On the Rise: Bobby Long at Troubadour

Bobby Long

Troubadour, West Hollywood, Calif.

Friday, July 9

British singer-songwriter has stepped up from his last Los Angeles appearance at the Hotel Cafe in Hollywood, recently playing the Troubadour in West Hollywood. And this time, it wasn't solo. Backed by a full band, KGB, Long's already rich material took on new textures with a greater dynamic.

The set included a slow-burn opener in "The Rattle and Roll," followed by one of his best song, "Who Have You Been Loving?"
While inspirations such as Bob Dylan and Van Morrison can be found in his work as he sketches scenes and toys with words, Long isn't derivative in the least.  While from the UK, his sound is more Americana, a combination of folk and rock elements, not unlike singer-songwriters of the early '70s.

In a solo run with just acoustic guitar, he offered the intimacy that included the solace of "Sad Woman Blues" and plaintive "I Give Her Love."  Two members of his band - guitarist Kalob Griffin and drummer Eric Lawry - joined him for a new tune, "It's Hard To Take,'  as they traded off verses with harmony.  The rest of the band returned to the stage for the powerful and searing "Penance Fire Blues." The combination of the two songs made for one of the evening's highlights.

Other standouts included "Left to Lie," "Cold Cuts for Torches" with opening act Trouble Over Toyko and a compelling cover ot Jack Teagarden's "100 Years From Today." He wrapped it up with an appropriate "Dead and Done."  No false encores were needed.  He'd made his statement and without a doubt won new fans.
For an indie artist, with little if any airplay at all, it was remarkable how many in the crowd sang along to many of the songs. These fans are devoted already and the flock is growing.

Long is one of several British singer-songwriters on the rise, including his friend Marcus Foster and another pal who's kind of become well-known in film, a guy by the name of Rob Pattinson. But while that Twilight connection may send some to check out Long's music, his songs and earnest performances stand on their own. 

You'll find Bobby Long here on myspace, and also www.musicbobbylong.com dedicated to his music.

photos courtesy of Sharon Weisz/W3

'Twilight Eclipse' Review: One for Guys, Too

Finally, a Twilight film that won't make husbands and boyfriends squirm in their theater seats. 

The Twilight Saga: Eclipse is a monsters-in-action movie first and a romance second. Which is okay. Really, aren't many films and TV shows in the genre dark romances as well? Think Buffy/Angel, Moonight, Dark Shadows and more.


It helps much that this third installment is helmed by David Slade, an actual horror film director(30 Days of Night) who also also gets teen-centered turmoil with tension (Hard Candy).  Previous directors Catherine Hardwicke on Twilight and Chris Weitz on New Moon each had a different style, the former quite indie yet too self-concious and the latter forced to deal with an unfortunately plodding first half of a story. 




Eclipse picks up where New Moon left off. A "newborn" is created and he becomes the vampire big bad until we learn the power behind the power (like it's hard to figure out). The cliffhanger ending of the prior film is resolved early on - or is it? Of course not. High schooler Bella (Kristen Stewart) is torn between eternally teenage vampire Edward (Robert Pattinson) werewolf boy Jacob (Taylor Lautner).  While Jacob showed fire (and his abs, to teen and soccer mom screams) in the last movie, the sullen, emo Edward is now much more the dangerous vampire he'd been saying he was all this time. Yes, he still sparkles in the sun and has no fangs, but that's writer Stephenie Meyer's lore, dopey as it is (to some of us, sorry). 

Sinister new vamp Riley (Xavier Samuels) has raised a army and they don't just want human blood. So it's up to hero blood-suckers, the Cullens, to take them on. But they can't do it alone. Meanwhile, the evil Victoria, dressed from the Janis Joplin boutique, is back and wants revenge for the deaths of lover James and fellow vamp Laurent. Along the way, we also get additional back-stories of some Cullens, Jasper (Jackson Rathbone) and Rosalie (Nikki Reed), each tale filled with tragedy, plus there's the origin reveal of how Native American shapeshifters became werewolves. This is loads better than Bella journal confessions in voiceover and time spent with her Nik channel high school pals.  Still, the theme of graduation yields a funny line or two and some typical grad moments.


