Steam & Rye Launch

Last night I went to check out the new venue Steam & Rye on Leadenhall Street opened by Kelly Brook & Nick House. Situated within the old converted New York Bank the venue features a large open main space dressed to look like Grand Central Station during the 1920s complete with train carriages containing booths as well as a basement and loft space. With a fun, friendly music policy and some brilliantly eccentric cocktails, not to mention a very well done American food menu I'm sure this will be a hit.

http://steamandrye.com/

Rihanna - Unapologetic (Album Review)

Having never been a big fan of Rihanna I approached this album with hesitant curiosity. Talk That Talk felt like a slightly confused and rushed effort, peaking with some epic pop tracks but more often than not falling somewhere in middling territory as a throwaway full-length consisting of some great singles and some truly forgettable tracks that leant little to the overall experience. Unapologetic is a much better full listening experience, the songs here feel more developed and there's a surprising amount of experimentation. It's a perfectly fitting title, Ms Fenty will no doubt get a lot of flack for duetting with her abusive ex Chris Brown on the sticky sweet Nobody's Business as well as mining a variety of influences to construct the tracks here.

What marks this particular album apart from her previous output is the emotional vulnerability that comes across, in stark contrast to the defiantly confidant Rated R. Stay featuring Mikky Ekko is perhaps one of the most unlikely Rihanna tracks I have come across, a subtle introspective and nuanced ballad, yet it's absolutely exquisite with an undeniably strong vocal performance. What Now features a belting vocal with a great melody and suitably epic instrumentation; it's the kind of track you would expect to hear on a Beyoncé album, and while Rihanna doesn't have the vocal chops to match the beloved Bey, she certainly gives it her all and it works.

The latter half of the album delves deep into emotional territory, dealing with the complications of intense love and flawed relationships while the first half is much more experimental and interesting in terms of production. Switching from woozy sonic trips and drug-referencing lyrics recalling The Weeknd to aggressive electro and dubstep courtesy of Chase & Status and David Guetta. Guetta's hyper masculine beats are always most interesting when paired with a strong female vocal and Rihanna does a good job with him on Right Now and it's interesting that instead of attempting to create another We Found Love this is the only four-on-the-floor club-ready song here and yet it's the second shortest track, clocking in at only three minutes and acting as more of a transitional cut rather than any kind of centrepiece.

Unapologetic moves on from the power pop and dance of Talk That Talk in favor of more hip-hop influenced beats and hazy RnB. Get it Over With's paired-down beat and lush string sounds bring Rihanna into more left-field territory, at any moment you'd expect Abel Tesfaye or Frank Ocean to join in, as do the vocal pitch effects and sonic manipulation on Numb. The Brandy-esque vocal turn on Jump wears its influence on its sleeve and the use of Genuwine's Pony lyrics is unexpected but when the dubstep drop hits the audacity of it is grin-inducing thanks to the slick and assured production. It's true that the album pilfers unashamedly from other artists, from The Weeknd to Michael Jackson, and you get the feeling that a lot of drugs were involved in the creation process, more specifically Marijuana and other downers. It's a dream-like experience, most notably on Loveeeeeee Song (just in case you didn't know this was Rihanna's 7th album there are 7 'e's in the spelling of Love here of course), and perhaps the production outshines Rihanna herself at times, but it's impossible to deny Unapologetic's strong points.

With album number 7 Rihanna branches out musically and reveals a more vulnerable side which expands her overtly-sexualised persona and adds more depth to her as an artist. Personally I think this is one of her best efforts, certainly her most dense and varied, and I'd rather see her take more interesting leaps such as this than rely on bubble-gum pop as she served up on Loud. Unapologetic is just that, an uncompromising entanglement of musical styles laid down with equal amounts of fun and raw emotion and it hints at a longevity and crossover appeal that I wouldn't have previously expected Rihanna to have. If she continues to try new things and bring in more interesting influences to her work without watering them down the way she did previously then the future could be even brighter for this troubled star.

Diamonds - Rihanna (Erol Sabadosh Remix)

Thanks to everyone who's been sharing my latest remix, it's now got over 200,000 views on YouTube! Here are what some of the blogs have been saying, and in case you missed it here are some links to the YouTube upload and the download on Soundcloud.

"With a dash of synth sparkle and an alluring moombahton gallop underlining, his “nu disco” makeover proves that sometimes a subtle tweak is all that’s needed to bring about the best remixes." - Mixtape Maestro

"We’re quite partial to an Erol Sabadosh remix and this one is Nu Discotastic!! This remix adds a twist of joy to the original that you should be getting your audio fix of." - Your Music Radar

"The track sounds like a deep house take on moombahton with Rihanna’s vocals over the top. Its sexy and cool but still danceable." - Surviving The Golden Age

Menomena - Moms (Album Review)

Boulder Canyon, you made a son out of me, I had a mother who swam in your streams, I know the ending yet I'm faking suspense...

Menomena return with their fifth studio album Moms, minus founding member Brent Knopf and with a bigger and bolder sound than before. There's less of the cut 'n' paste approach to crafting songs that's become their trademark, ironically despite one third of the band departing this is the most unified and confidant they have ever sounded. Previous album Mines was perhaps their most serious, ditching the overarching playfulness of Friend and Foe for a tense and moody atmosphere. Don't let the title of Moms fool you though, this album is a powerful beast of chugging riffs, crashing percussion and intricate sound design and this time around the playfulness, experimentation and bizarre tendencies of Menomena's earlier work have crept back in to the foreground, married with a rejuvenated exuberance that makes this their most exciting and perhaps best record yet.

