Friday, January 27, 2012

BEST MOVIES & TV: 2011

The Great, The Good, and The Interesting!

THE GIRL
WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO

Shortcut links:
• BEST MOVIES: 2011
• BEST DOCUMENTARIES: 2011
• BEST TV: 2011

Note: This will often spotlight directors for special merit.
But Auteur Theory is a shoebox; films are a collaborative effort with everyone involved.

"And... Action!"

B E S T
M O V I E S :
2 0 1 1

E R O S

• THE ARTIST (France) ⇧
A modern Silent Film, for wen the only thing one should say is, "I love you."

• CIRCUMSTANCE (Iran)
Two women in love, and the Morality Police who can't handle it.

• CHICO AND RITA (Spain/U.K.)
Moved me to tears.

T H I N K

• HUGO ⇧
A beautiful love letter to early film and classic books. Sweet, inspiring.

• THE KING'S SPEECH (U.K.)
A film about stammering told with impeccable timing. Razor-sharp cast, moving story.

• FOR COLORED GIRLS
Tough to adapt a poetic play. This is like an ensemble song cycle: some swagger notes are a bit stagey, but all the pain notes are devastatingly true.

• TRUE GRIT
A gripping story well-acted, with raw poetic dialogue so great you'd watch it again just to savor it.

• NORWEGIAN WOOD (Japan)
Elegant and bittersweet. Reject death, embrace life.

• THE TREE OF LIFE ⇧
The big picture, the little things. Love your life while it's happening.

• DRIVE
Cruises mostly on pure style, like the best film Michael Mann might've made in 1986.

• ONE DAY
Mixed feelings on the story structure, but Anne Hathaway was terrific.

• THE DEBT
Good thriller, great cast.

• THE HELP
The Civil Rights movement is too big to expect one film to carry it. Taken for its own merits of telling a sliver of that story, this film is generally strong -if sometimes mawkish, soft, or reductivist- with great performances from Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer. If its massive success encourages people to learn more, then all the better.

To go further, make sure to watch the best non-fiction series ever made for television,
"Eyes On The Prize: America's Civil Rights Years 1954-1965"

• A SEPARATION (Iran) ⇧
✭✭✭✭✭
Because of its haunting humanity, this is the best film of the year for me.
Distressed people at the mercy of bad luck, and the fundamentalist regime that makes it worse. Emotionally grueling, complex, and riveting, and worth every minute of it.

• THE WOMAN KNIGHT OF MIRROR LAKE (China/Hong Kong)
In early 1900s China, a badass woman leads a revolution against repression with smarts, poetry, and martial arts. Count me in.
(Based on the true story of Qui Jin.)

• MARGIN CALL
An ensemble piece about the 2008 financial meltdown viewed through one company.

• THE IDES OF MARCH
When idealism collides with ambition.

• KINYARWANDA (Rwanda/U.S.)
Powerful expose on the Rwandan genocide.

• THE FLOWERS OF WAR (China)
Every film by Zhang Yimou is automatic viewing. This is a grittier take on his theme of championing humanity in the face of repression.

• THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO (U.S.) ⇧
Telling the same good story again, just as well as the Swedish film and with added dimensions.

• A DANGEROUS METHOD
Freud vs. Jung and the woman between. Mortensen and Fassbender are low-key great, but Keira Knightley steals it with a truly brave performance.

• THE KID WITH THE BIKE (France)
A touching story of a kid with an unyielding spirit.

• TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY
A Swedish director (Let The Right One In) remakes the quintessential British spy games story, with brilliant success. Understated, fiendishly complex, period perfect.

S M I L E

• ELEKTRA LUXX ⇧
The sequel to WOMEN IN TROUBLE by Sebastien Gutierrez, the L.A. answer to Almodovar. Carla Gugino is always excellent.

• GIRL WALKS INTO A BAR
Another Sebastien Gutierrez film, an interlocking comedy of errors.

• WIN WIN
Nice character play, astute details.

• PAUL
A little soft, but carried by Kristen Wiig and some clever in-jokes.

• CRAZY, STUPID, LOVE
Could have been another Six Whiteys movie for the mallburbs, but there's enough touching scenes and manic surprises to elevate it. Good moments from Julianne Moore, Marisa Tomei, and Emma Stone.

• MIDNIGHT IN PARIS
A fun story beautifully shot, with a legendary cast of characters.

• THE MUPPETS
"Yes! The third greatest gift ever!"

• TURN ME ON, DAMMIT! (Norway)
A teen girl navigating between puberty and identity; a smart film with deft characters and a sly heart.

D R E A M

• ANOTHER EARTH ⇧
A carefully etched character drama. The soulful silences are enriched by the breakout star (and co-writer/co-producer), Brit Marling.

• THE ADJUSTMENT BUREAU
A 'Twilight Zone' premise underlined by romance.

• SOURCE CODE
Taut, engaging, twisty. From the director of MOON, Duncan Jones.

• LOVE
MOON was a fine complement to 2001 and SOLARIS. This finely-crafted indie is another.

• HAUNTERS (S. Korea) ⇧
The bridge between UNBREAKABLE and PUSH.
Sharply made, great characters, constant surprises, a rousing finish.

• SUPER 8
J.J Abrams brings it all full circle with this mysterious and tender homage to the 1977-1982 sci-fi movies that ignited everything since.

• HARRY POTTER And the Deathly Hallows, Part II
The craft of director David Yates has been exponentially impressive for the final three films.

• RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES
On the surface, a 'popcorn flick'. Underneath, a deeply clever prequel to the original 1968 film.

N I G H T M A R E

• THE THING [new prequel] ⇧
John Carpenter's 1982 film was ignored on release and trashed by critics. It found its cult audience later on cable and video, and now is recognized as a classic cast-driven thriller.
And so will this one eventually, as perfectly dovetailed a prequel as has yet been made.

• BLACK SWAN
Darren Aronofsky's companion piece to THE WRESTLER. They are essentially the same story, exposing the traps and pitfalls of enforced gender roles.

• ATTACK THE BLOCK (U.K.) ⇧
One of those great debuts that transcends 'b-movie' into first-rate. Outstanding performances by Jodie Whittaker and John Bodega.

• APOLLO 18
Impressive debut delivering a great deal from deep constraints.

• BEYOND THE BLACK RAINBOW
Mainly for the vibe and craft, which recaptures the chilly vibe and stunning shots from early 70's-early 80's arthouse SF and Horror perfectly.

• ABSENTIA
When you have no money, tell a gripping story with a good cast, directed well.

• MARY MARCY MAY MARLENE
A nuanced psychological antidote to 'shock-and-chop' films, with great leads in Elizabeth Olsen and Sarah Paulson.

• THE SKIN I LIVE IN (Spain)
No means no.

G R A P H I C
I M A G E S

• The Adventures Of TINTIN ⇧
> Four Color Films review
Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson wed artist Herge's clean-line world and rich plots to 3D realism, noir lighting, and Hitchcock angles...and pull it off spectacularly. A breathtaking avalanche of smart fun.

• SUPER
A bent Indie comedy take on what would really happen if you tried to be a superhero, featuring an unhinged Ellen Page.

• >THOR
> Four Color Films review
Kenneth Branagh really went for it all. The Earth stuff was a little rushed, but Asgard was glorious.

• CAPTAIN AMERICA
> Four Color Films review
A refreshing surprise. No irony, no jingoism, just a great Pulp adventure homage with all the right instincts.

• GRIFF THE INVISIBLE (Austrailia)
A modest take on homemade superheroes, with an engaging romance and some twists.

• BATMAN: Year One
An anime take on the classic Frank Miller/David Mazzucchelli origin.

• The Extraordinary Adventures Of ADELE BLANC-SEC (France)
> Four Color Films review
The grumbling adventurer gets a fine film treatment of her illustrated exploits by Luc Besson.

A R T F L I X

• CHICO AND RITA (Spain/U.K.) ⇧
A melodic love story, beautiful to watch, to listen to, and to feel. Wonderful.

• WRINKLES (Spain)
A touching film about two friends in a retirement home, navigating ageism, loss, and hope.

• THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN
> Four Color Films review
It isn't the 3D 'realism' that makes this come to life; it's the faithfulness to the canny plots, crafty heroes, and slapstick ballet of Herge's timeless books that gives it such spirit.

• RANGO
Excellent and mediocre at the same time. Baffling. The craft and sequences are inspired, the dialogue and plot strangely uneven. The finale sold me.

• A CAT IN PARIS (France)
A joy to watch, in style, story, and score. Just gets better and better as it goes.

• THE SECRET WORLD OF ARRIETTY (Japan)
Another gem from Studio Ghibli, this charming tale of miniature people is a winner all around. Smart, heart, art.

B E S T
D O C U M E N T A R I E S :
2 0 1 1

• FREEDOM RIDERS
Young people with compassion can change the world for the better.

• THE BLACK POWER MIXTAPE 1967-1975 ⇧
All power to the people!

• THE INTERRUPTERS
The real war is at home, where racism and poverty doom communities to destroy themselves.

• REVENGE OF THE ELECTRIC CAR
The sequel to the great 'WHO KILLED THE ELECTRIC CAR?'

• PROHIBITION
The dangers of zealous lobbies and capitalist corruption...

• WOMEN, WAR, AND PEACE
Death leaves the wound that never heals.

• WE WERE HERE
The shadow of death unleashes compassion and love of life.

• GEORGE HARRISON: Living In The Material World ⇧
The great spirit who happened to be in the greatest band.

• GRANT MORRISON: Talking With Gods
Grand writer holds forth.

• THE STORY OF FILM: An Odyssey
✭✭✭✭✭
A 15-part rethink of the world history of film by critic Mark Cousins.
An essential entry point into discovering all of the cinema that matters.

B E S T
T V :
2 0 1 1

(The season number follows each title.)

• THE KILLING 1 ⇧
The expansive remake of the Danish series Forbrydelsen, with richer character and new directions. (And a healthy dose of "Twin Peaks".)

• BOARDWALK EMPIRE 1
Basically the roots of "The Sopranos" and "The Wire". At its best, an allegory of the corrupt politics and social repressions of today.

• TREME 2
A story about New Orleans, by the makers of "The Wire".
What are you waiting for?

W O N D E R

✭✭✭✭✭
• GAME OF THRONES 1 ⇧
Only 5% of this is 'Fantasy'. The other 95% is the best character drama about court intrigue one could imagine.

• FRINGE 4
X-FILES never paid-off any of its set-ups well. FRINGE always does, in an unwinding tapestry that only gets better as it goes.

U K

• SHERLOCK ⇧
The only Sherlock Holmes that matters, alive on today's streets. A marvel to watch.

