id
stringlengths 1
5
| contents
stringlengths 354
1.98k
|
|---|---|
38500
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
“But there have been so many points in my career, moments of pure chance, when things went my way. And if you can survive the moments when things don’t go your way, you can make it.” If you’re not a diehard Game of Thrones fan, Teale’s name may not be familiar. But his pale face, intense eyes and imposing physicality – he’s 188cm in his socks – will be. The Welsh character actor is a Zelig-like figure whose frequent stage and screen appearances invariably guarantee two things: the tale will be well told and bad stuff is going to happen. He’s in Leeds when we speak, visiting his younger daughter Gracie, 21, who’s studying art and design at the city’s university. Eliza, 25, his other daughter with actor wife Sylvestra Le Touzel, is following in her parents’ footsteps. His son, Ion, from his first marriage, recently made him a grandfather.
|
38501
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
And if you can survive the moments when things don’t go your way, you can make it.” If you’re not a diehard Game of Thrones fan, Teale’s name may not be familiar. But his pale face, intense eyes and imposing physicality – he’s 188cm in his socks – will be. The Welsh character actor is a Zelig-like figure whose frequent stage and screen appearances invariably guarantee two things: the tale will be well told and bad stuff is going to happen. He’s in Leeds when we speak, visiting his younger daughter Gracie, 21, who’s studying art and design at the city’s university. Eliza, 25, his other daughter with actor wife Sylvestra Le Touzel, is following in her parents’ footsteps. His son, Ion, from his first marriage, recently made him a grandfather. Owen Teale and his wife, Sylvestra Le Touzel, at the sixth-season premiere of Game of Thrones in Hollywood.
|
38502
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
But his pale face, intense eyes and imposing physicality – he’s 188cm in his socks – will be. The Welsh character actor is a Zelig-like figure whose frequent stage and screen appearances invariably guarantee two things: the tale will be well told and bad stuff is going to happen. He’s in Leeds when we speak, visiting his younger daughter Gracie, 21, who’s studying art and design at the city’s university. Eliza, 25, his other daughter with actor wife Sylvestra Le Touzel, is following in her parents’ footsteps. His son, Ion, from his first marriage, recently made him a grandfather. Owen Teale and his wife, Sylvestra Le Touzel, at the sixth-season premiere of Game of Thrones in Hollywood. Credit: Getty Images Loading Earlier today, he was in Edinburgh shooting scenes for the second season of the supernatural TV thriller The Rig.
|
38503
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
But his pale face, intense eyes and imposing physicality – he’s 188cm in his socks – will be. The Welsh character actor is a Zelig-like figure whose frequent stage and screen appearances invariably guarantee two things: the tale will be well told and bad stuff is going to happen. He’s in Leeds when we speak, visiting his younger daughter Gracie, 21, who’s studying art and design at the city’s university. Eliza, 25, his other daughter with actor wife Sylvestra Le Touzel, is following in her parents’ footsteps. His son, Ion, from his first marriage, recently made him a grandfather. Owen Teale and his wife, Sylvestra Le Touzel, at the sixth-season premiere of Game of Thrones in Hollywood. Credit: Getty Images Loading Earlier today, he was in Edinburgh shooting scenes for the second season of the supernatural TV thriller The Rig. His character Lars Hutton, an irascible bully and the man most likely to be chucked off the oil rig, has somehow made it back for the next instalment of the Amazon Prime drama.
|
38504
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
He’s in Leeds when we speak, visiting his younger daughter Gracie, 21, who’s studying art and design at the city’s university. Eliza, 25, his other daughter with actor wife Sylvestra Le Touzel, is following in her parents’ footsteps. His son, Ion, from his first marriage, recently made him a grandfather. Owen Teale and his wife, Sylvestra Le Touzel, at the sixth-season premiere of Game of Thrones in Hollywood. Credit: Getty Images Loading Earlier today, he was in Edinburgh shooting scenes for the second season of the supernatural TV thriller The Rig. His character Lars Hutton, an irascible bully and the man most likely to be chucked off the oil rig, has somehow made it back for the next instalment of the Amazon Prime drama. Hutton, Thorne and Chief Inspector Philip Osborne, another textbook bully who first appeared in the opening season of the BBC police procedural Line of Duty, are just three of the menacing characters he’s played in recent times.
|
38505
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
Eliza, 25, his other daughter with actor wife Sylvestra Le Touzel, is following in her parents’ footsteps. His son, Ion, from his first marriage, recently made him a grandfather. Owen Teale and his wife, Sylvestra Le Touzel, at the sixth-season premiere of Game of Thrones in Hollywood. Credit: Getty Images Loading Earlier today, he was in Edinburgh shooting scenes for the second season of the supernatural TV thriller The Rig. His character Lars Hutton, an irascible bully and the man most likely to be chucked off the oil rig, has somehow made it back for the next instalment of the Amazon Prime drama. Hutton, Thorne and Chief Inspector Philip Osborne, another textbook bully who first appeared in the opening season of the BBC police procedural Line of Duty, are just three of the menacing characters he’s played in recent times. Peter Knox, a villainous sorcerer in A Discovery of Witches, the fantasy TV series based on books by Deborah Harkness, is another.
|
38506
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
His son, Ion, from his first marriage, recently made him a grandfather. Owen Teale and his wife, Sylvestra Le Touzel, at the sixth-season premiere of Game of Thrones in Hollywood. Credit: Getty Images Loading Earlier today, he was in Edinburgh shooting scenes for the second season of the supernatural TV thriller The Rig. His character Lars Hutton, an irascible bully and the man most likely to be chucked off the oil rig, has somehow made it back for the next instalment of the Amazon Prime drama. Hutton, Thorne and Chief Inspector Philip Osborne, another textbook bully who first appeared in the opening season of the BBC police procedural Line of Duty, are just three of the menacing characters he’s played in recent times. Peter Knox, a villainous sorcerer in A Discovery of Witches, the fantasy TV series based on books by Deborah Harkness, is another.
Advertisement
When he portrays Ebenezer Scrooge in an upcoming Melbourne production of Jack Thorne’s award-winning adaptation of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, he’ll summon the same forces to make the archetypal miser utterly convincing.
|
38507
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
Credit: Getty Images Loading Earlier today, he was in Edinburgh shooting scenes for the second season of the supernatural TV thriller The Rig. His character Lars Hutton, an irascible bully and the man most likely to be chucked off the oil rig, has somehow made it back for the next instalment of the Amazon Prime drama. Hutton, Thorne and Chief Inspector Philip Osborne, another textbook bully who first appeared in the opening season of the BBC police procedural Line of Duty, are just three of the menacing characters he’s played in recent times. Peter Knox, a villainous sorcerer in A Discovery of Witches, the fantasy TV series based on books by Deborah Harkness, is another.
Advertisement
When he portrays Ebenezer Scrooge in an upcoming Melbourne production of Jack Thorne’s award-winning adaptation of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, he’ll summon the same forces to make the archetypal miser utterly convincing. The truth is this: the avuncular man in the amber-coloured spectacles and leather jacket chatting to me on the line from Leeds is a master of darkness.
|
38508
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
Hutton, Thorne and Chief Inspector Philip Osborne, another textbook bully who first appeared in the opening season of the BBC police procedural Line of Duty, are just three of the menacing characters he’s played in recent times. Peter Knox, a villainous sorcerer in A Discovery of Witches, the fantasy TV series based on books by Deborah Harkness, is another.
Advertisement
When he portrays Ebenezer Scrooge in an upcoming Melbourne production of Jack Thorne’s award-winning adaptation of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, he’ll summon the same forces to make the archetypal miser utterly convincing. The truth is this: the avuncular man in the amber-coloured spectacles and leather jacket chatting to me on the line from Leeds is a master of darkness. When Ser Alliser Thorne drove a dagger into the heart of Game of Thrones’ Byronic hero Jon Snow in the final episode of Season 5, he left the show’s 10 million viewers in a profound state of shock.
|
38509
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
Peter Knox, a villainous sorcerer in A Discovery of Witches, the fantasy TV series based on books by Deborah Harkness, is another.
Advertisement
When he portrays Ebenezer Scrooge in an upcoming Melbourne production of Jack Thorne’s award-winning adaptation of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, he’ll summon the same forces to make the archetypal miser utterly convincing. The truth is this: the avuncular man in the amber-coloured spectacles and leather jacket chatting to me on the line from Leeds is a master of darkness. When Ser Alliser Thorne drove a dagger into the heart of Game of Thrones’ Byronic hero Jon Snow in the final episode of Season 5, he left the show’s 10 million viewers in a profound state of shock. “It’s true, I have started to play a lot of dark characters,” he says, smiling. “And at first it was a great challenge because I’m quite a sociable fellow.” So, how does he find that darkness?
|
38510
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
Advertisement
When he portrays Ebenezer Scrooge in an upcoming Melbourne production of Jack Thorne’s award-winning adaptation of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, he’ll summon the same forces to make the archetypal miser utterly convincing. The truth is this: the avuncular man in the amber-coloured spectacles and leather jacket chatting to me on the line from Leeds is a master of darkness. When Ser Alliser Thorne drove a dagger into the heart of Game of Thrones’ Byronic hero Jon Snow in the final episode of Season 5, he left the show’s 10 million viewers in a profound state of shock. “It’s true, I have started to play a lot of dark characters,” he says, smiling. “And at first it was a great challenge because I’m quite a sociable fellow.” So, how does he find that darkness? “It’s a sense of nothingness. In all honesty, I’m not very good at being completely on my own,” he explains.
|
38511
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
The truth is this: the avuncular man in the amber-coloured spectacles and leather jacket chatting to me on the line from Leeds is a master of darkness. When Ser Alliser Thorne drove a dagger into the heart of Game of Thrones’ Byronic hero Jon Snow in the final episode of Season 5, he left the show’s 10 million viewers in a profound state of shock. “It’s true, I have started to play a lot of dark characters,” he says, smiling. “And at first it was a great challenge because I’m quite a sociable fellow.” So, how does he find that darkness? “It’s a sense of nothingness. In all honesty, I’m not very good at being completely on my own,” he explains. “I come alive when I’m with other people. So staying in hotel rooms away from my family isn’t great and it doesn’t get any easier. There’s something empty and a bit scary within me when I’m not with people.
