Dear Grandpa,

Rest in Peace. You lived life a so full and touched so may people...it will never really feel like you are no longer with us. Say hello to Grandma for us now that you are together, we all love you very much.

With Love,

Your Little Buddy

Merry Christmas!

May the holiday find you happy and full of good cheer! All the best from your Uncle EL and the rest of the Famous Family Singers...PEACE (on Earth and good will towards man)!

MORE MURRAY SANTA MAYHEM!

So, several years after the financial success of the original 'Santa Claus' movie in the previous post, Murray played Dr. Frankenstein to another horrendous classic in 'Santa Claus and His Helpers'. Padded mercilessly with scratchy footage from the original Santa movie, and surrounded by abysmal, filmed-in-the-US silent footage worthy of bad home movies, this short film was actually released theatrically as a feature!

The crux of the 'story' is that Santa Claus and Merlin the Magician visit their feuding pals, Stinky the Skunk and Ferocious Wolf, on Earth. Santa and Puss 'n Boots convince Stinky and Wolf to put aside their grievances and prepare for Christmas. Stinky is put in charge of Santa's modern toy factory. Plus, the mysterious use of the 'Fifth Dimension' is unveiled once again to give the story that whole creepy occult thing that ended up a Murray trademark. Confused? Don't feel bad...while I love it, so am I.

To add some local flavor for those in the Chicagoland area, the new scenes shot in the US took place on location at the three Santa's Village amusement parks...including the one in Dundee, IL (represent)! Two more films followed, including 'Santa's Magic Kingdom' and 'Santa's Enchanted Village'...both pretty much following the same formula and storyline.

Want to check out the insanity for yourself? Unfortunately, I can't find 'Santa's Helpers' anywhere and there isn't any fun MST3K commentary, but you can enjoy the following in their entirety nonetheless...

'SANTA'S MAGIC KINGDOM'

PART 2

'SANTA'S ENCHANTED VILLAGE'

PART 2

...and be sure to visit the go-to-website for all things K. Gordon Murray: THE WONDER WORLD OF K. GORDON MURRAY and read up further on a slew of movies that led one theatre-chain owner to reportedly dub the Florida producer, 'Disney from Hell.'

MURRAY CHRISTMAS!

K. Gordon Murray was a Florida-based producer and distributor of low-budget motion pictures. From the late 1950's through the mid 1970's, he released approximately 66 films...many of them imported from Mexico and re-dubbed for US release. The films ran the gambit from horror to kiddie/family matinee to exploitation/grindhouse...and most of them elevated Murray into legendary status amongst cult film aficionados.

The reason i'm posting up about him now though...a series of crazy Santa Claus movies rivaled only by his run-in w/ martians mentioned in earlier posts. The original 'Santa Claus' was imported from Mexico, re-dubbed/re-released in the US and finds Santa in battle w/ the Devil...yes, as in Lucifer, Beelzebub, SATAN. I'm not joking...

See? Not only does he thwart the Devil's minions and makes sure Christmas goes off w/out a hitch, but he does so w/ the help of Merlin...yes, the magician...and powers drawn from the mysterious and powerful 'Fifth Dimension'. Folklore, religion and the occult incredulously intertwine for the entire family! Truly a creepy and beautiful mess, it has to be seen to be believed.

Luckily for you, this film received the MST3K treatment as well! It's broken up into nine parts, w/ (again) links organized nicely, below. Different host, same great holiday taste:

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

Part 7

Part 8

Part 9

Great stuff. Insane and a lot of fun...but it doesn't stop there. What would you say to meeting 'Santa Claus and His Helpers'? How about visiting not only 'Santa's Magic Kingdom' ...but his 'Enchanted Village' as well?!

If the answer is 'F**K YEAH I WOULD!' then stay tuned for the next post where we'll delve even further into Murray's warped Christmas vision.

HOORAY! HO-HO-HOLIDAY MIX 2007!

Alrighty Dalek faithful, the fat man is only 8 days away from making his way down your chimney (with glee) and your Uncle EL producly presents to you his (semi) annual audio stocking stuffer for your holiday listening pleasure.

Hang some missletoe, chill some Cranberry Sierra Mist, cue this bad boy up on the hi-fi and then curl up w/ your sweetie on the faux bearskin rug by the fire...

'HOLIDAY MIX 2007: THEIR SANTANIC MAJESTIES REQUEST'

Hooray for Santy Claus! - Milton DeLugg & The Little Eskimos

Father Christmas - The Kinks

Rock 'N' Roll Santa - Little Joey Farr

Come On Christmas - Cheap Trick

Linus and Lucy - Game Theory

Super Sunny Christmas - Red Kross

Sleigh Ride - The Three Suns

Christmas Wish - NRBQ

Christmas Wrapping - The Waitresses

Donde Esta Santa Claus? - Guster

Frosty the Snowman - Man or Astroman?

Christmas Boogie - The Davis Sisters

Waking Up on Christmas Morning - The Smithereens

Eggnog - Luna

Merry X-mas Everybody - Oasis

God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen - Los Straitjackets

I Believe In Father Christmas - Emerson, Lake & Palmer

Auld Lang Syne - Esquivel

The New Year - Death Cab for Cutie

Mmmm, that's good stuff. Burn a copy, make your own cover and pass it off as your own to friends and family in lieu of a real gift...leave one for Santa next to his milk and cookies...use it as a coaster for Uncle Louie's eggnog...whatever you decide to do with it, have some holiday fun and ENJOY!

I think I still have a few more gifts in my big magic bag, so hang tight...more yuletide poop is on the way!

This Is No Laughing Matter...

First full trailer for the upcoming 'Dark Knight' flick is online HERE...and, if you think that looks good, check out THIS little x-mas gift that showed up early before the imax showing of 'I Am Legend'. Seriously, wow.

