STACK NZ Mar #60

7 / 58

LOVING THE ALIEN
They were one of the four featured acts on
Flying Nun’s seminal 1982 Dunedin Double
EP – reissued on vinyl last year – but unlike
The Chills, Sneaky Feelings and The Verlaines,
the cheekily named Stones didn’t last long
and split the following year. Frontman Wayne
Elsey went on to form the Double Happys
with Shayne Carter, but died tragically in a train
accident in 1985. However, the riotous sounds
of the iconic Dunedin three-piece – Elsey
(guitar/vocals), Jeff Batts (bass/vocals) and
Graeme Anderson (drums) – are celebrated
in a new compilation from Flying Nun, Three
Blind Mice, which brings together The Stones’
tracks from the Dunedin Double and their 1983
EP Another Disc, Another Dollar, along with
nine previously unreleased live tracks. With
liner notes from Carter and artwork from Alec
Bathgate and Chris Knox, this essential Kiwi
reissue is out on March 6.
It’s not quite over yet but Peter Jackson’s epic Tolkien odyssey is nearing its end. March 24 sees
the release of the final film in The Hobbit trilogy, The Battle of the Five Armies; we will have more
about the film in the April issue of STACK, but it’s reviewed on page 36.
In his first film, David Bowie is perfectly cast
as an alien from a drought-ridden planet who
travels to Earth in search of water. Using
his advanced technological know-how, he
quickly becomes a billionaire but struggles to
comprehend human nature. Made in 1976,
The Man Who Fell to Earth was directed by
visionary British director Nic Roeg, who also
gave Mick Jagger his first big screen break
in the cult favourite Performance (1970).
The film is available exclusively on
lu-ray from JB Hi-Fi on
arch 4, along with two
ther cult ‘70s films: Dustin
Hoffman’s satirical western
Little Big Man (1970) and
Walter Hill’s masterful
crime thriller The Driver
(1978), which was a big
influence on Ryan Gosling’s acclaimed
thriller Drive (2011). The new High-Def
range is rounded off by Black Snake Moan, a
sweltering Deep South melodrama starring
Samuel L. Jackson, Christina Ricci and Justin
Timberlake.
David Bowie classic The Man
Who Fell to Earth debuts on
Blu-ray – exclusively at JB Hi-Fi.
If you own an Xbox One, chances are there is
one game in particular you can’t wait to play
this year: Halo 5: Guardians, a sequel to 2012’s
Halo 4, developed by 343 Industries and due
at the end of 2015. In a recent The Inner Circle
podcast, Aaron Greenberg, Microsoft’s Global
Director of Games Marketing, described the
game as a ‘marketer’s dream’.
“The game is just super-innovative,” he said.
“I think this is a title that 343 has dreamed of
making, and they’re innovating in ways that our
jaws are dropping. It’s such a deep story.” The
game will feature two protagonists, including
fan-favourite Master Chief.
Meanwhile, JB Hi-Fi has lined up a cool
exclusive edition of the latest Halo live-action
TV spin-off Nightfall, which lands on March
12. Both the DVD and Blu-ray sets include five
collectors cards.
MORE MISSING
The gripping British crime drama The
Missing – due out next month on DVD
– is set to return at the end of the year,
with a second series getting the
greenlight from the BBC.
However, at this stage, it doesn’t look as
if the show’s original stars James Nesbitt
and Frances O’Connor will be on board, with
the Beeb saying it will feature a new cast,
characters and locations.
In the first series of The Missing, Nesbitt
and O’Connor play distraught parents
whose life falls apart when their young son
disappears during an enforced stopover at a
sleepy French village.
Meanwhile, for more on the latest UK TV
DVD releases, check out our new ‘Best of
British’ section on page 40.
STONES ROLL
07
EXTRAS NEWS
halo 5 described as ‘jaw-dropping’