#colin devenish

[samurairobotics]

* Reprise Records (April '98)

Article from Reprise Records

Faith No More Exists No More

Contributing Editor Colin Devenish reports

Following a steady slew of swirling rumors about their imminent demise, Faith No More have officially called it quits 13 years after the release of their first album, We Care A Lot.

The San Francisco hard-rock quintet, which last recorded for the Reprise label, has been long rumored to be on the rocks. The members of the band put an end to speculation regarding their future with a statement issued Monday by their management.

Howie Klein, president of Reprise, said he was not completely surprised, but that he was disappointed by the breakup of the band that he said he's followed since the recording of its first album. The band released five albums in total.

"Long before I was associated with Reprise, I was a disc jockey at KUSF in San Francisco, and the band had recorded We Care A Lot," Klein said. "They brought it into the studio and said, 'Can you play this?' We put it on, and it became a number-one record at the station. I've loved the band ever since."

During their career, Faith No More were briefly fronted by Hole singer Courtney Love and then by rapper/singer Chuck Mosley. But the band enjoyed its greatest success after Mike Patton took over as lead vocalist. With the charismatic Patton, Faith No More recorded their best-selling album, The Real Thing, which included the hit single "Epic."

Various members of the group are proceeding with their own projects. Drummer Mike Bordin, who has toured with heavy-metal giant Ozzy Osbourne, is in demand as a session player. Keyboardist Roddy Bottum's band, the San Francisco quartet Imperial Teen, will release its second album, What Is Not To Love, in May. Meanwhile, Patton will continue with his longtime side-project Mr. Bungle and a new collective called Phantomas, featuring Buzz Osbourne of Melvins fame on guitar, Mr. Bungle bassist Trevor Dunn and ex-Slayer skinsman Dave Lombardo.

Greg Werckman, who will manage Phantomas, said the band will play its first gig on June 18 at Slim's in San Francisco and described the group as being the brainchild of Patton.

"Patton made a tape of himself playing all the instruments, and then he asked his favorite bassist, guitarist and drummer to join him," Werckman said. "Each of the members sent the tape back to him with tapes of what their parts would be, and it's evolved into a tape of what they'd like to be done."

Werckman added that the foursome plan to be a full-time band that tours and records and that they are leaning toward a fall release for an album of new material.

Asked about the prospect of Reprise picking up Phantomas or any other possible Faith No More offshoots, Klein left the door open.

"I love those guys," Klein said. "I'm open to anything they do. They're very talented."

[claudia1829things]

"BLEAK HOUSE" (1985) Review

"BLEAK HOUSE" (1985) Review

In less than I year, I have developed this fascination with the works of Charles Dickens. How did this come about? I do not know. I have seen previous Dickens movie and television adaptations in the past. But ever since last year, I have been viewing these adaptations with a vengeance. And one of them turned out to be "BLEAK HOUSE", the 1985 adaptation of Dickens' 1852-53 novel.

Adapted by Arthur Hopcraft, this eight-episode miniseries conveyed the affects of Jarndyce v Jardyce, a long-running legal probate case involving the existence of more than one will. The heirs and their descendants have been waiting decades for the court to determine the legal will, for the sake of a large inheritance. Among those affected by the Jarndyce v Jardyce case are:

