P.D. James - "Children of Men"

Was looking through lists of dystopic stories, this title sounded so familiar. Turned out that the film with similar title starring Clive Owen and Julianne Moore was loosely based on this story. When I found it in the library, it seemed to fit alongside "Poste Restante" and why shun some possible inspiration?

Can't help it, but yes the book was better, compared to what I remembered from the film. Less action, less clear answers. Those aren't the point.

In short: suddenly the whole world becomes infertile. No cure is found. Strange practices start, "mothers" with dolls as substitutes. The Quietus: killing of old people because they want it to end (an escape?). The nephew of England's "leading counsil man" Xan (basically, tyrant) becomes involved with an anti-government group, 4 people, not experienced in anything like warfare. After bombings they have to flee across England and one of the women turns out to be pregnant.

quote: "no one was more adept at demolishing a woman's self-confidence while treating her with meticulous, indeed almost insulting, consideration and courtesy."

I wonder whether "I got the blues. The black dog on my shoulder" is a common proverb.

The first sentence of a paragraph often seems factual. Afterwards, it continues with facts or introduces subversive viewpoints. Describe what people do - "spying" -, not just the facts - "has another country found the cure to global infertility" -, but add emotional reasons, - "adult buccaneering". Sometimes, start with this emotional POV.

Lots of Christan elements, without becoming a religious story. Certain things are not explained, the infertility or why the woman can become pregnant again. Moral grounds when there are no facts. Choices to make. Repentance for sins of the past. Xan == Herodes. Julian == Maria. Faron (main character) is ...? Humanity?

Some would call this an open ending. Xan dies, Faron takes his place. A child is born. I like the fact that the story doesn't provide certainties, there aren't always answers. Living is groping in the semi-darkness and trying to make the best of it, I guess.

Wonderful writing.

The Cat Piano

http://www.thepra.com.au/Content.aspx?p=117

A wonderful dark jazzy tale of cats and an evil man who snatches them away to create his devilish "cat piano". Narrated by Nick Cave, simple animation with only a few colourtones per scene, it is beautiful.

The animation seemed somewhere between old-fashioned and flash-web, probably produced with tools of the latter by people who really know what they are doing.

Ponyo on a cliff by the sea

The latest from Hayao Miyazaki, studio Ghibli

It's a nice piece, happy, bubbly (literally) but a whole lot more aimed towards children. Or rather, less aimed at adults. The dark undercurrents that were so typical of his other films, are almost completely gone here.

Still, reading through some trivia, one can't help but marvel at the beauty and craftmanship:

• The opening 12 seconds, involving vast schools of fish and undersea creatures, required 1613 pages of conceptual sketches to develop.

Millenium: mannen die vrouwen haten (Män som hatar kvinnor) (2009)

The books are said to (become) a big hit. They're huge. LoTR style.

I must admit I read some reviews, all of them positive, before watching the film, but those didn't spoil it.

Haven't read the books, some of my family have and they considered them ok, but one quote I remember well: the reviewer actually prefers the shortcut the film needs to take to the extensive description of literally every character offered by the book(s).

I wouldn't say I am as lyrical about it as some of the people I've met, but it is definitely a good film. Gripping at moments, a high pace. The style one could describe as typically Scandinavian; cold, winter, bleak colours, but this is also due to the setting of the story.

There is one plot instrumentum that I wasn't too happy with. It becomes obvious that while "sidekick" Lisbeth Salander (she's much more than that, a stronger personality than Mikael Blomkvist, which is part of the whole male vs female discussion that the book/film raise) discovers who the murderer is, he of course is just at the house of the killer. And is caught by him. And yes (no! you groan) she manages to save him at the very last moment.

Yes, go on, give me crap about timing and suspence, but it ruined the fairly realistic tone that was established. This single plot device suddenly turns you around and you see the Hollywood cardboards, the effects, ... 

But that sounds too harsh. I truly liked the film.

Mono - "Hymn to the Immortal Wind" (album)

Where did I get this album from? X-Rated suggestion?

Long, chaotic, running-wild soundscapes. Bit busy to the ears, but not bad.

The songs, for example "Burial At Sea", feel like a 5min bombastic song that has been stretched into 15-20min. It is slow, yet progressively overwhelming.

