Anybody going to see "Cloud Atlas"? I hadn't even heard about this movie until a couple of weeks ago, when I saw the trailer three times before the movies "Argo", "Taken 2" and "Seven Psychopaths". Then there was this article in the Sunday L.A. Times that same weekend. http://touch.latimes.com/#section/-1/article/p2p-72834995/ A bit crowded having three directors on one film. I was beginning to wonder what happened to the "Run Lola Run!" dude...and I had no idea that one of the Matrix guys had a sex change! Seeing the trailer, it definitely looks like it could either be a wild trip or an utter train wreck. It's adapted from a popular British novel that I never read...anybody here read it? It opens today.

Bellissima, actually, since you're addressing a girl.

Ady, this is one of the very very few "found-footage" type movies I liked. You should check it out. "[REC]" It's a Spanish film from 2007.

"Frankensteins Monster Jagen Godzilla's Sohn": German poster for "Frankenstein's Monster Hunts Godzilla's Son":

After a long long day working two jobs, finally heading home to sleep. It is 2:38am as I write.

Jason Bonham's Led Zeppelin Experience @ The Greek Theatre, Hollywood, CA. Thursday October 11, 2012. Weather was weird all day. Alternately sunny then cloudy. By the afternoon when I went to Universal City to get my tickets for the "Celebration Day" screening on Oct. 18, I could literally see the sky divided in half from the top of the hill where Universal Studios and the Citywalk are located. To the west there was sun and blue sky, but to the east there were threatening storm clouds, dark, gloomy and grey. It was east where the Greek Theatre lay and I began to worry about the possibility of the show being cancelled. Especially when the rain and thunder could be heard. Oh, maybe that's just Jason doing a soundcheck. I checked my concert tickets and saw that it said "Rain or Shine". I guess the show will go on no matter what, so I relaxed. Still a few hours to go before showtime anyway...time for the storm to pass through. Which it did. By 8pm, I was in my seat at the Greek...Section B, Row Q...and there was no rain. I went alone to the show. Couldn't take my godson as it was a school night. Same with my nephew. All my friends and siblings either had to work, rehearsals, therapy, or some other event to attend. No problem...certain shows I like going alone. No distractions. I think I have mentioned before I am not big on seeing tribute bands. I had only seen 3 in my life...Wild Child(a Doors tribute band) when they opened for the Porno for Pyros Halloween show at the Mayan Theatre in the 90s, Hell's Belles(all-girl AC/DC tribute) at some club in Hollywood in the early 2000s, and Lez Zeppelin(all-girl Led Zeppelin tribute...maybe even all-lesbian? I was never sure) at the El Rey Theatre in 2005. So I wasn't sure how I would like the Jason Bonham Led Zeppelin Experience, even though it featured the son of John Bonham, a link of DNA that other tribute bands lack. But I had heard so many people express their enthusiasm for the show, and had read about the Bonham family films that Jason showed, that I was looking forward to the experience. The show started around 8:20pm. First a series of photos and film clips of a young John Bonham, as a voice I presumed to be Jason narrated the flow of images...Bonzo as a kid, with his dad, on a boat...then older as he went through school until he became recognizable as the Bonham we saw on the back of the first Led Zeppelin album. Then, superimposed over Bonzo's face was Jason's, as a little boy. The band came on as Jason said hello and took his place behind his drum kit. The show kicked off with "Rock and Roll" and the first thing I noticed was that he didn't play the intro correctly. The next thing I noticed was that the singer was bearded and bald, a shocking combination for someone used to having his Led Zeppelin sung to him by Robert Plant. I can't remember all the names of the band...Jason of course was on drums, playing a slightly modified kit from his father. Only one tympani, not two...and no Paiste cymbals; Zyldjian instead. Jason's rack tom didn't look as big as John's either. The guitar player was named Tony, and played all the trademark Jimmy guitars. According to Jason, Tony's been playing with Jason the longest. The bald singer was James Dylan, and unfortunately the cold night wasn't doing him any favours. His seemed to be struggling with his voice at times, lacking power. There was also a bass player and a keyboard player who also doubled on 2nd guitar and pedal steel guitar. A harmonica player showed up during "When the Levee Breaks", to make it a grand total of six musicians on stage. Here's the setlist for the night: 1. Rock and Roll 2. Celebration Day 3. Over the Hills and Far Away 4. The Song Remains the Same 5. Babe, I'm Gonna Leave You 6. Out on the Tiles 7. Since I've Been Loving You 8. Four Sticks 9. Moby Dick 20-minute Intermission 10. The Ocean 11. No Quarter 12. That's the Way 13. Going to California 14. Fool in the Rain 15. When the Levee Breaks 16. Kashmir 17. Stairway to Heaven Encore: 18. Whole Lotta Love The concert ended just before the 11pm. curfew. I won't go into a song-by-song breakdown. The playing for the most part was adequate, even very good on some songs such as "Celebration Day" and "The Song Remains the Same". I like the way Tony hit the note bend at the end of the main riff, as on the record. Another interesting part of the show was seeing them do certain songs and imagining what if Led Zeppelin had tried it that way. For instance, on "Stairway", Tony had an acoustic guitar on a stand, so he could play the opening part on acoustic before switching to the double-neck for the rest of the song. It added a nice touch, as one of the beautiful moments of "Stairway" is the madrigal feel of the opening with the acoustic and recorder. Tony also did the same acoustic to electric switch on "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You". There were also song surprises like "Four Sticks", "Fool in the Rain", and "Out on the Tiles", which proved a little difficult as Tony and/or Jason kept missing each other on the turnaround, so they never quite meshed when the next verse was supposed to start. According to Jason, they only play certain songs when they're in California..."Going to California" and "That's the Way", so that was nice. They even append a sort of electric jam at the end of "That's the Way". Because Led Zeppelin never did "Fool in the Rain" in concert, it was one of the highlights of the night for me. Mainly because it was one song I could listen to without my mind instantly comparing it to a previous Led Zeppelin performance. And Jason played his arse off on this song. Actually, he played pretty well all night...even the "Moby Dick" duel with his dad via filmclip was great. He held his own. The other live Zeppelin rarities, "Out on the Tiles", "Four Sticks", and a monstrous "When the Levee Breaks"(where they had the ingenious idea to use Bonzo's actual drum track for the song) all worked well for me, precisely because of their low profile on the bootlegs. The problem for me was when they did the more commonly played songs such as "OTHAFA", "No Quarter", "Whole Lotta Love" and the like. For the most part, the band seemed to use the 1973 tour arrangements for the songs(as heard on TSRTS film and soundtrack)...and edited versions at that. But while the band was playing like it was 1973, the singer was singing the songs the way they were recorded on the original studio albums. Which wasn't so bad on "Celebration Day", "Over the Hills and Far Away" or "Rock and Roll", but it was awkward and unnerving on "No Quarter", "Stairway", and a few others. Take "No Quarter"...the arrangement on the studio version is very different to the live version from 1973. That's why Plant doesn't sing it like he did on the album...in concert, he emphasizes the different pace, and builds and releases the tension in concert with what Jimmy, Jones and Bonzo are doing. So it makes no sense, musically or emotionally, to sing NQ the studio way while the band is playing it the TSRTS way. It creates a disconnect. This happened several times during the show, which is why in the final analysis, I would say overall it was just a fairly good show musically speaking, with the vocals being the weakest link. But the cold weather might have been the blame for that. I have saved the best for last, though. What clearly made this concert worthwhile to see and why I would advise anyone who is a Led Zeppelin fan to go see it, even if you don't care for the whole "tribute band" idea, were the films Jason showed of his dad and his family. The clips of Jason as a kid dancing while John is cracking up...or of little Jason drumming to Dr. John's "Right Place Wrong Time"...and Bonzo grooving to Ike & Tina Turner's "Nutbush City Limits"...they are all priceless glimpses behind the scenes. A chance to see John as a father and husband. To hear Jason get emotional and his voice crack as he talked about his dad showed the love that still beats in his heart for John...and how he still misses him so and how much he lost. You couldn't help but not get emotional, too. It was those moments that made the concert most worth going to for me. After the concert I went to get one of the souvenir posters or t-shirts for the nice person who gave me my tickets only to find they were all sold out. Drats! Anyway, jb, I hope this answers your questions...if you or anyone else has any more questions regarding the show, just ask. Most of my photos came out lame, as I wasn't close enough for my camera. But I was able to get down to the front before the show and after to get some of Jason's kit. You can see me reflected in the bass drum in the last photo.

