I need my Live!

I never knew how much I played games over Xbox Live until Microsoft shut it down today to apply some critical updates. This update is coming to us a precursor to the major update which will be the all new "Xbox Live Experience". Later this fall, Xbox Live will feature a new Wiiesque dashboard and will also be linking up with Netflix to bring movies on demand from, if your a subscriber, your queued playlist. I don't watch movies as much as I should, but I'm sure this handy little update will get me watching.

With even more similarities to the Wii, the new Xbox Live Experience will also allow you to create a personal avatar and sport him around your dashboard and on the net. So I can't wait for 12:01 am (Pacific Standard Unfortunately) when i'll get to play some more Halo 3......(Wow, has it really been a year? That's money well spent)

Iron is an important part of your diet....

So get plenty of Iron! Iron Man, starring Robert Downey Jr. is going to be released on DVD tomorrow, and oh I can not wait, this little blog here is really just about the release of the DVD, not much else, I just thought it was something everyone should know about, because it was one of the most fantastic movies of the summer!

808's and Heartbreak

Kanye West new album, 808's and Heartbreak is set for a November release, and I can't freakin' wait. Kanye is by far my favorite rap artist and always seems to put out high quality stuff, and the first single from the album, Love Lockdown, is awesome, so it gives me high hopes for the rest of the album. The song is availbere HERE, for free listen, on Kanye West Blog.

Also, if you missed the Speedy Thieves last night at the Brickhouse, you missed a hell of a show, so stay tuned for other dates, and make sure that next time, you make plans to go out and see them!

Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Bat.....

Well, the rumors about Johnny Depp playing the riddler in the next Batman movie may have been debunked, but other exciting news has just been confirmed. Johnny Depp is teaming back up with Tim Burton to portray The Mad Hatter in a live-action/CGI version of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. This movie will be Burton's and Depp's first film together since Sweeney Todd, and I'm sure will be full of Burton's unique brand of ummmm..... uniqueness?

Other news includes that he has also teamed back up with Pirates of the Caribbean producer Jerry Bruckheimer to play Tonto in an upcoming movie based on the novel, The Lone Ranger. So these aren't rumors folks these are confirmed true. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is set for a 2010 release, and no release date has yet been revealed for The Long Ranger.

Clay Aiken Gay?!

This may come as a shocker to some of you, but in an upcoming interview with People Magazine, Clay Aiken "officially" comes out as a homosexual. Now I know that this my test some people's faith on their Clay Aiken fanship, but at least give the man some credit for only taking FIVE YEARS of media skepticism to come out. But, according to links of the magazine, Aiken, featured on the cover of People with his newborn son (?), is very sincere with his "coming out" and says that he doesn't want to be a bad role model to his child by being a liar. The entire interview with Aiken will be featured in the first October issue of People Magazine.

Opening Pandora's Box

Maybe I'm just slow, or late on the scene, but this website that I found out about a long time ago, and am just now listening to, Pandora, is one of the best I've seen. It's an interactive radio station that lets you type in artist and listen to songs related to the musical artist that you've chosen. You can't choose which songs you want to listen to because of licensing reasons, but you can give thumbs up or thumbs down on the songs they are playing, and your customized radio station will attempt to find something else you'd like to listen to. If you register with the website you can even save all your radio stations that way they'll be there the next time you get on. So if you are wanting to discover new music or artist in a very interactive way, check out http://www.pandora.com for a very entertaining experience!

Speedy Thieves LIVE!!

If you missed the Speedy Thieves first show on August 26th, then you most likely DON'T need to miss their performance this Thursday night (25th), which they will be performing at the Brickhouse on Main Street.

The Speedy Thieves lineup includes Rob Parke, Brian Nobles, Jack Turner, and John Little, and their sophomore performance is likely to be even better than the first. The only thing I could see wrong the first time around is that they seemed a little bit out of whack at the beginning of their set, but they fell into a groove after that.

In other entertainment news, Run Fatboy Run is going to be released on DVD on Tuesday, and I suggest you check it out, because it has Simon Pegg (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz) in it. I also got a chance to listen to Nelly's new CD Brass Knuckles this week, and it just did not do anything for me, it sounds just like all the other rap garbage that's being turned out week by week, and just doesn't stand out from anything.

