More from last night...

For everyone's delight. More pictures from Friday night...

In random (mainly reversed) order.

Big hair. Big trouble.


"What's wrong with you people!??!"


The ever-cool Alex


M.: Tots. Listen to me. You NEED to go home now.
V.: Alright! Alright! Just one for the road, shall we?


Uhm... that hat looks MUCH better on Cat...


Spence. He's the man. The girls (and the boys) just LOVE his groove.


Er... yes. The hat did the rounds...


The star of the party. But what is she holding?!


Yes they WERE drunk.


Definitely looking good...


Cool


Cooler


"Can you REALLY do it in that position?!?!"


Yes, it's all about me. If Totty can do it, why can't I?


Ah. I love it when I get tall ladies sitting on my lap. PS: Don't ask why I keep on doing strange signs with my fingers. I think I was just stretching them after the exam.


Earlier in the day. People still looking pretty and sober...

Tales of Totty Wonder

This story, like all good stories, begins in the present day, with a ravishing Lady V, sweating gently under the weight of the familial 7 months-old offspring, giving out a sigh, as the world appears just a little too burdensome after the previous night's shenanigans.

Cut to: the previous day

Scene 1 - on campus

Yours truly completes at 11.59 his final exam, after writing 9 copious pages of rubbish on ecofeminists and why it's ok to drive SUVs and not worry about global warming (yes, we all need to make a living, and I need to get this degree, so shut up all of you).

Leaves examination room. Enters pub. Proceeds to down 2 pints of Guinness and then invite - in a slightly over-excited manner - anyone in sight and on his mobile to a house-party. Some look away in horror. Others ooze in delighted expectation. The damage is done.

Scene 2 - at home

People begin to trickle into the flat. Lady V arrives pretty early and downs within minutes 3 large G&Ts. Cheeks assume the well-known pink tinge. But conversation still makes some sense. Other members of the community arrive, including PDF & M, and Sicily, who begins to harass innocent bystanders. Most don't know how lucky they are to have escaped Little P's presence.

Scene 3 - later

V.: I really ought to go... I am babysitting Baby B tomorrow, and he's always awake at 5 am. I promised it to my sister, who's going to wedding.
A.: Don't be ridiculous, it's only 10.30. Have another G&T.
V.: Oh, alright then...

Scene 4 - later

People have begun to arrive en masse. The flat fills up. The booze flows. The music grooves. Those legs just can't stay still. At 2.30 am, the spirit of the night takes possession of the flat and every person is bouncing up and down like there's no tomorrow to the sound of the Killers, the Klaxons, the White Stripes and... er... Justin Timberlake...

Lady V is spotted having a fag on the edge of the crowd. The pink tinge has given way to a deep Cardinal red. Her twinkly eye runs along the crown, searching for a prey, and stops when it meets mine. A mischievous smile and her fag is flicked onto the wooden floor and stomped on. The only person to do this in a crowd of students. I feel like a proud parent.

Scene 5 - later

4:30 am. The crowd is thinning. Buena Vista Social Club has replaced Indie Rock. Sicily has reappeared from some lesbian dungeon to hang out with the kool kidz, only to end up on the terrace negotiating (very loudly) a certain deal with a group of blokes 3 floors and 2 buildings away from ours. The negotiations end in mutual insults and death-threats. We all sigh in relief that this conversation overheard by tens of flats is finally over.

Lady V is spotted crawling on a floor, fag in hand, looking for something.

A.: What are you looking for dear?
V.: My dignity... Ohhhhh... I am a bad auntie, aren't I...? You see... I really ought to go home... sniff... I feel so bad... I have to be up in half an hour babysitting that child...
A.: Well why didn't you leave earlier?
V.: You wouldn't let me!!!
A.: But that was at 10:30...!
V.: Really? Uhm... Oh well... If you insist, I'll have one for the road.
A.: All the booze is gone...
V.: Really? What is that?
A.: You mean those last drops of warm sangria?
V.: Sometimes we can't be choosy, darling...

The End

!!!

These guys (pronounced chk chk chk) are so sexy, they make me want to dribble white paint down my forehead, wear fur and have long candle-lit parties for the rest of my life...



Another Glastonbury band to lookout for (thanks Tom!)

two more to go

another exam done today,
one more tomorrow,
and one more on Friday.
my enthusiasm is declining
with every word I write.
concentration is getting worse
by the hour, by the minute.
all I can think of
even during the exams
is...

GLASTONBURY!!!!!

Two images...

... representing my state of mind these days...

Ok. I take no responsibility for this one

this has to be the weirdest video. ever.

Instead of studying

Here I am lusting after all the bands I'll be seeing in Glastonbury...

Kasbian





The Fratellis



Gus Gus



Dirty Pretty Things



The unbelievable Iggy and the Stooges. Love him.



Mr Scruff



Tim Deluxe! (love the video!)




The Go! Team



Vitalic (!!!!!!!)



Beirut!



Infadels



Arctic Monkeys



I could go on for ever...

I am all excited and can't concentrate on my upcoming exams... damn!

One more week...

... and the torture will begin to be over

I know. So wrong

yet so good...

Arcade Fire and Beirut update

My last musical post of the day - possibly... er... the week, since I REALLY have to prepare for these f*cking exams now...

Here's the latest Arcade Fire song - Broken Window - most relevant to those of us who will be seeing them soon, the lucky b*tches... It's beautiful. As usual.

Incidentally, the Arcade Fire made a recent appearance in New York offering warm support - together with Final Fantasy - to Beirut during the encore at the Bowery Ballroom...



Brooklyn Vegan has a really good set of pictures of the event.

