Foals - Holy Fire

Foals released their debut album 'Antidotes' in 2008 and were instantly popular with the british public reaching number 3 in the UK albums chart. Foals managed to bring something new to the table pioneering the MathRock genre and in doing so influencing a range of future bands. The bands second album 'Total Life Forever' showed the bands progression both as musicians and in maturity. Foals dropped the shouty approach they employed in Antidotes and singer Yannis adopted a more melodic style in his vocals. I also think it would be fair to say that the songs were better written and contained layers which made them more accessible to a wider audience. Not in the sense of selling out but the Math Rock movement was short lived and i think Foals were aware that due to their rise in popularity they would be playing bigger venues and thus would have to write songs for arenas. Personally 'Total Life Forever' was one of my favourite albums of 2010 so naturally i was very much looking forward to listening to 'Holy Fire'.
Prior to listening to the full album i had read that the band had cut down on the amount of weed they smoked, this was worrying. Sometimes bands or musicians work better and produce better stuff when on some substances. I'm not advocating the use of drugs but when they managed to produce such good albums when high why change a winning formula? these fears were quickly put to bed and read a bedtime story when i heard the first single 'Inhaler'. The first time i heard it i was sat in my cold overpriced Uni room probably eating a pack of salt and vinegar chipsticks, in other words bored out of my brain. I saw the video linked in a tweet and like a fat kid walking into a bakery, i was excited. My first thoughts as the intro started was yeah good tune if not a bit samey. The chorus caught me so off guard, such a big leap for them to add that heavier aspect to their repotoire, works a treat though. I fell in love and its no exaggeration for me to claim to have watched the music video 5 plus times a day. In a word, belter.
Anyway, as the album goes, i've always been a big fan of the instrumental opener something i feel isn't used enough. A big, big intro that sets the tone of the album and i'd say 'Prelude' does just that. I'm picturing it live maybe as the set opener, its the type of intro that is guaranteed to whip the crowd up. The next track 'Inhaler' obviously you know my thoughts on that 'and that's all i have to say about that' Forrest Gump. 'My Number' is a catchy little tune with a nice bit of backing vocals probably the type of song you need after 'Inhaler' had blown your socks moments before. For me its slightly reminiscent of the 80's as its got that funky twang to it but all the while keeping the type of guitar sounds we have grown to love from Foals. Definitely not a 'mosh pit' song but the type of song you won't be able to resist throwing shapes to. This is followed by 'Bad Habit' a song that could have easily been on their second album, not one of my favourites but its still a solid album song, just doesn't have the edginess that other songs on 'Holy Fire' have.'Everytime' kicks in with a techno-esque intro and some tribal sounding drum beats, a great combination. It lures you into believing you've got a massive drop coming at some point and the chorus just tickles that idea. The whole way through this song your anticipating the big breakdown climax. You could argue it does come towards the end but i would have liked it to be bigger fatter with a PH. 'Late Night' emphasises the progression in Foals. The vocals kick starting and leading the song, with the instruments providing a nice ambient sound in the background, complimenting the vocals beautifully. It builds up gradually to become a really nice ballad of sorts, the type of song 'Antidotes' lacked. Its a very mellow song but once again i challenge anyone to not have a shuffle. 'Out of the woods' has a more stereotypical intro, I like the way this song incorporates some instruments you don't tend hear in a Foals song, they blend well with the generic Foals sound. 'Milk and Black Spiders' easily the most striking song name i saw when looking at the track listing. I was hoping the strikingness of the title would spill out into the music and i wasn't disappointed. It keeps this sort of trickling guitar line achieved with delay the whole way through the song and maybe i'm just being weird but i personally felt it kept the rhythm perhaps a spider would when making its web. I realised i should probably go to bed when i felt like i was at a 4d cinema and could actually feel spiders crawling over me. Definitely one of my highlights of the album though this song. 'Providence' starts with the echoey vocals accompanied by the punky guitar strums. throughout the song that takes a back seat as we are treated to a masterclass in how to build a song up to colossal heights like only Foals can. This was what i was waiting for from the album the glorious climax where you just lay down, eyes closed with goosebumps and just ride that music. Following on from that was always going to be a monumental task. Foals went for the almost hypnotic song 'Stepson' which could easily double up as a lullaby even the lyrics 'Now i'm falling deeper down i go'. What are you trying to do boys send me to sleep? Personally i think 'Stepson' will forever be living in the shadow of 'Providence' it doesn't have that Genese que needed to follow up from such a massive tune. Finally, we have 'Moon' and your starting to get the impression they really are trying to get you to catch some zzz's. A slow intro with a mellow assortment of guitar parts floating in the background. Then you hear the faint crashing of drums in the background and your thinking 'lets have it'. The synth kicks in but then fades back into the earlier calm vibe at the beginning of the song. The last 30 or so seconds is just noise which left me feeling shortchanged. I was hoping for another corking ending but i guess it just wasn't meant to be.
I would like to say that this was all upon first listen, i was listening to the album for the first time as im typed so any of these songs could either grow on me or start to grind me. However very enjoyable album that i would recommend to anyone i'd even give it an 8/10 upon first listen which for me is unheard of. I know just look forward to seeing them live again which will hopefully be a better experience than the last time at Reading when i was tricked into drinking piss. I hope you enjoy. Toodles

