"The critic an artist."

In the piece, "The critic as Artist," speaks of how art is viewed to an audience. Gilbert and Ernest have a conversation on ethical, culture, and form effect of art. Is a critic really an artist?

Gilbert interestingly says how, "we have art treated, not from the moral, but from the purely aesthetic point of view." They both compare philosopher from generation to generation of unity, appearance, and the relation of fact or fiction.

Another point Gilbert makes is, "the longer one studies life and literature, the more strongly one feels the behind everything that is wonderful stands the individuals and that it is not the moment that makes the man but the man who creates the age."

The importance on unity, tone, and harmony in all different areas of art has an affect on an audience. "Criticism is no more to be judges by any low standard of imitation or resemblance than is the work or poet or sculptor." Gilbert is trying to prove that it takes knowledge and reaction to review art and in his way critic as an art. He proves his point time and time again. We get it.

Smoke Stack

The band Stick Figure combines a creative blend of upbeat roots of reggae with rumbling echoes. The music is written, recorded, and produced by Scott Woodruff from Duxbury, Ma.

All of Stick Figure's songs are made by recording each instrument separately, layering several tracks on top of one another in unison.

Stick Figure recently relocated to Southern California and picked up three new members for the love band, Brendan Dane on bass, Todd Smith on drums and Kevin Bong on Keys.

The Album, Smock Stack has 14 songs forming a hype beat on each with pops and tabs layered on top of one another. The first song, “Vibes Alive” draws your ear in by the laid back low pitches and smooth lyrics. As, does “Hawii Song” with the lyrics who speak of someone thoughts of getting far, far away.

"...I want to get away from this place

home is not where I want to be

...12 hours on a plane

in a short time i'll be on my way

alone, all alone

there was reggae on the radio

you have no idea

this is life..."

Amongst all the tracks, “Alright With Me”, has a blend like all the others on the album, but the lyrics more catch the long holds in the notes while exaggerating the echo in his voice making the sound relaxing and calming.

Stick Figure all around combined synched rhythm and transition flawlessly but my only complaint is if anyone should play a Johnny Cash song it should only be Johnny himself. Any band who attempts to do repeated covers of Folsome Prison Blues, which Stick Figure names it Folsom Prison Dub, needs to just leave it alone. Stick Figure attempts to put there own flavor of twist on the cover and the effort is shown but they failed the reggae spin.

If anyone is searching for lift and smooth sailing Smoke Stack is an album to pick up. Stick Figure continues to flow on this third album and more are to come with this undiscovered reggae movement upon the airstream of music.

Everybody Loves Raymond

“A Job For Robert”

Tracy Chatton

11-10-09

In, “Everybody Loves Raymond”, the main character played by Ray Barone is a sports writer, with three kids, stay at home wife, all taking place in a nice home in the suburbs. How perfect can you get? Well, Ray constantly battles with his parents living in his child hood house right across the street, with his mother, father and brother popping in and out of a revolving door of his home there never seems to be a dull moment in Ray’s so simple and perfect family.

This series started in 1996 and has made it through to 2005. Directed mostly by Gary Halvorson of this show but he also has done shows such as, “Two and a Half Men”. To myself Gary definitely has a funny bone in him.

In this episode of, “A Job For Robert,” (Robert being Ray’s brother), Robert has finally took the leap of faith and married his wife Amy, which now they live with Ray and Robert’s mother Maria (Doris Roberts) all under the same roof. Starting out Maria flys over to Ray’s house to have him put new storm windows in at the house, Ray feels that since his younger brother lives over there rent free that he should be the one doing it and not himself. Maria without hesitation feels that Robert being the cop of the community is under to much stress and doesn’t need anymore. Ray huffs and follows his mothers orders and proceeds to take out the storm windows.

Ray being the good son he is, takes out the window in his brothers room only to discover all the little treat Maria has been doing for his rent free brother. With lotion, candles, massage oil, and fresh new boxer not briefs waiting for Robert to enjoy with his new wife, Ray finally figures out with Maria has been being so soft on Robert. One word, Grandkids! For Ray this is an instant laughter and runs with it, convincing Robert, Amy, and the rest of the family, Maria is force to confess the truth about her baby making plot.

With Ray’s father Frank (Peter Boyle) with classy one liners to grab the audience with continual laughter.

Amy: “And just so you know, Robert was even willing to try, but he couldn’t preform because he couldn’t get you out of his mind.” (Maria Robert’s mother)

Frank: “Believe me I’ve tried too. It takes years.”

If wanting a good chuckle and “Seinfield” has had it last toll, “Everybody Loves Raymond,” is a good re-run choice for that half hour fill during your midday.

Away We Go

"Away We Go" is a road tripper movie for perfectionist. Verona and Burt (Maya Rudolph and John Krasinski) travel the country to figure out the perfect place to raise their unborn baby. They venture to Tucson, Phoenix, and Montreal, hoping that one place will feel right to live. Each area has either a friend or family member varying from emotionally unstable, psychotic, to a loud mouth.

Dave Eggers and Vendela Vida, the Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward of the literary journal universe, wrote this film, which the Englishman Sam Mendes , of "American Beauty" and "Revolutionary Road," directed. The tone, "Away We Go" feels like a fairy tale built on an aggravating collection of attitudes. It's condescending, judgmental, righteous, yet sincerely searching. It's also the very rare American movie about men and women in their 30's intelligent, articulate, appreciably and a sense of humor. Putting both actors of Maya from SNL and John form the show, “The Office” seems like an awkward combination but some how they sink into the characters of Burt and Verona so adequately.

"Away We Go" acknowledges passage into a rite of adulthood. Verona and Burt aren't asking what kind of grownups they want to be. They're wondering what sort of mom and dad they'll turn out being. The movie has moments of beauty, mostly when the couple are lying around thinking aloud, once on a trampoline in Miami exchanging child-rearing vows. The ruth about love is that it's not perfect and Burt and Verona are no exception, but it's how all these different people deal with their imperfections that make them both interesting and hilarious.

This film made myself think about packing up all my belongings to just see what would be so different in another place. How would my surroundings affect the way I am to others?

Overall, this is a sweet story the joins all the crazy things that happen to everyone. We all have an idea of what is the perfect family, how parents should be, and what makes a relationship survive. But, the only thing anyone can do is just be who you are and the best person to that special someone.

Just Make Us Look Cool...

Front and center, thousands starring while holding a mic and a guitar. Adrenaline running through numerous veins to only hope to rock as hard as anyone has ever before. Almost Famous represents music and the people who need and follow the adrenaline of music. William Miller (played by Patrick Fugit) dreams to become a good writer. Be able to write about things that matter to him, music. As, William sends his underground paper to Lester Bangs he is directed to follow his outstanding writing abilities and to not fall shallowly into misleading and unwanted writing by the evil honkey dory Rolling Stones. Through the film William follows the band Stillwater in 1973 to critic the concert for Creem magazine. William ignited their attention by knowing the band members by their first names and why he personally was reached out by the music. When William finds out that he gets to write a full front cover issue of Rolling Stones for Stillwater they utterly repeat to William, "just make us look cool," William learning to write through his experiences faces turbulent swings as to write what he knows and see then what Rolling Stones just wants to hear. William frequently called Lester Bangs for advice in communicating with band members and Rolling Stones. As being put on the tight rope William tries to balance what the band will approve of and what he is actually reviewing, the music. As, relationships built William found himself having a harder time being critical. When the band didn't confirm that the story was true for Rolling Stones they had a tuff time knowing if William was telling the truth. The criticizing that William had to portray shows the constant struggle that writers and journalist have to go through to get things straight.

Jupiter One

Jupiter One, Sunshower

With wide range of influences, Jupiter One is an American indie rock band from Brooklyn, New York combining a futuristic style sound and a poppy up beat. K Ishbashi, Zac Colwell, Mocha, David Heilman, and Pat Dougherty formed in 2003 with three albums under their belts, Sunshower released September 18, 2009.

Listeners can understand why Jupiter One first started as just an instrumental band because it joins the beats together as one and not choppy.

Jupiter One’s debut is well produced making this third one, one of the most intreguing to listen to. And, with a rare, synth-tactic, crazed sounds, unfused with an array of influences, they breathe new life into the indie genre

This album can follow any kind of mood, and is an accomplishment for an artist. It’s their sway of many correlated genres that help them to impede these emotions especially through electronic, pop, punk and indie/folk. Jupiter one can be compared with the band Mute Math, sharing the same passion for in depth thought out beats with a strange twist to each one.

The ups and downs of ageless melodies stomping carelessly through each second of the song are nothing more than pure harmonic obsession. This song’s strong suit is located in its catchy chorus surrounded by hand-claps and grind up riffs. A drop in movement can be heard especially a little later in the album.

Favoring “High Plains Drifter Finds the Oracle At Delphi” attracts light drops, basic strung of cords repeated, with a harp and a joining chorus brings your ears forward like a cat. Each line of lyric is like a piece to the puzzle to figure it out but that doesn’t distract you away from the sound. With their added harp to the beat it cleverly combines a balanced melody that is unusual but comprehended.

Placing and comparing this album from genre to different bands, one song in particular “Anna” has a familiar sound, like an 80’s cover band of Naked Eyes playing, “Always Something There to Remind me.” For Jupiter One to have this bounce back, shows possibly the time period they were influenced in and a nice change up for the listener to still enjoy.

American Saturday Night. Brad Paisley

Brad Paisley’s American Saturday Night is an instant reminder of why the country crowds have come to love him. Listening to the 62 minute album will feel like only a minute has flown by with one after another keeping you wanting more.

As Paisley’s previous album, Time Well Wasted, took a hold of the air waves in 2005, Paisley jumps the hanging word of, “Alcohol” in our speakers and makin’ us feel pretty with “She’s Everything” and a good feeling knowing that every man is “Waitin’ On a Woman.” This album only gave Paisley fans a glimpse of what Paisley is capable of composing.

American Saturday Night combines everything majestic about Paisley without overdoing all the wonderful things in life. With fellow country star Kenny Chesney filling all the same rock beats of his concerts year after year, Paisley delivers them in concert anthems like “American Saturday Night” and the energetic “Welcome to the Future.” He never forgets what made him who he is today with three gentle, soft ballads - “Anything Like Me” about his son, “No” about his grandfather and “Then” about his wife.

Paisley couldn’t make any album without a little chuckle, and a love affair with “Water,” “Catch all the Fish” and “The Pants.” None of these songs wore out their welcome the way that previous Paisley light hearted tracks “Ticks” and “Online” did.

Not only is Paisley having a rodeo but the heart beat strung of the blues makes you move your head to the beat as it flows down your leg to tap your foot, “She’s Her Own Woman,” and “Oh Yeah, You’re Gone,” brings just that sound to your ear drum.

American Saturday Night challenges Paisley, particularly on “Everybody’s here,” a slow-burn lonesome ballad, Paisley known for unique guitar bluesy torch kills it. Paisley continues to write and play ballads that are related to him and his upbringing, covering experiences that anyone can relate to. The album features bits of his finest songwriting to date, and again seems to have been put together by an artist rather than a singer.