Gottfried Tollmann and Ralf Hildenbeutel & other: 2008

Monday, 8 September 2008

'Ratchet & Clank' leads wave of fresh PSN games

Of the three computer game console manufacturers, Microsoft was the number one to embrace online gaming, and its Xbox Live has get essential to anyone world Health Organization wants to play against faraway competitors. Sony and Nintendo are trying to catch up with, respectively, the PlayStation Network and the Virtual Console.

PSN has more impulse. It's already home to solid multiplayer games like "Warhawk" and "Metal Gear Online," and future projects like "Home," "DC Universe Online" and "MAG" (a 256-player war game) promise to extend Internet-connected play in innovational ways.

Sony besides lets you download games directly to your PS3 hard drive. The subroutine library isn't as impressive as Microsoft's or Nintendo's, merely there ar some gems ("Echochrome," "PixelJunk Monsters") that you ass find only on PSN. Each of the ternary games reviewed here brings some saucy ideas to the electronic network, and crataegus oxycantha provide some hints of what's in store for PlayStation diehards.

-"Ratchet & Clank Future: Quest for Booty" (Sony, for the PlayStation 3, $15): At the end of last year's "Tools of Destruction," Clank disappeared with a tribe of his fellow robots. As this new chapter begins, Ratchet (the furred half of the brace) discovers that the plagiarist Captain Darkwater may recognize where Clank went. Unfortunately, Darkwater is dead, so Ratchet must search for the scorbutus seadog's treasure in hopes of determination a clue.

"Quest for Booty" plays like a stripped version of its harbinger, leaving out all the side missions and minigames in favour of straight-ahead action. Even Ratchet's impressive arsenal of wacky weapons has been scaled endorse: For much of the game, his only putz is his trusty wrench. There ar still mess of great puzzles and running-and-jumping action, though, so things ne'er slow down.

For a project that's truly a make-do between full-fledged "R&C" adventures, "Quest for Booty" silent delivers the brilliant animation and crank humor we've come to expect from the developers at Insomniac Games. It only takes about three hours to finish, just it's a tasty appetizer until the next primary course arrives in 2009. Three stars out of four.

-"PixelJunk Eden" (Sony, for the PlayStation 3, $10): The Kyoto, Japan-based Q-Games has released three identical different titles for PSN: the slot-car game "PixelJunk Racers," the strategy game "PixelJunk Monsters," and the uncategorizable "PixelJunk Eden," which looks like no game you've ever so seen before.

Each level begins in an underpopulated garden with a minuscule hero who canful swing and jump from leaf to leaf. When he swings into a "prowler," it releases pollen, which helps more plants grow. The goal is to grow the plants high enough to reach out the prized "Spectra."

The psychedelic visuals and techno soundtrack give "PixelJunk Eden" a trippy vibe, but its controls guide some acquiring used to and may frustrate casual gamers at first. Also frustrating is a very unforgiving timer, which forces you to rush through levels rather of allowing you to admire your gardening skills. Still, the deeper you get into "Eden," the more satisfying it becomes, with challenges that smartly expand upon the minimalist approach of the early levels. Three stars.

-"Siren: Blood Curse" (Sony, for the PlayStation 3, $15 for four episodes, $40 for 12 episodes): In an interesting experimentation in occasional gaming, Sony has retooled the unnoted 2004 claim "Siren," sliced it up into a dozen chapters and put them loose on PSN. The nontextual matter aren't very much better then they were are the PlayStation 3, but the developers make tightened up the gameplay and added some American characters.

In the first episode, a U.S. camera gang stumbles crosswise a Japanese village populated by zombies, and you briefly presume the part of a college scholarly person who's trying to escape from an undead snitch. In later episodes you see the events in the village through different characters' eyes - at times, fifty-fifty through the eyes of the zombies themselves.

