3rd March 2023
Ethical and practical questions persist in this dive into the unflinching, uncomfortable context behind direct action. Why To Blow Up a Pipeline is perhaps a more appropriate title for the book this climate crisis thriller is based on. Yet Andreas Malm’s theoretical and intellectual justification of direct action, sabotage and property destruction in tackling the ...
3rd March 2023
A prolific movie director from Hollywood’s Golden Age appeals to modern viewers. Over 100 years after the premiere of his first feature film, the voice of Alfred Hitchcock (via the brilliant impressionist Alistair McGowan) calls to us modern people with our 5G phones. Already renowned as “the Master of Suspense” with his cinematography dissected by ...
3rd March 2023
Best described as a damp squib. The sequel to 2009’s grand epic, Avatar: The Way of Water, is a predictable and tired narrative packaged in a breath-taking piece of cinematography. Pandora is the epitome of natural beauty but with a delightful sci-fi twist, and the expensive but worth it technology involved makes this world feel ...
3rd March 2023
An emotional journey into the depths of self-destruction. Darren Aronofsky has done it again. The master of evoking discomfort and emotional terror has produced yet another film drenched in melancholy and uncomfortable situations. However, in this instance, things are much more toned down. There’s no frantic psychosexual paranoia as in Black Swan, or the manic ...
28th February 2023
An exploration of the small-scale issues with BCNR’s Live at Bush Hall. “Look at what we did together, BCNR, friends forever.” Black Country New Road’s Live at Bush Hall has all the hallmarks of a final goodbye. The performance is framed like a prom, with its protagonists dressed in decaying school-dance garb, as if stumbling ...
22nd February 2023
Spotify’s obsession with data should not come at the expense of smaller artists. Enter Spotify, the most popular streaming service in the world. Home to your favourite music artists, podcasts, and audiobooks, all but the press of a button away. What’s more, it’s accessible, and completely free (if you can stomach a persistent wave of ...
22nd February 2023
It’s a war waging between fan bases with no sole aim or angle: the battlefield of the 21st century. Being able to follow artists we idolise on social media is like having a virtual backstage pass to all their events, all the time. Have you ever been to a gig and seen the artist post ...
22nd February 2023
For LGBTQ+ history month, an exploration of three artists and bands bringing queer expression into their songwriting It’s often said that if you want something done well, you must do it yourself. This perfectly sums up the new wave of LGBTQ+ musicians that have risen up in recent years. With fresh ideas, unapologetic themes, and ...
22nd February 2023
Music can help comfort us and contextualise our sorrows. Let’s be honest with ourselves for a second. Our comfort, pump up and nostalgic song choices aren’t just a reflection of our mood, but a message to our past, present and future selves. As many of us dived into our Spotify wrapped last year, I’m sure ...
21st February 2023
The Scottish screenwriter talks to The Glasgow Guardian about his upcoming play Better Days, and club culture past and present. Ben Tagoe was a teenager when the title track to his one-person show, Better Days, was released. Featuring a raft of classic early 90s rave tunes, his crowdfunded production tells the story of Danny, a ...
