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Day: 16 February 2016

Q&A: Rødhåd

Written by Matthew Staite on . Posted in Music.

Where is your favourite venue to DJ? and why?
That’s a hard question. Of course Berghain is great, but so are similar venues like Village Underground in London or Concrete in Paris. But honestly, I also like smaller clubs, especially some in Germany like Distillery in Leipzig, Lehmann Club in Stuttgart, Rakete in Nürnberg, or Arenaclub in Berlin. For me the sound has to be good, and I need to feel the passion of the crowd.

Can you put the Berlin club scene into words for us?
It feels like its getting bigger and bigger, and more international every year. Somehow everyone is wearing black these days!

What is your favourite record?
At the moment, I am a big fan of Drumcell, Dytopian’s latest release!

Do you think people enjoy your music more if they’re on drugs?
I hope not! My goal is always to bring people in contact with electronic music just through the records I play and my mixing skills, so no drugs are needed if I do it right !

Do you think Berlin is the world centre of techno?
I have seen soo [sic] many cities last year, so I can tell you that there are more hot spots for techno music at the moment apart from Berlin, which is a good thing!

Do you prefer dark electronic music or uplifting house music?
It depends on my mood, and the crowd. But these days it definitely seems to be dark techno.

Which other current DJs do you admire the most?
I like a lot of artists at the moment. Musicians like Ben Frost or Porter Ricks, Radiohead, but also heroes like Laurent Garnier or Ben Klock or Antigone. There are so many good artists, I could talk about them for hours!

Where did your dub influences come from?
From my passion to play slow music with a lot of bass!

__

Read our review of Awakenings Manchester here.

Live: Awakenings

Written by Tai Kolade on . Posted in Music.

Victoria Warehouse

6 February 2016

8/10

An army of tectonic techno titans shook the foundations of Victoria Warehouse. Their inaugural show in Manchester, and first in England since 2014, Awakenings’ return was eagerly anticipated. While it had cost a hefty £40 for a ticket, the likes of Rødhåd, Chris Liebing, Rebekah and Dave Clarke on the line up meant that you got a lot of bang for the buck!

While I was in the taxi, I had gotten anxious about my long-awaited return to Victoria Warehouse. The epic venue had not held my dancing feet since the days of it playing host to The Warehouse Project; I couldn’t help but feel apprehensive, with haunting memories of being lost for hours amongst the hordes of people who moved en masse within its maze-like system. Awakenings’ efficiency with the space available (4 rooms instead of three that I was used to there being) mitigated this. It allowed for the large number of revellers without having to brush shoulders with an overly exuberant, perspiring man person.

Room V, the main room in Victoria Warehouse, showcased heavier techno music. Rødhåd was second on the bill. As calm and as cool as ever, peering out under his Dell boy-esqe flat cap, he sent the crowd into hysteria with his dark, thumping style which set the pace for the night. His successor to the decks, Dave Clarke, set higher beats per minute, dropping the eerie and iconic ‘I Wonna Go Bang’. Speedy J closed Room V in a flurry of dry ice and pyrotechnics which consistently received a clamour of applause from the hedonists in attendance. For the majority of the night, I employed a routine of starting at Room V, moving to Room W, up the stairs to Room X, scurrying along to Room Y, resting and recouping outside, then diving back in and repeating. The efficiency of this system allowed me to catch a reverberating Matador live set in Room W, and the ambient Monkey Safari in Room X. Meanwhile in Room Y, amongst the minimal lighting and randomly placed pillars, Clouds demonstrated the more abrasive side of techno, highlighted by their ‘Speak To Me’—causing me to shriek in excitement.

The night as a whole had that very Dutch festival feel to it; tokens being exchanged for drinks, well-mannered people, and an overall smoothness to the rave. Not a bad word was spoken all night, which flew by in a flurry of shapes, sounds, and superstar DJs. The night was a melting pot of people with all ages and ethnicities—demonstrated by the numerous flags flying about—bopping to a collective beat. It was simple to get in, with approachable staff and clear signs chaperoning you around the venue. It all came together smoothly, and this will hopefully usher in a new resident to Manchester’s iconic music scene.

 

Read our interview with Rødhåd here.

MIFTAs 2016: An Evening with the Voices in Annie’s Head preview

Written by Elise Gallagher on . Posted in Theatre.

‘An Evening with the Voices in Annie’s Head’?

That doesn’t even sound like a play.

It sounds like a TV show!

Maybe it is a TV show?

Maybe the voices in Annie’s head have taken the form of TV presenters?

Well that sounds stupid.

Probably stupid.

It is stupid.

Do you think they’re nice to her?

To Annie?

God I hope not, Annie sounds dull.

Maybe it works because of how talented the actors are?

I’ve heard they are really, really talented actors.

What is this play even about?

Is this supposed to be the synopsis for the play?

Have they actually just written this list of questions instead of bothering to write an actual synopsis?

Is that really pretentious or really lazy?

Really both?

There’s definitely no reason to go and watch this play.

I mean, it’s on the 1st, 2nd, 3rd of March.

You are free at least one of those days.

And it’s at the Council Chambers, that is very close.

And you could take in a pint!

£5. Not too expensive for an evening out.
I think you should go!
I think you should go.
I already said that.
Sorry.
Shut up.

Album: DIIV – Is The Is Are

Written by Cassie Hyde on . Posted in Music.

Released 5th February 2016 via Captured Records

7/10

As a band that produces such lush, dreamlike, shoegaze music, it seems almost darkly funny how much turmoil DIIV have been through. In between Is the Is Are and their debut, primary member Zachary Cole Smith went into rehab for heroin addiction and drummer Colby Hewitt left for, supposedly, similar reasons. Such circumstances profoundly affected this album, giving the songs a grey and gloomy quality. This can be heard, in particular, on songs such as ‘Dopamine’, written shortly after Smith left rehab.

Yet although a key theme, Is the Is Are is not completely melancholic. Quite often, Smith attempted to stare down his own demons through his music. Highlights include songs ‘Out Of Mind’ and ‘Dust’, which combine his addiction with bright guitar work to create an overpowering, bittersweet tone.  Another poignant moment is a cameo appearance from Sky Ferreria, Smith’s girlfriend, singing in a style that would not be out of place on a Kim Gordon-fronted Sonic Youth song. With breathy lyrics such as “A made up bed that waits in heaven”, the threat of death is something that still looms large over the album.

However, if Is the Is Are has any major problems, it has to be its length. With a total running time of 64 minutes and 17 tracks, the album can feel exhausting. This is not to say that the songs themselves are bad, but it’s begs the question—are they good enough to justify this length? Not really. Although the songs on the album are indeed very good, they are not enough to surmount the cumbersome length of this album. The difference between DIIV’s Is the Is Are and a similar album, say The War on Drugs’ Lost In The Dream, is that the latter sounds like the best Bob Dylan album that Dylan never made. It makes you wonder how much better Is the Is Are would be if it was 40 minutes long—going straight in and straight out again. If that were true, this album would have a good chance of being one of the best albums of 2016. As it is, that extra 25 minutes lets this down, making you wonder what could have been.

The Post-Uni Fear

Written by Alice Williams on . Posted in Lifestyle.

When entering into the home stretch of university, it’s most likely that you will be entered into one of two camps. You either know exactly what you want to do, or are currently suffering from something that can be easily categorised as THE FEAR.

If you’re of the former camp, you probably went for a run before your breakfast of steel-cut oats with almond milk and placenta, and have all your lecture notes colour coded. Or you might just be a medic, in which case, I don’t know what’s worse.

For us lesser mortals (Read: Humanities students), an existential crisis invades our every social event. Nights out, house parties, trips to the pub, and even Dominos in front of the T.V. are not safe from the dark conversations about what the hell we’re supposed to do after we leave the safety of a university degree.

While it’s definitely something to care about and give thought to, people often freak out much more than they need to.

