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Month: November 2012

Let me tell you about Chorlton

Written by Ben Walker on . Posted in News.

Chorlton is the gastronomic centre of Manchester, whether you’re eating, drinking or shopping; it is no exaggeration to say this suburban village has everything. Here I will endeavour to guide you through a list of my favourite independent outlets to ensure that your festive season will be full of well-informed culinary adventures.

Heading out for breakfast? Manchester does nothing well if not casual dining, and Hickson and Black’s Deli boasts the finest bacon sandwich in all of Manchester. There is limited seating, so having your butty to go will allow you to gorge on crispy, locally-reared back bacon nestled in a homemade bloomer whilst pushing on to the next port of call.

However I understand it rains in Manchester a lot, so rarely do we have the crisp autumnal morn required for breakfast-to-go. Never fear, Gabriel’s Grocery is a beacon of regional produce prepared to very high standards. In many ways, this joint encapsulates what the Chorlton food is all about: simple, local, tasty and reasonably priced.

Full of breakfast, we go in search of morning coffee – and dare I say elevenses? This place has been a stalwart for me over the years and there is no better place to brunch in Chorlton than North Star Delicatessen. The glass windows allow light to flood the open plan space which is adorned with home-made cakes, quiche, salads, sandwiches and other light Mediterranean lunch dishes. NSD, without a shadow of a doubt, offers a quite brilliant brunching opportunity whether it’s with company or simply you and a newspaper.

We now head straight for lunch, and Chorlton’s best do not need me to big them up. The Parlour, winner of The Observer’s Food Magazine Awards 2012 for best Sunday lunch is really all I need say, except that it gets very busy so go early. Again, there is little for me to add but ‘Winner of best cheap eat in the North’ in this year’s OFM Awards, which is Bar San Juan. It really is a little piece of Spain serving pretty much the finest tapas I’ve ever had.

Tummies fortified against late afternoon hunger pangs, maybe it’s now time to do some shopping. You may want to visit WH Frost, the most traditional of butchers, to pick up meat that is stocked in both the Parlour and NSD. It has been on top of its game for over a century and indeed long may it continue. Just up Wilbraham Road is Out of the Blue. This fishmongers exudes class on every level, from its everyday fish selection to its special occasion luxury line – which is delivered to the shop on a sometimes tri-daily basis to ensure the freshest and most beautiful fruits of the sea.

However, Chorlton (and maybe famously so) is not just for carnivores. Unicorn, Manchester’s vegetarian co-operative grocery breaks down all the pretences of somewhere that might use words like ‘wholesome’, ‘organic’ and ‘ethical’. It has a deli bar, fresh bread counter and a seriously good beer, cider and wine selection. However, what knocks me out about this place is the fruit and veg, which is always so fresh, healthy, appetising and utterly sumptuous. They even have a lettuce pick ‘n’ mix section which is picked from their own plot and is an absolute treat.

Across the road from Manchester’s premier independent supermarket is Manchester’s premier delicatessen: Barbakan. Besides from supplying 15,000 loaves a week to local businesses, you can sample the delights of the in-house master baker along with a very fine cured meat and artisan cheese selection. Furthermore, the shelves are bursting with what seems like every specialist canned or dried delicacy from over the entire continent from Gdansk to Gibraltar. This emporium is the epitome of what a deli should be.

Late afternoon? Early evening? We head to Pi for pie and more importantly delicious beer. Pi is a haven for continental beer and some fantastic oddities. Nationally renowned for its quality and quantity of beer, its atmosphere and friendliness means it is in my top 5 Manchester pubs and bars. Do try a legendary Delirium Tremens or a Pauwel Kwak served in its round bottomed glass propped up by a wooden stands, or even a Sri Lankan Lion Stout. Take some time to enjoy the intricacies of beautiful beer in the serene setting of Chorlton.

These very wonderful places can only exist if people in their locality go and enjoy them. Have a foodie day in Chorlton; there is literally something for everything, my list is nowhere near exhaustive of the delights on offer, but simply a sample. Like anywhere, the best way to explore is to go yourself and have a leisurely stroll around. Mooch in the shops, peer through windows, read menus, spy upon other peoples’ plates of food. Ultimately treat yourself, indulge and enjoy, let your senses free and appetite roam through the butchers, delicatessens, restaurants, pubs, cafés, bars, supermarkets and fishmongers.

 

Get lost, Get Baked

Written by Emily Clark on . Posted in News.

Get Baked is a newly-conceived business selling cakes, pies, brownies and American sweets to a student market. The concept is a good one – delivery of desserts to your front door. Their Facebook footfall is large; this is probably due to their regular posts depicting their freshly baked goods and also because of the association with smoking weed. Inspired.

I ordered a selection of their offerings: Caramel Apple Pie, Chocolate Lumpy Bumpy, Banoffee Gateau, Malteser Brownie and Marshmallow Blondie, with a side of milk chocolate sauce (I was sharing). The delivery was prompt and would have felt even faster in the land of the high and drunk.

I’ll start with the Caramel Apple Pie at £2.75– the filling tasted very artificial with cubes of apple in a processed type apple sauce. The pastry was fine but the caramel was fairly flavourless. The whole pie generally had an unloved air. Had I only ordered this, I would have been very disappointed. It just didn’t seem homemade. Hopes dashed, I moved onto the Banoffee Gateau, at £2.00.

Firstly, what’s wrong with Banoffee Pie? Sounds much nicer to me; gâteau just implies pretentious cake. But never mind, what was primarily wrong with this cake was the lack of both its eponymous heroes. Banana was entirely boycotting every element of the dessert, although my housemate did say that he caught a fleeting essence of it in the filling. The toffee manifested in a few tiny (grated?!) pieces, sprinkled forlornly on top of the cream that had started to congeal a bit and do that funny off-colour thing. The cream also had a strong taste of lime – an unwelcome visitor having expected banana. The sponge, however, was beautifully light and moist – but this was too little too late.

Finally, success arrived with the £3 Chocolate Lumpy Bumpy Cheesecake. The chocolate ganache layer on top was thin and dark, shrouding a cloud of thick cheesecake filling. Underneath were the layers of chocolate mousse a chocolate sponge that was again beautifully light. This one was more expensive than the other two, maybe because they knew it was actually good – but why not just standardise the prices at £2.50 rather than having each pie or gâteau at a slightly different price.

The Malteser brownie was another disappointment, and had a strong acrid taste, like cigarette ash or burnt coffee. I think maybe it had burnt slightly on the bottom. My housemates didn’t notice this as much as I did but even if I’m exaggerating its bitter taste, the brownie still wouldn’t have passed in my book. It needed more chocolate and less sugar. It needed to be taller in height to have enough thickness to be gooey and moist. The Malteser element was undetectable; I was imagining them embedded in the top. When in doubt, use the Ben & Jerry technique – if you’re going to have chunks of something throughout, make them big and obvious. If they’re unfeasible to bake with, they should have used a different ingredient.

The Marshmallow Blondie was better, you could actually see the half-melted marshmallows sunk in the top. Good start, but the thickness of the blondie again needed to be more and again it had too much sugar. The texture was also fairly raw. I’m all for a squidgy brownie, but this one simply needed longer in the oven.

The chocolate sauce I had ordered wasn’t actually available, so they gave me a toffee sauce and a Nutella sauce instead. The toffee sauce was thin and artificial. The Nutella was Nutella, and I am sceptical as to whether or not the resale of Nutella is even legal. I thought that the amount of sauce supplied with all the cakes was not enough – the ideal Caramel Apple Pie would surely have caramel dribbled liberally and temptingly so that it spills over the sides.

Despite the initially professional-looking graphics and branding on the website, the packaging was very amateurish. The cakes came in blank burger boxes and the brownies were wrapped in foil. The sauces came in a paper bag and had been messily decanted into the containers and also were leaking into the bag. A comparison which sprang to mind were the Graze boxes, another student set-up company which really sets the example for professional packaging that mirrors the ethics of the company.

I have a few other niggles with the website. The Chocolate Fudge Cake, described “it’s gotta’ [sic] be on the menu“ was ironically not in stock. Many other things have also not been in stock when I have otherwise visited the website. The floating selection boxes on the website didn’t align properly with the items so I mistakenly selected certain things, even though I was sober. Many brands were misspelt, such as Nutella “Nuttella” or Malteser “Malteaser.”

Despite wanting to support small businesses and student ventures, despite wishing I had come up with the concept myself, despite loving all things to do with baking and eating, Get Baked does not win my seal of approval. Get lost – or maybe just get better.

 

5 songs in the field of…Fire

Written by Sam Bartram on . Posted in Music.

The xx – Hot like Fire

Fire is definitely hot, The xx got that much right. Well, actually, they got more than that right because, as expected, this Aaliyah cover is a charming track from the London trio. This song is more mellow than a firecracker, think along the lines of gentle smouldering coals.

Johnny Cash – Ring of Fire

Imagine what the great Johnny Cash would make of the popular drinking game which shares its name with this song? Food for thought. But seriously, this track’s  nearly fifty years old,  and you’d be hard pushed to find someone who doesn’t know these lyrics.

Busta Rhymes – Fire It Up

It’s never made exactly clear who, what or indeed, why Busta wants to ‘fire it up’, but he’s certainly very serious about it. And who would argue with him? Exactly. Lets just take his word for it and do what the nice man says.

Magnetic Man ft. Ms Dynamite – Fire

Ms Dynamite rates relatively high on the all time list of cool female singers, so if she tells you to play with fire, you’re probably going to play with fire, no questions asked. The rolling bass could only ever be made by Benga, Skream and Artwork and as ever, Dynamite’s fiery rap compliments it perfectly.

SBTRKT-Wildfire

For a track with vocals from Little Dragon, it seems appropriate that fire is involved. As for the wild part, SBTRKT always know how to spark up a good night and continue to sell out wherever they go. Overall, Wildfire, remains a firm favourite among on the club scene.

MMU students exhibit protest art

Written by Anthony Organ on . Posted in News.

Manchester Metropolitan University students have had their protest-themed artwork exhibited at the Students’ Union (MMUnion).

The exhibition is titled ‘The Art of Protest: MMUnion Edition’ and is a collaboration between the Union and the award-winning arts charity NOISE.

Katie Parker, MMUnion’s Community Officer, who organised the event, said: “It’s absolutely incredible. We couldn’t have predicted the standard of work that we have received.”

The project was intended to be a reaction to the upcoming #Demo2012 student protest, and asked students to create something based around the theme of “The Art of Protest.”

Ms Parker said: “When I came into office we had to prepare for the demo, but the feedback from the student community, officers and staff was quite critical.

“They thought that it would be another opportunity for the media to portray students as anti-social or unengaged members of society.

“The exhibition is about reimagining what the concept of protest could be and encouraging students to be creative as they protest.”

Exhibited work included Barbie dolls hanging from the ceiling with notes about eating disorders attached and a painting of last summer’s Manchester riots, alongside work by prominent figures such as Banksy and Billy Bragg.

It took three months to organise and involved around fifty volunteers from all of the MMU faculties.

Collette Curry, a postgraduate researcher of Artificial Intelligence, created a piece highlighting the effects of isolation and depression, based on her own experiences of suffering with bipolar disorder.

She said: “I feel quite honoured and very happy to have my work selected. The whole exhibition is so good.”

80 people turned up to the launch night which featured films, live poetry and live music all by Manchester students.

Daniel Collins, in his third year of a degree in Fine Art, used “desecrated” flags to comment on the Euro crisis and said: “To see people engaging with my work and actually discussing it is really exciting on a personal level.

“This is the first time my work has actually been selected to be exhibited anywhere, so it’s really exciting and a great opportunity.”

The artwork will be placed into an online gallery and will be considered in the national ‘Art of Protest’ project, with a chance to be exhibited at the People’s History Museum.

