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Month: October 2011

Stage set as France prepares to cast judgement on Sarkozy

With a beleaguered incumbent, a rejuvenated Socialist Party and a worrying yet unpredictable threat posed by the far right, France is set for its most intriguing presidential election in recent history with less than six months to go until polling day.

Whilst President Nicolas Sarkozy is almost certain to confirm his place as the centre-right UMP candidate on April’s ballot – alongside François Hollande of the Socialist Party and Marine Le Pen, leader of the Front National – the verdict of the French electorate will be intriguing on both a national and European level, as France continues to find itself immersed in the ongoing Eurozone debt crisis.

Deeply unpopular and routinely lambasted for his extravagant lifestyle, the outlook is bleak for the man they call ‘Sarkule’ (a pejorative nickname coined in response to his regressive policies). A recent poll suggested that 68% of voters would not like to see him re-elected, despite the considerable international approval the President amassed over his handling of the conflict in Libya. Even the birth of new daughter, Giulia, seems unlikely to soften the hearts of the disillusioned French public, who have become increasingly hostile towards their notoriously brash leader.

Sarkozy’s apparent failures have revived a Socialist Party which has been electorally dormant since Hollande’s namesake, François Mitterand, retired from the presidency in 1995. This time around, more than 2.8 million voters participated in the party’s first ever presidential primaries, which saw the moderate Hollande emerge victorious over Martine Aubry. Many have suggested that the pioneering primary season has brushed off the Socialists’ dated image, and their position at the forefront of media coverage over recent months has gifted the party the exposure they so greatly desired. Sitting firmly on the centre-left of French politics, Hollande has seemingly positioned himself towards the centre ground in an attempt to sway disillusioned UMP voters. However, it is his concerted effort to present himself as an ‘everyman’ which is currently proving his most potent weapon in a country growing tired of the current leader’s ‘celebrity presidency’.

Just as there is a Sunday in every week, there seems to be a Le Pen involved in every French election – and this year is no different as Marine Le Pen attempts once more to detoxify the Front National brand crafted over the decades by her father, Jean Marie. Fighting on the all-too-familiar dual platform of immigration and Euroscepticism, Le Pen is convinced that she can better the party’s shock second place of 2002. Certainly, there is some sympathy for her point of view, but despite her evident popularity in certain regions, it remains doubtful whether she can gain widespread support for her radical policy programme.

UMP optimists keen to play up Sarkozy’s chances of turning things around will of course point to the dire situation that Jacques Chirac found himself in six months before the 1995 election – one which he went on to win comfortably. Sarkozy’s natural charm and dogged campaigning will most likely see an election result far closer than is currently being predicted, but with Monsieur Hollande enjoying a 64-36 advantage over Mr Sarkozy in an October run-off poll it appears that the French electorate are unconvinced by accusations from the UMP camp that Hollande is too inexperienced to deal with the current economic turmoil.

Should Hollande lead the Socialists to victory in France, it will perhaps mark a change in attitudes towards the social democratic and socialist parties on the continent who were punished so heavily by European voters in the wake of the financial crisis. Whilst Gordon Brown’s Labour government was defeated by the Conservatives in this country, Spanish Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero announced he would not stand again at the next election amidst plummeting poll ratings. In Portugal, Jose Socrates was forced to resign as Prime Minister after a vote of no confidence in June.

With many deeming the 2012 election more a judgement on President Sarkozy than a battle between ideologies, the suggestion of a resurgence of social democracy in Europe may yet prove to be premature. In any case, the situation is becoming desperate for ‘l’Omniprésident’, regardless of the size of his well documented platforms.

“Every Libyan should be rich” – how Gaddafi squandered oil trillions

The unrestrained jubilation in Libya following the death of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, which ended his 42 year reign as one of the world’s most feared dictators, is not only a response to the grim conclusion of a brutal regime that curtailed democracy in the region for so many decades. For all of the human rights abuses and increasingly bizarre decisions he made, perhaps Gaddafi’s greatest failure was the way in which he squandered Libya’s monumental oil riches, only to line the pockets of his closest associates and cronies.

One of the twelve members of OPEC, Libya played a pivotal role in manufacturing the oil crisis of 1973. According to the organisation, revenues from Libya’s oil sector contribute around 95 percent of its export earnings and at least 25 percent of its GDP. Nevertheless, this sparsely populated nation of just six million people has suffered inexorably from severe inequalities facilitated by the Gaddafi regime, with approximately one third of Libyans living below the national poverty line. “Divide the trillions which the country’s oil has produced since the early 1970s by six million and everyone in Libya should be a multi-millionaire. Not so”, says the BBC’s World Affairs Editor, John Simpson, explaining the sheer absurdity of the economic situation. “Libya may not be dirt poor like Sudan or Yemen, but the comfortable capitalism of Morocco, Tunisia and Egypt is entirely missing”.

The vast amount of oil produced has disproportionately benefited the few under Gaddafi’s hand, and left the masses in disarray. A cursory glance over the despot’s personal portfolio gives us some indication of where these riches might have disappeared to. Born into a rural, poverty-stricken farming area just outside Sirte, and raised in a Bedouin tent in the desert, Gaddafi somehow amassed a personal wealth of billions of dollars. In recent years, the Gaddafi family has had more than $30 billion of assets seized or frozen in the United States, Canada, Austria, Switzerland and the UK. Some of his less hefty investments include a 7.5% share in Italian football club Juventus, a $120 million private jet (complete with Jacuzzi and cinema), and $455 million worth of property across west London. For a man who claimed to live a simple, unluxurious life, it is an astonishing collection.

Alas, history cannot be reversed and the Libyan people must look forward to a brighter future. As of January 2011, Libya has total proven reserves of 44 billion barrels of oil – by far the largest reserves in Africa. Many more reserves are said to have a legitimate founding beneath Libyan soil. However, the civil war has reduced the need for drilling and shipping equipment, whilst the legal framework for managing oil money was destroyed long ago. In spite of this, Libya is forecast to produce 2.2 million barrels of oil per day over the next decade, before a gentle decline to 1.6 million barrels per day. By 2030, the country will have produced a further 35 billion barrels – no mean feat for a country responsible for only 2% of the world’s oil production. As such, it is imperative that the new Libyan administration understands that maintaining the current balance of demand and supply is paramount when it comes to oil production.

The existence of a legitimate policy framework for the benefit and redistribution of resources to the Libyan people disintegrated long ago. Today, an uncertain cloud hangs over Libya, but the potential output of Libya’s oil reserves is yet to be reached and as such the path to prosperity is clearly there for the taking.

Moving forward, Libya should not encumber itself with economic vested interests as it has done in the past. The new administration must set up a system for oil companies to negotiate contracts for finding, retrieving and supplying oil. It is imperative that oil companies feel reassured in their terms and conditions; only then will trade flourish under the right provisions, rather than in favour of foreign interests. “It’s extraordinary how the Gaddafi regime squandered so much oil wealth and left it a deprived country in terms of infrastructure. The country will need oil revenues to recover”, says Daniel Yergin, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of a seminal history of the oil industry. Incredulous at Gadaffi’s wastefulness, Yergin is in no doubt that placing a priority on reforming the country’s oil industry is fundamental if we are to see a long overdue improvement in the standard of living of the Libyan people.

Live: The Wombats @ Apollo

The Wombats
02 Apollo
9th October

3 & 1/2 stars

It’s a tiny bit bizarre how The Wombats have managed to take four years to release a follow up album to their debut, ditch the guitars for a more synth-pop direction and still, somehow, be able to sell out venues as big as the 02 Apollo. Given the cluster of landfill indie bands that broke out around the same time as the Liverpool 3-piece, few would have predicted that such a feat was possible, and would have expected them to have fallen by the wayside, joining the likes of the Ting Tings of this world.

