The Deadbolt - Reviews

For anyone who was eagerly awaiting the second OneRepublic album, Waking Up, let me start by saying there's a reason why OneRepublic had the biggest radio airplay hit in the history of Top 40 radio in North America in 2007 with the Timbaland remixed "Apologize". It's called talent. And with Waking Up, the follow up to Dreaming Out Loud, it's a talent that should keep OneRepublic in the music scene for years to come if the band continues to experiment, take risks and evolve in the same manner as the tracks of Waking Up unfold.

Given the advances in visual technology, few networks have benefited more than History. Although History, formerly known as The History Channel, rose to popularity on old black and white war footage from World War I and World War II, the latest in high definition visual technology allows History fans to view the conflict of war as a new, more realistic color experience like never before. Premiering Sunday, November 15 at 9pm, the new five night, 10 hour History documentary event, WWII in HD, gives viewers a riveting, never before seen showcase of World War II though the lives of eleven soldiers and one nurse from cleaned and digitally restored footage from all over the world.

When I first heard that AMC was resurrecting the 1967 British TV series, The Prisoner, which begins its six-hour, three night run on Sunday, November 15, I thought writer Bill Gallagher, the creative folks at AMC and co-producing partner ITV from the U.K. had their work cut out for them. As a property, The Prisoner languished in development hell for ages, with many starts and stops over the years to get The Prisoner on the big screen and back to the small screen. For any talented writer or director, The Prisoner is one tough nut to crack given its significant and powerful statements on society. So the most intriguing question surrounding the AMC version of The Prisoner became: How can The Prisoner be remade so modern audiences won't be confused and get what the series is about without diluting the magic of The Prisoner?

With the new three track Ash Koley EP, The White, out on Nettwerk as of November 10, what is most intriguing if not beguiling about the up and coming Koley is her natural vocal talent. The velvet voice of Ash Foley has the perfect rhythm to fit the mainstream, commercialized pop market, but instead Koley and producer Phil Deschambault choose to streamline her vocal arrangement on her White EP and cast aside the technological studio enhancements that stereotype many budding artists. As fans will hear on The White, that all-important decision is a refreshing change in a genre escalating with recyclable material.

After getting an advanced listen to The Cricket’s Orchestra, the debut album of self proclaimed shy girl Meaghan Smith, I was eager see and hear how The Cricket’s songs would play to a live audience when Smith rolled into Vancouver on Friday, November 6 at the River Rock Casino. As I mentioned exactly one month prior to Smith's Vancouver show, "The Cricket’s Orchestra" is one of the most diverse and sophisticated albums of the year, as Smith bears her soul in an 11 track musical kaleidoscope that dances delicately between a variety of genres and decades, featuring country, jazz, and even a few chords reminiscent of the Lindy hop 1920s cabaret scene.

ABCFamily’s critically acclaimed hit, Greek has been riding high on its season three success and this week’s Monday, November 2 mid-season finale, “Friend or Foe,” just might be the baddest episode yet. Everyone has a score to settle and there will be more than ruins left in the Greek society as fraternities and sororities, friends and enemies fight to the metaphorical Greek death to redeem and recapture their former glory. It’s a no-holds barred battle of Greek wills as Omega Chi Delta and Kappa Tau Gamma have more at stake than just the newly reformed friendship between their presidents, Evan and Cappie.

Legend of the Seeker takes after other Raimi produced projects, which include Xena: Warrior Princess and Hercules: The Legendary Journeys. However, Legend of the Seeker differs from Raimi’s earlier projects in the development of the scripts and the characters. The series is not as humour based although a few quips from Zed do keep Richard in line when his curiosity needs to be kept in check. However, where the series excels is in its character development. Horner and Regan have brilliant on-screen chemistry as Richard and Kahlan. The discovery of a Seeker is much needed good news to the Midlands where Rahl’s tyranny and oppression have diminished almost any hope of salvation.

Ryan Reynolds and Sandra Bullock make a fantastic comedic duo in The Proposal, a charming romantic comedy now out on DVD that pits two people who were never supposed to fall in love against each other. The story begins with Margaret Tate (Bullock), a high-strung editor-in-chief of a prestigious publishing house in New York City who finds herself in hot water with American immigration and must return to her native Canada and lose her job.

After spending time with the October 6 release of "The Cricket’s Orchestra," Meaghan Smith is certainly one of the finest hidden gems to come out of the east coast music scene. One of four daughters within a musical family, Smith found solace on the piano as a young girl while also exposed to the melodies of old musicals. Drawing from personal experience to find her way as an artist, the past and present converge for Meaghan Smith as a wonderful foundation on her debut album, "The Cricket’s Orchestra". A self-proclaimed shy girl when it comes to expressing love, the tracks of "Cricket’s Orchestra" provide a porthole into an artist in bloom as Meaghan Smith invites new fans into a world of love lost and love never gained.