By Jack Silbert on January 2, 2018
4.5 stars out of 5
Among the downers related to my extended hospitalization and rehabilitation was that I didn’t get to see Rogue One in the theaters. Since age 8, I’d seen every Star Wars movie on the big screen, as the good Lord intended. I eventually rationalized to myself that Rogue One was a Star Wars story but not an official, you know, Episode. So my streak is intact! And I’m glad, because this is one of the best Star Wars movies yet.
“Wait, what? But I read in such-and-such article that…” Feh, I don’t read any of the articles. Forget it, Jake, it’s Star Wars. You’re either on-board or you’re not. Me, I’m all in, baby. Now, where were we? The Empire did some bad stuff, and the Resistance resisted. The Force Awakens was a thrilling rejuvenation of the series, and a true joy for us dorks of a certain age. Yet as I looked back on it, the film felt more and more like an exercise in nostalgia and a re-telling of A New Hope for the younger set out there. But, no complaints, as it was so entertaining and uplifting.
The Last Jedi, on the other hand, has to almost completely rely on its own merits and storytelling — and pretty much succeeds spectacularly. Characters introduced in Awakens continue to grow and flourish: kickass Rey who the Force is strong in, Poe the rebellious rebel pilot, Finn the reformed Stormtrooper, and Kylo Ren who had some real daddy issues last time around. Inner conflict reigns supreme in this installment. Rey and Ren are both torn between the twin sides of the Force, while Finn wavers between cowardice and heroism.
OK, they did bring in a real nostalgic ringer with Luke Skywalker. But he too is conflicted — chilling on the island or returning to his long-shirked Jedi responsibilities. Will he play Yoda to youthful Rey?
The movie isn’t perfect. Early on, I worried about the series’ Disneyfication, as Finn’s storyline felt entirely too video-game-ready. But the film got better and better as it went on, with larger issues taking precedence. When all is said and done, The Last Jedi has it all — thrilling action, enough heart, and even some positive lessons for the kiddies. It’s a fitting farewell for Princess Leia and definitely gave me a new hope for future episodes.
Posted in movie reviews | Tagged 10s movies, Star Wars
By Jack Silbert on December 31, 2017
1. See some shitty famous band just in case that “10 bands I’ve seen/1 I haven’t” meme comes around again.
2. Invent a smartphone selfie attachment that’s just an arrow saying “camera is here.”
3. Recruit an unbeatable personal army comprised only of transgender soldiers and maybe also stage a production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.
4. Withhold judgement till I’ve walked a mile in someone else’s prosthetics.
5. Totally cool it with the groping, leering, exposing myself, inappropriate comments and jokes, but if you think I’m taking down my Cheryl Tiegs poster you’ve got another thing coming.
6. Journey to the center of the Earth and/or a Tootsie Pop.
7. Suggest to the Fleet Enema people that perhaps their bottles shouldn’t look exactly like an Elmer’s Glue bottle and hint that just maybe I found out the hard way.
8. Encourage kids to take a knee during “Itsy Bitsy Spider.”
9. Re-do Skid Row’s “Eighteen and Life” as “2018 and Life;” sit back and watch the money roll right in.
10. Make America Less Dickheaded Again
• My resolutions for 2017
• My resolutions for 2016
• My resolutions for 2015
• My resolutions for 2014
• My resolutions for 2013
• My resolutions for 2012
Posted in satire | Tagged 2018, New Year's resolutions
By Jack Silbert on December 26, 2017
EPISODE #263: NEW TO ME IN 2017
In 2017, I saw 172 musical performances by 152 different acts, 90 of which I was seeing for the first time, 84 of them brand-new to me. Of those, I was inspired to buy 23 records. (I also purchased debut records by 7 acts that I’d seen in previous years, marked below with asterisks.) Rehabilitation and lack of mobility limited my show-going, but I hope to attend more than 200 performances in 2018.
