The Soviet Century: Archaeology of a Lost Worldby Karl Schlögel & Rodney Livingstone Soviet Russia is my jam. I’ve been reading about it for over ten years and am totally captivated by the politics and impact it had around the world. And the period spanning the revolution to Stalin’s death? Don’t even get me started on that. That’s the sweetest plum. But I often forget that the richness of Russian culture doesn’t end when Khrushchev took over, and especially now...

Poe – “Trigger Happy Jack” – Hello LP A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Hello vinyl reissue by Poe. The fact is that, by intention and not by accident, Poe (born Anne Decatur Danielewski) has always chosen to present herself in a manner completely separate from any artist who might pretend to be her peer. Most recently, the proof of presenting herself that way can be found in the fact that – at the height of “reissue...

The Maltese Falcon When the pandemic started, I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to go through the AFI 100 list. Get some takeout, queue up a movie rental from the library, and get educated. I made it through all of them except Sophie’s Choice (I don’t know if it’s the feel-good movie for a new parent) and Intolerance (my endurance for silent movies is low, especially a 3+ hour one). Through it all, I laughed (both WITH...

Everyone should be listening to Fucked Up. That’s a fact. Unfortunately, hardly anyone does. That’s a sad fact. I mean this in the sense that this band should be much much bigger than they actually are. For one thing, they play glam punk, fuzzy and complex, and layered. They release a plethora of vinyl and take it on tour with them. They’ve proven twice now that expansive concept albums are well within their skill-range. Of course they’ll try it (Pitchfork...

Rebel Without A Cause Wanna talk about the influence Rebel Without a Cause has had on pop culture? Phillip J Fry’s outfit in Futurama is a direct reference to James Dean in this movie. Tommy Wiseau’s “You’re tearing me apart, Lisa!” is fully copied from Dean’s delivery here, and much more. And, of course this movie is going to be in the spotlight after James Dean’s tragic death. This movie is in the American conscience and sometimes as a...

DorohedoroThe Complete Collection (Vol 1-23)by Q Hayashida I’ll never stop singing Dorohedoro’s praises. Something about the 2020 anime struck a chord with me with its colorful characters, rich story, and peculiar setting. It’s been years and I still find myself looking up clips of it on Youtube. The anime has only had one season, and looks like it’ll stay that way, so to quench my thirst I turned to the manga. I didn’t know what I was going to find,...

Miles Davis Live: What it is Montreal 7/7/83 There’s this story of Miles David being confronted by a fan in the 80s or whatever and the fan saying to him that he can’t really get into the new style and direction of his music. Miles supposedly replies, “Should I wait for you, motherfucker?” By all means, Miles. Artists should be allowed to pursue their art the way they want to. They should be allowed to express themselves the way they...

Few bands are flying the hardcore flag these days as successfully as OFF! It’s a mix of things that makes this band stand out. Sure, it’s fronted by Keith Morris of Black Flag and the Circle Jerks, who is still at the top of his game both vocally and lyrically. But, the appeal OFF! has for me are the hardcore riffs provided by Dimitri Coates. They are both musically innovative and undeniably hard and catchy. This band has already released...

Seeing Dinosaur Jr for me is a loaded affair. First off, because I had the chance to see them before, 15 years ago, but I was much more preoccupied with interviewing and seeing Mike Watt, who was opening for Dinosaur Jr, than sticking around to see them perform. I knew who J Mascis was, and stuck around backstage to meet him, but I think I met him more than he met me. A week later I was recounting the story...

Flores y Fuego – Altar LP – “Soy tu Voz” A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Altar LP by Flores y Fuego. It’s startling when one realizes how far punk as progressed over the last thirty years or so. It could be argued that the turning point in the history of punk’s greatest evolution was when Epitaph Records broke the barrier between pop and punk in the Nineties; suddenly, production values and styling began to change dramatically....