Communications – Page 89 – Fooyah

March 11 2019

Live at Drury Lane – Monty Python

This is an album of a live comedy show. By Monty Python. At Drury Lane Theatre.

It’s fucking genius. I loved this after I bought it in my late teens and I listened to it a lot. I hadn’t really ever seen Monty Python on television and so this record of sketches really made me laugh and imagine the action on stage. The songs are still brilliant and I listen to it still.

I once tried to decode the Bruces’ Song and I played it over and over trying to work out the lyrics. I think I drove my mum mad with the repeating Aussie music. The best part of this was that I didn’t even really know a lot about philosophy and I certainly didn’t know what all the main players were called.

There is something special about the craziness of the action and the sheer stupidity of this album.

“Albatross”.

March 9 2019

Live After Death – Iron Maiden

In this ongoing slow series of album reviews we have reached all those that begin with “Live”. So we now get an eclectic mix of albums recorded live although I don’t think we will cover the best live album, which is probably No Sleep ‘Till Hammersmith by Motorhead. I’m not sure how long this project is going to take. This series of communications started on 29 April 2013 and it’s nearly six years later and my music tastes have moved on. This list doesn’t include any albums I’ve purchased since 2013 and there’s a whole new genre to explore and explain. Anyway, onto Live After Death.

This album ROCKS. The gatefold sleeve was amazing and the images convinced me that Iron Maiden could put on a show. Even though all these songs are live and so will be individually reviewed elsewhere in this site this probably deserves some of its own mentions. This double album was recorded in Long Beach Arena and Hammersmith Odeon. Just the idea of having a job where you play an arena in California seemed amazing to me as a teenager. Of course, I also bought the video and watched it over and over.

I’m reasonably sure that W.A.S.P.s Live In The Raw was recorded on the same tour and that album is pretty amazing too. They supported Iron Maiden.

One of the appeals of this music is that it scares your parents. It’s a way of rebelling. It’s new and for you only. While at the same time being what all your mates listen to as well. You don’t want your parents to like this stuff and you want to make that break of the parental bond and music is one way of doing that. Before I was ten I grew up on a diet of ABBA and Jean Michel Jarre. While this is not bad music, I’d even say it’s bloody good, it wasn’t what I was after. I’ve talked about my descent into metal elsewhere and so will save you that story.

Iron Maiden had a monster on their album covers and the detail in the artwork was incredible. We all liked trying to find some new part of the image that no-one else had seen just to stand out, just to impress and show how much we concentrated on the art. Then there’s the stories of devil worship and Satan. The idea that this music was evil itself. I mean that’s bullshit but the puritanical press loved ranting about how this music was ruining the mind of children. The dying age of stiff-upper-lip and backward-repression of feelings and conformism was breaking as a new generation found their feet and wanted to make their mark. This happens all the time. I look at it now and think that I am just not that fussed by the new music. I have my niche and am happy to stick in it.

I think the bigger problem might be that trying to convince me your are weird or different is going to take some doing. I’ve been there and see it all. I’m still part of this counter-culture. I still go to club nights which would be considered “seedy” and rebellious. I mix with people whose day jobs are professional but who live in the boundary of conformism as we struggle to fit in to everyday society. What I do know about this culture is that I’ve never met an idiot or arsehole. Everyone seems to appreciate everyone else and people don’t make judgments. The society is more tolerant by definition and it survives and thrives because of that. It’s a microcosm of a better world where people are treated with respect and trust.

Back to this album. It kinda works on a sense of patriotism and harking back to the good times when Spitfires ruled the air and Britain worked to defeat evil [not my choice of words really and I struggle with the idea that the state can ask me to die for the state]. We start with Churchill’s fight them on the beaches speech with the sound of Rolls Royce engines in the background and BLAM – Aces High blasts out from the speakers.

After that we get one of my favourite Iron Maiden songs, Two Minutes To Midnight and its anti-war message. The lyrics in this astound me.

The body bags and little rags of children torn in two
And the jellied brains of those who remain to put the finger right on you

These aren’t nice lyrics, they aren’t meant to be. They also don’t glorify war in the way that the popular press might have you believe about metal and heavy rock. It’s a song against war.

