Cat's Eyes

Cat’s Eyes is a collaboration between The Horrors’ Farris Badwan and Canadian musician Rachel Zeffira. Having performed their first gig at St. Peters Basilica in the Vatican City (!), they’ll be bringing their suitably grand, boy/girl, heartbreak- pop to the UK in March, culminating with a show at the Amadeus Centre in London on the 18th. They release an EP – ‘Broken Glass’ – on February 28th through Polydor, followed by a self-titled album on April 11th.

Download today’s MPFree, ‘Not a friend’, via the Cat’s Eyes website.

Five great bits of comedy you can watch free online

Snipe recently rediscovered an old comedic friend online. A strange experience – outwardly we lol-ed rambunctiously at the jokes, inside we were crying at the remorseless passage of time. Here are five free videos from years past which will stir up some similarly mixed emotions. But mostly laughter.

Arrested Development Tribute Video

If we had to choose one video on the entire internet to take to a desert island (and we were forced to make it clean), it would be this one. Arrested Development isn’t (legally) available in full online, but this is an incredible tribute. Moment after moment of comic genius synced perfectly to the lyrics of that Peep Show theme song. If you know AD at all, this will make you happy beyond measure. If you don’t, self flagellate with a large whip for the next hour and then buy yourself a copy.

Old Stand Up

Here’s Steve Martin dicking around with some balloons. Here’s Richard Pryor talking about the word “nigger”. Here’s Stewart Lee discussing the changing parameters of morality through the ages. Seek out good stand up, reader, and ye shall find.

Not the Nine O’Clock News

Still one of the funniest sketches ever. The way Atkinson says “walking around with an offensive wife” is a thing of beauty.

Massive Landmarks of the 20th Century
No more embeds, but click through for the videos. Here is a link which will take you to a special place, a place of underrated comedy, of overblown hats, of shaky historical knowledge, of improper use of English…here is a link to the National Theatre of Brent’s magnum opus, in which two middle aged white men in suits act out the defining events of the last century. Very badly. If you have the slightest interest in history, politics, the arts, culture, comedy or human life itself, you will watch this series and you will laugh.

Clark and Michael
More Michael Cera here, this time in a low budget self made project which probably wouldn’t be much good if he wasn’t so darn cute.

'The Boutique Sessions' - big sound in a tiny Bethnal Green charity shop

I’m running late. Skip out of Bethnal Green tube—past the Children’s Museum —first right down Old Ford Road—the public baths on my left—next, the Gallery Café—and now: AYOKA Charity Boutique. Excellent. Ten, fifteen minutes late; not so bad.

I lurch through the door with little grace, blushing under the gaze of an elegantly adorned manikin in faux fur poised in the far right of the store. It’s cosy. Rails of clothes track the walls with vinyl and book cladding in one corner. A bouquet of vintage scarves tempts me by the cash register alongside hand-crafted jewellery by local artists.

Last Night in LDN: The Mariners Children and The Head and the Heart at the Lex 24 January 2010

It was a fabulous night in Islington. Photos by Angela Confeggi.

The Mariners Children

The Head and the Heart

London agenda for Tuesday 25 January

1. You know nothing of my work. Annie Hall at the BFI [Le Cool]

2. Surround oneself with an evening of sound, music, entertainment and performance at Goldmsmiths, featuring Martin Creed [Run Riot]

3. Be entranced by Hadestown with Anais Mitchell [London Gigs]

4. Remember Robert Burns at the Embankment Gardens memorial [Tired of London]

5. Write a Mills & Boon romance novel at the Mills & Boon Workshop [Jon Davis]

6. Blend contemporary pop art and vibrant fashion at Chicks on Speed: Happening [Lauren Down]

Exhibition Guide: 24 - 30 January

John Stezaker: ‘Marraige (Film Portrait Collage) LXI.’ Courtesy the artist, the approach and Whitechapel Gallery, 2010

Chicks on Speed: Happening
Kate MacGarry, 7a Vyner Street, Cambridge Heath, E2 9DG

Fashion, art and music all play a key role in the complex, multimedia output of Chicks on Speed. Their sculptural works often function as instruments, props and tools in their live performances, which in turn blend contemporary pop art and vibrant fashion with an early 20th Century avant-garde chique. Until 30 January.

