The Cramps are one of the most important American rock and roll bands of all time. No one could blend cheese and sleaze quite like they could and their influence is felt all throughout music. If some band or someone cannot appreciate the Cramps’ music to some extent, they’re not worth being associated with. Unfortunately, the band left us prematurely with the passing of vocalist Lux Interior, and after having stayed dormant for some years, their record label Vengeance seems...

Star Wars: Skeleton Crew Original Soundtrack by Mick Giacchino It’s hard to know exactly when we need to pull the plug on Star Wars or completely abandon it. I used to be a fan of the franchise, but somehow, re-watching in my old age (30s), it failed to connect with me at the level it did as a child. Had I become jaded? I know plenty of Star Wars apologists of course, but my hot take after my re-watch is...

“Wuthering Heights” I don’t think anyone was asking for this movie, but we got it. I guess some people were excited, but the “Wuthering Heights” marketing team DEFINITELY insisted we wanted this movie. “This is it!” they told us. “The greatest love story of all time!” “It’s super horny!” “It has music by Charlie XCX!” “YOU WANT THIS!” I wasn’t really interested in “Wuthering Heights” until the reviews came out. Everyone hated it, and everyone was, suddenly, really funny...

WHO: Brook Pridemore WHAT: Only I Can Prevent Forest Fires WHY: We’ve been singing Brook Pridemore’s praises for years because he’s, in our minds, the most underrated solo musician currently in the biz. His music is a pleasant mix of folk, deeply inspired by punk ethos, and with a healthy dose of introspective witty lyrics. It’s not just that he’s a great musician, he’s also a wordsmith. He should be packing the halls, but instead he’s out there jammin’ econo,...

A deeper look at the grooves pressed into Butthole Surfers’ self-titled 10” EP, released on Capitol Records in 1993. When Butthole Surfers signed with Capitol Records, it really must have seemed like anything was possible. By then, the years of living in a car, touring constantly and basically surviving on a steady diet of nothing were over; the band had unexpectedly broken through. Because they had attained a greater level of mainstream visibility, the band decided to live a little;...

The Great Whenby Alan Moore You know, it’s never a good idea to raise expectations TOO much. Alan Moore is great. I’m a fan of his. I think Watchmen is amazing. I think From Hell is amazing. I like him so much that I read the entirety of his book Jerusalem. It was unlike anything I’d ever read before and I still think about it many years later. I know he’s great, but why on earth would you start the...

Better late than never. This applies to this review and to the Marked Men. The Marked Men came into my life 20 years ago and my love for them remains to this day. They haven’t even released new music in 18 years and probably will never release a new full length. They sent their ripples and are now a legacy band by choice. All their members are still active in other bands, but they just refuse to put out new...

A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Cartoon Violence LP by Herzog. Did it take me an unreasonably long time to review Herzog’s Cartoon Violence LP? Yes, yes it did – and the reason for that is simple: Cartoon Violence exists as a series of contrasting elements which are all trying to function and/or co-exist...

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WHO: Lice WHAT: Miami Lice (Season Four) WHY: I’ve been a fan of Aesop Rock for a long time and have been following his collab with Homeboy Sandman for quite some time, but never have I heard a collection of Lice songs that’s so elevated and fun. This time it just GELS. I don’t get the Miami reference (Miami Vice, sure, but why?), but somehow, the rhymes and beats just work on a whole new level on this Fourth Season....