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BOWIE: Stardust, Rayguns, & Moonage Daydreams Review: David Bowie's Memoirs Sparkle

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David Bowie is presented as a very human superhero alien in a cinematic graphic novel.

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BOWIE: Stardust, Rayguns, & Moonage Daydreams begins with a forward by Neil Gaiman called "If We Can Sparkle He May Land Tonight." It recounts the author's first contact with the third kind. David Bowie's songs were stories, he remembers, like the Gilbert and Sullivan ditties Gaiman preferred over rock and roll in his youth. He bonded with the rock star over the science fiction undercurrent in the music and image, and glorified him in his mind. Among his favorite memories is trekking to Victoria Station where the Thin White Duke arrived by special train before the 1975 Isolar Tour. Gaiman remembers the faux Bowies at the station, and the Station to Station albums scattered about to distract Bowie fans. The rest of the world was distracted by a blurred photograph which made it look like Bowie was giving a Nazi salute when it was enhanced. Such was the homo superior superpower of Bowie's myth.

Insight Comics' graphic novel is presented as a film directed by Mike Allred (Madman, Silver Surfer), who is also credited as co-screenwriter with Steve Horton (Satellite Falling). The illustrations by Mike and Laura Allred (Madman, iZombie) get her the credit as Technicolor cinematographer and the cinematic theme helps center the reading experience and nods to Bowie's acting exposure. The book points out Bowie trained in mime and appeared in a few films before his career took off like Major Tom in a tin can. He also had to turn down an appearance, Son of Dracula, where he would have played Harry Nilsson's son to Ringo Starr's Merlin, due to studio commitments. BOWIE: Stardust, Rayguns, & Moonage Daydreams opens at the Hamersmith Odeon on July 3, 1973, when Bowie said goodnight to his Ziggy Stardust persona, but the film crossfades to 1962 just before the actual announcement is made.

At the start, Bowie is presented as a tireless and curious artist, a veteran of bands The Konrads, The Mannish Boys and The King Bees, hanging with young London musicians who would make up the Small Faces and ultimately T Rex. BOWIE: Stardust, Rayguns, & Moonage Daydreams doubles as Bowie's memoir told against the rise and fall of his Ziggy Stardust persona, who comes across as a character conjured by the singer from the sky to bring his music to new life. Bowie is a superhero whose extraterrestrial exploits are made from the madness which runs in his family and the alchemy of the changing styles of rock and roll. His ears gobble up Velvet Underground, the Rolling Stones, the Who, and Pink Floyd, and his non-matching eyes catch the fiery fingers of Eric Clapton at night at the clubs. Forced to change his name to the strong sounding Bowie because David Jones is already singing for the Monkees, his first album debuts the same day as The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, but doesn't do quite as well.

read more: Why Mick Ronson is Essential to David Bowie's Legacy

Taking inspiration from Stanley Kubrick's science fiction masterwork 2001: A Space Odyssey and Roger Vadim's camp classic Barbarella, Bowie stars in the promotional film Love You Til Tuesday, which also features Hermione Farthingale, the girl with the mousy hair, in a segment. He meets Tony Visconti, the Brooklyn-born instrumentalist who would be a lifelong collaborator. The pair bond artistically over a viewing of Roman Polanski's film Knife in the Water. Bowie finds his Jeff Beck in Mick Ronson. The first glam rock performance happens on Feb. 22, 1970, when David Bowie appears as Spaceman, Vicsonti is Hypeman, Ronson is Gangster Man and John Cambridge is Cowboy Man in the band The Hype at the Roundhouse in London. Nobody applauds when the band leaves the stage, but Marc Bolan eats it up.

read more: Exploring David Bowie's Sci-Fi Fascination

If you're a rock fan, you know all the characters in the book. Bowie's career traversed the entire musical world in the short time it took for Ziggy Stardust to fall to earth. As a young artist, Bowie shops at the same stores as Freddy Mercury, shares stages with Peter Frampton and goodnaturedly ribs Marc Bolan, who will co-opt Tony Visconti, over tea. As he gains prominence he takes tea with Elton John, who Visconti passed on as a producer. There are some informational nuggets and gossip in the mix. The story throws in incidental tidbits like Bowie staying at the Warwick, same hotel the Beatles stayed at when they played Shea Stadium, when he was in New York to sign with RCA. Then adds details like how Iggy Pop got clean at the Warwick or how Bowie was taken straight to an Elvis Presley concert after one of his arrivals in the United States.

