// Category Archive for: Best Of Lists

Best Comics Of 2013: Carol Borden

Though there’s been a lot of gloomy talk about the state of the comics industry, I actually find myself overwhelmed by the number of good comics I’m interested in reading. So instead of doing a straightforward best of list, which I admit I’m terrible at anyway, here’s my list of best comics of 2013 by category.

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Best Alternative Posters Of 2013: Tal Zimerman

Godzilla by Phantom City Creative

Another award-winning design for Phantom City Creative—Godzilla AS the wreckage he causes.

The balance of simplicity, power, and conceptual playfulness that marks the modern movie poster movement just does not get better than this.

Evil Dead 2 by Jason Edmiston

Edmiston’s Evil Dead 2 poster got a ton of notice due to, among other things, the unprecedented smoothness between blended colors. Jason once again raises the bar for the screen print set.

The Visitor by Seek and Speak

This is the kind of poster you hope the movie is half as good as. It looks like how my uncle’s room smelled in the ’70s. It looks like all the Uriah Heep songs. It looks like that He–Man episode where everyone takes acid. Or did I watch it on acid and it just looked that way? I dunno.

Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter by Gary Pullin

Ghoulish Gary Pullin’s poster for Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter is a master class in unsubtle. Sometimes the indie poster scene gets a little too clever. Other times, it’s just a giant fucking Jason face coming through your wall. And I like that.

There Will Be Blood by Aaron Horkey

Impossibly tight technique meets million dollar concept in Horkey’s There Will Be Blood print for Mondo. Horkey basically prints money, anyway. Ask anyone who has tried to buy one of his posters.

Jaws by Paul Shipper

This piece was from a Jaws tribute show, and if you told me it was a long lost Drew Struzan design, I would have believed you. Thank goodness for designer Paul Shipper and his unwillingness to let the classic ’70s and ’80s poster style die.

The Silence of the Lambs by We Buy Your Kids

Looking like a playing card from Satan’s personal deck, WBYK’s The Silence of the Lambs print combines concepts and aesthetics to form something both beautiful and creepy. A modern classic.

Creepshow by Mike Sutfin

Sutfin’s pays tribute to the original poster designs for BOTH Creepshow films (there is a third film, but we don’t talk about it . . . ever) and the variant edition glows in the dark. A movie that’s fun and spooky needs a poster big on both.

Frankenstein by Tom Whalen

This Frankenstein poster is but one of many designs found within Tom Whalen’s Universal Monsters folio for boutique gallery Dark Hall Mansion. I picked this piece because, well . . . that’s how I was feeling at the time. Tomorrow, it may be the Dracula poster, or the diptych with ALL the monsters in it. Who knows?

Evil Dead by Trevor Henderson

This was one of the first posters I thought of when I signed up to make my list. Those eyes! They don’t let you forget them so easily. This image was used to promote the film’s SXSW premiere.

Tal Zimerman is a founding member of the comedy troupe The Sketchersons, writer for Rue Morgue magazine, game show winner, and currently the subject of the upcoming documentary feature WHY HORROR?

Best Of 2013: JG Thirlwell

Music
Here is some popular music I have been absorbing this year. Some on this list came out this year and some didn’t.

Chrome Hoof, Chrome Black Gold (Cuneiform)
Ken Thomson/JACK Quartet, Thaw (Cantaloupe)
Fuck Buttons, Slow Focus (ATP)
Guapo, History of the Visitation (Cuneiform)
Goldfrapp, Tales Of Us (Mute)
Dominique Leone, January – December: Mr. Leone published a new piece of music almost every day in 2013 (Bandcamp)
These New Puritans, Field Of Reeds (PIAS)
Yamantaka//Sonic Titan, UZU (Suicide Squeeze)
Noveller, No Dreams (Important)
Patrick Higgins/Mivos Quartet, String Quartet No. 2 (Ex-Cathedra)
Else Marie Pade and Jacob Kirkegaard, Svaevninger (Important Records) and Jacob Kirkegaard, Conversion (Touch)
Christian Gibbs, Sleep The Machines (Eastern Spurs)
Robert Haigh, Darkling Streams (Primary Numbers)
Tim Hecker, Virgins (Kranky)
The Field, Cupid’s Head (Kompakt)
François Bayle, Motion – Émotion (INA-GRM)
Oneohtrix Point Never, R plus Seven (Warp)
M.I.A., Matangi (Interscope)
Igor Wakhevitch, Logos/Docteur Faust/Être Dieu/Hathor (Lithurgie Du Souffle Pour La Résurrection Des Morts)/Les Fou d’Or/Nagual (Les Ailes De La Perception)/Let’s Start (Fractal)
Major Lazer, Free The Universe (Downtown)
A Hawk and a Hacksaw, You Have Already Gone To The Other World (LM Duplication)
Francis Dhomont, Mouvances-Métaphores (BVHaast)
Jonas Broberg/Erik Mikael Karlsson, Two Composers (Fylkingen)
Red Stars Over Tokyo, Melody Attack (Kompakt)
Dorit Chrysler, Avalanche EP (In My Room)

