5 in 5

Here's my 5 for '05:

Music
Lightning Bolt - Hypermagic Mountain
Lou Barlow - Emoh
Rogue Wave - Descended Like Vultures
Winterpills - s/t
System Of A Down - Mezmerize

Movies
Batman Begins
Cinderella Man
Grizzly Man
Broken Flowers
Fever Pitch (Yes, I am a sucker)

5 things I loved about 2005
1) The San Antonio Spurs winning their 3rd Championship in 7 years. In a league filled with prima donnas and egocentric morons the Spurs handle themselves with class, dignity and respect. They also play team oriented basketball. Which is a rare (larry)bird in the NBA these days.
2) Dear friends (and AMAZING human beings) Killswitch Engage and Shadows Fall have had HUGE success this year. Here's to many more. They are proof positive that the age old adage of "nice guys finish last" is a crock of shit.
3) The Red Sox championship trophy came to the Brass Cat. In case you missed it, click here.
4) I won the WRSI singer/songwriter competition and I finished my second record, which should be out early in the new year.
5) Jen and I made it through another year of very long hours together and hope to continue doing so for years for our baby.

5 things I hated about 2005
1) Bands that put out records that sound exactly like an old band. White Stripes = Led Zeppelin/Aerosmith. Arcade Fire = Talking Heads. And bands that put out records where every song sounds like a different old band. My Morning Jacket. Modest Mouse. My advice for these folks. Crawl into a closet with your guitar, take a New York Times front page with you. Eat an entire bucket of paint with a spoon. Read the whole page of the paper and then write a song about it. You all must purge the notions of derivation. The saddest part about this is that there are people surrounding these bands (producers, walking wallets, engineers, friends, peers) standing around patting them on the back. Oblivious. Or knowing and not letting on for hopes of fattening their bank accounts. Sickening.
2) R. Kelly's video/movie thingy. Sorry Matthew, I understand why you enjoy this. It is really easy to laugh at and make fun of but the reality is that this is passing as the biggest thing to happen to R+B since James Brown. When a musical style has hit its collective head on the ceiling you would think that it would be the most likely time to look out for ground breaking talent. Someone who rethinks the whole genre or takes inspiration from as of yet untapped sources. What happens here, though? This idiot makes music into a soap opera for soccer moms. I can't tell you how much it sickens me that this thing is a huge hit. Marvin Gaye (who changed the dynamic of R+B in the 60's by singing songs about the horror of war) is spinning in his grave. And for good reason.
3) Our presidential cabinet keeps insisting on killing our poor (as in "impoverished") kids in a foreign land (that doesn't want us there and poses no threat to us) so the rich can get richer off the blood oil of that nations soil. Bile inducing. Sadly, this will probably be on my list for years to come.
4) The passing of Brox. The dog that was synonymous with the Brass Cat. Sleep well, dear friend. I am less of a man without you.
5) I can only think of those 4 things. I guess that's a good sign for 2006.

Happy holidays all.