Zach Is Back
March 18, 2010
Zach Galifianakis is so damn funny. He’s one of the few modern comedians that really makes me LOL consistently. I especially love his talk show, Between Two Ferns, which I’ve posted on Westcheddar in the past. Here’s the latest episode, featuring guest Ben Stiller, who’s out plugging his new movie Greenberg (it’s directed by the same guy who did one of my favorite films The Squid and the Whale)…
Galifianakis also hosted his first Saturday Night Live episode earlier this month. Here’s a clip of his hilarious opening monologue…
WATCH FULL EPISODE HERE
I heard he shaved his beard off at the end of the show. Is that true? Haven’t watched the whole thing yet, but I’m gonna. And if you missed my post of his stand up special, watch it HERE. Peace out…
Wild Horses
March 18, 2010
Okay, let the Westcheddar promotion of the new Band of Horses album officially begin! Infinite Arms drops May 18th, they’re at MSG with Pearl Jam May 21st, but they still haven’t released any new songs. The picture above, however, is from a recent show at the Ogden Theater in Denver. Grabbed it off their Twitter. Anyway, here’s the most recent interview I could find with them (lead singer Ben Bridwell and new addition to the band Ludwig Boss), where they talk about the new album and much more. Live from Sweden son…
Great band. Really looking forward to their new album….
Brat Pack Book
March 15, 2010
I am so excited to read this book. Just copped it yesterday at Borders. Anyone like me who’s a fan of John Hughes 80’s teen flicks will certainly enjoy this. It’s very rare that I see a book I actually want to read in full, but this grabbed my attention the moment I saw the cover. Sounds like the pages are filled with lots of juicy behind the scenes stories, “making of” details, and much more. Here’s the description of the book, taken from it’s official website…
You can quote lines from The Breakfast Club, your iPod playlist includes more than one song by The Psychedelic Furs and Simple Minds, and you still wish that Andie had ended up with Duckie in Pretty in Pink. You’re a bonafide “Brat Pack” devotee, and you’re not alone. The films of the Brat Pack, from Sixteen Candles and St. Elmo’s Fire to Ferris Bueller’s Day Off and Say Anything— and the landscape that they memorialized, where outcasts and prom queens fall in love and preppies and burnouts become friends— have influenced an entire generation who still wants to believe that life always turns out like an ’80s movie.
“You Couldn’t Ignore Me If You Tried” takes us back to that golden age of youth cinema, through author Susannah Gora’s original and revealing interviews with scores of key players such as Molly Ringwald, Anthony Michael Hall, Ally Sheedy, Judd Nelson, Matthew Broderick, Andrew McCarthy, Cameron Crowe, Rob Lowe, Joel Schumacher, Jon Cryer, and John Cusack. Gora mines all the material from these movies, from the music to the way the films were made, and show how they shaped our vision of romance, friendship, society and success. Full of compelling anecdotes about the deep friendships, the off-screen romances, the breakdowns and the breakups, and the infamous night on the town that led a writer from New York magazine to dub this core group of actors “The Brat Pack,” affecting their careers and personal lives for decades to come, “You Couldn’t Ignore Me If You Tried” is also the most comprehensive study of the late John Hughes, the godfather of the genre.
In The Breakfast Club, Judd Nelson’s rebel Bender tells Molly Ringwald’s prom queen Claire, “Sweets, you couldn’t ignore me if you tried,” and time has shown that even if we tried, we couldn’t ignore the impact of The Brat Pack and their movies. “You Couldn’t Ignore Me If You Tried” is the definitive account of the movies that stirred an entire generation, and a poignant homage to the people who brought those films to life.
Holler at me if you want to read this along with me. We can start an online book club! Yay! And if you missed it, check out my Westcheddar tribute to John Hughes (RIP) HERE.
