Showing posts with label Fourth of July. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fourth of July. Show all posts

Friday, July 5, 2024

USSA - Blue Light

 

From USSA's 2007 album The Spoils. This was Duane Denison and Paul Barker's group and damned if I wouldn't LOVE to see these guys release another record. Every track is pretty tight, and when this came out, I remember feeling their next record would be even better. Alas, that never happened. That said, take it for what it's worth, but their Wikipedia entry does not refer to them in the past tense, so who knows... 

In digging around, I never realized that Barker was a co-founder of a Synthesizer/FX manufacturer. HERE is a link if you're interested.




Watch:

My Fourth of July movie viewing was 100% a nod to the summers of my youth. After putting in an hour and a half writing and then mowing the lawn in ungodly heat, I picked my impromptu Trailer Park Boys marathon. My folks came over, and we made ribs on the grill. As I've aged, meat on the bone bothers me, especially when it's so much work for so little meat. Still, I'd let my folks pick and they turned out pretty good, so we masticated and then sat down to watch my second favorite movie of all time: Joe Dante's The 'Burbs!

 

Apparently, my Dad had never seen this before, and neither had K's mom. It was a pleasure watching this with them; their laughter only bolstered my own. Not that this one needs any help with me - after almost four decades of regular viewings, The 'Burbs never disappoints. Every joke lands, the cast is PERFECT, and Jerry Goldsmith's score provides the perfect sonic balance between sinister intentions and 80s suburban bliss.

At one point during the film, there's a clip of Tobe Hooper's Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 on the tv, and seeing that I instantly made up my mind what my second feature of the evening would be. It'd been a few years since the last time I watched this one, so after The 'Burbs ended and my folks took off, I pulled out my DVD copy and fired up what I can still only describe as one of the most insane movies I've ever seen.

   

The only movie I know of that may have more screaming than TCM2 is Juan López Moctezuma's Alucarda. Seriously, I watched this once in San Pedro - also on the 4th of July, come to think of it, and with all the windows open, my ex became concerned the neighbors might call the police. 




Playlist:

Deafheaven - Sunbather
Deafheaven - New Bermuda
Anthrax - Spreading the Disease
USSA - The Spoils
Deftones - White Pony
Stereolab - Mars Audiac Quintet
Brand New - Science Fiction
Deafheaven - Infinite Granite
Valkyrie - Fear
Thou - Umbilical
The Knife - Silent Shout
The Replacements - Pleased to Meet Me
Coleman Hawkins - Wrapped Tight
JD Mcpherson - Undivided Heart & Soul




Saturday, July 4, 2020

Isolation: Day 112 - Fourth of July



I have been nothing but impressed with Two Minutes to Late Night, both as an example of the Late Night TV format I grew up loving with David Letterman (that's where it ends for me), and a vehicle for outstanding cover songs. How do they handle one of my favorite Soundgarden songs?

Perfectly.

They're Patreon is HERE. I've been meaning to sign up. Seems like today is the day.

**

Last night I FINALLY watched Ti West's In A Valley of Violence. As a huge fan of Mr. West's work, my natural inclination to watch this one back when it became available on VOD in 2017. That said, the film proved a source of massive cognitive dissonance for me, as one of the stars is travolta, and I have a 'no travolta' rule when it comes to cinema. There's really no exception to this rule, and while I'll agree he did fine in Pulp Fiction, that film is one I pretty much have no interest in ever watching again, so it works out. At any rate, Valley is currently on HBO, and K was interested in seeing it, thus I had an impartial third party to help me over my hump. Turns out, as I suspected, the film is magnificent. Also turns out, JT does a pretty decent job in it.



Is this a learning experience for me? Should I break down and challenge my No-ben stiller and No jim carey rules?

Nope. Those will stay staunchly in place. I can make an argument that the JT rule was made broken already, as my boycott mainly applies to the post Pulp Fiction work of the actor. His earlier work is spotty, but definitely contains some gems, Brian De Palma's Blow Out being the example that immediately springs to mind.

**

Playlist:

Mastodon - Emperor of Sand
John Carpenter - Skeleton/Unclean Spirit
War on Women - Capture the Flag
The Chameleons UK - Strange Times
True Widow - AVVOLGERE
Prince - Sign O' The Times
The Obsessed - Lunar Womb
Megadeth - Rust in Peace

**

Card:


From the grimoire: "Big Influences and the creation of a new project."

Yes. I'm sitting down to that new project after I post this, so spot on.