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Month: November 2013

A Gin Tasting Night at Lock 91

Written by Maddy Hubbard on . Posted in Food & Drink.

Dave Marsland, better known as The Drinks Enthusiast, is a great bloke. Warm, engaging and funny, he keeps the room laughing and heckling throughout the evening at Lock 91. He describes himself as a “Taster & Guide to the World of Drinks”, and for £15 you can spend the evening trying out four different spirits, and learning their history. We went to the gin night, where Bombay Sapphire, Tanquaray, Hendricks and Sipsmith were on offer, each being described and tasted in turn.

 

The history of gin is genuinely fascinating. Most people have heard it described as ‘mother’s ruin’, but Dave traces its history right back to an early version of the spirit was supposedly drunk by soldiers from the Netherlands during the Eighty Years War, giving birth to the term ‘Dutch Courage’. From there it was brought to England, leading to the Gin Craze where by 1743 the British drinking 10 litres (!) of gin per head each year. While clearly never reaching such dizzying heights of popularity again, gin drinking has definitely had a resurgence in recent years, with its image rehabilitated from seeming like and ‘old man drink’, even becoming the tipple of choice for hipster-types for a while.

 

Dave’s enthusiasm when talking about all of this is fantastic, and he really made me want to find the tasting notes he was talking about in each of the gins. Unfortunately often all I got, in all honesty, was the overwhelming burn of alcohol and an aftertaste of nail varnish remover. This is clearly partly due to the failings of my palate, but I did think that it was a little much to be expected to drink four neat shots of gin in succession. The people around me pulled an interesting variety of faces as the night went on, and I saw more than one group quietly push their second or third glass to the side after having a sniff of its contents. Personally, I’d have liked to be provided with some sort of mixer, maybe a bottle of tonic on each table, for once we had tried a sip of each different gin.

 

Despite struggling with this part of the evening, I am definitely a huge gin fan, and after the tasting I really enjoyed the four delicious and potent cocktails we were given, each using a different gin we had tried. The guys at Lock 91 really know what they are doing here, using gin in various drinks including their take on a martini (Chambord, Sipsmith gin and vermouth – a grown up drink that was incredibly strong and not too sweet), and the deliciously sweet Lemon Sherbert (Tanquaray, limoncello, orange liqueur, lemon juice and vanilla). They made a great end to the night and had us walking home along Deansgate Locks really quite tipsily.

 

Overall therefore I would pronounce the night a qualified success. We all had a great time, warming to our host and the company, but I do think there are slight changes which would make the event even better. But of course, everyone’s palate is different, and there were definitely some tables knocking back the neat gin like there was no tomorrow! And while not an expert, I’m now definitely much more qualified to ramble on pretentiously about the history of gin, which is clearly a vital life skill and one for which I am very grateful to Dave.

Live: Robert Plant

Written by Tom Ingham on . Posted in Music.

29th October

Apollo

“Talk and song from tongues of lilting grace, sounds caress my ears/ But not a word I heard could I relay, the story was quite clear”. The tambourine wielding, golden god of Led Zeppelin; undiminished by time, albeit in slightly looser fitting denim trousers. Backed by the Sensational Space Shifters, one would be forgiven for expecting Robert Plant to stray away from his previous incarnation – leaving most Zeppelin tracks barely recognisable to the human ear, by the man’s own admission “we fuck about a lot”. Opening with Anne Bredon’s ‘Babe I’m Gonna Leave You’ Plant delivers with intensity and dynamism; staying more or less completely faithful to the original arrangement, the songs largely remain the same.

Having proved his capability vocally, the set remained largely mellow as he dipped into the mythical Led Zeppelin back catalogue. Led Zeppelin III provided ‘Friends’ and the somewhat simplified ‘Bron-Y-Aur Stomp’, but the highlight came from a breathtakingly beautiful rendition of ‘Going to California’, where once again the clocks were rolled back to 1971.

Since the death of Bonham, Page and Plant have taken license to experiment – dipping their toes in to all manners of musical waters. The Delta Blues scene was a key ingredient in the Zep formula and tonight the master pays homage with a cover of Howlin’ Wolf’s ‘Spoonful’. Backed by a powerful and vibrant sounding band, (comprising of Massive Attack’s John Baggott) the veteran rocker managed to enrich his potentially dated set with new life – avoiding the all-too-common garish, nostalgia-ridden sights as seen at Deep Purple gigs nowadays. Juldeh Camara brought a flavour of West Africa to tracks, most notably ‘Black Dog’ which was completely devoid of its infamous pentatonic riff.

Plant really brought it on home at the end with ‘Rock and Roll’ and ‘Whole Lotta Love’, quipping, “at least it’s not Smoke On the Water, imagine doing that”. With possible hints at a Led Zeppelin reunion in 2014 all things are sound on the vocals front – Jim, John *cough*.

Classics digested: Wuthering Heights

Written by Elizabeth Linsley on . Posted in Books.

WHO is the author?

The second youngest of the six Brontë children, Emily Brontë was inspired to publish Wuthering Heights by the success of her older sister Charlotte’s first novel, Jane Eyre. Brontë originally published her only novel under the pseudonym Ellis Bell (her sisters Charlotte and Anne were first published under the names Currer and Acton Bell respectively); Victorian sensibilities deemed that only a man could have written a book of such violence and passion. Wuthering Heights was inspired by the wild and rural landscape of the Brontë family home on the Yorkshire moors.

WHAT is it about?

The novel recounts the lives of two generations living at the Wuthering Heights farmhouse and the neighbouring Thrushcross Grange. The story is told by the old maid Nelly to Mr Lockwood, a wealthy outsider who is renting the Grange. Gradually he begins to learn the complicated tale of the two houses, and learns of the love and passion between Cathy and Heathcliff (her adopted brother) that lies at its core. However this is no fairytale romance, and the bleakness and isolation of the setting is echoed in the grim plot.

WHY should you read it?

Brontë’s book is beautifully written and incredibly evocative of how difficult and lonely rural life was in the 19th century. It’s a classic tale of a forbidden love. The passages where Cathy finally declares her love for Heathcliff are beautiful and heart-wrenching poetry. Wuthering Heights is the perfect book to curl up with on the sofa on a cold winter’s day and devour in a sitting, particularly as so many characters have the same name and can therefore take some keeping up with. However it’s worth the effort to experience one of English literature’s most important and well-loved novels.

Classic quote

“You said I killed you – haunt me, then! The murdered do haunt their murderers, I believe. I know that ghosts have wandered the earth. Be with me always – take any form – drive me mad! Only do not leave me in this abyss, where I cannot find you!”

Interview & Live: Little Green Cars

Written by Ruby Hoffman on . Posted in Music.

5th November 2013

Ruby Lounge

8/10

Dublin-based band Little Green Cars is winding down their UK tour, as well as anticipating a tour in their home country that starts at the end of the month, something that the band members are quite enthusiastic about. Playing back home will be a welcome change given their nonstop touring schedule that has included supporting Jake Bugg last winter, as well as appearances at American festivals Coachella and Lollapalooza, (“Chicago is definitely one of the our favourite places we’ve been”, says bassist Donagh O’Leary of the band’s three visits to the USA) as well as appearing on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.

Surprisingly, none of the band has celebrated more than a 21st band’s appearance on Jimmy Fallon occurred before any of theirs. “The interview appeared an hour after being filmed, and we went to a bar to watch it being aired, except none of us were 21 and we were refused entry until it was apparent we were actually the ones on TV”. “Then we were finally let in and bought loads of whisky,” he adds. When asked to describe their band’s current sound, lead singer Stevie Appleby and guitarist Adam O’Regan confer before coming up with ‘neo-soul-garage-rock’. Really? ‘Well, that sounds pretty cool, anyway’, Appleby laughs.

The label-mates of Mumford & Sons and Two Door Cinema Club again come up with a collusion of different genres when speaking about their influences, which range from folk music to the fact that “our drummer has been listening to a lot of hip-hop”. Their debut album, Absolute Zero, was released in March of this past year, and has been five years in the making. When asked about the extensive period of time between the band’s formation and their debut record, O’Regan states that “we didn’t want to make an album until we thought we were ready. We’ve naturally matured since we were sixteen, seventeen years old”.

The bandmates narrowed down a collection of sixty to seventy demos into the twelve songs that represent Absolute Zero, tracks that span “different places” according to O’Regan, but are all within the same vein. So what has been the response of fans to the individual songs? “It’s always interesting watch the crowd’s reactions to certain songs, and how one person can be smiling when a certain song is played while the person next to them seems sad”. O’Regan and Appleby talk about the time a fan sent them a video clip of ‘the John Wayne’, the band’s first and best known single, as background music to his proposal to his girlfriend. I express surprise at the song choice, given lyrics such as ‘it’s easy to be alone / it’s easy to hate yourself / when all your love is in someone else’. “Yeah, it was a bit strange… maybe that’s why she said no”. They both laugh.

Supporting Little Green Cars on tour are fellow Irish band Bleeding Heart Pigeons, and O’Regan and Appleby are both emphatic about their high regard for the band. Catching the second half of the their set post interview, it’s clear why; as the keyboard-infused pop rock outfit captivates the crowd that’s thus far gathered. And then it’s finally time for Little Green cars to take the stage. The band draws the crowd into the set with two acoustic songs that make evident the five members in-tunement and cohesion with one another (vocals stem from every member). They then launch into more upbeat numbers, and the surprisingly small crowd (barely filling out the stage area of the Ruby Lounge, there’s elbow room for everybody) nods and taps along. When it’s time for Appleby to announce the final song, there’s a chorus of disappointment from the crowd.

Little Green Cars isn’t finished however. In a surprising gesture, midway through the song Appleby instructs as many people as possible to join the band on stage, and I find myself and about two dozen others standing alongside and amidst the band as they sing the final refrain. Little Green Cars then returns to for an encore performance of their song ‘the Consequences of Not Sleeping’, stepping down from the stage and gathering instead within the center of the crowd, where Appleby strums guitar and all the members sing this final love ballad, with members of the crowd joining in.

It’s clear that Little Green Cars, having come a long way already, still have far to go; gestures such as these show how much their fans mean to them, indicative of the fact that the still-grounded band deserve all of the recognition they have thus far achieved.

Live: Lucy Spraggan

Written by Francesca Lawson on . Posted in Music.

28th October 2013

The Ritz

Rating: 8/10

Little over a year since Lucy Spraggan burst to fame on the X-Factor stage, she makes her return to the Manchester stage with a bang.

As she emerges onto the stage, she is the upmost antithesis to the crowd; 1500 people chanting her name and she seems completely chilled and relaxed. That’s a remarkable quality to Lucy’s performance, she has a natural charisma on stage which is completely devoid of arrogance.

True to form, she has her banter with the very receptive crowd, pointing out “You’re too pissed mate!”, to one fan, and speaking jovially about the volumes of bras she’s received on stage. This interaction defines the gig; she even invited the crowd to sing the chorus of ‘Wait for Me’ in the encore, showing how much her fans mean to her.

The setlist consisted mainly of her debut studio album Join the Club, with a couple of non-album tracks thrown in there as well. A particular crowd pleaser was her witty internet hit ‘Jeremy Kyle’, amplified by her especially animated expression and rapping. Another highlight was her particularly poignant rendition of ‘You’re Too Young’, taken from her album, it’s a moving and emotional story which she delivered with passion and conviction.

Support came from Shannon Saunders, an up and coming singer songwriter, and Andreas Moe, the voice of Aviici’s ‘Fade into Darkness’. The acoustic element to both of their musical styles seemed a natural crowd-warmer for Lucy and yet provided a sense of variety.

Overall, all the elements fitted into place to form an excellent gig; a buzzing atmosphere, a full venue, and a series of top notch performances.

Live: Coasts

Written by Abi Aldred on . Posted in Music.

The Castle, Northern Quarter

21st October 2013

8/10

Coasts, a five piece band hailing from Bristol, brought their indie set to Manchester’s The Castle. Relatively new on the scene, Coasts is a band that has come on in waves since their formation back in 2011. Playing a quaint setting in Northern Quarter there is sense that this band is bigger than their venue.

Their live show is undoubtedly that which makes this band so special. The lead singer delivered a beautifully understated vocal and the rest of the band equally brought something individual to the performance.

Their track ‘Oceans’ is without doubt their most famous owing greatly to its instant connection with the listener and its catchy chorus. Therefore there was no surprise they saved this one for the end and it was very well received. Another favourite from their set is new single, ‘Stay’ which is just as memorable as its predecessor.

Unfortunately Manchester brought a pretty disappointing crowd and Coasts definitely deserved more. However, that didn’t affect their performance as they continued to play as though filling a much larger space. Their enjoyment on stage was evident and this transferred into the crowd where spectators danced at the front and enjoyed the comfort and intimacy of the small venue. It was also refreshing to see a band take so much care and pride in their performance without the arrogance that many smaller, indie bands tend to demonstrate.

It is easy to see why this band has been labelled as tropical. With a name like Coasts, a debut single entitled ‘Oceans’ and an EP named Paradise (not to mention the palm tree mascot on stage) they seem to be encouraging this theme. However, this band is so much more than just another breezy, tropical, indie band. With brilliantly written songs and a punchy live show, this is definitely a band to catch live.

Top 5 Songs… About Names

Written by Samuel Ward on . Posted in Music.

Lucille – B.B. King
One evening King snapped a string mid-set and, to entertain the crowd, he told the story of his guitar and how it saved his ass. The story went down so well that he snapped a string every successive night so he could tell his tale.

Mary – The Subways
The Subways are that band that is the joyous tat you forgot about until you clean out under your bed. Fresh-faced, bright and kicking, this song perfectly embodies the energy of their first album Young for Eternity. Definitely a belter.

Hanna hunt – Vampire Weekend
The scraping organ and Koenig’s shrill voice definitely make this track uniquely atmospheric. Koenig even admits that he has a fetish for names, with another big hitter on their latest album named Diane Young. I prefer Hannah.

Martell – The Cribs
Who doesn’t like the Cribs? That Wakefield accent. Those charming smiles. Ripped jeans. Bleeding faces. Oh and don’t forget the incident at the 2006 NME awards with the jar of flying saucers. Oh yes, who can’t adore the Jarmans.

Silvia – Miike Snow
One of the more thoughtful Miike Snow singles, Silvia builds up into an icy electronic ballad that really chills. Ambience is definitely sexy, and this track has plenty of it.

Society as the Self: Social Influences Over Creative Culture

Written by Jack Sheen on . Posted in Arts.

Ever since I’ve come into contact with creative people, I’ve always been shuddered slightly at those who claim to ‘express themselves’. The idea of art being a self expressive tool for the artist is ultimately one of the Romantic period, where musicians, writers and artists saw their work going beyond its aristocratic social function and becoming worthy of self sufficient greatness, along with themselves. Since then, Romanticism has gone somewhat out of fashion. Continually deconstructed through various progressive trends, it’s expressive notions nowadays polarize artists and audiences into those or see it as a lost ideology of better times, and those who cringe at it’s remaining presence within contemporary culture. Yet discussions on the extent of which art is or can be itself a form of self expression is a bit of a red herring, as ultimately all artworks are intrinsically intertwined with the subjective mind of it’s maker. Perhaps a more pertinent question would be what do we really mean when we speak of the ‘self’ in ‘self expression’?

Alongside an inherent biological makeup, I believe that people today are essentially built out of the world within which they live; the architecture of one’s social, cultural and moral values rises from one’s experience of and involvement with these factors. This is perhaps most obvious within the arts. Those who have been brought up on the grand scale and complexity of five hour Wagner operas may find it difficult to adapt their modes of listening and musical concepts to a short, economic pop song by Beyonce, just as those who indulge in Renaissance portraits may be baffled by the abstract expressionist paintings of the 1950s. Much post-modern art deliberately plays with this idea, conceptually grounding itself in challenging what people see the arts to be aesthetically and socially. Thus, perhaps when we say ‘self’ expression, we really refer to a manifestation of the sum of our socio-cultural influences and the world within which we work. This idea goes beyond just culture, summating our entire interaction with the world as a series as determined social causes and personal effects; there is just as much ‘self expression’ creating art as there is ordering a cup of coffee, it’s all a ramification of your surroundings.

