Adam Riff™ Clip of the Week

8. Killing Bill Maher (Miracle Workers, S01E02)

Context: Steve Buscemi is God.


Stray Observations

  • Bumping tucks (Jon Glaser Loves Gear, S02E07)
  • "I just don't get it is all."
    "There's nothing to get, Tim. I'm pretending that I have a vagina. It's very simple. What is even the big deal about it?"
    "Tim, what is it about tucking that makes you so uncomfortable?"
    "I'm a lifter."
    "What the hell is a lifter?"
    "It's a person who likes to lift their penis and scrotum…up."
    "Okay, and then what?"
    "Nothing. Just lift."
    "Hold on. So you're a lifter, but you have something against tucking? There's at least a concept behind tucking. You're not even doing anything. You're just lifting and that's it?"
    "I don't know, man! It feels good!"
    "So what if it feels good?! So does mine!" (Jon Glaser Loves Gear, S02E07)
  • Bumping regulars (Jon Glaser Loves Gear, S02E07)
  • "You don't have to turn everything into a Thomas Cruise film."
    "Why not? Movies are super fun. Meanwhile, real life is very boring. That's why no one watches documentaries."
    "Tell that to the man sitting next to me at last Saturday afternoon's screening of Ryuichi Sakamoto: Coda." (Brooklyn Nine-Nine, S06E07)
  • "That's your drumroll?"
    "When a tempo isn't specified, any reasonable person would default to lento." (Brooklyn Nine-Nine, S06E07)
  • "ChaseDreams is now taking photos for the next 20."
    "Oh, don't forget to use the hashtag 'DreamDance.'"
    "I thought it was #Chom. That's what my surge protector says." (The Other Two, S01E05)

Still the AR™TV World Drama Champion: Homecoming
Still the AR™TV World Comedy Champion: The Other Two

Blast Corps

[browsing SXSW's 2019 film line-up]

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE COMPETITION

Tread
Director: Paul Solet

Pushed to his breaking point, a master welder in a small town at the foot of the Rocky Mountains quietly fortifies a bulldozer with 30 tons of concrete and steel and seeks to destroy those he believes have wronged him. (World Premiere)

On June 4th, 2004, a sixty-three-ton bulldozer, fortified with steel and concrete, systematically destroyed numerous businesses and homes in the small mountain town of Granby, Colorado. The rampage lasted over two hours and resulted in more than eight million dollars in damage. State and local police were incapable of even slowing the machine. Though it was armed with three high-powered firearms, no one but the driver was killed. His name was Marvin Heemeyer. TREAD explores the polarizing perspectives on this man, his motives, and what drove him to the breaking point.

Paul Solet… Why is that name familiar?

[consults IMDb]

He wrote and directed the 2009 horror film Grace.

Did I see Grace?

[consults Adam Riff™'s archive]

Yes. Promoted it in a Cribsheet too.

Grace
limited release fri 08.14

mcn: "oh. my. god. i don't think i've ever been as traumatized by a film"

two men fainted at its sundance premiere

I don't remember anything about it.

Adam Riff™ Clip of the Week

7. Trash Talk (Pen15, S01E01)


Stray Observations

  • "These kids are up to no good. They are making way too much noise, okay?"
    "Noise? That's Tyler, the Creator." (Shameless, S09E10)


(Jon Glaser Loves Gear, S02E06)

  • "Guys, I appreciate your help, but I can't do this. I've got a Brie to soften." (Black-ish, S05E12)
  • "I kept blowing deadlines until I found a spell for automatic writing. Now, you feed it a premise, and it constructs an airtight storyline. I gather they use it in Hollywood all the time."
    "That explains Netflix." (The Magicians, S04E04)
  • "Guys with golden retrievers eat pussy." (You're the Worst, S05E06)
  • "Can you hold a boombox over your head for the length of a Peter Gabriel song?"
    "Not 'Sledgehammer.' It goes on forever."
    "Well, that's the point of th—doesn't matter, doesn't matter." (Fresh Off the Boat, S05E14)
  • Russian Doll Season Grade: C

Still the AR™TV World Drama Champion: Homecoming
Still the AR™TV World Comedy Champion: The Other Two

Eater's Digest: Los Angeles 6

Previously on Adam Riff™:


December 2018 / January 2019
guerrilla tacos / bavel / ms. chi café / majordōmo / slab / fiona / diddy riese / sichuan impression


Eater named (Bavel) its 2018 Los Angeles restaurant of the year. It is worthy of that title.


