If their 2009 release, This Is War, was anthemic, massive and downright epic, 30 Seconds To Mar’s (30STM) newest release, Love Lust Faith + Dreams seems to be a more toned down version of that. That said, the American rock band’s fourth disc is a concept album and so takes a while to get used to.

Split into 4 segments, a female voice can be heard at the beginning of each segment, marking the start and end of each segment. These are Love which starts of the album with “Birth” and “Conquistador”, followed by Lust which is opened by their first single, “Up In The Air” before it moves to “City of Angels”, “The Race” and closed by “End of All Days”. Faith introduces the second half of the album with “Pryes of Varanasi”, moving through “Bright Lights” and “Do or Die”. The album to brought to its conclusion by Dreams with“Convergence”, “Northern Lights” and “Depuis Le Début” (from the beginning in French).

Even before the release of the album, the band was pulling stunts for its promotion, culminating in them sending a physical recording of “Up In The Air” into space on a NASA Falcon rocket for it to dock at the International Space Station, making the single the first commercial piece of music to literally defy gravity.

You wonder, too, if this isn’t also a bid to get closer to fulfilling their name of being 30 Seconds To Mars. However, with the International Space Station being 53 million miles from our neighbouring planet, they’re still some 3,000 to 5,000 hours short – depending on how fast the NASA spacecraft is flying.

The music video of “Up In The Air” seemed to be playing on the theme of their colourful polka-dotted album cover. It features a multitude of different incoherent elements – from lions, to snakes, to zebras, to wolfs and to appearances by burlesque actress Dita Von Teese and model Ashley Smith – making it the 8 and a half minute video feel like an art house movie gone wrong.

“City Of Angels”, about the band’s home ground Los Angeles, is an emotional journey, slowly building up from a slow, spacey start, to end off with Jared Leto belting his heart out with drummer and brother Shannon’s heavy hitting, bringing the song to a mammoth climax. Quite possibly the stand out track of the entire album, its poignant lyrics will resonate with Angelenos (maybe not as much as Jay Z’s “Empire State of Mind” did for the New Yorkers) and its dramatic, passionate sound will be something for fans to connect to.

“Lost in the city of Angels, down in the comfort of strangers. I found myself in the fire burnt hills, in the land of a billion lights.”

30STM’s propensity to write colossal choruses, which up till now seemed to be lacking from the album, is finally put on show as we enter the middle part of the Faith section of the record. Almost U2-esque, “Bright Lights” features guitarist Tomo Miličević using delayed guitars and slow keyboard build-ups. Weirdly enough, Leto seems to be singing about cities, again. “Do or Die” starts off with the female voiceover proclaiming the song’s name in Chinese, and with the chorus of woahs finally used to evoke emotion rather than a gimmick to get people to join in, you can imagine sold-out stadiums shouting this back at Leto.

Quite unlike This Is War, which is instantly connectable, Love Lust Faith + Dream appears to distance the ambitious band from its audience. It’s almost as if they tried to sound much larger than they are. While the same can be said of their earlier efforts, they’ve always managed to save themselves with a couple of songs, from the old days of “Capricorn (A Brand New Name)” to the aggressive and huge “A Beautiful Lie” to the titanic chorus of their previous record “This Is War”, genuinely arena rock sounding.

Love Lust Faith + Dreams fell short of that, with the experimentation with the otherworldly sounds on “Pyres of Vanasasi” particularly disappointing, sounding more like movie trailer track, overly dramatic and theatrical, than something fit for a rock album. However, the record does have, just about, enough songs for 30 Seconds to Mars to keep selling out their stadia.

Album Details:

Artist: 30 Seconds To Mars
Album Name: Love Lust Faith + Dreams
Rating: 2.5/5
Language: English
Genre: Alternative Rock
Record Label: Virgin Records/Universal Music
Release Date: May 17, 2013

Track list:

1. Birth
2. Conquistador
3. Up In The Air
4. City of Angels
5. The Race
6. End of All Days
7. Pyres of Vanasasi
8. Bright Lights
9. Do Or Die
10. Convergence
11. Northern Lights
12. Depuis Le Debut

Singer-songwriter Joe Brooks promised at a press conference on May 22 at the Copthorne Waterfront Hotel “lots of nudity, many fireworks, and free cupcakes for everyone…” for his third show in Singapore.

“It’s going to be louder and a lot longer. There’s no plan, there’s no set list, just to go on stage and call out the songs as we go. There’s going to be a lot of spontaneity.”

