"The Avengers", superheroes' all-star game

The Avengers

That's the last superhero movie I'm watching in a long while, promise. Too many in the last two years, the majority of them being quite mediocre. "The Avengers" is not going to be any landmark in these overexploited sub-genre, but at least achieves its ultimate goal: being a pleasant entertainment.

After watching "The Avengers", I think I resolved myself a question regarding superhero/action movies. I prefer to have a no-brainer but quite spectacular, and for the most part, entertaining film than a supposedly more serious, but eventually more pretentious and sorry to say, tiring film like the last Batman. After all, a superhero film is not author's cinema and, if the material you are working with doesn't allow you to do so, maybe is better to concentrate in what you can offer: a couple of hours of fun. Besides, Marvel's factory has never been known for its adult/very mature pretensions, something that is completely reasonable, if you keep your coherency. So director Joss Whedon probably realised he had the potential (and budget) to film the most spectacular superhero film ever made. And decided to go for it, leaving the most substantial elements of a film (namely the plot or the premise) in an obvious second place. He probably chose well.

So, if you expected an intricate and tortured villain, look somewhere else. The bad guy is that kitsch version of Loki we saw on the laughable Thor, who by the way, looks exactly as silly as it was on that film, more likely to be participating on Smack Down/RAW than understanding what's going on Earth. If you were thinking on an elaborated major crisis that would force to assemble such a superhero "all-star game" this is not your film: the evil comes from another world, and with no other goal than provoking total war. Basically, "The Avengers" is that battle, and the so-called plot is the excuse to keep you waiting for it.

Well, the good part is that "The Avengers" doesn't pretend to take itself very seriously either. No one really cares about the Tesseract, and that extremely long scene on S.H.I.E.L.D. awesome headquarters, where scientists Bruce Banner and Tony Stark try to find a solution about the energy issue while they discover the real reasons of Nick Fury's behaviour, has the only purpose of being funny.

No, the questions on "The Avengers" are who would win in a fight: The Hulk or Thor? Who will be do the last action, who would be the one that saves the world? Can Captain America pair alongside the powers of the other superheroes? And what are the real motivation of the S.H.I.E.L.D. soldiers? The sort of questions to please the comic fans, providing a feast of amazing scenes of action, the mother of all battles and quite a few hilarious moments (best one being The Hulk hitting Thor by surprise). Actors doesn't have a lot to prove. Scarlett looks sexy as anyone can expect, but her character doesn't have an important role. Chris Evans has the same lame character as Captain America as their solo film. And Samuel L. Jackson is quite ridiculous again as Nick Fury. The only ones remarkable are Robert Downey Jr's impersonation of the cynical hero as Iron Man and the good actor Mark Ruffalo mutating into the green beast.

"The Avengers" combination is pretty engaging. Pretty silly, understanding silly as some kind of compliment, as it refers to its lack of pretensions. So it's a good, fun option, for having a couple of entertained hours at least. 

SCORE: 6/10

"New Wave & Post-Punk", well-known pleasures

New Wave & Post-Punk (1978-1984). From Depeche Mode to Franz Ferdinand (de Depeche Mode a Franz Ferdinand, Spanish original title)- Juan M. Corral (editor)

Here comes a very interesting and needed book. Well, music books are desperately needed in general in Spain, as the production is so small. So "New Wave & Post-Punk" has to be praised even if just as an attempt of covering such a music period. So thanks Juan Manuel Corral and the rest of music specialists (six different writers trying to dissect those times in several individual chapters) for the work.

Having said that, the book has many attractions, from just being informed about those years, who were the leading bands and artists of the different "movements" or "scenes" (whether the real existence or non-existence of the scenes are one of these perennial debates), their connections and relations, and maybe discover some of them, to bringing to the table, or at least explore, the origins and direct influences of many bands that are referential today. As the book clearly exposes, and I don't think its arguable, 80s are "on fashion" today.

To present such a vast and complex (it evolved very quickly) music panorama is not an easy task, so for sure, the scope of the book has limitations and the list of groups/artists included is, by no means (that's almost impossible) exhaustive, but the overall feeling after reading it is that the most relevant scenes have been covered and documented. Therefore, prepare yourself to embark on a quite challenging ride: from "England's Dreaming" to Joy Division fatalism, from American Hardcore to Gary Numan, from German industrial sounds to The Specials, from Morrisey & Marr to Diamanda Galas. 

As I said before, the book tries to analyse the most relevant bands and milestones of the different music scenes (plus a chapter on music labels, not that usual and highly absorbing, another positive point). I like the fact the writers doesn't hide their criticisms and opinions on albums and attitudes and that the focus is not reproducing what the chroniclers from USA and United Kingdom have vastly documented: the perspective is a more local one, about what and how we received these bands and styles here in Spain, and how we can value them. In that sense, the final chapters of "New Wave & Post-Punk" are particularly relevant despite its length constraints. One is dedicated to the "legacy", where music specialist Daniel Cabezas tries to summarize the influences of some of the most celebrated artists of the new millennium. A titanic, incomplete, but great chapter. The second is a brief (too short) but valuable view of how new wave and post-punk arrived and influenced national music, in a pivotal moment of change in Spain, after the dictatorship regime.

