For this installment, we'll be looking at "Africa" by Toto, a group who looks like the A/V club at my high school, if we had an A/V club.
FUN FACT: Jeff Porcaro, Steve Porcaro and Mike Porcaro, the drummer, keyboardist, and bassist of "Toto" are from South Windsor--so they may have been the A/V club at my high school, if we had an A/V club back then.
"Africa" - Toto (1983)
That is all.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Inauguration Day
I was watching the Today Show this morning before I went to work, and Matt Lauer was talking about how Obama and his family will meet with the Bushes (Bush's? Bushi?) and Cheneys for coffee this morning before the inauguration. He then mentioned "the peaceful transfer of power," and it made me think just how big today is, and just how much we take it for granted.
For millennia, the only way people got power from their predecessor was out of their cold, dead hands. And if that wasn't after a long and bloody conflict, you could consider yourself lucky. Even today, depending on where you are in the world, this may be the case.
So yeah, we complain about our government not getting things done, and being too conservative and whatever else. But when you get down to it, in the grand scope of things, we're able to elect the guy we want and have him take power in (arguably) the most powerful seat in the nation, if not the world, just by voting for him. No fighting. No killing. Just letting the system work--and it actually did.
That's pretty cool.
That is all.
For millennia, the only way people got power from their predecessor was out of their cold, dead hands. And if that wasn't after a long and bloody conflict, you could consider yourself lucky. Even today, depending on where you are in the world, this may be the case.
So yeah, we complain about our government not getting things done, and being too conservative and whatever else. But when you get down to it, in the grand scope of things, we're able to elect the guy we want and have him take power in (arguably) the most powerful seat in the nation, if not the world, just by voting for him. No fighting. No killing. Just letting the system work--and it actually did.
That's pretty cool.
That is all.
Friday, January 16, 2009
Bandwagon?
Hey, I'm on Twitter now, too, for what it's worth.
You can find me at twitter.com/marshalkowski
And I may be watching you... O_o
That is all.
You can find me at twitter.com/marshalkowski
And I may be watching you... O_o
That is all.
Monday, January 12, 2009
Up for Debate
Not sure if this will be terrible or awesome. It does have cameo factor going for it.
You decide.
That is all.
Friday, January 9, 2009
I $#@! the Eighties, Part II
Today's installment of "I $#@! the Eighties" is technically from 1979, but its close enough. Someone bought this album in the eighties I'm sure. It doesn't boast the previous videos myriad of videos, but instead looks like something my friends and I might have made in high school, if we were to make a music video.
"Brass in Pocket" - The Pretenders (1979)
There are a number of things I could write about but they would draw attention from the funniest thing ever in a music video.
1:20-What better way to get the most important word in your song across than to have your bandmates point it out for the viewers at home. It's also hilarious because you can the first guy thinks the entire situation is ridiculous, but the second guy is just thrilled to have face time on camera. As he should be, with that hair.
Also, check out the third guy about 10 seconds later, when he almost achieves a full 180-degree head turn. That dude is part owl, swear to God.
That is all.
"Brass in Pocket" - The Pretenders (1979)
There are a number of things I could write about but they would draw attention from the funniest thing ever in a music video.
1:20-What better way to get the most important word in your song across than to have your bandmates point it out for the viewers at home. It's also hilarious because you can the first guy thinks the entire situation is ridiculous, but the second guy is just thrilled to have face time on camera. As he should be, with that hair.
Also, check out the third guy about 10 seconds later, when he almost achieves a full 180-degree head turn. That dude is part owl, swear to God.
That is all.
Thursday, January 8, 2009
The Dictionary of the Future
So, I'm probably the only one who thinks this is "neat," but it's my blog, I get to choose what goes up here. This is about language and the future of dictionaries. And the speaker actually makes it interesting.
That is all.
That is all.
Monday, January 5, 2009
I $#@! the Eighties
Today, I'd like to discuss the proud and horrifying tradition of 80s music videos. The decade of 1980-1989 was a time when a man could make it big with just a synthesizer and a dream. That said, some people should have just let the dream die.
"Don't You Want Me (Baby)" - Human League (1981)
We'll start with this one because it embodies a lot of the things that make these 80s music videos both terrible and awe-inspiring. So, we'll take a somewhat academic approach with this one, and parse out what makes it less of a music video, and more of a car accident you simply can't look away from.
Number One: Creepy Close-Ups
This is what bothers me most about this particular video, I think. No less that one dozen times in this three and a half minute video, does the video zoom in on someone. I don't know if they thought it made the video more intimate, or more intense, but the vibe they got was freakin' creepy. It doesn't help that half the cast has a mole in the exact same place.
Defining moment(s):
0:20, first time it happens, you just can't see it coming.
1:00, GAH! They're doing it with the entire cast! No one is safe!