A Caroling We Will Go

I love Christmas music and when I say that I love Christmas music, I mean I love all TYPES of Christmas music. You can't beat the traditional stuff ala Mel Torme, Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole, etc...but this time of year, I also find myself on a quest to find holiday tunes you won't hear while shopping for a last-minute fruitcake at Walgreen's. Be it modern covers of the classics to originals of their own modern bent, it's an obsession that comes up each and every year.

Much of the latter usually finds it's way to my annual holiday mix, but while you wait for me to post up w/ this years audio gift bag to get the sugar plums dancing in your head (look to the skies early next week)...here are a few standouts of a non-traditional variety for you to check out:

'Happy Birthday, Baby Jesus'

An excellent compilation from the Sympathy for the Record Industry label, this'll incite you to cover yourself in x-mas lights and set the tree on fire just to watch it burn. Well, maybe not that excited...but you'll have a lot of fun w/ new tunes and new takes on old tunes served up in surf/garage/punk rock wrapping from artists like Rocket from the Crypt, New Bomb Turks, Man or Astroman, Mono Men, Supersuckers and Go-Nuts just to name a few.

'Tis' the Season for Los Straitjackets'

Instrumental versions of x-mas classics performed in a surf rock manner by an amazing band wearing Mexican wrestling masks...what's not to love? Really though, Los Straitjackets are no novelty act and bring forth a wonderful sounding uptempo holiday album that will have the entire family twisting by the chimney with care. One of my personal favorites.

'Merry X-mas from the Space-age Bachelor Pad'

I have been on a big space age pop/lounge kick as of late and thanks to my good friend, Miss Yvonne, I finally got my hands on the fantastic holiday offering from the genre's King himself, Esquivel. A mess of big-sounding lounge-esque holiday magic complete w/ instrumentalization using everything but the kitchen sink and plenty of POW DOO DOO ZA ZA ZA ZOOOOOOO-WOW! Can be enjoyed ironically or for the fun album it actually is at any 'holiday happening'.

The first two are availble via iTunes and you can pick up a copy of the third on Amazon or, likely, other means of an e-variety if you look hard enough. I'll have a lot more musical fun for you all w/ the holiday mix early next week...kids on the naughty list get first dibs.

GLAD TIDINGS, GLAD TIDINGS!

Okay kids. I've had several x-mas presents i've been planning on dropping on the Dalek faithful and this is one of them...

Deckin' your halls w/ a double-whammy. Two, Two, Two gifts in one! Not only are you getting one of the greatest 'so-bad-it's good' holiday classics of all time in 'Santa Claus Conquers The Martians'...but you get it w/ the additional yuletide flavor of one of the best shows ever to be on TV, MYSTERY SCIENCE THEATRE 3000!

Really, the movie is just so fun by itself, but watching it w/ Joel, Crow and Tom Servo just makes it even better...much like booze in your egg nog. It's broken up into 10 parts, w/ Part 1 up above and links to the others, organized nicely, below. C'mon gang, let's Have a Patrick Swayze Christmas:

PART 2

PART 3

PART 4

PART 5

PART 6

PART 7

PART 8

PART 9

PART 10

and for those of you who'd rather watch the film in it's glorious entirety, w/ one click and in better video quality... HO, HO, HO! More holiday fun from the El Famous workshop is on it's way.

All I Want for Christmas is...

...this bad mamma jamma. Okay, actually, I already know i'm getting it. Spotted it at Costco of all places for $20 less than the suggested retail price. Snapped it up yesterday, but it's being wrapped by the Mrs. and placed underthe tree until the 25th.

What is it? Well, true believers, it's 'The Marvel Vault: A Museum-in-a-book With Rare Collectibles from the World of Marvel'. A really sharp looking retrospective tome about Marvel comics by master comics writer and former longtime Marvel editor-in-chief Roy Thomas and noted comics historian Peter Sanderson, cool enough in and of itself.

However, it comes loaded w/ a bunch of extra goodies and reproductions of promotional materials, w/ each section includes a plastic holder containing a rare facsimile unique to the era.

Facsimiles featured include:
- Sketches 1941-42 (8)

- Bill Everett's Postcards to his daughter (3)

- Farewell Party poster 1957

- Stan Lee's Fantastic Four synopsis

- 1961 Thing Christmas card

- 1965 MMMS Welcome Kit (4)

- Marvel Convention book 1975 (small version)

- Value Stamps Collection mid-70's (10)

- Howard the Duck Campaign Button 1976

- No-Prize Book 1982 (small version)

- Marvel Visitor Pass 1982

- Spider-Man Wedding Invitation 1987

- Trading Cards 1990 (3)

- Marvel Share Certificate 1993

- Marvel Restaurant Menu 1998

- Andy Kubert's Origin sketches 2001(4)

I looked through one in the store and it's beautfully done...each of the 'trinkets' are organized and enclosed in flat plastic pouches to keep them in good shape, etc. An excellent x-mas idea for the comic book geek in your family.

Some more legitimate holiday poop on the way soon. Stay tuned.

Do You Have Christmas in France?

Well, it's December and Christmas in only a mere 22 days away. Stately Famous Manor is decorated appropriately and the boys are having fun w/ trying to 'redecorate' the tree. That said, i'm still not in the holiday frame of mind quite yet.

Actually, we were out at Woodfield Mall yesterday and I found myself pretty disgusted that the big 'Meet Santa' deal in the middle of the place was entirely sponsored by the horrible looking movie 'Fred Claus'. Seriously. Movie posters everywhere and a big freaking video screen right in back of Santa playing an endless loop of Vince Vaughn line-dancing w/ a bunch of elves. Co-opting the holiday for a movie tie-in is one thing...but a crappy flick like that?! The whole thing struck me in a bad way like a stocking full of coal to the head.

