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Bookazine Book Review: Thailand - a Traveller’s Companion

by Lang Reid

This week’s review is another coffee table hard cover book, Thailand - a Traveller’s Companion (ISBN 9-8130-1874-7). This is the style of publication that you will often find in the 5 star hotels, on the locker beside the bed, and indeed this book has full page advertisements for some of the ultimate luxurious hostelries in the Kingdom.

It is not, however, a list of places to hang one’s head, but is much more akin to an encyclopaedia which covers Nature, Thai history, both pre-history and relatively recent, arts and traditions, Architecture, Thailand as seen by the painters and writers, detailed Bangkok and then the South, the North East, Central Plains and the North. All covered in 300 plus full colour glossy pages.

Being a pictorial encyclopaedia there are many drawings and photographs per page, some of which are of a superb standard. Every page is certainly packed with information - for example, did you know that there are eight very distinct groups of peoples that inhabit Thailand, and that does not include the different hill tribes. Or that the life expectancy of a Thai male is 61.5 years and for a Thai woman 67.5 years.

The history section is most impressive, with the reigns of the different Thai Kings being discussed, all the way through to the current Monarch. Down the sides of the pages there is also an international time scale so you can plot the historical Thai details relative to the events in the world outside.

The scope is all encompassing. In the section loosely called Arts and Traditions, this covers such diverse subjects as Buddhism, flower arrangements, spiritual abodes, elephants, royal barges, costumes, Thai classical music, theatre, Thai puppets, Thai pleasures (no, Pattaya is not in this section), baskets, Thai food and even a couple of recipes.

There are just so many facts that I believe there is no-one who would have all the different items at their fingertips. For example, the “wheel” motif that you see on flags outside many temples is called “The Wheel of the Law”. Did you know that? I certainly did not. Or that 2000 years ago there were Sanskrit training manuals for the use of elephants. Probably beginning with “First, catch your elephant.”

The review copy was made available by Bookazine, 1st floor Royal Garden Plaza next to Black Canyon and Boots, and costs only 590 baht. It is only because of the liberal advertising sponsorship through the book that it can be made available for this price. I was expecting an RRP of much closer to 2,000 baht to be frank. However, the advertising is done in such good taste and in a style that complements the book in such a way that they do not intrude, and can be, in fact, very interesting.

At the price, it is probably the best publication I have seen to send back to the “old country” as an Xmas gift. With the weight penalty (a heavyweight publication), either hand carry it on the plane, or send it early for the festive season by sea mail! An exceptional book! You will enjoy it.

Movie Review: K-19: The Widowmaker

By Poppy

This movie is based on the true story of Russia’s first nuclear ballistic submarine, which suffered a malfunction in its nuclear reactor on its maiden voyage in the North Atlantic in 1961. Unfortunately for the crew, the K-19 really isn’t all that ready for the mission, and while cruising beneath the Arctic ice pack, the nuclear reactor’s cooling system springs a leak causing the reactor to heat up to explosive levels and exposing the crew to massive radiation poisoning.

The submarine’s crew, led by the unyielding Captain Zateyev (Harrison Ford), races against time to prevent a Chernobyl-like nuclear explosion which threatens not only their lives, but has the potential to ignite a world war between the super powers.

Director Kathryn Bigelow succeeds admirably in delivering a tense thriller of a submarine crew facing certain death.

It’s difficult to get used to Harrison Ford playing a Russian. He even uses his trademark, the Harrison Ford (Indiana Jones) smirk. What I don’t understand is if you are speaking in English why in the world would you want to keep the pretense of an accent? Liam Nesson just plays Liam Nesson.

You have to be in the mood for this one and it’s a little long.