It's an effective endurance horror take chances, but the episodic social system doesn't help, mainly because the individual chapters take so long to download and install. Also, the early chapters are very short (around 20 minutes), which may dissuade cost-conscious players from downloading the entire run. I'm hoping Sony takes more chances on episodic games, just next time its developers need to build one from scratch. Two stars.

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On the Net:

PlayStation Network: http://www.us.playstation.com/PS3/Network

More info

Saturday, 9 August 2008

Boston

Artist: Boston

   Genre(s):
Rock
   Pop: Pop-Rock
   Rock: Hard-Rock

Discography:

Corporate America

Year: 2002
Tracks: 10

Greatest Hits

Year: 1997
Tracks: 16

Walk On

Year: 1994
Tracks: 10

The Neverending Story

Year: 1993
Tracks: 11

Third Stage

Year: 1986
Tracks: 10

Don't Look Back

Year: 1978
Tracks: 8

Boston

Year: 1976
Tracks: 8

The domain of a function rock mathematical group slow unitary of the fastest-selling debut albums in history, Boston was fundamentally the fomite of studio whizz Tom Scholz, born March 10, 1947, in Toledo, OH. A john Rock winnow throughout his teen old age, he began writing songs while earning a master's academic degree at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. After commencement, he began work for Polaroid, and eventually linked a local band lED by guitar player Barry Goudreau. Though Scholz signed on as a keyboardist, he likewise began acquisition guitar, and his quick control of the instrument shortly allowed him to train full controller of the band.

At the like prison term, Scholz set or so constructing his possess 12-track recording studio in the basement of his home plate, where the group -- now dubbed Boston and including Goudreau, vocalist Brad Delp, bassist Fran Sheehan, and drummer John "Sib" Hashian -- recorded the demos that earned them a contract with Epic in 1975. Although some transcription and overdubs were later done in Los Angeles, the 1976 release of Beantown consisted largely of Scholz's original basement tapes; spawning leash hit singles ("More than Than a Feeling," "Long Time," and "Peace of Mind"), the LP injection immediately to the top of the charts, and remained the best-selling pop debut effort in history before it was supplanted by Whitney Houston's low gear album in 1986.

Scorn the record's consuming success, Scholz spent over iI age on the job on the followup, 1978's number one hit Don't Look Back; a perfectionist, he alone then released the album because of intense tag imperativeness for product. Unsatisfied with the results, he swore to give rise the adjacent album at his have pace; as a termination, the chart-topping Third Stage did not appear until 1986, at which meter only Scholz and Delp remained from the original lineup.

Scholz exhausted the next respective years in the court: first gear, he was sued by Goudreau, world Health Organization alleged that Scholz had discredited his solo recording career (they colonized out of court); next, he won a seven-year struggle against Epic, which claimed Boston had reneged on its contract by taking so long between releases. When the stria resurfaced over again in 1994 with Walk On, Scholz was the sole odd member; Delp and Goudreau had reunited in 1992 as RTZ, cathartic the album Regress to Zero. Unlike previous returns, Walk On was a noted failure. Radio and MTV unheeded any attempts at singles or videos, and the minimalist approaching taken by the popular alternative artists of the epoch made the crystalline production and lengthy recording meter seem like an egotistical practice. Compounding the trouble was the poor songwriting, which could no longer be hidden with sheeny production techniques. Scholz still hit the road to support it, just upon his turn back to the studio he knew he had to overture his situation other than.

Taking another vIII geezerhood to work on the adjacent criminal record, he targeted the Internet push first by cathartic a undivided to world Wide Web.MP3.com in the summertime of 2002. The trail became the site's figure one download, and word of their unexampled album spread apace. Secondly, Scholz localise his lyrical sights on political targets, passing so far as to title the record Incorporated America as he emphasised his condescension for the organization he had been a vital voice of at one time. After cathartic the disk in the accrue of that class, Boston embarked on a term of enlistment that took them into 2004. In 2006 it was announced that a new album was in the works with Scholz, Delp, and Goudreau all mired. This novel jut remained unreleased when Delp passed away dead and unexpectedly on March 9th, 2007.

