Putting Holes In Happiness

It's been a funny old year for Marilyn Manson. This time twelve months ago, his marriage was in ruins, his long mooted directorial debut was (and still is) languishing in development hell, and he hadn't written a song in a long, long time.

Yet at 6am, on Christmas morning, he began to write what became If I Was Your Vampire - the opening track on the critically acclaimed Eat Me Drink Me album. The album was a departure from Manson's previous work - both stylistically (writing as himself, rather than in character for the first time), and sonically... his usual grand guignol glam rock riff fest fused with complex guitar solos - yes, solos on a Manson record (!) - courtesy of Tim Skold, the only other musician featured, yet stripped down to the bare essentials everywhere else. Marilyn Manson the band is dead. Marilyn Manson the solo artist, lives on.

Not so, perhaps, on stage. Skold and longterm drummer Ginger Fish are still in tow, though the absence of MW Gacy is felt by the somewhat basic keyboard setup for his live successor, Chris Vrenna. And with John5's departure in 2004, former live bassist Skold has shifted to lead guitar, so Rob Holliday has been drafted in to fill that slot... not that you'd know it - because the two new members are rarely given a moment in the spotlight all night. Indeed, even when the houselights are up while Manson addresses an audience member who threw a bottle at Holliday, forcing a ten minute interval, you can barely see either of them - and Manson neglects to even remember to say Rob's name when he's talking about him.

The result is a band that doesn't feel quite right. We're light years away from the Golden Age of Grotesque, or even the band's real golden age - when Gacy, Ginger, and 5 were joined by the greatly missed Twiggy Ramirez (now touring with NIN) for two albums and high profile tours... and Marilyn Manson was a powerful unit that middle America and the more religious parts of the world were deeply afraid of.

Thats not to say the show isn't enjoyable... far from it. For arguably the first time in his career, Manson has perfected his live vocals - he'll never be blessed with the strongest voice on the planet, but its absolutely perfect for the music he makes, and its never sounded better outside the confines of a recording studio as it does on this tour. Considering how heavily treated his voice was on Eat Me Drink Me, this is a welcome surprise, and its also backed by a more showy Manson than past tours. There's none of the spitting, the audience baiting, the rubbing body parts on security staff, or starting fights with band members... in its place is a man aware of how to put on a great show, and determined to prove he can still deliver without having to resort to shock tactics to do so. Its almost as if, shock horror, he's actually grown up.

The one let down of the night is that the majority of the new songs don't work in a live context. Its possible to argue that its because they jarr badly with the back catalogue tracks wheeled out and joyfully accepted by the rabid crowd... the majority of them just don't have the catchy hooks and Adam And The Ants style drum beats of the old favourites, and inevitably end up being the songs in which everyone catches a breather or heads to the bar before another hit appears. Its also possibly because whilst I greatly enjoyed the new album, its ultimately got less to offer than his fictional concept albums, and as a result feels like a lesser album than perhaps it really is... either way, only Heart Shaped Glasses and If I Was Your Vampire seem to really excite the crowd anywhere near the levels Tourniquet or The Dope Show do.

But thankfully the stripped down approach hasn't been applied to the Manson's stage concepts. The familiar Antichrist Superstar podium makes a welcome reappearance (though its smoldering Bible seems like an unnecessary relic from a bygone era he's no longer interested in), alongside a giant Alice In Wonderland inspired chair, a moving mannequin in those heart shaped glasses, a rising platform for Manson to propel himself into the air upon, and best of all - confetti launchers showing the crowd with glitter and sparkling things.

And through it all - Manson the performer finally takes center stage - prancing and posing for the crowd, playing up to the front row, diving in every now and then to create a frenzy... here's a man who is obviously reveling in being back up there doing what he does best, and overjoyed that after all these years, people still care. Long may he continue.

All things digested have a similar hue...

British comedy is full of unsung heroes. Those faces you know, who make you laugh, but never quite reach the giddy heights of the mainstream. But so few of them delight in their position just off kilter from the world of celebrity as much as Matt Berry.

Having first made his mark as the womanising alcoholic stud Todd Rivers, portraying hot headed badly dubbed womanising alcoholic stud Dr Lucian Sanchez in the magnificient Garth Marenghi's Darkplace, Berry soon cropped up in The Mighty Boosh - as the self important and sometimes villainous zoo owner Dixon Bainbridge. This was followed by what, to date, is his magnum opus... the criminally unseen AD/BC: A Rock Opera.

Further appearances in the Garth Marenghi linked Man to Man with Dean Learner, and his own sketch show with Rich Fulcher, Snuffbox (soon to be released on dvd at last), were followed by his most high profile role to date - as new boss Douglas Denholm in series two of the hit and miss The IT Crowd. The role may have been somewhat limited - at times it felt as if the part was a hastily formed rewrite when Chris Morris refused to return for the full run - but its certainly brought Berry a lot more attention.

This is both a good thing and a bad one. Its given the BBC the push they needed to release both AD/BC and Snuffbox - though the success of The Mighty Boosh through sheer word of mouth and Youtube alone may have had a helping hand there - but it also means that the audience for his second tour of 2007 is made up as much of unwitting newcomers who have no idea what to expect as it is the hardened followers who've seen it all before and want a second helping of the bizarre.

And strange Berry's show is. Drawing mostly on his 2005 album Opium - a glorious blend of seventies prog jazz lounge rock, faux-mysgonistic comedy and that wonderful fruity voice - the show also features songs from AD:BC and Snuffbox, and a snatch of the music he's composed for other shows on the quiet too (the theme for Saxondale gets an airing, but sadly none of the hilarious songs he wrote for The Peter Serafinowicz Show). The songs were mostly the same as the previous tour, but the character Berry plays on stage had developed immensely. Matt Berry, the 'singer', is apparently a bastard, and proud of it.

Throughout the night, Berry downs a bottle of 'vodka', berates his band - at one point insulting his bassist so much he threatens our anti-hero - only for Berry to command the poor man remove his trousers and play the rest of the show sans pants. Its a grand cabaret of base debauchery, and while its a complete contrast to the man himself, the theatrics stretch out what basically amounts to around 40 minutes of musical material into a full show. It barely matters that Love Is A Fool/Snuffbox Theme gets trotted out three times before the night is over, because the journey between the variations is so entertaining.

A highlight of the evening is undoubtedly Berry's most famous 'number' - the infamous One Track Lover. For those not in the know, in the fictional world of Garth Marenghi, the actor Todd Rivers (Berry) had a failed attempt at a pop career on the back of his Darkplace role - as those awful eighties tv stars often did - and as with many of the real shows of the time, persuaded the makers to put the song into an episode for a bit of free promotion... well, to say any more if you haven't seen it would spoil its charms should you chose to do so, and to say any more if you have would just be pointless - you know the bit I mean.

In the middle of One Track Lover, Berry and the band have taken to inserting a brief blast of In The Air Tonight - this time around, this was backed up by the sight of drummer Charlie wearing a gorilla mask. At another point, Berry complains he feels sick, then pretends to pass out while the band perform a perfect rendition of The IT Crowd theme. When its over, Berry awakes, and jokes he's had a horrible dream that he was in a show that people watched. It's these little touches that help to make the night so special... a treat for the dedicated who have followed his work these past three years or so enchanted.

Special mention must be made of his backing band, Jonas 3. Their own work is heavier than Berry's, and positively reeks of 'The Next Big Thing', yet they are also the perfect accompaniment to Matt's unusual charms... being suitably quirky in their own right. Sadly on this tour they are not playing their own set, being knee deep in working out material for their second album, but if you get a chance to see them live in their own right - you'd be a fool not to go for it. It's safe to say that if it wasn't for Berry's tv connections, the majority of people in the audience wouldn't be there... its arguable that a lot of them would find his music on record to be a little too oddball for them - but if you buy into Berry's world, you're in for a treat. Let's hope another album and tour are in the pipeline before too long.

