bluepiano

I have a blues band that does some roots rock (Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis) and the occasional Hank Williams and Johnny Cash tune. I've had people tell me to check out Chris Stapleton, so I probably should. He might be the kind of country artist I like too.

I always think the same thing when watching westerns made in the 1930s. The "Wild West" was fairly recent history, if "history" is even the right word for it. There were places in the country that were still more dependent on horses than cars. Of course some of the first silent movies were westerns, and that was even closer in time to what was being portrayed. There were actual legendary western figures who did appear in silent westerns, sometimes playing themselves. For me, I think about the World War II movies and TV shows I watched as a kid in the '60s, thinking about that as some long ago time, when it was only 20-25 year before. Like watching a movie now set in 1990. As for how teenagers today feel, I have some friends who teach junior high and high school. They say that thanks at least partly to the internet and social media, kids live totally in the present, and anything that happened before they were born, or even a few years ago, has little interest to them. Most wouldn't be able to tell you when the Vietnam War happened, or when man first set foot on the moon. Whether it's the Vietnam War, World War II, or The Civil War, it all took place in some hazy, undefined thing called "the past. (Sadly, I don't think it would be a lot different for many adults. As a culture we seem to have really devalued knowing our history).

Every word you say is so true. I DVR the show so I was able to fast forward through that crap, but holy cow, were those the best two acts they could hire? How ironic that on the semi-final results night for a show called "The Voice" they have two acts with not a single person who can actually, you know, sing. This has been true way too often for both The Voice and American Idol over the years. The judges dissect the vocal performances of the contestants and hold them to certain standards, and then the big name musical guest comes out and proves that you can make millions in the music business with little to no talent. For me this has been a disappointing season. No one's been overly impressive. My favorite of the ones who made it deep into the season was Vanessa, and she didn't even get to sing for the last save, which surprised me. I guess it's hard to beat out a young blonde country singer, but for me Brenley isn't remotely in her league. Aliyah is a talented 15 year old, but I don't like the way the show's handled her. Too many heavy, serious songs that don't give her a chance to show the fun side she displayed in her blind audition with "Hound Dog." I really wish the age minimum was 18. I've gotten to hate "Tennessee Whiskey" as it's been done to death on these shows, but strategically it was very smart of Jessie (or Adam) to go with a country song in the sing-off rather than with a blues or rock tune. Lauren Duski has a beautiful voice, with almost the purity of an Emmy Lou Harris, so though I'm not a big country fan I'd be happy seeing her win. Probably the best thing you can say for this season is that there was never an almost certain winner from early on, as there's been in several recent seasons.

Should the show be called "Food Network Southern Star" now? 8 of the 12 finalists are from the south. A really strange geographical distribution. Two contestants from Atlanta, but not a single one from California, or anywhere on the west coast Or the northwest. One contestant from the entire northeast. I guess the FN brass decided that those southern accents are just too adorable, and can't wait to find another Trisha Yearwood or Pioneer Woman. Three out of 12 chefs (25%) doing Cajun? Now there's some culinary diversity! There is one contestant from Honolulu, but admittedly profiling based on her photo and bio, I don't imagine she will be doing much in the way of Hawaiian/Pacific Island cooking. Her bio says that she "specializes in elevating everyday foods." Now there's something I've never heard before.

Yeah, very Disney. But I won't deny that I kind of enjoyed it. As Luke Bryan said, Aliyah is cute as a button. But although she can really sing and she sounds older than she is, I wish she'd waited a year or two. Or that the age limit hadn't been lowered. Glad to hear you say that. I feel like that was true for the first Battle Round as well. Since I'm way past the age demographic for today's pop music, I don't know most of the songs and so maybe I'm not a good judge. But a lot of these songs just sound like people shouting at each other. No real melody. Was really surprised at the pimping of Chris as a lock for the finals, and even a probable winner. Someone posted previously that so far this season has no clear early favorite, which has kind of become a Voice tradition,. Often the early favorite ends up winning. (Alisan Porter, Jordan Smith, Sawyer Fredericks). Maybe the producers thought that they needed to put someone in that position, but I don't feel Chris is that strong. In fact, so far no one's impressed me. I'm hearing a whole lot of bland. No one who's a powerhouse vocalist, or has an interesting personal style.

Yeah, I remember in the blinds that her pitch to one of the teen girls struck me as kind of creepy. It was like, "I love you, I want to possess you," and she sounded desperate. If I was the girl's parent I would've been screaming, no, don't pick Gwen!

