So it might come as a bit of shock to find out that the traditions surrounding classical music in other cultures actually encourage improvisation. For, while in countries like India there are certain formal patterns of structure adhered to, within the form there is plenty of room for the musician to interpret the music. As the performances of music is considered a personal spiritual journey, a means of expressing a connection to the gods, it can't help but change from individual to individual. India is not unique in having this kind of musical tradition, and considering the cross-pollination of culture between the two countries down through history, it's not surprising to find a similar tradition has existed in Iran since the twelfth century.

Persian classical music, like many others where there was originally nothing committed to paper, involves a long and involved training period for anybody wishing to perform it. First of all a student has to memorize a canonic repertoire known as radif (literally translated as order) comprised of over 200 model pieces of music known as gushehs. These gushehs are grouped together as progressions of modally related pieces into twelve distinct dastgah (systems). Once a musician has memorized not only all the gushehs individually and collectively in their respective dastgah, they are ready to begin creating. Unlike the West where we have specific pieces of music to perform, the radif is not something that is actually performed as an individual piece of music, but serves as the starting point for creative improvisation.

Of course listening to music the theory behind it usually flies out the window as you get swept up in the sounds and emotions being generated by the artist in question. Such is the case with I Will Not Stand Alone the latest release from Kayhan Kalhor on World Village Music in February 2012. The recording features Kalhor playing a variation on the traditional Middle Eastern four stringed bowed instrument, the kamancheh, called a shah kaman accompanied by Ali Bahrami Fard on a hammered dulcimer type instrument known as a bass santor. If you had any thoughts that the conditions described above for the creation and playing of music were restrictive they will be quickly dispelled as you listen to what these two men are able to generate between them.

Looking at a picture of a kamancheh - the shah kaman has a slightly deeper tone then the original - you'll be amazed at the quality of sound Kalhor is able to create with what looks like a very simple instrument. With only four strings and a resonating chamber made out of a gourd covered by an animal skin you'd think its sound would be limited or at least thin. I don't know whether its the virtuosity of the player or a matter of appearances being deceiving, but on this recording it seems to have the ability to sound like most of the bowed four stringed instruments in an orchestra. From the heart stopping emotional clarity of a violin, the rich texture of the cello to the mid tones of the viola Kalhor not only covers almost the entire musical scale as we know it but its emotional equivalent as well.

Serving as a combination percussion and bass Fard's bass santor not only offers a rich counterpoint and underpinning to Kalhor's playing, he adds the additional element of being able to emphasize the rhythm through his use of the hammers required to play his instrument. Any expectations we might have as to its limitations based on our experiences of bass instruments in other compositions are quickly dispelled. For Fard does far more than merely play a simple bass line instead he plays a melodic accompaniment in the lower register that is every bit as involved as Kalhor's lead instrument.

In the liner notes accompanying the recording Kalhor describes the eight pieces of music as having their origins during a period of unrest in Iran. He's unclear as to whether he's talking about the revolution which saw the overthrow of the Shah back in the 1970s or the more recent period of turbulence and its unsuccessful attempt to push for reforms. Whenever the period was, he describes it as one of the most difficult periods in his life, "where darkness and violence seemed to be taking over". Out of this period came the realization that music has the capability to open what he refers to as doors of hope and he made the choice to play his music for the people for this reason. The actual playing and recording of the music was a way for him to break out of the isolation he felt because of the unrest and connect with those around him - hence the title I Will Not Stand Alone

Listening to the music after reading these notes one can't help but be struck how well it captures the journey he took from darkness to light. The titles of individual pieces aren't what you'd call an accurate indication of their musical content, you'd think tunes called "The Laziest Summer Afternoon" or "Dancing Under The Walnut Tree" would be light hearted and carefree when the former sounds nothing at all like any idle summer day I've ever had and the latter bears no relation to dancing. Perhaps something was lost in their translation from the original Farsi, but I think he's commenting on the sense of disconnect he must have felt witnessing scenes of violence and trouble on beautiful summer days. Idyllic conditions have no bearing on how humans behave. It can be a beautiful day and people can still commit atrocities as easily as if there were a horrible storm taking place. The distance between the meaning conveyed by the title of the song and the story the music tells us captures that horrible irony better than anything I've heard before.

Everyone of these pieces has an emotional depth that far outstrips most music we're used to hearing, whether popular or classical. Kalhor has taken the basic skill set required to play Persian classical music and has built a collection of pieces that explore both the depths the human spirit can sink to and the heights it can ascend. You many have trouble believing this is the work of only two men playing given the multitude of sounds, tones and emotions they are able to express, but it is only Kalhor and Fard and their two instruments on each track. If you've never experienced non-European classical music this recording will be an eye opener for you. It will dispel any doubts you ever had of music's ability to cross cultural and linguistic boundaries. The gulf between the Iranian and Western governments is huge these days. Listening to recordings like this one help to remind us the divide between the people of our respective cultures is far smaller than some would like us to think.

(Article first published as Music Review: Kayhan Kalhor and Ali Bahrami Fard - I Will Not Stand Alone on Blogcritics)

This isn't a deliberate thing, nor is racism implied, but it is a fact, and one that doesn't look like its changing with any speed. For in spite of the subject matter, science fiction and fantasy publishers are just as conservative, if not more so, than their mainstream counterparts. All of which goes a long way in explaining my interest in a title being released by Penguin Canada on February 7 2012 - Throne Of The Crescent Moon by Saladin Ahmed

The combination of the book's title and the author's name led me to correctly assume the book wouldn't be drawing upon the usual European cultural pool for its inspiration. Even the little I know about the rich tradition of myth and legend in the Islamic world is sufficient to know there's a rich vein of material waiting to be mined by the right fantasy writer. Ahmed has a solid history as a short story writer, even being a finalist for a couple of awards, however this is his first full length novel, and its not always a smooth transition from one format to another. While I was happy to see an author looking to other traditions for inspiration, what really matters is how well he or she is able to handle the basics of story telling.

In this case the answer to that question is as good as, if not better than, anyone else out there writing fantasy today. Ahmed has created a vibrant and exciting world where his characters both live and have the adventures which form the basis of the story. Like many fantasy writers he has chosen to base his world on a version of our past. In this case he has looked to the ancient city states of the Islamic world. The majority of the tale takes place within the walls of the great city Dhamsawaat with the characters making only occasional forays beyond its walls into the countryside surrounding it. While there are five main characters involved in telling us the story, the city becomes another character who lives and breathes alongside everybody else. Ahmed's descriptions of the city are so vivid she takes on the type of distinct personality we ascribe to the places we are most familiar with.

Doctor Adoulla Makhslood is feeling every one of his three score and ten years these days. A good many of those years have been spent keeping the people of his beloved Dhamsawaat safe from the monsters sent to plague mankind by the Traitorous Angel. While it's true the doctor has been doing the work of the Blessed God, he's as profane as any street urchin trying to spot a pocket ripe for the picking. In order to be able to perform the magic necessary to dispatch the ghuls and assorted demons he faces in his work, the Doctor has had to make sacrifices, chief among them not being able to marry and raise a family. As this story commences he's forcibly reminded of this prohibition when he's asked to investigate reports of a ghul attack by the woman who has been the love of his live for decades. Only his calling has prevented him from marrying her. While in the past he'd been able to make peace with this trade off, recently he's began to feel the beginning of resentment towards having been denied the simple pleasures of a normal life.

Unlike the good Doctor his young assistant, Raseed bas Raseed, a warrior in the holy order of dervishes, is pious to the point of being inflexible in his judgements of others and himself. You either live according to the dictates of the Traditions or you're morally lacking. However he finds himself sorely tested when he and the Doctor meet a young tribeswomen, Zamia Badawi, during their pursuit of the ghuls responsible for the most recent attack. The fact that she is blessed by the angels with the ability to assume the shape of a lioness armed with silver claws and teeth and saves both men's lives is only part of the problem. For the first time in his life Raseed finds himself beset with feelings that have nothing to do with his sacred calling and everything to do with Zamia.

Unfortunately he's picked the worst time possible to be plagued with doubts and distractions, for it turns out this new attack isn't just some minor magic user, but something far more ancient and evil. These days most spell casters are only able to raise one or two ghuls and have to keep them in site in order to control them. However the creatures the Doctor, Raseed and Zamia defeated outside the city were on their own and far stronger than anything Makhslood has faced in decades. Then upon their return to the city they are attacked in the Doctor's home by more ghuls and something even more deadly. A creature made of shadow, part man part jackal, who can't be harmed by normal weapons, only those made of silver. It's only through the timely intervention of his close friends and neighbours, Dawoud Son-of-Wajeed, a magus, and his wife Litaz, the alchemist, they survived the attack. For while Zamia's silver claws were able to wound the thing that called itself Mouw Awa, it also gave her a horrible festering wound which untreated would gradually eaten her soul. Only the combined workings of Dawoud and Litaz were able to save her.

Finding out who is behind the attacks is only the first hurdle the Doctor and his allies face. The shadow creature had mentioned something about its "blessed friend" sitting on the Cobra Throne and thus gaining the power needed to rule and create armies of monsters. If that wasn't bad enough the city is also in the midst of a power struggle on the mortal plane. The current Khalif is a brutal and greedy man who makes life miserable for most of his citizens through crippling taxes and his cruel version of justice. A bandit calling himself the Falcon Prince has been carrying out a covert war against the Khalif for a while now, and judging by his actions he looks to be preparing his final push against the throne. Is it merely a coincidence the Falcon Prince's uprising is coming to a head at the same time as the mysterious ghul attacks are increasing? Or is there some insidious connection between the two seemingly unrelated events?

In Throne of the Crescent Moon Ahmed does a wonderful job of not only spinning a fascinating story that will hold a reader's attention from beginning to end, but of bringing an environment most of his audience won't be familiar with to life. While some authors might have over explained and filled the story with unnecessary details supplying background information about the culture his world is based on, he is able to paint his picture through the deeds and thoughts of his characters. Whether it's something simple like describing the type of tea the Doctor prefers to start his morning with or a little more involved such as Raseed quoting scripture as he lambastes himself for his failings, by the end of the book you'll be as comfortable reading in this environment as you would one based on a culture and society you're more knowledgeable about.

However, don't read this book because its different. Read it because its well written and as good as most other fantasy titles out there. The fact that it adds some much needed diversity to the genre is a bonus. Even better is the promise of more stories set in this world the sub-title, Book One of The Crescent Moon Kingdoms, offers. Now that's something to look forward to.

