Tuppence top 10 news & reviews, April 2011

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We’ve got some amazing stories this month, what with big announcements from Nintendo, some great additions to our fashion section, more than a few new books to check out, as well as a new album or two:

Beastie Boys, Hot Sauce Committee Part 2

The Beastie Boys are back with a very old school hip hop sound in their 8th studio album, Hot Sauce Committe Part 2. There’s also a cool trailer for the album release too.

Eddie the Eagle film

Just when you thought you’d heart too much about Edwards, he’s right there in your ever loving face once again. OK, so we haven’t heard hide nor hair of him since his showing at the 1988 Winter Olympics, but the prospect of the Eddie the Eagle film is still pretty good.

Dave Gorman vs the Rest of the World

Another blast from the past is Dave Gorman with his power point book of tricks. This time he’s turning his attention to games and taking on any comers in Dave Gorman vs the Rest of the World.

Nintendo Wii 2

It’s official, Nintendo will be releasing their follow up to the genius Wii in 2012. The working title at the moment is the Nintendo Wii 2, but details are thin on the ground right now.

Vivienne Westwood leather jacket

This is probably our fashion find of the month. It’s amazingly unique, stylish and sleek. Vivienne Westwood is one of our favourite designers, so we had to do a review of her leather jacket.

The Kills, Blood Pressures

The Kills have been absent since 2009′s Midnight Boom, but their return with Blood Pressures sees them back on the music scene. With some great sounds and a few class tracks it’s got a lot of potential.

Tron Legacy DVD

We’ve also reviewed the new Jeff Bridges sci-fi adventure Tron Legacy DVD. With the original steeped in cult status thanks to its unique visualisation, Tron Legacy was always going to have a lot to live up to.

David Walliams’ Awefully Good Movie Moments

David Walliams picks out the best (for best read words) movie moments throughout history. Featuring some of the worst thex scenes in cinema, Arnie lines a go go and more than a few bad acting skills, David Walliams’ Awefully Good Movie Moments could be a good watch.

Gundam 3DS

Bringing mecha machine warriors to the Nintendo 3DS, Gundam 3DS isn’t out for a while, but the Gundam franchise has got a lot of love, so it’ll be interesting to see if the game lives up to the expectation.

Fashion sales, discounts, offers and codes

To thank all of our visitors to the fashion section of Tuppence Magazine, we’ve put together a fashion sales, discounts, offers and codes page to contain all of the money off info we get wind of.

Tuppence top 10 news & reviews, from the recent past until 6th March 2011

This will be a mixed bag, because I got so distracted with the top 10 albums of 2010 that I completely forgot about listing the top 10 news and reviews from Tuppence Magazine. Here’s a quick selection of some of the best pieces to come out of the online entertainment news & reviews website; a lot of them are from the fashion section this time around, but that’s because there have been some half decent improvements to there recently:

Lingerie Gifts

With Valentine’s Day just out of the way, this page isn’t quite as useful as it was in early February, but it’ll always be good for romantic gifts all year round. It’s got a great selection of lingerie gift ideas to cover a range of different tastes. The aim of the page was pretty classy, so if you’re looking for riding crops and gag balls you should probably look elsewhere, but if you want something stylish, this page has got more than a few iconic selections.

Women’s winter coats

Again, winter is just out of the way and we’re heading headlong into spring, but there’s still a lot of cold in the air, so this page is great for ideas for women’s winter coats. There’s a mix of different styles, including thick duffel coats, belted macs and long, sweaping wool mix whole body wrappers. It’s probably a good time to get a coat in preparation for next year. You can check out some of the styles from the recent London Fashion Week to pick up the styles that are most likely to be big next winter too.

Cheap going out dresses

With the taxman kicking up a twenty percent stink now, it’s time to start reigning in your belts, so getting going out dresses that are on the cheaper side of cheap is probably a good idea. There’s a good selection ranging from the twenty pounts mark, up to around forty squid. Also, if you spend less on the dress, you’ll have more for the cocktails, so it’s a win win situation, although, if you pick the right dress, maybe you won’t need to buy your own drinks anyway.

