Chimpomatic

Trailer Park: Let Me In

Trailer up for Let Me In, the US remake of Swedish-Indie-Vampire-Hit Let The Right One In. It's directed by the guy that made Cloverfield - and looks pretty good, though this early review over at AICN might suggest otherwise...

2nd Jul 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Big Boi For Dummies

Big Boi from Outkast is back in action this month, with new album "Sir Lucious Left Foot ...The Son Of Chico Dusty" ready to pick up a grammy for best album title if nothing else.

As a refresher, Big Boi has worked with DJ X-Rated and DJ Esco to compile a mix-tape of previous work - which you can download for free right now over at bigboi.com

2nd Jul 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

How Lego Is Built

Tedious news from Aint-It-cool about the development of a possible Lego movie, but worth noting for highlighting this awesome video of how Lego is made. And how fast Lego is made.

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2nd Jul 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Jeff Tweedy

Union Chapel, London

Jeff Tweedy cemented his position at the top of the league this week, with another top-notch performance - this time without the help of backing band Wilco and in the serene setting of Islington's Union Chapel. I've been looking forward to this one since missing his 2005 solo show in favour of seeing an ageing Bob Dylan at Brixton. A shocking mistake that I have regretted since, particularly as Dylan has returned several times since.

With just a guitar and his booming voice, the Wilco front man worked his way through a diverse range of classics from Wilco (Jesus Etc, Via Chicago, Kidsmoke), Uncle Tupelo (New Madrid, Acuff-Rose), Loose Fur (Laminated Cat, The Ruling Class) and a good selection of tracks from the Woody Guthrie albums on which Wilco teamed up with Billy Bragg (Remember The Mountain Bed [awesome], California Stars). He even bowed to "some asshole's" request for a Bob Dylan cover.

There was one exception to the solo status, as Tweedy was joined on stage early on by his 'hero' Bill Fay, with the two singing a charming duet of Be Not So Fearful. The more delicate setting placed a real emphasis on the lyrical quality of many of Tweedy's songs, highlighting his real talent as a talented and prolific songwriter, rather than just the front man of a brilliant rock band.

New tracks also made for some of the highlights (One Wing, Impossible Germany), but the star of the show was Tweedy's charming presence and wit - making the choosing of tracks by the audience like an episode of VH1's Storytellers starring Jack Dee. Brilliant.

#Music
#Gig
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2nd Jul 2010 - 1 comments - Add Comment - Tweet

Diss Is It

"I don't like your jerk-off name, I don't like your jerk-off face, I don't like your jerk-off behaviour ....and I don't like you, jerk-off."

Hardly an editing masterpiece, but pretty sure I've seen at least 98 of the movies featuring the 100 best insults of all time.

Via Defamer

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1st Jul 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Promo Promo: Not Band of Horses

Bizarre cover, even more bizare (NSFW) video. Cee-lo does Band of Horses.

1st Jul 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Matador at 21 = GBV Reunion

Matador Records are celebrating their 21st birthday in style - with a 3 day blow out at The Palms in Las Vegas. Highlights include a Guided By Voices reunion ("The classic '93-'96 line up"), Superchunk, Spoon, Chavez and Kurt Vile.

I'll be honeymooning in LA at the time, so will see if I can trick Mrs CSF into attending.

Update: The tour is expanded, and GBV will be playing in LA. Too tempting.

#CSF
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#Travel

30th Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Promo Promo: Sour

It's won some best video awards and had 2M+ hits on YouTube. Check out the Gondry-esque maniacal organisation of SOUR 'æ—¥ã€…ã®éŸ³è‰² (Hibi no neiro)'.

Via Sound Theory

29th Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Mr. Fusion

OK, it's not quite on a par with Doc Brown's banana skin eating Mr. Fusion, but Gucci web-developer-turned-physicist Mark Suppes has built his own fusion reactor in a workshop in Brooklyn.

Via BBC

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29th Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

The Big Picture: Korean War

It's 60 years since the war started in Korea. The Big Picture has a round up.

