Our Concert Could Be Your Life
May 25th, 2011 by chocko
Last Sunday’s show at Bowery Ballroom in New York City was a special one and it featured 14 bands paying tribute to the book by Michael Azerrad titled “Our Band Could Be Your Life” which chronicled the American punk and indie rock scene in the 1980’s. Every band on the bill covered a band written about in the book, each playing short sets. Eugene Mirman and Janeane Garofalo hosted the evening and provided the comedy while introducing the bands. The first band up was members of Dirty Projectors doing a set of Black Flag songs, surprisingly in the way they were meant to be heard…fast and furious. This was a total departure from Dirty Projectors’ reinterpretation of Black Flag songs in their tribute “Rise Above” which came out in 2007. It was definitely a good way to start the night. Delicate Steve played Minutemen songs with the help of Les Savy Fav’s lead singer Tim Harrington and Lee Renaldo of Sonic Youth. Citay performed Mission of Burma songs. Ted Leo covered Minor Threat in a set that featured him without a band and singing over backing tracks which played on a reel to reel tape machine. You would think that it would be wack, but Ted pulled it off well and his set was definitely a highlight. Grooms covered Husker Du. Titus Andronicus did an energetic Replacements set with Craig Finn playing the role of the police officer at the start of “Kids Don’t Follow.” Tune-Yards and Callers both played Sonic Youth songs. Things got really wacky when Dan Deacon performed Butthole Surfers songs with the all the lights off and a screen which projected images of demons and Woody Harrelson. The crowd got a bit rowdy and mosh pits were formed and noses were broken. Annie Clark a.k.a. St. Vincent covered Big Black songs which was the definitive highlight of the night. Doing her best Albini, Annie Clark shredded her guitar and rocked the f*ck out. Her versions of “Bad Penny” and “Kerosene” blew the roof off the place and got the loudest crowd reaction of the night. Wye Oak played a rocking Dinosaur Jr. set. Buke and Gass played an acoustic set of Fugazi songs. White Hills treated the crowd to a Mudhoney grunge fest and Yellow Ostrich ended the night with a Beat Happening set. The encore featured a speech by Michael Azzerad and a set of Nirvana songs performed by members of Wye Oak, Buke and Gass, Dirty Projectors, Titus Andronicus, Tune-Yards and Dan Deacon.
SET LIST
Members of DIRTY PROJECTORS (Nat Baldwin, David Longstreth and Brian McOmber) played “Police Story”, “Gimmie Gimmie Gimmie”, “Spray Paint”, “Thirsty and Miserable”, and “Rise Above” by BLACK FLAG
DELICATE STEVE played “Cohesion”, “This Ain’t No Picnic” (with Tim Harrrington) and “History Lesson Part II” and “Jesus and Tequila” (with Lee Renaldo) by MINUTEMEN
CITAY played “Term Two” and “Peking Spring” by MISSION OF BURMA
TED LEO played “”Minor Threat”, “Stand Up”, “Filler”, “Look Back And Laugh” and “Salad Days” by MINOR THREAT
GROOMS played “”Pink Turns To Blue”, “Diane” and “Something I Learned Today” by HUSKER DU
TITUS ANDRONICUS played “Kids Don’t Follow”, “Raised In The City” and “Treatment Bound” by THE REPLACEMENTS
TUNE-YARDS played “The Burning Spear” by SONIC YOUTH
CALLERS played “Shadow of a Doubt” and “The World Looks Red” by SONIC YOUTH
DAN DEACON played “Sweet Loaf”, “Human Cannonball”, and “The Shah Sleeps In Lee Harvey’s Grave” by BUTTHOLE SURFERS
ST. VINCENT played “Bad Penny” and “Kersene” by BIG BLACK
WYE OAK played “Sludgefest” and “Tarpit”by DINOSAUR JR.
BUKE AND GASS played “Long Division” and “Guilford Fall” by FUGAZI
WHITE HILLS played “In ‘N’ Out Of Grace” and “When Tomorrow Hits” by MUDHONEY
YELLOW OSTRICH played “Indian Summer” and “Left Behind” by BEAT HAPPENING
ENCORE “Negative Creep”, “Sliver” and “Lithium” by NIRVANA
Tags: bowery ballroom, buke and gass, callers, citay, concert, dan deacon, delicate steve, grooms, indie, mike azzerad, new york, new york city, nyc, punk, st. vincent dirty projectors, ted leo, this band could be your life, titus andronicus, white hills, wye oak, yellow ostrich
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On the Shoulders of Giants (2011)
May 23rd, 2011 by Mr. C
Directed by Deborah Morales
Written by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
This documentary was written by one of the greatest NBA players of all time (and college,too), Kareem Abdul Jabbar. He would tell us a story about the greatest basketball team that you’ve never heard of, The Harlem Renaissance better known as the HARLEM RENS! This documentary would also serve as a reminder of what our young united america thought about people of color.
The film would open up with 4 guests on the hot stove & Kareem on the sideburner offering up his point of view when the baton was passed to him! The question was posed to the 4 distinguishable guests: Bill Russell (Celtic legend), Jerry West (Laker great), Jerry Reinsdorf (Chicago Bulls owner), & Marques Haynes (Harlem globetrotter legend).
Who was the greatest basketball team of all time? Russell argued for his Boston celtic teams. West would throw in the 1980-85 L.A. Lakers, Reinsdorf would mention Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls, & Haynes would say his Globetrotters. Kareem was also partial to his 1980’s Lakers and then segued into the statement.. “But now, I want to tell you the greatest team that you’ve never heard of !”
