Girlflesh - "Nudes" (2014)

When I heard the name Girlflesh, the first thing that comes to mind is a female version of Godflesh.  Sort of how Gallhammer are seen as a a female version of Hellhammer.  Even though Girlflesh have a electronic sound, Girlflesh is nothing like Godflesh.  

Roxxie Wallace is the mastermind behind Girlflesh.  And I have to say that this Aussie sure knows how to create some killer beats.  Everything that I love about experimental/electronics are on her album, "Nudes".  From trip hop to dark ambient, "Nudes" is quite the musical experience.

Another thing I like about "Nudes" are the song titles.  "Bass-Moi" sounds like a play-on-word of the French film "Baise-Moi".  And Lilya 4-Ever comes to mind when I saw the song,"Ennui 4EVA".  But "Gore Habit" is the most creative song title I've ever heard.  And probably my favorite.

It's nice to see another musical artist from Australia, since I really don't hear many bands from Australia.  Or at least introduced to any Australian bands.  Only a few.  I know back when Roadrunner had that SignMeTo page, there were some cool Australian bands there.  But lost contact from them when the site was shutdown.  Anyhoo, if you enjoy some electronics, then "Nudes" by Girlflesh might be the album for you.  These sick beats gets "5 Hitlers Punched in the Face".

To purchase "Nudes" got to https://officialgirlflesh.bandcamp.com/album/nudes

Tusk (2014)

Kevin Smith, who most people have known him as the "Clerks Guy" or "Silent Bob", has finally made his second horror film, Tusk.  If you ever hear his podcast that he does with his friend/producer, Scott Mosier, then you've probably heard the story he told about a ad he read on a website called Gumtree.  In the ad, someone was looking for a lodger to live with him.  The rent is free, but the lodger has to dress up as a walrus for two hours a day.  And on that episode of Smodcast, Kevin and Scott started pitching the idea of a walrus movie.  Even though Kevin had already finish the script for Clerks III, he was willing to hold it so he can do a walrus movie.  He asked his fans to go on Twitter and hashtag walrus yes, if his fans wanted him to make the movie, or hashtag walrus no, if they don't.  The people have spoken and said "#WalrusYes".  Therefore, Kevin Smith made his walrus movie called Tusk.  And it was pretty fucked up.

The movie is about a bloke name Wallace Bryton (Justin Long), who does a podcast with his friend, Teddy Craft (Haley Joel Osment), called "The Not-See Party".  In this podcast, Wallace goes around to interview people who are strange and/or interesting, then comes back and tell Teddy all about it.  In one of the episodes, they find a video on youtube, where a dude cuts his leg off with a sword.  The guys, who is referred to as "The Kill Bill Kid" reaches out to Wallace to do a interview.  So Wallace plans a trip to Canada and visit the Kill Bill Kid.  Wallace's girlfriend, Ally (Genesis Rodriguez), is against it because she doesn't want him to ridicule the poor guy.

So Wallace arrives to Winnipeg and goes to the house where the Kill Bill Kid lives.  Sadly, Wallace finds out that the kid died.  He goes to a bar and calls Teddy to tell him all about it.  And since Wallace needs something for the show, he plans to stay for a while and hopes to find someone who's a bit out there.  When he goes to drain the lizard, he sees a ad in the bathroom wall, about a guy named Howard Howe (Michael Parks) looking for a lodger, pretty much similar to the Gumtree ad.  So Wallace goes out to find Howard Howe, and do an interview with him for the podcast.  When Wallace goes to Howe's place, he finds him in a wheelchair, all alone and very harmless.  Like your typical old man.  Howard goes on to tell Wallace the story about how he was saved by a walrus  As Howard continues to tell the story, Wallace passes out and we find out that his tea was drugged.  When he wakes up, he finds himself in a wheelchair.  Howe tells him that he was bitten by a spider.  But Wallace knew he was bullshitting him.  In the dinner scene, Howard tells Wallace his plan to turn him into a walrus.  While trying to get some sleep, Wallace hears his phone.  He tries to look for it, and when he does, he sees it's Ally trying to call him.  He tries to call her back, but ends up leaving a voice mail.  Sadly, Mr. Howe catches him and knocks him out.

Back home, Ally and Teddy haven't heard from Wallace for a long time.  One morning, Ally went to check her voicemail and heard Wallace's message.  She tells Teddy about it and they go to Canada to look for Wallace.  They visit Detective Frank Garmin (Ralph Garman), and have him listen to the voicemail.  The detective wasn't sure what to make of it, but he referred Ally and Teddy to a investigator name Guy LaPointe (Johnny Depp).  LaPointe tells Ally and Teddy about a case two years prior and that the person who captured Wallace, may be the person that LePointe is after.

As Guy, Teddy, and Ally go and search for Wallace, we see the transformation and it looks really fucked up. Maybe silly and goofy, too, but it still looks fucked up.  And seeing Howe training Wallace to be a walrus is pretty disturbing.  And just seeing Wallace in that suit is very depressing.  Because now we know there's no coming back.  And when I saw the fight seen, it looks pretty funny, but felt so wrong.  And hearing Fleetwood Mac's "Tusk" playing in the background, made it a bit darker.  Of course Ally and Teddy find Wallace, and I don't need to go any further.

If you're a fan of Smodcast, then you'll enjoy the references, which you've probably heard in the podcast.  They mention the brown recluse spider.  Red, White, but never Blue.  The Gimli Slider.  And if you listen to Hollywood Babble-On, Wallace has the "Hollywood Helpers" theme song as a ringtone.  

I also enjoyed Michael Parks performance in Tusk.  And to me, Howard Howe seems more mental than Abin Cooper from Red State.  There's a scene with Parks and Depp which I found to be hilarious.  And also made me a fan of the Guy LaPointe character.

So if you found the trailer to be interesting, then go check it out.  Of course don't take it too seriously.  It's about a man turning another man into a walrus.  It's suppose to be silly.  Really glad Kevin Smith made this, because I don't know if anyone else will.  And if you enjoyed this, then also check out "The Island of Dr. Moreau" and "Sssssss".  Both are crazy films.

#WalrusFuckYeah

p.s.  If you enjoyed Guy Lapointe, there's a little extra after the credits.

The Sacrament (2013)

Ti West is a director that you're either gonna love or hate.  Some people complain about how he takes to long and that it starts to get boring.  Others enjoy the slow burn style because once the horror starts, it does leave an impact.  In "House of the Devil", when they showed the Grandma, it really scared the shit out of me because I didn't expect something so hideous.  Especially since the movie was very slow.  "The Innkeepers" was bit of a challenge.  But I did enjoyed Sara Paxton's character.  So fuck'n adorable.  Now with "The Sacrament", Ti West was able to keep me interested in the story til the big horrifying ending.  By now, everyone should know that this movie was inspired by the Jonestown Massacre.  And pretty much Ti West does do a re-telling of that event, but made it look like a VICE travel guide/investigative report.

The movie is about a fashion photographer from VICE named Patrick who receives a letter about his sister, Caroline.  Caroline is a recovering drug addict who went to live in a little community in Mississippi.  The letter tells Patrick that the community that Caroline was living at moved out of the country.  Patrick showed the letter to his co-worker, Sam, who is a reporter for VICE, and Sam decides to go look for Patrick's sister and do a investigative report.  They bring Jake, their cameraman, and off they go to find Caroline.

When the VICE team arrive, they are confronted by two men with rifles.  Patrick tells them that they were invited by his sister and the men then gives them a ride to the compound.  Finally they arrive at the compound called Eden Parish.  Caroline welcomes the VICE team when she sees that the guards wouldn't let Patrick in.  Once they go in there, they see a community of people just living their lives.  Caroline explains how a man they call "Father" pretty much started this community.  Sam ask Caroline if he can get a interview with "Father" and she tells him that she'll try.  Patrick goes off with his sister and Sam and Jake are left behind and start going around interviewing some of the people who live there and asking them how they got here.  They interview a lot of people who seemed very happy and give lots of praises to "Father".  Sam and Jake feel a bit off about Eden Parish.  But since the people there seemed happy, they had no problems with it.  But then they meet a little girl named Savannah and her mother who seem to be scared and not happy like the others living in Eden Parish.