Director: Kathryn Bigelow

Cast:

Harrison Ford ... Capt. Alexi Vostrikov

Liam Neeson ... Capt. Polenin

Peter Sarsgaard ... Vadim Radtchenko

Ingvar Eggert Sigursson ... Viktor Gorelov

Joss Ackland

George Anton ... Konstantin Poliansky

Shaun Benson ... Leonid Pashinski

Christian Camargo ... Pavel Loktev

Dmitry Chepovetsky ... Sergei Maximov

Steve Cumyn ... Oleg Falichev

Svetlana Efremova ... Elena

JJ Feild ... Andrei Pritoola

James Ginty ... Anatoly Starkov

Michael J.X. Gladis ... Yevgeny Borzenkov

Kristen Holden-Reid ... Anton Malahov

Ravil Issyanov ... Igor Suslov (as Ravil Isyanov)

Mark Antony Krupa ... Georgi

Steve Nicolson ... Yuri Demichev

Peter Oldring ... Vanya Belov

Sam Redford ... Vasily Mishin

Christopher Routh ... Oleg Argunov

Tygh Runyan ... Maxim Portenko

John Shrapnel

Lex Shrapnel ... Mikhail Kornilov

Sam Spruell ... Dimitri Nevsky

Mott’s CD review: 

Aerosmith - Nine Lives

by Mott the Dog

*** 3 Stars Rating

The trouble is when you’re a classic rock band riding on the crest of a second wave with all the trappings of being a rock star still regarded as cool, regardless of obvious wealth, and showing the odd sign of wear and tear, and a huge recording contract round your neck that you have to produce albums every three years whether you want to or not. Quite clearly, in 1996 the Boston Bad Boys were not really ready. I wouldn’t dare presume this is not a good album, by any other band perhaps great, but for Aerosmith it is just ordinary.

From the opening squally feedback and Steve Tyler’s trademark caterwauling, there’s no mistaking whose album this is; there are some true stormers here. The first single from the album was the tongue-in-cheek “Falling In Love” with its smirk some bracketed suffix (“is so hard on the knees”) is pure vintage Aerosmith. It’s all sex, heavy innuendo, with a swaggering horn section. Joe Perry’s sultry guitar poking out a nifty riff to hang the whole thing on.

Though it’s not all straight ahead Rock ‘n’ Roll as Aerosmith enjoy themselves in the studio with dulcimers, fiddles, and a bevy of Indian influences. And while it’s not exactly as overt as the Beatles transformation to all things mystic in the mid-sixties, it does seem that the boys have been listening to a great deal more than a few old Rolling Stones albums for inspiration.

Sometimes all this experimentation works, like in the title track, where Perry’s main riff is enhanced by a sitar sound, whereas “A Taste Of India” seems to have been recorded for the sake of having a George Harrison sounding track on the album, and comes off sounding like a gimmick.

As a complete piece of work “Nine Lives” is not as immediately accessible as it’s predecessors “Permanent Vacation”, “Pump” or “Get a Grip”, nor did it have the hit singles. How many songs will remain in the live set for another tour remains to be seen. However, it’s an album that is rewarding with repeated listening as it all hangs together rather well as a whole. Well, that is until it was re-released this year with the added inclusion of their monster hit “I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing” (all thanks to the ham fisted movie “Armageddon”, where Bruce Willis saves the world ... again). Obviously, the inclusion of this song will boost sales, but I have always felt at odds with this song as an Aerosmith fan as it’s a shame that this slushy ballad, written by Diane Warren, was the song to finally take them to number one, not one of their own songs.

For those lulled into a false sense that Aerosmith have lost their rockin bottle and gone all soft, fear not, there is no need for alarm. We get the riotous “Crash” which is as close as punk rock as the Toxic Twins are ever likely to get, while “Pink”, with the kind of over the top lyric only Tyler could get away with, is simply outrageous and sees the vocalist break out the blues harp for a bit of good old bar room boogie.

Remarkably, considering the band had been together (on and off) for well over a quarter of a century when “Nine Lives” was released, it’s still the sound of a band firing on all cylinders.

Not a classic album, but it is Aerosmith and you’ve just got to love ‘em.

Musicians

Steven Tyler - Lead Vocals, Keyboards, Piano, Hammer Dulcimer, Percussion, Hand Organ, Harmonica

Joe Perry - Guitar, Dulcimer, Slide Guitar, Background Vocals

Brad Whitford - Guitar, Acoustic Guitar
Tom Hamilton - Bass, Chapman Stick
Joey Kramer - Drums

Track Listing

1. Nine Lives
2. Falling In Love
3. Hole In My Soul
4. Taste Of India
5. Full Circle
6. Something’s Gotta Give
7. Ain’t That A Bitch
8. The Farm
9. Crash
10. Kiss Your Past Good-bye
11. Pink
12. Falling Off
13. Attitude Adjustment
14. Fallen Angels
15. I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing