M  i  l    M  a  n  i  a

       

        The Official Newsletter of WWW.ARTISTINSANE.COM

 

 

Thanks for reading this issue of Mil Mania!  And, remember, this is a work in progress, subject to many and varied changes — all adding up to a new and improved publication...so I hope!  Please drop me a line to let me know what you think, including any and all suggestions.  Thank you!!!

To remove your name from this mailing list click here  and type “Unsubscribe” in the subject line. Questions or comments?  E-mail :   mil@artistinsane.com

 

All Content © Mil Scott                                                                                                         www.artistinsane.com

Welcome To The February Issue of Mil Mania!

 Volume 2, Issue 2, Feb. 2006

 

                                          Greetings once again, Mil Mania readers —
                                   and thanks once more for subscribing to this bit
                                   of monthly madness.  I hope you continue to
                                   enjoy its eclectic collection of articles and info —
                                   and, if so, that you’ll feel free to encourage your
                                   friends to join us.  Indeed, everyone is welcome
                                   to share in this “insanity”...and I’m truly thrilled
                                   and overwhelmed at how quickly readership is
                                   growing.    Thanks as well for the feedback and
                                   suggestions, including your green light to an
                                   advice column by my dear friend, Molly (which I
                                   hope to begin in the March issue.  I have yet
                                   another Molly-related contribution for this one, as you’ll see when you read on.  )
     On that note, I thought it might be appropriate to let readers know that my little rodent star and her offspring are by no means the first pets in our household — nor the only ones.  In fact, at one time or another we have adopted nearly every domestic animal one can name...horses, dogs, cats, llamas, goats, sheep —  even a hedgehog.  To meet a few members of our current population, click here. 
     The other big event characterizing February, of course, is Valentine’s Day, which you’ll likewise note is honored in this issue — both with the quotes/poems linked at right, and in the review section where I’ve glowingly covered long-time favorite Green Card. May it be a beautiful day of celebration for you and your Valentine...whether she/he be human, canine, feline — or rodent! As one website I visited in researching this publication points out, love isn’t only about traditionally “romantic” relationships, and indeed all true bonds are things to be reminded of, and treasured.
     As always, I’ve also included the latest installment in the ongoing  travails of Joshua Gray, music news announcing “much ado” that’s far from “nothing”, and a “nutshell” of light fare to be “savored”. I hope they might make a mid-winter day a bit warmer for you — just as preparing this issue has warmed several winter days for me.

                                                                                                       Mil

 

Music Mayhem    

As noted in the December edition of Mil Mania, I will continue to include news in every issue to keep readers up to date on the latest happenings with the three acts most prominently featured on www.artistinsane.com.  In addition,  for each issue I will also choose one additional artist — in some cases a new discovery I’ve recently made, in others an individual or group whose work I’ve long appreciated — to make a one-time appearance here.  And, of course, as with all aspects of Mil Mania, feel free to offer suggestions.

 

This month’s featured artist: 

 

Shawn Mullins --

Like much of the 
world, I first dis-
covered Shawn 
Mullins through
his 1998 album
Soul’s Core and
its hit single, “Lullaby”.  Upon learning recently that a new release was soon upcoming (and hence reminded of how much I truly had enjoyed his prior work), I acted on impulse to sign up for his appearance at XPN’s Free at Noon Concert appearance at World Café Live immediately upon receiving the e-mail announcement of this event.  And, let me tell you, this impulse was a “stroke of madness” that indeed proved a “stroke of genius” as well...because, of course, the performance turned out to be truly a gift to everyone in attendance.  Characterized by wonderfully full, powerful and yet beautifully controlled vocals, the backing of a more than competent band on many of the songs, and the passion of a real artist whose humble spirit could be felt almost palpably, this event proved a musical highlight taking place in a year barely begun — but which will surely still be recalled very fondly at its end...and well beyond. 
     Visit www.shawnmullins.com or www.myspace.com/shawnmullins for more info and to order the new CD, 9th Ward Pickin’ Parlor (release date 2/14/06). 

             ……………………..