(Article first published as Book Review: Throne Of The Crescent Moon by Saladin Ahmed on Blogcritics)

Well a new release by the British folk group The Unthanks, named for lead singers and sisters Rachel and Becky Unthank, Diversions Vol. 1: The Songs of Robert Wyatt and Antony & The Johnsons, being released in North America on Rough Trade America February 7 2012 seemed like a great opportunity to see how Antony's music held up in the hands of others. To be honest I had never heard of The Unthanks and only had a vague sort of awareness of the other song writer featured, Robert Wyatt. It turns out Wyatt is the former lead singer of the British 1960s group Soft Machine who, after a nasty fall left him paralysed from the waist down, went onto develop a career as a singer songwriter in Europe and the United Kingdom.

As for The Unthanks they are another in the long line of British folk groups whose roots are firmly embedded into that island nation's musical history. Unlike folk music here in North America with its topical/political associations, in the United Kingdom the genre is far more literally representative of the "folk" of the country's various regions. In the case of the Unthanks that's Northumberland, best known for its wide open moors, bloody past and having once been an industrial heartland. Not having heard any of their music prior to this recording, I don't have any means of comparing this new recording with their other work. However, judging by their history they've not shied away from tackling material most would consider outside folk music's traditional purview. No matter how progressive they are I'm sure there aren't many others in the genre who've covered everything from King Crimson to Tom Waits.

So this foray into covering other's music isn't something new for the band. What is unusual is they had done a series of live concerts dedicated to performing the works of Robert Wyatt and Antony & The Johnsons. The tracks on this CD are taken from two concerts they gave at the Union Chapel in London England on December 8 and 9 2010. Diversions Vol 1 opens with five tracks taken from the Antony & the Johnsons' release I Am A Bird Now plus one song, "Paddy's Gone", from the single "You Are My Sister". The second half of the concert, and the CD, are nine of Robert Wyatt's songs taken from five of his solo releases. At the actual concerts the audience was given an intermission between the two sets and you might just want to hit pause for a few seconds after the last Antony & the Johnsons' tune to give yourself time to prepare for the change in atmosphere that occurs with the change in material.

What is most impressive about this CD is the remarkable way in which the Unthanks are able to capture the almost ethereal quality of Antony & the Johnsons' music and convey the emotional intensity behind his highly personal material. Antony's songs are akin to paintings in the way they present a variety of self-portraits of the artist. Exploring themes such as sexual identity, "For Today I Am A Boy", "Bird Gerhl" and "You Are My Sister" all deal with that subject with remarkable candour and sweetness, it makes it extremely difficult for someone other than the writer to perform them with the honesty required for them to touch a listener in the same way as the original.

While both Rachel and Becky Unthank have strong singing voices with impressive ranges, they very wisely don't attempt to match Antony's unique style. Unaffected and pure, with a raw sweetness of their own, what their voices might lack when it comes to the ethereal quality that gives Antony's work its emotional integrity, is more than made up for by their obvious honesty. Like great actors who allow themselves to become conduits for a writer's words, the Unthank sisters have done their best to let the lyrics speak for themselves. Where others may have tried too hard, and in the process spoiled the purity of the song's emotions, they have let the material guide their performances instead of forcing their own interpretations upon it.

However no matter how good a job they do with Antony's material, it's the songs by Robert Wyatt that allow them to show the qualities that had one of their recent albums voted onto two of Britain's more reputable newspapers' lists of the previous decades' best recordings. Hints of this quality, musical ability mixed with a certain homespun warmth, had shown up in their chatter in between the songs in the first part of the show with the comments the sisters made to each other and the audience. Wyatt's material, rooted as it is in the same folk traditions from which the sisters spring, is more of a natural fit for them not only musically but culturally. This isn't to say they are lacking in musical sophistication, because the arrangements by the band's producer and keyboard player Adrian McNally aren't simplistic by any means, but it feels like they have far more of a natural affinity for work based on more traditional folk stylings.

Wyatt's songs seemed to liberate the band more and the second half of the CD was far more exuberant, especially a rousing rendition of "Dondestan" that sounded like it included some of the clog dancing the sisters had promised their audience earlier on in the show. Of course not all of the tunes were "dance" numbers. "Free Will And Testament" for example was equally as introspective as anything done in the first half of the show, but regardless of its tempo The Unthanks seemed a little bit more relaxed and open playing this music. In fact the last time I had heard a concert with this unique a mixture of musical professionalism and "down home" atmosphere was watching Kate and Anna McGarrigle perform.

Diversions Vol. 1: The Songs Of Robert Wyatt and Antony & The Johnsons will not only give those who appreciate the music of the artists being covered a chance to hear evocative and thoughtful interpretations of their work, it offers listeners an indication of The Unthanks versatility. The fact they are equally capable of performing the work of two such different artists with almost equal comfort and ability is astounding. For those like me who had never heard them before, it makes for a remarkable introduction to their music and whets your appetite for more. The fact that it was recorded live in front of an audience makes it even more impressive and left me hoping they'll consider touring on this side of the Atlantic ocean some time in the near future.

(Photo Credit: Pip April)
(Article first published as Music Review: The Unthanks - Diversions Vol 1: The Songs Of Robert Wyatt and Antony & The Johnsons on Blogcritics.)

So, in order to see what all the fuss was about I bought Game of Thrones 4-Book Box Set, put out by Random House Canada in the spring of 2011 containing the first four books in the series: A Game Of Thrones, A Clash Of Kings, A Feast For Crows and A Storm Of Swords. Set in a world roughly equivalent to our history's dark ages where the majority scrabble to eke out an existence from the land or from what little money a skilled tradesperson can demand and a minority rule through inherited wealth and military prowess, "A Song Of Ice And Fire" takes readers from the throne rooms to the whore houses of Martin's invented world of the Seven Kingdoms and the lands surrounding it, to detail the struggle for control of its Iron Throne. While there is a wide world beyond the realm of the Seven Kingdoms, the majority of the action takes place in one of three geographical locales; the far north of the kingdom where a small band of warriors, The Night's Watch, man The Wall that keeps uncivilized tribes people (and if the myths are true other, less human, foes) at bay, the kingdom itself, which is a seething cauldron of plots and counter-plots as various factions strive for control of the throne and the Free Cities where the scion of the former ruling family looks to find the means to regain the throne her family lost.

Book one, Game Of Thrones, introduces us to all the main players, the world they inhabit and shakes out the various plot lines the series will continue to follow through the first four books. Rather then following the standard format of telling a story through the eyes of characters representing one perspective, Martin chose to try and tell his tale from as many angles as possible. In each book he has chosen to follow a specific collection of characters who represent as many sides of the story as possible. He then proceeds to switch back and forth between those characters with each chapter. As a result readers, over the course of each book and cumulatively over the course of the series, get to know the main characters far more intimately then is usual for this type of story. For not only do we see them through the eyes of others, we also step inside their heads and hear their version of events. It's amazing how what one person sees as a strength in them self is seen by others as a means to defeat them.

Even more fascinating is how Martin is able to use this format to change our opinion of a character. Someone who is depicted as vain, venal and indolent by others turns out to be far more complex and multifaceted than anyone else ever gave him credit for when we finally meet him. The eldest son of the wealthiest family in the kingdoms, Jamie Lannister, has been decried as a breaker of oaths and a king slayer since he killed the king he was meant to be guarding. While others, like Ned Stark, head of another powerful family and enemy of the Lannister clan, claim he dishonoured himself, when Jamie tells the reader why he killed the king, even though he knew he would be cursed and damned, we see him in a far better light.

The same applies to the aforementioned Ned Stark and his family who are all central figures in the struggle for power in the Seven Kingdoms. A descendant of one of the oldest families in the kingdom, and ruler of the far north in the king's name, Ned Stark initially comes across as your typical tragic hero. Yet for all his supposed nobility and honour his adherence to the code governing knights is so inflexible it blinds him to both the realities of the world he lives in and how others suffer because of his actions. It's his inability to see the world as anything other than black and white which leads to both his own downfall and the kingdom's descent into civil war.

Initially we are sympathetic to him, seeing how easily others are able to manipulate him because his reactions are so predictable. However, the more we learn about other people and see the history of the land through their eyes, the more we realize how flawed he was and how his simplistic view of the world was unfair and unjust. Of course Ned Stark and Jamie Lannister aren't the only characters whose stories we follow, and with each, whether Ned's wife and children (Catelyn, his youngest son Bran, his two daughters, Sansa and Arya, and illegitimate son Jon Snow) other members of the Lannister family (Tryion Jamie's dwarf brother and their sister Cersei, Queen and then Queen mother/regent of the Seven Kingdoms) or any one of a number other major and minor players in the struggle for power, we learn more about the land and the history behind the current conflict and the other currents of power at work in this world.

While this rather novel approach does serve to give readers a better than average understanding of the characters in the series, in the end it also ends up being the series' biggest limitation. While the details offered up by each character are interesting enough to hold your attention, after a while it began to feel like too much minutiae and not enough focus is being paid to the big picture. In spite of there being any number of battles and fights, countless plot twists involving betrayal and counter betrayals, we are never able to fully appreciate their scope as we always see them through the narrow focus of one person's perspective. It's like trying to see a panoramic view using a magnifying glass which only lets you focus on one small area at a time.

Only on very rare occasions does Martin give readers the distance required to appreciate the full sweep of events. As a result, even the most momentous of battles and happenings felt trivial and I began to feel like I was endlessly waiting for something important to happen. The few times he allowed action to begin to take place he'd leave readers hanging and end a chapter, However, instead of coming back and picking the action up where it left off, the story would have moved on and we'd find the characters somewhere else. Instead of experiencing the events begun earlier directly, we have to make due with the character's memories which makes them far less immediate and reduces any impact they might have had. This has the unfortunate result of making the books more like history texts than fiction.

While the first four books in the series "A Song Of Ice And Fire" are well written and are populated by a fascinating collection of characters the sum of its parts doesn't add up to a cohesive whole. While the idea of constantly switching focus from character to character is interesting enough, not enough has been done to tie the different perspectives together for it to have the flow required for a story of this length to have any sense of continuity. Having purchased the box set I waded through all four books, but by the third volume, Storm Of Swords, I found myself caring less and less about certain story lines and skimming the sections I found more tedious and have no real desire to read the most recently published fifth book. These are not bad books, or poorly written by any means, but the comparison with Tolkien is without basis and does Martin no favours. All it does is heighten a reader's expectations and makes the books that much more disappointing.

(Article first published as Book Review: A Game of Thrones, 4-Book Boxed Set (A Song of Ice and Fire Series) by George R.R. Martin on Blogcritics.)

