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Month: October 2014

Decisive student vote could swing 200 seats

Written by Charlie Spargo on . Posted in News.

The student vote could swing the results of 200 seats at the next general election in 2015, according to a new report by the NUS.

The NUS’ general election manifesto, ‘New Deal for the Next Generation’, was released last week by the union’s president, Toni Pearce.

In it, it was reported that there were 197 seats with a majority of less than 10 per cent, meaning a 5 per cent swing would see the constituency change hands.

In 191 of these seats, there is a higher proportion full-time students residing there than the size of the swing that was needed to change the result of the 2010 election, according to census data.

This means that a decisive student vote could have considerable bearing on which party comes out on top next year.

These 200 seats in which students have such considerable power make up more than a quarter of all seats in Parliament.

81 are Conservative seats, 76 are Labour, 25 Liberal Democrats and eight are held by MPs not from the three main parties.

Furthermore, the number of students who have already registered to vote has soared recently, reaching 73 per cent compared with only 66 per cent nine months ago. Nearly three-quarters say they are highly likely or likely to vote if the election was held tomorrow.

Polling by the NUS also showed that 77 per cent of students did not trust politicians to keep their promises, and 65 per cent believe that Governments cannot be trusted to put the interests of the country above that of their party.

25 per cent of those polled would vote for Labour at the next election, 10 per cent Conservative, and only 5 per cent for the Liberal Democrats. Only 4 per cent say they strongly identify with any political party.

Toni Pearce, NUS President, said “We want to ensure that promises made are promises kept, so we’ve asked for a right to recall that takes into account more than just fiddling expenses—lying to voters is wrong too.

“Students are the force to be reckoned with at the ballot box. Our ‘New deal’ manifesto covers education, work, and community because students are not single issue voters because we do not have single issues.”

Cost of living, health and employment are the three key factors for students in deciding who to vote for.

“We endure financial hardships and future debt unimaginable even to the students of ten years ago. Students hold the key to the next general election, and we will be making sure they use it.”

Manchester success at Manchester Evening News Environment Awards

Written by Helen Chapman on . Posted in News.

A joint campaign encouraging students to donate their unwanted items to charities won the Environmental Services Waste Prevention award at the Manchester Evening News Environment Awards.

The campaign is managed in partnership between the University of Manchester, Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester City Council, British Heart Foundation and Manchester Student Homes. The scheme has been running since 2009.

This year, the University of Manchester have seen a significant increase in donations from last year. In total, the partnership donated 16,651 bags (2013 saw 8,788 bags donated), with University of Manchester halls doubling their donations from 2013-2014. A total of 183 tonnes of materials were saved from being disposed into landfill and the donations raised over £230 000 for the British Heart Foundation.

86 student volunteers from the Manchester Leadership Programme were involved with the creation and delivery of packs, which go out to 80,000 students across Manchester.

Al Clark, Environmental Coordinator at the University of Manchester said, ‘this is a fantastic initiative which has helped the University raise the profile of thinking about what we waste and being able to further enhance our commitment to social responsibility.’

Kirsty Hutchison, Volunteering and Community Engagement Consultant at University of Manchester added, ‘once again this shows how students care about their community and want to get involved to make a difference to the world around them.’

The Manchester Leadership Programme (MLP) has been developed to support the University of Manchester’s ambition to produce highly employable graduates who understand the important role they play as global citizens, and who have a strong sense of personal and social responsibility. Over its 8 year lifetime over 5,000 students have chosen to take part and a further 1,300 students will participate over the next 12 months. The programme is available to students from most study areas; the cohort of participants ranging from Engineering, Medicine, Social Sciences and Humanities.

The programme has addressed many of the key challenges facing 21st century society through a focus on the themes of ethics, global poverty and inequality, economic and environmental sustainability and social responsibility. Students on the programme gain an insight into these themes in two ways: through an academic ‘Leadership in Action’ unit and through the opportunity to contribute to more sustainable communities by completing up to 60 hours of volunteering.

 

The Sensory War: 1914 – 2014

Written by Holly Smith on . Posted in Arts.

After opening last Saturday, Manchester Art Gallery is currently hosting a 5-month exhibition exploring the impact of military conflict on the body, mind, environment and human senses in the last 100 years.

The Sensory War: 1914 – 2014 marks the centenary of the First World War and the works on show depict the shocking impact of new military technologies utilized in a century of almost constant conflict. 1914 marked a huge reconfiguration through the invention of new devastating weaponry, destroying people’s lives and altering the environment beyond recognition.

Over 20 prominent artists make up this exhibition, which includes traditional and contemporary pieces from all over Europe, such as Heinrich Hoerle’s Three Invalids and die Krüppelmappe, which are here in the UK for the very first time together, recording Hoerle’s tender but also bitter reflections on the ruined bodies of war from a German perspective.

From bombing scenes to rehabilitation, this fascinating exhibition is a must for anybody interested in finding out how the war contributed to the reshaping of the art world. The devastation and destruction depicted transports you to an entirely different time and makes you wonder how mankind is capable of doing these things.

The Sensory War: 1914 – 2014 is now on at Manchester Art Gallery until 22nd February 2015. Entry is free.

5 Most Controversial Books

Written by Alister Pearson on . Posted in Books.

