With autumnal leaves covering our paths, that distinct chill getting colder by the day and the faint smell of fireworks in the night air it’s definitely November. Can you believe it’s rolled around so quick? Before we blink it’ll be the festive season and the myriad of tinsel tinged events that accompany it. We’ve tried to spare you too much of that this month, where the focus should be on bonfires and bottle rockets. We’ve brought you everything from film fests to fine threads, Bob Dylan to beer and plenty more, it’s the November EDIT.
What to Do…
Korean Film Festival (1st – 25th)
Korean cinema has given us some stellar offerings over the years from the bloody revenge of Oldboy, monster movie The Host and ace zombie flick Train to Busan in 2016. This year’s annual fest celebrating the very best new Korean films puts a focus on the day-to-day lives and struggles of the people of the country on the ground, in these rather tense political times. The festival opens the premiere of Jeon Go-woon’s Microhabitat and closes with Malene Choi’s The Return, the story of a young woman returning to Korea in an effort to track down her birth parents.
Light Up Lancaster (2nd – 3rd)
This annual festival of light & art returns to the beautiful city of Lancaster. There will be a magical after-dark light-art trail that literally shines a new light on the city’s familiar places, with massive projections, artworks and installations illuminating handsome historic buildings, squares, parks & monuments. And on Saturday the fest concludes with one of the biggest firework extravaganzas in the North, with rockets launched from the roof of Lancaster Castle that evening.
Richard James of Saville Row sample sale (2nd – 4th)
For top-notch threads at prices that won’t leave you seriously out of pocket, sample sales are always a sure fire way to get some great bargains. One of Saville Row’s most respected designers Richard James is about to slash up to 80% of some of his designs so you can dress to impress. Known for making men’s clothing of exceptional quality and forever pushing boundaries through colour, cut and design, it’ll definitely be worth a trip to East London to get kitted out for a fraction of the normal price.
London Nights (Till 11th)
There aren’t many more fascinating places to observe than old London town, especially late on a Saturday night. This great photography exhibition at the Museum of London gives us a dramatic, nocturnal study of the Capital. There are over 200 works on display by 60 photographers, ranging from the late 19th century to the present day, with some never seen before. Contributors include, Alvin Langdon Coburn, Bill Brandt, Rut Blees Luxemburg and Tish Murtha.
Regent Street Motor Show (3rd)
Petrol heads from around the country will be converging on this huge motor show in central London. Cabbies will be collectively cursing as for the day Regent Street from Piccadilly Circus to Oxford Circus will be pedestrianised so you can peruse the awesome array of cars on display. They’ll be supercars, examples of iconic Americana, pre-1905 horseless carriages and most excitingly for us, star cars from the movies in Herbie and the DeLorean from Back to the Future.
Heavenly Jukebox at Spiritland (6th)
Brilliant Kings Cross music venue Spiritland will be hosting an evening of top tunes by DJ’s from MALESTROM favourites Heavenly Records. They’ll be a bit of something for everyone from fun-filled pop music, soul classics and future hits from Jeff Barrett, Danny Mitchell and Carl Gosling, the resident DJs and music programmers at The Social in London. The fun starts at 7 till late.
Lyrics & Drawings of Bob Dylan (Until 30th)
This new exhibition at the Halcyon Gallery in London showcases a different side of folk singing legend Bob Dylan. We know he can pen a good tune having sold over 125 million records and even won a Nobel Prize for his efforts. But here the focus is on his drawing, pencil drawings to be specific, each illustrating the songwriter’s most renowned lyrics, selections of which are also on view, each handwritten by him in pen on paper.
Turner Prize at Tate Britain (Till 6th Jan 2019)
Tate Britain is currently running an exhibition of work by the four artists shortlisted for Turner Prize 2018: Forensic Architecture, Naeem Mohaiemen, Charlotte Prodger and Luke Willis Thompson. The ever controversial prize for contemporary visual art continues to provoke debate as it has done since 1984. All of the shortlisted artists this year work with the moving image to tackle issues such as human rights abuses and police brutality, queer identity and post-colonial migration.
Kendal Mountain Festival (15th – 18th)
Running for 17 years this event in the Lake District is the go-to social event for those with a love for the outdoors. Thousands of enthusiasts gather each November to celebrate the very best in outdoor and adventure sports culture. As well as a fantastic line up of speakers such as legendary mountaineer Aid Burgess, ready to inspire that next big adventure. There’s also an International Film Competition, with over 100 films vying for twelve coveted awards, a photography comp and plenty of other great events.
The London Jazz Festival (16th – 25th)
Started in 1992 the London Jazz fest has a reputation for bringing together new talent and world-renowned figures from the electrifying world of jazz. This year there will be 10 days of diverse performances, from headline concerts at the Royal Festival Hall & Wigmore Hall to more intimate affairs at smaller spaces. 42-piece orchestra Jazz Voice opens the festival, featuring the sultry tones of Zara McFarlane, Lisa Stansfield and more. Other highlights include actor Jeff Goldblum tickling the ivories with the Mildred Snitzer Orchestra.
Hyde Park Winter Wonderland (22nd – 6th Jan)
For those in London it never really feels like the festive season is properly round the corner till Winter Wonderland appears in Hyde Park. This festive haven can put the Christmas spirit into the meanest Grinch you know with its funfair rides, German beer houses and general cheer. New attractions this year include Peter Pan on Ice, Ice Sculpting Workshops, and a Comedy Club. Our favourite way to while away the time here though is to watch visitors who’ve had a few too many try to balance on the ice rink. You’re guaranteed at least one good video to send into You’ve Been Framed.
