Lower East Chinese Side + DUMBO Brooklyn – photos
April 9th, 2012 by Mr. C
You can take my idaho potatoes, oranges, and bean sprouts but you cannot have my cart! – Chatham Square, Chinatown
who needs polo on horseback – fuggetaboutit!! – Sarah D Roosevelt Park
DUMBO (Down Under the Manhattan Bride Overpass) – Brooklyn
(all photos by mr c)
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Adventures of an Autograph Hound
April 7th, 2012 by chocko
Eric Erlandson, Patty Schemel and Melissa Auf der Maur made an appearance at Barnes & Noble in Union Square to promote Eric’s new book titled “Letters To Kurt” on the death anniversary of his friend, Kurt Cobain. Eric read some of his emotional letters, which actually read like ‘stream of consciousness’ poetry. His former Hole bandmates, Patty and Melissa also shared their thoughts about the loss of their friend and music icon. Eric and Melissa also performed some songs including “Seasons In The Sun,” a song Nirvana covered during their last tour. Eric considered it Kurt’s “swan song.” They ended the night with a cover of The Smiths song, “Paint A Vulgar Picture.” Pretty heavy stuff for a Thursday night! Be sure to check out Patty’s upcoming documentary about being in Hole. “Hit So Hard” starts at the Cinema Village in NYC on April 13. Melissa Auf der Maur recently opened an art space, Basilica Hudson in Hudson, New York. Check them out for upcoming events!
Tommy Ramone, the only living original member of the legendary punk band, THE RAMONES stopped by Barnes & Noble in Tribeca recently along with Linda Ramone (Johhny Ramone’s wife) and John Cafiero (director of documentary Ramones Raw) to sign the Johnny Ramone autobiography, Commando. There was a big turnout and it was good to see that people still care about a band that helped pave the way for punk, new wave and alternative bands. Tommy signed lots of Ramones memorabilia including my highly coveted “Rocket To Russia” album. Tommy is currently in a band, Uncle Monk whose music is rooted in old-timey bluegrass music.
Nicki Minaj at the Best Buy in Harlem…getting her new CD, Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded autographed was a major ordeal. First, I had to get up early for the 8AM wristband pickup and had to move my hovercraft in two different spots to avoid parking tickets. Then, I had to go back to the store at 4pm to line up for the 6pm signing. The diva from outer space was an hour late but it was all worth it. I killed a lot of time in Harlem, shopping at Hue-man Bookstore (2319 Frederick Douglass Blvd), wandering the streets for bootleg blaxploitation movies on 125th St and eating at soul food spots such as Jacob Restaurant on Lenox Ave. They have an excellent buffet there but don’t pile your plate too high because there’s so many places to eat in Harlem. I also ate at Patsy’s for the first time. They’ve been located at 2287 First Ave (between 117th and 118th St) for 75 years and I could just kick myself for not checking them out sooner. It was the best pizza I’ve had since going to Rome a couple months ago. Thin slices, crispy crust. No joke…gotta go back soon!
Stephin Merritt (The Magnetic Fields) at the signing table after his recent appearance with Emma Straub (author of The Other People We Married) at the Barnes & Noble in Union Square. Stephin performed a couple songs with his ukulele including “Andrew In Drag,” “Your Girlfriend’s Face,” “This Little Ukulele” and “The Book of Love.” Stephin signed anything you brought at the table but weirdly did not want to personalize anything. He told me that without personalization, my CD was now worth 5 times more if I sold it at Academy Records. Funny dude! Check out Love At The Bottom of The Sea the new album by the Magnetic Fields. It’s their first album on Merge Records since 1999’s 69 Love Songs. Go get it!
Jennifer Hudson showed up at a Barnes & Noble in midtown a couple months ago to promote “I Got This: How I Changed My Ways and Lost What Weighed Me Down,” her encouraging book about weight loss. Jennifer dropped 80 pounds and is looking good. Security at the event was super strict about taking photos. Chocko went into ninja-mode and took the photo anyway. Jennifer was more than happy to sign CDs too.