1. The Satanic Verses – Salman Rushdie

Not only did two American bookshops refuse to sell the book due to death threats, but you could actually be imprisoned for 15 months if you were caught reading Rushdie’s 1988 novel in Venezuela. To top it all off the Ayatollah of Iran sent out a fatwa calling on all Muslims to kill Rushdie and his publishers. Rushdie avoided any harm but his Japanese translator was stabbed to death in 1991.

2. Brave New World – Aldous Huxley

Huxley’s dystopian novel was banned in Ireland during the 1930s for its coarse language, being anti-family and anti-religious. In the 1960s, the book was removed from shops in India with Huxley being branded a “pornographer.” A teacher in Maryland was fired for assigning the book to her students. The decision was upheld despite an attempt to sue for violation of First Amendment rights.

3. The Catcher in the Rye – J.D. Salinger

The American Library Association reports that Salinger’s 1951 novel about Holden Caulfield—an angst-ridden and alienated teenager—was the tenth most challenged book in the 1990s. The book was a major influence on Mark Chapman who shot and killed John Lennon and was even observed reading the book whilst waiting to be arrested. The novel was actually banned at high Schools in Washington in 1978 because it was deemed to be part of a “Communist plot.”

4. Tropic of Cancer – Henry Miller

“It is a cesspool, an open sewer, a pit of putrefaction, a slimy gathering of all that is rotten in the debris of human depravity.” That’s how the Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice Michael Musmanno described Miller’s 1934 autobiographical novel. Despite this the book has been accredited for the “free speech that we now take for granted in literature.”

5. Captain Underpants – Dav Pilkey

A surprise inclusion, perhaps, but this children’s favourite has been the most frequently challenged book in the last two years in America, according to the American Library Association. Its offensive language and violence was enough for parents to actively seek to get the series removed from the bookshelves.

Review: Amsterdam

Written by Allie Liu on . Posted in Theatre.

Colanders, mini lightsabers and slanted furniture give an interesting aesthetic to Chanje Kunda’s new play Amsterdam, which mixes drama with performance poetry and art. We were fortunate enough to watch the play’s world premiere on Friday 3rd October in the intimate space of the Contact Theatre—and it certainly didn’t disappoint! As we follow Chanje through a year of her life, we experience her first trips to Amsterdam, which lead to a new relationship and causes her to re-evaluate the way she looks at her life in Manchester.

Chanje is a very likeable performer and despite at times the play becoming bogged down in metaphors, especially towards the end, she is an inclusive entertainer and the piece has a conspiratorial tone. The overtly comedic sections present a very warm and familiar setting—as if we were gossiping with a friend. The crowd responded with laughter throughout the play, raucously so at the use of a megaphone to evoke the voices of friends and family; and the subversion of conventional terms used for emails into tongue-in-cheek flirtation.

This symbolism of material goods to express something more intangible is used throughout the play and it begins with freedom being poetically described as “your own roof” and other household appliances. The link between the product and experience remains strong, with Chanje coupling the excitement of her new life—and man—in Amsterdam with luxury apartments and fast cars. The doomed nature of the relationship probably hints more closely at her real views on the connection between commodities and happiness, short-term gratification and long-term contentment.

This is epitomised in the play’s denouement with a second performance of a poem about her son—which also features a recording of her son reciting along with her. It focuses on her son’s love of the rain and, as such, represents a return to, and realisation of, Chanje’s maternal responsibilities. Through the return to a love that is based on natural closeness rather than the enticements of luxury shows the hollowness of her love in Amsterdam and the pureness of that for her son.

Chanje exceeds all expectations as a one-woman performer; her ability to embody several characters (somewhat stereotypically) is both humorous and believable. Having no one else on stage to bounce off of or prompt makes the fluidity of her rhythm and rhyme all the more impressive.

Top 5: Spooktacular accessories

Written by Mancunion on . Posted in Fashion & Beauty.

Hadn’t had time to plan your outfit for Halloween? Don’t want to spend a fortune on a tacky costume that you’re likely to only wear once? Or just generally don’t really care for dressing up and are just looking forward to the party and spending time with your friends? Then we’ve got it covered. Halloween is a time in which all of the fashion boundaries are broken and whatever you wear you’re bound to fit in perfectly with the rest of the witches, cats, zombies and even pirates! Here are five accessories that will Halloween-ify any simple outfit.

1. Creepy cat mask

Cat Mask – Claire’s Accessories

This year, Claire’s are showing us that dressing like a cat can be not only fashionable, but sophisticated too. The intricate work on this mask will add a touch of class to any black outfit and is incredibly easy to just throw on.

Cat mask, Claire’s accessories, £12.

 

2.  Devilish ears, tail and bow tie set

Devil set – Claire’s Accessories

A very simple way to make yourself look devilish and the tail is guaranteed to be a conversation starter for the duration of the night!

Devil set, Claire’s accessories, £10.

 

3. Witchy red and black wings

Red wings – George

These wings could be worn alone or teamed with the devil set to create a fiendishly fun costume.

Red and black butterfly wings, ASDA, £5.

 

4. Ghoulish ghost mask

Ghost mask – George

This eerie white ghost mask is the way to go if you plan on terrifying your friends this Halloween and will save you the effort of spending hours on your hair and makeup!

Ghost mask, George £5

 

5. Dark and dangerous – black lipstick and dazzle dust

Barry M Lip paint No. 37 Barry M Dazzle Dust in Petrol Black

Want to opt for an easy but effective grunge look this Halloween? Using this lipstick and Petrol Black dazzle dust you can create a cool Halloween makeup look that is compatible with any outfit.