If you didn't already know, DJ AM and Blink 182's former drummer Travis Parker are in critical condition after suffering injuries from a plane crash that occured friday night. Four others died in the plane crash and Barker and AM are being treated for burns in the largest burn center in the US.
Well, that's all for now, but stay tuned for next time as I critique Metallica's new CD, Death Magnetic!

The Doctor is In

Tonight is the premiere of the 5th season of House M.D., one of my all time favorite shows. The show ended last season with one of the main character's death, and this season begins right where that left off. Also tonight, the second episode of Fringe airs, (can't wait for that either).
Today was also a semi-big release for other media, LucasArts released its brand new Star Wars action title, The Force Unleashed, and rapper Nelly's CD, Brass Knuckles was also released. I'll have a short review of that CD, and maybe even the Star Wars game later this week, Catch ya later!

Righteous Crap

Well, I must say, I was way more excited about new movie Righteous Kill than I am about most movies, Robert De Niro and Al Pacino back together for another crime drama, should be an easy hit, right? Well, not really, the movie kind of left me empty, there was never any real drama to speak of, and, although the acting was good, it was wasted on parts that are played over and over again. Not only that, but the plot twist, (of course, its a crime drama), can be figured out within the first 10 minutes of the movie.

The acting of the movie was performed pretty well, but it did have veteran actors De Niro and Pacino in it, but surprisingly, Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson did a pretty good job in his supporting roll. So if you're going to go see a movie this weekend, I'm sure your money would be better spent on Burn After Reading, the new Coen Brothers Film, directors of last years smash hit, No Country fo Old Men.

Famous Author Thanks Me

After being published in the school paper, my article about horror author Scott Sigler immediately received a comment online, from none other than Scott Sigler himself. Scott Sigler thanked me for doing the story, and told me if I ever decided to do something again, to e-mail him! Being astonished, I did a little research to find out if it was really him, and lo and behold, I chatted with him for a few minutes on Facebook!

Scott Sigler's novel, Infection, was one of the best novels I've ever read, and I think that I'm becoming what in Sigler's fanbase is known as a junkie (a big fan of Scott Sigler and his work). There's more information on Sigler and his work on http://www.scottsigler.com, and also in my story in the ASU Herald!

Johnny Depp set to play... The Riddler?

Straight from the "rumor mill" ladies and gentlemen. According to Yahoo! Entertainment, rumors are circulating (just rumors of course), that Johnny Depp will be signing on to play none other than The Riddler in the future sequel to recent Batman flick The Dark Knight. Johnny Depp is in my top 5 actors/actresses, hands down, but the thing that surprised me was that another one of my favorite actors, Phillip Seymour Hoffman (Mission Impossible 3, Capote), is also being rumored to play Batman's next nemesis as The Penguin. Other rumored villains for the next flick include Maggie Gyllenhall, who played Bruce Wayne's love interest, making a return, to play..... wait for it..... Catwoman...

Afterthoughts: Fringe

After the debut episode of Fringe, I must say, I'm hooked on another television show. It has only been about 4 years (since the beginning of House M.D.) that a show has captivated me so. John Noble does a fantastic job as Dr. Walter Bishop, and Joshua Jackson (Dawson's Creek), also has a superb performance in this episode.

The show begins with a revolutionary new air line that has the capabilities to land on its own flying across the Atlantic Ocean. When a horrible storm seems to scare one of the passengers to death, he injects himself with what looks to be insulin. Soon after this all of the skin starts melting off of all the passengers, then cutscene.

Soon agent Olivia Dunham (the main character, played by Anna Torv, whom also does a great job), arrives on the scene where this "autopiloted" airplane has landed, and as she explores the fuselage, she discovers that there is nothing left but bones in the seats and pus on the floor, and there is my very brief synopsis of the first 20 minutes, and that's all you're getting from me!

The encore of the season premiere will play Sunday night at 7 pm!! Set your Tivo your DVR, whatever you have, or just be there! And just watch it, and come back and leave comments on what you think!

This show will captivate you! At least I hope it will...because it sure did me....I Feel....All Fringy.

Lost all over again.

Tomorrow night a television show I am very interested in premieres on Fox at 7 pm central time. Fringe, produced by JJ Abrams (creator of Felicity, Alias, and Lost), is a sci-fi drama that, according to Abrams, will have an overarching mythology all its own. Modeled after Lost's own mythology, I'm sure that eventually Fringe will have its own fan sites, fan fiction, and varying opinions on the happenings in this odd world.

