Lacuna Coil "shallow life" (album review)

So this is the 5th studio album from Italian gothic rockers Lacuna Coil & its clear they have gone right back to their roots delivering exactly what the fans wanted. This is their first concept album where the main theme is the superficial existence of everyday life thus the title “shallow life” but even when you break down all the one by one its still difficult to see the concept in there.. Regardless of that its still a great album & it’s the music that really matters not the story. Ok so its not their best album yet but it doesn’t fall flat on its face either. Scabbia takes the lyrics & spins them into highly emotional vocals but as for co-vocalist Ferro it seems like he’s playing a game of catch up. There are a lot of heavy rock influenced tracks on the album like the title track which is fast paced with great guitar backing & clear vocals. “wide awake” is one of my favourite tracks on there & is a testament to the bands gothic roots - definitely one for the fans. So as mentioned already the album is a concept album but after you hear it, it becomes clear that this album could exist far away from the concept arena. Of all the tracks on the album I’d say about half of them really appeal to me.. Its almost like the album was rushed for the release date. Comalies can be hailed as one of the bands finest albums & I’d agree with the thinking that Comalies really made them. The real problem I had with the album was it seemed to lose a lot of its more heavy influences & instead concentrate on a pop sound.. Almost like it was too radio-friendly. But its not all bad some of the tracks have a kind of Karmacode sound to them, which should make up for the pop sound. The bottom line really is you can split this album up the middle ..half the tracks really appealed to me but there is still plenty of time for the others to grow on me & when it comes to a band as good as Lacuna Coil I’m always ready to give them the benefit of the doubt. If you want to give them a try yourself the CD is in stores now.

Joker will be exclusive to PS3

Eidos has revealed plans to make the Joker a playable character in the PS3 version of the upcoming Batman: Arkham Asylum video game. The Joker will feature exclusively in the PS3 version of the title, with no mention of whether the 360 will recieve a similar exclusive. The character will be free to download from the PSN Store and will be available to use in various challenge and multiplayer maps.

Batman: Arkham Asylum is due to be released for the 360 and PS3 in June.

Fallout 3 - game review

Its been 200 years, since Vault 101 , a fallout shelter, started to operate & serve the surviving residents of Washington DC and its environs, now known as the Capital Wasteland. The global atomic war of 2077 left the US all but destroyed, the residents of Vault 101 enjoy a life free from the constant stress of the outside world. Giant Insects such as ants, Raiders, Slavers, & Super Mutants all roam the ravaged wastelands but have not gained access to the vault. However one faithful day you awake to realise your own father has defied the ruler of the vault & left the security & comfort of the vault..his reasons are unknown to even you. Forced to leave the vault you soon experience the harsh realities of the wasteland yourself in a bid to find your father, if you can survive the new world.

The game is all about freedom of choice & even includes a state or the art character customization feature where you can not only design a male or female character of your choosing but add attributes & skills to help you through the game these come in many forms but really the end result is up to you. As you wander through the capital wasteland you will witness the sights & sounds of a post-apocalyptic ruined landscape complete with buildings & ruins to explore, you can even go on scavenger hunts & sell off your finds to the nearest store or dealer. Because its all about freedom & choice you can go through the game as a complete villain cheating & robbing your way to the end or you can be the good Samaritan that uses more brains than Braun. Whichever way you choose to play the game will affect your rewards & overall karma, if you come across as a villain then people will be less likely to help you. Of course if you do opt to use force you can take advantage of your enemies by using the V.A.T.s targeting system which lets you freeze an enemies attack to deal a stronger blow by targeting specific body parts. Your enemies react with quick thinking & some of the best artificial intelligence I have seen, facial expressions & even gestures seem life like. There are a vast amount of weapons & items scattered all across the capital wastelands & you can use everyone of them from bb guns to pulse rifles. You really are free to play the game how you see fit & because of this the replay value is truly mind-blowing, the perks make the replay value even greater.

The graphics are really something else, the detail of everything is so vivid that it makes the game really standout. The enemies & characters you meet a long the way are ever changing so while one might be easy to defeat another one will take a lot of thinking maybe even a little improvising. The instant travel feature comes in handy when you want to speedily travel across the map to a location you have already discovered & really without it you would be running for miles. Overall this is a great game with stunning visuals & lots of game play that will have you hooked in an instant, even the voice acting is impressive with Liam Neeson himself playing the role of your father. My only compliment would be the soundtrack, it’s a little dull & doesn’t change enough but other than that little con I would give Fallout3 a well deserved 9 out of 10. I meant to review this game at Christmas but never got around to it until now, I only wish I played it sooner.

