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« December 2018 | Main | February 2019 »

Shank Events Calendar - Early February 2019 & On

01/30 - Atomic LaserDisc Club - Atomic Books, Hampden Baltimore

01/30 - Linas Garsys Dvasia Closing Party - Metro Gallery, Station North Baltimore 

 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

January 30, 2019 in The Shank Weekly Calendar | | Comments (0)

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Best Of 2018: 11 Favorite Reads

Madmag5_1024x1024by Benn Ray

The first great, gritty, literary junkie novel of the Opioid-era, with a splash of PTSD for good measure.

From the writer of one of my favorite short story collections, Jesus' Son - this is the recently deceased Johnson's final collection. And this and Jesus' Son perfectly bookend his career - almost as if the characters from the earlier book could be the old, mortality-laden characters in this book. Beautifully written.

Funny, bleak, but real.

This book is simply, in a word, bonkers. If they made it into a movie, they'd have to pretend it was fiction because no one would believe the ridiculous shit Leary and Nixon pulled. It's a delightful historical screwball comedy.

A stunning long-term mass murder committed by whites to take money away from a community of very rich Native Americans who had the good fortune and misfortune to have oil under their land.

Do you suspect your job is bullshit? Then it probably is. Think of it as a safeguard baked in to capitalism to keep people too busy to do things like unite to get rid of capitalism.

It's been a long time since I've read a comic and have actually been creeped out by the imagery. This is an effective haunted house tale with an anti-Islamophobia twist.

In 2018, Jeff Lemire juggled a bunch of creator-owned titles (not to mention a handful of work-for-hire super hero titles for DC and Marvel). And I picked up and enjoyed every one of his creator-owned series. 
Black Hammer - this is an expansive super hero universe that Lemire has created for Dark Horse (sort of like Mike Mignola's Hellboy) - with mini-series, one shots, ongoing series and spin-offs. These stories are overflowing with ideas. And the core books - Black Hammer Volumes 1 and 2 - felt a little Watchmen-like - yeah, it's that good.  
Descender - a beautiful family-oriented sci-fi epic. I was recommending this for people were all caught up on Brian K. Vaughan's Saga and wanted something similar to tide them over.  
Gideon Falls - a paranoid horror tale about a mysterious barn.   
Royal City - This was a subtle drama set in a post-industrial America focused on a family haunted by its own ghost - literally.

Tom King's run on Batman, like Scott Snyder's a few years ago, are some of the best Batman comics written in the past 30 years. He has characterization down. And he finds humor in the all the best places. Plus, he's in it for the long haul - so you can see someone planning out a bigger tale with pieces in motion that will come together down the line.

Usually you get a good story or great art in mainstream comics, but rarely do you get both paired up - and Mister Miracle is one of those rarities. This is next-level storytelling - a definitive graphic novel for a cult character in a large universe.  
 
Biggest Surprise: MAD Magazine
I grew up on MAD Magazine, so I admit that I've always had a spot in my heart for it. But this year MAD Magazine rebooted - starting over with #1 and a new editor - and holy-shit it got good. And it got relevant. And it's pretty goddamn fearless. Just pick up the year end (#5) 20 Dumbest Things of 2018 issue and tell me it's not great. I dare you. No, I double-dog dare you.  

January 30, 2019 in Best Ofs | | Comments (0)

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BernieBro Purity Testing The Democratic Presidential Nominees

by Benn Ray
 
The other day, when Kamela Harris announced she was looking at Baltimore to house her campaign offices, I posted a link to the story on Facebook. That fairly benign post very quickly devolved into how unacceptable she is as a Democratic presidential nominee (it wasn't my point to endorse her although I am Kamela Harris curious) because her "progressive bona fides weren't quite pure enough" for the more self-righteous lefties I have in my feed.
 
The result was me be bickering with dudes, again, about how a female Democratic candidate isn't left enough to deserve their vote. It felt so depressingly familiar - here we are at the very start of the 2020 presidential campaign season, and I'm already fighting with more Bernie Bros more than I am with Trumpians (again).
 