Should've gone up a while ago but here we have my critical review from the first semester

Last year I was made aware that the second year of the Journalism course would revolve around Winol however I didn't quite anticipate how much. Since restarting in September Winol has pretty much dominated my life. During the week i'm editing packages and at the weekend i'm filming them, not that I haven't enjoyed it. The way the second year of the course is structured is to essentially gain on the job experience as Winol represents a realistic newsroom environment therefore further our skills as Journalists. Everything feels real about the experience most notably on Wednesday when the bulletin is due to air. Around 1 o' clock the atmosphere changes from relatively relaxed to a full throttle all systems go battlefield as everyones trying to make the three o clock deadline.
The role I undertook this semester was as a Winol sports reporter as Winol cover the local sports teams including; AFC Totton, Winchester FC and The Basingstoke Bison. Originally I was asked to film the Bison, an ice hockey team. For me this was my introduction to the sport as it was something i'd never really followed. The first week I set off and was slightly hindered by the fact that the public to the Planet Ice Arena left a lot to be desired, nonetheless I turned up and recorded the game and put together my first package for the bulletin. In hindsight i'm not particularly happy with the highlights I put together as I underestimated the intensity of the sport and thus my camera work was sloppy. As football has been the main sport I have been weaned on the speed of an Ice Hockey game came as a bit of a culture shock and when the highlights were posted on Youtube they got some negative reviews however from this mishap I know knew what it was I had to improve on and had a slightly better idea of how the game was played, so naturally I was eager to redeem myself the next weekend.
The following weekend I returned to the Planet Ice Arena looking forward to game but also at having the opportunity to make up for my mistakes. The game was equally as intense but as I'd managed to get there with time to set up properly I had the camera and tripod moving much more freely which enabled me to get better shots. When I came back to edit the package I was a lot more contented with the footage I had to work with as I had picked up all the goals as well getting shots of the fans and establishing shots. The package I made on the second week was probably my favourite of the semester as I also managed a solid voice over. The trouble i've had this semester was not with the writing of the script as I enjoyed writing the humorous pun filled commentary it was just that I couldn't make myself sound excited enough. The majority of the voice overs i've done have sounded pretty monotonous which has been very frustrating but this week for whatever reason I managed to sound like I was actually enjoying myself. After the second package I felt a lot more comfortable covering The Bison and found myself adopting Ice Hockey as a second sport. The main factor of me enjoying the Ice Hockey was the buzz in the arena the games are exciting enough but the DJ and the upbeat fans make it a highly enjoyable experience.
I spent the next few weeks filming the Ice Hockey but as my packages were usually finished by Monday I found myself offering to help out other people on the Sports Team. Me and Harvey went down to film an interview with the manager of Winchesters Women's team, as Harvey was presenting the package I was the cameraman which I still enjoyed and it also gave me an idea of the sort of things others were providing for the bulletin. I also suggested at the weekly meeting that we should capitalise on the fact that I had a housemate who was part of the Universities Polo Team which we could use as a feature. It was agreed that Emma would front the package as she had prior horse riding experience and I would assist her in filming the interview. For both of us it was a new experience as neither of us had used a lot of the equipment including the radio microphones but we managed to pull it together and when Emma had finished the package it came out looking very good. After helping Emma I then went onto help Harvey out with an interview he had with QPR scout Kevin Braybrook this made me realise that I wanted to try out an interview of my own. I felt confident that I would be able to conduct myself accordingly in an interview situation and also that i'd like to broaden my experiences in the first semester of Winol.
After realising that I wanted to expand from the Ice Hockey highlights I brought up a story idea I had that I knew was quite ambitious but still attainable, the Portsmouth Supporters Trust. I felt that it ticked all the boxes for Sports Week story as it was a local story that was also being
covered on a national level. I was hoping to use contacts I had within the club to both interview and help me film in and around the stadium which turned out to be very successful. As my dad used to be involved with the supporters club a few years ago I knew that I would be able to get reasonably decent interviews but when I managed to get ex Pompey player Vince Hilaire for an interview it instantly gave my package more credibility. I had the idea that it would be good to interview John PFC Westwood as he is regarded as the most recognisable fan in the world and as the story was about the fans it fitted. After a lot of hunting around I did manage to get in contact with him and he was more than willing to give his thoughts on the Supporters Trust. I had hoped to do another interview with someone from the supporters trust but they were difficult to get in contact with and when I did manage to get in contact with the spokesman I was already back in Winchester so I had to settle for a statement. Once I put the package together I was incredibly pleased with the outcome my pieces to camera came out well considering I had to use a gun mic and as I was given exclusive access to Fratton Park I got some excellent shots and managed to do one of my pieces to camera on the pitch. One of the things I would have changed if I had more time was the statement as the white text over a still of the pitch didn't look quite as good as I had liked. Fortunately both the interviewees had some interesting stuff to stay which gave the VT a nice fluidity and hopefully would have kept the viewer engaged throughout.
Aside from the weekly bulletin I have also been part of a couple of other projects put on by the Winol team. The first was when Winchester were selected to host the BJTC awards which gave us a chance to showcase our professionalism. Everyone was eager to impress not only because it gave Winchester the opportunity to gain a stronghold as the best student journalists in the country but also as there were a lot of audience members who were big names in the industry most notably Sir Alistair Stewart. I was asked to man one of the cameras which would mostly be holding a tight shot on Alistair as he hosted the awards. The day was a complete success as everything ran smoothly despite some quite shaky rehearsals.
Another event I was asked to help with, once again manning a camera, was Winol's coverage of the American elections. The event was another success as both of the 2 hours seemed to run smoothly enough the only issue was the skype connection. This was understandable as the conversation was being held from opposite sides of the globe. In terms of working on these projects I didn't hold down major roles but it was still nice to be part of such big projects both of which were pre-eminent for student journalism.
As far as the whole bulletin is concerned I think it was evident that we struggled to produce a decent standard of bulletin in the first few weeks, but I don't feel that it took us long to find our feet at all. By the third bulletin peoples packages were looking more professional, the sound was coming out better and people looked more comfortable in front of the camera. Also the content of the stories gradually began to improve as the semester went on. Next semester I would like to have a go at presenting the bulletin as I thought that everyone else did a good job and fancied having a go myself. I know the features team have been focusing on the website more so than the bulletin and some of the features could have easily been picked up by national institutions. Lee's Hitler's neighbour feature for example strikes me as the type of thing that you'd see as a documentary on the BBC or ITV. Also the Paul Blackburn interview, I personally felt quite privileged to have been able to hear his story first hand. It was a powerful and shocking talk but his story will undoubtedly be broadcast at some point, if it hasn't already.
I was keen to dabble in some Radio this year, which I managed to do in the form of two Sports Week radio shows. The shows were an hour at an time which I thought would be difficult to talk about sport for but as soon as I sat down in the booth the time flew by. Radio is something I would like to keep doing next semester as I did enjoy both the shows so hopefully I will be able to carry on with this.
Without the aid and support of the third years it will be a tough task taking over Winol. I know I personally relied quite a lot on our sports editor Henry this year but I think as a unit our second year team is strong. We have people that will be able to slot in to the editorial roles that i'm sure will be able to do a good job. I just hope that by the time the new second years take on the
challenge of Winol I will be as much of a useful source of help as the third years were to me.

