This Fine Social Scene

End Of A (Not Particularly Significant) Era

2009-07-31T06:52:00.000-07:00

So, after several months of silence I'm closing down TFSS for good. It's been fun, or something.The good news is that my writing efforts have now found outlets elsewhere. Newly started is We Write Lists, which I'll be writing with my good friend Natalie. Also, I'll be contributing from time to time over at For Folk's Sake, an excellent folk website. So goodbye from me over here, but hello from

A First Love That's Been A Long Time Coming...

2009-02-09T09:57:00.001-08:00

Some two or three years ago I stumbled across a track online by Emmy the Great called 'Canopies & Grapes'. Ever since, I've been waiting desperately for a debut album, devouring every track I could find, taking every chance to see her live that I could, until I had a physical album release in my hands. Today, thirty tracks and six gigs later, I held just that.It's interesting how you can spend

I wish...

2009-02-01T19:37:00.001-08:00

...The Cardinals had won. I've always been an underdog's man, and I always will be. I've only ever watched two games of American Football - this year's, and last's. Still, I'm a Cardinals Man now.And as such, I'm devastated.

A New Day Dawning

2009-01-20T10:50:00.000-08:00

Norman Cook seems, by now, to have had more musical modes and eras than Madonna. He started in The Housemartins, spent a fair portion of his life as Fatboy Slim, and has played around with Beats International and Freak Power in between. Now he's started up a little project by the name of The BPA (which is short for The Brighton Port Authority, so yer knows). Personally, this looks to be his

Starlings

2009-01-06T07:53:00.000-08:00

How dare the premier ignore my invitations. He'll have to go. So, too, the bunch he luncheons with. It's second on my list of things to do. At the top I'm stopping by Your place of work and acting like I haven't dreamed of you and I And marriage in an orange grove. You are the only thing in any room you're ever in. I'm stubborn, selfish and too old. I sat you down and told you how the truest love

Possibly the worst thing you could say to a cancer sufferer...

2009-01-02T07:09:00.000-08:00

"...Well, there's no use losing your hair over it!"I would advise against using that piece of comfort talk...

Desert Island, All-Time, Top 3 Reasons 2008 Should Be Remembered Twenty Years From Now

2008-12-31T15:25:00.000-08:00

1. Let's get the obvious, important, ridiculously brilliant one out of the way first, shall we? Obama. Let's not forget, this time last year we didn't even know who the candidate would be, let alone the president. And now we have Obama. Excellent. That said, I still reckon too much is made of the man's race. Is America ready for a black president? Well, no, clearly not all of them are. But who

Like my old man always used to say...

2008-12-31T15:21:00.000-08:00

"Meryl Streep deserves an Oscar for how she sang 'The Winner Takes It All' in 'Mamma Mia'."

The Ten Logical Reasons Why I Haven't Yet Watched Transformers

2008-12-29T14:15:00.000-08:00

1. Did you see the logo?2. Michael Bay, the cinema god behind Pearl Harbour and Armageddon.3. Shia the Beef. I refuse, by the way, to refer to anyone by their real name when it essentially refers purely to a meat product. Especially when they are one of the least worthwhile things to come to Hollywood since Nicholas Cage.4. It features robots. That transform.5. It's a remake of a Japanese

A Few Of My Favourite Things: Sexy People

2008-12-21T10:03:00.001-08:00

No, I genuinely don't think that the girl above is sexy. Honestly. That'd be wrong in so many ways. No. Hell no. Rather, 'Sexy People' is an excellent little blog posting frankly horrific professional portraits. Young boys in dungarees and huge glasses. Full families straight out of 1970s mail-order catalogues. Teenage lads who quite possibly helped found Microsoft. Young girls from a little

Best Of '08: Songs Of The Year

2008-12-19T11:31:00.000-08:00

I never even managed to get round to this list last year. I wasted my time on cover version lists and frivolities like that. Not this year. Not this year. Here lies my Top 60 Tracks of 2008, in ascending order.60. 'Lord, I'm Discouraged' - The Hold Steady59. 'Sax Rohmer #1' - The Mountain Goats58. 'Stay Positive' - The Hold Steady57. '5 Years Time' - Noah and the Whale56. 'I Thought I Saw Your

Obsessions

2008-12-18T11:29:00.001-08:00

Too often these days the studio is the artist's biggest downfall. When a band is live, or recording out of the second cousin's bedroom, then the music is raw, alive and energetic. They perform live, they gather a few hundred fans, they record their EP in their auntie's nephew's garage and they give it out free at gigs - then they get a record deal, and they get to the studio, and they have all

Glen Hansard tackles the great pop saga of our generation.

2008-12-18T11:11:00.000-08:00

A while ago - a fair while ago, as it happens - Ireland's greatest non-female export covered a couple of rather okay modern pop songs, thus making them rather marvellous. Everyone knows the rumoured story - Cry Me A River is about Britney, Everytime is her (superior) reply. But screw that. The best thing about these tracks is the smarmy violin at the end of the Britney cover. Name that tune, so

'Blonde on Blonde', translated from English to Japanese and then back to English again.

