American Speedway - "Ship Of Fools" CD

All-American balls-out RAWK from this Philly band who are hellbent on busting their amplifiers and your eardrums, if you get too close. This is simple stuff, with no scenester poses or slick haircuts. American Speedway are about the rock of it. And it's a heavy, yet well-measured dose (31 minutes that don't back down), easily for fans of the bare-bones adrenaline/sweat sounds of AC/DC or the Supersuckers. They don't easily fit into metal or punk camps, though will easily appeal to fans of either side. 'Cocaine' is destined to be an anthem for all times, with it's raw and anarchic boost of energy. American Speedway are a blitzkrieg of boisterous ferocity with the power to shake some booty and crack some skulls in the process. Loved it. (Prophase/MVD Audio) American Speedwayspace

The Brothers Strause - "AVPR: Aliens Vs. Predator - Requiem"

Hmm. After an awesome trailer last year, I was actually hyped to see this one (despite the last 'AVP' entry being pure shite all the way through, with respect to Lance Henriksen who had to pay some bills). Anyway, damned if star Reiko Aylesworth (as Kelly O'Brien) isn't an adequate stand-in for Sigourney Weaver. She has the look, the sinewy tough military exterior, the loving, feminine maternal side, and...well, not quite the acting chops. She and small-town just-released-from-jail boy Dallas Howard (played decently by Steven Pasquale) fend off a marauding force of treacherous aliens, crash-landed on Earth when they escape a Predator's mobile space lab. Okay, sounds fine so far. And, to it's credit, 'AVPR' is really nicely splattery, with a surplus of head-smashings and exploding body parts. Score some points for not holding back on that front. The problem comes in when the plot introduces some petty and generic teen characters. What follows is a highly pedestrian teen-action-horror romp, with the requisite 'hot girl' jealousies, jocko homo in-fighting, and insipid conversation. Maybe that's a lot like real life, but this script kinda sucks. It's evident that this film was aimed at that kinda audience, as there's little here to recommend it to die-hard fans of 'Alien' or 'Predator', two classics of the sci-fi genre. The franchise of 'AVP' needs to end here, and now, as this kind of mindless pabulum doesn't expand or add to the mythology of either character. The big showdown at the end is in the form of the Predator facing off with a hybrid 'Predalien', and this climactic battle scene reminded me of a choreographed pro wrestling match, or maybe a silly old Godzilla movie. Ugh. Pass on this one. trailer

Dead Child - "Dead Child" CD

Louisville, Kentucky has a rich musical pedigree, especially in indie-rock circles. As the birthplace of the ultra-influential Slint, the city's legacy is important indeed. It's been well over a decade since Slint (who had local ties - they played their final show here at UE, and guitarist David Pajo went to school here, albeit briefly) disbanded. Members have been around, in bands like The For Carnation, Zwan, and Tortoise, but some members reconvened in 2005 for a brief (and sold-out) Slint 'final' tour, and, oddly enough, formed the wonderfully-named Dead Child. This is metal, pure and simple. Classic metal - as in Iron Maiden and Judas Priest (maybe a little Ozzy, even). In fact, much of this would fit really nicely alongside those acts, as vocalist Dahm (from indie rockers Phantom Family Halo) channels both Dickinson and Halford as well as anyone. And using inspirations from great horror fiction and film ('Twitch Of The Death Nerve' is a song title, for example), this crunchy, antisocial mix is tight and ballsy, just as well-forged metal should be. 'Angel Of The Odd' is rollicking ride into Beelzebub's bowels, and 'Wasp Riot' just begs for denim jackets and fist-pumping. I bet they're a hoot live, too. Metal up yer arse! (Quarterstick/Touch & Go) homepage

The Coen Brothers - "No Country For Old Men"

