Remember when Summers used to be about having free time to play catch up with friends and family, maybe taking a vacation for a while and just enjoying the nice weather in general? Well Microsoft has been making it their duty to help you forget to do those things so you can stay in your room and play the 360 instead. When the new releases at retail are slowing to a crawl in wait for the big Fall releases, XBox Live Arcade fills in the gaps with their biggest and most anticipated titles of the year. With the 2008 campaign being such a huge success that featured hits such as Bionic Commando ReArmed, Braid and Castle Crashers, Microsoft planned an even bigger Summer of Arcade for 2009 to follow up with. Did the lineup match the greatness of last year’s? Read on for part one, ‘Splosion Man. (more…)
I’ve been meaning to review World of Goo for a while now, but I’ve been taking my time since I was fairly certain none of the G-E staff were going to beat me to the punch. World of Goo is one of those well received games that nobody has seemed to play. Well I played it, dammit, and I’m going to take some time now to spread word of its glory… which I have cleverly disguised as an objective review. (more…)
Political movies that have an obvious message about the struggles of a person or group of people fighting against another are a dime a dozen. They can be intriguing, but in the end they lack any wow factor because they are often based on real events. That’s probably why most movies based around political happenings and social injustice are documentaries and not motion pictures. Luckily, Neill Blomkamp (co-writer and director) does a fantastic job of creating a political movie that has you on the end of your seat. He takes a serious topic, South African apartheid, and adds a (what seems to be random) twist: aliens. (more…)
“Good-Evil; The Soundtrack” is a weekly feature that showcases an editor’s song pick complete with a small write-up and a YouTube video or streaming version of the song. This week’s selection by Jason Vincion is Neurosis – “Locust Star”. (more…)
It’s a shame that a lot of Australian music doesn’t make its way to the states. There seems to be a lot of great stuff coming out of the country, and yet it’s only by chance that my ears have been blessed with a scant few sonic gifts.
The story of this review is as such: This past Saturday evening I spent a good amount of time reading Cormac McCarthy’s The Road and listening to Bruce Springsteen’s haunting album Nebraska. The combination of those two things can put a man in a dire mood, especially on a lonely Saturday night.
Then by chance I happened upon Tame Impala, a psychedelic rock band straight out of AU. The depressing funk that had been set upon me was instantly lifted, and the spirit of rock and roll coursed through my veins once more. Taking obvious influence from late 60’s acid-rock, especially Cream, these guys still manage to sound fresh and exciting.
Opening with “Desire Be Desire Go”, the band introduces itself with a driving but somewhat reserved sounding song that sounds like the Beatles or the Kinks on acid… on acid. And midway through the song is a mandatory super-fuzzed, spaced out interlude/solo. It’s certainly a groovy number and a great start to this EP.
Next is “Skeleton Tiger”, which pushes the acid-washed rock and roll feel even further. There’s some crazy phase/flange effect on the drums, drifting in and out of the song while a synth adds some sparkle to the thick fuzzed out guitars. In a way this song sounds like Cream covering an early song by The Who.
Marking the halfway point is “Half Full Glass of Wine”. A simple two-note riff starts the song and gets some energy building before dropping tempo and then dropping pitch, completely changing the feel on the fly. It’s an amazing transition into a song that epitomizes the Cream comparisons.
The following song, “Forty One Mosquitos Flying In” changes up the sound a little. Much of the song sounds like it could be a Donovan song (although with the heavy instrumentation). The song has some nice subtle jazzy parts amidst the typical bleary-eyed, head-bobbing riffage.
Completing this EP is “Slide Through My Fingers”. Starting off with some spacey sounds and an acoustic guitar, the mood is set for a song that is much more drifting and flowing than the four previous songs.
Each aspect of the band is wonderfully represented in this EP. The vocals are sultry and peaceful. The guitars are rich with thick but never overbearing fuzz. The bass has that classic plucky sound that keeps a solid beat without saturating the songs with lots of low end. The drums can range from simplistic, driving beats to wild fills when needed. Overall these guys seem to know how to let each other shine at various times, although this is a very guitar driven band.
This is a solid EP which shows just what this band is made of. Although they wear their influences on their sleeves, they don’t let that get in the way of their own originality. I am definitely looking forward to the upcoming album slated for a 2010 release.
Unfortunately this EP was not made for mass distribution and is hard to find. It can be found on iTunes if you use that, but apparently not on Amazon or other digital services.
As a bonus, here is the video for “Half Glass Full of Wine”:
This is part of my continuing series of playing and reviewing random SNES games I’ve never heard of. Some of these are just quick looks at the game, and may not be too terribly in depth. Today’s game is Battle Master – Ultimate Warriors (Battle Master – Kyuukyoku no Senshitachi). (more…)
1968 Tunnel Rats is the latest release from genius filmmaker Uwe Boll, the mastermind behind such past gems as Postal and In The Name Of The King. As has become customary for any new Boll release, we held a Bollfest to celebrate. This time, we packed up on the 40’s and assorted beers and began the film festival. The films included this time were 1968 Tunnel Rats, Sleepaway Camp, Sleepaway Camp 2: Unhappy Campers, Dragonball Evolution, and Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li. Below are Good-Evil thoughts in a convenient +/- format, from those who experienced them. (more…)
With the recent release and review of the new Modest Mouse EP, I took the liberty to bring back some more old reviews from our site. Andrew briefly reviewed two Modest Mouse albums back when the site was barely a year old, and I’ll also discuss their first two full length albums. Without further ado, FLASHBACK TIME! (more…)
