So now I'm "that guy?"

On the way home from work, I noticed myself bobbin' my head and reciting the lyrics to the Beastie Boys 1998 classic "Intergalactic" when it came on the tuner.

This is how I looked...

 

You rock that powder blue dress shirt!

I am now "that guy." Rocking out in my car to a song from the year I graduated high school on the way home from my white-collar gig.

It's like I suddenly woke up...old.

And speaking of vinyl...

...I yanked this off of the Facebook page for one of the handful of record stores I frequent semi-regularly, Green Light Music & Video in Kalamazoo, MI. I tell ya, this guy is living the dream. If I can get the dough together, maybe I can open a record store when I'm 40.

http://www.facebook.com/greenlightmusic

Tonight's Slab: I Got the Beat

Well, the Canadian Belle (my "Zooey-esque" girlfriend) is at the bar with co-workers, so I'm holed up in the office of Castle JEP looking at cool stuff online and digging some tunes. I purchased a BOATLOAD of records over the past month and am slowly listening to the mountain of sides that recently came into my possession. To record some of my purchases for posterity, I thought I would start a new semi-regular blog feature I'll call "Tonight's Slab."

Have fun babe. It's cute when you come to bed with Pabst on your breath!

Spinning on the table tonight is the debut album by The Go Gos, "Beauty and the Beat." I dropped the needle on this one, cranked the sound way up, and could feel the pulsing beat of the kick-drum as their song "Our Lips Are Sealed" bounced exuberantly out of my speakers. I have dug the Go Gos since high school, when I became acquainted with their hits via VH1 shows like "I Love the '80s." Their music has a punk attitude melded with catchy pop hooks. Unlike some of the *shudder* "mall punk" bands of 10 years back or so, the Go Gos had real punk credibility.

I picked up this record, along with their third studio album "Talk Show," for $2 each at East Lansing's legendary Flat, Black & Circular. Near mint vinyl for $2 a pop...you can't beat it! This store been around since 1976 and has a great selection with reasonable prices. When I went in there Super Bowl weekend the place was busy as heck! Word of warning, the record store clerks I have encountered are of the surly, music snob variety.

The Go Gos broke up in 1985 but have had numerous reunions. I think it would be a fun show to go see if they end up on tour again sometime soon. There's one other thing I should mention when discussing my fondness for the Go Gos: my humongous crush on rhythm guitarist and co-vocalist Jane Wiedlin. I just love her spunkiness and cutesy voice. And I have a thing for brunettes.

Pay no mind to what they say, Jane. It doesn't matter anyway. Shall we go to the pub for a Pabst?

Looks like John Carter has some competition

DC published a John Carter tribute in this issue of Superman, which came out during that weird limbo period of time between the end of "Crisis" (issue #12 was cover dated March 1986) and the beginning of John Byrne's newly rebooted adventures in "Man of Steel."

Those of you with knowledge of comic history will know what I'm talking about...the next 6 issues of Superman (under the editorial hand of the legendary Julius Schwartz) basically had a "let's try whatever" approach as they had nothing to lose, knowing that a new direction would be starting soon. I may explore this topic further in an upcoming post. Stay tuned!

Moebius 1938-2012

Legendary French comic artist Moebius passed away earlier today. American cartoonist Larry Marder had this to say...“Moebius RIP. He died during the solar storms so it’s as if even the universe wept.”

A beautiful sentiment indeed. Here's one of the earliest images by him I ever saw, a pin-up from 1984's Superman #400.

The debacle known as "Teen Wolf Too"

It's been almost 2 weeks now since I was flipping through the channels on a Saturday afternoon (the day before I started this blog, in fact) and came across a movie I haven't seen since I was in second grade. I now know why it had been nearly 25 years in between viewings. It was because it sucked. It sucked BAD.

First, some background....

I loved the original "Teen Wolf" film as a kid , which was released in 1985. In fact, it's still one of my favorites. It is by no means a classic of American cinema, but it is a highly entertaining movie that has heart. It also had likeable characters and a fun premise. For those who haven't seen it, Michael J. Fox plays an awkward teen who becomes the star of the basketball team when he becomes a werewolf capable of amazing athletic feats.

I remember my mom renting it from the video store (on a video disc no less...anyone remember those? If not, here's the obligatory link http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capacitance_Electronic_Disc). Anyway, I still recall mom picking it off the shelf and saying I might like it because it has "the guy from 'Family Ties' in it".

I ended up loving the movie and its portrayal of the lives of a bunch of '80s teenagers, one of whom happens to turn into a werewolf. I've been to my share of parties, but I don't think any have been as fun as the one portrayed in that movie, with the fun party games involving feathered-haired girls writhing around in pudding. I remember it airing on TV when I was in first grade and we taped it onto a blank VHS tape for future viewing. I watched THE HELL out of that tape!