Don't know about her dramatic chops, but watching Modern Times again the other day I was struck by just how incredibly lovely she was. As the barefoot homeless girl she was a great counterpart to Charlie's Tramp, and I thought she gave a moving performing. My wife and I watch a lot of old movies on DVD or online, and for years now, every time one ends we jokingly say that we're waiting for Robert Osborne to come on. So sad that he's gone, even though it had been expected for some time. I never failed to enjoy his comments. I loved that he never really tried to make any earth shaking pronouncements about the movies. Instead, he offered small insights and insider anecdotes that you were not likely to get anywhere else. Ultimately, it's all about the movies, but for me, like many others I'm sure, Robert Osborne was a huge part of what made TCM special.

I posted earlier that the lower age minimum was going to ruin the show. Well, maybe that's going too far, but I think we've already seen it have an impact. I think that the 14 year old girl who got stolen was just not that good (yet), and better "grown-up" singers didn't get stolen. I was okay with Quizz winning his battle, but I think he's being treated as a novelty. So hard to compare a 13 year old to an adult. If these "kids" get to the live shows they could be hard to stop. America loves the little ones. Look at past seasons of Idol and America's Got Talent.

I totally agree with you. The gamesmanship between the coaches about hitting their buttons is worse this year than I ever remember. It's like they're bored just listening to the singer and have to find a way to amuse themselves. To me it's annoying and disrespectful of the person singing. I want to see the judges pushing their button (or not pushing it) based solely on their opinion of the singer. Barricades that restrict the judges from seeing the chair turns, making it a "blind audition" in every sense, is an idea I'd love to see them try next season. (Guess you'd need silent buzzers too). But this show is really about the competition and bantering between the judges, so I don't ever see that happening.

Wow, did they intentionally save the most boring performances for this episode? YMMV, as some people seemed to really like this show, but I thought it was a snooze. Probably the best performance for me was TSoul, but even he was mediocre compared to some of the soul/r&b singers they've had in the past. It no doubt says more about me than about the show, but I get bored with the special little snowflakes from the loving, supportive families. I want to hear some pain in my music, or at least some life experience. Glad that no one turned for the faux rocker chick in the black leather outfit. It was like she was playing a rock singer in a high school play. Great point by Alicia, that it's hard to get people involved in your performance when you start dialed up to 10 and stay there the whole time. Listen to a skilled rocker chick singer like Anne Wilson of Heat, and you'll hear how she keeps her voice restrained until she goes big on the chorus to give it real dramatic effect. Usually when it gets later in the blinds the coaches become more critical, but tonight it felt like they were getting kind of desperate. There were several multi-chairs for what I thought were very ordinary performances. I think some better singers in earlier shows got shafted. "Ring of Fire" is one of my all-time favorite songs, and I thought the woman who got the pimp spot butchered it, with her over-affected, quavery vocal. Yet she got four turns? I enjoyed the guy who sang "Allison" more. Not exciting, but at least he stayed true to the melody.

You've identified one of my pet peeves with this show. Blake isn't the only one. I've heard many coaches say, "I'm going to pick the artist I feel I can do the most for," or "I'm going to pick the artist with the most room for growth." Which is counter to what the show was originally supposed to be about, finding the best singer, right here, right now. It's what was supposed to make The Voice different from American Idol. But with the huge emphasis The Voice puts on the coaches (no question they're the stars), it makes sense that the coaches would often prefer the younger singer who they feel they can mold. And get credit for helping. If they go with the more mature artist, who's not really looking for guidance, then it makes the coaches seem unnecessary. In the past, Gwen has seemed to make some of her decisions based on who she thought she could mold into a mini version of herself. Or use as the subject for a hair/fashion makeover. That's why I think that the "older" contestant would be wise to avoid her, if they have a choice. I'm not a huge Adam fan, but he will go with an experienced performer like Laith Al-Saidi, and then just stand back and let him do his thing.

