You Make My Dreams by Hall & Oates From 500 Days of Summer

1 of my favorite scenes from my favorite rom-com ever 500 Days of Summer:

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!!

Killing Strangers by Marilyn Manson (As Featured in JOHN WICK)

The 1st track on Marilyn Manson's latest album The Pale Emperor (released 1/15/15) is entitled Killing Strangers & was featured in the film John Wick which I just saw for the 1st time last night. Both the song & John Wick are pretty badass. If you like Keanu & you also dig super violent movies, John Wick's for you! A sequel is apparently already in the works.

Caravan By Juan Tizol (As Featured in the INCREDIBLE 2014 Film WHIPLASH)

Yesterday afternoon, George & I continued our Best Picture 2015 Oscar nominee homework by seeing Whiplash at The Landmark in West LA. We've seen 4 Best Picture-nominated films in the past 10 days (with only Selma & The Theory of Everything left to go before the 2/22 awards ceremony) & my current rankings of the 6 films I've seen so far are as follows:

1 - The Grand Budapest Hotel
2 - Whiplash (which is DANGEROUSLY close to #1 because it was SO incredibly good!)
3 - American Sniper
4 - Birdman
5 - The Imitation Game
6 - Boyhood

Whiplash is absolutely stunning...and a lot bloodier than expected! The music, the acting, the directing, the writing, the plot & the nonstop intensity are all pure perfection. J.K. Simmons & Miles Teller are both brilliant. How Miles Teller didn't receive a Best Actor nomination is beyond me! Do yourself a favor & go see Whiplash immediately!!



Per Wikipedia, "Caravan is a jazz standard composed by Juan Tizol and first performed by Duke Ellington in 1936. Irving Mills wrote seldom performed lyrics. Its exotic sound interested exotica musicians; Martin Denny, Arthur Lyman & Gordon Jenkins all covered it. Woody Allen used the song in two of his films, Alice & Sweet and Lowdown. The song is also heavily featured in the 2014 film Whiplash as an important plot element. The Mills Brothers recorded an a cappella version, making the instruments' sounds with their voices. There are more than three hundred and fifty recordings of this song by Duke Ellington's orchestra, the great majority of them now in the public domain."

Concert Addict Chick's TOP 25 ALBUMS of 2014

HAPPY NEW YEAR'S EVE DAY!!!!!!!

In honor of the new year & after 12 solid months of VERY careful consideration, I present to you the crème de la crème of 2014:

1 - TV On The Radio - Seeds
2 - Broken Bells - After The Disco
3 - Beck - Morning Phase
4 - Spoon - They Want My Soul
5 - tUnE-yArDs - Nikki Nack
6 - Caribou - Our Love
7 - Atmosphere - Southsiders
8 - Jungle - Jungle
9 - Real Estate - Atlas
10 - Kiev - Falling Bough Wisdom Teeth
11 - Dan Croll - Sweet Disarray
12 - Sylvan Esso - Sylvan Esso
13 - Bear In Heaven - Time Is Over One Day Old
14 - RAC - Strangers
15 - Gardens & Villa - Dunes
16 - Kishi Bashi - Lighght
17 - The New Basement Tapes - Lost on the River
18 - Little Dragon - Nabuma Rubberband
19 - Glass Animals - Zaba
20 - Future Islands - Singles
21 - Chet Faker - Built on Glass
22 - Liars - Mess
23 - Karen O - Crush Songs
24 - SBTRKT - Wonder Where We Land
25 - Ty Segall - Manipulator

Runners Up:
-Sturgill Simpson - Metamodern Sounds in Country Music
-Aphex Twin - Syro
-Jack White - Lazaretto
-Thom Yorke - Tomorrow's Modern Boxes
-Phantogram - Voices
-Flight Facilities - Down To Earth
-Warpaint - Warpaint

Soundtracks:
-Guardians of the Galaxy - Awesome Mix Volume 1
-Gone Girl - Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross

And, in order to start easily checking out any & all of the music you might have missed this year (including ALL of the above), please start following me AND Concert Addict Chick's BEST OF 2014 playlist on SPOTIFY!

