Dio's dead

[davidn]

After the existence failure epidemic of 2009 wiped out everybody I knew who used to be on television, the hand of doom has turned its eye to musicians - (Ronnie James) Dio died this weekend. I admit that actual knowledge of the Rainbow - Black Sabbath - Dio era isn't really a strong point for me, but it has to be recognized that he had a major influence on most of the music that I enjoy today.

Most notably, it would seem that he pioneered the practice of putting together fantasy music videos that look more like submissions to Beadle's Hot Shots, perfected by Rhapsody in the modern era - watch the one for Holy Diver and witness a full minute of lingering atmospheric shots of some branches followed by five minutes of him stalking around a ruined castle dressed like a hairy Richard O'Brien whacking people with a plastic sword. Also note the way that they run out of video halfway through and then just confidently use some of the previous bits a second time for different parts of the song despite the chronic lip-sync issues that this obviously brings up, and the monster made out of one side of a cardboard box painted black and stuck in front of some stock footage of an erupting volcano.

Thanks, Dio. Thio.

Comments

[e-to-the-ipi.livejournal.com]

That reminds me: have you heard that Serafinowicz is in the pilot for some new US sitcom?

[davidn]

I hadn't, Captain Non-Sequitur - what's it going to be?

[e-to-the-ipi.livejournal.com]

I can't find a good source that's not embedded into a long article on a new season. Because it was on a tweet a while back:

"“Running Wilde,” meanwhile, is a romantic comedy starring Will Arnett and Keri Russell, which is certainly a curious pairing. More specifically, Arnett plays “a filthy-rich, immature playboy trying desperately to win (or buy) the heart of his childhood sweetheart.” Russell’s Emmy, meanwhile, is “an earnest do-gooder who has spent her adult life trying to save the world.” She lives in the Amazon rainforest with her 12-year-old daughter, and the show will apparently be told from the daughter’s perspective. Arnett is a mixed bag, but I believe I forgot to mention that this show comes from Mitch Hurwitz, the one person who’s been able to pull pure comic gold from Arnett (ok, ok, Arnett’s been pretty funny in most of his “30 Rock” guest spots too). That, coupled with Keri Russel, means I’ll definitely be willing to give this show a shot but, like “Raising Hope” before it, it’ll be on a short leash (particularly if Arnett doesn’t bring anything to the table beyond being a stereotypically abrasive man-child, as that’ll just make me long for the days of Gob)." here (http://www.pajiba.com/trade_news/2010-upfronts-foxs-20102011-schedule.php).

For something that actually mentions Serafinowicz's involvement, check out Why I Steal Movies… Even Ones I'm In (http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2010/05/why-i-steal-movies%E2%80%A6-even-ones-im-in/), an article he wrote this weekend. [Also because it's a brilliant article.]

[davidn]

Well, good :) He seems to be the latest in a sometimes very arbitrary line of UK comedians who get successfully imported to the US.

On the subject of the article, I love the convenience of downloading films/TV (legitimately or illegitimately) and just getting a video file that I can do anything with, rather than being trapped in a heap of unnecessary stuff that comes along with it. It's telling, and quite wonderful, that he mentions downloading his own programmes because it's easier for him than doing the same with the DVDs :) But that same feeling hasn't extended to all physical media, because I still love having the complete package for CDs too much to want to buy albums digitally online, and that feeling hasn't faded for me yet. Perhaps it's because all the extra nonsense on film media hasn't yet invaded the music world.

[e-to-the-ipi.livejournal.com]

To be fair, Serafinowicz has always been less a comedian, more a comic actor. He was the voice of Darth Maul, 11 years ago, so isn't strictly a recent development.

I'm very similar on these these download feelings. Ebooks is going to be the big one...

[davidn]

Oh, the Look Around You bit at the end! I hadn't made the connection :)

[kjorteo]

As I had said before, only Dio could storm Castle Shadowgate armed with naught but his wits, a cheesy sword, and enough footage for about half the video before looping, and make it so surprisingly-not-terrible. (Though, to be fair, that did give him a distinct advantage over the actual Shadowgate protagonist, who, of those three items, only had the sword.)

Truly we have lost a legend, but so long as we have the likes of Rhapsody, Hammerfall, etc., he will never be forgotten.

[davidn]

the actual Shadowgate protagonist... only had the sword

And Dio never once accidentally hit himself in the face with it, or died by walking past the eagle without arbitrarily dealing with it first!

[kjorteo]

Dio had the ability to look at common household objects without feeling compelled to kill himself with them. In Shadowgate, that would have almost qualified as a superpower.

[ravenworks.livejournal.com]

Oh shoot, I just realised -- the hand of doom isn't turning towards musicians, it's turning towards metal! Frank Frazetta left us recently too, eh?

[davidn]

He did! That's a point...

I'm very surprized that Ozzy Osbourne is still alive... and, actually, more so that he remembers who Dio was or what his name is.