And in a millisecond, Chuck D’s rap vocals with familiar public enemy boom bap beats paired with Wynton Marsalis’ jazz chops would ignite the film! Jamie Foxx & Abdul Jabbar would bring much life to the basketball courts while narrating the movie! Besides the plethora of informative facts, the stunning visuals of the black & white still photographs from the film really leaped out from the screen telling an electrified tale of their own even from their static only presence. Stills & animation would provide the backdrop to stories of lynchings, burned bodies, church burnings, racism, & segregation of african americans. Maya Angelou appeared in the film & provided a quote:
“If you’re LIGHT you’re all right, if you’re BROWN stick around, and if you’re BLACK get back..get back” – Maya Angelou
In the NY area, this would inspire black americans to unite and provide the inspiration to give birth to the Harlem Renaissance movement. Black culture, music, arts, literature, history, entertainment, & sports would be the manifestations of this renaissance. Bob Douglas would be the man with the master plan in creating the Harlem Renaissance Casino & ballroom on 138th st. & 7th avenue in Harlem! Douglas would also add a few basketball backboards & rims to his ballroom and soon thereafter, his basketball team of all blacks, the Harlem RENS would be the brainchild to one of the greatest basketball teams ever assembled! Ren players, fats jenkins (point guard), pop gates (great ball handler), zack clayton, wee willie smith, john isaacs (great ball control), Tarzan cooper, puggy bell, & shag burnett would be the foundation for this juggernaut of a team! Harlem didn’t have pro teams in other sports, but did have a pro basketball team with players that came from the heart of african american culture in harlem, new york! The Rens were the heart & soul of basketball at that particular era & they had a certain flare & style that was unique to harlem.
The style of basketball from the Rens can be defined as more of a passing game & less of a one man dribbling monster like we know it today. The goal was to always have the ball ahead of the players & keep the ball moving like a hot potato. Give & go! The Harlem Rens would be compared to warrior jazz musicians on the court that encompassed lots of improvising & rhythm. The bass would provide a strong foundation to the band much like the power forward on the team.
Meanwhile, the original celtics from the 1930’s were an established all white team who were very important in the development of strategy in basketball history. Without providing you with too much details, the Celtics and the Rens would eventually tango to discover who the real champions are & find out how much they really had in common. Bob douglas would also take his team on the road enduring struggles of traveling, meals, & accomodations for the colored. Staying in jails would prove to be safer.
Bob Costas: “The Rens embodied dignity in the face of oppression.”
A quote from the movie: “Terrorized. Traumatized. Stigmatized..which made african american role models not just important but essential to the black community.”
The Harlem globetrotters would eventually surface as another team created to cater to the white audience. Their traits were to be docile, less threatening, & to provide comedy on the court as opposed to the Rens who were hardcore players. The globetrotters were created to be non threatening to the whites. You will be surprised to hear where they are really from!
The Harlem Rens were pre Jackie Robinson era & much respect should be shined on them for the pains, burdens, & sufferings they had to deal with to fight for social equality in hostile settings with basketball as the vehicle! Black americans knew what they had, though! They achieved a serious milestone with the success of their Harlem Renaissance team! That along with the Joe Louis victory against Max Schmeling provided much pride & something to cheer for against their hating & ignorant counterparts!
This documentary cracked open the history books and gave me a lesson on a great basketball team that I never knew about while more importantly, provided me with a refresher course on a disgraceful part of american history which showed the struggles of african americans and their sources of inspiration to slowly overcome. Showing this film in history & social studies classes to our kids in high school might prove to be a good idea.
Guests from the film include: Dr. Cornel West of princeton, grant hill, chuck d, samuel l jackson, hubie brown, rev jesse jackson, charles barkley, clyde drexler, herbie hancock. david stern, lou carnesecca, John Wooden, & much,much more! Soundtracks from the movie includes music from Chuck D, Herbie Hancock, Will I am, & Wynton Marsalis!
This makes me want to visit the original site of the Harlem Renaissance Casino & Ballroom on 138th street & 7th avenue to see what remains of this once magnificent structure! You would imagine that the Harlem Renaissance Casino & Ballroom should of been flagged as a natonal landmark, but…??? I can also taste the history of the Apollo Theatre in Harlem as well!
Tags: basketball, deborah morales, documentary, harlem renaissance, harlem rens, kareem abdul jabbar, on the shoulders of giants, sports
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Detonation: Violent Games (1976)
May 16th, 2011 by Mr. C
Director: Teruo Ishii
Genre: Japanese biker gangs, exploitation
If TOEI wasn’t busy producing mega monster movies like Godzilla, you can bet your Takoyaki balls that they were looking for the next biggest thing in the exploitation arena to knock out of the ballpark at the box office! In this case, it’s the 1970’s invasion of the Japanese biker gang phenomenon on the big screen! Teruo Ishii directs the 2nd movie of the 4 part DETONATION series! Ishii was well known for directing movies in the pinku, martial arts, & yakuza film genre!
Detonation: Violent games tells the tale of an urban tug-o-war between two rival motorcycle gangs in Tokyo. It’s the Red Barons vs the Black Panthers! The Red Baron gang encompasses members of the more well to do faction of Tokyo while the Black Panthers are a bunch of raggamuffin inspired street demons who work day to day blue collar jobs. It’s a social typecasting that all human races can relate to and the animal in us will soon surface as layers of wealth are just that…layers that can be shed in the journey to discovering your true self. The opening scene of the movie involves both gangs tearing up the streets with their motorcycles to eventually meet tire to tire on the concrete slabs of Tokyo while hell riding & karate kicking each other in attempts to try and knock each other out of the box! Hells yeah! sounds like a good prelude to the movie already! Let’s get ready to rumble! Turf wars would soon ensue as the upper echelon society of the Red Barons will battle the sewer rats of the Black Panthers with Masami, a European Grand prix racing champion acting as the mediator between the two gangs! You can guarantee that someone will get caught up in the crossfire! Love, pride, & a tattoo BY FORCE to one of the gang members will cause the emotions of Mount Fuji to slowly erupt while testosterone levels rise to unsafe levels in the name of revenge! In the midst of all this brouhaha, finger snapping Japanese style West Side Story scenes will make this movie appeal to the exploitation fans as well as broadway enthusiasts(not really). As with any successful-award winning(sarcasm) exploitation flick, a decent amount of breasteses will show thyselves in the film & high beam you when they need some TLC! So, if junior is near the vicinity & he thinks that Detonation is an appetizer to a double header to Godzilla, get him back to playing pong on those colecoVision, Intellivision, or Atari game consoles while you investigate Detonation: Violent Games! This movie is chock ‘o full of fun motorcycle wares and love stares to make you grease that head back, or encourage you to puff out that perm with some extra heat while in the hairstylist seat!
