Craft Hope

Mercury Radio Theater is one of the first bands I fell in love with when I came down to the Philly area for college. The first time I saw them, I was immediately taken aback. A tight three piece surf rock/punk/rockabilly/jazz ensemble, the band played instrumental music, amidst an old time radio show broadcast out of an old time radio set up in center stage. I’ll never forget the first episode of the many that I saw performed live over the following years, a story based on a Bond-like hero named Dick Danger. I later found out that a classmate was one of the voice on the radio show recording.

In the years since seeing this show, the lineup has changed on several occasions, the episodes have evolved form one to the next, and their live show has continually gotten more visual, but they’ve always been one thing if nothing else: a talented group of showmen. I hesitate to call them musicians, while it is entirely fair to say that they are fantastic musicians, because they are so much more than musicians. With a new album and many supporting shows on the way, my hope is that many more can see what I have seen in this band over the last decade.

The lineup, when I first saw the band consisted of only one current member, Kurt Fowler aka Buddy Mercury, and two guys that have since moved one to other endeavors. Jeff Brown played bass and did so very well. I believe he got married and settled down. Chris Tolomeo was the drummer; he’s since went on to write, direct, and perform in several musicals, as well as perform in several other bands and as a solo artist. This original trio was very talented… but as the lineup changed, nothing ever seemed to miss a beat.

I recall a discussion with Buddy that I had a couple of years ago when I was doing a show with the guys. Buddy asked me if I had a favorite episode and I told him that I though it was “Manhattan Zombie Massacre”. He responded (paraphrase):

Oh, thanks. Your favorite episode is the only one I wasn’t part of

Honestly, I didn’t even realize that he wasn’t part of the episode, which speaks volumes to the quality musicianship and showmanship of everyone involved in this band.

Now, I must clarify to those who aren’t waxing nostalgic, like myself, what I mean by “episodes”. MRT’s whole concept is based on the old radio shows that our parents and grandparents gathered around their radios to listen to back before we had the picture tubes we now glue ourselves to. Each set list that they performed was the soundtrack to a pre-recorded radio show. From their inception, they would write new episodes and every so often would introduce a new one.

Now that we are all on the same page, I’ll fast forward a bit… in 2004 or so, I remember the band finally putting out a solid CD version of one of their live shows. It was the episode The Death and Life of the Undead Boy and the whole presentation was incredible. Released on Angryson Records, the release featured artwork by Joe Whiteford (Calibretto, Harley Poe) and narration by Philly punk legend Joe Jack Talcum of The Dead Milkmen. The entire thing was down to perfection; while it could never do full justice to their stage presence, it was the first time the band was able to present to the public something truly representative of Mercury Radio Theater. It was a dark, clever, punk rock version of a Shel Silverstein book set to music.

At this time, they began to introduce the slideshow visual to the live performances. I thought this was a fun addition to an already incredible live act and I know many people agreed. And, naturally, this did not go away when they produced their seminal (at least at this point) release in 2006 on Lujo Records, The Blue Eyed Model. This retelling of the Frankenstein story was released to a wider audience, including being made available in major outlets like iTunes and Amazon. But if I know this band like I think I do, we can only expect them to top this with their upcoming release…

I was assured by Buddy that in the next few months, we will be seeing the release of another episode from Mercury Radio Theater. I have no doubt that it will make fans out of anyone willing and able to check it out, albeit I hope I have not turned you off by taking you along on my nostalgic journey this evening… as I know I can be boring at times. But if you suffered this far into the story, I can only assume that you fall into one of these 3 categories:

1. An old school MRT fan that remembers the Farquar Muckenfuss rivalry, the show at Wayne Pres where the computer wouldn’t work, and the smoke alarms in the Great Room at Eastern
2. Someone who values my opinion and, thus, will be checking out The Death and Life of the Undead Boy and The Blue Eyed Model, while awaiting the next episode
3. Someone who spends way too much time on the Internet

I’m hoping the 2’s (and some 1’s) win out and make a point to head over to the Mercury Radio Theater website. More info to come as I receive it, but until then acquaint yourself with this fantastic Philadelphia staple.

