W♥M

Shaw Brothers Classics: Volume Two

Shaw Brothers Classics: Volume Two Product Description This spectacular box set comprises 12 classic martial arts films from the famous Shaw Brothers' library, featuring some of their greatest stars—Cheng Pei-pei (Come Drink with Me), Lo Lieh (King Boxer), Sammo Hung (Wheels on Meals), Ti Lung (A Better Tomorrow), and David Chiang (The Boxer from Shantung). Many of these films are debuting for the first time on Blu-ray. Get ready for some exciting thrills and chills as heroes meet villains in a duel to the death! Read More Shaw Brothers Now enter Shout Factory, who also has a Shaw Brothers boxset in the works, set for release on June 13, 2023. They are releasing 11 titles, with special features yet to be announced. …

As you know, I am a huge Shaw Brothers… particularly their martial arts/kung fu movies. While we have exhausted all of Arrow Videos and 88 Films (so far), Shout Factory has stepped in to release even more Shaw Brothers titles to the American market.

Although I purchased Shaw Brothers Classics Volume 1 on June 13, 2023 … I just haven’t had the time to watch them all. And looking at the aggressive schedule of Volume 2 to be released last month on August 15, 2023, and Volume 3 set for October 25, 2023… it’s become a really expensive hobby for me, at $160 a boxset.

Originally, I wasn’t going to buy Volume 2 until I fully watch enjoy all of Volume 1, but with the sudden free $260 money from the state of Minnesota… I thought why not order Volume 2 and be done with that.

So, the problem is that Amazon misdelivered my Volume 2 package! This is the second time that it happened for me in the past few months. It was so upsetting that going forward, I’m having everything deliver to an Amazon Locker.

Anyway, after getting a replacement shipped to a secured locker, I’m finally watching Volume 2.

Between Volume 1 and Volume 2, the first boxset focused on pre-1970 Shaw Brothers films, with the earliest titles from 1967 with The Assassin and The Thundering Sword.

Many of these late-1960s titles are of the wuxia / some fantasy and emphasis on martial weapons, such as darts in Killer Darts (1968), daggers in The Flying Dagger (1969), or swords in The Golden Sword (1969).

The majority of these films were never officially released in America, so it’s awesome to watch them for the first time (and in HD!), but unfortunately, many of these titles did not have the English dub… which is disappointing, but understandable, since these films were never marketed to America or the UK.

I do appreciate that we got audio commentary on many of these older films, and I think Shout Factory did a great job on the boxset… but, again, I did not really love many of these early Shaw Brothers titles. I’m sorry, the Shaw Brothers haven’t perfected their Kung Fu formula yet.

To me, the golden age of Kung Fu films didn’t happen until Five Fingers of Death in 1972, so I prefer films released after that time period.

The only film that I really enjoyed in Volume 1 is the revenge flick called The Bells of Death (1968). The film made the boxset worth it, as for the first time, we’re seeing this in Bluray format (at least in America).

I first saw the film on DVD when I visited the China town in Canada about 20 years ago. The plot is simple, it’s a story of a wood cutter who searches town to town for the killers of his family… wearing the bells bracelet of his family around his neck. I really like this one, mostly because, for the first time, to my ears, I’m hearing the English dub of the film.

Thankfully, Volume 2 collects early 1970s films, with The Dragon Missiles being the latest at 1976. This film is pretty delightful, with the Dragon Missiles clearly being inspired or ripped off from The Flying Guillotines (1975)… which is also included in this boxset.

I’m almost certain that the early Shaw films, collected in Vol 2, such as Lady of Steel (1970), The Crimson Charm (1971), The Devil’s Mirror (1972), The Bride From Hell (1971), were never released in America.

I haven’t watched those early films (in both Vol 1 and 2), so I can’t really say they’re good or not.

I’ve already own Brothers Five (1970), The Shadow Whip (1971), The Delightful Forest (1972), Man of Iron (1972), The Water Margin (1972), and Heroes Two (1974), but I would like to re-visit and check out the special features in this new release. Most of these titles have audio commentaries, so it should be interesting to see what critics have to say about these films.

As for Volume 3, it’s coming out in October… so I do have a little time to enjoy Vol 1 and 2 before Volume 3 comes out… based on the titles, such as The Shaolin Avengers, The Deadly Breaking Sword, Clan of the White Lotus, it’s going to be a mid-1970 to 1980 collection. This is my favorite era: 1972 to 1984, so I’m actually way more excited about Volume 3.

If you’re collecting Shaw Brothers films, as I am, I should also point out that there are two Shout Factory-exclusive releases: The Brave Archer Collection (2023-04-18), an Alexander Fu Sheng four-film set for $70, and The Ti Lung / David Chiang Collection (2023-09-26), a massive collection for $170.

If you didn’t know Ti Lung, David Chiang, and director Chang Cheh, became known as “The Iron Triangle”, due to their successful films, such as Have Sword, Will Travel (1969), Vengeance (1970), The Deadly Duo (1971)… and many others.