I’ve been trying to get a hold of the 1st movie in the series called Detonation : Violent Riders with a special guest appearance by Sonny Chiba! Chiba Chiba-san promises to be a rough riding badass mofo!
Tags: detonation, exploitation, japanese biker gangs, teruo ishii, violent games
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The Oily Maniac (1976)
May 13th, 2011 by Mr. C
Director: Ho Meng Hua
Produced by Shaw Brother Studios (1976)
Actors: Danny Lee, Chen Ping, Lily Li, Hua Lun
Genre: Horror, exploitation
Make sure to secure your quarts,gallons,and drums of engine oil, y’all! The OILY MANIAC is coming ‘atcha! This movie is another fine example of a Shaw Brother produced horror & exploitation joint at its best or worst depending on your point of view! How can you deny boobs, blood, & oil, I say?! Danny Lee plays the character of a lawyer on crutches stricken with polio. (And YES, this is the same Danny Lee that plays the good cop in John Woo’s, “The Killer”). His uncle who owns a coconut garden oil factory is framed for murder when a dirtbag business conglomerate fashions a plan to try and take over the company as well as some prized female possessions! While the Uncle is destined for death, Danny Lee’s character begins to unravel the truth behind the shenanigans which involves a crooked lawyer taking bribes from both parties while taking advantage of his clients & the defendants under the horrid circumstances. Danny would meet with his Uncle one last time as uncle Bah Ba passes on a secret spell that is tattooed on his back which will ultimately give birth to the wd40 monster, the OILY MANIAC! Danny cannot hide his emotions any longer when his love interest gets taken advantage of which then progresses further by her sleeping with the enemy! This quadrupled with Danny’s undressing of the conspiracy theory with uncle bah ba’s misfortunes & further frustrations of his polio disease leads to the inspiration of the Oily Maniac casted from this secret spell! He uses the oil slicked monster to take revenge on the evil doers as he morphs from human to monster when he douses & drowns himself in oil! While in monster format, he can also turn into a pool of oil to mask himself as he travels from scene to scene often magically reappearing in liquid format in local plumbing pipes to the bathtub to the ceiling to the ground before morphing into the well oiled 15w40 monster! His powers include possessing extraordinary strength & the ability to regenerate his body parts! With the intention of using the well oiled monster for good killings?, his rage gets the best of him when he starts to use the power to kill for love or the lack thereof! You may or may not be surprised on the method of his demise! The special effects & costume of the Oily Maniac is suspect almost hilarious, but the acting, story, & overall production of the movie is pretty darn entertaining! I guess you can say THE OILY MANIAC is a mashup of THE BLOB & the TOXIC AVENGER…chinese style! Saying yes the Oily Maniac is saying yes to breasteses, blob, blood, & oil! You will never look at an ordinary quart of oil in the same way again!
Tags: chen ping, danny lee, exploitation, ho meng hua, horror, hua lun, lily li, oily maniac, shaw brothers
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Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds played at the Paradise Theater in the boogie down Bx!
May 11th, 2011 by Mr. C
Legendary singer/songwriter/producer – Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds played at the Paradise Theater on the Grand Concourse in the Bronx on Sunday, Mother’s Day! It was a very special day for all the ladies that night as a double header explosion of R&B started out with TANK who proceeded to rile up all the females into ecstasy with his supple sounds of sexual healing which clearly populated into the emotional minds of some swooning ladies in the house! The bass was thumpin’ & asses were jumpin’ around! We walked into the last few songs of Tank’s set including May I deserve & Please don’t go! Tank made a few more ladies cry in the front row by offering them $50 for getting their nails & hair done for mothers night out! Dag, if I would of known earlier I would of gotten dressed up as a martian version of Sheneneh from the Martin Lawrence show to try to get some Andrew Jackson’s thrown at me!
Batting in the cleanup spot was Babyface as he would slowly electric slide onto the stage with a full band as he caressed the mic while whispering sweet somethings in the audience’s ear! ‘Face opened up with “For the cool in you” as he danced & pranced about while spinning around like an elder statesmen from FAME! Father time reared its head as ‘Face even said that he was gasping for air after attempting the Bobby Brown twinkle toe dance moves! Despite the need for an oxygen tank, Babyface sounded real nice that night and the band complimented him really well by adding a full sound coupled with his gentle vocals. Face also had a few funny stories that he unleashed to the crowd including the “if the circumstances or the generation gap” would of been different with his 5th grade crush & charm on his school teacher, he might have been a writer/performer similiar to R. Kelly! “There ain’t nothing wrong….with a little bump n grind!” . The other story that he reminisced about that sparked his inspiration to write & perform with the best of them included a concert that he attended of Luther Vandross & Debarge! He stated that Luther was always the great Luther, but when he saw this little pale skin colored dude (El Debarge) with that puffed out curly hairdo jammin’ on that keyboard while singing in that falsetto voice with the song, “Love me in a special way”, Face knew what his calling was!
