#w: eric renner brown

[danishphoner]

Alex Turner talks ditching the 'naiveté' of the previous Last Shadow Puppets album

Alex Turner has made a name for himself in recent years as the slick frontman of British alt-rockers Arctic Monkeys. Though he looks the part when he strides in to meet with EW — perfectly coiffed hair, a bright turquoise suit, and a pristine white linen shirt unbuttoned to the chest — Turner isn’t promoting new music from his most popular project.

Instead, he’s joined by Miles Kane, the former frontman of the Rascals, who created the Last Shadow Puppets with Turner back in 2007, well before the Arctic Monkeys were rocking stadiums and Olympic stages. Kane and Turner have reconvened the group — which also includes super producer James Ford (Florence + the Machine, Haim) and string mastermind Owen Pallett (Arcade Fire, Beirut) — for the follow-up to 2008��s The Age of Understatement.

Where Understatement was a syrupy homage to the likes of Scott Walker, Kane and Turner introduce a more worldly sensibility on Everything You’ve Come to Expect, which includes raucous jams (“Bad Habits”), sly Brit-pop (“Dracula Teeth”), and serene ballads (the title track). Turner attributes the shift on the new album, which dropped earlier this month, to newfound maturity: “That naiveté we shared has long since gone the way of old flesh.”

Kane and Turner sat down with EW to discuss why they chose to resurrect the Last Shadow Puppets, recording at Rick Rubin’s studio, and whether they’ll release a third album.

Written by Eric Renner Brown Photography by Zackery Michael

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: The Last Shadow Puppets haven’t released a record for nearly a decade. Why now? How’d you get the band back together? ALEX TURNER: In the last eight years, Miles and I have seen each other a lot, James and I have seen each other, those two probably bumped into each other now and again, but the three of us being together was quite rare. We talked occasionally, like, “Maybe we’ll do another [record]” but it started to seem like it wasn’t going to happen. Then there was this one night and we were all back in Miles’s flat. Some other people got talking about it and we were like, “Oh f–k, yeah, we could give it another roll of the dice.” We woke up the next day and were like “Oh god, we’re going to have to follow this through now.”

And so then, was it just immediately writing and recording demos? AT: Me and Miles had already been writing a little bit for what was possibly going to be next. We always thought “Aviation,” which ended up being the first track on the album, had the properties of a Shadow Puppets song, if there is such a thing. Then it became, “Alright, but it’s not enough to stay there. We’ve gotta try and explore other things.” I guess that’s what the next ten songs do. [Laughs]

Are there themes on the album that you’re exploring? Or did you guys just want to play together again? AT: The lyrical side of things was not discussed that much. But the musical side of it was like, yeah, we should definitely explore.

How did working with James Ford contribute to that? AT: Having him agree to do it again was integral. The moment you start discussing the reference material for too long, it becomes stifling to the creative process. One thing that working with [Ford] allows you is you don’t get stuck in that. He says, “OK, we’re going to push you in this direction as far as we can” but [knows] when to stop. That’s what you want.

What did Owen Pallett bring to the table? AT: Last time, we brought [Pallett] in after we [finished recording]. We met up with him once in a hotel room in Manchester — just the fact that we had anything [from him] on [the album] was blowing our minds. When we recorded that, it blossomed into something that we could never envisage before. This time we thought, “Let’s get Owen to do the strings again, but this time let’s get him to come down to the studio. If he’s there, we’ll be able to communicate better.” There was a piano in the other room and he’d kind of — MILES KANE: Whisk in. AT: Yeah, float in and out and then have an idea and shoot off there. Every time we’d be in the control room and the song would end you’d just hear [Pallett] shredding the grand [piano]. It was wicked.

How do you guys plan to take these songs on the road? AT: Last time, we had the orchestra every time. It’s difficult to do that and it’s f–king really expensive. And some rooms you play in, you stick an orchestra in there and it’s not even built for it. This time we’ll have a smaller [group] and adapt the arrangements accordingly. I won’t be doing that, but…

How have you guys changed since the last album? MK: My singing has changed — [becoming] not afraid to sing stuff, which is something Alex would help. Before doing this record, [I’d be] singing in a certain style thinking “Oh, it sounds too weak” or “It sounds too thin.” That door opened up for me [on this record]. AT: This, in the first place, was a chance to try something else. The first Shadow Puppets record was the first time that either of us had tried to really sing like that. The fact that we didn’t quite make the mark is almost one of the things that’s good about it. This time we’re more equipped to sing like that.