GMP hires apprentices to work for under Minimum Wage

Written by Ellen Conlon on . Posted in News.

Great Manchester Police is recruiting apprentices to be paid under the National Minimum Wage, in a cost-cutting drive.

There are 22 apprenticeship positions available, whose role will be to help the neighbourhood teams. They will be paid £10,500 a year, while the minimum wage is around £12,000 a year.

Greater Manchester Police is currently trying to cut £134m, and will eventually see 2,700 posts axed.

This comes as a Manchester has just elected a new Police Commissioner, who will receive a salary of over £100,000 and needs no prior experience in the police force.

The apprentice role will mostly involve doing paperwork rather than being on the beat, and police force bosses are hoping to recruit from ‘hard-to-reach’ communities where people tend not to consider a career in law-enforcement.

They hope to recruit people with ‘potential’ rather than experience.

The title given to those on the year-long apprenticeships will be Operational Support Officers (OSO).

After six months in the job the wages would rise to the equivalent of £12,900-a-year and once it was finished the apprentices could join the force either as civilian workers or constables in the future.

Chief Constable Sir Peter Fahy said that he hopes the recruitment of young blood will help to keep his workforce fresh.

A report published on the scheme said: “The introduction of apprentice OSOs in GMP represents a cost-effective approach to workforce planning.

“If the OSO apprenticeship scheme is successful, there is considerable potential to extend apprenticeships across the wider organsiation.”

One police officer said: “It’s policing on the cheap.”

GMP declined to comment, but Councillor Steve Bashforth, of Greater Manchester Police Authority, said: “It’s an imaginative way to get people into work who may not get that opportunity.

“It’s a great idea.”

Live: Rolo Tomassi

Written by Joe Goggins on . Posted in Music.

27th October 2012, Deaf Institute

7/10

I first saw Rolo Tomassi play live about four years ago and they gave me the shock of my life. The evening’s headliners were Blood Red Shoes – for the uninitiated, a Brighton-based two-piece who sound like Fleetwood Mac if they’d made a grunge record – and when you go to see a band who make comparatively straightforward rock music, you don’t tend to expect them to have handpicked an outfit quite like Rolo Tomassi to support. They’re halfway between math rock and hardcore, and they won me over that night with a thrillingly energetic live performance, although their debut record, Hysterics, was decidedly uneven.

Their second record, Cosmology, was startlingly controlled by way of comparison, bringing frontwoman Eva Spence to the fore by introducing angelic, sung vocals alongside her demonic screaming. The result was a tremendously well-honed album that moved away, sonically, from their chaotic first, and left you wondering exactly where they’d progress from here.

Judging by the opening one-two of tracks from new full-length Astraea, still a week from release, they’ve moving to slightly more direct territory than the experimental – and occasionally ponderous – Cosmology; ‘Howl’s tension-building, synth-driven intro quickly gives way to an avalanche of guitars, while ‘Ex Luna Scientia’ makes excellent use of the vocal back and forth between Spence and brother James, who sounds a little road-worn tonight. The band do a good job of incorporating Hysterics‘ better moments; ‘Oh, Hello Ghost’ slowly thunders its way towards a frenetic climax that leads nicely into early single ‘I Love Turbulence’.

It’s disappointing, then, that some of Cosmology’s finest cuts are overlooked; ‘French Motel’ and ‘Unromance’ would’ve gone down a storm and provided a break, midset, from the unfamiliarity of Astraea material, and therein lies the problem when you’re touring behind a record that most of the audience won’t have heard yet. Absolutely criminal is the decision to omit Cosmology‘s title track, the peak of the band’s recorded output, and while an explanation is offered – they don’t have the right gear on the road with them – and Astraea closer ‘Illuminare’ proves a decent substitute, the set still feels a little flat without it.

Genre-wise, Rolo Tomassi are a little tricky to pin down, but a live show as hectic as theirs is a real breath of fresh air in the current musical climate – if only the show had come a fortnight later, the crowd might’ve been able to fully appreciate Astraea beforehand and, therefore the entirety of tonight’s set.

How to Improve Grades and Alienate People…

Written by Grainne Morrison on . Posted in Fashion & Beauty.

The University of Manchester Library, formerly and affectionately known as John Rylands, is a microcosm of Manchester’s student population. One witnesses fellow academics at their best, but mostly at their worst.  The number one activity of JRUL – procrastination – means the outfits of every scholar are scrutinised by those who should be focusing their attention on more ‘important’ tasks. Yet, if we are all aware of this, why have I had to experience numerous fashion offences that are truly detrimental to my studies? I’m not asking for Blue 3 to resemble the front row of Chanel , but is it really that difficult not to wear a bright pink onesie to the library? Those, and crocs, are universally offensive- just don’t. In fact, please refrain from wearing anything that could interrupt an innocent student’s thought process.

I’d forgive every clothes disaster if JRUL made entry dependant on personal hygiene. I have once justified giving up on a days revision due to the stench of overworked and unwashed students. And girls: keep the make-up to a minimum; there’s nothing more frightening than the sight of panda eyes mid essay. We all want to express ourselves, but if that means horrifying others in doing so: save it for the holidays.

Students to face random ‘smart drug’ tests?

Written by Jonathan Breen on . Posted in News.

Students may face random drug tests during exam time due to concerns an increasing number are taking ‘smart drugs’.

10% of students in the UK and 16% in the US admit to taking ‘cognitive enhancing’ drugs to help them stay up late, concentrate and cram for deadlines, a November report found.

The widespread use of ‘cognitive enhancers’ has led to concerns among colleges and universities it may be necessary to begin random drug testing, said Barbara Sahakian a leading Cambridge psychologist who worked on the report.

Sahakian told the Indepedent, “People are starting to think about drug testing. Some of the students who don’t use cognitive enhancers may demand it because they are concerned about cheating. Some admissions tutors are also concerned about it.”

The most popular drugs are Ritalin, usually prescribed for attention deficit disorder, and Modafinil, prescribed for narcolepsy, named in the joint Academies study into ‘Human Enhancement and the Future of Work.’

The report says the drugs are favoured because they do not have any serious side effects, such as mood changes or ‘highs’, commonly associated with recreational use.

Sahakian also said some senior academics had admitted to using performance enchancing drugs.

“The head of one laboratory in the US said that all of his staff are on Modafinil and that in the future there will be a clear division between those who use Modafinil and those who don’t,” she said.

Column: Kendrick Lamar – the Saviour of Hip Hop?

Written by Joe Goggins on . Posted in Music.

Like a particularly nasty hangover, the lingering effects of Odd Future’s meteoric rise to prominence last year continue to rankle. We’re only eighteen months on from what felt like the ubiquity of ‘Yonkers’ and ‘Sandwitches’, but already it’s a little difficult to recall why, exactly, the collective created such a stir. If you can cast your mind far back enough, though, you’ll remember what it was about Odd Future that captured the imagination of the hip hop world, even fleetingly; they looked ready to administer a desperately-needed shot in the arm to a flagging genre. ‘Yonkers’ seemed like a new breed of hip hop track, eschewing the more typical lyrical conventions of recent times in favour of verbal ideas equal parts disturbing and bizarre, like an aural microcosm of Chris’ Morris’ Jam, laid over a sparse and markedly unpolished beat. Their eye-catching performance on Jimmy Fallon’s talk show evoked memories of a young Wu-Tang Clan, and their already-prodigious level of output at that stage presented something for the hip hop community to invest some emotional stock in. It’s saddening, then, that Odd Future are already best remembered pretty unflatteringly; their gratuitous use of misogynistic and homophobic language (and their belligerent attitude when pulled up on it) became very tired very fast, as did Tyler, The Creator’s shtick; he still posts irritating, inconsequential nonsense on his twitter feed with the First Letter Of Every Word Capitalised, but surely no one continues to pay him any heed.

The truth is, though, that the buzz generated by Odd Future was representative of much more than just hipster yearning to be the first blog to break the Next Big Thing; it reflected the fact that there was a dearth of fresh ideas in hip hop. The genre had finally begun to be consumed by the rampant materialism that, once upon a time, did have some relevance; no longer were cars, women and diamonds being used to gauge the rags-to-riches success of the likes of Biggie, Pac, Jay-Z and Nas; instead, we’ve had years of watching 50 Cent and Snoop Dogg parading around as self-styled pimps, contributing nothing meaningful or emotionally engaging. Musically, the genre had taken an alarming move towards soulless, manufactured pop sensibilities; to hear Kanye West, the man who pioneered a visionary production style on The Blueprint, replete with so many great vintage soul samples, produce a record that leaned so heavily on AutoTune in 808s and Heartbreak was depressing to say the least.

Fortuitously timed, then, is the arrival of good kid, m.A.A.d. city. Kendrick Lamar’s sophomore LP plays like a paean to everything I love about hip hop; vivid storytelling, complex, thought-provoking lyrical ideas and the inevitably high production values utilised in a sonically-interesting manner. It sounds like a hip hop record should – a remarkably cohesive body of work given the amount of different producers involved across a sprawling sixteen tracks. Take Lamar’s formidable technical ability into account – and the man is a genuinely superb rapper, effortlessly bending all manner of phonetically complex verses to the beat – and you’ve got a potent reminder of what makes hip hop such a powerful art form. good kid, m.A.A.d. city provides compelling evidence that a rapper in 2012 doesn’t need to rely on pugnacity or publicity stunts to meet with acclaim; there’s a bright future for the genre if more young artists follow Lamar’s lead.

Johnny Don’t Come At All

Written by Sophie Lipton on . Posted in Theatre.

‘Jonny Come Lately’ tells the story of a white working class mother and daughter who pretend to be disabled in order to cheat the system, by living off stolen goods and sponging off society. The women therefore get a shock when a Middle Eastern man played by Amr El-Bayoumi turns up desperate to stay with them for reasons unknown. Throughout the play, he tries to inject his culture into their ignorant lifestyle and treats Britain with respect and dignity. Mixed with right wing political messages, ‘Jonny Come Lately’ sent political sparks through the air implying that immigrants should not always be stereotyped living off the state. However, these cultural, political messages had to be dug up as they were hidden under the poor way the play was directed.

It can’t be ignored that the play was a bit like a GCSE drama performance, which was trying to be overtly pretentious. For instance, the scene changes were un rofessional, and the story line didn’t quite click. This was not what I had expected from ‘Coal’, an award winning company. The techniques used such as physical theatre were only hinted at, and I feel if more of it had been utilised ‘Jonny Come Lately’ may have had more potential. In my opinion ‘Coal’, just about scraped a C minus and had little sparks for a blazing performance.

Despite this, the distinction between the working class women and El-Bayoumi was conveyed well. For instance, El-Bayoumi made Arabian food and explained how he ate it in his country regardless of his language barrier. However, Erika Poole who brought energy to the play with her aggressive, assertive attitude refused to eat ‘foreign’ food, highlighting the ignorance of some of the British population today. The clash of civilizations therefore was portrayed well, and probably one of the only scenes which was ‘A’ grade material, (and Poole can have a gold star).

Amr El-Bayoumi undoubtably brought colour, culture and a bit of comedy to the play, which is pretty impressive as he did not speak English throughout. His movement, and tonality gave him ability to connect with the audience, as he had the talent to act as the most comedic character yet still bring sorrow to his theatrical performance. Similarly Erika Poole also had the ability to transform from an aggressive mother to a severely disabled character, upping the theatrical performances grade.

Unfortunately, ‘Jonny Come Lately’ definitely had potential to be a raw piece of physical theatre. However, its slightly dark, quirky confusing plot left me quite unimpressed, and I definitely did not think it was worthy of an ‘A*’ grade. The acting did improve as the play went on but the jokes did not mature. On that note, Jonny, please don’t come at all.

Retro Corner: Paper Mario 64

Written by Eleanor Jayawant on . Posted in Games.

