Music and Sports Equal Life

New Album Releases

2008-01-22T15:02:00.000-05:00

Here are the new album releases for last week. Stay tuned for a Super Bowl analysis post.

Scale:
A- to A+: Universally Acclaimed

B- to B+: Overall positive reviews

C- to C+: Mixed reviews

D- to D+: Overall negative reviews

F- to F+: Horrible

1. Sia-Some People Have Real Problems
Average Critic Score: B-
Average Fan Score: A+

Scores:
Rolling Stone: D+
PopMatters: C
Billboard: A-
NOW Magazine: A-
Spin: C+

2. Marah-Angels of Destruction
Average Critic Score: B+
Average Fan Score: A-

Scores:
Billboard: A-
The Onion: A-
Spin: C
New Musical Express: C+
The Guardian: C+

3. Magnetic Fields-Distortion
Average Critic Score: B+
Average Fan Score: A-

Scores:
All Music Guide: B
Rolling Stone: A-
Pitchfork: A-
PopMatters: A-
Billboard: A-

4. Ringo Starr-Liverpool 8
Average Critic Score: B-
Average Fan Score: B

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
Rolling Stone: B
Billboard: B
NOW Magazine: C+
Uncut: C+

New Album Releases

2008-01-14T23:28:00.000-05:00

Sorry for the lack of posting in this blog. The week hiatus will be the longest you'll ever see. Here are a couple of album releases. Once the year gets kicked into gear there will be more per post.

1. Kate Nash-Made of Bricks
Average Critic Score: B-
Average Fan Score: C+

Scores:
Rolling Stone: C+
Pitchfork: C
The Guardian: D+
Village Voice: A-
The New York Times: B

2. Blitzen Trapper-Wild Mountain Nation
Average Critic Score: A-
Average Fan Score: B+

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Pitchfork: A
PopMatters: B
The Guardian: A-
Prefix Magazine: B+

NFL Playoff Predictions

2008-01-04T14:31:00.000-05:00

Here are my predictions for the entire NFL Playoffs.

AFC

Wildcard:

San Diego Chargers vs. Tennessee Titans:
Prediction: Chargers win, 27-10
Why?: Despite a beginning of the season struggle, the Chargers have been dominant throughout the season including ending on a 6 game winning streak. The Titans on the other have had some trouble down the stretch. The dominant defense and the running game of LT should have no trouble rolling over the Titans in the first round.

Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Jacksonville Jaguars:
Prediction: Jaguars win, 30-21
Why?: The last time these two teams met, the Jaguars pulled away with a victory in a relatively close game. I expect a similar showing although I feel the Jaguars have become an even stronger team with the dominance of Fred Taylor in the running game. The Steelers are pretty much the same team, not showing any improvements, which will result in a first round loss for them.

2nd round:

New England Patriots vs. Jacksonville Jaguars:
Prediction: Jaguars win, 30-27 OT
Why?: I'm the only person on the planet giving the Patriots a loss in their first playoff game, but I see it coming. The Patriots have been anything but impressive in their second half wins (minus the Steelers) and will get a surprise loss to the surging Jags in OT.

Indianapolis Colts vs. San Diego Chargers:
Prediction: Colts win, 17-14
Why?: The last time these two teams faced off, the Chargers won in a battle. The Colts have been improving on all levels since that game and are now healthier especially with Marvin Harrison returning. It'll be another close one due to the Chargers defense, but Peyton will be clutch enough to carry this team to the championship.

Championship:

Indianapolis Colts vs. Jacksonville Jaguars:
Prediction: Jaguars win, 24-21 OT
Why?: Another battle decided in OT and the Jaguars will take it again. I'm aware that the Jaguars lost both games against the Colts this year, but the Jaguars, as stated earlier, are the best they've been all season and will result in a shootout to the end. It will be a big day for Fred Taylor in terms of the running game and I expect Garrard to be his usual flawless self. Jaguars will be the surprise team heading into the Super Bowl.

NFC

Wild Card:

Seattle Seahawks vs. Washington Redskins:
Prediction: Redskins win, 20-17
Why?: The Redskins, winners of 3 in a row, will carry their red hot streak through the first round of the playoffs. Collins will continue to impress and Portis and the running game will be too much for the Seahawks to handle. Hasselback will continue to attempt their dominant passing game performance, but it won't be enough to stop the Redskins from an upset victory.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. New York Giants:
Prediction Giants win, 24-20
Why?: The Giants are 7-1 in road games and are coming off one of their most impressive offensive performances all season against the Pats. Eli will throw an interception obviously, but it will only be one. The combination of Jacobs and Bradshaw in the running game will be too much for the Buccs dominant defense to handle and Jeff Garcia will have his first loss against the G-Men in the playoffs.

2nd Round:

Dallas Cowboys vs. Washington Redskins:
Prediction: Cowboys win, 31-21
Why?: The Cowboys might have lost the last time around against the Redskins, but they'll bounce back. T.O. will be in the game this time unlike their last appearance which is a huge deal and the Redskins defense won't be able to contain Romo and his Cowboys.

Green Bay Packers vs. New York Giants:
Prediction: Packers win, 24-13
Why?: The last time these two met, the Packers destroyed the Giants. Not much else will change. Brett Favre is used to this kind of playoff pressure whereas Eli isn't. Eli will have a bad game, Favre will have a good one and the Packers will coast to the championship game.

Championship:

Dallas Cowboys vs. Green Bay Packers:
Prediction: Cowboys win, 28-14
Why?: Once again, the Cowboys will dominate the Packers. Brett Favre won't play badly, but he won't be able to compete against the dominant Cowboys offense. The #1 seed will face-off in the Super Bowl against the number #5 Jaguars.

Super Bowl:

Dallas Cowboys vs. Jacksonville Jaguars:
Prediction: Cowboys win, 21-14
Why?: I hate the Cowboys, but I am picking them for the Super Bowl champions. It will be a battle of the passing game of the Cowboys vs the Jaguars' running game. Romo will have one of his more clutch games and Fred Taylor will be held in check more than the Jaguars would expect. This of course is dependent on whether or not Jessica Simpson comes to the game..

NFL Power Rankings Week 18

2008-01-03T17:09:00.000-05:00

Well folks, the season has ended and the Patriots are the first undefeated team since the Dolphins of '72. In fact, the Patriots have established themselves as the best team in NFL history with their win over the Giants. Here are the final power rankings for the 2007 NFL season. Stay tuned tonight or tomorrow for playoff predictions.

1. New England Patriots
Move from Week 17: 0
Why?: Most people would have you believe that the Patriots were in a lot of trouble against the Giants on Saturday night. If they were any other team that would have been the case, but the Pats are too good of a team to lose their last game of the season to the G-men.

2. Indianapolis Colts
Move from Week 17: +1
Why?: Jim Sorgi is the reason this team moved up one spot in the rankings. Had Manning played the entire game he would have rolled over the Titans. The same couldn't be said about the Cowboys who got destroyed by the Redskins.

3. Dallas Cowboys
Move from Week 17: -1
Why?: They are still the best team in the NFC, but that doesn't mean it is smooth sailing for this Cowboys team. Yes they rested injured starters, but they were also going for their franchise record 14th win and couldn't even come close against a red hot Redskins team. They might experience some deja vu with a possible playoff game against them.

4. Jacksonville Jaguars
Move from Week 17: 0
Why?: Quinn Gray played very well, but it wasn't enough to beat the Texans. With Garrard, Taylor, and Jones-Drew this team should have a repeat victory easily over the Steelers. Keep an eye out for a surprising upset by this team throughout the playoffs.

5. Green Bay Packers
Move from Week 17: 0
Why?: Even with some rested starters the Packers completely destroyed the Lions. Many people are saying the Cowboys for a Super Bowl entry, but the Packers are looking like a stronger team right now.

6. San Diego Chargers
Move from Week 17: 0
Why?: I said this last week, but they are the hottest team in the NFL besides the Pats. They have won 6 straight to secure a 3rd seed which is remarkable after looking like they might not even make the playoffs halfway through the season.

7. New York Giants
Move from Week 17: +1
Why?: It is really unfair for me to say this, but if the Giants played the way they did against the Pats against any other team it would have probably resulted in a victory. The running game is looking great, Eli had his best game of the season, Hixon was impressive on special times, and the defense was good despite giving up 38 points. I expect them to coast through the first round.

8. Seattle Seahawks
Move from Week 17: -1
Why?: I don't care if it is a meaningless game, you should not give up 44 points to the Falcons. They'll struggle against a red hot Redskins team.

9. Pittsburgh Steelers
Move from Week 17: 0
Why?: Unlike the Seahawks, their meaningless loss against the Ravens is exactly that, meaningless. However, they are up against a terrific Jaguars team which will probably result in a first round loss.

10. Tennessee Titans
Move from Week 17: +2
Why?: In a close battle against the Colts, the Titans escaped with a victory and a 6th seed clinch. Although they don't look as good as their 6-2 start would indicated, they ended the season on a high note which is important going into the playoffs.

11. Washington Redskins
Move from Week 17: +2
Why?: Two weeks ago, entering Week 15 against the Giants, I would say this team had no shot of getting in, but they won 3 in a row including huge games against the Vikings and Cowboys and have rightfully earned their spot as the 6th seed.

12. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Move from Week 17: -1
Why?: Again, I'm repetitive when I say this, but this team is the weakest of the playoff teams. Jeff Garcia may be 2-0 against the Giants in the playoffs, but that might not make a difference this time around for the Buccs.

13. Cleveland Browns
Move from Week 17: -3
Why?: They won a meaningless game against the 49ers (by a lot actually), but I rarely will put a non-playoff team in the top 12 unless its an obvious choice. The Browns might have a case against the Buccs and even the Redskins as a better team, but it's not enough to put them ahead of them. This team has impressed me all year however and should be as good next year.

14. Philadelphia Eagles
Move from Week 17: +1
Why?: They looked good against the Bills. After a disappointing start to the season, they finished strong and will probably be a playoff contender come next year.

15. Minnesota Vikings
Move from Week 17: -1
Why?: The Vikings fell short to the Broncos in a game that wouldn't have mattered anyway. While exceeding the expectations set in the beginning of the year, they still ended the season disappointingly after their surge under the running game of Adrian Peterson.

16. Houston Texans
Move from Week 17: +3
Why?: The Texans had their best season in franchise history with a victor of the Jaguars. Expect even better things from them next season.

17. New Orleans Saints
Move from Week 17: -1
Why?: Its hard to figure out why this team was 7-9 this season. It's hard to say they'll need to make some changes going into next season when this lineup worked so well two years ago.

18. Buffalo Bills
Move from Week 17: -1
Why?: After being booted from the playoffs with the loss to the Browns, this team never recovered (its funny that the Browns didn't even make the playoffs). They could still be a playoff candidate next season if they continue to use Trent Edwards.

19. Arizona Cardinals
Move from Week 17: +1
Why?: I really don't think this team exceeded expectations or went below them (they went below mine however). It was important for them to avoid a losing season which is what they did when they pounced on the Rams.

20. Chicago Bears
Move from Week 17: +1
Why?: A hugely disappointing season for the Bears. I can't really see them improving next season unless they make some huge acquisitions during the draft.

21. Detroit Lions
Move from Week 17: -3
Why?: 6-2 to 7-9. That is not just bad, that is horrendous. They couldn't even end the season with a .500 record. Although a big improvement over last season, this team needs to make some big changes.

22. Denver Broncos
Move from Week 17: 0
Why?: They beat the Vikings in OT to end the season at 7-9, what does that mean? A worst spot in the draft.

23. Carolina Panthers
Move from Week 17: 0
Why?: A very up and down season for this team. As long as Jake Delhomme stays healthy next season, expect this team to be a playoff contender.

24. Cincinnati Bengals
Move from Week 17: 0
Why?: They won...against the Dolphins....which really doesn't mean that much. They finished the season 7-9 which is a big disappointment given all the talent they have on their team.

25. New York Jets
Move from Week 17: +2
Why?: The win over the Chiefs has officially made this team the best out of the bad teams (bad team is a team that is 6-10 or worse). We'll see where they stand next year.

26. San Francisco 49ers
Move from Week 17: -1
Why?: I'll be blunt, stick with Shaun Hill going into next season. Shaun Hill=2-0, the rest of the starters=2-13. Enough said.

27. Oakland Raiders
Move from Week 17: -1
Why?: JaMarcus Russell looked a lot better in his first start going 23 for 31 for 224 yards. The Raiders need to take advantage of this going into next season if this team wants to be taken seriously.

28. Kansas City Chiefs
Move from Week 17: 0
Why?: What else is there to say about this team? They are horrible. They lost 9 in a row. Seriously what else is there to say?

29. Baltimore Ravens
Move from Week 17: +1
Why?: A win over the Steelers isn't enough to save poor ol' Bill's job. Who can blame the Ravens organization though? The once dominant Ravens team ended the season 5-11.

30. St. Louis Rams
Move from Week 17: -1
Why?: If you want to look at the Rams season for any optimistic point of view, they started the season 0-8 in the first half and ended up with a 3-5 record. Ok, I'm trying to give Rams fans some hope.

31. Atlanta Falcons
Move from Week 17: 0
Why?: They scored a lot of points, 44, against their win over the Seahawks, but also gave up 41 against their reserves. After ended 4-12 on the season they might want to find a way to break Vick out of jail.

32. Miami Dolphins
Move from Week 17: 0
Why?: 1-15. I don't care how many games were lost by 3, 1-15 shows how bad of the team the Dolphins are and how they are in a LOT of trouble going into next season as well.

Top 10 Albums of 2007

2008-01-01T12:38:00.000-05:00

I recently posted the worst albums of 2007, here are the best ones.

10. Arcade Fire-Neon Bible
Mini-Review: It's almost impossible to expect Arcade Fire to top the brilliant "Funeral", but they come close in their sophomore effort. This is a brilliant piece of work that establishes Arcade Fire as one of the elite alternative rock bands still making music
Highlights: Keep the Car Running, No Cars Go, Black Mirror

9. Elliott Smith-New Moon
Mini-Review: Even after his death (like 2pac) Elliott Smith still manages to release very compelling material. This album is like listening to Elliott's diary. It gives you more of a glimpse on the man behind the music more than any of his albums even if it isn't his best work.
Highlights: New Disaster, Looking Over My Shoulder, All Cleaned Out

8. Burial-Untrue
Mini-Review: This is the kind of album you either love or hate. Obviously since it made my top 10 list, it is one that I love. This isn't an album made to pump you up, you need to listen to this piece of work in the right setting whether it be 3AM after you're stoned, in your car during a rainy late night drive, or during a cold winter day. The more you listen to this work, the more you love it.
Highlights: Near Dark, Etched Headplate, Ghost Hardware

7. Jay-Z-American Gangster
Mini-Review: A very important album release in Jay-Z's catalog. After an extremely subpar "Kingdom Come", Jay-z bounces back and then some with this album that is also the soudtrack for a movie with the same name. This will remind you of his glory days and that in itself is a triumph.
Highlights: Hello Brooklyn 2.0, I Know, Ignorant Shit

6. Robert Plant and Alison Krauss-Raising Sand
Mini-Review: This is one of the best collaborations in recent memory. You would ever expect the pair to compliment each other so well, but they do. This seems to be more influenced more on Alison Krauss's bluegrass roots then Robert Plant's rock 'n roll roots which could disappoint Zeppelin fans, but don't let that stop you from listening to an extremely beautiful album.
Highlights: Polly Come Home, Please Read the Letter, Sister Rosetta Goes Before Us

5. Kanye West-Graduation
Mini-Review: Kanye is one of the best MC's in rap today and he continues to prove this in his latest release, Graduation. In a battle with rival 50 Cent's "Curtis" it wasn't even close to being a contest with Kanye releasing such better material. This isn't as immediately catchy or as good as "Late Registration" and "College Dropout", but it is still the best rap album released this year.
Highlights: Flashing Lights, Stronger, I Wonder

4. Spoon-Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
Mini-Review: This album is such an enjoyable listen from start to finish. In fact, it is the best Spoon release to date. Everything about this release is fun, catchy, heartfelt, and just fantastic. Even if you haven't heard any of Spoon's previous releases, pick up this album if you're a fan of indie rock, or any music in general.
Highlights: You Got Yr. Cherry Bomb, Don't Make Me a Target, Eddie's Ragga

3. Silverchair-Young Modern
Mini-Review: Silverchair, in my opinion, released the best album of the 21st century with "Diorama". It combined rock 'n roll, indie appeal, and a full orchestra with pop songwriting into a brilliant masterpiece. "Young Modern", the follow up, faced a lot of challenges competing with such a brilliant record and it falls short, but it doesn't mean that this album isn't brilliant. Fans of "The Dissociatives" (Daniel John's and Paul Mac's side project) who were eagerly awaiting a sequel to their debut album, will find this suitable. Paul has rubbed off on Daniel in a good way and it shows through the entire album. Silverchair is always exceeding expectations and makes me curious to see where they will go with album number 6.
Highlights: Straight Lines, Waiting All Day, All Across the World

2. White Stripes-Icky Thump
Mini-Review: If you don't find this album appealing, you don't like to have fun. This can't top the brilliance of "Elephant", but it demolishes the their last release "Get Behind Me Satan". Jack White is an amazing guitarist and his skills shine throughout this release. White Stripes are the type of band you hope will never break up.
Highlights: Icky Thump, You Don't Know What Love Is (You Just Do as You're Told), 300 M.P.H. Torrential Outpour Blues

1. Radiohead-In Rainbows
Mini-Review: Radiohead return to guitar rock with their 7th release and it pays off rewardingly. This is their best album since "OK Computer" which is saying a lot since "Kid A" and "Hail to the Thief" were brilliant albums ("Amnesiac" was good as well). The more you listen to this album, the more you'll love it. It is so insanely good that it makes you wonder how Radiohead can be put into the same league as other musicians.
Highlights: 15 Step, Nude, Faust Arp

NFL Power Rankings-Week 17

2007-12-26T09:19:00.000-05:00

Here we go folks..the final week of the NFL is upon us and the only spot left is the 6th seed in both the AFC and NFC. The Titans control their own destiny with a win getting them in that spot or a loss forking it over to the Browns. In the NFC, the Redskins will clinch it with a win, the Vikings will clinch it with a win and a Redskins loss, and the Saints will clinch with a win and a Redskins and Vikings loss.

1. New England Patriots
Move from Week 16: 0
Why?: Their final week against the G-men should be interesting. Brady needs two TD passes to break Manning's single season record and Moss needs to receive both of them to break Jerry Rice's record. Don't expect Brady to be benched until this is accomplished.

2. Dallas Cowboys
Move from Week 16: 0
Why?: I loathe the Cowboys, but I am the only person to put them at the #2 spot. Romo seemed back on track with a 7 point win over the Panthers. If they rest their starters they'll be giving the Redskins a good chance to take the 6th seed.

3. Indianapolis Colts
Move from Week 16: 0
Why?: They destroyed a decent Texans team. They played Addai too much during the game however, who is now suffering from an injury (although minor).

4. Jacksonville Jaguars
Move from Week 16: +1
Why?: If I had to pick a team in the playoffs to upset the Pats it would be this team. Seriously. Fred Taylor is unstoppable and with him and Jones-Drew that have one of the best 1-2 punches in the NFL.

5. Green Bay Packers
Move from Week 16: -1
Why?: Sitting a 12-3, two of these losses came to a mediocre at best Bears team. Luckily for the Packers they won't be facing them come playoff time.

6. San Diego Chargers
Move from Week 16: +1
Why?: This team is the hottest team in the NFL right now minus the Pats. They look a lot like the 14-2 team they were last year.

7. Seattle Seahawks
Move from Week 16: +1
Why?: They absolutely destroyed an already emotionally weak Ravens team. They could be a surprise threat come playoff time.

8. New York Giants
Move from Week 16: +1
Why?: They don't need for Eli to perform well if the running game performs as well as it did against the Bills. That's asking a lot though. If the G-men can come within 7 points of the Pats this week then they'll have a lot of confidence going into the playoffs.

9. Pittsburgh Steelers
Move from Week 16: +1
Why?: They have the AFC North all wrapped up now. I still don't have much confidence for them for the playoffs though.

10. Cleveland Browns
Move from Week 16: -4
Why?: I'll admit I've jumped on the Cleveland bandwagon because of how unexpected their season is. Now they are in trouble for the playoffs with the Colts controlling their destiny. If Dunge plays his starters except to see the Browns in come playoff time, if not, then the Browns will have to wait until next year.

11. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Move from Week 16: 0
Why?: They lost to the 49ers, but their starters were rested for the game so nothing should be read too much into it. They are still the weakest playoff team out of all that is clinched.

12. Tennessee Titans
Move from Week 16: +1
Why?: Their 4 point win over the Jets might not seem impressive, and it isn't, but it has helped them to stay alive in the playoff picture. Now they are in control of their own playoff destiny.

13. Washington Redskins
Move from Week 16: +3
Why?: Do you think this team has Sean Taylor in the back of their minds? They have been dominating, with the exception of the Bills game, since his death. Like the Titans, they control their own destiny for the playoffs. If the Cowboys rest their starters, expect to see the Redskins take the 6th seed in the NFC.

14. Minnesota Vikings
Move from Week 16: -2
Why?: After what looked like a sure playoff clinch, their is a pretty strong chance they won't be seeing any playoff time come January.

15. Philadelphia Eagles
Move from Week 16: +4
Why?: Even though they are out of the picture, they are still playing like they are fighting for their playoff lives. This team can pull a Packers move and end this season strong and have a dominating year next season.

16. New Orleans Saints
Move from Week 16: -2
Why?: Even though they lost, the Redskins win kept this team alive. They need a miracle to clinch though.

17. Buffalo Bills
Move from Week 16: -2
Why?: Trent Edwards was the opposite of clutch throwing 3 quick interceptions against the Giants. They should still use him for their starting QB come next season.

18. Detroit Lions
Move from Week 16: 0
Why?: Somebody had to win in their game against the Chiefs (imagine if they tied?!?) and the Lions took it by 5 points. Kitna is biting his tounge after predicting a 10-6 season.

19. Houston Texans
Move from Week 16: -2
Why?: This team will be better next season. I'm curious to see what their record would be in any other division.

20. Arizona Cardinals
Move from Week 16: 0
Why?: They squeaked out a win against the Falcons which is embarrassing with the way the Falcons have been playing. I can't believe I predicted this team to be a 6th seed this year with a 9-7 record.

21. Chicago Bears
Move from Week 16: +1
Why?: A dominating performance against the NFC's 2nd best team. They'll need to discuss their QB situation for next season though or this team won't be making the playoffs again.

22. Denver Broncos
Move from Week 16: -1
Why?: A disappointing season for this team. Expect Cutler to improve with experience though.

23. Carolina Panthers
Move from Week 16: 0
Why?: They really haven't been playing bad as of late, even with 4th option QB Matt Moore. That doesn't mean they aren't still wondering what their season would have been with an injured Jake Delhomme.

24. Cincinnati Bengals
Move from Week 16: +1
Why?: Their playing the role of spoiler quite well with a win over the Browns. Lets see if people will continue to pick this team for the playoffs next year with another subpar performance under their belt.

25. San Francisco 49ers
Move from Week 16: +3
Why?: Why the big increase? New QB=New team. Shaun Hill is 2-0 QB-ing for a team that started the season 3-10 (first two wins came from the first two games of the season). The name Alex Smith should never be mentioned again.

26. Oakland Raiders
Move from Week 16: -2
Why?: Well they gave JaMarcus Russell a shot and he looked horrible in his first start. The Raiders should start him again given it is his first game and they have nothing else to shoot for.

27. New York Jets
Move from Week 16: 0
Why?: Another game lost by 7 or less. Who is QB-ing come next season?

28. Kansas City Chiefs
Move from Week 16: -2
Why?: The lost the battle of the losers against the Lions. The Chiefs aren't just bad, they are crazy bad.

29. St. Louis Rams
Move from Week 16: +1
Why?: Yes, they lost by a decent amount against the Steelers, but they kept it close throughout the game. They also don't deserve to be in the 30s compared to the other teams listed below.

30. Baltimore Ravens
Move from Week 16: -1
Why?: 9 in a row?!? Wow. Did anyone expect this team to be 4-11 at this point of the season??

31. Atlanta Falcons
Move from Week 16: 0
Why?: They pretty much clinched this spot in the rankings. They won't win next week and even if they lose, the Dolphins will have to put up a surprising win against the Eagles for this team to move down.

32. Miami Dolphins
Move from Week 16: 0
Why?: 1-14, look how bad that sounds. It'll be 1-15 after the game against the Eagles.

New Album Releases

2007-12-25T20:16:00.000-05:00

The end of the year means very little in terms of new releases..here are three from last week

Scale:
A- to A+: Universally Acclaimed

B- to B+: Overall positive reviews

C- to C+: Mixed reviews

D- to D+: Overall negative reviews

F- to F+: Horrible

1. Lupe Fiasco-The Cool
Average Critic Score: A-
Average Fan Score: A+

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
The Onion: A+
Blender: C+
Entertainment Weekly: A+
Village Voice: A-

2. Mary J. Blige-Growing Pains
Average Critic Score: B+
Average Fan Score: B-

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Rolling Stone: B
PopMatters: A-
Blender: C+
Entertainment Weekly: B+

3. Rivers Cuomo-Alone: The Home Recordings of Rivers Cuomo
Average Critic Score: B-
Average Fan Score: A-

Scores:
All Music Guide: A
Rolling Stone: C
Pitchfork: B
PopMatters: B
The Onion: C

The Floppy 5

2007-12-22T15:02:00.000-05:00

Now people who have entered this post via BlogRush might have been anticipating seeing five old men with erectile dysfunction performing some sort of dancing ritual. I assure you this is not the case. The floppy 5 refers to the 5 biggest flops in terms of album releases this year. I'm going to do a dramatic countdown to the number 1 flop of 2007 (well its not dramatic, but just picture dramatic music in the background).

5. Stereophonics-Pull the Pin
Why?: The bands previous release, Language. Sex. Violence. Other? wasn't a great album by any means, but it at least was decent. Pull the Pin is the worst release by the Stereophonics in their 6 CD career. This is so boring, so safe, that it will appear to individuals who listen to Nickleback because they find Pearl Jam too challenging.

4. 50 Cent-Curtis
Why?: 50 Cent claims that if his CD doesn't do as well as Kanye's-Graduation then he will retire from the music biz. Well I guess 50 is packing it in because I can't understand for the life of me how he can make such "threats" as this when releasing such a mediocre album. Remember how good 50 was 5 years ago when he was this up and coming rapper? I'm hoping this is just a flop, and not an indication of things to come.

3. Jennifer Lopez-Como Ama Una Mujer
Why?: Huh? J-Lo released a new album? She sure did, back in March of this year. It's in all Spanish which might be frustrating for listeners who dont' speak the language, but even if you do, you'll find it just as bad. Now I've never been a huge fan of her music, but I respected her as a singer and knew that she had some talent. This album shows none of it. Marc Anthony, her husband and well-known singer, produced the HELL out of this album and its painfully evident. It's so boring and the ballads are extremely dull.

2. Soulja Boy-souljaboytellem.com
Why?: It's almost unfair to call this the 2nd biggest flop of the year because there isn't a prior release to base this on, but this album is the most overrated album I have ever heard. Soulja Boy isn't good. Listen to the worst of rap that existed 10 years ago and try to tell me that the lyrics and music on Soulja Boy's album is better. You can't.

1. Prince-Planet Earth
Why?: Again, this is another artist who I was never a huge fan of, but always respected his work. In the 80s he was the Prince of pop (under Michael Jackson's reign of being the king). His newest release just shows you that it's time for him to hang up his crown and realize that he's lost all of his artistic ability. He's like that guy who has worked in the office for 50 years and refuses to retire, but is obviously too old to do his job and feels the need to tell everyone how to do theirs. This CD actually didn't get bad reviews, but after listening to it I wonder how that is possible.

NFL Power Rankings-Week 16

2007-12-18T08:48:00.000-05:00

2 more weeks to go

1. New England Patriots
Move from Week 15: 0
Why?: Well it wasn't the blowout we all expected, but Belichick was still all smiles after beating Mangini's team.

2. Dallas Cowboys
Move from Week 15: 0
Why?: Can't move them down still after their loss against the Eagles, although these last two games they looked anything but dominating. They'll need to finish the season strong to have some confidence going into the playoffs especially with an inexperienced QB.

3. Indianapolis Colts
Move from Week 15: 0
Why?: They clinched a first round bye with their win over the Raiders. That didn't mean they played well. They couldn't score a touchdown against the Raiders until midway through the 4th quarter.

4. Green Bay Packers
Move from Week 15: 0
Why?: An easy game for this team against the Rams. Even though they got their asses handed to them against the Cowboys, don't count this team out for the Super Bowl especially with the way the Cowboys have been playing.

5. Jacksonville Jaguars
Move from Week 15: 0
Why?: I really like this team, especially after their win against the Steelers. Easily the best wildcard team in the NFL. They could be an upset for the Super Bowl.

