Volume XX – Otwo – Issue 4

the university observer culture magazine

otwo

hozier

Rio de Janeiro

gary numan

street style

the civil wars

sam lloyd the honourary l&H fellow talks to otwo

best simpsons horror

letter from the editors

What’s hot & What’s not What’s hot

What’s not hot

Dublin Beatles Festival

Disappearance of Mike tyson’s Sex Energy

Taking place around the city from November 7th - 10th, this year’s Beatles Festival is going to be bigger and better than Jesus. Keep an ear out for skiffle bands and tribute acts, and don’t forget to punch someone across the face every time you disagree with their choice of favourite Beatle. All suits from the A Hard Day’s Night tour will be on display in the Arnott’s Window on Henry Street. Beatles are not for sale.

boo Scared you, didn’t we? ‘Tis the season for all manner of spookiness, and this issue should give you your fill, what with your Fatal Fourway tackling the thorny subject of the best Simpsons Treehouse of Horror story.

In our games section, your jointfavourite Otwo co-editor, Steven Balbirnie, takes you on a ghost tour of sorts, through horror games and Film’s Top 10 also counts down the ten films that were never planned to scare the bejayzus out of you, but inevitably did so.

If you’re not into Halloween, or suffer from Samhainophobia, we’ve plenty to cater to those who aren’t interested in the premier pagan holiday. Laura “Victree” Bell talks to the lovely Sam Lloyd in this issue’s centre while Otwo also catches up with Director Joe Lawlor to discuss his latest film Mister John.

In Games, Niall “Comrade” Gosker becomes the customs

official from hell in Papers Please, while Eva Griffin increases the amount of media attention paid to the release of GTA V by wondering if the media have paid too much attention to the release of GTA V. Meanwhile, Fashion sees Emily “The Fourth Haim Sister” Mullen teaching you lads out there how to look smart while being casual about it.

The music section boasts interviews with the Civil Wars, Gary Numan and some Wild Tibetan Monks (and believe us, Tibetan monks can get pretty wild). Rebekah “I’m Idaho” Rennick also sits down with Hozier to have the bants.

All of the spine-tingling splendour you need for a fine Samhain’s eve.

Yours from beyond the grave, Jack & Steven

Bluegrass Tuesdays

The International Bar on Wicklow Street has finally recognised the real and undying yearning for bluegrass music in all of our souls, by hosting a free entry bluegrass night every Tuesday. Entertainment.ie gives a detailed review of the evening on their events page, describing it as being “In the bar.” This express promise of an old-time hootenany should be the only reason you need to get down there for unadulterated hooley.

Gradual Duck Implementation Scheme at the New Lake

In the spirit of Halloween, UCD has paid homage to Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds by gradually increasing the population of ducks living in the vicinity of the new lake, until they will most likely experience a psychotic break and immediately peck out the eyes of the entire student body. Despite our near and present danger, this is a positive move, because ducks are cute.

If you haven’t gotten to experience the mindblowing taste of Mike Tyson’s Sex Energy, you’ve missed a huge opportunity, since the popular energy drink has recently disappeared from shops.

With absolutely no indication over why this may be, hundreds upon thousands of disappointed drinkers of Mike Tyson’s Sex Energy have had to resort to other, less sexual energy drinks. Apart from in Poland, where Mike Tyson’s Sex Energy is soon to be awarded the title of National Beverage.

Nano Domestic Quell

This is the American government’s secret plan to take down future anarchists by way of an Armageddon nano device that gives them the flu.

Exposed by self-described “lawyer, doctor and media watchdog” Dr Bill H. Weld, the controversy has all the makings of a poorly executed sci-fi film, undertaken entirely through the blog of a yuppie. Thus making the nano domestic quell this issue’s Yuppie Conspiracy Of The Fortnight.

Blood Transfusion Hacks

Not to say a word against the important cause of donating blood, it’s a potentially life-saving deed that exhibits selflessness and compassion, and the Irish Blood Transfusion Service do tireless work motivating the public consciousness to donate blood for the good of the colony. But why are they pushing donations so close to Halloween?

And why is that Dr. Acula lad on their team so friendly? Because they’re blood-robbing fiends is why. Death to all vampires!

mystic mittens

Aries

Leo

Sagittarius

Everything’s going to be alright for a change! Oh wait, I confused you with Capricorn. No, things are about to go horribly wrong for you in a comically impossible fashion.

The surest path to enlightenment is consuming twice your weight in swordfish, dropping out of college and travelling to Nepal with the first three clothed people you meet on Chatroulette.

You will discover a delicious new way to start each morning by chewing tobacco instead of smoking it and your friends will discover new ways to pretend to be busy when you want to hang out.

Taurus

Virgo

You will meet a mysterious stranger this week. How they ended up tied to a chair in your basement is for you to explain to the authorities.

You will discover that people you once thought trustworthy may not actually be trustworthy. Your paranoia will then lead you to abandon all those who love you and you will die alone. Also, you will step in gum.

Gemini

Libra

If in doubt, blame the Love/ Hate Cat for your problems.

Alternatively, leave reality behind and go live in a fictional world in which your ex still loves you and your parents are proud of your also fictional achievements.

Cancer You may be an ugly duckling now, but one day you will grow into a terrifying, angry swan. Then they’ll see... Well, they would, if they had eyes left to see from.

2 otwo

I will only bring you fear, clarity and dead mice

Capricorn Way to fail those mid-terms! The use of negative marking leaves you needing to get 105% in your Christmas exams to pass. Oh wait, I thought you were Aries. You just keep doing what you’re doing Capricorn.

Aquarius

Happiness can be found with a new love. In your case, it’s the blob in the Arts block. Good luck keeping your love a secret from campus security.

The presence of Jupiter indicates a significant increase in gas in your life.

Maybe you should lay off the burritos, unless you need to secure a place to study in the library, that is.

Scorpio

Pisces

If you’re wondering where the money came from for the revamp of the science building, you can find the answer in the fact that you’ve been assigned a companion cube. Now, please step through that blue swirly thing in the wall.

You will become the face of a new brand of breakfast cereal only to become mired in lawsuits due to its lethal levels of potassium benzoate. Don’t let this deter you.

The people need their delicious, delicious chemicals.

index 2 Regulars

12

Centre

3

Regulars

14

music

——————————————— Mystic Mittens holds the fate of you pitiful mortals in the grasp of her paws and your definitive guide to hotness and notness proves to be as accurate as ever.

4 5 6 8

——————————————— This issue’s Soapbox sees Joanna O’Malley tackle the burning issue of the lack of female bromances, and an omniscient narrator tells you what to expect in this issue. Read on...

Soapbox—Bromances Venting about the lack of female bromances, Joanna O’Malley puts out a come and get me plea to all readers

——————————————— Best known for his portrayal of Ted from Scrubs, along with leading a capella group The Blanks, veteran actor Sam Lloyd chats to Laura Bell about things that will no doubt be of interest to you and all those you love.

——————————————— The Civil Wars, Gary Numan and Hozier all take to the interviewee’s chair this issue and our Radar discovers some Wild Tibetan Monks.

New releases by John Mayer, St. Lucia, TLC and Lissie are reviewed, plus we get the latest from Orla Gartland about the interwebs.

columns

——————————————— There’s more of old-fashioned wisdom from the Dark Ages thanks to @tila, while the cavalcade of hilarity provided by Foil, Arms and Hog keeps rolling.

Travel & Drink

——————————————— Your tour guide to Rio de Janeiro ahead of next year’s World Cup is Alex Vickery, while Steven Balbirnie gets acquainted with a bottle of Peroni Gran Riserva Doppio Malto.

Yes, those were a lot of Italian words.

Games

——————————————— Ever wanted to experience life working in Soviet passport control?

Of course you have! And now you can, thanks to Papers Please, as Niall Gosker gives you the rundown and Karl Quigley checks out what Jeppe Carlsen has been up to since Limbo by reviewing 140. Resident (Evil) horror fanatic Steven Balbirnie charts the genre’s rise and fall, as Eva Griffin looks at the media’s obsession with GTA V.

Film

——————————————— From boozing to bluegrass, Drinking Buddies and The Broken Circle Breakdown get reviewed. In Top 10, Stephen Larkin also recounts the most unintentionally horrifying cinematic experiences that you can endure.

19 22 23

fashion

——————————————— Envy your peers in Street Style, marvel at men’s smart casual wear, and bow down before the Hashtag Queen Emily Mullen in #Winning or #Binning.

culture

——————————————— Culture Woulfe explores the 1913 Lockout through art and writer Elizabeth Reapy talks to Steven Balbirnie about how to bring together a new generation of emerging Irish writers.

fatal Fourway

——————————————— Quiet night in on Halloween night?

All you need is three friends, a TV and a Simpsons boxset. Failing that, you could always read the opinions of the fourway on the best Simpsons Treehouse of Horror tale.

As a person of the double X chromosome variety, I must confess I’m upset. Upset that I, as a female, cannot have a bromance.

Let me clarify, I do have friends, but can only refer to close female friends as ‘gal pals’ or ‘my bessie mate’. My guy friends already have that special someone with whom they can be bromantic.

The only person who I’d refer to in almost every conversation, hug every half an hour or share lingering glances with while singing along to one of the many songs we both know from our vast repertoire is my boyfriend, and that’s lame.

The real question is, why can guys share intimate moments and call it harmless ‘guy love,’ but when girls do the exact same action with one another it’s considered weird or homoerotic. Both men and women have shot down this argument, saying that women can indeed have a bromance, but they generally tended to be the Sex and the City type.

My personal view on the matter is that, as a gender, we’re too quick to judge and compete with one another. We are indeed our own worst enemy. When we see a woman comedian, we complain that they are not actually funny and that all they do is complain about their lives.

Yet when we see male comedians we tend to believe that they can do no wrong.

This communal thought translates in to the world of bromance.

Women tend to be quicker to be judged and slower to be forgiven. It’s no wonder legitimate bromances for women are few and far between.

Upon searching for the female name for a bromance, I discovered that the name of such a friendship indicates ‘slutty’ behaviour and negative connotations. Names for the female bromance included; ‘hoemance’, ‘lesbifriends’ and ‘scissor sisters.’ We are basically discouraging a carefree and silly relationship with fellow members of the female gender.

The desire for a bromance doesn’t stem from some sort of feminist viewpoint. It stems from TV shows advertising the male friendship as being something that’s adorable as well as thoroughly amusing.

There may be hope though. Even though it’s very rare, the female bromance does indeed exist as Amy Poehler and Tina Fey show us. I wait in optimistic hope that my perfect bromance could be out there waiting to embrace with me while shouting ‘hug me sister.’

otwo

3

Foil, Arms & Hog In this fortnight’s column, Foil, Arms and Hog are on hand to diagnose readers with the terminal internet addiction disorder and brag about the popularity of their YouTube channel

Are you an internet junkie? First of all, stop imagining a heroin addict who is computer literate, that’s not what we’re talking about here. Sure it’s a hilarious image and sure it would be funny to imagine him trying to fill out the Ryanair booking online and getting timed out because he’s goofing off in the middle. Please, this is serious; we’re talking about Irish people spending too much time on the internet.

Are you one of these people?

Maybe too much Twitter is your vice. Maybe it’s making shit up and posting it up on Wikipedia? Saying things you don’t have the balls to say in person on boards.ie? Do you get off to posting classifieds on DoneDeal.ie?

Or are you one of those people who always turn YouTube comments on a random video of a dog sleeping into a racist or religious debate that ends in homophobic rants. Whatever it is, don’t worry, the internet is fucking great.

It’s kind of like when you heard David Duchovny or Russell Brand were sex addicts. “I’m sorry, I don’t understand, they’re sex addicts?”

“Yes, they are addicted to sex.” “Oh, I get it, they have a penis.”

You see there is no new infor-

Or are you one of those people who always turn YouTube comments on a random video of a dog sleeping into a racist or religious debate that ends in homophobic rants

mation in the sentence ‘David Duchovny and Russell Brand are sex addicts.’ Unless you didn’t know that they were male. So, if you think you are a special case who’s addicted to the internet, think again. We all are.

Why be ashamed? The internet is hailed as a modern day wonder of the world. Just think of its procrastination abilities. For example, have you ever found yourself thinking when you know you have to write an essay sitting back and saying, “Oh hey, I better check my Gmail one more time, just in case anything has come through in the last six seconds from when I last checked it because I was checking my Facebook updates.

“Which reminds me, it’s been a while since I checked Facebook, don’t want to miss anything, actually I’ll open it in another window in case I forget because in the meantime it’s vital I check my LinkedIn requests...

Oh shit I’ve neglected my Pintrest account for way too long now, god this stuff is just so important, actually it’s probably best I watch a whole season of Breaking Bad on Netflix that way I’ll be more relaxed to do the essay in sixteen hours time.”

Sound familiar? It should, because this is human nature. If this doesn’t sound familiar, then that’s when you should be worried because you have psychological problems; or you have

a dial up connection.

Anyway, since we’ve established you’ve got time to burn online, why not try our Foil Arms and Hog YouTube channel? It’s ranked 5,327,984th of top visited sites in Ireland, so you know it’s got to be good. Go on, help a brother out. The first one is always free.

Seriously though, if you can’t get enough of Foil, Arms and Hog in Otwo, why not check out their videos on YouTube, and/or join them on Facebook and Twitter @foilarmsandhog. They also have a fancy website with upcoming gigs and things at foilarmsandhog.ie

@tila_da_hun u ok

Hi Hun! I’m in a hoop over what to wear for Halhun? loween. Usually I’d go fer a stunnah black dress and like flowers or some shit painted on my face, but everyone’s getting mad creative this year and I want it to look like I came up with something artsy. I can’t think of anything decent that doesn’t involve layers, and that’s obviously a spastic move cos I’ve got class tits. What’ll make it look like I gave a shit about the costume in a way that still looks glam?? tnx!

Elvira xxx

Been dealing with da huns problems since 445AD… Ur resident agony aunt & Hunnic Emperor lol! Don’t mess wit my girlos or I’ll wreck u like I wrecked da city of Aquileia . xoxo. Tweet me!

4 otwo

Howiye hun!

Here stop, I used to be given so much shit for wearing the most cinch-waist armour we had back when we were hoppin’ on the Balkans. They were decking us with bone laths and all this, but the mesh bodysuit I was wearing had this mad cute keyhole detail so I couldn’t not wear it like?

Me and the girls sacked Margus and Viminacium cos they were too distracted tryin’ to get stuck in to us, and also because we had a reserve of rolling siege towers.

But like, don’t let anyone tell you not to get yer pair out because it only does everyone a favour.

Try anything that can be bodypainted on, that way you can completely pull off a mad decent costume without havin to look like a dope.

‘Tila xoxo

Story hun, Me and the girlos were out on a massive one last week in town, we were still buzzin at 3 after everywhere was closing and we stalled it to this ropey afterparty. It seemed grand when the hotzer on Abbey Street told us about it, but once I shook the bogey Mickey Finns head offa me I saw that yer man wasn’t even alright-looking, and the afterparty was shit.

Ye wouldn’t even mind but they were playing Nelly, and they were seriously overcharging for cans and blow. Could I bring a case to the Consumer Rights Agency, and if so, how do I find where the fuck it was again?

Blanca xx C’mere to me hun, Poxy afterparties are the worst, for a tenner in, you’d think they’d even give ye a free smoke or something... One time after we captured Metz we threw a filthy massive night in the Generator after, even set up a livestream to the slaughter of Nicasius in Rheims.

It was mad craic until we got shut down early after someone told the guards about the Baked Sale we set up, since when do you even need a licence for that at an illegal underground rave? I brought the case to the OmbudsHun, but I was still off my face at the time so they didn’t take me seriously…

You definitely have a case against Mickey Finns, ‘cos anything you do after downin’ that is officially their liability. Get in touch with Citizens Information and scope out their afterparty refunds policy and their Mickey Finns Third Party Liability policy.

At the very least you’ll get a pack of Dutch Gold or something.

‘Tila xoxo

Rio de Janeiro—The Dos & Don’ts Ahead of the 2014 World Cup, Alex Vickery guides you through Rio de Janeiro, one of the beautiful host cities

Beer of the

Fortnight

Peroni Gran Riserva Doppio Malto Ipanema, Rio de Janeiro

Do

visit the kiosks scattered along the sides of the beach. They are great places to meet people while cracking open a cold coconut or sipping on a caipirinha, the national cocktail.

Also, be sure to take advantage of the many fresh juice stands.

They are essentially the Brazilian equivalent of a Starbucks on every corner.

Don’t

bring a towel to the beach. It’s like having “tourist” stamped across your forehead. That’s if the bathing suit covering most of your body doesn’t already give it away.

Instead, Brazilians use kangas, or sarongs. Don’t worry, many vendors on the beach sell kangas, as well as bathing suits, sunscreen, food and pretty much every other surfside necessity.

Do

buy as many pairs of havaianas as your suitcase will allow. Havaianas, a Brazilian flip-flop brand, has found international success, sported on the feet of

everyone from Americans to Singaporeans. Here, you’ll find the best variety of styles and lowest prices. Brazilians hardly leave the house without them.

on is the elaborate barbecue stain just when a young boy buffet called a churrascaria. runs up to clean it for you, Servers come around with know that he is probably the knives and skewers of various one who put it there. Keep types of meat and serve you a your valuables such as your portion at your table. A word of phone, camera, and flashy jewelry tucked away, not in your advice, make sure to wear your forget to look fat pants that day. back pocket. Simplicity is the both ways key when it comes to safety. before crossing over to the Don’t attract any unnecessary beach. The bustling sidewalk learn a few Portuguese attention to yourself. can distract pedestrians from phrases during your watching out for bikers or trip. While a lot of people skateboarders whizzing by in increasingly speak English, venture outside of the bike lane. Use caution in any especially with the upcoming the traditional tourist street in the city; drivers can be a destinations. While Corcovado World Cup and Olympic games, bit reckless with no lane divisions. and Pão de Açucar are incredible they greatly appreciate and sights, there is much more to see respect foreigners who attempt to speak their language. Not to in Rio. Visit the Feira Hippie in pay attention to the mention that many locals only Ipanema on Sundays for a local numbered posts know the Portuguese names of handcrafted market, or explore along the three main beaches popular tourist hubs (i.e. Pão the lush Floresta da Tijuca. For of Copacabana, Ipanema and de Açucar instead of Sugar the more adventurous, go hang Leblon. Each post has it’s own gliding in São Conrado or hike up Loaf). When in doubt, just use a unique community; from the thumbs-up, smile and say “okay.”

Pão de Açucar instead of riding rainbow flags along post eight, the cable cars. to the family beach around post 11. Students, along with hip expect locals residents of Ipanema, tend to to be on time. leave without gather between posts nine and Part of the laidback carioca sampling ten. lifestyle is enjoying life at a some of the local cuisine. Much leisurely pace. Dinner starts of Brazilian food, from the late, nightlife ends even later fall for typical açai fruit to the rich chocolate and seven o’clock probably dessert brigadeiro, can be an thief traps. means eight or nine. Just sit acquired taste, but one thing If you look down to find your back and go with the flow. every meat-lover can agree shoe covered in a mustard-like

Don’t

Do

Do

Do

Don’t

Don’t

Don’t

Looking for a quick and tasty recipe? Check out Amy Cortney's Mug Brownie on www.universityobserver.ie

Based in Rome since 1864, Peroni is Italy’s premier brewing company, renowned for its Nastro Azzurro lager which is smooth, highly drinkable and widely available. Less known, though equally deserving of praise if not more so, is Peroni’s Gran Riserva Doppio Malto, a double malt premium lager.

The Gran Riserva is an award winning Italian beer and it’s easy to see why.

This 6.6% strong lager has a crisp, dark, malty flavour. It has a much deeper, richer, fuller flavour than you’d expect from a lager.

This is a result of the recipe using only malt, without any unmalted cereals being added.

Available in a 330ml bottle, served chilled, this is the perfect accompaniment to hearty meat or rich pasta dishes. Don’t be put off by the smaller bottle size. This packs the same punch as 500ml of your standard lager.

Steven Balbirnie

otwo

5

Papers, Please

140

Papers, Please, from lone developer Lucas Pope, shouldn’t work. Despite this seemingly glaring flaw, not only does it work, it actually excels at something very few other games do; creating a genuine sense of tension without having to resort to bombastics. While the descriptor of Papers, Please, which terms it as a “document thriller,” may seem like a paradoxical misnomer at first, it couldn’t be more appropriate.

The year is 1982, and the setting is the fictional Eastern European country of Arstotzka. Players take on the role of a low-ranking citizen who has been tasked with the job of working passport control on the reopened border.

In terms of moment-to-moment gameplay, Papers, Please is comparable to very few other games. Hopeful entrants approach the border office and whether or not they pass through is entirely the player’s choice.

Documents need to be inspected to guarantee their validity, a procedure that starts out simple, but quickly becomes a complex and pressurised task.

All of this is happening against the clock, as wages are calculated based on how many people are processed each day. The Ministry of Admissions is, however, always watching and too many deviations from protocol, intentional or otherwise, can result in a monetary penalty.

Money feeds into the meta-game, an allocation of scant resources that ensures all family members are kept in good health. It’s possible

Developer Jeppe Carlson, well known for his work on the successful indie title Limbo, has taken a stark change of direction. This new game, which he developed during off-time from duties at Playdead Studios, has been described as a “minimalistic platformer.”

The player takes control of a small geometric object, which changes shape throughout the game. It’s a square when stationary, a circle when moving left or right, and a triangle when jumping or falling.

Carlson set out to create an old-school platformer, combining the classic elements of tight control and pattern navigation with the new generation of rhythm based platformers. The electronic music created by Jakob Schmid is used as a base for obstacles and patterns. Blocks of black and white static form the ‘instant-death’ zones, which revert the player back to the most recent checkpoint.

The central premise of the game revolves around the fact that the music forms the basis for each level. The player must seek out small colourful spheres and bring them to a door. This then leads them onto the subsequent level, with a different colour palette and a higher, more kinetic set of music.

With each door unlocked, the levels progress in difficulty and more obstacles begin moving in and out of existence in time with the music. As the beat becomes more complex and more parts are added to

to purchase booth upgrades, which should facilitate faster processing and consequently more income. Yet it’s easy to slip into a mood of complacency where the temptation of a greater reward ends up actually diminishing it.

The power of the oppressive world of Papers, Please is made possible in great part due to its visual and audio assets. The game’s introduction, which sees the title card shift slowly into centre screen in time with a knock-off Soviet national anthem, is an appropriate way of establishing the setting.

The largely monochromatic colour scheme never bores thanks to a wonderful artistic attention to detail. The foreboding shadows of the border guards’ rigid animation is one such great visual flourish. There are occasional moments of black humour serving to alleviate, if only slightly, what may otherwise be too suffocatingly grim an atmosphere.

It’s ironic that a tale of suppression of individuality has such a strong personality of its own, and that this is what’s ultimately pivotal in creating the tangible relationship between the player and game. This relationship is what allows the game’s moment-tomoment progression to be wrought with such impressive weight of consequence.

This is an accomplishment in itself, but one that’s even greater when taking into account the comparatively tame and banal premise Papers, Please uses to achieve this great effect.

