Territorial Bloggings

*tap* *tap* *tap*

Is this thing on?

Wow. It still works. Good to know…

Some random musings that have been floating through my mind after a nice Holy Trinity Sunday service (LSB, DS III, for those who care) this morning…

• The Athanasian Creed – we didn’t confess it today. That makes me sad. Why didn’t we? Well, the usual, I suppose – “it’s too long”, “it’s too different”, “it’s too confusing”, etc. I don’t buy that, but matters little-to-none in the grand scheme.
• On Eagle’s Wings – this (LSB 727) was sung during distribution. Can someone convince me that it’s not utter emotionalistic dreck? Anyone?
• The Nunc Dimittis – we didn’t sing it today. I think it got cut to move things along & keep the service shorter. That makes me sad, because I loves me some Song of Simeon.
• VBS Themes – this year’s VBS theme was announced/touted – “God Rocks!” *sigh* I guess I’ll cut VBS some slack, but overall, it rolls together with my confusion & annoyance over the contemporary obsession with making everything FUN!!! – as if that’s the panacea for fixing what ails the church. ‘Cause, goodness knows that Sunday School & Youth programs focused on FUN!!! for the past 35+ years has worked sooooooooo well.
• Perfect(?) Rewards – After service, awards were given out for Sunday School perfect attendance. Thing is, you can miss up to 3 times & still get “perfect” attendance. Not even the local public schools have devalued the word/concept that much (heck, in the Valpo Public Schools, if you want “perfect” attendance, you still have to be there every day – no mulligans!). I’m not agin the award, per se, just agin the misuse of the word “perfect”. Are we teaching our kids that “perfect” = messing up once or twice? And, if so, what might that subliminally be teaching them about (the need for) Jesus’ perfect life, death, and resurrection? I don’t mean to be overly pedantic here (well, maybe a little), but words have meaning, and precision in that meaning is a good thing that we ought not throw away. Especially in some misguided effort to make kids (or is it their parents? hmmmm?) feel better about themselves.

Ahh, that feels better. Back in the saddle. Gotta get ready for the upcoming district convention, and all the festivities that come along with that. I’m sure there’ll be plenty to write about…

-ghp

This is very, very cool…

Brimming over with EPIC WIN!

-ghp

This is way, way cool! (yes, I’m a tech geek, and I’m ok with it…)

The sounds of those old drives and components is just, well, comforting. And to hear it used for the good of one of Queen’s greatest hits? Well, that’s just a sublime experience, now isn’t it?

-ghp

I’m not going to bother to wait and view the results show to post some thoughts; the likely ejectees this week are largely irrelevant (it’s gonna be Michael or Megan, but it should be Scott)…

This is, I think, the best season of Idol to date, in terms of talent from top to bottom in the Top 11 (I feel compelled to include Alexis, because she is more talented than Michael, Megan, or Scott, and really shouldn’t have been eliminated last week…). In past seasons, there were usually two, rarely three, obvious contenders who were a cut above everyone else. Of course, there were the token “genre” entries, but they were never that strong across the board.

AI:1 had Kelly & Tamyra; AI:2, Ruben & Clay; AI:3, LaToya, Fantasia, & Jennifer; AI:4, Bo & Carrie; AI:5, Kat, Taylor, Elliot, & Daughtry; AI:6, Jordin & Blake; AI:7, David & David. (NOTE 1: Voting didn’t always reflect the true talent – see Tamyra, LaToya, Jennifer, Elliot, & Daughtry. NOTE 2: AI:5 is the only season that can really compare to the top-to-bottom talent level evidenced in AI:8. It still falls short, IMO…)

What sets AI:8 apart is that, not only did the producers cast each of the musical genre “slots” that they seek to fill each year, this year they did so with folks who are very talented and really have a chance to build a genuine, non-gimmick-based fan base.

Matt. Kris. Lil. Allison. Adam. Danny. Anoop. Alexis.

A full eight — *8* — out of the top 11 were good & talented enough that, if they made it to the finale, no one would’ve been shocked. Think about that. The only fodder in the top 11 were Megan (the token blonde hottie/quirky artiste), Michael (the token family man/Daughtry story), and Scott (the token feel-good story who sings good enough, but wouldn’t still be here, IMO, if it wasn’t for his being blind).

At this point, my favorite is Allison. If Daughtry paved the way, and Cook proved that a rocker guy could win the competition, then I think Allison will prove that a girl with a rock edge, not to mention a young contestant, can win. She’s refreshing. She’s real. She’s cute. She arguably has the most vocal talent. She’s awesome.

And then there’s Adam. I’m not a fan. He’s too faux for my taste. He’s Constantine – The Next Generation, aka, The Poseur 2.0. He’s over the top self-indulgent, in guise of being “artistic”. He’s undeniably talented. Vocally, he’s brilliant. When he exhibits proper self control, that is.