While bussing may not have done much for racial integration in America, when it came to the musical integration of Fishbone, it was an incredible success. Slashing guitar riffs met R&B horns, funky rhythms, gospel tinged vocals and was wrapped up in the anarchic packaging of punk rock to explode all over the bars and clubs of LA. While they were a hit with anybody who saw them, nobody cares what colour your skin in in a mosh pit, when they started to move into the recording studio it was different story. Columbia, the first label they signed with, still had a black music division in those days, but Fishbone weren't Lionel Richie, Michael Jackson - hell they weren't even rap music - and they sure didn't fit anybody's image of what "black"music should sound like. Yet in spite of these obstacles by 1993 the band looked like they were on the verge of the big time. Spike Lee directed their music video, an appearance on Saturday Night Live and signing on for the Lollapalooza tour all seemed like things guaranteed to push them into the spotlight.

However, coincidence or not, the wheels started to fall off around the time the four cops accused of beating Rodney King were acquitted and South Central went up in flames. Growing up black, poor and male in LA they had all felt the sharp end of the LAPD at one time or another and were just as angry as everybody else over the verdict and it came out in their music. Not something a mainstream record label like Columbia was going to be comfortable with. At the same time guitarist Kendell Jones started experiencing personal difficulties, drinking heavily and accusing his fellow band members of being instruments of the devil. When Norwood and a few others tried to stage an adult intervention in order to get Jones the psychiatric treatment they thought he needed, he had them charged with attempted kidnapping. While they were all eventually acquitted, the loss of Jones seemed to signal the beginning of the end as Chris Dowd left the band a year later.

As the movie makes clear, while others had joined the core group who came together in 1979 along the way, when the centre started started to fall apart the band began a long slow decline back from the brink of success. By 2003 only Norwood Fisher and Angelo Moore remained of those who started the group, and the strain of holding it all together was starting to take its toll on them. The camera had been moving back and forth between the present and the past throughout the course of the movie as the directors wove archival footage of the band performing, rehearsing and hanging out in the studio with present day interviews, animation and even paintings to bring Fishbone's story to life. As is normal with these types of things we viewers are safe from any direct emotional involvement with the subject matter because it's all stuff that's happened in the past. So when the camera all of a sudden drops us down in the middle of something happening in the present the wall separating the audience from the movie's subjects comes tumbling down.

In footage shot at various points over the last decade we see how the struggle to keep the band going has come to affect the relationship between Fisher and Moore They both begin to harbour resentments towards the other which they start to reveal to the camera i their inteviews. Moore, the mercurial front man, is as potent a force on stage as he ever was and continues to look for new means of expressing himself. Exploding in all directions at once he washes up against the stolid and very grounded Fisher who as bass player has always provided the roots which gave the band its strength. Within the original band their were other members who could serve as buffers between the two with either the force of their personalities or their creative contributions. But the two of them as the only creative engines were gradually being pushed apart like polarized magnets.

What's amazing about this film is that instead of merely hearing others talking about the problems between the two men, or even just the two of them talking about each other, the camera sits down with them and watches as they attempt to hash out their differences. Both of them are committed to the idea of Fishbone and have made huge personal sacrifices for the band. However that can only keep working as long as its able to fulfill each of their artistic needs. As we've seen from the present day footage showing the band playing for miniscule audiences or attending publicity events which nobody comes to, they're not making the force they once were. Yet in spite of their differences, neither Norwood and Fisher want to give up on the band and still believe they have something to say that needs to be heard. It's that common ground that allows them to work things out and to continue the band. In fact, as the movie ends it seems like the band's future is actually looking brighter then it has in ages. Kendal Jones joins them for a gig and not only appears to have rid himself of the demons that plagued him in the early 90s but also wants to play with the band again. Trumpeter Kibby had left the band in 2003, but came back in 2010 and Chris Dowd - who had been one of the main writers in the early days - plays a couple of gigs with them.

Watching the footage included in the movie of the band performing during their hay days of the 1980s you can see why people like Flea from Red Hot Chili Peppers and others claim that Fishbone were the band who inspired them the most. You can also see how almost impossible it would have been for any record label to cope with them. Their music defies any sort of classification and their stage show would have a straight audience quaking in their boots. Moore thrashing atop the mosh pit, scaling the walls of the concert hall to climb into a balcony and diving into the audience and singing all the while while the rest of the band thrashes out a deadly mix of punk, funk, ska, rock and roll and jazz. What's truly amazing is how tight the band is. This wasn't some group of idiots who had no idea how to play their instruments or who couldn't find their way from the beginning of a song to its end without getting lost. No this was a tight knit and well rehearsed band with incredible skill whose vocal harmonies were as tight as a gospel choir and musical arrangements as crisp as any band.

Everyday Sunshine: The Story Of Fishbone does a wonderful job of not only telling audiences who Fishbone was, but who they are today. However, it's not just about a rock band, its about the people who are in a rock band and what it is that keeps them going when times are tough. This is one of the few "rockumentaries" I've seen where which manage to capture the love and pain involved with playing rock and roll when you care about it more than anything else in the world. It can eat at your soul. but the rewards can also be glorious. As this movie shows so poignantly he members of Fishbone have seen both sides of that coin and the long grey areas in between as well.

(Article first published as Movie Review: Everyday Sunshine: The Story Of Fishbone on Blogcritics.)

Oka is the fictionalized account of ethnomusicologist Louis Sarno's early days of living among the Bayaka people of the Central African Republic. Pygmies, the Bayaka are hunter gatherers most at home in the forests removed from civilization and its accompanying distractions and noise. In the movie Sarno has been renamed Larry Whitman - played by the remarkable Kris Marshall. While part of the movie deals with Whitman's obsession with his recordings, what it does best is clearly illustrate the degradation suffered by a people when they are forced off their land and their traditional way of life is taken away from them. Without stooping to sentimentality, or making the Bayaka out to be anything more than they are, Oka tells the story of every indigenous people who have ever been displaced by civilization though its depiction of their situation. Beautifully filmed on location in Central Africa, Oka manages to tell its story without preaching, presenting its subject as victims or objects of pity and with a great deal of humour. It might have a message, but that doesn't stop it from being a good movie.

The People Speak
History is written by not only the winners, but those in positions of power as well. History books tell the story of our countries from the point of view of generals, captains of industry and political leaders, while the voices of foot soldiers, factory workers and farmers - the majority - are never heard. American historian Howard Zinn changed all that when he published A People's History Of The United States, a collection of speeches, letters and other first hand accounts of events throughout American history written by those not normally given a voice. In order to bring these voices to life, a collection of American actors and performers staged readings from the book at campuses and theatres around the country. The DVD of The People Speak is a record of those live shows featuring readings by Viggo Mortensen, Josh Brolin, Matt Damon, David Strathairn, Danny Glover, Kerry Washington, Marisa Tomei and performances by Pink, Bob Dylan, Bruce Sprinsteen and John Legend. With material dating back to a speech given by a defendant from a court martial at Valley Forge - the men were upset that they were starving to death and freezing while their officers were well fed and comfortable - to letters home from soldiers serving in Iraq and Afghanistan it presents a very different view of American history than the one offered by most text books. This is the reality behind the statues, famous battles, the headlines and the oratory of politicians. These are also the voices of dissent who protested against slavery and who were responsible for things we now take for granted like child labour laws, mandatory work place safety, minimum wage, the eight hour working day and equal rights. There are more than two sides to every story, including history, and the DVD The People Speak is vitally important for the version of American History it tells.

Murphy's Law - The Complete Collection
While there are plenty of cop movies and cop television shows where an officer goes undercover to get the bad guys, very few depict the cost paid by the officers in question. During the five year run of Murphy's Law we followed Tommy Murphy (James Nesbitt) undercover as he descended deeper and deeper into the dark side of policing. While the first two seasons were the usual case an episode type of affair, although of a far higher quality than most anything else you'll see on television, in its last three years the show went places you don't often see. With each season following a single story line they were able to bring in details about the reality of undercover police work that make you wonder how, and why, anybody could do that type of work. The acting, writing, direction and camera work is superb throughout (look for Michael Fassbender in series three) but it's Nesbitt's performance that will leave you awestruck. Never before has the baggage carried by a cop been depicted in such heart rending detail and how much it costs them emotionally and physically.

Agadez - The Music And The Rebellion
is a movie with two purposes. First it tells the story of the indigo clad nomads of the Sahara desert known to the world as the Tuareg and themselves as Kel Tamashek. Over the past thirty years they have fought in three rebellions in a attempt to preserve their traditional way of life as their territory is gradually stolen from them. While they have taken up arms in their fight, they have also used music to inspire their people and to spread the message of the rebellion. As a result musicians were targeted for assassination by the armies of the countries whose borders now dissect the Sahara desert. Like many others the second subject of this movie, the young Tuareg musician known as Bombino, spent years in exile in order to avoid being assassinated like two former members of his band. Through a mix of talking heads, documentation of this young man's remarkable journey and concert film, audiences are not only given a clear history of these fiercely independent people and their current situation but are introduced to a young artist whose career is motivated by more than just a desire for fame. There is a long history of poets and story tellers among the Tuareg whose job is to remind the people of their traditions and who they are and the musicians of today have inherited that mantle. The camera reveals a climate as beautiful as it is harsh and unforgiving leaving you in awe of those who have called it home for generations. Stirring and unforgettable, Agadez - The Music And The Rebellion is as remarkable as the people it documents.

The Complete Doc Martin Collection - Series 1 - 4This series could have been your typical fish out of water tale with the easy sentimental conclusion of the stranger growing to love his rather eccentric new surroundings. However, when London based surgeon, the Dr Martin Ellington of the title, develops a phobia to the sight of blood and is forced to become a general practitioner in a small Cornwall fishing village, that's not the case. While he treats them for their various complaints, from the ridiculous to the dangerous, aside from one exception, he remains as aloof and abrupt towards his new patients in the last episode as he was in the first. Even falling in love with the local school teacher does nothing to soften his attitudes. Remarkably, Martin Clunes, manages to take this seemingly unlovable character and make him remarkably sympathetic. While he may end up with his foot in his mouth far more often than most of us, and definitely doesn't suffer fools gladly, his heart is more often than not in the right place. Funny, and at times poignant, the series avoids most of the pitfalls and stereotypes you'd normally associate with this type of story line and makes for entertaining and intelligent viewing.

