Once you get your member's card to that verboten club you're way gone

Imagine you're walking down a busy inner city street late one night and you need to step off for a slash. You find a back alley but suddenly while watering the brick wall you notice a door that's not completely shut. You pull the door, it opens, you walk in - and find yourself in a secret club filled with wonderful eats and drinks and no one knows about this place and normally you need a member's card to get in. A card that about no one is ever granted. Yesterday, I got one such member's card!! Well, figuratively speaking that is. In reality I received an invite to THE SCREAMER's world! A world that hardly anybody knows about. The invite? A DVD called THE SCREAMERS LIVE IN SAN FRANCISCO SEPT 2ND 1978!!!

I discovered THE SCREAMERS a few years back when they were mentioned in the documentary film PUNK: ATTITUDE. I've watched that film a dozens times since then and I've spent many a cold and forsaken night wondering about how the hell they sounded. Well, now I know! The reason I thought I would never get to hear them is simple: they never released one single record!!!

But fortunately someone else taped one of their gigs and released it on VHS back in the 80s. Recently I discovered that the old tape had also been re-released on DVD a couple of years back. When I found out about that I went straight to land of the Amazons and ordered a copy. Like I said, I got it yesterday and, man, I so wish I hadn't got it... Huh? Why?? Cos it fucken cracks me up THAT I CAN'T HAVE MORE!! This is just fucken AWESOME. I've already listened to the recording like 8 times since yesterday (the full gig clocks in at the 25 minute mark!). The music was early punk but WAY AHEAD OF ITS TIME. Not punk rock, not hardcore, not a SEX PISTOLS clone, but a mix of punk and electronic music, not in any way like KRAFTWERK or SUICIDE mind you, but truly unique on its own. The singer, Tomata du Plenty was either insane or at least looks like it on stage. It's truly a wonderful recording.

I went on YouTube and discovered there's actually tons of track there, most of them from live gigs but also some recorded for radio demos (and maybe ordinary demos) and a few music videos (made BEFORE MTV got on the air). THE SCREAMERS were totally different and a more INVENTIVE punk band than most of what followed. They broke up in 1981 and the singer went on the become a painter. Sadly he died a decade ago. There's a CNN spot on him made about a year before his untimely death.

Here's two tracks from the same gig as my DVD but they're from another source, maybe the original VHS or a video master. The picture quality on the DVD is way better. This is very exciting and I'm certainly gonna venture further into those uncharted waters that are THE SCREAMERS.




"Punish or be Damned"

Everything she wanted
That's all she got
That's all

She took a chance
Nothing happened

It's not always easy
To get what you deserve

Punish or be damned

Cruel and unusual
But justice nonetheless
Justice

Cast a stone
Show no mercy
No mercy

It's not always easy
To get what you deserve

Punish or be damned

The price is fixed
It's sang froid a la carte

It's not always easy
To get what you deserve

Punish or be damned



"Better World"

I shoved and I shoved and I shoved
And I dug and I dug and I dug and I dug
And I hacked away!

In a better world,
Everybody must be
Made to feel important.

What's wrong with us?
Are we mad?
Why are we so stupid?
So stupid!
So stupid!

Cheated children,
They go berserk,
They steal and kill and destroy!

I'm trying
To be like
Jesus.

In a better world, don't let them laugh.
In a better world, kiss their wounds
In a better world, don't let them laugh.
In a better world

They slash out and bang things around
They think they'll come out on top!

In a better world,
Everybody must be
Made to feel important.

I shoved and I shoved and I shoved
And I dug and I dug and I dug and I dug
And I hacked away!

A better world, a better world begins with me.
A better world, a better world begins with you.
A better world, a better world begins with me.
A better world, a better world begins with you.
A better world, a better world begins with me.
A better world, a better world begins with you!



(I found the lyrics on Lyricsmania.com so big thanks to whoever transcribed them. I had to change a line here and there (I guess Tomata probably sang them differently at other gigs). Also, I'm not completely sure about the "It's sang froid a la carte" line. Does he really sing "froid"? I did a Google and the ONLY place that pops up with "froid" in front of "a la carte" is actually in the Screamers lyrics. Maybe the original transcriber mistook it for something else. I can't make out what he might sing instead so if you can I'd be grateful to know. Thanks)

Deadly Angels Strike Back (Indonesia, 1981)

aka Fire of Vengeance / Tödliche Engel / Tödliche Engel Schlagen Zurück

EDIT: Due to a screw up at the German film data base OFDB this German VHS turned out NOT to be DEADLY ANGELS STRIKE BACK but an entirely different Indonesian film called FIRE OF VENGEANCE!!! (same director though, and same plot too, haha, but different film!!!)

