We’re heading into Halloween weekend and if you’re like me you usually relish this time of year because that’s when a few horror movies get put into the theatres. The major releases are Wes Craven’s first directorial turn in five years, My Soul to Take; the seventh and supposed final film in the Saw franchise, Saw 3D; and the sequel to last year’s low-budget box office smash, Paranormal Activity.

Despite the Bloglin’s glowing review last year, I absolutely hated the first film. I wasn’t alone. The large crowd I went to see it with all had pretty high hopes and left incredibly underwhelmed and bored. I’ll admit that it was a clever concept, but the execution wasn’t whatsoever scary and it failed fleshing out the films one glimmer of hope, it’s lore. Had they, it may have gone a long way in having the audience fill in the gaps mentally to terrify themselves. But what do I know? People ate up this hackneyed attempt to do (and fail) what The Blair Witch Project did. And judging by the current box office totals people eagerly want seconds. *sigh*

Paranormal Activity 2 takes place before and during the events of the original Paranormal Activity and truth be told, much like the premise.. is a clever set-up in furthering the story along. The sequel focuses on the Rey family, which happens to include Katie’s (from the first film) sister, Kristi who is married to Dan with whom she has a newborn son and a step-daughter from Ali what I imagine is a previous marriage.

Most of the footage in the film comes from Ali who carries a camcorder around with her all the time for some reason AND because the house is wired with cameras everywhere. So why is this house wired with cameras? Well early in the film the Reys return home to discover their house has been broken into and trashed. But the only that was stolen is a necklace that Katie had given to Kristi… creeeeeeeppppppy! Dan, the dad ain’t puttin’ up with this shit and installs cameras everywhere.

So what do these cameras pick up? Most of what we get are some some lame ghostly hi-jinks like taking the pool cleaner out of the water each morning, some odd night wandering by Kristi and a freaked out housekeeper who senses “bad spirits” and tries to vanquish them. The family walks in on her doing that and she subsequently gets fired because it freaks out that lame-o Dan. Eventually the Reys get a visit from Katie and Micah which establishes a timeline between the two films. Most of Paranormal Activity 2 takes place within the 6 months of that visit and Katie killing Micah in the first film. Eventually the spookiness builds up (ever so slightly) with some pans falling, doors slamming, a game of Ouija and eventually Kristi getting sucked down the stairs and into the basement where we can only assume she gets possessed.

The whole Kristi/Katie connection is honestly the only redeeming element of the film as it does what the first film failed to do, cementing some sort of mythos as to why these people are getting haunted. Kristi at one point asks Katie if she remembers when they were kids and they were having “those weird episodes,” to which Katie gets all defensive and instructs Kristi to just ignore it or she’ll “end up like Mom.” Step-daughter Ali also does some digging (much like Micah in the first film) to conclude that maybe it’s a demon haunting them, and that the only way that could be possible is if someone in Katie and Kristi’s family made a deal with a demon for wealth/fame but never paid their debt with a newborn son! Dun dun dun! Kristi’s newborn son is the first son born into her side of the family since the 30s… spoooooooooky!

The film’s climax involves a homemade exorcism and in a clumsy, albeit enjoyable sort of way ties the story neatly back into the original film. I won’t give that away though, you’ll just have to watch the film yourself to see it if you care. So why am I so down on a film I admit has a clever premise and some pretty thought through plot? Well for one, you still couldn’t give two shits about any of the characters in the film… not even in that “fuck I want these douchebags to die soooo bad” sort of way Slashers tend to elicit. Two the pacing is an absolute snooze and the payoffs are never worth your time. Look this thing doesn’t need to be all blood and gore, I love subtle horror, but I’d love to meet the person who was unsettled by anything in either this film or the original.

Like the last film there are all sorts of easter eggs, but you know what? Who cares. They’re not exactly easy to pick up on because of way the film is shot and nothing about the movie makes you want to sit through repeated viewings to catch them. It sucks to see something this promising for the second time in a row get completely tripped up by lackluster execution and casting. Paranormal Activity 2 isn’t unwatchable, it’s just really boring. So if you’re planning on taking in a scary movie this Halloween weekend, opt for Saw 3D because at least with that you know you’ll get a few chuckles and at least one or two clever kill scenes.

Wolf People - Steeple (2010) [Jagjaguwar] // Grade: B

In today’s post modern and remix music culture, it’s refreshing to see a band that is committed to an era of sound without trying to revamp it for a modern audience. Wolf People is a band that plays retro psych rock with such strong, balls out confidence that it feels like they’ve been plucked straight out of the late 60s. This English band formed back in 2006, releasing 7” singles over the years. Last year they combined them all for the singles collection, Tidings. The four piece band has released Steeple, a proper LP with all new material (recorded in an old chicken barn on a 17^th century Welsh property).

Wolf People play with such dedication and skill that it feels as if they’ve been playing together, honing their craft for 40 years. Singer Jack Sharp’s voice even sounds like it has been frozen in time. Drummer Tom Watt plays with such definitive precision bouncing around between funkier beats to more prog rock progressions. The skills of guitarists Gabriel Lloret and Joe Hollick are ferocious and integral to the band’s sound.

Wolf People have managed to create meaty tracks that seem to be self aware of their weight on. Each track can easily stand on its own but when put together they create a powerhouse of pure raw awesome psych rock that packs a punch. You’d never know the LP is 9 tracks long by listening to it. “Banks of Sweet Dundee Pt. 1” (mandolin influenced mellow folksy track) and “Banks of Sweet Dundee Pt. 2” (low slow starter that sheds the softness as it crescendos to a power rock finale) combined clock in at over 8min. “One By One From Dorney Reach” is a track that’s made fantastic due to this off kilter guitar melody strung throughout that for whatever reason makes me think of the James Bond theme. The real prize winner of the album is “Tiny Circle” that features this fantastic trippy hippie pop flute melody.

While Wolf People have created a stellar debut LP with Steeple, I unfortunately can not see it converting people who are not fans of psych rock. However if you are a fan of the genre, it’s an album that feels like a gem that you could have found while digging through crates of vintage records at a neighbor’s garage sale.

We’ve just received a brande new shipment from our friends over at Secret Base & Cure of some brand new Kaiju to satisfy your (hopefully growing) vinyl addiction. First up we have a Secret base classic in the Yellow Glitter Skull Bee. This is one of the most iconic Secret Base characters and would make a for perfectcreature to get your feet wet in the Kaiju pool.

Black Karate uniform with gold belt… not sure what a gold belt means but I wouldn’t fuck with it. But best of all is that he’s got a yellow glitter vinyl body!

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The Micro Infection Monsters are back! We’ve got three new styles of this tiny ghouls and each are available in 2 colorways. There’s the Cyclops Monster, who shares a striking resemblance to say Cyco Simon? Then there’s the Hand Monster, who’ve pretty gnarly hand for a head. There are little skulls for each of his finger tips and a huge eye in the palm. Finally there’s the plain ole’ Skull Monster who has got these bad ass snaggle teeth!

The Micro Infection Monsters all measure about 2″ tall and come in a snazzy little paper coffin. They are part of the Next Level line of Secret Base, which means only a select group of boutiques around that world can carry these bad boys and we have them!

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Finally our last new bit of vinyl toy goodness is from another kaiju powerhouse from Tokyo, Cure! We have the newest version of their classic Boogie Man character. This Boogie features both the sinister Dokuro King mask and the Attack of the Killer Tomatos inspired head underneath it!

This Summer Edition Boogie Man (yeah, yeah we know it’s deep into Fall already) not only glows in the dark, but it also glows under black light! You are just going to have to buy it to see how cool it really is for yourself.

