Will.i.am is the Worst and Best Thing for Music Right Now

I just finished Rolling Stone's interview with Will.i.am of Black Eyed Peas as part of its "40 reasons to be excited about music" story. I admit, I'm not a Black Eyed Peas fan. Nonetheless, I read the story with some interest; you can't deny Will.i.am is successful. From his Pepsi mash-up with Dylan to his Obama song and video to the sheer number of hits his group has recorded, the man clearly knows what sells, what people want, and how to deliver that to them.

However, I'm kind of uneasy with his description of music of ambient mood sound bytes, written like commercial jingles to be easily processed, digested, and consumed by music fans. I agree that itunes and the mp3 format has changed the way we listen to music, but to discount the power in story, in narrative, the power in the lyrical that's present in so many great songs... I'm not sure I'm there yet. Does beat and rhythm finally trump message and meaning? Is the medium the message in music, as McLuhan so presciently argued?

Of course, it's not fair to dump all this on Will.i.am. But I think his comments speak to a larger issue with the direction the music industry is headed, or has already arrived at. I'm not saying we should go back to the vinyl record. I know that's the trendy thing now (although I don't know if they're any more environmentally sound--nothing like the sound you get from a rubber tree from the rain forest, eh?). And I don't agree with Will.i.am that squares don't produce good music (I'm not kidding. Cassettes didn't work, according to him, just like 8 track tapes, whereas records and CDs did). Just the same, Will.i.am is likely the visionary to music relevant and move it (or keep it) in other areas of social and cultural life.

But I hate to think that artists can't or won't produce music of the same quality and with the same characteristics as they used to. And I hate to think that they're no longer "artists" but jingle writers. Call me old fashioned.

Comparing Caprica and BSG

I enjoy SyFy's prequel to their critically-acclaimed series Battlestar Galactica, Caprica. Here's one blogger's take on it so far (he's also an interesting poet to read, if you've never encountered his stuff).

I'm a fan of the film Big Fan

Overall, a good movie. There are some incredibly funny parts, some sad and poignant parts, but overall little payoff at the end of this journey made by the main character. It was well-written and there are some great camera shots and interestingly composed scenes. The acting is good as well. Its just one of those films that seemed to promise a bit more than it could deliver.

Find details about Big Fan here

Paranormal Activity is actually pretty normal...

Paranormal Activity is actually pretty normal...

I was disappointed in this film. I applaud the director, actors, and crew on a job well done given the budget. It looks good, and there are some creepy moments, but the conceit of the documentary-within-a-film was done better with the Blair Witch Project. In BWP, the characters at least attempted to leave the woods when they realized something strange was going on. In PA, about night 12 I was rooting for the "paranormal activity" to kill both of these idiots. While an attempt was made at character development, the two people behaved in ways that prevented me from identifying with them. The character Micah was such a jerk, by the middle of the film I was hoping he would bite it. The character of Katie was certainly more sympathetic, but didn't behave in believable ways (believable within the logic of the script, not according to real life). I don't want to spoil it, but let's just say you'd think these two (and especially Katie) would've interacted with more people and sought out more help than they did (or at least have gotten a dog to warn them and maybe ward off this "thing). The reason they didn't, of course, is likely because it wasn't in the budget to hire more actors or animal wranglers. Overall, a decent film that doesn't live up to its own hype.

You can find details about this film here.