2008-12-12T03:05:00.000-08:00

Woman #12 of day of rain and 35Pledge of my timeThe range of vision of JohannaOur one has known necessity without fail, (sooner or later)I think that we want,It is for the second time attached in movable device the Memphis blue having been attachedHat of pill box of [hiyou] skinExactly, like the womanPerhaps, your method it goes, I go my onesThe achilles corp way temporaryAbsolutely sweet

A Few Of My Favourite Things: Unexpected Collaborations

2008-12-10T05:18:00.000-08:00

There are few treats in the world sweeter than an unexpected musical collaboration that really, truly works. Of course, by this law David Bowie and Mick Jagger certainly are no treat - though Bowie and Queen are a perfect example. It's all about grabbing the opportunity, and being willing to shake things up a little.Recently I've stumbled across two excellent tracks by The Raconteurs - both are

Best Of '08: Top Ten Albums

2008-12-09T09:12:00.000-08:00

The best year for albums so far this decade? It seems likely - when I first heard Alphabeat's debut late last year I thought that when it was released mid-spring 2008 it would be by far the best pop record in my end-of-year charts. When I first heard Goldfrapp's album three months before it's February release I reckoned it would easily top the Best Album category. That now, a mere eight months

A Few Of My Favourite Things: Hand Drawn Map Association

2008-12-06T10:45:00.001-08:00

I can't tell you how I first discovered the Hand Drawn Map Association - I simply do not remember. But now I have found it, HDMA is a vital part of my internet life. The premise is simple - readers of the site send in maps of their own, or someone else's, creation - all the map has to be is created by human hand. No computer generation here. Most of the maps are simple line drawings, but

The Good, The Bad and the Cinematic: Changeling

2008-12-06T07:53:00.000-08:00

Angelina Jolie is far from my favourite actress - she seems, generally, to pick roles based upon how well they'll financially support her ever-growing family rather than how good they actually are. Wanted was one of the worst films of the year. I didn't even realise she was in Kung-Fu Panda til the credits ran. Sometimes I think Jolie should just become a stay-at-home mother whilst Brad goes out

The Five Most Vital People In Hollywood Today

2008-11-28T12:00:00.000-08:00

Before we get listing, I thought I'd just mention Blender's End of Year Album List. Now, I've never been a big follower of Blender, and read through their list and you'll see why. First, look at the lay-out: that's no way to write a list! Everyone knows that number one is the last number you want to see! Also, and probably slightly more important - the list features some truly average albums.

The Five Least Vital People In Hollywood Today

2008-11-25T06:40:00.000-08:00

I was chatting with my housemate the other day, and we found ourselves in a conversation, listing our 'Five Most Vital People In Hollywood'. His involved Guillermo Del Toro, I believe - an excellent choice. You'll see mine soon enough. But it all led me to the other list - the furthest opposite possibility, the 'Five Least Vital People In Hollywood'. I've given it great thought, and I present to

My Desert Island, All-Time, Top 5 Bob Dylan Tracks

2008-11-10T09:21:00.000-08:00

I was brought up in a Dylan-free house. My parents weren't against him, per se. They agreed he was an excellent lyricist, but they just couldn't stand his voice. As a good little kid I believed my parents were right about everything, both musically and otherwise. It was only somewhere between hearing them praise Alison Moyet

Obama Won!

2008-11-04T14:34:00.000-08:00

Is that gonna jinx it? I hope not.

The Definition of 'Pop'

2008-11-01T18:32:00.000-07:00

I have determined how, with almost 100% accuracy every time, one can determine whether or not a band is 'pop' or not. Whether a band is aimed at ten-to-thirteen year-olds or not. And, rather surprisingly, it's ever so simple. All these years, all these millions of dollars spent attempting to define what is and is not pop, and all along it came down to one thing:Linear notes.I know, right? How

'The Bends', translated from English to Japanese and then back to English again.

2008-10-31T16:25:00.001-07:00

The Planetary TelexWindingIt Was Stranded To The BankFalse Plastic WoodBoneSplendid DreamExactlyMy Iron LungEvidence… Of Bullet I Desire The Fact That It Is IBlack StarIll HumourMind Of Sort (Atrophy)

A Wasted Youth Is Better By Far Than Knowing You Can Drink Premium Juice.

2008-10-30T07:28:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I buy the newspaper every day. Sometimes I don't buy it for weeks on end. Usually, though, I get it when there is a nice chunky section on music, or film, or because something particularly exciting is going on in the world, like a squirrel is learning how to water-ski, or some girl named Keeley has lost her top... I kid, I kid. I only read tabloids when I'm in a staff room or on a

The Hallowe'en I Would Like To See

2008-10-29T07:08:00.000-07:00

As Hallowe'en approaches there will always be the inevitable 'what do I go as?' fear. It strikes every year, and only those blessed with ADHD of the imagination don't get it. I myself had a fancy dress event the other week for which I dressed as Noel Edmonds. At the beginning of May I dressed up for one event as Luigi of the Mario brothers. I have to admit that I've been tempted to repeat

Solving Politics With Jambalaya

2008-10-28T14:45:00.000-07:00

I wouldn't describe myself as a politically aware person. I mean, I'm not ignorant by any means - I tend to know when there's an election going on (in England, at least), and I have a firm concept of who I think is wrong and who I think is slightly less wrong. And just once in a while I stumble across a politician whom I genuinely admire - someone who could really make a difference to the lives

The Good, The Bad and the Cinematic: The Dark Knight

2008-07-30T16:37:00.000-07:00

Nice one.9/10.

