Reverbiage: Stories from NPR tagged 'eccentric'

'Sleeping Beauties', Comforting A Lonely Sinner

Thu, 13 Nov 2008 17:18:00 EST

An adaption of Yasunari Kawabata's 1961 novella, Sleeping Beauties is a wistful erotic mystery centered around an eccentric German brothel. Mark Jenkins calls it artful and delicate — but with an oddly tone-deaf ending.

O'Death: Old Thyme Punk Rock

Tue, 28 Oct 2008 13:27:00 EDT

Old-thyme in instrumentation, but punk rock in spirit, O'Death is an eccentric jug-swigging porch band in a raw, dark way. The band has honed their energetic Americana over self-released CDs and constant touring. O'Death performs music in a session from WXPN.

David Lindley On Mountain Stage

Tue, 21 Oct 2008 12:27:00 EDT

The musical palette of multi-instrumentalist David Lindley is as varied and eccentric as his colorful onstage apparel. For this intimate Mountain Stage performance, Lindley played instruments as varied as a Hawaiian lap-steel guitar and a traditional Middle Eastern oud.

Carrie Rodriguez On Mountain Stage

Wed, 08 Oct 2008 12:11:00 EDT

Rodriguez is a classically trained violinist-turned-fiddler with an eccentric, genre-bending style. She performs music from her latest album on Mountain Stage, with a guest appearance from Crooked Still's Aoife O'Donovan.

Auntie Mame: An Antidote To Social Caution

Wed, 30 Jul 2008 16:27:00 EDT

Auntie Mame was a popular novel in the 1950s that was made into a famous movie, play and a musical. It tells the story of the adventures of a boy being raised by his eccentric aunt, the free spirit more commonly known as Mame Dennis.

Rainn Wilson, From 'Office' Drone To 'Rocker' Star

Wed, 30 Jul 2008 09:54:00 EDT

Twitchy undertaker, cubicle fiend, sassy convenience-store clerk — Rainn Wilson has long gravitated toward eccentric characters. But is The Office actor attempting the leap to sex symbol through his titular role in The Rocker? Given the hair-metal coif and the still-goofy humor, probably not.

Head of Femur: 'Jetway Junior'

Tue, 22 Jul 2008 11:38:00 EDT

At first listen, it's hard to tell if Great Plains, the third album from Chicago-based band Head of Femur, is wildly ambitious in its eccentric, incredibly catchy sound, or is simply a good, old-fashioned pop and rock record. The songs sound new and energetic while taking enough cues from the past to sound like a tribute album. The result is a record that is recognizable, but fresh and surprisingly accessible, despite offering plenty of surprises.

Norma Winstone: Britain's Poetic Jazz Singer

Fri, 11 Jul 2008 13:11:00 EDT

The veteran vocalist has a gift for putting the right words to a melody. She wrote some lyrics for her new CD, Distances, and she blends a poem by an Italian filmmaker with music by eccentric French composer Erik Satie.

Lil Wayne: Uneven but Undeniable

Tue, 10 Jun 2008 13:10:00 EDT

The New Orleans rapper's gremlin groan carries him through Tha Carter III, an uneven album that, for all its eccentricities and disappointments, proves him to be an undeniably great MC.

Firewater in Its 'Golden Hour'

Mon, 12 May 2008 14:33:00 EDT

Firewater is the loose musical collective formed by the eccentric leader Tod A. In the last ten years, the unclassifiable group has released six albums that somewhat fit into the punk area, but Firewater is also fueled by gypsy music, ska, jazz and klezmer.

Eccentric Mom Colors Childhood of a 'Beautiful Boy'

Sun, 09 Mar 2008 14:56:00 EDT

When Robert Leleux's father left him and his mother in 1996, she set out to remarry rich. In his funny memoir, Leleux recounts their erratic family journey, which saw Leleux's mother purse risky cosmetic procedures to meet her goal.

Cass McCombs: Eccentric and Tender

Mon, 29 Oct 2007 09:38:00 EDT

Cass McCombs is an ingenious and unorthodox singer/songwriter. His influences range from The Velvet Underground to Morrissey, and his style blends folk and art-pop. Hear an interview and in-studio performance by the musician from WXPN.