Like pretty much any other Mario game, the story of Paper Mario begins with Princess Peach being kidnapped by Bowser, King of the Koopas. It is up to Mario to save the Mushroom Kingdom… again. To do this he must gather the seven Star Spirits, scattered throughout the regions, so he can gain the power to overcome Bowser’s new weapon, the mysterious Star Rod. Originally known as Super Mario RPG, Paper Mario is exactly that: a charming RPG with 2D ‘paper’ characters in a 3D world.

The world of Paper Mario is fairly large, with several different areas to explore and eight different allies for Mario to befriend along the way. Throughout the game the player also gets to control Princess Peach, undergoing stealth-based missions within Bowser’s castle to gather information, which is then sent to Mario by a young star named Twink. With each level gained, the player can choose to increase Mario’s Health Points (HP), Flower Points (FP) – used for special moves – or Badge Points (BP). Badges can be equipped in order to gain the special effects they have, at the cost of BP. Another mechanic used in battles is Star Energy. Star Energy allows the player to borrow the power of any Star Spirits Mario has saved.

The battle system itself is slightly flawed, as although Mario fights with allies alongside him it is not possible for the player to switch which character is in front. Character zoom-ins result in ugly splashes of pixelated  colour, and some critics argue that there is not enough in the game to carry the ‘paper theme’. Despite these criticisms, on Nintendo Power’s ‘Best of the Best’ list, Paper Mario scored as the 13th best game for Nintendo 64 of all time, and in 2007, Paper Mario was released for Virtual Console on Wii, where it was second most downloaded game in Japan and most downloaded in the US.

The soundtrack is upbeat and annoyingly catchy, the storyline is brilliant, and the dialogue is often witty. It’s definitely worth playing, and, like all N64 games on Virtual Console, is 1000 points.

Halo 4 – Review

Written by Mancunion on . Posted in Games.

Since the release of Combat Evolved in 2001, the Halo series has in many ways come to define the modern first-person shooter, mixing exciting combat and weapons with an interesting and engaging plot. Now, 5 years after his previous outing against the Covenant, Master Chief returns to fight a whole new enemy in Halo 4.

Five years you ask? Yes believe it or not, despite Wars, ODST, and Reach, 2007 was the last time players got to take charge of the legendary Chief. In game, the gap is just four years, which our favourite Spartan has spent being the 24th century equivalent of a Calippo.  Freshly thawed by AI sidekick Cortana, Chief once again finds himself fighting for Humanity’s future.

The story itself is notably darker than previous outings, much closer in tone to Reach than Halo 3. There is also a bigger focus on the Chief’s feelings and emotions, and particularly the nature of his relationship with Cortana. The game pulls this off quite well, which is an achievement considering Chief famously never removes his helmet. Thus it is entirely down to the voice talent of Steve Downes to make his emotion come across, something he does rather well. There is also a concurrent plot regarding the ways in which Humanity has moved on since the events of Halo 3, and the relevancy of the Chief to this new, more confident UNSC.

If you’ve played anything in Halo series before, you’ll be at home with the gameplay. The controls are largely the same, with the addition of a handy sprint function. And yes, you can still do the hilarious giant Spartan jumps. All your favourite weapons are back, spruced up and shinier than ever before. There are also some additions, notably the weapons of the new antagonists, the Forerunner Prometheans, but the Covenant have a couple of slightly different tools too. These new enemies are one of the highlights of the game. They actively work together, with their 3 forms (packs of dog-like Crawlers, flying Watchers, and the giant Knights) uniting to try and defeat you. For example, busy hammering rounds into a Knight? That’s ok, because he’ll spawn one of the Watchers that then protects him with a shield, or puts up a turret. Then, when you try to shoot it, it flies off, heals, and comes back. The game forces you to adapt your tactics in order to deal with your foes. Also, the Knights can teleport. So enjoy.

Joking aside, the Prometheans are a difficult enemy, and this makes the game rather more fun. Too many shooters today have a tendency to use hordes of enemies with dumb AI, something that Halo 4 thankfully avoids.

The game also offers the chance to drive around in vehicles once again. The Warthog, Scorpion Tank, Wraith, Ghost and oh-so annoying Banshee all return, along with a flight in a human fighter on one level that is akin to the Death Star trench scene from Star Wars, except with more obstacles. Seriously, it took us ages to do it on co-op. Then again maybe we’re a bit rubbish.

As with all games in the Halo series, the levels look beautiful and the game’s graphics engine is excellent. There are huge vistas around every corner, and were it not for the fact that you’re being shot at every 2 minutes, Halo 4 could easily have a mini game where Master Chief pulls out an easel and does some landscape painting.

Along with the graphics, the sound is excellent, with a focus on meatier, more realistic sounding weapons, alongside decent music, although there is less of it than in past games.

One of the real issues with the game is that it is all a bit linear. Despite those marvellous views, you don’t really get to explore much of it yourself. You’re rapidly pushed forward to fight more enemies somewhere else.

In terms of online play, the familiar multiplayer set-up returns, as well as a new series of story-related missions called Spartan Ops. There are also lots of customisation options for you to create your own, unique Spartan-IV. The multiplayer levels themselves are familiar without being boring, and a new system of personal drops to get the best weapons makes things more interesting, rather than the tedious map-scouring of the past.

All in all, Halo 4 is well worth your time and money, and looks to be the start of a brand new chapter in the saga. Based on this instalment, it looks like the franchise is very safe in the hands of 343 Industries.

8 out of 10

Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 – Review

Written by Mancunion on . Posted in Games.

The games in the Call of Duty franchise have a well earned reputation for bombastic insanity, and the latest edition, Call of Duty: Black Ops 2, does not disappoint. From the first moment you are thrust into the head of your grizzled, toned, too-old-for-this protagonist you dispatch a medium sized town’s worth of Angolan MPLA militia, and the action only gets bigger from there.

The story itself alternates between a group of US Navy seals in 2025, and the group of CIA clandestine agents you will remember from the first Black Ops, now operating in the late Cold War.

And yet, for all the Michael Bay-style over the top explosions, Black Ops 2 does something that CoD hasn’t really managed since the first Modern Warfare: weave an engaging narrative and create interesting characters you actually give a damn about. The bad guy is not simply a faceless monster plotting the downfall of the US, and actually has motivations you are driven to understand, even actively sympathize with to some extent. By the end of the game though, you’ll probably genuinely want him dead, even if you can understand where he’s coming from.  For once, our enemy is not that perennial staple of the CoD series, the Russians. In fact they are entirely absent, which makes a refreshing change. Some famous faces from the past and present even put in appearances, but we won’t spoil things by naming anyone in particular here.

The weapons are everything you’d expect from a Black Ops game: a mix of classic Cold War era shooters, and high-tech super guns from the future. The sniper rifle/rail gun that can fire through concrete/a bus/whatever they’re hiding behind was a favourite during the campaign. There are also some nifty gadgets in the missions set in the future, one of which allow you to access kit otherwise unavailable on the map, and so comes in very handy.  These gadgets can be selected as part of a mechanic, which allows you to select and customize your load-out before each mission, which is a nice touch.

The campaign itself remains a somewhat linear affair that fans of the series will be very much used to. There is however an element of choice involved, and your decisions in various missions can affect the outcome of later ones directly, and will potentially affect later games (if there are to be any). Suddenly CoD has gone all Mass Effect on us. One of the other interesting diversions from the main chapters is the new Strike Missions. These essentially task players to complete a set of given objectives, in a given time period, with certain resources, normally a combination of troops and drones/automated emplacements.

The cool part is that you can both take control of individual NPCs (be they human or machine), or you can run the whole show from above, directing units to attack enemies or defend areas on the map. That’s right people; Black Ops 2 now has a real-time strategy element. Like we said earlier, these missions are interesting, and the concept is fun, but they’re also frustrating. When attempting RTS-style overall control, the NPCs are stupid. And we mean stupid. Like constantly head-butting a wall when ordered to attack stupid or walking into a hail of bullets stupid. Basically the computer is a complete moron. Our advice? As the old saying goes, if you want something done well, do it yourself.

The graphics and music are both good, with a soundtrack featuring tracks from Avenged Sevenfold, Elbow and Skrillex, amongst others.

The online multiplayer is pretty much the same as usual, offering a nice mix of slaughtering the enemy and fancy new weapons from the future. Zombies also offers the standard mix of interesting maps, and hordes of the undead for you to murder in their thousands.

In all, Black Ops 2 offers a decent upgrade to the series, and one that we hope to see carried on throughout future games.

9 out of 10

The Staves

Written by Polly Checkland Harding on . Posted in Music.

The astonished silence before the applause: this is what speaking to a band currently enjoying the boost of critical recognition feels like. The Mancunion caught up with Jessica, one of the three Staveley-Taylor sisters who make up The Staves, right before the release of their first album, Dead and Born and Grown. She expressed relieved excitement at the gathering momentum of their success, after years of hard graft: “it’s all just quite surreal, I think. We’re just getting used to people knowing who we are and even wanting to have an opinion on us”. Jessica and her two sisters, Emily and Camilla, have been making music together from their teens; at early gigs in their local Watford pubs, Camilla, who is the youngest, occasionally had to be sneaked in because she was underage. They have since worked their way up from start-out venues to play with the likes of Ben Howard and Michael Kiwanuka. They performed on a trip around America this summer and, most recently, supported Bon Iver on his UK tour, playing to audiences of up to ten thousand people.

Artists like The Staves can face a long road to recognition, in comparison to the pop-up band-brands contrived by major record labels: Jessica noted that the lengthy process often involved “when you approach it from a gigging point of view, as opposed to the more manufactured artists that just kind of appear one day, don’t they, on billboards and stuff, and you’re thinking ‘Oh, where have they come from?’”. When thinking about the place that The Staves want to occupy in today’s music scene, Jessica made a diplomatic distinction between this mode of promotion and their own approach: “on the whole manufactured thing, the celebrity side of things, that’s kind of not what we do – and I think there has been a reaction to that, that people are more interested in hearing the sounds of real instruments and real voices and not hearing too much production and auto tune.”

The Staves’ authentic sound – lucid three-part harmonies, cleansed of over-produced gloss – has been well documented: the simple combination of voice and guitar distinguishes them as perhaps the purest part of a recent backlash against artificiality.

The band had time to talk gender politics, too, with Jessica displaying frustration at the  focus of attention often being on  The Staves’ all-female lineup: “I think it was Joni Mitchell who said “Female isn’t a genre”, but so many people see it as a genre and won’t compare, I don’t know, Bob Dylan and Joni Mitchell to each other – because one’s a man and one’s a woman, they’re in different categories. Which I suppose I find really weird, it doesn’t make any sense to me. We’re often described as a ‘female band’ but they would never describe Coldplay as a ‘male band’.” More worryingly still, she suggested that this attitude remains a factor their reception when gigging: “you think, actually, if we were a band of guys and we had a drum kit and bass, they’d never speak to us like that. They obviously just think that we’re idiots, with long hair, running around.” This testimony to regressive attitudes within a music industry broadly dominated by men is sobering.

More encouragingly, the rise of digital media does offer the potential for a new equality in how bands like The Staves come to be promoted. The shrinking of funds, though in some ways damaging to artists, has prompted the curtailment of extravagant corporate demands. Jessica commends this change: “If you look ten, twenty years ago, the amount of money record companies had to throw around was just obscene, and a band at our level would just be spending insane amounts of money on, I don’t know, limousines, or something completely pointless”. She does admit that this comes with certain downsides: “I mean, we’ll never make any money from what we do, just because of the way things are – you can’t sell as many records as you used to”. This is an observation that echoes the difficulties facing all emerging young professionals today, having to come to terms with the fact that they will achieve less financial success that the previous generation.

Yet this doesn’t seem to have dented The Staves ambition: “I’m not going to say ‘world domination’, but world touring would be amazing. As long as we’re having fun, it’s cool and we’re doing the right thing. There’s no master plan. Keep your head down, get on with it.” Their way of thinking about the future offers a refreshing freedom and pragmatism – but the applause will be no less uproarious.

