What Comes After Metal Machine Trio?

I love the name Metal Machine Trio, of course. Here's part of an old review that I missed:

It was good to have this Lou Reed back: not an American Master nor a Legend of Rock, but a barking, brooding, beneficial irritant. On Thursday night at the Blender Theater at Gramercy, onstage between Sarth Calhoun and Ulrich Krieger, two much younger musicians, he was making noise — improvised, loud, heavily processed, and some of it ugly enough to make people leave.

And

Contrary to expectations — and the original record [Metal Machine Music]— the show did include some singing, in Mr. Reed’s wayward croak, barely distinct through the din. Some of these interjections were just stray phrases, trailing off into nothing. “I can’t get you back,” was one. “Sorry if I made you mad.” “Free fly ... oh, baby, like a bird.” “I went to Avenue C. ...” And then, somewhere in there a recognizable lyric: “Standing on the corner, suitcase in my hand.”

I'm surprised that he didn't quote from Walk on the Wild Side. Anyway, I bring this up because I'm wondering if Reed is ready for his Time Out of Mind. It would seem that he isn't interested in that, but I can just imagine his following up Metal Machine Trio stuff with a record that everyone loves next year. Then again, if I can imagine it, then it probably isn't Advanced.

Brian Eno iPhone App: Music for Air Tropes

Brian Eno just keeps on being interesting, the bastard:

Brian Eno has two new applications for the iPhone and iPod Touch, based on his ambient music. One is called Air. The other is called Trope. Air is basically an endless version of Eno's 1979 album Music for Airports. Here's the official description:

Air is a generative audio-visual work created by musician / software designer Peter Chilvers and Irish vocalist Sandra O'Neill. Based on concepts developed by Brian Eno, with whom Chilvers created Bloom, Air assembles vocal and piano samples into a beautiful, still and ever changing composition, which is always familiar, but never the same.

Air is beautiful, but not as astonishingly beautiful as Trope. Like last year's Bloom program (which I still play with on a weekly basis), Trope let's you draw beautiful and colorful patterns while producing gorgeous drones and plaintiff piano motifs.

And all for just $3.99.

David Byrne: Allow Myself to Interview Myself

Just for fun, like "60 Minutes" on acid.

Okay, Then, I'll Change It. Hello Cliff Richard.

From tipster Judas Constant:

I just found this in the Guardian, attempting to explain the peculiar career of Cliff Richard. It reads like Advanced Theory 101:

"Cliff, though, is a little more problematic. At heart, he is clearly rather odd, an eccentric even. At every turn, Cliff will say or do something to spoil my argument that his catalogue is worthy of deeper analysis and investigation. He'll say something about wine or Jesus or how "rock'n'roll" he is; or offer his holiday home to Tony Blair at the height of the Iraq crisis, or force Chris Evans to take a stand and say he'll never, ever play a Cliff Richard record on the radio."

I don't know enough about Cliff Richard, other than his name is better on a hamster than special patrol group, but this sound very promising!

Preview: Christmas In The Heart by Bob Dylan

Listen here. Just click "preview all" and enjoy the unbelievable Advancement. Pretty Advanced cover, too.

Michael Stipe and Barry Manilow, Low, Low

And Tom Hanks too:

Looks like he's finally made it! Barry Manilow will soon write the songs that make the cinematic world sing.* Oh, yes. Variety reports that Michael Stipe and Sandy Stern of Single Cell are joining Playtone's Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman to create a romantic comedy focusing on Manilow's extensive song catalog.

But we're not talking about some Mamma Mia! sort of flick where famous folks get together and try to belt out songs like they're Abba. Why get some stand-ins when you can get the real thing? The film will be a character-driven smorgasbord of Manilow fans heading to Las Vegas to see the icon headline Mandalay Bay. His music will drive the piece, and there will even be a performance or two by the man himself.

Stipe has never really Advanced, but he does have a solid record of embracing music that you wouldn't expect him to like, especially if it's sweet and from the 1970s.

Warm Featurette: Wes Anderson's Fantastic Mr. Fox

See it at Apple.

PiL to Reform

It was inevitable:

Punk rock singer John Lydon, formerly known as Johnny Rotten, is re-forming his band Public Image Ltd -- or PiL -- after a 17 year hiatus with a five-date tour in December, according to media reports.

Lydon told Britain's Guardian newspaper that the influential band he created in 1978, a year after the disintegration of the Sex Pistols, and which lasted for 14 years, would reform with a new line-up.

He said the new-look PiL will not contain original band members Jah Wobble or former Clash guitarist Keith Levene but will feature guitarist Lu Edmonds, drummer Bruce Smith and a new arrival, multi-instrumentalist Scott Firth.

PiL, which had chart success with singles such as "Public Image" and "This Is Not a Love Song," will start its tour on December 15 in Birmingham. The band is also launching a new website (www.pilofficial.com).

Also in the article, Lydon complains, "Younger people at the moment are very mouthy and aggressive."

Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans Trailer

One other thing: Val Kilmer is in it. This might be the most Advanced movie in a long time.

Thanks Roger.

Nicolas Cage in "Bad Lieutenant": Don't Call It a Remake

Completely awesome on a million levels:

Actor Nicolas Cage plays a deranged, drug-addicted detective in "Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans," re-visiting the corrupt cop role made famous by Harvey Keitel 17 years ago.

Despite the similarity in title to Abel Ferrara's 1992 cult classic "Bad Lieutenant," and Ferrara's obvious displeasure at the idea of a remake, Cage and German director Werner Herzog say their movie is not connected.

"It would be unfair to compare the two movies," Cage told Reuters in an interview in Venice, where the picture is in competition at the annual film festival.

"Harvey's trajectory is really dealing with guilt and all of that, and perhaps fits more into that (Judeo-Christian) program, so to me it's a completely different story and a different cop," added the 45-year-old, who won a >best actor Oscar for playing an alcoholic in "Leaving Las Vegas."

"This is a New Orleans cop, it takes place in New Orleans, it's Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans, it's not Bad Lieutenant."

Ferrara has criticized the idea of a remake, and was quoted in the media as saying: "I wish these people die in hell."

"It's not 'CSI' it's 'CSI New Orleans.'"

Hats off to Herzog on creating a totally original version of being an Advanced Irritant. Also this is a perfect illustration of something that is not the opposite of what is expected from an artists, which is at the heart of Advancement. What gave Cage/Herzog the idea that this project would inspire anything but rage? Fans of the original will be mad, non-fans won't see it, so why would they do it? And who's paying for it? Whoever it is may be the most truly Advanced player in this whole project.

By the way, if you've never seen the original, he really is a bad lieutenant. Very, very bad.