Finally!!! I've been looking for this for a long time: the German VHS release of DEADLY ANGELS STRIKE BACK - the sequel to 5 DEADLY ANGELS. I already have the film on VCD from Malaysia but it's only in Indonesian. I never thought the film had been released outside of Indonesia and Malaysia so I was quite surprised when a fellow collector of Indo flicks posted a scan of this German VHS release (I've later learnt there's a French VHS as well - but no English dubbed release). Needless to say it's dubbed in German but I understand that a lot better than Indonesian! And according to the German film data base OFDB the tape is lbx whereas the VCD is awful pan & scan.

And in further, related news...

I recently won this very-very-very rare US/Puerto Rican VHS release of 5 DEADLY ANGELS (incidentally the release I DIDN'T get in post #368!!). I already have the Dutch VHS but the chance of getting the only other English dubbed release was too good to pass by.

I haven't watched the tape yet but I knew the German tape is missing one scene, a "main female character cheers up a friend by singing a happy song on the beach" scene so I checked the new tape for that scene right away. And quite surprisingly it's also missing from the American tape!! I always figured it was just the Germans who didn't find this amusing. The Dutch tape is uncut.

And one more thing, the NTSC tape is recorded in the lousy EP speed. I never understood why the bloody hell American video labels used this crappy speed at all. Neither LP nor EP was ever used for factory recorded tapes in Europe. Anyway, it's cool to have the tape but it'll be the ol'e Dutch vhs I'll be watching when I pull out the film again from time to time. LOL.

A message about the ONAR dvd sale from Ali Murat Guven

Ali Murat left this message as a comment to my previous post about the ONAR sale. I think it deserves a real post of its own. Thanks so much for the info, Ali. I think it's awesome what you do in honour of Bill (and to help his widow and daughter).
/Jack
-------------------------------------------------------------


Dear trash fan friends from all over the world,

Greetings to all of you.

My name is Ali Murat Guven, a Turkish film critic, cine-historian and Bill's fellow in Istanbul for many former Onar film releases.

I saw this blog tonight and wanted to give some friendly information to you.

Two weeks ago, I sent Mr. Kunt Tulgar, famous Turkish producer-director-actor, as a friendly representative to Bill's widow, Julia Barounis, to Athens, Greece. Julia knows very well all of us, here in Turkey. Because, we all helped Bill many times on his commercial efforts.
Mr. Tulgar and his wife took many DVD's from Vassilis' home-office, put inside their luggage as they squeeze as possible and returned to Istanbul after two days.
Now, I am trying to sell these first party of Onar DVD's one by one.

This is not a commercial activity for me or for Mr. Tulgar. We, the Turks never forget our good friends and Vassilis was a very good friend. Everybody thinks that Turks and Greeks hate each other. But, we were "brothers". My nickname for Vassilis was always "brother" on his e-mail messages. Novadays, I try to deserve this emotional nickname.
All the payment which is coming from the sales is collecting in a bank account. We earn "zero" on this proscedure.Everything for Julia and her little daughter. There is a deep economical crisis in our neighbour, Greece and this situation worries us too much. Turkey lived a similar position in 2001 and all the moral, ethic values collapsed. We don't want to see our Greek friends in a bad situtation. After they became rich again, then we may go on fighting with Greeks But,not now... It is the time of neighbourhood and friendship.

You may check this info by writing to Julia, to Athens. She knows everything, these sales and my friendly aim and trusts me.

Therefore, you are buying this DVD's for "Bill's family", not for me.



After releasing these adverts on the trash film websites, everyday, I receive more than 20 messages from all around the world and reply all of them one by one.

I sold 120 DVD to date, in first 10 days. And I sent all of them via registered airmail post to their owners from USA to Australia. And I added to all personal signed photos of Mr. Kunt Tulgar and Mr. Aytekin Akkaya. For only one DVD or for 10 DVD's, I always added 2 mini A4 color posters inside every parcel. This is our little present as the sales team for the supporters of this operation.

You must know this first... Only "Cellat" (The Executioner) finished... It was really and certainly finished. As the honorary representative of Onar Films in Turkey, I have only ONE COPY from "Cellat" in my library now. And Julia has not got this title in Athens. There was only 9 copies at Athens and Mr. Tulgar bringed them to me. And if we don't print a new 500 legal copies with Onar label as an independent work, it will never be again.
In the other side, "Kilink Istanbul"da is almost finishing. Last copies of this title are in Istanbul, in my office and I have only 25-30 copies from this title.

