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ALBUM: FONTAINES D.C. - DOGREL

I've just started listening to this record after it being recomended on a podcast i listen too. Fontaines DC aren't your typical indie band, there's a edge to their instrumental & the vocals provided by Grian Chatten are completley original. They're Dubliners, which if you've ever been to the city, for me, screams out in this record. There's something gritty and harsh about their sound. This is their debut album and after only a few listens i'm a fan. It's not massivley heavy but they also aren't Travis. Second album A Hero's Death was released in July which I'm sure will be just as good.  Give them a whirl!

PODCAST: MAD SOUNDS

I came across this pod after a retweet from Matthew Horne of Gavin & Stacey who was a guest. The lads also run a indie club night under the same name which for obvious reasons isn't a go at the moment so they've turned their hand to podcasting. There's a few interesting segments with "The Record Store" being a favourite of mine. A guest will come in and lay out their top three albums of all time, with reasons why and there's always a few anecdotes to keep things interesting. It's a superb way to introduce yourself to some new music or perhaps reaquainte yourself with some forgotten stuff, The Twang being a band that had slipped from my consciousness and now firmly back on my playlist! With top guests like Joe Carnall (see my Goldteeth review), Jamie Webster, Gary Powell and Mat Horne this is a pod for all music lovers.    

BOOK: LOUIS THEROUX - THE CALL OF THE WEIRD

I was suprised to find this is Louis first book. He's obviously well known for his BBC documentaries which have spanned, suprisingly for over twenty years now. I picked this up in HMV (yes there's still a few about) as I was looking for something light to read. You know, just before bed kinda thing and it's perfect. Written in 2005 it documents Louis return to the USA visiting a number of "weird" people he'd interviwed seven years previous for one of his early docs. These people range from: Alien murderers (yes you read that right) A pornstar, a washed up jazz star, members of a anti- New Order cult and the workers of a multi million dollar Nevada brothel plus a few more. These people were obviously chosen carefully by Louis and his team. Some for shock value others just to satisfy the Weird in his book title but as always with Theroux his interviews are sincere and he seems genuinley interested in his subjects. For me, the televised documentaries are more enjoyoable as there's some things that just can't be conveyed through writing but nevertheless this book is ideal for a quick read with just under 300 pages.   

TV/FILM:  THE SINNER SEASON 3 - NETFLIX/ TENET

I've watched the first two seasons of The Sinner and sadly each season has got progressively worse. Season 1 was completely original and although I've always felt that each season could be cut to maybe four or five episodes (currently eight) I was still intrigued enough to binge watch and finish in a matter of days. Season 3 still has a "why has this happend?" element but i found myself not actually that bothered about the lead character or why he has committed his crimes. There are a few twists and turns along the way as usual and one scene towards the end of the season made me uncomfortable but in a good way if that makes sense! Overall I found this a dissapointing watch but if you haven't already check out season 1.

As a big movie fan it's been pretty shitty not being able to catch a film during lockdown so when Tenet was released I was quick to round up some of the guys and smash a Waggers before a 8pm viewing. Chris Nolan is without doubt one of the outstanding directors of our generation. He reinvigurated the Batman franchise and both Intasteller and The Prestigue are outstanding movies. I've swerved Inception currently for some reason but it's one on my to watch list. 

To put it simply Tenet is confusing as hell! Which really pissed me off. Why is Nolan trying to be soooooo clever? He's in real danger of alienating his audience. I get that there's a certain concept he's trying to push, time travel etc but the intricacy, time lapses, the fact it feels like there isn't a scene longer then a minute for me at times made it a difficult watch. I don't want to HAVE to watch a movie three times to understand it! Confusion aside there's also some excellent parts to this moive. Once things start to be explained what I could piece together is very very cool. It's one everybody will be talking about good and bad even if none of us really know what's going on! Oh and there's the obligatory Michael Caine cameo too.