Concerts
I went to a bunch of concerts and events in 2013. Here are some of the most notable . . .

1/19: Extra Life at 285 Kent
2/7: Swans, Music Hall of Williamsburg and 6/13 at Warsaw
2/10: Beak/Chrome Canyon at Bowery Ballroom
3/23: Stockhausen’s Oktophonie at Park Ave Armory
4/4: Clint Mansell at St Paul the Apostle NY
4/7: Yeah Yeah Yeahs at Webster Hall NY
4/12: Barn Owl at Death By Audio
5/8: The Residents at Sodra Teatern, Stockholm
5/16: Tristan Perich at The Kitchen NY
5/31: Secret Chiefs 3 at The Stone NY
6/16: Asphalt Orchestra play Yoshida Tatsuya at the BOAC Marathon, Pace University
6/30: Tilt Brass/Holly Herndon at Winter Garden
7/6: Wolf Eyes/Hubble at St. Vitus
7/9: Squarepusher at Le Poisson Rouge
7/12: Cheap Trick at Coney Island
7/31: Melvins at House of Vans
8/2: Dan Deacon at Celebrate Brooklyn
9/17: Shining at St. Vitus
9/19: Lary 7 at Clocktower NY
10/16: Nicolas Bernier & Martin Messier La Chambre Des Machine at Lausanne Film Festival
10/17: Jason Lescaleet at Lausanne Film Festival
10/22: Mario Diaz de León at Roulette Brooklyn
10/27: Child Abuse/Cellular Chaos at Death By Audio
10/28: Sparks at Webster Hall NY
10/31: Raime at Output Brooklyn
12/6: Anna Von Hausswolff/Noveller at Union Hall Brooklyn
12/7 Frank Bretschneider at 285 Kent Brooklyn
12/8 Goblin/Zombi at Le Poisson Rouge NYC
12/15: Ken Thomson/JACK Quartet at SubCulture
12/21: Forma at Bowery Electric NYC
. . . plus John Zorn, various events for his 60th birthday

Film
Films I dug:
Paradise: Faith
Paradise: Love
Only God Forgives (why did everyone else hate this?)
R
Amour
The Imposter
Cold Fish
Leviathan
Gravity (for the incredible visuals and 3D, not the questionable script)
12 Years A Slave

I also keep a Tumblr blog where I talk about events that I check out, and other cultural obsessions, etc.

I must say it was a year of professional ups and personal downs for me.
Some of the highlights were:
Touring Europe with Manorexia
Working, recording, and touring with Zola Jesus, and being musical director for a succession of killer string quartets
Performing my solo piece Cholera Nocebo in Stockholm, Istanbul, and Lausanne
Writing my first piece for solo instrument—a piece for double bass commissioned and performed by James Ilgenfritz
Working with modular synths at the ElektronMusikStudion in Stockholm, and all the great music I discovered in their library
Skydiving from 13,000 feet
Pat Noecker’s Assemble Project at the Ace Hotel
Plus, I released two albums—Foetus, Soak and JG Thirlwell, The Blue Eyes—and produced another—Zola Jesus, Versions—and contributed to two others—Melvins, Everybody Loves Sausages and Kavus Torabi’s Exquisite Corpse project.

For more on JG Thirlwell, please visit Foetus.org.

Best Movies Of 2013: Ghoulish Gary Pullin

Maniac

I know, I know, we all hate remakes and fans of Bill Lustig’s sleazy original all had a giant seizure in unison when the project was first announced. But the new Maniac completely surpassed my own expectations in every way. Elijah Wood’s psycho is just as creepy and menacing as Joe Spinell’s, the P.O.V. camera work is innovative, and the violence is truly disturbing. This may just change your mind on the way you see remakes.