Despite this pedantic approach, the above conclusions have quite a severe affect on how we generally perceive the arts. Firstly, it shatters the image of the artist as an egocentric idol. Although rare virtuosic talent and craft is something to admire, it becomes much more relatable when one sees it as channeling a social product which we can analyse and empathise with, removing the intimidating pedestal upon which artists are placed. Art can also be seen as an effective historical tool, capturing not merely the personal emotions of an autonomous artiste, but preserving the sentiments produced by the socio-cultural environment which was felt by many.

Ultimately, art’s meaning thus transcends being a cultural commodity and becomes an important document and dialogue with society’s highs and lows. Once the narcissistic rug of personal expression which artists ground themselves on is swept away, comprehension becomes much more immediate and transparent, creating culture which no matter how cerebral or difficult it is, is ultimately an empathetic and universal one.

Origami how-to: Sombrero!

Written by Abbie Mia Roberts on . Posted in Arts.

  1. 1.Begin with square paper folded diagonally, fold in half and unfold to make crease.2.Fold bottom corners in to meet middle line to make a house shape.3.Fold these corners in again.4.Fold top point down

    5.Over along the middle

    6.This should result in the paper being flat. Pres flat.

    7.Turn paper over and repeat

    8.This should result in the paper being flat. Press flat.

    9.Turn paper round, open the paper along bottom edge

    10.And collapse it

    11.Into this shape. Then fold corners up. Repeat behind.

    12.On either side of model pinch outer layers of paper

    13.And pull them apart

    14.Making a flat sombrero

    15.To complete sombrero open out along the bottom edge.

     

Album: Los Campesinos! – No Blues

Written by Patrick Hinton on . Posted in Music.

Released 29th October

Wichita Recordings / Turnstile Music

5/10

Los Campesinos! are the band that sound tracked my pre-adult years. After discovering their early demos on MySpace at the age of 13 I was hooked. From there I went on to purchase everything they’ve ever released on every format (apart from the rare, US-only Sticking Fingers Into Sockets 10”), 10 of their t-shirts and see them a total of 12 times live. Fan boy? Certainly. Watching the band grow up as I did and progress from their somewhat twee beginnings to making brooding-yet-raw punk influenced indie-rock and involving myself in their active online community means no other band comes close to matching the emotional attachment I feel towards Los Campesinos!. This is why it pains me to reveal that latest offering No Blues is the band’s worst album yet.

Musically, No Blues feels very flat: it sees Los Campesinos! simplify their sound to become cleaner and more pop influenced. There’s a lot less going on in this album compared to previous efforts making it a far less arresting listen; the visceral emotion is turned down and careful production turned up. For instance first track ‘For Flotsam’ bursts into a jaunty hook after a stripped down opening, but it feels very restrained and careful. A world away from the brutal audio assault of ‘I Just Sighed. I Just Sighed, Just So You Know’ from the band’s third album, and career highlight, Romance Is Boring. ‘A Portrait Of The Trequartista As A Young Man’ trudges through two dreary minutes before swelling into an eventual climactic chorus in which singer Gareth Campesinos! reflects “We all know we’re gonna die” over the backing of serene vocals from sister Kim and a jazzy saxophone melody. The pay off doesn’t quite justify the precedent however.

As the aforementioned title suggests, football is a very strong lyrical influence on the album, and as an enthusiast of the beautiful game this holds a certain appeal. Being a Leeds fan, the line “People laugh, they will call it folly, but we connected like a Yeboah volley” swiftly becomes one of my favourite lyrics. Yet these references are too ubiquitous; Gareth is at his best when bitterly detailing emotional turmoil straight from the heart and it feels like perhaps football is used to cover up the absence of any real hurt. Niche puns don’t have quite the same emotional impact.

Los Campesinos! still utilise the collaboration of male and female vocals to good effect. The repeated harmony of “They say you and me are tautology” on lead single ‘What Death Leaves Behind’ is immensely catchy and cleverly reflects the sentiment of the words. Yet these exciting moments are uncharacteristically rare across No Blues, and it sounds like the band are stagnating.

Preview: The Wolf of Wall Street

Written by Mancunion on . Posted in Film.

Christmas is Oscar season at the movies, so most big studios, directors and actors set out their stall. Following from 2006’s The Departed (remake of Hong Kong’s Infernal Affairs), which won four Academy Awards, including Best Director and Best Actor, Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio are back together in the upcoming Oscar-bait The Wolf of Wall Street.

Martin Scorsese is back with his new darling Leonardo DiCaprio for the adaptation of the memoirs of Jordan Belfort, a convicted stock manipulator turned motivational speaker and author. The film is a black comedy focusing on his time running a “pump and dump” scheme (artificially inflating prices then selling in large quantities). Basically the lead is a crook and the joke is that we all know how this will end. The appeal of these types of film is the act of living vicariously through the anti-hero and, with a lead of DiCaprio’s charisma, probably rooting for them in the process. Despite Gordon Gecko being the villain in 1987’s Wall Street, many investment bankers took his rousing speeches and slick image as inspiration for their career choices, despite the man breaking the law!