"a thing to do" Part II

2008-07-12T14:48:00.000-07:00

In continuation from my favourite albums from each year that I'd been alive (lots of Elbow, no?), here lieth my favourite films from each year of my life.1987: Lethal Weapon1988: Die Hard1989: Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade1990: Die Hard 2: Die Harder1991: Terminator 2: Judgement Day1992: Aladdin1993: Schindler's List1994: Pulp Fiction1995: Die Hard With A Vengeance1996: From Dusk Til

"a thing to do"

2008-07-12T09:21:00.001-07:00

Stolen from here, which stole from here, which in turn stole from here, this is my list of my favourite albums from each year I've been alive. Next up, the same thing for films!1987: 'Bad' - Michael Jackson1988: 'I'm Your Man' - Leonard Cohen1989: 'Storm Front' - Billy Joel1990: 'Choke' - The Beautiful South1991: 'Achtung Baby' - U21992: 'Rage Against The Machine' -Rage Against The Machine1993: '

Facebook Band Group Analysis: Avril Lavigne

2008-07-06T06:21:00.001-07:00

I wish I could say I have no fondness for Avril Lavigne at all. She's put out at least two awful albums, both made worse by my sister's former fondness for them, and married a member of one of my All-Time Bottom Twenty Bands. Her song 'Mobile' was one of the least sensical and most musically frustrating I knew as a sixteen year-old. 'I'm With You' just reminded me of prostitutes ("I'm standing

Glastonbury Review: Volume Three

2008-07-06T05:43:00.000-07:00

Last year Glastonbury was, as visible above, the year of the mud. It was nasty. Wet, squidgy, everywhere. This year, with the sun out in the sky, the mud relatively non-existent and sunburns a frequent issue there was a need for another definition. Perhaps we could accurately call Glastonbury 2008 the Year of the Old Man. Which brings on nicely to today's Glastonbury Top Ten man:9. Neil

The Good, The Bad and The Cinematic: Kung Fu Panda

2008-07-05T16:03:00.000-07:00

Before Dreamwork's latest feature film last night was shown the trailer for Wall-E, the new Pixar effort that I wrote up earlier this week as, well, effortless. It was an unfortunate moment for Kung Fu Panda, because even though I was probably the only one in the screen to have seen the film, the trailer alone got more laughs than the first ten minutes of the film we had paid to see.Is Kung Fu

Soundtrack Staples: The Kinks

2008-07-04T05:57:00.000-07:00

Another new feature over here at TFSS, I thought I'd look at those artists who are so common in modern soundtracks that a film is missing something without them. The first band in question have been on pretty much every soundtrack made since they formed, and as result are a perfect band to start with.I'm still not sure at what point The Kinks became vital to my musical life. I remember being

The Good, The Bad and The Cinematic: Hancock

2008-07-04T04:14:00.001-07:00

It's been a good week for new cinema in my books. First, Wall-E turned out to be the most groundbreaking experiment in animation since, perhaps Snow White - or, at the very least since Beauty and the Beast. Now Will Smith stirs up the superhero genre with his best film in over a decade.This summer, as usual, we're being swamped with superhero films. We have the sequels, and plenty of them -

The Good, The Bad and The Cinematic: Wall-E

2008-07-03T15:37:00.000-07:00

I have this thing in life, that sounds as cheesy as hell, and really is. If I have an opportunity that I am unlikely to ever have again, I take it. Unless it is, say, the opportunity to jump off of a bridge. That'd be silly. But it's the same reason I went to Paris last year, saw Springsteen in May, and have gone to Glastonbury the last two years running.So when I was at Glastonbury last

Glastonbury Review: Volume Two

2008-07-02T09:12:00.000-07:00

My Top Ten 'Glastonbury Moments' From Glastonbury 2008. By me.10. Sunday night, about midnight, my mate Rob and I are sitting waiting for other friends in an old cockpit by a bar in Shangri-La. Man in thick-knitted sweater, worn jeans and wellies sits next to me. Looks at me. Raises hand and starts talking to me through tiny wool finger puppet mouse. I find this perfectly normal behaviour.9.

Glastonbury Review: Volume One

2008-07-02T08:21:00.000-07:00

Monday was a little slice of tiresome. I had to make the trek back from Glastonbury to Nottingham, which would be a stressful trip in itself, without considering the 175,000 people making similar plans (though fortunately not all to Nottingham), and the fact that I was on my now annual Glasto come-down. Like a musical cold turkey, if you will.Anyway, after last year's mess of a trip home, the

Ten Artists Not To Miss At Glastonbury: Volumes 5 & 6

2008-06-22T18:42:00.000-07:00

I'm leaving for Glastonbury in a mere 50-odd hours. Just sayin'. Let's continue the Top Ten, shall we?5. St. VincentToday we're keeping a strict Park Stage On Saturday theme, where both artists are performing for my aural pleasure. It should be good, seeing as last year my friend and I ventured to the Park area only once, in order to buy her a limited edition Stella McCartney top. She's worn it