Mr. Tulgar bringed only 11 titles from Athens because of airplane luggage limitations. He was with their wife, Mrs. Emel Tulgar, and they could bring 850 DVD's to me. More of it was destroying the little profits of these DVD's. Because, you know that, extra every kilogram is too expensive on board. A kilogram is two DVD's!

An important info to you... "Karanlık Sular", "Kadın Dusmanı","Demirpence Korsan Adam" is AVAILABLE. But their copies are in Athens now. Mr. Tulgar will fly to Athens again at the beginning of next May and will also bring me these titles. Total DVD's of Onar Films at the stock is almost 2500. When we sold them, forget forever all these titles. Because, anybody in the world except "Bill" can't prepare these old films with many wonderful extras. There was 4 crazy persons for this madness 1) Metin Demirhan 2) Vassilis Barounis 3) Kunt Tulgar 4) Me... Two of them is dead now, and Kunt and me are fighting to do something for you.

I shot many extras for Vassilis' former titles here. Last work I have done for Vassilis was a long interview with the actor of "Zagor" films, legendary stunt man Mr. Levent Cakir. Unfortunately, Vassilis couldn't complete the Zagor's. A Turkish company printed two Zagor's last years. But, they have any extras. The quality is so far away from Onar label. Because, Turkish DVD producers are looking to this area as only "the money". If you don't have a deep love against trash genre, you can not be a second Bill.

I respect him too much, I missed him too much.

Here is a link you my see our collection at the moment. Don't forget, next month 3 new titles will add to this list:

http://www.otekisinema.com/onar-film...dleri-satista/

If you need any titles and want to support this operation, then write me:

onarfilms.lastfilms@yahoo.com

Best regards to all,

ALI MURAT GUVEN
ISTANBUL, TURKEY

Something Weird Video's DEVIL WOMAN is cut!!!

[Mexican lobby card for DEVIL WOMAN]

Today I finally got hold of the Filipino horror movie BRUKA, QUEEN OF EVIL which for years was thought to be lost. And before it was believed to be lost fans though it was an alternative title for MANDA aka DEVIL WOMAN. But it's not, they're two different moves (which Andrew Leavold has written extensively about here)

It's taken me about three and a half years to track down BRUKA and today I finally received it. Yay!!! Last year someone else got hold of a copy and shared it with friends, and copies off that copy are now doing the rounds in collector circles. I wouldn't be surprised if it's uploaded to torrent sites. Apparently, there's already some bootleg site that has got hold of it as well. However, I figured I'd get it directly from the person who provided Andrew's and everyone else's copy; i.e. the gwilo actor who got the film on vhs from one of the actors who starred in BRUKA and DEVIL WOMAN! The actor got the tapes directly from the films' producer. I'm really looking forward to seeing this film now!

But lets talk about the HEADLINE!!! In addition to BRUKA I ALSO received the Mandarin dubbed print of DEVIL WOMAN! In fact I got two different prints of the Mandarin dubbed version; One with English subs that originates from the film's producer (it says "Sample" on the print). And an un-subtitled print which is taken from an official VHS release from (I'm pretty sure) Taiwan!! He also sent me a Xeroxed colour copy of the vhs cover and I'll post it here once I get my arse in gear and a scanner organised! I think the two tapes from the producer are taken directly from 35mm or 16mm prints. These subtitled prints are not released anywhere on home cinema format. And BRUKA has never been released in any format to home-cinema anywhere in the world.

But BACK TO THE HEADLINE!!! [spoiler warning here!] My suspicion was right!! My suspicion which I've had all along THAT SOMETHING WEIRD VIDEO'S EDITION OF DEVIL WOMAN CUTS OFF TOO EARLY!!! I was right!!! In fact the SWV vhs is missing the entire ending after the snake woman falls off the cliff!! There's about a minute of happy children and the snake woman crying in pain while she's burning in the flames of HELL!!! I wonder why it's missing from the SWV print. And it's highly annoying as SWV's fully letterboxed print otherwise looks so much better than the two Mandarin prints which are both presented in the fullscreen format. Anyway, I haven't watched any of my new dvd-r's properly yet but I'll write up some more (better) info once I do (and can make a proper comparison).

All very exiting!