Karl Quigley

Niall Gosker

Developer Lucas Pope Platforms Windows, Mac OS X

6 otwo

the constantly moving level, the player must synchronise their movements with the music while figuring out the order in which they need to move.

Like Limbo, the seemingly complex nature of these constantly moving puzzles is in fact simplicity in an elegant disguise. The beat will change with progress and in order to continue, the player must improvise and adapt to the fast moving levels.

Navigation around instant-death obstacles rely on a person’s spatial awareness, reflexes, and most importantly, an understanding of the pulse pounding music that surrounds you at all times.

The constantly changing world will lead to many missteps and those unfamiliar with rhythm games and platformers will regularly find themselves falling into deliberately placed traps.

The sparse seconds between death and respawn, however, allow the player to quickly get back into the rhythm of the level. While the boss battles present at the end of each of the three levels add extra tense moments of frantic movement and mental mathematics.

The game itself is relatively short and rarely frustrating. With a mix of tight controls, an excellent art style and music to die for, 140 is definitely worth the small asking price.

Platforms Windows, Mac OS X Jakob Schmid, Niels Fyrst, Developer Jeppe Carlson, Andreas Peitersen

The horror! The horror!

Just in time for Halloween, Steven Balbirnie charts the rise, fall, and rebirth of the horror genre

Videogames are perhaps the medium best suited to the horror genre as giving the audience agency brings the fear closer to home. With horror games being such an established component of the industry today, it is surprising to consider their almost incidental origins.

Arguably, the genre originated with Capcom’s 1989 title Sweet Home, which was a tie-in for a Japanese horror film of the same name directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa.

It was designed as an RPG, though it featured elements that would form the core of survival horror, such as puzzles and health and inventory management. The key significance of Sweet Home, however, is that it led to the creation of the most influential survival horror game ever made, 1996’s Resident Evil.

Resident Evil had originally been planned as a 3D remake of Sweet Home, but during the development cycle it mutated into a nightmarish title in its own right, thus launching a series that would forever change the games industry.

The creepy Spencer Mansion, made difficult to navigate by devilish puzzles and fixed camera angles, was populated by horrific monsters who were notoriously difficult to kill due to tricky controls and the need to conserve ammunition. This set the trend for much of what has followed.

The next major leap came three years later, when Konami took Capcom’s formula for survival horror and kicked it up a notch to create Silent Hill. This represented the first psychological horror game, which also drew inspiration from the 1990 film Jacob’s Ladder.

Set in a town that mirrors the inner fears and torments of those who pass through it, the Silent Hill series brought a new and even more unsettling edge to the genre through its use of Freudian and Jungian psychological tropes, typified by Silent Hill 2’s infamous antagonist, Pyramid Head.

The 2009 title Silent Hill: Shattered Memories took matters even further by psychologically profiling the player and tailoring the game experience accordingly. The 2002 GameCube game, Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem, also broke new ground by including insanity effects that would represent the deteriorating mental state of the protagonist.

Some of these tropes would even break the fourth wall such as a false message to the player stating that their memory card had become corrupted.

In the same way that survival horror was an offshoot of RPGs, action horror was an offshoot of the

outlast

Rather than evolving the horror genre however, these new independent titles are actually returning horror games to the roots doom

FPS; the first action horror being id Software’s Doom, released in 1993, with its brooding atmosphere and demonic imagery. This subsequently spawned a larger genre, most notably including 2005’s F.E.A.R. and the Dead Space series.

Resident Evil 4 marked the perfect hybrid of survival horror and action horror, but, while a triumph in its own right, its unfortunate legacy has been that its success led to the degeneration of mainstream horror into action titles increasingly devoid of the survival and psychological elements that had defined them for over a decade.

While mainstream titles have

seen a decline in recent years, with Resident Evil 6 and Dead Space 3 performing notably poorly, attention has instead turned to the flourishing indie horror scene. Garnering critical acclaim and in some cases commercial success, titles developed by small teams such as Amnesia: The Dark Descent, the Slender games and Outlast have resurrected the genre.

Rather than evolving the horror genre however, these new independent titles are actually returning horror games to the roots that mainstream developers have strayed so much from. The modern focus on atmosphere, sound design and player

vulnerability all trace their origins back to games from the 1990s.

The Lovecraftian charms of Penumbra and Amnesia hark back to 1992’s Alone in the Dark and 1996’s Quake; demonstrating that if there is one influence that has been at the core of the genre from its inception to the current day, it has been the mythos created by H.P. Lovecraft through his literary works.

The atmosphere and sumptuous sound design of Amnesia and the audio distortion of Slender were foreshadowed by the incredible audio work that Akira Yamaoka pioneered in the Silent Hill series, with sirens and white noise being

used to terrifying effect, creating an environment in which often what you could hear was far more horrifying than anything you could see.

Player vulnerability is also key to modern horror, in which many titles don’t allow the player to defend themselves; running and hiding are the only options. This is hardly new, as 1995’s Clock Tower saw the player powerless to do anything other than flee from the game’s antagonist, Scissorman, and pray that they weren’t found and eviscerated with a giant pair of shears.

Scissorman was the original stalker character whose horror legacy was notably continued by Nemesis in Resident Evil 3 and has now manifested itself in the forms of the abominations roaming Castle Brennenburg and Mount Massive Asylum. These characters conform to a genre trope which mainstream action horror has so carelessly neutered.

With the vast gulf between the triple A and indie horror sections of the industry exemplifying the genre’s mixed fortunes of late, much attention has turned to The Evil Within, which is due for release next year.

Helmed by legendary horror maestro Shinji Mikami, the visionary behind Resident Evil 1, 2 and 4, The Evil Within’s aim of revitalising the moribund survival horror genre has raised hopes within the community.

Only time will tell if Mikami can return to greatness the genre, which his work did so much to define.

otwo

7

Grand Theft Spotlight With Grand Theft Auto V holding a firm grasp on the media, Eva Griffin wonders where indie games come into the equation

Grand Theft Auto V.

Whether receiving good press or bad, the talking point in the gaming industry as of late has undoubtedly been the long-awaited release of Grand Theft Auto V. Whether you proudly declare yourself a lover of video games, or identify as a gamingvirgin, there was simply no escape from the latest Rockstar release as that poster of the buxom blonde in a red bikini graced magazines, billboards, buses and social media outlets.

While the mass coverage was, of course, expected, this puts lesserknown developers in a somewhat awkward situation; they may have content to release, but are aware that it’s wise to wait until the GTA-storm has calmed.

Given Rockstar’s reputation, they can make announcements, produce trailers, and release a game whenever they please; safe in the knowledge that they’ll get a sufficient amount of media attention.

For indie developers, they have to pick and choose their moments by working around AAA developer schedules, or they’ll struggle to be noticed and risk getting swept under the rug.

Should a conscious effort be made to provide equal coverage, or would this only serve to alienate the targeted audience? Grand Theft Auto is incredibly popular, but is the franchise’s domination of the media justified? Granted, statistics play an important part in what journalists

8 otwo

Perhaps the lack of media attention is yet another charming element of indie titles, but could this be actively preventing the progression of lesserknown developers?

choose to cover, and it could be a potential risk to deviate from this structure of appealing to popular tastes.

With this cycle continuing to run as per usual, there is a sense of the privileged consistently gaining further privileges. Of course, a game’s popularity deems it deserving of mass coverage, but it serves as an unfair advantage when there are countless worthwhile indie games waiting to be played, but lacking the media attention to build a stable fan base.

This creates a difficult situation for indie developers, where they’re somewhat restricted in terms of releasing trailers and promotional information for fear of getting lost in the media buzz around bigger titles.

That isn’t to say that they don’t get any attention, as a myriad of gamesoriented publications and websites strive to draw attention to indie releases. Unfortunately, it seems as though the mainstream media is not as quick to catch on.

Unlike other cultural mediums such as music and film, common publications have not yet accepted all aspects of the gaming industry.

While you may read about an indie band or film in various magazines or websites you come across, it’s more of a rarity to come across articles concerning indie games, unless you’re searching in a games focused publication.

Many game enthusiasts believe that the majority of innovative indie titles are to be held in higher esteem than some lacklustre AAA titles. With this in mind, it seems as though mainstream media chooses to focus on one aspect of the gaming industry, in the same vein as action movies are just one aspect of the film industry.

A ‘casual’ gamer who loves Grand Theft Auto would probably take a liking to Hypno Vol. I, but if their exposure is limited to populist media, billboards, bus stops, the Twitterverse and numerous posts by Facebook friends, they may never hear of it.

This sort of media frenzy limits what kind of games casual gamers are exposed to, so an indie developer is going to be consistently relying on enthusiast gamers and the divide in the gaming community becomes a lot more obvious. If you stick to mainstream releases, you run the risk of being labelled merely ‘casual’ in your gaming experience.

Perhaps the lack of media attention is yet another charming element of indie titles, but could this be actively preventing the progression of lesser-known developers? Exceptions to the rule have thankfully graced the scene.

Dennaton Games’ Hotline Miami and Polytron Corporations’ Fez are prime examples, but hopefully

that the occurrence won’t remain somewhat of a rarity.

Even though the previously mentioned games did make a big impression on the gaming community, there’s still a certain struggle for legitimacy with regards to indie games taking on the mainstream scene. Without a big developer name like Rockstar behind you, it may be hard to get noticed, and begging desperately for attention is likely to hurt your cause, though shouting a little would probably help.

It would be a relief to see more ‘casual’ gamers experience what the world of indie developers has to offer, the possibility exists that this territory will be forever marked by the enthusiasts of the gaming community.

There is a sense of ownership prevalent within the hard-core fans lurking in the depths of the internet inhabited by gaming forums. This could be justified by the fact that yes, they are incredibly dedicated to games, but if we can’t rely on the media to promote smaller titles then perhaps it’s up to the passionate gamers to aid the cause and spread the word.

If all else fails, then indie developers need to find some other way to make their voices heard and get their material out there, provided it’s worthy of attention.

Dear Mister John Independent Irish Film Director Joe Lawlor talks to Jack Walsh about working with Aidan Gillen, single shots and his latest feature, Mister John

Emerging from the English Theatre scene, Irish directors Joe Lawlor and Christin Molloy discovered early on that the conventional methods of storytelling within film was intensely overrated.

Their creative partnership has blossomed since 1992, when they first took on the nickname of the ‘desperate optimists,’ as the duo have developed a taste for adapting this non-traditional mode of portraying a narrative.

“We always used moving image in our work, and as the theatre developed, the moving image became bigger and bigger. Our last work was 50% image based. It was very gradual and very incremental. Our first passion is not really about story at all. Maybe that constituted 20 to 30% of the experience, but it’s only one part of the world you’re entering into.”

Lawlor began with single-shot short films, and in the creation of the partnership’s first feature length film, Helen, he was innately aware of their chances of artistic success. “That was the challenge, to make a feature film that would be accepted on an international level and make a debut feature.

“The big thing is how you’re going to do your first feature. If you do it right, it can help you. If you do it wrong, I remember going into Helen with the

As we shot it, we were covering scenes in conventional manners, but that doesn’t mean we are going to edit in a conventional way

statistic that 73% of UK filmmakers never make a second feature.”

Describing Helen, a film based around the ideals of community, Lawlor asserts, “It’s a very unusual film but that made it stand out and it got a lot of coverage. It’s made up of twenty eight single-take shots.

“We shot for fourteen days and every day we had two shots. They are quite elaborate in the shots. Our short films were well known as they are all single-take films and that dictates a certain type of pace. You have to get into that pace. If you take a film from 1973 to 2013, it’s a profoundly different experience in pacing. Helen is most certainly of the European Robert Bresson type.”