• DOCTOR WHO
They caught lightning in a bottle again casting Matt Smith. This second season is less focused and more chaotic, but he stitches it together.

• TORCHWOOD: Miracle Day
Sprawling, ambitious. Too many great notes in the symphony to be sniffed at.

• MISFITS 3 ⇧
The Sex Pistols of 'superheroes'. Sacrilegious and hilarious.

• THE FADES 1
A supernatural thriller, with pop culture in-jokes galore.

• THE HOUR
The dawn of tough investigative journalism in repressed '50s Britain. An amazing pilot episode propelled the strong new series.

• BLACK MIRROR
Rod Serling now. Excellent and essential.

C O M E D Y

• ENLIGHTENED 1
A star turn for Laura Dern, playing a fragile light surrounded by black holes.

• 30 ROCK 5
Tina Fey rethinks "The Mary Tyler Moore Show".
• PARKS AND RECREATION
Amy Poehler rethinks "The Office".

• THE DAILY SHOW, With Jon Stewart
The real News ridiculing the fake News.

• THE STEPHEN COLBERT REPORT
Ditto.

A N I M A T I O N

• FUTURAMA 6
Hey... It's Futurama!

• BATMAN: BRAVE AND THE BOLD 2 and 3
A love letter to the Silver Age Of Comics. Fun, wonder, and impossible non-sequiturs.

V I D E O
B O X
S E T S

• DRAGON TATTOO Trilogy: Extended Edition (Sweden) ⇧

I love the first film and really like the other two. The first is an essential thriller with a terrific lead in Lisbeth Salander (Noomi Rapace). The follow-ups show some plot strain but they pull it all off nicely.

© Tym Stevens

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

BEST MUSIC: 2011, With Music Players!

With 3 Music Players!

A N N A
C A L V I

ALL THE
REAL MUSIC!

Nevermind those suburban-angst
'Best Music' lists that taste like paste!

These tunes will break down your get down
and go through your breakthrough!

Shortcuts to Music Players:
• BEST ALBUMS: 2011
• COOL SONGS: 2011
• BEST RE-ISSUES: 2011

B E S T
N E W
A L B U M S :
2 0 1 1

Indie Rock, Funk, Electro, Folk, Garage, HipHop, Soul, Grrrl, and the indefinable!

The Kills, "Blood Pressures"

BEST ALBUMS 2011
by Tym Stevens

This is a Spotify player. Join up for free here.

This music player has songs from the following albums, in the same order.

• tUnE-yArDs, "w h o k i l l"
Polymorphous polyrhythms.
Merrill Garbus and Nate Brenner create pan-world beats out of tape loops and chants.

(See also: Fela, Talking Heads, The Slits, M.I.A., St. Vincent)

• The Black Keys, "El Camino"
Blues with a new fuse.
Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney sound big, think big, play big.

(See also: The White Stripes, Gary Clark Jr, The Alabama Shakes, Black Pumas)

• Charles Bradley, "No Time For Dreaming"
Gutbucket Soul.
What if James Brown kept making great Memphis Soul records?

(See also: O.V. Wright, Sharon Jones, Lee Fields)

• Gillian Welch, "The Harrow and the Harvest"
Alt Folk.
Underneath Gillian Welch and David Rawling's raw americana lies a wry gaze.

(See also: Emmylou Harris, Roseanne Cash, Lera Lynn)

• Anna Calvi, "Anna Calvi"
PostPunk Blues.
Cinematic guitar-scapes with an edge that could take your head off.

(See also: Ennio Morricone, David Bowie, PJ Harvey, St. Vincent)

• Danger Mouse and Daniele Luppi, "Rome"
Morricone moodscapes.
Channeling the sounds of '60s Italian soundtracks, with guest star roles from Jack White and Norah Jones.>

(See also: Portishead, Calibro 35, Adrian Younge)

• Shabazz Palaces, "Black Up"
Avant-HipHop noize worlds.
Dense, abrasive, distorted, forward.

(See also: Rammellzee/Gettovetts, Public Enemy, Nephlim Modulation Systems, Flying Lotus)

• Nikka Costa, "PRO*WHOA"
Prince's true foil.
The soul sister sways away from Stax funk toward Minneapolis techno-funk this time.

(See also: Sly Stone, Betty Davis, Prince, Lenny Kravitz)

• Cults, "Cults"
Girl Group Indie Rawk.
Spector chorals with arena chords and hiphop stomp.

(See also: Shangri-La's, Beach House, Ting Tings, Sleigh Bells)

• A.A. Bondy, "Believers"
Epic americana, beautiful and haunting.
The former frontman of Verbena trades grunge-punk for eerie folk dreams.

(See also: Vashti Bunyan, Leonard Cohen, Father John Misty)

• Tom Waits, "Bad As Me"
Grizzled bar burners.
Roots music shot through with corrosion and mischief.

(See also: Howlin' Wolf, Bob Dylan, Captain Beefheart, Mark Lanegan)

• Feist, "Metals"
Moody instrospective ballads with some clang.
Leslie Feist redefines herself with restless experimentation in mercurial tunes.

(See also: Joni Mitchell, Cat Power, Keren Ann, Angel Olsen)

• Mayer Hawthorne, "How Do You Do"
Fresh-minted Soul.
Clean Soul production and Pop chops belie a barbed wit.

