The Dark Master - Darkness

[1996]

This is pitched black post-apocalypse jungle. Some wicked choppage but any kind of will to survive is thwarted by a dysphoric bleakness that just hangs in the air poisoning everything in its wake. Strange. Quite an achievement.   

PFM ‎– Wash Over Me

Where the ambient jungle becomes the drum and bass but it's still good. Wash Over Me was a played out in 94 tune but not released until 95. The beginning of where the beats don't so much smash but roll, still it is an Amen. Plenty of new age-y sounds with a great flute bit in there. 

MI5 - Experience

[1995]

A DJ Crystl alias MI5 did just the one 12". I Can't Understand/Experience was maybe the last great thing he ever recorded after a stellar run of 12"ers from 92-94. This is a heavier yet more spacey sound than usual. Sometimes the drummage with the double kicks goes toward a metal style or somewhere a bit like ex-metal ambient dub of Scorn. There's some vocal science with a a haunted female(?) so disembodied that it feels lonely. Like it's out on the precipice alone, cold and coming down. Yet there's a warm ambient synth and womblike sub-bass comfort. An inherent paradoxical aesthetic was always part of the charm of ambient jungle but this is definitely on the darker side of darkside.

ABBA - Lay All Your Love On Me

[1980]

People go on about European electro-pop and disco with pioneers like Giorgio Moroder, Kraftwerk, Numan and what have you but do ABBA ever get seriously noticed when it comes to innovation and just plain peak state of the art sound... I dunno. They were always doing something weird or dark in the background that you might not have noticed on initial listening. 

Here's a quote from Carl Magnus Palm taken from his book ABBA: The Complete Recording Sessions (1994):

"Lay All Your Love on Me is known for a descending vocal sound at the end of the verse immediately preceding the refrain. This was achieved by sending the vocal into a harmoniser device, which was set up to produce a slightly lower-pitched version of the vocal. In turn its output was fed back to its input, thereby continually lowering the pitch of the vocal. Andersson and Ulvaeus felt that the chorus of the song sounded like a hymn, so parts of the vocals in the choruses were run through a [[vocoder]], to recreate the sound of a church congregation singing, slightly out of tune."

When listening on the hi-fi or through headphones all manner of unusual spooky shit reveals itself. That's pre-DJ Screw shadowy chopped and screwed shenanigans at the end of the verses innit. Then, I mean, a church choir deliberately being made to sound slightly wrong without you actually realising is pretty perverse, unnerving and kinda sinister. This deleterious to your unassuming mind chicanery is similar to the psychological games that certain scenes in horror movies play upon you. 

Interesting.

Mercury Rev - A Bird Of No Address

A Bird Of No Address - Mercury Rev (2024)

This is surprisingly almost very good. I mean it feels like it's gonna go interstellar at any minute but just kind of wimps out with some weak drumming that just doesn't coalesce into the great crescendo you were wishing for but its got hints of past genius in there and sounds a bit like it coulda been on See You On The Other Side (1995). Maybe it needs to be considered just low key not bad for a couple of old fellas. 

I'm still getting over the fact that they'll never be the same as David Baker era Mercury Rev but hey he only left the band thirty years ago. It's not like I didn't love post-Baker cds See You On The Other Side, Deserters Songs and half of All Is A Dream though. Two of my favourite early Mercury Rev tunes Blood On The Moon and Frittering were Johnathan and Grasshopper sans David songs anyway. 

Blood On The Moon - Mercury Rev (1990)

This was on the the bonus disc Lego My Ego which was included on a later 1992 version of the Yerself Is Steam cd. I think this is Grasshopper on lead vocals.

Frittering - Mercury Rev (1991)

Hang on, remember this classic! Frittering is an ecstatic blast of a tune. Reinventing the psychedelic space-rock jam for the 90s, Mercury Rev absolutely kill it here and it still sounds fucking great. The ravishing 5.17 moment when mind blowing lift off begins is well worth the wait. When euphoria was the goal and the possibilities seemed endless. 

More On Movies... the return part IV

Glengarry Glen Ross (1992)

A bunch of blowhard actors play a bunch of blowhard real estate salesmen playing macho status games. I mean if you're in the mood this character study has an impeccable ensemble cast where they inhabit these characters in consummate fashion. Jack Lemon's particularly great. Features peak Kevin Spacey. Not really much of a story though. 