*John Jarndyce - a wealthy English landowner, who happens to be the proprietor of the estate, Bleak House. Jarndyce had inherited it from his uncle Tom Jarndyce, who had went mad waiting for a verdict on the case before committing suicide. *Richard Carstones - Tom Jarndyce's grandson and John Jarndyce's cousin, who also became one of the latter's legal wards, and a potential beneficiary of the Jarndyce v Jardyce case. *Ada Clare - Tom Jarndyce's granddaughter and Mr. Jarndyce's cousin, who also became one of his legal wards, and a potential beneficiary of the Jarndyce v Jardyce case. She and Richard, also cousins, became romantically involved. *Esther Summerson - one of the novel's main characters and orphan, who became Mr. Jarndyce's ward following the death of her previous guardian, Miss Barbury, who had also been her biological aunt. She joined the Bleak House household as Ada's companion and Mr. Jarndyce's housekeeper after he became the guardian of Richard and Ada. *Honoria, Lady Dedlock - the wife of baronet Sir Leicester Dedlock and a beneficiary of the Jarndyce v Jardyce case. She is also the younger sister of Miss Barbury and Esther's illegitimate mother. *Captain John Hawdon aka Nemo - a former British Army officer, who became an impoverished law writer and drug addict. He is also Lady Dedlock's former lover and Esther's illegitimate father. His penmanship on one of the Jarndyce v Jardyce affidavit attracts Lady Dedlock's attention. *Mr. Bill Tulkinghorn - Sir Leicester's ruthless lawyer, who noticed Lady Dedlock's reaction to the affidavit. This leads him to investigate her past and possible connection to Hawdon aka "Nemo". *Miss Flite - An elderly woman living in London, whose family had been destroyed by a long-running Chancery case similar to Jarndyce v Jarndyce. This has led her to develop an obsessive fascination with Chancery cases, especially the main one featured in this story. She quickly befriended Esther, Richard, Ada and Mr. Jarndyce.

As one can see, these characters represented plot arcs that connect to the Jarndyce v Jarndyce case. As one of the beneficiaries of the Jarndyce case, Richard becomes obsessed with the verdict. He seemed more interested in depending upon the Jarndyce verdict to provide him with an income rather than pursue a profession. This obsession eventually led to a clash between and Mr. Jarndyce, who has tried to warn him not to get involved with the case. Another clash formed between Lady Dedlock and Mr. Tulkinghorn, due to his determination to find proof of her past with Nemo and the conception of their child. A clash that proved to create even more damaging for a good number of people, than the one between Mr. Jarndyce and Richard. In the midst of all this stood Esther, who served as an emotional blanket for several characters - especially the inhabitants at Bleak House, a potential romantic figure for three men (ironic for a woman who was not supposed to be a great beauty), and the center of the Lady Dedlock-Nemo scandal.

For years, 1985's "BLEAK HOUSE" had been viewed as the superior adaptation of Dickens' novel. The first novel aired back in 1959. But a third television adaptation that aired in 2005 had managed to overshadow this second adaptation's reputation. But this is not about comparing the three adaptations. I am focusing only the 1985 miniseries. If I might be blunt, I believe screenwriter Arthur Hopcraft and director Ross Devenish created one of the better Charles Dickens I have personally seen. Granted, one might use the source material - the 1952-53 novel - as the reason behind the miniseries' top quality. But I have seen my share of poor adaptations of excellent source material . . . and excellent adaptations of poor or mediocre novels and plays. And I would find this excuse too simply to swallow. Hopcraft and Devenish could have easily created a poor or mediocre adaptation of the novel. Fortunately, I believe they had managed to avoid the latter.

With eight episodes, Hopcraft and Devenish did an excellent job in conveying Dickens' exploration into the chaos of the legal landscape in 19th century Britain, especially cases involving the Chancery courts. One might consider the longevity of Jarndyce v Jarndyce rather exaggerated. However, I speak from personal experience that an extended length of time in such a case is more than possible. But what I thought the effect of Jarndyce v Jarndyce and similar cases in Dickens' story seemed very interesting. In Richard Carstone's case, I suspect his own hubris and upbringing had allowed the case to have such a toxic effect upon him. He had been raised as a gentleman. Which meant he was not expected to work for a living. But since he did not possess a fortune or an estate - like Mr. Jarndyce - Richard never lost hope that the court would rule the Jarndyce v Jarndyce case in his favor, allowing him to inherit a great deal of money. Although it took another case to send Miss Flyte mentally around the bend, I found it interesting that her obsession with Chancery cases led her to attach her interest to the Jarndyce case beneficiaries.

