The Cultured Hooligan Podcast #1 - Matty King (Stormshadow, The Match and The Moth)

An interview with musician, artist, philosopher Matty King of Stormshadow and The Match and The Moth.

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REVIEW: STORMSHADOW - SET ON DESTROY

When this album was first limitedly released years ago I liked screaming along with the lyrics (most notably "Greaser forever, Social Never") but I couldn't truly grasp it. I knew I was in the presence of something brilliant, but it's taken years of development and growth, of heartache, pain, failures, triumphs - to truly appreciate all that comprises this album.

Completely frenetic, beautiful, sad, lovely and yes, angry. Catchy without being pop. Technical without being annoying. Truly poetic lyrics without being flowery or corny. Sometimes political, sometimes introspectual, sometimes funny, sometimes analytical, sometimes a mixture.

Sweet, angelic (and sometimes even sexy) female vocals juxtaposed with the guttural growls of anger and frustration from a man wrestling with his demons and living in a world where it seems only he knows is insane.

Musically a product of their diverse influences (e.g. Minutemen, Black Sabbath, Human Remains) but without being derivative. A sound of their own.

Most songs clock in well under 2 minutes but are jam packed with changes, energy, and great lyrics. They take you on a journey where time doesn't exist and only on Earth is it that such a short time has passed. The music/feeling/energy hits so hard, that each song itself is a lifetime of emotion that sticks to your soul.

A timeless record, it could have been recorded last week, 13 years ago, or 30 years ago. Kudos to Don Giovani Records for having the smarts to release it and share this with the world.

You'd be a fool not to experience this record, and an idiot not to have it in your life.

Buy it now.

BULLDOG RADIO: THE LEGENDS RETURN

My favorite podcast/radio show comes back tonight. 

Listen live at 9PM Eastern at www.TheBulldogRadioShow.com.

MOVIE: THE GREAT GATSBY

Yet another 20th Century great American novel is being adapted to the big screen this month.  F. Scott Fitzgerald's tale of the roaring twenties.  Directed by Baz Luhrmann of Strictly Ballroom, William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet and Moulin Rouge! fame.  So, expect it to look cool but have a out of character sound track.

Trailer:


More info at the official site.

MOVIE: ON THE ROAD

The theatrical adaptation of Jack Kerouac's great American novel. Directed by Walter Salles of The Motorcycle Diaries fame. Hopefully it'll live up to the novel. It has Kristen Stewart in it, but she was decent in the The Runaways, so I won't hold Twilight against her. Hell, maybe even the Beat and Beatnik culture will become hot again because of her involvement.  Soon enough striped shirts, turtlenecks, and bongos will be in the front window of your local Hot Topic.

Watch the trailer:


More info. at the official website.

UPDATE: GYPSY GENTLEMAN EPISODE 5: LONDON

The fifth installment of the our favorite tattoo travel series visits London.

The Gypsy Gentleman - Episode 05: London from Marcus Kuhn on Vimeo.

Get more info. here.

SCREENING: 47 INDUSTRIES IS SCREENING 6 0VER SAT. NOV. 10, 2012 AT 7PM

One of the best and most honest mechanics you'll ever meet, my pal Mike, is hosting a screening of 6 Over at his shop 47 Industries. While you're there have him start building you the bike or classic car of your dreams.

For more info. and to subscribe to his blog, go here.

6 OVER

6 Over is a documentary about 6 motorcycle builders (Caleb Owens, Jason Webber, Kim Boyle, Jeremiah Armenta, Max Schaaf and Eddie Cleveland) and their love for 2 wheels.

Check out the trailer and buy a copy for yourself:

Trailer from Wild Honey Productions on Vimeo.

"MUNSTERS" REBOOT "MOCKINGBIRD LANE" TONIGHT ON NBC

Tonight NBC will air a modern reboot of the Munsters, the best monster's show from the 1960's. The Adams Family sucks, but I'll rant about that in a future post. I used to watch the original, I watched the reboot in the 80's/90's (The Munsters Today), and I'll watch this "special" (option of a series order should it do well in the ratings). More info. here

UPDATE: GYPSY GENTLEMAN EPISODES 2, 3, 4

The internet based tattoo/travel show that showcases "the world’s greatest tattooers and the world’s most fascinating places." is back with 3 new episodes:Episode 2: Austin, Texas

The Gypsy Gentleman - Episode 02: Austin, Texas from Marcus Kuhn on Vimeo.

