2013 - Year in Review - Part 2

2013 – Year in Review

Part 2 – Official Media Consumption Report:

Like anyone with an above-average interest in art (mostly film/television, literature, and music), I like to talk about my interests and, if possible, find some way to incorporate those interests into another one of my interests:  making lists.  What follows are a couple lists with some additional commentary. Just because life might be short, that doesn’t mean my blog posts have to follow suit.

Lots of Words on Lots of Pages, a.k.a. Books

I set a goal at the beginning of the year, an unofficial New Year’s resolution, to read twenty-five books in 2013.  That’s a tiny fraction over two books a month, roughly one book every two weeks.  Nothing difficult there, especially for a former English major and aspiring novelist, right?  Sadly, my reading output in previous post-college years has frequently failed to reach such mediocre heights.

It is with great pleasure that I announce my goal for 2013 to have been met, surpassed even.  Turns out that I read a whopping twenty-eight books.  Still, that’s nothing extraordinary, but it is better than other years, and that’s nothing to scoff at.  Anyway, here are:

The Top 5 Books I Read in 2013:

• Butcher’s Crossing – John Williams.  Williams is a great 20^th century American writer all but unknown to the world at large.  Butcher’s Crossing, one of Williams’s four novels, is a tale of the West in which the protagonist leaves Harvard, heads to Kansas, and bankrolls an expedition to hunt a massive buffalo herd deep in the Rockies.  The novel chronicles the hardships the adventurers suffer on their journey as wisdom succumbs to obsession, winter and intense physical hardship falls upon them, and they return to find their world irrevocably changed.  Williams writes with intense clarity, and though the book is a bit of a downer, it is a powerful reading experience.  I also recommend William’s novel Stoner, especially if you are someone who loves to read books written about other people who love to read books.
• Dom Casmurro – Machado de Assis.  My exposure to Brazilian literature has been criminally limited so after reading about the author, widely considered the greatest writer of Brazilian literature, I knew I had to read this novel.  It’s the story of a man who allows his unfounded jealousy (he admits his evidence is flimsy) of his wife, whom he believes has betrayed him, to completely disrupt his life.  I found the English translation (as my Portuguese is not up to snuff to read the original text) very rich, engaging, and darkly humorous, which only confirms the author’s brilliance.  The first-person voice is so strong that I was continually amazed by how modern the book felt despite being published over one hundred years ago.
• A Lesson Before Dying – Ernest J. Gaines.  This book, another light read like my previous entries, deals with deep racial issues still at play in America.  Set in 1949 Louisiana, the novel is about a young black man, Jefferson, charged and convicted of murder despite being an innocent bystander.  During the trial, his white lawyer argues unsuccessfully against the electric chair, comparing Jefferson to a hog.  Jefferson is convicted, sentenced to death, and sent away to jail to await his execution.  His godmother then convinces her friend’s nephew, a young schoolteacher named Grant, the novel’s narrator, to visit Jefferson in jail and teach him to be a man before he dies.  So yeah, nothing important going on with this book.  Gaines’ novel shows, as Grant struggles to reach Jefferson, how difficult it was and still is to struggle against a society/system that continually dehumanizes an entire race by reinforcing the falsehood that they are sub-human, nothing more than hogs.  It is a powerful novel with themes still very relevant in contemporary America.
• A Song of Ice and Fire (series) – George R. R. Martin.  I began watching the HBO series Game of Thrones this spring and burned through the three completed seasons in no time at all.  I was hooked and had to know what was going to happen to the characters so I started reading the novels, and I didn’t stop until I had finished all five of the unfinished series.  Now I live in constant fear that George R. R. Martin is going to die before completing the series and wish he’d stop wasting time with unessential projects.  If you’re unfamiliar with the series, it’s a fantasy series, albeit a very mature one, revolving around a power struggle involving multiple families.  There are some magic and mystical elements involved (dragons!), but the heart of the story is the political intrigue, deception, and betrayal at play in the power struggle.  It’s a very fascinating and well-written series, though Martin can fill page after page with unnecessary lists of foods being served at meals and how hundreds of different banners look going into battle – the man loves his food and banners – but once you get sucked into the story, you’re there for the long haul.  At the very least, Martin did share how the story ends with those responsible for the TV series, so there will be some sort of closure no matter what.
• Ender’s Game (series) – Orson Scott Card.  I read Ender’s Game to prepare for the upcoming release of the film adaptation.  I’d always heard good things about it from friends, so I wasn’t surprised to find that I enjoyed the books.  They were fairly quick reads but also deeper than a lot of other sci-fi stories, so I kept going once I finished Ender’s Game.  Of the entire series, Speaker for the Dead was my favorite, but I enjoyed each of the novels, usually for different reasons.  It’s just a well-written and engaging series by a talented author.

