Bad-ass new track from Memorials, a group consisting of Matthew Simms from Wire and Verity Susman. Really cool stuff, and they are recording an album, so there will be more. Head on over to their Bandcamp and give 'em a follow; pretty sure only good things can come of that.
Watch:
The Coffee Table was not what I had anticipated. That said, the thing I like most about this film is that from what I've seen, absolutely no one is saying too much about it online. That's good. Go in blind.
Is it disturbing? Yes, but not depraved - to me that's the big difference between what I can handle and cannot. This one? No problem, but it may fuck some people up. You've been warned, but also, it's a definite recommendation. Brother, you don't know tension until you see this one. Caye Casas NAILED this one.
Read:
I've only read one novel by author Paul Tremblay - Head Full of Ghosts - but it's a doozy that left an impact. He's had a couple books released since then, and although my buddy Jonathan Grimm always recommends them, I've held off. Well, I think this is the next one for me:
I love everything about the title and the cover art, and while you can't judge a book by its cover, I'm fairly certain this one will not disappoint. This is where I normally put in the solicitation, however, I haven't read that. I quite purposely know nothing about this novel, which I think is a good thing. I only have a few chapters left in Mike Bockoven's FantasticLand, so this is probably up next.
Suicidal Tendencies - How Will I Laugh Tomorrow When I Can't Even Smile Today
Suicidal Tendencies - Controlled By Hatred/Feel Like Shit... Déjá-vu
Television - Marquee Moon
Pink Floyd - Animals
The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion - Now I Got Worry
Steve Moore - The Mind's Eye OST
Jim Williams - Possessor OST
Cocksure - K.K.E.P.
Cocksure - T.V.M.A.L.S.V.
Various - Singles OST
Card:
From Jonathan Grimm's Hand of Doom Tarot, which you can buy HERE.
• Ace of Swords
• Nine of Wands
• Ten of Wands
Interesting to have a succession of two cards in the same suit. Ace of Swords is an intellectual breakthrough, Nine of Wands is the climax that leads to the Ten of Wands' Closure. What's that? Finally finishing languishing projects? Hallelujah.
Cold Cave is pretty hit-or-miss with me. I adore 2011's Cherish the Light Years but haven't really clicked as hard with any of the other albums by the band that I've listened to. This new track makes me feel like the still unannounced record on the horizon could go either way. It just feels like the energy barely contained in the nine tracks on Light Years is perpetually contained inside that album. Nothing else I've heard from the band lives up to that. Still, this is a great new song, especially that coda!
Watch:
Joko Anwar's Nightmares and Daydreams has landed on, of all places, Netflix. Time to dig in:
I really took a shine to Indonesian Horror back circa 2020 during the Pandemic. Long days spent after short shifts, laying on the couch falling deep down Shudder rabbit holes. The Indonesian one still resounds with an impressive eeriness, and Anwar's Impetigore and Satan's Slaves made an impact. I kind of dug The Forbidden Door when I finally caught it last year, but the ending disappointed me a bit. Still, compelling, and I was curious to see what Anwar would do with a shorter format.
Unfortunately, the first episode, Old House, starts very strong and, by the end, devolves into some pretty awful CGI that just tanked it for me. I still intend on watching more, but I'm pretty bummed by this opening. This is the same deal Netflix gave GDT for Cabinet of Curiosities, seven episodes that are really stand-alone, hour-long movies, so this first one is not necessarily a gage for what's coming. I just expected more.
Read:
I finished Stephen Graham Jones' The Angel of Indian Lake last week. Man, what a fantastic ending to Jade's story. I will say that there's a sequence in here that felt a little... wrong, but nothing that would prevent me from giving this series a high recommendation. After Indian Lake? I headed straight into FantasticLand:
This one has been hyped quite a bit to me, but always by people whose taste I 100% trust. Which meant when it didn't quite click at first, I was a bit sad. After the opening set-up shifted into the actual interviews of survivors, however, I was hooked. About halfway through in two days, I'm finding it difficult to put this one down, and I really love how the story develops.
