Vol XXI - Otwo - Issue 1

Otwo Volume XXI | Issue 1 16th September 2014

Brendan Gleeson Tara Flynn The Coronas Mercury Prize The Rise of the Gamer

The University Observer Irish Student Newspaper of the Year 2014

Volume XXI

Want to start your career in journalism?

We need:

writers illustrators web designers

reporters photographers bloggers

Sign up

or visit us in our office in the Student Centre @ucdobserver

2

www.universityobserver.ie

index

Letter From The Editors

3 Letter from the Editors Shane Hannon & Rebekah Rennick 4 Mystic Mittens 4 Back to School Conor O’Toole 5 InterRailing Dos & Don’ts Shane Hannon

FOOD&DRINK 6 Donal Skehan David Corscadden

7 Vodka Penne Recipe 7 Irish Craft Beer & Cider Festival Rob Mac Carthy

GAMES 8 See No Evil Duncan Wallace

8 Walking Dead Season 2 Steven Balbirnie 9 Rise of the Gamer Karl Quigley

FILM&TV 10 Best of Summer TV Matthew Hanrahan

11 Ebola & the Hollywood Effect Leanne Scott 12 A Life Of Crime Aaron Murphy 12 Before I Go to Sleep Ross McKeever 13 Maps to the Stars Shane Hannon 13 Top 10 Spectacularly Violent Kills Ross McKeever

CENTRE 14 Brendan Gleeson Shane Hannon MUSIC 16 The Coronas Gráinne Hennessy

17 The Boxer Rebellion Sean Hayes 18 Mercury Prize Rebekah Rennick 19 Album Reviews 20 Hard Working Class Heroes Sean Hayes

FASHION&STYLE 21 Street Style

22 “So Adorkable!” Fashion Shoot

ARTS&LITERATURE 24 Freaks and Wonders Lauren Moore

24 Begorrah Shannon Corrigan 25 From the Thriller to the Cinema Alanna O’Shea 26 Tara Flynn Patrick Kelleher 27 Fatal Fourway: Most Outrageous Bill Murray Moment 28 Photography

RELAX, WE’RE HERE. That’s right, the greatest arts and culture magazine in the known universe is here again, and yes, we are drinking cocktails and having fun in that photo, coz we can. We’d like to welcome all the lucky people reading this to Volume XXI of the Otwo magazine. If you have no interest in reading fantastic reviews, interviews and features from the artistic and cultural world, put this magazine down now. Yeah, thought not.

In our first issue this semester, Games sees reviews of Walking Dead Season 2 and See No Evil, while Karl “Two Black Eyes” Quigley pens an insightful feature on gaming culture.

Film & TV sees Aaron “I Know Hozier, I Swear” Murphy review Life Of Crime starring Jennifer Aniston – need I say more? Other films analysed (so you don’t have to) are Maps To The Stars and Before I Go To Sleep, while we give a rundown on the Top Ten Absurdly Violent Film Deaths. Our opening Film & TV features tell you what shows you should have watched this summer, as take an in-depth look at how Hollywood deals with deadly viruses.

In our centre feature, Shane “The Grand Seducer” Hannon sits down with man of the moment Brendan Gleeson, currently on our screens in the Canadian-made The Grand Seduction after a powerful performance in Calvary.

Music sees Seán “Bruce Willis” Hayes talk with both The Boxer Rebellion, and an interview with UCD Politics and Philosophy alumnus Dave McPhilips, who also happens to be the guitarist for the Coronas.

Two interviews for the price of one, that’s some cheap Lidl shit right there. Rebekah “I Love Macklemore” Rennick scrutinizes the recent Mercury awards, while the latest albums from Alt-J, The Kooks, Banks and Interpol are reviewed, plus much more.

In Fashion, our very own ‘Hun’ Sarah O’ Shea hits the streets, shows off the best in “adorkable” chic, and decides what’s #winning and #binning in the fashion world.

Our all-new Arts and Literature section sees Patrick “No Sleep Till Brooklyn” Kelleher interview Armagayddon star Tara Flynn, while our arts reviews and a feature on turning thrillers from paper to the big screen should satisfy your literary appetite.

As if you weren’t already more spoiled than a kid with two Happy Meals, we’ll tell you all about the recent Irish Craft Beer and Cider Festival and debate Bill Murray’s Most Outrageous Moment, while our Mystic Mitten predicts your horrifyingly bleak future and Conor “Stand-Up Thing” O’ Toole takes you back to school. Oh, and David “Bribe Me and I’ll Like You” Corscadden chats with chef Donal Skehan, robbing a recipe off him in the process.

It’s amazing what one can fit into 28 pages. Now sit back and enjoy, or your money back. (LOL JK, if you paid for this magazine you’re doing life wrong).

PEACE AND POUT, REBEKAH & SHANE

3

Back to School with Conor O’Toole

In a new column, Dublin comedian Conor O’Toole gives you the educational ride of a lifetime. On this week’s curriculum: colour I’d like to teach you a little bit about colours. I’m not a teacher, but I did play one in a short-lived RTÉ webseries, so I’m pretty sure I know how to do it.

Colour is a property of light that we humans like the most.

It’s the one that makes the setting sun so beautiful, the one that prevents RGB computer screens from being a bizarre inexplicable over-complification, and it’s the one that told our ancestors which fruits were ready to pick, and which ones weren’t ripe yet. Even today, it still tells people which fruits are ready to pick, and which ones aren’t ripe too, but I’m not related to any of them, so it barely seems worth mentioning.

Allegedly, rainbows are formed when light goes through some water droplets. I find this hard to believe, as I know some water droplets personally, and they rarely stay in the same place for more than a couple of seconds, before being yanked around by gravity or wind, or by a dog. Why don’t rainbows shake all over the place if the water droplets thing is true? Eh, Newton? Explain that, you dead jerk.

Another issue I have with rainbows is that no one seems willing to address the fact that INDIGO AND VIOLET ARE THE SAME COLOUR! They’re both purple! This seven colour idea is a load of horse apples, propagated no doubt by crayon manufacturers, and fans of 1987 fantasy film The Princess Bride. Only LGBTQ+ people are progressive enough to address this fallacy. They removed indigo from their flag in 1979. Whether this had anything to do with the comments indigo had made in the press about the gay community that year cannot be substantiated, and is likely just coincidence.

Obviously, there are an almost infinite number of colours in any rainbow, all the hues, covering the entire visible spectrum. The intricacies of colour-o-metry fascinate me. So you can imagine my disappointment when I read the book 50 Shades of Grey. If I had written that book there would’ve been less sex, and more shades of grey. She didn’t mention charcoal, or very light black, or ANY of my favourites.

I recently saw a trailer for the film adaptation of 50 Shades of Grey, and boy, was I disappointed. I hate when movies are unfaithful to the book they’re based on, and get this; the whole thing was in

colour! The book was printed in monochrome, presumably because it was cheaper, but perhaps it was because Wind and the Willows style illustrations would have been unsightly.

Colours are interesting, QED.

If you’re reading this the week the paper has come out, I’m doing a show in the Dublin Fringe, consider going to it. If the paper came out last week, or before that, please ignore the above request.

if I had written that book there would’ve been less sex, and more shades of grey. She didn’t mention charcoal, or very light black, or ANY of my favourites.

Mystic Mittens You don’t look that fresh to me, and I’ve been dead for years

Aries

Leo

You will list John Green as your favourite author in an English tutorial and be banished from the Newman building for all eternity.

A former SU sabbatical officer will be assigned to clean up your vomit in the Student Bar after you drunkenly accused him of not being able to do such a thing.

Taurus What’s the difference between crying and masturbation? Your Facebook page hasn’t made me cry.

Gemini

Virgo

Capricorn

You will befriend a classmate with the same birthday as you. Your shared birthday party’s Sister, Sister theme will start a debate on cultural appropriation on Tumblr.

You will get trapped in James Joyce library overnight and sleep inside a copy of Howard Zinn’s A People’s History of the United States for warmth.

You will describe an average-looking, middle-aged lecturer as “hot” and seek Freudian psychoanalysis about your relationship authority.

Libra

Aquarius

Cancer

You will finally find a lover able to stomach your horrendous personality. They’ll be the winner of C&E’s Iron Stomach challenge.

Scorpio

Your new ‘college phone’ is going to keep ringing in lectures and you won’t figure out how to put it on silent until week 4. Although by that point you’ll have missed so many lectures out of embarrassment that you can’t possibly catch up.

You realise that those paracetamol tablets you were given during Cascada’s set at the Freshers’ Ball may have been something else.

Pisces

You will learn the hard way this month that three is a successful threesome but four is a failed orgy. Or a “fourgy”.

4

Sagittarius You will stop boasting about getting into Law after your lecturer asks for spare change after class.

A society auditor will fail to relieve your concern by telling you that the photos of your bedroom window in your Freshers’ bag come as standard.

Interrailling—The Dos & Don’ts An increasingly popular way to see the European Continent, Shane Hannon examines the InterRailing phenomenon and how to maximise your experience

the port of split, croatia

DO

plan in advance. It’s not necessary to know for certain what cities/places you’ll be seeing beforehand, but having a fair idea of your route will make life much easier. Besides, being organised gives you the chance to figure out what you want to see or do in each destination.

DON’T

over pack. A medium-sized rucksack brimming with socks, underwear, t-shirts, comfortable walking shoes and toiletries really is all you need. Don’t be that guy/girl dragging a suitcase the size of the RDS around behind you. If you’re badly stuck, cheap clothes are aplenty in flea markets. Travelling light will also save you having to pay to check in a bag on your flight at the start of and the return of your adventure.

DO

travel with a person/people you get on well with. Surely there can be nothing worse than travelling across Europe with a person who is more annoying than the lovechild of Piers Morgan and the Crazy Frog. You should shiver at the thought.

DON’T

be afraid to act the tourist. The hipsters amongst you won’t like following the flock, but a visit to somewhere like Berlin is not complete without seeing the Berlin Wall, Checkpoint Charlie and the Brandenburg Gate. The outdoor thermal baths in Budapest are another must-do. Also, do the free tipbased walking tours in each city; they’re a great way of learning your way around whilst simultaneously taking in a bit of the city’s history and culture.

DO

book a sleeping bunk for the longer night trains. Take it from experience, sitting hungover in a tiny sweaty, noxious cabin with seven snoring people on a 9 hour train from Prague to Krakow is not fun.

Pay the extra 10/15 euro t get yourself a bunk-bed.

Book it a few days in advance at the departing train station to avoid disappointment.

DON’T

be afraid to rely on the odd McDonalds when you’re stuck and craving a Big Mac. People will say you’re being really uncultured, but I just say I don’t like the food in some places. You’re never far from a Micky D’s when InterRailing, and he truly is a tasty, reliable corporate machine. The free Wi-Fi is handy for calling Mammy and Daddy on Viber too so they know you’re still alive.

DO

the odd pub crawl. It’s a great way to meet people from your hostel and you can strike up friendships that last for a whole two days until your next train journey. Be aware however that you will be hungover the following day, so don’t go planning any travel or major excursions. A Prague pub crawl is highly recommended.

DON’T

go over budget. Stick to your guns at all times and don’t exceed the daily financial limits you’ve set yourself. Fifty euro per day including hostel accommodation should suffice, unless you’re a proper D4 and only a night’s sleep in the “Shelbourne Hotel of Bratislava” will do.

fences of the Auschwitz concentration camp

DO

visit the infamous Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp if you find yourself in Krakow.

A visit to any concentration camp is a powerful experience; standing in the place where the Nazis killed millions of innocent people is an experience you will never forget. You don’t need an interest in history either; a visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau truly is an emotional, human undertaking that everyone should experience.

DON’T

forget to finish up with relaxation and sun. Whether you find yourself on the Dalmatian coast of Croatia, the shores of Lake Garda in Italy, the French Riviera or the Greek islands, you’ll be glad of the rest. All the travelling and sight-seeing tends to take it out of you, and four or five days just lying on a beach taking in all you’ve seen in the previous few weeks is a must. Just don’t forget the Factor 50.

the Berlin Wall Photography: Shane Hannon

5

Food and drink

No longer just a kitchen hero Having firmly placed himself as the burning star of the new Irish food scene, Donal Skehan talks to David Corscadden about his passion for Irish cooking and his hectic year

Having just returned from a summer spent in Sweden and a stint in London to film a new cooking show, anyone would excuse Donal Skehan for putting the kettle on and putting his feet up. This is far from the case however, Skehan is on track to become an Irish food powerhouse to be reckoned with, and not just a kitchen hero.

It has not just been a busy summer but a jam packed 2014 in general for the Howth native. The past six months have seen him film two new television shows for RTÉ, launch a new cook book ,The Pleasures of the Table: Rediscovering Theodora Fitzgibbon, publish new issues of his food journal Feast and take YouTube by storm. Not to mention the major life moment of proposing to his girlfriend Sofie Larsson.

For Skehan his passion and love for food are the key driving force behind his motivation to share his food journey. His entry into the food writing scene really started when he moved out of home into his first apartment. “I had just moved in to an apartment and out of my family home, so it was my first opportunity to cook just for myself and Sofie. So we were cooking quite a lot and cooking on a budget cause you are not getting paid a hell of a lot.”

The purchase of his first camera and an interest in food photography allowed Skehan a chance to offer readers something that wasn’t overly utilised in the Irish blogging scene at the time. “My camera was a way into doing something a bit different because none of the Irish food blogs really had any decent photos at that time. That is when it kicked off.” Based around proper home cooking and drawing on the influences of the traditional Irish food of his childhood, Skehan explains that his blog really started off as a means to catalogue the dishes he was cooking. “I loved blogging because it was a way of cataloging the recipes that I was cooking cause I was doing a lot of it at that time.”

Following just six months of blogging, Skehan was approached to write his first book. It didn’t all happen overnight explains Skehan, “I was only six months blogging before I was contacted by an Irish publisher asking would I do a cookbook based on the blog. Then it basically rolled on from there.

It did take some time from there, from those initial six months, I think it was about two years after that the book came out“.

Since then he has seen a meteoric rise in popularity for his quick and easy to make style of cooking. “All my recipes I try and make it as easy as possible with ingredients that you will have in your store cupboard. There are of course more challenging ones in there but the essence of what is in there is always something that is achievable by a home cook”. Skehan’s success in the culinary world has not just been confined to Ireland though, he has been received the world over. Skehan has traveled around Italy for his Fox International cooking show Grandma’s Boy, been a judge on the UK’s Junior Masterchef and also become a presenter on the Swedish breakfast show Mitt Kök.

More recently Skehan has garnered attention in both the UK and globally thanks to an endorsement by Jamie Oliver and by joining Oliver’s ‘FoodTube’ on YouTube. Skehan’s move to YouTube has seen him enter into a new dimension of food. “The support has been great, Jamie has

6

YouTube has a lot of power where I don’t think people have realised it yet

been great and has really changed things a bit.

I am doing a lot more in the UK now. I spent the summer filming a new series in London. It really is fantastic and it has given me a bit of leverage over there.”

Skehan’s popularity on YouTube has exploded since he launched his own channel just four months ago. Starting off with around 2,000 subscribers, he has already reached over 85,000 and continues to clock up more each day. YouTube is a different kettle of fish than filming for television for Skehan. “In terms of it, I can have 400,000 people watching my series in Ireland on RTE, and that is really fantastic, but those people might not be there to see me, they might just be watching TV on that night. Whereas if you have 400,000 subscribers on YouTube they are there to see you and you alone. YouTube has a lot of power where I don’t think people have realised it yet.”

Keeping true to his ethos of easy to cook comfort food, Skehan has filled his YouTube channel with weekly installments of dishes that everyone will want to reproduce. Dishes like Vodka Penne, that Skehan shares in Cooks’ Corner on the next page, and his Pad Thai recipe, which can be found exclusively on our website, have received rave reviews.

The Skehan Express is showing no signs of slowing down anytime soon. The next six months are full of new projects and culinary adventures.

A trip to Vietnam to film a mini series for the Food Network, a new issue of Skehan’s food journal Feast is in the works and the expansion of his Skoff Pies will see Skehan just as busy closing out 2014 as he was going into it. Last week he also launched his new Spar Kitchen Hero Live Tour, which returns after great success last year. No doubt with all that Skehan has happening he will continue to win over fans and cement his status as a true food powerhouse.

Irish Craft Beer and Cider Festival The landmark event of an ever-growing community and industry, Rob Mac Carthy reviews this year’s Irish Craft Beer and Cider Festival

The Irish Craft Beer and Cider Festival, now in its third year of existence, has exploded into a landmark event for a scene that has been brewing quietly on this island for a few years now. For a nation with such a deeply engrained, co-dependent relationship with alcohol, Ireland has up until recently been more than happy to satiate itself with the usual cartel of big breweries. Any country where cans of Budweiser can be found in the “World Beer” section of supermarkets without a hint of irony really is a nation that is yet to embrace adventure. For those involved in this burgeoning brewing scene, the feeling is that all this is about to change. With over 50 stands and over 200 craft beers and ciders at this year’s four-day festival, not to mention its largest footfall yet, it’s hard to disagree.

Armed with a half-pint sampling glass, punters can sway from stand to stand, pinching tasters of an exceptionally diverse range of beers from all over Ireland. For €2.50 you can have your glass filled to the brim, an option you’ll certainly want to take up when you find a drink that particularly tickles your fancy.

Perhaps the greatest joy of an event of this nature is witnessing the growth of a new community. Chatting with the brewers themselves, predominantly Irish families and friends, you gain a real sense that these new

microbreweries are projects of passion. Fathers and sons, husbands and wives, these boozy entrepreneurs energetically explain the process of starting up their business, many of which have only popped up in recent months.

Much as wine exploded in Ireland in the 90s, with wine clubs popping up across the nation prompting the discovery that wine actually comes in flavours, not just colours, Ireland now finds itself on the cusp of a similar sea change with craft beers.

Riding a wave of enthusiasm from American hipsters, the microbrewery craze has reached our shores. For the uber-cool bohemian liberal, it is now a badge of honour to be able to name not just every seminal album of the 1990s, but also every underground craft beer worth knowing. The hope is that these family-made beers won’t just be washing up on the moustachioed upper-lips of Neutral Milk Hotel fans and that a wider audience can be found. The hope is that this explosion doesn’t burn out.

The Irish Craft Beer and Cider Festival ran from September 4th-7th in Dublin’s RDS. Check out universityobserver.ie for our top ten beers of the festival

Cooks’ Corner Vodka Penne, by donal Skehan

This recipe is inspired by the fantastic Lorraine Fanneran who runs the equally fantastic and awardwinning La Cucina in Limerick with her Italian husband Bruno. She is an expert at delicious little pasta dishes and this one definitely proves that. Parents, don’t worry: the alcohol burns off in the cooking, and anyway, the kids will be mightily impressed that you’re giving them vodka. Lorraine suggests 4 tablespoons of vodka (plus a few in a glass for yourself depending on how bad your day has been!).

Method: Cook the pasta in a large saucepan according to the instructions on the packet.

Meanwhile, heat the butter in a large frying pan over a medium heat, add the bacon and fry for 3–5 minutes until golden. Add the vodka and allow to simmer for a minute before adding the cream, tomato purée and parsley. Simmer gently for 5 minutes or until the sauce has thickened. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.

When the pasta is cooked, drain and add it to the sauce and mix through. Serve with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese.

For more recipes from Donal Skehan visit his website www.donalskehan.com or his YouTube channel, www. youtube.com/donalskehan.

Serves 4 350g dried penne 25g butter 125g pancetta or bacon bits or 2 slices cooked ham, chopped 4 tablespoon vodka 200ml double cream 3 tablespoon tomato purée A small handful of fresh flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped Salt and freshly ground black pepper Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, to serve

7

Games

See no evil A quintessentially indie puzzle game, See No Evil aims relatively low but manages to produce a polished title on the most shoestring budget. Anyone familiar with sequential problem solving games will recognise the game’s premise, as you are dropped into a strange location with a challenge to be mastered before being able to reach the exit and start it all over again.

The eponymous conceit of See No Evil is that non-player characters, both neutral and hostile, have varying degrees of blindness; they are only affected by the sounds you make. Helpfully, the game provides a visual representation of these sound waves, so simply walking across the screen will cause ripples to emanate from the user like a disturbance on water.

Although your character is also able to shout, and thereby direct sound in a particular direction, it is not possible to directly affect the environment through sound alone.

Instead, the player is reliant upon the AI’s response, such as the use of noise to disturb sleeping old men from their perches upon pressure sensitive buttons.

Such interactions are dependent upon the

Developer: Gabriel Priske Publisher: noetic games Platforms: PC

The Walking dead: season 2 Telltale Games have received high praise for their The Walking Dead: Season One and The Wolf Among Us. These two games have established them as the foremost developers to trust with adaptations and the studio that has revived the adventure game genre.

The studio has kept a sense of continuity between the games, as your saved data will carry on the effects of your choices in Season One. Clementine takes centre stage this season in The Walking Dead: Season Two and has matured considerably. Having aged in real time since the previous season, she’s a fantastic protagonist who exhibits an endearing mixture of youthful naivety and cynical world-weariness. Clementine’s character is where the influence of your choices from Season One are most evident, as her attitude has been shaped by her prior experiences.

Season Two is even more unrelenting than its predecessor, with Clementine being thrown in the deep end from the start, though later episodes in the season manage a better balance in pacing.

In terms of plot and characters, Season Two can stand alongside Season One with plenty of twists and turns in the narrative and a diverse cast of characters in regards to race, gender, sexual orientation and mental health. These differences are also generally addressed with subtlety and respect.

The main difference this season is the introduction of a recurring antagonist in the form of the vindictive William Carver voiced by Michael Madsen. Carver is the nearest equivalent to the characters of the

8

Governor or Negan from the comics, and his inclusion emphasises that in the zombie apocalypse the greatest danger is often from your fellow survivors.

Madsen’s performance as Carver is also one of the outstanding highlights of the season.

The main criticism that can be levelled with this season is that the choices made in Season One and in the 400 Days DLC don’t seem to have had much impact, leading only to cosmetic changes. This is disappointing but understandable considering that Telltale obviously do not want to put off newcomers to the franchise. This makes further sense as it will eventually be a cross-generational release and it will be impossible for XboxOne and PS4 owners to import their previous save data.

However, the decisions you make in Season Two have a profound influence upon the conclusion, with six generally divergent endings available. None of these endings manage to deliver the same emotional punch as Season One’s finale but they do make you feel as though your actions have played a far greater role in determining the outcome.

With a third instalment already announced, it will be interesting to see what direction the series will take next. Perhaps Clementine’s story will end to allow a new character to step forward. If it’s anything like this season though, it’s set to be another emotionally charged ride.

Steven Balbirnie

Developer: Telltale Games Publisher: Telltale games Platforms: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, iOS, Windows, OS Xtt

AI’s reaction, and the effects will typically operate in a narrow time window. Old men will return to their original positions, hermits will attempt to resume their patrols, and guards will take up their original sentry spots. As such, slightly unusual for the genre, many puzzles will be as much a test of dexterity as of logic. Fast reflexes will be key to both solving puzzles and avoiding death at the hands of your sightless pursuers.

These AI characters, the copious environment furniture and enigmatic narrator may leave you curious about the setting. Clues litter the game concerning your character, the “Seer”, and the reason for your unique position. The darkness that pervades the landscape, both literal and metaphorical, gives the environment a dream-like quality.

Unfortunately, while See No Evil always seems on the verge of actually telling a story, it tends to opt instead for allegory. While this lends to the atmosphere, it can otherwise be largely discounted.

Duncan Wallace

The Rise of the Gamer

With many e-sports gamers being recognised as legitimate professionals and recent social gaming “experiments”, Karl Quigley examines the idea that the gaming community can be seen as a culture in itself

Throughout the evolution of gaming, from the classics of Pong and Pac-Man to the newest blockbuster releases of the Call of Duty or Assassin’s Creed series, the gaming community has always been associated with negative terms. Even today, with video gaming as popular and mainstream as any other form of entertainment, the word gamer is often associated with so-called ‘nerds’. Regardless of how mainstream it gets, the dedicated community who call themselves ‘true gamers’ are looked down upon. The gaming community is plagued by the controversy of misrepresentation in the media and the ever present stigma of dedicated gaming. Yet time after time, the community perseveres.

The community itself is unique in its own way, containing dozens of smaller sects dedicated to their own way of gaming. There’s something for everyone, the most well-known including first person shooters (FPS) like Counter Strike or Call of Duty for the trigger happy, snap-reaction shooters, real time strategies (RTS) like Company of Heroes or Starcraft for those that plan two steps ahead, and of course role playing games (RPGs) like Skyrim or Mass Effect for a more immersive experience and those after a personal touch to their games.

But what truly makes this community unique is that there are deeper, more

invested sects within these groups. Within the communities of RTS and FPS players there are hard-core players who dedicate thousands of hours to a game of their choice, learning the minute and subtle details that give them the slightest of edges.

Recently E-Sports, or electronic sports, have come under scrutiny. These competitions often involve hundreds if not thousands of talented and skilled players battling for the grand prize - which is often large sums of money or sponsorship from a large gaming firm. There are unsurprisingly debates about whether E-Sports can be considered real sports. To compete, a certain skill level must be attained.

Similarly to any conventional sport, it requires large amounts of training and honing of those skills. The bigger competitions are often viewed by hundreds of thousands of people across the world, with prizes akin to those found in regular competitions.

As one of the most interactive forms of entertainment, these micro-cultures also allow for a unique study of human behaviour. Some examples can be noted; one intentional and the other emerging from a popular mod.

Curiosity - What’s Inside the cube? was released for all mobile devices in Winter 2012

by Peter Molyneux’s studio 22Cans. The game was simple in its objective with all players together in one room with one giant cube.

Upon further inspection it was noted that it was made up of smaller cubes and then 22Cans announced that there were sixty-nine million cubelets and that a secret was held within this cube. The person who clicked away the last cube would win whatever was inside.

Molyneux himself claimed that while people played this game, they would be taking part in something larger, without even knowing it. It was a social experiment - every player knew they could not do it alone, but every player also wanted to be the person to click that last cube. A co-operative competition, always active regardless of whether you were online or not. It was a multiplayer social experiment conducted across the world and lasted until May 2013.

A more renowned game that could also be seen as a social experiment is DayZ. Built originally as a modification of the military simulator A.R.M.A, the game became majorly popular and is currently in early development for a full release. The game is based around survival in a zombie apocalypse, and the hyper realism offered by the military simulator became immensely popular with gamers looking for a challenge. It is a fully multiplayer experience, meaning other players are in the world with you and more often than not, the zombies are not the real threat.

Encountering another player is generally

a tense experience, debating whether you will try to walk away, co-operate, or, if you’re aggressive, make the first move. Watching others play DayZ is always interesting, as some choose to scavenge in the wild outside cities and towns, while others prefer the more reliable method of gathering resources inside a city. This of course came with the increased risk of other players and, less importantly, other zombies.

Some players are bandits, attacking other humans on sight for their gear and supplies.

Others prefer to talk to or avoid other players as much as possible. Trusting a stranger in DayZ can prove fatal; misplacing trust in a random stranger has more than once resulted in a bullet to the back of the head. It is odd that such a game can bring out generally unseen characteristics in people, and while some see it as harmless, it can be interpreted as a view on someone’s character.

It could be argued that the situations players find themselves in in these gaming social experiments could be used to reflect on real-life society as a whole. Yet the uniqueness of the micro-culture of gamers is so different to the usual day-to-day that it is, in all likelihood, a step away from an accurate comparison.

The situations players find themselves in in these gaming social experiments could be used to reflect on reallife society as a whole.

9

Film and Television

the Shows You Should Have Watched This Summer Need something to fill the Game Of Thrones-shaped hole in your heart? Matthew Hanrahan has the shows you should have been watching this Summer

This Summer has been a fantastic time for television all round. The usual void we are left to fill with substandard network reruns was mercifully absent. Though it is not possible to watch every worthy television show broadcast over the Summer, here is a pick of Otwo’s favourite shows you should have watched.

MAD MEN The first and most underrated show on the list is Mad Men. The reason this show is not the one on everyone’s lips is that it is not a show that demands your attention with shocking twists and story lines. It is instead a slow, brilliantly portrayed example of character development that explores a variety of themes; in particular racism, sexism and the hollowness of materialism.

The 1960s setting of the show (and its comparability and applicability to our own lives) is used to outstanding effect. The latest season was by all accounts excellent television, but leaves very little left for the series finale due to the decision to split the season in half (similar to what was done with with Breaking Bad final season).

The pressure is on to make this a truly memorable end to an entertaining and rich show.

THE LEGEND OF KORRA The best animated show on the Otwo’s radar was The Legend of Korra. It is the sequel series to Avatar: The Legend of Aang, arguably one of the best animated television shows of all time. The Legend of Korra had a consistent but slow first season. It has suffered from trying to follow too many characters. This makes the show seem like it’s not being given the time it needs for its immersive storyline in its 23 minute run time. The Legend of Aang also had the advantage of being a series with a clear objective, and telling the story as one big nomadic adventure came naturally to it. Comparatively, The Legend of Korra has relied on a totally different dynamic which has made cultivating a sense of adventure more challenging. Further to this, the pressure was on for the third series after the finale of the previous. The series needed a different direction and the writers delivered spectacularly to tackle all doubts in the viewers. This is highly recommended viewing for any fans of the original series.

ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK Netflix followed up their Valentine’s Day release of House of Cards, with their summer release of Orange is the New Black which was, again, released all in one go. The second season has lived up to all of the expectations set by the ground breaking first season. The show explores life inside a women’s prison and focuses on Piper Chapman, a privileged woman who, in her twenties, becomes a drug smuggler. She is caught and sentenced to time behind bars. The casting is praised and criticised for being a blatant vehicle for giving societal minorities a platform in the media. Whatever you think of all of this, this brilliantly made series is about the characters’ lives on the outside (as well as the inside) and how it bred the circumstances that led to their incarceration. It leaves the audience to pass judgement on characters and is not overtly political. The second season continues on in the same vein as the first, although this time a new antagonist is introduced to the equation and becomes a fulcrum for the storylines of the season to move from. As a result, it was better paced this season than last and the perfect fodder for binge-watching.

THE WALKING DEAD The only notable disappointment this summer was The Walking Dead. Having been one of the best executed examples in its genre for a number of year, it has now reached the point where it feels repetitive. It feels like the antagonists needs to not be the external threat of flesh eating zombies or even other survivors, which its previous seasons dealt with well. Season 4 had the opportunity to explore the attempt to rebuild and the reasons to live in a zombie-infested world. Unfortunately this season failed to move on thematically and the show as a whole is slowly becoming nothing more than a post-apocalyptic soap opera. Its story lines are beginning to stagnate and be recycled. It is of course well-acted and the show has continuously improved its ratings season on season, but there needs to be a move away from the norm now. In spite of all this, it somehow still makes for addictive, if disappointing, viewing.

Louie Louis C.K.’s reputation precedes himself in the world of stand-up comedy, but since the debut of his FX series Louie, he’s slowly garnered a reputation as one television’s greatest auteurs. For those unfamiliar with it, imagine an art-house

10

Seinfeld. As writer, director and leading man, C.K. tells stories of his comedically tragic romantic and family life through a careful blend of stand-up, surrealism and drama. The fourth season, which ran this summer, saw the show take its already lofty ambitions to new heights. The six-part ‘Elevator’ arc is easily one of the highlights of the television year, managing to be funnier than any network sitcom while fearlessly tackling the pains of divorce, parenthood and love.

UTOPIA A mention also has to go to Dennis Kelly’s Channel 4 conspiracy thriller Utopia which followed up from a superb first season with an even better second season, maintaining its unique cinematic and hyper-violent visuals, as well as fantastically crafted plot and characters.

Summer is of course all about beaches, sun, travel and relaxing – however, missing out on critically-acclaimed television is not a wise thing to do. There’s still time to catch up in between lectures (or if you’re studying medicine, there’s always time after you’ve graduated).

The Ebola Crisis and the Hollywood Effect

With the recent Ebola virus outbreak leading to reactions ranging from apathy to fear-mongering, Leanne Scott examines whether the cinematic portrayal of such pandemics has an effect on the public reaction

The screenplay was inspired by such pandemics Neuroscientist Rodolfo Llinas writes in The as the SARS outbreak of 2003 and the influenza I of the Vortex that “the brain’s understanding outbreak of 2009 and brings to light the mass of anything, whether factual or abstract, arises hysteria caused by a lack of information. from our manipulations of the external world, In the film we see that the true instigator by our moving within the world and thus from of the panic is Allen, played by Jude Law. Allen our sensory-derived experience of it”. Simply begins to blog about the virus and implies that put, when we go to the cinema our brain, as one it is a man-made virus created to better the would assume, uses our own experiences of the profits of pharmaceutical companies. As the world to understand what is happening on the virus is contracted by more and more people, big screen. In saying that, the corollary must also apply; we use what we have witnessed in films to the community flock to Allen’s blog in search of answers. However Allen’s conspiracy only puts understand situations in real life. pressure on the medical personnel who are trying Historically film has been used to alter public desperately to find a cure. This causes the panic to perception. Hitler’s use of Leni Riefenstahl’s grow and surge out of control. Burns himself has film-making ability during his dictatorship led to said that the Ebola virus itself is not the pandemic, the film Triumph of the Will which was the most successful and obvious example of the persuasive rather it is the manmade fear surrounding it.

People have been misinformed by Twitter nature of film ever. As Triumph of the Will proved, posts such as that of Donald Trump that read: films can have a massive effect on society. The film industry often includes exaggerated, fictional “The U.S cannot allow Ebola infected people back.

People that go to faraway places to help out are story lines for the purpose of entertainment. But does this affect our perception and expectations of great – but must suffer the consequences!” Such an outrageous comment only serves to propagate the real world? a sense of community fear and enmity towards In 2011, the Steven Soderbergh film Contagion was released, with the screenplay written by Scott people from Ebola infected countries, whether Z. Burns. The film is based around the outbreak of those people are themselves infected or not. This a lethal virus which leads to a national pandemic. xenophobic statement is certainly reminiscent of

the cages in the background of Children Of Men. Though that film deals with a fertility crisis rather than a disease, the idea is the same - keep out the people from other countries who might make life worse.

Ebola is contracted upon interaction with blood or bodily fluid of someone infected. The virus has also been reported to be carried by primates.

Nothing suggests that it can be contracted by any other means. Trump’s comment implies that Ebola is easily spread, which it isn’t if you avoid swimming in septic tanks and going on vampiric raids. Those most at risk are the people who treat it and the people in underdeveloped countries with no proper hygiene infrastructure.

One would wonder why Trump came out with such an insensitive comment. Could it be that audiences are learning to fear rather than feel for others because of these often factually incorrect Hollywood ideas?

Like Contagion, M. Night Shyamalan’s The Happening, released in 2008, deals with an unusual outbreak that has no cure. What’s different about The Happening is that the virus causes people to commit suicide. Little is known about the virus and, like Contagion, this lack of information causes people to jump to conclusions.

Many believe that terrorists are the cause of the attacks. What is worrying about this film is that little compassion is shown for those who have died; the characters merely get on with trying to flee from the virus. The subjective nature of empathy in this particular film makes the death toll seem like little more than a footnote.

As you continue to watch the film you will notice that somehow the main plot of the baffling outbreak becomes a sub-plot to the troubled relationship of Elliot (Mark Wahlberg) and Alma (Zooey Deschanel). Hollywood loves a good love story and somehow the virus doesn’t appear quite as threatening anymore when the attention turns to whether they’ll get back together or not. A very similar departure takes place in the obvious plot of Ruben Fleischer’s 2009 hit Zombieland.

Though the film is at heart a comedy, until the love plot was thrown into the mix it seemed to have a genuine heartfelt recognition of its own bleak reality.

If there’s one thing that is obvious, it is that Hollywood uses irrational and shallow fear to make pandemics seem horrific, while also distancing itself from the tragedy of the diseases.

Could it be that audiences are learning to fear rather than feel for others because of these often factually incorrect Hollywood ideas?

11

Film Reviews

Life of Crime

Director: Daniel Schechter Starring: Mos Def, John Hawks, Jennifer Aniston, Tim Robbins, Isla Fisher, Will Forte.

Release Date: out now

Life of Crime is the story of a trophy wife, Mickey (Jennifer Aniston), who gets kidnapped by partners, Ordell (Mos Def) and Louis (John Hawks). Subsequently, her husband Frank (Robbins), decides he doesn’t want her back, and wires get crossed. They plan the kidnapping, and we get a classic caper montage with heavy bass lines to really warm us up for what turns out to be a really anti-climactic and tense kidnapping scene. However, the kidnapping is successful, even with the interruption of the wannabe-adulterer, Marshall (Will Forte). They knock him out and lock him in the closet before leaving with Mickey in tow.

Frank, being led by Melanie (Isla Fisher), decides that letting them keep his wife is cheaper than the alimony of the divorce he had just filed for. The plot gradually begins to thicken as there is a power struggle between Frank and the kidnappers, followed by one among the kidnappers themselves and their rotund, weaponcrazed, Neo-Nazi accomplice Richard. There’s also the unnecessary

subplot of Louis and Mickey’s growing affinity for each other.

As the movie progresses, Frank sinks in to the background and it becomes clear that Marshall was really an afterthought character merely there to build some tension. The character names are obviously a nod to Quentin Tarantino’s 1997 film, Jackie Brown.

Unfortunately, the reality of this film’s release is that most people are not going to get the references, obscure or blatant, to what is probably Tarantino’s least well known film, and so they fall flat.

The movie isn’t visually stunning, or even funny, and does best when conflict reigns. This means that though the plot is complex and engaging, the character development scenes are uninteresting and slow, and ruin the immersive qualities of the film. This is as much down to the writing as anything else.

The setting of 1970’s Detroit does nothing for the film and could well have been left out. The film is shot mainly between the beach-side apartment, the house in which they are holding Mickey

and the local tennis club, which makes the film seem very isolated.

The son who was used to portray Frank as a horrible father in the beginning is forgotten about and, at times, the film seems just a bit stumped with where to go. The film is not a long one, at 98 minutes, but perhaps it could have been even shorter.

It’s ultimately a case of too much caper, not enough comedy. It feels like the film could have lost some of the little plot points, and been streamlined into a really fun crime comedy where the jokes actually land. Instead, there are superfluous characters and sub plots that make the film feel neglected, cold and ill thought out.

These really take away from some very solid performances and a script with so much to give.

In a nutshell: Shows real flashes of promise and excitement, but ultimately fails to hold your attention to ransom.

Aaron Murphy

before I go to sleep Before I Go To Sleep is quite like 50 First Dates, if it were a disturbing psychological thriller instead of a silly rom-com. Both films share the same premise; they focus on characters that suffer from conditions that make it impossible for them to store new memories. Unfortunately, and ironically, both films are also quite forgettable.

The film opens as Christine Lucas (Nicole Kidman) awakens to find herself sleeping in a strange man’s bed with no memory of the last thirteen years. She creeps to the bathroom in her soon to be familiar deer-in-the-headlights guise, to find a wall covered in picture evidence of her marriage to said man. She returns to the bedroom to be spoon-fed her past by the man who claims to be her husband Ben (Colin Firth). When he leaves she receives a call from another man (Mark Strong), who in turn spoon-feeds her information about her present condition and anterograde memory loss, while asking her not to tell her husband he’s calling. This cycle repeats itself each day.

In fact, about half of the film seems to be Ben and Dr. Nash (Strong) “mansplaining” at an oblivious Christine. It sometimes feels like the premise is just being exploited for easy exposition instead of as a tool for clever narrative subversion. Once Christine begins recording video diaries, without her husband’s knowledge, she essentially gains memories of the previous day anyway, so the whole premise seems to become superfluous.

Whereas Christopher Nolan’s Memento, which also features a character with no short-term memory, takes full advantage of its characters condition in its scattered narrative, Before I Go To

12

Director: Rowan Joffé Starring: Nicole Kidman, Colin Firth, Mark Strong, Anne-Marie Duff Release date: out now

Sleep merely employs it as a tool to disguise its inevitable twist.

It’s even easy to forget that Christine has no short-term memory as she has access to her video diaries from the beginning of the film.

In terms of acting, Kidman delivers as her usual doe-eyed self, but doesn’t bring anything new to the table. Firth and Strong both play on their reputations for being typecast to give their characters greater believability, but not enough to convince or surprise unfortunately. Though Firth does bring emotion to his biggest scenes, he seems oddly peripheral throughout the film. Until the addition of two new characters in the final scene, Before I Go To Sleep seems disconnected and cold, especially odd considering its domestic setting.

It is very difficult to talk about Before I Go To Sleep’s plot without spoiling its twists. There is just enough misdirection and mystery to disguise the, in retrospect, obvious conclusion.

Looking back, the red herrings are cheap, but the film skips along quickly enough for first time viewers to glaze over its faults and plot holes, though also quick enough some subtleties may be missed.

In A Nutshell Before You Go to Sleep won’t put you to sleep, but you won’t remember it by the following morning.

Ross McKeever

Maps to the stars

top ten Spectacularly Violent Kills

10 9 8 7 6 5

Deadly Friends

You’ve seen Man Getting Hit By Football, but have you ever seen “Woman Getting facial reconstruction with basketball”? It’s a lot bloodier. And there are robots. Naturally enough, it is directed by Wes Craven.

Director: David Cronenberg Starring: Julianne Moore, Mia Wasikowska, John Cusack, Robert Pattinson.

Release Date: September 26th

David Cronenberg’s latest directorial release, Maps To The Stars, is a disturbing yet deeply enthralling 112 minutes of cinema. But then, if you are familiar with any of the Canadian filmmaker’s work, that comes as standard.

Cronenberg directed the 1983 film The Dead Zone, where a young schoolteacher (played by Christopher Walken) awakens from a coma to find that he has psychic powers, and his early films often dealt with anomalies of the human condition. Perhaps his best-known work is The Fly (1986), a remake of the 1958 original, starring Jeff Goldblum as a scientist physically altered by his own experiment into one of cinema’s truly disgusting creations.

Dealing with the Hollywood pursuit of fame and fortune at any cost, Maps To The Stars is equally fascinating, and the satiric drama also deals with the lesser themes of family and self-validation.

The film has been described as a ‘dark, comic look at Hollywood excess’, essentially an acerbic look at the dysfunction present in Hollywood. The spoilt child stars who go off the rails, the reliance on both legal and illegal pharmaceuticals, and the massive egos present in Tinseltown are all issues dealt with honestly, if perhaps in an exaggerated fashion, in the film.

The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in May where the lead, the evergreen Julianne Moore, won the festival’s Best Actress award for her convincing performance as an ageing actress trying to maintain her Hollywood relevancy. Her character, Havana Sagrand, goes through much emotional and psychological turmoil in the film, all

Sin City

Sin City’s neo-noir comic book aesthetic is striking, so much so that you might glaze over its culmination as Bruce Willis castrates and collapses the skull of a yellow man bare handed.

because she is haunted by her past.

Incredibly, the film is Cronenberg’s first movie he has filmed on U.S. soil, and was in development for roughly six years. John Cusack , who plays a celebrity TV psychologist, has said that when he saw the script he thought it was “the most savage destruction of Hollywood fame and secrets” he had seen, which goes some way to prove that the film was worth the developmental wait, at least in his eyes.

Robert Pattinson plays a struggling actor and writer working as a limo driver “to pay the bills” – his character (the only truly sane one) was based on the film’s screenplay writer Bruce Wagner. Periodic comic relief is provided by the spoilt teen sensation Benjie Weiss (played by Evan Bird) who is so arrogant and hateful it can be humorous at times. Finally, Mia Wasikowska moves on from playing the title roles in Alice in Wonderland and Jane Eyre to the more sinister role of Benjie’s misunderstood pyromaniac sister, on a mission to make amends for past wrongdoings. Having it been considered one of the year’s most anticipated films, it really delivers. Once you see past the incest and sporadic gore, of course In a Nutshell: A captivating film you will regret watching, but want to watch again.

Shane Hannon

Machete

In this film Danny Trejo disembowels a man and uses his large intestine as an escape rope.

Isn’t that enough?

Robocop

Emil Antonowsky’s skin is left horrifically disfigured after Robocop dupes him into driving into a vat of toxic waste. Thankfully, another speeding car puts him out of his misery in a memorably explosive fashion.

Hard Ticket To Hawaii

When a kill scene somehow introduces a sex doll, a bazooka and a skateboarding assassin in the space of a minute, you know it’s going to be good. Despite all common sense a man who is probably ‘smoking a lot of doobies’ is improbably launched into the air by a car and exploded at close distance.

Showdown in Little Tokyo

Have you ever looked at a wheel of fortune and thought ‘wouldn’t it be great if Dolph Lundgren impaled Hiroyuki Tagawa to this using a samurai sword, causing it to spin uncontrollably and explode?’ Well Mark L. Lester did. His latest movie is about an underwater T-Rex that attacks an island.

4

Commando

Not only does Arnold Schwarzenegger electrocute his adversary Bennett at the end of Commando, he also shoves a big metal pipe straight through his body, penetrating a gas tank behind him. When gas begins to shoot out of the pipe, Arnold tells Bennett to “let off some steam”, as his recently traumatized daughter watches. Classic Arnold.

3 2 1

Hobo With a Shotgun Hobo with a Shotgun breaks all the rules when its villains burn a bus full of innocent children to death to the tune of disco inferno. It doesn’t get much more spectacularly violent than that.

The Toxic Avenger

After falling into a barrel of toxic waste, Melvin Junko emerges as the Toxic Avenger. Armed only with his trusty mop, Junko takes revenge on those who wronged him in his past life, using the most “mind-blowingly” inventive use of a weights machine in film along the way. It’s heavy.

Marked For Death

Steven Seagal is never content to kill someone just once. He initially kills his Jamaican foe Screwface by castrating and decapitating him with a sword. When he discovers Screwface is actually two twins acting under one moniker. So he finds the other brother, gouges his eyes out, throws him through a wall, snaps his spine in multiple places and drops him from a fatal height, onto a spike. “Let’s hope they’re not triplets”.

13

Grand Expectations

With a starring role in the light-hearted ‘The Grand Seduction’ hot on the heels from the critically-acclaimed ‘Calvary’, Brendan Gleeson sits down with Shane Hannon to discuss Canadian accents, the Irish language and the fundamental theme of community

Brendan Gleeson’s acting career is far from your classic tale of Hollywood triumph by any stretch of the imagination. A secondary school teacher of English, Irish and P.E. at, the now closed, Catholic Belcamp College near Coolock in north County Dublin in a past life, Gleeson only left teaching in 1991 to commit full-time to acting. By then he was in his mid-thirties, but he has certainly made up for lost time.

Gleeson has been critically praised the world over for his powerfully realistic portrayal of a doomed priest in the John Michael McDonagh’s Calvary. The influential U.S. film website Indiewire has even gone so far as to suggest Gleeson as a dark horse for a Best Actor Academy Award nomination when award season comes back around. The emotional toll Calvary took on Gleeson during the filming has been well documented in the press.

During promotional work for the film Gleeson revealed that he himself had been molested years ago by a Christian Brother who “dropped the hand”.

Although he asserts that the incident was “just one of those things where something odd happened”, the film itself highlights the traumatic lifelong mental strain that was and is often indelibly marked on victims of sexual abuse. It is a more light-hearted and yet still deeply meaningful Canadian film that Gleeson filmed prior to that role as Father James Lavelle, and that film is one that will have surely

14

In the film Gleeson’s on-screen wife decides to make to persuade the film’s token hunk Dr. Paul Lewis resonated with the Irish public. the move to St. John’s for work, but stubbornness (played by Taylor Kitsch) ensue, with the villagers The Grand Seduction is based on Jean-Francois keeps his own character from following suit. “He even learning to play cricket (the doctor’s favourite Pouliot’s 2003 French-Canadian film La Grande doesn’t feel like the city is him at all. It’s a dilemma.” sport) to make him feel more at home.

Séduction, and is directed by Toronto-born actor, His character’s accelerated efforts to secure a doctor Gleeson had been eager to push this project writer and filmmaker Don McKellar. McKellar for the area come about when he realises Tickle along, and the well-written script and at times garnered much critical acclaim with his 1998 Head might fade away if it doesn’t secure the uproarious cast prove he had reason to be so directorial debut Last Night, which went on to win optimistic. “I was interested in pushing this because factory for the area. “He suddenly realises it’s not the prestigious Prix de la Jeunesse at the Cannes enough to merely be there, he has to have a reason I kind of felt I had a true line, so why would I try Film Festival. to be there too.” to look for something else?” Back in 2011 the late In The Grand Seduction Gleeson plays Murray One aspect of Gleeson’s performance that is Robin Williams was in fact linked with the film, but French, a head-strong fisherman reluctantly worth the price of admission alone is his mastery of apparent scheduling conflicts arose. The casting picking up welfare cheques along with the rest of the tricky Newfoundland accent in the film. “I said at however is one aspect of this film that warrants the locals because of the economic downturn that the start that if we’re doing this, then I want it to be no criticism; 84-year-old Canadian legend Gordon has hit their small harbour village of Tickle Head on that line where you can have great craic with the Pinsent and Mark Critch, writer and star of the in Newfoundland. Gleeson says himself that the accent, but you’re not laughing at it.” The Statistics weekly Canadian TV comedy This Hour Has 22 film is true to reality in that the culture of these Canada 2006 census revealed that an impressive Minutes, bounce off each other and Gleeson with bays which were based completely on fishing have 21.5% of modern Newfoundlanders claim Irish consummate ease. Gleeson himself reveals that “it been destroyed. “Here’s a man in his fifties who was constant with the two of them. Gordon Pinsent heritage, and it is clear to see throughout the film has his own crisis with that. He’s mooching around, is a total legend everywhere he goes in Canada, they that the music, religion and accents on show aren’t taking the dole and his sense of himself has been all that far removed from that of rural Ireland. just adore him.” completely diminished.”

There are many different dialects in the wider The outflow of people from Tickle Head to the Tickle Head is thrown a lifeline when it emerges Newfoundland region, all of which add substantially city of St. John’s to find work somewhat mirrors that it is being considered as the location for a new to the cultural uniqueness of Canada as a whole. petrochemical factory, something that would revive the huge numbers of Irish emigrating to countries the local economy and put people back to work. One like Australia for improved work prospects. Gleeson Gleeson jokes of his own attempts at the accent that points out that in places like the American Midwest “there are something like 180 different dialects in stumbling block stands in their way however; in Newfoundland alone so there are 181 of them now!” and here at home communities are under threat. order to be considered the village needs a resident “It’s a question of whether people find there’s enough doctor and eight unsuccessful years of trying value in them to maintain them or to fight for them.” don’t bode all that well. Often hilarious attempts

I said at the start that if we’re doing this then I want it to be on that line where you can have great craic with the accent, but you’re not laughing at it.

Gleeson is a huge advocate of the Irish language and promotes it when possible (many Leaving Certificate students in this country will recall his portrayal of the slightly agitating blind cake-eater Paul in the short film Cáca Milis). He is also hugely interested in his home country’s culture and heritage, and is a keen fiddle player.

A former Irish teacher at secondary school level himself, Gleeson is hugely enthusiastic about getting more people to speak ‘as Gaeilge.’ He notes that “there are expressions and things expressed in the language that you’re going to find amazing if you can access it.”

The negative aspects of how Irish is taught in schools in this country is blatantly obvious to him however. “The biggest problem I found with teaching Irish wasn’t so much what happened in the class; it’s that once you went outside, that’s it.”

