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Cloudcuckooland by The Lightning Seeds
Cloudcuckooland by The Lightning Seeds
1990 | Alternative, Indie, Pop, Rock
6.0 (1 Ratings)
Album Favorite

Pure by The Lightning Seeds

(0 Ratings)

Track

"I think “Pure” is a song that changed my life more than any other. I’d never really sung before or written any lyrics entirely by myself and it was kind of a first attempt. “To put it into context, at that time in Liverpool loads of bands were being signed by record companies and being given big deals. Bands like The La’s were all doing gigs and that’s how they got signed, but I couldn’t really do a gig because I didn’t have a band, so I just had my tunes. “I recorded about three or four tunes at home and during bits of downtime in a studio I produced in. It was a very tentative try, but there was a publisher guy who said, ‘I’d love to hear those songs’ and I played them to him and he said ‘We should put this out’. I said, ‘I don’t have a group and we haven’t got a label’ and he basically got some copies printed up and put it out. “We had 500 copies pressed and released it through an indie label called Ghetto and nobody expected much to happen. I thought at least I would be getting a song out there, so it was very much an underdog type thing. “Pure” just hung around and then people started noticing it - we’d sell a few hundred copies and then they’d get some more made. Then DJ’s on stations started playing it and it was a very word of mouth thing. In the end John Peel played it a few times and spoke about it, but nobody really knew what it was, because nobody had seen us play. “It culminated in me getting a call from someone in America. This station in LA called K Rock phoned me in my Liverpool flat and said, ‘Your record is the most requested record in California for the last two months.’ It was like fairy story, and then they pressed up a load more, we finished the album and it was the start of The Lightning Seeds. “That song had a massive part to play for me in the whole way my life and career went. It was a brilliant moment and it started everything. I’d always thought that music was a form of magic, or alchemy or something and the idea that I could record this song in the top room of my house on a tape machine and that it could go out across the world seemed mad to me. I couldn’t believe it."

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The Adam Project (2022)
The Adam Project (2022)
2022 | Action, Adventure, Comedy
7
6.6 (13 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Family Friendly, fun, action/comedy
Ryan Reynolds is making a nice living, not only is he on the “A” list for such films as DEADPOOL and FREE GUY (a wonderful film that you have to check out if you haven’t seen it), He is also popping up in charming action/comedy films that go straight to Streaming on Netflix. Following the fun romp that was RED NOTICE (with Gal Gadot and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson), he is back in the Shawn Levy helmed THE ADAM PROJECT.

And while this film is not doing anything special, nor will it be nominated for any kind of awards, it is a fun, entertaining way to spend a couple of hours.

Family friendly, THE ADAM PROJECT, stars Reynolds as…you got it…Adam. A time traveling pilot who goes back in time to find his father - the inventor of time travel - and stop him. Along the way, her runs into his younger self, his mother and a very important person from Adam’s past…or rather…future…or…

You get the idea, it’s a time travel movie, so I wouldn’t get too caught up in “the rules” or dig too deeply into the plot.

Reynolds, of course, is charming as pilot Adam, ready with a laser gun and a quip. His quick wit and snappy banter is reminiscent of many, many other roles that Reynolds has played…and that is okay. He is joined by his younger self (dubbed Small Adam) who is played as a young Ryan Reynolds mimic very well by newcomer Walker Scobell. To be honest, Scobell is annoying early on in this film - and that is on purpose - for what is charming in the adult Reynolds is really annoying in a 12 year old.

Jennifer Garner (Mom), Mark Ruffalo (Dad) and Zoe Saldana (mysterious person from Adam’s past…I mean…future) are “professional” in their respective roles, bringing the right amount of whatever their character needs at the moment. Finally, surprisingly, indie film icon Catherine Keener is very good as the “bad buy” in this piece.

All of this is handled deftly by Shawn Levy (NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM). His track record shows that he knows how to do these family friendly, action/comedy/adventure films and he does not disappoint here. He moves things along at a brisk enough pace to keep all interested while throwing in comedy and snappy banter along the way.

All-in-All, a very fun way to spend a couple of hours - certainly a good way to spend a crisp Spring evening whilst waiting for the warmer weather to arrive.

Letter Grade: B+

7 1/2 stars (out of 10) and you can take that to the Bank(ofMarquis)
  
Seven Dollar Paycheck by Arms Akimbo
Seven Dollar Paycheck by Arms Akimbo
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Album Rating
Arms Akimbo is a four-piece indie-rock band. Not too long ago, they released a heartfelt alternative tune, entitled, “Pitchfork”.

“I feel like the song is a letter to my band and my loved ones back home. I wanted to tell the people in my life that even though it’s not the easiest path that we’re on, it’s the right path and we’re not going to give up. We don’t play music because we want to. We play music because we have to. And, as we say in the song, ‘if we’re patient then we’ll make it eventually’.”

‘Pitchfork’ tells an interesting tale of a young musician who is out on the road, on tour in west New Mexico, very far away from a special woman who has his heart.

Apparently, it was hard for him to goodbye to her, and shortly after his departure, he felt that he had let her down. Her emotional wellbeing made him question if she will still want him when he returns home.

While on tour, he thinks about her text message which states how he always let love slip away. Deep down, he wishes she’s wrong about that statement.

Later, things aren’t the same and a tad bit quiet when they talk on the phone. Also, the thoughts of losing her and not fulfilling his musical goals scares him. But he remains patient and hopes that everything works out in his favor.

“I wrote ‘Pitchfork’ on a non-stop drive back to LA from Austin, Texas, after SXSW 2018. Facing the existential dread that comes with finishing a tour, I couldn’t help but think about the way that being a musician connects you with so many people while simultaneously being extremely isolating. Music is our form of communication to reach people who might be feeling the same way that we are and we use that to build a community. But functioning as a musician means being on the road and being away from the people that you care about. This dichotomy can be tough to balance.”

Arms Akimbo’s consists of Peter Schrupp (vocals, guitar), Chris Kalil (guitar, vocals), Matthew Sutton (drums), and Colin Boppell (bass).

They labeled their single ‘Pitchfork’ in reference to the lyrics at the end of the song.

The likable tune encourages those in the music industry to never give up. Also, it narrates the existential dread which comes with finishing a tour.

“The song was written in two parts, with the first section functioning almost like a tour diary, a vignette of our life on the road. The second part is more of a personal plea to my loved ones to stick by me on this journey. It’s also my attempt to explain why I have to play music and why it’s so deeply instilled into who I am.”

‘Pitchfork’ contains a relatable storyline, warm vocal tones, and summery instrumentation flavored with melodic guitars.

The song is featured on Arms Akimbo’s latest EP, entitled, “Seven Dollar Paycheck”.

https://www.bongminesentertainment.com/arms-akimbo-pitchfork/
  
Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
Thor: Ragnarok (2017)
2017 | Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Guaranteeing a “safe passage through the anus”!
I’m neither a Marvel fan, nor (in particular) a Thor fan….. but I have to admit “Thor: Ragnarok” was brilliant from beginning to end.
Thor (Chris Hemsworth) has been travelling the universe in search of… stuff… (I neither remember nor care)… but returns to his home planet of Asgard with a dire warning of impending ‘Raganrok’: this being the ‘End of Days’ for Asgard. But he finds the court engaged in serious leisure time!
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“Shave and a hair cut… two stripes”

Things go from bad to worse when Hela (Cate Blanchett, “Carol“) – someone with more than a passing relationship to Thor – arrives with a mission to assume the throne. Teamed uncomfortably with half-brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston, “High Rise”), the brothers get cast millions of light years away to a planet lorded over by a ‘grand master’ (a lovely performance, that I will leave anonymous here) who pits new gladiators in an arena against his latest champion. You’ll never guess who his champion is? Well, OK (cos the trailer gives it away)… he’s big and green!
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The grand master’s champion. Opponents are green with envy.

The film’s script is hilarious. It generates an enormous volume of entertainment with laugh-out loud moments throughout; the unforseen involvement of other Marvel characters; some startling cameos all mixed with the usual brand of spectacular fights and action. Some of the action is surprising: a real eye-opener you might say.
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Tessa Thompson as the Valkyrie in full flight.

The lead cast (Hemsworth, Hiddleston, Blanchett and Ruffalo) all perform admirably and are joined by heavyweight cameos from Anthony Hopkins (“Westworld”) and Idris Elba (“Bastille Day“) reprising their roles from “Thor: The Dark World”. Particularly impressive is Tessa Thompson (“Creed“) as Thor’s Valkyrie warrior side-kick and Karl Urban (“Star Trek: Into Darkness“) as the turn-coat Asgardian Skurge.
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The real McCoy. Karl Urban as the Skurge of Asgard.

Directed by young New Zealander Taika Waititi (behind last year’s successful indie hit “Hunt for the Wilderpeople”) it’s a breath of fresh air for the Thor franchise, more similar to the style of “Guardians of the Galaxy” rather than the previous films in the series. Waititi also saves all the best comedy lines for himself as the ‘rock warrior’ character Korg: his New Zealand twang delivering just side-splitting dialogue.
Hela (Cate Blanchett)
Hela may be a super-villain, but she still hasn’t learned to hold a hammer by the right end.

As with most Marvel films, its a little bit flabby in places, running to 130 minutes: some of the dialogue, particularly scenes between Hemsworth and Ruffalo, feel like they needed tightening up in the editing suite. This time of course includes the scrolling of endless teams of visual effect artists in the closing titles which – naturally – 90% of the audience stay for to see if there are any “monkeys“. In fact,there are two: one fairly early on; the other right at the end. (To be honest, I thought neither of them was particularly worth waiting for).
However overall the movie is highly recommended for a fun night out at the cinema.
  
Very Best of the Lovin' Spoonful by The Lovin Spoonful
Very Best of the Lovin' Spoonful by The Lovin Spoonful
2004 | Rock
(0 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"I’m on the Wikipedia page of this song? There you go, at least I’m consistent! I’ve obviously talked about it before, but I’ve not really talked about it very much. I can’t really divorce ‘Coconut Grove’ from early 1984, when The Smiths were just getting going. I loved the song then and I still love it now, it’s very evocative, but the reason I brought it up is actually to talk more about what it meant in my life, rather than the actual song. “We’d put out our first album at the start of 1983 and it took off, ‘This Charming Man’ was a hit and my life was really blooming into something kind of incredible for an 18 year old. Without getting too immodest, we seemed to be on everybody’s lips, certainly with young people and their parents were talking about us as well. We were ticking the boxes we wanted to tick; some parents were confused and little bit threatened by us and other people thought we were the bee’s knees. It wasn’t just about getting fame, it was the kind of fame that we really wanted, from kids and fans of what was going to be called indie music and it felt really intoxicating. “I’d been living at our manager Joe Moss’s house and because we were doing these gigs and coming back so late, Janet, who was Joe’s wife - and they had a little toddler - was probably getting so tired of these teenagers her husband had started to look after. He’d never managed a band before, so it wasn’t like he was this big shot manager, he ran a clothes shop and suddenly I was living in their house and giving Coca-Cola to their toddler Ivan, who I still know really well. With this back and forward of bringing the gear in at two in the morning she very kindly said “Look, I’ve got this cottage out in the hills in Manchester…” I would never have gone there in a million years, but essentially she was booting me out of the house! She said “You go and move, I’ll drive you there.” And I thought “Great, I’ve got these digs of my own, this little cottage.” “So all of this stuff was happening. Me and my band were getting in a van and coming down to London, playing at Dingwalls, opening for The Sisters of Mercy, we were the talk of the town and we were getting on Top of The Pops, it was a really heady time. I’d never been reviewed before but because I was playing a Rickenbacker and the sound of my guitar playing everyone was saying ‘He sounds like The Byrds.’ I didn’t know The Byrds very well but through them I got into The Lovin' Spoonful and the whole New York, East Coast folk-rock vibe. “We’d go and do these gigs, drive back and then in this cottage I’d moved into with my mate Andrew Berry I’d eat loads of acid and listen to ‘Coconut Grove’ over and over again, probably two hundred times. The neighbours must have thought I’d died and left the record on. “So that’s what it means to me, it was an idyllic time in my life and I had this really strong love for my mates, who were the band, I think we all felt the same way about each other. Because we got fame, our roles were being defined by ourselves to keep it going and by outside forces and I was very protective of them. We were all pretty streetwise, but I was kind of the chatty, resourceful one who was making things happen and who looked after everybody. I was growing into that role and I was only eighteen. “I called this period ‘The Heatwave’ in my book and you know what a heatwave feels like? Well it felt like that for about a year, I was in a heatwave and that’s ‘Coconut Grove.’ It sounds great on a very hot day, on acid."

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