6. Cleveland Browns
Move from Week 15: +3
Why?: They pulled off the biggest win of their season against the Bills and are now all but clinched for the playoffs. Did you ever the Browns making it to 6 in the power rankings?!?!

7. San Diego Chargers
Move from Week 15: +3
Why?: 51 points against the Lions. After not looking so great in the beginning of the season, this team is probably a 3 seed for the playoffs.

8. Seattle Seahawks
Move from Week 15: -2
Why?: They seemed to be playing with a "I don't care" attitude now that they have nothing to shoot for really. After dominating with the passing game this team could only come up with 10 points against the Panthers.

9. New York Giants
Move from Week 15: -2
Why?: Ugly loss against the Redskins. They needed that game so they could play the rest of the season without worrying too much. Now they need to beat Buffalo otherwise the playoffs, which once looked like a sure thing, might not happen.

10. Pittsburgh Steelers
Move from Week 15: -2
Why?: Go ahead and yell at me. Say "how can the Steelers be 4 spots behind the Browns when they beat them twice?!?!" Well, your Steelers aren't looking like they did when they faced off against the Browns. They've lost two in a row including their first game at home and are now fighting for the division title against the Browns.

11. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Move from Week 15: 0
Why?: I couldn't move them up due to the other teams ahead of them, but the looked great against the Falcons. Then again, it was against the Falcons.

12. Minnesota Vikings
Move from Week 15: 0
Why?: It wasn't the blowout the other games have been, but the Vikings beat the Bears and are now sitting at a cushy 8-6. Don't be surprised if they grab that 5th seed over the Giants.

13. Tennessee Titans
Move from Week 15: +1
Why?: The Titans keep their playoff hopes alive with a win over the Chiefs. They still will have a tough time with being a game back from the Browns.

14. New Orleans Saints
Move from Week 15: +1
Why?: Another team keeping their playoffs hopes alive with a huge win over the Cardinals. They'll need to avoid making any errors in order for it to happen though.

15. Buffalo Bills
Move from Week 15: -2
Why?: It wans't far for either team to play in this kind of weather, but the Bills needed that win (even more so than the Browns). This team could be a threat again next year though if they start Trent Edwards.

16. Washington Redskins
Move from Week 15: +1
Why?: They dominated the Giants and are now all of a sudden they're back in the playoff picture. It won't be easy, but they'll be making that extra effort for Shaun Taylor.

17. Houston Texans
Move from Week 15: +3
Why?: I feel bad that this team has to play in the AFC South (the toughest division in football). They'd be making a run for the playoffs in any other division. They still are doing the best they ever have in franchise history.

18. Detroit Lions
Move from Week 15: -2
Why?: After stating the season at 6-2, they might end up 6-10. They couldn't even keep it close against the Chargers, losing 51-14. Time to think about what to improve for next yaer.

19. Philadelphia Eagles
Move from Week 15: +2
Why?: Big upset against the Cowboys. Although it really just plays the role of being a spoiler than anything else, it does manage to have the Eagles hang onto their last thread of playoff life.

20. Arizona Cardinals
Move from Week 15: -2
Why?: This team looked like they could be a playoff team all year, but now are showing their true colors. They've been inconsistent all year and now are just consistently bad.

21. Denver Broncos
Move from Week 15: -2
Why?: The loss to the Texans wasn't really an upset. The Texans to me are on the same level as the Broncos, maybe slightly better. It doesn't save them from the fact that they won't be making the playoffs for two straight seasons.

22. Chicago Bears
Move from Week 15: 0
Why?: They couldn't hold onto the lead and now they're offiically done for the season. They could have the worst 3 QBs in all of football.

23. Carolina Panthers
Move from Week 15: +4
Why?: Trust me, they didn't move up 4 spots because they played exceptionally well. It is just because of the way the other games played out. A big upset against the Seahawks.

24. Oakland Raiders
Move from Week 15: +2
Why?: Again, it was that kind of week. The Raiders managed to only lose by 7 to the dominating Colts team, but that was after leading by 1.

25. Cincinnati Bengals
Move from Week 15: -1
Why?: They lost to the 49ers. Wow. Just when you think this can't get any worse they pull some tricks out.

26. Kansas City Chiefs
Move from Week 15: -1
Why?: Looks like they'll take on the Raiders role of being the bottom of the AFC West teams this year.

27. New York Jets
Move from Week 15: +1
Why?: People expected the Pats to win by 50 because of spygate, but don't you think the Jets wanted to keep it close because of the same exact thing? They put on a better showing then must people expected with a 10 point loss to the Pats.

28. San Fransisco 49ers
Move from Week 15: +3
Why?: Maybe they'll manage to stay out of the bottom 3 now that they upset the Bengals. Shaun Hill was great and gives them some hope going into next year.

29. Baltimore Ravens
Move from Week 15: -6
Why?: Somebody had to do it (well not really), but the Ravens were the team that the Dolphins scored their first win against. Now they have lost 8 straight and with the way they've been playing they can go 4-12.

30. St. Louis Rams
Move from Week 15: -1
Why?: This looks like the first half of the season all over again with the Rams dropping back down to the 30s. After their loss to the Packers they are now 1-6 at home.

31. Atlanta Falcons
Move from Week 15: -1
Why?: What a horrible team. They got absolutely dominated by the Buccs. Even with the way they've been playing I can't put them behind the Dolphins yet.

32. Miami Dolphins
Move from Week 15: 0
Why?: And they did it! Finally a win for this team. I can't move them up yet because they still only have 1 win and everyone else has at least 3. They'll need to win 1 more game OR come within 10 of the Pats for me to move them up.

New Album Releases

2007-12-17T08:52:00.000-05:00

This includes Pink Floyd's box set which has seen surprisingly negative criticism

Scale:
A- to A+: Universally Acclaimed

B- to B+: Overall positive reviews

C- to C+: Mixed reviews

D- to D+: Overall negative reveiws

F- to F+: Horrible

1. Saves the Day-Under the Boards
Average Critic Score: C+
Average Fan Score: B

Scores:
All Music Guide: B
The Onion: C
Spin: D+
Alternative Press: B
Boston Globe: D+

2. Wu-Tang Clan-8 Diagrams
Average Critic Score: B
Average Fan Score: A

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Rolling Stone: B
Pitchfork: A-
PopMatters: A-
The Onion: B-

3. Bow Wow & Omarion-Face Off
Average Critic Score: B-
Average Fan Score: B

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
Rolling Stone: C+
Billboard: B
Blender: C+
Entertainment Weekly: A-

4. Scarface-M.A.D.E.
Average Critic Score: B+
Average Fan Score: C-

Scores:
All Music Guide: B
Rolling Stone: C+
Entertainment Weekly: B+
The New York Times: A-
RapReviews.Com: A-

5. Dr. Dog-We All Belong
Average Critic Score: B
Average Fan Score: A

Scores:
All Music Guide: A
Rolling Stone: B
Pitchfork: C
PopMatters: C
The Onion: B+

6. Beanie Sigel-The Solution
Average Critic Score: B
Average Fan Score: B+

Scores:
Rolling Stone: C+
Pitchfork: B-
Billboard: A-
Blender: C+
The New York Times: A-

7. Pink Floyd-Oh By the Way
Average Critic Score: C+
Average Fan Score: B+

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Billboard: A-
Pitchfork: D+
Amazon.com: C
Uncut: C+

This Will Cause Some Controversy..

2007-12-15T12:29:00.000-05:00

Now knowing this is a blog about sports and music, I'm sure many of you guessed by the post title that I'm referring to the Mitchell report. The Mitchell report for anybody who hasn't opened a newspaper, watched TV, or got out of bed for the past 3 days is the report released Senator George Mitchell which compiles the history of steroid use in the MLB. The report names 89 MLB baseball players who allegedly used steroids (all MLB teams were represented in the report).

Out of everybody listed on the report, Roger Clemens was the one who caused the biggest reaction among fans. The future hall of famer (well maybe not anymore) apparently used HGH (human growth hormone) during the 1998, 2000, and 2001 MLB seasons. Just like the whole Bonds thing, it was pretty evident that he was on something. No baseball player can start on a downward spiral and then all of a sudden get to the age of 35 and become dominant. It just isn't physically possible no matter how hard you train unless you use steroids.

The race card has been thrown around this whole thing because of the scrutiny being endured by Bonds and then the lack of hatred being shown towards Clemens. First, I hate how the race card gets thrown around all too often. Certain circumstances it does apply to, but not this. People should not cry racism when it doesn't exist. The reason for the intense pressure on Bonds was because he was chasing the BIGGEST record in baseball. The whole controversy existed over whether or not it was fair that such a record with this kind of caliber should be broken by a guy who would have never broken it without steroids. The record he was chasing was that of Hank Aaron's, another black male. Clemens isn't under as intense scrutiny because while he is a future hall of famer, he isn't breaking any huge records.

The positive thing with this report is that he provides some light on the whole Pete Rose situation. If Bonds, Clemens, McGwire, or whoever else on that report makes the hall of fame then the Pete Rose situation needs to be looked into further. First off, he gambled when he was a Manager not a Player which is what he would be inducted into the hall of fame for. What he did, did not help him become a better player by an unfair measure. What Bonds and Clemens are doing is basically cheating and is the only reason why they have the numbers they do. Yes they probably would be hall of famers anyway, but there is no way they would have posted the kind of numbers they did without steroids.

I think its ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS how some sports writers are saying that nobody from the steroids era should be inducted into the hall of fame. Players like Glavine, Griffey Jr. (who would have been the best player of all time if it wasn't for his injuries), Maddux, and Frank Thomas should not be punished for the cheating ways of other players. Now I can't rule out that any of these guys didn't do steroids because even though they weren't in the report, it is possible that they took something. That's the thing. There is no way of knowing every player that did take steroids and every player that didn't. An investigation should be done, and if a player knowingly took steroids and is proven to have done so they should be BANNED from the game and from the hall. Plain and simple. Do you think it is fair for players like Glavine and Maddux to have to pitch to these steroid-ridden junkies? Their numbers could have arguably been a lot better hadn't been for the players who juiced.

The whole putting an asterik on these players is just stupid. This whole investigation has already tainted everything and an asterik wouldn't have an impact. Either you put them in all the way or not at all. Obviously I'm for not putting them in at all.

I'm not saying putting in some mediocre players who have proven not to have taken any steroids. There are plenty of good players (like I listed above) who have shown they can play the game well and not juice.

I'm also annoyed by the people who say "well there was no rule on taking steroids at one point in baseball so the players who took it before this time should be left alone". Ok there was no rule, but it was ILLEGAL. If a player stabs another player are you going to say that there was no rule against it so he should be kept in the league? Come on.

Again, with this thing it is so hard to prove anything. Nolan Ryan was referred to as the king of steroids, but that will never be investigated into. It is literally impossible to find the truth on every player so its so hard to weed out the cheaters from the true players of the game. My stance though was stated clearly and I'll say it again. Players who were proven to have taken steroids need to be banned from the league and the hall. Send a message to the other players that this game needs to be FAIR. The Pete Rose situation also needs to be looked into as well. I think he should definitely be in the hall of fame and if Bonds, Clemens, and all of them are still being considered for the hall then he needs to be also.

What will happen? Nothing. Seriously. Bonds might get punished for perjury, but there are too many players on the report to punish all of them. What they will do is possibly fine all players proven to have taken steroids, have more random drug tests, and then let the whole thing die off. It'll disappear in a few months and that is what they will wait for. Pete Rose won't be considered. Nothing will change. Bud Selig will turn a blind eye. That is what I think and I'm sure most people will disagree.

Leave the Giants alone!

2007-12-13T09:12:00.000-05:00

The Giants might be the most ridiculed team in the NFL this year. Even more so than the 0-13 Dolphins. People have gone as far as saying they are the worst 9-4 team in football history. It's absolutely absurd and I'll explain why.

Yes I'm a Giants fan by the way.

First, the reason that the Giants get a lot of crap is solely due to the inconsistency of QB Eli Manning. He can lead the team to some great games, but in others he looks like he has never held a football in his life. People have been only focusing on his subpar performances and never the fact that he manages to have great 4th quarters to produce a come from behind win. This is exactly what happened against the Jets, Eagles, Bears, and Redskins. I'm not saying he's a top 5 QB and he probably isn't a top 10 one either, but people are talking about him like he's on the same level as Alex Smith or even John Beck. I understand he looks like Peyton's retarded brother (see pic above) and that Cooper could probably beat him in a fight(Click Here to find out who he is), but that doesn't make him a bad QB. When you look at his numbers he's easily ranked between the 10-15 spot for QBs.

So that means the Giants should be the 10th-15th best team in the NFL right? Wrong. The QB plays a vital role on a team, but it isn't the whole package. Brady is great, but there is no way the Pats would be 13-0 without Randy Moss. Brandon Jacobs (even though he's been injured for almost half of the season) has been exceeding expectations in filling the shoes of Tiki Barber. He's put up some great numbers and when he's out, Derrick Ward has been great as well. These guys are overlooked because none of them have played in every game this season so their total yards aren't sky high.

Then you have the most vital part of the team. The defense. Look at the defense now compared to the first two games of the season. This to me is the reason why they are 9-4. Osi and Strahan have been exceptional and the Giants defense is able to contain decent offenses of the Lions and the Eagles (twice) to under 20 points.

Then lastly there is Tynes. He started out the season horribly, but now has been the most clutch player on the team. Field goals seem to be the deciding factor in a lot of games this year (not just for the Giants) and Tynes has been hitting all of them. Combine his kicking with the defense, Eli's great 4th quarter performances, and the RB situation, and you have an average 9-4 team. Not the worst one in history and not even below average.

How come the Bears didn't get this much crap last season? They were 13-3 with Rex Grossman as their QB! Yes their defense was better than the Giants, but Rex was arguably a substantially worse QB then Eli. Yet nobody questioned it.

As for the whole "look at their schedule" thing. I understand that they beat some easy teams in their scheudle, but they DOMINATED the Falcons, 49ers, and the Jets. If they were such a bad team you would expect some close match ups (you can argue the Dolphins game, but look at the weather conditions and they had to travel to London). Their 4 losses came to better teams. The Cowboys beat them twice who are easily the second best team in the NFL. The Packers beat them once who are the second best team in the NFC and then you have the Vikings who are the hottest team in football right now trampeling over the Giants, Lions, and 49ers in their past 3 games. Speaking of the Lions, the Giants were responsible for the Lions first home loss. Just thought I'd throw that in there.

Playoff wise, I'm not expecting them to make the Super Bowl, but to call them an automatic first out is ridiculous. They can beat the Buccs (who they will probably face). They'll probably get knocked out by the Packers, but so would the majority of the teams in the NFL.

So the Giants face the Redskins, Bills, and Pats to close out the season. My prediction? A 24-10 win at home against the Redskins, a 16-13 win on the road against the Bills, and a 31-17 loss to the Pats at home which equals an 11-5 record. Then they'll be known as the worst 11-5 team of all time.

NFL Power Rankings-Week 15

2007-12-12T09:58:00.000-05:00

Don't ever guarantee a victory over an undefeated team..that's all I'm going to say.

1. New England Patriots
Move from Week 14: 0
Why?: Do you think they wanted to prove something Sunday? Brady passed for a whopping 399 yards while the Pats completely destroyed the Steelers.

2. Dallas Cowboys
Move from Week 14: 0
Why?: If you haven't read Jimmie Johnson's article on Fox Sports, don't. It is the worst sports article I've ever read (content wise and grammar wise). He thinks the Cowboys are better than the Pats in a nutshell, but his explanations are ridiculous. That being said, this team is still the easy number 2 team in the NFL.

3. Indianapolis Colts
Move from Week 14: 0
Why?: They showed no mercy against the Ravens and now are pretty much a clinch for the number 2 seed.

4. Green Bay Packers
Move from Week 14: 0
Why?: This team is just geting better and better. Who needs Favre? This team is just fine without him.

5. Jacksonville Jaguars
Move from Week 14: 0
Why?: The best wildcard team in the NFL. This team would probably be first in any other division except for the AFC East and NFC East.

6. Seattle Seahawks
Move from Week 14: +1
Why?: Just like the Packers, this team is getting better as the year progresses. Hasselback is quietly having a career season and the Seahawks are rolling over everyone in their path.

7. New York Giants
Move from Week 14: +1
Why?: The Giants have yet again to thank their defense for another win. I don't care how inconsistent Eli is, they manage to pull off the big wins that they need which is clutch.

8. Pittsburgh Steelers
Move from Week 14: -2
Why?: Probably the biggest move down from losing to the Pats, but if you talk a lot of crap either put up or shut up. This team is in a lot of trouble come playoff time.

9. Cleveland Browns
Move from Week 14: +1
Why?: A big win over the Jets to have a one game lead for the 6th seed. The Browns have a game coming up against the Bills which might be a playoff decider. Did we ever think that those two teams would be fighting for the playoffs this year??

10. San Diego Chargers
Move from Week 14: +1
Why?: It came down to OT, but the Chargers won on an LT touchdown. It shows how much better this team has gotten. The Titans, although slumping, are playing as hard as ever with the playoffs on the line, but the Chargers are just a better football team right now.

11. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Move from Week 14: -2
Why?; The weakest of the division winners, which was definitely shown with a loss to the cellar dwelling Texans. In any other division this team would be struggeling to make the playoffs.

12. Minnesota Vikings
Move from Week 14: +1
Why?: Besides the Pats, this appears to be the best team in football right now. They are literally unstoppable their past 3 games. After looking like a longshot for the playoffs a few weeks ago they are now at the point where not making the playoffs would be an upset. Look at their schedule, they could easily go 10-6 to end the season.

13. Buffalo Bills
Move from Week 14: +1
Why?: 99% of other power rankings have them at 14, but the Bills are dominant under the leadership of Edwards. He is 6-1 with a one point loss to the Cowboys. He also threw 3 TD passes in the first half which hasn't been done by a rookie since 1971. The Browns will be in trouble when these two teams face off.

14. Tennessee Titans
Move from Week 14: -2
Why?: They didn't win a game they needed and will now have to fight really hard for a playoff spot.

15. New Orleans Saints
Move from Week 14: +2
Why?; This team is still breathing after a dominant performance over the Falcons. They took 2 out of the 3 division games they played consecutively, but that one loss to the Buccs could cost them the playoffs.

16. Detroit Lions
Move from Week 14: -1
Why?: Dallas led for about a minute the entire game, but the final score is the only thing that matters. After a 6-2 start this team will probably not finish above or at .500.

17. Washington Redskins
Move from Week 14: +1
Why?: Another team hanging on to their playoff hopes while at the same time shattering another one's.

18. Arizona Cardinals
Move from Week 14: -2
Why?: If they beat the Seahawks they would have been the current 6th seed, but the loss pretty much knocked them out of the picture with the surging Vikings. The Seahawks game pretty much proved that while they are an improved team they are not ready for the playoffs yet.

19. Denver Broncos
Move from Week 14: +1
Why?: They absolutely destroyed the Chiefs, but unfortunately they haven't been playing like that at all this season. I'm expecting better things from Cutler next year.

20. Houston Texans
Move from Week 14: +3
Why?: Their 6-7 record is a lot better than it looks. They are 0-6 in their conference which means they are 6-1 against the rest of the NFL.

21. Philadelphia Eagles
Move from Week 14: -2
Why?: Ackers almost made an impreesive 57 yard field goal attempt, but the thing is that the Eagles should have found a way to secure the lead with the struggeling Manning.

22. Chicago Bears
Move from Week 14: -1
Why?: Remember when this team went 13-3? They are now almost a clinch for last place in their division. Ugly.

23. Baltimore Ravens
Move from Week 14: -1
Why?: After an extremely close game against the Pats they get absolutely destroyed against the Colts. They have lost 7 in a row and will now have to beat up on the Dolphins in order for any confidence booster.

24. Cincinnati Bengals
Move from Week 14: +3
Why?: Cincinnati is making their case for the best of the bottom feeders. Unfortunately all that gets you is a worse spot in the draft.

25. Kansas City Chiefs
Move from Week 14: -1
Why?: I'm sorry I projected you to go 9-7 this season. I don't know what I was thinking.

26. Oakland Raiders
Move from Week 14: -1
Why?: Nothing surprising about the game against the Packers. This team will be battling for 3rd place in the AFC West.

27. Carolina Panthers
Move from Week 14: -1
Why?: I saw David Carr as an option for a Pro Bowl pick so I voted for him as a joke. I also told about 30 people to do the same and to spread the word. It could be the funniest thing I've ever seen if somehow he gets in (although it'll never happen haha).

28. New York Jets
Move from Week 14: +1
Why?: Yeah I'll move you up. You lost, but so did all the other teams below you and you kept it close against the Browns. Do you think Mangini will have a job come next year though?

29. St. Louis Rams
Move from Week 14: -1
Why?: They will be competing with the 49ers for that 3rd spot in the NFC West. I'm sure the Pats will be rooting for them all the way.

30. Atlanta Falcons
Move from Week 14: 0
Why?: 23 months in prison for Vick and a 3-10 record for the Falcons.

31. San Fransisco 49ers
Move from Week 14: 0
Why?: Dilfer and Smith are out which means that 3rd string Shaun Hill will be taking over. If he puts up some good numbers, the 49ers can have some glimmer of hope going into next yaer.

32. Miami Dolphins
Move from Week 14: 0
Why?: 0-16 is becoming more and more realistic with each passing week. The Ravens is their absolute last shot for any chance of a win. What do you think the line will be against the Pats? Right now if you bet $2500 for the Pats to beat the Jets you will win $100 and if you bet $100 for the Jets to win, you'll get $1700 according to my bookie. I might gamble on the Dolphins just so I can bye that island I always wanted.

New Album Releases

2007-12-11T09:57:00.000-05:00

You know the dealio...

Scale:
A- to A+: Universally Acclaimed

B- to B+: Overall positive reviews

C- to C+: Mixed reviews

D- to D+: Overall negative reveiws

F- to F+: Horrible

1. Ghostface Killah-The Big Doe Rehab
Average Critic Score: A-
Average Fan Score: A-

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
Rolling Stone: A-
Pitchfork: A-
PopMatters: A-
The Onion: A+

2. Daft Punk-Alive 2007
Average Critic Score: B+
Average Fan Score: A+

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Rolling Stone: B
Pitchfork: A
PopMatters: A
Billboard: A-

3. The Wombats-A Guide to Love, Loss, and Desperation
Average Critic Score: B-
Average Fan Score: B-

Scores:
New Musical Express: B
The Guardian: C+
Dot Music: B
Q Magazine: C+
Hot Press: C+

4. Wyclef Jean-Carnival II: Memoirs of an Immigrant
Average Critic Score: B
Average Fan Score: B

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Rolling Stone: B
Billboard: B
The Onion: C+
Blender: C+

5. Blake Lewis-Audio Day Dream
Average Critic Score: B-
Average Fan Score: B-

Scores:
All Music Guide: C
Billboard: A-
Entertainment Weekly: C
Amazon.com: A-
Los Angeles Times: B+

6. Freeway-Free at Last
Average Critic Score: B
Average Fan Score: A-

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Rolling Stone: B
Pitchfork: B+
Billboard: A-
Entertainment Weekly: B-

7. Rufus Wainwright-Rufus Does Judy at Carnegie Hall
Average Critic Score: B-
Average Fan Score: B+

Scores:
Rolling Stone: B
Billboard: D+
Blender: B
Entertainment Weekly: B-
Slant Magazine: A-

4 More Days!

2007-12-06T08:56:00.000-05:00

4 more days...that is what any Led Zeppelin fan in the UK (and probably further) are chanting. Unless you've been under a rock for a long time, Led Zeppelin is getting back together for a one-show gig on Monday in London. What's great is that the original lineup, minus the late drummer John Bonham, will be playing the show. I don't think you can possibly beat seeing the combo of Robert Plant and Jimmy Page live..unless of course Pink Floyd decides to play another show.

Why suddenly do they get back together? Well the break up first off wasn't over hostile issues, it was mostly due to John Bonham's death. It's not like Pink Floyd (yes I'm using them again) where Roger Waters and David Gilmour wanted to kill each other. This show though is to pay tribue to the late music producer, Ahmet Ertegun who signed the band back in 1968.

I'm curious about two things. First the set list. Will they play mostly old stuff (come on..everybody would rather hear the old stuff!) or do a mix of both. I'll make my prediction of "Black Dog" being the opener, "Kashmir" being the closer, and "Stairway to Heaven" being the final song for the encore.

I'm also curious to see how they are going to play. These gents average an age of 61 years. That's not young. Page is also playing with a broken finger which I hope doesn't hinder his performance because he is one of my favorite guitarists of all time. Hopefully Robert Plant has some energy to wail out some screams too.

Are they getting back together? Probably not, although the band didn't rule it out. Page is quoted as saying "Let's just do the O2 (on Monday) and we'll see what happens from there. I haven't got a crystal ball here and nor have you." Let's hope I'm wrong and we see a farewell tour in the future (I'd like them to come to the US!).

NFL Power Rankings-Week 14

2007-12-04T08:57:00.000-05:00

The Patriots hang on to their undefeated season. Here are the power rankings heading into Week 14.

1. New England Patriots
Move from Week 13: 0
Why?: The Patriots should have lost that game, but if you give these guys the ball too many times at the end of the game you are bound to lose.

2. Dallas Cowboys
Move from Week 13: 0
Why?: A win over the Packers almost clinches the number one seed in the NFC and is a predictor of who will make the Super Bowl.

3. Indianapolis Colts
Move from Week 13: +2
Why?: A big win over the Jaguars to have a cushy lead on the AFC South. Whatever struggles the Colts faced in the past few weeks are a thing of the past.

4. Green Bay Packers
Move from Week 13: -1
Why?: Favre leaving the game with an injury actually helped this team to keep it close, but the Cowboys are just a better football team. A number 2 seed is still pretty impressive from a team not expected to even win the division this year.

5. Jacksonville Jaguars
Move from Week 13: -1
Why?: They kept it close, but couldn't defeat their division rivals. Garrard threw his first pick of the season. That being said, this team will be almost a definite 5th seed for the playoffs.

6. Pittsburgh Steelers
Move from Week 13: 0
Why?: A big win over the Bengals to shut up the critics who say the Steelers are overrated. I'm not a Steelers fan at all, but I think they have more than proven themselves this year. The way the Patriots have been playing the last two weeks, this team has a shot of winning next week against them.

7. Seattle Seahwaks
Move from Week 13: +1
Why?: Their game against the Eagles sparked my curiousity. The Seahwaks had boasted a 7-4 record coming into the game but 4 of those wins were against the Rams and 49ers. The Eagles were 5-7, but recently had a great game against the Pats. It was close, as I expected, but the Seahawks pulled off the win, securing a nice lead in the NFC West.

8. New York Giants
Move from Week 13: +1
Why?: It looked like another woeful loss for this team, but Eli played great in the 4th quarter and carried this team to a late win against the Bears. Now sitting on top of the wildcard race by two games at 8-4, this team faces off against the Skins, Eagles, Bills, and Pats. If they win one of these games, expect to see a definite playoff clinch.

9. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Move from Week 13: +1
Why?: Big divison win over the Saints. With that win, the Buccs have pretty much clinched the division with a 3 game lead with 4 games to go.

10. Cleveland Browns
Move from Week 13: -3
Why?: I'm not a Browns fan, but I've been rooting for them all year because I find their situation exciting (projected to be the 2nd worst team in the NFL over the Falcons). Unfortunately their loss has put them into a tie for the last playoff spot with the Titans. They should win an easy game against the Jets next week.

11. San Diego Chargers
Move from Week 13: 0
Why?: Another big win to secure an almost definite divison title. The Chargers rolled over the Chiefs and now have won 6 out of their last 8.

12. Tennesse Titans
Move from Week 13: 0
Why?: After looking like a lost cause, this team bounces back with a huge win over the Texans. With the Browns loss, they are now tied for the 6th seed.

13. Minnesota Vikings
Move from Week 13: +7
Why?: Yes you read right. Every year there is a team who starts off struggeling and then makes a huge surge at the end. This is the team. They dominated both the Giants and the Lions in the last two weeks and are looking like the logical 6th seed choice with a tough Lions schedule.

14. Buffalo Bills
Move from Week 13: +3
Why?: A last minute win against the Skins puts this team back at .500. Nobody is really including them in the playoff hunt, but they are now one game back behind the Titans and Browns by themselves with a game against the Dolphins coming up.

15. Detroit Lions
Move from Week 13: -2
Why?: Remember how great this team looked in their first 8 games? The Lions have lost 4 in a row and are in a lot of trouble. They are facing Dallas, San Diego and Green Bay which means they might not finish above .500.

16. Arizona Cardinals
Move from Week 13: +3
Why?: A big win over the Browns keeps this team well into the playoff race. Lets see if they can defeat their division rivals, the Seahawaks (they already did once this season).

