30 November 2010

Keith Kenniff - The Last Survivor


(Rating: 3.5/5)
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It's a soundtrack from Keith Kenniff aka Goldmund and Helios for a documentary film regarding genocide.........still his trademark thoughtful contemporary piano stuffs packed with sadness and thriller.....not a bad one but too familiar......   
  


Watch Movie Trailer

Some info of the documentary film....
THE LAST SURVIVOR is a character-based, feature-length documentary that explores the idea of genocide in the 21st century. Following the lives of survivors of four different genocides and mass atrocities – The Holocaust, Rwanda, Darfur, and Congo – the film presents the stories of Survivors and their struggle to make sense of tragedy by working to educate, motivate and promulgate a civic response to mass atrocity crimes. Offering real world examples of Survivors who have become powerful agents of change, The Last Survivor presents a unique opportunity to learn from the lessons and mistakes of our past in order to have lasting social impact on how we act collectively in the face of similar issues today.

Giardini Di Miro - Il Fuoco

(Rating: 3.7/5)
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Having captured this record at last after knowing it's released in 2009 long time before........it's a soundtrack for Giovanni Pastrone's silent film Il Fuoco (translated as "The Fire"), released in 1915. The project began life as a one-off, live-soundtracking performance held at Turin's Museo Nazionale Del Cinema per Boomkat.........it's a cinematic post rock album with beautiful slow build-up atmospheric single line guitar play and exciting high tempo kraut rock jam.....a bit dark and sad that is completely different direction to the youthful and outrageous approach of their last album "Dividing Opinions".....the same vibe reminds me Mogwai's soundtrack "Zidane: A 21st Century Portrait"......

Antony and the Johnsons - Swanlights


(Rating: 3.7/5)
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I keep repeating listen to this record recently as I am worry to miss anything from the music..... but my feeling is still the same every time that I have a bit let down by this one compared last few albums the extremely high par set by Anthony ..... this one is still a good record with all beautiful pieces of ballads we all used to enjoy with, but just somehow missed that sparkling and moving charm that we treasure with in "I'm a bird now" and "The crying Light".......this one is more subdue and subtle (you can say it's "flat" except the high point of this album that the 2 most wonderful freak vocalist of him and Bjork in "Fletta") and I still miss his unique dominant vocal, high and low orchestral arrangements and beautiful and sad piano play.......  

28 November 2010

You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger

File:You will meet a tall dark stranger ver3.jpg

(Rating: 3.5/5)

Watch Movie Trailer

If you are not Woody Allen's fan, you will not like this movie as it shows very dull pale old-styled London with old-fashioned middle class scent and some familiar seen-before story lines. Nevertheless, with his daydream-like delusion of love and youth chasing and unique sense of humor, it's still full of fun and style of his own.....might not be amongst his best, but still worth to watch!! 

The Flaming Lips, Live in Asia World Expo Hong Kong, 13 November 2010



What can you say?! simply the best show of the year...... a wonderful party full of fun, visual excitement, gorgeous psychedelic music jam..... how can you ask for more!!!
BTW, support band, Raveonettes, played some rigid single line of noise rock stuff...but fortunately they are still young and cool enough to capture attention!!!

To click the below videos to see how good the show is:
Watch The Show Clip
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Watch The Show Clip
Watch The Show Clip
Watch The Show Clip
Watch The Show Clip
Watch The Show Clip
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Watch The Show Clip
Watch The Show Clip

Raveonettes







27 November 2010

Devics, Live in Hidden Agenda Hong Kong, 9 November 2010



This is my first time to see gig in Hidden Agenda..... it's always a special feeling to walk to live house in industrial building too see gig during night time.....such lonely decayed lost world mood in empty street...... pity that only around 50 to 60 nice people to see Devics playing their gorgeous blues/jazz influenced shoegaze music....very romantic stuffs.....

