Saw Dial ‘M’ for Murder yesterday, and it confirmed to me that she is undoubtedly the most gorgeous classic Hollywood blonde. I don’t think anyone could forget this sequence:

I’m playing Morton Feldman’s String Quartet No. 2 (ya, the 6-hour one) and I’ll be gosh-darned if the music around the 1hr-mark (track 5, min 9 on the FLUX2 recording) isn’t post-rock – wouldn’t be surprised if Feldman was a major influence for bands like GY!BE. The type of freedom Feldman gave to the notes is something that many current composers and bands sometimes tap into, and I think it’s what in the end really gives the post-rock genre its potential.

A couple of weeks ago I saw This Will Destroy You live – now, I wouldn’t necessarily count TWDY among my favourite post-rock bands, but the live setting really showed them in a new light. There were moments of ~transcendence~ and the stuff like what you read in pretentious reviews all about “capturing the zeitgeist” and shit – you could perhaps feel it here. Maybe a point about halfway between TWDY and Feldman would be interesting to aim for.

PS. by the way in case you were wondering, Stewart Lee was amazing last night! A true master of the craft, there’s just nobody like him. Hope he isn’t serious about not doing another live DVD, it’d be a crime not to record this for posterity

As you may or may not know, I went to Leeds, UK for a year to do a master’s in music. So for the past couple of months I’ve been seeing more shows and learning more about music than ever, pretty much living the dream. Who knows, by the time I’m done maybe I’ll have created something worthwhile myself – in the meantime, I thought I’d write down some of what I’ve learned and bring the blog out of hibernation:

• Jaga Jazzist are an amazing live band. You can’t afford to miss them, they’re pretty incredible. They’re putting out an album early next year and, judging from what they played in Leeds it’s going to sound wonderful.
• I saw Steve Reich in London, witnessed a mindblowing Music for 18 Musicians, and after the concert Reich talked a bit about his music. He, like in many ways his music, seemed like a very down-to-earth guy, which depending on who you ask can be a good or a bad thing. He made a couple of points that stuck with me:
  • Originality is a product of circumstance and dedication. Basically the techniques he invented in the 60s and 70s were very much a product of the time and place he was living in, and being passionate about what you’re writing is a prerequisite for coming up with original stuff. It’s always good to be reminded of this.
  • Classical music has always had a connection to the “man on the street” – they tried to change that in Europe after WW2 and the result was unnatural; this is what Reich and like-minded composers decided to fight against. Now, I’d only partly agree with this, and anyway I wouldn’t want to get too deep into this discussion – suffice it to say I don’t think the distinction is that clear cut. What I do strongly agree with though, is that music should be written&performed to be listened – it sounds obvious but sometimes it’s not
• The Leeds International Film Festival is in town, bringing countless amazing films I can’t watch because of lack of money/time Anyway, part of this was a brilliant Film Music Conference at my school which I’ll be writing about more in my next blog(s). Now I’ll just mention Tobias Pontara’s analysis of the music in Tarkovsky’s Stalker, especially the last scene: Pontara’s thesis is that, by blending the Ode to Joy with the sound of the train, Tarkovsky’s subverts the meaning of Beethoven’s music, and rather shows it as symbolizing the civilized masses, which are controlled through products like the traditional Western classical canon – thus exposing the untruth of our civilized world being perceived as the ultimate reality, an untruth that acts as an obstacle on our way to inner freedom and all that crap.
• I’ve been going through listening/reading/worshiping composers – first Arvo Part, then Ligeti, Horatiu Radulescu (we need more torrents of his music!) and now Morton Feldman. Also digging a fair bit of Vaughan Williams on the side. Next I want to get into Webern, I’ve been putting him off for too long.

Anyway that’s enough for now, I need to do some schoolwork and tonight I’m seeing Stewart Lee, yayyyy.

Lars von Trier’s new film Antichrist, starring Charlotte Gainsbourg (who won Best Actress at Cannes) and Willem Dafoe, is one of the films I’m most looking forward to seeing this year. There are many reasons why you and any filmgoer who enjoys movies that leave a lasting impression, should be excited about seeing Antichrist – one of them could be this page from Roger Ebert’s journal. Or maybe it’s the trailer:

Well anyway, I hope you don’t live in wonderful Romania, ’cause tough luck, the distributors decided NOT to show the film in Romanian theatres – their official explanation is that “due to scenes of violence and nudity, the film could prove commercially nonviable”. Really? Really really? …

I guess I don’t have to explain how stupid that is, and all it proves once again is how retarded Romania still is, and is likely to remain for some time to come. I wouldn’t be in the least bit surprised if the Orthodox Church had something to do with this – the fact that so many people here still take the Church’s opinions seriously boggles the mind, but that’s a subject for some other time.

