I Think It's All Right

Unfortunately, we're going to have to shut things down here for at least a couple weeks. Knee surgery is being done today. Probably as you are reading this. It's going to be an unpleasant experience to be sure, but a necessary one. I promise we'll have this site up and running again as soon as possible, including some new features that are under construction - much like my knee.

More details on the injury that caused this.
More details on deep thoughts on the day of an operation.

OWR: Sanjuro

81: Playful

Unyielding Commissioning on a Saturday

Back in Black - It's been a long while since we mentioned The Arcade Fire in these parts, which frequent readers may find strange. Our obsession with the Quebec group hasn't waned in the time we've been away. Not only is the new video for the Bowie-influenced song Black Mirror creepy and artsy and unique, you can actually play with the tracks. Take out the drums and it becomes a haunting, stripped-down dirge. Remove the backing vocals and it's a more naked, piercing approach. Or mix it up as it plays. You may find yourself spending the better part of a day here. Check it out.

They were holding him back - UB40 singer Ali Campbell is leaving the group after 30 years of reggae-styled cover songs. Firstly, who knew these guys were still alive, let alone still a group? Secondly, if your band's main thing is just to take popular, well-crafted songs (Red Red Wine, Here I Am, Can't Help Falling In Love) and turn them into stripped-down, boring pseudo reggae tunes, does that even make you a band? We say no.
(HT: PMaz)

Your worst nightmare (accounting) - Someone has put together a full list of all the deaths in every Rambo movie. Check it. Though we have to say the analysis is incomplete. There is nothing listed for the death of Richard Crenna's career.

Last Chance to Vote - for the 2007 Kaelin winner. Polls close tomorrow and the race is very tight!

OWR: My Best Friend's Wedding

28: Foolish

Thursday Youtube - Otis

To me, Otis Redding always seemed a lot older than he actually was. With his big face and gravely voice, my image of him long resembled an old bluesman. But I was unenlightened back then. Redding was a passionate performer, full of vivacity and passion. He wrote nearly all of his songs and found a way to make that gravel vibrate with naked soul. Otis died in a plane crash in Madison, Wisconsin just a month after his 26th birthday.


For many people of our generation, our initiation to Redding's music was as the soundtrack to Country Time Lemonade commercials. That song, Dock of the Bay, was by far his biggest hit. Sadly, he wasn't around to see that success as the song was released posthumously.

When people talk about tragic deaths in music, Redding is often the afterthought, perhaps because there's been no movie made about his life. While Richie Valens and Buddy Holly were surely quality artists who had some great hits, neither was building towards the career that Otis likely had ahead of him. This was not a death from drugs or other recklessness, which perhaps makes it all the less poetic.


The older I get, the more of his music I find, the more I appreciate him. Nobody has ever had soul like Otis. There is depth to his vocal tracks. You can listen to these songs over and over and grasp new details and feelings in the music he made. I guess the silver lining is that his music doesn't get old, even if he's gone.

Perhaps the most tragic thing about Redding's early demise was that his best days were ahead of him. And not only a tragedy for him, but for all of us. The music he was poised to make over the next ten years of his life would have made us jump, shout, shake, and weep. We were really robbed. So enjoy these clips. Then watch 'em again if you really want to get it all.

OWR: Dogtown and Z-Boys

39: Self-centered

Unyielding Commissioning Expects Low Ratings

The Verve reuinion – As you know, we’ve been out of touch. But we are pleased to discover that The Verve has reunited. Back in 1999, due to tension between guitarist Nick McCabe and frontman Richard Ashcroft, the band broke up much to the detriment of everyone involved. Aschcroft embarked on a solo career that amounted to only minimal success. Without McCabe’s songcrafting, Ashcroft’s work simply wasn’t as compelling. After claiming they are "getting back together for the joy of the music," they've been playing shows in England and are supposedly working on new material. We’ve seen similar reunions from bands before and they’ve almost always been money-making jaunts with little passion or artistic output (we're talking to you, Living Colour, Jane's Addiction, and hell, everybody else). But for some reason we have high hopes for this little-band-that-could from Wigan. The fact that they've all been knocked down a peg is the biggest reason. Of course, Ashcroft and McCabe could start fighting again at the drop of a hat.

Get your Oscar Noms! – As previously stated, we’re totally out of the loop due to traversing the nation for the last five months. Consequently, we haven't seen many of the movies nominated for Oscars yet. Multiplex, here we come. Er - wait a minute. It seems that none of the films up for big prizes are of the multiplex variety. Juno is up for four big awards including Best Picture. Michael Clayton garnered six nominations. Honestly, I don't think anybody really knows how these will be awarded. It should be an exciting ceremony. Well, at least for us and people who like independent film. Spider Man 3, Wild Hogs, and the other big box office winners from 2007 aren't included mean that public at large is probably not going to bother tuning in. That of course assumes that the writers strike is resolved before then.

Zodiac was completely shut out which we here find to be a travesty. Granted, we've seen scant few of the films named, but it should have at least gotten a Best Director nod for Fincher. Outside of Best Actress, it seems like they only nominated five movies across the board. One can't help but wonder if Harvey Weinstein put the fix in.

And of course the other nominees – People, you get to vote. Please weigh in on this year’s Kaelin award winner. Remember, voting is not just a privilege, it’s a duty.

OWR: In Good Company

54: Gimmicky

Unyielding Commissioning Saw This Coming

Good Morning America, Indeed For those awaiting an update, yep, Diane Keaton is still totally crazy. You may recall that when doing a German press conference alongside Jack Nicholson for the offensively silly Something's Gotta Give, she had a complete meltdown. Sadly, no video of that event appears to exist on the internet. We assure you, it was funny. At the last Academy Awards, Diane played the role of a tipsy kindergarten teacher while helping Nicholson present Best Picture.

On Tuesday of this week she blurted out the F-word in front of the entire country. Lucky for her, and for Diane Sawyer, the FCC is powerless to take any action. (We covered this issue in our bonus Schwarzenegger Sunday last summer.) Whether or not she gets fined, it is clear that something has gone wrong in Ms. Keaton's noggin. We write this not to persecute her, but to express concern. It's time for her to stop making public appearances. There's no telling where this will end up. Doesn't she have handlers?

They Look Like Giants Death Cab for Cutie has been working on a new album. Go to their homepage for a pretty kickass psych-up video. It's not exactly Alan Parsons' Sirius at the United Center, but it's got me ready for May. Plus, Chris Walla has finally started to fill out a bit. He's looking more like a grown up every day.

Also Not Exactly Sane Tom Cruise has a new movie out. OK, it's not a movie. And we're not even sure if it's him or he's been hypnotized. It's basically just him rambling on and on about Scientology. He throws down a lot of acronyms in the process making it that much more confusing. Are people being too hard on Tom on this one? Judge for yourself.

OWR: Miller's Crossing

86: Smart