Blogocentric Formulations

Come On Get Higher with Matt Nathanson, aliens, and a game!

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Song: "Come On Get Higher"
Artist: Matt Nathanson
Album: Some Mad Hope

Although Matt Nathanson may not be a headlining name on tour or even an artist that people regularly follow, if you're a fan of popular network television, I can almost guarantee you've heard one of his songs before. His work is regularly picked up and featured on the soundtrack of popular shows including (among others): NCIS, Private Practice, One Tree Hill, Scrubs, Men in Trees, Vampire Diaries, and Life Unexpected, as well as performing live on late night shows ranging from Conan to Craig Ferguson to Leno. Although he released his first album way back in 1993 (and put out five additional albums over the following ten years), his work really didn't start catching on until the 2007 release of "Some Mad Hope" which features today's song pick, which is the only song of his to achieve platinum status. It topped out at #59 on the Billboard Hot 100, #9 on the Adult Top 40, and #3 on both the Adult Contemporary and Adult Alternative charts.

I have another reason for featuring this song on my list, though. If you don't already know who Allyson Townsend is, allow me to share this ABC News story   with you. The link includes a short video (approx. 2 minutes) and short article, but the even shorter version is that she's a second grade teacher who wanted to help hearing-impaired people understand the way song lyrics flow, since reading words on a page doesn't convey a sense of tempo or emotion. So she records herself signing the lyrics to popular songs while also conveying a sense of the song's emotions so hearing-impaired audiences can get a sense of whether a song is fast, slow, happy, sad, etc. Here's a video of her performing the Matt Nathanson song I picked today  . Also, I highly recommend her version of "Tik Tok" by Ke$ha, which you can find on her YouTube channel, although a clip of it is also featured in the ABC News video.

So this song ended up being kind of a double-bonus for me today. Not only do I get to share an awesome song from a talented singer-songwriter, but I also got to introduce Allyson Townsend and the amazing work she's doing to help hearing-impaired audiences appreciate music in new ways. I've even heard that some other people are taking her cue and developing sound systems where those audiences can feel the vibrations of a song to get a clear sense of tempo. Combining a tactile sense of rhythm with sign language lyrics is a pretty freaking cool idea that I think could help a lot of hearing-impaired audiences appreciate music in a new way.

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PROMPT: Let's have some simple fun pretend an alien or maybe Brother Nature (Joel) visited your home. What would you want the alien or Joel to see in your world that might impress him? Let's hear what you have in mind.

My selection for the Soundtrackers blog post today segues nicely into this prompt for BCOF. Music, and most other kinds of art, are definitely the things I would want an alien to see if they visited Earth. Of course, it would probably depend on their intentions too... if the alien was coming to say, "I'm going to destroy your planet unless you convince me otherwise," I might consider a different tactic than if the alien had crash-landed and was facing the possibility of spending the rest of his life marooned on a planet that wasn't his. That said, though, I think art is one of the most important things we could show an alien to convey just what the human race is capable of.

I'm a little torn on the idea of showing aliens our scientific and technical achievements. On the one hand, if the alien were willing to help us develop our technology, there's a definite upside to giving him a tour of NASA or asking him to take a look at our current energy options. On the other hand, if we're trying to impress him, showing a nuclear reactor to someone who just arrived here on a ship with a suitcase-sized cold fusion reactor might be kind of embarrassing, like showing Michelangelo your finger-painting or Play-Doh sculpture from the first grade.

I'd also be a little hesitant to show them natural wonders like the Grand Canyon because (a) we can't really take credit for that, and (b) I think it can be argued that - as a species - we're doing a pretty good job of systematically destroying a lot of beautiful things in the natural world. Plus, if this alien is a frequent universe traveler, he might be like, "Mt. Everest, huh? You should see the size of the mountains on Alcaeus 17; they make this look like the foothills." Or, "You seem pretty proud of that rainforest. Everyone on my home planet grows one in their backyard." Hmm, now that I think about it, I sound pretty concerned about keeping up appearances if aliens were to ever appear. Hopefully they'll give us a little advanced warning so we can tidy this place up like we do before our in-laws come for a visit. Quick! Stuff all the carbon emissions under the couch! Hide that Great Pacific garbage patch in the utility closet until they leave!"