There we have it.  2013 was a pretty good year for reading.  So what’s the plan for 2014?  More of the same, no doubt.

The Tunes of Our Lives

I did enjoy me some music this past year.  I didn’t set any goals to listen to x number of albums or anything because I didn’t have to.  In 2013 I continued to scour the Internet for music, both new and old, in an effort to stave off becoming that old guy who only listens to stuff released ten years ago and is completely out of touch with contemporary music.  Not that I want to be the old guy obviously trying too hard to be hip.  I just want to keep discovering and listening to awesome music.  Here are the results of my efforts.  Note:  I tried to provide a link to each song mentioned below, usually the official music video, if available; otherwise, I tried to link to the album recording and, if that wasn't possible, a live recording.

Top Ten Albums of 2013:

• Vampire Weekend – Modern Vampires of the City.  This is hands down my favorite and most listened to album of the year.  It’s rare that an album feels both fresh and timeless upon first listen, but that was my experience with this album.  Prior to its release, I enjoyed a handful of Vampire Weekend songs, but I always felt the band was more style than substance, some hipsters cribbing world music sounds and rhythms to be cool.  This album changed all that, and all it took was one listen to “Step,” my favorite song on the album and my favorite song of the year.  Then I heard the rest of the album when it streamed early on iTunes, and I was hooked.  Their two earlier albums suddenly clicked because of the perfection of Modern Vampires, and now I’m a convert.  Everything is just so good: the songwriting, the lyrics, the production, everything.  Must listens include:  “Unbelievers,” the aforementioned “Step,” “Diane Young,” “Hannah Hunt,” and “Hey Ya.”
• Arctic Monkeys – AM.  I slept on this album for an unfortunate amount of time. Here is another band that I had enjoyed prior to 2013 but never really gotten into all that much.  I saw the British group play at Coachella in 2007, and the singer was remarkably arrogant.  Maybe it was because we were a bunch of dumb Yankees or something like that, but I remember being both amused and put off by his condescension and smug attitude.  Maybe Alex Turner and co. were just a bunch of cocky twenty-one year olds then, and they’ve always known how to write a good song, but AM is, for me, their best album, the work of a band growing and refining their craft.  Listen to:  “Do I Wanna Know?”, “R U Mine,” “Knee Socks,” “One for the Road,” and “Arabella.”
• The National – Trouble Will Find Me.  The National is not a band that deals in surprises.  Why reinvent the wheel when it’s working so well and sounds so great? While this album fails to hit the peaks of High Violet, it is still extremely enjoyable and consistent.  As an additional commendation, The National put on the best show I saw in 2013.  Recommended listening:  “Sea of Love,” “Pink Rabbits,” “Graceless,” and “Humiliation.”
• Chelsea Wolfe – Pain is Beauty.  I read about this album one late summer day and fired up the album on Spotify.  I was immediately entranced.  The music, made of mostly electronic elements, has this dark, hazy atmosphere and a frequent sense of dread; yet amongst that dread there is often beauty, usually in Wolfe’s voice and lyrics, but not a sunny kind of beauty, as the album title suggests.  (This is probably why the song “Feral Love” is so perfect in the trailer for season four of Game of Thrones).  If you can listen to the sprawling eight and a half minutes of “The Waves Have Come” and remain unmoved, then Wolfe and this album are not for you.  If you find yourself burning the next part of an hour replaying the epic and crushing song over and over, you’re welcome.  Take a chance on these songs:  “The Waves Have Come,” “Feral Love,” “They’ll Clap When You’re Gone,” and “We Hit a Wall.”
