Nov 29, 2013
Nils Frahm – Spaces (2013)
... Album of the month za Diskurs Xernia month ...
Nils Frahm straddles a few musical worlds. The Berlin artist has released star-gazing synth epics ("For"), intimate solo piano pieces (Screws) and plenty in between, and he does it all pretty well. His live show lays bare the sheer scope of his work: he's usually got at least three pianos, plus an array of synths and other gadgets. These performances often show the true breadth of his talent in a way his individual records can't. Spaces is here to fix that problem. It's a welcome compilation of live recordings from the past two years, collecting snapshots of him in different moods at different concerts. Over almost 80 minutes, we hear everything from climactic synth crescendoes to plaintive, whisper-quiet ballads. Spaces, in other words, is the wide-ranging sampler Frahm has needed all along.
Nils Frahm straddles a few musical worlds. The Berlin artist has released star-gazing synth epics ("For"), intimate solo piano pieces (Screws) and plenty in between, and he does it all pretty well. His live show lays bare the sheer scope of his work: he's usually got at least three pianos, plus an array of synths and other gadgets. These performances often show the true breadth of his talent in a way his individual records can't. Spaces is here to fix that problem. It's a welcome compilation of live recordings from the past two years, collecting snapshots of him in different moods at different concerts. Over almost 80 minutes, we hear everything from climactic synth crescendoes to plaintive, whisper-quiet ballads. Spaces, in other words, is the wide-ranging sampler Frahm has needed all along.
Kategorije:
muzika
Blackfish (Gabriela Cowperthwaite, 2013)
Killer whales at SeaWorld are looked at and the truth about their
conditions and abuse are shown in the new documentary, BLACKFISH.
Director Gabriela Cowperthwaite went inside SeaWorld to show how Orcas
turn on their handlers and how the animals suffer from being shipped
around the world and treated abusively.Shocking, never before seen footage and riveting interviews with
trainers and experts manifest the orca's extraordinary nature, the
species' cruel treatment in captivity over the last four decades and the
growing disillusionment of workers who were misled and endangered by
the highly profitable sea-park industry. This emotionally wrenching,
tautly structured story challenges us to consider our relationship to
nature and reveals how little we humans truly know about these highly
intelligent, and surprisingly sentient, fellow mammals that we only
think we can control.
Kategorije:
film
Nov 28, 2013
Choice of Arms (Alain Corneau, 1981)
This French production concerns a gangster (Yves Montand) who retires to
the countryside after living a full life of traditional crime. After
settling into his new residence with his wife (Catherine Deneuve), his
home is invaded by an unruly punk (Gerard Depardieu) who has some
new-fangled ideas about the way crime should work.
Kategorije:
film
Nov 27, 2013
Kristofer Åström – An Introduction To (2013)
Kristofer
Åström has been around, both metaphorically and literally. His hardcore
punk band Fireside was the first Swedish band to ever play the
Lollapalooza Festival. In 1998, he was given a guitar, trust and studio
time and has since released eight albums and several EPs under his own
name. Spanning folk, country, pop and rock, these records explore both
human relationships and, quoting his third album’s title, the condition
of “northern blues”. Sometimes with Hidden Truck or The Rainaways next
to his name, sometimes singing duets with musicians such as Britta
Persson and Maria Taylor. Sometimes releasing two records within one
year and sometimes disappearing for three years.
Kategorije:
muzika
Blancanieves ( Pablo Berger, 2012)
It's too soon to declare a trend, but a silent film once again seems
likely to become a success in the contemporary film world:
"Blancanieves," a striking, visually stunning Spanish feature, written
and directed by Pablo Berger.
Although the story draws on the Brothers Grimm and the legend of Snow White, it is anything but a children's movie. It is a full-bodied silent film of the sort that might have been made by the greatest directors of the 1920s, if such details as the kinky sadomasochism of this film's evil stepmother could have been slipped past the censors.
Although the story draws on the Brothers Grimm and the legend of Snow White, it is anything but a children's movie. It is a full-bodied silent film of the sort that might have been made by the greatest directors of the 1920s, if such details as the kinky sadomasochism of this film's evil stepmother could have been slipped past the censors.