As I actually love this time of year (including the crass commercialism that comes along with it), i'll get over it. I may even try to post up w/ my annual Holiday Mix, should my lazy ass get around to it. So, as always, stay tuned for mucho holiday fun and other useless pap.

Naughty? Nice? I don't give a crap...everybody is invited. Ho.

Holy Nards!

It has come to light, that an outright late 80's HBO classic that my little brother and I would watch EVERY time it came on was finally released on DVD a few months back...in a 20th Anniversary Edition w/ extras nonetheless! 1987's 'Monster Squad' was kind of The Goonies meet Abbott & Costello meet Frankenstein meets Dracula meets The Wolfman...you get the point.

The premise of the flick, is that Dracula has just happened to come to a small town to find some sort of amulet giving him the power to rule the world and the whatnot. He enlists Frankenstein, The Wolf Man, The Gill Man (AKA Creature from the Black Lagoon) and The Mummy to help him out. It also happens, that there is a club of movie monster fanatics made up of several young rag-tag losers in same said small town that set out to stop them.

The film is so phenomenally 80's in the look, feel and dialogue...and you can't go wrong w/ all those classic monsters. I'll be netflixing this bad boy soon and it will be an experiment in nostalgia...hope it's at least a quarter of the fun I had with it at age 16. If you are one of those retro 80's nerds and/or sci-fi/horror geeks like me...you probably already have it in your que.

BONUS: My YouTube query for the trailer also unearthed the 1976 TV series of the same name where a pre-Love Boat/US Congress Fred Grandy solves crimes w/ wax figures of Dracula, The Wolf Man and Frankenstein brought to life. Enjoy the show opening HERE.

CLOVERFIELD!

You may or (more likely) may not remember the teaser trailer I posted a while back for the upcoming J.J. Abrams project. At the time, it was untitled and going by 1-18-08 (it's release date). Fast forward a few months, and the film is officially being called 'Cloverfield' and there is a brand spankin' new trailer...

Still looks like fun, but I hope the whole Blair Witch POV thing doesn't get too annoying. Guess i'll find out come January. BOOM!

Come On Pilgrim

Thanksgiving is a couple of days away, which means that Christmas (my favorite time of the year) is hot on it's heels. That said, before I go all yuletide on your candy asses, I have a lot of things to be thankful for:

• My best friend and lovely wife, Mrs. Famous.
• My sons, the dynamic duo, O and Lo.
• My entire family and extended family-in-laws.
• My Grandfather, tough as nails and still an inspiration.
• My brothers from other mothers, Kev, Kory, J.C. and Brad.
• My e-brothers from other e-mothers, Charles and Peter (What's happening?).
• ANYBODY who takes the time to actually read this labour of love.

I'm also thankful for the return of the seasonal Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash and, in an even more fantastic development, the Slurpee version of the same delicious beverage at my local 7-11.

So, while I drink copious amounts of dark beer while simultaneously watching football/my children run amok w/ their cousins and supervise my bro-in-law's first ever frying of the Thanksgiving day bird, may you be enjoying life and giving thanks for everything you've been blessed with as well.

Gobble Gobble, PEACE and God Bless!

Play Misty for Me

Wow. My best friend and movie junkie, Gep, has been talking this one up since the first trailer hit the theatres/web a few months back. I haven't been that interested in anything Stephen King in a long while, but this looks solid...and legitimately scary. I do recall enjoying the short-story this was based on in 'Skeleton Crew' many moons ago and like how the supposed safety within the grocery store turns no less dangerous than the enviornment outside.

Another King/Frank Darabont collaboration ala 'The Green Mile' and 'The Shawshank Redemption', 'The Mist' is in theatres next week and I may just have to go see this prior to it hitting DVD. Looks like total tub-o-popcorn fun.

KING KHAN & HIS SHRINES

'What is?!'

Okay, wayyyy late w/ this one, but i've become so enthralled by it's retro goodness that I had to spread the love. I became a moderate King Khan fan w/ the 2004 release of the last album w/ his Shrines, 'Mr. Supernatural'. He did some subsequent work as one part of The King Khan & BBQ Show that was more of punk blues thing...fun, but not funky as I like him.

A tongue-in-cheek retro revivalist channeling the 13th Floor Elevators...a Hindu James Brown fronting a dangerously funky garage rock/show band hybrid...a man who spews musical voodoo on par w/ the late, great Screamin' Jay Hawkins...the King is all that and more. While the last album (much more polished in it's production) leaned heavily on the 70's, 'What Is?!' takes another step back to the psychedelic 60's.

Retaining the funky, horn-laden ethos of the band w/ a garage rock twist, this album is painfully authentic sounding in it's raw production. You can practically close your eyes and see the lava lamp/black light posters and smell the hashish in groove-intensive tunes like '(How Can I Keep You) Outta Harms Way', 'I See Lights', 'No Regrets' and 'Le Fils De Jacques Dutronc'.

Throw in some equally fun moments of soul ('69 Faces of Love') and psychedelia ('Cosmic Serenade')...you've got the blueprint to the best key party and/or clambake EVER. Khan and his Shrines obviously don't take themselves seriously and to properly enjoy this album, neither should you...while the musicianship on display is tight, this album is all about cutting loose.

The album actually dropped back in May, but but better late than never...you can pick up 'What Is?!' and the previously hard-to-find 'Supernatural' on iTunes after you take a test-drive in my samplemobile to the right. Yount!

OHMEGA WATTS

'Watts Happening'

Overdue review, but I didn't want this absolutely tasty album go by the wayside. I practically street-teamed everybody I knew a few years back w/ the release of his first solo joint, 'The Find', and it looks like the sophomore effort is having the same effect. While the kids were too busy worrying about how many albums Ye and Fitty were going to move, Ubiquity Records and my man Watts slid another modern take on CLASSIC hip-hop into the mix, under the radar.