Babyface really warmed up the crowd when he performed a medley of some of his favorite digs which included Soon as I get home, Somebody to love me, & Where will you go! My favorite performances of the night from ‘Face includes “Everytime I close my eyes” & “Two Occassions” by The Deele! He really brought that Deele song home! The Deele originally consisted of Babyface, L.A. Reid, Satin Greene, & Kevin Roberson! Another heavy hitter & fun composition of the evening also performed in a medley format were songs that Babyface either wrote and/or produced including a few of Bobby Brown’s top hits like Don’t be Cruel, Tenderoni, & Every little step! Tevin Cambell’s (Can we talk for a minute), After 7’s (Ready or not), Johnny Gill (my my my), & Boyz 2 Men (I’ll make love to you + End of the Road) rounded off the flashback songs that made you say GODDAMN, Babyface…you had a hand in creating those monster tunes?! And many more to go with that list including writing lyrics for Whitney, Aretha, Chaka Khan, Janet, Prince, Pebbles, Brandy….and the list continues on & on! It’s mind blowing as you get a feel of how much Babyface really influenced the music industry! Edmonds performed “Whip Appeal” to close out the night at the beautiful & historic Paradise Theater! The Planet Chocko Storm Troopers (Chocko, Buggy, & Mr. C) all agreed that it was a fun concert but, we also concluded that there seemed to be a few elements missing that would of turned this mutha into an unforgettable night! We’re not sure if there was a 10pm curfew or something posed at the theatre, but the show seemed to really end abruptly. Babyface did not introduce the band members, nor even mentioned Tank. There was no hasta la bye byes to the audience as ‘Face just drifted out into the boogie down bronx night while the band finished off the last of the notes. The band shouted “Baby…Face”…”Baby…Face”, but there was no encore to be had as the theatre lights came right on! Even before the last song of the night “Whip Appeal”, we noticed that the crowds were starting to file out like there was some fire sale going on at the Grand Concourse! Did they know something that us Planet Chocko freaks didn’t? Maybe the zombies & the From Dusk Till Dawn characters would soon file into the theatre after 10pm for an afterparty?! What was also odd was that Babyface didn’t even touch an instrument the whole night! We were expecting him to come out acoustically with his guitar to bust out a personal tune or two to connect with the audience! Maybe this wouldn’t appeal to the local Bronx crowd? Who knows! Strange! We wanted to hear more, though! Some of the following would of been nice! : “When can I see you again”, “Change the world”, “How come, How long”, & “and our feelings”. I guess you can’t keep all the fans happy! Despite the disappointing finish in our point of view, Babyface layed it down real smooth & soothing. I love how he doesn’t over dramatize his performances, but instead chooses to use his weapon of voice to flow steady & slay his listeners with control, gracefulness, & clarity! I’m thinking a Babyface show at Manhatty might be more to our set list liking! REE-VENGE!
SET LIST
For the cool in you
Everytime I close my eyes
Never keeping secrets
soon as I get home
somebody to love me
where will you go
two occassions
Don’t be cruel
every little step
Tenderoni
Can we talk for a minute
Ready or not
my my my
I’ll make love to you
End of the road
Whip appeal
Tags: babyface, bronx, paradise theater, r&b, tank
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JUSHIN THUNDER LIGER and HIROSHI TANAHASHI invade Mitsuwa
May 10th, 2011 by chocko
Japanese Professional wrestlers Jushin Thunder Liger (the one with the mask) and Hiroshi Tanashi (the dude with the killer mullet) stopped by Mitsuwa Marketplace in Edgewater, New Jersey today for an autograph session to promote their upcoming wrestling matches in the area. It was a pretty unusual spot to see wrestlers..their table was set up in back of the cash registers at the marketplace and feet away from the food court where lunch goers were munching on sushi and ramen. Both wrestlers were extremely polite and posed for photos with the fans that showed up including some cashiers that hopped off the express lanes. Jushin Thunder Liger is a Japanese legend who got his start in professional wrestling in 1984 and every acrobatic, high-flying wrestler since then owes their success in part to the great masked one. He’s been in a slew of epic battles in Japan with with the likes of Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero and continues to wrestle. Hiroshi Tanahashi has been wrestling professionally since 1999 and was a tag team partner of Kenzo Suzuki in a team called Kings of the Hills. After being stabbed in the back in real life by an ex-girlfriend, Hiroshi gained tons of popularity after recovering from his injuries and stepping back into the ring as a solo wrestler. He held many different titles in his native land and continues to wrestle internationally. They’re both part of the NJPW (New Japan Pro-Wrestling) Invasion Tour 2011 (Attack On East Coast) and will be wrestling at the following East Coast events:
May 13, 2011 – Rahway, NJ
Rahway Rec Center, 275 East Milton Avenue, Rahway, NJ
May 14, 2011 – New York City, NY
Basketball City, Pier 36 and South Street, New York, NY
May 15, 2011 – Philadelphi, PA
The Asylum Arena, 7 W. Ritner Street, Philadelphi, PA
You smell what Chocko’s cooking? Go get your tickets in advance here or else Chocko will give you a couple elbows off the top rope!