So is this film just another spiritual Wall Street sequel? I’d hazard to say the contrary, as Scorsese, and his editor-in-arms Thelma Schoonmaker, usually have a more dark comedic streak in their films. Wall Street set out to say the opposite to its famous maxim of “Greed is Good” and failed to convey that effectively. The Wolf of Wall Street looks set to revel in the moment, savouring the thrill of making a million dollars a week before the inevitable fall from grace. It seems as though Scorsese is setting out not to make a serious critique of the greed and temptation of the financial sector, but rather another gangster-esque romp through colourful characters skirting the long arm of the law.

So colour me excited. Scorsese makes consistently above-average films, DiCaprio is fast becoming one of the best working actors and Matthew McConaughey seems to be making good film choices finally after the critically acclaimed Mud and Magic Mike. Will this win Oscars? Probably not, it’s a comedy, but it’ll be worth the ticket price.

 

Release Date: 17th January 

Top 5: Tragic Nolan love interests

Written by Jackson Ball on . Posted in Film.

5. Leonard’s Wife – Memento (2000)

The events of Memento are set into motion after the violent murder of Leonard’s (Guy Pearce) wife. Her death leads him on a relentless vendetta to catch her killer, a quest that is forever stunted by his short-term memory loss.

4. Julia – The Prestige (2006)

Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale are warring magicians and bitter rivals. It’s revealed in flashback that their animosity stemmed from Julia (Piper Perabo), their former assistant and mutual love interest who was accidentally drowned during a failed magic trick.

3. Kay Connel – Insomnia (2002)

More of a reluctant love interest this one, as high-school student Kay is the subject of Walter Finch’s (Robin Williams) unreturned affections. Finch does not take the rejection well, leading to an investigation by detective Will Dormer (Al Pacino).

2. Rachel Dawes – The Dark Knight (2008)

Poor Bruce Wayne: His parents were murdered, The Joker is terrorising the city the love of his life is in the arms of the perpetually smug Harvey Dent. Nolan then takes Bruce’s misery to an unprecedented level by turning Rachel into ‘collateral damage’ as part of Joker’s evil plan.

1. Mal Cobb – Inception (2010)

If Christopher Nolan rained down tragedy upon Bruce Wayne, surely he raised the depression for Inception’s Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio). Not only did he inadvertently cause the death of his beloved wife Mal (Marion Cotillard), but he is constantly reminded by that fact when she appears in dreams to kill him and his friends, like a glamorous Freddie Krueger.      

Contrary Corner: Why Wahlberg doesn’t hit the mark

Written by Jack Crutcher on . Posted in Film.

Hollywood has always had its A-list favourites. From Marlon Brando and John Wayne, to Uma Thurman and Elizabeth Taylor; this elite bunch are generally considered the best around, and it’s more often than not hard to argue with that premise. But from time to time conventional wisdom fails to deliver, and there’s a certain actor who seems to be the talk of Hollywood right now, none other than Mark Wahlberg, vis-à-vis the guy who was out-performed by a CGI Teddy bear… who you could say was a little over rated.

This isn’t a personal attack on Wahlberg, it’s worth mentioning he’s a reasonably nice person. I mean, he rapped on Radio One and basically hijacked a Graham Norton show, for which we should all be thankful. But if somebody is ever going to make millions in their career, you’d like to think they were the best in their industry, and Mark Wahlberg just isn’t that great.

His career started off reasonably convincingly with solid performances in Boogie Nights and The Perfect Storm. But since then it’s all gone downhill. Planet of the Apes in 2001 was boring, and Wahlberg played your archetypical ‘yippie ki-yay‘ American action hero/ astronaut. In 2003 he ‘starred’ in the remake of the 1969 classic The Italian Job, again playing what was essentially an American action hero who enjoyed driving fast cars and shooting clueless bad guys.

It was at this point Wahlberg probably realised he could make easy money by playing the same character over and over again; a character that is ultimately the Mark Wahlberg he wishes he was. Hence his decision to work out loads and spend millions on a personal gym. Four Brothers was a rare hit from Wahlberg, as a movie it worked and offered a good blend of wit and edgy violence, but I’m sure you can all guess by now what Wahlberg’s character Bobby Mercer was all about. Shooter and Max Payne represented nothing new from Wahlberg, he blows things up, shoots a few bad guys and then rolls off into the sunset – His performances don’t leave you on the edge of your seat, they don’t make you want to reassess your personal views or feel the need to down a stiff drink. And unlike others who ply their trade in a similar fashion (Bruce Willis et al), Wahlberg doesn’t have that stately charisma, that Hollywood big daddy image that an actor needs to play the ‘stars and stripes wielding American Exceptionalism’ card.

In Ted he was fine, but was carried by Seth MacFarlane’s wit – So maybe the best advice he could receive would be to stick to his role behind the camera, as a producer in the award winning TV series Boardwalk Empire or the recent thriller Prisoners where he was executive producer. Or maybe he would be better suited to a life in the Marines… where he can shoot things for real.

Cornerhouse Pick of the Week: Philomena

Written by Bianca Boorer on . Posted in Film.

It’s the stories of those with age that are the greatest and Philomena is no exception, proving that its award at the Venice film festival for Best Screenplay was well-deserved.

Philomena is an emotionally gripping story based on true events of a Catholic Irish woman who, having had a son out of wedlock, was convinced by Catholic nuns of her shame and coerced into willingly signing away her son for adoption, advised never to search for the baby again. The tragic part of this is that Philomena was just one of many teenage girls that kept the secret of her long lost baby for 50 years.