The Trooper is a classic. Along with Revelations I heard this album before I had Piece Of Mind. The live version of Revelations is better than the studio version by a long way. Again, lyrically it’s amazing.

The Flight Of Icarus is boring.

Rime Of The Ancient Mariner is a good song and deliberately long. It build the atmosphere for the whole song and comes crashing down at the end.

Powerslave I love. A brilliant song and a masterpiece in how to end a piece of music. I’ve always felt that fading a song out is a lazy way of ending a song but I don’t think you can get better than the last two minutes of this song as a way of exploring how to finish a masterpiece.

All the other songs are from the first three albums and by default are the best that Maiden have to offer.

Number Of The Beast, Hallowed Be Thy Name [at about 150 bpm], Iron Maiden, Run To The Hills [a song explaining the mas slaughter of native Americans by white men], and then finally Running Free with its extra long audience participation which Dickinson manages with sheer aplomb.

The only problem with this album is that Sanctuary isn’t on it. But you can get it elsewhere. This is a stunner of a show.

March 3 2019March 3 2019

Lego 64 – Model 42091

This is a Lego model which has a pull-back spring motor. It’s pretty fast and good looking.

February 26 2019February 26 2019

On The Basis Of Sex

Yesterday there was a bonus few hours in the day as work was shut because of a lack of water supply. It’d be nice to have another day off, but we shall see what happens. I expect to be working and anyway, I’ve got a trip out to a mathematics competition so that will still need to go ahead.

As I gained some time yesterday I decided to go to the cinema in the evening as I got done some things earlier in the day. I visited the Cineworld cinema at Rochester and went to see On The Basis Of Sex. I forgot to look at the state of the tide on the way in but I can tell you the river levels were low on the way out with only the centre channel showing a liquid covering.

As is custom I rated this film on IMDB and there’s a complete guide to the rating system within this communication. You should read that before having a major breakdown about a score I gave a film. I then tweeted the result.

I rated On the Basis of Sex (2018) 6/10 #IMDb https://t.co/C3iVaSzgXR

— Ian Parish (@iparish) February 25, 2019

I might make a joke a bit later about this film, I’m working on the wording of it but something along the lines of “I went to see On The Basis Of Sex last night and I can tell you it was NOT the kind of film I was expecting”. You have to trust me that with my reputation this would be funny or at least vaguely amusing.

I liked this film and really wanted to give it 8/10 on the Parish IMDB scale but I realised I probably wouldn’t watch it again and so therefore, no matter how good, it gets a 6. This film covers the early life and career of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. She is currently trying to save the USA from the religious right wing views of the other judges on the USA Supreme Court [SCOTUS]. It is, I fear, not going to work because they appointed a sex-fiend to the bench recently rather than Merrick Garland. It is a disgrace what the GOP are doing to politics and human rights in the USA at the moment and I can’t go on about it for too long or I’ll get depressed about it.

I enjoyed this film. It’s a court room drama, sort of though as there’s only courtroom stuff right at the end, I guess this more likely shows the struggle to try and make sure that everyone has equal rights. You know, everyone should have the same protection under law and everyone should be treated the same. I mean, you’d think this would be an easy choice, it’s a simple question to answer. But, it took a long time and the fight still isn’t finished. There’s plenty more work to do, not only in the USA but also this country and most definitely around the world. Just have a look at how many countries still have homosexuality against the law.

I enjoyed this film. I don’t have a huge amount to say about it though. It was a nice little review of how people have fought for the common cause of good. It was nice to see RBG at the end.

What I do want to say is that whenever it gets dark in our world the producers in Hollywood and other film makers around the world try to make a difference. They try to make political statements by pushing films with messages. This group of flamboyant people who live in a bubble of acceptance of each other attempt to release films to show the good side of humanity. It’s like saying “fuck you” to those in authority. It’s a way of getting a message out there to the world to say “you aren’t alone and we care”.

This film is a slap in the face to the current presidential administration in the USA. It aims to show how we can improve as a society and what damage is being done. It’s a reminder of what things were like five years ago when politics wasn’t binary, divisive and aggressive. Hollywood tries its best to get the message of hope out there, to slap the face of those in authority. It attempts to change the world for the better by highlighting the stories of those who suffer or those who have done good.

