RIP Ron indeed. Was listening to Fun House on the way into work this morning. An incredible record.

The saddest thing about Asheton’s death is the fact that he was dead on his sofa for a few days but no-one had bothered to call.

Very cynical Jim…tut tut..etc

I doubt that the iTunes price changes are going to tempt too many people away from eMusic, subscriptions are the way forward- or at least ones that offer good value. Pretty reliable recommendations too, you can find some mad interesting stuff on it (really into my Scandinavian post-folk these days…)

The only negative reports I’ve heard about the O2 were actually from staff. While they seem to have done good by patrons with the overhaul, stage/road crew and the folks working the event have been very critical about the backstage facilities and the poor forethought regarding load in and out for crew.

Ironically where the O2 is now designed to accomodate the full stage show for any band, the actual (un)loading area can only service one truck at a time. This was compered to the four trucks that the Point could manage. Obviously when you are trying to put together a bigger jigsaw, you need a bigger place to lay out all the pieces.

The other point I heard was that they have used vast amount of backstage space to provide lavish offices for all the executive staff. Considering they had no green room for the artist or canteen facilities for crew or staff, it does sound like unusual priorities.

My own personal ‘as a punter’ observations…

(1) From a seated perspective, the floor for standing gigs looked like a massive h&s risk. To turn into a father of four for a moment, I would be terrified for one of my kids’ safety on the floor. Higher volume of people, no visible safety barriers (that i could see with my wonky eyesight), couldn’t see much comfort and if you were to get hurt, don’t plan on being helped out by the st john people.

(2) My second mixed vibe was about the bar/ food counter/ merchandise/ stairs areas behind the actual seating. Really busy, very dark, the back of the seats isn’t the most attractive view when you’re debating the €40 t-shirt or the €20 mug.

In other news…

After all the hub bub about them on other posts on the site, I decided to listen to the Passion Pit ep yesterday. Why do I sense the hand of a cunning spin doctor? Was pleasant enough but felt a little forgetable. Reminds me of The Postal Service but not as catchy.

I can’t stand English stage parties. All those bloody thespians wandering around Temple Bar quoting Shakespeare – who do they think they are?!

Sorry Jim, couldn’t help meself..

I should have asked Santy for a sub-editor instead of a power drill

I’d hate to appear to be harping on about it but yes, that Antony record is wonderful. Not paying 40 quid to see him in Vicar St. though.

@ Pedro – Welcome to the geek club fella. It’s great TV, actually it’s probably the bravest thing on US TV in years, you’ll find out why when you get to season 3.

BSG is one of the most under-rated US shows of the last few years. Hard to believe that such an intelligent series could come out of America.

Mixing heavy topical elements with soap opera sensibilities in a sci-fi environ has never been so well presented.

During the entire run, I can only really fault about 4 episodes which I hope says something.

The fact that they have been able to keep a key plotline (the reveal of the 12 cylons – don’t ask) engaging across 6 years of tv is a tribute to the production team. Where shows like Heroes & Prison Break have alread began to unravel, BSG has continuously flourished.

And finally Eddie Hobbs has just been on the line…

First four seasons of re-inmagined Battlestar Galactica, mini series and tv movie are available in box set format from HMV.co.uk for a scandalous €65.

I was wary of it but it’ll be money well spent.

Ian & James & Q, I wholeheartedly agree with you all.

My housemate came back after Christmas with the boxset of it (covering Season 1-4).
I watched the mini-series and the first 4 episodes in a 6/7 hour session.
I just finished season 1 last night and am blown away.

A couple wanton remarks:

1. Where has Tricia Helfer been all my life and why haven’t I been perving over her for the past few years?

2. Starbuck has-gots-to-be the sexiest bad ass on TV. She is awesome.

3. When I grow up, I want to be a neurotic, egotistical genius just like Gaius.

Is the Amazon music store available in Ireland? I thought it wasn’t – wasn’t sure if your comments were meant in an international or Irish context Jim? Still not sure if I’ll use the iTunes store much after this, unless they decide to embrace the mp3 sometime soon.

BSG is awesome, but Mad Men is easing my post-Wire pain considerably. Also, eMusic is still amazing. If only they’d give larger subs so I don’t have to keep buying boosters. Boo! Haven’t tried Amazon yet though…….meh.