The Apartment (1960)

Black comedy pinnacle. With a view to getting promoted, insurance officer Bud Baxter (Jack Lemon) lends out his apartment to a bunch of senior executives so they may participate in their extramarital affairs. Shenanigans ensue but with grim consequences. Whilst The Apartment is funny and clever it presents a bleak vision of urban modernity and the decline of moral values. Written and directed brilliantly by Billy Wilder and co-scripted by IAL Diamond. Jack Lemon pulls off incredible virtuoso performance along with Shirley MacLaine, Fred MacMurray, the stunning set design, the cinematography, the fashions and... 

 

Con Air (1997)

Absurd OTT action nonsense of the highest calibre. An array of miscreants, some of America's most reprehensible criminals, are gathered together on one aeroplane what could go wrong? Well everything. Some of the silliest action fun to ever be seen on a cinema screen. Action heroes used to be somewhat likeable, here though, the film makers poking fun, deliberately want us to cheer on the twerpiest smug fuck US Marshall (John Cussack) and the relatively unappealing Cameron Poe (Nicholas Cage) who is meant to be the movie's hero. Then Garland Greene (Steve Buscemi) the vile evil genius serial killer escapes into the night for a giddy ending, after all it was the 90s.

Great Expectations (1946)

Dickens brought to the screen by the master David Lean. Great set design, costumery, atmosphere, actoring etc. all captured by spectacular cinematography.

This Is England (2006)

With a backdrop of Thatcher, mass unemployment and The Falklands war. A 12 year old working class kid Shaun gets drawn into an older gang who are a loose conglomeration of misfits generally identifying with the skinhead subculture and its adjacent trends of mod, two-tone, oi, new romantic and whatever else. The gang soon becomes divided when Combo is released from prison and appears with his racially divisive views. A tragedy unfolds... it's a credit to the director Shane Meadows that this didn't end up as preachy propaganda. Supreme acting from terrific ensemble and empathetic film making guarantee you are watching some of the best 21st century cinema. 

The Heartbreak Kid (1972) 

A groundbreaking cringe-comedy cult movie written by Neil Simon and directed by Elaine May. Unlikeable characters do unlikeable things in unlikeable black comedy. Surely this can't be as bad as I think it is. Perhaps our appetite for insufferable characters who we'd normally love to hate, has waned because parliament and social media has overloaded us with actual real life living contemptible creatures that we are now at our wits end of tolerance. 

Dead Mans Shoes (2004)

Is this Shane Meadows' masterpiece? A classical depiction of revenge and redemption set in dilapidated and neglected rural England. Week men with no moral integrity commit an atrocity but they will be held accountable for their actions because ultimately they are responsible for them. A peak in early 21st century film making. 

Cinderella Man (2005)

He's Irish, He's a boxer. He's down and out in New York city. It's the great depression. He needs to feed his wife and kids and pay the electric. He gets a second chance for a big fight. He is Russell Crowe and you can't deny he's pretty bloody good at the ole actoring thing... even when it's cheesy shit like this. Also this is just an excellent cinematic boxing spectacle. 

A Clockwork Orange (1971)

Garish, lurid, bawdy, over the top and a whole lotta wrong fun. A bit of the old ultra violence, a little of the old in-out in-out and a bit of the old Ludwig Van. Fifty years later with the election in the Uk of a dull un-statesman-like prime-minister, who hates his own fellow Englishmen, A Clockwork Orange remains relevant as a satire on authoritarian governments and bureaucratic control. Every frame is iconic, Malcom McDowell as Alex is iconic and well the whole thing is iconic.

Brief Encounter (1945)

One of the most perfectly realised movies ever. This is so beautifully made you don't even realise it's doing that noir circular flashback, end at the start thing. It's a diabolical romance without being a diabolical romance. Two ordinary middle aged and middle class people are caught in a moral dilemma as they are unwittingly swept up in a delicious forbidden romance. Great characters wonderfully portrayed by top actors. Can't really fault this understated and charming film, everything's in the right place. 

