One of my favorite songs on an album that is 75% favorite songs. The guitar on this album - and this song in particular - is, in my opinion, the heights calibre hard rock guitar can reach. It sounds so rich and fuzzy, yet retains fantastic definition.
And, of course, great vocal lines, too.
Watch:
Bill Hader's Barry returned a few weeks ago and I only just found out. Over the weekend, K and I caught up and were pretty surprised by the tone of this third season:
One of this show's strengths is the way it balances its inherent darkness with some of the funniest shit I've ever seen. Part of that's the cast - Hader's fantastic, Anthony Carrigan (NoHo Hank) is brilliant pretty much every time he's on the screen, and Stephen Root is always gold. This season, the humor has, thus far, been seriously downplayed and we've been presented with a super dark take on the characters - especially Barry. Again, that comingling of tones has always been the strength of the show. Barry does not shy away from the reality of the concept: a hitman's a pretty dark protagonist.
But it works.
Really not sure where this show is ultimately headed, which is always a good thing.
Read:
I spent a large part of the weekend relaxing and catching up on my comics. Here's what I read:
So nice to finally sit and read this one all the way through, start to finish, in one tight sitting. The Last Ronin totally delivers that old school 80s Frank Miller dystopian aesthetic, while retaining and drawing from the original, B&W Mirage series. Gorgeous art - the design of everything we see in this dystopian world is gorgeous, and visually seems the natural evolution of the original book's Manhattan.
I'd dropped off reading James Tynion IV's The Nice House On The Lake monthly, simply because I lost a lot after its hiatus. sitting down and reading 1-8 in a sitting really took some time, and that just goes to show what a meaty story Tynion's telling here. Very cool story that's essentially a zombie-less update on Romero's Dawn of the Dead (in a way it is! Think about it!)
Playlist:
(Lone) Wolf & Cub - May You See Only Sky
Bexley - Lost in the Moment EP
Cypress Hill - III: Temples of Boom
Jerry Cantrell - Brighten
Calexico - The Black Light
Joseph Bishara - Malignant OST
Mike Doughty - Live at Ken's House
Calexico - Even My Sure Things Fall Through
Card:
A Conservative approach to an infuriating problem will serve me better than, say, a hammer beating. Loud and Clear.
No, you didn't miss a headline. Against all odds, Ozzy Osbourne is still alive. I know usually it's after someone has died that I do a "So-and-so week." But I'm always wanting to change that, and here's my chance.
The motivation here is really simple: I'm finding that after not paying any attention to Ozzy's music since No More Tears - an album I'll stand by until my dying day - I've become somewhat enraptured by his 2020 record Ordinary Man. What's more, for the past few years I've kind of rediscovered albums like Bark at the Moon and The Ultimate Sin - the latter of which I used to hate every track on except Shot in the Dark, which will no doubt turn up over the next six days, even though I'm certain I've posted it here before.
Anyway, for the next 7 or so posts, I'll be celebrating the Ozman, so light a doob and frog leap off your front porch - we're biting heads (off bats)!
Watch:
Holy Fuck!
Also, since I worked last Sunday, I had a half-day today. I drove home at a leisurely pace, made a turkey sandwich and fired up The Sadness on Shudder.
Holy. Fuck. X. Two.
Easily the most violent, gory and depraved movie I've seen in a long time. I'm not saying there aren't tougher flicks out there; I know there are. I just don't normally traffic in them. This, however, comes in right over the line in favor of my tastes. There were a few moments I thought we were going to dip into territory that I don't tread, but thankfully, that never happened. An unexpected result of this line-dancing is The Sadness clocks in as the first film I've seen since The Void that feels truly transgressive, or maybe even dangerous.
Not for the faint of heart.
NCBD Addendum:
I picked up my books for NCBD yesterday and had a few extra surprises. First, I'd forgotten Jeff Lemire and Andrea Sorrentino dropped a single-issue prequel to their new ongoing Horror Universe The Bone Orchard Mythos on FCBD. "Shadow Eater" arrives about a month before the first HC graphic novel, The Passageway.
This book is freakin' awesome, and if it's any indication - and I know it is - the Bone Orchard is going to be something I won't be able to shut up about for the next few years. Mapped out through 2023 "and beyond" according to Lemire, looks like we're in for some sleepless nights. Thanks guys! (really)
Next, and talk about couldn't be more different, I picked up the FCBD prequel for Judgement Day, the new X-Men/Avengers/Eternals crossover event.
Yeah, I hate crossover events, and I completely realize that I'm setting myself up to be pissed off, but I can't help it - I love this X-Men revamp, and my post-Hickman fears have been thus far trounced by Immortal X-Men, X-Men: Red, and now issue 11 of X-Men (holy cow Dr. Stasis!).
Also, the final story in this Judgement Day lead-in has one of the most chilling moments ever in X-history (and Spider-Man history, to boot!).
