If Christopher Nolan banning chairs from his sets sounded too good to be true (of course Christopher Nolan wouldn’t allow his cast and crew to sit down), that’s because it is.
In a recent conversation between Anne Hathaway and Hugh Jackman, The Dark Knight Rises actress told her Les Misérables co-star, “Chris also doesn’t allow chairs…. He doesn’t allow chairs, and his reasoning is, if you have chairs, people will sit, and if they’re sitting, they’re not working.” That’s the kind of method madness that titillates first-year film school bros, but a Nolan spokesperson told IndieWire that it’s simply not true.
“The only things banned from [Nolan’s] sets are cell phones (not always successfully) and smoking (very successfully),” spokesperson Kelly Bush Novak said. “The chairs Anne was referring to are the directors chairs clustered around the video monitor, allocated on the basis of hierarchy not physical need. Chris chooses not to use his but has never banned chairs from the set. Cast and crew can sit wherever and whenever they need and frequently do.” Look, here’s a chair on a Nolan set. Two of them, actually.
warner bros.
As for the cell phone ban, that’s to protect against leaked photos and videos. No wonder Tom Holland hasn’t been in a Christopher Nolan movie yet, and never will.
Indie music has grown to include so much. It’s not just music that is released on independent labels, but speaks to an aesthetic that deviates from the norm and follows its own weirdo heart. It can come in the form of rock music, pop, or folk. In a sense, it says as much about the people that are drawn to it as it does about the people that make it.
After delaying their new album at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, Haim’s Women In Music Pt. III is finally here to serve as the perfect soundtrack for those quick walks outside in the warmth before retreating back to your home. Throughout, Haim zeroes in on a shimmering vibe, focusing on instrumentation and songwriting that results in their lengthiest and most consistent album to date.
Gordi — Our Two Skins
Gordi’s latest album “balances fierce intimacy with expansive ambition,” writes Philip Cosores for Uproxx. The sparse arrangements leave room for Sophie Payten’s lyrics to really sink in, allowing the listener to revel in the intricacies and impressive command of her songwriting as she describes a woman figuring out her own place in the world.
Hum — Inlet
The best part about Hum’s first album in 22 years is that it doesn’t sound like they haven’t made an album in 22 years. It’s perhaps their most exciting album to date, giving the classic Hum sound a modern revamp for thicker mixes and heavier guitars, with no song clocking in at any less than four minutes.
Arca — KiCK i
Arca has been consistently releasing new music throughout the 2010s, and the producer isn’t slowing down in the 2020s. As for what you can expect to hear on Kick I, Carolyn Droke writes for Uproxx that “it’s hard to place a finger on the distinct category Arca’s music falls into, as she expertly layers jagged, metallic samples with contemporary pop sensibilities.”
Bad Moves — Untenable
On their sophomore full-length, these Washington DC rockers tried to push to the outer edge of their influences, into territory that felt a little more unfamiliar. Untenable features flourishes of folk and garage rock, while still staying true to the band’s mission of delivering undeniable hooks and melodies.
Bright Eyes — “Mariana Trench”
At long last, Bright Eyes’ first album in nearly a decade has a title and release date. “Mariana Trench” is the latest sampling from Down In The Weeds Where The World Once Was, previewing what the band called in a statement “an enormous record caught in the profound in-between of grief and clarity — one arm wrestling its demons, the other gripping the hand of love, in spite of it.”
Tigers Jaw — “Warn Me”
Tigers Jaw’s first song in three years marks the first time that Ben Walsh and Breanna Collins have recorded with their touring members, and the new input pushes the band in a welcome, fresh direction. “Warn Me” isn’t slated to appear on the band’s upcoming Hopeless Records debut, but is a promising taste of what’s to come. I’ve been hesitant in the past to write from a more positive point of view,” said Walsh in a statement, “but my entire personal life went through an upheaval a few years back and it inspired me to see things through a new lens.”
Narrow Head — “Night Tryst”
Narrow Head channel The Smashing Pumpkins on their first single for Run For Cover Records, featuring chugging instrumentals and Corgan-esque guitar leads. Lyrically, vocalist Jacob Duarte says he “wanted to create a fairly dark world with my words. I put my life and experiences into that world and those are the words that came out.”
If you’re a reader of this column, you probably know I’m a sucker for emo-inspired indie rock. Michigan’s Forest Green fall into this category, with melodic earworm choruses sandwiched between heavy guitars and raspy vocals. “Ivory” is the latest preview of the band’s upcoming album In Waves, which is due out this week.
