|
|
Go to page 1~2~3 [Next] | ||||||||||
Mercury52 Inner circle Kevin Reylek 2239 Posts |
I recently received an early copy of Metal by Eric Jones from Jason over at E. Since it doesn’t come out for another week or so, I thought I’d share some early thoughts.
Eric is rapidly becoming known as a powerful force in the magic world, with great skill in both coin and card magic. I’ve been aware of Eric’s work for several years, and he’s also an active and helpful member on the Café. I recently had the pleasure of meeting Eric a few times, at his lecture in NY, and at the annual Coin Seminar gathering in PA. Metal is an interesting project, as it’s not a single-trick release, nor a collection of original effects. It’s essentially designed to provide beginners with the core building blocks of coin magic, so that they can master the basics and move forward from there. There’s a ton of great material out there that already exists for teaching the basics, such as Bobo’s Modern Coin Magic, and a slew of tapes and DVDs by David Roth and others. The first half of the DVD focuses on core sleights and moves, with a few more difficult/advanced moves as well. It covers a number of palms and concealments, productions, vanishes, and utility moves. There are a lot of individual sleights including finger palm, classic palm, JW Grip, Ramsay Subtlety, etc. There’s also a quick section on basic sleeving techniques. This section is all done in-studio. Production value here is excellent. There are 3 different camera angles (including directly overhead), so you always have the best view of how a move is done. Eric’s teaching is thorough and methodical, but not labored or boring. Crediting is excellent throughout. The DVD then moves into a handful of full routines, including a 4-coin coins across, a quick and simple 3-fly, a quarter/penny transpo, a coin vanish using a classic ditch from Bobo, and then the “Jones Spellbound” which has some nice switches and changes. All of the routines are within that beginner/intermediate range. The quarter/penny transpo and full coin vanish can be done within minutes of viewing, even for a rank beginner. The other routines will require a bit more practice and dedication. The final section is on coin flourishes, none of which are at the easy or beginner level. Eric teaches the 4-coin roll down, 5-coin star, and an arm roll, where the coin rolls down the arm, pops off the elbow, and lands back in the hand. These are cool flourishes, but I’m surprised Eric didn’t include a more basic flourish, such as an across-the-knucles sort of roll, since the DVD is geared towards beginners. Throughout the DVD, Eric provides tips on naturalness, misdirection, creating tension, audience management, angles, getting caught, etc. It’s in these bits that he really takes it beyond just teaching the moves and into teaching magic. Overall, it’s a nice and thorough collection, with a runtime right around 2 hours. There’s a heck of a lot of material crammed in, certainly enough to keep a beginning coin magician busy for months. While there’s not as much here for intermediate or advanced coin magicians, there are some pieces that’ll you’ll enjoy. I was familiar with the vast majority of the material on the DVD, but there were some nice tips, alterations, and never-before-published bits thrown in as well. In particular, Eric’s variation on the Bobo switch, called the Jones Switch, and his Jones Spellbound, are worth checking out. I’m a big proponent of learning material from multiple sources/teachers, as I think it creates a well-rounded education. For example, I initially learn most of my card fanning technique from McBride’s videos, and got pretty darn good at it. But when I studied the work of a few other people, there were some other nuances that helped me to improve even more. So it goes with Metal. I’d suggest that anyone interested in beginning coin magic get themselves a copy of Bobo’s book, and check out the wealth of other material that already exists on tape/DVD as well. But don’t overlook Metal. It does cover a lot of the same sleights, but you may pick up a tip on Classic Palming that you didn’t learn elsewhere, or finally nail that move that you couldn’t comprehend in print. You’ll also learn some original routines that aren’t published elsewhere. It’s nice to see Ellusionist behind a DVD of this style, rather than a single-trick release. As they say, you need to learn your scales before you can create a symphony. Same is true for magic, you need to learn your basic sleights, and then you can progress from there. The modern magic market doesn’t really emphasize the basics a lot of the time, and I think many beginners get thrown into the deep end sometimes. So if this DVD encourages beginners to start where the should when they otherwise wouldn’t consult the classics, then so much the better. You can tell that Eric put a lot of thought and time into selecting the material, researching the history and credits, and that he’s generally passionate about magic, both in technique and in presentation. He’s got incredible chops, and is an excellent teacher. The only negative thing I could say about the DVD if I had to, would be that I didn’t really care for the style of the live performances. I felt the camerawork here was poor. Luckily, the live section only accounts for about 5 minutes of the total 2 hour runtime, so it’s not a big issue. People who are already well-versed in coin magic won't get as much out of this as a total beginner, but there is something for everyone. Definitely recommended for beginners, and recommended for anyone else passionate about coin magic. Kevin
Kevin Reylek
|
|||||||||
Xiqual Inner circle Upper left quadrant 4935 Posts |
Eric is an incredibly hard working accomplished magician. His teaching on "Audio" was fantastic. Clear and concise without being repetitive and pedantic.
He is a rising star in magic. I am sure this DVD will be great. James
Still with the Chinese circus
|
|||||||||
slyhand Inner circle Good ole Virginia 1908 Posts |
Love his stuff, I just wish I knew if this dvd would help me all that much or if it would be a rehash of what I already know/do.
I am getting so tired of slitting the throats of people who say that I am a violent psychopath.
