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Music |
Film |
Decision |
| 1. |
A Girl Called Eddy - self-titled
- Of all the albums I stumbled across while exploring ITunes this year, this self-titled debut album feels the most like a record that I will be treasuring for years to come.
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Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind
- I really dig the movies that Charlie Kaufman writes, but this one is my favorite thus far. I have wondered how this movie would have been different if Spike Jonze had directed it, but I know that I don't have the faculties to figure that one out. Michel Gondry did a fantastic job with a very complex script.
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I don't suppose that I should be surprised that the showdown between the number one's is a tought one to call. They both seem to have what it takes to stick around for a long time, but in the end it's hard to beat a great album.
Advantage: Eddy
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| 2. |
Mates Of State - Team Boo
- Though A Girl Called Eddy had my favorite album this year, the Mates Of State would definitely be the band I was most excited to find while wandering around ITunes. I have since found two other of their albums, and I adore almost every song of theirs that I get my hands on.
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Garden State
- Before last year, Zach Braff appeared to be a fairly funny fellow in a sit-com, and little more. But now I see him as more of a leading contender to become the supreme commanding uber-master of the future of movie-making. Perhaps I overstate my point. But when I consider that he wrote and directed and starred in this movie — all the while realizing that this is his first movie — I cannot help but be very impressed and amazed.
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Where the first battle pitted two masterpieces against each other, this one seems to boil down to a match between the artists themselves. This might be a little unfair since there are two Mates Of State and just one Zach Braff. Moreover the husband-wife combo made music that elated me as much as anything last year.
Advantage: Mates
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| 3. |
They Might Be Giants - The Spine
- The Giants live. This was great news in a year that felt a bit short on good news. Wouldn't it be understandable if these guys petered out to the point where you only wanted to remember their earlier albums? We can't really expect them to still be as exciting and eclectic and original and rocking as they were ten or fifteen years ago, can we? Apparently we can.
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The Incredibles
- I believe a number of people have already made the observation that Pixar has done it again. But if I may, I would like to add this: Pixar has finally done it. This is a real movie with real feelings first; and beyond that it is another great animated movie from the genius folk at Pixar. In a year when I had more sense, I would have made this my favorite movie of the year.
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Music has won the first two showdowns, but the war is far from over. Did I mention that The Incredibles feels like a number one movie? I think even the two Johns would be skeptical if I reversed this decision.
Advantage: superhero cartoon
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| 4. |
Loretta Lynn - Van Lear Rose
- Was I the only person baffled to learn that Loretta Lynn made a record with Jack White of The White Stripes? During the intervening months the shock has subsided, and in it's place I find awe. I'm talking about a whole buttload of awe. If there is anyone who can really shine through on a raw Jack White production, it is the legendary Loretta Lynn.
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The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou
- It's OK: you don't have to like this movie as much as I do. And apparently it's a good thing, becuase a bunch of people seem to like it less than I do. Since I'm a really big fan of Wes Anderson and his style of movie-making, I went to this movie hoping to see Wes's style shine through one more 'gain. It had irony, it had wit, it had heart, it had eclectic images, it had great characters, and it had charm. I was not disappointed. More than that, I was so not disappointed to the point of giddiness.
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How do you size up this showdown? Is it Jack White versus Wes Anderson? Is it Loretta Lynn versus Bill Murray? Does Mark Mothersbaugh's contribution get pitted against "Portland, Oregon"? Does it make sense to compare an album to a movie in the first place? Of course it doesn't. I have no other recourse but to fall back on the Laws of Conservation of Matter, Energy, and Good Mojo.
Advantage: push
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| 5. |
The Innocence Mission - Now The Day Is Over
It's well-documented that The Innocence Mission are my favorite band in all the land. They make peaceful and beautiful music all day and all night long. Well now they've made this album of lullabies, and it is truly wonderful. When peaceful bands do lullabies, you lose track of the precise time when waking becomes dreaming.
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Shaun Of The Dead
I'm not a horror movie buff. I know this because my friend Frank is a rabid horror movie buff, and I know practically nothing about horror movies compared to him. Shaun Of The Dead is somewhat of an homage to the horror genre, I'm led to believe. Let me mention what I do know about this movie - I love it. It's so funny and so well-written. It's got zombies and it's got a love story, and neither of them is cheesy. You've got to see it to believe it.