Wild Horses & Renegades This is not a movie for the faint of hear, weak of stomach or horse lovers of any stripe for that matter. For it details in stark and horrifying detail how the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in the United States, the very people whose job it is to protect the few remaining herds of wild horses in that country, have slowly but surely been working towards their complete extinction. In 1971 the American government passed the Wild Horse and Burro Preservation act into law which was meant to guarantee the survival of both species. However, as the film carefully details, almost since the act was passed the BLM has done everything in its power to ensure the opposite. From fudging figures as to how many animals actually exist in the wild to "leasing" the land out from under them for everything from grazing cattle to mining for uranium - the latter which makes the land unfit for any living creature for decades thanks to tailings and other pollution. Horses are rounded up without accurate records being kept as to what happens to them and footage included in the film shows animals from BLM holding pens passing through Mexican slaughter houses after being illegally shipped across the border. (Definitely not footage for horse lovers) This movie makes for bitter viewing as it documents the betrayal of trust on a massive and organized scale and how one of America's great natural treasures is being exterminated as a result. A labour of love by all involved Wild Horses & Renegades is a desperate cry for help on behalf of those whose only crime is to exist. Hopefully enough will hear before its too late.

George Gently, Series 3The 1960s were turbulent times the world over and the north of England was no exception. In the third series featuring Martin Shaw as Inspector George Gently and Lee Ingleby as Sergeant John Bacchus the two police officers deal with everything from anti-war protests, changing attitudes towards sex and still try to solve two rather sordid murders. The first of the two ninety minute episodes, "Gently Evil", involves the murder of a young woman of questionable morals. However, as they investigate her family life they uncover some dark and nasty secrets which leaves them both disgusted and horrified. The second, "Peace and Love", finds them smack in the middle of both the anti-nuclear missile campaign of the mid 1960s in England and the burgeoning free love movement at the local university. When a professor, who also happens to be the leader of the protest movement, is found murdered the problem is trying to figure out which of those he'd managed to piss off is the actual killer. One of the many students he slept with, including the latest who is pregnant with his child, the female professor he jilted or the night porter whose job he imperilled. While the investigations are interesting and push both officers into having to examine their judgements, what makes the series even more enjoyable is the interplay between the two leads. While Bacchus likes to think of himself as hip and modern, he is in fact the more conservative of the two. The shifting times make it very difficult for him to hold onto his view of the world being nicely divided up into good and evil, and without his more worldly superior officer he'd be soon lost. Both Shaw and Ingleby give stellar performances making George Gently some of the finest police television produced.
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spyand Smiley's Peoplewere both six part television adaptations of the John Le Carre books of the same names. Reissued on DVD in 2011, originally airing in 1979 and 1982 respectively, they both faithfully recreated Le Carre's fascinating works that delved the depths of British counter intelligence during the latter days of the Cold War. At the centre of each show's byzantine and many layered plots sat Alec Guiness giving the performance of his career as George Smiley, the most unlikely hero of a spy thriller the world has ever seen. Seemingly just another one of the thousands of faceless civil servants employed by the British government, quiet, unassuming and befuddled looking, his outward appearance hides a brilliant intellect and a deep well of emotions. Whether tracking down the "mole" within British intelligence, in "Tinker Tailor", or investigating the murder of an elderly field agent in "Smiley" he is able to weave seemingly unconnected loose ends together into a pattern that everybody else missed. Yet for all his skill and his ability he is filled with an ever increasing sense of disgust at the work he does and the means employed to achieve success. While the recently released movie version of Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy boasts a stellar cast of British actors, I don't see how it can hope to match these earlier adaptations with their faithful adherence to the books and Guiness' tour de force performance.

Case HistoriesThe troubled private investigator with dark secrets lurking in the background has become such a well worn device in movies and television it now borders on cliche. It takes either a masterful performance, great scripts or a combination of the two for a show based around that premise to deliver something original. The six episodes of Case Histories, adapted from novels written by British crime author Kate Atkinson, staring Jason Isaacs as retired Scottish police officer Jackson Brodie turned private investigator, don't just rise above the cliche, they are so well done it's like the premise is brand new. Isaacs is one of those great actors who understands just what to give the camera in order to communicate with an audience and he does more with his eyes than most actors can do with any number of facial expressions. Brodie has wound himself so tight in order to hold his past at bay, you have the feeling if he were to display anymore than what appeared in his eyes the whole facade would shatter. As the series progresses each case he takes seems to open up the past just a little bit more and we begin to realize he's attempting to seek redemption for what he considers past failures. Haunting, intelligent and leavened with just enough humour to make the characters human and the circumstances real, this two disc DVD set is a treat for fans of great acting and detective shows alike.

Article first published as At the Movies and on DVD: Some Unseen Gems from 2011 on Blogcritics.)

River Of Smoke Amitav Ghosh. If you've given up hope of ever reading historical fiction that's not merely a romance novel made respectable than Amitav Ghosh's River Of Smoke will be a welcome breath of fresh air. The second book of his Ibis trilogy lands the reader smack in the middle of the British run opium trade of the 1830s. Set primarily within the foreigner's enclave in Canton China, it follows the fortunes of a disparate set of characters ranging from the mixed blood bastard offspring of British traders, Indian opium merchants, Chinese merchants, to the heads of British trading houses. The latter's version of Manifest Destiny disguised as a belief in Free Trade makes the Monroe Doctrine look like a thing of restraint and reason. While his vivid descriptions of life at sea and on land bring the era to life, it's Ghosh's ability to recreate vernacular and dialect that gives his characters an extra dimension which allows them to almost leap off the page. This is an experience not to be missed.

Cold Comfort Farm Stella Gibbons Originally published in the 1930s and now reissued under the Penguin Classic imprint, Cold Comfort Farm is still one of the funniest books you'll ever read. Gibbons pokes fun at literary conceits, the bored middle class and religion in equal measure. For those who've seen the BBC film adaptation, the book will delight while the uninitiated are in for a treat. A very timely reminder of what satire sounds like and is capable of accomplishing.

The Conference Of The Birds Peter Sis It's not often you find a book which does as magnificent job of telling a story through words and art work as Sis has done in this work. An adaptation of a classical Persian poem it will appeal to people of all ages. The illustrations will delight younger readers and the text, while straightforward, contains sufficient depths to keep adults thinking. Literally one of the most beautiful books you'll find on the shelves this year, or any year for that matter.

The Crippled God Steven Erikson The long awaited, stunning, conclusion to Erikson's ten volume Malazan Book of the Fallen series lives up to everything devoted readers have come to expect from the books. Human frailty, the hubris of immortals, bravery, spectacular battle scenes and the ability to recount great events and their cost on an individual level have been the hallmarks of Erikson's writing and this volume is no exception. This series established a new benchmark against which all epic fantasy will be measured in the future. One would think that after ten books, each roughly eight hundred pages in length, an author might start to run out of steam and ideas. That wasn't the case with either the series or its conclusion as we are held in thrall until the last page. Thankfully for anyone experiencing withdrawal from all things Malazan, Erikson's partner in world creation, Ian C Esselemont still has two volumes left to contribute. So while one segment of the journey may be completed, the voyage is not quite over.

The Map Of Time Felix J Palma The mystery of this book is trying to figure our what is real and what isn't. Told from a variety of perspectives Palma has created a looking glass world where reality is dependant on who is doing the recounting. Yet even as various examples of time travel are revealed to be hoax after hoax, each subsequent adventure is described in such convincing detail by its narrator we can't help but think maybe this one is for real. However, how are we to know as we are at the mercy of both our narrator and the author himself. It's a wonderful conundrum that stretches the boundaries of reality and keeps a reader guessing right to the last page. Palma has done a brilliant job of bringing late 19th century London society to life from the hissing of the gas lamps to the upper classes fascination with all things mystical. A pleasure to read from beginning to end.

The White Luck Warrior R Scott Bakker The second book of The Aspect Emperor trilogy, the sequel to The Prince of Nothing trilogy, continues the three main story lines begun in its predecessor. A rogue wizard seeks to find proof of the Aspect Emperor's lack of divinity by finding his place of birth; the empress fights to keep the empire from toppling and the emperor himself is leading the combined armies of almost the entire world in what could be a doomed quest to prevent the second apocalypse. There are no heroes in this book, no matter which side you might think you're on, everybody's motivations are suspect. Is it more than just jealousy that drives the wizard's attempts to reveal the secrets of the emperor he feels betrayed him? What's truly behind the emperor's grand design of unifying all humanity and then marching their armies across the face of the earth? Can anything justify the iron rule the empire exercises in the name of "for the better good"? As brilliant an exploration of the light and darkness humans are capable of as ever written, The White Luck Warrior, and the series, take us on a journey that only a few have dared to describe before, and does so with elegance and brutal reality. Not for the faint of heart, but brilliant.

Tomorrow Is Another Song Scott Wannberg. Published barely a month after he died, this posthumous collection of Wannberg's poetry offers readers a chance to experience what made him so special. A keen ear for the absurdities of the world combined with an eye that saw through the bullshit we're fed on a daily basis and a heart that never stopped hoping for a better world formed the basis of a voice that never struck a false note. Whether raised in a stream of conscience rant against an injustice, ruminating on the strange minds of politicians or contemplating all things strange and wonderful concerning humanity, America, love and politics Wannberg's perspective was as unique as it was refreshing. Often humorous, always insightful and sometimes angry, his poems are the perfect antidote to the cynicism of most popular culture. People, not things or ideals, come first in Wannberg's world, a lesson we could all stand to learn, no matter what side of the political fence we sit on.

Why I Am A Five Percenter Michael Muhammad Knight While it might seem odd for a white American to write a book about why he adheres to a uniquely African American form of Islam, Michael Muhammad Knight, has never let conventional wisdom stand in his way before. Unlike so many others who look to another's culture for answers, Knight is completely aware of the paradox of a white man following the tenets of what is basically an African American self-empowerment movement. Not only does he deal with the whole issue of race within this context in his usual brutally honest manner, he is also completely open about the contradictions implicit in a Muslim embracing a movement which tells its members that religion is a trap. Part history of African American Islam, part lesson in Islamic spirituality and part unstinting self examination, Why I Am A Five Percenter is an intelligent and thoughtful read. A classic case of truth being far more interesting than most fiction could ever hope to be.

Canciones De Invierno/Winter Songs Viggo Mortensen Mortensen's collections of photography and poetry contain individual moments of insight and revelation that come together to form an overall impression of their subject matter. While his photographs capture moments in time and place, his poems delve deep beneath the surface to find everything that has gone into its creation. Winter is a time when the world lies dormant and on the surface all seems frozen near death. Yet beneath the ice and snow life continues to broil. It takes a special mind and eye to not only see through the permafrost but to fathom the secrets stored there and reveal the heart that continues to pump warm blood. Mortensen is more than up to the challenge and while the results are sometimes complex, they are always worth the effort required to appreciate.

