2012 Winter Music Preview

Take Adele out of the equation and the year in music for 2011 was pretty dire. But I have some good news and bad news for what very well may be the last year for CDs ever (and I am not just talking about the Mayans being right, it looks like record labels will be phasing out the format except to pricy special editions). The good news is there looks to be a lot of great music from top names being released this year. The bad news is you will probably have to wait until after Easter to hear most of it. Of course keep in mind Adele’s 21 was released one year ago last week (and Barton Hollow by The Civil Wars was released a year ago next week), so maybe there is a hidden gen that will take the world by storm this winter. Click on the album title to preorder on Amazon or the artist name to be taken to iTunes.


Today
The Stars Are Indifferent to Astronomy – Nada Surf
The Lion's Roar – First Aid Kit
Soul 2 – Seal
Clear Heart Full Eyes - Craig Finn
Plastic Moon – Madi Diaz

January 31
Born to Die – Lana Del Rey
Making Mirrors – Gotye
Tomahawk Technique – Sean Paul
Beyond Magnetic EP – Metallica
Human Again – Ingrid Michaelson

February 7
Kisses on the Bottom – Paul McCartney
Scars & Stories – The Fray
Popcycles and Politics – V.V. Brown
A Different Kind of Truth – Van Halen
Tramp - Sharon Van Etten
Stories to Tell - Richard Marx
Be The Void – Dr. Dog

February 14
As The Crow Flies – Amos Lee
Sweet Sour – Band of Skulls

February 21
Reign of Terror – Sleigh Bells
Some Nights – Fun.

February 28
Roses – The Cranberries
Songs from Nowheresville – The Ting Tings
All of Me – Estelle
Breakfast – Chiddy Bang
WZRD – Kid Cudi and Dot da Genius

March 6
Wrecking Ball – Bruce Springsteen
Break It Yourself – Andrew Bird

March 13
Strange Clouds – B.o.B

March 20
Port of Morrow – The Shins
The Hunger Games Soundtrack

March 27
Kids in the Streets – The All-American Rejects
Undisputed – DMX

April 10
Black Panties – R. Kelly
A Wasteland Companion – M. Ward


TBD
Songs of Ascent – U2
Born and Raised – John Mayer
West Coast Time – Michelle Branch
What We Saw from the Cheap Seats – Regina Spektor
Battle Born - The Killers
Tuskegee – Lionel Richie
Most of Our Heroes Don’t Appear on a Stamp / The Evil Empire of Everything – Public Enemy
Drive By – Train
Master of Make Believe - Santigold
Man on the Moon III – Kid Cudi
Picture Show – Neon Trees
Love Is a Four Letter Word – Jason Mraz
Rise of the Phoenix – Tenacious D
E.L.E. (Extinction Level Event) 2: End of the World - Busta Rhymes
G.O.O.D. Music: The Album
Mumford & Sons
The Avett Brothers
Pearl Jam
Cat Power
Fleetwood Mac
Garbage
Mazzy Star
Janelle Monáe
Rancid
Soundgarden
Sara Bareilles / Ben Folds
Frank Ocean
Phoenix
The xx
The Offspring
Wu-Tang Clan
Gary Clark Jr.
Christina Aguilera
Matchbox Twenty

And do not forget the obligatory this may be the quarter we actually get to hear Dr. Dre’s Detox. Of course if I missed anything, that is what the comment section is for.

We Use to Drive the Canyons, Get Lost for Fun

When the entertainment business finds a hit, there is nothing they like better than to copy it off like they work at Kinko’s. Seriously, even years later television has been trying to recreate Lost and Friends to little avail. I bring this up because I recently read an article calling Lana Del Rey the first artist of the post-Adele era, someone who tried to gain fame solely by trying to steal Adele’s style. And much like other first retreads like Invasion and Coupling, Del Rey crashed and burned after a disastrous Saturday Night Live performance last weekend.

Of course it is much better when an entire scene is in place before one them break big like the Seattle era when Nirvana bust through the door, bands like Pearl Jam and Soundgarden were ready and waiting for their breaks and it were the post-grunge bands like Bush that came along later and sucked massively. So instead of looking for the next Adele that who tries to squeeze herself into Adele’s persona, it would be better to an artist already out there that already has Adele’s esthetic for The Next Adele.

One candidate could be Jessie Baylin who may not have the same booming voice but travels in the same jazzy-folk music (just forget the cover art which maker Baylin look more like a Joan Jett clone than an Adele sound alike). Both manage to make retro music fresh for the new millennium but where Adele has a voice that goes down with the Aretha (and other one name divas throughout history) Jessie has a softer, smokier voice along the line of Dusty Springfield. With the throwback feel, Jessie Baylin’s third album Little Spark sound like a one woman Brill Building creation with a little Wall of Sound thrown in for good measure.

Little Spark starts off with the lovely Hurry Hurry which swells with the hopeless romantic of new love. While Love Is Wasted on Lovers shows the flip side of the coin with Baylin cooing along with the best track. Then later in the album, Dancer may actual put a little pep in your step. If you are looking for something organic for the Next Adele, Jessie Baylin may be better than anything that is packaged as such.

Song to Download – Love Is Wasted On Lovers

Little Spark gets a on my Terror Alert Scale.

