Is your baby a f*cking gremlin?
I'm sitting about at my parents' home, so I may as well write something here. They've pointedly written 'Happy Solstice' across the big mirror above the fireplace. Designer Atheism has followed me across the Irish Sea. My Dad has provided great entertainment by accepting an invite to a new networking site called tagged.com, making his profile photo one from a party where he's dressed as a Red Indian, then accidentally sending invites to everyone in his address book; including prominent businessmen, academics, newspaper owners, and Gerry Adams.
What have I been up to? Couple of films... The Baader-Meinhof Complex was a well-made thriller. It's upset people by glamorising its subject. But it is a great story that was calling out for a film; the teutonic equivalent of Polly Toynbee running away and joining the Real IRA, then blowing up John Lewis. Andreas Baader was portrayed as an unsympathetic and obstinate sociopath but there is a grain of truth in these accusations. I don't know how factual it all was but at their trial they ran rings around the slow-witted judge. And there's a most amusing portrayal of their training at a PLO camp, with lots of naked hippy ladies sunbathing in front of astonished Muslim guerillas. Bruno Ganz (Downfall's Hitler and Herzog's Jonathan Harker) was underused as an eccentric police chief; the only one with a profound understanding of his enemy, who looked beyond the black-and-white, Thatcherite law-and-order solutions. Let's hope the upcoming Che Guevara film gives him the kicking he needs, though I predict a hagiography. Maybe it's all the anniversary of 68 stuff but there seems to be something in the air where everyone's looking back at all the idealist iconoclasts and re-evaluating their legacy. I've been trying to write a song about it ever since I watched the film, but so far I only have a closing line- "You got exactly what you wished for/She was only a grocer's daughter".
W was an odd one. It focused on the run-up to the Iraq invasion, with regular flashbacks taking us through his early years. The latter scenes were engaging and full with tension (frequent clashes with his dad, walking out on every job he tries, alcoholism) but once he's President, it's an episode of Spitting Image, everyone doing funny impersonations. The satire felt forced and contrived, as in the wordless pretzel set piece or opening scene when they're all sitting around going "Axis of... hatred? Nah, it's not quite right...". I was baffled at the omission of 11/9, surely the pivotal moment in his life, but I suppose it's already been raked over by Michael Moore.
One of the best and oddest gigs of the year happened a couple of weeks ago, when Mr Shah and Aug played Benjamin Franklin's house/museum off the Strand. It's been lovingly kept in that C18th style and I felt like we should all be in corsets and horsehair wigs. David's new songs are quality and he played all the ones I was hoping for, 'Selfish Bachelor' being an inevitable highlight. I downloaded everything that was up for grabs the next morning.
Kate's been doing her 8-gigs-in-8-nights marathon and I made it to three. Fosca's ebullient farewell to the London stage took me right back to the dark days of 2002 and her school's Christmas concert boasted limitless variety; from Mozart sonatas to hip-hop dancers and most things in between. I made it to the first of the three atheist rallies as well. Designer Atheism is starting to wind me up and ended a full year of my lyric-writer's block with 'The Man Delusion'. Ok, you're obviously right, but if it's that obvious, why is it a worthy pursuit to stand on a stage and declare this? It all began as Hey Godbotherers, leave us alone, but now it feels like it's tipping the other way and declaring war on things that aren't impeding your own personal freedom.
Probably sensing this, Robin had tried to redirect the show to a celebration of science and rationalism. Sounds austere and Dickensian but it was a very fine show. As is inevitable with 20 performers, there were a few I didn't like (I may well go to my grave not getting Josie Long) but the highlights were legion. Natalie Haynes, who I'd never even heard of, was probably the best of a very strong bunch. It was a thrill to see my missus playing the glockenspiel as Luke Haines sang 'Bad Reputation', not to mention her tuba playing the timpani parts on 'Also Sprach Zarathustra'. Richard Dawkins, although out of his comfort zone appearing amongst stand-ups, read a very witty piece about a deadly drug called Gerinoil. Ricky Gervais made an utter fool of himself by being the only performer to insist that Martin's band be removed from the stage whilst he was on, but I have to admit that his jokes were very, very funny. I also liked Stewart Lee and the new character of Gary Le Strange, which is an extremely cruel (yet quite glorious) send-up of Brian Wilson. The song was spot-on.