American Mary

Directed by twin sisters Jen and Sylvia Soska, American Mary has been popping up on a ton of best of lists and for good reason—the original premise and convincing performance by Katherine Isablelle, star of the Canadian hit Ginger Snaps, helps American Mary rise above many of the independent horror films released in 2013. American Mary is just twisted enough to satisfy horror fans bent on the films of David Cronenberg and Takashi Miike.

The World’s End

The writing trio of Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg, and Nick Frost are in fine form with this hilarious, sci-fi horror film. Turbo-charged fight scenes with the alien invaders, top-notch visual effects, and the chemistry of the cast elevated this over Seth Rogen’s North American apocalyptic comedy, This Is The End.

You’re Next

You may have missed its short theatrical run, but Adam Windgard and Simon Barrett’s home-invasion thriller really delivers with clever kills and a simple but suspenseful story. It also marks the return of scream queen Barbara Crampton. You’re Next is a smart and scary tribute to the Friday the 13th franchise and the stalk and slasher subgenre.

The Conjuring

More or less based on a true case from the files of the real life paranormal investigators behind The Amityville Horror, Ed and Lorraine Warren, The Conjuring is a fun ride through the spookhouse. It’s more than predictable and even though I saw the ending coming, James Wan’s direction of the set-ups and the clever, unconventional scares make this film work. Plus, it’s got the creepiest doll in it since Poltergeist.

I Declare War

Co-directed by Robert Wilson and Toronto filmmaker Jason Lapyere, I Declare War was a total surprise. A highly imaginative game of Capture the Flag takes some dark turns among a group of neighborhood kids. Think Lord of the Flies and Battle Royale and you’re close. Great pacing and more than a few interesting twists make I Declare War a compelling watch.

Antiviral

Brandon Cronenberg’s debut is more than a skin cell similar to the films of his father, but his debut stands on its own as a slice of sick cinema. With a limited budget, the filmmakers really sold me on the world where celebrity obsessed, DNA vampires become addicted. Antiviral is the modern day Martin.

Grabbers

Gremlins, Tremors, and Shaun of the Dead walk into a bar. . . Produced in Ireland, Grabbers is B-movie monster fun at its best. In order to avoid becoming lunch, the people of a small Irish community must stay drunk because the tentacled creatures have a deadly allergy to alcohol. The film really benefits from a great cast, sharp humor, nods to other monster and sci-fi films of its ilk, and some pretty fantastic effects.

The Wolf of Wall Street

Based on a true story, Martin Scorsese’s latest effort is a frenetic, scathing, and often hilarious take on the life of salesman/crook Jordan Belfort. The Wolf of Wall Street is more in line with the demented satire behind Natural Born Killers: it glorifies the villains and plays as a comedy more so than a dramatic autobiography, but that’s not a gripe. For me, it’s Scorsese’s best since Casino.

Rewind This

Using entertaining interviews with fans and film folks harboring a rabid love of VHS and the home video boom of the 1980s, Rewind This is a ton of fun to watch for nostalgic horror fans and for those of us who remember what a video is.

Blackfish

You may just think twice about taking your kids to SeaWorld or Marineland after watching this infuriating and revealing doc on the cruelty and mistreatment of Orca whales in captivity. Like Warner Herzog’s Grizzly Man, nature has its revenge and it isn’t pretty.

All The Boys Love Mandy Lane

I caught this when TIFF programmer Colin Geddes screened it before he announced his selections for Midnight Madness and I was blown away by how good it was. The movie, starring Amber Heard, sat on the shelf for a whopping seven years before finally seeing a DVD release this year, but it still comes off as a fresh entry into the slasher genre. The twist ending was also a big surprise. Highly recommended.

A Band Called Death

A heartfelt documentary on three brothers from Detroit and their punk band Death that pre-dates The Ramones, The Sex Pistols, and Bad Brains. They cut an album, but the disappeared into obscurity only to be discovered years later. Electrifying and inspiring, the doc also features interviews with Henry Rollins, Alice Cooper, and guitarist Vernon Reid.

Most Anticipated In 2014

The Editor (Astron 6)
The ABCs of Death 2
Curtains (Blu-Ray remastered and reissued through Synapse)
Cooties (Elijah Wood’s monster movie)
Jodorowsky’s Dune (documentary)
The Raid 2
Alice Cooper documentary by Banger Films

For more on Gary Pullin and his artwork, check his website.