57 Channels and Only This Is On - 1/22/12

Once Upon a Time: One thin g this show has going for it that Lost did not is that it can bring in interesting characters for flash back episodes so we will not be stuck with a an episode dedicated to Jack’s tattoos or Locke at a commune that no one was looking forward to.
You can stream current episodes on Hulu. You can also download Once Upon a Time.

Leverage: It is off that everyone made a huge deal out of Nate not actually killing anyone but did not seem to mind that he put two guys in a position where they were guaranteed to kill each other. But it is always entertaining when they bring in Chaos to jaw with Hardison and I loved how they did the cartoon skeleton when Parker’s dad shocked him.
You can stream recent episodes on TNT.tv. You can also download Leverage on iTunes.

Shameless: It is weird how seamless the new Mandy is. I guess after half a season of Suburgatory I cannot even picture Tessa as anything else but an Emma Stone clone, let alone a goth chick that she was on Shameless last season. And I knew I should have taken the under on how many episode it would take Karen to have sex despite being in sex anonymous.

House of Lies: Slightly more entertaining than the previous episode thanks to the one dude trying to pick up the chick at the airport, but a lot of the flaws from the pilot remained. And are we really going to see Don Cheadle have angry sex with his ex-wife at the start of every episode?

Pretty Little Liars: So Lucas was not at the greenhouse, he was really shifty last episode because he gambled away Caleb’s money. What? Is this was the next couple episodes are going to be: the Liars think someone is an A helper only for it to be a red herring? Ugg, this may be a long season.
You can stream recent episodes on Hulu. You can also download Pretty Little Liars on iTunes.

The Lying Game: I was shocked when Sutton showed up last episode (I would have guessed by the end of the season) and even more surprised when she took over her life. So if I am playing this right, Sutton now has to play Emma playing Sutton for the person who is blackmailing her / them. But the big question for the episode is where does Emma go from here?
You can stream recent episodes on Hulu. You can also download The Lying Game on iTunes.

Castle: A mayor is connected to a death of a young woman in his campaign car… where have I heard this one before? At least we found out who killed her. Oh, wait, never mind.
You can stream recent episodes on Hulu. You can also download Castle on iTunes.

Switched at Birth: If you are going to have a show with subtitles, how about not put up banners that covers the subtitles? Should that not be a no brainer?
You can stream the show on Hulu. You can also download Switched At Birth on iTunes.

Justified: With Raylan battling hillbilly families, the Bennetts and Crowders, the first two seasons, it is going to be weird seeing him go up against a big city slicker as a main antagonist. It may be more interesting watching Boyd this season. I did not realize why he would attack a federal marshal in his office space (best line: You wouldn’t like Mexico… it’s full of Mexicans) until that last scene with Dickie and Dewey. I would not mind a season of the three blind mice in prison.
You can stream recent episodes on Hulu. You can also download Justified on iTunes.

Parenthood: It is about time something went Haddie’s way, she always seems to get the short end of the stick in the family. She even had a great line, something to the effect that she understands but she does not have to be happy about it. But she should not have been too upset, seriously, if you are from Southern California and smart enough to get into an Ivy League school, just go to Stanford instead, because school in the Northeast sucks massively. And I bet she will end up at Berkley by the end of next season anyway.
You can stream recent episodes on Hulu. You can also download Parenthood on iTunes.

Suburgatory: Just when you think Dalia could not get any scarier, she actually makes dancing look scary.
You can stream recent episodes on Hulu. You can also download Suburgatory on iTunes.

Revenge: So Emily had the lawyer in her back pocket the whole time, did not really see that coming. I am just wondering how she can keep up appearances sleeping a with a guy who is convinced that her father raped his mother? Seriously, when did this show stop becoming a guilty pleasure and become just pleasurable?
You can stream current episodes on Hulu. You can also download Revenge on iTunes.

The Big Bang Theory: What the frack just happened? Did the editor seriously screw things up or was this a dream sequence? I was just lost with the flashback to earlier in the episode.
You can stream recent episodes over at cbs.com. You can also download The Big Bang Theory on iTunes.

Chuck: One of the big drags on the show in recent seasons was they just did not seem to know what to do at the Buy More and its storylines kept shrinking and shrinking. At least they closed out the series with one last great Buy More plot with Jeffster saving the day with Casey’s massive stockpile of weapons of mass destruction.
You can stream current episodes on Hulu. You can also download Chuck on iTunes.

Best of the Week - 1/21/12

Quote of the Week: Live long and suck it Zachary Quinto. (Sheldon, The Big Bang Theory)

Song of the Week: Rock Lobster – The B52’s (Suburgatory)

Gratuitous Token Hot Chick Picture of the Week:



Scene of the Week:



Big News of the Week: The Republican Field Keeps Shrinking: The slow march to Mitt Romney vs. Barack Obama (hopefully America Elect nominates someone worth voting for) picked up a little this week when the Republican candidates shrunk by two this week. First Jon Huntsman who seemed too smart for the Republican electorate dropped out. The other shoe dropped with Rick Perry who possibly withdrew for the second time. Perry was supposed to be the anti-Bush Texas governor but managed to perform worse at debates than W. But the big new of the week had to do with the high number of drop outs just short of tomorrow’s South Carolina primary, the spotlight was back on Newt Gingrich’s many marriages with wife number two claiming that Newt asked her if they could have an open marriage so he could hook up with eventual wife number three. On the bright side, this wife was not going through chemotherapy when he asked. So tomorrow we get to see if evangelicals would rather get behind a Mormon or a Christian who actually tried to get his wife to sign off on polygamy.

