A Rave for Radin

23 Nov

I hadn’t really heard of Joshua Radin before my friend Fidge asked me a couple weeks ago if I’d be interested in going with her to his concert at the House of Blues here in Boston. I said yes, and I’ll admit that after listening to his two albums, and finding his music pleasant but maybe a little too low key for my tastes, I didn’t really have high hopes for the show. But I have to say, Radin’s an awfully talented and engaging live performer and I really did enjoy the concert. Sure, he started the show by singing the one song I knew best, “Brand New Day,” but his voice and lyrics really impressed me and kept me entertained for the entire 90-minute set.

Maybe you’ve heard of Radin because his song “Today” was Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi’s wedding song. His music has also been featured on Grey’s Anatomy and Scrubs, and on the soundtrack for the movie The Last Kiss (most likely because he’s Zach Braff’s good buddy). Radin’s music is similar to that of Jeremy Fisher or Josh Kelley, which is to say it’s chick-friendly, guitar-strumming, sensitive-guy singer/songwriter tuneage, with a sound not unlike modern-day Simon & Garfunkel. It’s “whisper rock,” the kind of music you can “put your babies and dogs asleep to,” as Radin himself described it on Sunday night. Yes, it’s mostly mellow stuff, the kind you might hear in a coffee shop on any given night, but in Radin’s case, it’s quite good … if you like that sort of thing. (And for the record — no pun intended — his most recent release is called Simple Times.)

Radin’s show Sunday night was like an episode of VH1’s Storytellers: The stage had little on it other than Radin and his 4-man band (and some lamps), and before each song, Radin explained its backstory. The HoB’s excellent, sharp sound system — and an audience that barely made a peep during the songs — allowed us to hear every word clearly. While he didn’t sing “Only You” (another song I’d heard before — probably because it’s a cover of the Yaz song), he did play others that I look forward to getting to know better, such as “I’d Rather Be with You,” “No Envy No Fear,” and “You Got Growing Up to Do.” He also got some yayas out by singing some more uptempo songs from his soon-to-be-recorded third album, which should be out sometime next year. And then he closed the show with a great cover of Bob Dylan’s “Don’t Think Twice (It’s Alright),” during which he was joined by openers the Kin and the Watson Twins.

I always enjoy finding a “new” artist that I can add to my iPhone playlist. Radin’s concert was a pleasant surprise, and his music will certainly get a few more “spins” from me.

She Just Wants to Be Loved

18 Nov

If you’re anything like me, then chances are good you’ve not seen many movies like Precious. Oh, you may think you’ve seen one too many movies about underprivileged young people from bad homes who deal with multiple hardships but who find the strength to persevere despite all the odds being stacked against them, but I’ll bet those movies didn’t move you like Precious moved me. Believe the hype; this is one great film.

In Precious, Gabourey Sidibe stars as the title character, 16-year-old Claireece Precious Jones, who lives with her abusive mother (played by the comedienne Mo’Nique) and is pregnant (for the second time) with a child fathered by her own father. To say life is hard is an understatement; at one point, Precious says she wishes she were dead, and that it wouldn’t be much of a change for her because she’s already used to being so far down and looking up at the world. When she’s thrown out of her school, Precious enrolls at an alternative education center, where her teacher (played by the beautiful Paula Patton) and classmates show her the love and guidance she’s never had, and help put Precious on the road to redemption.

The film is marked by some super performances: Sidibe, in her film debut, gives a heartbreakingly natural performance of such subtlety that you’ll think she’s not acting at all. Mariah Carey, as a social worker, is impressive and real and nearly unrecognizable. Lenny Kravitz, as a nurse, is charming and great. Patton is more than just a pretty face; she shows depth and feeling, and turns the saintly role into something more well-rounded.

And Mo’Nique … What can one say about this performance? Mo’Nique’s character is perhaps the purest definition of evil that we’ll see on screen this year. She’s one of the worst on-screen mothers of all time. And Mo’Nique is so good in this role that it’s hard to believe she makes a living telling jokes. It’s a career-changing performance, and it will leave you in awe. Near the end, both Mo’Nique and Sidibe get the chance to deliver devastating lines of dialogue that will have you tearing up. Bring your tissues to this one, my friends. Even the hardest hearts will be affected by what they see on screen.

Adapted from the 1996 novel Push by Sapphire, Precious was written by Geoffrey Fletcher and directed by Lee Daniels, and it is a raw and unflinching portrait of a young girl with very little going right for her. Yes, there’s hope to be found, but there isn’t a sappy happy ending here where everyone smiles and the music swells. Precious is hard to watch and it isn’t pretty, but it’s well worth seeing. I’m giving the movie an A–.

Does John Mayer Read Martin’s Musings?