Lip paint No. 37, Barry M, £4.25. Petrol Black Dazzle Dust, £4.59

Review: Lee Evans

Written by Andy van den Bent-Kelly on . Posted in Theatre.

A game of two halves would probably be the best analogy to describe the master of physical comedy’s latest venture onto the big stage. One half average, the other half excellent.

I arrived at the Phones 4u Arena brimming with excitement, knowing that I was finally going to see my favourite comedian perform live. I had high hopes that one of Britain’s best-loved standup comics would once again have me in hysterics, as all his other tours have done.

However, things didn’t initially turn out as I was expecting.

By the time Evans ran off stage at the interval to change out of his sweat-drenched suit, I found myself slightly puzzled. My jaw was aching from near-continuous laughter, but at the same time I was somewhat underwhelmed. The first half had been undeniably funny, but by Evans’ own high standards I still felt he had a lot more to offer.

There didn’t seem to be any real structure to the performance. Random jokes were scattered around and although I laughed at all of them, I found them surprisingly hard to relate to. There were no obvious themes.

I’m a huge fan of Lee Evans. I’ve watched his shows countless times online—I even own some of his DVDs. His previous tours have been built on scenarios that almost everyone goes through on a regular basis, in particular married couples and families.

The first half of this show didn’t really focus on these kinds of situations. I laughed as he spoke about train stations, Dyson vacuum cleaners and police sirens, but in all honesty there were very few moments where I thought to myself, “oh my God, that’s so true!”

However, I should have known better than to doubt a comedian of Lee Evans’ calibre. Perhaps changing his suit at the interval gave him a new lease of comedic life, because the way in which he upped his game in the second half stunned me.

Suddenly, I found myself relating to all the jokes. I howled as he talked about trips to the optician and the dentist. His painfully-accurate description of guys on a night out had me in stitches. I was almost slapping my knees as he spoke about charity work in Africa.

The crowd were mesmerised by his boundless energy, his wild facial contortions and his delightful ability to give ordinary, inanimate objects a personality of their own. In the world of Lee Evans, everything has a voice, be it food in a microwave or a sock in the washing machine.

As is the case with any Lee Evans show, situations involving him and his wife became a prominent feature in the second half. The wonderful thing about these jokes is that you don’t have to be married to understand them—for me, simply watching and listening to my parents is enough.

His observation of how his wife behaves in hotels and in shopping centres closely resembles what my mother gets up to in the same situations. There were moments in the show where I could picture my parents acting out the scenario that he was narrating.

Evans is well known for ending his shows with some sort of musical performance and this tour was no different. After one final dig at his wife, he sat down at an electric organ and dedicated a heart-warming song to her, even managing a few strums on a guitar as well.

He wasn’t finished there, however. Those of you who are familiar with his tours will know of his iconic Bohemian Rhapsody routine; the crowd roared in delight as he ended the show with a delightful performance of it.

One thing that really struck me was Evans’ humility throughout the show. Even after years of performing to sell-out crowds, his modesty still shines through on every occasion.

He repeatedly thanked the people of Manchester during the performance and while I suspect he says similar things at every venue he goes to, he was genuinely hugely appreciative of the hospitality he’s received up here in the North West throughout his career.

After he’d shouted down the microphone for one final time, he came straight to the front of the stage to greet his adoring fans, who had afforded him a standing ovation. He slowly made his way along, shaking hands with as many people as he could.

Surprisingly, the mad rush to the front that I’d been expecting didn’t ensue, so I simply strolled down to the stage and stuck my arm out in expectation as he approached. What followed was a brief moment of eye contact accompanied by the sweatiest, most glorious handshake I have ever experienced.

I walked out of the Arena smiling like a little child at Christmas, realising that I’d not only watched one of my idols perform for almost three hours, but shaken his hand as well.

By the looks of things, the Lee Evans juggernaut shows no signs of slowing down. I certainly hope that he doesn’t. Although this wasn’t vintage Evans throughout, the latter parts of the show were enough to convince me that this behemoth of British comedy has still got it.

Trick or Treat?

Written by Mancunion on . Posted in Fashion & Beauty.

Trick

When I think of Halloween fashion, the words ‘black’ and ‘lace’ immediately spring to mind. And combined, I believe they epitomise the ideal clothing marriage. Another perfect element to add to this duo is the online shopping haven we all know as ASOS, and its endless supply of clothing. If you’re not looking to go all out in crazy fancy dress, then we believe ASOS has the perfect combination of black lace garments that if accessorised in the right way, will make you look effortlessly fashionable.
This ASOS Victoriana Lace and Organza Top can be perfectly combined with an A-line skirt—as shown in the image, or even a pair of your finest black jeans. The sheer and lace elements provide just enough skin on show, whilst the high-neck adds a little extra high-end fashionability. Again, an item that can be worn over again to suit any occasion and at only £36.00, the price tag isn’t too much for your student budget. We’re all willing to spend that bit extra on Halloween! An up-do really shows off the detail and adds some sleek simplicity to the overall outfit, but feel free to add your own twist or wacky hairstyle if you’re feeling adventurous!

