The Kingsley Special

A few words on how I feel about some things.

[thekingsleyspecial]

Jeremy Clarkson & The Nigger Scandal

Jeremy Clarkson, pictured above, is all over the news because some worthless papers have decided to push out a video that claims he uses the word 'nigger'. Clarkson has since released an apology video for using said term.

The reality is: Clarkson says the word 'nigger'. Clearly. He says he tried to avoid it etc but he does. What I do wonder is, why doesn't he just use a different version of the rhyme..?

Anyway, the point is, who cares? It is not used in a racist way, whatsoever. At all! He is not using the term in a derogatory fashion or as an insult. I would argue that the problem is the way that people are reacting to it.

I was stuck in traffic today, getting a bit of Radio 1 on the go and on comes NewsBeat in which they feature the reactions and opinions of "random people" on the street (opinions which were heavily biased to calling him a cunt). Everyone featured was all about "nobody has the right to use such a term" blah blah blah. So why is it okay when it is used in music?? Why don't songs such as YG's My Nigga or any Jay-Z song/rap (see 1:20 in this video for use at the very start of his rap) generate this kind of publicity?

Is it because they're black? Why is it okay for some and not for others?

My general opinion is that this whole thing is verging on reverse racism. Isn't it making our current racism situation worse by making the term taboo? One interviewee talked about how the term is a "problem" with teenagers as the word is casually thrown around to mean nothing. Isn't that a good thing? Isn't it nice that we can move past prejudice and just use it as slang for 'brother' as people seem to do?

I basically think that Clarkson has inappropriately been landed in deep shit because of the public's reaction. No matter how you feel about him, I do not feel like this should be a career-ending scandal by any means.

[thekingsleyspecial]

[thekingsleyspecial]

Despicable Me 2

So, DM2. The sequel to a fantabulous story of love, overflowing with heart-wrenching character development and incredible animation. The beautiful thing about the first being that it wasn’t a normal boy meets girl kind of fall in love!!!!!!!!!! It’s always far more powerful when it’s about family.

The sequel, and the subject of this post, on the other hand, is about boy meets girl. (Really, where else could they have gone with it? Now he’s got the lovely girls, they need a mother.) Because of this, in terms of plot lines, the film is entirely predictable. Notwithstanding this fact, it was executed flawlessly. The film still erupts with emotion that one’s heart can’t help but empathise with.

As it is a children’s film, the former is understandable and completely appropriate. What really is stunning about the film is the astonishingly beautiful animation, to the point where you find yourself completely immersed in this bizarre little world. Seriously. This film is worth the watch just for that.

The actors put in a lovely performance, especially Kristen Wiig, who brings a wonderful energy to the character and the film. Plus, I still can’t believe Russell Brand is the science guy.

Overall this film a delight. Great if you are in an easy-watching, uplifting kind if mood.

7/10 (pushing 8. It’s just not as good as the first one. It almost begs the question, when is any sequel going to match the quality of Cars 2?)

[thekingsleyspecial]

Lea has to be mainstream in order to be able to sell records so she can do what she wants later on. She can't really on her glee fan base she needs to expand it. So to do something more commercial is fine for now. But this is one song, we know others are ballads. A song she specifically picked to push the looming elephant out of the room and say hey I am here and and lets move on from what happened.

Fair enough. In that case, it will be interesting to see where her career goes next. To be honest it just seems like an endeavour in which to make money, now and in the future, which I’m sure she wi get tons of.

I don’t think, however, that it’s relevant to link this release to Cory and his death. I would understand if she had written it, but she hasn’t. I think that it’s wonderful that she’s still doing things but I reckon this album has been planned for a long time.Thanks for the submission!

[thekingsleyspecial]

Lea Michele's "Cannonball"

So Lea Michele has recently released the single Cannonball  from her upcoming album Louder (Feb 28th 2014).

Before I start, I just want to state that I fucking love Glee. I really do. It warms my heart more than a mulled wine on a winter's day. It's a fantastic show that features the greatest MT-er of all time, Darren Criss. He's the boy. Lea has proven for five series that she has an incredible voice and can really own a cover - whether it be a song from a musical or a pop song.

Anyway, good ol' Lea has released this song. It is, in my opinion, basically an extraordinarily uninteresting pop song that would be very much part of a playlist containing songs like Wrecking Ball or 22. They have the same shitty structure and four chords that seems to sell millions.