The first thing to consider is where you want to remain living. Although seen as depressing to some, sometimes moving back home and living with your parents whilst making money is the best option in the long run. If you are originally from a big city such as London then it will be much easier to find a graduate job as well.

If you want to stay in Manchester then you need to work out where and who you might live with and how you can support yourself whilst living here. There’s nothing wrong with taking a year out and earning some money doing some bar work if you want to have some more time to think about what you want to do. Not everyone needs to go straight from their degree to a high-flying, ideal job. As long as you have a vision of your wider plan and where exactly you want to be going then you’ll be less likely to be stuck working in Sainsbury’s for longer than you would like.

If you have the funds and the time to be able to do something else, then an internship is ideal for expanding your CV. Sometimes you can be paid for these, but for the majority you may have to work for free. For this reason, choose one carefully to apply for that will really help you towards doing what you eventually want. You may have a somewhat exhausting year, but it will definitely be worth it.

Maybe you even know exactly what you want to do and you can start immediately applying for jobs. If that is the case then make sure you have a perfectly written CV and are prepared for an interview situation.

Above all, really don’t panic! You are young, and don’t need to be forcing yourself into the first 9 to 5 job that comes along. Think things over carefully and try to be excited, rather than scared!

The Factory and The Ghost Ranch

Written by Ashley McGovern on . Posted in Arts.

Designing the Walking Liberty Half Dollar, valorizing Union soldiers in bronze and chiselling Abraham Lincoln’s beard, brow and crotch; in other words, minting the US economy and styling Presidential power were just some of the workaday duties of Adolph A. Weinman’s studio on West 21st Street, New York.

A minor architectural sculptor, Weinman’s papers, including a photograph of him halfway up a wooden ladder, measuring a polished version of one of his enthroned Lincolns destined for a public square in Kentucky ca. 1906, are held in the Smithsonian’s Archives of American Art.

Their yellowing trove of commission receipts, private letters, sketchbooks and photographs of bygone American artists was published in book form in 2006, Artists in Their Studios. Full of the forgotten items of practising artists, mostly of jobbing society portraitists, it gives a glimpse of the sacred workspaces that we will never see again. Like the teeth of unrecognisable bodies, we need the exact addresses on New York’s grid to identify the location.

Other studios resist the condition of being mere property, and are anything but lost in the depths of art history. Some studios achieve such renown that they can erase the formality of the generic studious term and create their own identity. Think of Warhol’s Silver Factory, O’Keefe’s Ghost Ranch, Pollock’s Long Island barn, Raphael’s synagogue (a name given to his crowded workshop by rival Sebastiano del Piombo).

The aura of creative space continues to the present day, seen most recently by the recreation of Joan Miro’s Mallorca studio in Duke Street London. You can’t transplant the Mediterranean light, or the mummified cat he hung on his wall, but our fascination is still peaked and we want to see the copied set-up of unfinished works and pots of dry brushes.

Although creatively dormant, the re-made studios give a chance to judge the temperament, or at least the tidiness, of the artist. Francis Bacon’s Rees Mews studio, bought and recreated by Dublin City Gallery in 1998, is a squalid hovel and unmistakeably the room of a messy masochist; someone who wallows in the chaos of slashed canvases and sallow walls and tries to put this atmosphere into his work.

Between 1921 and 1936, 26 Rue du Depart was Piet Mondrian’s geometric chamber, and its clean freak arrangement of furniture and rigid paintings, life and art, is an anathema to Bacon’s den. The ultimate De Stijl living room was treated like an archaeological dig by Tate Liverpool last year when they rebuilt the entire room based on black and white photographs. His canvases appear above the door frame, as part of the partition wall, they are pinned where a mirror should be; they are the foundation stones of the room.

Mondrian’s chapel to Neo-Plasticism is like the stage set of a surreal play. Similarly, the photograph of Weinman’s factory of Americana on 21st West Street is inherently theatrical, edging towards the surreal. Three Abe Lincolns sit frozen in the one room.

In fact, when museums recreate the workstations of the dead they are following a dramatic tradition. After Magritte by Tom Stoppard is an absurdist pastiche of a made-up Magritte painting (if anything, it’s close in style to The Menaced Assassin (1927)) where the characters try to piece together the crime scene of a non-existent crime. The short play finishes and ends with the characters posed like a tableaux.

Charles L. Mee’s play bobrauschenbergamerica (2001) is a one-act ‘combine’ of vignettes inspired by the subject matter of Robert Rauschenberg’s works. It’s a medley of kitschy scenarios. We listen to the sex fantasies of a trucker and Rauschenberg’s mother discoursing sentimentally about her boy’s childhood. At one point, the characters group together to act out a conspiracy movie about blowing up a train, reading the plot and dialogue from their unique screenplay, two license plates.

Mee’s collection of scenes is supposed to be a Pygmalion-like animation of Rauschenberg’s paintings and it’s a more daring experiment that any museum can afford to offer. The plays reinforce the chaos of artistic creation and reminds us why we love to see inside the great studios. Even in the placid, cleaner versions offered to us by galleries, the studio offers the biography of both artist and creation.

Live: Flesh & together PANGEA

Written by Jay Plent on . Posted in Music.

Soup Kitchen

Monday 8th February 2016

I am rarely bored at a gig. I find live performance extremely stimulating, but usually even if the music isn’t great, I can count on some good showmanship or a zany frontman to keep me entertained throughout, and in a venue as rich in character and atmosphere as Soup Kitchen is, how could I not enjoy myself?

And yet, there are bands like Flesh and together PANGEA, who, incredibly, managed to drain any and all of the excitement or interest out of me in one of the most boring gigs I have ever attended.

Flesh, a quartet from Sheffield performing songs that sound like Oasis covers in the style of Nirvana, were not only one of the worst-dressed bands I have ever seen, but also one of the most unimaginative, performing song after song of dull, uninspired moaning garbage. Clearly they’re under the delusion that if they soak every single instrument in chorus and reverb that that will give their songs some much needed character, but even then, the songs themselves would still be just as terrible. It honestly amazes me in this day and age that a band can still be this painfully derivative of their influences, so utterly devoid of their own ideas.

And then there was together PANGEA, who, though infinitesimally more entertaining (and certainly backed by more fans), were just as musically uninspired, with songs as unmemorable as they were indistinct from each other. Also, they weren’t very professional; there were large swathes of unexplained, unfilled silences between certain songs, and clichéd audience interaction. Honestly, I’ve seen cover bands in dodgy Essex pubs with more engagement than these guys.

Unfortunately, this was a decidedly unimpressive affair, and just goes to show how far a lack of imagination won’t go.

Venue Review: Soup Kitchen is cooking up something good

Written by Adam Rogers on . Posted in Music.

Tucked down the side streets and alleyways, to one side of Manchester’s city centre, breathes a young and intimate venue that has come to be a pivotal part of Mancunian culture. Just off Stevenson Square in the Northern Quarter, Soup Kitchen operates as a trio of bar, canteen and club, and in just six years of its existence, has attained two awards and had some of the finest names in music walk through its doors.

By day, Soup Kitchen operates as a watering hole and eatery, offering up an ever-rotating choice of soup and mains, and for those planning to dine in the area, the jerk chicken is a must. As for drinks, the venue offers a wide range of cask ales and draught beers served alongside a healthy dose of atmosphere.

There are few other places in Manchester that offer the same rush at the beginning of a night as walking down the dank staircase to the club in the basement. The room itself is nothing more than a concrete cuboid with chipped walls, a bar at the back and a pair of speaker stacks at the front. Fans of live music in intimate spaces will be pleased to find that even in the toilets, you’re never more than ten metres away from your favourite artists.

