Foxtrot Oscar

"Show me someone who's genuinely interested in glamour and I'll ask you why you've introduced me to your twat of a friend."

After reading that, think I may have fallen a little in Love with David Mitchell. Despite appearances, he is quite a badass. This was one of the objections he raised in last weekend's Observer column. He was sick and tired of the annual pomp, sensationalism and high profile nonsense which surrounds the Oscars. And he has a point. The cult surrounding the ceremony is so waaaaay out of proportion to its significance.

Even the panel of judges who aren't incredible authorities on film. Honestly - did you know that 14 year old Dakota Fanning is a member of the guild? I'm not saying that the majority of guild members aren't terribly talented. But I do feel that they represent a very narrow set of perspectives on film, and the ingredients which produce a good film.

I mean, what is a good film? A film that makes you feel so upset you cry, a film that tells you about a world and events you knew nothing about? Yes. Maybe. Probably. But haven't we seen all those things MANY MANY MANY times before? If this is what we're after lets just run a cocktail of Schindler's list, titanic, and Steel Magnolias from now until eternity.

It isn't exactly breaking down the boundaries.

Even the 'thoughtful' one-sided representation of the world of film and does not deserve to be taken as seriously as it is. Frankly, I feel like all it takes to get considered for a best motion picture award is a bit of budget, take on a tricky historical topic but deliver it only through the channel of a heart-rending love story to make it more palatable to the masses who have already been brainwashed by decades of Oscarism teaching them that a good film has a goodie, a baddie and a moral. It's patronising crap. And makes it so so terribly difficult for all those interesting film makers out there. The oscars are just SO uninteresting.

I've never really cared or understood the Oscars and always attributed this to the fact that I'm not much of a film fiend. But that is often because I feel like most films are crap. They really are. Perhaps I was spoiled by poncy (as some might say) foreign language movies in formative years French and Spanish cinema studies at uni. Nonetheless, spending a tenner to go to the cinema to watch a hollywood film where it is entirely clear within the first 20 minutes who the baddie is, who you must hate, who you must like, what the moral of the story is going to be... harumph.

I'd rather spend the money on a new top. Which, ironically lumps me into David Mitchell's 'twat of a friend' category.

The Half-Marathon Mix

I'm a friggin' eejit. I'm running a half marathon in SIX DAYS TIME. Yes, just you count 'em. 1 through 6. Not many days left. Unfortunately, I have not trained for this beastly 13.2 miles. In the past 4 months, my longest distance completed has been 6 miles. Yes, once again, just you count 'em. 1 though 6. Not many miles. Fuck.

So, I have this impending humiliation, failure, and excruciating pain to look forward to. Delightful. My best friend through all this; my rock, my love, my all, will be... my mp3 player, (and The Loser). The only thing that I can imagine will help us is putting together an inconceivably great 2.5hr playlist. One which will temporarily endow me with superhuman energy reserves, magically give me quads powerful enough to make Linford Christie blush, and generally distract me from the fact that I'm an idiot who should have been training instead of sitting on my arse in the pub eating chips.

People, help me out here - inspiring empowering (not lame) tracks to get me through?

Powerless in Brixton

So, the gig I was meant to go see at Brixton Academy last night was cancelled at the last minute by the venue. I had laboured through a hangover fuelled, sleep deprived Friday, and the one thing keeping me going was my obligation to go see Ladyhawke and Ting Tings at Brixton academy. Wasn't too bovvered (innit) about Ting Tings, (randomly managed to catch their pre-gig sound check at a venue in Boston once - that was enough for me), but was quite looking forward to some Hawking with The Lady. Shame.


However, the cancellation is a bit weird. According to NME news it was due to a power failure in the Lambeth area. But I live in the Lambeth area, and less than a few minutes on foot from the venue... and there were certainly no power cuts nor resultant emergency ice-cream consumption before it melts, chez-Zo. Every single bar, fried chicken shop and late night weave salon that populates Brixton Road was not only alight with liveliness of that Friday feeling but well electrified and flaunting its super(lightbulb)powers. What exactly went wrong in Brixton academy? Apparently there have been a couple of other cancellations at the venue due to power failures. My suspicions are that it was a temporary and unexpected problem, but no one wanted to go down to the scary basement to flip the trip switch... Sort it out O2 Brixton!

Annie Flummox

Is it just me, or is this bloody horrible? I'm so disappointed. It ruined my Saturday morning of laying in bed watching iplayer and Lost catch-ups. It has to be said, Annie Lennox is something of a Goddess. She must surely be about 85 by now but she doesn't look a day over 65. She has written many kickass tunes, bitched out her ex-husband by the power of song, is a clever lady who speaks no crap, she has... integrity? Well. At least I thought she did until this gross MOR cover of Shining light wearing a Britney-style fedora and and a waistcoat which was clearly stolen from a dozing Pearly King.

Wtf is going on with that atrocious band she is singing with? And that nasty little guitar solo that she dances to? Ugh. I like this song, it's a beloved drunken anthem of my not-so-wild youth. I'd happily listen to it. I just don't get why, if she will insist on covering Shining Light, (and let's face it, it wasn't the most original choice of cover song), she didn't do a synthy, electropop version of it. It's what she is great at ffs, it would have been awesome! And if she is trying to be all bang on-trend and down with the kids, (as her dodgy attire suggests), then a cool keyboard and bleep driven interpretation could have easily thrown her into the realm of trendy folktronica. (And would have done an awful lot more for her integrity than that suspicious red blousoon did).

If you want a great cover of Shining Light, check out the Duke Special version. It is flippin' lovely. In fact, the Duke is flippin' lovely. Unfortunately, there is not footage of the cover on YouTube, (but I have the mp3 - email me and I'll send it you). Instead, have some other Duke Special niceness: