Elias Theodorou
UFC fighter Elias Theodorou happens to have a luscious, hypnotic head of hair.
Because of this, he also has a new pitchman contract with Pert Plus shampoo.
And because we a) think this is hilarious, and b) support anything UFC fighters do to earn themselves extra cash in lieu of that shitty Reebok contract they have to work under, Sarah talked to Elias about this development.
To read the full story go to Fightland by clicking here.
Filed under Jock Stuff, Shameless Promotion
Sima Azimi
Shaolin Wushu Club of Afghanistan might be among the bravest, boldest martial arts clubs in the world right now.
That’s because the group, led by Sima Azimi, is bringing martial artist training to women in a conservative society where female improvement of this sort is frowned upon.
Sarah wrote about this for Asian World Of Martial Arts.
To read the story click here.
Filed under Culture, Politics, Shameless Promotion
Flo Morrissey & Matthew E. White — Gentlewoman, Ruby Man
It’s fitting that British triller Flo Morrissey and American drawler Matthew E. White met for the first time at a Lee Hazlewood tribute night in 2015 because the pair’s new album Gentlewoman, Ruby Man has a clear “we want to be like Lee & Nancy” air throughout.
If it is an act of copycatting it’s a respectful one. Where Lana Del Rey gets her retro cues by searching through Jackie Kennedy photo archives on Pinterest, one gets the sense the 10 duet covers on Gentlewoman, Ruby Man were selected after exploring a well-curated record collection in someone’s rec room basement.
It’s not a total ’70s revival trip. The pair manage to turn Frank Ocean (“Thinking ‘Bout You”), James Blake (“The Colour In Anything”) and Charlotte Gainsbourg (“Heaven Can Wait”) tracks into effective grayscale mopers.
That said, Morrissey and White’s best work comes from their classic reinterpretations. Their take on Nino Ferrer’s “Looking For You” has even more gravitas when you know the French-Italian singer’s tragic story. It’s exceedingly difficult to mess up Roy Ayers’ “Everybody Loves The Sunshine” and their version’s tinkling keyboard flourish will lock itself between your ears long after you listen to it. Even more addictive is Morrissey and White’s buoyant reimagine of the Grease theme song. Striped of its context as part of a musical and careful calibrated to avoid any American Idol talent show-type airs, “Grease” turns into a groovy, Feist-ian bedroom jammer. Best, though, may be the pair’s take on the George Harrison spiritual “Govindam.” At risk of Beatles blaspheming, this modern redo, complete with its winding, mobius strip rhythmic track, may perhaps be better than the original.
Filed under Music
Arcade Fire photo courtesy Polaris Music Prize.
Arcade Fire, Blue Rodeo and Patrick Watson were among the acts we spoke to for episode four of the Polaris Podcast.
This episode was focused on four of the albums that received Slaight Family Polaris Heritage Prize designation last year.
Those were:
* Blue Rodeo’s Five Days In July, which won in the 1986-95 public vote category
* Mary Margaret O’Hara’s Miss America, which won in the 1986-95 jury vote category
* Arcade Fire’s Funeral, which won in the 1996-2005 public vote category
* Lhasa’s La Llorona, which won in the 1996-2005 jury vote category
Listen to the podcast via iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher or Acast. Or right here…
Filed under Music, Shameless Promotion
Eric Roberts and Robert Vaughn
We here at Risky Fuel believe in the principle that you “find your people.”
So if, say, you’re the sort of person who is super-obsessed with late actor/spy Robert Vaughn, all you have to do is check in with someone who’s obsessed with actor/cartoon villain Eric Roberts to put together that the two of them had worked together on the film A Cry From Within.
Next thing you know Sarah is on episode #42 of the Eric Roberts Is The Fucking Man podcast talking to host Doug Tilley about Vaughn and Roberts.
You can listen to/download the podcast by going here.
Filed under Films, Shameless Promotion, Television
I Overcame My Autism And All I Got Was This Lousy Anxiety Disorder: A Memoir
Risky Fuel 