AD/BC: A Rock Opera is now available to buy from 2|Entertain. Snuff Box: Series One is released in January. The album Opium is available at gigs, or visit Matt Berry's myspace for more info.

Purgatory Dance Party

This time last year, the world quietly lost one of its most underrated acts. After a decade peddling their unique brand of 'schitzo-experimental', inspiring waves of metal bands in the interim, famously featuring Serj Tankian in a guest slot on their fourth album, and spending much of 2006 as they had done every year - on the live circuit plugging their finest work to date, Adultery, Dog Fashion Disco called it a day.

Not that the majority noticed... for Dog Fashion Disco were too obscure, too risque, too 'out there' for the mainstream to ever comprehend. One moment they'd be thrashing out frenetic riffs and guttural screams that'd make Cradle Of Filth have nightmares, the next they'd be crooning like the love child of Matt Bellamy and Elvis Presley, or getting all funky with sprinklings of electronica, or even going all jazz prog on yo' ass then chucking in a down and dirty country number for good measure - the word versatile could almost have been invented for them.

And then, after six studio albums, a live cd and a jam packed dvd - it all stopped, and the metal community mourned one of its unsung heroes. Now, however, there's a chance to hear what may have come next - founding member and frontman Todd Smith, guitarist Jasan Stepp and drummer John Ensminger are back under a new name, Polkadot Cadaver - and they're more versatile than ever before. Stripped of the shackles that had begun to develop around Dog Fashion Disco's sound, retaining much of their fanbase and with the possibility of enticing a whole new set of devotees, the trio have been quietly hinting at their new album since February via their myspace profile - several songs presented first in early demo form, then the fully fledged final product, all radically different to one another, boded well for the release, and now the long wait for UK delivery is finally over, I can safely say it doesn't disappoint in the slightest.

Any album, in fact, that starts with jingling bells across a folk-tinged ballad will either make you reach for the eject button or kick off your shoes and lie back expecting a relaxing time... but again, this is no ordinary album. Smith's usual tongue in cheek lyrics are in full macabre swing, and before you're given a chance to comprehend what you're hearing, the band ramp up the tempo with the track this is perhaps most like DFD of old - A Wolf In Jesus Skin. But then, it all goes VERY weird.

The title track sounds, for want of a better term, like Dog Fashion Disco fornicating with Muse in the nightclub from the movie Blade. Long Strange Trip To Paradise, on the other hand, is an insight into the minds of The Beach Boys if they'd hung around with Charles Manson later on in his life when he took to murdering people. The album highlight is undoubtedly Bring Me The Head Of Andy Warhol - on which Todd Smith uses his ever impressive vocal abilities to sound like The Artist Formerly Known As And Now Currently Known Once Again As Prince... if Todd was gnawing on Prince's legs at the time - all spread over an electro dance track turned full scale sonic assault whenever you least expect it. Chloroform Girl is an alarmingly beautiful pop rocker complete with xylophone parts and lyrics about keeping someone chained up in your basement... and Brainwash will do anything but keep your mind from exploding and making a big dirty mess all over yer sofa. And thats only a handful of the twelve tracks on offer!

Let me make one thing clear - this isn't an album for everyone. If you like your metal pure and vicious, you're going to be put off by the pop and dance elements. If you like your albums to stick to one genre and give you ten tracks of roughly similar music with sprinklings of originality throughout - this isn't for you either. If you don't like your music all Izzy Wizzy Let's Get Busy, then you really shouldn't be listening to what is essentially Sooty's nightmare, in which he butchers Sweep, Sue and Little Cousin Scampi then plays with their corpses in a variety of ways too adult to discuss here. If, however, you like your albums totally uncompromising, jam packed with originality and with tongue firmly in cheek - you'd do a lot worse than check out whats shaping up to be my album of the year. All together now...

Buy the ticket! Buy the ticket, take the ride!
A long strange trip to paradise...