While the rhymes on 'Watts Happening' are the same throwback backpacker fare as last go around (social issues, relationships, loving hip hop, etc.), the intelligence, consciousness and positivity comes through like a breath of fresh air in a stale room full of mainstream rap...and it's sure as hell a lot more fun. Arguably, Watts strong point has never been as an MC, but he does seem to be an increased confidence in his delivery and flow on this one.

Rhymes aside, this album truly comes alive in it's production and composition. The man can just make absolute magic behind the boards, turntables and synths. The beats are so funky, so FAT...known side-effects of listening to this album are toe-tapping and head-bobbing. The musical explorations into funk, neo-soul and even bossanova that are layered on top, while keeping things funky, keep each track fresh and interesting to listen to.

While I love DJ's like Cut Chemist and Shadow, this is not turntablism for turntablism's sake...samples or scratching are never the focus, they only come in to accentuate the full composition of the song. This isn't a just a DJ or a rap album, it's hip-hop as God intended it to be...fun, funky and informative.

Enjoy some of the good stuff in the sample area and if you really dig the musicality/production, seek out the physical album w/ the bonus disc of all the instrumental tracks at your favorite record shop. PEACE!

AMBFAD Book Club

'The Replacements: All Over But the Shouting: An Oral History'

I don't know if it's come across via this blog or not, but if and when i'm posed w/ the question of who i'd consider the greatest American rock'n'roll band to ever stumble across God's green earth...it's an extremely easy question for me to answer. Minneapolis's favorite sons (of no one), The Replacements, are by far my musical (anti) heroes and changed the way I both looked at and listened to music.

Legendary in a way that could never be pre-fabricated and/or manufactured...more infamous than famous...the 'Mats are remembered for both how amazing and how amazingly bad they could be both live and on record. Their amazing catalog of music and self-destructive behavior as both band/individual equally created a near-mythical status and cult-like following that still haunts the surviving members/alumni of the band to this day.

The band was soooo ahead of it's time and the droves of artists that reaped the dividends from their influence during the early 90's alt-rock boom would have almost been sad, if not that it was seemingly the band's mission that they never reach industry-success. I remember back in the late 90's driving w/ a co-worker much younger than I and after a half hour of being subjected to their recently 'greatest hits collection' he turned to me and said: 'wow. this is amazing...how is it these guys were never huge?'

Until this book's release, that was a question that could only be answered w/ a few hours of free time and cocktails of equal amount. Minneapolis rock critic and former Westerberg co-conspirator, Jim Walsh, does an admirable job of weaving modern-day personal and recorded accounts of the band's infamous history into book format. Confirming and (in some cases) debunking the lore that has been spun from those who were there and those who wanted to be there during their 12-year ride.

Not only does 'All Over but the Shouting' encapsulate all of those great stories into one place, but it serves as a huge love-letter illustrating how much this band meant and continues to mean to people. While I don't usually like 'oral histories' and the book would have been more interesting w/ Paul and Tommy's participation...it's still a great read for fans of the 'Mats and music alike. It was supposed to be released on 15-Nov, but found it's way to my local Border's last week.

In honor of this book that has been a long time coming, please enjoy my favorite 'Mats song of all time in the sample area. 'I'm in love...w/ that song.'

'THE HOST'

I'm usually not too big on foreign films, unless they are of Asian descent and feature either elaborately choreographed kung-fu sequences and/or giant monsters terrorizing entire cities. Lucky for me, I had a certain Netflix on ice since last month when a few hours opened up this past weekend for a movie that had plenty of the latter.

A South Korean film, 'The Host' received and continues to receive a large amount of hype since it's release in 2006. While the film is a good old-fashioned monster movie at it's core...this is most definitely not your father's Godzilla flick. Personal struggles amongst the film's protagonists are just as frightening as the beast they are trying to take down. Plus, there are no foam suits or chicken wire here...this film is visually stunning in it's capture of the dark surroundings that serve as the backdrop to an FX masterpiece of a monster on par w/ Jurassic Park.

There is some parity to the cautionary Atomic tale of Godzilla, as the creature's origins offer some light political commentary based loosely from an actual incident in 2000 (wiki it, fool). Never a heavy-handed anti-US statement, the film does a great job w/ making the government's handling of the incident just as scary as the monster itself. There film also has it's goofy/comedic moments, but unlike most of the Godzilla flicks...it's intentional when they happen.

Bottom line, it's a blast of a flick that has a little something for everyone...sci-fi/horror nerds and art-house film geeks alike. Avaialble via Netflix and it sounds like they are working on a sequel for 2008 as well. Enjoy.

SACHARINE HANGOVER!

Well, our first official Trick or Treating expedition was a success! Owen (bottom pic) loved his monkey costume the minute we put it on him, but Logan (top pic) wasn't nearly as happy. However, once we started going door to door and filling up their buckets w/ candy...the cowardly lion was practically pushing us over to get to the doors and collect his loot. They hit 8-9 houses, had an absolute blast and made nice little haul.

I rounded out my Hallow's Eve by FINALLY watching the one film in the 'Halloween' movie franchise i'd never subjected myself to...'The Curse of Michael Myers'. It's awfulness is a thing of legend in horror movie fandom and it more than lived up to the hype. I'd never seen a movie try so hard to have such a complex plot line and make so little sense. Eh, it was still fun to watch.

Speaking of flicks, I finally got around to watching a great one that we received via Netflix and will share my review in a post later today. Stay tuned!

ZERO More Days til Halloween (Silll-ver Shamrock)

Only real horror junkies will get that title, but I digress. It's the actual holiday and not the movie and I caught myself chuckling at how my celebration of Halloween has changed over the years.