In plus to his renown as a musician, Scholz also base success as an artificer and man of affairs. In 1981, he formed Scholz Research & Design, Inc., a company founded to create high technology medicine equipment. After number one developing the Power Soak, a volume-control device, SR&D introduced the Rockman, a small and cheap guitar amplifier with headphones. The Rockman proved phenomenally popular with other musicians, and the washington generated from its gross sales helped fund Scholz's further musical ambitions.

Tuesday, 1 July 2008

Jay-Z to cover The Prodigy, Rihanna, Amy Winehouse at Glastonbury

Jay-Z played his final gig before his headline appearance at Glastonbury this weekend (June 28), performing at the Hove festival in Arendal, Norway last night (June 23).

Taking the main stage in front of 18,000 fans at 10.15pm (CET), the rapper played an hour-and-a-half set, which included covers of Rihanna's 'Umbrella', The Prodigy's 'Smack My Bitch Up', Amy Winehouse's 'Rehab' and Estelle's 'American Boy', giving some big hints about possible numbers he will perform at Glastonbury.

Dressed all in black, with dark sunglasses and sporting two medallions Jay-Z arrived on the island of Tromoy, where the festival takes place, via speedboat before being dropped off backstage in a BMW marshalled by two security quad bikes visible on the stage's video screens as the set commenced.

With a entourage of 36 people joining him at the bash, the Brooklyn-based rapper was joined onstage by a ten-piece band, including a full brass section and two percussionists all dressed smartly in white shirts and black waistcoats. He began with 'Say Hello' after shouting, "The Roc boy is in the building tonight."

His set included many huge crowd favourites drawn from his fourteen year career including '99 Problems', 'It's A Hard Knock Life', 'Big Pimpin', 'Song Cry', 'Girls Girls Girls', and 'Encore'.

Despite Jay-Z's love of collaborations, rapper Memphis Bleek was the only vocalist who assisted Jay-Z onstage, joining him for three songs.

There were loud boos from the crowd mid-set as the stage visuals froze with a picture of American president George W Bush shortly followed by loud cheers as image of Presidential candidate Barack Obama appeared on the large video backdrop.

The backdrop also displayed images of the fallout of Hurricane Katrina, which struck New Orleans in 2005, and clips from a variety of Jay-Z videos.

Speaking from the stage Jay-Z said: "I appreciate the love tonight Hove, it's a beautiful feeling � lets do one more, I owe you guys," before concluding his set with the Linkin Park-remixed version of 'Encore'.

To read more about about Hove festival including appearances from Black Kids, Les Savy Fav and The Cool Kids head to NME's festival blog at our dedicated festivals page.

Jun 29, 2008 at National Bowl, Milton Keynes -
Jul 3, 2008 at Hyde Park, London -
Jul 15, 2008 at BIC, Bournemouth -
More Jay-Z tickets

Diciplines De L'ame Reiki 1 Marc Durst

Artist: Diciplines De L'ame Reiki 1 Marc Durst

   Genre(s):
New Age

Discography:

Musique Du Coeur Pour Le Reiki

Year: 1999
Tracks: 1

Arctic Monkeys To Begin Work On Third Album This Month

Arctic Monkeys are to begin work on their third album this month, according to the band's guitarist Jamie Cook.

“We are gonna make a start... (we'll) get back in his (Alex Turner) room in Sheffield and start writing some tunes," he told the BBC.

Both of the band's first albums topped the charts in the UK and enjoyed almost universal critical acclaim.

But Cook admitted that he wasn't sure what direction the band will head on album number three.

“I don't know yet, we could go any way. I'm excited yeah... End of last year when we had been touring for a long time, we just needed a bit of a rest.

“But I think as a band we are just eager to get back in and really... I don't know what," he explained.