Purgatory Dance Party is available now via www.rottenrecords.com

Here For The World: The Quiet Conquest Of I Am Kloot

As long as you live, there will always be bands that slip you by. Artists who, despite your best intentions to discover as much as you physically could, you never quite get around to listening to. There'll be musicians you've never heard of making breathtaking music that would blow your feet off, let alone your socks - but you'll never get to hear it. Even with the outbreak of the internet, and the possibility of becoming a Myspace sensation of a Facebook superstar, there's still no guarantee you're going to come across the good stuff in amongst the nonsense.

In amongst all those bands you've either never heard of or never quite get around to, unless you're one of the lucky ones, are I Am Kloot. They've been quietly building up a reputation as a stellar live act across the UK and Europe since their self released debut, Natural History back in 2001. Recorded on the Isle Of Mull, Scotland, and 'sunny' Rochdale, Lancashire... the album garnered press attention instantly thanks to the presence of Elbow's Guy Garvey at the mixing desk, and Kloot hit the ground running - Andy Hargreaves' laid back percussion capable of soothing you one minute, and distressing you the next; Pete Jobson's throbbing basslines adding another layer of expression behind the guitar work and raspy, tender vocals of songwriter John Bramwell - his lyrics never pulling any punches - Twist, for example contains the immortal line: "There's blood on your legs... I love you..."; then there's Storm Warning's haunting verse: "I had a call on Saturday, to say I'd thrown my friends away, I reversed the charges on them all I, I made a lot of calls..."

The press attention led to their signing to The Echo Label, and their self titled follow up album was a minor hit, despite a lack of promotion - and garnered the hit singles Life In A Day and 3 Feet Tall, and included what may forever be their signature song - Proof - a track made all the more legendary by its stunning promotional video starring fellow Salford export Christopher Eccleston. Sadly, few people saw it at the time, because the single was cancelled at the last moment... the start of many let downs from the record label that led to their departure after one more album.


That album was 2005's Gods And Monsters - and its here where yours truly came in. The track Dead Men's Cigarettes was featured on HMV's promotional compilations in store, and intrigued, I checked out the album - only to find a treasure trove of incredible songs - from the singles No Direction Home and Over My Shoulder to the bitterness of the title track, the venom within Sand And Glue, and the mesmerising qualities of I Believe and Avenue Of Hope - the latter of which later was featured in Danny Boyle's sci-fi epic Sunshine earlier this year, hopefully opening up a new audience for Kloot.

I finally got to experience a Kloot live show in November of 2006, during promotion for their album of John Peel Sessions, and was so impressed, I went back for more... in February, March and now November of this year, at which they're flogging a new album, I Am Kloot Play Moolah Rouge. Recorded as 'live' with dozens of microphones set up in every possible part of the studio, and the band playing each song in full three times then working out which was the best take... the entire record was finished within two days, but you wouldn't know it unless told - such is their pitch perfect craft, not a note goes out of place. At their sell out gig at Manchester Academy on 24th November, there was a brief moment in which drummer Andy Hargreaves forgot to join in, yet the moment was so expertly woven into the song that again, unless you could see the mistake occurring, you'd never have known any better.

But a perfectly performed album and an incredibly honed live show is nothing without the songs, and this is where I Am Kloot are never let down. Bramwell has stated that he doesn't so much write about events in his life as writes around them, and by his own admission revels in the darker aspects of his songwriting - as if he feels a joyous defiance playing such emotionally charged material with the intensity to back it up. Now bolstered by the McLeod brothers on stage - Colin McLeod on piano, organ and keyboards, and Norman McLeod playing guitar and both pedal and lap steels like you've never heard them played before... and with the occasional guest star on stage (witness the triumphant appearance of friend Guy Garvey on stage with them at Night & Day earlier this year, for example), their reputation as a live act has been built up over many years of hard work - and whilst they're still between record labels and haven't quite passed into popular culture just yet, one can't help but feel - no, hope and pray - that their moment is just around the corner. So go on... knock them off that list, and get 'em listened to before its too late.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH CHANNEL M'S
EXCLUSIVE SET + INTERVIEW NOW!

