The King's Speech

The King's Speech has been getting a lot of "Oscar buzz" and for good reason - it's a nearly perfect narrative film with impeccable storytelling and an uplifting spirit. The film is based on the true story of England's King Edward VI (affectionately known as "Bertie"), a stammerer since childhood, and his speech therapist Lionel Logue, an Australian commoner. Lionel works with Bertie to manage his speech impediment as a series of circumstances lead to Bertie reluctantly taking England's throne at one of the most tumultuous times in modern European history. The daunting world circumstances are a backdrop to the real heart of the film, which is the unlikely friendship that forms between Lionel and Bertie, played brilliantly by Geoffrey Rush and Colin Firth. The King's Speech is a great example of a movie that has no dead weight. From the performances to the cinematography to the editing and direction - every aspect of the film is tightly executed. Regardless of what happens at the Academy Awards this year, The King's Speech is a winner.

Jónsi - Go

Every so often I take the plunge on an MP3 album when Amazon offers it for just a few dollars. Go is one of those albums and I have no reason to regret the money I spent. I'm not entirely enamored with the more upbeat/soundtrack-for-a-tv-ad songs, but there are also some real gems, such as Grow Till Tall and Hengilas, that probably have the other members of Sigur Ros scratching their heads and thinking, "How is this different than what we do together?"

Modern Family: The Complete First Season

Given our schedules, it's tough for my wife and I to commit to a weekly TV show. In fact, all the TV shows we get into now are watched ad hoc, via Netflix streaming, DVD/Blu-ray, or DVR (an ingenious invention that we only recently latchted onto). We caught just a few episodes of the first season of Modern Family when it aired and that was enough to have me believing that it was on par with the best comedies currently on television. Watching through the entire season on Blu-ray did nothing but confirm my belief. Modern Family features a pretty large ensemble of characters for a sit-com, but the razor sharp writing gives each one a unique identity and distinct contribution to the show's many laughs. The Blu-ray does it's job perfectly with an image as sharp as the show's dialogue, lossless surround sound (somewhat superfluous on a mostly dialog-driven show) and some fun extras.

Boys Life - Departures & Landfalls

Right around the mid-90s, a brand of dynamic indie rock typically referred to as "emo" was peaking, just before that term got hijacked and subsequently became something to be mocked rather than appreciated. Boys Life was one of many bands who typified the genre sound - soft/loud dynamics, driving riffs, poetic lyrics, and vocals that value expressiveness far more than accurate pitch. All of those elements are present on Departures & Landfalls and the results are certainly not for everyone. Brandon Butler's "singing" is more like raising his voice with varying pitch. The production is decidedly raw and lo-fi. The guitars are angular and dissonant. But all of this somehow works to create an album that really hits the spot for me and stands alongside other great albums of the era from Mineral, Roadside Monument, and Sunny Day Real Estate.

Joy Electric - Workmanship EP & The Ministry of Archers

Joy Electric is a mood band for me. By that I mean, I have to be in the right mood for Ronnie Martin's all-analog synth sound, but when I am, it's the only thing that satisfies. A few months ago I expanded my Joy Electric library with these two CDs, the Workmanship EP and The Ministry of Archers full-length, thanks to a killer sale from Velvet Blue Music. While neither quite matches the brilliance of my long-standing favorite Joy Electric album, The White Songbook, both do offer some great sounds to scratch my Joy Electric itch.

Mastodon - Crack the Skye

For whatever reason, Mastodon's music always takes a little while to grow on me and Crack the Skye is no exception. While I still don't think it quite measures up to some their earlier albums, after a number of spins it has managed to dig its cerebral metal claws into my skin and grab me with that uniquely-Mastodon grip.

Passion Pit - Manners

I experienced an interesting phenomenon with Manners for the first handful of listens. I found myself really enthralled with individual songs when I heard them on their own, but not so much when I listened to the album as a whole. Regular readers of the rotation report (all two of them) may remember that I picked up a Passion Pit 7" with the song Little Secrets on it. I REALLY dug that 7" and yet when the song came up on Manners, I wasn't nearly as enamored with it. Likewise, I recently heard the song Moth's Wings on a TV show and thought to myself, "What a great song!" even though I'd heard it on multiple spins of Manners and never gotten too excited about it. I think the issue was that I really wasn't giving all my attention to the album, because upon further, more dedicated listening I've been able to fully appreciate and thoroughly enjoy Passion Pit's catchy, electro-pop.

DJ Shadow - Live in Milan

Live in Milan is a live DJ Shadow performance from the late 90s. The album is unique in the sheer volume of scratching that he does throughout the set, but if you're looking for the best overall live performance in Shadow's canon, this probably isn't it. I don't think I'd call this album bad by any means, but I'd probably call it forgettable.

Sufjan Stevens - The Age of Adz

I think the glitchy electronic undertones on The Age of Adz has thrown some Sufjan fans for a loop. However, this album is still full of his staples: highly creative orchestration, dynamic instrumentation, and serious lyrical prowess. For my taste, the electronic elements and somewhat darker overall tone add a welcome new dimension to the Sufjan sound.

The National - High Violet

Obviously I'm late to the party for The National, given that High Violet is their latest offering and my first exposure to them. Better late than never though, as this is a really solid album that blends melancholy tones with layered production and slow, satisfying hooks. Bonus points for being an album that my wife really enjoys too. I guess I have no choice but to dig into the National's back catalog now.

Toy Story 3

Toy Story 3 is the first and only Toy Story movie I've seen. To Pixar's credit, it seemed to stand well on its own without depending too much on the ones before it. Everything I had heard about the Toy Story movies was fulfilled in Toy Story 3 - while it's obviously geared toward kids, it's just as fun and entertaining for adults. (Well, maybe not quite as entertaining - I doubt I'll ever watch is as many times as my nearly-four-year-old nephew has).

DJ Shadow - Live in L.A.

This all-vinyl DJ mix from Shadow was recorded live on Halloween in 2009. He mixes a variety of mainstream hip hop, classic soul, and some elements from his original tracks for a dynamic set that has your head bobbing the whole time. When people talk about a DJ "rocking a party," this album is exactly what they're referring to.

The Fighter

If you forced me to summarize the plot of The Fighter in one sentence, you'd probably blow it off as just another underdog boxer movie. But that would be a mistake, because Micky Ward's ascent to professional boxing success in The Fighter merely serves as the vehicle for a rich exploration of complex family dynamics and personal redemption. Christian Bale gives an Oscar-worthy performance as Dicky, Micky's brother and trainer who is mired in a crack addiction that is destroying his life. Mark Wahlberg holds his own as well, playing Micky with a vulnerability I've not seen in the actor's previous roles. The Fighter is more than just a couple of good performances though - it's a well-told, redemptive story with a solid emotional core.

M83 - M83

Back in high school and college, it seems like I was discovering new and interesting music all the time. Then I became an adult and "life intervened" to borrow a phrase from Willa Cather. One of the few musical gems I've managed to uncover in the midst of adulthood is M83, a group that has quickly become one of my favorites. This is my third M83 album and I seem to be going about it in random order, since this is their debut from the early 2000s. Everything that I've loved about M83's electronic, shoegazery sound is present here, if a little more raw and unrefined than their follow-on efforts.

DJ Shadow vs. Keane

I've never really listened to Keane, but DJ Shadow's remix of their song, We Might As Well Be Strangers, displays his prowess as a producer who can branch out from the style usually exhibited in his original tracks. Keane's towering vocal melodies and DJ Shadow's light electronica make for a perfectly-matched pair, while the instrumental version also stands up pretty well on its own.