This one's been dissected in blogs and at the proverbial 'office cooler' for months now, and barely needs any kind of description or guidance, but here's my say. Javier Bardem (as vicious murderer Anton Chigurh) is magnificent, cold, and purely evil as the lawless killer in search of a huge stash of stolen drug money. The admittedly idiotic Josh Brolin gets himself in far too deep when he stumbles across the drug money and then (duh) returns to the scene, where he is spotted by both the law and Bardem. This sets up the film as a kind of race to see who can track the riches first. Tommy Lee Jones is superb as the aging sheriff who is trailing both killer and drug money, and this tightly-wound film ended up winning a truckload of Oscars. It's a mean movie, not for the squeamish, and very dark - with a nice amount of subtlety. I liked it. trailer

Kirchenkampf - "Island Of The Dead" CDR

A lonely, desolate, and often spooky 42-minute travelogue over dank landscapes and abandoned ships, this masterfully-produced single track is an evocative and dark masterpiece of post-industrial drone and tense cinematic soundtrack. Composer John Gore has been active for years, and this is perhaps his finest hour. He proves his hand at subtle and deeply filmic soundscapes with 'Island Of The Dead', and I'm convinced. Easily recommendable work. A gem! (Cohort Records)

Stars Of The Lid with Christopher Willitts - 04.24.08 930 Listening Room, Louisville KY

Housed in what was once an old schoolhouse, the '930 Listening Room' is, in actuality, a part of Sojourn Community Church, and this is actually a really nice, informal place for shows. There's an adjunct art gallery (secular) attached, and the seated venue is comfortable and roomy. The complimentary coffee/tea is also a nice touch. There was no overt evidence of reference to any religious elements (aside from the initial opening act being a local church deacon named Jamie Barnes, who performed some really pleasant folksy indie sounds). Anyways, after our little hot beverage 'pick-me-up', we walked around the little gallery space and then found front-row seats. Chris Willitts is a San Francisco-based guitarist/programmer, and his funny faces and comical demeanor helped his set substantially. I thought his music was far too disjointed and freeform (and I appreciate a lot of abstract music, thank you very much). He ran his guitar through all kinds of digital computer effects, and the results were really pretty messy. His final track was his crowning moment, approaching a kind of ambience, but I wasn't really very interested otherwise.
SOTL were next, and this was quite a spectacular showing, and leagues better than when I saw them last in Bloomington in 2003 or so. Toting along a full (live!) string trio, Adam Wiltzie and Brian McBride's hypnotic, organic ambient sound was brought into proto-classical territory, with plenty of dynamic and melody. Their set ran about an hour, and their extended pieces were lovely and intense, with abstracted backing projection films and a lightshow that cast the stage in all kinds of hazy, colorwashed glows. Stunning and deep, Stars Of The Lid are among the leading purveyors of true ambient sound in all the world. This was certainly a world-class show, and in little lazy Louisville, no less. Wow! And if you happen to be near one of their shows anytime soon, check out the limited tour-only CD available (it looks like it's called 'Carte-De-Visite'), as well, featuring 9 rare or unreleased SOTL tracks. It is wonderful, as is anything in the group's astounding back catalogue. photo credit: Nick

Maria Beatty - "Gang Of Souls: A Generation Of Beat Poets" DVD

This digital reissue of a 1989 New York TV program attempts to cover the history and motives behind the highly inspirational literary movement of the late 50's through 60's, and in 60 minutes, it really just barely scratches the surface. With precious little archival footage, Beatty's film is really a bunch of talking heads. She interviews some key figures (William S. Burroughs, Allen Ginsburg, Gregory Corso, Diane DiPrima, and later 'children of the beats' like Henry Rollins, Lydia Lunch, Jim Carroll, Richard Hell, Marianne Faithfull, and others), and they surely have lots to say, but still, I can't help but feel there could've been so much MORE. It's always great to see now-passed artistic giants like Burroughs or Ginsburg interviewed, of course, and Rollins is a consistenly great character and presence, but this alone can't carry this film. In actuality, 'Gang Of Souls' would make for a fun little 'bonus feature', added-on to a more comprehensive documentary (and I know there are some out there), but for now, unless you're doing some deep research into this scene and movement (or are a major fan/collector of an artist included here), this one's a wee bit lacking. (MVD Visual)