Movie Haiku - Brick

www.empireonline.com/brick


Dir: Rian Johnson


Cast: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Nora Zehetner, Lukas Haas, Emilie de Ravin


They scrape junk from Pin

Em copped the brick but gummed it

or was she a scape?


soulmining rating: ****

Movie Haiku - Silent Hill

www.sonypictures.com/movies/silenthill


Dir: Christophe Gans


Cast: Radha Mitchell, Sean Bean, Laurie Holden, Deborah Kara Unger


Girl lost in ghost town

it looks visually stunning

at expense of plot


soulmining rating: ***

Movie Haiku - American Dreamz

www.yahoo.co.uk/americandreamz


Dir: Paul Weitz


Cast: Hugh Grant, Dennis Quaid, Mandy Moore, Willem Dafoe


Dumb Pres guests on show

will Arab singer use bomb?

tasteless and misjudged


soulmining rating: *

Movie Haiku - Scary Movie 4

www.scarymovie.com


Dir: David Zucker


Cast: Anna Faris, Regina Hall, Craig Bierko, Bill Pullman


Why sit through this sh*t?

all jokes were in the trailer

f*ck, I must be sick!


soulmining rating: *

Strictly Glandular Fever

I'm now off work with suspected glandular fever. Yesterday I finally got to see my doctor who took a blood test to determine if that's the case, but he thinks it's likely. So here's lots of info on what I've got courtesy of www.homehealth-uk.com

What is glandular fever?

Glandular fever, also called infectious mononucleosis, is a viral infection caused by the Epstein-Barr virus. The Epstein-Barr virus is part of the herpes group of viruses and is very common, however, like the other herpes viruses you may be infected but never show any symptoms. The vast majority of people with glandular fever will make a full recovery and it is extremely rare to develop it again. Glandular fever can affect anyone but it is most common in young adults and teenagers.

How can I catch glandular fever?

The infection is transferred from one person to another in saliva. This is why kissing is one of the most common ways of catching the disease and why glandular fever is often referred to as the ‘kissing disease’. Coughing and sneezing can also pass on glandular fever. The incubation period for glandular fever is usually 4-6 weeks.

What are the symptoms of glandular fever?

Glandular fever produces one or more of the following symptoms:

Sore throat and swollen tonsils - glandular fever often has similar symptoms as tonsillitis.
A rash - as doctors can occasionally mistake glandular fever for tonsillitis, they prescribe antibiotics, which may bring you out in a rash.
Enlarged and sore lymph glands - this is very common, particularly in the neck but there can also be swelling in the armpits and groin.
Flu symptoms - glandular fever is a virus and like other viruses it can cause high temperatures, aches and pains, loss of appetite and headaches.
Fatigue - an intense feeling of tiredness often accompanies glandular fever.
Swollen Eyes - a small number of people experience puffy and swollen eyes. This symptom usually disappears quite quickly.

How is glandular fever diagnosed?

Your doctor will probably be able to diagnose glandular fever from your symptoms alone, however, a blood test will usually be carried out to confirm the diagnosis. If the blood test is positive it will show abnormal cells called monocytes, this is why in America the infection is commonly known as 'mono'. Your doctor may also take a throat swab to rule out any throat infections.

What treatment is available for glandular fever?

Most people with glandular fever will require no specific treatment. Antibiotics do not help this type of infection as it is a virus. Your doctor will only prescribe antibiotics if you have another infection present e.g. tonsillitis. Most people will make a complete recovery in 2-4 weeks. However, because of the extreme fatigue it may be several months before you feel perfectly fit. Complete rest is the best treatment for glandular fever, though some symptoms can be relieved with the following:

Paracetamol - taking paracetamol to the maximum dose (as directed by a doctor/pharmacist) can help relieve the sore throat and bring the temperature down.
Fluids - it is vital to drink plenty of fluids such as water and fruit juices.
Aspirin gargles - for people over 12, soluble aspirin dissolved in water and then gargled for a few minutes often relieves sore throats (follow the instructions indicated on the packet or as directed by a doctor / pharmacist).
Steroids - it is unlikely that steroids will be prescribed, but if they are, it is usually to help reduce severe inflammation of the throat so avoiding any difficulties in breathing or swallowing.