 

Treat

Photo: asos.com

Conversely, I do understand that some of you want to go that extra mile and stand out from the crowd. ASOS have spoilt us with this midi-skirt that adds a sense of class to a crazy evening. Whether you are pairing this skirt with some scarily-drawn face paint, or subtly adding a few accessories to the attire, you will be sure to catch a few eyes. The skirt can be found on ASOS’ online transactional website for £55.00—and therefore, may be considered as more of a one-off purchase. However, post-Halloween, I can see the evidently intricate skirt toned-down with a minimalistic top and a delicate necklace. It’s also a perfect length for the coming colder months! Don’t be afraid to embrace the Halloween trends that the high-street has to offer—after all, it’s only Halloween once a year.

Interview: The Menzingers

Written by Dan Whiteley on . Posted in Music.

Since the release of their breakthrough third album On the Impossible Past, Philadelphia four-piece The Menzingers have risen to become one of the biggest names in the East Coast independent music scene. The follow up, Rented World, was released earlier this year, and continued to gain the band critical acclaim for their mix of Americana imagery and angst-ridden pop punk. Ahead of their sold out performance at Gorilla, I sat down with co-frontman Greg Barnett to discuss the new record, as well as their current European tour. First and foremost; are the band happy with the album’s reception?

“Yeah, absolutely!” he says, excitedly, “I mean, as pleased as you could be, it’s pretty unbelievable. We put the record out and immediately went straight to Europe for Groezrock festival, so we didn’t really know how the reception was gonna be until we were on this massive stage. And all of a sudden we opened up with the first song on the record, ‘I Don’t Wanna Be An Asshole Anymore’, and the place went off, so it was kind of a good feeling that people like it, and yeah man, it’s been great.”

With the band’s previous record being so well loved—having being named album of the year by both the AbsolutePunk and Punknews.org communities—did they feel extra pressure to deliver on the follow up? “There was only really personal pressure,” Barnett shrugs. “We always just tried to make ourselves happy and our immediate close friend group, and our friend’s bands. You play off of them and get their opinions on it. But yeah, I don’t really give a shit about what reviewers and shit like that have to say. I don’t hang out with them, I don’t talk to them, they’re not the people we’re writing the songs for. It’s personal; we do it for ourselves.”

Listeners have noted a growth in the song-writing on Rented World; though their punk ferocity is intact, the band shows their grungier side this time round on tracks like the riff-heavy ‘In Remission’, whilst ‘Where Your Heartache Exists’ bears resemblance to the Pixies. Barnett suggests this is partly down to their listening habits at the time: “There was a lot of nineties rock; the Smashing Pumpkins were a big one that we were always listening to in the van, that we referenced for mixing and everything. And yeah, the Pixies of course, they’re a huge influence. And our friend’s bands, we’re inspired by the people we hang out with, we live in a pretty amazing music city of Philadelphia. There’s a lot of cool bands and we’re influenced by that.”

One of the most talked about tracks on the new record is the stately ‘Transient Love’. Featuring some of Barnett’s most poignant lyrics to date and based around a hypnotic looping rhythm section and chiming, arena-ready guitars, it’s an obvious highlight, and one that marks significant musical departure for the band. “It’s a very serious song, but it kinda came together very comically.” He elaborates, “We used to practice five days a week, and every Friday we would have something called ‘casual Fridays’. We’d just get a couple of cases of beer and we’d pretty much just stop writing songs, and it wasn’t serious. We’d just jam and play covers. And out of that came that song, that groove. Last summer we did a six week European tour, and I wrote the lyrics but didn’t have a song for it, and then that came together and it just fit really well. It was a song that we went to a completely different place with, it’s completely different from anything we’ve ever done, or even attempted. I really love that song.”

Part of The Menzingers’ appeal is their ability to craft songs around familiar, often uncomfortable themes; their lyrics are filled with references to self-loathing, broken relationships and unfulfilled expectations. Their music, though, is driving and anthemic, with soaring choruses and major-key melodies, giving these otherwise depressing words an uplifting, almost forgiving quality. Do fans find solidarity in these songs? “I think that’s a great way to put it, there are just human flaws you notice in everyday life, and song-writing is a great relief where you can get those things out. A lot of the songs usually come from darker places, but at the end of them there’s some kind of resolve I guess.”

Is it bizarre, I ask, to hear hundreds of fans having the time of their lives whilst screaming line after line in the vein of “I will fuck this up/I fucking know it” every night? “Yeah, totally, of course. It’s really funny. There’s a lot of songs like that, that’s the kind of band we are, in that we write these really personal songs. To have that many people sing along like that to a very specific moment in your life, it’s totally surreal. In particular there’s a part in the song ‘Gates’ where we were buying a case of beer from my friend’s older sister and these undercover cops busted us in the CBS parking lot. And that’s the song, and it’s cool for people to hear that, and I can vividly go back to being in that parking lot, the cops coming up and being like ‘we got you!’ and we were like ‘aww no, we’re not doing anything!’, you know? It’s cool.”

Having gained a reputation for being one of the hardest working bands on the circuit, what does the future hold for The Menzingers? “Well, we’re always touring. That’s what we do. People sometimes say ‘how do you go on for that long?’, but it’s what we’ve always known and it’s fun, and if you enjoy it, why stop? So we do this tour, then we go home and we’re doing a quick weekend with our friends Spraynard, then on to Gainesville to do this big festival down there. Just staying busy, and writing songs in between.” He sums up—“we just keep going.”

Feature: Party For The People

Written by music on . Posted in Music.

