Inside:
ST EA
■ Eferklang ■ Dustin ■ The Flaws ■ Tourche
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F L S O E WN O T & J T H IA ER SS XP ME E E TH
The biggest ball of all The Wolfe Tones meets ...East 17
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1st April 2008
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ISSUE 10
Light the torche Florida rockers Torche speak to Lorcan Archer about their unique combination of heavy rock thunder and catchiness, their new album and the joys of nordic medicine
Music “It felt like there was someone else in on a gag that only me and him were in on it”
Messiah J & the Expert: P6
Music “I don’t know what Britney’s thinking. I reckon she is on that bloody crystal meth”
East 17: P6
Arts “I love them all, especially the ones that can get their mates at home to vote for us”
Even when not on tour with the band, Torche bass-player Jonation Nuñez surrounds himself with music, picking up the phone in the recording studio where he spends his days off the road. “We’re actually just back from a short trip that ended in the South By Southwest Festival in Texas,” he explains, name-checking a huge industry event that captivates the world’s music media annually. “It went really well man, the highlights were Texas, and doing five dates with the amazing Harvey Milk. It was indescribable play with them, so we had a great time.” Tour a er tour has crisscrossed the States in the past year, with the next round of dates along the East Coast already arranged for Torche, to support the imminent release of their sophomore effort, Meanderthal. “It’s out on April 8th in the States” confirms Nuñez. “We’re really happy with it. We’ve been working with Robotic Empire records for years now, but they thought it would be cool if we went with HydraHead Records for the next album, which will give it a bigger push. We know that they’re cool guys so we’re looking forward to working with them.” The vibe of a Torche concert is hard to describe - sonic violence mixed with unadulterated pop hooks abound in order to create the group’s unique sound. This has been firmly expressed in the new record according to the bassist. “I think with the new stuff, we still have the same vibe as we always have
had, but there’s more of an upbeat, energetic style to the newer material. As a live group, we’re very animated, and I think we captured that on our last EP, but the full-length has really caught what Torche is all about in a live setting. The material is so much fun to play, it gives you an adrenaline rush, and people seem to be really enjoying it, so we’re happy.” A common connection that is made by rock music fans is between forceful hard rock music and negative, downbeat lyrical concepts. This is certainly not the case for Torche, with upli ing salvos of vocals peppering their songs. “We’re totally enjoying
it,” stresses Nunez. “We’re certainly not gloomy people. In fact, we’re pretty goofy. We’re just glad people are reacting so well to what we do.” As maybe expected, the band is planning more shows outside their home nation, with previous treks across the Atlantic, and to Japan already in the bag. “We’ll be back in Europe hopefully this September or November,” states Nuñez. “We had a great tour over there with Baroness last time. Sometimes on tour you can get worn down, I got pretty sick on that last trip over there, but the Norwegians had some pretty brutal medicine and that sort-
ed me out pretty fast,” he adds with a wry laugh. It’s a healthy time for the group, who seem to be finding more and more people attending their shows and really getting into what it is that Torche does. “It gets better and better every tour. It’s nice when people find out about you, and just want to have fun on their night out and see something that they enjoy that surpasses their expectations.” With a return trip to Ireland on the cards, Nuñez reflects on their last trip. “We enjoyed our time in Belfast, Dublin and Cork. I seriously hope we can make it back over on our next trip.”
Flawless Lorcan Archer catches up with Shane Malone of The Flaws in advance of their Murphy’s Live appearance and UCD Ball slot to discuss persistence in touring and the band’s rabid Italian fans
Dustin speaks P10
Health “It is just really stressful. All you want to do is sleep and you can’t. It’s awful”
The Life of an Insomniac: P8
It’s been over six months since Monaghan’s finest The Flaws released their acclaimed debut album, Achieving Vagueness, to resounding critical applause. Since then they’ve picked up both a Meteor and Choice Music Prize nomination. But things on the ground have been slowly changing for the group too. “We’ve actually been noticing a bit of change in the gigs,” reports guitarist Shane Malone. “Because we released the album last September, we’re now really seeing people latching onto the songs and really coming out to see us. Every time we go somewhere it’s an improvement on the last time we played there.” Touring slots aren’t too easy to come by for an indie rock group on an island like Ireland, but with the ra of nominations that the band
has received over the last couple of months, taking to the road seemed like the natural thing to do. “With the nominations coming in, we decided to go around the country and take advantage of the press it would give us, and we found very good reactions,” says Malone. “We played Navan for the first time ever last week, and it was jammed out, which was amazing, totally mad stuff. It does go to show that there’s a hunger for this sort of live music out there on a really grassroots level.” Delving into population centres that are off the beaten track, The Flaws have been finding many fans waiting for them outside of the usual four big cities in the Republic. “It’s definitely a good time to be playing in a band in Ireland, even when we went down to Killarney we got a great crowd. It’s all moving back to-
wards live music I think. “We’re not just playing live though, we hope to either release one of our singles soon enough, because with the progress we’ve made, we think it’ll achieve the attention we think it deserves,” reveals a visibly motivated Malone. “Then hopefully there’ll be a new album before the end of the year.” Releasing new material and touring Ireland is one thing, but the band are determined to step abroad and cultivate their music’s reputation on foreign soil. “We’re just back from doing a mini-tour in Italy as well. It was very good, the shows, the food
over there, everything was great. We had a healthy turnout in Milan, and lots of people knew the words and were having fun singing along, which was fucking fantastic to be honest.” Achieving Vagueness has accomplished what the group was hoping to do – to establish themselves as a name that was recognizable, and form a base they could build on. “I don’t think I’ve actually read a bad review of the album yet. There’s still plenty of really bad music in the charts though, so we’ll see if we manage to have any effect in the future,” remarks Malone modestly.
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let battle commence With pretenders and hopefuls whittled away and the finalists decided, the UCD Battle of Bands competition rolls ever closer to the penultimate final event in Dublin’s Tripod on the 2nd April. Lorcan Archer investigates the range of acts on show
Take the Money and Run “We’re all from Dundalk and going to different college around Dublin,” explains Take the Money and Run member Neil Dooley. “I play guitar and do some backing vocals when I can’t avoid it.” The band have been biding their time, starting to get serious last summer and honing their sound before playing live. “Our first gig was actually this one in UCD, so we’re just starting out, but
we’re happy with how we’re sounding.” In terms of the group’s sound, Dooley is not inclined to pigeon-hole it anytime soon. “It’s a hard one to call, I suppose a sort of alternative Pop sound. Our bigger influences would be stuff like Radiohead, and even Ryan Adams. We just want to get out and play the songs themselves now.” The group are happy with their progress so far, but have their sights firmly set on the prize on the horizon. “We’d love to win, of course, but we know the competition is of a very high standard. We’re happy to be playing a great venue like Tripod, but we’ll be aiming to win, just like everyone else will be. We’re looking forward to it.”