One can dream that the British performer, who began his career 9 years ago at 17, will indeed have a show with everything he imagined. However on stage at Timbre @ Gillman later that day, dressed in a preppy white shirt, dark grey trousers and a skinny tie, Brooks felt the reality of his first outdoor performance in Singapore and commented, “I’ve never played at such humidity before. It’s absolutely hot as balls.”

To kick-start the 1 and a half hour show, Brooks played “The Island” and “Six String Soldier”, fresh off his upcoming album The Boy & The Broken Machine due for release on Jun 1. Both are his favourite songs from the new album and talk about the fight to get where he wants to go and how he’s “working [his] ass off” for it.

After serenading us with “Someday (OK)” and “I Find The Light In You” in his beautiful falsetto coupled with the Brit accent thousands have come to love, Brooks brought out 1 of the fans’ top favourites, “Holes Inside”. Everyone was more than eager to join in, and the sweet voices of the crowd blended perfectly with the Briton’s strong vocals, especially during the chorus. It must have brought goose bumps and perhaps even tears to those in the audience as Brooks’s heartfelt lyrics – “If we hold tight, shadows will be lost in the light. Oh cos’ sometimes, fate and your dreams can collide. When all that you’ve tried, leaves nothing but holes inside.” –of hope and a better day have a way of worming into your heart and soul.

That’s the thing about Brooks. His honesty and flair for placing his true emotions into lyrics and melodies make it very hard for you not to love him and his music. “It’s very difficult to be respected when you’re not honest in your songs… People pick up on it. They’re not stupid. Even the 14 year-old girls that may come to the show tonight will know…” said the bright-eyed singer at the press conference earlier that day.

Having his friends performing with him certainly brought a different feel to the stage. There were jokes thrown around with Brooks’ “brother from another mother” keyboardist Clinton Babers, intense acoustic and electric guitar duets with guitarist Braden Lyle, and sweet harmonisation sung by the 3 of them. Particularly drummer Matt ’s de la Garza whose impeccable harmony could be heard the clearest and melded exquisitely with Brooks.

Coming back to Brooks’ a**, a flurry of panic ran through the hearts of the over 100 fans present when he ended off the show by falling on his butt. Nothing was damaged, except maybe his pride, as he quickly ducked away behind the stage, only to return later when a birthday cake was brought out to celebrate his 26^th birthday. Although it was 3 days late, Brooks was so touched he gave the girl who brought the cake up a big kiss on her cheek, stunning her and making all his fans scream with surprise and jealousy.

He was so touched by the mini birthday celebration, that he decided to really end off the show by playing a few more tracks like his top hit “Superman” and “Till My Heart Stops Beating”, Joe Brooks and his band gave his fans something to remember; and having played 4 new pieces, something to look forward to as well.

Laurel Lim, 18, who only became a fan of Joe Brooks a year ago, was captivated by the performance and couldn’t help but sway to the music during the show. “He was even nice enough to thank every one who went for his concert personally during the fan signing after,” said Laurel, who was utterly speechless with awe when the beloved idol shook her hand.

Photos By: Sony Music Singapore

David Copperfield and friends meet Robin Hood describes star-studded Now You See Me, a series of bank robberies pulled off by stage magicians.

The Vegas audience get more than a great magic show, they’re showered with million of dollars of real cash, stolen from a bank all the way in France as part of the performance. The theatrics involved make for an incredibly entertaining performance –a member of the audience is teleported to France where he robs a bank, after which the winnings are showered on the crowd- with CGI and the characters’ showmanship elevating the heist to a whole new level.

The Four Horsemen responsible for this highly entertaining and “enriching” trick are classic card-trick master Daniel Atlas (Jesse Eisenberg), escape artiste Henley Reeves (Isla Fisher), amateur magician/pick pocket Jack Wilder (Dave Franco) and hypnotist Merritt McKinney (Woody Harrelson).

With the French bank missing 3 million euros (S$4.98 million), the magicians are brought in for questioning over the robbery, by FBI agent Dylan Rhodes (Mark Ruffalo) and his French counterpart, Interpol Agent Alma Vargas (Mélanie Laurent). After interrogations fail to produce any answers and with insufficient evidence, the 4 are released to go on to their next show in New Orleans.

You see then, that the mystery figure who recruited them was right in appreciating how their different areas of magical expertise complement each other and make them perfect for the crimes. Yes, the word’s plural because they continue to stage more performances and knock off other banks, as they elude the law.

