Hi all, just a reminder; the new episode of Dollhouse (the greatest show currently on television) airs tonight at 9/8c on Fox. It's the second episode of the series, so if you missed last week's, this will still be a great jumping-on point (in fact, any of the first six episodes make great jumping-on points, as they're all relatively stand-alone). In case you miss it, you'll be able to watch online after it airs at Hulu and FOX.com. (You can also watch last week's debut episode at either of those places right now!) Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, which airs directly before it, is also a really great show, so you might want to check it out, too. Finally, episodes of Dollhouse can be purchased for download at iTunes and Amazon, if you prefer that method of viewing.
Jeff and Fabio just got eliminated! Gotta suck for Jeff, since he was clearly in the top 3 for the elimination challenge and still got sent packin'. And I'm gonna miss Fabio, even if I didn't always love him. I didn't think this show would ever again reach the peak of Season 2 (not that it hasn't been good since then, really really good in fact, just not that exceptionally good), but everybody in this season has been so talented and interesting that it's really hurting to see them go.
So, looks like I haven't been posting too much lately (again). I have, however, been listening to and/or buying a lot of new music and catching up on a lot of great albums from last year that I missed (Cars by Now, Now Every Children, Waited Up 'Til It Was Light by Johnny Foreigner, Life Processes by ¡Forward, Russia!, Rearrange Beds by An Horse, Common Reaction by Uh Huh Her). Expect posts in the near future on the following:
i've also been listening to a lot of old (well, older) music - The Smiths, New Order, Sonic Youth. i picked up the New Order Singles compilation and Washing Machine by Sonic Youth (mostly because, since hearing that amazing Yeah Yeah Yeahs cover, i've been curious to check out the original Diamond Sea). it's interesting to me how i can listen to a band like, say, Bloc Party, whom i adore, and be absolutely blown away, but when i go to listen to some of their most major influences (ie. Radiohead, Joy Division, New Order, The Smiths, Sonic Youth, Smashing Pumpkins, Weezer, Pixies), the music that must have inspired them the same way they do me, i often don't connect with it (or at least, not nearly as much). i was at a record store in Calgary (Sloth Records, nifty place, check it out) and saw a bunch of those Smiths reissued 7" singles. they were $14 each (some with a b-side, some without) so i didn't pick any up, but i kinda think i should've just randomly grabbed one that i had never heard, just so i could put it on the turntable when i got home and hear something new, and maybe recapture some of that feeling that kids in the 80s must have had when they heard Morrissey's voise for the first time.
Dollhouse, the new show from writer/director Joss Whedon (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly, Serenity, and a whole bunch of other awesome things), premiered last Friday on Fox. In case you missed it, you can watch the full episode below via Hulu (unfourtunately only if you're in the US, although international viewers can use Hotspot Shield to bypass that restriction). For those who don't know, here's the premise; somewhere in LA, a very illegal organization operates what is known as the Dollhouse, in which volunteers' memories and personalities are wiped clean, allowing them to be imprinted with new personas. These "Actives", as they are called, are rented out to extremely wealthy and well-connected clients, who can have them be absolutely anyone they want them to be. "Engagements" can be sexual, romantic, criminal - literally anything the client desires. Amidst this, one of the Actives, Echo (Eliza Dushku, Buffy, Tru Calling), is slowly beginning to become aware of her situation and the fact that she does, in fact, exist.
Dollhouse - Season 1/Episode 1 "Ghosts"
(Embedded video may not display properly; if so, just click on it to watch directly at Hulu. If you prefer, episodes can also be viewed on FOX.com, and can be purchased from iTunes and Amazon Video on Demand).
Joss has never disappointed, and after only one episode, I'm already in love with this show. I can't recommend highly enough that you watch it; if you like funny, tragic, intelligent, dramatic, emotional storytelling, brilliant dialogue, and intensely humanized characters brought to life by some incredible actors (and who wouldn't?), it doesn't get any better than this. Anyways, since this is after all a music blog, here're a couple of tunes from the show:
(Complete with (very) poorly photoshopped fake album artwork! If anybody here has better image editing software/grpahic design skillz than me (which would be pretty much everyone), feel free to give it shot and post your work in the comments. My iTunes cover flow will thank you.)
30 seconds long and sooo damn catchy. Sexy, dark and mysterious. Fits the show perfectly. Note that this was Zamzar'd from this video clip, resulting in very slight (ie. unnoticeable) audio degradation. Fox had a music video for the full version of this song (with lyrics!) up on their site for about a day, but it's since been taken down. Hopefully it'll be released on iTunes soon.
Kindly ripped from Fox's rather cool Echo Chamber promo site by Mel_Anton at Whedonesque. I'm not 100% sure this was actually composed by Rob Simonsen & Mychael Danna, since it's uncredited on the site, but it does sound a lot like the score from the actual show, so I figure it's probably by the series' composers.
Aaand finally, go here to watch the music video for "Just Dance" by Lady Gaga, the song Echo dances to near the beginning of the ep in a rather stunning dress that, as noted by a Whedonesque commenter, is probably illegal in some states.
This blog is about the shared experience of discovering music you love. If you enjoy the tunes, please support the artists. If you represent the copyright ownership of a file posted and would like it removed, email me at htprtf@gmail.com and it will kindly be done.
