New Music from Pixies!

 

From the forthcoming album The Night the Zombies Came Out, dropping October 26th. Pre-order HERE.

Post-reunion Pixies has been a mixed bag for me. I LOVE Indie Cindy, but everything since has felt anticlimactic. Sure, I'll lean into Head Carrier and its brethren, but they don't put me in quite the same place. Plus, I've always been a bigger fan of the music Frank Black (or Black Francis) made after the Pixies' first breakup, so to see him essentially jettison those musical endeavors for the last ten years has been disappointing, to say the least. I'm hoping his upcoming Teenager of the Year anniversary tour early next year means maybe he will start dividing his time between Pixies and other bands (Catholics!). We'll see. In the meantime, I still love the Pixies, so I'm looking forward to hearing the new record come Halloween time.

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Watch:

The filmmaking collective of François Simard, Anouk Whissell, and Yoann-Karl Whissell - largely referred to as RKSS - is responsible for one of my favorite films of the last ten years: Summer of '84. Of course, they've also done Turbo Kid, which is fantastic in its own right. Not many films in recent memory have affected me like Summer of '84, though, so after that one, I'll follow RKSS to hell and back. And funny enough, it looks like that's where their next film will be taking us. 

Streaming everywhere on August 13th, We Are Zombies is based on Jerry Frissen and Guy Davis' comic series called The Zombies That Ate the World. I'm not familiar with that series, but like I said, I'd follow these filmmakers anywhere they want to take me, so based on the trailer, buckle up. 

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Read:

Over this past weekend, I sat down and re-read Ram V and Dan Watters' The One Hand and The Six Fingers as one complete story. 

This one is definitely going to be near the top of my year-end list. I read these all monthly, and re-read most of the series before the final two installments dropped, and I can say that when I finished the final issue last week, I was a little hesitant. I wasn't quite sure these guys had pulled off what they'd set up.

Boy was I wrong.

The key to 'getting' these books is reading them as one story because each issue of each book contains serious overlap, where we see the same events from both the Detective and the Killer's perspective. Not necessarily the most novel idea, except when you place the story in the context of a Blade Runner-esque Cyberpunk city like Neo Novena. 

Calling this Cyberpunk is a bit of a misnomer, but I can't really think of anything else that quite gets the tone across. With visual and tonal references to everything from the aforementioned Ridley Scott classic to Métal Hurlant, the atmosphere is thick enough to cloud the reader's perceptions. Something about the inevitability of these futuristic worlds makes them so real to me, and the creators use a mystery involving androids to pontificate on the human condition in a manner I've never quite seen before. I don't know. All I can say is there's a collected edition coming out in December, and I'm definitely going to recommend it to everyone who I think might dig this. 

Hopefully, this did well enough that both creators will return to Neo Novena at some point in the near future. Preferably before our world comes to resemble theirs any more than it already does.

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Playlist:

T. Rex - The Slider

Liars - Drum's Not Dead

Jerry Cantrell - Brighten

Japandroids - Celebration Rock

Queens of the Stone Age - In Times New Roman

Helmet - Monochrome

16 Horsepower - Hoarse

Liars - Sisterworld

Mr. Bungle - California

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Card:

From Jonathan Grimm's Hand of Doom Tarot, which you can buy HERE. Also, starting today for the next 30, Grimm's Kickstarter for the Hand of Doom Tarot Art Book is up. Check it out HERE.

• Two of Wands

• XVI: The Tower

• Seven of Swords

Collaboration of Will leads to a change in pre-existing paradigms - not an easy thing, but a good thing for those with the intellect to recognize the advantages of a system overhaul.

This has to be work-related. Not sure if that's good or bad. 

Pixies - Dregs of Wine

 

This one had me with the opening spoken word segment, dipped a bit, then picked way back up at about 2:20. It's been really interesting watching the Pixies pick back up and add to their legacy. I'd still REALLY like another Frank Black, Black Francis, or Catholics album (that'd be my #1 want), but Pixies have continued to evolve. Most bands like this just swim in circles and relive their glory days. Not these guys (and gal). 

The new album Doggerel is out on September 30th; pre-order HERE.