However, the enclosed, subterranean space and humble size of Soup Kitchen seems only to work to its advantage. Huge names in electronic music have stepped up to the decks, including members from Hessle Audio, Project Mooncircle and Apollo Records, and due to the limited size of the venue, every show is packed with a great atmosphere. As any fan of bass-orientated music will tell you, there’s something to be said for low ceilings and high decibel levels.

Soup Kitchen are no strangers to a diverse range of music either. The venue hosts the monthly club night You Dig?, which has fast become known as Manchester’s premium funk and soul night, as well as previously hosting shows such as the recent metallic hardcore gig with northerners Employed To Serve and Rolo Tomassi. The venue also frequently hosts popular indie club night Remake Remodel.

Despite not having a rich history akin to that of Manchester’s other popular venues, Soup Kitchen has made a name for itself as one of the most eclectic places to spend an evening, proving that sticking to the basics and breaking down the walls between artist and fan is a sure way to make a name for yourself in a crowded market.

UoM trounce MMU in American football varsity

Written by Alex Whitcomb on . Posted in Sport.

Super Bowl Sunday saw the University of Manchester’s (UoM) own American Football team record a resounding victory in their BUCS match against Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU). Going into the game, UoM were the firm favourites, having a perfect league championship so far with five wins from five. By contrast MMU were at the bottom of the league with only one win all season. UoM’s Tyrants dominated in defence, and made sure from the start that the MMU Eagles couldn’t get a foothold in the game.

The first quarter started poorly for MMU Eagles, with a botched kick-off giving Tyrants a good position from which to attack. Tyrants capitalised on this with a textbook touchdown, after a series of effectively played downs. This was shortly followed by Tyrants’ number 23 Lawrence Sarpong scoring an excellently executed 50 yard touchdown. Tyrants almost made it three from the quarter, but the direct pass to the end-zone was dropped by the attacking player.

The second quarter went much the same as the first, with the Tyrants scoring two more converted touchdowns. The dropped catch in the first quarter was expertly made up by a clean catch in the endzone by Manchester. This meant that Tyrants went into the dressing room with a 28-0 lead at half time.

The resumption of the match saw MMU’s Eagles have the lion’s share of possession but mostly within their own half, and failed to make any inroads into the strong UoM Tyrants defence. The quarter ended without either side scoring any points, but the retention of their 28-point lead. Tyrants went back on the offensive in the final quarter and were rewarded with another touchdown, taking the lead, and the final score, to 35-0.

Manchester Tyrants will be able to take in a lot of confidence from this game, especially from the perspective of the defence. MMU Eagles managed to have possession of the ball in Tyrants’ half for a grand total of one solitary down during the entire match, not even coming.

Close to getting a touchdown. Luke Hart, one of Manchester’s four captains, said after the game that the quality has been evident this year, that: “we’re lucky to have rich experience at defensive line and in the defensive backs.”

Hart was also keen to stress how well the squad are working together and that the offence and defence are part of a wider-planned programme. “The patience of the coaches teamed with some intense hard work from the committee has ensured that the Tyrants is about a franchise rather than individuals.” Adding that: “It’s a fantastic team feeling and that stems from an ethos that the coaches have created”.

The Tyrants will be looking towards a promotion now, with a healthy four-point buffer over nearest placed team, York; with two matches left in the regular season. Their remaining fixtures are away to Leeds and York and they are hoping to go into the promotion playoffs as their league’s invincibles.

BUCS Northern 2A (as of 12/02/2016)

Manchester      12pts

York                    8pts

Bradford            4pts

Leeds                  2pts

MMU                  2pts

The English ODI Revolution

Written by Toby Webb on . Posted in Sport.

It is coming up to a year since the 2015 Cricket World Cup. Anyone familiar with cricket will remember it as one of the darkest days of English cricket—comparable even with the 5-0 drubbing the Test team took a year before in the Ashes. Played in Australia and New Zealand last spring, the 2015 WC was a disastrous affair for England. It was the first time they had failed to qualify to the knockout stages in the history of the tournament. After being demolished by Pakistan, Australia and Sri Lanka, England needed to beat Bangladesh to qualify. On paper, this should not have been a difficult task. Yet again England were embarrassed, succumbing to a 4th defeat that ultimately summed up their tournament.

Yet, over the course of just under a year, the fortunes of the ODI team have changed massively. At the time of writing, England are embroiled in a One Day series in South Africa. They led the series 2-1 with two matches left, playing cricket of an unparalleled quality when compared to the World Cup. So, what has changed in the space of 11 months?

As expected, following the calamitous WC alterations made in the coaching department, Trevor Bayliss replaced Peter Moores as head coach, while Paul Farbrace was retained as assistant coach. Bayliss and Farbrace had previously worked as a coaching team with Sri Lanka; this familiarity, as well as a similarity in ideals, has reflected in the improved performance of the team. Bayliss and Farbrace offered a different outlook to the old regime. Where previously the emphasis had been on statistics and stringent analysis, they put forward a more relaxed, and uncluttered strategy. Each player is given licence to play their own game, whether that is fast and dynamic or more methodical. In the context of the ODI team, the emphasis is on dynamism and high-scoring; giving the players greater freedom to play how they want has been hugely beneficial to team performance.

A new team ethos required an overhaul of personnel. This was initially implemented by Farbrace, acting as interim coach during the ODI series with New Zealand last June. Three big names of English cricket—Bell, Broad and Anderson—were relieved of One Day duties, and were replaced with younger, and more exciting players such as Jason Roy and Ben Stokes. The batting lineup was revamped. Explosive openers Roy and Alex Hales were chosen for their attacking mindset; their ability to immediately put England on the front foot in an innings. A middle order boasting Joe Root, Eoin Morgan, Stokes and Jos Buttler was intended to complement the openers with similarly explosive players. The template set by Farbrace for the ODI batting lineup has been maintained by Bayliss as head coach: it is the modern day formula. New Zealand were pioneers of this formula during the fateful 2015 World Cup; they finished 2nd in the tournament. Headed by players such as Brendon McCullum and Kane Williamson, the New Zealand team discarded all notions of conservative, accumulative play, asserting a new brand of high-octane, big-hitting cricket. While it sounds relatively simple, the way in which they executed this style within the tournament situation was remarkable. And England were right to attempt to emulate it.

Since Farbrace and Bayliss took over, England’s ODI performances have markedly improved. In June 2015, they secured a 3-2 series win over New Zealand, posting 3 scores of over 350+ in the process. England had scored 350+ only twice ever before this. The trend continued into the ODI series with Australia (the reigning WC champions) at the end of the summer. Despite losing the series 3-2, England continued to play their new brand of cricket, contesting a series they would previously have been steamrolled in. Following this, in November 2015 they played an ODI series with Pakistan in the UAE, recording a 3-1 victory overall, thus continuing on the team improvement. Finally, again at the time of writing, England are playing a series in South Africa, 2-1 up with 2 matches to play. An ODI series win would cap off a memorable tour (England have already secured a Test series victory there). However, even if they lose the series, the ODI team have continued their upward trajectory which is most pleasing.

Following the embarrassing defeats at the 2015 WC, the England ODI team is finally now something to be proud of. They are an exciting team that people should look forward to watching. While the players should be credited, it is the coaches that deserve the highest praise. They have revolutionised the English cricketing philosophy, while at the same time achieving results. The future is undoubtedly bright.

The University of Manchester’s Ultimate Frisbee Club

Written by Oliver Gray on . Posted in Sport.

The performance of Halcyon over the weekend of the 6/7th February lived up to the successful history of the University of Manchester Ultimate Frisbee club. The University Indoor National Championship is an elite tournament between the top 20 most athletic and skilful university teams in the country. After an impressive win at university north-west regionals in November, Halcyon were expected to finish in a strong position at nationals.

