tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-258728752024-03-07T01:33:52.863-05:00Calcinator Death RayCalculate your chances...negative...negative...negative!Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.comBlogger368125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-29568123358025150802014-05-19T20:42:00.001-04:002014-05-19T20:42:30.391-04:00Some thoughts on Godzilla 2014I'm going to preface this by saying there's bound to be spoilers ahead. If that thought bothers you, avert your eyes.<br />
<br />
That said, this isn't going to be a review or a recap. Just a few thoughts I took away from my screening of the new Godzilla film. I'll start out by saying that overall I enjoyed the film. It's not a Toho Godzilla film, but it's not the Tri-Star Godzilla either. This Godzilla is kind of it's own monster (ha!) and if you go in with that in mind, and you're a fan of kaiju, you're bound to find something you'll like.<br />
<br />
The monsters look great...when you can see them. I'm not 100% in love with the design of Godzilla, but it is growing on me. At the very least, it's clearly in the tradition and completely recognizable as a Godzilla. The movement is great and I especially liked how expressive the face and tail were. I really loved when he had to stop and catch his breath while fighting off the MUTOs. It gave the character a bit of vulnerability that I think worked well. The MUTOs were pretty cool, but I couldn't help be reminded of the Heisei Gamera era Gyaos especially when looking at the male MUTO.<br />
<br />
The battles were fun to watch. Loved Godzilla's atomic breath. Loved seeing Honolulu, Las Vegas and San Francisco get destroyed. What I didn't like was the way Gareth Edwards filmed some of the battles. For example, you'd see a big, juicy chunk of action, but it's just reflected in a bus window. Or there's the peep booth window effect where just when things are getting good, a door literally closes and the action fades to black. I'm all for teasing it to add tension, but too often I felt let down that Edwards chose a more artsy shot over directly looking at what's going on.<br />
<br />
The human element is kind of a problem as well. For me, the best, most fleshed out character was Joe Brody (played by Bryan Cranson) and he got killed off early in the film. His son, Ford (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) is pretty mechanical and barely shows much emotion. The token scientist, Dr. Serizawa (Ken Watanabe,) plays to stereotype, looking shellshocked throughout and warning against using nuclear weapons on the creatures. The military folks are the stereotypical two-dimensional types we see in every kaiju film. Considering the movie focuses so much on the people rather than the monsters, it's surprisingly hard to get very involved in any of their stories. The film touched a bit on the actual human cost of a giant monster battle, which I liked, but, the Heisei Gamera films did it better.<br />
<br />
The only other thing I can really think to add at the moment is that this is a pretty dark and serious movie. While Godzilla plays the hero, the mood and tone harkens back to the original Godzilla. It's got a pretty heavy vibe for a film that is based on a pretty silly premise. I think it works, though the sequel ready ending left me a little cold. It'll be interesting to see where Legendary Pictures takes things in that already announced sequel.Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-51082033526260833432014-05-05T18:49:00.001-04:002014-05-05T19:29:14.041-04:00Record StoreDay 2014 Wrap-up Part 2Part one is done, so here's part two. Again sorry for the crap pictures. <div><br></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguqOQIupUrOQM4vVtPv6563fJVUpUrqG_GrZehXFLKDaEklE7vNKEpGX5uI5-MqfPDt_anP5tdVN_-WUCPlHQiIbmThCGMpDLZOHe-IoD6bTFZxGsX8S5yWCoISs75u4vv6L2a/s640/blogger-image--1257202835.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguqOQIupUrOQM4vVtPv6563fJVUpUrqG_GrZehXFLKDaEklE7vNKEpGX5uI5-MqfPDt_anP5tdVN_-WUCPlHQiIbmThCGMpDLZOHe-IoD6bTFZxGsX8S5yWCoISs75u4vv6L2a/s640/blogger-image--1257202835.jpg"></a></div><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I'd initially passed <b>LCD Soundsystem's The Long Goodbye </b>over thinking I'd get the much cheaper Blu-Ray instead. Then I remembered how concert films usually bore me and decided to pick this up anyway. It's expensive and pressed in a manner that is DJ friendly but a little weird for those of us rocking a solo turntable (odd sides appear on one record, evens in another, so you have to keep changing records.) Still, the performance is pretty epic and if you're a fan, you're going to want this one. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdJDQj6cJwczj4dufVXg8o54eKWZBwaPrnfbPY5XqfCG_uHLh3Qa2IUcRJn0ItjVsUaYKe_9ZEzBAu7A1O5h47SSt8C0W8ZAGp-AxVRI6_ob_WjBs0xPsXQXfb6ApChuP5msYi/s640/blogger-image-883678165.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdJDQj6cJwczj4dufVXg8o54eKWZBwaPrnfbPY5XqfCG_uHLh3Qa2IUcRJn0ItjVsUaYKe_9ZEzBAu7A1O5h47SSt8C0W8ZAGp-AxVRI6_ob_WjBs0xPsXQXfb6ApChuP5msYi/s640/blogger-image-883678165.jpg"></a></div><br></div>I have a subscription to Light In The Attic, so I got both their RSD releases as part of that. Sorry to say, as I love this label a lot, I think they kind of dropped the ball this year. Pictured above is <b>Playing Guitar The Easy Way </b>by <b>Michael Chapman. </b>I don't know the back story, so I'mjust going to tell you what I hear. Each track starts out with a couple of scales, then he launches into a kind of typical late 70's folky instrumental thing. Really does nothing much for me, though the package with a big booklet is nice. </div><div><br></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6JVGByWdy5znguh5GVh9SFGdCzCYbHFY6Uy5Q2v1o_JJNZVX1XZrcUsfVtMJe6WcmfMA9qCJRXJdUJwu-_O8y8XbtdvPMTe-AWB_NdTIS99pJWNkGORuzN5SSelcu8meM5QWD/s640/blogger-image-1439255493.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6JVGByWdy5znguh5GVh9SFGdCzCYbHFY6Uy5Q2v1o_JJNZVX1XZrcUsfVtMJe6WcmfMA9qCJRXJdUJwu-_O8y8XbtdvPMTe-AWB_NdTIS99pJWNkGORuzN5SSelcu8meM5QWD/s640/blogger-image-1439255493.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><b>A World of Peace Must Come</b> is a vinyl reissue of LITA's 2008 release by <b>Stephen John Kalinich. </b>Long story short, this was recorded in Brian Wilson's living room and sounds every bit of it. It's half almost madrigal and half hippy dippy spoken word. Maybe I was in a bad mood when I listened to this, but it just was a little too pot and patchouli for my tastes. </div><br></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje9ztrbfMn5Q7hKf4DFBmpnkcZJMUZqqSu_MAI2wSfjqMxz6GpYsxsZUXGVXnbXdlU4As9PuNRl-o-K468T6H1OJ-hbdwx4B-jt78_EY6m98NUrAc5yfffsiZEh5VMu0Fbk4_A/s640/blogger-image-693650593.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje9ztrbfMn5Q7hKf4DFBmpnkcZJMUZqqSu_MAI2wSfjqMxz6GpYsxsZUXGVXnbXdlU4As9PuNRl-o-K468T6H1OJ-hbdwx4B-jt78_EY6m98NUrAc5yfffsiZEh5VMu0Fbk4_A/s640/blogger-image-693650593.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Another label I love did deliver this year. Death Waltz delivered a quartet of their usual cult movie soundtrack goodness, three of which shared the above sleeve. The fourth was I<b>n The Wall </b>and looked like this:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1IS6lvQd8SD03Sa4iy1DR_j1-chYsmybUtkoI9Ejkf3lCNZroHzYoDAkD00jFWq0tRD3KxMgnNaT7r_auP_BqDP7RSMZ7TVJokSU_ISlbeuNfoVfOn7iwdAyZk5RcatikL4cI/s640/blogger-image-106316041.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1IS6lvQd8SD03Sa4iy1DR_j1-chYsmybUtkoI9Ejkf3lCNZroHzYoDAkD00jFWq0tRD3KxMgnNaT7r_auP_BqDP7RSMZ7TVJokSU_ISlbeuNfoVfOn7iwdAyZk5RcatikL4cI/s640/blogger-image-106316041.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Not sure why they did it that way, but there it is. Death Waltz is a label that just gets it. All this year's releases came on cool multi-colored vinyl, had a big poster and 12"x12" slick. They all were pretty good with the <b>1990: Bronx Warriors </b>soundtrack standing out for me. Good work and well worth the investment. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTqAMt4Mrzdz5lSFPckiGgQzfqjMb_p6hmohEYBxlGNHxRYHWV0l_j8aSLjebGh38NwnUq_lt27lBmHwqzWtwdi_6FgiMkaTgM6z7QMix4LIfM2ml7w2_6bGRGxlSQtuSSunS_/s640/blogger-image-1805667276.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTqAMt4Mrzdz5lSFPckiGgQzfqjMb_p6hmohEYBxlGNHxRYHWV0l_j8aSLjebGh38NwnUq_lt27lBmHwqzWtwdi_6FgiMkaTgM6z7QMix4LIfM2ml7w2_6bGRGxlSQtuSSunS_/s640/blogger-image-1805667276.jpg"></a></div><br></div>Speaking of soundtracks, here's One Way Static's picture disc release of <b>The Last House On The Left. </b>This is an interesting soundtrack, dated to be sure, but if you're into that early 70's vibe, you'll dig it. There's some groovy tunes, some Moog noodling, some hoedown stuff, etc. Noisy, like most picture discs are, but the source material is kind of lo-fi anyway. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNS1-mkQgVoUkRykKgljc0dMqnjs8mlIaGfP0Rk01z3eggy-xXnL91GNNdiEK9l-X8f7dSj2EtQUUaZWx4yU9XJvkZE1W2HBjeNhbifrHpE3fzqdmKqhrBYxi4awCGoaLLpKRL/s640/blogger-image--1360117812.