Music Banter - The Music Banter Members' Journals Monthly Update Thread

Music Banter (https://www.musicbanter.com/)

- Editors Pick (https://www.musicbanter.com/editors-pick/)

- - The Music Banter Members' Journals Monthly Update Thread (https://www.musicbanter.com/editors-pick/69086-music-banter-members-journals-monthly-update-thread.html)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trollheart (Post 1562538)

http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...o-reviews.html gets under way this week, with a review of Everclear. We wish him well in his new endeavour. He’s also taking requests and offers of collaboration. Who wants to see him and Batty do Cannibal Corpse or Fleshgrind’s latest? ;)

Y'know, that might actually be interesting in a weird way. See me probably not enjoying the album, and him cussing me out, in video form no less. C'mon, Batty, whaddaya say? ;)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Powerstars (Post 1562704)

Y'know, that might actually be interesting in a weird way. See me probably not enjoying the album, and him cussing me out, in video form no less. C'mon, Batty, whaddaya say? ;)

I think we'll all have to pressure him into it. In fact, it could become a thing: Powerstars and Batty's "Why you are a pussy for hating metal" or something.
Mind you, the only problem is, could the world take the awesomeness of Batty in person on camera??? :yikes:

Honestly I don't even know how ****ty my camera is. I think it works for more than just pics, but I suspect the video and audio would be hella ****ty. And despite what anyone may think, I don't really stay up on the newest brutal death metal albums. I get what I need from a few bands and the rest are just redundant.

Sounds like a fun idea though.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trollheart (Post 1562973)

No camera can zoom in that far.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trollheart (Post 1272115)

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi..._Gathering.jpg
Pilot episode/movie: "The Gathering"

I explained in the introduction that when it came to, well, mostly US series, where a season can consist of twenty or more episodes, I wouldn't be treating each episode separately, unlike the shorter, UK series like Red Dwarf, Life on Mars, Being Human etc, and so I won't. When the series has that many episodes it just isn't practical to synopsise every single episode, and would take far too long, dragging out each series to lengths I'd prefer not to go to. But this one is special, so I will be doing a reasonably in-depth analysis of it.

The pilot movie that would lead-in the series, should it be commissioned, "The Gathering" (originally just called "Babylon 5" before it was clear there would even be a series) is important in many ways. Its plot sets up the backdrop to the series, and introduces us to many of its characters, even if some of those would not last beyond this film. It hints at the very beginnings of a deeper story, and even from this standalone movie you can see the depth and intricacy of JMS's writing, so that it woudl have been a shame --- indeed, a crime --- had the series not been taken up. But happily it was, and the rest is television history.

CHARACTER AND CAST FOR "THE GATHERING" (Characters/actors who were changed after this are italicised, with notes on who replaced them)

Michael O'Hare (RIP) as Commander Jeffrey Sinclair
Jerry Doyle as Chief Michael Garibaldi
Mira Furlan as Ambassador Delenn
Tamlyn Tomita as Lieutenant Laurel Takashima (Replaced by Claudia Christian, playing Lieutenant-Commander and later Commander Susan Ivanova)
Andreas Katsulas (RIP) as Ambassador G'Kar
Johnny Sekka as Doctor Benjamin Kyle (Replaced by Richard Biggs (RIP) playing Doctor Stephen Franklin)
Peter Jurasik as Ambassador Londo Mollari
Blaire Baron as Carolyn Sykes (Replaced by Julia Nickon-Soul, playing Catherine Sakai)
John Fleck as Del Varner (Never seen again)
Peter Hampton as the Senator (Never seen again)
Patricia Tallman as Lyta Alexander (Replaced for seasons 1 and 2 by Andrea Thompson as Babylon 5's onsite telepath, but Lyta returns from the end of season 2 and features quite prominently, if sporadically, during the third fourth and fifth seasons)

The year is 2257. Mankind has made contact with alien races and moved out into the galaxy, mostly by way of "jumpgates", technology shared with them by the Centauri, a much advanced race, and have built a space station, which they call Babylon 5, in neutral space. Here, all races are welcome. It's a trading post, jumping-off point, conference centre, diplomatic post and holiday destination for humans and aliens, and an important factor in keeping the uneasy peace between the various races. Babylons 1 through 4 have all suffered various untimely demises, with the final station prior to this, Babylon 4, actually vanishing twenty-four hours after going online. This small snippet of information is an example of a seemingly-offhand remark that will turn out to have massive importance as both season one and three come to a close.

There are five main races in this part of the galaxy, including humans, and they are the "superpowers" that run things. They are vastly different, each with their own idelology, traditions, history and outlook, and while some are content to live in peace there are old wounds that are festering between others, wounds which will not heal and which will all too soon plunge this sector of the galaxy into war. For now though, a quick look at each of these aliens.

Minbari: without question the most logical, spiritual and coldly clinical race, the Minbari revere life and peace but are nevertheless divided into three classes, or castes: Worker, Warrior and Religious. They have just come off the back of a vicious war with humankind, during which Earth itself was almost overwhelmed, but for the fact that the Minbari, with victory within their grasp and all opposition to them smashed, mysteriously surrendered at what came to be known as The Battle of the Line, Earth's last stand against the implacable enemy. The reason they halted hostilities will become clear, and again have a huge and profound effect on the story arc, later on. When we meet them in "The Gathering", they seem more observational than confrontational, almost monklike, as if they're waiting for some great event to unfold.

Narn: Looking like reptilian humanoids, the Narn are a proud race of mighty warriors, but not so long ago were subjugated by their old enemy, the Centauri, who enslaved them for years, raping their planet and stripping it of all its resources, leaving the Narns far behind in terms of technology. Due to their treatment at the hands of the Centauri, the Narns are out for revenge and will side with anyone against their old oppressors. They are also trying to gain any technological or military advantage that would allow them to wipe out the Centauri.

Centauri: An ancient race of people whose lifestyle and traditions seem to be based on that of the Roman Empire of antiquity, the Centauri are a fallen people. They still have power, but used to command a vast empire which has shrunk as their influence in the galaxy has waned. They long for "the old days", and keep an abiding hatred and contempt of the Narn in their hearts, their other desire being the elimination of the whole race, which they consider inferior. The Centauri were the ones who sold jumpgate tech to the humans, and so are essentially their oldest and closest allies among the Five Races. They see the humans as less evolved, younger versions of themselves when they were at the height of their power.

Vorlons: A mysterious race cloaked in secrecy and rumour, no-one has ever seen a Vorlon. They leave their home planet but seldom and when they do, always wear a bulky encounter suit, as the atmosphere of other planets is lethal to them. At the time this takes place, hardly anything is known about the Vorlons, and legends about them include one which holds that if anyone sees a Vorlon without his encounter suit they will turn to stone.

As the movie opens, station commander Jeffrey Sinclair is waiting to welcome a Vorlon as the fourth ambassador to Babylon 5. The first race we meet however is one of the Narn, a man called G'Kar (jyih-kar) who is in fact the Narn ambassador to the station. He comes across as belligerent and pushy, a thoroughly nasty fellow. The station's resident telepath arrives and greets Sinclair. Her name is Lyta Alexander (lee-ta) and through her induction to the station we learn various things, such as that the aliens resident on the station have their own sector (Green) where their quarters can be maintained with the correct mix of atmosphere and gravity to allow them live safely. Sinclair's security chief, Michael Garibaldi, opines that he does not trust telepaths. This will become a recurring theme throughout the series.

The arrival of the ambassador from Vorlon (like some of the races here, their homeworld is the same name as their race) occurs unexpectedly, as his ship comes through the jumpgate early, and Sinclair goes to meet him alone. However, before he can get to greet the ambassador, a klaxon blares around the station advising an emergency, and on reachiing the alien Sinclair sees that he has fallen ill and he is rushed to medlab. Fearing that the ambassador may die, thus provoking a lethal response from his government, Dr. Benjamin Kyle, Chief Medical Officer on the station, asks Lyta to scan the Vorlon's mind telepathically. She is reluctant, as firstly scanning without the person's permission or consent is against the law, and she could be thrown out of Psi Corps, the body which regulates, trains and employs all telepaths; and secondly, this could conceivably be seen as a hostile act, the invasion of the privacy of an alien ambassador's mind, the breaking of diplomatic immunity in its most literal sense.

However, when the alternatives are put to her she has no choice but to agree, and is shocked to see in Ambassador Kosh's mind the picture of Sinclair poisoning him by attaching a small disc to his exposed hand. With such irrefutable evidence, a trial is convened and Sinclair is relieved of duty. Unconvinced, however, Garibaldi, who is his friend and served with him on the Mars colonies, and who got the job here from the commander, investigates to see if there is another answer. Meanwhile, the politics and powerplays that drive and characterise Babylon 5 come to the fore, as representatives jockey for position, eventually voting to allow Sinclair to be extradited to Vorlon to stand trial for murder.

But Garibaldi is interested in a traveller who came aboard about the same time as Lyta, a man called Del Varner, who is a petty thief and smuggler wanted in several systems. He breaks into the man's quarters but is shocked --- and annoyed --- to find Varner dead. So much for that lead! However, as he tries to figure out a new strategy, it seems that Lyta is in medlab trying to finish Kosh off by turning off his life-support, before Dr. Kyle catches her. As she runs off though, she walks in the door and it's obvious there is an imposter on the station.

More or less confined to quarters, Sinclair tells Carolyn, his girlfriend, about the Battle of the Line, and his part in it. He tells her that as the battle reached its height he decided to ram one of the Minbari cruisers, determined to take one of them with him, but he blacked out and when he came to it was twenty-four hours later, and the war was over. The Minbari had unaccountably surrendered, and no-one has ever been able to say why.

Looking further into the dead smuggler's records, Garibaldi discovers that he had been trafficking in specialised items, and his last run had taken him to the Antares sector, where he had got his hands on a changeling net, a portable force-field that allows one to bend images around it, essentially enabling them to take on any shape or form they wish. Including that of the commander! So it wasn't Sinclair who had poisoned Kosh --- as Garibaldi had been sure anyway --- but Varner, using the changeling net to look like him! But... Varner is dead, so who killed him, and why? Had he an accomplice? A second suspect, who even now is running around the station, probably at this point trying to get off it?

He has Takashima use the station's scanners to pinpoint the huge energy signature the changeling net woudl put out, and they discover that there is indeed a second man, or rather alien. An assassin from a Minbari warrior caste, who once they have overpowered him tells Sinclair "You have a hole in your mind!" That cryptic remark resonates with the commander, as he knows that there is a twenty-four hour period that he can't account for during the Battle of the Line. It's a phrase that will come back to haunt him, and lead to a massive development and finally revelation as the series progresses.

Once Sinclair's innocence is established then, everything, for now, goes back to normal, and the massive station, with the recovered Ambassador Kosh installed as its final representative, is opened for business.

Important plot arc points:
This is where I will refer to scenes, people, quotes, occurences, anything that will later have a large impact on future episodes/seasons. I'll rate them from Green through Orange to Red, which will correspond to their importance and how they influence the series and the plot as a whole. If, in later seasons, they tie in to a previous plot point, I'll reference that.

The Battle of the Line
Arc Level: Orange
Note: the final defence of Earth from the attacking Minbari warfleet, the Battle of the Line was the last stand against the invasion fleet. It has gone down in human (and Minbar, and other) history as one of the bravest and yet most futile actions ever, and yet it worked (or seemed to) as the attacking fleet stopped short of destroying Earth, and in fact surrendered. Many who were there at the time believe something else happened: they know they were outmanned and outgunned, and were losing, had lost the war. There was no reason why an enemy vastly superior, on the very cusp of victory, would suddenly decide to end hostilities. Sinclair would later say "Maybe God blinked!" but the truth will turn out to be very much more stunning and unbelievable than that.

Narn vs Centauri
Arc Level: Red
Note: The enmity between the Narn and the Centauri, the oppressed against the oppressor, the conquered for the conquerors, is an old wound that is still fresh. It means no Narn would ever trust a Centauri, and very much vice versa. The Centauri see the Narn as vile, backward, subhuman beings who are only good as slaves, and though they were eventually forced off Narn in a war of attrition, they still consider the planet theirs. They do not accept that they were defeated, merely that it became "too expensive to be worth staying". The relationship between the two races will form a pivotal strand of the plot, and in a tremendous piece of writing our attitudes towards and opinion of each race will change radically as the seasons progress.

Vorlons
Arc Level: Red
Note: Though having almost a peripheral role in this pilot movie, the mysterious and enigmatic Vorlons will become the puppet masters of the second and third seasons, leading into the fourth, and will become more entangled in and important to the fates of not only humans, but all races.

Lyta Alexander/Telepaths/Psi Corps
Arc Level: Red
Note: Although Lyta is replaced for seasons one and two by another telepath, the role of their parent organisation, the dark and shadowy, Orwellian Psi Corps, will become more pronounced and deep as it insinuates itself into the life of the station and makes its own plans for using certain members of its staff, resulting in a massive power struggle that will have cataclysmic consequences down the line.

"You have a hole in your mind".
Arc Level: Red
Note: This seemingly incomprehensible and unimportant remark will impact hugely on the truth behind the Battle of the Line, why the Minbari surrendered and why Commander Jeffrey Sinclair is key not only to the fate of humans but also to the rest of the galaxy. However, we will not find out exactly why until close to the end of season three, in an explosive revelation.

Best lines:

Commander Sinclair to tourist, about to make an, ahem, assignation with a female alien: "I wouldn't. You know the rules about crossing species. Stick with the list."
Tourist: "What are you, a bigot or something?
Sinclair: "No, but you've obviously never met an Arnassian before. After they're finished, they eat their mate!"

Ambassador Londo Mollari to Garibaldi: "You make very good sharks, Mister Garibaldi. We were pretty good sharks too once, but somehow, along the way, we forgot how to bite."

Londo (after Garibaldi has departed): "See the great Centauri Republic! Open nine to five, Earth time!"

Generic business man to Lyta Alexander: "Some day I'm gonna find the guy who thought up the idea of renting telepaths to businessmen, and I'm gonna kill him!"

Ambassador G'Kar to Lyta, on the subject of creating a race of Narn telepaths: "Would you prefer to be conscious or unconscious during the mating? I would prefer conscious but I don't know what your... pleasure threshold is."

Londo to Garibaldi: "I suppose there will be a war now? All that running around and shooting at one another: you'd think that sooner or later it would have gone out of fashion!"

Dr. Kyle: "There are moments in your life when everything crystallises, and the whole world reshapes itself, right down to its component molecules, and everything changes. I have looked upon the face of a Vorlon, and nothing is the same anymore."

QUESTIONS????
Why does Delenn abstain from the vote to extradite Sinclair to the Vorlon homeworld? When she says she is here merely to observe, what is she watching?

