Podcast #87, “In Bloom”

Posted in garage rock, podcast on May 17th, 2012 by Nick – Be the first to comment
cottonwood-seedsThis podcast was recorded while I was supposed to be on-air for a freeform shift at KJHK. However, thanks to the remarkably intense blooming of the cottonwood trees here in Kansas, my allegies have rendered me pretty much housebound for the next few days. Thus, you get to hear a very hoarse host talk minimally about the track's he chosen. Speaking of tracks -- the podcast is straight off the old hard drive this week. Last week, I started having issues with my stylus (yes, again), which was why there was no podcast. So, until I can scare up some cash for a nice Grado cartridge, we're gonna be rocking it digitally. Damn shame, too -- lots of new acquisitions here at the Nuthouse that I can't fucking play. That all being said, this is a pretty great start of summer mix. Podcast #87, "In Bloom" Gentleman Jesse & His Men, "Highland Crawler" (Gentleman Jesse & His Men) Best Coast, "Crazy For You" (Crazy For You) Dum Dum Girls, "Bedroom Eyes" (Only In Dreams) --- The Fleshtones, "Judy" (Blast Off!) Minutemen, "Corona" (Double Nickels On the Dime) Shannon And The Clams, "You Can Come Over" (I Wanna Go Home) --- The Paperhead, "Back To Those Days" (The Paperhead) Psychic Ills, "Mexican Wedding" (Hazed Dream) No Age, "Common Heat" (Everything In Between) --- M83, "Dark Moves Of Love" (Saturdays = Youth) LCD Soundsystem, "New York, I Love You But You're Bringing Me Down" (Sound of Silver) Wire, "Reuters" (Pink Flag) --- The Strange Boys, "A Walk On The Bleach" (Be Brave) Reigning Sound, "I'd Much Rather Be With The Boys" (Time Bomb High School) The Shins, "So Says I" (Chutes Too Narrow)

Kepi Ghoulie, “I Bleed Rock ‘N’ Roll” (video)

Posted in rock 'n' roll, video on May 16th, 2012 by Nick – Be the first to comment
Behold! The new video for Kepi Ghoulie's "I Bleed Rock 'N' Roll," the title track to last year's album of the same name. Released today, the video features appearances by members of the Dollyrots, Phenomenauts, and the excellent 1-2-3-4 Go! Records. You can buy the album on LP or CD from Asian Man Records.

Mongoliad collaborators to live chat Thursday, May 16

Posted in books on May 16th, 2012 by Nick – Be the first to comment
book-cover-mongoliad Nerd alert! Uber-geek author Neal Stephenson -- along with his collaborators on The Mongoliad Greg Bear, E.D. deBirmingham, Mark Teppo, Joseph Brassey, Erik Bear, and Cooper Moo -- will be hosting a live video chat this Thursday, May 16, at 6:00 p.m. Stephenson wrote such modern sci-fi touchstones as Snow Crash, The Diamond Age, and the Baroque Trilogy. For those not wanting to watch it solitarilly via the Ars Techina site, you can hang out with fellow fans in person at the Lawrence Public Library, where they'll have the chat on in the the auditorium, along with a library staffer to pass along your questions.

Dave Thompson’s short but sweet history of Rocky Horror

Posted in books, movies, reviews on May 14th, 2012 by Nick – Be the first to comment
book-cover-mof-rocky-horrorDave Thompson is rapidly becoming one of our favorite music writers here at Rock Star Journalist. There's something about his writing style that's rather informal and relaxed, as if he's just a well-informed bar mate. However, the man's research and facts are spot on, and regardless of how loose his tone may be, he still conveys a lot of information in short order. The breathless opening to the latest installment of Limelight's Music On Film series sets the tone for what will follow: this slim volume of less than 150 pages will tell you each and every little thing about Rocky Horror -- both as a the Show and Picture Show -- from its roots in glam rock with Bowie and Bolan all the way through Glee. A bit of familiarity with Rocky Horror's plot and songs will certainly help, but if you're looking for an introduction, you could certainly do worse. A reader could easily breeze past all the sidebars and get a straightforward history of the music, but for folks who think they know everything, there's still a wealth of information. Every reference in "Science Fiction/Double Feature" is explained, the cast is laid out, and the film-making process explained. You'll read it in an afternoon or a short plane ride, but despite its short length, Thompson's analysis and history of the Richard O'Brien musical is essential. It's the rock opera equivalent of the 33 1/3 series, and much like that batch of books, I'm going to need to track down every volume of Music On Film.

