10.20.2010
Born Ruffians @ Larimer Lounge – Denver, CO 10/17/10 [Live Review]
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C=T At The Movies ::: Network (1976)
C=T from time to time goes to the movies and occasionally watches television.Today, C=T writer, Samuel Jay, talks about a fictitious television station and the parallels to modern day life in the 1976 Peter Finch/Faye Dunnaway/Robert Duvall film, “Network”.
Commercials rarely give me inspiration to write, but the other day I
caught a commercial for financial services company J.G. Wentworth
featuring people coming to realizations about the settlement money
they were owed and then yelling out their windows, “It’s my money and
I need it now.” The commercial itself was pretty terrible, much like
similar commercials for Roni Deutch and Frank Azar, lawyers using
cheap local air time to reach potential clients. Considering the money
these people make it is interesting they do not invest a little time
and money targeting a different audience. With that said, I am
guessing people suing ambulance drivers and fighting their third DUI
charge are cut from an easily identifiable cloth -one that does not
take James Cameron to create something that will garner their
attention.
JG Wentworth Commercial
The commercial is a pastiche of Howard Beale’s (Peter Finch) rant from
Network (1976). Beale is the longtime anchor of the UBS Evening News
who is fired because of declining ratings. On what was supposed to be
his final segment at UBS -the movie’s fictional TV network- Beale goes
on a verbal tirade against the media industry which ends with him
opening the studio’s window and yelling to the streets: “I’m mad as
hell and I am not going to take this anymore!” He repeats the phrase
as those outside open their windows and repeat his words, venting
their own frustrations. Over time Beale’s rant has become one of the
iconic scenes from post-classical Hollywood cinema, imitated
throughout popular culture -the New York Mets season ticket office,
Weird Al, Hey Arnold! Unfortunately, this scene is the whole of what
many people know of Network.
Watch the “I’m Mad as Hell” Scene
Watching Network there is significant irony in how similar the
narrative is to what is happening with network television and cable
news in contemporary culture. Beale gets fired -a scapegoat for poor
ratings-, he goes off during his last show and threatens to kill
himself on live television, UBS brings him back for one more week so
he can apologize, he goes on afore mentioned rant, ratings soar, and
UBS gives him his own show. Just like contemporary network television
and cable news, the spectacle is what brings in the ratings. Gone are
the days of Edward R. Murrows or Walter Cronkites. We do not even have
Dan Rather or Tom Brokaw. Network news is the same from ABC to NBC to
CBS. In-depth reporting only exists on news magazines like 60 Minutes
and Nightline that air too infrequently. Cable news has embraced its
inner Howard Beale. In fact, Fox News, CNN, and MSNBC have come to
embody The Howard Beale Show, the show given to the anchor after his
outburst that featured yelling and arguing between host and guests
with little productive dialogue. “Arguing between host and guests with
little productive dialogue” could be the synopsis given when I push my
remote’s info button to see what the Countdown with Keith Obermann
rundown will be for the night.
Network is more relevant now than it was in 1976. It is bigger than
Howard Beale’s rant, but at the same time his rant embodies the inner
monologue of America’s news-watchers. We are mad as hell… but are we
really doing anything about it? Everyone bitches about the media and
its liberal bias, but the news is the same no matter what channel you
watch. It is the packaging that is different. This is the pessimism of
Network. It does not end with Howard Beale changing the world. Nothing
gets better and ratings remain the great equalizer. Cable and
satellite have changed the aesthetics of news. It is about scrolling
tickers, multiple cameras, and people doing stuff on computers behind
the anchor. The relevancy of actually news is still trumped by ratings
of not-so-relevant news. We want drama because it allows us to ignore
what is really going on. Howard Beale wanted relevant news; he became
the fictional Bill O’Reilly instead.
C=T At The Movies ::: Network (1976)
C=T from time to time goes to the movies and occasionally watches television.Today, C=T writer, Samuel Jay, talks about a fictitious television station and the parallels to modern day life in the 1976 Peter Finch/Faye Dunnaway/Robert Duvall film, “Network”.
Commercials rarely give me inspiration to write, but the other day I
caught a commercial for financial services company J.G. Wentworth
featuring people coming to realizations about the settlement money
they were owed and then yelling out their windows, “It’s my money and
I need it now.” The commercial itself was pretty terrible, much like
similar commercials for Roni Deutch and Frank Azar, lawyers using
cheap local air time to reach potential clients. Considering the money
these people make it is interesting they do not invest a little time
and money targeting a different audience. With that said, I am
guessing people suing ambulance drivers and fighting their third DUI
charge are cut from an easily identifiable cloth -one that does not
take James Cameron to create something that will garner their
attention.
JG Wentworth Commercial
The commercial is a pastiche of Howard Beale’s (Peter Finch) rant from
Network (1976). Beale is the longtime anchor of the UBS Evening News
who is fired because of declining ratings. On what was supposed to be
his final segment at UBS -the movie’s fictional TV network- Beale goes
on a verbal tirade against the media industry which ends with him
opening the studio’s window and yelling to the streets: “I’m mad as
hell and I am not going to take this anymore!” He repeats the phrase
as those outside open their windows and repeat his words, venting
their own frustrations. Over time Beale’s rant has become one of the
iconic scenes from post-classical Hollywood cinema, imitated
throughout popular culture -the New York Mets season ticket office,
Weird Al, Hey Arnold! Unfortunately, this scene is the whole of what
many people know of Network.
