Archive for April, 2006

Drive in Double Feature: Prince of Space/Invasion of the Neptune Men DVD
Dark Sky Films

This DVD features two old sci-fi movies put together in a double feature style of package, just like they were probably packaged back in 1964 and 1965 when these movies were originally shown in drive-in theatres. The movies are somewhat similar, so it makes sense that they would be paired together on this disc and were in fact written by the same person, Shin Morita.

Prince of Space is about some aliens from the rock planet of Krankor decide to attack Earth in hopes of taking it over and making it their new home. Some children discover their ship and are about to be taken by the aliens when a mysterious masked man named the Prince of Space saves them and sends the aliens packing. They don’t stay away for long. Frustrated by their defeat, they regroup and try again only to again be thwarted by the masked avenger, who much like Superman, has a day job where he is a mild mannered shoe-shine boy. The aliens decide to take a different approach and kidnap all of Japan’s top scientists and hope to also kill the Prince of Space, who is the only one with the ability to rescue them and save the Earth. The movie is a pretty light hearted, popcorn film and was about 90 minutes long.

Invasion of the Neptune Men stars Sonny Chiba, who much like the Prince of Space, is the hero of this film. Some children witness a ship landing on Earth and go to check out out. They find themselves surrounded by space aliens (who unlike the last film, don’t look like humans with pointed rubber noses glued on their faces, but more like robots), it looks like they are doomed until a mysterious man flies in on his own spaceship and saves the children. The children name him, Space Chief, and run to some scientists office to report what happened, but no one believes them. It isn’t until all the power goes out and things like trains and jukeboxes start moving backwards do the adults realize the kids were in fact telling the truth, and the earth is under attack. The scientists construct a barrier to protect the Earth (or at least Japan) but that just prolongs the inevitable, that the aliens are going to attack Earth and destroy it. When they finally breach the shield, it is up to Space Chief to battle them ship to ship in a space age dogfight. Space Chief also has a secret identity as one of the scientists and much like Prince of Space, we never learn the origin of this hero either or why he is there.

Both movies are pretty good mindless fun, but not without their share of holes, the biggest being we never know who the heroes really are, where they came from, or why they are really there. A few minutes to tell their origins would have really made the stories a lot more enjoyable, especially Invasion of the Neptune Men which was only 70 minutes long and certainly could have had a few extra minutes tacked on to tell that story without it making the movie too long. That aside, they were still a pretty fun, and mindless watch while eating some popcorn.

The disc is done is such a way that it really is made to be just like the old drive-ins. From the main menu you simply hit the enter key and you are first treated to some old-time commercials for the concession stand and some coming attractions. This leads straight into the feature presentation which starts with Prince of Space. When that movie ends, there is an “intermission” feature with another ad reminding you of the concession stand and then it goes right into Invasion of the Neptune Men. The only thing that could make watching this disc any more like being at the drive-in would be to park your car in the living room, and have one of those cheap little metal speakers to hang from your window. I thought that was a pretty clever concept which fit perfectly for this disc and made it a little more fun, and added to the retro style of these films.

Both movies are black and white and are anamorphic widescreen. The sound is the original mono soundtracks and are dubbed in English (both of these movies were made in Japan). Both the image and audio quality are excellent. The contrast is quite sharp and the mix between sound effects and speech is nice. There are no special features or commentary tracks. The total run time of the DVD is about 2 hours and 40 minutes. Fans of old Japanese sci-fi and robot shows like Ultraman would enjoy these films as it is just like those shows without the giant monsters. I myself had some fun with this disc and some snacks.

Related links:
Dark Sky Films website

Order the DVD from amazon.com

So Unloved - Pink Black & Broken CD
SOS Records

I saw So Unloved open for The Adicts last fall and was pretty impressed with them. They are a four-piece band consisting of three ladies and one gentlemen (who plays drums). They can’t be much older than 18, they look really young, but don’t let the age fool you because these ladies (and one dude) can really go! They play a sort of slightly melodic hardcore and mix up the screaming with some occasional actual singing, but not in an emo way. The emphasis is definitely on the hardcore and at times if I didn’t know better I’d have thought that this band were around in the late 1980s. There are 11 songs on this album and it is a pretty solid record from start to finish. The packaging leaves a little bit to be desired, it just feels and looks cheap to me and the front cover is really uninspired, looking like some demo you’d get in the mail. SOS really ought to start farming out the graphic design work to different people because the latest crop of releases just seem so cheap. That aside, if you like your hardcore to be played by cute girls (and really who doesn’t), then you’ll likely find some entertainment value out of this CD for sure. I know I wouldn’t mind going to see them play again.

