Here is the simply epic video for their new single “This Too Shall Pass”. Good job lads.

It seems over the past years the idea of a pay as you go phone – built into an actual vehicle has disappeared with premise being put on using hands free kits enabled by blue tooth. It almost feels like a car should be equipped with a telephone and perhaps even a mobile broadband solution.

Birds on a Telephone Wire

It poses a question which surely will be on the lips of any tech geek across the world: Are we coming to an end of the having a cable based system which largely works efficiently?  How long can we carry on using essentially old technology, and how long can we continue to put strain on already overworked cables? Is not the solution to move forward using wireless even perhaps mobile solutions – strategically placed across the country?

Moving forward with technology is what we need. A personal opinion I hold is that these wires dotted across the countryside are basically an eyesore and perhaps something needs to be done about them. In this way I also mean the power cables – another blog post there!

Below are some short summaries of why a Car Telephone is a cool thing.

• Nothing looks better then a legal safe to use car phone
• Signal perhaps would be better.
• Could be used to tie into a mobile broadband system which could allow passengers (LOL) to work on the move.

When it comes to safety of course all the necesarry steps would need to be taken to ensure it is sad for the user and for other members of the road.

There is I suppose an element of pointlessness about a car telephone- why change something which in a way does not need to be changed, but also there is nothing wrong with dreaming of a day when I can own a car and maybe then I’ll put a telephone in it and tell the world how its definitely the next best thing…

Running generally is a popular way for charities to raise money. Everyone understands what it is, and apart from some sneakers and a vest you don’t need any special equipment to do it. From fun-runs to marathons it seems hardly anybody goes above walking pace in this country without first getting sponsorship.

The London marathon is of course no exception to this rule. In addition to the elite marathon runners thousands of others (some suffering from severe cases of fancy dress) will pound the streets of Britain’s capital. Astonishingly it turns out that the London Marathon is the single largest one day fund-raising event on the planet.

This year is the 30th Anniversary of the London Marathon and it is set to be a record breaker as far as charity fund-raising goes. Over an an incredible half-billion pounds is set to be raised. That is a lot of money by anybody’s standards. Good luck if you are taking part in the London Marathon on April 25. Rather you than me!

]]> http://skip-to-the-end.com/history-in-2d/feed/ 0 http://skip-to-the-end.com/climate-change-scepticism-on-the-rise/ http://skip-to-the-end.com/climate-change-scepticism-on-the-rise/#comments Fri, 05 Feb 2010 21:55:17 +0000 Skip To The End http://skip-to-the-end.com/?p=454 BBC News has caused controversy with a new public opinion poll on climate change. In a poll asking “Do you think global warming is taking place?” 25% of the British public replied No. This is a 10% increase from the 15% that replied no in the same poll only 3 months ago.

So what does this mean? BBC News has interpreted this poll to mean that “climate scepticism is on the rise“. I interpreted this poll to show that the BBC are stupid. Firstly, you will often catch me reinforcing the point that public opinion on climate change is totally irrelevant. We cannot simply wish away the damage we have done and continue to do to our environment. Second, the question. The question was not ‘Do you think climate change is taking place?’. They blatantly substituted the correct phrase for global warming, one possible effect of climate change, only to then call it a phrase on climate change. But perhaps the stupidest part of this servery is the timing. It is hardly surprising that less people will believe the world is getting hotter, weeks after their country experiences one of the coldest and snowiest winters on record. Had you asked them if they thought the climate was changing, perhaps we would have very different statistics.

Verdict: BBC Fail (Again) See here for previous fails.

This is a film adaptation of the book by the investigative journalist Jon Ronson. This book is a work of non-fiction which examines the more far out experiments undertaken by the CIA, psychic warfare, mind control.  The film takes the content of the book and hangs a fictional story on it set during the 2003 invasion of Iraq, staring Ewan McGregor as an investigative reporter and George Clooney as an ex special forces ‘Jedi Warrior’. This is a piece of inspired casting as the film makes repeated Star Wars references. The goats of the title are a recurring motif throughout the film.  In flashback we learn that one of the objectives of the psychic warfare program was to train a soldier to kill one of these unfortunate  animals using the power of the mind alone. Clooney’s character succeeds in this, which he sees as bringing curse upon himself and the New Earth Army as he has used his powers for evil and, “turned to the dark side”. There are a lot of laughs, but there is a serious message at the heart of this film. In particular questions about the secret development and use of secret psychological torture techniques on captives in the global war on terror.