I had not watched this show in a while, and actually just became aware of the new season. I watched this episode on-demand, and OMG, what a bunch of BS. Are we supposed to believe all the action in the bar is being captured by hidden camera, a la "Mystery Diners?" Even that show has more credibility. It was obvious that the drunken owner, bar staff, and "customers" (ie hired actresses) were all miked and following a script. As someone who's had tangential involvement in the bar industry, I used to find this show somewhat interesting. Though I usually disagreed with Taffer's methods, he was at least dealing with real business situations. But this episode was totally staged "reality TV" fake drama. And Taffer is an even worse (and less believable) amateur psychologist and family counselor than Gordon Ramsey. His in-your-face screaming and exaggerated facial expressions are painful to watch. At least GR can sometimes be charming. Taffer has to be the most over-the-top, unpleasant person on reality TV. I guess I'll check out another new episode and see if it's any better. If not, adios.

Me neither. It was already hard enough to do a fair comparison between the perky teens, some of whom really grated on me (ie Braiden Sunshine) with the more mature performers. I think that often the better singers lost out to the cute youngsters, not just in fan voting, but also in the coaches' picks. It's potentially going to be harder this season with even younger contestants. If it's really about "the voice" then it's not fair if some contestants get graded on a curve. In a worst case scenario, this show could become another "America's Got Talent," won last season by a little girl who couldn't stay in tune, or even sing with the same accent, from one line to another.

This week's show really highlighted for me that song choice is (almost) everything. "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" is a song with such good vibes it seems to get the judges immediately on your side. And Cindy Lauper is really more of a performer than a great singer, so there isn't some high bar you need to match. By contrast, as soon as I heard Paul Adrian say he was going to sing "I Got a Woman" I knew he was in trouble. Ray Charles is one of the great, iconic singers of all time. I thought that Paul actually did a pretty good job of trying to make the song his own, and not try to imitate the original. But I still found myself wanting to hear those amazing Ray Charles shouts, and I bet the judges did too. I think that's what Alicia meant when she said it wasn't "stirring.' With a different song I'm sure he'd have made it. The criticism of him being a bit wobbly at times was valid, but you definitely could've said that about the girl from Utah who got three chairs, and Caroline, who got two, and in fact many people in the blinds. Other than the occasional older contestant with serious professional experience, it's likely due to nerves. Speaking of older contestants, does it seem that the show is slanting more heavily now towards the teenagers? Perhaps its the impact of American Idol being gone. But when The Voice started it had a focus on experienced performers who for various reasons had fallen short of "making it." That was the aspect of the show I really enjoyed. Last season it started skewing younger, and this season the trend's continuing. For the most part the teens, who have yet to develop a real personal style, bore me.

I'm always skeptical about online figures for peoples' net worth, because it seems to me that's not public information. But my impression was that Marty was worth much more than a couple of million. He was previously in oil and gas exploration, and if you're successful in that business there's mega big bucks to be made. He lives in Traverse City, where there are some quite rich folks with beautiful houses along the bay. (TC is also home turf for Michael Moore). Marty's son strikes me as a nice enough kid but a bit of a pampered prince. You generally see him just standing around, or driving a car when they go somewhere. Contrast that with Craig Tester's stepson Jack, who usually gets the dirtiest and least glamorous jobs, like digging (or rummaging with his hands) through the debris field. My supposition is that the History Channel, along with Prometheus Productions, is bankrolling the digging operations. They're not going to take a chance on losing one of their highest rated shows because the Laginas "and their partners" (as the narrator says) balk at sinking more of their own funds into something with little realistic change of financial pay back. Actually, the corporation they formed to buy up most of the island is called something like "Oak Harbor Tourism," though it seems to me that the opportunities to make money off tourism are limited, even should they make a significant discovery. It's not the easiest place to get to, and because of weather considerations that area of Nova Scotia has a short tourist season.