Sam finally gets the interview with "Father", but it is conducted in front of the congregation.  Sam asked "Father" a few questions, but "Father" seemed to dodge the questions and begins asking about Sam's wife and his unborn child.  Sam was disappointed  that he couldn't ask "Father" all of his questions.  And of course was creeped out when "Father" mentioned Sam's wife.  Savannah then shows up and gives Sam a little note.  He opens the note and starts to get worried.  He shows Jake the note and it reads "Please Help Us".  Later they go back to their cabin and someone bangs at their door and takes off.  Sam and Jake go outside and find Savannah and her mother, with other members of the congregation, begging Sam and Jake to get them out of Eden Perish.  This really starts to concern Sam and Jake as it seems that Eden Parish isn't the happy place that "Father" claims it to be.

Finally, the next morning, Sam and Jake see that there are a bunch of people outside yelling.  They go out and see that some of the members are trying to leave and some of the guards and Caroline are trying to keep everything under control.  They find Patrick, who explains to them that some of the members want to go with the VICE team, but that there wasn't any room for all of them in the helicopter.  And if you're familiar with the incident in Jonestown, then you might know what happens next.  But still check it out.

So far, this is Ti West's best film.  And with Eli Roth producing the film, they really did their best to make the movie very interesting.  There are images that shocked and made me sad.  I was very informed about the Jonestown Massacre, so I know what to expect.  But I have to give a lot of credit to Gene Jones for portraying the cult leader, "Father".  If you're expecting gore, then you'll be disappointed.  But the movie can be very disturbing.  So if you want to check out a film about a cult, then I recommend "The Sacrament" by Ti West.

Akem Manah - "Demons of the Sabbat" (2014)

Even though Doom Metal is becoming very popular in the underground scene, the number of Doom Metal bands that are coming out is very steady. which is why I'm still a fan of the sub-genre.  Unlike most musical genres that become very poplular, a shit load of bands come out of the woodwork, trying to catch in on the trend.  It also helps that a lot of Doom Metal bands mix some Death, Black, and other experimental music.  Which can sometimes keep things interesting.

When I read online that Akem Manah is coming out with a new alubm, I know that I'm gonna hear a awesome Doom record.  On the last one, "Night of the Black Moon", main man, Dead Nedry added some layers to the Akem Manah sound.  On album #3, to me, the Akem Manah sound has been defined.  As soon as I hear the first chord, I know it's Akem Manah.  Also Nedry was able to get Chris Lollis (ex-Nile/Lecherous Nocturne) on bass and Ivan de Prume (ex-White Zombie) on the skins.  As much as I hear Lollis bass, I do have to say that de Prume did a great job on the drums.  Head guitarist, Scott von Heildt, makes a appearance on two tracks and keeps things interesting.  Also Ramesses' Adam Richardson does vocals on "Demon Rise", which was also fantastic.

I love the piano intro on "Dark Ritual".  "Reign of Terror" is probably the best song that Akem Manah has recorded.  Scott von Heildt's lead also makes that track awesome.  I wouldn't be surprise if the title "Possession Of Nun" was inspired Haxan.  And "The Twisted Rites of Satan's Bride" is also one of my favorite tracks.

If you're a fan of "The Devil is in All of You" and "Night of the Black Moon", Then you're really going to enjoy "Demons of the Sabbat".  It's a huge step forward but still the Akem Manah that we know and love.  Very heavy.  Very dark.  Very Akem Manah.  This album gets "Five Hitlers Punched in the Face".

Red Fang - "Whales and Leeches" (2013)

My my, Oregon.  The bands that you've been exporting lately.  You brought us Poison Idea, The Decemberist, Black Elk, Trees, Akem Manah, Agalloch.  And now Red Fang.  It looks like the entire West Coast has a music scene.

By now you're already familiar with them because their third album, "Whales and Leeches", made a huge buzz last year.  Of course you've seen their video for "Blood Like Cream" (with Portlandia's Fred Armisen.  And also saw them perform on David Letterman (in which band leader Paul Shaffer joined in on keyboards).

If you're familiar with Red Fang, then you'll hear how much they have grown with album number 3.  Aside from their production, Red Fang sound tighter than ever.  The musicianship is more perfect then the last album.  And a lot of the songs have become more catchier.  Of course Aaron and  Bryan still got the clean vocals and growls still going.  And John still kicks ass on the drums.

For those who aren't familiar with them, Red Fang is a band that has a real sound.  They don't sound like some watered-down radio-friendly band.  They're very high energy, not aggressive or "hardcore", so don't worry about soiling your slim jeans.