Thanks for checking out HORROR WEEK. Tomorrow, we’ll be back to our regularly scheduled programming, with some music, beer, and other fun stuff as the week unfolds.

What HORROR WEEK would be complete without this:

If you’ve been following this site for any period of time, you’ve likely read about The Young Werewolves, a horror punk/rockabilly act from the greatest city in the world. I’ve done a killer interview with them, shared free MP3s on mixtapes, and reviewed their 2008 release Cheat the Devil… but it’s been a few months, so I felt it was once again time to share with you the fun, energetic, and hard working band that has become a fixture in my punk rock collection.

If you are new to the Werewolves, you can start by checking out this cool live video of “The Zombie Prom”:

Now that you have a little taste, there are only a few logical ways to go…

Option 1: See them live…

2/13/2010 (2PM) Waterfall Center Claymont, DE

3/6/2010 (9PM) Sweeney’s Philadelphia, PA

3/27/2010 (9PM) The El Bar Philadelphia, PA

(May I recommend the show at El Bar? I’ve heard it’s a fun venue.)

Option 2: Get Cheat the Devil at their bandcamp site. Head over there and check out the amazing price.

Option 3: Do both!

Did I mention they do SWEET cover songs? I choose option 3! owwwwwwwwwwwwwWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!

Only appropriate that on the day after George Romero’s 70th birthday, we look at the most awesomest scary movies of the past 10 years… especially since zombies seem to have dominated the list of great horror flicks during this decade.

Over the weekend, I’ll be posting spotlights of two great Philly bands that embrace the theatrical side of the horror genre, a fun and entertaining look at The Young Werewolves and a nostalgia piece of watching Mercury Radio Theater through the years. Check back on this snow filled weekend to read, comment, and enjoy!

Without further ado, in Letterman 10-to-1 style, here are my 10 favorite scary movies of the 2000s:

Honorable Mention: House of Wax (Creepy flick and Paris gets a spear through her head), 28 Weeks Later (A decent sequel to a great movie), Land of the Dead (Another great Romero flick in his tradition, except these zombies are getting much smarter), Diary of the Dead (One of the mockumentary style horror flicks that became popular again this decade, the only one worth a damn), House of 1000 Corpses (I like sequel even more, but consider it more of a road movie than a horror flick… both are quite chilling though), The Skeleton Key (Kate Hudson and creepy voodoo people in the South), and Silent Hill (Very scary and gory movie).

10. 13 Ghosts

Watch the trailer above... it's a fun, creepy remake of the 1961 cult classic. Matthew Lillard is quite convincing as a nerdy scientist on the verge of insanity. The guy from monk plays a good hero. The ghosts are quite creepy. Overall, a solid horror movie.

9. District 9

The reason this isn’t higher up is because it’s not truly a horror movie, but more of a Sci-Fi movie. That said, Wikus’s transformation into an alien is quite comparable to Goldblum’s in The Fly. That and lots of blood make the scary moments in this film quite horrifying.

Check out the original short film that the movie is based on:

8. Session 9

So, I’m not exactly sure why the number 9 is creepy, but it is apparently… ya know what else is scary? Listening to tapes of schizophrenics that turn out to be possessed by demons. Yeah.

7. Drag Me to Hell

Why should I write about this again? Go read my review and stop being lazy. Reading is fundamental.

6. The Ring

What’s scarier than a creepy dead girl crawling out of a TV?

5. 28 Days Later

The sense of impending doom that is always present in Romero zombie flicks gets worsened when the zombies no longer walk, but are inhumanly fast and strong. Scary scary scary… and since we all know that zombies will be coming one day, we should just pray that they are the George Romero kind and not these crazy brain-eaters!

Perhaps the best movie on this list as far as artistic quality, but not quite the scariest, in fact, there are 4 more that scare me much more.

4. Exorcism of Emily Rose

This picture says it all. This movie is absolutely terrifying:

This movie is really well done, the only one on here that rivals 28 Days in it’s overall quality as a feature film. It is part A Time to Kill, part The Exorcist, but better than either dreamed of being.

