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Flower and Snake is a grimy ‘n’ unbalancing blend of roughie and sex comedy. The early 1970’s Japanese production is a prime slice of the Pink genre, been both classy filmed-yet-at the same time wonderfully depraved and totally inappropriate. Here on Impulse Pictures is a DVD reissue of the film- there is nothing on the extras front- but the new print is classy letting one revelling in the glorious sleaze-ness of the whole thing.
One Cut Of The Dead is a film I did a complete 180 on while watching it- going from rather underwhelmed, to been both charmed and amused. For the first half-an-hour or so it plays like a rough ‘n’ ready low-budget Zombie flick about a film crew making a zombie film, getting attack by real zombie. Then for the rest of the film is a meta-comedy/drama, that is both charming, quirky and heartfelt. Here from Third Window films is a recent Blu Ray release of the picture- bringing together a spin-off film, and a great selection of extras pushing the extras up to around four hours.
Released in the late 80’s Someone To Watch Over Me is a glossy and moody blend of thriller and romantic drama. It is an enjoyable and entertaining if at points slightly tonally uneven/ unbalancing film, that is certainly worthy of revaluation. So, it’s great to see this new Blu Ray release from Powerhouse, taking in a new scan of the picture and a new commentary track.
Prolific free jazz multi-instrumentalist veteran Joe McPhee is mostly known to me through his one-off collaboration with Pauline Oliveros' ambient outfit, the Deep Listening Band, with a 2003 album titled Unquestionable Fire . This album certainly had an intuitive, stream of consciousness way of meandering and undulating, but was far from the dense chaos of this new recording, Winter Garden.
Written and directed by the ultra-prolific Dustin Ferguson (Penny Pinchers, Nemesis 5 and 5G Hornets), Direct to Video is his love letter to the movies that made him the director he is. Ferguson has become renowned for his own brand of cheap and cheerful, cult horror movies that are heavily influenced by the likes of Troma’s Lloyd Kaufman and Full Moon’s Charles Band who both made a living from making cheap, yet effective independent movies during the 1980s and 1990s. This DVD is a homage to these two men and the many other men and women who dazzled us with crazy low budget horror and exploitation movies during the heady days of the 1990s.
Lethal Nightmare is another shot of wonky low-budget horror from the Polonia brothers- made back in the early ’90s, and never really released, here on SRS Cinema is a recent region free DVD of the film. And if you know the bros early work you’ll know what to expect here- splattery-to-unsettling gore, woozy atmospherics, and a ton of lo-fi charm/ invention. Though this is not SOV, instead it’s filmed on super 8- which gives the film an older exploitation feel, which at points is very akin to the more wonky ‘n’ deranged work of Andy Milligan.
Forgotten Being is a noise release that sees two different takes on the same material. Firstly, we have the constantly swirling and spacy feel of the original track, then the more junk-to-water-bound walled noise feel of the second version. This release appeared in late April of this year on London based Small Worm- a label that prides itself on releasing some of the more interesting/ difficult to bracket noise releases.
Unfeeling is the dark ambient/ hazed ‘n’ slurred industrial project of NYC's Derek Rush( Dream Into Dust, A Murder Of Angels, December). Held Under is the projects first release, and it comes in the form of a digital download, which takes in four tracks of murky 'n' woozy darkness.
Departure Crash is a new full-length album from Richard Ramirez feed-back focused wall noise project Crash At Every Speed. The release comes in the form of a five-track CD/ digital download album on Iowa based noise label Breaching Static.
The White Tape finds Rien at its most minimal, sparse, yet at the same time eventful. The release finds the Swedish textured noise project dropping all of its wall-noise traits, for a work that is extremely pared-back, yet at the same time shifting in both its textural make-up and structural movement. Here on Ominous Recordings is a C90/ digital download- sadly the tapes long gone, but the download is of course still available.
April Fools is just shy of an hours’ worth of droning ‘n’ searing walled noise from this Finish project. The release appears on the UK HNW label Void Singularity Recordings- and it is available as either a CDR or digital download.
Over the years the good count (Dracula) has had a host of weird ’n’ wacky encounters, but this 1969 Mexicain production stands as one of the more bizarre, campy, and sleazed. Santo en El Tesoro de Dracula( aka Santo in the Treasure of Dracula) appeared in two versions- an original and tame Mexican B & W, and this sexier, coloured and dubbed version for the European market. The film pares masked ‘n’ tubby wrestling hero Santo against the Count, with a wacky time-travelling plot, leering and well proportioned female nudity, a ton of awkward fighting, and more than enough camp ‘n’ cheese to sink in a small boat. Here from VCI Entertainment/ MVD Visual is a region free release of the film.
