Boomerang Events Entertainment and News

Archive for February, 2010

Sinead O’Connor has always been a name to conjure up many images, headstrong, controversial, blasphemous to some, and whilst these descriptions may in some ways be justified they do distract from the one thing that she probably wants to be known for, that is making beautiful, intelligent and thought provoking music. After spending time with bands such as In Tua Nua and Ton Ton Macoute she recorded a demo, with the aid of Waterboy Karl Wallinger, and on the strength of that was signed to Ensign records. The demo became the basis of her fantastic debut album, The Lion and The Cobra and the rest as they say is history. One of the most memorable images of O’Connor is her hair, or lack of it and it is a tribute to how serious she was to be accepted for her music alone that she deliberately projected, in her eyes, an unglamorous image to stop her looks being the focus of attention. It is also ironic that this hard skinhead and combat boots image probably made her a memorable icon, but at least her music was accepted on its merits and this album contains some of the most interesting and original sections of her work.

Jackie opens the album and is a mixture of Enya like vocals and rasping punk guitar, O’Connor voice is alluring and mesmerising, unique and ground breaking later to be emulated by the likes of Delores O’Riordan of the Cranberries. This is followed by Mandinka, the strongest song on the album, a song that sees the young vocalist at full tilt, Marco Pirroni, once of Adam and the Ants providing a jagged swath of guitars to compliment Sineads voice. In contrast to the majesty of Mandinka, Jerusalem remind us that these songs were written when she was still a teenager and whilst there is a large helping of teenage angst, it also becomes clear that she has not yet perfected her trademark vocal and occasionally she slips from that emotion and controlled agitation into whinny mode. However the song is still powerful and original, a slow rock number that builds and falls as needed to set the atmosphere.

Just Like You Said it Would Be, begins as a slow haunting acoustic number is joined by strings and a stranglers-esque keyboard section and has a Fairport Convention or Albion Band feel to the proceedings. Never Get Old is a far more interesting composition, opening with a spoken gaelic piece from none other than Enya, as Sineads vocals build up behind, a mix of lyrics and voice being used as an instrument. Just when you think that this is going to be a vocal piece,  drums kick in and a piano crashes through as the vocals rise in wordless cries like birds in flight fleeing the noise that has suddenly descended.

Greek mythology and domestic disharmony are merged together in Troy the story of a journey through love and betrayal, its setting and imagery moving from a kitchen in Dublin to the walls of the ancient city itself. Again Sineads vocals take the lions share of the song, and here they sound at their most glorious, sharp attacks of violins and brooding cellos emphasise the pain and despair that drips from the song. This song, like most of her songs comes from the heart and you believe every scream and every spat out accusation to be true and wrought of personnel experience, “you’re still a liar, you’re still a liar” rings out as the song fades. White funk takes over next in the form of I Want Your (Hands on Me) and in true O’Connor style seems to blend many different styles, funk is laid on rock and sandwiched in-between is the sound of the orient, chinese rhythms seem to sneak through the gaps. The production and clarity of this song seems raised in comparison to some that have gone before but this may be due to the fact that although the songs were originally mixed by the artist herself, many were remixed by a host of different producers creating a lack of continuity if only in a small way.

The album ends in a mellow fashion with two of the older songs, Drink Before the War and Just Call Me Joe provide this low key ending to an album that is anything but low key. Sales of this album were initially very poor, only about 25,000, but this exceeded the expectations of Ensign who still considered the artist decidedly odd. Although initially categorised as part of the female retro-folk thing that was being fronted by the likes of Suzanne Vega and Tracey Chapman, this was just a cop out, as there was no really contemporary or category for such an original artist. The value of this album and the artist in general seems to have only been realised in hindsight, in the messages her songs have delivered and the people that she has influenced and open doors for. This is an album of beautiful and confrontational music that was at once original and innovative, raw and haunting and timeless, a great investment for anyone serious about music.