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24th Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Promo Promo: Black Mountain - Old Fangs

Black Mountain's psyco-delic promo for Old Fangs is not all together surprising. Nice rims.

23rd Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Promo Promo: The Roots feat. Jim James

Promo up the The Roots re-imagining of Monster of Folk's Dear God. Jim James goes to the big city.

23rd Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Mad Men 4

Poster out for Mad Men Season 4, which premieres July 25th in the US. Probably not until 2011 on the BBC....

23rd Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Trailer Park: The Green Hornet

Michel Gondry + Seth Rogen = The Green Hornet. What coud possible go wrong? See for yourself here.

Via AICN

22nd Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

The American

Loving the poster for the new George Clooney/Anton Corbijn movie The American. Check out the first trailer here if you haven't done so already...

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22nd Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Like: The Social Network

Not sure what to make of The Social Network. Seems like a strange premise for a movie - but there must be something to it for David Fincher to be attracted.

Take a look: www.thesocialnetwork-movie.com

Via AICN

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22nd Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

The Geography of LOST

Nice framed prints available from Image Kind, mapping the geography of the Lost island. Not sure you could find your way home with it, but it might look nice on the wall of your geek den.

Via Uncrate

21st Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Ad Nauseum: Flake

It might not sell a lot of chocolate, but it caught my attention. Sure, Cadbury's new ad from agency Fallon is a total re-make of the film from Alexander McQueen's A/W 2006 catwalk show, which projected a Kate Moss version of the film in front of the audience - but it's made by the same director (Baillie Walsh), so it gets a pass.

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#Fashion
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18th Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Trailer Park: Solitary Man

Trailer up for Michael Douglas' once-a-decade come back movie - Solitary Man. With added Danny DeVito.

18th Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Kids in the Hall - Death Comes To Town

Death Comes To Town sees the welcome return of 90's comedy legends Kids In The Hall, as the canuckian comedians eschew their traditional scetch show format for a narrative based comedy 'drama'.

Of course it's not that straightforward. The five kids play 90% of the characters in the backwater town of Shuckton, where death has literally come to town. In fact, he's staying at the the No-tell Motel. As the story evolves, we move between a handful of story lines - all revolving around murder in the town. We follow the trial of a 1/16th native suspect, the ascension of the mayors wife, rivalry in the local news crew and sofa-bound former hockey hero Ricky's dodging of death as he's compelled to solve the crime.

There may not be the screaming highlights of the show ("My pen!", Girl Drink Drunk), but it's all solid and full of laughs. Fat, thin, male, female - it makes no difference as the Kids seamlessly blend in and out, building a convincingly ridiculous picture of the intricacies of small town life.

"What's heaven like?"
"It's like Calgary. In the 60's."

#TV
#CSF

18th Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Ad Nauseum: Paint The Town Lavender

Fairly epic ad up from Dulux, who've kindly painted your neighbourhood a puke inducing shade.

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17th Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

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Spike Jonze: I'm Here

We missed the boat on this, but Spike Jonze has had a new short online since March. I'm Herecan be viewed in it's entirety over at the Absolutly-branded website: www.imheremovie.com

It's a love story, with robots. Trailer up top.

16th Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Trailer Park: Somewhere

The making-of featured in Girls of the Playboy Mansion months ago (apparently. I wouldn't know), but now there's a trailer for Somewhere - Sofia Coppola's follow-up to the mis-firing Marie Antoniette, and racist-but-thoroughly-entertaining Lost In Translation. In HD on Youtube and over at Apple.

Hanging out in hotels makes things look nice.

Via The Guardian

15th Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

More Mountain Wilderness

More album and tour info from Black Mountain...

Wilderness Heart will be released by Jagjaguwar on September 13th. Tracklist for the 10 track album will consist of:

1. The Hair Song
2. Old Fangs (download it here)
3. Radiant Hearts
4. Rollercoaster
5. Let Spirits Ride
6. Buried By The Blues
7. The Way To Gone
8. Wilderness Heart
9. The Space Of Your Mind
10. Sadie

The band are playing two low-key shows at The Lexington in July, followed by some festivals and now another London show at Shepherd's Bush in October.