Primus & The Chocolate Factory Willy Wonka Movie Mashup

Are you looking for a trippy, fun way to start the week of Christmas? If so, look no further!

"A mashup of the original Willy Wonka film with Primus' Primus and The Chocolate Factory album in place of the original soundtrack." - Charlie Mahoney

Come with me
And you'll be
In a world of
Pure imagination...

Primus & The Chocolate Factory (Mash-up - Edited into the original film) from Charlie Mahoney on Vimeo.

Guardians Of The Galaxy: Awesome Mix Volume #1

Last night, my boyfriend went to 3 different Redboxes in the Santa Monica area before he finally tracked down a Blu-ray copy of Guardians Of The Galaxy. Even though we saw the film in 3D its opening weekend, we loved it so much that we were eager to watch it again the moment it was available on DVD & it turns out it was even better the 2nd time around! The cast is perfect. The dialogue is hilarious. The action sequences keep you on the edge of your seat. And, last but certainly not least, the soundtrack is absolute MARVELous. Check out just a "few" of my favorite tracks below!

Guardians Of The Galaxy is 1 of my favorite movies of 2014 for sure. It's in my top 9 so far along with The Lego Movie, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Gone Girl, Birdman, A Million Ways To Die In The West, Edge of Tomorrow, Interstellar & Fury.

I'm Not In Love by 10cc

Come & Get Your Love by Redbone

Hooked On A Feeling by Blue Suede

Moonage Daydream by David Bowie

Fooled Around & Fell In Love by Elvin Bishop

I Want You Back by The Jackson 5

Spirit In The Sky by Norman Greenbaum

The Perks of Being A Wallflower Soundtrack

After having only seen the film 1 time on a microscopically small screen on the back of an airplane seat en route from Tanzania to Amsterdam after climbing Mount Kilimanjaro with my dad in Jaunary 2013, I'd been desperately wanting to watch The Perks of Being A Wallflower again but was having trouble finding an HD version available to rent. The only copies available were for purchase only & cost about $20 which, every time I considered making the purchase, always seemed a bit overpriced...especially since I'd already seen it before.

Finally, last night (a whole year & a half later), I got to see the movie again! My super sweet boyfriend just happened to come across a $5 copy of the DVD in a store yesterday afternoon so he bought it for me! It's not HD or Bluray but it still looked pretty good on our flatscreen so whatever! I'm just SO happy I now OWN 1 of my favorite movies of the past couple years! And it was still totally awesome upon 2nd viewing.

The Perks of Being A Wallflower is a heartwarming yet often dark & somewhat depressing film. It has a little bit of everything: teenage awkwardness, bullies, young love, parents who just don't understand, high school dances, drug experimentation, family looking out for family, a few tragic revelations, new friendships, student/teacher bonding, literary appreciation, AMAZING music, mix tapes, football games, holidays & OUTSTANDING performances by the entire cast. I can't recommend it enough!

Here are just a few awesome songs from the soundtrack...and I'm not even including the tracks by The Smiths, New Order or David Bowie!

Could It Be Another Change by The Samples


Come On Eileen By Dexys Midnight Runners


Low by Cracker

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty Soundtrack

Last night, I finally saw the movie The Secret Life of Walter Mitty for the 1st time &, despite its completely unfair rating of 49% on Rotten Tomatoes, I LOVED everything about it!!

I had wanted to see this film since last summer when I saw the 1st abbreviated trailer featuring 1 of my favorite songs by Of Monsters & Men. As Mitty's Christmas 2013 release date drew closer, I realized it was being released on the exact same day as SEVERAL other movies I was determined to see ASAP (i.e. The Wolf of Wall Street & Her) which meant, when Christmas rolled around, I ended up seeing every other December release movie I had wanted to see EXCEPT Mitty which is a shame because I now badly wish I'd seen it in the theater.

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty was directed by AND stars Ben Stiller plus a phenomenal cast that includes Kristen Wiig, Adam Scott, Sean Penn, Patton Oswalt, Shirley MacLaine & Kathryn Hahn. It is BEAUTIFULLY shot, well-acted, funny, heartwarming, inspiring, incredibly unique & it features 1 of the best soundtracks I've heard in long time.