What was the Minbari assassin's involvement with G'Kar? Why does he meet him in the Alien Sector (disguised as Lyta Alexander) where he tells the killer "there's been a complication"? What has he to gain from the assassination of Ambassador Kosh?

Was there a connection between the fact that the poison used on Kosh can only be found in the one sector from which Carolyn had returned? Was it merely coincidence that she arrived at the station twenty minutes before the assassination attempt?

What really happened to Sinclair at the Battle of the Line?

What did Dr. Kyle see under Kosh's encounter suit?

Next post I'll be looking at season one, though not in as much detail episode-wise, giving an overall synopsis of the season and also some pointers as to where the five-year story is going. Season one of Babylon 5 --- or at least, part one of season one, depending on how long I make it --- "Signs and portents", next.

Trollheart spends a lot of time highlighting other people's journals and we're all grateful for this on his weekly update. But the detail of his own work often goes unnoticed, so I've posted an entry from one of his journals here and this is just one example of some of the brilliant stuff that he does.

I've picked this as I'm currently watching the whole Babylon 5 series and am towards the end of season 2 at the time of writing. After watching each episode I check his entry on it and it's amazing how his write up fills in all the gaps and things that you may not have been certain about or missed, it's actually the perfect companion piece to watching the series. The excerpt I've included was his first on the series and a great taster for anybody thinking of watching this great series.

^I read TH's journals first because it always gets me into the mood of reading other people's journals. He's definitely got a unique way of writing, but it really sucks you into the enjoyment right away.

Wow, thanks guys! I just do what I do because I enjoy it, but it's nice for my work to be occasionally recognised. Like it says in my title, workin' on a dream!

US, if you're getting near the end of season two you have some amazing plot twists and revelations coming up. Enjoy! :thumb:

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Batlord (Post 1562979)

We don't even need you on camera, cause, hell, I never appear on camera. Just your smooth, silky voice, threatening to rip me to shreds for not being into death metal.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Powerstars (Post 1563076)

We don't even need you on camera, cause, hell, I never appear on camera. Just your smooth, silky voice, threatening to rip me to shreds for not being into death metal.

Sounds interesting. I'll see what I can do. What exactly do you have in mind for a format anyway?

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Batlord (Post 1563104)

Sounds interesting. I'll see what I can do. What exactly do you have in mind for a format anyway?

Is yelling and belittling a format?

I'm looking forward to this.

*popcorns*

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Batlord (Post 1563104)

Sounds interesting. I'll see what I can do. What exactly do you have in mind for a format anyway?

I could show you one of my existing reviews, but I'm planning to start doing a track-by-track format. Style will still be similar though.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trollheart (Post 1562538)

Always one with the funny story, Urban does not disappoint in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...sed-ideas.html, where he relates the tale of when he saw Kiss. But not Kiss. Really. Sort of.

Near enough.
Clue is in the title.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trollheart (Post 1563054)

US, if you're getting near the end of season two you have some amazing plot twists and revelations coming up. Enjoy! :thumb:

Last episode watched was "And Now For A Word" and what a fantastic episode it was as well, never expected a documentary episode at all. In fact I'm pretty much a fanatic of the series and even when an episode is not so great I still really like it.

It's by this time as well that you realise what a great Captain Sheridan is and offers a lot more than Sinclair (even though I liked Sinclair at the end a lot)

The Music Banter Members Journals Weekly Update Thread, week-ending March 15 2015

Captain's Log, Stardate ... sorry, sorry. Getting so wrapped up in Star Trek Month I forget where I am. So what's happening back on that little blue-green planet we left a week ago to go where no man has gone before? Oh yeah...
http://cdn.marketplaceimages.windows...=ws_icon_large
A new journal starting is not big news. I mean, it is for the person starting it, especially if it's their first, but journals start up all the time. This however is something special. It actually came to life last week, but only a few hours outside of the deadline for last week's update. Unknown Soldier and Anteater team up to bring you the complete musical history of the band we know as Toto. This is, to my knowledge, the first time anyone has done this (what? No no: Batty and my Voyager journal is long dead, I'm sure; kicked in the teeth and left bleeding in a dark alleyway while he runs off with its money and credit cards. I doubt it'll last until the ambulance arrives, assuming someone calls one) --- two people, both at the top of their writing game, collaborating on a journal featuring a band they both know and love. Should be very interesting. Read more about it below.

Also, Briks my apologies but if you're going to change your name to something Norweigan don't expect me to use that special “O” with the slash through it everytime I mention you. You'll have to be Isbjorn, ok?

And now, on with the show!

Aux-in kicks us off this week with a review of an album by Tritonal in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...continuum.html

while http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...lks-about.html, but this time with what he calls a cheap but decent set of headphones. Ah, I remember being able to use 'phones... long time ago now. He's also talking about those albums in his Metal Survivor thread. Good stuff.

http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...63-2013-a.html has albums from DJ Wally, The Black Keys, MF Doom again and ... William Shatner! Good on ya Goof! Great album!

Innerspaceboy has a manifesto for the future of pop in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...nnerspace.html : well worth reading, as usual

while it would seem that http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...seur-cave.html is under new managem --- oh no wait: that's just Briks changing his name to ...Isbjorn? Suppose he's going to start standing on Fox's Glacier Mints now? (Ancient Dad joke, he probably won't get it). Anyway, with his new identity in tow, he's laying down the ten rules of Music Banter, again very much worth a read.

I almost fear clicking http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...nal-music.html: I know the chances are that going to the last page is not going to be enough, that Ki will have put in so many updates that I will usually have to go back to the one before that, or even the one before that. And so it proves. This week he's got two pages of updates, featuring Swarm of the Sun, Swarm of the Sun and Swarm of the Sun. Did I mention Swarm of the Sun? He's also doing, in fairness, Swarm of the Sun. And Jonsi. And The Best Pessimist. And Tertia, Caspian, and a whole lot more. And Swarm of the Sun. Oh, and how could I forget Swarm of the ... all right, I'll stop now.

Oriphiel is http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...ck-garage.html with the Cans, The Silvertones and Five by Five, while also writing the latest chapter in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...rgy-story.html

Sidewinder is in 2003 with http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...ar-1965-a.html, looking at albums from The White Stripes, Sun Kil Moon and Chris Cleak among others

and we have a new journal, coming from Soulflower as she tells us that http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...dness-art.html and kicks off with some words about Fiona Apple.

After what I would consider a long time away from http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...d-journal.html I've finally got it together to post some more Tom Waits album reviews, four in fact, leaving us with just another four to go before we can wrap up his discography. Speaking of discographies, I've committed to do another seven of them in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...i-reviews.html, kicking off with Asia's debut. Discographies to come from Robbie Williams, ELO, Steve Earle and more!

Of course it's Star Trek Month over at http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...-emporium.html, and we're going at full warp with reviews of the first two Trek movies, more Trek themes, the women of Star Trek and the long-awaited showdown: who is the better captain, Kirk or Picard? Shut up, Batty... Finally, we're getting 1968 underway in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...ive-metal.html, looking at the new bands who formed that year and who would go on to almost define prog rock between them.

Almost into the top 10 now in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...y-history.html, and Gravestone are just hovering outside at 11. Not sure about anyone else, but that picture is way off to the right for me... Anyway, big news as above is that a new journal has been born, its fathers being two of our greatest writers, Unknown Soldier himself and the mighty Anteater. http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...78-2015-a.html is exactly what it says, a discography and review of all the albums by Toto, and they get it underway with the debut album. Interesting idea, as they share the review, kind of carrying on a conversation between them about it. Great work, guys: hope it goes well!