Overkill, the old school thrash metal band from New Jersey made a stop at Vintage Vinyl in Fords, NJ to promote and sign their new album, The Electric Age. Despite the middle finger salutes (they might have disapproved of me bringing a bootleg to the table), the dudes are quite friendly and have a dedicated fan base that showed up in great numbers. Pictured clockwise from the top left corner: Bobby “Blitz” Ellworth (vocals), D.D. Verni (bass), Rob Lipnicki (drums), and Derek “The Skull” Tailer (rhythm guitar). Pick up the new album-guaranteed quality whiplash-inducing head banging music! Check ’em out live at The Killfest 2012 Tour with God Forbid, Diamond Plate and Sudkara!
Tags: eric erlandson, jennifer hudson, melissa auf der maur, nicki minaj, overkill, patty schemel, ramones, signings, stephin meritt, tommy ramone
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DJ Premier & Bumpy Knuckles played Highline Ballroom
April 2nd, 2012 by chocko
Last Monday DJ Premier and Freddie Foxxx (aka Bumpy Knuckles) tore the roof off Highline Ballroom in celebration Bumpy’s birthday and also the release of Kolexxxion, a new album featuring Foxxx on the microphone and Premier on the beats. The night started with DJ Technician from The Bronx spinning new and classic tracks. He announced that there was a Wu-Block album coming out soon that features Ghostface Killah of Wu-Tang Clan and Sheek Louch of D-Block.
DJ Premier emerged behind the turntables and early in the night was surrounded by some Legendary Hip Hop Pioneers: Grandmaster Flash and DJ Kool Herc. If you don’t know who those two guys are, you need to do your homework! Herc got on the mic later on to drop some knowledge and to also mention his favorite MC’s: Nas, KRS-ONE and Jadakiss! Flavor FLav of Public Enemy was the host of the evening’s festivities and flew in from Las Vegas where he recently opened up a fried chicken restaurant. Don’t worry people of the tri-state area…Flav’s got a chicken joint planned to open soon in New York City. He did an excellent job hosting the show and started the night with “911 Is A Joke” from the Public Enemy album, Fear Of A Black Planet. Rock Out With Your Clock Out!
Preemo affiliates and longtime members of the Gang Starr Foundation, NYG’z (Panchi and Shabeeno) performed “Same Team No Games” along with H. Stax. Sweet Tee, a female rapper from the 1980’s came out of the woodwork and got the crowd pumped with a performance of “It’s My Beat” instantly bringing the crowd back to the days when they blasted Sweet Tee from the back of their Jettas. Brooklyn’s Shawn Pen, who used to go by the name Little Shawn, also did some songs. Anyone remember him? He had a 1992 new jack swing hit titled “Hickeys On Your Chest” and rhymed with Notorious B.I.G. on the track “Dom Perignon.”
Bumpy was getting antsy to rock and came out growling on the track “The Key” from his newest album, Kolexxxion. He paced the stage in a pointy, black hoodie and was surrounded by a posse that included Eric B. Props to that dude…the albums he’s worked on especially Paid In Full were game changers. Throughout the night, many more artists including Lord Finesse (pictured), Pete Rock, and Kid Capri stopped by to get on the microphone for a few words and to wish Bumpy a happy birthday.
Bumpy not only let the DJs get some shine, but he also brought out his heroes growing up-The Cold Crush Brothers! The Cold Crush are a legendary crew from the Bronx that Bumpy emulated early on, in particular the Captain of the Cold Crush, Grand Master Caz. After Bumpy set it off with a song paying homage to the art form, Cold Crush countered with a quick song with their signature powerhouse rhymes.
O.C. from the Diggin’ In The Crates Crew (D.I.T.C.) came out and performed “M.U.G. (Money Under Ground)” with Bumpy which is a track off of O.C.’s 1997 second album Jewelz. O.C. then proceeded with a special request-his 1994 classic and most well known track, “Time’s Up.”
