Best Entertainment of 2006

Was going back through my music, film, and book journals for 2006... here are my lists for the my favorite new-to-me music, movies, and books from 2006. Criteria is that I have to have listened/watched/read it for the first time in 2006.

Favorite New Music
"Stereo: The Evolution of HipRockSoul", 4th Avenue Jones
Out-of-the-box listening for me, good mix of rap, hip-hop, and rock. My review is here.

"Drunkard's Prayer", Over the Rhine
Splendid fusing of jazz and folk with vulnerable lyrics about a couple rediscovering lost love for each other.

"Room Noises", Eisley
If you like dreamy, imaginative pop with tight harmonies and fanciful melodies a la some of Sixpence None the Richer's lighter fare, this is the album for you.

"The Everglow", Mae
Solid, melodic rock from end-to-end with a distinct keyboard element to kick it up a notch above the standard.

"Good Monsters", Jars of Clay
Latest album from my favorite band has probably vaulted itself into the top 3 of their overall work. Very cool to see them continuing to stretch and innovate musically, with elements of all the influences and previous experimentations showing up in almost every song.

"Kaleidoscope Superior", Earthsuit
Now that the band has split into Mute Math (who I want to check out) and Macrosick, this mix of electronic rock and rap reminds me of some of dc Talk's stuff and is solid from front to back.

Disappointed in...
"Nothing is Sound", Switchfoot - First half is excellent. Second half is unmemorable.

"Feels Like Home", Norah Jones - I'm a patient listener, but I just couldn't get into it.

Favorite Movies/TV shows
"Firefly" (TV) - I agree with Andy that it may have been more interesting if it had remained as dark as the first few episodes, but all in all quite entertaining.

"Iron Monkey" - Blatant martial arts fun

"The Departed" - Jack Nicholson stole the show. And at a glance, I sometimes forget how to distinguish between Matt Damon and Marky Mark.

"Casino Royale" - Who's going to be the next fictional icon to have a "_____ Begins" movie? Admittedly they've been doing a pretty good job with this trend.

"Little Miss Sunshine" - Surprisingly fun movie with a heart and a message. I enjoyed this one way more than I thought I would, and now it's getting some buzz as the front-runner for the Best Picture Oscar!

"An Inconvenient Truth" - Any truth you didn't know before is bound to be inconvenient. Have another post in mind on this topic upcoming.

"March of the Penguins" - As Shally mentioned, Al Gore should have put penguins in his documentary about the environment. Because everyone loves penguins. Truth be told though, we watched a PBS special on "The Penguins of the Antarctic" not long before this documentary and the PBS one may have been better.

Favorite new movie/TV of the year: "Casino Royale"

Continuing TV fandoms:"24", "Lost", "Simpsons", "Whose Line Is It Anyway" (where'd it go?)
However, Lost needs to step up its game to keep my interest after this season. Oh, who am I kidding... I stuck with Alias till the bitter end. I don't know how to quit shows effectively.

Will eventually check out: Heroes. Probably won't have time to check out something else like Prison Break, since NBA hoops takes up TV time too, and it's always good to get away from the TV.

Favorite Books
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams
Found this one quite amusing, but haven't been able to wrap my mind around the next few in the Ultimate collection Mike P lent me.

For Men Only, Jeff and Shaunti Feldham
Nice starter book for this male Neanderthal to begin to try to understand women. I am now maybe 0.5% of the way there.