I'm still partial to Nergal's other project, Me and That Man, but he's an interesting guy and I tend to check out most of what he does, even if the Behemoth stuff usually doesn't really light my fire.
I will say, the setup here is impressive. Seeing the Sigil drawn Sky-large atop the building, staring up at the sky, you really get a feel for Nergal's ambition.
NCBD:
I'm still wishy-washy with this "Event," however, issue 4 was pretty awesome, and Judgment Day is slowly moving in unforeseen directions, so I continue.
Love this book. Shaolin Cowboy: Cruel to be Kin is the perfect vehicle for Geoff Darrow to go absolutely crazy with his insanely complex and beautiful art.
For my money, keep this book centered around Clea Strange.
I'm not really sure what this is, but I'm buying the first issue based on my love of the original, 80s Xterminators series (which I know will have nothing to do with this), and the idea that maybe an all-female X-book will tap into the majesty of the now classic Uncanny #244.
Having meant to listen since it dropped last week (is that right?), I woke up at our Air BnB in Dayton, Ohio and walked over to get coffee at Ghost Light with the new Daptone Records band Thee Sacred Souls. So this song was not only my first impression of the album, but the day and the city of Dayton, five and a half years since the last time I visited.
It was perfect.
You can order the elf-titled album HERE.
Watch:
In honor of the fact that Yellow Veil just announced an HD remaster BR of one of the lost French Extreme flicks:
I really enjoyed this flick, and can't wait to revisit it. Must be going on 17 or 18 years since I saw it last, back when I ordered the disc through the mail via Netflix's old business model. Director Fabrice du Welz's other film from that early 00s period, Vinyan, has long been a favorite of mine, and although both Vinyan and Calvaire are lumped in with the New French Extreme, I feel that's a bit of a misnomer, as neither even begin to approach the extremity present in other films of that 'genre.'
You can read more about the Yellow Veil unveiling on Bloody Disgusting HERE.
Playlist:
Ozzy Osbourne - Patient Number 9
Joy Division - Substance
Joy Division - Still
Melvins - Stoner Witch
Pinebender - Working Night to Wolf
Rough five-hour drive from Clarksville to Dayton. I mean, the drive last weekend to Chicago was longer but 100% enjoyable. Last night, we left at 4:00 PM and didn't arrive until 12:00 AM. Lots of down-to-one-lane construction on I-75 and terrible roads to boot (not as bad as AZ or NW, but still). Here's the playlist that got me through my oft white knuckling:
A lot of Cramps creeping into the rotation of late. Here's one from their 2003 Fiends of Dope Island.
Watch:
I've definitely figured out the movie theatre situation in Clarksville. Back in LaLaLand, post-COVID, AMC was the only big-box theatre I gave my money to. Not here; the AMC is inside the local mall, and my gut tells me it hasn't been renovated or even really kept up in any acceptable way since the late 90s/early 00s. The Regal, however, is the go-to. It's where I saw Barbarian the other night (this AMC doesn't appear to show anything other than the current big studio blockbusters), and it's where I saw Ti West's Pearl last night.
The sequel to X, Pearl is a completely different movie - of course - but it's also of such craft and substance, I walked out of that theatre bowled over. I had no idea Ti West and Mia Goth were capable of this. Not that I ever sold them short, but Pearl contains an absolutely formidable performance by Goth, who also co-wrote the film with West.
Can't wait for Maxxine.
Playlist:
Revocation - Netherheaven
Idles - Joy As An Act of Resistance
Idles - Crawler
Pailhead - Trait
My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult - I See Good Spirits, I See Bad Spirits
My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult - Confessions of a Knife
My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult - 13 Above the Night
The Cramps - Fiends of Dope Island
Revolting Cocks - Beers, Steers and Queers
Deth Crux - Mutant Flesh
Card:
From Jonathan Grimm's Bound Tarot, which you can buy HERE.
Without a sharp eye to incoming changes, fortune can suffer.
Holy cow - a new Revocation album dropped! Haven't heard the entire thing yet, but a couple songs in, I very much digging Netherheaven, which you can order from Metal Blade Records HERE.
