Director's Club

One of my all-time favorite bands is Low.  They've been around for over 20 years, and I first heard them back in 2001 for the record Things We Lost In The Fire.  Now they are about to release their 11th full-length record next month entitled Ones & Sixes, and I couldn't be more excited to hear it based on the first two singles.  I play a sample of the first single, and end the show with the second single as well as a couple of snippets of two of my favorite Low songs. 

But most importantly, I got to spend a half hour talking with an incredible songwriter, Alan Sparhawk, who along with his wife Mimi, create music alongside bassist Steve Garrington.  Tickets are on sale now for their North American and European Tours.  Low will be joined by Andy Shauf, Two Gallants, Mike Noga (The Drones), and Chelsea Wolfe so this is a show you won't want to miss, and another interview that I couldn't be happier to share with you. Special thanks to Bekah at SubPop and Low's management for makin this happen, and thank YOU for listening.

http://www.chairkickers.com/
https://www.subpop.com/artists/low
https://lowtheband.bandcamp.com/

Patrick fulfills yet another promise to a Kickstarter contributor, and a familar one at that. Mr. Bill Ackerman asked Patrick to reconsider some movies from past episodes that he claims to have disliked in the past. Will a rewatch help in any way?  Patrick embarks on a very long conversation about such films as CRASH, PICNIC AT HANGING ROCK, HENRY FOOL, TWIN PEAKS: FIREWALK WITH ME, and more!  It's great to hear his voice again and thanks again to Bill Ackerman for contributing to Patrick's request!  We will return in about ten days or so with another official episode, as well as an exciting new interview in the next week or two.  Thanks for listening - Jim

It wasn't easy filling an entire episode with a filmmaker whom we've only gotten to see two movies from thus far.  But that didn't stop my enthusiasm to talk about Alex Ross Perry with someone that is light years smarter than I was at his age. 

18-year-old filmmaker Ben Medina joins me to talk Perry. We also delve into the many films and directors that have inspired Ben, what movies mean to him, as well as discuss some recent entries into the contemporary indie film genre such WHILE WE'RE YOUNG (very appropriate), THE OVERNIGHT, IT FOLLOWS, and a whole lot more throughout the episode. The what we watched segment has been bypassed a bit due to the geyser of conversation we shared about film and filmmaking, and what it means to us.  Of course, the 2nd half focuses on both THE COLOR WHEEL and LISTEN UP PHILIP.  Thanks as always for listening, and stay tuned for another sequel episode coming in August - Jim

00:00 - 59:10 - Introduction / Ben Interview / General Discussion
59:11 - 59:58 - Director Song
59:59 - 1:30:41 - Alex Ross Perry (LISTEN UP PHILIP / COLOR WHEEL)
1:30:42 - 2:08:20 - Other Recent Indie Films We've Seen / Outro

Ben Medina on Vimeo

1985 celebrates my 30th anniversary as a movie freak.  BACK TO THE FUTURE was the movie I saw when I was seven years old that pretty much changed my life forever.  It got me hooked on going to the movies and seeing as many movies as I could. In honor of its release in July of 1985, I enlisted the help of two Chicago critics and friends Erik Childress and Collin Souter to not only talk about their earliest memories of seeing BACK TO THE FUTURE, but to look back at the year 1985 since it was pretty significant for all of us.  We pick our favorites from that year of course.

Many, many other titles come up throughout the discussion including THE GOONIES, REAL GENIUS, PEE WEE'S BIG ADVENTURE, RE-ANIMATOR, THE PURPLE ROSE OF CAIRO, AFTER HOURS, BRAZIL, RAMBO: FIRST BLOOD PART TWO, and a whole slew of forgotten gems that you have got to hear about including a rundown of releases later in the show that made us cringe.  Since BTTF was such a special movie moment in my life, I thought it would be apt to put out this bonus episode.  Many thanks to Erik and Collin for yet another joyful conversation and to the listeners who continue to support my love of film - Jim