However, playing their final show of a huge UK tour, tonight shows the key to The Wombats’ success to be the fact that they are pretty damn good at writing really catchy pop songs. Set opener ‘The Perfect Disease’ precedes hit track ‘Kill the Director’, setting the tone for the evening as the Apollo’s packed out crowd- which was admittedly 90% made up of 14 year olds clearly overly excited to be at their first ever gig- bounce all the way throughout the night. The vibrant atmosphere even manages to spread to the seated area upstairs where everyone was on their feet for the entirety of the show.

Songs from this year’s sophomore record This Modern Glitch go down well and, despite at times feeling like you were listening to an Inbetweeners soundtrack, older songs such as ‘Moving to New York’ and set closer ‘Let’s Dance to Joy Division’ also got the young crowd jumping.

Impressive lighting and Muse-esque lasers reaffirm that this band are (surprisingly) really big these days and although they’re never going to be artistically credible, The Wombats know what sells and clearly aren’t ready to fade away into obscurity just yet. Their fanbase are still there and, as tonight proves, teenage girls are suckers for catchy tunes and messy hair.

Album: Girls – Father, Son, Holy Ghost

Girls
Father, Son, Holy Ghost
Turnstile Music

4 & 1/2 stars

When Girls’ debut Album was released in 2009, it was embraced for all its lo-fi tortured optimism and let’s-get-fucked-up-and-love-each-other balladry. The story that led to its conception was pretty damn unbelievable (abandoned son of god-fearing cult members moves to San Francisco, is taken in by local millionaire, starts band with neighbourhood punks), and bandleader Christopher Owens’ voice had apparently been tailor-made to break hearts, falling somewhere between Elvis Costello and Ryan Adams’ end-of-the-road romanticism.

On Father, Son, Holy Ghost, Owens continues to channel the 60’s sunshine pop of Roy Orbison and the Beach Boys, but in an altogether more ambitious, rounded and ultimately satisfying piece of work. Just like on the first album, there’s a fresh batch of bouncy anthems about love that immediately sound like songs you’ve loved all your life, yet they’re tossed in with the Deep-Purple inspired, riff-heavy ‘Die’, the heartbreaking ‘Vomit’, and the world-weary despair of ‘Myma’. It’s an emotionality that borders on cliché, but lines that could appear over-sentimental and tacky elsewhere are so earnestly and desperately delivered that you can’t help but lend it the same sympathy and understanding that you would a close friend.

As is clear from the offset, the album borrows heavily from the past, but it’s hard to imagine Owens’ songs delivered in any other way. These are pop songs as they used to be, with all the raw emotion and attention to musical detail intact. Of course, it’s got its weaker moments, but all in all, Father, Son is anthemic, joyous, genuinely affecting and impossibly endearing in equal measure.

From past to a present – fabled Al Baker spun us a yarn. WEB EXCLUSIVE

Remember Hulme estate’s torrid to tepid past? Well if you don’t (or you do), read on.
Because we couldn’t resist asking the resident lens-witness of those ebbs and flows a few questions on what he remembers from those years – Manchester’s loyal-est photographer Al Baker.
October 2011

PC: Where and when did you live in Hulme estate?

AB: I moved to Hulme at the beginning of the 90’s into the deck-access flats which were already due for demolition & urban regeneration even then. I’ve had different properties dotted around; I still live there.

It was a significant time for me as I was entering my 20s, into the first flat that was solely mine, a spare room for my baby daughter. As for living in Hulme, as Billy Shakes says, “It was the best of times; it was the worst of times…”

PC: Why, in your opinion, was the Hulme estate such a creative hothouse, music graffiti, poets…?

AB: Well, originally of course it was one of those new ways of thinking in 60’s housing, a definite Le Courbusier influence, ‘A Design for Living’. The Car was environmental demon of the day then, so there were very few through-roads & the estate was quite self-contained, with multi-level ‘streets in the sky’ walkways between blocks. You could walk from one end of the estate to the other without touching terra-firma.

Then there were the Bullrings, 4 huge crescent-shaped blocks of flats with a different thing in the centre; a playground; open space; trees; the Eagle pub; but it never really worked. Heating & cockroach problems meant the council tenant families moved out & the flats were filled (mostly) with students, unemployed, squatters, junkies, artists looking for space.

PC: Was it the freedom or the alienation from society that fostered such an environment?

AB: Both. Emergency services found access difficult, so flats burned; police could be chasing a mugger into a stairwell where there might be 6 or 9 different escape routes for him so they stopped bothering. Burglaries & muggings were rife. As were the availability of a pharmacopeia of illegal drugs. It became quite hedonistic but also quite dangerous. You couldn’t get a taxi in or out of Hulme. You couldn’t get a job with an M15 postcode. People were left to their own devices. Poverty & Freedom writ large, with the volume cranked up.

PC: How did you feel when the estate was demolished?

AB: Sad, very sad: A way of life for a whole generation of people just wiped clean, and not for the 1st time. It was a slow, lingering death too. People who had kids or drug-addictions clung on, most everyone else trickled away.

Al Baker, '94

PC: It seems like Hulme fostered an atmosphere of goodwill and creativity, with very little hate or abuse in writing, and in general. Is this accurate?

AB: Tolerance was our key to living. On your landing you might have a lesbian commune, an alcoholic Irishman, a little old West Indian lady, a man with Care In The Community issues, a couple of students. Below you might be 3 Traveller caravans nicking electricity from a lamppost; above you might have a Rasta pirate radio station nicking electric from an empty flat. You had to get on with your neighbour. If you wanted them to look out for you, your safety, your property, well then you had to return that favour.

When Granada TV came to Hulme to film Cracker and used the estate as a backdrop it led to a community stand-off. Locals kicked off when the production crew, unable to find suitably offensive graffiti, decided to add their own. Local people were outraged because those kinds of opinion were not stood f or. Not on the walls of Hulme. Not in the pubs of Hulme. Lots of BNP & NF slogans had to be painted-over once filming had finished so that Granada TV were (only then) able to retrieve all their camera equipment safely. That was a proud day!

PC: Was there a dark side to Hulme? Were there crime and drug problems?

AB: Of course, lots of drugs. Different strokes for different folks. Punks on amphetamines; Hippies on Moroccan hash; Acid; Rasta’s who’d smoke sensei in the street; Heroin addicts who left syringes everywhere; and prescription freaks on Dexedrine, Valium, Temazepam, Diazaepam; then Ecstasy, Ketamine, GHB, cheap coke, skunk, whatever; all of it, up & down, but I don’t think it was much more than on other estates, just more evident, more obvious, more out-in-the-open. Then crack came into Moss Side and it all got fucked up. There were shootings, beatings & murders.

But I think wherever you find poverty you will find drugs, because it’s a quick way to make money & to escape. But whenever you have heroin you will have crime, simple as. It’s a parasitic problem quite unlike other recreational drugs & addictions

PC: Why did you first start to take pictures of the goings on in Hulme? What inspired you about the place/the people?

AB: I lived through an earlier Madchester period in a big shared-house with a band rehearsing in the cellar & took no photos at all of any of it! Very disappointing, but I was just learning photography. By the time I came to Hulme I was ready & knew what I was doing. Once I felt safe wandering around I started to take my camera out under my coat. Hulme was fast disappearing & I wanted to document its last days, its architecture & the faces of those people I knew then.

PC: Why take a picture of a picture? Why did you feel that it was important?

AB: At first I was just documenting Hulme, and photographing finished pieces as they appeared. Then I realised that context was everything and began to step back; to include the drab background more. You might notice a particularly large or smooth wall would get re-painted afresh, but rarely ever defaced. Once I knew the writers & they trusted me I began to shoot them on black & white film as they painted.

Ultimately though, the estate itself was becoming ephemeral, time passing into history. That tragedy is photography’s gain though. As time marches on, and things & people change, sometimes irrevocably, all that sometimes is left is a ghost in the machine; the photographs we have.

Al captures head-spinners at Smear 3, August 1996

PC: Does the community still have the same sense of respect between artists, and respect for the art?