High waisted denim shorts

Despite the fact that its still cold outside and there’s no kind of atmosphere, high waisted denim shorts still need to be high up on the agenda (I did a joke!). Summer will be here soon enough, but you can wear these whenever if you pair them up with some thick black tights and the right pair of boots. However, when the sunshine hits, whether you’re at home or on holiday, these will look class.

Red jeans for men

OK, so on to men’s fashion. The men’s red jeans page isn’t a random call to us all to don a pair of red skinny jeans, but more a how to if you are going down that route. Lots of people look upon fellers as wear red jeans as a bit nonsey, but that trend fell away where Jack White was concerned. With a less twotty attitude and a devil may kiss my adz outlook, you’re be less likely to look like a fool in a pair of red jeans.

Dunlop bags

Dunlop bags, on the other hand, are fool proof. These will look good no matter what. They’re massive inside too, but rarely feel bulky. There’s lots of different varieties and colours to choose from, so whether you want to look smart or scruffy, Dunlop bags never let you down. I’d wear these whether I were a doctor, investment hwanker or bin man. They don’t cost the earth either, so you can throw them around safe in knowledge that they’ll look cooler the more weathered they get, but when they finally go they don’t cost the earth to replace.

Black Converse All Stars

Just like Dunlop bags, Black Converse All Stars are iconic no matter what. They’ve been worn since the early 20th Century and have only gotten more well loved as the years have gone by. The trainer of choice for bands like the Ramones, black Converse All Stars are as much about music as they have been about sports and basketball. They’re like the punk rockers of the trainer world and for that reason they will always be class.

The Strokes, Under Cover of Darkness

It’s been a fair few years since the music world has been graced by the brilliance of The Strokes, and now it looks like they’re back with a vengeance. They’re new singlem Under Cover of Darkness is ace and sets them up for a big year with the upcoming release of their album, Angles. Literally, we can’t wait for it all to him. Gigs, albums, music history in the making.

The Tiger’s Wife

The Tiger’s Wife is Tuppence Magazine’s shout for one of the most exciting debut novels of recent times. Tea Obreht seems to have put everything into her upcoming novel, including her past in the Balkans, making The Tiger’s Wife a genuinely interesting prospect. It’s got debut novel awards written all over it, and with the big boost of featuring in the New York Times already, it should be a worldwide bestseller in no time at all. Miss it at your peril, I reckon.

Pilotwings Resort

Lastly, but by no means least, is the stunning excellence of the release of Pilotwings Resort on the 3DS later this month. Pilotwings hasn’t been seen in a long while, not since the brilliance of Pilotwings 64, but now it’s set to return in hand-held form and in beautiful stereoscopic 3D. This is one of the biggest steps forward for hand-held gaming, and with nearly a year’s head start over the upcoming Sony PSP 2 thing, it might just get the jump on it. Pilotwings Resort looks like one of the most pioneering hand-held game to be released in a while. There’ll be a lot more said about Nintendo 3DS games in the future.

Top 10 albums of 2010

It would be easy just to list the top 10 albums of 2010 based on the best album reviews scores for the year. This would put No Age’s Everything in Between in at number 1 with 4.5/5, MGMT’s Congratulations and Danger Mouse & Sparklehorse’s Dark Night of the Soul at joint number 2 with 4.4/5, The Coral Butterfly House at 4 with 4.3/5, Broken Bells, Brian Eno’s Small Craft on a Milk Sea and Wintersleep’s New Inheritors both at number 5 with 4.1, Arcade Fire’s The Suburbs at 8 with 4/5, Hot Chip’s One Life Stand at number 9 with 3.9/5 and Vampire Weekend’s Contra at 10 with 3.7/5. However, the scores were given based on a short time frame to listen to the tracks, so when I look back now, the Tuppence Magazine top ten albums for 2010 are:

