Twin Peaks 20 years later

20 years ago TV changed. David Lynch's "Twin Peaks" hit the air and confused / amused / creeped out millions of television viewers world wide. My mom even watched this show regularly back when it first aired.

The Guardian marked the occasion with this very interesting article which catches up with several members of the "Twin Peaks" cast.

"Twin Peaks Season 2" and the "Twin Peaks Definitive Gold Box Edition" DVDs were just released on March 22nd in the UK (these were both released in the States a while back). For an overview of the features on the box set check out this review from Lynchnet.com

Coalescence and Luxation

Coalescence and Luxation from stretta on Vimeo.

Mark Prent - Archangel

Artist Mark Prent was kind enough to share his latest work, "Archangel" with us (click images to view them larger).

You can see my previous post on Mark's work here and check out his official website here.

Monster Mash

Yeah, I know it's stupid. I found it amusing though (as I often do with things involving exploding heads).

Fear(s) of the Dark

I finally saw the French animation anthology "Peur[s] du noir" the other day. I quite enjoyed it.

The stand out segments are those by written by Romain Slocombe (who is one of my favorite photographers as well) and directed by Marie Caillou. Amazing stuff.

Check out the trailer here.

Here's the official website (in English).

You can buy the DVD on Amazon here.

Shadowline

Shadowline from Dan Seagrave on Vimeo.

You may know the name Dan Seagrave from many a metal album cover. You can see more of Dan's work at danseagrave.com

Thanks, yet again, to Rennie Resmini for the suggestion!

The Complete Magick Lantern Cycle

Well, this one is long overdue. I remember having my teenage mind blown while watching the old VHS versions of Kenneth Anger's Magick Lantern Cycle. Now all these amazing short films will be available again, in their freshly restored glory, on March 30th.

My single favorite short film of all time is Anger's "Invocation of My Demon Brother." That one alone is worth the price of this DVD set BUT WAIT you get "Lucifer Rising" and eight other groundbreaking short films, plus a boatload of cool extras.

You can learn more about this set over at the Fantoma DVD website and pre-order it on Amazon.

Francis Bacon's Arena

This is the first few minutes of the documentary "Francis Bacon's Arena." I remember they were playing this in the gift shop at Bacon's retrospective at The Met and I've wanted to see it since.

It looks like you can buy this on Region 0 DVD from the UK at francisbacondvd.com

Sydney Underground Film Festival

I ran across this trailer on YouTube. I must say these films look pretty damn interesting. If you know of any that are available to watch full length online please let me know.

The above trailer is for the 2009 Sydney Underground Film Festival BUT they are doing it again this September. You can learn more on their website: sydneyundergroundfilmfestival.com

The organizers are offering a submission fee discount to filmmakers that provide a rejection letter from another festival! Ha ha.

You can also see many more strange things on the Sydney Underground Film Festival YouTube page.

Convulse

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I used to HATE the band Convulse. Funny but true. I worked for Relapse Records back in the early 1990's so all I heard from them was their post-death metal releases which were a nauseating combination of Scandinavian metal and retro alternative rock. Yeah... not good. Convulse and my old band Dead World were on the 1993 "Corporate Death" compilation together and I STILL have to click past their tracks when listening to that CD. The rest of that comp is pretty much solid as a rock though.

Anyhow, a year or so ago I heard that my buddies at Relapse were reissuing the first Convulse recordings that are straight forward brutal death metal. I had my doubts. But, I am listening to "World Without God" right at this very moment. It sounds fucking EXCELLENT. The first death metal I ever heard was in this style. Raw, heavy, brutal and without over-polished production. So whenever I hear something from that era it resonates with me a lot better than most any death metal released within the last decade. So, I no longer hate Convulse. In fact, "World Without God" flat out rules.

You don't have to take my word for it. You can listen to the whole album right now at convulseworldwithoutgod.info

You can also pick up the CD and merch over here at Relapse.


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DeathSSquad

Here's a teaser for the new Isaac Williams series "DeathSSquad." I am dying to see more.

Voivod Live

My girlfriend and I saw saw VOIVOD here in Philadelphia last night. It was a really excellent performance with a totally SOLID set list. They even played a song off of their early album "Rrroooaaarrr." That never happened the previous four times I have seen them since 1988. The above video was taken earlier this year in Canada.

Their current guitarist Dan Mongrain did an excellent job filling in for Piggy (R.I.P.). The highlight of the show was bassist Blacky doing an a cappella version of the theme from Rocky (ha ha). That is the one and only time I have seen a Philly visitor make a reference to Rocky and not wanted to punch them in the face.

After the show we even had the pleasure of talking to VOIVOD drummer / artist Away for a couple of minutes. He's an extremely nice guy to say the least.

If you get the chance, make sure to see VOIVOD on this tour. If you are even remotely a fan you won't be disappointed.

Art of the Steal

I just read the cover story of the current Philadelphia City Paper on the new film "The Art of the Steal" (watch the trailer / learn more over at IFC).

In a nutshell, there is an absolutely stunning art collection in the Philly suburbs called The Barnes Foundation. City officials and other shady characters want the collection moved to the same area as the Philadelphia Museum of Art and Rodin Museum. Albert C. Barnes HATED Center City Philadelphia and put in his will that the collection was not to be moved after his death. The shady folks are moving the collection anyway. That's what this documentary is all about and I am really looking forward to seeing it.

In 1993 or so I went to The Barnes Foundation and was blown away. It is easily one of the greatest collections of art I have seen. I absolutely understand why people like those behind "The Art of the Steal" want it to stay in it's original place.

The standout memory of my visit to The Barnes was seeing an unpublished Hieronymus Bosch painting of hell. Not only was it instantly my favorite Bosch painting but it was totally naked on the wall. No barrier, no glass, no alarms, just some black tape on the floor. So I put my face a matter of an inch or so from the paint and took in every possible detail. This is my single best experience with a work of art in my entire life.

If you can, try to see The Barnes before it's moved. It will be worth the trouble.

LATE ADDITION 3.5.10: I just saw the documentary and it is AMAZING. Must see!

More importantly: Shame on all the people involved in moving The Barnes Foundation. What a fucking travesty.

Trevor Brown's Alice

Trevor Brown's brand new book "Alice" is now available for sale here.

This book is a catalog of sorts for his current gallery show at Bunkamura Gallery in Japan. Here's the exhibition post card and more info.

All above info taken from Trevor's excellent Baby Art Blog.