Saw Shame with Hot_bid when he came out here, what a fucking movie. I've actually thought about it quite a bit since then. Fassbender was fucking class.

edit: probably want to write more about this later. a little drunk now. so glad you mentioned it though. its just been sitting in my head for days.

BroOd

Austin10833 Posts

January 24 2012 11:06 GMT

#67

also, take this fwiw, but word on the street is Ross's story is mostly BS. drug deal gone bad is the story.

TOCHMY

Sweden1692 Posts

January 24 2012 11:45 GMT

#68

Real Estate is so good! :D Love your blogs man!

surfinbird1

Germany999 Posts

January 24 2012 12:20 GMT

#69

Man, 9 really got me.

zul

Germany5427 Posts

January 24 2012 12:21 GMT

#70

I always like your blogs, but this time I got to disagree with your shoe paragraph

the ones you linked look to "old" and not fresh at all. Even if they aren`t black they are very stiff and don`t work for any casual outfit. You don`t need to wear sportshoes or sneaker to have a fresh look, there are lots of different options.

- [image loading]

(I own a pair of these and they go well with everything)

In the end I just want this post to extend your great blog and not to bash a part of it.

looking forward to the next edition.

zatic

Zurich15366 Posts

January 24 2012 12:25 GMT

#71

So much stuff wow. Will definitely watch Shame!

emperorchampion

Canada9496 Posts

January 24 2012 12:30 GMT

#72

Long over due :p

Kompicek

Czech Republic245 Posts

January 24 2012 12:53 GMT

#73

Great blog, great albums, thanks!

Daigomi

South Africa4316 Posts

January 24 2012 13:34 GMT

#74

Awesome blog as always. I don't share your love for Real Estate, but other than that I love all your top albums. The RapGenius link was brilliant. When asked why I like hip hop (which no-one in SA listens to), I always tell people that I love it because the lyrics are clever (not necessarily intelligent, but clever) and because of the clevernessl, there's a ton of replay value. Every time I listen to an album I pick up some new reference that I didn't hear the previous time.

Also, I'm happy to say that 2 weeks ago I purchased shoes that look exactly like the pair you posted:

[image loading]

I haven't had too many opportunities to wear them yet, but I'm planning to wear them as often as possible.

rod-

Norway379 Posts

January 24 2012 13:51 GMT

#75

Only blog I read, again lots of awesome things to read and think about.
Ross is one strong guy, that xray was sick.

Also agree about the shoes, I have a pair of the Double Monk you linked, and another one I can't remember the name of. Easy way to look good is indeed the shoes.

Slardar

Canada7596 Posts

January 24 2012 13:54 GMT

#76

Thanks JWD, normally I was never super keen on these blogs, guess it's an acquired taste, I'm slowly getting used to. ^^

The shoe part was classy, I also usually only recognize a few of your 10 top albums at best which is disappointing. Listening to SBTRKT now, not so bad. Chill and catchystep, but I prefer the traditional wubwub.

JWD

United States12607 Posts

January 24 2012 14:03 GMT

#77

@Node: I'm glad you raised Grouper's albums since I love Grouper but never gave them a real shot. it's just so hard for me to get into ambient music because when I comb my library for something to listen to, I'm usually in the mood to devote a large % of my attention to music-listening. if I need to fall asleep at night I listen to podcasts or old Loveline episodes. maybe tomorrow night I will switch to those Grouper albums. I'm a big fan of Dragging a Dead Deer...

@Boes: lol I feel your frustration in ranking albums. in 2011 I didn't run across any clear standouts, so I focused more on subjective meaning to me.

love your thrift shop story. finding gems at thrift shops is a hard thing to do, since all of the shops that tend to have them will also tend to be totally combed over.

thanks for posting the J.Crew link. I have some sweaters that I really like from J.Crew, and a few pairs of the dressier "urban slim fit" chinos got me through work this past summer (no $$$ for something nicer). my main beef with J.Crew is that its shirts don't fit me whatsoever — kind of a boxy cut, and the sleeves are super short. do you find this? my arms are extra long, so maybe J.Crew is actually sized reasonably. last time I tried on a shirt at a J.Crew, the guy working there advised me that I should buy it despite the sleeve problem, and just always cuff the sleeves to hide the clownlike fit. sure dawg.

@chambertin: as I mentioned in PM, the point in the interview that you mention is at about 6:20 in. it's a great bit from McQueen, especially "why is a naked person more shocking than someone's head being blown off?" McQueen has this spot on conviction that sex/nudity should be a more acceptable subject because it's something we're all so familiar with. like, how weird is it that Shame is the only movie I've ever seen that really broaches the subject of male sexuality?