The Depths “We started out in school in separate bands”, reports The Depths member James Conlon McKenna. In a typically UCD fashion however, the group solidified on one of the more notorious social events of the year. “It was through college that we met, actually in the jacks on the Mystery Tour drinking cans, when we decided to hook up and get something going.” The group has been busy as of late, racking up critical responses to their work through the media outlets that are available to them in Ireland. “Since Christmas we’ve been playing gigs, we’ve performed at the Commerce Ball, but also doing things like getting reviews in HotPress and some songs played on Phantom FM, so things have certainly been happening over the past few months. We’re in a good position now.” There is no confusion as to what the group
Gran Casino
The Eskies “We formed back in 2005, purely playing covers back then,” explains Niall Molloy, frontman with acoustic-rockers The Eskies. “It took us a while to get things sorted, shi ing around members, but we got more serious in 2007.” No stranger to the stage, the band has performed with numerous big names on the Dublin circuit and further afield. “We’ve supported Aslan on their tour around the country; we’ve played with Director, and the Furies. I guess you could say we’ve lots of live experience at this point.” The band are a slightly strange proposition on stage, with a vast array of acoustic guitars and electrical instruments combing to make their own particular brand of ‘Kung-Folk’, folk styled songs with a kick. “We heard the term and borrowed it,” admits Molloy. “It describes us pretty well, as we have a bit more punch than the usual sound in that style. Our main influences would be stuff like Bob Dylan, but with more emphasis on singing.” With such a collection of acoustic guitars, people can jump to conclusions regarding the Eskies’ sound, but this is more than improved once the
Unfortunately, we were unable to make contact with a member of Gran Casino before going to press, but the group’s music speaks for itself. Having won the final round of the pre-heats in the Student Club, the band perform a style of music that incorporates hugely varied instrumentation, from a brass and wind section to the more traditional rock band guitar and vocals. band jumps into acWith a live incarnation tion. “People can look consisting of well over up and go, Jesus, that’s the usual four to five band a lot going on up there, members, the band have a but we play as a unit, and style falling somewhere between the verdant sounds of the songs are stronger when Arcade Fire and the Polyphonic Spree, and have been we all click in together. They gigging regularly in Dublin for the past couple of end up liking us a lot more than years. they may have thought.”
consider their own style. “We’re a rock band. We try to get away from that sort indie sound that’s everywhere nowadays. We try to create our own sounds, but do take inspiration from the likes of the Foo Fighters and Brand New, even Irish acts like Turn that we like.” The group are determined to do their best in the competition, being more than aware of the opportunities that it can provide and the talent that they are up against. “All the bands are so different in the competition, we’ve got folk rock, indie stuff, and other styles that are totally different. I think the competition final will be very interesting in terms of what’ll be on display.”
animal Channel “We view ourselves as the kind of upbeat, indie music that people can dance to,” asserts Animal Channel’s Thomas O’Driscoll firmly. Like many groups, the foundations for the band were laid in their pre-college days. “We all met in secondary school and have been working together since. We actually entered the Battle of the Bands last year and didn’t make it through to the final, which was disappointing, but we’ve applied ourselves and really tightened up, so we feel a lot more prepared now.” Performing on stages across Dublin is a regular activity for Animal Channel, with a long string of shows already under their collective belts. “We’re out there a lot at the moment, and we’re even involved in another Battle of the Bands in a different college right now.”
For inspiration, the group are content to look at the wealth of talent that is emerging in their own country. “In terms of inspiration, we’re listening to lots of Irish stuff at the moment, bands like Delorentos and Ham Sandwich who we love, so we can take a lot from that. We’re looking forward to the final show.”
The UCD Battle of the Bands takes place in Tripod, Harcourt St, on 2nd April
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Aural Examinations too out of place on an early Green Day album. Never complicating things too much to risk endangering the underlying groove that runs through this album like a seam of pure musical gold, the fat, warm tone of the songs barrels along at a breakneck pace, only to meld into some very satisfying chugging moment like on the playful title track. Elsewhere, tracks like Pirana deliver short, energetic shocks that break up the more blissedout warmth of the longer songs, nnnnp bringing to mind the diversity of fellow countrymen The Melvins Florida’s Torche have had a bizarre va- in the delivery. riety of labels thrown at them over the Truthful to the album’s title, the group past year in a vain attempt to describe sounds like they’re having a lot of fun. their refreshing blast of thick guitar The result is the perfect remedy to a wet sound and upli ing melodics, from March, and is guaranteed to both hit the thunder-rock, to joy-rock to doom-pop. spot in terms of sheer powerful rock as What certainly sets the group apart well as injecting some Sunshine State from the crowd is that they’re not afraid brightness into your immediate atmosof using a he y guitar tone in the slight- phere. est; as swamp-like sections of soaring amplifier worship combine with poundLorcan Archer ing, tribal sounding drums, only to jump into the catchiest of storming pop rock passages that bizarrely wouldn’t sound
tourche
meanderthal
yeasayer
the kills
all hour cymbals nnnnp
If ever there was a desire for a band to bring out the warmth of summer in their music it would be now, and Yeasayer could easily assume all responsibility for the task. Album opener Sunrise begins with a steady build-up of methodical drum beats, soon met with an almost discofeel chorus, akin to that of MGMT’s hit Electric Feel. The verses are awash with echoed, contrasting vocals draped beneath the more buoyant keys, alongside an abundance of instruments. Wait for the Summer dabbles in the luminous effervescence of the Californian 70s, with the chorus welcomed by sprightly clapping as an undertone to the frenzied vocals of all four band members. The song slowly changes into the ethereal, only to misguide the listener into its expected close, at which point Yeasayer’s vigour multiplies tenfold into an explosively raucous yet undeniably feel-good ending. The sunny ambience of the album is brought to a halt with the sombre pessimism of Wait for the Wintertime, a more morose ballad that delves into the seasonal blues of melancholy, eventually bursting into the livid heat of aggression. Cynical critics of the wave of mediocre indie bands might be inclined to consign Yeasayer to the same gutter as the rest of their ilk. Granted, All Hour Cymbals is certainly not to everyone’s taste, but if your appetite is for the unconventional and experimental, then Yeasayer may just prove to be a delectable feast.
Sophie O’Higgins
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1st April 2008
midnight boom nnnnp
Who remembers the days of dirty, grungy garage rock and roll? And who remembers those days with fondness? The Kills’ third album, Midnight Boom, harks back to that time, as they present an amazing rawness and darkness in the sound of this record which has been sorely missing from much recent music. The Kills are a two-piece, one Jamie Hince and Alison Mosshart, and through this mixed gender line-up comes a tremendous sexuality and sensual undertone in each of the songs. The roughness of the arrangements and the almost spat lyrics makes this record an enthralling listen right from the start. Midnight Boom is the most accessible release by The Kills to date, but that might be too strong a word for this sound. Their debut was an album of equal rawness but obviously from a band still trying to find their own sound, and while their second was a far more confident effort, it was still lacking a certain something. Midnight Boom has taken that confidence, that earlier rawness and added the production skills of Spank Rock’s Armani XXXchange, who has helped to make the rhythms that bit grittier and more violent. The album proceeds with a surprising fluidity and nothing seems out of place on it. Even the final song on the album, Goodnight Bad Morning, the now compulsory mellow closer to a Kills album, leaves you on the right note with the piano keys tinkling through it. Listen to this record, for old time’s sake at least.
Eoin Boyle
An eni ensem Battling through some awful touring luck in order to bring their enchanting style to legions of fans across Europe, Danish glitch-pop pioneers Efterklang speak to Lorcan Archer after a triumphant Dublin appearance about just what it is that they represent as a free musical group Casper Clausen is a man with a lot on his mind. As a founding member of perhaps Denmark’s most remarkable musical export, the strange project known as E erklang, it can be hard to easily bypass the stress of being on a tour that seems to have encountered so many problems from the get-go. Yet he is more than happy to be exactly where he is right now, backstage in The Button Factory drinking a well deserved can of beer before packing up his group’s equipment for the next date in support of their latest release, Parades. “I think that the sea seems to have cursed us,” he explains with a laugh. “We came over to the UK yesterday with such high seas, only to have our guitarist turned away and sent back to Denmark because he didn’t have the right work permit. “So then he had to hop back on the boat to Denmark during the storm to get back and sort it out, and very regrettably we had to cancel the Southampton date. Then the weather delayed our ferry and we were late tonight too. But when you get going again and play like we did tonight to such a mass of smiling faces, it makes it all worthwhile.” Such are the tribulations of DIY touring, yet E erklang are about as enigmatic an ensemble as their odd name seems to suggest. Spanning the boundaries between ambient beats and lush indie rock sensibilities, the group have been fostering a cult following across Europe since their foundations in 2001. With plenty of soaring post-rock influences and a unique visual element in both their release artwork and live incarnation, they can truly claim to be pushing the boundaries of what a band is comprised of in the 21st century. “It is strange when you think about it,” says Clausen. “When we go on tour, it becomes so much more than just the group as it stands going out there and playing songs. We thrive off pf the reactions of the crowd, and with our touring members contributing as well, we can move in directions that are so much more different and diverse than what you might think.”