Listen Music Samples


















A Year of Festivals

 
I am such a lazy person that’s lack of patience to read books especially for those few-hundred-pages brick-like ones and I think I like to read articles more….. that’s why majority of my book rack space are occupied by magazines rather than books and more than 90% books in my home are from my girlfriend……..nevertheless, I will still buy books with interesting subjects, cover art or whatever reasons regardless of the fact that I might eventually not have time and patience to read them in the rest of my life……That’s why lot of books is still queuing in my book racks waiting their opportunity to come. For me, I just can’t imagine how those bookworms around can finish of reading a book in one day like my girlfriend always do……


Recently, such emptiness of my inner nature in reading book has called again, so I decided to pick a book from my book queue…..the book shown above was bought from Rough Trade (East Side) in year 2009 during the time attending ATP Music Festival with my girlfriend…….the reason I bought this book is very simple and straight-forward......because all the author did is what I am really eager to do in my whole life that is to spend years to participate and experience all major music festivals in the world around……..but pity that I still have many years to go to complete this dream!!!


It’s already feeling as same-minded mate as the book says in the very beginning chapter……


“Why do you go to music festivals, is it more than for just the music?
Imagine a festival as an orange. The orange peel is the music, as what you see is what you get. But inside, there is so much more, the juice and the flavour represent everything amazing and wonderful about music festivals.


Let's click the below link for more details of the book.....

See The Book Details





Avey Tare - Down There


(Rating: 3.8/5)
Listen Music Samples

As an animal collective fan, it's hard to tell it's animal collective, panda bear or avey tare music as their recent records are just too similar......from early experimental sound exploration stuffs in Sung Tongs to mid term of structured refined Feels and reaching recent Strawberry Jam that is in their maturity of their humanly-warm freak-folk noise-pop phychedelic music... nevertheless, individually speaking, it's still a good album with very pleasant listening experience that you would like to keep repeating to listen...... 

ZOO Records



Zoo Records Web Link

it's really exciting to see the new Zoo Records.....bigger and more stylish set up gives indie music fans a  boost that we are still having a nice record store in town.......

Crippled Black Phoenix - I, Vigilante

I, Vigilante

(Rating: 4.3/5)
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Watch Live Video

Crippled Black Phoenix seem reaching their best form in this album......knowing they are super band with Mogwai and Portishead memebers since their first release, but I was not impressive with their output until this one....... a well-blended progressive/post rock 40+ mins world war 2 Bastogne related stuffs..... sophistcated, refined, melancholic and epic music pieces.....impressive!!!

26 November 2010

The Social Network

File:Social network film poster.jpg

(Rating: 3.8/5)
Watch Movie Trailer

Facebook might be a cool stuff, but facebook's founders' biography movie might not be...at least for me is a boring stuff..... after seeing some good reviews and knowing it's David Fincher's film, so decide to take a day off (to clear annual leaves) and go to IFC boardway (for the very good sofa) to see it....... seems David Fincher is in form again since Fight Club after directing those uncharacteristic movies especially Panic Room which was really a disaster....Fight Club is one of best movies in my life and David Fincher just can blend such unique comtemporary cool touches into this movie which is basically a boring story.... to make this movie is very good to watch and stylish.....nevertheless, the movie always talks about the facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg to protect the positive image of facebook, but in result the movie itself is making people feeling bad to facebook's founding story...... just like the final statement in the final shot, the beautiful lawyer said "You are not an asshole. You are just trying so hard to be"

24 November 2010

Similes - Eluvium

 

I like eluvium......for both its humanly warm ambient music and message to life........just like the feeling quoted from tinymixtapes 'Listening to an Eluvium record is like staring at a river. It moves, but it doesn't really go anywhere. While you stand still in front of it, waiting for something interesting to happen, you suddenly realize that your mind is flowing along with it.'........though adding vocal, drum and more pop song approach in this album, his music this time is still beautifully subtle, humanly warm, blissfully thoughtful.......
(24 March 2010)

Singular Forms (Sometimes Repeated) - Sylvain Chauveau

 

At last, his music is back to the path of 'Down To The Bone', maybe with some more electro processing, glitch/noise stuffs this time......still his long-missing minimal piano/electronic + thoughtful vocal......simple, very simple & beautiful!!
(24 March 2010)

The Courage Of Others - Midlake

 

Life is such an accidental tourist.....never really pay attention to the band, thought they are those wee-wee-wa-wa kitsch indie pop band.....but I'm wrong, one lazy Saturday kicking pebble listening around in hmv.......oh, come on, how come a band with such ugly cover artwork will create such rare music vibe nowadays in the facebook/internet century........thinking those ancient 60/70s love-peace long curly haired pure folk rock stuffs crashing with 90s thom yorke playing acoustic guitar singing creep, fake plastic tree, nice dream.......those almost-forgot old school melancholic and apocalyptic feeling all come back.......frankly, the music is not original, not new, even not really outstanding and sometime repetitive, but I just keep playing the album recently for such rare vibe and longing for good old days....
(24 March 2010)

A Single Man

 

as a rather mainstream movie, it's more kinky異色 than I expect.......art direction, custom & photography are really good (as expected!?), and the directing is also not bad.........a surprise package for a surprise debut of tom ford.....
(Archive 22 March 2010)

The Creatures In The Garden Of Lady Walton - Clogs

 

I think I like their sole instrumental stuffs more........purified beauty of classical-leaning post rock sound still this time, but the over-dominant singing by vocals from My Brightest Diamond and National spoil a bit the feeling!!
(22 March 2010)

Tomorrow Becomes You - Slow Six

 

very good classical/chamber post rock stuffs......something aesthetical drifting around from dirty three, balmorhea & domakesaythink.....
(22 March 2010)

Johann Johannsson "and in the endless pause there came the sound of bees"

 

still his familiar time-traveling epic orchestral stuffs......digging a bit to knowing this is a score for animated film 'Varmints' ....something like wall-e kind-of movie... http://www.youtube.com/user/STUDIOAKA#p/u/1/RJQ4RTo6hRg
(17 March 2010)

Liars - Sisterworld



back to cool stuffs of their early release this time.......but the remix disc is such a crap....
(17 March 2010)

A Chorus of Storytellers - Album Leaf

A Chorus of Storytellers

listening this now with the boring german football still.....quite a repeating-himself disappointing stuffs...but i like the art work......
(13 March 2010)

Best Albums 2008

hope not too late if count it as best of year of rat ....not too many groundbreaking records this year, but still have some above-average stuffs...not listed in any order....

1. Olafur Arnalds - Eulogy For Evolution
(still keep playing this 07's issue bought in 2008)
Ólafur Arnalds: Eulogy for Evolution

2. Elephant9 - Dodovoodoo
(not a typical Rune Grammofon stuffs but very interesting)
Dodovoodoo [Vinyl]

3. Tape - Luminarium
(sophisticated stuffs)
 Luminarium [Vinyl]

4. Squarepusher - Just A Souvenir
(lot of styles, some also very weird as a electronica record, pleasant listening experience)
 Just a Souvenir [Vinyl]

5. Helios - Caesura
(not as good as last one, but still a quality one)
 Caesura

6. Gang Gang Dance - Saint Dymphna
(some stuffs are still good though some other moments are not consistent enough)
 Saint Dymphna

7. Portishead – 3
(this return is surprisingly too good for me)
Third 
8. Beach House – Devotion
(unique and ear-catching stuffs)
 Devotion

9. Evangelista - hello voyager
(emotionally stylish)
Hello, Voyager [Vinyl]

10. Max Richter - 24 Postcards in Full Colour
(very beautiful small pieces of music or ring tones)
 24 Postcards in Full Colour

11. Brett Anderson – Wilderness
(may be too missing the vibe of "2 of us")
Wilderness

12. Yasushi Yoshida - Little Grace
(reached the peak of his elegant orchestral post rock music)
 

13. Balmorhea - Rivers Arms
(beautiful moody acoustic stuffs)
 Rivers Arms (Dig)

14. Goldmund - The Malady of Elegance
(my frequent late-night piano listening, very contemporary vibe)
Malady of Elegance

15. The Drift - Memory Drawings
(exciting jazzy post rock stuffs)
Memory Drawings

16. Dreamend - The Long Forgotten Friend
(unexpectedly brighter and fascinating post rock stuffs)
 Long Forgotten Friend (Dig)

 (Archive 1 February 2009)