Case in point: What he did with The Tracks of My Tears was beautiful. It was the thing we look for each season – an Idol “Moment” – Clay’s Solitaire, Kat’s Over The Rainbow, etc… Adam was respectful to Smokey Robinson, both in how he solicited input/history about the song, as well as how he carried himself/performed the song.

Contrast this with what he did last week, during Grand Ole Opry week. Adam treated Randy Travis with a bit of contempt (but not overly so). His contempt for the genre & the Opry, however, oozed forth uncontrollably. He gave no respect whatsoever to Johnny Cash and Ring of Fire. It was a big old middle finger, both in conception, and in execution.

That, in short, is my problem with Adam. He could’ve treated Opry week with the same respect as he gave Motown. He just chose not to, for some reason. And I don’t buy “artistic license” as a viable reason, not when he acted like he did on camera. Nope, I don’t want him to win. Not one little bit.

My top fave: Allison
My 2nd fave: Matt
My 3rd fave: Kris or Lil

-ghp

Just a quick blurb to update about why I’ve not been updating…

I’m not, I don’t think, going to take the entire season off; however, neither do I think that I’m going to obsessively document & comment on each and every episode. “Well, duh!” You are probably thinking to yourself, that’s a pretty obvious statement, given that I only recapped two of the seven audition shows, and neither of the Hollywood week shows thus far.

Here’s the thing — I’ve had enough other stuff going on that I actually haven’t been able to watch any the shows on the nights that they’ve been broadcast. That doesn’t make for timely recaps.

Here’s the other thing — This season I’ve found that I just haven’t cared enough about the preliminaries to do more than just watch and be entertained. I don’t want to concentrate to the point that I need to in order to write cogently about what’s going on. That doesn’t make for interesting/entertaining recaps.

It might/could very well change once we get to the semi-finals (doubtful) and/or finals (probable). I think part of the “problem” is that I just don’t feel like speculating this year. It takes too much mental energy to do so, and I don’t have that to spare this year.

Here’s the ironic part — So far, this has been a much better and more enjoyable season than they’ve had in quite a few years. The addition of Kara to the judging panel has helped immeasurably, both in that she is right up there with Simon as a/the judge who actually knows what’s going on, as well as somehow causing the other judges to raise their game a bit from time to time. The editing of the shows, in terms of how they cut them together to tell the story thematically, has also been much better this season.

I’ve purposely tried not to get attached to any contestants, and/or choose any favorites (though there are some I can’t stand!), because I want to wait until the semis or even the finals until I begin caring on the personal level. So far, that’s been working out pretty well.

Anyway, that’s why I haven’t been posting regular, detailed recaps/writeups. I just don’t have it in me this year. Hopefully, it doesn’t bum anyone out too terribly much, or at least not enough to keep you from visiting/reading to see if/when I start writing a little more once we get closer to the finals.

-ghp

Time for some more stream of consciousness, from Kansas City, MO…

• Jason Castro? Yikes!
• Boy judges being mean. Girl judges being nice. This time, the boys were right. nameless-bad-singer-girl just picked the wrong song? Delusion knows no bounds.
• Casey Carlson – cute as a button. If she makes it through Hollywood in one piece, she could be a contender. She’s very, very likable.
• A classically trained, overweight, hairy, white boy auditions with Aretha? Schnikes! Dude. Is. Epic. Suck. And he seemed shocked by it.
• That’s the truly amazing thing about this show — it allows us to see that people truly are that deluded and self-unaware. Year after year, we see it. From fans of the show who should know better. The delusion is that strong. It’s sad & amazing, yet always entertaining. It’s a hardy perennial.
• Michael Castro – worthwhile putting him through, I think. At least we don’t have to worry about dealing with those silly dreds. I could do without the magenta coloring.
• Matt Breitzke – a nice Hollywood story. Potentially a darkhorse to make it into the finals – not likely, but possibly.
• Jessica Furney – very nice girl, nice voice, nice story, nice grandma. I’m not sure I see her making it past Hollywood, although I think I’d like to see it.
• Danny Gokey – Unbelievably moving story, and a good enough voice, that if he makes it past Hollywood, he could hang around for a while.
• I’m boycotting the rest of the show, after Danny, because, well, it just made me equal parts sad and angry. It took 30 minutes (thanks to Tivo) away from me that I’ll never get back. And that’s just wrong, ’cause nobody was good enough during that time to salvage or justify the viewing time.

Oddly enough, though, in the final wash I’m not feeling quite as cranky tonight, thanks to the first 2/3 of the show. The last 1/3 tried to do me in, but it didn’t. Almost, but not quite. So, much like Carl Spackler’s promise of comfort from the Dali Lama, at least I’ve got that going for me…

I’m off to dream of shoveling snow in the morning.