#10 Vampire Weekend Contra

It’s hard to listen to Contra without comparing it to their debut album, but Vampire Weekend’s innate individuality leaves you with little else to hold it up to…

#9 Hot Chip One Life Stand

Hot Chip’s new album One life stand came out this week and it’s an instant classic. From the initial drumbeats in Thieves in the night (the opening track) expectations begin to rise, and by the time Take it in finishes you’re left with no doubt that One Life Stand will be a big part of 2010…

#8 Wintersleep New Inheritors

Having seen Wintersleep play a great gig in Barfly Cardiff last year, I was pleased to see that they had released their fourth Album, New Inheritors…

#7 Sleigh Bells Treats

I was a late comer to the Sleigh Bells box of ear splitting tricks, but when I finally got my act together I loved them. Their single, Sleigh Bell Tell Em, was massive and the rest of the album back it up with big punches to the head…

#6 Broken Bells

Broken Bells, the collaborative efforts of James Mercer (The Shins) and Danger Mouse (aka Brian Burton), isn’t necessarily going to change your life, but it is a fractured shard of class none the less…

#5 Danger Mouse & Sparklehorse’s Dark Night of the Soul

Following Danger Mouse’s work with James Mercer on Broken Bells, I didn’t really think 2010 could get much better for him, however, in Dark Night of the Soul, and with the help of Sparklehorse and friends, he’s produced a genuine contender…

#4 No Age Everything in Between

No Age’s third album, Everything in Between, is in most parts a loud, fuzzed up hurricane breath of fresh air. While it dips in places, the whole is a brilliant display of noise, souring sounds, beats and ratcheting guitar hits…

#3 The Coral Butterfly House

After hearing The Coral, Butterfly House  free download track back in May I had big expectations for the album, and despite a slightly ropey start, it hits them easily and goes a step above with the bonus tracks in the extended 2 CD Limited Edition LP…

#2  Arcade Fire The Suburbs

The first I heard of Arcade Fire’s 3rd album, The Suburbs, was a play of the title track on the radio around a couple of months ago. When the DJ announced that they’d be getting an exclusive play…

#1 MGMT Congratulations

MGMT broke onto the scene two years ago out of Brooklyn, New York, with their debut album Oracular Spectacular, which nailed electro new wave psychedelia down to the ground. In their new album, Congratulations nothing has changed on that front, but at the same time everything has changed… MGMT’s Congratulations was the stand out album of 2010, breaking the mould, p~ssing in the face of convention and doing it brilliantly their own way.

Honourable mentions go to Brian Eno’s Small Craft on a Milk Sea, which only missed the top 10 because we haven’t had long enough to fall in love with it as much as the other albums.

 

It would be easy just to list the top 10 albums of 2010 based on the best review scores for the year. This would put No Age’s Everything in Between in at number 1 with 4.5/5, MGMT’s Congratulations and Danger Mouse & Sparklehorse’s Dark Night of the Soul at joint number 2 with 4.4/5, The Coral Butterfly House at 4 with 4.3/5, Broken Bells, Brian Eno’s Small Craft on a Milk Sea and Wintersleep’s New Inheritors both at number 5 with 4.1, Arcade Fire’s The Suburbs at 8 with 4/5, Hot Chip’s One Life Stand at number 9 with 3.9/5 and Vampire Weekend’s Contra at 10 with 3.7/5. However, the scores were given based on a short time frame to listen to the tracks, so when I look back now, the Tuppence top ten albums for 2010 are:

 

#10 Vampire Weekend Contra

 

#9 Hot Chip One Life Stand

 

#8 Wintersleep New Inheritors

 

#7 Sleigh Bells Treats

 

#6 Broken Bells

 

#5 Danger Mouse & Sparklehorse’s Dark Night of the Soul

 

#4 No Age Everything in Between

 

#3 Arcade Fire The Suburbs

 

#2 The Coral Butterfly

 

#1 MGMT Congratulations

Simon Love’s Film Jukebox Thing

A Hard Day’s Night

Or how I imagined being in a band would be. Liars. One day I’ll make the indie Hard Day’s Night. It will involve not getting soundchecks, being bumped down a bill because another band brought the drums, sleeping on floors, not getting paid, late night service station stops, playing to 3 people in Stoke & the never-ending battle to get your mix CD played next in the car/van. I could’ve picked any Beatles film for this list as they are the best band that ever was or will be.