Recent Oscar winners show how these liberal elite try to change the world with their messages:

12 Years A Slave
Spotlight
Moonlight

Hollywood and films help because they start the discussion. They allow people to talk about subjects that might be uncomfortable while at the same time they normalise those things that many might find strange or wrong. These films give hope to the world, especially in these dark times.

February 23 2019February 23 2019

Goodbye Tonkas

As part of my trip around Lincolnshire I spent a few hours outside Coningsby watching the Typhoons. They are pretty loud when taking off although one did set my car alarm off by doing a full-afterburner take off and heading straight up to 15,000 feet.

I also went to the BBMF hangar and looked around the various types they have there. Here’s their Lancaster:

I also saw another Lancaster at ex RAF East Kirkby.

Just Jane - Avro Lancaster — Just Jane – Avro Lancaster

However, the main reason for being a hundred and sixty miles from home was to be relatively close to RAF Marham so I could try and see some Tornados flying before they end their airborne days. I had noticed there was a NOTAM out for Marham on the Friday and so I planned to be there about half an hour before the start of whatever it was. I figured that if it wasn’t the Tornados it would be a Lightning II and that wouldn’t be such a bad thing to see. I still haven’t seen one fly and I could only just make out two in real life over the other side of the airfield.

I was lucky. There were five Tornados going up and preparing for a final display and fly past later in the month. It was really good to see them taxiing.

Tonka Formation - RAF Marham — Tonka Formation – RAF Marham

After about an hour over the North Sea doing their stuff they headed back to Marham but not before I had seen four F15s fly over and then three KC-135s in formation. They were a sight to see!

So I have two Tornado stories for you. The first was at North Weald airshow in the late 80s. My friend Nick and I had cycled from home and couldn’t afford entry so we just parked our bikes inside one of two fences in line with the end of the runway. We figured we weren’t airside and neither were we next to the road, we were in a kind of no-mans land. A Tornado lined up in front of us and then used full re-heat to take off. The noise and vibration was amazing. It was an awesome sight.

My next anecdote involves me being a cadet at RAF Coningsby in 1988. I was allowed to sit in the cockpit of a Tornado ADV and I played with the throttle. I was later told that doing this had dumped some fuel in the engine, but I wasn’t concerned. Later that night I was on the flight line “helping” and the aircraft I had been sitting in refused to start. It looks like I broke it [a little].

Head On - Panavia Tornado — Head On – Panavia Tornado

While at Marham the spotters got our own little airshow and it was such a delight. It was a special time to see these aircraft doing what they were meant to do, which is fly, for the last time.

I should add in that while in Cyprus on cadet camp there were Typhoons and Tornados taking off every evening to bomb ISIS in Syria and Iraq and I remember watching them leave while we were at the beach bar on Akrotiri. The after burners, the noise and the sight was spectacular. Tornados going to do the job they were designed for.

February 23 2019February 23 2019

Lincs. Views

Having spent a few days in Lincolnshire I can confirm it is gorgeous and horrifying at the same time. The roads are too straight, there aren’t any hills, and the doesn’t seem to be any traffic after 18:00 hrs. In the time I was there I only saw some hills when I left East Kirkby and headed to Horncastle. There were hills and corners and all sorts of roads, it was actually quite exciting. I didn’t stay in Horncastle for long as I wanted somewhere to eat and it didn’t look like the town for me. I headed instead to an American themed diner at Langrick which I had driven past a few times and it was nice to stop and appreciate the views.

On my first evening I went to the cinema in Boston and there’s a communication covering my thoughts of Colette here. The next day I watched some Typhoon action at RAF Coningsby and then went for a tour around the Battle Of Britain Memorial Flight hangar at the other end of the airfield. It was interesting.

I then drove to the International Bomber Command Centre, a memorial to those who died as part of bomber command, which was based in Lincoln. I drove past RAF Waddington but there wasn’t much going on there. Just three E3-D sitting on the pan.

There’s an amazing view over Lincoln from the IBCC. In this next shot you can see the castle and cathedral looking through the monument which is as tall as a Lancaster bomber is wide.

