Author Archives: Frostie

Live By The Lake Presents Keane, Suede, Michael Ball, Laura Mvula, Ana Maria Martinez, Kerry Ellis

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Live by the lakeLIVE BY THE LAKE, the hotly anticipated series of outdoor summer concerts at Kenwood House, marks the welcome return of the English Heritage concert season.  Produced by the young dynamic agency, Rouge Events, Live By The Lake’s outstanding lineup of world class music is scheduled over six days – August 23rd-25th and August 30th-September 1st; each show promises to attract up to 10,000 music and film lovers to enjoy the music and share a picnic with friends and family in more than 100 acres of Kenwood House’s beautifully landscaped gardens.

 

Boasting the perfect mix of pop, rock, soul, classical, musical theatre and film, LIVE BY THE LAKE promises something special for every music lover in the land.  Tickets are now on sale at www.kenwood.seetickets.com and there are a limited number of discounts for residents in many of London’s northwest postal districts.

Ticket holders will be able to choose a variety of reasonably priced tickets for each concert and to decide whether or not to bring their own picnic and all-weather paraphernalia!  For those who want to rock up unhampered, the best of Carluccio’s Italian picnics can be ordered in advance and picked up on the day of each orchestral concert.   (NB: Suede and Keane concerts will be standing room only, so picnics and chairs should be left at home and a range of drinks and delicious food will be available from the on-site concession stands.

 

PROGRAMME at a glance:

 

August 23rd:        SUEDE and special guests BRITISH SEA POWER

August 24th:        ROYAL CHORAL SOCIETY and the ROYAL PHILHARMONIC CONCERT ORCHESTRA

August 25th:        KEANE and special guest LAURA MVULA

August 30th:      ‘SINGIN’ IN THE RAIN’ – film screening, score performed by the ROYAL                                                PHILHARMONIC CONCERT ORCHESTRA

August 31st:        ANA MARIA MARTINEZ and the ENGLISH NATIONAL OPERA ORCHESTRA

September 1st:   MICHAEL BALL and friends sing GERSHWIN

 

THE PROGRAMME in detail:

 

SuedeKicking off proceedings on Friday August 23rd are the multi-platinum selling, mighty SUEDE (left), Britpop progenitors, one of the world’s most exciting rock bands and whose sixth studio album ‘Bloodsports’ was released in March, after a ten year gap, to much critical acclaim.  Suede’s special guests are the splendid Brighton-based indie rockers BRITISH SEA POWER, the title of whose current album, ‘Machineries of Joy’, was inspired by a collection of short stories by the great sci-fi author, Ray Bradbury.  The band recently performed their soundtrack for the documentary film ‘From the Land to the Sea’, directed by Penny Woolcock, at the Sundance London Film and Music Festival at the 02 and at the Sheffield Documentary Festival.

 

 

fireworksOn Saturday August 24th it’s a feast for classical music lovers with the Royal Choral Society and the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra conducted by Roderick Dunk, performing a wonderful selection of arias from, among others, Carmina Burana, Madame Butterfly, Verdi’s Requiem and many more.  The night will end with a spectacular firework display. Roderick Dunk will be well known to BBC Radio 2 listeners as the BBC Concert Orchestra’s regular guest conductor for the long running Friday Night is Music Night.

 

 

 

 

image018To complete the perfect first weekend on August 25th the Brit Award winning, Grammy nominated, 10 million selling KEANE will take to the stage; fronted by the charismatic Tom Chaplin, the band’s fourth studio album, Strangeland, was released in May 2012 and immediately topped the UK charts.  KEANE are delighted to have as their special guest the uniquely gifted soul singer/songwriter LAURA MVULA, whose debut album, ‘Sing To The Moon’, was released this year and instantly catapulted her into the musical stratosphere and a headlining slot at this year’s Isle of Wight Festival.

 

image009Friday August 30th offers a truly rare opportunity to film fans: the screening of the 1952 musical romantic comedy ‘Singin’ In The Rain’ to a LIVE score performed by the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra.  Starring the legendary Gene Kelly, Donald O’Connor, and Debbie Reynolds, and choreographed and directed by Gene Kelly, the film offers an entertaining depiction of a 1927 Hollywood caught up in the transition from silent films to talkies.  The RPO, conducted by Neil Thomson, will bring the film’s iconic soundtrack to life while the re-mastered film is shown on the big screen.

