The Lumineers’ European shows are sold out for the next two months solid; their public profile here is relatively low, but their huge reputation in the US has earned them a cult fan base They begin with ‘Charlie Boy’: the opening notes from a mandolin tease the audience into silence. Frontman Wesley Schultz, blonde hair surfing over his forehead, delivers the song’s sentiment with a resonance that echoes beyond its simple lyrics. A cello swells the sound between the words, spot lit in the arms of Neyla Pekavek.
The set gathers momentum, accelerating through the military syllables of ‘Submarines’ and the parlor room piano chords of ‘I Ain’t Nobody’s Problem’. With each song, a new scene is set. For ‘Classy Girls’, Schultz animates his guitar by balancing a brown fedora on its head – the furious rhythm of the song makes it seem like there should be sawdust, not plastic cups, spread across the floor, with a summer’s evening outside
Next, the band disappears from the stage. The lights blink on, illuminating hundreds of confused faces – until shock registers as Schultz’s guitar is spotted threading its way through the Academy. Coming from chairs in the center, his request to “put away all recording devices” goes directly against the instinct to preserve this experience, even as the audience is given parts in singing the band’s anthem, ‘Ho Hey’.
Like the dental veneers that share their name, The Lumineers’ songs don’t amount to much more than a bright surface. They have, however, crafted a live show that is all about being present, giving real meaning to the word ‘live’. Queue for tickets, leave your phone at home: follow the line ‘It takes a boy to live / It takes a man to pretend he was there’, from ‘Flowers In Your Hair’, and be a child in our time.
Having entered the album chart at number two and met with near-universal critical acclaim, Holy Fire looks set to cement Foals’ place at indie’s top table. After the crunching ‘Inhaler’ gave us a taster late last year – frontman Yannis Phillippakis howling over a huge, Tom Morello-esque riff – lead single ‘My Number’ sees the band back in more familiar territory, and serves as a musical microcosm of their evolution on this record; balancing the inventive guitar work of their debut with the sunshine funk of their sophomore effort’s ‘Miami’, it’s representative of the middle ground that Foals have managed to strike between Antidotes and Total Life Forever, with the technical excellence of the former married with the latter’s denser, warmer sound.
After blowing off the cobwebs and re-honing their live craft across a series of dates in basement venues before Christmas, Foals are ready to bring Holy Fire to the big cities, kicking off their tour proper with a sold-out date at Academy 1 on March 2nd. Two shows in a day at the Royal Albert Hall will wrap up the run on March 28th and represent a significant milestone for the band. Having previously brought their incendiary live show to packed houses at Mancunian venues as diverse as the Academy, the Ritz and the Warehouse Project, it’s fitting that the Oxford outfit are poised to get things underway in Manchester; this Academy date looks bound to be their most intimate in the city for a long time to come.
Foals play Academy 1 on March 2nd – sold out. The band will DJ at Odder after the show – tickets £5 from Skiddle.
“Things are picking up, man! This is as good as it’s ever been for us, it’s fucking brilliant.” Pete Jobson is in buoyant mood as he speaks to me from the back of the tour van, en route to Leeds “in a snowstorm” after opening night in Glasgow. “I won’t lie, the first gig’s always a bit seat of the pants,” he laughs, “but we managed it. We’re getting there.”
Those three words sum up, pretty poetically, where I Am Kloot stand in 2013. After a little over a decade of modest success in their home country, their fifth studio effort, Sky at Night, saw them make their breakthrough as radio play and a Mercury Prize nomination came calling. With new record Let It All In, released last month, they’re looking to cement their place as one of the UK’s premier purveyors of intelligent indie rock, and Pete reflects on how things began for the band in the mid-nineties.
“For me, it all started when I saw a documentary Tony Wilson did, which had (legendary Mancunian performance poet) John Cooper Clarke on it. I remember seeing him and thinking he was a fucking genius, and that I needed to be where he was, so I came down from Northumberland to study music in Salford. On my first day, somebody told me that if I went down to the Night and Day on Oldham Street, I’d meet plenty of musicians. Sure enough, that’s where I properly met (frontman) Johnny Bramwell.”
Despite striking up an immediate friendship, actually forming a band and making music together was something of a last resort for Johnny and Pete. “I first saw him play at Castlefield Arena; funnily enough, it was the day of the IRA bomb. I just remember being taken aback by this song he did called ‘Twist’, but we never thought we’d be in a band together. We worked at the Night and Day for five years before we got sacked, and it wasn’t til we were really desperate that we started making music together. We were called The Mouth originally; me, Johnny, Andy (Hargreaves, Kloot drummer) and a friend of ours called Bryan Glancy.”
Glancy, who passed in 2006, is probably better known to wider audiences as The Seldom Seen Kid, the man who inspired Elbow’s hugely-successful 2008 record of the same name. The Bury outfit have been closely linked to I Am Kloot since their inception, and production duties on both Sky at Night and Let It All In were handled by their singer, Guy Garvey, and keyboardist Craig Potter. “We recorded the tracks for the new album just as a three-piece, in a few studios around Manchester,” says Pete. “Then we had six weeks with Guy and Craig, where they mixed it and we added a few things and took a few others away. Guy actually recorded our first LP twelve years ago, and obviously he’s learnt so much from his own band since then – both him and Craig are technically brilliant. The fact that we’ve been such good mates for so long meant it was a really quick, spontaneous process, without too much discussion, which is the way we like to work. It’s a match made in heaven, really.”