The Staves play the Ruby Lounge on November 27

 

Bon Iver

Written by Jessica Cusack on . Posted in Music.

As the main lights dimmed on the packed Manchester Arena and the obscure fabric hangings framing the stage became an icy white, we were  transported into the world of Justin Vernon: winter in the woods. His rise to fame is well documented, not a simple rags-to-riches story as such, but one of a log-cabin-in-Wisconsin-to-sell-out-global-success. Opening with the instantly recognisable chords of ‘Perth’ from his self-titled latest album, and accompanied by his brass instrumentalists, we were transfixed. The huge concert hall in which we stood suddenly became the most intimate musical space.

Regaling us with tunes new and old, the band’s latest venture ‘Towers’ stands out as a more traditional, upbeat folk song among his usually raw and sorrowful sounds, while ‘Holocene’ was an unadorned reminder as to the sheer skill and imagination of Vernon’s musical and lyrical ability. ‘Wash’ was appropriately performed amid a rippling ice blue light, similar in its tinkling sounds to ‘Minnesota, WI’. Part of Vernon’s skill as an artist is that he never allows his audience to forget where he began: that cold winter in Wisconsin is present in his song titles, set and most importantly his sound.

‘Creature Fear’ came to a crescendo in a cacophony of sounds, the stage bathed in red light, pre-empting one of his first and most popular hits, ‘Blood Bank’. The heavily auto-tuned yet haunting ‘The Woods’ was performed by Vernon alone on the stage, illuminated by a single white light and recording his own voice via reverb to create layer upon layer of sound which filled the silent arena. Vernon’s speaking voice is surprisingly throaty for someone who can hit such thin high notes, and he kept up an infrequent yet entertaining conversation with the audience: largely responding to people who kept calling him Bon.

There was nothing they could play that would not have wowed the crowd, who were the most still group of people I have ever seen at such a large gig. Vernon’s music and melodies have the power to utterly enchant you, and his sparse, haunting lyrics can move you to tears – as they did the first time I saw the band live. While the difference between the tone of each album is noticeable – his latest Bon Iver is decidedly more upbeat while the debut For Emma, Forever Ago is one of the most pertinent testimonies to heartbreak ever recorded – on stage the songs flowed seamlessly.

With his songs inspired by lost love and his life before Bon Iver marred by illness, Vernon cuts an extremely loveable figure on stage, and truly fulfils the nicest-guy-in-the-world image which seems to have stuck by him, whether he wills it or not. Ending the encore with the sensational ‘Skinny Love’ and ‘For Emma’, I left the arena feeling happy instead of haunted, wishing I were that Emma and noting that it was the start of a very good winter indeed.  

Architects

Written by Ol Urwin on . Posted in Music.

For diehard fans of Architects, this is a fantastic set. The band careens through their kinetic metallic noise, executing exceedingly tricky songs perfectly, while the crowd swells up with intensity, lapping up every moment. This reviewer is a diehard fan, right? Nope.

Rewind an hour or two and support Bury Tomorrow peddle their hackneyed hardcore/metal hybrid with unfathomable aplomb. Clichés abound at almost every juncture. Not good. Melbourne’s Deez Nuts fair slightly better. One only needs to look at their name and song titles (“I Hustle Everyday”, “If You Don’t Know, Now You Know”) to see that they’re indebted to hip hop as much as hardcore punk. It works surprisingly well, with the singer thrusting the mic out to eager fans while the band peals through a half hour set. All well and good, but if you want streetwise punk rock without pretence, Madball are playing twenty minutes away.

There are positives and negatives to Architects’ set. It’s kind of fun to watch the band work their way through shards of metal-esque hardcore, the band sound huge and watching bassist Ali Dean get carried from the stage to back of the room pallbearer-style is pure spectacle. However it’s not fun hearing these towering monstrosities collapse into choruses of cheesy singing with pedestrian structures. It’s also not fun having this happen for fifty minutes. No matter what songs they’re picking from their catalogue, it begins to dawn, that all these songs sound very, very similar. When they get it right, they get it so right; the discordant bludgeoning of Early Grave could bring the venue down at any moment, but when it devolves into a tired attempt at catchiness, it’s less than satisfying. Sadly, Architects’ live show is not enough to save them from the structural problems of their weary songs – back to the drawing board, guys.


Warehouse Watch – RBMA x WHP

Written by Toby Wareham on . Posted in Music.

The Red Bull Music Academy came to town last Friday, joining forces with Warehouse Project to produce one of the most enticing line ups seen in Manchester all year. We arrived just after eleven, narrowly missing German legend Prosumer. The former Panorama Bar resident didn’t appear best pleased about being the given the graveyard shift of 7.30-11, but then on a night dense with such diverse, talented performers, something had to give. Escaping from the OTT UK bass stylings in room two, Benji B provided welcome relief with his eclectic, African-tinged selections. After briefly poking our head into the Red Bull room, we made our way, tentatively, to try and catch Flying Lotus in room one.

Now, I’ve always favour small and intimate venues over big and busy, so maybe my opinion’s rendered a little invalid, but all the same… room 1 was a nightmarish experience. Full to bursting, sweat dripping from the ceiling, the performers’ sound just a muffled bass frequency lest you risk elbowing past the angry, sodden masses to the front of the floor. It would have been at least bearable, but Flying Lotus, capable of either brilliance or self-indulgence depending on his mood, totally opted for the latter. Playing a mixture of grime, dubstep and ‘swag’ rap, he spent more time jumping round the stage shouting into a Britney-style microphone than paying attention to the god awful tunes coming from his laptop. Where were the tracks from his superb recent LP? We didn’t stick around to find out, making for the now relatively empty confines of room two, where Ben UFO was, as ever, striking a perfect balance between familiar Hessle sounds and classic house and techno. The night kept getting better from there, in fact: Shed’s revered live set fully lived up to its billing, brutal at points but as intricate, bombastic and classy as the multi-monikered German’s productions would imply.