The Who — “Happy Jack” [THEME]
pronoun — “Til Your Legs Give Up”
A Giant Dog — “Photograph”
Pinact — “Seams”
Basic Bitches — “We All Moved to the City Now We Can’t Afford to Live”
Lee Bains III & the Glory Fires — “Black & White Boys”
Versing — “Call Me Out”
*Glenn Morrow’s Cry for Help — “Pony Express”
*Head Cheerleader — “I Want To Burn”
*Cassie Ramone — “Song of Love”
*Joy Cleaner — “My Psychic Dent (Is Acting Up Again)”
*Mikey Erg — “Boys & Girls & Tentative Decisions”
*Glazer — “Made of Meat”
Decoration — “Mall Walkers”
*Sunshine & the Rain — “Let’s Go”
Al Scorch — “Pennsylvania Turnpike”
Morricone Youth — “Anarchie Road”
The Royal Arctic Institute — “Do the Kuchar”
The Rubinoos — “Wouldn’t It Be Nice”
Winter — “Flower Tattoo”
The Regrettes — “Hey Now”
Greg Ashley — “Bruises”
Kyle Forester — “Won’t Go Crazy”
The Proper Ornaments — “Now I Understand”
Stef Chura — “Spotted Gold”
Trying — “My Life Is Like a Merchant Ship Song”
Dany Laj & the Looks — “Sweet Pretender”
Fascinations Grand Chorus — “When You’re Mine”
Jay Gonzalez — “Punch of Love”
Eyelids — “Slow It Goes”
Filthy Friends — “Any Kind of Crowd”
For a limited time, you can stream or download the episode here. Jack’s Aquarium podcast is proudly recorded in Hoboken, NJ.
Posted in internet radio playlists | Tagged A Giant Dog, Al Scorch, Basic Bitches, Cassie Ramone, Dany Laj & the Looks, Eyelids, Fascinations Grand Chorus, Filthy Friends, Glazer, Glenn Morrow's Cry For Help, Greg Ashley, Head Cheerleader, Jay Gonzalez, Joy Cleaner, Kyle Forester, Lee Bains III & the Glory Fires, Mikey Erg, Morricone Youth, Pinact, pronoun, Proper Ornaments, Royal Arctic Institute, Rubinoos, Stef Chura, Sunshine & the Rain, The Regrettes, Trying, unpopular music, Versing, Vivian Girls, winter
By Jack Silbert on December 22, 2017
4 stars out of 5
Aryan wonderboy Justin Timberlake cast as “Mickey Rubin”? When will we Jews finally get a break in Hollywood? Still, JT does a fine job here, as does the entire ensemble in yet another very good film from the late-era Woody Allen. I like elder Wood Man, I really do — he’s putting together some truly compelling work. Perhaps it’s because he has a life of experience, and of thoughts, that have percolated into philosophical questions. And time runs out to answer them.
I’ve really looked forward to my summer vacations in different locales with Woody in recent years. Though this is a winter release, the sun is shining in early-1950s Coney Island. And it’s absolutely gorgeous to behold; credit Woody’s longtime colleague, production designer Santo Loquasto, and the great cinematographer Vittorio Storaro.
We meet lifeguard/playwright/narrator Mickey, who warns us he’ll soon be a character in the story. Later we see Mickey reading the psychological study Hamlet and Oedipus, and a Shakespearean vibe permeates the plot. Our set-up fits the framework of a comedy: Carolina (Juno Temple, who I know from Vinyl), daughter of merry-go-round operator Humpty (Jim Belushi), returns to her estranged dad after escaping the clutches of her gangster husband. Humpty’s world-weary wife Ginny (Kate Winslet) begins an affair with Mickey. But soon, Mickey and Carolina also fall for each other, while gangsters circle ever closer. Eventually, you realize you’re not watching a comedy but actually a tragedy.
Even when not evoking the Bard, there’s a definite theatrical feel to the proceedings, especially when we’re in Humpty and Ginny’s home just off the boardwalk. It’s like the set of a play, conflicts arising between different characters. Between this and Twin Peaks, Belushi has had an excellent year, oozing confidence and likability. Here he summons some inner Gleason, but just below the jovial exterior he’s keeping the wolves — and his drinking — at bay. Why is his wife so unhappy? How can he protect his daughter, who he’s just repaired his relationship with? And how can he stop his wife’s young son from (literally) starting fires?
Yet the movie truly belongs to Kate Winslet. Ginny longs for her happier life when she was an actress and truly in love (before wrecking it with infidelity), not a waitress who merely appreciates her husband for “saving” her. The romance with Mickey awakens Ginny’s hopes and dreams, but her growing awareness of Carolina and Mickey’s mutual attraction brings out her worst qualities, and resentment of Carolina’s youth. It’s powerful, and Winslet deserves an Oscar nod.
There’s a brief comic respite when Bobby Bacala and Paulie Walnuts show up as henchmen, but the mood continues to darken and feelings chill, even in the warm glow of Coney Island.
