// Category Archive for: Current Faves

Comedy Review: The Audio AdventureBook of Big Dan Frater, Vol. 1

By Jeffery X Martin

Big Dan Frater (Brian Howe), Dutch “The Swede” Annacrombie (Dan Conroy), and plucky town librarian Millie Healey (Allison Martin) were all characters in a movie called Trail of the Screaming Forehead, written and directed by Larry Blamire. They were an amusing onscreen trio, certainly strong enough to carry an entire movie on their shoulders, but their triumphant return to the screen never panned out.

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Music Review: Various Artists, The Magical Mystery Psych Out – A Tribute To The Beatles

By Melissa Bratcher

It must be more than a bit daunting to cover the Beatles. They’re The Beatles for the love of Pete, the alpha and the omega, the ones from whom everything good sprung, the band that changed everything. (True fact: I once was friends with a woman who said, “I don’t really like the Beatles.” I realized from that moment that she was a horrible person and I couldn’t be friends with her anymore. And I wasn’t.)

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Music Review: Will Butler, Policy

By Tyler Hodg

One year after the release of Arcade Fire’s Grammy-nominated, Juno award-winning album Reflektor, bassist Will Butler momentarily slips away from the band to release his debut solo album titled Policy. Venturing out on your own musically is sure to be a difficult—and possibly terrifying—task, but Will Butler was able to successfully pull it off. Saying that Policy is better than most of Arcade Fire’s music would be false, but it holds its own when compared to the critical darlings.

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Music Review: Joe Pug, Windfall

By Melissa Bratcher

Austin-based indie folkster Joe Pug has weathered a lot of comparisons to Dylan in his career: his lyrics; the unusual timbre of his voice; his gently strummed, chiming guitar. All of the necessary ingredients are here, though on his latest, Windfall, vocally he sounds surprisingly like Jakob Dylan (which, let’s face it: Bob sings like a rusting hinge).

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Music Review: Marilyn Manson, The Pale Emperor

By Less Lee Moore

For many, Marilyn Manson is synonymous with the ’90s, even though he has continued to make music well into this new millennium. That’s been both a blessing (he redefined “shock rock” on his own terms) and a curse (he hasn’t had a hit single since 1998 and his record sales have decreased with each subsequent release). Confession time: I lost interest in him not long after Mechanical Animals so I had some homework to do before writing this review of The Pale Emperor, his ninth studio album.

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Blu-Ray Review: Poker Night

By Brad Henderson

Who the hell approves artwork for DVDs and Blu-rays for XLrator Media? I will slap the shit out of them for slapping together this bullshit for Poker Night.

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Blu-Ray Review: Every Man For Himself

By Brad Henderson

Jean-Luc Godard is a name I’ve been familiar with for a while and from a very young age. I first discovered Godard because of Quentin Tarantino. Tarantino was in an interview discussing movies and whatnot and mentioned he named his company after a French film called Band Of Outsiders. I immediately tracked it down because I was a nerd and Tarantino is a favorite of mine; he has introduced me to so many films that I cherish to this day.

After watching Band Of Outsiders, I did my best to try to track down other Godard films. Contempt, Alphaville, Breathless, and other films have really impacted me. Recently The Criterion Collection reissued his 1980 film, Every Man For Himself. My familiarity with Godard is through his films from the ‘60s and ‘70s so anything past that is new to me, but I was happy to dive into a Godard that was a little alien.

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DVD Review: Blood Car

By Brad Henderson

Well, I just watched Blood Car. I freaking loved Blood Car.

Blood Car was apparently made in 2007 and is just now getting a physical media release in 2015. Criminal. Going into it I wasn’t expecting much because it seemed from the plot and cover art it was going to be an overly gory schlock fest. Well, it was an overly gory schlock fest but a damn fine one that had me tearing up I was laughing so hard. That’s something to be said because I’m not really a “LOL-er” or whatever the hell you call it. I laugh, but it’s mostly inside. Soulless is another name for it, so I’ve been told.

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Book Review: Kim Gordon, Girl In A Band: A Memoir

By Noreen Sobczyk

The world of rock music (and music journalism) is one big boys club. And it’s no surprise that the title of Kim Gordon’s memoir, Girl in a Band, is partly in reference to the incessant query “What’s it like to be a girl in a band?” Despite possessing two X chromosomes, Gordon adeptly chiseled her own space in music with her own rules, coupled with intelligence and dignity. As far as her emotions, she has historically played her cards close to her chest, even appearing aloof, but when she performed “Aneurysm” at Nirvana’s induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, my body tingled and I was momentarily slack jawed. I don’t care what anyone else says about it, and opinions vary wildly, but Gordon’s performance was one of the most visceral, authentic, fearless, perhaps cathartic, but certainly intense moments I’ve ever witnessed in rock ‘n roll.

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Music Review: Young Buffalo, House

By Melissa Bratcher

Though they’ve been kicking around for ages (since 2009), Oxford, Mississippi’s Young Buffalo is only now releasing their debut album. It’s a good thing they waited, because House is the kind of debut bands dream of. Full of shimmering synths and pleasing harmonies, the songs are hooky, well-written treats.

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