The last word regarding her music and outspoken nature is summed up below.

In an interview with Bill Coleman that ran in Musician. ” I’m not an admirer of folk music, of Suzanne Vega and Joni Mitchell,” all that stuff is wishy-washy as far as l’m concerned.” Sinead may have had a big mouth when she sang, but that was going to be nothing compared to what she could do with it when she talked.

Shiny Toy Guns, the band that has shown electroclash influences emblematic of Depeche Mode and FischerSpooner, have emerged once again as purveyors of nouveau disco with their third full-length CD, Girls Le Disko from Ultra Records, the label whose stable includes recordings from such techno-pop artists as Calvin Harris, Tiesto, and David Guetta. Shiny Toy Guns’ collection of piping-pop dance tracks are a selection of original tunes and covers remixed by some of the top DJ/producers of today including Boys Noize (the stage name of German electro-pop artisan Alexander Ridha), Kissy Sell Out, Herve, Ferry Corsten, and Nadastrom, which culminate into an astral explosion of fantasy-rock tremors and reams of techno-channeled flourishes.

Some highlights on the album include the band’s dynamic remake of Peter Schilling’s 1980 prog rock sirloin “Major Tom (Coming Home),” originally written as a sequel to David Bowie’s “Space Oddity.” The synth-riddled vapors of keyboardist/bassist Jeremy Dawson and guitarist Gregori Chad Petree sizzle and flare out producing dynamic waves shingled by fantasy-clad pellets via Shiny Toy Guns’ drummer Mike Martin. Sisely Treasure, who replaces STG’s former singer Carah Faye, has a glistening sheen which clings to the synthy chimeras and lacy silhouettes and enhances the fantasy-feel of the track, contrasting the moody cleaving of Petree’s aggressive vocal kicks. Treasure comes close to sounding like Faye with an ambling glide that makes fan favorites from STG’s debut album We Are Pilots like “Le Disko” and “You Are The One” still have an enduring quality. STG’s songs “Ghost Town” and “Ricochet,” both originally recorded on the band’s sophomore release Season Of Poison, are given a stronger dancehall vibe on Girls Le Disko cobbled in spacey-bricked blocks. The crystal-like glaze of Herve’s remix for “Rainy Monday” is contoured by a flouncy rippling in the ethereal shards impaled by a club-laden pumping, and the clarion chimes and electro-leaded sabers arcade along “Don’t Cry Out” emote a fantasy world type of Shangri-la.

Shiny Toy Guns’ sonic masses of electro-clad trance and bolts of psychedelic rock have a common denominator with 2000’s electroclash movement and modern rock’s Goth-engendered dance pop. The band’s keen sensibilities of melodic coloring and lyricism is liken to MGMT with spacey synth-bricked grottos reflective of Goldfrapp. The band does not show a new prospective on electro-pop, but maintains its already established stance on the matter. Shiny Toy Guns may sound repetitive at times, but their songs are always sonically impressive and built as a portal to an escapist plane.

Tracklisting
1. Le Disko (Boys Noize Remix)
2. Major Tom (Coming Home) (Original Version)
3. Rainy Monday (Hervé Remix)
4. You are the One (Gabriel & Dresden Remix)
5. Ricochet! (Kissy Sell Out Remix)
6. Ghost Town (Evol Intent Remix)
7. Don’t Cry Out (The Teenagers Remix)
8. Le Disko (Ferry Corsten Remix)
9. Rainy Monday (Bimbo Jones Remix)
10. You are the One (Adam Freeland Remix)
11. Ricochet! (Nadastrom Remix)
12. Ghost Town (Hi-Deaf Remix)
13. Starts With One (Classixx Remix)
14. Ricochet! (BT Remix)
15. Rocketship (Original Version)

Okay what is this some kind of stunt! Mariah Carey who could have any man in the universe goes and marries Nick Cannon only after one month of dating? Nick Cannon may be an okay guy but not good enough to marry I mean let’s face it he has not been doing anything since Wild n Out, so basically he is a “D” Lister and to boot he is also a cheater. He has no money which means he is probably making payments on the $2.5 million ring he bought Mariah.