She is played by the marvellous Judi Dench who depicts this character with poise and humour although her Irish accent wasn’t very convincing. She reminded me of my gran, very easily pleased, religious, tough-minded and yet had this dying sense of helplessness. Despite her age she was really quite relatable as a character. It was quite the contrast from her usual role as the head of MI5 in James Bond. Eventually she tells her story to her daughter on her lost sons 50th birthday which her daughter then tells to a journalist Martin Sixsmith played by Steve Coogan.

Martin is the complete opposite of Philomena which makes them such a great pair. He’s cynical and anti-religion. He had no interest in writing Human Interest pieces as he thought they were for weak minded people but eventually gets emotionally involved in the finding of her son. There is a reversal of roles between the stereotypical good and bad guys. Nuns are depicted as evil and the journalist as heroic, truly moral one. For me personally I always saw journalists as the good guys, uncovering the truth to help people despite the fact they have to be objective and the way people interpret religion by discriminating against people as evil.

Despite all of this Philomena takes the high road and has no desire to seek revenge on the nuns and is only concerned for the welfare of her son. She goes out of her comfort zone to America to seek every detail she missed from her son’s life and connects them with son she so vividly remembers at the age of three. The flash backs of her at the convent really bring the story alive and help the audience live it through Philomena’s eyes. The two characters go on a journey together and realise they were more involved in this story than they thought and learn from each other along the way. There are many unexpected twists and the fact that it’s based on a true story makes it all the more fascinating to watch. The film takes you through the solving of this mystery and shows you things are never as they seem. It starts and ends with the convent Roscrea bringing the story in a complete circle.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So you think you’re the Christ?

Written by George Bellamy on . Posted in Film.

Let’s talk about Jesus. Don’t worry, I’m not trying to convert you; but as this summer blockbuster season was kicked off by a heavily Christ-oriented Superman, while a remake of Robocop is on the horizon (one of the more radical interpretations of the Christ figure), I feel it’s a good time to discuss Jesus in Hollywood, and give a little praise to the legacy of radical, alternative Christ figures in American cinema.

When discussions surround the treatment of archetypes and heroic tropes coming out of Hollywood, conclusions tend to stress the homogeny of the character-types, where the bland nature of the heroes we come across on the big screen all appear in the same mould. Jesus, however as a figure in cinema is surprisingly diverse in his apparitions, as there’s a wealth of playfulness in the depiction of God’s son and heir to the millions. Films explicitly about Jesus have had a long run of inoffensive conventional approaches, yet radical film-makers have had many opportunities where they have shaped Christ in a mould far more radical than how an action hero have be dealt with. Ken Russell’s The Devils, Martin Scorsese’s The Last Temptation of Christ, and Mel Gibson’s The Passion of The Christ are all worth watching for they ways through which the perspective of a film-maker has an object through which their personalities can create its most extreme expression.

It is common to find that in the architecture of the hero in cinema allusions abound to the qualities and tropes of Christ. The latest Superman film, Man of Steel had several visual references peppered throughout the film, which eventually provided a source of critical derision since the references made had the effect of tapping into an extrinsic source of worth and value, which the character within the film hadn’t justified or really conveyed. A moment where he speaks to a priest on whether it was worth sacrificing himself for humanity had a stained glass picture of Jesus taking up half the shot, screaming the pretence of dramatic meaning without being dramatic or meaningful in any effective manner.

However, when a film uses the tropes of Jesus to complicate or subvert expected understandings of the parallel with Jesus, a film can then use the extrinsic source of theological ideas to add vitality the film at hand. The original Robocop presents a Jesus Americanised with all the horror that prospect suggests. Robocop is a cyborg super-policeman who, with his oversized gun, hyper-scientific suit and passable one-liners, wreaks violent judgment on the creeps of a dystopian Detroit. This doesn’t sound very New Testament but the film has a surprisingly prevalent correlation to Christ’s physical suffering, which emphasises the damage inflicted by immoral bodies of people (be it thugs, corporate institutions or hubristic science) on the good guy trying to be earnest in a corrupt society. There’s even a moment where it looks as if he is walking on water before he goes to save a fellow cop. Cool Hand Luke on the other hand presents a darker use of the Christ-like iconography, where Paul Newman’s inspiration for the spirit and resistance of the people who revere him does not lead to salvation or freedom from oppression, but a pacified dream of hope where the inmates continue to revere the idealised hero but never defeat their oppressors.

Hollywood may not be an environment where the studios are keen to offend their audience with audacious presentations of an alternative Christ-figure, but somehow throughout the years, filmmakers have managed to mingle various ideologies and ideas through using existent genre tropes and religious iconography to great effect.

Interview: Naughty Boy

Written by Mancunion on . Posted in Music.

Shahid Khan is a prime example of a talented success story. From humble beginnings in Watford, a natural talent and sheer determination led him to produce Emeli Sandé’s award winning debut and biggest selling album of 2012, ‘Our Version Of Events’. When deciding on the moniker of Naughty Boy, Shahid explains “I didn’t choose Naughty Boy, I think he chose me. It’s a super hero alter ego as when I started out, I was too scared to produce under my own name. Naughty Boy just felt right”. However, come Summer 2013 and his own album ‘Hotel Cabana’, had rocketed to number two on the charts.