Tags: njpw, pro-wrestling, wrestlers, wrestling
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Adrock and Kathleen Hanna were at MoMA
May 9th, 2011 by chocko
Last Thursday, Adrock of The Beastie Boys rocked the turntables at MoMA in conjunction with the exhibition there called Looking At Music 3.0 which focuses on the underground music scene during the 80’s and 90’s. Adrock was all smiles as he provided the music in the outdoor sculpture garden. He covered pretty much every genre of music you can think of but one of my favorite moments in the set is when he dropped a little Misfits on the unsuspecting museum crowd. Where Eagles Dare…got my attention and head bobbing to the punk rock beat. His wife, Kathleen Hanna of the legendary riot grrrl band Bikini Kill and Le Tigre was also on hand to sign posters she designed for the museum exhibit. She was so nice and talked to all her fans that came to see her. She signed some Bikini Kill CDs for me and we briefly talked about her band, The Julie Ruin which also features another original Bikini Kill member, Kathi Wilcox. She has been recording recently and it looks like she’s totally down to tour again when the album is done. Cey Adams, the founding creative director at Def Jam was also in the house signing a poster he designed. MoMA is located at 11 W. 53rd St. in New York City and the exhibition Looking At Music 3.0 will run until the end of May.
kathleen signs a poster for a fan
poster designed by kathleen hanna
poster designed by cey adams
Tags: adrock, beastie boys, bikini kill, cey adams, kathleen hanna, le tigre, the julie ruin
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Zatoichi – Stage play (2007) directed by Takashi Miike
May 9th, 2011 by Mr. C
Written & Directed by: Takashi Miike
Starring: AIKAWA Show, ABE Sadawo, NAGATO Hiroyuki
Genre: Samurai Stage play
This Zatoichi stage play directed by Takashi Miike in 2007 is a pure work of art & a must see for any Zatoichi-Chanbara fan! The entire 166 minute play is stunningly performed & expertly crafted with very smooth set to set changeovers. The lighting & the soundtrack really set a nice mood to the story which included a hint of comedy along with the sizzling dramatics & violence! The sword choreography was graceful, yet powerful, a breathtaking glance with a dance of death of sorts! I’m probably wrong, but the swords that the cast were slashing & prancing about with on the stage really looked like heavy metal blades, not sharpened of course! They definitely did not look like toy soldiers with toy swords! Sho Aikawa played Zatoichi & he REALLY did a GREAT job capturing the spirit of the blind swordsman!
The play started out eerily quiet with 2 dark hooded figures with walking sticks cautiously strolling up the aisles of the theatre chanting, “I’m blind…I’m a blind masseuse…I’m blind…I’m a blind masseuse”. Upon stepping on the stage, the set changed over to a quick glimpse of Zatoichi slaughtering a few foes as they dropped like a sack of rice bags. The story would begin here as we find once again that Zatoichi has a reward out for his head with a few brave or dumb souls depending on your point of view that would have enough mochii to come and take a crack at cashing in on the reward! An added appetizer of the play includes an actress from a traveling stage troupe who starts to develop feelings for Zatoichi as well as for a renegade samurai bodyguard named Ryu. The central nervous system of this play would lie in a map that leads to a treasure which will cause a lot of grief & bloodshed! The fueding Yakuza clans, an elder, & an instigator will put their chips on the table for all to see! Who will bluff? Who will get stuffed? Who’s the schmuck? Zatoichi, Ryu, & the actress will find themselves in the middle of all this chaos! A tale of a broken sword & a confession of love will show thyselves!
I really dug this stage play that I viewed on DVD! The cast, the story, the costumes, the elaborate sets, mood, lighting, choreography, soundtrack, & the continuity of the whole production was off the hibachi! Not to mention that all of the above was done LIVE & to 1 take only! The close up camera shots when the fury swordplay erupted added to the chaos & frenzy! The subtitling of the play on DVD was also very easy to read! Thanks to the Kung Fu Cinema Community in shedding light to this wonderful find! Check out SamuraiDVD to get your copy of Zatoichi – Stage Play directed by Takashi Miike!
Tags: abe sadawo, aikawa show, nagato hiroyuki, stage play, takashi miike, zatoichi
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Ghetto Klown at the Lyceum Theatre
May 6th, 2011 by Mr. C
Johnny “legs” Leguizamo was large and in charge once again on broadway with his latest one man show dubbed, GHETTO KLOWN! Leguizamo was definitely in his comfort zone of live theatre by showcasing his great storytelling abilities all meshed together with his comedic, class clown undertones often adding a bit of physical comedy which he executes flawlessly with plenty of street swagger flavor in a new york minute! Besides the obvious over the top urban comedy that I love about Leguizamo, he seems to genuinely express himself with tremendous emotion when conjuring up stories from his past especially with his family. When he re-enacts the characters of his parents and his grandfather, you truly get a feel of who they are which influenced who he is. You also get a sense that Leguizamo uses Broadway as a vehicle for therapy for himself when he comes to grips with different stages of realities in his life. Ghetto Klown fills us in on the rest of John’s story in decades from the 1960’s onwards where his other one man broadway shows like FREAK left us off. He focuses more on his acting career while also driving home the personalites of his parents, grandfather, & his wife. Stage props included a movie screen with a mini stage-boardwalk like platform that John would jump up & down on to act out a few scenes with projected images & film being played in the background. The show opened with James Brown’s “Sex Machine” being played while John Leguizamo busted a nut or two with some funky dance moves! He briefly explains his parents’ pilgrimage from Colombia (South America) to Queens, NY which would promptly jump the decade to the 1970’s with the song “It’s just begun” by Jimmy Castor being played on the loudspeaker while Leguizamo busted a B-boy breakdancing artery in his best B-Boy NY Mets stance! Funny, funny stuff! John-L would mention two acting teacher influences which ignited his passion in the arts. One was a lady who he called “Tweety” & the other was the venerable, Lee Strasberg. Other colorful characters that Leguizamo brought to light was his best friend “ray-ray” the ghetto genious, his jewish girlfriend Kat, his LES NuYorican poet society ex wife-activist, Lisette who loved to dance the “hustle”, his malignant manager Irving, & his current wife, “teeny”! His first acting role included beating out Benicio Del Toro (John dubbed mumble king), Benjamin Bratt, & Esai Morales in the auditions for a spot in the TV Show Miami Vice starring Mr. Smooth, Don Johnson! John Legs then morphed into his grandfather who often told him to stay white in terms of skin color & be the latin vampire that saw no sun! Darker skinned latin guys would get typecasted in thug like acting roles so the grandpa suggested to stay pale skinned & just to be safe, don’t even eat dark colored food! Leguizamo would leave no stone unturned as he told funny on the set tales of Sean Penn(Casualties of War), Don Johnson(Miami Vice), Kurt Russell + Steven Seagal from Executive Decision, & Al Pacino in Carlito’s Way! Johnny Legs also told the story of Project Ho aka “To Wong Foo” with funny stories about Patrick Swayze & Wesley “the darkest black man alive” Snipes! Another funny scene included showing clips from his latin variety show called “House of Buggin” when they played a skit with the Bloods & the Crypts vs the Latin West Side Story! There were many, many stories & experiences told by Leguizamo that just had me on the floor coughing up a lung! There were also some very touching & emotional moments in Ghetto Klown amongst the silly slapstick that almost lead me to shed a tear. They included his confrontation with his father, his last words with his grandfather (Disney disease & etch a sketch), his run in with “ray ray”, & the epiphany he had on the subway train at the end! John made it clear onstage that whenever he seems to lose himself, lose his soul in hollywood, he gathers his spirit by writing & performing in these plays! Mambo Mouth, Spic-o-Rama, Freak, Sex-a-Holic, & this latest reincarnation are all therapeutic gems for him & the audience for that matter! If you haven’t seen Johnny “legs” Leguizamo perform in any of his one man shows, I strongly urge you to check him out! You’ll soon see why! Leguizamo bleeds thick Nueva York blood, & his story will resonate to all regardless of color, creed, sex, & greed! In my opinion, he encompasses the true new york state of mind! I loved how Leguizamo still pronounced Manhattan as ‘Manhatty’ just like they did in “Hangin’ with the Homeboys“! John Leguizamo/Ghetto Klown has extended their act till July at the Lyceum Theatre so get your ragged ghetto fab ass out to Broadway!
I’ll leave you with a few quotes from the show below!
“You can’t make somebody love you”
“Be yourself, you clown” (Al Pacino to John Leguizamo on Carlito’s Way set)
“Everyone else says that you’re just one girl, but to me you’re the world!” (From John to his wife)
“Dad, George Lopez is funnier.”
“Madonna stole freestyle from Safire & Sweet Sensation”
“Career jealousy & infidelity” (John describing his breakup with Kat)
“You have the Disney Disease” (Grandfather to John Leguizamo)
“But there are no spics in space, John” (Irving to John, regarding a role on Apollo 13)
Via playbillvideo
Tags: broadway, ghetto klown, john leguizamo, lyceum theatre
Posted in mr. c, theatre | Comments (0)
Beastie Boys “Hot Sauce Committee Part Two”
May 4th, 2011 by chocko
The new Beastie Boys album Hot Sauce Committee Part Two dropped yesterday. It’s been at least 4 years since their last album. It’s safe to say Adrock, MCA and Mike D are back! This album is a must-have for all the fans out there. Definitely, pass the sauce-16 tracks of vintage Beastie dopeness…bad ass beats and funky fresh rhymes. Guaranteed to make you smile…lots of funny lyrics. Let’s have a listen..
1. Make Some Noise – the video for this song is chock full of cameos from Frodo to Jack Black smashing beer bottles and windows and raising some hell which hasn’t been seen in a Beastie Boys video since “Fight For Your Right.” Will Ferrell on the wicked cowbell solo is not to be missed. Adam “MCA” Yauch directed the video and it is a nice homage to the “License To ILL” era. The song features the Beastie Boys doing their thing without compromise or giving in to present trends in “hip pop” music.
2. Nonstop Disco Powerpack – a tribute to old school hip hop which finds the 3 MC’s shouting out some of the pioneers of the genre: Rammelzee, Afrika Bambaataa and Spoonie Gee! MCA sounds dope on this track…definitely going in hard for the dunk.
3. OK – features a goofy beat with vintage synths and keyboards that culminates into a crazy electro jam explosion that will get all the b-boys and b-girls spinning on their heads.
4. Too Many Rappers – this sounds like it could have come off the “Check Your Head” album. Nasty NAS comes through nice with the cameo. I like when Mike D spits his lyrics like a lost member of U.T.F.O. “go back in time and fax from my car”…that’s some back to the future ish right there.
5. Say It – the Boys sound hungry on this one…they sound like they’re about to rob a bodega. The chorus features a sweet call and response that will have you waving your hands in the air. The song gets really bugged out towards the end when it switches up and sounds like a video game soundtrack to a Colecovision game.
6. The Bill Harper Collection – a short voice mail, um not really a track. An inside joke perhaps?
7. Don’t Play No Game That I Can’t Win – alrighty, we’re back on track. This has a bouncy reggae dub beat which sounds like a great summer tune to blast through your speakers. Santigold sings on this track which is a nice relief…I can’t remember a female being on a Beastie Boys track. Sounds hot.
8. Long Burn The Fire – MCA makes a nice Cold Crush Brothers (Grandmaster Caz) reference, Adrock sounds on top of his game and Mike D rocks this track. Nothing too crazy on this track…a decent instrumental. The cutting and scratching definitely sounds nice here.
9. Funky Donkey – spaced out funk to blow your mind and rattle the eardrums. This song will make you wanna pop and lock on the dance floor for sure!
10. The Larry Routine – this track is less than 30 seconds and blends in with the last track.
11. Tadlock’s Glasses – the Beasties at their best with a dusty old beat and crazy, dope rhymes. Wild Style-era Fresh!
12. Lee Majors Come Again – this song is a straight up bionic, punk rock song. It sounds like the Bad Brains with 3 MC’s, keyboards and a turntable. The mosh pits will be going buck wild when this song gets played live. (please no kung fu kicks in the pit…I hate that! It’s not the place to practice your roundhouse kicks.) Beware!
