Killed in a smiling accident.

Another quick post, this time to highlight Doctor Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog, for which the marketing machine seems to be building up a head of steam, the first trailer having been released recently.

The blurb:

During the WGA strike Joss Whedon started writing a three part musical series for the internet. Each of the three episodes will be approximately ten minutes each.

Co-writers for the internet feature are Joss’ brothers Zack and Jed and Jed’s Fiancé Maurissa Tancharoen. The writing and shooting have been completed and the series is now in post-production.

“It’s the story of a low-rent super-villain, the hero who keeps beating him up, and the cute girl from the laundromat he’s too shy to talk to.” says Whedon.

“Doctor Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog” will star Neil Patrick Harris as Dr. Horrible, Nathan Fillion as Captain Hammer, Felicia Day as Penny and a cast of dozens.

Neil Patrick Harris looks most excellent as Dr Horrible, and you can only expect great things from any collaboration involving Nathan Fillion, Joss Whedon and Felicia Day.

Kiasa approved, be sure to check it out.

I like to listen to the radio while wandering around doing housework, or exercising, or grinding level 20 mobs at level 46 thanks to someone deciding that when you learn armour crafting (level 40 at the earliest) you’ll have to make innumerable pieces of light and medium armour, and the rough leather you need for them won’t drop from level 40+ mobs, oh no, despite decimating the wolf, lynx, wolverine, marmot, wombat and shrew population of the Fields of the Dead apparently their combined pelts are barely sufficient for a single glove (and a fingerless glove at that), you’ll need to go back to the lower level zones and speed-slaughter your way through the wildlife there…

… sorry, slight digression there. Anyway, dull-but-necessary tasks can be enlivened by a good radio programme, and the joy of modern technology means you’re not restricted to what’s broadcasting at that moment (which is handy if you’re doing the dishes when The Archers is on). A mobile internet thingy, the BBC’s “Listen Again” service, which streams programmes from the last week whenever you want, and you’re set. Last night I was listening to Chairman Humph, a tribute to the magnificent trumpet-blower and panel show host Humphrey Lyttleton.

I love Radiohead’s post-OK Computer albums, especially Amnesiac, and one of my absolute favourite songs is Life In A Glasshouse with its mournful New Orleans sound; I was just Audiosurfing it the other day. I hadn’t the faintest idea that it was Humphrey Lyttleton and his band playing on it, until it was mentioned during Chairman Humph (with Stephen Fry helpfully informing Radio 4 listeners that Radiohead are a “modern indie band”).

In this age of digital music and streaming media, I can’t remember the last time I looked at an album’s liner notes; maybe a quick flick-through while waiting for an MP3 ripper to work through a CD then back on the shelf to gather dust, and not even that since digital downloads became prevalent. Still, you catch up in the end.

I went to see Russell Howard, sometimes known as “the young blonde one off Mock the Week”, the other night. Didn’t quite catch the name of his support act, Mark someone, but he wasn’t bad; bonus geek points for the first mention of a Slingbox I’ve seen in stand up comedy.

Russell himself has an amazing energy, a quick “any questions?” to get things going leads into a gangsta-aunty-on-facebook riff and then he’s freewheeling away, no obvious structure, no stopping to think, barely a pause over the next hour and a half. He never loses the audience, though, sweeping us along with him. If there’s any theme to his material it’s of hopefulness and optimism, child-like wonder, of things being great and magical. Great performer, very funny.