What the band is all about can perhaps be best be expressed in one of their most popular tracks, Step Aside, a gentle ballad comprising of lilting vocals of all the band mem-
bers’ vocals, combining with the most gentle array of flowing beats, melodic piano and subtle melody that exudes a quality quite apart from the norm. “It’s one of the songs people react to especially well, the same goes with Cutting Ice to Snow,” Clausen notes. “What we do is termed as glitch-pop, which is good to hear, because it means we’re turning fragments of beats into something people can re-
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gmatic ble ally appreciate.” The band also have a vast array of video productions to their name, the sparse yet beautiful slides that comprise their Prey And Predator track deserving special mention, while the accompanying music comes across as both fresh and satisfying in its enigmatic composure. As immersive as the sound that the group make may be, the intriguing name that they have chosen is worthy of attention as well. “The name itself comes from the Danish word for echo, or reverberation,” explains Clausen. “We like it because it suggests a reoccurrence of feeling,
and it’s something that we always express in our music.” Clausen is sure that touring has an impact that stretches far beyond simply achieving promotion for the group. “When we go on stage on a tour like this, it’s like we’re a lot more than just a band. We’re almost a project, and we’re able to move in so many directions because of what both we and the people watching experience. It’s something very special for us.” The unique and collective composition of the group means that the live show is a more difficult event to organise than most bands, but
Clausen is adamant that the magic that occurs once they’re all together makes it worth it. “It was really great being out there. We’d love to hit Ireland again on our next tour, but with the booking and everything we’ll have to see. We felt something very special tonight.” he adds with a distant look and tired grin. Parades is out now.
College Tribune
1st April 2008
be your own pet
get awkward
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the popular front nnnpp
This sophomore effort from Be Your Own Pet finds the four brash youths from Nashville on as aggressive, brazen and unpretentious form as on their eponymous debut. The record bristles with forthright energy - vocalist Jemima Pearl ranting and raving with verve and impudent self-confidence. The production is sharper and the band’s general sound is cleaner, without sacrificing the exuberant raw quality that is such a massive part of Be Your Own Pet’s appeal. Lyrically, Get Awkward is quirky and mischievous but also unapologetically in-your-face, to the extent that the US release of this album was shorn of three tracks by Universal, on the grounds that the content of these songs (Blow Yr Mind, Black Hole and Becky) was deemed too ‘violent’. Becky in particular is one of the highlights of this album, the savage storytelling lyrics allied with slapdash-yetcatchy instrumentation providing a break from the otherwise breakneck pace of what is a raucous collection of songs. There are some great guitar sections too, especially on Creepy Crawl, and the instrumentation throughout is rambunctiously brilliant. There are low points, Bummer Time hitting a, well, bum note. Teenage heartbreak number You’re A Waste doesn’t really seem to go anywhere either, with Pearl merely sounding inhibited and whiny. By and large though, Get Awkward is an effervescent romp, almost draining in its relentless enthusiasm, and there’s an expressive swagger to it that demands attention.
sons and ones nnnpp
The Popular Front would certainly not be the most original band by anyone’s standards. By extension then, neither would they necessarily have the most original tracks. However, with Sons and Ones, what’s proven beyond doubt is that the group’s lead vocals are firmly tuneful and the songs are undeniably very catchy, two extremely vital boxes that this band tick. The Popular Front won last years UCD Battle of The Bands, and what they show in these tracks showcase exactly why they achieved that particular accolade. What Do I Know is by far the catchiest track on the release, being both fast paced and perfectly harmonized, with several guitar riffs that show clever and addictive mixing with a stomping chorus in order to present a very attractive sound for the listener. Pretty Dresser may be a song for those who place lyrics over music and melody in importance, and could be accused of being overly repetitive by a very critical listener. Sheep, however, is perfectly paced, and perfectly executed, with particular solos from the guitar player making this track stand out from the others that make up Sons & Ones. Finally, 300 Days is the slowest track, at first presenting a very quiet lull that draws the listener into it, but eventually switching to a faster tempo that ends the release on an absolute high. Not a bad showing by anyone’s standard, the EP shows promise for the bands future and a strong talent for song writing that can only bode well.
Jennifer Bray
Sebastian Clare
Gig Guide Wednesday 2nd April: Billy Joe Shaver, Whelans, €25, doors at 8pm Emergenza International Battle of the Bands, The Button Factory, doors at 7.30pm
v From
02.04.2008 Monday 7th April: Aslan / The Delorentos / The Blizzards / The Coronas / Television Room, Olympia Theatre, €36, doors at 7pm Christy Moore / Declan Sinnott, €40, Whelans, doors at 8pm
Thursday 3rd April: Tuesday 8th April: Nightwish / Pain, We Are Scientists, AmbasVicar Street, €36, sador, €25, doors at 8pm Christy plays Whelans on The Breeders, Vicar Street, doors at 8.30pm Monday, 7th March Murphy’s Live €28, doors at 8.30pm Final with Cathy Davey, Free Tickets, Whelans, doors at 8.30pm Wednesday 9th April: The Random Nouns, Jennifer Evans & The Hard-Fi / Channel One, OlymRipe Intent, Crawdaddy, €14, doors at 8pm pia Theatre, €33, doors at 8pm Ocean Colour Scene, The AcadFriday 4th April: emy, €34.60, doors at 7.30pm Republic of Loose / Jape / Millionaire The Enemy, Ambassador, €28, doors at 8pm Boys, The Academy, €20, doors at 8pm Amoric / Robert O’Connor, CrawThursday 10th April: daddy, €10, doors at 8pm Exodus / Evile / Gamma Bomb, Voodoo Lounge, €24.50, doors at 7pm Saturday 5th April: Holy F*ck, Whelans, €13.50, doors at 8pm M.D.C. / Only Fumes and Corpses , Kids Dervish, Tripod, €26, doors at 8pm with Guns, Whelans, €12, doors at 8pm Condemned / Reth / DeNovissimis, Lupe Fiasco, Tripod, €42.50, Boom Boom Room. €10, doors at 10pm doors at 7.30pm The Gutter Twins, AmbasFriday 11th April: sador, €30, doors at 8pm This Will Destroy You, TwinKranes, Le Galaxie, Whelans, €15, doors at 8pm
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1st April 2008
Stayin
The real messiah Messiah J converses with Eoin Boyle about the challenge of producing high quality Hip Hop in modern Ireland, and their plans for corrupting the minds of as many intoxicated students as possible Messiah J and the Expert are the stand-out pioneers of the Dublin Hip-Hop scene. The release of their second album Now This I Have to Hear at the end of 2006, marked a great leap forward in their already inventive approach to rap music with the beats, samples, rhythms and lyrics all becoming sharper as well as smarter. The Messiah, J, explains how this all came about. “Basically when we were in our teens everyone else was picking up guitars and drums and trying to sing like Counting Crows, and we were just into Hip Hop, that was kind of our bread and butter, what we were raised on. It was foreign, it was attractive, it was glamorous, and we were suckers for it. Basically that is what we went for. “I always kind of wrote words and I just started writing music and then that was it. Myself and the Expert met each other and it felt like there was someone else in on a gag that only me and him were in on.” While they came from pretty much nowhere in the Irish music scene, there were relatively few Hip Hop acts around Ireland, not just around the time that they began making music, but even in the heyday of rap music in the early nineties. “I think that people will actually listen to
style descriptions with an attitude, like if I heard American and Emo, I would back away. It’s strange though, if things are bastardised like French Bluegrass or Irish Hip Hop or whatever, if it’s any good, then the one thing it stands is a chance of being original.” Bloodrush was the first song that
“Myself and the Expert met each other and it felt like there was someone else in on a gag that only me and him were in on” grabbed attention, with the angry beats and lyrics featuring on a compilation with David Kitt and The Frames (Kicking Against) where the duo were exposed to a wider audience. With their first album, What’s Confusing You?, there was a noticeable maturing in their approach. “I just think you get better as songwriters and realise that things like subject matter become more involving. I think we’ve progressively become better; when we were young
we were a bit starry-eyed and we just wanted to be heard by any means necessary. You still have to retain that fire in the belly but you just become a better writer and I think that’s what happened with us. But I don’t like to talk up what we’ve done too much, people can judge for themselves.” Messiah J and the Expert are a hard working twosome and keep making progress with their songs, already close to the completion of a third album. J relates an anecdote that neatly explains this. “I remember actually hearing an interview with Johnny Marr from The Smiths, who were always considered a very prolific band and someone said to him ‘Oh you’ve brought out this and all that, isn’t that very prolific?’ and he said ‘No, we’re not prolific, we’re songwriters, it’s our job and it’s what we’re meant to do.’ If it was anybody else in any other profession you’d do a certain amount every year so you can’t be that precious so that something comes out only every three years.” Messiah J and the Expert are undeniably a unique combination. “I don’t know a huge amount about the UCD Ball’, laughs J. “But I do know there will be a lot of drunken students there, so it should be great. Get them while they’re young!”