3. May

Not a big budget film or even very well known, but it has a killer soundtrack and takes the classic Frankenstein type story in a different direction. A modern day movie with a story that harkens to the storytelling of classic horror authors like Edgar Allan Poe. A must watch movie for fans of dark and twisted movies with laughs, screams, and lots of blood.

2. Repo! the Genetic Opera

A horror opera full of industrial music that kicks ass and a post-apocalyptic world to send chills up the spine of even the least squeamish among us. Paris Hilton, the dude who played Giles on the Buffy TV show, and King Capulet from the 1990’s Romeo and Juliet are among the talented cast. I think it’s still streaming on Netflix, so do yourself a favor and watch it while you are snowed in this weekend.

1. Planet Terror

You’ve likely seen the movie if you’ve spent the time to read this list. If not, you need to see this Robert Rodriguez gem. A star studded cast led heroic Rose McGowan and Freddie Rodriguez star in this intentionally poor quality B-Movie that does everything right. It’s scary, cheesy, funny, and bloody in all the right doses. Do yourself a favor if you haven’t seen it… avoid the other half of the Grindhouse feature, because it sucked.

Before you go, check out this extended scene below:

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

When you’re not protected by the guards and weapons of Fiddler’s Green, you may have to fend for yourself during a zombie attack. Thus, it’s important for everyone to have their own zombie survival kit. If you don’t already have one, you should get it together immediately… we never know when (not if, but when) World War Z will begin. If we aren’t ready, the dead will reign.

Ok, so now that I’ve impressed the importance of your zombie survival kit, I need to explain a few important things. First, it cannot be larger that a duffel bag or backpack, as you must be able to move around easily while carrying it (mine is is a messenger bag). Second, you are allowed to have two automatic or semi-automatic weapons that do not fit in your kit and you can wear your bullets Rambo style… of course, they must have straps so that they can also be carried easily. Third, this bag should include a few pairs of underwear, an extra shirt, and a pair of gym shorts… I don’t think this needs to be explained.

With the remaining space in your bag, what items will you carry in your zombie survival kit, and why?

For me, I’ll begin with a bottle of Jim Beam, a carton of strike anywhere matches, and, of course, my lightsaber. Essential.

Now, it’s your turn. The winner gets a zombie prizepack (any other winners awaiting prizes, sorry for the delay… I’ll get a bunch of them sent out by next Monday).

thepaintedman rates this:

If you look above, you’ll see I threw together a scary HORROR WEEK header for the site. I want to begin this review by pointing out the creepy face in the center. If you were trying to figure out where it comes from, it is the creepy gypsy woman from Sam Raimi’s Drag Me to Hell.

I watched this last week when I got it sent to me from Netflix. It is quite important to first note that this is definitely a film for Sam Raimi fans… horror in the classic Evil Dead style. Witty, visually enticing, scary supernatural old lady that gets scarier as the movie goes on… check, check, check. Only complaint in this department, the lack of a Bruce Campbell cameo. Dude was busy… at least that’s what I read, but I will admit that this was a tad disappointing. That said, nothing else to complain or be disappointed about, really.

The synopsis is as follows: Girl (Alison Lohman) is trying to get ahead in her career. She has a great, successful supportive boyfriend (Justin Long) whose parents aren’t very fond of her, but he doesn’t seem to care. Her main obstacle in getting a promotion is a competitive co-worker (Reggie Lee). When faced with an ethical dilemma, she chooses to deny an elderly gypsy woman an extension on her loan, seemingly as a the type of tough decision her boss wants her to make in order to demonstrate that she’s ready for her promotion. When the gypsy woman falls to her knees and begs the girl to reconsider, she calls security and believes that is that… except, after work, the woman is waiting… and (after the type of battle that only Raimi can create) the gypsy woman curses the girl. What happens after this can only be described as a world of attacks, fear, and supernatural torture.

