SOUNDTRACK SHELF #09

Posted on July 2, 2012 by bret

It’s obvious to anyone who checks this space regularly that I’ve been absent for a handful of months — here’s the podcast I did for my theater, The Cinefamily, back in April. I just finished Episode #10, but I’ll post that here in the next few days. Episode #09 was recorded under the heavy influence of Andrzej Zulawski, the mad Polish film genius whose soundtracks are just as bloody, sumptuous and frenetic as the music contained here.

DOWNLOAD: Soundtrack Shelf Podcast: #09, April 2012! (MP3)

Playlist:
Welcome To L.A. – The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter (Richard Baskin)
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Stridulum aka The Visitor – Stridulum Theme (Franco Micalizzi)
Stridulum aka The Visitor – Hospital Sequence (Franco Micalizzi)
Stridulum aka The Visitor – Jerzy Again (Franco Micalizzi)
Stridulum aka The Visitor – Atmosphere (Franco Micalizzi)
Stridulum aka The Visitor – Stridulum Theme #2 (Franco Micalizzi)
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Blue Jeans – Blue Jeans (Nico Fidenco)
Belladonna of Sadmess – Take It Easy (Masahiko Sato)
The Naked Ape – The Elephant Hunt (Jimmy Webb)
Madeline, Story of a Nightmare – Ipnosi (Maurizio Vandelli)
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L’Amour Braque – Prologue (Stanislas Syrewicz)
L’Amour Braque – Epilogue: Où Tu Voudras, Quand Tu Voudras (Stanislas Syrewicz)
The Important Thing Is To Love – Love Theme (Georges Delerue)
My Nights Are More Beautiful Than Your Days – Opening Credits (Andrzej Korzynski)
La Femme Publique – Générique Début: Version Longue (Alain Wisniak)
La Femme Publique – Ethel’s Tango (Alain Wisniak)
Possession – Opening Credits (Andrzej Korzynski)
Szamanka – End Credits (Andrzej Korzynski)
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On The Silver Globe – End Credits (Andrzej Korzynski)

Posted in Podcasts | 736 Comments

ISABELLE ADJANI

Posted on April 9, 2012 by bret

ISABELLE ADJANI – “PULL MARINE” (1983)

Everyone close to me is now thankfully obsessed with Possession, the shamanic and completely unique 1981 horror film about divorce starring Sam Neill and Isabelle Adjani. This is a “holy fucking shit!” kind of film experience which I’ve been waiting to lay on my friend base for ages now; it was written and directed by the incredible, unmistakable Andrzej Zulawski, the Polish filmmaker whose work has unfortunately barely made a dent in the U.S., but enjoys a solidly insane reputation in Europe and elsewhere.

My theater (The Cinefamily) just concluded a full retrospective of Zulawski’s films, and the retro included a week-long run of the brand-new 35mm print of Possession. This was the one film series which we’ve wanted to do since we opened in 2007 — and in March 2012, we finally got our wish.

Since she appeared on the film scene in the ’70s, Adjani has always been viewed as a (ahem!) peculiar personality, and “Pull Marine”, which appeared in 1983, was her lone skewed foray into the world of pop music. Anchored by a titular hit single written by Serge Gainsbourg, the album was a million-seller in France, and is a terrific ride through the Gallic pop funhouse. Adjani’s voice is one that perks up your ears: it’s impassioned, anxiety-laden, and makes you feel like she could deliver a soft punt to your throat at any time. Doesn’t sound punky, or violent — just on the edge of a sublime breakdown.

The music video for “Pull Marine” is an amazing object all its own, filled with bugged-out imagery that looks ripped straight out of a Zulawski film!

Isabelle Adjani – “Pull Marine” LP (ZIP file)

Posted in Album Sharity | 828 Comments

THE LINKS

Posted on February 6, 2012 by bret

THE LINKS – “AND AGAIN ONCE AGAIN THE LINKS” (197?)

I was just hipped to this one by a good friend a few days ago — and it is one wonderfully ridiculous piece of work that’s been making the blogosphere rounds over the last few months. In the incarnation pictured on this album cover, the Links were a lounge act featuring a brother duo plus a third dude — they had several albums during the first half of the ’70s (the LP covers of which you can take a gander at here.

Here on this album, their covers of MOR radio hits of the day are (ahem) HIGH OCTANE, to say the least. On a handful of these tracks, all nuances of vocal phrasing and instrumental arrangements of the originals are completely swept away, in favor of wildly galloping weirdness that sounds like a glee club doused with PCP.

