THE CONCRETE ROUNDABOUT (TCR)

This week's episode was fantastic. Especially the opening scene. Outstanding.

Are you set for the final episode, Tuesday? I feel slightly bereft that it's all finishing!

Trainwreck: Woodstock 99

Some context before we start. Years ago, when I used to surf almost every weekend, I went to Newquey for a long weekend. I wasn't driving, so was therefore subjected to the music that the owner of the car had. He had two CD's. The first, and least offensive, was The Black Crowes covering Led Zeppelin. The second... a white label of the soon to be released third album from those lovable scamps Limp Bizkit, Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water. The weekend just flew past.

I hate Limp Bizkit, I absolutely can't stand them. Likewise Korn, Tool and any number of 'Nu Metal' bands from the 90's. I fucking hate them. So bearing that in mind, sitting through three episodes of a show featuring shit like that, not for me Jeff. However…

Someone, original Woodstock promoter Michael Lang, thought that reviving the three days of love, peace and music festival, but with the twist of a bill stuffed with the aforementioned Nu Metal wankers, would be a great idea. Spoiler alert, it wasn’t.

The original ‘69 festival was held on farmland in Bethel, upstate New York. The ‘99 version on an airforce base, covered in concrete. The original had free food. The revival confiscated festival goers own water, then charged them $12 for bottled. Back in ‘69, the bands preached peace and love. The ‘highlight’ of the ‘99 had Limp Bizkit, who unbelievably were the biggest band in the world at the time, who had a song called ‘Break Stuff’.

It’s very good this. Three parts, with a brilliant countdown clock which stops at significant moments. The tone of what was going to happen is set on the first afternoon of the festival as Sheryl Crow is subjected to a barrage of “Show us your tits” from the audience. Which was stuffed with self entitled frat boys. Most of whom thought that as they were white, rich and male, gave them permission to do, and behave, exactly as they liked. Which they most certainly did.

I’m not really aware of Korn, but they’re, or rather were, massive in the 90’s. They came on Friday night and whipped the already hyped up audience into a frenzy. British grunge band Bush, who had to go on straight after, weren’t so hyped however. But fair play to them as they managed to calm the crowd down, for a bit. The tone was set as Saturday night headliners Limp Bizkit (them again) came on and exhorted the crowd to basically raise the site to the ground.

Anarchy followed. Rapes, arson, looting extreme violence, the whole nine yards, which was eventually quelled with the interversion of state troopers. The most disturbing aspect of the whole debacle is the organizers, still to this day, refusing to accept any responsibility for what happened. Lang, who died back in January, stood up in front of a press conference and actually said that it was just a dozen or so “bad apples” that caused the riot. Deluded to the last.

The music was shit. The Bizkit have been canceled. Good. Lang’s legacy is tarnished. Good. There will never be another Woodstock. Good. Festivals are extremely well organized these days. Good.

It’s well worth watching. I don’t like the music, and neither will you, but give it a go. Find it on Netflix.

The Sandman

The Sandman was a series of comics in the late 80's, early 90's, each of which I absolutely devoured. So it was with a certain sense of trepidation that I approached this. Shouldn't have worried, it follows the comics almost to the letter.

I know that comic book adaptations won't be for everyone, but fuck them. I enjoyed it. The basic premise…

Morpheus, or Dream as he's sometimes known, is the lord of dreams. One of the seven endless, along with his siblings Death, Desire, Despair and some others that I can't remember, who finds himself captured by an Alister Crowley tribute act during the first world war, and imprisoned for 100 years, before escaping and having to put his realm back together. I know! I get it.

In the comic he's an extremely thin version of Robert Smith, in fact the whole thing is a Goth's delight, and Tom Sturridge does an admirable job in the title role. It looks pretty good in all fairness, dark and brooding throughout, with a pretty impressive supporting cast. Jenna Coleman, Gwendoline Christie, David Thewlis, Charles Dance, Joely Richardson, Mark Hamill, Stephen Fry, and a host of others. However if I've one point of irritation, then it's the current trend of gender and colour blind casting.

In the comic Death is a willowy goth girl. In this she's a black women. Lucifer is, well, a bloke. Game Of Thrones Christie takes the leathery wings up here. Likewise Jenna Coleman's role was also a fella' in the comic. But those minor grips aside, it's not bad.

Thanks for the review. It will ensure I don't watch even a minute of it.