From dressing up and begging for candy as little shaver...to watching horror movies and defacing other people's property in High School...to dressing up and begging for girls in trashy costumes at bars in College...then, practically coming full circle, attempting to dress up MY little shavers so they can beg for candy (that we'll eat later) later this afternoon.

Keeping in that vein, while my love of the grindhouse/slasher horror flick is well-documented on this blog, I decided to go a little further back and highlight some of my favorite classic monster/horror flicks from my youth:

'Spider Baby'

While I don't recall actually catching this as a youngster, it seems like something I would have enjoyed on Son of Svengoolie some Saturday night. Theme song performed by and starring Lon Chaney Jr. himself, plus the debut performance of one Mr. Sid Haig (AKA Captain Howdy)! You can actually watch the whole flick online at AMC online as part of their yearly Monsterfest celebration.

'The Raven'

I remember stumbling upon this excellent flick based loosely around the Poe poem, on the WGN afternoon movie after school at a friend's house. Some gross FX for the time and an all-star cast including Boris Karloff, Peter Lorre, Vincent Price and a young Jack Nicholson. Creepy and funny...a really good time.

'Mad Monster Party?'

Rankin Bass flick featuring such legendary monsters as Dracula, Frankenstein, the Wolfman, the Mummy, Invisible Man and Phyllis Diller...nuff said. Not at all scary, but silly stop-motion fun w/ a Halloween vibe.

'Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein'

Again, not that scary as an adult, but this flick rocked my world as a kid. I both laughed and hid behind the couch as Bud & Lou took on Bela Lugosi, Lon Chaney Jr. and Glenn Strange (reprising their roles as Dracula, the Wolfman and Frankenstein).

While these flicks may seem kind of wimpy by today's standards, when included in a more well-rounded Halloween filmfest diet that includes guests like Michael Myers, Freddy, Jason and/or Dr. Satan...you've got an evening that has something for the entire family. Boo, bitches!

And You Don't Stop!

Not counting my lukewarm review of Ye's latest, we haven't really talked about much hip-hop in a long while. A lot of that has been due to my lack of exposure to anything interesting on that front outside of Madlib's 'Beat Konducta in India' (which is fly as hell BTW). Well, that changed earlier this week when the new album for my man Ohmega Watts dropped on iTunes.

The sweet boom-bip has me floating on air and I'll have a full review next week. Until then, check this dope 'making of' video for one of the funkier-than-hell instrumental tracks on the album, 'The Platypus Strut' and have a good weekend y'all...

THE HIVES

'The Black & White Album'

I'll preface this review by saying that for me, a little bit of The Hives goes a long way. I mean, i've always enjoyed both their music and their ethos...just in small doses. Could it be that, while I enjoy it, the chunky, dirty brand of Swedish rock delivered in black and white uniforms is just too much for even me to handle?! Well...yeah...that seems to be the case.

That said, their latest release, 'The Black & White Album', is nothing less than a blast. Really fun stuff. The trademark punchy, buzz saw garage rock wrought on previous releases still flows through the album's veins on killer tracks like 'Square One Here I Come' and 'Hey Little World'.

Maybe it's just me, there seems to be an infusion of funk/disco touches on tunes like 'T.H.E.H.I.V.E.S.' and 'Giddyup' as well, that may be in part to some different producers that include both Pharrell and Jacknife Lee and/or thier work w/ Timbaland. Sometimes it works, sometimes...not so much. I like the tracks that lean a little bit on some new wave floursihes the most. 'It Won't Be Long' and the Tony Basil's 'Mickey' on steroids 'Try it Again' bring the fun in a major way, both gritty and polished at the same time.

While I love quirky, the Hives just don't do it well as far as i'm concerned. Tracks like 'A Stroll Through Hive Manor Corridors' and 'Puppet on a String' end up as disappointing filler after the first listen and leave you a little irked that they are taking space up on the record. Regardless, the album as a whole is still worth the listen...especially if you are looking for a good time.

As always, check out a taste in the sample area and, while it was released in the UK last week, buy the album when it's avail in the States on 17-Nov. Even more WTF?! than the video in the post previous...they are currently touring as openers for Maroon 5. Wow.

Yup.

Well, it looks like Grandpa may be finally going home tomorrow. There will be a lot to work through, but he's doing as best is possible. Just got back from a long weekend at my college alma matter's Homecoming festivities and it was a much-needed good time...although my liver may say otherwise.

I'm still not really feeling like going back hot and heavy on the blog...and don't really feel like finishing off the whole ROCKTOBER thing, but I do have some worthwhile music and the whatnot to talk about. So, in the next few days, look for a review of the new Hives album and maybe some other semi-interesting stuff. Until then, here's the most excellent video for the first single from that album:

Don't ask me. Hell yeah it's weird, but like the band itself...you can't help but enjoy it no matter how strange they get.

Hey There.

Haven't had an opportunity to post up due to a family medical situation. My Grandfather had been acting a little unlike himself for the past few weeks and, long story short, they discovered a tumor on both his brain and his lung last Saturday.

Flash forward to this morning and the operation yesterday on the brain tumor went as best as possible. They removed everything they could via surgery and Grandpa got through just fine. I stayed until they brought him back to the ICU and he was really tired but okay.

The CT they did this morning showed no clotting and it seems everything was a complete success! He could be home as early as tomorrow afternoon. He'll start radiation treatments for the little pieces that could not be removed via surgery in 10 days and somewhere in that time frame they will also determine what to do about the tumor on his lung.

A (hopefully) long road ahead, but at least we got through one major issue okay. Today, I don't foresee myself blogging for a while...but that could change. Right now, music, pop culture and goofing around are kind of low on the list of priorities. Versus turning this blog way too emo, i'll just take a break until i'm ready to serve up the useless crap you look forward to on a not-quite-daily basis.