Read more Shaw Brothers, Bluray, Asian Invasion.

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

East, West, under the Ocean

Read More Herman’s Hermits Dillon Francis and Yung Gravy with Kittens, Jan. 26, Arvest Bank Theatre at the Midland. $35-$48 Herman’s Hermits, Jan. 28, Ameristar. $35-$50 Fortune Feimster, Jan. 29, Uptown. $29.50-$92 …

Herman’s Hermits
hermanshermits.com

“East West” is the sixteenth single by Herman’s Hermits. The single landed in December 1966, barely making it on the top 30 UK (and US) singles chart. While it was a fine song, it clearly meant something to a young Morrissey, as he would cover the song as a B-Side to his awful single, “Ouija Board, Ouija Board”. Morrissey’s version does change the lyrics around, notably, “Lush girls, older and dying, Sighing and crying…” and “Time flew, I wanted to see you somehow I could not do, because of success. What a strange life this can be!”

East, West, over the ocean
Perpetual motion, travelling around
No rest, singing and playing
Night out and day in, doing the rounds
What a great life it must seem
Swell joints, everything classy
Nothing that's passe', only the best
Lush girls ogling and eyeing
Crying and sighing, this is success
What a great life it must seem

But when I hear young voices singing out
The bells at home come ringing out
When I think all alone
Then I think of my home

Mom, Dad, all 'round the fire
In festive attire, keeping the day
Aunts, kids, all the relations
Congratulations, this is success
What a great life it must seem

But when I hear young voices singin' out
The bells at home start ringing out
When I feel all alone
Then I long for my home

- Herman's Hermits

LOWER EAST SIDE FILM FESTIVAL
www.lesfilmfestival.com

2023 will mark the 13th Anniversary of the Lower East Side Film Festival. The LESFF recently announced their programming, which includes exclusive feature film premieres, specialty short showcases, industry panels, and parties. It will take place from May 4 - 8 at the Village East Cinema, DCTV Firehouse Cinema, plus virtually through May 14. Open bar for all screenings.

“We love the movies. That’s the simplest way to put it,” says Festival Director, Roxy Hunt. “For me, there’s nothing like standing in the back of a dark theater, waiting with anticipation to see how the audience will react as the night unfolds, and being filled with so much joy when I hear the laughs, the shock, the appreciation, for each film they see - knowing that they put their trust in us. Any New Yorker has an endless amount of choices on how they’ll spend any given night, and I can’t describe how honored I feel they choose to spend it with us.”

Please see their website for the latest programming and schedule.

Read More The Meters Art Neville, the founding member of The Neville Brothers and The Meters (and later known as The Funky Meters), has died at the age of 81, according to a statement released by his longtime manager, Kent Sorrell, via CNN. Neville was 81. …

WILLIE WEST
williewestofficial.com

If you’re in the Minneapolis area, New Orleans legend Willie West (of The Meters) will be playing an early show at Crooners, this Friday, April 21st, 2023. Music starts at 4:30pm, tickets available at eventbrite.com.

We last mentioned The Meters when Art Neville (of The Neville Brothers) had died in 2019. Neville founded the band in 1965, but when Art (and Cyril Neville) left The Meters in 1977, the band added David Batiste Sr. on keyboards and added a new singer named Willie West! The Meters broke up in the 80s, but they’re still fondly remembered by fans.

Anyway, this upcoming Friday show will be Willie West’s first live performance in many years, and it’s to promote West’s new album The Soul Sessions.

If you arrive early, before the live music, there will be a live podcast by Twin Cities musician Mick Sterling, doing an interview with Willie West. You will find out all about The Meters and West’s solo career.

Joining West live on stage will be John Wright on bass, Dan Neale on guitar, Donald Hye on pockets - drums, and Toby Marshall on keyboards, etc.

Read More Lana Del Rey We’ve always like Lana Del Rey. With a #1 Billboard album Lust For Life (sold just over 107k copies in its opening week), expect a lot of happy fans attending this stadium show …

LANA DEL REY
lanadelrey.com

Once again, Lana Del Rey has the #1 album in the UK with the extra-long title: Did you know that there’s a tunnel under Ocean Blvd (Polydor Records). This is her sixth #1 UK album for a solo female artist. Only Madonna, Taylor Swift, Kylie Minogue and Barbara Streisand have more.

We were big early fans, writing about Del Rey in Jan 2012: “Well, that, of course, is subjective. But on a basic level, Del Rey embodies a sound that should be quite popular on the current indie scene: sexy vocals that travel the sexy spectrum from “sad and sexy” to “whispery sexy” to “nasally sexy,” set against a lush, orchestral backdrop with sparse beats and some violins. The minimal tear-jerker “Video Games” was grudgingly included on a handful of Best of 2011 lists, but I prefer “Born to Die” for its haunting, controlled tone and also for this line: “Let me kiss you hard in the pouring rain, you like your girls insane.” She’s no Dylan, but her lyrics feel authentic coming from the given source, regardless of whether or not her look is contrived. Would it be better or worse if she wrote about geeky boys in vests and made cryptic references to high-brow literature whilst strumming a Chinese erhu? What’s more, the production quality is pretty brilliant; Del Rey and co. have managed to hit a sweet spot—the axis of edginess and approachability, vintage pop and contemporary relevance, sexy bombshell and deadpan bad girl. She sounds good, the song craft is sharp, and even Pitchfork is “intrigued”.”

