Andrew Bird — Noble BeastFat Possum RecordsB
Blending beautiful violin playing with Irish folk and American jazz influences, Andrew Bird gives listeners a collection of songs that stand out as different. With its hand claps, soothing rhythms, and soft whispers, “Noble Beast” allows listeners to flirt with an ethereal atmosphere that may seem unfamiliar. A step up from 2007’s “Armchair Apocrypha,” Bird’s newest album is certain to turn any bad feelings the listener is experiencing into joyful experiences played out through the album’s 14 tracks.
J. Chenier———
Animal Collective — Merriweather Post PavillionDomino RecordsA
Animal Collective’s eighth studio album, “Merriweather Post Pavilion,” has been widely anticipated since the later part of 2008, and it delivers on a huge scale. The album offers track after track of somewhat psychedelic, but always beautiful, electronic melodies that pushes genre boundaries. The work consistently reminds the listener of the universe outside of themselves as the album unfolds. The vocals mesh together into great harmonies and blend smoothly with very well built rhythms.
J. Clapp
———Paul Blart: Mall Cop Columbia PicturesD
Paul Blart is an overweight and unathletic mall cop who is given the responsibility of saving an entire mall from a group of masked robbers. Kevin James, who plays Blart, is cute and funny, but he makes too many weight jokes. Viewers familiar with his show “The King of Queens,” will recognize the funny parts of the show repeated in this film. The film is bearable, but more suited for a younger crowd.A. Norsworthy———
John Frusciante — The EmpyreanRecord CollectionA
Though a manufacturing malfunction pushed the release of this album to next week, the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ guitarist’s latest solo album is available for digital purchase. His guitar and voice seem to ache with genuine emotion. The concept album is soothing yet psychedelic, featuring endless shifts of tone and volume through mountains and valleys of emotion that balance melody with layers of dissonance. “The Empyrean” “should be played as loud as possible and is suited to dark living rooms late at night.”J. LeBlanc———My Bloody ValentineLionsgate FilmsD
This movie boasts 3D violence, yet manages to disappoint even the lowest expectations. Director Patrick Lussier opens the film with a gruesome 10 minutes but quickly slows down and relies on typical horror plot devices — infidelities, hiding old secrets and growing suspicions. The film is gruesome, but never does the fake looking CGI blood deliver a real scare. The same axe killings coupled with melodrama prove 3D graphics can only amplify what’s already there.B. Bourgeois———NotoriousFox Searchlight PicturesA
“Notorious” is an epic movie that tells the short but violent life of Notorious B.I.G. (a.k.a. Christopher Williams), one of the first rappers to make it big time from the East Coast. While it is a biographical movie, the audience forgets about that the minute the beat drops in the first scene. It is everything a movie should be, with great cinematography, a soundtrack that never gets boring and a story that is inspiring, funny and heartwrenching.C. Vogels