AB: I think so. What I saw at SMEAR were graffiti artists from London, Leeds, Sheffield, Edinburgh, France, Spain, Holland. There’s a pecking order of sorts but only like any local pub or prison wing: Time served is important to these people. Joking aside, I’ve always found it to be quite an open atmosphere. Though there clearly are ‘beefs’ & people who just don’t like each other, in the main, just like back in the day, it’s not about who you are it’s about what you bring.

PC: How did it feel to be honoured by Manchester in the recent HomeGrown exhibition at Urbis, with so much of your photography crowding the floor?

AB: That was a fantastic buzz, I have to be honest, an honour to be involved. I contributed images to an earlier much-smaller exhibition there on D’n’B music in the North-West. Every time the curators asked the different local heads, promoters, producers, DJs & MCs for evidence they each put my name forward. So they called me up. They had much bigger plans than I could’ve achieved. I’d seen the Hacienda exhibition they had put together the year before at Urbis & they had the same design team onto it. I was impressed so I let them pinch the title from me! I thought it was well put together & well received. It’s a shame it didn’t travel. The real shame of course is that the Urbis closed as an Arts venue.

PC: What did you think about the recent riots in Manchester and around the UK?

AB: Interesting, I thought what happened in London was different, more to do with the long dark history of our Metropolitan Police Force. But what then erupted across the UK was mainly rampant opportunism, fuelled by new media (Blackberry, texting & Facebook), as well as more traditional News media (newspapers & television). Lots of young people who had voted for the 1st time, voted Liberal, and got the Tories. Loads more don’t even bother to vote. Fear of long term unemployment is still seared into the memories of their parents. Student grants are snatched away. There was protest then too. This was another eruption of dissatisfaction.

I was particularly disappointed in Newsnight, for immediately hosting a debate between black Labour MP Dianne Abott, a black educationalist & a former black gang member, with a white chairperson and all the usual scapegoats that they hung on a peg in Toxteth & Moss Side 30 years ago. Namely a right-wing view that rioters were mainly black youths, in organised criminal gangs, who had no respect for authority because they had no fathers at home: This was and still is clearly divisive nonsense.

PC: What are you working on at the moment?

AB: Still poking my lens occasionally out around city nightclubs, which I do less now to be honest. Since the digital revolution in cameras there are many more wanna-be photographers than ever & most cutting edge Manchester club nights are regularly documented & shared on websites or Facebook. Examplemagazine do a good job of keeping their fingers on various creative pulses

I work in an FE college & teach evening classes in Photography. I’m Photo Editor at Examplemagazine.com. Most recent work is with Virus Syndicate press & publicity shots for them. Loving their output more each & every time! But I’m always reppin’ for Manny me.
Check out Al’s work at http://www.albakerphotography.com or http://www.facebook.com/pages/MischiefMakerPhotoTaker

1993. Definitive.

Manchester left mournful after Liverpool’s lightning netball display

Much credit must be given to Manchester 3rd’s team as they were promoted into BUCS Northern Conference 2A from last season and will be battling it out against Man Met 1st, Liverpool 1st, Chester 1st and Lancaster 1st.
Wednesday saw the opening game of their 2011/12 league campaign against Liverpool with hopes high as the club as a whole is looking to improve on the achievements from last year.

The first quarter saw immediate pressure from Liverpool’s attacking players who were faster to the ball and quicker at off-loading when in possession. Manchester’s defence seemed a little dazed with Liverpool’s off the ball movement combined with lightening speed passing and were made to pay by clinical shooting, most noticeably from Liverpool’s GA- Kathryn Turner who literally didn’t miss a shot. Manchester did start to make a dent into Liverpool’s lead towards the end of the half when Jade Jarvis (WA) and the shooters started combining well together in the final third of the court with Ashley Sturrock (GS) hitting the target with most success. However Liverpool ended the first quarter with an established 15- 11 lead.

Manchester realised the dominance of Liverpool’s GA and GS (Turner and Baldin) and made a change in defence with Adrianna Winters coming on as GK which had an immediate effect as she harried and pressurised the attackers forcing them into errors in front of the net. Manchester gained confidence from this and there all round game came to life with excellent contributions most noticeably from Jade Jarvis (WA) whose passing and off the ball movement were excellent. Also Ashley Sturrock (GS) performed well in front of goal when given the ball continuing in the same vain from the previous quarter. However Liverpool continued to be clinical in their shooting despite Winters limiting their opportunities and the second quarter saw Manchester trailing 18-24.

The 3rd quarter saw both teams make the tactical decision of swapping their GA’s and GS’s around and Manchester moved the impressive Jarvis to (C) position to maximise her impact in the game. Manchester pushed Liverpool as far as they could making sure that they kept moving forward and getting the ball to Kennedy (GS) and Sturrock (GA) this tactic worked and Kennedy was lethal in front of goal. Liverpool however kept taking their chances which had been the pattern of the game and once again Turner didn’t miss a shot. Liverpool went into the final quarter with a 39-29 lead.

Jarvis had literally run herself into the ground with her battling performance and for the final quarter she was replaced by Jess Maughan who had started the game in (C) position. Liverpool also decided to change their (GA) and (GS) around once again to keep Manchester’s defence guessing. Manchester started the quarter on top and at one stage were only 3 goals behind. But unfortunately it was not to be a nail biting finish as Liverpool’s quality in finishing came through and they comfortably sailed to a 50-37 victory.

Despite the score-line Manchester can take much heart from their performance, the difference on the day was the finishing in front of the net; Liverpool took all their chances whereas Manchester did not. For any viewer it was an exhilarating game to witness and I felt out of breath just watching! Hopefully much can be taken from the game and Captain Fran Goodwin can turn their fortunes around and lead them to victory in their next away clash against Lancaster 1st on 26th October.

Places to go, people to see…

Now, as bloomin’ wonderful as the beautiful city of Manchester is you may well be at the point now where you’re sick of spending your Saturday afternoons in the Arndale, bored of kick-abouts in Platt Fields and just want to get away for the day. Well never fear because the Lifestyle team are at hand with a plethora of places just a hop, skip (and maybe a train’s ride away) for you to visit when the city sky-scraper sights just get too much.

 

Peak District

Take yourselves back to the heat wave of last month when Manchester reached a soaring 24 degrees, my housemates and I decided that it was ‘now or never’ to go on the long overdue Peak District trip we had all been talking about for so long.

So we packed a car, three bikes, sandwiches, Red Stripe, good humour and set off into the unknown.

I was one of the unlucky ones who didn’t get a space in the car, but, once we were on the Sheffield bound Trans-Pennine train from Piccadilly, I realised that the public transport way of getting there was a piece of cake.

We shortly reached a sweet little village, called Edale, in which there is an average-to-good pub with slightly overpriced food, a great selection of vintage ciders on tap, and friendly staff.  After a pint of Old Rosie, we embarked on our real adventure.

We walked along the footpath for about 20 minutes, through a farm, over endless picket-fences and eventually broke free from the track to find the ideal perch to sit and enjoy. The sunset was glorious, the views were impeccable, and the sense of achievement was second-to-none.

A day trip to the hills is highly recommended, choose your day carefully (weather-wise) and just do it, because otherwise, you run the risk of spending 3 brilliant years in a brilliant city, without ever having a taste of what is just out there; go on…      – Lil Hadden

 

Peak District - Taken by Lil Hadden

 

Heaton Park

Made famous by open air concerts from the likes of Supergrass, Travis and Oasis – and soon to be the backdrop of The Stone Roses 2012 comeback – Heaton Park is only 20 or so minutes from the city centre on tram or bus so there’s no excuse not to go.

Have a stroll around the animal centre, have a game on the pitch and putt golf course or even hire a boat or if you’re feeling really shameless hop on the ‘Heaton Hopper’ for £1 a go to make sure you don’t miss a thing!