I saw that you guys recorded at Rick Rubin’s studio. Did he stop by to provide his wisdom from the couch? AT: He didn’t, no. There’s a machine in the control room where you can bring him up like a hologram, if you’re really stuck. But we resisted turning that knob. It would’ve been embarrassing for James, more than anything else.

It would hurt his cred. AT: How’s he going to take that?

You’ve said this is like the second in a trilogy of Last Shadow Puppets records: How do you see it fitting in with the context of your last one? Do you think you’ll do another? AT: That’s the dream: We’ve got this third one and we’ll tie up all the loose ends. This one, maybe there’s a few loose ends left and next time, sonically, we need resolution. And, you know, so does the world. [Laughs] Some Shadow Puppets resolution.

[marymosley]

Don’t Mess with Texas! Pierce Bainbridge “Expands”… While More Partners Quit

As we shelter-in to combat the global Covid-19 crisis, social media has been abuzz about the new Netflix train wreck of a documentary that is The Tiger King.  For those partial to such entertainment, the recent events at Pierce Bainbridge Beck Price & Hecht LLP has likely been a treat.  The wreckage has been non-stop, the most recent including:

John Mark Pierce ousted as managing partner for Ponzi-scheme-like financial foul play.

Name Partner David L. Hecht is gone from the firm leaving behind brutal commentary from his partners and the media.

Two lawsuits filed against the firm related to questionable lending practices. A quote reported in Law360 from a Philadelphia lawyer, who claims in one of the suits that Pierce Bainbridge reneged on a settlement agreement, seems to capture potential root causes of the torrent of issues plaguing the firm.

Mukasey Frenchman & Sklaroff LLP has filed to withdraw as counsel for Pierce Bainbridge in connection with ex-partner Don Lewis’s lawsuits. The Mukasey filing suggests ethical concerns are preventing its continued representation. By cutting ties the Mukasey firm took a different approach than the two other firms who have represented Pierce Bainbridge in connection with Lewis. Putney Twombly Hall & Hirson LLP (Michael D. Yim) and Littler Mendelson ( Jeanine Conley) remain loyal Pierce Bainbridge foot soldiers apparently willing to continue to “swallow some risk,” an expression used by John Pierce to describe Pierce Bainbridge attorneys.

Around 30 attorneys have quit Team Pierce in the last several months. An updated roster of defectors is below.

The Mass Exodus Continues

The carnage appears never-ending, two additional partners have quit — Franklin Velie and Jonathan Kortmansky. Both Velie and Kortmansky were previously partners at Sullivan & Worcester LLP; both have landed at BraunHagey & Borden LLP.  Kortmansky, similar to Michael Pomerantz (formerly of Grais & Ellsworth) before him, has removed Pierce Bainbridge from his LinkedIn.

Kortmansky’s apparent shame, stands in stark contrast to the commentary both he and Velie offered when joining the firm.

“I am delighted to be joining Pierce Bainbridge and to be able to offer our clients the extraordinary advantages this dynamic firm offers. Pierce Bainbridge is stocked with talented, experienced litigators and, importantly, seasoned trial lawyers.” ~ Franklin Velie

“Pierce Bainbridge is at the apex of trial skills and innovation, and it is an honor and privilege to join a firm so prepared to meet the 21st century needs of its clients.” ~Jonathan Kortmansky

It appears that like many before, Velie and Kortmansky were suckered in by John Pierce.

Kortmansky is not the only ex-Pierce Bainbridge partner attempting to hide the fact that he was associated with Pierce Bainbridge Beck Price & Hecht LLP; even name partner David “like a cult member” Hecht is attempting to cleanse his record of any affiliation with the firm.

Hecht’s apparent embarrassment stands in stark contrast to his prior Pierce-lite musing that “we are fixated on world domination;” a claim Hecht made in an January 2019 interview with Above the Law; an amusing statement given the calamitous Pierce Bainbridge fall from grace.

Messing with Texas – Pierce Bainbridge Enters the Lone Star State

The bad news has not stopped the previously self-proclaimed “Fastest Growing Law Firm in the History of the World,” from continuing expansion efforts.  The newest stop:  Austin, Texas.  The office was “Co-Founded” by Pierce Bainbridge “Associate” Jonathan Raymond Dillion who also claims to have “Co-Founded” the firm’s New York Office.  (A screenshot from Dillon’s LinkedIn page is below.)