|
38512
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
When Ser Alliser Thorne drove a dagger into the heart of Game of Thrones’ Byronic hero Jon Snow in the final episode of Season 5, he left the show’s 10 million viewers in a profound state of shock. “It’s true, I have started to play a lot of dark characters,” he says, smiling. “And at first it was a great challenge because I’m quite a sociable fellow.” So, how does he find that darkness? “It’s a sense of nothingness. In all honesty, I’m not very good at being completely on my own,” he explains. “I come alive when I’m with other people. So staying in hotel rooms away from my family isn’t great and it doesn’t get any easier. There’s something empty and a bit scary within me when I’m not with people. I think that’s where that stuff comes from.” Owen Teale unleashes the darkness as Ser Alliser Thorne in Game of Thrones.
|
38513
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
“It’s true, I have started to play a lot of dark characters,” he says, smiling. “And at first it was a great challenge because I’m quite a sociable fellow.” So, how does he find that darkness? “It’s a sense of nothingness. In all honesty, I’m not very good at being completely on my own,” he explains. “I come alive when I’m with other people. So staying in hotel rooms away from my family isn’t great and it doesn’t get any easier. There’s something empty and a bit scary within me when I’m not with people. I think that’s where that stuff comes from.” Owen Teale unleashes the darkness as Ser Alliser Thorne in Game of Thrones. His ability to tap into the void served him well as he prepared to enact the murder of Snow, played by Kit Harington. “There was Kit … who was so beautiful. And he’s such a lovely man.
|
38514
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
“And at first it was a great challenge because I’m quite a sociable fellow.” So, how does he find that darkness? “It’s a sense of nothingness. In all honesty, I’m not very good at being completely on my own,” he explains. “I come alive when I’m with other people. So staying in hotel rooms away from my family isn’t great and it doesn’t get any easier. There’s something empty and a bit scary within me when I’m not with people. I think that’s where that stuff comes from.” Owen Teale unleashes the darkness as Ser Alliser Thorne in Game of Thrones. His ability to tap into the void served him well as he prepared to enact the murder of Snow, played by Kit Harington. “There was Kit … who was so beautiful. And he’s such a lovely man. By connecting to this feeling of emptiness, of having nothing inside of me, I was able to look at him and everything he had - his looks, his grace - and feel pure hatred.
|
38515
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
“It’s a sense of nothingness. In all honesty, I’m not very good at being completely on my own,” he explains. “I come alive when I’m with other people. So staying in hotel rooms away from my family isn’t great and it doesn’t get any easier. There’s something empty and a bit scary within me when I’m not with people. I think that’s where that stuff comes from.” Owen Teale unleashes the darkness as Ser Alliser Thorne in Game of Thrones. His ability to tap into the void served him well as he prepared to enact the murder of Snow, played by Kit Harington. “There was Kit … who was so beautiful. And he’s such a lovely man. By connecting to this feeling of emptiness, of having nothing inside of me, I was able to look at him and everything he had - his looks, his grace - and feel pure hatred. For all of Ser Alliser’s explanations [for the murder], deep down he just has a hatred of Jon Snow’s popularity and gifts.” Like Iago, I suggest.
|
38516
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
So staying in hotel rooms away from my family isn’t great and it doesn’t get any easier. There’s something empty and a bit scary within me when I’m not with people. I think that’s where that stuff comes from.” Owen Teale unleashes the darkness as Ser Alliser Thorne in Game of Thrones. His ability to tap into the void served him well as he prepared to enact the murder of Snow, played by Kit Harington. “There was Kit … who was so beautiful. And he’s such a lovely man. By connecting to this feeling of emptiness, of having nothing inside of me, I was able to look at him and everything he had - his looks, his grace - and feel pure hatred. For all of Ser Alliser’s explanations [for the murder], deep down he just has a hatred of Jon Snow’s popularity and gifts.” Like Iago, I suggest. “Yes,” he says.
|
38517
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
So staying in hotel rooms away from my family isn’t great and it doesn’t get any easier. There’s something empty and a bit scary within me when I’m not with people. I think that’s where that stuff comes from.” Owen Teale unleashes the darkness as Ser Alliser Thorne in Game of Thrones. His ability to tap into the void served him well as he prepared to enact the murder of Snow, played by Kit Harington. “There was Kit … who was so beautiful. And he’s such a lovely man. By connecting to this feeling of emptiness, of having nothing inside of me, I was able to look at him and everything he had - his looks, his grace - and feel pure hatred. For all of Ser Alliser’s explanations [for the murder], deep down he just has a hatred of Jon Snow’s popularity and gifts.” Like Iago, I suggest. “Yes,” he says. “Very like Iago.”
Advertisement
When Snow’s death was broadcast, Teale braced himself for the fall-out.
|
38518
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
I think that’s where that stuff comes from.” Owen Teale unleashes the darkness as Ser Alliser Thorne in Game of Thrones. His ability to tap into the void served him well as he prepared to enact the murder of Snow, played by Kit Harington. “There was Kit … who was so beautiful. And he’s such a lovely man. By connecting to this feeling of emptiness, of having nothing inside of me, I was able to look at him and everything he had - his looks, his grace - and feel pure hatred. For all of Ser Alliser’s explanations [for the murder], deep down he just has a hatred of Jon Snow’s popularity and gifts.” Like Iago, I suggest. “Yes,” he says. “Very like Iago.”
Advertisement
When Snow’s death was broadcast, Teale braced himself for the fall-out. He imagined being confronted by irate Game of Thrones fans who would hate him for “killing the goodness”.
|
38519
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
His ability to tap into the void served him well as he prepared to enact the murder of Snow, played by Kit Harington. “There was Kit … who was so beautiful. And he’s such a lovely man. By connecting to this feeling of emptiness, of having nothing inside of me, I was able to look at him and everything he had - his looks, his grace - and feel pure hatred. For all of Ser Alliser’s explanations [for the murder], deep down he just has a hatred of Jon Snow’s popularity and gifts.” Like Iago, I suggest. “Yes,” he says. “Very like Iago.”
Advertisement
When Snow’s death was broadcast, Teale braced himself for the fall-out. He imagined being confronted by irate Game of Thrones fans who would hate him for “killing the goodness”. Instead, he was asked for endless selfies and impromptu recitations of Thorne catchphrases such as “For the Watch!” or “Bas-terd!” Once, a drunk emerged from a restaurant and stumbled towards Teale brandishing a knife.
|
38520
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
And he’s such a lovely man. By connecting to this feeling of emptiness, of having nothing inside of me, I was able to look at him and everything he had - his looks, his grace - and feel pure hatred. For all of Ser Alliser’s explanations [for the murder], deep down he just has a hatred of Jon Snow’s popularity and gifts.” Like Iago, I suggest. “Yes,” he says. “Very like Iago.”
Advertisement
When Snow’s death was broadcast, Teale braced himself for the fall-out. He imagined being confronted by irate Game of Thrones fans who would hate him for “killing the goodness”. Instead, he was asked for endless selfies and impromptu recitations of Thorne catchphrases such as “For the Watch!” or “Bas-terd!” Once, a drunk emerged from a restaurant and stumbled towards Teale brandishing a knife. The actor braced himself, but the man simply wanted “Ser Alliser” to hold the utensil to his throat for a photo.
|
38521
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
For all of Ser Alliser’s explanations [for the murder], deep down he just has a hatred of Jon Snow’s popularity and gifts.” Like Iago, I suggest. “Yes,” he says. “Very like Iago.”
Advertisement
When Snow’s death was broadcast, Teale braced himself for the fall-out. He imagined being confronted by irate Game of Thrones fans who would hate him for “killing the goodness”. Instead, he was asked for endless selfies and impromptu recitations of Thorne catchphrases such as “For the Watch!” or “Bas-terd!” Once, a drunk emerged from a restaurant and stumbled towards Teale brandishing a knife. The actor braced himself, but the man simply wanted “Ser Alliser” to hold the utensil to his throat for a photo. On a visit to Uluru with his family, the tour guide caught sight of his face and exclaimed, “what are you doing here?” Says Teale, “He just kept staring at me and I realised it was an Alliser Thorne thing.
|
38522
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
“Yes,” he says. “Very like Iago.”
Advertisement
When Snow’s death was broadcast, Teale braced himself for the fall-out. He imagined being confronted by irate Game of Thrones fans who would hate him for “killing the goodness”. Instead, he was asked for endless selfies and impromptu recitations of Thorne catchphrases such as “For the Watch!” or “Bas-terd!” Once, a drunk emerged from a restaurant and stumbled towards Teale brandishing a knife. The actor braced himself, but the man simply wanted “Ser Alliser” to hold the utensil to his throat for a photo. On a visit to Uluru with his family, the tour guide caught sight of his face and exclaimed, “what are you doing here?” Says Teale, “He just kept staring at me and I realised it was an Alliser Thorne thing. I said, ‘I’m not going to kill anyone, I’m just an actor’.
|
38523
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
He imagined being confronted by irate Game of Thrones fans who would hate him for “killing the goodness”. Instead, he was asked for endless selfies and impromptu recitations of Thorne catchphrases such as “For the Watch!” or “Bas-terd!” Once, a drunk emerged from a restaurant and stumbled towards Teale brandishing a knife. The actor braced himself, but the man simply wanted “Ser Alliser” to hold the utensil to his throat for a photo. On a visit to Uluru with his family, the tour guide caught sight of his face and exclaimed, “what are you doing here?” Says Teale, “He just kept staring at me and I realised it was an Alliser Thorne thing. I said, ‘I’m not going to kill anyone, I’m just an actor’. But it clearly troubled him that this person who had committed this awful crime had suddenly appeared.” Teale has the grace to admit he enjoys this new level of celebrity.
|
38524
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
Instead, he was asked for endless selfies and impromptu recitations of Thorne catchphrases such as “For the Watch!” or “Bas-terd!” Once, a drunk emerged from a restaurant and stumbled towards Teale brandishing a knife. The actor braced himself, but the man simply wanted “Ser Alliser” to hold the utensil to his throat for a photo. On a visit to Uluru with his family, the tour guide caught sight of his face and exclaimed, “what are you doing here?” Says Teale, “He just kept staring at me and I realised it was an Alliser Thorne thing. I said, ‘I’m not going to kill anyone, I’m just an actor’. But it clearly troubled him that this person who had committed this awful crime had suddenly appeared.” Teale has the grace to admit he enjoys this new level of celebrity. “People seem to realise that without the darkness of people like Ser Alliser, Jon Snow couldn’t have shone as brightly as he did.” Owen Teale with Clare Homan in The Fifteen Streets.
