I am sitting on my couch eating breakfast drinking coffee and also channel surfing. I stopped on VH1, John Mayer storytellers is on.
Now against my better judgement I like John Mayer. I am a sucker for tall boys who are funny. I don't particularly like his music, but I understand, he writes songs for upper-middle class house wives. Sappy love songs that seem really sweet. He does it well, they LOVE it.
But WOW some are not sugary sweet songs. He just got done singing "Daughters" which we all think is AWWW so sweet because no one pays attention to what a song is saying.He wrote the song because he was tired of dating girls with daddy issues.
HA!
You are such a douchebag John Mayer, it's kinda fucking fantastic.
For Xmas my friend Erin bought me a book I wanted called Touch Me I'm Sick: The 52 Creepiest Love Songs You've Ever Heard by Tom Reynolds "Your Body is a Wonderland" is among them. Which is what just came on so as I write about it I have to listen to it. This song is so awful and you know he wrote it just to get laid.
This book describes it best stating that Mayer is two people and the evil twin is the one responsible for these terrible things and the other is a crazy talented guitar player who wishes he was Stevie Ray Vaughn.
I will admit he is very talented and smoking hot. And I kinda like that new single "Who Says".
I had a really tough time with this list. I see A LOT of movies. Some are garbage, but most are good. When thinking of movies from the last decade I was underwhelmed so few that I was OMG BRILLIANT about.
Here are a few that stood out
Planet Terror
Robert Rodriguez will one day be part of my harem of husbands (he can be the XL size, but that is a story for another day). I saw "Grindhouse" opening weekend I WAS SO VERY EXCITED. I am glad we got to experience it with Death Proof. Honestly though this was 12342x better. Zombies and shooting and Freddie Rodriquez and Robert Rodriguez and Rose's machine gun leg! ROSE MCGOWAN HAS A MACHINE GUN FOR A LEG!! There was nothing for me NOT to love about this movie.
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
I have MAJOR crushes on both Jim Carrey AND Kate Winslet so I would have seen this movie even if it was terrible. Overall I like Michel Gondry as a director. His movies are always interesting and pretty to look at. This one is no different. I went and saw it by myself, then a few days later took The Boy. I SOBBED both times and do everytime I watch this. I love this story(so do others it won a screenplay Oscar). I love the fact that even if we erase someone from our memory sometimes fate brings us together anyway. (sometimes my girly-ness makes me want to puke)
Shaun of The Dead
Do you know me? Well if you do there is no need to explain this choice. I am pretty sure everyone who reads this knows me but just in case. I love horror movies, zombies are a close second to vampires. Pretty much I will see something if it has characters that were once dead and now are not and walk among us. I also enjoy a well made satire. None of that "Scary Movie" shit THIS is how you make a comedy that is also a wonderful homage to the zombie movies we all grew up with.
These 3 (l-r Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg and Nick Frost) are BRILLIANT! Do you follow them on Twitter? If you don't you should, if you don't have a Twitter you should JUST to follow them. Me? I would follow them all to the end of the earth, but I also have issues. But that is besides the point, they are HILARIOUS!! This movie is hilarious and bloody and would probably make my top list of all time not just the decade.
Hedwig and the Angry Inch
This one I am just going to use clips for because anything I say will sound like fangirl screaming at this point.
now I have to watch this and listen to the soundtrack today.
100% amazing. Just watch it, don't think about "musical" or "drag" because all it will do it make you miss one of the best films EVER.
Also if you ever get a chance to see a stage production of this DO IT.
Let the Right One In
Yeah I know, vampires are TOTALLY IN right now. So why did no one see this movie? Is it because it has subtitles? Or the only vampire in it is a pre-teen girl not a sparklely high school senior?
THIS film is BARELY a vampire movie. It is about love and friendship and growing old. And it's gorgeous and it's brilliantly written and I will VIOLENTLY PROTEST THE AMERICAN REMAKE!! WHY USA? WHY ARE YOU SO A-SCARED OF SUBTITLES? It's really a shame since Hollywood is totally going to ruin the beauty of this film.