17. New Orleans Saints
Move from Week 13: -2
Why?: Drew Brees said a couple of weeks ago "if we're going to turn things around, now is the time to do it". Well they beat the Panthers last week, but failed to beat the Buccs on Sunday. Not out of it yet, but you probably won't see them come January.

18. Washington Redskins
Move from Week 13: -3
Why?: Washington has a knack all season of outplaying teams and still finding a way to lose the game. Unfortunately for them, wins are the only thing that really matters when it comes to making the playoffs. Them and the Eagles are fighting for that 3rd spot in the NFC East.

19. Philadelphia Eagles
Move from Week 13: -3
Why?: A close game against the Seahawks, but AJ Feely didn't come close to his performance against New England throwing 4 picks and completing less than half of his passes.

20. Denver Broncos
Move from Week 13: -2
Why?: A loss to the Raiders is pretty pathetic any way you put it, but it's especially pathetic when your playoff hopes are on the line.

21. Chicago Bears
Move from Week 13: 0
Why?: Rex looked great for the first half of the game, but then looked like himself the second half. The Bears failed to hold Eli in check in the fourth quarter giving up two TDs, including the game winner.

22. Baltimore Ravens
Move from Week 13: +1
Why?: The Ravens should have won against the Pats, but they blew it on so many levels. A time out call (bad coaching) on 4th and 1 that canceled the game winning play and then when they held the Pats again, the Pats got an offsides call giving them a 6th down. Lets not forget the 30 yard penalty for the stupid unsportsmanlike conduct display.

23. Houston Texans
Move from Week 13: -1
Why?: I'm really surprised this team isn't winning games with the return of Andre Johnson. Well I guess when Rosenfels is your quarterback anything is possible.

24. Kansas City Chiefs
Move from Week 13: 0
Why?: Another loss and now they are tied with the Raiders for last place. Thats the only thing they'll be fighting for anymore.

25. Oakland Raiders
Move from Week 13: +3
Why?: Oakland on a winning streak?!? Hard to believe, but yes it is true. They can possibly end the season at 6-10!

26. Carolina Panthers
Move from Week 13: 0
Why?: They finally won a game at home. That being said it was against the 49ers which is anything, but impressive.

27. Cincinnati Bengals
Move from Week 13: -2
Why?: Remember when everyone was saying how Palmer was a top 3, maybe a top 2 quarterback? He looked horrible against the Steelers. Thats not the worst of their problems with the defense being anything, but good.

28. St. Louis Rams
Move from Week 13: +2
Why?: The Rams have a chance of going 4-9 after beating the Falcons and a game coming up against the Bengals. This is a lot better than what was projected after they lost 7 in a row to start the season.

29. New York Jets
Move from Week 13: +2
Why?: After what many people (including me) believed to be the first Dolphins win coming up, the Jets destroyed the Dolphins. I guess they wanted to prove that they might be bad, but they aren't Dolphins bad.

30. Atlanta Falcons
Move from Week 13: -3
Why?: Losers of 3 in a row, the Falcons take on the Saints next week which means probably 4 in a row. Good luck in the draft.

31. San Francisco 49ers
Move from Week 13: -2
Why?: Welcome back to the 31st spot! We missed you for that one week after your fluke win. This team is in trouble next year too with giving their first round pick to the Pats.

32. Miami Dolphins
Move from Week 13: 0
Why?: And here is where they will remain until the end of the season. Pathetic display against the Jets. I would say maybe a chance of a win against the Ravens or even the Bills, but I highly doubt it.

New Album Releases

2007-12-02T19:34:00.001-05:00

Here are the new releases from last week

Scale:
A- to A+: Universally Acclaimed

B- to B+: Overall positive reviews

C- to C+: Mixed reviews

D- to D+: Overall negative reveiws

F- to F+: Horrible

1. Amiina-Kurr
Average Critic Score: B+
Average Fan Score: A-

Scores:
Pitchfork: C+
New Musical Express: B
The Guardian: A-
Drowned in Sound: A-
BBC Collective: A-

2. Kylie Minogue-X
Average Critic Score: B-
Average Fan Score: B+

Scores:
Pitchfork: B-
Billboard: A-
NOW Magazine: C+
Uncut: C+
Mojo: D+

3. Boyz II Men-Motown: A Journey Through Hitsville USA
Average Critic Score: C+
Average Fan Score: A-

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
Billboard: B
Entertainment Weekly: C-
Village Voice: D+
Vibe: B

4. Gorillaz-D-Sides
Average Critic Score: B-
Average Fan Score: B-

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Pitchfork: C+
PopMatters: A-
Billboard: A-
The Onion: B-

5. Jana Hunter-There's No Home
Average Critic Score: B+
Average Fan Score: B-

Scores:
All Music Guide: B
Pitchfork: A-
cokemachineglow: B
Dusted Magazine: B
Prefix Magazine: A

6. Shaggy-Intoxication
Average Critic Score: B+
Average Fan Score: A-

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Billboard: A-
NOW Magazine: D+
Entertainment Weekly: B+
Village Voice: A-

7. Burial-Untrue
Average Critic Score: A+
Average Fan Score: A

Scores:
Pitchfork: A-
The Guardian: A+
Dusted Magazine: A-
musicOMH.com: A+
Tiny Mix Tapes: A+

8. Pitbull-The Boatlift
Average Critic Score: B-
Average Fan Score: B+

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
Rolling Stone: C+
Billboard: A-
Slant Magazine: C+
RapReviews.com: B+

9. Gob-Meurtos Vitos
Average Critic Score: B+
Average Fan Score: B-

Scores:
CD Universe: C+
Rate Your Music: A-
MP3.com: A+
Amazon.com: B
Sputnik Music: B-

10. The Dillinger Escape Plan-Ire Works
Average Critic Score: A-
Average Fan Score: A-

Scores:
All Music Guide: A
Billboard: A-
PopMatters: A
The Onion: A+
Spin: B

NFL Power Rankings-Week 13

2007-11-28T09:58:00.000-05:00

Here they are..

1. New England Patriots
Move from Week 12: 0
Why?: An unexpected close game against the Eagles. The Patriots are proving they are human, but don't expect to see any close calls against the Ravens next Monday.

2. Dallas Cowboys
Move from Week 12: 0
Why?: They had their own Thanksgiving feast of the Jets on Thursday. Big game this Thursday which will decide home field advantage throughout the playoffs most likely.

3. Green Bay Packers
Move from Week 12: 0
Why?: A demolition of the Lions means that the only thing left to fight for is the number 1 seed. It will be a struggle for Favre who has been known to not post great numbers against the Cowboys.

4. Jacksonville Jaguars
Move from Week 12: 0
Why?: Big game against the Colts. It will be the decider of who takes the division. Colts are the obvious favorite, but the Jags are red hot and have a legitimate shot of winning that game.

5. Indianapolis Colts
Move from Week 12: 0
Why?: Their first good win in 4 weeks. After losing by 10 in the first quarter, they did what the Giants did against the Falcons and dominated for the rest of the game.

6. Pittsburgh Steelers
Move from Week 12: +1
Why?: Hate to keep using the Giants as a comparison, but the Steelers faced what the Giants faced in London (minus the jetlag). They were forced to play the Dolphins in horrible field conditions, but managed to pull away with the win. In any other environment I would expect this team to dominate.

7. Cleveland Browns
Move from Week 12: +1
Why?: Imagine if this team beat the Steelers in that game where they had that huge lead? They'd be sitting in first. The Browns are all but clinched for the playoffs with the Titans recent struggles.

8. Seattle Seahawks
Move from Week 12: +1
Why?: They almost blew it against the Rams, but managed a great comeback. With the Cardinals losing to the 49ers, they are pretty much guaranteed to be the division winners.

9. New York Giants
Move from Week 12: -3
Why?: Eli had one of his worst outing of his career. I wouldn't be too worried about it though. All season the Giants were losing to the teams they should have lost to and beating the teams they should have and last week was the first time that they failed to beat a team that was below them. They still have a one game lead over the 5th seed and a 2 game lead over the 6th seed.

10. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Move from Week 12: +3
Why?: All season it was not known who would prevail in the NFC South, but the the Buccs seem to have proven that they are the best team. A big win over the Skins makes them the likely division winners.

11. San Diego Chargers
Move from Week 12: +1
Why?: Philip Rivers told all of the Chargers fans to "shut up" about them not meeting expectations. Not a smart move, but fans might quiet down now that they are the lone division leaders.

12. Tennessee Titans
Move from Week 12: -2
Why?: After looking like a definite for the playoffs, this team is anything but. An unexpected blowout by the Bengals is making this teams playoff hopes slip away.

13. Detroit Lions
Move from Week 12: -2
Why?: Losers of 3 in a row with a tough schedule to end the season, the Lions making a playoffs might all be crushed.

14. New Orleans Saints
Move from Week 12: +7
Why?: They don't deserve to move up 7 spots, but everyone else lost. The Saints destroyed the Panthers and probably crushed their spirits a little too. If they win at home against the Buccs, this team might end up taking the division.

15. Washington Redskins
Move from Week 12: -1
Why?: They didn't play that poorly against the Buccs, it's just right now Tampa Bay is better than the Redskins. The Eagles are starting to show some resurgence which can mean that the Skins end up in the cellar at the end of the season.

16. Philadelphia Eagles
Move from Week 12: +2
Why?: It's funny when losing to a team by 3 makes you move up two spots in the rankings. The Eagles did something right to make the Patriots game a nail-biter. Its intersting to wonder if the Eagles could have pulled off a win with a healthy McNabb instead of Feely.

17. Buffalo Bills
Move from Week 12: -2
Why?: It was good while it lasted. The Bills are now at 5-6, back below .500. Their offense is just not strong enough to make this team a playoff contender.

18. Denver Broncos
Move from Week 12: -1
Why?: Big loss against the Bears. They had a shot of beating a mediocre team to stay tied for the AFC West lead, but now are looking like they wont be seeing any playing time come January.

19. Arizona Cardinals
Move from Week 12: -3
Why?: You're going to give up 37 points to the 49ers? Really? Either the 49ers ate their Wheaties or this shows a struggle in the Cardinals defense.

20. Minnesota Vikings
Move from Week 12: +3
Why?: This team is like a worse version of the Chargers. They'll get crushed by a bunch of teams, but then they'll unexpectedly destroy a team thats better than them. Jackson had his best game all season and the defense was spectacular against a struggeling Manning.

21. Chicago Bears
Move from Week 12: +4
Why?: A big win against the Broncos makes this team still in the playoff race. Their defense will need to take advantage of Eli's struggles in order for them to remain the hunt.

22. Houston Texans
Move from Week 12: -2
Why?: I wonder what this season would have been like for this team had Schaub and Johnson been healthy all year.

23. Baltimore Ravens
Move from Week 12: -4
Why?: They now have lost 5 games in a row which is the most in franchise history. Their next two games are against the Pats and the Colts which could mean a 7 game losing streak for this team.

24. Kansas City Chiefs
Move from Week 12: -2
Why?: All playoff hopes are offiically down the tube for this team.

25. Cincinnati Bengals
Move from Week 12: +4
Why?: They were clicking for the first time all season. What a day for Chad Johnson who had a career game. They'll be fighting for 3rd place now with a struggeling Ravens team.

26. Carolina Panthers
Move from Week 12: -2
Why?: They are one ugly loss away from being in the bottom 5, possibly the bottom 3. Some rankings are already putting them at 30! Panthers fan are probably wondering what it could have been like without Delhomme's injury.

27. Atlanta Falcons
Move from Week 12: -1
Why?: Their potential upset was taken away by the rally of the Colts team. I'm expecting 1 more win tops by this team.

28. Oakland Raiders
Move from Week 12: +2
Why?: This game snapped a 7 game losing streak as well as making it possible for this team not to finish in last place.

29. San Francisco 49ers
Move from Week 12: +2
Why?: They looked like a completely different team then they have been all season. Frank Gore had his best game of the season and the 49ers are doing their part in playing spoiler for the rest of the season.

30. St. Louis Rams
Move from Week 12: -3
Why?: Back to the 30s. They couldn't hold on to a lead against the Seahawks and now with the 49ers winning they are in dead last by themselves.

31. New York Jets
Move from Week 12: -3
Why?: Welcome Jets to the "if the Dolphins win you'll be in last place" situation. This could be likely considering they are playing them next week.

32. Miami Dolphins
Move from Week 12: 0
Why?: Ugly game against the Steelers (not the playing, the condition the field was in). This team actually has a bunch of games within 7 points which is the only thing that is giving this team hope. If they don't want to be 0-16 they need to beat the Jets.

The Craziness of the 2007 NFL Season

2007-11-26T13:44:00.000-05:00

This whole season for the NFL has been absolutely ridiculous. Teams projected to be great like the Saints, Ravens, and Bears are anything but that and teams like the Packers and the Browns are all of a sudden among the elite teams in the NFL. I thought it would be interesting to take a look at my projections prior to the start of the season in terms of records for all the teams and compare it to where they are at this point.

AFC East

Predictions
1. New England Patriots: 12-4 (4th Seed)
2. New York Jets: 9-7
3. Miami Dolphins: 8-8
4. Buffalo Bills: 6-10

Actual Standings
1. New England Patriots: 11-0
2. Buffalo Bills: 5-6
3. New York Jets: 2-9
4. Miami Dolphins: 0-10

Analysis: I knew the aquisition of Randy Moss would help the Patriots, but I never would have anticipated they would become the BEST team in the history of the NFL. I too fell into the "wow Mangini is amazing!" loop and though he would help the Jets again this year. Mangini to Mangina. Now I wanted to give the Bills a slightly higher record (7-9 or 8-8 tops) due to my prediction that Losman would be better and that Lee Evans would be a good receiver, but I didn't and they are better than I predicted, but not because of the reasons I described. Edwards has been a better QB than Losman and Lynch has been the go-to-guy. Now the Dolphins. I'm ashamed of myself. I had too much faith in Brown and failed to realize that he alone can't carry the team.

AFC North

Predictions
1. Baltimore Ravens: 13-3 (3rd Seed)
2. Cincinnati Bengals: 10-6 (6th Seed)
3. Pittsburgh Steelers: 9-7
4. Cleveland Browns: 5-11

Actual Standings
1. Pittsburgh Steelers: 7-3
2. Cleveland Browns: 7-4
3. Cincinnati Bengals: 4-7
4. Baltimore Ravens: 4-7

Anaylsis: This is almost the opposite of what I predicted, but I feel like everyone was fairly close to what I did. The Ravens defense still remains good, but their offense which I expected to improve or remain the same has vanished. Nobody anticipated the rejuvination of the Browns under Anderson's leadership. The Bengals have no excuse for their subpar performance with Carson Palmer, Chad Johnson, TJ (don't feel attempting to spell the last name haha), and Rudi Johnson. Their subpar performance is highly unexpected. The Steelers are not too far off from when I expected from them. Yes I posted 9-7, but that was anticipating better performances from the Bengals and Ravens which would have resulted in more divisional losses by this team.

AFC South

Predictions
1. Indianapolis Colts: 13-3 (2nd Seed)
2. Jacksonville Jaguars: 11-5 (5th Seed)
3. Tennessee Titans: 8-8
4. Houston Texans: 4-12

Actual Standings
1. Indianapolis Colts: 9-2
2. Jacksonville Jaguars: 8-3
3. Tennessee Titans: 6-5
4. Houston Texans: 5-6

Analysis: Minus my underestimation of the Texans, all of these predictions are possible. The Colts are a dominant team, but they are known to blow a couple of games throughout the season. I expected the Titans to struggle without Pacman Jones and they definitely are. After showing some promised in the beginning of the season they now have lost 3 in a row and Vince Young is unable to carry the pressure on his own. The Jags have a great double threat with Maurice Jones-Drew and Fred Taylor. Garrard is also having a great season as well. The Texans are a nice surprise with Matt Schaub exceeding expectations.

AFC West

Predictions
1. San Diego Chargers: 14-2 (1st Seed)
2. Denver Broncos: 10-6
3. Kansas City Chiefs: 9-7
4. Oakland Raiders: 2-14

Actual Standings
1. San Diego Chargers: 6-5
2. Denver Broncos: 5-6
3. Kansas City Chiefs: 4-7
4. Oakland Raiders: 3-8

Analysis: Well the order of the standings are right, but the records are way off. I knew the aquisition of Norv Turner wasn't a great idea, but with LT, Rivers, Gates, and a good defense I expected some good things out of this team. They do show some signs of their expected dominance in some games, but in others they just simply lost the magic of last season. I expected too much out of Jay Cutler although he is doing pretty well. I also expected too much out of LJ relating to the Chiefs. Up until two or three weeks ago I actually thought they could be a 9-7 team still. The Raiders are slighlty better than I expected, but not by much. Their best case scenario is a 5-11 record although they'll probably be 4-12 or 3-13.

NFC East

Predictions
1. Dallas Cowboys: 11-5 (2nd Seed)
2. Philadelphia Eagles: 10-6 (5th Seed)
3. New York Giants: 7-9
4. Washington Redskins: 6-10

Actual Standings
1. Dallas Cowboys: 10-1
2. New York Giants: 7-4
3. Philadelphia Eagles: 5-6
4. Washington Redskins: 5-6

Analysis: Avid readers of my blog should be shaking their head when they see the Eagles prediction. I always say how bad of a team they are. This was after I saw the first two weeks of play by them and realized how McNabb isn't the star QB we all remember. I expected bigger and better things from Romo, but he has exceeded my expectations. I thought the loss of Tiki Barber would be pretty big for this Giants team. I did expect Jacobs to have an above average season, but not to be able to compete with the heroics of Barber. I was right about that, but for some reason the Giants pulled off some big wins and are now at 7-4. The Redskins started off unexpectedly good, but are now dipping slowly.

NFC North

Predictions
1. Chicago Bears: 13-3 (1st Seed)
2. Green Bay Packers: 8-8
3. Minnesota Vikings: 7-9
4. Detroit Lions: 4-12

Actual Standings
1. Green Bay Packers: 10-1
2. Detroit Lions: 6-5
3. Minnesota Vikings: 5-6
4. Chicago Bears: 5-6

Analysis: This is the one I messed up on the most I think. I expected the Bears to be better this year. I anticipated them to have as dominant of a defense with Rex Grossman showing slight improvements. Last year he was anything but spectacular and the Bears still took the division. Brett Favre has improved his QB-ing over last season is showing signs from his peak days. He isn't trying to be fancy. He is just making great plays. He has made the Packers into one of the best teams in the NFL. The Vikings are about where I expected although I never anticipated the greatness of Adrian Peterson (too bad about his injury). People expected the Lions to do good things under Kitna's leadership. I wasn't buying it. Now I feel stupid. Although Kitna's prediction of 10-6 will most likely not hold up (I'm expecting 9-7 or 8-8) they are still a big improvement.

NFC South

Predictions
1. New Orleans Saints: 11-5 (3rd Seed)
2. Carolina Panthers: 9-7
3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 5-11
4. Atlanta Falcons: 5-11

Actual Standings
1. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 7-4
2. New Orleans Saints: 5-6
3. Carolina Panthers: 4-7
4. Atlanta Falcons: 3-8

Analysis: EVERYONE had the Saints in first. I don't blame them. Brees is still QB-ing and Deuce and Bush are still running the ball (well minus Deuce's recent injury) so what has changed? Beats me. This team is a big disappointment. I didn't expect the injury of Delhomme to occur and because of it the Panthers have really struggled. Tampa Bay has become a sleeper team under some good QB-ing. Michael Vick was the best thing about the Falcons and their struggles this season are highly anticipated.

NFC West

Predictions
1. Seattle Seahawks: 9-7 (4th Seed)
2. Arizona Cardinals: 9-7 (6th seed)
3. San Francisco 49ers: 7-9
4. St. Louis Rams: 6-10

Actual Standings
1. Seattle Seahawks: 7-4
2. Arizona Cardinals: 5-6
3. San Francisco 49ers: 3-8
4. St. Louis Rams: 2-9

Analysis: Even though the records are a little off, this is the division I think I nailed the most. Most people had the Rams winning the division or taking a wildcard and I didn't see it happening. Stephen Jackson is good, but not good enough to make this team a playoff team. Arizona was my pick for the sleeper team of the season (just squeaking bye into the playoffs). With a tough schedule for the Lions coming up this is very likely (although they need to get hot). I did expect more from the 49ers than what they are putting up. Frank Gore has been a big disappointment and Alex Smith an even bigger one (although nobody really expected much out of him). The Seahawks are where they should be. An above average team reaping the benefits of being in the worst division in football.

New Album Releases

2007-11-26T09:23:00.000-05:00

You know the deal...

Scale:
A- to A+: Universally Acclaimed

B- to B+: Overall positive reviews

C- to C+: Mixed reviews

D- to D+: Overall negative reveiws

F- to F+: Horrible

1. Holy Fuck-LP
Average Critic Score: A-
Average Fan Score: A

Scores:
Pitchfork: B+
The Onion: A-
Spin: C+
NOW Magazine: C+
New Musical Express: A

2. Levon Helm-Dirt Farmer
Average Critic Score: A-
Average Fan Score: B+

Scores:
All Music Guide: B
Rolling Stone: B
PopMatters: B
NOW Magazine: A+
Uncut: A-

3. Seal-System
Average Critic Score: B
Average Fan Score: B

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
Rolling Stone: B
PopMatters: B
Billboard: A-
Entertainment Weekly: B-

4. Efterklang-Parades
Average Critic Score: B+
Average Fan Score: B

Scores:
Pitchfork: B
PopMatters: C+
Uncut: A-
New Musical Express: B
Mojo: A-

5. The Dillinger Escape Plan
Average Critic Score: A
Average Fan Score: A-

Scores:
All Music Guide: A
PopMatters: A
Billboard: A-
The Onion: A+
Spin: B

6. Amy Winehouse-Frank
Average Critic Score: A
Average Fan Score: B

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
PopMatters: B
Entertainment Weekly: A+
The Guardian: A-
musicOMH.com: A+

7. Six Organs of Admittance-Shelter From the Ash
Average Critic Score: B-
Average Fan Score: A

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Pitchfork: C-
The Onion: B+
Spin: C+
Uncut: A-

8. Jordin Sparks-Jordin Sparks
Average Critic Score: B
Average Fan Score: B

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
Rolling Stone: B
Billboard: B
Entertainment Weekly: A-
Slant Magazine: C+

9. British Sea Power-Krankehnaus?
Average Critic Score: B+
Average Fan Score: A-

Scores:
Stylus Magazine: B-
QRO Magazine: A-
Three Imaginary Girls: B+
Rolling Stone: A-
The Tripwire: A

10. Animal Collective-Strawberry Jam
Average Critic Score: B+
Average Fan Score: A

Scores:
Pitchfork: A+
Stylus Magazine: B-
All Music Guide: A-
Rolling Stone: C+
PopMatters: A-

NFL Power Rankings Week 12

2007-11-22T13:39:00.000-05:00

A little late this week, but here they are.

1. New England Patriots
Move from Week 11: 0
Why?: This isn't even fair anymore. A 56-10 win over one of the hottest teams in football?!? I don't understand why this team has a field goal unit by the way.

2. Dallas Cowboys
Move from Week 11: 0
Why?: With all the excitement about Brady-Moss lets not forget about Romo-Owens. Tony Romo statisticaly is the 2nd best QB in the NFL and T.O. is the 2nd best receiver. This team will have no problem coasting to the Super Bowl.

3. Green Bay Packers
Move from Week 11: +1
Why?: I"m finally willing to admit that this team is the real deal. Brett Favre isn't trying to be fancy this year. He's just playing smart football. Big divison game against the Lions today.

4. Jacksonville Jaguars
Move from Week 11: +2
Why?: The Colts better watch their division lead because the Jaguars are right behind them. Although not a spectacular performance, Quinn Gray did what he needed to do when Garrard was out with an injury and now Garrard is taking over for the rest of the season which is a sure-fire playoff clinch.

5. Indianapolis Colts
Move from Week 11: -2
Why?: Yes, they won, but very sloppy. Vinaterri had missed 4 FGs stemming from the previous game, but ended up hitting two consecutive onces including the game-winner. Peyton Manning had his worst 3 game stretch in his career (even possibly toppling his anything but great rookie season). The Falcons game could be waht they need to get back on track.

6. New York Giants
Move from Week 11: +1
Why?: Their biggest win of the season. After defeating the Lions away, they now games against the Vikings, Bears, Saints, Redskins, Eagles, and Pats. Besides the Pats, these are all games they should win.

7. Pittsburgh Steelers
Move from Week 11: -2
Why?: They cannot afford to lose games against the Jets when the Browns are right on their asses.

8. Cleveland Browns
Move from Week 11: +3
Why?: Close game against the Ravens, but this team is not settling for anything less than the playoffs and with the way they have been playing this is a high probability.

9. Seattle Seahawks
Move from Week 11: +3
Why?: They look like a whole new team under the resurgence of Hasselback. They said they were going to throw the ball more and they haven't been lying. Even though the Cardinals have been improving, the Seahawks look like the probable division winners.

10. Tennessee Titans
Move from Week 11: -1
Why?: Vince Young had a great game, but the defense couldn't contain the Broncos offense. How come when Vince Young does poorly this team wins, but when he does well they lose?

11. Detroit Lions
Move from Week 11: -1
Why?: Their loss against the Giants could cost them the playoffs. The Packers game today is the final straw. If they lose this, dont' expect to see them in the playoff picture.

12. San Diego Chargers
Move from Week 11: -4
Why?: What a bipolar team. They beat the Colts, they get dominated by the Vikings. This team has been back and forth all year and it looks like they'll remain this way. However in a horrible division, its quite possible you'll see them in the postseason.

13. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Move from Week 11: +2
Why?: After much confusion in the NFC South, it looks like Tampa Bay will be the division winners.

14. Washington Redskins
Move from Week 11: -1
Why?: They lost, but it was too the NFC kings. This team, once looking like a probable playoff contender, is in a lot of trouble.

15. Buffalo Bills
Move from Week 11: -1
Why?: The Bills didn't play that bad. They just played the ridiculous Patriots. Hopefully they won't have the Colts effect and start on a downward spiral after their loss.

16. Arizona Cardinals
Move from Week 11: +3
Why?: I projected this team to be the sleeper team of the season and they very well might be at 5-5.

17. Denver Broncos
Move from Week 11: +3
Why?: After looking completely out of the picture, they have won 2 in a row and are now tied for first in their division. You could very well be seeing them in the postseason.

18. Philadelphia Eagles
Move from Week 11: +3
Why?: I still don't think they're good. They won 2 in a row, but it was against the Redskins and the horrible Dolphins. You will not be seeing them in the postseason. I guarantee it.

19. Baltimore Ravens
Move from Week 11: -3
Why?: Remember how good they were last year. I had them even winning the Super Bowl this year. Oh boy. The defense is great, but they have zero offense.

20. Houston Texans
Move from Week 11: +2
Why?: The Texans are back, but are unfortunately in the AFC South..the toughest division in football. Matt Schaub and Andre Johnson could make the rest of the season exciting to watch and hey maybe they can somehow pull off a wildcard clinch.

21. New Orleans Saints
Move from Week 11: -4
Why?: I'm not very optimistic about this team, but they have some HUGE divisional games coming up which could help them back in the playoff picture.

22. Kansas City Chiefs
Move from Week 11: -4
Why?: Losing by 3 to the Colts might look good on paper, but the Colts played a horrible game and the Chiefs couldn't take advantage of it. Although still right in the thick of the playoff picture, they won't make it.

23. Minnesota Vikings
Move from Week 11: +2
Why?: They're keeping any hopes of postseason play alive, but I think that'll all end next week against the Giants.

24. Carolina Panthers
Move from Week 11: -1
Why?: Even the 97 yr old Vinny Testevarde can't save their season.

25. Chicago Bears
Move from Week 11: -1
Why?: Did anyone really expect this team to be this bad? Yes, I never expected anything great out of the offense, but I was sure that their defense would be unstoppable. I guess I was wrong.

26. Atlanta Falcons
Move from Week 11: 0
Why?: If they want any glimmer of hope they need to take advantage of the poor playing by the Colts. A big upset against them could give this team a huge boost.

27. St. Louis Rams
Move from Week 11: +1
Why?: One of the two worst teams in football squared off and the result was a Rams victory.

28. New York Jets
Move from Week 11: +1
Why?: They're still horrible, but they pulled off an improbable win against the Steelers. To me that counts for something.

29. Cincinnati Bengals
Move from Week 11: -2
Why?: Easily the biggest disappointment of the season.

30. Oakland Raiders
Move from Week 11: 0
Why?: I had them going 2-14 at the beginning of the season, but thought I'd be wrong when they started off 2-2. Now at 2-8, it seems very possible.

31. San Francisco 49ers
Move from Week 11: 0
Why?: I'm just waiting for a Dolphins win to move this team to the last spot. This could be the worst offense in the history of football.

32. Miami Dolphins
Move from Week 11: 0
Why?: I really don't expect this team to go 0-16. In order for them to avoid this, they need to beat the Jets though. That to me is their only shot.