(Article first published as Recommended! My Favourite Reads Of 2011 on Blogcritics.)

Hank Williams III Ghost To A Ghost & Guttertown Greatness must skip a generation, because unlike his father Hank Williams III manages to genuinely capture the spirit of the original Hank's music. While they may have very little in common musically, both the grandfather and the grandson have that raw, rebellious nature to their music that makes it vital and alive. Hank Williams' music was the first steps towards rock and roll, who knows what Hank III's will lead to. Difficult to listen to at times, but never boring, Hank Williams III is a refreshing change of pace from the rhinestone shclock that passes itself off a country music these days.

Azim Ali From Darkness To The Edge Of Day This collection of Middle Eastern lullabies is a chance to hear one of popular music's truly beautiful voices. Unlike those who mistake a screechy falsetto for emotional intensity, Ali effortlessly soars from one end of her extensive vocal range to the other. Whether singing in her native Farsi, Turkish or Arabic she manages to convey the emotional depth of each song through intonation and tone. Not only is her performance wonderful, the collection is an opportunity to sample the diversity of music and poetry of the Middle East.

Bobban & Marko Markovic Orchestra & Fanfare Ciocarlia Balkan Brass Battle Every year the great German label Asphalt Tango, specializing in music from Eastern Europe and especially music of the Roma, puts out at least one recording that will knock your socks off. This year that involved putting the two forces of nature passing as brass bands, The Bobban & Marko Markovic Orchestra and Fanfare Ciocarlia, into a recording studio together and telling them to try and outperform each other. The result is beyond belief as they trade boasts, insults and music. This is brass band music for people who don't like brass bands, as it takes the instruments and the sounds they make to another dimension. The only thing better than this CD would be seeing the two bands live - so if you happen to be in Europe in the next little while and hear about a Balkan Brass Battle playing anywhere near you, check it out. You won't be disappointed.

Erdem Helvacioglu & Ros Bandt Black FalconThe words electronic music always make people thing of banks of computers and synthesizers. So this album will come as something of a surprise with Bandt's use of traditional plucked stringed instruments. However Helvacioglu has been making what he calls acoustic electronic music for a while now. The electronics are used to both digitally modify the sounds and to create base tracks which allow him and others to improvise with their own work. The results are always fascinating and in the case of Black Falcon, hauntingly beautiful. In Helvacioglu's hands electronics are another instrument to be incorporated into the final composition, not just toys to be played with and the results speak for themselves.

Flogging Molly Speed Of Darkness Once in a while a band comes along that reaches out and grabs you by the throat and doesn't let go until the disc is done. Flogging Molly's mix of traditional Celtic folk, punk rock sensibilities and social political awareness take you on a ride you won't soon forget. Intelligent lyrics which address our worries about the future, but that never give up hope for a better tomorrow, are accompanied by tight and energetic musicianship. These guys are great on disc, I can only imagine what it would be like to see them in concert.

Grayson Capps The Lost Cause Minstrels If you can imagine an old time southern revival meeting where instead of singing prayers the music is about honky tonks, hookers, drunks and bootleggers you'll be part way to picturing the music of Gryason Capps and The Lost Cause Minstrels. With music that's as rich and varied as the history and people he sings about. Capps has created an album as diverse as the South itself. Rock and roll, country and blues sound like they've been stewed over an open fire under a full moon with lyrics woven out of the fabric of real people's lives. Part story teller and part poet, Capps is one of the most spellbinding performers you'll hear in a long time, and this disc is another in a long line of great releases.

Jordi Savall & Various Artists Hisapania & Japan: Dialogues The idea of finding anything in common between Japanese and Spanish music is just a little hard to believe. However, cellist and composer Jordi Savall has made a career out of reaching back in time to bring unusual musical collaborations to life before, and this disc is no exception. Based on choral pieces and other religious music brought to Japan in the sixteenth century by Portuguese missionaries, this recording features traditional musicians from Japan and classical musicians from Spain collaborating to recreate and reinterpret this music. Taking scores that were first written down in the 1600s as their foundation, the results are both beautiful and revealing. It's amazing how common ground between two such apparently diverse cultures doesn't appear to have been very difficult to find. Something we could all learn a lesson from.

Mariachi El Brons Mariachi El Bronx II A punk band doing Mariachi music? The only thing stranger than that would be if they did it completely straight without any concessions to contemporary music. Guess what - that's exactly what the punk band Bronx has done. This is a great album of Mariachi music done with traditional instruments and with great verve and style. The only thing separating them from a Hispanic band is the lyrics are all in English, but aside from that you'd be hard pressed to find anything about this band and this recording that doesn't ring true. Not a novelty act, but pure and wonderful Mariachi music. Enjoy with your favourite tequila.

Marianne Faithfull Horses And High Heels If there's anyone deserving of the title "The Grand Old Dame Of Rock and Roll" it would me Marianne Faithful. With her distinctive growl still firmly in place, she can still sing circles around most of the so called "stars" out there. Sure her range is limited, but she does more with what she has than anyone else could even dream of doing. A great recording by a great artist.

Susan McKeown Singing In The Dark Mental illness is probably one of the few taboo subjects left in modern society. By delving into the history of music and poetry, McKeown not only shines a spotlight on the subject, she underlines its connection with the creative mind. How many artistic geniuses have been suppressed because they've been misunderstood and diagnosed as mentally ill. She doesn't shy away from the dark side of the subject either. The material she's chosen to interpret makes no bones about the fine line between the light of inspiration and the darkness of depression artists walk and she takes great pains not to romanticize the subject. Of course the music is also beautiful and her voice is amazing. As a result this collection will not only stir your soul, it will make you think.

Tinariwen Tassili From the first time I heard them, Tinariwen have been one of my favourite bands. The combination of electric blues guitar and traditional drums is mesmerizing. With this release though they've pushed both deeper back into their traditions and reached out further into modern pop. Recorded with entirely acoustic instruments from a base camp deep in their native Saharan desert, they've also expanded their sound with guest musicians from North America for the first time. The Dirty Dozen Brass Band from New Orleans and Tunde Adebimpe of TV On The Radio supply instrumental and vocal support respectively on a couple of songs without being jarring or incongruous. A perfect example of how a band can stay true to their traditions while preventing their music from stagnating.

Willie Nile The Innocent Ones Willie Nile has been kicking around the music industry so long now that he's taken everything they've had to throw at him and is still standing. As a result he does what he wants to do and doesn't worry about what anybody else has to say about it. It's too bad more people didn't have that confidence as this is as fine a collection of popular music as you'll have heard in a long time. He does everything equally well, with an exuberance that puts most acts to shame. Always a joy to listen to, Nile's latest is both topical and musically interesting. If you want to be reminded what rock and roll music is, check out this disc.

(Article first published as My Favourite Listens For 2011 on Blogcritics.)

European colonialists employed similar policies the world over as their influence spread. However, there were certain parts of the world where the native climate was so hostile that even the hardiest of settlers wouldn't have dreamed of trying to make a go of "taming" the land. Until late in the twentieth century people indigenous to places like the Saharan desert, the far north and the jungles of Africa and South America were able to carry on living much as they had for centuries. Unfortunately that began changing as "civilization's" greed for natural resources has meant that no area of the world is safe from exploitation any longer no matter how supposedly inhospitable it may once have been considered.

Once considered impenetrable and forbidding the jungles of Africa have only recently begun to feel the pinch of progress and development. The people of Central and West African nations are now seeing their lands torn apart by mining for materials for cell phones and other precious metals. The forests themselves are one of the last great sources of lumber, and improving technology has finally allowed companies access to the great trees that have stood for centuries.

Naturally those most effected by these encroachments are those least able to defend themselves. In the Central African Republic it's the Bayaka people in the province of Yandombe who are most at risk. Pygmies, treated as second class citizens by the other tribes, they've long lived as hunter gatherers deep within the forests. A new movie, Oka, shows how depriving them of their traditional way of life has begun the process of marginalizing them as has happened to so many the world over. Told through the eyes of an ethnomusicologist, Larry Whitman (played by the wonderful Kris Marshall), and based on the experiences of real life ethnomusicologist Louis Sarno who has lived with them for twenty-five years., the movie depicts the Bayaka's circumstances with both intelligence and humour.

Writer director Lavina Currier has created both a portrait of an individual's personal journey, as we follow Whitman from New Jersey at the beginning of the movie to Central Africa, and what happens to a people when they are forced to relinquish the way of life which has defined them for generations. Too often this type of movie falls into one of a few traps. They will either sentimentalize their subjects and make them out to be something they aren't or become a forum for some sort of new age bullshit about the spirituality of living in harmony with nature which comes across like so much "noble savage garbage. Thankfully Currier avoids any of those temptations and allows her cameras to speak for themselves and lets us reach our own decisions about events as they unfold. Even better is the fact that Whitman is never once shown to be their saviour. He doesn't come ridding into the jungle on his white charger and lead the poor ignorant native peoples to victory over his evil compatriots.

Whitman has made its his life's work to record the sounds of the Bayaka's lives including the music they create and the sounds of the world they live in. However there is still one sound he's been unable to capture on tape, the sound of the molimo, an instrument associated with the elephant hunts the people used to conduct. With elephants now a protected species both the hunt and the instrument are thought to be things of the past as the only time the Bayaka will play the instrument is for hunting purposes.

When the movie opens we find Whitman back home in the States looking for funding to continue his work and being told he's in no physical shape to tackle the intense heat of Africa again. In spite of his doctor's warning, "there's no more trips to Africa for you Larry", he refuses to give up his quest to record the molimo. However upon his return to the Central African Republic he discovers things have changed for the worse. The local Bantu mayor has forbidden the Bayaka to enter the forests and confined them to a small village. The mayor hope is to somehow convince the authorities to waive their protection of the Bayaka traditional lands so he can capitalize on a lumber company's desire to harvest the forests in those areas.

Confined to a village Whitman finds the Bayaka have fallen into the same malaise plaguing indigenous people everywhere forced from their lands. Instead of following their traditional way of life they have become dependant on earning what they can from casual labour and have started to succumb to the lure of the material goods money can buy. There's also the feeling that alcohol is starting to play too much of a role in helping them forget their troubles. Only one man seems to have been able to avoid the trap, tribal shaman Sataka and his wife Ekadi have ignored the mayor's edict to stay out of the forest and continue to live there as they always have. (All the Bayaka tribes people roles are performed by members of the tribe. According to production notes online they were initially perplexed as to what was expected of them. They had become so used to people making documentary film about them the idea of acting out something instead of just doing it was at first confusing. Judging by the results it's obvious they caught on quickly enough, as the performance by all are natural and completely believable.)

When Whitman heads off into the forest in an attempt to find Sataka, in the hopes of somehow hearing the sound of the elusive molimo, the rest of the tribe, knowing how hopeless he is at surviving on his own, set out after him. It's through these scenes in the forest that Currier makes her strongest arguments against the displacement of peoples from their habitat. Simply watching the Bayaka moving through the undergrowth with ease compared to the struggles Whitman experiences simply walking the same paths, tells you all you need to know about them and their environment. Contrasting how they are in the forest to their lives in the village nobody can doubt which is truly their home.

Currier has taken full advantage of her media, sounds and visuals, to get her message across. By allowing us to see and hear the forest and how the Bayaka interact with it, it's obvious where they belong. At no point does anybody make any speeches, nor are the lives of the people being portrayed sentimentalized. When Whitman argues against a proposed elephant hunt, the Bayaka look at him as if he was crazy. Elephants have been a traditional staple of the people for as long as they've been there. They provide enough meat to feed the entire tribe for long periods of time, why shouldn't they hunt it? "Don't you like meat?" they ask him. The harsh reality of the hunter gatherer lifestyle doesn't allow for any room to sentimentalize one's source of food.

Oka is a wonderful movie on a couple of fronts. For not only does it do a wonderful job of telling the story of how Whitman and his obsession with recording all the sounds and music associated with the Bayaka people, it is as honest as portrayal as you'll ever see of the effects of displacement upon a people. Here are a people who if left alone would simply carry on as they've done for generations. Ideally suited to their home environment, they don't need to be rescued, they need to be left alone. Unfortunately we don't have the greatest record when it comes to leaving things alone. Maybe films like this one will help us understand how somethings are fine just the way they are and in some cases change isn't necessarily for the better.

Oka was first released in theatres in October 2011 and is being shown in selected theatres on specific dates around the world. Check the web site for dates of a screening near you.

(Article first published as Movie Review: Oka on Blogcritics)

While that alone would make him remarkable, it's his seemingly insatiable interest in the world around him that makes him such a unique figure in the world of classical musicians. He made it obvious from early on that he was cut from a different mould. Like many other musicians he started playing when he was young, four years old, but unlike most he understood there was more to the world than Bach and Mozart. So after graduation from the Julliard School in New York, he completed a Liberal Arts Degree from Harvard University, all by his twenty-first birthday. It would be really easy to despise this guy. He's just too brilliant.

Unfortunately he's just too brilliant - I don't think I've ever seen a picture of him where he doesn't appear to be glowing. It's impossible not to like somebody who takes such obvious joy in not only doing what he does, but finding ways to spread the joy music brings to him to as many people as possible. Every time you turn around it seems like he's doing some new project that explores the different directions music can be taken and pushes his own instrument in directions most people wouldn't even have dreamt of let alone bring to fruition. His latest project on Sony Masterworks, The Goat Rodeo Sessions, is a perfect example. Not only does it show off his skills as a musician, it throws into relief the originality of his ideas.

For this recording he is joined by three other instrumentalists, Chris Thile on mandolin, Edgar Meyer on bass and Stuart Duncan on fiddle. Thile and singer Aoife O'Donovan accompany the quartet with vocals on two of the eleven compositions performed on the disc. Thile is also the odd man out in most people's idea of a string quartet. But that makes sense as the music the four, and occasionally five, of them make is nothing like what you'd hear from most string quartets. In fact I haven't heard anything quite as original from this type of configuration since I heard the Kronos Quartet performing Hendrix's "Purple Haze" on violins, viola and cello.

Each of the tracks on the recording are originals, with ten being composed by Thile, Meyer and Duncan. O'Donovan joins the other three in writing "Here And Heaven", the first of the two songs she contributes vocals to. Normally referring to a song as an original simply means the people performing wrote it themselves rather than playing somebody else's work. However, in this case the music on this disc is truly original. The five musicians involved in the project bring widely divergent backgrounds with them. From Ma, the classically trained cellist who doesn't improvise to Duncan, the Nashville fiddle player who doesn't read very much music, the challenges faced in creating and performing the music you hear on the disc would have been huge.

According to the liner notes the term "Goat Rodeo" is defined as a situation defying order. Yet, no matter how chaotic the creative process might have been, the final result is sublime. The opening track, "Attaboy", a stirring mix of the four instruments defining the new genre they've invented through their search for common ground, gives listener a foretaste of what's to come on the rest of the album. This is not merely four guys mixing bluegrass, country, Irish and classical music together. Instead it's finding the place where they all converge and then leaping off into the unknown from there. Forget any expectations you might have based on any knowledge of the individuals involved, as they won't prepare you for what you're going to hear.

Flashes of bluegrass, jigs, reels, madrigals, waltzes and almost everything else you can think of or recognize weave in and out of the material as the four men create tapestries of music you would not have thought possible. Of course it doesn't hurt that each of them are able to make their instruments sing in ways that most people only dream of being able to accomplish. Just to make things interesting, Thile picks up the banjo and gamba on one track, "Here In Heaven" (which he also contributes vocals to) Duncan grabs the banjo for "Less Is Moi" and Meyer hops over to the piano on "No One But You". However, no matter who is playing what, the end result is the same. Music that captures the imagination and stirs the soul in ways you might not believe possible until you hear it.

I know I'm avoiding specifics about individual tracks on this disc, but it's not like you can say, well the lyrics on this song are cool and you really have to check out the solo on this song. These pieces are each moments of musical magic that transcend the usual definitions we use for categorizing or compartmentalizing music. When something's boundaries have been redefined language is the last to catch up as we scramble to find words that will do justice to something we've never had to talk about before. If I tell you that one song sounds like a mix of bluegrass mandolin, Irish fiddle, jazz bass and a beautiful cello sonata, what kind of image would that invoke? That sounds like four instruments running off in four different directions all at once.

Yet there are songs in which that's exactly what it sounds like, except all four instruments are running in the same direction and are standing together on incredibly solid footing. What does happen is you hear these different styles and instruments in ways you've never heard before and it gives you an even deeper appreciation for them. Personally I've always loved the sound a cello makes. But were moments when hearing it on this disc, in the company of the other instruments, its sound effected me stronger then ever before. Maybe hearing it in unfamiliar territory made it stand out more, but it was the same for each instrument. You couldn't help but notice them and appreciate them far more then you would have normally.

Earlier I had briefly mentioned singer, Aoife O'Donovan, who along with Thile provides vocals on two tracks. Aside from the fact they sound like they've been singing together forever, what struck me is how they found the common ground between the folk music of the British Isles and the bluegrass and country music of North America. You'd be hard pressed to tell it today based on what passes itself off as country music, but it owes its existence to the traditional folk music of Scotland, Ireland and England. Hearing the voices of O'Donovan and Thile together, and the music created to accompany the lyrics they sing, is like listening to history come alive as you hear the two forms meeting and merging. It's one, among many, of transcendent moments you'll experience listening to this recording.

In mythology you often read that before there was life there was chaos. It's only through the imposition of some sort of order its maelstrom of divergent energies assumes a familiar form. The Goat Rodeo Sessions is an example of how chaos inspires the miracle of creation. The four musicians on this recording may not be gods, but they have certainly created something full of life, beauty and splendour. It might not be a new universe, but its definitely a new world of music.
(Article first published as Music Review: Yo-Yo Ma, Stuart Duncan, Edgar Meyer & Chris Thile - The Goat Rodeo Sessions on Blogcritics.)

In the late 1970s Willie Nile was on the verge of international stardom. The industry was dubbing him the next "big thing". After Springstien he was going to be the next Bob Dylan, the voice of a new generation and all the expectations that went with the designation. It wasn't just hype either as fellow musicians quickly recognized he was something special. Pete Townshead specifically requested Nile as the Who's opening act for their 1980 North American tour while more recently Lucinda Williams has said if there was any justice in the world she'd be opening for Nile not the other way around.

Instead of cashing in on his accolades in the 1980s, Nile chose to walk away to preserve his independence. Going almost a decade without a record contract, but never stopping writing and performing, he put out two releases in the early 1990s and then nothing else again until 2000. It was another six years before he released Streets Of New York, which was then followed by three live recordings in quick succession in 2007, Live In Central Park and 2008, Live at the Turning Point and Live From The Streets Of New York (also on DVD). This was followed by 2009's House Of A Thousand Guitars on his own River House Records label.

It's obvious having his own record label has agreed with Nile as he's now released his third new studio disc in the past five years. The Innocent Ones made its way into stores in North America on November 22 2011 after enjoying a successful release in Europe in 2010. The eleven cuts on the disc are Nile's usual mix of power pop anthems, thoughtful ballads and rock and roll for the sheer fun of it. There aren't many popular artists these days who are capable of doing a credible job of any one of those types of material let alone all three. Yet Nile seems to have no difficulty in switching gears from one mode to the other and performing each with equal ability.

With the exception of "Sideways Beautiful", which he wrote on his own, all the songs on the disc were co-written by Nile and his long time musical cohort Frankie Lee. The two men have a knack for creating songs deceptively simple musically and lyrically. You don't need to be needlessly complicated to write an intelligent song. Far too many people these days seem to feel that their music won't be taken "seriously" unless they clutter it up with convoluted lyrics that a cryptographer would have trouble deciphering or complicated tunes which nobody really has any fun listening to. If you have something to say doesn't it make more sense that people understand what you're talking about and enjoy listening to you say it? Lee and Nile are not only masters at writing intelligent lyrics that speak directly to their listeners, they've not forgotten that rock and roll is supposed to be fun. Who decided that the only way pop music could be taken seriously was by sucking all the life out of it anyway? Thankfully Lee and Nile weren't listening to whoever made that decision.

When was the last time you listened to a CD and found the music so infectious that you caught yourself singing along with the chorus of a song the first time you heard it? How many times has a song's lyrics caught your attention so vividly you were able to pay attention to what they were saying without making any effort? Not only are the tracks "The Innocent Ones", "Song For You" and "Rich And Broken" from this disc capable of doing this, they do so without you feeling like you've been manipulated. Too often songs rely on cleaver "hooks", catchy arrangements or melodies, and cheap sentimentality to capture our attention. That's not the case with any of the songs mentioned above, or the rest of the material on the disc either for that matter.

