Vinyl

Let's not beat around the bush.

'Vinyl' is a low budget film.

It's more akin to a television special than what people currently expect from a cinema release, but that's not to say that it's a substandard movie.

It's just that I think that some cinema goers of a certain age will baulk at what is often called, 'the gritty realism', and which often means that the film was made within very tight financial constraints.

What I mean by that is that it looks dull.

In an age where CGI is king and technicolour has been left in the past to bring us a bigger, brighter and more crisp viewing experience Vinyl does actual look as if it could have been filmed on a digital camcorder bought for fifty buck from a cash generator store.

Then there's the filler such as footage of a caravan park where you get to see some kids on a cheap holiday looking at the camera and such.

These are of course minor quibbles, but ones that may be picked up on.

To be fair the good points far outweigh the criticisms that may be levelled at it though.

The acting itself is of an acceptable standard, especially from the main cast.

No surprise there.

The script is entertaining enough, albeit for some clunky dialogue in places, and the pacing of the story is well played out.

I personally found it to be very enjoyable and would recommend that given the chance people do go and see it on it's short theatrical run.

Just keep in mind that what you are going to see is not a Hollywood blockbuster and you will be fine.

For those who don't know what the film is about then let me tell you.

This is the film whose story is a fictional account of when The Alarm hoodwinked the British music industry, and the media, when they created a young band called The Poppy Fields to front a single that they were releasing after they found that many doors were stubbornly being held closed to them due to their age.

It's a broad side swipe at the industry and probably more relevant now than when The Alarm initially set the wheels in motion for the original swindle-esque caper.

Some may say nothing much has changed, but I would argue that it has gotten worse as lip syncing teens dominate the releases, while companies who manufacture acts appear to be at the fore front of what is called the music business in the present.

That being the case this is a timely reminder that what we have is not representative of what is out there, but instead of what the money men want us to hear.

So while nothing was really learnt from what the Alarm did, we do get to be reminded of it here, and can blissfully wallow in nostalgia as we watch some aged fictional rockers stick two fingers up to the establishment and win out the day.

There's a nice wee cameo from Steve Diggle (Buzzcocks) in it to.

Well worth throwing a tenner at.  

Big Country - The Journey

With the release of The Journey, the Mike Peters fronted Big Country are in a way stepping into a lions den and inviting the truculent to air their criticisms.

When the band originally reformed the gathering storm of protest from fans looked as if no teacup would be able to hold it.

However the naysayers soon found themselves having to order a portion of humble pie when they took to stages and with some aplomb turned the spluttering flame that was Big Country into a wonderful conflagration of sound that would burn every minor critique to ash.

Part of the success of the second (third to the pedantic) coming of Big Country was undoubtedly down to the bands understanding that Stuart Adamson could not be left behind.

That his memory should be honoured and the material approached with a degree of reverence that it deserved.

Not that the reverence would be coached in sombre tones either, but more that it would be a reverential celebration.

So with each gig they all reinvested in the name, and the bands history, and then even the most begrudging fan was ultimately swept along in their wake.

Quite simply put all was fine in the Big Country.

Now the storm clouds are gathering again with some fans taking umbrage that new material that is obviously sans Adamson is on the horizon.

It's partially understandable as this album will always be considered as the beginning of a new chapter.

A chapter of a story that some are happy to have considered to have ended.

Of course it's an individuals right to hang onto the past as tightly as they would wish, but this isn't a release that closes one door merely to open another, and instead it's more a stepping stone from the past into the future.

Once heard it would be safe to say that similar to how the previous live dates won the fans over that this will do likewise.

Mainly because it is still recognizably Big Country.

If the band wanted to move in a new direction then a name change would have been the best option for them, but the direction they are taking is really just another step down a path that the original members and Stuart had already charted out.

To my ears it sounds like a natural progression, and that's what will win the day out.

I can imagine that with each writing and practice session that the band themselves would have been tweaking and tinkering with every single song until they had something that they knew was of a standard that would be acceptable to the fans, and then when they went in to record it that they then turned it up a notch with the consideration that it is better safe than sorry.

In fact that about sums it up. 

It's a Big Country album for Big Country fans.

Hats off to them.

They did exactly what some thought they couldn't.

Big Country as a brand seems to be in safe hands.

The Alarm - The Sound and Fury

On first listen to the latest album from Mike Peters and his band of merry musicians I will have to admit to being just slightly underwhelmed.
For an album that is called the sound and the fury I wasn't feeling a punch from it.
Now that a number of days have passed and each of the songs have bedded in I've decided that the reason for that is prior to hearing much of it from the studio my only point of reference for the music was from the live experience.
Put the two together and the studio versions sound like pale imitations of what the songs can sound like.
In the studio the heartfelt 'fury' seems to have been lost, distilled down, and tamed by going through the recording process.
I've said it before, but how do you capture the lightning that can spark from a live performance?
I'm not sure that you actually can, but even when a producer comes close to doing just that I reckon that it's a hit and miss stroke of luck.
This reworking of songs written during Mike Peters long career, while worthy, maybe could have been something that was tinkered with until a bit more energy was caught in the recording.
So while I'm now enjoying this album far more than I initially thought I would, I'm still longing to hear the songs played again with that Sound and Fury that is promised and is delivered each time Mike takes to the stage.