Anyway, I know it’s a cliche, but I am glad I’m leaving this country in a couple of weeks – going to a place where I can see Antichrist in a movie theatre… that is, if it hasn’t been pulled out already

Saw Five Easy Pieces last nite.

Clearly they do, since there obviously couldn’t have been any other reason for a Faith No More reunion other than to give us the greatest show on the planet. I’d only heard Angel Dust a couple of times before, but after seeing the live webcast of their show at Download Festival I decided I had to catch them here in Bucharest – and I’m glad I did, this was the best live show I’ve been to in recent memory.

Mike Patton

Mike Patton is a monster, he obviously got his voice by going to Hell and stealing it from Satan himself. He’s also an amazing frontman, and if you can take your eyes and ears off him you’ll see the rest of the band also kicks ass – I especially enjoyed watching keyboards guy Roddy Bottum.

Roddy Bottum

An exhilarating show from start to finish, both in terms of music and presentation. FNM rule, I know I’ll be raping their discography for some time to come. If you get the chance to see them, DO NOT miss it. Seriously, here’s the tour dates, GO SEE THEM.

Here’s ‘Midlife Crisis’ from last night, I can guarantee it was 1000 times better in person

I cannot stand to see a woman bleed from her mouth – reminds me of country and western music, which I cannot abide.

James Gandolfini and David Rasche

Welp, I have nothing but praise for this movie. It’s consistently funny, with many bits of brilliance. The story is based on the beginning of the 2003 Iraq war and, while the theme is relevant and the satire is spot on, the major strength of the movie is the fast-paced, sharp humour delivered by an amazing cast of characters – way better than in say Gervais‘ comedies.

Lots of very talented actors from both sides of the ocean here. Tony Soprano obviously kicks ass, and so does Peter Capaldi (playing Malcolm Tucker) – he’s a monster. Obviously the confrontation between the two is one of the best scenes in the movie.

Swear Master Peter Capaldi

Some may complain that the Brits talk too fast – they are indeed hard to follow sometimes but I think it’s worth the effort. And of course, half of the film is on the American side, so it’s fascinating how director Armando Iannucci and his team have worked with the cultural differences between the two: it’s not just different accents.

Iannucci has definitely hit the mark with In the Loop, and now I have to get my hands on The Thick of It, a similar 2005 sitcom made by the same team.

****

The Romanian New Wave is going strong. This film is at least as successful as everyone’s 2007 favourite, 4 Months …, even though its theme isn’t as sensational. The title has been translated as Police, Adjective – in Romanian, the term “politist” means both police officer, and the quality of pertaining to police business. Thus, the film is ultimately about meaning: what it means to uphold the law, and to follow your conscience.

Dragos Bucur has really come into his own as an actor, he does a great job here. Director Corneliu Porumboiu (who also made the excellent 12:08 East of Bucharest) has made the bold decision of using many long, contemplative shots that will test the patience of today’s audience used to having a cut every 3 seconds.

Fortunately, the film is sprinkled with lots of witty dialogue, and it all pays off in the end. The ending reminded me of a similar scene in A Clockwork Orange, although the style is obviously quite different.

****

He wrote and directed the tasty The Cook the Thief His Wife & Her Lover in 1989, a brilliant film starring Helen Mirren and Michael Gambon. That’s just the tip of the iceberg though, his filmography spans over 5 decades and is bound to contain more gems – The Draughtsman’s Contract is next on my list.

EDIT OCT’09 So yeah, just watch The Cook… and The Draughtsman’s… and you better love them and their Nyman music scores. That is it.

Discovered them just yesterday, they’re pretty great. The band’s full name is …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead and, who would’ve thought, the main guy is somewhat of a pretentious faggot. But fact is, he’s talented and writes some blindingly good tunes. The new album, The Century of Self (hmm.. I wonder why the name attracted me ) has a fair share of them, and the one that’s quickest to own some souls is ‘Isis Unveiled’.

Here’s a video for the shorter version, I thought it was cool.

By the way, dredg released an excellent new pop album, you should probably check it out if you haven’t already.