FLEET FOXES Helplessness blues

Fleet Foxes' unpretentious, crowd-pleasing directness was the key to their rapid rise. Their Sun Giant EP and self-titled debut LP, both released in 2008, brimmed with inviting melodies, evocative lyrics, and open-armed harmonizing that seemed designed to reach a wide variety of listeners. Their bright folk-rock sound wasn't exactly "cool," but that was sort of the point-- it's familiar in the most pleasing way, lacking conceit or affectation. Their expression of their love for music (and making music) was refreshing three years ago, and that sort of thing never gets old.But clouds inevitably roll in. On the band's follow-up, Helplessness Blues, the mood is darker and more uncertain, adding shade to their gold-hued sound. The change in tone reflects the tumultuous road Fleet Foxes traveled during the album's creation. In late 2009, Fleet Foxes had an album's worth of songs ready, but the tracks were mostly scrapped before mixing. The arduous creative process took a toll on the group members, particularly singer/songwriter Robin Pecknold  told "The last year has been a really trying creative process where I've not been knowing what to write or how to write." The group's persistence paid off, though: Helplessness Blues is comparatively deeper, more intricate, and more complex, a triumphant follow-up to a blockbuster debut. Working again with producer Phil Ek, they've crafted a cavernous record that allows more room for them to breathe and stretch. The album's longer, episodic cuts contain disquieting shifts in tone. "The Plains/Bitter Dancer", for example, begins as a spindly, psychedelic folk tune reminiscent of some of the Zombies' more introspective moments, and then, after a brief pause, bursts suddenly into the type of gangland chorus Fleet Foxes have practically trademarked by now. Elsewhere, shorter songs seem to end mid-thought; the rollicking tumble of "Battery Kinzie" cuts off suddenly, while "Sim Sala Bim"'s heavy-strummed raga quickly unfurls like broken strings. This battle between tension and serenity is new to the band's repertoire, and it lends the album a compelling uneasiness that starkly contrasts the sunnier disposition of their first two releases.The group harmonies that flowed from Fleet Foxes are in shorter supply here, employed largely to embellish tracks, allowing Pecknold to take a clearer lead role, both vocally and lyrically. He first emerged as an impressionistic songwriter, but he's since become stronger and more descriptive, conjuring vivid imagery of men striking matches on suitcase latches and penny-laden fountains. Mostly, he spends time working out his own personal puzzles, pondering the big questions of existence and meditating on the dissolution of his five-year relationship during one of Helplessness Blues' more difficult creative periods.The record reflects his determination to deal with the present while leaving the past behind. At times, Pecknold's voice takes an aggressive tone, as on the eight-minute breakup saga "The Shrine/An Argument"; other times, it cracks slightly, exposing his pain on the bittersweet "Lorelai". But the warmth is there. On the album's most intimate track, "Someone You'd Admire", he contemplates the contradictory impulses to love and to destroy, accompanied by spare harmony and softly strummed guitar.Pecknold confronts more universal concerns as well, starting with "Montezuma"'s memorable album-opening lines: "So now, I am older/ Than my mother and father/ When they had their daughter/ Now, what does that say about me?" He wrestles throughout the record with his own measurements of success, and whether any of it adds up to anything. He asks questions only to come up with more questions, and they all lead into a sort of resolution on the album's title track, "Helplessness Blues". Here, he retreats from the world into idyllic, pastoral imagery and wishes for a simpler life before trying to come to grips with his newfound renown. "Someday I'll be like the man on the screen," he promises at the end of the song.Helplessness Blues' analytical and inquisitive nature never tips into self-indulgence. Amidst the chaos, the record showcases the band's expanded range and successful risk-taking, while retaining what so many people fell in love with about the group in the first place. And once again, a strong sense of empathy is at the heart of what makes Fleet Foxes special. Much has been made of American indie's recent obsession with nostalgic escapism, but Robin Pecknold doesn't retreat. He confronts uncertainty while feeling out his own place in the world, which is something a lot of us can relate to.

DESTROYER Kaputt

 Dan Bejar from Canada for fifteen years fighting to create   his personal  sonic space . In the ninth album, " Kaputt "decides that an auspicious soft rock style with hanging  gentle  wide  orchestrations and maturity is what makes more sense for today's listener.Somehow he is right. " Kaputt "is a beautiful album. Rolls round, fragrant with the best hours of the afternoon hearing. It sounds happy and cheerful, has  romantic endings, has "space" to move and  the listener is left with such bravery in the American tradition and how strangely Scottish dash. Moreover, Dan Bejar does not skimp on the openings to electronica of our  days. Keyboards and synths stroll throughout its duration, like to enjoy a  strolling in the gardens of oblivion and peace . His compositions are "small" in ideas but big in performance.  " Kaputt "has every reason to claim the hand: it  has trouble in its effort, a positive effect (the female vocals highlight the elegance), a transcendent style and several moments that make the half-open eyes to shine here and there with joy. And further, in general   " Kaputt "  has a fair and a respectable ambition to soothe the listener without  making him  being bored . I appreciate it very much. An intersection between Al Stewart 's " Year Of The Cat "and Prefab Sprout 's " Andromeda Heights "never hurt anyone.