Episode 3: San Francisco, California

The Gypsy Gentleman - Episode 03: San Francisco from Marcus Kuhn on Vimeo.

Episode 4: San Diego y Tijuana

The Gypsy Gentleman - Episode 04: San Diego y Tijuana from Marcus Kuhn on Vimeo.

More info. can be found here.

REVIEW: EVERYTHING IS A REMIX

A documentary making the argument that sampling and remixing isn't new, has always been around, and that everything we know is a remix of something else.

Watch the 4-part series below:

Part 1: The Song Remains the Same
Everything is a Remix Part 1 from Kirby Ferguson on Vimeo. Part 2: Remix Inc.

Everything is a Remix Part 2 from Kirby Ferguson on Vimeo.

Part 3: The Elements of Creativity

Everything is a Remix Part 3 from Kirby Ferguson on Vimeo.

Part 4: System Failure

Everything is a Remix Part 4 from Kirby Ferguson on Vimeo.

Visit the official website for more info.

BONES BRIGADE: AN AUTOBIOGRAPHY

An upcoming documentary on the crew who ruled skateboarding when I was a kid. I was too young for the Dogtown/Z-boys era, but my first "pro" skateboard was the Powell Peralta Mike McGill Skull and Snake in blue. I'm definitely looking forward to this. Screening now in select locations (in NYC on October 17, 2012), and being released digitally/home video on November 6, 2012 (available for pre-order now). Get more info here.

REVIEW: GYPSY GENTLEMAN - EPISODE 1: NEW YORK

A new internet based tattoo/travel show that showcases "the world’s greatest tattooers and the world’s most fascinating places."  Kind of like a tattoo version of Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations.

I really like this show.  The Cultured Hooligan approves of the Gentleman Gypsy.  Had to write that, sorry.

Check it, enjoy it, and donate so they can make more episodes.


The Gypsy Gentleman - Episode 01: New York City from Marcus Kuhn on Vimeo.

Check out the official page for more info.

STEVIE TOMBSTONE OCT. 14, 2011 8PM

First show I've helped book in probably a decade.


Friday October 14, 2011 8PM
Stevie Tombstone
with Special Guest Gabe Zander
Calabrese's Barber Shop
33 West Front St., Keyport, NJ

TATTOO AGE

A new tattoo documentary series featuring a series of interviews/profiles of what they're calling "the most interesting and sought-after [tattoo] artists in the world."  It debuts July 13, 2011 on VBS.TV with a profile of a buddy of mine, Dan Santoro.  Although I don't have any tattoos by Dan (yet?), he's a legit artist of all sorts (needle, spray paint, acrylics, etc.) and it's good to see him getting recognized for his talents.  If you like what you see, book an appointment with him at Smith Street Tattoo at (718) 643-0463.  You won't be disappointed. 

 

From the official page:  

Tattoo Age is the new series that takes an inside look at the craft of tattooing through a series of profiles on some of the most interesting and sought-after artists in the world. The series kicks off on July 13th with Dan Santoro, and new episodes featuring such artists as Troy Denning, Mike Rubendall, Freddy Corbin, and Grime will air through November.

REVIEW: TRANSCENDENT MAN

A documentary about "futurist", scientist, genius Ray Kurzweil.  Not nearly as boring as that sounds.  This is one of the few documentaries that I've seen recently that actually made me feel optimistic about the future.  This movie delivers some of Kurzweil's predictions for the future of technology while also telling his life's story, his life's goal (bringing his father back from the dead), and gives some scientific theory/proof on how humans will live forever as part machine, or maybe even part of the machine.  This movie makes me happy about this world, and longing for the future (soon to be the present).  Check out the trailer below.


From the official site:

The compelling feature-length documentary film, by director Barry Ptolemy, chronicles the life and controversial ideas of luminary Ray Kurzweil. For more than three decades, inventor, futures, and New York Times best-selling author Ray Kurzweil has been one of the most respected and provocative advocates of the role of technology in our future.