Duck 'Nduja Hummus (Bavel)
creamy garbanzo beans, jerusalem mix spice, herbs, pita

^ At (Bavel), no accompanying bread is the same. Catch 'em all.


Scallop Crudo (Bavel)
pomegranate molasses, citrus, serrano chile oil, charred cucumber, mint, black sesame

^ Delayed heat.


Roasted Cauliflower (Bavel)
hawaij chile sauce, lime leaf, crème fraiche serrano dip, pistachios, dried flowers


Malawach (Bavel)
ancient grain crispy layered bread, grated tomato, dill crème fraiche, aged egg, strawberry zhoug

^ Reminded me of Chinese flatbread that my mother fries up at home.


Slow-Roasted Lamb Neck Shawarma (Bavel)
tahini, amba, pickled vegetables, laffa

^ Served bone-in.


Eater named (Majordōmo) its 2018 Los Angeles sensation of the year. It is the best David Chang restaurant that I have dined at by far.


$190 Whole Plate Short Rib (Majordōmo)
smoked bone-in adam perry lang-style ribs, served with beef rice, shiso, rice paper, ssämjang, and condiments

^ Sliced tableside. The scraps are then used to make an unusual fried rice featuring shaved horseradish and lemon juice/zest.


Fried Oxtail (Majordōmo)
salsa seca, chili, peanuts

^ Smothered in a delectable dry salsa. The oxtail evoked teriyaki.


Spicy Lamb Bing (Majordōmo)
smoked labneh with sichuan oil, pickled chilis and herbs

^ A play on Sichuan toothpick lamb.



Ms. Chi Scallion Pancake Sandwich (Ms. Chi Café)
chinese-spiced pastrami, hazelnut pesto, beijing mustard vinaigrette, served with salt and pepper tater tots

^ The scallion pancake didn't add anything, but you can't go wrong with pastrami and tots.


Hedgehog Bao (Ms. Chi Café)
molten dark chocolate, steamed milk bread

^ Chocolate-filled mantou.



Hawaiian Blue Prawn Taco (Guerilla Tacos)
three head-on hawaiian blue prawns, panchetta, mojo negro, flour tortilla, cabbage, avocado sauce, cilantro

^ More like an open-face burrito.



The Trudy Special (Slab)

^ A Brie cheese and barbecued brisket sandwich that's impossible to eat as a sandwich.

Frito Pie (Slab)
—Why aren't Frito pies more popular in California?

Chocolate Chip Cookie (Fiona)

Boiled Fish with Rattan Pepper (Sichuan Impression)
fresh boneless fish fillets, rattan peppers, fresh bell peppers, sprouts, black fungus

Adam Riff™ Clip of the Week

6. Boxed Waffle Mix Drama (Top Chef: Kentucky, S16E10)


Stray Observations

  • "We've all peed in things we regret." (The Magicians, S04E03)
  • "Hank, bring me…a Charbonnay." (Brooklyn Nine-Nine, S06E05)
  • "I also deleted photos of you from Halloween as Terri Schiavo."
    "Okay, I went as Terri Schiavo before and then I happened to pass out at the party." (The Other Two, S01E03)
  • "It's like a regular shoe, but it has this little baby drawer in the sole that you can put all of your change in."
    "So you just, say, hear coins when you walk around?"
    "Hell yeah. It's like how everybody's always talking about how they want to look like a million bucks, but now, you can also sound like a dollar." (The Other Two, S01E03)
  • "I'm living in SoHo at Justin Theroux's house."
    "Lego Ninjago?!" (The Other Two, S01E03)

Still the AR™TV World Drama Champion: Homecoming
The New AR™TV World Comedy Champion: The Other Two

Big Disc Energy

Previously on Adam Riff™:


Adam Riff™'s 2018 retrospective festivities conclude with my 15th audio almanac. Hear ye hear ye Monsters of Wak.


Our mates Adam Robot and Jon Bell also curated a 2018 mix. Heeeeeere's Herauditory!


And sneaking in right before the Grammys is Benny C 'til Infinity, curated by our mate Ben Cohen.


artwork by Jon Wilcox


1 hr 56 min


Previously on Adam Riff™:

Our favourite songs. One per year.