Limited Fanfare debuts with the Ettes’ latest

Posted in garage rock, streaming audio / video, vinyl on May 8th, 2012 by Nick – Be the first to comment
cover-ettes-teethThe debut release on Limited Fanfare Records is this haunting single from the Ettes. The last record I heard from this trio was 2008's Look At Life Again Soon, which was fuzzy, echo-y, garage-y rock 'n' roll. It was fun, and I couldn’t get over how much this band made me want to shake my ass and dance all around the living room –- damn the fact the curtains are open! The a-side to their new single, "Teeth," is nothing like that. It's a slow country blues stomper, set for hot summer nights. It's the soundtrack for one of those movie scenes where some woman drinks too much and does this lazy bump and grind in full view of an entire bar or party. Sultry, kind of dirty, but not quite going full-on nasty. The flipside's a slightly dark, yet ultimately upbeat and bouncy little number called "Safely Down the Road." If "Teeth" was the late-night harbinger of things yet to come, this is the happy ending riding off into the sunset. Great stuff, cleanly produced, but just a hint of lo-fi to keep things interesting. The cover art's as wonderful as anything you'll see this year, and will make for a fantastic t-shirt. Limited to 700 copies -- 175 on translucent gold (which is already sold out), as well as 175 on translucent red and 350 on black.

Horrifying! Shocking! Tales of works from print to screen

Posted in books, movies, reviews on May 7th, 2012 by Nick – Be the first to comment
book-cover-now-a-terrifyingIt's been a good long while since I blew through a book as quickly as I did James F. Broderick's Now A Terrifying Motion Picture! Twenty Five Classic Works of Horror Adapted from Book to Film. Out now from McFarland & Company, Broderick's book is an enjoyable read. As I said, I breezed right through it, but that's not to say that Now A Terrifying Motion Picture! is a lightweight piece of writing. Broderick does a fine job of analyzing both literature and film in a well put-together piece of analysis. Each work gets the same treatment: analysis of short story/play/book, then analysis of the film, then a bit of comparison and contrast between the two. Those topics are all contained in each 7-8 page chapter, but it's not as if Broderick follows a pattern. Each work gets its own flavor of treatment. "The Masque of the Red Death" allows for a brief summation of other Poe collaborations between Vincent Price and Roger Corman, while works like The Fly and The Thing From Another World let the author look at multiple adaptations over the years. The reader could possibly quibble that there's no grand thread running through the book. Aside from the introduction, there's no real effort made to try to bring everything together in one grand theory. Actually, that works to Broderick's advantage. Covering so many works and so many films, with both print and screen titles covering centuries and formats, it would be nigh-impossible to find a commonality between all twenty-five pieces covered within the pages of Now A Terrifying Motion Picture! Plays, short stories, novels, novellas, movies both silent and talkie, to say nothing of a couple made-for-TV films ... the mind boggles at the effort of trying to tie all of this up neatly. Broderick does a wonderful job of keeping each chapter succinct and focused, while not skimping on any pertinent details. This is a must for fans of both literature and film. You order the book directly from McFarland using the link above or by calling their order line at 1-800-253-2187.

Podcast #86, “Definitely”

Posted in podcast on May 3rd, 2012 by Nick – Be the first to comment
you_sureJacked to the gills on caffeine, hiding in the basement from the mugginess of the outdoors ... I got a little twitchy and repetitive on this week's show. Expect to hear a certain word many times more than you want to over the course of the podcast. I apologize for my going to the well on certain words. For whatever reason, it happens, and particular terms get bandied about like a dog worrying a bone. It's a little obsessive, and I apologize. Podcast #86, "Definitely" Sit 'n' Spin, "Faster" ("Faster" single) Lydia Loveless, "Bad Way to Go" ("Bad Way to Go" single) The Stool Pigeons, "The Way You Look Tonight" ("I'm the One" single) --- Drakkar Sauna, "Son of Serious Injury" (live) (Pirate Treasure) Tin Horn Prayer, "Stumble" (forthcoming full-length) International Submarine Band, "Blue Eyes" (Safe At Home) --- The Ettes, "Teeth" ("Teeth" single) The Kinks, "Big Sky" (Village Green Preservation Society) King Khan & the Shrines, "Shivers Down My Spine" (Three Hairs and You're Mine) --- The Clash, "Time Is Tight" (Black Market Clash) James Brown, "Is It Yes or Is It No?" ("It's A Man's Man's Man's World" single) Otis Redding, "Shake" (Otis Blue/Otis Redding Sings Soul) --- Soul Brothers Six, "You Better Check Yourself" (All Night Soul Stomp) The JB's, "Gimme Some More" (Food For Thought) The Dovells, "Bristol Stomp" (Daffy Dances)