16 Nov

It’s always an exciting thing when a highly anticipated album leaks ahead of its official release date (at least it is for me. I can’t say the same for the artist). Such was the case with John Mayer’s Battle Studies, which I downloaded a week ago and have been listening to almost nonstop ever since. How great is it when an artist you like releases an album that’s worth the wait? (This is the second time in a week or so that it’s happened for me.) From the opening track, the U2-esque “Heartbreak Warfare” to the closer, “Friends, Lovers, or Nothing,” Battle Studies is a keeper. Sure, traces of John’s on again/off again relationship with Jennifer Aniston are all over this one (or at least, that’s what a tabloid reader would assume), but they do say heartbreak is the impetus for the best art, right?

Anyway, as much as I like so many of the tracks on Battle Studies (a shout-out to the Taylor Swift collabo “Half of My Heart,” as well as “Edge of Desire” and first single “Who Says”), my favorite one is the track called “Perfectly Lonely.” Listening to it, I feel like John took my recent blog post about how “content” I am with being single, and just set it to music — with an upbeat melody, too. He perfectly captured the underlying denial that’s inherent in a post like that. Have a listen for yourself and see if you don’t see the similarities in tone. Or, just read some of the lyrics here:

“…Nothing to do, nowhere to be
A simple little kind of free.
Nothing to do, no one but me
And that’s all I need.

I’m perfectly lonely
I’m perfectly lonely
I’m perfectly lonely, yeah
‘Cause I don’t belong to anyone
And nobody belongs to me.

I see my friends around from time to time
When their ladies let them slip away.
And when they ask me how I’m doing with mine
This is always what I say:

Nothing to do, nowhere to be
A simple little kind of free.
Nothing to do, no one to be
Is it really hard to see

Why I’m perfectly lonely
I’m perfectly lonely
I’m perfectly lonely, yeah
‘Cause I don’t belong to anyone
And nobody belongs to me.

And this is not to say,
There’ll never come a day
I’ll take my chances and start again.
[ … ]

That’s the way (3x)
That I want it.”

Yeah, that’s my new personal theme song. No wonder it’s the track I’ve played the most times thus far.

Battle Studies officially drops tomorrow. Pick yourself up a copy and see which track speaks most directly to you.

Lloyd Dobler Saves the Day!

11 Nov

Instead of a formal review of 2012, allow me to be totally obvious and cheesy and cliched, and to sum up my feelings by quoting R.E.M.: “It’s the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine.”

Basically, there’s a lot of cool special effects, a lot of preposterous plot points, plenty of close calls, Danny Glover as the President (not getting too old for this sh*t, apparently), all the expected cheeseball lines of dialogue (“I thought we’d have more time,” etc.), stubborn government officials, a good-hearted scientist, a rich jerk who doesn’t make it to the end of the movie, and a lot more cool special effects. Continue reading →

Train Kept on Rolling

10 Nov

They may be derided as “middle of the road,” but Train is still one of my favorite bands.

They put out consistently good music, and frontman Pat Monahan is one of the more charismatic and enjoyable guys to watch.

He also has an awesome voice.

Monday, at the House of Blues here in Boston, Pat was nursing a cold, but he still sounded great as the band played its latest gig to support Save Me, San Francisco, its latest release. Continue reading →

A Toast to the Friendly Toast

9 Nov

You might think from its kitchy, retro décor that the Friendly Toast is just some too-hip restaurant that’s almost too cool for its Cambridge locale. But after my first visit on Sunday, I can safely say this much: don’t judge a book solely by its cover. Continue reading →

The Force Is Not Strong Here

8 Nov

Sometimes, when you set out to make a movie that’s wacky funny, you end up instead with something that’s strange and unfunny. Such is the case with The Men Who Stare at Goats, one of those classic misfires that has almost no redeeming qualities. Starring George Clooney (clearly doing a solid for his friend and producing partner, Grant Heslov, who makes his directorial debut here), Men Who Stare is about a reporter (Ewan McGregor) who tries to impress his wife by going to Iraq. There (or rather, in Kuwait), he meets Clooney’s character, a military man who may or may not be gifted with special psychic powers, who may or may not be retired, and who may or may not still be a part of a top secret military unit that specializes in nonviolent action (such as Jedi mind tricks performed on goats). The film is only sporadically funny, the tone just isn’t right, and Clooney, sadly, seems totally miscast. Just about the only thing worth mentioning positively is Jeff Bridges, who plays the hippie-like leader of the group and seems perfectly cast in his role. Otherwise, Men Who Stare is just weird and unnecessary, and I’m giving it a D.

Can’t Stop the Music

7 Nov

You might call this a case of “Desperate times call for desperate measures” — relatively speaking, of course.

