Culture Diary w/c 01-04-13
Monday – #INDIENIGHT 8pm @ Studio 2, Parr Street Studios FREE
Indie; who knows what it even means these days, but Studio 2 @ Parr St. are putting their own spin on things with a recent addition to the list marked ‘stuff to do when you should be ironing work clothes’. With The Strokes, Franz Ferdinand, The New Pornographers and LCD Soundsystem all listed on the flyer, plus the odd drinks promo, there may be some sore heads at desks come Tuesday.
Tuesday – Caesar Must Die 6pm @ FACT
Winner of the Golden Bear at the 62nd Berlin International Film Festival, Caesar Must Die – with great skill and sensitivity – follows inmates at a high-security prison in Rome as they prepare for their performance of William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar. Directed by brothers Paolo and Vittorio Taviani, it makes for a revealing look at crime and punishment, both in art and real life. For further insight, the film was the subject of a recent podcast.
Thursday – Walking Too Fast 6.30pm @ FACT
The first screening in a tour showcasing ‘The New Czech Cinema’, director Radim Špaček’s Walking Too Fast looks back to a Czechoslovakia stagnating in the grip of the country’s totalitarian regime. Offering a glimpse of the constraints just such a regime places on its citizens, this is a Cold War thriller of personal defiance rather than political rebellion.
A Small Selection of Lofty Ideas 8pm @ Bold Street Coffee FREE
Taking as their starting point themes of flight and escapism, artists Hannah Bitowski and Jo Hicks present their new exhibition A Small Selection of Lofty Ideas. With live music to accompany the opening from ‘melancholic folk-drone’ outfit Trouble with Books, and Big Effigy, the night promises to be quite the just-after-midweek pick-me-up.
PICK OF THE WEEK: Hookworms 8pm @ Camp and Furnace £6
The Leeds-based five-piece Hookworms have for some time now been cast very much in the role of psyche-revivalists. That the genre is currently enjoying a renaissance of sorts, combined with support slots for the likes of Wooden Shjips, means the quintet fulfill – to a degree – such music journo chatter, while also leaving themselves well-placed to take advantage of it. That latest album Pearl Mystic is superb certainly does them no harm, either. Support in the form of Baltic Fleet adds up to £6 very well spent.
Friday – JAWS 7.30pm @ Mello Mello £4
Back in December 2012 the Guardian Guide ran a feature on a trio of bands hailing from Birmingham, all flying the flag for indie. Sam Wolfson who wrote the piece, argued that alongside Peace and Swim Deep, JAWS could be considered the real deal, and that together they were “three of the brightest indie hopes for 2013″. The NME meanwhile described them as “reminiscent of the poppiest Cure moments with a shoegazey stoner snuggliness”.
A Day in The Death of Joe Egg 7.30pm @ the Liverpool Playhouse £12-£23
In 1967 Peter Nichols brought the difficulties and realities of raising a disabled child to the theatre. More than 40 years later and its power to affect the audience no doubt remains. Ralf Little plays teacher Bri, whose marriage to Sheila (Rebecca johnson) is coming under increasing pressure, the pair struggling to come to terms with disabled daughter Josephine. Truly trailblazing, the Telegraph called A Day in The Death of Joe Egg: “An unmistakably great play.”
Saturday – Gorgeous Gershwin 7.30pm @ Liverpool Philharmonic £16-£40
For many of us, our introduction to George Gershwin will come via Woody Allen’s Manhattan, the use of his 1924 composition Rhapsody in Blue rarely failing to send tingles down the spine of the listener. On Saturday, the Liverpool Philharmonic offers a wonderful opportunity to get to know the man and his songbook all the better.
The Left Hand 8.05pm @ The Pilgrim £3
Angie Walker, Joe McLaughlin and Paul Hirons are The Left Hand, a trio of space-rockers landing at the International Space Station that is the Pilgrim this Saturday. With a raucous take on psyche and eccentric asides from McLaughlin, there can be little better use of £3.
Sunday – Mary Epworth 7.30pm @ Leaf £7.50
With Mary Epworth, the worlds of pop and accessible folk collide. Certainly that’s the opinion of BBC 6 Music, who say she “successfully merges folksy surrealism with a slightly demented pop heart”, which can only be a good thing. Melding traditional English tune with strong West Coast sensibilities, Epworth’s 2012 album Dream Life makes for a great listen and serves to whet the appetite nicely.
