WATCHING, READING AND LISTENING TO
THE EDITOR
WATCHING: I don't go to the cinema often, but I've not seen many films this year better than Into The Wild. Sure, Chris McCandless was selfish, cocky and reckless, but his journey and eventual fatal stay in the Alaskan wilderness still makes for a haunting tale and it's very well told by Sean Penn, who stays remarkably faithful to the book (which I've since started reading). The cinematography is sublime throughout, with stunning scenery as Chris wanders around the fringes of American life, and Eddie Vedder's soundtrack is good on its own and awesome in the context of the film. Penn rightly realised that the true tragedy of this story comes from the people that Chris meets, charms and then walks away from, not least the poor old man (played with class by Hal Holbrook) whose heart is clearly breaking when he has to say his goodbyes. A gorgeous road movie that cuts deep and leaves a mark.
READING: Like I said, I've been tearing through the Into The Wild book, written by journalist Jon Krakauer in 1996, inspired by an article he wrote about McCandless. It's a great book, particularly as it fills in all the gaps around what you see in the film and sticks to the hard facts of what we can know about what happened, while obviously some of the film is fictionalised, not least the parts where he is in Alaska on his own. When I finish that, it'll be back to Anna Karenina, appropriately as Tolstoy was one the authors who inspired McCandless' adventures. Then when I finish that, it'll be back to Wild Swans by Jung Chang. Only three books on the go at the moment then...
LISTENING TO: Erm, Into The Wild! Seriously though, the soundtrack has taken on a whole new depth since seeing the film, and all the short songs that didn't make much impact on their own have suddenly developed a real spine-tingling quality. Good work Vedder! As well as that, I've been listening to lots of very good albums from 2007 to start trying to finalise my Top 20 lists. Some albums haven't sounded as good as I first thought they were, and have fallen down or out of the list, while some have shot up the rankings. And I think we have a winner, unless something special comes out in the next few weeks...
THE WRITER
WATCHING: Frankly, it's not been a great week for films. I've only watched two flicks this week and both have been pretty rotten. Firstly, I watched High School High, a John Lovitz-starring Dangerous Minds parody whose jokes were so lame it came off as more of a bad drama than a good comedy. The second film I watched was Cannonball Run, which was marginally better, but did feature Burt Reynolds at his most irritating and Roger Moore parodying his James Bond, which is quite an achievement really seeing as his Bond was a parody anyway. Meanwhile, on a random point, I saw that Coca Cola ad with the people chanting 'Holidays are coming' that hasn't been showed for the past few years, but appears to have made a comeback. Evil company, great advert.
READING: I'm back on the Bonds. Earlier in the year, I embarked upon a literary James Bond marathon by reading some of Ian Fleming's original novels. They're all really enjoyable reads (especially Moonraker, which only make the unrecognisable film 'adaptation' even more unforgivable), but I struggled to get through Diamonds Are Forever and have only just returned to it. It's widely regarded as one of the weaker 007 books, and it's not hard to see why, with its slow-moving plot and un-engaging villains. Still, in emotionally scarred Bond girl Tiffany Case, Fleming has created a rich, grounded femme fatale who would fit well in the Casino Royale sequel.
LISTENING TO: Nightmare Before Christmas soundtrack. I've never been quite as convinced by Danny Elfman's score writing talents as most other people are. He‘s certainly very talented, but his work has a trademark to it that makes it sound fairly uniform and, despite my enjoyment of both scores, its sometimes difficult to differentiate his work on the Batman and Spider-Man films. Having recently listened to the Nightmare Before Christmas soundtrack, though, I am now well and truly in the Elfman camp. This is a rich, textured score that is not only good enough to be ranked up there with any of the truly great musical soundtracks, but also displays his sadly unexplored talent with lyrics. What's This perfectly describes the childlike wonder of Christmas and This Is Halloween has the phrase 'tender lumplings' in it. No real analysis to add to that, I just think it's a phrase that should come in to more common usage.