Rebel wit
Wolfe Tones front man Derek Warfield talks the band, one of the most recognized “We’re absolutely looking forward to coming back to UCD,” declares Wolfe Tones founder Derek Warfield. A er more than 40 years in the music business, Warfield is confident that their audience has never dissipated. “The audience has always been intergenerational”, he explains. “At one of our shows you will can find anyone from the age of six to sixty, and maybe even older.” For any group’s music to cross generation barriers like this is surely a rare feat and Warfield credits their success to the traditional aspect of their music. “I think it’s born out of a home tradition, because when we were young, all ages enjoyed traditional Irish music. As you
can see from our shows, this is still true today, and I am glad that it has stayed this way over the years.” Keeping the Irish tradition alive is clearly a high priority with the Wolfe Tones, whose love for ballads was instilled in them at a young age. “I was always surrounded by these songs in my own home because all my folks sung songs and ballads. This tradition was everywhere in Dublin, not just in my family. My home was definitely a source of inspiration for me. I always loved the songs; it was just part of the upbringing.”
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ng another day East 17 founding member Terry Coldwell speaks to Lisa Towell about Britney Spears, drugs and the newfound focus that the group have found upon regaining their position as one of the heroes of pop East 17 - a band synonymous with dodgy hair cuts, dodgy fur coats and dodgy dance routines - were beloved by teenage girls worldwide. Responding to the news that they’d be playing the UCD Ball alongside denim-clad female pop group, Bewitched, East 17’s Terry Coldwell exclaimed with genuine delight, “Oh are we? Jesus, I haven’t seen those girls in years.” Unlike other pop groups who were trained in performance schools, East 17 were always different. “Most people went to drama school but we were nothing like that,” Coldwell remembers. “We were just four people on the street, getting up to all sorts of naughtiness.” And naughty boys they were. Remembered by many as the bad boy version of Take That, East 17 fell from grace in 1997, following lead man Brian Harvey’s divulgence of drug taking on a national radio program. It was one of the pop world’s biggest scandals and caused a mass media frenzy, earning the band a crippling amount of bad press. Taking drugs, especially boasting about it, was a strict no-no for any boy band. Chief song-writer Tony Mortimer departed, and the trio of Brian Harvey, Terry Coldwell and John Hendy soldiered on, reincarnated as E-17, but called it a day in 1999 a er eight years in the business. Like many other pop groups, eve-
rything began for the boys in school. “Tony and John were somewhat older than me and Brian was about three or four years older as well, but we went to the same school and we used to hang out at this block of flats”, Terry remembers fondly. “Tony was setting up a band, and he approached me one day saying he knew I could dance, and he asked me if I wanted to be in a band.” The group from Walthamstow combined their love for R’n’B, Hip Hop and Pop to reach dizzy heights of fame. Scoring numerous hit singles with House of Love and Stay Another Day, their duet If You Ever with Gabrielle is still voted
“I don’t know what Britney’s thinking. I reckon she is on that bloody crystal meth and all that. Fame does sort of mess you up a bit” as one of the world’s favourite duets in music polls to this day. Despite their success, Terry is quick to point out that fame can come with a price. He points to the recent fall of one of the pop world’s greatest success stories. “The industry is bad enough
anyway with the like of drugs and stuff. Look at Britney Spears,” he emphasises, with the authority of one who has been through tough times. “I don’t know what she is thinking. I reckon she is on that bloody crystal meth and all that. Fame does sort of mess you up a bit. People say you should be appreciative of it, but when you’re in the limelight for a period as a pop star, you get aggressive and you don’t get time for yourself. It can affect you. “For the first three years a er we came out, we didn’t get a break for three years. Jamming seven days a week, and if you ain’t doing stuff in England you’re touring in Europe or America, or you’re in
Australia. People say ‘Oh, but it’s easy.’ It’s not physically hard work, sure, like if you were on a building site, but it’s mentally taxing.” Following the split in 1999, the band members followed different career paths until Coldwell made a chance discovery. “I picked up The Sun one day and there was an interview with Tony in it. So I read it and Tony was quoted as saying that if the guys asked him to get back together, he’d probably say yes. “And I thought, well, bloody hell. I didn’t know where he lived or have any of his numbers”, he laughs. “So my
girlfriend did a bit of research on the Internet and it turned out that Tony had been in contact with an Australian fan that had set up a website. So I le her a message. I didn’t hear anything for months then Tony rang me out of the blue and we had a good chat.” This ill-fated reunion was to be short-lived however. The band got together for a one-off gig in May 2006 but musical influences had changed and as Coldwell candidly explains, “Tony punched Brian and that was the end of it.” East 17: The Reunion, a Channel Four documentary charting the band’s reunion in the lead-up to their comeback gig was helpful in getting their music back out there. “I think about four million people watched it when it initially went out. It did help us. To be honest we needed it because we were not getting any help from anyone. It’s not like we were Take That and people were throwing money at us.” However, the trio continue to tour the clubs and university circuit, which Coldwell prefers to the bigger stadium gigs they were used to back in the fledgling days of their boy band youth. “I really like them, you’re up close and personal with the people who are going to be buying your records,” he explains. UCD students will have their chance to get up close and personal with Coldwell, Harvey et al at the UCD Ball in April.
