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Invitation To Love

Thesis

Could a better day be had? Sure, I was up all last night writing a paper - but I also participated in all my classes, got my schoolwork done, carved pumpkins, and rewatched my current obsession. Forgive me for taking it easy once again. I promise it's important for me to chill out this regularly.

If you can't tell from the above image, I'm freaking out about Twin Peaks lately. I finished the first season yesterday. Tonight I plan on marathoning as many episodes as reasonably possible before bed. So: all of them? I do hope to get some sleep, but the weekend is near enough.

Bad News

Yes, Take Care has been delayed until November 15. Though the wait is now even more excruciating, I appreciate Drizzy's honesty and commitment to the finished product. I must also say that the album is being released conspicuously near the anniversary of MBDTF's landing. Does Drake know that November is the month to unveil magnum opuses? I hope so. Until we find out together just how much of a perfect record this is, take care.

DRIVE

As many of you have noticed on Twitter, I'm currently in the throws of obsession with this movie. There's something inside it that's hard to explain.

Drive [2011]

I've now seen this film twice. On both occasions it was exhilarating, mesmerizing, and exhausting. Rarely does a movie affect such an effortlessly cool.

Its characters are expertly portrayed, if they amount to little more than types. The strong and silent loner. The innocent and helpless dame. The father figure. The untrustworthy mobster. All is forgiven, because rarely are the types embodied so perfectly. Each actor convincingly breaths a visceral presence into the stylishly sparse script. The driver could easily come off as one-dimensional or absurd. Instead, Gosling's nuanced and understated performance hints at a brokenness beneath the driver's laconic cool that feels real and endears him to us.

But this isn't just a sleek indie character study. If you haven't yet seen the movie - or watched the trailer (DON'T WATCH THE TRAILER) and spoiled the movie for yourself - you might want to stop reading now. Okay.

What makes Drive especially exciting is the unexpected and totally grindhouse/camp/pulp turn it takes in its second half. Because things get ridiculous for a couple reels: cocaine swirls on strip club mirrors, exploding heads, and old-school car chases. Seriously. Few films have so successfully pulled off a tonal switch of this magnitude while retaining their thematic weight and emotional effectiveness. The beginning third of the film works economically and masterfully to establish the visual motifs and overarching emotional concerns of the characters, such that the rest of the film's stylized adrenaline rush feels earned. We never lose our emotional stake in the characters or the film, making its frantic action all the more powerful.

Before I wrap up this review, two things: 1) Drive is that unseen example of a drama/action/romance that effectively incorporates elements of horror to heighten tension, make claims about the characters, and nail some beautiful visual moments, and 2) the lighting and soundtrack are pitch-perfect. The original score and selected pop songs complement the visuals in ways I didn't know I wanted them to. And the lighting is so dramatic and shamelessly theatrical and stylized and did you see how good it looked?

Alright, alright. I'm clearly head over heels for this pop masterpiece. Go see it!

Ps - I'm totally going as the driver for Halloween.

Conclusions

Think I'mma call Ferris up. Did you know Lil B released another mixtape today? I think that makes eight releases for the year. Gotta love it. Let the day off continue with David Lynch and Mark Frost's soap opera spectacle. Take it easy, y'all.

MIXED FEELINGS IDK ABOUT THIS :/

Day Off

Or: Why I'm Not At Pitchfork

Thesis

Sometimes words are inadequate. Such was the case last night after the Woods and Kurt Vile show. Zech and I were walking the streets of Bloomington in an emotional stupor, shellshocked and overpowered by ourselves and some heavy music. A first-world problem, but a problem not helped by what we witnessed on Kirkwood.

Knock You Down

The idiot drunkenness that can be seen on weekend nights downtown is usually a welcome component of the college town atmosphere. Last night, however, things were worse. The two of us passed by a group of friends consoling their crying friend, who was distraught because he had (I think) just been verbally assaulted by a pack of what I'll call for the sake of this blog "white people." I used different words at the time.

The crying friend in question was black. He had been assailed, presumably, because of this. His friends were doing their best to explain the idiocy of the passing bigots/worst humans ever/white people. He wasn't comforted.

Take This Weight

I feel immature and naive and "white guilt" writing about racial insensitivity/injustice/violence. Who am I to be taken aback by this scene? It's not as if I didn't know racism was a real and terrible problem in the world. I just can't process seeing that last night. I felt like crying. It's always been obvious that the world is terrible at times. That people treat each other badly. I can't stand it. I can't offer a response to this. I probably shouldn't have even committed it to writing. Maybe by reading it you can feel bad too. Or figure out if there's anything intelligent or useful to be made of this. I just want humans to care about each other.

Anyway, to talk about the usual trivialities of #METASWAG, all of this happened in the midst of an already emotional night. Zech and I were talking deep existential things and trying to figure out what makes everything okay. Maybe midnight bike rides. Talking to each other? Art?

This Is A Music Blog

I guess it's time to talk about why I'm not at Pitchfork. And why that's okay.

> None of my friends were able to go this year

> It would run me at least $100

> The only acts I really cared to see today are G-Side and Julianna Barwick

> I've already been to four concerts in the past week

> So

Conclusions

I'll write up said concerts and talk about less sad things when I'm feeling less sad about things. Wish I had written more carefully and usefully about the sad things themselves. Maybe I will soon. For what it's worth, excepting last night, this week has been spectacular. Back to regular programming in the coming days.

I'm the bouncing head in front of Avey (Good Memories)