Halo 3 is easily one of the most anticipated video game releases of all-time. Some are even arguing that it is one of the biggest pop culture phenomenons ever. But was Tuesday's release bigger than another highly-anticipated release earlier this year, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows? The Chanticleer's resident nerds Chris Pittman(Halo) and Kevin Jeffers(Harry Potter) debate.
Magik Marker's latest release, Boss, comes as a relative surprise. With this release on Thurston Moore's label Ecstatic Peace, the now duo - bassist Leah Quimby left the group in May of 2006 - goes for a more accessible sound. Past endeavors, I Trust My Guitar, Etc...(also on Ecstatic Peace) and A Panegyric To The Things I Do Not Understand, were firmly rooted in the experimentalists' realm of no-wave and, at its basest form, sheer guitar noise.
Across the Universe, the new film directed by Julie Taymor deals with the turbulent 60's and has a harmonious soundtrack, full of classic Beatle's songs covered by the movie's cast, including Bono, Jim Sturgess, T.V. Caprio, Evan Rachel Wood, Joe Cocker and Joe Anderson to name a few.
Though they have been around since 1991, HIM was brought to the attention of the American public thanks to Bam Margera.
The band's sound is driven by the signature forlorn and pleading voice of front man Ville Valo. He has a swooning voice that is rare in the heavy/gothic metal world. Their newest album, Venus Doom, has an even grittier and darker sound than its predecessors.