He performed with contemporary dance company, TU Dance. Bon Iver debuted new music last night (24 March) at a special collaborative show with contemporary dance company, TU Dance. The sold out show – at the Massachussetts Museum of Contemporary Art (MASS MoCA) – saw Justin Vernon perform a work-in-progress score alongside the dance company, which will be performed again today (25 March) during a matinee show, before officially premiering on 19 April in Saint Paul, Minnesota. ‘Don’t worry about the visuals, they were nothing special (at best), but new Bon Iver sounded tremendous tonight!’ wrote Twitter user @AnEarful, who posted a clip of the performance. ‘Some of his boldest, most passionate, yet accessible music. Stunning singing, including a Leon Russell cover for the ages.’ “I feel so inspired in collaborating with [TU Dance’s choreographer] Uri [Sands] on new work,” Vernon had previously said. “I know that the experience will be both positively challenging and extremely rewarding for all involved.” He previously performed a more mellow version of one of the songs at a show at The National Theatre in Richmond, California, last December. “It’s new and it’s not even quite done, but I just want to play it for y’all,” he said, to introduce the track. Back in February, the singer performed a previously unheard song from the ‘For Emma, Forever Ago’ sessions. ‘Hayward, MI’ never made the final cut for the album, despite being written around the same time. The musician’s debut album turned ten last year, with Bon Iver performing a special “smoke-free” show in Michigan in support of the record’s anniversary, and to celebrate its vinyl repress.

It’s not often that one act comes along and substantively changes a genre in what seems like an indecently short space of time. Migos – the hip-hop trio of Quavo, Offset and Takeoff, not actually amigos, but north Atlanta blood relatives – arrive on stage in London as innovators basking in validation. They have a much-copied, idiosyncratic sound (the so-called “triplet flow”, studded with ad-libs) and a distinctive visual presence. To what looks like a heart attack in a Versace factory, they add diamond-encrusted granny specs. Or at least they do in videos and photo shoots: tonight they are dressed down. Migos are undeniably hot – triply so tonight, thanks to the jerk chicken barbecues that fill the air outside the venue, to the constant firing of onstage pyrotechnics, and to Takeoff’s padded black jacket and Offset’s fluorescent yellow one. These stay on throughout this triumphal, but not quite scintillating, set. Migos are far more than a passing fancy: their third album, Culture II, released in January, hit a plethora of No 1 spots internationally and went platinum in six weeks in the US. Its predecessor, 2017’s Culture, also went platinum. Specifically, though, there’s a very “now” sort of verve to them. Just one example: Quavo mischievously tweeted last year that Migos would be happy to play the three hyenas in the forthcoming live action remake of The Lion King, due in 2019 (Beyoncé is playing Nala). Migos have also been aspiring to ubiquity through a hyper-modern digital assault, in which memes, hooky phrases, references and interjections are as much the product as some notional unit of music. The dab craze of 2015? If they did not technically invent it (take a dab, Skippa Da Flippa), Migos staked a claim to the viral phenomenon by being early disseminators with a track called Look at My Dab. Then there’s the car wheel screech of “skrrt skrrt” – again, not exclusively a Migos tic, but the trio’s favourite embellishment. (Can I get a “skrrt skrrt?” wonders Quavo aloud; he can). It’s not just “skrrt” either: Migos’ tracks feature high levels of in-song commentary, where a line is punctuated by a catchphrase or an interjection. “Momma told me (ugh) / Not to sell work (Momma!),” runs a typical opening of T -Shirt, one of the best songs from Culture. In a world where reaction is as much a part of a cultural product as the product itself, these vocal ad libs work very much like auditory emojis, or comments below an Instagram post. The internet is constantly pumping out nugget-sized, fast-moving, attention-seeking sounds and visuals. How can music compete? By reshaping itself ever further into a meme-able state. Elsewhere, such subtlety is not a priority. Most Migos tracks hammer home Velcro-like catchphrases with merciless repetition. Versace, the breakout track of 2013, repeated the fashion house’s name, a fascinating reductio ad absurdum that had many old-schoolers gnashing their teeth at the death of hip-hop’s core lyrical function. Advertisement Tonight, Migos’ old track Hannah Montana – basically a chorus on steroids: “Hannah Montana! Hannah Montana!” – is dispatched with businesslike vigour. More recently, the opening couplet of Bad and Boujee (ft Lil Uzi Vert), the killer track that took Migos to the next level, even spawned another mini-meme. Someone would text or tweet “Rain drop” to someone else; the required response was “Drop top”. Tonight, Migos fire off the mighty Bad and Boujee midway through their set, an indication that they have moved on from it. This, then, is a rap trio at the height of their pummelling power, shaking the room multiple times and mustering a sea of camera-phones for at least half a dozen tracks. There are, however, some caveats floating around the smoke-filled air. Live, the subtlety of Migos’ work is all too often lost. The nuances of their respective deliveries (Quavo, still dominant; Offset, no slouch tonight; Takeoff, rumbly low-end) are inaudible; the silvery ad libs barely land, and the stark elegance of many of their productions are subsumed into a barrage of hooks, bass and shouting. This loss of range is pretty standard for live hip-hop, and, indeed, much live music. But the undeniable excitement generated by bass and shouting is itself undercut by the run time of the newer songs. One widespread criticism of Culture II was its length, a sprawling double that did not justify the generosity of the tracklisting. (Really, it was a shameless land-grab: streams are calculated into chart positions, so the more tracks on an album, the more streams overall, the higher the chart potential). Sign up for the Sleeve Notes email: music news, bold reviews and unexpected extras Read more But the songs were longer too. One of Migos’ strongest points has long been their tightness, but many of Culture II’s songs test the crowd’s considerable energy. BBO is not that great a track to begin with (Migos’ attitude to women is appalling, a downside that “bad bitches only” miserably reinforces) but it seems twice as long as you remember, even if Takeoff does lower his hood for it. The big singles off Culture II fare better, consolidating Migos in the consciousness. Walk It Talk It is an earworm that scores high on a number of Migos metrics – clipped syllables, nagging ad libs. It could go on much longer than it does, with Takeoff doing a little dance and all three rappers nailing a lengthy verse (yes, they do those too). Quavo’s boast that “I think my back got scoliosis ’cos I swerved a lane” is a standout line. (An excellent video, released earlier this week, finds Migos and their guest Drake parodying 70s music TV in outrageous wigs). MotorSport, meanwhile, is relentless, and with the song’s guests (Nicki Minaj and Offset’s fiancé Cardi B) absent, it falls to the girls in the crowd to shout out Cardi’s verse. A huge, bouncing, interactive version of Stir Fry closes the set. Again, Migos’ signatures are all over it: the clipped, almost onomatopoeic chorus (“In the kitchen, wrist twisting like it’s stir fry”). Like most culinary metaphors in hip-hop, Stir Fry is actually about drugs, but beyond that, it’s the moment where Migos abandon their “trap sound” (a subgenre of hip-hop, by and for the drug demimonde) while singing about it. Stir Fry actually matches Migos’s rhythmic raps to a bouncing Pharrell Williams dance beat – a crossover without compromise

During a March 15 presentation meant to publicize its April 3 trading date, Spotify executives told investors about the company’s goal of creating “self-driving music,” a nonsense term that basically means that the streaming giant wants to automate the music discovery process even more than it already has. “The more music people discover, the more they will listen, and the more artists will be successful,” explained the company’s CEO and co-founder Daniel Ek. In true tech company form, Ek was proposing a tech-centric solution to a problem that music buffs, especially hip-hop fans, have already solved on their own. Spotify has turned the music industry into a game where artists have to rack up millions of streams in order to turn a profit, so from the vantage of a tech company, it probably seems logical to develop fancy algorithms that guide listeners from one artist to artist in the hopes of spreading the (relative) wealth. In the real world, however, this approach doesn’t make a goddamn iota of sense. One of the ways in which people who actually like music find out about new artists and albums is by following the behind-the-scenes people — think labels, session players, songwriters, and producers. In hip-hop, where producers might only make one or two beats on a project, this process is even more pronounced. If you check the credits of a mixtape that’s on DatPiff or Livemixtapes, you’ll often see the name of a track’s producer listed right after the song title. Most well-known producers specialize in one or two specific sounds, and so half the fun of listening to a project by, say, Bun B, is seeing how a southern hip-hop legend will handle a instrumental from DJ Premier, whose name is synonymous with New York boom-bap. Meanwhile, a superstar rapper can elevate an anonymous producer simply by working with them, such as when Jay Z’s The Blueprint prominently featured production from the then-obscure Kanye West and Just Blaze — and after that happens, fans sniff around the underground for which other rappers their new favorite beatmaker has worked with. Conversely, when a big-name producer like Zaytoven decides to lend their beats to an unknown trio of Atlanta rappers named Quavo, Takeoff, and Offset, then suddenly, the name Migos can become ubiquitous. Rather than trying to train rap fans to passively accept new vibrations being shot into their ears, it would be fantabulously easy for Spotify to create mechanisms that work within this pre-existing, organic process. When you listen to a hip-hop song on Spotify that features a guest rapper or singer, you’re already able to click on that person’s name and go to their artist profile, where you can check out their solo work, as well as other albums they’re featured on. Why not create similar profiles for producers? Making it so that every producer had a little hub indexing every album they’ve worked on would be intuitive and in line with hip-hop’s long-held customs — and would serve Ek’s stated goal of making music more accessible and helping artists eke out a living on streaming platforms. The point of technology and automation should be to make it easier for us to do the things we already do, not to ask us to change our behavior in the promise that it’ll be easier once we do it. Discovering music is leisure, not labor, a way to pleasurably occupy our time and distract us from the pressures of work and the stresses of our daily lives. If Spotify wants to streamline that leisure activity to the point of nonexistence, then how are people supposed to spend all that extra time on our hands? “Diligently working with a Spotify playlist on in the background” would be their answer, I suppose, but that sounds terrible.