The Jarndyce case also produce a group of leeches in the forms of attorneys like Mr. Tulkinghorn and his obsession with assuming control over the Dedlocks and Mr. Vholes, who had sucked a great deal of money from Richard in exchange for his legal services. The series also featured the vicious moneylender Mr. Smallweed, who helped Mr. Tulkinghorn in the latter's campaign against Lady Dedlock; and Mr. Jarndyce's "friend", Harold Skimpole, who had not only encouraged Richard to pursue a greater interest in the Jarndyce case, but also had accepted a "commission" from Vholes to recruit the young man as a client. Would I regard William Guppy as a leech? Sometimes. I had noticed that one particular story arc was missing - namely the story arc regarding the philanthropist Mrs. Jellyby, her daughter and Esther's friend, Caddy and the Turveydrop family. This did not bother me, for I have never been a fan of that particular arc.

However, I also noticed that "BLEAK HOUSE" featured a few moments in which important plot points had been revealed through dialogue or shown after the fact. Audiences never saw Skimpole convince Richard to hire Mr. Vholes. Instead, Mr. Jarndyce had revealed this incident after it happened. The whole scenario regarding Dr. Allan Woodcock being a survivor of a shipwreck was handled as a past event revealed by the good doctor himself. Hopcraft's script never stretched it out in the same manner as Dickens' novel or the 2005 miniseries. Audiences never saw George Rouncewell's release from jail, for which he had been incarcerated for murder. Instead, Episode Seven began with George in jail and later, near the end, found him serving as Sir Leicester's valet without any information on how that came about.

"BLEAK HOUSE" featured a few other writing and direction decisions by Hopcraft and Devenish that I found . . . well, questionable. Why did the pair solely focused on Lady Dedlock in the series' penultimate episode and Richard and the Jarndyce v Jarndyce case in the final one? Would it have been so difficult for them to switch back and forth between the two arcs in those final episodes? I found Inspector Bucket's resolution to the story's murder mystery rather rushed. I would have liked to see Bucket eliminate suspects before solving the case. In Bucket's final scene with the killer, Hopcraft left out that moment from the novel when the latter had the last scathing word on British society, leaving the police detective speechless. This erasure dimmed the impact of Dickens' message and made the killer even more of a caricature. I had some issues with how Devenish directed certain performances. How can I put this? I found them a bit theatrical.

I have one last issue - namely Kenneth MacMillan's cinematography. I realize that in "BLEAK HOUSE", fog represented institutional oppression and human confusion and misery in society. Unfortunately, I feel that MacMillan may have been heavy-handed in utilizing this symbol in the series. It is bad enough that photography featured a fuzzy element that seemed popular in many period productions in the 1970s. But thanks to MacMillan's use of fog in the story, there were many moment in which I could barely see a damn thing. And I found that irritating.

Aside from a few quibbles, I had no real issues with the performances featured in "BLEAK HOUSE". One of those quibbles proved to be the performances for some of the secondary cast members. How can I say this? The exaggerated and wooden performances for some of the cast members brought back memories of some of the minor actors' bad performances in 1982 miniseries, "THE BLUE AND THE GRAY". I must admit that I did not care for Pamela Merrick's portrayal of Lady Dedlock's French maid, Madame Hortense. Her performance bordered and then surpassed the lines of caricature - as some British actors/actresses tend to do. Charlie Drake's portrayal of the moneylender Smallweed tend to waver between a pretty solid performance and pure caricature. Although there were moments when I found her portrayal of the eccentric Miss Flyte a bit hammy, I must admit that Sylvia Coleridge gave a well-done performance. Chris Pitt's performance as Jo, the crossing sweeper boy struck me as very poignant. Yet, at the same time, he seemed so passive that at times, I found it difficult to believe he had survived on the streets on his own, for so long. Jonathan Moore, whom I had remembered from the 1988 television movie, "JACK THE RIPPER"; did an excellent job of conveying the ambitious and self-interested nature of law clerk William Guppy. However, his portrayal of Guppy seemed to lack the character's comedic nature. Denholm Elliot gave a very interesting performance as Esther, Richard and Ada's guardian, John Jarndyce. On one level, I found his portrayal of the kind-hearted Mr. Jarndyce as first-rate. Excellent. But there were moments, including the character's famous quote following Jo's death, when Elliott's Mr. Jarndyce seemed to resemble one of those "angry young men" characters from a John Osbourne play. I found those moments very odd.

