What just happened here?

One horrible movie trailer links to another horrible trailer ending up I'm guessing in one of the gates of hell. I will report back hopefully with a postcard and a patch for my mothers quilt.

Crystal Castles II

Sure its 2 months late but you never cared anyway.

Back in 2008 my dearest and oldest friend Cody introduced me to a band called Crystal Castles. From then on at least once a week (often times more) for two years I listened to their self titled debut from start to finish. Glitchy shrieking electro with a fuck you punk attitude? How could it not be awesome? Fast forward to 2010 and here I am anticipating the follow up to the most important band of my adulthood. Will it suck? How could they possibly live up to their previous work? I actually lost a little sleep over it. The album finally gets leaked (I still bought it :P) and you know what? It is AMAZING, just an eyelash shy of their last album. A bit more reserved but willing to explore their darker side, Crystal Castles finally established themselves in the main stream as one of the most cutting edge bands of the 21st century. At least that's what I tell myself as I blast through their new album again and again on my way to work casually hurling insults at other drivers for their crappy taste in music (even if I can't hear them).
The first half of the album is a beast covering more ground in varying styles and sound than most bands do in their careers. From the nihilistic drone and grind of Fainting Spells to the euphoric radio friendly Cellestia to the brutal punchy assault of Doe Deer (my current favorite)Crystal Castles delivers on all fronts. Baptism and Year of Silence finish the flawless opening which soon turns from trance-like glory to slow, dark and brooding. It all starts to feel a bit formulaic but still manages to pull out some real surprises with tracks like Intimate, Pap Smear and Violent Dreams, a song that plays like the pulse of a dying man. The main difference between their two albums are these filler songs. Their debut was filled with fun, short and catchy instrumentals while here they are replaced with dirty 4 minute grooves. It weights the album down a bit but does encourage a more thorough listen to Ethan Kath's amazing song writing skills.
If you need your music to be familiar and friendly go elsewhere. This is the future of pop and quite frankly pop has been long overdue for a face lift.

9.8/10

Sing along! DEATHRAY DEATHRAY DEATHRAY DEATHRAAAAAAAEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

In the Realm of the Senses

If you are related to me stop reading. If you are offended by explicit sexual content stop reading because In the realm of the Senses is one graphic sex scene after another. When I say graphic I mean its what prudes call porn and people like me call art. This is erotica people if you can look past and the fornicating you will discover a masterpiece of the dangers of desire. Directed by Nagisa Ôshima (Japanese Summer Double Suicide) the story is told though the sex life of a man and his mistress. Their sex directly reflects the state of their relationship as they spiral out of control. From giggly feisty love making to the dangerous and violent depths of sexual depravity. The cinematography is perfect and is what keeps this from being porn. It transforms screwing into love making and that's all the difference in the world. What really makes the movie though, what really makes this a masterpiece is not the bold content but the actors that deliver it. H-o-l-y s-h-i-t I can not even begin to imagine the kind of trust and bond Tatsuya Fuji and Eiko Matsuda had to have to do the things they did on screen. The complete dedication of the actors towards their craft is in my opinion is unrivaled. I have the most insane respect for them and that's why I blog, to make sure movies like this are watched and appreciated as they should be. If you can get over the graphic sexual content I promise you it will be one of the most important and unforgettable movie experiences of your life.

Summer of love

Life has been too busy for movies but things are never too busy for this. Never.