Brief Book Review for 'Catcher in the Rye' (1951)

Catcher in the Rye (1951)

So I finally sat down and read this one, after years of intending to (honestly just never getting around to it), and also seeing it on that Top 100 BBC Books List that has been floating around the social networks this past year. Catcher in the Rye was published in 1951, was written by author J.D. Salinger (who just past away a year ago in January 2010). After reading a little bit about the author's life (according to his wikipedia page) one comes to conclude that perhaps the book is actually written verbatim from his own personal experience of human interactions, and just going about his young-life in New York City for a few days. It is most definitely a book that will be less interesting to women, that is of course unless you wish to know how the mind of a young-male actually operates. This book also does a wonderful job of revealing the insanity of compulsive thinking, which is an affliction that affects almost every human being on the planet at present. I would recommend this book to you to read, especially if you are a male, and even if you a female too. I am not sure that I personally would put this book on the Top 100 of all time list, or consider it to really be one of the great American literary works as many do, but many acclaimed critics and people much more well read than I do. If it helps to unveil the insanity of the current state of human egoic consciousness to even a few people then more power to it. Check this one out!

Song of the Day = 'Let's Go Surfing' by The Drums

Today's feature song is....Lets Go Surfing by American indie-pop group The Drums. The The Drums originate out of Brooklyn, New York and consists of members Jonathan Pierce (vocals), Jacob Graham (guitar), Connor Hanwick (drums). This track, like the last one I posted comes off of their self-titled debut album which was released on June 7th, 2010. Let's Go Surfing was the third single to be released off of their debut self-titled album. This song was originally released in September 2009 on their EP titled Summertime!, but was later released on the June 2010 debut-studio album, and then it was released as an actual single in August 2010. This song charted at #63 on the UK Singles, but surprisingly haven't appeared on the US charts??? Apparently, The Drums are better known in the UK than they are in the USA, and that seems to be more of a target market for them, so I guess I am taking it on as partly my mission here to introduce/plug their work to an American/Australian/global audience, so I hope you enjoy this song, and do be sure to check out the 2 previous song posts I've done on The Drums. Oh yeah, and Happy New Year everybody!!

2011 Global Year Forecast (by Astrologer Steve Judd)

Brief Movie Review for 'Baby It's You' (1983)

 Baby It's You (1983)

4/5 Stars ****

This movie is more than just your standard formula 80's teen movie. It really is a social commentary film about class and opportunity in America. The young-hot-shot guy who is filled with the confidence of youth, but comes from a poor family and neighborhood (with no real support network) goes for the pretty jewish girl, who's father is a successful Doctor, and who has a family that supports her emotionally and financially. This movie is more honest in my opinion about the two different worlds that these two come from and how that in the end, ultimately reveals how they ultimately never had a chance to begin with. Nuff said, check this one out.

Today's Song = 'Dusk Til' Dawn' by Ladyhawke

Today's featured song is Dusk Til' Dawn, by New Zealand artist Ladyhawke. Ladyhawke is a singer/song-writer/multi-instrumentalist who is now a solo artist, but who used to be a member of a Wellington-based band called Two Lane Blacktop. This song certainly is not new, as it is over 2 years old already, and it comes off of her September 2008 release self-titled album. This album peaked at #16 on the Australian albums chart, #1 on the New Zealand albums chart and #41 on the US Billboard Top Heatseekers chart, although Ladyhawke doesn't receive much airtime here in the USA, which is a bit of shame in my opinion. Well, enjoy yourself some good Kiwi-music!

'All Day' mashup album by Girl Talk

A new mashup album by Girl Talk (the 4th to date), which includes a mashup mix of heaps of songs artists. Quite a mashup masterpiece and mos def worth mentioning here. Check it out!  Girl Talk - All Day by walt74

Today's Song = 'Take Me Away' by The Melodics

And the song of the day is....Take Me Away by Australian indie-electro-rock band The Melodics. The Melodics originate out of Melbourne, Australia and consists of members Oceans Baroque on Keyboards/Vocals, Jeremedy on Vocals,  James Tudball on Drums, Jamie Barlow on Bass, and Tarko (aka Fantastic Mr Fox) on Saxophone and synthesizers. The Melodics released their debut album, titled 4d in 2009 and it involved collaboration with over 20 other artists in its making. Take Me Away comes off of that album, which can now be found on ITunes and Amazon. The band has a mix of synth-electro with elements of rock and hip-hop that blends to make quite an interesting and almost rebellious sound. If you would like to find more info on the band check out their website HERE or if you like this song it is still available as a free and legal mp3 download on their Unearthed page HERE.

Conserving the Internet as We Have Known It!

I have posted this because it is something that will most definitely affect all bloggers and vloggers out there, as well all internet based businesses. Check out the video and come to your own conclusions.

Brief Review for 'The Lady Vanishes' (1938)

The Lady Vanishes (1938)
4/5 Stars ****

An interesting Hitchcock flick from 1938 during a dark time in Europe. An interesting group of Brits, Italians, and an American woman take a ride on a train when one of their party strangely disappears. This movie has one or two continuity issues, but other than that it is quite entertaining. Naturally it is done in the Classic Hitchcock style, and is also funny (and Margaret Lockwood was quite a looker). Check this one out! 

Song of the Day for December 25th, 2010: 'Westfield' by The Salvadors

Today's song is...Westfield, by Adelaide based Australian indie-pop group The Salvadors. The Salvadors consist of first names only Tom ( vocals/guitar), Eddy (guitar), Jeff (bass guitar), Eugine (drums), and Cat (keyboards). The Salvadors certainly are making waves in Oz, and I recommend you check out this song as well as their others, which incidentally are available on ITunes and Amazon right now. Westfield comes off of their Misspent Youth Ep, which was released in November 2009. You will have to go to their Unearthed Page HERE to listen to this song and note that is still available as a free and legal MP3 download there. Also be sure to check out their website HERE. Merry Christmas!

#34 of VJ Samsonite's Top 100 80's Dance Hits Countdown: "Rebel Yell" by Billy Idol (1983)

Now presenting #34 of VJ Samsonite's Top 100 80's Dance Hits Countdown, and the song is...Rebel Yell by a true British-punk-rocker and legend Billy Idol. Now, this is the second Billy Idol song to appear on the Top 100 Countdown, and like I said before, it may not be the last one. And, from my previous post:  Idol's real name is William Michael Albert Broad, and he was born on  November 30th, 1955 in Stanmore, Middlesex, England, which makes the  Brit rocker 54 this year! Idol bounced around a bit in his earlier  years, and in fact was first a member of the punk-rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees in 1976, but before they were actually called Siouxsie and the Banshees. In 1977 he moved on to join Chelsea, and then with bandmate Tony James he quit and co-founded the band Generation X,  at which point he switched from guitar to lead vocals. In 1981 Idol  moved to New York and started up his successful solo career. Rebel Yell was released in 1983 as Idol's 2nd studio album, which produced 4 singles that appeared on the Billboard Hot 100 charts. The album itself peaked at #6 on that year's Billboard Hot 200 albums chart. MTV featured 3 of the hit videos off of this album for the songs Flesh for Fantasy, Eyes Without a Face, and Rebel Yell. This past Summer I was shocked to hear that Idol has since started doing small time gigs for Summer-fairs in relatively random and rural US cities?? Now, the reason why I was shocked, is because you look at some other bands from the 80's who are still charging over $500.00/ticket at their shows and yet Idol is playing these smalltime gigs, and he really is one of my favorite 80's artists, I guess them's the breaks, or something like that...Anyways, onwards to #33!

Song of the Day for December 23rd, 2010: 'Progress (ft. Mantra)' by Ishu

Today's song is... Progress (ft. Mantra) by Ishu. Ishu is a Melbourne-Australia-based producer, and Progress comes off of his recently released A World in Progress album, which hit stores on November 9th, 2010. This is the first single released from the album, so check it out. Not a whole lot of info on this artist, but you should check out his Myspace page HERE, and this MP3 is currently available as a free and legal MP3 download at the Triple J page HERE. Check it!   Ishu - Progress Ft. Mantra by FBi Radio 

Song of the Day for December 22nd, 2010: 'Can't See You (feat. Laneous)' by Rainman

The song for today is....Can't See You (feat. Laneous), by Australian hip-hop artist Rainman. Rainman has been out in the Australian hip-hop scene since at least 2006 or before, and he hails out of Brisbane, Australia. This song comes off his upcoming album, not yet titled or known when it will likely be released. If you like this song you can still download it as a free and legal MP3 from his Unearthed page HERE, and if you want more info on the artist etc. check out his Facebook page HERE. Triple J Hottest 100 Vol 17