|
38525
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
The actor braced himself, but the man simply wanted “Ser Alliser” to hold the utensil to his throat for a photo. On a visit to Uluru with his family, the tour guide caught sight of his face and exclaimed, “what are you doing here?” Says Teale, “He just kept staring at me and I realised it was an Alliser Thorne thing. I said, ‘I’m not going to kill anyone, I’m just an actor’. But it clearly troubled him that this person who had committed this awful crime had suddenly appeared.” Teale has the grace to admit he enjoys this new level of celebrity. “People seem to realise that without the darkness of people like Ser Alliser, Jon Snow couldn’t have shone as brightly as he did.” Owen Teale with Clare Homan in The Fifteen Streets. Credit: ABC He was well into his 50s when he landed his highest profile role, but it would be wrong to think of Teale as a late starter.
|
38526
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
On a visit to Uluru with his family, the tour guide caught sight of his face and exclaimed, “what are you doing here?” Says Teale, “He just kept staring at me and I realised it was an Alliser Thorne thing. I said, ‘I’m not going to kill anyone, I’m just an actor’. But it clearly troubled him that this person who had committed this awful crime had suddenly appeared.” Teale has the grace to admit he enjoys this new level of celebrity. “People seem to realise that without the darkness of people like Ser Alliser, Jon Snow couldn’t have shone as brightly as he did.” Owen Teale with Clare Homan in The Fifteen Streets. Credit: ABC He was well into his 50s when he landed his highest profile role, but it would be wrong to think of Teale as a late starter. In 1989, not long out of drama school, he starred in the hit television adaptation of Catherine Cookson’s romance The Fifteen Streets.
|
38527
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
I said, ‘I’m not going to kill anyone, I’m just an actor’. But it clearly troubled him that this person who had committed this awful crime had suddenly appeared.” Teale has the grace to admit he enjoys this new level of celebrity. “People seem to realise that without the darkness of people like Ser Alliser, Jon Snow couldn’t have shone as brightly as he did.” Owen Teale with Clare Homan in The Fifteen Streets. Credit: ABC He was well into his 50s when he landed his highest profile role, but it would be wrong to think of Teale as a late starter. In 1989, not long out of drama school, he starred in the hit television adaptation of Catherine Cookson’s romance The Fifteen Streets. The cast included Sean Bean, another young working-class actor, who went on to become a leading man in Hollywood before playing Ned Stark in Game of Thrones. I ask Teale if he ever wishes he’d followed Bean’s trajectory.
|
38528
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
But it clearly troubled him that this person who had committed this awful crime had suddenly appeared.” Teale has the grace to admit he enjoys this new level of celebrity. “People seem to realise that without the darkness of people like Ser Alliser, Jon Snow couldn’t have shone as brightly as he did.” Owen Teale with Clare Homan in The Fifteen Streets. Credit: ABC He was well into his 50s when he landed his highest profile role, but it would be wrong to think of Teale as a late starter. In 1989, not long out of drama school, he starred in the hit television adaptation of Catherine Cookson’s romance The Fifteen Streets. The cast included Sean Bean, another young working-class actor, who went on to become a leading man in Hollywood before playing Ned Stark in Game of Thrones. I ask Teale if he ever wishes he’d followed Bean’s trajectory. “Oh god, yeah,” he replies. “Absolutely.
|
38529
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
“People seem to realise that without the darkness of people like Ser Alliser, Jon Snow couldn’t have shone as brightly as he did.” Owen Teale with Clare Homan in The Fifteen Streets. Credit: ABC He was well into his 50s when he landed his highest profile role, but it would be wrong to think of Teale as a late starter. In 1989, not long out of drama school, he starred in the hit television adaptation of Catherine Cookson’s romance The Fifteen Streets. The cast included Sean Bean, another young working-class actor, who went on to become a leading man in Hollywood before playing Ned Stark in Game of Thrones. I ask Teale if he ever wishes he’d followed Bean’s trajectory. “Oh god, yeah,” he replies. “Absolutely. You instinctively think [playing leading men] will lead to feelings of success. But it never came my way. My cut of my jib wasn’t quite right.
|
38530
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
Credit: ABC He was well into his 50s when he landed his highest profile role, but it would be wrong to think of Teale as a late starter. In 1989, not long out of drama school, he starred in the hit television adaptation of Catherine Cookson’s romance The Fifteen Streets. The cast included Sean Bean, another young working-class actor, who went on to become a leading man in Hollywood before playing Ned Stark in Game of Thrones. I ask Teale if he ever wishes he’d followed Bean’s trajectory. “Oh god, yeah,” he replies. “Absolutely. You instinctively think [playing leading men] will lead to feelings of success. But it never came my way. My cut of my jib wasn’t quite right. It’s about what your face does on screen I guess.”
Advertisement
There have been opportunities to step into the spotlight over the years.
|
38531
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
Credit: ABC He was well into his 50s when he landed his highest profile role, but it would be wrong to think of Teale as a late starter. In 1989, not long out of drama school, he starred in the hit television adaptation of Catherine Cookson’s romance The Fifteen Streets. The cast included Sean Bean, another young working-class actor, who went on to become a leading man in Hollywood before playing Ned Stark in Game of Thrones. I ask Teale if he ever wishes he’d followed Bean’s trajectory. “Oh god, yeah,” he replies. “Absolutely. You instinctively think [playing leading men] will lead to feelings of success. But it never came my way. My cut of my jib wasn’t quite right. It’s about what your face does on screen I guess.”
Advertisement
There have been opportunities to step into the spotlight over the years. When The Fifteen Streets attracted a massive TV audience in Britain, Teale was offered a lead role in a movie playing a bare knuckle fighter.
|
38532
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
In 1989, not long out of drama school, he starred in the hit television adaptation of Catherine Cookson’s romance The Fifteen Streets. The cast included Sean Bean, another young working-class actor, who went on to become a leading man in Hollywood before playing Ned Stark in Game of Thrones. I ask Teale if he ever wishes he’d followed Bean’s trajectory. “Oh god, yeah,” he replies. “Absolutely. You instinctively think [playing leading men] will lead to feelings of success. But it never came my way. My cut of my jib wasn’t quite right. It’s about what your face does on screen I guess.”
Advertisement
There have been opportunities to step into the spotlight over the years. When The Fifteen Streets attracted a massive TV audience in Britain, Teale was offered a lead role in a movie playing a bare knuckle fighter. But the financing fell through and he signed up for a four-year stint with the Royal Shakespeare Company instead.
|
38533
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
The cast included Sean Bean, another young working-class actor, who went on to become a leading man in Hollywood before playing Ned Stark in Game of Thrones. I ask Teale if he ever wishes he’d followed Bean’s trajectory. “Oh god, yeah,” he replies. “Absolutely. You instinctively think [playing leading men] will lead to feelings of success. But it never came my way. My cut of my jib wasn’t quite right. It’s about what your face does on screen I guess.”
Advertisement
There have been opportunities to step into the spotlight over the years. When The Fifteen Streets attracted a massive TV audience in Britain, Teale was offered a lead role in a movie playing a bare knuckle fighter. But the financing fell through and he signed up for a four-year stint with the Royal Shakespeare Company instead. Years later, a producer offered him the lead in a big film being shot in Britain, but the money men demanded an American star and William Hurt got the gig.
|
38534
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
I ask Teale if he ever wishes he’d followed Bean’s trajectory. “Oh god, yeah,” he replies. “Absolutely. You instinctively think [playing leading men] will lead to feelings of success. But it never came my way. My cut of my jib wasn’t quite right. It’s about what your face does on screen I guess.”
Advertisement
There have been opportunities to step into the spotlight over the years. When The Fifteen Streets attracted a massive TV audience in Britain, Teale was offered a lead role in a movie playing a bare knuckle fighter. But the financing fell through and he signed up for a four-year stint with the Royal Shakespeare Company instead. Years later, a producer offered him the lead in a big film being shot in Britain, but the money men demanded an American star and William Hurt got the gig. When Teale won a Tony Award in 1997 for his performance in Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, he was told he needed to spend time in Hollywood wooing producers.
|
38535
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
“Absolutely. You instinctively think [playing leading men] will lead to feelings of success. But it never came my way. My cut of my jib wasn’t quite right. It’s about what your face does on screen I guess.”
Advertisement
There have been opportunities to step into the spotlight over the years. When The Fifteen Streets attracted a massive TV audience in Britain, Teale was offered a lead role in a movie playing a bare knuckle fighter. But the financing fell through and he signed up for a four-year stint with the Royal Shakespeare Company instead. Years later, a producer offered him the lead in a big film being shot in Britain, but the money men demanded an American star and William Hurt got the gig. When Teale won a Tony Award in 1997 for his performance in Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, he was told he needed to spend time in Hollywood wooing producers. He decided to fly home to his family in London instead.
|
38536
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
But it never came my way. My cut of my jib wasn’t quite right. It’s about what your face does on screen I guess.”
Advertisement
There have been opportunities to step into the spotlight over the years. When The Fifteen Streets attracted a massive TV audience in Britain, Teale was offered a lead role in a movie playing a bare knuckle fighter. But the financing fell through and he signed up for a four-year stint with the Royal Shakespeare Company instead. Years later, a producer offered him the lead in a big film being shot in Britain, but the money men demanded an American star and William Hurt got the gig. When Teale won a Tony Award in 1997 for his performance in Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, he was told he needed to spend time in Hollywood wooing producers. He decided to fly home to his family in London instead. “My wife was about to give birth, so I said ‘I’m off’.
|
38537
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
My cut of my jib wasn’t quite right. It’s about what your face does on screen I guess.”
