The Brit Awards 2013

It’s that time of year again, when the famous and beautiful people of the world get dressed up in their designer frocks and suits and parade on the red carpet for awards ceremonies. The Brits used to be an evening of mishaps and anticipation for what cock-up would happen next, but it seems since the awards stopped being live it may have lost its excitement.

James Cordon played host for the second year in a row, and although some may not agree, he actually did a decent job, his jokes went down well and he didn’t cut anyone’s speech short this time. The live performances were a bit hit and miss, Robbie Williams put on a good show as usual, despite singing his increasingly annoying song "Candy". Justin Timberlake failed to impress with his new single "Mirrors", this was mainly down to the song just not being catchy and interesting enough. He still has the moves though that’s for sure. Mumford and Sons killed it with “I Will Wait”, which was arguably one of the best performances of the night, with Emeli Sandé performed amazingly too, closing the show with “Clown” and “Next To Me”.

Ben Howard was probably the most unexpected winner of the night, winning two awards for Best Male Solo Artist and British Breakthrough Act, despite being less well known than other nominees. After The Brits, Ben has seen his album sales rocket, which suggests he’s going to have another big year ahead. The Global Success Award went to One Direction, which is understandable as they have seemingly conquered the world this last year, however, considering Adele is playing at the Oscars, and Mumford and Sons have won a Grammy this year, it’s debatable whether they were the worthy winner.

Overall the Brits was entertaining enough, but it needs a bit more unpredictability like it used to before it was pre-recorded. It does, however, still give a platform to emerging artists such as Ben Howard and Tom Odell to propel them into the mainstream. 

I'm back!

It's been an embarrassingly long time since I posted anything on this blog, so it's definitely time to start writing again! As you can see I've changed my blog title and the layout, I hope you like it, and I'm open to feedback of course. Another change is that I've decided that instead of just writing reviews, I'll be writing about pretty much anything I can think of. . I'm off to the Harry Potter Studio Tour next weekend so I'll let you all know what that's like, and then the weekend after I'm going to Paris, so there should be some good photos, so basically what I'm saying is keep a look out!

Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol

  

If you’ve been missing stunt packed, explosion filled Tom Cruise films recently then you’ll be pleased to know that Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol once again takes the action to another level, literally.  Despite the fact that you can basically predict the majority of what happens in M: I films, small changes such as Ethan Hunt going separate from the Impossible Missions Force, and the Addition of Simon Pegg, made a slight difference to the narrative.

In true M: I style, the film opens epically with Ethan Hunt fighting his way out of prison with the help of Benji Dunn (Simon Pegg) and Jane Carter (Paula Patton), the reason he was there in the first place doesn’t become clear until later in the film (and I won’t spoil it for you). From the moment we are introduced to Benji, you can tell he is going to be a typical geeky, clumsy Simon Pegg character, but he does play it very well, and it is a welcome contrast to Ethan Hunt who can seemingly do anything, and make it look good at the same time. As the film develops, Ethan gets cut off from the IMF and only has his three colleagues to help him complete his mission.

The filming is excellent, as expected; full of impressive wide shots which show the audience the scale of the stunts and surroundings. By far the best stunt is where Hunt must scale the tallest building in the world, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, during an approaching sand storm. The camera work shows the stunning views of Dubai, while maintaining the focus on Hunt climbing the building, and of course there are moments when, even though you’re sure he will fall, his skill as a climber stops him.

Although some may see the predictability of a Mission: Impossible films as a downside, isn’t the whole point of seeing a Mission: Impossible is because you know what you’re getting? Exceptional stunt work, explosions, and a storyline which takes a lot to believe. If you enjoyed the previous Mission: Impossible films then you’ll enjoy this, and Simon Pegg is a great addition to the cast, so if you fancy a fast paced, thrilling blockbuster then give it a watch.

Black Mirror

Charlie Brooker is known for his glum social commentary, and his latest creation Black Mirror is no different.  The three part series explores many areas of pop culture, from politics to the X Factor phenomenon, and forces you to question the accepted aspects of our lives.

The first instalment The National Anthem followed to actions of the Prime Minister as he was blackmailed into fornicating with a pig in order to save a Princess Susannah. At the beginning of the episode the Prime Minister discovers that the princess has been kidnapped, and the only ransom her captor asks for is that the Prime Minister has sex with a pig on television. Out of the whole series, the message of this episode was arguably the hardest to pinpoint, but the public’s acceptance of such a lewd act says a lot about how accustomed we are to seeing shocking images on television. You are forced to draw parallels between the fictional characters and real life public figures, which makes this episode even more thought provoking.

15 Million Merits focuses on the culture of X Factor, discussing how far a person will go to achieve success. This episode is set in a strange futuristic world where you must exercise to earn money, which makes for a rather mundane undertone. However, the excitement begins to pick up when the main character, Bing, buys his love interest, Abi, a ticket to enter the talent show ‘Hot Shot’ as a romantic gesture. Unfortunately this backfires and she is cajoled by the judging panel to become a porn star. Bing then returns to the show because the guilt had got too much for him, he intends to change people’s attitudes towards this mind numbing form of television. The episode ends with a speech from Bing on his own television show, which felt like Brooker almost shouting at the audience to wake up and realise how low television shows such as X Factor really are. This episode seemed to drag on more than the others, but to some extent this could have been the intention, to make us think about how we accept the mundane aspects of our lives as long as we have an exciting television show to look forward to.

The final episode, The Entire History of You, with contribution by Brooker, but written instead by the makers of Peep Show, predicts how we would cope if we could relive every moment of our lives just by pressing a rewind button on a remote. The reaction of the main character actually seems reasonable; he focuses on minute details such as peoples facial expressions and body language, making inferences about his wife’s relationship with an ex boyfriend. Possibly the most interesting of all the episodes, you question how you would change if you could watch your life back like a DVD, and the reality is that most of us would become obsessed with our past. 

This series explored many areas of modern culture which many writers wouldn’t dare to, and it was refreshing to see a television programme unlike any other around currently. Although we shouldn’t expect any different from Charlie Brooker than a cold hard look at ourselves, instead of his usual in-your-face rants, he subtly makes us question our culture without making it too blatant.

Arctic Monkeys: Evil Twin

Sheffield boys Arctic Monkeys showcased a new B side to their single Suck it and See at their live show in St Lois, so what’s the verdict?

Evil Twin has The Monkeys signature stick-in-your-head chorus and fast paced guitar, but their best work comes from when they change their sound and experiment, so it’s disappointing that Evil Twin seems to have gone back to their ‘Fluorescent Adolescent’ days. The song isn’t bad by any means, and it certainly seemed to get the crowd going in St Lois, but it would be nice to see them stray from their typical sound like they did in ‘Humbug’. Come on boys, be brave.

The Stroke: Angles

It’s finally here! The long awaited new album ‘Angles’ from ‘The Strokes’, ever since I listened to ‘Under Cover of Darkness’ I’ve been waiting for this album, after all, it has been six years since their last one, but was it worth the wait?

There are a few songs on this album which I absolutely love, and the first one has to be the opening song ‘Machu Picchu’, it has lots of lively guitar and an odd Jamaican sound to it, even with Julian Casablancas’ voice which is completely different to anything I’ve heard from them before. This is one of those songs which you just can’t stop listening to, the beat is totally infectious and it has a catchy chorus which I’m a bit of a sucker for I must admit. It doesn’t fit in with the rest of the album, but in a way this doesn’t matter because it works well as a standalone track; they should definitely release this as their next single.

Next is the single ‘Under Cover of Darkness’, which again, I can’t get enough of. The guitar is energetic and definitely the driving force of the song, coupled with Casablancas’ energetic yet slightly monotone voice, it’s a tune you can’t stop listening to. You can definitely feel the emotion and passion coming through in the lyrics, specifically the line ‘we’ve got the right to live, fight to use it, got everything and you can just choose it.’

As the album progresses it seems to me that the more exciting songs are the ones which I prefer, this is my personal opinion but for me I like that they’re trying new things and experimenting a little. They appear to be doing this in ‘Taken for fool’, the vocals in particular are exquisite, and they’re so passionate and rough that they almost gave me Goosebumps. The chorus sounds a bit like their old work, but with a new edgier twist which I like, one of my favourites for sure.

‘Two kinds of Happiness’ is a bit of an unusual one, it starts off sounding like it should be on a 'Police' album, I think this is down to the beat, but then the vocals come in and this changes immediately, it does sound like they’ve slipped back into their old, slightly depressing, style so it’s not the best, and after the hugely energetic opening two songs, it does fall flat a little which is disappointing.

‘You’re so right’ is by far the weirdest song of the bunch, occasionally sounding like a song from ‘The Mighty Boosh’ due to it having that same rhythm and robotic style vocals, really strange and not something I’d expect to hear from ‘The Strokes’. This changing of the vocals doesn’t work very well to be honest, it sounds too out of place and the guitar isn’t up to their usual standard, however it is quite energetic and when they slip back into normality it gets a bit better.

The final song on the album ‘Life is simple in the moonlight’ (a lovely title I must add) is mellowed down a little, but in a way which is relaxed and composed, the song starts with a slightly psychedelic feel to it. I love the chorus where Casablancas’ voice works its wonders again, singing catchy, lovely lyrics, great finish I think.

This album has its up and downs, I don’t think it competes with ‘Is This It’ but there are some truly great tracks which have a whole new energy to them, and the vocals on these tracks are definitely a step up from their previous work. I’ve been a fan of The Strokes for a long time so it doesn’t take a lot for them to impress me, and by and large they did, but they miss the mark on a few of the tracks, still worth a listen though.

Amplifier: Octopus

I thought I’d review something a bit unusual this time, and I came across something quite...interesting. Mancunian Alternative rock band, Amplifier, have just released their third album ‘Octopus’, and I have to say I was quite taken aback by their music having never heard of them before. It’s a fairly large album, with 16 tracks, and one song clocking in at eleven minutes, but you don’t actually realise that you've been listening to them for so long because they're so unusual.

The album opens with a purely instrumental track, it has an odd mixture of noises like footsteps, and something which I think is supposed to resemble the sound of a bird. It even has occasional moments of silence before another lot of strange noises. I do like the piano at the end as it’s a taste of normality, which is a really nice contrast and works surprisingly well. This song sets off the album, and makes you realise that you probably shouldn’t try and pigeonhole them into one particular genre or sound; this song shows that they are, if anything, unpredictable.

The ‘Minions song’ is second on the album, and it changes the tone again, it’s mellow and showcases lead singer Sel Balamir’s pretty decent voice. He resembles Dan Gillespie-Sells, lead singer of ‘The Feeling’ possibly because he also sings in a British accent. One aspect of this song I particularly like is the almost chant like chorus, we hear ‘Sing along to the Minion’s Song’ sang repetitively, making it empowering and strong. We hear some piano played throughout, which, compared to the ripping electric guitar on later tracks, is very pleasant to listen to.

Then the album slips into slightly heavy metal, which I have to say I’m not a huge fan of, so ‘The Wave’ and ‘Interglacial Spell’ weren’t to my taste, I much preferred it when they were experimenting with sounds, and not fitting into a generic style. However, they redeem themselves with some of the later tracks such as ‘Octopus’, which keeps that unusual weirdness about it, after all, there's nothing wrong with some bells and a xylophone. You are then surprised to hear acoustic guitar on the track ‘Oscar Night//Embryo’, a nice track which again shows off Balamir’s voice. As for the final track ‘Forever and More’, it feels like they’re finishing off, it’s mellowed down and comes to a slow end, possibly a bit drawn out, but nonetheless a nice way to conclude.

The length of the songs is a slight hindrance with the album, but not to the extent that it gets boring, besides, their sound is so varied that it feels as though you’re listening to a new band every other track. The album artwork for this album is very interesting, and quite beautiful actually, it reflects their music in that it’s unusual and creative. I’m really glad I stumbled across this band; I’ll definitely be keeping an eye on them from now on.