Head

The Monkees attempt to smash their image & get cool results in them losing all their teenybopper fans. I saw this late one night on S4C on a portable black & white TV. Back in the 1950s. They never looked cooler than when they’re playing “Circle Sky” all in white surrounded by screaming girls. Except for Davy.

The Wicker Man

I still get creeped out by the hand of glory. It wasn’t til I watched it with the commentary on that I realised that it was the hand of the old woman Sgt Howie’s sat next to in the library when he’s reading about pagan rituals, who then dies, & is in the coffin he opens when looking for Rowan. Her right hand is missing. Do you see?

Harold & Maude

I think everyone I’ve shown this film to has fallen in love with it even if when I explained the premise of it (an 18 year old boy’s relationship with a 79 year old woman including sex) they balk. By the end they’re either crying or singing “If you want to sing out, sing out & if you want to be free, be free”. For more examples of Bud Cort’s ossum-ness see Brewster McCloud & The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou. He looks proper old in that one though.

Star Wars

As much as I hate the triple-chinned, badger haired, one idea stretched out over a lifetime director George Lucas for raping my childhood with Episodes 1-3 of the “saga”, my first real memory of going to the cinema was being taken out of school early one Friday afternoon to go & see “Return Of The Jedi” with my dad. He told the teacher I had a dentist appointment just so there wouldn’t be any queues or other over-excited children hopped up on Kia-Ora & Butterkist. I remember sitting next to a boy I’d never met & immediately getting into a conversation about the programme for the film that we both had. I was disturbed to see that unboxed SW figures were going for $12 each in a Brighton flea market last weekend. My mother gave away all my figures & an At-At, the Millennium Falcon, an X-Wing & a Snow Speeder to a friend about a year before they all became collectable again.

Back To The Future

After Han Solo, Marty McFly was the person I most wanted to be when I was young. I had a sleeveless body warmer (maroon & white rather than orange though) & begged my parents for a skateboard. Instead I got a hi-fi. The year after when I finally got a skateboard it was wonky & when I leaned left it went right & when I leaned right it went left. I also ripped the nail off the little finger on my left hand after I rolled over it when sitting down on the board along with Matthew Lane. Who was a big fellow. Like all right thinking people the 2^nd part is my favourite & in 2015 I will begin wearing my clothes inside-out.

Clerks

Like the film equivalent of a garage band, I saw Mallrats first but immediately went & got this on video. Why is Jeff Anderson not a huge star? The scene where he’s reading out the titles of the films he’s ordering (“Cumming In Socks”, “Girls Who Crave C*ck”, “Girls Who Crave C*nt”, “Men Alone 2- The KY Connection” etc) is a million times funnier than anything Adam Sandler’s ever done. But then again an orphan being injected with cat AIDS & then being set on fire is a million times funnier than anything Adam Sandler’s ever done. I like all off Kevin Smith’s films including Jersey Girl.

Rushmore

Or pretty much any Wes Anderson film. There’s something about the symmetry of his shots that appeals to me. & the Futura font. & the soundtracks are always amazing too, much better than Justin Quarantino’s. This one was co-written by Owen Wilson, whom I am gay for. Also when you’re next on youtube look up Anderson’s American Express advert “FRANCOIS!!!”

Superbad

I bought this because I had £15 burning a hole in my pocket & I liked Michael Cera in Arrested Development but now I think it’s the film I’ve watched the most over the last few years. I don’t think I’ve seen it for a while though as the last time I did, I was told of for speaking along with every character. The lazy comparisons of this to the American Pie films are way off. All of those films are sh*t even if they do have Eugene Levy & the woman who says “Thank God for the liddle trains” in “A Mighty Wind” in them.

The Sasquatch Gang

I bought this because it was £1.50 & had the wonderful Justin Long in it (for more examples of his wonderfulness see his cameo in Zack & Miri Make A Porno) Turns out it’s a mini-masterpiece pitched somewhere between the young adventures of Napoleon Dynamite & Pulp Fiction. The Loves watched it on a night off in Leeds & for the rest of the weekend “Crap off!” & “This bark smells” were shouted to the bemusement of everyone who wasn’t us.

Honourable mentions must go to “The Blair Witch Project”, “Starship Troopers”, “Southland Tales”, “Anchorman”, “Knocked Up”, “Snow White & The Seven Dwarves” & “Double D POV”

Tuppence top 10 news stories for 27th September – 10th November

This edition of Tuppence Magazine entertainment news & reviews’ top ten stories includes the comeback of White Lies with their new album, Ritual, trailer and release date for the new Galifianakis film Due Date, a look at the upcoming Xbox 360 Kinect game, Fighters Uncaged and a review of Rob Sheffield’s Love is a Mix Tape… It’s all kicking off!

White Lies, Ritual

White Lies stamped a new mark on the British music scene in 2009 with the release of their debut album, To Lose My Life, which was the first album produced by a British band to go to number 1 in 2009. The second album, Ritual, is…

Everything in Between, No Age

No Age’s third album, Everything in Between, is in most parts a loud, fuzzed up hurricane breath of fresh air. While it dips in places, the whole is a brilliant…

Due Date film

After the success of The Hangover last year, and previous directorial comedy offerings of Road Trip and Old School, Todd Phillips is back in the directors seat with Due Date…

Broadwalk Empire

Boardwalk Empire isn’t scheduled to go to air until early 2011 on Sky, but the new Mob epic is already creating ructions. With Martin Scorsese in…

Love is a Mix Tape

Rob Sheffield’s Love Is A Mix Tape puts a whole new perspective on the era defining memoir. In amongst its tape bound monologue you get…

Fighters Uncaged

With the launch of the Xbox Kinect it’s time to start to imagine a completely new concept of gaming and Fighters Uncaged is one of the first to really show some of the future potential of the Kinect…

Bill Bailey Dandelion Mind

Dandelion Mind revolves around the concept of doubt and brings Bill Bailey’s musical musings, manic facial expressions and surreal stories to London’s West End for…

Mr Sixties: Phillip Townsend’s Portrait of a Decade

Mr Sixties: Philip Townsend’s Portraits of a Decade opened earlier this week at The Lowry in Salford Quays. Running through…

Beef Rogan Josh recipe

A good beef rogan josh recipe is great for winter. It’ll blast out your sinuses, give you a good hit of veg and superspice the…

H&M online clothing store

H & M, Hennes and Mauritz, opens up its own online clothing store just in time for Autumn and Winter 2010. The site went…

OK, that’s the top ten entertainment news and reviews for the completely arbitrary dates of 27th Sept-10th Nov. Nothing at all to do with me only just getting around to adding stuff nor nuthin’….

Tuppence Top 10 news & reviews 9th August – 26th September 2010

This edition of Tuppence Magazine entertainment news & reviews’ top ten stories includes news of the upcoming launch of the Xbox Kinect, as well as a review of the Playstation Move, a full breakdown of Brandon Flowers’ Flamingo and news of the Labour Leadership election winner:

Brandon Flowers Flamingo

Flamingo is Brandon Flowers’ first solo effort after three big albums with The Killers, and while there are a number of similarities in the production values, it is the differences that stand out starkly.

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (film) DVD

I didn’t have massive expectations for the Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (film) DVD; I was just shattered from a beast of a week when I watched it and needed something fun and distracting to take my mind off shizz, and in this it lived up to my expectations brilliantly.

