metro station

 Metro Station is back, which is basically Mason Muso, yet songs in the tradition of what Metro Station is known for, a sweet electronic pop guided by Musso's melody. No Trace Cyrus, who has his own project going Ashland High.



The band broke up in March of 2010, over a personal dispute. But fans are delighted that Metro Station is possibly back on track now. Hopefully, 2012 will bring lots of luck to Trace and Musso even if they have parted ways.



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War Horse - movie review

War Horse has long been a favorite story in England. So its interesting to see what Spielberg would do. He's also taken a fascination to the cartoon character in Europe, Tin Tin. But that's another movie to talk about.

Of course the main character of this film is Joey, the Thoroughbred. Who learned quickly from Albert. And Spielberg did a majestic job of showing the beauty of the friendship between a boy and his horse as well of lovely landscapes unspoiled by war. It also talks of the unspoken wars we hear less and less about as the decades go by. If you are a history buff, you'll certainly want to take in this film.

Its been said it took 17 horses to play "Joey" the Thoroughbred.

War Horse is based on the book by Michael Morpurgo. Its the story of Albert Narracott who is played by the wonderful Jeremy Irvine. After seeing this film, I can't think of anyone but him for this part. Jeremy Irvine is certainly the actor to watch for. His emotions are spot on in the film.

The cinematography is grand. Such beauty Spielberg exposes, yet he shows the grim reminder of war too. And there is a bit of nostalgia to behold. The story transcends an emotion of war and how it affected all of Europe.

There is such amazing performances from Tom Hiddelton, the officer who rides into battle with Joey, as well as David Kross (The Reader) as the German solider who found Joey. Then the wonder crux of the motion picture when Toby Kebbell (a Brittish solider) comes across Joey.

As one patron put it, "I loved the movie, but I dunno if I could recommend it." Its quite an emotional ride. Pretty much a tear jerker. Although, it is a film well worth seeing on the big screen. This is the first film Spielberg has ever edited digitally. He's old school when it comes to editing.

The movie opened Christmas day. Just in time for an Oscar buzz!

STORYLINE: Young Albert enlists to service in WWI after his beloved horse, Joey, is sold to the cavalry. Albert's hopeful journey takes him out of England and across Europe as the war rages on.

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One Direction

OK, not to get these guys mixed up with that wonderful boy band that Simon Cowall created from X-factor. This is a USA group, based out of California. The band is made up of Sean O'Leary who plays keyboard and lead singer, Isaiah Chavez-Pickett, Scott Nagareda, and Adam Davis (Scott Graham used to be with the band). Although, they are not as popular as the other ONE DIRECTION, these guys do have musician talents as well as catchy melodies in their songs.






Their new CD is THE LIGHT. And I found their 2012 song and thought I'd share it with you... since its almost 2012. Wishing them a great new year in music!


ONE DIRECTION

Tim Urban

He's grown up a lot since American Idol. Remember him? The one with the adorable smile.

" I love seeing how much he’s grown since Idol.  It’s like night and day!  :-)" Says one fan.

I still think he'd make a great addition to Glee. However, he is doing a lot of charity events with other American Idol contestants. Over the summer he did the Dreamworld Benefit. Fans find him delightful, kind and happy go lucky.

One fan suggested that he be on BIG TIME RUSH. Many are hopeful he'll still make it big. Perhaps 2012 will be his year. And he won't be a forgotten face from American Idol.



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Tim Urban Music

Fiction Tuesday- Lola and the Boy Next Door

Stephanie Perkins does it again! A new favorite Christmas present of many -  LOLA AND THE BOY NEXT DOOR.  She has a way of making us want the guy. And Cricket Bell is just as original as St. Clair from her last book ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS. And...guess what? Anna and St. Clair pop in on this book too!

My dreamcast: Cricket - Matt Beard (from Chatroom), Lola-Phoebe Tonkin(from Secret Circle), and Calliope- Elizabeth Gillis(from Victorious)

“I slide my hand between our mouths, just in time. His lips
are soft against my palm. I slowly, slowly remove it. “No, I
don’t love Max anymore. But I don’t want to give you this
broken, empty me. I want you to have me when I’m full,
when I can give something back to you. I don’t have much to
give right now.”
Cricket’s limbs are still, but his chest is pounding hard
against my own. “But you’ll want me someday? That feeling
you once had for me … that hasn’t left either?”
Our hearts beat the same wild rhythm. They’re playing the
same song.
“It never left,” I say.”
“And I hold my head high toward my big entrance, hand in hand with the boy who gave me the moon and the stars.” --Lola and the Boy Next Door

Dreamcast-Thomas Dekker as rocker boyfriend Max

Is it possible to still have that feeling of first love with the guy who moved away? Who did the worst thing possible to you. Emotionally. Can it come back to haunt you or to be rekindle?