-ghp

Montage of good, bad, ugly, naughty, nice, phycho, normal, loser, & winner, ending with #1 Kelly Clarkson & #7 David Cook. My two favorites, I must say.

This is. This is. This is. This. This. This. This. Is. American. Idol.

Thank you, Ryan.

Let the delusion begin again.

The Grand Canyon, eh?

Is that a sign? Will the new season suck as hard as the Canyon is deep? Let’s keep that question in mind as we float down the stream of consciousness…

• Emily Wynne-Hughes – Rocker chick. I like her. Don’t like the tatts. Great voice. Nice attitude.
• “Rock Star in a Box”? Too bad he can’t sing like a rocker. More like a “Poseur in a Box” — There’s no crying in hard rock!
• I think Michael Gurr got sick because he heard himself sing, not because he was nervous or anything like that…
• I really can’t bring myself to document & write about all the freaks. I think it’s my self-preservation mechanism kicking in.
• 16 y/o Stevie? She’s got potential. I want her to be good when this gets to Hollywood…
• The Roughneck will garner some support, potentially serious support if he can make it past Hollywood…
• Bikini Girl? Her ass was better than either her face or her voice. But, then, I don’t think Simon didn’t care about that. Randy neither. Kara & Paula were right (I like the new judge – I think she’s going to kick some ass when and where necessary…), Randy & Simon were wrong.
• Sorry, Randy Watson is Sexual Chocolate, not the impostor that got a new car for failing (I want a comment from someone giving the reference – prove to me that I have readers, people…)
• I’ve seen a million auditions, and I’ve hated them all. Wanted, dead or alive.
• Scott Macintyre? Quite good. Hollywood week might not be so kind, but if he gets past that, he could be surprising.

And so it goes…

Tomorrow: Kansas City

-ghp

So, it’s back.

Tomorrow, it awakens from it’s slumber.

The Winter behemoth that devours all that dare enter its path.

American Idol

I’m ambivalent, I must confess. I’ve semi/sorta kept up during the off-season. I mean, how can you not keep up with Paula having near meltdowns & threatening to walk away from the franchise that rejuvenated her career? Or not learn that a 4th judge has been added to the menagerie, and react with a little bit of hope that perhaps (oh, hoping against hope!) the judging won’t suck in such a violently horrific fashion. But it will… *sigh*

Anywhoo, I’ll watch. I’ll blog. I’ll probably even end up blogging regularly & on a schedule. Although my preference is to not spend too much time & effort on caring, and thus on blogging, until after the Hollywood phase.

As you recall, I’ve long posited that AI is actually three shows in one:

1. The Train Wreck Auditions – wherein we all slake the thirst of our collective morbid curiosity on the refreshing nectar of the psychotically deluded, the bad, and the ugly…
2. Hollywood Week & most of the Semi-Finals – here, we begin the transformation from morbid, drive-by, TV, into an only slightly more respectable and/or of redeeming value entertainment product…
3. The Finals – finally, we get the Bataan-like death march of the AI Finals process, which gives us the veneer of presentability & respectability that we so desperately want after the first two phases of the competition. Unfortunately, we don’t truly trust it after so many years of AI, because we know that the judging is violently offensive, the themes are wantonly abusive, and the voting process makes an old Soviet-era election look trustworthy & legit.

Oh, who am I trying to fool? I’ll watch. I’ll rage. I’ll blog.

And I hope you’ll read.

-ghp

There is so much that is both right and wrong, good and bad about this video clip, words almost fail me. I must confess that it enchants me. Not for the theology, but for the simple fact that it’s a catchy little new wave/pop ditty that is so rich with cheeze that it’s almost sinfully good. I think back to the early 80′s, and that song makes perfect sense, both musically and visually. And God help me, I love it. For some reason, whenever I see the background singers doing their little wiggly-dance-thingy, I think of the Joan Cusack character in Sixteen Candles (the girl who wore the back brace), when she was at the school dance, doing her little wiggly-move-back-and-forth dance. And I giggle.

Zap!

HT: BJS – and go there for a good outline & discussion of why this video is an object lesson against falling prey to “contemporary” worship fads.

-ghp

Not that the original lyrics aren’t still classic (’cause they are, in a good cheezy way…); I still remember just how cool that animation was back in the day, 23 years ago (it was way cool…); that girl in the video is still cute as a button (rawr!); and the Ah-Ha! lead singer still looks too pretty & hits those high notes way too easily.

Despite all that being true, even a proud child of the 80′s like me has to admit that the new lyrics of this parody are just too darned funny to ignore! Enjoy…

-ghp