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I think that this album and this film are as diametrical as any combatants could be on these lists of mine. It seems that the only way that these two things are related is that I really enjoy both of them. How can I pick a winner? The question is moot: my whims have spoken.
Advantage: British zombies
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| 6. |
The Bad Plus - Give
- If you grew up listening to country and/or rock on the radio like I did, how do you get any exposure to jazz and then make your way to being a jazz enthusiast? One possible answer: go to college. That might have worked for me, but the only jazz I got much exposure to in college was that modern jazz sound... is it called jazz fusion? I didn't really take to it. Here's a better answer: The Bad Plus. This three-piece blends elements of rock and jazz extremely well. I got hooked on this album, and then scavenged everything else I could find by them. So from The Bad Plus you can transition to John Coltrane and Charlie Parker, and then you're good to go, right?
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Anchorman
- Will Ferrell kills me. Not only does he have a great comedy mind, but he's not afraid to make himself look absolutely ridiculous. It pays off so often, and it paid off plenty in Anchorman. The supporting cast really threw themselves into their roles too. Steve Carell is just ridiculously funny, as he was in Bruce Almighty, as he always was on The Daily Show. My only complaint is that the song "Afternoon Delight" is now permanently lodged in my brain. At least now our minds are fertile with new expressions for awful smells.
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The Bad Plus opened up a whole new sub-genre of music for me: a sub-genre I don't even know the name for. Anchorman was really great, but I fully expected that.
Advantage: cutting-edge music
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| 7. |
Alison Krauss and Union Station - Lonely Runs Both Ways
- This album came out a little late in the year, so the seventh spot was quite a climb for this latest offering from this group that has sort of become the bluegrass version of the Chamber of Commerce. When we talk about the legends of bluegrass, we usually start with Bill Monroe and end with some other really old white guy. How long will it be before we start putting AKUS on that list too?
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Spider-Man 2
- When we talk about the legends of superhero movies, we usually start with Bill Monroe and... wait, wrong column. When we talk about the legends of superhero movies, we usually start with Superman, go to Batman, and then we scatter in a few different directions. Spider-Man 2 makes a really strong case for Sam Raimi, Tobey Maguire, and the rest of the Spider-Man franchise for induction in this imaginary society that I made up in my head just now. Heck, Spider-Man could move to the front of the head table if they can bring us at least a couple more compelling sequels without the ilk of Joel Schumacher stepping in.
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Somebody said that Spider-Man 2 was easily the best movie of the year. Though I obviously haven't gone that far, I am very curious to see what else Sam Raimi has up his sleeve. I see promise.
Advantage: Webslinger
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| 8. |
Seekonk - For Barbara Lee
- I once mentioned in The Theme To 13D that I thought this album was the ultimate expression of mellow, gentle agression. I must have been way more lucid that night than I am tonight, because I can't think of anything good to add to that. Wait... how about this: this album sounds like the smell of morning coffee. Hmmm... I need some sleep. And a good, solid education wouldn't hurt either.
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Friday Night Lights
- Well, this little film paints quite a picture, doesn't it? I was glad this movie didn't turn out to be a Texas high school version of The Replacements. All of the acting in this was just superb, and... hey, did y'all notice that this had that same kid from Sling Blade? He still kind of talks the same, doesn't he. What? Oh, right. Good cinematography, this one.
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I really liked Friday Night Lights, but I wouldnt' want a sequel of it or anything like that. I definitely want to see a second and third and fourth album from Seekonk. Good luck with the label search, guys.
Advantage: band named after a city
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| 9. |
Linford Detweiler - Unspoken Requests
- Let's go ahead and answer your first question: Linford is the writer / piano-player / husband-of-Karin member of Over The Rhine. In 2003 I went completely ga-ga for OTR's Ohio album. In the absence of a new OTR album this last year, I picked up Linford's piano album on a fancy. It turned out to be the most pleasant instrumental album I've picked up in a long time.