FOOTNOTE:  If you happen to be in the Chicagoland area before July 14th, and want to see BACK TO THE FUTURE on the big screen hosted by Erik, you can get tickets here - http://www.classiccinemas.com/Content.aspx?page=1017

LINKS:
http://www.rogerebert.com/contributors/collin-souter
http://www.indiewire.com/critic/erik-childress

I've had some wonderful guests in the past, but this one is particularly near and dear to me for reasons which I cover in this episode. Power pop legend Matthew Sweet talks with me about a number of things including what it's like to hang out with Brian Wilson, the early days of MTV and record labels, what's in store for the future, and more!  There's certainly a lot of talk about in regards to his many records but I did steer the conversation towards Girlfriend, Altered Beast and In Reverse mostly. 

Even if you've never heard of Matthew, you should become familiar with his incredible songwriting since it's had a huge influence on my own music. There is no outro, since I wanted one of my favorite ballads of his to play in its entirety, and have the episode end on that "note."  This was a true honor, and I couldn't be more happier with this conversation.  There will be more to come in the future!

Songs featured:
"Girlfriend" from the album Girlfriend
"Where You Get Love" from the album Blue Sky On Mars
"I Almost Forgot" from the album 100% Fun

Matthew's website for tour dates:
http://www.matthewsweet.com/

Me and Patrick tackle the big questions regarding why we bother to talk about movies at all and slip into a little processing of our own about the nature of movie-viewing and the importance of the "rewatch."  But for the majority of the episode, we parse the idea of movies that can potentially grow on you over time.  My choices for discussion were THE MASTER and JOE VS. THE VOLCANO, two oddities that couldn't be more different from one another, that I didn't love until I saw them a second time. 

After our reviews of both films (one of which is a straight-up disagreement) something rather unexpected occurs.  A wildly organic conversation erupts about the nature of why we watch so many movies in the first place!  Patrick questions his need to see "everything" despite leaving the show as a permanent co-host and I come to terms with the fact that movies are just a part of my own personal narrative.  So it gets pretty heavy and personal later on in a very interesting way.  The episode fades out leaving the listener wondering... will Jim and Patrick return as full-time co-hosts in the future?  God only knows.  But expect a few more appearences from Patrick throughout the year regardless, and we're all the better for it.  He will be back with at least three more bonus episodes in the months to come, and obviously, he is welcome back anytime.  Thanks everyone for listening to a very personal (and hopefully) enlightening conversation - Jim

http://directorsclubpodcast.com

Director's Club as you know it is back, kind of.  As indicated in the recently posted Pop Culture Club debut, I mentioned that every now and again, directors will still be focused on from time to time.  I decided to put a couple of sequel episodes on the schedule for the summer to make it easier on myself, and to follow through on a couple of promises I made.

Friend to the show Bill Ackerman and I are both huge fans of David Cronenberg, and as much as I enjoyed our first episode on DC, I knew a sequel / reboot was due so we could discuss some more of his recent films and a couple others we skipped over the first time.  It's more of a general discussion but there is definitely a heated debate surrounding CRASH and a newfound respect for both SPIDER and A DANGEROUS METHOD.  Also, Bill talks about DER SAMURAI while I review Rodney Ascher's documentary THE NIGHTMARE.

00:00 - 27:17 - Introduction / Cronenberg
27:18 - 27:35 - What We Watched Song
27:36 - 42:41 - What We Watched
42:42 - 43:01 - Director Song
43:02 - 02:07:52 - Cronenberg Discussion
02:07:53 - 02:18:48 - Top 5 Cronenberg Films / Outro

Thanks everyone so much for listening!  The next episode will be another bonus episode recorded with Patrick, whom I love.  Him and I will be revisiting Paul Thomas Anderson's THE MASTER to see if we warm up to it more, as well as talk about the genius of John Patrick Shanley's JOE VS. THE VOLCANO.  There's plenty of good stuff to come, so stay subscribed.  And as always, do send me an email:  [email protected]