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNS1-mkQgVoUkRykKgljc0dMqnjs8mlIaGfP0Rk01z3eggy-xXnL91GNNdiEK9l-X8f7dSj2EtQUUaZWx4yU9XJvkZE1W2HBjeNhbifrHpE3fzqdmKqhrBYxi4awCGoaLLpKRL/s640/blogger-image--1360117812.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Finally, here's the annual "what was I thinking" pick up. Now, I love <b>Spacemen 3</b>, especially the early stuff. The problem being, the entire contents of this set is readily available on an inexpensive CD, also titled <b>Translucent Flashbacks</b>, where as this three 12" single set ran $80. Ouch. But it did come with a download card, for untagged 128kbp mp3s. In 2014, that's just unacceptable. </div><br></div><br></div>Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-50121160922674047632014-04-30T19:37:00.001-04:002014-04-30T19:44:14.373-04:00Record Store Day 2014 Wrap-up Part 1<i>I'm Rob G. And I'm back from the dead...</i><div><i><br></i></div><div>Has it really been three years??? Well, whadda know? Anyway. Another Record Store Day has come and gone and rather than rehash all the old sentiments I blogged about ages ago, I figured I'd just do a brief run down of my haul. Once again, I spent more than I'd planned, even though the list this year really left me underwhelmed. Go figure. (Sorry for the crap pictures. I'm doing this from my iPad.)</div><div><br></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglChvlD-5-819bT9zUnUyTbT3HkHtP-XaR3tQYkasK5CEoYAfck2Uk8vFQPcqSVjUZbZseCOzyjWO89JP9pj_xxy1XpHDHz3vhKh1EiJwotRI-Qm7yhe_WfYwBQxVP4p-SjzaO/s640/blogger-image-925903414.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglChvlD-5-819bT9zUnUyTbT3HkHtP-XaR3tQYkasK5CEoYAfck2Uk8vFQPcqSVjUZbZseCOzyjWO89JP9pj_xxy1XpHDHz3vhKh1EiJwotRI-Qm7yhe_WfYwBQxVP4p-SjzaO/s640/blogger-image-925903414.jpg"></a></div><br></div><br></div><div>Leading off is <b>Nothing New by Gil Scott-Heron</b>, one of the few releases I was really looking forward to. Long story short, this is stuff GSH originally recorded for XL Records but was passed over in favor of what became I'm New Here/We're New Here. Stark recordings of just Gil and his piano, revisiting deep cuts from his catalog and a little chatting in between tracks. Needless to say, this is an essential pick-up for fans of GSH. Very deep stuff, goosebump territory here.</div><div><br></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlL7gdaKEOWXgBF47sxjipOHoIF5jE2jB1-Add88SMj6yQp8ccG24JZExvk-ZruXH3uaj-nqTBn1WhQxhMLM9g6UaIxeIBf15zswY6DPzrG4dc8QyJJnQe32woC1ezQU6i65-V/s640/blogger-image--2005528768.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlL7gdaKEOWXgBF47sxjipOHoIF5jE2jB1-Add88SMj6yQp8ccG24JZExvk-ZruXH3uaj-nqTBn1WhQxhMLM9g6UaIxeIBf15zswY6DPzrG4dc8QyJJnQe32woC1ezQU6i65-V/s640/blogger-image--2005528768.jpg"></a></div><br></div><div><b>Tame Impala </b>dropped <b>Live Versions </b>this year and I may be a little biased about this release as it happens to be from a Chicago show I attended. The band stretches out a bit in concert, so this isn't just a same old stuff with crowd noises type of affair. My only beef is that they trimmed down the set list to fit it on one record. I'd have gladly ponied up for a second disc to have the whole show. Nice emerald green vinyl too.</div><div><br></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCTONvdLagn9yo6BGql7u0WTV4z9JydbDmef0TK6RPr1djojofwrQWVlGmt4H_TBAn8PKYa9_pK95sWJ1WFFGC64ZkTqfUDnYiC4G497aDJ3EnQx5j4qiGWZadOz1mZd42Sy3L/s640/blogger-image--1927721752.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCTONvdLagn9yo6BGql7u0WTV4z9JydbDmef0TK6RPr1djojofwrQWVlGmt4H_TBAn8PKYa9_pK95sWJ1WFFGC64ZkTqfUDnYiC4G497aDJ3EnQx5j4qiGWZadOz1mZd42Sy3L/s640/blogger-image--1927721752.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">From 1968, we have <b>Sun Ra's Outer Spaceways Incorporated</b>, a nice slab of prime, live Arkestra. For an artist as prolific as Sun Ra, it can be a real crap shoot as to what you're getting, but this album delivers. Not a particularly rare recording, but nice to have it on lavender colored vinyl with snappy new artwork. Shame ORG Music didn't bother with a personnel listing though. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGYYLouQfJ5w33oEt5d3-yZNszbR0FmVJC42kxvt0aYOOoLFfrQuE2KknUOsyCSwsDngZRUWov0GGDQUZQ_qxgDlHom3_LbFG8wMOqENTuRPnbCGKt4EEwl73VxqCzRfx8hcSI/s640/blogger-image--1517383262.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGYYLouQfJ5w33oEt5d3-yZNszbR0FmVJC42kxvt0aYOOoLFfrQuE2KknUOsyCSwsDngZRUWov0GGDQUZQ_qxgDlHom3_LbFG8wMOqENTuRPnbCGKt4EEwl73VxqCzRfx8hcSI/s640/blogger-image--1517383262.jpg"></a></div><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Get On Down has become one of my favorite reissue labels, but this year their RSD pickins were kind of slim. <b>Food For Thought </b>by <b>The J.B.s</b> is uneven as most James Brown related LPs are, but there are some stone cold classics contained within. I'm sure I have all these tracks on various compilations, but it's still a good spin. The purple vinyl single of The Grunt is a nice touch, though the poster of the album cover I could give or take. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeSb78O8bA52wOmjKktNLDvGopizQQYl3mc7oLcQGKDVrZZ594Q5-mnDmlpYU_WdVaHNh50hEcSG0ZbfedAKxr3cwmVu-XrFtXB1qa4vyfKbnYt6OJdZP6NOTcZt3Cfm0lKveL/s640/blogger-image-645102898.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeSb78O8bA52wOmjKktNLDvGopizQQYl3mc7oLcQGKDVrZZ594Q5-mnDmlpYU_WdVaHNh50hEcSG0ZbfedAKxr3cwmVu-XrFtXB1qa4vyfKbnYt6OJdZP6NOTcZt3Cfm0lKveL/s640/blogger-image-645102898.jpg"></a></div><br></div>And my second pull from Get On Down is my token overpriced 7" for this year ($12! Damn!) The Coldcut remix of <b>Paid In Full </b>is a classic moment in hip-hop and this is a nice reproduction of the British version of what may be <b>Eric B. & Rakim's</b> finest moment. The flip side ("Eric B. Is on the Cut") still sounds like filler and I'd have preferred the 12" of this with the full seven minute remix, so I guess I'm kind if split on this one. </div><div><br></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCOmEQJCFrqwZaLVpRVwo9FsZJjr4nmx9hwsiBvwOTcVwe1egjcUj5joF22lI6aszdl4TvUAKtcL95PZhZGmK4gHHV07fVrdCq4Du97Fo-7nu1tUBzNhMOcgDxGbSIpeXEHB95/s640/blogger-image--1669782439.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCOmEQJCFrqwZaLVpRVwo9FsZJjr4nmx9hwsiBvwOTcVwe1egjcUj5joF22lI6aszdl4TvUAKtcL95PZhZGmK4gHHV07fVrdCq4Du97Fo-7nu1tUBzNhMOcgDxGbSIpeXEHB95/s640/blogger-image--1669782439.jpg"></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">My blind buy for this year was Jazzman's <b>Jef Gilson et Malagasy </b>five LP/one 7" set. I'm still digesting this one, as it's all new to me, but I'm liking what I hear so far. Spiritual jazz with a bit of a foreign twinge. What's not to like, other than the packaging, which left me a bit underwhelmed. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3BiIJtW6cm61PQWVxsdfxjHSl7wFVviVPASZS3zhrhuKxuOuiL_lA26auRm53GhpTVuhrD1VwPCWTupymlydPSauLZ-eC6J_rpMmNjSp_eYz2-gQB9TmCAD2sEcxDHCEbD-Zm/s640/blogger-image--1567214029.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3BiIJtW6cm61PQWVxsdfxjHSl7wFVviVPASZS3zhrhuKxuOuiL_lA26auRm53GhpTVuhrD1VwPCWTupymlydPSauLZ-eC6J_rpMmNjSp_eYz2-gQB9TmCAD2sEcxDHCEbD-Zm/s640/blogger-image--1567214029.jpg"></a></div><br></div>Another RSD repeat performer is <b>The Black Angels</b> who came out with another 10" this year called <b>Clear Lake Forest</b>. I'm not really sure what to say about is one other than if you don't like the Angels brand of Texas psychedelia, this isn't going to win you over. Clear vinyl, mp3 card. You know the drill. </div><div><br></div><div>I think I'm going to stop for tonight as I'm running out of things to say. Keep an eye open for part two, before RSD '15, I hope. </div>Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com0Indianapolis Indianapolis39.838303 -86.136502tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-38005309477353283842011-05-13T16:09:00.004-04:002011-05-13T16:26:13.275-04:00A Quick Blurb About the Vinyl Lovers LabelEven though they've been putting stuff out since 2008, I just discovered this Russian reissue label called Vinyl Lovers. Apparently it's a subsidary label of Lilith Records and somehow related to 4 Men With Beards. They have some sort of contract with Universal and have a pretty impressive catalog. And that's about all I know about that.<br /><br />I picked up a couple of Os Mutantes albums and a purple vinyl pressing of the Velvet Underground's "White Light/White Heat" at Half Price Books, who seem to have gotten a bunch of these titles in new. I'll start with the positive and tell you that these are quality pressings. Nice vinyl, flat records, very quiet. <br /><br />The problem is in the mastering. These all have some harsh upper mids. The Mutantes records just sound kind of thin overall. The VU isn't too bad, but it still gets a little trebley at times. I'd also lay money down that these are from digital masters, if you care about such things. <br /><br />Would I recommend this label? Probably not, especially at the $30 a pop most places seem to be charging for their stuff. I paid $10 a pop, and that's about what a Scorpio/vinyl.com reissue would cost and quality wise, I'd say sound quality these are similar, though the pressing is definetly nicer.Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-1293797897258306812011-04-16T17:44:00.003-04:002011-04-16T18:23:50.787-04:00Record Store Day ThoughtsRecord Store Day is a bit of a scam. There. I said it. <br /><br />At the same time, there I was, lined up before opening with all the other hipsters and record collector scum, waiting to spend, spend, spend!<br /><br />Why?<br /><br />Well, I had a ton of in-store credit burning a hole in my pocket. And, at the same time, I'm enough of a sucker that there was some stuff I actually wanted to buy this year. Sigh. Hook, line and sinker. <br /><br />But first, let me reel off a quote from the excellent Numero Group which kind of sums up a lot of how I feel about this retail holiday:<br /><br /><blockquote>For openers, most Record Store Day records are trashy cash-ins. Bogus 7″ repros, expensive and needless live LPs, and perhaps the worst culprit of all, records that aren’t actually limited but are marketed as such (We’re looking at you Flaming Lips Dark Side Of the Moon)</blockquote><br /><br />Of course, they then go on to pimp their own Record Store Day special, available in the oh-so-trendy and completely worthless cassette format. Waddayagonnado?<br /><br />Speaking of worthless, how about that Beach Boys double 78rpm set? How many of those do you think will ever get played? How many people even have something to play 78s? I don't and yet, here I sit looking at #3794 of however many thousands they cranked out, unwrapped and on my table. <br /><br />The one item I was actually out for, the Big Star Third "test pressing" set, is pretty cool, even the cynic in me must say. But, it's still a fetish item. I had the music already. There's nothing new there. But I still had to have it, for some reason.<br /><br />Ditto a few "bogus 7" repros", though I stayed away from the live stuff. And I did actually get around to buying some Black Angels stuff I didn't have. So there was that. <br /><br />But really, at the end of the day, it's all kind of silly. The false scarcity and silly collector's editions and whatnot are, in my not so humble opinion, some of the worst aspects of the music biz. They do nothing other than trivialize the music, which is what it is supposed to be about, I think. <br /><br />Let me tell you though what I do like about Record Store Day: seeing the stores packed. Sure, it's a herd of folks grabbing at those exclusives, but ultimately, they are putting money in the cash drawers at some of the few record stores we have left. Who knows? Maybe this one day could mean the difference between paying bills and getting evicted for a store?<br /><br />But it also kind of gives me pause. If they have to go to all this hype and gimmick to get people in, are record stores still relevant in today's world? I know I've moved a lot of my purchasing to on-line and digital sources for reasons of both price and convenience. Yet I still find myself at the record store, every now and again. I don't think I could imagine life without them completely. <br /><br />And apparently a lot of other people feel the same way. Both of the stores I went to were packed, and I can't believe they were all eBay scalpers. People weren't just buying the exclusives. There must be something to it that people would stand in the kind of lines I stood in for pieces of plastic with music on them. <br /><br />So I still think Record Store Day is a bit of a scam, as I do any retail holiday, but at the same time, it does make me appreciate living in a town that can support three independent record stores. Though I don't frequent them as much as I used to, I'm glad they're still around. And, even though it's kind of ridiculous, I'm glad to have this Big Star set sitting in front of me.Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-28580327010783419802011-04-05T12:11:00.004-04:002011-04-05T16:09:01.477-04:00A Secret Stash of Fake(?) FunkRecently, I've picked up some releases on a label called Secret Stash. The albums seemed right up my alley, claiming to be lost porn and blaxploitation soundtracks, funk from Russia and a reggae version of Kind of Blue. However, something about these albums just didn't seem quite right.<br /><br />Each one of these records is kind of mysterious, which already set alarms off with me. Absolute minimal credits and a suspiciously perfect backstory accompany each record. Me being me, I wanted more info about what I was listening to. If the recordings were really as obscure as they claimed, not knowing the musicians who played wasn't out of the question. But, I figured there should be some reference somewhere to some of the movies the tracks from Porno Grooves are from. Or surely someone is looking for that lost blaxploitation film Mad Dog's Hustle.<br /><br />Suspiciously, all the information I found about the Porn Groove and Mad Dog's Hustle albums either linked back to those albums or a source which took Secret Stash's promo material verbatim. In other words, outside the scope of these albums, these movies don't seem to exist.<br /><br />Regarding the Soviet Funk albums, they sure smell fishy, if they aren't out right fakes. <a href="http://my.opera.com/sovietgroove/blog/a-fake-soviet-funk-release">This blog post</a>, was one of the first I found and it led me to <a href="http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=ru&tl=en&u=http%3A%2F%2Ffunk-petersburg.ru%2Fviewtopic.php%3Ft%3D4139">this message board thread.</a> Pretty damning stuff.<br /><br />Now I'm not going to say that these releases are fake just because there's no information about the movies or any of the people connected to them out there. And just because there are some wonky Russian titles doesn't necessarly mean it's a fake either. But the evidence sure casts a heap of doubt on the authenticity of these records.<br /><br />But does it matter? If the music is good, does it really matter where it came from? Well, I kind of think in this case it does. If you're selling something as vintage Russian funk, it's kind of shady to have some guys from the local throw it together for you. I took an interest in these records because of what I thought they were and yeah, I feel a little ripped off that they appear to be fakes.<br /><br />So how is the music anyway? Well, the one record I haven't mentioned, the Reggae Interpertation of Kind of Blue is very good, though the dub versions on the B side are lacking. The Porno Groove and Mad Dog's Hustle albums are pretty much standard library sounding tracks. Mad Dog leans a little heavier in a blaxplotation groove. Not too bad, but neither is essential.<br /><br />However, when it comes to the Soviet Funk albums, the origin and back story on the records isn't the only bit of questionable labeling. To be generous, one could call these Jazz-Funk records, but really they are more in an early 70s fusion bag than anything like funk. Aside from not being what I expected, there really wasn't anything that grabbed me on the records. That could be because I was expecting Meters and James Brown and got Return to Forever and Weather Report.<br /><br />If I'm wrong about these releases being fake, I'd be the first to admit it. I'd also be very suprized. It seems to me like Secret Stash has wrapped some pretty average music in an interesting, but phony, back story and put it out there. Oh well, at least the colored vinyl is nice.Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-73881359517270559802010-01-11T11:57:00.003-05:002010-01-11T17:02:29.651-05:00The Weird Al Show<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Cngq1jgAs2E&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Cngq1jgAs2E&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />In 1997, Weird Al Yankovic hosted a Saturday morning show on CBS called, appropriately enough, The Weird Al Show. The show ran 13 episodes before being canceled. A typical episode unspooled like this: an educational objective is displayed on a parchment and literally yelled at the viewer. Al, playing a jerky man-child, behaves in a manner contrary to the educational objective and his friends awkwardly reiterate the message to him. A Fatman cartoon is played, TV is watched, a tween friendly band plays. Finally, Al learns his lesson. Roll credits.<br /><br />Sound kind of dull? Well, sad to say, it is. But, I think it's safe to say it's not the creative team's fault. It seems they envisioned something more along the lines of Pee-Wee's Playhouse, aimed at a middle school audience. CBS had other things in mind. <br /><br />Since the network had been stung by past controversial kidvid, like Pee-Wee and the New Adventures of Mighty Mouse, they were looking to play safe with future Saturday morning fare. Additionally, new government mandates required three hours of educational television in the Saturday morning slot. How CBS was pitched The Weird Al Show and decided it would be safe and educational is beyond me.<br /><br />What appeared on the screen was the product of back and forth between the show's creators and CBS, who insisted on things such as the educational objective and more or less dumbing down the show to reach a Barney aged crowd. Aided by an ever changing time slot, the result was the show never found an audience and was off the air a year after it started.