SOUND
Bleep Podcast 138 – Moon Wiring Club (2009)
My favourite mix/podcast episode ever. I revisit this a lot. Curated by the UK hauntologist Moon Wiring Club (Ian Hodgson) where music choices are mixed with sound grabs from cult TV, film, commercials, obscure pop cultural moments and who-knows-what. There’s lots of BBC Radiophonic Workshop mixed with Goblin, Vangelis, Boards of Canada, electronic Library music and unreleased soundtracks. It’s still available to download here.
Barbara Morgenstern – The Grass Is Always Greener (2009)
A frequent play during the COVID lockdown period this has become essential in my music rotation.
David Holmes Featuring Raven Violet – Blind On A Galloping Horse (2023)
I have a few DH albums which are all fascinating. It reminds me a little of Etienne Daho’s pehnomenal Blitz (2017) album.
Hinako Omori – Stillness, Softness… (2023)
TV/FILM
Young Royals (Netflix)
Outrageous Homes with Lawrence Llewelyn-Bowen (Foxtel)
An excellent marriage of host and subjects. Lawrence can camp it up with people that understand camp. In the first episode he goes to the 70s house in Manchester. Fun.
Visitors from the (Arkana) Galaxy (Gosti Iz Galaksije) (1981 – Tubi)
The second of my Deaf Crocodile watches via Tubi and it’s a goodie. You simply won’t believe the Mumu Monster created by Jan Švankmajer. Imagine Snorky from The Banana Splits fed through a Hieronymus Bosch filter. And the entire cast gets naked at one point for no logical reason.
A few I abandoned..
In The French Style (1963) (Tubi) looked beautiful, mainly due to 1960s Paris and the styling of the 60s, and Jean Seberg is terrific as always, but the overall tone of her being bossed around by crappy guys was deeply unappealing.
Ilya Muromets (The Sword and the Dragon / ‘Илья Муромец’) (1956) (Tubi)
Gorgeous to look at with classic fantasy styling meets HR Pufnstuf vibe, but the relentlessly didactic and brow-beating honour-for-mother-Russia was hard to take, especially in the current world.
ONLINE
More about Etienne – Daho and now Saint. Sarah Cracknell’s song Ready Or Not was an Etienne Daho cover? La suprise!
And here’s Sarah’s cover version (no clip available).
Full of Days: An Exhibition by Andy Holden and Hermione Burton at The Gallery of Everything
A bit heavy on the videos this week and more about Saint Etienne, but in for a penny… This is an interesting little promo for an exhibition held last year of found paintings by artist Hermoine Burton.
The Very Now 