poptransmission

Author: DSquared

  • You Betcha, Fargo is Back for Season 5

    (This was an early review of the first two episodes of the new season of Fargo. Fargo airs on FX Tuesday nights at 10:00 p.m. and is available to stream on Hulu the following day.) “This is a true story.” Fargo is back to the Midwest after a detour to Kansas City. There’s something about…

  • Nyad: Netflix’s Inspiring Film on Long-Distance Swimming and Friendship

    I’ve always been in awe of open water swimming. My lifetime of swimming has mostly been confined to chlorine, not salt. (I spent 40+ years in the ocean but that was close to shore with a surfboard underneath.) My Dad introduced me to swimming at a young age and I’ve never stopped. We went lap…

  • Hackney Diamonds: The Rolling Stones New Album Sparkles…Really

    Here I go talking about octogenarians again. A couple weeks ago it was 80-year-olds Robert De Niro and Martin Scorsese (Killers of the Flower Moon: An Epic Telling of a Sinister Conspiracy). And now, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards (Keith will officially hit 80 next month). The Rolling Stones just released their 26th U.S. studio…

  • The Gilded Age: Old Money V. New Money in NYC

    The Gilded Age: a term coined by Mark Twain, to refer to the period between Reconstruction and the Progressive Era (1877-1900). A time of serious social problems masked by a thin gold gilding of economic expansion. A pejorative phrase for materialistic excess combined with extreme poverty. The TV series focuses on the privileged wealthy, and…

  • Killers of the Flower Moon: An Epic Telling of a Sinister Conspiracy

    The Flower Moon. The full moon in May as the flowers bloom and announce the arrival of spring. Everything about Killers of the Flower Moon screams epic from the 3½ hour running time, to the triumvirate of Martin Scorsese, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Robert De Niro, and its relatively unknown story about the murder of Native…

  • Fair Play Movie: A Disturbing Expose’ on Office Romances

    Emily and Luke, co-workers and secret lovers, are partying at Luke’s brother’s wedding reception. They’re horny, in love, and focused on making tons of money working at One Crest Capital. They race into the bathroom and have passionate sex complete with an awkward moment. While putting himself back together, a ring falls out of Luke’s…

  • One-Hit Wonders: Twenty Songs That Still Hit the Spot

    One-hit wonders. We love them and we hate them. We all have some of these irrepressible songs seared in our brain. But what really is a one-hit wonder? What’s the criteria? Wikipedia defines it as being named as such in “at least two media sources even though the band may have had multiple hits.” Huh?…

  • Israeli TV Crime Thrillers: More International Intrigue from Netflix

    German, French, Spanish, Norwegian, Swedish, Danish, Icelandic, Russian, Japanese, South Korean. I’ve really enjoyed the polyglot of languages on Netflix programming. (Some Americans would add the U.K. and Ireland to the list of countries whose TV programming requires subtitles.) Netflix has made international programs accessible and easy for many who previously might have shied away…

  • Dave Mason in Concert: An Evening of Solo Hits, Traffic Songs, and Covers

    Dave Mason. Co-founder of the excellent and unique 1970s band, Traffic. Songwriter of Traffic songs, “Feelin’ Alright” and “Hole in My Shoe,” the former becoming a huge hit for Joe Cocker. Played with a variety of other artists, including, Crosby & Nash, Delaney & Bonnie, Eric Clapton, Fleetwood Mac, Cass Elliot, and Leon Russell. Notable…

  • Ten Iconic Opening Lines That Will Always Strike a Chord

    “There something happening here, but what it is ain’t exactly clear.” Nothing conjures up the counterculture movement of the mid-to-late 60s better than “For What It’s Worth.” Often believed to be a Vietnam protest song, the song’s lyrics by Stephen Stills were actually prompted by the Sunset Strip curfew riots in November 1966 when Buffalo…

  • Future Islands Concert Review: Une Soiree Speciale a Paris!

    I always check out upcoming concert schedules in cities I’m about to visit. Usually, a cool concert doesn’t line up with my vacation plans. You can imagine my joy when I saw that Future Islands were going to be in Paris during the time of my trip. So, in addition to the Eiffel Tower, the…

  • The Pale Blue Eye Movie: A Gothic Murder Mystery at West Point

    Who is killing U.S. Military Academy cadets in 1830? The first hanging is initially thought to be self-imposed, but upon examining the body, suicide is clearly not the cause of death. Then another cadet is found hanged and a third disappears. The military brass is frantic about the possibility of scandal at the fledgling academy.…