<br /><br />It is exactly this behind the scenes wrangling that may have ruined the show, but makes this DVD set worth watching. Not because the show itself has improved with age. It hasn't. But because it allowed Al, director Peyton Reed and producer Thomas F. Frank the opportunity to create one of the most blunt and fascinating commentary tracks of all time. <br /><br />If you are expecting a laugh a minute track like say the one from This Is Spinal Tap, you will be disappointed. However, if you enjoy knowing how the sausage is made, or not as the case is here, it doesn't get much better than this. I'm not talking technical details of how they made shots and things of that nature. Sure, that's there too, but I'm talking pretty blunt airings of the many ways CBS mucked up the show.<br /><br />The three commentators turn their bitterness and disappointment into a fascinating look at how major networks really view their audience and how removed they really are from the creative process. It's also interesting to get takes on what was removed vs. what was allowed. For instance,Al proudly proclaims the show had the fist television puppet vomit and then marvels that this was allowed while other, much more innocent things, were axed.<br /><br />The tone of the commentary isn't all bile. They seem very self-aware and willing to poke fun at their own shortcomings as well as dish earned blame to the network. For example, Al notes if they had wanted to avoid comparison to Pee-Wee's show, they probably shouldn't have used the same set designer. There's also some fun trivia, such as they were originally offered the Family Guy characters for the show and Randy "Macho Man" Savage only agreed to a skit where he is pinned by Al's hamster sidekick after he was assured Harvey the Wonder Hamster wasn't a girl. It's also amusing to hear how Al lined up guests by accosting them on the Tonight Show set (which was down the hall) and they aren't afraid to poke fun at some of those same guests. ("John Tesh? There's one for our target demographic. Kids love John Tesh.")<br /><br />To be fair, the show, as crippled as it is, has it's moments. On the rare occasion Al is allowed to be Al, it works well. The channel surfing bits, especially the Mr. Rogers parody Fred Huggins, are quite funny. And Emo Philips, who makes a guest appearance (much to the networks chagrin, it seems,) is great. But, it's hard to see The Weird Al Show as anything other than a giant missed opportunity, just like it's creators do. It's hard to deny these DVDs are much better with the commentary track on, and I'd highly recommend anyone interested in how messed up network television really is have a listen.Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-82293478439706372032010-01-11T10:29:00.002-05:002010-01-11T10:37:52.908-05:00Random thought about Blade RunnerI know it's popular opinion to hate on the voice over version of Blade Runner originally released, but I don't. Maybe the fact that I saw the original version first helps. (It seems to me a lot of the people really against the voice over version, saw it after the "Director's Cut".) Yes, Harrison Ford phones it in, but that only adds to the noir feel of the film. (Really, it pretty much gives the movie a film noir feeling all by itself.) It also helps me accept the movie as a separate entity from the book. Watching the "Director's Cut," I tend to get mad about all the stuff they cut from the book. <br /><br />I would stop the projector five minutes before the end though. The ending they tacked on is disgusting anyway you look at it.Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-55475688387210912722010-01-10T13:15:00.004-05:002010-01-10T13:43:25.261-05:00Rifftrax DVDsOnce upon a time, a company called Legend Films, who specialize in colorizing old movies, decided to put out a DVD of their version of Reefer Madness. In their infinite wisdom, they hired Mike Nelson of Mystery Science Theater 3000 to do a humorous commentary track. And it was funny. The project proved successful, so more DVDs followed. Soon, Mike was joined by Bill Corbin and Kevin Murphy, also of MST3K. As the commentary tracks were proving to be very popular, RiffTrax was born, which allows you to purchase commentary tracks for a wide variety of movies, including the public domain fare Legend was releasing.<br /><br />Soon, the old commentary tracks were remade with all three of the MST3K alumni. These tracks were available for download and synced to the appropriate movie as video on demand. But then someone had the idea to issue new DVDs with the so called "three riffer versions" of the old films as well as two collections of short industrial films the RiffTrax crew had been doing as well. You can buy these discs individually for $9.99 or as a ten pack, which I got for around $60 on Deep Discount.<br /><br />The only of these I'd seen prior to these DVDs were the shorts and the original Reefer Madness with Mike solo. The shorts are absolutely hilarious. When films like this were shown on MST3K, they were always one of my favorite features and the RiffTrax crew hasn't lost its touch. Reefer Madness is also a hit with few jokes being repeated from Mike's version (or at least few that I can remember.) <br /><br />After that however, the laughs slow down. I'd passed on Mike's versions of Carnival of Souls and Night of the Living Dead as I'd read some mixed reviews on these. The new versions are pretty mixed as well. The laughs are sparse and I'm not sure why that is exactly. My hunch is that those two movies, aside from being low budget, are fairly well constructed and among some of the best horror films ever made. It's not as easy to riff on something that doesn't give you much to work with.<br /><br />On the other hand, Plan 9 From Outer Space is one of those movies that bad movie fans know so well, there aren't going to be too many jokes that haven't been thought of already. In an official MST3K FAQ, they said something to that effect in response to the question of why they hadn't done Plan 9. I think this RiffTrax disc proves it was a pretty wise move. Plan 9's jokes practically write themselves and unless you haven't seen the movie before, or if you have no imagination, there's not a lot of new chuckles to be had.<br /><br />And then there's Swing Parade and Little Shop of Horror, which show the difficulty of riffing on comedy, even when the film is so threadbare as Swing Parade is. You just can't make that much fun of a film that isn't taking itself seriously. <br /><br />On top of that, these DVDs are pretty barebones. You don't get the colorized versions and, in some cases, it looks like you don't even get the restored prints Legend used to make their colorized versions. Night of the Living Dead and Little Shop of Horror in particular approach streaming web video in quality. Other than that, you get a new song over the menu (meh) and a download code for a Riff on one of the Harry Potter films. Unfortunately, it's the same card in all the DVDs, so once you've downloaded it, there's not much point to the other nine codes you have.<br /><br />As much as it pains me to slag anything MST3K related, I have to this time. It's pretty difficult to recommend buying all these. The Shorts are really funny and so is Reefer Madness, but if you buy just those, you're halfway to the ten pack in cost. On the other hand, I really can't see myself re-watching any of these other than those three and, my life would be no poorer having skipped the other seven. It's really a toss up. I think I'd say the smart move is to try to score those three used and do a video on demand rental of the rest if you must see them.Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-91723214733104151462009-06-05T10:05:00.010-04:002009-06-05T21:11:11.022-04:00eMusic, SonyBMG and how not to roll out a service changeThose of you who have followed this blog for a while know I've been a huge fan of eMusic. The service, for those who don't know, is a subscription based music service that offers very low rates and a fiercely independent catalog. Earlier this week, eMusic causally announced changes to both of these core features.<br /><br />From the official statements, the most heralded change is the addition of SonyBMG back catalog. This is a fairly major coup for the service. In the past, the major labels have avoided eMusic due to their low label payouts so for SonyBMG to join up is a pretty radical change of thought on their part.<br /><br />Or is it? The second announcement was an across the board (a New Your Times article called it "slight") rate increase. Technically, rates are staying the same, but the number of downloads that same money buys is going down. And here's where the story gets really interesting.<br /><br />The way this was rolled out could be a text book example of how not to handle service changes or how to piss off nearly all your loyal customers. Rather than sending an eMail to subscribers, users would have to log into the site and notice the link on the homepage announcing important changes to your account. For a company that has tried to build a large sense of community, this came as quite an affront to many subscribers.