I AM KLOOT play 93 East Street in London on 27, 28 & 29 November. Shows in Berlin, Paris, Vienna and Amsterdamn in December. See www.iamkloot.com for details.

Tinselworm

For the last decade or more, Bill Bailey's star has been in the ascendant. After peddling his unique blend of musical prodigy and animal obsessed, occasionally drug referencing comedy unsuccessfully for years on the club circuit, ye olde gogglebox suddenly took notice of him - and his first filmed live show, Cosmic Jam was a smash hit. It was followed by a cult tv series, Is It Bill Bailey? (which featured a very young Simon Pegg, no less), for the BBC, then appearances in Pegg and Jessica Stevenson's seminal Spaced as hapless comic store owner Bilbo Bagshop.

Black Books was up next - a leading role beside the ever dour Dylan Moran and the ever frumpy Tamsin Grieg, and suddenly, the mainstream was calling - with regular appearances on QI and Have I Got News For You leading to a residency as team captain on Never Mind The Buzzcocks after the departure of Sean Hughes. And all the time this was happening, Live-Bill never rested - with the incredibly successful Bewilderness tour being quickly followed by the even bigger smash Part Troll. The inevitable live boxset eventually happened, selling huge numbers, and Bill turned his hand to documentary work - his love of animals had become enjoyable docu-light tv.

Which brings us to Tinselworm, Bill's latest tour - and at long last, he's made it big. Instead of grotty clubs and intimate venues, Tinselworm has headed straight to arenas - 10,000 people a show watching the cosmic hobbit at his prime.

And believe me, this is Bailey in his prime. There are a few fallbacks to older material - namely the Scale Of Evil and his usual anti-Bush stance, but make no mistake about it - this is an all-new show - with only the obligatory Love Song from the previous tour being drafted out of early retirement as part of the encore. Bill's wit and intelligence would seem daunting if his material wasn't delivered in such a shambolic, chatty style - he seems less Super Comic, Defender Of The Joke than he does Yer Mate Who Tells The Funny Stories. And what stories he has to tell - from a fabulous routine about confusing Americans by pretending to be the Mayor of London, to an explanation of the similarities between the AA and Al Qaeda, to a chant-a-long anthem proudly proclaiming his refusal to become Asda's bitch - Bailey is arguably better than ever.

Whereas most comedians take hecklers to task - witness, for example, the Mighty Boosh take on hecklers with twice as much venom as the show-spoilers themselves - Bill almost encourages it. At one of his Manchester Evening News Arena shows, someone in the audience decided to shout out that she was pregnant - and this cracked him up for a good five minutes, leading to an impromptu keyboard number that had to be heard to be believed. And hear it, you could - long after the show had finished, because his team have taken the wise idea of allowing you to buy the show (bar the encore) on audio cd as you leave the venue!

As Bill whizzes around the arena on his custom made Mini Scooter Trouser Press, one can't help but feel he's a giant kid that never grew up... a theory backed up by his 'alien abduction' method of leaving the stage... his delight at finding a squeaking rubber chicken filled with sweets on the stage (which, I have to admit, was my idea to throw onto the stage in the first place), and the fun he has arguing with four aspects of his personality on a giant video screen. Nevertheless, this is no bad thing - here's a comedian that doesn't swear often, doesn't rely on crudity to make a joke funny, and has not only great comic timing but genuine musical talent to back it up. You'd be a fool to miss this tour - and I hope some of you have made it there already.

Live photographs courtesy of Lauren Gavin. Ta, chick!

Mindless Self Indulgence: Live @ Manchester Academy 21.10.07

Two years ago, if you told someone you were a fan of Mindless Self Indulgence, they'd give you a strange look, decide you were strange, and move on. But careful marketing, a few video game soundtracks, a Jhonen Vasquez collaboration and that good old chestnut: 'The Word Of Mouth' have shown that you don't need to have a hit record in this country to win an ever growing mass of devoted followers, who eagerly snapped up tickets for this return trip to Manchester Academy.

