Raves (February 2008)

From time to time, Red is kind enough to turn us all onto fun and interesting things via her Top Five lists. I’ve decided to one-up her and give you six whole things that I’m digging right now. Ain't I a stinker? They’re not all as fun and interesting as Red’s suggestions, but then again, neither am I.

1. The Blakes – Oh Seattle, you’ve given us so much, there’s really no need for you to offer up yet another great band. And yet, lookee here. OK, garage rock band The Blakes may not be great yet, but their self-titled freshman LP has had me dancing embarrassingly in my car for a few weeks now. Some of the songs are very derivative of their influences, but when your influences appear to be The Kinks, MC5 and The Strokes, that’s really not a bad thing.

2. The Fourth Season of Lost – Only four episodes in, we’ve already had more answers and intrigue than nearly the first two-thirds of last year. The flash-forwards are working nicely, and if the more recent Kate-centric episode is any indication, even this year’s mediocre episodes are going to be way better than some of the best from last year. Now if we can just find out what the hell Smoke Monster is???

3. Movie Posters – Or more specifically, these movie posters. In honor of the Oscars, this blog has presented the posters from every Best Picture winner since the Academy started its Awards. I’ve always loved movie poster art and its especially cool to see how the designs have changed over time. (Not to mention realizing that a lot of the Best Picture winners are totally unheard of today). Thanks to USA Today’s surprisingly cool culture blog for introducing me to this!

One of my personal favorite movie posters. Does that make me gay?

4. Gary Shteyngart – This Russian/American authors first novel, The Russian Debutante’s Handbook had me laughing out loud as it skewered everything from hipsters to Communists to gangsters to Rogain (long story). A friend of mine just bought me his follow up, Absurdistan and I can’t wait to start reading. (I suppose I should have “raved” about Shteyngart after I started reading … You know what? It's my party and I'll rave if I want to).

5. Cetirizine – The over the counter (read: easier to obtain) generic (read: cheaper) version of the allergy drug Zyrtec, this little pill has recently become my new best friend. Is it weird to list an allergy pill as one of your latest raves? Sure. But not much weirder than being allergic to everything from dust mites to avocados! Welcome to my hell.

6. Stuff White People Like – On-again, off-again GitW contributor Dave introduced me to this blog, and he hit on a winner. I have no idea who writes this thing, but they picked up on a lot of the overly-analytical/embarrassingly self-aware/basically pretentious things white people can't seem to get enough of. From recycling, to study abroad, to knowing what's best for poor people, this site finds new and interesting ways to polk fun at whitey. (One caveat: this is mostly talking about a certain kind of white person; the well educated, kind of bourgeois, somewhat hipster type. I know plenty of white people who don’t like sushi, don’t listen to indie rock, and do enjoy dancing at concerts -albeit in that awkward, white person kind of way).