The Master And Margarita review...

i find it hard to review this Russian classic by 
Mikhail Bulgakov because i don't have a fundamental
knowledge of communism and how it affects society,
that being said this is an awesome example of the
imagination run wild and what is possible within
the written arts. Firstly let me say that The Master 
And Margarita was written in the early 1930's but 
was banned under Stalin's rule and wasn't published 
until 1967, the premise is brilliant! Satan makes an
appearance in Moscow with a few of his best buddies
and causes all sorts of mayhem. I love seeing the 
devil as a trickster and not the all evil figurehead 
of doom the western society believes him to be, and 
his sidekicks are hilarious particularly Behemoth, a
six foot tall black tom cat that drinks, totes tommy 
guns and rides public transport. sounds interesting
doesn't it, well it is. Probably the closest thing i 
can relate it to is Alice In Wonderland (written around
the same period).
Blasphemous, challenging, sensual, sexual, hilarious,
devastating are some of the words that spring to mind 
when thinking back upon the book, i won't tell you about
the plot because my feeble mind is still trying to sort
it out, but read The Master And Margarita i promise
you that Behemoth is destined to become your favourite
fictional character...

female style icons of the past...

1.Audrey Hepburn 2.Deborah Harry 3.Twiggy 4.Marilyn Monroe 
5.Patti Smith 6.Coco Chanel

male style icons of the past..

so i thought since i am a hairdresser by trade i 
should do some shameless self promoting! Here is
the first in a series of posts about people who
i think have shaped the term style icon...

1.Prince 2.David Bowie 3.James Dean 4.Quentin Crisp 
5.Steve McQueen 6.Marlon Brando

Alexander McQueen... we miss you

Dear Alexander, 

we at monkmenagerie hope all is well and that you have finally found peace but know that the world misses you. Since your passing creativity shines less brightly on the catwalk, it's pretty boring in all honesty. Please send someone that creative spark that fashion sorely needs and say hello to the big boss in the sky for us...

Best regards, 

your friends, monkmenagerie.

Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds...

so i've decided to declare today the first ever Nick Cave
and the Bad Seeds public holiday, if the Queen gets one 
then Australia's rock royalty should by rights get their 
own national holiday also. I mean come on the man has 
written movie scores and scripts, he's in the Aria hall 
of fame and then there's the novels, not to mention being 
the frontman for one of the greatest bands(special mention 
to The Birthday Party and Grinderman) of our time. 
The guy's a rock and roll saint, and the world would 
be somewhat more boring without you. 
We at monkmenagerie think you deserve that holiday...

do you love me?

ten cigarettes...

I tried to write something
that was almost worth reading
but this pen feels numb in my hands
and I stayed up all night
just to see if I could
I went out through my window
and onto the streets
to see them lifeless for once
it was everything that I expected
which was not anything at all
but I laughed all the same
just to ruin the silence
with a voice that almost echoed
but the wind swept it away
before it was brought back to me
as a voice I once knew
a phantom under the cold morning air
that would be drowning in the pale moon
if the street lamps were not so bright
a perfect ending to a poem
almost worth writing.


Wes Thompson. 

Mark Jenkins installation art...

American installation artist Mark Jenkins' creations
are a sight to behold and all these eye catching sculptures 
are created using box sealing tape. This series entitled
'Storker' (where he worked with Sandra Fernandez) was
aimed at dropping babies in different cities throughout
the world, i thought they were funny and inspired... 

Shearwater, animal joy...album review

i can proudly say that there are two bands that i have
followed over the course of my lifetime that with each
album release have constantly evolved and improved, one
being The National and the second Shearwater.
This is Shearwater's first offering on their new label 
sub-pop and it seems that they have a new lease on life,
gone are the mystical strings and airy almost folk-lore
song structures, this album rocks. Driving drums make the 
backbone to each song with frontman Jonathan Meiburg's 
soaring Tim Buckely vocal stylings floating over angry
guitar riffs, but don't let me misguide you this is still
a beautiful album, there are still hints of old that make
Shearwater the band that i fell in love with, it's just
that well Meiburg who is the driving force behind the band 
seems happy for lack of a better word.
Best listened to loud armed with a scotch in hand from start
to finish like all worthwhile albums, Animal Joy is not the 
masterpiece that i know Shearwater have in them but they are
getting closer with each and every album and i guess that's 
all we can ask from any band.

the finer things in life...