Korn frontman Jonathan Davis is undeniably busier now than he’s ever been. The Californian rocker has been “living the good life” conducting press for Korn’s appearances at Australia’s Download Festival this weekend and doing so while in Japan, working on the band’s new album, finalising his first full-length solo release and prepping for an transnational solo tour. The man who has been quoted as saying “I don’t know the true meaning of happiness” sounded markedly upbeat when he spoke to Music Feeds’ Jade Kennedy about Korn, his home life and his love for all things Australian. Music Feeds: Hi Jonathan! So, how are you feeling? Are you keen to head down under for Download Festival? Jonathan Davis: Yeah, I’m excited. It’s been a while, last time we were in Australia was about 2013, and I’m excited to get down there and play Download, it’s gonna be a good time. MF: For sure, it’s the first one here, too. JD: Yeah! It’s really cool that we’re going to be on the inaugural version of this festival down there. We’ve played them all and this is a new one so this is going to be amazing, we’re really excited. MF: Fantastic. Your old mates Limp Bizkit are on the bill as well I noticed. JD: Yep, they’re going to be there… and the Prophets… oh, it’s gonna be a good show! MF: Yeah for sure. I noticed it’s your only show in Australia this time though? JD: Yeah, unfortunately that’s how it worked out. We only had time to come and do the one show, and I apologise — we apologise — but we’ll be back to do a proper tour of Australia as soon as Korn is done making the next record. It’s just the way it is. We’re in the middle of making a new record, and it’s just how it ended up, our agent obviously handles everything so it’s out of our hands. But we definitely want to come back because I love Australia, I’ve played everywhere there and I’m kinda bummed I’m going to be missing my favourite places there, so… it’s all good though. MF: So what is it that you like about Australia? Is it the people? The vibe? The landscape? The weather? JD: It’s just a cool vibe there. I love the culture there, I love the Aboriginal culture, I go there and I buy boomerangs and I buy didgeridoos and I play one, too. I know it sounds cheesy (laughs) but I like it, as an American it’s pretty cool. I like the Aboriginal art… and just the people are just really cool. Every town offers something different. I mean, I remember going to Melbourne and I remember I was there when the Crown Casino opened — I remember the opening night of that place (laughs) like it’s just so random. I love going to the Gold Coast, and I remember hanging out there and going to the Australian Open one time, and hanging out with all the tennis players… I’ve had good times there, some really good memories. MF: Well yeah, I remember when you guys came out here with Guns N’ Roses you came to my home town, which is Townsville in North Queensland, and everyone went kind of crazy because we don’t get a lot of big shows like that. JD: Well that’s cool! I mean that run was fun, I really liked going down there and hanging out with those guys, that was a good tour. MF: Well from all accounts — I didn’t actually go to the show myself — but I heard you guys pretty much blew Gunners out of the water. JD: Well thank you! It was different. I mean, now it’s with the original band and I’m sure it’s amazing, it’s just a different thing. For us, I mean, we’re just a live band, that’s what we’ve always been, and I mean, nothing against Guns N’ Roses. I mean when we did that tour I thought it was amazing but it was just different players. I mean that could affect it. It’d be amazing seeing Slash and Duff up there and everything else but you know, it was cool then, it was lots of fun. MF: Obviously with you guys, as well, Brian left for a little while there — how’s the vibe since he’s been back? JD: Oh, it’s been amazing. It was like he never left when he came back. He just had to go and figure some things out, and I’m glad he came back. We carried on without him and that was cool, we did some really cool experimental stuff, but it felt really good to have him back, and to have Munky’s guitar partner back. It really helped Munky so it was all around good. MF: I noticed you’ve got a fairly new synth player as well — a guy I’ve somehow been a Facebook friend with for ages and missed the memo on him joining you guys — Davey Oberlin? JD: Yeah Davey! Davey’s awesome. He was in a bunch of metal bands and he’s a good kid, I love hanging out with him. He’s a really sweet dude. MF: He was a guitar tech for Avenged Sevenfold at one stage, wasn’t he? JD: Yeah! That’s how I met him, when we did a tour with them. MF: Is that how you ended up picking him up? JD: Well it was from [Brian] ‘Head’ [Welch], actually. But I met him out on that tour too, and he’s just a really sweet guy, and Head said he was available so we tried him out and he was perfect for the job, so it was like, there you go. MF: Speaking of alternative instruments – you play the bagpipes and the fiddle as well, is that right? JD: I play everything (laughs). I grew up in a music store. So I play drums, guitar, drums, bass, bagpipes, panpipes and all kinds of stuff. I grew up around musical things so I play lots of things. It’s not like I’m classically trained in all of them, but I’ve taught myself the basics. Basically you know, when you’re a kid, the first thing you learn is drums, then the second thing is piano, so if you mix those two things together you learn rhythm and you learn musical notes, so then you can pretty much put the two together to learn the basic working of the instruments. So you can mess around and learn pretty much anything, so that’s what I was doing. MF: I know from previous interviews there’s been quite a theme of bullying and violence in your earlier life. Have you taken a lot of that and turned it into inspiration for a lot of your music? JD: I mean yeah, that was back in the early days. I mean the Korn record Life Is Peachy some of that stuff I dwelled on, but I’m 47 years old now and I’m not really talking about high school any more (laughs). But I mean, shit, that high school stuff just carries on in everyday life — I think everyone can relate to that. I mean, you’re going to have great times, you’re going to have bad times. I have a lot of amazing times in my life with my family, and I have really bad times too. It’s just that I choose to use the bad things to help me when I’m writing lyrics to get those things out. It’s my therapy. I guess though a lot of people can relate to them so that’s how I do it. MF: Well obviously Korn has been around for a while now. Do you think your fan base has kind of grown with you? JD: Definitely, I mean, it’s been like 24 years so yeah, definitely (laughs). I mean I know we have some fans that have been coming to shows since they were kids, and now they’re bringing their kids to the shows, so there’s a second generation of Korn fans coming. It’s definitely grown over the years, yeah. MF: And are your own kids into your music? JD: Yes. Definitely. They’re not really into rock music, they’re more into hip-hop and stuff, but when I put my tunes on they like it. So that makes me feel good. I mean, kids are the biggest bullshit metres, they can call bullshit a mile away, so if they like it I know it’s okay, it’s good. MF: So they get the early listening parties and they can say, “Yeah Dad, that’s great,” or, “Ehhh that’s not so good”? JD: Oh they’re with me when I create it. It’s part of my process now. I’ve got a studio here so when I do my vocals and everything they’re always with me, so they get to watch and hear me do my thing. They’re my little production team. They’ll be like, “No, Dad, that sucks,” (laughs) and I’m like, “Really?!” MF: Well, you know, you can’t beat their honesty. JD: Yeah I love it. MF: And you mentioned earlier you’ve been working on some new music? JD: Yeah, well Korn we’re in the process of writing our next record, so we’ll be doing that and it’ll be out probably sometime next year, late next year. So yeah, that’s an ongoing process at the moment. MF: Sounds great. I mean, 2016’s Serenity of Suffering is the last one we saw from you — it was a little different for you guys, a little more intense? JD: Yeah, it was a little heavier sounding. I mean, it was cool, it was something that Head and [James] ‘Munky’ [Shaffer] wanted to do and you know, each album is a different vibe so that’s the vibe we were going for. I think that we executed it perfectly, and a lot of people latched onto it and really enjoyed it. MF: So what do you think about Rolling Stone giving it two-and-a-half stars? JD: Whatever. I mean, it’s all subjective. It’s all an opinion. It’s all up to the reviewer, you know? I mean you can’t really judge… I mean, there’s horrible shit, and then there’s good shit, but it’s just up to the individual. I mean, you can hear it (laughs) it’s just tastes so whatever, it’s all good. I mean our fans loved it. MF: Well I guess that’s the main thing, right? I mean, who’s buying the music at the end of the day? JD: Exactly! MF: I have spoken to a couple of people who weren’t aware that you had an EDM alter ego as well. JD: Yeah that was back in 2011 and 2012 I think. Yeah, it was cool. I did that whole thing for a while, and I had fun with a lot of my friends, and made a lot of new friends — it was a really good time but that’s done. I haven’t done that stuff in years. Now I’m just concentrating on my solo stuff and the Korn stuff now. MF: I know with the JDevil thing you had to drop out of the Zombie/Manson tour in, what was that? 2012? I know they’ve just announced they’re going to tour together again, so is there any chance you’d jump on that? JD: I mean I’d love to. At the time I dropped out I was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes so I was out of my mind. And this time, you know, I’ve got too much of my own stuff going on… but I wish them the best, I mean, I love Rob and I love Manson, they’re some of my best friends so it’s going to be a great show, they’re going to have a good time. MF: How is your health now? JD: Great! No complaints. MF: What about taking care of yourself on the road now? Obviously touring in your 40s is a lot different to touring in your 20s? JD: I have a physical therapist with me all the time, and I exercise and do all kinds of stuff. Gotta keep my body in good shape, so that’s what I do. I eat whatever, but try to eat healthy and clean — that’s all I can really do. I mean, it’s hard being in a different town every day so I just try to eat the best I can. MF: And what about your solo stuff, how’s all that going? JD: Oh, killer. I mean I’ve got my single out that’s being played everywhere, and my record’s done. I’m getting really excited. I’m taking off on tour soon, so I do Melbourne and Japan with Korn then I take off on my own solo tour in the States and Europe after that, so it’s going to be good. MF: Oh, amazing! So do you think we might see a Jonathan Davis solo show in Australia soon?
 JD: I would love that to happen! That’s up to agents and promoters that want to bring it down there, but I would love to do that.

As the first chords of Horses were strummed, the Red Hot Summer Tour crowd started cheering, their hands thrown in the air. Australian rocker Daryl Braithwaite turned the microphone to the enthusiastic crowd and a resounding chorus rang out across the grounds on Saturday night. The putting greens at Country Club Tasmania were transformed into a sea of picnic chairs and rugs for the Red Hot Summer Tour. Despite his years in the industry, headliner and music legend John Farnham’s voice was ageless. He lead an energetic set, even paying tribute to the grey day by performing Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head to an excited crowd. Farnham finished with You’re the Voice before returning for an encore performance. While there was a brief downpour during the early afternoon, it didn’t dampen any spirits as festival-goers donned their ponchos and danced on. Already sights have been set on a 2019 Tasmanian leg of the tour. Tour promoter Duane McDonald said the Red Hot Summer Tour would definitely be returning and the team had a date in mind. “We’re looking at Australia Day next year,” Mr McDonald said. With Australian rocker John Farnham and American artist Suzi Quatro each headlining one of the two 2018 tours, more than 11,000 people attended the two shows in total, he said. The success came down to a great venue and quality music, he said. Baby Animals rocked out through the smattering of rain while those early through the gate were treated to performances by The Black Sorrows with Vika and Linda, and 1927. Country Club Tasmania marketing director Bede Clifton said he was thrilled by the turn out with 5000 people attending the event. “People turned up and had a great time,” Clifton said.

