New Goal: Attend This Festival Next Year

Urlesque posted yesterday about the Chiang Mai Yi Peng Festival (a Buddhist tradition in Northern Thailand) and I gotta say, the Buddhists have WAY cooler festivals than the hipster trash in NYC. My new goal is to check this out in person someday.

Look at the video, it's breathtaking.

Sleepy Babies

It's that kind of day.

I Saw Leonard Cohen Friday Night!

"Chelsea Hotel No. 2," Live at MSG - 10/23/09 from Elizabeth Brady on Vimeo.

And I made this crappy iPhone video to prove it.

Predictably, the concert was spectacular. It was a welcomed alternative to the madness of CMJ that was going on downtown. Cohen made a point that "I don't know when it is our intention to pass this way again," which was foreboding, kind of sad and made me eternally grateful that I had the chance to see him perform.

Head over to FREEwilliamsburg.com to get my larger review of the evening.

#JetMystery 2009

Kevin and I had the pleasure of going on Thrillist's JetMystery trip over the weekend, and hot damn, was that fun! 170 new media/social networky/freelance editorial/inter-nerd types hopped on a rowdy Jet Blue flight, spent the weekend at the Iberostar Hotel and got to drink A LOT. There were also awesome activities like a private party at Sandals (NY Mag summed up that one pretty well). Best of all, I got to represent the Asylum.com brand and simultaneously do my best Goldie Hawn in "Bird on a Wire" impression while dune buggying through Jamaican farmland.

Thank you to Jet Blue, Thrillist, Starbucks, the Cold-Eeze guy, Mark from Iberostar, my bosses for sending me on this trip, my liver for withstanding it, the Crush on Obama Girl, Flavie (best Dir. of Communications for any company, ever), and a bunch of other new friends we made.

Can't wait for the reunion!

Another Good Band You Won't Find at CMJ

Telepathe - So Fine from Paul Tao on Vimeo.

This Just In, From Savannah's Blog:

I was having plenty of fun on #JetMystery, via NeverNotListo.

Berkshire Mountain Pup

Lola the Mountain Pup from Elizabeth Brady on Vimeo.

We took Lola to her natural habitat this weekend, for some apple-picking and hiking. Needless to say, she was one happy dog.

October in PEN15 Book Club:

Get on it! If you've ever read anything else by Diaz, you'll know he is a no-BS writer who can make things unbelievably raw and heartwrenching, but hilarious in the same breath. This novel won the Pulitzer Prize, and it takes place in my homestate of NJ. Done+done.

PEN15 will meet Nov. 4th to discuss.

Hopewell's "Island" Video

The new video from Hopewell is fantastic -- it's a blend of Super 8 footage shot here in Brooklyn and vintage film from an array of war archives. The visuals complement the psychedelic anxiety of the song, and I've now added them to my mini list of must-sees at CMJ this year.

A Celebration of Tim Curry

Tim Curry is a true enigma, but I think he has the potential to make a completely badass and/or absurd comeback. He should start starring in Quentin Tarantino films and walking around with hot topless beefcakes on leashes. He should have seasonal parties at outrageous nightclubs where he screens his worst movies, such as "Congo." He should get into physical fights with douchey people like Sharon Stone and start publicity stunt catfights with people like J. Lo. He is at the point of his careeer where he could do all this and more, and people would sit and smile and cheer him on, fondly saying things like, "Oh yea, Tim Curry! I forgot about that guy." and "Who knew Tim Curry was so awesome?"

T.C. is the best. Seriously, what is going on with this man? Is he straight or gay? When is his next movie coming out? And is he embarrassed about this?

Sam J. Miller’s 25-Word Movie Reviews

The Rumpus has a new film review feature that's easy to appreciate: 25-Word Movie Reviews. Taking off on the Twitter-esque 140 character standard, these reviews sum it all up. They might not be relevant in a timely sense, but anyone that can tie together "Changeling" and "Dances With Wolves" in one post is enough to impress me. Here are some examples of telling it like it is:

Changeling (Clint Eastwood, 2008)
This horrible horrible movie’s plot: Angelina Jolie weeping/pleading/cowering/being tortured. Unwatchable. Offensive. Solely for those who get off on watching women suffer.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine (Gavin Hood, 2009)
I can do this one in three: weird and stupid. Also? They cut the hot gay trailer sex scene where Liev Schreiber tops Dominic Monaghan.

Dances with Wolves (Kevin Costner, 1990)
Four hour movies should be illegal. Mary McDonnell is my messiah now. Lovely scenery; solid music, competent-if-unremarkable directing. Also? White people are evil.

"Breakfast at Sulimay's" Is Still Glorious With New Episodes

Last spring, Woodshop Films' "Breakfast at Sulimay's" series got some well-deserved attention for bringing the musical critiques of three senior citizens at a Philly breakfast shop to the mainstream. Few things could be better than irascible and detached old folks giving their two cents on hip hop and indie rock -- their musings on autotune/prostitutes/mashups/the downfall of pop culture can only be classified as awesome. Basically, they're just confused and disappointed, and it endlessly reminds me how sheer our generation is.

Much to my delight, I realized that new episodes of "Sulimay's" are still being made. Watch and learn how to be a septuagenarian with style:

Just as a bonus, here are two of my absolute favorite classic episodes:
Grizzly Bear and Iggy Pop --


(Note the Poisedon Adventure commentary)

Animal Collective and Young Jeezy: