Search

Search only in certain items:

Even Serpents Shine by The Only Ones
Even Serpents Shine by The Only Ones
1979 | Punk
7.0 (1 Ratings)
Album Favorite

No Solutions by The Only Ones

(0 Ratings)

Track

"""Rather than going into the technicalities about them as a band, with The Only Ones it’s more about what it says about me as a teenage fan. I went to a lot of places to watch them, I slept in at least two bus shelters and on the kitchen floor of someone I didn’t know once. Sometimes I’d have tickets and sometimes I’d sneak in to see them and not just in the North, I came down to London and saw them at Dingwalls and The Lyceum. “Peter Perrett was feminine, and if you were a real fan of The Only Ones he had this thing where you’d almost imagine him as a really cool older brother who you didn’t know, that was the way I used to look at him. He led the gang, but he was small and I was small, and he got really involved when he played and that’s the thing, they were a really tight, great rock band. In a way he was almost like my Syd Barrett, he had a very poetic aspect to him. I was already well into studying what the rules of being a bohemian were about and he was it really. “John Perry was an amazing guitar player. Even then, when I was really learning my thing, I was aware it sounded exactly like a Jimi Hendrix lick crossed with a Jeff Beck lick from The Yardbirds, he was of that generation, probably a second generation Marquee, Wardour Street guitar player. They had a really fantastic drummer too, Mike Kellie from Spooky Tooth. They were a great ensemble and I knew they were really rehearsed and it really mattered to them. Peter Perrett never turned up like some druggy mess. “‘No Solution’ is a lesser known one, everybody knows ‘Another Girl, Another Planet’, but it’s the fan in me turning people onto one I think they’ll like but might not know. Fans of The Only Ones will know this song, but when I say fans I’m talking about the people in the audience, I think there were only five of them and I’m probably the only one still left alive!"""

Source
  
Let Love In by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
Let Love In by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
1994 | Alternative, Rock
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"Nick Cave is one of these very rare male artists that has managed to hold my attention and interest over the course of four decades now. He is extraordinary and continues to push his artistry and has never cheapened himself or been a desperate gambler in Vegas. In regards to his musical career, he's always just done what he does, so beautifully, with no compromise to the musical climate. As a result, [he] has created his own genre, really, that he is king of. His career is just continuing to blossom and continuing to grow. It has this incredible reach now and is touching new generations. 

 He is one of the greatest artists, storytellers and musicians that I have ever met and have ever been around. I feel lucky to be here to enjoy his work and I'm so grateful that somebody like him is out there still. He is this incredible answer or rebuke to the current climate of just completely vacuous people-pleasing pop music. 

 He's a truly incredible wordsmith too and he is really blessed with the true greatness of a writer. He's not a pop lyricist by any stretch of the imagination: he's a great erudite communicator and you can feel that in his music, in his lyrics, in his books, in his scripts. He's bordering bona fide genius with his words – just so poetic and so very honest and authentic. 

 Each record is a logical sort of expansion from the previous record, but he's a great storyteller, and a great communicator, and a great connector too. I can't think of anyone else who has the kind of career he has, where he's never had a hit – not really, in the traditional sense of a hit – and yet enjoys this phenomenal career where he's now selling out fucking arenas around every corner of the world. I mean, it's mad. 

 He's so unique and just doesn't sound like anybody else. He's got this phenomenal band too in The Bad Seeds whose musicianship is just incredible. It's like going in to listen to an orchestra because it's so emotive and powerful: to see him live is truly extraordinary."

Source
  
The Sisters of the Winter Wood
The Sisters of the Winter Wood
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I'm going to avoid discussing the plot too much so I don't spoil any potential readers (and I do recommend you read this!).

This book is set in Dubossary, narrated alternately by Liba and Laya. Liba is the older of the two, the only children in their family. They are Jews, and while this book was hugely about their faith and discrimination against them, it is not only about that. This book was like a new fairytale. It had magic in every page, and was genuinely exciting to read. There were tragic elements, tons of romance, and even a sense of suspense.

The girls are left in their home alone when their parents rush off to Kupel in a family emergency. But just as they plan to leave, the girls' Mami decides it's time to tell her daughters who they really are: a bear and a swan.

As I said, I will not delve into the story too much. But I really loved the story involving Laya and the Hovlin brothers, as well as Liba's own internal struggles. Laya's romance at the end of the book was, in my opinion, a little rushed and unexpected, but that's the only real downside I have.

