Bigal

As a fairly liberal Unionist, I like to go for the middle position; I call it Derry, but anybody who tries to tell me that its real name isn't Londonderry gets a swift kick in the chuff

Okay, I know fuck all about music, but can anybody give me an idea if these bands are worth seeing:

The Barker Band

Benjamin Folke Thomas

The Great Whale

La Rabla Fam

Shooting Star Poets

The Vagabonds

Bastille

Dark Moon

The Joker And The Thief

Thelights

Tom & The Tides

The Welcome Committee

Cheers

Stay, you whore.

Will do

Righto. Not enough John Goodman, sadly.

I'm having a similar problem with the X-Files. Ten episodes in, and I like it, but it's...I dunno, it's just not blowing me away like I expected it to.

Boardwalk Empire, on the other hand, is fucking amazing.

Does Treme pick up? I've heard good things, but I just watched the first episode, and just couldn't get into it

Ditto. I love me some Robin Williams.

I can't figure out Caravan

Only Fools & Horses: "Speed 3". Big pile of boxes in the road. 'Nuff said.

Surely you mean Father Ted.

I do. Shall edit now!

And I'd be interested to see what stok's favourite WW episodes are.

The Sopranos: "Pine Barrens" is easily the best episode. Just fantastic all-round.

Fawlty Towers: "Gourmet Night", just for Basil attacking the car.

Frasier: "The Seal That Came To Dinner". A perfect blend of slapstick and wit.

Only Fools & Horses: "The Unlucky Winner Is...". This is the one where they go on holiday and Rodney has to prtend to be fourteen. It's just wonderful.

Father Ted: "Speed 3". Big pile of boxes in the road. 'Nuff said.

Peep Show: "Holiday". Everything just comes together in this one, and as things become more and more ridiculous, it all seems eminently plausible.

The Office (UK): "Training". Easily the best, in my opinion. As well as the hilarious Brent song, there's Gareth's perversions and the cringe-inducing end with Tim.

24: "Day 5, Episode 24". Charles Logan was my favourite 24 character, and this one came together beautifully. Great ending.

Lost: "Deus Ex Machina". The episode that made Locke into a truly tragic figure.

And finally, my favourite TV show ever...

The West Wing: So many, but I'll see if I can narrow it down to three.

"Noel." This one is basically a one-man show from Bradley Whitford, who plays the whole thing beautifully.

"Somebody's Going To Emergency, Somebody's Going To Jail". The storyline with Sam is beautifully done.

"Two Cathedrals". One critic called it the finest hour of television ever, and he's not far wrong. This is simply fantastic.

So apparently I've got three by the end of series two :-\. Fuck it, I'll keep going.

"Posse Comitatus". Both the main storylines in this episode are fantastic. It manages to focus on the characters while also bringing into focus much wider issues.

"20 Hours In America Parts I and II". Just for the Donna/Toby/Josh storyline, which is hilarious and touching.

"The Long Goodbye". A lot of people hate this episode, but I found it a refreshing change of pace and really heartwarming and heartbreaking.

"Life On Mars". I love me some Tim Matheson, and he's great here.

"Twenty-Five". Wonderful storyline, which had been hinted at way back in the first season. Plus John Goodman. 'Nuff said.

"Shutdown". Just a great storyline all round.

"No Exit". An hour of fantastic acting.

"A Change Is Gonna Come". Sets things up for the rest of the seasons very nicely.

"2162 Votes". So much happens in this one, and it's genuinely exciting.

"Here Today". As controversial as this storyline was, it's hard to deny that all the actors involved were terrific.

"The Debate". While clearly written to favour Santos, this was still wonderfully done.

"Institutional Memory". Since the last episode was kind of dull, this was the last quality episode of the show.

Well, that's 15 >_>

Right, let's give this a go:

AC/DC - Back In Black

Don McLean - Castles In The Air

Frank Turner - Journey Of The Magi

Airbourne - No Way But The Hard Way

Paul McCartney - Band On The Run

Simply Red - Money's Too Tight To Mention

Robert Plant - House Of Cards

Volbeat - I Only Wanna Be With You

The Wonder Villains - Oh Peter

Ellie Goulding - Under The Sheets

The Answer - Under The Sky

SilhouettE - Put The Silence On Hold

Pay*ola - Everybody Talks

Marvel Comics' Fantastic Four to become three

Comic superheroes the Fantastic Four are to become three with one character to be killed in the January edition, Marvel has announced.

But the publishers will not reveal whether it will be Mr Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Human Torch or The Thing who will die in issue 587.

All four were left in life-threatening situations in the latest edition.

The Fantastic Four - made into a 2005 film starring Ioan Gruffudd and Jessica Alba - first appeared in 1961.