Lana Del Rey (05 Jan 2018)

We saw her live in Jan 2018 at the Target Center, and was blown away by the million-dollar set: “As for Lana Del Rey’s show, this was the best set design we’ve ever seen! It contains two beach folding chairs, a raised platform covered with rocks, surrounded by plants, trees, and palm trees. The floor is transformed into a body of water when the special effect lights are projected onto the surface. Plus, that’s not all: two hidden swings for the two dancers. It was unbelievable.”

If you look at the concert photos, you’re note quite sure if she’s singing at a concert or that she’s on vacation in the tropics. It was definitely the best concert set we’ve ever seen.

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Coming soon: Shaw Brothers Classics, Vol. 1 (Shout Factory)

Product Description This spectacular box set comprises 11 classic martial arts films from the famous Shaw Brothers' library, featuring some of their greatest stars – Jimmy Wang Yu (One-Armed Swordsman), Cheng Pei-pei (Come Drink With Me), Lo Lieh (King Boxer), Ku Feng (The Five Venoms), and David Chiang (The Boxer From Shantung). Many of these films are debuting for the first time on Blu-ray. Get ready for some exciting thrills and chills as heroes meet villains in a duel to the death! Read More Shaw Brothers As you know, I’m a big Shaw Brothers fan, and have personally own over 75 DVDs and Blurays. As I previously mentioned, unfortunately these movies don’t sell well in America, so many of these Shaw Brothers titles never made …

I know I’ve previously said that there just wasn’t enough fans in America to warrant more Shaw Brothers Bluray releases. This is just based on speculating on some companies were losing money on Shaw Brothers releases or no marketing or releases in America.

Then, exciting news, during the pandemic people were buying films again to watch at home. So in 2020 we got UK releases from 88 Films. It proved so popular with American audiences, that they started releasing domestic releases in 2022.

For the US market, Arrow Video announced they were releasing two boxsets (based on the company getting the rights to 26 films). So the company released the first boxset in Dec 2021 and the second boxset in Dec 2022.

Since I also own about 30 Shaw Brothers titles from 88 Films, I thought that truly that was the end of the Shaw Brother releases.

Now enter Shout Factory, who also has a Shaw Brothers boxset in the works, set for release on June 13, 2023. They are releasing 11 titles, with special features yet to be announced.

Titles:

THE ASSASSIN (1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1) / Mandarin & English Dub DTS-HD Master Audio Mono / 112 min.)

THE THUNDERING SWORD (1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1) / Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio Mono / 90 min.)

THE GOLDEN SWALLOW (1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1) / Mandarin & English Dub DTS-HD Master Audio Mono / 104 min.)

THE JADE RAKSHA (1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1) / Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio Mono / 91 min.)

THE BELLS OF DEATH (1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1) / Mandarin & English Dub DTS-HD Master Audio Mono / 85 min.)

THE SWORD OF SWORDS (1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1) / Mandarin & English Dub DTS-HD Master Audio Mono / 106 min.)

KILLER DART (1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1) / Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio Mono / 84 min.)

THE INVINCIBLE FIST (1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1) / Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio Mono / 94 min.)

DRAGON SWAMP (1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1) / Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio Mono / 105 min.)

THE FLYING DAGGER (1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1) / Mandarin & English Dub DTS-HD Master Audio Mono / 93 min.)

THE GOLDEN SWORD (1080p High-Definition Widescreen (2.35:1) / Mandarin DTS-HD Master Audio Mono / 101 min.)

Being a massive fan, I will, of course buy this. I just wish all the titles were licensed to one company, as now I know that among these various Shaw Brothers boxsets - they won’t fit together in uniform. We’ll have these super long Shaw Scopes, we’ll have all these single releases, and now a giant block. I know I shouldn’t complain, I should just be happy at least we’re getting these titles in HD. There’s never been a better time to be a fan of martial arts films.

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

R.I.P. Lance Reddick

Read More Bosch Out of nowhere, I got notification that the new Season 7 of Bosch just dropped on Amazon Prime! I was so excited that I launched the pilot and after viewing the “Last Season on Bosch” recap… …

Actor and musician, Lance Reddick has died at the age of 60. According to Variety, “His rep at Portrait PR confirmed the news, saying he died of natural causes but not providing other details.”

Although Reddick is best known as an actor in roles such as Cedric Daniels in The Wire (2002–2008), Phillip Broyles in Fringe (2008–2013), and Chief Irvin Irving in Bosch (2014–2020), and as Charon in the John Wick films… not many people know that he started studying music as a teenager at the Peabody Preparatory Institute. He actually earned a Bachelor of Music degree at University of Rochester's Eastman School of Music.