Sky at Night was unquestionably the band’s most ambitious effort to date – as Pete puts it, “we went all out with the orchestration and didn’t worry about whether we’d be able to play it live” – but Let It All In is a more intimate affair. Was this intentional, I ask, or just reflective of the way the songs developed? “A bit of both, I think. We had such a clear idea of what Sky at Night was going to be; we had the title early on, and we knew all the songs were going to be thematically linked. I think we were just keen to make sure we didn’t do the same thing twice.”
That’s not to say, however, that there’s no connection between the tracks on Let It All In. “There’s definitely cohesion there; it’s a body of work, not a collection of songs,” says Pete. “It’d really sound nonsensical if the songs weren’t linked, and we dropped some because they didn’t fit. You can hear it in the lyrics mainly; at this point in his life, Johnny’s only really looking forward.”
Johnny might be looking forward on Let It All In, but he’s also recently reissued his old solo record, You, Me and the Alarm Clock, which The Guardian once described as “one of the best albums you’ve never heard”. “Johnny, why did you reissue your solo album?” shouts Pete across the van, relaying the question I’ve just asked him. “He said it was a combination of vanity and fiscal desperation,” he laughs. “Nah, that’s not true. Really, it gives diehard Kloot fans a sketch of what the band used to be. You can trace us back to that album, because that was what I knew of Johnny, musically, early on.”
Speaking of sketches of what I Am Kloot are, Pete speaks with real enthusiasm about ‘Hold Back the Night’ from the new record, which he describes as “the song I’d play anybody who asked me what Kloot are all about. It’s all in there, all our diverse influences; you’ve got your chilled-out hip hop drumming, you’ve got your London Calling guitar, your fucking crazy Led Zeppelin strings, your Jimi Hendrix, ‘Crosstown Traffic’ vibe, and it all comes together like ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’, which is fitting because Queen have always been pretty important to us.”
Rumours had it that production difficulties and scrapped material had plagued the early stages of making Let It All In, and Pete’s earlier admission that songs were left off the record had piqued my interest in this regard. “I suppose that’s kind of true. Honestly, we’ve had some of these songs for a long, long time. We’ve recorded them for previous albums, then realised they didn’t fit, so when it came to making the next one we’d revisit them and record them again and try and make it so that we could get them onto the next album. ‘Let Them All In’, and ‘Even the Stars’ – they’ve both been a long time coming.”
It was Sky at Night, though, that saw things move up a level for Kloot, and it’s difficult to find much press coverage relating to it that doesn’t use the word ‘breakthrough’. “That was definitely where things went up a gear, in the UK at least. We got played on the radio, which had never happened before, and then to be nominated for the Mercury was massive for a band like us – we’ve always been about word of mouth.” Pete does reveal, though, that a more settled atmosphere around the group has also proved vital; “we’ve had the same bunch of people around us for the last two albums now, and I think we’ve become better at letting other people help us out and give us advice. It’s a big help to be in such a comfortable place.”
If ‘breakthrough’ was a term liberally applied to Sky at Night, then ‘underrated’ is the equivalent when it comes to discussion of I Am Kloot in general terms. After all this time, is that an irritating tag? “We’ve noticed it less with this record, but to be honest, that’s just the way the press are in this country; they want to be negative about you a lot of the time. They only measure your career within this country, but we’ve headlined festivals in Europe. The ‘best kept secret’ thing doesn’t seem as important outside of the UK.”
This current tour saw the band take in their biggest Manchester headline appearances to date, with two nights at The Ritz; I spoke with Pete just before the dates, and the scale of the sold-out shows certainly wasn’t lost on him. “We’re very proud of that; it was a bit of an ask, two nights there, but we’ve pulled it off somehow. I never cease to be amazed by the appetite for music, and entertainment generally, in Manchester. I remember Johnny saying to me, years ago, that if the crowd here likes you, they’ll be really passionate, and partisan, and they’ll take you to their hearts.” He pauses. “But then he also said that if they don’t like you, they’ll do their best to fuck you up,” he laughs. “There’s a lot of truth in that.”
Rihanna was red hot at the 2013 Grammy awards sporting an Azzedine Alaia dress, Neil Lane jewelry, and Manolo Blahnik shoes. With its structured sheer bodice and dramatic train, the singer’s outfit was certainly a showstopper at the ceremony, framing her enviable figure and complementing her simple red lip look and ombre tresses. Faultless.
picture: motilo.com
Les Mis. star Anne Hathaway was certainly the toast of the 2013 BAFTAs fashion stakes, leading the trend for chic black dresses with an individual twist. She opted for a Burberry black column gown with metallic stud detailing on the top, teaming her gown with a vintage clutch and a flash of raspberry lipstick. Her almost gothic look, complemented perfectly by her recent pixie crop, was certainly a winner.
LOATHING
picture: Reuters
Never a dull moment with Miss Bonham Carter, Helena walked down the red carpet with her beau Tim Burton wearing a black and white layered Vivienne Westwood gown. Although it no doubt suited her eccentric persona, the gown was more ‘nightmare at the taffeta factory’ than ‘red carpet chic.’ Having said this, it was certainly a step up from her 2011 Golden Globes ensemble to which she sported mismatching shoes, sunglasses and what appeared to be wrapping paper.
picture: okmagazine.com
Real Housewives’ Brandi Glanville definitely tops the worst-dressed list for me appearing at the 85th Academy Awards in a plunging frock which she designed under her ‘Brand B’ fashion label. Although cleavage and décolletage are always a huge focus at the Oscars, Ms Glanville certainly entered the dreaded nip-slip danger-zone, looking ready to burst out of her risqué gown.
The red carpet has seen a lot of stilettos and suits over the years. Since 1821 it has hosted famous faces, style icons and fashion fails of all ages. This year, the Oscars brought us a range of generations to the red carpet, and here we celebrate the best of both the mature and fresh faced.
