Between coffee-tasting and tea-tasting days (there's a difference!), I have been putting my creative writing on a higher priority so between the new playlist and that Hocus Pocus piece, the blog juices are a-flowing and the V-Spot folder in my bookmarks is full of things that are pretty amazing. I repeat, amazing.

"Penny Dreadful" is Bleeding 

to Come Back!

And honestly, I can't wait! "Penny Dreadful" is a feast for the Victorian-loving senses (and you can quote me on that!). While I can honestly say that the first season's storyline being all knitted and tied up too quickly is the possible downfall of John Logan's series despite the amazing acting from Eva Green, Harry Treadway and Josh Hartnett. But one season is one season, a way for Showtime to know what they have. But let's just hope that Logan will be able to embellish and, like a good Victorian novel, spend pages and pages describing this beautiful sense of longing with these Gothic characters. For now, let's enjoy a promo because "the past [might] return." Bring it! I'm ready!

(Josh Hartnett making out with Reeve Carney again! Josh Hartnett making out with Reeve Carney again! I mean, ahem....)

Penny Dreadful Season 1 is AVAILABLE NOW ON DVD! So you know what to get me for my birthday or Christmas, right? Right???


Say Goodbye to Mr. Mickey Rooney  in the latest adaptation of "Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde"

With two well accolighted veteran actors in Margaret O'Brien and the late Mickey Rooney, B. Luciano Barsuglia's adaptation of the Robert Louis Stevenson story looks pretty good to me. Add the 12th Doctor's distant cousin, actor Gianni Capaldi playing Mr. Hyde and we certainly have a strange production coming our way. Toss into the weird salad two actors playing the normally dual role, Mickey Rooney not dressed in Victorian attire, and the trailer still feeling somewhat ambiguous, damn it, I NEED TO KNOW WHAT THIS IS! Tell me what magical insanity this is! Please? Let's Take a Moment to Remind Ourselves Sean Lennon is Awesome-r Than the Rest of Us I literally have no words to explain how awesome this is. So let us take these magical four minutes to take in this man's brilliant words. Amen. Blessed Be. And Another Reason Why Donkeyboy  is My "Hero" ... and not in a Bette Midler Kind of Way ...

There is absolutely no lie when I say that Donkeyboy is amazing and have the inability to suck, because Cato Sundberg is amazing with everything he composes. While he can't take the whole credit for this new song "Hero" as this was the first 100 % Donkeyboy-produced and written song with the exception of a few lyrics thrown in by Canadian songstress Kiesza (who also helped out on "Triggerfinger"). But damn it, this is just good and Scandipop is right that you start singing along midway through. I'm starting to lose the words of how good these guys are. Just, damn it! Check out the boys performing the new hit on NRK TV!
Ages and Ages NEW VIDEO!

Remember that band that I mentioned once that their music could help change the world? Yeah, they took that opening song from the album and made it into a beautiful video. Despite the fact they dumped the driving introduction that absolutely rocks my socks off, the video is full of the intricate work of instruments and voices shot-by-shot. And that's amazing. So I must share this because every time someone plays Ages and Ages, humanity receives more hope. I really hope I'm right about that. Oh, and Tim Perry talks to his cat.

Conan O'Brien Holds George Harrison Week and It Was...

...Lukewarm. I'm sorry, it was totally lukewarm with some pretty dynamic moments. I have always loved Mr. O'Brien and everything he associates himself with (that epic throw-down three-way between him, John Stewart and Stephen Colbert? Uh, yeah.). With the advent of Harrison's reissued "The Apple Years: 1968-1975," the O'Brien bandwagon leapt to showcase many artists throughout the week playing in the former Beatle's honor. And it was... yeah, it was very lukewarm. Beck kicked off the week with a classic from "All Things Must Pass" which came across well-played but with not much vocal strength. Tuesday was blessed by Paul Simon covering "Here Comes the Sun" and once more, there was something lacking I just wasn't feeling. The Bob Dylan-esque vocals, perhaps? Harrison's own son came on Wednesday night to serve the world the best night covering not only a rocking yet simultaneously soulful "Let it Down" but also a web exclusive featuring Jon Bates of Big Black Delta giving a folky rendition of "Ballad of Frankie Crisp (Let it Roll)." Norah Jones finished off the week with a pretty not incredibly exciting "Behind the Locked Door".  But that was only the tip of a very cool iceberg as Sunday night was George Fest at the Los Angeles' Fonda Theater, which was just a huge explosion of music, including Brian Wilson, "Weird Al" Yankovic, The Killers, Dhani Harrison, Spoon, Velvet Revolver, "that guy" from The Eurythmics Dave Stewart, Ringo Starr, Kara DioGuardi, Ann Wilson, The Flaming Lips, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club among many others. This magical night was not only a George Harrison "church service," so to speak, but also a benefit for the Jameson Neighborhood Fund which 100 percent of the tickets went to. You can watch a lot of the magic here. But Mr. O'Brien proved his Beatle nerdiness as he covered "Old Black Shoe" both vocally and on guitar. I immediately gave infinity points to Gryffindor. 
And the Honorary V-Spot Award of Life  Goes to... ME GETTING A PICTURE WITH SHARON VAN ETTEN LAST MONDAY! You can see it all on my face, "Dear Goddess, her arm is around me and WHAT THE HELL her head is on my cheek. Keep it together B! *internally screaming*"

Ghost Hunters, rewatching Dark Shadows and the first season of American Horror Story, the new season of American Horror Story, Ghost Adventures... I think I need a HAA (Horror Addicts Anonymous) meeting.

And now a picture of John Lennon (birthday boy on the 9th) and a kitteh!

"You Got Me Stuck on Repeat,"
Ghost Adventures Crew

This.
 No summary needed, just... thank you. thank you so much.

Dhani Harrison covers Daddy's
"For You Blue"

Just as charitable, magnetic and wonderful as his father, Dhani takes the little known Beatles tune "For You Blue" and not only assigns it to GAP's fall ads but also raises money for the George Harrison Material World Charitable Foundation and the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation for spinal cord injury. I hate to warn you but if this is on your musical device, it will make smile like a crazy person in public.

So much Glee!!!! *squee*

Amanda Palmer: 10,000 points,
Sinead O'Connor: 0

We all think we're personally doing the right thing in our opinions sometimes; but in the instance of Sinead O'Connor releasing an open letter to Miley Cyrus, there is a magical system called proofreading and common sense.  Since everyone has an opinion over Cyrus's performance at the Video Music Awards, everyone has to put in their two cents, especially when Cyrus, according to O'Connor is "worth more than your body or your sexual appeal" and "is allowing yourself to be pimped." Excuse me? It's almost as if O'Connor is saying like she has it coming or in other words, slut shaming.

In comes Amanda Palmer with her open letter to Sinead O'Connor. "Miley is, from what I can gather, in charge of her own show. She's writing the plot and signing the checks, and although I think it's tempting to imagine her in the board room and management, I don't think any of them masterminded her current plan to be a raging, naked, twerking sexpot." Finally! Someone said what no one was saying, and that personally is my opinion.

But what pissed me off the most is O'Connor's statement, "We don't encourage our daughters to walk around naked [...] because it makes them prey for animals and less than animals..." It's as if saying even though culture sexualizes, women as artists shouldn't even bother expressing their sexuality and the sexiness that is the feminine form. I applaud Miley for getting naked; it was called for a very naked and honest song that is Wrecking Ball.

Palmer weighs in on my irritation as well, worded and proofread brilliantly: "Do I want a whole generation of teenagers looking at Miley Cyrus to determine that the only way to get hits and hawk your music is to rip your clothes off and wiggle around as violently and loudly as possible? ... Fuck no. But I don't want to tell them it's wrong, either, because like I said: the field has to encompass EVERYTHING."

In a nutshell, everyone has their opinion and culture sexualizes women. And if the woman artist is lucky enough, like Miley, to portray female sexuality in a tasteful and sexually empowering way, that's the only way to get to a younger audience since we live in a Puritanical country where a strong woman who owns her sexuality is basically slut shamed. In a nutshell? America and most of its inhabitants sucks.

Hey Geronimo Release a
"Lazer Gun Show"

 And damn, it's catchy and awesome.

 

Click here for some awesome