Number Two: Soulless Stares
Don't get me wrong, if you can write a song and perform it, that's impressive. I can't do that beyond Rock Band in the comfort of my living room. That said, these people take being unable to act and turn it into an art form. Everyone has this sort of dull, lifeless stare.
Defining moment:
2:15, it's like she couldn't make it to the shoot that day, and they replaced her with a really convincing mannequin. Why bother emoting at all when you can let sudden focus changes communicate your angst. The angst. Can you feel it?
Number Three: Makeup
In the eighties, everyone wore make up. All the time. Everywhere. And lots of it. If you wanted to be the man, you had to look like a woman. Oh, that's not true? Well, you could have fooled me, Human League.
Defining moment:
0:20 again, Jesus Christ, man. You demean us all when you go around like that.
Number Four: When Did I Rent Labyrinth?
This is no one's fault, but this guy looks like the Goblin King in Labyrinth. The makeup doesn't help, citing number three again.
Defining moment:
0:43, seriously what was David Bowie doing when this was shot? I want documentation.
I guess those are my major complaints with this video, but they are so liberally distributed throughout that its difficult to find a point where at least one of these isn't happening.
I have more of these exciting videos up my sleeve. Each more exciting than the next, I assure you. But this post is already getting long-winded, so I will save them for another day.
That is all.
"Don't You Want Me (Baby)" - Human League (1981)
We'll start with this one because it embodies a lot of the things that make these 80s music videos both terrible and awe-inspiring. So, we'll take a somewhat academic approach with this one, and parse out what makes it less of a music video, and more of a car accident you simply can't look away from.
Number One: Creepy Close-Ups
This is what bothers me most about this particular video, I think. No less that one dozen times in this three and a half minute video, does the video zoom in on someone. I don't know if they thought it made the video more intimate, or more intense, but the vibe they got was freakin' creepy. It doesn't help that half the cast has a mole in the exact same place.
Defining moment(s):
0:20, first time it happens, you just can't see it coming.
1:00, GAH! They're doing it with the entire cast! No one is safe!
Number Two: Soulless Stares
Don't get me wrong, if you can write a song and perform it, that's impressive. I can't do that beyond Rock Band in the comfort of my living room. That said, these people take being unable to act and turn it into an art form. Everyone has this sort of dull, lifeless stare.
Defining moment:
2:15, it's like she couldn't make it to the shoot that day, and they replaced her with a really convincing mannequin. Why bother emoting at all when you can let sudden focus changes communicate your angst. The angst. Can you feel it?
Number Three: Makeup
In the eighties, everyone wore make up. All the time. Everywhere. And lots of it. If you wanted to be the man, you had to look like a woman. Oh, that's not true? Well, you could have fooled me, Human League.
Defining moment:
0:20 again, Jesus Christ, man. You demean us all when you go around like that.
Number Four: When Did I Rent Labyrinth?
This is no one's fault, but this guy looks like the Goblin King in Labyrinth. The makeup doesn't help, citing number three again.
Defining moment:
0:43, seriously what was David Bowie doing when this was shot? I want documentation.
I guess those are my major complaints with this video, but they are so liberally distributed throughout that its difficult to find a point where at least one of these isn't happening.
I have more of these exciting videos up my sleeve. Each more exciting than the next, I assure you. But this post is already getting long-winded, so I will save them for another day.
That is all.
Friday, January 2, 2009
Happy 2009!
A little late to the party, perhaps, a day and a half in, but so be it!
My resolutions this year:
1. Start a blog in earnest.
2. Eat healthier.
3. Start writing again.
The first comes from a decade of loathing the concept of blogs, so I figure the only proper thing for me to do now is start one. I'm not sure what the overall theme is yet, so right now we're starting with whatever suits my fancy and it will evolve from there.
The second is that all-purpose self-improvement and vague promise that will last until... I'll say January 5th.
The last is just something I feel I should be doing more. Yes, I write ads for a living (if you didn't know that, now you do), but I've got other things to write, too. If I don't come out of this year with at least a collection of short stories, I should be kicked in the pants.
So that's my plan for '09, what's yours?
And let me just say, this year has started out awfully cold. I don't care for it. Not one bit.
That is all.
My resolutions this year:
1. Start a blog in earnest.
2. Eat healthier.
3. Start writing again.
The first comes from a decade of loathing the concept of blogs, so I figure the only proper thing for me to do now is start one. I'm not sure what the overall theme is yet, so right now we're starting with whatever suits my fancy and it will evolve from there.
The second is that all-purpose self-improvement and vague promise that will last until... I'll say January 5th.
The last is just something I feel I should be doing more. Yes, I write ads for a living (if you didn't know that, now you do), but I've got other things to write, too. If I don't come out of this year with at least a collection of short stories, I should be kicked in the pants.
So that's my plan for '09, what's yours?
And let me just say, this year has started out awfully cold. I don't care for it. Not one bit.
That is all.
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