Pool Stage

Comfortable wins over lower seeded teams, Staffordshire University (10-6) and the University of York (10-4) gave the team the opportunity to gain confidence and to settle nerves for those at nationals for the first time. The University of Dundee proved a greater challenge for the team; equal scoring was maintained for the majority of the game. Importantly, Dundee were unable to produce many turnovers on the Halcyon offence. Eventually, the dogged defence of the entire squad contributed to turnovers that were converted by efficient offence. Halcyon eventually won the game 7-5 with composed attacking.

The University of Bath was the final group game and proved to be a turning point for the weekend. After making a very strong start to the game and moving to 5-1, a small amount of complacency allowed Bath to win the next 6 points. At 6-5, with Bath needing only 1 more point to win, Halcyon displayed commendable grit to level the game 6-6 and produce universe point (next point wins). Bath had the first opportunity to score and Halcyon had to force a turnover of possession before having a chance on offence. A well-timed, layout block from Oliver Gray did just enough to produce a turnover of possession and gift Halcyon a chance to top the pool. After some incredibly nervous offence, Halcyon scored to win the game 7-6.

Quarter-final

After a wakeup call by the University of Bath, the team produced a dominant performance to beat University College London and progress, with 3rd seed intact, into the quarterfinals. After rest and recuperation of Saturday night, the Sunday morning quarterfinal versus the University of Strathclyde was a test of who could start the better team. Halcyon offence stuttered into life and despite the impressive layout block of Evan Smith, Strathclyde took a lead that was maintained for the majority of the game. With the prospect of being knocked out of medal contention at 6-4 down very much eminent, Halcyon held their nerve to attain 6-5. In front of a loud, patriotic Scottish crowd, Strathclyde only had to convert one of their final next two chances to win the game. Nerves and some great pressure defence from both teams produced multiple turn-overs and after a display of true grit and skill, Naoki Gotoh displayed a cool head under pressure to convert and produce the second universe point of the tournament at 6-6. For the second time, a block was required and another layout block from Oliver Gray allowed for a short pass to Pepe Espinosa to win and progress to the semi-final. The Scottish crowd became noticeably quieter while Manchester celebrated.

Semi-final

Halcyon’s path to the national final was yet again challenged by Scottish dreams in the semi-final. The University of St Andrews had put together a strong display throughout the tournament. Halcyon, fresh from the tumultuous experience of their quarter-final, produced an outstanding display of shutdown defence and ruthlessly efficient offence from the entire squad to move into an early lead that was maintained until the end of the game. The dominance of the performance was exemplified by a huge reception in double coverage by Pepe Espinosa to win the game 7-5.

Final

After a long break, the team prepared well for the final. The University of Birmingham had experienced a far less dramatic route to the final and, being the only team to have beaten Halcyon indoors in three years, were the favourites. High class, clinical offence epitomised the entirety of the game and both defences struggled to produce turnovers. In particular, Steve Dixon dominated the statistics and united the offence. Unfortunately, on the occasions where Halcyon could produce a turnover, offensive inexperience of the defensive players in high pressure situations meant the team couldn’t convert the turnovers into points. Eventually, Birmingham’s defensive pressure told and a break in the offensive exchange meant that they took a one point lead to 7-6. Halcyon were able to maintain composure on offence and a huge layout score by Bart Garcia took the game to 7-7; however, Birmingham’s offense scored the subsequent third universe point of the tournament, despite enormous defensive pressure from Manchester’s Khoo Soo Thong, to win the game and the national title 8-7.

After a successful campaign, Mancunian heads now turn to the outdoor season, with the fantastic support of new sponsor, Wesser. After winning a silver medal indoors and bronze medal at last year’s outdoor national tournament, Halcyon will once again be one of the favourites to become national champions. The question remains as to whether ornot the dominance of the University of Birmingham can be broken. Again, watch this space, Halcyon will be back in April!

 

Have we reached peak ‘stuff’?

Written by Tristan Parsons on . Posted in Opinion.

Whilst the global consumption of resources continues to increase, we in the UK have reached ‘peak stuff’, say Ikea. The businesses of the world have milked our desire for the material dry. The immunity to advertisement continues too. Modern-late capitalism has been fantastic at providing the developed world with disposable items of instant gratification or utility. But now, some are suggesting that one of its many limitations is its failure to move on from that material gold rush.

The expanded version of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs is a good place to start. The bottom two rungs have been fulfilled by our economic system to varying degrees. The first, ‘physiological’, includes breathing, water, food, sex, sleep, homeostasis, and excretion. All of those have been incorporated into the economic system of demand and supply, to varying extents. Some, such as sleep, are subtler or—the ‘bed industry’ and sleeping pills might be examples of profitmaking for sleep. Once a society has created adequate conditions for survival for the majority, it moves on to the second rung: security of body, morality, employment, resources, health, property, and the family. Property, employment, and family are perhaps the strongest driving forces for individuals and couples in developed economies.

However, there are some gaps when we come to the third rung. Friendships do not come with success. One may not aspire to anything out of the ordinary but yet still have a large network of friends to share good times with. In contrast, success may drive away true friendships and instead create a network of colleagues—people like oneself. Family and sexual intimacy, too, show the same patterns. But how many businesses offer services that benefit a society or an individual in these parameters? As it turns out, counselling and ‘talking therapies’ are on the rise: 1 in 5 Britons has utilised these services for a variety of reasons.

Up until the third rung of the pyramid, there is a consistent capitalisation of human needs by businesses. What some are now suggesting is that the economy as a whole needs to move further in this direction. These services might include mental healthcare, counselling, or education about how to care for one’s mind in an increasingly hectic and urban modern human condition in much of the developing world. At this point I would like to recognise that this issue is one almost entirely focused on the developed world. Some may interpret this, too, as an issue of the urban middle classes of these societies.

With regards to why business has not already done this on a large scale, it may be stigmas around issues such as emotion and mental health. Long-standing notions of masculinity, or the new ‘masculine’ femininity that is the result of the progress of females into the previously male-dominated workplace contribute to this. It may be the lack of incentive to join the market. Many see the NHS and the state as the rightful provider of these services, and indeed it does saturate the lower and middle end of the market somewhat. It might be the alleged ‘British’ stiff upper lip and the widespread resistance to vile, ‘American-style’ self-improvement.

The state provision of these services has helped accessibility for those without higher levels of disposable income, and should be extended if possible to prevent this issue becoming locked up in the previously mentioned urban middle classes. However, whilst it may be to the detriment of social equality, there is money to be made in the private sector here. One of the assumptions is that people won’t be able to afford these services if they were to be provided by business. However, what some suggest is that at out stage of ‘peak stuff’, we in the developed world will reduce the volume of our material consumption, and further shift spending towards these new kinds of services.

In Paris in 2006, academics came together to form around an idea that had been itching to burst into popular discussion: degrowth. The case made was that planned and steady reductions in GDP might be useful for ecological and climatic sustainability, and that the new economics would have to exist along side greater socio-political engagement. There is a mass of opinion that denounces the idea as a destruction of the privileges of our modern society for the goal of a Marxist utopia. But factor in the steep rise in the environmental movement in recent years, the new increasing focus on grassroots and local politics, and now the expected decline in material consumption, and perhaps the idea starts to seem feasible for some point in the future.

So here is a new challenge for out capitalist system: Not just in reform for the ideals of equality, financial sensibility, and environmental sustainability, but to provide the services that will make us happier without the assistance of the material. If we look towards the possibility of a future that begins to incorporate the ideas of degrowth, it may be that these services have a crucial role to play in the reaching out for improved happiness and socio-political engagement. Government, businesses, and individuals need to learn (and slowly they are) to be happy without the head-spinning consumerism of what is but a blip in human history. This is not ‘going back in time’ to some kind of dark age—if anything, this is learning to be more sophisticated humans.

Corbyn attacks £9k fee system: England should be “utterly ashamed”

Written by Georgie Hines on . Posted in News.

Speaking on education for the first time since his election as Labour Party Leader, Jeremy Corbyn has spoken out against the government’s policies, arguing that England now has the highest fees for public universities in the world—beating the US.

