Capitalist Pig Tuesdays

This Capitalist Pig Tuesday is coming out earlier than usual due to the fact I have my VIP award banquet here in an hour and a half, but no less, it's a decent week. Pretty light on purchases, but there are a few gems to check out along with some other things that I have not managed to get my hands on quite yet. What are they? Let's look below.

Album of the week: Jamie Lidell - Jim

It's a pretty light week in music (for me), with there being plenty of releases but my interest ranging from "plenty, but cannot find any streams" (Portishead's Third), to "a bit because of recommendations" (Bearsuit's Oh:lo), to "zero...absolutely zero." (Madonna's Hard Candy).

However, Jamie Lidell (another Sasquatch-ian!) does release a new album this week and it's a funkified blast, perfect for those that are currently dealing with nice weather and can drive around with the windows down bumping Lidell's particular brand of soul. It's a very interesting summer album, one that takes you back to yesteryear when music was soulful and fun. It does get a bit repetitive in feel at times (but overall is quite diverse - the tracklisting could have used an edit), but it's good overall and definitely something you will find yourself yearning for time to time.

If anything, it's worth picking up just to hear Lidell belt out some of the lyrics. The arrangements of the instruments are diverse and interesting throughout, but Lidell's delivery is bar none the best instrument within the album. This album will likely garner comparisons to Amy Winehouse's last album, and they would be fair. Except this album is fun, and that's a big deal for me and something I felt was missing from Winehouse's album.

Check it out yourself, as it is streaming here for free.

DVD Release of the Week: The Golden Compass (Directed/Written by Chris Weitz; Starring Dakota Blue Richards, Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig, Sam Elliott, and Ian McKellan)

Who wouldn't want to watch an adaptation of the first book in a stunning trilogy of stories that featured bear fights, Steampunk influenced devices, girls with supernatural abilities, fully developed characters, sharp wit, and blasphemy? Especially one that featured such a stunning cast and had an incredible trailer going in? I mean come on.

I know I wanted to.

Too bad what came out was the Cliffs Notes version of the story, cutting out a large portion of the book (not in a "I'm a reader that's fickle" way, but in a "where did the ending go?!" way), speeding through the rest, and outright altering another large portion of it.

Needless to say this is not coming recommended from me, except if you rent it or borrow it from someone else.

Do yourself a favor and read the book, and then the rest of the series.

Video Game Release of the Week: Grand Theft Auto IV (Rockstar Games)

What the hell? Am I writing about video games? That's new, especially considering I hardly ever play them anymore. However, this is not just any game. No, no sir. This is the new installment of Grand Theft Auto, also known as the bane of Lieberman and McCain's existance, Satan's favorite video game (and yours too!), and all in all one of the most complete experiences for any video game ever.

Or at least that's what I've surmised from the reviews so far, and why isn't it possible? GTAIII and GTA: Vice City were two of the best games of the past decade, and this is the first one that is testing out the new generation systems. I have my copy sitting right next to me, and I am ready to play. Point in fact, I'm going to stop writing right now to play because, to be honest, if you play video games at all you're probably already doing that yourself. And if you don't, you're probably not that interested.

Oh yeah, and according to GameRankings.com, it has a near perfect rating to date and is the highest rated game of all time. No big deal.