Rituals Of Mine — “Come Around Me”
Mixing the sonic palettes of R&B, electronic, and pop, into a unique and innovative hybrid, Rituals Of Mine previews her new album Hype Nostalgia with “Come Around Me,” where Terra Lopez takes on the music industry to call out the times she has been taken advantage of as a gay woman of color. With Lopez’s ethereal vocal over an electronic beat, “Come Around Me” is an extremely promising look at what’s to come with Hype Nostalgia.
Fenne Lilly — “Alapathy”
Fenne Lilly’s music takes a more upbeat approach on Breach, her debut album for venerable indie label Dead Oceans. “Alapathy” is a taste of this new approach, with insistent percussion that keeps up an anxious intensity throughout the track. It’s the first step toward the inner peace that Lilly searches for throughout Breach.
Katie Dey — “Dancing”
With programmed drums and glitchy synths, “Dancing” introduces Katie Dey’s latest album mydata. On the new album, the Australian musician maintains the integrity of electronic dissociation that made her previous efforts so engaging, while also utilizing strings and orchestral arrangements to expand the breadth of her songwriting.
Chloe Moriondo — “Manta Rays”
Just a few months after releasing the Split Orb EP, 17-year-old singer songwriter Chloe Moriondo is back with “Manta Rays.” With shimmering guitars and reverb-soaked vocals, the track “is supposed to feel like the moment when you sit fully alone in your room after seeing that one person you’ve been trying to dream of just to be closer to them, and reflect on how dumb you are and how much of your time goes to thinking of them,” wrote Moriondo in a statement.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Toronto singer, songwriter, and poet Mustafa released the stunning debut single “Stay Alive” in March as a reflection on gun violence. The song was produced by James Blake, who also worked with the singer on a handful of other songs. The duo collaborated on the touching track “Come Back” and they’ve now returned to debut the song with a moving live performance.
Directed by Nabil, the affecting performance poises James Blake on the piano as he offers supporting vocals to Mustafa, who showcases his textured voice. The song is a reflection on loved ones Mustafa has lost throughout his childhood. “If she runs her fingers through my past / She may lose the softness in her hands / Maybe I can still make it come back,” Mustafa sings.
Speaking on the meaning behind song, Mustafa expressed his gratitude towards Blake in a statement: “Perpetually grateful for James who helped free me of my own emotional burdens when I was young, to now helping me free these stories of those who’ve passed too young. today marks 2 years without Smoke Dawg. I pray the people you lost come back to you in the form that heals you best, if not a memory, a dream, if not a dream, in their siblings eyes, if not that, than in the way you carry yourself.”
Watch Mustafa and Blake perform “Come Back” above.
Ever since the Lost series finale aired, a decade ago as of May 2010, it’s been a source of contention for both fans and the creators of the show. While there never could’ve been an ending to the hit supernatural drama that satisfied everyone, the series finale has been relentlessly dunked on for years. Even George R.R. Martin got into the act. Although, he probably should’ve waited until Game of Thrones ended its run, because that show did not have the smoothest landing either.
In a revealing new interview with Collider, Lost co-creator Damon Lindelof opened up about the behind-the-scenes battle that led to the show’s ill-received ending. With the success of HBO’s Watchmen and The Leftovers under his belt, the showrunner seems to be less apprehensive about tackling what he believes was the main source of creative problems: ABC wanted too many seasons.
According to Lindelof, the original plan for Lost was to only run for three seasons, and there were already conversations about how the show would end as they were working on the pilot. However, if the show became a hit, ABC’s line of thinking was “why end something that people love watching?” This led to the show being stretched to over twice its original length, causing too many mysteries to stack up, and the show’s trademark flashback scenes became less revelatory character moments and more “treading water.”
Eventually, Lindelof and the writers managed to convince ABC to at least have a conversation about ending the show, and well, it didn’t go so great.
“Then they finally came to the table and we had a real conversation. They were like, ‘We have agreed to let you end the show.’… I just said to [ABC President] Steve McPherson, ‘Thank you. This is what’s best for the show,’ and he said, ‘We were thinking 10 seasons.’ Mind you, we’re halfway through Season 3, so first off how do you even think we’re gonna get to 10? That’s really the same as saying we’re not gonna let you end the show, because how many drama series even get to 10 seasons?”