Meanwhile, Rhodes meets with Thaddeus Bradley (Morgan Freeman), a retired magician who now exposes magicians’ tricks for a living. Having been at the first show, Thaddeus explains how the first illusion was done, breaking down the main mechanics of the heist, though his explanations don’t cover several key points, which may be disconcerting for the audience.

The 4 manage to complete 3 heists disguised as magic shows, each ending with giving away their loot to the audience, and the brilliance of infusing a heist with illusions and hypnotism, not to mention the financial windfall that far exceeds the price of a ticket, keep the audience enthralled and amused.

Behind the scenes sits their benefactor, insurance tycoon Arthur Tressler (Michael Caine) who underwrites their performances. Subservient as the butler Alfred from Batman, Caine’s now in the commanding and assertive role of an arrogant millionaire.

Despite the movie’s failure to explain all the questions raised, like how did the magicians teleport from the top of one building to the next during their last performance, the quick pace with stolen money, car chases and fight scenes make it easy for the audience to ignore the gaps in the storyline.

Director Louis Leterrier known for action-packed The Incredible Hulk and Clash of the Titans.

The star-studded cast, despite being impressive (the Horsemen are especially convincing in their roles as magicians), are handicapped by their under-developed characters despite a long running time of nearly 2 hours. It’s a pity we don’t get to see more of their back stories, especially for Thaddeus and Dylan. Instances of humour from Meritt directed at Daniel and his relationship with Henley get a chuckle or 2 from the audience, but other than that, the story, like any magic trick, moves too fast for much else.

The movie ends with a twist and a love story that feel misplaced and unnecessary.  Who cares about romance, especially with a character you don’t know enough to care about, unless it’s part of the heist! Although the movie can’t hold a candle to the Ocean’s trilogy, it does amuse with the novelty of combining magic tricks and heists. The cast really picked up the slack and saved the show from its weak storyline, as Rhodes says after a surprising twist at the end, “The real magic is taking 4 strong solo acts and making them work together.”

If theatrics and magic tricks still delight and amuse you, the movie is one you don’t want to miss!

Rating: 3.5/5

Release Date: June 6

Runtime: 1 hr 55 min

Language: English

Censorship rating: PG 13

Genre: Action/Thriller

Director: Louis Leterrier

Main actors: Jesse Eisenberg, Mark Ruffalo, Michael Caine, Woody Harrelson

Collectively, they traced how far Singapore’s first professional dance troupe has come in 25 years when it started with just 7 dancers. It doesn’t matter if you’ve never seen a ballet production before. One thing’s for sure, SDT’s 25^th anniversary gala is sure to blow you away with the stunning performances they have to offer, which includes precise movements, charming intricacies and beautiful visual effects.

The gala celebration was a fitting showcase of its best works from the company’s repertoire ranging from classical to contemporary ballet.

“We want to look good on stage especially for this anniversary gala that represents what we have achieved during these 25 years as a company,” Chihiro Uchida, a senior artist at SDT, tells UrbanWire.

The 25^th Anniversary Gala was nothing short of pure elegance. The night started off with Serenade by George Balanchine. The ballet was a gracefully executed piece, against the stunning royal blue backdrop, where the dancers were almost floating, flawlessly in sync with one another. With every graceful leap and pointe comes a soundless echo, showing how the dancers effortlessly controlled their weight shift. It was truly a breath-taking opening as they perfectly executed the signature piece of the New York City Ballet, setting the bar for the night.

The company has come a long way since its inception. When it started, the 7 dancers trained on the second storey of a rundown colonial bungalow on Killiney road. Just last year, the 37 dancers started practising in the gleaming bright Bugis+ mall. Its new premise boasts 20,500 sq ft, and four large studios for the dancers.

When it was time for Beginnings by the late and renowned choreographer Goh Choo San who co-founded the troupe, the crowd was taken back in time to 1988, when SDT first performed. The moment it began, the 2 couples, Beatrice Castañeda & Nazer Salgado and Kwok Min Yi & Ryo Suzuki, were nail-bitingly dramatic, as they explored the intense yet intimate dynamics in a relationship. Watching the dancers seemingly telling their love story was akin to seeing a drama unfold right before your eyes.