And with the queue stretching further back that most bands could dream of, the Academy was soon filled with what, as Winona Ryder once described herself in Beetlejuice, the "strange and unusual"... many of whom were lapping up the overpriced merchandise, which annoying included a t-shirt that just a month ago the band's management and myspace page were proudly proclaiming would only ever be available as a free gift with pre-orders of their live dvd, Our Pain, Your Gain. Still - there's no business like show business... when it comes to ripping off the fans, eh?

The evening's entertainment did not start well, either. It takes a performance of truly coma inducing boredom for me to even forget their name, let alone the songs they played, but whoever supported MSI have to be one of the worst warm up acts I've ever seen. It was as if Coldplay suddenly discovered a drum machine and sampler, and had no idea how to use them... amusing to watch for about twenty seconds, then I'm afraid they received the same treatment all crap support bands get these days - utter ignorance of their presence, while I played an enthralling round of Tetris on my phone. What on earth did we do before mobile phones - I've have gnawed my own arms off without it!

All was forgiven, however, once MSI appeared on stage. The crowd went wild, and the band played up to it, especially, of course, Little Jimmy Urine himself. Songs flew by, the band stopping only to allow Jimmy his half-scripted taunts... this time tailored to UK audiences - his tales of trying to write a Girls Aloud quality song, for example... or shopping at Marks and Spencer - neither of which you expect to hear American bands talk about in general, let alone whilst whipping an audience into a frenzy.

By the end of the night, all but a handful of their more famous songs had appeared in one form or another... the most notable omission being the first track of theirs I heard all those years ago, the infamous Molly... but in a set packed with as many songs as they like to perform, its not surprising a few get left out. After a brief explanation as to what bands "normally" do during the pre-encore moments, and a final corker or two... Jimmy rounded off with a perfectly mimed rendition to a playback of There's No Business Like Show Business, and vanished.

He returned five minutes later and all those who hadn't left yet swarmed around him as he began signing autographs for fans... though unlike most autographs, these could say absolutely anything - most notably his response when handed a passport: I'm not sure if its genius or insanity to allow him to write the words "I AM A TERRORIST" in your legal documents, but its certainly something unique to treasure forever! Guitarist Steve, Righ? soon followed, and bassist Lynn-Z and drummer Kitty were on their way, but after a long trek up from London to see them (I'd been away for the weekend), I simply couldn't be bothered hanging around and fighting my way through the scrum to speak to them.

Nevertheless, they should be commended for this behaviour - so many bands these days couldn't care less if their fans like them or not, as long as they get their money at the end of the night - here is a band that has become an ever growing phenomenon because they take the time to care... and long may they continue to do so.

Come back soon, MSI - next time the Apollo, eh?

2 Hearts

The Queen of Pop is back - with incredible results!

On 12th November, Kylie Minogue releases her first single in almost three years. Entitled 2 Hearts, you can hear the track now on Kylie's new myspace page, which also features the stunning music video for the song.

The tracklisting is as follows:

2-TRACK CD SINGLE
2 Hearts
I Don't Know What It Is

MAXI CD SINGLE
2 Hearts
2 Hearts [Alan Brave Remix]
King Or Queen
{+ CD-ROM Video}

12" PICTURE DISC
2 Hearts
2 Hearts [Alan Brave Remix]
2 Hearts [Version By Studio]

The album, entitled X will follow on November 26th.

Personally, I have to say I'm very impressed with the single. Originally recorded by electro band Kish Mauve, Kylie's reworking is a vast improvement on an already impressive original, and combines the best elements of Goldfrapp with more than a dash of that Bowie/Roxy Music sound so typified by the songs recorded for the movie Velvet Goldmine that this could almost be a lost track from the soundtrack album.