Kilmarnock’s Dirty Weekender (22nd – 25th)
Who said that music festivals had to be held in the height of summer? Not this hardy Scottish lot. Kilmarnock in East Ayrshire is the location for three days filled with music, with 100 acts playing at various venues. Highlights include sets from Jake Bugg, The Coral and particular MALESTROM faves the Welsh wonders Goldie Lookin’ Chain.
What to Eat & Drink…
True OriGINs: The Scottish Gin Festival (1st – 4th)
Aberdeenshire based brothers Guy & Mungo Finlayson are on a mission to bring you the best of Scottish Gin, so much so they’ve put on the first gin festival to promote exclusively Scottish gin. The Tobacco Docks is the location where you will find eight different Scottish regions represented with their own bars across the venue, where festival goers can go thoroughly explore the unique distillation methods and different botanicals used that make these spirits so special. On entry visitors will receive a Scottish gin bible which has tasting notes on all of the gins along with some blank spaces so you can write down which ones you liked before you’ve had one too many.
Brewdog’s Metro Mayhem (10th)
Scottish brewery, BrewDog are putting on a beer festival, and it’s set to be epic. The Copper Box Arena in East London will play host to this mega celebration of craft booze. There’s a line-up of 17 other breweries from around the world including Jolly Pumpkin (Michigan, USA), Fat Head’s Brewery (Ohio, USA) & Siren Craft Brew (Berkshire, UK), who will be running bars and hosting exclusive panels and tastings. Along with all that drink, there’s top music to entertain from Everything Everything and Frank Carter and The Rattlesnakes.
Melton Mowbray Choc Fest (17th – 18th)
Although often more associated with the pork pie, this November the word on local lips will be chocolate. And they’ll be plenty of the sweet stuff at this festival. The appropriately named ChocFest, will see tastings, demonstrations, talks, and workshops where you can whip up your own chocolate bar or for you posh lost some Champagne truffles. And of course, you can buy the best food and drink from some of the UK’s best local producers.
What to Listen to…
Tenacious D – Post-Apocalypto (2nd Nov)
Long time pals Jack Black and Kyle Gass are dusting off their instruments once again for another Tenacious D album. And not content with just delivering new music, we’re also getting an accompanying (barely) animated web series, hand-drawn by Black himself, which is on YouTube now. As the title Post-Apocalypto might suggest, here we see the band living in a land post-atomic bomb drop, with evil creatures roaming the Earth, it’s up to our two rockers to somehow save the world. No pressure lads. For the 21-song record, the group have added the little-known drummer, Dave Grohl, into their musical mix. Let’s hope he’s up to the task of beating those skins with the creators of the greatest song in the world, or was it just a tribute?
Smashing Pumpkins – Shiny and Oh So Bright (16th Nov)
It’s been four years since the Smashing Pumpkins released an album, but excitingly this time round original members James Iha and Jimmy Chamberlin are back in their rightful places along with Billy Corgan, ready to rock. This their 10th studio album was recorded at Shangri La Studios with legendary producer Rick Rubin, so we’re expecting the band to be back to their best. Single Solara suggests we’ll get just that and the video is suitably weird as you’d hope from Billy.
What to Read…
Unlike your typical musical memoir the Beastie Boys Book is as eclectic a mix as the hip hop group themselves. Aside from the very funny accounts of their rise from teen punks to rap superstars by Adam Horovitz (Ad-Rock) & Michael Diamond (Mike D), there are rare photos, a graphic novel, a cookbook by chef Roy Choi, mixtape playlists and sections contributed by stars such as Spike Jonze and Wes Anderson. You’ll also find out fascinating BB facts, like their first major tour being in support of Madonna, that they were best mates with Run DMC and “BEASTIE” stands for “Boys Entering Anarchistic States Toward Internal Excellence”, which all might be useful for a pub quiz.
What to Watch…
Widows (6th November)
The Steve McQueen helmed action thriller Widows follows four women whose lives are upturned by the death of their husbands. But rather than your expected heartfelt tale of female bonding, the four women go rogue, taking over a daring heist set up by their late husbands. With an all-star cast including Michelle Rodriguez, Liam Neeson and Colin Farell, Widows looks set to be a smart, yet high octane ride that could well see another golden statue heading McQueen’s way.
Suspiria (16th Nov)
Ok, so you’ll know by now that we’re not fans of genuine classics being remade, especially when they’ve been helmed by the like of horror great Dario Argento. But this reimagining of Suspiria looks really good. Set in 1977 Berlin, the plot follows a young American dancer (Dakota Johnson) who enrolls at a prestigious dance academy only to discover (spoiler alert!) the place is controlled by a coven of witches. We recently voted the original’s soundtrack as one of the greatest in cinema, but everything we’ve heard from Thom Yorke’s haunting score shows very positive signs.
Robin Hood (21st)
Not that we’re saying Hollywood has long since run out of original ideas (it has) but do we really need another Robin Hood? It seems from this latest incarnation the answer is yes. Kingsman star Taron Egerton swaps sharp suits for Medieval looking clobber to star as the arrow-slinging Hood. He’ll be bringing the battle with his merry men (including Jamie Foxx) to the evil figure of the Sherrif of Nottingham (Ben Mendelsohn) as he leads a revolt against the corrupt English crown. The trailer looks as action stuffed as you’d expect, can it live up to its predecessors? Those are some big tights to fill.
Creed II (21st)
It’s a case of like father like son in the second installment of the Rocky franchise spin-off Creed 2. The first movie set up Apollo’s boy as a proper contender battling real-life boxer Tony Bellew in the ring, this time round he’s chasing the offspring of Ivan Drago, the Russian man of steel who killed his father. Of course his trainer Rocky isn’t happy about this, he’s seen what the power of Drago classic could do first hand and doesn’t want history to repeat itself. Expect shorts with American flags on, epic training montages and a Ruskie v USA match to rival all others.
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