Opening track Plumage is an immediate, upbeat and catchy reintroduction, complete with handclaps, fuzz guitar, arpeggiated synths and quirky lyrics; "I once was tragically hip and beautifully fine, now my beautiful hips are tragically wide." Capsule begins with a sleazy strummed guitar on maximum overdrive before being snatched away and replaced with a stuttering beat and tight bassline. In just over four minutes the track incorporates blues influenced chords, lush piano, booming sub-bass, prog-rock breakdowns complete with woodwind flourishes and more of those quirky lyrics; "no more trophies as the consolation fantasy, like a nervous random stranger at a gloryhole." There isn't a single song here that doesn't showcase something new or reinforce the band's knack for left-field songwriting and composition.

Standout tracks include the emotive lead single Heavy is as Heavy Does, which gradually builds with intensity to an epic climax, the theatrical and twisted Don't Mess With Latexas and the stunning and sublime closer One Horse which features cinematic string arrangements and sombre lyrics; "you always drank alone, you were a one-horse town." Across ten tracks Moms not only reminds us of all the things that previously made Menomena such a special band but armed with a more organically cohesive and confidant approach to recording they have managed to step into new territory and completely own it. It's extremely exciting to see a band maintain such a consistant level of brilliance in their output and judging by this latest LP Menomena are certainly one of the most talented and unique acts around.

Angels - The XX (Erol Sabadosh Remix)

"Erol Sabadosh is a master of minimalist remixes that manage to keep the tone of the original while being danceable. In "Angels", the fabulous new single from The XX, the producer not only showcases one of his best works but also one of his most danceable. Keeping the cohesive structure of the original, Erol adds pianos, synthesizers and a lavish production that rivals the original track." - Oh My Rock

"Erol Sabadosh handles The XX like so many have done so before him, and transforms their Original into a radio friendly & club floor drum-honey. It’s good floating in the arms of synthy angels." - Aerial Noise

"Erol mixes a nice live drum sound with some glockenspiel and bouncing synths to create a very atmospheric remix." - Surviving the Golden Age

Ping Launch Party

Last night saw the official launch party of the new concept venue in Earl's Court from Alex Potter, Fraser Shipsides, Johnny Boud and Stevie Thomas. Ping pong, pizza and cocktails come together in a grand space mixing boho chic with underground cool. The pizzas are hand made, delicious and surprisingly competitive in price. £7 will get you a pizza or a cocktail and the choices are varied and unique. We love it and are already looking forward to going back! The license is until 2am so we expect some kicking parties coming up too.

Film Review: Cosmopolis

As a big fan of David Cronenberg and an even bigger fan of Don DeLillo I was certainly looking forward to this adaptation of DeLillo's lesser known 2003 novel. Deciding to adapt a novel that was released to a lukewarm reception amongst critics is a brave move on the part of Cronenberg, especially when the narrative takes place inside a limousine all on the same day and is mostly made up of dialogue between the protagonist and a cast of supporting characters who he encounters on his way to a barber shop across town.

Robert Pattison plays the protagonist in question, Eric Packer, a 28 year old billionaire whose intelligence is matched only by his equally nurtured ego. Pattison plays the character to chilling perfection, conducting all of his business from the back of his cork-lined soundproof high tech vehichle, with its multiple display panels plotting every second of the global financial market's movements. Trailed closely by his head of security, Torval, Packer meets with a plethora of his advisors, employees and concubines as he is driven through Manhatten to have his hair cut at the same barber shop where his father took him as a child. Packer's journey is hindered by traffic due to a presidential visit, anti-capitalist protests and the funeral procession of an influential rapper. In between all of this he meets repeatedly with his wife, a poet who comes from an excessively wealthy family, whom he still hasn't slept with.

Cronenberg provides the perfect directorial match to DeLillo's material, sinking his claws into the dense and darkly comic satire and transferring to the screen with great care much of the details and observations of DeLillo's examination and parody of greed, wealth and modern America. The films operates as a sociological tragic comedy, focusing on the influence of power and money and the divide between the wealthy and working classes. It's certainly pertinent to the current socio-political climate,  DeLillo has been frighteningly prophetic and insightful with a great majority of his material and Cronenberg seems to be completely engrossed with the critique, inserting just the right amount of existential angst to provoke introspective thought without overshadowing the satire. This isn't a film for everyone, the humour is far from broad and the dialogue is very calculated, but for those who like to keep their brains switched on during a film or for any fans of DeLillo or dark American satire this is a must-see.

Prometheus (A spoiler-free critique)

Riddled with plot holes and sorely lacking in suspense this Alien prequel from the director who started the franchise with writer Dan O'Bannon back in 1979 shamelessly exploits the original mythology for what is ultimately a highly flawed and frustrating to watch sci-fi thriller.

Taking the mystery of the previously unexplained creature discovered by the crew of the Nostromo, piloted by the charismatic and now legendary character Ripley, prior to their exposure to the famous Xenomorph that picks them off one by one, Prometheus creates a back-story for this bizarre entity, once dubbed the Space-Jockey and now referred to as an Engineer. Set 100 years before the original Alien took place, Noomi Rapace steps into the central protagonist role this time around as Dr Shaw, a scientist who believes that the answer to the meaning of human life lies with these advanced beings after discovering ancient cave drawings referring to a distant galaxy where the Engineers seem to have travelled from to visit Earth millions of years ago. Cue a lengthy mission statement from Charlize Theron as Meredith Vickers, an employee of the fictional Weyland Yutani corporation that is spearheading and funding the mission, the true reason for which is revealed later, and Weyland himself, oddly played by Guy Pearce in aged prosthetics and make-up. Much time is spent between the crew bickering and debating ethics and morality and the should they/shouldn't they nature of the expedition and once the film picks up interest it's lost yet again due to more banal theologizing and philosophising which comes across as a failed attempt to inject deeper meaning into what is a rather simple plot that doesn't really beg to be dwelled on.