Free Download of the Week: Hurry Hurry - Jessie Baylin (Amazon MP3)

Deal of the Week: Over 1,000 Albums $5 Each: With over a 1000 album for sale for just $5 there are a lot of hidden gems, here are a couple from my list of The 100 Greatest Songs of the 00’s including Michele Branch, John Mayer, The Killers and Kanye West.



New Album Release of the Week: The Stars Are Indifferent to Astronomy - Nada Surf

New DVD Release of the Week: Kojak: The Complete Movie Collection

Video of the Week: House of Lies premiered to a resounding yawn a couple weeks ago and tomorrow’s episode should make any fan of Kristen Bell’s feet happy. Until then the two guys on the show not named Bell or Don Cheadle are starring in webisodes for the show entitled Friday’s at Gallweather, one of which even features Bell, with shoes on, in a cameo.



Next Week Pick of the Week: Chuck, Friday at 8:00 on NBC: An end of an era comes Friday when the hottest token hot chick ever in the history of television will presumably be donning her last skimpy outfit on the small screen. Sure the show itself has not been great since the second season and arguably has not even been good for the last couple seasons, but hopefully Chuck will go out on a high note, preferably by finally killing Morgan off, something they should have done a long, long time ago.

Around the Tubes - 1/20/12

I have gotten a plethora of cool press releases have been flooding my inbox recently that you may find interesting. This post will include blurbs on America's Book of Secrets, Luck, The Lying Game, Predator Bowl, Smash, Eastbound and Down, America's Most Wanted, The Tonight Show, and Sony Xperia Play.

- New series alert! America’s Book of Secrets is premiering tomorrow at 10:00 on H2 (it is History’s second channel if you are wondering) which aims to uncover the controversial truths of the most confidential secrets in American history. Until the premiere, you can try their quiz below (or on their Facebook page) which can earn you prizes like an iPod or Beats by Dre headphones.

App loading...

- Or you can win $50K courtesy of Luck the new HBO. Starting over to Luck’s Facebook page starting Monday (you can always “Like” it now and presumably they will remind you) and just like the characters on the show, pick a couple horses by 1/28 at three.

- The latest episode of The Lying Game hits ABC Family Monday at 9:00 and here is a quick look of a photo from Black and White and Green All Over where it looks like Sutton and Ethan will be keeping up the public relationship that Emma ousted during her tenure in the Mercer family.



- For those already working on what to watch while avoiding the Super Bowl in two weeks, Nat Geo Wild just announced Predator Bowl featuring specials on some of the world’s deadliest predators starting at noon February 5 culminating with the premiere of Lion Battle Zone at 10:00.

- And who could forget with the incisive promotion over the past two month’s that Smash premieres the Monday after the Super Bowl on NBC. For those that are not already sick of the show thanks to all the promo, you can actually download the premiere episode on iTunes for the low, low price of free two weeks before you are stuck watching it with ads.

- Who better to warm you up in these winter months than Kenny Powers? Here is the latest poster promoting the 2/19 return of Eastbound and Down:



- America’s Most Wanted may have moved to Lifetime, but it is still leading to captures like this weekend where two men alleged to be involved in a DC shooting were captured thanks to the show. You can check out new episodes Fridays at 9:00.

- Just in time for the Florida primaries, Michele Obama will be appearing on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno January 31.

- Kristen Schaal is still playing with her Sony Xperia Play and looks like she has not been doing much else since as she has been too busy playing Pro Evolution Soccer 2012 than keep up with hygiene.

Juggling Kristen – Xperia Play

I Want My Music Television - 1/19/12

There have been a couple of videos that have caught my eye lately so I thought I’d give them some love since the death of Musical Television left a void for a forum on the art form. If you are interested in buying the video through iTunes, click the title link (where available). If you are interested in buying the song, look for a link in the analysis.

Tattoo - Van Halen



This may be one of the saddest comebacks in recent memory. The song is kind of lame and the music video even lamer (c’mon Van Halen, just because you made the exact same video twenty-eight years ago does not make it all right because you made this one in black and white). Maybe Michael Anthony should be happy he got booted out of the band for Eddie’s son so he did not have to taint his legacy.


Everybody Talks (Animated Version) - Neon Trees



I wonder if it says anything about me that when the Ouija Board started to spell H*E*L my first thought was the spirit was writing “Help”? But Neon Trees seems like one of those bands, had they came out a decade earlier would have been huge thanks to a McG assisted video.


Bruises – Band of Skulls



It is about time someone made an epic bowling video featuring suit wearing Luchadores. Thank you Band of Skulls.


In the End - Snow Patrol



Snow Patrol should be a little worried because they are maybe one or two more flops away from being a on a dancing show themselves.

It's a Shame He Wasn't a Wanted Felon so I Could Shoot Him He Resisted

Raylan Gibbons did not just return to our television screen yesterday for the new season of Justified, but he also saw his triumphant return to the bookshelves (or virtual bookstand as the brick and mortar versions are hard to find these days) in Raylan. For those unfamiliar, Justified is actually based on the Elmore Leonard short story Fire in the Hole where a cowboy hat wearing US Marshall is demoted back to his home country after a questionable shooting in Miami.