The Cardigans at Shepherds Bush Empire

Okay, I probably shouldn't have been gigging around London in my condition, but not even the deadly space virus (suspected glandular fever) was going to stop me seeing The Cardigans this time. Support came from the eccentric Florian Horwath who walked amongst the audience clapping loudly to himself before ambling on stage. With a couple of backing musicians either side (who he introduced as "Mum and Dad"!), he launched into his slo-fi melodies / guitar rock-outs with some fine melodica playing to accompany him. In short, it was like watching Dom's band, Good Morning Captain... if they were Swedish. The Cardigans were much more businesslike, giving a polished 90 minute set which included two encores. Much of the set comprised songs from Super Extra Gravity and Long Gone Before Daylight as expected, plus a handful of tracks from Gran Turismo. There was no room for the likes of Lovefool, but to be honest it wasn't missed - the harder, rockier sound suits the band much better these days and their most recent albums are definitely their strongest work. A good solid gig - I just wish I'd felt like getting into the crowd a bit more, rather than staying back by the mixing desk all evening.

The Cardigans set list in full:

• Drip Drop Teardrop
• You're The Storm
• Little Black Cloud
• Don't Blame Your Daughter (Diamonds)
• For What It's Worth
• Live And Learn
• A Good Horse
• And Then You Kissed Me
• And Then You Kissed Me II
• Paralyzed
• Erase/Rewind
• Hanging Around
• Holy Love
• I Need Some Fine Wine And You, You Need To Be Nicer
• Good Morning Joan
• Losing A Friend
• Godspell
• My Favourite Game
• Communication

Pimp My Snack

Behold, it's the Burberry Curly Wurly!

There's loads more of these monsters on the Pimp My Snack website... www.pimpmysnack.com

José González at the Dome

Last night I was working on the José González show, so I managed to catch the end of his performance and he sounded pretty good actually, bearing in mind I've only ever heard that single before. It was the first night of his UK tour and there was a quiet, respectful atmosphere inside the Dome as José went to work with his acoustic guitar, accompanied solely by a couple of mates on percussion duties. For the encore he covered Kylie's Hand On My Heart and Massive Attack's Teardrop before the inevitable solo finale of Heartbeats.

[ Sorry for the lack of posts recently but I've been hit by a particularly vicious strain of 'space virus' (© James Moran) which has been busy eating away my throat, pounding my skull and generally giving me sleepless nights. Abnormal service will resume shortly, I hope... ]

Movie Haiku - The Dark

www.whatisannwyn.co.uk


Dir: John Fawcett


Cast: Sean Bean, Mario Bello, Maurice Roeves, Sophie Stuckey


Sheep jump over cliff

daughter is trapped in annwyn

last five mins spoil it


soulmining rating: ***

Movie Haiku - An American Haunting

www.anamericanhauntingonline.com


Dir: Courtney Solomon


Cast: Donald Sutherland, Sissy Spacek, James D'Arcy, Rachel Hurd-Wood


Haunted by own ghost

cos daddy did the dirty

that's a poor plot twist


soulmining rating: **

Play It Cool in April

It's been a slightly weird start to 2006 musically for me as for some reason I really seem to be struggling to discover any new music that grabs me... I've hardly bought any CDs this year, and the ones that I have purchased have generally been on release for a while and I've only picked them up as they're on special offer - Fopp and Music Zone are doing some great deals week in, week out since establishing themselves in Brighton. So here's what I've been playing this past month... maybe there'll be some new music to celebrate next month?

• Longview - Mercury (14th Floor)
• Serena Maneesh - Serena-Maneesh (Honeymilk)
• Feeder - Pushing The Senses (Echo)
• Frou Frou - Details (Island)
• Brakes - Give Blood (Rough Trade)

Dazed And Confused gets the Criterion treatment!

