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Music
Diane Birch—Bible Belt
Diane Birch—Bible Belt (S-Curve Records, 2009) Review by Hugh Lilly Diane Birch moved around a lot when she was growing up—her father, a pastor, was born in South Africa, and the family moved from Michigan to Zimbabwe, and then Australia, when Birch was still in elementary school. At age 10, the family moved back to … Continue reading
Amy Millan—Masters of the Burial
Amy Millan—Masters of the Burial (Arts & Crafts, 2009) Review by Hugh Lilly Amy Millan is a Canadian singer-songwriter who has been in the indie super group Broken Social Scene and the band Stars, as well as contributing to albums by Kevin Drew and Jason Collett; most recently she appeared on Gomez’s A New Tide. … Continue reading
Bites of Reality
“X Saves The World” by Jeff Gordinier “Charlie Kaufman and Hollywood’s Merry Band of Pranksters, Fabulists and Dreamers” by Derek Hill A few years ago Jeff Gordinier, a writer at Details and Entertainment Weekly magazines, was asked by his editor to look into what had become of his generation. The resulting book, subtitled “How Generation … Continue reading
RiP!: A Remix Manifesto
RiP!: A Remix Manifesto (dir. Brett Gaylor | Canada | 2009 | 86 mins) A thought-provoking and vibrant new film looks at the future of art and culture in the digital age, writes Hugh Lilly Brett Gaylor’s documentary about copyright and the place of fair use in remix culture is an exciting and thoroughly entertaining … Continue reading
New York in the ’70s
“If New York City were to slide back into the crumbling anarchy of the 1970s, as some fear, would that be so bad? The author recalls a time when artists’ lofts were inhabited by actual artists, every subway car held potential drama, and legends–Lennon, Warhol, Garbo–walked the streets.” “Splendor in the Grit” by James Wolcott, … Continue reading
M Ward—Hold Time
M Ward—Hold Time (Merge Records/4AD Records) Review by Hugh Lilly Hold Time, Matt Ward’s sixth studio release under the initialised moniker M Ward, is a lucid assortment of country-folk songs that features members of Grandaddy and DeVotchKa, among others. Ward, a folk singer based in Portland, Oregon, is no stranger to collaboration, having worked with … Continue reading
Yusuf—Roadsinger
Yusuf—Roadsinger (A&M Records) Review by Hugh Lilly Roadsinger (To Warm You Through The Night) is Cat Stevens’ second pop record since his conversion to Islam in 1978. Asked a few years ago by Jools Holland why he left the glamorous pop world, he answered “You come to a point where you have sung…your whole repertoire … Continue reading
Bob Dylan—Together Through Life
Bob Dylan—Together Through Life (Columbia Records) Review by Hugh Lilly Together Through Life is Dylan’s 33rd studio album, and the first to reach #1 in the UK charts since New Morning in 1970. David Hidalgo of Los Lobos and Mike Campbell of Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers join Dylan’s regular backers for ten tracks of … Continue reading
Glass: A Portrait of Philip in Twelve Parts
Glass: A Portrait of Philip in Twelve Parts (dir. Scott Hicks | Australia/USA | 2007) Review by Hugh Lilly Philip Glass is arguably one of the most influential and important classical musicians of his generation. He is certainly one of the most prolific, having composed eight symphonies, eight concertos, twenty operas and numerous works for … Continue reading
Maybe Robert Downey Jr. should have “gone full-retard,” after all
The 81st Annual Academy Awards were held at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood on Sunday, February 22nd and, for about the fifth consecutive year, were not telecast live by any free-to-air New Zealand broadcaster. Never mind though, that’s what the Internet’s for, right? Although that too could be in jeopardy depending on what happens with … Continue reading
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