Belated birthday wishes to you, RH! Cheers. Happy Birthday today to the redhairedqueen and Sabel!

^^^ Thanks, I was just about to say the same thing. Ian is also performing "Thick as a Brick Part 2", as well as the first "Thick as a Brick" album. Okay, I will write one tonight. Briefly, I give it a thumbsup with reservations.

Tuna tartare, beet salad, iced tea.

Well done and congratulations to one and all in your family! Looks like you're starting to rival Fool in the Rain 60's brood. After a few days of clouds and grey skies and intermittent rain, woke up today to blue skies and sun!

Nevermind...wrong thread.

^^^ You got that right, jb. Haha Ady, I'll take your word for it. But you deserve a medal if you can sit through this piece of schlock that Hollywood just vomited upon the public: "Bigfoot: The Lost Coast Tapes".

Are you a Hitman?

ROCK-tober is heading into its final week...next concert up is: Tuesday October 23: Beth Orton @ El Rey Theatre.

^^^ Then I will...shame on you, Kiwi's mum! Making your daughter suffer thru such tired slop. This half-baked trend of "found footage" movies has overstayed its welcome....it deserved to die after "Blair Witch" came out.

^^^ Oh Kiwi, you didn't...

Game 7 of the National League Championship Series: St. Louis Cardinals @ San Francisco Giants on Fox 11. During the inning breaks, I switch over to the Monday Night Football game on ESPN: Detroit Lions @ Chicago Bears. Go Giants! Go Bears!

^^^ Haha, what a coincidence...I'm having a meatloaf sandwich and a salad. The meatloaf is leftovers from last night.

It made me unhappy that so many people who wanted to go see "Celebration Day" couldn't. Either because it wasn't playing in their town or because their parents or older siblings or friends didn't care enough to help them out with a ride to where it was playing.

You should just LOVE the 1975 tour then! It'll leave you howling in laughter...plenty of on-mic coughs and clearing of throat and other noises. Plant was very phlegmy in 75.

^^^ It's okay...it was only a glass of water, not a tall glass. Eeeaaahhh, what's up, Doc?

A perfect album for a Sunday evening: "Nina Simone at Town Hall". 1959 vinyl. Simply a MUST for your music collection. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jcCrOf-rjA0&feature=youtube_gdata_player

^^^ Oh dear Ledzepfvr, I am horrified to hear about this...it sounds painful. I've never had problems with my bladder so unfortunately I cannot be of help to you regarding remedies or advice. I just want to wish you well and hope you are on the road to recovery soon.

ABSOLUTELY. Try to watch "Queen Christina" when you get a chance...the last scene will haunt your memory forever. Watching Dallas @ Carolina on one screen, Baltimore @ Houston on another, Tenn @ Buffalo on a third, and Washington @ NY Giants on a 4th. Wall to wall football!

It's because of New Year's Eve. Think about it. Happy birthday Virginia! Sorry your teams aren't doing better. You're such a pleasant person to have on the forum. Best wishes to you!