With over 600 acres of greenery, Heaton Park is the perfect setting for you to regress back to your 10 year old self with a 99 and feed the ducks some stale bread on the odd sunny day that Manchester experiences during these crisp autumn months.       – Lily Howes

 

Lyme Park - Taken by Anthony Beal

 

Lyme Park

A swift (thirty minutes) and cheap (£3) trip down the tracks from Manchester Piccadilly will take you to the village of Disley in Chesire, where the largest house in the county can be found.

Lyme Park is everything you could ever want and expect from a National Trust property – and that little bit more.  A rolling deer park, beautifully sculpted gardens, a seventeenth-century Tudor mansion designed by a flamboyant Italian and, of course, a cafe to fill that afternoon tea-shaped hole in your day.

So asides from an opportunity to break free of Market Street’s smoggy recesses and having somewhere new to point your new camera, what is it that makes it that little bit special?  Two words: Mr. Darcy.  Lyme Park served as the setting of Pemberley, the home of Colin Firth’s brooding character in the BBC adaptation of Pride & Prejudice – the ultimate pilgrimage for those who think that wet shirts and outdoor pursuits should go hand-in-hand.     – Emily Brown

 

Dunham Massey - Taken by Ian Roberts

 

Dunham Massey

Advertised as the most visited of the Nation Trust’s properties, Dunham Massey in Altrincham, Cheshire is an early Georgian House which is built around a Tudor core.

It may not be the typical weekend visit for most students, but Dunham Massey’s luxurious atmosphere as well as serenity would be perfect for a quiet day of reading, walking and a place to get away when the city centre and hustle and bustle of Oxford road are becoming too much.

One of the striking factors of this park is the fact that there are Deer which are free to roam the premises; adding even more authenticity to what could be deemed quite a fairytale setting anyway.

It costs £5 for car space and the use of the public park. Food is pricey; but that’s to be expected if you’re heading down to Cheshire. Pack a lunch, pick a spot and get lost in your book. It’s going to be a chilled day.     – Naila Missous

 

Salford Quays - Taken by Michelle Simmons

 

Salford Quays

Granted, Salford Quays isn’t the first go-to for us students. It’s out of the way, more upmarket and opening hours tend to be in the daylight. However, these are things that make Salford Quays so worth a visit.

The Quays are home to, most famously, the Lowry Centre, the Imperial War Museum in the North and Media City. Although most of the latter is still a building site, they are all architecturally astonishing. You’ll find yourself transported to a strange sci-fi world of avant garde buildings that seemingly defy gravity. This continues into the Lowry where the floor is made up of a series of waves.

The Quays are great for those looking for a bit of culture that goes beyond the Manchester Museum and The Whitworth Art Gallery. The Lowry is a haven for the arts, housing two theatres and an exhibition centre. The Imperial War Museum pretty much speaks for itself but it can also be hired out as an impressive venue in the evenings and at weekends.

For anybody else, around the Quays are bars, restaurants and shops; basically everything you need for a day or evening spent away from the honey pot areas of town.     – Elizabeth Harper

 

Debate 2: Ban non-therapeutic infant male circumcision

In Britain it is accepted wisdom that female circumcision on minors (now widely referred to as female genital mutilation) is in effect child abuse. How else could you describe carrying out an unnecessary, risky, painful surgery to remove parts of a child’s genitalia? But why do our infant males’ genitals not receive the same protection from cutting?

Despite the laws safeguarding female genitals, parents of infant males in the UK are allowed to decide on behalf of their offspring whether that child’s genitals are left intact or not. This means that male juveniles are not protected from non-therapeutic infant male circumcision. Non- therapeutic infant male circumcision is the practice of amputating healthy parts of the genitals (in this case the foreskin) of a child’s penis for non-medical reasons.

But, female genital mutilation is nothing like male circumcision, right? A circumcised male penis is cleaner and circumcision isn’t dangerous like it is for females.

Wrong. The acceptance of male infant genital cutting relies on two common beliefs; one, that the foreskin is superfluous, and two, that the practice of cutting it off is trivial. Nether is true.

The foreskin is in fact a key functioning part of the penis. It is a mucous membrane (like an eyelid) and serves the purpose of keeping the glans (penis head) moist, guarding the urethral opening, and keeping it sensitive and protected in the same way as the clitoral hood protects the clitoris. On the erect penis the foreskin serves an even more important function; namely the giving of erotic pleasure. The foreskin contains thousands of ultra-sensitive nerve endings, making it a highly erogenous zone, and its ability to move during sexual intercourse increases the pleasure for both parties by increasing moistness and reducing discomfort through a gliding action.

Indeed, scientist have mapped the regions of the intact penis with the use of “fine-touch pressure threshold tests”. Their findings show that the most sensitive regions on an intact penis are exactly those removed by circumcision. On the circumcised penis the most sensitive location is the circumcision scar –  however, this is still less sensitive than five other areas on the intact adult penis. The result is significantly less pleasurable sex and masturbation for the circumcised male compared to the intact male.

The procedure itself is also very significant. Firstly, the psychological impact of the pain experienced from circumcision has been recognised as causing problems in infants and children, including post-traumatic stress disorder, maternal bonding failures after breached trust, and a lowered pain threshold recorded in babies more than 6 months after the operation.

These points, however, are trivial in comparison to the risks entailed in the procedure despite the rigorous rules on practice. Circumcised infants are not only more likely to have genital illnesses than uncircumcised children, but when complications occur they are much more likely to be serious complications such as permanent mutilation, infection or haemorrhage. Less frequent risks also include gangrene and whole or partial amputation of the penis. However, this price is still far less than that paid by some 200 babies per year in the USA, who pay with their lives.

With such a lot at stake, how can we legitimately uphold that becoming circumcised is for a parent to decide, not for the individual when he is at full consenting age and able to make an informed choice? The laws of this country rightly state that religious observance should be a personal choice. This is why I cannot accept that it is a parent’s right to force their religious beliefs on their non-consenting offspring, whereas I can accept, and in fact defend, an individual’s right to show his religious commitment in adulthood by making an informed decision to become circumcised.

See the other side of this debate.

What’s your opinion? @Mancuniondebate

Feature: Bombay Bicycle Club

The Manchester Apollo is a big venue. Huge, for a band like Bombay Bicycle Club. I managed to catch up with Jamie and Suren from the band in the middle of sound check. It’s the group’s third show in a row and there are six more dates to come with barely a day off in between. I ask them how it feels to be on a tour this big. “We don’t normally tour this much”, Suren tells me, “and this is our biggest show ever”.

Jamie points out that it’s their first electric tour for a year and a half, having last toured in support of their acoustic album, Flaws.  The new album, A Different Kind of Fix, is another sound entirely. Bombay Bicycle Club have, like many of their contemporaries, moved towards a more electronic sound. They readily admit that it’s a bit of a risk. “Critically, it’s probably been our best received album” Jamie tells me, “it’s more difficult for the fans, to be honest.” But when the quartet take to the stage later and open with new single ‘Shuffle’ the reaction from the crowd is huge. Admittedly, the older songs are probably better received but they are an energetic and exciting live band that easily manages to win the crowd over. Some of the new tracks like ‘How Can You Swallow So Much Sleep’ and the next single ‘Lights out, Words Gone’ are wonderfully received. ‘So Much Sleep’ in particular is an exciting addition to the set. It sounds enough like the older material to be familiar while showing how strong their new sound can be.

When Bombay Bicycle Club first emerged many parts of the media portrayed them as a part of an upstart scene of pop-sounding underage bands. Despite their already varied back catalogue, many music fans and bloggers derided them as being too “Topman”; a style over substance group, not dissimilar to such acts as recent touring partners Two Door Cinema Club. I ask them how they feel about such associations. “We’ve never felt like part of any scene”, Jamie tells me; “we just played at the same underage venues [as bands like old schoolmates Cajun Dance Party]. People have hopefully stopped writing about that”. But he does admit that being seen as a ‘young’ band did mean the boys received more leeway from reviewers than other acts might have. Suren tells me they “aren’t the most social of bands” and don’t have many friends in other acts. Given their hectic recording and touring schedule, it’s perhaps easy to see why. Despite this, female vocalist Lucy Rose joins the foursome on stage for a number of tracks from the most recent album and during set closer ‘The Giantess’ they are joined on vocals by support act Dry the River.