Digging Up Thelonious Monk's Southern Roots

Wed, 10 Oct 2007 15:18:00 EDT

The legendary jazz pianist and composer is best known for his time in New York City, where he developed his eccentric musical genius. But 90 years ago today, Thelonious Monk was born in the Southern city of Rocky Mount, N.C.

Mexican Governor Candidate Flaunts Eccentricities

Sat, 04 Aug 2007 12:36:00 EDT

The Institutional Revolutionary Party is trying to make a comeback in Sunday's election for governor of the Mexican state of Baja California. The party's candidate is Tijuana's former mayor, the flamboyant billionaire and gambling magnate Jorge Hank Rhon.

Gavin Castleton & Cyrus Leddy: 'The Good Night's Sleep'

Thu, 07 Jun 2007 14:00:00 EDT

Cyrus Leddy and Gavin Castleton's Grace Land shocks and amuses listeners by giving a blue-collar eccentric not only a podium but an entire orchestra to punctuate his rolling narrative.

A Whimsical Eccentric Gets Nakedly Emotional

Thu, 17 May 2007 10:15:00 EDT

Writing "N.Y. Doll" from the perspective of a late New York Dolls bassist, Robyn Hitchcock opts not to copy the Dolls' pre-punk strut and roar. Instead, he sticks to what he knows, slowly stretching the guitar jangle until it ripples and pulses with the hum of psychedelia.

Peder Bares His Moaning, Cinematic Soul

Tue, 08 May 2007 16:41:00 EDT

Much of Peder's music sounds like the eccentric score for an independent movie: On "Would You," the flat, plucked-out notes and ghostly piano sound like they await a Tom Waits vocal. Instead, Nino Moschella surfaces, his vocals bringing the longing in Peder's music out of the abstract.

Smart Street: The Madcap 'Avenue Montaigne'

Fri, 16 Feb 2007 16:00:00 EST

Avenue Montaigne is a comedy about people who are suffering from the writing of a breezy play in the tradition of "Boulevard Comedies." But as a film, Montaigne is a sophisticated street with some eccentric residents.

A Rock Supergroup Gets Sublimely Mysterious

Thu, 01 Feb 2007 17:28:00 EST

An ominous track in a musical class of its own, "Herculean" is the product of an eccentric and sublime collection of talent, including members of Blur, Gnarls Barkley and The Clash. Though much of its membership finds its roots in rock, The Good, The Bad & The Queen opts for subtler ambience.

Hollywood Tolerates Strange Behavior, Up to a Point

Fri, 25 Aug 2006 06:00:00 EDT

Hollywood production companies put up with plenty of eccentric stars. Often a touch of weird behavior is good for business. But as the recent case of Tom Cruise shows, sometimes there are limits.

Jimmie Riddle and the Lost Art of Eephing

Mon, 13 Mar 2006 17:59:04 EST

The eccentric Southern tradition of "eephing" is best described as the hillbilly equivalent of the hip-hop human "beat box" vocal style -- a kind of hiccupping, rhythmic wheeze that started in rural Tennessee more than 100 years ago.

A Musical Trip to 'Grey Gardens'

Sun, 05 Mar 2006 14:16:24 EST

A 1973 documentary focused on Grey Gardens, a rundown mansion where two eccentric relatives of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis lived. Now there's an off-Broadway musical based on the film. The show's creators talk about the production.

'American Primitive': Second Batch of Musical Gems

Fri, 03 Feb 2006 00:00:00 EST

The late John Fahey, an eccentric guitarist and music historian, co-founded Revenant Records. Fahey's last project before he died in 2001 was American Primitiven Vol. 2, a collection of early 20th-century American recordings by artists so obscure that folk music archivists had overlooked them.

Outdoor Business Pioneer Yvon Chouinard, Part 2

Thu, 20 Oct 2005 00:00:00 EDT

Patagonia remains a pioneer in outdoor clothing design and alternative corporate culture after decades in business. Company founder Yvon Chouinard discusses his business philosophy in his new book, Let My People Go Surfing: The Education of a Reluctant Businessman. In the second part of our profile, Alex Chadwick further explores Chouinard's eccentric approach to running a company.

'Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit'

Fri, 07 Oct 2005 00:00:00 EDT

'Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit' October 7, 2005 · Animation critic Charles Solomon reviews Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, the new claymation animated film from director Nick Park. The film reunites an eccentric English inventor and his trusty dog sidekick, first introduced in a series of critically acclaimed short films.