A piece that got the audience excited was ZIN! by Dutch choreographer Nils Christe. It was an attention-grabbing piece, because you’d hardly associate the high art form of ballet with something as commonplace as soccer. Yet, here we have 7 dancers that were supposedly mimicking a warm-up routine for a football match, with a touch of witty humour thrown in. The dancers sported red and white outfits, and whistles that were blown continuously to time with the bubbly upbeat tempo of the music “Serra Pelada” by Philip Glass.

Despite being a physically demanding and energetic piece, the dancers hardly showed a hint of fatigue; their grins stretched from ear to ear throughout the routine. The item hit a high when the dancers surprised us with the use of a canon of playful butt bumping, drawing loud cheers from the audience.

The highlight of the gala, however, was the world premiere of OPUS 25 by award-winning Chinese-American choreographer Edwaard Liang. The piece d’occasion was a specially commissioned work that featured the entire company of dancers, bringing out the strengths of each dancer as they brought out the fullness of the choreography, starting off with strong sharp movements, powerful lifts and tricks, and then transitioning to a dreamlike state, where the dancers had so much fluidity in their movement, it was almost like as if they were corals swaying in the sea. It was definitely a night to remember for both the audience and dancers.

For many dancers, SDT is more than just a dance company; it’s part of their life. Speaking to UrbanWire before the show, Kwok Min Yi, a Singaporean-born apprentice dancer with SDT, says, “Watching performances by SDT has been a part of my childhood, which is why it will always have a place in my heart.”

Fans disappointed with The Hangover 2 storyline will be glad to hear that The Hangover 3 is nothing like its previous instalment, which wore the bachelor-party-gone-wrong story thin. This time, the plot’s much better and not at the expense of the laughs either.

The movie starts out in an exaggerated slow motion, where Chow makes his dramatic escape from a Thai prison, warming us up to the tone of the movie – pretty dark, yet inexplicably bringing us a huge laugh.

It’s been 2 years since the wolf pack last heard from Leslie Chow (Ken Jeong) who was captured in the previous Hangover. Meanwhile, Phil (Bradley Cooper), Stu (Ed Helms), Doug (Justin Bartha) and Alan (Zach Galifianakis) are glad for their humdrum lives, thinking that their surreal misadventures are behind them. That is, until they meet again at Alan’s father’s funeral.

When the guys discover that Alan stopped taking his ADHD medication, they try to persuade him to seek help before he goes berserk. En route to checking him into a rehab facility in Arizona- the foursome are rear-ended by a mob. Their leader, Marshall (John Goodman), was robbed of $21 million worth of gold and Chow was –expectedly- guilty as charged. Forced into action by the threat to Doug’s life, the group sets out on a manhunt for the elusive Chow.

The Hangover 3 isn’t only different in terms of its storyline. For starters, (brace yourselves) nobody’s close to being hungover. I vaguely remember myself thinking – the movie should really be called Sober 1. But despite the hilarity centering on the hung over antics of the confused men in the previous 2 movies, the cast manage to tickle your funny bones without having to pull a cork off any bottle.

The cast entertains us with 100 minutes worth of hilarious campy action where it all began, Las Vegas. As the saying goes, what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.

Part 3 has all eyes on Alan, our wacky bearded friend, who continues to amuse us with his awkward lack of societal norms, including unexpectedly taking a ‘selfie’ at his father’s funeral… but well, that’s Alan for you. A beautiful and elegant turn from Alan’s usually hyperactive behaviour, it was the sheer genius of Director Todd Phillips that Alan sang “Ave Maria” in a high register for the funeral.

Taking centre stage to Alan’s coming of age was Chow as he got sides splitting with his crude humour. Parachuting down the now the famous Caesars Palace singing “I Believe I Can Fly” with his thick Asian accent accompanied, he got the theatre choking on their laughter.

A new addition to the Hangover 3 is the outlandish character Cassie, played by Melissa McCarthy. In a creepy yet comical sharing of sharing a lollipop with each other, Cassie and Alan develop an almost disturbingly intense chemistry.

However not all humour was appreciated in The Hangover 3, especially not by animal lovers who were rather upset at the bad taste of abusing animals. No actual animals were harmed in the making of the film, but the violence against them to forcefully create comedy was aplenty.  Criticised for the decapitation of a giraffe, the suffocation of a chicken, and the killing two guard dogs, some audience members found it too morbid and distasteful.

Phillips was smart to end the franchise at its peak. Other than knowing that the characters couldn’t go any further, the movie itself was starting to lose popularity. Despite The Hangover 3 opening a day earlier to avoid a head-on collision with Fast & Furious 6, it sadly dropped to a distant second in the US box office. Hardcore fans of the franchise were, however, still supportive of the return of the third instalment.