Despite the set drawing heavily from the new album, the gig also revisits a number of less recent tracks from the bands history. Older number ‘Open House’ makes a return to the set after a lengthy absence. Two songs from Flaws are also aired in the middle of the set. In fact, the reception for acoustic single ‘Ivy and Gold’ was one of the biggest of the night. With such a varied back catalogue that changes direction with every album, it’s an open question where the band goes next. For Suren, the electronic sound is the future: “This is the Bombay Bicycle Sound”. Jamie however seems to disagree. “I’d like to make another 4-piece band rock album, but it’s hard to do that and not sound like so many other bands”. For Jamie, the future lies in “the sort of off-kilter pop songs like ‘Shuffle’ and ‘Always Like this’” but “with more guitars”. So can the boys see themselves going back and making another acoustic album? Jamie pauses for a moment and then tells me, “I’m sure Jack [Steadman, the lead singer] will, whether we do it as Bombay Bicycle Club or not.”

When I ask them if they feel intimidated by the size of the venue, they tell me they look forward to it but they worry about being so far away from the fans. It’s a fear that may be well founded. Older tracks like ‘Always like This’ and ‘Lamplight’ have the masses jumping around at the front. But in such an arena, with a considerable amount of seated fans, they don’t have that live moment that can bring the whole crowd to its feet. By playing such a big venue the gig loses some of that necessary energy. Bombay Bicycle Club are impressive and give the fans enough of what they want. But part of me thinks it was a big step up that came just a bit too soon.

 

Debate 2: Defending circumcision

Circumcision of new-born males has been debated for thousands of years, but if done professionally and with appropriate following check-ups, there seems little reason to ban it. Those who would like to ban the procedure point to  the unethical nature of performing the procedure on young children, the risk of complications and the supposed cost to sexual activity in later life. However, advocates of circumcision claim that the potential health benefits outweigh any risk.

A study conducted by several doctors in Kenya between 2002 and 2005 aimed to find whether circumcision improved or impaired sexual activity. The study found that compared to pre-circumcision, “64.0% of circumcised men reported that their penis was “much more sensitive” and 54.5% rated their ease of reaching orgasm as “much more” at month 24”. Those circumcised at birth would be unable to comment on such a difference, but these men were sexually active before the procedure. The World Health Organisation (WHO) also found in 2007 that “male circumcision performed by well-trained medical professionals was safe and reduced the risk of acquiring HIV infection by approximately 60%”. Whilst they note that this is not 100% and that contraception should still be used, they nevertheless described the findings as “an important landmark in the history of HIV prevention”.

The important phrase in the WHO report is “performed by well-trained medical professionals”. Whilst complications do sometimes occur, several studies have found that this depends greatly on the experience and skill of the particular surgeon involved. In 1993, UK doctors N. Williams and L. Kapila found that, as circumcision was seen as a relatively minor procedure, it was often delegated to junior surgeons. If the procedure was taken more seriously, and surgeons were better trained to do it, then the already-low risk of complications could be further reduced.

Perhaps the largest issue, however, is the fact that new-born children are unable to consent to a procedure which will have a permanent effect on their lives. Obviously there are times when an infection or a severe case of phimosis leaves little choice but to operate, but there are certain faiths which advise the circumcision of all new-born males, regardless of circumstance.

Whilst I would never condone certain circumcision rituals, such as that done by the Xhosa tribe in South Africa with blunt or rusty blades, as long as the procedure will be done under anaesthetic and by an experienced surgeon, it should be up to the parents to make that decision. For a male not to be circumcised can have serious implications in some religions like Islam where an uncircumcised male may not participate fully in religious activity. In such religious societies, it would be likely that uncircumcised males could be ostracised to some degree if they had not undergone the procedure. Perhaps more concerning is the possibility that a ban on professional circumcision of newborns could lead to families attempting ‘DIY’ surgery with whatever instruments are available, leading to a dramatic increase in the risk of complications or even death.

As long as society starts to take circumcision more seriously rather than wincing at the thought of it, procedures could be improved and surgeons could be better trained. If that becomes the case then there seems little reason to prevent parents from having the option to circumcise their child.

 

See the other side of this debate.

What’s your opinion? @Mancuniondebate

Manchester’s very own comedy film festival

On 31st October and 1st November Manchester will be playing host to the premier of Cofilmic, the Short Comedy Film Festival.

From the mind of Manchester business woman, Janet Harrison, Cofilmic gives aspiring producers, actors, writers, comedians and directors the chance to have their work ogled by the masses and judged by a panel of comedy’s finest.

The event will take place at The Comedy Store on Deansgate Locks, including the award ceremony on the evening of the 1st November. Get your glad rags out guys and gals, at only £5 for a ticket are you going to miss this fine gem of an oppurtunity?

Looking at those of you who want nothing more than the world to see what gag-busting skills you have to offer, this is the place for you to rub shoulders with the people who’ve got the know-how and what-nots.

The judges thus far include:

Charlie Hanson, BAFTA winning producer whose recent credits include Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant’s TV series Extras, as well as their film Cemetery Junction

Jon Mountague, BBC Comedy North executive producer 

Leslee Udwin, East is East and recently released sequel West is West producer 

Don Ward, founder of The Comedy Store

Lindsay Hughes, Executive Producer and Head of Talent, Baby Cow

Andy Baker, Managing director of global filmmakers community Mofilm

Henry Normal, co-founder of Baby Cow

Cofilmic’s creater, our Janet, produced her first comedy short film in 2010, and was alerted to the lack of support for those trying to make it in the competetive comedy film industry.

The lack of a dedicated comedy film festival, the rich heritage of comedy in the North West and the dwindling amount of support organisations inspired Janet to look at how she could collaborate with comedy and film professionals in the North West.

Cofilmic will also provide an ongoing, professional talent development platform for budding hopefuls.  The overarching aim being to create an environment that may kick-start a whole new era in comedy film making for the UK, based out of Manchester. 

Janet said “I feel the panel events will be beneficial to students as they will have a unique opportunity to hear from and question those directly involved in making, commissioning, writing and filming comedy in the UK.  All are top industry professionals who are currently working in the industry and are extremely well respected.  In addition they will have an opportunity to network with film makers, writers, producers and directors and form collaborations to get their own projects off the ground.  All for free!”

Like your eggs funny? Got some wit to spread on the bread of banter?

Cofilmic opens at The Comedy Store at 1pm on Monday 31st October, go forth and share the laughter.

cofilmic.co.uk

Home Grown comediennes, Lady Garden

 

Described by the Daily Telegraph as ‘Britain’s funniest women’, Lady Garden are five girls who have been working their bums off climbing the ladder to comedy genius status.

 

Since graduating from our very own University of Manchester back in 2008, they began their journey Edinburgh Fringe and have this year set up their critically acclaimed sell-out monthly residency, Lady Garden & Friends at The Wilmington Arms in Islington.

 

On the world of laughter’s larger stage, the troop have been on Radio 4’s Front Row, Radio 2’s The Art’s Show, performed at Glastonbury and Latitude, were in the kitchen on Comic Relief’s Upstairs Downtown Abbey, and most impressively on Dick and Dom.

 

I had a chat with the five girls that make up Lady Garden; Hannah, Rose, Eleanor, Camille and Beattie before they returned to Manchester for the Comedy Festival on 29th October. 

 

Dani: So you guys are returning to Manchester on Saturday for the Comedy Festival and performing at Platt Chapel?

 

Lady Garden: Yes we are, just behind Fallowfield and Rusholme so you can have a curry on Curry Mile first then have nice evening out at Queen of Hearts afterwards.

 

Dani: So is that the plan for you guys on Saturday night, out in Fallowfield?

 

Lady Garden: Yeah we’ll probably end up in a bar somewhere in Fallowfield.

