AH WANNA TELL YA 'BOUT A GIRL

The Graphic Novel Reporter has reviewed You Have Killed Me.

"[Joëlle] Jones’ art is a true standout. She has a knack for drawing beautiful dames, elegant, long-legged ones, and her men are strong-jawed toughs who take punch after punch without flinching. She and Rich have worked together before (12 Reasons Why I Love Her), and they collaborate well. Rich clearly loves the genre he is honoring in his script, and he contributes a fun new work to it. You Have Killed Me is a fast-paced detective work, and as such, the actual solution to the mystery isn’t the point—the journey is, and getting there is where all the enjoyment lies."

Thanks, John!

Current Soundtrack: The Fiestas, "I Can't Shake Your Love (Can't Shake You Loose);" Inez Foxx, "Crossing Over the Bridge"

YOU DON'T REALLY LOVE ME, AND I DON'T REALLY MIND

Oh, man, am I behind this week. Two reviews?! Really? Well, to be fair, I saw six movies in the theatre between Monday and Thursday this week, starting with Broken Embraces and ending with, yes, Avatar, and I have written reviews for all of them, I'm just not allowed to post until things open in Portland. So, expect plenty more in the coming weeks, especially as I get back to my DVDs.

NEW IN THEATRES...

* The Princess and the Frog, Disney's fun-filled return to classic animation is a winner.


THIS WEEK IN DVD REVIEWS...

* Spectacle: Elvis Costello With... - Season 1, a show where Elvis sits and chats with other musicians about music. Its brilliance is equal to its simplicity.

I'd love it if Mr. Costello had Mr. Hannon from the Divine Comedy on.

Current Soundtrack: Erasure, "Stop," The Lodger, "A Year Since Last Summer," Stereolab, "The Noise of Carpet (US Single Version);" Elvis Costello & Allen Touissaint, "On Your Way Down"

e-mail = golightly at confessions123.com * Criterion Confessions * Live Journal Syndication * My Corporate-Owned Space * ComicSpace * Last FM * GoodReads * The Blog Roll [old version] * DVDTalk reviews * My Books On Amazon

All text (c) 2009 Jamie S. Rich

MY IMAGINARY FRIEND

I think we've broken Nico. He is so lost in Spell Checkers, he's drawing comic strips where he and one of the characters are hanging out. By a bunch of lockers. This book has so many lockers!

Read it in French on his blog if you're fancy.

Current Soundtrack: Ocean Colour Scene, Anthology...and I think I hear the kitty purring over there, and the coffee percolating over there

HE WILL TELL YOU THE DAY AFTER A TRIUMPH IS AS HARD AS THE DAY AFTER A TRAGEDY

Nice review of You Have Killed Me over at Major Spoilers. Check it out:

"I do like Rich’s writing. He has a great grasp of giving the reader just enough information without giving everything away. When it comes to revealing important clues from Mercer’s past and how his continued love for Julie lands him in trouble, it makes for a page turning story as you try and guess what will happen next. The story is nothing new, but it is engaging, and I found myself reading it multiple times over two days.

When I read comics, I generally do not pay attention to who wrote or did the art in any book until well after I’ve read the issue. After being taken in with Joelle Jones’ art in 'You Have Killed Me,' further investigation into her previous works was a bit of a surprise as some of her recent works include the recently released Noir, and other books from Dark Horse Comics. I love her style, and it mostly works for me."

Current Soundtrack: Arctic Monkeys, "Cornerstone" EP

A FEW HOURS BEFORE THIS...

Thanks to the folks who came out tonight to hear me program an evening of music and dancing. They know who they are. We had fun, yes?

For those who didn't come to the second official DJ Icky Animal excursion, here is the set you missed:

Mareva Galanter, "7h du matin"
The Monkees - "Can You Dig It?"
The Jam - "In the City"
Wire - "Three Girl Rhumba"
Elastica - "Waking Up"
Cornershop - "Lessons Learned from Rocky I to Rocky III"
Janelle Monae - "Violet Stars Happy Hunting!!!"
Irma Thomas - "Break-A-Way"
Marvin Gaye - "You're a Wonderful One"
Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings - "Take Me With U"
Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds - "Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!! (single edit)"
The Horrors - "Who Can Say"
The Cure - "A Few Hours After This..."
Bloc Party - "Ares"
Jarvis Cocker - "Fuckingsong"
Ride - "Twisterella"
The Dandy Warhols - "Welcome to the Third World"
Prince - "No More Candy 4 U"
Alicia Keys - "Try Sleeping with a Broken Heart"
Space - "Female of the Species"
Blur - "Popscene"
Nancy Boy - "Johnny Chrome & Silver"
The Brian Jonestown Massacre - "Servo"
The Olivia Tremor Control - "I'm Not Feeling Human"
The Jesus & Mary Chain - "Far Gone & Out"
Muse - "I Belong to You (New Moon Remix)"
Morrissey - "You Have Killed Me"
Suede - "Metal Mickey"
Adam & the Ants - "Physical (You're So)"
Duffy - "Rain on Your Parade"
Smokey Robinson & the Miracles - "I Gotta Dance to Keep From Crying"
Georgie Fame & the Blue Flames - "Yeh Yeh"
Baby Washington - "Hey Lonely"
France Gall - "Poupee de cire, poupee de son"
Lily Allen - "Not Fair"
Dizzee Rascal w/ Lily Allen - "Wanna Be"
Estelle - "Wait a Minute (Just a Touch)"
Saint Etienne - "Boy is Crying"
Suede - "Love the Way You Love"
Newcomers - "Martian Hop"
New Order - "Regret"
Mystery Jets & Laura Marling - "Young Love"
The Pipettes - "It Hurts to See You Dance So Well"
P.M. Dawn - "Set Adrift on Memory Bliss"
Rihanna & Justin Timberlake - "Hole in My Head"
Dr. Teeth & the Electric Mayhem - "Tenderly" + Animal Sings Gershwin

In keeping with songs that area also titles of my books, I think next time we'll start with some My Life Story....

Current Soundtrack: The Slickers, "Johnny Too Bad;" Johnny Hartman, "Charade;" Elvis Costello & the Attractions, "Really Mystified;" Johnny Boy, Johnny Boy

FOUR SEASONS IN TWO DAYS

Or, at least, that's what it feels like.

Busy weekend, including a couple of public events.

First up is tonight, when I will be making my second appearance as DJ Icky Animal, "spinning" from 11 to 1 a.m. at the Fez Fez Ballroom in the downstairs bar, 318 SW 11th Ave, right across the street from Powell's, above Buffalo Exchange. If you're wondering what kind of stuff I play, you can look at the set list from last time. $4 at the door.

Second, tomorrow night, Floating World is hosting a party to celebrate the release of One Model Nation, a little project under the guidance of Mike Allred, written by C. Allbritton Taylor and drawn by Jim Rugg. All three of those folks, plus editor Joe Keatinge, colorist Jon Fell, and historian Donovan Leitch--yes, that Donovan Leitch--will be at the store from 6 to 9.

Here is more specific info.

Plus a preview of the book.

And the website for the band One Model Nation.

ONEMODELNATION : OST BERLIN

onemodelnation | MySpace Music Videos

By the way, the Portland Mercury is running some charity auctions right now. They have two comic book packages, one of which contains a place on the Oni Press comp list in 2010, which means a copy of Spell Checkers in amongst there. Bid on that here. The other auction is a pack of Dark Horse comics, and it includes an original page of Joëlle Jones' artwork from Dr. Horrible. At the moment, the price is insanely cheap, check it out.

Joëlle's site should also have prices for other Dr. Horrible pages shortly.

Current Soundtrack: Sandie Shaw, "Maybe I'm Amazed" & "I'll Cry Myself to Sleep;" Beautiful South, "Blackbird on the Wire;" Stars, "The Big Fight;" The Charlatans, "Muddy Ground"

e-mail = golightly at confessions123.com * Criterion Confessions * Live Journal Syndication * My Corporate-Owned Space * ComicSpace * Last FM * GoodReads * The Blog Roll [old version] * DVDTalk reviews * My Books On Amazon

All text (c) 2009 Jamie S. Rich

SENDING OUT AN S.O.S.

NEW IN THEATRES...

* The Messenger, the hard-hitting drama with Woody Harrelson, Ben Foster, and Samantha Morton. Portlanders, it's finally here.


THIS WEEK IN DVD REVIEWS...

* A Christmas Tale - Criterion Collection, Catherine Deneuve and Mathieu Amalric in Arnaud Desplechin's take on The Royal Tenenbaums. (Cross-posted with Criterion Confessions.)

* Fraggle Rock: A Merry Fraggle Holiday, three episodes of the classic Jim Henson show, though only one is really holiday-themed.

* The Golden Age of Television - Criterion Collection, a wonderful boxed set of live TV dramas from the 1950s. (Cross-posted with Criterion Confessions.)

* Johnny Mercer "The Dream's On Me", a TCM documentary about the amazing songwriter who co-wrote "Moon River."

Current Soundtrack: The Charlatans UK, self-titled



e-mail = golightly at confessions123.com * Criterion Confessions * Live Journal Syndication * My Corporate-Owned Space * ComicSpace * Last FM * GoodReads * The Blog Roll [old version] * DVDTalk reviews * My Books On Amazon

All text (c) 2009 Jamie S. Rich