13. Multilateral Nuclear Disarmament – funky bass line on the song will get your head bobbing. It’s the only instrumental track on the album.
14. Here’s A Little Something for Ya – another vintage track…cowbells, keyboards, a party-rocking break and lots of energy.
15. Crazy A** Sh**t – there’s a kid’s voice sampled on here saying things like “on and on ’til the break of dawn” and nice drums very catchy…this reminds me of “Cookie Puss” for some odd reason.
16. The Lisa Lisa/Full Force Routine – this track left me wanting more…clocking in under a minute. It could’ve been a tad bit longer. I will say the the beat on here is straight up nasty!
Tags: adrock, album review, hip hop, mca, mike d
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Rappin’ (1985)
May 3rd, 2011 by Mr. C
Director: Joel Silberg
Actors: Mario Van Peebles,Kadeem Hardison,Eriq Lasalle,Richie Abanes
genre: urban, rap musical
yes, yes, y’all & you don’t stop! Mario van peebles plays John “rappin” hood in this light hearted & fun rap musical from 1985! John hood is fa..fa..fresssh outta jail when he returns to his not so mr. rogers neighborhood with a whole new outlook in life full of positive energy, & a freshly oiled geri-curled puff hairdo while struttin’ his stuff & rappin’ to the beat on the city streets to greet his brethrens of the concrete! His jive talkin brother played by Leo O’brien, the same actor that played the smartass brother of the Last Dragon, Bruce Leroy was a diminuitive mischief of the streets! John Hoods’ homies including characters played by Kadeem Hardison (A Different World) & Eriq Lasalle (Coming to America,ER) stand by their boy be it for old school throwdowns, homie the clown beatdowns, dance offs to one offs in the club, or just street rappin! Former john hood crew member, Duane takes rappin hood as a threat to his pride when he resurfaces to the scene again. All is not good in the hood as Van Peebles’ character will have Duane & his new gang to deal with while trying to bail his little brother out of juvenile detention. Another bigger problem simmers & will eventually erupt when the slumlords & the real estate moguls collaborate to try & evict the residents from their apartments in order to lease out to more well to do prospects. Hood & his homeslices has their own ways to deal with things as they “rap” their case in the court of law to convince them otherwise. Sandwiched in all this drama would lie a few fun rap musical performances by Van Peebles & his crew rhymin’ about a “snack attack”, “neighborhood walk”, “double trouble-grandma rap”, & other street hustles! A few off the yin-yang cameo appearances & performances in the movie includes Eugene Wilde & Joanna Gardner singing “First Love Never Dies”, ICE-T & the Rhyme Syndicate rappin’ to “Killers”, The Force MD’s with “Itchin’ For A Scratch”, & Tuff Inc. performing “Golly,Gee”! Lovebug Starski had a few soundtrack joints in there as well, but no cameo appearances from what I could see! At the end of the movie, the whole neighborhood would start rappin till the ending credits came home! All’s well, ends well in the NOT so Mr. Roger’s neighborhood, y’all!
“We can’t stop..We won’t stop..rockin that rhythm till we hit the top!”
ICE-T & the Rhyme Syndicate + The Force MD’s + Eugene Wilde & Joanna Gardner
Dance Off scene + Snack Attack performance!
The ending credits rappin performance!
Tags: Eriq Lasalle, force md's, ice t, joel silberg, Kadeem Hardison, Mario Van Peebles, Richie Abanes
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The Artist Zone: Chris Castaneda
April 30th, 2011 by Mr. C
Chris Castaneda at the MoCCA Festival in NYC
Planet Chocko had the pleasure to attend the MoCCA Festival which was held on April 10th & 11th at the Lexington Avenue Armory in NYC to benefit the 10th anniversary of the Museum of Comic & Cartoon art! Chocko went in one direction while I went the opposite as we foraged into the abyss of comic-zine-cartoon art aficionados & made a few exciting discoveries! The impressive neo-classical structure of the Lexington Avenue Armory housed an impressive list of creative geniouses of the comic, cartoon, & zine faction! Among these artists was Chris Castaneda who lured me into her art galaxy like a spectactor in a coney island sideshow with her unique creations of mythical looking characters dare I say demonic & satanic looking! Chris graciously spared a few minutes of her time to answer a few questions regarding her art work & background! Check out some images of her creations below as well as a few photos of her studio in Mexico City! Cute kitty & hello Pequeno Jose! And Chris, we love Ghost World, too! Enjoy, share, & appreciate!
PC: Where are you from & how has the environment & culture (ethnic,music,pop culture) influenced your vision for the arts which is manifested through your creations?
CC: I was born and raised in Mexico City, so living on one of the most important cultural centers in the world has been like heaven and hell. Heaven because we have a great amount of museums and the mixture of cultures is awesome. And hell because it can be very noisy, chaotic, a little bit violent, but still lovely. The constrasts are so evident that it also becomes a strange phenomenom, but anything you need you’ll find it here.
PC: What type of media do you like to work with?
CC: Photography and drawing are the mediums that I enjoy the most, but I sometimes experiment with sculpture and video. Drawing and photography are as my faithful husbands, and sculpture is like my lover.
PC: Can you describe your work & what messages if any are intended for the eyes of the beholder?
CC: Drawing is another kind of language (or that’s how I perceive it), and what I love about it is that there are no absolute truths. In my graphic work you can see demons, sacred symbols and pagan messages, but what I really wish is that the viewers have the same feeling of enjoyment I get while I’m creating each and every one of my pieces. Fear, excitement, passion, hate… whatever! But I want the viewer to travel and be penetrated into the mystical worlds that I invented. I want them to swell with more doubts and join me in these strange parallel universes where the limits of the goodness and evil fade.
PC: With some of your renderings & drawings that we saw at the MoCCA Festival which includes snakes, demons, satan, & other cool looking mythical creatures, is sorcery or witchcraft the source of this vision?