In his speech, at a University and College Union event, Education From Cradle to Grave, Corbyn highlighted the dramatic decline in part-time students since the increase in fees. Numbers are down from 824,000 in 2011 to 570,000 today.

He said: “A quarter of a million people a year have been put off [by] part-time education by the hikes in fees—a loss to the institutions, a loss to the education of the whole country and obviously catastrophic for those quarter of a million individuals who wanted to develop themselves… [who] cannot now do it because of these costs,” according to Times Higher Education.

They are “now being betrayed by a government which changes the terms of the loans after they have been taken out. How can any prospective student trust an education system which treats them like this?”

In his campaign for the Labour party leadership, Jeremy Corbyn was highly vocal of his opposition to the £9,000 a year tuition fee system. During his campaign, Corbyn proposed a new scheme which involved scrapping fees and reintroducing maintenance grants—a move thought to cost £10 billion a year.

Gordon Marsden, Shadow Higher Education, Further Education and Skills Minister, has said that the Labour policy on education has not been decided on just yet, noting that it is still a “subject for discussion”.

Speaking on the matter, Marsden stressed that rather than entering “hypothetical, theological discussions” about education, the party are not rushing. He said: “The priorities that we set must reflect the needs of the 21st century and the breadth of the subjects we need to address.”

Whilst still relatively unknown, the policy is thought to be centred on the re-establishment of maintenance grants. Marsden has said the recent scrapping of grants was “rushed, untested and potentially very socially damaging.”

During his talk, Corbyn also stressed how £9,000 fees has meant that there is a greater divide in the classes—“education is of such huge economic and social importance it must be open to all regardless of background or wealth.”

He argued that “the cost of higher education is extortionate and prohibitive”, leading to many economically disadvantaged students taking up part-time work while studying—something which could affect the quality of their education.

“Having to juggle two or three jobs and studying in order to make something of their lives—from which we all benefit. Surely we can do better than that and we must change to do better than that.”

He added: “The government claimed that students from disadvantaged backgrounds would not be put off by the fees of 2012 because of maintenance grants.

“The government has now scrapped those much needed maintenance grants, which means that thousands of students every year will be worse off.”

He added: “David Cameron has called on universities to take more black and minority ethnic students. I welcome that and I agree with that”, and now “we call on the government to recognise that, however, that these students are being put off disproportionately by the cuts to funding and abolition of maintenance grants.”

More controversy surrounding the topic of education occurred when the current Conservative government unveiled their plan to freeze the repayment threshold, set at £21,000, for the next five years. According to some estimates, this means that graduates will pay an extra £2,800 over 30 years.

Previously, the government had said they “will increase the repayment threshold to £21,000, and will thereafter increase it periodically to reflect earnings.”

GuildHE has said that the change “will undermine the trust and confidence in the stability of the loan system for future students… and it will be more difficult to make an informed decision to go to university.”

“Students will end up repaying more and it will negatively impact the income of the lowest and middle earner graduates, women” as well as groups such as black and minority ethnic students—”who tend to have lower rates of professional employment six months after graduation.”

More unsettling for students, the Business Secretary, Sajid Javid, has refused to rule out any further changes to student loan repayment terms.

Corbyn stated that these cuts to education could be “doing permanent damage to the whole of our society and to the ability to develop a much stronger manufacturing-based innovative economy in the future.”

He said that education is, “yes, about training, and yes, about the ability to work, but it’s also about the value of having an educated society where everybody’s imagination is opened up,”

“We have the highest tuition fees in the industrialised world—it’s not something we should be proud of, it’s something we should be utterly ashamed of as a country.”

Upcoming: An evening with Gloria Steinem

Written by Yasmin Mannan on . Posted in Books.

Glora Steinem, hailed as one of the leaders and major spokeswomen of the 1960s and 1970s Second Wave feminist movement—an acclaimed writer, editor, journalist, and activist—is coming to Manchester for her first visit to the UK in 20 years.

On the evening of Tuesday 23 February, Gloria Steinem will be in conversation with The Observer critic and author Rachel Cooke, hosted by Manchester Literature Festival in Waterstones Manchester. Steinem is the co-founder of the American ‘liberal feminist’ magazines and has devoted her life to discussing, writing, and campaigning for women’s rights and equality. She has also organised social movements across the United States and campaigned with Hillary Clinton and Bobby Kennedy. Some of her best-selling books include Revolution From Within, Moving Beyond Words, and Everyday Rebellions.

A representative from Manchester Literature Festival stated glowingly that Steinem’s new memoir, My Life on the Road, “beautifully documents her childhood, her relationship with her nomadic father, her own wanderlust, and her travels across the United States and India.” It also “crucially focuses on the individuals and communities she encountered on her travels and the profound impact they have had on her life and work.” bell hooks [sic] praises the book My Life on the Road as “as an inspiring work, a call for action” as well as an essential reading for anyone interested in feminism and social change.

Tuesday 23 February 7.00pm
Waterstones Deansgate
91 Deansgate,
Manchester,
M3 2BW
Tickets £10 / £8 concessions & Waterstones card holders
Book on 0843 208 0500

Increased health spending can be Africa’s route to prosperity

Written by Jessica Chow-Lau on . Posted in Opinion.

The Abuja Declaration was created in 2001 to ensure that African countries heuristically implement the Millennium Development Goals. Working with the World Health Organisation, member states of the African Union pledged to set an allocation target of at least 15 per cent of their annual budget on health programmes. Their funding would come from donor countries (including G8 countries), who would give 0.7 per cent of their gross national income as official development assistance. By 2013, 6 of the 46 African countries met this target, 26 saw no change, and 10 decreased their spending on health. Because the Abuja goal was not met, the sub-Saharan African countries missed out on a cumulative £13.2 billion in potential health investments.

It is understandable that developing countries in the African continent would be wary of devoting too much of their budget to the health sector. Their priorities as emerging players include growing their economy so that they may act as a global competitor. But because funds granted correspond to percentage achieved, a mere 1 per cent increase would have yielded more than £2.5 billion for their annual health budgets. The AIDS epidemic prevents Africa from being a developed continent. It contributes to the perception that a European’s life is worth more than an African’s and makes an otherwise virile population unable to fully contribute to an emerging economy. Economics aside, these are African lives that are being lost to a preventable disease. 7 million people would have gotten a year’s worth of antiretroviral therapy if 20 per cent of that 1 per cent theoretical health allocation were to go to AIDS programs.

The African continent does not have the excuse of having inadequate resources or unsupportive external aid. Their countries generate more than £356 billion annually through domestic resource mobilisation—more than 8.5 times the amount the continent receives in official development assistance from foreign funding. But on average, for every 69p that the International Monetary Fund allocated to sub-Saharan Africa for poverty reduction, only 19p was spent—the rest went to domestic debt reduction or building foreign reserves. This was between the years of 1999-2005. Since then, improvements have been frustratingly slow. As of 2014, Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa were the only countries funding the majority of their AIDS programs from domestic sources. Spending the country’s money as opposed to that given by external transfers is a crucial distinction in determining sustainable development.

If conditions are not met, international organisations should divert funds to nations that are truly struggling. To even imply that Africa’s defining characteristic is poverty would be wildly vacuous. Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, is a leading oil producer. Its gas and oil reserves are responsible for driving their economy, but has also placed a certain resource curse on the country. Economic inequality, ethnic tension, and the creation of a corrupt political culture can all be traced back to the misgoverning of oil wealth. Hence the specification: “certain” resource curse. The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) member needs to assiduously cleanse its governing body of malfeasance, or risk having their economic growth stunted.

