Friday, January 27 2012
The Future Is a Faded Song: Douglas Rushkoff on the Groundbreaking “ADD”
It's especially hard to shift between being a world-class media theorist writing nonfiction, and a writer of fiction. That's even more so when the fiction appears as comics. Why does Douglas Rushkoff make it look so easy?
Different Flavored Skulls: An Intimate Chat with the Flaming Lips’ Wayne Coyne
In speaking to PopMatters about the creation of the Flaming Lips' latest edible piece of insanity, frontman Wayne Coyne reveals how he turned mistakes into opportunities, gives much love to the major label he's signed to, and remains unshakably upbeat about what's next for one of the greatest bands working today.
Thursday, January 26 2012
The Hidden Mythos of ‘Police Academy’
Exploring the strange parallels between the writing of mythologist Joseph Campbell and the first four Police Academy films.
Make-Believe Rock Star: An Interview with Anthony Green
“Everything that [people] think and everything that they see and everything that they say [about me] is just make believe. It’s all just made up. Most of it is just a projection of who they wish they could be and that’s a shame because I spend a lot of time trying to tell people that they already are amazing. They see nothing in me but themselves."
Wednesday, January 25 2012
Learnin’ to Ride: An Interview with Caitlin Rose
She's a young country hopeful with an incredible voice and even more incredible songs. Speaking with PopMatters, we discover how some of her new songs were originally written when she was 16, the "anti-folk" influence on her own work, and how she very well could've made it as a stand-up comedian ...
Circling the Sun Machine: Re-thinking David Bowie’s ‘Space Oddity’
Bowie's odd magnetism has long been interpreted as a function of his ambiguous sexuality, but could it be that he was transgressing more than just gender norms and heralding the rise of the man/machine?
Tuesday, January 24 2012
“You’re Afraid You’ll Hate Everything Within a Month”: An Interview with Lisa Hannigan
After scoring a Mercury Music Prize nomination for her first solo album after working with Damien Rice, Lisa Hannigan returns with an effort more sophisticated and mature than before, and tells PopMatters all about it ...
Monday, January 23 2012
The 40 Best Films of 2011
2011 was a year of good, not necessarily great, films, though the amazing choices by our staff might argue against such a overall cinematic classification.
Friday, January 20 2012
Endless Reentry: J. Torres, “Li’l Jinx” and “Bob Dylan by Greil Marcus”
J. Torres is a mature, creative voice, a powerful storyteller, and a gifted intellect. Exactly the kind of person you'd want reimagining a classic from your childhood.
The Hippie That Wasn’t: An Interview with Wayne Coyne of the Flaming Lips
The Flaming Lips have spent the past year doing off-beat collaborations, releasing songs in skulls both Gummi and real, and creating songs that last up to 24 hours. In this extensive interview with PopMatters, frontman Wayne Coyne discusses all of this... as well as his peacocks.
Thursday, January 19 2012
Movies 2011: Out of the Past
Super 8, The Muppets, and some of the other great movies of 2011 owe plenty to movies of the past. And they pull off a neat trick too: they're as vivid and delightful as your memories of those movies.
TV 2011: Survivalist Crime Solvers
Recent US crime shows claim not only that the law does not provide justice to ordinary Americans, but also that it cannot do so.
Wednesday, January 18 2012
The Best Male Film Performances of 2011
In another strong year, crime and punishment take on heart and heroism for the right to be called 2011's best male film acting work.
Writing the Story of the World (and Wearing It, Too!)
This is a force of energy with a lot of moving parts. The goal is to write the story of the world.
Tuesday, January 17 2012
Traveling at Different Speeds: An Interview with Icebird’s RJD2
After producing countless underground-rap hits, scoring the Mad Men theme, and putting out iconic albums of his own, RJD2 decided to write songs with singer Aaron Livingston before they formed a band. RJ talks about the creation of the one and only Icebird.
The Best Female Film Performances of 2011
It was a monumental year for women in film as our selections for 2011's best female performances indicate... over and over and over again.
Monday, January 16 2012
Movies 2011: American Gothic
While comic-book apocalypses ripped across US multiplexes, some smaller films of 2011 envisioned an icier, more disruptive darkness at the heart of the American family.
Movies 2011: Powerful and Disturbing Visions
Many films this year explored self-consciously "big" themes, revealing that sometimes the line between felicity of expression and facileness can be unclear.
Friday, January 13 2012
The Best Indie / International Films of 2011
The year's best independent and international films are highlighted by a duo from iconic director Werner Herzog, a staggeringly brilliant frontier-western and a score of top-notch documentaries that illustrate how filmmaking continues to reach new highs.
“Copying People I Like”: A Conversation with Eleanor Friedberger
The Fiery Furnaces' Eleanor Friedberger tells PopMatters all about her breezy, gorgeous new solo effort, and also tells us why she doesn't like giving interviews, which Fiery Furnaces album she least enjoys, and how performing solo was a revealing experience for her.
