Snake Oil for the Authoritarian Soul

 

From 2023's post-script collection of covers Snake Oil, here's Frank Black and the Catholics doing Bruce Springsteen's "I'm Going Down" and absolutely OWNING the song. Special thanks to Mr. Brown for lending me this in our most recent vinyl swap. Hot damn, I needed a fresh dose of Catholicism!!!

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Watch:

A couple nights ago, K and I went to see Sean Durkin's new film, The Iron Claw. This was completely off my radar, and I'm very grateful K suggested it.

Durkin's 2011 debut film, Mary Marcy May Marlene left an impression on me that has lasted long since my only viewing, shortly after it hit physical media. I've watched his name pop up here and there but hadn't actually seen anything else by him until now. Imagine my absolute joy to find out his work has paid off with a widely released film (thank you once again, A24!!!) that features some fairly notable actors. Zac Efron impressed the hell out of me with his physical dedication to taking on this role, as did The Bear's Jeremy Allen White, both of whom gave enormous performances. This one is a story for the heart, and I find it infinitely gratifying that the cultural detritus of previous eras are being reevaluated and recirculated in new contexts, helping unify the various cultural 'eras' of our time on this planet into something that helps us understand one another better. 

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Read:

Two nights ago I began reading Jeff Vandermeer's Authority, the sequel to Annihilation. Seventy or so pages in, this one hasn't inspired quite the same level of rabidity that book one did, however, there's a brilliant bridge built into the story from the first book and this one; something that promises things are going to get pretty insane pretty soon. 

Based on my difficulty finding images for this one's cover, I'm going to guess that this series didn't really receive the attention it deserves. This is super high concept Science Fiction/Horror that pushes into the spaces between the world as we understand it and really tries to pick apart the atomic structure of what humanity has built for itself. Not always the easiest read, as evidenced by the somewhat scuttling pace of the opening chapters of this book, there's a "clinicism" here that pushes how we take in and assimilate concepts through language. Reminds me a bit of China Meivile, specifically Embassytown and City and the City.

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Playlist:

Portishead - Third

Baroness - Stone

Frank Black and the Catholics - Snake Oil

Frank Black and the Catholics - Eponymous 

Various - Snatch Soundtrack Playlist

Blackbraid - Blackbraid II

Frank Black and the Catholics - If It Takes All Night (single)

The Bronx - IV

Exhalants - Atonement

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Card:

From Jonathan Grimm's Hand of Doom Tarot, which you can buy HERE.

• King of Swords

• Ten of Wands

• Nine of Wands

Lots of phallic imagery today! The Airy aspect of Air indicates to me at this moment that I'm not smart enough for what is required of me in some situation at play that, in fact, may have already resolved itself.  Recognize the accomplishment and don't dwell on the afterbirth.

2019: July 17th 3 From Hell Trailer

Although I've been waiting for this, I'm not entirely sure how I feel about Rob Zombie returning to the Firefly Clan characters. Why? Well, A) they pretty clearly died at the end of The Devil's Rejects, and B) it's weird when filmmakers put you in a position of rooting for such ultimately disgusting characters. Also, this looks like Zombie has added Natural Born Killers into his blender, so that may run the risk of feeling overly borrowed from. We'll see. Normally, Zombie can more or less mix in the stuff he 'samples' from his influences in a way that feels like homage instead of theft. Hopefully, that will be true here as well.

As for the 'how did they survive?' question, I noticed a quick flash at 0:20 in the trailer of a newspaper headline that reads, "Satanic Recovery," and I'm wondering (Read: Hoping) the recovery is pulled off via some weird call-back to Dr. Satan and all the strange, quasi-supernatural stuff that happened in the final segment of House of 1000 Corpses, all of which was completely ignored for The Devil's Rejects. That absence was disappointing at the time Rejects was released, however, over the years I have grown to understand and applaud the decision as a matter of tone - Dr. Satan and all related characters would never have fit into Rejects; the one deleted scene with the Doctor was definitely best left out. Now, however, this might be a great way to bring him back.

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Frank Black Appreciation Week concludes today with another of my favorite songs from The Catholics-era Black. Released on the album Dog in the Sand, this was, I believe, the first time Black had recorded with Pixies guitarist Joey Santiago since the break-up of the band. The resulting material - especially this particular track - is a doozy. I remember hearing around the time of this album's release that the lyrics were about how, after Black's father passed away, when it came to the task of going through his home, dozens of guns were found, all loaded with only a single bullet.

Creeeeeepy, but awesome.



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Playlist from 7/16:

Frank Black - The Cult of Ray
Preoccupations - Eponymous
Jim Jarmusch and Jozef Va Wissen - The Mystery of Heaven
The Jesus Lizard - Liar
White Lung - Eponymous
Uniform and The Body - Penance (Pre-release single)
Uniform and The Body - Mental Wounds Not Healing*
Sunn O))) - Life Metal


*I totally just figured out that this album is named after a lyric in Ozzy's Crazy Train. It made me love both these bands even more than I already do.

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Card of the day:

Feeling like this is a good sign that I cross a finish line today.

2019: July 14th - Frank Black Appreciation Week Day

Day 5. LOVE this track, despite the mispronunciation of Bowie's name.

2019: July 10th Frank Black Appreciation Week!

Man, you know how after someone whose music we love dies we start posting a bunch of stuff? I mean, of course we do, right? I certainly do. Well, hopefully we are NOWHERE NEAR a planet without Frank Black/Black Francis, but in falling back into a rotation with his music, I thought I'd spend a week posting some of my favorite Frank Black songs.

At least a week.

I mean, there's a lot to choose from. There's Frank Black and the Catholics - my personal favorite of his projects or 'eras'; The Pixies, Grandy Duchy, not to mention albums published under both Frank Black and Black Francis. I'm sure I'm missing something, but the point is that I love this man and I felt it was high time I represent that love on this blog.

We kick this off with a cut from my all-time favorite Frank Black-related album, the 1998, full-band direct-to-two-track-analog-tape Eponymous Frank Black and the Catholics album. I love this entire record SO much, and although I'd probably place I Need Peace and I Gotta Move as my favorite tracks, here's one that has felt especially fresh to me in this current FB jag I'm in.

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NCBD:

Nothing for me, so I guess this is what my end-game goal of lessening my monthly floppy subscriptions is going to feel like: weird and a little unsettling.

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K and I finally watched the Joan Jett documentary Bad Reputation last night. It's streaming on Hulu at the moment. Fantastic film. Jett's music is among the first that I can remember (I Hate Myself for Loving You and I Love Rock and Roll are early examples of Rock especially), and this really broadens my understanding of her place in Rock history. Really great doc, highly recommended.



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Playlist from 7/09:

Frank Black and the Catholics - Pistolero
Frank Black and the Catholics - Eponymous
Motörhead - Ace of Spades
Judas Priest - Screaming for Vengeance
Ministry - The Land of Rape and Honey
Helmet - Aftertaste
M83 Dead Cities, Red Seas and Lost Ghosts
Spotlights - Love and Decay

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Card of the day:

Holy cow - I haven't see this card in ages. Turning points. Decisions. Needing a better view. All this describes the rut I've found myself in for last week or so. Can't seem to overcome the inertia pushing at me, corroding my work. I've taken the first steps and forced myself to walk to the coffeeshop the last two days, so hopefully I'm building enough momentum to switch back to the good inertia. But my perspective is clouded by indecision on projects, and I need to commit and be done with it.

Thanks Hanged Man!