Peace…
Puba Snacks
March 12, 2010
Grand Puba is my favorite rapper to ever represent the 914 (Now Rule stand up!). I listened to his first album non-stop throughout my freshman year of high school. Today, I stumbled upon a brand new Best of Grand Puba mix, done by Bay Area DJ Tim Diesel, and it’s dope. Here’s the tracklist…
1. Very Special – Grand Puba
2. Who Can Get Busy Like This Man? – Brand Nubian
3. Foundation – Brand Nubian
4. Actual Facts – Lord Finesse
5. Bread & Butter – Beanie Sigel
6. Love vs. Hate – Brand Nubian
7. Keep On – Grand Puba
8. A Little Of This – Grand Puba
9. Probable Cause – Brand Nubian
10. Open Bar – Sadat X
11. Momma – Brand Nubian
12. Soul Controller – Grand Puba
13. My Struggles – Missy Elliott
14. What’s The 411? – Mary J. Blige
15. Check It Out – Grand Puba feat. Mary J. Blige
16. Ya Know How It Goes – Grand Puba
17. Mind Your Business – Grand Puba
18. Change Gonna Come – Grand Puba
19. Who Makes The Loot? – The Brand New Heavies
20. Back Up Off The Wall – Brand Nubian
21. The Beat Change – Brand Nubian
22. I Like It (I Wanna Be Where You Are) – Grand Puba
23. Play It Cool – Grand Puba
24. Let’s Get It On – Eddie F. & The Untouchables
25. Watch The Sound – Fat Joe
26. Check Tha Resume – Grand Puba
27. Slow Down – Brand Nubian
28. Shinin’ Star – Brand Nubian
29. Step To The Rear – Brand Nubian
30. To The Right – Brand Nubian
31. Are You Ready – The Beatnuts
32. 360º (What Goes Around) – Grand Puba
33. All For One – Brand Nubian
34. One To The Knot – Masters Of Ceremony
35. Drop The Bomb – Brand Nubian
36. Dedication – Brand Nubian
37. Wake Up (Reprise In The Sunshine) – Brand Nubian
Download/Stream the mix HERE (it’s one mp3, let it ride). And below are some classic Grand Puba videos for your enjoyment…
Grand Puba “What Goes Around (360 Degrees)”
Grand Puba and Mary J. Blige “What’s The 411?” Yo! MTV Raps
Fat Joe featuring Grand Puba and Diamond D “Watch the Sound”
*VISIT UPNORTHTRIPS FOR ALL YOUR ADDITIONAL THROWBACK HIP HOP NEEDS*
Ski School
March 11, 2010
Ski Beatz, best known for his work with Jay-Z and Camp Lo, is in the lab hard body working with Dame Dash on the 24 Karate School mixtape/album. Featuring everyone from Jay Electronica to Mos Def to Jim Jones to the Cool Kids, this is one of the freshest projects cooking in hip hop right now. And the promotional videos are dope too. Check this visual mixtape above to get a feel for the flavor. It’s worth watching just to hear that first Jay Electronica verse, shit is crack. And watch the clip below of Ski Beatz and Jay-Z reminiscing about their classic song, “Dead Presidents”…
24 Hour Karate School Official Website
By the way, this was my boy Goldberg’s favorite movie as a teenager. I wonder why?
Later dudes.
Handsome Men’s Club
March 11, 2010
This is a fun watch. Shout out to Lizzy F for sending this over. It’s a star studded clip, featuring all the Hollywood studs that all our wives/girlfriends get open off, and Jimmy Kimmel. Ladies, don’t get too excited. Enjoy.
Broken Bell Blam
March 10, 2010
I missed my boys Broken Bells perform on Letterman last night in celebration of their album release (it dropped yesterday). Did anyone see it? Did you cop the album yet? Don’t see last night’s clip online, so instead check this live, in studio style performance of “The High Road” they just released, which I’m sure is fairly similar to their Letterman performance (they rocked the same song). Enjoy, and go cop that Broken Bells album!!!!
*Bonus*
A tough set of judges (kids) review the new Broken Bells single “Vaporize”…
Also, MTV’s got a performance of “The Ghost Inside” on their buzzworthy site. Watch it HERE.
Biggie Smalls Live
March 9, 2010
I never got to see Biggie live. He got killed too young. I was only 18 when he was murdered, and I really do believe that hip hop changed that day. Sure, there’s been lots of classic songs and albums released since then by some amazing artists, and I’m still one of the biggest rap fans around. But since he died, THINGS DONE CHANGED. A lot of these bums would not have careers if he was still alive. Or maybe they would, but we wouldn’t care, because Biggie would be pumping out too much heat for us to notice. I guess there is life after death for hip hop, and Jay-Z has done a great job holding it down for the original King of New York. But we will always wonder, “what if Biggie was still alive?” Well for those of you like me who never got to see B.I.G. on stage, check out this great mixtape by DJ Semi, filled with rare live performances from the late great Biggie Smalls…
And please, stay tuned to UPNORTHTRIPS today as me and my partner EvBoogie pay tribute to Biggie with a whole lot of rare pictures, video, mixtapes, etc. You don’t want to miss it. I’ll update this post with the full recap at the end of the day, but for now, GO THERE AND CHECK IT OUT.
R.I.P.B.I.G.
*UPDATE*
Here’s the full UPNORTHTRIPS recap from yesterday, which includes the links to the 60 plus Biggie posts we put up yesterday…
Pass Go
March 8, 2010
I don’t know much about this band OK Go, but one of the high school kids who frequents my center (what up Lonie) showed me their new video “This Too Shall Pass”, and I was blown away by how cool and creative it is!!!! Turns out they won a short film Grammy in 2007 for THIS video. Well the one above reminds me a little of Happy Gilmore’s final shot to beat Shooter McGavin to win the green jacket. Check it out. And if you’re interested in the making of the video and how it came to be, start watch their four part behind the scenes video playlist HERE. Always good to have hip kids around to keep me in the loop on what’s hot. And yeah, this video has been out for one week, and it already has north of 6 million views on YouTube. Bananas yogurt.
Infinite Arms
March 8, 2010
The new Band of Horses album Infinite Arms is set to be released on May 18th. That’s my wife’s due date! Supposedly the album will be more upbeat, with a “Friday night” type of vibe to it. And looks like it’s going to be put out by Brown Records/Fat Possum/Columbia, and not Sub Pop. Really? Oh well, don’t really care, but I got mad love for Sub Pop so I’m curious why they made the switch. Regardless, I’m amped to hear their new stuff. This is going to be the first album my baby boy listens too! Far out!!!!! Stay tuned for more info on this project….
*UPDATE*
Pearl Jam and Band Of Horses. MSG. May 21st. Wow. Probably won’t be able to make it because my son should be in the building by then, but someone please bring me home a shirt!