Reminding us that there is no age limit for experimentation, Dame Helen Mirren put the likes of Katy Perry and Nicki Minaj to shame. She strutted onto the red carpet at this year’s BAFTAS with bubble-gum pink hair. Although told by disapprovers that ‘the only way was down’ after her drastic move, we argue that Mirren keeps it current by shooting an injection of youth and vitality into her look. Helen matched her new hair with a long-sleeved Nicholas Oakwell gown that combined chiffon and floral embroidery to ensure her look was graceful. Another fashion success was her full-length black lace D&G dress with gold embroidery at the 25th European Film Awards. This dress fuses together classy and sexy to leave Mirren looking hotter than any other 60 something year-old and showing us how elegance is timeless.
Photo: gossiprocks.com
Another red-carpet regular is Meryl Streep. Despite claiming to have no interest in fashion, Streep is a fashion icon. She always looks poised and elegant, maintaining an effortless level of composure that some of us can only dream of achieving. At the 2006 Oscars, Streep wore a beautiful plum Rogelio Velasco dress. With a low neckline and purple embroidery, it really was beautiful. In 2011, Streep donned a white Stella McCartney coat and gold dress for a photo shoot in London, showing us that glamour is not only for the red carpet.
Photo: bittenandbound.com
Having frequented the big screen since 1954, Lady Jane Fonda is an old-hand at the red carpet. In 1970, Fonda looked the image of perfection with her long floaty white dress, minimal makeup and snakeskin clutch. Looking just as glamorous as she did over 40 years ago, Fonda wore head to toe Gucci to the 2012 LACMA Art and Film Gala. Matching black silk jacquard trousers with brocade jacket, Fonda transformed this outfit with splashes of silver through her clutch and shoes. She also brought an element of the androgynous to the red carpet but still looks poised, ensuring she is still in the running for best dressed.
Photo: digitalspy.com
Now, please turn your attention to Quvenzhané Wallis, star of Beasts of the Southern Wild, the youngest star to ever be nominated for an Oscar. How does one dress a nine year-old for the Oscars? Ask David Meister – the man who designed all of Quvenzhané’s outfits for her award shows to date. Her stylist, April Steiner, says that Quvenzhané asked to be shiny, twirly and wear one of her over 20 animal handbags – you can’t get much cuter than that! Quvenzhané has worn an array of signature puppy-dog bags and she knows how to match and contrast them accordingly. At the 65th Annual DGA Awards, she teamed her sparkly blue puppy bag with a cute pink dress and when presented a Breakthrough Award, she wore a green Ralph Lauren green with a black poodle purse. Just when we thought she couldn’t get sweeter, she looked adorable in her purple embellished dress and her white puppy purse at the Academy Awards.
Photo: posh24.com Photo: fashionsalade.com
One actress that has always been on the silver screen is Dakota Fanning. Blonde hair, blue eyes: Dakota is a classic beauty and has always kept her makeup minimal. That is until recently for the final Twilight premiere. Dakota shocked with her new brunette hair and red lips, looking striking in her emerald Elie Saab dress. You might remember Dakota at the War of the Worlds premier in 2005? She looked so cute in her white party dress; in a way she has changed so much yet so little at the same time.
Photo: superiorpics.com Photo: stylebistro.com
Nobody has transitioned from a gorgeous girl to a stunning teenager quite like Chloe Moretz. While most of us at her age were playing with our Baby Borns, seven year-old Chloe made an unforgettable appearance at the premiere of’ The Amityville Horror in 2005 in a floor length pink floral dress matched with natural makeup and loose curls. Transforming from a girl into a teenager, Chloe showed us just how stylish a 14 year-old could be at the 2012 People’s Choice Awards. She looked striking in a Proenza Schouler dress and black Mary Janes, but only just touched on her potential. She shocked at the Metropolitan Opera earlier this year in a navy floor length YSL gown, choker necklace and scraped back hair. Demonstrating just how grown up Moretz has become, and just how stylish she intends to be.
From rejoicing the style of these icons of all ages, never have the words of Yves Saint Laurent seemed more appropriate; ‘fashions fade, style is eternal’.
If support acts Axis Of and Single Mothers were the ones that cheekily placed sticks of dynamite amongst the crowd beforehand, it’s The Bronx who stomps on the detonator when they arrive on stage. Even prior to the band appearing, the audience is bottled up and ready to blow; four years have passed since they last played Club Academy, and the anticipation is not lost on the crowd nor singer Matt Caughthran, grinning a mile wide before launching into new album Bronx IV’s opener ‘The Unholy Hand’. It’s only been out a week, but that’s enough time for this faithful crowd to digest the music and regurgitate the words right back at them, spitting lyrics as if these were classic Bronx cuts.
That said it’s the older tracks that result in the most chaos. The scuzzed-out roar of ‘Rape Zombie’ flares the crowd up like a rash, Shitty Future kicks out the jams with assured swagger as the folks up front really let loose and Knifeman gets the venue jumping as one. These motherfuckers want our blood, and we’re all too willing to oblige; at one point a manic and bloodied fan sails over the barrier, punching himself in the face as he does so.
Though it’s largely customary to see the singer in the crowd for most of the set, Caughthran remained mostly on stage. It’s only towards the end that Matt Caughthran and the Infinite Mic Lead gets stuck into the crowd for ‘They Will Kill Us All’, swigging punters’ drinks and unleashing his bellicose howl in their faces as a thank you. ‘History’s Stranglers’ gets anyone that was previously in the woodwork to appear for one last stomp. When the band leaves, everyone is in disarray. As their new album proudly states, when The Bronx shoot to kill, they don’t fuck around.