Some people however, might need to ask themselves a few questions about what it is they are buying. For instance I’m not quite sure what the reaction the guy who gave this would get from his ladyfriend:

Top marks for humour, but most women would prefer flowers. And with some foxy lingerie, everybody’s happy!

Given what has been happening to airport security lately its amazing this guy thought he could get away with it. I don’t know, maybe that’s his thing: having security guards pulling scaled reptiles from his undercrackers. Its weird enough to be a fetish. If half the things we have heard about Angelina Jolie over the ears are true maybe she has experimented with covert reptilian  lingerie funtime. That sounds good actually, maybe I will pack a little something ‘extra’  for my trip to Malaga this summer!

This is a 100% genuine roadsign alongside a Colorado highway. Must be a real heart warming sight for any WWII veterans passing by. Whether the states image of the Nazi ideology can be rehabilitated by trash free verges and Stormtroopers planting flowers is doubtful. One thing is for sure, this is a true moment of WTF for Colorado.

I notice from TV that there is a christian 1 million aid…. wonder where the muslim aid is?……

Christian aid, muslim aid it matters not – what matters is we do what we can to help send urgent aid to the victims of the Haiti earthquake catastrophe, not just re-build Haiti, if you re-build an outhouse its still an outhouse – what we need to do is “build” Haiti into atleast a 2nd world country. If Brazil can be borderline 1st world and  2/3rd of them live in shanty towns, then the least Haiti deserves is a couple of schools and maybe a hospital. Put the Muslim bashing to one side its isnt’ the time or the place for petty your God is bigger than my God stuff (I do have some issues with fundermentalism but painting all Muslims with that brush is wrong).

How about we all say this weekend the 1st drink we buy will be for Haiti and drop a fiver in the box? Lets just pray its enough.

In Peace

As with the recent struggle in the music industry to make money, it has simply forced filmmakers to up their game. This has lead to perhaps the best year for film of the decade. Of course there were still some stinkers. Here are my top 5 movies of 09:

1. District 9
2. The Hangover
3. 500 Days of Summer
4. Hurt Locker
5. Zombieland

It’s now easier than ever to watch movies. iTunes now does movie rentals too, which means you can watch the latest movie releases from the comfort of your own sofas without leaving you house. You got 5 greats to choose from above, get watching.

Only joking, here is your Christmas gift from me to you in the form of Jack Bauer. Merry Christmas.

Now the culmination of months of discussion on climate change has reached the final and most important stage at the climate change Copenhagen conference. The conference featured and opening video, which is almost exactly like that released in Britain only months earlier. Titled “Please help the World” it sees a possible future threw a child’s eyes.

It may seem unfair to pressure people by using children, but the truth is that it is children who will face the effects of climate change, despite doing little to cause it.

I flew into Vancouver last week, soon to be home of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. The first thing that hits you stepping into Canada for the first time (and flying over it) is the scale. Everything is bigger. The roads, the pavements, the buildings, the cars, even the tree’s are huge. Like most Brits, my only experience of North America had come from TV and movies. You don’t really get a proper idea of just how big everything is from that at all.

I stayed in a backpackers hostel downtown Vancouver for 5 nights which was pretty cool. Hostels are a great place to meet people, most of whom are pretty awesome. If you ever want to meet an Australian or a Kiwi, they are all in Canada. Seriously, I have met more Aussies and Kiwis that any other people put together. I met loads of people around the sofas in the hostel. Many had just arrived in Canada for the first time in hope of finding a job. With the winter Olympics just around the corner Vancouver is probably not a bad place to start looking.

Vancouver is an amazing City. Everything I usually hate about big cities like London just don’t occur there. I hate London because everyone is rushing around with no respect for anyone, everyone is so tensed and stressful. Its dirty, cramped and you are usually a couple of hours from the countryside. Vancouver is none of these things. There are 2.2 million people living there, but it not once felt busy or overcrowded. There is so much space everywhere that you just don’t realize quite how big it really is. Its also so clean. The roads and sidewalks get cleaned nearly everyday. The people are all chilled and laid back, no one is rushing around willing to stab you if they could get to where they are going that second quicker. The food was also amazing. Many restaurants offered Christmas hampers of their own cuisine for the festive season. All you can eat Japanese lunch is certainly one to look out for. The nightlife is pretty good. The Hostel we stayed at had a bar downstairs which was always full and screened Canucks games most nights.

But the best part about Vancouver by far is the scenery. It is so unique to have a massive coastal city that has mountains bordering it. Skiing mountains as well. On a sunny day, you can stand on a beach in Stanley Park and look up into the mountains and see a ski slope. You could Ski and Surf in the same day! Its insane. The flight out of Vancouver on a clear day was simply awesome. The view was probably the best thing I have every laid eyes on. Its worth going just for that.

Yes climate change is a very important issue. Yes people should be aware about it, and yes people should care about it. But people are not stupid (well, they don’t like to think so) so resorting to shock tactics like this is dumbing down the debate. If you support more stricter action on climate change then you are supposed to be one of the intelligent ones. If you don’t then you are ignoring the one thing that could allow us to continue flying around the world, technology. Stop being petty and making cheap shots at people with adverts like this. Your not helping. Most people have accepted the science behind climate change now and want to do something about it. The public are not the ones you need to be shouting at. Its the politicians and business leaders. They are the ones with real power, and they are the only people who can make a real impact on the climate of this world.

It is up to us to make sure that they understand that we demand action. No longer will we put our banks and money over our lives and our future.

The mid to late 90’s saw a decline in real/decent music with only dreadful pop groups thriving. But the internet has changed the game, managing to both damage and save the music industry at the same time. So lets look back at perhaps the most important decade for music since the 60’s. Here is our pick of the best albums by year of this magnificent decade:

Best Album of 2000: Rated R – Queens of the Stone Age

The second album from the band formed from the ashes of stoner rock pioneers Kyuss, featuring Josh Homme on vocals and guitar and Nick Oliveri on bass. The follow up to their first Hard Rock self titled album, Rated R was anything but conventional. From the off with the track “Feel good hit of the summer” you know this is going to be something important, but also a bit funny. The first track, which lyrics’ consist of only drugs [Nicotine, Valium, Vicodin, Marijuana, Ecstasy  and Alcohol] sounds so addictive as the drugs themselves, leaving you craving the rest of the album. Each song takes you in a different direction, somewhere music has never been before and yet maintains the coherent sound of a concept album. Josh Homme always take making music seriously yet seems compelled to do it ironically threw out the album. Irony oozes from this record. Perhaps because you know it does not conform to popular music, yet it follows a basic and familiar song structure that people can understand. This is pop rock on crack. The Homme – Oliveri partnership thrives, with Homme’s almost angelic vocals and devilish guitar riffs and Oliveri’s simply evil and filthy bass lines, the two forces balance each other beautifully into a strangely beautiful album. Best Track: Better Living Threw Chemistry

2000 Runner Up: OutKast – Stankonia

A break-threw album for OutKast, with awesome hits such as “Ms Jackson” and “BOB (Bombs over Baghdad)”. These guys clearly had something to say and were one of a few stand out rap artists that we striving to be better than the status quo (not the rock band).

Best Album of 2001: Origin Of Symmetry – Muse

With their follow up to the groundbreaking debut album “Showbiz” Muse permanently stamped their mark on the British music scene. The album was a instant classic. The epic sounds of “Newborn” and “Plug In Baby” are unparalleled in British Rock in anything post 70’s. Front Man Matt Bellamy simply oozes talent, managing a unique and excellent guitar style, amazing vocal ability and he plays a mean piano. Muse essentially create their own genre with “Origin of Symmetry” that simply cannot be categorized only as rock. This is Unique, beautiful, heartbreaking, amazing and backed up with some of the best live performances of any British act ever. Best Track: Plug In Baby

2001 Runner Up: Toxicity – System of a Down

These 2 albums were a big part of the soundtrack of my youth. Music television had just started to really explode with the release of lots on new music channels, including rock and metal channel Kerrang, which can be partially blamed for the disgrace of the late 90′ early 00’s that was new metal. But it wasn’t all bad, I remember System of a Down must have been on at least once every 10 minutes after the release of Toxicity. It destroyed everything around at the time in the rock and metal scene, because it was actually good. Well it was in fact a lot better than good.