The characters may mostly be the same, Raylan does not play in the same timeline that Justified. Though the book does read as if the writers of the television series got a hold of an outline of the book and made it the basis of the second season, because both feature heavily a storyline about an evil coal company coming to town in the form of an attractive lady by the name of Carol (but with a different last name). But the surrogate Ma Bennett is now a guy by the name of Pervis Crowe but retains sons Coover and Dickie (and Dewey turns out to be his nephew).

And Elmore clearly was watching the television series because Loretta McCready makes a quick cameo as well as Wynonna who was just mentioned in the short story. And the Boyd and Ava relationship seems to be progressing much like it did in the early part of season two, but she only quickly shows up in one chapter and disappears. Missing in Raylan is Arlo who just gets a quick mention along with a little sister for Raylan who I do not remember ever getting mentioned on the show before (but for some reason whenever I was reading about Pervis I saw Arlo in my mind).

Naturally Raylan is tasked to hunt down some bad guys whenever he is not escorting Carol around. One case finds him hunting down some criminals who are taking kidneys out of people and then try to sell them back to the patient. More humorously is someone from Raylan’s past who devised a plan to get strippers to rob banks for him and stupidly makes a video tape for Raylan telling him he knows Raylan is coming for him and he will get Raylan first. Hopefully the Justified writing staff turn this plotline into an episode because I would love to see how the plot played out in living color.

With the themes similar, but outcomes different, it is a little hard for a Justified watcher to get into this book, but once you do, it is filled with everything you love about the series. And it may have been a while since he written about him but Elmore Leonard still has an amazing grasp on the character and Kentucky as a whole. The series inspired Leonard to start writing about Raylan Gibbons again and after reading Raylan, hopefully he has a couple more stories about the US Marshall in him.

Raylan gets a on my Terror Alert Scale.

Lyrics Quiz: Best of 2002

Every January I like to look back ten years at my playlist of the best songs from that year and present them as a lyrics quiz. Now with Spotify, click to follow me, I am slowly added all my previous lists for everyone to listen and I recently added my Best of 2010 list to go along with my first (1996) and latest (2011). You may have to wait a little while until I upload my Best of 2002 list so until them you can try to guess the list by their lyrics below. As always leave your guesses, both artist and song title, in the comment section or e-mail me. If you are correct I will un-bold the lyric and give you credit. Please keep in mind the lyrics quiz is for entertainment purposes only so please only use your own meandering mind to guess them.

1. Red hair with a curl, mellow roll for the flavor and the eyes for peeping.
2. It’s just the thought of you in love with someone else. It breaks my heart to see you hanging from a shelf.
3. “Welcome to the real world,” she said to me condescendingly. Take a seat take your life, plot it out in black and white.
4. Tell me just what you want me to be. One kids and boom, you’re the only one for me.
5. It’s always times likes these when I think of you and I wonder if you ever think of me. ‘Cause everything is so wrong and I don’t belong living in your precious memory.
6. Honey now if I’m honest, I still don’t know what love is. Another mirage folds into the hazy time recalled. And now the floodgates cannot hold all my sorrow, all my rage.
7. Broken heart again, another lesson learned. Better know your friend or else you will get burned. Gotta count on me ‘cause I can guarantee that I’ll be fine.
8. Something about the way the hair falls in your face. I love the shape you take when crawling towards the pillow case.
9. Thinking of a master plan, you know, anything you need, baby ask your man. He was there from half a gram and now kilos and C-notes and high fusion brands.
10. Hey, don’t write yourself off yet. It’s only in your head where you feel left out or looked down on. Just do your best, do everything you can and don’t you worry what the bitter hearts are gonna say.
11. I always thought are love was so right, I guess I was wrong. Always thought you’d be by my side papa, and now you’re gone.
12. Left the house this morning. Bells were ringing filled the air. I was wearing the cross of my calling on wheels of fire I come rolling down here.
13. I will never bother you, I will never promise too. I will never follow you. I will never bother you.
14. I you want to, I can save you. I can take you away from here. So lonely inside. So busy out there.
15. Maybe she thinks I know something, maybe, maybe she thinks it’s fine. Maybe she knows something I don’t. I’m so, I’m so tired, I’m tired of trying.
16. He said, “Take my hand. Live while can. Don’t you see your dreams lie right in the palm of your hand?”
17. It hurts to want everything and nothing at the same time. I want what’s yours and I want what’s mine. I want you but I’m not giving in this time.
18. If you can hear a piano fall you can hear me coming down the hall. If I could just hear your pretty voice I don’t think I’d need to see at all.
19. Mama, love you but this trailer got to go. I cannot grow old in Salam’s Lot. So here I go, it my shot. Feet fail me not. Maybe this is the only opportunity I got.
20. Well I’ve been watching while you been coughing. I’ve been drinking life while you been nauseous. And so I drink to health while you kill yourself.
21. Doo what I please, gonna spread the disease because I wanna. Gonna call all the shots for the No’s and the Nots because I wanna.
22. I’d like to ask you from the start if you could pull me out the dark or if our love could fall apart like cookies crumble.
23. So many things I’m going through, so much that I wanna do. It starting to become so clear to me tomorrow ain’t really guaranteed.
24. you don't wanna wake up getting told that ya kids trapped at school. When the time’s right, I’mma put this nine right to the left side of ya head, push ya mind right.
25. When I saw the break of day, I wished that I could fly away. 'Stead of kneeling in the sand catching teardrops in my hand.