Posted in movie reviews | Tagged 10s movies, Kate Winslet, Woody Allen
By Jack Silbert on December 19, 2017
EPISODE #262: HOLIDAY SPECIAL 2017
The Who — “Happy Jack” [THEME]
Darlene Love — “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)”
Lorna — “Hannukah”
The Hit Parade featuring Amelia Fletcher — “Christmas Tears”
The Buzz of Delight — “Christmas”
The Spook School — “Someone To Spend Christmas With”
The Bakersfield Breakers — “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer”
Allison Strong — “If You Believe”
Thee AHs — “A Family That Doesn’t Know Me”
Mayor Jerramiah T. Healy — “White Christmas”
Captain Sensible — “One Christmas Catalogue”
The Minus 5 — “When Christmas Hurts You This Way”
The Felt Tips — “Christmas Release”
Fred Schneider & the Superions — “Santa’s Disco”
The Pogues with Kirsty MacColl — “Fairytale of New York”
Jack’s Aquarium podcast is proudly recorded in Hoboken, NJ.
Posted in internet radio playlists | Tagged Allison Strong, Amelia Fletcher, Bakersfield Breakers, Captain Sensible, Darlene Love, Fred Schneider & the Superions, holiday music, Kirsty MacColl, Lorna, Matthew Sweet, Mayor Jerramiah T. Healy, Pogues, Spook School, The Buzz of Delight, The Felt Tips, The Hit Parade, The Minus 5, Thee AHs, unpopular music
By Jack Silbert on December 12, 2017
EPISODE #261: NEW TO ME IN 2016 + LIVE HIGHLIGHTS
In 2016, I saw 145 musical performances by 135 different acts, 83 of which I was seeing for the first time, 77 of them brand-new to me. Of those, I was inspired to buy 9 records. (I also purchased a debut record by an act that I’d seen in a previous year.) My show-going was cut short mid-year by illness and hospitalization, thus the reduced annual tally and the tardiness of this episode.
The Who — “Happy Jack” [THEME]
Adult Mom — “When You Are Happy”
Mrs. Magician — “No More Tears”
Petal — “Tommy”
Bent Shapes — “What We Do Is Public”
Mercury Girls — “Ariana”
Dentist — “Koko B. Ware”
Evening River Band — “Red Bank Blues, No. 1 (Ordinary Grace)”
Castle Black — “The Old Town”
Halfsour — “Grump”
Dear Tracks — “Moment of Clarity”
Britta Phillips — “Daydream”
…not new to me but was excited to see:
The Moles — “Bury Me Happy”
BMX Bandits — “E102”
Los Lobos — “Our Last Night”
The Chills — “Pink Frost”
Allo Darlin’ — “Hymn on the 45”
For a limited time, you can stream or download the episode here. Jack’s Aquarium podcast is proudly recorded in Hoboken, NJ.
Posted in internet radio playlists | Tagged Adult Mom, Allo Darlin', Bent Shapes, BMX Bandits, Britta Phillips, Castle Black, Dear Tracks, Dentist, Evening River Band, Halfsour, Los Lobos, Mercury Girls, Petal, The Chills, The Moles, unpopular music
By Jack Silbert on December 10, 2017
After uncharacteristically missing out on the sweepstakes for Japanese star Shohei Ohtani, the New York Yankees made their first splash of the Aaron Boone era by acquiring super slugger Giancarlo Stanton. As both Stanton and Aaron Judge are right fielders, questions immediately arose regarding next season’s outfield alignment. Of course, another question looms: What will be radio announcer John Sterling’s home-run call for Stanton? Before the deal had even been officially announced, wags already weighed in with possibilities such as “Stanton ovation” and “He hits it all the way to Stanton Island!” Salt in Wound now humbly enters the fray with the following suggestions.
— “Stanton hits that one a TON!”
— “Stanton delivers!”
— “‘Carlo unloads!”
— “Gee, Giancarlo!”
— “It is Giancar-high… it is Gian-far… it is… GI-AN!”
— “Now I under-Stant his power!”
— “It’s a Gian-t blast to left!”
— [to the tune of “Erie Canal”:] “Giancar-lo’s ball, everybody up, lo’s ball, it’s coming at you, yup!”
— “If home runs were clowns, Stanton would have a Gian-carload!”
— “I need a Stant stent because that ball gave me a HR attack!”
— “Giancarlo Is-pro-hitto!”
— “There’s no station-to-station when it’s Stanton-oh-Stanton!”