Everyone loves a bit of Freud

After the Continental and Anglophone philosophers had drifted apart the analytic tradition had started to dominate in English speaking countries. The most influential continental thinker on Anglo-American philosophy was Sigmund Freud. Freud didn't see him self as a philosopher more as a Scientist. Freud was born into an Austrian family in 1856 he trained as a doctor in the University of Vienna were he specialised in Brain Autonomy but became fascinated by neurology. In 1895 he published work on mental illness, Freud was originally a fan of hypnosis but later went onto develop a new form of therapy which he called psychoanalysis which he stated consisted of nothing more than a conversation between Patient and doctor. Freud felt that the hysterical symptoms of his patients were forged by a trauma that had been repressed and that by provoking them into remembering and discussing they could be helped. Being Freud he believed most of these traumas to have been caused by sexual encounters in the patients youth.

In 1900 Freud published his most important work 'The interpretation of dreams' which he believed let people express their repressed sexual desires. He made many adaptations to his original theory and book over the next few years slightly tweaking the theories. In 1923 he published a new work the ego and the id in which he described his thoughts on the unconscious mind. Freud was forced to flee to England after the Nazi's banned psychoanalysis and after 16 years of suffering from jaw cancer he was euthanised by his physician in 1939.

Freud summed up his psychoanalytic theses in a set of lectures between 1915 and 1917. These were that the greater part of our mental life was unconcious and secondly that sexual impulses were vital in maintaining a healthy mental state. He believed that if one suppresses these emotions due to them be deemed unacceptable by society they could later surface in the form of a mental illness. Freud believed the unconscious is manifested in three ways ; trivial mistakes, reports of dreams and symptoms of neurosis. He felt that his psychoanalytic approach could reveal patterns in a persons unconcious. From this development Freud developed the Oedipus complex. In Freud's opinion the most important stage in development to help understand a persons unconscious is to look into their sexual development. According to Freud infantile sexuality starts with an oral fixation followed by an anal stage between the ages 1-3 and then the phallic stage in which a person is fascinated by their genitals. This is when the oedipus complex kicks in as a male child becomes aroused by his mother and therefore resents his father, however the boy fears his father will castrate him so drops the feelings for his mother and begins to identify with his father. His female equivalent to Oedipus was never fully worked out.

His later work was more focused on his theories the ego and the Id. In its most simplest form the ego is the level headed part of someones soul. The Id represents the devil we see appear on someones shoulder in cartoons the part of our psyche that wants to act on impulse and fulfil our desires. The superego is the angel and basically the conscience that tries to cancel out the ID. Freud believed that as long as there was a healthy balance people would be less likely to display neurotic symptoms.

Well needed TLC

I realise that my blog hasn't been receiving much attention of late which isn't good news, therefore i have decided to take on a blog a day challenge from now until the end of the semester. However this will probably not include weekends.
I think a good place to start with this new ambitious project is to talk about my first experience presenting. I was asked to present Sports Week and naturally as i had yet to give it a go i was keen to take the 'hot seat'. I came in on the Tuesday suited and booted and nervously waited for the camera to start rolling. As I was losing my presenting V plates I wasn't familiar with the autocue but found it easily enough to use. I felt like my performance wasn't too bad for a first attempt, the build up beforehand was quite stressful as a lot seemed to be going a bit Pete Tong, but when we actually got down to business everything ran relatively smoothly. Obviously it took me a few takes to nail the links and such but the finished product was alright. I was keen to watch back the footage just to see how it came out and when I did i was quite disappointed. Its something that i'm struggling to come to terms with but I don't think i look that great on camera, which is bit of a pain. In my head I looked suave like a James Bond type character however in reality I really didn't. Anyway this is only a short one to ease myself back into the swing of things but judge for yourself.