As previously reported on Gigwise, Arctic Monkeys frontman Alex Turner will head out on his first UK tour with side-project The Last Shadow Puppets in the Autumn.

For more information about the band's shows, click here.

See Also

Bryan Adams squeezes in more acoustic shows

Bryan Adams [ tickets ] has mixed a handful of solo-acoustic performances in with his summer co-headlining dates with Foreigner and Rod Stewart.The veteran Canadian rocker, who's been touring the world to support his new album, "11," is set to launch his next US run July 15 in Augusta, ME. The outing's first half covers the East Coast and South with Foreigner, and then Adams will hook up with Stewart for shows stretching from California to Ohio. Along the way, he will veer off for solo-acoustic performances in Wilmington, DE; Charleston, SC; St. Louis, MO; New Orleans; Milwaukee; and Pittsburgh. Details are listed below.The Grammy-winning singer/songwriter's new record, which was released exclusively through Wal-Mart and Sam's Club stores in the US last month, shot to No. 1 in Canada and entered Billboard's Top Independent Albums chart at No. 7. The appropriately titled set is Adams' 11th album of original music and features 11 songs that he recorded in hotel rooms and backstage areas of concert venues across Europe over the last two years. A couple of those tunes, including adult-contemporary hit "I Thought I'd Seen Everything," are streaming at his MySpace page.In May, Adams completed a string of solo-acoustic shows across the US to preview material from the acoustic-based "11" and put a new spin on some of his classics."I think for a lot of people that haven't heard me do [an acoustic show] before, it will be intriguing because to play a song like 'Cuts Like a Knife' on acoustic guitar is quite a different thing than hearing it with a full band," Adams explained during a May press teleconference. "I believe that that will give some insight into the songwriting and it shows that some of the new songs blend in. It's like one solid body of work."Adams' previous studio album, "Room Service," was released in the US in 2005 and marked his first set of new music in almost seven years, with the exception of the 2002 Grammy-winning film soundtrack for "Spirit," which Adams composed and performed in English and French. The Canadian Music Hall of Famer also continues to make a name for himself as a photographer and philanthropist. His latest photo exhibition, "Hear the World," (recently shown in Berlin) features portraits of celebrities and benefits the hearing impaired. Adams also recently shot the 2008 ad campaign for Guess, all the proceeds from which will be donated to his namesake charitable foundation, according to a press release.

Don't be afraid of sex film, star says

Sex And The City star Chris Noth has jetted into Sydney, urging men not to be afraid of the movie.

Noth - who plays the elusive love interest of the movie's main star - is in Australia to launch a new phone for LG.

He may have missed the film's Sydney premiere but said he hoped men would go to see it.

"I'm hoping that men don't feel too afraid to go to it," Noth told a press conference at the State Theatre in Sydney.

"I feel like once the women see it the men won't want to go."

Noth, who plays Mr Big in the film, said he wanted to get the message across that the movie was also about "friendship and forgiveness".

"It was a great experience," he said.

"It's great to see that people have connected to it."

Sex And The City is already an international success, shooting to No. 1 in Australia after taking after more than $17.5 million in ticket sales.

Noth later joined stars including former Miss Universe Jennifer Hawkins, Australia's next top model judges Jonathan Pease and Charlotte Dawson as well as MTV's Ruby Rose and Pease's girlfriend April Rose-Pengilly at the official launch party.

See Also

Bonnie Bianco

Artist: Bonnie Bianco

   Genre(s):
Soundtrack

Discography:

Cinderella

Year: 1992
Tracks: 10

LiveDaily Song of the Day: The Poison Arrows - "Casual Wave"

Today's Song of the Day is by The Poison Arrows [ tickets ]. The group's featured cut is "Casual Wave," the title track from their forthcoming August EP.

Glass art is attracting more collectors and they're paying more

CORAL GABLES, Fla. - Artist William Carlson dips the large steel ladle into the blazing furnace and fills it with liquid glass. With sweat pouring down his face, he quickly moves to a graphite mould he has made and pours in the seething yellow-coloured liquid.