Lola is the main character who is from the San Fransisco area. She has two dads who care very much for her. She's also wanting to be in costume too. And she thinks she's met the perfect guy. A rocker, in a band, who's older ...with tattoos. Max isn't exactly Dads approved, but her parents are trying.

As luck would have it, Cricket Bell comes back into her life, who has always played second fiddle to his sister, Calliope, the skater. He's tall. Geeky, but such a gentleman with a style for fashion who had to let Lola go because he had to be there for his sister... who's life is ice skating.

“I know you aren’t perfect. But it’s a person’s imperfections that make them perfect for someone else.”

—	Lola and the Boy Next Door

Stephanie gives us so much to smile about as the story unfolds. As Lola discovers how everything isn't perfect with her rocker boyfriend. And she starts to learn more about her biological mother when she comes to stay with them. The story grows and Perkins has a way of showing us how girl meets boy, and how friendship and romance can be a journey worth the self discovery.

Perkins is most definitely my favorite Young Adult Author of 2011. I embrace her characters, and I always want to read her books again and again, after I've read them.

  “History books are filled with lies. Whoever wins the war tells the story.”

—

Lola and the Boy Next Door, by Stephanie Perkins, page 156

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freebies

I've really fallen in love with this sampler from Nettwerk.

Especially, White Elephant from Ladytron. Such a cool song and it makes me want to know more about this band. They feature Tegan & Sara in this song.

Also included on the sampler is a very hypnotic song called X by kidstreet...out of Waterloo, Ontario.

And I loved Fascinated by Ivy.

There is also a song on the sampler by the Great Lake Swimmers.

Jane Levy

She has to be my new favorite, up and coming actress this year. Most definitely my favorite Female Character in a Comedy-Tessa Altman (Suburgatory). One of the best new shows on ABC.

Jane is a little bit Emma Stone, yet she brings her own originality to her character Tess. Her face is so expressive.

Before she was in Suburgatory, she was in SHAMELESS (the American version).

Her birth name is Jane Colburn Levy.

She has two new movies in the works this coming year. NOBODY WALKS and FUN SIZE.

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winter perfect

SNOW DRIFT COWL!


*Perfect addition to your winter outfit
*Cozy, Chunky, Scrunchy & Warm
*Made with soft, non-scratchy wool blend yarn

SWEETEDGE!

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It might be that time of year. Or, just looking for new artist to fall in love with. How about checking out Stockholm Belongs to Us at Amazon.

22 songs in fact that you can't even hold on one CD. As if anyone does that anymore. But some really cool songs you might want to include on your next mix for a friend or a last minute Christmas gift that a friend might even joy.

There are sounds from Radio Dept., Club 8, Sambassaduer, Pelle Carlberg and many many more.

The Moondoggies

The Moondoggies are a four-piece band from Seattle that plays timeless American music. Warm three-part harmonies, gothic Rhodes organ, and wanderlust guitar mark a sound rooted in boogie blues and cosmic country; whip-smart songwriting leads to hook-heavy tunes that bristle with originality. Led by 22-year-old singer/guitarist Kevin Murphy, the Moondoggies are intent on artistic balance. They’re a serious band with a silly name. They play music that speaks of travel but is strongly connected to its place of origin. They’re young musicians continuing a legacy that goes back generations. Songs that unravel over seven sinuous minutes are somehow catchy and compact.



Looking for a classic rock group with a lot of soul? Look no further. These guys have heart and soul in each note. They've done Bob Dylan covers. But I have to say it was Its a shame, Its a pity that grabbed a hold of me.Its so Neill Young. I just had to find more of their music.

Kevin Murphy is the lead singer of the band. He does many acoustic sets which makes him all the more wonderful. His voice alone is a mighty storyteller of feelings. I dunno why, but he reminds me a little of Zach Galifianakis. Perhaps its the beard.



Words get overused
Lose all meaning too
Oh I’ve been such a fool
So I’ve been told
So I’ve been told

I’ll do whatever it takes to set my heart free
I’ll do whatever it takes to set my heart free-the undertaker by the moondoggies

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Jeremy Irvine

Before Jeremy got his big break in War Horse he was in LOVE BITES which is a family comedy.

"I had been a struggling actor for two years, so to go from that to being on the set of a Steven Spielberg film, where he treated me like part of one big family, was amazing." Jeremy says about WAR HORSE.

"
There were real explosions at my feet, bodies flying through the air, stunt men getting shot at. It was terrifying. The smoke and the smell and the taste of the guns firing. It's not difficult to act scared in that situation."-he says about working on the set of WAR HORSE.

Premier still of NOW IS GOOD with Dakota Fanning.

