Spring Break

Ladies and Gentlemen, "Spring" Break is upon us, or at least me. And with it, I will be heading to the eye of the snowicane that is going on on the east coast. I am more than open to suggestions as to how to spend my time out in New York, but the less money I spend the better. Any suggestions?

Music Monday

I'm gonna keep it light today. Was on WQAQ 98.1 today. Mike and Mike had a great show as always. I also enjoyed hearing the one and only Reid Benjamin's opinions on the status of the Cleveland Cavaliers and the likelihood of them winning the Larry O'Brien Trophy this year. Anyway, soon, I will have some worthwhile posts...until then, here's a few mash-ups I'm a big fan of that I found on YouTube.











Enjoy the mash-ups!

-KK

New York State of Mind

To quote the great Billy Joel, I'm in a New York State of Mind, for I will be gracing NYC and the greater State of New York with my presence in less than a week. But, I apologize for taking almost two weeks to blog again. I've been extremely busy, and also just haven't found myself with much to talk about. But, I shall just rant about a few things right now. First off, it is Olympic Time. I know I myself have enjoyed watching a large amount of Curling. I think I even understand the rules. Unfortunately, I've missed most of the US's men's hockey games so far due to the wonderful time waster known as class. They have played well so far, but today is the big test, US vs Canada. As much as I love Stevie Y and Mike Babcock, I gotta side with the homefront. I also had the pleasure of missing Shaun White's epic gold medal performance Wednesday night. Oh well...I guess thats why we have Sportscenter. One last note on the events going on in Vancouver, I personally enjoyed ESPN's Rick Reilly's column right before the games opened.

On a more local note...It is reported that the Tigers signed Johnny Damon to a one-year, $8 million deal. All I'm saying is that clearly Dave Dombrowski has been reading a certain blog (doubts). Now if only they'd start Alex Avila with regularity...

Now...to Hollywood. I took in Martin Scorsese's new movie Shutter Island on Friday night. I was thoroughly impressed. The entire movie kept me thinking what exactly was going on until the very end. Although it continued my general opinion that Leonardo DiCaprio is a terrible actor, it was an amazing story and was definitely worth seeing. Here's the trailer...



I'll save the wonderful world of music for tomorrow. Also, I will be on WQAQ-FM 98.1 sometime between 4 and 6pm tomorrow. Look out for that. I hope everyone had a nice Valentine's Day last weekend. I know it was a fun and interesting one for myself. And, if I can't leave you with anything too wise or ingenius, I'll leave you with the great words of John Lennon..

Music Monday

Because I've been joking about this "theme" of music for a few weeks now (for reasons completely seperate from Music Monday), Here are three songs that suggest strange hook-ups.

Stacy's Mom - Fountains of Wayne

The song is off of their third album, Welcome Interstate Managers. Fountains of Wayne formed in New Jersey and are named after a local small store that sold lawn ornaments. The song was released in 2003 and was the band's true "first hit." Adam Schlesinger, one of the founders of the band, actually wrote another one of my favorite songs, That Thing You Do. The music video follows the fantasy that a young boy has of getting with a friend's hot mom. Funny video, catchy song. Check it out.



I'm on a Boat - The Lonely Island ft. T-Pain

Originally a Saturday Night Live short, I'm on a Boat picked up speed thanks to the world wide web. The band, The Lonely Island, composed of comedians Andy Samberg, Akiva Schaffer, and Jorma Taccone, have continued making many humorous songs and music videos that have, and have not aired on Saturday Night Live. This song is quite funny and the end, suggesting getting with a certain marine creature, only makes it better.



Scotty Doesn't Know - Lustra

Featured in the movie Eurotrip, the song is a catchy upbeat, dirty as all get out song. The band, Lustra, is a pop punk band originally from Boston. In the movie, Matt Damon acts as their lead vocals. This is not the case in real life, but I always try to imagine its Matt singing (Cue Matt Damon joke). Regardless, the song is funny, catchy, and Kristin Kreuk is hot.