VIDEO FEROX was a ZINE in the 90's. Now... it's a COFFEE TABLE BOOK!!!

Readers of my old zine STAY SICK! will undoubtedly remember Henrik Larsen's review of an issue of the legendary Swedish zine VIDEO FEROX. The zine is long gone but, lo and behold, the editor Johan Karlsson has reprinted every issue (i.e. 10) in book form! The book contains 608 pages and weighs a kilo (two pounds)!! Madre de dios!!!

Those original issues are RARE! (I never got hold of the early ones) and they go for inflated prices on the Swedish auction site Tradera. I've just ordered the book and paid around HALF of what one of the original issues went for on Tradera recently!!! According to their website the print run is limited to 160 copies and there's only about 30 left. Get it while you can. NB: All text is in Swedish.

For the Video Ferox site go here.

Prices: 297 SKR (Sweden) / 329 SKR (Denmark) (incl. postage). If you live in other parts of Scandinavia or elsewhere write and ask for price. They take PayPal and Bank-giro (the latter probably only within Sweden).

Juan de los Muertos (Spain/Cuba, 2011) - trailer

Check out this trailer for JUAN DE LOS MUERTOS [Juan of the dead] that I discovered via a Uruguayan blog, El Bizarro Mundo Nihilista (whose contents is mainly reviews of spanking sex videos, LOL). I don't know if there's a DVD release but it certainly looks cool enough to get if there is one!

"I love you Gordon Bleu"

No. 375 in our series of mistaken lyrics: SONIC YOUTH's "I Love You Golden Blue" which I seriously heard as I love you Gordon Bleu. Hahaha. Gordon Bleu is the often used Danish spelling of Cordon Bleu. Do watch the video, it's an awesome track. Oh, and it would have been more fun if she had actually sung I love you Gordon Bleu.




PS: I was gonna link to a recipe site to show you what a Gordon Bleu is and in honour of the single one Icelandic reader of this blog I decided to link is to an Icelandic site. Gee, if the Danes hadn't spent a 1000 years trying to improve our dialect of the old Viking lingo I would still be able to read that site. As it is I can only pick out certain words like Uppskriftir, kjüklinga and eggjahvïta, haha.

Witch With Flying Head (Cheung Yan-Git, Taiwan, 1982)

A few years back I watched a truly weird, wacky, wild, gory, and wonderful horror movie called WITCH WITH FLYING HEAD. Back then I thought it was from Hong Kong but it's actually from Taiwan, and it was directed by Cheung Yan-Git who also made the weird, wild and gory THE DEVIL (1981). He's made many more films but I haven't watched any of those (you can look them up on the HKMDB).

WITCH WITH FLYING HEAD is very rare as it's never been released on dvd or on any easy-to-find video tapes. The bootleg I got hold of years ago is the same version that everybody else has; it stems from a rare TAI SENG vhs that doesn't have any English subtitles. Until very recently I didn't think a subtitled print existed but then... someone on eBay put up a Mandarin language tape from TAIWAN that indeed includes English subs. I made a hefty bid on the tape but couldn't compete with the winner whose winning bid ended up on $155!! However, someone who had dealt with the seller before suggested I write to him and ask if he's sell me a dvd-r copy instead. Fortunately the seller said yes!

I watched my dvd-r tonight and what a difference it is when you can actually comprehend the WACKED OUT story line!! The Taiwan print is fullscreen and cuts off left and right but because it's also squeezed you can actually get it "down" in the correct ratio by using the 16:9 button on the remote. The film print that was used for the vhs is fairly scratched but, arch, screw that! It's subtitled!!!

Repo Man (Alex Cox, USA, 1984)

I've just re-watched REPO MAN which I hadn't seen properly for almost 25 years! (I did get hold of a fullscreen VHS dupe from Finland thru tape-trading in the early 90s but I think I only watched it very late one night and I fell asleep half way thru and never re-watched the tape I don't think). Initially, I watched it at an all-nighter at the old Scala Cinema Club in London in the late summer of 1988; If memory serves me well the all-nighter was entitled "Punk all night" and one of the other films was STRAIGHT TO HELL (also by Alex Cox) and I think SID & NANCY was shown too, and a fourth movie which I don't remember at all. Hmmm, no wait a minute... actually I do remember! It was DOGS IN SPACE, haha. I haven't actually re-watched any of those. I went with my friends Michelle G. and John Dodson - a big Aussie bloke who had died three times of drug overdoses and had just got out of a Spanish jail when I met him. The last time I saw him he left the UK in a hurry cos the tax authorities where getting on to him. Who was the last one there? Hmmm, memory is faint here. I think it was a Kiwi girl called Caileen. Haha. Anyway, I got hold of the reg. 1 dvd, the one that dvdcompare.net says is the best release of the film. And I must admit I thought REPO MAN was every bit as WEIRD and WONDERFUL as when I saw it almost 25 years ago. Alex Cox ought to pull his shit together and make some more films!