I just recently discovered this show and have been binge watching on-demand. Viewing this way, I've discovered that I can skip around within a season, or even from season to season, and not miss anything. Because nothing ever really happens. Whatever episode you watch, they're digging one hole or another, finding one piece of wood or another, or listening to one far-fetched theory or another. It all blurs together. I'm enjoying reading this forum and seeing that it's not just me who finds the whole thing an exercise in faulty logic and circular reasoning. "Because someone went to the trouble to bury a vault 150 feet down and build multiple booby traps means that whatever's down there must be fabulously valuable." Except there is no actual evidence that anyone did any of those things. And of course, if someone did bury a fabulous treasure, they would install a plaque saying "hey, you who are trying to steal our treasure, you're on the right track. Keep digging." And how, if the Laginas and their partners with all kinds of machinery and modern technology can't get 150 feet below the surface, would a bunch of 17th century pirates (or whoever) have done it with picks and shovels. And why? There's no reason to bury anything more than 10 feet below ground, since you're on an obscure tiny island off the coast of Nova Scotia. This show makes it sound like Oak Island is Times Square, with thousands of visitors passing through daily. All that said, I do enjoy the show, because I like the idea of a quest, and I think that the personalities involved are generally likeable, unlike many reality shows. The relationship between the Lagina brothers is interesting. Even though Marty is the younger one, he really acts like the older brother, and is incredibly indulgent of his sibling. Rick Lagina is kind of a lost soul. They've never mentioned his having a family, and I think that he occupied himself with fantasies of buried treasure to keep from being bored with his post office job. Year ago I had a friend who was very intelligent but also kind of a lost soul dreamer. He was a career post office employee too. Has anyone commented that this show is produced by Prometheus Entertainment, who also do "Ancient Aliens"? And I'm almost positive that the eternally astonished narrator on "Curse of Oak Island" is the same narrator on AA. "Could it be that blah blah blah? Ancient astronaut theorists says yes."

I would like to see them do a whole season in a Canadian city, and am perplexed as to why they haven't done so yet. Montreal, Toronto, and Vancouver are all fascinating cites with great food scenes. Toronto used to be kind of meat and potatoes boring, but now it's one of the most international cities in the world, with food influences from Asia, the Caribbean, Middle East etc. I'm wondering if there's some kind of issue with work visas. But even if they had to shoot using a Canadian crew it would be a really nice change of pace. I agree that moving to another, often foreign location for the finale makes no sense and is rather jarring. After having been in Charleston all season, focusing on southern regional cooking, we're suddenly in Mexico paring dishes with tequila? It's a complete non sequitur, and does feel like a slight to the season's host city. And as someone previously posted, with Bourdain and Zimmern and so many travel shows on the air, the travelogue aspect is hardly a novelty. And I suspect that Tom and Padma can afford their own vacation to Mexico, the Bahamas, or wherever.

Patron's been an off-and-on sponsor this season, but I agree that this show was way too much of a commercial. (And I love tequila). This late in the season, the sudden emphasis on making a cocktail felt really strange. It's Top Chef, not Top Bartender. I didn't understand Tom's comment about the excessive alcohol in John's drink destroying the taste of the food. Any strong drink (and a real margarita should be strong) is going to impact your taste buds. Were the other drinks that much weaker? I think they just wanted to get rid of John. The final three seem to me to have been predetermined long ago. I remember rooting for Brooke in her first season. Now I'm for anyone but Brooke. The concept of half-newbies, half-veterans was an epic fail. They never have to try that again. I guess having been on the show before is a big advantage. The guest judge seemed like a tool. I looked up his L.A. restaurant online. I've been to some highly regarded "high end" Mexican and Mexican-fusion restaurants, but none with prices that even approach what this dude is charging. Forty dollars entrees??? Even worse, most of the reviews on Yelp said the food was terrible, and that you'd be better off eating at a neighborhood Mexican joint for a fraction of the cost. Still, it's L.A., so at long as it's considered trendy I'm sure the place will be packed with rich foodies.

We have an "International District" here in Seattle, and there are several Taiwanese restaurants. Also restaurants with food from Hong Kong. It's been an education for me to learn just how many different cuisines there are under the umbrella of what most Americans generically call "Chinese food." I love Malaysian food, which is like a synthesis of the food from a number of different Asian cultures. As is Filipino food, which also has Spanish and Portuguese influences from their colonial period. The Seattle area has I believe the largest Filipino-American population in the country. I'd never had Filipino food until I moved here. We also have a number of Hawaiian restaurants. The Filipino-Hawaiian fusion that Sheldon was talking about would probably be a hit here. This week's show was actually the first time I can remember hearing him talk about his Filipino heritage. Maybe I just wasn't paying attention?

Maybe next she should go on "Food Network Star," where they almost require that every dish be accompanied by a heart-warming family story. I've heard many Top Chef contestants from China and India, among other countries, say their parents were not happy they chose a culinary career, rather than going into something like medicine or engineering. The attitude is, "we didn't emigrate to the US and work hard all those years so you could end up a cook." The families seem to be particularly hard on women who become chefs. I don't know yet who won LCK. But if it's Brooke, and if I were cynical enough to believe that the entire season is scripted, what better story line could you have than Brooke emerging from LCK to win the title? Poetic justice and payback for when she lost in the final to LCK winner Kristen.