(See also: Motown, Philly Soul, Monophonics, St. Paul And The Broken Bones)

• St. Vincent, "Strange Mercy"
Angular Pop.
Anni Clark is a mirror funhouse of striking images seen from skewed angles.

(See also: David Byrne, Beck, New Pornographers, Mitski)

• Ty Segall, "Goodbye Bread"
Garage Punk.
A perpetual emotion machine blasting torrents of fuzz.

(See also: The Sonics, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, The Kills, Thee Oh Sees)

• The Go! Team, "Rolling Blackouts"
Pep rally arena rock.
Like cheerleaders amping up a dance party at a rock stadium.

(See also: World Famous Supreme Team, Le Tigre, !!!)

• EMA, "Past Life Martyred Saints"
Noize Folk.
Erika Michelle Anderson deals in folked-up mayhem.

(See also: Sonic Youth, Anna Oxygen, tUnE-yArDs)

• MeShell Ndegeocello, "Weather"
Supple mood Soul.
Leaning to her melodic and moody side this time.

(See also: Tanita Tikaram, Esperanza Spalding, Georgia Anne Muldrow)

• Girls, "Father, Son, Holy Ghost"

Like "Abbey Road" performed by Pink Floyd.

(See also: Spiritualized, Radiohead)

• PJ Harvey, "Let England Shake"
Protest folk ballads.
PJ is not having any more Colonialist war bull$h!t.

(See also: Patti Smith, Billy Bragg, Tracy Bonham)

• Black Joe Lewis And The Honeybears, "Scandalous"
Bluesadelic.
Raw blues with Rock hues.

(See also: Elmore James, Bobby "Blue" Bland, Benjamin Booker)

• Alela Diane And Wild Divine, "Alela Diane And Wild Divine"
Soulful Country.
The hook-up of solo singer with indie band is a double-win of hickory-smoked tunes.

(See also: Karen Dalton, Joan as Police Woman, Laura Marling)

• The Love Me Nots, "The Demon And The Devotee"
Garage Rock.
Snarl guitar, pumping farfisa, mean rhythms, and the lash of Nicole Laurenne's roar.

(See also: The Pandoras, The Husbands, Gore Gore Girls)

• Fitz And The Tantrums, "Pickin' Up The Pieces"
Sheeny Motown Pop.
Mid-'60s Soul with unabashed '80s gloss.

(See also: Smokey Robinson, ABC, Mayer Hawthorne)

• Dum Dum Girls, "Only In Dreams"
Garage Rock goes dreamily lysergic.
Going from solo dubbing to a full band opens up Dee Dee's range and impact.

(See also: Pretenders, The Raveonettes, Tashaki Miyaki)

• Sharon Jones And The Dap Kings, "Soul Time!"
Timeless Soul for Now People!
Leading the true Soul revival, both with her band and her label Daptone Records, Sharon Jones is in the pocket and firing bottle rockets.

(See also: Aretha Franklin, Hannah Williams, Eli "Paperboy" Reed)

• The Like, "Release Me"
Beatlesque perfect.
Like another heaping helping of "Help!" to make you twist and yelp.

(See also: The British Invasion, The Feminine Complex, The Bangles)

• The Kills, "Blood Pressures"
Barbwired bluze.
Banshee rage and serrated guitar that sticks in your head like daggers.

(See also: Pussy Galore, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, The Dead Weather)

Quality-Is-Timeless, dept.,
(a.k.a., Great Returns By Iconic Artists)
"If it was good in the past, it's still good."
-Sly Stone, Woodstock, 1969

Sly Stone and George Clinton today

The latter part of the Music Player focuses on timeless acts making current music, with songs from the following albums, in the same order.

• June and Jean Millington (of FANNY), "Play Like A Girl"
Classic hook rock.
Fanny were the first all-female rock band signed to a major label to make full albums. Here, the sisters prove quality is timeless.

(See also: Badfinger, Cradle, Bonnie Raitt)

• Blondie, "Panic Of Girls"
Adventurous Pop.
Every handful of years, Blondie comes correct right on time.

(See also: Ramones, Transvision Vamp, Garbage)

• The Cars, "Move Like This"
The Reunion.
Like a lost 1981 album, sounding exactly as good as it should.

(See also: Roxy Music, Split Enz, New Pornographers)

• Gang of Four, "Content"
PostFunk.
Led by guitarist Andy Gill, the quartet pours more yet.

(See also: Defunkt, Tackhead, Erase Errata)

• Wire, "Red Barked Tree"
PostPunk rethunk.
A bit familiar, but always pushing outward.

(See also: Neu!, Can, Elastica, Parquet Courts)

• The Bangles, "Sweetheart Of The Sun"
Sunshine Jangle.
Beat tunes, sunny harmonies, warm songwriting.

(See also: The Beatles, Fanny, The Fleshtones, The Like)

• Beastie Boys, "Hot Sauce Committee, Part Two"
Hot and saucy HipHop.
Thye've got an open mind so why don't you all come inside?

(See also: Funkadelic, Public Enemy, Kool Keith, Cibo Matto)

• Poly Styrene, "Generation Indigo"
Dance Punk.
The front force for X-Ray Spex projects new innervisions.

(See also: Nina Hagen, LiliPUT, Gossip, FKA Twigs)

• Booker T, "The Road From Memphis"
Memphis Soul redux.
The core of Booker T And The MG's charts new directions by new degrees.

(See also: Ray Charles, Stax Records, The Blues Brothers, Soulive)

• Nick Lowe, "The Old Magic"
Perfect Pop with feel.
Power Pop upstart has gradually emarged as a songwriting statesman.