Alec |
|||||||||
DougNicols Special user 846 Posts |
If Eric Jones made it, I'm buying it. No reviews needed.
|
|||||||||
Larry Davidson Inner circle Boynton Beach, FL 5270 Posts |
Eric's a worker and great teacher. I'm sure this is outstanding.
|
|||||||||
Strange Tasting Fish Sticks 1988 - 2013 The Big Brother is watching you 1095 Posts |
It is a fantastic DVD and is going to be a staple for most coin magicians...I'm going to write a very comprehensive review later, I've watched it in hand.
It teaches the high finger palm, I just can't seem to do this with a morgan. The coin won't grip. Haha. Even when ponta showed me a couple times, its very difficult to hold the coin in high fingerpalm for me. Anyway, if I had to give one constructive critism...it would be, some of the sleights and ultilites such as sleeving are explained too quickly. Eric is a great teacher, and does a great job on 99% of the material, not only teaching throughout but also giving credits and tips on each move. I was impressed. I had to re-wind it several times to look at the mutobe palm, because it was explained too fast. The arm roll is a very nice flourish I want to learn too, but I also felt this taught too quickly. |
|||||||||
jazzy snazzy Inner circle run off by a mob of Villagers wielding 2109 Posts |
Excellent review Mercury.
Eric is one of the best teachers out there. This will surely be fine addition to his body of work.
"The secret of life is to look good from a distance."
-Charles Schulz |
|||||||||
Eric Jones V.I.P. Director of Product Development 2101 Posts |
Hey guys the trailer for Metal, which is out on November 1st, is here:
http://www.ellusionist.com/metal-dvd-by-eric-jones.html
“We're two tigers away from an act in Vegas.” Greg House M.D.
<BR> <BR>http://www.ericjonesmagic.com |
|||||||||
Steven Leung Inner circle found the Magic Rainbow after 1614 Posts |
That DVD is in my wish list... never have so high anticipation in a Coin Magic DVD since Homer Liwag's release in previous years.
Most memorable moment - with Maestro Juan Tamariz & Consuelo Lorgia in FISM Busan 2018.
"Being fooled by a trick doesn't always mean they are having a good time" - Homer Liwag https://hhpresents.com/ https://www.glitchstudiohk.com/ |
|||||||||
TheCuso New user 14 Posts |
I also received a copy and posted some pics of the packaging here: http://www.bestmagicdeals.com/2010/10/me......contest/
They are giving away 4 sets of 1929 walking liberty halves by the way... |
|||||||||
Blindside785 Inner circle Olympia, WA 4541 Posts |
I am gonna order right when it comes out . If I don't win..well liberty halves aren't that expensive are they?
|
|||||||||
Salby Inner circle New Jersey 1254 Posts |
.
How much $$$$$$ is this going to run us... Including the shipping??? .
You know how to make God laugh?........... Tell him your plans!!!
|
|||||||||
Dougini Inner circle The Beautiful State Of Maine 7130 Posts |
Salby the DVD is 34.95 from Ellusionist. Shipping? They don't quote a shipping rate. I imagine it's not much. It's worth it!
Doug |
|||||||||
Blindside785 Inner circle Olympia, WA 4541 Posts |
Shipping is usually around 4 bucks at E I believe.
|
|||||||||
J-Mac Inner circle Ridley Park, PA 5338 Posts |
Can't wait for this one to hit the other magic shops. (I don’t buy anything from Ellusionist - boned me big time once...)
Anything by Eric is about the closest you will ever come to a sure thing! Thanks! Jim |
|||||||||
Eric Jones V.I.P. Director of Product Development 2101 Posts |
Quote:
On 2010-10-27 02:28, J-Mac wrote: The only downside to this Jim, is that you probably won't see this in many magic shops. Ellusionist typically doesn't wholesale to other magic shops from what I understand. The only two places to purchase this, are through me and through Ellusionist.
“We're two tigers away from an act in Vegas.” Greg House M.D.
<BR> <BR>http://www.ericjonesmagic.com |
|||||||||
Mercury52 Inner circle Kevin Reylek 2239 Posts |
I know that Fantasma and Tannens here in NYC carry E products. Can't say for other regions.
If Eric is selling the DVD directly though, I'd suggest buying from him. Kevin
Kevin Reylek
|
|||||||||
MickeyPainless Inner circle California 6065 Posts |
Anytime I have the chance to buy directly from the creator, I do!
MMc |
|||||||||
motown Inner circle Atlanta by way of Detroit 6127 Posts |
It sounds like as always, Eric has cover all the angles. No pun intended.
Great reviw.
"If you ever write anything about me after I'm gone, I will come back and haunt you."
– Karl Germain |
|||||||||
benjie84 Loyal user New Jersey 234 Posts |
I just caught this trailer, I am ANXIOUSLY awaiting the release! This could quickly become a go-to guide for coin magic right up there with Bobo's
|
|||||||||
The Magic Cafe Forum Index » » Latest and Greatest? » » Metal by Eric Jones (0 Likes) | ||||||||||
Go to page 1~2~3 [Next] |
[ Top of Page ] |
All content & postings Copyright © 2001-2024 Steve Brooks. All Rights Reserved. This page was created in 0.05 seconds requiring 5 database queries. |
The views and comments expressed on The Magic Café are not necessarily those of The Magic Café, Steve Brooks, or Steve Brooks Magic. > Privacy Statement < |