Making the learning of Irish mandatory in secondary schools is one thing that, in Gleeson’s opinion, will have put countless numbers of students off the language permanently. However he feels the situation can only improve. “At least it’s valued now. It became compulsory, so you couldn’t do this or you couldn’t do that if you didn’t have Irish. It became the enemy in a way; instead of a gift it was a poisoned chalice and people hated it.”

Many people in this country see the Irish language as a dying thing, but the Dublin native hopes it doesn’t

come to that, saying Irish is in fact “a connection of 2000 years of culture that is very specific to us.” Realistically, when learning any new language, complete immersion is the only true way to take all on board. “What frustrated me in terms of my own Irish was I wasn’t in the position to spend much time in the Gaeltacht. I went down for a couple of weeks and as soon as I was getting into the flow of it I had to come back.”

Most teenagers worldwide will mainly recognize Gleeson for his portrayal of the Hogwarts Defence against the Dark Arts teacher Mad-Eye Moody in the Harry Potter films. His teaching background actually gives him the distinct honour of being the first and to date only actor to have played a Hogwarts professor who had been at some point or other an employed teacher in real life.

One of Gleeson’s co-stars in the Harry Potter series is his eldest son Domhnall, who played Bill Weasley in the screen version of J.K. Rowling’s acclaimed novels.

Domhnall is also due to appear in the star-studded and much anticipated Star Wars Episode VII, which is due for release in December 2015. Acting talent is clearly something that runs in the Gleeson blood with another son, Bríain, an up and coming star who has already appeared in the likes of Love/Hate and The Stag.

In their father, the Gleeson sons are learning from the very best in acting talent, and yet any discussions about acting in the family seem to be kept to a minimum. “I would only give advice to them if I was asked. We seem

able to keep a certain objectivity when it comes to looking at our work.”

The Grand Seduction performed well at the Canadian box office, and its performance in Ireland has been expected to be quite strong as well, not least because of the lure of Brendan Gleeson. When asked whether he thinks it will perform as well in Ireland as across the Atlantic, Gleeson is quietly confident. “I hope so, and I hope it gives people a laugh. We tried to keep a kind of integrity in it, a certain soul in it, we wanted to show that it is about something.”

Gleeson’s acting C.V. is more impressive than his modest and friendly demeanour would suggest. His performances in the likes of The General, Braveheart, In Bruges, 28 Days Later, Troy, Gangs of New York, The Treaty and the remarkably successful and hilarious The Guard have ensured he is the subject of much acting acclaim. Freelance writer Monika Bartyzel of The Week unwittingly described the film’s lead actor in her review of The Grand Seduction. Brendan Gleeson truly is a man “overflowing with charm from end to end.”

The biggest problem I found with teaching Irish wasn’t so much what happened in the class; it’s that once you went outside, that’s it.

15

Still addicted to progress On the verge of their first major label release, UCD alumnus and Coronas’ lead guitarist, Dave McPhilips chats with Gráinne Hennessy about working with friends, his time in UCD and the body hidden in their tour bus

Sitting in a London coffee shop on a Sunday afternoon, Dave McPhillips has a lot to be smiling about. He has just come from the recording studio, where he and his bandmates, who collectively make up The Coronas, are putting the finishing touches to their highly anticipated, upcoming album. He remains coy about a release date, but does hint that the record will drop towards the end of the month.

This album will mark the fourth release by the four-piece band, their first with the backing of a major label. In July, The Coronas signed a record deal with Island Records, the same label that boasts the likes of Hozier, Bombay Bicycle Club and Disclosure. Speaking about the forthcoming release, McPhillips reveals “We’ve pretty much finished recording this album and we are going to tour it as much as we can. With Island on board it gives us a great chance to do some things we’ve never done before.”

Major record labels are regularly criticised for pressuring and manipulating their acts to change their image and sound in order to reach as wide an audience as possible. McPhillips, however, is positive about his label. “When Island signed us, they told us that they signed us on the strength of our new material, the demos we sent them, and so they see this album as our first album.”

16

While Island may regard the as-of-yet untitled release as the band’s first album, The Coronas’ previous releases are not to be forgotten.

Released independently, all three albums were met with critical acclaim and continued to steadily help grow the group’s fan base. Their previous record, Closer To You topped the Irish Indie Chart, reaching number three in the overall chart. Reflecting on their past releases, McPhillips believes that “we have improved with every album we’ve done. To continue being able to do what we love with the same group of friends is a very lucky situation to find ourselves in.”

On the subject of friends, McPhillips offers an insight into the dynamic of the group. “All the guys were in the same year in school together, including our manager, Jim. Knoxy (bassist Graham Knox) and Danny’s (vocalist/guitarist Danny O’Reilly) parents were best friends growing up, so they know each other since they were born.

Try to make sure you have good people around you. Not just your bandmates, but your manager, sound engineer. We’ve had the exact same small crew of seven people with us since we started and that has made everything so much more enjoyable. That’s what it’s all about really, isn’t it?”

This formula for success seems to be

working. The Coronas have regularly sold out venues, including the O2 and have supported well-acclaimed names such as The Script, Justin Timberlake and Sir Paul McCartney. “We learnt a lot from The Script because we went on tour with them. They are extremely professional guys and gave us a lot of good advice. JT seemed ridiculously cool and nice to talk to and obviously, Paul McCartney is Paul McCartney. That’s a life so different to mine.”

At this point in the conversation, McPhillips begins to laugh to himself, thinking back to a moment while they were on tour. “One time I was left on the tour bus when the bus was being x-rayed. We were going through France and they were doing a security check. I was asleep and nobody woke me up. The police thought we had a body or a stowaway on board and started freaking out! I’m still waiting to feel those radiation effects.”

Had French authorities arrested The Coronas, McPhillips would have been well prepared after his time spent in UCD. “I was in UCD for four years.

I did a degree in Politics and Philosophy and then a Master’s in International Relations. The IR thing overlapped with the recording of the Coronas’ first album. I’ll never forget trying to do some of

The police thought we had a body or a stowaway on board and started freaking out!

I’m still waiting to feel those radiation effects

my thesis in between guitar takes in the studio!

It was by far the most stressed I’ve ever been in my life. But it all worked out well.” McPhillips also played super-league while in UCD, his fondest memory of his time spent in university. “I played for the Amazing Amazing Fellows, Dalhousie and Fr. Romeo Sensini XI. Somehow I never won the league.”

Not winning the league, however, hasn’t seemed to have an adverse effect on McPhillips.

He chooses not to concentrate too much on the future, instead preferring to appreciate the moment. “Who knows how the next couple of years will go for us? We could be successful all over the world, or I could be back living in the parents’ house by Christmas. I’m not worrying about our future, our present feels pretty good and I’m going to enjoy that.”

The Coronas’ fourth album is due for release later this month

Punch-Drunk love Taking time out from the studio, The Boxer Rebellion’s lead singer Nathan Nicholson talks to Sean Hayes about the departure of a band member, their upcoming tour and the struggle to survive

playing some festivals across North America, The departure of a founding member can ”We got very drunk afterwards. Well, when Nicholson is looking forward to getting back be a devastating blow to any band. Many on tour, but especially when in Dublin!”, on the road, as the band prepare for their groups struggle to ever match the success Nathan Nicholson reflects on the aftermath upcoming tour. “These shows are going to they had beforehand, while some battle to of his band’s most recent gig in Dublin last simply adapt to the challenges that naturally be different. It’s our first tour with him, so February. “There’s this bar that’s attached that’ll bring a certain element to the shows come with such a transition. Nicholson, to Whelan’s and a few of the guys started that’ll be exciting as well.” however, is hopeful for the future of the pounding Guinness. It was good.”

Touring is something that Nicholson has Boxer Rebellion. “It’s very exciting. It’s just Today, Nicholson seems decidedly calmer always enjoyed. “The favorite part, for me different, but different in a good way. He’s than that night, despite it being obvious personally, is the travel and seeing different been with us for three months now and we that he’s rushing between locations. places. It’s kind of a surprise that people have our own studio, which is helpful when Traffic noises occasionally interrupt the you’re trying to bring someone up to speed. know who we are and come down and see conversation, as he tries to tell of what he’s us.”

It’s worked out really well.” been doing during the week. “We’ve just Yet Nicholson shouldn’t sound so Their new guitarist, Andy Smith, has some been in the studio. It’s usually where we hang out. We’re working on demos for a new big shoes to fill as Howe often played a large surprised. Having been around for more than part in the production of the band’s records. a decade, the band has released four studio record, album five, which is crazy to write!”

“Todd was always very in control of demoing, albums, one EP and a compilation album.

A lot has happened since The Boxer Rebellion were last on Irish soil. In April, the the recording and stuff like that, which now With each release comes a wave of positive press, but Nicholson is quick to dismiss it.

Andy has to kind of take over.” band announced that Todd Howe, one of “It’s a tough one because I guess you never The real test, however, for all bands is their founding members and lead-guitarist, was leaving the band to pursue his interests how well the dynamic of the group can work take in the good stuff and only focus on the bad stuff. If I read the good stuff, invariably when playing live. This will be tested for in producing and mixing. Nicholson adds there’s going to be bad stuff, and that serves the first time since Smith joined the group to this, saying Howe left “because he got no purpose.” this October. After spending the summer married and moved to the States.”

Their music has also been widely used in many films, video games and television shows such as Grey’s Anatomy, One Tree Hill and NCIS. In the past, having a band’s music featured in a television show or advertisement has drawn criticism from both musicians and listeners alike. Yet Nicholson is happy for his music to be used, believing it to be a great way to get his music across to new listeners. “The [last] album didn’t really get much radio. It wasn’t until our song ‘Diamonds’ that we started getting some radio. Mainly TV, video games, stuff like that. It was really the only way to get our music out there.”

Apart from simply being an opportunity to get their music out there, Nicholson describes how licensing his music for use has, at times, made the difference of the band being able to continue or not. “Today, if people think that if they’ve heard of your band, they automatically think that you’re super successful and that you’re doing very well, which isn’t really the case. We have to

rely on things like that, we’re doing fine, but those things definitely help.”

As the conversation comes to a close, Nicholson has by now arrived safely at his destination and he begins to plan the future of the band. “We’re doing this tour and that finishes in November, and then we have the first half of next year finishing off our writing and probably put out the next record in a year or so, I would imagine. That’s probably the next step, but anything can always change.”

Nicholson probably doesn’t need reminding that things can change quickly.

Moving on and developing with the new group will certainly be challenging, but whatever they decide to do next, The Boxer Rebellion will no doubt come out fighting.

The Boxer Rebellion play the Academy on October 4th, tickets are priced €14

17

Mercury Prize 2014

Following the release of this year’s Mercury Prize shortlist, Rebekah Rennick dissects the Barclaycard Mercury Prize to expose its highs and ultimate lows

Illustration: Rory Mullen

Damon Albarn Is one of the few more widely recognised names from this year’s nominees

Like “carrying a dead albatross round your neck for eternity” is how Damon Albarn described his Mercury Prize nomination for Gorillaz in 2001, before withdrawing from the running completely. This same man is no longer the curmudgeonly, growling Murdoc alongside his grotesque musical cronies, but now sits reticent on his stool, head bowed with grey hair and greyer anorak upon his debut album cover, which has nabbed another such nomination.

Perhaps thirteen years has softened the tongue of this acerbic but beloved musician, or perhaps his animated counterpart was onto something.

Next month sees the Mercury Prize floundering into its twenty-third year. With the release of the lazily anticipated shortlist last week, it’s clear the judging panel have finally opened their eyes and disregarded genre constraints, silencing obvious contenders. However, their habitual inclination to showcase how “cutting-edge” and in-tune they are with today’s musical sphere obscures the prize’s original objective.

Amongst the seven debut albums and three jazz installments, Bombay Bicycle Club and Damon Albarn stand out as the only pair which popular audiences may recognise.

A conscious effort by the judging panel perhaps, or possibly an airing out of the Mercury Prize closet; allowing fresh new hopefuls to become shrouded in the award’s elusive ‘curse’.

The twelve nominees include an array of unfamiliar and obscure faces, with not a single bellowing Guy Garvey or sniveling Sam Smith in sight. Brighton based duo Royal Blood are the first thrashing, invasive rock act to grace the award ceremony since Biffy Clyro in 2010, while bookies favourite, FKA Twigs, is a lady of shivering melodic charm, enticing you into her sensually sharpened underworld.

Similarly, the mysterious funk that shrouds Jungle has landed them a spot on the list alongside performance poet.

18

Undoubtedly the most interesting act of the twelve nominees is Kate Tempest, whose album is a journey in itself between romance, class and society.

While the concept of this annual affair, celebrating the cream of the musical crop of the past twelve months, is outwardly a great thing, over the years it has transformed into a banal pat-on-the-back from an omnipresent judging panel. At the time of its inception, the early 1990s’ music world was a lackluster environment, struggling to come to terms with the dance revolution. Parasitic award ceremonies where music executives drained musicians dry of their humility and integrity were rampant and the Mercury Prize was a beacon of light.