Monday, Jamie Cullum‘s new album, The Pursuit, will be released in the U.K. and all over Europe. I’m a very big Jamie Cullum fan, have been for years, and for a while now, I’d been banking on the fact that the album — Jamie’s first in more than four years — would be released in the U.S. a day later, on Tuesday. That’s how it usually works, after all (though one wonders why albums don’t just drop on the same weekday around the world). Well, last week I got an email telling me that in fact, the U.S. release would not happen until March 2.

Suffice it to say, I just couldn’t wait that long. I mean, that’s crazy, right? Releasing the album in Europe, and then waiting four months to do it here? Especially after a four-year gap between albums. Jamie may not be a household name in the U.S., but he’s hardly an unknown, brand-new artist (Pursuit is actually his fifth album, though not all have been released in the U.S.). People like me are going to notice if he has an album out elsewhere in the world, and they’re going to want to get their hands on it now.

So as any enterprising person would do, I went on a pursuit of my own, and set off to find the album somewhere on the Interwebs. Before you could say “I’m All Over It Now,” I found a site (actually, a couple of them) where I could download all 12 tracks, for free, before the album had even been released overseas. It was almost too easy. Isn’t the Interwebs great?

Now, before you get all huffy and accusatory on me, and tell me I’m “stealing music,” you should know this much: I have every intention of buying the album when it’s officially released over here next year. In fact, I’ll probably even go for the deluxe edition (assuming I have the same option as the European fans), which includes bonus tracks and a DVD. I support artists I like, and I want this album to do well.

Speaking of which, let me say this: The Pursuit is great (of course it is). More mature, confident, and experimental than Jamie’s previous albums, Pursuit features some impressive tracks, such as his take on Cole Porter’s “Just One of Those Things,” Stephen Sondheim’s “Not While I’m Around” (from Sweeney Todd), and Rhianna’s “Don’t Stop the Music.” The originals “Love Ain’t Gonna Let You Down” and “Mixtape” are cool. “Music Is Through” will be a hot number when Jamie plays live, as will the raucous swing tune “You and Me Are Gone.” The dramatic “If I Ruled the World” erases any memory of Tony Bennett’s more-famous version. In short, Jamie’s come a long way from his U.S. debut, Twentysomething (a long way from his follow-up, Catching Tales, too), and he’s pretty much blasted out of the “jazz singer” box that some have painted him into (just in case the album cover wasn’t symbolic enough for you). The Pursuit is well worth the wait.

But let’s not miss the larger point here: In the age of the Interwebs, you can’t keep devoted music fans waiting. If an album is out in one part of the world — and it’s going to be hyped in other parts of the world with emails, on Facebook, Twitter, and a podcast — then it should be out everywhere. Otherwise, you can’t blame a guy for finding it on his own, especially when it’s this easy.

He Needs a Little Christmas

5 Nov

Disney + Jim Carrey + Robert Zemeckis + Christmas should add up to a joyous and fun holiday movie, right? Well, then, what the Dickens is up with Disney’s A Christmas Carol? This umpteenth retelling of the classic story is a dark and often scary film with very little joy and festivity. Not even Carrey giving voice to multiple characters can liven the mood. Kids at the screening I was at were fidgety and clearly not engaged, and I couldn’t blame them. Maybe I don’t know the Charles Dickens story as well as I should, but I’ve never seen it told in such a dark and depressing way — and this is a Disney film!

That said, the animation is really impressive. There’s great detail in many of the images, and the 3D effects provide depth and added realism without being a distraction. The opening credits sequence, when the “camera” goes sweeping over the London skyline, is particularly great. Carrey, too, is quite good; he makes the most of the material he’s been given, as does the rest of the cast, which includes Gary Oldman and Colin Firth. I just wish I walked out of the theater feeling uplifted and happy, like Scrooge is at the end of the film.

Disney wants this Carol to be a fun holiday film, like Carey’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas, perhaps. (Which is not to say that The Grinch is anywhere near a holiday classic, of course.) But they’ve gone all Scrooge on the seasonal charm, and instead, all we’re left with is a lump of coal. That’s why I’m giving Carol a C+. Bah humbug.

I Could Be Stamos’ Wingman

2 Nov

Over the course of the nearly 7.5 years that I worked on Continental magazine, I was lucky enough to interview a fair number of big-name celebrities, including Nathan Lane, Jennifer Hudson, Mitch Albom, Jesse L. Martin, Ginnifer Goodwin, Idina Menzel, Jason Lee, Joan Allen, Jason Mraz, Roger Bart, and Lin-Manuel Miranda.

But I have to say, none of them was as much fun to chat with as John Stamos, who I recently interviewed for a freelance article in the magazine (my first such assignment since I left that job). And of course, I’m telling you this because the article is now online. Continue reading →

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