The last remaining stock of ONAR dvd's is now up for sale

Two of BILL BAROUNIS' friends in Turkey, film director Kunt Tulgar and film journalist Ali Murat Guven, are now working with Bill's widow Julia to make the last of the ONAR FILMS stock available!

Yesterday, they posted a list of ONAR DVD's that are available on the semi official ONAR Facebook page. Some are in great numbers and some are almost sold out. CELLAT (aka Turkish Deathwish) is almost gone (5 copies yesterday). I've got all of Bill's releases but I intend to grab a few anyway as a way to pay my respect one last time.

All the money goes to Bill's widow and their young daughter.

The list is here with info on prices and ordering. If you're not on FB you can also see the list here - but it's not yet translated into English.

Oh Anita!

ANITA LANE is quite wonderful. So weird and so cool musically. She belongs to that group of friends around NICK CAVE and his old band THE BIRTHDAY PARTY who went to live in Berlin in the early 1980s. She's been making music with various members from that crowd, most notably MICK HARVEY but also BLIXA BARGELD - and THE BIRTHDAY PARTY play on several of her recordings. Listening to those tracks is almost like discovering a long lost BIRTHDAY PARTY record.

Unfortunately, she's not very productive. She has kids and would rather spend time with them than make music. How odd!! (I hear the rumbling sound of mothers of the world coming this way to flatten me under their swollen feet. LOL). I remember sitting in the kitchen in Melbourne sometime in the 90s listening to an Anita Lane interview on the radio. She had just had a kid and she kept switching from trying to answer questions to trying to get the kid to stop crying. LOL. Check out these two videos. So cool.





And check out this li'l thing that I bought on eBay last night (i.e. this morning); Anita Lane's vinyl EP "Dirty Sings". I've actually already got the music as it's included on the CD version of her album "Dirty Pearl" but the cover was too cool not to own. It's pretty rare too!

Ol'e zombie fave to finally get uncut / un-tampered with / original DVD/BLU-RAY release!!!

Bloody great news!!! One of my all time fave horror flicks is fanally getting an uncut DVD release in its original format for the first time ever! Yes, NEEDLESS TO SAY, I am talking about the (studio) sequel to NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD: RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD!!! It's Second Sight Films in the UK that are putting out the DVD/BLU-RAY. It's scheduled for release 04/06/12 (which everywhere in the world except the USA means means JUNE, not April!).

There's already been several DVD releases of RETURN but they all suffer from not being in the original format one way or another! I have avoided getting any of them because I already had an uncut letterboxed release that contains the original audio, i.e. the UK Tartan video tape! From what I've read the reg. 1 DVDs are in the right widescreen format BUT they suffer from having a truly truncated soundtrack: Some of the COOL punkrock music has been chucked out or changed (Rocky Erickson's awesome "Burn the Flames" has been shortened) and some dialogue has been altered.

The Return Of The Living Dead - Official Trailer - The most popular videos are a click away

The UK DVD from Tartan carries the original audio but is in fullscreen. If I want to see the film in fullscreen I can watch my Australian VHS (that I bought at the Melbourne Video Warehouse in the early 90s, check the scans in this post - although it's of ANOTHER Aussie tape, not mine. It's on eBay right now). Someone might claim the old DVD's were already uncut but I beg to differ: An altered soundtrack means cut in my book! But anyhoo, I for one am looking forward to this release heaps! Hell, maybe it's even time to get one of them hip BLUE RAYS everybody and his ugly cousin is talking about!

I've told you this a dozen times (all the way from the editorial of BANNED IN BRITAIN issue #1 in 1994) but here it is again; The very first time I discovered the fun and cool zombie genre was way back in the late summer of 1988 when I went to a "Dead all night" all-nighter at the old Scala Cinema Club in London (I used to live there in the late 80s and early 90s). The films they showed that night were: NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, DAWN OF THE DEAD, DAY OF THE DEAD, RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD, and ZOMBIE FLESH EATERS (which I missed cos I had to leave for work Sunday morning!!).

