2008 August Archive at The Black Nail

Archive for August, 2008

Where In The World Is Osama Bin Laden?

Published on August 27, 2008 in Entertainment and Film Critic. 2 Comments

I grabbed this film for the comedic approach on a real issue. Tonight I watched it straight through without distractions, then let it roll again while I worked on a project. This documentary is, in a sense, more about the on-camera director (Morgan Spurlock) and his intake of the middle east, than the problem solving of the war on terror, oil and the struggle between Israel and Palestine. However, I think this film is great for the average selfish American. The film tips it’s hat subtly towards awareness. Which is exactly what this country needs more of. It is factual that not all, nor even a third, of the middle east is “out to get us.” Morgan does a beautiful job shedding the light on a culture that does care about their families and peace. Throughout the film he sought out very interesting people of all backgrounds to interview, often speaking with an infectious honesty. You will find yourself mustering a hefty chuckle as he springs this question on random citizens passing by, “Where is Osama Bin Laden?” One fellow responded with, “Where is your car?” Morgan’s off the cuff reply was, “Why, do you want to blow it up?” His quick wit makes this film fun, all the while keeping the serious issues at hand. Do take the time to watch the alternate ending along with a short feature titled Three Girls Saudi. The animation included is very well done, complete with a smart play on modern video games and Osama dancing to Hammers “Can’t Touch This.” You will walk away with a broader world view than what your evil television is teaching you through the “news.”

In my ranking of 1 – 5, I give this film a 3.5

Check the trailer, then go rent it!

Press Rewind [<<] Last Weekend

Published on August 22, 2008 in Uncategorized. 4 Comments

17 August 2008

Warning: This will be a mess of a blog post with no direction, little meaning and plenty of information; some useful, some not. But by all means, do read on.

The weekend. It came, it conquered and melted into Monday. My weekends ‘end’ was interesting. Let me start there and then ‘Tarantino’ this for you. Last night I rolled out to East Nashville to toast my good friend Kevin on his birthday. While we were sitting outside at the Red Door someone who heavily enjoyed his alcohol and didn’t understand the phrase “in moderation” decided to jump on top of the table next to us and reveal his posterior to the adjacent street. Our table grew silent without needing to say, “What the heck was that all about?” Moments later this same donkey approached our table and wanted to know who we all played for. None of us spoke up, as he had now interrupted our pleasant evening twice. He carried on until finally Kevin mentioned that he was an artist. After the, “Oh yeh, you’re that guy.” He went into a mindless rant about how he knew who he was and how he knew the ‘other two.’ Then his babbling became far too annoying and Juan ever so gently put his hand on the donkeys shoulder and said, “It’s time for you to go.” Interrupting him mid-sentence. And without another word he turned and walked away. I have never seen anyone take the hint so well. Three cheers for ‘that guy.’ And thanks to Juan for letting us get back to conversing. I was able to hear a small amount of his story from Kevin, having just met Juan. He seems like a great guy with an incredible story to tell. Juan was one of the original dcTalk dancers way back in the day. I hear he is writing a book, which I can’t wait to read. As soon as I hear more about it I’m sure I will divulge.

After catching up with a few pals in the industry I thought it best to head back home and get some sleep so that I could tackle this week properly. The idea of sleep came and went. I tossed and turned for a bit with ideas, thoughts and memories of the past dancing in my head. So I tossed the covers aside and sat down at my piano. Three simple words would not leave me. They tagged the feelings that were attached to the memories I was replaying to perfection. I shaped a few chords around the hook and before I new it I was playing the most personally penetrating song I’ve ever penned. To me, the best piece yet. There is so much beauty in simplicity. Beauty in honesty. I know that it is a song that when performed I’ll have to ‘go there’ to get the proper emotion for it to be relatable and touch others. But I believe it’s in a good place now, a safe place. And when I finished the lyrics and sang it through I felt such a soothing release. Indescribable. If you have no idea what I’m talking about when I say ‘go there’ and you don’t know me well enough to have heard the 5 hour story from MY lips, hang around for a while. The start to finish of a major chapter of my life is being penned in full, to be released at some point further down the road.

Upon finishing the song for the night (morning), I returned to my bed to try and get a few hours of sleep before I had to get back on the mac and edit in the morning. Sleep did not come. My mind is something that I don’t think I’ll ever figure out. It will ignore sleep completely in order to think through every possible scenario. So in order to stop the process I sometimes turn on Seinfeld or old western films to fade away into slumber. I snatched the remote by my bed and flicked on the tube. I found the forum at Saddleback with John McCain and Barack Obama on CNN. Politics are something that I rarely discuss. Very rarely. I am more about actions than words. And talking about what you’re going to do for over a year does nothing but annoy me. I won’t get into what I thought about the questions and answers, because at this point it’s just my opinion about opinions. I will say that it was informative and I am happy that I was able to catch it. But it was not Seinfeld nor a western, and I was still awake. So I rolled out of bed, made it, then pulled up the shades and rolled into my office chair. The work week officially began.

It was definitely a definitive weekend for me. I came to many conclusions internally. After collaborating how I viewed others and myself in certain settings I made a few decisions. Decisions are always good. Because you take a stand when you decide. And after many years of learning, by observing my father, I have a strong knack for making a decision and going with it. Full speed ahead. Divulging further is not at all necessary, this is not a gossip column. Even though I haven’t slept…

I’m feeling good about life.

The NeverEnding Story

Published on August 21, 2008 in Journal Entry and Uncategorized. 4 Comments

In a few hours I am flying out to Dallas/Ft. Worth. Feel free to scroll through my ‘Twitter’ (mini-blog) to follow me on my traversing. I have a few blogs that are not yet posted because I haven’t had the time to finish them. I’m just happy that I have clean laundry and a packed suitcase at this point. My life has been crazy lately, to say the least. Prayer for safe travels accepted. You are loved.