57 Channels and Only This Is On - 1/14/12

Once Upon a Time: How dressing is it that the kid actually think his mother is some evil queen capable of killing a dude. Sure it turns out that he is right, but you would think he may start living back in the real world after the sheriff’s death.
You can stream current episodes on Hulu. You can also download Once Upon a Time.

Leverage: Usually I rail against promo monkeys and their spoilery ways, but I am actually glad they actually told us who that was behind the bars because I had no clue who the guy was in the final shot.
You can stream recent episodes on TNT.tv. You can also download Leverage on iTunes.

Shameless: The Chicago cold was such a character of the first season it is weird seeing the cast walking around in summer clothes. Well, Fiona is still wear the same amount of clothing, little to none.

Pan Am: In other promo monkey news, thanks for letting us know next week Christina Ricci will be making out with the hot chick from those horrible vampire movies.
You can stream recent episodes on Hulu. You can also download Pan Am on iTunes.

Pretty Little Liars: Lucas as A’s lackey helps my theory that he, Mona and Jenna actually comprise as A and a wet Mona and an arguing Jenna also bolsters that theory. Of course with all that smoke I am beginning to think they are all just red herrings (which brings me back to my original theory that Allison really is not dead). But the biggest question now is how did Lucas get from the door to the middle of the lake in the time Emily talked to Spencer? Does he have an evil twin? Or was it just horrible writing? I will assume that latter until proved otherwise.
You can stream recent episodes on Hulu. You can also download Pretty Little Liars on iTunes.

The Lying Game: That was a great ending. Just as the credits ends with everyone eulogizing Sutton while I role my eyes (anyone who watches television knows no one is ever dead until you see the body, and even then there are exceptions) Sutton shows up at the door a second before the episode ends.
You can stream recent episodes on Hulu. You can also download The Lying Game on iTunes.

Castle: I do not understand how Ryan was so calm about learning his future wife was in a conquest book by some sleazy dude. I do not care about exclusivity; she had a one night stand with someone who is probably a hotel for VD. I would call off a wedding for less.
You can stream recent episodes on Hulu. You can also download Castle on iTunes.

Switched at Birth: Whenever they go into silent mood whenever Emmitt is talking is always jarring but effective, but the silent mode when the cops showed up was really striking.
You can stream the show on Hulu. You can also download Switched At Birth on iTunes.

Suburgatory: I did not think Dalia could get any scarier, then I saw the 3-D laser rendering of her inside a paperweight.
You can stream recent episodes on Hulu. You can also download Suburgatory on iTunes.

Modern Family: Funniest sight gag of the week was Hayley sticking an egg in Luke’s mouth after theorizing that the egg could survivor a story drop inside his mouth.
You can stream recent episodes on Hulu.



Happy Endings: It is nice to know I am not the only person who goes around copying The Wire without actually ever seeing an episode.
You can stream the show on Hulu. YYou can also download Happy Endings on iTunes.

Revenge: I have had the inkling since the beginning (the timeline set up very well), but actually hearing someone suggest that Charlotte may actually be Amanda/Emily’s half-sister was pretty jaw dropping (mostly because I had forgotten of this theory a long time ago). And it was nice to finally see Emily go back to destroying people’s lives. But I wonder if we will be getting the first scene of the series earlier than the season finale like I have always expected. By my count there are still ten episodes left and are they really going to string out Emily and Daniel’s inevitable engagement out that long?
You can stream current episodes on Hulu. You can also download Revenge on iTunes.

Chuck: Isn’t Bo Derek a little before Morgan and Chuck’s time? Wouldn’t Kathy Ireland or Elle Macpherson been more age appropriate for the boys? But anyway. Is it a shame the writers did not have the foresight to make the Memento notes a season long gag.
You can stream current episodes on Hulu. You can also download Chuck on iTunes.

Best of the Week - 1/13/12

Quote of the Week: Let’s go steal us a time machine. (Parker, Leverage)

Song of the Week: If You Leave Me Now – Chicago (as sung by Cameron, Modern Family)

Gratuitous Token Hot Chick Picture of the Week:



Scene of the Week:



Big News of the Week: Frank Darabont Coming Back to Television: You would think after he was treated over at AMC with The Walking Dead, you would think it would be a while before Frank Darabont would get back into the television business. But TNT just announced that they ordered a pilot for L.A. Noir (based on John Buntin’s book not the video game) where Darabont will serve as the executive producer as well as write and direct the pilot.

The network is also getting into the reality competition game with The Great Escape from the guys behind The Amazing Race along with Ron Howard and Brian Grazer. The show will feature three pairs of players as they try escaping from exotic locations such as a seven story castle, a deserted island, a sinking ship or a maximum security prison. Rich Eisen is set to host and will hit the network this summer. While over on TNT’s sister station TBS has ordered ten episodes of Men at Work starring Danny Masterson (That ‘70s Show), James Lesure (Las Vegas), Michael Cassidy (The O.C.) and Adam Busch (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), who my sources tell me will not be wearing woman’s clothes as part as their job.