— “Giancarlo hits the yellow Stanchion in left field!”
— “He is Gian-point!”
— “It was like he was hitting off a tee — a Gian-Harlow Stand-on!”
— “Giancarlito’s Way… way back!”
— “Ay, Gian, See ya later!”
— “He hit that ball on the Gi-spot!”
Previously featured:
• Todd Frazier
• Starlin Castro
• Didi Gregorius
• Carlos Beltran
• Jacoby Ellsbury
• Brian McCann
• Kevin Youkilis
Posted in satire | Tagged baseball, Giancarlo Stanton, John Sterling, New York Yankees, radio, WFAN
By Jack Silbert on December 5, 2017
EPISODE #260: 6TH ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL (RADIO VOL. V)
The Who — “Happy Jack” [THEME]
The Replacements — “Left of the Dial” (live)
The Blasters — “Border Radio”
ZZ Top — “Heard It on the X”
M. Ward — “Pirate Radio”
Stephen Chopek — “Radio Caroline”
Boys’ Star Library — “History of the Radio”
[listener Hoboken Jack legal ID for WFMU]
Bobby Sky — “Radio City”
Jim Testa — “Blow Up Your Radio”
The Cordova Academy Glee Club — “The Radio Has Got No Soul”
The Stray Cats — “Something’s Wrong With My Radio”
Komplx & Oddateee — “Radio Waves”
Spoon — “I Can Feel It Fade Like an AM Single”
Jon Langford’s Four Lost Souls — “Poor Valley Radio”
Jack’s Aquarium podcast is proudly recorded in Hoboken, NJ.
Posted in internet radio playlists | Tagged Bobby Sky, Boys' Star Library, Cordova Academy Glee Club, Jim Testa, Jon Langford, Jon Langford's Four Lost Souls, Komplx, M. Ward, Oddateee, Spoon, Stephen Chopek, Stray Cats, The Blasters, The Replacements, unpopular music, WFMU, ZZ Top
By Jack Silbert on December 5, 2017
I wrote this article for hMAG about the exciting upstart record label Rhyme & Reason. It’s run by Emmy Black and Annemarie Scuderi, with help from Emily Cadman, and it was a delight to talk with them.
Posted in shameless self-promotion | Tagged Annmarie Scuderi, Emily Cadman, Emmy Black, hMAG, Hoboken, record industry, Rhyme & Reason Records
By Jack Silbert on December 3, 2017
2.5 stars out of 5
For quite a while in its nearly two-hour running time, I genuinely liked this movie despite some gaping flaws. It certainly has a lot going for it: compelling story (grieving mom rents billboards to shame police who didn’t solve her daughter’s murder), strong cast, scenic small-town setting. And it looked like there was even a “Black Lives Matter” undercurrent in the mix. Still, certain elements gnawed at me. The advertising agency that owns the billboards is directly across the street from the police department? Really?!? And Sam Rockwell’s character, a dumb-as-mud racist cop, is an absolutely unbelievable caricature. Shameful writing, truly. A supposed-to-be-humorous scene in which he corrects the justice-seeking mom, “You’re supposed to say ‘torturing people of color‘, not torturing blacks,” had me cringing. And in a total casting fail, I’m sorry but you cannot hire Sandy Martin to play that cop’s white-trash mama; anyone who watches It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia will only see her as Mac’s mom.
But, I was hanging with it. In the lead role, Frances McDormand delivers a powerhouse performance, tough as nails, wounded to the core. An Oscar nominee for certain. Woody Harrelson’s character is as multi-layered as Rockwell’s is one-note. Caleb Landry Jones, as the young head of the ad agency, has a real pleasing way about him. And I enjoyed seeing Ed Danvers from Homicide in a station house and Lester from The Wire back on the force.
Then something very dramatic happens in the plot, and shortly after, I was feeling, “End the movie right here. Fade to black.” But it doesn’t end, and instead falls to shit. Witness: a major character’s personality doing a complete 180 just by reading a letter! Totally disrespectful portrayals of two young women just for laughs, complete with clichéd upspeak! Amazing coincidences where characters end up in the same place at the same time! And the racial issue never really gains traction.
There were at least two more instances where I thought, “OK, end the movie here. Stop the bleeding.” But it keeps on going, feeling much longer than 115 minutes.
There’s a lot of positive buzz about this film, but I’m going to post this review on three billboards outside Hoboken, New Jersey.
Posted in movie reviews | Tagged 10s movies
Jack Silbert, curator