Lance Reddick (02 May 2015)

We saw Reddick at Wizard World Minneapolis in May 2015 and wrote, “One of the hardest working Hollywood actor, Lance Reddick spent his time at his panel answering questions about Lost, The Wire, and, of course, Fringe. Recently, Reddick is most recognizable from American Horror Story, and per a fan's request, he re-created his Papa Legba character and did a line in the Cajun voodoo accent.”

Rest in peace, Lance Reddick.

Read more Musicians who died in 2023

[17 Mar 2023] Lance Reddick (American actor and musician), 60 Lance Reddick was best known for playing Cedric Daniels in The Wire (2002–2008), Phillip Broyles in Fringe (2008–2013), and Chief Irvin Irving in Bosch (2014–2020). As a teenager, he studied music at the Peabody Preparatory Institute and studied classical music composition at University of Rochester's Eastman School of Music, earning a Bachelor of Music degree. … via deadline

[17 Mar 2023] Fito Olivares ( Mexican cumbia musician), 75 The music ringing out at Fiesta next month will have a note of sadness as social media posts report that Mexican musician Fito Olivares has died. A Facebook post from San Antonio’s Tejano station KXTN on Friday, March 17 reported Olivares’ death … via mysanantonio

[16 Mar 2023] Tony Coe (English jazz musician), 88 Sad news. One of the understated greats of British jazz, saxophonist and clarinettist Tony Coe, passed away peacefully yesterday at the age of 88. … via londonjazznews

[15 Mar 2023] Théo de Barros (Brazilian composer), 80 Composer Theo de Barros, known for "Disparada", alongside Geraldo Vandré, and for his partnership with singer Elis Regina, died early this Wednesday (15th) in São Paulo. … via folha

[15 Mar 2023] Daniel Bourgue (French horn player), 86 The virtuoso horn player Daniel Bourgue, ‘surely be the last representative of the old school of French playing’ according to the IHS, has died at the age of 86. … via slippedisc

[14 Mar 2023] Bobby Caldwell (American singer and songwriter), 71 Singer Bobby Caldwell, known for his smooth blue-eyed soul voice, is dead after battling illness for several years ... TMZ has confirmed. Bobby, whose biggest hit is the classic "What You Won't Do for Love," died in his sleep Tuesday night at home in New Jersey, according to his rep. … via tmz

[14 Mar 2023] Dix Denney (American guitarist for The Weirdos, Thelonious Monster), 65 Dix Denney, guitarist and co-founder of pioneering LA punk band The Weirdos, has died. Along with his brother John, Dix Denney formed The Weirdos in Los Angeles in 1975. Although initially inspired by The Ramones, they soon became trailblazers … via louderthanwar

[13 Mar 2023] Canisso (Brazilian bassist for Raimundos), 57 Bassist José Henrique Campos Pereira, known as Canisso, died this Monday (13/3), aged 57. The information was confirmed by the band's manager, but the cause of death was not disclosed. The musician was part of the original formation of the Brasilian rock group Raimundos. … via metropoles

[13 Mar 2023] Jim Gordon (American convicted murderer and musician for Eric Clapton, Derek and the Dominos), 77 Jim Gordon, a top drummer for Eric Clapton, George Harrison and countless others who was diagnosed with schizophrenia after murdering his mother in 1983, has died. … via variety

Read more Musicians who died in 2023.

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

7 Grandmasters (film) at Trylon Cinema, Minneapolis (05 Feb 2023)

Jue quan (1977) An aging martial arts expert is gifted a plaque from the Emperor declaring him the Kung Fu World Champion. Unsure of whether or not be is deserving of this title, he embarks on a journey to defeat the 7 Grandmasters. Director: Joseph Kuo Writers: Da-Wei Kuo (story), Joseph Kuo, Ching-Kang Yao Stars: Yi-Min Li, Jack Long, Kuan-Wu Lung Read More Shaw Brothers As you know, I’m a big Shaw Brothers fan, and have personally own over 75 DVDs and Blurays. As I previously mentioned, unfortunately these movies don’t sell well in America, so many of these Shaw Brothers titles never made …

We caught the last showing for 7 Grandmasters, as part of the An Exploitation Extravaganza showcase, at the tiny 90-person non-profit Trylon Cinema in Minneapolis.

Turn out was terrific, although I heard Friday night’s showing was entirely sold out and there were talks that it might sell out based on pre-sales. Fans who showed up have never seen this independent 1977 production from Taiwan.

7 Grand Masters (DVD)

Of course, as an avid film collector, especially in the Kung Fu genre, I own the DVD release from Tokyo Shock (Media Blasters). The disc came out in 1999, and the video was taken directly from the source at Mei Ah Film Production Co., Ltd., which did a great job restoring the film for licensing. In many ways, the DVD copy is a better representation of the film, because it has the English dub (as well as original Mandarin with English subtitles).