 

Dani: You graduated from Manchester in 2008 and made your way to Edinburgh, any tips for budding sketch comedians?

 

Lady Garden: Write as much as you can because most of it will be crap, every 10 you write one might be passable. When you first set out perform as much as possible, do as many gigs as you can to experience performing live in front of an audience, and also get a day job, a flexible day job.

 

Dani: I was going to ask is it quite lucrative now that you’ve made a name for yourselves?

 

Lady Garden:  We make millions from it, we’re currently looking at penthouses and just bought a Ferarri.

 

Dani: Can you see yourselves making more in the future?

 

Lady Garden: Hopefully in about ten years when we’ve got our own series.

 

Dani: What jobs have you ended up having to do? Any really horrific ones?

 

Lady Garden: I used to work in an office that distributed software, I was collecting payments.

 

Beattie was basically a debt collector.

 

Before Edinburgh, to raise money, we decided to set up a cleaning business. We only got one job which was just disgusting. We had to clean blood, broken glass, insects.

 

Dani: Where were you cleaning?

 

Lady Garden: Fallowfield.

 

Dani: What’s it like travelling around the country in a group?  Is it a good experience and lots of fun or do want to kill each other?

 

Lady Garden: It can either go really well and be really fun, or very badly and really un-fun. We can be driving through the night all in one big car singing along to Lady Gaga and Heart fm, or we’ve had journeys like our trip to Edinburgh this year.

 

It took a mammoth 16 hours and started with the roof of Beattie’s car being hack-sawed open in London because it was jammed, we drove through the night and arrived in Edinburgh at 6.30am. 

 

So advice would be check your oil take lots of Pro Plus.

 

 Dani: Do you feel closer now that you’re sharing this experience, or do you feel like you can’t bear to be around each other when you’re not performing?

 

Lady Garden: We can’t stand each other.

 

No it’s a bit of both, we’re very close, probably too close.

 

Dani: Is there much you miss about Manchester?

 

Lady Garden: Cheap drinks, clubs, nightlife.

 

Dani: What was your favourite club?

 

Lady Garden: Roadhouse and Mint Lounge, Queen of Hearts, Tiger Lounge, Sankeys, Warehouse Project, we did like the Warehouse Project.

 

I miss the Curry Mile, and Primark.

 

Dani: So I take it you’re all looking forward to coming back here then?

 

Lady Garden: Yeah it’s going to be brilliant.

 

We’ll be in Primark if you can’t find us.

 http://www.manchestercomedyfestival.co.uk/10mcf_show.aspx?event=928

Album: Youmeatsix – Sinners Never Sleep

YoumeatSix
Sinners Never Sleep
Virgin Records

3.5 out of 5

Youmeatsix are one of the fastest rising British bands of recent years; a fact seemingly confirmed by their scooping up of Best British Band at the Kerrang! Awards earlier this year, beating 3 time winners Bullet for my Valentine. Not allowing themselves to settle, the band has stated in many interviews that Sinners Never Sleep will be much heavier than the previous two albums, Hold Me Down and Take Off Your Colours.

To gain a heavier sound, Youmeatsix have collaborated with metalcore vocalists Winston McCall of Parkway Drive and Ollie Sykes of Bring Me the Horizon. While McCall’s screams alone would be perfect on ‘Time is Money’, alongside Josh Franceschi’s they sound like two songs that don’t gel together. Unfortunately, the same is true of ‘Bite My Tongue’ featuring Sykes.

Youmeatsix have done softer, melodic songs really well on all their previous albums with ‘Always Attract’ and ‘Fireworks’ and this continues on Sinners Never Sleep. Franceschi’s voice is much more fitting to these songs with a particular highlight on the album being ‘Crash’.

The songs on the album might not be the most complex, but somehow the majority of the songs are simply catchy. ‘Loverboy’ is reminiscent of songs like ‘Save It for the Bedroom’ and ‘If I Were In Your Shoes’ from Take Off Your Colours with simplistic but memorable lyrics.

Overall, the album is decent and shows that Youmeatsix are deserving of their hype as a rising British talent. However, the attempt to create a heavier album in comparison to their previous releases might leave a sour taste in some fans mouths and their clean-cut image is unlikely to appeal to metal fans. You have to give it to them; they tried to do something different and add a slight twist on their music but sadly it may have backfired.

Live: Metronomy @ Academy 2

Metronomy
Academy 2
26th September

5 stars

After endlessly touring the continent’s finest festivals for what seems like an age, Metronomy tonight revealed what a well-oiled machine they are. The band finally gained the recognition they deserve via their nomination for this year’s Mercury Prize and The English Riviera is tonight showcased in all its definitive glory. A strong candidate for album of the year, the entry riff from every track is greeted by a chorus of cheers, while lead tracks ‘The Bay’ and ‘The Look’ nearly bring the house down. What’s more, the group’s notorious light show has moved on from what were somewhat humble beginnings to now being an integral part of the performance.

Having sold out Academy 3 within days of tickets going on sale, this gig was sure to be moved to it’s larger neighbour, and Academy 2 proved to be an ideal location. With the place full to bursting, the foursome provide a show with enough energy to power a small country. Nevertheless, Metronomy are dressed to the hilt and an air of cool emanates from them throughout the entire evening.

The constant 80s pop shuffle of the crowd is only broken by a mass of bodies storming towards the stage upon the playing of first album classic ‘You Could Easily Have Me’. My only gripe could possibly be that this was indeed the only offering from Pip Paine (Pay The £5000 That You Owe). But that does not detract in any way from the overall spectacle, instantly danceable numbers from Nights Out litter the setlist, and the evening is drawn to a close perfectly by an energetic rendition of ‘Radio Ladio’.

It is true; Glastonbury exposed the south-coast crooners to possibly not be the desired material for the Pyramid Stage, so obviously questions could persist about their ability to fill larger venues. Nevertheless, after tonight the only issues that come to my mind are:

Are Metronomy the most tight-knit performers around? Is ‘Heartbreaker’ the most perfectly layered pop song? Is bassist Gbenga Adelekan the coolest man on the planet?

By the way, the answer to all the questions above is yes. Bloody brilliant.

Column: Loutallica

Collaborations between bands have always been a bit of a dodgy area. Granted, the odd few seem to work, despite your conscience screaming that it’s wrong (see Aerosmith teaming up with Run-D.M.C. and smashing the original ‘Walk This Way’ to pieces),  but the vast majority just sound shit and ultimately are shit (see the endless stream of trash Fred Durst popped up on in the noughties.) But over the course of last summer, one such coming together was announced that greatly distressed me; Metallica and Lou Reed.

If you are sane, the first question you ask when you see this isn’t the usual, “Hmmm, I wonder what that will sound like?”, but rather “Who is this album being made for?” Are there vast numbers of Velvet Underground fans out there screaming for a bit more stadium metal behind Lou Reed’s voice? Are there Metallica fans who feel deprived having just one set of croaky vocals, a decade or two past their prime? Of course, there are neither; the only reason for these strange bedfellows to unite, lies in pure ego and self indulgence. Reed wants to seem more extreme than he now is and yet, his attempts ultimately likening him to a balding, middle-aged man who just bought a leather jacket and a motorbike. Metallica are also having their own little midlife crisis. Desperate to undo nearly thirty years of rebellious, beer swigging attitude and be seen as credible, they’ve decided to enlist one of the greatest vocalists in living memory, with the ironic side-effect of sapping the credibility out of all involved.

Let me be honest with you now. Every judgement I made on this car crash of an album, I made before seeing any details, hearing any songs, reading any interviews or observing the artwork, but in turn, nothing I’ve seen in the slow reveal since has changed my mind at all. In fact, every time I hear a new detail about the album or hear an extended sample, I do so getting steadily more depressed about the impending result. The most distressing detail about the whole album is the concept; yes, it’s a concept album by the way. The album is called Lulu, and charts the story of a dancer and her relationships. If that didn’t interest you enough, it also involves Jack the Ripper. If that still didn’t interest you, it’s worth noting that, ultimately, this is the score for a failed reworking of century old German plays Earth Spirit and Pandora’s Box. Whilst this is the exact quirky territory you may expect Reed to cover, I really wonder what Metallica were thinking.

