The album of the week this time is....

KING CRIMSON- IN THE COURT OF THE CRIMSON KING

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8Yo3FJDrbc

This was one of the first mainstream prog rock albums. Prog had existed before this album but it was mostly underground psychedelic bands trying too hard to sound weird. This is when it all came together into a consistant and great album. The guitarist Robert Fripp is one of the best guitarists of all time. Everyone mentions guys like Hendrix, and Clapton, but to me Robert fripp is the best. The sound of this album is a weird mix of jazz, psychedelic rock, and blues. It is hard to define the sound, and I hate saying prog rock because it sounds pretentious. The song "21st century schizoid man" shows that Fripp is a master of the electric guitar. His amazing solos mixed with the mostly nonsensical lyrics combine to make this one of the best albums in rock history.

The film of the week this time is BREAKING THE WAVES.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0115751/

I am not a big fan of Lars Von Trier usually. His films tend to be very self indulgent, and arty in a way that annoys me. His recent film Anti-Christ was hyped a lot but ended up being shallow shock and not much else. However this film shows that he is a very talented director. Breaking the waves is by far his best film. is a very bleak film. I don't think I have seen a film this depressing in years. Emily Watson plays Bess McNeil, a naive woman in Scotland who falls in love with a Danish oil rig worker. When he leaves to go to the oil rig she prays to god that he will return and he does eventually but his neck is broken.

She is distraught and he tells her that since he can't make love to her anymore he wants her to find a man to make love to and to tell him about it. She does it and starts to become more and more deviant in her sexual behavoir because she thinks her actions are guided by god to help her husband Jan recover. This is a very sad and depressing film. Its great but dont watch it if you want to be cheered up.

I saw that my last thread was locked and I suddenly realized I had been spamming a bit. It wasnt research for a film or anything, I just thought I would do a few threads that were different from my usual film and music threads. Apparently I went slightly overboard:P

I am here to announce that I am covered in leather bees. That is all Reginald.

This is my new weekly thing. I will still do the film of the week too. I am doing album of the week instead of band of the week because I think it is a better idea. Now let's start this party with the first album!

The first album of the week is...

JARVIS COCKER- JARVIS

Jarvis Cocker was the lead singer of the great British band Pulp who were well known for the song "Common People." His songwriting $tyle can be compared to Ray Davies of The Kinks in the way that his lyrics are very British. They make references to many aspects of British culture which would explain why he never did very well in America. This is his first solo album released in 2006. Many people in America might know Jarvis Cocker for interrupting a Michael Jackson performance when Michael was pretending to be Jesus. However Jarvis is much more than that. He is one of the best songwriters in the U.K, and on this album it shows. Here is the song "I will kill again."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJZszAbCODU

Jarvis is a very cynical songwriter. This album is all about loss, and the inevitable destruction of society, and humanity. Some songs sound vaguely cheerful but there is always a hint of tragedy in the lyrics. "Baby's coming back to me." is a song that many will think is a happy one about a lost love coming back, but if you really listen to the lyrics it is obvious that the song is more of a desperate cry for a love lost long ago. Jarvis Cocker has never been very conventional in his approach to songwriting, but that just makes his songs more fascinating. There is always a surface idea and theme to the songs on this album, but if you look below the surface you will usually find something a lot more bleak and depressing. This is not an album to listen to if you want to cheer up. It is a sad, and sardonic, but strangely beautiful and witty at the same time. To me it seems many of the most beautiful songs are also the most tragic.

The film of the week this time is WOLFEN!

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0083336/

I'm going to be honest here, I think most werewolf movies suck. There isn't much with a werewolf that you can do that hasn't been done before already. They tend to be a very dull monster compared to the emotional complexity and maturity that some vampire films have had in the past. In a werewolf film there is an innocent man who gets bitten and eventually he turns into a werewolf. The only emotional aspect of that is that he might kill someone close to him but then he is a wolf so it's not like he can show emotion well and when he transforms back there is some guilt but it is never very compelling. This though does something interesting with werewolves for once. What makes this film good is the slightly surreal atmosphere it has mixed with the interesting mix of symbolism, and mythology. The story is pretty cleverly written and has a good sense of dark comedy. If you like werewolf films I recommend this. It's not the best werewolf film, but it's much more interesting than most of them.

This time I have actually ranked these so the numbers mean something. It is tough to do well as a female singer unless you have some kind of sex appeal so I respect any girl who can sing and still keep her dignity. We need more girls like this in the music world.

1. Kristin Hersh

She was in the great alternative rock band Throwing muses as well as 50 foot wave. and her solo career. I grew up listening to her great songs this could partly be a nostalgia choice.

2. Joni Mitchell

Her album Blue is one of the best albums ever. Her voice is beautiful and haunting at the same time. She is another one I grew up listening to in England

3. Heather Nova

Heather Nova is of the most underrated singers ever. She has been making albums for years. This Bermuda born beauty has an enchanting voice and well written lyrics that actually mean something.