<br /><br />The <a href="http://17dots.com/2009/05/31/more-of-the-good-stuff/">SonyBMG announcement, a blog post ironically titled "More of the good stuff"</a> is rather ambiguous and worded heavily with corporate speak. The addition of a major label is certain to change the face of a service that has always been a feisty independent, a fact downplayed in the official word. And one would have to do a bit of leg work to see that this deal is for "selected" SonyBMG back catalog without mentioning what or when it's coming. Neither of the official statements to subscribers mention this, but <a href="http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/technology/2009/06/emusic-sony-mp3.html">this LA times blog post</a> fills in some gaps.<br /><br />Most importantly are the rate changes, which were rather casually tossed in near the end of the statement. A while back, eMusic raised it's rates and sent out an eMail assuring current subscribers they'd have their current rates as long as they remained members in good standing. Two years later, these most loyal, longest subscribing members are seeing their rates more than double without even a proper eMail alerting them to the changes. <br /><br />Needless to say there's been a healthy sense of outrage at eMusic over these changes and the way they were handled. On eMusic's message boards, the consensus is overwhelmingly negative mostly for the rate changes but the way this was handled and SonyBMG itself isn't exactly popular either. While I think this was really carried out in the worst manner possible, especially for a company that needs customer loyalty in the form of long term subscribers to survive, after the shock has worn off, I'm cautiously optimistic about what lies ahead.<br /><br />Let's get this out of the way first; I'm not happy my rates are going up. I was grandfathered in on a plan and I'm now paying about double what I was per track. One of the major things I liked about eMusic was the low cost that made experimenting with music rather painless. the new rates are going to make me, and seemingly all other users, a bit more cautious about what I'm downloading.<br /><br />But, I'm also a musician with music on the service. Our per track take from eMusic is less than half what it is from iTunes or Amazon. In the last couple of years, eMusic has lost major indies like Epitaph and Drag City over these lower per track payments. As an artist without a label selling through TuneCore, the lower payments aren't as big a deal as they may be to a real label with overhead. <br /><br />I've had arguments with other eMusic users on this point, but I just don't see how the service could have continued to keep the labels they have, let alone attract new ones, with the rates they were charging. There was an unofficial statement now buried on the message board from the site's editor, and public face of eMusic to many of it's subscribers, Yancy Strickler which sounds to me like eMusic was looking at the potential of a mass exodus of labels if they didn't find a way to increase the payouts.<br /><br />The problem is, they tied this in with the SonyBMG announcement, which was a huge mistake. While the arrival of SonyBMG is certainly related to the rate increase, I don't think it's the only reason for the increase. I can understand why many users feel it is. I did too for a while. But, knowing what little I know about the behind the scenes and label side stuff, I really don't think it was just luring SonyBMG that was the reason for the hike.<br /><br />But the bigger problem is the way this whole thing has been handled. Most of what I've written is speculation as both a subscriber and a music provider, I know very little other than rates are going up and some SonyBMG back catalog is coming. I'm not trying to suggest my situation entitles me a seat at the board meetings or anything like that. I do think I, and every other subscriber, am entitled to better communication than we've been given.<br /><br />I find myself very conflicted about everything right now. As an artist, I'm cautiously optimistic that the new rates will mean better payouts. The big question is, will users be as adventurous with fewer and more expensive credits? (This is an issue I <a href="http://captainwrong.blogspot.com/2007/09/epitaph-emusic-and-one-of-my-favorite.html">addressed a few years ago when Epitaph left</a>.) This may end up going much like iTunes new $1.29 price point where the increase in per track rates doesn't make up the shortfall from users choosing not to download things they would have at the older rates.<br /><br />As a subscriber of the service, I'm really hoping my hunches are correct and the increased rates mean keeping the quality labels they have as well as adding new ones. Many users feel that Sony is the entire reason for the hike, which, if true, would be a pretty drastic swing in what eMusic is all about. I don't think that's the case, but the rate increase will be much easier to take knowing the money is going towards courting more labels I care about than attracting the back catalog of one I don't.<br /><br />Whatever the case, the way this was handled has given me some serious doubts about the future of eMusic. Hopefully this was just poorly planned and isn't a sign of the way changes to the service will be handled in the future. But the silence from the top since all this exploded doesn't exactly do much to make me hopeful.Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-17579866853269549882009-06-03T19:58:00.003-04:002009-06-03T20:37:10.765-04:00Review: Zachariah (1971)Spoilers ahoy, if you care.<br /><br />Zachariah and his friend Matthew (played by a very young Don Johnson) decide to go off and be gunfighters. They meet up with an inept game, have a few heists, then Zach gets the big idea to meet up with Job Cain, the fastest gun in the west. For some reason never really explained, Zach gets cold feet and he and Matthew split up. He then meets up with a mystical old coot who takes him for a romp in the desert that somehow fills in all the blanks. Matthew guns down his boss Job then comes looking for Zach. He finds him, they don't have a shoot out but instead wrestle and then when Matthew realizes the ridiculousness of it all, they ride off into the sunset together. The end.<br /><br />Zachariah is clearly a product of it's time, and by that I mean the post-Woodstock, post-Easy Rider era. The movie just reeks of the tail end of the hippie era. That in itself isn't necessarily bad, but the problem comes in when Zachariah tries to be both a deep, loner looking for the greater meaning of life movie and a comedy and a head trip movie and a western. It succeeds at none of these things. <br /><br />Simply put, this movie is a mess.<br /><br />Part of the problem is that it is trying to be all those things I mentioned above and succeeds at none. The comedy (written by the Firesign Theater, who I always find the definition of hit or miss) really isn't all that funny. The drama isn't that compelling. The mystical stuff is clearly in the who cares category. Very little of this movie makes sense, motivation for any of the characters is really hard to figure out. <br /><br />It's clear that this movie was trying to be a hip drive-in flick, so the fact that I'm watching it 35+ years after the fact with no chemical enhancements seems to be the rest of the problem. I have to say though, I'd be curious to know what combination of drugs would make some of these sad sack jokes funny. This movie wasn't for me, so maybe I just don't get it. <br /><br />However, there are two shining moments in this film and I'm using this review as an excuse to post them. First, you get a totally gratuitous (and nonsensical) opening sequence featuring the James Gang. (They return later in the movie as Job Cain's house band.)<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/oeHZecjraGs&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/oeHZecjraGs&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Next, and this is truly the highlight of the film, Job Cain is played by none other than Elvin Jones! And Elvin is truly awesome in his role. This is the best scene in the whole movie, though the beginning is truncated a bit. <br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/74MvcFBLJdY&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/74MvcFBLJdY&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />I mean, damn. He just shot a man and then he busts out a crazy Elvin Jones drum solo. It really doesn't get much cooler than that. <br /><br />Well, I just saved you the trouble of seeking this one out as there's really nothing else redeeming about it. Unless you are a hippy western completest, stay far away. If you do get it, do yourself a favor and skip to Elvin's scenes and revel in his awesomeness.