Watch the “I’m Mad as Hell” Scene
Watching Network there is significant irony in how similar the
narrative is to what is happening with network television and cable
news in contemporary culture. Beale gets fired -a scapegoat for poor
ratings-, he goes off during his last show and threatens to kill
himself on live television, UBS brings him back for one more week so
he can apologize, he goes on afore mentioned rant, ratings soar, and
UBS gives him his own show. Just like contemporary network television
and cable news, the spectacle is what brings in the ratings. Gone are
the days of Edward R. Murrows or Walter Cronkites. We do not even have
Dan Rather or Tom Brokaw. Network news is the same from ABC to NBC to
CBS. In-depth reporting only exists on news magazines like 60 Minutes
and Nightline that air too infrequently. Cable news has embraced its
inner Howard Beale. In fact, Fox News, CNN, and MSNBC have come to
embody The Howard Beale Show, the show given to the anchor after his
outburst that featured yelling and arguing between host and guests
with little productive dialogue. “Arguing between host and guests with
little productive dialogue” could be the synopsis given when I push my
remote’s info button to see what the Countdown with Keith Obermann
rundown will be for the night.
Network is more relevant now than it was in 1976. It is bigger than
Howard Beale’s rant, but at the same time his rant embodies the inner
monologue of America’s news-watchers. We are mad as hell… but are we
really doing anything about it? Everyone bitches about the media and
its liberal bias, but the news is the same no matter what channel you
watch. It is the packaging that is different. This is the pessimism of
Network. It does not end with Howard Beale changing the world. Nothing
gets better and ratings remain the great equalizer. Cable and
satellite have changed the aesthetics of news. It is about scrolling
tickers, multiple cameras, and people doing stuff on computers behind
the anchor. The relevancy of actually news is still trumped by ratings
of not-so-relevant news. We want drama because it allows us to ignore
what is really going on. Howard Beale wanted relevant news; he became
the fictional Bill O’Reilly instead.
Kyle Hollingsworth Band - Fri, Dec 10th @ 7:00 PM
Cervantes' Masterpiece Ballroom
2637 Welton St, Denver, CO 80205
7:00 PM, $15.00 / $17.00 day of show
w/ DJ Logic
Cervantes’ Masterpiece Ballroom website
map to Cervantes’ Masterpiece Ballroom
Buy Tickets"
“Vanderlyle Crybaby” all the way unplugged
Koffin Kats - Mon, Nov 15th @ 8:00 PM
Benders Tavern
314 E 13th Ave, Denver, CO 80203
8:00 PM, $7.00 / $10.00 day of show
Benders Tavern website
map to Benders Tavern
Buy Tickets"
Talib Kweli & Food Chain - Thu, Dec 2nd @ 7:00 PM
Cervantes' Masterpiece Ballroom
2637 Welton St, Denver, CO 80205
7:00 PM, $20.00 / $25.00 day of show
Cervantes’ Masterpiece Ballroom website
map to Cervantes’ Masterpiece Ballroom
Buy Tickets"
Loss Prevention Thanksgiving: a 200 Million Years Benefit - Wed, Nov 24th @ 6:00 PM
Hi-Dive
7 S Broadway, Denver, CO 80209
6:00 PM, $6.00
w/ Pacific Pride, Panal S.A. DE C.V, 200 Million Years, Hearts in Space, Adam Cayton Holland, Nathan Lund
Hi-Dive website
map to Hi-Dive
Buy Tickets"
Win a pair of tickets to see LCD Soundsystem and Hot Chip tomorrow night at the Fillmore
This is happening. No, really! We're not kidding. It is. Somehow, we've managed to get our hands on a pair of tickets for LCD Sounsystem's sure-to-be-mesmerizing show with Hot Chip at the Fillmore...
Continue reading "Win a pair of tickets to see LCD Soundsystem and Hot Chip tomorrow night at the Fillmore" >"
All right, unscrupulous theives: Enough with the taking of stuff that doesn't belong to you!
The band 200 Million Miles, in case you haven't heard, got burgled last week. Twice. In one week. And none of the items have been recovered. According Zale Hessler, who spoke with our friends at ...
Continue reading "All right, unscrupulous theives: Enough with the taking of stuff that doesn't belong to you!" >"
The French are fighting piracy in a new and interesting way, but could it work here?
The French government has revealed a plan to combat piracy that could either be the most brilliant gesture ever or the most monumental waste of government resources of all time (okay, maybe not a...
Continue reading "The French are fighting piracy in a new and interesting way, but could it work here?" >"
Missed our headphones: Bob Dylan’s “The Witmark Demos”
OK, in all honesty, no, Dylan did not — nor will he ever — “miss” our headphones.
Alas, here’s a pretty nifty trailer for The Witmark Demos: 1962-1964 (The Bootleg Series Vol. 9), out today on Columbia, the same label that signed him in 1961.