Floating Points provided a perfect end to the evening, expertly blending his now trademark 130 bpm disco cuts with tribal rhythms, samba, and finally deep house brilliance from the likes of Pepe Bradock and Soul Capsule. The night, then, was a qualified success: most of the big hitters on the line up delivered, and the atmosphere and crowd was about as good as I’ve seen at WHP (discounting DJ Harvey’s glorious return last month). That said, while room one has always served a specific purpose at Warehouse Project – keeping the dickheads away from the deeper offerings in smaller rooms – it was just unbearable at time on Friday. The promoters would do well to learn from clubs like Trouw in Amsterdam, or even Canal Mills in Leeds, on how to make big room clubbing a more enjoyable experience. A better air conditioner would be a start.

Anthrax

Written by Charlie Boydell-Smith on . Posted in Music.

6th November 2012, Apollo

3/10

Music is subjective, and the fact that Anthrax have amassed over fifteen million in album sales is a testimony to their popularity amongst heavy rock fans. Tonight’s performance, however, highlights the very fine line between heavy rock song writing and unintelligible noise.  On a joint tour with rock legends Motorhead, the fact that many of the attendees are sporting earplugs sends a message that sometimes even the fans have trouble with the barrage of din emanating from the abundance of Marshall Amps populating the Apollo’s stage.

Opening their set with a flurry of new songs from 2011’s Worship Music, the crowd create a sea of devil horns which are thrusted in time to the power chords that dominate opening numbers ‘Earth on Hell’, ‘Fight Em Till You Can’t’ and ‘Antisocial’. The chorus to ‘Antisocial’ is essentially a description of the ‘greebos’ in attendance. There is one in every hall of residence, every place of work and every college classroom in the country, the giveaway being an unkempt moustache, the owner of which is ready to donate it to the nearest pubic wig factory.

The sight of lead singer Joey Belladonna in an Indian headdress that was given to him by a member of the crowd lends some much needed comedy to the repeated refrain of ‘Die for the Indians’ during crowd favourite ‘Indians’, but Anthrax are capable of crafting listenable songs and are at their best when their output is more melodic, rather than just a case of playing their instruments fast and loud.

Lead guitarist Rob Caggiano has time to berate those sitting in the balcony, before asking “Are you ready for the law?” and instructs them to “Get off your asses and bang your heads” before launching into popular song ‘I Am The Law’.

Their set moves quickly, but lacks clarity and is at times incredibly dull, leaving those in attendance with sore ears, painful necks and fingers locked in a permanent salute to the devil.

Sea of Bees

Written by Polly Checkland Harding on . Posted in Music.

‘I’m no big deal’. This is the tagline for singer-songwriter Julie Ann Baenziger’s Sea of Bees blog, last updated in 2010. Though honest, such self-effacement is discouraging – particularly when facing near two hours attention to Baenziger’s music. The crowd in the womb-walled Night and Day Café is sparse, though there is a little line of devotees to the right of the stage who tell me they’ve followed Jules Bee, as she’s otherwise known, around the UK to see her play.

Still, muted cheers rise when the band arrive, unannounced. The flat planes of Baenziger’s face emerge from an eighties hair halo as her mouth makes its way around the big notes of ‘Skinnybone’. With two albums under her belt, Baenziger’s voice has an obvious agility, hooking the top notes like whisky from a high self, but her words become smudged by the stoner’s slur of her Californian accent. It is a strange, eccentric sound from someone who presents themselves so plainly: Baenziger wears a jarring red check-shirt and sludge-coloured trouser combo. The set list is a discordant compilation of songs from Baenziger’s two albums, Songs for the Ravens and, most recently, Orangefarben, the willfully cryptic title meaning ‘orange-coloured’ in German.

Baenziger alternates between the wild, unexpected melodies of songs like ‘Gnomes’, and the more straightforward pulses of ‘Broke’ or ‘Girl’. Two thirds through, a lady in baby blue weaves into the space before the stage and begins to wiggle to the music, wagging one sassy finger. Beneath fairy lights that go nuts at steady intervals, experimental folk is being danced to disastrously badly. The effect is terrible and comic in the worst way. Watched over by and absurd and ancient moose head, Sea of Bees slides into its only predictable end: oblivion.

5 songs in the field of…footwear

Written by Tom Ingham on . Posted in Music.

‘Diamonds on the soles of her shoes’ – Paul Simon

Surely the whole point of wearing diamonds is to attract jealousy from unsuspecting onlookers who are much less fortunate than yourself. It’s a vulgarian display of the highest order. Well actually, this girl was so stinking rich she just stuck them on the bottom of her shoes – why? Because she could.

‘(Angels wanna wear my) Red Shoes’ – Elvis Costello

As cool as Elvis Costello is, I don’t think that he can pull of red shoes. No matter who you are or what you’ve got on, you’ll look ridiculous. Even Father Christmas himself opts for a more dignified black pair. Let the angels have them if you ask me, unless you are in actual fact Noddy, steer well clear!

‘Boogie Shoes’ – KC & the Sunshine Band

Although KC don’t specify exactly what shoes constitutes a ‘boogie shoe’ I think it’s safe to assume that even a pair of Crocs would do the trick when you’ve got a groove like this. Beware though, once you put them boogie shoes on, they’re not coming off! One size fits all.

‘Blue Suede Shoes’ – Elvis Presley

Elvis was a pretty fashionable chap, but not the most practical when it came to footwear I have to say. When you’ve got to wade through endless streams of fluids from you’re crazed female fans after every gig, the last thing you want to be wearing is suede – an absolute nightmare to clean!

‘Fairies Wear Boots’ – Black Sabbath

It’s quite hard to picture Tinkerbell wearing a pair of Doc Martens. I guess once you’ve taken as many drugs as Ozzy has then it isn’t totally inconceivable. I like to imagine that when Sharon isn’t around, it’s these fairies who help him through the day-to-day turmoil of being Ozzy Ozbourne.