The Irresistible Bliss of Jolene's Cake

I bought a new phone this past weekend. It was time. One of the new features on Apple Music that is cribbed from Spotify is when an album you're listening to ends, they throw a bunch of songs at you that the almighty algorithm finds based on what you just listened to. This is a little cool and a little lame. Lame, because Nick Cave dredged up a bunch of really bad stuff the other day, cool because after I spun through Soul Coughing's Irresistible Bliss this morning, Apple went into Cake's "Frank Sinatra". One taste of that track and there was no way I wasn't going all the way through Fashion Nugget, one of my favorite records from the 90s. Here's the thing though. I count myself a Cake fan because of how much I love this record, but I'm not really familiar with their other stuff. So when this particular version of Nugget ended with a live version of "Jolene", I was floored. This track is amazing. Anyway, I'll finally be digging into some more of Cake's discography after this, so I'm pretty excited. It's not every day I get to have a band from my past feel so new to me (I think that's why I play so coy with some bands in the first place).

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NCBD:

Only a few titles this week on NCBD, but that's fine. Last week was a killer.

The Autumnal has been a great Horror title so far, and I'm definitely anxious to see where it's going. Kind of a mash-up of Folk and Ancestral Horror, but with a decidedly more modern feel.

I picked up issue one of Night Hunters a few months back on a whim when I noticed the unmistakable art of Alexis Ziritt. You may know Ziritt's work from Black Mask's 2015 limited series Space Raiders. Hard to say what's going on in Night Hunters after only one issue, but whatever it is, I dig it. From Floating World comics, who are super indie, so give them the benefit of the doubt and pick this one up if you see it at your local comic shop.

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Watch:

I caught David Keating's Cherry Tree on Shudder yesterday after work and enjoyed it quite a bit. Pretty cool little flick, but then these smaller, English/Irish films tend to be my jam.

 

The make-up at the climax has a definite Nightbreed-era Barker feel, which was cool and added to an already very cool atmosphere.

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Playlist:

Soul Coughing - Irresistible Bliss

Cake - Fashion Nugget

Der Butterwegge - Super Optimiert

Blut Aus Nord - 777 Cosmosophy

Blut Aus Nord - 777 The Desanctification

Godflesh - Pure

The Bangles - All Over the Place

Butthole Surfers - Rembrandt Pussyhorse

 

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Card:

 Rewards for creativity and perseverence.

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.