On their path to development, Nigeria needs to have more partnerships with countries like Italy and Finland—and fewer with China. Establishing bilateral relations reflects Nigeria’s influence in the global community. It is imperative then, that contracts help the people in addition to promoting trade. Nigeria’s relationship with China has caused the country to be inundated with poorly made electronics. Design wouldn’t be a problem if not for the Chinese power strips’ inadequate copper wiring—causing fires and threatening the livelihood of Nigerians. This extends to interactions with transnational companies, who, because of Nigeria’s weak judiciary, can get away with wreaking havoc on water supplies.

Nigeria’s potential for growth is shown in its expected GDP of £201 billion by 2020. Prodigious as it is, about 61 per cent of Nigerians still live in extreme poverty. People can’t produce, trade, or consume if their government fails to curb fraud or theft. The country needs to better protect property rights by defending—thereby encouraging—the freedom of economic initiative.

Along with unequal distribution, Nigeria remains precariously dependent on oil. Investments are flowing from private companies and partnering countries to Africa’s largest economy. But relying on one export will revert all progress when it fails. There needs to be assurance that the telecommunication and banking industries have the necessary tools to further expand. Furthermore, cyclically connecting profits and the economy, to improve overall quality of life and to strengthen the middle class will mean they contribute to the retail sector, further increasing GDP.

The consequence of not investing in their people is Nigeria becoming a petro-state.

Last week, the government requested a £2.4 billion loan from the World Bank and the African Development bank. This follows a collapse in oil prices and a drop of growth to just 3.2 per cent (previously 7 per cent). It matters little how much infrastructure, power plants, or factories Nigeria has if it can’t maintain its level of growth. It matters less when Nigerians aren’t healthy enough to participate in their own economy.

Allocating 15 per cent to the health sector is not unreasonable, especially when Nigeria’s budget is in a slight surplus and public debt remains 20 per cent of GDP. Top individual tax rate is 24 per cent and top corporate tax rate is 30 per cent (compared to UK’s 21 per cent). They’re taxing efficiently: overall tax burden equals 3.1 per cent of total domestic income. Their economy is stable, they don’t spend more than their revenue, and yet there persists a hesitation to put more money towards the wellbeing of Nigerians. Unification within the African Union will help shift perceptions away from the “dictators club” which means helping fellow African countries spend more on health, closing wide disparities; and advising less developed areas to follow the Nigerian model. Hope lies in the leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari, to spend more on health, to introduce reform in the Nigerian government, and to invest in his people.

Big Trouble in Little China Town

Written by Felix Sanders on . Posted in Food & Drink.

The Year Of The Monkey at Happy Seasons.

I go to Chinatown quite a lot. It’s on my preferred route to the city centre from Oxford Road, and the supermarkets, like Wing Fat, are the only places in Manchester where one can buy a pork stock cube. ‘Why don’t they sell pork stock cubes in Sainsburys,’ I hear the masses cry, but I have no answer. The British are no less fans of the pig, to me it makes no sense.

I digress. So, I am often in Chinatown but have never eaten there for the feeble excuse that I could never make my mind up about where to go. I know Yang Sing has a great reputation, but sadly it’s a little out of budget.

Last weekend’s Chinese New Year provided a great opportunity to throw caution to the wind and just pick somewhere. I went on two criteria, the name and the shop front. There is a window at the front of the poetically named ‘Happy Seasons,’ where a man hangs roasted ducks and marinated pork belly over his large wooden chopping block and butchers knife. It was not a hard sell.

Having taken in the sights and synchronised dancing grannies outside the town hall, my companion—a wood turner and microbrewer from Bristol—and I made our way to Chinatown. Even though the lunchtime crowd hadn’t fully descended, there was still a queue outside the restaurant; I’m always happy to wait, it builds suspense.

We got our table, ordered a couple of Tsing Taos and rang in the New Year. The Chinese way of doing things certainly made a nice change from the British equivalent, pickling your liver and wistfully hoping for a kiss at midnight.

Mr Radford and I began with the most generous serving of prawn toast I’ve ever seen, alongside char siu pork buns, which demand a twenty minute patient wait in order to steam properly. The dough was insane, like an edible pillow, and the filling equally as good.

By this point the street outside was filling up and a line, twice the size the one we had been standing in, was beginning to form. Very satisfying.

We ordered a pretty generous selection of mains, some more successful than others. The lemon and honey chicken was a little unsettling and rather artificial, reminiscent of a lemon curd, or maybe the air freshener in a hotel bathroom. The deep fried scallops left much to be desired, but when dredged in a sweet and sour sauce it was hard to notice.

However, the bbq mix was serious, it demanded authority and was essentially what we came for. The pork belly was undeniably the star of the show but the duck, on the bone, took names as well. The crackling on the bbq char siu pork provided a pleasant Anglican point of reference. All of that for £7.50 is an outstanding deal. Vegetables were essential in establishing some kind of balance in our New Year’s feast. A large plate of pak choi in oyster sauce served that purpose with extreme vengeance.

About halfway through the meal, a commotion broke out outside, as the elderly man at the table next to us would later explain, the fireworks were to ward off evil spirits. We looked on as the owner of the restaurant walked out the front door and lit a huge length of firecrackers. Two-man dragon puppets, embodying the evil spirits, danced around the explosions. But alas, the fireworks were not enough to deter the dragon spirits, they followed the owner back into the restaurant as cymbals crashed and iPhones were launched by small women in a fierce attempt to capture the mayhem.

I can safely say this was the most surreal dining experience of my life. Come next year there is only place to be for Chinese New Year, Happy Seasons.

Price £££ (3 out of 5)

Food 4/5

Drinks 3/5

Service 3/5

Atmosphere 3/5

Value 4/5

The Great Call of China

Written by Adam Selby on . Posted in Sport.

Although the January transfer window often fails to live up to the expectations set by its older brother during the summer, only time will tell whether or not the winter window of 2016 is looked upon as a game changer in World Football. As beneath  the surface, through the deadline day mist of breaking news banners focusing on Pep Guardiola and the counting down of the hours until Jim White’s iconic gold tie made its first appearance, something both unique and significant was beginning to pick up pace in Chinese domestic football. A country and football league often considered in the same breath as the MLS or Indian Super League perhaps as an ideal destination for players to end their footballing career, was now gradually beginning to assert their authority and financial muscle in World Football. And all of a sudden, the Chinese Super League has the potential to become a real force to be reckoned in World Football.

To the everyday football fan, it was perhaps Jiangsu Suning’s recent acquisition of former Chelsea midfielder and Brazilian international Ramires which made fans across the continent take note of the increasing role China is beginning to play in modern day football. In a deal reported to eventually total £25M with an initial fee of £20M, a player clearly capable of playing for a number of sides competing at the highest level in the Premier League and major European competitions swapped the blue of South West London for the blue of Jiangsu Suning, managed also by former blue and Chelsea icon Dan Petrescu.

So as the dust settled and the new Chinese Super League record signing joined up with his new teammates and an ever-increasing number of stars now based in China, I struggle to think whether Mystic Meg would have even been able to predict the Chinese Super League’s next move. After being linked with a move to the Premier League during the latter stages of the 2014/15 season, the prolific Colombian and FC Porto forward Jackson Martinez reportedly turned down a whole host of offers throughout Europe to join 2013/14 La Liga winners Atlético Madrid, helping fill the attacking void left by the outgoing Arda Turan and Mario Mandžukić to FC Barcelona and Juventus respectively. And with an impressive goal-scoring record at both FC Porto and for his native Colombia, the €35M release clause paid by Diego Simeone’s Atlético looked like a shrewd business and money well spent.

