Archive for December, 2009

Ryan SanAngelo and Elizabeth Chatel Remind Us That “Christmas Is Coming”

We haven’t gotten around to reviewing his CD yet, but Ryan SanAngelo doesn’t hold a grudge — he’s just sent us his new video, “Christmas Is Coming.” Gather ’round:

CD Review: Dean Jones, “Rock Paper Scissors”

Man oh man oh man. Why can’t they all be this good?

Not only my favorite kids’ album of the year but one of my favorite releases period, Dean Jones’ stellar Rock Paper Scissors is everything children’s music should be: A wonderfully easy-to-listen-to collection of songs that, while childlike in their lyrical simplicity and musical exuberance, still hum with a wild and woolly grown-up rock ‘n’ roll spirit. It’s one long, joyful noise, this album is, and having spent enough time with it to allow the initial euphoric rush of hearing it to wear off, I can safely say it’s my favorite kids’ record ever.

A big part of this has to do with Jones’ choice of backing musicians. At his day gig, Jones is a member of the highly regarded kindie outfit Dog on Fleas, and he doesn’t seem to take his solo efforts lightly — his first one, Napper’s Delight, is a wonderful collection of lullabies, and this time out, he teamed up with the Felice Brothers, Catskills-bred purveyors of gloriously ragged, Band-esque Americana. The Felice Brothers have a wonderful sound, and having seen them play live and truly unplugged, I can say with authority that they’re the real deal — but they have an annoying tendency to devote large chunks of their albums to listless ballads instead of the sweaty, moonshine-flavored uptempo numbers that are their true strong suit. Here, you get the benefit of the Felice Brothers’ terrific sound without having to contend with their occasionally frustrating songs; Jones uses them as a crackerjack backing band, leading them on a pleasantly off-kilter hootenanny.

You know what you’re in for from the first track, the shoutalong “Hail! Hail! The Gang’s All Here,” a perfect 1:45 celebration of the world’s marvelous unpredictability (“life is just a gamble, livin’ in the brambles”). It’s a tough act to follow, but Rock Paper Scissors does it in style, with songs jazzy (the title track), funny (“Butterfingers”), heartbreakingly beautiful (“Sing Like a Sparrow”), and everything in between (“Throw on the Charm,” “Flat Tire”). Jones’ press kit describes the album as “18 songs of fun and mayhem,” and I can’t think of any better way to sum it up, with the possible exception of simply telling you to buy it. Immediately. You and your kids will not be sorry.

DVD Review: The Jimmies, “Trying Funny Stuff”

Watch enough kids’ videos, and you’ll figure out pretty quickly that even though kindie rock is a booming genre, even its most popular artists tend to have more enthusiasm than money — and as a result, music videos for children are mostly pretty low-budget affairs, which is unfortunate, because their target demographic is accustomed to plenty of eye candy.

Enter the Jimmies, the NYC-based group led by singer Ashley Albert (a.k.a. “Plucky Pea”). They’ve only released one album, 2007’s Make Your Own Someday, so you wouldn’t expect their debut DVD to be much to write home about, both because the band doesn’t have a huge backlog of material and because they haven’t been around long enough to build an audience the size of, say, They Might Be Giants. But the DVD, Trying Funny Stuff, is a wonderful surprise — emphasis on the “wonderful.”

The disc kicks off with six music videos, all of which I now know front to back, thanks to the daily viewing regimen my daughter has imposed since Stuff showed up in our mailbox a couple of weeks ago. Familiarity hasn’t bred contempt, though; these are the Lord of the Rings of kindie music video, with stellar production values to match the band’s smart, catchy songs. Hardcore Jimmies fans will already know five of the videos (“Do The Elephant,” “Spanimals,” “Cool To Be Uncool,” “Bedhead,” and “Taddy”) from YouTube, but I hate watching stuff on the computer, and besides, the band has been good enough to toss in a brand new video for “What’s That Sound?” Read the rest of this entry

DVD review: Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian (Two-Disc Monkey Mischief Pack)

Adult fans of the original Night at the Museum may be a little disappointed with its loud, action packed sequel, Night at the Museum: Battle for the Smithsonian; I was. Because the thrill from the first film of seeing museum pieces come to life was gone and because Ben Stiller’s character, “Larry,” was no longer at his wits end trying to contain those same museum pieces, some of the magic is missing from the 2^nd film. Battle for the Smithsonian is bigger, noisier and has all of the shortcomings most sequels have. However, it does have one saving grace, one key element that makes this DVD worth checking out: Amy Adams.

Adams co-stars as Amelia Earhart, or rather a mannequin of Earhart that comes to life when the magic tablet of Ahkmenrah (from the first movie) is shipped off to Washington to be placed in storage at the Smithsonian. Earhart teams up with Larry (now a wealthy entrepreneur) to prevent an evil Egyptian pharaoh, Kahmunrah (Hank Azaria) from opening a portal to the underworld and unleashing an army of the undead to take over earth. Adams, one of the most charming and likable actresses working these days, is pure delight at the legendary female aviator. She speaks in a rat-tat-tat-tat cadence that hearkens back to the era from which Earhart was popular. Adams gives her character a no nonsense attitude and gung ho spirit that pops off the screen and charms your socks off. Moreover, the way she carries herself and commits to the role makes watching Adams such a pleasure that whenever she’s on screen you overlook the shortcomings of this movie, which was wildly successful in its theatrical run. Read the rest of this entry