Street food can be really hit and miss. You might find yourself paying £5 for a frankfurter in a bun just because it has Mrs Marple’s Marvellous homemade relish on it (which turns out to be a combination of tomato ketchup and balsamic glaze,) or you might manage to indulge your senses in something truly scrumptious and creative.
‘Guerrilla Eats’, a group of street food traders based primarily in Manchester, is a typical example of both ends of the spectrum. Tired of the usual pizzas and burgers I went in search of the Chaat Cart selling traditional Indian roadside snacks. Never has a vendor had such a welcoming smile even after the fifth customer in a row asked her to explain what was in the food. Unlearned as I am in Indian cuisine, I just said I’d have whatever she thought was best and I was given a Masala Dosa; a pancake made of lentil and rice filled with a spicy potato mix and topped with her own coconut and tomato chutneys. This was something I’d never make for myself, it was inventive and you could really tell that the vendor was serving what she loved to cook. Her passion certainly manifested itself in the food, which was delicious, healthy and hearty.
Contrary to the enthusiasm shown at the Chaat Cart, round at Pancake Corner the mood was bleak. Perhaps it was because their fillings were so uninspiring? Yes, I too would be bored stiff after my 200th customer asked me for a Nutella pancake. There is nothing wrong with doing something traditional and simple but if you’re going to do it, you have to do it really well, and these thick doughy pancakes really didn’t make the cut.
At Ginger’s Comfort Emporium, however, it was a different story. As winner of ‘Best of the Best’ at the British Street Food Award 2012, the ice creams, with fantastic flavours like orange saffron and whiskey marmalade, were good enough to tempt you to have one in Manchester in February – and that’s pretty good.
Other things on offer included rustic artisan pizzas, marinated and barbecued smoky beef buns and traditional Mexican burritos, among others. My friends vouched for the delectability of all of these though none of them were likely to leave a lasting memory.
The great thing about street food is that it’s a fun and cheap way to eat out, as well as an opportunity to get to know a different part of the city. As we bobbed along to Jamie T and the Libertines blaring out of the speakers – whilst attempting to keep the contents of our burritos from escaping – I decided that it wasn’t really about the food. Of course, it’s always a bonus if there are some sellers that leave a lasting impression, but the fun is really to be had in the relaxed atmosphere. With everyone wrapped up in coats, holding a chilli hot chocolate in one hand, a burger in the other and happily chatting away, it’s the most casual and inexpensive way to go out to eat that you can get. Main, pudding and a can of beer for a tenner: what could be better?
It’s that time of year again. Rolled out in cities across the world, traipsed by many a red-soled shoe, snapped by the world’s press and, increasingly, a host to high street. Yes, red carpet season is upon us once more and you may or may not have noticed a cheeky flash of high-street leg when scrutinising each star’s effort (let’s not pretend like we don’t all see ourselves as the judge in some sort of fashion court case when awards season rolls around). It’s happening.
Whether it’s left you reeling in haute-couture horror or high street happy, the growing appearance of non-designer garments at awards ceremonies is a trend and an interesting one. And with the weekend’s announcement that the UK has become the latest economy to lose its AAA status it can only become more so. But is the donning of accessible fashion by not-so accessible figures really a statement about the arctic economic climate? I doubt it. I imagine, sorry for my scepticism, that it’s probably something more like cardio for the column inches. But to be perfectly frank, I’m not sure I want high street on the red carpet. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not being elitist. I love the high street and I’m all for celebrities sporting stuff that a normal personal could afford without selling their soul to the devil (or John Galliano, as he’s more commonly known). And for stamping right out the sadly growing gap between rich and poor (Cheers, Dave). But leave the red carpet out of it.
Rooney Mara wearing ASOS. Photo: stylebyladyg.com
At its heart it’s something based on dreams and aspirations. Would we care half as much if it was a parade of clobber you could get down the Arndale Centre? Probably not. Sad but true, our long-held interest in that iconic scarlet rug is largely lust-based. We love to look at luxury because it’s a vicarious means of experiencing it: we are so enthralled by extravagance because it most likely will never be ours. Put simply, if it wasn’t exclusive, we wouldn’t be interested. And as long as that’s the case I’d rather keep the red carpet plush than pedestrian.
Treasure Trapped is a road movie documentary about the LARP hobby. For those that don’t know what LARP is, it stands for ‘Live Action Role-Play’ and the easiest way to describe it is it’s like Dungeons and Dragons but instead of sitting at a table rolling dice you’re out in the woods battering each other with fake swords. Have you seen the movie Role Models? If so, you’ve seen a bit of LARP. In Treasure Trapped we’re off on a journey to find out how the hobby works, who plays it and why.
Where did the inspiration for Treasure Trapped come from?
A good few years ago a friend of mine started LARPing, as they say. When he told me about it I could not believe such a thing existed, I was instantly fascinated and wanted to know everything about it, not to mention see it in action. I figured I couldn’t be the only person who felt this way so I rallied the troops and we decided to set off to some LARP events with a camera and see what happened. Next thing you know we have a documentary on our hands.
Who was involved?
The film is produced by Cosmic Joke who are a Manchester based production company, founded by myself after leaving The University of Manchester. When I left University I felt like I hadn’t had many opportunities to develop my filmmaking skills or meet with industry professionals so I wanted to start a production company that offered Manchester students the chances I never had. As a result Cosmic Joke is made up of a mixed bag of people who’ve been working in the industry for 20 years and current University Students looking for their way into filmmaking.
What was the film-making process like? Did you encounter any difficulties?