Godspeed.

Coco Chanel, a Cowboy and a Basement

Published on August 14, 2008 in Entertainment and Some Sort of Review. 4 Comments

Last night I ventured out on the town to take in a bit of live music. It’s a great town for that if you have yet to hear. Nashville has a decent amount of indie type players, singers/songwriters and the like. The stereotype that this place is all country music is ridiculous. If you avoid the honky-tonk row on Broadway and saturate yourself with the surrounding side streets and villages, you will come to love the sub-culture that is Nashville. And just a side-note for Nashville as a whole: Please put away the “Nashville is the next L.A.” t-shirts. The ‘Ville is just dandy the way it is. Those shirts may be cool for your kids in 15 to 20 years when the printing of everything ‘retro’ picks back up. I wouldn’t really want any of what L.A. offers here (other than a beach).

Back to the reason for the photos bookending the text… We decided to check out the ASCAP show at The Basement instead of the incredibly crowded Belcourt Theatre, featuring Brooke Waggoner (hopefully I’ll catch one of her shows soon). The opening act at The Basement brought Dumb and Dumber to my mind as he first took to the stage. Merely based upon his ‘getup’ (mimicking the single colour cowboy outfitting of Harry and Lloyd-exchanging cowboy hat for indian headband). Levi Weaver was the name. As he began playing, I must be honest, I mumbled inside my head, “Not another guy performing loop tricks with the foot pedals…” I let opinions leave as he began to play, yet it wasn’t until his cover of Idioteque by Radiohead that I began to gain respect for what he did. He did it well. From that song on I was into what he was selling and rather enjoying it. This is an artist that you should definitely check out on Myspace and purchase an album. His music is great for a night of easy-listening; presenting reflecting story-telling songs a la the late great Johnny Cash. Some of my favs include Which Drink, You Are Home and Of Bridges Burned. I can see a healthy career for this cat within a comfy pocket. And upon reading that he did some touring with the loop master Imogen Heap in 2006 means that he knows how to get connected and gain respect.

Chanel Campbell took the stage with a strong sense of belonging. She seemed very comfortable as if she had been performing these songs for years and they were a part of her. I had the chance to give her music a quick listen prior to heading over to The Basement, just hearing her ‘on tape’ was enough to impress. And as I heard her perform she proved to be a well rounded artist coupling an infectious penetrating voice live with a superb studio ability. Dissecting her words as she sang I felt a familiarity with them, not in an “I’ve heard this before” sense of the word yet an “I’ve felt this before.” Her stories of love and want breathed a relatable comfort to the listener and a wanting to hear more. At one point she presented an Elvis cover with ease and gave it ownership. Gaining much respect for ‘doing a cover the proper way.’ Her voice slightly parallels that of early Jewel with a touch of Feist, yet in no way is that a true comparison as she introduces a voice that is all her own. With the right path, Chanel will without question rise to the top, it’s only a matter of time. Her songs are very well written containing just the proper dose of hook and sing-ability, meaning she can reach a wide variety of listeners and really hit home. The tune I can’t seem to cease listening to is Never Enough. However, there isn’t one track that I don’t want to hear again and again. This will be a much anticipated album for me when it is released. Do head over to Chanel’s Myspace page and give all of her songs a good listen. The album release date is unknown at this point, but I do know that she will be performing again live on September 1st at the Mercy Lounge in Nashville, and at the famed Hotel Café in L.A. September 15th. So all my Nashville and Cali readers get on out to the shows!

Sarah’s Long Overdue

Published on August 13, 2008 in Entertainment and Of the Musical Kind. 1 Comment

Sarah has a voice that everyone should love. Coupling that voice with very meaningful/memorable lyrics and melodies she has always been one of my favorites. And unlike some songs, the memories I have that are attached with Sarah’s music are ones I don’t mind hanging onto.

It has been far too long since she has released anything consisting of new/original material; 2003 [Afterglow] if I’m not mistaken. On October 7th she will be releasing a ‘new’ album. It is, of course, of the greatest hits genre. None-the-less, she is giving us two brand new tracks ”U Want Me 2″ and “Don’t Give Up On Us” both composed by Sarah McLachlan (and co-produced by Sarah McLachlan and Pierre Marchand). Below I have attached one of the two for you to give a listen. It’s nothing epical or insanely catchy, but sometimes simplicity is best. And with this song, after a few listens, I really enjoy it.

I definitely recommend grabbing the greatest hits album when it comes out, ’cause let’s face it – your old CD’s are probably still scattered and not uploaded into your itunes.

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(If you haven’t heard the album Wintersong it is a MUST for the holidays)

Tuesdays with Cory

Published on August 12, 2008 in Entertainment and intellectual Crumbs. 8 Comments

12 August 2008 – A blog in two parts

Today has thus far proven to be beautiful (in the U2 sense of the word). I am proud of my body for being able to allow me slumber last night. Having pulled an all-nighter on Sunday, finishing up an edit for Integrity Records, I feared that I would get sucked back into the insomniac routine that my body goes into when I work too much. I sometimes need to have a discussion with said body and promise it that I will not be torturing it so with little or no sleep. As soon as I awoke I stepped out to breathe in semi-fresh air and thank God that I am now in Nashville, experiencing non-humid 77 degree weather in August (As opposed to sucking wind in Phoenix dealing with 118 degree mornings – but it’s a dry heat… pssh). I haven’t had a reflective morning to myself in a while, it has been good to take time for that today. Continue reading ‘Tuesdays with Cory’