Lil' Romeo the next Jordan?

2007-11-20T08:55:00.000-05:00

Before I discuss the title of the post, lets look at new album releases from last week.

Scale:
A- to A+: Universally Acclaimed

B- to B+: Overall positive reviews

C- to C+: Mixed reviews

D- to D+: Overall negative reveiws

F- to F+: Horrible

1. Seether-Finding Beauty in Negative Spaces
Average Critic Score: C-
Average Fan Score: C

Scores:
Rolling Stone: D
PopMatters: C+
Billboard: A-
Sputnikmusic: F+
CD Universe: A-

2. Blanche-Little Amber Bottles
Average Critic Score: B+
Average Fan Score: B

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
The Onion: B-
Spin: C
Uncut: A-
New Musical Express: B

3. The Hives-The Black and White Album
Average Critic Score: B
Average Fan Score: A-

Scores:
Pitchfork: B-
PopMatters: B
Billboard: A-
The Onion: A-
Blender: C+

4. Puscifer-V is for Vagina
Average Critic Score: B-
Average Fan Score: B-

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
Rolling Stone: C
Billboard: D
The Onion: B-
Hartford Courant: A-

5. Celine Dion-Taking Chances
Average Critic Score: B-
Average Fan Score: B+

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
Billboard: A-
NOW Magazine: D+
Entertainment Weekly: C+
Slant Magazine: C

6. Duran Duran-Red Carpet Massacre
Average Critic Score: B-
Average Fan Score: A

Scores:
All Music Guide: B
Rolling Stone: C+
PopMatters: C+
Billboard: C+
Blender: B

7. Stars of the Lid-And Their Refinement of the Decline
Average Critic Score: A+
Average Fan Score: B+

Scores:
All Music Guide: A
Pitchfork: A
PopMatters: A
Tiny Mix Tapes: A+
musicOMH.com: A+

8. White Williams-Smoke
Average Critic Score: B+
Average Fan Score: B-

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Pitchfork: A-
Blender: C+
cokemachineglow: B-
Tiny Mix Tapes: C

9. The Killers-Sawdust
Average Critic Score: B-
Average Fan Score: B+

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
Rolling Stone: C+
Billboard: A-
New Musical Express: C+
Slant Magazine: C+

10. Alicia Keys-As I Am
Average Critic Score: B-
Average Fan Score: A-

Scores:
All Music Guide: B
Rolling Stone: C+
Billboard: A-
Blender: A-
NOW Magazine: F+

Now onto Lil' Romeo. He just signed on to play basketball for USC. I guess the song "Stomped Out" really foreshadowed what this kid wanted to do (see lyrics). In his last year in high school he averaged 13.9 points and 5.6 assists. I guess the basketball gene runs in the family. Father, Master P, had tried out for two NBA teams back in the 90s. Now his fame isn't the reason why he got recruited. One recruited made mention that even at 6'0 and 170, he is within the top 15 point guards in the country.

NFL Power Rankings-Week 11

2007-11-14T09:08:00.000-05:00

And then there was one. Miami is now the only team yet to win a game this season. Here are the power rankings going into week 11.

1. New England Patriots
Move from Week 10: 0
Why?: Duh

2. Dallas Cowboys
Move from Week 10: +1
Why?: Since I consider the Patriots in another league as everyone else, I'm going to say that the Cowboys are now #1 in the regular NFL. Big win over the Giants to have a cushy lead for the division.

3. Indianapolis Colts
Move from Week 10: -1
Why?: They almost pulled off the improbable. Down by a helluvalot with 5 interceptions by Manning (he ended up with 6) and the Colts still came within two. Two losses in a row was very unexpected by this team.

4. Green Bay Packers
Move from Week 10: 0
Why?: Couldn't move them up despite a dominant performance over the Vikings. Colts might have a worse record on paper, but they are still in my opinion, a better team.

5. Pittsburgh Steelers
Move from Week 10: +1
Why?: It's funny how much one game can affect a team. They looked like they were going to lose all game against the Browns, but managed to escape with a win. If they had lost that game I'm not sure they would have been in the top 10.

6. Jacksonville Jaguars
Move from Week 10: +3
Why?: Why the big surge in the rankings? They won the biggest game of the season without Dave Garrard. Now that he's coming back I sense an easy wild card clinch by this team (maybe even the division..who knows).

7. New York Giants
Move from Week 10: -2
Why?: Not a horrible performane against the Cowboys, but not very good either. If the Giants win next week against the Lions, they'll definitely make the playoffs. If not, you might see a repeat of last season sans a playoff birth.

8. San Diego Chargers
Move from Week 10: +4
Why?: You know what? Despite losing horribly two weeks ago to the Vikings, they pulled off a win against the Colts. I believe that loss to the Vikings was a huge wake up call and expect them to run away with this division.

9. Tennessee Titans
Move from Week 10: -2
Why?: They lost a huge game against the Jags. That being said, if the playoffs were decided right now they'd still clinch. Titans are performing well despite a mediocre showing from Vince Young. If he gets back on track this team will be fine.

10. Detroit Lions
Move from Week 10: -2
Why?: They had a chance to pull to 7-2 with a game against the Cards, but instead got their asses handed to them. They need to bring their A game against the Giants next week or the playoffs might not look like such a sure thing anymore.

11. Cleveland Browns
Move from Week 10: -1
Why?: Poor Browns. They had a huge lead against their division rivals and ended up blowing it. It's interesting to see if this team is going to recover from this big loss.

12. Seattle Seahawks
Move from Week 10: +2
Why?: They started throwing the ball and it really payed off. They absolutely destroyed the 49ers and any chance that team had of making a comeback in the division. This, in my opinion, was the best game the Seahawks had played all year.

13. Washington Redskins
Move from Week 10: -2
Why?: After looking like a probably playoff contender with the Giants, they are slowly slipping away. I really don't think this team has a shot at it despite being only game back. They can't pull off the division wins they desperately need.

14. Buffalo Bills
Move from Week 10: +4
Why?: They looked like they were going to hand Miami their first win, but instead escaped with a win. Winners of 5 in a row, but don't expect that to last with a game against the Pats next week.

15. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Move from Week 10: +1
Why?: The Bucs need to take advantage of the Panthers and the Saints losing for a shot at the division. It's going to come down to the wire in my opinion.

16. Baltimore Ravens
Move from Week 10: -3
Why?: I like their impression of the 49ers offense. It was quite good. Well the performance wasn't good, but their impression was. Defense actually played quite well (only holding the Bengals to field goals), but the Bengals ended up kicking 7-7 with field goals and the Ravens couldn't capitilize on offense.

17. New Orleans Saints
Move from Week 10: -2
Why?: Really Saints? You have a shot at the division after a horrible start and you lose to the Rams.

18. Kansas City Chiefs
Move from Week 10: -1
Why?: This team can't afford to lose divisional games to the Broncos especially when the Chargers beat the Colts. Their playoff hopes to me are done.

19. Arizona Cardinals
Move from Week 10: +3
Why?: Nobody is really paying attention to this, but the Cardinals are only one game out of first. Yes it is the worst division in football, but the Cardinals could potentially take it.

20. Denver Broncos
Move from Week 10: +4
Why?: Big win over the Chiefs. However, I can't move them into the teens yet due to every other game this season.

21. Philadelphia Eagles
Move from Week 10: +4
Why?: A huge win over the Redskins makes this team not out of the playoffs yet. I dont' think this team is good at all nor do they have a shot in my opinion, but hey with the way this season has been so far you never know.

22. Houston Texans
Move from Week 10: -1
Why?: This team really isn't that bad especially compared to last season or the year before. They just happen to be stuck in the hardest division in football.

23. Carolina Panthers
Move from Week 10: -4
Why?: While tied for first, this team is in a lot of trouble. They lost to a lowly Falcons and their QB situation is a mess.

24. Chicago Bears
Move from Week 10: -1
Why?: Ok they won, but I'm still moving them down. You shouldn't have a nail biter game against the Raiders.

25. Minnesota Vikings
Move from Week 10: -5
Why?: They are in a lot of trouble with Adrian Peterson getting injured. They cannot win without the guy.

26. Atlanta Falcons
Move from Week 10: 0
Why?: They are now one win away from meeting my expectations for their season. With two wins in a row, the Falcons are actually on a streak now!

27. Cincinnati Bengals
Move from Week 10: 0
Why?: Them and the Falcons should have moved up, but I couldn't place them above any of these teams yet. With Carson Palmer as your QB you shouldn't be winning by kicking 7 field goals and scoring zero touchdowns.

28. St. Louis Rams
Move from Week 10: +4
Why?: Why am I moving them up this much? They are looking like a decent team again. They didn't win their first game by horrible playing by the Saints or any luck. They actually looked good. They might be back on track (although too little too late).

29. New York Jets
Move from Week 10: 0
Why?: I'm a Giants fan and while I already hate the Jets, I'm now officially embarrassed to have this team play in our stadium.

30. Oakland Raiders
Move from Week 10: -2
Why?: The first time all season they are ranked this low. After starting a promising 2-2 they are now 2-7. This is the Raiders we remember from last year.

31. San Fransisco 49ers
Move from Week 10: +1
Why?: If the Dolphins would have won this team would be ranked last. Their first two wins of the season helped saved this team from a last place ranking. They are horrible. Zero offense and not a great defense either.

32. Miami Dolphins
Move from Week 10: -1
Why?: Chatman will be the reason they win their first game, but it might not happen for a while after blowing a lead against the Bills.

Rookies of the Year,Perfect..Well..Almost

2007-11-13T17:48:00.000-05:00

So yesterday it was announced that the AL Rookie of the Year was Dustin Pedroia and the NL Rookie of the Year was Ryan Braun. In my opinion both were great choices.

Lets analyze the AL first. Pedroia batted .317 which ranked number 10 for the AL League Leaders. This was after a horrific April as well. He absolutely shattered the other competition which really didn't surprise me. However what I was disappointed about was where Okajima was placed in the running. Since when is a middle reliever seen as not important. Okajima was aquired with the deal the Sox did to get Dice-K and Okajima, in my opinion, was the better of the two aquisitions. Dice-K ended up being placed 4th in the running and Okajima ended up being placed 6th. I'm not saying Dice-K was bad. He was actually pretty good, but for what he was supposed to be he was a big disappointment. First lets look at ERA. Okajima had a 2.22 ERA versus Dice-K's ERA of 4.40. Yes, Dice-K pitched 135 more innings, but in order for Okajima to match Dice-K's ERA he would have needed 87 more ER giving up in those 135 innings. Not very likely. His K/BB is also significantly better (3.71 versus Dice-K's 2.51).

Now onto the NL. I would have thrown a shit-fit if Tulowitski won over Braun. Yes defense is a very important part of the game, but Ryan Braun's numbers were astounding as a regular player and even more astounding being done as a rookie. Compare his stats to A-Rod when he came up in May and he was on par with him the entire way (he was actually higher in batting average). Troy put up phenominal numbers and in any other year he would have probably would have been rookie of the yar, but he just doesn't compare to Braun. I agree with the top three ranked players. Hunter Pence was third and probably could have been second if not for an injury.

Stayed tuned for the CY Young and MVP.

New Album Releases

2007-11-11T20:25:00.000-05:00

Some highly anticipated releases last week...

Scale:
A- to A+: Universally Acclaimed

B- to B+: Overall positive reviews

C- to C+: Mixed reviews

D- to D+: Overall negative reveiws

F- to F+: Horrible

1. Shocking Pinks-Shocking Pinks
Average Critic Score: B+
Average Fan Score: B+

Scores:
All Music Guide: B
Pitchfork: A-
Spin: C+
Uncut: C+
Mojo: A-

2. Jill Scott-The Real Thing: Words and Sounds Vol. 3
Average Critic Score: B+
Average Fan Score: A+

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Rolling Stone: B
The Guardian: A-
Slant Magazine: C+
Amazon.com: A-

3. Castanets-In the Vines
Average Critic Score: B+
Average Fan Score: C+

Scores:
All Music Guide: B
Pitchfork: B-
PopMatters: A-
NOW Magazine: A-
Sylus Magazine: B+

4. Backstreet Boys-Unbreakable
Average Critic Score: C
Average Fan Score: B

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
Rolling Stone: D+
Billboard: A-
The Onion: C-
NOW Magazine: F+

5. iLiKETRAiNS-Elegies to Lessons Learnt
Average Critic Score: B
Average Fan Score: A-

Scores:
New Musical Express: B
Mojo: A-
Stylus Magazine: C-
Drowned in Sound: A-
No Ripcord: A-

6. Sigur Ros-Hvarf/Heim
Average Critic Score: B
Average Fan Score: B+

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
Pitchfork: B+
The Onion: A-
New Musical Express: B
Dusted Magazine: C+

7. Jay-Z-American Gangster
Average Critic Score: A
Average Fan Score: A

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Rolling Stone: A-
Pitchfork: A
PopMatters: A-
Billboard: A-

8. Angie Stone-The Art of Love and War
Average Critic Score: B-
Average Fan Score: C

Scores:
PopMatters: C+
Billboard: A-
Mojo: D+
The Guardian: C+
Amazon.com: A-

9. Chris Brown-Exclusive
Average Critic Score: B
Average Fan Score: A+

Scores:
Rolling Stone: B
Billboard: A-
Entertainment Weekly: B-
Slant Magazine: D+
The New York Times: B

10. Angels & Airwaves-I-Empire
Average Critic Score: C+
Average Fan Score: B+

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
Rolling Stone: C
Billboard: A-
The Onion: B+
New Musical Express: D

NFL Power Rankings Week 10

2007-11-06T09:02:00.000-05:00

Patriots win the game of the century! Here is a look at the power rankings heading into week 10.

1. New England Patriots
Move from Week 9: 0
Why?: I honestly don't know how people are STILL ranking the Colts ahead
of them. Yes, they barely won the game on Sunday, but they won an
away game against the undefeated Colts. This team is going to coast
the rest of the season.

2. Indianapolis Colts
Move from Week 9: 0
Why?: If there was a 1.5 I'd move this team there. They were the only team
to give the Patriots a real scare (minus a few brief seconds by the
Cowboys). They'll end up with a 13-3 or 14-2 record which will be
good enough for a 1st round bye.

3. Dallas Cowboys
Move from Week 9: 0
Why?: I laugh at all of you who say that the Eagles would beat them. For
the last time, THE EAGLES AREN'T GOOD. The Cowboys on the other hand
are continuing to prove they deserve the role of the NFC Kings.

4. Green Bay Packers
Move from Week 9: 0
Why?: Here comes the broken record again...This time always keeps it close,
but manages to find ways to pull off wins. Thats the most important
thing and that is why they are 7-1.

5. New York Giants
Move from Week 9: 0
Why?: A huge game next week against their division rivals, the Cowboys.
With a win they could pull into a tie for first in the division.
Lets see if they can take advantage of their 6-2 record this year or
blow it after the bye again.

6. Pittsburgh Steelers
Move from Week 9: +1
Why?: A Monday night blowout by the Steelers. I didn't expect the Ravens
offense to do anything productive against them, but I did expect
somewhat of a defensive effort. The Steelers absolutely blew them
out of the water.

7. Tennessee Titans
Move from Week 9: +1
Why?: Another surprisingly mediocre performance from Vince Young, but the
defense was able to hold the Panthers in check resulting in a 6-2
record for this team.

8. Detroit Lions
Move from Week 9: +2
Why?: Can people start believing me now when I say that this team is the
real deal? Not only did they beat the Broncos, they DESTROYED them
44-7.

9. Jacksonville Jaguars
Move from Week 9: -3
Why?: Couldn't expect this team to keep winning under Quinn Gray's QB-ing
(this is despite having his best game). A "playoff on-the-line" game
against the Titans could spell trouble for this team.

10. Cleveland Browns
Move from Week 9: +7
Why?: I told you I'd skyrocket this team if they won. They almost
couldn't pull it off, but they found a way to win. I can't believe
I'm actually saying that the Bronws are the real deal.

11. Washington Redskins
Move from Week 9: +1
Why?: A sloppy OT win against the horrible Jets, but if you win a game in
this league, chances are you're moving up.

12. San Diego Chargers
Move from Week 9: -3
Why?: They got destroyed against a mediocre Vikings team. Fortunately for
this team they might make the playoffs due to the division they are
in.

13. Baltimore Ravens
Move from Week 9: -2
Why?: This team is on the verge of having no playoff hopes after getting
dominated against the Steelers last night.

14. Seattle Seahawks
Move from Week 9: -1
Why?: This is the first time all year I'm saying that a loss to the Browns
doesn't move you down too far in the rankings.

15. New Orleans Saints
Move from Week 9: +3
Why?: Sunday's game was a huge win for the Saints. Until then they were
only beating the teams they should have been beating, but they
destroyed the Jaguars and are now looking like playoff contenders.

16. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Move from Week 9: -1
Why?: I only am moving them down because I couldn't put them above anybody
else. They surpassed their win total already from last year which
really isn't much of an accomplishment.

17. Kansas City Chiefs
Move from Week 9: -3
Why?: They lost just like everyone else who lost to the Packers. They
couldn't hold onto a lead and ended up barely losing.

18. Buffalo Bills
Move from Week 9: +2
Why?: This team is standing at a surprising 4-4 record after beating the
Bengals on Sunday. Yes, they are beating mediocre at best teams,
but this could give them the confidence they need to finish the
season strong.

19. Carolina Panthers
Move from Week 9: -3
Why?: They are in a lot of trouble especially with the Buccs and Saints
winning on Sunday. David Carr's injury can actually help this
team. I'd rather have my mom QB then him.

20. Minnesota Vikings
Move from Week 9: +5
Why?: Whooooa Adrian Peterson. A rookie set the record for the most
rushing yards in a game. Who cares if they don't have a QB. Adrian
more than makes up for it.

21. Houston Texans
Move from Week 9: +3
Why?: The bottom feeders in the AFC South are 4-5. This team is in the
toughest division in football so their 4-5 record is better than it
looks.

22. Arizona Cardinals
Move from Week 9: -3
Why?: From potential sleeper team to playing like they are practically
dead. They have lost 3 in a row and are slowly slipping away from
any playoff hopes.

23. Chicago Bears
Move from Week 9: 0
Why?: I won't move them down on their bye because I feel bad. They'll
give me plenty of reasons to move them down when they return.

24. Denver Broncos
Move from Week 9: -3
Why?: After a sudden surge, this team got spanked by the Lions. Goodbye
playoffs.

25. Philadelphia Eagles
Move from Week 9: -3
Why?: I've said this in the Cowboys rankings and I've said this in the
past, but THE EAGLES AREN'T GOOD. They aren't playoff contenders
and they'll be in last place in the division. Stop thinking
they are going to win games!

26. Atlanta Falcons
Move from Week 9: +2
Why?: I don't want to put them here, but everyone else lost. They'll
drop after their next game.

27. Cincinnati Bengals
Move from Week 9: -1
Why?: Put a second fork into them. This team is beyond done. A new word
needs to be invented to describe their playoff hopes.

28. Oakland Raiders
Move from Week 9: -1
Why?: Losers of 4 straight in a row, the Raiders are reverting to their
old tricks of not being able to win more than 3 games a season.

29. New York Jets
Move from Week 9: +1
Why?: Ok I'm moving them after losing, but they kept it close against
the Skins and lost in OT. Plus Clemens didn't look that bad.

30. San Fransisco 49ers
Move from Week 9: -1
Why?: They couldn't beat a horrible Falcons team. They have the worst
offense in the league. I'm moving this team in further down if
either the Rams or Dolphins win.

31. Miami Dolphins
Move from Week 9: 0
Why?: Ronnie Brown is out, but Chatman looked great last week. Lets
see if he can carry this team to their first win.

32. St. Louis Rams
Move from Week 9: 0
Why?: They're playing New Orlenas away next week. That's a guaranteed
loss. This team is like the fat nerdy kid in gym class who always
got picked last except slightly worse.

New Album Releases

2007-11-05T09:31:00.000-05:00

Something new this week. I'm still including the average score for about 15 music critics, BUT now I'm also adding what the fans think. A lot of times there will be a CD that the fans will LOVE, but the critics will hate and vice versa so what I did is I took the average score from about 50 music fans from metacritic, amazon.com, and forums and whatnot and came up with an average score for them as well for each of the new releases.

Scale:
A- to A+: Universally Acclaimed

B- to B+: Overall positive reviews

C- to C+: Mixed reviews

D- to D+: Overall negative reveiws

F- to F+: Horrible

1. Stereophonics-Pull the Pin
Average Critic Score: C-
Average Fan Score: B+

Scores:
Spin: C+
New Musical Express: B
The Guardian: D+
Drowned in Sound: D+
Dot Music: D+

2. Black Dice-Load Blown
Average Critic Score: B
Average Fan Score: A

Scores:
Pitchfork: B+
PopMatters: A-
The Onion: B+
Blender: B
New Musical Express: D+

3. Robert Plant and Alison Krauss-Raising Sand
Average Critic Score: A
Average Fan Score: A

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Billboard: A-
Blender: A-
Entertainment Weekly: A+
Mojo: A+

4. Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings-100 Days, 100 Nights
Average Critic Score: A-
Average Fan Score: A-

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Rolling Stone: C+
Pitchfork: A-
PopMatters: B
The Onion: A-

5. Buck 65-Situation
Average Critic Score: B-
Average Fan Score: A-

Scores:
Rolling Stone: B
Billboard: A-
Blender: B
NOW Magazine: A-
Mojo: C+

6. Britney Spears-Blackout
Average Critic Score: B-
Average Fan Score: B-

Scores:
All Music Guide: B
Rolling Stone: B
PopMatters: D+
Billboard: C
Entertainment Weekly: A-

7. Avenged Sevenfold-Avenged Sevenfold
Average Critic Score: B-
Average Fan Score: B+

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
Rolling Stone: C
Billboard: A-
The Onion: B+
Blender: C+

8. Say Anything-In Defense of the Genre
Average Critic Score: B+
Average Fan Score: A

Scores:
All Music Guide: B
Rolling Stone: C+
PopMatters: C+
The Onion: A-
Entertainment Weekly: A+

9. Prefuse 73-Preparations
Average Critic Score: B-
Average Fan Score: D+

Scores:
Pitchfork: C
PopMatters: C+
Billboard: B
NOW Magazine: A-
Spin: B

10. The Eagles-Long Road Out of Eden
Average Critic Score: B
Average Fan Score: B-

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Rolling Stone: B
Billboard: A-
Uncut: A-
The Guardian: F+

NFL Power Rankings-Week 9

2007-11-01T09:18:00.001-04:00

The most anticipated game of the season (Patriots vs. Colts) is next Sunday. I'm predicting a 10 point win by the Patriots (34-24 to be exact), but lets save that for a future post. Here are the rankings going into week 9.

1. New England Patriots
Move from Week 8: 0
Why?: There has been many complaints that the Patriots were being "unfair" in their 52-7 win over the Redskins by not taking out Brady earlier and by going for it on 4th with a substantial lead. My reaction? Get over it. If you're getting beaten that badly do something about it. Don't use the Patriots as your scapegoat for not being able to stack up against them.

2. Indianapolis Colts
Move from Week 8: 0
Why?: They could be seeing a number 1 ranking for the first time this year if they defeat the Patriots this Sunday.

3. Dallas Cowboys
Move from Week 8: 0
Why?: Tony Romo just signed a huge contract with this team. They are hoping he'll be the next Troy Aikman. Big game against a struggeling Eagles next week (they've been 1-7 against them out of their last 8).

4. Green Bay Packers
Move from Week 8: 0
Why?: I've said this every time, but this team just keeps finding ways to win games that they shouldn't win. They kept it extra close against the Broncos winning it on an OT touchdown. Honestly, if this team was a hair worse they could easily be 1-6 instead of 6-1.

5. New York Giants
Move from Week 8: 0
Why?: People have been giving them a lot of crap for barely beating the Dolphins in London, but the whole game was unfair (for both teams) and I couldn't move this team down no matter how close the game was. The field conditions were horrendous and I'm sure both teams suffered some jet lag. If this was in Dolphins territory the Giants would have won by more.

6. Jacksonville Jaguars
Move from Week 8: 0
Why?: I'm impressed that this team managed to win a game against a decent team without Garrard. If you can win games with Quinn Gray then you have nothing to worry about.

7. Pittsburgh Steelers
Move from Week 8: 0
Why?: After losing to a struggeling Broncos team, they pull off a big win against an een more struggeling Bengals. Big division games against the Browns and Ravens coming up.

8. Tennessee Titans
Move from Week 8: 0
Why?: The top 8 teams remain the same (they all won or were on a bye). Vince Young though needs to get this offense rolling more.

9. San Diego Chargers
Move from Week 8: +1
Why?: Its easy to forget about the Chargers when the Patriots and Colts exist, but this team is red hot. They not only have been winning, they have been dominating.

10. Detroit Lions
Move from Week 8: +4
Why?: 5-2! That is the Lions record this year. I'm very impressed by this team. Not only that, they are undefeated against their division.

11. Baltimore Ravens
Move from Week 8: +1
Why?: Their season is on the line with a HUGE game against the Steelers.

12. Washington Redskins
Move from Week 8: -3
Why?: They looked horrible against the Patriots, but I guess any team who plays the Patriots looks pretty bad.

13. Seattle Seahawks
Move from Week 8: +2
Why?: This is the #2 game I'm excited about next week. Yes you heard right. Them and the Browns are facing off which will prove whether or not Seattle deserves to win the division that they practically already clinched and whether or not the Browns are the real deal.

14. Kansas City Chiefs
Move from Week 8: +2
Why?: Remember when this team was ranked among the bottom of the pack with the Rams and Dolphins? No more. This team is 4-1 after starting the season 0-2.

15. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Move from Week 8: -4
Why?: Yes they only lost by 1 point, but this team is in a lot of trouble. After looking like probably playoff contenders they are 4-4 and still missing a star RB.

16. Carolina Panthers
Move from Week 8: -3
Why?: After starting the game strong against the Colts this team absolutely fell apart. The inability for David Carr to be a starting QB is showing.

17. Cleveland Browns
Move from Week 8: +1
Why?: This team is like one of those PG movies where you have a big underdog who comes against the odds and wins. The Browns are supposed to be bad. It is their trademark. They are now sitting at a surprising 4-3 and are playing a huge game against the Seahawks. If they win, I'm going to SKYROCKET this team in the rankings.

18. New Orleans Saints
Move from Week 8: +2
Why?: They are winning the games they are supposed to be winning. That being said, that equals a 3 game winning streak and they are now only one game behind the Panthers.

19. Arizona Cardinals
Move from Week 8: -2
Why?: This team suffered a huge loss two weeks ago by missing a PAT. A taem like this can't afford to make mistakes like that.

20. Buffalo Bills
Move from Week 8: +3
Why?: They win like the Ravens win. The team kicks a few field goals, struggles a bit on offense, but manages to pull of a win. They still have won 3 out of their last 4 (the only loss was a battle against the Cowboys). Hey they even won last week under the QB-ing of JP Losman. Anything is possible!

21. Denver Broncos
Move from Week 8: -2
Why?: Even though they lost last week to the Packers I wouldn't be too discouraged about this team. They won the week before against an exceptional Steelers team and they lost to a 5-1, at the time, Packers team in OT.

22. Philadelphia Eagles
Move from Week 8: +2
Why?: Don't get too excited Eagles fans. They beat the Vikings, but I will guarantee a loss to the Cowboys next week even though they've won 7 out of their last 8 against them.

23. Chicago Bears
Move from Week 8: -2
Why?: Brian Griese had a QB rating of 38.3 on Sunday. Do I need to say anything else?

24. Houston Texans
Move from Week 8: -2
Why?: I remember through week 4 or 5 how I thought this team finally had a legite shot of at least a wildcard. Since then, the team just can't seem to win games.

25. Minnesota Vikings
Move from Week 8: 0
Why?: Yeah they lost to the Eagles last week, but I can't move this team down (I can't move them up either). Look at the remaining 7 teams and can you honestly say that any of them deserve to be ahead of the Vikings?

26. Cincinnati Bengals
Move from Week 8: 0
Why?: Oh boy. They are playing a pretty hot Bills team next Sunday. Looking at the Bengals schedule prior to this season's start I would have said this was a gimme game for Bengals, but now I'm almost leaning towards the opposite.

27. Oakland Raiders
Move from Week 8: 0
Why?: It's unfortunate that after a decent start this team is now sitting at 2-5. What is even more frustrating is that they keep it close, but their offense just can't seem to do enough to win games.

28. Atlanta Falcons
Move from Week 8: 0
Why?: As you'll see, just like the top 8 teams have remained the same in the rankings, the same goes for the bottom teams. Not much new to say about this team. They still suck and they'll suck for the rest of the season.

29. San Francisco 49ers
Move from Week 8: 0
Why?: They have lost 5 straight and now are playing their next 5 games on the road. This can spell a 2-10 record.