Making the film has been an immensely enjoyable and fascinating process but not without the challenges that face any documentary film project. Dealing with ‘reality’ you need to be adaptable, some things will go well and some things won’t. We’ve captured incredible footage in the most unlikely places and similarly had monumental failures filming what we thought would be guaranteed gold. It’s also a challenge working on such a big project, we’ve been working on this for three years now, maintaining relationships along the way, it becomes a huge part of your life that you can’t switch off. Everyone is out their juggling their studies or other commitments but we’ve always managed to make it work.
How did promoting your movie on sites such as Kickstarter help?
Kickstarter has been invaluable in helping promote the film and, of course, with earning us that last little bit of funding that we needed to finish. It’s helped us reach people all over the world and build a global audience for the film when is released. It’s also helped us make contact with interested parties who would like to help with further promotion of the film or be involved in some way. Without giving too much away we received a special invite to something yesterday that we never dreamed we’d have the chance to attend with Treasure Trapped, and that was because of our Kickstarter campaign. It is a constant job to maintain this interest though. It really annoys me when people set up these Kickstarter campaigns or twitter accounts and expect them to populate themselves, after running our campaign I have more respect than ever before for those film promoters out there, especially using crowd funding.
How was Treasure Trapped received?
Treasure Trapped is still a few months away from release. All signs point to a positive reception so far though, we’ve had great feedback from all our trailers and test cuts, so fingers crossed the finished product will continue in this vein. We hope we’ve made a film that will interest and entertain people who’ve never heard of LARP before whilst pleasing those devout LARPers out there who want to see their hobby handled fairly in a film.
What projects have you got lined up next?
I keep telling myself I’m gonna have a holiday when Treasure Trapped is released but it’s already looking unlikely! We’ve got a pretty steady flow of music videos on at the moment (our bread and butter as a production company) and are developing a script into a feature film so lots planned but I’ll keep it vague and secretive for now!
How can we find out more info/get involved?
If anyone would like to know more head to www.cosmicjoke.co.uk for the lowdown. All the up to date happenings come flying out of our twitter accounts @CosmicJokeUK and @TreasureTrapped or we can be reached on [email protected] We’re currently sat inside 18 hours a day watching LARP footage so any greetings from the outside world are much appreciated!
Adapted from a self-contained story in Rachel Seiffert’s 2001 book Dark Room, this ‘black fairy-tale’ views the impact of post-World War II Germany through the eyes of 14 year old Lore (newcomer, Saskia Rosendahl) who, with her four younger siblings, is left to make a treacherous and eye-opening journey after their Nazi parents are arrested by allied forces. It is a refreshing take on the arguably homogeneous ‘front-line’ and ‘love story’ WWII films that have been surfacing ever since the horrific events of that period. The stunning cinematography of Adam Arkapaw (Snowtown), whose images of nature and decay are so haunting, infuses this unconventional take on the Holocaust legacy with unforgettable impact.
From its haunting opening to its somewhat bleak conclusion we are taken on a literal and metaphorical journey with the five children, who are attempting to make it to the safety of their unsuspecting grandmother in Hamburg. There are no obvious signs that Lore has learnt any moral lessons from the journey, and no redemption is offered by the film, but Shortland maintains the piece of cinema in a contemporary setting through its ‘coming-of-age’ aspect; through Lore’s reluctant sexual awakening juxtaposed with the sudden brutal awareness of the harsh reality she is living in.
Encompassed in this beautiful piece of cinematic innovation is Lore’s internal conflict to dispel the beliefs she has been brought up with, particularly when Thomas, an enigmatic Jewish refugee of little words, appears on the scene and Lore has to learn to trust the one person she has always been taught to hate in order to survive. This intensely artistic portrait lays out the merits and flaws of how post-war Germany was dealt with by the allies; should the children be made to pay for the crimes of their parents through the suffering they endured travelling across war-torn Germany?
The Sound of Music-esque scenes of them walking through the hills with all their belongings scream of irony – they are not escaping the Nazis, but struggling to come to terms with the impact that Nazism has had on their homeland and the part they played in this destruction. Side by side with this are eerie scenes such as when an old German matron stares at a portrait of the late Führer and says, “We broke his heart… he loved us so much,” epitomising a nation in denial of its crimes.
Lore is an intense, artistic portrayal of the aftermath of one of the most horrific crimes against humanity. An interesting premise, a stunningly executed performance from Saskia Rosendahl, and the bleak picture of humanity it paints is beautifully illustrated by its haunting imagery.
Marketed as “orch-folk”, To Kill A King are a five-piece based in London that have steadily progressed to the brink of their debut album launch since forming in 2009. The group consists of Leeds uni mates Ralph Pelleymounter, Ian Dudfield and Josh Platman, joined by Jonathan Willoughby and Ben Jackson. Heartwrenching and humble, definitely a grower; it’s a pleasure from start to finish – tall order for a debut.
The last couple years have seen the release of two EPs, numerous tours, including a campaign of ‘guerilla’ and ‘living room’ gigs and spots at Bestival and Wilderness. ‘Cannibals with Cutlery’ draws on their previous releases but under the wing of producer Jim Abbiss (Adele, Arctic Monkeys, Bombay Bicycle Club) becomes a much meatier offering. The songs which may be familiar to fans have been reworked and fleshed out; layered with strings and brass, delving into new depths of harmonies led by the distinct vocals of frontman Pelleymounter. Conveying the emotion of his own lyrics, the track progression holds listener interest throughout, and even includes a curveball of the 42 second title track in the middle.
The future single ‘Cold Skin’ creates an anthemic feel, and the video which has already had over 100k hits on YouTube certainly offers a few talking points, filled with face painted kids running amok and wrestling men. Other potential single tracks include ‘Rays’ and ‘Funeral’, with distinctive riffs and choruses to sing your heart out to. The stand out track would have to be the beautiful ‘Choices’, which may start off simply but gradually builds to a dynamic finale. Similarly, the more folky ‘Children Who Start Fires’ shows a great range to what this band can offer.
