"I've seen your frown, and it's like looking down the barrel of a gun. And it goes off and out come all these words. Oh there's a very pleasant side to you, a side I much prefer. It's one that laughs and jokes around. Remember cuddles in the kitchen, yeah, to get things off the ground. And it was up, up and away. Oh, but it's right hard to remember that on a day like today when you're all argumentative and you've got the face on." ~arctic monkeys

Okay, it's a day later and already I'm changing my list. I forgot about and have to add Ray LaMontagne's "'Til the Sun Turns Black." Which means I have to remove one. So, after careful consideration, I'm taking off Arctic Monkeys. Sorry, guys. Q Magazine called "Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not" the best album of the year and one of the best debut albums ever, it's one of the most talked-about albums of the year, and it's done extremely well in terms of sales (especially in Great Britain), but it didn't resonate with me as much as the other albums on my list. Even though it's still fantastic. "Mardy Bum" is a particularly good song, so it gets the opening quote today. Here's my updated list (still subject to change):

Damien Rice, "9"
The Strokes, "First Impressions of Earth"
The Killers, "Sam's Town"
Dashboard Confessional, "Dusk and Summer"
Regina Spektor, "Begin to Hope"
Bruce Springsteen, "We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions"
Jenny Lewis with the Watson Twins, "Rabbit Fur Coat"
John Mayer, "Continuum"
Ray LaMontagne, "'Til the Sun Turns Black"
Bob Dylan, "Modern Times"

Some runners-up are Arctic Monkeys, M Ward, The Decemberists, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Pearl Jam.

I went to see the movie Notes on a Scandal today. I've been waiting forever to see it, and it finally opened in my area. It was incredible. It was such a well-made film. The directing, acting, script, were all superb. Have I mentioned that I love Cate Blanchett? I saw her in Hetta Gabler at BAM last year and she gave one of the best live stage performances I've ever seen (and I've seen lots), so that exponentially increased my respect for her as an actress. She's great in this movie, and so is Judi Dench. And Bill Nighy. It's definitely one of the best movies of the year, and I really hope it gets an Oscar nod for best picture. Dench and Blanchett will surely get noms for best actress and best supporting actress, respectively.

Ooh, I don't think I've written about Dreamgirls yet. Sorry if I already have, I forget. I saw that a couple of weeks ago and loved it as well. I predict that it will (deservedly) win the best picture Oscar. Jennifer Hudson blew me away. Her "And I am Telling You..." was phenomenal. The theater was completely packed (there wasn't an empty seat; I think we saw it on the day it opened) and J. Hud. got a standing ovation after that song. It was the kind of movie where you wanted to just stand up and clap at multiple times throughout the movie. It definitely inspired hope in me that the movie musical genre is not dead.

Praxis II is tomorrow. I'm afraid I haven't studied nearly enough. I don't even know how many points it's out of. I'll be glad when it's over.