Big Shug, also a member of the Gang Starr Foundation, performed “Militia” with Bumpy. Guru’s verses played through the speakers while live footage of the Gang Starr MC was projected on a huge screen in back of the stage. It was a bittersweet moment of the night. R.I.P. Guru.
The party then continued with M.O.P. performing a few songs including the crowd-moving “Ante Up” and “My Kind Of Nigga” with Heather B. Treach was pretty visible throughout the night, but once Vin Rock emerged there was no question…Naughty By Nature was in the house. Some of Jersey’s grimiest and finest performed a quick set of jams including “Uptown Anthem” and “I Gotta Lotta.” Bumpy ended the night with another track off Kolexxxion titled “The Gang Starr Bus.” Peace to Premier on the 1’s and 2’s. Check out some videos below!
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“911 IS A JOKE” by FLAVOR FLAV
“M.U.G.” by Bumpy Knuckles and O.C. and “Time’s Up” by O.C.
“My Kind of Nigga” by M.O.P. + Heather B.
“Uptown Anthem” and “I Gotta Lotta” by NAUGHTY BY NATURE
Tags: bumpy knuckles, concert, dj premier, freddie foxxx, highline ballroom, new york city, nyc, review, show
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Grimes played The Church
March 26th, 2012 by chocko
Montreal’s Claire Boucher aka Grimes played a show in the basement of the First Unitarian Church in Philadelphia last Thursday in support of her 3rd album titled Visions which is a totally fun record if you like catchy, haunting cyborg electro-pop. I don’t normally make the roughly 2 hour trek to Philly but I just had to go. And plus, all her shows in NYC were sold out and I couldn’t get tickets to those shows. Throw in some Philly cheese steaks (shout out to Jim’s Steaks on South Street!) and some record shopping (Repo Records and Long In The Tooth) for the win!
Born Gold (formerly Gobble Gobble), another Canadian electro-export opened up for Grimes and made it through their set despite early audio problems. Their set was like a lo-fi Depeche Mode meets Tron. The lead singer’s jacket was fully equipped with flashing lights and colorful buttons that lit up the otherwise dark stage. The other two members of the band took part in the theatrics by jumping into the audience with strobe lights and another time with stilts while playing an instrument that looked like it was made from an old snow shovel. There was also some wacky choreography involving blinking decorative fans and creepy masks.
Grimes arrived and made a disclaimer to those in attendance in the basement that she had been sick and her voice was messed up. I don’t think the hyper-excited crowd would have even noticed that she wasn’t quite hitting those falsettos which sound so effortless on the albums. Grimes stood between two tables of all sorts of little drum machines, pedals and a keyboard…pushing buttons and singing into a microphone, often wincing at her attempt at the high notes. Her singles “Genesis” and “Oblivion” got the biggest response from the Philly crowd that never stopped dancing once the music started. Grimes was accompanied by members of Born Gold for most of her set that included a good amount of songs from the new LP which is heavy on synthesizers, loops and electronic samples. The album is a beautiful and intriguing schizophrenic mix of mostly upbeat songs with influences from 80’s club music and new wave to modern R&B. I can’t recommend it enough. The show was awesome and left the sweaty mess of a crowd wanting more. The basement took a while to empty out and it looked like a water pipe burst and a garbage can exploded up in there. Grimey Grimes is da real deal!
Tags: concert, grimes, live, philadelphia, philly, review, show, the church
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MANDRILL (2009)
March 21st, 2012 by Mr. C
Director: Ernesto Diaz Espinoza
Fight Choreographer: Marko Zaror
Stars: Marko Zaror, Celine Reymond, Alejandro Castillo, Luis Alarcon, Juan Pablo Aliaga, Miguel Angel De Luca, John Francis Meany
Genre: Martial Arts/action/thriller
Mandrill is a fun filled martial arts – action flick set in Atlantic City – Lima, Peru directed by Ernesto Diaz Espinoza from Chile. I think all old school kung fu/karate/action film fan hobbits would appreciate this one! The film feels and flows with a 1970’s like vibe, but the background and dress would make us believe it’s from the current times. Although our protagonists and antagonists threw us off by inserting a cassette tape into their BMW 540 car stereo! I’ll compromise and say modern times with a 1980’s spirit!
Marko Zaror, the fight choreographer and lead actor in this film is one big-badazz mutha that showcases his kicks and flips being almost as nimble as Jackie Chan despite his large size. His spinning somersaults and backflips usually has a deadly end result with a footprint being engraved onto someones face!
Mandrill (Marko Zaror) plays a rico-suave hitman who is focused on getting revenge on the person that murdered his parents when he was a child as he witnessed the whole ordeal unfold before him while hiding in the bedroom closet. Now trained as an assassin himself while idolizing the great TV show personality – John Colt (James Bond wannabe), Mandrill would meet formidable mob bosses like Waldo and other hitmen such as Felipe Wasca before finding out that Cyclops would be the man responsible for his parents’ death!
You kind of want to hate on Mandrill’s mr. smooth persona but you know underneath it all, he’s just a deadly nerd looking to get blood in the name of his parents! In the end, you really do care about the character that he portrays and the love that he has for this certain lady. But enough with the sappy stuff and onto the fights!! The choreography of the fight scenes looked very appealing to the eye with great technical execution by very skilled combatants led by Marko!
Fight #1 : Takes place in a bathhouse/jacuzzi as Mandrill dispatches 2 goons with one swift backflip turned kick that immobilizes both of his opponents in one shot! Really brief but neat sequence! This scene will show that Marko Zaror has the goods!
Fight #2 : vs Wasca . Not a great fight but Mandrill still displays awesome technique. He lashes out some quick spinning back kicks and back fists. Atlantic City in Lima, Peru will have a big shoutout in this scene!
Fight #3: Mandrill quickly dispatches 3 easy opponents en route to the villains home, but the one on one rumble in the garage is a tough opponent! Zaror shows his long range fighting techniques with nice footwork, kicks, & boxing techniques while eventually closing the gap into a takedown, then joint locks before finishing the deal with a choke! Really nice choreographed fight!
Fight #4: While in the apartment, he dispatches a few easy foes with one swift signature backflip turned into a knockout kick!
Fight #5: A neat but quick barrage sequence in a stairwell that has Mandrill all fired up and of course finishes off an opponent with an aerial – body twisting somersault with that crazy kick of his!
Fight #6: vs a Goliath bodyguard. Mandrill’s opponent is a strong, gigantor, but the fight itself was very sloppy on the Goliath’s part. Mandrill was finally able to get the beast with a choke out and an armbar.
Fight #7: vs the 3 amigos was my favorite fight sequence in the film! The 3 all take their turns offering a nice beatdown for Mandrill. The trio combined their aerial assault with a hybrid half-capoeira/half-karate standup style. The 3 amigos didn’t have the rhythm that you normally would see fom Capoeira fighters but they had some awesome looking aerial techniques of their own in a more direct way without the indigenous brazillian one-two step! Mandrill closes the gap by taking the fight to the ground as armbars, takedowns, and that twirling flip kick he does puts the icing on the face!
If you appreciate well designed, thumping martial arts action in a B-movie setting then this film is for you, my friends! The stylish slow motion, stop & go camera techniques executed during the moment of impact in the fight scenes enhanced the art of the kill! Say Hella yes to John Colt and Mandrill!
Tags: chile, mandrill, marko zaror
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Zigtebra, Joey Molinaro, Dead//Beat and Cauldron played ABC No Rio
March 20th, 2012 by chocko
(from top to bottom: Zigtebra, Joey Molinaro, Dead//Beat and Cauldron)
Last Saturday, Chocko bum rushed the lower east side to see what was going on at ABC No Rio, the “collectively run center for art and activism.” Most Saturday afternoons, they hold a hardcore matinee where you can check out a bunch of punk bands for $7. ABC’s been around since 1980 and not only do they have punk shows, but there’s a dark room, a print shop, computer lab and a ‘zine library in there too. The last couple of years, the collective’s been accepting donations which will go towards the demolition of the old building and construction of a new art space.