The album launch will be followed by a stint supporting pals Bastille, offering the opportunity for an on stage collaboration which has till now been limited to the recorded videos from Ralph’s Balcony Sessions. This includes two back to back sold out shows at Shepherds Bush Empire, before shortly afterwards setting off on their own headline tour around the country in April.
Breakfast is a very important subject, and none take it more seriously than Malcolm Eggs, alias of the pun-loving founder of the London Review of Breakfasts, Seb Emina. I interviewed him as he recovered from the launch party for his first book, The Breakfast Bible, and although rather hungover, his passion for all things breakfast-related was clear.
For many, breakfast seems a cheap but slightly grotty fixture on the high street, but Seb waxed lyrical about greasy spoons, arguing that they are places of real cultural importance. In fact, The Breakfast Bible is dedicated to G Muratori, a caf’ where contributors to the book – including the fabulously named Grease Witherspoon, Blake Pudding and H.P. Seuss – would meet once a week. He claims the magic was due to the sausages, which were “just a little bit better than average, meatier –” (cue a wistful pause, as a mark of respect to a departed friend.) It closed down just after they submitted their manuscript, and has been sorely missed.
In the wise words of Thomas Babington Macaulay, “Dinner parties are mere rituals; but you invite a man to breakfast because you really want to see him”. Breakfast is at once the most intimate and also most democratic of meals. Seb points out that whether you’re in Claridges or a cabman’s shelter, you can have pretty much the same plate of food, made to the same recipe, and while the produce might change in quality, at no other time of day can you find such an egalitarian meal.
Seb has had little breakfasting experience in Manchester, and regrets missing the opportunity to eat Bury black pudding, which he claims as “one of the three great black puddings of the UK and Ireland” (the others being Stornaway in the Outer Hebrides and Clonakilty in County Cork, Ireland.) However, he ended up eating at his Travel Inn on his last visit, despite crowd-sourcing Twitter breakfast recommendations of Trof and North Tea Power. He describes the chronic disappointment of breakfast in buffet form, summed up by the fact that “I want eggs cooked for me, not just for someone who happens to be me!” A bad breakfast can be horrible – flabby bacon, watery egg, undercooked tomato or flaccid sausage can all ruin the experience. Even in posh places you aren’t guaranteed a satisfying meal; Seb argues that in fact many of them put breakfast on the menu without truly thinking or caring about it.
This, of course, is a cardinal sin, as a good English Breakfast is a marvellous thing. While not prescriptive, the Breakfast Bible sets out the framework for this: the Magic Nine. These are eggs, bacon, sausages, mushrooms, tomatoes, black or white pudding, toast, baked beans and potatoes. The last two are particularly controversial, and we agree that chips have no place on a breakfast but are unfortunately ubiquitous. HP Seuss immortalised the image of a “baked bean militia” in an early review for the London Review of Breakfasts, which, if insufficiently disciplined, will flood the plate and “carouse like drunken navvies”. As I am firmly in the school of thought that sees baked beans as the work of the devil, I couldn’t agree more.
This wonderful image is a good example of the central feature of both the blog and the book. While firmly focused on the subject of breakfast, the form is more literary than food blog. Reviews come in the form of poems, political dispatches and Freudian dreams. In fact, many of the writers in the early years have gone on to have extremely successful literary or journalistic careers. In the Breakfast Bible, along with recipes, there is an essay on Freud’s breakfast dream, a list of songs the perfect length for boiling an egg to different degrees of hardness, and a strict guide to breakfast etiquette, such as the first rule: breakfast should be held in silence, punctuated by occasional grunts about passing the marmalade.
Clearly, this is a man that respects breakfasts and treats it with due reverence and sincerity. One would be a fool to visit London without referring to the London Review of Breakfasts, and now his new book will enable lovers of breakfast to create the perfect breakfast at home as well.
Recipe for the ultimate Breakfast Cocktail
Seb was in a quandary on the morning we spoke, as his hangover had in fact been caused by far too many of these the night before, but in general this is the perfect antidote to a heavy night. He found the recipe in Harry Craddock’s 1930 Savoy Cocktail Book, and it came with the instruction that it is “to be taken before 11am, or whenever steam or energy are needed.” While Bloody Marys are for hair of the dog, this is if you just want to get right back on it
The Corpse Reviver
Serves 1
20ml gin
20ml Cointreau
20ml Lillet Blanc, or sweet white vermouth and a dash of bitters
20ml lemon juice
Dash of Absinthe
Mix all ingredients and shake over ice. Pour into a cocktail glass and consume immediately.
This week, after lifelong deliberation, I decided to get my nails properly done. Somehow, this managed to be part of a Management Marketing project (any excuse!), but it is something I have considered getting done for a long time. However, I have always been put off by the hefty price tag of £30-£40 for something which may have the same results as your extensive Barry M nail collection, and the thought of fiddling with everyday objects with lengthy claws quite frankly scared me.