The opening track "Doen" has a awesome Mastodon vibe, but with a more stoner metal sound.  "Blood Like Cream has the most catchiest chorus.  "Voices of the Dead" is a song that I love turning the volume up when driving.  And "Dawn Rising" is a really sick Sludge track.

If you enjoy Mastodon or Queens of the Stone Age, then you'll really enjoy Red Fang.  They do a awesome of blending hard rock with a bit of Sludge.  They may not be a moshing band, but you can sure as hell bang your head to them.  And for you high school kids, while playing "Whales and leeches" in you're room, expect your parents to be banging on your door and telling you to put it louder.  That's why I give this album "5 Hitlers Punched in the Face.

A Band Called Death (2012)

When I was a wee little lad, I was told that The Ramones and The Sex Pistols were the originators of punk.  Also when I was a wee little lad, Death was a death metal band from Florida, started by Chuck Shuldiner.  Well it turns out that three brothers from Detroit played some very fast rock n' roll before The Ramones and The Sex Pistols.  And there was already a band called Death before Chuck changed Mantis to Death.  This documentary caught my attention when Sean Boyle of Hellbeard mentioned it on his Facebook status.  And I was surprise when I saw that Scott Mosier (Kevin Smith's friend/producer) helped to get this doc released.

In the documentary, we meet the Hackney brothers (Bobby, David, Dannis).  Sons of a preacher, they grew up in the Motor City known as Detroit, where Motown was a huge thing.  In 73', they formed a band called Death after trying to start a funk/rock n' roll band.  The sound was very fast and loud, that people today would consider it "proto-punk".  They recorded a demo and shopped it around to record labels, but no one was interested.  most of the labels thought the sound was too aggressive.  And the band's name didn't help either, even though in the doc, they explain the meaning of the name, which was meant to be seen as a positive light.  But soon enough, they were signed to Groovesville, but sadly, they had trouble in trying to market Death.  Because of this, Death will disband.  Bobby and Dannis would start a reggae.  David would write songs by himself.  Years later, David would pass away.  This would be a shame because later on, a record collector purchased a 45 and was amazed by Death's sound.  He would write about them on his blog and upload two songs from Death.  Later, other music fans would listen to them and also give high praises.  But when Bobby's son, Bobby Jr., heard the two songs, that would make a huge impact on Bobby and Dannis.  They finally got the recognition they deserved.  Because of all the interest, the remaining Hackney brothers would reform Death.  Later, they would release their first album and start touring.

This was a really touching documentary about not just music, but family.  The Hackney brothers were really close.  David had a message and luckily his brothers were able to spread it to concert goers, nationwide.  A Band Called Death is a great documentary in general.  Even if you're not a fan of punk, the Hackney's story is still interesting.  Bobby and Dannis seemed very humble and don't make a big deal about they were the "first" to do this or that.  But it's nice to see that a band like them have finally got recognized.

Berberian Sound Studio (2012)

This movie caught my interest when I heard that it takes place during a making of a Italian giallo.  Being a fan of Dario Argento, I had to seek this out.  I do have to say that this is a strange film.  Some may not like it, others will find it interesting.  There were times where I get lost in the story, but just seeing things get crazier for the main character, just makes me want to see what happens next.

We are introduce to Gilderoy, a middle-age bloke who took a job in a Italian horror flick, working as a sound engineer.  When Gilderoy see's what film he's working on, he begins to feel uncomfortable.  Also some of the actress doing the dubs are also not big fans of the film, either.  Producer Francesco Coraggio doesn't makes things easy for his staff.  When Gilderoy tries to get his flight ticket reimbursed, Francesco always gives him excuses.  Or when a actress has a scene where she screams, he makes them do it over and over again.  By the end of the second act, things do start to get weird for Gilderoy.  First, someone tries to break into his room.  Then later someone tries to attack him in his sleep.  By the end of the film, you start to wonder what was this movie all about.

Me being a fan of Italian horror, behind the scene stuff, and sound recording, I found this movie to be interesting.  Of course I wasn't really that big on the third act.  I felt like there could have been more.  The atmosphere was great.  It gave really creepy vibe.  Very similar films by Bava and Argento. The average movie goer may not fancy this film a lot.  But if you're interested in seeing how dubbing and sound effects were done back in the days, then you might find it fascinating.  It may not be the greatest horror/psycho-thriller, but it was a decent flick.