Kategorije:
film
Evil (Mikael Håfström, 2003)
Evil is adapted from a best selling novel and directed by
Mikael Håfström (Derailed and 1408). This 2003 Swedish language film
follows a teenager, Erik, played by Andreas Wilson. The film opens with a
very violent scene of Erik beating a fellow student to a bloody pulp.
The camera focuses tight on his face, this is clearly the face of evil. Erik is subsequently expelled from school and his mother despairs at
the path her son is on and so sells some of her possessions in order to
send Erik to the prestigious Stjärsnberg Academy. There, she hopes, he
will get a chance to continue his schooling.
Kategorije:
film
Inch'Allah (2012) , Anaïs Barbeau-Lavalette
Quebec-born doctor Chloé (Evelyne Brochu)
finds herself thrust into the middle of a conflict that's raged for
centuries while living on the Israeli side of the West Bank divide and
also working at a women's health clinic on the Palestinian side. Over
time, Chloé strikes up a close friendship with her Israeli neighbor Ava (Sivan Levy)
-- a young woman who's working as a checkpoint guard as part of her
mandatory military service. Meanwhile, at work, Chloé finds her
sympathies shifting to Rand (Sabrina Ouazani), an expectant mother who's trapped in a life of destitution, and whose older brother Faysal (Yousef Sweid) won't rest until the Palestinian people have been liberated.
Kategorije:
film
Nov 25, 2013
Nov 24, 2013
Nov 23, 2013
Liv & Ingmar (Dheeraj Akolkar, 2012)
One of world cinema’s greatest creative and romantic pairings—that of director Ingmar Bergman and actor-turned-director Liv Ullmann—comes vividly to life in Dheeraj Akolkar’s vibrant documentary, aided immeasurably by the radiant Ullmann’s on-screen narration.
Bearing the subtitle "Painfully Connected," Akolkar’s examination of the 42-year-long relationship is told from Ullmann’s point of view and captures the many highs and lows of their tumultuous time together. Through a collage of sound and image from the timeless Bergman-Ullmann films—they made 12 together, including such towering classics as Persona and Scenes from a Marriage—as well as behind-the-scenes footage, still photographs, passages from Ullmann’s book Changing and excerpts from Bergman’’s love letters to his lead actress, a candid and humane picture emerges of what can truly be called a love story.
Kategorije:
film
Nov 22, 2013
Nov 21, 2013
The Debauchees – Big Machines and Peculiar Beings (2013)
As word begins spreading about the “funky spunk rock” trio that is the
Debauchees, let’s clarify a few points of interest. 1) They are all
19-20, and two of them had little-to-no experience on their instruments
until fairly recently. True. But you’d never know it from hearing the
fantastically creative ways they manipulate their strings and drums into
an accessible yet artsy take on underground rock that barely even
sounds like something as boring as “rock music”. Drummer Cameron Lowe
and bassist Ashley Bowen’s approach to rhythm is classically post-punk
in every way, yet adds so many more textures, tempos and accidents to
their songs; guitarist/vocalist Sydney Chadwick’s jagged riffs clear a
path for them while bouncing off walls like a parkour champ.
Kategorije:
muzika
Forest Fire – Screens (2013)
The Brooklyn indie rockers Forest Fire have been sidling closer to the cosmos with each album, and Screens
is their most prolonged and soulful glance into the starry sky yet. The
synths billow upward, fat and soft-edged, and beneath them, lead singer
Mark Thresher whispers hushed, folky inquisitions into the natural
world and his place in it. Screens is an expansive, patient,
gentle record, the kind where hooks sharpen slowly out of drifting songs
only by accumulation. “Cold Kind” returns repeatedly to a sighed,
descending four-note melody, and it’s only by the end of the song’s
dilated run-time that it occurs to you: That was the hook.
Kategorije:
muzika
A Bad Son (Claude Sautet, 1980)
This is a quiet drama about the struggles of a former drug addict and
dealer, Bruno Calgagni (Patrick Dewaere), as he is released from prison
in the U.S. and arrives back home in France. His unhappy father blames
this disgraceful prison stint for the death of Bruno's mother. No one
wants to hire an ex-con, and a romantic liaison with another, very
delicately balanced former addict only adds to the burden Bruno is
carrying. Mauvais Fils skillfully limns Bruno's daily fight to keep his
head above
water.