However, there were performances that did not leave me scratching my head. Colin Jeavons and Anne Reid gave very competent performances as the grasping solicitor Mr. Vholes and George Rouncewell's close friend Mrs. Bagnet, respectively. Ironically, Jeavons had portrayed Richard Carstone in the 1959 adaptation of "Bleak House" and Reid had portrayed Mrs. Rouncewell in the 2005 television adaptation. Both Suzanne Burden and Lucy Hornak gave solid performances as Esther Summerson and Ada Clare. And yet, both actresses managed to rise to the occasion with some brilliant moments. Burden's moment came, following Esther's realization that she had survived the smallpox. As for Hornak, she gave an excellent performance during Ada's soliloquy about her love's growing obsession with the Jarndyce case. Brian Deacon gave a passionate performance as Dr. Allan Woodcourt, the penniless doctor in love with Esther. Ian Hogg gave a very solid, yet commanding performance as Inspector Bucket. I really enjoyed Sam Kelly's warm portrayal of the law-stationer, Mr. Snagsby. Bernard Hepton gave one of the most colorful performances of his career as the alcoholic rag and bone shopkeeper, Krook. Dave King gave a very solid performance as the loyal, yet intimidating and conservative former Army sergeant George Rouncewell. I found George Sewell's performance as Sergeant Rouncewell's older brother, the wealthy Mr. Rouncewell not only entertaining, but very memorable. I thought Robin Bailey did an excellent job portrayed the haughty and proud Sir Leicester Dedlock.

But there were four performances that really impressed me. One came from Philip Franks, who did an excellent job of conveying Richard Carstone's emotional journey from John Jarndyce's warm and friendly young man, to the more embittered one, obsessed with the Jarndyce case. T.P. McKenna gave a delicious performance as Mr. Jarndyce's self-involved friend, Harold Skimpole, who proved to be quite the emotional (and financial) vampire. I thought Peter Vaughan was superb as the Dedlocks' sinister lawyer, Mr. Tulkinghorn. I was amazed by how Vaughn managed to combine the character's dedication to protecting his client Sir Leicester and his penchant for assuming control over others. If I had voted for the best performance featured in "BLEAK HOUSE", I would choose Diana Rigg's portrayal of the tragic Honoria, Lady Dedlock. I believe the actress gave a brilliant performance as the mysterious, yet complicated baronet's wife, whose cool demeanor hid a great deal of emotions and a personal secret. I am shocked and amazed that neither she, Vaughn, McKenna or Franks had ever received any accolades for their performances.

In fact, I am surprised that "BLEAK HOUSE" had only received BAFTA nominations (and won three) . . . and they were in the technical/arts category, aside for the Best Drama Series/Serial. No Primetime Emmy nominations, whatsoever. Was this eight-part miniseries the best adaptation of Charles Dickens' 1852-53 novel? I cannot answer that question. Granted, it had its flaws. But what television or movie production did not? But I cannot deny that "BLEAK HOUSE" was a first-rate miniseries that deserved more accolades than it had received, thanks to Arthur Hopcraft's screenplay, Ross Devenish's direction and an excellent cast led by Suzanne Burden, Denholm Elliott and Diana Rigg.

[downtherabbitholewithlucy]

TAGGED BY @korn-dogz thank you very much!

Last song listened to: "Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Can See" - Busta Rhymes

Currently watching: CSI: NY

Currently reading: not currently reading anything at the moment, butttttt I just finished one of those old Limp Bizkit biographies (yeah, yeah I know... "ofc the LB blogger read an LB-related book"... I wanted to read it so I did. Don't come at me for being so predictable. Plus, it had been sitting in my ipad books app for a while so I finally got around to reading it.). Anyways, it was the one by music journalist, Colin Devenish.

Current obsession: Limp Bizkit, re-discovering my old obsession with CSI shows (more specifically CSI: Miami). That's pretty much it for me for now, which is rareeeeeee (I'm usually elbow-deep in a fixation buffet. Maybe I'm just getting old idk).