Urban reviews Burzum (for those with ADHD that is) in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...sed-ideas.html and also has a memorable interview between Michael Jackson and ... Hugh Laurie???

Wpnfire does not like Death. Or at least, the album Human. So says he in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...s-journal.html, sending Batty into a sulk

while Zero plays us out with his own personal Irish artistes Spotify playlist in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...nal-sound.html. La fheile Phadraig agat, my friend!
http://i.istockimg.com/file_thumbvie...-with-beer.jpg
I've no problem picking out the
http://www.trollheart.com/quill.jpg
when you have someone like our little Norse boy (or should that be Polar Bear now?) writing gold like this:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Isbjørn (Post 1564742)

The True Rules of MusicBanter

Aight, the members who register here can be divided into four categories. Some stick around. Some are spammers who get banned. Some lose interest and stop posting, and some stick around for a month or two before they get butthurt and leave in tears. If you're a new member, you probably don't want to end up in that last category, so here are some things you need to know in order to survive in the MB community. Drumroll, please...

http://www.cutecatgifs.com/wp-conten...4/01/metal.gif

Thou shalt not speak of Butthead.
Batty's ego is like a T-rex. Huge, and not to be stroked.
Wait a second...
Thou shalt not get in an argument with GuitarBizarre, lest thou embarrass thyself and thy family.
Beware of the Grammar Nazis and the Political Correctness Army, or they will lynch thee.
If thou feelest the need to ask whether or not that new member is Butthead, it's probably Butthead.
Do not have a small avatar. Small avatars are for plebs.
If "Anal Beads" is a poll option, thou art legally obliged to select it.
Google seeth all.
Thou shalt not use the band smiley.
Thou shalt respect the younguns.
Pet_Sounds is the Grammar Nazi. Isbjørn is the pinko leftist commie bastard, or so sayeth Batty. Josef K is the hipster. Machine is the one who maketh scary music.
"Ja" > "yes"
Thou must identify as a fan of Wolves in Sheepskin and Snake Walk, even if thou dost not like Wolves in Sheepskin or Snake Walk.
Do not start a thread about an album.
Or actually, do start one, but only in the "New Releases" or "Album Reviews" subforum.

Just perfect.

And speaking of the member formerly known as Briks, it's time once again for
http://www.trollheart.com/classicj2.png
Last time we left our intrepid author it was March, and he was overdosing on metal. Come April, he's still at it. Opus Eponymous by Ghost, Lateralus by Tool, Electric Wizard's Dopethrone, Metallica's Load and ... And justice for all, Priest's Rocka rolla and then it was Nickleback week for, um, a day.

As May began then, more metal with Sabaton, then the Pixies and then it seemed Nickelback Week was still on. I offered to run this jointly with him, but sadly shortly afterwards I had my nineteenth nervous breakdown and exited stage left, retiring from the entire forum for several months. What do you mean, you never even noticed I was gone? Humph! Anyway, back in The Poseur Cave Isborn struggled on alone, also listening to Violeta Violeta by Kaizers Orchestra and yet even more metal with Storm of the light's bane by Dissection. This took us into June, so here we must pause and await the triumphant return of the polar one next week.

That's it for this week. Bit of a shorter update as I'm late writing it, but hopefully you all enjoyed it and nobody was left out. If you were omitted, see our complaints dept.
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_tZaA1Q48mQ...ouncer_big.jpg
Till next week,
Toodles!

Just a heads up. If you hit the permalink button at the top right of someone's post, it gives you a link to that specific post in the thread. Like so...

http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...ml#post1565276

Not to worry about the mass amount of updates, as I may be slowing down a bit on the updates. I've been doing a lot of updates because I will try to keep a 3-4 updates a week schedule and I just wanted to get as much in my journal as I can in the event that I can't follow my schedule. Post-rock month will be taking an instant turn to that schedule so don't expect day to day updates anymore. I enjoy doing them day to day but i'm finding that the quality of posts tends to decrease as I continue the day to day updates. I want to put more thought into them instead of getting them out consistently.

Yo, thanks for Post of the Week! Appreciate it. :)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ki (Post 1565584)

Don't worry, it's not a problem. It was more poking gentle fun, like you were with me earlier... Keep up as many updates as you want; they're great to read.

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Batlord (Post 1565554)

Um, thanks but I know. What is that in reference to as a matter of interest?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Isbjørn (Post 1565614)

Yo, thanks for Post of the Week! Appreciate it. :)

You're welcome. It was pretty hilarious.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trollheart (Post 1565636)

Don't worry, it's not a problem. It was more poking gentle fun, like you were with me earlier... Keep up as many updates as you want; they're great to read.

It's more just my own personal thing for my journal. I can't keep up with a day to day as much as I'd like to think I do.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trollheart (Post 1565636)

Don't worry, it's not a problem. It was more poking gentle fun, like you were with me earlier... Keep up as many updates as you want; they're great to skim.

ftfy

Wow, those rules certainly are important.

Coming soon to a Poseur Cave near you:

Tom Waits double-review.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Isbjørn (Post 1567845)

Coming soon to a Poseur Cave near you:

Tom Waits double-review.

More Tom Waits reviews. Goody.

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Batlord (Post 1567876)

More Tom Waits reviews. Goody.

Shut it, you.

The Music Banter Members Journals Weekly Update Thread, week-ending March 22 2015

Ah, the sun is finally shining and no doubt soon enough those bothersome little flies and bluebottles will be buzzing around, annoying us all, to say nothing of wasps and bees! Yeah, summer is slowly heading our way, and down in Journaltown it's all hands to the pumps, with a decent body of work this week. Let's check it out.

Reclaiming his place at the head of the pack, Anteater returns to bring us more of http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...ravaganza.html, with a feature on Bernard Oattes. No, he was not one half of Hall and Oates! Go check out Ant's journal and educate yourself.

There's more from Tritonal in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...continuum.html

while http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...lks-about.html and this week he's reviewing ten grindcore albums in less than a minute each. And then another ten. That's twenty too many for me!

George Harrison is on the menu (not literally, of course: Black Francis is not a cannibal --- at least, so far as I know!) in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...l-journey.html

while Frownland becomes the latest to take the plunge and open another journal, this time it's featuring his rather excellent photographic skills. Catch him http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...-darkroom.html and see what you think.

Mew, Bloc Party, Boduf Songs, Ugly Duckling and more are all to be found in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...63-2013-a.html

but it's western classical music in China that concerns innerspaceboy, also writing about how to entice mp3-buyers to purchase physical albums in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...nnerspace.html --- not for me to be honest; it's a step backwards. Been there, done all that collecting, cleaning, drawing on the inner sleeves and writing the lyrics on those that had none...

Isbjorn (no I won't) has found himself disappointed with Al Jazeera, sorry Jahzzar down at http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...seur-cave.html --- Hell, all free music can't be great you know!

Ki is taking it easy this week (for once) with just the one entry in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...nal-music.html, on Godspeed You! Black Emperor, but that might be due to the fact that he too has opened another journal, this one concentrating on video games. In http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...is-arcade.html you'll find Zelda, Torchlight II and Pokemon, so indulge your inner gamer and take him on!

Kendrick Lamaar and some of Machine's poetry/lyrics in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...-its-dumb.html (but do, its not)

Oriphiel has chapter nine of http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...rgy-story.html

on http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...crap-heap.html you'll find Steely Dan, The Doors and The Cars (cars have doors, dont they?)

and there's an update on Guiseppe Torrisi in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...listening.html

We have a new journal, from a new member, as http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...-robbe264.html gets underway with Chance the Rapper (didn't DJ Chameleon mention him? Or was it someone else? Anyone seen DJ recently?)

and Soulflower is still praising the http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...dness-art.html, with Stone Temple Pilots and an article on The Jacksons.