Kategorije:
film
Thesis on a Homicide (Hernán Goldfrid, 2013)
Roberto Bermudez, a specialist in criminal law, is convinced that one of
his students committed a brutal murder. It leads him to start an
investigation that becomes his obsession.
Kategorije:
film
Nov 20, 2013
Nov 19, 2013
In the Realms of the Unreal (2003) , Jessica Yu
Award-winning short filmmaker Jessica Yu makes her feature-length debut with In the Realms of the Unreal,
a documentary about outsider artist Henry Darger. Born in 1892, Darger
lived in Chicago and worked as a janitor for most of his life. When he
died in 1972, his landlord found his life's work: The Story of the
Vivian Girls, in What is Known as the Realms of the Unreal, of the
Glandeco-Angelinian War Storm, Caused by the Child Slave Rebellion
(often simply referred to as The Realms). A massive, multiple-volume
fantasy novel, The Realms also contains nearly 300 illustrations of
collages, drawings, and paintings. Rather than interview art scholars
and psychologists, Yu chooses to look at Darger's work from the viewpoints of those who knew him. Yu also incorporates animation segments into the documentary, using Darger's original images. In the Realms of the Unreal was shown at the Sundance Film Festival in 2004 as part of the documentary competition.
Kategorije:
film
Feral & Stray – Between You And The Sea (2013)
Produced by Mark Lawson (Arcade Fire, Beirut, Timber Timbre). Features Taylor Kirk and Simon Trottier (Timber Timbre) & Emi Honda and Kristina Koropecki (Elfin Saddle). Godspeed You! Black Emperor’s Dave Bryant mixed the album’s instrumental tracks.
“The warmth in the gentle voice of Lang, the yearning guitar play, tender string moments and the bittersweet melancholic melodies they provide. You could call it dream pop, but maybe that would be to simple.”
“The warmth in the gentle voice of Lang, the yearning guitar play, tender string moments and the bittersweet melancholic melodies they provide. You could call it dream pop, but maybe that would be to simple.”
Kategorije:
muzika
Nov 18, 2013
Arcade Fire live at Bridge School Benefit Concert 2013
Arcade Fire live at Bridge School Benefit Concert (26 Oct 2013)
Setlist:
1. The Suburbs
2. Reflektor
3. Awful Sound (Oh Eurydice)
4. Normal Person
5. I Dreamed A Neil Young Song (new song debut) (feat. Neil Young)
6. Wake Up
Kategorije:
muzika
Nov 17, 2013
Nov 16, 2013
Nov 14, 2013
Angel Olsen - "Forgiven/Forgotten"
Angel Olsen "Forgiven/Forgotten" from the forthcoming release Burn Your Fire For No Witness, out Feb. 18 2014, on CD/ LP/ Digital on Jagjaguwar.
Kategorije:
ostava
La Ciénaga (2001) , Lucrecia Martel
Two families try to make the best of a bad situation as they suffer
through a crippling heat wave in this neo-realistic drama, featuring a
primarily non-professional cast. Tali (Mercedes Moran) is minding four
small children with little help from her husband, who is preoccupied
with the opening of hunting season, as a record hot spell grips
Argentina. Things aren't much better for her cousin Mecha (Graciela
Borges), who is looking after four teenagers and a husband (Martin
Adjemian) who can hardly be bothered to help out, but Mecha does
have a pool, even if it hasn't been cleaned in quite a while. Tali and
her brood end up spending much of the summer with Mecha as the town is
riveted by the appearance of the Virgin Carmen on the city's water
tower, and a series of thunderstorms add an awful humidity to the
summer's unbearable heat. While seemingly improvised, La Cienaga was
actually carefully scripted by Lucrecia Martel, who won a screenwriting award at the 1999 Sundance Film Festival prior to making her directorial debut with this feature.
Kategorije:
film
Nov 13, 2013
Our Children (2012) , Joachim Lafosse
Passionate young couple Murielle (Emilie Dequenne) and Mounir (Tahar Rahim) find their marriage threatened when they become overly dependent on Mounir's overbearing mentor Doctor Pinget (Niels Arestrup), a development that soon sets the stage for a tragedy that could destroy the lives of all involved.