Advertisement
There have been opportunities to step into the spotlight over the years. When The Fifteen Streets attracted a massive TV audience in Britain, Teale was offered a lead role in a movie playing a bare knuckle fighter. But the financing fell through and he signed up for a four-year stint with the Royal Shakespeare Company instead. Years later, a producer offered him the lead in a big film being shot in Britain, but the money men demanded an American star and William Hurt got the gig. When Teale won a Tony Award in 1997 for his performance in Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, he was told he needed to spend time in Hollywood wooing producers. He decided to fly home to his family in London instead. “My wife was about to give birth, so I said ‘I’m off’. I’m sure part of it was I just didn’t believe that I was going to waltz into leading man roles in Hollywood.” And there it is, that ambivalence.
|
38538
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
When The Fifteen Streets attracted a massive TV audience in Britain, Teale was offered a lead role in a movie playing a bare knuckle fighter. But the financing fell through and he signed up for a four-year stint with the Royal Shakespeare Company instead. Years later, a producer offered him the lead in a big film being shot in Britain, but the money men demanded an American star and William Hurt got the gig. When Teale won a Tony Award in 1997 for his performance in Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, he was told he needed to spend time in Hollywood wooing producers. He decided to fly home to his family in London instead. “My wife was about to give birth, so I said ‘I’m off’. I’m sure part of it was I just didn’t believe that I was going to waltz into leading man roles in Hollywood.” And there it is, that ambivalence. Despite all the plaudits, the awards and the steady offers of work, you sense Teale has never been certain of his gifts.
|
38539
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
But the financing fell through and he signed up for a four-year stint with the Royal Shakespeare Company instead. Years later, a producer offered him the lead in a big film being shot in Britain, but the money men demanded an American star and William Hurt got the gig. When Teale won a Tony Award in 1997 for his performance in Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, he was told he needed to spend time in Hollywood wooing producers. He decided to fly home to his family in London instead. “My wife was about to give birth, so I said ‘I’m off’. I’m sure part of it was I just didn’t believe that I was going to waltz into leading man roles in Hollywood.” And there it is, that ambivalence. Despite all the plaudits, the awards and the steady offers of work, you sense Teale has never been certain of his gifts. It’s probably why he’s so consistently good – complacency isn’t in his nature.
|
38540
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
Years later, a producer offered him the lead in a big film being shot in Britain, but the money men demanded an American star and William Hurt got the gig. When Teale won a Tony Award in 1997 for his performance in Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, he was told he needed to spend time in Hollywood wooing producers. He decided to fly home to his family in London instead. “My wife was about to give birth, so I said ‘I’m off’. I’m sure part of it was I just didn’t believe that I was going to waltz into leading man roles in Hollywood.” And there it is, that ambivalence. Despite all the plaudits, the awards and the steady offers of work, you sense Teale has never been certain of his gifts. It’s probably why he’s so consistently good – complacency isn’t in his nature. Owen Teale with Toni Collette in Dream Horse: “Toni just raised my game,” he says.
|
38541
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
When Teale won a Tony Award in 1997 for his performance in Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, he was told he needed to spend time in Hollywood wooing producers. He decided to fly home to his family in London instead. “My wife was about to give birth, so I said ‘I’m off’. I’m sure part of it was I just didn’t believe that I was going to waltz into leading man roles in Hollywood.” And there it is, that ambivalence. Despite all the plaudits, the awards and the steady offers of work, you sense Teale has never been certain of his gifts. It’s probably why he’s so consistently good – complacency isn’t in his nature. Owen Teale with Toni Collette in Dream Horse: “Toni just raised my game,” he says. Credit: AP He’s far better at recognising brilliance in others.
|
38542
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
When Teale won a Tony Award in 1997 for his performance in Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, he was told he needed to spend time in Hollywood wooing producers. He decided to fly home to his family in London instead. “My wife was about to give birth, so I said ‘I’m off’. I’m sure part of it was I just didn’t believe that I was going to waltz into leading man roles in Hollywood.” And there it is, that ambivalence. Despite all the plaudits, the awards and the steady offers of work, you sense Teale has never been certain of his gifts. It’s probably why he’s so consistently good – complacency isn’t in his nature. Owen Teale with Toni Collette in Dream Horse: “Toni just raised my game,” he says. Credit: AP He’s far better at recognising brilliance in others. For example, Toni Collette, who he worked with on Dream Horse, a 2020 movie about an unlikely champion racehorse.
|
38543
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
He decided to fly home to his family in London instead. “My wife was about to give birth, so I said ‘I’m off’. I’m sure part of it was I just didn’t believe that I was going to waltz into leading man roles in Hollywood.” And there it is, that ambivalence. Despite all the plaudits, the awards and the steady offers of work, you sense Teale has never been certain of his gifts. It’s probably why he’s so consistently good – complacency isn’t in his nature. Owen Teale with Toni Collette in Dream Horse: “Toni just raised my game,” he says. Credit: AP He’s far better at recognising brilliance in others. For example, Toni Collette, who he worked with on Dream Horse, a 2020 movie about an unlikely champion racehorse. “Toni just raised my game. That’s a huge talent, huge,” he says, shaking his head in wonder.
|
38544
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
“My wife was about to give birth, so I said ‘I’m off’. I’m sure part of it was I just didn’t believe that I was going to waltz into leading man roles in Hollywood.” And there it is, that ambivalence. Despite all the plaudits, the awards and the steady offers of work, you sense Teale has never been certain of his gifts. It’s probably why he’s so consistently good – complacency isn’t in his nature. Owen Teale with Toni Collette in Dream Horse: “Toni just raised my game,” he says. Credit: AP He’s far better at recognising brilliance in others. For example, Toni Collette, who he worked with on Dream Horse, a 2020 movie about an unlikely champion racehorse. “Toni just raised my game. That’s a huge talent, huge,” he says, shaking his head in wonder. “I recently received an award from BAFTA for the film and part of me thinks they should give it to Toni.” He’s happiest in a room full of actors working on a play, a film or a TV production.
|
38545
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
Despite all the plaudits, the awards and the steady offers of work, you sense Teale has never been certain of his gifts. It’s probably why he’s so consistently good – complacency isn’t in his nature. Owen Teale with Toni Collette in Dream Horse: “Toni just raised my game,” he says. Credit: AP He’s far better at recognising brilliance in others. For example, Toni Collette, who he worked with on Dream Horse, a 2020 movie about an unlikely champion racehorse. “Toni just raised my game. That’s a huge talent, huge,” he says, shaking his head in wonder. “I recently received an award from BAFTA for the film and part of me thinks they should give it to Toni.” He’s happiest in a room full of actors working on a play, a film or a TV production. “What turns me on is the thought of collaborating with talented people.
|
38546
|
He killed Jon Snow. Now Owen Teale is coming to ruin your Christmas
It’s probably why he’s so consistently good – complacency isn’t in his nature. Owen Teale with Toni Collette in Dream Horse: “Toni just raised my game,” he says. Credit: AP He’s far better at recognising brilliance in others. For example, Toni Collette, who he worked with on Dream Horse, a 2020 movie about an unlikely champion racehorse. “Toni just raised my game. That’s a huge talent, huge,” he says, shaking his head in wonder. “I recently received an award from BAFTA for the film and part of me thinks they should give it to Toni.” He’s happiest in a room full of actors working on a play, a film or a TV production. “What turns me on is the thought of collaborating with talented people. I’m very sociable with the rest of the company and fully intend to do that when I come to Melbourne.”
Advertisement
|
38547
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
Tate McRae’s career, until recently, had a stench of desperation about it. That’s a wild thing to say about someone who’s only 20, but how else to describe the feeling you get watching an artist who trades explicitly in classic pop moves failing to grab the mode such musical expression necessitates, ie: popularity? Tate McRae’s Think Later: a second stab at superstardom. Despite her age, the Calgary-born musician’s already had a journey. A professionally trained dancer since 6, at 13 she finished third on the US version of So You Think You Can Dance and attracted record label attention with songs uploaded to YouTube.
|
38548
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
Tate McRae’s career, until recently, had a stench of desperation about it. That’s a wild thing to say about someone who’s only 20, but how else to describe the feeling you get watching an artist who trades explicitly in classic pop moves failing to grab the mode such musical expression necessitates, ie: popularity? Tate McRae’s Think Later: a second stab at superstardom. Despite her age, the Calgary-born musician’s already had a journey. A professionally trained dancer since 6, at 13 she finished third on the US version of So You Think You Can Dance and attracted record label attention with songs uploaded to YouTube. In 2020, her weeper You Broke Me First had a chart moment, leading to her debut I Used To Think I Can Fly in 2022, an intriguing album of thrashy bangers and post-Billie Eilish sad-pop featuring production from pop titans Greg Kurstin (Adele) and Finneas (Eilish).
|
38549
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
That’s a wild thing to say about someone who’s only 20, but how else to describe the feeling you get watching an artist who trades explicitly in classic pop moves failing to grab the mode such musical expression necessitates, ie: popularity? Tate McRae’s Think Later: a second stab at superstardom. Despite her age, the Calgary-born musician’s already had a journey. A professionally trained dancer since 6, at 13 she finished third on the US version of So You Think You Can Dance and attracted record label attention with songs uploaded to YouTube. In 2020, her weeper You Broke Me First had a chart moment, leading to her debut I Used To Think I Can Fly in 2022, an intriguing album of thrashy bangers and post-Billie Eilish sad-pop featuring production from pop titans Greg Kurstin (Adele) and Finneas (Eilish). It had at least one could’ve been smash – the spiky What Would You Do?
|
38550
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
Tate McRae’s Think Later: a second stab at superstardom. Despite her age, the Calgary-born musician’s already had a journey. A professionally trained dancer since 6, at 13 she finished third on the US version of So You Think You Can Dance and attracted record label attention with songs uploaded to YouTube. In 2020, her weeper You Broke Me First had a chart moment, leading to her debut I Used To Think I Can Fly in 2022, an intriguing album of thrashy bangers and post-Billie Eilish sad-pop featuring production from pop titans Greg Kurstin (Adele) and Finneas (Eilish). It had at least one could’ve been smash – the spiky What Would You Do? – but, fairly listless despite her swaggering delivery, it failed to ignite with either mainstream audiences or pop aesthetes. But then, this past August, Greedy happened.
|
38551
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
Despite her age, the Calgary-born musician’s already had a journey. A professionally trained dancer since 6, at 13 she finished third on the US version of So You Think You Can Dance and attracted record label attention with songs uploaded to YouTube. In 2020, her weeper You Broke Me First had a chart moment, leading to her debut I Used To Think I Can Fly in 2022, an intriguing album of thrashy bangers and post-Billie Eilish sad-pop featuring production from pop titans Greg Kurstin (Adele) and Finneas (Eilish). It had at least one could’ve been smash – the spiky What Would You Do? – but, fairly listless despite her swaggering delivery, it failed to ignite with either mainstream audiences or pop aesthetes. But then, this past August, Greedy happened. Used in a video by popular TikToker Tube Girl and then in countless hair-flip transition clips, the song went viral, eventually amassing over 320 million streams globally, topping charts internationally, and becoming McRae’s proper breakthrough and a rare reintroduction.