What's your favourite film? I hate that question... I've always got a rolling list of films that I love and can watch time and time again, but if I had to choose just one movie then I'd probably pick Dazed And Confused. So I'm delighted to read that it's due to get a DVD release from Criterion in June. Unlike last year's rather disappointing Universal edition, this brand new 2 disc set is mooted to include a decent array of special features, such as a commentary track from Richard Linklater, a 50 minute 'making of' documentary, original interviews and behind-the-scenes footage, deleted scenes, and coverage of the 10th anniversary cast reunion. With The Criterion Collection setting the benchmark of DVD quality, this is simply an essential purchase.

On a related note, I've discovered that Wiley Wiggins - Mitch in Dazed And Confused - has his own blog entitled News of the Dead, so I've added that to my links and you can read it here.

Movie Haiku - Alien Autopsy

www.alien-autopsy.com


Dir: Jonny Campbell


Cast: Ant McPartlin, Declan Donnelly, Bill Pullman, Harry Dean Stanton


London not Roswell

can't believe they fooled the world

eat my haggis brains


soulmining rating: ***

Jim's Big Night Out

Cocktails in Valentinos to celebrate Jim's last week working in our office... I unwittingly end up ordering the campest drink on the menu! Until Morgan arrives that is...


Afterwards we move on to the casino for some roulette and then go back to Holly's flat for more booze and the opportunity for Dom to show off his breakdancing skills...

The Grand National - Feed The Pony's Tips

Yes, it's that day of the year where I put my reputation on the line and try and pick the winners of The Grand National, taking place at Aintree this afternoon at 4:15pm. Traditionally I've been pretty lucky on this race and indeed last year I picked Hedgehunter to win and came up trumps, so I'm feeling over-confident with my selections today - perhaps not a good omen as I was on a losing streak at the casino last night! Anyway, these are my three tips for today:

• Garvivonnian 16-1
• Lord Of Illusion 25-1
• Le Duc 40-1

I've got a £2.50 Each Way bet on all three horses, plus a straight £10 to win on Garvivonnian, making a total stake of £25. I've also drawn Ballycassidy in our winner-takes-all office sweepstake. Check back later to see if I'm celebrating or cursing...

[ Updated 4:40pm ]

So here's the winning horses:

• Numbersixvalverde 11-1
• Hedgehunter 5-1
• Clan Royal 5-1
• Nil Desperandum 33-1

Gambling then - it's a mugs game. Unless you're Dom that is. B*ll*cks! Right, I'm counting on my free bet on tonight's Irish lottery now...

Imogen Heap at the Komedia

Wednesday night found me, Rich and Kelly downstairs at the Komedia to see Imogen Heap on the Brighton date of her first UK tour for eight years. I'd been waiting to see her play live for ages and she didn't disappoint - this turned out to be an early contender for gig of the year in my opinion. What was particularly cool was that the audience directly in front of the stage remained seated on the floor throughout, which allowed those stood at the back and sides to see clearly - always a problem downstairs as the stage is only a foot high! Immi was joined by cellist (and support artist) Zoe Keating for a couple of songs, but otherwise did everything herself, with her bank of keyboards, samplers and laptop. Her amazing strong voice carried each song perfectly, sending shivers down my spine during Hide And Seek, and I was surprised at how well the tracks translated live. Her setlist was dominated by songs off Speak For Yourself but she also played one track from the Frou Frou and I Megaphone albums, her song from the Chronicles Of Narnia soundtrack, plus the new b-side from her forthcoming Goodnight And Go single. A fantastic evening!

Immi's setlist in full:

• Just For Now
• Goodnight And Go
• The Walk
• Let Go
• Loose Ends
• Can't Take It In
• Clear The Area
• Headlock
• Come Here Boy
• Hide And Seek
• Have You Got It In You
• Speeding Cars
• Daylight Robbery
• The Moment You Said It

Immi and me

Yes, she really is that tall!!

You can see more photos from the Brighton gig and the rest of the tour on Immi's moblog here.

Graham Coxon at the Concorde

Having blown out his secret gig at Audio last month in favour of seeing James's Severance flick up in London, I was glad to get a second chance to catch Graham Coxon on his current live jaunt, touring his Love Travels At Illegal Speeds album. I wasn't overly impressed when I saw him at the same venue two years ago, but this time around he was much better - leaner, tighter and with a more solid vocal performance. The set list too was stronger, mainly comprising his more poppy / punky tracks from his last two albums rather than the lo-fi noodlings of his earlier material. Considering most of his songs don't last more than three minutes this was a value-for-money ninety minute set, plus he returned for a five song encore. And support band Duals also impressed.