 

 

 

 

Ana Maria Martinez photo by Tom SpechtSaturday August 31st is Opera Alfresco night with the English National Opera Orchestra and a special appearance by the incomparable Grammy Award winning American soprano, Ana Maria Martinez whose lyrical, elegant style has seen her grace all the grand opera houses around the world.  The ENO together with principal soloists Wynne Evans, Fiona Murphy, Kai Ruutel and David Webster will perform some of the world’s greatest and most popular arias from the works of Bizet, Mozart, Puccini, Verdi and more.

 

 

 

 

 

 

MICHAEL BALL by joelanderson.com s -

 

 

On Sunday September 1st MICHAEL BALL, double Olivier Award winner (‘Hairspray’, ‘Sweeney Todd’), multi-platinum recording artist, and radio and TV presenter will close Live By The Lake’s programme of events with a special evening of music by George and Ira Gershwin.  Britain’s top musical theatre star will be inviting friends from the West End stage such as Kerry Ellis, Gina Beck, and David Shannon to join him in performing some of the Gershwin’s best loved songs including Summertime, I Got Rhythm, S’Wonderful, Shall We Dance, and many more.

Domaine Vintur Cuvee Le Gentleman 2011 Wine Review

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Domaine-Vintur-Le-Gentleman-wine reviewI am fussy about red wine. Some of it just tastes like acid and gives me a headache. So was Domaine Vintur Cuvee Le Gentleman 2011 (£14) drinkable? Yes, more than. It is a very good, full bodied red wine with a great taste and no bad aftertaste. It has a bit of spice and is well balanced. It has ripe, dark fruits and a good balancing of acidity,

This lightly oaked wine has full, fresh tastes of cherry and red fruit. It is a very fruity red wine. It has lots of flavour and does not have the acid-like aftertaste I feel some red wines have. It is also dominated by grenache.

My favourite thing about this wine is that it is not too heavy. It is just fresh and light and full of flavour. Worth every pound of the 14 it cost.

The wine is dedicated to all the cyclists who have climbed Mon Ventoux – one of the most famous final ascents in Tour de France history by the English owner of the estate Graham Shore.

What They Say.

Cuvée Le Gentleman 2011, Appellation AOC Ventoux

Our flagship red wine, made from grapes selected from the best and oldest vines. 70% Grenache, 15% Syrah, 10% Mourvèdre and 5% Carignan. Aged for 20 months before bottling with a light touch of oak.

The wine is complex. It has a round nose rich in woodland fruit, with a hint of oak. The palate is full and succulent, with fresh cherries and notes of the garrigue -Provençal herbs- and spice. Its tannins complement the length and balance of the sweet wild fruit and give a rounded full finish.

It is named to honour all the men who have ridden up Mont Ventoux by bike and to celebrate Bradley Wiggins’ Tour de France win in 2012. It is a wine to enjoy with meats, cheeses and on its own. Ready to drink now but with aging potential.

 

Chinese Shanghai Composite index falls 5.3% on Monday

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Recent actions by the Chinese regulators to curb lending has further unnerved investors already unsettled by recent comments from Ben Bernanke. The interest rates Chinese banks charge each other surged last week to record highs before falling back.  And following a recent statement by the People’s Bank of China, the Shanghai Composite Index fell 5.3% Monday night.

 

Adrian Lowcock, Senior Investment Manager, at Hargreaves Lansdown;-  

 

“China’s new leadership is addressing some of the risks that have been building up in the banking system, inevitably this could result in some short term pain, possibly impacting on growth but it should benefit China in the longer run.  Chinese stock markets do look cheap at present,  based on 20 years of information.   In addition it is important to remember that China is a state-controlled economy and therefore it is very difficult to make a clear judgement on the accuracy of the information being provided.   There are some concerns China’s shadow banking system will spiral out of control, however it seems unlikely the People’s Bank of China will let the system fail.“

 

“In line with their 5 year plan China is undergoing a change from an export driven manufacturer to a consumer focused economy. This transition is not going to be smooth and there will be some bumps along the way.  China continues to grow, at around 6 to 7% per annum, but like all emerging markets this does not lead to a smooth rise in the equity market.