Art, to me, though, is the greatest achievement we've been able to create as a species. We've created paintings that make you feel hopeful just by looking at them... songs that make you cry when you hear them... novels that make you feel like you've lost a personal friend when a character dies... movies that bring you to the edge of your seat in anticipation of what's going to happen next... sculptures that take your breath away with their intricacy... architecture so amazing you can stare at it for hours. If an alien were to land on Earth and ask me to show him (or her) around, I think I'd probably buy one of those City Pass booklets and hit up a few museums, monuments, and artistic attractions. Although I'd probably try to steer clear of Hollywood Boulevard lest our extraterrestrial friend get sucked into taking a Star Tour of celebrities' houses, or got distracted by the fat guy dressed up like Spider-Man outside the Chinese Theater.

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PROMPT: I'm going easy on ya this time. Make a list of 15 things/elements of your favorite television program and place them in italics in your blog as part of your conversation with us. Don't tell us the name of the show but you can include locations, common phrases used in the show. Let's see how many of us can guess correctly. Kind of like playing charades but blog style.

Oh man, this prompt is so much fun! It took me over an hour to even decide which TV show to choose!

Okay, I'm going to try to make it kind of hard... or at least nothing too obvious... and as a result, I'll even put a prize up for grabs: the first person who responds with the correct name of the show hinted at below will win a Merit Badge! Here are your fifteen clues:

1. This show's lead actor co-starred in a stage production with another actor who happens to play the same lead character in a different series.
Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock Holmes in Sherlock) and Johnny Lee Miller (Sherlock Holmes in Elementary) both appeared in a 2011 stage production of Frankenstein. Fun fact: the production was headed up by film director Danny Boyle and featured the two leads alternating the roles of Dr. Frankenstein and The Creature.

2. One of the show's creators also plays the lead character's brother.
Creator Mark Gattis also plays Sherlock's brother, Mycroft Holmes.

3. The show's other creator is also a lifelong fan of, and current showrunner for, another very popular and longrunning TV show.
Steven Moffat is also the showrunner of Dr. Who.

4. The show's other star has appeared in a diverse set of hit movies including Love Actually, The Hobbit, Shaun of the Dead, and Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
Martin Freeman (who plays John Watson) has appeared in all of those films.

5. The show has its own official mobile app.
In January 2014, the producers released the "Sherlock: The Network" app which features additional content to supplement the show.

6. One of the main characters' on-screen wife is played by his real-life romantic partner.
Martin Freeman's partner Amanda Abbington plays the role of Mary Morstan, John Watson's wife.

7. The show includes an inventive visual way of showing audiences the lead character's thought process.
Sherlock's thought process is often shown with on-screen visual effects as he notices details or sifts through information.

8. One of the show's recurring antagonists earned multiple award nominations and critical praise for reinterpreting the normally calm and calculating character as an emotional psychopath.
Andrew Scott plays Jim Moriarty, a typically refined and calculating villain as an unhinged crazy genius (which was brilliant, BTW)!

9. The show is planning on releasing a standalone Christmas special.
Scheduled for release in December 2015!

10. The show's two stars each won an Emmy (one for Lead Actor and one for Supporting Actor) the same year. They also both worked on The Hobbit.
Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman won Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor, respectively, at the 66th Annual Emmy Awards in 2014. The show also won an Emmy for Best Writing, and was also nominated in the Best Directing category. Also, Martin Freeman plays Bilbo Baggins in The Hobbit, while Benedict Cumberbatch lent his voice for the dragon Smaug.

11. The show just started production on the new season last month (January 2015).
Series 4 started shooting last month with a projected release date of 2016.

12. Unlike most TV show schedules, this one has only aired nine episodes over three seasons. The running time of each episode is approximately ninety minutes.
I love the fact that each episode is basically a movie unto itself.

13. One of the reasons for such limited production is the talent's availability. Among the two stars and two show creators, they collectively worked on five movies and three TV shows (in addition to this show and a few other odds and ends) in 2014.
Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman appeared in The Hobbit. Benedict Cumberbatch was also in The Imitation Game and lent his voice to The Penguins of Madagascar. Martin Freeman also starred in the television adaptation of Fargo. Mark Gatiss acted in Mapp and Lucia as well as Game of Thrones, and Steven Moffatt also worked on Dr. Who and a Dr. Who documentary.

14. The show is based on a famous series of books. During the first season, sales of the books increased 180% due to a resurgence in their popularity.
Arthur Conan Doyle's classic Sherlock Holmes stories have increased in popularity... and have only gotten more popular after the success of this show and Elementary.

15. One of the show's actors was also nominated for an Oscar this year.
Benedict Cumberbatch received a Best Actor nomination for his role in The Imitation Game.

First one to comment with the right answer gets a MB!

UPDATE: The winner is Jay's debut novel is out now! ! Details have been posted above.