Mon 29/08
Hanna - DVD & Blu-Ray
Directed by Joe Wright (of Atonement fame), Hanna tells the tale of a 16 year old girl, raised by her father to be the perfect assassin (for reasons which become clear). Garnering mixed reviews on its cinema release, it is nevertheless a superior thriller, boasting a strong ensemble cast featuring Saoirse Ronan as Hanna, Eric Bana as her father and Cate Blanchett as the corrupt CIA agent Hanna must eliminate, this movie offers thrills and spills alongside beautiful scenery.
http://www.hannathemovie.com/
Oh Land - White Nights
I must confess the chanteuse was entirely new to me as of the end of last week. Oh Land came to my attention for all the wrong reasons, 'earning' worst album of the month in Vice magazine. I felt duty-bound to check her out, point and laugh. Instead, I got served this charming piece of Scandi-pop, not incredibly unlike Bat For Lashes sans the ridiculous head gear and penchant for taking oneself a little too seriously. It's a winner, folks - check out the video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3LcL7MAqwOc
Wed 31/08
Best Coast @ Mojo, £10
With Reading/Leeds disappearing over the horizon and festival season along with it, we can all get back to focussing on some great tours up and down the UK. This Wednesday sees an early treat in the form of California fuzz-pop trio, Best Coast, providing the perfect soundtrack to the end of the summer.
http://www.facebook.com/rockandrollaintnoisepollution?sk=events#!/event.php?eid=218021514898335
White Denim @ O2 Academy, £8
If your tastes run to something altogether more rootsy, you're in luck, for Texan four-piece White Denim also happen to be in town this week. Their latest record, D, was released earlier this year to much critical acclaim. Catch them while they're hot, we reckon.
http://www.myspace.com/whitedenimmusic
Fri 02/09
Kill List
Part post Iraq fall-out, part UK Gangster/Pagan horror-movie mash up, this high concept Brit-shocker seems to have been made in-part simply to vex the likes of me, trying my ass off to provide a little insight without giving the whole damn thing away. Directed by Ben Wheatley (Down Terrace), Kill List is certainly causing a stir. Check out the official trailer below, it opens later this week.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aqkqF--v1tg
The Double Negative
thedoublenegative.co.uk is coming...
Monday 29 August 2011
Sunday 21 August 2011
Culture Diary, Week Commencing 22/08/2011
Mon 22/08
Stephen Malkmus and The Jicks - Mirror Traffic
More superior, stilted, americana from slacker icon and Pavement alumni Malkmus. Ably supported by his Jicks (minus Janet Weiss, off forming her own super-group, Wild Flag), this is his 5th post -Pavement record, and arguably the best. More a continuum than revolution (or even evolution), Mirror Traffic (produced by Beck) is proof, if it were needed, that there's life after the 90's best band, if you want it.
http://www.npr.org/2011/08/14/138957392/first-listen-stephen-malkmus-and-the-jicks-mirror-traffic
Thurs 25/08
The Thespians @ The Shipping Forecast, 19:30, £4
Spiky post punky-pop from the Liverpool-based band whose debut album The Crash was released earlier this year. Featured recently in Bido Lito! magazine, The Thesps enjoy a growing reputation in certain quarters, and for £4 and with support, they're worth a look if you're at a loose end this Thursday.
http://www.theshippingforecastliverpool.com/2011/07/bido-lito-harvest-sun-presents-4/
Fri 26/08
The Skin I Live In
Set in a possible near future, Pedro Almodovar's eagerly awaited latest tells the story of a maverick plastic surgeon, working on a 'skin' that cannot burn. The twist is that he has a guinea pig, in the form of the beautiful Vera (played by Elena Anaya), held against her will. It stars Antonio Banderas, back working with Almodovar for the first time in years, and is described by the director as "a horror story without screams or frights."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcEdhBx6U9c
Stephen Malkmus and The Jicks - Mirror Traffic
More superior, stilted, americana from slacker icon and Pavement alumni Malkmus. Ably supported by his Jicks (minus Janet Weiss, off forming her own super-group, Wild Flag), this is his 5th post -Pavement record, and arguably the best. More a continuum than revolution (or even evolution), Mirror Traffic (produced by Beck) is proof, if it were needed, that there's life after the 90's best band, if you want it.