The Good, The Bad and The Cinematic: The Bone Collector

2008-06-21T14:42:00.000-07:00

Actually, this isn't about The Bone Collector at all - though that would have made a suitable enough alternative title for 'Teeth', I think. I tried that joke out with my friends as we left the cinema post-film. There were less than impressed, which fortunately was not similar to the response the film received.You see, for a film that is essentially about a girl with a vagina that bites back,

Ten Artists Not To Miss At Glastonbury: Volumes 3 & 4

2008-06-21T13:57:00.000-07:00

3. GoldfrappThere is an undoubtable prescence of summer in Seventh Tree, the latest from Goldfrapp, and if I were a documentary maker I'd be setting up camp front row of the band's Glastonbury set this year. Simply put, Seventh Tree is the music of Glastonbury, grand, swooping and Romantic with a big 'R'. Alison Goldfrapp is herself renowned for putting on a mesmerising live show, and I doubt

Ten Artists Not To Miss At Glastonbury: Volumes 1 & 2

2008-06-19T14:37:00.000-07:00

In less than seven days I will be on my way to Glastonbury 2008, hopefully having worked out how to fit my new pop-up tent back in its case (I tested out the other day and now I can't put it down). One week from today I'll be strolling around the back streets of the festival looking for whatever Thursday night music I can - probably Make Model at the Queen's Head... Until then, however, I must

Facebook Band Group Analysis: Gym Class Heroes

2008-06-18T15:51:00.000-07:00

New feature time! The aim of Facebook Band Group Analysis is to reinforce my beliefs about my favourite, and least favourite bands by looking at what Facebook groups are available, fan or otherwise. I'm hoping I'll find that most people are sensible, and like the bands I like, and hate the bands I hate. Somehow, I feel it won't work that simply. My first focus group, so to speak, are Gym

On Stars and Sons

2008-06-18T15:21:00.000-07:00

Far be it from me to jump to non-forensic conclusions, but I have a feeling that the above picture, to be found on band Stars and Sons' MySpace, is a fake. I mean, I'm not claiming to be Sherlock, Miss Marple or even Basil the Great Mouse Detective - but a few things stick out to my sleuthing eye. First of all, there is the fact that Bruce Springsteen seems to have lost the cover spot to a new

Sad songs say so much...

2008-06-17T17:20:00.000-07:00

For a long time now I've read the occasional word about the Eels cover of Elvis Presley's 'Can't Help Falling In Love With You'. I've not thought much of it so far, imagining the cover to fall more in line with Eels other covers, such as Get Ur Freak On - a Linkin Park rockiness that worked in that context and not really anywhere else. I never allowed for the possibility it could be any other

The Good, The Bad and The Cinematic: Mongol

2008-06-17T16:51:00.000-07:00

I was round a very good friend's house recently for an evening of generally doing jack-all. We watched something trashy on TV, I'm not sure what, and then realised that the French documentary 'Etre et Avoir' was on the wonderful BBC4. Both of us had heard good things of this documentary, and we settled down to watch it. What we hadn't counted on was my friend's housemate, a certified

A brief look into Amazon.co.uk reviews that could quite possibly have been written by my father.

2008-06-17T08:40:00.000-07:00

My father is, by all accounts, a remarkable man. He is remarkable in his complete and utter inability to correctly remember the choruses to even his most favourite songs. He is remarkable in his ability to cross the line without feeling any need to stop the joke, or the teasing. He is remarkable in the sheer volume of shades of grey to be found in his remarkably short hair. He can, on

The Good, The Bad and The Cinematic: The Happening

2008-06-17T07:56:00.000-07:00

Last Friday a friend and I went to see M. Night Shylamalangadingdong's most recent effort, The Happening. I recommend now, as your friend and lover, that you do not make the same mistake. I won't, in the interest of respecting your right to watch an awful film without having it ruined for you, explain any plot details, but I will say these few things:1) Do not watch this film if you do not want

I wanna hold your hand...

2008-06-16T13:51:00.000-07:00

Last summer I, like many others, fell in love with the sample-heavy 'Can't Stop Movin'' by the then named Sonny Jim. It's just over a year later, and finally he returns with his first album, and an ever-so-slightly shortened name - Sonny J. I had the good fortune to interview the man himself a couple of months back, and he hinted at the single that would follow Enfant Terrible (which he was

Naughtiness doesn't always pay off...

2008-06-16T13:25:00.000-07:00

When I was a kid, I spent pretty much every car journey being indoctrinated into the cult of Billy Joel. I'm proud to say I'm a lifelong member now, and I'm sure, in time, there will be many posts that will provide evidence of this. But back to the story that I hadn't yet begun: One track I particularly loved of Joel's - one that was briefly my favourite song ever for a period of about two

The Crap These Kids Listen To Today...

2008-04-24T10:11:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I think that if I went back to my seven-year-old self in 1995 and played him some of the tracks I listen to these days I wouldn't have believed me. I also probably wouldn't have hung around long enough to listen to the tracks, those being the days of Stranger Danger and all that crap. Whatever happened to always relying on the kindness of strangers?Then I think forward to the summer of

An alternative to loving Brendan Benson...