The Trip BBC 2

The founding fathers of the resurgence of British comedy, Rob Brydon and Steve Coogan, are joining forces once again in the upcoming BBC comedy, The Trip.

MI6: The History of the Secret Intelligence Service 1909-1949

If you’ve ever seen one of the James Bond films you’ve probably been caught up in the intrigue of the MI6. However, the reality is that most of us know very little about the inner working of the organisation, but Keith Jeffrey’s MI6: The History of the Secret Intelligence Service 1909-1949 is about to change that, up to a point.

Xbox 360 Kinect

Welcome to the future. I know I harp on a lot about Back to the Future 2, but all the signs seem to point in the direction of hover boards being invented one day (hopefully in my lifetime) and the development of the Xbox 360 Kinect  is yet another sign that it’s on its way. If you don’t know what it is yet, check out the video below and come back when you’ve picked your jaw up.

Playstation Move

The Sony PS3 Playstation Move is obviously a big attempt by the console giant to move in on the motion controller action that was jettisoned to mainstream legend status by the Nintendo Wii. However, the big question is whether or not the release is a step forward or simply a carbon copy designed to cash in on Nintendo’s near dominant market share.

The Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize 2010

The Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize exhibition 2010 entry period is now closed and the submissions are with the judges to decide the winner of the £12,000 prize.

The Greedy Cow, Mile End

Unassuming from the outside, but class on the inside is the best way to describe The Greedy Cow in Mile End.

Ed Miliband wins the Labour Party leadership race 2010

In a narrowly fought contest, predominantly with his own brother David Miliband, Ed Miliband has won the Labour Party leadership race (2010)…

French Connection Man Autumn / Winter 2010

For a long time now I had written French Connection off as a bit chavvie, but their new ad campaign and Autumn / Winter collection 2010

Tuppence Top 10 news & reviews 4th July – 9th Aug

Now I’m up to nearly a month’s worth:

Arcade Fire, The Suburbs

The first I heard of Arcade Fire’s 3rd album, Suburbs, was a play of the title track on the radio around a couple of months ago. When the DJ announced that they’d be getting an exclusive play I got massively excited, but sadly…

Spider-Man 4 (2012)

After the announcement back in January 2010 that Sony Pictures’ plans for Spider Man 4 had been cancelled, Spidy fans were left in a spin. This brought an end to the Raimi, McGuire, Dunst franchise. However…

Sherlock BBC

Thanks to the success of Matt Smith’s Dr Who, the BBC has found a TV platform that really works. Now, with the help of Doctor Who writers, Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss, they’ve turned their attention to Sherlock Holmes…

Hans Fallada, Alone in Berlin

Apart from the brilliantly interwoven storyline and the strength of the characters, what’s truly amazing about Alone in Berlin is that Hans Fallada wrote it just two years after the second world war (1946)…

Star Wars Force Unleashed 2

The sequel to one of the best Star Wars games of recent times, Star Wars Force Unleashed 2, is about to hit the shops, but with Nintendo Wii, DS, Sony Playstation 3 and Microsoft Xbox 360 version all in the pipeline, which one will be…

Axis of Awesome, 4 chord song

They’re an Australian musical comedy act that are a bizarre cross between Flight of the Concords, Spinal Tap and Tenacious D…

Who Am I? Gallery at the Science Museum

If you’ve ever read Richard Dawkins’ Selfish Gene, or pondered your GCSE biology notes in serious contemplation, then you’ve probably got a good idea of who you are and what has led…

Milgi, Cardiff

Sort of boho (not the Flight of the Concords variety), kind of cool, Milgi is Cardiff’s answer to a cross between Greenwich Village, New York, and Soho, London. However…

Brazil’s forest law legislation proposals

The diminished Brazilian rainforest has been holding on to its conservation credentials thanks to Brazil’s Forest Law, which determines how much land…

Transformer dress

Growing up in the eighties means that I have a massive love of films like Ghostbusters and Back to the Future 2. When Marty McFly blasted into the future…