th a cause to Fiona Redmond about continuing appeal of and appreciated Irish music groups in history Singing ballads was a regular part of Irish life, but Warfield decided to make a career out of it. “In the late 50s and early 60s, I was quite interested in the Irish music scene because we o en travelled to the Fleadh Ceoil. But the main attraction for me was through hearing the Clancy Brothers who were very popular in America at that time. They brought Irish songs into a new dimension, onto a new
platform.” While the Wolfe Tones cover many Irish rebel songs and ballads, they also have a huge back catalogue of songs that they wrote themselves. According to Warfield, writing a ballad is more difficult than a normal song, as the ballad must be inspirational both to the song writer and the audience. “While writing these ballads there has to be a passion, you have to want to write the song, the idea has to be inspirational. When you’re writing about your own country, your country’s history and your heritage, it’s different to normal music.” The notion that the Wolfe Tones have a certain responsibility to uphold and preserve the Irish culture is not only apparent in their song writing skills, but also in their lengthy live shows. The group clearly have retained their
enjoyment and love of the live performance. “I’ve a number of places that I like to play”, Warfield admits. “I like playing in America and we perform there quite o en. I particularly like Chicago because there is a great audience for us there.” The list of places they’ve played is extensive but Warfield emphasizes the special importance of playing smaller venues. “I like playing to small communities that have had a strong Irish back-
ground for many years. I’ve played a lot of small communities in England and in the South of America. In Texas, for example, there wouldn’t be a large Irish community yet there still are people of Irish descent, who very actively value their heritage. I still get a great sense of satisfaction out of playing there because through us these people are staying in touch with Ireland. I think that’s the most satisfying aspect of my career, it’s so enjoyable.” The traditional music scene is still
going from strength to strength, with acts like Kíla and Damien Dempsey selling out shows across the country. “I do think that traditional Irish music is in a very strong position now”, acknowledges Warfield. “It’s definitely not as weak as it was back in the 1950s when we first started.” With a successful career spanning nearly half a decade and plenty of concerts in the pipeline, it’s likely that the Wolfe Tones are only going to continue to flourish.
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1st April 2008
Counting sheep Cathy Buckmaster talks to James, an insomniac, about the serious affects of the disorder and examines the difficulties experienced by those who suffer from narcolepsy, in a sleep disorder special James feels absolutely exhausted but is lying painfully awake yet again, staring at the ceiling, and trying to clear his head of numerous thoughts or worries when all he wants to do is to nod off. If this story sounds familiar, you could be suffering from the surprisingly common sleep ailment, insomnia. James, a UCD student explains the difficulties of living with this underestimated illness. “I only really have been suffering from insomnia for the last two or three years. It’s pretty horrible. It has been getting worse over the last while. When it started out, it was just before the Leaving Cert when the exams were coming up. Now, a lot of the time, I’m awake all night, just over little things. “I remember when I mentioned it to a friend, they thought it must be a great help for late night essays but it’s actually not, it’s the opposite. You might be up, but you’re so tired, far too tired to do anything. It is just really stressful. All you want to do is sleep and you can’t. It’s awful.” Sleep problems are quite common among young people and while this form of insomnia is not life-threatening, it can be hugely distressing, frustrating and depressing, making the problem worse. There are two broad types of insomnia; chronic insomnia is the most serious and may last several months. Transient insomnia generally only lasts for a few days or weeks and is linked to stress or sometimes bereavement. “For me, it comes and goes. I could go for three months and be grand and then I would have a week or two that was really bad where I’d get maybe one or two hours of sleep
a night. “I would say stress is the main factor and just having too many thoughts in my head when I’m trying to get to sleep. If I get stressed about an essay deadline or exam, I might not be able to sleep for a few days beforehand. “Recently over Christmas, I just couldn’t sleep. I’d be awake for ten hours and couldn’t get to sleep until ten in the morning and then I’d be up again two hours later. I
sleeping tablets or some sort of pills and I don’t want to be dependant on drugs to get to sleep.” Experts suggest that insomniacs should exercise regularly, go to bed only when they feel very tired, leave their beds at the same time each day and try to relax mentally and physically before going to bed. This can be done by bathing or going for a short walk. They warn against taking stimulants such as alcohol before bed, going to bed when one is wound up, eating, drinking or smoking during the night. James explains that alcohol will definitely put him to sleep but explains why he avoids this as o en as possible. “When I go out and have a few pints, I’d fall asleep straight away but at the same time I don’t want to rely on that either as it could lead to alcoholism and more problems.” As for counteracting it, James explains how he tries to get on with things. “I don’t let it get to me. I try to be calm about it because if I stress out, it’s just going to lead to longer periods of time without sleep. I just try to stay calm about it and try to realise it will sort itself out.”
“It is just really stressful. All you want to do is sleep and you can’t. It’s awful” couldn’t do anything for those two weeks. I was too exhausted to go anywhere.” As for coping with sleep depravation while attending lectures and doing essays and exams, James explains that it negatively affects his work but that illnesses like insomnia are not generally taken into account by lecturers. “I do find myself not being able to pay attention and therefore don’t take notes which can be a nightmare when assessments are due. The worst thing about it is that I don’t think lecturers are aware that a lot of people are affected by insomnia and that it does affect college work. “People tend to brush it away saying things like ‘you can’t sleep, big deal.’ I’m reluctant to see a doctor as all they’d probably do is prescribe
For prolonged cases of insomnia, it is recommended that a doctor is consulted, who can advise the patient about lifestyle changes he or she can make to help overcome the condition. Alternative medicines such as hypnotherapy have also had degrees of success with some sufferers.
For further information about insomnia and its affects, visit the Insomnia Health File at www. vhi.ie.
Sleep attack Imagine walking around college with your friends on your way to get coffee when all of a sudden a paralysis takes over your body, your neck slackens, you can’t move your legs, you get disturbingly drowsy and without warning, you’re fast asleep. An incident like this is only too common for someone suffering from narcolepsy. A disorder marked by unwarranted daytime tiredness, the individual falls asleep suddenly and uncontrollably, experiencing a sudden loss of muscle tone (or cataplexy), usually lasting up to thirty minutes. Cataplexy affects 75 percent of people with narcolepsy and is the most dramatic symptom, generally caused by strong feelings of emotion. It causes the knees to buckle and the neck muscles to slacken during a sleep attack. In extreme cases, the sufferer can become paralyzed and fall to the floor. However, even as it is frightening, the loss of muscle tone is temporary, lasting from a few seconds to half an hour. Other symptoms of this illness include temporary sleep paralysis which is a worrying incapacity to move just a er awakening. Hallucinations can accompany narcolepsy and whether audio or visual can be frightening experiences that occur while asleep. People used to dealing with narcolepsy explain that the sleepiness a narcoleptic experiences can be compared to the feeling of trying to stay awake a er not sleeping for two days. Some may even appear to continue to
function outwardly during an episode, even appearing to continue with simple tasks occupying them at the time. However, when they awake, they will almost certainly have no memory of the event. The condition can be dangerous if the symptoms happen while the sufferer is engaged in a task such as driving. Narcolepsy can also impair performance in school or at work. Narcolepsy is linked to the deepest part of sleep known as rapid eye movement or REM sleep, when dreaming takes place. When a non-sufferer falls asleep, they will probably experience 90 minutes of light sleep which is then followed by REM. People with narcolepsy enter REM sleep immediately. Symptoms of narcolepsy usually appear during person’s teenage years or their twenties. In general, the first symptom is an overwhelming feeling of fatigue. A er several months or years, cataplexy and other symptoms may appear. While there is no cure for narcolepsy, medication is available to counter its affects and anyone experiencing symptoms should contact their doctor immediately. Changing one’s lifestyle can help to alleviate the condition, and a balanced diet and plenty of exercise are also helpful. To learn more about the condition and the available treatments, visit the Narcolepsy Information Page of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke at http://www.ninds.nih.gov/.