2008-04-18T09:28:00.000-07:00

I've missed Brendan Benson over the last few years. Every now and again I find an artist I have not come across before, like I did with Benson just prior to the release of his third album in 2004, and no sooner than I find them do they stop making music. It's terribly frustrating, and the only real relief is knowing that it's a rare occurrence. For a few months back in the summer of '04, I

As we jam, the rhythm gets stronger...

2008-04-16T04:33:00.000-07:00

Last night I had, once again, the pleasure of seeing Alphabeat live. We folk up here in Nottingham have now been told regularly by the band about how we are the best audience in the UK. And whilst, normally, it would be hard to be cynical about such things, after last night's performance, and the audience's response, it may well be the truth.The crowd were ecstatic from the first support act -

Back again, naturally

2008-04-15T16:28:00.000-07:00

I'm back again. How lovely of me. Had a little Easter holiday, that in reality consisted of far more work than if I was at university. Oh well. I had plenty of treats awaiting me on my return, including this gem. I'll be posting plenty over the next few days, a little bit on Stars And Sons, reviews of the Sia, Elbow and Alphabeat gigs I've been to in the last week and a half, and reviews of 27

The Good, The Bad and the Cinematic: Juno

2008-02-18T08:35:00.000-08:00

The best thing about Juno is, undoubtably, the fact that it has opened up the world of independent cinema to the masses. Whilst it is techinically an indie film, yes, it has had all the publicity, all the television spots and benefits of mainstream cinema. All the folk who would normally be off watching Definitely, Maybe or Knocked Up have seen these trailers and thought to themselves "Ooh,

The Good, the Bad and the Cinematic: Cloverfield

2008-02-11T15:20:00.000-08:00

It took me long enough to get to Cloverfield. And then I see it twice in 48 hours. Why? Because, frankly, Cloverfield is a terrifically original and surprisingly great film.I know it shouldn't be the case - a hype-led film shot entirely in the style of a home video (albeit one you sure as hell wouldn't show the kids) is doomed almost immediately to fall victim to it's own publicity machine.

Further news of the Fantastic 6!

2008-02-10T15:25:00.000-08:00

Today my favourite new band of 2008 (first reported on back in November by me, just sayin'...) reached Nottingham. That's the lovely, if blurred, city centre that you can see above. The big wheel is only temporary and I'm going on it tomorrow! Believe me, the little-boy-who-never-got-to-go-to-the-fair inside of me is wetting himself with glee. But that's a different, and slightly concerning,

All of ours have blown...

2008-02-05T16:12:00.000-08:00

James Yuill says 'hi'. Either that, or he has some weird muscle thing that won't let him straighten his right arm. Whatever the case, he only has three fingers, and that's just freaky. Let's judge him. BUT. Let's not judge him for the finger thing, or even the arm doodah. Nope. Let's judge him based on his remix of The Answering Machine's track 'Lightbulbs'. I'm judging him nicely, how about you?

Heartbreakers at the Superbowl

2008-02-04T07:53:00.001-08:00

No, I'm not referring to Mr. Petty's friends in the band, but rather those bloody New York Giants. If that score had stayed 14-10, or even if the Pats had scored another 7 or 8, I would have been fine. I would have won back twice what I put in the pot. But no. Bloody Giants had to go and win. Bastards. Still, thanks to the Pats in the first quarter I only lost £2.50, rather than the possible

Brand New Hotness: The Futureheads - The Beginning Of The Twist

2008-02-03T12:04:00.001-08:00

Sunderland's third finest (after Field Music and my mate Mark) are coming back 'atcha again with their third effort. If it all sounds as good as this exciting Kaiser Chiefs/Maximo Park/video-game-soundtrack crossbreed, then I'll be very happy.I half met the bloke in glasses once. He nodded at me.Ohh yeah.mp3: 'The Beginning Of The Twist' by The FutureheadsBuy Futureheads

Brand New Hotness: Guillemots - Kriss Kross

2008-02-03T11:52:00.000-08:00

My favourite British band of 2006 are back, and boy do they sound shiny! I love Guillemots like Kel loves Orange Soda. I love Guillemots like some people love oxygen. They're phenomenal live, phenomenal vocally, and possibly the most grand-sounding thing to happen in music since Muse. New song 'Kriss Kross' from upcoming album 'Red' is, well, phenomenal. It sounds like their first album's

The Good, The Bad and the Cinematic: I Am Legend

2008-02-03T11:03:00.000-08:00

It took me a while to make it to I Am Legend - caught it just a day or so before it slipped quietly out of cinemas here in the UK. I must say, I enjoyed the film immensely, no matter how far I dug myself back into my seat for shocks I knew were coming.It had its downsides, I won't deny that. The CGI effects were reminiscent particularly of The Mummy films, which will be a shame when the new

The Good, The Bad and the Cinematic: The Good Night

2008-01-31T04:03:00.000-08:00

It's rare you'll find a first-time director with a cast as good as this. Martin Freeman, Simon Pegg, Penelope Cruz, Danny DeVito and Gwyneth Paltrow. In fact, I have a strong feeling that it's solely down to the last cast member that the rest are there - she is, after all, the director's sister. It's a shame, really, that the cast are all horrendously bad choices for the roles they play. They

The Good, The Bad and the Cinematic: Sweeney Todd

2008-01-31T03:22:00.000-08:00

It's almost surprising to find that Sweeney Todd is Tim Burton's first feature to receive an 18-rating in the UK. His dark stylings have long scraped by purely because they remain no more than heavy undertones. Frankly speaking, Johnny Depp was so disturbing in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory that I would have given it an 18 rating after two minutes of him being on screen. Perhaps more

Cuban walls and ticking clocks...

