A critical evaluation of Bacchus Omnibus Edition Volume 1 by Eddie Campbell. Like most of you, I only knew Eddie Campbell from his excellent work in Alan Moore’s From Hell; one of the most thematically rich comics ever written. But, not surprisingly of course, the man is at the helm of other remarkable works. Not least of which is Bacchus. I had never heard of Bacchus, so I’m not here to be Mr. I-Told-You-So, but what I will say is...
A critical evaluation of Empowered Volume 9 by Adam Warren. I have to say, the only thing that’s gotten worse about the Empowered series is that they don’t come out as often as they used to. Is it a superhero comic? A parody of superheroes? A manga? A sci-fi story? It’s really all of those things. Adam Warren has been able to grow and mature his little baby which started out as short “sketches†of a damsel in distress into...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Manufactured Recordings/Omnian Music Group reissue of Million Dollar Ecstacy’s self-titled album. Ever watched one of the interviews that Narduar the Human Serviette has done with Snoop Dogg, reader? They often prove to be very revealing – although not in the way that one would typically expect. See, Snoop is an audiophile and loves/collects old, rare hip hop and rap records and, years ago Narduar took him some in the spirit...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into Ancient Shapes’ self-titled debut LP. While Daniel Romano has found great success exposing his Country & Western inspirations over the last few years (both 2011’s Sleep Beneath The Willows and 2013’s Come Cry With Me got longlisted for the Polaris Music Prize in those respective years), it’s refreshing and relieving to hear that the singer has elected to turn up and speed up for the new project he has called Ancient Shapes....
A critical evaluation of Freedom and Organization by Bertrand Russell. If you’re going to learn about history, why not learn from the best? I have to hand it to Bertrand Russell (because the man hasn’t been praised enough) for these inventive books which are both unique in their content and style. Freedom and Organization has an odd content which is to analyze the main influences of 1814-1914 that shaped the world. Maybe this century is of such importance because with...
A critical evaluation of Lafayette in the Somewhat United States by Sarah Vowell. It’s funny how the American Revolutionary War is taking America by storm now – much like the revolutionary war actually did back when it happened. I’m sure this is mostly due to the Hamilton musical which I observe with a very suspicious eye. I might not know much about books, but I know a thing or two about music and Hamilton sounds like amateur-ish rap sung by...
A critical evaluation of Hunger Makes Me A Modern Girl by Carrie Brownstein. The closest I ever got to seeing Sleater-Kinney was seeing Wild Flag play. Standing on the balcony, waiting through the opener’s set, there was Carrie Brownstein standing on the sidelines of the stage watching the set as well. I wondered if we’d get to interact with her. “She’s a rock star,†my then-girlfriend reminded me. After the show, much to my surprise, a lot of people stayed...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Trying To Become A Millionaire reissue LP by California Playboys, released by Manufactured Recordings/Omnian I know I’ve said this before, but it’s a statement which requires regular reiteration: one of the best parts about records after they’re made and have come out is that they’re there – available to be found when potential listeners are ready to find them. It’s even easier now that the music industry is hurriedly reissuing so...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Vinyl Me, Please reissue of Paranoid by Black Sabbath. Ever since I “got into” metal through the likes of Motorhead and Mastodon, I’ve been trying to fill in the holes in my musical brain with all the awesome metal I’ve missed out on over the years. Unfortunately, I’ve been getting more and more disappointed with what I’ve been finding. Albums from Metallica, Kylesa and Baroness are fine, but I’d much rather...
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Battletoads soundtrack LP, released by I Am 8-Bit. I’m going to give you a second so you can process the craziness that you’re seeing here. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the Battletoads soundtrack on vinyl. That’s Battletoads – as in the Nintendo game from the Nineties, regarded as one of the hardest games of all time. Is this the 8-bit soundtrack in all its 8-bit glory? Yes it is. Is...