Debtocracy A Greek Documentary about the financial crisis

   There is the traditional way to make movies (find producer, get money, shot the film, released), and there's crowdsourcing. In the world of crowdsourcing users from every corner of the Earth or financially support any project or exchange information and contribute to completion, depending on their skills, as a peculiar puzzle of the electronic era. The film world, and particularly the independent scene, it soon adopted the habit - at this year's festival Sundance even premiered the documentary «Life in a day», a collage of short videos users YouTube. In most cases, however, the contribution of public money is (so called and provided crowdfunding), and cases such as the documentary «Corporation» and «The Age of Stupid», have already managed to secure distribution through donations.

   Successful attempts crowdfunded longer one and the "Chreokratia" documentary journalists Mars Hadjistefanou and Katerina Kitidi on the economic crisis and debt of Greece. The two journalists, along with the production team they framed, decided to avoid the traditional mintiakes platforms and released their work initially only on the Internet through websites such as YouTube, Dailymotion and through torrents .

   The profile of the documentary, which presents an alternative view from those discussed in the dominant media, may dictate the choice, which helped them to avoid any interference in the content of parties, agencies or other donors. " If it was given information, we did not want to put a great deal to teach people a different view. We wanted to spread as much as possible, mainly to stimulate discussion. For these purposes, just the production should be free and without rights [use or reproduction] , "he said in an interview with one of two directors, Katerina Kitidi.

   Once shown a small sample of their work and invited the public to fund the effort, the response has surpassed expectations of: € 8,000 for the basic costs of production were collected within 14 days from 300 individuals, clubs and associations that have may appear as co-producers in the end credits. Your account has been closed since gathered twice in total amount, which includes the cost of distribution. A detailed list of fees and charges are posted on the official website , which, as he and Mrs Kitidi is vital for such a project. " What I think it helped that there were all the items available on the Internet. If you follow this model in the future should take care of the financial part "Under this policy, even Mrs Kitidi stresses that the extra money, which so far are heading for a future documentary team returned unless announced plans over the next six months.

    After the online premiere of the evening Wednesday, April 6 , which was promoted through social networking sites and blogs, the documentary has been featured in academic schools, clubs, and local channels in the province, while the players have already agreed to distribute the film in Athens and individual views on the rest of Greece. Prepare also has completed the subtitling in English, French and Portuguese, to distribute the film abroad , primarily through organizations such as CADTM, the Committee for the debt of Third World countries, and then possibly and festivals. Even in the face of these developments, however, the production team is prepared to withdraw from cyberspace because " especially when we turned to the public, we would just have to give back to the public. This project does not belong to us but the world was paid , "said Mrs Kitidi.

    Apart from the way they have chosen to cover their investment, notable is the web presence of "Chreokratia." factors have made ​​dynamic use of modern information and networking and the resulting numbers are impressive : the film has seen a total of over than 680,000 times the references to Google exceed 1,000,000, the official website has 320,000 unique users visit, and the film's page on Facebook has 12,780 friends and Twitter 1.500 members.

The authors continue to participate actively, not only to promote the film, but the debate that has arisen from it. The research team collected the most important questions raised by viewers, the replies and posted on the website, unity, according to Mr. Kitidi will continue to be renewed. In their plans, too, is to enrich the content of the website with additional material that could not fit in the final result, which will be integrated into a mini theme documentaries, in addition to the main work. At the same time have already posted " a new version of the script, which will link to specific words that refer to our inquiry: what sources were consulted, or what other material you find on the specific word of the script. So, not only the content but the search will be available to the public . "

   But this kind of journalism is a long term viable proposal in front of the undeniable crisis, economically and effectively, the mainstream media? Mrs Kitidi believes that " the situation has now reached the media, what is needed is to find a way be able to have independent information without commitments or political institutions or from commercial companies, because a greater commitment in our times is towards the operator or entity, which is opposite to the advertising department. To be able to have independent information, perhaps the best way is to finance the public. "

JOHN KENNEDY TOOLE'S NEON BIBLE

John Kennedy Toole, who won a posthumous Pulitzer Prize for his best-selling comic masterpiece A Confederacy of Dunces, wrote The Neon Bible for a literary contest at the age of sixteen. The manuscript languished in a drawer and became the subject of a legal battle among Toole's heirs. It was only in 1989, thirty-five years after it was written and twenty years after Toole's suicide at thirty-one, that this amazingly accomplished and evocative novel was freed for publication. The Neon Bible tells the story of David, a young boy growing up in a small Southern town in the 1940s. David's voice is perfectly calibrated, disarmingly funny, sad, shrewd, gathering force from page to page with an emotional directness that never lapses into sentimentality. Through it we share his awkward, painful, universally recognizable encounter with first love, we participate in boy evangelist Bobbie Lee Taylor's revival, we meet the pious, bigoted townspeople. From the opening lines of The Neon Bible, David is fully alive, naive yet sharply observant, drawing us into his world through the sure artistry of John Kennedy Toole