30. New York Jets
Move from Week 8: 0
Why?: Smart move to bench Pennington. That doesn't mean it'll have any real positive impact on this team..for this season anyway.

31. Miami Dolphins
Move from Week 8: 0
Why?: Ronnie Brown who? Chatman was playing in London like the playoffs were on the line. He might have the ability to bring this team to a 2-14 record!

32. St. Louis Rams
Move from Week 8: 0
Why?: They are showing signs of life on offense (although very slowly). Steven Jackson should be fully recovered after the bye week. It is possible you'll finally see this team win a couple of games.

Sox Win, Yanks Lose

2007-10-31T08:49:00.000-04:00

I apologize for the delay of this post. I was going to write this entry yesterday, but since I make enough from this site a week to only buy a meal at McDonalds (no way I could even super size it) I have to do the 9-5 gig. That being said...lets move on to some baseball news (might be the last of MLB news you'll hear in a while).

The Red Sox are your 2007 World Series Champions by performing a 4-0 sweep over the seemingly unbeatable Rockies. Before entering this series I wasn't going to touch any predictions with a 10 foot poll. How would you predict this? The Rockies have won 20 out of their last 21 games (correct me if I'm wrong..it might be 21 out of 22) and swept both the Phillies and the Diamondabacks coming into the World Series. The Red Sox are Red Hot winning 3 straight against a good Indians team after being down 3-1. While I'm surprised that the Red Sox swept, I'm not really surprised that they won big.

The bats of the Sox had been absolutely dominant prior to the series and there was no way that the Rockies hitters would have been able to stack up against them. Matt Holliday wasn't performing amazingly (although he did hit a few homers). The Rockies pitching had been phenominal in the playoffs, but it hadn't been phenominal during the season. Red Sox pitching had been consistently good however. The only exception for the Rockies pitching was Francis who had been good throughout the season. However, he's facing off against Beckett and even though the Rockies had beaten him during the season there was no way they were going to beat him during the playoffs. Lets not forget the 2nd part of the 1-2 punch with Papelbon who just can't blow a save if he tried. They needed to hope for wins off of Schilling, Dice-K (their best bet in my opinion) and Lester and they couldn't even pull off one.

I forgot to mention that at the beginning of hte year I made a bet with my friend that if the Mets won the World Series he'd have to give me $100 and if the Sox won I'd have to give him $100 (another reason I have to do the 9-5 gig!)

Lets move on to the Yanks. I smell a late 80s slide coming. Their team is on the brink of falling apart (it already has to a certain extent). Steinbrenner (both of them) don't realize how important of an asset Torre was to the Yankees. He was the glue holding everything together and now that he's gone, the Yankees are slowly coming apart. Money bags A-Rod opted out of his rockstar quality contract because he's uncertain of the direction the team is heading in (especially whether or not the players are staying). When a player says that you know other players are leaving (he's just obviously not allowed to say anything). A-Rod leaving is enough to damage the Yankees but it's not going to stop there. There is a high probabily that he will go to an AL team (most likely the Tigers) that is a playoff contender and you know that unless he pulls a Griffey, his bat is not going to be stopped.

Then you got the rest of the team. Between Pettite, Rivera, and Posada I guarantee at least one of them leaves. For the Yanks sake they better pray that it is Pettite. While a big part of the team, he can easily be replaced with another great pitcher. Rivera did slump a little last season, but he is still a solid closer and he plays the role as the unofficial coach of the Yanks. The Yanks need Rivera on their team. Lastly, Posada is arguably the best catcher in the league and is irreplacable. I don't think the Yankees would want to start Molina and whoever they would aquire wouldn't stack up to Jorge.

I didn't even mention Girardi, but that won't really make a difference. He's a great coach who will do what he can, but the team won't be as good. Yes I'm sure Cashman will aquire some great big named players, but the team chemistry will be off. The players won't look up to Girardi like they did Torre. The players won't have A-Rod, the probable AL MVP, and they are likely to lose even more players. The Red Sox on the other hand are a solid team who will be solid next year. They really built a great team and will easily win the division. Now the Yankees would have to pray for a wildcard because thats the only thing they'd get and between the Indians and Tigers it won't look probable. This is true especially if A-Rod goes to the Tigers. Think about that team. A-Rod, Ordonez, Polanco, Granderson.....holy shit.

Then again...the Yankees always find a way to pull it off so we'll see what happens.

New Album Releases

2007-10-29T08:52:00.000-04:00

There were some good album releases last week. Here are some of them along with their average score and some individual scores.

Scale:
A- to A+: Universally Acclaimed

B- to B+: Overall positive reviews

C- to C+: Mixed reviews

D- to D+: Overall negative reveiws

F- to F+: Horrible

1. Ben Lee-Ripe
Average Score: B-

Scores:
All Music Guide: B
Spin: C
Uncut: A-
Q Magazine: C+
Amazon.com: B

2. Melissa Ethridge-The Awakening
Average Score: B-

Scores:
All Music Guide: B
Rolling Stone: B
Entertainment Weekly: B-
Los Angeles Times: D+
Boston Globe: B

3. Babyface-Playlist
Average Score: B

Scores:
All Music Guide: B
PopMatters: C+
Billboard: B
Entertainment Weekly: B+
Los Angeles Times: A

4. Neil Young-Chrome Dreams II
Avearge Score: B+

Scores:
Rolling Stone: C+
Pitchfork: C+
PopMatters: C+
Billboard: B
Entertainment Weekly: A-

5. Babyshambles-Shotter's Nation
Average Score: B

Scores:
Rolling Stone: C+
Pitchfork: D+
PopMatters: B
Billboard: C+
Blender: B

6. Coheed and Cambria-Good Apollo,I'm Burning Star IV, Volume Two: No World for Tomorrow
Average Score: B

Scores:
All Music Guide: B
Rolling Stone: B
The Onion: B-
Blender: B
Spin: D+

7. Serj Takian-Elect the Dead (Lead singer of System of a Down)
Average Score: B

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Rolling Stone: C
Billboard: A-
The Onion: B-
Blender: A-

8. Carrie Underwood-Carnival Ride
Average Score: B-

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Entertainment Weekly: A-
Slant Magazine: D+
The New York Times: B
Hartford Courant: D+

9. Ween-La Cucaracha
Average Score: B+

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Pitchfork: B-
PopMatters: B
Billboard: A-
The Onion: A+

10. R.E.M.-R.E.M. Live
Average Score: B-

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
Pitchfork: C+
Billboard: B
New Musical Express: B
Entertainment Weekly: C

NFL Power Rankings-Week 8

2007-10-23T08:54:00.000-04:00

The Patriots and Colts continue to remain a dominate team while the Rams and Dolphins are..well...the Rams and Dolphins. Here are the power rankings going into week 8.

1. New England Patriots
Move from Week 7: 0
Why?-This isn't even fair anymore. They were leading by the half 42-7 agains the Dolphins with Brady throwing for 5 touchdown passes. This team is having all sorts of fun.

2. Indianapolis Colts
Move from Week 7: 0
Why?-They won a big game last night against the Jags. This game was a completely different than last year's faceoff due to the return of Barry Sanders and it showed. I'm very excited about their game against the Patriots.

3. Dallas Cowboys
Move from Week 7: 0
Why?-The game against the Vikings was a lot tougher than people realize, but the Cowboys were able to control Peterson enough to win the game. Tony Romo is still looking like an easy Pro-Bowl candidate and the Cowboys are still looking like the kings of the NFC.

4. Green Bay Packers
Move from Week 7: +2
Why?-The only reason they moved up during their bye week because there were a lot of losses. The Packers look like the real deal, but they face road trips against the Chiefs and Broncos. If they win those expect them to coast to the playoffs.

5. New York Giants
Move from Week 7: +3
Why?-After struggeling in the first two games in the season, this team has been looking great in their last 5. The defense is one of the best in the leagues right now and Eli isn't looking so horrible. Brandon Jacobs is also proving himself fit for the roll of the "go to guy" in terms of running the ball. They should have an easy game next Sunday against the Dolphins in London.

6. Jacksonville Jaguars
Move from Week 7: -2
Why?-Can't really move this team too far down yet. Their loss last night came to a dominating Colts team and they had to take out a very good Garrard in the beginning of the game due to an injury and replace him a not-so-good Gray. If Garrard is expected to miss a fe games it can really hurt this team.

7. Pittsburgh Steelers
Move from Week 7: -3
Why?-I really expected this team to dominate against the Broncos, but they lost on a last second field goal. A game in Cincinnati will be tougher than people anticipate for this Steelers team.

8. Tennessee Titans
Move from Week 7: +1
Why?-They almost blew a 25 point lead against the Titans, but managed to hang on to the win with a last second field goal kick (this seems to be a theme this year). This team is pulling off wins without Vince Young and should pull to a 5-2 record when they face the Raiders next week.

9. Washington Redskins
Move from Week 7: +2
Why?-A blotched PAT by the Cards was the difference between a win and an OT decision for this game. The Skins like to keep it close, but they manage to pull off the win which is the most important thing.

10. San Diego Chargers
Move from Week 7: +2
Why?-Another team moving up during their bye week due to other teams' losses. This team is red hot right now and that is dangerous for everybody else. They'll be extra confident with the new addition of Chris Chambers.

11. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Move from Week 7: -4
Why?-They lost to a streaky Lions team where Garcia put up some good numbers, but had two crucial fumbles. This team can't afford to lose games like these.

12. Baltimore Ravens
Move from Week 7: -2
Why?-The Bills might be rejuvinated under Edwards leadership, but that is no excuse for the Ravens to lose to them. However, this team has been overrated the entire year. Their defense is excellent usually, but they have zero offense.

13. Carolina Panthers
Move from Week 7: 0
Why?-A loss by the Bucs has moved this team into first place on their own during their bye week. I'm curious to see if this team can keep it up with the elderly Testaverde and the anything but good David Carr in the QB role.

14. Detroit Lions
Move from Week 7: +1
Why?-They might streaky, but they are only trailing a very good Packers team by one game in the division. The Packers face a semi-tough road schedule coming up and the Lions face a not-so-good Bears team next week which means this team be on top in the NFC North.

15. Seattle Seahawks
Move from Week 7: -1
Why?-They had a field day against a horrible Rams team on Sunday. The only reason I'm not moving this team up is because Alexander is still continuing to struggle. His needs to break out of his slump in order for this team to have any shot of a good season.

16. Kansas City Chiefs
Move from Week 7: +1
Why?-Slowly, but surely this team is climbing up in the rankings. Expect this team to continue to climb as long as LJ keeps having good games.

17. Arizona Cardinals
Move from Week 7: -1
Why?-If you looked at the stats and not the score of Sunday's game against the Skins you would say that this team dominated. Well that wasn't the case. A botched PAT, a failed two point conversion, and a 55 yard field goal miss could all be the reasons this team doesn't make the playoffs.

18. Cleveland Browns
Move from Week 7: 0
Why?-I'm definitely routing for this team to destroy the Rams next week. They have the potential to be above .500 for the first time since god knows when.

19. Denver Broncos
Move from Week 7: +1
Why?-An impressive win over a very good Steelers team. At 3-3 this team doesn't look so out of the runnings anymore.

20. New Orleans Saints
Move from Week 7: +5
Why?-These are the games the Saints need to win and they're pulling it off (although barely). Next week against a struggeling 49ers team is just what this team needs to get back on track.

21. Chicago Bears
Move from Week 7: +3
Why?-This spot was a 3-way toss up for me between the Bears and the next two teams in the rankings. The win over the Eagles was the deciding factor though. A 21-yard pass to Hester set up the game winning touchdown. This team is starting to get it, give the ball to Hester and everything will be ok!

22. Houston Texans
Move from Week 7: -3
Why?-I'll give them credit for pulling off a great comeback against the Titans, but they couldn't hold onto it so here they are. This team doesn't deserve to move down 3 spots for their loss, but last week was a crazy week so I had no choice.

23. Buffalo Bills
Move from Week 7: +4
Why?-Edwards is having some start. Since taking over Losman as QB he is 2-1 with a last second loss against the Cowboys. Lets see if this guy can keep it up.

24. Philadelphia Eagles
Move from Week 7: -3
Why?-Everyone (including all the "experts") keep saying how tight the NFC East is going to be with EVERY team. Apparently they don't realize that the Eagles are in this division. They are 2-4 this season with an ugly win over the Jets and one good win over the Lions. With the way the Cowboys, Giants, and Redskins are playing this team has absolutely no shot.

25. Minnesota Vikings
Move from Week 7: -3
Why?-Just like the Texans, it is unfair to move this team down 3 spots after Sunday's loss to a very good Cowboys team, but I couldn't put them any higher than this right now. As long as Peterson stays healthy I expect this team to move back up.

26. Cincinnati Bengals
Move from Week 7: +1
Why?-I'll give them a pity move up after a win against the Jets although they really don't deserve it that much. I see some rankings that moved this team as high as five spots after their win against the Jets. I can't do it. Somebody had to win the game and it was just the better of two horrible teams.

27. Oakland Raiders
Move from Week 7: -4
Why?-Ah Oakland. After being first in the division two weeks ago they are now dead last with two straight losses. Still a better team than last year, but not good enough to be playoff contenders.

28. Atlanta Falcons
Move from Week 7: +1
Why?-In my opinion they look the best out of the bottom 5 teams. Looking their best still means losing to a 1-4 Saints team.

29. San Francscio 49ers
Move from Week 7: -3
Why?-Remember how this team started 2-0? That's all a memory now after losing 4 straight and having arguably the worst offense in the league. They need to give the ball to Frank Gore constantly in order for this team to have any shot of winning more games.

30. New York Jets
Move from Week 7: 0
Why?-They needed to beat a struggeling Bengals team in order to gain some confidence back, but they couldn't do it. When Pennington has a great game (great for him anyway) and the team can't beat a 1-4 Bengals you know you're season is done for.

31. Miami Dolphins
Move from Week 7: 0
Why?-Just how bad are they? Look at the first half of Sunday's game against the Patriots. They were losing 42-7 by the half. Now Brown is out for the season and this could spell an 0-16 record for this team.

32. St. Louis Rams
Move from Week 7: 0
Why?-I have San Diego and Seattle's defense for my fantasy team and since San Diego was on a bye I used Seattle's defense. I probably would have used them anyway considering they were playing the Rams. Well I'm glad I did use them because they gave me almost as many points as Brady did (yeah I had a dominant week). I really want them to play the Dolphins so I can personally witness the worst football game in history.

New Album Releases

2007-10-21T19:29:00.001-04:00

Here are last week new releases and their reviews.

Scale
A- through A+ = Universally acclaimed

B- through B+ = Overall positive reviews

C- through C+ = Mixed reviews

D- through D+ = Overall negative reviews

F- through F+ = Horrible

1. Vic Chesnutt-North Star Deserter
Average Score: B+

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Pitchfork: B+
PopMatters: A
Spin: A-
Uncut: C+

2. Jens Lekman-Night Falls Over Kortedala
Average Score: A-

Scores:
All Music Guide: A
Pitchfork: A
PopMatters: A-
The Onion: B+
Blender: A-

3. Band of Horses-Cease to Begin
Average Score: B+

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Rolling Stone: B
Pitchfork: B+
PopMatters: A-
Billboard: C+

4. Jimmy Eat World-Chase This Light
Average Score: B-

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
Rolling Stone: C+
Billboard: A-
The Onion: B-
Blender: B

5. She Wants Revenge-This is Forever
Average Score: C

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
The Onion: B+
Blender: D+
Sputnikmusic: D+
Urb: F

6. Kid Rock-Rock N Roll Jesus
Average Score: B

Scores:
All Music Guide: C
Rolling Stone: A-
Billboard: A-
Blender: B
NOW Magazine: C+

7. Underworld-Oblivion With Bells
Average Score: B-

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
PopMatters: C
Billboard: A-
The Onion: C+
Blender: C+

8. John Fogerty-Revival
Average Score: A-

Scores:
All Music Guide: A
Rolling Stone: B
Billboard: A-
Uncut: A-
Entertainment Weekly: A-

9. Thrice-The Alchemy Index Vols. I and II: Fire and Water
Average Score: B-

Scores:
Rolling Stone: C+
Billboard: B
The Onion: B-
Blender: D+
Alternative Pres: A-

10. Patti Scialfa-Play It As It Lays
Average Score: B

Scores:
All Music Guide: A
Rolling Stone: B
Billboard: A-
The Onion: C
Blender: B

Torre Did the Right Thing

2007-10-19T08:44:00.001-04:00

Let me start this off by saying I'm a huge Mets fan and I despise the Yankees. That being said, it was absolutely completely 100% unfair how the Yankees treated Joe Torre. In my opinion what they did was worse than firing him.

Joe Torre has been the Yankees manager for an amazingly long 12 years (this is very long considering how quick Steinbrenner is to make changes within the organization). In those 12 years Torre has recorded 4 World Series titles and has reached the playoffs in each and every year (even after a horrendous start to this season). Now the main argument against Torre is that he's managing the Yankees and they are expected to win the World Series every year. Bullshit. Complete and utter bullshit. I don't care how much money you spend on an organization, there is no guarantee that they will win.

Let's look how the Yanks spend their money. First there is Jason Giambi who almost makes $24M a year and who spent all of 2007 with injuries and the steroid scandal hanging over his head. Making even more is the elderly Roger Clemens who was supposed to act as some sort of hero for the, at the time, struggeling Yanks. Roger Clemens was one of the best pitchers in the history of the game, but that has faded and there was nothing Torre could do about him as well as the Giambi situation. Rivera too is getting up there in years and it has shown this season. Yes he performed above average compared to other closers, but he was subpar compared to his previous seasons. This is what you spend your money on and this is what you get. It has nothing to do with Torre's management skills.

Lets look at Torre's offer. A 30% pay decrease which equals $5M and then bonuses based on how well they do in the playoffs (if they make it). To any manager in the leauge thats a pretty great salary, but to Torre it is a huge slap in the face. Torre does not have to prove himself to the Yankees organization after his great 12 years. The pay decrease is bad enough, but the performance based salary was over the top for a guy who has lead this team to the playoffs every year.

I'm also angry about how the Yankees went about handeling the situation (administration not the players). Although it's not unlike Steinbrenner to behave this way, he should have not said Torre's job depends on the series against the Indians. That was just wrong. Then to make the guy wait as long as they did was just ridiculous. Show the man some respect.

This offer was obviously intended for Torre to turn down and I'm glad he did. Taking that offer would show signs of weakness to the players who respect him so much. If they wanted Torre out of there they should have just fired him. End of story. I'm curious to see if they'll implement the "performance based" salary to Mattingly or whoever takes over the Yanks next.

We might see the Yanks of the late 80s all over again. That is how big of an impact losing Torre could be. Posada and Rivera have grown through the league with Torre and who says they'll stay. A-Rod is going to go wherever there is money (although I feel the Yanks will pay enough to keep him). Pettite I expect to leave and Clemens will drive his rascal wheelchair scooter wherever the money is alongside A-Rod.

Whoever replaces Torre is going to have an extremely tough year. He'll be under intense pressure from the higher ups to win a world series. He'll also have a tough time of earning the same kind of respect that Torre has rightfully earned. Good luck Yanks, you'll need it next year.

By the way, have Torre come to the Mets and bring Posada. We'd love to have you.

Week 7 Power Rankings

2007-10-17T08:55:00.001-04:00

The Patriots dominated the Cowboys and remain undefeated while the Rams and Dolphins have yet to record a win. Here are the rankings going into week 7.

1. New England Patriots
Move from Week 6: 0
Why?-Do you even have to ask why? Their 5-0 record was put to the test against the 5-0 Cowboys and ended up scoring 48 points. This is not only the best team in the NFL right now, it is one of the best teams of the NFL in years.

2. Indianapolis Colts
Move from Week 6: 0
Why?-Its hard to be in the shadow of the Patriots, but it shouldn't take away from another great season this team is having. They'll face a challenge against the Jags next week.

3. Dallas Cowboys
Move from Week 6: 0
Why?-I refuse to move this team down right now. Yeah they lost last week, but to the Patriots and they actually had a lead in the 3rd quarter at one point. They are still the dominant team in the NFC.

4. Pittsburgh Steelers
Move from Week 6: 0
Why?-Has anyone noticed how great Willie Parker is doing this season? His run average per game is ranked number 4 in the NFL.

5. Jacksonville Jaguars
Move from Week 6: +2
Why?-After a questionable performance in game 1, their defense has been spectacular in the 4 games that have followed. If they beat the Colts next week they'll be a definite playoff team (no shit right?).

6. Green Bay Packers
Move from Week 6: -1
Why?-They escaped with a win against a good Redskins team making them second to only Dallas out of NFC teams. It will be interesting to see if the team can keep finding a way to win for the rest of the season.

7. Tampa Bay Buccaneeers
Move from Week 6: +7
Why?-This team has really impressed me. They were 4-12 last year, lost their star RB and still managed to pull of a win against a tough Titans team. Here is your sleeper team folks.

8. New York Giants
Move from Week 6: +2
Why?-They beat up on the Falcons which was expected and now have 49ers to face at home and the Dolphins away before the bye. This practically almost a lock for a 6-2 record before the bye(I'm a Giants fan and am worried I just jinxed it). Lets see whether they can actually take advantage of a potential 6-2 record or screw everything up like last year (2-6 after the bye).

9. Tennessee Titans
Move from Week 6: -3
Why?-This could be the last time you see this team ranked in the top 10. Vince Young is injured (Madden curse strikes again!) meaning Kerry Collins will be the QB for now. He might have done well last week, but I can't see him performing nearly as well as Vince.

10. Baltimore Ravens
Move from Week 6: +1
Why?-A lot of people have them ranked higher, but their wins have all been pretty sloppy. The defense looks great however. I expect this team to get crushed against a good Steelers team next week.

11. Washington Redskins
Move from Week 6: -3
Why?-People look at their 3-2 record and say it is better than expected of this team, but honestly they are really close to a 5-0 start. They lead at the half against the Packers and Giants and couldn't hold on for the win.

12. San Diego Chargers
Move from Week 6: +1
Why?-It looks like the Chargers we all know are back. In my opinion, this team is too good to revert to the horrendous performance they displayed their first 4 games of the season.

13. Carolina Panthers
Move from Week 6: +6
Why?-I was expecting to move this team even further down in the rankings after last week, but Testaverde played really well and surprisingly carried this team to a win. If he plays 3 weeks in a row well then I'll be convinced.

14. Seattle Seahawks
Move from Week 6: -5
Why?-There are always one or two bipolar teams in the NFL every season and this looks like one of them this year. After looking like easy division winners they get destroyed by the Steelers (although they are a really tough team) and lose to a winless Saints.

15. Detroit Lions
Move from Week 6: +2
Why?-Other teams not performing well made this team move up in the rankings while they were on a bye. They face a big challenge against the Bucs next week. To me, that is the biggest game of their season.

16. Arizona Cardinals
Move from Week 6: -4
Why?-All is not lost for this team yet although they need to figure out their QB situation quick or their playoff hopes will be shattered.

17. Kansas City Chiefs
Move from Week 6: +5
Why?-I had them going 9-7 at the beginning of the season and everyone laughed at me after their first two games. Then they picked it up and started to perform well. Then they started sucking again. Now LJ is showing signs of life and this team is looking better. This is your other bipolar team ladies and gentlemen.

18. Cleveland Browns
Move from Week 6: +2
Why?-A rare move to the teens in the rankings for this team. Derek Anderson has rejuvinated this entire organization. They have an easy game after the bye against the Dolphins so this team can very well be above .500 for the first time in god knows when.

19. Houston Texans
Move from Week 6: -4
Why?-After a promising start, this team looks like their old selves. I've said this before, but they really really need Andre Johnson.

20. Denver Broncos
Move from Week 6: -4
Why?-It is slightly unfair to move a team down 4 spots when they are on a bye, but I honestly couldn't put this team above the higher ranked teams. They are 2-3 and facing a really tough schedule.

21. Philadelphia Eagles
Move from Week 6: +3
Why?-I'm not convinced yet that this team is back on track. They had one good win and another mediocre win against a horrific Jets. The Eagles offense should not have only scored 16 points against the Jets. If they beat up on the Bears defense like everyone else than maybe I'll move them up to the teens.

22. Minnesota Vikings
Move from Week 6: +5
Why?-Finally the offense has arrived! Adrian Peterson has been having a great year, but last week's performnace against the Bears was ridiculously good. If he can keep it up the Vikings could be looking at a 8-8 season.

23. Oakland Raiders
Move from Week 6: -2
Why?-They lost last week, but it was against a recently very good Chargers team. A big game next week against the bipolar Chiefs.

24. Chicago Bears
Move from Week 6: -6
Why?-Hester is a very exciting player to watch. The rest of the team isn't. The once unpenetrable Bears defense is pretty easy to score points against now. Honestly if this team has any shot of being playoff contenders they need to give Hester the ball as much as possible.

25. New Orleans Saints
Move from Week 6: +5
Why?-Huge win against the Seahawks (to state the obvious). Upcoming games against the Falcons and 49ers are just what this team needs to get back on track.

26. San Francisco 49ers
Move from Week 6: -3
Why?-Even though they were on a bye week, the Eagles and the Saints wins caused this team to move down in the rankings. I feel like the Giants defense will have a field day against a struggeling (thats an understatement) 49ers offense.

27. Buffalo Bills
Move from Week 6: -2
Why?-Losman might be healthy enough to come back next week, but the Bills need to stick with Edwards. Under his leadership the team is 1-1 with a last second lost against the Cowboys. They need to test the waters with this guy and see where he can take them.

28. Cincinnati Bengals
Move from Week 6: -2
Why?-It's all over folks. Rarely do I give up on a team who is supposed to be good, but I am. They needed to beat the Chiefs to save their season and they couldn't. Sure they might win next week against the Jets, but the next game is against the Steelers so they are looking at a 2-5 record for a best case scenario. Plus who says that they will even beat the Jets they way the Bengals are playing.

29. Atlanta Falcons
Move from Week 6: -1
Why?-They started off the first quarter well against the Giants (especially in terms of rushing), but they failed to score any more points after they scored 10 in the first. I really don't expect this team to win more than 3 games this season.

30. New York Jets
Move from Week 6: -1
Why?-This team is so bad it's painful. Chad Pennington couldn't QB if his life depended on it and the team is following suit. In order for any chance for this team to get some dignity back they need to beat the Bengals next week.

31. Miami Dolphins
Move from Week 6: 0
Why?-Everyone likes to put this team last in the rankings and the Rams at 31, but they play the Bills in 4 weeks at home and I see this being the first win that either them or the Rams record.

32. St. Louis Rams
Move from Week 6: 0
Why?-Who is this team going to beat this season? Look at their schedule and I honestly only see them winning one game, home against the Falcons, 7 weeks from now which means this team will be 1-11 at that point. Yes they are playing the Saints and the 49ers, but they are away and the Saints are starting to show signs of life and the 49ers are still a better team than the Rams.

New Album Releases

2007-10-14T22:08:00.000-04:00

Last weeks new albums include the highly anticipated Radiohead release "In Rainbows"

Scale
A- through A+ = Universally acclaimed

B- through B+ = Overall positive reviews

C- through C+ = Mixed reviews

D- through D+ = Overall negative reviews

F- through F+ = Horrible

1. The Cult-Born Into This
Average Score: B-

Scores:
All Music Guide: B
Spin: C+
NOW Magazine: C+
Past Magazine: C
The Phoenix: C

2. Ian Brown-The World is Yours
Average Score: C+

Scores:
Uncut: C+
New Musical Express: C+
Mojo: C+
The Guardian: C+
Drowned in Sound: C+

3. Dashboard Confessional-The Shade of Poison Trees
Average Score: B

Scores:
All Music Guide: B
Rolling Stone: C+
The Onion: A-
Blender: C+
Now Magazine: C+

4. Matt Pond PA-Last Light
Average Score: C+

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Pitchfork: D+
PopMatters: C
Spin: C
Prefix Magazine: C

5. Vanessa Carlton-Heroes & Thieves
Average Score: B+

Scores:
All Music Guide: B
Billboard: A-
Blender: B
Entertainment Weekly: B+
Slant Magazine: B

6. Magik Markers-Boss
Average Score: A-

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Pitchfork: B+
Spin: C+
Uncut: A-
Dusted Magazine: A-

7. LeAnn Rimes-Family
Average Score: B+

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Rolling Stone: B
Billboard: A-
The Guardian: C+
The New York Times: A-

8. Jennifer Lopez-Brave
Average Score: C

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
Rolling Stone: C
Billboard: A-
NOW Magazine: D+
Entertainment Weekly: C

9. Beirut-The Flying Club Cup
Average Score: A-

Scores:
Rolling Stone: C
Pitchfork: A-
Billboard: B
The Onion: A-
Blender: B

10. Radiohead-In Rainbows
Average Score: A-

Scores:
Rolling Stone: A
Billboard: A-
The Guardian: A+
Slant Magazine: B
Dusted Magazine: D+

Jango.com, Free Custom Radio Station

2007-10-13T13:55:00.000-04:00

A fellow blogger by the name of Keith, click here for his site, invited me to beta test a new program called Jango. How this works is you select an artist you want to hear and the program automatically creates a radio station that has most if not all songs by that artist. What you can do then is add artists to the same radio station and edit the station name to make it more compatibale with the content you have stored.