According to film collector and programmer, Dan Halsted, he spoke to director Joseph Kuo, and said that what we’re about to see is the only 35mm print of the film. It’s a rare treat to see these films on 35… but unfortunately, due to time passage, the print has not aged well. Colors were washed out, in some area of the film, looks like it could be a black and white film.

Despite poor subtitle translations (and sometime impossible to read when there’s a white shirt in the shot…), you do get the general idea of the story. Speaking of which, the story is about a retiring Kung Fu master named Sang Kuan Chun who was challenged before his retirement. He takes his three students and his daughter to defeat the 7 Grandmasters to become the ultimate Grandmaster.

Along the way, an unknown young man begs the Grandmaster to take him as a student. It’s a fairly simple story, but they try and add in more plot, such as how the Grandmaster only knew 9 of the deadly Pai Mei strokes as a masked man stole the other 3 deadly strikes. It seems sometime that the filmmakers were making up the story as they started filming (since so many of these elements weren’t established early in the story).

Look, you don’t watch these films for the amazing stories, you watch them for the action… and this film delivers. The teacher has to fight 7 fighters, resulting in what seems like a super long fight after fight. In fact, during his fight with the Mantis Fist style, I was left wondering, “Is this number 5 or 6?” There were so many masters to keep track of!

With these films, it’s always better to watch it with an audience. The audience would laugh at some scenes… which you wouldn’t know it was funny if you watched it alone. Also, when the film ended, everyone was clapping in approval. I love that kind of experience; it tells me that there are many fans who appreciate these films.

Dan Halsted at Trylon Cinema, Minneapolis (05 Feb 2023)

vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

We♥KC- January 23-31, 2023- Upcoming Concerts (Kansas City / Lawrence, KS)

Read More The Lone Bellow Nashville-based country trio The Lone Bellow are returning to a sold-out show in Minnesota's The Turf Club. The band are touring in support of their second album ...

Read more Kansas City Music Guide.

January continues and it hasn’t exactly been the “dog days of winter” so far in terms of bad weather (which is fine w/us) and concerts are trickling in, to begin the new year.

Chiefs are continuing to win in the Playoffs (fingers crossed), it’s Restaurant Week in the metro, and the milder temps, have made going out to shows, that much easier to do, which is great.

Let’s take look at the Kansas City/Lawrence KS metro musical happenings through the end of the month- January 23-31st.

MONDAY JAN 23

TUESDAY JAN 24

Larkin Poe w Goodnight Texas, Knuckleheads, SOLD OUT

Sisters Rebecca & Megan Lovell are singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalists creating their own brand of Southern bluesy roots rock and have a new record out, Blood Harmony (via Tricki-Woo Records). Originally from Atlanta and currently living in Nashville, they are descendants of celebrated author Edgar Allan Poe and in concert, have lately been working in covers from Robert Johnson, Allman Brothers Band, and Son House.

Openers Goodnight, Texas are a folk-rock band named after the town that is the geographic midpoint between the working locations of songwriters Avi Vinocur from San Fran and Patrick Dyer Wolf in Chapel Hill, NC. They’ve toured with the headliners previously and have a new record to promote, the spooky named How Long Will It Take Them to Die.

WEDNESDAY JAN 25

Kansas City Symphony Presents Marvel Studios’ Black Panther™ in Concert Film + Live Orchestra January 25-28, Kauffman Center, $37.50-$77.50

Wakanda Forever! Featuring Jason Seber as guest conductor, you can relive the excitement of this highly successful Marvel Studios film as T’Challa (Chadwick Boseman) becomes king and battling Killmonger, (Michael B Jordan) all while the Kansas City Symphony performs composer Ludwig Göransson’s Oscar® and Grammy®-winning score live to picture.

THURSDAY JAN 26

Carlos Mencia, Jan 26, 27, 28 Comedy Club of KC, $25/$33

The Comedy Central funnyman hits the road for a new stand-up comedy tour – Mencia's show "Mind of Mencia," first premiered in 2005 and became quickly popular with his first comedy special No Strings Attached becoming the first original standup DVD to achieve platinum status for the comedy cable channel.

The Fab Four (Beatles Tribute), Prairie Band Casino- Mayetta, SOLD OUT

The California-based tribute band is one of several that pay high-level homage to The Beatles. Founded in 1997 by Ron (as John Lennon) McNeil, the group began performing first in southern California and since have played in such far-off places as Japan, Malaysia, France, Hong Kong, the UK, Germany, Australia, Mexico, and Brazil and cover the entire Beatles songbook and members' solo projects.

FRIDAY JAN 27

Angel Olsen & the Big Time Band w Erin Rae, Liberty Hall- Lawrence, $30-$50

Asheville, NC (by way of St. Louis) alternative folk singer-songwriter Angel Olsen and her distinctive voice and stage presence are back on the road again and also can be found in the record racks with new release, Big Time (co-produced by Jonathan Wilson and via Jagjaguar) and its initial singles, “All the Good Times” and the title track.