FaSHION
Leanne Cummins, Veterinar y Medicine What are you wearing? My jeans are from BT2, my Olga de Polga Cardigan is from BT2, my patent bag is from Urban Outfitters, and my necklace is from Chanel and my blazer from Topshop. Who or what inspires your style? Twiggy and Gemma Ward, an Australian model.
James D. Murphy, 2nd year Arts What are you wearing? rs, My jeans are from Urban Outfitte irt T-sh my nys, my socks from Pen t from American Apparel, my coa h watc my and r Bea and Pull from from Casio.
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Patrick Murphy, Psychology
Shane Leahy, Ar ts
Emma Crowley, Ar ts
What are you wearing?
What are you wearing? My T-shirt is from Topman, my my jeans are from Urban Outfitters, my ce, Offi from e vers Con shoes are leather jacket is from The Harlequin, a second-hand shop.
What are you wearing? s My mack is from Topshop, my jean Top from also are ers and my runn shop, my shirt is from Zara and my my earrings are from Topshop and rs. fitte Out bag is from Urban
e? Who or what inspires your styl Johnny Borrell (Razorlight), Jared iFollowill (Kings of Leon) and mus . cians in general
Who or what inspires our style? People on the street, bands, Kate Moss, the Olsen twins and Alexa Cheung (a British TV presenter)
My tracksuit top is from Adidas, my trousers are from Tailors and my shoes are from Converse. Who or what inspires our style? Convenience
e? Who or what inspires your styl nin. Dur an Ciar Sir
e r u t u o c s u p Cam the UCD campus to find und aro s tter dse tren le nab hio fas the es gat rro Sarah O’Hegarty inte inspirations out where they shop and where they get their
Victor Ekanem, Sports Management
Robbie Moore, Ar ts
What are you wearing?
What are you wearing?
My jeans are from River Island, my jacket is from River Island, my jumper is from Jack and Jones and my runners are from K-Swiss. Who or what inspires your style? People on the street and footballers.
My jacket is from Genius, my hoodie is from Topman, my jeans and shoes are from Topman. Who or what inspires your style? No one person, different bands and music in general.
Eleanor Hutch Arts
Nicola Quigley, Arts
What are you wearing?
What are you wearing?
My boots are from Pennys, my cardigan is from H&M, top is from Urban Outfitters, my skirt is from Topshop, my belt is from Urban Outfitters and my bag is from H&M. Who or what inspires your style? Magazines
Sarah McKendry, Architecture What are you wearing?
My dress is from Urban Outfitters and my jeans and my run p. ners are from Topsho
My dress is from Chica, my coat ts is from Debenhams and my boo are from Topshop.
Who or what inspires your style?
Who or what inspires your style?
Music videos.
My flatmates, Marion and Aoife, and the high-street shops.
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1st April 2008
Magic of the movies Cian Taaffe tallies up the votes to reveal what the students of UCD have chosen as their top ten favourite films of all time The students have been polled, the votes are in, the scores have been counted. Get your Xtra Vision cards at the ready, stock up on popcorn and if there’s any films on this list of ten that you’ve somehow neglected to see up until now, you’ve probably been living under a rock, so dust off the DVD player and get watching. Let the countdown commence.
corrupt prince, played by Joaquin Phoenix. Maximus is a general, who becomes a slave, who then becomes a Gladiator and takes down the Roman empire. Gladiator is a motivational film, that proves that when you put your mind to something, even the destruction of an empire. “What we do in life, echoes in eternity.” - Maximus
10. Finding Nemo Ever since Toy Story, Disney and Pixar animations have been the most popular children’s movies, but the older audience tend to enjoy them just as much. In 2003, came Finding Nemo, the story of a clown fish, Marlin, and his forgetful companion, Dory, in their attempt to find his son, Nemo. With vegetarian sharks and surfer sea turtles, this family feature is a laugh a minute. “I suffer from short term memory loss. It runs in my family. At least I think it does. Where are they?” - Dory
7. Die Hard Bruce Willis took on the role as John McClane for the first time in 1988, in the Godfather of all blockbuster movies, Die Hard. With Alan Rickman in tow as criminal mastermind Hans Gruber, Die Hard is one action-packed, explosionfilled, laughter-stuffed, two-hour-long rollercoaster ride. The dialogue between McClane and Hans is hilarious, but the action will have you on the edge of your seat, no matter how many times you’ve already seen the film. “Nine million terrorists in the world and I gotta kill one with feet smaller than my sister.” – John McClane
9. Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy Possibly the most quoted comedy flick of the last decade, Anchorman, tells the story of Ron Burgundy and his temptestuous relationship with his rival Veronica Corningstone, a new co-anchor on the Channel 4 News Team. Will Ferrell is at his best, Paul Rudd is brilliant as always and Steve Carell’s career blossomed a er his part in this film. Anchorman can be watched over and over again and manages to remain painfully funny each time. “I’m in a glass case of emotion.” – Ron Burgundy 8. Gladiator Russell Crowe seeks vengeance, as Maximus Decimus Meridius in this epic drama, for the murder of his family by a
6. Braveheart Mel Gibson stars in this epic adventure that follows the fortunes of William Wallace, a Scot who returns to his own country in the 13th century to help unite his fellowmen in the quest to overthrow the domineering English, who have ruled over Scotland for 100 years. Braveheart also stars veteran Irish actors Brendan Gleeson and Sean McGinley and is a stirring and exciting masterpiece, with some brilliant battle scenes “Would you be willing, for one chance - just one chance - to tell our enemies that they may take our lives, but they’ll never take our freedom?” – William Wallace
John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, Harvey Keitel, Christopher Walken and Uma Thurman, amongst others, Pulp Fiction was bound to be a hit from the word ‘go’. Four tales, from four different perspectives, are intertwined in the telling of this twisted tale. Throw in an amazing soundtrack for good measure and Pulp Fiction is a modern day masterpiece. “Normally, both your asses would be dead as fucking fried chicken, but you happened to pull this shit while I’m in a transitional period so I don’t wanna kill you, I wanna help you.” – Jules Winnfield
5. Donnie Darko Richard Kell’s 2001 indie film, Donnie Darko (starring Jake Gyllenhaal) has confused and intrigued film-goers since its release. It takes two or three viewings of the film to comprehend what exactly is going on, but the fact that you are forced to piece together what is happening is what viewers seem to love most about it. “Do you want your sister to lose weight? Tell her to get off the couch, stop eating twinkies and maybe go out for field hockey.” – Donnie Darko 4. Fight Club Brad Pitt, Edward Norton and Helena
Bonham Carter star in this 1999 psychadelic thriller, which revolves around Tyler Durden (Pitt) and the rise and fall of the Fight Club, a global organisation dedicated to the venting of male aggression. However, as both the first and second rules of Fight Club are not to talk about Fight Club, you’ll have to watch the film to find out what it’s all about. “It’s only a er we’ve lost everything that we’re free to do anything.” – Tyler Durden
3. Pulp Fiction Directed by Quentin Tarantino and featuring a stellar cast of Bruce Willis,
2. Forrest Gump Until you’ve seen the world through the eyes of Forrest Gump, played by Tom Hanks, you haven’t really seen what the world is truly like. Forrest isn’t the sharpest tool in the box and isn’t exactly your average movie hero, but he is a film character who has warmed the hearts of many. Have a box of tissues at the ready, as this film is a tear-jerker. “My momma always said, ‘Life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.’” – Forrest Gump 1. The Shawshank Redemption Surprise, surprise, The Shawshank Redemption rolls into the number one spot. Morgan Freeman and Tim Robbins steal the show in this 1994 classic. The Shawshank Redemption, is unlike other prison dramas, as the film itself is not only about breaking out of prison, it’s about breaking free from all of life’s worries, and starting afresh. Truly inspirational. “Geology is the study of pressure and time. That’s all it takes really, pressure and time - that and a big goddamn poster.” - Ellis Boyd “Red” Redding
Fowl play at the Eurovision Q: How are you feeling now that you know you’re going to compete in the Eurovision as Ireland’s representative? Dustin: I’m feeling good Aoife. Are you one of those Ugg Boot wearing little cuties from UCD? Q: You have received a lot of criticism as a result of your win. What do you make of this? Has your opposition a point or do you have anything to say on the matter? Dustin: I think it’s fair enough, great art always divides people – Mozart, Picasso, Donna and Joe and meself – we’ve all had our critics and that’s ok. Obviously, in my case, none of it is valid and they are just a bunch of washed up has-beens jumping on my bandwagon looking for some attention. Q: In your song you list Wogan’s wig, Bono’s pants, Johnny Logan, Guinness, Dana, Westlife, Riverdance and the Corrs. Is this Ireland to you? Dustin: Well obviously you haven’t listened to the song, but don’t worry as a student nobody would expect you
Dustin the Turkey speaks to Aoife Ryan about Bob Geldof, Terry Wogan’s wig, and representing Ireland at this year’s Eurovision to have done any research – no mention at all of Guinness, Dana, Westlife, The Corrs (who?) or Bono’s pants. To me Ireland is many things, but most of all it’s my home and in many ways it’s the Eurovision’s home so all I want to do is bring it home. Q: You also mention briefly all the immigration of modern Ireland, like newcomers from Lithuania, Bosnia, Poland, Georgians, Czechs etc. What do you make of modern Ireland and all of our cultural changes? Dustin: I love them all, especially the ones that can get their mates at home to vote for us. Q: Bob Geldof gave you great support about your song. Have you thanked him or have you been talking to him since he called you a national treasure? Are you a fan of Live Aid and his work?