Tagging (don't feel like you have to follow-up. only do it if you'd like to) : @kornocreep @peppermint-candy , and anyone else that may want to participate

[rollingstonemag]

Un nouvel article a été publié sur https://www.rollingstone.fr/flashback-the-b-52-interivew/

Flashback : Découvrez une interview culte de The B-52's

En 2002, pour le 25ème anniversaire du groupe, Rolling Stone avait rencontré le chanteur et frontman de The B52’s, Fred Schneider. Une interview culte à découvrir. Flashback !

Les B-52’s sont aussi étranges que James Brown est funk. Des tenues flashy, des danses dégingandées, un style New Wave à outrance se mutant parfois en pop, des voix hurlantes… À l’époque, à l’occasion de la sortie de la compilation Nude on the Moon, Rolling Stone avait pu rencontrer le groupe, au détour d’un concert à l’Irving Plaza, à New York.

B-52 a commencé son aventure avec des sessions jam totalement folles. C’était comment ?

Fred Schneider: On a commencé par prendre un verre dans un restaurant chinois, puis nous sommes allés chez un ami pour jammer. Nous avons fait cette chanson, intitulée « Killer B’s » parce qu’à l’époque les abeilles tueuses s’échappaient du Brésil. Bien sûr, maintenant, elles sont partout aux États-Unis. Ça prouve que c’était il y a longtemps. Athens [leur ville d’origine en Georgie] n’était pas un lieu de musique comme ça peut être le cas aujourd’hui, il n’y avait rien d’autre à faire. Alors on a pensé qu’on pourrait réessayer de jouer.  Je suis donc retourné à Athens et on a joué à une fête organisée pour la Saint-Valentin. Tout a décollé de là. C’était notre propre truc. On jouait juste ce qui nous venait à l’esprit.

Comment était l’ambiance à Athens, à l’époque ?

C’était une ville universitaire assez fraternelle. Il y avait une toute petite scène punk, un peu new wave, où les gens achetaient des disques et les écoutaient – mais ce n’était pas comme si les gens se rassemblaient, habillés en punk et tout ce qui va avec. On écoutait cette musique avec plein d’autres genres, ça allait du mamba à la funk en passant par James Brown. Cette guitare rock – qui n’est pas typique de LA « guitare rock », mais qui fait danser les gens – était jouée et ça faisait du bien. On a dansé sur tout, des Ramones aux Sex Pistols jusqu’à « Get Up Off That Thang ».

Comment votre son a-t-il évolué ?

J’ai toujours été influencé par des écrits surréalistes de type Dada et des choses un peu décalées. Nous avions tous des idées mélodiques différentes. En tout cas, on a pas essayé de ressembler à d’autres groupes ; même si on les trouvait très inspirants, on était pas vraiment influencés par eux. Au début, on était plutôt prolifiques, on a composé pas mal de chansons totalement différentes les unes des autres. On pouvait jammer pendant des heures et des heures. Nous avions chacun notre propre personnalité et notre propre créativité, et finalement on s’est tous retrouvés sur la même longueur d’onde. C’était juste une progression naturelle !

Les premières chansons étaient assez dures à composer, nos premiers concerts étaient compliqués… Mais c’est comme ça que nous aimions vivre. Depuis, ça a évolué. Même pendant l’époque « Love Shack », j’allais à la radio pendant que le groupe faisait des balances : on devait littéralement forcer la radio à jouer le titre ! Pourtant on pensait que c’était le truc le plus accessible de notre carrière. On nous a dit que c’était trop bizarre. Dieu merci, on leur a prouvé qu’ils avaient tort. Aujourd’hui, toutes sortes de radio peuvent la jouer. Même si à cette époque, les choses évoluaient davantage vers le grunge.

Il y a dix ans, Cindy a dit à Rolling Stone que lorsque les B-52 ont écrit la chanson « June Bug », elle savait que le groupe pourrait avancer après la mort de Ricky. (Le guitariste Ricky Wilson, le frère aîné de Cindy, est mort en 85) Qu’est-ce qui vous a donné la confiance nécessaire pour continuer ?