What have I been up to? Couple of films... The Baader-Meinhof Complex was a well-made thriller. It's upset people by glamorising its subject. But it is a great story that was calling out for a film; the teutonic equivalent of Polly Toynbee running away and joining the Real IRA, then blowing up John Lewis. Andreas Baader was portrayed as an unsympathetic and obstinate sociopath but there is a grain of truth in these accusations. I don't know how factual it all was but at their trial they ran rings around the slow-witted judge. And there's a most amusing portrayal of their training at a PLO camp, with lots of naked hippy ladies sunbathing in front of astonished Muslim guerillas. Bruno Ganz (Downfall's Hitler and Herzog's Jonathan Harker) was underused as an eccentric police chief; the only one with a profound understanding of his enemy, who looked beyond the black-and-white, Thatcherite law-and-order solutions. Let's hope the upcoming Che Guevara film gives him the kicking he needs, though I predict a hagiography. Maybe it's all the anniversary of 68 stuff but there seems to be something in the air where everyone's looking back at all the idealist iconoclasts and re-evaluating their legacy. I've been trying to write a song about it ever since I watched the film, but so far I only have a closing line- "You got exactly what you wished for/She was only a grocer's daughter".
W was an odd one. It focused on the run-up to the Iraq invasion, with regular flashbacks taking us through his early years. The latter scenes were engaging and full with tension (frequent clashes with his dad, walking out on every job he tries, alcoholism) but once he's President, it's an episode of Spitting Image, everyone doing funny impersonations. The satire felt forced and contrived, as in the wordless pretzel set piece or opening scene when they're all sitting around going "Axis of... hatred? Nah, it's not quite right...". I was baffled at the omission of 11/9, surely the pivotal moment in his life, but I suppose it's already been raked over by Michael Moore.
One of the best and oddest gigs of the year happened a couple of weeks ago, when Mr Shah and Aug played Benjamin Franklin's house/museum off the Strand. It's been lovingly kept in that C18th style and I felt like we should all be in corsets and horsehair wigs. David's new songs are quality and he played all the ones I was hoping for, 'Selfish Bachelor' being an inevitable highlight. I downloaded everything that was up for grabs the next morning.
Kate's been doing her 8-gigs-in-8-nights marathon and I made it to three. Fosca's ebullient farewell to the London stage took me right back to the dark days of 2002 and her school's Christmas concert boasted limitless variety; from Mozart sonatas to hip-hop dancers and most things in between. I made it to the first of the three atheist rallies as well. Designer Atheism is starting to wind me up and ended a full year of my lyric-writer's block with 'The Man Delusion'. Ok, you're obviously right, but if it's that obvious, why is it a worthy pursuit to stand on a stage and declare this? It all began as Hey Godbotherers, leave us alone, but now it feels like it's tipping the other way and declaring war on things that aren't impeding your own personal freedom.
Probably sensing this, Robin had tried to redirect the show to a celebration of science and rationalism. Sounds austere and Dickensian but it was a very fine show. As is inevitable with 20 performers, there were a few I didn't like (I may well go to my grave not getting Josie Long) but the highlights were legion. Natalie Haynes, who I'd never even heard of, was probably the best of a very strong bunch. It was a thrill to see my missus playing the glockenspiel as Luke Haines sang 'Bad Reputation', not to mention her tuba playing the timpani parts on 'Also Sprach Zarathustra'. Richard Dawkins, although out of his comfort zone appearing amongst stand-ups, read a very witty piece about a deadly drug called Gerinoil. Ricky Gervais made an utter fool of himself by being the only performer to insist that Martin's band be removed from the stage whilst he was on, but I have to admit that his jokes were very, very funny. I also liked Stewart Lee and the new character of Gary Le Strange, which is an extremely cruel (yet quite glorious) send-up of Brian Wilson. The song was spot-on.