CC: Being raised in a catholic environment influenced my work but more in a perverted way.
Although my parents have strong beliefs about religion, I could never understand many things that were said in the Church. That is why I´m approaching to what we fear, so this experiments always get me out of the comfort zone. I have been researching on Satanism, witchcraft, and things of that style (I always wanted to be a witch), and although there are things which I identify with myself completely, it also makes me doubt about everything, so I’d rather be kind of a vomiting-cocktail of things I like, and explore the faith of the human condition with greater freedom.
PC: TOYS! Describe your toy sculpture creations & inspirations!
CC: I’m in love with toys and I love collecting them, so I decided to create my own characters: Maggot Girl & Slurp-O. Maggot Girl is a girl who looks like a Caterpillar and has mouse ears, and Slurp-O is a demon of very long, sticky tongue who eats garbage and feeds himself of that. Its crazy look is very sexy and his grains are more! Both are the result of what I love to see in comic books and on TV, especially those movies which are so rubbish that later become an epiphany of bad taste.The sculptures were made by my boyfriend (who is a master at that), and we will do the official presentation of the toys very soon.
PC: What is the story behind your zine, The Adventures of Maggot Girl?
CC: Maggot Girl was created 2 years ago along with other characters on their acid-mystic trips. She is a girl who was born without legs and arms, so her mother was very disgusted on embracing her. That’s why Maggot’s mom decided to weave her a suit. One day Maggot Girl went to the world’s largest amusement park and bought some mouse ears. Never more she removed them and her mother adapted the suit with ears.
Sometimes, you can see her travelling with demons or fighting with her clones. She can be evil with her friends and even to herself, but seconds later she turns into the sweetest girl in the world. I think that she is like my alter ego, as the girl who can move to strange worlds and then return home without any problem.
PC: Who are some artists that you admire?
CC: The Mexican artists that I admire the most are Manuel Manilla, José Guadalupe Posada, Ernesto “El Chango” Cabral and Pedro Friedeberg (although he was born in Italy, most of his work was developed in Mexico). The novohispanic and religious art is amazing and inspiring too! Looking to Cristóbal de Villalpando’s paintings make me shudder. Also, the films of Kenneth Anger and Christopher Ulrich’s paintings make me want to continue working, and about comic artists I am ardent fan of Charles Burns, Daniel Clowes, Frank Woodring and Tove Jansson.
PC: Do you have any upcoming projects that we should know about?
CC: Right now I’m preparing an art residency that will take place in Iceland. I’ll play the role of a witch that invents herself a new religion and this project will end in a solo exhibition. This project is sponsored by the Fundación / Colección Jumex, so I’m very excited for this trip, and I’m very anxious to find a big wall for street art, so if you know any place that needs a satanic drawing, please let me know.
PC: Do you have any other hobbies to free your mind when not creating artwork?
CC: I’m like a trash collector. I love to go to garage sales and find little treasures that once were useless. Sometimes I find cool outfits for my two cats, so cat cosplay is another hobby too. And I love to read the dictionary, specially the “Dictionary of Occultism”, but one of my strongest desires is to learn taxidermy and to be a tattoo artist.
PC: What foods do you miss the most when away from home?
CC: I really miss my mother’s “fideo seco”, her mashed potatoes and a stew that looks like a big meatball. The coziest meal you’ll ever have.
PC: Any must eat destinations for travelers to Mexico City?
CC: If you visit Mexico any time, the must place is “El Cardenal” restaurant. The “agua de amaranto” (amaranto water) is simply delicious and the “panza de borrego con tortillas” (belly lamb with tortillas) tastes like heaven!!! There’s another place near my studio, “El Maquech Púrpura”, that has one of the greatest lime soups that you’ll ever try.
PC: Your favorite bands to listen to are…
CC: My all time favorite band is The Velvet Underground, but while I’m working I like to listen to Os Mutantes, The Zombies, Wanda Jackson, The Kinks… surf, psychobilly, rockabilly, darkwave and 80’s are a must too when you enter to my studio. The retro atmosphere comes good for sketching the upcoming drawings.
PC: What are some of your favorite movies?
CC: Alejandro Jodorowsky’s “Holy Mountain” is one of my favorite movies ever. His film has been a big influence on my work. I saw a few weeks ago this japanese movie “Hausu” and it just killed me. The moments when the vomiting cat and the floating body parts appear are priceless! David Lynch’s “Wild at Heart” is another favorite one, but “Gentlemen Broncos” entered on my top ten when I met the actor Héctor Jiménez (the guy that plays Esqueleto in Nacho Libre). You must know that my boyfriend is a make-up artist, so horror movies are always on the TV too.
PC: Where can fans contact you to purchase your artwork, toys, & zines?
CC: You can visit my virtual diary christiancastaneda.tumblr.com theadventuresofmaggotgirl.blogspot.com and christiancastaneda.carbonmade.com .
I love to receive emails and chit chat, so you can catch up with me at xiancv@gmail.com
or you can facebook me too! http://www.facebook.com/christiancastaneda.v
(Oh, I have a flickr account, but you must be 18 or older). http://www.flickr.com/xian_cv/
PC: Any other tidbits, closing comments, & words of wisdom for the aspiring artists out there?
CC: If you love to make mistakes and learn from them, then you’re on the right way as long as you have fun and passion. The hard work always has rewards. Just like Aleister Crowley said: The joy of life consists in the exercise of one’s energies, continual growth, constant change, the enjoyment of every new experience. To stop means simply to die. The eternal mistake of mankind is to set up an attainable ideal.
I love to receive all kind of comments (the dialogue is always enriching), so if you want to make a collab, any trade or something you like to add you are very welcome!
Chris
Tags: chris castaneda, drawings, maggot girl, mexico city, mocca, photography, sculpture
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