Friday, November 23, 2007
Tuesday, November 06, 2007
WATCHING, READING AND LISTENING TO
THE EDITOR
WATCHING: Since last time, The Sopranos has come to an end on E4 and I'm still really digesting THAT ending (I won't spoil it here for anyone who is waiting for C4) and deciding whether it was the best thing ever or the worst thing ever. And indeed, what actually happened. But one thing for sure is that the show itself was awesome from start to finish, though I'm resisting the temptation to watch it from the start on More4 in the hope that someone will buy me the DVD box-set for Christmas and I can watch at my own pace. It's certainly the kind of programme that deserves much closer attention than you can pay to it over the course of six series in eight years. The plot-lines and characterisation are so intricate that I'm sure there's going to be loads that I missed first time around.
READING: As I had a week away recently I managed to read Michael Palin's Diaries: The Python Years, which much more interesting than reading one man's diaries from ten years of his life might sound. For one thing, it runs from 1969 when the Pythons were starting out, to 1979 when they had made Life Of Brian and were very famous and important and coming to the end of their work as a team. It's very interesting to read about the inner workings of it all and while Palin is as fair-minded as you'd expect from him, there's still some snide digs at Eric Idle and John Cleese to keep things ticking over nicely. Through in all of his trips to work on Saturday Night Live and all the famous and talented people he meets, and you've got a great antidote to the blog culture (yes, this is being written in a blog, so what?) of mediocre people writing about their mundane daily lives...
LISTENING TO: A bit of a hangover from WATCHING, but having seen the original Godzilla (Gojira if like) at the weekend, I bought off iTunes a compilation soundtrack of music from the Godzilla films between 1954 and 1975. With around 40 tracks, I did worry that it might be a bit repetitive, with lots of uses of the main theme, but instead it was quite the opposite, with Akira Ifukube using all kinds of different music for the various films in the series, making it very fun listening throughout. The only pity is that I now want to rent the rest of the films and virtually none of them are out on region 2 DVD. Sort it out someone, there's so much tripe out there on DVD that surely no-one ever watches, so why can't these be released?
THE WRITER
WATCHING: The last thing I saw at the cinema was In the Shadow of the Moon, a majestic documentary about the Apollo moon missions of the late 60s and 70s that pays fitting tribute to the men involved without descending into the overbearing patriotism or trite spiritualism that might have been expected. On TV, I’m currently enjoying Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman’s travel chronicle Long Way Down, which occasionally becomes a little too laddish but remains an engagingly intelligent watch. And on DVD I’m working my way through the magnificent third season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Which leads us nicely onto…
READING: Buffy Season 8. I had put off buying this official comic book continuation of the Buffy story until recently because I wasn’t too keen on the team of potential slayers that emerged at the end of season seven or the idea of them now being a sort of military organisation scattered across the world. However, just seven issues in, this is shaping up to be one of the finest seasons in the series’ history. The military idea is working surprisingly well, the various slayers are all getting enough page time to give them all individual personalities, and, best of all, the Scooby Gang has been reunited. Seeing Buffy, Willow and Xander together again for the first time since 2003 is one of my highlights of the year so far.
LISTENING TO: Amid all the hype over the download-only release, I struggled to get to grips with Radiohead’s In Rainbows on the first few listens. While I enjoyed it, it seemed to lack the stand out songs of their other albums. However, after a few weeks of solid listens, it emerges as one of their finest records, arguably challenging OK Computer and The Bends for all-time classic status. Bodysnatchers finds them rocking out in a way they haven’t done since National Anthem. Nude and Videotape are haunting little pieces filled with the band’s usual melancholia. And All I Need builds to the kind of ethereal crescendo of noise that only Radiohead can pull off. All in all, it’s a classic and I can’t wait for my discbox thingy to arrive next month.
THE EDITOR
WATCHING: Since last time, The Sopranos has come to an end on E4 and I'm still really digesting THAT ending (I won't spoil it here for anyone who is waiting for C4) and deciding whether it was the best thing ever or the worst thing ever. And indeed, what actually happened. But one thing for sure is that the show itself was awesome from start to finish, though I'm resisting the temptation to watch it from the start on More4 in the hope that someone will buy me the DVD box-set for Christmas and I can watch at my own pace. It's certainly the kind of programme that deserves much closer attention than you can pay to it over the course of six series in eight years. The plot-lines and characterisation are so intricate that I'm sure there's going to be loads that I missed first time around.
READING: As I had a week away recently I managed to read Michael Palin's Diaries: The Python Years, which much more interesting than reading one man's diaries from ten years of his life might sound. For one thing, it runs from 1969 when the Pythons were starting out, to 1979 when they had made Life Of Brian and were very famous and important and coming to the end of their work as a team. It's very interesting to read about the inner workings of it all and while Palin is as fair-minded as you'd expect from him, there's still some snide digs at Eric Idle and John Cleese to keep things ticking over nicely. Through in all of his trips to work on Saturday Night Live and all the famous and talented people he meets, and you've got a great antidote to the blog culture (yes, this is being written in a blog, so what?) of mediocre people writing about their mundane daily lives...
LISTENING TO: A bit of a hangover from WATCHING, but having seen the original Godzilla (Gojira if like) at the weekend, I bought off iTunes a compilation soundtrack of music from the Godzilla films between 1954 and 1975. With around 40 tracks, I did worry that it might be a bit repetitive, with lots of uses of the main theme, but instead it was quite the opposite, with Akira Ifukube using all kinds of different music for the various films in the series, making it very fun listening throughout. The only pity is that I now want to rent the rest of the films and virtually none of them are out on region 2 DVD. Sort it out someone, there's so much tripe out there on DVD that surely no-one ever watches, so why can't these be released?
THE WRITER
WATCHING: The last thing I saw at the cinema was In the Shadow of the Moon, a majestic documentary about the Apollo moon missions of the late 60s and 70s that pays fitting tribute to the men involved without descending into the overbearing patriotism or trite spiritualism that might have been expected. On TV, I’m currently enjoying Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman’s travel chronicle Long Way Down, which occasionally becomes a little too laddish but remains an engagingly intelligent watch. And on DVD I’m working my way through the magnificent third season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Which leads us nicely onto…
READING: Buffy Season 8. I had put off buying this official comic book continuation of the Buffy story until recently because I wasn’t too keen on the team of potential slayers that emerged at the end of season seven or the idea of them now being a sort of military organisation scattered across the world. However, just seven issues in, this is shaping up to be one of the finest seasons in the series’ history. The military idea is working surprisingly well, the various slayers are all getting enough page time to give them all individual personalities, and, best of all, the Scooby Gang has been reunited. Seeing Buffy, Willow and Xander together again for the first time since 2003 is one of my highlights of the year so far.
LISTENING TO: Amid all the hype over the download-only release, I struggled to get to grips with Radiohead’s In Rainbows on the first few listens. While I enjoyed it, it seemed to lack the stand out songs of their other albums. However, after a few weeks of solid listens, it emerges as one of their finest records, arguably challenging OK Computer and The Bends for all-time classic status. Bodysnatchers finds them rocking out in a way they haven’t done since National Anthem. Nude and Videotape are haunting little pieces filled with the band’s usual melancholia. And All I Need builds to the kind of ethereal crescendo of noise that only Radiohead can pull off. All in all, it’s a classic and I can’t wait for my discbox thingy to arrive next month.
Friday, November 02, 2007
Top Ten... Alternative 90s
Concluding our (mini) series of Top Tens, we're looking over the alternative classic of the 1960s, 70s, 80s and 90s. So, what do we mean by alternative? Well, alternative, for the purposes of these entries, means anything that is critically derided, overlooked by the public or just generally under-rated. Ultimately, though, it all comes down to how we argue it, so if you disagree, let us know!
FILMS - By The Writer
1. A Simple Plan (1998)
Sam Raimi may be best known for his Evil Dead and Spider-Man trilogies, but his finest film is this low-key drama from 1998. Starring Bill Paxton as a man who finds his senses of morality and loyalty challenged when he stumbles across thousands of dollars hidden in a downed aeroplane, A Simple Plan is a mini-masterpiece of a film that was nonetheless ignored upon release because its snowy landscapes and crime-oriented story were similar to the earlier Fargo. But while the Coens’ film was a blackly comic one that ultimately left you with a feeling of warmth, this is a dark exploration of the evil that men can do in the pursuit of money and power.
