Hey Soul Mates,
now you can get a sneak peak of what our video (actually, film) for "A Talent For Loving" looks like! Check out the newest pictures on our home page. They cover the first half of the shoot at London's Bedford. The crew includes Director William Archer; Director of Photography Dennis Madden and actress Sarah Monrose. We filmed almost all of the promo at the venue, with some outdoor scenes at Tooting Bec Common. No pictures of the outdoor location, but you'll get a good sense of the main set, the Bedford's Globe theatre.
We absolutely loved the international crew: Brits, Italians, French, Americans. The DP, Dennis was a great character with a really good feel for the flow of the song. Our hand-picked director, Will, was superb at handling the shoot and properly motivating his cast. Sarah, who is stunning, was a major surprise. Best of all, everyone really seemed to enjoy the song.
The video should be making its premiere on rushhoursoul.com in a few more weeks. Of course, we will make certain you know about it. Gotta run, but you go check out how handsome we look on the set of our first major promo film! The second half of the pictures will post tomorrow.
Love, Power, Peace
Superman Rocks And Stonehenge... Rocks
Hey Soul Mates,
last night, I actually paid to see a movie in a theatre for the first time in 6 months. Went to see Superman Returns and it was quite tremendous. I urge anyone interested in seeing it to do so before anyone gives away the plot twists. Yes, there are actually plot twists. The story picks up where Superman 2 left off, but takes place in the present day. Lex Luthor is out of jail, Lois Lane is about to win a Pulitzer and Superman split the planet for 5 years.
What I will tell you is that Brandon Routh (the new Superman) does a great job filling Christopher Reeve's boots. Parker Posey is funny as Lex Luthor's not-so-bright girlfriend (a combination of Miss Tescmacher & Otis), in the worst wigs and wardrobe you've ever seen. They must have pulled her costumes off the extras from the original '78 Superman. But the topper here is scene-stealer Kevin Spacey as Lex. He brings comic timing along with his John Doe (from Se7en) menace. Everytime Spacey was on-camera I laughed. The rest of the audience was kind of stoic. Maybe it's just me. Anyway, again, I will give away none of the plot, I ain't that kid.
The smartest choice the production made was to keep the John Williams' theme song and the title graphics true to the Reeve Superman opening. It really took me back to childhood and watching those Superman movies on tv (never saw a one in the theatre). That meant it was the director's game to lose and he kept up the pace for nearly 2 1/2 hours. There were enough bits of dialogue and visual clues from the originals to make if feel familiar. Superman has always been a little cheesy compared to other superheroes, but it was nice to walk out of a superhero movie feeling like you've had some fun.
[Six Degrees of Separation: You've heard me mention before that we were interviewed by Brandon Routh's sister, Sara last fall. Well, Parker Posey's brother Chris was a dormmate of mine in school. That can mean only one thing: Rush Hour Soul appears in the next Superman movie. Dang skippy!]
On to the important stuff. The real reason why you read this blog. Picture time! That's right, Rush Hour Soul is almost done with the photo-tour. Today's are from a travel day. We spent the morning of June 6 mixing at the Studio. Then around noon we hopped in the car and headed south. I wanted to show Doug Tintern Abbey. I also got a chance to play fetch with Rarebit who was hanging around the tavern again. From there we headed toward Salisbury Plain and Stonehenge.
The whole traveling party got a kick out of Stonehenge. We got the audio wands to do the walking tour around the monoliths. I managed to hear one of the spiels about 4 times on accident, by the last time I was rolling at the way the narrator was saying "mmyeaasss, the Station Stone," in reference to one of the pieces of the site. Once everyone else had heard it, we all said it to each other for the next hour. Bryan particularly perfected the delivery. Mmyeaassss.
From Stonehenge we drove on to London; dropped off the gear and the car and settled into squalor in Bayswater. Note to all travelers: avoid the "hotels" in Bayswater. Tiny. Stuffy. Cheap, yes. But in general, no fun. We were spoiled by the great outdoors in Wales. Suddenly we were thrust amongst the tourists, noise and whatever else.
All right. It's a busy day here. We are anticipating a new mix of our single. Then I have several hundred pictures from the video shoot and our performance in London to prepare for the website.
Stay cool everyone.
Love, Power, Peace
Celebrate Like You're Lil' Kims
Hey Soul Mates,
it's the 4th of July. Time for grilling and chilling by the pool. Hope you have a safe and happy one. If you are one of RHS' friends on myspace, look out for this. I claim full responsibility. She should go down in history like Samuel Adams, Susan B. Anthony and Ben Franklin as a great American. Now get out there and rejoice: Lil Kims is FREE!!
Love, Power, Peace and Independence
Hey Soul Mates,
We are proud to introduce Radio Rush Hour Soul. The debut track on it is our live performance of Fall Out. It's still in beta mode for us, so bear with us. Our goal for it is to play a whole jukebox of live, studio and rare Rush Hour Soul cuts. We'll also be adding snippets from interviews and spoken messages from the band from time to time.
Today's tour pictures are from day 2 in the recording studio. This was the day for vocals. I did a lot of work on the tracking. Master takes, backing vocals, harmonies. A lot of experimenting and hot performances. Then the boys joined in to record the choruses. Lots of fun and a little goofiness. I am partial to our "BoyzIIMen" shot.
There are a couple of pix of the surroundings including Bry down by the riverside. No sword and shield, but he's got his beer and iPod.
Hope you all are enjoying the 4th of July weekend. Now that the Radio is up and running and pix are posted, it's time to take a dip in the pool, which is really off the wall. I got a color TV so I can see the Knicks playing basketball. Name that tune!
Love, Power, Peace