Justin Long and Alison Lohman play perfect Raimi protagonists. Long’s likability and humor bring a lighter feel to some scenes and it really helps to develop the characters and their relationship. Lohman has the perfect blend of fear, confusion, and tenacity to be a Raimi type of hero. The supporting characters are quirky, entertaining, and well written.

Overall, this is a great film if you’ve been missing that Evil Dead type of horror flick. Not quite as grotesque as the first ED movie or as cheeky as the 2nd and 3rd installments… and a better overall production that anything in the series.

Rob: Let’s just say that I hadn’t seen it and I said to you, “I haven’t seen Evil Dead II yet”, what would you think?

Barry: I’d think that you’re a cinematic idiot and I’d feel sorry for you.

Don’t be a cinematic idiot… see Drag Me to Hell (and ED 2 if you haven’t YET). Rent this today.

thepaintedman rates this:

As I’m sure you can tell, it’s HORROR WEEK on TPM this week. The inspiration: Mob Zombie. The Mob is a hip hop collective of the living dead. They entertain while eating brains. They make you tap you toe and bounce your head, all the while scaring the life out of you… ok, maybe not exactly. But they do rock, in fact they know it, with references to being more rock than hip hop… chucks, Mohawks, and all that rock ISH.

Before I go on, I’d like to offer my theory on the cause of zombie-ism, at least the theory that I believe to have learned from The Mob: WEED. Apparently, smokin’ lots of weed can make you a zombie (which leads me to believe that my buddy keen and my cousin are likely zombies, as well). While this is never stated outright, I believe I’m not the only one who would come to this conclusion when rockin’ Join the Mob.

Ok, so I think based on what has been said so far, you can guess what the lyrical content of Join the Mob focuses on… if you haven’t caught on, the key points are zombies, brains, and marijuana. Marijuana is secondary to the zombie stuff, which is good since that’s what drew me to Mob Zombie to begin with. My hopes and dreams for this CD are fulfilled for sure… as much brains, eating flesh, and walking dead folks as one can ask for.

There is a story told throughout the CD, partially through the tracks filled with hot beats and B-Movie lyrics, but also through the news radio bits scattered throughout the CD. As with all good zombie stories, the dead run amuck; in this story, several major US cities are overrun and quarantined. The story is quite well done.

As far as the actual songs go, I have a few favorites. Hands down, my favorite track is “Zombies vs. Humans”. The backbeat is folky acoustic guitar with a phat drum beat. The chorus includes folk vocals that set a backdrop to this battle between the living and the dead.

Other standout tracks include “Mary’s Brains” (an R&B love song focusing on a different part of the body than what Al Green and Isaac Hayes were focusing on), “They Were Diggin’” (a track with one of my favorite verses on the album, “Hip hop sucks, that’s why I wear chucks”), “The Underground Funk”, and “I’m a Zombie”.

With hip hop that rocks like this, I may be willfully joining the mob sometime soon. I wonder if zombies can blog…

thepaintedman rates this:

My friendship with Skot has not only lead to my introduction to Debtor, but also to a great band from my own backyard, Reading’s own Twin Killing.

Last week, when I saw Debtor play at Johnny Reno’s, a killer new venue on Lancaster Ave in Reading, I also was treated to a great set from the local hardcore act. Their set was most impressive, so I grabbed a CD and gave the band some kinds words before they fled to a second show they were playing that night.

Thirteen tracks on the CD and it still seemingly clocks in around 8.5 minutes. Not really, but it is quite short. Each track goes by quickly, but that isn’t to say that there isn’t enough riffage and breakdown action to tear your face off during each of the thirteen.

Some of the lyrics are deep, some are clever, some are typical hardcore “fuck you, stand true” type lyrics… but the vocal delivery is straight forward and solid. The music is punishing and full of all the appropriate hardcore elements.

When it comes down to it, Twin Killing is a straight forward hardcore band, no bells, no whistles. They do it the right way. They dress how they want (sweatpants, jeans, whatever), work hard (as evidenced by two shows in a night), play as a tight unit, have some sing-a-long gang vocal choruses, and even have the token fat guy on bass (I’m allowed to say that since I’m a fat guy, too).