We caught her live last, just last August, in an outdoor show on the Wild Hearts Tour alongside Julien Baker and Sharon Van Etten. Live, she plays with a full band as well as solo and has recently been encoring with an older classic- from Badfinger, Harry Nilsson, and others. Nashville singer-songwriter Erin Rae opens, in support of her new full-length, Lighten Up.

Dan Cummins (comedian), Uptown, $31-$122

The stand-up comic/podcaster is out on his 2023 Burn It All Down Tour. Cummins is frequently played on Pandora with over 850,000 artist stations created and over 650 million plays. His stand-up albums also spin heavily on numerous Sirius XM comedy stations.

Shen Yun Presented by Falun Dafa Association of KC Jan. 27-29, Kauffman Center, $88.50-$158.50

Shen Yun invites you to travel back to the magical world of ancient China. Experience a lost culture through the incredible art of classical Chinese dance, and see legends come to life. Originating in 2006, a group of Chinese artists came together in New York with a vision: to revive the best of China’s cultural heritage and share it with the world. They drew courage and inspiration from their practice of Falun Dafa- a spiritual discipline based on the principles of truthfulness.

We’ve seen the show before and it is colorful, vibrant, and visually stunning, but also be aware there are also some politics injected into the show regarding China’s modern regime, the relationship with Taiwan, and its place in the current world.

SATURDAY JAN 28

Frank Foster w/ Southerland, Granada- Lawrence, $20-$25

The Louisiana-raised and fiercely independent Country singer-songwriter is on the road, with recent single, “What’s It to Ya?” from last year’s Star Spangled Bangers being among his most recent releases. Nashville-based songwriting duo Southerland, is slated as support.

Nick Swardson (comedian) Uptown, $44-$54

The Minneapolis-born comedian Nick Swardson continues his Make Joke from Face Tour.

Eddie B (comedian), The Midland, $25-$65

The comedian first hit viral status with his series of comical videos titled "What Teachers Really Want to Say", eventually taking his videos to the stage at comedy clubs, theaters, and arenas. After a series of Covid-era virtual performances, he’s back on the road with his Teachers Only Tour.

SUNDAY JAN 29

MONDAY JAN 30

TUESDAY JAN 31

The Lone Bellow w Tow'rs, Knuckleheads, $30

We continue to be big fans of this Nashville (by way of Brooklyn) trio, out in support of their fifth studio Love Songs for Losers, which was released last November (via Dualtone Records). We’ve caught their spirited and passionate live show pretty regularly over the last decade plus, most recently at this very venue in March 2020, right before the global lockdown.

Openers Tow’rs are Flagstaff, AZ-based and led by husband-and-wife pair Kyle and Gretta Miller with last full-length being 2020’s The Holly & and The Ivy but have also just released three singles from an upcoming album.

john c ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

More Morrissey: Blitz Vega and The More You Ignore Me

Read More The Smiths I was excited to see that This Day Is Music is publishing The Smiths - The Day I Was There, a new book on the Manchester band. This book is more or less a collection of memories from various fans, compiled and edited by Richard Houghton. …

Blitz Vega
twitter.com/blitzvegamusic

I know I’m late to the party, but I just got around to hearing Blitz Vega’s “Strong Forever”, the November 2022 single from FutureSonic Records/CEN/The Orchard.

What is incredibly important about this single is that it features a team-up of Andy Rourke and Johnny Marr, a long time The Smiths reunion of some sort… a meeting that only took 35 years in the making. We all know that Morrissey has never forgiven the other band members (and in fact had an online spat with Marr a few years ago), so seeing Rourke and Marr together is good enough for me!

Andy explains: “We approached a few people to guest on the track and I asked Johnny, who very kindly recorded some guitars and sent them over. Johnny and I have remained friends, we’ve known each other since we were 13 years old. He’s my oldest and dearest friend and I feel our friendship gets stronger as time passes."

Hearing the song, it’s pretty good! Kind of powerful, but familiar and dance-able. I feel like this is a song you want to hear before a big battle or an intense workout. It’s very catchy.

Kav Blaggers from The Happy Mondays and Andy Rourke wrote the “Strong Forever” as a campaign song against discrimination in soccer.

You can purchase the single or preview it on Amazon.

Read More Morrissey As you know, I used to be a devoted The Smiths and Morrissey fan. Like many of you, I have grown up and may have been a little disenchanted by singer Morrissey’s beliefs and personality... but I still love the music .…

The More You Ignore Me (2018)
twitter.com/TMYIMFilm

When I first saw the title The More You Ignore Me, I simply thought it was Morrissey-related, as he had a big hit with that song, “The More You Ignore Me, The Closer I Get”. Personally speaking, I don’t really love the song, but it’s popular song. Even Bill Nye the Science Guy parodied the song with Momentisey’s “The Faster You Push Me, the Further I Get” from Not That Bad Records.

Anyway, so, indeed, the film The More You Ignore Me, is a story about love, family, and 1980s rural England. The film starts with a mental mother and her daughter Alice. One day, she discovered The Smiths on television, playing “This Charming Man”, and instantly fell in love with Morrissey and his music.