After a back and forth where Lindelof and the writers suggested ending the show after four seasons and ABC came back with nine, six seasons was agreed upon as an ending point even though, again, that was twice as many seasons as the creators originally wanted. While Lindelof is proud of the plan they came up with to end the show and they way they executed it, he fully acknowledges that stacking too many mysteries over the show’s 121 episodes spiraled out of control.
“I think that we can both agree that we did not get that balance right,” he told Collider.
Terry Crews isn’t faring so well on social media these days. Following the killing of George Floyd, Crews tweeted controversial remarks on avoiding “Black supremacy.” He then attempted to explain his perspective with more tweets and ended up creating a bigger mess, mostly because his wording had suggested a warning against something (“Black supremacy”) that does not exist. The matter grew even more unwieldy with Crews eventually lashing out against “gatekeepers of Blackness” and doubling down: “Any Black person who calls me a coon or and Uncle Tom for promoting EQUALITY is a Black Supremist, because they have determined who’s Black and who is not.”
Crews then tried to explain his stance to Seth Meyers, which didn’t fix things, but fast forward a few weeks, and Crews is, well, tweeting again.
“If you are a child of God, you are my brother and sister. I have family of every race, creed and ideology,” he wrote on Tuesday. “We must ensure #blacklivesmatter doesn’t morph into #blacklivesbetter.”
If you are a child of God, you are my brother and sister. I have family of every race, creed and ideology.
Again, Crews appears to be sending a warning against something (#blacklivesbetter) that wasn’t even on the table. As one might expect, this tweet isn’t going over any better than his past tweets on Black Lives Matter, and now, Martin Luther King Jr.’s daughter, Bernice King, has responded to the Brooklyn Nine-Nine actor.
“We’re so far from that bridge, Terry,” Bernice tweeted. “#BlackLivesMatter is, in part, a rallying cry and a protest slogan to galvanize people into doing the justice work needed to derail the deaths, dehumanization and destruction of Black lives that racism causes … Justice is not a competition.”
We’re so far from that bridge, Terry. #BlackLivesMatter is, in part, a rallying cry and a protest slogan to galvanize people into doing the justice work needed to derail the deaths, dehumanization and destruction of Black lives that racism causes.
Crews hasn’t responded with another tweet yet, although that might be coming.
On a tangential note, Crews recently revealed that Brooklyn Nine-Nine has trashed several episodes (while planning “to start over”) following the killing of George Floyd.
Flying Lotus called up a lot of collaborators to lend him some assists on Flamagra, his latest album. Now, though, the musician and producer wants his fans to step up to the plate and make some contributions of their own. He and Denzel Curry have launched #BlackBalloonsChallenge, for which they want fans to share their ideas for reinterpreting the lyrical part of the instrumental version of “Black Balloons Reprise,” from Flamagra (Instrumentals).
Asking fans to “enter the world of Flamagra (Instrumentals)” and “re-imagine” the song, the site instructs interested entrants, “Download the 16 bar instrumental via SoundCloud here & create your own flow to the accompaniment. Submit video or audio of yourself performing your bars on SoundCloud, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or TikTok & use the hashtag #BLACKBALLOONSCHALLENGE to win various prizes, including a Flying Lotus merch package, a free Pro-Unlimited subscription from Soundcloud, and the chance to have your remix featured on socials by Lotus & Curry.”
The SoundCloud description of the instrumental download also notes, “In celebration of the one year anniversary of the landmark album, Flamagra, Flying Lotus has returned with a new and intimate perspective of that epic body of work; Flamagra (Instrumentals). The album is an exploration of Lotus’ mastery of production techniques & virtuosic musicianship that allows the featured players of his world to take center stage. Now Lotus challenges you to enter his world & re-imagine the single ‘Black Balloons Reprise,’ originally featuring Denzel Curry.”
As the WNBA and NBA continue to plan out how they will use their seasons in Florida to take a stand for broader social issues, Chicago Sky forward and two-time NCAA champion at UConn Gabby Williams released photos of the Nike sneakers she’ll wear on the court when the WNBA kicks off on July 24 in Bradenton, Fla.
The sneakers are a tribute to the late Gigi Bryant, the daughter of Kobe Bryant. She, her father, and seven others died on Jan. 26 in a helicopter accident, and the WNBA has been dedicated to honoring Gigi’s memory since her passing.
