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DUNDEE, Scotland, September 24 – - Following the Announcement of a GBP500,000 Investment, ClashMusic.com Two highly experienced editors and online music news journalists have Mike Diver and Will Kinsman will join ClashMusic.com after proving As Online Editor at DrownedinSound, Mike was responsible for their Will Kinsman is a former editor of The Fly magazine. His experience of Both men are delighted at their appointments, during a period of Will Kinsman said: “I’m thrilled to be joining Clash at what is a Mike Diver added: “I hope to be able to use my experience in the online Simon Harper reflected these statements, saying: “The addition of Will “Both bring with them impeccable reputations, a wealth of experience, ClashMusic.com was launched in December 2007. Since then it has grown The appointments of Will and Mike will help improve online music news http://www.clashmusic.com About ClashMusic.com Launched in December 2007, ClashMusic.com is one of the busiest online For more information see http://www.clashmusic.com Media Contact: John O’Rourke, |
Miley — What, Me Difficult?
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Miley Cyrus says she’s not trying to get out of her “Hanna Montana” contract, notwithstanding our spies on the set — who say she’s been vocal about it. Our sources, as well as the Chicago Sun-Times, say Miley has been habitually late and has pissed off other cast members. |
The Music’s Robert Harvey Slams Downloads
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The Music are not fans of downloading music digitally, as it has an impact on the industry says frontman Robert Harvey. The singer tells BBC News, “Songs have just become an accessory now, they’re not something to believe in anymore and they can’t change lives like they used too. I think it’s becoming increasingly more difficult for unsigned bands to do anything.” Robert then went on to say he doesn’t agree with big names like Coldplay giving away their music: “I find it bizarre that bands who give music away act like saviours when they could quite easily be helping smaller bands on the label who can’t afford to even tour.” “I just feel there is less investment in real music now.” He concluded. More info |
‘Mentalist,’ ‘Gary,’ a new ride, and more ‘Heroes’
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NEW YORK — The fall TV season officially starts Monday, and NBC will pop the cork with its returning “Heroes” (a two-hour opener airs Monday at 9 p.m. EDT). CBS is ringing in the new year with “The Mentalist” (premiering 9 p.m. EDT Tuesday) and “Gary Unmarried” (8:30 p.m. EDT Wednesday). NBC hits the road with its new-model ‘Knight Rider’ (8 p.m. EDT Wednesday). — Back for its third season, “Heroes” is confronting high expectations from its besotted fans. And also a bit of resistance from former and would-be fans who couldn’t make heads or tails of the show last season. “Message: We care,” the producers have been saying as they promised to get “Heroes” heroic again. But to judge from the season premiere (a second hour airing Monday wasn’t offered for review), the series has met with only mixed success. The look and style of “Heroes” is as grand as ever. Everything about the show’s design, including the lettering for the captions and the eerie three-note musical signature, feels like part of a marvelously unified package. If only that package could contain the series’ plodding mishmash of a story. At the risk of sounding feeble-minded or, even worse, un-cool, I again ask the question I’ve asked about “Heroes” so many times before: What is going on? The murky, brooding, free-range narrative seems to glory in its abstractions. The action hop-scotches around the world, and back and forth through time. The internal logic of the show seems always ready to defer to the situation at hand. And the characters have multiplied like roaches. There’s a grandiose goal at the bottom of it all (saving the world, y’know), in the face of fierce opposition. But is this existential tug of war really going anywhere? Couldn’t everybody stop, relax their scowls and take a chill pill - just once? I’ve always admired “Heroes” for its epic, sprawling vision - up to a point. But an occasional save-the-world pronouncement isn’t sufficient to maintain coherence. Not with this scattered affair. — “You’re a psychic,” someone says to Patrick Jane. “No,” he replies. “Just paying attention.” Later in the premiere of “The Mentalist,” he goes a step further: “There’s no such things as real psychics.” Used to be, Jane marketed his skill for observation by masquerading as a psychic, making good money by “speaking with the dead” and other parlor tricks. Now he’s trying to redeem himself as a consultant with the California Bureau of Investigation. He wants to nab the serial murderer dubbed Red John, who leaves a shocking signature in blood at the scene of each crime and killed Jane’s family while Jane was winning fame with his hoaxes. He’s already cracked a couple of cases, so his effectiveness is acknowledged, albeit grudgingly, by the cops he works with. Meanwhile, he can be hard to handle. He’s flighty, cheeky, charming but sometimes insultingly blunt, a mite mysterious, and altogether disinclined to follow rules. A character like that provides a great showcase for an actor, and Simon Baker (”Smith,” “The Guardian”) is terrific in the role. Just watch him looking at things (he’s a good-looking guy), sifting through clues, the wheels in his brain almost visibly whirring. No wonder by-the-book senior agent Teresa Lisbon is torn between letting him into her unit, or giving him the boot, or (maybe) sleeping with him. She’s played by Robin Tunney (”Prison Break”). Tim Kang, Owain Yeoman and Amanda Righetti play other members of the unit. But you don’t have to be psychic to see that “The Mentalist” is all about Baker’s performance - and whether he will get scripts as good as he deserves. — Jay Mohr commands a pair of facial expressions that serve him well in comedy: an impish smile and hollow-eyed bemusement. He makes the most of both in “Gary Unmarried.” A better-than-you’d-think sitcom saddled with a worse-than-mediocre title, it finds Mohr playing the titular Gary, a recently divorced guy learning how to navigate his new world. Gary and Allison (Paula Marshall) share custody of their two kids, an 11-year-old daughter and a 14-year-old son. Then things get really complicated as Gary meets and falls for lovely Vanessa (Jaime King) while Allison turns up engaged to Dr. Krandall (Ed Begley Jr.), their couples therapist. “I’m not sure what makes me more mad,” Gary tells him after learning the truth, “the fact that you’re sleeping with my ex-wife, or that you made me keep a dream journal.” Sure, it may sound like “The New Adventures of Old Christine” as told from a man’s perspective. If you consider that a good thing, all the more reason to check out “Gary Unmarried.” It’s fast-moving and clever, and feels like, in the future, it could take some unexpected twists. But couldn’t the show have found a better name? — There isn’t much point reviewing “Knight Rider.” Any interested viewers can click their way to the Hulu Web site, where NBC has already made the first episode available for screening (because the network is so proud of it, or maybe wants to make an end run around snarky critics). Whatever, you’ll know within a minute or two if “Knight Rider” is your cup of tea. It has that beautiful car accessorized with artificial intelligence, transformative engineering, the voice of Val Kilmer and a pushy personality. The dashing young hero who looks great in a tux and is never at a loss for witty retorts. His gorgeous partner, who shares with him a bittersweet romantic past, and is equally adept at throwing a punch or throwing on a cocktail dress and looking like a million for the party at the consulate. There’s also lots of cartoony gunplay, explosions and turbocharged computer effects. Bad guys who go, “We can do this the easy way, or the very, very hard way.” And a missing data “package” that (as we are repeatedly told) is “vital to national security.” Along with its real star, “Knight Rider” features attractive bipeds including Justin Bruening (”Cold Case”), Deanna Russo (”NCIS”), Sydney Tamiia Poitier (”Veronica Mars”) and Bruce Davison (”Breach”). It’s based, of course, on the 1980s hit that starred David Hasselhoff, which (who knows?) might have been based on the 1960s sitcom “My Mother, the Car.” Or not. But the real inspiration is the product-placement deal struck with a major auto maker. “Knight Rider” isn’t so much an action-adventure show as a high-octane commercial. — NBC is owned by General Electric Co. CBS is owned by CBS Corp. — On the Net: http://www.nbc.com http://www.hulu.com http://www.cbs.com — EDITOR’S NOTE - Frazier Moore is a national television columnist for The Associated Press. He can be reached at fmoore(at)ap.org |
Christina Applegate - Applegate Wows Crowd At Emmys