Rollerball (1975)

Managerial elites from the ruling corporation control every aspect of rollerball (a cross between handball, roller derby and speedway no less) champion Johnathan E's life, sound familiar? This paranoid futuristic dystopian saga with James Caan roller skating is supreme kitch-a-delia of the most turgid variety. Not as much fun as it used to be now we're living the nightmare where ruling corporations like Black Rock have more wealth and influence than most countries and oligarch's are nefariously pulling all sorts of strings that we are powerless to stop. 

The Smiths - Well I Wonder

[1985]

CardrossManiac was a Thirteen year old doing year 8 at high school in 1985 when Smiths albums entered the home. My older brother left behind a vinyl copy of Hatful Of Hollow. Going from INXS, Models, Mentals, Hoodoo Gurus and u2 to The Smiths might not seem like such a big deal but it was massive. Those other bands were mostly fun, good time music or uplifting. The Smiths however dwelt on uncomfortable and dark themes, not always of course, sometimes they were a great laugh and a lot of the time they were dark and comic during the same song. 

I've never thought about this before but I don't reckon I ever played a Smiths tape around my mates and I doubt any of them knew who they were. I mean we're talking Australia in the mid 80s in a dusty isolated country town 500 kms away from Melbourne. This was a long time before national youth network radio JJJ or the even further away internet. This was Chisel territory mate! Acca Dacca and the Oils too. 

It wasn't until a year later that a girl in the schoolyard recognised me singing Frankly, Mr Shankly that I even realised it was possible that others knew about The Smiths. She had older capital city siblings too. Then by 86/87 The Queen Is Dead and Strangeways Here We Come were in local record stores if you knew what you were looking for. Plus telly-wise, by then, it wasn't just Countdown, Beat Box, Rock Arena and Sounds but the all night music video show Rage had begun showing on ABC on Friday and Saturday nights. So we were all becoming a lot more familiar with little known bands. I recall Smiths coverage in music magazines (that were on country newsstands) from 1984 onwards like Australian Smash Hits, Countdown Magazine, Ram and Juke. 

By 1988 when The Smiths had broken up I even recall chicks, I would have considered uncool, with Smiths tapes at school. By this time they had appeared on John Hughes soundtracks and anyone with a vcr and a keen eye on Rock Arena and Rage would have had a compilation of Smiths film clips on a VHS tape.

Anyway for some reason or other I never had a copy of Meat Is Murder until later. I'd listened to my brother's cassette version many times but something about the production gave me the shits. Also the title irked me. How could I abide supporting an album that had a title that went against my own interests ie. meat pies, sausage rolls, roasts, bangers, burgers, Bolognese and chops! Such people are still annoying me to this day, trying to impose their zealous views about meat consumption on the general steak-loving public. All its gonna take is one authoritarian premier or prime minister to say that's all folks. We've already had meat bans at junior football clubs here in Victoria so... Maybe having our meat-rights taken away is when Aussies will actually wake up and finally get off their arses and stand up to the creeping totalitarianism. I'm all for a meat based revolution...

Anyway the above tune has been very underrated by me and possibly you for thirty nine years. It's been a long time since I've read a Smiths book or ultimate Mojo guide magazine so I don't recall if others rated Now I Wonder highly or not. Surely though it's one of their best. These lovelorn lyrics could easily be seen as a bit histrionic but the group approach the song with such incredible sensitivity it's breathtaking. 

The gorgeous drear driving rain stillness bass of Andy Rourke, the perfect precise pressure of Mike Joyce's snare, the array of Johnny guitar greatness, I mean what is he doing exactly, are there strings in there too and Morrissey's voice in an absurd echo-chamber permeates the entire thing. It's a teenage opera of unrequited love with just the right amount of restraint to make it delicious and not dire. 

Well I Wonder is the Smiths at their most understated and tender. 

Great.

We won't be forced to change our viewpoints. 

Blue Oyster Cult: Subhuman

[1974]

So ladies, fish and gentlemen this is a fucking great tune from the excellent Secret Treaties LP. 

The future and the past, the familiar and the uncommon all represent in this sea-breeze-y fluid psychedelia. Mysterious and dark sci-fi subject matter amid some 70s guitar glory. 

A sound sometimes trapped in strange cul-de-sacs then freed into driving flow motion. 

1974: The Records