This site is really cool. I currently created a bunch of stations (90s, alternative, classic rock, and rap) and you get to hear a wide of songs from the artists you select for your station (not just the hits). If you're too lazy to download music to your iTunes this could easily solve your problem.

Some features of the program:

This is still in beta form so I'm sure there are some kinks to be worked out, but this has potential to be a HUGE site and I think it deserves that kind of attention. I'm actually able to invite three individuals to test the program so if you're interested comment here or shoot me an e-mail. Not to sound like John Reese, but this is not an affiliate program. I DO NOT get paid to invite people. I am just very excited about the potential of this program and want as many music lovers as possible to experience Jango.

If you're already a tester of the program let me know what you think of it.

NFL Power Ranking Week 6

2007-10-09T21:01:00.001-04:00

Patriots, Colts, and Cowboys (barely) remain undefeated while the Saints, Dolphins, and Rams have yet to win a game. Here are the rankings going into week 6.

1. New England Patriots
Move from Week 4: 0
Why?-The Patriots had their worst week last week..and by worst week I mean they only won by 17 against the Browns. They face a challenge against Dallas away next week. If they can pull off a win, a 16-0 season won't seem so improbable.

2. Indianapolis Colts
Move from Week 4: 0
Why?-Even without Harrison and Addai this team proved how good they were against a decent Tampa Bay team. Another 5-0 start to the season. Another Super Bowl? Doesn't seem unlikely.

3. Dallas Cowboys
Move from Week 4: 0
Why?-The Cowboys barely won against a horrific Bills team. Tony Romo had a career worse 5 interceptions, but the Cowboys managed to pull off the win with a last second field goal. Was it too soon to say Romo was a top 3 quarterback? Absolutely not. It's one bad game. I wouldn't be too worried about it if you're a Cowboys fan.

4. Pittsburgh Steelers
Move from Week 4: +1
Why?-The game against the Seahawks should have been close, but the Steelers have proven to us that their 3-1 start to the season wasn't a fluke. They are looking like one hell of a team.

5. Green Bay Packers
Move from Week 4: -1
Why?-Are the Packers getting set back down to reality or are the Bears starting to get their act together? A little bit of both in my opinion. This team wasn't goign to be a 13-3 or 14-2 team. It just wasn't and isn't going to happen. Are they a playoff team though? Absolutely.

6. Tennessee Titans
Move from Week 4: 0
Why?-They kept it close against the Falcons, but hey a win is a win and the Titans are even further proving to the world that their surge at the end of last season was no fluke.

7. Jacksonville Jaguars
Move from Week 4: +1
Why?-I said in the beginning of the season that this team was going to fluctuate a lot in the power rankings, but so far they've been consistently good. Has anyone realized Garrard has not thrown an interception yet this season?

8. Washington Redskins
Move from Week 4: +8
Why?-This team has really earned this spot. After the Lions scored 34 points in one quarter against the Bears defense, the Redskins just held them to 3, while scoring 34 points themselves. Why are they this good? I have no idea.

9. Seattle Seahawks
Move from Week 4: -2
Why?-They might have gotten destroyed by the Steelers, but they are still a good team. Getting a new lead blocker might help Shaun Alexander obtain the yardage the Seahawks offense needs.

10. New York Giants
Move from Week 4: +5
Why?-A huge comeback over the Jets. Eli Manning is being questioned again after having an awful game last week, but the defense has been showing signs of life. Their easy schedule makes them look like probable playoff contenders.

11. Baltimore Ravens
Move from Week 4: +2
Why?-A sloppy win, but a win nonetheless. Their lack of an offensive line might put this team in some trouble.

12. Arizona Cardinals
Move from Week 4: -1
Why?-Having Matt Leinart out and replaced with Kurt Warner could spell trouble for this team after Matt's solid performance so far.

13. San Diego Chargers
Move from Week 4: +6
Why?-Wow. When it looked like this team was done they bounce back by DOMINATING the Broncos. This confidence might be just what the team needs to get back on track.

14. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Move from Week 4: -4
Why?-This team did not look as good against the Colts as they have been the other 4 games of the season. They need a replacement RB fast or all their playoff hopes will be flushed down the drain.

15. Houston Texans
Move from Week 4: +2
Why?-Talk about relying on your special teams. FG kicker Kris Brown nailed 5 FGs including 3 from over 50 years to beat the Dolphins. The scary thing though is that it came down to a FG kick against the Dolphins.

16. Denver Broncos
Move from Week 4: -7
Why?-Oh boy. The Broncos are looking worse and worse. Their upcoming schedule isn't looking promising either. They needed to go into the bye week with at least a 3-2 record and couldn't pull it off.

17. Detroit Lions
Move from Week 4: -5
Why?-After a spectacular comeback against the Bears, the Lions are looking like their old selves after being crushed against the Redskins.

18. Chicago Bears
Move from Week 4: +5
Why?-Give them credit for coming back and defeating an undefeated Packers team. However don't give them credit for much else. Their defense is looking all but impressive and their offense is still a mess. Maybe the win will give them some sort of spark though.

19. Carolina Panthers
Move from Week 4: -5
Why?-Delhomme is now out for the season so the Panthers have to rely on David Carr as their QB. Lets keep in mind that he's not 100% healthy right now and also keep in mind how he performed when he was on the Texans. A once promising season is now looking like its at end after only 5 games.

20. Cleveland Browns
Move from Week 4: +1
Why?-The Browns unexpectedly cut the Patriots lead to 10 points during one portion of the game. They were the only team to give the Patriots an actual scare. That has to count for something right?

21. Oakland Raiders
Move from Week 4: +1
Why?-The Raiders are actually in first place in the AFC West due to a bye week. Yes you read right. Thats not saying the conference is any good considering they only have a 2-2 record. Upcoming conference games should be a true indicator of whether this team has a legitimate shot of being a .500 or better team.

22. Kansas City Chiefs
Move from Week 4: -2
Why?-From horrible to "hey maybe not so bad" to "oh i guess they are bad after all". LJ, what the hell are you doing??

23. San Francisco 49ers
Move from Week 4: -5
Why?-Horrible offense. Ravens won by kicking all field goals against them. Please.

24. Philadelphia Eagles
Move from Week 4: 0
Why?-This is the week for the Eagles to prove themselves. McNabb needs to get back on track otherwise this team is doomed for a last place finish.

25. Buffalo Bills
Move from Week 4: +4
Why?-They should have beaten the Cowboys last week and they almost did, but almost and should have doesn't count unfortunately. The difference between the Bills and a good team is that a good team would have taken advantage of Romo's 5 interception day, but the Bills couldn't hold on to it. On the positive side of things, Edwards is looking a lot better than Losman and the defense had arguably their best game against the league's best offense.

26. Cincinnati Bengals
Move from Week 4: 0
Why?-For the Bengals sake, hopefully a bye week has given this team time to cool off and get some of their team chemistry back. History has shown this team to do well after the bye.

27. Minnesota Vikings
Move from Week 4: -2
Why?-This team is all but hopeless especially with their offense.

28. Atlanta Falcons
Move from Week 4: +2
Why?-They surprisingly kept it close agains the Titans. While this team only has 1 win, they are still doing better than I expected.

29. New York Jets
Move from Week 4: -1
Why?-This team had a chance for an upset against the Giants, but instead interceptions cost this team the game. How was this team a playoff team last year??

30. New Orleans Saints
Move from Week 4: -3
Why?-Before the game, I thought this team was going to pull it off agains the Panthers. They did keep it close, but they couldn't pull off the win even with the Panthers using David Carr. This team was supposed to be a Super Bowl team. Oh boy.

31. Miami Dolphins
Move from Week 4: 0
Why?-So close to getting their first win, but this team is going to have to wait another week..or two..or three. Trent Green is out which might not be a horrible thing for the Dolphins.

32. St. Louis Rams
Move from Week 4: 0
Why?-0-16 this season? Probably not, but I'd have them doing it over the Dolphins and Saints. Bulger's gone which means all is pretty much lost for this team.

New Album Releases

2007-10-07T11:34:00.000-04:00

For those of you new to this blog, every week I'll list 10 new album releases from the week before along with an average score based on about 15 reviews or so. The scale is listed below.

Scale
A- through A+ = Universally acclaimed

B- through B+ = Overall positive reviews

C- through C+ = Mixed reviews

D- through D+ = Overall negative reviews

F- through F+ = Horrible

1. Magnolia Electric Co.-Sojourner
Average Score: A-

Scores:
All Music Guide: A
Pitchfork: B+
Spin: C+
Uncut: A-
Mojo: A-

2. Akron/Family-Love is Simple
Average Score: A-

Scores:
Pitchfork: B+
PopMatters: A-
NOW Magazine: A-
cokemachineglow: B-
Stylus Magazine: A-

3. Stars-In Our Bedroom After the War
Average Score: B

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
Rolling Stone: C+
Pitchfork: B
PopMatters: A-
The Onion: B-

4. Mum-Go Go Smear the Poison Ivy
Average Score: B-

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Pitchfork: C
Uncut: C+
New Musical Express: A-
Stylus Magazine: C

5. Joni Mitchell-Shine
Average Score: A-

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Rolling Stone: C+
PopMatters: A-
Billboard: A-
Uncut: C+

6. Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band-Magic
Average Score: B

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
Rolling Stone: A+
Pitchfork: B-
PopMatters: A-
Billboard: A-

7. Black Lips-Good Bad Not Evil
Average Score: B+

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Spin: C+
Uncut: C+
Now Magazine: A-
New Musical Express: A-

8. Siouxsie-Mantaray
Average Score: B

Scores:
All Music Guide: B
Rolling Stone: B
Pitchfork: B
Uncut: C+
Mojo: C+

9. The Weakterthans-Reunion Tour
Average Score: A-

Scores:
PopMatters: C+
The Onion: B+
Spin: A-
Now Magazine: A-
Alternative Press: A

10. Annie Lennox-Songs of Mass Destruction
Average Score: B-

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Rolling Stone: B
PopMatters: C+
Blender: B
Entertainment Weekly: B+

Radiohead Says F You to the Music Industry

2007-10-06T14:31:00.000-04:00

As many of you know (and I'm sure all Radiohead fans already know this), Radiohead is allowing the fans to decide the price they are willing to pay for digitally downloading their music. This is either a brilliant marketing strategy or Radiohead causing a lot of chaos within the music industry. I think it is more of the latter than anything else. Fans can go to Radiohead's website and select to download their music. The price field is left blank and says "It's up to you" and "No, really. Its up to you".

This raises the question of who decides what should be a fair price for music? Should it be the record industries who handle most of the pricing now and are the most aware of the incurring costs? Should it be the actual fans who purchase the music? How about the artists themselves? It is their masterpiece so whose right is it to say they shouldn't be the pricers of it. Painters sell their own work at galleries under their pricing structure most of the time. How are artists in the field of music different? This raises another question too. Once a band strikes it big, do they actually need a label in order to make money? Bands like U2 can create a CD without a label and it'll go platinum, guaranteed.

I personally think this whole thing will die down after a month or so. It'll create a buzz when it is released and people will have an interest in monitoring how successful it does, but the hype will end and nobody will really care anymore. In answering the question of "Who should price music?", the industry will continue to be the deciders of how music is priced. However in an age where obtaining free music is as easy as clicking a button, the industry is going to have to offer some incentives besides an album filled with music in order for people to actually go out and buy an album. Bonus features such as interviews with the band or concert footage is a start and it is being done a lot, but there will need to be more (especially at 20 bucks a pop).

How will the album do? There will be a hard copy released in stores. It will obviously not sell as much as you would expect from Radiohead because of the digital downloading, but will still sell a decent amount. A lot of people will pay $.01 for the downloadable version because they have the power to do it and others will pay a decent amount for it (over $20) because of the message Radiohead is sending and how they are going about doing it. Either way, I'm just hoping the music is as good as their past five albums were.

NFL Power Rankings Week 5

2007-10-03T18:03:00.000-04:00

Here are the power rakings going into week 5.

1. New England Patriots
Move from Week 3: 0
Why?-Is there really a reason to ask why for this? They are by far the most dominant team in the NFL. The true test will be when they face off against the Cowboys and Colts.

2. Indianopolis Colts
Move from Week 3: 0
Why?-Again, until they lose they'll be in the top 2 for the rankings. After two close calls against the Titans and Texans, the Colts proved how good of a team they are by demolishing the Broncos. Expect them to keep it up all year.

3. Dalls Cowboys
Move from Week 3: 0
Why?-Still the dominant team in the NFC. They destroyed the Rams and their offense has been absolutely astonishing this season. Romo is further proving himself as one of the best quarterbacks in the league.

4. Green Bay Packers
Move from Week 3: +3
Why?-Their 4-0 record makes them deserve this spot. It isn't just their record though. Brett Favre is having an unexpectedly awesome season and the whole team is following suit.

5. Pittsburgh Steelers
Move from Week 3: -1
Why?-I wouldn't worry too much about their loss to a decent Cardinals team. The Steelers are still looking like a contender for this year.

6. Tennesse Titans
Move from Week 3: -1
Why?-Lets see if this team can keep it up after the bye week. Vince Young is handeling the pressure of not having any elite receivers.

7. Seattle Seahwaks
Move from Week 3: +2
Why?-The Seahawks are looking like their old selves from two years ago. Shaun Alexander is playing well, but needs to get more rushing yardage in the first half of games.

8. Jacksonville Jaguars
Move from Week 3: 0
Why?-This team has been looking really good. They have been known however to struggle after the bye, so lets see if they can hold up their good performance.

9. Denver Broncos
Move from Week 3: +1
Why?-They suffered a big loss last week, but it was against the Colts away. They are looking kind of shaky this whole season though and need to turn it around quickly.

10. Tampa Buccanneers
Move from Week 3: +4
Why?-This team right now looks like the sleeper team in the NFL, but suffered a huge loss when it was announced Cadillac Williams is injured and will be out for the rest of the season (the same goes for Luke Petitgout). If this team can win next week without these players they'll be fine for the rest of the season.

11. Arizona Cardionals
Move from Week 3: +12
Why?-A huge move in the power rankings, but this team deserves it. They upset an undefeated Steelers and are looking great overall.

12. Detroit Lions
Move from Week 3: +10
Why?-Another huge move in the power rankings. The Lions broke an NFL record last week when they scored 34 points in the 4th quarter against the Bears. Let me repeat that. A team scored 34 points in one quarter against what is supposed to be the best defense in the NFL.

13. Baltimore Ravens
Move from Week 3: -7
Why?-People expect this team to be good because of last year's performance, but they've been struggeling. They had a surprising loss to the Browns last week. Maybe they aren't the elite team people thought they were.

14. Carolina Panthers
Move from Week 3: -2
Why?-I didn't move them that far down after last week's loss because I haven't given up on this team yet. The QB situation isn't ideal, but I can't see this team going below .500

15. New York Giants
Move from Week 3: +5
Why?-People aren't really giving the Giants the credit they deserve. They are 2-2, but their two loses were to the Packers and Cowboys, both undefeated teams. They dominated the Eagles last week (even though the Eagles didn't have their offense). The defense finally showed some light with 12 sacks on McNabb. If the defense does half of what they did last week expect this team to be on the rise, especially with the return of Brandon Jacobs.

16. Washington Redskins
Move from Week 3: +3
Why?-They are a surprising 2-1 this season and they were very close to being 3-0 except that the Giants made a terrific comeback. I don't expect this team to be a playoff contender, but until they prove me wrong they'll remain in this spot.

17. Houston Texans
Move from Week 3: -6
Why?-They were looking great all year until a horrendous loss to the lowly Falcons. This team is in desperate need of Andre Johnson.

18. San Francisco 49ers
Move from Week 3: -1
Why?-They somehow manage to be 2-2 with the worst offense in the NFL. Maybe Dilfer can rejuvinate this team.

19. San Diego Chargers
Move from Week 3: -6
Why?-This team is one more loss away from being in the bottom 10. They didn't utilize LT when they had the lead over the Chiefs and it cost them the lead and the win. Don't expect Norv Turner to be around much longer.

20. Kansas City Chiefs
Move from Week 3: +6
Why?-They are looking like an ok team after a horrific start. LJ finally had a 100 yard rushing game. Maybe the team will keep up.

21. Cleveland Browns
Move from Week 3: +6
Why?-They are supposed to be a bottom 3 team, but they aren't playing like it. They are a surprising 2-2 with an offense that is a hundred times better than last season.

22. Oakland Raiders
Move from Week 3: +6
Why?-Culpepper is rejuvinating this team, but I guess anyone can do that after you have Aaron Brooks as your quarterback.

23. Chicago Bears
Move from Week 3: -8
Why?-The Bears never had an offense to brag about, but Rex has been especially bad this season. It was smart to sit him out. The most surprising thing about this team is that their so-called "unstoppable" defense gave up an NFL record 34 points against the Lions last week! No defense, no offense. What's left? Is Robbie Gould going to have to start to learn to kick 70 yard field goals?

24. Philadelphia Eagles
Move from Week 3: -8
Why?-I was wrong. McNabb did not return to his old self after a great game two weeks ago. Without his offense he looks absoultely lost.

25. Minnesota Vikings
Move from Week 3: -1
Why?-The offense looked a little better against a good Packers defense, but this team still has a long way to go.

26. Cincinnati Bengals
Move from Week 3: -8
Why?-Their surprisingly bad 1-3 record is not the only reason why this team is ranked this low. Their own player said the team was just plain bad. I've never heard that! If you doubt your own team you won't win. Plain and simple. Marvin Lewis is starting to lose it too-"If you don't want to be on this team, don't show up". This team is falling apart.

27. New Orleans Saints
Move from Week 3: -2
Why?-This team has one more game to convince me that they are still the same team from last year or I'm giving up. Good luck with that without Deuce.

28. New York Jets
Move from Week 3: -7
Why?-They lost to a lowly Bills team (barely but they still lost). Mangini went from a hero last year to a zero (yeah that was corny, but zero sounded better than loser).

29. Buffalo Bills
Move from Week 3: +2
Why?-The revomal of JP Losman might have been the spark they needed. They picked up their first win against the Jets. If Edwards can make the Bills come close to the outstanding Cowboys expect this team to recover from their horrific start.

30. Atlanta Falcons
Move from Week 3: +2
Why?-They won their first game last week agaisnt the Texans, but again without Michael Vick don't expect them to win much more than that.

31. Miami Dolphins
Move from Week 3: -2
Why?-A loss to the Raiders last week moves this team even futher down in the rakings. They have yet to have a win this season.

32. St. Louis Rams
Move from Week 3: -2
Why?-People claimed this team was going to breakout this season. That their offense was nothing short of spectacular. I didn't believe, but I still predicted they'd go 7-9. This team is such a wreck though it is ridiculous.

MLB Playoff Predictions

2007-10-02T20:07:00.001-04:00

What a wild ending to the NL. The Mets had the biggest upset in the history of baseball and lost the division. The Rockies had an incredible September and took the wildcard over a one game playoff against the Padres. Here are my predictions for the playoffs.

AL

Round 1
Indians vs. Yankees
Prediction: Indians in 5
Why?: The playoffs are a whole different ballgame. The fact that the Indians will be on a three man rotation is a huge factor considering that they have Sabathia, Carmona, and Byrd. The Yankees will keep it close, but the Indians will take the series.

Red Sox vs. Angels
Prediction: Red Sox in 4
Why?: The home field advantage in this series is HUGE. Red Sox fans are one of the most dynamic and passionate (and also violent) fans in baseball. This plays a much bigger role in the playoffs than one might expect. The Red Sox are also an overall better team with potential CY Young winnner Josh Beckett in their rotation and veterans such as Ortiz and Ramirez. Lets not forget Okajima and Papelbon (arguably the league's best closer). The Red Sox are too good of a team to lose this series.

ALCS
Red Sox vs. Indians
Prediciton: Indians in 7
Why?: Most people have the Yankees or the Sox going to the World Series due to their reputations. This makes it easy to overlook at the Indians, but the lack of recent playoff experience shouldn't count this team out. The power bats of Hafner, Sizemore, and Martinez might not match up to Ramirez and Ortiz, but they won't have to. Sabathia and Carmona will hold this team in check. The Sox will beat up on Byrd, but thats as far as it will go. The Indians will win it in game 7 at Fenway Park (which I know people will think is unlikely, but it will happen).

NL

Round 1
Phillies vs. Rockies
Prediction: Phillies in 4
Why?: The Rockies are riding a wave of success that stems as far as the beginning of September, but so are the Phillies. The Phillies were all, but out of it until the collape of the Mets. While people can argue that the Phillies are only it because of the collapse, all the NL teams struggled to make the playoffs. The Phillies are a better team overall than the Rockies. Matt Holliday might be the best hitter in the NL, but he can't alone help the Rockies especially when stacked up to Howard, Rollins, and Utley. Both teams don't have good pitching, but the Phillies have Cole Hamels who is a huge advantage. The Rockies will get their bubble burst in the first round.

Diamondbacks vs. Cubs
Prediction: Diamondbacks in 5
Why?: This is a toss up to me. The only reason I'm giving this to the Diamondbacks is because they have home field advantage. We all know what happened the last time the Cubs were in the playoffs and that'll definitely be in the back of their minds (along with the fans), but the Diamondbacks will edge them.

Round 2
Diamondbacks vs. Phillies
Prediction: Phillies in 6
Why?: The Phillies will carry their hot streak against the Diamondbacks. The Phillies are dominant in terms of hitting with Howard, Utley, Rollins, and Rowand. Webb and Hamels match up pretty nicely, but the Phillies bats will prevail.

World Series
Phillies vs. Indians
Prediction: Indians in 7
Why?: It'll come down to game 7, but again the pitching of the Indians will be too much for the power bats of Phillies to handle. As said, the Phillies will keep it close, but the Indians will win their first World Series since 1948.

MLB Award Predictions

2007-10-01T18:28:00.001-04:00

Even though the season isn't technically over (Rockies and Padres still have one game decider for the playoffs), I'm going to list my predictions for MVP, CY Young, and Rookie of the Year.

AL MVP-Alex Rodriguez
Reason-This is pretty obvious. The MVP is going to come from a playoff team and there is no batter that comes close to A-Rod's stats. He has a league high 54 Home Runs and a league high 156 RBIs all while batting a very good .314. Without this guy there is no way the Yanks would be in the playoffs.
Possible Upset-Josh Beckett
ReasonThere really is no possible upset for this, but if there was it wouldn't be coming from a batter. Josh Beckett, the only 20 game winner in the MLB (unless Peavy wins tonight), could be a possible upset (although I highly doubt it). The Red Sox only won the division by 2 games so without Beckett's 20 wins there is a chance that these Sox would be a wildcard team instead.

NL MVP-Jimmy Rollins
Reason-David Wright would be winning this if the Mets made it to the playoffs, but now that they're out it is all Jimmy Rollins. At first glance his stats might not seem impressive, but take a closer look. He's hit for a good .294 while smacking 30 homers, 20 triples, 38 doubles, and stealing 41 bags. He is only the fourth player in the history of baseball to have 20 or more in these 4 categories. Not only that, the Phillies last month surge couldn't have possible happened without the bat of Rollins.
Possible Upset-Matt Holliday
Reason-I personally think he deserves it over Jimmy Rollins especially if the Rockies make the playoffs. He has an NL best .340 Batting Average, a 2nd NL best 135 RBIs (only one behind Ryan Howard), and is 4th in the NL in Home Runs with 36. Lets not fail to mention his 50 doubles and 214! hits. If the Rockies make the playoffs don't be surprised if he wins.

AL CY Young-Josh Beckett
Reason-Until September I wouldn't have picked him for the CY Young, but Josh Beckett has proven himself worthy of this honor. He is currently the only 20 game winner (depending on Peavy's performance tonight) with a fantastic 20-7 record. His ERA of .327 ranks 6th in the AL. He is also ranked 7th in the AL with 194 strikeouts. If Haren didn't have as big of a collapse as he did I would have to give the CY to him, but Beckett has proven himself the entire season.
Possible Upset-C.C. Sabathia
Reason-There are a few good candidates for the upset (Bedard, Haren, Lackey..just to name a few), but Sabathia has the edge on all of them. His 19-7 record is just one win shy of Beckett's record. He also is ranked 5th in the AL with a 3.21 ERA and is also 5th in the AL with 209 strikeouts. He actually is quite even with Beckett, but the 20 wins that Beckett put up could be the deciding factor.

NL CY Young-Jake Peavy
Reason-Pretty obvious pick. He is number one by far in the NL with a 2.36 ERA, has the best record with 19-6, and is number in strikeouts with 234. He's number one in EVERYTHING. It is absoultely impossible for him to lose even if he blows it today against the Rockies.
Possible Upset-Brad Penny
Reason-Not even a possibility, but he is, in my opinion, the next best candidate. He finsihed the season with an outstanding record of 16-4 and is number 3 in the NL with a 3.03 ERA. Again, he's not going to be picked, but he is the second best choice (you can make a case for Harang or Webb, but I don't agree).

AL Rookie of the Year-Hideki Okajima
Reason-He might have slowed down near the end of the season, but a 2.22 ERA in 69 innings pitches is still pretty remarkable. Lets not forget his K/BB ratio of
3.71 which is absoultely ridiculous. He has given 0 unearned runs as well which should be taken into account as well.
Possible Upset-Dustin Pedroia
Reasion-Not really an upset. He's actually a great option for Rookie of the Year. His .317 batting average and .380 OBP are quite impressive for anybody let alone a rookie. Besides David Ortiz, he is establishing himself as the best hitter on the Sox.

NL Rookie of the Year-Ryan Braun
Reasion-I don't care what anyone says, he HANDS DOWN deserves the award. He was the quickest in the history of the Brewers to hit 30 Home Runs. In just 451 at bats he hit 34 Home Runs and 97 RBIs while also batting .324. Imagine another 125 at bats under his belt (which would be what he would have had if he played a full season). He would have ended up with about 44 Home Runs, 124 RBIs, and 20SBs. Add that with his .324 batting average and those are MVP numbers right there. People have been shouting Tulowitzki for this award, but Braun stacks up dominantly against him.
Possible Upset-Troy Tulowitzki
Reason-The only reason that Tulowitzki could win this award is defense. Braun had a horrific 26 errors for the season (Tulowitzki only had 11). Other than that, his numbers are quite impressive as a rookie, but just don't compare to Braun's. He hit for .287 this season, 24 home runs, and 98 RBIs. Great numbers for anybody (not just a rookie), but it just doesn't compare to Braun (Pence would be the possible upset by the way if it wasn't for his injury).

New Releases

2007-09-30T11:23:00.000-04:00

I'm listing new album releases for the past week and taking about 15 or so reviews and coming up with an average score along with select music reviewers scores as well. The scale is below.

Scale
A- through A+ = Universally acclaimed

B- through B+ = Overall positive reviews

C- through C+ = Mixed reviews

D- through D+ = Overall negative reviews

F- through F+ = Horrible

1. Foo Fighters-Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace
Average Score=B-

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
Rolling Stone: B
Pitchfork: C-
Popmatters: D+
Billboard: A-

2. Iron & Wine-The Shepherd's Dog
Average Score=A-

Scores:
All Music Guide: A
Rolling Stone: B
Pitchfork: A
Billboard: A-
The Onion: B-

3. PJ Harvey-White Chalk
Average Score=A-

Scores:
Rolling Stone: A-
Pitchfork: B-
Blender: C+
Spin: B
New Musical Express: B

4. Athlete-Beyond the Neighbourhood
Average Score=C

Scores:
All Music Guide: C+
The Guardian: D+
Drowned in Sound: D+
Dot Music: C+
Sputnikmusic: C

5. High on Fire-Death is Communion
Average Score=A-

Scores:
Blender: A-
Spin: C+
Dusted Magazine: A-
New York Times: A-
Village Voice: A-

6. Will.I.Am.-Songs About Girls
Average Score=B-

Scores:
All Music Guide: A-
Rolling Stone: B
Billboard: A-
Now Magazine: F
Entertainment Weekly: C-

7. Steve Earle-Washington Square Serenade
Average Score=B

Scores:
All Music Guide: B
Rolling Stone: C+
Popmatters: C+
Billboard: A-
Blender: A-

8. Emma Pollock-Watch the Fireworks
Average Score=B-

Scores:
All Music Guide: B
Pitchfork: B
Now Magazine: C+
Drowned in Sound: B
Mojo: C+

9. Pinkback-Autumn of the Seraphs
Average Score=B+

Scores:
All Music Guide: B
Pitchfork: B+
Popmatters: B
The Onion: B+
Spin: C+

10. Jose Gonzalez-In Our Nature
Average Score=B

Scores:
All Music Guide: B
Rolling Stone: C+
Pitchfork: B+
Popmatters: C+
The Onion: A-

The Downward Spiral of the Mets

2007-09-28T13:38:00.001-04:00

I'm a diehard Mets fan. I have been since I was born. I can't remember the last time that this team looked like such a lock for the playoffs. They had 17 games left with a 7 game lead over the Phillies. They're a shoe-in right? Well the Mets have gone 4-10 in their last 14 games and the Phillies have been on fire. Now it's all tied up and the Mets might not even make the playoffs. What is more frustrating is that the Mets had leads as big as 5 runs and blew the game!