But there's a big, and a bit surprising, "issue" with this book: the unacceptable number of misspellings and typos. There's virtually no page without it. Just the back cover has half a dozen of them. Don't know which has been the problem (edition, lack of correction) but it makes the work look bad, not very professional. Sad, because despite its limitations, this book should be quite recommendable.

SCORE: 6,5/10

Discoverer 40: new indie findings

New band recommendations for you: lots of girls playing guitars (and other stuff)!

Sweater Girls. Checking the roster of Happy Happy Birthday To Me Records was on my agenda for quite a long time. But thanks to my frequently recommended friends of Indie Pop Saved My Life, this time I had a clear goal: the Sweater Girls. The L.A. band, active since 2010, is quintessential indiepop, the one that will immediately grab you and make you smile, full of jangling guitars, delicious twee vocals singing about impossible loves and friendships. Immediate warm and gentle feelings to your ears... and heart. After a couple of 7" releases, "Were Here", their debut album, is out on September 25th. The countdown has started.
 
Cruel Summer. Short trip from L.A. to Frisco to meet this quartet, which started to play out not even a year ago, and that defines themselves "like Sonic Youth making illegitimate kin with The Wedding Present". After hearing their small collection of tunes, an initial self-titled 3-songs EP (demo?) and another, comprising 6 tunes, out very soon, you'll see that BIG comparison might not be too far-off. Leaded by the voice of Thea Chacamaty, magnetic in the stunning "Carquinez", one of two pieces available to hear of their forthcoming EP, this band could have it: fuzzy, crunching guitars, dreamy melodies, infectious pop hooks. Have it all.    
 
TEEN. Change of coast with this Brooklyn's band, the current project of former Here We Go Magic keyboardist Kristina “Teeny” Lieberson, and a very familiar affair, as the (now) quartet is completed with her sisters Katherine and Lizze, plus long-time friend Jane Herships. A first EP in 2011, "Little Doods", preceded their debut album, "In Limbo", out just now. Rich and haunting, full of synths, spacey percussion, ethereal vocals, flourishing harmonies, guitar cascades and psychedelic turns, I hear echoes of Electrelane, The Velvet Underground, Rose Elinor Dougall, but I bet you'll find many others. An absorbing kaleidoscope of sounds.

Primavera Club 2012: my wish list

Swans, a quality and prestigious name but very far from my tastes was filtered a couple of days ago. Today, Gabi Ruiz tweeted the full line-up of the Primavera Club 2012 (December 5 to 9) will be announced  next Tuesday12th. So, as I did with Primavera Sound last spring, here's how my wish list would like... aside from my impossible and recurring dreams (I guess) of bringing The Very Most, The Hermit Crabs, Nat Johnson or Electrelane to Barcelona, I just made the list from bands that could be possible seeing their agendas so far... so here's hope!

Alpaca Sports. Well, they are simply one of the most delicious acts that have appeared this year.
Corin Tucker Band, The. The album is just arriving, so they should present it, so why not Barcelona? Or maybe for Primavera Sound 2013. Another amazing option (would love to have both) is to include Wild Flag, still have to come here!
Echo Lake. Touring UK in October....
Evans the Death. Similar case to Echo Lake.
ExLovers. No dates means options? Hope so.
Fonda. They release a new album very soon, so the time is right....
Fountains. The best new band of the year?
Hospitality. My Nº1 choice of the list. They end their American tour in November so...
Motorama. Finally, finally, finally, please...
School, The. Another must-see.
Shrag. "Canines" deserves a stop in Barcelona!
Softies, The. The Chickfactor celebrations gathered them for some gigs. Needless to say that would be a dream come true...
Stealing Sheep. Recently discovered, and completely haunted. How will they sound live?
Strawberry Wiplash. Wouldn't it be nice if Matinée Recordings had a special section at Primavera each year?
Toy. Similar case to Stealing Sheep. Counting the days for the record to arrive...
Wild Nothing. Their calendar dates seems to fit nicely...
Young Romance. Favourites from the blog, Claire and Paolo are an absolute must.

"Lemmy", the rock's heavy rock

Lemmy: 49% Motherf**ker, 51% Son of a Bitch

As you already know, I enjoy music documentaries so much it's easy I could end watching almost everything if its about music, even if the group/artist is completely opposite to my personal tastes. That's the case with "Lemmy", a rockumentary on Motörhead's leader, Ian Fraser "Lemmy" Kilmister, an undeniable hard-rock/heavy metal legend and rock icon.

The good about this rockumentary is that (luckily) doesn't focus on the music, and is not a collection of footage just to please his devote fans. It is a film about Mr. Kilmister, about capturing who he is and what's behind his iconic figure. The conclusion couldn't be more striking: there's no difference between Lemmy, the "rock God" (not my opinion, you'll hear that affirmation thousands of times during the film) and Lemmy the human being. There's no Lemmy and then an Ian. Forget the usual glamorous, decadent or eccentric side of a rockstar. Forget the tortuous and extremely hard disassociation of his musician's life and his life at home. The guy is just the way he is. Always.