In the meantime, i'll offer one parting shot for ROCKTOBER and ask that you go give somebody you love a hug...life is too short and you cannot take it for granted.

On the Cover of the...

Rolling Stone? Pfffft. If you were into hard rock/metal in the late 80's, the only one of your favorite bands you would have seen accomplish that was Motley Crue in 1987. Even then, they were poster children for a venemous article ('Heavy Metal: It's Loud, It's Ugly and it Won't Go Away') that pretty much trashed the genre at that time. I was so incensed I cancelled my long-running subscription and found a new mag to curl up with while I listened to my new Bullet Boys cassette.

That rag was the glorious Larry Flynt-published RIP Magazine. Until it's arrival, (outside of Metal Edge, which i'll be talking about later) your options were either Circus or Hit Parader...the former not good for much else other than concert pictures to hang on your bedroom wall and the latter looked like they had a 12-year old for a design editor.

RIP was like the Cadillac of metal magazines...real interviews instead of monthly regurgitation of press clippings, professional photography versus photocopied fan photos and coverage of a diverse line-up of artists from death to speed to glam. Seriously, you could find an article on Anthrax sandwiched between pieces on Vixen and King Diamond. Plus (see above), where else could you WIN A GREAT WHITE LEATHER JACKET?!

But, like the genre it covered, the mag started to jump the shark w/ the grunge/alternative boom of the early 90's and eventually died off in it's attempt to stay relevant. Shortly thereafter, I went back to suckle at the teat of Rolling Stone, until the Internet pretty much rendered it as useless as a Great White leather jacket and 'artists' like Britney and The Backstreet Boys adorned it's cover. Hmmmm.

Yngwie For Africa

Hear N' Aid - 'Stars'

I deemed that Sam Kinison video in the last post the hard rock/metal equivalent of the 'We Are the World Video', only to remember there actually was a legitimately bad metal version of the whole Band Aid / USA for Africa trip called (get ready for this) Hear N' Aid. The tune itself was a pretty awful garden-variety sounding deal reflective of the times, but there was just as much big hair in the 'Do They Know It's X-mas' video (Duran Duran, hello?).

I have absolutely no idea what they were actually raising money for...it could have been to buy Kevin Dubrow the hair extensions for the Quiet Riot video I posted earlier. Who cares though, because...'We'rrrrrrrrrrrre STARS!'

Hahn(s) Across America

Sam Kinison - 'Wild Thing'



An awful cover tune from his excellent 'Have You Seen Me Lately?' album w/ the 1988-89 hard rock equivalent of the 'We Are the World' video to go along with it. More cameos from the 'who's who' of the genre during that time frame, than a double-sized issue of Metal Edge w/ fold-out poster of C.C. Deville. I can't believe it received regular rotation on MTV, even during metal's heyday on the channel. That said...R.I.P, Sam.

ROCKTOBER BONUS: The only thing more obnoxious than Jessica Hahn's freakishly altered breasts in that video? The follow-up vid for his cover of 'Under My Thumb' that came from his next album that MTV wouldn't air. Hmmmm...I wonder why?

NO ROCK'N'ROLL!

Quiet Riot - 'The Wild & The Young'

A perfect way to kick off ROCKTOBER, Kevin Dubrow and bandmates save us from a rock-less Wink Martindale-ruled future using only sequined marching band uniforms and a tune that sounds way too close to 'I Know There's Something Going On' by former ABBA member Frida.

Good Morning!

Well, it's a brand new week and after the last 2-3, i'm sure it's going to be a good one. Just in case, I thought i'd kickstart it with a little audio pick-me-up for everyone to pour into their coffee...complete w/ a sneer and bad haircut. Herrrrrrrrrreeeee's Johnny...

A lot of fun stuff planned starting today. Now that i've got the Lydon out of my system, the rest of the month AMBFAD will be spent celebrating ROCKTOBER! What does that mean? It means we will be substituting precursors like 'indie' w/ 'glam' and/or 'hard' whenever we refer to thee rock. Videos, albums, books, film that will make you want to tease your hair, hold your hand up in devil horn formation, lift your shirt up and flash the monitor. ROCKTOBER!

Hey, Hey. Holy Mackerel.

No doubt about it, it's going to be an interesting October...CUBBIES WIN THE NL CENTRAL DIVISION!

I don't know what the hell happened in Florida, but that doesn't matter now. While the NL Central may be considered the weakest division in baseball, it doesn't make this any less sweet. I'm excited and apprehensive at the same time. All I can say is...come Wednesday...LET'S GET SOME RUNS! GO CUBS!

This and the Mountain Dew Slurpee I had during the last couple of innings of the Brewers game, were perfect way to end another crappy week. I'll get back in the game after the weekend and post up w/ some good stuff. Taking the kids for their first trip to Brookfield Zoo tomorrow, so go outside and play. Peace!

THE CULT

'Born Into This'

I blogged about the announcement of a new Cult single and eventual album back at the beginning of August and kind of laid my fandom out on the table in the process. To be truly objective about said album, after having such a long-standing love affair w/ the band no matter what line-up the core nucleus of Ian Astbury/Billy Duffy surrounded themselves with, is pretty much near impossible. Then I remembered, aside from the fact that hardly anybody reads this anyway, I pretty much only review stuff on here I actually like anyway (w/ a few exceptions)...so, true believers, prepare for the fan-boy deluge to follow.