That evening I had dinner booked in Prezzo in Boston. I’m not sure what I think of Boston yet. It’s kinda of pretty in places but an utter dump in others. Cheap petrol at the Asda superstore though.

On the final day of my trip I took in RAF Marham in the morning. There was a NOTAM out for a display and it turns out there were five Tornados practising their formation flying ready for the last-last flypast. Before that as I left Coningsby the C-47 took off in light fog shortly followed by two Typhoons. As they passed in front on the sun their shadows cast over me at 150 knots which was really cool.

After Marham and a refueling stop in Boston I went to the Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre at the ex-RAF base of East Kirkby. They have a Mosquito and a Lancaster there along with tons of bits and pieces from the war. It was lovely and sunny and there was definitely a certain atmosphere at the place. Really interesting.

Finally I had a meal at the American Diner at Langrick, next to the bridge. It’s such a strange place. I do wonder how people find their way around these parts. There aren’t any hills to use as hints to where you are and the sky is so big.

February 21 2019February 21 2019

Colette

The other night I drove from my half decent B&B to Boston town in the fens to go to the cinema. I was here about a year ago when I saw The Shape Of The Water. I’m not sure what I wrote about the area but having spent some more time driving around South Lincolnshire I can confirm that pretty much everywhere worries me. There’s not much traffic, it’s quiet and the roads are too straight. I drove six miles earlier and didn’t go around a single corner. The fact that Boston was really quiet at just before seven pm was really worrying and the roads were dead. I mean there was another car on the road but it was a good mile behind me and stayed there. This is country completely countryed up.

Straight Roads - Highlighted — Straight Roads – Highlighted

To give a sense of scale the runway at Coningsby is 2.7km.

After parking in Boston, where all the car parks seem broken and leave me in a state of worry for my car, I went to the Savoy cinema after a small excursion to a kebab shop for dinner. I went to see Colette and I rated the film on the IMDB website. There’s a communication nearly five years old that explains the scoring process.

I rated Colette (2018) 6/10 #IMDb https://t.co/d4kSDkTi2e

— Ian Parish (@iparish) February 20, 2019

Well, what did I think. I definitely enjoyed the movie. I think it portrayed many of the issues still facing our society today. Women’s place to make their own money, people to be gendered however they wish etc. I enjoyed all of it. I always like these historical films because once I’ve seen them I spend a little time learning more about the characters the film was based on and learn that the real story is much more real and interesting than the film version.

Much like the other historical drama I saw recently I was somewhat surprised at the level of lesbianism within this film but if I had bothered to know a little more before I went I would probably have understood what was going to happen. There wasn’t a use of the word “cunt” in this film unlike in The Favourite.

Overall I thought this film was well acted and the setting and story were good. A nice little film with a relatively nice ending.

February 19 2019

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse

Took a short trip to the Cineworld cinema at Rochester to see Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse. What an awful title, it’s too long and clumsy but then, given how many times Sony have tried to fix the Spider-Man franchise this isn’t a surprise, they’ve tried to make it right this time.

The tide was about two thirds but I don’t know whether it was waxing or waning. I could look it up but I can’t be bothered. I will say that the sun was out and the view was lovely. Not too cold either coming in at about 10 Celsius.

So, I rated this film on the IMDB website, which is customary now. You can see a communication explaining the scoring system somewhere on this site, or you could click here. I then tweeted my result:

I rated Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) 8/10 #IMDb https://t.co/ppiDO8KVg5

— Ian Parish (@iparish) February 19, 2019

I really enjoyed this movie. I liked nearly all of it and I thought it was good. This result is probably a bit of a shock to regulars to this website. I haven’t rated a superhero film as good for a long time. I find them all incredibly poorly written and boring. Also they tend to be sexist and reinforce toxic behaviour. I know, I know, I read too much into all of it, but these films help normalise poor behaviour towards each other. They also rely on the idea that we, as humans, accept a higher power looking out for us, or a better social class trying to help us. That’s not the reality.

Anyway, I loved the style of this film. The animation was beautiful and original. It really aimed for a style of its own and won. I was mesmerised with the beauty of it all. Such a wonderful job.

It had a Spider-Pig.

The story was pretty good all over and I enjoyed it. There was some lovely many-worlds theories there and it all fitted together nicely. Yeah, I could find many flaws if I tried but I don’t want to. I want this film to be allowed to just be.

