Pullbox Issue 10

Listen:
Japan is still on my travel wish list, but the folks behind ExtraClassic have some excellent mixtape selections.
Will have to check out more Major Grave mixes after the Dublin Boiler Room mix.

Read:
The Tao Te Ching is one of those books, I’ll likely re-visit for the rest of my life.
Watch:
The Tig documentary and her Showtime special Knock Knock - great comedy insight.
That Nina Simone
documentary, heartbreaking.
The other heartbreaking music documentary -
Amy (Winehouse).

Follow:
You can follow me on Twitter @ntorquiano or Instagram @ntorq. For even more random distractions, bookmark NTORQ Tumblr.

Pullbox Issue 9

Listen:
Arabic Funk - Yes, more please - Habibi mix series
Always fire, Lucky Me fam S-Type drops a Fact Mag Mix.
Anything with Underground Resistance means you got to listen to it, even when UR Presents, again another
killer Boiler Room set.

Read:
The book vs movie debate means nothing when you read Susan Orlean’s The Orchid Thief. When an New Yorker article gets a chance to sprawl into a book, then it’s going into the queue.
Steve Earle on In Cold Blood makes you appreciate Capote even more.

Watch:
My weak spot for docu-cooking shows continues with Mind of a Chef, binged on the Sean Brock and Ed Lee’s episodes. Makes you want to go a food journey through the South.

92 Y has some great talks and makes you really jealous that these talks don’t happen anywhere except New York. But thank goodness for the Internet. Malcolm Gladwell and Brian Grazer do some great name dropping, but breakdown why these people are worth name dropping. Gladwell drops some journalism gems that are worth re-visiting for folks in the throes of work.

The BAFTA Screenwriters Lecture series - heavyweights, like seeing a beautiful jab.

 

Pullbox Issue 8

Listen:
Waajeed Boiler Room set - Detroit in the House!
Another Boiler Room set worth checking - DJ Pone in Paris!
Joe DeFranco’s podcast will make you want pump iron.

Read:
Wow,
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. A classic book, I should have read sooner.
Great profile on Nic Pizzolatto in Vanity Fair, True Detective fans attention.

Watch:
Chris Weidman -
Singular Focus - on par with UFC’s Embedded and Countdown series.
Dope - fun summer coming of age movie. Like a mix of Better Luck Tomorrow and The Wackness.

Follow:
You can follow me on Twitter @ntorquiano or Instagram @ntorq. For even more random distractions, bookmark NTORQ Tumblr.

 

Pullbox Issue 7

Listen:
The always on-point DJ Craze put together a great set on DataTransmissionTV

Caught the finale to Flying Lotus' BBC residency with J-Rocc, so will play catch up with the past episodes.

On the queue list - Jaime XX on Gilles Peterson.

Read:
Maron's WTF podcast with Kim Gordon was a tad bit of letdown because she kept saying "it's in the book," and really is in the book. Girl in a Band lands easily on one of my favorite memoirs/music books of the year.

Watch:
Trying to stay away from binge watching, but Chef's Table on Netflix has 6 episodes and 5 of them are worth scarfing down. 

Jeff Ross Roasts Criminals in Brazos County Jail is a trojan horse for prison reform advocacy. Yes, nearly everyone deserves a second chance.

Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee has another serving of episodes. Hopefully, Seinfeld never gets tired of doing it because it's one of the best web series of all time.

Follow:
You can follow me on Twitter @ntorquiano or Instagram @ntorq. For even more random distractions, bookmark NTORQ Tumblr.

Pullbox Issue 6

Listen:
J Rocc mixes are worth checking (Do Over set). He started a radio show, Adventures in Stereo, that’s required listening for hip-hop/beat/good music fans.

The Champs with Neal Brennan and Moshe Kasher podcast is always entertaining, however it’s inconsistent on its release dates. But since it’s free, really no complaints. And apparently, it’s coming back.

Meiko Kaji - no idea what the Japanese actor is singing about, but sounds just as comforting as French female vocals circa 60s-70s. She’s known for her Lady Snowblood movies, which Kill Bill fans should try to track down. Quentin Tarantino knows how to borrow from the overlooked classics.

Read:
The Innovators by Walter Isaccson kept me going on a recent roadtrip. Ex Machina and Blade Runner make a lot more sense once you know about Alan Turing. Will have to check out the Steve Jobs biography.
Plenty of good reads and video clips of Letterman out there. One of the gems is Daniel Kellison’s memories during his Letterman years. (hat tip from AK comic Matt Collins)

Great blog post about the final day of Letterman; 6 months of editing for the final montage, an intern scripts the final 2 of the final Top 10.

My own Letterman memories can be traced back to spending time in California with my cousins. For whatever reason, they always had Letterman on and I’m glad because even though it went over my head, it likely did plant some comedy seeds in my brain. Thanks Dave!

Whoa, Mark Twain’s uncovered San Francisco stories when he was a 29-year-old journalist.

Watch:
Again, Mad Max: Fury Road is a must watch in theaters. As chaotic as it seems, it’s actually straight-forward and follows lots of rules. Here’s a great mini-breakdown of crosshair framing.

Great Vimeo staff pick on the Art of the Black Panthers.

The Danny Way documentary Waiting for Lighting gives a great glimpse to one skater pushing the ledge. The timeline is a bit off for storyline purposes, but it’s still incredible to think about. There’s a terrifying fall at the X-Games that’s absolutely spine-tingling. It actually happened after the Great Wall of China and he finished that run with all those injuries - yikes! Thanks to Way, Bob Burnquist pushes big air even more - check out his Dreamland videos.

Silicon Valley (the pinnacle inappropriate math joke) - killer comedy. Season 2 is still stellar with a bunch of new writers.

Follow:
You can follow me on Twitter @ntorquiano or Instagram @ntorq. For even more random distractions, bookmark NTORQ Tumblr.