Prometheus suffers from a disjointed and muddled narrative that crams so many different potential threads into 124 minutes but never fully follows through with any of them, apart from perhaps the existential quandary facing multiple characters that arises and is summed up with one line of dialogue that fittingly surmises the film itself; "there is nothing". As if to distract us from the banality of the characters and script Scott goes to town on the visuals with some truly breathtaking imagery, the only trouble is that the initial awe is hardly replenished due to the fact that the whole thing is set in one general location with only the crew's ship, the Engineer's structure and the planet surface as sets, and whereas Alien used the confines of the industrial ship to claustrophobic effect Scott here tries constantly to mine as much grandeur from these locations that it becomes tedious.

To demystify the mystique which leant Alien so much atmosphere and boosted its terrifying impact I would argue that there should be a worthy reason to do so and at no point in Prometheus did I feel that the weight of the story and concept was fully realised. In fact most of the major occurrences in the film come and go so quickly and often inconsequentially that you start to feel as if you are watching a showreel of high tech special effects sequences with no narrative continuity. Alien kept you on the edge of your seat due to what you didn't see, and the power of the imagination was provoked to startling effect, whereas with Prometheus Scott shines the brightest light he can find onto the story and shows us too much of the locations, creatures and dwells heavily on the concepts and ideas raised while eschewing emotion, suspense, horror and feeling.

You could argue that this is a standalone film and that it should be judged on its own merit but even so it still boils down to being a spectacle-driven film conceived as something more intellectual that fails to reach its own ambition. To not compare it to previous Alien films is impossible due to the fact that it borrows so heavily and directly from each one. Human-alien pregnancy, hybrid mutations, chest-bursting, rape subtext, androids and of course the alien itself, I don't criticize them for taking some of the best elements from the past and revisiting and revising them but unfortunately the new creatures in this film aren't scary at all and the characters are so unlikeable that the sense of threat is heavily diminished, the other elements are wasted apart from Michael Fassbender as the android David who is at least one saving grace. One of the most inspired scenes that harkens back to the underrated and brilliantly dark Alien 3 involves an alien pregnancy and the removal of a gestating alien from one of the human characters but unfortunately there is such little build up to this that it lessens the impact of what could have been a much more tense and unnerving situation and then it's forgotten so quickly that you feel slightly cheated, which becomes a pattern throughout.

As mentioned Fassbender is one of the film's best aspects, but Theron and Idris Elba also do a great job considering the shoddy material they're given and the bizarre and incongruous character motivation, which you will no doubt be questioning at every narrative turn. Noomi Rapace seems oddly cast as Prometheus' Ripley-esque protagonist, lacking the humanity that would have perhaps made her more likeable. The minor characters are appallingly written and really detract from the otherwise serious tone and atmosphere.

Those hoping to find direct links to Alien will be disappointed and most likely angry. The planet which is visited in Prometheus is LV-233, not LV-426 which is the planet that the crew's nightmare begins on in Alien. Instead of tying things up nicely the film raises more questions than it answers and ends in such a way that demands a sequel to actually finish the story, but if it's going to be as confused and ineffective as this than it's one sequel I can definitely do without.

SPOILER ALERT

(Scroll down to read my spoiler filled grievances and questions)

Why does Ridley Scott set this on LV-233 and not LV-426? I found this very misleading and annoying.

The tentacle creatures look silly and are not scary at all, neither are the Engineers.

The characters actions aren't clever, the scientist playing with the tentacle, the character smoking marijuana from his space suit, Idris Elba switching from not caring at all about what happens to suddenly deciding he must sacrifice his own life to destroy the Engineer's ship, Dr Shaw being able to run around after having her stomach cut open, Vickers letting herself get crushed by the ship while Shaw merely rolls a few feet out of the way, the Engineer suddenly deciding to get angry...

The alien which bursts from the Engineer at the end looks like a poor copy of Geiger's iconic design.

The Engineer's are supremely advanced beings that have mastered space travel, interactive hologram technology and bioengineering and yet the activation of their ship is accomplished with a magical flute.

2 Days in New York

I should have posted about this sooner but I've been incredibly busy, anyway, I went to the London premiere of Two Days in New York, Julie Delpy's latest film and the sequel to her previous feature Two Days in Paris and wanted to share my thoughts. Delpy and co-star Chris Rock were both in attendance for the press and Delpy also introduced the film and participated in an informative and witty Q&A afterward.

The film itself was very enjoyable, a brilliant blend of neurotic comedy and classic farce. The story sees Delpy's character Marion from Two Days in Paris now divorced and living with new boyfriend Mingus (Chris Rock). When her French father and sister visit the situation causes a strain on the couple's relationship and brings out Marion's neuroses in full force. While the characters are quite caricatured and the plot very basic you can't help but enjoy its simple charm and assured execution. There are some unapologetically cringe-worthy culture clash moments that are truly hilarious and Delpy really knows how to keep the material fresh and provocative without being too crass or off putting. It's also very refreshing to see an interracial couple at the centre of a domestic family comedy, as this is certainly rare. When probed about this during the Q&A Delpy downplayed the intention of this, explaining that it wasn't a key element of the storyline and that her choice to cast Chris Rock was simply due to her admiration of his work but nonetheless I think it's a positive and praise-worthy aspect. Rock lends his character a more grounded humanity which pits him as the voice of reason amidst a sea of neurosis and madness, he is the rational force that highlights the absurdity of the scenarios that escalate beyond his control and playing off of this Delpy shines.