When they and Reed played together at their induction to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, did they really see this as the logical next step? If so, why? Surely inspiration cannot be so dried up that, not only must they recruit an outsider, they do so bringing no ideas and perhaps more importantly not shooting down ridiculous ones Reed gives them. ‘The View’, a number in which Reed talks over plodding riffs, was released to near universal groans, seemingly proving every sceptical comment thrown Lulu’s way to be correct; which brings this rant to the point I wanted to make. Sometimes it is just better to focus on what your fans want. Now, I’m not saying that Reed or Metallica should pander to the masses and put out what they feel is a terrible album, but surely, they want to keep in the favour of long term supporters. By putting out Lulu, not only have they put out a potential flop, but they’ve also pissed in the face of fans waiting patiently for a real new album and that shows just how out of touch with their audiences both are. Collaborating with somebody your fans probably don’t like, on an album they didn’t ask for, in turn delaying the album they want.

Album: Justice – Audio, Video, Disco

Justice
Audio, Video, Disco
Edbanger Records

1 out of 5

Remember Justice? Yeah? Well you’re in for a treat then, sort of. The French duo that took electronic music by storm with their first, and critically acclaimed album † have returned with another album that is set to follow the same formula and change the face the of dance music again. Or is it? After listening to Audio, Video, Disco, it’s clear much has changed.

After the power-hitter that is Justice’s new single ‘Civilization’, the album fades. Too many songs just come and go without any real consequence; in fact, at least a third of the album sounds like it could be backing music for a shit remake of Crystal Maze. For those of you looking for another ‘Phantom Pt. 2’, a song that stood out amongst the other stellar tracks on the first album, you’re out of luck. The duo have cited Queen, The Who and Black Sabbath as influences on this LP, and whilst it’s clear that a homage to these artists exists in some of the tunes – especially the 80s guitar riffs in ‘Parade’ and ‘Newlands’ – it’s unclear as to whether it actually works for them. It often sounds confused. It seems too far removed from what made their first album great – towering drums, haunting, deep base – replaced with MGMT-style vocals and too many faceless instrumentals. It appears to be an altogether more inoffensive listen, which is sad, really. You certainly won’t find a ‘Stress’ on this record.

It will work for some, but not for me. For those who want to hear the Justice of old, avoid this album. If you simply can’t go without listening, brace yourself to be under-whelmed and slightly gutted.

Album: Sungrazer – Mirador

Sungrazer
Mirador
Electrohasch

4.5 out of 5

Europe, at least for the last three or four years, has been the place to go for fuzzy, psychedelic, underground riffs. Small bands, such as Colour Haze, Graveyard, Asteroid and Kamchatka, have flown the flag for the genre over recent years, but in Mirador, Sungrazer have stepped up to challenge all comers.

Heading up their first full length, ‘Wild Goose’ is a confident jaunt between swaggering, semi-distorted riffs and calm, seemingly endless jams, setting up a real feel for where the album is taking us. What follows is a succession of jam like tunes with long instrumental parts, leading up to crushing choruses, all helped along the way with the odd pedal effect. Trippy parts are scarcely few and far between either, with title track ‘Mirador’ an easy song to get lost in, even through some of the more crunching parts.

Worth noting also is that this is an ‘album’ album; rather, it is not just a collection of songs with no common thread. From start to end, Mirador travels in a seamless direction, washing over you all the more effortlessly in the knowledge that this is, for all intents and purposes, one solid piece of music. The real testament to this album however is the effect small, seemingly inconsequential flurries, hidden away among instrumental sections, can have. On the second spin, you may find yourself awaiting a three second long progression of simple chords, all because of the hypnotic effects and mixing of the album.

With the acclaim many critics gave to Sungrazer’s self titled EP last year, it was interesting to see how their debut full length would match up to the merits of the former. The answer is easily. Mirador is an album that is, as ludicrous as it may seem, simultaneously relaxing and exciting. Simply amazing.

Thrashing About

Three out of five stars

Conor McKee’s ‘Thrasher’ seemed even from the foyer to be fit the Royal Exchange Studio’s image of being slightly ‘younger’, and edgier than what one might expect to find in its theatre space. The woman queuing in front of me at the box office certainly seemed to think so; she looked relieved on behalf of my friend when he was told there were no more tickets available. ‘Thrasher’ had sold out to a very specific audience, the type that does not need to ‘enjoy’ a play as long as they get to discuss it afterwards. With this in mind, ‘Thrasher’ certainly delivered what it promised: a challenging play, available to be discussed with cast, writer and directors after the show. I admire the idea of the Exchange to engage with an inquisitive audience, and ‘Thrasher’ did provide plenty of discussion, but I cannot help but think that McKee probably wrote it after a very long break-up; it was not the happiest of plays.

‘Thrasher’ was created by McKee out of three short plays written separately, and came together as an interesting look at how people interact within and without their chosen relationships. The original script included 12 characters, as opposed to the six in this production. The smaller cast allowed the audience to grasp the characters’ dependence on their existing situations; although they were unhappy it was clear that they had run out of other options. We follow six characters through one day inManchester, exploring their motives and emotions and how they affect each other. McKee’s script, although rather miserable, did very skilfully set up three or four very believable, relatable relationship dynamics, despite only showing the audience a few hours of the characters’ lives. The question of why each character remained in these relationships was cleverly emphasised by a sparse, uncluttered set that did not physically distinguish between scenes. There was a distinct lack of personality on set which focussed the audience on understanding the actions of each character, and made it visually more understandable that they thought they had cut off any alternative.

The cast itself produced six very clear, convincing characters. The dialogue was very well delivered to make the audience sympathise even with the characters that weren’t very likeable. The dynamic between the six characters, Lee, Jenny, Vic, Colin, Chloe and Frank, presented three who were much easier to blame for the unhappiness onstage, and three who appeared much more passive and victimised. Several monologues allow the audience to understand how each character could have allowed themselves to get to their current situations, but this understanding was rather well challenged by the idea introduced very early on that ‘people don’t change, they just change their rules’. Throughout the performance we are reminded that each of these characters has cut themselves off through the choices they have made; it comes across as quite a frightening prospect that even the ‘victims’ have got themselves into such unhappy situations. In the final scenes of the play it is interesting that the more aggressive characters, both of whom paid another character for sex in previous scenes, end up happy and comfortable together. Although they have perhaps ‘betrayed’ each other the most they are also the most honest, albeit unpleasant, of the characters. While the audience may want Lee and Jenny to be happier together, the final scene- a repeat of the opening scene with a few extra lines added on the end- brings the audience to understand why the decisions each character made throughout the play prevents them from understanding each other.

Set in Manchester in the context of drinking, drugs, office jobs and parties, ‘Thrasher’ makes quite a clear point about communication and motivation in modern life. Throughout the play the most common prop is a mobile phone, and much of the dialogue is made up of ‘half conversations’, often two such conversations happening simultaneously. The actors make these conversations very convincing; fortunately this technique does not at all fall flat and is actually quite effective. One scene set in a call centre shows Vic and Colin struggling to have an argument while they each try to sell life insurance to a string of different customers. Jenny tries to organise appointments for her home massage business while her boyfriend Lee struggles to talk his way out of debt and into jobs next to her. The dynamics of these two relationships are quite cleverly shown to be lacking in communication; the words are there but none of the characters can quite communicate and understand each other like they used to. The remaining two characters, Chloe and Frank, are equally plagued by their phones; Chloe’s mother incessantly calls her about church while Frank ignores messages from a woman asking after him. The presence of these ‘invisible’ voices gives the audience the idea that these characters are running from their identity and the community they have set up for themselves: McKee emphasises the idea that the characters are trapped.

