Author Archives: Andrew Majors

[Music Review] The Flaming Lips “Embryonic”

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the-flaming-lips.embryonicI wish a younger version of myself had been more in tune with the wonderful music that has always been around during my 24 years on this Earth, rather than just being force fed whatever bubble gum garbage was on the radio, whatever Classic Rock music was deemed good enough to still be popular, or whatever flavor of the month Rap Star was clever enough to come up with some catchy hook. I wish a younger me had discovered bands like The Flaming Lips.

For those uninitiated, The Flaming Lips are a psychedelic and spacey American rock band from Oklahoma City. They produce what can be classified as bizarre rock tunes, and when listening to them I can hardly believe they aren’t mega-Gods here in their home country (they’ve achieved much more notoriety overseas.) Continue reading →

[Game Review] Geometry Wars: Galaxies (Wii)

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geometrywarsgalaxieswiiSystem: Wii (Also on DS)
Developer: Kuju Entertainment/Bizarre Creations
Publisher: Sierra
Genre: Arcade Shooter

Judging a book (rather, a game) by its cover can sometimes be a big mistake. I’m sure I’ve missed out on some quality games in my life because I walked passed it on the shelf and thought it looked lame, pedestrian, or not worth my money. Just looking at the case for this game, I would’ve initially passed up on it because it just doesn’t look that interesting. I flip the case over, and it doesn’t really sound that interesting. But luckily, I’m not paying to rent this game (because my esteemed leader Zac just let me borrow it). Continue reading →

[Game Review] GT Pro Series (Wii)

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boxart_wii_us_gt-pro-seriesSystem: Wii
Developer: MTO
Publisher: Ubisoft
Genre: Racing

Racing games are simple, fun, and give you immediate results. You don’t have to work through a number of complicated levels, with variables that you cannot control. You get a track, a vehicle, and opponents. Its about as straight forward as gaming gets. Nintendo’s Wii offers you the ability to control the action with an actual gaming wheel. So, automatically, you are given a unique gaming experience.

The only problem is that GT Pro Series otherwise plays like it could have been developed for Super Nintendo over a decade ago. The graphics are sub par, and it looks like a 32-bit system. The cars are chunky, bland, and non-descript. The race tracks are basic, and completely barren of any major graphic achievement. The graphics are the game’s major, and truly the only damning weakness. If you aren’t distracted by graphics that barely would’ve been revolutionary in 1993, then you won’t mind this game. Continue reading →

[Movie Review] Whip It! (Theatrical)

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This movie has been on my radar for a few months now, and I was surprised to see the horrific Box-Office performance it had its opening week. I’m not sure what the factor was. Here, you have a very positively reviewed film with an indie film darling, and a completely fresh movie.

I’m usually not one for movies with all-female or strong female casts, and that’s not because I’m sexist. It’s because, as a viewer, I have a tough time sympathizing (usually) with female characters. Probably because after 24 years on this earth, I still have no idea how they think. It makes it tough to have a visceral reaction in a lot of films due to that lag of knowledge of my opposite sex. Continue reading →

[TV Review] South Park (Season 13, Ep. 8)

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south park season 13 ep 8I’m going to warn you right now. I think South Park is the single greatest TV show of ALL-TIME. It is the only show that, with each passing year, actually improves. I attribute that to Trey Parker and Matt Stone having not only brilliant comedic minds, but that they have refined their method of production in such a way that they can include the most current of topics into the show. With this, they make each season seem just as, if not more, relevant than the last.

They always push the envelope creatively, and even if you think you’ve seen a shitty episode or two, you haven’t. I’ve made that mistake, too. I get my hopes and expectations up so high that sometimes an episode falls a little flat. But go back and watch it again. Even a mediocre episode of South Park is better than even the best episodes of some other good shows. Continue reading →

[Movie Review] Away We Go (DVD)

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away_we_goAnyone know who Sam Mendes is? The director of such films as American Beauty, Jarhead, and my personal favorite, Road to Perdition delivers this incredibly under the radar movie about to expecting parents (The Office’s John Krasinski and SNL’s Maya Rudolph) who realize they aren’t bound by anything in their current lives, and can choose to raise their daughter anywhere they want.

The film follows Bert and Verona on their journey across North America, trying to find the best possible place to raise a child. They head to Phoenix, where their old “friends” live. There they find a largely dysfunctional crew, (including a CRIMINALLY underused Jim Gaffigan), and hot weather, and easily decide this isn’t the place to be. Continue reading →

The Five Worst Halloween Treats

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It’s October, one of the greatest months of the year. Everything starts to calm down from the summer, but we haven’t yet hit the rush of the holiday season just yet. Also, Halloween! It’s the one holiday that, every year, children plan in advance for. Their costume, their route, what candy they want. It’s also an awful night to deliver pizza on, because you are nearly involved in almost seventeen vehicle/pedestrian collisions. So I thought for this month I would compile a few top 5 lists that are related to our favorite spooky holiday. Continue reading →

[TV Review] Dexter Season 4 Premiere

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Few shows give me the chubby that Showtime’s Dexter does. It’s fun, intelligent, original. So, having caught up on DVD, I was finally ready to watch my first season on TV, without the ability to watch multiple episodes in a day.

The Season 4 Premiere begins with us getting a look at the new father/husband Dexter. Visibly exhausted, he’s trying to juggle his new life with his desire for his old life, all while adding a new baby into the mix. We are quickly introduced the this season’s main new character, The Trinity Killer (played by Jon Lithgow). Having another serial killer for Dexter to go toe to toe with is going to lead to a very intense season, I believe. Continue reading →

[Book Review] “I Drink for a Reason” by David Cross

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I Drink For A ReasonA lot of people close to me know of my love for pretty much everything David Cross says/does. To me, he’s a ballsy comedian not afraid to say what he thinks (I know that sounds kind of cliche`). He also strikes me as a very smart guy who doesn’t just spout off at topics he doesn’t know. He knows about these things. He just doesn’t agree.

“I Drink for a Reason” is a book that was released last month, and upon picking it up I was immediately slightly disappointed. It’s not a big book, and for $25 dollars (that my girlfriend paid, thank dog for First Year Dating Anniversaries!), I was less than thrilled with the economics of such a small book.

But the book is packed full of funny and worthwhile observations from Cross. He touches on a lot of subjects, and the book actually reads like just a collection of short, blog-like entries (which for the most part, I think it is). Continue reading →

[Concert Review] Ben Folds: Live in Bloomington, IN

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I know I tend to get over excited after I’ve seen a live show, and I come out gushing about how truly bad ass the show actually was to the poor bastards who couldn’t or didn’t want to go. Last night, filing out of the IU Auditorium, I again felt this bonery affection having watched the amazing Ben Folds.

I’ve been a fan of his since before I had pubes, and that my friends, was a long, long time ago. At that time, I was a fan of his band Ben Folds Five, and then once he went solo, I followed him there as well. This show was for fans just like me, who have heard all his songs and loved his music during our awkward and formative middle school careers. Continue reading →