Here are my predictions for the last 3 games of the season for Mets, Phillies, and Padres(I'm hoping I'm wrong and you'll see why):

1. Mets-The Marlins aren't on fire by any means, but they've been playing well (a lot better than the Mets have). Now that the Mets lost their lone division lead for the first time since mid-May I think it's finally sinking in that they might not make the playoffs, which will be a huge factor in the upcoming games.. Because of all these factors, Mets will take 2 out of 3 against the Marlins. Final Record=89-73

2. Phillies-The Phillies are one of the hottest teams in baseball, but that doesn't mean anything if the Phillies don't make the playoffs. It is playoffs are bust for them. They'll be extra confident playing a team like the Nationals for their last series. However, the Nationals have won 4 in a row, and nothing would make this team happier than being responsible for a team in their division not making the playoffs (especially after being pegged in the beginning of the season as the worst team in baseball). The Phillies, like the Mets, will take 2 out of 3. Final Record=89-73

3. Padres-Padres have the toughest last 3 games of the season between them, the Phillies, and the Mets. Facing the Brewers away is no easy task, but the Padres have too much to lose and are too good of a team to lose this series. Like the Mets and the Phillies they will also take two out of three. Final Record=90-72, which is a clinch of the wildcard.

The Phillies will be home for the tiebreaker between them and the Mets. The Mets can't beat the Phillies. They have struggeled against them the ENTIRE season and now they are facing them away where the Phillies have to win to make the playoffs. This is going to be the most painful thing to watch in the world, but the Mets will get DESTROYED. It won't even be close, and I will be crying the entire MLB postseason.

Again..I hope I'm wrong

Upcoming Shows

2007-09-27T21:45:00.000-04:00

Below are some artists on tour (I'm listing ones that I've seen before) along with their upcoming tour schedule and thoughts on their performance.

1. Ataris
Tour Schedule
Thu 09/27/07 Athens, OH Union Bar

Fri 09/28/07 Washington, DC Rock And Roll Hotel

Sat 09/29/07 Philadelphia, PA TBA

Sun 09/30/07 Bowling Green, OH Howard's Club H

Mon 10/01/07 Lansing, MI Mac's

Tue 10/02/07 Windsor, ON Chubby Pickle

Wed 10/03/07 London, ON Salt Lounge

Thu 10/04/07 Hamilton, ON The Casbah

Fri 10/05/07 Toronto, ON The Reverb

Sat 10/06/07 Saint Catherines, ON L3

Sun 10/07/07 Barrie, ON The Foundation

Mon 10/08/07 Kingston, ON Time To Laugh Comedy Club

Tue 10/09/07 Ottawa, ON Mavericks

Wed 10/10/07 Trois-Rivieres, QC Le Maquisart

Thu 10/11/07 Saint Jean, QC Metric Bar

Fri 10/12/07 Montreal, QC Lambi

Sat 10/13/07 Port-Rouge, QC Manoir De Port-Rouge

Sun 10/14/07 Sainte-Marie, QC Bar Le Freddys

Mon 10/15/07 Rimouski, QC Pavilion Agricole

Wed 10/17/07 Hamden, CT The Space

Thu 10/18/07 Amherst, MA TBA

Fri 10/19/07 Framingham, MA Framingham Civic League

Sat 10/20/07 Stroudsburg, PA Sherman Theater

Sun 10/21/07 Doylestown, PA Siren Records

Thoughts: I saw the Ataris about 5 years ago at a local record store for free. They put on a pretty good performance ("San Dimas High School Football Rules" was the highlight). This was the day that So Long Astoria was released. Now they have a whole new line up and recently released their worst CD to date which I'm sure they are plugging (especially due to the new line up). I would probably avoid this show if you're expecting a lot of old tunes.

2. Badfish
Tour Schedule
Thu 09/27/07 Columbus, OH Newport Music Hall

Fri 09/28/07 Cincinnati, OH Bogart's

Sat 09/29/07 Garrettsville, OH Quarry Park

Sun 09/30/07 Athens, OH Blue Gator

Tue 10/02/07 Grand Rapids, MI The Intersection

Thu 10/04/07 Fort Wayne, IN Piere's

Fri 10/05/07 Libertyville, IL Austin's Saloon

Sat 10/06/07 Milwaukee, WI The Rave Eagles Club

Sun 10/07/07 Chicago, IL House Of Blues

Tue 10/09/07 Lawrence, KS Granada Theatre

Wed 10/10/07 Columbia, MO Blue Note

Thu 10/11/07 Urbana, IL Canopy Club

Fri 10/12/07 Sauget, IL Pop's

Sat 10/13/07 Carbondale, IL Copper Dragon Brewing Company

Wed 10/31/07 Atlanta, GA The Masquerade

Thu 11/01/07 Hilton Head Island, SC Monkey Business

Fri 11/02/07 North Myrtle Beach, SC House Of Blues

Sat 11/03/07 North Charleston, SC Centre Stage At The Plex

Tue 11/06/07 Jacksonville, FL Freebird Live

Wed 11/07/07 Gainesville, FL The Venue

Thu 11/08/07 Port St. Lucie, FL The Mojo Room

Fri 11/09/07 Fort Lauderdale, FL Revolution

Sat 11/10/07 Saint Petersburg, FL Jannus Landing

Sun 11/11/07 Lake Buena Vista, FL House Of Blues

Wed 11/14/07 Columbia, SC Headliners Mainstage

Thu 11/15/07 Winston-Salem, NC Ziggy's

Fri 11/16/07 Carrboro, NC Cat's Cradle

Sat 11/17/07 Charlotte, NC Amos' Southend

Sun 11/18/07 Charlottesville, VA Satellite Ballroom

Wed 12/05/07 Lancaster, PA The Chameleon

Thu 12/06/07 Troy, NY Revolution Hall

Fri 12/07/07 South Burlington, VT Higher Ground

Sat 12/08/07 Poughkeepsie, NY The Chance

Fri 12/21/07 New Haven, CT Toad's Place

Sat 12/22/07 New York, NY Nokia Theatre Times Square

Sun 12/23/07 Philadelphia, PA The Trocadero & The Balcony

Fri 12/28/07 Providence, RI Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel

Mon 12/31/07 Cambridge, MA Middle East Restaurant & Nightclub

Fri 01/04/08 Baltimore, MD Rams Head Live!

Sat 01/05/08 Sayreville, NJ Starland Ballroom

Thu 01/17/08 Knoxville, TN Blue Cats

Fri 01/18/08 Asheville, NC Orange Peel

Thu 02/07/08 Baton Rouge, LA Varsity Theatre

Fri 02/08/08 Houston, TX Meridian

Sat 02/09/08 Dallas, TX House Of Blues

Wed 02/13/08 Flagstaff, AZ The Orpheum Theater

Fri 02/15/08 Las Vegas, NV House Of Blues

Sat 02/16/08 Anaheim, CA TBA

Wed 02/20/08 San Francisco, CA TBA

Fri 02/22/08 Los Angeles, CA Knitting Factory Hollywood

Thoughts: I've seen this band twice. The second time I saw this Sublime cover band they changed their singer/guitarist and it wasn't for the better. That being said, both performances were excellent and really plays tribute to Sublime well. They don't do just do the singles so any hardcore Sublime fan will enjoy the fact they play a lot of non-mainstream songs. I guarantee this will be a fun show so check it out.

3. Billy Joel
Tour Schedule

Tue 10/30/07 Vancouver, BC General Motors Place

Sat 11/03/07 Edmonton, AB Rexall Place

Mon 11/05/07 Calgary, AB Pengrowth Saddledome

Thu 11/08/07 Seattle, WA KeyArena at Seattle Center

Sat 11/10/07 Oakland, CA Oracle Arena

Sat 11/17/07 Las Vegas, NV MGM Grand Garden Arena

Mon 11/19/07 Fresno, CA Save Mart Center

Thu 12/06/07 Kansas City, MO Sprint Center

Thoughts: Yes he's still on tour even after a million fairwell tours. Do I really have to specify whether or not he'll be good? It's freakin' Billy Joel. He plays the numbers you expect to hear along with a couple of pleasant surprises. Even if you're not a huge fan, he puts on a really good show and interacts with the crowd quite a bit. Recommended.

4. Dashboard Confessional
Tour Schedule
Sun 11/25/07 Nottingham, UK Nottingham Arena

Tue 11/27/07 Glasgow, UK S.E.C.C.

Wed 11/28/07 Manchester, UK Manchester Evening News Arena

Thu 11/29/07 Newcastle, UK Metro Radio Arena

Sat 12/01/07 Birmingham, UK The NEC Arena

Sun 12/02/07 London, UK Wembley Arena

Mon 12/03/07 Cardiff, UK Cardiff International Arena

Wed 12/05/07 Brighton, UK The Brighton Centre

Fri 12/07/07 Paris, FRA Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy

Sat 12/08/07 's-Hertogenbosch, NET Brabanthallen

Sun 12/09/07 Antwerp, BEL Lotto Arena

Thu 12/13/07 Dusseldorf, GER Philipshalle

Sat 12/15/07 Munich, GER Zenith

Sun 12/16/07 Milan, ITA Palalido - Milano

Mon 12/17/07 Zurich, SWI Hallenstadion Zurich

Thoughts: I've seen Dashboard once when it was Chris performing an acoustic set on his own and once with the full band. Both are equally as good. Not that it is an amazing show, but if you're a fan of emo music you'll definitely enjoy this. "Hands Down" was the highlight both times. They do an equal amount of old and new stuff although I haven't seen them since they released "Dusk and Summer". Usually their shows run pretty cheap so if they're keeping up with this trend go and check them out.

5. The Format
Tour Schedule

Sat 11/10/07 Jacksonville, FL Metropolitan Park

Thoughts: It's only one show, but if you're from the area check them out. I actually got into this band because they opened for Yellowcard and Something Corporate and enjoyed every minute of their set. They only had one album under the belt, but now they're 3 in (the first 2 are incredible CDs). "The First Single" was the highlight of their set. If you're not familiar with the band download that song along with "The Compromise".

6. Good Charlotte
Tour Schedule
Tue 10/09/07 Brisbane, AUS Brisbane Entertainment Centre

Thu 10/11/07 Moore Park, AUS Hordern Pavilion

Fri 10/12/07 Moore Park, AUS Hordern Pavilion

Sat 10/13/07 Melbourne, AUS Rod Laver Arena

Mon 10/15/07 Adelaide, AUS Entertainment Centre

Wed 10/17/07 Perth, AUS Challenge Stadium

Thoughts: I've actually seen this band three times and everytime was by accident (they always were opening for somebody who was the band I came to see). They're four releases in, but I've only seen them after they released 2 CDs so I can't really judge how they play nowadays (the last time I saw them was 7 years ago). They were decent, nothing special. Their interactions with the crowd was a bit cheesy (they talked about suicide and to get help if you need it).

7. Guster
Tour Schedule

Thu 09/27/07 Vermillion, SD University Of South Dakota

Fri 09/28/07 Saint Louis, MO St. Louis University

Sun 09/30/07 East Lansing, MI MSU Concert Auditorium

Mon 10/01/07 Kent, OH Kent State University

Tue 10/02/07 Bloomington, IN Indiana University

Thu 10/04/07 University Park, PA Bryce Jordan Center

Fri 10/05/07 Rochester, NY University Of Rochester

Sat 10/06/07 Burlington, VT University Of Vermont

Fri 10/12/07 Nashville, TN Vanderbilt University

Sat 10/13/07 Gainesville, FL University Of Florida

Sun 10/14/07 Fort Lauderdale, FL Culture Room

Tue 10/16/07 Athens, GA Georgia Theatre

Wed 10/17/07 Knoxville, TN Bijou Theatre

Thu 10/18/07 Murray, KY Lovett Auditorium

Fri 10/19/07 Asheville, NC Orange Peel

Mon 10/22/07 Charlotte, NC Neighborhood Theatre

Tue 10/23/07 Richmond, VA Toad's Place

Thu 10/25/07 Statesboro, GA Georgia Southern University

Fri 10/26/07 Raleigh, NC North Carolina State University

Sat 10/27/07 Williamsburg, VA College of William and Mary

appearing with Barenaked Ladies' "Ships And Dip"

Sun 01/27/08 Miami, FL Carnival Victory

Mon 01/28/08 Miami, FL Carnival Victory

Tue 01/29/08 Miami, FL Carnival Victory

Wed 01/30/08 Miami, FL Carnival Victory

Thu 01/31/08 Miami, FL Carnival Victory

Fri 02/01/08 Miami, FL Carnival Victory

Thoughts: Highly recommended. I've seen this band four times and all four times were nothing short of spectacular. I"m not familiar with a lot of their new CD "Ganging up on the Sun" and the last time I saw them (2 weeks ago) they plugged a lot of material from it, but I still enjoyed the show a lot. Dont' expect to hear anyting from "Parachute". You'll hear "Airport Song" (easily the highlight of their set) and "Demons" from "Goldfly". The rest will be all from the "Lost and Gone Forever", "Keep it Together", and "Ganging up on the Sun". Adam became quite the guitarist over these past years so if you haven't seen the band in a while it is worth checking them out just for his guitar play.

8. Hootie and the Blowfish
Tour Schedule

Thu 09/27/07 Livermore, CA Wente Brothers Winery

Fri 09/28/07 Kelseyville, CA Konocti Harbor Resort & Spa

Sat 09/29/07 Anaheim, CA House Of Blues

Sun 09/30/07 Tucson, AZ Desert Diamond Casino

Wed 10/03/07 San Diego, CA Humphrey's Concerts By The Bay

Thu 10/04/07 Temecula, CA Pechanga Resort & Casino

Sat 10/06/07 Laughlin, NV Aquarius Casino Resort

Sun 10/07/07 Albuquerque, NM Sandia Resort And Casino

Fri 10/12/07 Glendale, AZ Jobing.com Arena

Thoughts: This band puts on a much better show than I expected. They announce the name of each song and what CD it is from before they play it which is good for just the casual fan seeing them. The band has a solid line up and knows how to put on a good show.

9. Incubus
Tour Schedule

Thu 09/27/07 Paris, FRA Zenith Paris

Sat 09/29/07 London, UK Carling Brixton Academy

Sun 09/30/07 London, UK Carling Brixton Academy

Mon 10/01/07 London, UK Carling Brixton Academy

Wed 10/03/07 Bournemouth, UK International Centre

Fri 10/05/07 Dublin, IRE Olympia Theatre

Mon 10/08/07 Santiago, CHL Arena Santiago

Tue 10/09/07 Santiago, CHL Arena Santiago

Thu 10/11/07 Buenos Aires, ARG Luna Park

Sat 10/13/07 Rio De Janeiro, BRA Citibank Hall

Sun 10/14/07 Sao Paulo, BRA Citibank Hall

Mon 10/15/07 Sao Paulo, BRA Citibank Hall

Wed 10/17/07 Monterrey, MEX Arena Monterrey

Fri 10/19/07 Mexico City, MEX Foro Sol

Sat 10/20/07 Zapopan, MEX Auditorio Metropolitano

Thoughts: What impresses me most about this band is that a lot of the music that seems to a result of producting tricks are in fact made from the band members themselves and it is proven at their shows. A very tight band musically and an overall good show. "Under My Umbrella" was the highlight when I saw them.

10. Jimmy Eat World
Tour Schedule
Thu 09/27/07 Flagstaff, AZ Prochnow Auditorium

appearing with "103.9 Edgefest"

Sat 09/29/07 Queen Creek, AZ Schnepf Farms Festival Site

Jimmy Eat World

Sun 09/30/07 Redlands, CA Greek Theatre

Tue 10/02/07 Santa Cruz, CA The Catalyst

Wed 10/03/07 Davis, CA UC Davis Freeborn Hall

Thu 10/04/07 Reno, NV Grand Sierra Resort & Casino

Sat 10/06/07 Salt Lake City, UT Utah State Fairpark

Sun 10/07/07 Missoula, MT Wilma Theatre

Mon 10/08/07 Calgary, AB MacEwan Conference And Event Centre

Wed 10/10/07 Vancouver, BC Commodore Ballroom

Thu 10/11/07 Seattle, WA Showbox At The Market

Fri 10/12/07 Bellingham, WA PAC Main Stage

Sun 10/14/07 San Francisco, CA The Fillmore

Tue 10/16/07 Los Angeles, CA The Wiltern

Thu 10/18/07 Anaheim, CA House Of Blues

Fri 10/19/07 San Diego, CA House Of Blues

Sat 10/20/07 Las Vegas, NV The Joint

Fri 10/26/07 Atlanta, GA Center Stage

Sat 10/27/07 North Myrtle Beach, SC House Of Blues

Sun 10/28/07 Raleigh, NC Disco Rodeo

Tue 10/30/07 Washington, DC 9:30 Club

Fri 11/02/07 Cleveland, OH House Of Blues

Fri 11/09/07 New York, NY Terminal 5

Thu 11/15/07 Chicago, IL Riviera Theatre

Thoughts: The band doesn't really interact much with the crowd, but they put on a pretty good show nonetheless. I feel like in order to enjoy the show though you would need to be an actual fan of the band.

11. John Mayer
Tour Schedule

Sat 10/27/07 Mountain View, CA Shoreline Amphitheatre

Sun 10/28/07 Mountain View, CA Shoreline Amphitheatre

appearing with "The Mayercraft Carrier" Cruise

Fri 02/01/08 Miami, FL Mayercraft Carrier Cruise Ship

Sat 02/02/08 Miami, FL Mayercraft Carrier Cruise Ship

Sun 02/03/08 Miami, FL Mayercraft Carrier Cruise Ship

Mon 02/04/08 Miami, FL Mayercraft Carrier Cruise Ship

Thoughts: John Mayer is unfairly categorized with the "mainstream pop crowd" such as James Blunt or Gavin Degraw, but John Mayer displays a lot more talent than you would think. He is one hell of a guitarist and he knows how to keep a crowd entertained (his in between banter was actually quite funny).

12. Josh Rouse
Tour Schedule

Thu 09/27/07 San Francisco, CA The Independent

Fri 09/28/07 Los Angeles, CA El Rey Theatre

Sat 09/29/07 Tucson, AZ Club Congress

Sun 09/30/07 Albuquerque, NM Golden West Saloon

Tue 10/02/07 Austin, TX The Parish Room
Tue 10/02/07 Austin, TX Waterloo Records

Wed 10/03/07 Birmingham, AL WorkPlay Theatre

Thu 10/04/07 Atlanta, GA Variety Playhouse

Fri 10/05/07 Nashville, TN Exit / In

Sat 10/06/07 Nashville, TN Exit / In

Tue 10/23/07 Newport, KY Southgate House

Thu 10/25/07 Chicago, IL Park West

Fri 10/26/07 Milwaukee, WI Turner Hall

Sat 10/27/07 Minneapolis, MN Fine Line Music Cafe

Sun 10/28/07 Madison, WI The Annex

Mon 10/29/07 Ann Arbor, MI Blind Pig

Tue 10/30/07 Toronto, ON Lee's Palace

Thu 11/01/07 Somerville, MA Somerville Theatre

Fri 11/02/07 New York, NY Blender Theatre At Gramercy

Sat 11/03/07 New York, NY Blender Theatre At Gramercy

Wed 11/21/07 Murcia, SPA TBA

Thu 11/22/07 Madrid, SPA El Sol

Fri 11/23/07 Valencia, SPA Green Space

Sat 11/24/07 Barcelona, SPA Bikini

Mon 11/26/07 Lisbon, POR Aula Magna

Tue 11/27/07 Braga, POR Teatro Circo

Thu 11/29/07 Sheffield, UK Plug

Fri 11/30/07 Manchester, UK Manchester Academy

Sat 12/01/07 Glasgow, UK Queen Margaret Union

Mon 12/03/07 Gateshead, UK The Sage

Tue 12/04/07 Nottingham, UK Rescue Rooms

Wed 12/05/07 Bristol, UK Carling Bristol Academy

Fri 12/07/07 Oxford, UK Oxford Academy

Sat 12/08/07 Brighton, UK Concorde 2

Sun 12/09/07 London, UK Shepherds Bush Empire

Thoughts: I saw him about 5 years ago when he opened for Guster. I wasn't familiar with his work, but was pretty pleased with his performance. Download "A Simple Thing" and "Nothing Gives me Pleasure" to start you off. If you're a fan, check out one of his shows.

13. Live
Tour Schedule
Fri 09/28/07 New Orleans, LA Sugarmill Room

Sat 09/29/07 Orange Beach, AL Amphitheater At The Wharf

Sun 09/30/07 Southaven, MS Snowden Grove Amphitheater

Tue 10/02/07 Houston, TX Verizon Wireless Theater

Wed 10/03/07 Grand Prairie, TX Nokia Theatre At Grand Prairie

Fri 10/05/07 Chicago, IL Congress Theater

Sat 10/06/07 Council Bluffs, IA Harrah's Council Bluffs

Sun 10/07/07 Denver, CO Fillmore Auditorium

Fri 10/19/07 Phoenix, AZ Arizona State Fair

Sat 10/20/07 Las Vegas, NV Mandalay Bay Beach

Thoughts: I wasn't relaly impressed by their set. They put on a decent show, but that was pretty much the extent of it. Their last 3 CDs were pretty crappy ("V", "Birds of Prey", "Songs from Black Mountain") and I expect them to play at least half of their set list from these CDs. I wouldn't recommend it if you're looking for the glory days of "Throwing Copper."

14. Lucky Boys Confusion
Tour Schedule

Fri 10/19/07 Iowa City, IA The Picador

Sat 10/20/07 Urbana, IL Canopy Club

Sun 11/04/07 Milwaukee, WI Varsity Theatre

Thoughts: Not a bad show, but won't leave a lasting impression. "Fred Astaire" was the highlight of their set.

15. Maroon 5
Tour Schedule

Sat 09/29/07 Auburn Hills, MI The Palace Of Auburn Hills

Mon 10/01/07 Saint Paul, MN Xcel Energy Center

Tue 10/02/07 Rosemont, IL Allstate Arena

Thu 10/04/07 Toronto, ON Air Canada Centre

Fri 10/05/07 Cleveland, OH Quicken Loans Arena

Sun 10/07/07 Columbus, OH Nationwide Arena

Mon 10/08/07 Charlottesville, VA John Paul Jones Arena

Wed 10/10/07 New York, NY Madison Square Garden Arena

Fri 10/12/07 Uncasville, CT Mohegan Sun

Sat 10/13/07 Philadelphia, PA The Wachovia Spectrum

Mon 10/15/07 Boston, MA TD Banknorth Garden

Tue 10/16/07 Washington, DC Verizon Center

Thu 10/18/07 Columbia, SC Colonial Center

Fri 10/19/07 Nassau, BAH Atlantis Casino

Sat 10/20/07 Sunrise, FL BankAtlantic Center

Sun 10/21/07 Tampa, FL St. Pete Times Forum

Tue 10/23/07 Orlando, FL Amway Arena

Wed 10/24/07 Duluth, GA The Arena At Gwinnett Center

Fri 10/26/07 Houston, TX Toyota Center

Sat 10/27/07 Fort Worth, TX Convention Center

Mon 10/29/07 Denver, CO Fillmore Auditorium

Tue 10/30/07 Denver, CO Fillmore Auditorium

Sat 11/03/07 Vancouver, BC P.N.E. Pacific Coliseum

Mon 11/05/07 Sacramento, CA ARCO Arena

Tue 11/06/07 San Jose, CA HP Pavilion At San Jose

Thu 11/08/07 Los Angeles, CA Staples Center

Fri 11/09/07 San Diego, CA Cox Arena

Sat 11/10/07 Las Vegas, NV The Pearl Concert Theater At Palms

Sun 11/25/07 Nottingham, UK Nottingham Arena

Tue 11/27/07 Glasgow, UK S.E.C.C.

Wed 11/28/07 Manchester, UK Manchester Evening News Arena

Thu 11/29/07 Newcastle, UK Metro Radio Arena

Sat 12/01/07 Birmingham, UK The NEC Arena

Sun 12/02/07 London, UK Wembley Arena

Mon 12/03/07 Cardiff, UK Cardiff International Arena

Wed 12/05/07 Brighton, UK The Brighton Centre

Fri 12/07/07 Paris, FRA Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy

Sat 12/08/07 's-Hertogenbosch, NET Brabanthallen

Sun 12/09/07 Antwerp, BEL Lotto Arena

Tue 12/11/07 Copenhagen, DEN Valby Hallen

Thu 12/13/07 Dusseldorf, GER Philipshalle

Sat 12/15/07 Munich, GER Zenith

Sun 12/16/07 Milan, ITA Palalido - Milano

Mon 12/17/07 Zurich, SWI Hallenstadion Zurich

Thoughts: I saw them when they were unknown. They opened up for Phantom Planet with about 4 other bands and this was the only band that I liked out of the openers. Very very good performance. Their cover of "I Want it That Way" was the highlight.

16. Muse
Tour Schedule
Thu 10/04/07 Athens, GRE Terra Vibe

Sat 10/06/07 Bucharest, ROM Arc De Triomphe Stadium

Sun 10/07/07 Belgrade, SER Pioneer Hall

Tue 10/09/07 Zagreb, CRO Dom Sportova Zagreb

Wed 10/10/07 Budapest, HUN Budapest Arena

Sat 10/13/07 Kiev, UKR Palace of Sports

Mon 10/15/07 Moscow, RUS Luzhniki Stadium

Wed 10/17/07 Helsinki, FIN Ice Hall

Fri 10/19/07 Saint Petersburg, RUS New Ice Arena

Sat 10/20/07 Trondheim, NOR UKA Festival

Sun 10/21/07 Stockholm, SWE Arenan

Tue 10/23/07 Oslo, NOR Oslo Spektrum Arena ANS

Wed 10/24/07 Copenhagen, DEN Forum

appearing with "Vegoose Music Festival"

Sun 10/28/07 Las Vegas, NV Sam Boyd Stadium

Muse

Sat 11/10/07 Perth, AUS Supreme Court Gardens

Wed 11/14/07 Adelaide, AUS Entertainment Centre

Thu 11/15/07 Melbourne, AUS Rod Laver Arena

Sat 11/17/07 Darling Harbour, AUS Sydney Ent'ment Centre

Wed 11/21/07 Brisbane, AUS River Stage

Fri 11/23/07 Auckland, NZ Trusts Stadium

Sun 11/25/07 Christchurch, NZ Westpac Centre

Thoughts: A lot of people dislike this band because they feel singer Matthew Bellamy's voice is obnoxious. Some of these same people ended up acidentally seeing Muse in concert and LOVED their set. I'm personally a fan of the band and all of their recordings, but I still recommend them to all fans and non-fans. Matthews Bellamy is one hell of a musician (very good guitarist and pianist). I guarantee you'll enjoy their show.

17. Nas
Tour Schedule

Sun 09/30/07 Kitchener, ON Centre In The Square

Thoughts: Another tour with only one show, but if you're in the area check him out. He's one of the greatest MCs in the rap industry and has stood the test of time since the brilliant releases of Illmatic and Stillmatic.

18. New Found Glory
Tour Schedule

Fri 10/05/07 Las Vegas, NV House Of Blues

Sat 10/06/07 Tempe, AZ The Marquee Theatre

Sun 10/07/07 Albuquerque, NM Sunshine Theatre

Tue 10/09/07 Austin, TX Stubb's Bar-B-Q

Wed 10/10/07 Tulsa, OK Cain's Ballroom

Thu 10/11/07 Dallas, TX Palladium Ballroom

Fri 10/12/07 Houston, TX Warehouse Live

Sat 10/13/07 New Orleans, LA House Of Blues

Mon 10/15/07 Lake Buena Vista, FL House Of Blues

Tue 10/16/07 Fort Lauderdale, FL Revolution

Fri 10/19/07 Atlanta, GA Center Stage

Sat 10/20/07 Charlotte, NC Tremont Music Hall / The Casbah

Sun 10/21/07 North Myrtle Beach, SC House Of Blues

Mon 10/22/07 Norfolk, VA NorVa

Wed 10/24/07 Baltimore, MD Rams Head Live!