Let me start by saying my nails were not in an amazing condition to start with. As an ex-nail biter I have never had long talons, so the idea of my nails becoming ‘ruined’ didn’t bother me too much. The beautician began by filing my nails down, rubbing her scary looking sanding mechanism all over my nails so that the formula would apparently stay put better. In addition to inhaling my own nail powder at this point, my nails were not a pretty sight!
picture: Halee Wells
Next, the beautician opened a box of long white plastic strips and measured the correct sizes against my nails. Using a small strip of glue she attached each strip to the tip of my natural nail. She told me some clients actually opt for that length, gulp!
picture: Halee Wells
I opted for a shorter length, so she took a metal clip and shortened the nails. Then she applied a mixed powder and liquid solution and let it dry under a small fan. I was then instructed to wash my nails under a tap, before she began filing the tips to a more round shape. Two clear top coats were then added, and dried almost instantly.
picture: Halee Wells
The verdict: I was apprehensive at first to the functioning of my new talons, as I definitely wasn’t used to the feeling of having false nails. I paid £30 for a full set of the French manicure nails in Manchester’s Arndale Centre, with all salons in the shopping centre apparently agreeing on the same price for fair business. So far I am very pleased with the results. You may have to adapt when using your smartphone, but if the nails do really last 5 weeks as promised, then I would definitely recommend trying them for yourself.
It’s fair to say there have been some beautiful makeup looks on the red carpet so far this year. From perfected red pouts at the Grammys, to more smokey eyes than you can shake a stick at gracing the Baftas, the A-listers have truly nailed some classic looks in 2013.
I have never really been an Alexa Chung fan, however her makeup look at the Grammys this February really impressed me. With absolutely flawless soft peach skin, and a satin red lip, I cannot fault her look here: beautiful.
picture: emirateswoman.com
My second look of the night had to be from the gorgeous Miss Carrie Underwood. She rocked a stunning soft brown and black smokey eye, with nude lips. Her skin was glowing with a subtle tan and pale pink blush: minimal yet sexy. Taylor Swift also tried and succeeded with this look at the Brits this week, a trend I will have to try!
usmagazine.com
All stand please for the girl crush: Jennifer Lawrence. This girl seems to look beautiful wherever she goes, whether at the gym or on the red carpet. Her look at the Baftas was truly stunning. Whether her gown and hair got soaked or not, her sultry smokey eye stayed put all night long with her understated skin glowing. Flawless!
picture: Kay Montano
Unfortunately, it appears some stars may have got ready in the dark this season, with some truly horrific makeup looks getting papped!
Don’t get me wrong, I admire Florence Welch for her quirky style and incredible musical talent, but her makeup artist needs to be sacked ASAP. She wore eye shadow and lipstick shades that were a total no for her skin tone, and where on earth had her mascara run off to? You can easily perfect pale-chic without looking like a zombie, but unfortunately Florence took the drop dead gorgeous memo a little too far.
picture: sheknows.com
I wasn’t even sure who this strange looking creature was without Googling her, but the Estonian singer Kerli appeared to have arrived three months in advance for the Star Trek 2 premiere. Need I say more?
For a long time I have joked that Justin Timberlake is the safest human being on earth. He’s just such a nice guy. He picks nice roles in nice movies and makes nice music. His hair is also very nice; I bet it smells like sandalwood. It seems fitting then that for the release of his long awaited album: The 20/20 Experience, JT has teamed up with designer and all-round maker of nice clothes, Tom Ford. Word is old Trousersnake himself will have a say in designing a line of men’s formalwear alongside this fashion veteran.
Unsurprisingly, Ford’s brand of lavish minimalism is ubiquitous throughout the video for Suit and Tie, the album’s flagship song. The black and white recording depicts JT in an array of Tom Ford clothing, including Ford’s signature black peak lapel suit. Moreover, Suit and Tie affords the viewer unprecedented insight into the eclectic activities of JT’s fast-paced life. These include: casually tickling the ivories, picking up Tom Ford glasses, putting down Tom Ford glasses, and generally looking svelte in his bespoke Tom Ford three-piece suit. Suit and Tie also features David Fincher’s first directorial return to music videos in seven years. This marks JT’s first partnership with Fincher since The Social Network three years ago.
MTV Style
Overall the video is great to look at; the fruits of JT and Ford’s collaboration are handsome and exude tasteful wealth. The attention to sartorial detail is not dissimilar to the opening scene from A Single Man, Ford’s recent deviation from fashion. The single’s cover, a detail shot of a Tom Ford satin tux and piqué shirt, gets my vote for the best artwork of the year featuring ‘deets’. Yes, the video could have forgone the air of barefaced product placement, but it is pretty, so I’ll let that slide.
Since JT has recently been photographed at various events bedecked in Ford’s stuff, including the recent SAG awards where he looked killer, I assume we can expect this duo’s alliance to continue. That makes me happy.
1. Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears (American Music Awards 2001)
JT and Britney rocked not double, not triple, but quadruple denim at the 2001 American Music Awards. The stuff of fashion nightmares, I’m sure you’ll agree.
Huffington post
2. M.I.A. (Grammys 2009)
Can this woman do no wrong? Well not in my eyes, at least. M.I.A made her bump her best accessory in a sheer House of Holland minidress at the 2009 Grammy awards, where she performed before giving birth a mere 3 days later. What a woman.
ibtimes.com
3. Lady Gaga (VMAs 2010)
Lady Gaga took edible art to whole new levels when she showcased the Franc Fernandez designed meat dress at the VMAs in 2010. The dress received a bemused reception from bloggers and was condemned by PETA. Her rationale behind the dress was that if the ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ laws regarding homosexuals in the US armed forces weren’t overturned, then human beings would be worth ‘no more than the meat on our bones’. It almost makes sense. Almost.
fashionista.com
4. Lil Kim
Staying true to form, Lil’ Kim powered the trashy mermaid look at the 1999 VMAs. You’ve got to hand it to her, she owned it. Who knew someone was embracing crazy coloured wigs and sea-life chic ten years before Nicki Minaj and Azealia Banks?
people.com
5. Hilary Swank
Hilary Swank was the epitome of glamour in this Guy Laroche dress at the 2005 Oscars. She proves that keeping it simple and classy sometimes really is the best, yet the incredible deep V back has me swooning each time, even 8 years on.
