Singers and Players - 'War of Words'

I've also been listening to a lot of Jamaican music. All the way from ska and rocksteady to the dub and roots reggae of the 70's. Of course, I wouldn't post something here unless it were a little out of the ordinary. Lots of dub has strange qualities...I mean, it IS a genre founded on getting high and doing the craziest mixes you can think of to pre-recorded tracks. It just sounds like pure fun. This album, however, is not fun at all.

Initially I saw this described as 'gothic reggae,' and I guess that's not far off the mark. It's got a very skeletal, sterile dub sound. The echo and reverb is all harsh and digital, and for some reason there's also a lot of super-distorted guitar, which is atypical of dub. The lyrics are all performed in creepy whispers, or a really deep, smoked-out toasting voice.

Everything, down to the black and white cover photo, conjures up a deeply depressive vibe, something also atypical of dub. While it's normally bass-heavy and minimal, this is heavy in different ways.

If you're looking to get into reggae, but want to start with the furthest possible point from Bob Marley, this is probably a good bet.

Singers and Players - 'War of Words' - 1982

Tracklist:

1. Devious Woman
2. Quante Jubila
3. Sit and Wonder
4. Fit to Survive
5. Reaching the Bad Man
6. World of Dispensation
7. '91 Vibration

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Konrad - 'Evil'

For some reason, this damn album seems to follow me wherever I go! When I was still doing the Obscuro! radio program, a few people would CONSTANTLY request the track 'My Girl,' and now I've got a request for the full album to be posted, so I must oblige. It is a great record, I won't deny it. Somewhere between the DIY minimal synth stuff of the 80's and sci-fi acid casualty, Konrad is a one-man-band who cranks out some of the catchiest tunes you'll ever hear about binary code, matrices, and music scientists (whatever those are.) There is also a spot-on parody of The Police that's about...police.

Also, the guy behind this project is QUITE a character. He claims to have both created the idea behind 'The Matrix' films, and to have sold speakers to Celine Dion. I'm not sure if either is true, but here's hoping.

Konrad - 'Evil'

Tracklist:

1. It's Only a Matrix
2. Music Scientist
3. Don't Want No Police
4. Alien
5. Working Man
6. Keep On Playing That Jazz
7. My Girl Likes to Buy
8. The Man of Mystery
9. Blue Sunrise
10. One Way Motorcycle Ride
11. Seems Like One of Those Days
12. DMZ Bolero
13. People

***LINK REMOVED BY REQUEST***
Preorder the re-release here.

Films 15 - Bizarro Jerry's trip thru vintage anime OVAs part 1

Haven't done a movie post in a while because I got stuck on weirdo sci-fi anime, which I've never really posted up here. So, if you're into that, here are some of the things I was watching.

'Baoh the Caller' - 1989

This one stuck out as rather strange. Sure, the plot is kinda similar to a lot of other 80's OVAs (people given weird powers by the government/military/corporate giant) but it's done fairly well and it's cheesy in all the right spots. There are also a whole heap of bizarre, unexplained things happening, and a lot of head-exploding goodness. If you haven't seen much anime but want to give this stuff a try (believe me, it's NOTHING like the streamlined shit Adult Swim puts out) this is a pretty good place to start.

'Darkside Blues' - 1994

This isn't like anything else I've seen, really. It is very stylish, and a lot more mysterious/suspenseful than most sci-fi animes. It's definitely not all blood, guts and robots. In fact, the only 'robot' in it turns out to be a regular guy. There is also a demented homeless blues musician, alternate-universe storylines, and a shit ton of surreal imagery. The opening scene is a little graphic, but don't worry, this one is much more tame than some of the stuff out there. It's also by the creator of 'Vampire Hunter D,' so you know it's classy.

'California Crisis' - 1986

I don't know why, but I really like Japan's take on 1980's American pop culture. It's so flawed and insane. They must've thought we did nothing but dance and eat cheeseburgers, and that's pretty much what happens here. This isn't a bloody one, or an 'artistic' film. It's just non-stop 80's action and super-stylish animation. I don't think I've seen anything MORE 80's than this. From what I remember, some guy and girl come into possession of some weird orb and get chased by gangsters for it. It's only 40 minutes, so the generic storytelling doesn't get boring.

'Cyber City Oedo 808' - 1990

This is pretty much the epitome of splat-fi cyberpunk anime. I liked it a lot better than more well-known stuff like 'Appleseed' and 'A.D. Police File,' and while a lot of anime fans seem to hate on English dubs, this one is fucking demented. So much unnecessary swearing! Plus, it's graphically violent, overflowing with creativity, and every one of the three episodes has ex-cons being mean to a C3P0-esque robot.

'Take the X Train' -  1987

When it opened with a dedication to Duke Ellington, I wasn't sure what to expect. But, indeed, this is a jazzy little OVA. It's more like an art-picture than some of the stuff I've posted here, and my only complaint was that the dialog was a little too fast to watch it with subtitles. Unfortunately, there is not an English dub, but oh well. It's an interesting (and also not especially violent or disturbing) story about a guy who works for a railway company that is trying to capture a ghost train. He has some kind of a link with the train, and his nose starts bleeding whenever it comes by. It just gets weirder from there. A lot of stuff happens for no reason. But, if you're into experimental filmmaking, this is worth checking out for sure.

...hopefully I will find time to post a LOT more because I watched like way too many of these things.

