Like nature, the teenage pop music industry hates a vacuum. With all quiet on the Spice Girls front, the industry was presented with an intolerable situation. Enter former Mickey Mouse Club ‘Mouseketeer’ Britney Spears, who at the tender age of 17 has gripped the music industry in a headlock worthy of Stone Cold Steve Austin. ‘Baby One More Time’ established her as a mega star, and ‘Oops, I Did It Again’ proved to be an appropriate title as it spent weeks at the top of the charts. She now takes her nightclub Barbie act out on the road, selling out venues across the country.
May 4, 2009
February 21, 2009
Just be careful…
Be careful when arriving in Athens. I took a bus to Constitution Square and was approached by a very nice older gentleman who asked me the time and told me about a bar he owned just down the street. I went with him, but when I entered the bar I was struck by the lack of people; just two barflies, who immediately came over. Before I knew what was happening, there were drinks all around, and girls were asking me to buy them a drink. I refused, and was told I owed 5000 dr! I refused to pay for anything except my beer, and said they could have the 1000 dr they were extorting for that, but that I would be coming back with the tourist police. I then left. I heard of at least five people in Athens that this happened to in the two days I was there and two people I have since met also had this occur to them (one bloke being hit for around US$100!). The moral of this story is: do not enter a bar with a Greek person that you do not know extremely well.
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January 4, 2009
Maná
From the streets of Guadalajara, Mexico, come Maná, the most successful Latin-rock band ever. Originally named ‘Sombrero Verde’ in the late-1970s, Maná found fame with their second release, 1992′s ‘Dónde jugarán los niños?’ (‘Where will the Children Play?’), which by 1997 had sold three and a half million copies worldwide. Maná’s fresh, eclectic mix of pop-rock with reggae and Afro-Latin rhythms and pro-ecological lyrics has now earned them a huge following throughout the Americas and Europe, several awards from Billboard and MTV as well as a Grammy.
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November 24, 2008
October 28, 2008
Tout Truffaut
François Truffaut digested four decades of cinema history, and then with his brilliant 1959 opus on childhood, ‘The 400 Blows’, began a film-making odyssey that changed the way we look at film. The Film Forum’s comprehensive retrospective explores all of Truffaut’s finest work via brand new 35mm prints, capturing both the self-awareness and transgressive energy of the ‘nouvelle vague’ and the deep humanity of the men, women and particularly children who populate his films. This two-month festival revisits everything from Truffaut’s radical appraisal of relationships in ‘Jules et Jim’ to his hilarious meditation on cinema as a medium in ‘Day for Night’.
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September 19, 2008
Divino Aqualung
Divino Aqualung occupies the space that was formerly Aqualung, a legendary nightspot and music venue. Closed for several years, Aqualung has now reincarnated itself, keeping its most idiosyncratic features, especially the immense glass windows that look on to a swimming pool. The club’s new feel comes mainly from its Ibiza night-scene ambience. A large outdoor terrace area awaits municipal blessing for summer frenzy, so, for the moment, management are concentrating on the spacious interior, boasting six bars, with go-go dancers and drag queens grooving to pumping house and garage music from resident and guest DJs.
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September 15, 2008
Anarkali
Don’t be deterred by its drab façade – this Pakistani restaurant (which, curiously, has cheery pictures from Indian cities festooning its walls) is a culinary thrill. Recently renovated, it has also been transformed from a waiter-only to a largely self-service eatery. For 395BF (£6), you can take as much from the buffet of dal, fish curry, assorted chicken dishes and vegetable biryami as your belly can hold. Rice, nan bread, side salads and coffee are all included for that price. Wine prices are also reasonable.
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August 2, 2008
July 21, 2008
You belong in the Zoo
On a recent trip to Helsinki, I went to the Zoo, one of the world’s most respected. You can well imagine my annoyance when I found that over half the exhibits are missing. There are part of the zoo complex that just comprise empty cages. One of the wardens told me that it was because of on-going improvements and building – expected for another two years.
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July 7, 2008
Go on Saturday
There is a ceremonial changing of the guard outside the presidential palace (Banski Dvori) in St Mark’s square. According to the tourist guide, this occurs at 12 every Sunday, but in fact, it appears to occur every Saturday and Sunday and I found that the crowds are a lot thinner on the Saturday.
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