And so to me. There are two more Tom Waits reviews in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...d-journal.html, leaving us with just two more to go before we finish his entire studio discography, while Star Trek Month continues unabated in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...-emporium.html with Deep Space 9, the third Trek movie and a whole lot more. Quite a lot happening down athttp://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...i-reviews.html, with reviews of albums from Antalio, Sawmail, Emissary Echo and Care of Night.

Meanwhile we're preparing to move into 1968 in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...ive-metal.html, with a list of the albums I'l be covering from that year, and there's something of a change of pace coming for http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...d-2000-ad.html as I prepare to take on Alan Moore's masterpiece, Watchmen.

Into the top ten for 1984 we go in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...y-history.html, and at ten it's Metal Church while Mercyful Fate take the number nine spot. In the other journal Unknown Soldier shares with Anteater, http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...78-2015-a.html there's a joint review of the second Toto album, “Hydra”.

Finally, poor old Wpnfire is struggling In the embrace of evil, but he doesn't seem to mind in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...s-journal.html.

It's not very often I award my
http://www.trollheart.com/quill.jpg
to a relatively new journal, but this one was pretty good so I think it deserves it. Certainly shows that she has a lot of passion for her subject, and is prepared to write rather than just throw down video after video, which is after all the hallmark of a decent journal.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Soulflower (Post 1567655)

The Creation of "The Jacksons" 1976
https://mjtheman.files.wordpress.com...9/10ncsg10.jpg

By: Soul Flower
By 1976 the cute Jackson boys from Gary Indiana were now young men. After seven years under contract with Motown, the Jackson's decided to move to CBS. Joe Jackson thought this venture would be beneficial for his sons because he felt they would have more artistic control. He wanted his sons to grow as artists and musicians instead of being manipulated by a label. Michael (in particular) had a very difficult time with this at first because he loved Motown, Berry Gordy and the life changing experience it made for the family. However, like with most ventures within the family, he eventually gave in and agreed. The Jackson 5 soon became known as "The Jacksons" once they moved to CBS for their 13th studio album..."The Jacksons."
http://i42.tinypic.com/r244yw.jpg
http://images5.fanpop.com/image/phot...49-326-500.gif
Fun Fact: Jermaine Jackson decided to stay with Motown despite the family's persistance that he come with them to CBS because during this period he had just married Berry Gordy's (Motown Records Founder) daughter Hazel Gordy. Randy Jackson, the youngest brother replaced Jermaine. In this photo he is in the far left sitting under Tito.
http://theredlist.com/media/database...theredlist.jpg
The album was released in 1976 for Epic Records and Philadelphia International Records as a joint venture.

Why does this album matter?

This album was a milestone for the Jacksons and in my opinion Joe Jackson made a clever genius move. While I don't think all his business decisions were savy ones, he hit it out the park with this one. Why? Once the Jacksons moved to CBS/Epic Records it allowed them to grow as artists. No more singing bubble gum pop tunes or singing songs the label would spit out. The Jacksons NOW were in control of their own sound, image and the songs they wanted to sing and perform. Overall, this was a good move and in my opinion really helped Michael grow not only as a performer but also as an artist. Here is another fun fact: Michael Jackson wrote his first ever published song on this album "Blues Away." He was 19.

Stay tuned....

while this week's
http://www.trollheart.com/hotchair.jpg
goes to Ki, for http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...is-arcade.html, which certainly seems to have everyone talking about their favourite games. And Pokemon.

http://trollheart.com/classicj2.png
Where were we, young polar bear? Oh yeah. June broke and he was back to “Essential emo albums I have never heard”, with the self-titled debut from Rites of Spring, but he couldn't stay away from metal for long, and so it was back to Mercyful Fate with Finntroll and Mayhem on the side, and that was more or less it for June, taking us into July as he tried to kick off Pierce the Veil Week, also talking about The Descendants and Kiss, decided to ditch PtV Week as he got bored, and so ended July.

And so ends our update. Back with more same time next week.
Till then,
Toodles!

The Music Banter Members Journals Weekly Update Thread, week-ending March 29 2015

Boot up system ... system running ... initiate generic introduction .... insert witty comment ... run pithy comic routine ... insert reference to the weather ... load standard complaint subroutine ... prepare to install Update Thread Post ... program running ... Don't forget to register this software for help, free upgrades and next week's lottery numbers sent to you by email.... Disclaimer: next week's lottery numbers will not be sent to you by email.

Program successfully installed! Run now y/n? Upgrade to full paid version y/n? Register online y/n? Preparing to run program for first time. This may take some moments. Upgrade to full paid version y/n? Installing codecs ... Your computer needs to restart. Restart now y/n? Loading program. Upgrade to full paid version y/n? Create desktop icon? Loading ... preparing to run progra --- oh, we did that didn't we? Upgrade to full paid version y/n? Loading ... Welcome!

Bah! Last time I try to computerise the intro! Now that we're up and running, let's see what's shakin' down at Journaltown...

Looks like it's Black Francis who gets us underway with more George Harrison in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...l-journey.html

while taking a break from the darkroom, Frownland goes back to being http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...wnapilago.html where he's writing a story he “wrote in outer space”? Um, yeah...

innerspaceboy is getting back to basics with some “modern music” in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...nnerspace.html

and http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...is-arcade.html continues to gather momentum and create debate, as he speaks of the wonders of Bajo Kazooie and Banjo Tooie as well as, um, Goat Simulator, and a lot more. Not neglecting his other journal though, in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...nal-music.html he's wrapping up Post Rock Month, talking about the new collaboration between Franz Ferdinand and Sparks, asking if Megaedeth are “Worth the hype?” and still has time to listen to some Alesana.

Oriphiel has chapter ten of http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...rgy-story.html this week (aliens, assassins, pizza?) and is also back http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...ck-garage.html going through Hell thanks to Clive Barker as he reviews Hellraiser. Ugh. Love Barker's written work, but man is it gory onscreen!
:shycouch:

and Pet_Sounds is listing off his favourite bands as he climbs around http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...crap-heap.html

As I near the end of the discography of Tom Waits, there's a review of Real gone in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...d-journal.html while Star Trek Month is beginning to wind down in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...-emporium.html, with a few more best and worst episodes, more “Women of Star Trek”, the pilot for Voyager reviewed, as well as the last few before we find out what is my top Trek theme. Oh I'm so excited! Bah. Other journals getting a good kicking back into life this week include http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...gy-legend.html, where there's information on Beowulf, Bellerophon and the Sirens among others, while http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...ive-metal.html jumps off into 1968 with albums from The Mothers of Invention, The United States of America, Floyd and Family, and there's a short return for http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...ver-heard.html, with the debut from The Cars. Finally, reviewed in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...i-reviews.html this week are albums from Plastic Violins of Darkness and The Divine Comedy.

There's glam metal in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...y-history.html as Icon's s/t takes the number eight spot, and more Toto in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...78-2015-a.html from Anteater and Unknown Soldier (Unknown Anteater?) with a review of Turn Back.

http://www.trollheart.com/quill.jpg
goes to Oriphiel this week for his deeply disturbing but extremely in-depth, some might almost say Trollheartesque (!), review of Hellraiser, below.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oriphiel (Post 1570641)

I decided to do something different for a change, and look at a movie rather than an album. Of course, being a fan of weird music, it's no surprise that i'm also a fan of weird flicks! Specifically, I've always had an affinity for the genres of horror, science fiction, and comedy, with some of my favorite movies having a mix of all three. I'll start off with a movie that truly is the perfect incarnation of the phrase "Love it or hate it"...

http://i.imgur.com/gN1Bh0l.jpg

From the introduction to the very last scene, Hellraiser is an incredibly odd and at times non-traditional horror movie. Rather than focus on the standard battle between "good" and "evil", where young twenty-somethings with a deus ex machina defeat some ancient and wicked force, Hellraiser is at it's heart a story about the role of pleasure and pain in the human psyche. Of course, while one of the characters is eventually pegged as the "hero" whom the audience is supposed to root for, the movie actually spends most of it's run time examining the relationship between the two characters who become "the villains". In fact, you get the feeling that Clive Barker (the director, and author of the novel from which the movie was based) was constantly pressured by the studio and producers to make the film more simple and clear-cut then he wanted it to be. Everything from the scenes (which were edited to appease the MPAA) to the title of the movie became issues. Originally named "The Hellbound Heart" (after the novel), the studio asked for a change, citing that it was too "romantic" sounding. They asked for new ideas; Clive jokingly came up with the overly-literal "Sadomasochists From Beyond the Grave", and an elderly woman in the film crew apparently offered the joke suggestion "What a Woman Will Do For a Good ****". Needless to say, the studio rejected the titles, and eventually everyone settled on "Hellraiser".

http://traumaticcinematic.com/wp-con...-and-Julia.jpg
Hellraiser is mostly the story of these two characters: a middle-aged woman who no longer loves her husband, and the living corpse of her husband's brother (who, in life, had an affair with her)

The difficulties of the movie didn't end with the road-bumps during it's creation. After it was released, viewers and critics alike had no idea what to make of what they had just seen. It isn't hard to see why people were confused and in disdain; the movie constantly tries to accomplish too many things in it's run-time, and this creates odd inconsistencies. For example, the first half of the movie relies mostly on suspense (and the dialogue between the characters) to affect the audience, however the second half features many cheap jump scares and the "cat and mouse" cliche that audiences were fairly tired of. The movie was at times a very tasteful and suspenseful work of horror, which many people thought didn't mesh well with the heavy scenes of (what they claimed was "tasteless") gore. Also, most of the movie centers around the idea that humans are always driven to do what brings them pleasure, forming morality after the fact to try and justify their inclinations, while also examining our odd fascination with danger and pain, trying to find the blurry (or maybe non-existent) line where the sensation of pleasure becomes pain. The first two thirds of the movie shy away from the labels of "good" and "evil", portraying the humans and demons without clearly defining any heroes or villains (making it hard to truly hate any character, since they're all mostly given motives for their actions). However, the final part of the movie throws the moral neutrality out the window, and becomes a generic battle between a human and demons. These odd dualities left a bad impression on audiences, causing half of the audience to absolutely hate the movie, and the other half to love it to the point of making it a cult classic. The critics were just as divided: while some praised the movie for it's merits, others were not at all impressed. As Roger Ebert himself put it: "This is a movie without wit, style or reason, and the true horror is that actors were made to portray, and technicians to realize, its bankruptcy of imagination."

http://grimmfest.com/grimmupnorth/wp...r-pinhead.jpeg
The Cenobites, demons who care only for exploring the limits of pleasure and pain.

Part two follows...

Quote:

The plot of Hellraiser isn't quite clear when it first begins, opening with a scene of intense gore that goes unexplained until later in the movie. It begins with a man purchasing a strange cube from a mysterious merchant, and later tinkering with the cube in an empty room. As he later explains, his goal was to experience everything the world had to offer, to come to an understanding of pleasure and pain. Normal pleasures (including having an affair with his brother's wife) had grown to bore him ("It's not enough. It's never enough"), and so he sought down an artifact that would supposedly grant him otherworldly experiences. He opens the cube, and it brings forth a cadre of demons that torture him until he is literally in shambles (:laughing:). Of course, their powers prevent him from actually dying, and they eventually bring him back to their home dimension. He becomes their slave, presumably for all eternity, or so the demons thought. His brother and sister in law move into his old home (which was left by the brothers' parents as inheritance to the both of them), and he uses the common blood between him and his living brother to anchor him back into reality. However, he comes back without any definite form, being a jumble of bones and tissue, and the only way for him to completely regain a body is to drain the essence of other living beings (or possibly just rip off their muscles/skin/etc. to use as his own, the movie never quite reveals which it is). After using a puddle of blood to give himself a basic form (in a fantastically eerie display of practical effects), his brother's wife finds him in the attic, and reluctantly agrees to help him.

http://www.vividscribe.com/wp-conten...96-300x269.jpg
The daughter, who eventually becomes the hero of the movie, trying to protect her father while evading his brother and the demons that are chasing him.

What impressed me most as the movie played out was, surprisingly enough (in a cult horror movie), the acting. Julia, played by Clare Higgins, does a fantastic job of conveying exactly what the character is thinking without ever having say more than a few words at a time. There's a specific scene where she's saying goodnight to various guests at a dinner party, and when she reaches her husband, you can instantly see that she simultaneously loves him (deep down, anyway) and hates him. Andrew Robinson plays the part of the aloof and somewhat benign husband, and he plays it very convincingly and while his acting can seem a bit odd here and there, it actually fits his character pretty well. Later on, (serious spoilers from this point on) he plays the role of his reanimated sibling, after his brother kills him and steals his skin/face. As the "villain" of the end of the movie, Robinson does an incredible job, especially with his parting lines of the movie (which I'll probably address later on). The daughter, Kirsty, is played by Ashley Laurence, who does a good job of conveying a sense of shock at what the character is witnessing. However, I found some of her lines to be written and delivered a bit awkwardly, being too stiff, and it unfairly sets her character up to deliver some of the worst and most cheesy/overracted lines of the movie. Lastly, there's the resurrected brother, Frank, played predominantly by Oliver Smith (Sean Chapman plays his during flashbacks, when he still has his original body). In the flashbacks, he really doesn't pop up that much, making it hard to really critique Chapman's performance (I thought he did alright, though). Smith's time as Frank, however, when the character is a skinless body of exposed muscles and bone, is very memorable. Beyond these characters (who, to be fair, all have the occasional moment of cheesiness), everyone else was pretty forgettable. The movie introduces a love interest for the daughter (*groan*), but luckily for us he basically shows up only three or four times. I'm also glad that they didn't have him fulfill the cliche of popping up at the last second to rescue the girl, and in fact she's the one who ends up doing everything and saving the day (while he just stays in the background, trying not to get killed). Another thing that the film does right is that, quite frankly, the physical effects are stunning. However, Barker and the film crew ran out of money near the end of filming, which resulted in some very crude and dated effects as well. Below are two examples:

http://i.imgur.com/JbfAz05.jpg
Here, you can see that they put a lot of effort into the designs of the demons.

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_xFCcotkVHe...eer004_jpg.jpg
And here is a goofy blob of rubber that never fails to make audiences laugh uncontrollably.