Best Album of 2002: A Rush of Blood to the Head – Coldplay

Coldplay pioneered a flood of soft rock bands with their first album at the start of the 00’s. But Their second album really blew all competition out of the water. The amount of feeling and passion in this album can be heard and felt threw-out and there is not a second of the album that does not sound powerful and amazing. This album is sure to have inspired many budding musicians already and will continue to do so for years to come. Best Track: Amsterdam

2002 Runners Up: Sigur Ros – () | Queens of the Stone Age – Songs For The Deaf

Yes, that’s not a misprint, its really called “()”. You have probably heard of, or atleast heard songs by Sigur Ros at some point in your life. But you almost definitely don’t appreciate them as you should. They are guilty of some of the most passionate and beautiful music ever made and this, their second album is the pick of the bunch. So good they could not name the tracks or the album, perhaps because words cannot describe its beauty, the band even created their own language to sing in the album. If you want to feel something, this album will introduce you to feelings you never knew existed, if you let it. In contrast their soft musical style, Queens of the Stone Age’s third album “Songs For The Deaf” thumped it’s way into the mainstream with its first single “No One Knows” with pounding rock beats provided by none other than Dave Grohl who appeared on the album in the previously vacant drummer position, providing perhaps the best drumming performance on any record of the decade. It’s a heavy, heavy album that will go down in history as one of the very best hard rock albums ever. Grohl enjoyed playing with the band so much he proclaimed it the best band he had ever been, but other commitments with the Foo Fighters lead QOTSA to find a worthy replacement with Joey Castello.

Best Album of 2003 : Veneer – José González

The Debut album from one of the best singer songwriters to emerge from the 00’s. Veneer has incredible depth for an album that is only vocals and guitar. José González almost reinvents how to play acoustic guitar, managing to create a sound that is almost orchestral. The First single “Heartbeats” was shot to fame in a memorable Sony Bravia advert which helped it become a household hit in the UK. Best Track: Heartbeats

2003 Runners Up: Hail to the Thief – Radiohead | Fever To Tell – Yeah Yeah Yeahs

2003 saw a real transformation in popular music, the boy-band era had ended and real bands had hit the mainstream thanks to the likes of Coldplay and Stereophonics. But few of this new wave of soft rock and indie bands made any classic records. Radiohead are worthy runners up for putting their past classic albums behind them and reinventing themselves to make a very modern sounding record that upheld their style and amazing songwriting. The Yeah Yeah Yeahs also deserve a mention for their instant classic album “Fever to tell”, that simply blew false saviors of rock like The Strokes and other indie bands out of the water. Lots of people praised the album but few really understood it at the time. The Yeah Yeah Yeahs have continued threw-out the decade to make music of the tallest order, being only properly appreciated by a select few.

Best Album of 2004: Kasabain -Kasabain

An album full of anthems, this really felt like the start of something important. Hailed as the new Oasis, their egos quickly became too big for their own good, but make no mistake this album is a classic in the history of British music. From the off the album has something to say, a protest record that makes you want to join the resistance and punch someones lights out, which perhaps is why it became a popular hit with football fans. An Epic manly record. Best Track: Club Foot

2004 Runners Up: To the 5 Boroughs – Beastie Boys | Funeral – Arcade Fire

After 6 years out of the game, the Beastie Boys make one of the best comebacks of all time. After making rap records for nearly 20 years, to come out again and make an album ash fresh and relevant as the first, they sure cemented their appeal as one of the all time greatest hip-hop acts. Arcade Fire’s debut album “Funeral” is arguably the best of the year, with such a passionate and unique sound, they paved they way for future bands like Friendly Fires and Be Your Own Pet. They gave indie a rural country edge twist that made “Funeral” feel really special.