Repo! The Genetic Opera - DVD/Movie (review)

Rocking its way onto DVD at last (thanks HMV!) comes Repo, in a nutshell it’s a cross between the rocky horror picture show & blade runner.. interested? I sure was. The movie is set In the future where organ replacement is not only universally accepted it’s a fashion statement. A company known as gene co controls & regulates the the market & offer organ replacement to the masses for a price but when someone cant keep up on their payments a repo man is sent to reclaim the organs.. usually directly from the person with the help of a scalpel or two ..that’s where the 18 cert comes in because its gory. So how is the acting? AMAZING! It hosts a whole bunch of actors & actresses including Sarah brightman as “blind meg”, Anthony Stewart Head (giles from buffy), Paul Sorvino (from goodfellas)..even Paris Hilton pulls of a great performance & I thought that would be impossible! My favourite character was Shilo Wallace played impeccably by Alexa Vega.

The story is at first a little complicated but thanks to the superb delivery from each character it starts to quickly flow in a highly entertaining way. When rotti largo the owner of gene co learns that he is dieing he is faced with the decision of who will continue his legacy, he knows his 2 sons & daughter are not worthy of the title & has to look elsewhere. Even as he faces his own death he sets out a dramatic plan of backstabbing & deceit that will unfold throughout his final hours affecting the man who stole his one true love from him. That man of course is Nathan who by day is a Doctor that cares for his sick daughter Shilo ..but by night is the fearsome Repo man ..the one who repossesses the organs for gene co. through the story Shilo starts to realise that her father is not all he says he is & is faced with the choice of living a lie of facing her destiny. As likable as the main characters are they don’t take anything away from the other minor performances, such as the rocktastic grave robber who acts as a kind of narrator to the movie.

You don’t have to be a fan of musicals to like this movie but it will help. Its really the balance between the acting & the music that makes this not only unique but a cult classic. Even with the gore I don’t think the movie deserved the 18 rating, the gore itself is quite similar to Sweeney Todd & doesn’t really feature that much in the movie. The music/songs themselves are a really catchy & will have you humming along in no time.. Whether you want to or not. The DVD is a nice little package & includes a few mini futurities including deleted scenes/trailers/galleries/commentaries & some sing along videos. Repo is different to any other film I have watched in a long time but that’s a good thing, the combination of superior acting & exceptional music makes this one of the best & creative movies of the last few years & I would highly recommend it to anyone looking to see something a little different.

GOSH Spring/Summer

GOSH introduces its brand new Extreme Art Eye Liner, which offers more possibilities than any eye liner before! The first of 12 new waterproof Extreme Art Eye Liners are now available in 4 daring shades: 03 (rust), 10 (blue), 11 (blue-green), and 12 (green). Extreme Art Eye Liners also allow you to ditch the confines of everyday eye liner, offering a few unconventional uses. Use them for body art or draw striking lines or delicate flowers on nails before sealing the designs with top coat.

The glosses are partially transparent with a pearly sheen, and contain a fruity fragrance and a hint of mint flavor. The lips experience a super fresh sensation from the menthol while making them appear fuller. The seductive glosses make lips shiny, soft, and incredibly alluring for a super-sexy look.

GOSH also offers new Trio Eye Shadow palettes, each of which contains a mosaic of complimentary shades, to make it easy for you to create a look for every mood or even create your own signature shade. Try TR9 Sunset (warm orange, warm golden yellow, and ight yellow) for a warm,tropical glow or TR10 Ocean Drive (blue, green, and mother of pearl white) for a look that won't be soon forgotten.

Dust your lids, browbones, cheekbones, chest or shoulders with GOSH Effect Powder, a make-up artist favorite that can be used as a highlighter, shadow, or liner when applied with a moist brush. Go with Green Fingers (blue-green), Golden Gate (golden-yellow), or Rusty Nail (rust).

Myla Beachwear/Swimwear 2009

Its almost that time again & with the summer just around the corner the beach beckons. The top designers are gearing up for it now with their latest swimwear & beachwear collections - most notably Myla. The whole Myla collection is now available directly from their site & features fun flirty & very feminine designs that will make you make you one of the most fashionable people to hit the beach. Myla offers classic one piece suits like “mollie” which is designed to look like something straight off of the French Rivera with its stripes & halter neckline. The “mimi” range concentrates more on the two piece sets of underwired bikini tops & my personal favourite the cute matching skirted mini hipster bottoms. For a more 1970s look Mylas “daisy” range hit’s the spot with its striking metallic & platinum sets which include a stunning backless swimsuit & gorgeous two piece bikini, both come with a funky little flowery detail. Amber Le Bon the daughter of Duran Duran front man Simon Le Bon is the freshest face to join Myla so its no surprise she got to model the new collection.

Pirate Bay launch official appeal

The Pirate Bay four, who were convicted of being accessories to breaching copyright laws on Friday, have fired off an official appeal against the $3.6m fine and one-year jail terms they were handed by a Swedish court last week.