His transition however from the Portuguese Primeira Liga to the Spanish La Liga certainly did not go to plan and after only netting twice in fifteen games (largely down to the impressive goal-scoring record of the prolific Frenchman Antoine Griezmann) it looked as if Atlético were prepared to cut their losses on Martinez, reportedly offering him in a swap deal with Chelsea for former forward Diego Costa on deadline day. Yet somewhat out of the blue as the European transfer deadline had passed, the Chinese Super League with a keen eye on improving the wealth of quality running throughout the competition made their next move. This time however it was to be 2015 Super League winners Guangzhou Evergrande managed by 2002 FIFA World Cup winner Luiz Felipe Scolari who capitalised on the players unrest and clubs willingness to recuperate the money spent on the forward. A matter of days later, it was confirmed that Jackson Martinez had joined the recent FIFA Club World Cup runners up to FC Barcelona Guangzhou Evergrande, in a record-breaking deal for the Chinese Super League valued at €42M.

And just as you thought lavish investment from sides in China would stop there, to the surprise of football fans across Europe especially those of Liverpool, Chelsea and Shakthar Donetsk, Jiangsu Suning flexed their financial prowess once again. After a protracted transfer saga dating back to the early stages of the 2015/16 season, the highly rated Brazilian playmaker Alex Teixeira looked set to join Liverpool in the winter transfer window only for the deal to breakdown in the final week of January. Prior to that earlier on in the season, Alex Teixeira had spoken publically of his desire to move away from the Ukraine to apply his trade elsewhere with Chelsea repeatedly signalled as the most likely destination. Although his previous employers Shakthar Donetsk suggested it was highly unlikely for the Brazilian to be sold this transfer window, it does seem once again that money does talk and quickly Ramires’ transfer record was exceeded by Jackson Martinez. Alex Teixeira’s €50M move now tops the Chinese Super League transfer charts.

These three transfers in particular perhaps stand out poignantly as a true indication of the direction that Chinese Football is heading towards but it would be unfair to dismiss the current wealth of talent across the board in the top tier of Chinese Football. At present former Premier League stars Gervinho, Demba Ba, Tim Cahill and Manchester City’s £19M club record signing back in 2007 Jô, are all competing in the Chinese Super League and given the recent wholesale investment on players based largely in Europe, South America and Africa, I would expect to see far more players not just simply at the end of their career but also at the peak of their powers heading to China to apply their trade. And although the influx of household footballing names is widely recognised as a recent trend in the spending of Chinese clubs, it must not be forgotten that the likes of Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka moved directly from Chelsea to Shanghai Shenhua in 2012. Therefore although the Chinese Super League is now publically and forcefully beginning to a statement to its competitors in World Football, it does seem to have been the long-term aim of league to recruit the biggest names in the sport. And with recent rumours linking the likes of Dmitri Payet, Dani Alves and Yaya Touré with mega money summer moves to China with David Moyes even stating that he himself rejected a managerial offer from China recently, we could perhaps be already looking at the next big football powerhouse for many years to come.

But should leagues like the Indian Super League and the MLS begin to worry, given they are known universally for attracting marquee signings often at the end of their career? Furthermore is this way forward sustainable and consequently, what does the future hold for Chinese Football? Only time will tell how the league continues to evolve but as a sport itself, football appears to never have been more popular. The 2014 World Cup Final attracted 87 million Chinese television viewers and the average viewing figure of the 64 tournament matches broadcast live on television was an impressive 21.57 million. Additionally a Forbes report in November 2014 also stated that China Media Capital (CMC), a state-backed investment firm chaired by media mogul Li Ruigang, had purchased the rights for the broadcast of the Chinese Super League for the next five years in a deal valued at around $1.3 billion. And of course not to forget the state visit of Chinese president Xi Jinping and ‘that selfie’ with David Cameron and Sergio Aguero during a tour around the City Football Academy in October 2015, a visit which soon led to the $400m (£265m) investment from Chinese consortium CMC, securing a 13% stake of the City Football Group associated with Manchester City FC, valuing it at $3bn.

All things considered, the future clearly looks promising for Chinese football. Despite the many raised eyebrows from pundits across World Football and widespread questioning over whether recent acquisitions are in fact lured by the excessive sums of money spent instead of a genuine interest to develop as a player, the arrival of the likes of Jackson Martinez and Alex Teixeira can only be a good thing for both Chinese and World football as a whole. What these moves will mean for the international careers of players choosing to play in China will only become clear in time but as we clamour over the latest news in European Football, China has clearly done its homework and I really don’t think it will be long until it eventually reaches the top of the class.

High fashion goes high-tech

Written by Kyle Zabawa on . Posted in Fashion & Beauty.

Although still in its embryonic stages, the concept of wearable technology is an exciting prospect. Despite the fact that my inner conspiracy theorist is still not entirely trusting of the wonders of such technological advances such as free Wi-Fi (it all seems to good to be true?), in what I’m christening as my very first ‘infotainment’ feature, I’m going to be diving head first into the depths of cyberspace and beyond to show you that the very best of cutting edge clothing and cosmetics is yet to come.

Bubble Dreams: Gaga for the Lady

In a change of direction from her usual attire of lingerie, haute couture, or even antipasti, it was pop icon Lady Gaga who first introduced me to the potential for the worlds of fashion and technology to collide and give birth to something altogether more revolutionary.

Never one to shy away from the unconventional, back in late summer of 2013, Gaga was photographed leaving Camden’s Roundhouse venue surrounded by a nebula of bright bursting bubbles. There were no devoted acolytes nor doting assistants blowing these bubbles, they were instead emanating from her very own dress. Titled ‘Anemone 2.0’, it was white, 3D printed construction by Studio XO which featured four distinct bubble factories designed to produce a fabulous flurry with every step. One might even say that the dress was designed to quite literally reinject the ‘pop’ back into pop culture.

Photo: Gagapedia

 

The thrills of 3D printing

How frustrating is it when you dream up exactly the garment you need—yet the humble high street is unable to satiate your sartorial cravings? Fear no more, fellow fussy fashionistas, for 3D printing could be the answer to your prayers. A specialized substitute for the humble sewing machine, input your designs virtually and marvel as the 3D printer works its magic especially for you in a state of the art fusion of skills from the spheres of material science, mechanical assembly and three-dimensional design.

For the 3D printer, making the jump from tech offices (where they have been based since their conception in the 80s and 90s), to the catwalks of today is no mean feat. Designers across the globe are hidden away currently researching the best ways to make tech couture more articulated and sensuous.

Take the most expensive piece of 3D fashion to date, for example—a $100,000 dress designed with burlesque icon Dita Von Teese as its muse. The result of one hundred hours of skilled work, a total of 17 printed pieces of lasered nylon; three thousand articulated joints and 13,000 Swarovski crystals (my favourite ingredient) were all needed to ensure that this unique piece was both functional and form-fitting. Like its inspiration, the resulting dress really was a true reflection of fantasy.

Photo: Albert Sanchez

 

Metamorphosis à la Mode: The Butterfly dress

In what could be thought of as the perfect blend between the worlds of haute couture and science fiction, the Çetin sisters this year presented a piece of well-orchestrated design that they hoped could change the world’s approach to fashion and technology. From the depths of the creative chaos of their combined minds, came the butterfly dress.

The dress itself is simple yet chic. Made from an elegant blend of luxury jacquard, interwoven with metallic lurex fibres and cerulean feathers, the 40 individual computer-powered butterflies adorned the collar of this piece to truly ensure that the wearer stands out from the crowd.

Thanks to an embedded proximity sensor (the Intel Edison chip), the otherwise secured and poised butterflies were primed to react to external stimuli. The closer an approaching person gets to the dress, the more fervently the butterflies are encouraged to flap their wings until—finally—in an otherworldly, avant-garde display, the butterflies release en masse into their immediate surroundings. The resulting effect is quite literally, fashion that flies in the face of anything ever seen before.

Here’s hoping that the Çetin sisters invest in a whole collection of a similar nature to ensure that this highly intelligent couture can become a staple for the more flamboyant fashionistas of the universe in the near future.