Thu 10/25/07 Philadelphia, PA Electric Factory

Fri 10/26/07 Philadelphia, PA Electric Factory

Sat 10/27/07 Atlantic City, NJ House Of Blues

Sun 10/28/07 New York, NY Nokia Theatre Times Square

Wed 10/31/07 Worcester, MA The Palladium

Thu 11/01/07 Amherst, NY Club Evolution

Fri 11/02/07 Cincinnati, OH Bogart's

Sat 11/03/07 Detroit, MI The Fillmore Detroit

Mon 11/05/07 Chicago, IL Metro / Smart Bar

Tue 11/06/07 Chicago, IL Metro / Smart Bar

Wed 11/07/07 Milwaukee, WI The Rave Eagles Club

Thu 11/08/07 Kansas City, MO Beaumont Club

Fri 11/09/07 Denver, CO Ogden Theatre

Sat 11/10/07 Salt Lake City, UT In The Venue

Mon 11/12/07 Seattle, WA Showbox At The Market

Tue 11/13/07 Portland, OR Roseland Theater

Thu 11/15/07 San Francisco, CA Warfield Theatre

Fri 11/16/07 Santa Cruz, CA The Catalyst

Sat 11/17/07 Los Angeles, CA The Avalon

Sun 11/18/07 Los Angeles, CA The Avalon

Tue 11/20/07 Pomona, CA Glass House

Wed 11/21/07 Pomona, CA Glass House

Fri 11/23/07 San Diego, CA House Of Blues

Sat 11/24/07 San Diego, CA House Of Blues

Thoughts: Another show that is decent, but won't leave a lasting impression (unless you're a huge fan of the band). If you're not going to spend a lot of money on the show its worth checking out, but otherwise I would stay clear.

19. Ok Go
Tour Schedule

Fri 10/26/07 Indianapolis, IN Butler University

Thoughts: I hate posting multiple tours with just one show, but Ok Go is a band I highly recommend seeing in concert. Their funny, musically tight, and provide an overall fun experience.

20. Phantom Planet
Tour Schedule

Sat 11/03/07 Vancouver, BC P.N.E. Pacific Coliseum

Mon 11/05/07 Sacramento, CA ARCO Arena

Tue 11/06/07 San Jose, CA HP Pavilion At San Jose

Thu 11/08/07 Los Angeles, CA Staples Center

Fri 11/09/07 San Diego, CA Cox Arena

Sat 11/10/07 Las Vegas, NV The Pearl Concert Theater At Palms

Thoughts: A lively, fun, show. They play what you would expect them to play and do a good job with keeping the crowd going.

21. Queens of the Stone Age
Tour Schedule

Fri 09/28/07 Homestead, PA Carnegie Library Music Hall

Sat 09/29/07 Philadelphia, PA Electric Factory

Tue 10/09/07 Providence, RI Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel

Fri 10/12/07 Boston, MA Orpheum Theatre

Sat 10/13/07 New York, NY WaMu Theater At Madison Sq. Garden

Mon 10/15/07 Toronto, ON Sony Centre For The Performing Arts

Tue 10/16/07 Montreal, QC Metropolis

Wed 10/17/07 Clifton Park, NY Northern Lights

Sat 10/20/07 Columbus, OH Lifestyle Communities Pavilion

Mon 10/22/07 Grand Rapids, MI Orbit Room

Tue 10/23/07 Detroit, MI The Fillmore Detroit

Wed 10/24/07 Milwaukee, WI The Rave Eagles Club

Thu 10/25/07 Chicago, IL Riviera Theatre

appearing with "Vegoose Music Festival"

Sat 10/27/07 Las Vegas, NV Sam Boyd Stadium

Queens Of The Stone Age

Mon 10/29/07 Los Angeles, CA Nokia Theatre L.A. Live

Fri 11/16/07 Dortmund, GER Westfalenhalle 2

Sat 11/17/07 Stuttgart, GER Congresscentrum

Sun 11/18/07 Wiesbaden, GER Schlachthof

Mon 11/19/07 Nuremberg, GER Lowensaal

Wed 11/21/07 Hamburg, GER Grosse Freiheit 36

Fri 11/23/07 Brighton, UK Brighton Dome

Sat 11/24/07 Liverpool, UK Carling Academy Liverpool

Sun 11/25/07 Nottingham, UK Rock City

Mon 11/26/07 London, UK Carling Brixton Academy

Wed 11/28/07 Glasgow, UK Carling Academy Glasgow

Sat 12/01/07 Bristol, UK Carling Bristol Academy

Sun 12/02/07 Manchester, UK Carling Apollo Manchester

Mon 12/03/07 Birmingham, UK Carling Academy Birmingham

Tue 12/04/07 Reading, UK Rivermead Centre

Thoughts: I saw them when they had their allstar line up so it might be unfair for me to judge their performance, but they were good. This was right after the release of "Songs for the Deaf" and they plugged a lot of that so I expect them to do the same with their newest release (especially because of the new line up)

22. Razorlight
Tour Schedule

Wed 11/07/07 Cambridge, MA Middle East Restaurant & Nightclub

Fri 11/09/07 New York, NY Fillmore New York At Irving Plaza

Sun 11/11/07 Toronto, ON Phoenix Concert Theatre

Tue 11/13/07 Chicago, IL Metro / Smart Bar

Thu 11/15/07 Seattle, WA Neumo's

Sat 11/17/07 San Francisco, CA Mezzanine

Mon 11/19/07 Los Angeles, CA Music Box @ Fonda

Thoughts: Their studio releases are mediocre, but they put on a better show than their CDs anticipate.

23. Reel Big Fish
Tour Schedule

Fri 12/07/07 Gold Coast, AUS Southport RSL

Sat 12/08/07 Brisbane, AUS Arena Entertainment Center

Sun 12/09/07 Sydney, AUS Luna Park

Tue 12/11/07 Melbourne, AUS Billboard Nightclub

Thu 12/13/07 Adelaide, AUS HQ

Fri 12/14/07 Perth, AUS Metro City

Thoughts: A good show overall (I know I've been sayign that about most shows I've been writing about here, but I'm mostly listing shows I recommend). Recommended more so if they're playing in a small venue (definitely a lot more fun.

24. Rufus Wainwright
Tour Schedule
Fri 10/05/07 Berlin, GER Volksbuhne

Sat 10/06/07 Dusseldorf, GER Schauspeilhaus

Tue 10/09/07 Belfast, UK Waterfront Hall

Wed 10/10/07 Dublin, IRE Vicar Street

Thu 10/11/07 Dublin, IRE Vicar Street

Sat 10/13/07 Gateshead, UK The Sage

Sun 10/14/07 Glasgow, UK Clyde Auditorium

Mon 10/15/07 Glasgow, UK Clyde Auditorium

Wed 10/17/07 Liverpool, UK Philharmonic Hall

Thu 10/18/07 Manchester, UK Carling Apollo Manchester

Fri 10/19/07 Sheffield, UK City Hall

Sun 10/21/07 Cambridge, UK Cambridge Corn Exchange

Mon 10/22/07 Cardiff, UK Millennium Centre

Thu 10/25/07 Birmingham, UK Symphony Hall

Fri 10/26/07 Birmingham, UK Symphony Hall

Sat 10/27/07 Harrogate, UK International Centre

Tue 10/30/07 London, UK Carling Apollo Hammersmith

Wed 10/31/07 London, UK Carling Apollo Hammersmith

Thu 11/01/07 Ipswich, UK Ipswich Regent Theatre

Sat 11/03/07 Toulouse, FRA Halle Aux Grains

Sun 11/04/07 Barcelona, SPA Teatro L'Alianca

Tue 11/06/07 Lisbon, POR Lisbon Coliseum

Wed 11/07/07 San Sebastian, SPA Kursaal Auditorium

Fri 11/09/07 Cartagena, SPA Teatro Circo

Sat 11/10/07 Malaga, SPA Teatro Cervantes

Mon 11/12/07 Madrid, SPA Teatro Coliseum

Wed 11/14/07 Marseille, FRA Espace Julien

Thu 11/15/07 Basel, SWI Festsaal

Fri 11/16/07 Brussels, BEL Cirque Royale

Sun 11/18/07 Nantes, FRA Auditorium 800

Mon 11/19/07 Paris, FRA Casino

Tue 11/20/07 Amsterdam, NET Heineken Music Hall

Thu 11/22/07 Grenoble, FRA Maison De La Culture

Fri 11/23/07 Vienna, AUT Arena

Sat 11/24/07 Milan, ITA Conservatorio Guiseppi Verdi

Mon 11/26/07 Munich, GER Herkulessaal

Tue 11/27/07 Frankfurt, GER Alte Oper

Thu 11/29/07 Hamburg, GER Kampnagel

Mon 12/03/07 Oslo, NOR Oslo Konserthuset

Wed 12/05/07 Aarhus, DEN Musikhuset

Fri 12/07/07 Lille, FRA Theatre Sebastopol

Sun 01/20/08 Nagoya, JPN Diamond Hall

Mon 01/21/08 Osaka, JPN Namba Hatch

Wed 01/23/08 Tokyo, JPN Tokyo International Forum

Sun 01/27/08 Brisbane, AUS Tivoli Theatre

Tue 01/29/08 Sydney, AUS State Theatre

Fri 02/01/08 Melbourne, AUS Hamer Hall

Mon 02/04/08 Auckland, NZ The Studio

Thu 02/07/08 Adelaide, AUS Norwood Concert Hall

Thoughts: Rufus has one of the best voices in the industry and he really lets it show in concert. That being said, his set gets redundant and boring about half an hour in (his set is exactly like listening to somebody with a really good voice singing the same thing over and over again). Check him out if he's opening for somebody you like, otherwise don't bother.

25. Saosin
Tour Schedule

Fri 09/28/07 Seattle, WA El Corazon

Sat 09/29/07 Portland, OR Hawthorne Theatre

Sun 09/30/07 San Francisco, CA Slim's

Mon 10/01/07 Fresno, CA Rainbow Ballroom

Tue 10/02/07 Los Angeles, CA The Avalon

Thu 10/04/07 Anaheim, CA Grove Of Anaheim

Fri 10/05/07 San Diego, CA SOMA San Diego

Sat 10/06/07 Las Vegas, NV House Of Blues

Sun 10/07/07 Tempe, AZ The Marquee Theatre

Tue 10/09/07 San Antonio, TX White Rabbit

Wed 10/10/07 Houston, TX Meridian

Thu 10/11/07 Austin, TX Emo's Austin

Fri 10/12/07 Dallas, TX House Of Blues

Sat 10/13/07 Nashville, TN Rcktwn

Mon 10/15/07 New Orleans, LA House Of Blues

Tue 10/16/07 Tallahassee, FL The Beta Bar

Wed 10/17/07 Saint Petersburg, FL Jannus Landing

Thu 10/18/07 Fort Lauderdale, FL Revolution

Fri 10/19/07 Lake Buena Vista, FL House Of Blues

Sat 10/20/07 Jacksonville, FL Fuel

Sun 10/21/07 Atlanta, GA The Masquerade

Tue 10/23/07 Columbia, MO Blue Note

Wed 10/24/07 Chicago, IL House Of Blues

Thu 10/25/07 Milwaukee, WI The Rave Eagles Club

Fri 10/26/07 Detroit, MI St. Andrews Hall

Sat 10/27/07 Cincinnati, OH Bogart's

Sun 10/28/07 Cleveland, OH House Of Blues

Tue 10/30/07 Charlotte, NC Tremont Music Hall / The Casbah

Wed 10/31/07 Norfolk, VA NorVa

Thu 11/01/07 Towson, MD Recher Theatre

Fri 11/02/07 Boston, MA The Roxy

Sat 11/03/07 Philadelphia, PA The Fillmore - TLA

Mon 11/05/07 Farmingdale, NY Crazy Donkey

Wed 11/07/07 New York, NY Fillmore New York At Irving Plaza

appearing with Alexisonfire

Sun 11/11/07 Bristol, UK Carling Bristol Academy

Mon 11/12/07 Southampton, UK Guildhall

Tue 11/13/07 London, UK Carling Brixton Academy

Wed 11/14/07 Manchester, UK Manchester Academy

Fri 11/16/07 Birmingham, UK Carling Academy Birmingham

Sat 11/17/07 Nottingham, UK Rock City

Sun 11/18/07 Middlesborough, UK Middlesbrough Town Hall

Mon 11/19/07 Leeds, UK Metropolitan University

Mon 12/10/07 Thunder Bay, ON Thunder Bay Community Auditorium

Wed 12/12/07 London, ON The John Labatt Centre

Thu 12/13/07 Ottawa, ON Ottawa Civic Centre Arena

Fri 12/14/07 Trois Rivieres, QC TBA

Sat 12/15/07 Montreal, QC Metropolis

Sun 12/16/07 Mississauga, ON International Centre Arrow Hall

Thoughts: One of the most hyped up bands I've ever seen in concert. The singer is absolutely nuts, in a good way, and provides a fun show. The music itself is mediocre at best however.

26. Saves the Day
Tour Schedule

Fri 10/05/07 Denver, CO Cervantes Masterpiece Ballroom

Sun 10/07/07 Chicago, IL Subterranean

Wed 10/10/07 Cleveland, OH Grog Shop

Thu 10/11/07 Pittsburgh, PA Diesel Club Lounge

Fri 10/12/07 Richmond, VA Alley Katz

Tue 10/16/07 Philadelphia, PA North Star Bar

Sat 10/20/07 New York, NY Knitting Factory

Mon 10/22/07 Atlanta, GA The Loft At Center Stage

appearing with "Saints and Sinners Festival"

Sat 11/03/07 Asbury Park, NJ Convention Hall

Thoughts: Its actually fun to figure out whether you're going to see a fat Chris (the lead singer) or a skinny Chris (he has a condition where his weight fluctuates like crazy). I've seen them 3 times and he's managed to keep the weight down. This has nothing to do with the performance however haha. A fun of this type of music will LOVE their set otherwise you will loathe it (its that extreme). I happened to enjoy all three times I saw them.

27. Third Eye Blind
Tour Schedule

Sat 09/29/07 Bowling Green, OH Bowling Green State University

Sat 11/17/07 Geneseo, NY SUNY / Geneseo

Thu 12/27/07 Aspen, CO Belly Up Aspen

Fri 12/28/07 Aspen, CO Belly Up Aspen

Thoughts: Although not my favorite Third Eye Blind song they did not play "Semi-Charmed Life" when I saw them which surprised me a lot. Their show was overall good although not incredibly memorable.

28. Virginia Coalition
Tour Schedule
Thu 09/27/07 Richmond, VA Virginia Science Museum

Fri 10/26/07 College Park, MD Santa Fe Cafe

Thoughts: SEE THIS BAND. I don't care what kind of music you like you will LOVE their set. I saw them when they opened for O.A.R. and was not familiar with their music whatsoever, but I actually enjoyed their set more than O.A.R.'s (and O.A.R. puts on a good show). The percussionist is the best part of the band. He is absoultely insane and plays with every part of his body. One of the most fun bands I have ever seen live.

29. Wildhearts
Tour Schedule,

Wed 10/24/07 Seattle, WA El Corazon

Thoughts: If you're in the Seattle area and are a fan of hard rock, check out this band. Very talented musically, and the singer has a perfect voice for metal.

30. Yellowcard
Tour Schedule

Thu 09/27/07 New York, NY Nokia Theatre Times Square

Fri 09/28/07 Philadelphia, PA Electric Factory

Yellowcard

Sat 09/29/07 State College, PA Cell Block

appearing with Blue October

Mon 10/01/07 Sayreville, NJ Starland Ballroom

Wed 10/03/07 Columbus, OH Lifestyle Communities Pavilion

Thu 10/04/07 Louisville, KY 4th Street Live!

Fri 10/05/07 Covington, KY Madison Theater

Sat 10/06/07 Royal Oak, MI Royal Oak Music Theatre

Tue 10/09/07 Saint Charles, MO Family Arena

Thu 10/11/07 Chicago, IL Riviera Theatre

Fri 10/12/07 Milwaukee, WI The Rave Eagles Club

Sat 10/13/07 Maplewood, MN Myth

Sun 10/14/07 Fargo, ND Playmaker's Entertainment Complex

Wed 10/17/07 West Des Moines, IA Val Air Ballroom

Thu 10/18/07 Wichita, KS The Cotillion

Fri 10/19/07 Council Bluffs, IA Mid-America Center

Sat 10/20/07 Denver, CO Fillmore Auditorium

Yellowcard

Sun 10/21/07 Salt Lake City, UT Avalon Th./Church

appearing with Blue October

Tue 10/23/07 San Francisco, CA Warfield Theatre

Wed 10/24/07 Las Vegas, NV The Pearl Concert Theater At Palms

Fri 10/26/07 Los Angeles, CA Greek Theatre

Sat 10/27/07 Phoenix, AZ Celebrity Theatre

Mon 10/29/07 El Paso, TX Abraham Chavez Theatre

Thu 11/01/07 Oklahoma City, OK Coca Cola Bricktown Events Center

Fri 11/02/07 Grand Prairie, TX Nokia Theatre At Grand Prairie

Sat 11/03/07 Houston, TX Verizon Wireless Theater

Sun 11/04/07 San Antonio, TX Sunset Station Lonestar Pavilion

Mon 11/05/07 Corpus Christi, TX Concrete Street Amphitheatre

Thu 11/08/07 Tampa, FL USF Sun Dome

Fri 11/09/07 Pompano Beach, FL Pompano Beach Amphitheatre

Sat 11/10/07 Lake Buena Vista, FL House Of Blues

Mon 11/12/07 Charenton, LA Cypress Bayou Casino

Fri 11/16/07 Tulsa, OK Cain's Ballroom

Sat 11/17/07 Austin, TX Frank Erwin Center

Yellowcard

Wed 11/28/07 Osaka, JPN IMP Hall

Thu 11/29/07 Nagoya, JPN Diamond Hall

Sun 12/02/07 Yokohama, JPN Bay Hall

Tue 12/04/07 Tokyo, JPN On Air East

Thoughts: The addition of the violin with this band is a real treat when seeing them live. It sets apart Yellowcard from your traditional punk/pop bands. The set list is what you would expect in a good way and they interact with the crowd a lot. Recommended.

31. Zebrahead
Tour Schedule

Tue 10/16/07 Newcastle, UK Carling Academy Newcastle

Wed 10/17/07 Glasgow, UK Carling Academy Glasgow

Fri 10/19/07 Swindon, UK Oasis Centre

Sat 10/20/07 Brighton, UK The Brighton Centre

Sun 10/21/07 Bournemouth, UK Solent Hall

Mon 10/22/07 London, UK Carling Brixton Academy

Tue 10/23/07 Wolverhampton, UK Civic Hall

Wed 10/24/07 Manchester, UK Carling Apollo Manchester

Thu 10/25/07 Newport, UK Newport Centre

Fri 10/26/07 Plymouth, UK Plymouth Pavilions

Thoughts: Very very interactive with the crowd. The highlight of this show was the "Bootylicious Vinyl" where the entire crowd got into a circle and dance around a disco ball. They take a substantial amount of requests as well which is a big plus. The only disappointing thing was they didn't play my favorite song and a pretty big hit from the band "The Real Me".

NFL Power Rankings-Week 4

2007-09-25T22:05:00.000-04:00

Here are the week 4 power rankings for the NFL.

1. New England Patriots
Why?-The Patriots are scary. Very scary. The Patriots were always good, but now with the implementation of Randy Moss they are unstoppable. I hate to say 16-0, but it's very possible with this team.

2. Indianopolis Colts
Why?-Until they lose a game, the Colts will remain in the top 2 for the Power Rankings. Although they had close calls with the Titans and the Texans, Peyton Manning and his maturity and skill helped guide his team to victories in both games. These Super Bowl Champs are picking up right where they left off.

3. Dallas Cowboys
Why?-The kings of the NFC. Tony Romo was no fluke last year and he's definitely making that a point this year. He is establishing himself as a top 5, possibly a top 3, quarterback.

4. Pittsburgh Steelers
Why?-Some people might view their 3-0 records as just luck that will run out, but it sure as hell doesn't look like it by the way they are playing. Don't forget they have a new coach and they absolutely destoryed a decent team (49ers).

5 Tennesse Titans
Why?-I had this team pegged to win the Super Bowl this year until the entire team either ended up injured or in jail. Vince Young seems to be able to handle the pressure of having nobody on his team and could be a big upset this season.

6. Baltimore Ravens
Why?-They might not be playing up until their level, but thats just it, they are a better team than they have been showing. I'm quite confident that the rest of the season will look extremely positive for this team.

7. Green Bay Packers
Why?-I really don't think the amazing start to their season will last that long, but hey with Brett Favre you never know. They will be a mediocre Minnesota next week, but don't expect them to go above 9-7 this season.

8. Jacksonville Jaguars
Why?-This team is going to fluctuate in the Power Rankings more than any other team. They can be a 13-3 team or a 4-12 team and it wouldn't surprise me either way. As of now they're looking really good. We'll see if it stays that way.

9. Seattle Seahawks
Why?-A win over the Bengals made this team earn this spot. Seahawks will win the division, which is expected.

10. Denver Broncos
Why?-Their offense lookins surprisingly good, although with a tough AFC schedule its hard to see this team going beyond number 10 in the rankings.

11. Houston Texans
Why?-Who would have thought this team would be ranked this high at all this season, but hey they are 2-1 with a loss to the Colts that was surprisingly close. Matt Schaub looks awesome right now and is totally rejuvinating this team.

12. Carolina Panthers
Why?-Don't expect this team to stray outside of this ranking too much this season. They are an above average team and thats pretty much the extent of it.

13. San Diego Chargers
Why?-Obviously the implementation of Norv Turner was one of the biggest mistakes in recent memory. That being said, I can't give up on this team yet. They still have LT and Philip Rivers. They have to be good..right????

14. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Why?-They could very well be a sleeper team this year, although part of me doesn't think that will happen.

15. Chicago Bears
Why?-The defense is above average as always, but Rex looks as bad as ever. If they got a mediocre quarterback, the Bears would easily be in the top 10, probably even the top 5, but they have Rex.

16. Philadelphia Eagles
Why?-After two bad weeks, the Eagles look like they are back in top form. Given his track record, I can't see McNabb goign back to the way he was in the first two weeks. This team will clear .500 easily.

17. San Francisco 49ers
Why?-They might be 2-1, but they are lucky to have that record. They are having issues on offense. Alex Smith is anything, but great and you can't expect Frank Gore to carry the entire team. Until the offense does something this team will be in the bottom 15.

18. Cincinnati Bengals
Why?-The loss to the Browns is the reason they are this low. Its the Browns!!! That being said, I expect the Bengals to bounce back under the leadereship of Carson Palmer.

19. Washington Redskins
Why?-The loss to the Giants knocked them down a few pegs. Don't expect this team to really recover much from it.

20. New York Giants
Why?-I honestly expect this team to continue to rise. Eli is having his best season so far and Ward is doing much more than expected of him. That being said, where the hell is the defense????

21. New York Jets
Why?-I'd rank them lower, but they are playing the lowly Bills next week which is almost a guarantee win.

22. Detroit Lions
Why?-Better than last year, but not as good as expected. After a 2-0 start they were placed back in reality when they faced an actual team, The Eagles.

23. Arizona Cardinals
Why?-Another team that could be a sleeper. Even though they are 1-2, keep an eye on this team.

24. Minnesota Vikings
Why?-Does this team even have an offense???

25. New Orleans Saints
Why?-I had this team going to the Super Bowl this year. THE SUPER BOWL! They are 0-3 right now and look absolutley horrible. I expect them to bounce back, but I'm waiting very patiently.

26. Kansas City Chiefs
Why?-They are starting to show some signs of life, but they still have a ways to go. They need LJ to start doing something though.

27. Cleveland Browns
Why?-This team is doing much better right now than I expected, but don't expect them to be a contender at all this year.

28. Oakland Raiders
Why?-While a much improved team, they are still pretty crappy.

29. Miami Dolphis
Why?-Why do people think this team is going to make the playoffs every year?? There is nothing good about this team.

30. St. Louis Rams
Why?-Another team pegged to be good, but showing no signs of it. Stephen Jackson is showing some signs of life so expect this team to move up in the rankings.

31. Buffalo Bills
Why?-JP Losman was supposed to have a breakout season this year. I guess we'll have to wait until next year.

32. Atlanta Falcons
Why?-I've heard from many people that without Michael Vick this team we'll be pretty much the same. I'm still waiting.

Check Out These CDs

2007-09-24T22:28:00.000-04:00

I'm posting below my favorite CDs of all time (in alphabetical order). These are CDs that if you do not know of you need to check out immediately.

Abandoned Pools-Humanistic

Ben Folds-Rockin' the Suburbs

Coldplay-A Rush of Blood to the Head

The Dissociatives-The Dissociatives

Green Day-American Idiot

Green Day-Dookie

Green Day-Nimrod

true

Guster-Goldfly

Incubus-Make Yourself

Jimmy Eat World-Bleed American

Jimmy Eat World-Clarity

Led Zeppelin-Led Zeppelin I

Led Zeppelin-Led Zeppelin IV

Live-Throwing Copper

Muse-Absoultion

Nirvana-In Utero

Nirvana-Nevermind

Oasis-(What's the Story) Morning Glory

Pink Floyd-Dark Side of the Moon

Pink Floyd-Wish You Were Here

Radiohead-Kid A

Radiohead-Ok Computer

Radiohead-The Bends

Sigur Ros-()

Sigur Ros-Takk

Silverchair-Diorama

Sublime-40oz to Freedom

Sublime-Sublime

U2-The Joshua Tree

Other Highly Recommended CDs:

1. Alanis Morrissette-Jagged Little Pill
2. Ataris-Blue Skies, Broken Hearts, Next 12 Exits
3. Beatles-Magical Mystery Tour
4. Beatles-Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
5. Beatles-White Album
6. Ben Folds Five-Ben Folds Five
7. Bob Marley-Babylon By Bus
8. Clash-London Calling
9. Coolio-Gangsta's Paradise
10. Dave Matthews Band-Under the Table and Dreaming
11. Death Cab For Cutie-Transatlantacism
12. Dispatch-Bang Bang
13. Doors-The Doors
14. Doors-The Soft Parade
15. Eagles-Hotel California
16. Elliott Smith-Either/Or
17. Elliott Smith-XO
18. Fall Out Boy-From Under the Cork Tree
19. Flaming Lips-The Soft Bulletin
20. Flaming Lips-Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots
21. Format-Dog Problems
22. Format-Interventions and Lullabies
23. Fugees-The Score
24. Gorillaz-Gorillaz
25. Green Day-Insomniac
26. Guns 'N Roses-Appetite for Destruction
27. Guns 'N Roses-Use Your Illusion I
28. Guster-Keep it Together
29. Guster-Lost and Gone Forever
30. Incubus-A Crow Left of the Murder
31. Incubus-Light Grenades
32. Incubus-S.C.I.E.N.C.E.
33. Jellyfish-Spilt Milk
34. Jethro Tull-Aqualung
35. Jimi Hendrix-Are You Experienced
36. John Lennon-Imagine
37. Kings of Convenience-Riot on an Empty Street
38. Kinks-You Really Got Me
39. Led Zeppelin-Led Zeppelin II
40. Led Zeppelin-Led Zeppelin III
41. Led Zeppelin-Physical Graffiti
42. Muse-Black Holes and Revelations
43. Muse-Showbiz
44. Nas-Illmatic
45. Nas-Stillmatic
46. No Doubt-Tragic Kingdom
47. Notorious BIG-Life After Death
48. Ours-Precious
49. Outkast-Stankonia
50. Paul McCartney-McCartney
51. Pearl Jam-Ten
52. Pearl Jam-Vitalogy
53. Phantom Planet-The Guest
54. Pink Floyd-Meddle
55. Pink Floyd-The Wall
56. Radiohead-Hail to the Thief
57. REM-Automatic for the People
58. REM-New Adventures in Hi-Fi
59. REM-Out of Time
59. Sigur Ros-Agaetys Bryjun
60. Silverchair-Freak Show
61. Silverchair-Young Modern
62. Smashing Pumpkins-Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness
63. Smashing Pumpkins-Siamese Dream
64. Snow Patrol-Final Straw
65. Straylight Run-Straylight Run
66. Sublime-Robbin' the Hood
67. System of a Down-Mezmorize
68. Talking Heads-Talking Heads
69. Third Eye Blind-Third Eye Blind
70. Tonic-The Lemon Parade
71. U2-War
72. Van Morrison-Astral Weeks
73. Van Morrison-Moondance
74. Violent Femmes-Violent Femmes
75. Wallflower-Bringing Down the Horse
76. Weezer-Weezer (Blue Album)
77. Weezer-Weezer (Green Album)
78. White Stripes-Elephant
79. White Stripes-Icky Thump
80. Wyclef Jean-The Carnival
81. Zebrahead-Waste of Mind
82. Zoo Story-Come Out and Play

Enjoy...

Welcome

2007-09-24T22:24:00.001-04:00

Real posts will start within this week. To state the obvious, this blog will contain information on mine and a lot of people's favorite interests: music and sports. It will contain music reviews, unknown bands to check out, upcoming shows, power rankings, predictions, and more. Feel free to offer your opinions (positive or negative).