‘Thrasher’ is an unrelenting look at modern life and its relationship with money, age, sex and innocence. Each character is isolated by one aspect, for instance Chloe’s faith in God is unrelenting but she feels as though she doesn’t ‘understand’ anymore, that she is cut off from reality and craves ‘warmth’, by which, it is clear, she means sex. Jenny’s apparent agoraphobia increases her dependence on Lee but also her awareness that he is rarely there for her, while his lies about their financial situation show that he is motivated by money, but also by maintaining their relationship however he can. Throughout the play is communicated a sense of control and of memory, in each scene the use of names is very apparent. Lee will use Jenny’s name to try to establish a personal connection that used to be there, while Vic will use Colin or Chloe’s name as a means to establish her status over them, to control the outcome of the conversation. McKee’s script quite cleverly establishes the habitual relationships of the characters even while turning them on their heads to portray people’s real motivations and priorities.

Despite being a rather unhappy watch, ‘Thrasher’ delivered a positively challenging and brave performance. Luckily this was followed by a very lovely recital on the double bass by composer Michael Cretu, which emphasized the happier outcomes of the final scene.

Trasher ran at the Royal Exchange Studio from 28th September to 1st October

 

Interview- Michael Mayhew

Fresher’s week 2010. A bunch of nervous freshman bustle into a lecture hall for an introductory lecture. Welcome to Manchester Drama department. I am your lecturer, you are my students and this is what you will be taught. Half way through, a mysterious scruffy figure wearing baggy trousers and a tweed hat stumbles into the hall. He plonks himself somewhere between the lecturers and students, sniggering to himself whilst noisily fumbling in his pockets. Who is this man whose uninhibited nature intoxicates us as he tells us to forget about lectures and so called “required reading”, to venture off the Oxford Road, to explore and to “do”. The answer is simple yet indefinable. The answer is Michael Mayhew.

A year on I find myself walking down a cobbled alleyway lined with old, rehabilitated Morris Minors. I end up next to the last garage on the street, nervously calling out under the crack in the door. With the great theatricality of a stage curtain, the garage door slowly rises, revealing feet, legs, torso and then finally the man himself, as a whole; Michael Mayhew, defined by some as performance artist, but more importantly to him, as an organism, a living breathing, “doing” human being.

When asked to define himself, Michael replies; “I think the things that happen to you shape who you possibly are and you have a series of decisions to make about who you want to be.”

From day one Michael Mayhew lived outside the box. Born and raised on a “seedy fairground” with an uncle as an all-in wrestler and a dad who drove dirt-cars, it was not only his back ground that set him apart from the rest. Experiencing a “horrific” accident when he was a kid Michael broke his legs and his arms leaving him an invalid for a period. In a more socially segregated time, with much discrimination against disabled people, Michael’s role as an outsider was further confirmed.

Determined to explore these formative experiences, Michael rejected the family business and attended the radical Dartington College of arts. Dartington’s focus on a performative and multi-disciplinary approach to the arts catalyzed the evolution of his ideas. It is the influence of this particular education system which prompted what he represents. A system “which asked you to ask not what something is but the possibilities of what it could be.”

“It was just… standing still was dance which was electric for someone who just had two broken legs”

Unfortunately, Michael claims that this particular ethos of a very open education system has, since, been diminished, eroded and attacked by the “establishment” and doesn’t exist anymore. “The establishment has swallowed up every subversive aim that has been thrown at it, and has made it its own”.

Theatre was Michael’s first love, but he felt uncomfortable with the hierarchical system within it, everyone has their particular roles, the set designer makes the scenery, the builders build, the actors act and the rehearsal process is meticulously planned out in advance. “It was departmentalized structuring and that’s not for me”. Leaving conventional theatre behind, Michael decided to dedicate his work mainly to the exploration of performance art.

Mayhew accepts that performance art such as his own provides a fundamental change to conventional theatre, but as part of an “evolutionary process”. He believes the role of an artist is to reflect and question our culture in order to understand where we are. It is a “barometer of our times and you can’t blame the barometer for the weather.” This aspect of art is, he claims, a deeply historical tradition which has always been a fundamental underpinning of society. “You can’t pin it down and so the academic can’t own it, it’s a very fluid thing.”

Art is for Mayhew, incapable of categorization. His own art has taken place in many forms, or different “language, patterns and structures” as he describes it. He has won awards for dance, traditional theatre and writing and is currently nominated for a British composer award even though he can’t read music or play an instrument. Why shouldn’t one be able to practice multiple means of expression and test the pre-conceived boundaries the so-called “establishment” has created? What defines what he asks?

When asked why this is art and not theatre, and is theatre not art? He replies yes! It’s all art! For Michael, the creation process is a very holistic process “and that’s not hippy, that’s just about being complete”.

In keeping with his ideas of completeness, Michael’s life has come full circle. Nearing fifty, and after years of travelling he has finally decided to return home to Manchester. “This city shines with people saying I’ll give it a go. What if? Why not?” and it is “full of musicians who can’t read music”.

Michael wants to introduce Manchester to performance art with his new performance piece In Remembrance performed on 11/11/11; a date, the significance of which, not only relates to Remembrance day, but also the rarity of the three elevens. “I took one look at this date and thought I’ve got to do something!” he says, “You cannot let that date drift by and not recognise it as completeness”.

So, its 11 artists, in 11 hours, performed on 11/11/11.

But while the structure is complete, the substance within the structure is, in true Mayhew style, unknown, secret and ever changing. It is a holistic package of the unknown, loaded only with humanity. But humanity, he claims, is unpredictable and constantly in flux. All Michael would reveal, and all he probably knows of the performance, is that 11 artists will arrive at Platt chapel on the 11/11/11 and for 11 hours they will remember, but we don’t know what and we don’t know how.  The only way to find out is to go along and experience it for ourselves.

As I take my leave from this strangely unsettling man, I am confused but oddly exhilarated. His ideas are slightly incomprehensible and at times arguably pretentious, yet I can’t help but feel perplexed and liberated. I am left with his final words echoing within my head.

“You can go, I got a plan, but actually the world starts changing around you. So you have this plan, and the structure of the work is happening, but actually there are things that will start happening that you haven’t written down, that you haven’t pre-empted and you haven’t expected; and those are the things that will change your life. And that’s what this work does.”

Performance will be held at Platt Chapel on 11/11/11

Tickets are available at www.inremembrance.org.uk

Album: The Drums – Portamento

The Drums
Portamento
Moshi Moshi/Island Records

2 out of 5

Just over a year since the release of their critically acclaimed, self-titled debut, The Drums are back with Portamento, their palpably unremarkable second effort. Given the turbulence of the band’s recent past (losing a guitarist, and dealing with the upheaval that came with it), you might expect Portamento to be musically a very different record to The Drums. It isn’t: it merely sounds like a moodier re-run.

Despite this, ‘Book of Revelation’ is still a strong opener, retaining the melancholy catchiness and infectious bass of their first album. “I’ve seen the world, and there’s a heaven and there’s no hell”, lead singer Jonathan Pierce assures us during the chorus; unfortunately, listening to the album’s other 11 tracks arguably proves the opposite. By the time we reach the fourth track ‘Money’, the album’s first single, the songs already begin to blend into a bland musical sameness. Although the slower tempo and softer, less frantic vocals of ‘Searching For Heaven’ do introduce some progression, the band then revert back to their usual quick, poppy style for the remaining five tracks. ‘If He Likes It Let Him Do It’, with its Morrissey-esque vocals (heard throughout the album, most obviously in ‘Money’), quickly becomes annoying, and Pierce’s whining voice on ‘In the Cold’ doesn’t take long to start grating.

The word ‘portamento’ is an Italian term denoting a vocal slide between two pitches, but despite its connotations with change there is little to be found here. Few of the 12 tracks on Portamento are actively bad, but most are lazy and uninventive, which makes the album a frustrating listen. Pierce’s lyrics in ‘Hard to Love’ perhaps sum up the album well; “I would never hate you, but you’re hard to love” – except in this case, it’s very hard.