I expect more of the same from Fringe, there isn't really that much information out about the show, I only knew of one of the actors, John Noble, and the only reason I knew him was because he played Denethor (the King of Gondor), in the Lord of the Rings: Return of the King.

Other shows premiering this week include, 90210, a remake of classic teen cult drama, Beverly Hills: 90210, Don't Forget the Lyrics!, and sketch comedy shows Mad TV, and Saturday Night Live. Michael Phelps, multi-gold medal Olympian, will host this first episode of SNL's season, and Lil' Wayne will be the musical guest.

Stay tuned later this week for a preview of Righteous Kill, a new movie starring Al Pacino and Robert De Niro, and also a little video gaming news. I finally got to play around with Viva Pinata:Trouble in Paradise, and will also give new PC game Spore a test drive.

"Ultra Beatdown" This

Well, for this blog, I thought I'd deal with a little music news. The past few weeks have seen a pretty high profile album release lineup. For this blog, I'll be talking about The Game's Album, L.A.X., Young Jeezy's The Recession, Slipknot's All Hope is Gone, and Dragonforce's Ultra Beatdown.

The first album I'll talk about is Ultra Beatdown, which is the 4th album released by Dragonforce. Most people will know Dragonforce from their song, Through the Fire and the Flames, which was a bonus song featured on Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock. Dragonforce's previous album, Inhuman Rampage, was released over 2 years ago, and after my first listen through, I was thoroughly impressed by the fast guitar solo's, the over the top vocals, and the unbelievably fast time signatures. After listening to Dragonforce's new Album I must say....that I am highly unimpressed, and it isn't because they don't do the unbelievably fast solos or ridiculously fast drum rhythms, it's because every song sounds, and I mean this, exactly the same. So for all of those Dragonforce fans out there, I'm sorry, but this album just isn't for anyone other than you.

Now, in listening to my second metal album, All Hope is Gone by Slipknot, I must say that these guys are definitely on their stuff. Slipknot stays away from what happens to most metal bands, repetition (*cough* Dragonforce *cough), and delivers a solid mix of some slower rhythm based metal songs as in their song, Dead Memories, and they also jam out on tracks such as Psychosocial. So this one, is definitely worth your time.

Now to rap, and my first featured artist, Young Jeezy. First off, let me start by saying, that I am not a Young Jeezy fan, at all, so I may have been a little biased when I listened to this album, but I think this album just genuinely blows. The only high quality song on the album is Put On, and I believe that is only because it features Kanye West. So I say you should just check out a few of these tracks on Ruckus before you buy it.

Now, as in with the metal, for every sucky album, there's a quality one, and you'll find that quality album in L.A.X. by The Game. He keeps true to his roots by still using old Cali beats and rapping about his life and times as a GANGSTA GANGSTA. It's almost like listening to an audiobook with beats in the background. So this one is definitely worth your time and money, so you may want to check it out.

Well, that about wraps up this days blog, sorry it was so long, but I want to give you the best description I can, so I shortened it up as much as possible for you, the reader. And thanks for reading and stay tuned for some movie news on the next blog!

I Sure Hope Candy Comes Out of That.....

Today is a historic day people, it really is, well, for me it is. Today marks the release of Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise, the sequel to one of my favorite games, Viva Pinata, which was released in 2006. Viva Pinata was a game that placed you as a rookie gardener that had just been given a desolate piece of land that was once a beautiful garden. It is your job to turn this garden beautiful again, and during the process, you will attract the animals of this world, Pinatas, into your garden, thus increasing the value of your garden, and the progress you make in the game. The better your garden, the better pinata you get.

Even though it appears very childish, Viva Pinata is a game that requires constant attention and experimentation in order to achieve everything (I still haven't achieved everything).

I expect more of the same in Trouble From Paradise, but I also expect many more Pinata, and many more adventures to embark upon. So if you're an Xbox 360 owner, and you're looking for a game that is priced at a value ($39.99), then you might want to check this one out. Don't let the childish appearance or the low price fool you, this game is sure to be worth every penny, but if you'd like to wait and see what I personally think of the game, then I'll put a small snippet in my next blog over how the game really is. Until next time, Good out.