Thursday, January 22, 2015

Three Albums

Singers and Musicians Before Inside a Studio That electronically Records Their Performances, Which Are Then Sent To A Factory to be Pressed Into a Plastic Disc

Master Works for Strings by Douglas Lilburn.  Orchestral musicians play orchestral tunes.  In 2006 I ordered a CD of Orchestral Works on a whim. That CD has barely checked out, but since I liked it I'm giving this one a chance. 


Title by Meghan Trainor. Singer sings about her bottom.


In the Lonely Hour by Sam Smith. Englishman sings songs of pop.



King Crider's Cowboys Are Cold In July

DVD

Cold In July starring Michael C. Hall, Sam Shepard and Don Johnson.  Man kills burglar and the dead man's scary dad wants revenge.  Adaptation of a Joe R. Lansdale story and Lansdale says the movie is good.



Equalizer starring Denzel Washington. Let's see what Max Allan Collins says: [A] terrific Spillane-style THE EQUALIZER...The film even begins with a scene that re-works the opening of MY GUN IS QUICK. Washington is terrific as the self-contained, haunted hero, and a final action sequence in a Menard’s-type big-box store is blackly funny and satisfying as hell.



The Drop starring Tom Hardy and James Gandolfini. Crime flick in Boston. What's Patti Abbot think: It’s hard to think how this film could be any better although it moves slowly. But that’s Bob. And Bob is the heart of the film. Highly recommended.



Archer: the complete season three and the complete season four starring Duchess and a cast of crazies.  You know the drill.  Archer is a jerk and causes trouble.  You watch the whole thing and laugh a lot.


Fiction

Texas Vigilante by Bill Crider.  Sequel to Outrage at Blanco which is still in processing.  Ellie revenged her murdered husband in 1880s Texas and now runs a ranch.  Escaped convicts descend on her ranch to go after one of Ellie's ranch hands.  [I was going to write "one of Ellie's hands".  That could be neat, maybe they just want revenge on a couple fingers. They have nothing against Ellie as a whole, but those fingers have it coming!]

First Frost by Sarah Addison Allen. Book with an apple on the cover.

Cane and Abe by James Grippando. This cover is similar to another novel.

Tuesday, January 20, 2015

DVD: Python Archer Among the Tombstones

DVD

Pride starring Bill Nighy, Imelda Staunton, Paddy Considine.  Gay protestors in 1984 London lend support to a Welsh village with striking miners.


Skeleton Twins starring Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig. fraternal twins suicidal. A comedy.



If I Stay starring Chloe Grace Moretz.  Girl in a coma has to decide whether to live or not when the rest of her family has been killed.One of those teen girl movies about "the love of her life."


Prime Cut starring Gene Hackman and Lee Marvin.  '70s spectacular with mob enforcer traveling to Kansas City to collect a debt from a local mobster.


Dawn of the Planet of the Apes starring Andy Serkis, Gary Oldman.  I cannot keep all these Apes and Spiderman movies straight.  Post viral apocalypse U.S. in 2026 and survivors find a community of intelligent apes.


A Walk Among the Tombstones starring Liam Neeson.  Movie version of the dark, but great, Lawrence Block novel.Recovering alcoholic PI helps find who murdered a drug dealer's wife.


Guardians of the Galaxy starring Vin Diesel. Aliens fight.



Ragnarok starring Archeologist "along with his kids and a colleague, begin an expedition to uncover the secret of the day of doom."


Monty Python Live (Mostly) : One Down Five to Go starring Monty Python.  Live stage production from 2014.


Banshee: the complete second season starring Frankie Faison.  Season 1 is coming.  Ex-con fakes an identity and becomes Sheriff in small Amish community.


Justified: the complete fifth season starring Timothy Olyphant, Walton Coggins, others.  More Kentucky crooks and gunfights. A fun show and I never finished watching this season.


Boyhood starring Ethan Hawke, Patricia Arquette. Twelve year production following a boy's growing up.


Archer: the complete season five starring [many voice actors].  Super secret agent drinks too much, is a jerk, spends time in South America.


Boardwalk Empire: the complete fourth season starring Steve Buscemi, Jeffrey Wright. Wright has played Felix Leiter in the past few Bond flicks.  New Jersey crime and punishment.



Monday, January 19, 2015

Cold, Cold Chimney Sweeper

Fiction

Murder at the Book Group by Maggie King. Paperback mystery with lots of purple on the cover.  Chelsea McGuckin did the cover, she lives in New York, give her a call, chat about graphics.

By Winter's Light by Stephanie Laurens.  Romance novel. Lots of snow on the cover.  Cover by Doreen Minuto. Minuto lives in the New York area as well.

The Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust by Alan Bradley.  A Flavia de Luce novel. Joe Montgomery did the cover design for this one.  Dig it, I looked Montgomery up and discovered the Book Cover Design website.

West of Sunset by Stewart O'Nan. F. Scott Fitzgerald in Hollywood. "Designed by Spring Hoteling" I thought Spring Hoteling was a business name, but it must mean this lady. Looks like she does comics, too.

Saint Odd by Dean Koontz. Latest novel in the series. Koontz's author photo has a weird out-of-focus and light effects.  Who did this cover? Why, Scott Biel, of course.

Cold Cold Heart by Tami Hoag.  You can tell Hoag is Big Time Author because she has a full author photo on the back cover.  I do not know if Richard Hasselberger is a Big Time Designer, but he did the cover. I cannot find any good info on the guy, he is an Art Director at Penguin.

The Rosie Effect by Graeme Simson.  Man with regimented life adjusts to marriage.  Evan Gaffney adjusted the cover.  Hey, Gaffney did some covers for Thomas Ditsch.

Vanessa and Her Sister by Priya Parmar.  Parmar "divides her time between Hawaii and London" May as well write, "Parmar divides her time between expensive real estate and super-expensive real estate."

Soul of Discretion by Susan Hill.  Hill wrote The Woman in Black, I have not read the story, seen the play or watched the film.  Book design is by Bathcat Ltd. which is Courtney Andujar.

Secret Wisdom of Earth by Christopher Scotton.  Anne Twomey did this one. Twomey is a Director at Large for the Type Director's Club.

Large Print

Trust No One by Jayne Ann Krentz.

Saint Odd by Dean Koontz.

Insatiable Appetite by Stuart Woods.