A LIFE IN POP IS...

Message

DJCulture · #16 Post by **DJCulture** » Sun 29 Oct 2006, 9:36 pm

Undertaker wrote:A fantastic DVD. One of the best things i've ever seen.

The extra's is ace just for their first ever t.v performance. It's worth buying just for that. Right near the end, Neil looks like he's had some sort of stroke, coming out with crazy noises.Whoever told them to change their appearance on stage, gave them the best advice ever. It's so comical.

The Go West performamce on the Brits, still sounds fantastic.

Dave

Their first TV performance is simply pure gold. Miming to those James Brown samples was, um, a little mis-judged shall we say!

Chris's job as a glass collector sounded quite interesting!!!

There seemed to be a lot of time spent on talking some stuff, like Being Boring, whilst other topics were covered quite quickly (such as Nightlife and Bilingual as mentioned). That's only a minor gripe though. All in all, an absolutely brilliant DVD.

#17 Post by **Drico One** » Sun 29 Oct 2006, 11:38 pm

Along with Performance and PopArt, A Life In Pop is an essential piece of PSB memorabilia. It's quite illuminating to track the narrative of the story from the earlier and imperial years all the way through to the present day in terms of where their creative emphasis seems to lie.

After Very, the big set-piece events of their story revolve around collaborations and experiments rather than on big hit singles or albums. Indeed, I get the distinct impression that each studio album merely acts as the excuse that allows them to explore different creative impulses to take them further away from the pop epicentre. Their world has become more expansive and disjointed while simultaneously less focused.

In some ways, this DVD acts as the natural successor to PopArt in that it contains every video since that release. The live performance extras are nice too, though the Belgian appearance in 1984 is a true horror with Neil looking like a demented Lord Snooty, a ghastly, haughty Thatcherite figure, and Chris evincing all the hallmarks of solid heterosexuality while dancing gaily behind his keyboard as if auditioning for Brother Beyond.

Drico.

synthpopfan · #18 Post by **synthpopfan** » Mon 30 Oct 2006, 2:28 am

I think that this was mentioned before, but what region is the DVD?

You know, being in the States and all...

Thanks for your help - and sorry for any repetition of info.

Remark · #19 Post by **Remark** » Mon 30 Oct 2006, 2:42 am

I ordered my NTSC copy of "A Life in Pop" from IdealCopy.com here in the US... should be here next week.

synthpopfan · #20 Post by **synthpopfan** » Mon 30 Oct 2006, 6:34 am

Thanks Remark, I really appreciate you responding to my question

raggatwin · #21 Post by **raggatwin** » Mon 30 Oct 2006, 9:30 am

Got mine on Saturday form play.com

dVTB · #22 Post by **dVTB** » Mon 30 Oct 2006, 10:19 am

Drico One wrote:Along with Performance and PopArt, A Life In Pop is an essential piece of PSB memorabilia. It's quite illuminating to track the narrative of the story from the earlier and imperial years all the way through to the present day in terms of where their creative emphasis seems to lie.

After Very, the big set-piece events of their story revolve around collaborations and experiments rather than on big hit singles or albums. Indeed, I get the distinct impression that each studio album merely acts as the excuse that allows them to explore different creative impulses to take them further away from the pop epicentre. Their world has become more expansive and disjointed while simultaneously less focused.

Dunno.... if you watch the documentary, you would almost get the impression that Bilingual and Nightlife are completely irrelevant PSB albums. The era 1995-2000 is being rushed through.

Until Very, the documentary is more or less complete (although Absolutely fabulous and Yesterday When I Was Mad are ignored). Bilingual only has Bruce Weber talking about the Se A Vida E video and a fragment from Single-Bilingual. No word about Before, A Red Letter Day, Somewhere and the Somewhere tour. Same with Nightlife: only the Scissor Sisters guy talking about New York City Boy. No word about the other singles, the costumes, nor the Nightlife tour.

As for collaborations in recent years; many aren't mentioned. No word about Tina, no word about Elton, no word about Kylie, no word about Johnny Marr, no word about them remixing Yoko Ono, Rammstein, Madonna, working with Robbie Williams, working on the Noel Coward tribute... - In fact lots of collaborations were ignored!

#23 Post by **Drico One** » Mon 30 Oct 2006, 3:02 pm

The point I was making was that after Very, the thrust of the film largely concentrates on Closer to Heaven and Battleship Potemkin. This occurs for two possible reasons:

1. They really haven't had commercial success after Very.
2. Their creative impulses have taken them into more experimental territory.

I think it should also be remembered that the "collaborations" you refer to had little resonance and often merely amounted to a writing credit or remixing job. They pale in comparison to the Dusty and Liza projects and are no great loss to the film.

If PSBs were about pop for the first 10 years of their recording career, they seem more about the fringes of pop in their second decade. In many ways, their story is complete - and has been for 10 years - and all that remains now is the personal creative impulse that finds expression in obscure ventures and unusual flights of fancy. This is what makes the film quite poignant from my perspective.

Drico.

Oznerol · #24 Post by **Oznerol** » Mon 30 Oct 2006, 3:14 pm

Does the PAL or NTSC releases include spanish subtitles option? From where the NTSC version comes from?

I had some hopes about an argentinean release (for sure NTSC and spanish subtitles) but it seems that this time that´s not gonna happen...

E-Mail Vampire · #25 Post by **E-Mail Vampire** » Mon 30 Oct 2006, 4:42 pm

Haven't watched the documentary yet as I only really brought for the videos since PopArt. I did notice that the booklet omits Flamboyant...luckily it is on there.

E-Mail Vampire · #26 Post by **E-Mail Vampire** » Mon 30 Oct 2006, 5:26 pm

Does anyones else's dvd freeze a bit when Chris is talking about Being Boring being one of his fav PSB singles but being on of the lowest charting?

Undertaker · #27 Post by **Undertaker** » Mon 30 Oct 2006, 5:39 pm

E-Mail Vampire wrote:Does anyones else's dvd freeze a bit when Chris is talking about Being Boring being one of his fav PSB singles but being on of the lowest charting?

I thought that happened. I didn't rewind to see if it was a glitch. Obviously it is.

Dave

E-Mail Vampire · #28 Post by **E-Mail Vampire** » Mon 30 Oct 2006, 5:41 pm

As long as it is not just mine.

Issey Miyake · #29 Post by **Issey Miyake** » Mon 30 Oct 2006, 7:30 pm

bought it today from HMV £16.95, I checked in WHSmith and they didn't have it, Virgin was £17.99.
Just a little gripe here, I ordered the 12" of Numb from Hmv , went to see if i had come in and they had a copy but not mine, they looked on the computer and said it was someone elses who had ordered it after me but they only orded one copy and i ordered two so they they get it as it fulfills their order; I get nothing.
They said they have a loyalty to this customer as they may have contacted them to tell them it's here. What happened to first come first served, where can i get my 12"?, i orded the 7" as well no suck luck. Just orded the 7" off ebay.

By the way I love A life in pop especially the first ever tv appearance, very good!

S-sense · #30 Post by **S-sense** » Mon 30 Oct 2006, 8:34 pm

@Email Vampire

Maybe its just the Layer-Changing of your dvd-player. so dont worry too much.

Life in Pop is really great. I just love the boys even more after seeing it.

I would love to have all those Instrumental Versions of the Songs they play in the Background. Especially "Casanova in Hell", and IDLTR

A must have, definately.