The BitTorrent tracker site’s co-founders Peter Sunde, Carl Lundström, Frederik Neij and Gottfrid Svartholm Warg always planned to appeal if they lost February’s high-profile trial in Stockholm. As a result, the case will be referred to the Swedish Supreme Court, which could take several years to reach a final verdict. In the meantime, Sunde, who throughout the trial was the main spokesman for the group, said he is planning a trip to Brazil as well as working on other internet projects. On Saturday protesters against the judgment hit the streets of Stockholm, Goteborg, Karlstad and Lund, to express their anger at the decision that the four men should be thrown in the slammer and cough up $900,000 each in damages to the entertainment industry.
According to the Associated Press, hundreds of pro-file sharing advocates, many wearing jolly roger bandanas, rallied against what they described as “judicial murder”. The Pirate Party, which is an entirely separate outfit from The Pirate Bay, but shares political views on the issue, organised the protests. It claimed membership shot up 20 per cent to 20,000 people, following Friday’s verdict. The party is hoping to grab a seat in the European Parliament elections in June.
"The establishment and the politicians have declared war against our whole generation," said Pirate Party chairman and founder Rickard Falkvinge at the rally in Stockholm. He also called on "file-sharing for the people."

Elsewhere, Paul McCartney has come out, unsurprisingly, in support of the verdict by labelling it a “fair” decision.Macca, who continues to tussle with the Fab Four's record label EMI over making the entire Beatles back catalogue available through Apple's iTunes, told the Beeb: "If you get on a bus you've got to pay. And I think it's fair you should pay your ticket." But over at The Pirate Bay, despite the judgment, it continues to be very much business as usual at the site, which remains fully operational – for now.

“You, our beloved users, know that this little speedbump on the information super highway is nothing more than just, a little bump,” reads a defiant message on TPB’s blog.

MySpace HQ shutdown due to insider breach

While the usual cause of a data breach at a social-networking site is down to an outsider hacking into the database, last week’s breach at my favourite site MySpace was attributed to an employee who gathered the names, social security numbers and other personal information on a number of his co-workers. The employee in question was detected and fired, but the discovery of the data breach led to a shutdown of MySpace’s Beverly Hills headquarters all day Thursday, as employees were told to work from home. An email was sent out to all employees asking them to work away from the office on their laptops while the company was “analyzing their systems to reduce the possibility of any future breaches”. There were no reports of a data breach of MySpace user information. The last big data breach at MySpace was in June of last year, when a flawed security setting allowed Yahoo! users to simply type in the web address of private profiles and gain access to private pictures. The private photos of celebrities including Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan were exposed in this security flaw, which questioned how secure data portability between sites such as Yahoo! and MySpace really is.

New Jaguar XJ exposed

I rarely write anything about cars because its rare I even take interest in them but I must admit the new jaguar xj really looks great. The teaser pictures have just been released to mark the beginning of shanghai motor show. I love big cars such as Mercedes & Maybach so maybe that’s what appeals to me so much about this jag. Apart from looking great & being on four wheels it is the first of the new generation of aluminium bodied cars & it will be the first ever jag to feature a panoramic roof which will be an optional extra. As for engine power it will be available in V6 diesel which is one of the cleanest & most fuel efficient on the market, and in the turbocharged V8. Its set to be unveiled in the UK this July & will go on sale at the end of the year. Rolls Royce have just announced the name of their new car “ghost”, it will use most of the same materials as the phantom but also parts of the recent bmw 7 series. Again aiming for a 2009 release date it will be equipped with a 500+ horsepower, in a word ..fast.

Vannina Vesperini 2009 collection

French designer Vannina Vesperini created her own brand back in 1996 & rapidly gained respect for her work. over the years she has created a niche with her 'visible lingerie' collections; which means she creates pieces that are meant to be layered or shown as part of your outerwear. Often times Vannina will create a bra & panty, and also design a matching camisole, sweater, skirt and/or wrap so that the look can be worn out. The bras in her collection are so luscious and beautifully-detailed, it's no wonder she makes it possible for you to show them off. Vannina Vesperini is now a big name in luxury lingerie. with concepts like the ‘visible lingerie’ that brought lingerie closer to pret-a-porter fashion her latest spring collection follows the trend. Her latest campaign was designed by Marco de Rivera, photography by Gilles Pernet.

Hundreds take to the street for Pirate Bay

STOCKHOLM (AP) — Wearing bandanas and waving Jolly Roger flags, hundreds of supporters of file-sharing hub The Pirate Bay demonstrated on Saturday against a Swedish court's conviction of the Internet site's organizers.