Relating this to their latest feature, Mister John, the story of a man going to Thailand to retrieve the body of his brother, Lawlor explains, “It’s not about single takes, there’s a very different dynamic to it. It’s still quite a gentle film. Its performance is much greater and the central role that Aidan Gillen plays is much more demanding.

“As we shot it, we were covering scenes in conventional manners, but that doesn’t mean we are going to edit in a conventional way. The same obsession is there, somebody going through something of a crisis. A film where death is a catalyst for change,

a death that is not necessarily to be grieved for. An act of death giving people opportunity.”

Although Mister John had the backdrop of Singapore, Lawlor was keen to stress that the film’s location is secondary in importance to the character’s own struggles having lost his sense of self. “Nobody ever says the word Singapore, so for all intents and purposes you would never know that it was actually Singaporean. It’s important that you don’t know where it is.

“The film is very much about a man who has no sense of his own self, and Singapore, with its history, has essentially had to find its own identity in the last hundred years. The character is very much in focus, and Singapore is kept necessarily in the background.”

Story has never been a subject of importance for Lawlor, character development, however, has remained a constant. “It’s all about character, and in many ways it’s about the internal nature and workings of the character. It’s a very insular film and not articulate emotionally.

“He doesn’t externalise his emotions. When people are in crises this can be seen to be very pertinent and with a man in crisis, emotions get very bottled up. They don’t get vocalised or externalised. I think that’s also quite

psychologically true. So you’re not just watching a male character, you’re watching a closed off and frustrated character.”

Mister John and his reactions are the central narrative to the film’s emotional payload. The character was portrayed

by Aiden Gillen, an actor Lawlor highlighted as a major factor contributing to the film’s artistic success.

“Aidan was a great actor to work with, he’s very easy going and generous, he works very very hard.

“Getting the character to the bone was very important for him, and each take took work. He’s not just trying to coast on his ability; he’s always trying to search for something different.”

Driven by news reports about young Irish men holding a high suicide rate, Lawlor believes the film’s subject is “not like a piece of social realism, it’s not a thematic or subject driven piece.

One can only imagine when a loss of self and depression starts to take over.

The film is about grieving, depression and how people often have to battle their own confidence.”

Despite the dark subject matter of their work, the desperate optimists certainly have a bright future ahead of themselves. As for Lawlor himself, it seems that works like Mister John will only improve an already stellar reputation.

otwo

9

The Broken Circle Breakdown

Director Felix van Groeningen Starring Johan Heldenbergh, Veerle Baetens, Nell Cattrysse Release Date 8th November Set in Belgium around the time of the attacks of September 11th, and shot almost completely in Flemish, the film is an excellent re-imagining of the boy meets girl story. A Belgian bluegrass musician, Didier (Heldenbergh), falls in love with a tattoo artist, Elise (Baetens), however, after the birth of their leukemic daughter, their lives change.

Flicking back and forth between moments in the lives of Didier and Elise, we see how their relationship unfolds and how the characters grow together.

In this way, the film effectively tells just enough of the story to be coherent and to explore the characters while still being interesting.

The film is a powerful and touching piece that is filled with many moments of both love and strife. It’s charming and stark in its depiction of love and relationships and still, somehow, the dialogue is believable. The joyous depictions of love make you smile and the hardships they endure can bring you to tears. It’s hard to imagine growing to care for a wannabe hillbilly and a moody, religious tattoo artist, but it happens.

The soundtrack is absolutely perfect for the film. It resonates with one’s own feelings and also, more practically, helps you decipher the film’s location in time.

The moments where Didier’s band is onstage playing are of particular note,

10 otwo

pinpointing the couple’s relationship at a certain moment in time. This technique is used very creatively, and to stunning effect by director Felix van Groeningen.

The wonderfully vivid performances by the leading actors can’t receive enough credit. Although you may not agree with the characters, it is certainly not difficult to understand them. As a drama, the film is not over or under acted and it gives what feels like a very true to life insight of the events.

A combination of good writing and fine acting humanises the characters while keeping the plot entertaining. Despite this, the story tends to drag on a bit towards the last quarter. This lag in the pace does not in any sense take away from the performances, but does leave the viewer slightly impatient for more plot development.

This can be the only criticism of an otherwise outstanding and understated film. The Broken Circle Breakdown may leave you emotionally exhausted, but you will be grateful for the experience.

In a nutshell A wonderful and engaging drama about two parents coping with their daughter’s leukaemia and the ups and downs of their relationship Aaron Murphy

Drinking Buddies

Director Joe Swanberg Starring Olivia Wilde, Jake Johnson, Anna Kendrick, Ron Livingston Release Date 1st November Drinking Buddies is an unexpected take on the garden-variety will-they-orwon’t-they romantic comedy. The story follows buddies Kate (Olivia Wilde) and Luke (Jake Johnson) who work together at a Chicago craft brewery and have clear sexual tension despite the fact that they’re both in other relationships.

After a quiet, ill-fated couples’ weekend at a cabin in the woods around Lake Michigan, the established order of the film slowly and expertly falls to pieces. The film’s flaws are of the glaringly obvious sort, but get themselves out of the way very quickly.

The dialogue consists mainly of the kind of non-developmental chat that filmmakers tend to think makes their movies more realistic, while Olivia Wilde plays yet another one of those effortless beauties who doesn’t want to do anything but drink beer and play cards with the guys. In addition, character development stagnates a little by resting too heavily on the audience’s ability to read between the sparse lines of dialogue.

Despite this, Drinking Buddies still manages to be thoroughly captivating. Wilde and Johnson are entirely believable as best friends who might be something more, while Ron Livingston (Chris) is at home with the typically indie, low-key atmosphere.

As usual, Anna Kendrick gives a beautiful performance, in this instance as insecure special education teacher Jill. Director Joe Swanberg makes a film that is very clearly content within the indie comedy genre, but foregoes

typical low budget stylisation in favour of a minimalist soundtrack, steady and efficient cinematography and lack of empty profundities about the changing world and other postmodern non-issues.

A notable element of the film’s production is the emphasis placed on improvisation by the actors in leading roles, which, despite its drawbacks, lends the film an organic depth in more intimate moments and allows the plot to shy away from typical Hollywood interpretations of romance.

The film does skirt around the fact that Kate and Luke are, at best, functional alcoholics, though the fact that the alcohol they imbibe so frequently is a gold coloured craft beer softens the concept into a vague portrayal of their deep immaturity.

One of film’s main strengths is that when it starts to fall too far into melodrama and predictability it selfreferentially pulls the audience back in, a quality that can’t be valued enough.

Ultimately, Drinking Buddies is a rewarding master class in pacing. Strong performances and a fresh, authentic style make it a standout example of its genre.

In a nutshell A slow-burning romantic comedy with something sweet and light at its centre, Drinking Buddies works through its failures and comes out eminently watchable on the other side Laura Bell

Top 10—

Unintentionally Scary Films

a magic ball and perverting the laws of physics. David Bowie’s hair alone could scar anyone for life.

7 6

10

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

So, is Willy Wonka trying to find an heir or just messing with these children’s innocence? The crazy LSD boat ride is there for no other reason than to horrify unsuspecting kids, everyone nearly dies in really horrible ways, and Oompa Loompas are just terrifying. Especially when you meet them in town on a night out.

9 8

Alice in Wonderland Creepy twins who live in the forest, a cat with a serial killer smile, a giant stoned caterpillar and the Red Queen threatening to chop off your head.

Yeah, real wholesome family stuff here.

Labyrinth The entire movie is centred on a man who abducts a baby in order to score Jennifer Connelly. First, however, he must scare her shitless by throwing her down a mountain, trapping her in

5

Return to Oz While The Wizard of Oz wasn’t entirely as happy-sunshine as you may remember, its sequel is leagues ahead in terms of bat-crazy nightmares.

Flying monkeys are replaced with rollerblading human/dog monstrosities, and the Wicked Witch of the West has nothing on a giant talking mountain from the depths of hell. Put all that in post-apocalyptic Oz, and Otwo never wants to sleep again.

An Inconvenient Truth Living in a place where it rains 367 days of the year, global warming doesn’t seem like such a big deal. Not according to Al Gore, who, with the help of a very convincing slideshow, shows us just how screwed we really are. It’s just a PowerPoint presentation, so why is it terrifying?

Dumbo/Bambi/ Pinocchio/Most Early Disney Films Donkey mutations, psychedelic trips involving elephants, and Bambi’s mother. Why, Walt, why? Walt Disney has to be the second most evil Walt in history.

4 3 2 1

Toy Story

Now Cid’s Frankensteinian monstrosities are pretty freaky, but they’re merely victims of a classically deranged little boy.

No, the real horror here is the realisation that your toys are alive and you never knew. Just think about that for a few minutes.

They’re watching you.

Coraline Why is this marketed as a kid’s film? Grown men and women are perpetually terrified of this. The art style alone will make you an insomniac.

Garfield You thought it was a movie about a sarcastic talking cat. Instead, it’s a slow murder wrapped up in bad CGI. So many nightmares, from which Bill Murray’s career has never really recovered.

Justin Bieber: Never Say Never Although labelled an inspiring story that gives a rare glimpse into the life of Justin Bieber, Never Say Never leaves all viewers in perpetual fear that they may wake up in some sort of Freaky Friday-esque situation as the Biebs himself. The horror, the horror!

otwo

11

“I want it to look bad, I want to look horrible” Before accepting his Honorary Fellowship of the L&H, Sam Lloyd sat down with Laura Bell to talk about acting in diapers, a cappella and taking on 37 characters in a one man show

I’m wearing suits that don’t fit, and bad makeup, and sweat, and I look horrible, I feel horrible.

People are telling me I’m horrible. So yeah, after a while it got kinda tiring

Photos Joanna O’Malley

12 otwo

“There’s a picture of me in my debut as one of the mice in the Pied Piper at three-years-old. I was supposed to be the baby rat, so I had to wear diapers over my black tights.

I had just gotten off diapers in real life and I was insulted that I had to wear diapers, on stage, in front of people. And in spite of that, I still became an actor.”

The first thing you need to know about Sam Lloyd is that he’s absolutely nothing like the character of Ted Buckland; the bumbling, inept, and massively depressed lawyer we all know and pity from Scrubs. Born in Vermont in 1963, Lloyd was indoctrinated into the world of performance at a very early age by his parents, who were both actors at a professional theatre called The Weston Playhouse.

They met at summer theatre in New York, where his father was on Broadway as an understudy for Walter Mathau. The Lloyd patriarch was also responsible for securing a debut role for his younger brother, Christopher, who would later go on to star as Doc in the Back to the Future trilogy.

Now, Sam is in Ireland to perform Fully Committed, a one-man stage show for which he was first cast by the theatre his parents belonged to. It’s almost as if he’s come full circle; though, as with everything on Lloyd’s resumé, there’s a comedic twist.

Fully Committed sees Lloyd play no less than 37 distinct roles: as a wannabe actor working as a maître d’ at a pretentious New York restaurant and as everyone who calls for a reservation. He imitates the restaurant’s evil chef, his own agent, and various guests, including Naomi Campbell’s assistant, Bryce. He hasn’t gotten any smart phones thrown at him so far, but acknowledges that Ms. Campbell “hasn’t seen it yet.”

The sheer volume of work that went into Lloyd’s preparation was

known as Ted’s Band, have enjoyed truly immense. “The trick of it a string of sold out shows throughout is that you have to sustain these characters, you know? So if you can the UK and Ireland.