Aside from the fact they are well written and intelligent, what makes them so compelling is Nile's abilities as a performer. By no stretch of the imagination would you say he has a beautiful voice, but it has the rough hewn honesty so many strive to emulate but which can't be faked. Whether he's excited, happy, sad or just having a good time, as listeners we can always tell because his voice doesn't lie. The compassion in his voice when he sings, "For every heart that's broken in two/I'm speaking your name, I'm lighting a flame/ I'm singing a song for you" during "Song For You" is so genuine that you can't help believing him. He isn't just singing these words, he lives them, and if he could he'd find a way to comfort the lost people of the world he would.

He's not just compassionate either. In "Rich And Broken", he not only sings about the wasted lives of young starlets like Lindsey Lohan and the other party girls with genuine regret, he accepts the fact that our society, our craving for celebrity, has to accept some responsibility for what's happened to them. "She's oh so rich and broken/There's part of her that's yet to be awoken/She's rich and broken...and she's mine"..."With first name recognition/She's a walking fashion fiction getting high/Bye Bye Bye". Not only does he mourn the lost potential all these people represent and how our cult of celebrity has taken away their identities by reducing them to a meaningless name, the three words "and she's mine" are him accepting his share of the blame for being part of a society that thinks celebrity worship is normal.

Willie Nile is that rarest of musicians, a true independent. He's turned his back on record contracts twice because of the compromises involved working with studios and forged his own path for the last two decades. The result is pure unadulterated rock and roll music and lyrics sung from the heart with more genuine emotion in one song than most people can squeeze out of themselves over the course of a career. Like the bards of old, Nile seems to have found a way to tap into the human condition and create songs that are both topical and timeless. He finds universal themes and imbues them with his own unique blend of compassion and intelligence in the hope that he might make a difference. So when he sings "So if you get knocked down you gotta' take a stand/For all the outcast, dead last who need a helping hand" on the song "One Guitar" he gives you hope that maybe if people do raise their voices together they can make a difference. It's at least worth trying anyway don't you think?.
(Photo Credit: Christina Arrigoni)
(Article first published as Music Review: Willie Nile - The Innocent Ones on Blogcritics)

What truly strains my credulity about these plots is in the world of modern policing most forces frown on officers having personal agendas influencing their behaviour. Not only do they now have police psychologists who would be quick to relieve anyone so inclined of their duties, the last thing they want are accusations of excessive force or police brutality screwing up a conviction. Anyway, why is it a cop's answer to his troubled past always violence? There are other ways people react to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

Thankfully it turns out there are script writers who understand and have started to create characters who aren't quite so simplistic. As is often the case the best of these characters are being created for British television shows with the most recent example being the six part series called Case Histories. Now available as a two disc DVD set from Acorn Media, it was adapted from the works of British crime writer Kate Atkinson featuring the character of Private Investigator Jackson Brodie.

Brodie, portrayed brilliantly by Jason Isaacs (Best known as Lucious Malfoy in the Harry Potter movies) has previously been a soldier and then a cop. While he deals in the bread and butter of private investigation work, checking on cheating spouses for insecure partners, he seems to have a particular affinity for missing persons and cases where the trail has long since gone cold. We also learn early on that he is haunted by a memory from his childhood. It turns out his sister was murdered and his older brother was so guilt ridden he attempted suicide and has ended up catatonic in a nursing home.

While it sounds like we're headed into the typical brooding cop type thing mentioned earlier, the series manages to avoid that pitfall. Instead of having Brodie losing himself in a glass at the end of each day, the fact that his sister's killer has never been caught dictates his choice of cases. The other thing we quickly learn about him is he doesn't wallow in self pity. Instead the memories of his sister's death seems to have increased his sense of compassion towards both those who are victims of crimes and their families. He might never find out who killed his sister or have been able to protect her, but he's not going to let another murder go unsolved, allow someone to be victimized or to suffer needlessly.

While this white knight riding to the rescue sounds like it shortened his career as a police officer, we're never really told why he left the force. However,we do know the only cop he's on good terms with, DC Louise Munroe, played by Amanda Abbington. We do find out during one of his visits to Munroe at work that he somehow managed to have two cops suspended for apparently not pursuing the capture of a rapist as thoroughly as Brodie would have liked. Whether that happened while he was a cop or more recently isn't made clear, however it does explain why uniformed officers casually call him "wanker" whenever they see him.

However strained his relations are with the rest of the police, and no matter how much he might piss her off periodically, Munroe not only has a great deal of respect for Jackson's skills as an investigator, she also covers for him on those times he skirts around the edges of the law. As the series progresses the nature of their relationship actually becomes more not less confusing. Both of them become involved with other people, but they always seem to be drawn to each other, and you have the feeling with a little bit of encouragement they could become a couple. There's very little said overtly, but both actors are wonderful at communicating what's between the lines through the manner in which they each behave around the other.

It's like they both realize any relationship between the two of them wouldn't be casual, and they'd better well be damn sure about it. Both have had previous marriages and each has a child. It's not said what happened to Munroe's, but it's pretty obvious that Brodie's wife just couldn't put up with his work hours. It quickly becomes apparent that as far as he's concerned there's no off duty hours when he's on a case. He even takes his five year old daughter with him when he goes off to interview people, which thrills his ex-wife no end when she finds out.

One of the great things about this series is the arc we're able to watch the character of Brodie travel. When we first meet him the death of his sister dominates his life. When his ex-wife announces she and their daughter will be moving to New Zealand for a year, he freaks. It's not just because he will be separated from his daughter whom he loves, but because he can't shake the belief something horrible will happen to her if he's not there to protect her. Even after he finally resigns himself to their going, he still can't let go. It hasn't helped that the cases he'd been working on prior to them leaving were two involving young girls who had gone missing thirty and about sixteen years ago respectively and two unsolved murders.

However its the last case he takes on in the series, after his daughter has already left for New Zealand, that helps him to finally begin to resolve his own issues. After a teenaged girl saves his life when he's injured in a train wreck, she convinces him to investigate the disappearance of the woman she baby sits for. It turns out this same woman had only just escaped being murdered as a child after watching her mother and daughter be cut down in front of her by a knife wielding crazy. She had managed to escape by hiding in the the tall grass near to where the murder took place. It was there she was found by a young soldier named Jackson Brodie who was part of the search party looking for her.

Now all these years later he's searching for her again and while he finds her and brings her home, he also sees how she was able to protect herself. Not everybody is a victim, and he begins to realize he can't and shouldn't try to be everybody's saviour. Sure he should do what he can for his daughter, but he also has to let go. Isaacs depiction of Brodie's transformation is so gradual you barely notice it happening over the course of the six episodes. However, when you look back at how he was when we first met him and compare that to the man we see on the television screen in the final frames of the series, it's like a twenty ton weight has been taken off his shoulders.

All through the series we've seen him running for both exercise and an attempt to run away from his past. However hard he runs though, his mind can't help but travelling back to the day he saw his sister's corpse being found. In the last frames of the show we see him crest a hill while running and looking around himself with a smile on his face. Case Histories is not your typical crime show and Jackson Brodie is not your typical private investigator. The cases he takes on are intriguing and following along with his investigations is as interesting, if not more, than any other series of this type. However it's the study of Brodie the character and Jason Isaacs's performance which elevates this show into a category all its own.

The two disc set contains all six episodes of the series plus a fifteen minute bonus, making of , short. While there's no real startling revelations in the feature, the interviews with Isaacs, Amanda Abbington and author Atkinson are interesting for the perspectives they offer on the characters in the show and the author's intent with creating the series. However, it's not the extra features that make Case Histories special, it's the show itself. If you weren't able to catch it on your local Public Broadcasting Station recently, than you need to watch it now. It ranks right up there as one of the best mystery/crime shows to come out of Britain in the last few years.

(Article first published as DVD Review: Case Histories Starring Jason Isaacs on Blogcritics.)

For a lot of people the temptation might be to run as far away from their family name as possible in order to prove they can make it on their own. However, there shouldn't be any reason for them to have to do that. If you have talent it will show through no matter who you are or who you perform with. When Amy Nelson and Cathy Guthrie released their first disc as Folk Uke a few years ago they not only proved they could stand on their own two feet as song writers and performers, they also made no secret of their family ties. Let's be real, Willie Nelson's and Arlo Guthrie's daughters aren't going to be able hide from the world who they're related to, so they might as well own up to it. So both dads appeared on the first record in support roles.

While the first CD was fun to listen to the duo relied more on their sense of humour and intelligence than their musical abilities to impress listeners. There were only a couple of moments which hinted at the true nature of their talents. Songs like "Shit Makes the Flowers Grow" and "Motherfucker", seemed like deliberate attempts to distract listeners from the natural sweetness of their voices and how suited they were to an older style of country/folk music. Now, with their second CD, Reincarnation, being released on November 22 2011 on their own Folk Uke label, the duo, as can be seen through their choice of material, have far more confidence in themselves and their abilities as vocalists.

The opening track on the disc, a cover of Harry Nilsson's "He Needs Me", tells the listener right away the direction Guthrie and Nelson have moved in. Nilsson's material requires just the right touch or it could easily slide into sentimental mush. Like a great many of his songs its deceptively simplistic while demanding a great deal from any who attempt to sing it. The temptation would be to go over the top emotionally in an effort to "make something" of the song. However, it's the song's very understatement which makes it so powerful, and Nelson and Guthrie understand that perfectly. Their vocal arrangement is simple enough to allow the song to speak for itself, while the unaffected sweetness of their harmonies captures its emotions without getting in your face.

Of course being who they are they haven't completely abandoned their rather wicked sense of humour. "I Miss My Boyfriend", with guest vocals supplied by Skeeter Jennings, is one of the most biting and non-politically correct songs about abusive boyfriends you're ever going to hear. In a letter from his prison cell an abusive boyfriend confesses to his girlfriend how he's had a wife all along. Not to worry though, for while dragging your wife around by the bra turns out to be against the law, he'll be out in a couple of years. With its sweetly sung chorus of "I miss my boyfriend/ will you hit me/give me the beating of my life/take off your belt now/leave me a welt now/treat me just like I was your wife", some might think the tune doesn't take the subject seriously enough. However, if that's the case, you need to look up the word irony in the dictionary and then listen to it again.

