‘Aint No Grave

At last American VI: 'Aint No Grave has arrived, released on what would have been Johnny Cash's 78^th birthday, and is possibly the most haunting album ever recorded. From the title track through to Aloha Oe, Cash's vocals are equal parts vitriol and melancholia, and though the bass in his voice that made him famous is well and truly gone, pneumonia-damaged lungs lend his vocals a ghostly quality. The album, his 61^st, was recorded in the final 3 weeks of his life, and is littered with themes of mortality and salvation.

Since American III in 2000, Cash knew he was dying and that can be felt through his music, concentrating upon redemption, forgiveness and love, however it is this final album which descends deeper into that mentality of facing death. Though lyrics by late musicians may attain a deeper poignancy, eg. Cobain singing "Man, I swear I don't have a gun", Cash knew he had weeks to live and that knowledge leads to a greater poignancy and meaning. This meaning cannot be overlooked, as it is a rarity to find meaning of this level in foresight, rather than hindsight.

Shame then that the final album is only 32 minutes, but this is half an hour of a legend that has been long-awaited and doesn't let down. Of the American recordings, after only a handful of plays, this 6^th offering is already the second best, and will never better American IV though 'Aint No Grave is quite possibly Cash's most poignant song with the exception only of Hurt. Finally, let it just be said that this is the final reminder that Cash was one of the greatest musicians to ever live, and with this album, no grave can hold him down.

3Demented

3Demented

In the last 12 months the sheer abundance of film available in 3D has shot through the roof as cinemas have invested in the technology. According to my dad, he watched How The West Was Won in 3D in the 1960s, however he is possibly confused by early onset Alzheimer's. In my own personal experience, I first remember donning the now defunct one-red-one-blue-clingfilm-glasses in 1990 or so, at the request of Robert Englund. Anyone who remembers 3D Freddy's Final Nightmare will recall sitting through 100minutes of the lamest Nightmare on Elm Street instalment, just to have about 100 seconds of, well, 2D that caused a migraine. This was the end for 3D as far as I was concerned...until 2008.

Kung Fu Panda, the most awesome animated film of all time (see prev. post) set the bar pretty high with its three dimensional dumpling fight, and since then 2009 has brought us the flying house of Up, the paddle ball in the opening scene of Monsters Vs Aliens (bizarrely still looking 3D on the dvd version), the HamsterBall in Bolt, the flying scenes in Ice Age 3, and so on...I watch a lot of animated 3D fare.

Aside from animation, however, 3D just doesn't seem to be gelling, and yes Avatar is included in this statement. Watching Avatar I felt euphorically relieved that for once, after Final Destination 3D set the aforementioned 'bar' down on the floor and ran away from it, a modicum of thought and time had gone into scripting the film. Verdict...Avatar's 3D was long-surpassed by animation, but its script and cast saved it from total let-down. The likes of 2012 seem perfect for the extra dimension...imagine the limo race scene or the plane take-off...but don't receive it, and don't need it.

The best 3D film made to date, you wonder? A Christmas Carol. Suspension of belief is not even necessary, your brain cannot convince you that the snow is not falling all around you or that the GhostCoach will not trample you in its path. So ahead of everything else, even Avatar, is Crimbo Carol, that it begs the question "Can live action ever match animation in three-dimensional terms?"

So, the future holds Toy Story 2 in 3D and Battle For Terra...animation still leading the way, and even if new, original concepts such as Terra flop, the inevitable success of Toy Story 2 surely signals the revisiting of old faves. The thought of Lion King's stampede, or Shrek escaping the Dragon's castle surrounded by flame, or the likes of The Matrix in 3D is enough to keep me investing time and money in seeing the end results.