Waxing Nostalgic: Braniac, “Fucking with the Altimeter”

Published on February 21st, 2014 in: Music, Waxing Nostalgic |

By Jeffery X Martin

I spent a lot of time in Ohio as a kid. I’m sure there are people who really love that place and there is nowhere else they would rather be. Cool. I’m not one of those people. Even hanging out in Cincinnati like I did, most of the time there was just nothing to do.

Ohio comes in three dehumanizing flavors: generically urban, run-down industrial, or flatland farming. Any of those situations can seem oppressive, and that kind of oppression is enough to make a creative person yearn to break out and do the craziest shit possible to get their ideas out there into the Universe. To get noticed. To get the hell out of Ohio.

The band Brainiac, formed in Dayton, Ohio, certainly felt the backhand of the heartland. In an interview given in 1997, lead vocalist Tim Taylor said, “It might give you the illusion that there’s a happening scene, but there’s not at all. As of right now, there’s not even a record store where you can buy our records in town. You have to go to Columbus to buy a Brainiac record, it’s ridiculous.”

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DVD Review: The Legend Of The Psychotic Forest Ranger

Published on February 21st, 2014 in: Comedy, DVD, DVD/Blu-Ray Reviews, Horror, Movie Reviews, Movies, Reviews |

By Brad Henderson

Eighties throwback films are getting more and more popular every year. Some of these films are pretty incredible while others fall flat and just don’t hit the notes. You sometimes have a film that falls in between and that is exactly where The Legend Of The Psychotic Forest Ranger ends up.

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VHS Visions: Deadly Dreams (1988)

Published on February 21st, 2014 in: Horror, Movie Reviews, Movies, Retrovirus, Reviews, VHS, VHS Visions |

By Brad Henderson

Back in the ’80s there was an actress named Juliette Cummins who has remained one of my favorites until this day. Bringing up her name probably won’t ring a bell, but she was in such flicks as Friday The 13th Part 5: A New Beginning, Psycho 3, Slumber Party Massacre 2, Running Hot, and Deadly Dreams. (Psst. . . this post is about Deadly Dreams.) Ever since I can remember, Juliette Cummins has been a favorite of mine and I love every film she is in. Yeah, the films are pretty badass to begin with, but she makes the films better.

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Music Review: Clan Of Xymox, Matters Of Mind, Body And Soul

Published on February 21st, 2014 in: Current Faves, Music, Music Reviews, Reviews |

By Hanna

Matters Of Mind, Body And Soul is the first Clan of Xymox studio album in several years, since 2012’s cover album Kindred Spirits. Because of this, and their sudden and short recent return to L.A., there has been some tradgoth excitement about this release. The result is safe but not boring: on the one hand, this album sounds like their music has always sounded; on the other, it’s new and varied.

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DVD Review: Birth Of The Living Dead

Published on February 14th, 2014 in: Current Faves, Documentaries, DVD, DVD/Blu-Ray Reviews, Horror, Movie Reviews, Movies, Reviews |

By Brad Henderson

When I was little, one of the first films that I can remember seeing and buying on VHS was Night Of The Living Dead on the Blockbuster Exclusive label. You know the one; the one with the big red label on the side. . . Night Of The Living Dead is one of the most important and influential films that exists. It has impacted not only the film industry but also the world, inspiring many people along the way. First Run Features recently released a documentary based on the events leading up to the making of this important film. Birth Of The Living Dead sheds a lot of light on the making of Night Of The Living Dead including stories of its successes and mishaps.

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VHS Visions: Valet Girls (1987)

Published on February 14th, 2014 in: Comedy, Movie Reviews, Movies, Retrovirus, Reviews, VHS, VHS Visions |

By Brad Henderson

Sex comedies are my forte. I’m in love with them, even the bad ones. It doesn’t matter to me if they’re bad because I find something enjoyable out of each of them. There are a lot of sex comedies but there are some real gems hidden about all the boobs and sand. One of those flicks is Valet Girls.

With these films you can’t go on expecting a plot. Usually there’s a very simple story with lots of boobs and running from the villain or trying to overcome some obstacle and having to raise money for it. Valet Girls is about a singer who wants to make it big so she becomes a valet girl? What?

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Interview: A Conversation With Director Steven DeGennaro

Published on February 14th, 2014 in: Found Footage, Horror, Interviews, Movies, Upcoming Movies, Upcoming Releases |

By Jeffery X Martin

When I first heard about the upcoming horror movie, Found Footage 3D, I immediately got on Twitter to make fun of it. Oh, don’t act like you’re shocked. The real surprise for me happened when the director of the movie, Steven DeGennaro, saw my tweet and engaged me in a civil conversation. That’s the inherent joy and terror of Twitter; you never know who’s reading. After talking to Steven for a while, I moved out of mockery mode and into curiosity. That led to research.

Steven DeGennaro previously directed the short film, First Date. For his new movie, he is working closely with horror icon Kim Henkel, co-writer of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. That certainly intrigued me. Then, I had the opportunity to talk to Steven DeGennaro at the end of last month.

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DVD Review: Concussion

Published on February 7th, 2014 in: Current Faves, DVD, DVD/Blu-Ray Reviews, Feminism, LGBTQ, Movie Reviews, Movies, Reviews |

By Less Lee Moore

The tagline on the DVD for Concussion is the kind of lurid text that implies we’re going to watch a Lifetime movie from the 1990s: Wife. Mother. Escort. When you examine the plot—middle-aged wife and mother gets hit on the head and then creates a secret life as a prostitute—it doesn’t do much to dissuade that notion. Yet Concussion isn’t a cautionary tale and the head injury doesn’t produce dissociative fugues; no one gets blackmailed, kidnapped, or murdered. It’s a frank examination of dissatisfaction and desire that could easily be transposed onto a heterosexual relationship, but in Concussion the married couple are lesbians with two kids.

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