The Stockholm district court on Friday sentenced Gottfrid Svartholm Warg, Peter Sunde, Fredrik Neij and Carl Lundstrom to one year in prison each for helping millions of Pirate Bay users commit copyright violations of movies, music and computer games.
The court also ordered them to pay 30 million kronor ($3.6 million) in damages to international entertainment companies, including Warner Bros., Sony Music Entertainment, EMI and Columbia Pictures.
The entertainment industry applauded the move, calling it a landmark decision protecting the rights of those whose livelihood depend on creative activity.
All four defendants have vowed to appeal the verdict.
The rallies against "judicial murder" occurred in Stockholm, Goteborg, Karlstad and Lund and were organized by The Pirate Party. The political party, which supports free file-sharing for noncommercial use, said its membership rose by more than 20 percent to about 20,000 after the court announced its verdict.
Police spokeswoman Birgitta Nilsen said at least 500 mostly young people were protesting in Stockholm alone, many supporting the Pirate Bay defendants by wearing bandanas and carrying skull and crossbones flags.
The Pirate Party does not have any formal ties to The Pirate Bay, but has expressed its support of the site on several occasions.
Party Chairman and founder Rickard Falkvinge received loud cheers as he addressed the black-clad crowd at the Medborgarplatsen square in downtown Stockholm, demanding that the defendants to be freed from the charges.
"The establishment and the politicians have declared war against our whole generation," he said, calling on "file-sharing for the people."
The Pirate Bay doesn't host copyright-protected material, but directs users to content through so-called torrent files. It has an estimated 22 million users worldwide.

Armani Bronze Mania 2009

Giorgio Armani captures the vivid coloured earth shades of the sienna landscape in an explosion of vibrant mineral colours melted together into a fine microfil™ texture. Like a picture taken from the sky, the sun infused palette earth tones (Venetian ochre, deep Sienna red or sandy copper) present an all over blush for a golden bronze or a deep reddish brown glow while touches of colour on the cheeks or eyes will shape the face with a warm and sensual effect.

MAC viva glam - VI

A lavender-lovely Fergie asks us to enter a new kind of dreamscape, to feel the "Yes, we can!" of tomorrow, and to push forward on behalf of every man, woman and child affected by HIV/AIDS. VIVA GLAM VI Lipstick, Lipglass, and Special Edition Lipstick lead the way. Every cent of the selling price of VIVA GLAM Lipstick and Lipglass is donated to the M·A·C AIDS Fund to support men, women, and children living with HIV and AIDS.

Tinted Lipglass (17 euros)

Viva Glam VI- Warm plum with pearl (frost)

Viva Glam VI Special Edition- Soft pink-tinged mauve (frost)

Viva Glam Lipstick (17 euros)

Viva Glam VI Special Edition- Soft blue pink

Viva Glam VI- Terracotta-plum with pearl (lustre)

Autopsy - movie review

Yet another horrorfest movie review this time in the shape of “Autopsy” & as the name suggests it involves doctors & such. As a group of friends are returning home after the trip of a lifetime at mardi gras they get involved in a car accident, they soon find out that they have hit a man & before they can figure out what’s after happening a mysterious ambulance shows up to cart the man back to hospital but one of the group is badly injured so he too is brought to the hospital with his friends following. Upon arrival a doctor shows up & takes the injured guy away to be treated, one by one the group of friends get seen to by the medical staff but they start to notice not all is right with the hospital or the staff. A few things about this movie confused me but overall it did have a good scary feel to it..maybe because I’m scared of hospitals? But then the over the top gore definitely added to the scares, when the horror & gore does happen its very raw & there are not many cut away’s to shield the audience but then I guess that’s how it made it into the horror fest line up. The acting was surprisingly good with a great performance by Robert Patrick as the evil doctor Benway, again doctors & hospitals unnerve me so I expected this to creep me out but with elements of “hostel” thrown in it definitely delivered a genuine dose of weirdness, although at times some of the scenes felt a little like the movie “braindead” but all in all once I got my head around some of the confusing plot points it was an enjoyable enough movie, not the best from horror fest but a good attempt.

Dying Breed - movie review

Dying Breed was another movie that featured in the latest collection of after dark horrorfest . Feeling a lot like “wrong turn” this movie takes place in Australia & is rife with blood & gore scenes. When a group of friends decide to go on a hiking trip in the hopes of tracking down a rare breed known as the Tasmanian tiger. A long the way they encounter a group of grotesque cannibals believed to be descended from a criminal known as the pieman. From start to finish the movie delivers some pretty good effects & decent gore, it is a horror movie after all. Following the same recipe for horror as movies like Friday the 13th & wrong turn once the group are isolated enough then the real terror kicks in, & when it does it will leave you gripping your seat at every little gruesome jump. The only bad thing I can say about the movie is that the girl who played nina had the worst Irish accent I have ever heard in any movie..there were moments when I’d shudder just hearing it, of course for anyone who can stick the accent they will be rewarded with a sharp little horror movie that delivers in bucket loads.

From Within - movie review

From within is a horror movie directed by phedon papa Michael & written by brad keene. This was one of my favourite after dark horrorfest movies this year & had a couple of really good scares. After a number of suicides start to plague the small town of grovetown the people quickly turn to their faith for the answer..but the truth is harder to swallow than expected. Lindsay starts to investigate what happened herself & gets deeper into the mystery when she makes friends with aiden, she soon realises all the deaths are linked & that the real power behind them is pure evil..not only that but she is next in line to die. I really liked this movie & loved how it dealt with the concept of peoples religious beliefs, apart from the horror element which was of course prominent throughout the movie it did a great job of portraying a realistic reaction to such events. perhaps the real horror is that fact that peoples beliefs can overshadow the truth to such an extent that they become evil themselves.

Jesús Fernandez - spring/summer collection 2009

Jesús Fernandez is a company dedicated to the design & production of handcrafted fine retro style corsetiere and lingerie. The production is performed by incorporating artisan haute couture techniques. They count on a specialized group of people who work with professionalism & put their passion in what they do. In their corsetiere laboratory they combine innovation & tradition, together with imported fine materials & haute couture details, in order to produce unique pieces, original & with great design. They work with recycled sewing machines in order to maintain the spirit of the last century corsetiere. Their products are fine, ultra feminine, with delicate textures & exquisite details. The latest collection is called “Via Tokyo/Via Paris” & incorporates Japanese aesthetics with Italian fabrics, liberty motifs, stripes & of course classic polka dots. The new line introduce a number of camisoles which are both sophisticated & stylish.

Dead Space - game review

Set in space (obviously) this bears an uncanny resemblance to the movie “event horizon” & “alien/aliens” ..not that that’s a bad thing & in this case it sure isn’t. dead space puts the player in control of isaac clarke an engineer sent to repair a mining ship known as the USG Ishimura which has recently come into contact with a strange alien artefact. Upon boarding the ship clarke & his crew are confronted with unimaginable horror as the ship is slowly turned into one giant bloodbath. Infested with aliens & mutilated crew the Ishimura has turned into a what can only be describe as hell, a hell the player must survive through in order to discover what happened & how to fix it before its too late.

Its no secret that the game borrows a lot from the movie event horizon & even some of the alien movies so visually that’s really what you get. The ship itself is full of atmosphere & seems to be ever changing - a rare enough feature in most modern games. The lighting effects really impressed me here & the first time the ship went into lock-down when the lights started flashing & I could only make out things moving in the shadows I was instantly hooked..not to mention a little scared! But then that’s the way the game is supposed to play, from the start to the finish you know you are playing a survival horror game. The level design is top-notch & includes, claustrophobic hallways, industrial type hanger bays, areas so heavily infested that the walls themselves are alive, medical labs, armouries, control rooms but one of my favourite little features is the areas where zero-gravity has kicked in. these areas as you might imagine are completely free of the effects of gravity so things in the rooms float freely through the air, but so do you & whatever enemies you may encounter, solving puzzles in zero-gravity can be tricky but equally entertaining & definitely rewarding.

The alien enemies are called necromorphs &a simple headshot will definitely not take them down instead you have to literally take them apart piece by piece. If you are squeamish then I really wouldn’t advise playing this game but if you aren’t then you will enjoy blasting your way through the game taking out all kinds of aliens & a number of bosses. A long the way you will encounter key characters & logs that will help you get to the truth. To deal with the alien threat the game gives you the option to buy all kinds of weapons at shop points throughout the levels, credit can be collected & found in many different places & on the bodies of the crew/aliens but you can also earn credit by selling items you don’t want..I really liked this feature because instead of roaming around looking for ammo I needed I could simple sell the ammo/items I didn’t need & purchase the things I did need

Your character is equipped with a spacesuit or “rig” which can be upgraded through the game by collecting power units & unlocking upgrades but it also gives you control to slow down objects in real time which can be very useful when faced with a swarm of enemies or trying to get past a broken door. Another ability unique to the game is the use of telekinesis which allows the player to pick up & move objects without actually being near them, you can even use the limbs of defeated enemies & fling them as weapons. As for the weapons themselves there really is everything you would expect & a little bit more - pulse rifles, force guns, flame throwers, plasma cutters, even an industrial saw which can shoot blades out to dismember the aliens, & as an added bonus every weapon can be upgraded using the same power nods as the your suit, my favourite was the plasma cutter but on my second play through I upgraded the pulse rifle & stuck to using that.