In Transcendent Man, Ptolemy follows Kurzweil around the globe as he presents the daring arguments from his best-selling book, The Singularity is Near: When Humans Transcend Biology. Kurzweil predicts that with the ever-accelerating rate of technological change, humanity is fast approaching an era in which our intelligence will become increasingly non-biological and millions of times more powerful. This will be the dawning of a new civilization enabling us to transcend our biological limitations. In Kurzweil's post-biological world, boundaries blur between human and machine, real and virtual. Human aging and illness are reversed, world hunger and poverty are solved, and we cure death.

Ptolemy explores the social and philosophical implications of these changes and the potential threats they pose to human civilization in dialogues with world leader Colin Powell; technologists Hugo deGaris, Peter Diamandis, Kevin Warwick, and Dean Kamen; journalist Kevin Kelly; actor William Shatner; and musician Stevie Wonder. Kurzweil maintains a radically optimistic view of the future, while acknowledging new dangers. Award-winning American composer Philip Glass contributes original theme music that mirrors the depth and intensity of the film. 

ARTIST PROFILE: KINGZILLA (MATTY KING)

KINGZILLA is one of my favorite artists (and people) living today.  His style is unlike any other I've seen.  Old school cut-and-paste to a level of brilliance.  He takes images we see everyday, co-opts them and then morphs them into something new that invokes feelings of anxiety, happiness, depression, beauty, anger...sometimes all at the same time.  Like a cut-and-paste Van Gogh he is.  Brilliance like this comes around only once in while.  Enjoy it while you can.

Check out more images here, and pick up a print before you have to sell your entire record collection just to get a print.

REVIEW: NOT JUST A GAME

A great documentary showing the inherent existence and use of politics in sports, even while sports decries politics.  Great even for non sports fans.  While I don't buy all of the arguments made in this documentary, I do appreciate Dave Zirin's arguments and explanations.  

I really recommend watching this movie (available on DVD or watch a low res version in it's entirety here).





From the official site: 

Not Just a Game: Power, Politics & American Sports
We've been told again and again that sports and politics don't mix, that games are just games and athletes should just "shut up and play." But according to Nation magazine sports editor Dave Zirin, this notion is just flat-out wrong. In Not Just a Game, the powerful new documentary based on his bestselling book The People's History of Sports in the United States, Zirin argues that far from providing merely escapist entertainment, American sports have long been at the center of some of the major political debates and struggles of our time. In a fascinating tour of the good, the bad, and the ugly of American sports culture, Zirin first traces how American sports have glamorized militarism, racism, sexism, and homophobia, then excavates a largely forgotten history of rebel athletes who stood up to power and fought for social justice beyond the field of play. The result is as deeply moving as it is exhilarating: nothing less than an alternative history of political struggle in the United States as seen through the games its people have played.

REALITY 86'D - BLACK FLAG DOCUMENTARY

A Black Flag Documentary covering their last tour. Never released, but due to the power of the internet, now available. Watch the teaser below, or watch it in it's entirety here.

From the official site:

REALITY '86'D

(Shot in 1986 and completed by director David Markey in 1991 for We Got Power Films, approx. 62 min., Super 8 film)

Three bands and crew (a combined total of 13 individuals), 2 Dodge Ram extended cab vans, one equipment truck, one PA system traverse the continental US for six months. A road documentary shot from the inside of the last Black Flag tour ever (the 1986 "In My Head" US tour.) Greg Ginn along with Henry Rollins, Cel Revulta, and Anthony Martinez comprise the final line up of the band. Featuring behind the scenes proceedings and live performances from Black Flag, Painted Willie, and Gone (Ginn's side project, then featuring Sim Cain and Andrew Weiss (later of the Rollins Band) . David Markey was along for the entire trip as the drummer / singer for Painted Willie (with Phil Newman & Vic Makauskas), documenting the six month tour with his Super-8 camera as it happened. Also features roadie Joe ("Planet Joe") Cole, soundmen Davo Claasen and Dave "Ratman" Levine, and the tour manager who kept it all together, Mitch Bury. A crucial turning point in American underground rock. The end of the line for a trail blazing American band.

HOWL

Decent indie movie about Ginsberg and the Howl trial.

For fans of the Beats. Not sure if you'll enjoy this if you're not.

Check out the official page here and the trailer below.