Working with Emeli Sandé was the opportunity that gave him such confidence. “We just met randomly at some random underground showcase in London and started working together. When I had my first hit with Emeli in 2009 and it reached the Top 10, I felt something changing at that point as people started finding me. It was crazy success!”

Ultimately, it meant stepping into the limelight to further develop his artistry. “The renewed confidence from working with Emeli made me want to bring something new to the game but it needed to be a full album to truly show my abilities”.

‘Hotel Cabana’ certainly does just that. Based on Shahid’s experiences working as a waiter in 2005, the album brings all the exotic influences and imagination of his signature sound known with Emeli. He expands “I used to work as a waiter for 2 years and got to see the whole of the world. At first I envied the rich and famous people living their lives in the hotel but after a while thought they were quite lonely. In ‘Hotel Cabana’ I talk about various temptations, money, sex etc. that takes place in hotels.”

The success of the first track of the album ‘La La La’, came almost overnight and could be partly contributed to a unique video. The profound video references the childhood story The Wizard of Oz and acts as the backdrop for the album. “The kid featured is going to grow up and become me.” Shahid explains. “He too comes from nothing but is able to use his imagination to ignore the trials of everyday life”. Shot in Bolivia, “the child escapes his father’s alcoholism by realising that sometimes it’s okay not to listen to people around you. I think that’s why the video gets so much love”.

Tracks ‘Lifted’ and ‘Daddy’ on the album are similarly thought-provoking through their suggestive lyrics and experimental samples. “I want people to use their imagination to interpret my music”, but imagination doesn’t mean complexity. “The hardest track to write on the album was ‘Top Floor’ featuring Ed Sheeran. I didn’t know whether to keep it simple and acoustic or bring up the production but just because something is a demo, doesn’t mean you should add to it.”

Having dropped out of his Undergrad at the University of London to pursue his Music career, Shahid reflects on his short-lived University career. “I left because I realised that sound engineering wasn’t for me. My biggest advice to student producers would be to know the course you’re doing is the right one. I was doing sound engineering but being passionate about creating colours and music, I felt I made the right decision to put the plan in focus.” However he continues, “I wouldn’t rule out going back to University in the future. I’ve been doing some freshers gigs at Unis and regret that I never had that independent move from home. I want to experience the clichés!” … at Manchester perhaps?

Looking to the near future, Shahid has big visions. “My goal is world take over so I can afford to be more creative in the process. At the end of this year, I’ll be touring in America. Collaboration wise, I’d love to work with Adele. It’s always the best to work with and be respected by those you respect yourself”.

Horoscopes 11/11/13

Written by Moya Crockett on . Posted in Lifestyle.

SCORPIO (24 OCTOBER – 22 NOVEMBER)

We see a very strong chance of romance for you this month, Scorpio. All you have to do is look out for the person wearing a beanie on their head, Nikes on their feet and an edgy rucksack on their back. Don’t say we don’t give you options.

SAGITTARIUS (23 NOVEMBER – 21 DECEMBER)

You’ve spent so much time in the library recently that the bags under your eyes are more like suitcases and you’ve begun to dream in footnotes. Take a break every now and then – join the rest of us in Slacker Land! We’ve got tea, Come Dine with Me repeats and loads of naps… It’s great.

CAPRICORN (22 DECEMBER – 20 JANUARY)

A wise man once said, “Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.” We are here to advise you that these words have no relevance to your life at all. It is literally the worst advice in the world. Do that and you end up like the cast of Made in Chelsea: permanently surrounded by awful people you hate.

AQUARIUS (21 JANUARY – 19 FEBRUARY)

The colour red looks to be of great significance for you this month. It’s the colour of love and passion, sure but it’s also the colour of winter acne and unpaid bills. You decide which has more relevance to your life.

PISCES (20 FEBRUARY – 20 MARCH)

Elephants never forget, and apparently neither do you. Yes, it was annoying that your housemate finished off your vodka when you were home for Reading Week, but you have got to let it go.

ARIES (21 MARCH – 20 APRIL)

If you don’t rein it in, your constant and inaccurate use of the word “literally” will literally see you bludgeoned over the head with a blunt object until you literally learn your lesson. No quotation marks, capeesh?

TAURUS (21 APRIL – 21 MAY)

This month, a toxic combination of emotions – nostalgia, desire, and straight-up loneliness – will result in an ill-advised night of passion with your ex. After consulting the stars, we predict you’ll realise they’re just as annoying before and regret it.

GEMINI (22 MAY – 21 JUNE)

They say don’t put all your eggs in one basket, but to be honest, Gemini, you’re lucky to have a basket at all, so take what you can get. In the words of Mark Twain: “Put all your eggs in one basket – and watch that basket.”

CANCER (22 JUNE – 22 JULY)

This month you will experience incredible highs and devastating lows, as you spend six hours at Warehouse Project and then spend the next 48 hours crying weakly into your pillow.

LEO (23 JULY – 22 AUGUST)

The whole casual-grunge, ’90s sportswear, un-brushed hair, scuffed trainers look you’ve got going on is cool, sure. However, you might start to reconsider a few things this month when a homeless person kindly offers to buy the magazine you’re holding.

VIRGO (23 AUGUST – 23 SEPTEMBER)

It’s not that you’re lazy, exactly, it’s just that you can’t be bothered to do anything. Lectures, essays, getting out of bed and showering are all just quite pointless tasks, aren’t they? According to Jupiter, you are actually part sloth, so draw the curtains, get back under the covers and watch stuff on iPlayer all day. It’s destiny.