There you go peeps. I have no idea why this was such a hard list. I even have RUNNERS UP: Moulin Rouge, Children of Men, Old Boy all could have been on this list if I had made it longer. But I am sticking with only 5.
This decade I rediscovered music it seems. As much as everyone seems to dislike the "emo" music I embraced it. Suddenly I could not get enough of the music that was being released and enjoyed more new music than I had in YEARS. It seemed the late 90's were a little too mellow and indie for me, maybe even too sad. Then suddenly that exploded into ANGST AND ANGER AND LOUD!!
I was a metal kid for all intents and purposes. But my favorite bands were always basic rock bands. The Replacements, Concrete Blonde, Soul Asylum, INXS... you get the idea. I also was SUPER into hair bands, but the sleazy LA kind: Faster Pussycat, LA Guns, Skid Row... less hair spray more cocaine and leather. Which led to my love of Hanoi Rocks, New York Dolls and Big Star.
It all makes sense now doesn't it.
So thank you 2000's for making me love music again
5. Cobra Starship
This is my favorite
The first time I heard Cobra Starship was live. I saw them open for 30 Seconds to Mars and Head Automatica. It was right after the first album came out. I walked in as the band before them was ending (they were kinda bad). Then this crazy looking group of kids took the stage. AND I WAS FLOORED. I made sure I bought a CD on the way out, I dug it, then thought nothing more. When Viva La Cobra came out is when I was hooked. They are fun and ridiculous and THEY have fun.
Cobra shows are some of the most fun experiences EVER, you shake your butt off and I usually come home with 1/2 my voice. I will always prefer seeing them live than on CD. And I am so ::sniff:: proud that this year as been so great from them.
4. The Dresden Dolls/Amanda Palmer
I picked this song because I love it and also love Jools Holland
Living in Boston the Dresden Dolls had been on the local scene for a bit, I had heard about them but had never had a chance to see them. I gave them a listen and was impressed by how different and pretty damn amazing they were.
Last year Amanda Palmer released a solo album that was one of the best things I had ever heard. It made my top albums of last year. If you do not have it go get in now then do the same with the Dresden Dolls albums. You will not be sorry.
3. The Used
Pretty much I love everything about The Used.
I wish I could say I loved them the second I heard them, but I didn't I actually HATED it. Bert's voice got on my nerves so I never gave it a second listen. Then I heard "I Caught Fire" somewhere and was all "Who is THIS?" so I went back and realized I must have been high on crack the first time I listened to them since it was OBVIOUSLY wonderful.
The thing I love about them the most is that they are sort of jerks, but in a nice way. That makes no sense, I know. But I feel like they do make music for themselves and are glad that people like it. Too many artists make music for people and hope they (the band) like it.
They are also HILARIOUS.
It is embarrassing how many times I have watched this.
2. My Chemical Romance
Since I always use "I'm Not Okay (I Promise)" I will use this, my second favorite MCR song to sign at the top of my lungs in the car
This will not be the "They saved my life OMG!!" because they didn't, but I love them. Love that their songs are amazing, love that they are dorks. Everything I read, see or hear from/about them makes me love them a little more.
For a bit I tried to resist them and it was useless. You sound like that and and like comic books, horror movies and were an outsider as a kid? Yeah, it was useless to try it all had been decided for me.
1. Butch Walker
it's really not fair to put this here since he has been putting out music for years but started putting out solo albums this decade SO IT TOTALLY COUNTS!!
Again trying to share something that I have not used a trillion times.
This man :::sigh::: the songs are perfect always, he is one of the most genuine and amazing people I have ever met. Seeing him preform is something I crave and never doesn't send chills up my spine and often brings me to tears.
Yep, Butch Walker... forever #1 (and I will always find a loophole to make it so.)