The first band Chocko checked out in the dark gallery was Zigtebra, a girl and boy duo from Chicago. They kept the sound to the basics: guitars and drums, and sang loud, quirky songs. Sometimes they made animal sounds and howled like in their song “We Dogs.” Next up, was NYC’s Joey Molinaro who played the violin like he was in a metal band…rocking riffs and solos. His foot stomps provided the percussion and it was pretty intense. I’m not sure how much of that I can listen to until I flip a table, but Joey kept his set nice and short. Brooklyn’s DEAD//BEAT brought the punk rock fury to the show. I was definitely feeling their set of short, old school punk songs and if I was a little younger, my carcass would’ve started a mosh pit up in there. DEAD//BEAT released a killer demo last year and an EP titled “Tremors.” Cauldron (not the Canadian heavy metal band) played last. The trio of punk dudes played so loud or the mix was all messed up…I couldn’t make out any of the vocals. I’ll have to check ’em out again next time along with the band I missed, Columba Fasciata. A bunch of folk punk bands are playing next Saturday including Ghost Mice (Indiana) and Absinthe Rose (Boston). See you in da pit!
Dead//Beat at ABC No Rio
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Tags: abc no rio, cauldron, dead//beat, joey molinaro, punk, zigtebra
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THE RAID — REDEMPTION (2011)
March 18th, 2012 by Mr. C
Director: Gareth Evans
Stars: Iko Uwais,Joe Taslim,Donny Alamsyah,Yayan Ruhian,Pierre Gruno,Tegar Setrya,Ray Sahetapy
Genre: modern action
“Fatality” – “Finish him!” – “aDamn” – “Yeaaah” as well as other rebel yells, and hand clapping filled the theater at Cinema Village last Wednesday with the screening of Indonesian film, THE RAID with the director – Gareth Evans in tow for a quick Q&A after the film! Thank you Fangoria for making this a free event for us action freaks! We came in strong with our own little Paul Bunyon-lumberjack film gang including the three headed Planet Chocko, Unseen Films with DB and Mondo Curry, and the filipino Kwai Chang Caine – The Wandering Asian. We even met Rufus from cineAWESOME – the rad dudes that hosted the 2012 Korean Blogathon. It was a nice celebratory way to soak in this much anticipated 2nd cinematic, martial art effort from this director. Gareth Evans’ first film – MERANTAU – which featured the debut of Iko Uwais who wonderfully displayed the Indonesian fighting arts of Pencak Silat in a more traditional way. Iko would return again in The Raid to showcase Silat in a non traditional, no nonsense short range combat filled movements which instituted quick immobilizing strikes with throws, takedowns, and joint locks added to the violent menu. You will also see one of the specialties of Silat — weapons especially the 1001 ways to slice, dice, and ginsu an opponent going straight towards the vitals to incapacitate and add to the kill list! Suffice to say, the martial arts choreography, the action, the stunts were R-A-W, gruesome, and unique which made it all the much more fun as manifested through with the audience reactions at Cinema Village! The bad ass villain in the story played by the character, Mad Dog (Yayan Ruhian – actor not the character) was also in Merantau. Yayan was in that off the chain fight scene in the elevator for all those that watched it. Yayan Ruhian (Mad Dog) came back again in The Raid as a bad azz, diminutive mofo! Donnie Yen, you better watch the EFFF out! I think a new sheriff is in town!
The following is just a quick rundown of the film with no spoilers whatsoever of what little plot there was anyway. The dialogue is minimal and the bodycount is high – just the way we like it! The Indonesian Swat team is called upon to Raid a low income/tenement building – home to a flip-flop wearing thug of twisted proportions & his urban puppets armed with Uzis, hammers, knives, & of course – empty handed martial art goodness! Up and down the floors they go, but who’s chasing who!? That’s all the information from the film I’m going to divulge! Go see The Raid: Redemption, y’all! We are definitely in for take 2 of this film on a massive screen! I can’t wait for this film to get released on blu-ray! I so want to see the outtakes and the behind the scenes footage!
