The Next Big Thing

Pretty sad to hear about the death of Brad Delp yesterday. Incase you're too young to know or too cool to care, he was the singer in Boston. "More Than A Feeling" always instills a feeling of rock grandeur when I hear it and reminds me of a time when quite possibly things in general didn't suck. It was and remains a fine loud display of almost hymnal power chord pop. Something that sold a bazillion copies that will resonate for all eternity. To go off at a tangent for a minute, it was odd very recently to discover that the song "New York, New York" wasn't a standard and hasn't been around for much longer than The Dictators anthem of the same name. (Did you sign the petition for the White Castle Hall Of Fame yet?) This is what happens when you get to a certain age. Time plays cruel tricks on you and confuses which way is actually up. I always thought The 'tators should be as big as Boston and that their music was equally anthemic. "What's Up With That?"

Saw Inland Empire yesterday and I have to say that, contrary to what I've read, it's actually more straightforward than Mulholland Drive to me. Where that came off the rails in the final third, I think this hangs together pretty well in terms of Lynch's creation of worlds within worlds. It made more sense to me than I expected it to. Also the criticism of the shooting in digital video seems a bit twatty also. It looks great and anybody who cares about his work will know that nobody uses light like "Jimmy Stewart from Mars". There are also several homages to himself in here to my mind which serve as treats for fans. Not sure about the closing sequence but it's not integral to the three hour investment. I do miss the heartbeat and lifeblood of a Badalamenti score which always adds to the omni-dimensional atmos but other than that there's much to dig.