2008-01-30T16:09:00.000-08:00

I was shopping for clothes the other day in H&M - this is of no real surprise, approximately 70% of my clothes and 100% of my socks come from this one store - and as usual was enjoying the background music on offer. Often I will find myself the lone appreciator of Zero 7 or even, once, Brendan Benson. This one day I found what was clearly Coldplay's fantastic single 'Clocks', albeit with a

A divine track.

2008-01-29T12:09:00.000-08:00

These last couple of days have been pretty snazzy for me - I've been listening heavily to various dance tracks, reigniting my love for the genre as a whole. All was helped by a fantastic night out at Nottingham's fourth best club, Oceana, which was filled with the crap and the spectacular - I almost roared with joy when Britney's 'Piece Of Me' came on.Anyway, the best track of the last couple of

The Good, The Bad and the Cinematic: No Country For Old Men

2008-01-27T02:44:00.000-08:00

Never has a film struck me on all fronts quite so immediately as No Country For Old Men. From the opening scenes and the fantastic Texan slur of Tommy Lee Jones' monologue until the end credits started to roll there is barely a moment when the intelligent viewer is not in awe at this film, a true benchmark in the quality of cinema.Visually, No Country is strikingly shot, and stunning throughout.

The Good, The Bad and the Cinematic: P.S. I Love You

2008-01-25T08:22:00.000-08:00

Rather than review this in a calm and composed manner, I would rather just list the reasons why this film was so unforgivably awful. I'll limit myself to ten, or we may be here all night.1. There has never been a more unnecessarily schmaltzy film than this. My female friends watching this with me were mostly in agreement that the film wasn't that good. They still cried. Lots. You know why?

The Good, The Bad and the Cinematic: Charlie Wilson's War

2008-01-25T07:52:00.000-08:00

I'm going to be honest here, and it's going to hurt me, or at least any reputation of me that you have built up in your head. I can't stand Julia Roberts. I really, honestly, utterly can't see what everyone sees in her. That smile? It comes straight from the world of Wallace and Gromit. Except, being a non-fictional human, it clearly doesn't, and is therefore creepy. Her acting? It isn't bad,

Bringing Down The Krankenhaus

2008-01-24T04:52:00.001-08:00

After the triumph that was last year's Krankenhaus EP, and the release of new album Do You Like Rock Music? (answer: yes, if it all sounds like this), British Sea Power reached Nottingham in the midst of their January tour, and impressed as I have been of late by the band's soaring music, I found myself in Rescue Rooms on Tuesday night, thoroughly enjoying myself.Why? Because it turns out British

The Good, The Bad, and the Cinematic: Enchanted

2008-01-24T04:01:00.000-08:00

There isn't a sensible person in the world who doesn't enjoy the occasional Disney film. I, myself, am pushing the boundaries of an acceptable fondness for Disney with my quest to own all their animated classics on DVD - 14 so far, and probably 15 by the end of today, should things go my way. Still, the idea of an animated Disney princess being thrown into the real world is one that should

R.I.P. Heath Ledger

2008-01-22T17:23:00.000-08:00

My thoughts are with the friends and family of actor Heath Ledger (left), who was found dead tonight after a suspected overdose. His roles indcluded 'Ennis' in the multi-award-winning Brokeback Mountain, the lead role of William Thatcher in A Knight's Tale and the role of Patrick Verona in 10 Things I Hate About You. He recently finished filming his role as The Joker in new Batman film 'The Dark

The Good, The Bad, and the Cinematic: St. Trinians

2008-01-22T06:17:00.000-08:00

What is perhaps saddest about St. Trinians as a film is that it is defined for me not by its quality, nor by its occasional moments of genuine comedy, and not even by its small but rather choice selection of hot young things. No, St. Trinians will be defined to me solely as 'the last film I watched in the cinema before I got my unlimited pass'. That's sad really, especially for a film aiming to

A (belated) New Year, and a (belated) new start.

2008-01-21T13:46:00.000-08:00

Yeah, so I got bored of lists before I really even managed any. For those of you who care, track of the year was Maximo Park's immense 'Our Velocity' and album of the year was The Hold Steady's delightfully Springsteen-esque 'Boys And Girls In America' with, as it happens, Springsteen's own 'Magic coming second. If you haven't heard the latter yet, track down opener 'Radio Nowhere' and the

Stepping Into Christmas #3

2007-12-10T07:05:00.000-08:00

Allison Crowe is a singer whom I first stumbled across around late 2004, early 2005. It was a time when I was falling in love more and more with Keane and Coldplay, and other piano-based indie. Allison was, and remains, a perfect accent to their music - bold, piano-based music supported by a frankly beautiful voice. Over the past three years she's proven herself again and again, and

