Aimee Mann At The Beacon Theater

Any weekend that begins with an Aimee Mann show and ends with “Adaptation” can’t be all bad. Even if it is, like, 4 degrees outside.

Aimee’s show was amazing. It was the first time I’ve been in the Beacon Theater, which is odd as it’s just a few blocks from my apartment. It’s a beautiful old thing with gorgeous chandelieres and carved statues and such. Maybe a little dusty. What I failed to note in my report on the performance (see “Aimee Mann Jacked On Latte, Won’t Play Her ‘Freebird’ At NY Show”) is how funny Aimee is. She was droppin’ F Bombs like Andrew Dice Clay. Which was refreshing, as I’m oft scolded for my on-stage potty mouth. Of course, her performance was fantastic, inspiring. She does exactly what I do. Or, I do exactly what she does: acoustic-based pop that rocks. Truly. Her drummer is tight and inventive. Her guitar player, Michael Lockwood, who also produced the record, played tasteful, smart solos. And of course Aimee’s lyrics are genios. Deep, clever. I’m not even close, but I aspire. And they all seemed to be having a terrific time. It was great to see. I sat there grinning for two hours straight. And somewhere in the middle of it all, I realized that I’m a little depressed about my whole music career. Which probably comes as no surprise to you, dear reader, but was a revelation to me. And I figured out that I’m happiest when I’m being proactive about it. That is, I’m happiest booking shows, puttings CDs together, even making calls and sending letters and such. Because at least I’m doing something about it. You gotta’ hit the curb to get up again, or something like that.

“Adaptation.” In the closest thing to a tearjerking moment this inventive, ingenious film offers, Charlie Kaufman (Nicholas Cage) says to twin brother Donald Kaufman (Nicholas Cage), “It’s not what loves you, but what you love.” I’m not sure what else I can tell you short of encouraging you to go see it. It’s smart, deep, clever, funny. It’s meta. It’s post-post-post modern. It’s hopeful, somehow (I, for one, like films where the characters grows). And it’s the kind of thing Hollywood should do more of. And will, if it does well at the box office. So vote with your wallet and go see it!