The true winner on this record is their cover of “Vehicle”, originally by The Ides of March (already a stridently ridiculous song to begin with). The Links’ version is a slap-happy mish-mosh of baritone auctioneer vocals, garage rock tropes and dizzying organ runs that veer into out-of-control warped-vinyl territory. A strong second reason to jam this into your ears this instant is their take on “I Can See Clearly Now”, which recalls the Buzzcocks at their most jittery!

Nowadays, The Links consists of one of the guys, plus his wife, plus [once again!] a third member form an outside party. According to their own website, “You will find Mary & Diana performing regularly as The Links Duo in the senior market in the independent and assisted living facilities in Omaha, Lincoln and surrounding areas…But wait…. There’s more! Mary and Diana along with Jimmy as “The Trio” perform regularly for Nostalgia Wednesdays at Anthony’s Steakhouse in the Ozone, often with special guests.”

The Links – “And Again Once Again The Links” LP (ZIP file)

Posted in Album Sharity | 2,065 Comments

SOUNDTRACK SHELF PODCAST #08: Flamma-Jamma!

Posted on January 16, 2012 by bret

It’s been some weeks now, but it was time to put together another soundtrack mixtape for ya. A significant number of tracks this time around come straight from audio rips of the films themselves, as many of the movies in question have never had official soundtrack releases!

DOWNLOAD: Soundtrack Shelf Podcast: #08, first of 2012! (MP3)

Playlist:
My Boys Are Good Boys – My Boys Are Good Boys (Dorsey Burnette)
Sextette – Love Will Keep us Together (Mae West & Timothy Dalton)
The Squeeze – Opening Credits (David Hentschel)
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Soldier of Orange – Title Theme (Rogier van Otterloo)
The Kingdom – Opening Theme (Joachim Holbek)
The Heart of the World – Time, Forward! (Georgy Sviridov)
Hugo The Hippo – Zing Zong (Burt Keyes)
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Loose Shoes – Tight Pussy, New Shoes and A Warm Place To Shit (????)
30 Is A Dangerous Age, Cynthia – The Real Stuff (Dudley Moore)
Cocaine: One Man’s Seduction – End Credits (Brad Fiedel)
Murphy’s Law – Murphy’s Law (Kathleen Wilhoite)
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Police Academy 4: Citizens On Patrol – Citizens On Patrol (Michael Winslow & The L.A. Dream Team)
Weekend Pass – Weekend Pass (Joan Baer)
Escape From The Insane Asylum (aka Night of Terror) – End Credits (Rick Vartian)
Police Academy 4: Citizens On Patrol – Let’s Go To Heaven In My Car (Brian Wilson)
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Police Academy 6: City Under Siege – the worst rapping on Earth (Marion Ramsay, Bubba Smith & ????)
Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me – Questions In A World of Blue (Julee Cruise)
The Phantom of the Paradise – The Hell of It (Paul Williams)
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Human Highway – Hey Hey My My (Devo & Neil Young)

Posted in Film Writing, Podcasts | 804 Comments

SOUNDTRACK SHELF PODCAST #07: Another Dose of Horror!

Posted on November 22, 2011 by bret

Good god, six weeks between the last post and this one?!?! You should be ashamed of yourself!

We’ve been much busy here in the office with a gazillion different items, but we’ve finally coughed out the next episode of this show — a few weeks later, but better later than never. We went with the horror film theme again, basically because we wanted to.

DOWNLOAD: Soundtrack Shelf Podcast: #07 (MP3)

Playlist:
Inferno – Mater Tenebrarum (Keith Emerson)
Return of the Living Dead – Trioxin Theme (Francis Haines)
Dead Heat – End Credits Theme (Phil Settle)
Forbidden World aka Mutant – End Credits Theme (Susan Justin)
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Cat People – Leopard Tree Dream (Giorgio Moroder)
Conquest – Night Creatures (Claudio Simonetti)
Zombie – Sequence 2 (Fabio Frizzi)
Emanuelle And The Last Cannibals – The Dark Side of the Soul II (Nico Fidenco)
Anthrophophagus The Beast – Main Theme/Padre Snaturato (Marcello Giombini Leon)
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The Monster Club – Monsters Rule O.K. (The Viewers)
Terror On Tour – Forever Love (???)
Phantasm – End of the Game (Fred Myrow & Malcolm Seagrave)
Night Train To Terror – ??? aka Everybody But You (???)
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Nightbreed – Meat For The Beast (Danny Elfman)
Q: The Winged Serpent – End Credits Theme (Robert O. Raglund)
Bad Moon – Nepal (Daniel Licht)
Dawn of the Mummy – End Credits Theme (Shuki Levy)
Axe – Opening Credits Theme (George Newman Shaw & John Willhelm)
Nosferatu (1979) – Mantra I (Popol Vuh)
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The Sadist Has Red Teeth – ??? (Raymond LeGrande)
Necromania – ??? (Hubler/Schwab)
Shiver of the Vampires – Shiver of the Vampires (Acanthus)
Devil’s Nightmare – Demon Arise (Allesandro Allesandroni)
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Troll 2 – End Credits (Carlo Maria Cordio)

Posted in Podcasts | 2,952 Comments

SOUNDTRACK SHELF PODCAST #06: Horror Ahoy!