Society's Funk and Society's Fault

Woops...been a bit since I posted on here. I've got a backlog of radio programs for ya. Freshly updated on the Mixcloud. Two of them are the mini-show Society's Funk that seems to happen when Jake's absent, and one is the regular shit. Enjoy.

Society's Funk 12-13-13 by Bizarrojerry on Mixcloud

Society's Funk 12-20-13 by Bizarrojerry on Mixcloud

Society's Fault 1-3-14 by Bizarrojerry on Mixcloud

Society's Funk 12-6-13

Instead of the regular crap, we did an all-funk show to keep ya warm in the winter. Well, more accurately, funk, soul, disco, italo disco, and electro are all represented here. Next week's podcast will continue with this, then we'll probably be back to the punk stuff. For now, though, gitcha groove on!

Society's Funk 12-6-13 by Bizarrojerry on Mixcloud

Obscuro! podcasts for all you podcats

A few more of these for your listening pleasure...

Episode 75 - 7-16-10

Obscuro 7-16-10 by Bizarrojerry on Mixcloud

Tracklist:

People Band - '1968' Part II
Sun City Girls - Dreamland
Tom Wilson - Lesbian Seagull
Silver Apples - Water
The Fuckin' Flyin' A-Heads - Swiss Cheese Back
Hot Poop - My Baby's Dead
Grant Moros - Death be the Penalty
Michael Yonkers - Goodby Sunball
Rockin' Rollin' Blues Band - Untitled Track 2
Withuser and Westrupp - Nimm Doch Einen Joint, Mein Freund
Kim Fowley, Jr. - Bad News from the Underworld
Vertical Slit - Fair Exchange
Blacklight Braille - Side 1 (Excerpt)
Mike Rep and the Quotas - H.M. My Mind
Scissor Shock - Bring Back the Guillotine
Former Fetus - I'm a Mom
Tool Shed - Variations on Cannabis
Sensational - Hi-Tech Issue
Eddie Callahan - Judge Me
Peter Grudzien - Holding Court
Secret Metal - The Cop
Jim Shepard - A Streetcar Named Depression

Episode 76 - 7-23-10 1980's KID METAL

Obscuro 7-23-10 1980's Kid Metal by Bizarrojerry on Mixcloud

Tracklist:

Bob Thompson and Doug Snyder - Teenage Emergency
Pink Babycats - The Hunting
Mix Music - Let's Go
Boyhunters - Boys
Galaxy - se pa mig
Tom Nehls - Clean Air, the Underwater Symphony
South Side Senior High School Choir - Happy Mother's Day
Vertical Slit - New Thrill
Dane Sturgeon - Ghost of Bardley Road
These Trails - Garden Botanum
C.A. Quintet - Trip thru Hell (Part I)
Jimi LaLumia and the Psychotic Frogs - You'll Never Walk Again
Megatrip - Megatrip Outro
Bobby Brown - Jungle Cowboy
Chandra - Kate
Gene Marshall - Richard Nixon in '76
Jim Shepard - Untitled Track 4
Wicked Witch - Electric War (Vocal Version)
Joe Peace - Reflections I See
MC Trachiotomy - Ma Baby
Palmer Rockey - Smile Pretty Baby
John Ashcroft - Let the Eagle Soar
Mark Tucker - Everywhere with Sally (Ride)
Master Wilburn Burchette - Godhead
Noah - Brain Suck/Goodbye Earth

Episode 77 - 7-30-10

Obscuro 7-30-10 by Bizarrojerry on Mixcloud

Tracklist:

Drunks with Guns - I Got the Gun
Georgie Leonard - The Clown
Sun City Girls - Burial in the Sky
Konrad - My Girl
Cincinnati Joe and Mad Lydia - Jesus is Our Color Man
Cincinnati Joe and Mad Lydia - Love Spider
Vyto B - Tanya
The Godz - Permanent Green Light
Happy Dragon Band - Disco American
Red Krayola - Pink Stainless Tail
Old Lady Drivers - Bathrooms Rule
Vertical Slit - The Starlight Investor
Michael Hurley - Werewolf Song
Arcesia - White Panther
Essra Mohawk - I Have Been Here Before
Pat Morris - We're Diabetic
Chico Magnetic Band - Explosion
Comus - The Prisoner
Kenneth Higney - Rock Star
The Kids of Widney High - New Car
Michael James - You Don't Walk on My Street
Silver Apples - You and Me
Mij - Planet of a Flower
Residents - The Shoe Salesman
Christian Yoga Church - Untitled Track 5

Obscuro! Mixtape #16...'80's sunburn'

I'm pretty pleased with how this one turned out...45 minutes (as usual, because that's the longest amount of time I feel someone can pay attention to something...generally speaking) of smooooooth sounds. The vibe I was going for was washed-out 80's with a huge helping of beach. Or something like that. Lots of Quiet Storm favorites, atmospheric library music, and a little hip hop thrown in. There might be a few songs that don't fit the 80's decade, but whatever, it suits the mood. Have at.

Obscuro! Mixtape #16 - '80's sunburn' by Bizarrojerry on Mixcloud

Slime City #1

...and here's that experimental, meta-radio broadcast I posted about earlier. It's an aural trip through Slime City, a region with more gyms than churches...similar to the moods conjured up by the music of James Ferraro and Casino Gardens. In fact, a couple James Ferraro tracks make appearances, as well as lots of dirty south lo-fi rap, library music, and weird synth stuff...LOTS of sound effects and 80's commercials, too.

Bizarro Jerry's Slime City #1 by Bizarrojerry on Mixcloud