So my final thoughts about the game. The visuals are stunning & it has some of the best lighting I have ever seen, its full of atmosphere & the ship itself is truly unique, the enemies are constantly changing/evolving to the fit the level, the music & acting is a cut above the rest & the plot/story will grab you & not let go, the weapons/abilities are impressive & fun to use & upgrade. All in all it’s a solid game with a lot of features & intrigue that will have you playing for hours - I’d say I got about 3days play out of the whole game. If you are a fan of games like resident evil/silent hill or movies like event horizon/alien then you will really enjoy this game, I sure did.

Happy Easter!

Have a happy Easter everyone & dont eat too much chocolate!

























lisa

x

Silverstein "shipwreck in the sand" (album review)

I have to ask myself the question, can Silverstein actually make a bad album? (listens to the album) .. No! they bloody well cant. For those not in the know Silverstein are a post-hardcore band from Canada & have a punk element to their tracks, some even say they are a screamo band..some say they are just rock with a lot of emotion. Whatever they are they sure do know how keep the hits coming & coming. Albums like “discovering the waterfront” & “arrivals & departures” really turned me onto the band & I haven’t stopped listening since then. Whichever Silverstein album I listen to there seems to always be a seriously addictive track on there & for me this time around it was “the end” which features an incredible duet with the Canadian singer known as Lights - the vocals between the two singers is really something else & lyrics really just speak for themselves, after listening to the song I started to listening to some of Lights work & now I’m hooked on her too!. So the new album is called “shipwreck in the sand”, a concept album split into four chapters that loosely follow the story of people looking for the ultimate successes & prosperity in a new world but in the end they give into the temptations of sin when the reality doesn’t live up to the expectations of their dreams. It really has so much heart & rock mixed into it that it will be anything but shipwrecked, in the past Silverstein have sold a whopping 750,000 albums & its no surprise really. with every album they bring a level of passion & energy to the music that it really is over whelming.

The opening track "a great fire" is no different delivering just what the fans were craving, its fast & hard yet extremely addictive, other tracks include “I am the arsonist” & the slightly lighter “born dead” which starts of heavy but blends into a smoother calmer song, but like I said before the track which stands out the most in my view has to be “the end”. I love when a band that’s traditionally male features a strong female artist it’s the ultimate in a musical relationship & in this song you can feel the energy from each artist propel the album through to its final minutes - much like the characters featured in the albums story, one of the best endings I have ever heard. Silverstein have done it again with “shipwreck in the sand”, if you have not listened to the band before then this is the album to start you off - as for the fans they wont be disappointed. Its early days yet but I can see this being one of my favourite albums of 2009.

Other similar bands: senses fail, hawthorne heights, rise against, thursday, a day to remember, a skylit drive, underoath, bless this fall, alesana, norma jean, thrice, escape the faith.

Natalia Vodianova joins Etam

26 year old Russian model Natalia Vodianova has designed a new & exciting lingerie collection for Etam, the high street brand of the eighties & early nineties. The chain that failed to survive in Europe, recently received a glamour dose when it chose Vodianova as its brand ambassador. She recently invited some of her closest friends to an Etam catwalk show at The Ritz, Vogue.com reports. The audience was able to watch her debut the newest designs for s/s 09 and included Lou Doillion, Eva Herzagova and Princess Charlotte Casiraghi of Monaco, Elle magazine reports. The collection of Natalia pour Etam will include polka dot sets, a grey lace corset and a silk night gown. Most of her desings are inspired by her personal collection.

"What I realised when designing this is how feminine I am - I'm feminine to the bone. I wanted the line to be for women who are not afraid, who like to play," Natalia said of her range. The collection is now available in selected stores nationwide & has been since the beginning of April.

Fairygothmother - SALE

Wow there is a huge sale on at Fairygothmother that is both tempting & utterly seducing! The prices are all reduced to as much as 50% & 30% & even the rare designers such as mademoiselle fred/niki/lulu & lush, the modern courtesan, kiss me deadly & a vast selection of corsets, the prices are really good & if you are looking for something a little different then it might just be worth checking out.

Twitter, Facebook of Generation X

If you’re in your late twenties to early forties, then you grew up listening to grunge, witnessed the era of the McJob & were among the first generation of internet users. You’re comfortable with technology & your social media of choice is Twitter.

Social-networking sites such as Bebo, MySpace and Facebook are traditionally associated with younger users in their mid-teens to early twenties, but when it comes to micro-blogging site Twitter, ComScore found that this demographic was actually 12pc less likely than average to visit. According to ComScore, those aged 45-54 are 36pc more likely than average to visit Twitter, while 25-43 year-olds were 30pc more likely to visit.

