August 2006

Anna Wood comes face to face with two of life’s crux occasions – death and Beastie Boys concerts

Awesome: I Fuckin Shot That!
Dir: Nathanial Hörnblowér
Cert 15
(Cinema and DVD)

In October 2004, the Beastie Boys handed out 50 digital and hi-8 cameras to fans who’d bought tickets for their hometown gig at New York’s Madison Square Gardens, plus another 11 to friends and crew. They were told to keep shooting through the entire show, and their footage has been deftly cut and pasted together by Beastie Boy Adam Yauch (directing under his favoured pseudonym Nathanial Hörnblowér) and a team of four editors. The result is a film that is a little bit more than post-pub background noise for men of a certain age, with a hoard of Fat Lace magazines and a skateboard in the loft – although it would serve that purpose very well. (more…)

Filed under: Reviews - Film/DVD/Blu-Ray by Flexmaster Nylon
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August 2006

Khalid Mallassi discovers gamers’ crack, fights for the US flag and has a snooze courtsey of Dan Brown

Half-Life 2: Episode 1
(PC)

Let’s not waste any more time; this is the sequel to the BEST GAME OF ALL FUCKING TIME! You know, the one where you play as some ginger geek who has to save the world from some pesky evil, alien types. So, of course, this sequel has got to be even better, right? Fuckin-A right it is! See, when ‘Half-Life 2’ ended I felt like throwing my controller at the screen in disgust. I felt empty, alone and cheated. What do you mean the screen just freezes? What’s with all this “To Be Continued” shit!?! So they bring out the next parts of the story as separate ‘Episodes”’ and charge your ass £20 for each one as they come out. Like it was Crack or something? What’s next, your going to walking down the alley when some guy shouts, “Pssst. I got ‘Half-Life Episode 4’ right here, buddy. You know you want it…”???? Whatever, I’m sitting here in my boxer shorts, just spent 20 hours straight on this fucker and… “To Be Continued!” Fuck it! …I need another hit. (more…)

Filed under: Reviews - Games by Flexmaster Nylon
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Maverick scribbler Tim Wild reviews… things.

This month – the top five people who must die if humanity is to make any progress at all

My Neighbour

I’m talking about the bearded (but strangely unmoustachioed) Serbian bloke who lives a few doors down the road and whose fucking kids run about in the street with their crappy broken toys screaming their little heads off at all hours of the night when all I’m trying to do is get the baby to sleep and catch a bit of ‘Desperate Housewives’ whilst simultaneously drowning myself in Jacobs Creek and hoping to exchange a civilised word with my intended wife before she falls asleep on my lap. The revolution’s coming, and he’s first. (more…)

Filed under: The Wild Reviews by Flexmaster Nylon
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Gary Clail & On-U Sound System
End of the Century Party (On-U Sound, 1990)

The freshest forgotten albums of yesteryear. Not the usual fawned over suspects (usually due for re-release and consequent advertising revenue) but albums that ‘net-trawlers and second-hand shop aficionados may come across and should snap up NOW…

Guy Oddy recommends…

Do you remember the late ‘80s? Stock, Aitken and Waterman, Loadsamoney, Britain ruled the waves again after the Falklands War! Now think a bit harder. Remember an autocratic, right-wing government, unemployment, nuclear paranoia, privatisation mania and inner cities awash with heroin. Out of this amalgam came the On-U Sound System with its sound of resistance, keeping the flag flying between the politically-charged agit-pop of the early eighties indie and post-punk scenes and the anarchist, angry rave sounds from the likes of the Spiral Tribe in the early nineties. (more…)

Filed under: Great Lost Albums by Flexmaster Nylon
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August 2006

Beatmag’s run-down of the best to throw your hard-earned money at.

Sound 6

Beatmag Album of the Month

1: The Pipettes

We Are The Pipettes (Memphis Industries) (more…)

Filed under: Reviews - Albums by Flexmaster Nylon
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August 2006

SIX OF THE BEST

SINGLE OF THE MONTH

Kasabian
Empire (Columbia) (more…)

Filed under: Reviews - Singles by Flexmaster Nylon
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Beatmag Interviews… Senor Coconut

Andrew Laughlin dusts off his mambo shoes for some Japanese-flavoured laptop merengue with Senor Coconut

What do you get if you cross a German, a bag of electronic tricks, a hat full of pop covers and the magic of the mambo? The answer is the mysterious Senor Coconut. As Batman has the smooth talking billionaire playboy Bruce Wayne as his alter-ego, so the Senor has his. Uwe Schmidt AKA Atom Heart, Lassigue Benthaus, Flanger, etc, has been the architect of the elusive Senor ever since he emerged out of the shadows;
“For me, Coconut is an experiment,” explains Uwe, “It has always been an experiment. The music, the design, the image, they all combine intuitively to make the Senor. I really enjoy creating the world of the Coconut!” (more…)

Filed under: Interviews by Flexmaster Nylon
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Beatmag Q&A with John Foxx

John Foxx was the original lead singer of Ultravox and is widely perceived as a key influence on the development of British electro-pop. He continues to release albums both as a solo artist and in collaboration with other musicians. Aside from music, Foxx lectures in digital culture and art, and is currently working on a series of ‘cut up’ digital movies. During his tenure in Ultravox, Foxx’s charismatic vocal delivery and the experimental sounds made by keyboardist Billie Currie (via an ARP Odyssey), made the band distinctive, yet unpopular with a British press who found them too artsy during punk’s heyday. (more…)

Filed under: Old Friends Electric by Flexmaster Nylon
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Writer and mysterious musical artist Nag’s Head stands up for boredom.

These are infotainment saturated times, and boredom has been banished forever. Millions of dedicated media professionals work quite hard 24 hours a day to ensure that your every desire is served up on a digital dinner-plate in three seconds flat. If you’re tired of my spiel already then google ‘celebrity midget fisting’, and hey presto, you are instantly un-bored. But do you NEED all that pleasure and stimulation? No. What you NEED is some of that lovely velvet-grey ennui. (more…)

Filed under: Devil's Advocate by Flexmaster Nylon
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Born Keith Hopewell and raised in York, UK, Part 2 was one of his home city’s original hardcore graffiti crew. Initially as much interested in the danger and illegality of graf’ culture, he sooned earned his stripes with a unique figurative style that drew attention and eventually saw him exhibiting beside Futura 2000 and Goldie. In recent years his attention has been more focused on music production for Part 2’s studio work is at the leading edge of UK hip hop (Roots Manuva, Ty, etc). His own group New Flesh are one of the funkiest, most innovative acts around as their new album ‘Universally Dirty’ demonstrates beyond doubt. On the visual side of things, Part 2 has his SerialType show from the 12th to the 22nd September at the This Way Up Gallery at the Dragon Bar in London’s Leonard Street. (more…)

Filed under: Gallery by Flexmaster Nylon
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