Мишка
350 Broadway
Brooklyn, NY
718-388-1725
—
Мишка LA
1547 Echo Park Ave
Los Angeles, CA
213-536-4234

Photos by Teo on Flickr

I mentioned this on Tuesday but I wanted to make an official post about it. Our homie Marco from Tokyo took 1st place at a recent fixed freestyle competition in Osaka. Marco also works at our Tokyo store and rides for the best bike shop in Tokyo: W-Base!

Teo grabbed this awesome photo of Marco doing a flyout barspin. Perfect timing! Check out some more photos from this day here, at Teo’s Flickr. Congrats to Marco!

Download Keep Watch Vol. XXI: 12th Planet (Click Here)

Hide ya kids, hide ya wife – The 21st edition of Keep Watch finds 12th Planet taking the reigns. There is something particularly attractive about this one, with a tracklisting featuring the finest examples of the various directions of the ‘umbrella term’ that is Dubstep. Currently, the scene is in a mass overhaul – where the traditional ambiance of the genre has been set aside: traded in for powertools, funkier synths and wilder audiences. Leading this party scene is L.A.’s freshly crowned King of Dubstep, 12th Planet… and his first line of business is bringing out your bass face.

A rare studio mix from 12th Planet this monstrous mix delivers a set of 37 tracks in 1 hour that displays his diverse taste in low end frequencies and his superb skills on the decks. Keep Watch Vol. XXI features some of 12th Plaent’s latest remixes and exclusive content from Skream, Skrillex, Dub Police, and Flinch. This mix is not for the lighthearted. Turn it up loud and prepare yourself for world domination in 2011!

After touring the world as Drum & Bass maestro Infiltrata, and winning over icons such as Goldie, Photek, and DJ Craze, John Dadzie gave himself a new name, sound, and mission. It was 2005 and the gentile beatmaker was inspired by sounds he heard from the likes Technical Itch, Skream, and Benga. That sound was Dubstep, and it was his calling. Infiltrata re-dubbed himself 12th Planet and that is where rge story really begins.

Thanks to 12th Planet, Dubstep, what was largely a British movement has suddenly and dramatically taken hold of Los Angeles. Like the mythological twelfth planet (popularized by controversial author Zecharia Sitchin),  our bass heavy hero flies perpendicular to the system. His wicked beats are off axis and his subsonic frequencies will send you into orbit. America’s first heir to the Dubstep crown is ready for impact! Tracklist after the jump.

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Die Antwoord - $O$ (2010) [Cherrytree] // Grade: B-

When Die Antwoord showed up on the scene last year with the video for “Zef Side,” pretty much the entire internet collectively went “what the fuck?” In the two and a half minute video we got introduced to the white trash via South Africa, rave-rap that they solely peddle in. As if that origin wasn’t singular enough there was also a feeling of something being off about the whole thing. I’m not talking about Yo-Landi’s uncanny valley attractiveness, her welfare elf swag or their aesthetic obsession with Ninja’s dick. The bit that was really off was the reality of the entire situation. Basically, if this dude and chick were really this trashy and divorced from reality, how were they getting professionally shot HD videos, crisp beats and a Puma sponsorship? Shouldn’t they be slanging this shit out of the back of their car at a South African flea market parking lot, while smelling like cheap incense and Drakkar Noir?

How do you say “I got it for cheap” in Afrikaans?

After, a brief minute in the spotlight it was revealed that Ninja (AKA Watkin Tudor Jones) is actually a performance artist/comedian and that whole Die Antwoord persona is actually a performance. Which is cool. You’re not really the most productive meth heads to come out of South Africa, fine. But, that means you’ve gotta come extra hard. You’ve got to actually give us (the listeners) a good show. Pop music as performance art, word to Lady Gaga and David Bowie. Everyone wanted bat shit crazy, white trash theatre that came in just north of the WWE and Insane Clown Posse on acid, but still something the kids can get drunk and dance too.

Most of $O$ does that, by following a very strict formula of layering in allusions to 2 Live Crew drum patterns over rave basslines and mixing in a bit of European electro melodies. Sprinkle in Ninja rapping in double time and have Yo-Landi flutter all over the hook in her castrati soprano and you have a Die Antwoord track. Songs like “$copie” and “Beat Boy” follow this formula to a T and end up coming off like a weirdo foreign version of L’Trimm. That’s awesome, I don’t really have anything else filling my slot for South African reinterpretation of Miami Bass, so we’re all set. Yet, it’s not anything I need to immediately revisit. It’s not as epic as the package it comes in.

When Die Antwoord utilize their musical weirdness effectively, the result is songs that actually get stuck in your head because they surpass their influences. “Wat Kyk Jy?” slithers from full on rave, fist pumping, crescendo madness into a sleazy half time beat made for chicks in skirts from Pretty Girl to dance on tables to. Above that sweaty musical mess you have what sounds like a riled up 7 year old girl rapping double time with the weird dude from the mechanic shop. The one with terrible tattoos, who openly discusses masturbating to ESPN2′s early morning workout shows out of preference as opposed to necessity — you know the dude. The song is weird as shit, catchy and totally fit’s their created personas. Similarly, “Evil Boy” is a Diplo produced club track that has Yo-Landi alternating between cooing at you and leading taunting cheerleading chants while Wanga* chants in the back about how strong his dick is in a thick South African accent. It’s both the last thing you’d expect to hear on a night out and yet totally appropriate in a meta textual sociological context. Most importantly it sounds like nothing else circulating right now.

The only places where this album falters is when it tries to skew away from Yo-Landi and Ninja’s strengths. There’s no need for slow moody songs like “Rich Bitch.” Similarly, no one needs Ninja rapping and singing at us about the dangers of marrying hot women on the stadium anthem electro of “She Makes Me A Killer.”Dude I know they’re crazy but, fly colored Asians backyards be bangin’ like Benzis. I’m really supposed to not wife them? Questionable marriage advice aside, Die Antwoord do not need to be highlighting their rapping skills. They can put together some quirky bars over a loud and fast bass beat, and get some weird but catchy hooks but no one is checking them for their story telling capabilities and/or social commentary. Even if the story telling is about a sexual encounter with a menstruating transsexual.** As long as they stick to the weirdo full tilt rave rap they’re come to be known for and keep the bizarre visuals coming they have a formula that will continue to equally creep out and hype people up.

*You think the strong dick raps came first or the name Wanga dictated dick themed raps?

**”Beat Boy,” if I’m following it correctly, is about Ninja banging a chick in a bathroom, but she’s on her period sans tampon. So he puts on an S&M mask, jerks off in a champagne glass, they travel around the space time continuum (possibly to different points in their possible future life together) where in one future he turns into a “giant black god” and there’s a couple of operations to make the chick “a beautiful woman with a brand new penis.” Can’t wait till a story line like that hits the WWE, word to Lord Fanny.

Brand new Mater Suspiria Vision song, and video,”Immaculate Conception (Part II of Holy Beat of Bethlehem)” from the forthcoming House of the Witches CD-R. Those of you, like myself who have been obsessed with MSV can rejoice in that they’ve started to take their Kvltish sounds live. The mysterious crew just posted loads of images from their recent performance in Dusseldorf, Germany. I can’t wait for this insanity to come stateside. Prepare the goats and virgins to be sacrificed!

Crucifyre - Infernal Earthly Divine (2010) [Pulverised] // Grade: A

What. The. Fuck. Or rather, where the fuck. Where did these guys come from? Wait, Stockholm? Damn. Crucifyre is a proper old-school death metal band who’s fucking killing it! Their first album Infernal Earthly Divine is absolutely destroying all other death metal albums from 2010. Seriously, I know I get giddy like this quite often when it comes to metal bands but Infernal Earthly Divine is like manna from the metal gods. The vocals, riffs and drums all deserve accolades. I have yet to hear a complete package like this.