I don’t think this film will change my overall opinion of superhero movies because I am pretty convinced they suck. However, when films like those regularly make over five hundred million at the box office who am I to complain about the social problems of them.

February 19 2019

He Said What?

Over the weekend I went to a chapel communion service and I did this voluntarily. I was away at the Armed Forces Chaplaincy Centre and while there one of the members of staff was going to deliver the chapel service. I went to the chapel service to support her and be a part of her experience. There is also the very slight possibility that one of these services might persuade me a little to partake in religion. It’s not happened yet and perhaps I secretly want this. I am, very slightly, jealous of those who have such faith, such comforting thoughts about the world.

As it turned out my friend couldn’t deliver the service because there are rules about who can touch certain parts of church paraphernalia and I guess you have to be a certain rank within the church before you are allowed to commit certain acts. I find it all rather confusing and very amusing. I think that every church has these man-made rules to govern who can do what within their made up system of belief. Everyone seems to take this very seriously.

I was once at Amport House and someone mentioned that although gay priests are allowed your vicar licence has to be approved by the local bishop and if that bishop is homophobic then you lose your licence to priest if you come out to the church. That seems utterly ridiculous that your ability to church is dependent on what your human boss thinks. But then again, the idea that a committee of humans can overturn the common ideals of a religion within a committee and change a religion’s view on a particular issue amuses me greatly.

The sermon on Sunday was interesting. The padre [I honestly don’t understand the terms for vicar/priest etc] spoke about Valentine’s Day and the love that we receive from partners on that day. He then linked this into the love that Jesus gave to us and also the love that God gives us. There was general chatter about two holy men who gave their lives for strangers. One of them was at Auschwitz and he sacrificed his life for another man. The other man went on to live to an old age and had many children. The other priest was a man who got entangled in another soldiers parachute on D-Day. The priest cut himself free to fall to his death and the other soldier went on to do his job. These stories were interesting and not ones I had heard before. While they showed a love for the stranger I do think they missed the point that they occurred within a time when there was great evil on the Earth and millions were dying in concentration camps and in battle. But religious people gloss over the problem of evil.

Within the sermon the padre talked about a passage from John. He mentioned words that Jesus said:

[side point: Jesus didn’t say these things. This was written about thirty years after Jesus died. Go back and think about any conversation, important or not, from thirty years ago and try to be convinced about how accurate you are. It amuses me just how much study is made from the EXACT words in the bible when it’s all translations and copying errors]

Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”

Hey, it’s only my way or no way. You must do as I say or you won’t get to heaven. Do as I say you muthafuckers because I will damn you if you don’t follow my exact words.

“But, Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?”

Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. Anyone who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.”

This part was read out and the message was meant to be that if you love Jesus you will get to heaven. My problem is the bit IN THEIR OWN BOOK which clearly shows signs of an abusive relationship. This part wasn’t talked about in the sermon and it’s interesting the bits of their own book they are willing to gloss over. You see that little bit in there which is along the lines of:

Follow my rules or else. Follow my rules and I will love you. Don’t follow my rules and you are damned to everlasting hell.

Do as I say or you will be burnt and suffer in indescribable pain forever. This section of the reading was glossed over in the sermon but it screamed in my head and really bothered me. If christians take this book so seriously and believe it is the word of god then why don’t they see these parts. The parts that require complete submission or else. They don’t see them because they are either glossed over or they think it is a good thing. That passage has really bothered me for a few days now.

Follow my rules or get fucked.

It’s not like following the laws of the road or those at work. This is referring to eternal damnation and the only path to heaven is through following the rules of Jesus. Well, screw that. This book has been used to justify hatred and murder for the last two thousand years and probably will be used for another millennia. I do hope that one day we grow out of following a book written by men about two thousand years ago which is demonstrably wrong about so much.

You don’t need Jesus to understand that being nice to people is the best way to go. You don’t need Jesus to believe that treating people as you would wish to be treated is a good maxim for life. These things are self evident and don’t require a god or his naughty boy. It’s easy to use the principle of BE NICE to inform all your choices and decisions. If only more people realised you don’t need god [or the threat of hell] to be good.