Info abut the release from the Second Sight Films website:

THE RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD (04.06.12)

NEWS JUST IN !!!!!
We are excited to announce the inclusion of 'original soundtrack' audio option !!
Available in a Special Limited Edition SteelBook Blu-ray and double disc DVD. The 5 hours of killer extras include:

MORE BRAINS! A RETURN TO THE LIVING DEAD: The definitve 2 hour documentary featuring interviews with cast, writers, producers, as well as behind-the-scenes footage, storyboards, conceptual art, publicity materials and archival documents

MORE BRAINS! 2 HOURS OF KILLER BONUS FEATURES: A conversation with Dan O'Bannon: The Final Interview, They Won't Stay Dead: A Look at Return of The Living Dead Part 11, Love Beyond The Grave: A Look at Return of The Living Dead 3, Stacey Q Live: Exclusive 'Tonight' music video, Even More Brains: Deleted documentary interviews, Return of The Living Dead in 3 minutes, Resurrected Settings: The Filming Locations Today

THE ORIGINS OF RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD with John A. Russo
THE FX OF THE LIVING DEAD with Production Designer William Stout, FX Makeup Artists William Munns and Tony Gardner
PARTY TIME with Music Consultant Steve Pross and 45 Grave Singer Dinah Cancer

Thanks to Derrick King who first mentioned this on Dvdmaniacs.

You are the worst band I have ever seen in your entire life.

This was posted on the (official I think) SONIC YOUTH facebook page today. This guy hates Sonic Youth's music, I mean hate to the extent that it's not just the worst he's seen in his life - but the worst he's seen in their life!! Hahahaha.

our fans writing:

"I'm going to be 100% honest with you.

I'm 13. I have a little band. We are so much better than you. Honestly. You are the worst band I have ever seen in your entire life. You are worse than Rebecca Black. The bass player just hacks the bass and plays one chord. The guitar players are playing out of tune guitars and... well not even playing actually chords. I couldn't sound worse if I tried. It actually sounds like a joke to me. The drummer is okay. But honestly the vocalist is completely out of tune. Oh and The Black keys have two people and are better than you.

From: Me, and pretty much everyone else who has accidentally stumbled upon your terrible music. "

I stole my sister's boyfriend, it was all whirlwind, heat, and flash. With-in a week we killed my parents and hit the road.

I first discovered SONIC YOUTH in 1988 (or maybe 1989). I was living for months on end at the Curzon House Hotel in London and would religiously listen to John Peel's show. I had brought with me my ghettoblaster (that had a little TV in it even!) and I would always make sure to have a blank cassette tape ready for John's sessions hoping he'd play something cool. At one point or another he invited Sonic Youth into the studio, which was of course awesome, but for that session they decided to play all four tracks instrumentally! So I didn't even get to hear how they sounded "normally" (yes-yes, an odd term to use in connection with Sonic Youth!). Anyway, soon after I bought their "Sister" album (on cassette tape!) and the rest is noisy history. This video is one I've just found and which I've never seen before. And it's a really cool video too! The track is "Tunic (Song For Karen)" from their "Goo" album (the headline is from the cover). The band has existed for more than 30 years now and I'm happy they keep putting out records and I'm even happier they're proving that not all old farts have to suck musically and attitude wise. It's possible to still make interesting music after you've left your 20s - although a lot of bands for some reason try and suck as hard as possible musically and attitude wise. I won't soon forget that live video on YouTube where one rich and famous Metallica drummer during a concert blew his nose in a towel and then handed it to a fan. I must admit I lost all respect for the cunt at that point. Anyway, this isn't about shitty mentality but about a cool video; Do check it out, like I said it's pretty cool. xD

Thunder (Italy, 1983)

aka THUNDER WARRIOR

Unfortunately, it seems like the Japanese VHS market is drying up a bit so if I don't post so much about newly purchased Jap. tapes it's not just because I couldn't be arsed to but simply because I don't actually buy any at the moment and haven't for a good while. Well, not until tonight that is; I've just scored Fabrizio De Angelis' (alias Larry Ludman) THUNDER.

The film is Angelis' Italian ripoff of RAMBO - just this time "Rambo" is a native American! And it's the film about which either David Z or Paul Cooke wrote in their splendid book "Tough to Kill"; "Thunder is an excellent and solidly made cheap action film which entertains, no matter how many times it is viewed". I've already got the first sequel (but not the second and final one) also on Japanese VHS. Needless to say, there are no DVD releases (I don't count bootlegs). Winning bid 40 bucks.