Free Download of the Week: Pennies On the Floor – Little Willies (iTunes): If you are not familiar with The Little Willies, it is Norah Jones’s country band.

Deal of the Week: Over 1,000 Albums $5 Each: With over 1000 albums for $5, here are a couple Greatest Hits that you could find while sorting through all of them including the Steve Miller Band, Otis Redding, Run-DMC, and Roxette.



New Album Release of the Week: Voyageur - Kathleen Edwards

New DVD Release of the Week: The Ides of March

Video of the Week: House of Lies is not the only new show Kristen Bell is lending her talents to, Unsupervised is FX’s latest animated series following two 15 year old boys who find themselves without parental guidance. Unsupervised airs Thursdays at 10:30. Check out a promo below:



Next Week Pick of the Week: Justified, Tuesday at 10:00 on FX: In its first two seasons, Justified was kept out of the top slot of my Best Television Shows of the Year by Friday Night Lights and with FNL retiring its jersey last year, Justified is primed to take the Best Show on Television tag. Though with the entire Bennett clan either dead or in jail, it will be hard for the show to find better replacements to be antagonists for Raylan. But the addition of Carla Gugino as Raylan’s boss’s boss will make things interesting especially with Raylan’s high body count that follows him.

Around the Tubes - 1/12/12

I have gotten a plethora of cool press releases have been flooding my inbox recently that you may find interesting. This post will include blurbs on Being Human, America’s Most Hated Family, Dating Rules from My Future Self, Eastbound and Down, Untouchable, and Redbook.

- Being Human returns Monday at 9:00 on Syfy for its second season and here is a sneak of what to expect.

Turn this Mother Out


- Before you write it off on the name alone, no, America’s Most Hated Family is not another Kardashian reality show. The special actually follows the controversial Westboro Baptist Church that grabbed media headlines by picketing military funerals and pretty much everything else (and were humorously counter-protested by filmmaker Kevin Smith with a “Thor Hates Straights’ sign). The one hour special airs tomorrow at 10:00.

- Have you ever wanted to text your former self to warn you off your current dating strategy? When now there’s an app for that. Or least there is new webseries with that plot. Shiri Appleby (Swimf@n) plays a geek, no seriously, in Dating Rules from My Future Self who in the future creates said app and hilarity presumably ensures. The series premiered earlier this week with new episodes premiering every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday on its Facebook page. Bonus points for also featuring Bill Haverchuck.

- Pitchers and catchers may not be reporting for a couple weeks, but one baseball player who will be back on the mound this winter is Kenny Powers. And who better to talk to the youth of today in the teaser for the upcoming season of Eastbound and Down returning to HBO Sunday February 19.



- This Sunday at 9:00 on OWN Oprah will be sitting down with New Jersey governor Chris Christie in his own home to talk about the upcoming presidential election and why he did not through his hat into the race.

- It is a little surprising that it has taken Lifetime so long to air this, but for those waiting for the Lifetime version of The Drew Perterson story, Untouchable hits the network Saturday January 21 at 8:00 staring Rob Lowe (Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me) as the titular character and Kaley Couco (*knock*knock*knock* Penny) as his missing fourth wife Stacy.



- Coming to a newsstand next week is Redbook’s Hot Husband Issue with Blake Shelton on the cover. Head over to redbookmag.com to win a signed CD from Blake and two tickets to his upcoming tour.

Feed Your iPod vol. LXIV: Silver Springs

Emotion is always a sign of a great song. If a song moves you to feel a certain way, the songwriters are doing their job. One of the most heartbreaking songs of my lifetime is Silver Springs by Fleetwood Mac, a lost track from the Rumours era that got found when the band performed it on the MTV reunion special The Dance (remember when MTV would do these grand specials back in the 90?). And as heartbreaking as the first two verses are with Stevie Nick pleading to a former lover to stay (a not so subtle nod to bandmate Lindsey Buckingham) the song turns on a dime at the bridge where Nicks creepily sings, “I’ll follow you down until the sound of my voice will haunt you” and the song has haunted me ever since.

Silver Springs – Fleetwood Mac

I Want My Music Videos - 1/10/12

There have been a couple of videos that have caught my eye lately so I thought I’d give them some love since the death of Musical Television left a void for a forum on the art form. If you are interested in buying the video through iTunes, click the title link (where available). If you are interested in buying the song, look for a link in the analysis.


United States of Pop (World Go Boom) - DJ Earworm



One thing always to look forward to at the end of every year is DJ Earworm’s mash up of the 25 biggest songs of the year. Unfortunately, much like last year, DJ Earworm was stuck with a bunch of horrible songs that he was stuck with, but at least World Go Boom was better than last year’s submission.


We Are Young – Fun. featuring Janelle Monáe



Thought I am not completely sold on the song by Fun., at least until Janelle Monáe (who says she plans to release two new albums this year) shows up for an all too brief cameo, but it is hard to to be down with a music video featuring slow motion chaos.


Black Treacle – Arctic Monkeys



I did not like most of the Arctic Monkeys’s latest album because it delved mostly in phycodelia, but this song is more in vein of their older song and even has their usual nonsensical video to boot.


Ray Charles - Chiddy Bang



It’s hard not to think of The Throne sampling Otis Redding when you first see Chiddy Bang serenade Ray Charles, but it entertaining in its own right especially their homage to Parents Just Don't Understand.