Best Album of 2005: Demon Days – Gorillaz

The second album from Damon Albarn’s Gorillaz dominated the pop charts in 2005. The band surely surpassed all expectations with this record that included chart toppers “Dare”, an amazing collaboration with Shaun Ryder, and “Feel Good Inc” with De la Soul. The record was produced by Danger Mouse, who is quite possibly the best in the business at the moment, which is sure to have played a part in its success. But characters in the band may be cartoon, but the talent behind this album was very real. The success of Demon Days called for the Identity of the real band members to come forward, but not before their first ever live performance, where they still masked their identities. Best Track: Kids With Guns

2005 Runner Up: Kaiser Chiefs – Employment

The Kaiser Chiefs continue a run of new British bands that carry a lot of social issues on their back and in their music. It was not long after people started hearing the likes of “I Predict a Riot” and “Oh My God” that it was clear they would be destined for the big time. Like Kasabian, they were a mans band, with rocky riffs and social shouts for the masses, and they came from Leeds.

Best Album of 2006: Who Needs Actions When You Got Words – Plan B

I’m going to make a controversial decision here and go for Plan B over the Arctic Monkeys. Both are perhaps the social commentary albums of the decade, but I’m choosing Plan B because I believe it is more relevant, more honest and more important. At a time when mainstream Rap and Hip-Hop had become soulless, commercial and generic, Plan B came along and made it honest again at least in Britain. Just one guy and a guitar rapping about being brought up in East London. It’s very dark, which perhaps has warded off more people than it attracted, but this guy had a real message for the British people and we’d be a damn sight better off if we listened to him. He wins for rapping with relentless passion in his voice which you can hear him pouring into the record. If it scares you, then good, at least it made you feel something. Best Track: No More Eatin’

2006 Runners Up: Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not – Arctic Monkeys | The Warning – Hot Chip

Arctic Monkeys mark a milestone in the history of music. A band discovered by millions threw word of mouth, well not word of mouth exactly. This was the dawn of the internet age for music. Over the space of 6 months, the Arctic Monkeys went from playing in small pubs around the UK, to being one of the most talked about bands in the country, headlining massive shows. The internet had now become fast enough and social enough to share music and videos instantly with your entire network of friends. Myspace gave anyone the chance to upload their own music onto a website for free and share it with the world. The Arctic Monkeys represent this new generation, signing about having nothing better to do than cause trouble and get pissed. But their simply epic rise to fame was not only down to the Internet, it was also down to “I Bet You Look Good On The Dance floor”. This is a huge tune, so good I can even specifically remember where I was the first time I heard it, just instantly acknowledging with myself that it was going to be a massive hit. A classic so timeless, I had to check to see if it was actually new because it felt like it could have fitted in at any point over the last 30 years. The Album, perhaps one of the most anticipated of the 00’s, was used as a launching point for online music stores like iTunes, which now meant people could download tracks and albums straight to their computers. It smashed the record book, becoming the fastest selling album of all time. As for Hot Chip, they rightfully deserve a mention for bringing Electro Pop back into the mainstream with their fantastic second album, setting a trend for the years to come.

Best Album of 2007: In Rainbows – Radiohead

What a year for music! The success of the Arctic Monkeys provided the new hope for the music industry that everyone thought was dying. 2007 saw some simply awesome music. I could give 3 or 4 albums that would top most mentioned on this list. In Rainbows was not a mainstream hit, but it hit the mainstream smack in the face. Digital downloads were thriving. Radiohead could see the industry had changed, and not satisfied with making one of the greatest concept albums of all time, again, they made the headlines by releasing the album only as a download from their website. But the twist was you, the buyer, could choose how much you wanted to pay for it. Some said it was the future, others said it was a joke, but it was never the less a shock to the system. Reports say they pocketed far more than they would have got if they had signed up to release on a Major label. The way it was sold unfortunately overshadowed the sheer awesomeness of the album, which is certainly in my top 3 of all time. It’s so very raw and edgy, yet beautiful and smooth. At a time where new technology is transforming everything, production of albums had become way over the top. All signs of emotion and raw feeling were compressed out and smoothed over to be easily listening for the masses. In Rainbows was totally different from everything else at the time. The production was clearly  minimalistic, so it really captures everything the band were feeling. The first time I heard it, it sounded so unfamiliar, it felt like I was hearing music for the first time. That is the biggest compliment I can pay to it. Despite critical acclaim, I still feel its one of the most under rated albums of the decade. Best Track: Videotape

2007 Runners Up: Sound of Silver – LCD Soundsystem | Memory Almost Full – Paul McCartney

Sound of Silver is the best electronic album of the decade. Electro was becoming more and more mainstream and more and more relevant. Their first album was fantastic and this was miles better. It’s simply an exquisite piece of work. “Get Innocuous” is an engrossing opener that sets the tone of a progressive and engaging experience. “All My Friends” is a stand out anthem for anyone who is considering whether to stay in, or party with friends. Listen to it and you realize its a no brainer. It’s beggars belief how Paul McCartney can still produce an album of excellent original tracks after having already writing so many over his 40 years in popular music, that have become part of the furniture of British music. It’s a really amazing album, it’s not going to change the world hey, I think he has already done that enough times.