Anybody who witnessed the sordid history of the band firsthand, knows that The Cult, while never really re-inventing, seemed to ever-so-slightly evolve in both image and sound from album to album. Starting out as a kind-of post-punk goth-rock outfit, w/ the release of 'Electric' they added an dirty-sounding AC/DC vibe to go along w/ the Doors-influenced psychedelic leanings from albums previous. By the late-80's/early-90's via 'Sonic Temple' and 'Ceremony', they amped things up to Zeppelin proportions and went from 120 Minutes to Headbanger's Ball. Then, grunge came into vogue and influenced a dark, slow-moving self-titled release and, shortly thereafter, an 8 year hiatus. It's uber heavy, feedback laced, plodding Atlantic Records 'comeback release' ('Beyond Good & Evil') was cut off at the knees when the label abandoned the band a few months into promoting it.

History lesson...over. Cut to 6 years later, after Ian has left his doppleganging of Jim Morrision for a quasi-Doors reunion to 're-focus on his own musical legacy' and the Cult re-form for a tour and record a collection of tunes that Astbury has called a 'real, true Cult record.' 'Born Into This' is pretty much exactly that. While it's sound is probably most akin to the stripped-down rock of 'Electric' w/ shades of both the post-punk of 'Love' and bombast of 'Sonic Temple' color the edges. Really, the band revels in all the best parts of their history for what may be their best release since the heydays of 1988 - 1990.

As much as a fan as I am, I wouldn't lie if it stunk or was even so-so...but it's really a killer listen from the tribal baseline to riff onslaught of the lead-off title track to the defiant Stones meets AC/DC finish of 'Sound of Destruction'. The only possible dip in the road, would be an abrupt rock stoppage by way of Ian ditching Morrision for Johnny Cash on the stripped-down ballad 'Holy Mountain'...not bad, but I dig the classic Cult power-ballad of 'Tiger in the Sun' more. 'Citizens' and 'I Assassin' are also vintage Cult tracks any fan would love and the rest of the disc follows suit.

While Duffy's playing is a little more restrained and Astbury's voice not quite at the heights it used to be, they still got it. Listening to this made me feel the same way I did when I listened to them in High School...except i've gotten laid a lot more and have a mortgage. The album actually drops on 2-Oct and both iTunes and stores will have versions w/ some bonus demo/unreleased tracks to boot. I posted the link to check out the hip-shaking first single 'Dirty Little Rockstar', so check out something a little more introspective in the sample area. 'C'MON NOW YOU SINNERS!'

Save the Cheerleader, Update Your Blog...

My hope for a less crazy day at work than a majority of last week didn't really pan out, but the day was salvaged by coming home to see the boys actually coloring for the first time w/ Mommy and the season premiere of NBC's 'Heroes'! The boys ability to stay with the lines or even stay on the paper could use a little more practice, but the return of my favorite show was perfect.

Unlike my other 'must-see' show, ABC's 'LOST' (yes, i'm still a fan), 'Heroes' did a great job cinching up most of the plotlines from Season 1 prior to the finale. While this season's storylines are a result of what happened last time around, they are brand new stories that start 4 months later after the end of Season 1 and will also introduce some new charachters to keep things fresh.

Tonight's episode did great job setting up the intrigue that kept me coming back week after week last time. The whole 'Hiro in ancient Japan' thing looks a little shaky, but it could pay off in answering some questions about the origins of that mysterious symbol that seems to also be a forewarning to 'heroes' of old that they are to be eradicated. Whatever, it all looks good.

I'd still say that you'd probably get more enjoyment out of it if you've watched it from the start, but luckily they released the Season 1 DVD not too long ago if you need to catch up. You can also rest easy that you could probably be 50% the comic/sci-fi geek I am and still enjoy it...go to NBC.com and watch last night's episode and see. As 'LOST' isn't back on until 2008, the only other show I kind of have to watch is 'The Office'...it still brought the funny after two seasons, so i'm hoping for another.

I'm crossing my fingers, but I hope to have time tomorrow to post up w/ an album review that i've been dying to do since a few months back, so keep your eyes open. 'This is where it all begins...'

Professor, What's Another Word for Pirate Treasure?

That's what it is.

MOBIUS BAND

'Heaven'

A mobius band is a geometrical term for a 'non-orientable surface that cannot be embedded in a plane.' Mobius Band, who's upcoming release 'Heaven' has been enjoying some prime time in my headphones, are equally as impossible to compartmentalize into one particular sound or genre. A predominantly electro-pop sound occasionally lapses into brief moments of slight touches of alt-country and big helpings of indie rock, forming one cohesive collection of insanely catchy tunes.

Comparisons could easily be made to Postal Service's brand of glitchy electronics, sliced-and-diced strings, crunchy/distorted beats and sparkling synths...except this album features glitchy electronics, sliced-and-diced strings, crunchy/distorted beats, sparkling synths AND GUITAR. Definitely a lot less twee and each track has enough energy to move seamlessly into the other.

There are plenty of the bleeps, blips and enough sonic tchotchkes thrown about to make things interesting, but from the nearly rocking 'Secret Language' to the bouncy 'Friends Like These' to the driving crescendo of 'Black Spot'...shows a band who knows how to craft a true pop song. Actually, I think the band has found a perfect blend of the the electronic and pop rock, w/ only a few tracks bordering on one overshadowing the other. Another album I can listen to from start to finish.

The official in-store release date for the physical album is 2-Oct, but you can actually buy the 'e-version' today via iTunes. Take my favorite track for a test-drive in the sample area and see what you think. *blip*

Don't Tase Me, Bro!

I'm sorry. I know this video has been all over the place the past few days, but between the fact this braniac totally brought the whole course of events on himself and the week i've had...i've enjoyed numerous viewings since it hit the web.

I love how some people want to turn this into a freedom of speech thing or police brutality thing, but you're staging a sit-in for a guy who lets his boxers ride up above his cargo shorts and says 'bro'. Put the hackey-sack, String Cheese Incident bootleg and water bong down for a sec and think about what happened.

