album review – thebestpossibletime

Books:

IV, Chuck Klosterman: Chuck Klosterman does the kind of journalism I would love to do. Funny, sarcastic pop culture essays with smart commentary on the impact of entertainment on society. I’ll always point to his essay on The Real World as one of the best I’ve read. This collection was decent; the non-fiction was great, the semi-fiction was okay, and the fiction was barely worth reading. I particularly enjoyed the profile of Morrissey’s hispanic fans and the one about tribute bands.

The World’s Wife, Carol Ann Duffy: I love Carol Ann Duffy’s poems and their clever, feminist slant. The World’s Wife is a perfect example. Duffy writes from the perspective of the wives and lovers of famous historical and literary figures: how does King Midas’ touch affect his marriage? or alters the stories to give women more agency than in their original tellings.

The Ocean at the End of the Lane, Neil Gaiman: I read this book over the course of two days; whenever I needed a break from wandering around London I would take advantage of the comfortable sofas in the Piccadilly Circus Waterstones and curl up for a few minutes with this book. It’s a beautiful little fairy tale about monsters and magic and growing up.

Salt: A World History, Mark Kurlansky: I may be sick of Mark Kurlansky by the time I finish writing my thesis as one of his books is a major source I’m using, but in the meantime I loved reading this. He looks at a common material—salt—and through evidence and anecdote, explores its impact on history and contemporary life and food in an interesting and entertaining way.

The Little Friend, Donna Tartt: Not as good as The Secret History and certainly not as good as The Goldfinch, but a book can still be pretty excellent with both of those things being true. I didn’t find myself caring much for the central mystery, which is good because I also didn’t find much resolution, but it was all the little pieces of southern gothic description and all the side stories about minor figures and all the miscellaneous everything else that I really enjoyed.

Paper Towns, John Green: Paper Towns is known for being a story that points out the ridiculousness of the idea of the so-called “Manic Pixie Dream Girl.” I found it to be mostly successful in this regard, but it would’ve been more effective if it had been from the perspective of the girl, rather than about her. Still, a quick and fun read.

Let the Great World Spin, Colum McCann: I absolutely loved this. Set in 1974, while Philippe Petit crossed the World Trade Center towers on a tightrope, the novel features characters from all walks of live, and the city of New York itself is as strong a character as any of them. It’s a beautiful book, and one I look forward to reading again in the future.

Live by Night, Dennis Lehane: I didn’t realise that this was a sequel of sorts to The Given Day until I started reading it, but instead of the sprawling historical novel and social commentary of its predecessor, Live by Night is a fast-paced crime story more in line with Lehane’s other detective works.

Bark: Stories, Lorrie Moore: Whenever you can finish a book in one sitting you have to assume that a) it’s not very long but b) it is very good. The first two stories didn’t entirely hook me, but by the time I got to ‘Paper Losses’ I knew I wasn’t moving until I had gotten to the end. Luckily it was a beautiful day outside. The descriptions were visceral and the relationships devastating.

Werewolves in their Youth, Michael Chabon: I shouldn’t have read this immediately after Bark, I don’t think. Too many stories about relationships facing harsh realities. Michael Chabon is one of my favourite authors, and this isn’t his best work. There were still moments and sentences that really resonated, but overall I didn’t find the stories or characters as memorable as in most of his books.

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Shakira, self-titled & Juanes, Loco de Amor (both 2014)

25/03/201413/09/2020 Lauren (thebestpossibletime.com)2 Comments

If I say I love Shakira, there may be one or two people who know me that might be surprised, but probably they already know too. (Certainly anyone who has ever gotten drunk with me is aware, given that for some reason one of my favourite topics of drunk conversation is how, while Shakira and her footballer boyfriend Gerard Piqué are a cute couple, she is a goddess and could still do so much better). Anyway, my adoration of her makes me predisposed to love anything she does, including her new, eponymous album. Still, even stepping away from my massive bias, I can say with certainty that Shakira is weird and wonderful and great.