The Twelve Events That Will Make 2012 Awesome

Sure the world might be coming to an end December 21 but that does not mean we cannot have a little enjoyment before it happens. Here are twelve things that could lessen the blow of the world ended by the end of the year.

12. Detox - Dr. Dre: I put this at number eleven last year just in case it was not actually released and twelve months later no sign of it even if the first single was release in 2009 with the second last year. Maybe because neither really caught fire is why we are still waiting. Dre has eleven and a half months until the world ends, so hopefully he can get it out by then.

11. Work It: I have been waiting way too long for a Bosom Buddies reboot and I have a feeling this will be as close as I will get. And I will enjoy all three episodes that air before it is canceled.



10. The Amazing Spider-Man: When they first announced they had dropped Sam Raimi from the Spiderman franchise I was all ready for a boycott (even if it freed him to do another Evil Dead movie). Then they cast Emma Stone (number one on my list of the 100 Most Entertaining People of 2011) as Gwen Stacy and even though I do not care for her as a blonde, or with bangs, I will see anything she is in until she makes a bad film. Plan your July 4th weekend accordingly.



9. Bruce Springsteen: Yeah The Boss does seem to do his best work when a Republican occupies the White House (Born in the USA, The Rising) but with the economy in the tank maybe the working man’s hero of the past four decades may just have another good one in him despite the Democratic president which will be the first since the passing of his longtime sax man Clarence Clemmons. Plus the new album cannot possibly be worse than Working on a Dream.

8. In Living Color: I have long nothing is as good the second time around, then Beavis and Butt-Head came back funny as ever (granted their television watching habits have been less to be desired) so maybe the return of In Living Color for its specials (and possible regular series) will still be funny. And it will be see if any of the original cast will show up.

7. The Avengers: All of the individual Avengers movies have been at the very least solid and hinted at a collective movie and have now assembled under the tutelage of Joss Whedon. Sure I would have rather seen a Justice League movie this year instead, but you will take what you can get. The movie hits theaters May 4.



6. Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter: There will be two Lincoln starring movies released this year and who would have guessed that the one with Steven Spielberg directing Daniel Day-Lewis as the titular character (along with Sally Fields, Joseph Gordon-Levett, Tommy Lee Jones, Lee Pace, Walton Goggins, John Hawes, and Hal Holbrook) would not be the most anticipated one. I guess he should have added more vampires and cast Ramona Flowers as Mary Todd. The movie is set to hit theaters June 22.

5. The Mayans and Roman Emirich Could Be Wrong: Sure, the Mayan calendar maker may not have had any insight into when the world end and stopped in 2012 just because he figured taking the calendar out 5000 years in the future was good enough. In any case, you may want to spend the year partying like its 1999 just in case.

4. House of Lies: Sure I did not love the first episode (see Previewing House of Lies) but is nice to see Veronica Mars back on weekly television without having to slum it on a horrible show like Heroes.

3. The 2012 Olympics: The greatest sporting even comes around every four years (two if you include the winter version) and I may watch even more this year as this will be the first one I will be able to watch in high definition. Get ready to plop yourself on the couch starting July 27.

2. Mumford and Son / The Avett Brother: As you may have noticed there was a lot more folksier music on my 100 Best Songs of 2011 list than in previous years and these two bands kicked open that door two years ago with a pair of great albums. Both should be back early this year with new material. Bassist Ted Dwane recently called their second album "Black Sabbath meets Nick Drake." The Avett Brothers again worked with uber-producer Rick Rubin who worked on I and Love and You.

1. The Dark Knight Rises: If you need to ask why this is number one; obviously you have not seen the first two films of the trilogy. You might want to get in line now for the July 20 release date.

57 Channels and Only This Is On - 1/8/12

Leverage: Take out the ego and hubris, it would be nice if a couple other the other members take the lead every once in a while. But how Nate undermined Hardison, I have a feeling we will not be seeing that anytime soon.
You can stream recent episodes on TNT.tv. You can also download Leverage on iTunes.

Pretty Little Liars: Seriously, the Liars have A cornered and no one thinks to shine a flashlight in his or her face? Hrumph. And I saw Emily playing turncoat a mile away; that was one of the worst catfights I have ever seen.
You can stream recent episodes on Hulu. You can also download Pretty Little Liars on iTunes.

The Lying Game: Did the writers pull a fast one on them. I have no desire to look it up, but I could have sworn they had us believe earlier that the twins’ birth mother and Char’s aunt was the same person. Then Cordilia Chase shows up this week as Char’s aunt named Annie but not the same last name as the birth mother. Oh yeah, and she wants to be called Rebecca now. Huh?
You can stream recent episodes on Hulu. You can also download The Lying Game on iTunes.

Work It: I was not expecting Tom Hanks quality or even Peter Scolari, but wow was the acting on the show extremely bad. But I am not ke$hamed to admit that I still laughed harder and more often than a bunch of highly touted pretentious comedies currently on air.
You can stream recent episodes on Hulu. You can also download Work It on iTunes.

Parenthood: Awe road trip. I have long called Parenthood “Blue State Friday Night Lights” and all the lingering shots of the landscape was clearly right out of the FNL playbook.
You can stream recent episodes on Hulu. You can also download Parenthood on iTunes.