If he would have just gone up, asked his questions about voter fraud, impeaching Bush and what frat Kerry was in, let the Senator answer in his best teacher from the Charlie Brown cartoon voice and then shuffled his Tevas back to his seat...none of this would have happened. He had numerous opportunities to avoid every stage of the treatment he got from being forcefully escorted away from the podium to being wrestled to the ground to being cuffed and then, eventually, tazed (bro).

This is guy is a fourth-year student and U of F must be providing a humdinger of a quality education. At EIU, it only took me a few bar raids for underage drinking to realize as a Freshman that when the fuzz asks you to do something you don't talk back...let alone physically resist them.

That said, I thank Andrew Meyer for making this crappy week more enjoyable or, at least, a little funnier. BTW, shelf-life on the phrase 'don't taze me, bro' being funny before it's done to death is next Tuesday...use it while you can. I have some great new music i'm going to try and review tomorrow, but if I don't get to it...'don't taze me, bro.'

Okay, better make that Monday.

Oh No, There Goes Tokyo...

...and New York, Melbourne, Paris (where's Bowie and Jagger when you need them?) and even a trailer somewhere in Arizona. I caught another gem via my cable company's free on demand movie section over the weekend. If I were to have seen 'Godzilla: Final Wars' as a 13 year old, my guess is that I would have declared it the greatest movie ever made and ever to be made. I mean, I enjoyed the hell out of it in my thirties!

Really though, what's not to love though?! A flying battleship armed to the teeth w/ lasers/missles/a giant drill, city-leveling battle royales featuring a virtual 'who's who' of Japanese cinema monsters (Rodan, Mothra, Ghidorah, etc.) and outrageous mutant versus alien kung-fu throwdowns worthy of a Stephen Chow flick. Only gratuitous nudity or a free pony every time you watch it could have made it better.

Released in 2004, it supposedly boasts the biggest budget ever for any film in the Godzilla franchise...and you can tell. However, unlike the awful 1998 US summer blockbuster, the pure fantasy and silliness that made the long string of classic Godzilla films so much fun isn't sacrificed for megaton-FX. In fact, the 1998 US (what our friends abroad refer to as 'Zilla' sans the 'God') version is quickly disposed off by the real deal post haste...

Awesome. I'll spare you the detailed plot summary (wiki it), but the whole thing is a blast. If you've got the Comcast, look for it and if not, Netflix this bad boy.

Damn.

Hey there, kids. We've had a sick kid at home and somebody put something in the water at work...things have been apeshit crazy w/ new projects and i've been too busy to post up. I will remedy that shortly and hope to get back on track w/ stuff that nobody will really read but me anyway. Peace!

FOO FIGHTERS

'Echoes, Silence, Patience and Grace'

The Foo Fighters are an interesting animal...not really heavy metal/hard rock, but not quite true alt/indie rock either. I think that's why i've considered myself an admirer since their S/T debut and pretty big fan upon the release of the classic 'The Colour & The Shape'. They've always sort of 'bridged a gap' between those two genres I love and have gone on to rise above both to become a true ROCK band w/ no hyphen preceding it.

Working w/ Gil Norton (Pixies) for the first time since 'Colour', 'Echoes, Silence, Patience and Grace' doesn't quite recapture that paring's magic...but may be their most solid output in it's entirety since. Really though, they're a different band than they were then and this album is filled w/ tunes that can fill the very stadiums the band finds itself playing to nowadays.

Case in point, the lead off single, 'The Pretender', I posted the vid to a while back...a tune which has since grown on me to a point of really digging it. The big sounding arena-friendly rock continues on my personal favorites 'Erase Replace', 'Long Road to Ruin' and 'Cheer Up Boys (Your Makeup Is Running)'...you can almost feel the breeze from the Pete Townshend-esque guitar windmills.

The surprise track for me is 'Summers End'...a classic rock radio throwback that sounds like the Eagles on steroids. Not at all earth-shattering, but a perfect roll-the-windows down and head down the highway track. There are a couple of forays into the more acoustic jams that Dave has seemed to become fond of and, while not my favorites, I actually find myself not skipping past.

Bottom line, as I stated earlier, this the first Foo album in a long while I can honestly say I enjoy in it's entirety. No 2-3 killer tracks w/ varying degrees of no more or less than decent music peppered around them. This is a great album. A great album that via a pre-order from iTunes, gets you early access to show tickets and a bonus track...worth every penny. Check out a track in the sample area prior to the album's release on 25-Sep and then pre-order that bitch!

BAND OF HORSES

'Cease to Begin'

Another band I didn't catch the first time around, Band of Horses sophomore release, 'Cease to Begin', seems to be one of the most eagerly-awaited indie-kid new releases of 2007. The band really won a lot of folks over w/ the 'Neil Young/Crazy Horse meets Big Star' sound that was the hallmark of their 2006 debut, 'Everything All the Time' and justifiably so. Said album was the perfect mix of big, lush sounding indie-rock w/ moments of melancholy alt-folk...you could here everything from the aforementioned influences w/ some Beach Boys, Byrds and even late-era Hüsker Dü thrown in for good measure.

Upon first listen, I was really impressed w/ how beautiful sounding the album was, but that was w/out the frame of reference of their previous release. While the overall sound is still amazing, this album is sparse, plodding and a little less rocking in totality. Now, my favorite tracks 'Ode to LRC', 'No One's Gonna Love You', 'Marry Song', and 'Is There A Ghost' are strong enough to keep the praise lauded on them intact...they just don't make for an entire 'four-star' album (if I actually had an official rating scale). It's almost a 50/50 split on tracks that are fantastic and just okay.

Still worth checking out for yourself once it's released on 8-Oct, but in the meantime, try out a track in the sample area and go ahead and purchase their debut already available on iTunes and the like.