Wednesday, March 17th, 2004
Hell Is Chrome
Funny thing for a horror/suspense movie, From Hell wasn’t really scary or suspenseful. I mean, it was alright – I didn’t dislike it, not at all. I thought they telegraphed the identity of Jack the Ripper way in advance, but the way the rationale unfolded was compelling enough to keep me interested. Still, it felt kinda flat overall for reasons I can’t quite put my finger on. The look of the film was lacking, at no point did I believe in the slightest that I was look at turn-of-the-centuty London. It looked like sets on a soundstage. I think this is mostly due to the lack of any sky or environment whatsoever in the scenes aside from some establishing shots, it’s all walls and alleys. A minor niggle, I guess, but it really affected how absorbed I got in the film. I haven’t read the graphic novel so I don’t have a point of comparison, but I’m reasonably sure that the book, as always, is better. Moving on.
A happy St Patrick’s Day to all – I was going to post some Irish-themed MP3s, but Teaching The Indie Kids To Dance Again has done a bang-up job instead. Pogue mahone! Yes, I know what it means.
Wilco has posted a new old song from the YHF sessions on their website. You can download “Cars Can’t Escape” in either mp3 OR MP4 format. That’s my boys, always on the cutting edge. I have a different, more downbeat version of the song on the YHF Demos bootleg as “Rhythm”, but more Wilco is always a-ok with me. Meanwhile, Said The Gramophone has an mp3 of “At Least That’s What You Said” recorded live in Oregon last September. What’s strange is that I have another mp3 of the same song that purports to be from the same show, BUT IT’S NOT THE SAME. One of these tracks is lying. LYING. Trust no one. It’s slated to be the leadoff track on A Ghost Is Born, out June 8.
Update: Don’t trust Winamp. Its browser said Sean’s download was a live track, but it’s not – it is, as he said, the actual album track. Leak leak leak!
Plexifilm are well on their way to becoming my favorite people in the world. In addition to having already released DVDs for Pavement, Ted Leo and Wilco’s I Am Trying To Break Your Heart doc, they will be putting out a Galaxie 500 double DVD in June featuring live footage from the band’s personal archives, music videos, an interview and “acoustic” session filmed for UK television, and two complete “bootleg” shows. It’s enough to make a man weep with joy. Details from Damon & Naomi.
How great is it that the Dalai Lama has his own listings on Pollstar? The spiritual leader of all things Buddhist drops phat beats from his latest album April 25 at the Skydome. Kid Koala and Barenaked Ladies to open.
np – Centro-Matic / Distance And Clime
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3/17/04 11:47 am
Hi Frank..
Uh, the version of "At Least That’s What You Said" which I have up at Said the Gramophone is from the album proper, not a live show. I don’t know where you got the idea that it’s a bootleg… Thanks for the plug, though.
cheers!
3/17/04 11:53 am
Sean – I got that impression from the fact that the Winamp browser window says so when I play it.
Artist: Wilco
Track: At Least That’s What You Said
Album: 9.4.03 – McDonald Theatre, Eugene, Oregon
But when I look at the file info, you are correct, it says ‘A Ghost Is Born’. And it doesn’t sound live. But it does sound very close to the other version I have that is live from that Oregon show.
Sounds great, either way. I cannot wait for the album.
3/17/04 1:16 pm
When in England this past christmas, I made it a point to locate and visit the spots where Jack killed his victims. There are only a few left, and they’re totally unmarked. Oddly, they are located in what is now Little India. Not very spooky at all. Nevertheless, it was partly From Hell that inspired me to find these spots. I have photographic proof!
>>lack of any sky or environment
London is always grey. Always.
>>it’s all walls and alleys
The area in question was and is, indeed, all walls and alleys.
3/17/04 1:37 pm
I remember sitting near the front row at the theatre when I first saw From Hell. Everytime Johnny’s lovely face loomed 20 ft tall in a close-up shot, all I could think was "Man you can really tell those sideburns some of the other facial hair are fake."
Oh that and I also remember being thoroughly impressed by the opium den set up. Kind of makes you want to have your own, does it not?
3/17/04 4:25 pm
One explanation might be that the Ghost Is Born info isn’t yet on CDDB or whatever database AOL/nullsoft uses, and Winamp doesn’t know what this is (and so assumes it’s that live show).
I have the rest of the album, and I’m sure that they’re not live bootlegs.