Sydney was a city that stayed up late and drank until dawn when Dave Faulkner founded the Hoodoo Gurus in 1981. “Every week you’d hear about a new band playing its first gig,” he said. “You’d find new venues. It was all very exciting.” However, Faulkner said live music has been harassed almost out of existence in Sydney by pokies, restrictive liquor laws and planning rules. “Sydney has spent so much energy destroying its claim to be a hub of anything other than real estate and wowserism,” he said. Faulkner is one of the musicians who will appear before a NSW parliamentary inquiry into the music and arts economy on March 26. Hip-hop artist Tim Levinson, who performs as Urthboy, will also give evidence to the Upper House inquiry, which is chaired by Paul Green of the Christian Democratic Party. Levinson said the lack of venues across Sydney had “really kneecapped” the development of live music. “I think as a city we prioritise development and the money that can be made far higher than the cultural output of the city,” he said. “Quite often there’s a real blind spot when it comes to the cultural industries and the contribution they bring to the economy.” The inquiry, which received 394 submissions, was formed last year to assess the NSW government’s progress in reviving Sydney’s nightlife following the implementation of lockout laws to combat alcohol-related violence. It follows a 2016 review of liquor laws by former High Court judge Ian Callinan that recommended a relaxation of the 1:30am lockout laws for live entertainment venues in Sydney's CBD and Kings Cross. However, Mark Gerber, the founder of the Oxford Arts Factory, said the venue had seen “no benefit whatsoever” from an extension of its trading hours. “There has been no increase in trade or attendance; in fact we are still very much on the same downward spiral as we were prior to it being granted,” he said. “The reason is that the public perception of the entire Oxford Street precinct continues to be one of closure at 1:30am - a no-go zone for any late-night activities and not worth going to anymore.” The Lansdowne Fifteen, whose members include Mr Gerber and anti-lockout group Keep Sydney Open, said the regulatory environment had contributed to a 40 per cent decline in attendance revenue at live music venues in Sydney’s CBD in recent years. “The pipeline of musical works by NSW-based artists is being depleted in comparison to previous generations,” its submission said. The Lansdowne Fifteen said the NSW government was “currently falling short” in its obligation to foster creativity and recommended easing planning rules for small arts venues, improving public transport, cutting red tape and appointing a minister for the night-time economy. The Live Music Office echoed many of these recommendations in its submission, including new planning laws to protect venues from conflict with residents over noise and easing regulations for small arts venues. The NSW branch of the Australian Hotels Association said venues will continue to close or shun live music if they are not protected from noise complaints. “[W]herever a disturbance complaint is made the fallback position for the regulator is to call for acoustic testing to be conducted,” its submission said. “This comes at a cost. Further, there needs to be an acknowledgement that during standard trading hours a reasonable level of noise is to be expected.” The Committee for Sydney referred to the regulatory burden facing live music in Sydney. “The Committee recognises concerns that the live music on offer in Sydney can be limited, in some cases due to noise restrictions or lack of venues,” its submission said. “We also recognise concern that the separate processes for liquor licensing and development approvals for live music venues can create uncertainty, as overlapping functions add greatly to cost and time involved in establishing and operating businesses.”

Spotify is expected to float on the New York Stock Exchange in the coming weeks. Shares sold privately last year value the Swedish music streaming service at between $US6 billion and $US23 billion ($30 billion). Dominant in the streaming market yet still making losses of $US1.5 billion last year, Spotify's financial worth is a riddle. Its musical value is also contentious. Last year Hubert Léveillé Gauvin, a US doctoral student in music theory, published research into song intros. Looking at US top 10 hits between 1986 and 2015, he found their average length had dropped from more than 20 seconds to as little as five. The report received widespread coverage, mostly threnodies for what the BBC called the "dying art of the great song intro". Streaming was collared as the villain: Spotify pays out for a song after 30 seconds of play, an incentive for songwriters to cut to the chase. Format has always been critical to pop. The three-minute length of the archetypal pop song is linked to the amount of music that vinyl records could contain, a limitation dating back to the first days of the phonographic industry. Motown Records designed songs so as to sound best on car radios (the concept of "drive time radio" emerged in the 1960s). Today's hits are similarly engineered for headphones and mobile phone speakers. Cassandra-like commentators warn that Spotify and its ilk are promoting a low-attention-span, algorithmically-led musical culture, the malign overflow of big data into our listening habits. The fears chime with broader feelings of foreboding about our tech-driven world. But is streaming really changing the structure of songs? Last year Mark Bannister, a London-based data analyst, published analysis of every US number one in the Billboard charts from August 1958 to April 2017. The data were taken from Spotify's publicly available store of data about its song library. The results are catnip for pop's version of the trainspotter, the chart obsessive. "I'm a big geek about that as well," Bannister says. His findings do not support the idea that streaming is radically reshaping songs. The shortest hits, averaging under three minutes, were in the 1960s, while the longest ones on average were in the 1980s, the decade when "attention deficit disorder" first appeared in the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. During our own supposedly attention-degraded times there has been a gentle dip to just under four minutes. Tempo has fluctuated since 1958, but not in a way mappable to notable format changes such as the arrival of CDs in the 1990s or streaming in the 2010s. Broader musical trends are at work. "In the 1960s and 1970s when you had rock and disco, it climbed up," Bannister says. "In the 1990s when number one singles were dominated by Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men, it dropped." More swearing Loudness – compressing audio so as to make it more blaring, or "hotter" in studio-speak – climbed steeply at the turn of the century when digital music recordings supplanted analogue. But the trend rate since Spotify launched in 2006 has been broadly flat. The one area of dramatic change is swearing, the use of which has shot up in lyrics recently. Freed by streaming from relying on radio airplay, the likes of Migos's "Bad and Boujee" appear to have ushered in the age of the profane chart-topper. New York consultancy Hit Songs Deconstructed take a microscopic approach to breaking down hits. A resource for music labels, courses and songwriters, the company conducts in-depth analyses of songs in the US charts. At our request, they provided a breakdown of compositional trends in the US top 10 since 2013, when their database begins. Intros have not shrunk in the past five years, remaining broadly constant at about 13 seconds. The average time taken to get to the first chorus has been steady at almost 40 seconds. The average number of choruses in songs has not significantly changed. The only ammunition for the hypothesis that songs are being front-loaded to reach the Spotify 30-second-payment mark is an upwards tick in the proportion of songs in which the chorus, the hookiest part of a song, is placed before the first verse. The main music trend of the 2010s is the supremacy of hip-hop. One-third of hits last year were by rap acts, including half of the US number ones. Over the past five years, hip-hop has doubled in prominence as an influence on other genres in the US top 10. The most streamed performer last year was the Canadian rapper Drake with 6 billion streams. He was also the most streamed of 2016. Hip-hop's pre-eminence has been over 30 years in the making: streaming is not the cause. The real transformation that the likes of Spotify have brought about is to sabotage traditional measures of a song's popularity, its sales figures. Chart rules are constantly contorting themselves in order to incorporate streaming. The latest change, introduced this year in the US, favours paid-for streams over free content such as YouTube. Meanwhile albums have swollen to unimaginable sizes, like the 45-track behemoth released by Chris Brown last year, so as to game streaming figures. We can therefore blame Spotify for hastening the death of the album and killing the charts. But hit songs themselves, pop's traditional unit of currency, are proving more resilient.

On 10 June 1991, in the chilling finale of the second season of Twin Peaks, Laura Palmer – or someone who looked like her – tells special agent Dale Cooper: “I’ll see you again in 25 years.” As promised, a quarter of a century later, the show written by David Lynch and Mark Frost returned with a boundary-pushing third season. It launched a thousand thinkpieces and fan theories; controversially, it was ranked second in Sight & Sound’s best films of 2017 list. At the heart of the show was new character Tammy Preston, an impossibly glamorous FBI agent played by relative unknown Chrysta Bell. The musician and sometime actor has often been referred to as David Lynch’s muse: one of her songs appeared in his 2006 film Inland Empire, and since then they have recorded an album and an EP together. She has been making music in various guises for 20 years, and in 2017 released her first solo album, We Dissolve, produced by PJ Harvey collaborator John Parish. She goes by her full first name, Chrysta Bell, a southern-inspired spelling of Christabel, the Samuel Taylor Coleridge poem she was named after (fittingly, it deals with mysterious women and the supernatural). When we meet at a hotel in Paris, she has just released a self-titled EP – a wistful, languid affair full of water imagery and symbolism – and is about to perform at the Philharmonie de Paris with French singer Christophe (think a more bedraggled Johnny Hallyday). She has flown in from the States the night before but bursts into the room full of energy, immaculately turned out in a 40s-style dress. While on screen she emanates a cool gothic beauty – “I thought she was like an alien, the most beautiful alien ever,” Lynch said of first seeing her perform – in person she has the air of a southern belle: unfailingly polite, warm and upbeat, with the sort of posture that makes you immediately sit upright. Chrysta Bell first met David Lynch in 1999, introduced by an agent who thought they’d get along. They hit it off right away, talked for hours, and wrote a song together that day. “Before you meet David, he’s this icon, it’s kind of impossible to believe he actually exists. Then you see him, and he’s real,” she recalls. “We figured out that day we’re complementary as artists and as friends. Everyone was really happy.” They started making music together – he’d write the lyrics and she the melodies – resulting in their haunting, dreamy 2011 album This Train. “It became a regular thing: I’d come to the studio and we’d make music we both loved and we’d have coffee – a lot of coffee.” She laughs. “Man can drink coffee.” On one level, it may seem obvious why the director was initially drawn to her – with her waist-length dark hair and femme fatale red lips, she looks like she’s been beamed in from the David Lynch cinematic universe – but it’s more than that: they have a compatible artistic sensibility and a shared interest in mysticism and spirituality. In the studio, she says, “we’d have these great conversations – we have similar intrigues: esoteric subjects, the great unknown”. She’s partial to digressions about the imagination and destiny, but it’s hard to be cynical about it: there’s enthusiasm and openness in everything she says, and a beguiling lack of irony or malice. When she uses phrases such as “cosmic beyondness”, she apologises with a little smile. The day before the interview, I send an email to Lynch via his assistant, asking for a couple of quotes explaining what he admires about Chrysta Bell’s work. This is the reply: “David loves Chrysta Bell. Here’s what he has to say about her: ‘Chrysta Bell is round and fully packed, and what comes out of her reminds me of a light blue songbird with extended wings, and a shining beak.’” I read this out to her; “Wow, that’s really sweet,” she replies, and wells up. Chrysta Bell Zucht was born in San Antonio, Texas, in 1978. It was “as good a place as any to grow up: there were a lot of trees, beautiful architecture. It was clean, safe,” she muses, “but not, you know, highly charged with artistry.” After school she moved to the more culturally vibrant Austin, and became the lead singer of swing revival band 8½ Souvenirs (named after the Fellini film and a Django Reinhardt song), with whom she recorded two albums. She now lives in Oakland, California, but has developed a newfound appreciation for Texas, its Latin culture, and – especially compared to Bristol, where she recorded her last album – its expanses of “massive, infinite” sky. As she gets older, she says, she has started to realise what an unusual upbringing she had: she was raised by “a group of odd and eccentric parental beings who were very special and encouraging”. Her mother was a singer, her “highly psychic” stepfather a composer, producer and engineer; together they ran a recording studio. Her father was, variously: a hot air balloon pilot, a dentist, a real estate entrepreneur, president of the local Bachelors’ Club, a collector of old cars, manager of a bed and breakfast, and chairman of the board of the Texas Transportation Museum. When he died, he left her, as a business, a natural burial cemetery. “When it happened, he said: ‘Darling, this is going to be our legacy as a family,’ and I was like, ‘What are you talking about?’” But, in time, she started to recognise the significance of the burial ground, which is now a big part of her life. She is a proponent of the ‘death-positivity movement’, which attempts to change the way death is perceived in western societies. “It’s about relieving some of the anxiety people have around death by bringing it to the conversation with a more relaxed tone. Nature has it figured out: our culture has put up a big wall around this thing that’s going to happen to everybody, and I think that has created much more resistance to it than is necessary.” She is attempting to find a way to combine this with her music: “Maybe I can bring the two together somehow. We’ll see.” For years, Chrysta Bell’s collaborations with Lynch were confined to music. Then, while they were working on their 2016 EP Somewhere in the Nowhere, he floated the idea that there may be a role for her in his next project, although he didn’t say much more than that. When he told her it was Twin Peaks, she was incredulous: “I had no, no idea he’d ask me to be a part of it. I felt like, in the scope of what David has to offer as an individual, I’d received so much, and felt so fulfilled. I wasn’t expecting more.” She hesitated – this would be her first screen role since starring as Jet Li’s love interest in 1997’s Once Upon a Time in China and America – but soon gave in, assuming it would be a small part. What followed was a long process, shrouded in mystery, during which Lynch gave her little teasing hints (“the character is nothing like you, you know, she’s hyper-intelligent and very professional…” she rolls her eyes, “…and then he’d smile”). Then, when she got her script, she found that hers was the eighth biggest role. She offered to get acting lessons, but Lynch said no, he didn’t want to have to un-teach her everything she’d learn. She felt a lot of pressure to get it right for the fans who had waited so long, but was excited to find she had so much screen time with Miguel Ferrer as Albert Rosenfield, Lynch as Gordon Cole, and the enigmatic Diane, who was later revealed to be Laura Dern. On set, the sense of mystery continued. No cast member was given the full script except Kyle MacLachlan. One long, nearly silent scene in which Gordon Cole has a puff from Diane’s cigarette, with Tammy Preston looking on, was improvised. For someone who hadn’t acted in 20 years it could feel quite intimidating, but fortunately co-star Miguel Ferrer provided support. “He was really gracious – if I was wandering aimlessly he’d say: ‘Chrysta Bell, we can break now, you can go back to your trailer.’ If he had an opportunity to give me an ‘Atta girl, you’re doing great!’ he always took it.” In January last year, Ferrer died aged 61. At the end of filming he’d told Chrysta Bell he had cancer, but she misunderstood, thinking he meant he’d overcome it. “So I said: ‘Oh how wonderful, you look so great and vibrant and now you can conquer anything.’ He didn’t correct me, because why would you? I only heard what I wanted to hear.” She takes a moment to compose herself. “I want to talk about him, but I haven’t worked out how to not blubber through it. He would tell these remarkable stories about the early days of Hollywood, of when he played drums in Duke Ellington’s orchestra. But he remained totally humble: he was a true gentleman, just an A-plus human.” as of a piece with the show’s surreal atmosphere, not everyone was impressed with Chrysta Bell’s acting. The backlash hurt, but led to introspection and eventually acceptance: “I’m a lot less sensitive and tender now. I’m cool with it all.” Because of the negativity, she didn’t explore the myriad online fan theories: a brief clip of her walking towards a door led to fervent discussions about space and time glitches; there was speculation about why Tammy’s initials are the same as Twin Peaks. One particularly compelling theory suggests that the two final episodes are designed to be watched simultaneously. “Wow! I will have to do that now,” she says. “Even if that wasn’t the intention I believe David is so connected, so in tune with other realms, that it would work, despite him.” She has plenty of theories of her own, but she’s not likely to discuss any of them with Lynch. “No! No! He’d be the last person. With him it’s like: ‘Look, I gave it to you for you to figure out and have your own personal experience with it.’ I think he’d feel his ideas and thoughts might stifle my own process of discovery. I don’t know that he knows what happened to everybody – maybe he does – but it’s not about answering all the questions. I think that’s such a big, fun part of it: the choose-your-own-adventure part of Twin Peaks. Or choose your own cosmic reality.” After the show finished, she went to visit Lynch at his workshop and found him making a desk, surrounded by power tools. “It was the perfect thing to do after this huge expansive production: bringing it in, making a functional desk that would hold his pencils, his glasses, his coffee cup.” She admires his ability to make space for work of various kinds: if he’s painting he’s not afraid to tell her he can’t talk, despite how close they are. I ask how she feels about being referred to as his muse. “I mean, I think it’s romantic, but I think it’s more accurate to call us collaborators, and to be considered his protege on some level. He’s certainly a mentor for me, not just about art or music but about life.” Lynch is famous for creating complex, captivating female characters, and The Return is no exception: Tammy is a capable, high-ranking FBI agent, Naomi Watts’s Janey-E is spirited and moving, and Dern is exceptional in the role of Diane. Nevertheless, there was some criticism online about the portrayal of women in the season, including a shot of Tammy walking away while Albert and Gordon look on approvingly. “I think it’s clear David appreciates and celebrates women,” says Chrysta Bell. “When I’m around him I feel cared for and considered, like he believes I could do anything. I’m always fascinated when people have issues with appreciating the female form – it’s the most beautiful thing in the world! People get so worked up.” The reason why his female characters resonate so much, she thinks, is party down to the people he chooses: “Laura Dern is an amazing human, and she brings that to her characters. There are so many of these women throughout his career.” Not everyone in Hollywood loves and celebrates women the way Lynch does. When I mention the #MeToo movement, Chrysta Bell’s eyes light up. “I have an 11-year-old stepdaughter and my heart starts beating faster when I think that when she is my age, this could be a distant memory: ‘There was a time when women weren’t paid equally? When women had to deal, on a daily basis, with people treating them as inferior to men? That’s crazy.’” Her Twitter feed shows how politically engaged she is, about gender equality, gun control, the environment, civil rights. But, despite everything that’s wrong with the world, she remains hopeful for the future. One way she copes with anger and hopelessness is transcendental meditation, which she practises twice daily for 20 minutes (fellow TM fans include Martin Scorsese, Jerry Seinfeld and Oprah Winfrey). Chrysta Bell took it up in 2006 after witnessing its effects on Lynch and his crew. “Everyone was so compassionate and thoughtful and I was like: ‘What’s going on in here?’ I don’t know why it does what it does: it’s the simplest thing and yet really profound. It’s like a secret weapon.” (For what it’s worth, she’s an effective ambassador for it: she radiates warmth and positivity.) One of her priorities, she says, is making a worthwhile contribution to humanity. One way is with her father’s cemetery in Texas. Another is through art: “I’ve tried so hard to offer someone else the same medicine I’ve been given through music. That’s why I do it, even though sometimes I think it’s pretty ridiculous. Music can provide access to emotions we don’t normally have because we’re in daily routines, always doing something. Then you hear a song that stops you and opens you up.” Twin Peaks falls into this category too: “I truly believe it’s something remarkably special and a gift to humanity.” It may seem like an outlandish statement to make about a TV show, yet there’s something about the devotion Twin Peaks has attracted over 30 years that makes it sound utterly reasonable. Music continues to be her passion, but she’s open to more acting if the right project comes along (something is in the works, though it’s very hush-hush). She’s fatalistic about the future, but less in an “everything-happens-for-a-reason” way than “let’s see where life takes us”. Whichever cosmic reality we turn out to be in, she’s open to it. “I’m always in discovery mode – if it’s my destiny I feel like it will find me. I think there’s magic in that.”