Top Twenty Cover Versions: 2007

2007-12-09T14:34:00.000-08:00

It's New Year's Eve, not the 9th, and with my only real offer involving whiling away the night in someone's shed, I am left here watching Jools Holland with my dad and a couple of cats, none of whom really care about the changing of the calendars tonight. Of course, I'm not too fussed either, except for a particular enjoyment in making end of year lists, of which the pick of the crop come

Top Ten Films: 2007

2007-12-06T18:23:00.000-08:00

And so we reach the point of the year at which I sum up 2007's cultural form in numbered lists. Hoorah! As I work slowly through my top 100 tracks of the year, and my top ten album lists, I'll tide you over with a less musically-themed one. This last year has been a sterling one for cinematic bewilderment on my end of things, and though some where let-downs (Saw IV, Spiderman 3) and others

Stepping Into Christmas #2

2007-12-05T15:04:00.000-08:00

I will not be disclosing my own personal beliefs on the matter above at this moment in time. Needless to say, though, that if Santa is a real and personal present-bringer, he is clearly a lovely bloke and deserves all the milk and mince pies left out for him every Christmas Eve. That said, I've seen some press photos and he looks like he could stand to lose a few pounds, so maybe less with the

Stepping Into Christmas #1

2007-12-04T11:15:00.000-08:00

How have I held off so long? How have I a) not written about Sufjan, the most blogged about artist of anyone, ever, already? and b) not posted a Christmas song in the four days since it became Chistmasember? Mostly university-based essays, I'm afraid to say, but that's all behind us - it's Christmas and Santa Sufjan is the best man for the music-based jobs that are sure to pop up everywhere now.

Excuse me forgetting, but these things I do...

2007-12-03T15:29:00.000-08:00

Once in a while I'll have a good day for music. I had one about a month ago, where every new track I downloaded was fantastic, and each flowed so perfectly from one to another that with only minor tweaking I had a lovely new playlist on my hands, that which became my soundtrack to the winter of '07. One of the tracks that became a slow-burner for me, one that started with a 'Huh' in a quietly

Goldfrapp to the left of me, jokers to the right...

2007-12-01T05:36:00.000-08:00

Allison Goldfrapp, that enigmatic sextress of musical bewilderment has done it again, folks! But don't get too excited if you were a hardcore addict to the thrusting electro sounds of the Supernature and Black Cherry albums - she's gone all mellow! If, come February 25th, you're hoping for the same old Goldfrapp I hate to say this but: you're only going to be disappointed.Is this bad news? Heck

How's that for sea power, biatch?

2007-11-28T10:30:00.000-08:00

Just for future reference, a few things I would not like to take on single-handedly in a battle to the death: a honey badger, the T1000, Michael Jackson's groping hand, a racially-incensed woman of any ethnic minority, the British navy. And there, my friends, is the smoothest link ever made. I should be on tv.British Sea Power are a band who have grown on me possibly slower than any other artist

Fascination is the best word for them.

2007-11-26T07:45:00.000-08:00

Alphabeat are gonna be huge. Just you wait, and just you see. This is a band who sound like an orgy between Disney, The Go! Team, The New Pornographers and Abba. This is a band who know what fun means, but only because they defined it in the first place. Hailing from Denmark, Alphabeat just go to prove that if you want great pop music then Scandinavia remains your best bet. I think there's

Giant Drag: little bit awesome.

2007-11-24T07:53:00.001-08:00

Once upon a time, somewhere before I was really sure what I was doing on music blogs, I stumbled upon a small duo going by the name of Giant Drag. They were loved by NME (which was still respectable to me back then) and the female lead singer was renowned for having the dirtiest mouth this side of the Osbourne's estate. They did a fantastic song called 'This Isn't It', and possibly the greatest

Great British Films #1

2007-11-08T12:46:00.000-08:00

It's hard to describe the joy I experienced whilst watching Atonement in the cinema this summer. There was no logical reason for it to be good. It shared a director and star with Pride & Prejudice, arguably the most boring film ever (since Gosford Park, at least, and I don't suppose I should blame them, so much as that Austen chick). Anyway, it turned out that Atonement is a ruddy great film,

Humpday Treats

2007-11-07T09:17:00.000-08:00

I thought I'd drop a few humpday treats for you this week - three covers and an original! Ah. Joy. So first up, a fantastic cover by one Natasha Bedingfield. Bedingfield is very high up in my books as one of the three artists (alongside Stereophonics and Lily Allen) who mark themselves out as fantastic cover artists. Sure, all three artists are responsible for fantastic original music, but

Through sparks and shining dragons...

2007-11-06T17:26:00.000-08:00

I've just spent the last half hour watching the Channel 4 broadcast of Keane's Warchild gig on Sky+. The benefit of my belated watching is I've been able to fastforward through the crap and boring (The Magic Numbers, some other bloke I can't remember) and still watch the jolly awesome (Brendan Benson, Lily Allen, Keane covering Queen & David Bowie). One of the most upsetting moments, though,

Mrs. Oh My God That Britney's Shameless

2007-11-05T08:45:00.000-08:00

I'm on the fence about Britney Spears. There's no denying that at one point she was very hot. But there's also no denying that shaving her head bald did very little favours, either for her appearance, or for the rumours of a declining mental health. Personally, I reckon the press doesn't help at all. I also reckon it's not my place to judge her for all this that's happening in what should be

A nice pat on the bum and a sit down.

