Damon Albarn’s new supergroup with ex-Clash bassist Paul Simonon and ex Verve guitarist Simon Tong will release their first album on January 22nd.

 

 

 

 

The Raconteurs and The Strokes (V-Festival second day)

Sigur Ros / Wilco at Massey Hall

The Flaming Lips at the Phoenix Theater

Cat Power at Lee’s Palace

Radiohead at Hummingbird Centre

Badly Drawn Boy at The Mod Club

Belle and Sebastian with The New Pornographers at The Docks

 

 

 

I still didn’t have the chance to see The Good German, History Boys, The Good Shepherd, and some others. Unfortunately David Lynch’s Inland Empire was not released in Canada (I’m sure it would be on this list) and Letters from Iwo Jima did not get its released either, so for now are these are the ones, in no particular order:

 

 A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints by Dito Montiel

The Queen by Stephen Frears / Flag of Our Fathers by Clint Eastwood (sharing a position on my list)

Volver by Pedro Almodovar

Babel by Alejandro González Iñárritu

A Scanner Darkly by Richard Linklater

The best animated movie I’ve seen in years was Happy Feet by George Miller.

Again, I’m sure that list will change if I think about it, but let’s publish it and get this over with

 

 

I hate to make lists as much as I love it. There were so many great albums released this year by Belle&Sebastian, The Fratellis, Badly Drawn Boy, Bob Dylan, The Raptures, The Lemonheads, The Raconteurs…the list is endless…

I’m sure this list would change if I think about it some more, so at this moment, these are my top 5 favorite albums of 2006 (in no particular order):

 

Thom Yorke - The Eraser

Cat Power – The Greatest

Guillemots - Through the Windowpane

Arctic Monkeys  - Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not

The Flaming Lips - At War with the Mystics

 

And these are the top 5 most played albums on my ipod:

 

"The Life Pursuit" by Belle & Sebastian 
"Great Western" by James Dean Bradfield
"5:55" by Charlotte Gainsbourg
"Supersunnyspeedgraphic" by Ben Folds
"A Blessing And A Curse" by Drive-by Truckers

 

My two new artist this year: CSS and Silversun Pickups

 

 

 

Buon Natale!
Feliz Navidad!
Joyeux Noel!
Fröhliche Weihnachten!
Kala Christouyenna!!
Zalig Kerstfeast!
Kurisumasu Omedeto!
God Jul!
Kurisumasu Omedeto!
Zalig Kerstfeast!
Boze Narodzenie!
Feliz Natal!
Glædelig Jul!
Mele Kalikimaka!

 

 

 

 

If you still haven’t heard about it, consider this my Christmas gift to you J

 

 

 

 

 

I watched the new U2 video last night (not so new actually). It goes beyond the song and the clever editing, the images are just so powerful for any music lover, that it would have had the same effect on me even if the TV had been on mute.

 

 

The series of Whiskas commercials are pretty funny, but this is my absolutely favorite one:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’m still trying to catch up with the movies that opened on the last month. This Tuesday it was time for “Shut up & Sing” by Barbara Kopple and Cecilia Peck, the documentary about the aftermath of Dixie Chick’s singer Natalie Maines anti-Bush on-stage statement during a concert in London. The news went from the local papers in London quickly to the US and they ended up being banned of the country music radio stations at the peak of their career.

 

When people that used to love them decided to burn their CDs and not listen to their music, it started a debate about freedom of speech. I’ve been thinking about the movie for a couple of days, and I realized that what makes this documentary so good is the fact that it doesn’t focus on the freedom of speech debate, or even on Bush administration. It’s about how entertainment, media and politics work.

 

Of course a band like Pearl Jam can say whatever they want and that will never affect their career, even make their political statement on their music. But the Dixie Chicks are the ones that were supposed to keep the people “entertained” and not say their opinion on politics.

 

The conclusion I made out of it, is that it was not about freedom of speech but about tolerance. Natalie said what he wanted. People decided not to listen to their music. They had their freedom. Now, how can you change your mind about an artist just because they said something you don’t agree with?

 

Johnny Ramone was a known republican and supported Bush administration. Eddie Vedder made fun of Bush on stage and Pearl Jam released the anti-Bush song “Bushleaguer”. Even so, they were best friends until Johnny died.