If you're a fan of Delpy's previous directorial efforts, especially Two Days in Paris, then you will no doubt enjoy this and if you're just looking for a smart adult comedy then you could do a lot worse than Two Days in New York. It's worth the price of admission alone for the surprise cameo in the third act which had me in stitches! Check out the trailer below and a brief interview with the stars as well as some Chris Rock stand-up:

The Voice UK vs. Britain's Got Talent

I must say I'm not generally a fan of televised talent shows but the concept of The Voice UK coupled with the eclectic line-up of judges reeled me in and I've been watching since the show debuted. I think it's great that The Voice only celebrates real talent and doesn't set out to mock, unlike rival show Britain's Got Talent, which mixes the sublime with the truly terrible.

So far The Voice has already showcased some amazing performers, of which Ruth Brown, Jazz Ellington and Vince Kidd are my favorites, and I certainly think these three will do very well after the show is finished, no matter who is crowned the first 'Voice UK'. While I still think these kind of television shows are tacky and not really my kind of thing, I do think The Voice UK has emerged as a unique and highly watchable series that stands firmly above its competition, and if you happened to catch both The Voice UK and Britain's Got Talent yesterday then the difference between the two was perfectly encapsulated by Emeli Sande's strong performance on the former contrasting with that of singer Tulisa, previously of UK grime act N-Dubz, on the latter. Tulisa's cringe-worthy effort rivals Britney Spears' ill fated 2007 VMA performance for awkwardness, although of course she will never reach the same level of fame, which does make me wonder why anyone would want to see this. Surprisingly though BGT is winning the ratings war with The Voice UK according to latest figures so what gives?

There are some very gifted folk popping up on BGT but I just can't sit through the rest, and I find the judges excruciatingly smug and annoying. On the other hand The Voice UK has been a great platform for Black Eyed Peas member Will.I.Am who, during the course of the series, has completely won me over with his bizarre catchphrases and his brilliant anecdotes, and he really has proved that he has a great ear and top producer talent. I do think the show has lost some of its initial spark as the live rounds continue and the cast of hopefuls are slowly picked off, but there are still moments that make it worth watching. The judges haven't always made wise decisions (Harriet Whitehead not being picked has so far been the most infuriating) and the show is still obviously manipulative and exploitative but I do think it's a step up from the usual reality-based dross that graces television screens.

As an aside, I tried watching The Voice US but the judges, including Christina Aguilera and the lead singer of Maroon 5, proved too insufferable to bear.

Here are some of my favorite performances from The Voice UK so far:

Marley

I really should have posted about this sooner, but better late than never right? Last Wednesday I went to a preview screening of Marley, the new documentary chronicling the career of one of the most influential musicians of all time, Bob Marley. The screening was held at the W Hotel London for friends of Island Records, the film itself having been produced by Island Records founder Chris Blackwell who signed Marley to the label in 1972. Directed by Kevin Macdonald (The Last King of Scotland/Touching the Void) the film features interviews with everyone from legendary music producer Lee 'Scratch' Perry to Marley's wife and back-up singer Rita and of course The Wailers. There is also plenty of amazing live footage, including his performance at the Smile Jamaica concert shortly after he was shot. Macdonald offers us a very intimate portrait of the star, choosing not to gloss over issues such as the use of marijuana and Marley's infidelity to his wife, as well the stubbornness which lead him to skip medical appointments following a serious foot injury and delayed the revelation of his cancer which was discovered too late, costing him his life at the age of 36. The final segment of the film, which clocks in at a weighty 146minutes in total, focuses on the last year of Marley's life as he attempts to battle his cancer through holistic medicine, and it's certainly emotional and difficult to watch. Whether or not you're particularly familiar with Bob Marley's history and career you will no doubt be moved by the power of this documentary and the positive socio-political messages that Marley spread across the world through his music. The accompanying soundtrack is also worth picking up, featuring some very strong live performances, rare tracks and remixes.

Elfie Hopkins World Premiere

Last night I attended the world premiere of my friend Ryan Andrews' debut directorial feature Elfie Hopkins starring Jamie Winstone at the Vue in London's Leicester Square.

The film follows a pair of detective-wannabe stoners who begin investigating a suspicious family who move into their sleepy hunting village in England. While billed as a horror film it's actually more of a quirky coming-of-age story that just so happens to feature cannibalism and gratuitous violence. The story is overshadowed by the vivid characterisation and splendid performances from the cast. Jamie Winstone and Aneurin Barnard are engaging and likeable as the oddball pot-loving duo at the centre of the film while the bizarre family of Gammons provide comedy and terror in equal part.

Elfie Hopkins is a B-movie story with fully-fleshed and precisely portrayed characters that is entertaining, heartwarming and occasionally rather gruesome, with a hilarious cameo from Ray Winstone. It takes elements of cult cinema and mixes them with slick contemporary filmmaking to make the ideal midnight movie and a promising debut from a new young director. As Elfie would say, "skin up", sit back and enjoy.

Note: The film also features some very exciting and promising new unreleased tracks by Charli XCX (pictured below with me at the premiere).

Thinking About You - Frank Ocean (Erol Sabadosh Remix)

Thinking About You - Frank Ocean (Erol Sabadosh Remix) from Erol Sabadosh on Vimeo.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD

"What do you get if you mix Frank Ocean on track duty and the incredible Erol Sabadosh on remix duty? A fucking awesome track for the summer thats what!" - Totally Twitterpated

"Helping re-spark our desire to hear “Thinking About You” at least five times a day everyday is this new remix by ace London-based DJ/ producer Erol Sabadosh, who perks up the ballad with a sprightly electro-pop/ house spritz." - Mixtape Maestro

"To the same degree as a late March open breeze, Erol Sabadosh passes us this exceedingly high-end John Legend & Kanye West vocal-doppelgänger, occupied by soulful intent and noteworthy prosperity of the electronic sound. Flawless for radio plays and suitable for beginning ones DJ set with, Erol Sabadosh continues on the lavishness." - Aerial Noise

"Ocean’s smooth vocals sound great over Sabadosh’ driving production." - Surviving the Golden Age

"Erol Sabadosh has taken one of our favourite FAVOURITE tracks by Mr Frank Ocean and given it a wonderful tweak and edit of joy to magic up a wondrous delight of a remix." - Your Music Radar

Ocean‘s easily recognized vocals meet progessive / R & B sounding synths, while flowing over a housey driving beat and fuse together for an infectious dance pop experience. - The Get Downnn

Album Review: Always - Xiu Xiu

I've followed Xiu Xiu for a long time now and they still remain one of my favourite acts. While I do feel that they have settled into a slightly predictable format since Women As Lovers, their output is still of a high quality and stands enough apart from any current artists I can think of to maintain their position as a unique and consistently interesting entity. It seems arbitrary of me to review their work, simply put I fucking love Xiu Xiu, but for the sake of promoting their album and maybe helping them gain some new fans here are some slightly more comprehensive thoughts I have upon listening to their upcoming LP titled Always:

Akin to Fabulous Muscles Always mixes aggressive experiments in noise with quiet and ominous soundscapes and whispered vocals. Born To Suffer will probably go down as one of their best songs, Black Drum Machine is the most downbeat closer they've had since Ian Curtis Wishlist and I Love Abortion beats Support Our Troops OH! for most discomfort-inducing Xiu Xiu moment. Lead single Hi kicks things off with an anthem for dysfunction and from beginning to end there is not a single moment wasted across this album; Jamie Stewart packs so many ideas and sounds into every bar of music that you'll either be totally enthralled or immediately daunted.

If you like music that's challenging then you will probably love this, it's more ballsy and far less accessible than previous album Dear God I Hate Myself, but that's not to say that there aren't great melodies and songs here. Honeysuckle has one of the sweetest sounding male/vocal exchanges that Jamie's ever employed, and on The Oldness his voice rides atop a lush piano and synth arrangement that peaks beautifully.Always showcases Xiu Xiu as one of the most arresting and brave acts around, harkening strongly to their earlier work but exhibiting a continually evolving grasp of complex production and arrangement that keeps their sound fresh and relevant. Always is out March 6th. Check out lead single Hi on Soundcloud:

  Hi by Xiu Xiu

The Rose Club

Last night I was invited to check out the new venue from Nick House, called The Rose Club, (known shortly as The Black Cat during a series of soft launch parties before its renovation and official opening this week) and I must say it certainly was fun! DJ Kayper kept the crowds jumping and we enjoyed some Ciroq vodka and Champagne cocktails with the club's creative director Andrew Dax. Ballerinas performed synchronised routines to Runaway by Kanye West, special drinks were brought out in oversized novelty Monopoly game pieces (see us drinking from a silver top hat below) and the infinity mirrors, state-of-the-art lighting and Funktion 1 sound system induced a near-epileptic state of frenzy in the already lively crowd. Suffice to say we're feeling a little fragile today. Not one for the faint-hearted but definitely a great place to go if you want to party hard in the West End and you have the cash to splash on a table (otherwise you may feel a little awkward as the whole space is made up of booths and there is little designated dance floor to speak to of). You can check out their official website if you click HERE and apply for membership.

Shabazz Palaces

I went to see Shabazz Palaces live at the Jazz Cafe in London two nights ago and boy oh boy was it an amazing show! Support came from the brilliant Seattle MC duo of Stasia Irons and Catherine Harris-White aka THEESatisfaction who also joined Shabazz Palaces on stage toward the end of their set. In case you're not familiar with Shabazz Palaces yet they are a hip hop collective fronted by Ishmael Butler, previously of seminal hip hop group Digable Planets, and multi-instrumentalist Tendai Maraire. Their debut album Black Up just dropped on Sub Pop and I can't say enough good things about them. Please do listen to Black Up and spread the Shabazz love. Check out some photos and a video I took at the Jazz Cafe gig plus listen to one of their EP tracks as well:

The Dream releases free album 1977

Today Terius Nash, aka The Dream, dropped his free internet-download album 1977 under his birth name in advance of the release of upcoming album proper, The Love, IV: Diary of a Mad Man. The 11-track album, featuring guest spots from Pharrell and Big Sean and introducing Casha, is available direct from his official website. Earlier Nash tweeted in regards to the album: "this one was done with no politics and Pressure. Its Free literally and figuratively." Check it out for yourself, just click HERE for the free direct download.

Def Jam, who Nash is signed to as The Dream, are unsurprisingly unhappy about Nash defying them and going ahead with a free release, and he even announced that he's filming videos for the album too. 1977, which is also the birth year of Nash, is an introspective downtempo album mostly made up of breakup songs, so if that's your kind of thing you'll probably dig this. Here's the tracklist:

01 Wake Me When It's Over
02 Used to Be
03 Long Gone
04 Ghetto (feat. Big Sean)
05 Wedding Crasher
06 Rolex (feat. Casha)
07 Silly (introducing Casha)
08 1977 (Miss You Still)
09 Wish You Were Mine
10 This Shit Real Ni**a (feat. Pharrell)
11 Form of Flattery

Watch The Throne; Jay-Z, Kanye West and the American Dream

Originally intended as a 5-track EP by Jay-Z and his protegé turned superstar Kanye West Watch The Throne evolved into something much bigger than initially planned. The recording process, taking place across hotel rooms and studios in Hawaii, Australia, New York, France, England, Dubai and Los Angeles, resulted in numerous incarnations of the album which were scrapped or re-done due to creative differences. Being one of the only major albums of recent years to avoid an internet leak it was finally released on August 8th through Kanye West and Jay-Z's own labels Roc-A-Fella Records, Roc Nation, and Def Jam Recordings.

