November 2010

There were 16 posts published in November 2010 (this is page 3 of 3).

C.A.T: I Should Coco

Supergrass – I Should Coco (1995)

Remember when we were doing a “Classic Album Tuesday” for every year? Well I’m bringing it back and I believe we left off at 94′ so here’s the debut from Supergrass for 95. What happens when you mix frenetic punk music with pop melodies and shrill vocals? You get Supergrass, a high energy trio from Oxford that’ll rock yer socks off. From their hit single “Alright” to their other genre defying singles I Should Coco is an unpredictable mish mash of punk/pop inspirations.

I first heard about the group from their song “Caught by the Fuzz” featured at the end of Hot Fuzz and soon enough realized they were responsible for the hit song “Alright” featured in a handful of commercials a few years ago. They’re definitely one of those bands that has a definite identity and you can usually spot them from a mile away with Gaz Coombes distinct vocals. At first I found him annoying but somehow I became a fan with time, well suited for this kind of garage rock music.

I’ve never really had as much interest in another Supergrass album like “I Should Coco.” It just feels fresh and no holds bar, something I never found on future Supergrass releases. The band would go on to record five more albums before calling it quits in 2010, but I’ll always remember them for this one, you could say its’…. “Alright?” Ehh?

Favorite Tracks: “Alright”, “I’d Like to Know”, “Mansized Rooster”

The Undead Air


Zombies seem to be everywhere these days, hell I went to a zombie convention last weekend. Basically the undead are as popular as ever and what better way to capitalize on that than with the first ever zombie TV show? I was ecstatic when I heard that AMC out of all networks was going to take on Robert Kirkman’s graphic novel The Walking Dead and after viewing the pilot, I can proudly say that all my expectations were met.

I read the first installment of Kirkman’s series last summer and though it didn’t blow me way, I still found it’s simple approach and style enjoyable. Definitely plenty to expand on for a series, so it’s a good jumping off point. Seeing that zombies have been done so many times you don’t want to overcomplicate anything, keep it simple using atmosphere and character development to suck us in. I mean the zombie concept has been taken on so many times, but how often has it actually been taken on well? This show takes it on and takes it to new heights.

I could explain it in just a few sentences for those who don’t know. A southern sherif gets shot on the job and awakes from a coma to find the world has been taken over by the undead. Sounds a lot like 28 Days Later huh? Surprisingly no, this is a quiet and brooding show that’s paced slowly and stealthily. Until the end there weren’t even that many zombies, most of our lead character Rick’s (Andrew Lincoln’s) confrontations with corpses were one on one. Oh and I must say the corpses look fantastic in traditional makeup work.

What’s great about The Walking Dead premiere is that it’s not as much about zombies as it’s just about human survival. Almost if the zombies are just props to the desolate setting in which people try to survive in the midst of disaster. There’s a lot of room for these characters to grow and develop over time and “time” this show does take.

I couldn’t of been happier with the premiere of AMC’s newest and hopefully next big show, it certainly has the potential to attract a large following. Who wouldn’t want to see a movie quality show that’s free to show as much blood as they please on basic cable? I can’t wait for next sunday.