Related links:

So Unloved website

So Unloved on myspace

SOS Records

Last night, Senor Citizen, Lady of 2, and I went to see Subhumans, Leftover Crack, Saint Catherines, and Siderunners at the Logan Square Auditorium. Senor and I got to the city and found Lady of 2 and proceeded to wait in the very very long line to get in the show. I was amazed at how many people turned out for this because not nearly as many did last fall when the Subhumans played at the same place. It turns out, this Leftover Crack band is quite popular with the kids and were a pretty big draw.

As the line finally got moving, we were pretty close to the front of the alley when some people working the show announced that if you were paying cash to step up, so Lady of 2 and Senor did just that. I was on the guest list thanks to generous accommodations from MP Shows so I had to wait in line some more. Not three minutes later, there was an announcement that the show sold out. The person who made the announcement was John B from MP Shows so I introduced myself and he brought me in and up to the show. The place was packed. In the few times I’ve been to that venue, it’s never been nearly that crowded. I could barely move through the place!

We were outside in line so long we completely missed the first band, Siderunners, so I can’t tell you what they were like. After enjoying some beer at the bar, I tried to make my way to find a place to shoot some photos. I managed to get up front near the stage and started unpacking my camera when a security guy noticed me and kindly offered to let me get behind him off to the side of the stage to take my photos. I thanked him for his kind offer and got back there and was allowed to take photos there safely for the rest of the show. That really made my night. Sadly despite what seemed like an adequate light rig, it was way too dark on stage to take really good photos without the use of a flash. I sure as hell tried. So I succumbed and popped the flash and got to work. I apologize ahead of time for these not being my best photos, but I think given my limited safe place to shoot from and the fact I had to use a flash, they turned out alright. If it wasn’t for them letting me in to shoot the photos safely from the side, I’d never have gotten any because the crowd was crazy!

Saint Catherines

Saint Catherines

Saint Catherines were the first band I saw. They were pretty good and they had like three guitar players on stage, it just seemed like a crazy amount of band members. They played for about a half hour or so and they left me with wondering how their records would sound because I was definitely interested. They were a rough yet melodic punk band that had just enough punch to hold my interest. In fact, someday I plan to buy their records unless they want to be kind enough to donate them to the vault.

In between bands I went back to join Senor and Lady of 2 at the bar for another round. While downing the serum a fellow tapped me on the shoulder and asked me if i was MXV of the Punk Vault site. I said I was and he introduced himself as Gantry, who is a fan of the site and has emailed me before. He proceeded to tell me he likes the site, asked if I was shooting photos of the show, and then handed me a beer that he got for me! That was totally generous and kind and also added to making my night! Thanks Gantry!

Leftover Crack

Leftover Crack

Leftover Crack were next. I took my place in order to shoot some photos right before they took the stage. I noticed the place seemed even more crowded if that was even possible. They came out and blasted right into their first song and the crowd went insane. They almost knocked over the light rig I was standing next to a few times! The security did their best to hold them at bay and they did a great job. Occasionally some kid would end up on stage only to be safely escorted off the side and back into the crowd. They started off sounding really great, energetic yet melodic punk rock, but as time wore on, they seemed like they were a band who couldn’t decide what band to be and played ska, nu-metal, etc in an effort to be everything to everyone. I started getting bored and they seemed like they played forever. When Senor noticed them doing Limp Bizkit imitations on stage, that pretty much ruined it for all three of us. Had they played about half as long and stuck to the formula they started with, I’d have found them to be quite cool and would have understood how they were such a big draw to the younger people in attendance.

Subhumans

Subhumans

After a bit of a break (and another couple of serums) The Subhumans finally took the stage. Having seen them just last fall, I knew that we were all in for good things. 25 years or so after they formed, they haven’t lost a step and are still extremely energetic and play those old songs with as much passion as they did back in the day. They played a lot of the hits and even busted out what sounded to me like a new tune if I heard Dick correctly between songs! Does this mean they are going to record? If so, I’m all for it, they are as great now as they were back then and the song sounded like any other Subhumans song in style, which is great. That band never put out a bad record in their lives. The crowd had thinned out some but it was still a pretty full room and everyone there seemed to be enjoying themselves.