Playlist:
Alice in Chains - Dirt
Alice in Chains - Eponymous
Alice in Chains - Live
Dillinger Escape Plan - Calculating Infinity
Mastodon - Once More Round the Sun
The Raveonettes - Lust Lust Lust
The Raveonettes - Raven in the Grave
Peeping Tom - Eponymous
Godflesh - Purge
Mars Red Sky - Eponymous
Tina Turner - What's Love Got To Do With It?
The Ravenonettes - Sing
Shellac - To All Trains
Card:
From Jonathan Grimm's Hand of Doom Tarot, which you can buy HERE.
• Five of Cups
• Four of Swords
• XX: Judgement
Emotional struggles that ultimately lead to a new stability, just remember - everything in its right place.
That's an off-the-cuff read with a little help from the Grimoire. I think it's referencing the ongoing mental issues I have concerning K's mother living with us. There's an unbelievably volatile amount of cognitive dissonance that I live with in my brain every day, and there are times when it feels as though it will drive me mad. Maybe things are getting better, though.
I am happy to report the new Man Man album is awesome! This one dropped last week, but I've had a hard time getting around to listening past an initial time. This song, however, made an indelible mark. Can't wait to really dig in this weekend.
Order Carrot on StringsHERE.
NCBD:
I haven't had a chance to post my NCBD picks this week yet. Better late than never. Here's what I picked up:
The best book I'm reading monthly at the moment. This one just transforms in the most interesting, natural, seductive ways issue by issue. Love the character development - especially in this latest issue.
Shockwave and the Combaticons arrive on a Space Bridge from Cybertron? Holy. Crap. There's something going on in between the lines here that makes me think that, just maybe, the Autobots aren't the noble good guys we have always known them to be. Not that they're evil, but what looks like heroism on our world may come from a darker place in their history on the home planet. We'll see.
I missed the first issue of Dan Watters and Ram V's Creature From the Black Lagoon Lives! when it dropped a few weeks ago, but snatched up a second printing this week because in our house, the Creature Rules! Well, K and I are both big fans of the Universal Monsters in general, but this guy and big Frank are our favorites. With great art and colors by Matthew Roberts and Dave Stewart respectively, I really dug this issue!
And then there's a new book by Zac Thompson that sounded pretty cool. I missed grabbing it, however, Ryan and Walter at Rick's ordered me a copy, so it's a'coming.
From Dark Horse's solicitation:
"A group of climate scientists working in a remote base camp on the Australian outback discover an impossible landform. They venture inside expecting the unexpected, and the titular Unbeing delivers. True to the traditions of cosmic horror, they discover an anomalous environment that defies everything they think they know about the world."
Sounds pretty cool, and Thompson has some killer books.
Watch:
Ben Bigelow's debut feature Thine Ears Shall Bleed recently got a trailer:
Maybe it has more to do with it's Doom Metal-ish title, but I'm definitely curious about this one. Looks a bit like The Wind and What Josiah Saw. I'm not seeing a hard release date yet, but I'll be keeping my eyes out for it.
Playlist:
Alice in Chains - Jar Of Flies
The Jesus Lizard - Down
Soundgarden - Superunknown
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds - Let Love In
Ween - Chocolate & Cheese
Pigface - Notes From the Underground
Type O Negative - Bloody Kisses (Suspended in Dusk Edition)
Red Hot Chili Peppers - Blood Sugar Sex Magick
Alice in Chains - Dirt
The Twilight Singers - Dynamite Steps
Bandsplain Podcast - Remembering Steve Albini
Sinéad O'Connor - The Lion and the Cobra
Card:
From Jonathan Grimm's Hand of Doom Tarot, which you can buy HERE.
• Knight of Swords - The Firey aspect of Air or the Will as applied to Intellect.
• Nine of Pentacles - Climax; Accomplishment of Earthly concerns, i.e., materializing the idea into a tangible form, i.e., finishing the books.
• Ace of Swords - Breakthrough in operations. Rethinking how I do things.
Time to think a bit harder about those projects that are near completion. This will lead to accomplishment and a breakthrough that may alter the way I approach my creativity.
I drove into Chicago over the weekend and saw The Raveonettes play the Bottom Lounge on Monday night. The video above is from George Devereux's YouTube channel - lots of awesome videos like this one over there, so mosey on over, check it out, and perhaps give the man a follow.