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Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow
- A great many folks seem to have been distracted by all that they knew about the making of this movie. Maybe I spend too much time in front of a computer monitor, but I wasn't distracted at all by the knowledge that all the acting was being done in front of a blue screen. The only recurring thought I had during this flick was about how much it felt like an old sci-fi movie. It was magnificent, and it had giant robots. If I could create anything that would cause anybody to say "It was magnificent, and it had giant robots" about it, I would be happier than Gwyneth Paltrow's tank top.
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Well, I don't suppose I can think of any scenario where a man in glasses has a chance against giant robots and Gwyneth.
Advantage: Cloud Commander and the Future of Earth
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| 10. |
Patti Griffin - Impossible Dream
- I could listen to Patti Griffin roar, whisper, shriek, sob, sell, teach, or read the obituaries, just so long as one of us has the right tune in our head. Impossible Dream is a long draw on a summer sunset, and listening to it again on a cold January night reminds me of the seasons when daylight lasts longer than it does these days. Good gravy this album makes me sentimental, doesn't it?
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Starsky and Hutch
- If Owen and Ben were destined to star in a movie version of a 70's sit-com, I'm glad it was this instead of Chico And The Man or Barney Miller. I don't imagine Vince Vaughn could have handled the part of Fish anyway. This movie did a good job of delivering what we could hope to get from this cast for this tribute flick. Strong work, one friend might say.
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Maybe I ranked Patti's album a little lower than it deserves, but I don't see this as being a very difficult decision.
Advantage: m'lady
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| 11. |
Viva Voce - The Heat Can Melt Your Brain
- Keeping up with this band is hard work. They don't seem to be looking for any big labels that can give them a distribution deal. It appears that they are more than content making incredibly catchy rock albums in the comfort of their own home. Sounds like one great gig, come to think of it. I hope there are plenty of folks like me who are willing to put forth the effort it takes to keep up with them.
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Dodgeball
- This is the movie we talk about the most at work these days. "If you can dodge a stapler, then you can dodge a ball", we'll often jest. We have the five tenets of dodgeball written on the big white board in our area. If I could get past the fact that Vince Vaughn should not be trying to show a range of emotion — it ain't happening — I might call this a great comedy film.
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"Pepper needs new shorts, Cotton." It's not often that a line that beautiful gets written sans divine inspiration.
Advantage: the movie with a pirate in it
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| 12. |
U2 - How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb
- This was the first time in about ten years that I really anticipated a new U2 album. All That You Can't Leave Behind was the first great U2 album in a long time, so I was dying to see what they would bring to the table next. Well I'm glad to report that there's plenty to enjoy on this record. It's really great to have you back, guys.
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Finding Neverland
- I misunderstood the first preview or two about this movie. I thought this was another Peter Pan movie, and I did not get excited to see it. Luckily I read up about the movie, and I came to realize that it was actually a movie about the guy who wrote Peter Pan: that's more like it. What a great movie! You've got to love the kids in this movie, don't you? This is the second movie on my annual list that stars Kate Winslet, and it's the second Peter Pan-related movie to have Dustin Hoffman in it. Coincidence?
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Wow, this is a pretty hefty bout considering its rank on the list. There's only one way to settle this one: a fight to the death. Does anyone think that Johnny Depp, two women, and several British children stand a chance against four Irishmen?
Advantage: Adam, Larry, Bono, and the Edge
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| 13. |
Phoenix - Alphabetical
- I was so enamored with Lost In Translation and its soundtrack; I ferreted out as many albums as I could find from the artists featured on the soundtrack. Phoenix was a tough one: I didn't find much music of theirs until Alphabetical was released. Not only can Sofia write and direct a great film, but she also has great taste in bands.
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Sideways
- After a few months of watching previews for this movie, I had a hunch that I would really like this one. Paul Giamatti earned street cred in my book with American Splendor, and Sideways just solidifies his standing as one of my favorite actors.
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Wouldn't you know it: a 13-round match is on the brink of finishing in a tie because I couldn't pick a winner in the fourth. It started out looking like music would win in a landslide. Later I took a quick glance down the list and thought that film might edge out a victory. Not this year. In the end, everything evens out for me.
Advantage: me, because 2005 can't hurt half as bad as 2004 did.
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