Jeremy grew up in the rural village of Gamlingay in Cambridgeshire, England. He likes history. He also has Type 1 diabetes.

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Fiction Tuesday- Picture books for kids

EXCUSE ME! a little book of manners by Karen Katz:

The book is very easy to read to a little one. Very help, I might add. And makes a great gift in the board books out there. Everyone needs to talk about their manners. Maybe even Mom or Dad can learn a thing or two with this lesson. Karen Katz is a Mom. A great book for babies and toddlers! Her latest is Wiggle Your Toes.

FRENCH DUCKS IN VENICE by Garret Freymann-Weyr and Erin McGuire (5 & up)


A magical, lyrical, beautifully illustrated tale about friendship and healing--and the joys and risks of staying open to love, even in the face of loss.

Siblings George and Cecile live in Venice, California, but think of themselves as French ducks. They have an important friend, Polina Panova, who conjures magical dresses of thread, silk, and velvet . . . of grass, pieces of night sky, and strawberry jam. To the ducks, who delight in her daily visits, Polina is a princess. But when Polina's prince--who makes movies almost as luminous as her dresses--decides to go away, life on the canal changes, and so does Polina. What are two steadfast and affectionate French ducks to do? Save admit that every broken heart mends on its own time, in its own way? From an acclaimed Y A author and a talented debut illustrator comes a storybook classic full of light and hush, wisdom and whimsy, about patient friendship and the healing power of time.

I loved the pictures in this book and could see it being a major motion picture, perhaps.

TUMFORD the terrible by Nancy Tillman (From babies on up)

Oh, who doesn't like a story about a cat? Or a pet for that matter. Sometimes, its best for the younger minded to read stories about animals. Perhaps they can find them relate-able, or understand how pets can be.


Tumford isn’t really a terrible cat. He just has a way of finding mischief—tracking dirt into the house, knocking over breakable things, and disrupting fancy parties. But even though he feels bad, he has a hard time saying, “I’m sorry.” Will the fact that his owners love him, no matter what, help Tummy say the magic words?

Young Adult - movie review

Jason Reitman and Diablo Cody together again. Saying that, I guess I can add these two are showing some maturity even if the film is about a Young Adult author who won't grow up.

This is a film that's a bit messy, yet much of the dialogue won't feel anything what we are used to hearing from Diablo. Its quite restraint. Yet, there is this darker reality of it, and Charlize Theron's Mavis Gary is just a twinge of "Jennifer" from Jennifer's Body about how she feels toward life and those around her. She is the star of her own reality show in a sense..which I mean..as in her life. We see from the locals, when she goes back to Mercury, Minnesota, they couldn't quite stand her, anyway. The beautiful prom queen who might as well be the ice witch (Sound familiar? She's the witch in the new Snow White and the Huntsman).

Of course, she thinks she can come back and take her old high school boyfriend back, Buddy Slade played by the sweet natured yet oblivious Patrick Wilson. Elizabeth Reaser (From the Twilight saga) plays Buddy's wife. They've just had a baby. While Mavis is freshly divorced. Add to the geometry of the film is Patton Oswalt as Matt, the "hate crime" kid. Really, its Oswalt who steals the film. And in a sense its a bit haunting as in the reality of what is left of bullied grownups.

The film has its layers. To some it will be much darker than to others. And that's what makes the film unique. The fact that you can have different interpretations of this film. But all will realize just how Mavis sees herself. And how her past sees her.

The film definitely gives you all the different layers of Charlize's character Mavis. It has such a wonderful cast. The tiny amount of time we see of Collette Wolfe as Matt's sister is priceless. One has to wonder how many turns this film could have taken. Still Reitman is one to lay it all out for you and leaves you with a bit to think on.

"I don't want to make films that give you the answer. If there is a message to my films - and I hope there isn't - it's to be open-minded." Jason Reitman

STORYLINE: Soon after her divorce, a fiction writer returns to her home in small-town Minnesota, looking to rekindle a romance with her ex-boyfriend, who is now married with kids.

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“The conventional knowledge in Hollywood is that an unsympathetic female character can tank a movie. I’m hoping that’s not true. I’m knocking on wood really emphatically right now, but honestly I have a lot of theories. Sometimes I wonder if it comes down to mommy issues. The idea of a cold, unlikeable woman or a woman who is not in control of herself is genuinely frightening to people because it threatens civilization itself or threatens the American family. But I don’t know why people are always willing to accept and even like flawed male characters. We’ve seen so many loveable anti-heroes who are curmudgeons or addicts or bad fathers and a lot of those characters have become beloved icons and I don’t see women allowed to play the same parts. So it was really important to me to try and turn that around.”

—	Diablo Cody in an interview about Young Adult (via isummonedyouhere)

This song really puts a perspective on things in the movie. Perhaps you might have a memory from it too.