<br /><br />(<a href="http://jclarkmedia.com/film/filmreviewzachariah.html">Here's an alternate viewpoint</a> that goes way more in depth than I think this movie deserves. Two points he makes are especially interesting to me: one is the gay overtones between Zachariah and Matthew, which I noticed but thought it was just my imagination. The second is the film's relationship to Siddhartha, which I missed but find myself slapping my forehead about now.)Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-73844843194485552632009-05-27T09:20:00.003-04:002009-05-27T09:21:56.856-04:00Y'know...not having a job where you're in front of the computer all day gives a person a lot less time/motivation to blog.Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-9072783835032340322009-04-19T09:15:00.003-04:002009-04-19T09:38:29.864-04:00Yuki Show Diary: 4/18/09 Luna MusicWe got asked to play Record Store Day at <a href="http://lunamusic.net">Luna Music</a>. They've been pretty good supporters of us, so it was kind of a no brainier. Of course, playing at 2 pm on a Saturday afternoon was kind of early for us, but we were helped by beautiful weather and people were out and about in good numbers. <br /><br />It would seem that we had a good number of people there. I really am not sure because I wasn't looking out at the audience much. I think we had a lot of people listening outside. Yeah, we're a little loud for a small shop like that.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos-a.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs036.snc1/3291_1149764222645_1183772509_30441368_6357220_n.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 604px; height: 453px;" src="http://photos-a.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs036.snc1/3291_1149764222645_1183772509_30441368_6357220_n.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a><br />(Photo by Jen Hughes)<br /><br />Anyway, I feel pretty confident in saying that performance wise, this is the best we've done in a while. I really felt good about it on the way out and I rarely do. I usually hear the mistakes (especially mine) but I really didn't hear many. I hope a video of this show turns up somewhere as this would be the time I didn't see anyone filming. <br /><br />Fun day though and I go to finally meet Scott, who I've known online for ages, and Koven was there as well. That was the coolest, just having people I've never or rarely see around. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos-d.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs014.snc1/2947_1134561087875_1342754723_356155_1612995_n.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 604px; height: 453px;" src="http://photos-d.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/hs014.snc1/2947_1134561087875_1342754723_356155_1612995_n.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a>(Photo by Scott Bolderson)<br /><br />And I got to play my new drums. They rocked, but I'm still not happy with the snare.Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-35175855944278297232009-04-05T09:49:00.002-04:002009-04-05T09:56:50.313-04:00Yuki Show Diary: 4/4/09 Zaines TooEven though this was pretty close in genres to the line up at the basement show last week (we even played before Stand and Deliver,) I felt more out of place last night. Or maybe it was playing a bar with no band beer that put me in a bad mood. Whatever the case, this was a night where as hard as I tried, I was just not feeling it.<br /><br />Again we were filmed and I'm not looking forward to seeing this one as much. I felt like I was really sluggish with the tempo (probably compensating for last Saturday where I'm sure everything was way too fast.) I will say this, I had enough stage to set up the entire Vistalite kit, which was pretty cool. I'm not sure how much more I'll be bringing all that out, as it's really a lot to lug around (and it needs reheaded badly.) <br /><br />I don't know. I guess there isn't much else to say. Not a disaster but just a slightly less than average night.Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-6597912428099513732009-03-30T08:47:00.002-04:002009-03-30T08:54:27.297-04:00Links and stuff.I've been meaning to get to this forever, but keep forgetting, so here it is now. First off, I'd like to recommend you check out <a href="http://www.rotheblog.com/">Jeff Rothe's blog</a> for awesome stuff about golden age arcade games. It's become one of my favorite sources for information on restoring and history of machines of the pre-crash era. <br /><br />Also, I'd recommend you check out my friend and the keyboard player/singer in Yuki Gwynn's blog <a href="http://codhandmade.blogspot.com/">Cult of Domesticity</a>. She's also making handmade bags and other stuff, so you can check that stuff out there as well.<br /><br />Alright, I think that gets me caught up. :)Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-35353843005800521962009-03-29T11:44:00.004-04:002009-03-30T08:33:44.901-04:00Yuki Show Diary: 3/28/09 Basement Show<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiW5ARPMJl7WiUuGwSOUlFpXIt4USmTzp_VqcHRz5u5G-q7SfNXNR_c0gVXcKvof4y9vnPBvc4a6fjYsyv_E5l1klH0jfkAbal5K0HFHMmi3B8yu5nLED4dsjEO8Q8ZQgAfy6n/s1600-h/-1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiW5ARPMJl7WiUuGwSOUlFpXIt4USmTzp_VqcHRz5u5G-q7SfNXNR_c0gVXcKvof4y9vnPBvc4a6fjYsyv_E5l1klH0jfkAbal5K0HFHMmi3B8yu5nLED4dsjEO8Q8ZQgAfy6n/s320/-1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318957988065187394" /></a><br />I felt kind of out of place as I knew very few people and it was a basement show with hardcore bands and whatnot. However, it was a show for a good friend of Jason's who passed away recently, so I was more than happy to do it. It was kind of a rough evening though as it was raining a lot and we had to park half way across town, it seemed. Plus there were a lot of people there and that always wigs me out a bit. Luckily Bob Fouts from Stand and Deliver was loaning me drums, which made the night a hell of a lot easier. <br /><br />So we got there and I think we were all anxious to play and kind of figured we'd go over pretty poorly as we were kind of out of place. It all worked out though. After the line up stopped changing around, things got better. Of course, when we actually got to play, things came together in a big way. I guess I was steaming and I'm amazed I didn't catch pneumonia. I felt our playing was better than in Chicago. Probably looser, but the energy was stronger. I don't know why. Maybe it was the whole basement show vibe.<br /><br />Oh and yeah, people seemed into it. It was really pretty nice. I'm sure there were people who didn't care for us at all, and that's fine, but we had a pretty packed room from what I could see. I forgot that people at these shows tend to be supportive of all the bands because you don't usually get asked into someone's basement if you're going to really suck. So that was nice.<br /><br />Anyway, this has been kind of hard to type as I'm in pretty poor shape. I think I was slamming the hell out of Bob's drums (sorry about that.) My left hand especially is blistered and I'm missing a chunk of skin on my pinky. How that happened is a mystery.Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-81885281771908758162009-03-28T17:36:00.001-04:002009-03-29T12:11:19.471-04:00Yuki Show Diary: 3/27/09 Darkroom, Chicago(I just realized I forgot to do one of these for a show we played earlier in the month. Oops. Well, the 11th, we played the Melody Inn. A good time was had by all and the turnout was strong for a Wednesday. The end.)<br /><br />Anyway, Jason has been on a booking frenzy and got us a date at this bar in Chicago called the Darkroom. Originally, it was to be a different date, but something fell through and we ended up with this night instead. Worked out better, I think, as this was a monthly show called The Equalizer sponsored buy The Onion and KEXP. Kind of cool, as we're all big fans of The Onion.<br /><br />I'm still kind of amazed we landed a Friday night as a pretty hip bar in Chicago being that we really don't have a name for ourselves. I guess the power of Yuki is just too strong.<br /><br />I'd gone back and forth about bringing my own drums since Kristen and I were going up early and are driving a Canyonaro right now. Ultimately I was talked out of it, as Tiger Spirit, who we played before, said we could use their gear. Nice folks and an enjoyable band.<br /><br />So, I got to play on this old Slingerland kit with large drums. It was fun, but I walked the line between getting things set right and knocking things out of whack for the drummer who's kit is was. Plus I felt like an idiot for forgetting my pedal and throne. The drums were fine, but my playing on them was a bit off because of that.<br /><br />But I had good monitor for a change and, for the most part, I think we played well but not particularly inspired. The show was taped, so I'll get to hear it, but I'm guessing that it's going to be tight and mostly correct but missing some of the fire we've had in practice lately. So it goes.<br /><br />The audience was bigger than what I expected and they were polite and more attentive than I'd expected. However, we only sold two shirts, both to family, so I guess the proof is in the pudding.