// Category Archive for: Issues

Travel Advice for a Journey Into Comic Books

By Christian Lipski

Thanks to Hollywood, comic books (graphic novels) are more popular than ever among the general public, and a lot of people are interested in finding out what these things are all about. Comics have been around for a hundred years in one form or another, so it’s nearly impossible for the uninitiated to know where to begin. I’m no expert, but I can tell you what I’ve loved. My tastes run toward the superhero end of the spectrum; I’ve never delved into the world of Love and Rockets or American Splendor, two great examples of the “realistic” genre, so plan accordingly. This isn’t meant to be a comprehensive map of the best in “sequential art” (as comic books are sometimes loftily known), but rather some suggestions for places to start, based on my own forays.
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Bands, Posters, Lights, Money: The Notebooks of Rob Gretton

By Emily Carney

A Q & A with Lesley Gilbert, Rob’s widow, can be found here.

Rob Gretton, Joy Division’s manager, has attained legendary status due to his massive presence in Manchester’s musical history, and due to his various depictions in cinema. He’s been portrayed in two major films: 24 Hour Party People (directed by Michael Winterbottom, 2002) and Control (directed by Anton Corbijn, 2007). He has been depicted as being brusque and pint-loving-yet-sympathetic by actor Paddy Considine in 24 Hour Party People; he is rendered as being somewhat harsh and expletive-using by actor Toby Kebbell in Control. A new book, entitled 1 Top Class Manager (referring to Rob referring, well, to himself), consists of Rob’s journals and notebooks from the period between 1978 and 1980, when Joy Division began to make their mark upon the world of popular music. These notebooks set out to “humanize” the myth of Joy Division while underscoring the enormous work it took to make the band successful.
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Nothing Wrong With Liking A Flashy Man: An Interview With Dick Valentine

Interviewed by Christian Lipski

From the bouncy warning “Danger! High Voltage!”, through the metallic invitation to a “Gay Bar,” to the recent clarinet-laden declaration, “It’s Showtime,” Electric Six has been a band you can count on for high-energy music in a patchwork quilt of styles. Their new album, Flashy, is more of the same only in the sense that it’s utterly rocking. Lead singer Dick Valentine and band have put together a new collection of songs that span the gamut from the upstroke ska of “Your Heat Is Rising” to the electronic vocoder of “Making Progress.” Valentine took time out from the recording of E6’s new CD to talk with Popshifter‘s Christan Lipski about carbon footprints, the music industry, and the worst places in America.
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The Heart Of Darkness: Comedy And Drama From The Coen Brothers

By Lisa Anderson

In 2008, Joel and Ethan Coen’s No Country For Old Men took home Oscars for best film, direction, supporting actor, and adaptation, as well as numerous other awards and critical accolades. This year, their follow-up caper comedy, Burn After Reading, garnered Golden Globe, BAFTA, and WGA nominations, before being passed up altogether by Oscar.

Speaking as a critic and a film fan, I appreciate the craft that went into both movies, but vastly prefer the first to the second. On the surface, both seem to have the characteristic Coen worldview, where nothing that happens has any meaning beyond itself. A closer look, however, reveals that the denizens of No Country For Old Men at least try to bring meaning to their own lives, even if they ultimately fail.
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Top Five Most Inadvertently Hilarious Rock Books

By Emily Carney

5. Kraftwerk: I Was A Robot, by Wolfgang Flür (2000)

Wolfgang Flür is best known as being Kraftwerk’s drummer from 1974 to 1991, during their “golden years” when they turned out seminal albums such as Radioactivity (1975) and Trans-Europe Express (1977). This memoir by Flür details his various escapades within the workings of the “Düsseldorf Beatles.”

Flür’s liquored-up memories encompass shameless groupie-guzzling, getting surreally and seriously ill while on tour, and being sexually attacked by an aging alcoholic male German film actor. They climax when Flür is unceremoniously ousted from the band, who have become increasingly obsessed with cycling (to Flür’s utter dismay). Who would have believed the inner workings of Kraftwerk could be so scandalous and sex-soaked? The book was greeted with anger from Kraftwerk’s remaining members, who sued Flür; apparently Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider were not amused by photographs depicting the Kraftwerk robots in various homosexual activities.
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Popshifter‘s Best Of Lists

Pete Best

Most publications give you their “Best Of” and “Top Ten” lists in their December issues. But what about giving props to of all the great things you embraced in the penultimate month of the year?

That’s why Popshifter has decided to provide you with our favorites now, so that you can add them to your list of “Things To Check Out In 2009.”

In addition to the lists our staff compiled, we’ve also posted the lists from some very special guest contributors.

Enjoy!
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You Think You’ve Seen It All Except The Future*

Image from EquilibriumFans

John Preston: What’s the point of your existence?

Mary: To feel. ‘Cause you’ve never done it, you can never know it. But it’s as vital as breath. And without it, without love, without anger, without sorrow, breath is just a clock. . . ticking.

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The Shortwave Set, Replica Sun Machine

By Chelsea Spear

If you like lush melodies, boy/girl harmonies, blackly clever lyrics, handclaps, obsolete musical technology, analog synths, or references to great pop songs of the past, I have great news for you: The Shortwave Set has released their second album.
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1 Top Class Manager—The Notebooks of Rob Gretton: Q & A With Lesley Gretton

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The Good, The Bad, The Ugly: Film Remakes, Part Two

By Michelle Patterson

Read Part One of this series here.

In the previous installment, I explained what separates the good film remakes from the bad and the ugly. There should be a lot of care taken to avoid any of the mistakes of the past, or in the case of a particularly artistic original film, one should not overdo what made that film so good in the first place. Bludgeoning the audience to get a message across won’t make them roll over like kittens and beg for their bellies to be scratched; it will leave them numb and confused, desperate to go home and crawl under the covers to make it all just go away.
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