@Mild, one thing to keep in mind: when you believe in something (even if it's a form of unbelief), that *forms* your worldview. At least, that's the case for many. You can't switch it off. I'm sure there are plenty of artists that believe in something quite firmly and the artist's creativity stems from their…

Bazan is a nice guy
I've met him casually a few times, going out to drink with him once after a conference at Calvin College. He played a show at the college I work at two years ago, and I picked him up from the airport. Incredibly nice guy, very funny in a self-deprecating way. We talked about the band Bedhead and…

I didn't go, but I think it was at my friend's house (and I know I knew at least half of the people there). I honestly didn't find out about it until the day after it happened. Whoops!

Interestingly enough, when I got the advance copy of the album to review a few months ago, I knew nothing of the backstory. It was still pretty powerful.

It took a few listens to sink in, but it is a fantastic record. At first I felt like it borrowed a bit too much from other bands ("hey, it sounds like a shoegazery Arcade Fire singing Bon Iver songs!") but that went away quickly; it's not derivative at all. "Shiva" in particular just kills me (ha).

Like Steve B, I saw it when I was in my early 20s and kind of enjoyed it, but that was it. It wasn't until I was a senior in college that I realized how funny and fun and (yes) great the movie really is. Now, it's one of the few movies I can watch (with company OR by myself) and not get bored. It's not a perfect…

For those that think this is a mismatch…
…read some of Mamet's essays from the past fifteen years. He's made strides to reclaim his Jewish roots, even writing some theological texts on Torah. Anyway, he wrote a fair bit about Frank in the late '90s. I think a stage production of Frank's diary ticked him off (as it was…

Impressive
I haven't had a chance to keep up with the comic series in the past year or two, but I always hoped it would end up on the screen in some (good) form. It's very well-written, and the characters have always felt like, well, normal folks. Which makes it rough when tons of them become normal dead folks as the…

This review…
…is pretty spot on. Though I'd give the album a minutely lower grade. It's really well crafted, but I can't emphasize how blatant some of the homages are. "Hi-Fi Goon" sounds so much like There's Nothing Wrong With Love-era Built to Spill, and "Tag" sounds almost identical to a Shins song. Actually,…

For what it's worth, the brothers ARE Christians, and I feel like you can see their worldview influencing their films.

I've been amazed at how rabid some of the toy / comic fanboys have been about it. I posted some negative thoughts about the movie on a message board I frequent, and a truckload of middle-aged guys joined the board just to tell me how awesome and True To The Toys the movie was going to be.

I think their older/mature side really started showing on their '97 self-titled album and Rockford, in spots. Good to see that continuing. I still think "Say Goodbye" is one of the best songs the band has written, ever.

Yeah, Bun E. Carlos drummed for Tinted Windows (also had Fountains of Wayne-r/soundtrack guru Adam Schlesinger and ex-Pumpkin James Iha). It was a pretty fun album, honestly, but nothing super great (or super bad, for that matter).

The Latest
Anyone actually listen to it? Thoughts?

Ah, yeah, I thought of Tabloid as soon as I read the review. That gets my vote.

Amen, Ricola. Louris's guitar playing on those songs is just…wow. The outro on "Ms. Williams's Guitar" melted my steering wheel once. I saw it, really.

I didn't realize Rick did the pick-shot thing back then, too. It's a fun gimmick, and never gets old.

Why did he shoot Method Man in the face?

The Salvation Blues
I'm surprised no one has mentioned Olson's only straight-up solo album, The Salvation Blues. I didn't think much of it at first, now I can't stop listening to it. He recorded it right after he and Williams split. Lots of good playing, and it has this dreamy, meditative glaze over all of it (kind of…

I think I made it one and a half songs into The Doctor before screaming and crying. Funk? Female backing vocalists?