Unyielding Commissioning Gets Enlightened a Bit

Missed Him and Will Miss Him More - Ever heard of Nathaniel Mayer? I hadn't, but over at HearYa, they tell the news of his passing this week. With a rasp that would make Tom Waits blush, and fuzzy blues riffs that would do the same to the Black Keys, he's right up my alley. Check out "Lonely Man" over here, and judge for yourself.

Someone's Been Eating My Porridge - And it's the Country Bears! You may remember a few months ago, we examined the actors most devoted to their paycheck, or at least with the most egregious examples. Well, now Mental Floss gives you the chance to guess which awful movies actually featured Christopher Walken (our #2 biggest Paycheck Hound), and which did not. He's got that many duds. I scored 15/18, see if you can beat it.

Mo' Music! - Check out the newest, latest, greatest music and entertainment website, Shockhound.com. They've got loads of music for sale, reviews, t-shirts, and your own customizable community features. Definitely an interesting new endeavor.

I can't pronounce it either - Sigur Ros has a new video. It's all very film school senior project, but the song's great! Check it out at Stereogum. They also have a new Smashing Pumpkins video I couldn't manage to get to play. But you can give it a shot if you're inclined.

Speaking of Grant Park - Lollapalooza also rallied and has signed a 10-year contract. Let's hope they can get their act together in coming years and not rest on their laurels. This past summer's was easily the worst (in terms of music anyway) of the four so far.

Proudly Standing Up - Roger Ebert laces into George Bush for appointing Lee Greenwood to a six year term on the National Council of the Arts. Then he backs things off a bit and gives Mr. Greenwood some marginal credit for living a long ass time. I've said this before, but Ebert's really hitting his stride as a blogger, even if he goes too light on the snark sometimes.

This List Is Overrated - Scene Stealers list this week is the Top Ten Overrated Films of all time. As you might imagine, it's generating a lot of discussion. Gladiator, the most overrated entity on the planet, only made the honorable mention list. Just a reminder, I recently posted a Top Ten of my own over in those parts. Considerably less commentary on that one. Go leave a note if you're bored or somethin'.