For the sake of all humanity I hope this is a stunt because compared to all the men that Mariah has been with this is to me considered a dive off the deep end. I do not see this going pass the summer let alone 2 weeks, but maybe I’m wrong it could actually be true love and if it is then my hat is off to the booth of them and I give my Congratulations, but I seriously doubt it.

Well according to her hit single “Touch My Body” it appears that the song is explaining her romance with Nick Cannon, just listen closely next time because just like in the song this too appears to have been a secret rendezvous that no one seemed to know about, but honestly why Nick Cannon, I could understand her hooking up with Terrence Howard, Taye Diggs or even Larenz Tate for that matter, I mean even Larenz Tate hasn’t been out for awhile but at least he is still on the “B” List.

Well I guess Mariah likes the idea of being a sugarmomma, why else would she consider this venture, and I hope she had him sign a Prenup because you know that his pockets are not bulging or ripping out the seams. My mouth is still open in shock about this and do you think it will last to the point that they will actually start a family. I just thought of their new celebrity name “Nariah” pretty cool huh!

I guess Nick Cannon doesn’t believe in breaks after a recent breakup either, and I am wondering if he broke up with the Victoria Secret Model in order to get hooked up with Mariah Carey because if that is how it went down then that is just grimy. I wonder how Christina Milan took this news especially due to their break-up being caused by his cheating. I don’t think he has the guts to try and cheat on Mariah Carey that would be insane.

Well I will closely stay tuned to this odd relationship and I will be sure to keep everyone posted. TTFN

Computer television might sound crazy to some, but the fact is thousands and thousands of people all over the globe are turning to this new way of viewing to see the shows they desire when they desire. While almost any computer set up with an Internet connection can be used to make computer television work, broadband connections are preferred.

A broadband connection simply allows for the faster transfer of data over the Internet to and from a computer. When a television show, movie or small video file are the desired download for computer television, this type of connection is almost a must. If it’s not used, computer television will seem like a step backwards rather than the huge step forward that it really is.

Let’s look at some of the whys behind the reasoning for broadband with computer television set ups:

* File size. If computer television is being used for downloading show files, the resulting size of the files will be incredibly large. Considering their size, even a broadband connection can require a fair amount of time to complete a file transfer.

If a regular dial up Internet connection is used, anyone trying to download a file to use computer television will likely find the time involved is neither convenient nor conducive for fun. Television shows and movies involve a lot of graphically heavy files which even in compressed formats are large.

* Speed. The file size involved in computer television will make downloads less useable than a regular television set up unless a broadband connection is used. It will generally take minutes to download computer television files with broadband and up to hours on dial up. There really is that much of a difference, so if time is a concern, broadband is a must.

* Streaming. Even if a computer television set up doesn’t involve downloads, a streaming set up can be impeded by a non-broadband connection. Streams can suffer from hiccups, which are made much worse by slow Internet connections. Streaming set ups are offered very often by membership services and even by networks themselves to show off new programs and help fans keep up with old ones.

The reason broadband is the preferred route is because this higher speed connection is better equipped to handle mass transfers of data in a short period of time. Generally more reliable than a dial up connection, broadband also isn’t affected by incoming telephone calls and other things that can knock dial up users offline.

Broadband lends itself to computer television regardless of the type of program that’s being used to deliver the programming to the computer. The basic types of programs that are involved in computer television include services that enable users to buy memberships and those that offer computer television downloads by the single episode. Both are very effective methods for being able to watch television programming using broadband connections.

As computer television gets better and better with services offering new programs within minutes of them airing on regular broadcast and others providing them the minute they air, broadband provides the connection necessary to really tap into this technological advancement.