 

Third Eye Blind has recently announced that they will be re-recording their upcoming album as a band (much like they did their smash self-titled debut) as opposed to following the conventional wisdom of constructing a finished product from separate and individual parts.  And, while this must surely represent yet another delay in an already long awaited release, in the meantime you can check out their official page at myspace music (which I only very recently discovered myself), as well as the updates posted in late January to Jen’s Stephan Jenkins.com (including the bio revision by me mentioned in prior issues of Mil Mania)

 

Brian Fitzpatrick has also taken advantage of his MySpaceMusic page to communicate with fans while he contemplates his own path for creating a new album — and to offer us all something new to listen to...in the form of something old!  More specifically, he’s added to his jukebox two songs from an album he recorded several years ago, but opted to never release...including a wonderful tune called “Faith”, which I had to privilege to hear live at a show in 2004.  Now it’s your turn to enjoy this previously (far too) well-kept secret.  Let’s hope many more such surprises are on the way!

 

Michael McDermott seems to have arrived at a decision at last regarding his own new album dilemma — and resolved this in what I consider the best possible way.  Building on his unique strength as an acoustic artist, he’s opted to re-record and self-produce (at least parts of) the disc in a Chicago studio  At last, the record-buying public may get a taste of the genius McDermott fans have so long known via Michael’s pure and moving live shows.  And, although, this (like the similar decision by Third Eye Blind noted above) must represent a major setback to the disc’s release date, I have little doubt that with the far more complete vision of his work that will be the end result, truly all of us will at last be reminded again that “good things are worth the wait”….a lesson oft reiterated at Michael’s MySpaceMusic page — via the many older compositions he mixes with brand new ones for his ongoing Monday Morning Madness...which is itself proof that not only is insanity contagious; it’s also quite a joyous and 
beautiful thing!

If you enjoy perusing this issue and are not already a subscriber to Mil Mania, SIGN UP HERE. Everyone is welcome and ALL readers are appreciated!!! 

      Ravings of a   
       Mad Woman

This column corresponds with the Mad Ravings On section of www.artist-insane.com, and is dedicated to selected reviews of movies, television and books… most of which are unlikely to represent “the latest” in any of these categories, but rather a  random selection that represents a new and/or noteworthy discovery to me.

 

And, as always, for additional film recommendations, click here.

            ………………………..

 

     In honor of Valentine’s day this month I thought it appropriate to review one of my all-time favorite romantic films, Green Card.  And while I realize that description of the film may seem incomplete given its technically categorized a romantic comedy, the fact I’ve watched it a truly embarrassing number of times — or rather, a number that would be considered embarrassing for a sane person; I myself feel no shame at all with regard to that matter — and never failed to wipe away tears of bittersweet joy at its conclusion, I categorize it a poignant, and beautifully touching portrait of self-discovery...one that is indeed often amusing, but more importantly one that ultimately rings true...to human nature, its foibles, forgiveness, resilience, and the power of love to prevail when its least expected, and under circumstances in which it seems least likely to succeed.

     Of course, in my own case, the unflattering truth of this film’s unlikelihood of success can best be described by Dickens’ words in Great Expectations, “The fault had never been in him, but had been in me.”   By that I mean, I still remember seeing the television ads for Green Card at the time of its first theatrical release — a film touted as the story of a couple who “got married, met and then fell in love”.  And, I remember as well (all too distinctly) scoffing at the possibility that the..uh, visually less than stunning...“silly French oaf” being shown in all of them could ever be believed as the object of the lovely Andie MacDowell’s affection.  And, because of that one “fault” I passed up seeing the film in the theater, and likewise passed it up again months later when it appeared on my local video store’s shelves. 
     Just as Pip in the aforementioned novel was eventually faced with circumstances that forced him to see the truth, however, so too was I led to an abrupt and much needed comeuppance— when from those same video store shelves I plucked an English-subtitled adaptation of Edmond Rostand’s classic play, Cyrano de Bergerac — starring Gerard Depardieu — yup, that’s right...the very same “leading man” featured in