|
38552
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
In 2020, her weeper You Broke Me First had a chart moment, leading to her debut I Used To Think I Can Fly in 2022, an intriguing album of thrashy bangers and post-Billie Eilish sad-pop featuring production from pop titans Greg Kurstin (Adele) and Finneas (Eilish). It had at least one could’ve been smash – the spiky What Would You Do? – but, fairly listless despite her swaggering delivery, it failed to ignite with either mainstream audiences or pop aesthetes. But then, this past August, Greedy happened. Used in a video by popular TikToker Tube Girl and then in countless hair-flip transition clips, the song went viral, eventually amassing over 320 million streams globally, topping charts internationally, and becoming McRae’s proper breakthrough and a rare reintroduction. It even landed her a slot on Saturday Night Live, that pop superstar rite-of-passage, and sold out shows for her upcoming Australian tour next November.
|
38553
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
It had at least one could’ve been smash – the spiky What Would You Do? – but, fairly listless despite her swaggering delivery, it failed to ignite with either mainstream audiences or pop aesthetes. But then, this past August, Greedy happened. Used in a video by popular TikToker Tube Girl and then in countless hair-flip transition clips, the song went viral, eventually amassing over 320 million streams globally, topping charts internationally, and becoming McRae’s proper breakthrough and a rare reintroduction. It even landed her a slot on Saturday Night Live, that pop superstar rite-of-passage, and sold out shows for her upcoming Australian tour next November. That Greedy’s the thing that’s pushed McRae to the next level is somewhat confounding. Is it even a good song? It’s not particularly memorable, and McRae’s debut had better tracks that slipped listeners by.
|
38554
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
It had at least one could’ve been smash – the spiky What Would You Do? – but, fairly listless despite her swaggering delivery, it failed to ignite with either mainstream audiences or pop aesthetes. But then, this past August, Greedy happened. Used in a video by popular TikToker Tube Girl and then in countless hair-flip transition clips, the song went viral, eventually amassing over 320 million streams globally, topping charts internationally, and becoming McRae’s proper breakthrough and a rare reintroduction. It even landed her a slot on Saturday Night Live, that pop superstar rite-of-passage, and sold out shows for her upcoming Australian tour next November. That Greedy’s the thing that’s pushed McRae to the next level is somewhat confounding. Is it even a good song? It’s not particularly memorable, and McRae’s debut had better tracks that slipped listeners by. But its sassy sentiment – “I would want myself”, particularly suited to clips of youthful coming-of-age expression – clearly caught on with the TikTok crowd, which is how pop stardom happens these days.
|
38555
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
But then, this past August, Greedy happened. Used in a video by popular TikToker Tube Girl and then in countless hair-flip transition clips, the song went viral, eventually amassing over 320 million streams globally, topping charts internationally, and becoming McRae’s proper breakthrough and a rare reintroduction. It even landed her a slot on Saturday Night Live, that pop superstar rite-of-passage, and sold out shows for her upcoming Australian tour next November. That Greedy’s the thing that’s pushed McRae to the next level is somewhat confounding. Is it even a good song? It’s not particularly memorable, and McRae’s debut had better tracks that slipped listeners by. But its sassy sentiment – “I would want myself”, particularly suited to clips of youthful coming-of-age expression – clearly caught on with the TikTok crowd, which is how pop stardom happens these days. In another popstar move, McRae also channelled an alter ego (Tatiana, who’s “ballsy, loud and obnoxious”) for Greedy’s vibrant music video, a fun throwback to choreographed Y2K-era aesthetics – McRae dancing all lustily on a Zamboni (so Canadian) – which surely helped.
|
38556
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
That Greedy’s the thing that’s pushed McRae to the next level is somewhat confounding. Is it even a good song? It’s not particularly memorable, and McRae’s debut had better tracks that slipped listeners by. But its sassy sentiment – “I would want myself”, particularly suited to clips of youthful coming-of-age expression – clearly caught on with the TikTok crowd, which is how pop stardom happens these days. In another popstar move, McRae also channelled an alter ego (Tatiana, who’s “ballsy, loud and obnoxious”) for Greedy’s vibrant music video, a fun throwback to choreographed Y2K-era aesthetics – McRae dancing all lustily on a Zamboni (so Canadian) – which surely helped.
In this context comes Think Later, McRae’s sophomore release.
|
38557
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
That Greedy’s the thing that’s pushed McRae to the next level is somewhat confounding. Is it even a good song? It’s not particularly memorable, and McRae’s debut had better tracks that slipped listeners by. But its sassy sentiment – “I would want myself”, particularly suited to clips of youthful coming-of-age expression – clearly caught on with the TikTok crowd, which is how pop stardom happens these days. In another popstar move, McRae also channelled an alter ego (Tatiana, who’s “ballsy, loud and obnoxious”) for Greedy’s vibrant music video, a fun throwback to choreographed Y2K-era aesthetics – McRae dancing all lustily on a Zamboni (so Canadian) – which surely helped.
In this context comes Think Later, McRae’s sophomore release. Almost completely produced and co-written with Ryan Tedder (OneRepublic), it sports his hit-making trademarks, for better or worse – pristine songcraft hooked around off-kilter concepts that can’t help but catch the ear, but punishingly midtempo, songs searching for gravitas over, say, fun.
|
38558
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
But its sassy sentiment – “I would want myself”, particularly suited to clips of youthful coming-of-age expression – clearly caught on with the TikTok crowd, which is how pop stardom happens these days. In another popstar move, McRae also channelled an alter ego (Tatiana, who’s “ballsy, loud and obnoxious”) for Greedy’s vibrant music video, a fun throwback to choreographed Y2K-era aesthetics – McRae dancing all lustily on a Zamboni (so Canadian) – which surely helped.
In this context comes Think Later, McRae’s sophomore release. Almost completely produced and co-written with Ryan Tedder (OneRepublic), it sports his hit-making trademarks, for better or worse – pristine songcraft hooked around off-kilter concepts that can’t help but catch the ear, but punishingly midtempo, songs searching for gravitas over, say, fun. For an album that’s supposed to be McRae’s bold, confident, cheeky makeover, parts of it lack spark.
|
38559
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
In another popstar move, McRae also channelled an alter ego (Tatiana, who’s “ballsy, loud and obnoxious”) for Greedy’s vibrant music video, a fun throwback to choreographed Y2K-era aesthetics – McRae dancing all lustily on a Zamboni (so Canadian) – which surely helped.
In this context comes Think Later, McRae’s sophomore release. Almost completely produced and co-written with Ryan Tedder (OneRepublic), it sports his hit-making trademarks, for better or worse – pristine songcraft hooked around off-kilter concepts that can’t help but catch the ear, but punishingly midtempo, songs searching for gravitas over, say, fun. For an album that’s supposed to be McRae’s bold, confident, cheeky makeover, parts of it lack spark. Tellingly, the best songs on the album – Exes, Hurt My Feelings and Guilty Conscience – follow the Greedy template: skittering Timbaland-style beats recalling Y2K-era pop, all syncopated and staccato and sultry kiss-offs to dumb boys.
|
38560
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
In this context comes Think Later, McRae’s sophomore release. Almost completely produced and co-written with Ryan Tedder (OneRepublic), it sports his hit-making trademarks, for better or worse – pristine songcraft hooked around off-kilter concepts that can’t help but catch the ear, but punishingly midtempo, songs searching for gravitas over, say, fun. For an album that’s supposed to be McRae’s bold, confident, cheeky makeover, parts of it lack spark. Tellingly, the best songs on the album – Exes, Hurt My Feelings and Guilty Conscience – follow the Greedy template: skittering Timbaland-style beats recalling Y2K-era pop, all syncopated and staccato and sultry kiss-offs to dumb boys. They feel strong and personally nostalgic – like McRae’s nodding to her countrywoman Nelly Furtado’s classic mid-’00s run – but driven by McRae’s playfulness.
|
38561
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
Almost completely produced and co-written with Ryan Tedder (OneRepublic), it sports his hit-making trademarks, for better or worse – pristine songcraft hooked around off-kilter concepts that can’t help but catch the ear, but punishingly midtempo, songs searching for gravitas over, say, fun. For an album that’s supposed to be McRae’s bold, confident, cheeky makeover, parts of it lack spark. Tellingly, the best songs on the album – Exes, Hurt My Feelings and Guilty Conscience – follow the Greedy template: skittering Timbaland-style beats recalling Y2K-era pop, all syncopated and staccato and sultry kiss-offs to dumb boys. They feel strong and personally nostalgic – like McRae’s nodding to her countrywoman Nelly Furtado’s classic mid-’00s run – but driven by McRae’s playfulness. We’re Not Alike shows another promising side to McRae’s sound, a post-punky thing built on an Interpol-ish riff that slyly builds into something anthemic, recalling her pal Olivia Rodrigo’s sleeper Guts track, Pretty Isn’t Pretty (the post-punk revival has officially returned to pop, it seems).
|
38562
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
Tellingly, the best songs on the album – Exes, Hurt My Feelings and Guilty Conscience – follow the Greedy template: skittering Timbaland-style beats recalling Y2K-era pop, all syncopated and staccato and sultry kiss-offs to dumb boys. They feel strong and personally nostalgic – like McRae’s nodding to her countrywoman Nelly Furtado’s classic mid-’00s run – but driven by McRae’s playfulness. We’re Not Alike shows another promising side to McRae’s sound, a post-punky thing built on an Interpol-ish riff that slyly builds into something anthemic, recalling her pal Olivia Rodrigo’s sleeper Guts track, Pretty Isn’t Pretty (the post-punk revival has officially returned to pop, it seems). That these songs are so interesting makes the album’s overemphasis on understated ballads frustrating.
|
38563
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
Tellingly, the best songs on the album – Exes, Hurt My Feelings and Guilty Conscience – follow the Greedy template: skittering Timbaland-style beats recalling Y2K-era pop, all syncopated and staccato and sultry kiss-offs to dumb boys. They feel strong and personally nostalgic – like McRae’s nodding to her countrywoman Nelly Furtado’s classic mid-’00s run – but driven by McRae’s playfulness. We’re Not Alike shows another promising side to McRae’s sound, a post-punky thing built on an Interpol-ish riff that slyly builds into something anthemic, recalling her pal Olivia Rodrigo’s sleeper Guts track, Pretty Isn’t Pretty (the post-punk revival has officially returned to pop, it seems). That these songs are so interesting makes the album’s overemphasis on understated ballads frustrating. Songs like opener Cut My Hair, Grave and Stay Done are slick but dour affairs, the classic Tedder formula.
|
38564
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
They feel strong and personally nostalgic – like McRae’s nodding to her countrywoman Nelly Furtado’s classic mid-’00s run – but driven by McRae’s playfulness. We’re Not Alike shows another promising side to McRae’s sound, a post-punky thing built on an Interpol-ish riff that slyly builds into something anthemic, recalling her pal Olivia Rodrigo’s sleeper Guts track, Pretty Isn’t Pretty (the post-punk revival has officially returned to pop, it seems). That these songs are so interesting makes the album’s overemphasis on understated ballads frustrating. Songs like opener Cut My Hair, Grave and Stay Done are slick but dour affairs, the classic Tedder formula. Messier, which weirdly is not another Canadian nod to ice hockey great Mark, shows McRae has the range, a bitter ballad where she allows her vocals to get raw and unhinged.
|
38565
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
They feel strong and personally nostalgic – like McRae’s nodding to her countrywoman Nelly Furtado’s classic mid-’00s run – but driven by McRae’s playfulness. We’re Not Alike shows another promising side to McRae’s sound, a post-punky thing built on an Interpol-ish riff that slyly builds into something anthemic, recalling her pal Olivia Rodrigo’s sleeper Guts track, Pretty Isn’t Pretty (the post-punk revival has officially returned to pop, it seems). That these songs are so interesting makes the album’s overemphasis on understated ballads frustrating. Songs like opener Cut My Hair, Grave and Stay Done are slick but dour affairs, the classic Tedder formula. Messier, which weirdly is not another Canadian nod to ice hockey great Mark, shows McRae has the range, a bitter ballad where she allows her vocals to get raw and unhinged.
