SongExploder № 15: Brian Reitzell and “Watch Dogs”

Last updated on: October 28, 2015 at 2:50 pm By Joseph Susanka

Hrishikesh Hirway’s “SongExploder,” which I discovered through the crazy folks at MaximumFun.org, is one of my regular podcast stops. Described as “a podcast where musicians take apart their songs, and piece by piece, tell the story of how they were made,” it tends to focus on electronic music — which is a) unsurprising, given its stated interest in pulling apart/putting together, and b) not my genre of choice. However, it’s exactly the sort of “Man Behind the Curtain” thing that I love. So I listen to... Read more

Little-League Baseball in Big-League Wineskins

Last updated on: January 26, 2015 at 6:06 pm By Joseph Susanka

As I’ve remarked in the past, one of my favorite things about baseball is its unpredictability; its often mesmerizing and just as often hilarious unpredictability. But my favorite kind of mesmerizing–hilariously unpredictable thing is the one that involves Major Leaguers doing things that I myself (or my Little-League–playing kids) would do. Because along with being such a mesmerizing and hilarious thing, baseball is also The Ultimate Leveler. Everyone who plays it will be humbled by it, eventually. Just ask David Murphy:... Read more

CPE FTW!

Last updated on: March 17, 2017 at 2:58 pm By Joseph Susanka

This is a fantastic playlist. Also, a reminder: While there are occasionally new things under the sun, I never find them. My range of interests is shockingly (even embarrassingly) narrow. Which is why I have to double-check my list of Streaming Suggestions every time I post a new one, just in case I’ve already recommended it. And it’s also why I’ve done a whole ‘nother post on C.P.E. Bach and various awesome Longform YouTube links. (And yes, for the curious, I’ve had... Read more

SSF: “Malaria”

Last updated on: January 15, 2015 at 10:56 am By Joseph Susanka

This is the sort of thing that’s referred to as “mixed-media,” right? (And also as “Awesome.” To say nothing of “Ridiculously Imaginative.” Or “Quite Possibly the Best Simulation of Comic Book Sensibilities I’ve Ever Seen Captured on Film.” Which all apply, as well.) MALARIA tells the story of Fabiano, a young Mercenary who is hired to kill Death. This short film combines Origami, Kirigami, Time lapse, nankin illustration, Comic Books and Western Cinema. Despite the short’s visual and storytelling imaginativeness and its wonderful use of genre... Read more

SVS: “12 Angry Men”

Last updated on: January 12, 2015 at 5:34 pm By Joseph Susanka

Sidney Lumet’s legendary 12 Angry Men, currently streaming on NETFLIX INSTANT and available for rent on AMAZON PRIME, needs no introduction. So I’m not giving it one. (Boom!) Knowing full well that a guilty verdict means death, a jury of 12 men must decide the fate of an 18-year-old boy accused of killing his father. Lumet’s film is one of the finest examples of “Overcoming Cinematic Challenge” ever, answering the question of whether or not you can keep an audience interested in a story shot almost entirely within... Read more

Raising Meatatarians (Mostly)

Last updated on: January 18, 2015 at 4:48 pm By Joseph Susanka

During our most-recent vacation/cross-country trek/annual ordeal, I stumbled across an interesting (if hilariously unanticipated) side-effect of my sons’ speedy consumption of the latest and now-troubled season of “The Legend of Korra.” When we travel, we tend to stop at McDonald’s for meals. Fast food is a rarity for us, so it always feels like a bit of a reward for the boys. Plus, it’s…well…fast. And about as cheap and tidy a way to deal with the truly terrifying amounts of food required... Read more

Jeeves, Reading Wildely

Last updated on: March 17, 2017 at 3:04 pm By Joseph Susanka

Here’s a wonderful YouTube video of my man Jeeves (a.k.a. Stephen Fry) reading one of my favorite fairy tales of all time: Oscar Wilde’s “The Happy Prince:” “You have rightly chosen,” said God, “for in my garden of Paradise this little bird shall sing for evermore, and in my city of gold the Happy Prince shall praise me.” …and…um…I think I got something in my eye…a bit of dust, or something. I’m not a huge fan of the visuals associated with this recording, hence... Read more

Parked By the Jukebox with Great Big Sea’s “Heart of Hearts”

Last updated on: October 6, 2015 at 5:12 pm By Joseph Susanka

Great Big Sea is great big fun. They’ve been described as a “Canadian folk-rock band from Newfoundland and Labrador, best known for performing energetic rock interpretations of traditional Newfoundland folk songs including sea shanties, which draw from the island’s 500-year-old Irish, Scottish, and Cornish heritage,” and that pretty much nails it. Especially the “energetic” part. I can’t remember when I first heard them, though I suspect it was the folks at Pandora who slipped ’em out of the Great Unknown box and into my musical life to wreak... Read more

SSF: “Buy Buy Baby”

Last updated on: January 15, 2015 at 10:52 am By Joseph Susanka

I love the “old-timey” feel in this week’s short, Buy Buy Baby, which starts in the first few frames of the title and carries through all the way to the end credits. Even the length reminds me of those thrilling days (or Saturday mornings) of yesteryear. I was practically raised on this sort of thing. Great stuff. It’s the roaring twenties and things are looking great for Frederick Frinklesworth II and the rest of the New York Stock Exchange, but when his... Read more

SVS: “Galaxy Quest”

Last updated on: January 12, 2015 at 12:31 pm By Joseph Susanka

ALEXANDER DANE: Dear God… How did I come to this? TOMMY WEBER: Not again… ALEXANDER DANE: I played Richard III… FRED KWAN: Five curtain calls… ALEXANDER DANE: There were five curtain calls! I was an actor once, damn it. Now look at me … LOOK AT ME! I cannot go out there, and I won’t say that stupid line one more time. I can’t … And I won’t. Remember that time when I said that everyone should watch The Emperor’s New Groove ASAP and... Read more