LIBRA (24 SEPTEMBER – 23 OCTOBER)

Mars rising in Jupiter suggests that you’ll be experiencing feelings of great uncertainty about your future and your purpose on the Earth. Unfortunately, it doesn’t offer any solutions.

It’s a boy girl thing

Written by Mancunion on . Posted in Lifestyle.

Yes- Lewis

Even though I’m the first to admit that a lot of friendships between the opposite sexes do not always remain friendships, I think it’s wrong for people to assume that lads can never be ‘just friends’ with girls. My best friend is a girl, we spend loads of time together and I love her to bits- but if I had to describe my worst nightmare of a girlfriend, she would be it. I just consider her on the same level as my male friends, in the sense that we get on, but there’s absolutely no attraction between us. Nowadays, I know loads of lads that get on with girls better than their mates of their own sex, and vice versa, and if you enjoy spending time together, why should that be an issue?  Yes, I have overstepped the mark with some of my female ‘friends’ in the past, but I think that if your friendship is genuine, then it will survive this test.  My best friend is way more reliable than other lad mates that I’ve known for years, and I always know that I can rely on her. I think that those who don’t believe the opposite sexes can be friends have obviously just not matured yet.

 

No- Beth

I have seen many male-female friendships form ever since high school, and almost every time I can write the scripts for these ‘friendships’: mates for a couple of months, one falls in love with the other, the pair gets physical, and/or one is most definitely left heartbroken and friend-zoned at the end. Time and time again, lads and girls form friendships believing that they are ‘different’ to others; but the simple fact is, we are not biologically programmed to have lasting, platonic relationships. It is in our blood to be attracted to the opposite sex, and sexual desire will always find a way to form.

Think of your favourite TV sitcoms, and I bet all of them feature friendships that eventually turn into relationships. Where would F.R.I.E.N.D.S have ended up if Ross and Rachel hadn’t had the most on/off relationship of the Nineties and Noughties? Would How I Met Your Mother be half as entertaining without Ted’s countless attempts to get himself out of the friend-zone with Robyn? We all fall in love with someone that we can be friends with, and this is exactly why friendships with the opposite sex rarely end well. Yes, I have lad mates, but there’s no way that I could talk to them in the same way I do my girl friends, or hang out with them regularly. In my opinion, if you want to spend a large amount of your time with a member of the opposite sex, then you’re in denial about your feelings towards them! We may as well admit that these friendships will never work, and save millions of people the heartache (and embarrassment) of being launched into the friend-zone sooner or later.

Cornerhouse Pick of the Week: Gloria

Written by Jane Kilpatrick on . Posted in Film.

I first watched Gloria in the Costanera centre, Santiago, streets and moments away from where much of the film was shot. Watching it for a second time in Manchester’s lovely Cornerhouse cinema truly emphasised the film’s celebration of Chile and of life.

On 23 October the Cornerhouse hosted an exclusive preview of Chilean masterpiece Gloria, even offering a rare opportunity for a question and answer session with extremely talented Chilean actress Paulina García, winner of the Berlinale’s Silver Bear award for Best Actress in 2013. She explains just how the film, and Gloria herself, celebrate what it is to be Chilean and what it is to be alive.

Gloria, the film and the woman, are both somewhat unique and unusual. Writers Sebastián Lelio and Gonzalo Maza called García when they were thinking of writing Gloria. The script was ‘written’ for her- except it wasn’t written. A story board was provided, but the actors had much more free reign over dialogue, improvising scenes in rehearsals, truly bringing free spirited Gloria to life. Regarding the curiosities of creating a celebration of a female life written by a male director, García comments “Hamlet is alive when the actor is there. There was no script, only a story-board, so my experiences informed the character a lot.”

García describes the rehearsals as “special”; she was taken to dinner, went dancing, walked around and watched films, to prepare for her role, creating “a bridge between the director and the actress”. Lelio always watched rehearsals before shooting to pick out the best parts. García describes one of the hardest parts of filming to be the fact that, appearing in every single frame of the film, García spent a lot of time filming alone. For five weeks Paulina García worked 11 hours a day, every day.  For Gloria the director and his lead actress worked extremely closely for 5 weeks to create a really touching and cheerful drama.

When asked whether she considers Gloria to have a “happy ending”, García muses that it is not a happy ending we should be focussing on. “It is just a moment, a moment in which she is joining with life. We are losing our abilities to be happy. And it is our duty to be happy, living a good life with no problems.”

The protests that filled international news coverage of Chile in 2011 are not at all central to Gloria’s plot, yet they are included in the film, as Gloria observes from her balcony and walks against swathes of students in Santiago’s centre. Why include them, if just to include a nod of the head towards their prominence in the background of everyone’s lives at the time?

“Our lives in Chile today are very political. Even though we are not talking all the time about dictatorship, it is still under us. It’s not about parties; it’s about how you are standing on life. To be Chilean, you have to really care about that. Gloria is going through an existentialist change, and so is Chile.”

Gloria’s relationship with an ex-naval officer clarifies this point of change and decision. “Like the student protest, [Gloria] was going forwards, Rodolfo was going backwards. She made the decision to change something, it wasn’t a big deal, but he also made the decision.”

As the film leaves her dancing, celebrating life and herself, we wonder what’s next for Gloria? “She’s just going to start again”, shrugs Paulina García, as though it is obvious. “You are alive until you are dead, so why not?”