Party For The People is a social-enterprise born in Sheffield 2 years ago. The idea was to find a way to give back to the community and those in need through everyone’s favourite past time, partying. With humble beginnings in bucket raising and selling sweets on the dance floor the focus quickly shifted to ticket sales and Party For The People now operates a fully-fledged ticketing agency, donating a percentage of the booking fees from every ticket to charity. They also throw their own parties; all profit from which is donated to various good causes. Just last week they hosted Deep Space Orchestra at Soup Kitchen in Manchester’s Northern Quarter and alongside Gold Teeth brought Daniel Avery and Artwork to their own venue in Sheffield, raising £1,300 in the process!

Being the only not-for-profit ticketing organisation in the UK, PFTP offers a unique way to add an ethical dimension to music events at no extra cost to partygoers or promoters, a self-defined but accurate “revolutionary solution”. Knowing the debauchery of the night before had a positive impact on those who need it should go some way to soothing that hangover and as PFTP have no shareholders 100% of their net profits are reinvested into the charities and causes they support.

Since its inception PFTP and its “good times for good causes” movement has gained pace considerably, with partnerships with the likes of Warp, the O2 Academy, Sankeys and Tramlines, Farm and Gottwood festivals secured. In line with this growth has been the increasing number of charities they support, which includes the Leeds Little Livers Campaign and Sheffield Mind; as well as those with a more global focus such as Send A Cow and Oxfam. Hosting a room at Pangaea’s ‘Rumble in the Jungle’ Festival, alongside Manchester based parties Hi Ku and Groove Kitchen, they also raised £150 for UoM’s RAG society. Go here for more information on these charities and their aims.

Last year sponsorship from the National Lottery allowed PFTP to begin a project titled The Night Kitchen. Redeveloping the location of the former nightclub Dirty Little Secret alongside CADS (Creative Arts Development Space), another Sheffield based non-profit, , they turned the space into a creative hub for the city and a location for some of the best parties in town with a décor inspired by Maurice Sendak’s ‘Where The Wild Things Are’. The space is also home to a 12 month programme of workshops with the aim of providing young people of socially excluded backgrounds the opportunity to gain experience in artistic pursuits, including creative set design, event production, digital arts and more.

Watch a video of this process below:

Party For The People are always looking for enthusiastic individuals to join their cause and have many opportunities to offer, including paid and volunteer positions in journalism, blogging, web design, graphic design, event production, promotion and more. If it sounds up your street then get in contact via their website here.

And to find out what’s going on in the city and to plan that next night out with a clear conscience go here.

Fallowfield Baa Bar brawl leads to road closure

Written by Elena Losavio on . Posted in News.

A vicious fight took place in the early hours of the morning on Sunday the 12th of October outside of Baa Bar in Fallowfield forcing police to close Wilbraham Road at the junction with Wilmslow and Moseley Road.

The fight erupted between two large groups of drinkers just after 3:15 am and although shocked students looked on as the violence escalated it is yet to be confirmed if any Manchester students where directly involved in the violence or why the incident began.

As the violence became more severe riot police vans were called to stop the violence from becoming any further out of control.

Despite the apparent scale of the fight only one man, in his early 20s, has been reported to be suffering from any injuries, having received a blow to the head. However despite the potential seriousness of his injuries, he is not thought to be in a serious condition.

Police officers say that so far one man has been arrested on suspicion of assault, but enquiries are still ongoing.

The area where the fist-fight occurred is very close to the halls of residence of the Fallowfield Campus, and many fast food restaurants. For this reason it is usually bustling with people, and very rarely unoccupied.

Therefore if anyone has any information about the bust-up or was present at the time of its occurrence, they should call 0161 211 2113, Greater Manchester Police on 0161 856 4973, or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.

The final nail in the coffin

Written by Mancunion on . Posted in Fashion & Beauty.

This Halloween delve into your nail varnish box to get creative with some cute-not-creepy seasonal nails. Here are five of our favourite super-easy designs to get you ready for Halloween.

 

The Perfect Pumpkin (pictured above)

Simply add an orange base and then use a toothpick to paint on the pumpkin face with triangles.

 

The Super Skull and Crossbones

Photo: evil.girl666 @Flickr

Add a black base and again use a toothpick or small brush to paint your white skull face and bones.

 

The Frankenstein

Photo: tatievangelista @Flickr

Use any shade of green as a base coat and simply paint on your eyes and stitches with a toothpick.

 

The Wicked Witch

Photo: jenniferl @Flickr

Use this Halloween as your excuse to jump on board the pointy nail aesthetic trend. Don’t want to cut or file a thing? Simply add a base of nude, then add tape from each side of your nail, meeting in the middle to create a triangle, and then fill with any dark colour. Wait to dry then simply remove the tape to give a witchy nail illusion.

 

The Daring Drip

Photo: lauracollop@Flickr

Add a nude base then use any dark shade to bring from top down to the middle of the nail to create a dripping effect.

Preview: The Orb

Written by Alister Pearson on . Posted in Music.

18th October

Academy 2

The Orb will once again mesmerise the people of Manchester after a sell out performance in October 2013. The exclusive show promises to be of consciousness-expanding and awe-inspiring status.

The genius that is Dr. Alex Paterson will pilot the night performing first as The Orb with two of their most prominent albums. Their debut album, Adventures Beyond The Ultraworld, was essentially the album that kick started ambient house popularising low volume with multiscreen video projections. UFOrb was the group’s first UK number one, a phenomenal achievement for a genre that a few years prior was an undefined entity. The honourable doctor will then take the crowd on a 90-minute journey called ‘Orb in dub’.