“The skew towards older visitors, although perhaps initially surprising for a social media site, actually makes more sense than you might think at first,” said Sarah Radwanick on the offical ComScore blog. “With so many businesses using Twitter, along with the first generations of internet users ‘growing up’ and being comfortable with technology, this is a sign that the traditional early adopter model might need to be revisited,” she added. Radwanick postulated that the ratio of older to younger users may partially explain the explosion in Twitter’s user base in the past few months; simply put, there are more 45-54 year-olds in US and European population than 18-24 year-olds. Again, if you look at the Twitter ‘celebrities’ that have completely embraced the way of the tweet, you will see figures like Stephen Fry and Jonathan Ross – males over 35, who are first-generation internet users.

It’s even attracting those that epitomize Generation X: Courtney Love, Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails and Chris Cornell (ex-Sound Garden) are all active users. Facebook, Bebo and the like will continue to adapt to a younger audience with advertising models and restructuring, but it will be interesting to see how Twitter’s post-baby boom, dotcom, MTV generation user base will shape its evolution.

Marilyn Manson: "The High End of Low", early impressions

May 26th sees the arrival of a new album by shock rocker Marilyn Manson & naturally I’m excited about it but will it live up to writing the wrongs of & “eat me drink me”? from first impressions I’d have to say yes! From what I have heard of it so far I’d say its going to redeem Manson in a big way, the early tracks seem very well written & nicely polished. So far the tracks that are confirmed are as follows: 15, arma-god damn-mother-fu@#in-geddon, devour, four rusted horses, I want to kill you like they do in movies, the wow, we’re from America. The main single is “we’re from America” & it was released free on march 27th - when asked about the single he had this to say: "I think a lot of people will hear the track and initially think it's just political, but it's not just that, it's also me describing a lot of fu@#ed-up scenarios that I'm going through in my personal life. Someone asked me, 'Why are you so fu@#ed up?', 'Well, I am from America.' I hate the fact that so many people have fu@#ed the country up, and so many people fu@#ed up my personal life and I allowed it to happen. So in a way, I feel like America as a whole feels, but in no way does that make me a tree-hugging patriotic freedom rocker". - so there you have it the new album will be out on the 26th of May so expect a review of the album from me just before then.

Yummy sugarsweet by Mac

Just in time for easter when we will all be overdosing on sugary chocolate comes Macs delish new range aptly named “sugarsweet”. ok so its pretty..that’s obvious! & it being Mac you know you are getting value for your money so what’s in it? Some pretty candy shadows, fab little three toned glosses, flattering lipsticks & lots of other little goodies. My favourite so far has to be the nail lacquer which comes in peppermint patti & seasonal peach, the shade sticks are fab & come in such colours as lemon chiffon, cakeshop, red velvet, butternutty. The shadows are priced at 15 euro each & include stars n rockets, aquavert, dear cupcake, & sugarshot to name but a few. Onto the glosses.. Priced at 20 euro each these include simply delicious, consume me, triple yum, just dessert & tasty. Last but not least the lipsticks.. Bubbles, touch, sweet thing, saint germain & my personal fav lollipop loving, Macs latest little collection is without a doubt good enough to eat & will satisfy even the sweetest tooth..in a word, yummy!

LAID TO REST (movie review - 2009)

First off..wow! This movie really was a thrill a minute ride with enough jumpy moments to satisfy even the most hardcore horror fan. The year so far has not exactly been great for horror movies & with all the remakes of classics like Friday the 13th & the last house on the left it wouldn’t be harsh to say that Hollywood’s run out of steam but just when I was about to loose faith in newbie horror along comes laid to rest. In a way I’m glad I only found out about this movie when I watched it because I would have no doubt had high expectations but expectations aside it would definitely not have disappointed. In these times of big budget ultra stylized modern horror its no surprise that you get bucket loads of gore in this movie but what is a surprise is the quality of the movie, the acting is top notch & the photography is amazing. Well onto the story… a girl wakes up in a casket & has no memory of how she got there or who she is, straight away she encounters a maniac in a chrome skull with a video camera mounted on his shoulder - after giving him the slip she tries to put as much distance between herself & the man in the chrome skulled mask..but that in itself is no easy task. This being a slasher movie there is no shortage of victims for the crazed killer to dispatch & armed with two razor sharp knives its not exactly a hard task. The deaths themselves & special effects are superbly executed..pardon my pun, some scenes will definitely have you leaping from your seat, the scene where he crashes through a glass door…wow did that look great. The strange thing about this movie is not just the mysterious killer or his reasons for doing what he is doing is that I cant find anything wrong with it.. The killer with the chrome skull is kitted out in a very cool outfit & the camera mounted on his shoulder is a great little touch, his signature blades are not to be snuffed at either..another little pun there.. But seriously this was a great movie & really added a much needed breath of fresh air to the genre. Most modern horror movies with the same level of jumps & gore tend to bomb the viewer with gory death after gory death but fail to give you enough time to actually react or in some cases laugh it off but laid to rest fixes that & you really don’t see the hits coming until chrome skull decides to let you see. Laid to rest takes a big step into a new direction that I hope many horror movies will follow, ok so it can mean scenes of strong violence but that’s what you are supposed to get with a slasher flick so if like me you are tired of the countless remakes.. Sequels & even prequels then laid to rest might just have what the doctor ordered.