This year started with me seeing Butch, next month I see The Used. Both MCR and Butch are putting out new albums in the next couple of months. What does this mean? That I will be taking LOTS of time off to "go on tour" lol
So I am sitting here not watching the last two weeks of Doctor Who. Since as just mentioned to the ElleVee if I don't see it it is not happening. I ENJOY MY DENIAL!!
Anyway while Boy watches something about the world ending in 2012 I figured I would finally do some of these "Best of..." lists
I do love a good list AND countdown. Who am I to deny others like me.
SOOOOO! Going to do 3 of these. TV, Movies & Music. Since what else is there?
TV is first.
Television is used to escape my everyday life. This is why I do not enjoy "Life Without People" or "Things That COULD HAPPEN WITH THE WEATHER THAT WILL END THE WORLD OMG". We do not acknowledge Animal Planet even exists in my house. TV is not for learning. (PS. Who told Willie Nelson to sell his song to the MSPCA? Really?)
The exception that proves this rule is A & E, Hoarders and Intervention are GENIUS! I don't watch them often anymore since they both make me upset. Like in a skin crawly "I can't get clean enough" sort of way.
Shall we begin? Let's....
My Top 5 Shows of the Last Decade!!
5. Glee
really the only reason this is at the bottom is because it has only been on a 1/2 season. It turns out Fox is a BITCH anbout copyright and there are NO show clips of the songs on You Tube. This is a fan vid. I love Finn best. y'all can HAVE Kurt and Puck.
This show is BRILLIANT and I already owed Ryan Murphy my soul now I am going to have to go on a payment plan or something.
4. Torchwood and Doctor Who
OH WAIT THAT IS NOT FROM THE SHOW!!!!
Much better.
I put off watching Doctor Who for a very long time. It reminded me of my parents and the "weird" things they watched after I went to bed. The Theme song STILL kinda creeps me out.
Then I started watching Torchwood. Capt Jack Harkness, the perfect imperfect hero/leader. I was sucked in very quickly, watched the first series within a week. It was all over. My friend Gary! (who is dalekg on twitter and has an old school Doctor Who fan club card) informed me I should watch the last few episodes of the most recent season of Doctor Who since there was some Torchwood crossover.
That was the end. It is all SO VERY CLEVER and Gary! is very proud of my progress.
Both of these shows broke my heart this year.
3. Skins
Skins is what the new 90210 wishes is was. One of the BEST shows at representing teenagers EVER (second only to Freaks and Geeks). S3 was a little bit of a let down, I LOOOOOOVED the kids from S1&2 these kids are terrible and I barely like a couple and hate the rest. But I still watch everyone and wish I had thought of this when I was 18-19 (which is how old the creator of this was).
And that awkward kid from "About a Boy" grew up NICE... it makes me feel dirty.
2. True Blood
Yes, in two seasons it is THAT good
for anyone who has known me for any amount of time knows I have a thing for vampires and the horror genre in general. This show NAILED it. I had not read the books so it was fresh to me (I have since read 2 and have all that have been published on the "TO READ" shelf).
I should not have been surprised. Alan Ball is good. But TV is not known for doing this well, unless Joss Whedon is involved. (See: Moonlight, sigh... I wanted that to be good). This is just the right mix of sexy and violent. Just like a vampire show should be.
1. Supernatural
SHOCKER!!!
BEST. SHOW. EVER. (that is not Buffy)
Have I convinced you to watch this yet? No?
Let me tell you it is funny and scary and perfect. The writing is good. They poke just enough fun at the fans and themselves. They have been able to keep up as time goes on (for a epic fail of this see Heroes). Nothing about this is bad. NOTHING.
And seriously two of the hottest sweetest boys on the planet star on it.
Go watch the first season, you will want to keep going. Promise.
Now like Heroes I have lost my momentum. I will return later in the week for the other parts of this.