With the event set to last six hours in Manchester’s Academy on Saturday 18th, expect a mystical and captivating experience into the mind of The Orb. If you can prepare yourself for a night like this, check out their first two records, as they will be showcased on the night.

Tickets are available now on Ticketline, priced at £17.

Interview: Darlia

Written by Aileen Rose Duffy on . Posted in Music.

“If I had a black afro, people would say we sound like Hendrix too, you know.” Frontman Nathan Day doesn’t take well to the never ending comparisons to Nirvana, although it’s hard to ignore the similarities when the heavy chorus of ‘Queen of Hearts’ starts to play. Darlia, the band who’ve twice been named Zane Lowe’s Hottest on Radio 1, are on tour and loving it. If you haven’t heard the explosive sound of Darlia yet, hold on—because they’re about to go off.

Amidst being track of the week in NME for almost every EP they’ve released and getting spotted by fans whilst on rides at Alton Towers, the three-piece pop-rock band from Blackpool are just down to earth, cheery chaps who are living their dreams and having fun.

“We all went to the same school together… although Jack was way more popular than me and Dave.” The band explained that they’ve been playing music together since they were 10 years old, but it’s only in the last two years they’ve pulled some amazing songs out of the bag—leading them to secure a record deal and what seems like endless touring.

“We’ve played Manchester three times this year, and it always sets the precedent for the rest of the tour—we love Manchester so much.” Talk about a precedent being set—when they played Sound Control earlier in the year, Nathan thought they were “taking the piss” because the crowd reaction was so wild. “I was wondering if someone had organised a flash mob!” Reviews of that particular show include good times and paramedics—someone suffered a head injury, and another person had broken nose from the sheer enthusiasm of the moshing. Dave shared another story from the tour—”Jack normally takes his shirt off on stage, so one night someone shouted it during a set, but I thought they said take your shoe off… so I flicked it off stage and played the rest of the set with one shoe.’

Although a relatively new band, they’ve had mountains of hype and success since they formed, having already played the John Peel stage at Glastonbury and gracing the Festival Republic stage at Reading and Leeds. “I just wanted to get rid of it,” says Nathan, describing his guitar smashing antics at both events. “It’s just like, why won’t you break? It keeps getting fixed… I’m saving up the next smash I think.”

The lads all seem pretty humbled by their success—‘in career terms, it was astonishing [to play Glastonbury].” When questioned about boredom and loneliness on tour, bassist Dave explained that “it’s why we get the hotels to put in an extra pillow… for us all to cuddle!” Guilty pleasures whilst traveling on tour appear to be listening to Daniel Bedingfield and Craig David. “It’s not as bad as it sounds! One minute it’s on shuffle and the next thing we know we’re listening to Blue.”

What’s next for Darlia? “An album is in the works at the moment. It’s hard to get it just right, so there’s no date set yet.” Although they’ve just finished their third tour of the year, it’s likely that Darlia will be back on the road in no time. “We really love the fans, it never gets annoying or anything. It’s so nice when they recognise you and say ‘hi’, stop you in the streets, you know?”

Opinion: This Blood Has Taken Its Toll On Me

Written by Martha Norman on . Posted in Music.

Maroon 5 have managed to create a song and video which makes Robin Thicke’s ‘Blurred Lines’ look like a feminist anthem. If you’ve not yet seen their video to ‘Animals’ then be prepared for a shock. It’s a far cry from ‘She Will Be Loved’. The video shows a psychotic butcher becoming obsessed with one of his customers, a young woman, and traces his obsessive mental process. Front man Adam Levine is shown following a woman home down dark streets, taking photographs of her, grabbing her flesh aggressively and hanging onto carcases in a butchers store room, before smearing blood on his face and body. In the final scene of the video, a man and woman clutch each other naked whilst blood pours all over them, matting their hair and covering their bodies. This scene feels reminiscent of the blood splattered lift scene in ‘The Shining’ and is an uncomfortable thing to watch in a music video setting.

We seem to have entered a dangerous and depressing domain within popular music, where artists try to outdo one another for the most controversial video or lyric in the business (see Robin Thicke & Nicki Minaj). This video is so offensive and provocative that it will surely spark a debate surrounding the lack of age ratings in music videos which apply to feature films. As music videos become ever more explicit it seems appropriate to protect younger generations from harmful or damaging material; even if this material is set to music. The problem with this video however, is that it is not only disturbing to younger people, but it is equally (if not more disturbing) for teenage girls and women. If you are a woman, you will know that the fear of a sexually-aggressive male figure tracing your steps at night is an all-too-familiar threat, and something that shouldn’t be ‘performed’ in a music video. It is done so in a way which makes it appear sexually attractive and makes it seem as though it is a natural by-product of men’s lust.

Another problem with Maroon 5’s video is the undercurrent of violence; not explicit, but implied. This frustratingly means that it is more likely to be age-restricted for nudity than for its depiction of stalking or implied assault. Whilst not always explicit, violence is everywhere in this video and is distinctly sexual. As watchers we assume that the blood Levine smears on his mouth and body belongs to the animals he has slaughtered, but the editing and lyrics make the origin of the blood ambiguous, and you wouldn’t be crazy for assuming that it could belong to the woman that he is fetishizing. The video cuts from a young woman’s flesh, to the flesh of an animal being prepared in a purposefully disorientating way. It further cuts from a woman sleeping in underwear to Levine punching a hanging carcass. One of the most explicitly stalker-like scene is a scene where Levine appears to stroke the woman’s arm at a bar (where she turns away from him and shuns him, clearly blocking the unwanted attention). Not only does this choppy editing style literally communicate that the woman is a piece of meat, but it confuses passion and lust with encroachment and aggression. Ultimately, the video suggests that a predator/prey relationship is both normal and necessary in a male pursuit of a romantic partner. It’s not at all surprising that domestic violence groups have had a ferocious reaction to the video.