And with this, the final part of The Hangover franchise wraps up with the wolf pack’s final walk down the hallway. Although The Hangover 3 fell short of its expectations, the finale was an emotional closure as it flashed back to scenes from the previous hangovers. Where they walked towards trouble before, this time, the four now walk towards a new beginning. Although most would say that the final part of The Hangover was a little short on laughs, it was an inevitable closure as it answered Alan’s question: Haven’t you learnt anything? And it seems like they have… that is, until you reach the end credits.

Despite the underwhelming response by critics for its lack of laughter and crude execution of comedy, the audience in Singapore were responsive and chuckled their way through the film.

Rating: 3.5/5

Release Date: May 30

Runtime: 1hr 40mins

Language: English

Censorship Rating: M18

Genre: Comedy

Director: Todd Phillips

Main Actors: Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis, Ken Jeong

Contrary to the album title, Bankrupt!, Phoenix might be hitting gold despite offering a different vibe and direction from its successful predecessor, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, their Grammy-winning album for Best Alternative Music with a total of721 000 copies sold in the US as of April 2013.

The concept for this synth-driven work was birthed by Thomas Mars, lead singer of the French quartet, who believes their success 4 years ago might pose an obstacle moving forward. Their desire to start on a clean slate, led them to explore “the sort of bankruptcy”, according to an interview with BBC news and explains the album’s striking name.

“Entertainment” kick-started the album with a familiar sounding oriental chime before turning into an earworm with Mars’ dreamy voice working its charm of leaving the lyrics, “What you want and what you do to me/ I’ll take the trouble that you have in mind” lingering in your head even after the song is over. It may seem that “Entertainment” is yet another typical Phoenix song with its melodious hooks, however, the song illustrates how fame has affected the band making them more recognised after their trio success “1901”, “Lisztomania” and “Fences” and how they’d rather stick to their principles than be blinded by all that fame brings, hence “I’d rather be alone”. Purposeful and more palatable to the masses compared to the other songs in the album, it’s safe to say that this hit single is almost on par with their Billboard chart topper, “1901”.

The differing point of this album compared to Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, can also be seen in songs like “S.O.S In Bel Air”, which is the gratifying point of the album. The louder, dripping with heavy synths, and punctuated with pulsating drumbeats, song reaches its climax when Mars appropriately bellows: “Put my name on your list/ S.O.S in Bel Air/”.

“Trying To Be Cool” is another track to look out for, with its funky vibe and electric swirls. It seems the French do have their charm as the downtempo track showcases Mars as he coos “Tell me that you want me/ Tell me that you want me”, literally begging you to love it.

Almost every of Phoenix’s 5 albums contains a longish song that usually spans from 5 to 9 minutes which acts as an interlude.However, in the case of Bankrupt! it’s a little disappointing that its title song didn’t live up to the standard of the other interludes in the previous albums such as “Love Like a Sunset” in Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix. The track starts off with a low-key pulsating beat that’s shortly accompanied by an almost tranquil rhythm, slowly building up to an eccentric middle section before finally ending as a folk song, making it feel really messy and all over the place. The build up was so slow and erratic that you’re tired before you even get to the singing, which is quite a pity considering how the lyrics are so well written, “Caledonian rich and young/ Self-entitled portrait/ Court in session, justice done” poking fun of the “rich and young”.

Bankrupt! may not be as coherent as Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix’s perfectly arranged flow of the tracks  but it shone almost as brightly, exuding Phoenix’s charm through their catchy melodies and repetitive lyrics. This fulfills their purpose of evoking emotions out of their listeners, instead of trying to interpret their, at times, illogical songs. Was this album a failure then? It could have been a carbon copy of the previous commercial success, but that would leave no space for the band to grow creatively. Instead, with this reboot, “I’m just too glad to say no/ just too glad to say no”.

Album Details:

Artiste: Phoenix

Album Name: Bankrupt!

Rating: 3.5/5

Language: English

Genre: Alternative Rock, Synthpop

Record Label: V2 Records

Release Date: April 22, 2013

Tracklist:

1. Entertainment

2. The Real Thing

3. S.O.S. In Bel Air

4. Trying to Be Cool

5. Bankrupt!

6. Drakkar Noir

7. Chloroform

8. Don’t

9. Bourgeois

10. Oblique City