Next on the "I didn't anticipate buying this in the comic shop today," I'd seen a little of the Professor Dario Bava books in a post on The Comic Bug's social media back a year or two ago for a signing, but ultimately forgot all about it. Luckily, there was a new book that dropped this week and I grabbed that and the previous. The new one is the first of an ongoing story (I think) that is actually a two-sided magazine-sized behemoth.
The second is the first GN they kickstarted (again, I'm not 100% on the timeline here - this is very new to me).
Both are gorgeous, creepy and filled with Cult Cinema goodness. You can check the Dario Bava stuff out on their website HERE.
Playlist:
Perturbator, Johannes Persson & Final Light - In the Void (pre-release single)
Calexico - El Mirador
Calexico - Even My Sure Things Fall Through
16 Horsepower - Low Estate
Atrium Carceri - Kapnobatai
Blood Red Shoes - Ghosts on Tape
(Lone) Wolf & Cub - May You Only See Sky
David Bowie - The Next Day
Journey - Escape
Stian Carstensen & Mike Patton - Hydrocephalus Epilogue (single)
Last night we finished Ozark. Man, what a f**kin' ride! This show brings the anxiety meter to new heights. It obviously wouldn't exist without Breaking Bad, but that's not a knock. In fact, I'd say Jason Bateman and company managed to take the BB template and hone it into an even more impressive beast.
And what a beast this is. The ending didn't make me happy, but it had balls, and that in and of itself, makes me happy. As a viewer, I don't want to get what I want. I want you to tell your story. And they did. Oh boy, they did.
As for the song, if you've seen the latter half of the second season, you'll know why I'm posting this. I'd go on record as saying the "traffic incident" is possibly the best scene in the series.
Also, I loved the Killer Mike cameo in the first part of season four.
NCBD:
Not much of a haul this week, although they're all big issues. Also, after buying the first issue of the Clea Strange-centered Strange series a few months ago, I think I'm going to pick up the second and third issues that I missed.
Pretty psyched for a Hulk-Thor battle. I doubt it will be as awesome as the old Hulk-Thing battles in the 80s, but still, when Titans collide, and all that.
Loved the first issue, so let's see where this new Sandman spin-off is heading. The Corinthian has always been my favorite Nightmare, and although he received a lot of "screen time" in the old 90s The Dreaming series, I've always kind of felt like there was a lot more room for the right creators to explore with the Corinthian. I think we're finally seeing that.
The last all-women X-issue I read was back in the 80s: Uncanny X-Men #244, which introduced Jubliee. I'm hoping that, like that issue's follow-up in 245 with "Men," this current X-Book pays homage and does the same next issue. Either way, I love this book.
Watch:
Eskil Vogt's The Innocents looks to be the very definition of unnerving:
You can read a nifty little article where Vogt talks about his new film over on Bloody Disgusting HERE. This one hits VOD on Friday, the 13th. I'd be doing a "Day-of" screening, if not for the fact that I've already got tickets to go see Friday the 13th Part 3 at the Aero. I mean, how could I pass that up?
Playlist:
The Effigies - Remains Nonviewable
Zeal & Ardor - Wake of a Nation EP
The Mysterines - Reeling
Ozzy Osbourne - Ordinary Man
The Smiths - The Queen is Dead
Pink Mountaintops - Peacock Pools
Orville Peck - Bronco
Spotlights - Love & Decay
Card:
It's been a minute since I've done a pull, so here goes:
I've been relying on my intuition when it comes to creative choices, and it's led me to a new strength. Now, I need to finish my current project and move into my next.
New Meg Myers! Her stuff is getting weirder, but she still delivers those pulse-pounding hooks.
Watch:
Oh shit, I forgot ALL about this:
No release date yet, but the announcement says "Soon."
Dollar Bin:
I don't know much about Micronauts, other than it was a toy property from just before my era - before the era where cartoons and I always came across stray figures and playsets at garage sales in the early 80s and wondered what they were (same with Shogun Warriors). Last year though, when Chris Saunders and I interviewed comic artist legend Kelley Jones, he mentioned he started at marvel on the Micronauts book.
I have developed a bit of a phantom nostalgia for toys and comics from just before my era, and finding these in the ol' dollar bin proved impossible to pass up. This falls in line with the weird, TSR, Hobby-Shop genre of SciFi and Horror that I feel existed as a kind of 'quiet zeitgeist' in the early 80s - a pop culture texture that has been mined and revitalized by Stranger Things perfectly. Anyway, I'm hoping to find more Micronauts, or maybe snag some on eBay. I'd like to read a solid run of a handful of consecutive issues, just to get a feel.
Also, they're written by Bill Mantlo, and I've really come to see him as a kind of underappreciated genius in that Hobby Shop Sci-Fi thing.
Playlist:
Ozzy Osbourne - Ordinary Man
Jerry Cantrell - Brighten
Mike Doughty - Live At Ken's House
Prince - Sign O' The Times
Testament - The New Order
Sparks - Hello Young Lovers
Mr. Bungle - The Night They Came Home
Run the Jewels - RTJ4
The Raveonettes - Raven in the Grave
Goatsnake - Black Age Blues
Card:
Once again, the ways of peace are strong in me, even in the midst of adversity.
I will always miss Sixteen Horsepower, however, the work David Eugene Edwards has been doing as Woven Hand over the last decade-and-a-half (or so) is next-level stuff. It's interesting how the slightly toxic religious elements that informed/inspired Horsepower pushed this man into a considerably more Shamanic perspective with his music.
Woven Hand's new record Silver Sash is out now on Glitterhouse Records and can be ordered from them or Woven Hand's Bandcamp HERE.
Watch:
This is going to be one of those posts where I post the newest trailer for David Cronenberg's upcoming Crimes of the Future, but don't watch it:
Right now, this is my most eagerly awaited film of the year - thus far- and I say that on the cusp of seeing Sam Raimi's Dr. Strange In the Multiverse of Madness tonight, a film I have been CHOMPING at the bit for since... well, since I realized Patrick Stewart's voice is in the trailer.
NOTE: I should say something here. Marvel, I'm talking to you now; if it turns out that Patrick Stewart is playing a man named Jim Bohner or some such, I will not be happy. Just saying. And as long as I'm posting trailers I have no intention of viewing, here's that 'Final' Dr. Strange trailer:
I have insanely high expectations for this one, even though I still have been unable to sit through the first Stephen Strange flick. I've always maintained I'm more interested in Marvel's big picture than I am the individual films, and this is the one that - I think - will firmly shape the post-Avengers landscape for the MCU into something more cohesive than it's been (not that I've minded the chaotic and disparate elements of the last few years, which have been very final-years-of-Claremont's-Uncanny-X-men at times).
Playlist:
Bexley - Eponymous
Blut Aus Nord - Memoria Vetusta II: Dialogue with the Stars
Michael Jackson - Greatest Hits
Kate Bush - Hounds of Love
The Mysterines - Reeling
Sparks - Tryouts for the Human Race (single)
Helmet - Meantime
Motorhead - Ace of Spades
Anthrax - Persistence of Time
Jerry Cantrell - Brighten (Thanks to Mr. Brown for the beautiful vinyl!)
Prince and the Revolution - Purple Rain
Card:
It's been a minute since I've pulled from Missi's Raven Deck, so here goes:
Expecting knowledge to come my way today that might turn things around a bit. Or maybe that was yesterday when we spoke to a new realtor in TN and received a lot of really good, inspiring information. I suppose there's a part of me that demonizes that, simply because the longer we've stayed in LaLaLand, the allure of the routine and easy (not really, but kinda) life we've made here pulls at my ideas of burning it all down and starting over.
Last night marked my first live show since hitting 2 of the 3 Mr. Bungle shows in LaLaLand back in February 2020, mere days before COVID struck. I've reacquired my comfort level with seeing movies in the theatre, largely because you can very much curate how many people you'll be exposed to. Not in every case, but with Matinees and seating charts online, it's pretty easy to limit exposure. A live show is a more, "All bets are off" situation, though, so it's taken me a while to prepare. That changed recently, though.
When my good friend Jacob introduced me to The Mysterines' music, without even thinking I googled them to see if they were on tour - a practice I've maintained for years when I find a new band I love. When I saw they were playing on May 4th at the Peppermint Club, I didn't think twice about buying tickets.
I'm glad I did.
Not only were The Mysterines awesome, but in preparation for the show, I looked up opener Bexley and was pretty blown away by her 2021 self-titled album. Above, I've posted my favorite song from said album, and since Bexley is local, I'll definitely be keeping an eye out for more shows, as she and her band were also great.
You can check out Bexley's Bandcamp HERE or her official site HERE.
Watch:
Oh my. I probably wasn't supposed to laugh out loud, but I did. And then I winced enough to almost fall out of my seat.
The Sadness is written and directed by Rob Jabbaz, and as far as I can tell, this is his first full-length film. IT LOOKS F&*KING AWESOME, so I'll be watching this the day it drops on Shudder, next Thursday, 5/12/22.
Playlist:
Sepultura - Chaos A.D.
David Byrne & Brian Eno - Everything That Happens Will Happen Today
David Lynch - Crazy Clown Time
Soundgarden - Superunknown
Bexley - Eponymous
Card:
Water of Water, pure emotions. This can trip me up, so I'll be attempting to keep a cool on any over-the-top moments I might have; there's a lot of ridiculousness at work of late, and I've grown a bit cantankerous when certain people are involved. Play it cool.
New Afghan Whigs! 'Nuff said. Pre-order How Do You Burn, out September 9th, HERE.
What a gorgeous video.
NCBD:
Playlist:
Jim James - Eternally Even
Rammstein - Zeit
Def Leppard - High 'N' Dry
Ozzy Osbourne - Ordinary Man'
Blut Aus Nord - Memoria Vetusta I: Fathers of the Icy Age
Ozzy Osbourne - No More Tears
Testament - The New Order
Sepultura - Chaos A.D.
Card:
Remember last Friday when I drew the Four of Swords: Truce?
This was the result. It pays to temper your outrage and anger with time and distance. And it also pays to have a good amount of humility and admit when you've kinda been a dick.