<br /><br />ADDENDUM: Two things I almost forgot. One, we were interviewed by KEXP and I'm sure it will be absolutely embarrassing. Two, upon entering the club, I was told that if I wanted some moonshine, it was $10 for a jar. Sure enough, a couple hours later, I got a Ball canning jar wrapped in newspaper with a clear liquid in it. I waited until I got home to sample it, but it's fairly smooth going down, but once it hits, it burns all the way up.Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-67058301482576832342009-03-24T11:04:00.003-04:002009-03-24T11:31:40.934-04:00Warner Movies On Demand/Made To OrderRead about it here: http://tinyurl.com/dbrx8r<br /><br />Summary, if you didn't click the link, Warner is offering films from the vault going back to the 20s not previously available as on demand downloads and made to order DVDs. I have to wonder what's taken them so long, but whatever. It's a good idea at any rate.<br /><br />Except the downloads won't play on Mac, which leads me to believe they're going to be WMV files DRM encumbered with Microsoft's Plays For Sure. And they'll cost you $15 for the privilege. Want a DVD? It's $20.<br /><br />I feel like a broken record but, here's another example of just not getting it. The idea, while good, is a bit late. They may think these films are "unarchived" but it's really not that difficult to find tons of "unarchived" movies for free online, if you're not troubled by the legality of it.<br /><br />In a time when even the control freakish record labels are finally realizing DRM doesn't work, they're bringing out something with it? And, naturally, they've chosen the path which excludes Apple users, who I know are a minority. But they're a minority with money.<br /><br />And $20 for what I'm assuming is going to be a bare bones DVD might have flown five years ago, but it isn't acceptable today. DVD prices are in the tank and you can get new Blu-Ray releases for $20. While I recognize there's additional cost with to order type services, Something Weird Video has their to order DVDs priced around $8-$10, which is a much more reasonable cost. <br /><br />So, once again, I'm finding myself writing close, but no cigar. Sometimes I feel like one of those people who just won't be satisfied no matter what. It just irritates me to see time and time again when these companies do something that they should have been done ages ago, but make mistakes so obvious and then complain about how it didn't work and piracy is ruining everything etc., etc. It's especially irritating because, with something like this, I really think it could work, but not the way they're going to do it. <br /><br />I'll still be interested to see what films they offer up and how long they keep at it. But this also goes back to the "too little, too late" thing because I really can't think of too much from the WB vaults I'd want to see that I couldn't get my hands on if I wanted. Maybe for the people who are as resourceful as I am, this will be a great thing. Who knows?Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-67527823090886242122009-03-24T10:56:00.002-04:002009-03-24T11:01:03.269-04:00Hi, I am still here, promise.I realized the other day, I'm really slacking on the blog. I meant to post when I got back from school, but never did. Anyway, I am back and school was pretty amazing. I just posted a bunch of pictures of where I lived and you can see them here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/captainwrong/sets/72157615771650386/<br /><br />Really, I've been spending more time of Facebook as I guess I haven't felt I have much to say that can't be summed up in a few hundred characters. Still, I hope to hit the movie stuff again soon. I've seen a bunch of stuff recently, nothing has really inspired me to write about it. <br /><br />So there you have it. I'll be back more though. Promise. :DRob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-15446137970892981562009-02-16T19:10:00.001-05:002009-02-16T19:10:52.009-05:00photo.jpg<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/captainwrong/3285560893/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3579/3285560893_6ed029479e_m.jpg" alt="" style="border: solid 2px #000000;" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: 0.9em; margin-top: 0px;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/captainwrong/3285560893/">photo.jpg</a> <br />Originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/captainwrong/">CaptainWrong</a></span><br clear="all" /><p></p>Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-61766900527331684332009-01-07T10:07:00.004-05:002009-01-07T10:52:05.626-05:00DRM free at last...but wait...I'm sure you've heard by now, but the iTunes Music Store is finally going all DRM free with higher bitrates and variable pricing. As always the case, there's good and bad here, though for me I'm seeing more bad and indifferent than good. <br /><br />First off, it's a good thing that Apple and the rest of the majors finally got past their logjam to offer all the tracks DRM free. Nice to see Apple finally catch up with the rest of the world, even if they still are offering tracks in their proprietary AAC format (no surprise) which not all media players support. <br /><br />Then there's the mixed blessing of variable pricing. The way things were worded, it's implied that most of the catalog will be going to 69 cents a track. New releases are scheduled to stay at 99 cents and might go as high as $1.29 a track. I see this as a mixed blessing at best. <br /><br />The lower price on the back catalog only makes sense, but the higher price on new releases strikes me as an attempt to break the 99 cents standard, which the majors have been trying to do for ages. We'll see if this higher price rolls out in Amazon and other stores. Since Apple is going to be at a disadvantage here if everyone else is selling new tracks thirty cents cheaper, I can't imagine they'd have agreed to this unless that was in the plans.<br /><br />Now, like last time, Apple is making the option to "upgrade" your old iTunes purchases that are now iTunes Plus...for a fee. That fee is 30 cents a track. Although this may affect a small number of people, this is the part of the plan that really irritates me.<br /><br />OK, I know there's no upgrades given or implied with iTunes Music Store purchases. I get that. However, there is a prescient for free upgrades. When some of the other stores converted from DRM encoded WMA files to mp3, users were given tracks in the new formats. To be fair, there's a slight difference here; the WMA files would be useless once the DRM servers were turned off. But, that was a risk the user was expected to assume, yet after the outcry, they were switched over for free as an act of goodwill.<br /><br />Let's look at the money here. Assuming you paid 99 cents a track, adding the 30 cents upgrade puts you at $1.29. Now, we've also learned that most of the catalog is supposed to drop to 69 cents. If you upgrade your tracks, you've just about paid double for them, based on the information that back catalog is going to drop in price. <br /><br />The most infuriating thing is that, once again, the upgrades are presented in an "all or nothing" form. Meaning, to upgrade that out of print Quincy Jones album I really like, I'm also going to have to pay 30 cents a pop to upgrade dozens of tracks don't want. While I can at least see where the upgrade fee is coming from, forcing users to convert all their purchases rather than letting them choose the ones they want is completely ridiculous. <br /><br />While I think it's good that Apple and the labels have worked out their differences, I'm still finding much to be skeptical about. The lowering of back catalog prices is good (assuming it happens,) but I fear the trend is going to be aimed more at raising the price on new releases. And while the option to upgrade is nice, forcing consumers to upgrade everything is not, especially considering they'll have almost paid double for back catalog items once the price drops happen. <br /><br />Of course, as long as people's old purchased tracks still play, I doubt many are going to care about any of this anyway. And, until new release prices go up, I'd imagine most iTunes Music Store users will continue to make purchases, not really even aware of the changes.Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-84090196580741225792009-01-06T09:29:00.002-05:002009-01-06T09:39:58.316-05:00Guilala Gets a Job<a href="http://wtf-film.blogspot.com/">Kevin at WTF films</a> linked this and I had to repost it. You may remember Guilala from <a href="http://captainwrong.blogspot.com/2007/03/review-x-from-outer-space.html">The X From Outer Space.</a> Seems he has a new gig:<br /><br /><object width="480" height="295"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/W89YXGQShCI&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/W89YXGQShCI&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="295"></embed></object><br /><br />Clever little ad. Kudos to whoever made it for using real kaiju instead of creating a generic one. (Of course, if memory serves, there's a remake of X From Outer Space in the works, so perhaps this wasn't that much of a stretch.)Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-61876056809946772502009-01-02T10:17:00.003-05:002009-01-02T10:35:26.194-05:00Now I'll have an Excuse for the Infrequent Updates2008 was not one of my better blogging years. Mostly this is because I wasn't at a job where I was in front of a computer all day, watching crappy movies on the sly. (Nothing quite like viewing a sleezy exploitation film on the clock.) Well, at least for the next couple of months of 2009, I'll have a better excuse for being so lazy.<br /><br />I'm heading off tomorrow for the Recording Workshop in Chillicothe Ohio. Basically, I'm following through on a long time promise to myself to learn how to be a recording engineer. Though part of me worries I've picked the wrong time to embark on such an endeavor, I don't know when or if there really will be a better time. <br /><br />So, that's where I'll be until the end of February. I'll still be back in Indy from time to time, but I don't know yet how often. Obviously, I'll have the laptop with me, so if I get a chance to throw up a blog, I will.<br /><br />But yeah, so happy new year everyone and wish me luck. And if anyone has some recording gig they need filled after February, let me know. I'll be ready to get it on.Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-20535540042752160392008-12-28T10:02:00.002-05:002008-12-28T10:17:20.823-05:00Yuki Show Diary: 12/27/08 Radio RadioBy the week of the show, I think all of us were regretting taking it. There were a number of factors, mostly dealing with the time of year and that most of would just be back from holiday traveling and just want to relax. For me, this was compounded by a party we'd hosted the prior night and that I was feeling so much the shattered man.<br /><br />Regardless, we continued on and I didn't follow through on my threat to bring an old Rhythm Ace instead of my drums. The night started on a bad note for me as I discovered I'd lost one of my fitted earplugs. Luckily, I happened to have another pair where I'd lost the opposite one, so I still have a matched pair. It's just that they were halfway across the city.<br /><br />The show itself was better than I'd expected all the way around. We had a very good turnout, which was really surprising given this hadn't been one of our finest promotional pushes and it was two days after Christmas and bad weather was looming. <br /><br />It took me a while to get my footing though. Tempos have been creeping up in practice and I've been trying to pull them back a bit, but between that and feeling like a chewed piece of gum, I overcompensated the first half of the set. Had a few minor mishaps, but as long as I didn't think about what was going on, I was fine.<br /><br />The combination of the humidity outside and the club not being ready for 60+ degree weather in December made for a very sweaty night. I think I lost a gallon of fluid on the stage. That was the worst part. Well, that and loading out in the pouring rain. That really sucked.Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25872875.post-82797617084533379392008-12-13T01:42:00.003-05:002008-12-13T02:46:52.618-05:00Santa and the Ice Cream Bunny (1972)I love bad movies. If you've been reading this blog, it's a given. And, I love weird kiddie matinee movies from the 60s and 70s. If they're Christmas kiddie matinee movies, even more so. But Santa and the Ice Cream Bunny...wow. <br /><br />I'm going to start out by saying, this is easily the worst Christmas film I've ever seen. Really, calling it a Christmas film at all is stretching it, as I'll explain later, but for now let's just leave it at that. It's also probably the worst kid's film I've ever seen as well. (Yes, it's even worse than <a href="http://captainwrong.blogspot.com/2007/06/lot-of-words-about-handfull-of-dvds.html">The Magic Land of Mother Goose</a>, another kid's film with a tacked on Christmas tie in.) I'm going to go so far and say it's on the top 10 worst films I've ever seen. (Now there's a list I need to compile some day.)<br /><br />If you want to read a recap of the film almost as long as the movie itself, block off an hour and <a href="http://www.agonybooth.com/recaps/Santa_and_the_Ice_Cream_Bunny_1972.aspx">click here</a>. If you'd like a more sensible length recap, <a href="http://www.kiddiematinee.com/s-sicbunny.html">try this one</a>. But, since you are here, let me give you my quick run down of what goes on in this movie.<br /><br />First up, we have Santa's sleigh stuck on a beach in Florida. Why? Who knows? Santa magically summons a motley crew of kids to help unstick him, and they try...for nearly fifteen minutes. When they run out of random farm animals to try to hitch to the sleigh, they hunker down for Santa to tell them a story. And by tell them a story, I mean unspool an entirely unrelated movie, complete with opening titles, within this movie. <br /><br />For the next hour, we are treated to schlockmeister Barry Mahon's take on Thumbelina, apparently filmed two years earlier. The only connection this Thumbelina has to the Santa bits is that they both have parts filmed at the Pirate's World amusement park. I mention this because it is the only thread connecting these two things. <br /><br />Thumbelina doesn't have squat to do with Christmas and doesn't even try to. The acting is horrible, the songs excruciatingly long and the animal costumes aren't even detailed enough to be nightmare fuel. One thing Thumbelina has is plenty forced cross species romance. My favorite bit is when Thumbelina reels off a list of why she can't marry Mr. Digger, a rich mole, and the fact that he is not human comes in last by a long stretch. <br /><br />Anyway, eventually, though not soon enough, Thumbelina ends and we're returned to our Santa stuck in the sand already in progress. I'd like to remind you, we're about an hour and fifteen minutes in and we've barely seen Santa and have seen neither hide nor hair of the Ice Cream Bunny. But wait, we're not done yet. Since someone was nice enough to YouTube it, I'd like to present to you the last ten minutes of the film.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/JLKEGAbkpyo&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/JLKEGAbkpyo&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />If you're worried that you didn't understand what just happened because you came in at the end, let me assure you, I saw the entire thing and I still have no idea what just happened. You will note, as everyone who has seen this movie does, a distinct lack of ice cream. I guess he was in such a hurry slowly driving to save Santa, he completely forgot about his namesake dessert item. Maybe he was made of ice cream, though that would be highly impractical in Florida. <br /><br />You should also note someone either pushing the fire truck or a kid who has fallen off the back and is attempting to catch up. My guess is the former, as the truck is moving so slowly you'd have to be dead to let it pass you.<br /><br />There is one detail you missed from the front half of the film. The two kids in the straw hats? Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn. Why? No clue. They don't figure into this film at all except for a scene establishing who they are and showing them spying on the Santa scene. When they popped back out at the end, I'd completely forgotten they were ever there, that's how little they added to the movie.<br /><br />By putting that clip up, I'm afraid I've oversold the film. See, that is literally the best ten minutes in this ninety minute film. It goes downhill from there. All of the stuff I'd read about this movie didn't prepare me for the tedium that sets in quickly while watching. <br /><br />Other classics in this genre of bad kiddie Christmas movies, like Santa Claus Conquers the Martians or the Mexican Santa Claus, may be inept, but they are never less than entertaining, even if for all the wrong reasons. Santa and the Ice Cream Bunny is just plan boring. The only reason the ending is worth seeing is it's about the only time in the movie anything at all worth watching happens. <br /><br />Prior to this, I'd have said two of the worst kiddie flick I'd seen were The Magic Land of Mother Goose and Jimmy, The Boy Wonder, two films the great Herschell Gordon Lewis did for other people in between gore and sexploitation films. Santa and the Ice Cream Bunny shares many traits with those two movies (tacked on Christmas theme, nonsensical film with in a film, grade school play production values, terrible songs) but it truly takes them to another level. Jimmy and Mother Goose may be slow in spots, but they're mind blowing in others. The Ice Cream Bunny is just dull. <br /><br />I sought this one out because it has a bit of a reputation among connoisseurs of crap cinema. After seeing it, I really can't understand the appeal. There's good crap and bad crap and this is definitely bad, boring crap. Unless you are up to an endurance challenge, a completest or a masochist, I'd recommend staying far away from this one.Rob G.http://www.blogger.com/profile/03389079991952510620noreply@blogger.com6