Anyway, this trip was 100% last minute. Upon returning from Chicago on May 27th, I realized The Raveonettes were only playing ten dates on the tour to support their new covers album, "The Raveonettes... Sing," and Chicago was the closest to me, so I made a snap decision to buy tickets and attend.
The Raveonettes have long been one of my favorite bands, but before they held such a lofty status in my heart, I passed a couple of opportunities to see them. Then, living in L.A. for the period over which they released no fewer than six records—three of which are my favorite by the band—I missed every opportunity to see them, where they often played the gorgeous El Rey Theatre.
I really don't know what I was thinking - there was a large part of my life in the city of broken angels where we had so little money (or so I thought!) that I didn't go to hardly any shows, but whatever. The point is, having the band then all but disappear after 2017's 2016 Atomized kind of broke my heart. When I saw this tour, I knew I had to see them.
And, of course, I was right. They were miraculous live!!! I broke into small sobs probably ten times during the show - there's something about Sharin Foo and Sune Rose Wagner's vocal harmonies and melody lines when combined with Wagner's Rock-a-Billy-meets-Robert-Smith guitar lines that overwhelm me with emotion, even more so live.
Here's the setlist, courtesy of Setlist.FM.
1) When Night Is Almost Done
2) Hallucinations
3) Lust
4) Dead Sound
5) Blush
6) Railroad Tracks
7) Love Can Destroy Everything
8) Attack of the Ghost Riders
9) Veronica Fever
10) Do You Believe Her
11) My Tornado
12) The Enemy
13) Endless Sleeper
14) Sisters
15) Heartbreak Stroll
16) That Great Love Sound
17) Recharge & Revolt
Encore:
18) Remember
19) Love In a Trashcan
20) Aly, Walk With Me
Watch:
Although I've been avoiding everything released leading up to seeing Osgood Perkins' new film LONGLEGS, last week I caught the full trailer in the theatre. I'm posting it here and can 100% say I actually think this is one of the best trailers I've seen in years. They show so many intriguing, disconnected images that it revs up the desire to finally see the film, but gives away absolutely nothing. There's a big, obvious "gottasee" that happily dances around with the utmost tact. That said, I'd still prefer to not see it again. I just want this movie here now!
Also, just have to say, although I haven't been a fan of Perkins' other films, this one really has me excited, and pictures of him wearing a Mr. Bungle T-Shirt at a recent premiere only strengthen my resolve to give him and this film a fair shake.
Some classic Thou. I still prefer the album art on the old CD, but I dig that the band eventually aligned all the older records through the artwork.
Something about this image just fits the music so well. It's cold, lonely and a little eerie.
Read:
Two of my old compatriots from the Los Angeles chapter of The Horror Writer's Association are publishing a novel this coming Friday that I'm dying to read.
Placerita comes to us courtesy of the fine folks at Cemetery Dance are releasing this one. Here's the solicitation from the Publisher's website:
"It's 1928, and something strange is afoot in the desert town of Placerita just north of Los Angeles. When young biologist Alexis Crawford discovers an unidentifiable specimen washed up in the wake of a devastating flood, it begins a journey that will reveal the dark conspiracies at the heart of California and the secret known only to a few: that beneath the City of Angels is an ancient world of tunnels lined in gold, a world that is home to the legendary Lizard People.... Like a cross between 'Chinatown' and the biggest conspiracy theory of them all, Morton and Palisano’s 'Placerita' addresses the intrigue behind 1928’s catastrophic collapse of the St. Francis Dam, corruption, organized religion and saurian urban legends in a fleet new noir that wastes little time in getting to the good stuff." PLACERITA is an intriguing premise, set against the ambiance of the 1920's and steeped in the culture of early 20th century California
You can order this one from the Cemetery Dance website right HERE, or wherever books are sold.
Play:
Being that before I bought a Nintendo Switch two years ago, I hadn't owned a video game console since the original Nintendo, I missed a lot of games and gaming culture. That's not really an issue - I'm about 10-20% gamer, no more. I just don't have time, as any time I spend on a game is time I regard as stealing from writing. That said, I do steal some time every once in a while, so now that I have a Switch, I'm constantly on the lookout for cool games I missed being ported over. Case in point:
Also, being that my interests lie in the Horror realms, Bloody Disgusting is a great place to find out about stuff like the above. Here's a link to the article on this one. John Carpenter's The Thing as a video game... I've heard some things about this one over the years and am very much looking forward to the creeping fear and isolation.
