El Chicano has been on the music scene for nearly 40 years: 1970 marked the first time that the band came together and created their own special type of Latino R&B meets funk. “In The Eye of the Storm†is a documentary that shows the evolution of the band from their earliest days to the present, while the second disc captures their magic in a May 2008 show at The…
The Ascent of Money is one of the few DVDs that one can actually watch that provides a fair and balanced perspective into what is currently happening regarding the economy. Where there are a number of different talking heads weighing in on the issue, only Niall Ferguson seems to have a solid head on eir shoulders. The Ascent of Money, adapted from one of Ferguson’s lectures on the circuit, is…
Though The Casting Out is led by former BoySetsFire singer Nathan Gray, don’t expect this new outfit to sound anything remotely like the post hardcore band he used to front. On the band’s debut, Go Crazy! Throw Fireworks!, the angry guitars and angsty bellows have been replaced by a more pop/punk sound and a few song-along choruses.
We have had the ability to taste a number of different types of vodka over the year or so that the alcohol review section has been active. However, we have not had too much in the “organic†section of things, and Blue Ice is one of many reviews that we are conducting over the course of the next month to see how organic spirits stack up to their non-organic brethren.…
Very few directors of opera, I believe, take the plunge in directing a feature film, and even smaller of a number tackle a project with Meryl Streep. That is what Chen Shi-Zheng did with “Dark Matterâ€, and eir aptitude and skill behind the camera is enough to even take someone like Streep’s style to the next level. The film itself deals with the linkages between Streep’s character (Joanna), a rich…
The Showdown is a Western, showcasing the trials and tribulations of US Marshal Luke Canfield, played here by Bob Handegan, a powerful newcomer to film. Specifically, Luke is pitted against a gang, a group of ruffians that would like no more than to murder the love of eir life, Dixie (Ann Hagemann) and son. Whether Luke folds under the pressure and allows the gang to run roughshod over eir territory…
These three classic films are released on Blu-Ray for the first time, and each brings something slightly different to the table. Despite the difference in release year (1977, 1978, and 1986), each of the films are brought to the current period in terms of video and audio quality. Each of the releases will provide purchasers with a tremendous amount of added features, as they represent at the base level the…
Enchanted April was originally a book written by Elizabeth von Arnim, and the book itself was brought to the silver screen on the seventieth anniversary of the release. The film centers around two women that wish to be free of the monotony of their daily lives. Packing up and taking a trip away from these lives, their husbands, and damp, murky England, they set out to the Italian Riviera. Adding…
Though not as prolific as sometime tour mate Willie Nelson, Bob Dylan has yet to show no sign of slowing down anytime soon. On his 33rd record, Together Through Life, Dylan has clearly gone back to the old Sun and Chess Recordings for inspiration and the result is fantastic for long time Dylan devotees (another obvious influence is Dylan’s Sirius/XM radio show “Theme Time Radio Hourâ€).
To be honest, this is the first GLBT-related horror film that I have seen. The one thing that I can first notice is that while the stars are up and coming Judith O’Dea (Night of the Living Dead) and Brinke Stevens (The Slumber Party Massacre), the skill that they put forth on the screen is equivalent to that of even seasoned actors. The film itself surrounds a cast that were…
Who would honestly think that a film about a cemetery would be interesting in the slightest? Heddy Honigmann, whom individuals may know from O Amor Natural, knew that eir talent was at a level that ey could make a bunch of stones on a grassy field interesting. There are a few bonus features, with traditional materials like the original trailer along with a bio/filmography of Heddy Honigmann for individuals to…
It has been a few years since the last of the (good) WarioWare games were released, so there needs to be something to fill the gap. Atlus has done just that on the Nintendo DS with their “101-in-1 Explosive Megamixâ€, which is available now for the Nintendo DS. Inside the cartridge is what individuals may already know is present: a large number of different games that will have players handling…
Into the Blue 2 deals with a couple of scubaers; Dani (played here by Laura Vandervoort) and Sebeastion (Chris Carmack) and their adventures around the scenic locale of Hawaii. Where fun is fun, things take a decidedly more serious turn after they are offered a large sum of money by some shady characters. After things take a turn for the worse, it really is a testament to the skills of…
Before this, I thought that Knob Creek was the best whiskey out there. However, after getting a chance to review Bulleit Bourbon has revealed that there is a serious contender to Knob Creek’s throne. Don’t let the bottle’s retro flair fool you: despite claims to the contrary, what is present in each bottle of Bulleit Bourbon is complex, full-bodied, and will be a whiskey experience that imbibers will not soon…
There have been a number of different Dragonball Z games over the course of the last fifteen years, and Dragon Ball: Evolution is the one that really tends to break free of the molds and bring something new to the line. Despite the fact that the game is on a portable console (the Sony PSP), there is a certain vibrancy and quick pace to the action that belies the slower…
Green Day will release 21st Century Breakdown, featuring the single “Know Your Enemy,” globally on May 15th.
Most the time, whenever I have some sort of mixed drink, there seems to be mounds too much sugar and not enough in the way of alcohol for me. However, Smirnoff has done the impossible and has created what I consider to be the best cocktail I have ever had. Their “Tuscan Lemonade†seems to be a shade or two darker than most lemonades, but the inclusion of Limoncello (Italian…
As bassist and front man for Australian rockers The Church, Steve Kilbey has had a hand in turning out some of the more influential psychedelic pop songs of the late 80’s/early 90’s alternative scene. On his latest solo offering, his sixth, however Kilbey is running out of steam. The Aussie rocker known for penning classics like “Under the Milky Way†and “Metropolis,†simply sounds conflicted with this uneven record.
Where Disturbia was a solid film and The Ring really allowed horror to take that next step forward, The Uninvited is one of those films that is able to learn from the successes and failures from previous efforts by the producers, as well as from the entirety of the genre. The haunting aura of The Uninvited comes forth quite well on Blu-Ray, meaning that the atmospheric noise and sounds present…
A cappella is not supposed to sound this good. The vocals-only genre exists solely for our amusement and ridicule, right? Andy, the dork from The Office was in a college a cappella group, so it’s gotta be uncool, right? Ben Folds may have finally made the oft maligned musical form hip with the release of Ben Folds Presents: University A Cappella!