I stumbled upon the latest release by Harvey Danger through a story about them releasing their new album for free on the Internet. I went to their site, downloaded the track and listened and loved it. So I sent a contribution to them via PayPal. It’s the way that things should be. It would have been a lot harder to find them if they didn’t have their site and I love the leap of faith in releasing tracks that way as well as the implicit faith in humanity within the act.

It’s solid indie rock that is catchy and it has been rotating through my iPod on a regular basis. Great music that is easily available, what a great idea.

It begins with a picnic that is interrupted by a balloon coming to land and a rescue attempt. The peaceful moment is interrupted and everything changes. Daniel Craig and Samantha Morton give solid performances as Craig’s character is haunted by the decisions that he has made and a fellow rescuer who begins following him. The film is all about the nature love or lack of love and how the assumptions that we make change our relationships and how we feel.

It’s a haunting film that is emotional and intellectual with some thriller elements thrown in as well. A fascinating and disturbing look at what love does to us.

Part science-fiction, part dumb comedy, Mike Judge’s Idiocracy is a carefully-crafted vision of the future that presupposes the decline of intelligence so someone who is average today becomes the smartest man in the world. While a bit uneven at times, I didn’t mind since I was laughing so much. Crammed full of details and jokes, it’s fun and biting satire of the dumbing down of media, corporate takeovers, and government. Filled with great graphic design and jokes in the background, it’s funny, but it also makes you think a bit.

L’Enfant is a subtle and understated story about a couple who have a child and then make some difficult decisions. It’s a remarkable film with no music and an observational style that simply follows the characters around as we watch what happens. Beautiful shot and acted, it seems as if it’s a documentary shot on location with the participants, but it’s actually a carefully constructed film.

I found Lali Puna a while ago and I’ve loved everything that I’ve heard by them. At first it seems to be very simple electronic music, but the more I listen, the more I hear and the underlying complexity starts to emerge.

If I’m not sure about what to listen to, it’s very likely that I’ll start with Lali Puna.

From the opening studio logos that are from the 70s to the look and feel of Zodiac, it’s clear that David Fincher wanted to capture the spirit of classic films from the 70s about crime and conspiracy. The newsroom is shot similarly to “All The President’s Men” and there are some great establishing shots filled with period detail. But while some of the early scenes are a bit violent, the bulk of the film is about the investigation and the compulsive need to solve the puzzle of a series of killings. The film overflows with period detail as well as information and clues, which makes things intentionally confusing at times, but overall it works as we’re trying to make sense of it all as the characters in the film are as well. Beautifully shot in HD it’s a meticulous film that is a different take on a very crowded genre.

It’s made locally and is delicious! You can only get it at the Propeller Brewery in Halifax, Nova Scotia for a limited time. It’s a stonger beer (8%) and is very dark and a bit bitter, but still quite stout.

With Woke Myself Up Julie Doiron is writing and sounding happier than on some of her other, more confessional recordings. With her slightly awkward and endearing voice, and personal lyrics, she’s a unique artist who can play rock songs and ballads with a guitar with equal confidence. There is a range of songs will full production and instruments as well as simple songs with just Julie and a guitar (and at one point, a cat meowing somewhere in the room). It’s a CD that I’ve been listening to again and again for the simple and catchy music and beautiful lyrics.

I found out about Susanna Brandin who records as Winter Took His Life from a post about one of her tracks that a friend made. I followed the links and listened to When You Said You Headed Home and I loved it and listened to it again and again. Looking through her site I saw that I could order an EP, which I did and a couple of weeks later I had a lovely burned CD in a silk screened sleeve with five beautiful and simple songs. With a quiet voice and personal lyrics and simple instrumentation built around a guitar, it’s music that is beautiful and I don’t seem to get tired of it. She has a new CD that has been mastered and I can’t wait to get that.

Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant follow up the brilliant The Office with the slightly different Extras which moves from an office to film sets. Both focus on the boredom of people who wish that they were doing something else. I’ve always felt that The Office was a drama disguised as a comedy and with the arc of the series it managed to cover both comedy and genuine human emotions in both the main and supporting characters. With “Extras” it’s simplified with a smaller core cast and a more episodic structure. Still funny, but in a very dark and understated way. Gervais is more toned down but the moments of inappropriate comments, uncomfortable situations, and memorable characters remain. With a wonderful chemistry between Ricky Gervais and Ashley Jensen it’s a worthy, but different followup to “The Office”.