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Actress CHRISTINA APPLEGATE wowed audiences at Sunday’s (21Sep08) 60th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards - proving she’s bounced back since beating breast cancer earlier this year (08). |
LiLo and Sam Break Out the Sand Panties
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Lindsay Lohan and Samantha Ronson continued their “coming out” honeymoon today — leaving those itchy flannels in Las Vegas to parade their absolutely jaw-dropping beach bodies around Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. |
Upcoming Oasis Shows Possibly In Jeopardy
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Oasis’ Noel Gallagher has revealed his injuries from the stage attack in Canada could put the band’s upcoming shows in jeopardy. Speaking out on the band’s official blog, Noel Gallagher writes, “”Went for some acupuncture earlier. Doc says it might help with straightening myself up. Can’t see it but I’ll try anything to make the gig happen. The guy’s not a miracle worker.” “He is a funny little Chinese man though. He greeted me by saying, “Come in, don’t worry, be happy!” KILL ME NOW!!! Didn’t work. Still feel pretty stiff.” “I’m walking like an old man,” he continued. “Best start thinking about packing up and going home, I guess.” “Yet another North American trip ends in chaos. If I believed in God, I’d begin to think he had it in for us. To be continued… “ The band has previously postponed their show in London, Ontario and cancelled a special club show at Terminal 5 in New York due to his condition. Other news:
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Johnny Depp in deep with Disney
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Actor to play Tonto, Mad Hatter in upcoming films Move over, Mickey Mouse: Johnny Depp, having buccaneered his way through three “Pirates of the Caribbean” movies, is becoming the new mascot of Walt Disney Studios. Depp, taking on the role of the Mad Hatter, has accepted an invitation to join the manic tea party in Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland.” In a surprise piece of casting, Depp also will play the sidekick Tonto in the upcoming movie version of “The Lone Ranger.” A daylong preview of upcoming Disney movies and projects, held Wednesday at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland, ended with a surprise appearance by the actor, outfitted as Jack Sparrow, walking onstage to the tune of “The William Tell Overture,” the “Lone Ranger” theme. The Depp castings were just a couple of the developments that Disney execs, led by chairman Dick Cook, offered up to a packed house of exhibitors and media types. In lieu of doing major presentations at industry confabs like ShoWest, Disney traditionally throws elaborate show-and-tells in Los Angeles every few years to promote its wares. Pushing the pedal to the metal, Disney and Pixar have moved up the animated sequel “Cars 2″ from summer 2012 to summer 2011. Another sequel, “National Treasure 3,” has been put into development, as has a fourth “Pirates.” Oprah Winfrey will lend her voice to the traditionally animated “The Princess and the Frog.” And on the Miramax front, Helen Mirren is set to play an Israeli agent in “The Dead,” a World War II espionage thriller that John Madden will shoot early next year. “Movies are constantly changing, and we want to be at the forefront,” said Cook, hammering home themes of innovation and creativity throughout the day. He began by showing graphs to make a point that movie attendance worldwide has remained relatively flat no matter how many movies were released. While not stating the point, it subtly underscored the company’s recent decision to scale back the number of movies it releases each year. Cook stressed that in order to stand out in the crowded marketplace, the company is focusing on what it calls “the Disney difference,” a combination of its brand name mixed with a dedication to creativity and innovation. “We add that extra increment of quality to everything we do,” Cook said. The starry presentation also trotted out such names as Jim Carrey, Dwayne Johnson, John Travolta, Robin Williams, Sandra Bullock, George Lopez, filmmaker Robert Zemeckis and Pixar/Disney Animation creative head John Lasseter. The company used the occasion to preview movies including “A Christmas Carol,” “Bedtime Story,” “High School Musical 3: Senior Year,” “Hannah Montana: The Movie,” “Race to Witch Mountain,” “The Proposal,” “The Surrogates,” “Old Dogs,” “Up,” “Prince of Persia” and “Tron 2.0.”