Did you visit the new website yet:
http://directorsclubpodcast.com

Visit Bill's blog damn it:
http://auteuristtrap.blogspot.com

I'm sure you are very confused right about now, but don't fret.  Director's Club isn't going away, just becoming sporadic.  Patrick will be back with another bonus episode soon enough too.  As for me, I'm occassionally going to put out shorter episodes akin to the one you're about to hear, that will go under the moniker "Pop Culture Club."  This is a trial run (or episode 1 if you prefer) in which I interview my friend Marissa about UHF, talk with an aspiring documentarian named Clay, play some music from my favorite record of the year, briefly review TU DORS NICOLE, and elaborate on what's to come.  Don't worry, there will be director-centric episodes in the future, but for now, enjoy this spin-off show in its infancy - Jim

Pop Culture Club Podcast
00:00 - 00:20 - Charlie's Angry Voicemail
00:21 - 15:29 - Introduction To PCCP
15:30 - 17:55 - Nick Digilio / "New Skin" - Torres
17:56 - 21:09 - Interview With Clay Jewel
21:10 - 52:33 - Weird Al UHF Discussion w/Marissa Robertcop
52:34 - 01:05:36 - "The Harshest Light" - Torres / Movie Review / Outro
01:05:37 - 01:09:08 - "Come To Terms" - Torres

If you see TU DORS NICOLE, email me at [email protected].  (New website forthcoming).  If you have any thoughts, suggestions, comments or questions, email me there or leave a voicemail like listener Charlie did at (224) 366-9528.  Be prepared since it will be played on the air!

BUY TORRES RECORDS NOW:  http://torrestorrestorres.com/
LISTEN TO NICK DIGILIO:  https://www.facebook.com/nickdshow
FOLLOW MARISSA ON TWITTER:  https://twitter.com/m_robertcop
POP CULTURE CLUB ARTWORK:  https://twitter.com/gabempowers

The first of a few bonus episodes from Patrick (before his departure) as promised!  This one comes courtesy of a listener request from Sean.  This discussion also features previous guest Regina talking with Patrick about two Scorsese horror films: CAPE FEAR & SHUTTER ISLAND.  More episodes to come in the next couple of months!

Hello friends, Jim here.  Welcome to Clip Show Redux.  Well yes, this was technically supposed to be a part of episode 100 -- much like the last episode we did on favorite movies -- but that's okay since numbers don't really matter, right?  Besides we've surpassed episode 100 if we counted the bonus episodes, remember?  Basically, a couple of emailers suggested another crack at this, and I was up to the task at hand despite it consuming up an entire day.  It was worth it.  Thanks to Caleb and a caller that left a voicemail -- you are both featured in the intro! 

I explain more about two minutes in, but here's the scoop.  You get nearly two hours of everything you've come to love about Director's Club -- puns, mouth noises, grunts, umms, witticisms and insights galore.  This redux clip show features excerpts from about four years of podcasting interspersed with newer parody songs that were not played or featured in the "Radio Director's Club" bonus episode that Patrick did.  Some of these clips may have been played during Part 2 of Episode 50, but the majority of them along with the parody songs have never parsed before!  I'm sure I forgot a lot of great moments throughout the show, but if you're a fan and want to relive memories or share the show with skeptics, this might be the way to go.  Listen and decide for yourself.  It turned into quite the pinata so I hope you love ear candy.  Here's the rundown:

00:00 - 05:59 - Introduction
06:00 - 13:47 - Greatest Clips Part 1
13:48 - 24:23- Parody Songs
24:24 - 34:16 - Greatest Clips Part 2
34:17 - 43:52 - Parody Songs
43:53 - 53:02 - Greatest Clips Part 3
53:03 - 01:07:03  - Parody Songs
01:07:03  - 01:12:46 - Greatest Clips Part 4
01:12:47 - 01:17:52 -   That Time Patrick Almost Died In His Car!
01:17:53 - 01:28:14 -  "Unreleased" Parody Songs & More Songs!
01:29:15 - 01:49:45 -   Greatest Clips Part 5 / Conclusion

Love,
Jim & Patrick
http://directorsclubpodcast.com