Once again, it showcases Kylie's ability to change with the times, and rework familiar concepts into her own grand design. Minogue has always been at her best when she's left to her own devices, carving out the epic string arrangements of Confide In Me, the laid back chillout of Put Yourself In My Place, the thundering electronic gems Limbo, Too Far and Tears from Impossible Princess, or that album's highlight Cowboy Style, with its eastern edge that makes Madonna's best efforts at bringing in multicultural influences seem positively laughable. And then, lets not forget those two titanic number one hits - Can't Get You Out Of My Head and Slow, or the sheer beauty of the rarely heard acoustic gem that is Ocean Blue.

I can't help but feel that at times, however, Kylie is compelled to make the music the public believes she should be making, as opposed to the material she wants to investigate, and time will tell whether they take to her tenth studio album. But judging by this early taster, I can't wait for the end of November...

Seth Lakeman: Live @ Manchester Academy 07.10.07

The last time Seth Lakeman played at Manchester Academy, there was an overwhelming feeling that he was finally breaking into the mainstream. After years of underground success, including a Mercury Music Prize nomination for 2005's Kitty Jay album, Seth had appeared on a variety of tv shows, entered the UK top 40, and had a shiny new recording contract upon which to reissue his albums.

Since then, things have been somewhat quiet on the Lakeman front, bar the odd festival appearance and a rather muted 7" only single release for King And Country. Yet whilst the venue hadn't quite sold out, it was still jam packed by the time Benji Kirkpatrick and recent chart success Ben's Brother had completed their support sets - and once again, yours truly, fluffy fox was right at the front. This time, the Academy had elected to put the barriers up, so leaning on the stage beside Seth's feet was not an option!

Lakeman and his more than able backing band were all full of a cold, but you wouldn't have known it if Seth hadn't apologised profusely during between-song banter - his voice as sensational as ever, his fiddleplaying as breathtaking as it was the first time you saw him blast his way through Kitty Jay all alone. And that track was, as ever, a highlight of an evening packed with them. Recent singles The White Hare and King And Country were both absent from the setlist, but fan favourite Lady Of The Sea and numerous tracks from his three albums to date all appeared, as did tantalising glimpses of the forthcoming fourth full lengther. One can only hope it'll be released in time to make 2008 start with a bang.

The next time Seth's in a town near you, do yourself a favour - put aside any prejudice you may have against folk, and go and see an incredible performer with a talented backup band, who together can put on a show to take your breath away. You won't regret it, believe you me.

Rob Zombie's Halloween

Packed with big budget sequels and pointless remakes, American cinema has been somewhat unoriginal in recent years. And Rob Zombie's take on Halloween is by no means a patch on the original - but then, few films can be. Nevertheless, it was better than all the Halloween sequels I've seen (including H20), and most remakes and indeed mainstream horror films of recent years.

On the plus side, Michael's childhood scenes, though they seemed to go on forever, were handled well (except for the highly misjudged first scene imho - though that may have been there to lull the audience into thinking they're watching another swear-cuss-no-plot Zombie film), and the child playing young Michael was excellent - as was, surprisingly, Sherri-Moon Zombie. However, spending so much time on his motives, his troubled upbringing and attempts to understand him detracted from the notion of Meyers as a pure manifestation of evil, which was a major factor in the character as originally seen. Zombie's alternative was far more realistic, but the fantastical flair of the original was lost as a result.

I wouldn't say thats necessarily a bad thing - if he had made a direct remake, it would most likely have failed miserably - in fact, I'd suggest he be commended for his attempts at taking the basic template and trying something different. The knowing winks to the original, and factoring in plot elements from the later sequels not only reveal that Zombie is a man who knows his subject, but actively worships it, and his representation works on a level that most other horror remakes don't - the closest comparison I can make is Savini's take on "Night Of The Living Dead", which also stayed very close to the original, but twisted and turned in different ways to keep knowing audiences on their toes and still provide the same thrills and spills for those who haven't seen the first film.