Photo: Intel

 

Bespoke Beauty: This time, it’s personal

In what is being hailed as a revolutionary crossover between the worlds of technology, cosmetics and forensics, beauty products can now be tailored to even the most individualistic of tastes through the miracles of 3D printing. Simply locate your desired colour on the Pantone colour chart and marvel as the modern machinery meticulously produces the matching pigment. The resulting colour can then be added to mixing mediums, producing nail paints, lipsticks, eye colours and eyeliners with the hopes that foundations and concealers will eventually follow. Although it is currently exclusive to the makeup mavens of the world, it is thought that in as little as one year from now, printers of a similar nature will be on sale to the general public.

Photo: KarenBlakeman@Flickr

 

A Most Macabre Moisturiser

If (as is the case for every human being to have ever lived) your face suffers from pigmentation, acne, an oily T-zone or even dull, dry patchiness, a Vampire Facial Cream could be your (un)holy grail. The magic ingredient? You guessed it—the client’s very own blood.

The elaborate production process involves a trained professional drawing two teaspoons of blood from the willing participant. A centrifuge (a piece of fancy laboratory equipment that a linguistics degree student is dangerously unqualified to use or even describe) then isolates platelets from the blood—a 10 minute process according to the experts. The platelets are then ‘activated’, spurring them to release 8 growth factors thought to be crucial to the healing of injured tissue.

While this process may sound like a scene from an episode of American Horror Story, thankfully, the white cream that contains the aforementioned blood is not a gore-toned red but a sparkling white due to the translucent nature of the platelets. Fellow Beauty School Dropouts rejoice.

The cream (once devoured by ‘bloodthirsty’ pores) promises to improve skin tone and texture, tighten problem areas and even plump the hollows of the face. At £950 a pot, you’d jolly well hope it was doing some good. Unfortunately, as this alleged miracle cream is way out of my price range (and at time of writing this I have yet to be granted a trial) the only guarantee I can offer to you is that this product will take a bite out of your bank balance.

Photo: Pascal@Flickr

 

Final thoughts

For much too long, when it comes to fashion and cosmetics, we’ve been living an analogue life in a digital world. All of this technologically tantalising tailoring and tincture won’t stop us from buying off the shelf just yet. For the foreseeable future, it seems to be the case that (unfortunately so) these products shall remain largely the possessions of the upper echelons due to their tremendous (yet justifiable) cost. So, on a closing note, while the pairing of technology and fashion is an exciting venture (a marriage of which we are nowhere near the apex) we are forced to remain comfortable, yet content with our current wardrobes and cosmetics. Vampire Facial, anyone?

Janis: Little Girl Blue

Written by Henry Scanlan on . Posted in Film, Music.

It’s a sad reality that Janis Joplin is perhaps more renowned for her death than for her life. In 1970, she was taken by heroin—that ghoulish talent thief of the sixties—and now she crops up every time an important young musician dies before a potential is reached. Her tale seems largely to be treated as more cautionary than legendary. That could be partly due to the fact that, shockingly, Joplin hadn’t had the full biopic treatment until last Friday—when Amy Berg’s new documentary, Janis: Little Girl Blue hit cinemas and brought Joplin’s tempestuous energy back into focus.

Still, Joplin’s music hardly saturates today’s airwaves. Some would say that she had to be experienced live, that her voice was too spontaneous to be bottled up and fossilised in studio recordings. Her 1967 performance at Monterey Pop Festival attests to that. Either way, the music demands to be heard. The Joplin-fronted Big Brother and the Holding Company’s Cheap Thrills is a great acid rock album, and her own posthumously released Pearl is stunning from start to finish. She burned a hole right through the psychedelic sixties, too, totally embodying the Zeitgeist, whether she was having ear-splitting sex at the Grateful Dead house or blown out of her mind on stage at Woodstock in 1969.

The one thing that shone through everything Joplin did was her fierce, anguished honesty. Her brother, one of the many close relatives and friends on board as the film’s consultants, said something interesting about how Janis not only felt pain, but idolised it. From Odetta to Billie Holiday, Joplin’s heroes all sang the blues, and she needed some blues to sing too. She was in no short supply—her formative Texan teenage years as a bullied reject saw to that.

Beneath Joplin’s San Franciscan persona—all Californian jive talk and theatrical sixties dress—was a pensive, articulate, and deeply wounded Texan entering adulthood. It might be fitting, then, that the startlingly raw ‘Mercedes Benz’, Joplin’s most enduring musical moment, is a proudly Southern romp, stripped of all pseudo-psychedelic affectations. It’s in those a capella moments (the kind which were a precursor to Robert Plant) when Joplin’s unmatchable emotional intensity hits you, when it feels like all of her turmoil is tumbling out in indefinable syllables.

We can grieve over Joplin’s death, and this film may bring you (like it did me) to tears in doing so, but the plain truth is that the music wouldn’t have been the same without the misery. Whether it was worth it is another matter.

Review: Dad’s Army

Written by Sarah Jane Thoms on . Posted in Film.

The art of being able to maintain a good thing is only achievable if you know when to call it a day, when to let the curtain fall, and when to pull the plug. It seems that whoever came up with the idea of bringing the popular British television sitcom Dad’s Army to the big screen was unaware of this. When viewing the film at a large multiplex cinema in one of England’s biggest cities on its opening night, I expected to be greeted by a hustle and bustle around the film. But the empty 398 seats in an auditorium built to seat 400 seemed to foreshadow the film’s triviality.

Set in Walmington-on-Sea in 1944, the film shows the war effort of Britain’s Home Guard towards the end of World War II and how the news of a Nazi spy living in the town gives the men a chance to play their highly-anticipated part in the war. The news of a film release of Dad’s Army was an exciting form of nostalgia for older generations that had worshipped the BBC sitcom back in the late sixties. For a lot of the younger generations, they probably associate the programme as something that would be on the television screen when they visited their old Grandpa Bob or Great Uncle Jim. Whichever kind of audience group the film intended to target, it did not meet the standard of comedy and entertainment originally produced by Jimmy Perry and David Croft.

Dad’s Army was never a show based on the spectacle of action, but as a film adaptation, one would expect a little bit more than what appeared to be an extended version of a bog standard TV episode. Just when you think the plot is about to pipe up, you are sent back to listening to painful attempts of comedic dialogue and watching the characters in their aimless endeavours. I found myself laughing at the absence of funniness rather than the gags themselves as wit and comedy appeared to have taken a long-haul holiday together when this screenplay was written. I sometimes worry about accidently or subconsciously revealing plot spoilers when writing film reviews, but in this case, there aren’t any to reveal. The small climaxes in the plot that do exist: predictable. The so called “big” action: miniscule. The stab at bringing the background female characters to the spotlight is an admirable one, but it is fails on intent and creates no noticeable effect on the film’s plot.

Despite the lack of wit and action on behalf of the screenplay, the shrewdly-composed cast were able to deliver some impressive performances. Catherine Zeta-Jones elegantly plays the charismatic heartthrob for the male characters and adds a glamorous, yet dominant female to the screen. It is Toby Jones that brings the much needed sparkle to the film. His take on the original portrayal of Captain Mainwaring by Arthur Lowe is a one of great homage, and his physical clumsiness creates a nostalgic nod towards the slapstick comedy that is famously attributed to Dad’s Army. A contemporary comedic figure in the form of Blake Harrison—famously known for his role of Neil in The Inbetweeners—he enabled the character of Private Pike as a humorous form of dopiness as much as the screenplay allows. From a cinematic and artistic point of view, the film is a visual treat for the eye. The costumes are on point, with a poignant use of red, white and blue. Yet it is the use of the famous song “Who Do You Think You Are Kidding Mr. Hitler?” that gives that one last blow of nostalgia and creates a feeling of community amongst the platoon.

The film lacks substance and most of all, comedy. But the performances of the cast are able to bring some dignity back to this adaptation. All in all, some things should be left as they are, the proof being in Dad’s Army.

2/5