Best Of 2013: Less Lee Moore

My goal for 2013 was to see 100 new (to me) movies, listen to 100 new albums, and read 100 books. I had to find time to eat, sleep, and bathe, so some of these goals were not accomplished. (Hint: the latter two.) I also watched quite a bit of TV, but not all the shows that I loved so fiercely in 2012. Part of this was availability; part of it was time. Without cable or a DVR, I’m reliant upon Canadian network websites for new shows. I did, however, get into Mad Men and get back into Supernatural, thanks to Netflix Canada, which is the second best pop culture item on my 2013. The first is the TV show that dominated everything else in 2013: Hannibal.

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Best Of 2013: Brad Henderson

1. Blue Ruin
I could go on for days on how much this film means to me and how emotional I became watching it. Not only one of my favorite flicks of the year, but also of all time. I can’t wait to hear about the general consensus of this one.

2. The Conjuring
I’m a horror fan for life and I have lots of love for James Wan. I’m also a huge fan of The Warrens and their work so this is an obvious film for me to put on my list.

3. The Lords Of Salem
Don’t care about the hate for Rob Zombie. Zombie is a genius through and through and shows his true love for film in this one.

4. The Battery
Best $6K zombie movie ever made. Also, one of the best zombie movies ever made.

5. Jug Face
Read my review on this one. The Pit Wants Want It Wants.

6. Furious 6
You can call it whatever you want, but the title card said Furious 6, and it’s also the best in the franchise.

7. Maniac
One of the best remakes ever. Also, Elijah Wood plays a brutal serial killer and we take him seriously? Yep, it worked.

8. Mud
Great flick. It is very basic, but the way it’s presented is outstanding.

9. Spring Breakers
I’ve always disliked Korine and thought this film was going to be garbage. As it turns out, it became a favorite of mine and I think about it every single day.

10. Broken
Heart breaking and super emotional, this film hit me hard.

Best Of 2013: Erik Alcock of The New Royales

Photo © Mike Quain

Ty Segall, Sleeper

Ty Segall’s new one was a bit of a departure. It was a pared-down acoustic collection that showed not only his versatility, but also his softer side. For a guy who releases an album in what seems like every couple of months, it was nice to see him follow his moods and whims and still come out with a solid and surprisingly emotive collection of tunes. He’s got some John Lennon to him; his voice can quaver in that direction, but there is also the subject matter. He lays some things very bare and does not hide behind pedals or bombast.

When the guy does do his rock and roll, as on Twins from last year, he makes everyone else sound slow.

Fave tracks: title track and “She Don’t Care”

My Bloody Valentine, MBV

I don’t remember what I was listening to 22-years ago, but it sure wasn’t the last MBV record. When I got into them, I didn’t think that a follow-up would ever happen, but lo and behold, earlier this year, the 22-year drought ended and is it weird that I feel it was worth the wait? I’ve read they are the loudest live band of all time and people have left shows delirious in need of new underwear. My friend in Montreal said he was depressed after seeing them last month because he realized that no show could ever compare. It’ s otherworldly, challenging, blissful, and strangely sexy, all of this and more.

While I’m sure Kevin Shields didn’t spend all of those 22 years making this album, you can tell the man knows his way around a studio. No one has made a guitar sound like he does. It tells me that listening to an album as an album and not just digital files is not an old-fashioned idea. It’s best played without anything else going on, with the biggest speaker system you can find, and if you don’t have anything other than an iPod dock, find your nearest audiophile friend and persuade him to let you blow his mind for an hour. (If he’s a real rock audiophile, he’ll already have the album, but I digress.) You will both be cleansed of any urge to listen to bro-rock or bad Auto-Tune flash-in-the-pan for a good long while. If any of the above urges return, I recommend you repeat the dosage. . . louder.

Fave track: “In Another Way”

Kurt Vile, Walking On A Pretty Daze

Not sure where this guy came from; well, Philadelphia specifically, but apparently he’s been plying his brand of psych-folk-rock for a good few years and has been on a pretty good clip as far as albums go. Picture a lazier Neil Young and that would be half the picture, though I would never deign to call someone who releases an album a year “lazy.” Anyway, he can finger pick acoustic with the best of them and throw down a sludgy swampy rock stomper without missing a beat. He throws more than the usual “cowboy chords” into the mix and does not shy away from programming and sequencers. I have it on good counsel that Kurt Vile is actually is his real name and he’s got great hair. This isn’t an instant gratification record: his first song is nine minutes long, but he takes the time to wind the tune and play it out. In fact. two other songs are over eight minutes long, but there are certainly some hooks. He’s well worth checking out if you like albums that make you want to get in a car and just drive past small towns and country fairs, letting that great hair go in the breeze. Did I mention he has great hair?

