Month: July 2009

I shoot at a full moon…

There’s been a few bits regarding MOON in the UK press ahead of the general release on July 17th.

First up is the above front-page feature in filmstar magazine which has a six-page article and interview with Duncan. Can’t find this online right now, but it’s definitely worth a read if you can pick up a copy.

The above spread in the Sunday Times Culture magazine is available online from which this great quotation from Duncan when asked how has he maintained his anonymity for so long?

?Because this image of me being nerdy and geeky is who I really am,? he laughs. ?I am not cool. I don?t really drink, I?ve never taken drugs, I don?t get into fights and I don?t have celebrity friends.? Not that he?s entirely averse to the idea. ?If Oliver Reed was around, I?d have a drink with him,? he enthuses. ?He was a force of nature. We need another actor like that.?

You can read the full thing here.

Another piece unavailable online (unless you subscribe) is the above interview with Duncan by John Millar from the Sunday Express. I’ll leave you with this lovely excerpt regarding Duncan’s Dad’s attempts at steering him toward learning a musical instrument but finally interesting him in home move making instead…

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Duncan smiles when I wonder why he chose making movies instead of a career in music. ?That was one of my big rebellions when I was growing up,? he says. ?I had absolutely nothing to do with music.?

Despite inspiring his father?s song Kooks on the Hunky Dory album, Duncan dealt with having a famous father by distancing himself from the work of David Bowie. ?I?m better now but when I was growing up I couldn?t take it seriously whenever I would hear or see anything with my dad in it.

?My poor dad tried so hard to get me to learn so many instruments. We started off with piano and then he tried the saxophone, then the guitar and the drums. He tried everything he could think of and I just wouldn?t have it, I would have nothing to do with it. I regret it now because I wish I could play an instrument.?

However, Duncan has his father to thank for fostering his passion for film-making. When he was a youngster he made home movies with his father, using toys like Star Wars characters or the Smurfs to create little animation efforts.

?Because my dad realised he wasn?t going to get me on to the music kick, he wanted to have a hobby with me. So we had this old 8mm one-stop camera and made these little movies together. It?s great, one of those father-and-son things we used to do together. Then, as I grew up and he was acting in films, I would go and visit film sets. I was on the set of Labyrinth, which was amazing.?

Duncan admits with a blush that some of those early home movies that he made with his father are still around. ?They are on a beaten-up old VHS tape but no one will ever see them,? he says.

?One reason for that is that they have awful commentaries from me as a child, explaining the stories. Just listening to yourself is so embarrassing.?

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Ch ch ch ch changes…

To celebrate today’s release of EMI’s VH1 Sorytellers CD/DVD package, we are giving away five copies to a similar amount of BowieNet members.

I know from past experience that these spot-the-difference contests are popular and as we haven’t had one for a while…

Below is a shot from the original VH1 Sorytellers taping populated by BowieNetters and various contest winners, etc.

There are five major changes which are very easy to spot as far as I can tell, but then again, I would say that.

When you think you have all five, send your findings to me here, either as the image with the changes highlighted, or if easier for you, just describe the changes.

All the correct entries will be dropped into The Random Generator’s big hat with the five winners being announced on the 13th, the day before the North American release (July 14th). Last entries by midnight on Sunday July 12th New York time please.

Usual BowieNet rules apply: Only one entry per BowieNet account and please remember you must enter using your BowieNet e-mail or at least supply your BowieNet user name. If you do neither of these things you won’t be eligible to enter.

Good Luck, kidz…

Every Magazine on every shelf…

The August issue of UNCUT magazine has a five star review by Chris Roberts of the upcoming VH1 Sorytellers CD/DVD release. Elsewhere in the mag Chris also gives MOON a four star review.

Howard Devoto, (02.08.2009 NEWS: DEVOTO ACKNOWLEDGES BOWIE’S LITERARY AWARENESS) of the newly-reformed Magazine, has Hunky Dory, Low and Lust For Life among the ten albums that informed his musical education in UNCUT’s regular MY LIFE IN MUSIC feature.

