Around the Tubes: February 25, 2022

         

I have gotten a plethora of cool press releases have been flooding my inbox recently that you may find interesting.  This post includes blurbs on The Man Who Fell to Earth, Hip Hop 50, Florence + the Machine, Eddie Vedder, Mandy Moore, James Brown, and George Thorogood.

- SHOWTIME has released the official trailer for THE MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH, which will premiere on Sunday, April 24 at 10 p.m, with the first two episodes airing back to back. ET/PT. The new series stars Oscar nominees Chiwetel Ejiofor and Naomie Harris, along with Jimmi Simpson, Rob Delaney, Sonya Cassidy, Joana Ribeiro, Annelle Olaleye, Kate Mulgrew, Clarke Peters and Bill Nighy.  Inspired by the Walter Tevis novel of the same name and the iconic David Bowie film, THE MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH will follow a new alien character (Ejiofor) who arrives on Earth at a turning point in human evolution and must confront his own past to determine our future. Harris plays Justin Falls, a brilliant scientist and engineer who must conquer her own demons in the race to save two worlds.

- As part of the network’s HIP HOP 50 banner, SHOWTIME announced that CYPRESS HILL: INSANE IN THE BRAIN (w/t) will premiere Wednesday, April 20 at 8 p.m. ET/PT. Chronicling the legendary L.A. rap group Cypress Hill, the documentary film will debut along with two newly acquired titles LA MADRINA: THE SAVAGE LIFE OF LORINE PADILLA, premiering Friday, April 15 at 8 p.m. ET, 5 p.m. PT, and BUSHWICK BILL: GETO BOY, premiering Friday, April 29 at 8 p.m. ET/PT.   Told through the intimate lens of photographer and director Estevan Oriol (LA Originals), CYPRESS HILL: INSANE IN THE BRAIN is a smoke-filled journey across the lives and careers of the groundbreaking, genre-defying Hip Hop group, Cypress Hill. Their unique sound, influenced by their Latin roots and West Coast upbringing, was built on a movement rooted in true authenticity: from cultivating the flower, to smoking it, to rapping about it, their influence is forever burned into the musical landscape of Hip Hop as they continue to stay relevant after 30 years. Using a treasure trove of never-before-seen archival footage captured by Oriol himself, as well as images of band members B Real, DJ Muggs, Sen Dog and Eric “Bobo” Correa, CYPRESS HILL: INSANE IN THE BRAIN tells the story of a brotherhood that has withstood the test of time to create a truly original, everlasting legacy.

- Florence + the Machine debut a new song, “King,” today alongside a video by acclaimed director Autumn de Wilde. Listen and watch here.  “King” is a meditation on womanhood, family, femininity and the subverting of expectations in which Florence Welch declares: “I am no mother, I am no bride, I am king”.  “As an artist, I never actually thought about my gender that much,” Florence says. “I just got on with it. I was as good as the men and I just went out there and matched them every time. But now, thinking about being a woman in my 30s and the future, I suddenly feel this tearing of my identity and my desires. That to be a performer, but also to want a family might not be as simple for me as it is for my male counterparts. I had modelled myself almost exclusively on male performers, and for the first time I felt a wall come down between me and my idols as I have to make decisions they did not.”

- Eddie Vedder’s highly anticipated album, Earthling, debuts #1 on Billboard’s Current Albums Sales, Album Sales, Rock Albums Charts.  Across the globe and in the US Earthling has made history as it marks Vedder’s highest solo album debut on the Billboard Top Album Sales, Top Rock Albums, Top Current Album Sales Chart, and #1 on Alternative Album Sales (per MRC Data), #1 on the Canadian Top Current Albums, Top Canadian Album Sales, Alternative Album, Current Digital Albums, and LP Vinyl Albums Charts, and continues to hit new highs in numerous countries including Switzerland (#3), Belgium (#5), Netherlands (#5), Germany (#11), UK (#36). In addition, the album was the highest international debut in Italy (#10) and hit Top 10 in Australia.  The album is available on all streaming platforms HERE, on cd (available now) and deluxe cd, vinyl & cassette (pre-order) available HERE. In addition, Vedder was also able to have a limited number of LP’s manufactured with simplified packaging. The records, dubbed “Fresh Pressed” resembled test pressings and were only available at pearljam.com.

- Mandy Moore joins Delilah, the undisputed queen of sappy love songs, on her popular podcast, Love Someone: A Podcast with Delilah on the latest episode.   Delilah says: "For six seasons we've watched her masterful performance as the beloved matriarch, Rebecca Pearson, on the hit series, This Is Us. It's my favorite show - in fact, it's the ONLY show I tune into regularly and I'm pretty devastated it's coming to an end. But Mandy Moore had an amazing music and movie career before the series, making me so excited to see what's next for her. She's got a beautiful new baby boy and some exciting projects in the works. Join us for the inside scoop!"  Log onto www.delilah.com/podcast to listen. The podcast is also available everywhere podcasts are played: iHeart Radio App, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher, Pandora and more.