Best Album of 2008: Seldom Seen Kid – Elbow

Elbow are band that have been around threw out the entire decade, consistently creating good albums. This was the exception. Seldom Seen Kid is an outstanding album, which met much critical acclaim including winning the Mercury Prize, a just reward for a band that have always made good honest music. Many acts at the time we re-branding themselves to try to appear to the new internet age of music and loosing all sense of who they really are and what the were about. Elbow on the other hand carried on regardless and made a fantastic honest record. Best Track: Grounds For Divorce

2008 Runners Up: Third – Portishead | Made in the Dark – Hot Chip | Random Album Title – Dead Mau5

The long craved comeback of Portishead was not a disappointment. There had always been a void in the Trip Hop scene since their last album over 10 years previous. Third proved they were very much still the kings of the Genre even after so long away from the music scene. Check out the intense “Machine Gun“. Hot Chip continued to get better and better with their third album “Made in the Dark”. Dance newcomer Dead Mau5 (pronounced ‘dead mouse’) became one of the hottest new producers in the music scene with his first album. An Electronica & Dance album that is perfectly progressive and the production is fantastic.

Best Album of 2009: Them Crooked Vultures – Them Crooked Vultures

I know I’m a little quick to make this call seeing as the album came out today, but hear me out. In a decade of disappointing rock comebacks and distinctly average rock albums, where rock-stars like Iggy Pop and Alice Cooper have resorted to appearing in TV ads selling insurance or televisions and Coldplay became the biggest “Rock” band in the world, you would be forgiven for thinking that Rock ‘n’ Roll was dead. But there was still some soon to be (or perhaps already) rock legends keeping the fire burning: Dave Grohl [Nirvana, Foo Fighters, Probot, Queens of the Stone Age] and Josh Homme [Kyuss, Queens of the Stone Age, Desert Sessions, Eagles of Death Metal]. Both residing in the Los Angeles music scene it was inevitable for these two to bump into each other. They first worked together when Homme invited Grohl to return to the drums for the first time since the end of Nirvana to play with his band Queens of the Stone Age on their third album “Songs for the Deaf” (See 2002 runners up). It was one of the best rock collaborations of the decade and produced a hard rock album of simply epic proportions. The pair continued separately to make some great rock music threw out the following years. Grohl’s band “Foo Fighters” played some amazing live shows, including surprise performances with former rock legends “Queen” in Hyde Park and rock pioneers “Led Zeppelin” in Wembley Stadium. Then in 2009 a monster was formed. Grohl and Home decided to make a new record under their own terms and tempted none other than John Paul Jones [Led Zeppelin] to join them in making a record, making one of the most exciting super-group line ups of all time. After months of secret recordings in Homme’s studio, the band was announced as “Them Crooked Vultures” and they hit the road revealing very little about their forthcoming album. Dave Grohl recently called it the best band he has ever been in, which is a mighty big claim. People feared they would go the way of most modern super-groups and fall short of expectations and just plain suck, but this band broke the trend.

But that’s enough back story, why is this album the best of the year? Because it is one of the only Rock albums of the last twenty years that upholds the original point of Rock ‘N’ Roll. This is just three guys fooling around, having fun and making a record. They ain’t trying to be cool, they ain’t trying to make money, they ain’t trying to be popular, they ain’t trying to have sex with you, they ain’t trying to tell you how to live your life, they ain’t trying to change the world, they ain’t trying to be Bono, they ain’t trying to start a new fashion trend, they ain’t trying to tell you about climate change, they ain’t trying to make you think they are the best guitarist/drummer/bassist in the world and most importantly of all, they ain’t trying to be something they are not. That is what makes this album and this band so different to everything else around at the moment. Music doesn’t always have to have a point. Sometimes it’s just about having a good fucking time! I think that’s exactly what we all need right about now. There are no hidden homages to former bands like Led Zep or The Doors or even QOTSA, if you think there is you are looking too much into it and missing the point entirely. This is a funny, hard, invigorating, in your face, devilish and downright dirty record. Now pick up the bottle of bourbon and lets have a fucking party! Best Track: Nobody loves me, and neither do I (On the record, stick it out to 2.44 and it will blow your tits off!)