The fact this film didn't get more buzz, positive reviews & attention astounds me. The only explanation is it got lost in the sea of other Oscar-contending movies that were also released in or around December. I hope more people will give The Secret Life of Walter Mitty a chance & check it out now that it was just finally released on DVD/Netflix because it is officially 1 of my most favorite films of 2013.

Step Out by Jose Gonzalez

Dirty Paws by Of Monsters & Men

Space Oddity by David Bowie

Lake Michigan by Rogue Wave

The Complete SOUNDTRACK:

The Moon Song (from the film HER) by Karen O & Ezra Koenig

I love this song, this film & Karen O all SO much! They might as well give Karen O the Oscar for Best Original Song right now! 

LOCK, STOCK & 2 SMOKING BARRELS Soundtrack = Best Movie Soundtrack of All Time

One of my favorite films of all time, Lock, Stock & 2 Smoking Barrels, has what is, in my opinion, still THE best movie soundtrack of all time. It's just too good.

The Boss by James Brown


"Chill Winston" (movie clip)


Spooky by Dusty Springfield


I Wanna Be Your Dog by The Stooges


Why Did You Do It by Stretch


The Payback by James Brown - You know a soundtrack is good when there are TWO James Brown tracks on it!

Ballads Blues & Bluegrass (1961) World Premiere Screening PLUS Live Performances by Father John Misty, Sara Watkins, Curt Smith of Tears for Fears & Asdru Sierra of Ozomatli @ The LA Film Fest @ The GRAMMY Museum - 6/19/12

Sometimes you need to do something a little different...like go to the LA Film Fest at The GRAMMY Museum in Downtown LA on a Tuesday night to attend the world premiere screening of a never-before-seen short film from 1961 directed by Alan Lomax called Ballads Blues & Bluegrass followed by a Q&A session & live performances by Father John Misty (previously of Fleet Foxes), Sara Watkins, Curt Smith of Tears for Fears & Asdru Sierra of Ozomatli. I highly recommend checking out Ballads Blues & Bluegrass if you ever get the chance (definitely at least watch the trailer below) as it was pretty incredible. What a unique & special evening :-)

My favorite part of the Q&A session was listening to Alan Lomax's daughter talk about her father & all the famous, old musicians who partied, played music & sometimes even lived in their apartment throughout the 60s.

The funniest moment of the night was when host & KCRW DJ Chris Douridas asked Father John Misty to explain how he ended up moving to Seattle, joining Fleet Foxes then branching off to do his own thing &, instead of providing any bit of detail, Father John Misty simply said, "I quit!" then picked up his guitar ready to play his 1st song. He made it very clear he was not interested in sharing anything more than his music :-P

Ballads Blues & Bluegrass (1961) by Alan Lomax


"In the early 1960s, when Greenwich Village was bursting with a folk music revival, the Friends of Old Time Music made it their mission to introduce urban audience to some of the legends of pre-war American traditional music. After a 1961 series of concerts featuring Roscoe Holcomb, Clarence Ashley and Doc Watson, Alan Lomax invited the artists and a who's who of the folk revival back to his West 3rd Avenue apartment for an impromptu song swap. Filming was arranged on the fly and a raw, many-layered evocation of the art and attitude of the period emerges from the footage, with some of the biggest names of the era, old timers and revivalists alike: Memphis Slim, Willie Dixon, Jean Ritchie, Ernie Marrs, Peter LaFarge, Ramblin Jack Elliott, Guy Carawan, the Greenbriar Boys, and the New Lost City Ramblers.

Ballads, Blues, & Bluegrass is a remarkable portrait of a brief but fabled era that was widely documented in recordings but all too under-represented in moving image." - Media Generation -http://www.youtube.com/user/mediageneration

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/videos/newly-uncovered-willie-dixon-doc-watson-documentary-to-screen-at-l-a-film-festival-20120619

http://www.thebluegrasssituation.com/free-tix-la-film-fest/

Father John Misty


Sara Watkins on guitar


Sara Watkins on violin & a lil bit of a sing-along :-)

GO SEE SHUT UP AND PLAY THE HITS ON JULY 18th!!!

