Essential February

Essential viewing:
- With Oscars for Sean Penn and Best Original Screenplay under its belt, "Milk" is finally getting the attention it lacked when it first came out. The gong was well deserved for Penn, but the supporting cast is also terrific, with stand out turns from James Franco and Josh Brolin. Director Gus van Sant is direct in style and keeps focus on the human aspect, instead of opting for the political getaway. Wonderfully put together and thought provoking, it certainly is worthy of all its recent praise.
- "Role Models" is another comedy featuring members of the so-called "Brat Pack" Paul Rudd and Seann William Scott. Deliciously ridiculous and well packed with laughs, it also features one of the best child performances in ages by newcomer Bobb'e J. Thompson. It's a joy to hear him dish out his lines. "You're white, so you're Ben Affleck." Priceless.
- With both "Entourage" and "Californication" on hiatus, the only thing really worth watching on TV these days is "30 Rock". Well into its third season, it is still fresh and original. Although it is now packed with stars, the real punch still lies in the writing. Tina Fey is becoming more and more like the female Larry David, and her scripts are by far the best thing on the tube since David's "Curb Your Enthusiasm."

Essential listening:
- The Airborne Toxic Event is a young American band who deliver catchy indie rock tunes with a touch of melancholy. There are plenty of bands who offer that, but the difference here lies in the quality of each single song. Great lyrics and terrific arrangements. Their debut album is not released in Europe until mid-March, but for now the wonderful tracks available on their MySpace site should be plenty sufficient.
- The Whitest Boy Alive is the new project by norwegian wunderkind Erlend Øye, from Kings of Convenience. After the success of the first album "Dreams", the follow up, "Rules", is now just around the corner. Having gotten a taste of it at a concert last week I can assure you it is still catchy electro folk rock tunes with firm beats and a mellow party atmosphere. Hard to dismiss and even harder to dislike. Surely another hit with the critics and fans alike.
- After their incredible concert in Oslo a few weeks ago I've been revisiting some of the classic Ac/Dc records. And "Who Made Who" is still the best rock album ever made. Simple as that.