Fantasy

Fantasy is a genre of fiction that uses magic or other supernatural elements as a main plot element, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic and magical creatures are common. Fantasy is generally distinguished from the genres of science fiction and horror by the expectation that it steers clear of scientific and macabre themes, respectively, though there is a great deal of overlap between the three, all of which are subgenres of speculative fiction.

In popular culture, the fantasy genre is predominantly of the medievalist form. In its broadest sense, however, fantasy comprises works by many writers, artists, filmmakers, and musicians, from ancient myths and legends to many recent and popular works.

Fantasy is studied in a number of disciplines including English and other language studies, cultural studies, comparative literature, history, and medieval studies. Work in this area ranges widely, from the structuralist theory of Tzvetan Todorov, which emphasizes the fantastic as a liminal space, to work on the connections (political, historical, literary) between medievalism and popular culture.

Fantasy (1938 magazine)

Fantasy was a British pulp science fiction magazine which published three issues in 1938 and 1939. The editor was T. Stanhope Sprigg; when the war started, he enlisted in the RAF and the magazine was closed down. The publisher, George Newnes Ltd, paid respectable rates, and as a result Sprigg was able to obtain some good quality material, including stories by John Wyndham, Eric Frank Russell, and John Russell Fearn.

Publication history

The first U.S. science fiction (sf) magazine, Amazing Stories, was imported into the U.K. from its launch in 1926, and other magazines from the U.S. market were also available in the U.K. from an early date. However, no British sf magazine was launched until 1934, when Pearson's launched Scoops, a weekly in tabloid format aimed at the juvenile market. Soon Haydn Dimmock, Scoops' editor, began to receive more sophisticated stories, targeted at an adult audience; he tried to change the magazine's focus to include more mature fiction but within twenty issues falling sales led Pearson's to kill the magazine. The failure of Scoops gave British publishers the impression that Britain could not support a science fiction publication.

Fantasy (Aldo Nova song)

"Fantasy" is the debut single by Canadian rock musician Aldo Nova and is his most popular work to date. Released on his eponymous debut album in 1981, the song climbed to #3 on the Mainstream rock chart, and #23 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart. The song was featured in a flashback sequence in the final episode of the popular television series Rob & Big. A cover version of the song, performed by Steel Panther, is the current theme song for the MTV show Rob Dyrdek's Fantasy Factory.

VH1 listed it at #78 on its countdown for the 100 Greatest One Hit Wonders of the 80s.

Music video

The video shows Aldo performing with his band at a concert. It is best remembered for its intro, which starts out with a man holding an electric guitar and two bodyguards holding machine guns, waiting for someone. Then comes a helicopter, landing from the sky, and Aldo comes out in a very contoured leopard-print suit, being escorted to the stage. When they encounter a locked door, which the bodyguards can't open, Aldo grabs his guitar and fires a laser into the door and it opens.

Intro (Bravo Band album)

Intro (in Macedonian: Интро) is the debut album by the Macedonian male group Bravo Band. The album was released in October 2008 and it contains nine songs which are different by style.

Production history

The first single released from the album was "Lesno Ti E Tebe" ("It's easy for you") in 2006. With that song the band first promoted their self as a music group on the Macedonian festival Ohrid Fest. The song is work of Jovan Jovanov and Elvir Mekic which made their second single too called "Ne Bih Te Menjao" ("I wouldn't change you"). "Ne Bih Te Menjao" is a Serbian language song and it was the band's entry for Suncane Skale 2007. With this song they finished third in the first night with 63 points. The video for the song "Neka Patam" made by Dejan Milicevic was selected for best Macedonian video of 2008. In October all since then present songs they released on an album. The album is called Intro mainly for two reasons. The first one is the word intro which comes from the English word "introduction". It is just a metaphor for what they present in it, an introduction of their emotions which are in one way or another expressed in every song.

Intro (The xx song)

"Intro" is the opening song of English indie pop group The xx's 2009 self-titled debut album. The trip hop instrumental was composed by the group and produced by one of its members, Jamie xx. The song has been positively received, as well as getting comparisons to the works of Casiokids, Interpol and the music used in James Bond movies. It has been analyzed by The Daily Telegraph to have been a "TV favourite", getting play in several television commercials, events, and shows. The track has reached number 129 on the UK Singles Chart, as well as appearing record charts in France, Spain and the United States.

Production

"Intro"'s production was handled by Jamie xx, who was also mixer. The recording and mixing was held between December 2008 and May 2009 at XL Studios, a studio by XL Recordings located in London, England. Rodaidh McDonald engineer the track and was also mixer. Romy Madley Croft and Baria Qureshi played guitar, the latter being a keyboardist for the song, while Oliver Sim was bassist. Finally, the mastering was done by Nilesh Patel at studio The Exchange in Camden Town.

Ready to Die

Ready to Die is the debut studio album by American rapper The Notorious B.I.G.; it was released on September 13, 1994, by Bad Boy Records. The label's first release, the album features production by Bad Boy founder Sean "Puffy" Combs, Easy Mo Bee, Chucky Thompson, DJ Premier and Lord Finesse, among others. Recording for the album took place during 1993 to 1994 at The Hit Factory and D&D Studios in New York City. The partly autobiographical album tells the story of B.I.G.'s experiences as a young criminal. Ready to Die is his only studio album released during his lifetime, as he was murdered just days prior to the release of his second album, Life After Death (1997).

Ready to Die was released to critical acclaim and became a commercial success, achieving gold certification. In 1995, after the release, the album became a certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and the album has reached a certified quadruple platinum with sales. It was significant for revitalizing the east coast hip hop scene, amid West Coast hip hop's commercial dominance. The album's second single, "Big Poppa", was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance at the 1996 Grammy Awards. Ready to Die has been regarded by many music critics as one of the greatest hip-hop albums of all time. In 2003, it was ranked number 133 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time, making it the third highest hip hop album on the list after It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back and Raising Hell. In 2006, Time included it on their list of the 100 greatest albums of all time.