Public Image Limited -PIL Live in Dublin 12.06.2025

My piece on a fabulous concert, Johnny Lydon & co. aka PIL for Sunete Live here

https://sunetelive.ro/de-la-pil-la-nin-in-dublin-cu-alin/

also they got a new great logo 

The Phoenician Scheme (2025)

 The Phoenician Scheme (2025) is Wes Anderson's 12th feature (out of 12, 2 films are animations), presented at the 78th Cannes film festival in the Official Competition. 

The New Yorker review here

It's supposed to be a film dedicated by the writer-director to his daughter, a more emotional relationship of characters and less parodic as in his other films.

A lot of in-house references and cyphres, even more and obscure than before. From the name of the character, Zsa Zsa (Gabor), Korda (the famous filmmaking brothers), to Casablanca, Orson Welles' Mr. Arkadin, Max Ophuls shots, Igor Stravinski & Mussorsky-Ravel, Pierre-August Renoir's painting (that was owned by Greta Garbo). Black Narcissus nurse included ;) The score is again by the great Alexandre Desplat, on his seventh collaboration with WA, in a synchopatic sound and beat very similar to the music from The Grand Hotel Budapest (the best Wes Anderson film for my money).  What is new is the cinematographer, Bruno Dellbonnel's first film with WA. Top set & production design (done again at Babelsberg studios, where the Grand Budapest Hotel was shot) by Adam Stockhausen and cool costumes by the legendary Milena Canonero.

Za-Zsa Korda (genius name !) Benicio Del Toro chews scenery, actually he machetes it, in a part half inspired by Howard Hughes, part Groucho Marx. Matthieu Amalric (Marseille Bob !!! -Bob le flambeur ?) plays Peter Lorre and Jeffrey Wright (Marty- "man") is the epitomy f cool !

IMO Benedict Cumberbatch (uncle Nubar) looks like from Feulliade's Fantomas or any silnet films villains, with a fake beard and diabolic eyes (Jack Lemmon in Blake Edwards' The Great Race too?). Also Michael Cera's Bjorn accent is far far out. The Monty Python affiliation is automatic.

If you know Wes Anderson's favorite films and directors, you know there is not much Americanism in him. He might be the most European Art-house American director. Also he is starting to live completely in his own MU (movie universe), like latter Fellini, Roy Andersson, etc. Is that a good thing, or a Phoenician scheme ;) ?

All in all, 7 out of 10 /3 1/2 out of 5 (could've been 10 mins. shorter) and the Black and white Bunuelian mocking Bergman (or Pasollini ?) sequences (except the Bill Murray cameo as God). Too much of mannerism, tends to deja-vu/veja-du ?. 

RIP Brian Wilson

Just on my first day in Ireland, the evening of July 11th, while stopping on a gas station I got the X notice, from Keith Richards, "goodbye Brian Wilson"...Then the news and the social media were flooded, the next day's newspaper in Dublin had a one page obituary, all my facebook, even the radio played his songs...Took me 5 days to get to write this...(adapter/charger/chord problems plus 1 PIL & 1 NIN)

I saw Brian Wilson in Lyon in July 2017, at Théâtre Antique de Fourvière (Les Nuits de Fourvière Festival, avec Toubib Mishu). I cam all the way from Grossmann Fest in Slovenia, via Zagreb and Milan, and left afterwards to Geneva for Sardegna. It was a detour and a stop I wanted to do and I am so happy I did. It was a magical, wonderful evening, filled with uplifting songs. 

Here's the setlist , he played Beach Boys songs and then Pet Sounds live, ending it with Love and Mercy, the title of his biopic picture from 2014 (as Love & Mercy), where he was played by Paul Dano (young) and John Cusack (old).  That film dealt with his recovering from psychosis and forced medication, a very dark long chapter in Brian Wilson's life. He was, as his song says, not a man on his times. The dark side of Genius. Cos' Wilson is one of the greatest genius in XXth century music, admired by his peers, McCartney, Lennon, Dylan, Neil Young, etc. If The Beach Boys wouldn't put out Pet Sounds in 1966 (and the lost 1967 Beach Boys unfinished album, updated and completed by BW in his master Opus, SMILE, in 2004), there wouldn't have been no Beatles' Revolver, then Sgt. Pepper, then no Their Satanic Majesties, and maybe no Tommy and no Dark Side of the Moon. God Only Knows ...

Good Bye Brian...it was an honor to see you live and I thank Uncut magazine for introducing me to your work, on Smile era.

RIP Sly Stone

Sylvester Stewart aka Sly Stone (leader of legendary funk-soul group Sly and the Family Stone) went away to the other side... He was 82. He is the godfather of funk (adelik), soul master, Uber rockstar in hiss day and a raw model for Prince. Also for Nile Rodgers, George Clinton and many others, black or white. He upped James Brown's game to a a musical level of perfection. His band played Woodstock in 1969, one of the high(er!) acts of the monumental event. And I mean, who ever married on Madison Square Garden and Live ? (in 1974!).

There's a great documentary about him, that just premiered in Sundance Fest. this January and was streamed by Hulu (in Ro on Disney+) in Feb. 2025. Sly Lives! (aka The Burden of the Black Genius), directed by Questlove, musician on his own. See it and you'll get why Sly was the slyest ;) He did a big big thing for Black musicians way back when segregation was All Time(s) Nigh !

Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin ;)