Animated Shorts #4

Coffee, the elixir of life. I'm your typical recovering alcoholic, smoke like I may never be able to smoke again and drink coffee like I did my liquor, day and night, gallons at a time.  Not snooty about my coffee, but I can't stand the cheapest stuff that tastes like it was swept off the floor.  That's what they brew at work, tight budget and all, I choked it down for years, gotta have that java fix, even though it's straight from hell.  Our secretary (from the fair land of Costa Rica, where coffee is cherished), these days brews a "secret" pot of the good stuff that a few of us are blessed to thankfully enjoy. From another email sent by my Gramps, entitled "Breathalyzer (the written test)". I'm not sure if my Grandpa knows that I grew up to be the raging-est of alcoholics or that I managed to clean myself up almost 9 years ago.  Also not sure if there would be disappointed and then relief, probably best to just leave that alone.  One of a few things left that I have a hard time forgiving myself for, is my DUI, 13 years ago.  Must have drove drunk 1000 times, but what made this so "special" was there was an accident and my son was sitting next to me in his car seat.  Not my proudest moment by a long shot, in fact, along with 3 or 4 other events, something that should damn me to hell.   So there is inherent humor in the activities of a stumbling bumbling slurring drunk, but there's some thing tragic there too. Figured I needed to insert some music in this non-musical post...Epic female fronted in Spanish EBM/Industrial (did I mention it was epic?) by way of my electronic music prophet Rafael Prayers... Hocico - Without a God

Super high quality, sci-fi gore and brutality... "PostHuman"

[video width="640" height="360" mp4="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/PostHuman-sci-fi-action-animated-short-film-directed-by-Cole-Drumb.mp4"][/video] Short but "sweet"... "The Sad Tale of Bad Breath Joe"

[video width="640" height="360" mp4="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/The-Sad-Tale-Of-Bad-Breath-Joe-Disturbing-Animation.mp4"][/video]

this one's a trip, good action and I love claymation... "Ward 13" http://www.liveleak.com/ll_embed?f=5375f05d7ae4

Melt-Banana - Lefty Dog (Run Caper Run)

New Melt-Banana video...this new incarnation is growing on me... "Lefty Dog (Run Caper Run)" [video width="640" height="360" mp4="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Lefty-Dog-Run-Caper-Run-MELT-BANANA.mp4"][/video]

The Day My Kid Went Punk

The 80's were an interesting era, so much plastic, so much aerosol, you could redesign yourself with a can of hairspray.  This ABC Afterschool Special aired the year I graduated from high school, unbeknownst to me (I didn't watch too much TV at the time), I only just discovered it.  Didn't watch the whole thing, kinda skipped through, but apparently this young lads romp into punk rock was based on attention seeking, his family just wasn't making him feel special.  At this point in my life I pretty much completely subscribed to the Crass-ism that punk was dead.  Looking back and I guess it's true today, the music we listen to plays such a big role in our cultural identity.  Societies kneejerk reaction is always on the outside looking and in this case it's comical and pathetic...

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fEptCSLhgfk]

FEAR - On that show...

This one keeps appearing and disappearing on utoob so thought I would put it here for permanence and posterity. The immortal John Belushi invited them to come on but it was too much for network TV and got cut short. Here's the wiki blurb on it... "Spheeris' documentary brought the band to the attention of John Belushi, who lobbied successfully to get the band a spot as a musical guest on the 1981 Halloween episode of his former show Saturday Night Live. Belushi had originally offered Fear the soundtrack for his major motion picture Neighbors. The film's producers eventually forced Fear off the project, and Belushi got them the infamous SNL gig as compensation. The band's appearance included a group of moshers, among them Belushi, Ian MacKaye of Minor Threat (and later Fugazi), Tesco Vee of The Meatmen, Harley Flanagan and John Joseph of the Cro-Mags, and John Brannon of Negative Approach. The show's director originally wanted to prevent the dancers from participating, so Belushi offered to be in the episode if the dancers were allowed to stay.[2] The end result was the shortening of Fear's appearance on TV. They started their second performance by saying, "It's great to be in New Jersey", drawing boos from SNL's New York live audience. Fear played "I Don't Care About You", "Beef Bologna", "New York's Alright If You Like Saxophones", and started to play "Let's Have a War" when the telecast faded into commercial. The slamdancers left ripe pumpkin remains on the set. After their SNL appearance, which resulted in $20,000 in damage, some clubs chose not to hire the band. A New York Post article later reported the figure to be $500,000. This is believed to have originated from Ving, who told the Post that "...we caused $500,000 worth of damage, a cool half a million dollars worth of damage, ‘cause we’re professionals, and I counted the damage myself."

