All posts by Chris DeCarlo
Classic Film Review: Slacker
Full Title: Slacker
Director: Richard Linklater
Year: 1991
Fun Facts: “The average movie has 500-1,000 cuts in it. This movie only has 163. And almost a third of them come from the last five minutes during the super 8 film scene.” and “Was the movie that directly inspired Kevin Smith to become a filmmaker; inspired the movie Clerks. (1994).”- http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0102943/trivia
Comments:
I’m not one to jump on this or that marketing ruse, but in this rare instance, the so called “Generation X” phenomenon of the early 90s seems pretty damn accurate in Slacker, the 1991 debut of the gifted writer/director, Richard Linklater. From start to finish, this entire flick is simply scene after scene of random, anti-climatic, yet infinitely fascinating (at least to me) conversations from lazy, twenty-something layabouts in the city of Austin, Texas (Linklater’s hometown). To most folks this film is probably tedious or simply too boring. There are no sequences of action or really drama of any kind. The film basically offers the viewer a slice of everyay Austin life for these quirky, colorful characters. The scenes have no connection to one another (in the narrative sense) and no character appears more than once, at least to my memory. In many ways each scene is its own short film that one could view on its own or as a collective with the other scenes. All of these little stories are tied together under the overall theme of apathy and reluctance to get one’s shit straight, so to speak. Because this film is unorthodox in this manner, it will surely turn off most viewers. For dialouge based film junkies like me, I find it to be a unique and intriguing movie. Characters that stand out to me specifically include an aging, kind hearted anarchist that sports a framed phot of Leon Czolgosz on his wall, a enthusiastic Kennedy Assasination theorist, a fierce “anti-artist,” amongst other characters. Honestly, I can’t say much bad about this film; it is what it is and for me, I seriously do not find it even a tad bit boring, but then again, I suppose Linklater could have thrown in a thing or two to grab everyone’s attention. On the other hand, his laidback filmmaking (in this picture) and/or storytelling stands as an astonishing reflection of the lifestyles of the people he is depicting.
Grade: A-
Kurt’s Top 50
A list of Kurt Cobain’s top 50 favorite albums:
50. Raping a Slave – Swans
49. Mazzy Star – Mazzy Star
48. Over the Edge – Wipers
47. Youth of America – Wipers
46. Is This Real? – Wipers
45. The Man Who Sold the World – David Bowie
44. Beach Party – Marine Girls
43. Takes a Nation of Millions – Public Enemy
42. Flowers of Romance – Pil
41. The Record – Fear
40. Damaged – Black Flag
39. Locust Abortion Technician – Butthole Surfers
38. We are those who Ache Amorous Love – Half Japanese
37. Meet the Beatles – Beatles
36. Generic Flipper – Flipper
35. Yip Jump Music – Daniel Johnston
34. Superfuzz Bigmuff – Mudhoney
33. Last Sessions Vol 1 – Leadbelly
32. Tales of Terror – Tales of Terror
31. Jamboree – Beat Happening
30. Rites of Spring – Rites of Spring
29. Void/Faith EP – Void/Faith
28. Combat Rock – Clash
27. Typical Girls – Slits
26. Burning Farm Cassette – Shonen Knife
25. Green – R.E.M.
24. What is This? – Punk Comp California
23. Rocks – Aerosmith
22. Colossal Youth – Young Marble Giants
21. Raincoats LP – Raincoats
20. Anything by: – Kleenex
19. Know Your Product – The Saints
18. Get the Knack – The Knack
17. Daydream Nation – Sonic Youth
16. Dry – P.J. Harvey
15. It’s only Right and Natural – Frogs
14. Nevermind the Bollocks – Sex Pistols
13. Entertainment – Gang of Four
12. Rock for Light – Bad Brains
11. My War – Black Flag
10. Pee Pee the Sailor – Butthole Surfers
09. 1st EP – Saccharin Trust
08. 1st EP – Scratch Acid
07. Millions of Dead Cops – M.D.C.
06. Land Shark – Fang
05. Philosophy of the World – Shaggs
04. Sun Of A Gun – the Vaselines
03. POD – The Breeders
02. Surfer Rosa – Pixies
01. Raw Power – Iggy & The Stooges
Retrieved from “http://nirvana.wikia.com/wiki/Kurt_Cobain%27s_Top_50_Albums”
Song of the Day- FUCK SCHOOL!
I figure as school is coming around the corner this is the perfect song for you kiddies.
High Praise for High Art
This is somewhat of a Question of the Week sorta… Ok, so can anyone think of a band or an artist that has consistently put out high quality, evolving music for decades? For my money, Sonic Youth probably beats them all. In fact, I have often proclaimed them to be the most “successful” band of all time, but that’s a whole other story. Certainly some SY albums are stronger than others, but overall, they have an initimidating discography consisting of nearly thirty years worth of material. Very, very few bands can boast such a claim. So, what do others think? What other artists do you feel should be mentioned? Do they rank higher than SY and Why? You know where the comment section is. Peace.
The Simpsons!
