Tag Archives: Terry Gilliam

Contest: Win Arcade Fire’s The Suburbs on Vinyl

“The Month of May” is a standout track on Arcade Fire‘s stellar new album The Suburbs, but it ain’t got nothing on the month of August.

So far this month, the indie rock sensations have played two sold-out shows at Madison Square Garden — one of which was webcast under the direction of film auteur/Monty Python alum Terry Gilliam — and their performance at last weekend’s Lollapalooza was the festival’s most talked-about event (ok, second most talked-about). Oh, and did I mention that The Suburbs just beat out some guy named Eminem for the best-selling album in America?

Not too shabby, and the month isn’t even halfway over yet. To keep the awesomeness going for the rest of August, our friends over at Merge Records are giving away a copy of The Suburbs to one lucky Owl and Bear reader. And this isn’t some CD or 8-track or whatever format you kids listen to nowadays — this is a freshly pressed double-LP of pure vinyl goodness. Top that, Slim Shady.

For your chance to win Arcade Fire’s The Suburbs on vinyl, send an email to contest@owlandbear.com with “Arcade Fire Contest” in the subject line and your name and mailing address in the body. The winner will be selected at random on August 30th.

Why So Modest? (Video)

King Rat

In January, it will have already been two years since Heath Ledger died. And as much as the world continues to miss him, that loss is eased somewhat by the continued unveiling of Ledger’s latter-day projects. Last summer, we were treated to a little film called The Dark Knight, which won Ledger a much-deserved posthumous Oscar.

This fall, we will get to see his final film, the Terry Gilliam-directed The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (also starring Tom Waits), which finds Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and Colin Farrell assuming Ledger’s role for the scenes left unfinished at the time of his demise.

But, in even more exciting news, today has seen the belated release of “King Rat”, an animated music video Ledger directed for indie darlings/smart-asses Modest Mouse. Completed in collaboration with LA’s THE MASSES, the video’s release is timed to coincide with Modest Mouse’s new EP No One’s First and You’re Next. The EP contains newly recorded songs from the We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank and Good News for People Who Love Bad News sessions, as well as two rare b-sides.

In addition to being entertaining, the video has a conservationist bent. According to THE MASSES:

Proceeds from iTunes video downloads in the first month of release will go toward Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, an international non-profit, marine wildlife conservation organization organization committed to ending the destruction of habitat and slaughter of wildlife in the world’s oceans in order to conserve and protect ecosystems and species. Sea Shepherd uses direct-action tactics to investigate, document, and take action when necessary to expose and confront illegal activities on the high seas. We encourage you to visit their site if you are compelled to make a larger donation or volunteer your time.

We’ve got the video for “King Rat” after the jump. Continue reading