NCBD:
A big haul this week for NCBD. Let's dive right into it:
Gonna have my hands full with this one for a day or two, but that's some great reading.
Watch:
How the hell do you talk about this movie without actually talking about it? The trailer is one of the best I've ever seen, as it shows you so much that wets the Horror Whistle, but tells you absolutely NOTHING about the film, and after seeing this one yesterday, I want to tow the exact same line.
Barbarian's trailer indeed tells you little about the movie. In fact, it actually tells you less than I thought going in. There is so much here, so much that makes it not only my "film-to-beat" for 2022 but also, one of my favorite Horror Flicks in recent years. And make no mistake, this is no "psychological thriller." Nope. This is pure, unadulterated Horror. There are some gnarly ideas and images in here that make for an often revolting watch - in the best possible way, of course.
My suggestion - go see it on the big screen if you can. I may be going back for a second time tonight. My only regret will be that I can't go in blind a second time.
The fact that this is Writer/Director Zach Cregger's first feature blows me away. Mr. Cregger is now on my "See anything they make" list right next to other indie filmmakers like Ti West and Joe Begos.
I'm starting my week with Pretty Hate Machine and thought I'd pass it on.
>kl3
Watch:
In my absence, A LOT of trailers and announcements dropped via Disney-con (or whatever it's called). A lot of super cool stuff to be excited about, but this tops the pile for me:
I have NO IDEA if or how this fits into the MCU continuity, but Werewolf By Night appears to be a Black and White Grindhouse flick. Also, watch closely and you'll see a glimpse of one of my favorite characters, Man-Thing!!!
Read:
I just have to say that Chris Condon and Jacob Phillips' That Texas Blood has become one of my favorite comics on the stand today. Issue Seventeen was BRILLIANT.
The comparisons to Fargo, both the series and the movie, are unavoidable, but this book is so much more than that.
Playlist:
Idles - Joy As An Act of Resistance
The Moody Blues - Knights in White Satin (single, album-length)
Ginger Wildheart - Year of Fanclubs
The Afghan Whigs - How Do You Burn
Pixies - Doggerel (pre-release singles)
Black Sabbath - Eponymous
The Smiths - The Queen is Dead
The Cure - Disintegration
Card:
From Jonathan Grimm's Bound Tarot, which you can buy HERE.
Pertains directly to a conversation I had with the creator of the Bound Tarot yesterday while driving back from Chicago. I have inbound new ideas and information for a project I am GIDDY with excitement about.
Somehow I totally missed this stunning single the Whigs released in 2017.
Watch:
Maika Monroe is really on my radar of late. True, she was fabulous in both The Guest and It Follows, and both were years ago. Seeing this year's Watcher a few months back at a Beyondfest screening, she really stole the show. And now this:
I signed up for Paramount + again recently so K and I could finish Evil, Season 3, and looks like I'll probably hang onto it a bit longer to catch this on Friday, October 7th.
Playlist:
Various - Return of the Living Dead Soundtrack (Playlist)
The Cramps - Songs the Lord Taught Us
The Cramps - Psychedelic Jungle
The Misfits - Legacy of Brutality
Idles - Joy As An Act of Resistance
Melvins & Lustmord - Pigs of the Roman Empire
Card:
Re-engaging with Magick this weekend could lead to a breakthrough, but it may also lead to Ruin. I'm pretty sure I know exactly what this is talking about, and my intention remains to stay away.
I discovered Idles two days ago completely by accident. I think.
Since setting up a work-from-home office in our new house, I've been using Spotify more than I ever have. I'll always prefer Apple Music for most things, but there's some great stuff about their competition, too, one of which is how bands will just show up in your 'feed' based on their algorithm. I know a lot of folks hate that word and practice, however, I have found that, while I would never want to solely rely on an AI to find me music, they sometimes come up with some good stuff I had otherwise missed.