Exactly ONE MONTH from today I'll be seeing Shut Up And Play The Hits at the Regent Theatre in Westwood. Never in my life have I been SO unbelievably excited to see a documentary. I can't wait to relive some of my favorite LCD Soundsystem memories & learn A LOT more about the one & only Mr. James Murphy. There's a reason I saw this band live SEVEN times before James officially ended an era. If this film is playing anywhere near you, PLEASE go see it!!
http://oscilloscope.net/lcdtheaters/

The Art of Flight Soundtrack

OK, first & foremost, EVERYONE needs to see the film The Art of Flight. Shot with the same types of cameras used to shoot the National Geographic series Planet Earth, this breathtakingly epic snowboarding documentary will seriously blow your mind...guaranteed. And the soundtrack is pure perfection which is just the icing on the cake.

The Art of Flight Trailer

Deadmau5 - Ghosts N Stuff (Nero Remix)


The Naked & Famous - No Way

The Black Angels - Young Men Dead

We Are Augustines - Chapel Song

M83 - Intro

Beck Loves Vampires

Vampires are so hot right now. Beck's been hot for decades. You can't blame the guy for jumping on the blood-sucking bandwagon by contributing to the latest True Blood soundtrack as well as the most recent Twilight movie soundtrack. Pretty much everything Beck touches turns to gold & these 2 tracks are no exception. The man is a genius.

And, just to clarify, I have never seen a Twilight movie & I swear I never will but I'm not the least bit embarrassed to admit I am 100% obsessed with True Blood. I've been watching the series since the very 1st episode premiered & it keeps getting better. If you've never seen the show or you've only caught a random episode somewhere along the way, you need to go back & start from the beginning. If you start with season 3, you'll just think it's ridiculous. Ease yourself into it. I guarantee you WILL get sucked in ;-)

Bad Blood - True Blood Soundtrack, Volume 2

Let's Get Lost - Beck & Bat for Lashes - Eclipse Soundtrack

24 Hour Party People

If you like music & you like movies, be sure to check out the awesome 2002 British film 24 Hour Party People. It definitely got me on a Joy Division kick tonight...

Phish Fest 8 in 3D!!!

I can't wait to relive one of the best weekends ever!

ODDSAC Screening @ The ArcLight in Hollywood - 3/22/10

Last night, while I was sitting inside the Hollywood ArcLight’s Cinerama Dome waiting for ODDSAC (the new visual album by Animal Collective & director Danny Perez) to begin, I laughed when I overheard one usher say to another usher, “This is a weird event, man.” I couldn't have put it better myself.

I went into the screening of ODDSAC with no idea what to expect & the great thing about that is, if you don't really know what to expect, you can never be too disappointed. Luckily, I was far from disappointed. ODDSAC blew my mind! Animal Collective's unique & original music combined with Danny Perez's super intense imagery made me feel as though I was hypnotized for 54 minutes.

After the film, Danny Perez & 3 of the 4 members of Animal Collective (Noah Lennox a.k.a. Panda Bear was the only one missing) conducted a 20 minute Q&A session that was extremely interesting. It was really cool hearing the artists go into detail about how this psychdelic visual album came to be. Sometimes the music came before the imagery &, other times, the imagery came before the music. It took 4 years for Perez & Animal Collective to finish making ODDSAC. They say the name of the movie stemmed from a joke they had about an oddly shaped sack of candy but they also just liked how the 6 letters looked together all in caps so, if you're searching for a deeper meaning in the title, you're probably not going to find it.

On my way out of the ArcLight, I managed to run up to Animal Collective & say hello to Brian Weitz a.k.a. Geologist. I told him I've seen Animal Collective live twice & can't wait to see them again. I also gave him one of my blog business cards & let him know I'd be blogging about how much I loved the movie. I'm sure he'll check it out :-)

I can't guarantee that everyone who sees ODDSAC will enjoy it as much as I did but, if you like Animal Collective &/or you're just open to weird, new things, it's definitely worth watching.

http://www.oddsac.com/