Today i made prawn balti

Ingredients:
500 g prawns Juice of 1 lime½ tsp red chilli powder1 onion – diced1 tsp ginger-garlic paste1 green chilli – chopped1 red pepper – deseeded and shredded2 large red tomatoes – chopped¼ tsp turmeric powder½ tsp red chilli powder¼ tsp ground cinnamon½ tsp garam masala½ tsp coriander powder½ tsp sugar2 tbsp fresh coriander leaves – choppedSalt to taste2 tsp oil

Methods:
Put the prawns in a bowl, squeeze lime juice over it and stir in the red chilli powder. Mix well and set aside. Heat oil in a wok and fry onions until they begin to turn golden. Add ginger-garlic paste, green chilli and red pepper. Fry for a minute. Turn the heat up and add the tomatoes, turmeric, chilli powder, cinnamon powder, garam masala, coriander powder and sugar.Cook till tomatoes have thickened. Pour in about 150 ml hot water, stir well and turn the heat down. Add salt and give it a good stir. Tip in the prawns and simmer for three to four minutes or until the prawns turn tender. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve with steamed rice.

Dublin zoo photos

The zoo is really one of those places you forget to visit or at least for me it was. I went on Tuesday but hadn’t been in at least 10 years & it really was refreshing to see all the different types of animals & wildlife that I forgot even existed. Of course like everywhere else I visit I brought a long a camera & was so happy with the results that I’m getting an annual pass so I can pop in any time I want for the next year. If anyone wants to see any of the pics they are in their own special set on flickr & I will no doubt be adding more & more after each visit. So pop along to flickr & have a look & even leave a comment or two if you like them, I unlike some of the animals wont bite.

lisa
x

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lacylisa/sets

Nintendo Launches DSi for £144.99

Japanese gaming company Nintendo has released a much needed update to its popular DS console in the form of the DSi, a £149.99 console.

The DSi is an evolution of the DS rather than a complete break from the existing version. The third iteration of the console, which is released more than 5 months after its Japanese debut, introduces a thinner body by one eighth, bigger screens (3.25-inch vs 3-inch).
But it is the addition of two VGA cameras - one on the inside and one on the outside edge - which be of most interest since it converts the device into a fully fledge multimedia platform. Users can use the cameras to take pictures and the onboard image editing software to do a number of simple manipulations on the pictures.

The DSi is also now capable of playing AAC content but surprisingly (and it's a shame) no MP3. They will be able to manipulate audio files through the DSi's own built-in application which has limited abilities and will only be able to record up to 18 ten minutes sound bites.
Finally, customers will be able to buy and download games directly to their portable gaming console via an internet connection (probably through the onboard WiFi). The DSi shop will allow points to be redeemed against content. Each DSi console will also come with 1000 Nintendo points.

The DSi has also adopted a new SD Card slot format which will open the way for the prospects of a new generation of SD-based accessories and peripherals. This is a boon, given the fact that a significant amount of DSi applications are expected available for free and its internal storage will be filled fast. Nintendo's DSi bears the first signs of the company's willingness to be more than a simple.

Conficker stays quiet

The much-hyped Conficker botnet has passed its 1 April update mark without causing any major incidents. Researchers said on Wednesday that, although infected machines did appear to contact an update server, no other activity stemming from the infections has been reported.

"We had several readers contact us over the past 24 hours with some minor impact, but so far no reports of anything newsworthy," said Sans Institute researcher Marcus Sachs in a blog post.
"Many organisations have been proactive about scanning their systems and finding either unpatched or Conficker-infected computers that were subsequently removed for repair."
The day provides a rather anti-climactic conclusion to what some had predicted would be a major computing crisis. When news emerged that machines infected with the Conficker.C worm would be connecting to a control server on 1 April, many speculated on a possible attack.
The speculation gathered steam when large news outlets picked up the story and some pundits predicted that the update could trigger a catastrophic series of attacks.

Those charged with researching and analysing the worm, however, suggested that the update was likely to be a non-event. Experts noted that the criminals who owned and operated the botnet would not want to risk losing the valuable network by triggering a major attack.
"Setting an attack to happen in the future, and leaving the specifics of that attack in plain sight, mostly serves to give everyone a chance to prepare for the attack and defend against it," said 451 Group analyst Paul Roberts in a blog post.

"It's kind of like those hopelessly complex executions in the James Bond films. Why tie the guy to the table then wait 30 minutes for the laser to cut him up? If you want Bond dead, just shoot him in the head and be done with it?"