And here, its possible to feel pity on Michael at times... you can understand why Danny Trejo's character feels a connection to him, even if he is ultimately betrayed by Meyers brutal urges. It also allows Zombie to explore scenes the original could not - most notably the seemingly peaceful confrontation between Meyers and Laurie Strode. Sadly, it has to be said, Scout Taylor-Compton is no match for the equally double barreled Jamie Lee-Curtis, and one can't help but wonder how she would've handled this material back in 1978. And Taylor-Compton's relative obscurity may have played a factor in reducing Laurie's role to that of a supporting character, which is a decision I'm not sure is a good one - the audience is barely given time to get to know her and her friends before the killings start, and for a film that takes so long getting to the main events, suddenly rushing through them only makes proceedings feel highly uneven.

But the biggest change is one which is perhaps entirely down to the period in which both films were made, yet can't help but reduce the new film down to the levels of a generic slasher - that is, the choice of victims. The original film is effectively a morality tale - the victims are all people who drink, smoke and have sex - and only the virginal Laurie Strode, the wholesome Dr Loomis, and the young children Laurie is babysitting can survive Meyers attacks. This element was admittedly present in most slasher films of the age, though Halloween was most certainly the inspiration for the vast majority, its origins go back even further - to Carpenter's main inspiration, Psycho.

In Zombie's film, this element is almost lost, yet still lingers on in dialogue. He keeps references to Laurie needing a boyfriend, and her friends getting up to no good, even so far as to pay an almost direct homage to the original post coital demise of Annie and her boyfriend... and the film's first human death is also dished out to someone who Zombie goes to great lengths to portray as wicked... yet with the deaths of the prison guards, Laurie's 'parents' and even Dr Loomis, he's effectively discarding the notion of Meyers as a gruesome moralistic boogeyman and turning him into a pure blooded psychopath. Indeed, the sequence prior to the childhood killing of his family features the young Meyers almost ritualistically playing with his trick or treat candy before casually preparing his instruments of murder.

It's almost as if Zombie felt compelled to make a new film that took the basic setting and the iconic villain, and made both look completely different, up to date and more realistic than they ever did before - yet at the same time felt the need to please the existing fanbase and pay homage to the original a tad too often. As a diehard horror movie buff, he knows his subject expertly, and the knowing cameos from Ken Foree, Bill Mosely, Udo Keir and Brad Dourif, plus the entire casting of Malcolm McDowell seem to be there entirely to please both himself and his fellow horror aficionados as much as the odd line or shot that knowingly reference Carpenter, or the use of the original score (which lets face it, few could ever topple)... but the need to appeal to mainstream audiences, and to provide a new take on things ultimately clashes with the fanboy urge, and the film never quite lives up to the sum of its parts as a result, though the sudden ending works far better than any genuine resolution ever could, and like the best horrors, leaves you with one last scare before the credits roll. Perhaps it would've been better to show Michael leaping back to life only to be suddenly dispatched in the same manner he eventually is, or even disappearing into the ether as with the original... but somehow Zombie's ending feels more "real" than either could ever do.

On the whole, it was an enjoyable piece of horror hokum - and audiences who have never seen Jamie Lee Curtis hiding in the closet armed only with a coathanger will adore it. Those going into it expecting to hate every second will find its flaws and rip it to shreds, and those who love the original and expect a carbon copy will also be disappointed. Yet, I can't help but think those who go into it with an open mind and no expectations whatsoever will reap its rewards in spite of its mistakes... and get to see a half decent horror thats vastly superior to the majority of recent remakes in the genre.

Welcome

Hello there ladles and jellyspoons, and welcome to Suburban Wonderfox - a place where yours truly, fluffy fox will attempt to post his random musings on a variety of films, tv, music and other forms of art whenever he sees fit.

There's no guarantee I'm going to remember to maintain this page, let alone that anyone will want to read it - and this isn't a replacement for my real blog - which is staying put at Myspace - but as an alternative, less personal place to shout about things without 'real life' getting in the way, this is an ideal place to try something new.

So hello once again, and I look forward to hearing your thoughts on mine very soon.

Until then - you stay classy, live journal!

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Didy