(See also: Dan Penn, Elvis Costello, Crowded House)

• Jane's Addiction, "The Great Escape Artist"
Classic Indie-Rock.
Still reigning, still dreaming.

(See also: Led Zeppelin, Butthole Surfers, Blackwater Holylight)

• Sly Stone, "I'm Back"
Funk God.
After a prolonged absence, Sly remakes his hits, plus a few new goodies.>

(See also: Sly And The Family Stone, Parliament/Funkadelic, Earth Wind And Fire, Prince)

C O O L
S O N G S :
2 0 1 1

THEESatisfaction

All the REAL MUSIC
beyond the box!

Nevermind Gloss Pop, Stepford Idols, Karaoke Choruses ("woh-oo-oh"), Ego Brats, Emo Prats, Plinky Folk, Brittle Bombast, Vegas Country, Smug Thug, Mope Noodling, De-mixed Throb, and Robot-o-Tune schlock! >

Here's the
D R E A M
J U K E B O X !
Extrude your mood
and lube your groove!

COOL SONGS 2011
by Tym Stevens
This is a Spotify player. Join up for free here.
This jukebox is sequenced into groups of sound, instead of randomly.
All the songs elasticize their genres.
Get your groove on in this sonic order.:
Rockabilly! Beatlesque! Garage!
Psyche! Soul! Blues!
Country! World! Riot Grrrl!
Indie! Electro! Cinematic!
and Cover Songs!

The Black Keys; St. Vincent;
Charles Bradley; Ty Segall

7 hours of brain-boggling, hips-joggling music, featuring the following fine folks in this exact order!:

• Rockabilly! • The Del Moroccos, Screamin' Rebel Angels, The Dark Shadows, and Tom Waits.

• Surf / Beat / Garage! • Cults, Threesome, The Like, The Jayhawks, Miss Chain And The Broken Heels, Les BOF!, The Love Me Nots, Las Vinylators, The Tin-Up Motors, Wer Wie Was, The Ugly Beats, Ty Segall, Bass Drum of Death, Telekinesis, Hollywood Sinners, and Jack Of Heart.

• Psychedelic / Classic Rock! • Mayer Hawthorne, Elks Skiffle Group, The Bon, Weyes Blood, thenewno2, Smith Westerns, Cerrone, Nicole Atkins, Beady Eye, Girls, Dum Dum Girls, White Denim, The Hook Up, Thee Ludds, Quintron, and Blood Ceremony.

• Blues! • The Black Keys, Cassie Taylor, Black Joe Lewis And The Honeybears, Saidah Baba Talibah, and Raphael Saadiq.

• Soul / Funk! • Sharon Jones And The Dap-Kings, Booker T. Jones, JC Brooks And The Uptown Sound, Randa And The Soul Kingdom, The Bo-Keys, The Sweet Vandals, Komety, Charles Bradley, Graffiti6, Sly Stone, Adrian Younge, Slim Moore And The Mar-Kays, Lenny Kravitz, Nikka Costa, Fitz And The Tantrums, JR JR, Nicki Bluhm, Marques Toliver, and Buddy Miller + Ann McCrary.

• Alt Songwriter! • Lynda Kay, The Civil Wars, Gillian Welch, A.A. Bondy, Emmylou Harris, Cass McCombs, Keren Ann, and Feist.

• World-arama! • Markéta Irglová, Antibalas, Ikebe Shakedown, The Funk Ark, and Aṣa.

• Riot Grrrl! • Poly Styrene, Thao And Mirah, The Go! Team, Those Darlins, The Coathangers, The She's, and PJ Harvey.

• Alt Rock! • St. Vincent, The Kills, Arama Mara, The Raveonettes, The Cars, WILD FLAG, Kaiser Chiefs, Wire, The Bots, Gang Gang Dance, Matana Roberts, and Harriet Tubman.

• Electro! • SBTRKT, The Cool Kids, Clutch Douglass, Liam Finn, JD Samson, Phantogram, POLIÇA, and Doomtree.

• Cinerama! • Julianna Barwick, Chrysta Bell, Lana Del Rey, The Tremolo Beer Gut, Los Lobos, Jessica Lea Mayfield, Danger Mouse and Jack White, Anna Calvi, The Hillbilly Moon Explosion, Ramin Djawadi, and Adrian Younge.

• Cover Versions! •
List = Original By / Cover Artist
Songs are sequenced in the chronological order of the Originals.

John Barry / Messer Chups • Eddie Holland / The Moons • The Byrds / The Watson Twins • Sam And Dave / Isreal Hagan and Jack Penetrator • The Eyes / Les Fleurs de Bach • Shuggie Otis / Sharon Jones And The Dap-Kings • Neil Young / Charles Bradley And The Menahan Street Band • Nazz / The Bangles • Serge Gainsbourg and Brigitte Bardot / The Ghost Of A Saber Tooth Tiger • Os Mutantes / Alice Smith + Aloe Blacc • The Beat / The Muffs • Cybotron / The Dirtbombs • Pixies / Trampled By Turtles • Nirvana / Pitty • Goldfrapp / Suzi Quatro.

B E S T
R E I S S U E S :
2 0 1 1

Quality is timeless.

The Beach Boys, "SMiLE"

BEST REISSUES 2011
by Tym Stevens This is a Spotify player. Join up for free here.

