Scottish-native and singer/guitarist, Alasdair Roberts has always loved the traditional folk music of his homeland, and again after two dozen or so solo and collaborative releases, he returns here with 12 traditional ballads. Recorded live in the studio over the course of two days, Grief in the Kitchen and Mirth in the Hall, a title…
I don’t quite know what to make of Mafia Mamma. This is the new film from Catherine Hardwicke (Twilight) and features both Australia’s own Toni Collette (who also serves as a producer on the project) and Monica Bellucci. It’s from an original short story by prolific French writer Amanda Sthers, and was adapted by J….
It’s been fifty years since the horror classic The Exorcist hit screens and scared the bejesus out of audiences. Since then there have been many other films that have delved into the demonic possession genre. The Pope’s Exorcist is the latest in a long line of such films and it ticks off all the usual…
The first book of Spanish author Juan Gómez-Jurado’s crime thriller trilogy, Red Queen (translated by Nick Caistor) demonstrates (if it needed demonstrating again) that English-speaking authors do not have a lock on any genre. That said, while absolutely referencing American serial killer and terrorist thrillers, the book series it seems to draw on most also…
Our selection of the best new music across a range of genres from the week ending 7 April 2023. Oracle Sisters’ highly-anticipated debut album Hydranism is available globally via US indie label 22TWENTY. The Parisian three-piece make music that is at once melodic, poetic, and visionary. Working with the lightning speed afforded by the simplicity…
Having closely watched all 75 minutes of Pear-Shaped, I remain utterly confused about what I just saw. It is a semi-autobiographical work (it contains both real and imagined experiences), written by Miranda Middleton and Ziggy Resnick, starring the latter and Luisa Scrofani. It concerns an eating disorder overlaid with Alice in Wonderland. What the? From what I…
Rolling Thunder Vietnam is a deeply emotional, richly rewarding musical and narrative experience that takes you to the heart of the highly divisive Vietnam War. Featuring 20 of the most affecting songs of the era, Rolling Thunder Vietnam prizes open the hopes and fears of the young soldiers who went into battle. It also looks at the…
At several points on this monumental 9th album from singer/songwriter Lana Del Rey, she reports that “When you know, you know.” Yet after numerous listens to this album that no less than pop superstar Taylor Swift recently described as “brilliant” and “extraordinary,” adding that her collaborator on the song “Snow on the Beach” from her…
Basketball is huge in America; and Air Jordan shoes are now synonymous with it. Of course, that wasn’t always the case. Director and actor Ben Affleck’s (Argo) new film AIR tells the story of how the greatest basketball player of all time, the shoe and the Nike company came together. So this is one of…
The quirky dramedy Linoleum concerns a decent man of science who always wanted to be an astronaut. That man is Cameron Edwin (Jim Gaffigan). He hosts a local, late-night children’s TV science show, called “Above & Beyond”. One day a very strange thing happens – a red sports car crashes right in front of him,…