There are wonderful parts, but a bit too excessive and repeating. At least, while one is supposed to be working.

Muse - "The Resistance" (album)

1. Uprising
   still as good as ever
2. Resistance
   Good, same mood.
   
3. Undisclosed Desires
   boyband-beatish, though the low base-notes at the beginning are very Muse-ish. Not a favourite.
4. United States of Eurasia
   "ha! ha! ha!"
   In the latest Q, Matthew Bellamy tells they want an "over the top" part on every album. A bit that cracks them up when they hear it back. Guess this is the one.
5. Guiding Light
   Okay.
6. Unnatural Selection
   oh! organ! love the uptempo "ocean...ocean..." with the multivocals. Bit System-Of-A-Down-ish at times
7. MK Ultra
   uptempo (that's relative, I admit). good
8. I Belong To You
   wondered by the title whether this'd be a kind of "Unintended". It _is_ definitely more slowpaced with a hint of the "chinese harmonics" that featured in United Status of Eurasia. The slow piano and drawling voice make a good second "over the top" candidate. Crazy tempo-changes! Invites a near boogy at the end.
9. Exogenesis: Symphony Part 1 (overture)
   Violins, orchestra... piano, soft voice. Bellamy in NME: "I think on the next album I’d like to do at least one 15-minute space-rock solo."
   

Klaus Schulze - "Dark Side of the Moog"

Love its soundscapes. Flying over a dying world, watching an unborn planet.

Life is sizzling, but it is strange and not human. Reptilian. Hot. Fighting the cold of space.

M. Vasalis - ("ik droom steeds vaker in mijn dromen")

Ik droom steeds vaker in mijn dromen 
een barre grond, groot en verlaten, 
gegolfd, versteend, verwonderlijk geplooid, 
met kromme, bladerloze, grote bomen, 
als een van te nabij gezien en oud gelaat, 
en voel mij thuis – te dicht bij huis – gekomen. 
Te sterk, te naakt, te vroeg berooid. 
Daar is geen rust, gewen dood, al bloeit geen blad, 
al is het stil – geen vogelstemmen... 
De stilte en rust zijn schijn: 
het hart van een cycloon, 
al klopt het niet, een niet te temmen 
kracht schijnt alles bij elkaar te klemmen. 
Zo is het land, waarin ik woon. 

O tovenaar, o kracht, waar zijn de vogels toch gebleven, 
de kleine, warme, met hun ritselende veren, 
die zich van takjes stortten met een dikke keel; 
de twijgjes die zich verende herstelden 
van ’t licht gewicht, dat het zo sierelijk verliet? 
Het waren toch zo vele 
Wanneer ik sterven moet, wil ik bij kleine vogels sterven 
en water horen en de oortjes van het gras 
zien spitsen en de losse aarde voelen.

M. Vasalis - ("In de oudste lagen van mijn ziel")

In de oudste lagen van mijn ziel,
waar hij van steen is gemaakt,
bloeit als een gaaf, ontkleurd fossiel
de stenen bloem van uw gelaat.

Ik kan mij niet van u bevrijden,
er bloeit niets in mijn steen dan gij.
De oudste weelden zijn voorbij
maar niets kan mij meer van u scheiden.

Simon Carmiggelt - "Femme d'artiste"

Zij loopt hem na met spijs en spet,
als hij in trance zijn gaven zit te melken,
of na veel kroegen eindelijk in bed 
van het artiestenfeest ligt te verwelken.

Zij kent zijn vijf verschillende gezichten,
zijn vreugd, zijn woede en zijn dom gepoch. 
Hij kan niet veel, dat weet ze wel, maar och...
geduldig luistert ze naar zijn gedichten.

En laat zich wekken 's nachts, omdat zijn luit
weer iets bijzonders aan de Muze heeft ontwrongen.  
Zij wacht tot 't uit is en zegt ongedwongen:
'Het is heel mooi, Wim, je gaat steeds vooruit.'

Een jurk kan zij niet kopen, want het ongerief
van zijn gestadig dingen naar de erepalm
maakt haar zo arm. Maar in de keukenwalm
ziet zij hem stralend aan - ze heeft hem lief.

