Must See Bands of SXSW 2012 - Charli XCX

Seven weeks to go...

Charli XCX

I previously made a brief reference to the fact that there will be a lot of electronic acts at SXSW this year. If I may be a little more specific; SXSW will be heavy on the chillwave and all of the sub genres that have have come after it. Not much can be said that hasn't already been said on the subject of chillwave.  It isn't exactly the most beloved of music genres and it hasn't exactly been my favorite.  Generally, I thought this past year was a pretty poor year for music and I feel that this particular genre is to blame for much of that. So much of it is just so banal and saccharine and desperately needs to be pushed to more extreme levels in order to be interesting. Most artists have failed to do this.  Some have succeeded. Charli XCX has succeeded with...well, one or two songs really. So yes, I'm basing all of my expectations on a couple songs, but even with this limited output she's been able to push the boundaries of this genre just far enough to make something pretty damn good.  Granted, technically this probably isn't even considered chillwave, but I don't think it would exist without the genre. It's got a dark-goth-pop edge to it that I enjoyed and I'm looking forward to seeing what else she has to offer.

Nuclear Seasons (dir. Ryan Andrews)

Must See Bands of SXSW 2012 - Teengirl Fantasy

The hotel room is officially booked and I'm ready.  Here is another must see band for 2012.

Teengirl Fantasy

I was a little late in my discovery of this band and just recently started listening. I'm pretty obsessed with Dancing in Slow Motion featuring Shannon Funchess of Light Asylum. SXSW, at least for me, is looking to be heavy on the electronic bands this year and I'm not complaining. 

Dancing in Slow Motion (dir. DJ Mark Brown)

Must See Bands of SXSW 2012 - Gauntlet Hair

Leading up to SXSW this year I will be highlighting some of the bands I am most excited to see and that you should most definitely check out yourself.

Gauntlet Hair

Artsy, avant-pop, psychedelic, experimental, reverb-heavy rock. Whatever you call it, it's kinda great. With their yelpy vocals and comparisons to Animal Collective, their debut self-titled album was another one of my favorites of 2011.  They will be at SXSW 2012 and I will be seeing them. 

Keep Time (dir. Bernardo Pantoja and Skyler Stevenson)


More bands to come...

Top 20 Anticipated Films of 2012, 5-1

5-1 are as follows:

5. Provizoriu (dir. Cristian Mungiu)

Christian Mungiu's 4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days stayed with me way longer than most films do and that's always a mark of something great. Set in a Romanian convent, this is the story of a 23 year old girl's love for a girl inmate.

4. Like Someone in Love (dir. Abbas Kiarostami)

I just recently watched Certified Copy so it's very fresh on my mind. It was my first Kiarostami film and I plan on catching up on older films from the director very soon. I'm looking forward to this one in particular because while I enjoyed much of what Certified Copy had to offer, for some reason I felt very much as if I were on the outside looking in.  I found that I had a hard time relating to that particular couple's story. I don't think that's any fault of the filmmaking. This film, on the other hand, features a younger lead and a story set in Japan.

3. Django Unchained (dir. Quentin Tarantino w/Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Kerry Washington, Leonardo DiCaprio, Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell, etc., etc., etc.)

I don't think there is a more universally admired director right now than Quentin Tarantino and the story of a freed slave joining up with a German bounty hunter to track down his wife from her plantation owner sounds extremely promising.

2. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (dir. Peter Jackson w/Martin Freeman)

Nerd alert! I loved Lord of the Rings and I can't wait for this. That is all.  

1. The Master (dir. Paul Thomas Anderson w/Philip Seymour Hoffman, Joaquin Phoenix, Amy Adams, Laura Dern)

Anderson is, after all, my favorite working director.  There Will Be Blood is a masterpiece. And this story that has strong ties to the founding of Scientology couldn't sound more interesting.

Top 20 Anticipated Films of 2012, 10-6

10-6 are as follows:

10. Only God Forgives (dir. Nicolas Winding Refn w/Ryan Gosling, Kristin Scott Thomas)

Like I said, kind of over Ryan Gosling for the moment, but I'm still all about Nicolas Winding Refn (Drive).  And considering Southeast Asia is my current dream travel location, pretty much anything set in any Asian country, I get really excited about.  This is a revenge story about a gangster living in Thailand where he runs a Thai boxing club as a front for his family's drug smuggling operation.  This one is supposed to be pret-ty crazy.

9. Laurence Anyways (dir. Xavier Dolan w/Nathalie Baye, Melvil Poupaud)

I sometimes feel that the style/substance ratio that I personally enjoy most in a film can sometimes lean a little too much towards style.  Based on this director's previous film Heartbeats, which I loved, Dolan may become a very good example of that for me.  Heartbeats was great and I even related to certain parts, but it was definitely heavy on style.  Screw it, I hope Laurence Anyways is just as indulgent.

8. Gravity (dir. Alfonso Cuaron w/Sandra Bullock, George Clooney)

This is the second sci-fi movie on this list. Weird.  I was just in awe of how Children of Men was filmed, Y Tu Mama Tambien is one of my favorite films of all time, and even Prisoner of Azkaban was the best of the Harry Potter movies.  This one is about two astronauts on an emergency return home after an exploding satellite accident. 

7. The Grandmasters (dir. Wong Kar-Wai w/Tony Leung, Song Hye-kyo, Chang Chen, Zhang Ziyi)

An action film (his first since Ashes of Time) from Wong Kar-Wai about Ip Man, the man who trained Bruce Lee.  What else do I need to say?