Time to update it.

Side A (curated by Jon)
1. Radiohead – "The National Anthem" [2000]
2. Finch – "What It Is to Burn (Demo)" [2001]
3. Spoon – "Stay Don't Go" [2002]
4. The Mars Volta – "Take the Veil Cerpin Taxt"
5. Ratatat – "Seventeen Years"
6. The Mountain Goats – "This Year"
7. DragonForce – "Through the Fire and Flames"
8. Frank Turner – "The Real Damage"
9. The Wonder Years – "You're Not Salinger. Get Over It."
10. So Many Dynamos – "New Bones"
11. Jamie Lidell – "Your Sweet Boom"
12. M83 – "Midnight City"
13. Jai Paul – "Jasmine (Demo)"
14. CHVRCHES – "The Mother We Share"
15. CFO$ – "Worlds Apart"
16. Oneohtrix Point Never – "No Good"
17. Kanye West – "Ultralight Beam" [2016]
18. GoldLink – "Crew (feat. Brent Faiyaz and Shy Glizzy)" [2017]
19. Panic! at the Disco – "High Hopes" [2018]

Jon: For reasons that are too embarrassing to print but involve Smash Bros., I listened to "High Hopes" more than any other song in 2018 by an wide margin. That it's catchy, bombastic, and optimistic in a time that can use more optimism didn't hurt.

Side B (curated by Ben)
1. Outkast – "B.O.B." [2000]
2. Gob – "I Hear You Calling" [2001]
3. Justin Timberlake – "Cry Me a River" [2002]
4. The White Stripes – "Seven Nation Army"
5. Franz Ferdinand – "Take Me Out"
6. R. Kelly – "Trapped in the Closet"
7. TV on the Radio – "Wolf Like Me"
8. UGK – "Int'l Players Anthem (I Choose You) [feat. Outkast]"
9. MGMT – "Time to Pretend"
10. Passion Pit – "The Reeling"
11. LCD Soundsystem – "Dance Yrself Clean"
12. M83 – "Midnight City"
13. Bruno Mars – "Locked Out of Heaven"
14. Daft Punk – "Get Lucky (feat. Pharrell Williams)"
15. Duke Dumont – "I Got You (feat. Jax Jones)"
16. Major Lazer × DJ Snake – "Lean On (feat. MØ)"
17. G.L.O.S.S. – "Give Violence a Chance" [2016]
18. Kendrick Lamar – "DNA." [2017]
19. Cardi B, Bad Bunny, and J Balvin – "I Like It" [2018]

Ben: From the first moment I heard this song, I've been absolutely obsessed with it. Cardi's verse is legit HOF level ("Flexing on bitches as hard as I can / Eating halal, driving the Lam" is legit amazing) and her chorus with "Oh, he's so handsome, what's his name?" is just fantastic. Add in Bad Bunny and J Balvin spitting their best verses of 2018 and you get my favorite song of 2018. I don't think I'll ever tire of this masterpiece.

Bonus Disc (curated by Adam Robot)
1. Snapcase – "Typecast Modulator" [2000]
2. Rival Schools – "Travel by Telephone" [2001]
3. City of Caterpillar – "And You're Wondering How a Top Floor Could Replace Heaven" [2002]
4. Every Time I Die – "Ebolarama"
5. Codeseven – "All the Best Dreams"
6. Comeback Kid – "Wake the Dead"
7. Jesu – "Silver"
8. Rob Crow – "Up"
9. Russian Circles – "Campaign"
10. Coalesce – "Wild Ox Moan"
11. Deftones – "Rocket Skates"
12. Touché Amoré – "Home Away from Here"
13. Torche – "Kicking"
14. Coliseum – "Fuzzbang"
15. Violent Soho – "Covered in Chrome"
16. Baroness – "Chlorine and Wine"
17. Joyce Manor – "Last You Heard of Me" [2016]
18. Charly Bliss – "Westermarck" [2017]
19. Daughters – "The Reason They Hate Me" [2018]

Adam Robot: This song is a lot of things – scary, industrial, and oddly danceable. I've been reciting its sardonically delivered first lyric ("Don't tell me how to do my job") in my head and occasionally out loud for the better part of a decade. To say I relate is a vast understatement. The encompassing album is my favorite album of 2018.