Oddly, however, the firm’s webpage makes no mention of an office in Texas.  Be that as it may,  one Texas connection of which we are aware is a UCC filing dated July 2019.  The filing specifically refers to the “Uniform Commercial Code of Texas” as controlling.  As Pierce Bainbridge had no Texas operations at the time, this suggests a Pierce Bainbridge funder located in the Lone Star State.

                                                                            “Big Hat, No Cattle”

The personal free-fall of firm founder John Mark Pierce has been breathtaking, Pierce has been exposed badly as the quintessential case of the “emperor has no clothes;” or, as they say in Texas, “Big Hat, No Cattle.” For example, one of Pierce’s many ridiculous statements….

Pierce’s hyperbolic prophecy is yet another example of far more Delusion than Reality from the Pierce Bainbridge founder.

The Crown Princes of Pierce Bainbridge Dishonesty

Firm partners Christopher N. LaVigne and Denver G. Edwards have embraced and adopted the dishonest ways of the defrocked King Pierce.  According to Lewis:

“LaVigne and Edwards filed an action pro se, about internal firm issues, and they lied under oath.  Their lies were financially motivated.  They lied to protect Pierce, smear me, undermine my allegations of financial misconduct, which LaVigne had complained about himself, and to ensure their paychecks kept flowing.”

This hallmark deceit was on display when Pierce Bainbridge last opened a new office.  Indeed, while the future of the firm’s Austin operations is unclear, Pierce’s commentary when the firm opened in Boston, juxtaposed with reality, may provide insight.  In covering the opening in Boston, Meghan Tribe provided a platform for Pierce in The American Lawyer:

“We are building an army of killers on a highly collaborative platform,” said founder John Pierce, promising his young firm would “take over Boston in short order.”

A little over a year later, with the recent departure of partner Conor McDonough, it appears the number of Pierce Bainbridge attorneys “taking over Boston” currently stands at Zero.  (The Pierce Bainbridge website no longer lists the firm’s attorneys in any office.) If so, we hope McDonough was kind enough to turn off the lights.

The lights might be on elsewhere, however. As recently reported by LawFuel, former Pierce Bainbridge partners Yavar Bathaee and Brian Dunne have founded a new firm Bathaee Dunne LLP. The new firm remains a mystery but does appear to maintain close ties with Pierce Bainbridge and could see more departed PB attorneys join.

The Roster of Recent Pierce Bainbridge Defectors

FORMER PB PARTNER NEW OR FORMER FIRM Eric Creizman Armstrong Teasedale Caroline Polisi (formerly Creizman LLC) Deborah Renner Renner Law Jeffrey Alexander Wachtell Missry Jeffrey Newton Kobre Kim Joan Meyer Thompson Hine Melissa Madrigal Armstrong Teasedale Michael Winograd Brown Rudnick Susan Winkler Winkler Law Theodore “Ted” Folkman (formerly Murphy King) Thomas Frongillo (formerly Fish & Richardson) Yavar Bathaee Bathaee Dunne LLP Brian Dunne Bathaee Dunne LLP Michael Pomerantz (formerly of Grais & Ellsworth) Franklin Velie BraunHagey & Borden LLP Jonathan Kortmansky BraunHagey & Borden LLP Conor McDonough (formerly of Paul Weiss) FORMER COUNSEL NEW OR FORMER FIRM Kristin “Krissie” Darr (formerly Linklaters) Julie Capehart BraughnHagey & Borden Matthew Rand (formerly McKool Smith) FORMER PB ASSOCIATE NEW OR FORMER FIRM Aaron Gold Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe Abbye Ognibene Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro Barron Flood Herbert, Smith & Freehills Cassie Black (formerly Sullivan & Cromwell) Clairborne Hane Kasowitz Benson Elizabeth DeGori Kirkland & Ellis Matthew Kokot (N/A) Minoti Patel Grant & Eisenhofer Stephen Farrelly Browne George Ross W. Tyler Perry Reid Collins & Tsai

The post Don’t Mess with Texas! Pierce Bainbridge “Expands”… While More Partners Quit appeared first on Legal Desire.

Don’t Mess with Texas! Pierce Bainbridge “Expands”… While More Partners Quit published first on https://immigrationlawyerto.tumblr.com/