While trumpeting Disney’s 3-D track record and early commitment to the stereoscopic format, Cook took a jab at rival DreamWorks Animation, saying, “I read that Jeffrey might be releasing his first 3-D movie next year.” The event also featured an extensive demonstration of the making of Zemeckis’ performance-capture-based, 3-D “A Christmas Carol,” slated for November 2009. Onstage with Cook, Zemeckis said of the performance-capture technique: “You’re only limited by your imagination. It’s purely virtual. The filmmakers have complete control.” “Alice,” which begins filming this fall, is the latest collaboration between Burton and Depp — the two first worked together on 1990’s “Edward Scissorhands” and most recently collaborated on “Sweeney Todd,” becoming one of the longest-running director-actor partnerships in modern Hollywood. When Burton committed to filming a new live-action/CG, 3-D version of “Alice,” Depp was touted as the most likely candidate to play the Mad Hatter — after all, having starred in Burton’s “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” he’s practiced in wearing a top hat. Sony Pictures Imageworks’ Ken Ralston is the senior VFX supervisor on “Alice.” Imageworks is slated to do a substantial amount of the effects work on the film. David Schaub is the film’s animation supervisor, and Sean Phillips and Carey Villegas are visual effects supervisors for Imageworks. When talking animation, Lasseter said the studio is so high on the “Cars” sequel, which Brad Lewis is directing, that it will now arrive a year earlier. In the meantime, Pixar will keep the “Cars” engine humming with a series of animated shorts that it will dub “Cars Toons.” The first in the series will focus on Mater, the truck character voiced by Larry the Cable Guy. “Cars Toons” will play on Disney Channel and also will screen theatrically. Lasseter also revealed the story line for “Toy Story 3-D,” which will reunite the cast as the beloved toy characters deal with their owner leaving for college. In “Princess,” due in late 2009, Winfrey will play Eudora, mother of main character Princess Tiana, voiced by Anika Noni Rose. |
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Cream drummer Ginger Baker is to be honoured at the Zildjian Drummers Achievement Awards this December. The performance-led night takes place at Shepherds Bush Empire in west London on December 7. Baker is expected to be joined onstage by Cream bandmate Jack Bruce and The Good, The Bad & The Queen/Afrobeat legend Tony Allen. Steve White (Paul Weller/Style Council) is also set to appear at the ceremony. The event celebrates the 385th anniversary of cymbal-makers Zildjian. |
Revision3 Beta, the minor league for webisodes
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Media is starting to look like some weird fractal zoom pattern where every tiny eyelet contains another, smaller universe of even tinier eyelets. Evidence Revision3 Beta, the new webisode sandbox that web TV network Revision3 is officially launching Monday, where new amateur-ish shows can ride Revision3’s brand power in a race to win bigger audiences. Given that online TV is often considered the farm league for offline TV, this means we now have a farm league within a farm league. And since several of the Revision3 beta shows themselves graduated from the YouTube-like Viddler video platform, you could extend the metaphor and say this is a farm league, cubed. Shows like HackCollege (how to get through college more quickly and “without Adderall”), and “Bottles, Blends and Brews” (lots of drink reviews) are, production-wise, a half-step down from Revision3’s already inexpensive web shows, but a half-step up from the legions of YouTube shows that are made for free. See what I’m saying? Until now, who knew that such a half-step even existed? Anyone can submit their episodic show to Beta — which says it is not putting a limit on the number of programs it will host. If your show is accepted, Revision3 gives you a production deal. (For an idea of how much/little money this involves, refer to the previous paragraph’s half-step conceit). Still, the exposure Revision3 can offer to a show — for one thing, a reprieve from the anonymity of infinity that is YouTube — is itself a considerable boon to web producers. The site’s initial slate, which offers mostly commentary and how-to type shows on music, food, finance, tech, and sexy things, feature hosts that are, again, better than YouTube little leaguers but perhaps not ready for the pros. In terms of who might eventually be drafted to the majors, I’m a fan of Walt, the guy who teaches you the basics of music theory faster than you can say sousaphone. — David Sarno |