Featuring guest vocals from Beyoncé, Frank Ocean, La Roux and Bon Ivor's Justin Vernon and production from the likes of The Neptunes, Q-Tip, RZA and Swizz Beatz plus (expensive) samples of James Brown, Otis Redding, Nina Simone and Curtis Mayfield it's a hefty concoction of talent, influences and money put together by two of hip hop's biggest names. It's an album rife with radio-friendly hooks and stellar production but one that lacks unity and direction as a whole, one might call it eclectic or uneven depending on which way you look at it. West's audacity and spontaneity leads either to moments of inspiration or clumsiness (he's still going on about that South Park episode) while Jay-Z is more restrained and ultimately comes across as more consistent.

As you would expect with that title and cover art the topics of fame and luxury permeate much of the album as the pair celebrate their success rather awkwardly at a time when global economy is still recovering from major blows. Nonetheless it is not entirely self-congratulatory and gloating as some critics have brazenly stated, but the message does seem at times either didactic or muddled. Take Murder To Excellence for example, which begins with a focus on Black-on-Black murder before shifting over to look at success in the form of wealth. West delivers a stellar verse in the first half, "And I'm from the murder capitol where they murder for capital... I feel the pain in my city wherever I go, 314 soldiers died in Iraq, 509 in Chicago," which is later juxtaposed against the emptiness of the rags to riches American Dream of success as Jay-Z comes in with "I'm all dressed up with nowhere to go" and West replies "new crib, watch a movie 'cause ain't nothin' on the news but the blues, hit the mall, pick up some Gucci now ain't nothin' new but your shoes." They seem equally dissatisfied and intoxicated by gaudiness, critical of Capitalism yet completely obsessed and consumed by it.

The album opens with No Church In The Wild, with tales of coked-up excess and late nights, which is followed by the glossy Beyoncé-driven track Lift Off which serves as a mission statement of ambitious grandeur for the remainder of the album to come, but one that the album never really reaches and sustains. Niggas In Paris tells more tales of excess, this time in the French capitol, but it's not until the fourth track, Otis, that Carter & West begin explicitly talking about themselves, but the focus stays firmly on wealth and the high-life. The gloating reaches a pinnacle as West raps "I made Jesus Walks, I'm never goin' to hell/Couture-level flow, it's never going on sale/Luxury rap, the Hermes of verses/Sophisticated ignorance, write my curses in cursive" and in the Spike Jonze-directed video for the song the pair are shown against a backdrop of a large-scale American flag, Jay-Z raising his arms in the air and smiling to his line "Build your fences, we diggin' tunnels /Can't you see we gettin' money up under you?" Ignorant? Yes. Sophisticated? Not really.

New Day sees them in a much better light, as they rap to their future sons about their hopes for themselves as fathers, the mistakes they've made in the past and the ones that they never want to make. It's a rare moment of poignant honesty that adds some emotional depth to proceedings. Welcome To The Jungle is another emotionally charged track that sees Jay-Z describing an introspective moment of personal crisis in the opening verse. In the second half of the track he references the dreams of Biggie and the death of Tupac in Las Vegas and then goes on to allude to numerous big-name rappers without mentioning their names, from P. Diddy to Lil Wayne and even himself. "My dreams is big /Reality set in /Let off a clip from a automatic weapon /Through shots in the door /It died in Vegas /Though it fought so hard /I knew it wouldn't make it" he raps, and it seems to me that with this statement he is referring to the view that the majority of 'real' hip hop died with Biggie and Tupac after which he acknowledges the materialism and superficiality that even he has fallen prey to; "Champagne for the pain /Weed for the low /God damn I'm so high /Where the fuck did I go? /I'm losing myself /I'm stuck in the moment."

If hip hop has been assimilated into the mainstream then Watch the Throne is a shining example of this ongoing hip pop movement. Despite the incredible production and occasional moments of brilliance the album is too confused and ultimately arbitrary; a hip hop album squeezed into a pop mold by two rappers who are clearly frustrated by capitalistic American society yet perfectly willing to pander to it in the name of success. Although both rappers seem to be aware of the ironies and contradictions of their roles and viewpoints, they seem unable to find any resolute direction or stance. The first half of the album revels in 'bling' while the second half of the album wallows in the emptiness of the American Dream; "I got my liberty choppin' grams up /Street justice, I pray God understand us /I pledge allegiance to all the scramblers/This is the Star Spangled Banner." It ends with Why I Love You, a look at greed and betrayal and the pair defending their "throne," asking their peers a question they could just as easily ask each other; "Me or the money, what you loyal to?"

For a long time the primary role models for young African Americans were rappers and athletes and these were the roles that were aspired to. With the election of Obama as the first Black president of the United States came a landmark historical moment. Carter & West are both in positions of power and influence, West caused a massive stir when he went on live television for an appeal for the New Orleans flood crisis and said that "George Bush doesn't care about Black people," so it's disappointing to see that when they come together for what should be a crowning collaboration with massive potential for scope they have very little to say and no inclination to put this influence and power to good use, whether in the form of a positive message for the youth of today or something provocative or subversive to elicit a reaction. The pair are instead almost entirely complacent, no doubt ready to reap the monetary gain from their diluted brand of hip hop for the masses, selling capitalism straight back to their audience despite the few moments of bittersweet honesty on display here. If Kanye West & Jay-Z see themselves as kings at the throne of hip hop then I'd say it's time for their reign to end.

Click here to read Ghostface Killah's hilarious review of the album

Watch the official video for latest single Otis below and the response song by Chuck D:

Love Is What You Want

Last week I went to check out the Tracy Emin exhibition at the Hayward Gallery in London. The exhibition covers every period of her career, revealing facets of the artist and her work that are often overlooked, and features painting, drawing, photography, textiles, video and sculpture, in works that are by turns tough, romantic, desperate, angry, funny and full of longing. Seldom-seen early works and recent large-scale installations are shown together with a new series of outdoor sculptures created especially for the Hayward Gallery. I found the exhibition to be extremely well curated, grabbing your attention immediately with the engaging large-scale textile pieces displayed alongside a full-scale derelict wooden pier titled Knowing my Enemy (2002). Personally I'm a big fan of Emin's work, drawn to her mixture of humor and pathos; she places her own personal experiences at the forefront of her creative output with extreme vulnerability, and yet there's usually a strong sense of irony involved in her work that I find darkly comic and existentially aware at the same time. There is perhaps an over-abundance of material on display, and it may be exhausting to examine everything in detail, but I'm confidant everyone can pick and choose as to how much of the exhibition they consume and enjoy it on their own terms. Love Is What You Want runs until Monday 29 August 2011.

The Tree of Life: A reading and review by Erol Sabadosh

"The nuns taught us there were two ways through life - the way of nature and the way of grace. You have to choose which one you'll follow. Grace doesn't try to please itself. Accepts being slighted, forgotten, disliked. Accepts insults and injuries. Nature only wants to please itself. Get others to please it too. Likes to lord it over them. To have its own way. It finds reasons to be unhappy when all the world is shining around it. And love is smiling through all things"

Terence Malick's ambitious and poetic Tree of Life is a stunning and complex personal exploration of faith, loss, memory and experience, mostly focusing on the lives of a family living in Waco, Texas during the 1950s. In present day New York, Jack O'Brien (played by Sean Penn), is struggling in a world that he sees as having "gone to the dogs," seeming alienated and troubled by an architectural project that poses a monumental challenge in his career. On the anniversary of his younger brother's death at the age of 19, Jack reminisces about his childhood and his relationships with his deceased brother, R.L., his permissive mother, played by Jessica Chastain, and his domineering and stern father, played by Brad Pitt. The film's narrative is presented in fragmented recollections, metaphysical and metaphorical imagery, dreamlike sequences and whispered voice over, providing haunting and nuanced glimpses into the lives of its characters and juxtaposing them with grand symbolism infused with philosophical and religious connotations.

"Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth … when the morning stars sang together and the sons of God shouted for joy." - Job 38: 4,7

The film opens with a quote from the book of Job, from the Hebrew Bible, in which the pious character of Job loses his offspring and then suffers at the hands of Satan by God's permission. Although Job does not curse God, he seeks to "argue" his case with the Creator in search of an explanation, while his friends insist that God's concern lies with general providence and not singular intervention or the fate of the individuals he has created. Job embodies the battle of reason versus faith in a personal God, and this is a battle that the characters in The Tree of Life come to face in the wake of the deaths, tragedies and the pitfalls that befall them. The young Jack attempts to speak to God, as heard in his voice-overs, seeking answers and asking why he should be good when even bad things happen to supposedly good people.

Another struggle that permeates throughout the character's lives is introduced by Mrs. O'Brien at the beginning of the film when she speaks in voice-over of nature versus grace. Pitt's character, Mr. O'Brien, represents the way of nature as outlined, exercising his power over his family, pushing them to do his bidding and persuading them to prove their devotion to him. Mrs. O'Brien and L.R. represent the way of grace; they are both more permissive and accepting and L.R. is shown to be particularly gifted creatively, playing the guitar and painting at a young age. In one scene Mr. O'Brien is teaching the boys to fight; Jack eventually tries his best to punch his father while R.L. is almost completely unwilling to engage in physical confrontation, this difference between the two brothers is highlighted repeatedly throughout and even explicitly discussed by the pair. Malick poses moral quandaries, filtering them through the religious and philosophical, and explores the way in which our experiences during childhood shape our beliefs and attitudes.

"I didn't know how to name You then. But I see it was You. Always You were calling me."

Jack, the elder of the two, asserts his dominance over R.L. but breaks the bond of trust between them and reveals a darker violent tendency when he mercilessly shoots his brother in the hand with an air rifle. Malick fixates on Jack's behavior as influenced by his father, whom he grows to resent, as well as his frustration with his inability to wield the same creative inspiration as his younger brother; "What I want to do, I can't do. I do what I hate." Mr. O'Brien, a failed musician, also shows signs of jealousy toward his more creatively gifted son. Human and animal nature is questioned recurrently within the film, the notion that natural instinct leans toward violence is considered but juxtaposed against Mrs. O'Brien's consciously nurturing domesticity and R.L.'s talent with the arts. In the early portion of the film Malick unexpectedly abandons the 1950s setting in order to show us a reconstruction of the scientific view of the creation of the universe and our planet, as well as the extinction of the dinosaurs. During one sequence a predatory dinosaur comes across another wounded creature, pinning its head down with its foot it prepares for the kill only to change its mind without explanation and spare its life. Perhaps Malick is oddly trying to convince us that nature is not entirely cruel, or perhaps it is just another symbol of the unexplained. These dualities and contradictions serve to portray our existence as complex and occasionally indefinable, spanning all creation.