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NCBD:

Kind of a big week for NCBD. Here's my planned haul:

Not sure I'll be keeping up with this new Alien series; I dropped off the previous one after the first story arc, figured I'd grab the #1 and reassess. 

This new Ghost Rider title is really hot and cold with me. None of the issues have been bad, but a few were spectacular. Wolvie guest-starring so soon isn't really a good sign in my book, but both titles share Ben Percy as a writer, so maybe that's all it is. Either way, c'mon Ghost Rider - "Thrill Me."

I LOVED that last week, Gerry Duggan had the opportunity to write an X-Men issue that didn't solely deal with Judgement Day, which, as I suspected, is beginning to wear on me. I'm hoping the same for this lastest issue of Immortal X-Men. I'd really like the Sebastian Shaw issue to deal with Shaw's place in the bigger picture of Krakoan politics.

Still having lots of fun with this Moon Knight series. 

And talk about lots of fun. This one is just fantastic (pun intended).

This wins "Cover of the month" award, for sure. 

Tried and true, that's IDW's TMNT. 

Of the two books I began simultaneously earlier in the year that bear more than a little resemblance to one another - A Town Called Terror and West of Sundown - West of has ended. Or at least, the first arc has. I enjoyed that book, but I'm not 100% I'll be back if it returns. The same can be said of this one; it's not bad, I'm just not convinced. We'll see; this issue is most likely ending the first arc, so I'll do a re-read and make a decision then.

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Read:

With a surprising number of "Gloryhole Horror" flicks hitting streaming lately (2, but still, that's quite a bit considering the subject matter, eh?), The Horror Vision held a very Special episode: our Glorious Gloryhole Death Match. One of the unexpected joys of doing that episode (there really were no others), was discovering the H.P. Lovecraft/Hazel Heald novella Out of the Aeons, which has never been in any Lovecraft collection I have previously owned. I took a brief respite from Sandy Macnair's Carspotting to read about the origins of Ghat (see Glorious, the winner by far of the aforementioned death match) in the Cthulhu Mythos. 

Out of the Aeons is available on Kindle for $0.99. First published in 1935 in Weird Tales, I'm really having trouble believing I'd never heard of this one before. 

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Playlist:

Revolting Cocks - Linger Fickin' Good

The Cure - Carnage Visors

The Cure - Faith

The Verve - Eponymous EP

Type O Negative - October Rust

Type O Negative - World Coming Down

High On Fire - Blessed Black Wings

Godflesh - Post Self

Godflesh - Pure

Type O Negative - Origin of the Feces

The Afghan Whigs - In Spades

The Afghan Whigs - Gentlemen

The Afghan Whigs - 1965

The Twilight Singers - Blackberry Belle

Calexico - Garden Ruin

Blut Aus Nord - Memoria Vetusta III: Saturnian Poetry

The Afghan Whigs - Do the Beast

Idles - Joy As An Act of Resistance

Ginger Wildheart - The Year of the Fanclub

Miss Piss - Self-Surgery

Chelsea Wolfe - Hiss Spin

Chelsea Wolfe - Abyss

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Card:

From Jonathan Grimm's Bound Tarot, which you can buy HERE.

Everything this morning is about approaching things with balance, adaptability, understanding and a keen eye. So something needs a closer look it would seem...

New Pixies! Vault of Heaven

 

New Pixies! From the forthcoming new album Doggerel, out September 30th. You can pre-order HERE.

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NCBD:

Well, we won't have our automobiles until the end of the month. This has become the final challenge with the move, as otherwise, I feel as though we're pretty settled in. Last weekend I rented a car, and I'll probably do so again Friday, so I guess this is what I'll be grabbing at Rick's Comic City on the 12th:

Issue 6 was the Legacy #900. It was cool, but a total departure from the "Street-Level" Spider-Man that has me loving this new book. I also have never given a toss about Norman Osbourne, as he was well and truly dead in the 80s when I read Spider-Man, and thus, not really a factor in any of those stories. But I'm digging this enough to keep coming back for me... for now.

I'm hesitant about following all of these. I've dug the X-Books that tie in and Judgment Day #1, but Eve of Judgment was not for me. I just can't get into The Eternals. So, if this one focuses on them, I'll be skipping it. 

I'll be picking up the #1, but remain hesitant on adding this. Great timing, though, what with Prey winning over the hearts and minds of Predator fans everywhere. 

I just realized A Town Called Terror is ongoing! I had been laboring under the idea this was limited series, and that it was developing too slowly for there to be any satisfying story arc here. This changes everything!

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Playlist:

U.S. Girls - Half Free

Forhist - Eponymous

Blanck Mass - In Ferneaux

The Besnard Lakes - The Besnard Lakes Are the Roaring Night

Blut Aus Nord - Memoria Vetusta I – Fathers of the Icy Age 

Blut Aus Nord - Memoria Vetusta II - Saturnian Poetry

Explode Into Colors - Quilts E.P.

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Card:

Back to my Thoth Deck, which I realize I've been neglecting a bit. Continuing with the 3-Card Spread, which I'm thinking will be the norm from here out, I'm seeing a lot of somewhat chaotic but 'soft' forces at play for the day. Nothing huge will happen today, but emotional waters run deep and the same inspirations that help build my personal world, could also potentially damage it, especially in light of what may be a fascinating revelation. 

Hmm. This feels like complications are brewing in the house, and I can only look in one direction for that. K's Mom started out really good and positive, but this not having our car thing is making her squirrely. I mean, it's making all of us squirrely, but one thing I can definitely say is, as Perry once observed, "Elderly are like children." It causes her to act out. Which can be frustrating, to say the very least. I'm taking this spread as a suggestion to shore up my personal Dominion and follow my better nature, despite whatever happens. 

Isolation: Day 198 - New Pixies!

Musick

Being that I'm more of a Frank Black/Black Francis fan than a Pixies fan - though that wasn't always the case and really, I love both so it's kind of splitting hairs - their ongoing reunion has been bittersweet to me. Bitter, because I would love to hear another Black Francis/Grand Duchy/Frank Black (with or without The Catholics), but instead most of the previous decade has been a continuous run of new Pixies material. Which is also great, although I've received each album in different degrees of infatuation. The first one back, Indie Cindy, is a perfect return. I love it absolutely. Head Carrier and Beneath the Eyrie have required a bit more of a loving curve, but thanks to Mr. Brown, I dig both - although I haven't had enough of a Pixies binge in a while to really get to know either album like I do the others. Now we have a new 12" and the first 'single' I absolutely LOVE. So bring it on guys (and gal), I'm ready for whatever you have coming. 

But I'd still love to get a new album from Mr. Black sometime soon.

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Read:

I finally made it around to reading The Autumnal #1 from Vault Comics. Written by Daniel Kraus, with art by Chris Shehan, this is another one of those books, like The Plot and Black Stars Above, that has helped define Vault as the destination for Indie Horror Comics.

Now, those are non-consecutive pages. I just wanted to give you a feel for the art and the characters, both of which I absolutely love so far. Kat Somerville and her daughter Sybil remind me a lot of people that would know the family from The Devil's Candy, another family set I adore. Maybe it's because I've chosen not to reproduce that I love seeing stoner families who love one another and set a good example.

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Playlist:

Deftones - Ohms 

Alice in Chains - Dirt 

Mastodon - Medium Rarities 

Low Cut Connie - Hi Honey

The Blues Brothers - Briefcase Full of Blues 

Black Pumas - Eponymous 

Mannequin Pussy - Patience 

Bob Mould - Blue Hearts 

Alice in Chains - Sap

Alice in Chains - Jar of Flies

Concrete Blonde - Eponymous

OGRE Sound - A Field Recordist's Guide to Summoning Lesser Demons

Portishead - Third 

The Devils Blood - The Thousandfold Epicentre

Alice in Chains - Eponymous 

Pixies - Hear Me Out (single)

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Card:

Spontaneity and Enthusiasm. Two attributes to contemplate this week as I shift into the second Act of the second Shadow Play book.

2019: September 14th - New Pixies!

The new Pixies album came out yesterday. It's fantastic.

