Dylan, Rabin

Started this over the summer. I posted twice and promptly went into a blog-coma. A few things have brought me out of that coma, but I'll give most of the credit (blame?) to the fact that it's winter break and I'm mildly bored. I figure if I post a couple times over break, sharing my useless thoughts will become habit and then the world will be treated to my insight on a permanent basis.

The other reasons for restarting this are these...

Blood on the Tracks

Bob Dylan's 1975 album has snuck up on me, but I think it may now sneak in right behind Blonde on Blonde as my second favorite of his. Let it be noted that I am no Dylan junkie. There are plenty of albums I do not own, and plenty that I have not even listened to. Nevertheless, Blood on the Tracks has slowly been pecking at me, and today it really set in.

Personal highlights:
Idiot Wind and You're Gonna Make Me Lonesome When You Go may be the one of the most sublimely emotionally conflicting pairs of songs ever placed next to each other. Lily, Rosemary and the Jack of Hearts is probably one of my favorite Dylan songs, but listening through the album it is almost too much fun in the context of such a personal album. Someone posted a comment on an AVClub message board a while back that they don't like the song because it sounds insincere. I don't buy that but can understand the argument. The song is just so much fun that the sincerity seems hidden.


My Year in Flops

The AVClub doesn't do a whole lot wrong in my book, but with his year long series of biweekly reviews of infamous/famous/completely unknown films that bombed at the box-office, Nathan Rabin has produced something that will probably outlive him, and most certainly outlive its year stay on their website, whether in anthology book form or just in the minds of people like me who place filminess next to godliness, and scour the internet looking for evidence to support that belief.

They are informative, hilarious and more often than not, spot-on. The comments section is always good for a laugh (as it always is on AVClub).

Check them out, the year is almost up. He's through 99 of 104.

Favorites:

Howard the Duck, Pinocchio, It's Pat: The Movie but they are quite seriously all great.