But the real pleasure of Think Later lies in McRae’s idiosyncrasies and their potential; she’s a throwback in the classic singing-dancing Britney mould.
|
38566
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
We’re Not Alike shows another promising side to McRae’s sound, a post-punky thing built on an Interpol-ish riff that slyly builds into something anthemic, recalling her pal Olivia Rodrigo’s sleeper Guts track, Pretty Isn’t Pretty (the post-punk revival has officially returned to pop, it seems). That these songs are so interesting makes the album’s overemphasis on understated ballads frustrating. Songs like opener Cut My Hair, Grave and Stay Done are slick but dour affairs, the classic Tedder formula. Messier, which weirdly is not another Canadian nod to ice hockey great Mark, shows McRae has the range, a bitter ballad where she allows her vocals to get raw and unhinged.
But the real pleasure of Think Later lies in McRae’s idiosyncrasies and their potential; she’s a throwback in the classic singing-dancing Britney mould. With a pop landscape led by serious singer-songwriters like Taylor Swift, SZA, Rodrigo and Eilish; Dua “go girl, give us nothing” Lipa; the fame-trolling Doja Cat; and the introverted to the point of obscurity PinkPantheress, there’s a vacancy for McRae’s particular set of popstar skills.
|
38567
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
That these songs are so interesting makes the album’s overemphasis on understated ballads frustrating. Songs like opener Cut My Hair, Grave and Stay Done are slick but dour affairs, the classic Tedder formula. Messier, which weirdly is not another Canadian nod to ice hockey great Mark, shows McRae has the range, a bitter ballad where she allows her vocals to get raw and unhinged.
But the real pleasure of Think Later lies in McRae’s idiosyncrasies and their potential; she’s a throwback in the classic singing-dancing Britney mould. With a pop landscape led by serious singer-songwriters like Taylor Swift, SZA, Rodrigo and Eilish; Dua “go girl, give us nothing” Lipa; the fame-trolling Doja Cat; and the introverted to the point of obscurity PinkPantheress, there’s a vacancy for McRae’s particular set of popstar skills. If she’s greedy enough, the platform feels like it’s hers to grab.
|
38568
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
Songs like opener Cut My Hair, Grave and Stay Done are slick but dour affairs, the classic Tedder formula. Messier, which weirdly is not another Canadian nod to ice hockey great Mark, shows McRae has the range, a bitter ballad where she allows her vocals to get raw and unhinged.
But the real pleasure of Think Later lies in McRae’s idiosyncrasies and their potential; she’s a throwback in the classic singing-dancing Britney mould. With a pop landscape led by serious singer-songwriters like Taylor Swift, SZA, Rodrigo and Eilish; Dua “go girl, give us nothing” Lipa; the fame-trolling Doja Cat; and the introverted to the point of obscurity PinkPantheress, there’s a vacancy for McRae’s particular set of popstar skills. If she’s greedy enough, the platform feels like it’s hers to grab. Robert Moran I/O, Peter Gabriel For a guy who spent much of the ’70s at the forefront of prog-rock as the singer for Genesis, creating sprawling concept albums, wearing a series of increasingly bizarre stage outfits that suggested he had ingested a truckload of acid on the way to a Halloween party, and being one of the main reasons punk had to happen, Peter Gabriel sure did go on to personify big, shiny ’80s pop.
|
38569
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
With a pop landscape led by serious singer-songwriters like Taylor Swift, SZA, Rodrigo and Eilish; Dua “go girl, give us nothing” Lipa; the fame-trolling Doja Cat; and the introverted to the point of obscurity PinkPantheress, there’s a vacancy for McRae’s particular set of popstar skills. If she’s greedy enough, the platform feels like it’s hers to grab. Robert Moran I/O, Peter Gabriel For a guy who spent much of the ’70s at the forefront of prog-rock as the singer for Genesis, creating sprawling concept albums, wearing a series of increasingly bizarre stage outfits that suggested he had ingested a truckload of acid on the way to a Halloween party, and being one of the main reasons punk had to happen, Peter Gabriel sure did go on to personify big, shiny ’80s pop. The most played video on MTV?
|
38570
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
With a pop landscape led by serious singer-songwriters like Taylor Swift, SZA, Rodrigo and Eilish; Dua “go girl, give us nothing” Lipa; the fame-trolling Doja Cat; and the introverted to the point of obscurity PinkPantheress, there’s a vacancy for McRae’s particular set of popstar skills. If she’s greedy enough, the platform feels like it’s hers to grab. Robert Moran I/O, Peter Gabriel For a guy who spent much of the ’70s at the forefront of prog-rock as the singer for Genesis, creating sprawling concept albums, wearing a series of increasingly bizarre stage outfits that suggested he had ingested a truckload of acid on the way to a Halloween party, and being one of the main reasons punk had to happen, Peter Gabriel sure did go on to personify big, shiny ’80s pop. The most played video on MTV? That would be Sledgehammer, his body slam of a hit from 1986 that did just what it said on the tin.
|
38571
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
If she’s greedy enough, the platform feels like it’s hers to grab. Robert Moran I/O, Peter Gabriel For a guy who spent much of the ’70s at the forefront of prog-rock as the singer for Genesis, creating sprawling concept albums, wearing a series of increasingly bizarre stage outfits that suggested he had ingested a truckload of acid on the way to a Halloween party, and being one of the main reasons punk had to happen, Peter Gabriel sure did go on to personify big, shiny ’80s pop. The most played video on MTV? That would be Sledgehammer, his body slam of a hit from 1986 that did just what it said on the tin. The song blaring from that boombox John Cusack held aloft under Ione Skye’s window in the iconic scene from 1989’s Say Anything? That would be Gabriel’s In Your Eyes. And, somewhat bizarrely, you can barely watch an old episode of Miami Vice without hearing a Gabriel song in the background.
|
38572
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
Robert Moran I/O, Peter Gabriel For a guy who spent much of the ’70s at the forefront of prog-rock as the singer for Genesis, creating sprawling concept albums, wearing a series of increasingly bizarre stage outfits that suggested he had ingested a truckload of acid on the way to a Halloween party, and being one of the main reasons punk had to happen, Peter Gabriel sure did go on to personify big, shiny ’80s pop. The most played video on MTV? That would be Sledgehammer, his body slam of a hit from 1986 that did just what it said on the tin. The song blaring from that boombox John Cusack held aloft under Ione Skye’s window in the iconic scene from 1989’s Say Anything? That would be Gabriel’s In Your Eyes. And, somewhat bizarrely, you can barely watch an old episode of Miami Vice without hearing a Gabriel song in the background. After two decades, Peter Gabriel returns – overcooked and overlong.
|
38573
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
The most played video on MTV? That would be Sledgehammer, his body slam of a hit from 1986 that did just what it said on the tin. The song blaring from that boombox John Cusack held aloft under Ione Skye’s window in the iconic scene from 1989’s Say Anything? That would be Gabriel’s In Your Eyes. And, somewhat bizarrely, you can barely watch an old episode of Miami Vice without hearing a Gabriel song in the background. After two decades, Peter Gabriel returns – overcooked and overlong.
From popularising the massive, heavily gated drum sound that dominated the era to becoming one of world music’s greatest champions by co-founding the WOMAD festival, for a while there Gabriel was seemingly everywhere. And then… he wasn’t. In fact, I/O is his first solo album of new original material in over two decades.
|
38574
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
The most played video on MTV? That would be Sledgehammer, his body slam of a hit from 1986 that did just what it said on the tin. The song blaring from that boombox John Cusack held aloft under Ione Skye’s window in the iconic scene from 1989’s Say Anything? That would be Gabriel’s In Your Eyes. And, somewhat bizarrely, you can barely watch an old episode of Miami Vice without hearing a Gabriel song in the background. After two decades, Peter Gabriel returns – overcooked and overlong.
From popularising the massive, heavily gated drum sound that dominated the era to becoming one of world music’s greatest champions by co-founding the WOMAD festival, for a while there Gabriel was seemingly everywhere. And then… he wasn’t. In fact, I/O is his first solo album of new original material in over two decades. Some wags are calling it his Chinese Democracy, but the rarely punctual Axl Rose only took a comparatively brisk 18 years to finally release the follow-up to Use Your Illusion.
|
38575
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
The song blaring from that boombox John Cusack held aloft under Ione Skye’s window in the iconic scene from 1989’s Say Anything? That would be Gabriel’s In Your Eyes. And, somewhat bizarrely, you can barely watch an old episode of Miami Vice without hearing a Gabriel song in the background. After two decades, Peter Gabriel returns – overcooked and overlong.
From popularising the massive, heavily gated drum sound that dominated the era to becoming one of world music’s greatest champions by co-founding the WOMAD festival, for a while there Gabriel was seemingly everywhere. And then… he wasn’t. In fact, I/O is his first solo album of new original material in over two decades. Some wags are calling it his Chinese Democracy, but the rarely punctual Axl Rose only took a comparatively brisk 18 years to finally release the follow-up to Use Your Illusion. Some things haven’t changed.
|
38576
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
That would be Gabriel’s In Your Eyes. And, somewhat bizarrely, you can barely watch an old episode of Miami Vice without hearing a Gabriel song in the background. After two decades, Peter Gabriel returns – overcooked and overlong.