Eight minutes of composer John Williams' Close Encounters of the Third Kind score that was cut from the 1977 film has been performed publicly for the first time. The lost music was revealed in Brisbane on Saturday at the premiere of Close Encounters of the Third Kind in Concert — a screening of the science fiction movie with a live orchestra and choir. Co-producer Jamie Richardson said the extra eight minutes of music was spread across the first and second acts. "It's footage which was always in the film, it just didn't have music but Williams did write music originally for it," Mr Richardson said. Mr Richardson said Williams and the film's director Steven Spielberg were involved in the concert's creative process. "[Spielberg] is delighted with the approach we have taken," he said. "When we prepare these projects it's very important for us to work not only with the composer but with the filmmaker." Conductor Nicholas Buc, who led the premiere with the Queensland Festival Philharmonic orchestra and the Resonance of Birralee choir, said audiences would "geek out" over the collaboration of live music and film. "It's a really great way of watching great films which we've known and loved for many years," Mr Buc said. Producer Steve Linder, who has been involved in other live concert productions of Williams' scores including ET, Jaws, Raiders of the Lost Ark and Jurassic Park, said Close Encounters had always been on his wish list. Mr Linder said bringing live music and film together transformed the experience from two-dimensional to three. "We are always looking for interesting ways to present our films and broaden the reach of where an orchestra and film can go," Mr Linder said. "[Music] provides dramatic arch, provides dramatic narrative and even in some cases, it's actually a character in the film."

WASHINGTON: Music sales soared anew last year in the United States backed by the rise of streaming, bringing revenue to a level last seen a decade ago, the industry said Thursday. The Recording Industry Association of America said that revenue grew a robust 16.5% in 2017, marking the first time since 1999 at the dawn of online music that the business has expanded for two years in a row. Recorded music sales in the world's largest music market from all formats totalled US$8.7bil, returning to the revenue level seen in 2008 even if it is still 40% below the pre-internet peak. The growth was almost entirely attributable to the public's embrace of streaming, with subscriptions to paid platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal and the new service of retail giant Amazon growing 56% to 35.3 million users. With the countervailing trends, revenue from physical sales outpaced digital downloads in the United States for the first time since 2011. Streaming has been transforming the music business in much of the world, although artists frequently complain that they see little of the industry's newfound bounty. But Cary Sherman, chairman of the Recording Industry Association of America, pointed to a study that record labels worldwide invested US$4.5bil in artist development and marketing in 2015. "More than any other creative industry, music companies successfully transformed themselves ahead of the transition to streaming, all while forging stronger relationships with their most important partner – the artist," he wrote in a blog post. He reiterated the industry's concerns that antiquated laws have capped revenue from advancing even further. But he voiced hope that the US Congress will soon pass a bill, backed by members of both major parties, that would guarantee that online radio stations pay royalties for songs recorded before 1972, which are exempt under current law. Streaming has been transforming the music business in much of the world, although artists frequently complain that they see little of the industry's newfound bounty. – AFP Relaxnews Source: thestar.com.my

The Roseanne revival will officially roll on, as ABC has ordered up a second season of the sitcom. Roseanne returned to TV this week after a 20 year absence, and shockingly garnered immense ratings. The giant numbers for the sitcom even caught the attention of President Trump, who called Roseanne Barr to personally congratulate her. The working-class sitcom Roseanne was massively popular in its original run from 1988-1997, but even so, no one knew if its formula would still work in today’s very different world. It turns out, America still loves the Conner family. Roseanne (Roseanne Barr) and Dan (John Goodman) are of course back, still living in the same house and still dealing with many of the same issues. In addition to the familiar family conflicts the show has always tackled, the new incarnation adds a political element, with Trump supporter Roseanne pitted against her liberal sister Jackie (Laurie Metcalf). Some wondered if the political element would turn off viewers, but it appears the exact opposite has happened. After the monster ratings for the season premiere, ABC has officially renewed Roseanne for a second season (via EW). ABC Entertainment president Channing Dungey said in a statement: “We’re thrilled that America has welcomed the Conner family back into their homes. The show is as fresh and relevant today as it was when it left the air 21 years ago. We can’t wait to see what the Roseanne team has in store for next year.” Premiere ratings for Roseanne were initially reported at 18 million viewers, but after delayed viewers were counted, that number was bumped to 21.8 million. Not only did viewers welcome Roseanne back with open arms, they embraced it in a way no one was expecting. Some have rushed to read this development as proof that there exists in America a huge, under-served audience thirsting for entertainment with more of a conservative political bent. Some have even gone so far as to call Roseanne the new Archie Bunker. The truth is, Roseanne has always been a fairly radical show in its willingness to tackle sensitive topics head on. And things have not changed on that front. The new season has already seen Roseanne diving into the issue of gender identity, with an episode about Darlene’s gender fluid son Mark dealing with school bullies. In classic Roseanne fashion, the family humorously expresses their discomfort over the whole situation. But of course everyone embraces Mark and his eccentric personal style, and encourages him to continue being himself. And the issue of Roseanne’s specific political opinions never really enters into that particular dynamic. Ultimately, Roseanne is about a family that manages to stay together no matter what. And the political animosity, finally, is just one more obstacle they must overcome in order to maintain that unity. With Roseanne now officially returning for season 2, we can look forward to many more sensitive and hilarious – and probably controversial – moments with the Conner family. However, here’s hoping Roseanne Barr herself doesn’t gain too much creative control over the series. The last time Barr took the reins, it resulted in an entire season that needed to be retconned out of existence.

Jeremy Saulnier was to share directing duties with Nic Pizzolatto for the season, but Daniel Sackheim has now stepped in for the duration. Some minor changes have come to the long-delayed third season of HBO's True Detective. Director and executive producer Jeremy Saulnier, set to split directing duties for the entire run with show creator Nic Pizzolatto, has left after completing the first two episodes. Prolific TV helmer Daniel Sackheim, known forFX's The Americans, is filling the void. Though the show's episode count is still unknown, Sackheim is expected to divide up all the episodes with Pizzolatto, who is stepping into the director's chair for the first time this season. An HBO spokesperson issued the following statement on the switch: "Director and executive producer Jeremy Saulnier has completed the first two episodes of True Detective season 3 and will be departing the production due to scheduling issues. Daniel Sackheim has come on board as a director and executive producer for the series alongside series creator and director Nic Pizzolatto." Ironically, finding a director for the third season of True Detective was one of the show's biggest holdups. "I've read five scripts on the new season and I think they're terrific," HBO chief Casey Bloys said of the third season at TCA in July 2017, adding of the timing: “When we find a director, we'll be a go on that." Cary Fukunaga unanimously won over critics as the helmer of all eight episodes of the critically beloved first season but famously didn't return for the second iteration after rumblings of friction between him and Pizzolatto. For season two, a rotating lineup of directors was used instead. The third season of True Detective had been gestating for some time. Rumors of Pizzolatto plotting his comeback on the once-hot drama have been circulating ever since HBO signed him to a three-year overall deal at the network in 2015. The third installment, which HBO finally confirmed in August 2017, will attempt to redeem the series from the critical bashing it underwent in the second season after its breakout freshman run starring Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey. This third season stars Oscar winner Mahershala Ali and tells the story of a macabre crime in the heart of the Ozarks, a mystery that's said to deepen over decades and play out in three separate time periods. Pizzolatto is the sole writer on the series, with the exception of David Milch, who co-wrote the fourth episode. Carmen Ejogo, Stephen Dorff, Scoot McNairy, Mamie Gummer and Ray Fisher round out the cast. Season three is expected to debut in 2019.

'Mozart in the Jungle's' Will Graham and 'Broad City's' Abbi Jacobson are exec producing the half-hour comedy based on the Geena Davis and Tom Hanks feature directed by Penny Marshall. Amazon Studios is ready to take a big swing. The retail giant/streaming service is developing a TV series based on Penny Marshall's Tom Hanks and Geena Davis feature, A League of Their Own. Mozart in the Jungle's Will Graham and Broad City's Abbi Jacobson will co-write and executive produce what is being described less as a traditional reboot and more as a modern look at the story. The project is being envisioned as a half-hour comedy series. For now, the Amazon take is in development, with a mini-writers room set to open and deliver scripts before Amazon makes a decision. Jacobson will not have an onscreen role. Amazon and Sony declined comment, as Jacobson's deal is not done yet. Graham's Amazon Studios-based Field Trip Productions topper Hailey Wierengo will also exec produce alongside Graham and Jacobson. Amazon's modern take will not feature either Davis' Dottie or her kid sister, Kit (Lori Petty), both of whom served as the central characters of the 1992 movie. Here's the official logline: "A League of Their Own is a half-hour comedy infusing the warmth, humor and DNA of the classic film, while taking a contemporary spin on the stories of the women surrounding the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. The show will begin with the formation of the league in 1943 and follows the Rockford Peaches, season to season as they struggle to keep the team alive through close games, injuries, late night bar crawls, sexual awakenings, not crying and road trips across a rapidly changing United States. The series dives deeper into the issues facing the country while following a ragtag team of women figuring themselves out while fighting to realize their dreams of playing professional baseball." Amazon's League of Their Own will be produced by Sony Pictures Television Studios, whose Columbia Pictures produced the classic film about the real-life All-American Girls Professional Baseball League that was formed when World War II threatened to shut down Major League Baseball. The film — which celebrated its 25th anniversary last year — followed two sisters, Dottie and Kit, as they were recruited to join the AAGPBL and wound up playing for the Rockford Peaches (before a trade that would see them face off in the World Series). Hanks played manager Jimmy Dugan, a character inspired by former big leaguers Jimmie Foxx and Hack Wilson. The cast also included Madonna (Mae), Rosie O'Donnell (Doris), Megan Cavanagh (Marla Hooch) and David Strathairn, who played Ira Lowenstein, the league's GM who kept it going after owner Walter Harvey (played by Garry Marshall) wanted to shut it down after the war. Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel penned the screenplay based on a story by Kelly Candaele and Kim Wilson. Marshall directed the film. The feature, produced on a budget of $40 million, went on to gross $132 million worldwide. In 2012, the Library of Congress selected the film for preservation in the U.S. National Film Registry for its portrayal of women's choices and solidarity during World War II that was both funny and feminist. Sources say Graham and Jacobson reached out to both Marshall and Davis ahead of time to get their blessing for the Amazon take, which will — like the film — explore themes including prejudice and equality, among others. (The original movie included one short but important moment during which a black woman throws a ball back to Dottie in a scene that briefly illustrated the segregation that existed at the time.) This is the second time that A League of Their Own has been rebooted for the small screen. CBS tried unsuccessfully in 1993 with a sitcom that featured Cavanagh and Tracy Reiner (Betty "Spaghetti") reprising their roles. Ganz and Mandel created the series, with Marshall directing. Sam McMurray took over Hanks' role. The series was pulled after three episodes. (A total of six episodes were produced, with three airing in April 1993 and two more in August of the same year.) The League of Their Own reboot comes as Amazon has put a renewed focus on broad comedies. The company recently tapped NBC Entertainment president Jennifer Salke to serve as its head of content, replacing Roy Price — who was pushed out hours after a producer went public with claims of sexual harassment. In the interim, Sharon Tal Yguado has been serving as head of content during the monthslong search for a new exec. Her orders, which will be inherited by Salke, were to carry out Jeff Bezos' mandate to find big, broad and global hits. Yguado has done that with the upcoming Lord of the Rings series, among other projects, while also cleaning house of niche comedies like I Love Dick and passing on a handful of comedy pilots. A League of Their Own represents a push for broad comedies after Price quickly canceled feminism drama Good Girls Revolt weeks after its premiere. For his part, Graham launched his Field Trip production company with an overall deal at Amazon in December. His credits include Amazon's Mozart in the Jungle and Alpha House and Bravo's Odd Mom Out. He also directed feature Movie 43 and was one of the founders of the Onion News Network, serving as showrunner on the IFC series of the same name and on Comedy Central's Onion SportsDome. He created one of the pilots on Amazon's first pilot slate — The Onion Presents: The News. He's repped by UTA, Kaplan/Perrone and Hansen Jacobson. Jacobson, meanwhile, created, stars in and exec produces Comedy Central's Broad City. On the feature side, her credits include The Lego Ninjago Movie, Neighbors 2 and the upcoming 6 Balloons. She's repped by UTA and Jackoway Tyerman. Reboots continue to remain in high demand as broadcast, cable and streaming outlets look for proven IP in a bid to cut through a cluttered scripted landscape expected to top 520 originals this year. Key to the reboots is having the original producers involved — which A League of Their Own has with Sony TV. Amazon's A League of Their Own arrives a year after Fox teamed with Major League Baseball for scripted drama Pitch, about the first woman to break the gender barrier in the big leagues. The Kylie Bunbury starrer was canceled after one low-rated season, despite a groundswell of support.