2. That Thing You Do (1995)
Tom Hanks is already one of America’s best-loved actors, but if this directorial debut is anything to go by he could well become one of its best-loved personalities behind the camera too. Telling the story of fictional 60s pop group The Wonders, That Thing You Do is a snappy tale of love and fame that’s sweet and nostalgic without being sentimental or cheesy. Liv Tyler and Tom Everett Scott give great performances, but its Hanks' zipping direction (and his surprising talent for writing a toe-tapping pop song) that makes this trip into nostalgic pop culture really fly.
3. Romeo + Juliet (1997)
From the plus sign of the title to the use of guns instead of swords, Baz Luhrmann's modern-day adaptation of William Shakespeare's timeless play was attacked on release for not paying enough respect to the much-loved original text. If anything though it's actually more in tune with the Bard’s work than Franco Zeffirelli’s more-lauded 1968 version. By communicating in the modern language of guns, pop music and the media, Luhrmann heightened the feelings of lust, revenge and violence that the play revolves around, and in doing so returned the passion to a timeless piece of work that had become twee through decades of rubbish school productions.
4. Alien 3 (1992)
Following on from Alien and Aliens is difficult enough already, but doing so with the interference of producers and a script made up of fragments from several earlier drafts just makes the creative process even trickier. Yet that was exactly what David Fincher had to put up with while making Alien 3 and, predictably enough, the results are messy. Still, there's enough here to show just how impressive a director Fincher would go on to be, from the dark religious subtext to the stunning set design and cinematography. The new, non-Fincher-endorsed, cut on the Alien Quadrilogy DVD set promised much but delivered little, meaning this is likely to be a flawed masterpiece that will remain under-appreciated for many more years to come.
5. Hard Eight (1996)
Here's another debut film wracked with production problems. Or rather, one big one. Paul Thomas Anderson's first feature, a low key story of a down on his luck gambler played by John C. Reilly, was originally going to be called Sidney, after the father figure Reilly's character finds in Vegas. Then the studio got involved and re-branded it the far less meaningful (and vaguely pornographic-sounding) Hard Eight. Controversy or no though, this is a sterling debut that features some wonderful performances from Samuel L Jackson and Gwyneth Paltrow and shows all Anderson's usual themes in their embryonic stages.
6. Meeting People Is Easy (1998)
Grant Gee's OK Computer era Radiohead rock documentary is remarkable for two reasons. First, the band are notoriously shy around the media and the idea of Thom Yorke and co allowing a camera crew to record the making of In Rainbows or any future albums is almost unthinkable. Secondly, and most importantly, it's not really a typical rock documentary. We see very little of the band performing, with Gee instead choosing to show how the worldwide success of OK Computer affected the band personally. Throw in some rare glimpses of the band working in the studio and snippets of still-unfinished songs (the biting Big Boots among them) and you have a fascinating insight into the defining band of the 90s.
7. Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990)
Joe Dante is one of the least appreciated directors of the 80s and 90s and Gremlins 2 is one of his least appreciated films. Sure it's not as good as the original and sure it just becomes a procession of gags about half-way through, but who cares? This is all about Gizmo acting cute and his gremlin siblings tearing stuff up, which they do very well indeed. Throw in endless film references, Tony Randall voicing the sophisticated Brain gremlin and a closing rendition of New York, New York that’s arguably the finest musical sequence ever committed to celluloid and you have an hour and a half of raucous Dante entertainment.
8. Heavenly Creatures (1994)
Like Sam Raimi, Peter Jackson is best known for his work in the fantasy and horror genres. And, just as Raimi did, he also directed a stunning drama in the mid-90s that proved him more than just a one-trick pony. Heavenly Creatures is based upon the Parker-Hulme murders of 1954 in which two young girls’ friendship grew to such an intense state that they plotted murder when their parents tried to separate them. It’s dreamily shot and sensitively written, making for a unique piece of filmmaking that bodes well for Jackson's return to drama: next year's adaptation of Alice Sebold's novel The Lovely Bones.