The movie also has some interesting scenes, as well as metaphors and symbolism, that add depth to the characters in a way that you might miss during the first viewing. Kirsty gets most of the weird symbolism that never gets explained. The baby crying in the distance during her nightmare, the sound of pigeons flapping their wings that she continually hears throughout the movie and the homeless man that usually appears not long after or before the sound (who stares at her with strangely clear and young eyes). Although later, the homeless man turns into a demon and saves the cube from being destroyed, but that doesn't quite make sense when looked at literally; at that point, the portal between worlds had closed, and all of the demons had disappeared. Not only that, but he had first appeared before the cube had even been opened by Kirsty. It seems more logical that he (and the pigeons) are a symbol, something about the alluring and yet disgusting nature of the strange and mysterious, and his saving the cube is a way of saying that humanity can never be free from our curiosity; someone will always come along, eventually, to give in to their curiosity and "open the box". In terms of the other characters, they also have their symbols and telling moments. The most obvious (yet also strangely easy to miss) is when Julia kisses Larry so that he doesn't notice skinless Frank lurking about. Larry takes that as an invitation to have sex with her, and Julia goes along with it, until Frank enters the room with a knife. Julia starts shouting "No! Please don't!", and she yells it quite a few times, and yet Larry (who has no reason to believe that she's not yelling at him) keeps on as if nothing's wrong. She pretty much has to toss him off, and he gets offended, asking "What's wrong with you?". At first, this just seems like lazy writing; Larry obviously had to have heard her, so it's idiotic to think that he waited for so long before stopping. But then you think about it, about his delay and response, and if it was actually intentional. The movie hints that the two are having marriage problems, and that Julia is "unsatisfied" with him as opposed to Frank, despite her husband trying to please her, and Larry's reaction to her screaming makes it seem like it's something normal for them (especially considering that the movie makes Larry out to be too sheepish to take advantage of anyone). Either way, the movie just implied that either Larry was approaching the point of rape without giving a care (which would give quite a dark side to his otherwise happy and goofy persona), or that doing so was something that Julia normally expected him to do. It's freaky, no matter how you look at it, because it makes the relationship between them that much darker. And then there's the matter of the scene preceding the ending. It's become somewhat of an iconic moment, popping up in many "Best Last Words" compilations and lists, and is completely open to interpretation. If you've never seen it before, here it is...

(Sorry: YouTube removed as per yadda yadda ...)

"Jesus Wept". Not exactly what you'd expect a murderer to say before being torn to pieces by dimension-traveling demons. At the time, critics brushed it off as being just a meaningless bible quote, added purely to sound interesting. In a way, they're right; when the scene was being filmed, the original line was supposed to be "**** you", but Robinson (the actor in the scene) asked Barker to change it to something more meaningful, memorable and mysterious. Specifically, he asked for that quote from the bible, and Barker immediately saw the potential in it, and reworked the scene. It's actually an ingenious line, when you look at the context of the phrase: In the bible, Jesus (depending on interpretations) is either crying for his friend Lazarus, or he's crying because of the faithlessness of Lazarus' family. In the first interpretation, it would mean that Frank is admitting that his actions were in vain (as Jesus wept for a dead man, despite know that he can bring him back to life with little effort, which he does, making the tears pointless). In this case, it seems like Frank is saying that there was no point trying to fight the demons, as he was always destined (because of his curiosity and passions) to be their slave. In the second interpretation, where Jesus cries because Lazarus' family is upset despite knowing that he can and will bring Lazarus back, Frank would be making more of a commentary on humanity, and how we're ruled by fear and doubt. We'll always be repelled by (and attracted to) the unknown, to death and pain, and ruled by fear. Jesus weeping, in this case, is almost as if he's sad because of this flawed and unchanging nature of humanity, and it gives Frank's words a kind of edge (as if he's saying "**** it, we're all screwed no matter what we do."). Another way to look at his words is by taking "Jesus Wept" as it is used as a phrase. People say it as a way of expressing frustration and mounting troubles (i.e. someone steals your car, and then you find out that your spouse is leaving you). In this case, Frank might simply be saying that he knows everything is about to go to hell (literally). There are many interpretations of just what Robinson had in mind when he chose that specific line, and when you take his strangely genuine smile into account, the possibilities only grow. This is the most highly discussed part of the movie, and everyone has their own idea of what was going through Frank's head. Was he giving up, smiling in despair? Was he actually enjoying the moment, knowing that his pain was simply the price of the curiosity he loved so much? You decide.

http://horrorhomework.com/blog/wp-co...2013/12/HR.png
Even demons need to chill every now and then.

I consider Hellraiser to be a great and ambitious movie, definitely one of the classics of the horror genre, but also one that has far too many flaws and inconsistencies to be a true masterpiece. However, despite it's problems, you can really see that Clive Barker tried as hard as he could to bring his novel to life, and his hard work really shows in all of the movie's successes and strong points. There's a legitimate sense of intrigue and charm that seperates this movie from it's peers, and it actually makes you feel somewhat sympathetic for the "villains". With Frank, you can feel his sense of urgency and fear as he knows that the demons are coming for him, even as he takes monstrous actions to try and reclaim a physical body and escape from them. With Julia, you can see her sense of boredom with her husband (and life in general), almost feeling bad for her despite her infidelity and the actions she takes on behalf of Frank. There's also Larry, who legitimately tries to be a good husband and father, trusting his wife until the very end. And of course, you can't help but feel bad for Kirsty, who gets dragged into everything because of the actions of others, and is simply trying to keep her family together. When the acting works, it works very well, and the same can be said of the (now somewhat dated) effects. There are layers to the action (albeit not as much as in more intellectual films) which may serve as good food for thought. All in all, I'd definitely recommend Hellraiser, even though I already know that half of you will hate it. It seems like this movie will always be destined to walk the line between being great and horrible in the eyes of the viewers; which will it end up as for you?

Something a little different for this week's
http://www.trollheart.com/workhorse.png
I'd like to award this to Anteater and Unknown Soldier, for the amount of work they've put in to their collaborative journal. They certainly seem to have hit on a winning formula, but I can see it's taking a lot of their time and effort. Certainly worth it, I feel.

And so we go back to The Poseur Cave, another of the
http://www.trollheart.com/classicj2.png
Into August we went, and Isbjorn decided to take on Quorthon's solo album, then “I see fire” followed by (deep breath) Empire! Empire! (I was a lonely estate) --- what is it with these bands who have to have forty words in their name? Doesn't even make sense. Imagine all the time wasted saying their name, all the other things you could be doing instead: “Who you going to see tonight then?” “Oh this band called Empire! Empire! (I was a --- oh no! The gig's already started!” :rolleyes: Any-way, it was Exhorder next and then on we went into September, which opened with Jets to Brazil, then Myrkur, after which he ranted “Death to false indie!” (Just doesn't have the same ring to it though, does it?) and we were done for another two months.

And we are done here too. But not for two months. Just a week.
See you all next Sunday.
Toodl --- ERROR! ERROR! ABNORMAL PROGRAM TERMINATION! FATAL ERROR! ALL DATA WILL BE WIPED FROM HARD DRIVE! PRESS ANY KEY TO CONTINUE....

http://www.garfieldposters.com/shop/...73A%7D_450.jpg

Appreciate the mention Trollheart. :)

But seriously, any harrison fan out there leave my a comment, it's frickin lonely there, am i really the only dude here that digs Harrison?

Ive been Following Frown's picture journal and Ki's arcade, good stuff, keep it up guys.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Black Francis (Post 1570951)

Ive been Following Frown's picture journal and Ki's arcade, good stuff, keep it up guys.

Thanks man. When I started the journal, I had in mind a few things I wanted to talk about, and i'm happy people are discussing those things along with me. It's turned out to be a better journal than I could have expected.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trollheart (Post 1570946)

Into August we went, and Isbjorn decided to take on Quorthon's solo album

Where was this? I missed that one. I dig that album.