Posted on October 7, 2011 by bret

This horror-themed playlist is the first time that Bret and Nicolaou have collaborated together on an episode of the podcast — spot which tracks came from whom, and win a year’s supply of canned soup!

DOWNLOAD: Soundtrack Shelf Podcast: #06 (MP3)

Playlist:
Friday The 13th Part 3 – Disco Theme (Hot Ice)
The Fearless Vampire Killers – Main Title (Krzysztof Komeda)
The Black Cat – The Black Cat (Scotty McKay)
Shoobie Doobie Moon – You Make Me Feel Like A Monster (John Harrison)
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Sugar Hill – Supernatural Voodoo Woman (The Originals)
Shock – Tema Di Marco – Tema Di Marco II (Libra)
Tenebre – Slow Circus (Goblin)
The Blob (1958) – Beware of the Blob (Burt Bacharach)
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Gremlins – The Gremlins Rag (Jerry Goldsmith)
Howling II – Howling Theme (The London Theatre Orchestra)
Deadly Friend – B.B. (Charles Bernstein?)
The 12th Paris International Fantasy & Science Fiction Film Festival – Bloodnight (Yan Tregger)
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TerrorVision – Terrorvision (The Fibonaccis)
The Keep – Ancient Powerplant (Tangerine Dream)
The Dunwich Horror – Black Mass (Les Baxter)
Boardinghouse – Opening Theme (33 1/3? Kalassu? Teeth?)
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Fiend For Flesh – Coming Attraction
The Stuff – 2 commercials
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Trick Or Treat – Trick Or Treat (Fastway)
Hard Rock Zombies – Zombies Lure Ghouls (Paul Sabu)
Rocktober Blood – Killer On The Loose (Sorcery)
Rock ‘N Roll Nightmare – We Accept The Challenge (Jon Mikl Thor)
Dreamaniac – ?? (Tom Milano/Don Great)
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The Green Slime – The Green Slime (Richard Delvy)

Posted in Film Writing, Podcasts | 599 Comments

SOUNDTRACK SHELF Podcast #05

Posted on September 16, 2011 by bret

The Cinefamily’s Alex Nicolaou is back with another hour-plus set. KA-PLABBO! The Wings Hauser song from Vice Squad alone is worth the download here, let alone all the other cool stuff —

DOWNLOAD: Soundtrack Shelf Podcast: #05 (MP3)

Playlist:
Performance – Memo From Turner (Mick Jagger, Keith Richards / Guitar: Ry Cooder)
Who Dares Wins – Commando (Roy Budd)
Zoo Folle – Space And Freedom (Giuliano Sorgini)
Viva La Muerte – Ekkoleg (Grethe Agatz)
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Vice Squad – Neon Slime (Joe Renzetti / Vocals: Wings Hauser)
Sea Of Joy – Down To The Sea (Tully)
The 5000 Fingers of Dr. T – Do-Mi-Do Duds (Frederic Hollander / Lyrics: Dr. Seuss)
Brigade Mondaine – Phonic (Cerrone)
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Beyond The Valley Of The Dolls – Find It (Stu Phillips & Bob Stone / Voc: Lynn Carey)
Deliverance – Eight More Miles to Louisiana (Eric Weissberg & Marshall Brickman)
Last House On The Left – Wait For The Rain (David Hess)
A Boy And His Dog – A Boy And His Dog (Tim McIntire)
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Sweet Movie – Is There Life On The Earth (Manos Xatzidakis / Voc: Anne Lonnenberg)
Visa de Censure No. X – Novavana (Delired Cameleon Family [Clearlight])
La Cicatrice Intérieure – Abschied (Nico)
The Conformist – O.K. Bull (Georges Delerue)
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Codice D’Amore Orientale – Kamasutra (Alberto Baldan Bembo & Blue Marvin Orchestra)
The Wicker Man (1973) – Maypole (Paul Giovanni & Magnet)
A Zed And Two Noughts – Car Wash (Michael Nyman)
Cannibal Holocaust – Main Theme (Riz Ortolani)
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Percy – God’s Children (The Kinks)

Posted in Podcasts | 870 Comments

SOUNDTRACK SHELF Podcast #04: feat. guest DJ Nathaniel Thompson!