9. Pi (1998)
Darren Aronofsky attracted massive critical acclaim for his 2000 adaptation of Hubert Selby Jnr's novel Requiem for a Dream. But it's his self-written debut Pi that is arguably the better film. Shot in striking black and white, it’s the story of a maths whizz whose calculations land him in hot water with Wall Street and some Jewish zealots who believe he can bring them closer to their god. Sean Gullette gives a stunning turn, while Clint Mansell, in his first slice of soundtrack work, creates a haunting score. However, it's Aronofsky who shines the brightest here, making a big impact in his first attempt as so many others on this list did.
10. The Iron Giant (1999)
Brad Bird is once again wowing audiences at the moment with the amazing Ratatouille, so it’s as good a time as any to revisit this, his debut feature. Stunningly rendered in 2D animation at a time when everyone was busting their pixels for CGI, The Iron Giant is a faithful adaptation of Ted Hughes' short story The Iron Man that remains one of the best and most under-appreciated animated films of the decade.
ALBUMS - By The Editor
1. The Crocketts - We May Be Skinny And Wirey (1998)
I'm showing my age with my choices, which are all from within three years of 90s rock music (basically when I was first really getting into music and everything was the best thing ever). The Crocketts' debut album still stands out from pretty much anything else with its mixture of angry folky rock music and some beautiful and memorable guitar-playing on the slower tunes. Singer Davey is still around with The Crimea, but he's never quite lived up to the awesome potential of this album.
2. Baby Chaos - Love Your Self Abuse (1996)
One of the common themes of this list is that most of these bands aren't around anymore, with Scottish pop-rockers Baby Chaos having turned into the less infectiously-wonderful (but still pretty good) Deckard. Debut album Safe Sex, Designer Drugs And The Death Of Rock 'n' Roll was fantastic, but the follow-up was even better, particularly singles like Hello and Ignoramus. They were sometimes called Baby Wildhearts for their use of crunching guitars and soaring melodies, but that's no bad thing when it's done as well as this.
3. Joyrider - Be Special (1996)
They appeared from Northern Ireland at about the same time as Ash, and had just as many catchy pop rock tunes, like All Gone Away, Vegetable Animal Mineral and their cover of cheesy 80s hit Rush Hour, but for some reason Joyrider were left behind. Every track on here is great, from the fast ones like Fabulae to the slower ones like That Tired, but like so many fantastic bands, Joyrider missed the bus to superstardom and ended up getting the one to obscurity instead.
4. Silver Sun - Silver Sun (1997)
One of the few on here to be still going, Silver Sun did disappear for a while, but reemerged a couple of years ago and have released a couple of albums since then. Obviously none of them have done very well, but at least they are still around, because their Beach Boys-esque harmonies and incredibly catchy power pop songs are well worth hearing. Their debut album was a classic, with singles like Golden Skin, Julia, Far Out, Last Day and the icky sexual exploits of Lava. Quite how it wasn't the biggest album of all time, god only knows.
5. Brad - Interiors (1997)
Like many people no doubt, I first got into Brad through their guitarist Stone Gossard, of Pearl Jam, but the real appeal of them is vocalist Shawn Smith. They are a side project at best of course, with Smith also recording with Pigeonhed, Satchel and as a solo artist, but Interiors ranks up there with the best that any of them have recorded. Smith's soulful voice shines through on tracks like The Day Brings and some darker material like Funeral Song and Some Never Come Home, and Interiors is one of the best albums to come out of Seattle since grunge's heyday.
6. Bullyrag - Songs Of Praise (1998)
Quite probably the most un-Beatles like rock band to have ever emerged from Liverpool, Bullyrag were possibly also a bit too different to fit into any convenient box, which is why they were mostly ignored. Kerrang! tried calling them 'raggametalpunkfunk' for their mixture of all those genres, and even included singer Robbie Awork in their Top 100 Coolest Rock Stars list, but despite awesome ragga-rock tracks like Jump Up In A Fashion, Frantic and Learn To Live, they never really made it big.
7. Kerbdog - On The Turn (1998)
Having a lead singer with a name as cool as Cormac Battle and songs as heavy and memorable as Sally, JJ's Song, Severed, Pledge and On The Turn should have been enough to catapult these Irish lads into the kind of league that the likes of Foo Fighters and Silverchair occupied at the time, but for some reason they were pretty much ignored by the British rock press in favour of 'the next big thing'. They turned into the poppier (but still very good) Wilt, but still got ignored.