• 1950s •

• "Let's Have a Party: Girls Gone Rockin', vol. 2" (1950s Rock'n'Roll women)>
Rock is a feeling, felt and expressed by everyone. Party out with Janis Martin, Etta James, LaVern Baker, Ruth Brown, Wanda Jackson, Brenda Lee, Laura Lee Perkins, Jean Chapel, and Jean Chapel, and many more who deserve the spotlight.

• 1960s •

• THE BEACH BOYS, "The SMiLE Sessions" (1967)>
Brian Wilson created a beautiful response to "Sgt. Pepper" and it never came out. Until now. Count your lucky blessings and soar in one of the most lustrous song cycles ever made.

• JIM FORD, "Harlan County" (Country Funk!; 1969)>
Sly Stone's friend, and ambassodor of Country Funk.

• 1970s •

• MARVIN GAYE, "What's Going On" (1971)
This is one of the greatest albums ever made.

• SUZI QUATRO, "Suzi Quatro" (1973)
The tightest, toughest album of the Queen of Glam Rock.

• STONE COAL WHITE, "Stone Coal White" (rare Funk Rock band)
Funkadelic had unsung Funk Rock rivals who deserve limelight, such as Purple/Image, Stone Coal White, Black Murder, The Next Morning, and Mothers Finest.

• "The Fame Studios Story: 1961-1973" (Muscle Shoals compilation)
Fame was the initial core of Muscle Shoals Soul, the Alabama counterpoint to Stax in Memphis. Everyone recorded there to bask in it, from Aretha to The Stones.

• PINK FLOYD, "Wish You Were Here" (1974)
One of the best records in Rock history.

• CRASS, The Remastered Albums (1977-84)
Punk was inherently political, but Anarcho-Punk bands like Crass went all the way, fighting for true revolution with every fibre.

• THE ROLLING STONES, "Some Girls" (1978)
Punk also kicked many of its forefathers into making tougher, more daring albums, like this career highlight.

• 1980s •

• ESG, "Come Away With ESG" (1983)
Minimalist Funk, from the NYC Downtown vanguard.>>

• 1990s •

• TALK TALK, "Laughing Stock" (1991)
In their span, Talk Talk arced from New Wave to Psyche Soul to finally Floyd-esque Art Rock. This album is the apex of that.

• U2, "Achtung, Baby" (1991)
The album where they ripped it up and started again.

• NIRVANA, "Nevermind" (1991)
The seismic impact of this album in the early-'90s was a big as The Beatles and as shocking as The Sex Pistols. Win-win.

• QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, "Queens Of The Stone Age" (1998)
The debut album from the Stoner Rockers.

© Tym Stevens

"A splendid time is guaranteed for all!"

Monday, January 23, 2012

BEST COMICS: 2011

STARSTRUCK

Shortcut links:
• Best Graphic Novel
• Best Comics
• Graphic Novels
• Best Collections/ Reissues
• • Where We Come From, Dept.
• Movies And TV

• Rest In Power

B E S T
G R A P H I C
N O V E L S :

• STARSTRUCK Deluxe Edition, by Elaine Lee, Michael Wm. Kaluta, and Lee Moyer ⇧

Still the smartest, funniest, and most creative series there is.

And this lavish, giant-sized omnibus packed with goodies blows all other competition away.

▶ STARSTRUCK Strikes Back!
▶ The Roots And Branches Of STARSTRUCK

B E S T
C O M I C S :

D C

• BATWOMAN, story by J.H. Williams III and W. Haden Blackman; art by J.H. Williams III/ Amy Reader ⇧ _______
The best of the best.

• SWAMP THING, by Jeff Lemire and Yanick Paquette _______
Pulls off the impossible, by bringing back all of the best elements of the Wein-Wrightson original, the Moore-Bissette-Totleben renaissance, and with a new sense of surprise. Astounding so far.

• ANIMAL MAN, by Todd Snyder and Travel Foreman _______
Matches the original heyday of Grant Morrison with better art and its own sophistication. A fine companion piece to the new SWAMP THING.

• ACTION COMICS, by Grant Morrison and Rags Morales _______
The 1938 Superman was a populist everyman who fought for the workers and took down the fatcats who lorded over them in the Depression.
The new Superman is again an avatar of the foreclosed, the downsized, and the penniless under the heels of the greed machine.
Look, up in the sky...it's our raised fists!

V E R T I G O

• THE UNWRITTEN, by Mike Carey and Peter Gross

M A R V E L

• ULTIMATE COMICS: SPIDER-MAN, by Brian Michael Bendis and Sara Pichelli ⇧ _______
While some jerks overreacted to a new Hispanic/African American Spider-Man, what we really got was a tender coming-of-age story of a charming teen kid starting his path to glory. Excellent all around. >

• MOON KNIGHT, by Brian Michael Bendis and Alex Maleev _______
Bendis and Maleev...hey, what more could you ask for?

T O P
S H E L F

• LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDIANARY GENTLEMEN: 1969, by Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neill ⇧ _______
Alan Moore takes on the literature and pop culture of late-'60s London.
A dream come true.

D A R K
H O R S E

• DOLLHOUSE: Epitaphs, by Jed Whedon, Maurissa Tancharoen, Andrew Chambliss, and Cliff Richards ⇧ _______

The DOLLHOUSE tv series reached its height with the shocking leap into a dystopian future in its final "Epitaph" episodes. The scriptwriters return to sketch out the deeper details of that future in this mini-series, with the promise of more to come.