Take a look at the movies and TV shows that will be added to the streaming service next month. Start off April with a blast from the past. On April 1, Netflix is adding several classic TV shows and movies to its library. And the streaming service isn't joking around. Deep Blue Sea, Friday Night Lights, Mortal Kombat, Scarface and Seven kick off the new additions. Later, Netflix will bring back the laughs with Despicable Me 3. As for the rest of the month, April will be full of Netflix originals featuring big name stars. Jay-Z will sit down with David Letterman for the April installment of My Next Guest Needs No Introduction. Seth Rogen's "Hilarity for Charity" special, with an all-star lineup, will start streaming on April 6. And Adam Sandler's next Netflix movie, The Week Of, co-starring Chris Rock, drops on April 27. New series Lost in Space and The Chalet will premiere on April 13 and 23, respectively. Lost in Space is based on the 1965 series of the same name and stars Toby Stephens, Taylor Russell and Molly Parker. The Chalet stars Chloe Lambert, Philippe Dusseau and Emilie de Preissac. Take a look below at the complete list of April movie and TV additions. April 1 Along Came Polly Bad Boys Battlefield Earth Beethoven's Christmas Adventure Big Time Body of Lies Cabin Fever Cabin Fever 2: Spring Fever Cats & Dogs Cold Mountain Dare to Be Wild Deep Blue Sea The Duchess The Family Man Fish People The Flintstones The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas Friday Night Lights The Iron Giant Jackass 2.5 The Joel McHale Show with Joel McHale (streaming every Sunday) Life Is Beautiful Looney Tunes: Back in Action The Lost Boys Mortal Kombat Nancy Drew Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest The Queen of the Damned Scarface Seven Sin City A Sort of Family Speed Racer The Spy Next Door Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines Wakfu: Season 3 April 2 La Piloto: Season 1 April 3 Fary Is the New Black April 5 Behind The Curtain: Todrick Hall Despicable Me 3 April 6 The 4th Company 6 Balloons Amateur The Boss Baby: Back in Business: Season 1 Fastest Car: Season 1 Money Heist: Part 2 My Next Guest Needs No Introduction With David Letterman: Jay-Z Orbiter 9 Ram Dass, Going Home Seth Rogen's "Hilarity for Charity" special Sun Dogs Todo lo que sería de Lucas Lauriente Troy: Fall of a City: Season 1 April 7 24 Hours to Live April 9 AMO: Season 1 April 10 Greg Davies: You Magnificent Beast April 12 Pickpockets April 13 Chef's Table: Pastry Come Sunday I Am Not An Easy Man Lost in Space: Season 1 The Magic School Bus Rides Again: Season 2 April 15 Lakeview Terrace Seven Pounds April 17 The Chalet: Season 1 The Honeymoon Stand Up Special: Collection April 18 Friend Request Pelé April 19 Charité: Season 1 Chasing The Dragon April 20 Aggretsuko: Season 1 Dope: Season 2 Dude Kodachrome Mercury 13 Spy Kids: Mission Critical: Season 1 April 21 The Letdown: Season 1 April 24 Call the Midwife: Series 6: "Christmas Special 2017" Kevin James: Never Don't Give Up April 25 Bill Nye: Science Guy Psychokinesis April 27 3%: Season 2 Bobby Kennedy for President Candy Jar Holy Goalie The Man Who Knew Infinity The New Legends of Monkey: Season 1 The Week Of

Take a look at the titles that will disappear from the streaming service this month. Netflix is wasting no time in letting go of movies this month. On April 1 alone Apollo 13, The Shawshank Redemption, The Whole Nine Yards, Cool Runnings, The Pursuit of Happyness and Wild Wild West leave. Also leaving the streaming service at the beginning of the month are four Batman films: the 1966 Batman starring Adam West, Batman Returns, Batman Forever and Batman & Robin. Comedies American Pie, Ace Ventura and Caddyshack are also disappearing that first day of April. As a number of titles are leaving, a variety of films and TV shows are being added to Netflix's library throughout the month. April’s additions were just announced. Take a look below at the complete list of movies and TV shows leaving Netflix in April. Leaving April 1 30 Days of Night 88 Minutes Ace Ventura: Pet Detective Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls American Pie American Pie 2 Apollo 13 Batman Batman & Robin Batman Forever Batman Returns Caddyshack Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Cool Runnings Death Sentence Dolphin Tale The Dukes of Hazzard Eagle vs. Shark John Mulaney: New in Town The Men Who Stare at Goats Never Let Me Go The Pursuit of Happyness Set Up The Shawshank Redemption Small Soldiers The Whole Nine Yards Wild Wild West Leaving April 3 Starry Eyes Leaving April 5 The Hallow The Nightingale Leaving April 12 The Emperor's New Clothes Leaving April 15 Happy Tree Friends Leap Year Leaving April 16 Son of God Leaving April 17 Z Storm Leaving April 20 The Exorcism of Molly Hartley Leaving April 21 The Prestige Leaving April 22 Exit Through the Gift Shop Leaving April 26 Kung Fu Panda 3 Leaving April 27 Begin Again

In the dark heart of a sprawling, anonymous city, TERMINAL follows the twisting tales of two assassins carrying out a sinister mission, a teacher battling a fatal illness, an enigmatic janitor and a curious waitress leading a dangerous double life. Murderous consequences unravel in the dead of night as their lives all intertwine at the hands of a mysterious criminal mastermind hell-bent on revenge. Starring Margot Robbie, Simon Pegg, Dexter Fletcher, Max Irons and Mike Myers Written and Directed by Vaughn Stein In Theaters May 11

Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure hit theaters in 1989 and became a box office phenomenon. It was a multimedia franchise for the multimedia age. There was a cartoon spin-off, a live-action TV spin-off, a Nintendo game. 1991 brought a sequel, Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey, where the San Dimas duo played by Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter went on a journey through the afterlife, meeting the Grim Reaper (William Sadler) and defeating him in a bout of Battleship. Almost 30 years later, Hollywood runs on reboots and revivals. The top-grossing films from 1989 include an Indiana Jones, a Batman, a Lethal Weapon, a Ghostbusters, and Disney’s version of The Little Mermaid, all franchises that still exist in various stages of activity. (The most-watched show of 1989 was Roseanne, currently earning big ’80s ratings on 2010s network television.) Could there be another Bill & Ted movie? This was the big question on our minds when we reunited Reeves and Winter with original Bill & Ted writers Chris Matheson and Ed Solomon. The lead actors had kept in touch over the years. (They actually worked together in 2015, when Winter, a director and a documentarian, had the John Wick star narrate his film Deep Web.) And the possibility of a new Bill & Ted movie actually first came up over a decade ago. “Chris and Ed came to us in 2007 with the idea of doing it,” Reeves explains, “They pitched us an idea. It sounded great.” Simple, right? “In show business,” Reeves says, wearily, “There’s show and then there’s business.” “We’ve been to the altar a few times,” is how Solomon describes the lengthy development process, which has been full of rumors but has resulted in no actual production news as of yet. “We get rejected right about the ‘now you may kiss the bride’ part of it.” Solomon and Matheson wrote a complete script for the third film on spec. “‘Spec’ means ‘for free’ for all you folks in Toledo, Ohio, who don’t read all the entertainment blogs,” jokes Winter. “We wanted to get it right,” Solomon explains. “We wanted to have it be something that we — all four of us, Chris and I, Alex and Keanu — could stand behind, and know we’re doing this for the right reasons.” The result of their efforts is a script titled Bill & Ted Face the Music, which finds our intrepid explorers still struggling to complete the great work of their life. At the end of Excellent Adventure, futuristic mentor Rufus (George Carlin) told the teens that they would write music that would turn the world into a utopia. “You’re told you’re gonna save the world,” Matheson says. “And now you’re 50 and you haven’t done it. Now they’re married, and it affects their marriages, and it affects their relationships with their kids, and it affects their everything.” “Everybody’s a little older now,” notes Reeves. “A little afraid.” “There’s certain comparisons,” says Winter. “A rock band that never goes to the place it thought it was going to get to. Having that moment in their life of going: ‘Do we try to get there, or give up the dream?'” “Indomitable spirits confronted with, ‘Is this the end?'” Reeves continues. “Of course, there is a little caveat in that someone comes from the future and says: ‘Not only do you have to save the world, you have to save everything.'” “I think it’s kind of like A Christmas Carol with Bill and Ted,” teases Solomon. “Looking at their lives, and really kind of rediscovering what they’re about.” And here’s some nigh-bodacious news: To hear the creative team talk, we’ve never been closer to the third Bill & Ted. “We are hoping to close a deal with some financiers,” says Solomon. “Hopefully within the next month or so, we’ll have news that will stick.” “We went out and found a director,” says Winter. “Dean Parisot, who we love, did Galaxy Quest, which is a masterpiece.” “Steven Soderbergh is one of the producers on it,” says Solomon. “Along with Scott Kroopf, the original producer [of Excellent Adventure and Bogus Journey]. Bill Sadler is back, returning as death, and a few delicious cameos by people to be named another time.” Will Bill & Ted Face the Music triumphantly emerge from development hell as triumphantly as the main characters ascended from actual Hell? Winter, at least, has a suitably historical serenity when he describes the process of making the third film. “The whole trajectory of getting the next one off the ground has been pretty much exactly like the experience of getting the original. Going to every studio, and they’re like, ‘What the eff is this?’ It’s this kind of independent spirit, and the films have an anachronistic quality to them that’s a big part of what they are, fundamentally. I’m really happy that this one is the same. It doesn’t feel like some stale knockoff that a studio would have immediately gone, ‘Oh, this feels right. We have rebranded very successfully.'” “I love the characters so much — who they are, the spirit of their voice that Chris and Ed have given [them],” says Reeves, noting the underlying message of the original film, stated explicitly by Bill and Ted (and even Abraham Lincoln). “You can’t go wrong with: ‘Be excellent to each other.’ And: ‘Party on!’ I mean, it might actually be the beginning, one of the first examples of contemporary modern apocalyptic art.” “Now we have to make the third one,” says Winter. “Before the apocalypse!”

