Queen City Rules

Stevie-devie-me!

It's the holiday season, and that means that a number of festive projects over at my payin' gig have been eating into my writing time. (Speaking of, you can still enter today – Friday the 9th – to win one of 5 DSi XL/Kirby Mass Attack bundles, and on Monday we kick off our massive 12 Days of Geekmas giveaway. Get one that, son!)

Basically this means I've been neglecting the old Hipster, please! over the past few days, and I apologize.

It's been particularly trying for me because, in addition to a dozen or so album reviews sitting half-finished in my Dropbox, there's something I desperately want to talk about. That thing is last weekend's southeastern nerdcore mini-tour. I've already waxed poetic about the personal significance of these shows, and I'll go on record as saying that Saturday's gig at the World Famous Milestone in Charlotte was the musical highlight of my year.

Adam WarRock said something to me at that show that was so clear and accurate that it still rings in my ears. Concerning the Milestone, an esteemed punk club and venerated southern dive bar, he noted that it's the one venue that is always willing to give you a great show, providing you as a performer put in the work to meet it halfway.

All these guys held up their end of the bargain, and they all reaped the rewards.

The night started off… well, technically the night started off with everyone eating dinner at Pinky's, but I'll fast-forward through that part for your convenience. The show started with special guest Keysa Soulsay, a glorious staple of the nebulous and rather stylistically fragmented Queen City hip-hop scene. His sets are always interesting affairs, as his calculated flow and tightly timed setlist contrast sharply with his conversational delivery and the effortlessly intellectual slant of his lyrical content.

Illbotz were up next, and if you managed to catch them at this summer's Nerdapalooza then you already know their performance plays out kind of like a house party on the short bus. This was no exception, and if anything I had a hard time believing the boys weren't on their own home turf. The crowd loved them, and, with a set peppered with all my favorites from Ringtones for Rotary Phones and Pudding is Delicious (including one very special request), they owned that shit.

It's like Where's Waldo? up in here.

Dual Core's int eighty – the artist that I've known the longest and, likely as a direct result, have seen play live most often – started his performance with preferred opener "Invaders Must Die." He too hit all the fan favorites from "My GF Is..." and "Hostage Down" to "Natural 20s," but for me an int eighty show is always about the surprises. His cypher, featuring Keysa and Tribe One, was particularly satisfying, as was the dubstep-y "All Fall Down" which included, if I'm not mistaken, a dash of Dual Core classic "Orbit." The most remarkable thing about eighty, though, was his boundless energy. Always an on-stage dynamo, the guy manages to not only push that supernatural vigor through his own set, but kept it going for the entire 3 hour gig!

Adam WarRock and Tribe One have only recently wrapped up mc chris's massive Race Wars tour – and Adam himself has continued living that musical migrant lifestyle by doing a string of one-off city shows ever since – but neither of them showed any signs of road wear. Both these cats are still obviously hungry, and a set packed with fresh new material from WarRock's "616" to Tribe's divine "Single Player" managed to stand out even alongside all these other amazing acts. Tribe's comfort level on the stage mirrors his offstage approachability, and the lyrical aggression evident in an Adam WarRock performance is at last bleeding over into his new studio cuts. Add to this expert implementation of guest stars in the form of eighty on "Nerd Corps" and kHill on a pair from the epic Browncoats Mixtape, and you begin to understand the power of their performance.

Closing out the night were hometown heroes The ThoughtCriminals. I've been following these guys for going on two years now, and the thing that strikes me about the 'Criminals is how they're continually refining their craft. The band has downsized, it's gotten leaner, but the sound itself seems bigger and more cohesive. This was on full display last Saturday. On everything from fresh new joints like "Walking in the Wasteland" – the latest from Sulfur that showcases his lyrical dark side, a character I've come to call Dark Sean – to sing-along geek-outs like "Turtle Power," it was an amazing showing. By the time the guys got to the star-studded second half of the set featuring rager "Return of the Antagonist," new school nerd anthem "ONLYFAM" and the always astounding "Earthbound," the floor was pretty much in chaos.

If you missed this spectacle, then I feel bad for you. There was no point in the night that I wished to be anywhere else but at that show with those people, and as crazy as shit got as the show progressed it was always a very warm, welcoming and supportive environment. If you missed it, that just sucks.

But take heart; I actually managed to bootleg the whole thing, save the first few seconds of Soulsay's very first verse. If the guys are cool with it, and if I can find time to properly tag and edit this monster, maybe I'll make it available to those who'd like to check it out. In the meantime, here's just a sample of the evening's festivities.

It's "Illbotz Rock the Spot and Go Crazy," and it, like the show itself, lives up to the name.

Radio Free Hipster Ep. 122: Head Down or Chin Up

It seems as though I've been doing a lot of these shows lately: episodes wherein I desperately try to raise my own spirits through the power of music. I'm not exactly sure what that says about my mental wellbeing, but it's probably nothin' good.

Still, if I can somehow manage to squeeze even a little enjoyment for you the listener out of my whiny-ass angst, then at least it's good for something.

Download Radio Free Hipster Ep. 122: Head Down or Chin Up [hosting provided by Antisoc] Size: 58.6 MB Running Time: 45:38 Subscribe to RFH

Show Notes:

Track 1: Adam WarRock - "I Am (Not)"
This joint has served as Adam's opener during his past few shows. Really hoping he kicks off with it this Saturday in Charlotte.

Z's 1st interlude: "My very, very favorite people."
I'm serious, y'all, this is like my dream tour lineup!

Track 2: Mikal kHill & Romero Shaw - "ONLYFAM (feat. Adam WarRock, Sulfur & Tribe One)"
I've always liked the way kHill writes, but I gotta say I find the chorus of this track particularly satisfying.