Wanted:

Taxi for Thaksin

Fantastic news just in from The Guardian's website:

"The Thai prime minister, Thaksin Shinawatra, is to resign from office in the face of mass protests calling for him to depart after Sunday's disputed election."

You can read the full story here.

This is long overdue; Thaksin is an evil, dishonest, corrupt little man.

I've been tagged...

Yesterday I was tagged by Kelly, so here's my responses to her set of questions...

What were you doing 10 years ago?

[ This is where keeping old journals etc. comes in handy! ]

I’d just moved into the coldest flat in Brighton and was working as the Assistant Box Office Manager at Brighton Centre. On 4th April 1996 we had Black Grape (minus Bez) in concert and I got my It’s Great When You’re Straight… Yeah! CD signed by the band.

What were you doing 5 years ago?

I’d just been made redundant via email while on holiday in Thailand (nice, huh?), so I’d decided to stay out there for an extra month. On 4th April 2001 I woke up in a basic wooden house in a tiny village in Lamphun province, having met (my Thai girlfriend) Am’s parents for the first time the day before and staying the night at their place. In the morning we paid a 6000 baht (about £100) deposit on a brand new Honda Dream, then rode to the local temple to have the bike blessed by the monks. Later in the day we made the 2-3 hour ride back to Chiang Mai, then in the evening I caught up with a couple of mates in one of the local bars - both of whom were down in the dumps experiencing women trouble.

What were you doing 1 year ago?

Much the same as today, on 4th April last year I was here in the Box Office selling tickets for Brighton Festival. I was logged onto MSN in the afternoon chatting with Nikita about recurring dreams, and spent the evening watching the first few episodes of series three of Millennium on DVD with my friend Steve.

5 Snacks you enjoy:

Bacon sandwiches
Belgian buns from Forfars
Doritos with a hint of lime
Hot buttered toast
Millie’s cookies

5 Songs (you think) you know by heart:

Bohemian Like You – The Dandy Warhols
Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen
This Is The Day – The The
West End Girls – Pet Shop Boys
Wonderwall - Oasis

5 Things you would do with a LOT of money:

Give some to my colleagues so that we could all leave work
Give some to my close friends and family
Buy a house
Become a season ticket holder at Everton FC
Travel around the world with my best friend

5 Things you would never wear:

A ‘Same Same But Different’ t-shirt
Sandals
Short shorts
Vest tops
White socks with shoes (sorry Sean)

5 Things you should have never worn:

A 70s tan leather jacket which had been handed down to my Dad by one of his friends
A Belinda Carlisle sweatshirt
Black shoes with red laces when I was a student
Glasses from the age of 10 – 17
Multi-coloured shirts which looked like an explosion in a paintbox

5 Things you enjoy doing:

Catching the morning screening of a good film, sat in the far corner of a quiet cinema, armed with a large coffee and doughnuts
Discovering new music
Flying to foreign countries
Foreplay
Writing

5 Bad habits you have:

Blogging at work
Buying DVDs that I’ll never watch more than once
Indecisiveness, I think
Interrupting friends before they’ve finished speaking
Using ‘…’ in emails and posts all the time…

5 People you would like to do this:

Adz
Courtney
GG
James
Kumquat

Movie Haiku - Firewall

www.firewallmovie.warnerbros.com


Dir: Richard Loncraine


Cast: Harrison Ford, Paul Bettany, Virginia Madsen, Mary Lynn Rajskub


Too old for Indy

stealing cash online is dull

why hold dog hostage?


soulmining rating: *

Movie Haiku - Basic Instinct 2

www.sonypictures.com/movies/basicinstinct2


Dir: Michael Caton-Jones


Cast: Sharon Stone, David Morrissey, Charlotte Rampling, David Thewlis


What a dirty mouth

I don't care if she's guilty

put some clothes on, luv


soulmining rating: *

Corinne Bailey Rae at the Concorde

Summer arrived early yesterday as I strolled down to the Concorde in the late afternoon sunshine for Corinne Bailey Rae's first live appearance in Brighton. Which was somewhat appropriate as the music on offer was well suited to those long Summer evenings. James Morrison got the crowd going with a lively set of pop songs and ballads - hardly my kind of thing, but he did it well and I won't be at all surprised to see his name in the charts later in the year. Corinne too had the talent to back up her recent chart success; after a rather hesitant beginning she soon found her rhythm and by four or five songs in she had the crowd in the palm of her hand. Her set comprised, perhaps unsurprisingly, largely of tracks from her debut album, but she also sang an inspired cover of Led Zeppelin's Since I've Been Loving You. Of course, the most popular tracks were Like A Star which she'd performed on Later last year, and current single Put Your Records On. It's just a pity there's no Glastonbury Festival this year as she'd be an ideal choice for the main stage on the Saturday afternoon, but with other festival appearances lined up this Summer I'm sure they'll help cement her growing reputation. A confident, assured debut and on this evidence we'll be hearing a lot more from Corinne Bailey Rae in 2006.

April Live

Blimey, we're into April already so maybe things will start warming up a bit and we can say goodbye to that horrible wintery weather we've been having. Right, onto this month's live bits and pieces...

01/04 - Tonight we've got the hotly tipped Corinne Bailey Rae taking the stage at the Concorde. I've only heard Put Your Records On, but her debut album has already hit the top of the charts so this will probably be a rare chance to see her in such an initimate venue.

03/04 - One of the few 'pop' bands it's okay to like, The Sugababes, are playing at Brighton Centre - although quite how good they'll be now that there's only the one original member remaining is open to debate! Otherwise you could see Oom playing an acoustic set at The Globe on Middle Street.

04/04 - Graham Coxon makes a swift return to Brighton after his 'secret' gig at Audio last month. This time he's back at the Concorde touring his new Love Travels At Illegal Speeds album.

05/04 - Gig of the month for me I reckon is Imogen Heap at the Komedia. I fell in love with her voice after hearing the Frou Frou album a few years ago and her solo album Speak For Yourself made my top ten of 2005. Meanwhile over at Brighton Centre, Little Britain return for three more nights of their sold out live show which I saw back in December.

09/04 - After two sell out shows at the Dome in February, The Mighty Boosh move to the bigger Brighton Centre for two further live performances of their cult television show.

10/04 - Fresh from their support slot on Rufus Wainwright's autumn tour, The Guillemots are back in the city for a gig at Audio.

12/04 - Rescheduled after he had a sore throat (or something equally lame), comedian Paddy McGuinness finally takes to the stage at the Dome. He better be bloody funny now after all the hassle he's caused us!

20/04 - Jose Gonzalez makes a quick return to Brighton, still cashing in on the success of his single Heartbeats. Is he a one hit wonder or not? Judge for yourself at the Dome.

21/04 - I'm going to be in London seeing The Cardigans at Shepherds Bush Empire, having missed them last time they played in the capital. Meanwhile back at the Dome it's the turn of The Ordinary Boys, enjoying a bit of a revival since Preston's appearance on Celebrity Big Brother.

23/04 - If you fancy a bit of comedy this month you could do a lot worse than check out Will Smith at the Komedia. He's doing his Misplaced Childhood show, centred around his love of the band Marillion which he performed at last year's Paramount Comedy Festival.

25/04 - One year on from their gig at the Concorde The Kaiser Chiefs have now moved into the big league and are now headlining at Brighton Centre.

26/04 - At the risk of opening myself up for ridicule I'll admit that I really liked Hilary Duff's debut album Metamorphosis. With her second album Most Wanted on release she's now doing her first UK tour stopping off at Brighton Centre. Don't worry, I'm not planning on going... well, not unless someone offers me a free ticket!

Movie Haiku - 13 (Tzameti)

www.13themovie.com


Dir: Gela Babluani


Cast: George Babluani, Pascal Bongard, Aurelien Recoing, Fred Ulysse


Overdose in bath

takes his place in deadly game

unlucky number?


soulmining rating: ****