He may have "killed a man" as he freely 'fesses here in this exclusive tell-all Amoeblog interview but Job O Brother is one hell of a gifted writer and his Another Witty and Unnecessary Blog contribution to this Amoeblog section of amoeba.com is always guaranteed to be must-read material;  the type of prose that leaves the reader fiending for more of its consistently engaging, well-written, and witty insights and observations on life - Job's life.

In fact Job O Brother's refreshing conversational writing style allows his readers an inside look at the personal details of his life - including life with boyfriend Corey and his workmates at Amoeba Hollywood-- is so natural and free-flowing that he makes it all seem really easy to write. But as anyone who has written a short story or blog will attest, to accomplish such results a writer must put a lot of time and energy into their craft. 

"Job is a born writer, truly gifted," offered Brady of Amoeba's Bay Area Crew - one of the regular readers of Job's Another Witty and Unnecessary Blog. But who really is this Job O Brother? Does he write for other outlets besides the Amoeblog?  Is he independently rich and only puts in time at Amoeba to get material for his writing? And did he really kill a man?

If you read Job's official Amoeblog bio we are told: "Mr. Brother was born into one of the wealthiest royal families in Europe. Having been raised in luxury only known to 1% of the world's population, he studied in the greatest schools and with acclaimed private tutors until he reached maturity, at which point he decided he "really, really wanted to work in a record store," which is what he's been doing and will continue to do until the demands of tradition force him to rule as King over his country or they hire him at "Donut Time" on Santa Monica and Highland. 'Which ever comes first,' he says." 

It should be noted that Job penned this bio and, like some things he says, you never quite know if it is truth or fiction--nor do you care when the writing is so entertaining.  So to find out a little bit more about Amoeba Music Hollywood employee Job O Brother I set up an interview with the man, deliberately conducting it via email since this way I figured I could get him to write/type out his answers which I guessed would be as witty and entertaining as his Amoeblogs always are.  I wasn't disappointed. Scroll down and read on...........

 
AMOEBLOG:  Exactly when and how did you end up working at Amoeba? Was it something to do with them hiring you before Donut Time on Santa Monica & Highland had responded to your application?

JOB O BROTHER: Confession time: A few facts in my Amoeblog profile are not entirely true. Yes, I am heir apparent to a powerful, European dynasty, but I’ve never actually applied for work at Donut Time.   When I first moved to LA (a little over three years ago) I assessed the work market and decided that Amoeba Music was the ONLY place I wanted to work.  I wasn’t sure when they would hire me, so I also applied to other places, but ONLY establishments that were soulless, corporate chains which I would feel no guilt quitting even after one week of employment, so that I’d be ready for when Amoeba called me. I even applied for a job at (insert f-word here, plus the suffix ‘ing’) Jamba Juice.

As reported in the Sunday Fashion & Style section of The New York Times, Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova got in a little shopping at Amoeba Music while in Hollywood, in the days leading up to the Oscars. The musicians/actors and stars of the Irish indie film Once,  won an Oscar last night in the Original Song category for the film's moving composition "Falling Slowly"  --  which they also performed live at the televised event (see clip below). 

The picture above, courtesy of the New York Times'  Emilio Flores, shows the couple shopping at Amoeba Music on Sunset where they reportedly spent time shopping for DVDs (Amoeba prices are way better than back home in Dublin) and talking to fans of the indie success film Once, fans who were pleasantly surprised to see its two stars in the aisles of Amoeba Music.

Personally I was so happy Once won because not only did I fall in love with the film when I first saw it last March, but I saw it under the best possible circumstances: on the big screen in Dublin, Ireland, not far from where much of the film was shot.  And I saw it with two of my favorite people, my dad and sister, who both loved it and its soundtrack as much I did-- so much so that the next day, inspired by the film, we decided to take a short drive south of the city to Killiney, to that beautiful location overlooking Dublin Bay and the Irish Sea where the two main characters in the movie go on their memorable motorbike ride.

I watched the movie Once last night. 

It's a simple but complicated film about two people who meet in Dublin and begin writing songs together.  There's not terribly much plot to it, but I thought it was fantastic.  Nothing seems contrived in this movie, it all feels completely real.  It truly captured a tone, a beautiful feeling of not only melancholy but also joy and inspiration.  There's not much dialogue and most of the communicating actually goes on through the music, which really makes this film different and intriguing. 

We had an instore here at Amoeba SF with the film's stars, Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova back in August and I had the chance to meet them (without ever having seen the movie) and discover how fantastic and genuine they truly are.  Watching the film last night  reminded me of the feeling I had when we met:  Once, like Glen and Marketa themselves (and their equally tremendous road manager Howard), kinda grabbed me right away and I could tell everything was going to be great from just a few minutes in. 

There's a lot of integrity to the characters in the film.  It's a movie about people who are flawed but good hearted, which felt...different from most movies these days.  It was a pleasure to watch this film.  There aren't a bunch of jump cuts and flashy sets.  I enjoyed the fact that the minimal dialogue allowed the viewer to put pieces together and create the story by paying attention.  There's no pandering to the audience in this movie, and that's one of its most refreshing details.  There's also a hell of a lot of chemistry between the two main characters and it's compelling to watch and become absorbed in.  When I finished the movie, I wanted to watch it again right away, which is an unusual feeling!

 Gabriella works in the DVD department of Amoeba Music Hollywood - located in the mezzanine area of the cavernous Sunset Blvd building that stretches one full block. She's been at Amoeba for almost three years now and was recruited by fellow Amoebite Chris Carmena. She works on the registers twice a week and three days in the DVD department's movies, which is her passion, she says.  In total twenty Amoebites (a lot!) work in the extensive Hollywood Amoeba Music DVD section where there is a truly amazing selection of DVDs - in every genre you can think of, found in both new and used, and at damned good prices.

AMOEBLOG: What are three of the most popular DVDs with Amoeba shoppers in the last week or so?

GABRIELLA:  “Cocaine Cowboys”, “An  Inconvenient truth”, and with the recent Paul McCartney in-store performance, we’ve had a lot of Beatles music DVD’s selling out.




AMOEBLOG: Who shops in Amoeba Hollywood's DVD section? And does the fact that the store is right in Hollywood - home of the movies - make a difference?

GABRIELLA: We have the most diverse clientele- from celebrities to tour buses full of Japanese visitors. We attract all types of people because we satisfy every taste!