8. Groop Dogdrill - Half Nelson (1998)
Sometimes impulse purchases are the best ones and sometimes you can judge a book (or a single) by its cover. Finding their single Gracelands looking cool as hell in my local Omega Music for 50p, I decided to check it out and was rewarded. A real rock 'n' roll swagger, with oil-slicked hair and the constant threat of physical violence, Groop Dogdrill were the best thing to come out of Yorkshire, with lots of film references in tracks like Oily Rag.
9. Shelter - Mantra (1995)
Not many rock albums start off with some Krisna chanting, but not make rock bands were like Shelter. A New York 'krishnacore' band who mingled their spirituality with a straight edge ethos and hardcore rock music, Shelter were much more fun than that sounds, and Mantra was a very catchy album indeed. Not only were the songs great, but the message in all of them was too, which certainly helps convince your mum to put the tape on in the car despite the heavy guitars...
10. Veruca Salt - Eight Arms To Hold You (1997)
One of the all-time greatest music videos was Veruca Salt's Volcano Girls. Rock girls plus guitars plus bungee cords = awesomeness! What? They should be naked too? Tsk... Anyway, Veruca Salt were a great American alternative rock band with two great female singers Louise Post and Nina Gordon. Cracking rock songs, great pop songs and the knowledge that they were already starting to hate each other and ended up splitting up not so long after this. Post still carries on with the Veruca Salt name, but with the magic partnership with Gordon, there's not the same kind of thrill.
Concluding our (mini) series of Top Tens, we're looking over the alternative classic of the 1960s, 70s, 80s and 90s. So, what do we mean by alternative? Well, alternative, for the purposes of these entries, means anything that is critically derided, overlooked by the public or just generally under-rated. Ultimately, though, it all comes down to how we argue it, so if you disagree, let us know!
FILMS - By The Writer
1. A Simple Plan (1998)
Sam Raimi may be best known for his Evil Dead and Spider-Man trilogies, but his finest film is this low-key drama from 1998. Starring Bill Paxton as a man who finds his senses of morality and loyalty challenged when he stumbles across thousands of dollars hidden in a downed aeroplane, A Simple Plan is a mini-masterpiece of a film that was nonetheless ignored upon release because its snowy landscapes and crime-oriented story were similar to the earlier Fargo. But while the Coens’ film was a blackly comic one that ultimately left you with a feeling of warmth, this is a dark exploration of the evil that men can do in the pursuit of money and power.
2. That Thing You Do (1995)
Tom Hanks is already one of America’s best-loved actors, but if this directorial debut is anything to go by he could well become one of its best-loved personalities behind the camera too. Telling the story of fictional 60s pop group The Wonders, That Thing You Do is a snappy tale of love and fame that’s sweet and nostalgic without being sentimental or cheesy. Liv Tyler and Tom Everett Scott give great performances, but its Hanks' zipping direction (and his surprising talent for writing a toe-tapping pop song) that makes this trip into nostalgic pop culture really fly.
3. Romeo + Juliet (1997)
From the plus sign of the title to the use of guns instead of swords, Baz Luhrmann's modern-day adaptation of William Shakespeare's timeless play was attacked on release for not paying enough respect to the much-loved original text. If anything though it's actually more in tune with the Bard’s work than Franco Zeffirelli’s more-lauded 1968 version. By communicating in the modern language of guns, pop music and the media, Luhrmann heightened the feelings of lust, revenge and violence that the play revolves around, and in doing so returned the passion to a timeless piece of work that had become twee through decades of rubbish school productions.
4. Alien 3 (1992)
Following on from Alien and Aliens is difficult enough already, but doing so with the interference of producers and a script made up of fragments from several earlier drafts just makes the creative process even trickier. Yet that was exactly what David Fincher had to put up with while making Alien 3 and, predictably enough, the results are messy. Still, there's enough here to show just how impressive a director Fincher would go on to be, from the dark religious subtext to the stunning set design and cinematography. The new, non-Fincher-endorsed, cut on the Alien Quadrilogy DVD set promised much but delivered little, meaning this is likely to be a flawed masterpiece that will remain under-appreciated for many more years to come.