From popularising the massive, heavily gated drum sound that dominated the era to becoming one of world music’s greatest champions by co-founding the WOMAD festival, for a while there Gabriel was seemingly everywhere. And then… he wasn’t. In fact, I/O is his first solo album of new original material in over two decades. Some wags are calling it his Chinese Democracy, but the rarely punctual Axl Rose only took a comparatively brisk 18 years to finally release the follow-up to Use Your Illusion. Some things haven’t changed. From the get-go, on opening track Panopticom, there’s that gunshots-in-an-echo-chamber drum sound and the instantly recognisable fat, slithering tones of long-time bassist Tony Levin.
|
38577
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
After two decades, Peter Gabriel returns – overcooked and overlong.
From popularising the massive, heavily gated drum sound that dominated the era to becoming one of world music’s greatest champions by co-founding the WOMAD festival, for a while there Gabriel was seemingly everywhere. And then… he wasn’t. In fact, I/O is his first solo album of new original material in over two decades. Some wags are calling it his Chinese Democracy, but the rarely punctual Axl Rose only took a comparatively brisk 18 years to finally release the follow-up to Use Your Illusion. Some things haven’t changed. From the get-go, on opening track Panopticom, there’s that gunshots-in-an-echo-chamber drum sound and the instantly recognisable fat, slithering tones of long-time bassist Tony Levin. And the subject matter is the familiar, big-world thinking we’ve come to expect, too – in this case, Gabriel’s utopian idea of an infinitely expandable and accessible world database, but, you know, one that doesn’t peddle untruths.
|
38578
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
And then… he wasn’t. In fact, I/O is his first solo album of new original material in over two decades. Some wags are calling it his Chinese Democracy, but the rarely punctual Axl Rose only took a comparatively brisk 18 years to finally release the follow-up to Use Your Illusion. Some things haven’t changed. From the get-go, on opening track Panopticom, there’s that gunshots-in-an-echo-chamber drum sound and the instantly recognisable fat, slithering tones of long-time bassist Tony Levin. And the subject matter is the familiar, big-world thinking we’ve come to expect, too – in this case, Gabriel’s utopian idea of an infinitely expandable and accessible world database, but, you know, one that doesn’t peddle untruths. The title track could almost come from Coldplay, with its singalong chorus designed for arena crowds waving lit-up smartphones, while Gabriel sings “stuff coming out, stuff going in, I’m just a part of everything”.
|
38579
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
Some wags are calling it his Chinese Democracy, but the rarely punctual Axl Rose only took a comparatively brisk 18 years to finally release the follow-up to Use Your Illusion. Some things haven’t changed. From the get-go, on opening track Panopticom, there’s that gunshots-in-an-echo-chamber drum sound and the instantly recognisable fat, slithering tones of long-time bassist Tony Levin. And the subject matter is the familiar, big-world thinking we’ve come to expect, too – in this case, Gabriel’s utopian idea of an infinitely expandable and accessible world database, but, you know, one that doesn’t peddle untruths. The title track could almost come from Coldplay, with its singalong chorus designed for arena crowds waving lit-up smartphones, while Gabriel sings “stuff coming out, stuff going in, I’m just a part of everything”.
In the late ’90s, Gabriel collaborated with Randy Newman on That’ll Do from the Babe soundtrack.
|
38580
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
Some things haven’t changed. From the get-go, on opening track Panopticom, there’s that gunshots-in-an-echo-chamber drum sound and the instantly recognisable fat, slithering tones of long-time bassist Tony Levin. And the subject matter is the familiar, big-world thinking we’ve come to expect, too – in this case, Gabriel’s utopian idea of an infinitely expandable and accessible world database, but, you know, one that doesn’t peddle untruths. The title track could almost come from Coldplay, with its singalong chorus designed for arena crowds waving lit-up smartphones, while Gabriel sings “stuff coming out, stuff going in, I’m just a part of everything”.
In the late ’90s, Gabriel collaborated with Randy Newman on That’ll Do from the Babe soundtrack. Should Newman be indisposed for the next Pixar film soundtrack, Gabriel’s Playing For Time could easily slot in for that reflective, tear-inducing, life-affirming ballad Newman routinely provides for the end of the second act.
|
38581
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
And the subject matter is the familiar, big-world thinking we’ve come to expect, too – in this case, Gabriel’s utopian idea of an infinitely expandable and accessible world database, but, you know, one that doesn’t peddle untruths. The title track could almost come from Coldplay, with its singalong chorus designed for arena crowds waving lit-up smartphones, while Gabriel sings “stuff coming out, stuff going in, I’m just a part of everything”.
In the late ’90s, Gabriel collaborated with Randy Newman on That’ll Do from the Babe soundtrack. Should Newman be indisposed for the next Pixar film soundtrack, Gabriel’s Playing For Time could easily slot in for that reflective, tear-inducing, life-affirming ballad Newman routinely provides for the end of the second act. In fact, there’s a palpable sense of mortality on I/O.
|
38582
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
And the subject matter is the familiar, big-world thinking we’ve come to expect, too – in this case, Gabriel’s utopian idea of an infinitely expandable and accessible world database, but, you know, one that doesn’t peddle untruths. The title track could almost come from Coldplay, with its singalong chorus designed for arena crowds waving lit-up smartphones, while Gabriel sings “stuff coming out, stuff going in, I’m just a part of everything”.
In the late ’90s, Gabriel collaborated with Randy Newman on That’ll Do from the Babe soundtrack. Should Newman be indisposed for the next Pixar film soundtrack, Gabriel’s Playing For Time could easily slot in for that reflective, tear-inducing, life-affirming ballad Newman routinely provides for the end of the second act. In fact, there’s a palpable sense of mortality on I/O. Gabriel is 73, and he’s mining a seam of material here about taking stock, feeling at one with the world and the (admittedly, not exactly original) realisation that love is all we need.
|
38583
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
The title track could almost come from Coldplay, with its singalong chorus designed for arena crowds waving lit-up smartphones, while Gabriel sings “stuff coming out, stuff going in, I’m just a part of everything”.
In the late ’90s, Gabriel collaborated with Randy Newman on That’ll Do from the Babe soundtrack. Should Newman be indisposed for the next Pixar film soundtrack, Gabriel’s Playing For Time could easily slot in for that reflective, tear-inducing, life-affirming ballad Newman routinely provides for the end of the second act. In fact, there’s a palpable sense of mortality on I/O. Gabriel is 73, and he’s mining a seam of material here about taking stock, feeling at one with the world and the (admittedly, not exactly original) realisation that love is all we need. This reaches its most intense moment in And Still, a song he wrote to deal with the death of his mother in 2016.
|
38584
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
In the late ’90s, Gabriel collaborated with Randy Newman on That’ll Do from the Babe soundtrack. Should Newman be indisposed for the next Pixar film soundtrack, Gabriel’s Playing For Time could easily slot in for that reflective, tear-inducing, life-affirming ballad Newman routinely provides for the end of the second act. In fact, there’s a palpable sense of mortality on I/O. Gabriel is 73, and he’s mining a seam of material here about taking stock, feeling at one with the world and the (admittedly, not exactly original) realisation that love is all we need. This reaches its most intense moment in And Still, a song he wrote to deal with the death of his mother in 2016. It’s a fragile, delicate thing that has an almost Nick Drake transparency to it, as he remembers leaning his head against her skin and the feeling of her brushing his hair as a young boy.
|
38585
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
In the late ’90s, Gabriel collaborated with Randy Newman on That’ll Do from the Babe soundtrack. Should Newman be indisposed for the next Pixar film soundtrack, Gabriel’s Playing For Time could easily slot in for that reflective, tear-inducing, life-affirming ballad Newman routinely provides for the end of the second act. In fact, there’s a palpable sense of mortality on I/O. Gabriel is 73, and he’s mining a seam of material here about taking stock, feeling at one with the world and the (admittedly, not exactly original) realisation that love is all we need. This reaches its most intense moment in And Still, a song he wrote to deal with the death of his mother in 2016. It’s a fragile, delicate thing that has an almost Nick Drake transparency to it, as he remembers leaning his head against her skin and the feeling of her brushing his hair as a young boy. But with all that time spent cooking up these songs, some have been left in the oven too long, stretching to five, six, seven minutes, and in need of an edit or at least a change in tempo.
|
38586
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
In fact, there’s a palpable sense of mortality on I/O. Gabriel is 73, and he’s mining a seam of material here about taking stock, feeling at one with the world and the (admittedly, not exactly original) realisation that love is all we need. This reaches its most intense moment in And Still, a song he wrote to deal with the death of his mother in 2016. It’s a fragile, delicate thing that has an almost Nick Drake transparency to it, as he remembers leaning his head against her skin and the feeling of her brushing his hair as a young boy. But with all that time spent cooking up these songs, some have been left in the oven too long, stretching to five, six, seven minutes, and in need of an edit or at least a change in tempo. Olive Tree and Live and Let Live overload the “one with the world” barrow he’s pushing – the former, a Sting-like concoction that seems to be two different songs bolted together; the latter, coming from a fine place (inspired by Nelson Mandela and The Elders project) but littered with cliches such as “When we can forgive, we can move on” and “An eye for an eye, again and again, until the whole world is blind”.
|
38587
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
It’s a fragile, delicate thing that has an almost Nick Drake transparency to it, as he remembers leaning his head against her skin and the feeling of her brushing his hair as a young boy. But with all that time spent cooking up these songs, some have been left in the oven too long, stretching to five, six, seven minutes, and in need of an edit or at least a change in tempo. Olive Tree and Live and Let Live overload the “one with the world” barrow he’s pushing – the former, a Sting-like concoction that seems to be two different songs bolted together; the latter, coming from a fine place (inspired by Nelson Mandela and The Elders project) but littered with cliches such as “When we can forgive, we can move on” and “An eye for an eye, again and again, until the whole world is blind”. On top of all this, there are two mixes of the album, one a “bright-side mix” by Mark “Spike” Stent, and the other a “dark-side mix” by Tchad Blake.