4. Arehtra Franklin

The legendary Queen of soul. Her voice has more power than anyone I can think of. I grew up listening to her thanks to my dad's love of soul music. People may think she is ugly these days but my god you have to respect her amazing voice. True beauty comes from within and she has a ton of it. In these days of generic pop stars we need to respect the oldies that came before us.

5. Hope Sandoval

I discovered this singer quite recently thanks to my uncle giving my all his Mazzy Star CD's. She is another very underrated singer. Mazzy Star, and her solo albums show that she has a truly beautiful and hypnotic voice that gave her music more soul than most singers can only dream of. I find Mazzy Star's music oddly dreamy. Good to listen to at night.

6. Grace Slick

Maybe it's just that song "Somebody to love." being in A Serious man, but her voice is unique. She has the raw power and energy that most girl singers lack. I also quite liked Jim Carrey singing "Somebody to love' in the very underrated film The Cable guy. This girl was a 60's icon.

7. Sonya Madan

Okay this one is pure nostalgia based. Back when Brit pop was getting big in the U.K and everyone was loving Oasis, and Blur, I was the weird kid who loved the band Echobelly. Mostly because I had a major crush on Sonya Mardan though. Echobelly toured with big names like The Smiths but sadly never got big. Shame too. I still love this band and her voice made them special.

8. Karen Carpenter

I remember my dad playing the song "Top of the world" by The Carpenters, and ever since then I have loved that band. Sure they have cheesy pop songs, but my god her voice was magical. I can't describe the beauty and enchanting quality her voice had. Such a shame she died. People also tend to forget that she was quite a good drummer too.

9. Cass Elliot

The Mama's and the poppa's are a bit of a guilty pleasure of mine. Well not really since I dont feel guilty at all. Her voice was one of the main reasons I love that band.

10. Billie Holiday

A great singer that most forget to mention.

11. Ella Fitzgerald

An absolute jazz legend.

12. Elkie Brooks

I saw her live a while back and she held an amazing high note for at least a minute and half. At her age that is mind blowing. Very nice lady too. My dad worked with on an album a while back.

13. Gladys Knight

Another legendary singer. Most people I know think she just did the theme song from License to kill.

14. Tina Turner

Hell yeah! She has a very unique and powerful voice. She still sings today I think.

15. Maria Muldaur

Another nostalgia choice.

16. Beth Gibbons

Her voice makes Portishead special. Very haunting.

17. Harriet Wheeler

The Sundays are a great band that most people don't seem to know.

18. Beth Orton

19. Patti Smith

20. Siouxsie Sioux

21. Pat Benatar

22. Dolores O'riordan

The Cranberries are one of my favorite female led bands.

23. Sarah Cracknell

Shame her band Saint Etienne never got very popular.

24. Tanya Donelly

25. Lisa Hannigan

26. Bjork

27. Georgia Hubley

28. Tracey Thorn

29. Kate Bush

Her voice was unique but was almost annoying at times.

30. Amy Ray and Emily Saliers

The Indigo girls are a fantastic duo so naturally I had to include both of them.

Not even with a goose
Or the power of zeus
Rammed in your caboose

The film of the week this time is BREAKER MORANT!

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080310/

This is one of my favorite films. The lead actor Edward Woodward died recently, and this is by far his best film. It is about three Austalian soldiers in the Boer war who are on trial for killing prisoners even though they were ordered to. They are being used as Scapegoats so their superior officer General Staff can distance himself from the war. Unfortunately for him, the three soldiers put up a fight and things don't go as smoothly as the General intended. As a Brit myself it shames me to think of the horrible things my country has done in the past. No country is perfect of course and Britain has done many great things, but their treatment of the Australians in this film is sad to watch knowing that most of it was probably true. This is a great court room drama that I would consider one of the best ever.

They don't make films like this anymore. I highly recommend this to anyone interested in seeing the best Aussie film ever. I love seeing film about subjects we don't see all the time. This is a fantastic story that many probably don't know about. War films are great, but sometimes I get bored of the same old WW2 film. This is something different. It has power, and intensity, and tragedy. It pretty much has everything you would want from a great film.

The film of the week this time is WONDER BOYS!

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0185014/

This and L.A Confidential are the only really good films this director has made sadly. This is a fantastic film about a writer played by Michael Douglas who teaches at a college and his struggle to finish his new book. He had a hit many years ago but he thinks that everyone thinks he is a joke. He has a student played surprisingly well by Tobey Maguire who is a mystery to everyone. He is a film lover, and seems to have no home. This film's plot is a bit vague. It is more a series of situations. All the characters evolve in different ways which reveals a lot about who they are.

There is a sub plot about how Michael Douglas is having an affair with Frances Mcdormand's character because his wife left him. His editor played by Robert Downey jr. is in town with a transvestite friend and wants to see his new book. The only character I didn't care for is Hannah. Katie Holmes plays her well but she doesn't really do much in the film. I personally find Michael Douglas more interesting as an actor in some ways than his dad Kirk Douglas. Michael is better at being emotional and his roles recently have been pretty good. though the Wall Street sequel coming soon looks pointless.