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Articles tagged "popmatters pick"PopMatters Pick Film ReviewMoonby Cynthia Fuchs[9.Jul.09] :. In brief, stark moments, Duncan Jones' movie makes plain how awful it is to be so solitary, how utterly impossible it is to consider this existence a "living."  Film DVD ReviewPic up the Mic: The Evolution of Homohopby Terrence Butcher[7.Jul.09] :. This vibrant documentary casts light upon the duality of socio-sexual identity and identity politics. PopMatters Pick Music ReviewFlorence and the Machine: Lungsby Emily Tartanella[7.Jul.09] :. Florence and the Machine deliver a stunning debut in the wake of overwhelming expectations. PopMatters Pick Music ReviewSunset Rubdown: Dragonslayerby Dan Raper[25.Jun.09] :. Spencer Krug dazzles once again. PopMatters Pick Music ReviewSerengeti & Polyphonic: Terradactylby Thomas Britt[24.Jun.09] :. Compared to other hip-hop releases this year so far, Terradactyl is effectively peerless. PopMatters Pick Music ReviewGeorge Jones: A Picture of Me (Without You) / Nothing Ever Hurt Me (Half as Much as Losing You)by Ben Child[22.Jun.09] :. A perfect introduction to the Billy Sherrill-Epic years and a chance to watch Jones pick up all the shine and trappings of the Rolls Royce of country singers. PopMatters Pick Music DVD ReviewIron Maiden: Flight 666by Adrien Begrand[19.Jun.09] :. Only Iron Maiden could pull a world tour like this off. The ecstatic reactions from India, to Australia, to Japan, to Central and South America, to Canada are all essentially the same the world over. PopMatters Pick Books FeatureBumming Smokes in Paris and London: George Orwell’s Obsession with Tobaccoby Josh Indar[19.Jun.09] :. Cigarette smoke so permeates George Orwell’s stories it almost leaves stains on one’s fingers when reading his books. PopMatters Pick Film ReviewHuman Rights Watch International Film Festivalby Cynthia Fuchs[18.Jun.09] :. The documentaries of the Human Rights Watch International Film Festival grapple with profound dilemmas, yet make their cases through deeply personal perspectives. Featured Article Music ReviewRhett Miller: Rhett Millerby Christel Loar[12.Jun.09] :. Rhett Miller's self-titled fourth solo album is a continuously captivating collection where harmony and heartache meet with sharp wit. Featured Article TV DVD ReviewDesigning Women: The Complete First Seasonby George Tiller[12.Jun.09] :. A delightful combination of a fresh breath of feminism and the last gasp of the “New South”. PopMatters Pick TV ReviewNurse Jackie: Series Premiereby Michael Abernethy[8.Jun.09] :. Edie Falco is surely dynamic, but the strength of Nurse Jackie lies in its smart, respectful examination of a nurse's life. PopMatters Pick TV ReviewThe Closer: Season Five Premiereby Leigh H. Edwards[8.Jun.09] :. As The Closer evolves both formally and thematically, Brenda and her team are forced to reflect on their own assumptions and actions. PopMatters Pick Music ReviewStaff Benda Bilili: Tres Tres Fortby Michael Kabran[5.Jun.09] :. The story behind the music is pretty compelling, but the music behind the story might be even more compelling. Comics ReviewTransmetropolitan Vol. 1: Back on the Streetby Ian Chant[4.Jun.09] :. Warren Ellis’ violent, vicious, hilarious and horrifying vision of the future remains entrenched in a bleak and amoral future, where human beings are vat cloned as fast food livestock, media buys include subliminal bombs that buy ad space in your dreams and Star Trek style replicators are operated by AI addicted to cybernetic drugs. PopMatters Pick Music ReviewRyan Bingham & the Dead Horses: Roadhouse Sunby Aarik Danielsen[4.Jun.09] :. Yes, this is the thinking man's honky-tonk music. PopMatters Pick Film ReviewThe Chaser (Chugyeogja)by Cynthia Fuchs[2.Jun.09] :. Surrounded by cops who mean well but have trouble keeping up, Jung-ho looks close to clever in The Chaser. PopMatters Pick Music ReviewRancid: Let the Dominoes Fallby Ron Hart[2.Jun.09] :. Rancid return to their old homebase to deliver their finest album since Life Won't Wait. Featured Article TV ReviewLootby Cynthia Fuchs[1.Jun.09] :. Loot sneaks up on you, much as the treasure hunters' own histories sneak up on them. Featured Article Short Ends and Leader‘Up’ Makes It a Perfect 10 for Pixarby Bill Gibron[29.May.09] :. Perhaps it’s time to stop wondering and simply believe. Every year, like cinematic clockwork, we critics hear about the latest release pending from Pixar and our thoughts notoriously turn to... PopMatters Pick Music ReviewGrizzly Bear: Veckatimestby Mike Newmark[26.May.09] :. By pulling all four of their heads together in the conception process and tweaking the nuts and bolts of