By the way, the Linkin Park influenced (Mike Shinoda) soundtrack from the film was also a nice way to amp up the adrenaline!
(footage of the Q&A with Director: Gareth Evans – vid by chocko)
Tags: gareth evans, Iko Uwais, indonesian film, Pencak Silat
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Razika played The Glasslands Gallery
March 13th, 2012 by chocko
I got to the show last night at Glasslands in Williamsburg, Brooklyn a little late and a tad shook up, thanks to the wacko walking in the middle lane of the FDR in a black hoodie and backpack. I know the sidewalks can get a little crowded at times, but c’mon now. I caught the last couple songs by Belgium’s Balthazar. Their song “Blood Like Wine” was catchy and got my head bobbing, but ultimately the song went on for too long. The next band, Landlady featured the lead singer, Adam Schatz of the band Previously On Lost. I did enjoy the story of how the lead singer tripped and gashed his chin, requiring stitches to sew up the bloody mess. He offered to show the stitched up wound if you bought some merch.
Shortly after the DJs (Tanlines) dropped some Ace of Base, UB40, General Public and English Beat on the late night dancing crowd, Razika took to the stage. Razika is a young, all girl band from Norway who play upbeat and sweet ska-pop that will move your feet! Their youthful take on songs of heartache and love got the midnight marauders of Williamsburg pumped up. They sang a perfect balance of songs in English and Norwegian. They opened up their set with the catchy “Hvem Skal Tro På Deg Nå.” They also played a staple in their set, “Why Have We To Wait” which is a cover from the 1960’s Norwegian pop band, The Pussycats which features a bouncy retro vibe found in most of Razika’s songs. Some of my favorite songs in their set was the Specials influenced ska tune “Nytt Pa Nytt” and the poppy and optimistic “Taste My Dreams.” They closed the night with the crowd favorite “Vondt i hjertet.” Their album is titled “Program 91” and it is on the label Smalltown Supertown. Next up for Razika: head out west to perform 7 shows in 3 days at SXSW in Austin, TX and then off to Japan for a bunch of shows!
Tags: brooklyn, glasslands, new york city, nyc norwegian band, razika, show, the glasslands gallery
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Bowery Graffiti and Street Art
March 13th, 2012 by chocko
Chocko was hovering around the Bowery last week and noticed some changes in the scenery. It was a surprise to see the completed RETNA mural on the corner of Bowery and Houston Street. At first look, it appears to be ancient script or Hieroglyphics-meets-gang-graffiti in dripping red and blue paint. What does it all mean? There must be a some sort of Rosetta Stone for RETNA’s old world calligraphy-graff but until then, I will visit the Bowery’s newest installation for the next few months, stand in front while scratching my head…attempting to crack the code.
Take a short walk from RETNA’s enigmatic wall to the former Germania Bank Building on the corner of Bowery and Spring Street and you will discover plenty of graffiti, stickers, and art within the ever changing urban landscape. The exterior of 190 Bowery always features something, but it looks like the weather beaten wheatpasted walls could use a little sprucing up. I did find the tiny hummingbird mosaics very interesting.
Finally, a shout out and R.I.P. to Billy’s Antiques & Props whose green tent has been a fixture on the Bowery for more than two decades. Where else can you buy a stuffed coyote, some Ramones records, a glass eye and an old NYC subway sign? The store has been closed and the tent has recently been dismantled and all that is left are the skeletal remains of the structure painted blood red. A building will take the place of the former antique site and Billy’s will be back, but it just won’t be the same.
