Archives for December 2009

My Baker’s Dozen For 2009

December 22, 2009 By Robert Lanham

This is what I was listening to this year. The obvious oversight is Dirty Projectors. I appreciated their record—and they are flawless live—but I just didn’t listen to them enough to add Bitte Orca to my list. In addition to the records below, I’m totally addicted to Adron’s self-released first record which came out in 2008. Do yourself a favor and go buy it now.

Overall, 2009 was really a great year for music and I was happy to be in Brooklyn which has become the epicenter for the indie music scene.

	13. Passion Pit Manners [Columbia/Frenchkiss]
	12. Nosaj Thing Drift [Alpha Pup]
	11. Luke Vibert We Hear You (Planet Mu)
	10. Yeah Yeah Yeahs It’s Blitz! [Interscope]
	9. N.A.S.A. The Spirit of Apollo [Anti]
	8. M. Ward Hold Time [Merge Records]
	7. The xx The xx [Young Turks]
	6. Allen Toussaint The Bright Mississippi [NoneSuch]
	5. Fiery Furnaces I’m Going Away [Thrill Jockey]
	4. The Love Language The Love Language [Bladen County; 2009]
	3. Grizzly Bear Veckatimest [Warp]
	2. Animal Collective Merriweather Post Pavilion [Domino]
	1. Girls Album [True Panther/Matador]

Update: I just posted FREEwilliamsburg’s list too. Check it out here.

Golden Globe Nominations Announced, Lieberman to Filibuster

December 15, 2009 By Robert Lanham

Please, make Lieberman go away. I’ve got a new one up on Huffington Post satirizing the whole debacle.

Just hours after the nominations for the 67th annual Golden Globe Awards were announced, Senator Joe Lieberman of Connecticut threatened to filibuster the ceremony should key concessions fail to be met.
“Unless Vince Vaughn gets a nod for his excellent work in Couples Retreat,” said Lieberman, “I just cannot support the nominations. Sure, the American people love George Clooney and he was great in Up in the Air,” continued Lieberman. “But if Vaughn is overlooked in the Best Actor category, I will have no choice but to filibuster.”

Read it all.

Obama to Let Congress Decide If White House Card Should Say “Happy Holidays” or “Merry Christmas”

December 7, 2009 By Robert Lanham

I’ve got a new piece over at The Huffington Post. Here’s a taste:

Determined to avoid mistakes made by previous administrations, Obama announced on Friday that he’d let Congress be responsible for the language used on the White House’s annual holiday card.
“War on Christmas reform is one of the most important issues facing our nation today,” said Press Secretary Robert Gibbs. “Should the president send out a card that says ‘Merry Christmas?’ Should it say ‘Happy Holidays?’ Does using an image of Frosty the Snowman on the cover become more inclusive if Frosty’s wearing a colorful Kwanzaa vest and lighting a Menorah? These are all important questions for Congress to consider,” said Gibbs. […]
Though the war on Christmas debate is far-reaching, the public’s attention has culminated around the White House card controversy. Fox News commentator Glenn Beck alleged that Obama is “passing the buck” about the card for religious reasons
“Wake up people, he’s a Muslim,” said Beck on Fox News, adorned in a hand-knit sweater with a large Santa stitched into its front (pictured).
“I don’t even know if they have Christmas in Kenya,” said Beck. “If Obama had his way, the White House card would read ‘Happy Ramadan’ and feature a picture of Santa driving a sleigh strapped with explosives.”

Read it all here.

Another Quote About Wes Anderson In SF Weekly

December 6, 2009 By Robert Lanham

Evidently, this story was syndicated all over the place:

Then, the air came out of the tires. Released in 2004, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou cost $60 million and took in $24 million. The more modestly budgeted Darjeeling Limited grossed $12 million in 2007, $5 million less than Rushmore. These were commercial failures, sure, but the critics were also starting to pile on. Phrases like “too precious,” “cloying” and “detached” popped up more and more in Anderson’s reviews.
In one case of hipster cannibalization, The Hipster Handbook author Robert Lanham, writing for the ubercool Viceland Web site, said of The Life Aquatic: “Wes Anderson doesn’t make movies anymore. He creates overly precious paintings inhabited by emasculated man-children who knit sweater vests to the accompaniment of Belle & Sebastian while fantasizing that they’re macho enough to skin a caribou with a pocketknife. The set pieces to The Life Aquatic are stunning, but watching this film is like visiting the Natural History Museum. It’s a beautiful building, but most of its pleasures are filled with lifeless things.”

For the record, I think Wes is back. Fantastic Mr. Fox was his best film in years. It’s great to see him back on track.

Archives for December 2009

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