Many rockumentaries have their good share of interviews/comments with relevant/related people talking about what it means for them the artist/band object of the film. Many of them are really bland, but in Lemmy's case, if you let aside some worshipping and anecdotes that seem trivial (the passion, enthusiasm and consideration from the likes of Metallica or Dave Grohl looks genuine and moving), you'll hear/see a recurrent affirmation. He's real. He's the person you are seeing. There's no fake, no star-pose. For good or bad. Take it or leave it. Celebrity Joan Jett from The Runaways summarizes it: "Everybody assimilates at some point [...], go along to get along, you know, to get what they need to get... I don't see Lemmy as that kind of guy [...] I see him doing things his way to get where he wants to go. And that's attractive, because people don't do that anymore."
 
Lemmy's portrait is necessarily bittersweet, revealing a complex character to take an insight of. Aside from the expected account on Lemmy's role within music history, we see his everyday routine (bars and slot machines), his musical interests, his personal life, from his views on marriage to a shocking interview together with his son, his collector, more like an obsession, "mode" and (glups) peculiar tastes recalling uniforms, a little recall of his early career (the most hilarious moment of the film, with the Hawkind members trying to justify why they kicked them out of the band due to "different drugs choice") and interesting footage of his current music career: life on the road, band and crew opinions and some brilliantly filmed music clips (but if you ask me, Lemmy's voice is really annoying).

Some could say the rockumentary is a bit loose in its structure, or that, in my opinion it would flow better with a reduced length, but it succeeds well in its goal of bringing a detailed account on Kilmister, with several moments to be remembered. Even for a non Motörhead fan... well let's be honest, even for a metal hater, "Lemmy" is an absorbing film, an unusual, profound and brave attempt to show a music legend that just happens to be a complex human being, with a not very glamorous everyday life. His own life, made of his own choices. He's like a rock, unalterable despite fame, drugs, alcohol, sex, etc. He's the rock's heavy rock.

SCORE: 7,5/10

Discoverer 39: new indie findings

It's Sunday, so here are the new band recommendations. Warning: it's a psychedelic week!

Toy. Like past week, another deserved hype coming from London. Formed in 2010 by singer/guitarist Tom Dougall (who is the younger brother of my beloved Rose Elinor Dougall), the quintet, with three former members of the band Joe Lean & The Jing Jang Jong quickly become "one to watch" at Festivals and as supporting slot for The Horrors on 2011, with whom they share friendship and musical style. Two celebrated singles, the debut "Left Myself Behind" and "Motoring", preceding their self-titled album, out next week on Heavenly Recordings. Post-punk, psychedelia, Toy are an exciting indie-rock sonic adventure full of promise...

Stealing Sheep. From London to Liverpool, with a female trio formed in 2010. They debuted with "What If the Lights Went Out" EP that year, followed by two singles in 2011 and "Noah & The Paper Moon" EP in 2012, before their debut album, "Into the Diamond Sun", arrived last week (Heavenly again). Defined as "whimsical pagan pop", if you allow me a more down-to-earth interpretation they sound like Warpaint embracing psych-folk territory, understanding folk as an enormous landscape where almost everything fits, always with their shining harmonies and intriguing melodies, full of little secrets, on top. Haunting.
Stealing Sheep

Whirr. Our third proposal comes from an Oakland, California, sextet. Active since 2010, they debuted with "Distressor" EP in June of 2011, quickly followed by the 7""June". After a slight change of name (from Whirl to Whirr), on spring of 2012, they released "Pipe Dreams" first album on Tee Pee Records. Whatever you choice, their EP's rougher side, or their poppier, more diverse and polished album, you'll find a band on absolute command of a cohesive, hypnotic shoegaze/dreampop. Yeah, you can bring the "untouchable" names to the table (Ride, My Bloody Valentine, Slowdive) for comparisons. They are that good. Ladies and gentlemen, let's float in space with Whirr for a while.
  Whirr - Home is where my head is Whirr - "Junebouvier"

Playlist: the Best of Beth Orton

In exactly a month, October 1st, Beth Orton will release her new album, "Sugaring Season", after six years of hiatus. She is one of my all-time favourite artists, so here's a little homage (a personal selection, many b-sides) to her beautiful music, and a nice warm-up to start the countdown till the record arrive. If you didn't know her yet, please take a listen!

1. Stolen Car
2. The Same Day
3. Concrete Sky
4. Shadow of a Doubt
5. Wild World
6. Central Reservation (original version)
7. Conceived
8. Dolphins (with Terry Callier)
9. A Place Aside
10. Galaxy of Emptiness (Live)
11. Safety
12. Sweetest Decline
13. Pedestal
14. Sugar Boy
15. This One's Gonna Bruise
16. Ooh Child
17. Ali's Waltz
18. How Far 
19. Thinking About Tomorrow
20. Pieces of Sky
21. It's Not the Spotlight