I don’t really love drama, and probably wouldn’t have watched it if it wasn’t available for free via TenaaTV.

So if you’re into Morrissey and English humor (which is not funny to some people), check it out.

Description:

The More You Ignore Me is both a poignant and darkly funny coming-of-age story of dysfunctional family life in 1980 s rural England: Gina (Sheridan Smith) whose efforts to be a loving mother and wife are undermined by her declining mental health and her growing obsession with the local weatherman and Alice (Ella Hunt) her daughter, who struggles to relate to her mum. Written by, and starring, Jo Brand based on her critically acclaimed novel of the same name using all the insight gained during her years as a psychiatric health worker, The More You Ignore Me is set to the songs of The Smiths and also stars Mark Addy, Sally Phillips, Sheila Hancock, Tom Davis and Ricky Tomlinson and is directed by Keith English.

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The More You Ignore Me (2018)

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Smile for M3GAN

M3GAN Read More Chucky Child’s Play is not one of my favorite. That’s because I just find the doll killer just too silly. In fact, in the later films, they are just straight up comedies. …

M3GAN (2023)
universalpictures.com

The first horror film of 2023 is called M3GAN. To be honest, it’s not really a horror film, more like comedy/horror…

M3GAN is from James Wan, who created Saw, Insidious and The Conjuring franchises.

The story is simple, it’s about a doll with artificial intelligence, designed to be a friend and protector to recently orphaned 8-year-old. Unfortunately, M3GAN’s programming and logic is out of control, as the doll murders everyone it thinks is a treat.

The film suffers a little from pacing. It took a long time before we’re introduced to M3GAN. I thought they spent too much time setting up back stories and build characters. However, once M3GAN is introduced, every moment the doll’s on screen is a treat. You love watching the evil doll and attitude. At times it felt like this could be the latest Child’s Play film and sometime I thought wouldn’t it be cool to have a M3GAN vs Chucky film?

I know it’s not the child’s fault, but at times, I found the character infuriating. When M3GAN is taken away from her, she’s screaming and crying and I just wanted to shut her up! I guess it’s great acting on Jenna Davis’ behalf, but I hated the spoiled brat so much towards the end of the film.

My one big complaint about the film was the dancing/killing part of the film. It just comes out of nowhere, there was really no setup why she’s doing it.

If you saw the trailer and loved it, you’re going to love the movie. It’s all very predictable… if you were hoping for more, you’re not going to find it.

For those wanting a Rated-R cut of the film, look for the new version on streaming soon.

Smile Read More Horror This is one of my favorite horror film this, and last year. The film was actually based on a short story (Oculus: Chapter 3 - The Man with the Plan) which may explain the lack of story... but what it lacked, it made up for such a horrific, satisfying ending. …

Smile (2022)
amazon.com

One of last year’s best horror film, Smile, is out now on Bluray/DVD and streaming on Paramount+. If you’ve seen the film It Follows, it has a similar premise.

In Smile, the main character Rose Cotter witnessed a horrific suicide, with the person smiling as they killed themselves. Since then, she’s plagued with this supernatural entity. After researching, with the help of her ex-boyfriend, a police detective, she finds out that she can only break out of this chain if she murders someone.

It’s a very good film. Very good pacing, and very good uses of sound to create tension and unease.

Perhaps the reason why the film seems so refined, it is because the director Parker Finn, actually kind of a did a test run with his short horror film Laura Hasn't Slept. I haven’t seen the original movie, but I’m assuming he took what he learned from making that original film, and, with a bigger budget and extra casting, he was able to put together a better film.

While audiences overwhelmingly loves the film, some critics said it was too formulaic and felt the story was padded to a two hour feature from its original 11-minute short. You know what I say, critics have never liked genre films, particularly gruesome, horrific films like Smile. If you like The Ring (both the American version and the Japanese version) or It Follows, you’ll be entertained by Smile.

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vu ([email protected]) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Which Witch

Mayfair Witches Read More Walking Dead Are you excited that The Walking Dead is back? New episode, "The Suicide King", is airing tonight on AMC. This is just an announcement that you can start your pre-order for The Walking Dead AMC …

Mayfair Witches
amc.com

With the final 11th season of Walking Dead just aired in 2022, AMC is shopping around for a new IP to bring in new viewers. To me, it looks like AMC decide to put their chips in Anne Rice. Their first effort was Interview with the Vampire, based on Rice’s 1976 novel.

I only know about this Interview with the Vampire story through the 1994 movie adaptation, starring Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt. Between this movie and its sequel, Queen of the Damned, I can’t say that I was that interested in gothic vampires. I do eventually intend to watch the AMC TV show of Vampire… but, at the moment, I’m in no hurry.

However, I am very interested in the upcoming Mayfair Witches show, mostly because I’m in love with leading star Alexandra Daddario. She was amazing in The White Lotus and was the best thing in Baywatch (2017).

While Mayfair Witches is the second series in the Anne Rice universe, titled “The Immortal Universe”, you do not need to watch Interview with the Vampire to understand Mayfair Witches.