Dustin: The lad won’t leave me alone, smell off him is brutal. He wants to come to Serbia but they’ve a “no crust” rule at the Eurovision so he hasn’t a hope of getting in. Q: Do you think you have a good chance? Have you been talking to other acts from Europe? What are they like do you know?
to sort a rocket for the final bit. Dustin: I met Chiki Chiki last week in Barcelona; he’s the Spanish entry. Looks like something from a 70’s Showband from Crumlin.
Q: What are you going to be doing after this? Dustin: Running for Mayor of London.
Q: Do you know if any other animals are going to be taking part?
Q: Would you consider America?
Dustin: Yes. Would you? Maybe we could get two J1’s and go live in a Dustin: One two bed apt with 34 other Paddies of the birds in Boston for the summer, eh? is a bit of a woof woof, Q: Do you think your image does that count? and attitude will change if you win and shoot to the top? Q: How are rehearsals going? Is there Dustin: I’m already at the top. much involved? Q: What has been the Dustin: Great, loads best moment so far? – just trying Dustin: The look on Dana’s face when I won. Priceless.
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Naughty nature Strange Wilderness is Fred Wolf’s take on the world of a wildlife documentarymaker. This rollercoaster ride features some mostly new faces in comedy such as Steve Zahn, Jonah Hill and Justin Long but also throws in veterans Allen Covert and Robert Patrick. This movie is not for those lacking an expansive and liberal sense of humour, as it is highly offensive at times and a certain F word is used excessively. Hilarity reigns throughout the film as we follow Peter Gaulke’s (Steve Zahn) journey to track down Bigfoot and save his failing wildlife show. He assembles a unique team of horny, alcoholic, drug-addicted young men and of
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course the token innocent, attractive damsel whose mind has yet to be corrupted. The movie uses mostly slapstick comedy but what is most impressive is the dialogue between the two leading characters. Their arguments between each other are priceless and will leave you in a hysterical fit of laughter. However, there are some pitfalls when certain scenes go a bit too far. The ending is too prolonged, and many of the jokes become
repetitive and overused. One shouldn’t expect anything new and unique in this film; it’s basically the same old stuff we’re used to seeing in the likes of Superbad and American Pie. S t r a n g e Wilderness is shocking, obscene and offensive, and the one thing guaranteed in this film is a laugh or two.
Max Harding
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In 1997, Austrian director and writer Michael Haneke wrote and produced a fantastic psychological horror film in German, called Funny Games, about two sadistic brothers, Peter and Paul, who terrorise a family in their countryside home. Over a decade later, seeing that there was money to be made from this concept, a Hollywood producer with dollar signs in his eyes decided to remake this film in English, for those too lazy to read the German subtitles.
Usually a remake of a film of this genre would end badly, but luckily the original writer and director, Haneke, stayed on board and directed the US version, ultimately saving the film from disastrous results. The film is a scene by scene re-make. All that has changed is the actors and the fact that the film is now in English rather than German, otherwise the sets, costumes and story is almost identical and at times you’d think the exact same sets and props were used. Naomi Watts and Tim Roth take on the roles of Anne and George in this re-make, while Michael Pitt and Brady Corbet play Paul and Peter. The acting is up to scratch and the actors stay true to the characters, which should keep fans of the original satisfied. Funny Games has quite a disturbing plot, so don’t let the title fool you - there is absolutely nothing funny about the games that Peter and Paul play. If you saw and liked the original, you’ll enjoy the re-make, but don’t expect any new twists or turns. If you haven’t seen the original and don’t mind subtitles, check it out, otherwise this re-make is just as good.
Cian Taaffe
Prehistoric pyramids When we sit down to watch a film, we are expected to be open-minded and to ignore our disbelief of the unrealistic, but Roland Emmerich’s 10,000 BC really takes the biscuit and leaves the viewer wondering if the writers ever attended a single history lesson back in their school days. Historically, the first pyramid was built in approximately 2,750 BC, but this film, clearly set in 10,000 BC (hence the title) shows pyramids being constructed at that time. If this was a science fiction feature, about the space time continuum, pyramids in 10,000 BC would be understandable, but as it’s not and as the pyramids were unneccesary to the plot,
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we must wonder what the writers were thinking. Even if one can get over the pyramid fiasco, 10,000 BC remains a dire film. The ‘hero’ of the piece, D’Leh (Steven Strait), if you could go as far as to refer to him as a hero, has the acting abilities of a sock puppet, and the viewer finds themself not caring in the slightest about the fate of the supporting characters. The computer-generated graphics used for the extinct animals such as the Woolly Mammoths, the Saber-Tooth Tiger and the
Phorusrhachids are awful, and a slightly talented four-year old could have done a much better job. 10,000 BC’s only redeeming feature is the breathtaking good looks of the leading actress, Camille Belle, who unfortunately could not act her way out of a paper bag. Ultimately the problem with 10,000 BC is that the producers weren’t sure whether to aim it at children or at an older audience, which leaves us with a middleof-the-road potential epic, which was ruined because some muppet in Hollywood attempted to aim it at the entire family to ensure maximum profit.