Classic poltergeist activity is attached to a person (usually a young girl), so if that if the person moved to another house the activity would go with them. (Supernatural writer/researcher Colin Wilson documented a number of cases like that). So that would be another legal wrinkle. If it was poltergeist activity, would you need to disclose it, since it may not have anything to do with the physical location? Unlike your classic ghost, who is tied to the physical location. Of course this is assuming that these phenomena are real. My personal view is that, like with UFOs and aliens, well over 90% of the reported cases have a conventional explanation, or are hoaxes. But there's a small number of cases that can't be explained and may be evidence of genuine supernatural activity. By the way, has anyone seen the show "Ghost Asylum," which features a bunch of bubbas whose accents are so thick I can barely understand them. I don't want to insult southerners, but these guys make Zach and his team look like serious scientists. The Nick Kroll Show on Comedy Central did a very funny take-off on all the ghost-hunting shows. Their fictitious show was called "Ghost Bouncers." Which is actually a great name.

I took Gail's comment to mean it was Sylva going home, because he was the last of the "newbies" and because of the sad story about losing his restaurant to arson. There seems to be a different standard of judging for Brooke than everyone else, and the judges (particularly Tom) were jumping through hoops to try to explain why she shouldn't be sent home for serving something as basic as yogurt and fruit, which didn't even meet the criteria of the challenge. With anyone other than Brooke, elimination would've been a no-brainer. Over the years I don't think there have been too many of these "chosen ones" who get special treatment. But when it happens, it does damage the integrity of the show. I'm guessing that one of the first time contestants will make the finals through LCK. Otherwise it becomes another alumni season. And camera person and editor - nice close-up of Padma's breasts. In case anyone missed the point.

I'm very happy. Been a huge Fed fan throughout his entire career, and after the last few Slam finals losses was beginning to doubt I'd ever see him win another. And to be honest, despite how well Fed was playing, I thought that Raonic needed to beat Rafa, because I feared Rafa more than anyone else in the final. For Roger to win a Slam in his first tournament back after 6 months, winning three 5 setters, and beating Rafa in the final after being down in the 5th set - all amazing. Sorry to admit it, but when Roger lost the fourth set I doubted his chances in the 5th, and like practically everyone else, once Rafa got the break I thought it was lights out. But Roger came back to win 5 games in a row and averted what would've been another devastating finals loss. Maybe the worst ever given what was at stake. I always liked Ivan Lubijic as a player. He was very crafty, and it looks like he's the right coach for Roger in terms of match strategy. For Roger now it becomes all about the body. I think he will likely play a pared back schedule that will enable him to focus on the Majors. Funny, for a long time it was all about Djokovic and Murray. Now I think all anyone will be taking about again is Roger and Rafa. Both play the game with so much more flair than the current world #1 and #2.

Padma strikes me as a woman who knows how good looking she is, which allows her to get away with comments that from someone else would cause resentment. As a culture we're pretty shallow, and definitely have different standards for people depending on how they look. Is Brooke the only person on TC to be in the final two and lose to a winner of LCK? I think the fact that she was nosed out by Kirsten, who was clearly always Tom's favorite, may account for her sense of entitlement. Maybe Tom and the other producers even feel that they owe her something. As Sylva is the only remaining newbie I agree he seems a lock for the finals.

When Emily said she wished she'd gone further, my first thought was that she went much further than she should have. Making an ice box cake when you're in the last seven was pretty ridiculous. Like Tom said, it's one thing if you're in a team and get assigned to do desert, but even if that was the greatest ice box cake ever you were still going to be in the bottom. When the "chefs" on Hell's Kitchen struggle with that I've always assumed it's because their nincompoops. But I guess it is legitimately difficult to judge a taste without a visual. Some of the things they had to taste were pretty esoteric, but how do you mistake chicken for ham? Maybe I need to try this myself some day. I did not Padma's little joke about enjoying a blindfold now and then. Of course people laughed. They had to, because she's a judge, and because not laughing would've been awkward. There have been some juvenile double entendres and sex jokes over the years on this show. For me it doesn't add anything. Agree about Voltaggio's tats. The neck thing to me always looks gross, and I don't understand why a good looking guy would do that to himself. (showing my age). In the hip northwestern city where I live, so many restaurant servers are all tatted up, and I have to remind myself that they're not actually unclean.