EDIT: Deleted the vid for fear of the piracy police...

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Frud5RFtTi0&w=560&h=315]

Oblio - Square Pegs EP

I almost didn't do this review, not because I don't like the band (I don't see any point in telling bands they suck), because there is something likeable about them, but my old hardcore judgemental self tells me I shouldn't. In my eyes, this is a pretty tame band, there's is nothing extreme about them and usually I go for the sound that has some kind of unique edge to it. That's not to say that this band isn't unique, I can't think of a band they are imitating, they are quite simply, Oblio. If you had to lump them somewhere it would probably be in a pop-rock type of category. Are they part of the amorphous mass that is "alternative rock"? The reality that I had to come to accept is that this duo write extremely catchy, unwaveringly melodic, lyrically sophisticated tunes and they groove well together. I can't call myself a music lover and not admit that this is well done stuff from a pair of talented dudes, maybe it's just not MY stuff. They make me feel confused, out of my element and yet invited to participate and enjoy. I'm out of the popular music loop, but I can't believe I haven't heard of these guys at least in passing somewhere. Even though I wouldn't be buying, there is definitely a huge market for this kind of sound and I could easily see them making a decent living at their craft, deservedly so. And what the hell they're from my hometown, if you live in LA and your girlfriend digs U2, Sting or REM (they could easily open for those bands or their modern equivalents), go see them play, she will thank you. Here's what I got from their bio page... "Oblio is an alternative rock duo from Los Angeles. The band's two songwriters – Free Hallas and Blake Russell – draw their sound from a wide range of alt. rock influences, including Weezer, The Replacements, Brand New, Elliott Smith, and Nirvana. The two bandmates are also cousins, who've collaborated on musical projects for years. Oblio frequents many LA venues, including the Whiskey A GoGo, and is gaining featured slots on indie-rock radio programs. Oblio's debut release "Square Peg" is a collection of songs entirely written, recorded, produced, mixed, and mastered by the duo. The Square Peg EP is now available as a free download on their bandcamp page. The EP has also been made available on major digital music vendors including iTunes, Amazon, and Spotify." I guess, based on that information, you gotta also give them a boat load of credit for being utterly and completely DIY (Blake is the one who hit me up for a listen/review, not some management/PR company), that is a no bullshit achievement and highly thrifty, I might add. The cousins are well represented on the web, with their own website aptly called Oblio, Soundcloud, Bandcamp (where you can buy hardcopies/downloads of their EP), Facebook, Twitter, Youtube and Reverbnation. This here tune was a pretty good example of their writing skills.... Mr. 50 Questions …and I forget just why I had complained in the first place. …and how can I still have an ego, you know I only play the bass. The medal on my chest says "best at trying hard"…But I hardly tried. …and how can one girl be so beautiful she makes a man a boy? …and I regret not playing nicer with her heart like a child's toy. The comedy routine's called "love will find away"…and I laughed so hard! How can one man have so many friends? I have so many questions. How can one band fit so many trends? I have so many questions. …and how can body parts and chemicals control the mighty man? …or how they fuel false emotions, I will never understand. The sign outside says "we do happy endings", so why did I cry? How can one man have so many friends? …I have so many questions! How can one band fit so many trends? …I have so many questions! How can one world have so many ends? …I have so many questions! How can one God have so many plans? …I have so many questions! Surprise! Surprise… I have no other plans. I have no other hands to hold, it's why I can't let go. There's no good disguise for weary eyes, And mine are always closed. How can one man have so many friends? …I have so many questions! How can one band fit so many trends? …I have so many questions! How can one world have so many ends? …I have so many questions! How can one God have so many plans? …I have so many questions! So many questions for you http://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=3425006326/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/tracklist=false/artwork=small/transparent=true/

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KEIl-t7LLHg]

Missles of October - Don't Panic LP

Blown away in all kinds of ways with this release. I know I'm like a mother bird sometimes, regurgitating for her young, but this is how you you do art for your music. First impressions count, hell I used to buy records based on their covers alone. I don't know who did this art (obviously a master at creating emotion), but these boys from Bruxelles, Belgium know how to put a face on their music. So when I got around to listening to the actual tunes from Missles of October, my expectations where high, but I'll be damned if these guys don't deliver, a truckload of freaking sound. In the email I got from them, which was both in French and English, they didn't waste a lot of time going on about themselves, it was mostly links to their tunes. I like that, let your music speak for you. Here's the little bit they had to say, "Missiles of October (Be) is a band formed in beginning of 2012 by: Bob Seytor (from Rotyes, Contingent (1st punk belgium punk!!!), ex-Walpurgis), Mathias Salas (Rotyes, Frau Blucher and the drunken horses, ex-galvanized), Lionel Beyet ([P.U.T], ex-Monster Eaters, No Hope for All // Boss of P.O.G.O. records since 1993) These 3 there play a dirty rock, heavy and powerful! sludge vs punk vs noise! for fans of Unsane, Les thugs, Mc Lusky, Unwound..." I told myself (I talk to myself a lot) the other day that with these reviews, I was going to say a little something about how the band makes me feel. With these guys I feel hope, the kind some sort of revolutionary feels when fighting for a cause. These guys are the hope for modern hard music. You could probably put them under the greater hardcore umbrella, they are very aggressive, but they also have sort of a metallic Am Rep sound, if you can imagine that. Good solid musicians, hard hitting, mixing up the tempos. There's some variety to the tunes, they don't all sound the same, so it stays interesting from beginning to end. They are on Pogo Records, but you can buy this as a hard copy or digital from their Bandamp, where you can also download their previous ep for free, plus listen to your heart's content. This song hit me just right... "Addiction" [audio mp3="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/08.Missiles-of-October-B3_Addiction.mp3"][/audio] http://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=490685085/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/tracklist=false/artwork=small/transparent=true/

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9Zwt_Q4jZQ]

Those Poor Bastards - The Hellbound Train

I absolutely worship this band, check them out at the Tribulation Recording Company...

Those Poor Bastards - "The Hellbound Train"

[video width="640" height="480" mp4="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Those-Poor-Bastards-The-Hellbound-Train-.mp4"][/video]

In case it doesn't work embedded, here it is at Youtube

Animated Shorts #3

It's okay to laugh at this wipeout even though the dude's in a wheelchair isn't it? Politicians have to be politically correct, but do you and I? This would be funny if he was riding a bike, right? Maybe it's not funny to laugh at these kinds of wipe outs at all.  My days of eating shit are over, just don't put myself in those situations anymore, but I certainly had my fair share of them over the years growing up.  Bikes, skateboards, motorcycles, tripping over myself drunk (that was a real common one for several years there).  I provide much laughter to onlookers.  Not really funny when it's happening, but usually good for a laugh afterward.  I bet the guy above had a pretty good laugh when all was said and done (provided he didn't break his back and get paralyzed). How 'bout this, okay to laugh? Your guess is as good as mine, hardcore WTF moment in a FTW kind of way.  I don't think he's stroking it, maybe playing a video game and then some kind of sensory overload seizure.  I hope that this is not his 5 minutes of fame, when this went viral, which I'm sure it did.  Instead I hope he invents something that changes the world or becomes a world renowned orator, gathers a huge following, and brings about a lasting and meaningful peace for humanity.  Of course, the way things work for most people though, is that this is it, this is the sum total of his existence. Not a gearhead or anything (I do wish that I had at least taken a semester of auto mechanics in high school), but always had dreams of having a tricked out Vdub. I've had two late model Bugs (my first car was a 74 super beetle), but they were both plain Jane stock affairs, all I did was put oil and gas in 'em. An old buddy of mine at The Rusty VW recently turned me onto a killer site where you can digitally customize VWs...check it out, Bus Selecta. Below is my dream creation... My Great Grandpa Hrabe and me on my first Kansas visit. I feature some of his Son's (my Grandpa) emails here and there, he never types messages, just forwards stuff on to me that he gets from various sources (Grandpa, who is multi talented, very skilled with his hands, did a stint as a gearhead, and put a 6 cylinder diesel into a Vega, thing could tow the Titanic). Here's the latest (some of these may be old, like my Grandpa)... 1. Do not walk behind me, for I may not lead. Do not walk ahead of me, for I may not follow. Do not walk beside me for the path is narrow. In fact, just leave me the Hell alone. 2. Sex is like air. It's not that important unless you aren't getting any. 3. No one is listening until you fart. 4. Always remember you're unique. Just like everyone else. 5. Never test the depth of the water with both feet. 6. If you think nobody cares whether you're alive or dead, try missing a couple of payments. 7. Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes. That way, when you criticize them, you're a mile away and you have their shoes. 8. If at first you don't succeed, skydiving is not for you. 9. Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach him how to fish, and he will sit in a boat and drink beer all day. 10. If you lend someone $20 and never see that person again, it was probably well worth it. 11. If you tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything. 12. Some days you are the dog, some days you are the tree. 13. Don't worry, it only seems kinky the first time. 14. Good judgment comes from bad experience ... and most of that comes from bad judgment. 15. A closed mouth gathers no foot. 16. There are two excellent theories for arguing with women. Neither one works. 17. Generally speaking, you aren't learning much when your lips are moving. 18. Experience is something you don't get until just after you need it. 19. Never, under any circumstances, take a sleeping pill and a laxative on the same night. 20. We are born naked, wet and hungry, and get slapped on our ass... then things just keep getting worse. Ran across this artist, Dan LuVisi, who, among other themes, re-imagines puppets and cartoon characters as villains. Dude is hyper-talented as you can see, Bert and Ernie as you've never seen them before. He's got a BLOG, Deviant Art PAGE, and of freaking course a facebook... BRUTAL Claymation shorts, from the twisted mind of Lee Hardcastle. I'm a little late to the game, these have over a million views on utoob, but maybe you're like me and always playing catch up...

"Chainsaw Maid"

[video width="640" height="360" mp4="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/CHAINSAW-MAID-with-a-sprinkle-of-Lux-Aeterna.mp4"][/video]

"Chainsaw Maid 2"

[video width="640" height="360" mp4="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Chainsaw-Maid-2-18-.mp4"][/video]

Dimeuhduzen - Nu Heirs EP

More badassery by way of my Bro Rafa of Prayers, to whom I am eternally grateful to for enlightening me musically.  Hailing from the sweetness of SoCal in San Diego, Dimeuhduzen, are a dark techno outfit (which I lump into the greater industrial puzzle). I don't know a whole lot about techno, but these guys have definitely educated and amazed me. Here's what Rafa had to say, "check these guys out they are about to dethrone the dark techno game they are my friends and their music isnt what people usually think of when they think of techno it's actually dark magic heavy as Fuck Volvin Sd Dimeuhduzen and his brother are taking over this summer."  As I said, I haven't ventured a whole lot into the techno realm (I'm a big fan of Die Antwoord, who are techno influenced), but I'm feeling these guys, the music makes me want to dance (don't ever let me dance) and do crime at the same time.  There's something sinister, almost evil about these beats.  They would fry a warehouse, turn it to ashes, they'd need more of a dungeon or maybe an abandoned asylum.  This is the shit whacked out demons groove to.  They just released this killer 3 track EP, you can read more about it and get a better review from GottaDanceDirty and you can get it from Police Records, where one of the tracks is a free download...give that a spin... Dethrone (Original Mix) If you go to their Soundcloud (and below) you get short samples of the tunes off the EP and also 4-5 other older tunes, to further blow you away.

[soundcloud url="https://api.soundcloud.com/users/1381530" params="color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_artwork=true" width="100%" height="450" iframe="true" /]

Angels Dust - Funeral

My Bro Rafa of the modern legends Prayers recently turned me onto this tune. The epitome of other-worldly...like shimmering spirits in ethereal landscapes. I know nothing, although I'm dying to know more, so asked Rafa to give me his take on the band, "They are my friends who just started working together the producer David lampley he is in the band skrapez and flavia the vox is a mystery...." Either you dig it or you fail to grasp the beauty of what it must sound like in purgatory... [video width="640" height="360" mp4="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Funeral.mp4"][/video]

Hey Joe...

EDIT: This was one of those mega posts that I used to do, a fucking great one if I do say so myself, but sadly all that was left was the text. Went back and at least put the basics back in...

"going down to shoot my old lady, you know I caught her messing around with another man..."  This is so fricken brutal and I don't know what the woman did to deserve being murdered, but this is how you make sure someone is dead...something like 9 shots, alternating between the head and the torso. The caption is in Portuguese and reads, "mechanic executes ex-wife". Only a deranged and crazed maniac would kill someone like this. You know in my own deranged fantasy world as a youth I always figured that if I caught my girlfriend/wife cheating on me I'd tell the guy (or woman, you never know) to get lost and and then blow away the girlfriend/wife.  Of course when it did happen I just walked away, never looking back, I'm not the killing type.  Years later I cheated with my friends wife and really for that offense I deserved to do die (our mutual friends made that clear to me). First time I heard Hey Joe must have been in the mid 70's, Jimi Hendrix's version (the most popular), but at that age I had no clue how serious and dire the song was. It's been covered a million times, but according to Wikipedia it was most likely written by Billy Roberts who stole the melody from his then girlfriend... Niela Miller - Baby, Please Don't Go to Town [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xN7otqp3MfQ] Fucker had the last laugh with all the royalties. Billy Roberts - Hey Joe [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PziiNzFWZog&w=560&h=315] The sweet version is by these guys and actually the first to be released as a single. Sick drumming, heavy bass lines and almost snotty dual vocals, the best! The Leaves - Hey Joe [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWv03Wgz0PQ&w=560&h=315] The Tangents almost out-garage the Leaves... The Tangents - Hey Joe another garage styled version... The Shadows Of Knight - Hey Joe Long about 1966 all the versions started to sound the same... The Standells - Hey Joe (Where You Gonna Go) Yup More of the same... Surfaris - Hey Joe Are you getting sick of 60's garage bands covering the tune yet, this time it's "money" instead of a "gun" in his hand... The Byrds - Hey Joe Oh c'mon, every body loves garage... Love - Hey Joe Japanese garage... The Golden Cups - Hey Joe Starts out psychedelic, but guess what...ends up garage... The Cryan' Shames- Hey Joe (Where You Gonna Go) It takes a genius with a sense of humor like Zappa to take it to another dimension (anything but garage), "Hey Punk, where you goin' with that flower in your hand?/Well, I'm goin' up to Frisco to join a psychedelic band."... Frank Zappa - Flower Punk Nobody played it like Hendrix and the Experience, all three of these guys are balls to the wall on this version (video)... Jimi Hendrix - Hey Joe (Live Happening For Lulu 1969).avi Must have heard Hendrix do his thing before they came up with theirs... The Marmalade - Hey Joe I love Cher's voice but her version is a little tame... Cher- Hey Joe If you want a female fronted cover of the tune, Patty Smith makes the song her own, putting an edge to it... Patti Smith - Hey Joe (version) Pretty much exactly what you would expect from Deep Purple playing Hey Joe... Deep Purple - Deep Purple Lounge meets the Beatles, in French... Johnny Hallyday - Hey Joe The Music Machine does one that sounds more the Hendrix version I'm familiar with..full of soul and painful. The Music Machine - Hey Joe Very Psychedelic... The Ant Trip Ceremony - Hey Joe The singer sounds a lot like Robert Plant, come to think of it the guitarist sounds a bit like Jimmy Page... Band of Joy - Hey Joe Okay this is Robert Plant and Jimmy Page, doing what you'd expect to the tune... Led Zeppelin - Hey Joe (live) Can't go wrong with a ZZ Top, bluesy rendition... ZZ Top - Hey Joe Another one of my favorites, hardcore blues freeform, with a funky vibe to it... Lee Moses - Hey Joe I don't know who she is, some kind of famous actress and singer, but this is a beautiful version. It's almost ironic having something so beautiful connected with murdering someone... Charlotte Gainsbourg - Hey Joe Rap with a Hendrix sample, nice that his name is Joe too... Fat Joe - Hey Joe You just knew there had to be at least one reggae version... Black Uhuru - Hey Joe (Live at VH1) Tripped out country bluegrass zydeco joke band (with a cool name)... Helge Schneider & The Firefuckers - Hey Joe Yup, jazz fusion one too... Brian Bromberg - Hey Joe Ice T's Body Count, kinda expected something a little more balls to the wall... Body Count - Hey Joe (with Lyrics) Cheezy neu metal... Dope - Hey Joe Nick Cave tears it up, dark as it should be... Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Hey Joe I'm a big fan of the UK Subs and Charlie Harper... Charlie Harper - Hey Joe Okay, total fricken overkill, but I got obsessed for several hours, now I'm sort of sick of the tune, which you should be by now if you actually listened to all those. Funny I was almost done and found that there is a Hey Joy CD of 20 artists covering the tune, some of whom I have represented here. And then to my utter amazement I found this torrent with 141 versions! I did not download that. I did want to leave you with a good solid dirty punk rock cover... The Vibrators - Hey Joe

Hey Joe, where you goin' with that gun in your hand Hey Joe, I said where you goin' with that gun in your hand I'm goin' down to shoot my ol' lady I caught her messin' 'round with another man Yeah, I'm goin' down to shoot my ol' lady now You know I caught her messin' 'round with another man And that ain't too cool Hey Joe, hey, Joe, I heard you shot your woman down Hey Joe, hey, Joe, I heard you shot your woman down, baby He said, "Yeah, I did it, yes I did, I shot her You know I caught her messin' 'round with another man" Yes I did, I shot her You know I caught my her messin' 'round with another man Yeah, and I gave her the gun Hey Joe, hey Joe Where you gonna run to, now where you gonna run to now Hey Joe, hey Joe Lord, where you gonna run to, now where you gonna run to, baby I'm goin' way down south, way down south Way down to Mexico way, yeah I'm goin' way down south, way down south, baby Way down where I can be free Ain't no one gonna mess with me there, baby Ain't no hang-man gonna He ain't gonna put a rope, a rope around me, yeah You better believe it, baby Hey, Joe, you better run on down, you better Goodbye everybody

Animated Short #2

This is me, talking to you, my imaginary audience. I don't know why I let some things bother me, but you know, I've been through too much shit in this life to deal with assholes and idiots. It's like there's a fricken plague and the stuff's terribly contagious. Feel like I'm a magnet for these diseased souls and they mistake my kindness for weakness. I try not to let what others do or what their personalities are affect me, people need to work on their own behavior instead of worrying about what everyone else is doing, but it's getting thick down here in the trenches, there's no elbow room, no room to catch a breath of fresh air.  It's all just payback, for those occasions in my life when I was less than pleasant, a dick really. Years ago I became a minister of The Universal Life Church, one of those free internet things (I've done one wedding and one funeral).  The church has an interesting history though, worth checking out if you're so inclined, and their only theology is "to do that which is right."  Simple enough and in my mind deeply profound...and like so many things that make sense, difficult to practice.  I have to remember that, no matter what I'm confronted with, I can't let things push me off my path, so hard though, "to do that which is right."  To get Old Testament, and Hollywood (Tarantino was underground at the time) simultaneously, quoting Jules (Samuel L. Jackson) at the end of Pulp Fiction, "There's a passage I got memorized. Ezekiel 25:17. "The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the inequities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he who, in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of the darkness, for he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to poison and destroy My brothers. And you will know I am the Lord when I lay My vengeance upon you." Now... I been sayin' that shit for years. And if you ever heard it, that meant your ass. You'd be dead right now. I never gave much thought to what it meant. I just thought it was a cold-blooded thing to say to a motherfucker before I popped a cap in his ass. But I saw some shit this mornin' made me think twice. See, now I'm thinking: maybe it means you're the evil man. And I'm the righteous man. And Mr. 9mm here... he's the shepherd protecting my righteous ass in the valley of darkness. Or it could mean you're the righteous man and I'm the shepherd and it's the world that's evil and selfish. And I'd like that. But that shit ain't the truth. The truth is you're the weak. And I'm the tyranny of evil men. But I'm tryin', Ringo. I'm tryin' real hard to be the shepherd."  That's all a fellow can do right, is try?  Okay whining done, this is an age old problem that will never go away, so you just move on to the next set of life events....right?  Plus, guaranteed, there some mofos out there who have some real things to gripe about. I'm thinking circa 1989-90, me with arms crossed, like I had anyplace better to be, with Erio, the better half of the dual vocals in WD40 to my left. At this point in my life with self inflicted brain damage and natural deterioration, I do not recognize any other souls in this picture.

