Features
Keeping Up (Vol. 24)
by Darren Paltrowitz
Here are another 5 quick picks for you, the loyal reader:
MUSIC: Maplewood / Yeti Boombox – Self-described as “canyon rock from Brooklyn,” Maplewood is a New York quartet comprised of members of Nada Surf, Champale and Koester. Their first new album in five years, Yeti Boombox, brings more of the familiar Bread and America-influenced sounds that fans heard on their debut. In fact, not only did America opt to cover Maplewood’s “Indian Summer” on their 2007 comeback album, but America’s Gerry Beckley can be heard on Yeti along with Sparklehorse’s Alan Weatherhead. A lot of name-checking, sure, but of course worth checking out. (myspace.com/maplewood)
BOOK: Chris Anderson / Free: The Future Of A Radical Price – A noted journalist about technology and Internet happenings, Chris Anderson’s latest is a controversial New York Times best-seller. Not only explaining the possible consequences of companies eliminating pricing from their products, it shows such in action with plenty of recent case studies. In turn, readers are expected to come away not only questioning if they are getting the best deals possible, but also if they may be able to implement such economical theories into their professional lives. (thelongtail.com)
SERIES: The Dana Carvey Show – In the mid-1990s, ABC did a great deed for comedy in giving Saturday Night Live star Dana Carvey his own weekly sketch-comedy series. And then did a very bad thing in canceling such after seven episodes. Shout! Factory recently released the complete series on DVD while Hulu hosts the series via free streaming. Anyway you watch it, you are enjoying the talents of future stars like Steve Carell, Stephen Colbert, Robert Smigel, Louis C.K. and Elon Gold. (hulu.com/the-dana-carvey-show)
TOOL: Criticker – With so many opinions and outlets out there, it is often difficult to figure out which movie you ought to rent or go out and see. Criticker aims to be a remedy to this with its tagline “Film Recommendations & Community.” After creating a log-in and rating some films –- much like Netflix -– it is able to make immediate suggestions for you. All the while, no obligation to purchase anything at all. (criticker.com)
ARTICLE: David McCandless “If Twitter Was 100 People…” – Somewhere between Criticker and Chris Anderson’s book comes this illustration and brief article by David McCandless. Discussing a recent study involving Twitter users, the majority of users are noted to be inactive and/or only reaching a small niche of followers. In turn, readers ought to be careful when reflecting on writing that favors Twitter as the end-all of Internet-age promotion. (informationisbeautiful.net/2009/if-twitter-was-100-people)
As always, if I’m missing something that’s worthwhile and deserving of column space, please reach out with an e-mail: darren.paltrowitz@gmail.com.
In the meantime, stay tuned for another 5 picks...