read more: The Man Who Fell to Earth: The Myopic Wonder of David Bowie's Earth Oddity

Prepare yourself before reading. "Roll up your sleeves and show us your arms," as a censored bit of promotion for The Man Who Sold The World advised. You might want a playlist of Bowie songs for backing music or for easy reference. Bowie's early liftoff was propelled by Barbra Streisand's cover of "Life on Mars" and Peter Noone of Herman's Hermit's rendition of "Oh You Pretty Things." The illustrations are fantastic, conjuring the look of classic iconography as well as rock stardom. Many individual drawings could be comic book covers, others album posters. The biography is colorful and cosmic, following Bowie's alter egos against the backdrop of iconic cultural influences like The Rocky Horror Picture Show, A Clockwork Orange, The Twilight Zone, even the Last Supper.

read more: David Bowie Was No Chameleon: A Sound and Vision Lookback

The novel illustrates Bowie's love of happy accidents like a phone ringing through a vocal track and a botched take which can be saved with the right 12 string guitar, in the formation of his sound. Bowie defied classification, mixing mime with psychedelic music, forming an image through the parts he plays and mixing the surreal with motion picture futurism. Bowie’s artistic and commercial trajectory is paralleled by the rise and fall of Ziggy Stardust. The Spiders from Mars disintegrates as Bowie wrestles with his alter ego. The internal conflict changes the world. The final separation between the character and the artist is sad, but necessary. He's saved the world, given us the Starman savior, grounded Major Tom and goes off for a few drinks, with ice.

BOWIE: Stardust, Rayguns, & Moonage Daydreams is a gift for David Bowie fans. It hit stands on Jan. 7, Bowie's 73rd birthday.

Culture Editor Tony Sokol cut his teeth on the wire services and also wrote and produced New York City's Vampyr Theatre and the rock opera AssassiNation: We Killed JFK. Read more of his work here or find him on Twitter @tsokol.

Read and download the Den of Geek Lost in Space Special Edition Magazine right here!

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Jan 7, 2020

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vivianrhopper85 · 6 years

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5 Toronto’s Most Unusual Restaurants

The Internet loves lists: the top 10 action movies, the worst 10 football fumbles, the 10 most watched Oscar moments, and six easy weight-loss secrets of the rich and famous. The list goes on.

Well, here is yet another list, but with a caveat; when you're dealing with a place as large and diverse as Toronto, titles like 'best' and 'worst' are even more troublesome than usual. Given that, the places below aren't the absolutely, no-doubt-about-it strangest restaurants in the city. But they are pretty darn unusual.

O.Noir

Location: 620 Charles St. Website: www.onoirtoronto.com

Following the success of its Montreal branch, Canada's first dining-in-the-dark restaurant opened a second location in Toronto in 2009. The idea is to heighten the sensory experience of eating by completely removing the visual element: patrons eat in pitch darkness, served and assisted by visually impaired waitstaff.

Let the 'blind date' jokes begin...

Typically, all food selections are made in the lit area of the restaurant. Orders placed, diners are then led into the darkened dining room, where, apparently, eating without seeing isn't as difficult as one might think, although you may have trouble recognizing what you're eating at first—so thoroughly have many of us come to rely on visual cues. For added mystery, you can order the 'surprise' option for any of the three courses O.Noir operates entirely on a prix fixe basis.

Those with a more restrained sense of adventure can sightlessly savour dishes such as filet mignon, pesto chicken, arugula salad, and chocolate mousse. A two-course meal is just over $30, not counting tips and taxes, while the three-course version is just under $40.

See more photos and read our full review here.

Figures

Location: 137 Adelaide Road Website: figuresto.com

These are the figures that shaped us is scrawled above the secret entrance to what has to be one of the coolest theme restaurants in the city. These figures the wall speaks of are comic book characters, cartoon personalities, movie idols, and pen & ink superheroes which adorn every corner of the space.

Figures is a full blown homage to your favorite comic book heroes, all with a secret entrance to the restaurant masked like a comic book and memorabilia shop.

Their menu consists mostly of sharing plates or Canadian twist on tapas both with vegetarian options, sea food and meat. Most desserts are also meant to be shared, so they cover things like mini ice-cream cones, do-it-yourself s'mores and other fun treats that can evoke a nostalgic feeling of your childhood.

