By Christian Lipski
Let us drink to the power, drink to the sound
Thunder and metal are shaking the ground
Drink to your brothers who are never to fall
We are brothers of metal here in the hall
Manowar, “Brothers of Metal Pt. 1”
Continue reading ‘Be Epic: The Glory of Power Metal’
By Noreen Sobczyk
In the 50s and 60s, the word “teenager” had long been part of the American lexicon, but it wasn’t until rock and roll came along that the generation gap began to widen exponentially. Music was a major delineating factor separating the generations, and as teenage culture began to blossom, a target marketing audience was born. Rock and roll was all the rage and some films caught a ride on the teen bandwagon via the medium of music. Who can forget Elvis cashing in on his fame with some of his similarly-plotted films?
Continue reading ‘1970—1980: Ten Golden Years of Teen Films’
One of the earliest crushes I can remember having is smiling Buck Owens on Hee Haw with his red, white, and blue striped guitar; his charming smile; his cringeworthy humor; and his soothing voice. I wore a pair of Hee Haw overalls to show my devotion to Mr. Owens and often pretended that he was my dad (not that anything was wrong with my dad, just, well, he wasn’t Buck Owens). I loved him and his music always reminded me of home.
Continue reading ‘Bucking Trends: How I Learned to Love Buck Owens’
By J Howell
John Parish may not exactly be a household name, but the scope of his work, on both sides of the glass, is almost unparalleled in both quality and variety. My first exposure to John was seeing his name in the liner notes to PJ Harvey’s To Bring You My Love, which is still a favorite record of mine. I had to find out who was responsible for the sounds on that record, which were jarring and lush, often in the same song. Turns out this Parish fellow had a lot to do with it, both as a musician and a producer, and as a mentor of Harvey’s, who basically got her start in Parish’s Automatic Dlamini. (Harvey once introduced him onstage as “more a god than a man,” which probably made him blush a little.)
Continue reading ‘My Short List Of Heroes: Q & A With John Parish’
Screencap by megacaps
If you’ve never seen Tuff Turf, the 1985 film starring James Spader and Kim Richards, then this list of reasons I’ve watched the movie over 100 times might pique your curiosity and prompt you to watch it. Maybe not over 100 times, but at least once. If you have seen the movie, this list will probably be at best, comical, and at worst, puzzling. Hopefully, however, this list will explain why I was thrilled when this movie was released on a (markedly bare bones) DVD a few years back. It meant that my original, recorded-from-HBO VHS tape could finally get a break.
Continue reading ‘Wounds Of Love: Ten Reasons I’ve Seen Tuff Turf Over 100 Times’
Misfit youths who happened to catch a late night airing of Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains have been rubbing their magic lamps for years, fully willing to trade one wish for a good quality copy of this film. Now the wait is over, thanks to the folks at Rhino who’ve released it as the debut title in their Rock ‘N’ Roll Cinema Series.
Continue reading ‘It’s Finally Here: Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains on DVD’
By Chelsea Spear
You are twelve years old. In your pocket you have some jangly change and a wilted sawbuck, heavy with sweat from your clammy hands—money you earned from babysitting your snot-nosed brother while your mom went out on another pointless date. You enter the Tape World at the mall—a store smaller than your bedroom at home—with the intent to buy the first album you’ll purchase with your own money.
Continue reading ‘10,000 Maniacs, Blind Man’s Zoo‘
The Four Rules Of Loving Adam Ant:
1. Love Adam.
2. Love Adam some more.
3. Love Adam as much as you can.
4. Marry Adam.
As composed by me and my sister in the early ’90s.
Continue reading ‘Antics In The Forbidden Zone: Adam Ant On VHS!’
“The Irish are the blacks of Europe,
and Dubliners are the blacks of Ireland,
and the Northside Dubliners are the blacks of Dublin.
So say it once, say it loud, I’m black and I’m proud!”
The Commitments
By Chelsea Spear
The last week of June 2008 found me in New York City. I’d been trying to escape the obligations and responsibilities that awaited me in my hometown: the whoosh I still heard in my ears as a birthday with a zero on the end passed me by, and the dozens of hours I suddenly had free. My life was about to change, and I had no idea what to do next. So far I’d attempted to distract myself with a free concert at which two of my favorite bands played, and a stage play written by a playwright and musician whose work I found intriguing, if not always successful. The poignancy and significance and melancholy of these works had not merely sated me, but left my brain feeling bloated and heavy and unable to even process the idealistic notes of hope they sounded.
Continue reading ‘Tom Verlaine Is My White Rabbit’