2009 Runners Up: West Rider Pauper Lunatic Asylum – Kasabian | Common Dreads – Enter Shikari

I thought all hope was lost for Kasabian after their second album “Empire”, which they grossly and egotistically claimed was better than Oasis’ “Definitely Maybe”, was awful bar a few tracks. But their third album “West Rider Pauper Lunatic Asylum” is amazing. An album so complete and fresh at times it felt like a Led Zeppelin record. Their Egos seem to at least for the moment, be put to rest, although they can be very very proud of this piece of musical mastery. Common Dreads is the closes thing there has been to a protest record for years. I mean a real protest record, not something like Muse’s latest album titled “The Resistance” which you would expect to say something about the dysfunctional mess society has become over the past decade. Instead it largely conforms so blatantly to a commercial audience, loosing all of the fight and edge they had with albums like “Origin of Symmetry” listed above. Enter Shikari have enthralled the not so mainstream fun loving hardcore scene over the past 2 years, providing an old school style rock and roll haven for the underground, occasionally making it into the spotlight with big performances such as Reading festival. “Common Dreads” is fun and fierce and a bloody good album.

So there you have it. Those are my opinions and I expect most of you to disagree with me. Feel free to give your views/choices in the comments below.

Yes despite destroying the American and world economy, businesses are still trying to prevent some new bills aimed to ensure the catastrophe of green never happens again. One is the “too big to fail, to big to exist” act, which will disclose the banks and businesses the government deem so big that their collapse would need a government bailout to prevent harmful damage to the economy, and split them into smaller businesses.

No surprises there that businesses will use their republican puppets to try and block that bill. But that’s not the most disturbing story. If you need any proof that Businesses are put before people and quality of life. Many American businesses are pushing to block a new bill that will ban American Companies from importing stock made by, or using companies that use child labour and/or slaves in poorer countries. All because it might harm their profits.

This is not a one off event. Last month 30 Republicans voted against a bill that would ban the government from hiring companies that do not condemn their employees raping female employees. Yes some companies that the government use for services have a clause in their female employees contracts that they cannot prosecute  the company or guilty employees if they rape them.

It’s a disgusting state of affairs and what makes me more angry is that people don’t seem to care that this is going on. For too long we have put our economy before everything, even quality of life. It seems like charity is the only businesses doing any good in this world. Show me where I can make donations to charity instead of paying taxes and I’ll sign up.

Yes your prayers have been answered with this sexy lingerie that is sure to light up the bedroom and put a twinkle in your man’s eyes. The latest in lingerie technology is the brainchild of Australian Jan Hawley.

Jan’s new lingerie range has hit shops the world over, proving to be a huge it in many countries. Everyone knows guys like boobs, but we also like cool stuff. This ticks both boxes.

In this range the underwear is much smaller and sexier. We’ve called it the Boudoir collection because it’s strictly for the bedroom after dark. When the lights go out, the lace on the bra and knickers glow beautifully, defining the tiny shapes of the micro G-string, bikini or triangle bra. It’s very sensual and sexy. Blokes just love it. This collection is easy to whip on, but even easier to whip off. The glow is to inject some fun into the bedroom.
It’s quirky and has novelty value and men especially like it. Lingerie designer Jan Hawley

She added that the idea for her latest lingerie endeavour came from her two sons. Nuff said.

Modern Warfare 2 is set to be a milestone in the history of computer games. Self proclaimed as the most anticipated game of the decade (and rightfully so) Modern Warfare 2 is likely to break every record in the book and take the crown of best first person shooter of all time. All reviews claim the game meets or even surpasses the massive hype surrounding its release, which is a rarity. The games is available everywhere from today for Xbox 360, PS3 and PC. Hot tip to save cash is that Sainsbury’s are selling it for only £26 for today and today only.