Subhumans

Subhumans

I also noticed something else during The Subhumans set that really took me by surprise. There was an actual old style slam pit! I am talking no human bumper cars, no random violence, there was the counter-clockwise circle and people were doing it how it was supposed to be done. They weren’t bashing into the crowd on the outside of the pit who were just watching the show, it was amazing. I felt like a proud father when I witnessed this. How the crowd went from the chaos of the first two bands (where one kid told me in the bathroom that in the pit, someone gave him an atomic wedgie!), to this old school and proper pit was beyond me, but it was sure nice to see! The band played about 45 minutes and there wasn’t a dull moment. The closed with “Religious Wars” which was a great note to end the show on as it is one of their best songs.

After the show we hit the road for a late night breakfast and then head home. It was a really fun evening overall and I’d like to thank John and Brian of MP Shows for their accommodating me for this show, that was very kind and generous of them. And thanks to Senor, Lady of 2, and Gantry for the serums!

A few more photos after the jump.

The Horror of Party Beach/The Curse of the Living Corpse - DVD
Dark Sky Films

This DVD is a double feature of old Del Tenney films from 1963. To be honest I’ve never heard of the man until I received this DVD to review, but it turns out he is some kind of classic drive in b-movie filmmaker.

The Horror of Party Beach tells the story that some people dump canisters of toxic waste into the ocean to dispose of them. One of the canisters breaks open at the bottom on the sea and the toxic waste spills out onto a human skull that just so happens to be resting on the sea floor. The mixture of skull, waste, and ocean elements creates a monster that looks like the retarded cousin of the Creature from the Black Lagoon. This monstrosity starts attacking beach goers, and as it kills people, it seems to multiply! Soon a small army of these creatures are killing girls beach-goers and girls having a slumber parties all over town. Some scientists find out about it and set out to figure out a way to kill the monsters because conventional methods aren’t doing the job. Its a pretty campy but entertaining drive-in suitable movie.

The Curse of the Living Corpse is about a rich man who dies and leaves explicit instructions about how things should be handled post-mortem with his body and estate. His family are all given specific instructions and told if these things are not followed, the old man will come back from his tomb and kill them one by one, using the methods they fear most to do the deed. As you can guess, greed starts to get the better of his surviving family and they immediately start breaking the agreement. One by one they start dying. But can the old rich guy really have the power to come back from the grave? This movie was a little slower paced than the other film on this disc and I didn’t enjoy it as much, but it still was a decent old time fright flick.

Each movie is around 90 minutes long. Both are in black and white and are in anamorphic widescreen. The image quality is very good, though dark in some places, especially in The Horror of Party Beach, but I suspect that was how it was shot. The picture quality is quite sharp and in general has pretty good contrast. The sound for both is the original mono mix and aside from a little bit of hiss, sounds quite good. The bonus material consists of audio commentary for both movies by Del Tenney and an interview with him about both movies. The theatrical trailers are also included.

Fans of campy horror flicks would find this disc a pretty decent way to kill (no pun intended) a few hours.

Kid$ for Ca$h - No More Walls 7″ EP (1985 Town of Hardcore Records)

I don’t recall how I heard about this band initilally, it was either a review in something like MRR or I simply bought this record in a stack of old punk vinyl in some big record acquisition. Regardless of where I got it, I thought it was a pretty good little EP. Sadly the band never stuck around long enough to release anything else and their story was a mystery to me. Recently a former band member, Dan Cook, got in touch with me and sent over this brief bio.

Kids for Cash was formed in 1984 by guitarist Sohrab Habibion and vocalist Frank Charron, quickly adding Dan Cook on bass and a steady succession of drummers, eventually settling on Tony Farfan. Three of the four band members were high school students at Lake Braddock in Burke, VA, a suburb of Washington, D.C., and the band’s outlook and music was heavily influenced by the mid-’80s D.C. scene.

The band released one cassette and one EP, the No More Walls 7″ on Habibion’s Town of Hardcore label, and played briefly around the D.C. area. They performed on multi-band bills with Embrace, Scream, Government Issue, Marginal Man and others, including Dain Bramage, which featured Dave Grohl on drums. Grohl filled in on drums with the band for two shows.

Habibion went on to play with Edsel, which played from 1989 to 1997 and recorded for the Grass, Relativity and Merkin labels. Cook went on to play with indie rock bands Lay Quiet Awhile (Daemon Records) and The Verna Cannon (Cargo Records).

If anyone has a copy of the cassette and can make a copy for me, it would be much appreciated.

Thanks to Dan for the band info!

Listen to “Same Old Thing” from the record (right click it and save)