The weirdest comic about a reincarnated Morrissey you’ll ever read

Posted in comics, indie, magazines on May 1st, 2012 by Nick – Be the first to comment
zine-cover-there-is-a-lightThere Is A Light is a self-published comic from Geoffrey D. Wessel and John Keogh that I picked up while waiting to talk with Tom Brazelton at C2E2. These guys had the booth directly to the left of his, and I chatted with them while Tom was working on a sketch for someone. They convinced me to drop the $2 the photocopied and stapled comic cost, so I bought a copy and stuck it in my bag, and promptly forgot about it. As I was cleaning up the basement this weekend, I rediscovered There Is A Light and gave it a read-through. It's the weirdest comic about a reincarnated Morrissey you'll ever read. Probably the only comic about a reincarnated Morrissey you'll ever read, but still ... weird. My copy's the second printing, meaning it's doing pretty well. Not sure how you'd go about getting a copy, but Wessel can be found on Twitter @gdwessel, so you could probably do that. It's a fun little read, and keeping it on your coffee table will certainly get a conversation going.

Mike Conte’s new label, Demon Problems, announces its first release

Posted in mp3 on April 30th, 2012 by Nick – Be the first to comment
cover-early-manIt should surprise no one that the first release on Mike Conte's new label, Demon Problems, is a split featuring his band, Early Man. The other act is "LA's impossibly loud hardcore/punk duo," It's Casual. Early Man contributes the song after which the label is named, while It's Casual offers up "Suffering" and "Father To Me." It's a limited pressing of 1000 hand-numbered copies, with each side featuring a screened 7"x7" canvas patch. That's the Early Man side to your left. It doesn't see release until May 22, but you can pre-order it right now. Take a listen to all three songs streaming below.

Podcast #85, “Headache Not Hangover”

Posted in podcast on April 26th, 2012 by Nick – Be the first to comment
headacheStrange rantings and ravings this week, as I complain about many things. Then, suddenly, like a bolt from the blue comes a rather coherent and deeply-thoughtful analysis as to why oi / streepunk never took off as a genre. Bizarre things happen in the basement, y'know? Next week's show is shaping up to be a rather more mellow take on tunes, with a heaping helping of twang. I don't recall the last roots / country podcast we did, so that must mean it's high time to do so. I'm looking forward to it, and I hope you are, as well. Podcast #85, "Headache Not Hangover" Ruiner, "Morning Glory" (Under the Influence Vol. 14) Kamikaze Eyes, "Chewing Glass" (Two Summers Ago) Stripmines, "Gallows Tree" (Crimes of Dispassion) --- Madcap, "Hometown" (split with the Mighty Mighty Bosstones) Fatskins, "If You Want Blood (You Got It)" (OI/OI: A Tribute to AC/DC) The Main Street Saints, "Main Street" (The Main Street Saints) --- School Jerks, "Ugly Minds, Ugly Faces" (Control EP) Joint Damage, "Depth Charge" (Strike Gently) Lopez, "White Trash, Tough Guy" (split with the Automatics) --- New Coke, "All I Want Is Your Sunshine" ("He Got Stabbed In The Throat" single) Magic City, "Love Whiplash" (split with Up the Academy) Pujol, "Reverse Vampire" ("Reverse Vampire" single) --- Lemuria, "Cannonballs to Hurt" ("Varoom Allure" single) Apache Dropout, "Cuddly Toy" (Trouble In Mind RSD 2012 4-Way split) Roy And The Devil's Motorcycle, "Cristina" (Tell It to the People)