Kategorije:
film
Nov 12, 2013
Stories We Tell (2012), Sarah Polley
Sarah Polley's documentary Stories We Tell
finds the director/actress exploring a family secret. She had
discovered a few years earlier that her biological father was not
actually the person she knew as her father; in an effort to fully
understand this long-held family secret, Polley
interviews every member of her family, and had the man she thought of
as her dad write his version of events and record it, using him reading
his story as a recurring voiceover throughout the film. Stories We Tell screened at the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival.
Kategorije:
film
Nov 11, 2013
Crystal Antlers – Nothing Is Real (2013)
The evidence that California trio Crystal Antlers has dialed down their
frenetic psych-rock blitzkrieg comes quickly on their third album,
Nothing Is Real. First, the skittering organ runs that punctuated 2009’s
Tentacles and 2011’s Two-Way Mirror are nowhere to be found, allowing
guitarist Andrew King’s textural riffs and live-wire solos to take
center stage. Second, singer-bassist Johnny Bell transforms his feral,
unintelligible howl into a surprisingly malleable, even pleasant croon
on “Rattlesnake” and “Wrong Side.” Sure, Crystal Antlers still executes
scuzzy, ’60s-influenced garage punk brilliantly on “Licorice Pizza,”
“Persephone” and “Anywhere but Here.
Kategorije:
muzika
Kurt Vile & Sore Eros – Jamaica Plain (2013) EP
Kurt Vile and Robert Robinson
were introduced to each other back in 2001 by a mutual friend because
they were born on the same day (January 3,1980), and by the following
year they had begun recording these recently unearthed and previously
unreleased tracks. As one of the most celebrated American songwriters
of today, now on his fifth studio album recently released to widespread
international acclaim, Kurt Vile really needs no introduction (well he
does have his own day in Philadelphia). Collaborator and long-time
friend Robert Robinson is a past member of The Violators, has toured in
Ariel Pink's band, but is best known for his own outfit, Sore Eros.
Kategorije:
muzika
Bungalow (2002) ,Ulrich Köhler
German director Ulrich Köhler made his feature debut with Bungalow. Pro skateboarder Lennie Burmeister
stars in his first film role as Paul, a disaffected teen who lets his
ennui carry him out of the army. He goes AWOL out of boredom, it seems,
and goes to his family's bungalow in the country. There, he runs into an
old girlfriend, Kersten (Nicole Glaser), who eventually grows tired of
his fecklessness. That's okay with Paul, because his brother, Max (David Striesow),
soon arrives with his sexy Danish girlfriend, Lene (Tryne Dyrholm), an
actress gunning for a role as an android in a German science fiction
film. Between dalliances with Kersten and attempts to avoid the military
police who are looking for him, Paul, who has a fairly hostile
relationship with Max, decides that he's fallen in love with Lene. He
exerts what, for him, seems a great effort to get a few moments alone
with her, and tries to persuade her to run off with him.
Kategorije:
film
Nov 10, 2013
Nov 9, 2013
Nov 8, 2013
Nov 7, 2013
Breathe Owl Breathe – Passage of Pegasus (2013)
Perhaps the last time you heard from Breathe Owl Breathe, you were
bemoaning the misfortune they suffered in California this summer when
their van full of instruments was stolen. Now, I don’t want something
like that to happen to the worst of my enemies, but, like, Breathe Owl
Breathe are the last group of people I wanted something like
that to happen to. The saccharine, whimsical folk trio from East Jordan,
MI makes music that fans find precious; songs that feel like homemade
keepsakes from someone special: singular, a little rough around the
edges, maybe kitschy but all the better because of it. When I heard
about Breathe Owl Breathe’s stolen vehicle, it felt like something awful
happened to a friend.
Kategorije:
muzika
Nov 5, 2013
Le Doulos (1963), Jean-Pierre Melville
Confusion and wrong assumptions are the cause of tragedy in this stylish gangster noir by director Jean-Pierre Melville. Maurice (Serge Reggiani) and Silien (Jean-Paul Belmondo)
are friends going way back, and both have had a shady past. Silien
wants to leave his illegal activities behind him -- but would he
actually be in league with the police, as an informer? That is what
Maurice suspects after he kills a fence who is responsible for the
murder of one of his friends and then takes some jewels as an extra
bonus. Doubts assail Maurice as well as others until it is finally
decided that something has to be done about Silien.
Kategorije:
film
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