Suburgatory: Chuck did it a couple weeks ago and it is nice to see shows are embracing the pixilated nudity for comedic effect. And thankfully there was pixilation in this sauna fight scene unlike Eastern Promises which I presume was they were making an homage to.
You can stream recent episodes on Hulu. You can also download Suburgatory on iTunes.

Revenge: Even thought I hated Tyler, and probably not even in the way the show wanted me too, I really loved his concept of “Truth or Die”. It is a shame no one got to play before his brother interrupted things. I would have liked to see a couple people being forced to play before he was taken away.
You can stream current episodes on Hulu. You can also download Revenge on iTunes.

Chuck: I like how Casey called out Chuck for not getting of Sarah blatantly obvious pregnancy hints because for the first half of the episode I kelp yelling at the television that no one noticed that she had morning sickness and avoided alcohol.
You can stream current episodes on Hulu. You can also download Chuck on iTunes.

Best of the Week - 1/7/12

Quote of the Week: Shame is over rated, like Ke$ha. In fact they should rename shame Ke$hame. I just bought a Ke$ha album, I’m so ke$hamed. (Max, 2 Broke Girls)

Song of the Week: Nothing Else Matters – Lissie (Revenge)

Gratuitous Token Hot Chick Picture of the Week:



Scene of the Week:



Big News of the Week: Television Is Already Back: Forget about the caucus (who cares what Iowa thinks anyway; go Jon Huntsman!) networks are already bringing back their shows the first week into the new year. Here is what I will be watching this winter. Premiere dates in parentheses if it has not already returned.

Mondays
8:00 – How I Met Your Mother – CBS
8:00 – Pretty Little Liars – ABC Family
8:30 – 2 Broke Girls – CBS
9:00 – The Lying Game – ABC Family
10:00 – Castle – ABC (1/9)

Tuesdays
8:00 – Switched at Birth – ABC Family
8:00 – Last Man Standing – ABC
8:30 – Work It – ABC
9:00 – The River – ABC (2/7)
10:00 – Justified – FX (1/17)
10:00 – Parenthood – NBC

Wednesdays
8:00 – Survivor: One World – CBS (2/15)
8:00 – The Middle – ABC
8:30 – Suburgatory – ABC
9:00 – Modern Family – ABC
9:30 – Happy Endings – ABC
10:00 – Revenge – ABC
10:00 – The Challenge: Exes – MTV (1/24)

Thursdays
8:00 – The Big Bang Theory (1/12)

Fridays
8:00 – Chuck – NBC (Series Finale 1/27)
9:00 – Grimm (1/13)
10:00 – Real Time with Bill Maher (1/13)

Sundays
8:00 – Once Upon a Time – ABC (1/8)
9:00 – Shameless – Showtime (1/8)
9:00 – The Walking Dead – AMC (2/12)
10:00 – House of Lies – Showtime (1/8)
10:00 – Pan Am (1/8)
10:00 – Leverage (Season Finale 1/15)
10:00 – Mad Men – AMC (3/16)

Free Download of the Week: If you scrolled through my list of the 100 Best Songs of 2011 there are actually a couple songs that you can download for the low, low price of free.

#5 Helplessness Blues – Fleet Foxes (Rcrdlbl)
#25. Freak Out – Tapes n’ Tapes (Rcrdlbl)
#34. Freaks and Geeks – Childish Gambino (I Am Donald)
#36. Nylons in a Rip - Nikka Costa (Amazon MP3)
#62. Bonfire (Clean) - Childish Gambino (Amazon MP3)
#79. Get Some – Lykke Li (Rcrdlbl)
#88. Monster – Kanye West featuring Jay-Z, Rick Ross, Bon Iver and Nicki Minaj (Rcrdlbl)
#93. Make My – The Roots (Rcrdlbl)
#96. Little Lie – Lindi Ortega (Spinner)

For those who would like to listen to my list but are too lazy or lack the hard drive space to download the songs, I have created a Spotify playlist for you listening pleasure. And be sure to follow me because I’ll be uploading my entire yearly (and decade) lists over the next couple months and Best Songs of 1996 is already up.

Deal of the Week: Over 1000 Album for $5: Best of 2011: Amazon MP3 has over 1000 albums on sale for five dollars this month including a bunch that were released just last year including number one on my list of the 20 Best Albums of 2011, Helplessness Blues by the Fleet Foxes. Also making my list at that price include the latest from Raphael Saadiq (#2), Blitzen Trapper and Danger Mouse.



New Album Release of the Week: Fallen Empires - Snow Patrol

New DVD Release of the Week: Boardwalk Empire: The Complete First Season

Video of the Week: The movie The Firm is a little before my time (and since I am old, it makes me wonder who this show is for; apparently NBC is finally going for the anciently old CBS demographic). Now The Firm the television show has its two hour premiere Sunday at 9:00 and here is a sneak peak of the premiere. Please note that the show settles into its regular timeslot later this week on Thursday at 10:00.

Looking for the Truth


Next Week Pick of the Week: House of Lies, Sunday at 10:00 on Showtime: You can check out my preview here (Previewing House of Lies) and even if you do not subscribe to the premium channel, that are having a free preview weekend so check your cable provider and maybe you will be able to sample the return of Veronica Mars to the small screen.