http://www.npr.org/2011/08/14/138957392/first-listen-stephen-malkmus-and-the-jicks-mirror-traffic
Thurs 25/08
The Thespians @ The Shipping Forecast, 19:30, £4
Spiky post punky-pop from the Liverpool-based band whose debut album The Crash was released earlier this year. Featured recently in Bido Lito! magazine, The Thesps enjoy a growing reputation in certain quarters, and for £4 and with support, they're worth a look if you're at a loose end this Thursday.
http://www.theshippingforecastliverpool.com/2011/07/bido-lito-harvest-sun-presents-4/
Fri 26/08
The Skin I Live In
Set in a possible near future, Pedro Almodovar's eagerly awaited latest tells the story of a maverick plastic surgeon, working on a 'skin' that cannot burn. The twist is that he has a guinea pig, in the form of the beautiful Vera (played by Elena Anaya), held against her will. It stars Antonio Banderas, back working with Almodovar for the first time in years, and is described by the director as "a horror story without screams or frights."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcEdhBx6U9c
Monday 15 August 2011
Culture Diary, Week Commencing 15/08/2011
Mon 15/08
CSS (feat. Bobby Gillespie) - Hits Me Like a Rock
Dismissed by many as being no more than a bunch of art & design school kids flirting with the world of pop, few would have predicted seeing them making any kind of a return amid rumours of inner-turmoil and acrimony. It's good to have them back though, with a song perfect for BG's lazy vocal and the summertime.
http://soundcloud.com/dillonfrancis/css-hits-me-like-a-rock-dillon
Thurs 18/08
RM Hubbert @ Bold Street Coffee
Fresh from a support slot on Mogwai's recent European tour, the Scotsman lands in Liverpool this Friday to perform his acoustic guitar 'sketches' in a free gig. Expect an affecting and intimate performance from the idiosyncratic (in a good way) craftsman.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dproRUbyvh4&NR=1
Fri 19/08
Cowboys & Aliens
It's a B-movie, but not as we know it. Director Jon Favreau is carving out something of a niche for himself in Hollywood, with movies that on the face of it are all kinds of wrong, or at the very least could end up that way (but rarely do). I'm thinking in particular Elf, the Iron Man franchise and now this. Telling the story of an alien craft invading Earth in the late 19th Century, this has summer pop-corn movie hi-jinx written all over it.
http://www.cowboysandaliensmovie.com/
CSS (feat. Bobby Gillespie) - Hits Me Like a Rock
Dismissed by many as being no more than a bunch of art & design school kids flirting with the world of pop, few would have predicted seeing them making any kind of a return amid rumours of inner-turmoil and acrimony. It's good to have them back though, with a song perfect for BG's lazy vocal and the summertime.
http://soundcloud.com/dillonfrancis/css-hits-me-like-a-rock-dillon
Thurs 18/08
RM Hubbert @ Bold Street Coffee
Fresh from a support slot on Mogwai's recent European tour, the Scotsman lands in Liverpool this Friday to perform his acoustic guitar 'sketches' in a free gig. Expect an affecting and intimate performance from the idiosyncratic (in a good way) craftsman.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dproRUbyvh4&NR=1
Fri 19/08
Cowboys & Aliens
It's a B-movie, but not as we know it. Director Jon Favreau is carving out something of a niche for himself in Hollywood, with movies that on the face of it are all kinds of wrong, or at the very least could end up that way (but rarely do). I'm thinking in particular Elf, the Iron Man franchise and now this. Telling the story of an alien craft invading Earth in the late 19th Century, this has summer pop-corn movie hi-jinx written all over it.
http://www.cowboysandaliensmovie.com/
Thursday 11 August 2011
After The Deluge - Fran Disley...