5. Hard Eight (1996)
Here's another debut film wracked with production problems. Or rather, one big one. Paul Thomas Anderson's first feature, a low key story of a down on his luck gambler played by John C. Reilly, was originally going to be called Sidney, after the father figure Reilly's character finds in Vegas. Then the studio got involved and re-branded it the far less meaningful (and vaguely pornographic-sounding) Hard Eight. Controversy or no though, this is a sterling debut that features some wonderful performances from Samuel L Jackson and Gwyneth Paltrow and shows all Anderson's usual themes in their embryonic stages.
6. Meeting People Is Easy (1998)
Grant Gee's OK Computer era Radiohead rock documentary is remarkable for two reasons. First, the band are notoriously shy around the media and the idea of Thom Yorke and co allowing a camera crew to record the making of In Rainbows or any future albums is almost unthinkable. Secondly, and most importantly, it's not really a typical rock documentary. We see very little of the band performing, with Gee instead choosing to show how the worldwide success of OK Computer affected the band personally. Throw in some rare glimpses of the band working in the studio and snippets of still-unfinished songs (the biting Big Boots among them) and you have a fascinating insight into the defining band of the 90s.
7. Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990)
Joe Dante is one of the least appreciated directors of the 80s and 90s and Gremlins 2 is one of his least appreciated films. Sure it's not as good as the original and sure it just becomes a procession of gags about half-way through, but who cares? This is all about Gizmo acting cute and his gremlin siblings tearing stuff up, which they do very well indeed. Throw in endless film references, Tony Randall voicing the sophisticated Brain gremlin and a closing rendition of New York, New York that’s arguably the finest musical sequence ever committed to celluloid and you have an hour and a half of raucous Dante entertainment.
8. Heavenly Creatures (1994)
Like Sam Raimi, Peter Jackson is best known for his work in the fantasy and horror genres. And, just as Raimi did, he also directed a stunning drama in the mid-90s that proved him more than just a one-trick pony. Heavenly Creatures is based upon the Parker-Hulme murders of 1954 in which two young girls’ friendship grew to such an intense state that they plotted murder when their parents tried to separate them. It’s dreamily shot and sensitively written, making for a unique piece of filmmaking that bodes well for Jackson's return to drama: next year's adaptation of Alice Sebold's novel The Lovely Bones.
9. Pi (1998)
Darren Aronofsky attracted massive critical acclaim for his 2000 adaptation of Hubert Selby Jnr's novel Requiem for a Dream. But it's his self-written debut Pi that is arguably the better film. Shot in striking black and white, it’s the story of a maths whizz whose calculations land him in hot water with Wall Street and some Jewish zealots who believe he can bring them closer to their god. Sean Gullette gives a stunning turn, while Clint Mansell, in his first slice of soundtrack work, creates a haunting score. However, it's Aronofsky who shines the brightest here, making a big impact in his first attempt as so many others on this list did.
10. The Iron Giant (1999)
Brad Bird is once again wowing audiences at the moment with the amazing Ratatouille, so it’s as good a time as any to revisit this, his debut feature. Stunningly rendered in 2D animation at a time when everyone was busting their pixels for CGI, The Iron Giant is a faithful adaptation of Ted Hughes' short story The Iron Man that remains one of the best and most under-appreciated animated films of the decade.
ALBUMS - By The Editor
1. The Crocketts - We May Be Skinny And Wirey (1998)
I'm showing my age with my choices, which are all from within three years of 90s rock music (basically when I was first really getting into music and everything was the best thing ever). The Crocketts' debut album still stands out from pretty much anything else with its mixture of angry folky rock music and some beautiful and memorable guitar-playing on the slower tunes. Singer Davey is still around with The Crimea, but he's never quite lived up to the awesome potential of this album.
2. Baby Chaos - Love Your Self Abuse (1996)
One of the common themes of this list is that most of these bands aren't around anymore, with Scottish pop-rockers Baby Chaos having turned into the less infectiously-wonderful (but still pretty good) Deckard. Debut album Safe Sex, Designer Drugs And The Death Of Rock 'n' Roll was fantastic, but the follow-up was even better, particularly singles like Hello and Ignoramus. They were sometimes called Baby Wildhearts for their use of crunching guitars and soaring melodies, but that's no bad thing when it's done as well as this.