www.katemacgarry.com

John Stezaker
Whitechapel Gallery, 77-82 Whitechapel High Street, Aldgate East, E1 7QX

This exhibition showcases a selection of over 90 works from the renowned 70s collage artist John Stezaker. Working with vintage postcards, illustrations and classic movie stills Stezaker’s surreal infused, Max Ernst-esque works are truly beguiling. 29 January – 18 March.

www.whitechapel.org

Oliver Pietsch
Nettie Horn, 25b Vyner Road, Cambridge Heath, E2 9DG

Nettie Horn gallery presents Berlin-based Oliver Pietsch’s 40-minute film ‘From Here to Eternity.’ An exploration of mortality and the theme of death throughout cinematic history, Pietsch’s film plays with video montage, using an array of imagery from classic archived material modern Blockbuster film reels. Until 30 January.

www.nettiehorn.com

Keep an eye for more in-depth February listings in next month’s issue of Snipe.

Neds

Neds (short for Non-Educated Delinquents in the film) charts the viscous trickle of one gifted boy’s eventual adhesion to the 1970s Glaswegian gang culture, a fate that Peter Mullan (writer-director), now into his third feature, so narrowly avoided in his youth.

Peter, Bjorn, and John

Swedish Homebase endorsers Peter, Bjorn and John return on March 29th with new album ‘Gimme Some’, the follow-up to 2009’s underwhelming ‘Living Thing’. Released on Star Time International, lead single ‘Breaker Breaker’ bodes well – two minutes of fuzzy, punk energy wrapped around P, B and J’s inherent melodic gift; a return to the inspiring, song-writing form of breakthrough album ‘Writer’s Block’. Download it for free, here.

Peter, Bjorn & John – Breaker, Breaker by snipelondon

Musicians with Literary Pretensions

Bob Dylan is going back to the books after his critically acclaimed Chronicles: Volume One. I suppose that comes as no surprise given the title, but the legendary troubadour has signed a whopping six-book deal. But what’s seven books from the man who’s written fifty six albums.

This has got us at Snipe pondering which other musicians have swapped the guitar for the pen. Of course celebrity memoirs are ten a penny so to make things more interesting we’ve found a handful of musicians who’ve been a bit more ambitious and attempted the art of fiction.

Nick Cave
The Bad Seeds frontman is no stranger to the literary scene having written several novels and screenplays. His critically praised 2009 novel The Death of Bunny Munro tells story of a middle aged alcoholic traveling salesman and Cave even wrote a soundtrack for the Ebook.

Pete Wentz
Now if you don’t know who Pete Wentz is then shame on you. He’s the bassist from Fall Out Boy. Wentz’s 2005 The Boy with the Thorn in His Side is influenced by the nightmare he had as a young child and receives a 4.5 star rating from Amazon’s discerning reviewers.

Geri Halliwell
The UN ambassador and former Spice Girl is the author of a collection of children’s stories. The books follow the adventures of Ugenia Lavender but also included the character Princess Posh Vatoria. If any characters are based on real life people she’s certainly keeping it close to her chest.

Pete Townsend
The Who’s guitarist is a bit of literary dark horse. Townsend has written a string of novels, was an acquisitions editor for Faber and Faber, and even founded his own publishing company, Eel Pie Publishing.

Bruce Dickinson
In 1990 the Iron Maiden singer published The Adventures of Lord Iffy Boatrace, and even wrote a sequel due to high demand. The original tells the story of the orally decrepit aristocrat whose estate is in a severe state of dilapidation. To raise much-needed cash he arranges a “grouse shoot” where his old school friends are invited to shoot what he ensures are indestructible “grouse”. I think I might be missing something here, but it did receive a 5 star rating on amazon. Sorry Wentz.

London agenda for Monday 24 January

1. Part spoken word, part gig, all Kirsten Hirsch [Le Cool]

2. See a beautiful duet of movement, free form jazz & a barrel full of black pain of a most mysterious creature [Run Riot]

3. Spy the Admiralty Citadel [Tired of London]

4. We already gave away the tickets to a lucky winner, but we’ll still be at the Head and the Heart at the Lex

5. But who does’t like thrash? Divorce, Child Abuse, Dead Days Beyond Help at the Victoria, Dalston [London Gigs]