 

In 2007 investing in China was very popular and as a result valuations rose to very high levels. The market has underperformed both developed and emerging markets since. There are clearly issues in China’s financial system and authorities are now taking action to deal with these. For long term investors that want to have exposure to China this setback could be providing an opportunity to invest. Company earnings are rising and valuations are looking much more attractive. Most investors can get sufficient exposure through a well-diversified emerging markets fund such as First State Asia Pacific Leaders which has 23.9% in the region or Aberdeen Asia Pacific which has 18.47% in the area.   For investors wishing to take a more adventurous approach and are able to tolerate a higher level of risk then Jupiter China, managed by Philip Ehrmann, provides exposure.”

 

Taking the Big Fat Problem Out of Recipes

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Fresh_meatNew study prompts the Fat Information Service (FIS) to introduce 10 ‘recipe rules’ to reduce saturated fat content when following your favourite recipes.

A recent UK study[1] analysed 904 recipes developed by celebrity chefs and discovered over three quarters (87%) contained high levels of undesirable nutrients, particularly saturated fats. Eating too much of this type of fat contributes to heart disease and obesity.

Prompted by the new findings, along with evidence indicating that the UK currently consume 20% more saturated fat than is recommended, FIS experts have developed 10 easy to follow rules that can be applied to any recipe to help make it healthier by reducing the saturated fat content.

The new initiative by FIS aims to encourage the nation to get ‘recipe savvy’ by helping them recognise how to make their favourite home-cooked meals healthier without compromising on taste. For example, simply swapping butter for a vegetable oil based spread or replacing cream with low fat yogurt can significantly reduce the saturated fat content of a recipe.  In addition, FIS are also reminding people of the importance of comparing food labels and selecting products that are lower in saturated fat as another simple way to boost their heart health.

Dr Emma Derbyshire, nutritionist and independent advisor to FIS, comments, “Celebrity chefs are great for inspiring people to cook fresh meals and try different types of foods. The problem is that their recipes are generally far too high in saturated fat and calories to be eaten regularly, making them better suited for treats and special occasions.

“The ‘recipe rules’ developed by the Fat Information Service aim to address this by introducing simple changes that people can make to any type of recipe to make it healthier and allow them to include it as part of their regular diet.

“These simple steps to cut down on the amount of saturated fat, such as adapting recipes by swapping less healthy ingredients with lower sat fat ones, and using healthier cooking methods, could potentially save thousands of lives and years of living with heart disease.”

The Recipe Rules:

1.                  If the recipe includes cream, replace with lower fat fromage frais, natural yoghurt or crème fraiche

2.                  Swap whole milk for semi skimmed or skimmed milk

3.                  If you are using cheese to flavour a dish or a sauce, opt for a strong tasting cheese and use a smaller amount of it. Alternatively, try a reduced fat version

4.                  Swap butter for vegetable oil based spreads or margarine

5.                  Use unsaturated oils such as olive, sunflower or rapeseed oils instead of butter, lard or ghee

6.                  Wherever possible grill meat and poultry instead of frying it and cut off any visible fat or skin before cooking

7.                  Use a non stick pan to avoid adding extra fat when cooking

8.                  Add less meat to stews and casseroles and replace with pulses and extra vegetables instead

9.                  When making a pie opt for just one crust – either a lid or a base – as pastry is high in saturated fat  – (also try to make pastry with

Vegetable oil based spreads or margarine instead of butter)

10.              Grill, bake, poach or steam rather than frying and roasting

[1] Food and Public Health journal, April 2013.

Festival Survival Pack

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Festival survival packWaking up in a tent with a hangover means a dry mouth and bad breath. Forgotten your toothbrush? Then Oraldiet is the perfect solution to keep you minty fresh all day. It’s an innovative lozenge that contains the probiotic lactobacillus reuteri, which balances out the bad bacteria in the mouth – the main cause of bad breath. It also contains aloe vera gel, which helps to keep your mouth bacteria balanced and keep you bad breath free.

I reviewed Oraldiet to see if it works. I took one everyday after brushing my teeth and it made a difference. It tastes like a strong mint. My mouth was fresher all day and I also noticed an improvement in my overall dental health. Better gums, whiter teeth and my tongue looked healthier too. Pretty cool.