I have not read the novel, but I have some comic book adaption of The Witching Hour (with some great John Bolton cover art), so I’m somewhat familiar with the first novel.

It would seem that the new television series made some drastic changes to the story. First of all, they future jump the story, so everything takes place in the modern age (people talking about Uber driver and Minecraft just makes me cringe).

Another thing is they removed an important character in the novel: Michael Curry. Instead, AMC decides to create a new character called Ciprien Grieve, which combines Michael and Aaron Lightner.

I can’t say that after watching the pilot, that I’m that excited to see the rest of the series. The pilot doesn’t really clue you in where the story is going, why we should care about anyone, and what are the rules of these supernatural witches. The only thing it does is set up some of the main characters, primarily centered around Dr Rowan Fielding. Maybe it’ll get better with the second episode.

Mayfair Witches will air on AMC on January 8, 2023.

The Witcher: Blood Origin Read More The Witcher The second The Witcher season is upon us! Man, it’s been so long (the first season aired in 2019!), I have forgotten much of the first season. I do recall that I loved it… however the critics hated it because they just couldn’t follow the three different …

The Witcher: Blood Origin
netflix.com

Netflix’s The Witcher spinoff series, The Witcher: Blood Origin is universally hated by fans and critics.

There are several reasons why no one likes the new television series… from my perspective, it just comes down to a poorly written story… and completely unnecessary. It has nothing to do with the Witcher… and, in fact, if they remove that name in the title, you can just treat it as a dumb fantasy about some elves.

When Witcher star Henry Cavill announced that he is stepping down as the Witcher, I read it was because the writers of the series was not respecting the source material. Based on watching The Witcher: Blood Origin, I’m going to agree.

You see, the regular Witcher series are based on novels by author Andrzej Sapkowski. His story and characters are from Polish myths and legends, combined with J. R. R. Tolkien’s Middle-Earth fantasy creatures of Elves, Gnomes, and Dwarves.

Instead of adapting one of Sapkowski’s novels, the Blood Origin creators decides to make up their own story to explain the origin of The Witcher. That does sound pretty cool, but when you watch it, it’s pretty awful. It starts with two characters meeting randomly after a failed assassin attempt. Their journey takes them to find Michelle Yeoh, the last of the Ghost Clan, and then they randomly meet other characters who bumped into them walking in the road. The seven outcasts join forces to fight an evil empire… and accidentally created the very first Witcher.

While I don’t hate myself for watching Blood Origin, I think I could have just skipped this. I have enjoyed the regular The Witcher television show, and I love the video game The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt… I just felt Blood Origin was a waste of everyone’s time, and not worthy of the Witcher name.

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Old Men

Read More Jason Bourne We just saw an advance screening of the spy action thriller film Jason Bourne, the fifth film in the Bourne film series, on Tuesday, July 26th at the AMC Southdale 16 in Edina. The new film reunites actor Matt Damon with writer/director …

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The Old Man
fxnetworks.com

Based on the 2017 novel by Thomas Perry of the same name, The Old Man is the new television drama thriller from FX. After its premiere on June 16, 2022, it was renewed for a second season.

The show is about an ex-CIA agent, named Dan Chase (played by Jeff Bridges), living off the grid for over thirty years. After killing an intruder with a gun and silencer, Chase realized he’s been compromised. He goes on a run, and that’s how the pilot starts.

There’s also the team trying to capture Chase, headed by FBI Assistant Director for Counterintelligence Harold Harper (played by John Lithgow). Harper doesn’t really want Chase caught, but at the same time, he has to do his job.

The first few episodes will have you on your seat, I’m very engaged in this cat-mouse game.

What I don’t really like about the show, because it’s about 7 hours long (in 7 episodes), there are a lot of flashback and backstory that I really didn’t care for. There are actors, playing younger version of Chase and Harper, but all they come off is like trying to imitate Bridges & Lithgow (who has very specific speech patterns).

If you like spy drama, thriller, such as the Jason Bourne, James Bond, or Jack Reacher, you’ll like this television show.

Old Man
rljentertainment.com

Old Man is a new 2022 American thriller/horror movie by Lucky McKee from an screenplay by Joel Veach, distributed by RLJ Entertainment (formerly known as Image Entertainment).

The film is about a lost hiker (Marc Senter) who stumbles upon a strange old man living in the woods (Stephen Lang). It’s really a low budget film, so there’s just a lot of dialogue between the old man and the hiker. It’s clear that the old man is mentally crazy, why the hiker would still engage in conversation, it’s somewhat unbelievable to me.

The problem with the film is that you do not like either character, the crazy old man or the naive hiker… and when you don’t like the characters, it’s just so hard to root for anyone. Everything is answered in the end, all the mysteries are answered… but getting there, I’m not sure if it was worth all that dialogue.

It’s weird to see how Stephen Lang, is playing these old men, who you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover. In Don’t Breathe, he plays an old blind man, who has his home invaded. Of course, it’s the invaders that should be worried, not the blind guy!

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