Disregarding all other categories and focusing solely on Album of the Year, the prize shed any unnecessary media hype and allowed for a deserving band to receive an honest, on-point award that reflected accurately the talent of that year.

By creating an entire award ceremony out of the exclusivity of a lone category, it allowed all genres to compete on the same playing field. Pop was to now contend with it’s harsher older brother, rock, who in turn was to attempt to rise above not only its R&B, jazz and folk counterparts but its soul sister too.

However. over time the Mercury Prize has somewhat lost its footing and relevance in today’s dominant, sugar coated music industry.

While the calibre of talent hasn’t waned, the curse which has fermented further with each passing year means that even if a well credited musician may win, it’s not long before they’re glazed over with the same plasticity; the scrutiny they endured prior to the win falls away, replaced by sickening indifference.

Those who win ultimately deserve to do so, but the

consequences that follow are ones of crippling pressure and insulting disinterest from the general public. Music fans now cross their fingers not in the hope that their favourite artist will snatch the prize, but rather that they won’t and are able to continue on without the Barclaycard burden.

Similarly, the once level playing field has become mutilated and misshapen with the heavy footprints of more favourable sounds or plat du jour. This year sees the absence of a classical, punk or Irish contender. English post-punk has not been as visceral and snarling as Leeds quintet Eagulls who fail to make an appearance, while our very own James Vincent McMorrow has been left out in the cold without even a beanie to keep him warm.

The Mercury Prize has become the drooling, glutinous monster that is today’s music provider to the masses. What began as the leading award ceremony for the esoteric music groups has become another meaningless spectacle. Even an award that simply offers £20 to its winner holds more integrity amongst the musical underdogs today. That’s not just a hypothetical analogy; take a look at the Popjustice £20 Music Prize, the brain child of the music website Popjustice’s founder Peter Robinson in response to the pompous and elitist nature of the Mercury Prize. That prize offers a humble sum to the year’s best British pop single, and usually makes an indisputably sound call.

Perhaps it really was Murdoc speaking when Albarn dismissed his nomination all those moons ago, but at least it provided a bit of outrage in an otherwise placid award ceremony. The least we can hope for this year’s winner is that they’ll at least shout a few profanities to make the win memorable.

The twelve nominees include an array of unfamiliar and obscure faces, with not a single bellowing Guy Garvey or sniveling Sam Smith in sight

album Reviews

banks goddess

For a debut album, Goddess sounds more like the craft of a veteran artist. Julian Banks, known simply by her last name, engages in a sultry, hour-long dialogue between threads of R&B, electronic-pop and indie genres. Glistening from the sheen of heavy production values, each track dives through the murky avant-R&B scene to uncover fresh musical directions.

From the filthy static of opener, ‘Alibi’, to the softened tribal beats of ‘Stick’, Banks’ style is more liquorice than bubble-gum pop. The rawness of her vocals interlocks with emotive but minimalistic lyrics to explore tortured tales of jilted lovers. This confessional tone is often veiled by the hypnotic effect of slick synths. Though Banks’ inner goddess appears to be shrouded in gloom, the album buzzes with a sincerity that pulls a passive listener into voyeuristic tendencies.

Tunes like ‘Brain’ sizzle and crack with an urban sensibility. Many of Bank’s vocal hooks are easily digestible, cocooned between urban beats, such as ‘This Is What It Feels Like’. Musical arrangements take an orchestral turn on ‘Under The Table’, while ‘Someone New’ lulls the tone with an acoustic, almost folk-like taste.

Despite echoing the frail vulnerability of Feist, she often breaks into an upper vocal register recalling Fiona Apple. Booming percussion and a tinge of classical influence on ‘You Should Know Where I’m Coming From’ prove an equally appropriate backdrop for Bank’s seductive croak.

Thankfully, the slower pace rebuffs any descent into disinterest.

In A Nutshell The purr of her jittery rhythms and mesmerising vocals will have you obsessing over this Californian songstress on first listen.

EVA GRIFFIN

interpol el pintor

the kooks

Alt-J

The noughties’ post-punk revival saw many rock bands arriving on the scene with a bang, only to remain beneath the shadows of their debut albums. Interpol are one such band, and with their fifth musical endeavour, El Pintor, it’s clear that the group are still trying to escape their unprecedentedly popular debut.

Aware of their fading favour, the opening tracks of El Pintor are spent reflecting on Interpol’s declining popularity. ‘My Desire’ hangs on the repeated plea to “play me out”, whilst lead single, ‘All The Rage Back Home’ laments that the group keeps “falling/maybe half the time”, referencing the bands mixed receptions. Interpol sound confident, but their lyrics suggest internal doubt towards their relevance.

Suddenly unsure of their standing, Interpol have retreated into old conventions. The atmosphere never strays from their trademark gloom and the guitars frequently resort to their tired but trustworthy combinations of reverb and tremolo picking. For better or worse, these New Yorkers don’t sound any different to the youthful, fresh band that broke onto the scene in 2002, despite the departure of bassist Carlos D. El Pintor is also an anagram of Interpol, portraying the album as a revised statement of self over their previous eponymous release. This installment encapsulates Interpol’s trademark sound well, yet it fails to expand on it any further.

The fourth track, ‘Same Town, New Story’ could, perhaps, have been a more honest title for this somewhat uninspired album.

Since their disappointing 2011 Junk of the Heart, The Kooks have avoided public scrutiny. Yet the Brighton quartet are back and revitalised with a new sound for their fourth studio album, Listen, the first with new drummer Alexis Nunez.

It’s clear from the offset that The Kooks have been developing their sound, as new single, ‘Around Town’ drips with satin gospel choirs, thrashing R&B drums and a groovy bassline to boot. The newfound R&B nuance has left its footprint on a number of tracks including ‘Forgive & Forget’ and ‘Down’, which hosts an almost pop flair with a swagger that Pharrell wouldn’t be short of producing in his own works.

The highlight of the album comes in the dance floor filler, ‘West Side’, which boasts flowing synth chords throughout the chorus and an alluring guitar riff that seduces the listener. These upbeat tunes are halted by the beautiful ballad , ‘See Me Now’, which pays tribute to frontman Luke Prichard’s father, who passed away at a young age. Prichard opens his heart to share an intimate dialogue with not only his father but also his audience.

The Kooks spice up the record with fiery rock anthem ‘It Was London’, as well as the raucous blast of percussion that is ‘Sunrise’, which brightens up the disruptively heavy mood with sharp guitar riffs. The album closes with ‘Sweet Emotion’ swinging back to the R&B vibe while the elongated piano outro ties up the album beautifully.

In A Nutshell While there’s plenty for diehard fans to enjoy in Interpol’s return to form, it’s an uninspiring menu for new arrivals.

In A Nutshell Listen is a refreshed look at The Kooks with a switched up style that’s got groove and splashes of attitude.

It was never going to be easy following the unprecedented success that was Alt-J’s debut album. Rave reviews, a Mercury Prize win and an Ivor Novello nod had set the English art-rock band up for a classic case of second album blues. Yet Alt-J continue to do only what they have done from the outset, which is to completely surprise, shock and fascinate their listeners.

If compared to the standard album, the “accepted norm”, This Is All Yours sets out to mutilate that template. The album fails to create any sense of balance in any way. Genres range from the pop-rock of ‘Left Hand Free’ to the electronic production of ‘Choice Kingdom’ and the folk trappings of ‘Warm Foothills’. The lyrics are, at times, nonsensical. There is no connection between the lyrics of ‘Nara’ and the titular Japanese city. Even the song titles do their part to leave the listener perplexed. ‘Intro’ implies a short prelude to the rest of the record, but one is immediately bombarded with heavy sampling and pounding drumbeats.

Yet for every norm that the album breaks, it embraces everything that represents today’s popular culture. ‘Hunger Of The Pine’ samples the all-twerking Miley Cyrus while “Every Other Freckle” contains sexual lyrics that have become commonplace in mainstream music. ‘The Gospel Of John Hurt’ is practically an ode to the British actor, referencing his infamous final scene in Alien.

This Is All Yours is both puzzling and beguiling.

It somehow manages to represent the norms of our society, by breaking every rule in the book. It somehow manages to work and makes for both a captivating and discomforting listen.

Ross McKeever

Alan Maher

listen

This is all yours

In A Nutshell An album that will delight, disturb, enthrall and confuse all within the first track.

Sean Hayes

19

Class acts

Radar: Spies Fresh after playing sets at this year’s Electric Picnic, Indiependence and the Trinity Ball, Eva Griffin talks to Michael Broderick of SPIES about the Irish music scene and his crush on St. Vincent

3 Days. 7 venues. 104 acts. 3,500 minutes of music.

As Dublin’s most exciting festival for new music gears up for its twelfth year, Sean Hayes takes a look at some of the must-see names gracing the stage at this year’s Hard Working Class Heroes.

C

arriages

2nd October - The Workman’s Club 10.40pm Carriages are a truly exciting act. Formed in 2012, the Dublin based producer and singer-songwriter folk duo have, quite literally, stepped outside the box when it comes to unearthing their musical inspiration.

Carriages build their sound from field recordings of parks, beaches, museums and the inner city. These seemingly mundane and inconsequential sounds are then spun into elaborate beats, accompanied by intricate guitar work and gentle vocals, resulting in a completely unique sound. Carriages have weaved together old-style folk music with modern technology to create something that will, undoubtedly appease both the visual and aural needs of their audience.

C

olor//Sound

3rd October - Bad Bobs - 10.40pm Color//Sound’s debut single only landed in June 2014, but the Dublin based, alternative rock band have already asserted themselves in the bubbling Irish music scene. Having supported the likes of Cathy Davey, Villagers and Little Matador over the past year, Color//Sound shine with iridescent energy and are set for an even brighter future. Combining four part harmonies, rhythmic guitar and infectious hooks, Color//Sound is guaranteed to be bring a fun performance, in the distinctive setting of Bad Bobs.

l

ittle xs for eyes

3rd October - The Grand Social - 10.50pm little xs for eyes are as quirky and fun as they sound. Quoted as having taken their inspiration from the tales of tragic heroes and failed lovers,

20

they put their own spin on such topics to create something truly fun and uplifting. Having released their debut album, S.A.D, in 2011, the six-person group have kindled the rising fire of intrigue circling them for some time now. Creating their signature sound through layered harmonies, elaborate vocal arrangements and gentle accompaniment on everything from guitars to xylophones, the quirky group are sure to create that toe-tapping set for which a Friday night is made.

M

eltybrains?

4th October - The Workman’s Club - 10.40pm Meltybrains? are a regular fixture on the festival scene, having just played the main Body & Soul stage at this years Electric Picnic. Rumours of actual brain mutilation are yet to be confirmed, but they’ve been lauded for their captivating and enthralling stage performances. With nuances of hip-hop, rock and modern classical music floating within their creative sphere, their sound is both bizarre and unique.

Having released a number of critically acclaimed EPs, Meltybrains? pride themselves on being not quite like any other band on the scene today, a fitting description for the closing band on Saturday night.

These top-class acts will also be joined by the three ‘Heroes’, alumni of previous HWCH festivals, who will headline the Meeting House Squares. These acts are to be announced September 19th.

Tickets are available now on www.entertainment. ie/hwch14. Weekend tickets for HWCH are €45 + booking fees with day tickets available at €20 + booking fees. Tickets allow access to all venues and stages

It’s so important to get the crowd involved with the song and I really look forward to pulling that little part out of me and sharing it, handing it around.

To some, the revival of a punk-tinged sound might seem unfashionable. Thoughts of outdated U2 albums and your dad’s Echo and The Bunnymen collection spring to mind.

Yet translating old indie-rock dynamics into modern sound waves is Dublin five piece, SPIES. Fronted by Michael Broderick, the band have been gradually churning out solid tunes since 2010. Each track is a dark, rich slice of punk with a tinge of agitation pulsating through the guitar lines, yet simultaneously wrapped in gorgeous melodies.

Latest release, ‘Moosehead’ is a perfect example of their anthemic sound, summed up by Broderick as “post-punk, 80’s guitars, brooding vocals, powerhouse drums, kind of crowd rock.” Despite their youth, this is executed with a certain element of expertise.

It’s surprising then to note that a full-length work is yet to be released, though is thankfully on the horizon. “I guess that’s the only thing that matters right now, having this really cohesive piece of work that people can listen to fully through” explains Broderick.

Namedropping homegrown groups like Tandem Felix and Girl Band, as well as the immensely popular Hozier, Broderick claims that they all “give a lot of hope” to our burgeoning music circles. Broderick believes that the emergence of new and genuine talent proves “something is really happening” in the Irish music scene.

Though melody and lyrics are primarily Broderick’s forte, like any focused band the creative effort is collaborative. “As a writing team, we’d all kind of sit in the room and bash it out. It can be frustrating at times but it comes out with interesting results.”

Getting an “appetite” for music, in Broderick’s case, involved discovering the greats like Bowie and Dylan,

while appreciating modern royalty like The National and St. Vincent. On the subject of St. Vincent, Broderick names her as his dream collaborator, “because I have a massive crush on her. I think she’s really creative.

She’s very inspiring. Maybe, if we collaborated we could somehow strike up a romance. That’d be great.”