Long time Pixies fan, but I've always been a bit disappointed that their reconvening has pushed Black's solo career out of the picture. So there's that. But I loved Indy Cindy, and all the weird, negative shit I'd see online, like, "This isn't the Pixies I remember!" felt so ridiculous to me. It's that, no-matter-what-when-a-band-reunites-I'm-gonna-hate-it attitude that I don't get. I mean, I always approach long-awaited reunions with skepticism, but some bands pull them off. Off the top o' me head, Bauhaus' Go Away White in 2006 was fantastic. And I put Indy Cindy in that camp as well. Then Head Carrier came out and I tried multiple times but just did not get it. Until, several nights ago in Chicago, Mr. Brown recommended I give it another chance. This time, I did what I had not previously done - headphones. Late one night while staying at my parents' place, I had a late night writing session and put Head Carrier on the old Apple Music.

Instant fan.

And now, here's Beneath the Eyrie. And although I'm still spending most of my Pixies time with Head Carrier on repeat, the one somewhat choppy listen I've been able to give Eyrie lead me to believe it is more of the same.

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It's been a while. Where do I even start? How about currently reading:

This is research for the second book in my Shadow Play series. The first book has ties into historical events, but in a much smaller way than I always knew subsequent books would. And of course, John Dee and Edward Kelley are going to play a part, because I've been obsessed with them off and on for almost two decades now. Although, their presence may largely be in an indirect way.

Regardless, I needed to brush up and expand my Dee/Kelley knowledge, and Benjamin Woolley's The Queen's Conjuror has turned out to be not only the best historical narrative I've seen yet of the duo, but a very well-written, enjoyable to read book.

Another book I grabbed on the day of release but haven't started reading yet came by way of a recommendation Warren Ellis wrote in his most recent Orbital Operations email newsletters. Tamsyn Muir's Gideon the Ninth had me at this blurb by author Charles Stross (also awesome):

"Lesbian Necromancers explore a haunted gothic palace in space!"

Sold! Can't wait to read this one; my deep dive into Alan Campbell's Gravedigger Chronicles earlier in the year left me seriously hungering for some strange SciFi/Fantasy, and Gideon sounds as though it will fit the bill.

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I watched Gaspar Noe's Climax a few nights ago. With heavy trepidation, might I add. I ended up really liking it; there's a social, "getting to know the characters" scene after the first dance number that I hated violently, but aside from that, Noe crafts a harrowing hell on earth that can only be described as modern de Sade. Also, the choreography in this flick is fucking amazing:



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K and I finally caught Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood last night. I have to say, I went through most of the film not really liking it; the film often felt aimless. Some of QT's more 'experimental' approaches to editing seemed sloppy. And Kurt Russell's narration appears in a way that made it feel like a rather sloppy device. Then the final, "Cielo Drive" sequence began and I LOVED it so much that this one sequence completely turned the entire experience around for me. I feel like I have to see it again, for sure, even if only to indulge in that final scene. Man! So good. Made me really miss Brad Pitt, so that I'm working it into the remaining days of September to re-watch both Twelve Monkeys and Fight Club, two flicks I haven't watched in ages, and in which Pitt really shines.

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Highlights of music that is new or has been important to me since my previous entry:

The Pixies - Head Carrier
The Pixies - Beneath the Eyrie
Black Sabbath - Sabotage
Black Sabbath - Children of the Grave (Vol. 4 alternate, cassette release I've had for decades)
Black Sabbath - Eponymous
Fantomas-Melvins Big Band - Millennium Monsterwork
Ghost - Seven Inches of Satanic Panic
Purity Ring - Lofticries (single)
M83 - Saturdays = Youth
M83 - Temple of Sorrow (pre-release single)
M83 - Luna de Fiel (pre-release single)
Alice in Chains - Rainier Fog
Pale Dian - Narrow Birth
Slipknot - We Are Not Your Kind
Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats - Wasteland
Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats - Mind Control
Algiers - The Underside of Power
Iggy Pop - Lust for Life
Roxy Music - For Your Pleasure
Moderat - II
Nabihah Iqbal - Weighing of the Heart (ALL I listened to on the flight back to LA)
Drab Majesty - Modern Mirror
Venom - Welcome to Hell
David Bowie - The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust

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Card of the day:

A nice apocalyptic image that fits right in with my delving back into Enochian Magick.