Executive editor Tom Brevoort said cliffhanger endings in the December issue helped to "heighten the suspense while preserving the surprise as to which member doesn't make it out alive"

In a previous storyline, Reed Richards - known as Mr Fantastic - was thought dead but instead was temporarily snatched away to another dimension.

But Mr Brevoort insisted that the death in next month's issue would be the real thing.

"It's a story that will have a transformative effect on these characters - virtually nothing will be the same after the events of this story," he said.

"And that was the reason to go this route - to bring about these seismic changes to the characters and to the series."

Film sequel Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer appeared in 2007.

Where would I get a copy of Arsenic?

Well, ignoring local stuff, I've seen:

AC/DC (x2): Fantastic both times, but even better the second time. That said, I like them so much I have an AC/DC tattoo, so I'm biased.

Bob Dylan: I'm a massive fan, so really enjoyed the show. I can see why people would hate it though.

Paul McCartney: Really fucking great.

The Answer (x3): Saw them supporting AC/DC and at a Belfast charity gig, but the first full gig I saw was awesome.

Airbourne: Good for what they were, and I got in for free, so yay!

Frank Turner (x3): The first time I got too drunk to really remember, but it was a solo show. The other two were full band and were fantastic gigs.

Damien Rice: He was supported by Fionn Regan, Willy Mason, The Guillemots and KT Tunstall. All four support acts were good, while Rice was excellent.

Tom Jones: AWESOME! Although me and my mate did get told to sit down for being too rowdy >_>

Don McLean: Didn't really want to go, but my girlfriend did. I ended up really enjoying it actually.

Britney Spears: Jesus. Went to please my ex. It was dire.

In the next couple of weeks I'm going to see Robert Plant (which should be good) and Simply Red (which won't, but my girlfriend's a big fan and this is their farewell tour). I think that's it.

The blues. Seriously. I go to the same bar every Thursday night which has a live Blues band, and it's fucking awesome, but I have literally no idea where to start. Names that spring to mind are guys like Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf, but I'd also like some modern blues too.

And I bought some Van Morrison albums, five to be exact. Shall get listening soon!

Much obliged

Is there a recommended 2010 update with summer transfers updated?

I use Metal_Guitarists from over at SI.

It's updated up to the 8th September, or around then at least.

Where is this? Can't find it anywhere.

Van Morrison, beyond Astral Weeks. I seriously have no idea where to jump on. The guy's got dozens of albums.

1.

2. Tom Jones (Worth it for the dancing alone)

3. John Fogerty

4. Joe Cocker

5. Bon Scott

6. Bob Dylan (I know he's objectively awful, but I love the emotion in his voice)

7.

8. Bruce Springsteen

9. Van Morrison

10.

I'd be inclined to think the opposite; I'd rather have one game with a shitload of songs. I mainly play Rock Band with a group of mates, and we don't all have the same tastes, so some diversity makes things more interesting all round.

Hey gang,

Here's the DLC coming at you next week! It's a healthy does of reggae, long over due in Rock Band, courtesy of one of the genre's most beloved icons. We'll be seeing Get Up, Stand Up on disc for RB3, but to tide you over here's the rest of Bob Marley and the Wailers' epic album Legend. Enjoy!

Available on Xbox 360, Wii and PlayStation 3 system (Sept. 21):

“Is This Love” +

“No Woman No Cry” +

“Could You Be Loved”

“Three Little Birds” +

“Buffalo Soldier”

“Stir It Up”

“One Love/People Get Ready”

“I Shot the Sheriff”

“Waiting in Vain” +

“Redemption Song”

“Satisfy My Soul” +

“Exodus”

“Jamming”

(All tracks are original master recordings)

(These tracks will be available in Europe on PlayStation 3 system Sept. 22)

These tracks will be available for purchase as individual tracks, as well as “Legend (Album)” on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 system and as individual tracks on Wii. Tracks marked with “+” will also be available for download in the family-friendly LEGO® Rock Band Music Store.

Price:

$1.99 USD, £.99 UK, €1.49 EU (160 Microsoft Points) per song

$2.00 USD (200 Wii Points™) per song

$19.99, £9.99 UK, €14.99 EU (1600 Microsoft Points for Xbox 360) for Legend (Album)

Finally some DLC I can get excited about.

"EP" by Frank Turner

I haven't heard anything about this. What is it?

Apologies if this has been done before, but I thought it would be useful to have a thread where members can ask for good jumping-on points for getting into new artists/genres etc. Hopefully, that's not stupidly vague.

Anyway, I'll kick off with Elvis Costello. Someone recommend an album or two to start with.

I think I'll go with Up. Still cry every time

Beyond that, I'd want to say Toy Story 3, since it's the movie that affected me most out of the series. The original is a very close third though.