Crucifyre starts their tyrranical reign on poseurs with “Born Again Satanist”, a decrepit anthem for all metal heads. Within minutes, you’ll recognize these guys. Lead singer Erik Tormentor Sahlström was in General Surgery, Maze of Torment and Serpent Obscene. Guitarists TG was in The Sun and Morbid. Urban Skytt was in Crematory, Regurgitate and Nasum. Bassist Henrik Doltz Nilsson was in Doberman Cult and drummer Yasin Hillborg hails from Afflicted. What a super group! These guys have been in just about every significant Swedish death metal band. Normally, this would be a recipe for disaster as egos supersede sound but that’s not the case here. After the opening track, we’re commanded to “Kiss the Goat”. Such a brutal track!

“Hellish Sacrifice” and “Majestical / Sadistical” follow with their own special dose of hell fire in the form of a pulverizing drum intro. Tormentor’s vocals are so fucking evil! One of my favorite tracks on the album is “Witch Hammer”. Such a classic tune laden with power riffs and d-beat drums. Open up that fucking pit with a spiked bat! If your head is still attached to your body and your ear drums aren’t shattered, prepare yourself for “Thessalonian Death Cult”. Heavy. As. Fuck. The last cut on Infernal Earthly Divine is “The Fetching” and there aren’t enough blast beats on Earth or Hell that could compete with it! Here, for the first time you get a nice mix of vocal range from Erik Tormentor Sahlström and it’s not to be missed!

If you’re into classic death metal and you have been disappointed with 2010′s offerings, do not sleep on Infernal Earthly Divine. From the all-star members to the festering vocals and blistering riffs, Crucifyre has nailed down their crown of thorns for one of the best death metal acts of the year. Chuck Schuldiner would have to return from the dead to make a better release!

Exile Western Flannel Shirt ($83.00)

If you didn’t already get it, we named a bunch of our button downs after Rolling Stones records.  This one is named after Exile on Main St. I think it’s an okay record but a lot of people think it’s the Rolling Stones best. I prefer early Stones and see Brian Jones’ exit from the band as a real shitty event. Even Mick Jagger claims he doesn’t get why people like it so much.  It’s a big fat double album and people think that’s cool so I guess that’s how it goes. “Soul Survivor” and “Rip This Joint” are pretty rockin’. It’s just that I think it was another one of the Stones’ attempts at imitating the Beatles.  This was their response to the White Album and it doesn’t even come close in either the number of good songs or production quality. Fun fact: Exile on Main St. got it’s name because the Stones had to flee England due to owing too much in  taxes.

No offense to the Rolling Stones, one of my favorite bands, but I personally like this flannel shirt better than I like the album it’s named after.  Each shirt has pearl buttons and that neat Western details on the shoulders and back yoke.  Plus this comes in some amazing color combos. For all you abused spouses out there we’ve got black and blue. For the jokers in the pack there’s green and purple.  If you’re more into softer colors there’s a mint and grey plaid. Whether you’re hanging out in a basement in France trying to keep your instruments in tune or just trying to figure out how to complete your album while half of your bandmates are turning into junkies, you’re sure to be happy in this little number from the moment you get it until it’s torn and frayed.

Мишка
350 Broadway
Brooklyn, NY
718-388-1725
—
Мишка LA
1547 Echo Park Ave
Los Angeles, CA
213-536-4234

This Halloween (10/31 ya drengus) our bros over at Trouble & Bass bring the US capitol a night of mayhem at the U Street Music Hall. Drop The Lime, Star Eyes, and The Captain will all be spinning some crazy tunes, from booty house to The-Dream. I don’t think there’s a label more fitting to throw a Halloween party than T&B. I mean these dudes are into some scary shit. So be prepared 2 be spooked. I haven’t been to U Hall yet, but Tittsworth tells me the bass rattles your eye balls.

All you politicians, don’t miss out on this! I’m looking at you Obama. Bring the girls too. Are they 18 yet? And when you come, come correct with a T&B DC shirt. Word is The Captain actually collaborated with Rahm Emanuel to design the tee.

Sunday October 31st, 10pm
U Street Music Hall
1115 U St. NW
Washington D.C.
18+ to enter
$10 advance | $15 at the door