JULY
11th - Kinross - T in the Park Festival
13th - London - Lexington - SOLD OUT
14th - London - Lexington - SOLD OUT
16th - Southwold - Latitude Festiva

SEPTEMBER
4th - Oxford - Academy
5th - Birmingham - Hare & Hounds
8th - Brighton - Concorde
10th - Isle of Wight - Bestival
11th - Larmer Tree Gardens, Dorset - End Of The Road Festival
12th - Leeds - TJs Woodhouse Club
14th - Glasgow - Oran Mor
15th - Manchester - Academy 3
16th - Nottingham |Rescue Rooms

OCTOBER
7th - London - Shepherds Bush Empire

Support will come from the mighty Ladyhawk for the Leeds, Glasgow, Manchester and Nottingham shows. Tickets for the headline shows are a very reasonable £11, except for a still reasonable £14 in London. Tickets available here.

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15th Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Freedom From Porn: The Movie

There seems to be quite an Apple backlash brewing recently, as Apple overtake Microsoft's spot at the top in more ways than one. While the closed eco-system of the iPhone/Pad/Pod certainly has its advantages, it's also a similar situation to that which led to Microsoft's dominating share of the browser wars - which were followed by years of anti-trust investigation and Internet Explorer's current position as bastard child of the evolving internet.

Steve Jobs' position on porn has been made quite clear, and some people don't like it.

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14th Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Eat My Gold!

Our old pal Prof. Poliakof (see here for his periodic table of videos) is back in action, this time disputing the claimed solid-gold quality of the FIFA World Cup. FIFA claim the cup is solid gold and weighs 6.175 kg, but by the professor's calculations it would weigh at least 70kg if it was actually 'solid' gold.

Via BBC

14th Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Free-zer

It's a last ditch attempt, but soccer nut Rivers Cuomo of Weezer has recorded the USA's World Cup Anthem. Free on iTunes in the USA. 59p here. Bah!

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12th Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

LOOFER!

Attention slackers! All six episodes of the excellent Luther are on BBC iPlayer for a limited time. Download now and get watching. Stringer Bell's best performance since The Wire (Season 3).

12th Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Venison

The Strokes played a secret gig at Dingwalls last night under the pseudonym of 'Venison', as they warm up for The Isle of Wight Festival. It sold out in minutes. NME have the details, including what they were wearing, because that matters apparently. Photos here.

11th Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

The Cure

Disintegration (Deluxe Issue)

Polydor

On it's impending release I remember thinking of Disintegration as something of a sell out. A mainstream album on a major record label, which was getting the kind of promotion a new Kings of Leon record would get today. In hindsight, it is perhaps The Cure's darkest and most complete album - focussing their attention in a way that the singles-orientated band had not managed before, into what might as well be one, long brooding composition.

Which begs the immediate question of whether this 12 track masterpiece really needs an expanded, 44 song edition? The answer isn't exactly yes, but if taken as 'extras', this is a fantastic release, which honours the original beautifully. The first disc features a newly remastered version of the original album, making it easy to switch off when that finishes. If you're on a mission, disc two should perhaps be listened to first - as the variety of demos from different periods in the production really show the evolution of the album, without the dull repetition that so many deluxe issue succumb too. Songs evolve from Robert Smith's home demos, through band rehearsals, band demos and studio outtakes.

Delirious Night, Pirate Ships and Babble offer notable non-album tracks on this disc, perfect for mix-tapes - but the more up-beat nature and tempo of each makes it easy to see why they didn't make the cut for the sombre/uplifting final record.

Disc three features the entire album, live (from Wembley Arena! Sell out). Stick this one on last and the evolution of the record is complete, transporting you back to a packed concert as the alum is majestically and triumphantly performed.

#Music
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11th Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Black Mountain

Old Fangs (Single)

Jagjaguwar

The first taste of Black Mountain's forthcoming album Wilderness Heart has arrived - and Old Fangs is no disappointment. Not exactly as expected, with the band moving their sound forward the best part of a decade to the late 70's/early 80's - but exactly as expected wouldn't be much fun would it? Empires will be smashed, dual vocals will rule and the psychedelic keyboards get their turn in the spotlight.