Still, the lasting impression you take away after listening to this disc is that of two wonderful voices raised in song. Whether it's the country type tear jerker "Long Black Limousine" or the title song "Reincarnation" - a love song that truly crosses all boundaries - Guthrie's and Nelson's vocals are a pleasure to listen to. Even on the aforementioned tear jerker they bring an honesty to lyrics that in other people's hands would sound cliched or downright stupid. They both seem to have the innate ability to open their mouths and sing unaffectedly. Whether one of their own creations or covering somebody else's material they have the confidence in themselves to simply serve as the song's interpreters and let it speak for itself.

On top of that their voices seem to have been made to sing with each other. Listen to the way they build their harmonies on "He Needs Me" and the effortless way their voices intertwine. It's not often you have the opportunity to just sit back and enjoy the sound of two voices working together so well. In fact you have the feeling that it wouldn't matter what they sang, and it would sound great. However, the music they've chosen here not only suits their voices perfectly, the songs also show their remarkable emotional and intellectual range as performers.

Both Nelson and Guthrie could easily slide over the edge into being cloying and sweet, and probably make a killing in the adult easy listening market, but thankfully they've taken a different direction and we're the ones reaping the benefits. They might have famous musical parents, but this latest release only confirms that Amy Nelson and Cathy Guthrie are deserving of recognition in their own right.

(Article first published as Music Review: Folk Uke - Reincarnation on Blogcritics.)

When Christopher Paolini was fifteen he self-published the young adult fantasy book Eragon. When he started to have some moderate success with sales on his own, Knoff, a division of Random House, republished the book and bought the rights to the series. Eragon and its sequel Eldest had shown a great deal of promise. An exciting adventure story filled with magic and magical beings. Sure it wasn't the most original of ideas, but there were enough new wrinkles thrown in to make the first two instalments at least compelling and interesting to read. Some of the sub plots were probably unnecessary but they at least helped further the story and didn't interfere with its forward motion. However even before the third book, Brisingr, in what was supposed to have been a trilogy, was published there were indications Paolini was running into trouble. For along with the announcement of its forthcoming publication came the news the series was being extended to a fourth book as the author hadn't been able to find a way to finish it in three books.

Brisingr wasn't a bad book, no better or worse than any number of fantasy books on the market, but it did very little to advance the overall plot of the series. There were a few pieces of information given out that would prove significant, but for the most part it was taken up with adventures which did little or nothing to advance the plot. So when it was announced that book four, Inheritance, published by Random House Canada on November 8 2011, was going to be over 800 pages long, I seriously wondered what Paolini was going to fill that number of pages with. Sure there were a number of questions that still remained to be answered, not least of which were how was the hero going to defeat a seemingly unbeatable foe, but even half those pages should have been sufficient to bring the series to a conclusion.

The most pressing of those questions was how the hero of the series, Eragon, and his dragon Saphira, were going to overcome the evil king Galbatorix who ruled Alagaesia with an iron fist. Eragon had been the first new dragon rider since Galbatorix had killed the rest of them, along with their dragons, when he rose to power. Everything we've seen in the series to date has made it look like a long shot at best that the younger rider succeed. Even with the four races of people banded together, elves, humans, dwarves and Urgal (a race of warriors with large ram's horns growing out of their heads) to form an army of resistance known as the Varden, the forces of the king seem overwhelming. Not only are his armies equal to, if not larger, than those of the Varden, his powers of magic are so strong even if Eragon and every other magic user in the kingdom linked their powers they wouldn't be able to overcome him through force. Galbatorix is so strong he was able to force Eragon's half-brother Murtagh, and his dragon Thorn, to swear oaths of allegiance to him against their wills; oaths that if broken would destroy them.

The only clue Eragon has to a possible solution to the problem of how to overcome Galbatorix is the second part of a cryptic piece of advice given him soon after he became a dragon rider. "When all seems lost and your power insufficient, go to the Rock of Kuthian and speak your name to open the Vault of Souls". Unfortunately nobody he's talked to, not even the werecat who gave him the advice, have any idea where either of them are located. When the leader of the Varden, Nasuada, is captured in a daring midnight raid by Murtagh and Thorn, the chances of their success have never seen slimmer. Their armies may have captured some of the cities controlled by Galbatorix, but they are running out of supplies and have to figure out how to defeat him quickly.

From that summation of events the final book had the potential for at least some nail biting adventure. However instead of focusing on the matter at hand, having Eragon search out the Rock of Kuthian and the Vault of Souls and then confronting Galbatorix, Paolini clutters up the book with page upon page of battles that could just as easily taken place off stage. While some people might find the battle scenes and side adventures exciting, overall they merely slow the story down and needlessly detract from the through line of the series. In fact by wasting so much time on insignificant details along the way, the final confrontation with Galbatorix when it comes feels rushed. Even worse, discovering the location of the Rock of Kuthian and the Vault of Souls feels incredibly contrived. It's almost like the author used the peripheral details hoping to distract us from the weaknesses of his resolution for the main plot.

Even more difficult to understand is how the last hundred or so pages of the book are spent in a very awkward attempt to tie up all the lose ends he had created throughout the series. While questions like who should rule Alagaesia after Galbatorix could only be answered once he was defeated, there should have been a way of resolving other threads more organically. Instead it feels like Paolini has remembered at the last moment he's left questions unanswered and tacked on the answers in order to satisfy fan forums.The most truthful part of his conclusion was the ambiguous way in which he dealt with some of the issues facing his characters. This at least fit in with the idea they and the world they lived in were facing a new beginning and an uncertain future.

The first two books of the Inheritance cycle showed great promise. Paolini had created a world complete with an intricate history and a variety of different races. However, somewhere along the way he lost his focus, and the details took on a life of their own until they overshadowed the main plot of the story. As a result the final book in the series, Inheritance, felt contrived and rather forced as the author tried to cram in answers to all the questions he had raised in the earlier books. While I'm sure die hard fans will find much to enjoy, it could have been much better.

(Article first published as Book Review: Inheritance, Book Four of the Inheritance Cycle by Christopher Paolini on Blogcritics.)

When they started making portable stereo systems manufacturers tried compensating for inadequate speakers using technological advances. While things like Dolby might boost signals and make the music louder, or give the illusion of rich sound by what basically amounted to turning the bass up higher, it came with a cost. The slight differences in frequencies generated by different instruments were gradually lost and music became more a wash of sound than collection of individual notes coming together in harmony to create magic. However, those comprises are nothing compared to what's happened with the advent of micro personal players and listening to music through headphones rather than speakers.

As a music critic I've struggled over the years to find the best ways possible to listen to the music people send me. It's become even more difficult in recent years with so many record companies only making review copies available as downloads and forcing critics to use digital players. In order to appreciate the music you have to be able to hear it - and that doesn't just mean have your brains turned to mush by mega bass and the other bells and whistles some audio companies seem to think are what's needed to make music sound better. Almost as important has been trying to find headphones that don't distract from listening to the music. There's nothing more annoying than listening to music with something which causes physical discomfort.

So in setting out to gauge the performance of two of the many headphones offered by iFrogz, the Timbre PRO Earbuds with built in Microphone and the CS40s Headphones I've judged them on both audio fidelity and comfort. For those of you who are interested in the technical specifics of both pieces of equipment you can check their individual web pages at the links above as I've looked at them in terms of personal listening experience only.

The CS40s Headphones are an over the ear set modelled along the lines of traditional headphones, but with some subtle differences to accommodate portability and ease of usage. The first thing I noticed about them was not only were they easy to adjust in terms of fitting around your head, you could also adjust each ear piece independently. The CS40s allow you to place each ear piece for maximum comfort and sound quality. They even fit comfortably around the arms of glasses, which far too many manufacturers don't seem to take into account with their designs. Not only are the ear pieces so well cushioned you don't feel like you're wearing tin cans on your ears, they exert even less pressure than a pair of ear muffs. The only drawback when it came to comfort was the headband could have been softer. The addition of a little extra padding for across the top of the head would make the world of difference.

The sound quality was equally as impressive. First of all whether listening to music through my iPod Classic or watching video on my computer there was a richness to the sound I'd not experienced with headphones before. While some of that might have been accomplished by boosting the lower registers slightly, it wasn't at the expense of the over all quality. Both the mid and high end were still distinctive and it was easy to distinguish individual notes. From background sound effects on a television show to being able to distinguish each instrument as a distinct entity within a song, the CS40s offered a far wider range of sound than I would have anticipated from headphones made of metal. At a manufacturers suggested retail (MSR) price of $39.99 these are more than worth the price. With their ability to collapse in on themselves for easy storage and their light weight, they are perfect for both home and travel.

However, while headphones have always been known to have superior quality sound over earbuds and other more portable types of headsets, most of us prefer the latter for listening to music while walking or jogging. No matter how collapsable they are you still can't stick a set of headphones in your pocket like you can ear buds. Until now though, you've always had to sacrifice at least sound quality, if not comfort as well, for convenience. If that's been your experience in the past the Timbre Pro earbuds are going to change your world. Somebody at iFrogz seems to have remembered that materials matter when it comes to sound quality. These are the first headphone of any type I know of where the speaker, or whatever you want to call it, has been wrapped in wood.

The sound is the best quality I've heard from any set of headphones I've ever used. It has the warmth and range of tonal quality I've only ever associated with top of the line speakers before. You aren't normally able to distinguish between the individual voices singing five part harmony when listening to music through speakers let alone ear buds, but the Timbre Pro not only delivers rich sound the separation of the different ranges and frequencies is so clear you hear each voice as clearly as the lead vocals. The same goes for individual instruments, including some percussion you almost never hear because they are usually lost in the wash of sound. You could listen to everything from classical to hip hop on these with equal enjoyment

Like most earbuds they come with three different sizes and shapes of replacement buds for inserting into your ear. In this case however, they not only fit snugly into your ears without hurting they also successfully block out a great deal of surrounding background noise. This means you don't have to risk deafness by cranking the volume to listen to your favourite tunes while walking down a busy street. I tested them on a major street walking on the sidewalk right beside two lanes of traffic and didn't have to adjust the volume on my player once and was able to set it at half the level I had with other headphones.

While the Timbre PRO earbuds with microphone might seem pricey at $49.99 ($39.99 without microphone) as far as I'm concerned they are worth every penny. After years of having to listen to barely adequate sound through less than comfortable equipment, it's a joy to be able to enjoy the same quality of fidelity that I used to only ever associate with high quality speakers. As was the case with home audio equipment in the past there's no point in spending a lot of money on a music player if your headphones suck. If you care about the music you listen to the Timbre PRO earbuds are worth every penny.

(Article first published as Product Review: Timbre Pro Earbuds & CS40s Headphones From iFrogz on Blogcritics.)