Après la mort de Ricky, le groupe a été profondément affecté. Keith [batteur devenu guitariste] et Cindy ne pensaient pas que le groupe pouvait continuer. Kate et moi étions prêts à essayer, on a donc commencé à collaboré. Keith est arrivé avec de la musique, on a tous joué dessus, elle s’est peu à peu structurée. C’est un effort collaboratif très important. Nous n’avons fait qu’une chanson à cette époque, et c’était « June Bug ». On ne se disait pas non plus ‘Ça pourrait être notre prochain album’. On voulait juste voir si on pouvait faire de nouvelles choses. On a finalement sorti le disque, et « Channel Z » a été le premier single. Ça a attiré un peu l’attention, on a commencé à faire des concerts et on a fini par faire une tournée de dix-huit mois. « Love Shack » a finalement fait un carton.

Aviez-vous le sentiment que Cosmic Thing serait aussi grand, lorsque vous étiez en train de le travailler ?

On s’est dit dès le départ que ce serait bien, mais nous ne savions pas à quel point. On se disait pas vraiment : ‘Oh, ça va être commercial’, ou ‘ça va être ceci ou cela’. Nous voulions juste de bonnes chansons, et celles-ci justement étaient vraiment bonnes. On a été assez choqués, parce que on ne s’attendait pas à ce que cet album aille si loin. Le succès pose aussi quelques soucis… parce qu’il est très difficile de faire des tournées. Déjà que je ne suis pas du tout du genre à vouloir partir, faire dix-huit mois de tournée, c’est de la torture. Mais bon, on vous offre de nouvelles opportunités et vous allez en Nouvelle-Zélande, en Australie, dans toute l’Europe. C’est assez excitant. Tout est allé bien au-delà de ce qu’on imaginait.

Propos recueillis par Colin Devenish

[theleaderdotinfo-blog]

STRIKE UP THE BAND! has been published at http://www.theleader.info/2019/04/03/strike-up-the-band/

New Post has been published on http://www.theleader.info/2019/04/03/strike-up-the-band/

STRIKE UP THE BAND!

By Andrew Atkinson

JOSEPH O'Brien trained Band Of Outlaws is set to step up in grade at Aintree on Thursday on the opening day of the three day Aintree Grand National meeting.

Band Of Outlaws who won at the Cheltenham Festival in March - tipped by The Leader - will step up to Grade 1 level at Aintree in the Doom Bar Anniversary 4 year old Juvenile Hurdle over 2 miles (2.20).

Band Of Outlaws gave O'Brien his first official festival winner in Cheltenham's Boodles Juvenile Handicap Hurdle, when gaining a 2 lengths victory over Coko Beach.

Four-year-old Band Of Outlaws was winning for the third consecutive time - leading to O'Brien pitching him in against better rivals at Aintree, with J.J. Slevin in the saddle.

"The plan is to step Band Of Outlaws up in grade and to run in the Doom Bar Anniversary Four-Year-Old Hurdle," said O'Brien.

Former England and Southampton footballer-turned trainer Mick Channon saddles Glen Forsa in the Devenish Manifesto Novices Chase (1.45) over 2m 3f, under jockey J.J. Burke - a Leader tip in the opening race of the day.

Paul Nicholls trained Clan Des Obeaux, ridden by Harry Cobden, gets the nod over Kemboy and Bristol De Mai in the Betway Bowl Chase over 3m (2.50).

Willie Mullins trained Faugheen gets the nod over Nicky Henderson trained Buveur D'Air in the Betway Aintree Hurdle over 2m 4f (3.25) with Mullins trained Melon expected to be in the shake up.

In the Randox Health Foxhunters Open Hunters Chase over 2m 5f (4.05) Leader each way selections are Bear's Affair and Burning Ambition.

Lady Buttons - featured in The Leader last month - returns to action after running at the 2019 Cheltenham Festival.

Trained by Philip Kirby, Lady Buttons (7-1) and the Colin Tizzard trained Molineaux (20-1) are each way selections in the Close Brothers Red Rum Handicap chase over 1m 7f (4.40).

Farne, who finished second at 25-1 when tipped by The Leader last month, runs in the Goff's UK Flat Race over 2m (5.15) and is selected each way, along with Misty Whisky, ridden by Sean Bowen.