Sam Wilson is back in action this week as Captain America: Brave New World commences a round of additional photography in Atlanta, featuring a new cast member. Giancarlo Esposito, who had been hinting at his involvement in a Marvel Studios project for weeks, is now confirmed to be part of the cast. Esposito is slated to play a villainous role, although specific details remain under wraps.

New Action Sequences and Production Schedule

The additional photography, directed by Julius Onah, will run for 22 days and include new action sequences. Despite reports of multiple reshoots, insiders indicate this is the only one and it will not be as extensive or costly as reshoots for other Marvel films like Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and The Marvels.

Overcoming Delays

Brave New World wrapped principal photography in spring 2023 but faced delays in postproduction due to the writers’ and actors’ strikes. With the actors’ strike ending in November, Marvel pushed the release date from July 26, 2024, to February 14, 2025. This extension allowed executives to refine the film based on test screening feedback. Matthew Orton, known for his work on Marvel’s Moon Knight, was brought in to write new pages over the winter.

A Grounded Action Thriller

The film, described as a political action thriller similar in tone to Captain America: The Winter Soldier, stars Anthony Mackie as Sam Wilson, who takes up the mantle of Captain America. At CinemaCon, Marvel head Kevin Feige highlighted the film’s grounded nature, emphasizing “no aliens, no alien invasions, no time travel.”

A Diverse and Star-Studded Cast

The cast includes Harrison Ford, Liv Tyler, Tim Blake Nelson, Danny Ramirez, and Rosa Salazar. The film, spinning out of Disney+’s 2021 series The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, has high expectations, especially with its focus on a Black hero donning the iconic Captain America costume. This move holds significant cultural relevance, potentially paralleling the impact of Black Panther.

Posted: 1st June, 2024 by The Editor

In an interview with the podcast, “The Downbeat”, Brian Garris, lead singer of Knocked Loose, told the story of the band’s 3rd LP title, You Won’t Go Before You’re Supposed To. Brian says that a woman sitting next to him on a plane was talking to him during a turbulent flight and casually uttered the words, “You won’t go before you’re supposed to.” Those 7 words are exactly what this album is about. Since it’s release, I have listened to it at least once a day, everyday. It won’t leave my ears before it’s supposed to. The entire album is a fiery hell-scape of sound.

The first track, “The Thirst” hits you like a ton of bricks. With the first couple of seconds of the track just being a ringing of bells, the safety net of just a singular sound gets broken by Brian Garris’ scream and a wall of instrumentals. The first words “Powered by the thirst” break the wall of sound and continue into a powerful first track about the strong desire for comfort and change. The final lyrics end with “I want to start again. I can almost taste it.” which sets the tone for the rest of the LP. Brian’s scream and the whole band’s fury of sound at the beginning of “The Thirst” don’t stop throughout the entire LP. “Piece by Piece”, “Suffocate”, and “Don’t Reach For Me” all beautifully compliment each other as they transition from track to track. However, a major stand-out was Poppy’s feature on “Suffocate”. The track’s lyrical themes are about a controlling relationship and trying to escape. I really enjoyed the dynamic Brian and Poppy have together on this track. Their screams play off of each other in this painful duality that really ties the lyrical themes together. And of course, we cannot forget the reggaton breakdown from Kevin Kaine in the middle of the track. Truly unexpected, but a really fun nod to the genre.

Another standout track for me was “Take Me Home”, a (in my opinion) sleeper hit of the LP. The track is a cry for help to take them out of the darkness. I think that this track is truly underrated in the scope of the LP. The creepy intro of the guitars followed by the deep bass riff and drum parts create this horror-movie-esque atmosphere. The guitar picking is eerie and contagious, creating a looming effect like something is always there itching away at you. The lyrics in the middle of the track, “I’m not as strong as I thought I was” followed by a repeated “Take me home now” is a heart-wrenching cry of defeat and for help. Which at this point on the LP feels appropriate. We’ve had 5 non-stop gut-punching tracks with all different themes around escape and pain, so to have “Take Me Home” placed almost in the center of the LP feels exactly right. We do want to be taken home, we do feel defeated by the amount of pain and suffering that is happening thematically and lyrically throughout this record. This track grounds the LP and almost allows for us to take a little cry-break before heading into the second leg of the LP.

With high anticipation, we are gifted with “Slaughterhouse 2”, a follow-up track to the first track “Slaughterhouse” by Motionless in White, featuring Brian Garris. Now, it’s Knocked Loose’s turn, and they brought Chris Motionless to absolutely throw down on the track. Same themes as the first track, but now tinged with Knocked Loose’s approach, the track delivered, and we will certainly not be surviving the slaughterhouse. The entire second leg of the record is again blaring with sound. It’s a non-stop feast for the ears. The following track “The Calm That Keeps You Awake” takes on a lot of creativity with the drums section, and grooves it’s way all throughout the track. Next up, “Blinding Faith”, which was previously released as a single, just demolished my eardrums when I first listened to it. The 3-way call-out, “Bend the knee, son of god” closed by Brian’s gutteral scream, is perfection. For a track that is all about denying the church and Christianity, it rips it to shreds. Closed out by “Sit & Mourn”, again, an eerie and haunting track, the LP takes it’s final rest with a dramatic breakdown at the end of the track.