When the @WNBA tips off in Florida next month, @gabbywilliams15 will wear a custom-painted pair of the Nike Mamba Focus in honor of Gigi Bryant
Over the past several years until her abrupt passing, Gigi often discussed her dreams of attending UConn and playing in the WNBA. It was one of the key focuses of Kobe’s post-playing career to draw attention to and support the WNBA. At an exhibition game between the women’s national basketball team and the UConn women’s team days after the crash, a seat was saved and decorated with flowers and Gigi’s No. 2 jersey to commemorate her relationship with the school. When the WNBA became the first league to pull off a virtual draft this spring, it kicked off the draft broadcast with a moving tribute to Gigi and her two teammates, Peyton Chester and Alyssa Altobelli, who also passed away in the crash.
Memphis rapper Jucee Froot is back with another twerk anthem, taunting listeners with the prospect of “Girls Kissing Girls” in her latest video from her Black Sheep debut mixtape with fellow Memphis star Juicy J. In the video, Jucee hits the strip club with a fleet of her fellow ladies, securing a VIP table and getting lap dances while her lyrics entice women to come through if they’re fed up with their man.
“Let me see your tongue ring,” Jucee flirts on the chorus. “I got girls kissing girls.” The burgeoning Memphian star hasn’t been shy about expressing her desires in her music, from the raunchy “Eat Itself,” which featured on the Insecure soundtrack earlier this year, to the aggressive “Psycho (Remix)” featuring Rico Nasty, on which she lets rivals know she wants smoke if they have it.
As Jucee continues to rack up vital placements such as her appearance on the Birds Of Prey soundtrack last year, Black Sheep songs like “Girls Kissing Girls” will continue to be a calling card, letting rap fans know she’s got the range to stick around for a while.
Quarantine television — in which entertainers entertain us by sitting in front of webcams in their homes while quarantining — has been a mixed bag. Even SNL, after a better-than-expected first “At Home” episode, saw its ratings slip for its second go, suggesting viewers weren’t going to put up with this style for too long. But if there’s anyone we’d love to see grumbling in front of a laptop, it’s Larry David. So here’s some pretty, pretty, pretty good news: As per Variety, Curb Your Enthusiasm has been renewed for an eleventh season. What’s more, his response was pretty, pretty, pretty great as well.
David did not reveal any details of the next season, not even if he’d actually address the real-life horror-show we’re enduring with no end in sight. (Although the famously grouchy entertainer, at least in April, told The New York Times that he’s enjoying his quarantine.) But he did leave a honey of a quote. “Believe me, I’m as upset about this as you are,” David told Variety. “One day I can only hope that HBO will come to their senses and grant me the cancellation I so richly deserve.”
Will David and company wait to shoot the series after things chill out in Los Angeles? Who knows, but from the sound of it, California won’t be returning to normal any time soon. That means Season 11 may be a glorious depiction of how Fake Larry David handles quarantining, deliveries, cooking at home, Zoom sessions with dodgy buffering issues, and, when he braves the outside, awful people not wearing masks. Really, if anyone going to be the poet of the pandemic, it’s Larry David.
The most recent season of Curb Your Enthusiasm bowed earlier this year, and it should be fun seeing how he writes his way out of its shocking conclusion.
Today, the European Union announced that it would begin allowing travelers from 15 countries to fly into countries in the EU beginning on Wednesday, July 1st. Significantly, the United States did not make the list. That shouldn’t come as much of a surprise, considering that with over 2.6 million cases of coronavirus across the country, according to the most recent data collected by the Johns Hopkins University, we are the current epicenter of the virus worldwide.
According to CNBC, external visitors from Algeria, Tunisia, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Georgia, Japan, Montenegro, Morocco, Rwanda, Serbia, South Korea, Thailand, and Uruguay will be welcomed to visit the European Union for the first time since countries began shuttering their economies in March as a response to the coronavirus spread. Chinese visitors will also be permitted to fly into the EU, once the country starts accepting European travelers.
The EU’s decision is non-binding, meaning any country may open its borders to whichever country they want, though European governments have been strongly advised to not lift travel restrictions if the country of origin has not met certain criteria — new COVID-19 cases over the last 14 days need to be close to or below the EU’s average, with infection rates trending toward a decline, or stabilizing in comparison to the previous 14 days.
Considering several states across the United States are still recording record highs, we can put to rest any hopes we held of flying to Europe this summer.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Cookie settingsACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy
Privacy Overview
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