You can be sure that Twihards who've read all the books know how things will turn out.  And Eclipse appears to be a pretty faithful adaption of what's probably the most solid book in the series. While the love triangle is still at the center of the movie, it's the "good" vamps and werewolf alliance against "bad" vamps that drives the film and makes its watchable for guys.  

So, let's put it this way: Think Marvel Comics team-ups. You've got the X-Men of vampires (the Cullen clan, since each with their own extra "gift") joining forces with adversaries, the shapeshifting wolf pack (okay, they're not Magneto's Evil Brotherhood, but you get the idea).  It's the ol' the enemy of my enemy thing, a truce for their greater good against a greater evil. And it works. The action sequences, especially the big battle have more in common with fantasy films then the first two movies, though the Volturi ruling class of Italian vampires were fascinating and didn't get enough screen time in New Moon and thankfully, play a part here, led by Dakota Fanning, creepy with a nasty streak, too. 


What's obvious and wince-inducing?  The dangers of sex, as funneled through Meyer's Twi-world with restrictive Morman perceptions. There's nothing wrong with sticking to one's values, but It's all delivered in such a heavy-handed fashion. On the other hand, the Edward-Jacob rivalry is snipe-filled, with plenty of verbal and visual barbs for those who are one "team" or the other, leaving the rest of us to just be, well, a bit amused. 


Stewart is far more tolerable than her annoying, no-one-understands-me portrayal in the first two movies (but blame the character rather the actress). Pattinson is still brood boy, but gets to ah, sink his non-fang teeth into the role much more.  Lautner also gets greater range here, wearing all emotions on the outside as Jacob as opposed to internal-until-he-bursts Edward.  


There are several standouts in the rest of the cast, though all are quite settled into their respective roles. Billy Burke is especially good as Bella's local cop dad Charlie, who wants her away from Edwward, though still does not know about the vampires or werewolves (one of the flaws in this series as he is cleary no idiot).  Peter Facinelli plays Carlisle Cullen with continuing paternal grace, wisdom and even warmth for a "cold one" and Ashley Greene's Alice is still darn cute. Bryce Dallas Howard (Spider-Man 3) takes over as Victoria from Rachelle Lefevre and does well enough with it, though Lefevre seemed to perhaps have a darker edge in the first film. 



Everything comes to a satisfying conclusion (not quite a happy ending for all, but...) and most plot threads are nicely sewn up. It could all end here as a trilogy but of course, there's one more book, Breaking Dawn and that's being divided into two films (milk that franchise) and could also be titled "The Volturi Confrontation," if you want a "hint" of where things are heading. But again, Twitards already know what's to come. Still, Eclipse is sure to make them happy, heck, giddy and this time, grumbling male companions won't be wishing they were in the theater next door watching something else. 

The X-Men of Sparkly Vampires?

'Twilight Breaking Dawn' Confirmed as Two-Parter

What "Twihards" (or "Twitards") 'round the world already knew has been confirmed by Summit Entertainment.  In an official press release, the studio announced that The Twilight Sage: Breaking Dawn will be released as two films, with the first due in theaters on November 18, 2011.  



"Academy Award-winner Bill Condon will direct both films starring Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner along with Billy Burke as Charlie Swan as well as returning members of the Cullen Family including Peter Facinelli as Carlisle, Elizabeth Reaser as Esme, Jackson Rathbone as Jasper, Nikki Reed as Rosalie, Ashley Greene as Alice and Kellan Lutz as Emmett," the release said. No date has been named for part-time, but it's likely set for the late spring or early summer of 2012.

The two-parter is based on the fourth novel in author Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series and is currently being written by Melissa Rosenberg with Wyck Godfrey, Karen Rosenfelt and Stephenie Meyer producing. Production will start this fall.


Meanwhile, the third movie, Eclipse, arrives in theaters soon, on June 30 and the soundtrack was released this week, featuring some of the hottest names in modern rock.  Look for a review here soon on That Writer Guy. 


Some may adore the books and films, some may loathe it all, but there's no denying Twilight in all incarnations has become a multi-media pop culture phenomenon.