As for their drink menu, if you only decided to go to Figures for a cocktail, you won't be disappointed. Clearly their main creative focus went into creating and naming all of their cocktail combinations. They have a huge wine list and a very extensive cocktail menu, with 10 comic-inspired choices like Johnny Blaze or Dumb Grandson Pep Talk, as well as 10 classics with a twist.

See more photos and read our full review here.

Sultan's Tent & Café Moroc

Location: 49 Front St East Website: thesultanstent.com

This one's the winner for ambiance, hands down. We have rich colours, a wooden floor, ornate hanging lanterns, elegant onion-dome archways, potted palm trees (which may not be real, but still), and booths hung with shimmering curtains to mimic the walls of the particularly sumptuous tent. In the evening, belly dancers come out to shimmy and wiggle.

There's also food, if anybody cares.

The first Sultan's Tent existed for many years at Yorkville and Bay, before having to relocate in the face of an up-and-coming development in 2002. The new location at 49 Front St. E. is not only larger and more luxurious, but is also a historically notable building in its own right.

The Dixon Building (as 49 Front is known) was built in the 1870s, and originally used as a warehouse. It is—according to the Canada's Historical Places—one of the few buildings in the province with a cast iron facade, which was apparently all the rage back then.

The Sultan's Tent falls under the broad heading of 'ethnic', based as it is on French Moroccan culture and cuisine (or a romanticized Western version of it, anyway). The Café Moroc is apparently based on Rick's Cafe from the movie Casablanca.

This means that you can order Harira soup, lamb provençal, escargot, and pistacchio strawberry cake for dessert. I admit, this doesn't sound very Arabic to me, but the focus here is on French Moroccan dining. If you want something really exotic sounding, order the Casablanca Burger and be done with it. Appetizers range from about $6 to whatever the market price for oysters is at the moment. Entrees hover between $17 and $39 (for the lamb), at least in the case of the dinner menu. Lunch and brunch are a little bit less demanding on the wallet.

See more photos and read our full review here.

360 Restaurant

Location: 301 Front St West Website: cntower.ca

Who would have thought that inside the most tourist-infested place in Toronto, one could find a fine dining spot with a definite focus on Canadian ingredients and dishes. Right inside the CN Tower, there's 360 Restaurant, providing it's guests with magnificent views and great food.

The restaurant is named after the fact that in rotates full 360 degrees every 72 minutes giving spectacular views of the entire city from over 1,000 feet above.So if your business dinner is too long, at least you have a new scenery to look at every few minutes.

The menu is strongly Canada-centered, with many local dishes that don't seem much adventurous. It is a prix fixe menu where you can choose from a 2-course or 3-course options for $65 or $79 respectively. There is an a la carte menu as well for grilled meats and seafood.

There are 7 desserts to pick from, or add onto your a la carte order for $14. They are more creative, more Canuck takes on typical fine dining desserts with ingredients that we have come to understand as purely Canadian.

They also have an extensive wine list and classic cocktails with Canadian names like Gord's Last Word, Toronto Islands, or CN Spritz.

See more photos and read our full review here.

SPiN

Location: 461 King St. West Website: toronto.wearespin.com

Like gym, but with beer - that's how Spin Toronto, a beer and food serving ping-pong lounge self-identifies. Hidden among pretentious club vibe of King Street West, spin is simply a big space crowded by ping-pong tables and a bar, where groups can come and enjoy a game or two with something tasty and a drink in their hand.

With beer, cocktails, and munchies, SPiN is anti-highstyle and very much like a frat party pub, but with much more interesting food combinations. Their menu consists mostly from pub favorites with a special twist. So you can find stuff like panko-crusted deviled eggs or potato rosti salad. You can top your meal with a fancy pop tart. In all honesty, this is not a dining destination. Nobody is coming here for the food.

It's the ping-pong tables and drink menu they are after. Because apparently enjoying a game of pong with a boozy drink in your hand is a very popular combination. With a pretty decent cocktail list, beers and special drought cocktails as well, there seems to be a choice for everybody to enjoy.

See more photos and read our full review here.

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from News And Tip About Real Estate https://jamiesarner.com/toronto-life/2018/05/toronto-unusual-restaurants/

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