If you want to watch the video, watch it with caution, and pay close attention to the creepy lyrics which go alongside these images. As if the video’s stalker message wasn’t clear enough, Levine actually sings; “Maybe you think that you can hide, I can smell your scent for miles,” which ultimately plays off the female fear of a predatory man and further perpetuates the kind of attitudes Emma Watson addressed and broke down in her famous UN speech.

Live: Outfit

Written by Cordelia Milward on . Posted in Music, Uncategorised.

7th October

Gulliver’s

8/10

When a band introduce their set with, “we’re going to be playing mainly new songs”, it can mean either one of two things; they’re using this audience as guinea pigs for a trial run of half completed numbers, or, they’re so confident with their new tracks, they’ll play them even if it’s not what the audience wants to hear. Clearly Outfit are of the latter seam, and in spite of the risk, they pull it off with extreme professionalism.

Based around the focal point of singer and keyboardist Andrew Hunt, the band patiently respond to his progressive piano chords that slowly saunter around the minor key. With the looping of basic guitar riffs and the swooping of cymbals sliding in and out of earshot, Outfit maximise on the bare minimum. It is because of this reliance on sudden quietness, that it’s hard to tell when one song ends and the next begins. The interludes and pauses play into the ambience just as much as the multi-layered instrumentation of sounds like Lightsabers, Gameboys and reverberations of impending doom. Outfit thrive off the reduction of noise, down to the simple repetition of three chords on piano. Yet Outfit are anything but simple. It’s a phrase thrown about often to any guitar band that takes on electronics, but much of Outfit really does sound like Radiohead, particularly in their intellectual arrangements and attention to minute detail.

Although the downbeat pop vibe that encapsulates the room is heavily weighed down by the melancholy minor key, older tracks such as ‘Elephant Days’, are more coherent with a strong upbeat chorus that grounds the song where others disappear out of recognition. It’s the final song that captures what Outfit are about, with each musical part easily identifiable as an individual sound, whilst working in exact equilibrium to flatter each other. Despite the complex construction of every song, Outfit depend on the individual contribution, and as true perfectionists, don’t allow even the finest of details to slip.

Live: Scottish Soulful Weekender 4

Written by Randeep Samra on . Posted in Music.

Park Hall Hotel, Chorley

26 – 28th September

7/10

The Scottish Soulful Weekender (SSW) is a somewhat unusual festival in that it is comprised primarily of DJs, with live music complementing the electronic throughout. Still being in its infancy, SSW—potentially jarringly named, to those unfamiliar—markets itself as being held near Preston. Indeed, in its previous three incarnations, it was held at the Cairndale Hotel, in the picturesque market town of Dumfries, Scotland. This time—the fourth year in which the festival has been running—it has found itself being held at The Park Hall Hotel, roughly eight miles south of Preston, whose location close to the centre of Britain makes the festival relatively accessible to those all over the UK. Such a location change, at the cost of the previous, particularly quaint setting, fits in with the somewhat elitist yet friendly and cosmopolitan attitude of the festival’s organisers.

Being held in a hotel, it should immediately be clear that this is a different kind of festival (notably, the organisers have not described SSW as a ‘festival’ in their marketing) to those that students tend to find themselves flocking to. The general vibe of this weekender is something rather unique: during the best part of the daytime, the festival felt like a distinctly awkward school disco, with not much besides the replacement of 11-year olds with primarily middle-aged partygoers to differentiate the two. I am almost certain that myself and my accompaniment, at the ages of twenty one and twenty respectively, were the youngest people in attendance.

I do not mean to suggest that SSW has nothing to offer young adults: the progressive aesthetic which Yogi Haughton—its chief promoter—has emphasised is one that should be attractive to younger generations, if only it had more exposure herein. The weekender itself embodies a pleasingly progressive approach to house music, with an emphasis on crossover and fusion; particularly with the funk and soul genres. A look at the line-up on the impressively laid out SSW4 website will reveal an array of DJs hailing from a diverse range of backgrounds, and expound upon what they have to offer. SSW yields more for the price of admission than most popular festivals: weekend tickets cost only £99, with double rooms available for an added £91 for two nights—or an added £116 for three.

The itinerary of the festival was scheduled to be as follows: three main rooms (The Blue Room, The Shrine Room and The Pressure Point), in which the majority of the booked DJs play, plus an outdoor area (So Chill), and finally, a room in which emerging talents can book themselves in to show off their DJing skill (The Goldmine).

Unfortunately, certain difficulties led to The Blue Room being cut very soon before the weekender kicked off, leading to its performers being moved to the other rooms, which knocked many performances off of the stated times in the schedule. To my annoyance, I ended up missing out on Anne Sexton’s set—one which I was particularly looking forward to. Despite this, I was far from left deprived of quality live soul music. Big Brooklyn Red delivered a stunning and unique vocal performance alongside Dave Hulmes and Groove Assassin, and legendary house vocalist CeCe Rogers, together with both his keytar and myriad of excellent faces. Saturday night in The Shrine Room was stellar throughout, with a live band backing a series of excellent singers, chief among them being Garfield Fleming, whose set was unforgettable.

SSW seems to be progressing as a festival; and is faring admirably in its aim to bring house music and the music that came to creatively form a significant portion of it to an increasingly diverse audience.

Live: The Travelling Band

Written by David Crawley on . Posted in Music.

Gorilla

4th October

6/10

Indie-Folk outfit the Travelling Band pack out Gorilla’s 700-capacity venue with their warm, mid-tempo melodies. In their generous 90-minute set this eight-piece band played a large portion of their back catalogue with every musical instrument short of a kitchen sink. They played quiet, introspective folk ballads. They played warm, driving indie which had the crowd singing along. They finished with some stomping folk-blues-rock. The cleverness in their set-list was that they somehow made all of these changes happen smoothly.

Electric guitar. Acoustic Guitar. Banjo. Harmonica. Keyboard. Bass. Drums. Violin. Cello. Tenor Sax. Trumpet. Trombone. It was hard to keep track of how many times they switched instruments/members throughout the evening. This helps them sound different song-to-song and while it is impressive that they can carry this many instruments to a gig it did seem overdone at times. In the end, it is the one thing they didn’t change—Nick Vaal on drums—that was the best thing about seeing them live. He played the entire set with a massive smile across his face and a vigour that reminded me of Animal from the Muppets.

The songs are polished, well written and at times anthemic—in their own indie-folk way. They sounded at times like a cross between Mumford & Sons and the Thrills. I liked seeing this band, and they played a strong live set which their fans thoroughly enjoyed. But I noticed that the additional string section, which sometimes became the additional horn section, seemed far less connected to the audience than the other members.

Trying too hard at something because you love it is not a crime; but it should not get in the way of the music, or come across negatively. When the lead singer said, “If you see anyone talking then do what I do and look at them as if you’re going to kill them and fuck their sister,” he was kidding.

But only just.

Live: Sylvan Esso

Written by Matthew Staite on . Posted in Music.

6th October

Soup Kitchen

8/10

Sylvan Esso played a sensational but short set at Manchester’s Soup Kitchen on Monday night. The support act came in the form of Cosmo Sheldrake, a multi-instrumentalist who builds up the many layers present in his songs via live looping. Despite the naff name, the complexity and quality of his songs was simply amazing. Announcing to the audience before ‘The Moss’, that the samples used in this song were recorded by “smashing bits of Welsh slate against each other”, he certainly captured the audience’s attention.

Anticipation was running high by the time Sylvan Esso took the stage. Despite half the duo being ill, their set was lively and well received by a very responsive crowd. Opener ‘Hey Mami’, was as tight and slick as on record, and singer Amelia Meath’s vocals oozed warmth. The energy of follower ‘Could I Be’, got the room shuffling to it’s infectious beat. The trappy ‘Wolf’ and the dancy ‘H.S.K.T’ maintained the electric atmosphere in the room and kept the crowd dancing. ‘Coffee’, Sylvan Esso’s debut single, and perhaps the most well-known song in the bands repertoire, was performed as emotively as on the record, and it’s slower and slightly downbeat sound provided a beautiful moment of respite. The set closed on the epic ‘Play it Right’, a song which builds off the live looping of one vocal line. Its large sound momentarily transported the crowd away from gloomy underground confines Soup Kitchen, and was a clear display of the band’s enormous potential.

Sadly it felt like the night ended slightly prematurely, with the whole gig lasting less than 45 minutes. The band acknowledge that the reason for this is that they only have one album, but a hint at new material, or at least a cover song would have been nice. However, it was still a great opportunity to see this brilliant emerging talent play a smaller and intimate venue before their career catapults.

Live: The Horrors

Written by Lowell Clarke on . Posted in Music.

27th September

Albert Hall

6/10

Ignore the tight jeans and the baggy hairstyles, this isn’t a one-off horror show. This is just another stop on the tour machine for Faris Badwan and Co. The lights are on—blindingly so at times—but is anyone really at home within this band of misfits?

Everyone’s heard the stories about The Horrors of old. Nowadays Faris barely talks to the crowds, let alone throw black paint over them. Despite the production of the night being flashier and louder than ever before, the band feels distant. The song choices aren’t bad—there’s an excellent back catalogue here—but they are boringly predictable. From opening with the first track on their new album (‘Chasing Shadows’) to ending with the same track they’ve closed with for the last three years (‘Moving Further Away’). Truly epic tracks like ‘Sea Within a Sea’ are still too good to be cut down and used to pad out the middle of a set. But unfortunately it was, and I could barely hear that bit that sounds like a whale love song. What a travesty.

If the problem is with the music, it comes down to the new album. Luminous has its beautiful moments born out of the loving self-produced sounds. But played live alongside raw psychedelic punk tunes like ‘Scarlet Fields’ dilutes the essence of both. The new tracks sound muddy and the older tracks from Primary Colours have lost their edge.

But for a band like The Horrors, sometimes just being there is enough. Their avid fans push and shove about, like it was only yesterday that they cried their paint-filled eyes out after hearing their first album Strange House live for the very last time. Since then, The Horrors have learnt how to spoon feed their fans what they want. Today it was a decent show with impressive lights and set list designed to promote the new album. But this bowl of post-punk-psychedelic-shoe-gaze-electro-pop (with a hint of disco?) is starting to smell a little off. There’s still time left, maybe it’s the time for a radical new flavour?