And it’s there in The Mirror…

The Mirror newspaper in the UK has made the VH1 Sorytellers CD/DVD release CD OF THE WEEK. You can read the review by Gavin Martin online here.

Here are a few lines from the conclusion…

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Thus the pieces of his life are put together with wit, insight and tenderness through impassioned versions of classics and curios. Bowie comes across as a warm and generous soul – not the cunning operator and vampiric manipulator of popular myth.

Blur reunions and Jarvis comebacks are all very well, but this is a sweet reminder of the real Prince Of Britpop in exile. Enjoy the sabbatical but please don’t leave it too long before you come back, David.

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Storytellers is released via EMI on Monday (July 6th) and in North America the following week. Stay tuned for a contest to win copies.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – July 2, 2009

David Bowie e-book is released in Apple app store

New York, NY ? Mosaic Legends, LLC and world-renowned photographer Mick Rock today announced the release of the Ziggy Stardust eBook App. Available exclusively at Apple?s iTunes App store, this interactive electronic book chronicles David Bowie?s journey as he transforms in to Ziggy Stardust. This eBook features over six hundred images from Mick?s photo archive many of which are being release for the first time.

“Bowie is a great subject for this creative medium,” said Mosaic Legends founder Craig Adam. “His eclectic music and Ziggy persona have left their mark in rock history and Mick, as his exclusive photographer, amassed an amazing archive of images which we are excited to share.”

Craig Adam created the cover artwork for this eBook. This eye-popping interpretation of Rock?s 1973 portrait combines the patented Photomosaic® technology with Mick?s photo archive to create a stunning visual documentation that traces the entire two-year career of Ziggy Stardust. Double-tap or pinch to zoom into the Photomosaic all the way to the full resolution of a single image. Each interactive photograph contains information such as the location, date and photographer notes. Users can e-mail each image to a friend or start a blog-like conversation in the Ziggy forum.

“To have the ability to use so many of my images in the eBook is nostalgic and surreal as it captures this magical snapshot of Bowie?s career and personal life,” said Mick Rock.

Mosaic Legends? digital publishing platform simplifies the App building process and allows content creators to easily enter photographs, text, audio and video through it?s web based interface. This turnkey solution gives Mosaic Legends the ability to bring new products to the public via the App store in a relatively short period of time. “I?m looking forward to opening my archive to Mosaic Legends so they can continue to create new and entertaining Apps of the many artists I?ve had the opportunity to photograph”.

David Bowie is an English singer, songwriter, actor, multi-instrumentalist, producer, arranger and audio engineer. Active in five decades of rock music, and frequently re-inventing his music and image, Bowie is widely regarded as an influential innovator, particularly for his work through the 1970s. Bowie has taken cue from a wide range of fine art, philosophy and literature. He is also a film and stage actor, music video director and visual artist.

Mick Rock is “The Man Who Shot the 70s”, the inimitable rock photographer who launched his career with an unknown David Bowie in 1972. Rock?s career with key 70s images includes Lou Reed?s Transformer, Iggy Pop?s Raw Power and Queen?s Queen II and many more.

Mosaic Legends is a digital media company focused on turning digital assets into marketable consumer products & services. The company is a leader in designing, developing and marketing mobile applications.

Really quite out of sight…

The Ziggy Stardust iPhone application that we’ve been telling you about, (11.02.2008 NEWS: MOSAICLEGENDS/MICK ROCK ZIGGY STARDUST MOSAIC & 06.22.2009 NEWS: MOSAIC LEGENDS APPLICATION DUE FOR iPHONE) is now available on iTunes at a discount launch price of just $2.99 USD/ £1.79 GBP.

I have to say that it’s a really cool application and though you can’t fault Mick Rock‘s photographs from this period (or any other, actually) I wasn’t expecting it to be such an enjoyable thing.

It’s just great to have instant access to so many high quality classic Ziggy images and it’s fun sending them on to those not expecting it. A few female Bowie fans I have forwarded the above image to have since collapsed with the vapours, as have Tony Day and Rexer!

Anyway, if you have an iPhone go here to purchase the app…if you don’t have an iPhone, you need one, if not only for this single application.

Stay tuned for more on this subject and check out the press release in the press release section above.