Cian Taaffe
FILM RETROSPECTIVE
A brief romance Before Sunrise is an accomplishment for director Richard Linklater - it is a great idea and a superb experiment in human interaction, as well as being an extremely well-executed piece. It concentrates on one fateful meeting of two people on a train going through Vienna, Jesse (Ethan Hawke), an American coming to the end of his travels in that Austrian city, and Celine (Julie Delpy), a French girl on her way
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back home to Paris a er visiting her Grandmother in Budapest. The two get talking on the train, they go to the dining car and we gradually see their relationship blossom. They reach Vienna where Jesse has to get off, as he has a plane to catch first thing in the morning, and he convinces Celine to get off and keep him company until
then. The rest of the film follows the pair around Vienna until their goodbye the next day. It is one of the most beautiful films one will ever see; we learn about their lives and see their personalities become fuller. We learn about them as they learn about each other. Their conversations tend to revolve around relationships and the idea of love, and we can see that these two should stay together
but they are resigned to the fact that they may never meet again, yet this is not shown in a depressing way. This film is stunning and it really does emphasize the great things that can come out of taking that chance –
that one should never be afraid to make that leap because you never know how it’s going to turn out.
Eoin Boyle
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Racial tensions Susanne O’Reilly reviews Sue Monk Kidd’s bestselling novel, The Secret Life of Bees, a novel dealing with the sensitive issues of race and domestic violence. ■ ■
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The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd tells the story of Lily Owens, a fourteen year old white girl, living on a peach farm in South Carolina in the 1960s. Inevitably, the issue of race is a predominant theme in the book, but is dealt with differently here than in other books such as To Kill a Mockingbird or Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry. Religion and love are also pretty important themes in this story, yet despite the heavy topics clearly weighing on Monk Kidd’s mind, she still manages to write a thoroughly enjoyable, suspenseful novel. The protagonist lives with her violent father, T. Ray, and their black housekeeper Rosaleen, who has a rather disgusting habit of chewing tobacco and spitting the juice into a small jug every few minutes. When Lily was four years old, her mother died when Lily accidentally shot her, while trying to stop T. Ray doing the same thing. She le Lily with nothing but a pair of gloves, a photograph of herself, and a picture of a Black Madonna with ‘Tiburon, S.C.’ inscribed on the back. Lily is something of a social outcast at school, and classes Rosaleen as her only friend. So when Rosaleen decides to go and register to vote, Lily tags along with her. In an incident involving tobacco-spit and three white men, Rosaleen ends up beaten and handcuffed to a bed in hospital, facing quite a stretch in jail. Naturally, Lily does what any good friend would do – packs her bags and breaks her housekeeper out of hospital. The odd couple then hitchhikes their way to Tiburon on Lily’s
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College Tribune
1st April 2008
whim, where they discover that the picture of the Black Madonna is used to label pots of honey in all the local stores. And so Lily and Rosaleen end up knocking on honey-maker August Boatwright’s door, where Lily spins a story about being an orphan on her way to visit an aunt in Virginia. Bob’s your uncle, August takes them both into her home. August has two sisters: May, whose twin sister killed herself when they were teenagers, leaving her severely emotionally damaged; and June, who doesn’t fall for Lily’s story and makes life as difficult for her as possible, for a while at least. They are beekeepers, and make a decent living from the honey produced by their many hives. Lily and Rosaleen work for their bed and board, and Lily quickly comes to love August and her way of life. She also meets Zach, a young black man who aspires to be a lawyer, and she falls in love with him. In the living room is a statue of a black Virgin Mary, which August and her friends pray to and use as a symbol of their equality and freedom. Lily becomes fascinated with the statue, and asks constantly for the courage to tell August the truth. One day, her wish is granted, but her story is wasted on August, who already knew the truth; Lily’s mother had lived with her for some time before she met T. Ray. What Lily did not want to know was the full story of the day her mother died, and the events leading up to it, which are far worse than she ever imagined. With the help of her new friends, Lily must come to terms with the truth, and face up to T. Ray one last time. Although the ending could have been more satisfying, the story as a whole is thoroughly enjoyable, with a host of likeable, believable characters. The Secret Life of Bees is a poignant, bittersweet coming-of-age story with more than a few twists and turns.
■ Sue Monk Kidd: Best-selling author of The Secret Life of Bees
e l b a d a e R chic-lit dives into the pages Hannah Kousbroek r women, otherwise g fo of some light readin als that certain ve re d an , t” Li ck hi known as “C lightly in this o to n ke ta e b to t no novels are d genre often misunderstoo
It’s easy to dislike chick lit – the characters can be one-dimensional, the plot can be either predictable or simply non-existent – but surprisingly, not all chick lit is that bad. For those whose reading list doesn’t have to synchronise with the Booker Prize short-list, there is a range of funny, light-hearted and romantic options to choose from. The Bridget Jones’ Diary books, by Helen Fielding, have more to them than meets the eye. They parody the entire genre of chick lit in a hilarious take on modern womanhood. Fielding brilliantly captures the tension between the quest to be a successful, independent woman, and the need to have love in your life. For all the silly things that befall Bridget, she is a realistic role model and an intelligent woman who tries not to depend on men – but who secretly sees herself running along a beach with love-rat Daniel Cleaver as though they’re in a Calvin Klein ad. Even though Bridget Jones is extremely exaggerated there are sentiments in both books that ring true for many women. Like getting drunk and sending everyone in your address book (including your plumber) really embarrassing text messages, or bitching about your friend’s horrible ex-boyfriend to cheer her up, only to have her get back together with him and tell him everything you said. Bridget Jones is laugh-out-loud funny, and provides a vivid insight into the doubts and insecurities of that are part of the lives of women
and men everywhere. The queen of chick lit is currently Meg Cabot. Best known for writing The Princess Diary series, (vaguely entertaining if you’re fourteen, but highly irritating a er that), Cabot has written a number of books for adults, but these are not nearly as enjoyable as the Bridget Jones series. She is presently engaged in writing a series of detective stories, about a former pop star called Heather Wells, who is infatuated with her landlord. As Anthony Lane once wrote about Charlie’s Angels, “If a is the number of obviously good people, and b is the number of darkly suspicious people, then the number of interesting characters in the movie should, whenever possible, be greater than (a + b).” Meg Cabot should have taken Lane’s advice; even the dimmest of readers would be able to point out the baddie a er reading the first few pages of A Size 12 is Not Fat. Although Meg Cabot has a good sense of humour, and the books are entertaining to read, they are best kept for long flights, or for when you have the flu. Most of Meg Cabot’s heroines are a bit dense – they blunder about, feeling sorry for themselves while the guy of their dreams is obviously already in love with them. The problem with writing a series is that you can’t let the girl get the guy in the first few books, meaning that the reader starts to think that the heroine is blind, eventually realising that the writer is probably only prolonging the story to make more money.
Then there’s Janet Evanovich, whose detective stories are a lot more believable than those of Meg Cabot. The Stephanie Plum series is hilarious, with a large cast of quirky supporting characters and amusing situations. Stephanie Plum is a bounty hunter with a pet hamster called Rex. In each book, one of her charges leads her into a crime investigation. She is torn between two men; Joe Morelli, a cop with Italian heritage and a voracious sexual appetite, and Ranger, who is dark and mysterious, and seems to have an inexhaustible supply of hot black cars. Again, the formula gets old quickly, and even though Evanovich is still churning out a book every two years or so, only the first six or seven are really good and original. The first one of the series is called One for the Money. Looking at these two writers, one can only conclude that it is a good thing that Helen Fielding stopped while she was ahead, and only wrote two Bridget Jones books. When a writer tries to prolong a series it helps if there is a plausible plot; otherwise the subsequent books are even more frustrating to read than the first. Still, Evanovich and Cabot are good fun, especially when there are no tall, dark, intelligent men to be found in your own life, and the workload is piling up. Bridget Jones, on the other hand is a modern classic, and is well worth reading, proof that the genre of chick lit has its stars.