their design in the three years following Yellow House, Brooklyn's Grizzly Bear have produced their finest record to date. PopMatters Pick Books ReviewWicked Plants by Amy Stewartby Shyam K. Sriram[20.May.09] :. Stewart deftly blends botany, politics, and history into a very appealing format while warning of 'botanical atrocities'. Music ReviewSerge Gainsbourg: Histoire De Melody Nelsonby D.M. Edwards[15.May.09] :. After 38 years the chilled orchestral-funk study of erotic obsession gets a U.S. release. PopMatters Pick Film ReviewMuseum of Modern Art Presents Kim Longinottoby Cynthia Fuchs[14.May.09] :. As the MOMA series demonstrates, Kim Longinotto's films are verité, in the sense that they are comprised of handheld camerawork and affect an observational distance. But they are also, always, deeply involved in their subjects' experiences. PopMatters Pick Yesterday's Jukebox FeatureSinéad O’Connor: I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Gotby Jill LaBrack[13.May.09] :. Nearly perfect, and overflowing with determined beauty, one of the best recordings of the 1990s is given its due. PopMatters Pick Music ReviewSvarte Greiner: Kappeby Mike Newmark[6.May.09] :. Deaf Center's Erik Skodvin resurfaces as Svarte Greiner with a doom ambient masterpiece, seductive in its melding of sensuality and terror, and already one of the best records of 2009. PopMatters Pick Short Ends and LeaderNew ‘Trek’ Should Live Long and Prosperby Bill Gibron[5.May.09] :. Talk about questionable prospects! Who could ever imagine that Paramount, preservers of Gene Roddenberry’s seminal Star Trek empire, would mount a massive reboot of the series, an... PopMatters Pick Music ReviewAkron/Family: Set ‘Em Wild, Set ‘Em Freeby Justin Cober-Lake[5.May.09] :. On its new album, the band delivers a masterpiece while ranging from pastoral ditties to noise-laden freak-outs. PopMatters Pick Film ReviewThe Limits of Controlby Cynthia Fuchs[1.May.09] :. The limits of control are simultaneously intimate and global. And Isaac De Bankolé's face reveals just as much as you can know. PopMatters Pick Music ReviewAllen Toussaint: The Bright Mississippiby Will Layman[30.Apr.09] :. A storied delta pianist makes an album of classic New Orleans tunes, and it may be the best jazz of 2009. PopMatters Pick Yesterday's Jukebox FeatureBeastie Boys: Check Your Headby Sean Murphy[30.Apr.09] :. At first the Beastie Boys were brats, then they were bratty; with their third album Check Your Head they dropped an ebullient bomb that is both heartfelt and soulful. PopMatters Pick Music ReviewWilco: Ashes of American Flags [DVD]by Michael Franco[28.Apr.09] :. Released in US indie record stores before today's wider release, Ashes of American Flags is further proof that Wilco may very well be the greatest American rock band right now. PopMatters Pick Music ReviewOrphans & Vandals: I Am Alive and You Are Deadby Spencer Tricker[27.Apr.09] :. The fact that five separate individuals have been able to coalesce this beautifully and produce art this vital renews my faith in rock ‘n’ roll for at least another decade. PopMatters Pick Film ReviewTreeless Mountainby Cynthia Fuchs[23.Apr.09] :. So Yong Kim's remarkable film never spells out exactly what Jin or Bin is thinking, the camera implies how they see. PopMatters Pick TV ReviewTrouble the Waterby Cynthia Fuchs[23.Apr.09] :. Trouble the Water reveals a vibrant mini-community of Nola residents, whose acute and often angry analyses of their circumstances put the so-called experts to shame. PopMatters Pick Books Feature‘Japanese Goth’: A Manifesto for the Beautiful Macabreby Oliver Ho[23.Apr.09] :. This book seeks to place Japan's fashion subculture known as "Gothic Lolita" on a continuum of fine art, fashion and literature. PopMatters Pick Film ReviewTôkyô!by Cynthia Fuchs[22.Apr.09] :. Taken together, the three movies in Tôkyô! create a frightful, smart, and lingering impression. PopMatters Pick Comics ReviewAll-Star Supermanby Kevin M. Brettauer[21.Apr.09] :. This story transcends all other Superman stories ever told, becoming the definitive take on the character almost without trying. PopMatters Pick Music ReviewBrakesbrakesbrakes: Touchdownby Joseph Carver[20.Apr.09] :. Brakesbrakesbrakes' latest release indicates that our friends across the pond are now at our borders, and are not shying away from the challenge of reviving the rock record. PopMatters Pick Books ReviewColumbine by Dave Cullenby Kirby Fields[17.Apr.09] :. This is an exquisitely researched, deeply considered treatment of an event that has heretofore fought a losing battle with sensationalism. PopMatters Pick Music ReviewSuper Furry Animals: Dark Days/Light Yearsby Michael