BottleRock Napa Valley 2023 Festival Journal, Day 3

(You’re reading Day 3. Be sure to catch up on Day 1 and Day 2!)

Day 3 of BottleRock Napa Valley is always bittersweet because it’s the last day, and I want to see more phenomenal artists, but my feet hurt, and I’m ready to get back to my real life, too. While I’ve been off to the races the past two days, seeing bands right away in the first hour of the day, today I opted for a slower, easier start. I stopped to catch a bit of Half Alive, where I enjoyed the trio’s energy and especially “Still Feel.”

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BottleRock Napa Valley 2023 Festival Journal, Day 2

You’re reading Day 2 – be sure to check out what you missed on Day 1!

Day 2 of this year’s BottleRock started with similar weather to the previous day. By the time I was done watching Paris Jackson‘s set (my first of the day), I was already warm enough to take my jacket off. Despite having heard at least a few of her songs here and there, I wasn’t sure what to expect from Jackson. She has a solid sound with her band, and her set was enjoyable pop-rock. I enjoyed her enough that I’ll be curious to see where her music career will take her. Continue reading “BottleRock Napa Valley 2023 Festival Journal, Day 2”

BottleRock Napa Valley 2023 Festival Journal, Day 1

You might not be able to tell by the weather, at least in Napa today, but it’s almost summer! Memorial Day Weekend marks the unofficial start of summer and the arrival of BottleRock Napa Valley’s 10th festival! The day started out pretty chilly, which had me worried that the weekend might be colder than I’d hoped for a festival weekend, but thankfully it eventually warmed up to a nice breezy, sunny day. 

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Single of the Week: “Connection” by Marc Ribot’s Ceramic Dog

I’m loosely familiar with the work of Marc Ribot, primarily his time as Tom Waits’ guitarist. What I’ve heard of his work has pretty much entirely been in the greater jazz vein. I’ve never heard him sing before. Even with Ceramic Dog, is work is closer to jazz fusion than anything else. But “Connection”? This song is heavy as fuck. Well, in that Sonic Youth / Wilco / The Replacements way… A ferocious, noisy cacophony with a sweet melody making you feel simultaneously comforted and uncomfortable. And there are even VOCALS! 

This surprising track is the first single off Marc Ribot’s Ceramic Dog’s upcoming record, also named Connection. You can preorder that here! 

Film Review: “You Hurt My Feelings”

No lie here: This film is worth seeing

Don (Tobias Menzies) and Beth (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) have an unexpected conversation with their son.

We’re not even halfway through the year yet, but I think I’ve just seen my Top 10 list’s number one pick. That contender is You Hurt My Feelings, a smart and often painfully funny picture about creativity and relationship dynamics that re-teams writer/director Nicole Holofcener with actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus.

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Show Review: Les Claypool’s Fearless Flying Frog Brigade with Fishbone at Meritage Resort, Napa, 5/19/2023

Even the poster still says Silverado Resort. This show was moved in a hurry! Brian Allen of Flyland Designs did the art for this poster — it’s killer.

About two weeks ago, well after most of the shows had gone on sale, Blue Note Napa announced that they were moving their Summer Sessions series of concerts from the Silverado Resort to the Meritage Resort. The Napa Valley Register reported that it was due to some permitting issues with Napa County, but regardless, if there’s a new venue out there in the world that’s hosting a show as promising as Les Claypool’s Fearless Flying Frog Brigade and Fishbone, I was going to have to check it out. Continue reading “Show Review: Les Claypool’s Fearless Flying Frog Brigade with Fishbone at Meritage Resort, Napa, 5/19/2023”

Film Review: “The Little Mermaid”

Halle Bailey is a shining star in this mostly successful and worthwhile remake

“It’s a dinglehopper!” Disney has been churning out live-action remakes of their classic animated films since the mid-1990s. The velocity increased exponentially with Cinderella (2015), The Jungle Book and Pete’s Dragon (2016), and Beauty and the Beast (2017). There have been six (!) direct live-action remakes since then, not including numerous character origin stories, sequels, and spin-offs. Over seven titles are in the pipeline. With few exceptions, most of these have been lackluster cash grabs, devoid of the groundbreaking nature and pizzazz of the originals, and unable to modernize themes and storylines without stumbling hard. Thus, The Little Mermaid is the latest entry into Disney’s live-action remake collection, an adaptation of the 1989 animated classic. Directed by Rob Marshall (Chicago; Mary Poppins Returns), the new The Little Mermaid succeeds in ways that previous Disney remakes failed, but at times the film trips over its own feet, err, fins.

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Film Review: “Master Gardener”

Spending time in this garden is no picnic

Master Gardener Narvel (Joel Edgerton) chats with his boss, Norma (Sigourney Weaver).

If you’re a fan of writer/director Paul Schrader, you’re bound to be disappointed by his newest film. With Master Gardener, the Taxi Driver screenwriter seems to have lost his focus, recycling old themes with no new insights and creating a picture that alternates between gothic camp and heavy-handed tedium.

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Single of the Week: “Fitness” by Snõõper

Looking for a nice, relaxing 20 minutes song played at a breakneck pace, so the whole song is played in under 2 minutes? Well, “Fitness” by Snõõper is the track for you! I wouldn’t actually try working out to this song because, well, you would definitely die. That being said, I think this song makes me want to ACTUALLY train hard enough to compete in a natural bodybuilding competition. So, yeah, gonna go buy some eggs and asparagus and get ripped in 1:45 chunks. (Also, this video is fantastic)

“Fitness” can be enjoyed in all the usual places RIGHT NOW. Their debut album, Super Snõõper, is coming your way on July 14th from Third Man Records. This means Jack White is a fan of breakneck perky punk rock, too! You can fully prepare for July 14th both virtually and physically here, and Snõõper is playing Mosswood Meltdown AND a Mosswood Meltdown After Party, both July 2nd in Oakland, CA,  if you are the type that doesn’t like experiencing the sun and music at the same time. Tickets for both are available here! 

Film Review: “It Ain’t Over”

A wonderful tribute and legacy reclamation for one of baseball’s greatest

Throughout the first half of the twentieth century, the New York Yankees dominated the baseball world. Between a sixteen year span, 1947-1962, they won ten World Series titles. Only one player was on the team for all ten of those titles (a MLB player record) while also becoming an 18-time All-Star — Yogi Berra. And yet, his name is most commonly associated with witty sayings, or ‘yogi-isms’, like “When you come to a fork in the road, take it” and “It’s like déjà vu all over again.” In the early 2000s his wit was made even more famous by his appearance in an Aflac commercial (which was quite funny, actually). His ‘yogi-isms’ are neither the whole story, nor do they represent his greatest accomplishments. Berra was a World War II veteran, and then achieved some of the best player statistics in the history of the sport, and Sean Mullin’s new documentary, It Ain’t Over, splendidly captures and reclaims Berra’s much deserved legacy.

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