Overall, this LP is 27 minutes and 33 seconds of pure sonic explosion. It’s not a palatable experience for all, but for those who are a fan of this genre, and especially Knocked Loose, you will not be disappointed. I was lucky enough to catch the band on their latest tour with Speed, Loathe, and Show Me The Body on night 2 of their NYC shows. Although I didn’t catch all of Speed’s set, what they showcased was hardcore at it’s finest. Traditional riffs and anger imported from Australia, they’re ones to watch. Next was Loathe, a Liverpool-based band, who’s sound borrows from hardcore with it’s own flair of beats in a nuanced way. Finally, Show Me The Body, a unconventional, yet conventional, trio from Brooklyn, who’s music continue to grow and develop with time.

Knocked Loose played an insane set. Opening with just an L.E.D. cross that lit up behind a giant beige sheet that fell to the ground at the beginning of “Blinding Faith”, I knew that this show was going to be bonkers. The crowd was a sea of crowd-surfers and pit-pushers alike. Playing from their entire discography, the band elevated their performance since I last saw them in 2019. The stage was set like a church, with a giant cross in the back, trees, and screens mimicking stain-glass windows. The atmosphere of the stage and the band’s presence was a spectacle. From the “arf arf” call-out in “Counting Worms” to “Knocked Loose motherf*ker” in “Deep in the Willow” every single person was screaming and head-banging to nearly every single song. It was an incredible performance and amazing experience.

Photos and Words by Sarah Knoll

Disappointing / Average / Good / Great / Phenomenal

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Prince Harry and Meghan Markle married in 2018 amid all the pomp and pageantry surrounding traditional royal nuptials. However, one photographer called the wedding “miserable” and the “worst royal event” he has ever attended.

Royal photographer says Prince Harry Meghan Markle’s wedding was the ‘worst royal event’

In an interview with The Sun, Royal photographer Arthur Edwards shared his thoughts about Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s wedding. He admits, “I hated the day.”

Edwards claims, “It was a miserable day. I can tell you now, it was the worst royal engagement I ever did.”

He continued of the drama, “Harry was determined to keep the newspapers away as much as possible. Everything [the photography] was done on long lenses. It was hopeless.”

“It wasn’t just me; it was the whole British press. They were, in many ways, badly treated. Harry was angry at us for some of the things that were said about Meghan. Quite rightly, some of the things that were said about Meghan that were said during the engagement were pretty harsh and pretty unfair as well.”

“He was angry. I felt we were punished for that,” Edwards concluded.

Issues with the press continued after the couple’s son Prince Archie was born

Royal photographer Arthur Edwards told The Sun he has photographed many royal weddings in his long career. He claims that they were “lovely” compared to the experience he had snapping the nuptials of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.

“I’ve done some really lovely royal weddings. Both of King Charles’ weddings, William’s wedding, Andrew, Sophie and Edward. They were lovely occasions, but I just couldn’t get out of Windsor fast enough,” Edwards said of the location which hosted the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s ceremony.

He then shared some recollections of the couple’s announcement of Prince Archie’s birth. He called that event “another disaster.”

Edwards said, “When Archie was born, that was another disaster. Because I knew we weren’t going to get a picture of it.”

The photographer continued, “Obviously, when William was born, Harry was born, George, Charlotte, and Louis, we got great pictures outside the hospital. William and Catherine especially made such an effort to show the whole world their new baby.”

However, he claims that Harry and Meghan handled their situation much differently. “We were led to believe she had gone into labor, when the baby had been born many hours earlier. We were led to believe it was going to be a home birth, but it was at a hospital. The whole thing was stage-managed to suit them.”

Despite all his professional mishaps in shooting the couple, Edwards once firmly believed that Meghan’s arrival into the House of Windsor would be an asset. “I have to say, that first year of working with Meghan on the road, I thought she was a great asset to the royal family.”

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle left their roles as senior royals in 2020

After two years of marriage, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle left their roles as senior royals. The couple announced the news on January 8, 2020, via Instagram.

Their message began, “After many months of reflection and internal discussions, we have chosen to transition this year in starting to carve out a progressive new role within this institution. We intend to step back as ‘senior’ members of the royal family and work to become financially independent while continuing to fully support Her Majesty The Queen.”

However, Queen Elizabeth was reportedly not in favor of part-time work. On January 18, 2020, she wrote that she hoped Harry and Meghan’s decision to step back from full-time duties to the crown “allows them to start building a happy and peaceful new life.”

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle subsequently settled in California. The couple has two children, Prince Archie, and Princess Lilibet.