Amoeba san francisco Staff
Tony G
Amoeba San Francisco
A lot of fine stuff in the Amoeba Graphic novel section...going through a "Palookaville" phase right now, creator Seth is a Canadian genius...check it out!
Chris Knox: Not Given Lightly (Book)
Craig Robertson
The story of New Zealand's Godfather of Punk & Indie music, Chris Knox...from his upbringing in Invercargill (“the city at the bottom of the World”) to his groundbreaking first Dunedin punk band The Enemy (What? all original material?) and on to Toy Love, who almost broke through before the music biz swallowed them whole, to Tall Dwarfs and the creative renaissance of NZ's Flying Nun label in the 1980s...and a ton of other musical, critical & artistic output in the years leading up to his massive stroke in 2009. His influence cannot be overstated...and his evolution is fascinating. Great stuff!!
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Nervous Breakdown: Album Covers (Book)
Raymond Pettibon
The first collection of record cover art from this still groundbreaking & relentlessly "punk" artist...from his early Black Flag work (he designed the logo!) to later work with Sonic Youth, Iggy Pop & Lana Del Rey (!), it's all here...wow!
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Mr. Moonlight: Brian Epstein and the Making of the Beatles (Book)
Philip Norman
Setting out to make the Beatles "bigger than Elvis", Epstein became the first modern rock band manager, enduring much antisemitism & homophobia along the way, before passing away in the middle of the Summer Of Love...it's all fascinating but the sections about his complex relationship with John Lennon are particularly squirmy stuff...some fantastic writing in this one!
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A Place Both Wonderful and Strange: The Extraordinary Untold History of Twin Peaks (Book)
Scott Meslow
The complete history of David Lynch and Mark Frost’s Twin Peaks, right up to the amazing "The Return" a few years back...their struggle to retain control of their artistic vision is epic...you're gonna want to binge re-watch after reading this!
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The Clean: In the Dreamlife You Need a Rubber Soul (Book)
Richard Langston
Formed in Dunedin, New Zealand, in 1978, The Clean profoundly changed alternative music – hitting the NZ charts for months with a single made for $50, ‘Tally Ho!’, helping establish the Flying Nun label and a music scene independent of the big labels, pioneering a low-fi, DIY approach to rock music, and shaping the development of indie rock overseas (Pavement, Neutral Milk Hotel and Yo La Tengo all cite them as primary influences).
This book is an insiders history of one of NZ’s most influential bands through their own words – the band members, their collaborators including Chris Knox and Martin Phillipps of The Chills, the producers, the pub owners, music writers and many more.
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Joe Goldmark "Roots Music Maven"
Amoeba San Francisco
VinylBeat.com - Record collecting 101. Hundreds of Galleries and label guides!
The Real Folk Blues (LP)
Howlin' Wolf
Here's a classic Blues reissue, that should be in every collection. "The Wolf" was a force of nature, and arguably the greatest Chicago bluesman. My faves are "Three Hundred Pounds Of Joy," "Built For Comfort" and "Killing Floor."
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The Way I Should (LP)
Iris Dement
Iris sings in the best country tradition about heartache, protest and family struggles. She also has the most twang-ful voice since Hazel Dickens. Check out the sexual abuse narrative of "Letter To Mom" and the heartbreaking "There's a Wall In Washington."
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The Further Adventures (LP)
Los Straitjackets
This is a vinyl reissue of their classic album from 2009. This and "Jet Set" are their best albums, IMO. They're the kings of the 2:00 guitar instrumentals. My favorite is "Catalina."
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That's The Way God Planned It (LP)
Billy Preston
First released in 1969, this album still sounds so fresh, soulful and church-y! It's beautifully produced by George Harrison for the fledgling Apple Records. Check out "I Want To Thank You."
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Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival (CD)
Cory Wong
Nobody out-funks Cory Wong! I first heard of him with "Vulfpeck" and then with the "Fearless Flyers." This album is almost too hot to hear. His band features a five piece horn section that kills it.
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Ruby!
Amoeba San Francisco
l like weird stuff
John.T
Amoeba San Francisco
Dead Mountaineer's Hotel (1979)
From the authors of Tarkovsky's Stalker. This is a bizarre neo-noir/sci-fi film set in the Swiss Alps. Chock full of bizarre characters, shadowy color noir lighting, bright snowy alpine mountains and cool synth music. Definitely on the artier end, though not so much as Stalker. Unexpected 4K release from Deaf Crocodile.
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The Bride (2026)
This one REALLY divided audiences. I myself wanted to turn it off within the first couple minutes. I'm glad I stuck it out as I thought it was one of the more interesting films to come out in a good while. Maggie Gyllenhaal really goes for it. Everything is over the top. I loved the movies within the movie starring brother Jake as a William Powell-esque musical comedy star of the 30s. There's even a direct quotation from Young Frankenstein. That was when I knew I kind of loved this. Out of folks I know, there are definitely more haters than lovers.
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Faust (1994) (BLU)
I feel like this release should be getting more attention. There isn't even a review on Blu-ray.com. It's not everyday we get a new Blu-ray of a Jan Svankmajer film. This, and his Alice, are extremely bizarre partially stop-motion partially live action films.
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The Spine of the Night (2021)
This film had an earlier release, but recently got a new slipcover edition from Shudder via their Vinegar Syndrome partner label deal. This is a very well made high fantasy animated feature with beautiful background painting and great rotoscope characters. Extremely gory. Great synth score. Fun voice acting from Richard E Grant, Lucy Lawless and Patton Oswalt. For fans of Heavy Metal and Bakshi's Fire and Ice.
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Desperate Living (1977)
My favorite of the 70s John Waters films is added to the growing number of Criterion Collection revivals of his trashtastic filmography. This movie has some of the greatest dialogue and individual scenes he's ever written and shot. Edith Massey's best role by far (sorry Egg Lady). An ugly movie for sure, but very much looking forward to fidelity boost that this new 4K restoration gives it. "Tell your mother I hate her! Tell your mother I hate you!"
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