• Janelle Monae – The Electric Lady.  In a day and age when so many artists are an instrument only performing someone else’s songs, it’s refreshing for someone with pipes like Monae to also write fantastic songs.  This album is a continuation of Monae’s earlier work (also definitely worth checking out), and she once again jumps from song to song and genre to genre with remarkable skill to create an album remarkably varied yet incredibly consistent.  There are some serious jams on this album.  See:  “Primetime,” “Can’t Live Without Your Love,” “Electric Lady,” and “Dance Apocalyptic.”
• Marnie Stern – The Chronicles of Marnia.  Ridiculous title aside, this album rocks.  Marnie Stern is an acclaimed guitarist, noted for her technical skills and tapping style, and this album delivers on that reputation.  Turn up the volume for this one.  Rock out to:  “You Don’t Turn Down,” “Nothing is Easy,” and “Hell Yes.”
• Queens of the Stone Age - …Like Clockwork.  Keep the volume turned up for this one.  Josh Homme and co. deliver another album of their cocksure and swaggering rock and roll.  This was their first album to really grab me since 2002’s Songs for the Deaf.  I will always remember listening to this album like five times the day before my wedding as I drove up and down the Wasatch Front, to and fro, stop and go, helping put the finishing touches on everything.  Raise a lighter to:  “If I Had a Tail,” “My God is the Sun,” “I Sat by the Ocean,” and “I Appear Missing.”
• Lorde – Pure Heroine.  Before “Royals” was played a million times on the radio, before the Grammy’s, Lorde was an Internet darling, and that was where I first found her.  Now that my indie-cred is secure once again, I’ll just say that I am fully onboard with Lorde’s minimal pop stylings and look forward to her future creative output.  I enjoy:  “Royals” (duh), “Tennis Courts,” “Team,” and “A World Alone.”
• Charli XCX – True Romance.  Here is another extremely talented young popstar, criminally unknown despite writing “I Love It,” Icona Pop’s summer anthem.  Yes, that “I Love It.”  Melissa and I have seen Charli perform twice, and she killed it both times.  Just twenty-one, she is poised for a massive breakthrough at some point.  I mean, she unceremonious released a non-album track as incredible as “SuperLove” like it was nothing.  Her best include:  “Nuclear Seasons,” “You’re the One,” “You – Ha Ha Ha,” and “Set Me Free – Feel My Pain.”
• Lucius – Wildewoman.  This album was the last addition to my list, and I technically didn’t even hear it until 2013 had come and gone.  That’s okay because I don’t care.  It’s from 2013, and it’s a fantastic album, full of great hooks and outstanding songwriting.  Lucius is basically what a 60’s girl group would sound like if some time traveler (Doctor Who, Bill and Ted, Marty McFly and Doc Brown, etc.) went back in time, scooped them up, and dropped them off in our day.  Give these a spin:  “Wildewoman,” “Hey Doreen,” “Tempest”, “Turn It Around,” and “How Loud Your Heart Gets.” 

My Baker’s Dozen Top Songs of 2013 (w/o repeating an artist):

• “Step” – Vampire Weekend.  Favorite song of the year, hands down.
• “Do I Wanna Know” – Arctic Monkeys.  The retroactive rock anthem for my expired bachelorhood.
• “SuperLove” – Charli XCX.  Just try to not get this stuck in your head.
• “The Waves Have Come” – Chelsea Wolfe.  The most epic song of the year.
• “Tether” – CHVRCHES.  Good song turns great when the synths go to 11.
• “Supreme” – Postiljonen.  Like M83 with a female singer – be excited.
• “If I Had a Tail” – Queens of the Stone Age.  Serious swagger with this bad boy.
• “White Noise” – Disclosure w. AlunaGeorge.  Best dance song of the year.
• “Wings” – Haerts.  Melissa says this should play at the end of an 80’s movie; I think it sounds more modern, especially when they pump up the bass in the final third.
• “Au Revoir” – The Front Bottoms.  Just good old rock and roll.
• “Hey, Doreen” – Lucius.  Two rockin’ female vocalists=yes, please.
• “The Wire” – Haim.  Up-and-coming, very talented rock band made up of three sisters and some random dude drummer.
• “Giddy Up” – Fe.  I don’t know anything about this singer/group except that I was immediately hooked on this song.  Love that dirty bass.

