music, Uncategorized

1775

Dauði Baldrs (1997)

Dauði Baldrs (youtube) (Old Norse for “Baldr’s Death” or “The Death of Baldr”) is the fifth album by the Norwegian solo act Burzum. Unlike Burzum’s previous work, which was mostly black metal, this is a dark ambient album. It was recorded using a synthesizer and a normal tape recorder by Varg Vikernes while he was in prison, as he was not allowed to have any other instruments or recording equipment. The album has been described by many as “dungeon synth“.

The album is about the legacy of Baldr, the second son of Odin in Norse mythology. Most likely a concept album, as the whole album leads up to Ragnarök, the battle at the end of the world in Norse mythology.

“Illa tiðandi” is easily the most minimalist track, with only two sections being repeated over the 10:29 duration, which are both simple piano melodies, eventually accompanied by a choral chant. It is an alternative version of the song “Decrepitude I” (wiki)


Thulêan Mysteries (2020)

Thulêan Mysteries (youtube) is the twelfth and final studio album by Norwegian musical project Burzum.

Recorded as a soundtrack to Vikernes’ role-playing game MYFAROG, the album follows the post-prison era medieval/dark ambient musical style. Vikernes said of the album:

“Since my true passion has never been music, but actually tabletop role-playing games, I figured I should make this an album intended for that use; as background music for my own MYFAROG (Mythic Fantasy Role-playing Game).”

The album’s artwork is by Norwegian artist Theodor Kittelsen called “Nøkken” (wiki)


movies

1742 – WW84 (2020)

timespace coordinates: Washington, D.C. 1984 (during the Cold War)

WW84-scaled

Wonder Woman 1984 (stylized as WW84) is a 2020 American superhero film based on the DC Comics character Wonder Woman. It is the sequel to 2017’s Wonder Woman and the ninth installment in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU).

The film is directed by Patty Jenkins from a script she wrote with Geoff Johns and David Callaham. Gal Gadot stars as Diana Prince / Wonder Woman, alongside Chris PineKristen WiigPedro PascalRobin Wright, Connie Nielsen and Lilly Aspell.

The film follows Diana and her past love Steve Trevor as they face off against Max Lord and Cheetah. (wiki)

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imdb   /   Sequel   /   Spin-off


In Greek mythology, the Amazon Asteria was one of those slain by Hercules when he came to Themyscira to take Hippolyta’s girdle as one of his famous Labors.   Asteria is also the name of the Greek goddess of stars.

animation, documentary, series, Uncategorized

1618 – The Shivering Truth (TV Series 2018-)

The Shivering Truth is an American stop-motion animated surrealist sketch comedy television series created by Vernon Chatman and directed by Chatman and Cat Solen. The show is produced by Solen with PFFR and ShadowMachine, and features the voice talents of Janeane Garofalo, Chatman, Kevin Breznahan, Trey Parker, Miriam Tolan, Michael CeraJonah HillStarlee KineRichard Steven HorvitzZack PearlmanMaria BamfordConner O’MalleyDavid CrossMartha Plimpton, Peter Serafinowicz, and Jordan PeeleThe Shivering Truth premiered at midnight on December 9, 2018 on Adult Swim, with the pilot episode having been released online on May 22, 2018 on the Adult Swim website.

When announced in a press release by Adult Swim in May 2017, The Shivering Truth was described as “a delicately crafted, darkly surreal anthology comedy, a miniature propulsive omnibus cluster bomb of painfully riotous daymares all dripping with the orange goo of dream logic. A series of loosely-linked emotional parables about stories within tales that crawled out of the deepest caverns of your unconscious mind and became lovingly animated in breath-slapping stop motion – in other words, it is the TRUTH”.

The characters in the show are 10-inch (250 mm) puppets with wire-based armatures, created with silicon, wool, polystyrene, and resin. Chatman has noted several inspirations for his work on the show, including Terry Gilliam‘s work on Monty Python’s Flying Circus, stating that “I saw it when I was very young, so it scared me. I didn’t know when the animation was beginning or ending.” He also explained that “A lot of my influences are non-animated, primarily in short films, novels, even radio shows. A recent one is David Eagleman‘s books on the brain. He’s a neuroscientist and he gives you 40 different versions of the afterlife, and none of them can co-exist.” Solen has spoken on her inspirations as well, saying that “I loved the movie The Wizard of Speed and Time, which is a cautionary tale about making movies. Another film that I loved as a kid was Nicolas Roeg‘s [film] adaptation of Roald Dahl‘s The Witches, which featured both Anjelica Huston and Jim Henson‘s puppets. It scared me so much!” (wiki)


imdb   /  adultswim.com/videos/the-shivering-truth

movies

1563 – Amulet (2020)

MV5BNzFiYTdiMDktMzJhZi00NzEwLTgxN2UtNDc5OTM5MmVhMjRkXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTEyMjM2NDc2._V1_SY1000_SX675_AL_A homeless ex-soldier in London is offered a place to stay at a decaying house, inhabited by a young woman and her dying mother, and begins to suspect something unnatural is living there, too.

MV5BMDk3YTA1ZjEtNjY5YS00OWFiLTg5ZWYtNjc3OGVlYmJlMDRhXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyNTIyMjU5NQ@@._V1_SY1000_CR0,0,709,1000_AL_Amulet is a 2020 British horror film written and directed by Romola Garai (in her directorial debut) and starring Carla JuriImelda Staunton and Alec Secareanu.

Amulet_069David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter called the film “smart and stylish” and wrote: “Garai steadily builds suspense while keeping her intentions enigmatic until quite late in the action. She eventually folds together mysteries of the past with terrors of the present in an out-there final act that goes full-throttle Dario Argento, mixing digital and hand-made effects in a sea of garish reds and bizarre pagan visions.” (wiki)

imdb   /   rottentomatoes

movies

1553 – The Old Guard (2020)

spacetime coordinates: 2019 (/2024?) South Sudan >  Afghanistan > France > England

The Old Guard is a 2020 American superhero film directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood and written by Greg Rucka, based on his comic book of the same name. The film stars Charlize TheronKiKi LayneMatthias SchoenaertsMarwan KenzariLuca Marinelli, and Chiwetel Ejiofor, and follows a team of immortal mercenaries that go on a revenge mission. (wiki)

The graphic novel that originated the film, The Old Guard: Force Multiplied, has four issues, so fans can expect this movie to have sequels. At least a second one is already in Netflix’s pipeline, with signed contracts by the main characters.

imdb   /   Scythians

games

1535 – Bastion (2011 video game)

spacetime coordinates: the aftermath of the Calamity, a catastrophic event that suddenly fractured the city of Caelondia (/sˈlɒndiə/) as well as the surrounding areas of the game’s world into many floating pieces, disrupting its ecology and reducing most of its people to ash.

Bastion is an action role-playing video game developed by independent developer Supergiant Games and originally published in 2011 by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. In the game, the player controls “the Kid” as he moves through floating, fantasy-themed environments and fights enemies of various types. It features a dynamic voiceover from a narrator, and is presented as a two-dimensional game with an isometric camera and a hand-painted, colorful art style. (wiki)

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS (Windows):  OS: Windows XP, Vista, 7 / Processor: 1.7 GHz Dual Core or Greater / Memory: 2 GB / Hard Disk Space: 1.0 GB / Video Card: 512 MB DirectX 9.0c compatible graphics card (shader model 2) / DirectX®: 9.0c / Sound: DirectX 9.0c compatible

steam