Jim,

re: O2.
Made the mistake of going to Kings of Leon. To be honest wasn’t into them before I went but thought it’d be a good night.
It wasn’t.
Mediocre is too tame to describe that bunch but whatever.
The O2 itself seems like a great venue but (understandably enough) operationally it was a shambles that night.

re: Santagold.
Picked up an old copy of Wired from 2002 last night and read an article on Moby after ‘Play’ was released and you can see the attraction of ‘mercenary agendas’
Here’s a snippet:
“Like any proper hitmaker, Moby has incorporated commerce into his creative method. He sells his music to commercials and soundtracks; he sells his likeness – such as it is – to advertisers. Moby’s successes on this score have been, in many ways, unprecedented. The dozen and a half songs on Play, for instance, have been sold hundreds of times for commercials, movies, and TV shows – a licensing venture so staggeringly lucrative that the album was a financial success months before it reached its multi-platinum sales total. ”
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/10.05/moby.html

I heard the same thing about the sound at Coldplay, they reckoned it was the mix that was the problem though. The Boosh the other night was my first time there and I was really impressed, the sound was really good for them. As mentioned above, the foyer area is a bit bleak, pretty industrial, but there’s a ridiculous amount of bars etc. I can actually see them scaling back on the amount of staff because most of them seemed redundant when we were there.

About the commuter times, the traffic around the city has actually improved markedly over the last 9 months. A large reason for that is the thousands of people who’ve been layed off (also the main reason for the 1 million less people using the Luas I reckon). Also, the M50 works have helped hugely. There are still some awful days, they’re just less frequent.

Another BSG fan here, people are always laughing at me when I tell them how great this series is. Best Sci-Fi series of all time by a distance.

I hope everyone notes the hugely dignified silence which this writer is maintaining here about BSG. This is the equivalent for me of the “who is he?” reaction of many of you to Chris Brown

As for the sound at the 02, it comes down to the band and their crew and the amount of money invested in the PA. I’ve heard no bad reports about the sound at Kings Of Leon or Mighty Boosh so maybe Coldplay were cutting back on the PA costs to pay for Apple Tangerine’s creche fees?

This totally DOES NOT do BSG justice but watch the trailer for Season 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hvYVR6XXsHA

Jim, you’ll become obsessed with it.

Jim, you’ll become obsessed with it.

Pedro – It’s fucking sci-fi, dude. That ain’t gonna happen. Next you’ll want me to start watching Star Trek or talk about Klingons

And being from Tipperary, you’re already walking a fine line.

We have UFOs in Tipperary too, you know

I put off watching Lost for a full 4 seasons but it did mean that my brain was almost able to keep track of all the 22,000 story lines, clues and red herrings. Personally I think it was Prof Plum in the study….

Did they ever get off that island in the end? I’m convinced it was all a dream

Sound was great at Boosh. I sat at the very back of the O2, about four rows from the back wall and the sound was great there. I was then able to move to the first block of tier seating (the row immediately behind floor seating) and the sound was identical to that at the back.

For my money, the first block of tier seating (blocks A to G) are the best seats in the house, very close to the stage and at a nice elevation.

You guys, there’s a 13 minute BSG guide called Catch The Frak Up available on youtube. I haven’t seen it yet but I’ve heard it’s a very good summary of what’s gone on so far and the intention is you’ll be up to speed for the start of season 4.5.

So if you can’t mainline four seasons in under two weeks give it a shot.

So no love for Ty Segall then?

Don’t get me started on Lost, Jim. A few of the survivors did make it off the island last season but that doesn’t make life any easier for them.

The ‘Catch The Frak Up’ recap on BSG might be handier for existing viewers looking for a refresher, it might not be the best starting point as it’s a ton of information on every minute story line…

My advice is to watch the mini series (about 3 hrs long) and tackle the regular series in your own time.

i almost watched ‘Lost’ once because one of my friends was convinced it was about purgatory. Alas, I never watched it, and have yet to lose sleep about it.

“Is the X-Files back? Didn’t that become sheer and utter muck or did I miss something in the last ten years.”

It never went away Gugai.

It.
Never.
Went.
Away.

Funny that the brilliant sounding Boosh made pretty much the same “pointless, clueless triumphs of mediocrity” comment at their show in the O2.

Well, not exactly in so many words, more in a whinging akin to the Caleb fellow.

I dont think they’d have got as many laughs if they had just said Kings of Leon are pointless, clueless triumphs of mediocrity..

And here’s a midweek ebb… I just realised that the Irish Festival Awards left out Mantua. Considering crap like Cois Fharraige and Loveboxx make the grade, that’s not cool.

The only reason for such a massive oversight I can possibly think of is, it’s direct competition to Castle Palooza, running over August bank holiday weekend. Not cool.

I was taking some of Roslin’s camalla yesterday. That catch up thing I was banging on about isn’t Catch The Frak Up but rather a 15 minute primer that will air on Sci Fi on Jan 13. It’s been put together by Ron Moore to give the casual/new viewer enough insight into the show to be able to watch 4.5. It should be available to download or watch on youtube shortly after.

The run of episodes from mid season 2 to early season 3 rival The Wire as the greatest thing on TV. Ever.

BSG — it’s great! such amazing paranoia. If it wasn’t SF, it’d be winning awards left, right and centre.

I went to the Boosh gig at the O2, and was amazed by the number of staff on. at one stage was served a beer by 3 people. great setup for a comedy gig at least…

“Chris Brown (yes, Chris Brown who was awesome)”

Intrigued Jim,tell us more?