6. Untitled (dir. Terrence Malick w/Ben Affleck, Rachel McAdams, Javier Bardem, Barry Pepper, Olga Kurylenko, Jessica Chastain, Rachel Weisz, Michael Sheen, Amanda Peet)

Who knows how certain that cast is, but if all of those actors make into the final cut - craziness.  You may have noticed that I didn't do a 'best of 2011' list because I've been more focused on looking forward, but if I had, Tree of Life would have been sitting somewhere around the three spot.

5-1 coming soon!

Top 20 Anticipated Films of 2012, 15-11

15-11 are as follows:

15. Love (dir. Michael Haneke w/Isabelle Huppert)

One half of an older retired music teacher couple suffers a stroke, is paralyzed down one side, and their love is put to the test. Sounds pretty uncharacteristic of Haneke, but I'm looking forward to it based on the strength of previous films (of course) which are some of my favorites. Cache? Anyone? 

14. Stoker (dir. Park Chan-wook w/Mia Wasikowska, Matthew Goode, Nicole Kidman, Dermot Mulrony, Jackie Weaver)

I'll be honest.  I just recently saw Oldboy (and no, I still haven't seen the other two in the trilogy).  I don't know why.  It's not like me to not watch something that's so culturally and critically admired.  And Korean!  Needless to say I kinda loved it.  I saw Thirst when it came out, which is to say, before I saw Oldboy and loved it as well.  I just hope he's able to hold on to his Kooky Korean Kraziness for this film and it's not too Americanized.

13. Untitled Bin Laden film (dir. Kathryn Bigelow w/Joel Edgerton, Jessica Chastain, Edgar Ramirez)

Obviously, this is based on pretty much nothing more than the success of The Hurt Locker.  I had absolutely no interest in that film when it came out and I was basically forced to watch it.  And then I enjoyed it - a lot.

12. Moonrise Kingdom (dir. Wes Anderson w/Bruce Willis, Edward Norton, Bill Murray, Tilda Swinton, Frances MacDormand, Jason Schwartzman, Harvey Keitel)

I went through a phase with Anderson's last 2-3 films where I had almost lost all hope.  I just wouldn't allow myself to enjoy them.  I thought he was repeating himself too much.  I think I'm over that.  I've realized that it's just a near perfectly realized style that, honestly, works very well for him and as much as I try not to be, I'm always very much entertained by his films. 

11. Prometheus (dir. Ridley Scott w/Michael Fassbender, Noomi Rapace, Charlize Theron, Idris Elba, Guy Pearce)

Here's that big budget I promised.  Honestly, I think I'm just looking forward to this one because it looks real cool.  If it's anything like Alien and nothing like Gladiator, that couldn't hurt.

10-6 coming soon!

Advanced Style Trailer

Trailer for Advanced Style (dir. Lina Plioplyte), a documentary about stylish New York older ladies.  Summer 2012.

Top 20 Anticipated Films of 2012, 20-16

Before I even start, I'm going to warn you.  There is one glaring omission from this list.  Without even saying actual titles, I will say that Christopher Nolan is not my favorite director and I think he's highly overrated as an action director. With that out of the way, I must admit that there are some really great looking movies coming out this year and I think my list represents a wide range - everything from small budget indie/foreign films to even a few huge budget event movies.

Inside Llewyn Davis (dir. Coen Brothers), Cogan's Trade (dir. Andrew Dominik), Simon Killer (dir. Antonio Campos), Argo (dir. Ben Affleck), Cosmopolis (dir. David Cronenberg), The Great Gatsby (dir. Baz Luhrmann), and Kiss of the Damned (dir. Xan Cassavetes) were all on the cusp but didn't quite make my very special and important list.

20. The Wettest County (dir. John Hillcoat w/Tom Hardy, Shia LaBeouf, Jason Clarke, Jessica Chastain, Mia Wasikowska, Guy Pearce, Gary Oldman)

Most, if not all, of my choices were made based upon the director and their previous work.  This is a great example of that.  This pick is based mostly on The Proposition (and not quite as much on The Road).  It is the true story of brothers who run a bootlegging gang threatened by authorities who want a cut.

19. Under the Skin (dir. Jonathan Glazer w/Scarlett Johasson)

Again, I was really impressed with Sexy Beast and I may even prefer Birth which I think is really underrated.  This one sounds a little odd, but in a good way.  Johansson is an extraterrestrial sent to earth by a greedy alien corporation?

18. Something in the Air (dir. Olivier Assayas)

Paris in the 70s from the director of Carlos and Summer Hours. 

17. A Place Beyond the Pines (dir. Derek Cianfrance w/Ryan Gosling, Bradley Cooper, Ray Liotta, Eva Mendes, Rose Byrne, Ben Mendelsohn)

I'm a little conflicted about this one because, while Blue Valentine was probably my favorite film of 2010, I'm a little tired of having Ryan Gosling shoved in my face. And the synopsis of a motorcycle stunt driver committing a crime in order to provide for his wife and child doesn't sound particularly enthralling to me.  Other than that, I'm sure it will be great. 

  

16. A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence (dir. Roy Andersson)

I really enjoyed 2007s You, the Living.  Maybe a little more than I should have.  I just have really fond memories connected to watching that one, so I'm really looking forward this one which looks to be similar in tone. 

15-11 coming soon!