It seems that melody is the product of some divine gift that Broderick finds hard to explain. Lyrical inspiration, however, is often drawn from books. “I model off books I read at the time, maybe characters from books and them being applied to my own life.”

As is the case with many bands of late, their latest single is available to buy on 7” vinyl. “I think that vinyl is one of the purest ways to enjoy music.” Broderick also points out that listening to a record player creates a more tangible experience, forcing you to engage in “actively listening as opposed to passively listening” to the music.

This interactive element is even more important when applied to live shows. “I used to be on my own, I’d have my eyes closed. But I think it’s so important to get the crowd involved with the song and I really look forward to pulling that little part out of me and sharing it, handing it around.”

If their performances at this year’s top Irish festivals are anything to go by, music lovers will undoubtedly be scrambling for a chance to experience their captivating sound on stage sooner rather than later.

SPIES play Bad Bobs on Saturday, 4th October as part of Hard Working Class Heroes.

street style

1

2

3

4

5

1 Maria Dyaz, 1st year german Scarf: vintage; Sunnies: “Electric Picnic” What’s the cheapest item you’ve ever bought? “A really tacky, really sparkly crop top from Penneys! Everyone goes to Penneys for that kind of thing, right?!”

2 Shupo Exchange English

A Japanese exchange student studying English literature who enjoys fashion and has a penchant for vintage hats.

3 luana carretto exchange Agriculture and Environmental science Floor-length coat: Vintage from Amsterdam.

How do you enjoy Dublin nightlife so far? “It’s really enjoyable; a lot different to Amsterdam!”

Luana runs tastebeforeyouwaste.nl, an initiative aimed at increasing awareness about food waste.

4 Georgie Power 2nd year politics, sociology, international relations We could barely grab a photo of Georgie as she was too shy, but we couldn’t resist snapping her impeccably clean-cut style!

5 Nadia El Mesery 3rd year English ‘’I got this bag when I was travelling in Belgium as I love dogs and thought that the little black dogs on the bag remind me of my own dog.’’ words Sarah O’Shea Photographs James Brady

21

“So adorkable!”

With those deadlines and exams looming, Sarah O’Shea is here with some dry shampoo and a feathery-fringed bagful of pointers to help you dress for whatever festival the summer has in store for you

Everybody’s favourite fashion oxymoron, it is easy to recognise that “geek chic” is an age-old trend that will be consistently correlated to hipster-like college students for centuries ahead. Incorporating geek chic elements into your ensemble is a fun way to punch up a fashionable but otherwise lacklustre outfit into something with a little more edge. This look makes for a perfect collegiate feel as the new semester creeps in on us.

Adorable yet grungy “geek chic” may appear as the more adventurous take on this classic look du jour, however, simply a black beanie and dark purple lip hugely catapult this otherwise generic middle-school geek look into a more playful, fashionforward approach to Autumn/Winter dressing.

In the first look, we see Lucy wearing an extremely cute, girly monochrome polka-dot crop from Tola Vintage. The bow clipped onto the crop top, in line with the smaller, more intricate polka dot print of these Urban Outfitters tailored trousers, adds that very 1960s schoolgirl look with a very adoring, bijou feel. These River Island specs incorporate a more futuristic, avant-garde element to the overall look.

Topshop’s berry-red, black frilled socks pack a preppy punch to Lucy’s look, which consistently renews the ‘geek chic’ theme, especially when paired with a simple pair of Oxfords or loafers, as can be seen on Lucy wearing this silver studded pair from Zara. This

22

black box-satchel ties Lucy’s entire look together, solidifying the subtle formality of the look, in contrast with the dark MAC Cyber lipstick playing up the grunge theme ever so slightly.

Adam can be seen here donning a Ralph Lauren checked shirt from Tola Vintage’s reworked vintage section. The structured and tailored fit offer the formal pre-requisites that the geek chic look has to offer, however the reworked grey cotton sleeves offer great pronounced interest to an otherwise everyday fitted smart-casual shirt. This shirt proves to be a key-piece in any man’s wardrobe, offering a good mix of both preppy schoolboy and casual comfortable.

This shirt, paired with a laidback pair of black skinnys, Converse high-tops and a trusty leather satchel will surely epitomise and exude those ‘adorkable’ chic vibes.

The huge reliance on basics in terms of clothing pieces, shows how simply one can transform their usual “3rd-floor-library-slob” assemblage into something a little more likely to get you street snapped on a gloomy September morning. Knitwear, loafers, leather satchels, thick-rimmed specs and fitted basics are your wardrobe savours for the forthcoming blustery months. All clothing items featured on Lucy and Adam can all be so easily mixed and matched up as they’re all of the same muted colour palette of deep red, purple, and monotone.

The appealing element of the “adorkable geek chic” look is the sheer versatility of all clothing items. The majority of the clothes and accessories, worn by models Lucy and Adam are all unisex pieces. Perfect for anyone who ends up wearing your boyfriend’s clothes up Belfield concourse as your sleep deprivation makes it impossible to wear anything other than what’s on the bedroom floor.

This deep purple Farah Vintage knit, as seen on Lucy, is actually part of Urban Outfitters menswear section. It offers a warm, practical and fitted fix to Lucy’s otherwise more formal outfit. The burgundy and black pinstriped collar peeping out over the jumper displays the more alternative take on the classic “geek chic” look. Lucy’s dark lip and black River Island beanie displays the more androgynous, boyish feel, perfect for adding a new thematic style element into your outfit. The Zara black studded loafers, opaque tights and basic black bodycon skirt all work in line with the knitted Farah jumper in retaining that preppy formal look. Adam can be seen donning a pinstriped red and blue shirt, which is geeked up with a pop of bright red in the cotton form of this Topman cable-knit jumper. The look is kept simple with black skinny jeans. Adam’s thick-rimmed frames, however, entirely set off this look as specs like these are practically synonymous with the “geek chic” trend.

Whether you’re a fan of this trend or not, do realise that everybody is a “geek chic” culprit at some point in their lives. When deadlines and Semester one exam season are looming, do root out this article and have to hand for A1 style dressing.

Lucy: Polka-dot crop: Tola Vintage €25 Polka-dot trousers: Urban Outfitters €59 Black box-satchel: Urban Outfitters €25 Black-frilled socks: Topshop Silver-studded leather loafers: Zara €70 Black bow-clip: Claire’s Accessories €4.50 Monochrome round sunglasses: River Island €17

Adam Reworked Ralph Lauren shirt Tola Vintage € 45 Black fitted jeans: Topman €60; Black Hi-Top Converse All-Star: Office €59.

Black beanie: Topman €12 Gold chain: Claire’s Accessories Watch: Urban Outfitters €27 Brown leather satchel: Model’s own Black-rimmed frames: Model’s own

Adam: Red shirt: H&M- €24 Red cable-knit jumper: Topman - €49 Black skinny jeans: Topman €47 Brown boots: Urban Outfitters €62

Lucy: Striped shirt: Urban Outfitters €46 Farah Vintage cable-knit jumper: Urban Outfitters €80 Black body-con skirt: H&M €12 Black tights: H&M €4 Silver studded loafers: As per look one Black beanie: As per look one.

Direction: Sarah o”Shea Models: Adam Duffy, Lucy Coffey make up: Rosalie lockhart photography: James Brady

23

Arts and literature

‘Sure and Begorrah!’

From Youtube to stage, Shannon Corrigan reviews Foil, Arms and Hog with their return show ‘Begorrah’ Foil, Arms and Hog (Sean Finegan, Conor McKenna and Sean Flanagan) are the dynamic trio who’ve burst onto the comedic stratosphere; a cheeky grin and nudge in tow. The three eccentric lads with ‘the most convoluted name in history’ met at university where the seeds of their future comedic endeavours were sown. However, don’t let the name fool you. Behind this collection of miscellaneous words lies the beginings of the comedy act. Foil is ‘the tin foil that wraps each sketch together - the straight man,’ whereas our man Arms ‘can’t play the straight man, is all arms on stage’ and then Hog because ‘whenever the three friends would craft a sketch, he would somehow always worm his way into the main role.’

With a recent world tour under their belts, and from their newest enthralling and uproarious show, one can’t be surprised at their steady trajectory of success.

Begorrah is a show filled with humorous skits; from a satirical sketch on rural Ireland’s propensity to drinking, to some farcical songs by a Christian rock group, an almost knock out take on the early Jonas Brothers’ days with the talent and the style to match. The lads are creative and bring a sense of good, wholesome craic onstage.

The Irish satirical performance begins when a young lad is scalded by his Mammy for not being a drinker; a Mammy who’d rather watch her son hammered and passed out on the floor than tucked into bed with a good book. Towards the end, the next take on the Irish sees parents bid farewell to their son off to America offering just a bit more from home including the family shoe, the good chair and all of the O’Flaherty essentials.

With a boozemonger sponsoring the Fringe Festival, it’s ultimately essential in any comedy show to play a Russian Roulette beer-themed game with the audience. Beer cans are set down, with one in particular poised dangerously after a ferocious shake, ready to explode. One member of the audience is plucked from the crowd to face these three messers for a game of risk, much to the delight of everyone else.

The show is more than just comedy skits, it contains enlightening satires and situations the audience can relate to (like the narcissistic song collection),but also leaves your stomach sore from laughter and a fulfilment of joy. The trio are at the forefront of emerging Irish comedy, and are well worth checking out in their future shows.

Turning the Usual into the Unusual

With French Artists Ciou and Malojo’s ‘Freaks & Wonders’ exhibition debuting in Dublin, Lauren Moore reviews the pair’s work at the White Lady Art Gallery They create an interesting fusion of Christian, Pagan and lurid images which leaves the viewer both unsettled yet intrigued

Artwork ciou

24

This month the White Lady Art Gallery welcomes French Pop Surrealists Ciou and Malojo for their second dual exhibition in Dublin entitled ‘Freaks & Wonders’. The Gallery champions progressive styles with nuances of lowbrow and contemporary art, meaning Ciou and Malojo are right at home in this setting.

The styles of the two artists are extremely different, yet complement each other beautifully.

Ciou’s bright jewel coloured gauche and acrylic pictures are filled with mutant sharp-toothed figures with highly detailed and intricate patterns. Japanese art and manga style drawing is a particular influence of Ciou and it can certainly be seen in the ‘kawaii’ aspect of her wide eyed characters.

Malajo, on the other hand takes a different approach, encompassing inspiration not only from comicbook art and illustration but also from various forms of religious art. Malajo, out of the two, is the one who most embraces the idea of taking the familiar and transforming it with macabre and demonic creatures and not so unfamiliar character, best seen in Jasper the Holy Ghost. American psychedelic art from the seventies is an extremely strong influence for the artists, embracing warm and bright colour and twisting patterns and shapes that draw the viewer into a sinister, macabre world.

For Ciou, a recurring theme throughout the exhibition is seasonal celebration and this theme is supported and strengthened by the religious aspects of Malojo’s art. Between the two artists, they create an interesting fusion of Christian, Pagan and lurid images which leaves the viewer both unsettled yet intrigued.

The length of the exhibition was perfect for the style in question, allowing the art to make a memorable statement of themes and ideas without fear of repetition. There was interesting variation in Malojo’s work, whereas Ciou’s could have delved into stranger territories inhabited by those without wide eyes and sharp-toothed grins.

Ciou says that by using a pop surrealist style, it can be difficult to be recognised as an artist rather than just an illustrator. However this exhibition is unapologetically refuting the idea that this figurative lowbrow art style isn’t art, but is rather an art for the people that move against the increasing presence of conceptual art in mainstream contemporary galleries.

With many exhibitions planned down the line, both solo and joint, it will be interesting to see how these artists grow and develop over the next couple of years.

Forced to adapt With two major psychological thriller novels coming to cinema screens, Alanna O’Shea questions whether a film adaptation can ever be as good as its source material

Can the film adaptation really be better than the book?

As a book lover, the reflex reaction is to reject such claims and guffaw in the face of such a statement. The film adaptation is never going to stand up to its original paper twin; there is always something more substantial encased within a book than a screen. A beloved movie is like an appeasing salad; an enthralling book is like filet mignon.

Yet film studios will continue to churn out new flicks week after week, and popular novels will continue to resemble nothing other then a good bet. Said studios are currently betting on two of the most popular psychological thrillers of the last few years, Before I Go to Sleep and Gone Girl, to reign in the box office. Perhaps this time, the movie will come out on top.

Gillian Flynn’s Gone Girl is a novel just ripe for film adaption. Spending eight weeks on top of the New York Times best sellers list, it is the definition of a literary sensation, becoming every commuter’s best pal for months on end. The love/hate relationship its readers have with it proves it even more popular, as the lovers embrace their precious novel while haters look upon with disdain and inquisitive interest, much to their dismay.

Gone Girl is a thriller focused upon Nick Dunne and his beautiful wife Amy, who has disappeared on the day of their fifth wedding anniversary. The narration switches between Amy and Nick and as the tension ratchets up, Nick’s involvement in his wife’s

disappearance comes to the fore with his unusual and erratic behavior exemplifying this rising sense of unease.