3. Joyrider - Be Special (1996)
They appeared from Northern Ireland at about the same time as Ash, and had just as many catchy pop rock tunes, like All Gone Away, Vegetable Animal Mineral and their cover of cheesy 80s hit Rush Hour, but for some reason Joyrider were left behind. Every track on here is great, from the fast ones like Fabulae to the slower ones like That Tired, but like so many fantastic bands, Joyrider missed the bus to superstardom and ended up getting the one to obscurity instead.
4. Silver Sun - Silver Sun (1997)
One of the few on here to be still going, Silver Sun did disappear for a while, but reemerged a couple of years ago and have released a couple of albums since then. Obviously none of them have done very well, but at least they are still around, because their Beach Boys-esque harmonies and incredibly catchy power pop songs are well worth hearing. Their debut album was a classic, with singles like Golden Skin, Julia, Far Out, Last Day and the icky sexual exploits of Lava. Quite how it wasn't the biggest album of all time, god only knows.
5. Brad - Interiors (1997)
Like many people no doubt, I first got into Brad through their guitarist Stone Gossard, of Pearl Jam, but the real appeal of them is vocalist Shawn Smith. They are a side project at best of course, with Smith also recording with Pigeonhed, Satchel and as a solo artist, but Interiors ranks up there with the best that any of them have recorded. Smith's soulful voice shines through on tracks like The Day Brings and some darker material like Funeral Song and Some Never Come Home, and Interiors is one of the best albums to come out of Seattle since grunge's heyday.
6. Bullyrag - Songs Of Praise (1998)
Quite probably the most un-Beatles like rock band to have ever emerged from Liverpool, Bullyrag were possibly also a bit too different to fit into any convenient box, which is why they were mostly ignored. Kerrang! tried calling them 'raggametalpunkfunk' for their mixture of all those genres, and even included singer Robbie Awork in their Top 100 Coolest Rock Stars list, but despite awesome ragga-rock tracks like Jump Up In A Fashion, Frantic and Learn To Live, they never really made it big.
7. Kerbdog - On The Turn (1998)
Having a lead singer with a name as cool as Cormac Battle and songs as heavy and memorable as Sally, JJ's Song, Severed, Pledge and On The Turn should have been enough to catapult these Irish lads into the kind of league that the likes of Foo Fighters and Silverchair occupied at the time, but for some reason they were pretty much ignored by the British rock press in favour of 'the next big thing'. They turned into the poppier (but still very good) Wilt, but still got ignored.
8. Groop Dogdrill - Half Nelson (1998)
Sometimes impulse purchases are the best ones and sometimes you can judge a book (or a single) by its cover. Finding their single Gracelands looking cool as hell in my local Omega Music for 50p, I decided to check it out and was rewarded. A real rock 'n' roll swagger, with oil-slicked hair and the constant threat of physical violence, Groop Dogdrill were the best thing to come out of Yorkshire, with lots of film references in tracks like Oily Rag.
9. Shelter - Mantra (1995)
Not many rock albums start off with some Krisna chanting, but not make rock bands were like Shelter. A New York 'krishnacore' band who mingled their spirituality with a straight edge ethos and hardcore rock music, Shelter were much more fun than that sounds, and Mantra was a very catchy album indeed. Not only were the songs great, but the message in all of them was too, which certainly helps convince your mum to put the tape on in the car despite the heavy guitars...
10. Veruca Salt - Eight Arms To Hold You (1997)
One of the all-time greatest music videos was Veruca Salt's Volcano Girls. Rock girls plus guitars plus bungee cords = awesomeness! What? They should be naked too? Tsk... Anyway, Veruca Salt were a great American alternative rock band with two great female singers Louise Post and Nina Gordon. Cracking rock songs, great pop songs and the knowledge that they were already starting to hate each other and ended up splitting up not so long after this. Post still carries on with the Veruca Salt name, but with the magic partnership with Gordon, there's not the same kind of thrill.
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