So I thought, to kind of underline the point of what their agenda really is and how absurd and transparent it is, I'd take the list of announced Democratic presidential candidates and apply a "Progressive Purity Test" (I need a better phrase because I'm a progressive and I think the the whole BernieBro thing is bullshit) to each candidate to reveal who the only viable candidate for the Sanctimonious Left is - the One True Democratic Nominee.
 
Sen. Kamala Harris of California - she's a former State's Attorney. So, she's on the wrong side of the law for the BernieBro left.

Former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Julien Castro of Texas - as former HUD Secretary, he was too cozy to Wall Street- selling off people's mortgages off to big banks when HUD was supposed to protect them.
Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii - despite being hand-picked Bernie acolyte - Gabbard has some pretty obvious conservative beginnings. Also, she has opted to meet with genocidal Syrian Dictator al-Assad as well as President Donald Trump.
 
Maybe this Gabbard quote helps, "In short, when it comes to the war against terrorists, I'm a hawk." She's also used phrases like "Islamofascism" (a big self-righteous leftie no-no) and has been very hard on immigrants - specifically refugees.

Former Rep. John Delaney of Maryland - he's wealthy, so that can't align with the values of any good socialist. Also, he voted to fast-track TPP and is a self-avowed bi-partisan fetishist.
 
On an unrelated note, this is a candidate who, when his name is mentioned around Marylanders, inspires a rather uninterested, "Who?"

Former congressional candidate Richard Ojeda of West Virginia - he voted for Trump. Now, that might not exclude him from consideration as a presidential candidate from the BernieBro Left, but it should. Also, as the Paste link points out, dude's a sham.

Businessman Andrew Yang of New York - yes, he favors Universal Basic Income, but he rebranded it the "Freedom Dividend" because it tests better with conservatives. He's also a wealthy businessman who is not afraid to take large cash donations. Maybe socialists are okay with rich guys when they're tech-rich?

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York* - Gillibrand has a lot of problems, but from the BernieBro Left perspective, she should be disqualified because she was once a pro-gun Blue Dog Democrat and she has a history of being very hard on immigrants. She claims to have evolved, but any good BernieBro knows that's just code for "phony".

Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts* - Warren, when she was a registered Republican 20 years ago, claimed she believed in the inherent fairness of the free market. As a Democratic Senator, she's taken efforts to assure Wall Street that she is a ... retch... capitalist!
 
Plus, she also campaigned with Hillary Clinton and didn't endorse Bernie Sanders. That is a sin that the BernieBro Left simply cannot abide.

Those are all the official Democratic candidates we currently have at the point of my writing this. So who does that leave us with? Well, Bernie Sanders of course. He is the only true, progressively pure, candidate that deserves the vote of the self-righteous left (or, as I'm starting to think of them, Left Wing Incels) as a Democratic Presidential candidate.
 
The only drawbacks are:
1. Bernie hasn't announced.
2. He is not currently technically a Democrat.
3. He lost last time. (Even if it was stolen, he also had a lot of Russian help.)
4. He is an old white guy from Vermont.
5. He is soft on guns.
6. Well... you get the point and if you are a BernieBro, you've already stopped reading. And if you're not, you might mistakenly get the impression that I don't like any of the candidates so far, and that's not true.

So BernieBro Left, shaddup already.
 
* Gillibrand and Warren have officially announced exploratory committees, they have not yet officially announced they are running for President yet.

January 28, 2019 in American Standard | | Comments (0)

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Best Of 2018: 25 Favorite Albums

 
 
1. Wide Awake! by Parquet Courts
There's hope for indie rock and its name is "Parquet Courts." A pretty diverse array of songs too.  
 
2. The Golden Hour by Kacey Musgraves
Contemporary country gets a great songwriter.
 
3. Invasion of Privacy by Cardi B.
She's very concerned about bitches and her money.  
 
4. Freedom's Goblin by Ty Segall
Segall is vying hard to be the next Bob Pollard in terms of productivity. Awesome psyche-rock.  
 
5. Space Gun by Guided By Voices
Speaking of Bob Pollard - the new GBV lineup seems to have revitalized the singer - this one is a later-era GBV classic.
 