I hope everyone enjoyed the Super Bowl last night. Commercials were pretty lame in my opinion, but I will have my three best and three worst later on in the week. Look for me on WQAQ today (98.1 FM) from 4-6pm. It is Quinnipiac Local Radio (whack, I know). So, your best bet is to listen online at http://www.wqaq.com/ . I'm gonna be pretty busy this week, but as always I will do my best to post with frequency. Have a great week and GO BLUE!

-Kevin

Super Bowl Preview

So...we are minutes until kickoff, and I have failed at posting the pre-game preview. But...to make it up, I'll just say a few words.

(Edited After the Game.)

- The game will come down to who throws for the most yards. Although this wasn't true (Brees threw for 288 and Manning threw for 333, Brees had a much better passer rating.)
- I can't remember a game that Peyton Manning has honestly played poorly in a long time. If he plays well, it'll be the Colts' D's game to loose. (Although Manning didn't play poorly, obviously the interception was the deciding point.)
- I'll have my top 3 commercials in the next day or two. (These will be coming, but I personally, along with the majority of my house, enjoyed the Coca-Cola jungle one.)
- I highly doubt Tebow's commercial will be anywhere close to as controversial as its supposed to be. (Clearly was not that bad.)
- Dwight Freeney will play no more than one half. His pregame looked rough. (Very much wrong. Freeney played well.)
- Go Lions! (Will always apply.)

Predicted Score: Saints - 28 Colts - 17 (31-17 Final...pretty close)

Five Overrated Movies

Much like Thursday's post of five underrated movies, today's shall be five overrated movies, in my opinion.

5. Rudy/The Natural - I know a large reason I don't like Rudy is because it is about Notre Dame. So because of this, I'll throw in another sport movie that I really really don't like and I think is extremely overrated: The Natural. Rudy is about a walk-on football player for Notre Dame who barely even cuts it on the practice squad, but one day works his way up the ranks and is able to get in for a play or two. Personally, I think The Rookie did a better job of the story of the underdog. The Natural is the story of a baseball player throughout his playing days. It really does absolutely nothing for me and I don't see why people like it. Maybe because it has Robert Redford? I don't know. Neither the book nor the movie have ever impressed me one bit.





4. Pixar Movies of Late - Between Wall-E, Up, and Ratatouille, Pixar, in my opinion, has not lived up to some of its originals. The Toy Story Movies, Finding Nemo, Cars, Monsters Inc...all phenomenal movies. But the three I mentioned have not lived up to expectations. And don't get me wrong, definitely decent movies. But prior to seeing Up, it sounded like it was going to be one of the best movies I had ever seen. Same goes for Wall-E.



3. Signs - This movie is an overall disappointment. I'm about to ruin it, so SPOILER ALERT. Any alien movie where you don't see them until halfway through, and they look ridiculous, is lame. On top of everything, water hurts them? Just in general, it could have been a much better movie. M. Night Shyamalan is a great writer and director obviously. The Sixth Sense is a great movie. But, in my opinion, its a swing and a miss (no pun intended).



2. 300 - Unless you go to Michigan State or some other school that embraces Spartans, this movie overstayed its welcome in pop culture in my opinion. Definitely a good movie...the first time. By the 15th time, it had lost its luster.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-6M5FukAoE (I couldn't embed the video).

1. Fight Club - I love this movie. I own it, and its awesome. The book is even better. But, Fight Club is not nearly as good as everyone makes it sound. Yes, it was one of Brad Pitt's breakout roles. Yes, Edward Norton is one heck of an actor. But, regardless, the movie is spoken of as one of the all-time greats. It is not and doesn't deserve to be spoken of so highly.



I'm always open to suggestions or comments, and of course debate. If you have any thoughts please share. I hope everyone is having a good weekend and GO BLUE Today! BEAT THE BADGERS...TWICE!