Although there are a few of her songs that I adore in any language, I’ve always preferred Shakira’s Spanish music to her English songs, whether it is because the lyrics make more sense when not translated to fit the melody or just because I think her voice is meant for the language. I wish there were more Spanish songs on this album, but “Loca por Ti” is a gorgeous track that reminds me of Sale el Sol. And I definitely prefer the Spanish version of her first single, “Nunca Me Acuerdo de Olvidarte,” to the English.

That’s not to say that I don’t enjoy Shakira’s English music nearly as much. I immediately loved her second single, “Empire,” and so far it remains my favourite track on the album. It reminds me in a way of a James Bond theme in the way it starts slow and relies on Shakira’s vocals to soar. Surprisingly, a song I really enjoyed upon first listen was “Medicine,” the country track featuring Shakira’s The Voice co-judge Blake Shelton. Although I’m generally not a fan of country music or Shelton’s work in particular, Shakira’s famous vibrato is perfect for the genre and she harmonises well with Shelton; it’s not a great song, but it’s so earnest I find myself liking it anyway. Another track I love is “Chasing Shadows,” written by Sia, with the blend of beauty and quirkiness that is pretty much the epitome of all things Shak.

A few of the songs are cringe-worthy on the level of Taylor Swift’s most preteen-obsessive: mainly “23,” the track most obviously written about Piqué, and the bland but probably radio-friendly “Spotlight.” While Shakira has had some notably weird lyrics in the past (“lucky that my breasts are small and humble so you don’t confuse them with mountains“), “Girl meets a boy / surrender to his charms / leaves her old boyfriend / and crumbles in his arms” aren’t interesting enough to be memorable, and the music sounds more like it could fit into Swift’s Red than Shakira’s oeuvre.

Others suffer from similarities to previous, superior works, like the duet with Rihanna, “Can’t Remember to Forget You,” which I can’t help but compare unfavourably to her “Beautiful Liar” duet with Beyonce. On the other hand, while “Dare (La La La)” is meant to be this World Cup’s “Waka Waka (Esto es Africa)” and it’s not as good as that (because let’s face it, there aren’t many songs better than “Waka Waka” and you’re lying to yourself if you don’t love it) I can still see myself listening to it on repeat while running, cleaning, doing homework… in pretty much all aspects of my life, as I do the earlier track.

Musically, the album has more interesting sounds than some of her recent work. As mentioned, there’s the country song, but on other tracks its a Caribbean vibe that reflects Shakira’s Barranquilla Colombian heritage, a power-rock sound on others, a few stripped-down ballads, and the usual bellydance-worthy pop music.

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February Microreviews

05/03/201419/01/2021 Lauren (thebestpossibletime.com)Leave a comment

January Microreviews

February books

Play it As it Lays by Joan Didion (1970): This is the second work by Didion I’ve read and I understand why everyone whose opinion I trust has been recommending her to me for so long. This novel is smart and bleak and some part of me is glad it was a quick read because I couldn’t put it down.

How Should a Person Be? by Sheila Heti (2010): At some points, I was annoyed by this book and it’s author. She’s petty, pretentious, probably watches Girls religiously. And yet in some ways I could relate, and it made me feel for her with all her insecurities and all her triumphs.

Between Dog and Wolf by Elske Rahill (2013): After seeing Rahill read at the Dublin Book Festival in the fall, I was intrigued by her novel. And it didn’t disappoint—although I admit I was turned off by the number of graphic sex scenes, the story overall is dark and compelling.

One More Thing by BJ Novak (2014): A funny but also bittersweet collection of short fiction. I wrote a full review HERE.

February films

Fruitvale Station (2013): A harrowing film about the last day of a real-life young man killed by the police in California on New Year’s Day 2009. Michael B. Jordan is excellent as always as the protagonist—although I’m not going to lie, Chad Michael Murray’s appearance as one of the police officers pulled me out of the story somewhat.

Dallas Buyers Club (2014): This biographical film about a AIDS patient in Texas who goes up against the FDA when he starts a business selling unapproved medicines is has received both controversy and acclaim. I thought Matthew McConaughey’s performance was surprisingly excellent but overall I didn’t find the film to be that fantastic.