Like many all-male a cappella do a funny voice, that’s great. But can you do it for an hour and a half? groups, as you might imagine, The Some of the voices came easy to me, Blanks had a slow start, forming when three of the four members met and then some were not easy, and at Syracuse University, but failing to you have to be careful because you move beyond the house party circuit. can’t have two of the voices close to “If a tree falls in the forest and no each other. It’s like a puzzle.” one’s there to hear it does it make a The play, and namely Lloyd’s sound? We were like the tree in the performance in it, received rave forest,” Lloyd says good-naturedly. reviews at the Edinburgh Fringe The group landed their big break Festival earlier this year. His when Bill Lawrence, the creator of reprisal of the role therefore comes as no surprise. “Once you learn this Scrubs, allowed them to perform at the season one cast and crew show, you’re crazy if you don’t do Christmas party. “We sang our it again. So, I mean, it’s perfectly famous version of the John Williams’ named, because any actor that does ‘Superman March’, with original it should be fully committed.” lyrics by Paul from the group. They It’s a credit to Lloyd that the thought it was so ridiculous they triumph of Fully Committed at put us on the show.” Unfortunately, Fringe is a follow up to the huge the show runners couldn’t get the success of his a cappella troupe, rights to the Superman track and so The Blanks, the previous year. The group, popularised on Scrubs as The The Blanks recorded the ‘Underdog’ theme instead.

Worthless Peons, or sometimes just

The Worthless Peons eventually became a core element of the Scrubs microcosm, but perhaps luckily.

The infrastructure of the show’s production, namely that everything was done in a rush, never allowed The Blanks to become overproduced or subject to too much outside influence.

Lending further authenticity to the quartet, their musical numbers were very often sung live on set instead of being pre-recorded in the studio. For montages where the song would form the background of the action, the process was haphazard. “We’d go down to the sound department and they’d kind of like, literally, rigged up a tent around a microphone, and they’d say, ‘OK, you guys have a half hour to lay this down and then we gotta shoot the scene.’”

The stress of the arrangement certainly didn’t end there, however, with weekends during shooting being entirely dominated by assembling the track. “They would write the script the week before, but they wouldn’t get clearance on the songs until the Friday afternoon, and we’re shooting Monday.

“So when we finally got it, Paul [Perry] would spend 24 hours arranging it. And then by Saturday night he would call up our answering machines and leave our parts on our message machines. Oh my god, it was so stressful, but a blast.”

That the quartet could put together such accomplished musical numbers in 72 hours is a testament to the talent of each of the members. In fact, Lloyd’s involvement in Scrubs can be credited with bringing The Blanks member Paul Perry, who plays Randall the accountant on screen, to the music department where he, alongside other projects, wrote and composed a number of pieces for the episode My Musical, including the Emmy Award nominated ‘Guy Love’.

That the song lost to The Lonely Island’s ‘Dick in a Box’, is something Lloyd admits the band don’t talk about. Their current success is a far cry from their pre-television repertoire of “about three songs.”

The character of Ted is definitely lightened by his involvement in the a cappella group. As a grown, single man who lives with his mother, often feels suicidal, and is unarguably the loser of Sacred Heart Hospital, upon the introduction of the unfortunately

named Peons, the only way to go for Ted was up.

It’s important to acknowledge, he says, that this assertion disregards the episode in which he competes against Dr. Kelso’s dog, Baxter, and loses. Regardless, Lloyd acknowledges that at times it was difficult to feel good about playing a character who is constantly being put down by everyone else on the show. “I was able to keep a sense of humour about it, but after a while, you know, I was ready to be happy again. Because he’s always sad, and everyone’s always treating him like crap.

“I’m wearing suits that don’t fit, and bad makeup, and sweat, and I look horrible, I feel horrible. People are telling me I’m horrible. So yeah, after a while it got kinda tiring.”

Ever self-deprecating and honest, Lloyd doesn’t fail to confess the large part he played in the characterisation of Ted, a move that should have been predictable considering a previous role of his as an Elaine obsessive on Seinfeld.

“Part of it was my fault. The first day that we shot the pilot, I’m getting

my wardrobe fit, and I’m like, I don’t want it to fit, I want it to look bad, I want to look horrible, make it too big, this and that. Going into makeup, I’m like ‘make me pale’; I want sweat on my face.”

Despite the image of a sweaty, pale depressive sticking with him both on and off the set for the best part of a decade, he happily admits that ultimately, “It was a blast. And you know, at the end of the day it was all for the fun, so it was great.”

In this manner, Lloyd has surely been both the architect of his own downfall and of his own success, by adopting a persona so beloved by fans.

A true character actor, his assumption of the role of the unfortunate has been unrelenting over more than forty years; beginning in 1966 with that fateful turn as a diaper-clad rodent in The Pied Piper and still going strong as a very lonely receptionist. “It goes way back,” he exclaims. “I suffered for my art.”

Would Lloyd return from the world of theatre and film a tenth season of Scrubs? “If everyone was on board,”

I’ve done three handers, I’ve done two handers, and when I got this part I was like ‘how much harder can it be than doing a two man show?’

he says, acknowledging that the fragmented nature of the ninth and final season was a bit “weird.”

The cast and crew absolutely had the type of boisterous fun that any fan would hope for, and Lloyd looks fondly back on the pranks played back and forth between the actors and writers, noting in particular that the screenwriters would surprise John C. McGinley, who played Dr. Perry Cox, with long monologues to memorise in a very short amount of time, just to see if he could do it.

He usually could, Lloyd notes, reflecting on the perks of working with a talented cast. For now, however, he seems perfectly content with his role(s) in Fully Committed, a challenge he wholeheartedly welcomes. “I’ve done three handers, I’ve done two handers, and when I got this part I was like ‘how much harder can it be than doing a two man show?’”

Mathematically, that would be 18 times as hard, but one gets the sense that’s just part of the fun for Lloyd.

“I always knew I was gonna be an actor. I mean, I don’t even remember when I knew, I just always knew.”

otwo

13

The disharmony of civil wars

Golden Globe nominee and Grammy award winner Joy Williams speaks to Jack Walsh about the Civil Wars, her relationship with John Paul White and the Hunger Games

Internal band disputes over a band name are a common occurrence in the music industry, however, in the case of the Nashvillebased duo The Civil Wars, there is an inextricable sense of irony attached to the whole fallout.

With the band name loosely representing Joy Williams and John Paul White’s tribute to the civil war monuments in their hometown of Nashville, the onset of the duo’s inhouse dispute due to “irreconcilable differences of ambition” will have to go down in history as simply a massive coincidence; even though it does seem like a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Williams and White’s tentative relationship has added a definite shroud of confusion around the release of their new album The Civil Wars. Their first album saw them garner three Grammy awards and, despite her relationship with White being on tenterhooks, singer-songwriter Williams believes their latest offering, The Civil Wars, doesn’t reflect the disharmony between the duo.

“John Paul and I wrote this album not in bits and pieces. We sat down, and we would finish a song.

The singing and the harmonising came really fluidly and I think the emotional overtones that were in the first album are fleshed out even further in the second.

14 otwo

that we made, I do feel that it is so visceral and raw, a really emotional project.

“You can hear it lyrically, we wrote all of these songs while we were on the road. I think the road seeped into many of these songs in a way that created many vulnerable and very colourful lyrics. It does feel like a very gutsy, rootsy, heartfelt album.”

Known as somewhat of a perfectionist, Williams was well aware of the critical and commercial expectations that The Civil Wars as an album faced. The album peaked at number one on the Billboard chart and it was well worth the many uncertainties during production.

“I’m a very ambitious person, so if something goes well then my natural instinct is to bring what I do next to an even better place.

“I think the bonds between John “So I would lay awake thinking Paul and I had shifted somehow, how could we do this musically very suddenly. To a degree where I or that production-wise and I’m don’t think it harmed the music in happy to say that the album has a any way, but the music became our progression sonically that I’m really best language to still speak to one proud of.” another.”

Speaking in relation to the critical Memorable for bringing a jazzy and commercial acclaim and how it vibe to the traditionally rigid folk can be inherently damaging to the scene, Williams assures that the artistic process, Williams eloquently latest album follows the same tone affirmed that it is very important and that the tracks definitely reflect for an artist to keep their feet on the a level of continuity between albums. ground. “All that I know I have been “While keeping within the DNA learning is to believe, that regardless of the band, the heart of the music of if it’s fame or not, is that if you

There’s an earnestness and an ache to country and jazz, is steeped in history in a way that pop music only winks an eye at

believe what other people believe about you, then you cease to be focused on what you know of yourself to be true.”

Having entered the touring scene at 17 years of age, Williams’ world view has changed substantially throughout her years as an artist.

“Learning how to navigate a nomadic life on my own; I think of my world view shifting as it often does and learning to trust your instincts. Doing what you feel instead of what you think you should. Accepting the beauty of living in the grey of things rather than the black and white.”

The harmonic relationship between Williams and White is a crucial aspect of the band’s identity.

Williams attributes their focus on harmonies to the early years of her life and the music that she listened to at a young age. “A lot of the music I listened to had a lot of harmonies.

My mom loved the Carpenters and my dad loved the Beach Boys.

“I became so intrigued by how notes can just bend and weave together. There’s an earnestness and an ache to country, and jazz is steeped in history in a way that pop music only winks an eye at.”

The band’s work with Taylor Swift on the Hunger Games soundtrack is an example of how the American folk scene does have a sense of family. Artists within the genre are

always happy to collaborate with one another, and this link up with Swift saw Williams and White enjoy great success.

Garnering a Golden Globe nomination for Best Original Song for their work on ‘Safe & Sound’, Williams recalls working with Swift and T-Bone Burnett, “The process of writing was really fun. We wrote in T-Bone’s home studio and recorded the song in an afternoon. It was really easy to write together and everyone was throwing out ideas and vibbing off of people. The vocals that you hear are the first takes that we did after penning the lyrics.”

Unfortunately, the Civil Wars are now deemed “on hiatus.”

Williams and White hold a well-kept estrangement, and asked about the prospect of a reunion Williams affirmed her “belief in the power of forgiveness and reconciliation.

Moving forwards is the way that I know. It also takes two people to mend bridges, so I do believe that that’s possible, if both people choose that.

“Moving forward, this experience, whether or not this is the end or this is the continuation of, it has changed me greatly. It has broken me in some ways and it’s also mended me in some ways. I think it’s a Japanese proverb that says; fall down seven times, get up eight.” To which Otwo says, stop falling over.

preacher perfect

From shaky schoolboy beginnings to his debut music video going viral, Hozier chats to Rebekah Rennick about his musical journey so far

If I did four years in Trinity I wouldn’t be any closer in doing what I really wanted to do

There’s something different about Irish talent. Whether it’s the native tag-line, or Otwo’s own sense of pride watching musical talent from this floating piece of land ascend to notoriety; one can’t help but sit straight and take note of upcoming Irish musicians.

Wicklow native, Andrew HozierByrne, of acoustic ensemble Hozier, is a prime example of an act that has firmly established himself as one of Ireland’s most notable up and coming artists.

With nuances of B.B King and bluesy undertones slinking through his repertoire, Hozier is the injection of elating, organic talent that would excite any music junkie. His humble beginnings, however, certainly don’t mirror the roaring vocals he is quickly being esteemed for today.

“The first time I ever performed, I was eight-years-old and I was singing in front of a school hall with hundreds and hundreds of people.

“It was diabolical. My voice cracked in the way that only an eight-year-old’s voice may happen.

Dead silence and I stood there until someone had to come over and tell me ‘It’s over’. I don’t really know why I ever did it again.”

That shaky premier has certainly

been thrown to the shadows of embarrassing childhood memories, and in its place stands a powerful performer with an even more rambunctious talent. While he has dabbled in numerous projects including Anuna, Nova Collective, Zaska and notably the Trinity Orchestra, Hozier has removed the stabilisers and accelerated his solo career straight into our consciousness.

“Anuna was certainly a great experience in that it was just singing with voices. I love congregational singing,” he explains. “So when I’m writing and doing backing vocals like I did then, it’s really helped my ear for harmonies; thirds, fifths and sevenths. And also blending; the technique of singing together.”

In his first year of a music degree in Trinity College Dublin, Hozier was approached by Niall Breslin of Universal Ireland with an opportunity he couldn’t resist. What followed was a golden chance to work in studio, at the expense of his degree.

Hozier discloses that the decision “was with a heavy heart. More because I knew I’d miss the people in my class; I was class rep at the time so it was a really shitty move on my part,” he chuckles nervously.

“I kind of knew in my heart that if

I did four years in Trinity I wouldn’t be any closer in doing what I really wanted to do. I had missed some exams to do those demos with Niall and I asked if I could defer for a year, and I couldn’t because I was a first year.”

Since then, Hozier has grown and developed his own unique style. His new EP Take Me to Church, recorded originally in his attic at home, contains both this authentic tinge and the polished, rounded touches only capable of the man behind some of U2 and PJ Harvey’s records; Rob Kirwan.

“What I was thrilled about was that I didn’t have to worry when working with Rob that we were going to veer too far left off. Even if you attempted to hamper with the demos, Rob just made it the best that it could. He has a real ‘if it feels good do it’ sort of attitude and you could just throw anything at him.”

The leading single from this new EP has propelled Hozier straight into the fleeting world of musical recognition. ‘Take Me to Church’ is a thundering, soaring piece of music that bowls you over with a video to boot.

Deeply moving due to the discriminate behaviour towards homosexu-

als in Russia, a slight element was changed in the video, which truly strikes a chord. Undercurrents of the oppressive omnipresence of the clergy and the church also bubble within the track.

“In the religious side of it, I think all of us carry with us this idea of God. We’re all marked with it. The song came originally from this idea that before you meet the criteria of the institutionalised discrimination that the church holds against you; before you’re a woman, a homosexual or whatever, you’re a human being and in the church’s eyes you are born sinful.”

He continues, “Ireland’s not full of the happiest people in the world, and we carry with us some sort of shame we could all do without.”

Hozier prides himself on being able to deliver stunning performances both on record and live.

His recent performances are ones enveloped in an undeniable sense of electric anticipation, as though you’re catching the beginning of something very special.

This Wicklow crooner is only getting started, so make room in your musical collection and allow him to get comfortable, because he’s going to be here for a while.

otwo

15

Old man on the block

From headline slots to chart topping reign, Conor Kevin O’Nolan chats to Gary Numan about synth stigma and set list trauma

“I’m not the most confident of people musically, so I tend to wait for people to come to me, then decide if I can add anything worthwhile or not.” It’s difficult to assess just how big of an impact Gary Numan has made on music today. Without him, Sugababes never would have covered ‘Freak Like Me’ and Basement Jaxx’s ‘Where’s Your Head At’ may never have materialized.

Numan’s music has evolved dramatically over the years. His synth-pop beginnings have been left firmly in the past, replaced with a much darker and fuller industrial sound. Latest album Splinter (Songs from a Broken Mind) resembles more dark-wave artists like Mortiis than his once infectious electroinfused records.

His best-known songs will likely remain ‘Cars’ or ‘Are Friends Electric’, but he has no interest in trying to pen a new radio-friendly unit shifter. Numan’s relationship with his older material has been tumultuous over the years, vehemently refusing to play classics, however, he’s recently gone full-circle. “I stopped worrying about what people expect over three decades ago… I do what I love and hope for the best.

“I’m very aware that my music these days is dark and heavy, but I’ve no right to expect radio to play it to help me out. I’m very proud to have written songs as successful as ‘Cars’ and ‘Are Friends Electric’, but I’ve written many songs that are better than either of those two.”

In the years leading up to working on Splinter, Numan ran into difficulties making music, as his mind fell into a darker reserve. “It’s been seven years since my last studio album Jagged but, in truth, most of that time was spent dealing with some issues that had nothing to do with music or career.”

He admits, “I began to suffer with depression, which got worse until I was put on medication. That lasted for about four years in total and in that time I barely wrote anything at all.”

After completing a side project towards the end of 2011, he regained some motivation to make more music, “Work on Splinter started in earnest in 2012. I had written a number of things in small spurts before then and so it wasn’t an entirely blank canvas, but most of it was taken from then on.

“I had a gap in late 2012, when I emigrated to America, but soon got a new studio built and finished it off in the months. I would say nearly half of it was written in those last few months in Los Angeles.”

16 otwo

It gets worse with each new album. If I only play 10% of my catalogue I would still be on stage for about 4 hours

He attributes a dramatic increase in his productivity to his move to LA, “Moving to Los Angeles really does feel as though we’re starting a new life. That excitement translated straight into working and I have never worked as much or as hard. I have found the American attitude to work admirable and it’s really made me want to get on with it.”

His attitude to writing is wholly pragmatic. “Splinter is no different to most other albums I’ve made, in that you just keep writing until you have enough songs you’re proud of to fill a CD. An hour seems to be the magic number these days. It used to be 40 minutes back when vinyl was the main format. God knows what it will be when CD finally dies and digital is king as that’s essentially

open ended.”

This work ethic has contributed to a problem Numan faces whenever he tours and needs to develop a set list. While making an effort to play a variety of his music, including the crowd pleasers, he can struggle. “It gets worse with each new album. If I only play 10% of my catalogue I would still be on stage for about 4 hours.”

Similarly, the studio processes for making electronic music have transformed enormously over the past few decades. Justifiably regarded as the pioneer of this electronic wave, even so, Numan doesn’t romanticise the now fashionable equipment of the early days.

“I’m not sentimental about any of it. The only instrument I have that I

genuinely love is my guitar. Synths and computers are like screwdrivers, just tools. Get the best out of them and move on. I totally embrace new technology and I have no desire to look backwards at older tech. I think for some people certain old synths have developed a kind of romance around them, which I don’t really get.”

Numan’s career has been an interesting one. He may never attain the sort of popularity he once had, but it’s pretty clear that he doesn’t really mind. Content making his own brand of dark electronic music, Numan’s breaking some form of new ground with every step.

Gary Numan plays The Button Factory, Friday November the 8th

album reviews

Lissie

TLC

Many people have a vendetta against John Mayer that is bred out of contempt for his music.

But doesn’t everyone deserve a clean slate, even if they are John Mayer?

In keeping with his usual habit of irking everyone, Mayer has thrown together an annoyingly enjoyably body of songs that almost paint him as a nice person. Unlike previous albums, Mayer has dropped the try-hard conflicted angst in favour of a more mellow, easygoing sound.

Starting with ‘Wildfire’, an ear-pleasing and upbeat melody, he lures you in to a playlist that doesn’t disappoint. Mayer also maintains a level of continuity by layering his songs with his autobiographical theme that runs through previous albums. His love for life finds itself entwined throughout.

‘Who You Love’, a peppy duet with Katy Perry, adds diversity, while ‘Paper Doll’ is a very pleasant song that has a pointed, yet measured response to the media storm following his relationship with Taylor Swift.

He has neither confirmed nor denied that the song was aimed at his ex-lover, but lyrics such as “and if those angel wings don’t fly, someone’s gonna paint you another sky” a direct and clever response to similar lyrics found in Swifts’ tune ‘Dear John’, says otherwise.

On the whole, Mayer has taken a stripped back and organic approach to his newer songs, which will be a sure hit for his growing audience.

Back To Forever reveals many emotions and personalities about the critically acclaimed songstress, Lissie. In her sophomore release, through twelve highly polished tracks produced by Irish native Jacknife Lee, Lissie explores themes such as confidence, fame, rebellion, patriotism, and love.

There is a clear shift in styles from her debut album Catching A Tiger. After being somewhat shunned from the organic ears of hipster audiences, Lissie has incorporated elements of hip-hop and pop to produce a much more radio-ready record.

The greater successes come prematurely on the record, where the pounding drums and ostentatious guitar riffs of ‘The Habit’ and ‘Further Away’ show what it could have been. Lissie commands attention early on and appears to assert her position as one of the most current rock vocalists, but past the third track the record ultimately disappoints.

The pop choruses and backing vocals of ‘Sleepwalking’ are edgier, rock versions of Katy Perry backtracks and in ‘Shameless’, Lissie ironically tells us that she doesn’t want to sell out for fame.

However, the hip-hop-infused verses give the impression that she’s attempting to appeal to a more mainstream audience.

The record, in truth, is not without it’s gems. Highlights include ‘Mountaintop Removal’, where Lissie pleads with America to turn on their industrialised ways, and the final track, ‘Back to Forever’, is a powerful, moving ballad that sees Lissie reflect on her past memories.

Utter the three letters TLC in sequence to any fan of 90’s music and you will undoubtedly be presented with a horrendously squawked version of ‘No Scrubs’.

Unfathomable really, since TLC were never known for making melodically difficult songs. Rather, it was the fact that they were the working man’s, and women’s, R&B group that the world needed, but not necessarily deserved, which largely contributed to their success.

Once considered one of the more successful female bands around, it comes as no surprise that a greatest hits album has finally surfaced. The issue that arises however is that nobody will listen to most of this album more than once.

Now, we don’t doubt TLC’s R&B credentials; they didn’t sell millions of albums for no reason. This was the nineties and early noughties, when music sales actually equated to musical quality. However, so many of the songs on this greatest hits album are so unfamiliar and indistinguishable they blend into one.

‘Diggin On You’ follows ‘Red Light Special’ on the tracklist, making it easy to guess the theme of the majority of the songs on this record. Surreptious seediness seems to be the order.

It becomes all too tempting and too easy to hit the skip button after ten minutes of listening.

Songs such as ‘Waterfalls’, ‘No Scrubs’ and ‘Unpretty’ are the classics they always were, but they come packaged in so much fluff it actually takes from their quality as standalone hits.

In A Nutshell A laid back, upbeat vibe that is perfect for soothing frazzled nerves on those early morning insufferable bus journeys

In A Nutshell A pleasing record that will gain this crooner a wider audience, but could disappoint original fans for being too mainstream

Claire O’Sullivan

Sean Hayes

John Mayer

Back To Forever

20

Paradise Valley

St. Lucia When The Night

After two EPs, St. Lucia have released their first fulllength album When The Night.

Channelling all the energy of A-ha and Erasure with all its accompanying 80’s pop-electro goodness, St. Lucia have created a retro album that will define the century. Synthesisers a-plenty and a swinging drum and bass beat allows it to hit all the right notes.

The opener, ‘The Night Comes Again’, kicks the album to life with an ethereal infused intro before swinging you thirty years into the past, at 88 miles per hour, to the likes of Live Aid, hair spray and questionable clothing.

‘The Way You Remember Me’ is definitely the standout track on the album and by far the most modern sounding, while still retaining the ecstatic pop goodness everyone needs in their life. Add in a cheesy saxophone solo, and you have a winner.

The hidden gem on the album is ‘September’; a song you could tirelessly repeat without any vestiges of stopping anytime soon.

One drawback to this album is that it feels more like background music, accompanying you and your friends over a few naggins.

While this is not a major downside, it does mean that none of the tracks immediately stick in your head like MGMT or Bastille do. Momentarily infectious, but it’s going to make it difficult for St. Lucia to get a strong footing in people’s heads.

In A Nutshell Pure vintage pop flair, with a modern day shine

In A Nutshell Pick up any 90’s R&B compilation album and you’ll get all the TLC you could need

Stephen Larkin

Michael O’Sullivan

otwo

17

Gartlandia—

Radar—

Addressing the fickle nature of internet fame, Orla Gartland discusses how fragile the career of an online musician can be

From broken thumbs to after hour gigs, the Wild Tibetan Monks talk to Elisabeth Kirwan about the highs, the lows, and everything in between of the emerging alternative Irish music scene

Realities of internet fame photo Erica Coburn

Wild Tibetan Monks

Although I began by uploading YouTube videos, I’m now lucky enough to experience the more traditional aspects of being a musician

The internet is a revolutionary platform, a generational feat. I have the web to thank for the foundations of the music career I now have the pleasure of pursuing it full-time.

However, being such an online geek over the past few years has led to the formation of some sceptical ideas about the internet. Here are two of them.

1 The internet will never stop changing Once upon a time in Ireland, Bebo was more popular than the Google homepage with over one million visits a day. Who could blame us? (Brief nostalgic flashback; remember flashboxes? Bebo skins?

Sharing the luv?). However, along came Facebook and away we went.

The success of particular websites can be painfully fleeting. It seems it will always be just a matter of time before we all collectively hop on the next bandwagon. Surely, in the grand scheme of the web, this is simply a natural process of development and renewal? I would agree, but let’s not forget how many people get hurt along the way.

This summer, I met a huge number of musicians who have used the internet since the dark ages known as the Myspace era. Some gained huge overnight success on the site. They had hundreds upon thousands of plays on their original material, legions of new fans and subsequently the attention of the industry and media.

They sat in the shiny boardrooms of major record labels and planned their glittering futures. From 2008 onwards, people flocked to Face-

18 otwo

book in their millions, as Myspace accounts were deleted and became inactive. Myspace died, and so did so many of the site’s most popular artists.

Tales such as this make me nervous for the current ‘celebrities’ of YouTube; the content creators who find fame on the site and make a decent living from the ads placed on their videos. You see, there are no rules.

The quality of your content could increase as your popularity decreases; some day you could upload videos and receive a quarter of the views you once racked up.

What happens if you pay your rent with ad revenue, and it’s suddenly slashed in half for no reason at all?

Scary.

2 The internet devalues art I once met a Dublin musician who vowed he would never busk. He said that blasting out his music for free in the street would diminish its value; that people passing by didn’t deserve to listen for nothing and that he didn’t deserve the guilt of having to force it upon people who didn’t want to hear. Is this the case with the web?

The internet is used freely as a platform for the arts; filmmaking, poetry, comedy, music and more.

By uploading our creative content online for people to access freeof-charge, are we responsible for a generation in which so many deem art as worthless? Are we responsible for a generation where many struggle with the concept of paying 99 cent for a song and instead lean towards downloading music and movies illegally?

Although I began by uploading YouTube videos, I’m now lucky enough to experience the more traditional aspects of being a musician; collaborating, songwriting, recording and gigging. Although I’ll always upload videos, it is these disciplines that I’ll focus on most.

An association with certain sites can be a novelty. I was always conscious of the assumption that I was a YouTube musician, and it’s a stigma I was always eager to shake off. One can’t help but wonder, is there a difference between a YouTube musician and a real musician? Are those who grow their music online simply not taken as seriously? It’s a tricky one, and definitely something for aspiring musicians to think about.

Sean Boyd, Conor Ring and Liam O’Gorman of the fresh and talented, Wild Tibetan Monks describe their sound as “alternative indie funk rock.” This may seem like a mouthful, but after one listen to songs such as ‘Josephine’, you can hear how these different genres have helped to shape their sound.

“We all have kind of different influences,” Ring explains. “I love the Artic Monkeys and acoustic stuff, Sean hates that.”

When asked how they formed the band, their answer was simple, but the delivery of O’Gorman’s answer almost hinted that there was no choice in the matter for his fellow members. “Sean recruited us,” laughs O’Gorman. “He was looking through everyone in our class trying to come up with a band.”

The band’s name is a topic that the group almost seem sick of broaching, but they are quick to assert that the original band name doesn’t necessarily have a spiritual meaning behind it. “Everyone asks us that, we never have a good answer” Lead vocalist and guitarist Boyd admits.

“We’ve been meaning to come up with a story for it. We think that Conor looks the most Tibetan.”

Referring to their premier chaotic band practice, Boyd explains, “I had my thumb broken for that,” before a laughing O’Gorman adds, “Playing guitar, broken thumb, and I had one of those electric drum kits that didn’t really work. Such humble beginnings.”

When it comes to gigs, Wild Tibetan Monks are truthful in discussing the problems they have faced. O’Gorman explains, “Sometimes the sound is really good, and sometimes it’s just really bad.”

Ring agrees and adds that “there’s something really satisfying when the sound is good though. It makes the practice all worthwhile. Usually, there is no one at the gigs, but when there are people at them and they are actually listening, there’s something to be said for that.”

With the band discussing their experience of gigging, O’Gorman keenly jumped into the conversation, revealing an embarrassing situation they never want to revisit. “We did play one gig where the place was actually closed because we played so late. The guy was sweeping the floor while we played.”

When it comes to the song-writing process, Boyd contemplates, “All songs have different meanings. I find if you explain the meaning of the song, then the song loses something. It’s like trying to explain a line in 3D. You can’t do it. This is coming out very deep all of a sudden.”

It’s this philosophical edge, as well as their varying influences and clear chemistry as a band that makes them stand out as exciting new artists. The Dublin trio plan on building on successes in the King Kong Club and victory in the SVP battle of the bands by expanding their profile further and developing a loyal fan base.

For now, the band have a simple motto they are living by. “It’s just gig by gig. That’s how we go. Maybe record more, maybe larger venues.”

Simple and to the point, their final parting message is one for all those with a keen interest in living to the letter of the law of their wild band name, “bring spare socks.”

street style

Jamie Mann

1

2

Studying Sociology & Economics Wearing: Shirt – Vintage shop, Shoes – Nike, trousers – Penneys, Knitted Jumper – River Island, bag – bought at a reggae festival in California.

Style Inspiration: London street style.

Biggest bargain: An oversized shirt from Fresh Temple Bar for €15.

Most expensive purchase: Barber jacket €200.

3

1 Killian Hilliard Studying: Economics & Finance Wearing: Jeans – Hollister, T-shirt – H&M Jacket – Pull & Bear, Shoes – Penneys Fashion Influence: Fashionbeans.com

2 Lelia Kaehm Studying: Politics & Philosophy Wearing: Jacket – Vintage shop, T-shirt Dress – Asos Leggings – H&M, Boots – Tahari Earrings – Asos, Bag – Penneys Fashion Influences: Loveaesthetics.blogspot.com

3 Nadine McLaughlan Studying: Psychology Wearing: Jacket – Miss Selfridge, Jeans – River Island T-shirt – Penneys, Bag – River Island Earrings – River Island, Boots – River Island Fashion Influence: Olivia Palermo

4 Roger Gonzalez Studying: Engineering Wearing: Jacket – Timberland, T-shirt – Bershka Pants – H&M, shoes – Nike, bag – River Island Hat – 47 (US Brand) Fashion Influence: Comfort

5 Shauna Hayes Studying: English & Film Wearing: Jacket – Penneys, Top – Penneys Denim Shirt – Shutterbug, Leggings – Penneys Scarf – Penneys, Shoes – Nike, Bag – Motive Fashion Influence: Ellie Goulding

4

5 otwo

19

everyday class Models Yousif Saleh & Sean Gardener Chief Stylist Christin McWeeney Photographer Joanna O’Malley Fashion Editor Emily Mullen Words Sarah O’Shea

Yousif Shirt – €10.00 – Dublin Vintage Factory Trousers – €30.00 – River Island Boots – €20.00 – Penneys Belt – €5.00 – Penneys Suspenders – €3.00 – Penneys Hat – €10.00 – Dublin Vintage Factory Sean Tweed Blazer – €25.00 – Dublin Vintage Factory Shirt – €10.00 – Dublin Vintage Factory Jeans – €30.00 – River Island Boots – €17.00 – Penneys Scarf – €7.00 – Vintage Shop Belt – €3.00 – Penneys

The waging battle between the smart-casual partitions is what can make this particular approach to dressing a constant 8:00am Monday through Friday battle with oneself.

Too formal, and you risk looking overly pretentious and overdressed in comparison to the latter typical student mindset of “I couldn’t have been bothered this morning.”

Then again, too casual, and you’ll quite easily be put to shame by the immaculately smart dress code of all male masters and PhD students.

The new age development in smart-casual menswear first began to emerge in the last hundred years or so. The terms ‘smart’ and ‘casual’ combined to form the substitute of the term business-casual in the 1950’s. The term smart-casual mainly alluded to a slightly more informal way of dress than then the traditional darkly-clothed black or navy-suited young professionals.

On a more serious note, how could one dare to disagree with Oscar Wilde’s glorious assertion, “You can never be overdressed

20 otwo

or overeducated.” The smartcasual look is constantly going from strength to strength and has certainly climbed in execution in recent seasons thanks to the preppy, yet relaxed, Made In Chelsea star Mark Vandelli, and Ed Westwick of Gossip Girl.

The basic ABC’s of the smartcasual look is an outfit consisting of a chino, shirt, blazer and smart

shoe combination, with a chino in this case being of a more neutral colour-palette.

Creams, nudes, browns, navies and blacks are the most applicable colours in achieving this highfashion look. Anything too heavilyswayed from this colour-palette will most certainly result in you looking like you’re simply just trying too hard.

look. To compliment the shirt of choice, a navy, black or indigo-blue blazer is key in keeping with the seamlessly sophisticated nature of this smart-casual look du jour.

The blazer is a failsafe option, effortlessly tying the finished look altogether. The blazer is probably the most essential item for donning a smart-casual look this season, so it’s definitely the one piece worth investing in.

Shoes should be a simple pair of again black, navy, cream, nude or any dark or light or dark-brown shade of brogues. Leather shoes are hugely popular in the smart-casual realm, so why not hit two nails on the head with a pair of leather brogues.

This offers zero fashion kudos to For those of you that enjoy anyone; even those who in fact have made the 7:00am effort that morning. their icing on the cake, subtle accessorising is very much welcome.

The only real safe addition of colour To add interest to the finished that is needed is a block-colour shirt ensemble, feel free to accessorise in a traditional hue of white, blue or with a pocket-square. However, for pink for the bravest of brave. an authentic smart-casual feel, leave A simplistically-patterned shirt the black tie at home and the top could also be worn for the more button casually undone for a more expressive students, bringing some personality and individuality to one’s campus-friendly feel.

Yousif Shirt – €37.00 – River Island Jumper – € 12.00 – Penneys Trousers – €30.00 – River Island Dicky bow – €15.00 – American Apparel Shoes – €25.00 – River Island

#winning #binning

/

or

Baton down the hatches as Emily Mullen goes on the rampage, presenting what is #Winning and what is most definitely #Binning

#winning

#binning

Muns

Proudlock

Since MIC came back we’ve been licking our tellyboxes at the sight of him. How is he real? #thosesuits #thosecheekbones #Kantevendeal

Sean Jeans – €30.00 – River Island Shirt – €10.00 – Dublin Vintage Factory Jacket – €60.00 – River Island Shoes – €17.00 – Penneys Bag – €25.00 – Vintage Danish military Issued backpack

If one more man-bun is seen around campus, Otwo will scream. Boys plz, unless you’re Proudlock (see above you peasant), you can piss right off. #OnlyPruddersCanMun Sexy Halloween Costumes

Slags, put yizzerselves away. We kant be dealing with you and your sexy Barney outfit #getthatmankypurpletailawayfrommelike #ktanxs The Rain

Lucas Papaw ointment

The most unreal thing to ever hit your lips. Vaseline can go and suck it #srsly. Do not be deterred by the strange packaging or the fact that you have to source it yourself from Australia. #totesworthit

This consistently rag-ordered weather can literally go and suck it. How is a hun supposed to wear her fab new A/W wardrobe if it’s damp and accessorised by a pox umbrella? #kantkope #ChildofPragueplzhalp

Soap and Glory make up

Basically gives two fingers to MAC, how even dare they charge so much for what Soapy Glory babes are doing on the cheap. #concealthisattitude Onsies

Belibe in the power of the onsie readers. The world famous designer brand Pennys have a hunreal collection of onsies at the moment; pigs, sheeps, mooses (meese?) whatever catches your fancy #rave2thegraveinaonsie

The hour going back

Another day another hour of daylight gone, goodbye naturally blended makeup, “Hello I did my make up in the dark and yes I noticed the stark contrast in colour between my face and neck in the dark this morning too.” #onlyGodcanjudgeme #donth8mecosImbeautiful

otwo

21

Culture Woulfe

Hugh Lane Gallery­— Dublin Divided: September 1913 With the centenary of the 1913 lockout upon us, Laura Woulfe investigates what Dublin Divided: September 1913 at the Hugh Lane Gallery has to offer

With no attempt to display the artwork in order to draw attention to artistic elements of style, composition, colour or form, this exhibition is primarily of historical interest rather than aesthetically appealing.