I love this guy. He's the essence of cool! And he'll be playing at Glastonbury! I think this festival is going to be so much fun, I will actually need to take something depressing to read with me to avoid dying of happiness!

The Dull Flame of Desire

I love your eyes, my dear
their splendid, sparkling fire
when suddenly you raise them so
to cast a swift embracing glance

like lightning flashing in the sky
but there's a charm that is greater still:
when my love's eyes are lowered
when all is fired by passions kiss

and through the downcast lashes
I see the dull flame of desire
and through the downcast lashes
I see the dull flame of desire

I love your eyes, my dear
their splendid, sparkling fire
when suddenly you raise them so
to cast a swift embracing glance

like lightning flashing in the sky
but there's a charm that is greater still:
when my love's eyes are lowered
when all is fired by passions kiss

and through the downcast lashes
I see the dull flame of desire
and through the downcast lashes
I see the dull flame of desire

dull flame
i see the full flame of desire
i see the dull flame
i see the full flame

I love your eyes, my dear
their splendid, sparkling fire
when suddenly you raise them so
to cast a swift embracing glance

like lightning flashing in the sky
but there's a charm that is greater still:
when my love's eyes are lowered
when all is fired by passions kiss

and through the downcast lashes
I see the dull flame of desire
through the downcast lashes
I see the dull flame of desire

dull flame
i see the full flame of
i see the dull flame
i see the full flame

I love your eyes, my dear
their splendid, sparkling fire
when suddenly you raise them so
to cast a swift embracing glance

like lightning flashing in the sky
but there's a charm that is greater still:
when my love's eyes are lowered
when all is fired by passions kiss

through the downcast lashes
I see the dull flame of desire
and through the downcast lashes
I see the dull flame of desire

and through the
downcast lashes
I see the
dull flame
of
desire

Cansei de ser sexy - CSS

And finallly I LOVE these fabulous 5 girls (+ 1 boy). Brazilian. Lesbian icons. Hot and bovvered. I could faint with delight.

The Klaxons

I also love these two songs and this band. The Klaxons. Such a good name.

Fujiya & Miyagi

I like this video a lot. And I like this band a lot.

A community outing

Needless to say, it involved large quantities of booze, existential conversations around a dinner table, a rushed escape from a hideous party, several mini-cab rides, some happy bouncing inside a night-club (some of us), some watching Keanu's riveting performance in the Matrix Revolutions (others), more booze, a 4:30 am appearance of Parko and mates on a rikshaw, Jon's historic question (when did you arrive?) and a final gentle stroll back home in the morning light.

Ah, if only all outings were community outings...

Glue, L'Ultima Rivoluzione

I went to see two films on Friday at the French Institute, part of their fantastic Mosaiques Festival of World Cultures. The first one, Alexis dos Santos' Glue, was a stunning portrait of teenage angst in the barren landscapes of central Argentina. It certainly spoke to my experience - northern Italy is, in its overpopulated way, not dissimilar to the Argentinian Pampa. The Toronto Film Festival's review reassured me: this 'vibrant coming-of-age story touches upon many adolescent topics - experimentation with drugs, familial alienation, homoeroticism, sexual frustration and self-discovery'. Glad I wasn't the only one, then. The lead actor, Nahuel Pérez Biscayart, is superb, giving an amazing performance for someone that young. I am sure we'll see much more of him in the near future.


The second one was the very political Cover boy: L'ultima rivoluzione, an Italian production about a migrant Romanian trying to make a living in Rome. The film points an accusatory finger to the structures which are letting thousands of people - migrants and non-migrants - descend into poverty and oblivion, while surrounded by a world of opulence they cannot touch. While the subtler politics of the movie will escape those who are not fluent in Italian (the subtitles barely bothered capturing the subtleties of the background TV speeches of Italian rightwing politicians, arrogantly preaching how 'the crisis is in people's minds'), most will appreciate the beautiful direction and excellent performances. Le Duc will appreciate the gratuitous shots of the lead actor's penis.

Now I feel I've done my bit for world cinema this year. When's the next US blockbuster coming out?

My sad, sad humps

Genius, Alanis. I never thought I'd say this, but this time you've surpassed yourself...

The Gay Blades

Indie. Rock. And tons of cool.

Maker Faire Preview

Wired reports on the forthcoming Maker Faire 2007, an 'event that celebrates arts, crafts, engineering, science projects and the Do-It-Yourself (DIY) mindset'.

The ultimate geek flick...

The Master and Margarita

With the excuse of writing today in my new literary toy - courtesy of Jonzo aka Too $hort - I had the opportunity to go back to one of my favourite books, Mikhail Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita. I therefore decided to do a little search for classical and contemporary illustrations of the masterpiece, and found some rather interesting pictures, which surely will inspire those few who still haven't had the pleasure of reading it. Here is a selection of those which caught my eye...

The wonderful Helen Yeskova


Marina Korenfeld


Donald Kilpatrick


Russ Spitkovsky


And finally a special mention for Charles Stone, who illustrated most of the book with stone carvings.

Kids...

Possibly the funniest commercial ever. I cried when I saw it...

The Thief and the Cobbler

Richard Williams' unfinished masterpiece.
Possibly the most beautiful animated movie ever made.

Sebastião Salgado - Genesis

Sebastião Salgado is embarking on the last of his great photographic projects, which will appear regularly in the Guardian's Weekend Magazine over the next eight years, as well as on the Guardian's website. He is seeking out places that are still as pristine as they were in primeval times, places that provide hope.

He remains for me the greatest photographer alive.

River

we should see this first...

Machines

Kiss kiss - Machines, in Reality vs. The Optimist.
Awesome. They deserve a new special place in my weird collection...