The Book Thief (2013): I was very disappointed in this film. It wasn’t bad; some of the cinematography was beautiful and the acting was good, particularly from the children playing Liesel and Rudy. However, I found the film lacked a lot of the emotional that made the book such a moving and powerful story.

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Best of 2013 in books, films, albums & television

31/12/201319/01/2021 Lauren (thebestpossibletime.com)1 Comment

I know you are probably wondering what I’ve been getting up to in Ireland (New Year’s resolution: update at least every other week), but for right now, the requisite Best of 2013 post. Unlike all the music publications who put out their Best Albums of 2013 lists at the start of December and got egg on their faces when Bey caught them slippin’, I’ve waited until the very last day of the year to avoid any chance that I’ve missed the best of the best. And because I’ve been busy/am lazy, take your pick. Anyway, without further ado, my favourite book, film, album, and television show of 2013. And my first post since September; I’ll do better next year, promise.

By the way, if anyone out there feel like they’ve got a story (or poem, or play, or art piece) about “home” they’ve been dying to tell, the literary journal I’m working with, ROPES, has just extended its submissions deadline to January 10th. Find out more information at the ROPES Facebook page.

Book of 2013: The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
Honourable mentions: Joyland by Stephen King, Red or Dead by David Peace

I don’t generally tend to read too many books in the year of their release, mainly because my to-read list is a mile long so I’m constantly catching up. Even when I’m excited about a book, like Joe Hill’s NOS4A2 this year or Michael Chabon’s Telegraph Avenue last year, they still have to take their place in line. But I did manage to read a couple new books this year, and it was just yesterday that I finished The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt. I had high expectations for it, since I read her novel The Secret History last year, loved it, and immediately recommended it to everyone I know, but The Goldfinch not only surpassed my expectations but absolutely left them in the dust.

This novel isn’t a light read; it’s dense, heavy, and while it doesn’t make as many obscure references to Greek and Latin as The Secret History, it’s not something you can just pick up and put down when you feel like it. Luckily, once you start reading it, you won’t want to put it down. If I hadn’t been reading it over the holidays where I had the occasional obligation not to be totally anti-social, I probably would’ve read the whole thing in one marathon sitting. As it is, the closer I got to the climax, the harder it was for me to stop reading to do minor things like eat and sleep. A friend said she thinks she read the last 150 pages without blinking; I’m pretty sure I read them without breathing.

But—and I may be acting a bit melodramatic here, but only a bit—who needs air when you have this perfectly crafted, emotionally devastating novel? It starts off like your typical tragic child novel—Theo’s mother dies in a terrorist attack in a museum in New York city—but takes a series of wild turns that completely changes the atmosphere and characters of the book. I bet the kid in that Jonathan Safran Foer novel about 9/11 doesn’t grow up anything like Theo Decker does. There’s corruption, scandal, art, and possibly one of my favourite supporting characters of all time in Theo’s partner in (usually literal) crime Boris Pavlikovsky.

Film of 2013: Before Midnight dir. Richard Linklater
Honourable mentions: Pacific Rim dir. Guillermo del Toro, Frozen dir. Chris Buck

Maybe I’m too much of a cynic for movies, but usually those typical happy endings to films make me think “Yeah, okay, you’re in high school, I’m sure this relationship is going to last you until marriage/the rest of your lives.” That’s one reason I liked the first film in Richard Linklater’s trilogy: in Before Sunrise, Jesse and Celine don’t end up together; they spend the night talking and then go their separate ways. When they meet up again in Before Sunset, the coincidence is a bit unbelievable, but their relationship still plays out in a realistic way.

Released nine years after the second film and nearly two decades after Before Sunrise, I was definitely curious to see what had become of Jesse and Celine. In Before Midnight, they are married with children, but the realism of their relationship hasn’t changed. They still have long, deep conversations that are beautifully written (the stars of the film, Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy, wrote the script with director Linklater). More importantly, their relationship isn’t perfect.

The cynical side of me always wondered if things could actually work out for two people who knew barely anything about each other. As it turns out, they have their fights and their issues, and Before Midnight is definitely a darker film than the previous two films. But it’s a beautiful movie about love and family, and a satisfying conclusion to one of my favourite trilogies.

Album of 2013: AM by the Arctic Monkeys
Honourable mentions: BEYONCÉ by Beyoncé, Trouble Will Find Me by The National

Picking honourable mentions for best album was difficult (I could’ve added Josh Ritter’s latest, the new One Direction album, and several others) but choosing a number one gave me no trouble at all. Since the Arctic Monkeys released their fifth studio album in September, my housemates can attest to the fact that I’ve listened to very little else. It’s the band’s best album since their debut, Whatever People Say I Am… (and I might even like it better), but it’s not the same style. The music is slightly more downbeat and the importance of production is a lot stronger—listen to the start of my favourite song on the album, “Do I Wanna Know?” and the hand claps/foot stomps digitally enhanced to create the beat.

AM is one of those albums where you think you know which songs you like the best but then you listen to one of the tracks you didn’t think you liked as much, and suddenly you have to reevaluate your ranking. Just the other day I was talking to a friend about it and I said that my favourite songs are “Do I Wanna Know?”, “Stop the World I Wanna Get Off with You” (even the b-sides are amazing), and “Snap Out of It,” then immediately realised I’d forgotten “Why’d You Only Call Me When You’re High?” Even right now, looking at the tracklisting, I’m not sure if I should’ve dropped one of those picks for “I Wanna Be Yours” or “Mad Sounds.” I didn’t think I loved “Knee Socks” originally, but I’ve been listening to it the most over the last few days.

Pretty much everything about this album is perfect. The lyrics are clever, the influences of every genre from Motown to rap are evident, and the rhythms of every song are the kind to get in your head and refuse to leave. I’ve listened to AM more than any other music this year, released in 2013 or otherwise. It’s my favourite album of 2013, but also one of my favourites in a long time.

Television show of 2013: Breaking Bad, the final season
Honourable mentions: Orphan Black, season 1; Elementary, season 1-2

In any other year, Orphan Black would be the clear winner in this category on the strength of star Tatiana Maslany’s acting alone, but this year nothing was as important as finding out if Walter White was going to get what was coming to him. The series finale of Breaking Bad was the television event of the year (and judging by the internet’s reaction to it, possibly the event of the year for entertainment overall) but the entire final season was full of last-minute plot twists and turns that made every episode more thrilling than most shows’ sweeps week episodes.

There’s an episode a few before the finale in which the final scene was full of action and totally changed the direction the plot was going up until those last few minutes. When my neighbour came over the day after it aired and said she just had a few minutes to go in the episode, my roommate and I were incredulous that she managed to leave before it was finished. “Have you caught up on Breaking Bad?” was a common conversation starter among, oh, everyone I know.

This was for good reason. The season finale was one of the best and most satisfying final episodes of a television show I’ve ever seen, but the whole last season was pretty amazing. The writing was tight and well thought-out, and the acting, particularly from Aaron Paul as Jesse Pinkman, was fantastic. Add this to the joy of endless speculation about how it would end, and great moments like showrunner Vince Gilligan calling out internet misogynists for hating Skylar White, and there could be no other choice for tv show of 2013.

“Wrecking Ball,” Bruce Springsteen (2012): 4.5/5 stars

12/03/201213/09/2020 Lauren (thebestpossibletime.com)Leave a comment

I haven’t listened to the album enough times to say for sure, but I think “Wrecking Ball” is Bruce Springsteen’s best since 2002’s “The Rising.” I’m sure there will be some who say it’s his best in even longer than that (one review I read called it his best since the 80s), but I just really, really love “The Rising.” Either way, Springsteen has had a lot on his plate lately; in his personal/musical life was the death of long-time friend and saxophone player Clarence Clemons last year, and in his professional life… well, as one of the most well-known protest singers of the last forty years, and with so much to protest lately, I’m sure I’m not the only one wondering what the Boss would have to say.

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