Wilderness Heart is due in September. Download Old Fangs now.

#Music
#CSF

11th Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

UP THERE.

Lovely short film up at Vimeo documenting the guys that still paint the multi-story billboard ads in NYC.

FYI ...should you find yourself wanting a Stella at the end, it's an advertorial. Produced by Mother NY.

Via Howies.

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8th Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

The Big Picture: D-Day +66

Sunday June 7th marked the 66th anniversary of D-Day. The Big Picture says it best.

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7th Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

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Celebrate Originality? Star Wars vs Adidas

Very, very strange ad for Adidas... totally lacking in atmosphere. And Beckham shoots first.

5th Jun 2010 - 1 comments - Add Comment - Tweet

Write The Future

Sure, it's an ad from a mega corporation, but ads don't get much more epic than this - just in time for the World Cup. Amores Perros director Alejandro González Iñárritu is the man calling the shots...

And while we're at it, here's a quick Nike salute to LA Laker Kobe Bryant, leading the Lakers into the NBA finals this week. Andre 3000 covers All Together Now on the soundtrack. (via Pitchfork)

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4th Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

TV Catch Up

TV on the move is becoming more and more of a reality, thanks in no small part to the BBC iPlayer (which is even HD on the iPad) and now TV Catch Up, who have just launched an iPhone-friendly version of their site.

The name is a little misleading, as much of the site's original PVR functionality has been dropped to meet legal requirements, and by all accounts the service is now legal. Barely.

Visit iphone.tvcatchup.com from your (i)phone browser or ipad.tvcatchup.com from your iPad and once registered you can watch live TV from the bulk of the better Freeview channels. Add it to the home screen for easy access.

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4th Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

If It Was My Home

Here's an interesting Google Maps site to help visualise how big the Gulf of Mexico oil spill actually is. It's big.

www.ifitwasmyhome.com

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4th Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

You Will Always Be A Loser

No review, but Team Chimpomatic thoroughly enjoyed Titus Andronicus at Camp last week. Favourable reports are coming in from Spain too.

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#Space
#Tech

3rd Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Mission To Mars(ish)

It's been 18 months since we last covered it - and they're only just setting off - but the Mars 500 project kicks off today in Moscow.

6 would-be astronauts will be sealed inside a simulation space capsule to document the effects of an 18 month round trip to the red planet. The simulator even includes a mock-up of the planet's surface - so the effects of EVA can be studied after the 6 month feet-up session.

One thing that has changed in 18 months is the arrival of Twitter - which Italian pseudonaut Diego Urbina will be updating during the trip. The mission also has a blog.

Via BBC

3rd Jun 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

A few unanswered questions

Still have a few questions after the Lost finale? College Humor has rounded up a few key questions in particular...

NY Magazine's Emily Nussbaum has got a good take on the disappointment of fans as well; some dumber stuff from the Fine Brothers here

31st May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Parallel Lines

More entertisment from Ridley Scott's RSA Films. This time they're making films in aid of hawking the latest 'innovation' from Philips - widerscreen TVs.

The films revolve around the concept of a unicorn. That's Carl Erik Rinsch's effort above. See them all and make your own over at YouTube.

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#Film

27th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Roll Up, Roll Up

Sony's new TV tech can roll around a pencil. And here's a video to prove it.

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#TV

27th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Hurley's Last Days

Don't get your hopes up for answers, but the Lost Blu-ray release will contain a bonus scene of '12 to 14 minutes' depicted Hurley and Ben's final days/months/years/decades on the island. Which might provide some answers.

27th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Free Kurt Vile

Kurt Vile's new EP is free for 24 hours, as of yesterday. Get it now.

If you haven't already, check out his excellent album Childish Prodigy.

#CSF

26th May 2010 - Add Comment - Tweet

Pearl Jam vs Band of Horses vs PJ Fans

Ben Bridwell's Band of Horses have been supporting Pearl Jam on tour in the US. Here he is doing guest vocals on grunge duet classic Hunger Strike.

Via Steadyburn