6. Sparkle Hard by Stephen Malkmus
I'd been saving this line for too long and ended up using it on a friend's FB post about the song "Bike Lane", but here goes: In the song "Bike Lane" (about Freddie Gray's murder without justice while society finds superficial satisfaction in a new bike lane) Malkmus delivered a more political take on Baltimore than any Baltimore band with a major release this year (or pretty much any since Double Dagger disbanded). He also manages to use autotune ironically. A surprisingly relevant album from someone typically aloof and abstract.
 
7. Elastic Days by J Mascis
With every new Mascis/Dinosaur Jr. album, I assume I'm not going to buy it because, well, there's not really a lot of variation in sound. And then, like this album, I hear a song or two and I realize I need those songs.  
 
8. Hey! It's The Pandoras by The Pandoras
This surprising '80s revival (sans a deceased lead singer) is a delightful all-woman garage rock gem.
 
9. Hell-On by Neko Case
While Neko gets well-deserved credit for having one of the most beautiful voices in music, I feel like she doesn't get enough credit for her songwriting. Here, the songs shine brighter than the vocals (which are still heavenly).
 
10. Wham! Bang! Pow! Let's Rock Out by Art Brut
If you know Art Brut, you know what to expect: very British talk-sung lyrics over songs that seem dashed off but are actually pretty smart. I had come to belive there would be no more Art Brut records, so this was a pleasant surprise when it came out late in the year.
 
11. Riddles by Ed Schrader's Music Beat
While still quirky, intense and angular, Dan Deacon's production gives a number of the songs here a more complex Deacon vibe.
 
12. Bottle It In by Kurt Vile
More quality bedroom jams.
 
13. Rebound by Eleanor Friedberger
Friedberger continues to flourish in her post-Fiery Furnaces career as a '70s-esque singer/songwriter type.
 
14. 7 by Beach House
One of Beach House's finest efforts.
 
15. The Louder I Call, The Faster It Runs... by Wye Oak
Like Beach House's 7, this too is one of Wye Oak's best.
 
16. Tell Me How You Really Feel by Courtney Barnett
Barnett swaps witty tales with more autobiographical content.
 
17. I'll Be Your Girl by The Decemberists
Yes, I get that it's not cool to dig the Decemberists (I'm guessing cuz they seem too theater-geeky), but I've always liked 'em. This one is more a collection of songs than an album - but the songs it collects are pretty good, diverse, and often, not typically Decemberist-y.
 
18. What A Time To Be Alive by Superchunk
A surprisingly political late entry into Superchunk's solid catalog.
 
19. Digital Garbage by Mudhoney
Like Malkmus and Superchunk, Mudhoney is another '90s-era band unafraid to address contemporary issues and the effort pays off in dividends.  
 
20. Hope Downs by Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever
Rock with a hybrid-sixties-era vibe.
 
21. Kill The Lights by Tony Molina
A more reserved, reflective (some may call "mature") Molina album.
 
22. Wanderer by Cat Power
This album is kind of all over the place - but in a brilliant way - and as I type this - I realize the name of the album is descriptive of what you'll find.  
 
23. Wrecked by Dumptruck
One of my favorite underground '80s bands delivers a consistent comeback.
 
24. Jericho Sirens by Hot Snakes
Another unexpected return that delivers rock like a heart-punch.
 
25. Jingles Collection by Mean Jeans
I'm not typically a Mean Jeans fan (their brand of Ramones-esque tribute punk gets tiresome too quick), but here they deliver a funny album of jingles for a number of ridiculous corporate products. 

January 23, 2019 in Best Ofs | | Comments (0)

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Shank Events Calendar - Late January 2019 & On

01/24 - Kacey Musgraves - Anthem, Washington, DC

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

January 22, 2019 in The Shank Weekly Calendar | | Comments (0)

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Shank Events Calendar - Mid-January 2019 & On

01/16 - Singles Quarter Auction - Atomic Books, Hampden Baltimore



 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

January 16, 2019 in The Shank Weekly Calendar | | Comments (0)

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Best of 2018: Local Music

4 FAVORITE LOCAL RECORDS
by Benn Ray

The final album from Baltimore's Snakes - a band I fell in love with at 2017's Hampdenfest. The songs have a country-noir feel - like they could be on the soundtrack to HBO's True Detective show.

Monster Museum has always been one of my favorite bands - they're sort of like Baltimore's Sonic Youth - but cooler.

Great indie-rock in a surprise release from cult local fave.