He is making glass wall tiles with an imprint of fibre knots in them that he will remove with tweezers. This will leave a fossil of the knot. The tiles will then be hung together in a grid format. Carlson says he is trying to start a discourse about language with the way he lays out the fibre.

Glass art is attracting more admirers and collectors today and gaining more attention as a fine art, as artists explore more with the medium. Meanwhile, prices for pieces are on the rise.

"It's a maturation of the field. More and more we are seeing people interested," said Michael Heller, vice president of the Heller Gallery in New York, where glass art is sold. "More and more collectors have also started to realize the value of work that has integrity."

The artistic content of glass art has developed over the last decade or so, artists say.

"It's kind of coming of age where craft is no longer the title of the work. Craft is the means to an end. . . . It really is the strength of the concept and power of the image," says Carlson, who also teaches at the University of Miami in Coral Gables.

Fran Kaufman, director of the contemporary art fair palmbeach3, says the reason glass art is on the rise is because many collectors aren't purchasing just one type of art anymore but varying the kinds of art they collect. Prices are also getting higher, which is enticing people to buy it.

"Prices getting higher, that is appealing to collectors. People are looking beyond the more traditional glass pieces. . . . Collections are not so specific anymore," Kaufman says. "I think the experimentation has grown more."

Mark Lyman, director of the two annual shows called SOFA, which take place in New York and Chicago, says that 10 to 15 years ago an expensive glass piece would cost between $50,000 to $100,000. Now, such works can reach anywhere from $500,000 to $1 million.

"It's a very active market for them," Lyman says of the glass pieces. "It's really come along. . . . We're seeing a lot of growth and strength."

In an effort to expand public awareness, collectors Sheldon and Myrna Palley of Miami donated about 100 pieces that they have been amassing since the 1970s to the University of Miami's Lowe Art Museum. The exhibit opened last month.

They say they have about 200 more works at home. The collection at the museum includes a piece by William Morris that looks like a prehistoric artifact with cave paintings on it. Next to it, attached to a metal stand, is a glass shaped to resemble a horn. It was created in 1992. Christina Bothwell's glass yellow baby with ceramic head and extremities also sits on one of the shelves.

Myrna Palley says they scour fairs and work with well-known glass art dealers to decide what they will buy.

"When you go to a cafeteria and there's all this food, how do you know what to pick?" Myrna Palley says of her experience buying glass art. "It just calls me."

Sheldon Palley says the feeling of power in Tom Patti's small glass objects really pull him to them.

"It's very architectural. They are like huge buildings, even though they are small," he says.

Patti, whose studio is in Fitchburg, Mass., says he also sees an increased interest in glass art.

"I think the interest in glass is continuously growing, getting larger," Patti says. "It's been accumulating. It's just something that if the art form is strong, it inherently progresses in many avenues. . . . The museums are not just collecting it, they are seeing it as an applied art form that can be incorporated as part of the building itself."

Some artists credit Seattle-based Dale Chihuly for getting their art more publicity. His colourful glass works have reached audiences across the United States and throughout the world.

Studio glass was introduced into college programs in the 1960s and then increasingly explored by students. It really started being considered art after 1960 when artists began to work in their own studios and not in factories. Around the same time, a non-industrial glass furnace was created, which opened up opportunities for creative use, artist Carlson says.

Now, a common recipe for the material is sand or silica mixed with sodium carbonate, lime, magnesium carbonate and any additives that may change the colour.

Wisconsin-based artist Beth Lipman, who creates glass still lifes inspired by Dutch, German and Italian paintings of the 1600s, says she feels a definite shift in the way her art is perceived.

"I think people are kind of hungry for more of a dialogue," Lipman says. "There is this overall shift of looking at the capitalist community that we're living in and being mindful about what you are using your money for."