The writing was lovely - it included Yiddish and Hebrew dialect, which was translated in the Author's Note at the end. (A quick side note; I actually read the entire Note, which is really quite rare for me.) And Laya's account, in particular, felt so poetic. She was definitely my favourite character, as much as I love Liba, too. And the relationship between the girls is so, so lovely. No matter how much they try to push each other away, they are always there for each other in the end.

As I enjoyed this book so much, I tried to talk about it with my boyfriend. However, I soon discovered that describing this story is really quite a feat. It was full of little details and twists that just made the story.

I really liked this book. As I only received an ARC and not a final edition, I didn't have the official layout, which I can imagine may add to it also. Even so, I'm easily giving this 4.5 to 5 stars.
  
The Line That Held Us
The Line That Held Us
David Joy | 2018 | Contemporary
8
9.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Brutal read with gorgeous storytelling & complex characters
Darl Moody has been after this infamous giant buck for years. So when he hears his neighbor has gone away for a week, he takes the opportunity to go hunting--off-season and illegally--on his land. But Darl never imagined it would end like this: it isn't the buck he kills, it's Carol Brewer, a member of a local family known for violence and hatred. Scared and panicked, Darl turns to his best friend, Calvin Hooper, for help. But when Carol remains missing and his brother Dwayne comes looking for him, the clues quickly point to Darl and Calvin. And Dwayne is looking for vengeance--and someone's blood.

"There were some things worth dying for and some things worth killing for and some things could make a man do all sorts of things he never knew he was capable of until the time came to do them."

Well, this was a dark story about morality and humanity that drew me in to its twisted world immediately. I've never read a book by David Joy before, but wow, he can really write. There's almost a lyrical, poetic manner to the way he puts his words together, which stands in stark contrast to the gruesome tale he tells. Believe me, this isn't a book for the faint of heart. If you're easily offended by gore, this might not be for you.

However, it's certainly an emotional story about family and friendship. I've lived in or near small towns like Darl's and Dwight's--where everyone knows everyone else and family grudges run back generations. Joy captures it perfectly. It's wonderfully descriptive and excellently written, and each of the characters stand out so well. What I found so interesting and surprising was his way of making me feel for all the characters, even though most of them were making poor decisions, even terrible ones. You can feel their conflict and emotions quite clearly.

"Things had a way of never leaving these mountains. Stories took root like everything else... Just as Dwayne told him the night before, a man's mind is its own kind of hell."

Overall, I didn't always enjoy this book, because it's a brutal read at times, but I was wowed by the writing and Joy's storytelling. The characters are complex, and the novel presents some fascinating complexities. It was an interesting and worthwhile read.
  
Wonder Woman (2017)
Wonder Woman (2017)
2017 | Action, Fantasy, War
Solid Bounceback for the DCEU
After the safety of her homeland Themyscira is threatened, Diana (Gal Gadot), strongest of the Amazon warriors, hurls herself into the middle of World War I to find the source of the threat.

Acting: 10

Beginning; 2
The movie starts off a bit slow, but does pick up rather quickly after the first ten minutes. I wasn’t in love in how they tried to establish the land of the Amazonians. Felt too factual and not very story driven. I know it’s one of those things that has to be done, but I’ve seen it done way better a number of times before so I can’t excuse it.

Characters: 10

Cinematography/Visuals: 10
The beautiful shots of Themyscira and the Amazonian training rituals borders on poetic at times, something you might read about in a famous ballad. Director Patty Jenkins does an amazing job of capturing the sanctity of this place, a place you don’t want to see get violated. Themyscira is pictured perfectly, it’s not just a Hawaii with women warriors. You can feel the change when Diana hits the real world and things become darker.

I thought it might be hard to capture Wonder Woman’s true strength on the big screen, but it is done almost effortlessly here with gritty scenes and slow-motion shots on impact blows. While I thought BVS overdid things with its slow-motion efforts, Jenkins has a way of capturing the perfect mood when she slows the camera down rather than it being just a mere effect. She really captures the heart of the story in every shot.

Conflict: 10

Genre: 9

Memorability: 10

Pace: 10

Plot: 8
Story was great except…Did we really need that one scene between Diana and Steve (Chris Pine)? I thought, not only did it betray the overall message of the film, but it felt forced and unnecessary. I would much rather have watched Wonder Woman just kick ass and take names and remain true to who her character was.

 Resolution: 10

Overall: 89
After a couple crappy movies, DC finally began to right the ship with Wonder Woman. I am hoping the future will bring more movies like this and less movies like Suicide Squad. Not only is it a great film for women superheroes, but it’s just a great film period.