B E S T
G R A P H I C
N O V E L S :

• HABIBI, by Craig Thompson ⇧ _______
BLANKETS (2003) was an intimate story with a wide canvas.
HABIBI is an intimate story on an epic scale that encompasses religions, countries, cultures, and gender. Ambitious and stunning.

• GREEN RIVER KILLER: A True Detective Story, by Jeff Jensen and Jonathan Case _______
Noted pop culture writer Jeff Jensen details the personal dimension of a notorious true-life case solved by his father.

• CELLULOID, by Dave McKean _______
One of the best fine artists in the field doing an experimental meditation on erotica.

• BATMAN: NOEL, by Lee Bermejo _______
Lee. Bermejo.

• NEONOMICON, by Alan Moore and Jacen Burrows _______
Alan Moore deconstructs and rethinks the H.P. Lovecraft mythos, turning its latent biases and psychological underthemes inside out into new fruition.

• FINDER: VOICE, by Carla Speed McNeil

• ANYA'S GHOST, by Vera Brosgol

• HARK! A VAGRANT, by Kate Beaton

• DAYTRIPPER, by Gabriel Ba

• LUCHADORAS, by Peggy Adam

B E S T
C O L L E C T I O N S :

• WONDER WOMAN Chronicles, vol.2, by Wm. Moulton Marston and H.G. Peter ⇧ _______
Moulton's 1940s proto-feminist parables are still light years ahead of any version of her done since, and Peter's nouveau art is still as wonderful as it is unsung. >

• MISS FURY Sensational Sundays 1944-49, by Tarpe Mills _______
The pioneering cartoonist given her proper retrospective.

• FIGURE DRAWING FOR ALL IT'S WORTH, by Andrew Loomis _______
The seminal illustrator's classic tutorial book is reprinted, with a foreward by his acolyte Alex Ross.

• WILLIE AND JOE, The WWII Years, by Bill Mauldin _______
Mauldin's cartoons from the front personified the grunt caught in the cogs, and were an early Neorealist window for the USA public on the realities of war.

• The Complete POGO, vol. 1, by Walt Kelly _______
The definition of smart art. Absolutely essential.

• Will Eisner's PS MAGAZINE, by Will Eisner _______
After his legendary run on "The Spirit", Eisner did 20 years of cartoon work for the U.S. Army.

• KAMANDI Omnibus, Vol. 1, by Jack Kirby _______
Jack Kirby in the early-'70s. Unbeatable.

• CREEPY Presents Bernie Wrightson, by Bernie Wrightson _______
WRIGHTSON's early horror work compiled.

• The Extraordinary Adventures of ADELE BLANC-SEC, Vol. 2, by Jacques Tardi _______
More fun with the taciturn adventurer.

• CHASE, by D. Curtis Johnson and J.H. Williams III _______
Fans may know Chase from BATWOMAN; this overdue volume collects all her early adventures, with art by J.H. WILLIAMS III.

• X-STATIX Omnibus, by Peter Milligan and Mike Allred _______
A huge compilation of their fun and satiric X-FORCE and X-STATIX series.

WHERE WE
COME FROM,
Dept.

• LILY RENEE, Escape Artist: From Holocaust Survivor to Comic Book Pioneer, by Trina Robbins _______
Historian emeritus Trina Robbins shines light on another creative woman who deserves her place in the pantheon.

• JOE SIMON: My Life In Comics, by Joe Simon _______
The dynamic duo of Golden Age Comics creators was Joe Simon and Jack Kirby. Listen up and learn.

• The Adventures of HERGE, by Jose-Louis Bocquet, Jean-Luc Fromental, and Stanislas Barthélémy _______
A biography of Herge done in the style of his beloved TINTIN books.

• The Art Of JOE KUBERT, by Bill Schelly; Joe Kubert _______
JOE KUBERT was an invaluable throughline from the Golden Age of Comics to the 21st Century.
His rustic line and human stories offset the slick in every era, and his School Of The Visual Arts trained droves of great comics creators.

_______________

• SUPERGODS, by Grant Morrison _______
Grant's insights on comic history are required reading.

(His judgement on Alan Moore is lacking, and can be corrected by reading...)

• ALAN MOORE: Storyteller, by Gary Spencer Millidge ⇧ _______
The most comprehensive overview on the multi-talented maestro, including an exclusive CD of his performance recordings.

B E S T
M O V I E S
+ T V :

I write and illustrate reviews of all comics-sourced films at the Four Color Films site.

- - - M O V I E S - - -

Super 8; Hugo; Tintin

• THOR _______
▶ Four Color Films review
Kenneth Branagh really went for it all. The Earth stuff was a little rushed, but Asgard was glorious.

• CAPTAIN AMERICA _______
▶ Four Color Films review
A refreshing surprise. No irony, no jingoism, just a great pulp adventure homage with all the right instincts.

• SUPER 8 _______
My personal favorite of the summer.

In the mid-'70s, science fiction films were declared dead. Then STAR WARS remade the movie industry like The Beatles revised music.> All those 13-year-old fans then made the pop culture of the next three decades. J.J Abrams brings it all full circle with this mysterious and tender homage to the 1977-1982 movies that ignited everything to come.

• HAUNTERS (S. Korea) _______
The bridge between UNBREAKABLE and PUSH. Sharply made, great characters, constant surprises, a rousing finish.