My problems with the song are as follows:

The most relevant thing, to me, is that fact that Lea's voice simply does not suit this style of song. The production features standard, unnecessary half-time RnB style drums, synths and a crap repeating "break down" that really do not develop the song. I feel like the song would work so much more if the song was stripped to a piano accompaniment and a bit of cheeky violinage in the bridge.

The pre-chorus is lovely. It's really nice. Unfortunately, the chorus does not take it further; it just repeats the same tune! The same one! Why! Olly Murs would be jealous.

What is it with pop and this stupid "repeat the name of the song a bunch of times in the same way to extend the chorus"? Seriously? Sick of it. (See: 22)

The song, in a nutshell, has nice elements that aren't taken to the epic heights that it could be taken to.

What I'm really upset about is that I'm worried that Columbia Records are commercialising Lea and her lovely voice. I understand that she can do what she likes but I really don't think this song suits her voice or style. She has so much potential. She could change the game. I would be so disappointed to see her become another one of these throwaway pop "singer/songwriters" (see: how many songs she's actually written on her new album...).

Let's see how the album turns out! I'm hoping to be pleasantly surprised!

[thekingsleyspecial]

Grease: Help me get my head around it

So. Grease. This fabulous, classic, musical, right?

Sort-of. I liked it. I mean, I love cheese and I love a good musical, so apart from Olivia Newton-John's astonishingly bad hair for 95% of the film, it was likeable. It's an easy-watching film. John Travolta wasn't terrible. The songs were fun! And it was surprisingly, highly sexualised. I didn't know people had sex in 1978!

There are just two things that really get on my balls. (spoilers)

So the moral of the story is 'change who you are and then everyone will sing and dance and love you again'. Please, somebody, try and figure out a way that this is wrong and I'm just stupid. Please. What a terrible ending, really. The song and dance was huge and majestic but the story behind it is just cat sick.

That's not the end of the ridiculousness, though. The entire film was fairly believable, and I'm sure for some people, almost relatable, until that point. But, it's not a huge deal! We could overlook it, right? That's how life was in the 80s! Let's just end the film and we will all be happy. OH NO, THEN THIS HAPPENS. THEY GET IN THE CAR AND IT FUCKING STARTS FLYING. IT FUCKING FLIES AWAY. CARS DON'T FLY. WHY DOES THIS CAR FLY? WHERE CAN I GET A CAR THAT FLIES? OH WAIT, I CAN'T, THEY FUCKING DON'T. IT JUST MAKES IT ENTIRELY UNRELATABLE AND A WASTE OF TIME AND MONEY.

HONESTLY.

[thekingsleyspecial]

Why don't people wash their fucking hands?

Seriously. It doesn’t make any sense.

You’ve been drinking and you’ve just had a piss. There could be splashback, you could have put your hands on the urinal next to you for moral support, you even could have accidentally pissed all over your little piggy fingers. Just wash your hands! Stop the spread of germs! Please!

The amount of times I see somebody piss and just walk out of the room is astonishing. Sometimes, I even see people walk out of a cubicle, stinking of shit and just stroll out of the room pretending like they haven’t just blown thousands of little shitty pieces of bacteria all over the porcelain.

One time, I was in the bathroom when a gentleman finished his piss, dried his hands and left. DRIED THEM. HE DIDN’T EVEN WASH THEM. HE EVIDENTLY GOT PISS ON HIS PALMS AND DECIDED TO JUST DRY IT UP ONLY TO INFECT THE GENERAL PUBLIC WITH HIS PISS GERMS.

Come on, people. Hand washing saves lives.

[thekingsleyspecial]

Ferris Bueller's Day Off: A few thoughts

After recently re-watching and researching The Breakfast Club (because I think it’s great) I decided, on a whim, to watch Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, which was also written and directed by the late John Hughes. (Fun fact: they were filmed at the same time, the same school is used in both films as they rented the place in one go! #banter)

I have a few thoughts. (spoilers)

Firstly, John Hughes must have fucking loved Simple Minds. Not only is the song Don’t You Forget About Me (an absolute stinker, by the way, I do rate a good 80’s banger) the lead trophy to The Breakfast Club, but there is a nice little poster hung up on the wall in Ferris’ room brandishing the artist and song. If you squint, you might be able to see it to the right of the Dad’s head: Pretty naughty.

After watching this film, I cannot believe how many Family Guy references I now understand. The user DrPepperJNL (luls) has kindly fitted them together in a couple of pristine videos for our pleasure:

Don’t forget, as the user puts, these are original DrPepperJNL uploads guys. They’re original.

I know that Seth MacFarlane has what seems like a constant eager for 80s references but I didn’t know the film was actually that big. Was it?

I’ve never seen Charlie Sheen look so young! Fair play, it was a brilliant cameo.

Now on to how I actually feel about the film. So, mostly, what awful morals for a film. ‘Skip school and you’ll succeed if you are this cool!!!!!!1’. Who is that helping? Seriously? And really, who would want to be like Ferris Bueller? He manipulates his friends and everyone around him with lies to make him seem better and for a laugh. Yeah yeah he did it for his mates own good or whatever, but I’m not game.

To be fair to the film, it did keep me engrossed. I didn’t wander off for a fag or anything. I even finished my beer and decided to stay watching the film as a pose to getting a new one (although that might just be laziness).

But, to be honest, I just wanted everyone else to win. This is one of the rare occasions where actually, the good guy doesn’t deserve to reap all the benefits of being a twat.

5/10 Bottom line: Ferris Bueller. What. A. Cunt.

[thekingsleyspecial]

Review: Bad Rabbits' "American Love"

I drunkenly bought this album for an extortionate amount of money after I watched Don Broco smash the Cardiff University Great Hall last weekend. Bad Rabbits were the main support and we arrived just at the start of their set. I was instantly afraid that I would regret making this detrimental financial decision (£10 is a LOT when you are working for £5.50/hour).

I am overjoyed to admit that this album is the cat's pyjamas.

It seems to be permanently in the CD thing in my car as whenever I turn over that engine, I cannot bring myself to put on anything else. My head starts involuntarily bobbing and my fingers start extemporaneously snapping. Each song is irrepressibly happy, funky and, ultimately, fabulous.

Bad Rabbits originate in Boston and have been going for a few years. This is their first full-length album. From start to finish we hear a mix of pretty much every instrument under the sun combined with wailing harmonies and terrific hooks. The songs, however, are somehow not an unintelligible mess of sounds. Teddy Riley has done an ingenious job of slapping these instruments together intelligently. Bad Rabbits are, in my opinion, exactly what the industry needs in order to bring some musical variation into the general public's lives. 

The only real shame about this album is that it is not longer. 10 songs seems to go too fast. Fortunately, my car CD player sends it straight back to playing the first track as soon as we reach the end of Royal Flush. I would urge everybody to have a gander at this album. I can guarantee you will go on a roller coaster of feeling like an epic gangster all the way to a cool, emotional gangster.

Worth every penny.

8/10 would bang Personal Pick: Fall in Love

[thekingsleyspecial]

Huge news: Tom Daley might be sort-of gay

Last night, I found myself briefing my brother of my annoyance at Tom Daley's 'big news'.

Before I start, I think it's great. Good for you, Tom. I'm very happy that you are happy and as a famous sportsperson, coming out publicly must have been a tough decision to make. I hope you are very happy together (even though I haven't met you and never will).

My problem is that I am struggling to see how it is a big deal. I was sitting in Café 37 yesterday, where they have BBC News on all the time, it seems. Amongst the headlines was "Daley Comes Out" - right up next to the Glaswegian helicopter disaster. I can't help but think that the publicity this YouTube video is being given is an atrocious documentation of how much our country struggles with accepting love between two men or women.

Great, so Daley is getting it browned by some dude but he still thinks about minge. Sounds like a pretty personal thing, right? I don't see why it makes headlines, and this morning, newspaper covers:  The nice thing about all the stories is that people have 'reacted' well. The tweets I have seen have generally been extremely supportive, which is nice (and so they should). Maybe what the hype around this story is doing is saying "look guys, it's okay to shag whoever you like!" which I think would be a positive thing for everybody involved. 

I don't know, I guess I'm just annoyed that all these new outlets have made it such a big deal, when it isn't. It may be a big deal for Tom, but it's not for us. It doesn't really change any of our lives. Why is it all over the place?