I've also got to say that I would have been super super pissed if there were some idiots in the theater sniggering during the movie's tense moments. what were they laughing at? I'm guessing some of the masturbation scenes. ha ha ha, it's a dude doing something dudes do every day.

@sob3k: I totally agree re: Street Halo; the boringness and rehashing is kind of why I included it

see, I only got into Burial this year (Untrue got so much play from me) so, to my ears, Street Halo was just a bit more of this great sound I'd only recently discovered. it's in my list sort of as a proxy for Untrue, which probably got most playtime on the year (but wasn't a 2011 album).

@Bobo_ ahhhh you're going to have a great time. Real Estate have a fantastic live sound and they seem like such nice guys.

@Belial88 thanks for the thoughts man. half the reason I post these blogs is because I like to get reactions like this. it's such a great reality check to have someone who can explain himself disagree. you raise a good point about how an ugly PC is easily disguised. I suppose (as I mentioned briefly in another comment) I had more in mind handheld electronics like phones and laptops. here my point is less strong though, cause there are some very attractive Android phones. (the Apple fan in me wants to say that these phones are just ripping off Apple's design aesthetic, but one way or another they're certainly decent-looking.)

your final point, about wanting every $ to go towards performance, is almost exactly one of the things I was trying to raise in that post. there just aren't that many people who care to spend on "good design" anymore, maybe. I couldn't even begin to tell you whether this is an "objectively" good thing, but it can be frustrating for someone who does want his $100 to go towards a better-looking product. while there are lots of options for performance, there seem not to be so many for nice-looking or distinctively designed products (at least in consumer electronics).

the guy making the weird sounds is doing pretty impressively accurate (to my layman's ear) impressions of typewriters. his name is Michael Winslow. you can read a bit more here

@loazis: this is really interesting. maybe there is a totally different "shoe culture" where you live. do these girls explain their thinking? no girl I've dated recently has made any recommendations for my wardrobe (kind of a bummer I guess, since I can always use one).

@Brood: Fassbender just crushed it, I agree. please do share your thoughts about the movie.

"word on the street"?? I'm intrigued. source? if that is the case, I wonder how Ross escaped police scrutiny so easily (or maybe there's a lot of lying there, too). the kid would have to be a world-class yarn-spinner! he sells it really fucking well.

@zul: thanks for posting man. it's cool to get some tips from other TLers in here, too. those shoes are not my style but I think they look sweet in your top photo there. I got into this a bit in OP, but I guess my blog is pretty targeted at people who face dressing requirements (i.e. what's appropriate given our locations of work/play) as me. so the main reason I wouldn't recommend a shoe like the ones you posted to a peer right now is just that there is no way I could get away with wearing something so casual to work (in NYC those shoes are also pushing it for a nice restaurant/bar/club). obviously not everyone faces the specter of a business formal type workplace, though ^^

edit: one thing I do need to object to is that you can't wear the shoes I posted with any casual outfit. like I wrote in OP, I wear my AEs with jeans almost every day. sometimes jeans and a t-shirt. the shoes go a long way to keep me from feeling like I'm dressed like a bum.

@Daigomi: have you listened to this track? can't stop playing it.

ZisforZerg

United States224 Posts

January 24 2012 14:14 GMT

#78

your blogs are awesome ^_^

hotblackdesiato

Canada74 Posts

January 24 2012 14:20 GMT

#79

Love it! Trials of the Past by SBTRKT is probably my favourite song of the year.

infinity2k9

United Kingdom2397 Posts

January 24 2012 14:24 GMT

#80

Some 2011 albums since you seem to like certain bass music and have a James Blake quote and mention Burial; but only go as far as the artists well-known in indie circles. Which sucks because their output is not as interesting anymore.

Machinedrum - Room(s) (Planet Mu)
Silkie - City Limits Vol. 2 (Deep Medi)
Kuedo - Severant (Planet Mu)
LOL - Me Me (Nonplus)
Sepalcure - Sepalcure (Hotflush)
Hyetal - Broadcast (Black Acre)

Others might suggest Rustie, Hudson Mohawke, Blue Daisy, Author, Pinch & Shakleton, Marytn, Irrelevant, Damu, Phaeleh who all also had LPs out and were all rated well, but those 6 were personally my preferred ones. Was a great year so many different directions being taken with influences from all over.