The one hundred and eighty-fourth TV show: #815 Party Down
My first watch of Party Down was about a decade ago, encouraged by the presence of Adam Scott, Ken Marino and Jane Lynch among others. The adventures of the employees of an LA catering company - the presence of failed dreams is there - are darkly humorous, in a way that you wouldn't have seen on a regular network comedy. And although the characters are a bit heightened, it clearly draws on so many real experiences (I suspect often by the actors on the show).
The writing is great, with the bizarre situations playing out well and unexpected enough, which is elevated by the amazing cast (I suspect in part put together based on how much they enjoy working together, especially for the guest cast) who play their role to perfection. They all play well off each other, with Adam Scott as the stable center around which everyone else revolves. It works out so well together that I feel I could rewatch this constantly (or at least more often than I have so far)
The one hundred and fifty-second classical recording: #222 Franz Schubert - Piano Quintet in A major, "Trout"
Aside from being well performed in this recording, there's something engaging in its simplicity with this piece. It flows well, the various movements not building as much as they give calmer sections between ones that are more energetic, but the whole stays quite attractive to listen to.
The four hundred and twenty-eighth album: #428 Sister Sledge - We Are Family
Between Lost in Music and We Are Family, it's quite clear what to expect from Sister Sledge - lots of disco music, something to dance to, and an album that instantly brings back the 70s disco scene. The album features some more soulful tracks as well, but the focus for me stays on the disco tracks, which really stand out that well.
The four hundred and twenty-seventh album: #427 AC/DC - Highway to Hell
With the bank holiday giving us a chance to do some extra traveling, I ended up starting the week more tired than usual - and AC/DC's Highway to Hell (together with a good amount of coffee) helped shock me out of that. You've got good and proper hard rock, no fancy tricks or big compositions, but a whole lot of volume on top of well constructed songs. I understand this is the first album of backing vocals (this album convinced me to dive into their back catalogue when this project is over) and it really helps add to the tracks by giving it the extra power it needs. The tracks aren't high art, the lyrics not incredibly insightful, but the simple subjects of the lyrics, wrapped in more vivid imagery, and the straight forward music that builds on that simplicity as well, makes for a really compelling album.
The four hundred and twenty-sixth album: #426 Siouxsie and the Banshees - The Scream
It took me a track or two to realize I was actually listening to an album - the music really ended up fading into the background a bit more than you'd expect from a post punk work. While angry and loud, there's also something dark and subdued about some of the tracks that make it sit in a different place. It's not bad - the vocals are screamed, but work against the raging guitars and instruments, and there are times where it really revs up through the track. Even so, the album never quite managed to reach a point where it satisfied me.
The one hundred and third book: #718 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
I'll be honest, I'm not sure if the list expected me to read the first entry of the trilogy in five parts, or if it expected the full work, but it just seemed right to do the latter. I have, of course, encountered it before - having read the books in both English and in the Dutch translation (which at least had a decent translation of Ford Prefect's name, even if not all of the other choices are as good), listened to the full radio series and I've watched the less stellar movie. Add to that that I've already reviewed both the TV series here and the game on the proper Pong and Beyond, and it feels like writing about the book just makes it full circle.
The books are still great to read. There's a bit of a downhill trend near the end, where the focus on more of an ongoing plot conflicts with the rush to get them out, meaning bits of plot just fizzle out or don't marry up, but the individual scenes often still work. The earlier books are more like vignettes, pulling together only loosely enough to move from one set piece to the next, and those in particular are a delight to read and immerse yourself in as the world gets weirder. It's, at its core, a highly serialized work, and that serialization comes with changes as you can feel it being pulled in all directions, with the Guide interludes especially showing that with their various interruptions, diversions and other notes. The book stands at its peak in the comedy sci fi genre, and it will be there for a long time still.
The four hundred and twenty-fifth album: #425 Brian Eno - Ambient 1: Music for Airports
Sure, there's a lot of value in ambient music, and there are times where I enjoy having something to break the silence (although even then it tends to be something that is a bit more active). As a piece of music to focus on, however, an album like this falls flat as you can't get the feeling of falling into the middle of it, wandering in as it's playing. The start and end point become deliberate, removing the easier flow into the music.
Even then, the slightly discordant sound, created often with musicians somewhat separated from each other, becomes off putting and difficult to manage. It never quite becomes comfortable, which makes the music off putting in its own right. It might occasionally work, but there's never a point where the music really connects.
The one hundred and eighty-third TV show: #497 Tous les Garcons et les Filles de Leur Age
Out of the shows we've covered, it feels like this one is one that had the longest journey for how much we watched of it. More a collection of short films with a single subject, it features the stories of different teens in different decades. Having watched three, it feels like the movies ahve some themes in common beyond the intentional - the way your own problems feel so much bigger at that age, dominating the world for you, and hwo life can feel more superficial. There's those elements of selfishness and lack of perspective, trying to be deep and failing beyond that superficial level. It's interesitng as a way of looking at it, but it has that new wave touch (even if it goes against it) that makes it harder to connect with watching now. They're interesting pieces that I'm glad I have seen, but I don't feel the need to dive deep trying to hunt down subtitled versions of others.
The four hundred and twenty-fourth album: #424 X-Ray Spex - Germfree Adolescents
X-Ray Spex's only album in its original form produces a number of memorable riffs with some decent songs built on top of that. Lyrically not the most engaging - they're often drowned out by the guitars - but enough comes through that you can shout/sing along with an approximation of the lyrics. It's aggressive and enjoyable, the fun parts of punk without feeling as political, going hard but not filled with anger. It feels like just listening to the album is cathartic in its own right.
The four hundred and twenty-third album: #423 Chic - C'est Chic
With the transformation from funk to disco, my tolerance for the music styles is increasing. I still don't get much out of the long dance breaks, but the songs are good to listen to, songs like Freak Out are classics for a reason and I enjoyed most of the album - or got in a comfortable groove when it wasn't trying to engage me as much lyrically. There are stand outs for a reason, but it's all put together well.