The film is book-ended with visual realizations of the birth and death of the universe, but rather than diminishing the impact of the emotional story at the heart of the film compared to these grandiose segments, it seems to me to serve the theme of unity, the notion that everything is connected, past and present, life and death, the human soul and the vast cosmos. The tree of life is actually a recurring motif throughout various religions, mythologies and philosophies, symbolizing wisdom in the Hebrew Bible, love of God in Eastern Christianity and the inter-connectedness of all life and post-mortal existence in other sources. The final shot of the Brooklyn bridge reflects this idea of connection rather literally, as does the sequence with the older Jack walking on the beach with characters from his past amongst a sea of people. Many critics have expressed their dislike of this scene for portraying a saccharine vision of heaven, whereas I read this as a visual metaphor for what I see as the core message running throughout the film. Mrs. O'Brien repeatedly speaks of love in her voice-over, with the implication that she has attempted to impart this advice on the young Jack, telling him that "The only way to be happy is to love. Unless you love, your life will flash by." She also says "Help each other. Love everyone. Every leaf. Every ray of light. Forgive." and in Jack's vision at the end he imagines her finding peace, coming to terms with her son's death and revealing forgiveness, offering him to God and the universe.

"I will be true to you. Whatever comes."

The young Jack seeks answers from God much in the same way that Job did; "Where were You? You let a boy die. You let anything happen. Why should I be good ? When You aren't... Are You watching me? I want to know what You are. I want to see what You see." It isn't difficult to come away from the film and label it as a New Age exploration of God as love. Malick's inclusion of the Big Bang coupled with the scene during the Late Cretaceous period seems to support a scientific view of the creation of the universe and yet faith and notions of God play an integral role within the film on numerous levels, as ruminated by the characters and through purposefully placed religious imagery. Malick inserts a portion of Thomas Wilfred's "Opus 161," originally created as an interactive light and sound composition that Wilfred dubbed Lumia, between scenes. The image is left unexplained, appearing as some sort of cosmic entity, perhaps representing Malick's idea of God as an elusive force. It would seem that Malick invites us to accept God in this way, embracing a unifying New Age idea of God whereby the Creator's presence is felt through our power to love and forgive, and that therein lies enlightenment.

Jack searches for an elusive transcendental answer and finds none, but through his dreamlike visions he equates the hand of God with the love and grace he sees in his mother and in particular R.L., who urges Jack to "follow" him. Rather than inviting him into death, heaven or some metaphysical plane it seems to me that this vision of R.L. represents Jack's conclusion that to live and love by grace is the highest attainable truth and peace we can find in this life and this is reflected when the older Jack states at the beginning "Brother. Mother. It was they that lead me to your door." Jack lights a candle in honor of R.L. but we may question how Jack's journey has really affected him and to what extent, since we only see a glimpse of his later life as an architect working in New York. The elder Jack's cynicism in regards to the world is linked to the urban sprawl surrounding him, Malick revealing the grey Houston buildings and streets as Jack expresses his discomfort and disdain, a stark contrast to the nostalgic vision of 1950s suburbia that Jack remembers.When Jack looks at the building he has designed, finally realized, its towering glass structure reflects the sky as it reaches toward the heavens. Young Jack's behavior was shown to be destructive, breaking windows and shooting animals with his air rifle, but the elder Jack helps to create rather than destroy, although the dichotomy here is that he is adding to the urban sprawl which he seems to have cultivated an aversion for. Whatever your judgement regarding Jack may eventually be, the message of love is what shines through for me in the film, and despite the fact that it's very depressing at times, it's also very touching and beautiful.

"Brother. Keep us. Guide us. To the end of time."

The cinematography created by Malick and cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki is stunning, from the incredible visuals in the space sequences to the nostalgic Texas childhood scenes, awash with golden light. The camera glides through the air, turning upside-down to catch shadows dancing across the ground, swinging from side to side to evoke a dreamlike sensation and occasionally creating a sense of unease through distorting camera angles. The acting is stellar from all involved, Pitt plays the domineering father with frightening intensity, carefully handling the complexities of his character, while Jessica Chastain emotes magnitudes through facial expressions and movement. The child actors are astonishingly captivating to watch and always completely believable, Malick more so than any other filmmaker I can think of has captured the interplay and behavior of children with such great clarity and precision that it's almost startling. The Texas portion of the film is truly one of the greatest slices of family drama ever put to celluloid. Seeing how these brothers react to the world around them and how their experience and upbringing affects them is riveting and at times terrifying.

Regardless of what you may think of the narrative, the film is undoubtedly an astonishing technical achievement. While its reach is epic in scope on many levels certain aspects are lacking, some may find the exclusion of the brothers' teen years and the details of R.L.'s death disappointing. Although sexuality is explored through Jack's gaze, sex itself is never touched upon, his sexual awakening never comes to fruition and sex between Mr. and Mrs. O'Brien is left completely out of the equation. Despite being set in 1950s Texas the issue of race is also noticeably marginalized. Malick himself was born in 1943 in Waco, where the childhood scenes are set, and it has been said that the film contains a lot of autobiographical detail, although this is difficult to confirm due to his protectiveness over his personal life, but it certainly isn't difficult to believe that Malick poured a lot of himself into this film judging by how carefully and lovingly it is crafted. The Tree of Life deserves praise for many reasons, but ultimately it is the wonderful message that it carries with it that makes me want to sing its praises. We all have the ability to choose the path of grace and to love and forgive, to plant seeds of wisdom and learn from our experiences, and this is the truest form of enlightenment we can achieve in this life.