Tags: billy's antiques, bowery, graffiti, houston street, mural, new york city, nyc, retna, street art
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Red Horse played William Paterson University (Shea Center for Performing Arts)
March 13th, 2012 by Mr. C
(John Gorka,Eliza Gilkyson,Lucy Kaplansky – photo by chocko)
The folk trio of Lucy Kaplansky, John Gorka, and Eliza Gilkyson better known as Red Horse folked the freak out of NJ with their wonderful harmonies when they played at William Paterson University (Shea Center for Performing Arts) last Saturday. As Red Horse, each band member performed songs of their choice written by the other two artists as well as belting out a tune or two of their own original music along with other classics! While one sings, the other band members provided backup with their acoustic guitars & dynamic harmonies. As individual performers, they each have their own unique and magical sound. Lucy has a smooth, medium-high angelic voice tinted with a bit of country. Her impeccable rhythm on the guitar and piano scores add emotional layers to her songs of love and loss. What to say about John Gorka? When John speaks, he seems to be of the soft spoken , yet outgoing garden variety type with a speech flow that can sometimes be described as quirky. However, when Gorka opens his mouth to sing — wow!, out came a very rich, resonating voice with a knock’em out-sock’em out of the ball park baritone of goodness! His guitar playing is also very smooth and precise as he works those frets like its his last. Eliza Gilkyson on the other hand has a soulful-eclectic vibe to her folk tunes that invoked emotions of unity, righteousness, love, & americana. Her delivery really made her performances standout. I thought she really hit the nail on the cowboy coffin when she opened up with Neil Young’s, “I am a child”. Another one of my favorite depressing love tunes of the night was performed by Eliza when she sang Lucy Kaplansky’s – “Promise Me”. Her soulful-raspy version knocked my socks off and I felt I should of been lamenting the ballad with a swig of whiskey.
One of the more uplifting songs of the set and also one of Chocko’s favorite of the night was “Sanctuary” written by Gilkyson – performed beautifully by Lucy Kaplansky on the piano. It was a very inspirational piece! Thanks Lucy!
Buggy, a Planet Chocko contributor from the past seemed like she was really enjoying the tunes of “Scorpion” by Kaplansky. We could tell because Buggy was playing the acoustic air guitar while mastering those seamless ghost chord transitions!
(photo by chocko)
Red Horse performed all the songs from their self-titled album with a few goodies added to the list such as the catchy “Slouching towards Bethlehem” by Eliza Gilkyson, Lucy Kaplansky with her “Ten Year Night”, and John Gorka with “Down in Milltown” a song about his hometown of Bethlehem, PA. A rally cry of gospel filled the air thanking the Lord when Red Horse rode out into the Jersey night singing Curtis Mayfield’s – “People Get Ready.”
Individually, the Red Horse artists are amazing but, the collaboration of the three are truly something else. I enjoyed listening to the different renditions of the original songs which really made some of these old tunes seem new again almost invoking a different type of emotion and feel. If you get a chance to see any of these performers live, either solo or via this super-folk trio known as Red Horse – do it!
Lucy Kaplansky – http://www.lucykaplansky.com/2004/site.html
John Gorka – http://johngorka.com/
Eliza Gilkyson – http://www.elizagilkyson.com/
Buy RED HORSE on Amazon!
(photo by mr. c)
Tags: eliza gilkyson, folk, john gorka, lucy kaplansky, red horse
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TIGRESSES (1977) – Korean Blogathon edition
March 9th, 2012 by Mr. C
Director: Chan Lit-Ban
Stars: Shang Kwan Lin Fong,Gam Ching-Lan,Kin Young-In, Kuen Yat-Chui, Chui Sing-Gwai, Chui Joi-Giu, Chiu Shing-Gau, Gam Chi-Ying, Chiu Chun, Lam Hoi-Lam, Chui Fung, Hung Wan Ching, Kim Wang-Kuk.