Keefe[17.Apr.09] :. Veteran Welsh psych-pop quintet continue to evolve, while revisiting the tripped-out, up-tempo sounds of their early days. PopMatters Pick Film ReviewForbidden Lie$by Cynthia Fuchs[10.Apr.09] :. As unusual, even sensational, images appear, it becomes clear that Forbidden Lie$'s more conventional images are also up for challenges, that they can no longer be assumed to be true. PopMatters Pick Music ReviewThe Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem: In Person at Carnegie Hall: The Complete 1963 Concertby Ron Hart[10.Apr.09] :. That most essential of Irish folk albums becomes even more vital as a Legacy Edition. PopMatters Pick Music ReviewWarsaw Village Band: Infinityby Deanne Sole[9.Apr.09] :. 'Powerful' is the Band's default setting. PopMatters Pick TV ReviewPedro: The Movieby Todd R. Ramlow[6.Apr.09] :. Pedro recalls a moment in reality TV when the genre had real political edge. PopMatters Pick Film ReviewSugarby Cynthia Fuchs[3.Apr.09] :. In this carefully observed and impressively minimalist movie, Sugar redefines and refines his art. PopMatters Pick Music ReviewRed Red Meat: Bunny Gets Paid (Deluxe Edition)by Matthew Fiander[3.Apr.09] :. Like so many other canonized rock albums, Bunny Gets Paid doesn't do all the work. But once you shoulder some of the load, the returns it yields are immeasurable. PopMatters Pick Yesterday's Jukebox FeaturePearl Jam’s “Ten”, Eighteen Years Laterby Michael Metivier[3.Apr.09] :. Over the years, Sony Legacy has re-released countless albums, but rarely has it honored a record whose importance with regards to legacy has been debated since day one as Pearl Jam’s debut. Featured Article TV ReviewIndependent Lens: Recycleby Cynthia Fuchs[31.Mar.09] :. As the day dawns in the discerning and detailed Recycle, a bulldozer is pushing cardboard. PopMatters Pick Music ReviewLeonard Cohen: Live in Londonby Adrien Begrand[31.Mar.09] :. Forced back on the road, the great Leonard Cohen sounds reinvigorated on his first tour in 15 years. PopMatters Pick Music ReviewThe Yeah Yeah Yeahs: It’s Blitz!by Evan Sawdey[30.Mar.09] :. Ripping off New Order? Stealing from the B-52s? Reveling in synth-washes and disco beats? The Yeah Yeah Yeahs finally give in and make their "pop" album -- but on their own terms. PopMatters Pick Film ReviewGoodbye Soloby Cynthia Fuchs[27.Mar.09] :. Almost as soon as he appears in Goodbye Solo, the optimistic Solo is confronted with another perspective, belonging to a weary fare named William. PopMatters Pick Film DVD ReviewIkiruby Marc Calderaro[27.Mar.09] :. The story is deeply affecting and life-affirming, but the plot is only a small part of what makes Ikiru so masterful. PopMatters Pick Film DVD ReviewThe Odd Coupleby Christel Loar[26.Mar.09] :. More than 40 years after its original release, the brilliant comedy writing and pitch-perfect performances make the film a comedic classic, the new bonus features make this the version to own. PopMatters Pick Music ReviewFever Ray: Fever Rayby Ian Mathers[26.Mar.09] :. With the Knife on hiatus, Karin Dreijer Andersson crafts something even more all-encompassing and darkly compelling than Silent Shout. PopMatters Pick Music ReviewAbdullah Ibrahim: Senzoby Thomas Hauner[24.Mar.09] :. An hour of solitary and ethereal playing in a single take recalls Thelonious Monk’s solo masterpiece, Thelonious Alone in San Francisco. PopMatters Pick Books ReviewIn Other Rooms, Other Wonders by Daniyal Mueenuddinby Chauncey Mabe [Sun Sentinel (MCT)][23.Mar.09] :. Given the power and beauty and deeply affecting quality of this book, I can't stop myself from wondering if Pakistan has found its Chekhov. PopMatters Pick Film ReviewHearts and Mindsby Cynthia Fuchs[20.Mar.09] :. The urgency of Hearts and Minds, its anger and its articulation, its insistence that effects of war be visible, and its cogent analysis of connections among politics, media, and the military, all seem apt lessons for today. PopMatters Pick Books ReviewThe Gamble by Thomas E. Ricksby Chris Barsanti[20.Mar.09] :. By the time Ricks brings his narrative to a close, he has solidly proved his point, namely that in the most basic reckoning, the surge can be said to have worked. PopMatters Pick Pop Past FeatureStay All Night (Stay a Little Longer): One More Time with the King of Western Swingby Bob Proehl[20.Mar.09] :. Today, many performers play a revivalist form of Western Swing, but even more may be tipping a hat to Bob Wills without even knowing it. Chomping down on his cigar, Wills and his legacy strut around the stage of musical history, rarely taking the lead but now and then giving a holler of approval. |
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