Giants Find Some Sleepers In The Draft

Posted on May 3rd, 2011 by ekko

Despite the ongoing issues with the lockout and whether there will be a season in 2011, the NFL draft went as scheduled last weekend, and even though the New York Jets take most of the attention because of their fanbase, the Giants were the ones who emerged as the Big Apple winners, especially on the defensive side of the ball.

The Giants really bolstered their secondary when cornerback Prince Amukamara was available with the No.19 pick, and they’re going to work him into the team as a number of their defensive backs are getting up there in age, such as Deon Grant (32) and Corey Webster (29). Those making NFL football picks found BetUs know that the league is turning into a quarterback-driven league with rules to make passing games more powerful, so you can never have enough good defensive backs. Then in the second round, the Giants picked North Carolina defensive tackle Marvin Austin, who dropped because of a suspension that caused him to miss all of last season. There is no doubting Austin’s talent as he was named to the Freshman All-American team in 2007, but the suspension threw up some red flags.

The later rounds were also good to the Giants as they took Michigan State linebacker Greg Jones in the sixth round with the 185^th pick, and then 13 picks later, they went back to the Big Ten to select defensive back Tyler Sash from Iowa. Jones was All-Big Ten three years in a row and a Freshman All-American at one point, while Sash is a ballhawk who had 13 picks in three years. Both are extremely good value picks and it shows that the Giants were definitely doing their homework.

It also shows that the Giants have been paying attention to the way the game has gone. Look at their division in the NFC East, where they have to face Dallas (Tony Romo) and Philadelphia (Michael Vick), and then you have the defending Super Bowl champs from Green Bay (Aaron Rodgers) and the previous winners from New Orleans (Drew Brees), among others. Look for the New York defense to continue to be one of the best in the NFL for years to come.

Tags: Sports

AWHOLELODDASTUF: Link Party!!!

Posted on May 3rd, 2011 by ekko

I haven’t thrown a link party in months–largely because I got sick of nobody reciprocating.  But my love for the medium of bloggin’ supersedes my sense of justice….Plus, can you think of a better time for a party?

LINK PARTY!

Let’s kick it off with a Cat Power bootleg courtesy of Captains Dead, whose also got a few Leonard Cohen boots as well.

Fabolous’ new mixtape, The Soul Tape, is pretty darn good.  Fab has always been one of those just-bubbling-under rappers who everyone forgets about and underestimates…Cop it here.

T.I., on the otherhand, is overrated.  He’s good, but not one of the greatest.  His new mixtape features B.O.B., Rick Ross, Nelly(!) and others.  Cop it here.

If you prefer indie rock to gangsta rap, you can score a really, really cool new EP for just a buck on Bandcamp.  It features Amanda Palmer, Ben Folds, and Neil Gaiman, a member of OK Go, and others, and proceeds go to charity.  Here’s a one-song taste: One Tiny Thing.

Cause=Time has a Neon Desert Festival mixtape posted, featuring Little Boots, Mstrkrft, Cansey de ser sexy, Dirty Vegas, and others.

Fugazi’s 13 Songs was one of the greatest indie hardcore albums of all time.  And back in 1988, they played most of it at D.C.’s 9:30 Club.  You can find it here.  And here’s my fave tune of theirs: Bad Mouth.

Front Porch Musings is becoming one of the best blogs around in terms of the quality and variety of music they discuss.  Go check ‘em out!

Covert Curiosity writes up J. Mascis’ side project King Tuff.  Great stuff, and quite rare.

Tags: Go away, Hip Hop, Indie rock

PICTURE OF THE DAY

Posted on May 2nd, 2011 by ekko

Tags: Picture of the day, Vaginer

RAVISHERS-s/t

Posted on May 2nd, 2011 by ekko

Portland, Oregon’s unisigned indie rockers The Ravishers have a song  that’s titled, “My Thoughts Are Killers,” which is ironic, because if there’s a band that these guys owe a current debt to, it’s probably The Killers.  And I mean that in a good way: Their self-titled debut album is chock full of vocal-driven, catchy power-pop.

Here’s the video for their first single, Underachievers:

PICTURE OF THE DAY

Posted on May 1st, 2011 by ekko

Tags: Godstuff, Messiah, Picture of the day

YOU CAN’T FIND ME IN DA CLUB . . .

Posted on May 1st, 2011 by ekko

‘Cause I’ll be watching movies for the whole summer . . . Here’s where you will find me . . .

MAY

May 6. Thor. Starting the season off right. But not the 3D version.
May 14. Hobo With A Shotgun. Rutger Hauer in some bloody B-Movie badass nonsense. In terms of titles, this is better than Snakes on a Plane. It’s released on May 6, but if it lasts a week, I’ll be here!
May 21. Priest. If the reviews aren’t horrible, I’ll see it in its second week of release.
May 27. Hangover 2.

Summary: One a weekend.  That’s manageable.

JUNE

June 4. X-Men: First Class.
June 11. This Saturday, I’m staying in to watch Green Lantern: Emerald Nights on DVD. DC toons are pretty damn good.
June 12. The Chameleon. ‘Cause Sundays are a good time to see a reader, and this French film looks like it could be awesome.  And I’m a guy who typically avoids French movies.
June 18. Super 8. No, I didn’t forget about it when it opened last Friday.  I just didn’t want to fight the crowds last week.
June 19. Green Lantern. Looks like my kids’ll be seeing two movies this weekend.
June 25.  If it’s still around, I might try to catch art-house flick Beautiful Boy, a drama about a Columbine-type shooting told from the p.o.v. of the parents of the shooter, or B-action/horror flick Trollhunter if it doesn’t get completely wrecked in the reviews.

Summary: Getting a little crowded, but even if miss a couple of these I’ll be fine.

JULY

July 2. Transformers 3. I can’t believe they scared Captain America off of Independence Day. Such a shame.
July 9. Horrible Bosses. Looks hilarious.
July 16. Salvation Boulevard. A former Deadhead/now ardent Christian tries to escape his followers. It’s directed by George Ratliff, who did a great doc called “Hell House” about an antiabortion haunted house program.
July 23. Captain America! If you even wondered about this, you’re nuts.  My personal most anticipated movie of the summer.
July 30. Cowboys and Aliens. I won’t fight the lines on Friday night, but if there’s a 7AM show, I’m there.
July 31. The Guard. I just love Don Cheadle.  Or, I may be taken to The Smurfs, depending on my boys’ level of interest.

Summary: Now it’s getting crowded.  I also may want to see Another Earth, The Perfect Host, Beats, Rhymes & Life . . . Too much to see!

AUGUST

August 5.  The Change-Up.  Freaky Friday for grown-ups.  Looks funny.
August 6. Rise of the Planet of the Apes.
August 12.  30 Minutes of Less.  A black comedy that looks like it could be funny–by the director and one of the stars of Zombieland.
August 13. Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark. It’s Guillermo del Toro, for goodness sake.
August 20. I might see Fright Night, if the reviews are decent. But I can pretty much guarantee I’ll have zero interest in the Conan reboot.
August 26.  Believe it or not, nothing.  A free weekend!  Maybe I’ll spend time with my family!
August 31.  The Debt.  Jews with guns!  And one of them is Helen Mirren!

And then it’s nearly September, and time for “serious” movies. Except of course for the prequel to The Thing. I’ll be all over that.

Tags: Movies