|
38588
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
But with all that time spent cooking up these songs, some have been left in the oven too long, stretching to five, six, seven minutes, and in need of an edit or at least a change in tempo. Olive Tree and Live and Let Live overload the “one with the world” barrow he’s pushing – the former, a Sting-like concoction that seems to be two different songs bolted together; the latter, coming from a fine place (inspired by Nelson Mandela and The Elders project) but littered with cliches such as “When we can forgive, we can move on” and “An eye for an eye, again and again, until the whole world is blind”. On top of all this, there are two mixes of the album, one a “bright-side mix” by Mark “Spike” Stent, and the other a “dark-side mix” by Tchad Blake. Yes, it’s a lot to take in. But then, it’s been a while in the making.
|
38589
|
Subtle as a sledgehammer, a pop icon returns
Olive Tree and Live and Let Live overload the “one with the world” barrow he’s pushing – the former, a Sting-like concoction that seems to be two different songs bolted together; the latter, coming from a fine place (inspired by Nelson Mandela and The Elders project) but littered with cliches such as “When we can forgive, we can move on” and “An eye for an eye, again and again, until the whole world is blind”. On top of all this, there are two mixes of the album, one a “bright-side mix” by Mark “Spike” Stent, and the other a “dark-side mix” by Tchad Blake. Yes, it’s a lot to take in. But then, it’s been a while in the making. And who knows when, or if, we’ll get a follow-up? Barry Divola To read more from Spectrum, visit our page here.
|
38590
|
Meltwater, the media monitoring startup, gets a $65M investment from Verdane
Meltwater, which first made its name around media monitoring and then got active in business intelligence using AI and big data analytics techniques, is picking up a new investor. Verdane, a Norwegian private equity firm that earlier this year closed a $1 billion+ fund to make investments in scaling tech companies, is taking an 11% stake in Meltwater, at a company valuation of €542 million ($592 million), valuing the stake at around $65 million. But that’s not the only deal that is going down with this transaction.
The investment is coming by way of Verdane taking a substantial stake in Fountain Venture, the investment vehicle controlled by the founder and current chairman of Meltwater, Jørn Lyseggen.
Meltwater, until earlier this year, was traded publicly on the Norwegian stock exchange. Lyseggen oversaw the company going private again earlier this year in a deal with two private equity firms, Altor and Marlin, and held his remaining share via Fountain.
|
38591
|
Meltwater, the media monitoring startup, gets a $65M investment from Verdane
Verdane, a Norwegian private equity firm that earlier this year closed a $1 billion+ fund to make investments in scaling tech companies, is taking an 11% stake in Meltwater, at a company valuation of €542 million ($592 million), valuing the stake at around $65 million. But that’s not the only deal that is going down with this transaction.
The investment is coming by way of Verdane taking a substantial stake in Fountain Venture, the investment vehicle controlled by the founder and current chairman of Meltwater, Jørn Lyseggen.
Meltwater, until earlier this year, was traded publicly on the Norwegian stock exchange. Lyseggen oversaw the company going private again earlier this year in a deal with two private equity firms, Altor and Marlin, and held his remaining share via Fountain. (The take-private deal was the last disclosed valuation and the one that Meltwater currently cites.)
|
38592
|
Meltwater, the media monitoring startup, gets a $65M investment from Verdane
Verdane, a Norwegian private equity firm that earlier this year closed a $1 billion+ fund to make investments in scaling tech companies, is taking an 11% stake in Meltwater, at a company valuation of €542 million ($592 million), valuing the stake at around $65 million. But that’s not the only deal that is going down with this transaction.
The investment is coming by way of Verdane taking a substantial stake in Fountain Venture, the investment vehicle controlled by the founder and current chairman of Meltwater, Jørn Lyseggen.
Meltwater, until earlier this year, was traded publicly on the Norwegian stock exchange. Lyseggen oversaw the company going private again earlier this year in a deal with two private equity firms, Altor and Marlin, and held his remaining share via Fountain. (The take-private deal was the last disclosed valuation and the one that Meltwater currently cites.) Verdane invested in Fountain Venture rather than directly in Meltwater because the plan will be to partner with Fountain to make future investments together in startups working in areas like AI.
|
38593
|
Meltwater, the media monitoring startup, gets a $65M investment from Verdane
But that’s not the only deal that is going down with this transaction.
The investment is coming by way of Verdane taking a substantial stake in Fountain Venture, the investment vehicle controlled by the founder and current chairman of Meltwater, Jørn Lyseggen.
Meltwater, until earlier this year, was traded publicly on the Norwegian stock exchange. Lyseggen oversaw the company going private again earlier this year in a deal with two private equity firms, Altor and Marlin, and held his remaining share via Fountain. (The take-private deal was the last disclosed valuation and the one that Meltwater currently cites.) Verdane invested in Fountain Venture rather than directly in Meltwater because the plan will be to partner with Fountain to make future investments together in startups working in areas like AI.
Joakim Kjemperud, a principal at Verdane, said the deal also gives his firm a stake in an HR firm, Jobylon, although Meltwater is by far the bigger asset.
|
38594
|
Meltwater, the media monitoring startup, gets a $65M investment from Verdane
The investment is coming by way of Verdane taking a substantial stake in Fountain Venture, the investment vehicle controlled by the founder and current chairman of Meltwater, Jørn Lyseggen.
Meltwater, until earlier this year, was traded publicly on the Norwegian stock exchange. Lyseggen oversaw the company going private again earlier this year in a deal with two private equity firms, Altor and Marlin, and held his remaining share via Fountain. (The take-private deal was the last disclosed valuation and the one that Meltwater currently cites.) Verdane invested in Fountain Venture rather than directly in Meltwater because the plan will be to partner with Fountain to make future investments together in startups working in areas like AI.
Joakim Kjemperud, a principal at Verdane, said the deal also gives his firm a stake in an HR firm, Jobylon, although Meltwater is by far the bigger asset.
“The deal here is that it’s very much a portfolio transaction,” he said.
|
38595
|
Meltwater, the media monitoring startup, gets a $65M investment from Verdane
Meltwater, until earlier this year, was traded publicly on the Norwegian stock exchange. Lyseggen oversaw the company going private again earlier this year in a deal with two private equity firms, Altor and Marlin, and held his remaining share via Fountain. (The take-private deal was the last disclosed valuation and the one that Meltwater currently cites.) Verdane invested in Fountain Venture rather than directly in Meltwater because the plan will be to partner with Fountain to make future investments together in startups working in areas like AI.
Joakim Kjemperud, a principal at Verdane, said the deal also gives his firm a stake in an HR firm, Jobylon, although Meltwater is by far the bigger asset.
“The deal here is that it’s very much a portfolio transaction,” he said. “We’re buying into Jørn’s investment company and acquiring an implied direct stake in Meltwater and Nordic HR firm Jobylon, but Meltwater is the biggest asset in the portfolio.” Jobylon’s ARR right now is around €5 million, while the ARR for Meltwater — which was founded in Norway but now calls San Francisco its headquarters — is around €500 million, he added.
|
38596
|
Meltwater, the media monitoring startup, gets a $65M investment from Verdane
(The take-private deal was the last disclosed valuation and the one that Meltwater currently cites.) Verdane invested in Fountain Venture rather than directly in Meltwater because the plan will be to partner with Fountain to make future investments together in startups working in areas like AI.
Joakim Kjemperud, a principal at Verdane, said the deal also gives his firm a stake in an HR firm, Jobylon, although Meltwater is by far the bigger asset.
“The deal here is that it’s very much a portfolio transaction,” he said. “We’re buying into Jørn’s investment company and acquiring an implied direct stake in Meltwater and Nordic HR firm Jobylon, but Meltwater is the biggest asset in the portfolio.” Jobylon’s ARR right now is around €5 million, while the ARR for Meltwater — which was founded in Norway but now calls San Francisco its headquarters — is around €500 million, he added.
The deal underscores a couple of important themes in the world of European tech and VC.
|
38597
|
Meltwater, the media monitoring startup, gets a $65M investment from Verdane
Verdane invested in Fountain Venture rather than directly in Meltwater because the plan will be to partner with Fountain to make future investments together in startups working in areas like AI.
Joakim Kjemperud, a principal at Verdane, said the deal also gives his firm a stake in an HR firm, Jobylon, although Meltwater is by far the bigger asset.
“The deal here is that it’s very much a portfolio transaction,” he said. “We’re buying into Jørn’s investment company and acquiring an implied direct stake in Meltwater and Nordic HR firm Jobylon, but Meltwater is the biggest asset in the portfolio.” Jobylon’s ARR right now is around €5 million, while the ARR for Meltwater — which was founded in Norway but now calls San Francisco its headquarters — is around €500 million, he added.
The deal underscores a couple of important themes in the world of European tech and VC.
The first of these is the fact that tech companies continue to see huge pressure on their valuations.
|
38598
|
Meltwater, the media monitoring startup, gets a $65M investment from Verdane
Joakim Kjemperud, a principal at Verdane, said the deal also gives his firm a stake in an HR firm, Jobylon, although Meltwater is by far the bigger asset.
“The deal here is that it’s very much a portfolio transaction,” he said. “We’re buying into Jørn’s investment company and acquiring an implied direct stake in Meltwater and Nordic HR firm Jobylon, but Meltwater is the biggest asset in the portfolio.” Jobylon’s ARR right now is around €5 million, while the ARR for Meltwater — which was founded in Norway but now calls San Francisco its headquarters — is around €500 million, he added.
The deal underscores a couple of important themes in the world of European tech and VC.
The first of these is the fact that tech companies continue to see huge pressure on their valuations. Meltwater’s current market cap of just under $600 million is actually less than the company raised over the years when it was a privately held startup (over $700 million, per PitchBook data), and less than half of its valuation when it went public in December 2020 at over $1 billion.
|
38599
|
Meltwater, the media monitoring startup, gets a $65M investment from Verdane
“The deal here is that it’s very much a portfolio transaction,” he said. “We’re buying into Jørn’s investment company and acquiring an implied direct stake in Meltwater and Nordic HR firm Jobylon, but Meltwater is the biggest asset in the portfolio.” Jobylon’s ARR right now is around €5 million, while the ARR for Meltwater — which was founded in Norway but now calls San Francisco its headquarters — is around €500 million, he added.
The deal underscores a couple of important themes in the world of European tech and VC.
The first of these is the fact that tech companies continue to see huge pressure on their valuations. Meltwater’s current market cap of just under $600 million is actually less than the company raised over the years when it was a privately held startup (over $700 million, per PitchBook data), and less than half of its valuation when it went public in December 2020 at over $1 billion.
The second is the nature of dealmaking at the moment and the efforts that investors are making to de-risk.
|
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.