I've got a lot of respect for Ryan Gosling. For the uninitiated, the Canadian-born actor has played leading roles in a few fan/critically-acclaimed films, each with its own distinct genre. In a relatively brief movie career, the guy has shown a breadth of skill matched only by today's most-talented actors (e.g., DiCaprio, Depp, Day-Lewis, any D, really) From his role in the unanimous lady-favorite "The Notebook", to the darkly amazing "Half Nelson", to the offbeat and endearing "Lars and the Real Girl", Gosling has taken calculated risks with each assignment and nailed it each time.
As if that's not enough, today marks the digital release of Gosling's music project, Dead Man's Bones. The eponymous album was created through collaboration between Gosling, his friend Zach Shields, and the Silverlake Conservatory of Music Children's Choir.
When I first heard about this project awhile back I thought, "Damn, that's too bad. I liked Gosling, now he's going to eff it all up by going all Eddie Murphy on us." I mean, even a pretty talented Scarlett Johansson couldn't even really pull it off and She & Him's Zooey Deschanel wasn't exactly a leading lady prior to that album's success...so, in short, I was not optimistic. However, after hearing a couple of songs of this album, I can say, without hesitation, this is the real deal. It's got a sort-of Halloween-theme, which is well-timed with its October release, and it hovers somewhere between Arcade Fire, Tom Waits and Bon Iver in its musical elicitation. I declare that this album will be a critical favorite despite Ryan Gosling's success as an actor, certainly not because of it given the uber-cynicality of the great indie nation. Seriously, it's that good. Have a listen to some of the tunes here. For an immediate grab, listen to "My Body's a Zombie...", "Pa Pa Power", "Lose Your Soul", and/or "Name in Stone". Damn, its good to be a Gosling.
May the Zombies be always at your back,
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