Un-fucking-relenting, unapologetic, fearless hardcore with some metal tinges. Smash the patriarchy.
 

January 15, 2019 in Best Ofs | | Comments (0)

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Shank Events Calendar - Mid-January 2019 & On

 

01/11 - Dark Thoughts - Joe Squared, Station North Baltimore
 



 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 

January 08, 2019 | | Comments (0)

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Best of 2018: Movies

5 Favorite Movies of 2018
by Benn Ray
 
1. Sorry To Bother You by Boot Riley
One of those classic indie/cult films I tend to adore. Regardless - the vision is great, the characters are relatable and the commentary on capitalism is spot on. Just terrific! It leaves you with a "Fuck yeah, why aren't there more movies like this?" feeling.

2. Mandy by Panos Cosmatos
Nicolas Cage redeemed. This psychedelic revenge fever fantasy is the very definition of phantasmagoric.

3. Isle Of Dogs by Wes Anderson
An animated anti-dog conspiracy propagated by cat people (typical). Amazing animation. Lovable voice action. Another Wes Anderson classic.

4. The Ballad Of Buster Scruggs by The Coen Brothers
The Ballad Of Buster Scruggs is a delightful, if disconnected, western adventure loaded with Coen Brothers magic and charm.

5. Vice by Adam McKay
Whereas McKay had large and by-design inscrutable concepts to explain in The Big Short - ambiguous financial products that lead to the Great Recession of 2008, here he just has to tackle one rather difficult and irredeemable man. McKaye doesn't have as much to explain so much as simply remind us - up to our eyeballs in the Trump-era, that there was a Dick Cheney and that the Bush Administration, under some of his influence, did a lot of nasty shit. 

January 07, 2019 in Best Ofs | | Comments (0)

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Best Of 2018: Music

Ten New Records I Bought From Bandcamp This Year 
by Jesse Morgan  
 
It's not that I stopped going to record stores this year, or buying physical music. But I've stayed on top of what's new and "special" by futzing around a lot on Bandcamp this year. Here are ten recordings that came out this year that I fell in love with.
 
Garagey punk rock from Buenos Aires that reminds me of the first Hot Snakes record. I got turned onto these folks from the Terminal Escape blog, which in turn led me down the Bandcamp rabbit hole this year.
 
One of many bands to come to prominence since I split town. These two cuts have tided me over while I wait for a new record from this Baltimore punk quartet.
 
I started getting into more doom/sludge metal this year, and this rad recording from Baltimore's Ben Price is a big reason why. This pairs well with the eternal gloom of the Pacific Northwest.
 
I'm not certain how you'd categorize these punks from FLA. Post-hardcore? Indie? Emo? I've replayed this a lot since its release in late September. It's super sassy and mega energetic.
 
Another Terminal Escape recommendation. This LA-based garage pop duo wouldn't be out of place on Burger Records...except there's no kitschy visual hook. Just excellent punky jams that remind me of '60s girl groups AND early LA punk pop.
 
Fuck...I'm so glad these Portland crusties have a new record. I'm also in shock that it's been more than 15 years since I saw them live. When did I get so old?
 
Speaking of bands that I haven't seen in 15 years...this is probably my favorite Cursive record since "The Ugly Organ" came out in 2003. Just more of the cynical, aggressive, hardcore-influenced indie that this Omaha institution has been making for over 20 years.
 
Another one-man band from Baltimore, this time dropping skramz-influenced grind/math rock. This reminds me of bands that played first at Charm City Art Space that I'd never see play again; full of passion and anger and teenage emotion.
 
The second full-length from this French hardcore band hasn't left my iPod since I snagged a copy earlier this year. Super melodic...like a mix of Oi! and mid-80s Dischord HC. Also noteworthy for being one of the nicest cassette releases I've seen in years, courtesy of Malaysia's Pissed Off Records.
 
I've been kirking out over these grimy Nashville punks since their first demo came out last year. This new set of recordings came out the last day of November and MIGHT be the best thing I've snagged all year. Just angry, fuzzed out, lo-fi destructo jams.
 
Jesse Morgan lives in the PNW and misses carousing in the Baltimore of five years ago.  

January 02, 2019 in Best Ofs | | Comments (0)

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