August 4th's Hot Spot Vspot

by B Condon 3:36 PM

Let's get this out of the way -- these next few weeks are going to suck hard for slowly trickling into fall. So everyone escape into the movie theater and Harry Potter your faces since I can't. In the wake of being broke, this is what is making me quiver and yes, two men after my own heart are on this list.

Josh Groban in "Crazy, Stupid, Love"

So it is a little odd that this man with the banana is my ultimate hetero-crush. But however, he is, and just happens to be coming back to acting. In case if you have forgotten, Josh Groban's acting debut was on Ally McBeal as a shy little choir boy and then ended up melting Ally's face from his first single off of his self entitled album "From Where You Are." He melted my face and a few other parts as well from that first time I saw him on the show 12 years ago... has it really been that long?

He's back as a secondary character again, but as Emma Stone's geeky lawyer fiancee who gets dumped for Ryan Gosling who he, as Groban tells US Today "He’s so cool. He’s the kind of guy you just want to just fist-bump. For no reason.” I support this Josh, as long as you come home to me.

 Darren Criss on Broadway?

 Onto the next musical and acting machine, Darren Criss, who has made men and women both swoon over his portrayal of Harry Potter in the Harry Potter musical AND as Blaine Andersen (of course) in Glee, making out with Chris Colfer's Kurt Hummel. Very hot. But swooning over those two together isn't why I'm writing about him. Turns out there will be one more parallel between Criss and Radcliffe, the role of J. Pierrepont Finch in "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying" which Criss will start playing in January. More info at the *click!* Nylon Blogs *click!*

RENT Revival

It's been three years since Jonathan Larson's epitaph of how to live life to its fullest -- otherwise known as RENT -- closed on Broadway, and it was a dark day... and then The Neiderlander sold its soul to Disney and practically was painted over with Mickey Mouse ears from the graffiti by loyal RENTheads. That didn't keep RENT from making a revival as of this month, hallelujah! 

I should be doing a happydance over this...

But is it worth it? 

From pictures on **click!** The Huffington Post **click!** and the short interviews of Michael Grief and the new cast at **click!** playbill.com *click!** it looks like it is made with the best intentions and I am almost curious, as both a lover of the La Boheme story, RENT, and a devoted disciple of Jonathan Larson, of seeing the video clips they intend to meld into the story. Any disappointments so far? While the costume department did fantastic (for Mark and others) but ditching the Santa outfit during Today 4 U is just sacrilege! Everything else looks fantastic.

My Little Pony

While Belle and Sebastian have always been a little lackluster to my ears, they just don't have that melt your face effect that I love to have in my music, once more I look to Norway and... Nylon? In the August 2011's Denim issue of Nylon, the article "Have it Norway" have introduced me to two new Scandinavian obsessions, Razika (more to follow) and My Little Pony, clearly taking a little from Belle and Sebastian's lo-fi sound, but making it sound a little twee.

Nothing is more twee than "A Song For You" or happier in "Capital of Norway" which is going onto the next Dance In Your Underwear Mix. Norway, you really lack the ability to suck! Have I mentioned they are great songwriters? "...and in the chorus i would use the word radio so that it could be played on the radio" there's something dorky but deep in between the lines of this magical band formed by a group of Osloians: Ola Innset, Nina Bø, Simen Herning, Marie Sneve Martiniussen and Jørgen Nordby. Have I mentioned they are hilarious?

 

Russell on Amy Winehouse

Since I have been so behind around this blog, I have neglected to give Amy Winehouse a moment of silence, but I'm giving a great shout out for Russell Brand for the beautiful eulogy he wrote on his site for this great retroress. Granted, the status of celebrity puts Amy both in "The 27 Club" joining Kurt Cobain, Janis Joplin and Jimi Hendrix but also really questions are we glamorizing this a bit much? If it was anyone else we'd shake our heads and let it go by without a mention but because Amy had an album out, it seems people are willing to put her back up on the Itunes Charts. Is there something wrong with this picture?

**click!** "There will always be a phone call." **click!**

Razika 

Once more from the pages of Nylon, another Scandinavian band captures my ears by use of a sampling of The Beatles "Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da" and for once, I don't care! Marie Amdam, Maria Råkil, Marie Moe and Embla Karidotter are like the Norge Runaways except they're of age (at least three years older) and with a little bit of a pop sensitivity from "Taste my Dream" and a little Green Day in "Why Have We to Wait?" showing off their influences. I think I'm a little in love.