Heterogeneous Shed: End of Year review: 2006

In 2006 we discovered of the old rather than danced with the new. But what new stuff The Shed did check in our own insular way, we enjoyed very much:

MUSIC
Landon's picks:
Spank Rock: YoYoYoYoYo (Big Dada)
Kool Keith-style sex rhymes, block party boom music and Armani XXXchange, one of my new favourite producers.
J Dilla: Donuts (Stones Throw)
Another hip hop legend passes, leaving behind this shiny beauty atop a career pile of gems. Re-inventing soul music, hinting at new directions we'll unfortunately never see, it's a whirlwind experiment, a stroke of casual genius.
Thom Yorke: The Eraser (XXL)
Thom makes laptop magic, a companion to the Kid A era sound. Brooding, uplifting and atmospheric as always, but more direct and personal. Gotta feel that voice.
Battles: EP C/B EP (Warp)
What is it? I don't know but I love it, all chopped guitars and brain melting rhythms. Smells something like a rock band playing instrumental hip hop, but in neither box. A danceable soundtrack.

Rich's picks
Didn't really take in much music this year. The Killers new album, Sam's Town is alright I suppose and I can't really remember what else came out this year. I've been enjoying old music mostly. I'm an aural ignoramous this year. Sorry.

MOVIES
Landon's pick:
The Host (Dir. Joon-ho Bong)
My favourite this year. Engrossing and suspenseful, a monster movie of originality and class that's anything but straightforward. Flips from tragedy to comedy in a second, keeping you on your toes, deftly spicing political and social criticism with the main family drama. It's $12 million dollar budget goes a long, long way.
Lady Vengeance (Dir. Chan-wook Park)
The best end to a brilliant trilogy since Back To The Future III. Not as heart-rending as Sympathy For Mr. Vengeance, not so crazy raw as Oldboy, but altogether a more elegant beast. Like an ornate mirror it's beautiful in it's own right but also reflects well on the previous two, allowing for appreciation of the whole.
Grizzly Man (Dir. Werner Herzog)
Fascinating documentary subject in Timothy Treadwell, self-invented wildlife actvist and bear enthusiast. That Herzog can cut 100 odd hours of footage shot over a 13 year period into such a precise, personal tale is tribute to his talent, but also makes a fitting epitaph for Treadwell and his life's mission.
Brick (Dir. Rian Johnson)
A clever conceit (hardboiled detective story supplanted to a sun-bleached California high school) that calmly delivers. Sharp dialogue and a heavy central performance from Joseph Gordon Levitt. Johnson's six year struggle to get the film made makes it that much sweeter to marvel at.
Miami Vice (Dir. Michael Mann)
I had no doubts going in (it's my boy Mann), I had some gripes coming out (emotionally empty, Colin Farrell, digital film at times not so convincing as in Collateral) and still it impressed; an

action movie with the style and balls to stand tall. Favourite scene: the trailer park standoff, a masterclass in suspense. A film for the guys, it makes me want to drink mojitos in Cuba, grow a 'tache, shoot automatic weapons. Just kidding, about the mojitos anyway.

Rich's pick:

Casino Royale (dir. Martin Campbell)

Daniel Craig silenced his critics and we were treated to the best Bond film for the last decade. For me, this is the stand-out film of the year, purely because I was worried that it would be a mess and I could have wept with joy when I found out that not only is it not a disaster, it's actually an incredible film in it's own right, Bond or otherwise.

The Departed (dir. Martin Scorsese)

Marty firing on all cylinders like back in the day. A searing cops and crims thriller with stellar performances from a flawless cast.

Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Rocky Bobby (dir. Adam McKay)

Funniest movie of the year, without a shadow of a doubt. Will Ferrell's on form and John C.

Reilly is a comic revelation. The funniest racing car movie since Days of Thunder, and that was hilarious.

GAMES
Landon's pick:
Shadow Of The Colossus (PS2. SCE)
Mostly I get my games on at Rich's house, mostly for sheer jokes (Scarface). But Colossus I had to play alone, a personal journey. Sparse, enigmatic storytelling to fire the imagination, gorgeous otherworldly landscapes, a fantasy title I can actually dig. I found myself completely bewitched by it, fully immersed and by it's end, genuinely touched. Who would have thought games could be so moving? An instant entry into my hall of fame.

Rich's pick:

Where to start? We've been spoilt this year , but as a PS2 and PSP owner, I'm biased, so here are my picks.

Canis Canem Edit (PS2. Rockstar)

Capturing perfectly the rose-tinted hue of bygone school days, CCE is a charming, enjoyable game. The school hierarchy is something you find yourself easily caught up in, school was never this much fun.

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories (PSP. Rockstar)

Yeah, yeah. Rockstar again. And yeah, yeah it's Grand Theft Auto which is in it's fifth 3D installment and yes, it is essentially more of the same. But when it's this good we can't get enough...although, we'd like something mind-blowing for GTA IV please, Mr. Rockstar.