Martin Freeman is a father desperately trying to find a home for his infant daughter in the upcoming zombie movie Cargo. Stories about zombies are a dime a dozen nowadays, what with The Walking Dead still among the most popular franchises pulling audiences in on television and in comics. While that series has gotten a little long in the tooth, the genre itself seems one filmmakers want to turn to again and again, sometimes adding little touches here and there to make the story stand out amidst the wave of projects about the undead and the ostensible end of the world. Cargo is one of those films with just enough of a twist on the usual zombie movie setup to warrant a watch. The new film starring Freeman sees him as a father racing against time after being infected with he virus that’s wiping out humanity. Set in rural Australia, Cargo sets the stage for its relatively simple conceit, making it less about a fight for survival against hordes of hungry zombies than it is in discovering the humanity in others when it seems as though all hope is lost. In that regard, the film reads like a refreshing counterpoint to the nihilism of The Walking Dead. As far as trailers go, Cargo’s is fairly expansive and might even give too much away, as it delivers what looks to be the majority of the major beats in the film, from the death of Freeman’s wife to his infection to his search for people who might look after his child when he finally turns. It’s more elegiac take on what is typically a genre ruled by bloody violence and gore, but one that adds an intriguing ticking-clock element to the narrative as Freeman only has 48 hours to secure his daughter’s future before he falls victim to the infection. The film hails from directors Yolanda Ramke and Ben Howling, who are expanding their short film of the same name from 2013. From the look of it, Cargo has more in common with Australian-set films like Rabbit-Proof Fence, Walkabout, and even Wake In Fright, than it does popular entries in the zombie movie canon. There’s also a hint of Cormac McCarthy’s The Road well, which should shake up its genre trappings quite nicely and perhaps put it more on par with movies like The Girl With All the Gifts or Maggie. The film will premiere at the Tribecca Film Festival next month, though Netflix scooped up its rights so expect it to be available sometime soon after. Knowing Netflix, the streaming service will release an announcement trailer just a few days before it’s available to subscribers. If you’re in the market for a somber father-daughter story with a zombie twist, Cargo is probably the movie for you.

Amazon Prime Video has acquired more than 40 premium French series and films from several key French distribution companies to feed the library of Prime Video in France, which launched at the end of 2016. The streaming giant signed deals with TF1 Droits Audiovisuels, France TV Distribution, AB Droits Audiovisuels, Newen Distribution, EuropaCorp, About Premium Content, Roissy Films and The Bureau Sales. “We are thrilled to partner with such respected French content creators and distributors and will continue to add leading content to Prime Video in France,” said Jay Marine, vice president of Prime Video Europe. The new French programs acquired by Amazon Prime include popular TV series such as “Sam,” the remake of the Danish show “Rita,” procedural “Les Innocents,” cop show “Captain Sharif,” family comedy series “Desperate Parents,” and World War II-set series “A French Village.” Amazon Prime Video also acquired French films such as Régis Roinsard’s “Populaire,” Thomas Cailley’s “Love at First Fight” (pictured), which topped Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight in 2014, Laurent Cantet’s Palme d’Or winning “The Class” and Martin Provost’s Cesar-winning “Seraphine.” Julien Verley, CEO at France TV Distribution, said the three series that his company sold to Amazon – “Captain Marleau,” “Criminal Games” and “Captain Sharif” – were ratings successes in France. “We are pleased to be part of this partnership with Prime Video which maximizes the exposure of French work and original content,” Verley said. Prime Video’s slate of original series includes “The Grand Tour,” “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” “The Man in the High Castle,” “American Gods,” “Transparent,” “Mozart in the Jungle,” “Bosch” and “Goliath.”

Steven Spielberg’s “Ready Player One” has launched impressively with a $12 million opening day, portending a four-day Easter weekend total of more than $50 million at 4,234 North American locations. Friday’s estimate came in well above Warner Bros.’ tracking from a day earlier, which had been $45 million. The studio had already adjusted its projection upward from the $38 million to $42 million range earlier in the week. The sci-fi spectacle earned an A- CinemaScore with an audience that was 59% male. The overall audience was 44% under 25, who gave it an A-, while those over 25 gave the film a B+. The solid opening day performance validates the studio’s decision to move up the opening by a day to Thursday to take advantage of many moviegoers being on vacation during the period. The movie is also debuting day and date internationally in 62 markets, with $3.2 million in foreign grosses since opening in Tuesday previews. Based on Ernest Cline’s 2011 novel, “Ready Player One” is set both in a dystopian version of Columbus, Ohio, in 2045 and in an elaborate virtual reality world called Oasis, popular because it enables residents to escape the grim reality of their actual world. The film, written by Cline and Zak Penn, stars Tye Sheridan, Olivia Cooke, Lena Waithe, Ben Mendelsohn, T.J. Miller, Simon Pegg, and Mark Rylance. Reviews have been mostly positive for “Ready Player One” with a 78% “fresh” score on Rotten Tomatoes. Lionsgate’s thriller “Tyler Perry’s Acrimony” opened with $1 million at 1,700 locations on Thursday night. By way of comparison, Perry’s “Boo! A Madea Halloween” reeled in $855,000 from Thursday night previews and “Boo 2!” made around $760,000. “Acrimony,” starring Taraji P. Henson as a vengeance-seeking wife, is expanding to 2,006 venues on Friday with forecasts in the $7 million to $11 million range. “Acrimony” will be battling the second weekend of Universal-Legendary’s “Pacific Rim Uprising,” the seventh frame of “Black Panther,” and Lionsgate-Roadside’s third weekend of “I Can Only Imagine” for second place during the holiday. “Black Panther” has passed the $637 million mark in 41 days, making it the fifth highest-grossing movie ever on the domestic list. March is trailing the same month a year ago by 30%, with year-to-date earnings off 4.3% to $2.73 billion, according to comScore. “The industry has yet to capitalize on the momentum created by ‘Black Panther,'” noted Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst with the tracking service.

After helming “Jurassic World” — and then sitting out for its sequel, “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom” — Colin Trevorrow is set to return to direct the third pic in the series, which he is currently co-writing with Emily Carmichael. Entertainment Weekly broke the director news on Friday with a statement from Steven Spielberg, who is currently on the press circuit for “Ready Player One.” “Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom” doesn’t bow until this June, but Universal and Spielberg are already moving quickly to get the third film in motion, dating it for June 11, 2021. “Fallen Kingdom,” directed by J.A. Bayona, is set to open on June 22, 2018. Trevorrow co-wrote that movie with Derek Connolly. “It’s important to this franchise that we welcome new creative voices to keep our storytelling fresh and alive,” Trevorrow said in a statement to EW. “I’m thrilled with the tension and beauty J.A. has brought to ‘Fallen Kingdom,’ and I know Emily will add another layer of emotion to the concluding chapter of our trilogy.” Spielberg and Trevorrow return to executive produce Universal Pictures and Amblin Entertainment’s latest installment in the franchise. Frank Marshall and Pat Crowley return as producers. The first two films starred Bryce Dallas Howard and Chris Pratt. 2015’s “Jurassic World” was a monster hit, grossing $1.6 billion at the worldwide box office.

“Ready Player One” earned $10.4 million overseas on Thursday, bringing the science-fiction fantasy’s foreign gross to $13.7 million. Final numbers haven’t been tallied, but it also appears that the big-budget Steven Spielberg film is off to a healthy start in China. Flash numbers from Friday showings have the film racking up $14.6 million (RMB 91.4 million) in the Middle Kingdom. “Ready Player One” unfolds in a dystopian future, one in which people escape the drudgery and economic privation by diving into an elaborate virtual reality world. Tye Sheridan (“Mud”) stars as a young player who participates in a massive search for Easter eggs in the game that will enable him to inherit a vast fortune. Reviews for the film have been strong, with critics praising Spielberg for delivering an enjoyable slice of pop entertainment. The cast includes T.J. Miller, Mark Rylance, Olivia Cooke, Lena Waithe, and Ben Mendelsohn. Among the top markets, “Ready Player One” picked up $1.5 million in the United Kingdom, $1.1 million in Russia, and $980,000 in Mexico. It played in 37 markets on Thursday and will screen in an additional 13 markets beginning on Friday. “Ready Player One” is expected to top the domestic box office, earning as much as $50 million over the holiday weekend. Since opening on Wednesday, the film has generated $12 million. However, the Warner Bros. release is a big bet for Spielberg and the studio. It carries a $175 million budget and cost well north of $100 million to market and distribute.

The 'Grey's Anatomy' spinoff gets a tiny lift in its second episode, outpacing NBC's 'Chicago Fire' — albeit in a different time slot. CBS dominated Thursday evening with a relatively stable episode of The Big Bang Theory. The comedy, fetching a 2.4 rating among adults 18-49 and nearly 13 million viewers, won the night by nearly every measure. Young Sheldon(2.0 adults) was just behind it, followed by an even outing of Mom (1.4 adults), a new Life in Pieces (1.0 adults) and the recently renewed SWAT(0.9 adults). Driven by Grey's Anatomy, which earned a 1.7 rating among adults 18-49, ABC ranked No. 2 among the broadcast networks. It led into an ever-so-slightly-lifted second outing of spinoff Station 19 that averaged a 1.2 rating among adults 18-49 and 5.8 million viewers, topping NBC's similarly themed Chicago Fire (0.9 adults) at 10 p.m., after losing a head-to-head two-hour battle on its premiere night. Scandal shifted into the 10 o'clock time slot with a 0.8 rating in the key demo, off a significant three-tenths of a point from its last original. NBC's comedy block also saw some fatigue, with drops for Superstore (0.8 adults) and Will & Grace (0.9 adults) before an unfortunate drop for Champions. The latter was down to just a 0.5 rating in the key demo. Fell freshman AP Bio was steady with a 0.6 rating among adults 18-49. Gotham (0.7 adults) and Showtime at the Apollo (0.6 adults) held on Fox, while Supernatural jumped to a season high 0.7 rating among adults 18-49 on the CW — matching its season premiere score from way back in October. Arrow held with a 0.4 rating despite the lifted lead-in.

Steven Spielberg has created an entire universe, but is it appealing enough for people to want to spend all their time there? It’s been more than six years since Steven Spielberg last made an action film, and nearly a decade since his last live-action action film was released. Ready Player One ends this drought, coming so long after The Adventures of Tintin (2012)and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008). However, much like Tintin, Ready Player One is heavily reliant on computer animation. Though Ready Player One is not a fully computer-animated film, it leans even harder on groundbreaking technology in terms of trying to craft believable virtual-reality environments. In other filmmakers’ hands, this aesthetic choice might fail entirely; in Spielberg’s hands, it works about as well as possible. Ready Player One, set nearly 30 years in the future, depicts a world so screwed over that many people choose to avoid serious problems and spend their days in the virtual-reality landscape called the OASIS. Though some sections of the film take place in the real world, primarily in Columbus, Ohio, more than half of the 140-minute film takes place inside the OASIS, meaning that we see our hero Wade Watts (Tye Sheridan) as much in flesh-and-blood form as in his VR form, known as Parzival. Even with a great filmmaker utilizing so much CGI, there’s always a fear that the characters onscreen — meant as hyper-real approximations of humans — might descend into the “uncanny valley,” the effect where what you’re looking at on screen is meant to look real but causes a sense of discomfort in audiences. (Think of the characters in The Polar Express or Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within.) Fortunately, that’s never a concern in Ready Player One. While a few VR avatars, such as that of baddie Nolan Sorrento (Ben Mendelsohn), look somewhat like the person who designed them, enough of the OASIS characters are exaggerated enough to never cause a truly discomfiting effect. Wade’s eventual love interest, Samantha (Olivia Cooke), is known as Art3mis in the OASIS, and is depicted with larger-than-life eyes, spiky pink hair, an impossibly thin frame and gaudy clothes that serve to make her look more unreal than real. The same goes for Wade’s avatar Parzival, who may sound like Sheridan, but looks like a generic video-game avatar as opposed to something approximating an actual person. If there’s a way in which the CGI feels like a drag, it’s not in how the characters are designed or brought to virtual life. It’s the OASIS itself. When we first enter the OASIS, Wade explains that the purpose of this virtual-reality world is to offer as literal an escape as possible for people around the world. In the OASIS, we’re told, anyone can do or be anything; if it’s not eating, sleeping or going to the bathroom, you can do it in the OASIS. As Wade tells us, the limits to the OASIS are any given person’s imagination. The pre-title view of the OASIS suggests something truly fabulous and fantastical, from vacation worlds to casinos to everything in between. However, the majority of the film takes place in only a few locations, none of which look terribly inviting. When we see how grim and unappealing the real world looks, it makes a kind of warped sense that people might want to escape into virtual reality. Why, then, does that virtual-reality world look roughly as unappealing as the world outside? Some choices make sense within the story — the final battle takes place on Planet Doom, so it’s not terribly surprising that the location isn’t a vacation hot spot. But the first big setpiece, during which Wade/Parzival, Samantha/Art3mis, and many others engage in a massive car race through a VR version of New York City with pop-culture obstacles trying to stop players from finding one of three keys to unlock an all-powerful Easter egg set up by the creator of the OASIS, looks equally chaotic, formless and unexciting. While Ready Player One certainly makes good on the idea that the OASIS lets people do almost anything they want, the sense of excitement and wonder is muted by the way the OASIS looks. Ready Player One probably would have fallen apart completely in the hands of any other filmmaker than Spielberg. Few other directors are half as gifted as he is at incorporating cutting-edge computer effects in high-intensity stories, and even fewer are able to build genuine emotion by using such computer effects. But while The Adventures of Tintin used computer and motion-capture animation to its benefit, crafting a world as exciting as its source material, Ready Player One’s virtual-reality world seems as dystopic as the world everyone’s trying to get away from. The film is never able to answer why anyone would want to spend so much time in a place as visually bleak as this; if the real world is so bad, why not escape somewhere that looks genuinely exciting?

Years before her first acting for the screen, Jessica Chastain played the title role in this play adapted for film by costar/director Al Pacino. 2011 was a breakthrough year for Jessica Chastain, in which work done over several years was finally seen by a wowed public: Features she made with directors Jeff Nichols, Terrence Malick and Ralph Fiennes premiered, as did the Hollywood adaptation of Kathryn Stockett's novel The Help. But at that year's Venice festival, the film elite got a glimpse of work she had done long before: Al Pacino's Wild Salome, a doc in the mode of his Looking for Richard, chronicled the preparations for a Los Angeles staging of Oscar Wilde's Salome in 2006, which starred a then-unknown Chastain in the title role. Now that film is finally getting a proper theatrical release alongside Salome, Pacino's adaptation of the Estelle Parsons-directed stage play. Though many interested moviegoers will want to see both films, this Salome stands on its own, intriguing as a work of interpretive risk-taking but captivating for its title performance. In a brief voiceover introduction, the director explains to newbies that, though the actors are in modern dress on a barely-furnished stage, the play was written by Wilde in the 1890s and set at the birth of Christianity: Judea's King Herod (Pacino) holds court with his wife Herodias (Roxanne Hart) after a great feast, and comes to make a bargain with his step-daughter Salome that will live in Biblical infamy. Pacino has shot a bit of silent B-roll to help viewers get the picture. That's useful in opening scenes, as some members of the royal guard stand on a terrace, commenting on festivities they observe through a window. The film cuts to what they're watching — glamour, debauchery, and above all, Salome. She's like the moon, they think, and the film's editing thinks so too: pale and virginal, magnetic. They're piling stacks upon stacks of similes, describing her, the night sky, and everything else they see. Soon Salome has come out for some air, where she'll eventually join the men in the poetic-comparison business. Salome hears the mad cries of John the Baptist (here known as Jokanaan, and played by Kevin Anderson), who has been imprisoned in an empty cistern. Jokanaan rails against the sinful union of Herod and his brother's former wife Herodias, and Salome must put her eyes upon him. The guards have no authority to bring him out of his cell, but one, Joe Roseto's Narraboth, is so drunk on Salome's beauty he might be convinced. Chastain offers a fine-tuned blend of seduction and imperiousness as she insists that Narraboth bring Jokanaan to her. She speaks of an inevitable moment in the coming days when her path will cross the soldier's; she will see him, she teasingly predicts. "And maybe, I will smile at you." Salome's composure breaks when Jokanaan is finally before her. Boldly admitting she is "enamored of your body," she rhapsodizes about his ivory torso, his black hair, his red lips. "Thy voice is wine to me," she says, even after he protests, "back, daughter of Babylon!" Salome's mood now flickers between lust and revulsion, but the drama is interrupted when Herod and his companions leave the dinner table and set themselves up on the terrace. From here, the film's sole subject is the old man's hardly concealed lust for his wife's daughter. Over and over, chilly Herodias rebukes him for the way he looks at her, but Herod grows more lecherous. Pacino oozes as Herod contrives new ways of paying attention to Salome. Plenty ripe himself, his Herod calls for platters of fresh fruit, which he wants the girl to taste. "I love to see in a fruit the mark of thy little teeth," he says. A viewer's tolerance for the singsongy eccentricities of Pacino's performance may waver, but as the King begs for a dance from the stepdaughter disgusted by his interest, the film's drama compels. Chastain possesses all the range and intensity she'd display later, condensing a strange emotional journey into one straightforward transaction: I will dance for you if you give me Jokanaan's severed head on a silver charger. The transaction is painful for both sides. And in the end, it's a horror show. Production company: Chal Productions Cast: Jessica Chastain, Al Pacino, Roxanne Hart, Kevin Anderson, Joe Roseto Director: Al Pacino Screenwriter: Oscar Wilde Producers: Robert Fox, Barry Navidi Executive producers: Beni Atoori, Todd Blatt, Robert Ekblom, Andrea Grano, Nader Hassen Director of photography: Benoit Delhomme Editors: Pasquale Buba, David Leonard, Jeremy Weiss 80 minutess