-Kevin

Five Underrated Movies

So, as I sat watching Josie and the Pussycats last night, I decided there are definitely a large amount of movies that are completely underrated. Some are on tv more than others, but still don't get the respect that they deserve. And here, I plan on sharing my Top 5.

5. Spaceballs: One of Mel Brooks' hits, yet never really gets any love when it comes to Mel Brooks movies. The movie, released in 1987, is a parody of Star Wars and stars Mel Brooks as President Skroob and Yogurt, John Candy as Barf, Rick Moranis as Lord Dark Helmet, Bill Pullman as Captain Lone Starr, and Daphne Zuniga as Lone Starr's love interest Princess Vespa of Druidia. It is definitely my favorite Mel Brooks movie and unfortunately find it to rarely get any love. This scene is one of my favorites and is poking fun at Star Wars obviously.




4. Across the Universe: This movie, an American Musical released in 2007, is an original story, written and directed by Julie Taymor. It features all Beatles music and has many other references to Beatles songs throughout the movie. It stars Evan Rachel Wood, Jim Sturgess, T.V. Carpio, Dana Fuchs, and Marin Luther McCoy. The movie also features cameos by Bono, Eddie Izzard, Joe Cocker, and Salma Hayek. The story spans the time of The Beatles as well. From their underground concerts in Liverpool to the famous Roof-Top Concert. The movie is one of my favorites and does a phenomenal job covering Beatles songs. I know it hasn't been out long but I also feel that it doesn't get the love that it deserves. Here are a couple of my favorite songs from the movie.





3. U-571: Great war movie. Released in 2000, U-571 is a fictional story of a German U-boat and an American crew trying to capture an Enigma cipher machine from the boat. The movie stars Matthew McConaughey, Bill Paxton, Harvey Keitel, and Jon Bon Jovi. I don't want to give it away, but as far as WWII movies go, it is extremely underrated.



2. The Replacements: As the professional football league goes on strike, the teams all find replacement players. This is their movie. The Washington Sentinels, coached by the famous Jimmy McGinty (Gene Hackman) are desperately needing to make the playoffs, and McGinty knows just which quarterback can lead them: Shane Falco (Keanu Reeves). The movie follows the team up until the last regular season game and is filled with funny moments, motivational moments, and just plain "sport movie shtick."



1. That Thing You Do!: If you know me, you know this is my favorite movie. So, I'm going to try to stay as impartial about this as possible. Released in 1996, and written and directed by Tom Hanks, That Thing You Do! is the story of a local band from Erie, PA that hits it big with their single "That Thing You Do". The movie stars Tom Hanks, Liv Tyler, Tom Everett Scott, Charlize Theron and Steve Zahn. The music is great, the story is fun, and no one ever knows about it or has seen it. It is extremely underrated and needs to get out there. Tom Hanks even named his production company after the name of the record label the band signs with (Playtone). It has Hanks' directing debut, and if you ask me he did one heck of a job.



Feel free to post your thoughts and comments. I am more than willing to discuss. In the next day or two I also plan on posting what I think are the 5 most overrated movies.

Stay Classy!

-Kevin

Detroit Tigers Projected Lineup

Baseball season is only...oh...two months away? Is it weird that I'm excited for this? As we get closer to the season though, there are still holes in the Tigers projected starting lineup, according to me. So, without further ado, I provide you with my projected starting lineup.

1. Ryan Raburn - LF
2. Wilkin Ramirez - CF
3. Magglio Ordonez - RF
4. Miguel Cabrera - 1B
5. Carlos Guillen - DH
6. Brandon Inge - 3B
7. Scott Sizemore - 2B
8. Gerald Laird - C
9. Adam Everett - SS

Now, this is actually the exact same projected lineup that the Detroit Free Press has, so obviously great minds thing alike (or something like that). But, there are still a few changes to make, in my opinion.