This is Flynn’s third psychological thriller, and her experience is apparent. Not only is the book addictive, it explores some of the darker aspects of long term relationships with many unpleasant truths raising their brazen heads at the unsuspecting readership.

As entertaining as Gone Girl might be, it suffers from a familiar affliction of the thriller genre: a cripplingly disappointing finale. Despite the incredible atmosphere and plotting of this book, Flynn’s novel seems to ask questions that, in the end, she can’t answer. After some 250 stellar pages the novel finishes on an irrational and jarring note.

Yet perhaps a movie version will change that. The film stars Ben Affleck, who should play the boyishly handsome, slightly arrogant Nick with aplomb, and Rosamund Pike as Amy. Directed by David Fincher of The Social Network, there will undoubtedly be some arresting visuals. It should also capture the sinister sense of the novel, aided by a soundtrack by Trent Reznor. Fincher has already had his hand at adapting a literary sensation when he made The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo, however, it would be difficult to maintain the argument that it exceeded the book’s power.

Most exciting of all is that Flynn herself has written the screenplay. A skilled writer, her involvement bodes well for the film in general, but in particular the ending.

Flynn has said that she has re-written the ending of the

story for the movie. Is this a chance for a movie to right some of the book’s wrongs? The film is already being considerably hyped, and is released here on October 3rd.

Similarly, in cinemas now is the film adaption of S.J Watson’s Before I Go to Sleep. Based upon the diary of a woman suffering from anterograde amnesia, an affliction that leaves her unknowing of even her own self every morning, this is Watson’s debut novel. While it is well written and engaging, it is a little more of a pedestrian effort than Flynn’s. The concept makes for a lot of repetition; the woman has to remember who she is every day, after all and when the twist does eventually arrive at the end it is fun, if a little unsurprising.

So can the film lift an unexciting subject matter to greater heights? The adaptation has attracted some big names with both Nicole Kidman and Colin Firth starring.

Despite its cast, signs are not particularly encouraging, and the film has garnered mixed reviews.

With a built in fan base, bestselling books will always be too tempting a cash-in for film studios to resist.

The financial evidence backs them up as well: a movie adaption The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, based on the popular young adult series, was the highest grossing movie at the box office last year. While these films are enjoyable and an experience within themselves, there’s usually something lacking, a certain magic to enrapture the audience. Something that is sadly lost in translation from page to screen.

25

Comedy and Equality As Armagayddon and The Nualas star Tara Flynn prepares to release her debut book, Patrick Kelleher sits down with her to discuss equality, racist B&B’s, and Irish self-help

When you sit down and talk to Tara Flynn, it’s immediately clear that she is passionate about her work. Delighted to have the opportunity to chat about her varied career, it is clear her lengthy and successful repetoire, encompassing work as a comedian, actress, singer and writer, has undoubtedly manifested itself in a confident, intelligent performer.

While many people would identify Flynn as a comedian, acting is where her passion for performance began. From a very young age she had dreams of becoming an actor.

“From a tiny kid, yeah. That, and a vet.” she laughs. While the veterinarian dream took a backseat, comedy soon raised its brazen head following an accidental meeting between herself, Anne Gildea and Sue Collins.

‘We were all at a party together one night, and we started with the guitar, messing about improvising songs, and a few of them stuck and we agreed to meet up a few weeks later and do them in The International.’ This chance performance was the conception of what would become the music and comedy group The Nualas.

To say Flynn’s comedy and acting has evolved since her roots with The Nualas would be an understatement. Her YouTube channel has encountered enormous success, racking up hundreds of thousands of views.

Much of her comedy takes on the issue of equality. She tackles homophobia in her Armagayddon sketch, which is satirically set in a post-referendum world where equal marriage has become a reality; the video has racked up over two hundred thousand views alone.

She believes the Marriage Equality campaign can be successful, but that an effort must be made. “We have to mobilise, we have to talk about it.” She reflects “You need to check that you’re registered, you need to vote when the time comes, and you need to talk to everyone you know about it. It will probably be quite close, even though it feels, especially when you’re at a university, or you’re at the March for Marriage, like it’ll be a landslide, because there’s such a feeling of goodwill. It feels like such a positive bit of progress for our country, and it seems to me, it’s a nobrainer, it makes sense. To some people it doesn’t, and we will have to make sure that everyone who is pro-equality votes.”

Alongside these passionate viewpoints are her thoughts on racism. Racist B&B, another short sketch was a triumphant success for Flynn, including winning her the Satirist of the Year title at Trim’s Swift Satire Festival. Though in this case, it was personal. “It was my husband who got racial abuse. My husband’s black, he’s AfricanAmerican, and he got racist abuse, and that was my response, because I am a comedy writer and a performer, and that was my way of saying ‘Screw you!’, to the guys that doled it out to him.” she explains.

Yet she’s quick to point out that these

26

causes all fit together easier than some believe. “People will say ‘Oh, it’s all your various causes!’ I don’t have loads of various causes at all, I have one: equality.

It all boils down to one thing: We’re all the same.”

Whilez her YouTube material is a constant source of entertainment, it is not the most important thing in her career at the moment. You’re Grand: The Irish Woman’s Secret Guide to Life is her first book, and is released next month. It’s a “tongue-incheek” self-help book she explains. “It’s the fact that Irish women are very, very wise, and how we haven’t shared that wisdom a lot. We’ve been told to be quiet for a lot of the time. The frame I have for it is other life guides like The Secret will tell you that you can manifest all your desires, but Irish women know that you can’t. So what we do know is that you’ll be grand, even if things turn out bad, and they will, but you’ll still be grand.”

Flynn is keen to stress that it’s not all about women. “There’s a nice little section about Irish men, because they’re feckin great, and you don’t make any strides without allies, and if we didn’t have the amazing male allies that we’ve had, especially recently, we’d still be in the kitchen” She laughs.

And while Tara has turned to writing, she is still very much an actress. Her recent spate of shows across Dublin with Geraldine Aron’s My Brilliant Divorce were a resounding success. Her performance was often hilarious, and sometimes heartbreaking. “It’s a comedy, and she very much wrote it as a comedy” Flynn explains.

She continues “It’s very hopeful, but it is also about one of the most heartbreaking things that can happen outside of a death, and people go through it all the time, and to go through it at sort of early middle age is really terrifying for people.”

She also hopes to have more dramatic roles in the future. “There’s another one woman play, not written by me, that somebody sent me, and I would love to tackle that”. She says “It’s very dramatic and very not comedic, very different ball game to My Brilliant Divorce, and very different subject matter. But that’s something I would love to do.”

It’s clear that Flynn’s career will continue in the steady trajectory that it deserves.

Incredibly talented and charismatic, Flynn will undoubtedly continue to make an impact on not only Ireland, but on the world as a performer at the helm of the fight for equality through comedy, writing and acting.

You’re Grand: The Irish Woman’s Secret Guide to Life will be released by Hachette in October 2014.

Photo James Healy

Fatal Fourway Most outrageous Bill murray moment

Bill murray throwing a shoe at edward norton—moonrise kingdom

Rebekah Rennick

With a film career spanning nearly thirty years, Bill Murray has depicted a plethora of characters. From the contentious Hunter S Thompson to a dapper animated Mr. Badger there is no character quite like Murray’s depiction of himself, a character that has snuck into many of his roles recently. Either Murray has thrown away the actor façade completely and utterly or he just doesn’t give a hoot no more nuh-uh.

Flannel trousers, wispy grey hair and the disheveled Murray expression we know and love, Walt Bishop in Wes Anderson’s Moonrise Kingdom is a hilarious, outwardly disdainful and downright outrageous individual.

Forget every other outrageous act my counterparts have tried to convince you were the top contenders in this ludicrous race; from his midnight endeavours to chop down a tree, his

sigh encroached vocal tone throughout the movie, nothing quite compares to the reckless act of shoe-throwing; especially when Edward Norton is involved.

With his daughter missing from home alongside her bespeckled pen-pal sweetheart, Sam Shakusky, Mr. Bishop comes to blows with the local scouts who have fronted her, until then, futile search party. Like any reasonably anxious father or in terms of Bill Murray Law, his anger and frustration comes to fold with these ‘beige lunatics’ and in one swift movement his brown, leather shoe is off and hurtling towards a flailing Norton in a boyscout uniform.

‘Very bold, unusual and rather shocking’ states the definition of outrageous and it’s difficult to find a more accurate description of such an act. And all in front of Bruce Willis in a cop uniform; you can’t get more outrageous (or dangerous) than that.

Bill murray and the garfield mishap—(reality) AAron murphy

By far the best, and most outrageous, Bill Murray moment ever, is the one where Murray realised that Garfield was not written by one of the Coen brothers, and that he had, inadvertently, made a terrible, unfunny children’s movie.

When Murray received the script for the film he flicked lazily through the pages until he came across the name “Joel Coen”, the writer.

He talked money with the agent, thinking that the Coen brothers would, naturally, have a big budget. He took the part, did what he was

asked and, when he was finished doing the lines to his standard, he went to see the film. It was only after seeing the car crash he starred in that Murray realised that it wasn’t the Joel Coen he thought it was.

As an actor, taking on (and completing) an entire movie without knowing who he was working for just tells you everything you need to know about the jowly enigma that is Bill Murray. There is a point when you’re being paid to lend your reputation to a film when you ask yourself “Is this funny? Why haven’t I met the

Coen brothers yet? Why did they choose an animated cat?” Bill Murray had no such second thoughts.

More ridiculous than throwing a shoe, or giving a golf-themed, Cinderella monologue; Bill Murray made a kids film without knowing, questioning or caring! This unfortunate mishap gave rise to him writing his own dying words in the 2009 Ruben Fleischer film Zombieland.

When asked if he had any regrets, he replied “Maybe Garfield”.

Bill murray’s Cinderella Story—caddyshack Karl Quigley

away at innocent flower heads. As the remaining petals from the violent flower head removal float to the ground, simple groundskeeper Bill Murray The dear readers of Otwo may be inclined to believe the other members of this fatal fourway boasts to no one in particular about the prowess of his swing and the resulting shot. but do not be deceived by their so called He lowers his voice as two actual golfers ‘cunning’ arguments. A classic movie which includes a defining role for Bill ‘Mad Man’ Murray appear, murmuring to himself about the crowd is undoubtedly the “Cinderella Story” scene from going wild for this ‘young cinderalla boy’ that Caddyshack; by far one of the most egregariously ‘came outta nowhere, to lead the pack’. There is outrageous on-screen moments for this comedy also an outrageous irony that the scene involves a groundskeeper destroying the very land he is legend. supposed to upkeep.

The perfect delivery of his completely The simplicity (not the good kind) of this irrelevant and incorrect predictions for distance and choice of club add to the hilarity as he clubs groundskeeper could only be pulled off by

Murray, and he makes this scene as outrageous as it should be. It’s by far his most hilarious scene in the movie and it’s difficult to debate it because, in truth he is a Cinderella story boy and he certainly came outta nowhere.

Bill murray’s Multiple lives —Groundhog Day Shane Hannon The entire world is aware of how infinitely glorious a human Bill Murray is, and not least because he shares the same birthday as yours truly. When it comes to being outrageous, the Ghostbusters star never fails to disappoint; Bill Murray truly is the Bill Murray of eccentric behaviour.

Aside from the fact that the film ruined Sonny and Cher’s catchy I Got You Babe for audiences everywhere, one Bill Murray performance stands out for deadpan delivery and sheer outrageousness.

Groundhog Day sees Murray’s character Phil Connors waking up on the exact same day every morning

to the same aforementioned song and increasingly annoying morning radio show.

Bill Murray’s most outrageous moment undoubtedly comes when his character is becoming more and more depressed and exhausted with his monotonous life. He calmly walks down to the hotel breakfast buffet, grabs the toaster, walks back up to his room and drops the then plugged-in bread-improving device into the bath in which he is seated. Although his repeated attempts at ending his daily banality are all unsuccessful, Murray’s serene expression that screams world-weariness does make for a hilarious slapstick watch.

Of course waking up continuously on a great day wouldn’t be half as bad. Think Leonardo DiCaprio arising in an era when Academy Awards meant nothing, or Buzz Aldrin awakening to Abba’s The Winner Takes It All having put his foot on the Moon first after all.

Forget his ability to rid the world of the paranormal or the stories about his random appearances at house parties; Bill Murray’s most electrifyingly outrageous moment was his decidedly shocking bath in Groundhog Day. The toaster got you babe.

27

parallax the best of student photojournalism

Ciara Browne

Saoirse Sheehy Ariff

Eva Redmond

Laura iorgulescu

Grattan Aikins

Arianna Stewart

Contributors were asked to submit photographs under a number of headings including portraiture, family members working and subjects appearing in black and white, with the only restriction being that it was taken by a student of UCD. The work here represents the first step taken by the University Observer to expand its coverage and promotion of photojournalism.

This work will develop into the future and will cover the life of students, news and current affairs as well as developing personal projects that can be published across various media.

Kirsten Floeter

28

Arianna Stewart

If you’d like to get involved, email design@universityobserver.ie.