Being on your feet all day at a festival can leave you feeling a little sore in the sole, but now you can add an extra weapon to your armoury against foot care woes with Carnation Footcare’s Anti Blister Stick. Long lasting, invisible and non-greasy, the innovative Anti- Blister Stick can be applied directly to the areas of your feet where shoes pinch and rub, providing instant relief, while also being easy to pop into your bag and carry around – perfect for when you are stuck in a field in the middle of nowhere. I use this almost everyday. I even took it on a recent trip to Toulouse and it helped with the hours of fun sight-seeing, which are always hard on poor feet.

Planning on dancing the night away? Look no further than the 9bar range for all of your energy needs. Available in nine tasty varieties – Original, Nutty, Pumpkin, Flax, Organic, Peanut, Anglesey Sea Salt, Cracked Black Pepper and Sweet Chilli – there’s a flavour to suit every taste bud. Packed with nutritious seeds that give a slow release of energy, 9bars keep you feeling fuller for longer, allowing you to concentrate on more important things – like which stage to attend. I have tried them and they are delicious.

Don’t let hangovers get in the way of your festival fun. Start your day with a Nature’s Plus Red Lightning powder sachet and feel electric. Each sachet is packed with over thirty whole food extracts including cranberry and pomegranate, giving it an antioxidant punch, perfect for curing those sore alcohol induced heads. It’s the perfect way to start your festival day!

The lights have gone off, the field is silent and you feel the need to sleep for days. It’s safe to say that the festival is over. Make sure that you are ready to get back to the daily routine with Detox Patch-It. This simple plaster-style detox system uses reflexology to support the body’s natural detoxification process. Just apply the Detox Patch-it to the bottom of your feet and let it do all of the work. Using double distilled mandarin wood vinegar and green tea the patches deliver FAR-infrared energy to stimulate key reflexology points on the feet so you awake feeling revived and ready for your next festival!

The 9bar range is available from Waitrose, Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda, Morrisons, Holland & Barrett and independent health food stores nationwide. Original, Nutty, Pumpkin, Flax, Organic and Peanut are available in 4 x 40g multi packs, RRP £1.89, and in 50g singles, RRP 70p. Anglesey Sea Salt, Cracked Black Pepper and Sweet Chilli are available in Waitrose stores nationwide. All varieties are available as 30g singles, RRP 65p.

Oraldiet is available from www.revital.co.uk. £6.35 for 30 lozenges.

Carnation Footcare’s Anti Blister Stick is available from £4.05.

Detox Patch-It is available from Holland & Barrett stores nationwide. £3.99 for 2 patches or £29.99 for 20 patches.

Nature’s Plus Source of Life Red Lightning powder sachets are available from www.nutricentre.com. £1.38 for 6g sachet.

Free Shipping From US When Online Shopping? Yes Please | Shopping News

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summer clothesOnline shopping is great, in fact the only bad thing about it- apart from the destruction to your bank account- is the absurd rise in postage costs. So when we came across the news that American Express are offering card holders free postage from the US we got quite excited. Sorry bank account, it is too good to resist.

Throughout June, American Express Cardmembers in the U.K. can enjoy free shipping and a hassle-free experience when shopping online at top U.S. stores and brands with a simple promotional code.

American Express has partnered with Borderfree to launch the U.S. Summer Sales campaign, which runs until 30 June, and is valid when using any American Express Card on orders of more than £70. British Cardmembers can take advantage of the offer by entering the promotional code AMEXBF when paying with their American Express Card.

The campaign includes a wide range of top U.S. brands, such as Bloomingdales, Neiman Marcus and Aeropostale. A full list of merchants can be found at the campaign website www.port51.com/amex .

In addition to free shipping, Cardmembers can browse online in local currencies, and see all taxes and duties up front at checkout. Shoppers will receive their merchandise within 10 business days and incur no additional fees upon receipt.

The promotion is valid when shopping online with an American Express Card, and when shipping to international destinations outside of the U.S.