Fave tracks: “KV Crimes,” “Air Bud”

The New Royales will release their new covers album, Freedom’s For The Brave: The Mixtape, on January 14, 2014.

Best Games Of 2013: Luke Shaw

I should start by going out of my way to elaborate that this is not a best games of the year list, or any other such nonsense. I don’t own every console, I barely played a quarter of the year’s releases, and I spent a disproportionate amount of the year on older games like S.T.A.L.K.E.R Shadow of Chernobyl.

Instead, I’m just going to write about things that I wasted my time playing this year, and why I am not sad I wasted my time doing so. The only real theme to this list is impact: anything that engrossed me for a sufficient space of time, or something that resonated deeply, or long after I finished it. I have included the three biggest critical releases of the year, not just because I enjoyed them but because they did a lot of things wrong. Regardless they deserve to be talked about and weighed into any discussion like this. I regret not being able to play tantalizing releases such as Gone Home and Papers, Please but I am no journalist and my time and money are limited. There is an overall winner, but it is only taking that spot due to the sheer lunacy of the hours invested.

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Best Of 2013: Corey Cunningham of Terry Malts

Here are five reissues I liked this year:

Neo Boys, Sooner Or Later
Oh man, this was very overdue. I’m also really surprised that it took this long. Kudos to the fine folks at K Records for getting this late ’70s/early ’80s Portland punk band’s music back out there so a whole new audience can find it.

For Against box set
I was really excited about this. For Against is one of those perpetual underdogs and I love them for it. They’ll never be co-opted and have their name mined for all it’s not-quite-post-punk, not-quite-shoegaze glory in crummy new band’s one-sheet. Pretty great artwork here, too, by Independent Project Press guru Bruce Licher. (Captured Tracks)

Giant Henry, Big Baby
Numero Group puts out some fantastic records; everybody knows that. I really truly loved the Wayfaring Strangers series and the Codeine reissues as well. They never disappoint with the packaging either. This release is an early recording by Unwound (as a part of their reissue campaign for that band) when they were in high school playing under the name Giant Henry and it shows the group in it’s early Nirvana/Tad inspired phase. A++ release here, folks!

Philip Perkins, Drive Time
Full disclosure on this one: I re-released this with my friend Matt Kallman on our label Body Double, a subsidiary of Captured Tracks. That being said, it’s an obvious candidate for my favorite reissues of the year. This is a mid-’80s sound collage by a former conspirator in The Residents. The whole thing is presented as an alternative to the AM radio commuters often listened to back then. It’s perfect listening for a long drive. Trust me.

I Am The Center: Private Issue New Age In America, 1950-1990
This is not so much a “reissue” as it is a compilation featuring private press new age from before it was a recognized genre until its saturation point in the ’90s. You can’t go wrong with this and you’ll find yourself scrambling to a computer to find the original pressings on Discogs after your first spin. (Light In The Attic)

Terry Malts’ new album, Nobody Realizes This Is Nowhere, came out through Slumberland Records on September 10.

Best of 2013: Julie Finley

This year has been awful . . . for me at least. Between agonizing pain that led to back surgery, as well as polycystic ovarian syndrome, it made it very hard for me to enjoy anything (with the exception of a few out of town excursions).

I watched more movies than usual, due to my combined illnesses, but not too many were new films. I actually only went to a movie theater once this year. As far as television shows go, there were only a few current shows I bothered with; most were re-runs (but I hadn’t watched originally, so it was like watching a brand new show).

Concerts were VERY few: The Hives (who were great; my review), and going to see Bill Burr do stand-up. I was supposed to see Adam Ant, but that was when my back injury was out of control, and I couldn’t attend, so those tickets went unused.

So with that said, here’s a list of media I enjoyed in 2013. There are no books listed, because even though I am cooped-up, I find no joy in reading!

Most of the music I listened to was old, but there were a few releases that came out this year that I really liked.

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