Over The Edge is a teen drama-come-later crime thriller from the late 1970s. The film is seen as a key Gen X/punk-rock movie, as well as a major influence on the likes of cult film-maker Richard Linklater and Grunge legend Kurt Cobain. Here from Arrow Video is a Blu Ray release of this seen-as cult classic- bringing together a new scan of the film, a new commentary track, and some new/ archive extras.
During the 1950s and 1960s, Hammer’s brand of gothic horror was pulling big crowds at movie houses around the world, and as with anything popular, there were plenty of rip-offs/ copies of the studios' output. 1958’s Blood For The Vampire was one such film, but don’t be fooled by its title, or its Dracula like poster artwork- what we have here is a campy and schlocky mad doctor camper, which is lined with all the classic Hammer gothic tropes- castles, graveyards, demented doctors, deformed henchmen, and splatters of Kensington Gore. Sure the films far, far from an original/ distinctive creation- but as an often hammy rip-off, it’s enjoyable. Here under its French title, Le sang du vampire- is a double format blu ray/ DVD media book release on the film on French cult film label Artus Films.
Here we have another selection of wonky ‘n’ waving accordion playing from Norwegian Kalle Moberg, and unlike the first Vol in this series, he's not flying solo. He’s joined by Marty Holoubek on double bass, and Joe Talia drums on four of the five tracks, and Tatsuhisa Yamamoto also drums on one of the tracks. The sound this time around is a bit more formally avant/ free jazz focused.
A Maid in Bremen was a live recording of the John Renbourn Group recorded at Roemer in Bremen on February 14th 1978. The band lineup at the time was John Renbourn (guitar/vocals), Jacqui McShee (vocals), Tony Roberts (flute, oboe and vocals), Keshav Sathe (tablas) and Sandy Spencer (cello). In the album’s liner notes Jacqui McShee mentions that this is the only recording of the group that exists featuring Sandy Spencer, who would return to America shortly afterwards.
The Spy Who Came In From The Cold is a lulling grim-yet-cunning espionage thriller, which slowly but surely pulls you into its glum and glamourless world. Hooking you in with its wonderful nuanced acting, subtle twisting 'n' turning plot, and great stark settings. Here from Eureka Entertainment, as part of their Master Of Cinema series, is a great new reissue of the film- featuring 1080p new print of the picture, a commentary track, and a few other extras including a forty-eight-page inlay booklet.
Here from BGO Records is a two-CD set bringing together three late 70’s/ early 80’s albums from lite-Jazz fusion/ smooth jazz guitarist Earl Klugh. Over the two-disc set we get a great selection of mellow 'n' tuneful jazz-pop- which features touches of disco, funk, soul and occasional world music flavours.
The Cat Is Out is a synth-heavy mid-1980’s pop-rock album, that features some soaring-to-powerfully wailing lead female vocals, and a good enough selection of memorable tunes/ different moods. With the album often bringing to mind more modern-but- retro focused acts like La Roux, but with a slightly more AOR edge to proceedings. Here from Talking Elephant Records is a CD reissue of the album, bringing together the original ten-track album with a selection of three single edits- bringing the original forty four-minute albums up to nearing an hour.
Your Transgressions Part Two is a sixteen-minute track that swings between strung-out to wonky indie guitar twang ‘n’ churn, and more intense bowel rupturing guitar feedback. Here on Pittsburgh based Enforced Existence is a CDR/ digital release, which is ltd to twenty five physical copies- and as of this review the label still has copies for sale.
Help Me Help Me Please is a rather appealing slice of rumbling rub 'n' jittering static bound wall craft from Springfield based Cory Aideen (Root Cellar, Monolithic Torment, and Submachine gun). The release appears as a self-release name-your-price digital download, and it’s another wonderful realized and entrancing example of textural noise making from Aideen.
Summer of Seventeen is a supergroup, a collaboration between Monika Khot, William Fowler Collins, Daniel Menche, Faith Coloccia, and Aaron Turner. Of these, Menche is the only name familiar to me, though I will admit to not knowing too much of their output. I’m reviewing a promotional CD in a card wallet, but the album is available on vinyl and digitally. The album, Summer of Seventeen, has eight tracks, most around the four or five minute mark with one considerably shorter, and two close to eight minutes in duration.
Here we have a double Blu Ray boxset bringing together two highly influential, important and classic examples of the noir genre. We have here 1947’s Brute Force- which finds Burt Lancaster leading up a wonderfully gritty and tense prison noir. And 1948’s The Naked City- a police procedural noir set on the streets of NYC, that went on to be a huge influence on cop cinema. Both films were helmed by Academy Award-nominated director, screenwriter, and actor Jules Dassin.
Duke Reid International Disco Series – The Complete Collection is a three-CD reggae compilation bringing together thirty-five tracks. The release appears on Doctor Bird, Cherry Reds reggae sub-label, and the collection offers up a good and varied selection of extended disco cuts of rock steady, dub and dancehall examples of the genre.