So it's been twenty-four days since my last confession, uh, I mean update. Please accept my apologies for the infrequency. Soulsmiles is no longer the primary distraction from the neuroses of my brain, school is. But today I skipped Fiction due to an oncoming IBS attack, so I am now able to commit myself to an update at last. I have found some incredible music, seen a couple movies, and lived through twenty-four days of general life experience of which I will report to you in a hopefully amusing manner. I shall get started...please continue reading.

Defending The Matrix Reloaded and Revolutions
The success of the first Matrix cannot be imitated, nor duplicated. And to expect such is utterly ridiculous! Nobody, not the producers, not the directors, not the actors, not even the critics expected it to become the classic cult hit it did. Because of the success of the first one a hype was built around Reloaded and Revolutions. We wanted the second and third installments to amaze us just as much as the first one, but that kind of amazement is rare. We saw things we'd never seen before; bullet time, amazing wire work, etc. Those things alone raised the bar of action movies to come. Bringing the kind of revolutionary vibe that the invention of sound and color had in the movies. If you were expecting the kind of innovative movie making we saw in the first one then yeah, you were going to be disappointed. But if you accepted that the kind of innovation and imagination we saw in the first one was so rare that not even the amazing Wachowski's could top themselves then you were in for a great movie.

The flak Reloaded and Revolutions has received is completely undue. The same techniques that made the first Matrix amazing were used again, making anyone who loved the first one a hypocrite for not loving the second and third. The relationship between Neo and Trinity was explored more, exactly what critics and the public alike longed for. We saw the last human city, Zion. We saw Agent Smith grow to become a foe no one would want to challenge. And then we saw Neo challenge him time and time again! The Wachowski's gave us EVERYTHING we wanted, and now we don't appreciate it? We should be ashamed of ourselves.

School of Rock
That Jack Black is one funny guy. I'm always up for a good-hearted kids movie in which everything always turns out just perfect in the end. I almost didn't see this movie but I was desperate for something to see one day. This movie is good for those appreciative of good music and families. You can teach your kids the history of rock n' roll by taking them to this movie! When I left I had the urge to listen to Led Zeppelin, loud! Overall, a good movie to waste a few hours with.

Lost In Translation
The other movie I'd like to mention is Lost In Translation with Bill Murray and Scarlet Johanssen. My sister and mother dragged me to this one. I was definitely not excited about it. And after having seen it I feel the same way I did before I saw it. I would have rather sat through cheesy Radio. The part I liked most was seeing the sights of Japan. The city lights, arcades, traffic, etc. I used to enjoy art house films. I enjoyed good dialogue and good acting, but now I need to see shit blowing up or fast cars or gun fights to get excited. Not some lonely, down on his luck, filthy rich actor being portrayed by another filthy rich actor.

And now for the meat of the update. I have discovered two artists that have been in constant rotation in my cd player since I first came upon them. One, a teenage soul singer from Britain with the depth of a young Aretha Franklin oozing from her voice. Second, a gifted musician and his band of other gifted musicians spreading their rock funk soul goodness.

Joss Stone - The Soul Sessions - www.s-curverecords.com/joss
She's only sixteen yet she sings with a voice of painful experience. As if she's fallen in love, had her heart stepped on with a lead foot, repeatedly, and lived to tell about it. In the process of working on her first cd she began collaborating with legends in the American music scene, leading her to cover their respective songs. To get that kind of experience and respect from these legends speaks volumes as to her talent. Every song is good, every note is perfect. My favorite is her cover of the White Strips "Fell In Love with a Girl (link)," produced by the Roots own ?uestlove. No doubt the White Stripes fell honored to hear such a great rendition of their song. I would never steer you wrong. Check out Joss Stone TODAY, or else miss out on the future!

Robert Randolph & The Family Band - Unclassified - www.robertrandolph.net
This is the first studio album by this group, they've released only live albums previously. I first saw them on VH1, of all places, on some program for new music. I checked out their website and was instantly enamored. They are the perfect fusion of soul, funk, and rock. If you don't at least tap your foot to this band then there is seriously something wrong with you! Me, I'm a girl of motion, when I hear something I like my head is the first to react, bobbing up and down in time to the rhythm. At particularly exciting parts of a song I will throw in some hand and/or arm movements. My favorite track is "Soul Refreshing (link)," and all the others fall in line closely in their greatness.

Other MUSIC mentions:
The Neptunes present: CLONES - www.clonesarecoming.com
I rarely buy things on a whim. Ever heard of the Cooler Kids? Exactly! I bought this cd after having sampled only two or three songs, of which I felt ambiguous about. But I was in a buying mood one afternoon and just bought it. And it was worth it! I'm not a fan of Jay-Z, Nelly, Nas, etc. etc. etc. But I do respect the Neptunes and what they've done for pop music the past few years. They make it good, actually worth giving a listen to. Yes, it's over produced for the sake of sales, but that's the nature of the business. The cd is good, if you have an ear for it, that is if you enjoy pop music.

Kill Bill: Volume One Soundtrack - www.kill-bill.com
Like I mentioned in the previous update, I enjoyed this movie so much I bought the soundtrack, which has never happened before. Thank god it was worth it! The best part of the soundtrack is actually spoken dialogue from the movie when Oren Ishii, let's say, is laying down some rules. I get a good chuckle every time I hear it. The music is actually good too. Some classic stuff mixed with some contemporary stuff. Nothing boring like some cheesy "original score" accompanied by most movies these days.

I do actually have a confession to make. You might want to sit down for this. Ok, here goes...I almost bought a trucker hat yesterday. I know, I know, how could I? What was I thinking? It was a momentary lapse in judgment I tell you! I looked at them, thought for a moment that it might be cool, but that's all, I swear! I didn't even touch it, ok, maybe just a little. But I did not take it off the rack! I remembered that I'm not a trendy fashion whore. I don't even like Ashton Kutcher!

Seeing as how my time has been occupied so much lately by school I might as well let you all in on how I'm doing and what I'm learning. I'm still pulling A's in both courses. Art History is starting to annoy me because there are different styles all happening at the same time, i.e. Neo-Classicism, Romanticism, and Realism. (I just gave you that example so you'd think I'm smart, although I do know what they all mean) But I'm learning a lot of cool stuff, which is pretty much my sole goal in school. My other class, Fiction, well it's become the class I dread going to. Half the stories I don't get. You read Garcia Marquez's "A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings" and try to figure that shit out. See, you're already turned off by the title! And I must say that there are a few people who really really really annoy me. One is the guy whose sole purpose in life is literary analysis. He sees things and makes connections no person should make, not even an English professor. And then there is the girl who THINKS her sole purpose in life is literary analysis, but everything she says is related to her in some way. We could be reading a story from 1850 and she's relating it to her 2003 world, which is completely asinine. And to top it off she says "like" every third word, and the phrase, "like, I don't know, like," every time she speaks. Thoughts come whirling to my mind of stabbing my pen in her neck, but she sits on the way other side of the room. And finally there is the guy who thinks everything we read is stupid, that the characters are stupid, the writers are stupid, and we're all stupid for having read it. Again, he sits on the other side of the room.

And you thought I'd forgotten about you! How's that for an update? I make no promises as to when the next one will be, but rest assured that I'm always thinking of what the next update will include.