Follow Reverb on Twitter! Here! Foursquare, too! Here!
John Hendrickson is the Managing Editor of Reverb and a multimedia journalist for The Denver Post.
C=T Contests ::: 2 Pairs of Interpol Passes @ Ogden Theatre 10.25.10
Interpol will be coming through town next week and I have a pair of passes to giveaway to two lucky readers. All you have to do is tell me the name of Interpol’s latest release. Send your answers via Twitter to @Causeequalstime and the passes are all yours! Interpol’s newest album was released last month and you can purchase it here. Good luck!
Tour Dates
10.19.2010
Hail Satan! The ten best metal songs about Hell
Of the countless contributions heavy metal music has made to modern society -- leather pants and corpse paint not least among them -- perhaps the finest addition this often crunchy, driving genre...
Continue reading "Hail Satan! The ten best metal songs about Hell" >"
Album reviews: Elton John and Leon Russell, Jimmy Eat World
Elton John and Leon Russell, “The Union” (Decca)
It’s not the most natural collaboration, but the new Elton John/Leon Russell record makes for a fascinating listen. It has some uplifting songs, some clever lines, some lovely vocal interplay. And while the two pianists’ voices couldn’t be more dissimilar, they make these songs work.
The mutual admiration between John and Russell is obvious. John spends four pages in the liner notes telling their story — from their first meeting at the Troubadour in 1970 to the creation of this record, which spanned multiple continents and involved the talents of mega-Americana producer T Bone Burnett.
And it’s a treat to listen to these boys’ jams, especially since their songwriting voices are as distinctive as their physical voices. “If It Wasn’t For Bad” is a rollicking, fun-loving jaunt that benefits from Russell’s signature sense of humor. The song’s key, titular line brings on a smile: “If it wasn’t for you, I’d be happy / If it wasn’t for bad, you’d be good.”
John’s “The Best Part of the Day” is a memorable ballad that works off Bernie Taupin’s clever lyrics: “I hear you singing ‘I Shall Be Released’/Like a chainsaw runnin’ through a masterpiece/But that’s all right, that’s OK/Grab.K./Grab the bottle and slide my way.”
Some songs feature the gents backing each other up. Others have them dueting. Others yet involve the talents of guests Brian Wilson, Neil Young and Booker T. Jones.
Even if this “Union” looks strange on paper, John knew what he was talking about when he first called Russell. These legendary piano men needed to make a record together, and don’t be surprised if this CD spawns an expansion of their now-limited tour schedule. –Ricardo Baca
Read our review of Leon Russell’s 9/18 show at the Boulder Theater here.
Jimmy Eat World, “Invented” (Interscope)
Remember when “emo” was all the radio rage, with Jimmy Eat World and Dashboard Confessional? While that term was being misinterpreted/co-opted by FM radio and the music press, Jimmy Eat World was releasing some of the best music of its career, 2001′s “Bleed American.”
The band’s hit-or-miss output since hardly tarnishes its rep, especially since the group has released such a strong record in “Invented.” The new LP lacks the meaning of “Clarity” and the hits of “Bleed American,” but it often sounds like the band that broke via modern rock radio eight years ago — thanks in part to to the work of producer Mark Trombino, who worked with the band on its first three releases.
You can hear that chemistry in “Coffee and Cigarettes,” which lacks lyrical punch but sounds like, oddly, a great Death Cab jam. “Action Needs An Audience” is a substantive rock song that also recalls the band’s past, and it’s an aesthetic that works well for the Arizona group.
A couple of songs early in the record are clear signals that this latest record from Jimmy Eat World is one of its best. “Evidence” is a driving, quiet-loud-quiet track with epic live potential. And “My Best Theory” is a song that has already landed them back on modern rock radio — a fitting home for these pop heroes. –Ricardo Baca
Read our review of Jimmy Eat World’s 10/4 show at the Ogden Theatre here.
Follow Reverb on Twitter! Here! Foursquare, too! Here!
Ricardo Baca is the founder and co-editor of Reverb and an award-winning critic and journalist at The Denver Post.
Ozzy Osbourne, Crystal Castles and Lucero shows announced
Ozzy Osbourne, who just launched a column in Rolling Stone called Ask Dr. Ozzy, in which he offers health and diet tips (no, really), hits the Pepsi Center with Slash on Tuesday, February 8, as p...
Continue reading "Ozzy Osbourne, Crystal Castles and Lucero shows announced" >"
Interview with Portugal. The Man’s John Baldwin Gourley ~ See them 2 NIGHTS @ The Fox 10/22 & 10/23
Photo essay: Nickelback, Buckcherry, 3 Days Grace @ the Pepsi Center
Canadian Pop/Rock band Nickelback stormed through the Pepsi Center on Monday night, with Buckcherry and 3 Days Grace in tow.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
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Nickelback brought its brand of explosive Pop/Rock to the Pepsi Center on Monday night. Photos by John DiTirro, heyreverb.com.
Follow Reverb on Twitter! Here! Foursquare, too! Here!
John DiTirro is a Denver-based photographer and a Digital Ad Trafficker at The Denver Post. Check out his website.