• HUGO _______
A beautiful love letter to early film and classic books. And perhaps the most thoughtful use of 3D yet seen.

• The Adventures Of TINTIN _______
▶ Four Color Films review
My old saw is, "Do Herge's actual clean-line style mapped onto CG puppets."
Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson did the opposite -wedding Herge's world to 3D realism, noir lighting, and Hitchcock angles- and pulled it off spectacularly. A breathtaking avalanche of smart fun.

• The Extraordinary Adventures Of ADELE BLANC-SEC (France) _______
▶ Four Color Films review
The grumbling adventurer gets a fine film treatment of her illustrated exploits by Luc Besson ("The Fifth Element").

- - - Good Also, Dept.: - - -
• GREEN LANTERN _______
> Four Color Films review
(Wait for it.) I like the 2/3 with the Lantern Corp and outer space.
The remaining third -the earthbound scenes with Hal and Carol- was hokey and cringe-inducing.

• SUPER _______
A bent Indie comedy take on what would really happen if you tried to be a superhero, featuring an unhinged Ellen Page.

• GRIFF THE INVISIBLE (Australia) _______
A modest take on homemade superheroes, with an engaging romance and some twists.

• X-MEN: First Class _______
> Four Color Films review
One-third of this movie is great (Michael Fassbender). Another third is generally good.
But the story is wildly uneven; the Civil Rights opportunity is inexcusably ignored; and reaching beyond 1962 to homage culture styles beyond it creates an anachronistic clusterfunk.

___________

- - - T V - - -

Game Of Thrones; Misfits; Fringe/Fringe

• GAME OF THRONES _______
Only 5% of this is 'Fantasy'. The other 95% is the best character drama about court intrigue one could imagine.

• MISFITS (U.K.) _______
The Sex Pistols of 'superheroes'. Sacrilegious and hilarious.

• FRINGE _______
X-FILES never paid-off any of its set-ups well. FRINGE always does, in an unwinding tapestry that only gets better as it goes.

• THE FADES (U.K.) _______
A supernatural thriller. Like reading one of the finest Vertigo Comics of 1993, with in-jokes galore.

___________

A N I M A T E D

• CHICO AND RITA (Spain/U.K.) ⇧ _______
Beautiful to watch, to listen to, and to feel. Wonderful.

• THE SECRET WORLD OF ARRIETTY (Japan) _______
Another gem from Studio Ghibli, this charming tale of miniature people is a winner all around. Smart, heart, art.

• BATMAN: BRAVE AND THE BOLD _______
Here, Bat-Mite points out that this show is a love letter to the Silver Age Of Comics. And he's right.
Before we got too dark and serious, comics used to be about fun, wonder, and impossible non-sequiters. This show brings all of that back with hyper zeal. It's great fun in all the right ways.

• BATMAN: Year One _______
An anime take on the classic Frank Miller/David Mazzucchelli origin. Effective, though Mazzucchelli's grittier artwork was more effective.

• FUTURAMA _______
Hey...It's Futurama!

___________

D O C U M E N T A R Y
• GRANT MORRISON: Talking With The Gods _______
Grand writer holds forth.

R E S T
I N
P O W E R

• Dwayne McDuffie
• Gene Colan
• Jerry Robinson
• Joe Simon

From you, we exist.
Because of you, we persist.

Friday, January 27, 2012

BEST MOVIES & TV: 2011

B E S T M O V I E S : 2 0 1 1

E R O S

T H I N K

S M I L E

D R E A M

N I G H T M A R E

G R A P H I C I M A G E S

A R T F L I X

B E S T D O C U M E N T A R I E S : 2 0 1 1

B E S T T V : 2 0 1 1

W O N D E R

U K

C O M E D Y

A N I M A T I O N

V I D E O B O X S E T S

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

BEST MUSIC: 2011, With Music Players!

ALL THE REAL MUSIC!

B E S T N E W A L B U M S : 2 0 1 1

C O O L S O N G S : 2 0 1 1

All the REAL MUSIC beyond the box!

B E S T R E I S S U E S : 2 0 1 1

• 1950s •

• 1960s •

• 1970s •

• 1980s •

• 1990s •

Monday, January 23, 2012

BEST COMICS: 2011

B E S T G R A P H I C N O V E L S :

B E S T C O M I C S :

D C

V E R T I G O

M A R V E L

T O P S H E L F

D A R K H O R S E

B E S T G R A P H I C N O V E L S :

B E S T C O L L E C T I O N S :

WHERE WE COME FROM, Dept.

B E S T M O V I E S + T V :

R E S T I N P O W E R

B E S T
M O V I E S :
2 0 1 1

G R A P H I C
I M A G E S

B E S T
D O C U M E N T A R I E S :
2 0 1 1

B E S T
T V :
2 0 1 1

V I D E O
B O X
S E T S

ALL THE
REAL MUSIC!

B E S T
N E W
A L B U M S :
2 0 1 1

C O O L
S O N G S :
2 0 1 1

All the REAL MUSIC
beyond the box!

B E S T
R E I S S U E S :
2 0 1 1

B E S T
G R A P H I C
N O V E L S :

B E S T
C O M I C S :

T O P
S H E L F

D A R K
H O R S E

B E S T
G R A P H I C
N O V E L S :

B E S T
C O L L E C T I O N S :

WHERE WE
COME FROM,
Dept.

B E S T
M O V I E S
+ T V :

R E S T
I N
P O W E R