Note:  Here’s a link to a Spotify playlist with fifty of my favorite songs from 2013, featuring all of the above except “Giddy Up,” which isn’t on Spotify at the moment.

On the Silver Screen

Alright, this thing is getting a bit long.  I’ll try to wrap up this final section quickly. 

I thought 2013 was a pretty good year for movies.  Looking at the Best Picture nominees for this year and last, I’d definitely say that 2013 sported a stronger field.  Anyway, Melissa and I partook of many films, be it at the theater with a large popcorn (a must) or at home on Netflix or DVD.  Here are the top films I saw that were released in 2013.

Top Five Films of 2013 (plus some honorable mentions):

• 12 Years a Slave – A worthy Best Picture winner, this is a very powerful and visceral film.  While watching it may have not been my favorite experience of the year, as it can be quite upsetting due to the nature of its story, I felt that it was an important experience.  Everything about the film is impeccable, especially the acting and directing.  Some film's just feel important and vital as you watch them, and this is definitely one of them.
• Frances Ha – A Noah Baumbach film that feels less like a Noah Baumbach film and more like an homage to the French New Wave.  Credit for that probably goes to Greta Gerwig, co-writer and star, who is enchanting as Frances, a 27 year old struggling dancer in New York, and carries the film nimbly upon her shoulders.  It's a very funny and moving character study, and it's already streaming on Netflix so go watch it.
• Fruitvale Station – This is a very unassuming film about the final day in the life of Oscar Grant, a young black man shot and killed by transit police in Oakland.  Grant is played by Michael B. Jordan (The Wire, Friday Night Lights), who does a fantastic job, worth an Oscar nomination in my book, in portraying a flawed human being shot in a senseless and controversial act.  I felt the film did a great job portraying the tragedy without getting mired in racial politics; what it does, rather, is show that any life cut short, be it white, black, or any other race, is a needless and devastating loss.
• Her – First things first, Joaquim Phoenix absolutely deserved an Oscar nomination for his work in this film.  He is onscreen for 99% of the movie, with that mustache and those high-waisted pants, and is captivating every second of the way.  Masterfully written and directed by Spike Jonze, this film is about more than a guy falling in love with a sentient operating system; it's all about Love:  what it means to love another being, what love requires of us, how it feels to lose that love, etc.  Scarlett Johansson is fantastic as Samantha and should have been nominated for Best Supporting Actress despite never appearing onscreen during the film.  I'm looking forward to rewatching this film when it comes out on DVD. 
• The Way Way Back – My final selection is a charming little coming-of-age tale about Duncan, a fourteen year old spending the summer with his mom (Toni Collette) and her boyfriend (Steve Carell playing a very convincing jerk)  at his beach house.  Liam James (young Shawn Spencer from Psych) is great as Duncan, but the real star of the show is Sam Rockwell, playing the young-at-heart water park manager who befriends Duncan.  Rockwell is just flat-out hilarious throughout the film while still bringing the pathos at all the right times.  Just a solid little film worth seeing.

Honorable Mentions:

• American Hustle – A very well-acted, well-written, and funny film about con artists. 
• Before Midnight – The often very harrowing third act to Richard Linklater's series about Jesse and Celine, eighteen years after their pivotal night in Austria.
• Dallas Buyer’s Club – Matthew McConaughey kills it as an AIDS patient trying to circumvent the hospital system to get the medication he and other patients need.
• Gravity – Seeing this in the theater was one of the best filmgoing experiences of my life.  Just a massive spectacle to behold from Alfonso Cuaron and co.
• Inside Llewyn Davis – The Coen Bros. fail to disappoint yet again with this tale of an unlucky folk singer struggling to get by in the NYC folk scene in 1961.

So there we have it, my official media consumption report for 2013.  Stay tuned for the final piece of my year in review:  Part 3 - A Certain Kind of Writing Report.

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