Burgeoning Metropolis: Best of January

I thought rather than doing another round up of a bunch of albums only a few people have heard of it might be a time to do a little monthly round-up.

Best Movie: The Wrestler (although I thought Benjamin Button and Milk were both quite good also) which didn't try and do too much, and told a really compelling story about the athletes we glorify after their prime.

Most Disappointing Movie: There Will Be Blood - I bought this movie at Blockbuster for 5 bucks just after Christmikkah and Liz and I finally got around to watching it this week. After all the Oscar hype last year for Daniel Day-Lewis (who was excellent) I was expecting a better film, and not a story that seemed like it would never end.

Best TV Show: Friday Night Lights despite the fact that the story line of the show throughout season 3 is incredibly choppy (although, you might note that my complaints about this show should be tempered against the fact that I've been re-watching the Wire lately - thanks Liz's Mom and Dad for the best Christmas present ever). That said, the show has some of the best characters on TV: The Riggins Bros., Buddy Garrity, Mr. and Mrs. Coach, Saracsen (sp?), I even like the new QB. And, although it seems unlikely, I'm really crossing my fingers for a forth season.

Best Sports Story: Roger Federer becomes the GOAT (regardless of how he fairs in the Aussie Open Final). If he wins, he ties Sampras and gets the nod by virtue of having success on all surfaces and having much more consistent results; if he loses, at least he's shown that he can gut out a win or two and will have lost to a guy who is a top-10 best ever.
(Note: Although Fed is 6 - 12 vs. Nadal lifetime he is 3-2 on hard courts, winning the last two on hard both in Shanghai. Its also interesting to note that if you take out all the matches they've played on clay Federer is 4-2. See the Federer-Nadal rivalry page.)

Best Live Performance:
Ketch Harbour Wolves was good, Jessica Lee Mayfield was very good, and Bruce Peninsula (tonight) promises to be unbelievable.

Best Albums:
#3 Bon Iver Blood Bank EP
[mp3] Bon Iver - Beach Baby

#2 Bruce Peninsula A Mountain is a Mouth (pick of the week #4)
[mp3] Bruce Peninsula - Steamroller

#1 Rah Rah going steady (pick of the week #2)
[mp3] Rah Rah - The Betrayal pt.1

Most Anticipated Albums (February):

Lily Allen It's Not Me, It's You
Mos Def The Ecstatic
M. Ward Hold Time
K'NaanTroubador
Beirut March of the Zapotec/Holland EP
N.A.S.A. The Spirit of Apollo

... feels like its going to be a good month... see you in February.