What were your initial thoughts when arriving? Really tall and really friendly, my first impression was that I thought he looked like a nice guy.
Did the date get off to a good start? Yes he was really easy to get on with, so we just started chatting straight away.
What did you like best about George? He was very easy going; I learnt lots of interesting things about him that I didn’t expect – like having two snakes!
What were the topics of conversation? A range of things, lots of past experiences, mutual friends, things we liked doing, just constant chat.
Did he make you laugh? Yes, he was really funny guy, and he had a really nice laugh.
Any awkward moments? No, none at all, so we carried on the evening and ended up buying more drinks afterwards because we were having such an enjoyable time.
What was the weirdest thing he told you? It turns out that he’s a bit of a geek, which I wasn’t expecting but thought it was funny.
What happened after you finished your meal? We were having a really nice time so decided to get more drinks and ended up staying for quite a long time, chatting away, the conversation was flowing.
Snog, marry, or avoid? I guess out of the three, I’d snog… What did he say? (laughs)
How did you say goodbye? We walked back together, and I was really cold so he gave me his jumper which was really sweet! Then I gave him his jumper back and we parted ways…
Kiss? Hugged and kiss on the cheek.
Any potential future plans? It would be nice to see him again some time.
George, 20, 1st year Maths
What were your initial thoughts when arriving? That she looks nice (laughs) I didn’t really know what to expect, but she looked really nice.
Did the date get off to a good start? Yes, we had mutual interests so it wasn’t difficult to talk about stuff. The only difficulty was that they didn’t have any roasts left!
What did you like best about Lucy? She was interested in just about everything we talked about, she wasn’t just talking for the sake of it, and she was a really genuine person.
What were the topics of conversation? There were quite a lot! How much of a nerd I am (laughs) people we both knew, what we thought about Manchester and places we’ve both been.
Did she make you laugh? Yes, we lol’d… We laughed quite a lot.
Any awkward moments? No, there weren’t even really many silences, or when there were it wasn’t awkward.
What was the weirdest thing she told you? We discovered we’ve both spent time in Manchester with students but not as students, and that we’d both gotten into strange sleeping patterns.
What happened after you finished your meal? We were going to go onto somewhere else, but as it was a Sunday we had many more drinks at Trof and chatted the night away.
So was she the highlight of the night? Yes!
Snog, marry, or avoid? Seeing as she’s going to read this, marry and avoid are both very weird things to say! So snog.
How did you say goodbye? We walked back together, even thought she could’ve cycled, and then said see you soon? With a question mark! And I got her number, being the smooth talking guy that I am!
Kiss? A friendly hug and kiss on the cheek.
Any potential future plans? Yes I think so. She was ‘humouring’ me it seemed. Yeh potential, it would be nice to see her again.
As always, a special thank you to Trof Fallowfield as well as both Lucy and George. If you would like to take part in blind date please email Leah at [email protected] or Ollie at [email protected] with your name, age and degree.
From their comfortable position in the underground scene, this local quartet are finally making a serious bid for mainstream success. After several thematic ‘detours’, they as The 1975, and during 2012 they had released two EPs and commenced on their first-ever headline tour. Since their support slot to Little Comets ar Academy 2 just over a year ago (then as The Slowdown), the four-piece have developed their own eclectic style, combining smooth guitar tracks, electronic indie pop and melodious lyrics about sex, drugs, love and chocolate.
Apart from some complications with the sound system that caused delays, the crowd was still to become restless before The 1975 had taken the stage. The energetic vibe was still present after the boys from Catfish & the Bottlemen had delivered an exhilirating support slot, and handed out free CDs. Met by a fervent crowd, the smile on lead singer Matthew Healy’s face displayed near-disbelief throughout the set. “You guys seem to know who we are”, he said and seemed almost amazed by the response they got.
Right from opening track ‘The City’, the crowd was singing along and the floor was rocking (at one point I was almost afraid it would give in). The as-yet-unreleased track ‘Chocolate’, from their upcoming EP Music for Cars already seems familiar to the crowd, providing the clear highlight of the evening. Healy’s distinctive, intoxicating vocal style amplified the atmosphere. Delivering a short, intense set, The 1975 proved why they might just be the next big thing.
Jeffrey Steingarten is the best food writer you have probably never heard of. He was the food critic for Vogue for many years and, despite most people’s assumptions that his readership was probably not particularly interested in food (or at least not in eating it themselves), he is incredibly well-respected and a wonderful, inspirational writer.
His first book, The Man Who Ate Everything, starts with his decision to rid himself of all food preferences before becoming a restaurant critic. He feels that in order to do the job properly, he must be able to look at a menu and feel equally interested in eating everything on it. After a long struggle with oysters and Greek food he eventually succeeds magnificently with everything except Indian desserts, going about it in a wonderfully obsessive way.
This meticulous focus is evident in later sections too – for example, when he takes up baking bread. This seems to involve not just practice and an oven, but trips around the world, chemical analysis of different flours and tests with various brands of bottled water, just to make sure the pH balance is exactly right. He is not a man who does things by halves.
One brilliant episode in his quest to make the perfect pizza has him buy a laser-gun heat reader, so he can sneakily test out the temperature in the ovens of his favourite restaurants to find out how they make the perfect crust. The average reader will probably never go to quite his lengths in the search for perfection, but he does provide tempting recipes at the end of each chapter so you can learn from his experience.
As well as this, he gives amazing descriptions of beautiful meals – so amazing that you feel as though you have eaten them yourself, wishing you could give up living in the real world to simply travel and share in experiences like these. That’s still the dream, but until then, read this book, be inspired, and live vicariously through this wonderfully obsessive and truly passionate food-lover.