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Batlord (Post 1570970)

Where was this? I missed that one. I dig that album.

Here http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...ml#post1474444
(Not so much a review as a few words and a video, but still...)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trollheart (Post 1570974)

Here http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...ml#post1474444
(Not so much a review as a few words and a video, but still...)

Just goes to show what a noob he was. Quorthon was clearly trying his hand at stoner rock. Grunge indeed.

Thanks for featuring my review of Hellraiser! I really need to read Clive Barker's novels one of these days. People keep recommending them to me, and I'd probably have a blast with them. :laughing:

The Music Banter Members Journals Weekly Update Thread, week-ending April 5 2015

Ah, welcome, welcome! Come in, sit down. Now where were we? You were telling me last week that you seem to have lost the will to write, can't muster the enthusiasm, have no inspiration. No, no, I assure you it's nothing to be ashamed of. Happens to the best of us. Could happen to a bishop. If they were allowed write music blogs. Which of course they're not. Bad metaphor. Never mind, just sit down here and let's go through what's been happening down at Journaltown, see if you can get the old creative juices flowing, yes? Just lie back, close your eyes and listen to my voice...
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2547/...22ea9e33_o.jpg

Anteater is back with http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...ravaganza.html, and praise the Lord! In this Easter week he's looking into Christcoast! What is Chriscoast? Step this way and save your soul. Possibly.

I must just have missed Aux-in's update last week, so let it be known that in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...continuum.html there is a “Bangers-only club” in force. How do you check it out? Ask your mouse to direct you...

Having received some feedback finally about good ol' George H, Black Francis is moving on to a band he discovered called Kas Product, and in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...l-journey.html he's reviewing three of their albums, with the first up this week.

Arctic Monkeys, Amy Winehouse, O'Death and Agalloch all feature in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...63-2013-a.html

while innerspaceboy is talking excitedly about the best concert of 2015 that you'll never have heard of, much less had tickets to, in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...nnerspace.html and also querying how much artistes get back from Spotify?

http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...is-arcade.html is hopping, very successful and popular, and this week he's putting the spotlight on his favourite characters from games, as well as beginning a list of his top ten video games. But there's still time for music and in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...nal-music.html he has more about the Franz Ferdinand/Sparks collaboration.

His lady on the other hand is kicking off a new journal (presumably motivated by the same “big news”) and in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...de-sparks.html she's introducing the band and telling us who they are and why we should care.

Machine is giving his final verdict on Kendrick Lamaar's To pimp a butterfly in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...-its-dumb.html

Pet_Sounds is considering the benefits of CanCon on http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...crap-heap.html. Don't know what that is? Me neither, till I read his article.

Winding up my discography of Tom Waits, I have a review of the monstrously huge Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers and Bastards in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...d-journal.html and with Star Trek Month coming to an end in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...-emporium.html expect something totally opposite to sci-fi to hit there soon. There's a lot happening though in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...ive-metal.html as we check out albums by The Moody Blues, Giles Giles and Fripp, and Caravan.

Dee Snider is at number 7 in http://www.musicbanter.com/members-j...y-history.html as Twisted Sister bring us closer to the top five for 1984, and in their shared journal, Unknown Soldier and Anteater (Antsoldier, perhaps? Gimme something to work with here guys!) look into the only Toto album I own, Toto IV, with their by-now-trademarked discussion to follow no doubt.

http://www.trollheart.com/quill.jpg
goes to Anteater, for this highly entertaining explanation of a term I didn't even know existed before this. Oh Lord I have seen the light! No I haven't.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Anteater (Post 1572124)

Sorry for the slow updates. I run a business IRL and as some of you know I'm doing a great journal collaboration every week with Unknown Soldier. But, without further ado, here is the Yacht Rock Question Of The Month-

"Anteater...wtf is Christcoast?"

http://i60.tinypic.com/2rwnwqu.png

Pray...pray for your mortal SOULLLLLL

That's a great question kids! But to truly answer this question to any real degree of effectiveness, we must travel back in time to the good ol' 1980's, the decade where CCM (aka Christian Contemporary Music) because a multi-million dollar industry.

See, what some labels were beginning to realize at the end of the 70's (such as World Records and Myrrh Records) was that there was actually a huge market of Evangelical Steely Dan and Bread fans who didn't mind it much when smooth, jazzy grooves and their faith intersected. Hell, sometimes the results were pretty interesting, even if the album covers tended to range from abysmal to downright hilarious:

http://cdn.discogs.com/3l64DW-EC450J...-8187.jpeg.jpg
https://oldchristianmusic.files.word...pg?w=450&h=450
http://www.christianmusicarchive.com...eRealThing.jpg
http://cps-static.rovicorp.com/3/JPG...er=allrovi.com

..and so on and so forth.

That being said, there are some real gems in this (arguable) genre of yacht rock, and a couple of key artists who are downright impeccable IMO. I'll highlight a few key songs below to those willing to get their feet washed in the holy waters of the Californian faithful:

http://www.trollheart.com/classicj2.png
October brought with it a desire in Briks/Isbjorn to investigate Punk and New Wave, and so he did. Firstly through a compilation as the month opened, and then more comprehensively via Blondie, DAF, The Sex Pistols and The Buzzcocks, The Stranglers and then My Chemical Romance. Four Non Blondes were also on the menu (hah! You wish, kid!) as were Morissey and more MCR, Xysma and Weezer. Feeling the need for Metal then he went all Mayhem, Deathcrush taking us into November.

Starting off with Kaizers Orchestra and then a review of Van Helsing (the movie) he then decided to get into folk, beginning with Bob Dylan. Soon after began his haiku reviews, which have been very well received and have become “a thing” around these parts. Stumbling over one of Ki's favourite post-rock albums in Kairon; IRSE! halfway through the month was followed by a review of Ozzy's Blizzard of Ozz and then he did his part, like all of us, for Urban's proposed-but-never-contributed-to Bowie Week, with a review of Hunky Dory. And that brought November to an end.

Well, that's it I'm afraid: our time has run out. What? No I can't, sorry. I have other patients waiting. Same time next week? You're making good progress, don't be downhearted. We'll soon cure you of this writer's block and you'll be back updating like, like ... well, like me I guess. Oh by the way, would this be a bad time to mention your last check bounced when I --- oh. You're gone. Well. There's always next week I guess.

Till then,
Toodles!

Thnx for the mention TH.

I don't know were you gather enough dedication to do all this but im glad you do, this is like reading the MB times. :p:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Black Francis (Post 1573274)

Thnx for the mention TH.

I don't know were you gather enough dedication to do all this but im glad you do, this is like reading the MB times. :p:

Well it helps that he skims a lot of our journals.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trollheart (Post 1573248)

and in their shared journal, Unknown Soldier and Anteater (Antsoldier, perhaps? Gimme something to work with here guys!) look into the only Toto album I own, Toto IV, with their by-now-trademarked discussion to follow no doubt.

This was actually mentioned in our chat section, that if somebody has just one Toto album it's nearly always this one.

Our chat section came up a bit later than normal this week.

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Batlord (Post 1573340)

Well it helps that he skims a lot of our journals.

Now that's unfair. In fact, I skim them all... ;)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trollheart (Post 1573499)

Now that's unfair. In fact, I skim them all... ;)

Except for mine of course.

He just skips that shit and assumes you're talking about how sexy Wolverine or Eric Adams is. I picture Trollheart as an intelligent individual so I'll assume he does the same.