Posted on September 3, 2011 by bret

This episode, I’m joined by guest DJ Nathaniel Thompson — a longtime friend of the revival movie theater I program (the Cinefamily), a fantastic collector of soundtracks, and the man responsible for producing the 3-disc special edition DVD of Caligula (no kidding; he actually did that!)

Soundtrack Shelf Podcast: #04, feat. guest DJ Nathaniel Thompson (MP3)

Playlist:
Father Jackleg – Sounds and Voices (Guido & Maurizio De Angelis)
Looker – Theme from Looker (sung by Sue Saad)
Demons 2 – Sally’s Garage (Simon Boswell)
Tourist Trap – Dreamwake (Pino Donaggio)
Dear Parents – Meeting at Pub Swan #2 (Riz Ortolani)
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Score – Shake Tragico (Amadeo Tomassi)
Venus in Furs – Marco Polo (Syd Dale)
The Name of the Game Is Kill! – Theme for Love (Stu Phillips)
The People Next Door – Sweet Medusa (sung by Bead Game)
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The Garbage Pail Kids Movie – Follow (Also Sprach the King of Eurodisco) (sung by Ed Kuepper)
Groupie Girl – Yesterday’s Hero (English Rose)
Dead and Buried – Welcome to Potter’s Bluff (Joe Renzetti)
Proof – Walk (Not Drowning, Waving)
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The Reflecting Skin – Main Theme (Nick Bicat)
The Unbelievable Truth – Opening Titles (Ned Rifle)
Chariots of the Gods? – Theme from Chariots of the Gods? (Peter Thomas)
Yeti: The Giant of the 20th Century – Yeti (sung by The Yetians)
The House That Screamed – Main Theme, Pop Version (Waldo De Los Rios)
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The Virgin Suicides – Dead Bodies (Air)
Pretty Maids All in a Row – Chilly Winds (End Titles) (sung by The Osmonds)

Posted in Podcasts | 114 Comments

Mystery Magician Seeks Cinefamily…

Posted on August 26, 2011 by bret

Every once in a while here in the Cinefamily (the revival movie theater in Los Angeles of which I’m one of the programmers), we receive an unsolicited piece of…well, “stuff” that we’re at a loss to fully comprehend.

About a week and a half ago, my co-worker Suki answered the office phone, and was puzzled by the person on the other end who wanted to “work with us”, and wanted our mailing address so that he could send us “a unique opportunity.” The fellow didn’t want to describe what he had in mind (of course), so we immediately put it out of our minds the second she was off the phone.

Imagine our surprise when, one week later, a printed-out version of the image below appeared in our physical mailbox, encased inside a PICTURE FRAME.

CLICK HERE TO SEE A LARGER VERSION OF THE SCAN!

We’re not entirely sure who on earth this kind of thing would actually work on — the picture-frame-in-the-mail thing, I mean, not the magic trick thing. Dude must’ve spent at least $10 on the framing and mailing it to us, unless he found the frame at a garage sale.

Posted in Uncategorized | 741 Comments

SOUNDTRACK SHELF Podcast #03: August 2011 Part Deux!

Posted on August 19, 2011 by bret

We were serious about making the Soundtrack Shelf podcast a twice-a-month thing, rather than just a monthly thing. And, WHAMMO!, here ya go!

Soundtrack Shelf Podcast: #03, August 2011 Part Deux! (MP3)

Playlist:
Contamination – Connexion (Goblin)
Beverly Hills Cop 2 – Shakedown (Bob Seger)
Megaforce – Title Theme (Jerrold Immel)
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Garlic Is As Good As Ten Mothers – The Garlic Waltz (Ruthie Gordon)
Stunt Rock – Stuntrocker (Sorcery)
Fear No Evil – Fear No Evil (Trybe)
Bedazzled – Love Me/Bedazzled (Dudley Moore & Peter Cook)
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The Magic Garden of Stanley Sweetheart – Water (sung by Michael Greer)
Privilege – Privilege (sung by Paul Jones)
Can Hieronymous Merkin Ever Forget Mercy Humppe And Find True Happiness? – Chalk and Cheese (sung by Joan Collins)
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Ms. 45 – Disco Party Theme (Joe Delia)
Timm Thaller (1979) – Timm’s Theme (Christian Bruhn)
Christine – Moochie’s Death (John Carpenter)
3 Women – Opening Credits/The Pool At Work (Gerald Busby)
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Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me – Moving Through Time (Angelo Badalamenti)

Posted in Film Writing, Podcasts | 121 Comments