Classic Review: Locust Abortion Technician
Artist: Butthole Surfers
Full Title: Locust Abortion Technician
Year: 1987
Label: Touch and Go/Latin Buggerveil
Tracks:
1) Sweat Loaf– 9
2) Graveyard- 8
3) Pitsburg to Lebanon- 7/8
4) Weber- 5
5) Hay- 7/8
6) Human Cannonball- 8
7) U.S.S.A.- 8
8) The O-Men-7
9) Kuntz– 9
10) Graveyard- 8
11) 22 Going on 23- 8/9
Comments: Early Butthole Surfers equals Music made for, by, and of heavy psychedelic drug use and Locust Abortion Technician is no exception. This is the pinnacle of the Buttholes’ highly experimental music. They dabble in Punk, Heavy Metal, Noise Rock, and definitely psychedlia. Without a doubt this is the group’s best offering up until then and since. I really dig the humor and chaos of “Sweat Loaf,” it is certainly a fantastic opener and really sets you up for what is to come. “Kuntz,” a remixing of an old Thai song and “22 Going On 23,” a disturbing/awkwardly amusing recount of a sexual assault case and its effects on the victim, round out my favorite tracks on this record. Overall, this is the kind of album that should be heard for its experimentation and the overall sound collage, oh and yeah, also for you and your pals to giggle and say “WTF?!!!” Turn it up at loud volumes, blast it as high as you can and freak out the whole neighborhood! In short, I feel like this serves better as a handbook for those who want to make experimental music, rather than an album you listen to again and again. With that being said, it is quite listenable and worthy of praise for it’s somewhat brave and unquestionably unique style. Basically, the Buttholes entered the studio and fumbled around with what they had (which was limited), took tons of acid (amongst other substances I can imagine) and ultimately created a really cool, trippy experience for all of us music lovers.
Grade: B
Hicks Vid of the Day
“What do you say we lighten things up and talk about abortion.”
Classic Album Review: Superfuzz Bigmuff
Artist: Mudhoney
Full Title: Superfuzz Bigmuff plus Early Singles
Year: 1988 (recorded), 1990 (released)
Label: Sub Pop
Tracks:
1) Touch Me I’m Sick– 10
2) Sweet Young Thing (Ain’t Sweet No More)– 9
3) Hate the Police (The Dicks)- 8
4) Burn It Clean- 8
5) You Got It (Keep It Outta My Face)– 9
6) Halloween (Sonic Youth)- 8
7) No One Has- 8/9
8) If I Think- 8
9) In “N” Out of Grace– 9
10) Need- 8
11) Chain That Door- 7/8
12) Mudride- 7/8
NOTE: “The album contains the entire Superfuzz Bigmuff EP, the A-sides and B-sides of 2 singles, and 2 covers from split singles with Sonic Youth and The Dicks.”- Wikipedia.
Comments:
For those of you youngsters out there that are strugglin’ with the ladies, here’s a new pick up line for y’all to try out. Tell em’ “Touch Me I’m Sick!” So, after you get clocked in the face, grab a case of beer and get rowdy with this sucker. Here we have the legendary Mudhoney at their muddiest. Loud, fuzzy, muzzy guitars, pouding drums and the distinctive, apathetic drone of singer, Mark Arm. These songs have that filthy feel to them, but at the same time the riffs are memorable/catchy and Arm’s vocals are pretty damn clear, especially for this kind of music. As we all know this became the template for the Seattle Scene and what would become known to the rest of the world as “Grunge” (yes, I hate the term too, but it’s useful as a point of reference). This record and this band are without a doubt influential, but a tad bit overrated. Don’t get me wrong, most of the songs on here are good, it’s a very good record, but there are only a few great, stand out tracks, and yes they are exquisite. “Touch Me I’m Sick,” is fucking great for headbanging and I can imagine moshing; as a whole Mudhoney is great for an intoxicated state, particularly “Touch.” It’s a classic for a reason, well many reasons. Of course sonically it showscases the garagey Seattle sound better than any other tune in their catalog, but for me, the lyrics and presentation of those lyrics are also extremely vital. It’s a song I can relate to, a different kinda love ballad, if you will. You see it’s the honest male emotion that’s key here- “I’m a creep and I’m a jerk”- Arm’s nastiness and brutal delivery turns girls off, while spineless blokes like John Mayer sing about your daughter and tell the females exactly what they want to hear, so they can love him, at least they used to. But enough of that ranting and raving, “Touch” is complemented by its B-Side, “Sweet Young Thing,” which is the second track on this compilation, making it one of the greatest singles of all time. “In ‘N’ Out of Grace” is certainly one of my favorite tracks and exemplifies the group’s excellent guitar playing; one of the best riffs I have ever heard. All in all, this is a really good record, but not exceptional. I feel like Mudhoney is more of a “sound” band, like they have a great sound to almost all of these songs, but for me to love this thang, I need more fabulous tracks. It’s definitely worth a few listens and if you like “grunge” music, then well, you suck if you haven’t heard this and shouldn’t call yourself a fan of said style, but I’ll give you a break and let you listen to this and impress your average mainstream listening friends.
Grade: B+
Dick Dousche
As always random and bizarre skits from Tim and Eric Awesome Show
Funny Pic of the Day
Kids Like You & Me (KLYAM) 