- Celebrating the pioneer of funk James Brown, Urban Legends, a division of UMe, Universal Music Group’s global catalog company, has teamed up with multi-instrumentalist and member of The Roots, Stro Elliot, to create Black & Loud: James Brown Reimagined by Stro Elliot, out NOW. The album, consisting of ten remixes of classic James Brown songs, will be available digitally on DSPs, physically as an LP on black vinyl, and will also have a clear vinyl color variant available as an e-commerce exclusive on the Urban Legends website HERE. Listen to the first single, "Machine No Make Sex," now HERE.

- As George Thorogood himself once put it, "I guess a good song is a good song is a good song, you know?" And what we have here is a collection of hard-stompin,' party-down, good songs—all penned by Mr. Thorogood himself. Scheduled for release on April 15, 2022, the aptly named album The Original George Thorogood brings together the best from the rock and roll heart and fevered brain of George Thorogood and his unstoppable, longtime band, The Destroyers. The Original George Thorogood will be released on CD, digitally, and in two vinyl LP configurations, including black vinyl and, for the ultimate collector, a limited-edition Translucent Orange LP. Preorder The Original George Thorogood HERE now.

Previewing Super Pumped: The Battle for Uber

Super Pumped: The Battle for Uber starts with the CEO of UberCab asking a potential employee, “Are you an asshole?”  Then he distracted by someone else and goes on a lengthy monologue that feels like I was watching at 1.5x speed.   Once done, he finally returns to the potential employee and asks, “Are you an asshole?”  The first time he asked, I though the obvious answer should be no, but after the monologue then I was thinking that UberCab CEO really hopes he answers yes.  I will not spoil what the answer was, not because I fear it will ruin the opening scene for you, but to be honest, the opening scene came me at such a breakneck speed, I forgot what the answer was, or if he even game an answer.

 

Super Pumped is created by the duo behind Billions, Brian Koppleman and Sam Levine.  Watching it, you probably would not even need me to tell you as the new show seem Billions after doing copious amounts of cocaine.  Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s Travis Kalaneck, founder of Uber (you will learn what happens to the “Cab” part of the name fairly early) comes across as a mix between Bobby Axelrod and Mark Zuckerberg, specifically the Social Network version, not the real one.  And much like how the finance talk on Billions goes way over my head, much of the tech talk goes way over my head, especially comes from someone who seems to be talking at 1.5x speed.

 

Another way you can tell the show is done by the team behind Billions, it seems like they spent most of their budget on music.  In the first episode, there is not one, not two, but three Pearl Jam spanning three of their first for albums.  Before you get mad that Vitology gets skipped over, a song from that album shows up in the second episode.  Then even more Pearl Jam songs in episode three.  Okay, they do not spend their entire budget on artists that will cost you a pretty penny (considering the amo8unt of earl Jam songs, I have to wonder if you get a discount if you buy in bulk) because they also managed to get Quintin Tarantino to narrate the first season.

 

With Gordon-Levitt dialed to eleven for most of his performance and the always hyper Tarantino narrating (though, it is surprising how little he actually narrates) it is nice the show also features Coach Taylor himself, Kyle Chandler.  He plays the money guy who does not always sees eye to eye with founder who likes to speak first, think about what he says either.  While not in the main cast, Noah Weisberg plays an employee of Uber and is probably best known (only known?) as Danny Michael Davis, the Mark Zuckerberg stand in at SPRQ on Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist.  Facebook is the subject of the already announced second season of Super Pumped.

 

Super Pumped: The Battle for Uber airs Sundays at 10:00 on Showtime.

57 Channels and Only This Is On: January 20, 2022

 

Billions:  Finally a cameo I recognize.  Though if this season is about the Olympics, why bring in a college basketball coach?  Where are the Olympics?  Michael Phelps?  Carl Lewis?  Simone Biles?     But that running total of expenses was extremely cheesy and I have to wonder why it took six seasons to do that?

Are they finally going to give Sacker a storyline?  I feel like everyone I feel like mentioning her, I have to look up her name, she has been that insignificant.  Everyone under Chuck always have except when the one guy went after him yet Bobby always had people under him who seemed integral to the plot.  I wonder if she has a play separate from Chuck and Prince.  Everyone always has their own play, this is Billions.  I guess we just have to wait to see what that is.

 

Snowpiercer:  We have not seen Melanie this season and she was absent for most of the second half of last season, and now she is just haunting everyone.  They never found her body, will we actually see her alive again?  She cannot possibly be at the Horn of Africa where they are traveling to, can she?    They seem to be going further and further from where she was last seen so it does not seem they will be back her way anytime soon.

 

Pam & Tommy:  There was a scene in Wayne’s World where the titular character went to a gas station and when interacting with the attendant there, broke the fourth wall and said he knew that this was a small part, but couldn’t they have gotten a better actor for the part.  The joke was, they swapped out that actor with Charlton Heston.  I thought of this scene when Tommy confronted Third Eye Blind.  I was expecting fireworks considering the lead singer is as big a douchebag as Tommy Lee, but they cast some bland actor who could not have been a more boring, non-descript white dude.    Meh.  But I will say, this episode sucked the least.  I had a big laugh at Nikki Sixx reading the newspaper.  Like that ever happened.

 

Single Drunk Female:  Why do so many employees at that grocery store wear tank tops under their work aprons?  Especially since I believe the most recent episode took place in April.  I am not sure I am returning to a store like that.