Beijing | Music Profile

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Bejing night bandAnother music profile from Frost Magazine. Let us know what you think.
Band: Beijing
Location: New Haven, CT USA
Styles: Indie Rock, Alt Rock, Garage Rock
Similar to: Sunny Day Real Estate, Silversun Pickups, Smashing Pumpkins, Jimmy Eat World, The Breeders, Jeff Buckley
CD: Night (May 7, 2013)
Members/Instruments:
Bill Pruchnicki – drums
Eric Thornberg – vocals, guitar
Jack Hoppingarner – bass, vocals
Thom Smith – guitar, synth, vocals
Bio:
Beijing is an American alternative rock band from New Haven, CT. The band is comprised of Eric Thornberg (vocals/guitar), Thom Smith (guitar/synths), Bill Pruchnicki (drums) and Jack Hoopingarner (bass). Their style has elements of a dark, melancholy, alternative rock sound made famous in the 90’s by bands like Sunny Day Real Estate and Smashing Pumpkins, fused with big choruses and spacey guitar reminiscent of modern bands like Jimmy Eat World and Kings of Leon.
The band formed in the Spring of 2011 and released their debut EP, ‘It’s Not So Simple’. The four song EP consisted of simple and unique grunge rock inspired pop songs characterized by Thornberg’s unique vocal style set to a soundtrack of layered fuzz and amplifier feedback. The EP quickly catapulted Beijing to a national level with countless bloggers reporting on the EP and culminating the year by being named the underground band of the year by Beatcrave.com.
After spending most of late 2011 and early 2012 maturing together as a band and writing a massive amount of new material, Beijing headed into the studio to record their full length debut, ‘Night’.  The album was released on May 7th, 2013. Inspired by feelings of love, loss and hope, ‘Night’ showcases the sound that Beijing has become. Dark and spacey melodies collide with huge distorted guitars, provoking emotion and thought inside of a dark and dense, yet beautiful atmosphere.
Beijing is currently supporting ‘Night’ and have begun writing a follow-up album to be released in early 2014.
Production:
Red Oak Recordings
Produced and Engineered by Jack Hoopingarner
Websites:

Spartacus TV Finale Review

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new-spartacus-trailer-releasedThe age of Spartacus is over – after three series full of blood, guts, sex and awesome action, the American TV series finished on April 12 2013. It’s had its ups and downs as a franchise, not least because of the tragedy surrounding lead actor Andy Whitfield, who sadly died of non-Hodgkin Lymphoma on September 11, 2011, necessitating a change of focus for the series and a new actor in the shape of Liam McIntyre.
McIntyre took on the second season Spartacus: Vengeance and the final series Spartacus: War of the Damned, which brings us onto our review of this final episode – and it’s not without sadness that we write this. Spartacus has become a perhaps unlikely classic that will be re-watched time and time again. It’s a great, visceral, absorbing series that manages to balance blood, gore and beauty with some rather effective writing and character studies.

 

All in all, we’re sad to see it go. But how did the last episode fare? It starts with the final battle for the rebel slaves, who fight the Romans with the famous battle cry “I AM SPARTACUS”, partly to shield his whereabouts and partly to show their allegiance to the man and their shared cause. They are one, they are all slaves and they are all fighting back.

 

One of the pressures of the final episode of a well loved series is that the legacy of the entire programme can rest on this – they effectively have one shot to please everyone. And we think they managed it. One thing to note is that there were no twists. There were no happy endings and there were no cop outs. The deaths of the main characters are dealt with in a brutally realistic fashion and there is no sudden happy ending as such.

 

The story arcs were tied up – for example, Caesar and Core telling Crassus the truth about his recently deceased offspring and Crassus and Spartacus meeting to try and come to a compromise before battle.

 

The characters all went down fighting – Kore, Saxa, Lugo – but there was no glory in their deaths, they just didn’t win through. Spartacus himself one upped Crassus in one to one combat (of course) but met his end in a similarly ignoble way. A bunch of Roman soldiers showed up and speared him to death – a metaphor for the entire uprising perhaps? After all, what chance did the rebel slaves ever have against the might of the Roman Empire? But a personal and moral battle won by Spartacus and his comrades.

 

Spartacus dies yet his story lives on whereas Crassus, although the victor, finds that he has lost almost everything. His son and lover are dead and his career has gone to rival Pompey who steals the glory for ending the rebellion. For a series that started out as seemingly out to shock rather than anything else, Spartacus ended up as a rich narrative – a classic story told well and we think it will leave far more of a legacy than anyone initially suspected.

 

If you’re feeling sad about the end of Spartacus, and you need to placate your gladiatorial leanings make sure you buy the box set so you can watch it whenever you feel the need for an injection of Roman history. Or you could always play gladiator movie slots now, to compensate for the loss of the show. It’s somewhat surprising that Spartacus the TV series genuinely holds up to this classic film in its stylistic depiction of the brutality of a long ago era that will forever capture our imaginations.