What Lemmy was up to the year I was born, '69 ...playing guitar, apparently... [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SAC-TdBXW8E]

That tune... Sam Gopal - Sky Is Burning Another, a little less trippy and more heavy... Sam Gopal - The Dark Lord THE BEST 10 second hardcore punk guitar solo @ 0:59... Sick Pleasure - I Wanna Burn My Parents In response to that assertion, the drummer of the band directed me to the solo here @ 3:39...YEAH!!! Frank Zappa - Fifty-Fifty

A couple more animated shorts in the horror genre, the first pretty heavy, while the second is more silly... "Who's Hungry"

[video width="490" height="360" mp4="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Whos-Hungry-.mp4"][/video]

"Dji Death Fails"

[video width="640" height="360" mp4="http://mustard-relics.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/CGI-Animated-Short-Film-HD-Dji-Death-Fails-by-Simpals.mp4"][/video]

Ever So Android - "Leash"

Still playing catch up on these reviews, but there is just so much good listening to be found out there and I'll be damned if it isn't seeking me out these days. Some of the "bands" are more underground than others, there was a time when if it wasn't strictly DIY, I would scoff at it. While I still admire anything on the grass roots level, I'm realistic enough to know that a guy has to make a buck and it's tough to do that being a musician.  I still stand my ground though on the importance of music having some kind of edge, I don't have time for butter knives. It's easy to tell the difference between real honest to goodness inspiration and shit that's been watered down for the masses. It's like diet soda, the chemicals that are in that crap will kill you, give me a couple ounces of pure sugar in my soda. This latest band, Ever So Android ain't no diet pop. This duo is alive and on fire, a fricken bonfire of sound. Here's part of their bio/press thing, "Ever So Android has released their new stand alone single "Leash" at the height of their 9 city tour. True to form, the song features their signature electro-rock sound that combines deep bass synths with a driving rock beat and soaring vocals. Consisting of guitarist Drew Murray and power vocalist Hope Simpson, this two piece rock outfit has a sound that is both powerful and creative. "Leash" will be featured on their yet to be announced EP, coming later this year and will be featured on this current tour." Well my review missed the tour, but I hope it was a happy and successful adventure for them. If the vid at the bottom of this post is any kind of indication of how hard they rock live, I'm sure it went spectacularly well. It takes two pretty dynamic individuals to create this volume of sound.  I was trying to find another female front woman to compare Hope to, but my ability to make those kinds of comparisons is limited.  She's got one hell of a voice, that's the bottom line.  A modern example of one of those Joan Jett or Suzi Quatro kind of rockers, with a little bit of Blondie thrown in to make it interesting, but she doesn't sound anything like them at.   Is there that cabaret-esque kind of Amy Winehouse thing going on...I don't know. There is this sultry kind of moaning throughout that just fuels that bonfire.  Speaking of  bonfire, Drew really lights up the sky with his riffing.  He's a one man band of sorts.  In the live vid you catch a glimpse of the effects panel he has at his disposal, and judging from the variety of sounds he gets out of his guitar, he makes full use of it.  It's almost like he has several instruments at his disposal.  His melodies have this aggressive structure, without being in your face and annoying.  Very digable stuff out of Seattle.  I bet if they wanted to they could put on an outstanding acoustic set, wonder if they do that.  I asked the band what makes Ever So Android tick, what message are they trying to convey and where are they headed? 1) experimentation. Pushing ourselves musically and personally. Always striving to be uncomfortable so that we can evolve. 2) on some level female empowerment. .. But generally human empowerment. Get people to get out of their boxes and live their life before it's too late. 3) High dive in Seattle may 9 th. We're touring the southwest again in August. Sounds like they're going to continue to be busy (bet they don' play NoWhere Kansas) maybe a guy could get a chance to spend an evening with them.  Be sure to check out their website and give a tune or two a listen... "Leash" http://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/track=2192733652/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/tracklist=false/artwork=small/transparent=true/ S/T http://bandcamp.com/EmbeddedPlayer/album=1829458973/size=large/bgcol=ffffff/linkcol=0687f5/tracklist=false/artwork=small/transparent=true/

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H15tNe5Zdyk]