Genre: martial arts-revenge
Another fun South Korean produced old school martial arts flick is coming at ya’ with a deadly kickass chick leading the way who happens to be chinese!? Yes, Polly Shang Kwan plays the leading role as femme fatale in Tigresses looking to get her sweet revenge on the Great Lord of Korea that ambushed her whole family in order to take that prestigious title of King. The plot is your typical revenge story with some pretty snazzy kung fu choreography for 1977 infused with some acrobatics that reminded me of a cross between peking opera and shaw brothers style rolling-ground fighting sequences! There is also some very neat magical powers added to the high flying wu-xia/kung fu hotpot to some of the characters in the movie to make it more mystical with the likes of the invisible man, the fire breathing specialist, and the master of hypnotics!
A non spoiling synopsis of the film follows: two sisters will get separated at a young age when their royal family gets slaughtered. One of the two siblings will develop into the character of the Black Leopard (Polly Shang Kwan) when she gets adopted into the Shaolin Temple while the other sister’s status is unknown until she slowly unravels herself into the shabu-shabu of revenge as well! The Black Leopard is draped in ninja like wear as she stalks the Great Lord’s guards one by one attempting to pick them off one at a time like a kung fu sniper. She moves like the wind while executing her Tiger-Crane techniques sometimes adding the immobilizing thrusts of the snake as well! The Black Leopard can also emit vapors and smoke from her hand. The fun comes in when she battles her superhuman opponents like the invisible man, the fire breathing – weapons expert, & the master of disaster – the hypnotist! Oh, and don’t forget, her long lost sister resurfaces, too!
I had a blast watching this movie. I was expecting basher style fight scenes but instead was pleasantly surprised with some of the crispness in the martial arts choreography. I also loved how some of the fight sequences were filmed with the camera panned out to enable the viewer to capture the entire flow and movements of the struggle while also allowing the viewer to appreciate the vastness of the beautiful geography while blood was being shed in the foreground! Very beautiful, y’all!
Watch Tigresses! It’s a soul to Seoul-wall to wall foray of insane old school action!
Tags: korean blogathon, korean blogathon 2012
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THE ARMLESS SWORDSMAN (1969) : Korean Blogathon edition
March 7th, 2012 by Mr. C
Director: Lim Won-Sick
Stars: O Yeong-Il, Kim Ji-Su, Kim Chang-Sook, Choi Gyeong-Ok
Genre: period piece martial arts
Talk about “Love Will Tear Us Apart” – literally! — which is the theme of the Japan Society’s most recent and ongoing film series mingling Japanese and Korean movie titles about Love that manifests itself in a more twisted and tainted form!
The Armless Swordsman might very well fit into this category barring the 1969 korean production which might stop the hip and modern folk from attending this type of screening. The Armless one is a classic revenge flick involving insecurities, love, swordsmanship, honor, and the will to survive! C’mon folks, the Swordsman is armless and here he is slicing and dicing, slashing and prancing as he wields his sword between his mouth with revenge in his eyes! Adding insult to injury or death to his naysayers blessed with limbs, he will use his foot to throw darts and knives to maim his opponents, a true meaning of by any means necessary!
Here’s a quick backdrop of the story without giving out spoilers to ruin the film: a young and handsome swordsman (Kim Chang-Sook) is madly in love with his teachers daughter and the feelings are mutual. However, the senior student (Choi Gyeong-Ok) of the master has been promised her hand in marriage and rage ensues when he finds out the young gunner and the masters daughter have other ideas. A confrontation between the two will leave the young jedi with two less arms. Forget about the One armed Swordsman or the Blind Swordsman, but an Armless Swordsman!! From here on out, I’m sure the viewers can imagine what the storyline will be. Our Armless vigilante will take refuge in the mountains as he recovers, thanks to a young lady and her grandfather. Here is where the limbless one will take on secret techniques of swordsmanship, throwing knives, and the art of high flying wu-xia in walk on water fashion! Mind you, the choreography and effects of this film is circa 1969 so be open minded in what to expect in this era as this rare and raw motion picture will tug at you in the limbless genre of martial art movies like the One Armed Swordsman! We have seen the One Armed Swordsman vs Zatoichi-the Blindswordsman but have they done the Armless Swordsman vs any one of the above? Hmmmm!!
Tags: korean blogathon, korean blogathon 2012
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