…If This Could Last Forever is a solid outing for this young band: 7 out of 10 stars. But, I recommend you catch these guys live: 9 out of 10 stars. They are sure to be rocking the Reading scene (and hopefully beyond) for years to come, don’t take my word for it , “Just like your shitty tattoos, we’re fuckin’ here to stay” (lyrics from “Just an Enemy”)

Stand out tracks: “Hard Times”, “Weak”, “Best of Us”

For fans of: Youth of Today, Ten Yard Fight, Good Clean Fun, early H2O

Today, I present to you two great CDs that you should own. Both incorporate elements of their influences, while their sound is their own. Both draw on faith for inspiration. Both write powerful songs that draw you towards them with a gravitational force. Both are CDs by acts that you’ve likely heard very little about before. And, both are CDs that will remain on my iPod (or iPad/iPon/iWhatever) for years to come.

However similarly I have described these two CDs, their sound is far from similar.

The first is the debut release from a surf-rock-shoegaze-dreampop band from Ventura, CA. This release first crossed my path through an email sent by Jeff Cloud of Velvet Blue Music. When I responded to his email about wanting to check this out, he noted that the band wasn’t on VBM, but is being distributed by VBM’s distro. He said he’d tell Joel, the man behind this music, to send me a copy for review. A few days later, I received a package, complete with CD, sex wax, and sand from the band’s favorite surf spot.

thepaintedman rates this:

When I popped Mainsail into my car stereo, I was immediately struck by the pop sensibilities of Joel Bennett and his band of merry musicians. I thought to myself, “Wow, this is what bands like Phantom Planet are supposed to sound like,” and I was transported in my mind to the Overseas Highway, where I drove through the Florida keys several years back… the ocean on either side of the road, the smell of the shore, and the warm sun. Ok, so Florida and California aren’t the same, but I’ve never been to Cali, so don’t jump down my throat just yet.

There isn’t a whole lot to say about this CD; the songs blend one into the next with ease. The sum of the parts is what is most important here. The parts are good, but none stand out as the best. Is there a song that could be a good single on here? Sure, pick one at random and put it on pop radio and I don’t doubt that people will love it. If I had to choose a single, I’d start right at the beginning… the opening track, “Endless Summer”. Think Jack’s Mannequin, but more mature and less interested in focusing on making music that sells. It’s just a good, upbeat Summertime type of song.

Here’s all you really need to know. This is dreamy, 90’s shoegaze influenced, surf pop. And I like it. A lot.

The second CD… drastically different. East coast. Very little in the way of pop sensibilities. Even less in the way of dreamy surf influence. What we have here is hardcore. Hardcore, Debtor be thy name.

thepaintedman rates this:

I was introduced to Debtor when I bumped into a friend, Debtor’s bassist Skot Rudy, who told me he was in a new band. While we stood amidst a crowd of folks wandering out the door after a killer Social Distortion show, Skot proceeded to explain to me that he had been asked to join a band called Debtor, a hardcore band based in the Philly burbs. I told him that I’d make a point to come out to a show. And come out to a show, I did.

At the show, I mentioned to Skot that I would love to review a CD, because not only do I like to promote friends but also because I thought their set was tight. Skot offered a free copy of their EP, but I decided to pony up the $5 and support the band with the little money I had on me that night.

The next morning, I popped the CD in the stereo in my living room. I walked out of the room for a minute, only to return to my 14 month old son dancing like a madman to the 2nd track of the CD. Plain and simple, it was awesome.

As opposed to Mainsail, I think Debtor’s Deliverance EP is more about the parts than the sum. Each track is its own piece. The CD flows well together, but nothing about it seems to push me to think that the sum is greater than its parts. Keeping with this theme, there are certain standout tracks on this EP. My favorites being the opener, “Escape”, the spoken word “None Righteous”, and “Witness”.

Overall, quite glad Skot joined the band and that I was lucky enough to experience them recently. I expect big things moving forward from this release. In short, the CD is powerful stuff, harkening back to the hey day of Spirit Filled Hardcore. Then again, I’d expect nothing less of Blood & Ink Records.