2007-11-04T14:30:00.000-08:00

Dean Friedman is a man who once had a small following, and now has an even smaller following, perhaps equal to the size of a poodle. Or another small dog. Of course, this doesn't mean he's crap, it just means he never had the marketing, or the support, or perhaps the need for success that tends to define multi-million selling artists today. You can't tell me Monsieur Timberlake doesn't need

An open letter to Arcade Fire

2007-11-01T11:06:00.000-07:00

Dear Win and friends (for you have many, and I remain unsure of their names even to this day...), Yesterday I spent my hallowe'en in a lovely but cramped house just off of Lenton Boulevard, in Nottingham. You spent your hallowe'en in a far roomier space, just half a mile or so away, in the city's Arena. I hear it wasn't so lovely though. According to the ever-reliable National Music

The people I've met are the wonders of my world.

2007-10-21T15:31:00.000-07:00

I have spent the last week or so addicted to Adele. She's unavoidably talented, and you haven't got much hope of keeping her off your radar for long as it is, so you may as well submit to my shameless promotions now, no?Hometown Glory is incredible, perfect and so many other adjectives. Whilst her accent when she talks slides in naturally with Kate Nash and Lily Allen, Adele's voice is closer

Schemeing Fretwell

2007-10-17T07:24:00.000-07:00

I've been a busy but very lucky boy this last couple of days. On Monday the small student-run music magazine for whom I write gave me an interview with one Ed Harcourt, who in case you weren't already aware is a talented Sussex-born singer-songwriter with six albums and a greatest hits to his name, all since 2000. I'd post you a track or two of his, but we spoke at one point of Radiohead's new

Saturday Sessions: Long you live, and high you fly...

2007-10-13T09:53:00.000-07:00

What better way to spend a Saturday blog than with a Saturday Session from The Shins? The Saturday Sessions is a fantastic compilation from BBC Radio 2 that outshines its more famous counterpart, Live Lounge, by a mile. It's a similar idea - bands pop in to the studio and perform a session featuring a cover. The key is in the bands that are invited to take part. Live Lounge had rubbish Brit

You can keep on singing...

2007-10-11T16:09:00.000-07:00

I'm back, I am. I'm sorry I went AWOL. Summer beckoned, and I went everywhere - Glastonbury, Ireland, a little escape to France. Then I spent eight weeks living back up here in Nottingham without the slightest hint of internet. Actually, I had the slightest hint, but the £3-an-hour internet in the Tourist Information Centre just wasn't enough to keep this going. But back to business.I posted a

A happy fortieth to the Sgt, and his musical men...

2007-06-01T14:13:00.000-07:00

Still regarded by almost everyone remotely sensible as the most influential band ever to exist, The Beatles, in their remaining form at least, will be celebrating a special anniversary today. Well, actually, it's far more likely that Paul and Ringo have let the landmark completely escape them, and are instead just lazing about in their respective gardens on what has turned out to be a rather

Guilty Pleasures #2

2007-05-28T11:44:00.000-07:00

Yes, yes, it is indeed true that Guilty Pleasures #1 took the form of 'Girlfriend' by Miss Avril Lavigne. But oh, do I have a treat for you. There isn't much to add to my last post here, apart from that this remix by Lil Mama is even better than the original. Pant-wettingly good, I swear. Take it, and run!mp3: 'Girlfriend (Lil Mama Remix)' - Avril LavigneBuy LavigneBuy Lil Mama

Old Trilogies Die Hard...

2007-05-25T11:16:00.000-07:00

It has been far, far too long since Die Hard With A Vengeance. So long in fact that I can't even wait til the early July release of Live Free Or Die Hard before posting on just how excited I am. Whilst my sister twitches over every bit of McFly news on release, and my friends drool over gossip surrounding a Spice Girls reunion (despite the fact they never listen to their old stuff anymore), I sit

Inspiration, No?

2007-05-24T15:41:00.000-07:00

Due to the magic of zamzar.com, my new online file converting buddy, I can finally put this blog's namesake up. Zero 7 are, without a doubt, the best ambient dance act ever to come out of anywhere. Massive Attack would give every single one of their limbs to be as consistantly beautiful and mesmerising as Zero 7. The band's first two albums featured vocalists such as Tina Dico, Sophie Barker and

Feeling Warm And Bright

2007-05-24T06:06:00.000-07:00

Yesterday it suddenly decided to become hot. I don't know what 'it' is particularly, but I know it decided to become hot. I'm not a fan of heat, being heavy-set and heavily affected by it - but I'm glad to see it back. It seems about right now I'm finishing my first year at university to be outside in the evenings, dancing, so to speak, in the moonlight. That said, at the moment the moonlight

Arthur Lee's Good-Time Sixties Pop

2007-05-23T08:17:00.000-07:00

I love me a bit of Sixties summer pop, and Love, the long-forgotten band of Arthur Lee, will fill that slot nicely, regardless of whether or not they'd like being called pop. They are. I've got to admit though, like a lot of my musical discoveries of the last few years, my love for, um, Love stemmed from their featuring on a soundtrack. This time round it was the soundtrack to 2001 comedy, and