Case in point, Idles appeared on my landing page yesterday and I have no idea why. But upon hearing "Never Fight a Man With a Perm" for the first time, I was in love. The album that song is on - Joy As An Act of Resistance - is start-to-finish fan-fucking-tastic!
This video of them performing Never Fight A Man With A Perm literally gives me chills. This is a band that the architects of the BBC's Hyundai/ Mercury Prize in 2019 never would have dreamed would be performing on this stage; seriously, the incongruency of the elaborate look of the set with this snarling mess of a band brings tears to my eyes and joy to my heart.
Watch:
New Lucky McKee? YES!
I'm betting money this will be announced next week along with the second half of Beyondfest's tenth-anniversary line-up.
Read:
An unexpected surprise yesterday at the comic shop:
With allusions to the works of both Dickens and Dan Simmons, and probably the most refined interpretation of Occult Victorian England since Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell’s seminal work From Hell, I am totally in for the ride on El Torres and Joe Bacardo’s new comic Phantasmagoria! Also, the title is quite possibly my favorite word in the English language, so bonus points on that. This one is from Scout Comics' Black Caravan line, which is really starting to beef up their presence in the Horror Comic Continuum.
Playlist:
Idles - Joy As An Act of Resistance
Idles - Brutalism
Sleaford Mods - Spare Ribs
Pailhead - Trait
Misfits - Static Age
Misfits - American Psycho
Godflesh - Pure
Revolting Cocks - Linger Ficken' Good
Card:
Back to Missi's Raven Deck for a single card signifier today:
Equilibrium for sure. Yesterday everything was out of whack, and I'm weary of bringing that with me into today. I'll take this as a reminder of yesterday's pull - even keel. Weight (wait?) and measure.
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.
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.
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.
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
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...
I was holding off on listening to the singles The Afghan Whigs have released from the upcoming How Do You Burn, however, I'm seeing them this coming Saturday night, so I broke down and started getting to know them. Being that the album drops this Friday, September 9th, I'll have all day to listen to it. So far, really great stuff. Not sure it will top In Spades, but that would be quite the feat.
Getting psyched to see "The Revolting Corpse" at the end of the month, courtesy of Mr. Brown. I'm not entirely sure who will be on stage, but either way, it's sure to be amazing.
Watch:
K and I wrapped up Evil season 3 on Paramount Plus the other day. As always, this show leaves an ENORMOUS void when it's off. I have a feeling the next season may be the final; either way, with the low-grade anxiety Netflix is resonating with its coy attitude toward Sandman's renewal, it's good to know that the next season of Evil has already been announced.
Next up, Feud!
We'd been meaning to watch this since it aired back in 2017, and our timing proves fortuitous, as a quick look-up on IMDB surprised us with the listing for an upcoming season two slated for next year.
Read:
I finished Irvine Welsh's Marabou Stork Nightmares. Jesus. This was easily his darkest book, and that's bloody well saying something. Still, I loved most of it; it always feels like slipping into a favorite Marathon Shirt when I tackle one of Welsh's novels, and despite several absolutely soul-searing scenes, this was no exception. Next up, Welsh's long-time friend Sandy McNair's tell-all book Carspotting: The Real-Life Adventures of Irvine Welsh.
Like Marabou, I've had this one for over a decade. After this, I'm thinking I may re-read Welsh's 2006 novel Bedroom Secrets of the Master Chiefs, which I haven't read since it came out.
Playlist:
King Woman - Celestial Blues
Charles Bradley - Changes
Cocksure - Corporate_Sting
The High Confessions - Turning Lead Into Gold with the High Confessions
Corrosion of Conformity - Deliverance
Willie Nelson & Leon Russell - One For the Road
The Black Angels - Eponymous EP
The Black Angels - Death Song
The Afghan Whigs - How Do You Burn? (pre-release singles)
It was not until just last week that I realized Melvins had collaborated with Lustmord on an album. THIS is mind-blowing stuff.
NCBD:
We start this week's NCBD with the final issue of Moon Knight: Black, White & Blood.
I Love this series. When they first announced they were doing one of these BW&B for Moon Knight, I was surprised. I'm hoping they do some other left-of-center characters, and that it wasn't just the Moon Knight Disney+ series that spurred this particular title. I'd love to see a Taskmaster or even, hell, a Wilson Fisk, Kingpin BW&B. Come on Marvel, let's see what you got!
One of my most anticipated series since the previous issue. This one is such a great heir to the Neil Gaiman/Vertigo legacy.
Being that issue 3 just came out last week, I'm not entirely sure this will land today. We'll see. Either way, this series is worth the wait.
I feel like it's been quite some time since the previous installment of West of Sundown. That's not really true, I think I've just, you know, moved across country and completely restarted my life since issue 4. Can't wait to read this next chapter.
Probably my favorite cover with Scott Summers on it EVER.
Read:
There was a time when I bought every novel Irvine Welsh released the day they came out. That stopped after his 2012 Skag Boys. Not because I don't love Welsh's work. On the contrary, his prose is a HUGE influence on my own, and being that I had shifted to working on a genre series, I was afraid that influence would hinder my completion of the first Shadow Play novel. Shadow Play ultimately took another seven years to finish, starting and re-starting it. In between, I cranked out a lot more genre work, always keeping Welsh at bay.
Last Sunday, the damn burst.
I'm a saver - if I discover an author who already has a few novels on the shelf, I'll always save one. So was the case with Welsh's 1995 novel Marabou Stork Nightmares. Well, after learning Welsh had just released a follow-up Ray Lennox novel to Crime with The Long Knives. I realized I've now missed five Welsjh novels including this one. To quote Lebowski, "this will not stand!"
So I cracked open Marabou and cannot put it down.
It's crazy to think this was Welsh's second published novel. The narrative is written in the same kind of experimental fashion that Filth is - I don't want to try and explain it here, but needless to say, Welsh finds a pretty insane way to move between main character Roy Strang's coma-narrative and his real life and what he hears while he's inside the coma, bubbling up just below the surface of waking. Which Roy does not want to do. I love Welsh's work so very much, I can't believe I've been away from it this long.
Playlist:
Pink Mountaintops - Peacock Pools
A Place to Bury Strangers - Exploding Head
Megadeth - Rush in Peace
Melvins & Lustmord - Pigs of the Roman Empire
Anthrax - Attack of the Killer Bs
Patty Smythe - The Warrior (single)
The Ocean - Phanerozoic I: Paleozoic
Scott H. Biram - Nothing But Blood
Amigo The Devil - Born Against
The Mysterines - Reeling
Young Widows - Settle Down City
Breather Resist - Charmer
Card:
From Jonathan Grimm's Bound Tarot, which you can buy HERE.
The way that I will choose to accomplish something will usher in notable change, part of which will be condemnation by someone I respect.
I've got a BIG new project in the works, and I'm pretty sure a lot of people - not necessarily people I know - will give it a big eye roll just for what it is. Unfortunate. "The work that transforms the medium."
Some old Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds for this Saturday morning. Live from 1986, no less!
Watch:
I have been waiting for this one for quite some time:
When I first read Grady Hendrix's My Best Friend's Exorcism, back in 2018 or so, I immediately bought it for like ten of my friends. I love that book - at the time I finished it, I ranked it as my third favorite novel, behind Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby and Bret Easton Ellis' Lunar Park. I don't know if that ranking would hold up, but maybe. It's a fabulous flick, and with Freaky's Christopher Landon Producing, I have a very good feeling about this adaptation.
Playlist:
S4lem - King Night
S4lem - Yes I Smoke Crack EP
Revolting Cocks - Linger Fickin' Good
Lustmord & The Ocean - Primal (State of Being) EP
The Ocean - Heliocentric
The Ocean - Anthropocentric
The Ocean - Phanerozoic I: Palaeozoic
Lard - Pure Chewing Satisfaction
Lustmord - Hobart
Type O Negative - Life Is Killing Me
Metallica - Garage Days Re-Revisited
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Ghosteen
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Distant Sky (Live in Copenhagen)
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - From Her to Eternity
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Kicking Against the Pricks
The Ocean - Phanerozoic I: Palaeozoic
Pink Mountaintops - Peacock Pools
Deftones - No Koi Yokan
Ghost - Mary on A Cross (slowed + reverb) single
The Atlas Moth - Coma Noir
Brenton Wood - Brenton Wood's 18 Best
Seasurfer - Zombies
The Dillinger Escape Plan - Disassociation
Card:
Late night Thoth Spread:
Pulled this while up late, finally attempting to get a small NFT venture off the ground. Immediate recognition, but I don't know anything about this world. I need to lean on my good friend Billy Big Beak in order to navigate what's happening. So the reading is pretty clear - what can look like success can actually be a load of BS.
More new Dead Cross! I'm digging what I'm hearing from this second album more than I did the first, can't wait to hear the entire thing, which is out October 14th on Ipecac Recordings. Pre-order a copy HERE.
Watch:
This dropped yesterday:
As far as Teaser Trailers go, I think this is perfect. Of course, there's the part of me that wants to see more, but really, I'd rather wait and get it all at once in my first viewing. Hey, it's gotta be better than most of the Dimension sequels, right? Let's hope this 20th Century Fox/HULU pairing the Mouse has going will turn out another unexpectedly fantastic sequel, like Prey.
Quote:
"Having made the world lousy, imagine ye are of significance to Heaven?"
- Austin Osman Spare, Anathema of Zos: The Sermon of the Hypocrite
A little old-school Chicago Industrial to kick things off today.
Watch:
This is my favorite thing I think I've ever encountered on the internet. No BS. A HUGE thank You to Seth:
I literally just want to watch this over and over and have Bobby Fingers tell me everything is going to be okay. Seeing this, and sending it over to my former bandmate Joe.Baxter, I can't help but feel like when we finally try and finish recording all that unfinished Christian Fisting material, we should dust off the old "Mel Gibson's a Cunt" song we had, written in the wake of that 2006 arrest that is being modeled here.
NCBD:
It's Wednesday, and that means new comics are on the shelves! Here's what I'm picking up at Rick's Comic City!
Street-level Spidey on a Goblin hovercraft? interesting. Love this cover.
The penultimate issue of Deadly Class!
I definitely liked the twist Marvel's Judgment Day took at the end of the second issue. Hoping this continues to expand that, instead of focusing on what we already know has happened. I get that in the onset of this series beginning, we only really got a 'thin slice' of the siege on Krakoa and holocaust on Arrako, but showing us all the nooks and crannies of those battles is getting a touch old. Issue 2 moved things forward, but then Death to the Mutants moved it back again.
This book is fantastic but truly independent, so there have been a lot of scheduling delays. I'm hoping it actually lands today.
LOVING this new Shaolin Cowboy series. Geof Darrow is an amazing artist, and he's really cooked up an "Anything Goes" world with this one. I pulled out my copies of the previous series and realized the titular character died at the end of it. This means Darrow has been - as he should be - doing whatever the hell he wants time-wise with this odd, post-apocalyptic mash-up series. I need to pick up the collected first series of this and read them all straight through. Not that you have to, because, like I said, I love that Darrow appears t be jumping around.
I'm not 100% sold on this big, TMNT 'Event,' but I'll hang for a while.
From the forthcoming album The End, So Far available on September 30th. You can pre-order the album HERE. I like the video a lot more than I like the song, but I've always been hot/cold with these guys. Still, they've evolved over the years, and that definitely means something.
Watch:
The teaser trailer for Benson and Moorhead's new film Something In the Dirt dropped yesterday. Here'sn our first look:
I really can't wait for this one. These guys are Aces in my book.
Lots of big ideas, but I have to narrow my focus for a bit to accomplish what I want.
As usual, the cards are pretty spot on. I'm writing again - been going to local coffee shops after work. I have quite a few short stories on deck, and part of the "following the inner voice" here is figuring out which ones I want to allocate for the free Kindle book I'm aiming to publish shortly before Halloween, and which ones I want to submit.
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