page38.html
Transfiguration (CD)
James Brandon Lewis Quartet
These guys know how to get "out there" without being atonal, and they do it together, with the same fearless spirit.
Read moreRhythm of the World (LP)
The Cowsills
Okay, dad rock is dead, how about dad pop? The Cowsills have endured trials and tribulations to come up with a bunch of catchy songs; I haven't gotten "Nuclear Winter" out of my head for days.
Read moreDecades (LP)
Maria Schneider Orchestra
A three-LP set, covering the best of Schneider's three decades of writing? Yes, please. www.artistshare.com
Read morePast Lives (BLU)
I've been watching all the movies that were nominated in the "Best Picture" category of the 2024 Academy Awards and this is by far my favorite. A very calm and meditative movie that in its simplicity conveys the many layers within the human consciousness.
Read more
Past Lives Soundtrack (LP)
Christopher Bear / Daniel
And I love the soundtrack just as much as I love the film!
Read more
Too Dark Park (LP)
Skinny Puppy
A vinyl re-release of the classic Skinny Puppy record. A quintessential album and A MUST for any electronic / industrial fan.
Read more
Opus Dei (LP)
Laibach
Remastered deluxe edition of the 1987 album. Contains the band's version of the Queen song "One Vision." "GIMME A LIGHT BEER!" If you know you know.
Available on single LP as well as a 2 CD box set that contains bonus live tracks.
Read more
Let Go (LP)
KMFDM
KMFDM, doing it again! The 23rd album from the industrial giants is in my opinion, a more cohesive one than their last record "Hyena." A nonstop ride from start to finish a more appropriate title would have been "Hold Tight" rather than "Let Go!"
2024 also marks the 40th anniversary of KMFDM's "ultra heavy beat" and "conceptual continuity."
Read more
Black Tight Killers (BLU)
For fans of colorful 60s Japanese films such as Seijun Suzuki's Tokyo Drifter. Features female ninjas and hidden treasure and some of the most outrageously colorful photography ever. From the director of the Stray Cat Rock series.
Read more
Cemetery Man / The Church / The Sect (BLU)
3 films from Argento protégé Michele Soavi. Cemetery Man is one of the more famously fun zombie films to come out of Italy. A cult hit in the video store era languished on DVD for all these years.
The Church is almost a single location film, but uses its Budapest cathedral location to wonderful effect. Outstanding practical effects. Am ildly uncomfortable performance from a young Asia Argento, but if you're an Argento fan then you already know the score. Features corpse towers, beheaded priests and a Satanic goat man. Good stuff!
The Sect is an odd one. Starts off with a hippy cult vibe but ends up being so much better than that sounds. While it shares a fair bit in common with Rosemary's Baby, it is far far weirder. While I find Italian horror to be a bit lacking in logical flow, The Sect makes a lot more sense and characters react with surprising realism. Plus there is an assault by giant bird monster. Maybe I have problems but that was one of the greatest things I've ever seen. These are all on Blu-ray or 4K/UHD and chock full of bonus features from Severin.
Read more
Bubble Bath (BLU)
This 1980 Hungarian animated film is about a gal studying for a medical exam. A man shows up who is getting married to her co-worker. He is having second thoughts and is for some reason burdening himself on this poor girl who didn't even want to go to the wedding. Ok. That plot is just not that interesting... but be that as it may, this is one of the most outrageously psychedelic and fascinating MUSICAL animated films I've ever seen. Chock full of pop/disco musical numbers (1 literally about studying for the exam) and featuring a wild variety of visual styles. I loved the use of real light refractions and shimmers over top the animation to give the effect of time of day and mood(?).
Like most Deaf Crocodile Blu-ray releases, this includes multiple short films from the director. His shorts often use a unique animated painting (oil or acrylic I'm not sure). The man declined medical help for his leukemia deciding instead to finish a manifesto and series of paintings. A one of a kind figure and posthumous national treasure of Hungarian modern art. If you are interested in animation, check out a trailer at the very least!
Read more
Poor Things (BLU)
My obligatory "main stream" pick. This movie seemed to really divide people. I personally thought it was Lanthimos' best film yet. I utterly loved every pretentious and hilarious second. Emma Stone is a force of nature (as they say) and Mark Ruffalo has never been funnier as a sleezy yet uncertain European lothario. Such a fun movie and wild that Emma Stone won an academy award for a movie that shares similarities with Frankenhooker.
Read more
Supermarkt (BLU)
1974 German film from Roland Klick, director of cult classic Deadlock (features a Can score). A classic juvenile delinquent film set in a gritty 70s Hamburg. Highly recommended if that's your thing. Now they just need to release Bübchen, his killer little kid movie.
Read more
Yes, Madam! / Lady Reporter (aka The Blonde Fury) (BLU)
2 Cynthia Rothrock Hong Kong action films available on Blu-ray for the first time. I love HK action films (and comedies) and these are 2 great examples. Chock full of amazing stunts and fights. Yes, Madam! co-stars Michelle Yeoh.
Read more
Fallen Leaves (BLU)
I am a huge fan of Aki Kaurismaki so any new film of his is automatically a big deal to me. With this one he goes back to the same extra stripped down plot as earlier films such as Shadows in Paradise and Drifting Clouds. I love that Aki continues to make films about people in the lowest rungs of the working class, something that seems oddly missing from most movies these days. I know film is escapist, but do we really need to see more movies where we are supposed to feel bad for someone living in a 5 bedroom house in the suburbs? I love Aki's visual style and the pacing and dialogue cadence he employs. There is no extraneous dialogue or emotion yet you feel just as deeply for these characters.
Read more
Stopmotion (BLU)
A horror film about a gal working on a stopmotion animated movie. Family trauma and mental illness are explored using the little characters made of morticians wax and carrion. Loved the vibe and look of this. The animated elements are so damned creepy.
Read more