The Toad's Burrow

    I was tempted to start off this review with the entire lyrics to Wonderwall,  which would be pretty funny, and I'm still contemplating doing it, but also I think that perfectly describes exactly how I feel about this band. I know nothing about them other than Wonderwall , and like one other song I heard in a TV show somewhere. Actually I know that they broke up because this band is two brothers who just always constantly fought with each other, and one of these Gallagher blokes is pretty funny on twitter. Either way, that's why when my friend Omaid suggested this album I groaned as one does, especially considering how people have rated this album. And frankly, I listened to the first track and just don't get it at all. Even still, I'm in a good mood, which gives this album a fighting chance, so without further ado, my track-by-track review. Standing on the Shoulder of Giants - Oasis Fuckin' in the Bushes - 25/100 I listened to about 80% of this song before reali...

      Rewatching Whiplash  for the first time in ages, basically since I was a child, I can't help but point out the fact that frankly the only scenes I remembered was the yelling, the bloody ones, and the one where he puts raisinets in popcorn (because I've never had raisinets or seen them and thought it was pretty weird and still do). Basically, what I'm saying is that to many people, this movie is frankly a lot of style over substance, it's technically a film about jazz, but if you come in with that mindset you're going to be disappointed. There's no love letter to the greats, there's no homage to the beauty of music, or freestyling, this movie is entirely about the pursuit of greatness and the idea that friction and pressure are the tools used to mold diamonds in the rough.     And for the most part it's pretty compelling. I'm not saying I agree with the teaching styles of Terence Fletcher, far from it. I mean when the cost of "doing busines...

     I'll be the first to say, my brother has been recommending this manga to me forever. I mean he loves it, he has stickers from this series, shirts from it, and as someone with a background in music he just loves the idea of a manga about jazz. Me on the other hand, well frankly I'm not the biggest jazz guy, but what I did need was something to read while I donated plasma, and honestly I was hooked. I'm a big slice of life guy when it comes to stories. I don't constantly need big events or crossovers, I just need characters to get hooked onto. And I'll be damned, Blue Giant did it for me. Really, the only thing I hated was the ending, I just felt like considering all they built up this band to be, the fact that it turned out the way it did really frustrated me. So let's talk about it.     I would consider at the very least this arc of the series two halves. The first on involves Dai in his hometown of Sendai, trying to prove that he is more than just someone ...

    Boooooooooooooooooooooooo. This show is just sad at this point man. I have no words. I can't believe even the little things I was complimenting this show about in the first season are just completely gone. Whether it be the very obvious music choices, the setting, or the proper diverison of minutes to each "couple," this show continues to erode at any sort of plausible realism fans might have been able to cling to, and I'm not even talking about the obvious one. This show has simply ballooned in the worst way, there's clearly too much money to throw around, and somehow this show decided that it's ambitious enough to try something it should have never even begun to sniff. Don't even get me started on all of the random characters or sideplots from past seasons that just fell off or died on the vine.     Let's start with the slight improvements over season two. For better or worse, season two loved living in the past, whether it be the fact that 60% o...

       I have a bit of an odd relationship with this album to be honest. Because on one hand it's one my least favourite Panic! albums, but also that's just because I kind of really loved their first couple of albums as a child. This is actually the Panic! album I came into as a fan, as sadly I only became a fan at the tail end of what was left of this "band." Even still, I'd be lying if I said I didn't still listen to songs from this album to this day. After all, and I cannot stress this enough, Panic! At the Disco was my gateway band to listening to music in any semi-serious capacity. So of course, as it is somehow still sunny in Toronto, I jumped at the opportunity to review it again. So without further ado, my track-by-track review. Death of a Bachelor - Panic! At the Disco Victorious - 10/100 I am proud to say I never liked this song as a child. I mean it's so obnoxious. Whether its Brendon gloating his vocal chops like a peacock, or the chorus, this ...

      I'm going to be honest. I used to make fun of this album too. As a young teenager with a  burgeoning music taste and a strong desire to have hipster credibility, I saw everyone making fun of this album, and specifically the song Feels Like Summer , and felt compelled to do the same. Of course, that doesn't mean I refused to listen to it. Back then, and even now I do listen to quite a bit of Weezer, and even I had my moments of listening to it, almost like a guilty pleasure, like the two weeks where I worked a summer job and just listened to 5SOS on repeat. But now, all grown up, craving the fleeting moments of summer more and more, I must admit that I unabashedly enjoy this album. I don't think I'll go as far to try and fight people over it, but I won't be afraid to say I really enjoy this album. Perhaps everything just rolled right in it's favour, it has the nostalgia factor going for it, and the summer one too, and frankly I am a pretty big Weezer fan, s...

      I have no idea who these guys are and I'm doing this review against my will. GHETTO GODS - EARTHGANG THE GLOW - NA/100 I'm not commenting on some intro. GHETTO GODS - 15/100 It's like if someone told them they put horns in this track it'd make it sound super epic and go hard. BILLI (feat. Future) - 10/100 I was glad when Future came on because they stopped yelling about Billi's.  WATERBOYZ (with JID & J. Cole) - 10/100 The less they repeat this chorus the better. HEY BOO - Skit - NA/100 A welcome reprieve. AMEN (with Musiq Soulchild) - 20/100 Hearing Musiq Soulchild reminded me that I'm supposed to be listening to music. ALL EYES ON ME - 15/100 Less offensive than the other tracks. LIE TO ME - 40/100 The beat is goofy as fuck and horny (not in a good way) but it's not that loud and frankly I don't hate it as much as I thought I would. JEANS INTERLUDE - Skit - NA/100 Am I glad there's a skit? I won't comment on that. BLACK PEARLS (feat. ...

    Honestly, this show was very much a tale of two halves for me. If you had asked me my opinion on this show after about two or three episodes, I would have been lukewarm on it. The plot felt pretty formulaic, and the only time I really managed to care about this show was when "The Bride" was on screen. Now, don't worry. There won't be any complaints about "woke" or how they ruined Frankenstein as a DC character, because frankly I didn't care too much about him or his role. But his appearance did mark by far the best part of this show, and that was shift away from your standard "team of misfits' show towards something that felt more real.     Now, don't get me wrong, this season is only seven episodes long you won't be blown away by intricate stories of how actually they're all the good guys, but what it does make you do is care about the characters, which is really hard with a show of this length. I mean seriously, whenever I see ...

      I write this review as someone whose watched this film before, and as someone who frankly still feels a little unequipped to be properly talking about this film, giving it the grace I should have. Now, don't get me wrong, I don't think it's perfect, but honestly with a film like this it's kind of hard for me to rank it on the usual scale of enjoyability I use for films. It's hard for me to slot this film into my rankings because frankly it's a hard film to watch. It's harrowing, it's devastating, it does it's job well, and leaves you just kind of uncomfortable by the end. So let's talk about it.     To me, this is a film about environment, whether it be as Little, Chiron, or Black, Chiron is struggling to figure out who he is, and is morphing before the viewers eyes. Like Juan said, in the moonlight he isn't just defined by who he is on the outside, or who other people think, he can become something completely different, and that's ...