Playlist:
Thou - Umbilical
Thou - Summit
Emma Ruth Rundle & Thou - May Our Chambers Be Full
The Raveonettes - Chain Gang of Love
Man Man - Carot on Strings
Man Man - Life Fantastic
The Raveonettes - In and Out of Control
††† - Goodnight, God Bless, I Love U, Delete
Sinéad O'Connor - The Lion and the Cobra
The Raveonettes - Observator
Soup Horse - The Choir (Single)
Soap Horse - Carrara 20/10/23
The Ravenonettes - 2016 Atomized
Card:
Back to my mini Thoth deck for today's pull:
• Princess of Disks - Stability; graciousness. Good intent.
• Knight of Swords - Intellectually soaring; intelligence on fire - beast mode!
• Knight of Disks - Industrious and patient.
Returning to work tomorrow will be a challenge, but I'll more than rise to it.
If you need a reason to love Thou beyond the music, this is it. Order the new album UmbilicalHERE. I think Byran Funck's vocals are the closest I've ever heard to recreating that infamous "Stroke Me" effect Mike Patton used in old-school Mr. Bungle. And regardless of how much sludge this band piles on, I still hear the Staley-era Alice in Chains. Fucking love it.
Watch:
Joe Bob and Darcy did my favorite movie of all time last night. Here are those Drive-in totals:
Loved this episode.
Playlist:
Blut Aus Nord - Memoria Vetusta III: Saturnian Poetry
Dean Hurley - Tales From the Library of the Occult: Flower
Faith No More - Angel Dust
Warning - Why Can Bodies Fly (single)
Calderum - Mystical Fortress of Iberian Lands
INXS - Kick
Thou - Umbilical
Card:
One card from Missi's Raven Deck to send me on my way to Chicago to see The Ravenonettes on Monday:
Wednesday was an incredible day for new album announcements. I'd been expecting David Lynch to drop something because of a video he posted last week, but The Jesus Lizard's Rack from Ipecac was 100% surprise. This is the band's first album since 1998's Blue, and while there is a lot I do like about their two Capitol Records, I can already tell by this first single "Hide & Seek," that I like Paul Allen's production on this one way better (RIP Steve Albini, who produced their iconic albums for Touch & Go back in the 90s).
Also, Mac is back! That's right, original drummer Mac McNeilly is once again behind the skins. The stars have aligned!
Last night, K and I went to see Ishana Shyamalan's The Watchers.
Despite seeing this or a slightly different trailer before pretty much every movie I've attended in the theatre for the last month or two, I went in with a fairly open mind. All I'll say is, if you're an M. Knight fan, you'll probably dig this. It was very well made and had excellent performances, but I did not care for the script, characters or the film overall. I kind of felt a weird parallel to when I saw The Village, back on opening night in 2004. With it in a half-arsed kind of way until the last act, when I kind of just want to get up and walk out.
* My good friend Missi laughs at my growing frustration at pre-show "entertainment." She cooly arrives at just the right time every time she goes to the theatre (about as often as us), but somehow, I just can't time that right.
Playlist:
The Jesus Lizard - Show
Shellac - To All Trains
Big Black - Lungs
Various - The Lounge Ax Defense and Relocation Compact Disc
Dillinger Escape Plan - Calculating Infinity
Black Pyramid - The Paths of Time are Vast
The Raveonettes - Chain Gang of Love
Card:
From Jonathan Grimm's Hand of Doom Tarot, which you can buy HERE.
• Knight of Swords
• Five of Wands
• Queen of Wands
Perhaps cryptically, I have "Motivation as Will" written in the Grimoire for Knight of Swords. This is the Firey aspect of Air, or the Will as applied to Intellect. Five of Wands is Conflict in Earthly matters, and Queen of Wands, or the Emotional aspect of Will.
All any of this tells me at the moment - when it's 12:47 AM and I'm tired as hell - are we're all a big o' mess O' trouble. Contradictions and good intentions, but if you recognize that and we start there, we can move on and perhaps conquer and shape some of what makes us indecisive and try and turn conflict into stability.