Martin Scorcese - "Warming By The Devil's Fire" (disc 4)

With Ma Rainey, Son House, Charley Potten, Mildred Jones.

"Oh Brother Where Art Thou"-ish. Perhaps not the best...

uh

I wanted to write: "perhaps not the best music to code with."

But just right now Billie Holiday started with "I'm A Fool To Want You"... and there is always a good time for Billie Holiday.

Stephen James Taylor - "Give Me Freedom" : gospel, slightly dark.

Definitely a multiversed collection. Just had Eagle Eye Cherry, now Public Enemy. Not one of my favourite songs though. Or Tom Jones in duet Jeff Beck. Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds!

Slumdog Millionaire

Saw it again and was positively impressed by the story-telling. Though many actions might seem random, they fit together in a plausible way.

First lesson during the first minutes: confuse your audience. Bombard them with the same character in opposite situations without telling what is going on. Curiosity rules.

"Jai Ho" still catchy. Must admit that the vocoder is used well here.

The Orb - "Sentinel" / "Toxygene"

Remixes from Mike Oldfield are nice. They fit the ever-eerie melody well.

Six versions of "Toxygene" might be a bit too much.

the Orb - "Assassin" (album)

Just deleted this album. Have many more to listen to, and its beats simply didn't appeal to me. 

Right now listening to the "classic" one

"A Huge Ever Growing Pulsating Brain That Rules From The Center Of The Ultraverse".

Much more ambient.

Pogo - "Alice"

Forgot where I found it, but it's a song consisting solely of sounds and voice-excerpts of Disney's "Alice in Wonderland". There is an eerie feeling to it, which fits the Wonderland idea rather well (perhaps not the Disney idea as much).

It must be said that "Alice" is by far the best of the four songs, the others being "Bread and Butterflies", "Lost" and "UnBirthday". Whether this is simply because "Alice" has been given much more attention during its creation, it was the first song that was created, the rest came forth from its popularity, or whether this gimmick wears off quickly, is hard to say.

Nina Simone - "Remixed and reimagined"

First track, "I can't see nobody", remixed by a certain Daniel Y. I realise it's probably sacrilege to many people to even think about remixing Nina Simone, but while listening to the first track I think, well, she does have the voice for it... the swung of her words, it does seem to fit the strange beats.

But after a few more tracks, it becomes fairly monotone. Now breakbeatish music has never been much of my taste, so that might be a problem here, but I doubt this one is on my squeezebox to stay.

By the way, "reimagined", is that really so different from "remixed"? To the connaisseur perhaps, but remixing a track well, doesn't that require re-imagining the song in the first place?

Blaine L. Reiniger & Steven Brown - "100 years of music : live in Lisbon 1989"

Have no clue how or why I ever got this CD. Must be X-Rated on which I heard something.

It's wonderful. The first track, "Iberia", with its jumping chords, reminds me of  one of Evangelion's themes.

Music that rumbles, grumbles, rolls forward, sweeping everything away...

There's more. I hear Die Anarchistische Abendunterhalting in track "Licorice Stick Ostinato"

Andrew Motion - interview BBC World

Andrew Motion - ex poet laureate. What a wonderful man!

"A parent who does not teach his child the love for poetry, has failed"

about Rudyard Kipling, the interviewer asks him: "Didn't he say a poet should never become a paid civil servant?"
A.M; "well, he refused to become poet laureate, didn't he?"

(about the strength of simple language) "let a glass of water always taste like a glass of gin"

Toon Tellegen - "Het bezoek"

Op een dag was het zover.
Ik besloot haar eindelijk eens op te zoeken.
Haar gieren deden mij peinzend open.
Haar honden gingen mij voor naar haar vertrekken,
de sporen van hun tanden in mijn been.
Haar slangen schonken mij een kopje thee in,
met een wolkje melk, en roerden het om met hun tongen.
Haar slakken likten mijn mondhoeken schoon.
Zij was er niet, zij was zojuist vertrokken,
zei haar hyena, huilend in mijn nek.
En zij komt nooit meer terug,
zei haar spin, de aanzet tot een web
reeds strak gespannen om mij heen.

Muse - "Unintended"

Have been watching the clip over and over again. Love the effect.

It's every time in every scene the same, but keeps mesmerizing... and just fits the music perfectly.