1. Sign Johnny Damon - Now, I wasn't too excited to hear that Johnny Damon "wanted" to sign with the Tigers either at first (see ). But, after thinking about it, we don't have a lead off hitter. Really, are we going to have Raburn lead off? I don't think so...I say sign him to a 2-year deal. That way if a Carlos Guillen or Magglio Ordonez were to leave after this season, we have him for next. I'm not necessarily thinking what he is asking for is kosher just yet. But sign him nonetheless. If he really wants to be Tiger like he says he does, they'll figure something out.

2. Let Wilkin Ramirez Play in the Minors - Last year Ramirez appeared in 15 games for the Tigers and batted .364 with 15 AB's. This isn't horrible, especially considering his 6 R's, 3 RBI's, and 1 HR. Definitely something to look forward to. But, give him time. I think we let him mature in Toledo for a little bit longer, and then call him up around July.

3. Let Alex Avila Play - Gerald Laird sucks. I don't care what anybody says about Brandon Inge and his batting woes. Gerald Laird is worse. If you dare try to convince me otherwise, you will lose. He batted .225 last year, tied for his 2nd lowest batting average of his career, only a measily .001 higher than his lowest. Yes, he played in 135 games, but that still doesn't excuse him. Alex Avila on the other hand, batted .279 in 29 games, with 17 hits, 5 being HR's, and 14 RBI's. At this point I vote starting them both with regularity. Just split time. Clearly Laird can't handle a full schedule, and Avila needs playing time.

This all being the case...here is MY projected starting lineup.

1. Johnny Damon - CF
2. Ryan Raburn - LF
3. Magglio Ordonez - RF
4. Miguel Cabrera - 1B
5. Carlos Guillen - DH
6. Alex Avila - C
7. Brandon Inge - 3B
8. Scott Sizemore - 2B
9. Adam Everett - SS

Johnny Damon in CF is questionable, but you can't realy put him in right field unless Magglio moves to left, which is highly unlikely. Anyway, this is all just my two cents. I hope everyone is looking forward to the MLB Season as I am.

Music Monday and More

Because I yet again am incapable of posting with regularity, apologies go out to my few readers. Anyway, its been a pretty lame week for sports. The Pro Bowl was last night (who cares). College Basketball no longer has any undefeated members. Training Camp will slowly get going in the next few weeks. Nothing else is particularly interesting. The Grammys were last night. I didn't watch because honestly, I don't really care (is that bad?). Obviously everyone is waiting for Sunday Night and the big matchup between the Saints and Colts. And for those of college age like myself, exams are beginning to show up in our schedules. Worst of all of this? IT IS REALLY REALLY COLD!

My Music Monday shares for the week are Lauryn Hill filled, between a solo job and her early work with The Fugees. Lauryn Hill was a phenomenal artist who just went, psycho I guess. Wyclef Jean has noted that he would never work with her again, or at least The Fugees would never get back together. Regardless, they had some absolute jams. Both are covers, but both are great.





And...as a joke...and because I like it and haven't shared it yet...



Now, on a sidenote, I also forgot to mention this a few weeks ago, as it made its way across the University of Michigan Athletic Blogs, and other websites, but the Michigan Hockey Team hosted Alaska Fairbanks and...well...here you go...



And lastly, because I came across it and love Bob Knight...



Within the next few days, I plan on doing a general look at the Detroit Tigers for the upcoming season. Usually I'm spending this time of the year boasting about the Red Wings and Pistons, and well...that is not necessarily an option currently. I also want to give a full Super Bowl Preview. And lastly, look for me to appear on WQAQ 98.1 next Monday from 4-6pm. I will have my own little part. You will have to listen in to catch it. FYI, you can listen in on their website at http://www.wqaq.com/ . I hope everyone had a solid first month of 2010 and hopefully Punxsutawney Phil is nice to us tomorrow.