I was especially fond of the two love interests in the movie, the characters Boof (what the fuck kinda name is that?) and Pamela. Once again, like with "Three's Company," you had the best of both worlds with the sexy blonde and down-to-earth brunette. The actresses who portrayed these characters didn't go on to do much else...I saw the chick who played Boof on an episode of "Charles In Charge" and the actress who played Pamela was in the '80s horror flick "Cheerleader Camp." Despite their less than impressive resumes, I thought their performances were quite memorable.

Scott "Teen Wolf" Howard with Pamela. I can do that.

Hey, how about a sequel?
The movie was a success, and two years later a sequel was released. Seems like a no-brainer right? Teen Wolf was such a hot property that there was even a cartoon!

                               

Upon my initial viewing I noticed there were some significant changes in the cast and characters from the first film. Instead of Micheal J. Fox reprising his role as Scott Howard, we instead got Jason Bateman playing Scott's cousin Todd. Also returning from the first film was Scott's dad (and Todd's uncle) Harold Howard and "Chubbs", the fat guy from the first film. Two additional characters from the first film appeared also, except they were played by different actors. That's how bad this movie was folks. They couldn't even get the original guys who played Stiles and Coach Finstock. 

The movie revolves around Todd trying to fit in as a dorky freshman at Hamilton College. First off, how weird is that he is dropped off by his uncle at college, and is friends with all of his cousin's friends who all mysteriously ended up at the same college? And they never did explain what happened to Scott...

He was captured by authorities after satisfying his "meat tooth." *Crickets* Yes, that was a bad pun.

Like Rocky II and Home Alone 2, this movie followed the same premise as the first film almost exactly. In the first film, Scott's wolf powers helped the high school basketball team win some games. In the sequel, Todd's wolf powers help the college boxing team (because colleges are well-known for their boxing teams of course). This movie differed from the first film in one major way, though: musical sequences which helped pad out the running time.

The first musical sequence is honestly one of the most horrible in film history...it features Todd Howard in wolf mode wearing an '80s style skinny-tie and suit dancing to the old '60s song "Do You Love Me." Why? All I can ask is why. WHY WHY WHY was this is in the movie? I have a few theories. Padding out the running time in an already weak-plotted movie was one theory. Cashing in on the '60s nostalgia that was currently in vogue was another. Here's a clip, if you're brave enough...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNKeFqMLWRs

The second musical sequence was utilized in a montage that showed Todd cramming for some test he blew off studying for because he was busy being a big 'old bad ass wolf, driving around Gomez Addam's bad ass car. Yes, the guy who played Gomez on "The Addams Family" tv show played the dean in this movie.

Lamborghini? Check. Hot broads? Check. Miami Vice suit? Check. Unholy freak of nature? Check.

The song that played during the study sequence was "Send Me An Angel," which I guess was some metaphor for how the average girl who he dug at first and then spurned for the skanks was now helping him. I can think of at least two other movies this song appeared in. Originally it was in some movie that I can't think of the name of, but it was about BMX bikes and featured the chick who played Becky on "Full House." It was also in the '80s kid movie classic "The Wizard." I think the song was utilized better in both of those movies.

Was there ever a movie you liked as a kid, and then watched years later and realized you didn't like anymore? It could have been any number of reasons...maybe you realized after years of growing up and sampling other cinematic fare that it wasn't a quality film. Or maybe it was something that was enjoyable within the original context of the times it came out in, but seems out of place in this modern world. Well, with Teen Wolf Too, I remember not liking it as a kid, and I do not like it even more as an adult. It's hard to sit through, even for the ironic humor factor. It will always be a pale imitation of the original classic (which itself was no Kubrick film).

And here, lastly, is the trailer. Remember that trailers are made to make someone WANT to see a movie.

Happy Belated Birthday to Dave Gilmour

The Pink Floyd guitarist/vocalist turned 66 yesterday...here's a clip of one of my favorite songs of his from Floyd's post-Waters era in the '80s. This song was a staple on the radio station I listened to in middle school, WRIF out of Detroit.

Some say the Floyd album this song came from was glorified Gilmour solo, but I think that is unfair. The band was finding their voice without Waters, and I found the music they put out to be very good. This song is Floyd-style mellow, with some interesting percussion. The video is cool in how it juxtaposes the industrial sounds of a factory with the agrarian worker using his scythe. I always loved the symbolism Floyd used, on album covers and their in-concert video back-drops. When it came out this song signaled that Floyd was back, and it's too bad this line-up was only good for 4 albums (2 studio, 2 live).

On VH1 Classic over the weekend I saw a documentary about the making of "Wish You Were Here." It was incredibly fascinating, especially the part where the album cover designer described how the album cover and interior photos were shot. 

I'm holding my breath for a reunion, but it's hard to see Waters and Gilmour ever collaborating again. Plus, it would not be the same without keyboardist Rick Wright, who passed in 2008.

NEXT: Teen Wolf Too. Promise.