Unfortunately, due to uncertainty over the safety of our streets after dark, the above has had to be rescheduled. Follow the link for info folks: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=892725636#!/event.php?eid=197555953632051¬if_t=event_update
Monday 8 August 2011
Culture Diary Week Commencing 08/08/2011
Mon 08/08
Source Code DVD/Blu-Ray
Duncan Jones follows up the superb debut Moon, with a futuristic thriller harboring definite Philip K Dick overtones. Jake Gyllenhaal stars as a man on a mission to prevent a terrorist atrocity; but, satisfyingly, it's not quite as simple as all that as Jones employs mindbending themes of Sci-fi existentialism with great results.
Thur 11/08
After The Deluge, Frances Disley @ The Royal Standard
RCA graduate and brand spanking new director of The Royal Standard, Frances Disley presents a new exhibition of works opening with a private view this Thursday. Exploring themes of the oft-difficult transition from childhood to adulthood, Disley draws in pencil on ceramic casts and cotton fabrics, conveying the essence of the most universal of subjects: the trauma of adolescence!
www.francesdisley.com
Fri 12/08
Super Best Friends Closing Party @ Wolstenholme Creative Space, 8PM, £3
To cap a week-long exhibition of film and art from Liverpool-based art and performance collective, Super Best Friends, a closing party featuring Trouble Books, In Atoms and Michael Egan is just the thing to give your weekend the kick-start it needs. Formed in 2003 with the simple mission to combine art and party, we reckon we've every right to expect great things!
http://www.artinliverpool.com/?p=25885
Source Code DVD/Blu-Ray
Duncan Jones follows up the superb debut Moon, with a futuristic thriller harboring definite Philip K Dick overtones. Jake Gyllenhaal stars as a man on a mission to prevent a terrorist atrocity; but, satisfyingly, it's not quite as simple as all that as Jones employs mindbending themes of Sci-fi existentialism with great results.
Thur 11/08
After The Deluge, Frances Disley @ The Royal Standard
RCA graduate and brand spanking new director of The Royal Standard, Frances Disley presents a new exhibition of works opening with a private view this Thursday. Exploring themes of the oft-difficult transition from childhood to adulthood, Disley draws in pencil on ceramic casts and cotton fabrics, conveying the essence of the most universal of subjects: the trauma of adolescence!
www.francesdisley.com
Fri 12/08
Super Best Friends Closing Party @ Wolstenholme Creative Space, 8PM, £3
To cap a week-long exhibition of film and art from Liverpool-based art and performance collective, Super Best Friends, a closing party featuring Trouble Books, In Atoms and Michael Egan is just the thing to give your weekend the kick-start it needs. Formed in 2003 with the simple mission to combine art and party, we reckon we've every right to expect great things!
http://www.artinliverpool.com/?p=25885
Monday 1 August 2011
The Double Negative: Art, Design, Music, Writing.
The Double Negative is a new arts, design, music and writing website, launching late 2011. It will cover events in the Liverpool City Region, featuring a strong element of comment and critique, and acting as a platform for undiscovered and emerging talent.
Follow developments and progress at the following:
TWITTER
https://twitter.com/#!/doublen
https://twitter.com/#!/dou
FACEBOOK
http://www.facebook.com/update_security_info.php?wizard=1#!/pages/The-Double-Negative/125683880858059?sk=wall
All enquiries regarding contributions and anything else:
Music and Writing editor - mike.thedoublenegative@gmail.com
Arts and Design editor - laura.thedoublenegative@gmail.com
Follow developments and progress at the following:
https://twitter.com/#!/doublen
https://twitter.com/#!/dou
http://www.facebook.com/update_security_info.php?wizard=1#!/pages/The-Double-Negative/125683880858059?sk=wall
All enquiries regarding contributions and anything else:
Music and Writing editor - mike.thedoublenegative@gmail.com
Arts and Design editor - laura.thedoublenegative@gmail.com
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