That said, the exhibition does adopt a slightly alternative angle to the renowned events by emphasising Sir Hugh Lane’s attempt to establish a gallery of modern art in Dublin in 1913, which was supported by Lockout leaders James Larkin and the Labour Party. Central to its foundation, the Hugh Lane Gallery therefore aligns itself in favour of the underpaid workers of the Lockout and also seemingly with many Irish 20th century artists.

Walter Osborne’s The Fishmarket invokes a sympathetic response from the viewer in contrast to the harsh shadow used by Sir John Lavery in his portrait of Sir Edward Carson; who is portrayed with a cruel, bored

stare, completely absent of emotion.

In fact, the curators tell us that when compared with Sir John Lavery’s portrait of John Redmond, Carson himself thought Redmond’s portrait was better than his and, knowing that Lavery was a Belfast Catholic, remarked, “It’s easy to see which side you’re on.”

This emphasis on providing detailed social context establishes Dublin Divided: September 1913 as having used Marxist art historical methodologies as opposed to formalist ones; befitting considering the socialist themes portrayed.

The gallery provides reams of information throughout the exhibition that recount the relevance of each image and are imperative to read in order to gain insight into the exhibition’s purpose. Therefore, it is as equally suitable to the historian, politician or sociologist as the art historian.

Word Leader

in Enniscrone and now in its second year, was also Reapy’s brainchild.

“I was working in an orange factory Writer and editor, Elizabeth Reapy, talks to Steven Balbirnie about in Australia and I’d a lot of time bringing together Ireland’s emerging literary community to think there as I boxed fruit for 11 hour shifts. A plan of having a writers’ festival came and wouldn’t go away.”

Since completing an MA in When asked about what motivated many of them their first break. writing in 2009, Elizabeth Reapy her to pursue these projects, Reapy The success of wordlegs has been at the forefront of the answers, “In creating wordlegs, 30 even allowed Reapy to pursue emerging Irish writing scene. It’s under 30, and Shore, I saw a gap in the compilation of a published clear that Reapy has an innate the market. I saw something that I’d collection of writing by fresh Irish passion for writing, as she always have liked for myself as a writer and talent called 30 under 30. This had amibitions of entering the when it didn’t seem like it was going anthology was met with much literary world. She admits that to happen any other way. acclaim, though Reapy explains although she wasn’t necessarily She continues, “I couldn’t moan that the process wasn’t without its inspired into writing by any single that ‘Oh there’s nowhere for young challenges. moment, but rather, she can’t writers, we’ve to submit against the “I sent out invites to 29 writers remember a time where she didn’t literati’ or ‘Why isn’t there an Irish that I admired. It was a good want to be a writer. project, though we were under major young writers’ festival when the It is, however, not just the quality time pressures as we needed to Aussies have one?’ etc. I just had to of her poetry and prose that make launch it six weeks after the invites try and put these things in place.” her such an important figure within went out because I was leaving for With wordlegs going from the burgeoning literary scene; it is strength to strength, the second Australia.” also her steadfast work as an editor Shore Writers’ Festival taking place Aside from her work with and an organiser of arts events. wordlegs, Reapy has also pioneered this November, and a screenplay In 2010, Reapy founded the projects to bring young Irish writers of her Australian stories currently online publication wordlegs, together such as Speed Connecting, in the works, Reapy’s positive which, as she explains, “came contributions to the Irish literary an event designed to bring writers from the idea of promoting writing scene only look set to continue. together as Reapy points out that by younger Irish writers, creating “there’s a lot of excellent literary a platform for their work to be You can find out more information events in Dublin and maybe showcased.” The publication about wordlegs and the Shore knowing a few familiar faces at quickly gained a reputation for Writer’ Festival at facebook.com/ these can make it less daunting to publishing high calibre work by a wordlegs and facebook.com/ go to them on your own.” new generation of writers, giving The Shore Writers’ Festival, held shorewritersfestival

22 otwo

Excluding the formalists, however, any temptation to walk through the galleries simply viewing the images should be strictly resisted due to the danger of aimlessly walking through the exhibition and finding yourself browsing the gallery bookshop within a matter of minutes.

The quintessential artwork of the exhibition is Maurice McGonigal’s Dockers [pictured]. This piece shows three working-class stevedores awaiting confirmation that they will have work on a particular day. The vibrant red background in the painting seems to reference the prospective violence that ensued on the 31st of August, 1913’s Bloody Sunday, which saw over 300 people injured by the police force.

The fact that the subject matter of Dockers was considered worthy of cultural concern shows the interwoven relationship between the Irish working-class and famous Irish painters such as Lavery, William Orpen and George Russell. This relationship, which is referenced to throughout the exhibition, suggests that the curators of Dublin Divided: September 1913 hope to illustrate that the parallels between economics, society and culture during the Lockout as the Irish citizens sought cultural liberation in addition to economic and social liberation.

Hugh Lane Gallery - Dublin Divided: September 1913, free admission, ends 2nd February 2014.

Fatal Fourway Best Simpsons Treehouse of Horror tale

Like scary Simpsons stories and even scarier people? Then you’ll love this issue’s Fatal Fourway, in which the gang debate the best Simpsons Treehouse of Horror story

Bart Simpson’s Dracula

Time and Punishment

The Shinning

The Raven

Emily Longworth

Jack Walsh

Laura Bell

Steven Balbirnie

To commemorate the feeble, half-baked, thrown-together attempts that I’ve made thus far to fill space in this paper’s tête-à-tête-àtête-à-tête, I’ve chosen to argue the case for the Treehouse of Horror that exhibited the least forethought, organisation or research: Bart Simpson’s Dracula from season four.

In the introduction, Bart eludes to the harrowing, spine-chilling tale that should have originally aired, “But it was far too intense, so we just threw something together with vampires.” Never a truer word spoken.

If that doesn’t resonate with the half-arsed student in all of us, then you’re doing something right.

When the Simpsons are invited to midnight dinner in Mr. Burn’s Pennsylvanian mansion, Lisa is the only one who suspects that the plot of the episode has already come uncomfortably close to that of a Francis Ford Coppola film.

Within 25 seconds, she finds the stairs to Secret Vampire Lair, and a copy of Yes I am a Vampire by C. M. Burns; with foreward by Steve Allen. But that’s just a filler synopsis, this episode is best remembered for containing the line “Super Fun Happy Slide?!”, and a concluding Christmas carol from the extended Simpson family. Oh look, and that’s my wordcount filled. Happy Halloween.

There is no time to mess around deciding which Treehouse of Horror tale is the best. Taking into account that there are 72 choices facing you and you have to decide which tale deserves about seven minutes of your Halloween pre-drinks, you’ve got to get some bang for your buck.

You clearly like The Simpsons, yeah? Okely dokely, then. Surely you would like an infinite number of parallel Simpsons universes (and one sly Flintstones reference) to bask in its luminous 90’s Simpsons yellow glow. Seriously, it’s better than the Northern Lights somehow centralising entirely in your kitchen.

Time and Punishment is the equivalent of Mark Ruffalo telling you several bedtime stories. It’s pretty, it’s intelligent, it’s got a large amount of plot, and it’s a sensory overload.

On his way around the multiverse, Homer meets Moe without a brain, remembers Grandpa’s sage time-travelling words (I wish my Dad said that at my fictional wedding), and, most importantly, nearly miraculously lands in a heaven of a rich life that is filled with doughnut rain and two dead sister-in-laws.

This is indeed a disturbing finish, but would being stuck where Homer ends up, with everyone having frog tongues, really the worst thing in the world? What do you mean yes?

Sorry, I couldn’t understand you, on account of your massive frog tongue.

“No TV and no beer make Homer go crazy.”

While this statement definitely implies that Homer is in the middle of studying for the end of semester exams, it is not so. Yes, he’s losing his mind, but only because he’s starring in The Simpsons’ priceless, and undoubtedly superior remake of The Shining.

The plot echoes the dry campus crisis of 2012-13, as Mr. Burns directly quotes the governing body of UCD. “By cutting off cable TV and the beer supply, I can ensure an honest winter’s work out of these low-lives.”

I think we can all relate to this episode on a level that is even almost deeper than our appreciation of alcohol. Sometimes we have to ask “Mom, is dad gonna kill us?” and sometimes the answer is “We’re just going to have to wait and see.”

Sometimes the blood doesn’t get off at the second floor, and sometimes you hack open the wrong door in a murderous rage.

Relatable stuff. Really, all I know is that there were a number of times I passed the old student bar and met a ghoul who told me to slaughter everyone. Or maybe that was just my brain suggesting ways I could get out of going to class.

Either way, I’m glad that I don’t personally have “the shinning.” Do I mean “shining”? No. I don’t want to get sued.

Oh hello, truly your forgiveness I implore, so faintly you came tapping that I scarce was sure I heard you. I was just reading one of my many quaint and curious volumes of forgotten lore. What do you mean “why am I speaking so strangely?” I’m establishing the mood.

For your information, I’m about to put forward the case for a cartoon based on a classic tale of terror by Edgar Allan Poe. Don’t worry; you won’t learn anything. The original, and best, Treehouse of Horror featured as its grand finale an exquisite adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe’s The Raven. Using the 1845 text, this sequence is masterfully narrated by Mufasa Vader himself, James Earl Jones.

Featuring Homer as the lead character mourning his lost love and Bart as his tormentor, the eponymous Raven, the scene culminates in Homer’s best attempt to strangle Bart as the Raven bombards him with volumes of Poe’s greatest works, while a bust of the author watches impassively from a shelf in the background.

While it isn’t scary, this is The Simpsons’ Treehouse of Horror at its most magnificent, and if you disagree get thee back into the tempest and the night’s plutonian shore.

otwo

23

The Back Page “Ireland’s not full of the happiest people in the world, and we carry with us some sort of shame we could all do without” Hozier talks the Irish mentality to religion in day to day life

“I was supposed to be the baby rat, so I had to wear diapers over my black tights” Sam Lloyd on his first acting role

“I think it’s a Japanese proverb that says fall down seven times, get up eight. That’s how I plan on moving forward, regardless of what the outcome is, that’s how I plan on going forward”

six seven up

Joy Williams of The Civil Wars on her relationship with bandmate John Paul White

Photograph of the week

Ireland’s global rank in terms of gender equality according to the World Economic Forum. Iceland is number 1

sudoku

the number of Guinness World Records now held by GTA V

keys by killian woods You didn’t know? Whales sleep standing up. Now you know. Vertical.

24 otwo

These are a set of keys. They are in a consistent state of being lost and found. Isn’t it interesting how things can be lost and found at the same time. Someone in this instance has lost their keys and are trying to find them, but someone else has already found them. This experience taught me that although these keys are lost, they are also found

To submit photos to the University Observer photograph of the week contest email design @ universityobserver.ie