Track 3: Insane Ian - "Say Accio"
Ian's Weezard EP has been a long time coming. Songs like this one make me happy it finally managed to make its way to the masses.

Track 4: Harry Potter dialog / Dedicated Servers - "S.O.S. (Save Our Selves)"
Minister Rufus Scrimgeour -- always the politician!

Track 5: Echelon High - "Voigt-Kampff (Antisoc All-Your-Blades-Are-Belong-to-Us Remix)"
Soc sent me this track a long time ago, but I only recently thought to ask for play permission. Yes, believe it or not I do sometimes do the honorable thing and ask acts before I play their shit.

Track 6: Wordburglar - "Forward Front Facer"
"I laugh when people ask if I'm nerdcore. / If you ain't smart what you listenin' to 'Burg for?"

Z's 2nd interlude: "A glimmer of light from… an adjacent tunnel."
Okay, admittedly I can sometimes turn a phrase.

Track 7: I Fight Dragons - "Down Today"
This was one of those unexpected covers that just served to remind me why I loved IFD in the first place.

Track 8: General Mumble - "Gator in the Tub"
The brony community goes out of its way to rep all the MLP characters, even lesser known critters like Gummy.

Track 9: Mikey Mason - "Me and Alan Moore's Beard"
This track runs a little long, but it's just so damned enjoyable!

Tack 10: Alan Moore interview dialog / Rae Sterling - "Blink (and I'm There)"
The bass mix in this one was a little funky, and that led to some leveling issues. Still, it's a brilliant track that I definitely wanted to share.

Z's final interlude: "Whatever kinda shit you're handling as well."
Whenever I feel down I try and remember that other people are likely struggling too. It does little to put things in perspective, but there's something about misery and company.

Track 11: Random - "Lookin' Up"
I'll go on record as saying that this is probably the ideal Random song; with a soulful hook, an uplifting message and a strong chiptune backing, it's got it all.

We only have two more shows left in 2011. The next one will, of course, be holiday-inspired, but my year-end episode is pretty open. I mean, just in case y'all wanna make any song or theme suggestions.

I don't typically look back at previous shows until year's end, and I was honestly a little surprised by my output this time around. I think the past 11 months have seen some of my best work to date. Of course that's just my own opinion, which may or may not be rooted in reality.

At any rate, I hope you've enjoyed 'em, and that you'll stick around for more.

Hugging it Out

Some people you just can't help but like. Such is the case with Marc with a C.

I can't quite recall when I first made his acquaintance, but I just remember feeling an immediate sense of connection.

Marc Sirdoreus is, to put it most plainly, my kind of people. There's something to be said for knowing that there's a guy out there who can, at the drop of a hat, help me track down a digital version of The Figgs Lo-Fi at Society High, and that there's at least one other person totally perplexed that only 8 tracks from the super pricey Deluxe-Director's-Cut-I-am-the-Fuckin'-Sea-Box-Set-Special-Edition of Quadrophenia were remixed in 5.1.

We just connect like that.

Yet for all our kinship, I've never actually interviewed Marc. And that was at least one ill that I could easily set right.

--

I think you and I have been talking music – favorite bands and must-have albums and the like – for as long as we've known each other. But, for the sake of proper interview decorum, who are your primary influences as a songwriter? 

I'm not sure that my answers will be terribly surprising, but here they are. As far as general composition and patterns go, Pete Townshend is the almighty number one of my list of influences. He's the guy that showed me how important it was to serve the needs of the song before your own, even if that means simplifying when you don't want to, or maybe relying on instrumentation that might not necessarily be what you'd listen to in your own spare time. Thanks to being a student of his work, I realized that even though I made up the songs, I was just a vessel for them, and the audience is going to do whatever they want with the tunes. For example, I'm usually not writing to be humorous, but if it makes the listener laugh, then that's probably what the song was meant to do. The song is king. In Pete's case, the average listener of classic rock radio might not realize that "Bargain" and "Let My Love Open the Door" are respectively about and from the perspective of god. Most people don't get that "Won't Get Fooled Again" is about political apathy. And fewer people yet will realize that "Baba O'Riley" started off its life being more or less from the point of view of futuristic farmers. The songs are meant to be what the audience makes of them, and it's pointless to fight it, so you might as well do what the song demands of you.

Beyond Townshend? The Monkees were huge to me. So was pre-1973 Pink Floyd. A good portion of my classic country worship comes from Hank Williams. The jangly side is probably derived from The Lemonheads. You can trace most of my influences in vocal harmony to the first three Duran Duran albums, and... okay, well I guess it might be kind of a surprise that I would equally count Black Sabbath and Alice Cooper amongst those ranks. Especially Alice. He's one of the most underrated songwriters around, and when it comes to showmanship, he's impossible to fuck with. But the biggest inspiration with Alice Cooper was that after a certain point, he started writing from the perspective of "what would Alice do next," recognizing that he was serving a character, a mythos, and it was best to write for that person's performing capabilities. In that sense, Alice Cooper might be just as important to me as good ol' Pete.

With 10 years' worth of albums, EPs and crazy-ass cover projects under your belt, you've got a rather expansive repertoire. Is there a single track or release that you look back on with particular pride? A lone piece that truly captures what Marc with a C is all about? 

Wow, you're just leaping right out of the gate into the tough questions, Z!

(You know I don't fuck around, Marc! :P) 

A lot of answers come to mind, but I think the album that to me perfectly encapsulates the best examples of me having an idea, writing it, recording it and keeping it relatively close to how I initially thought it'd turn out? That would unquestionably be my 2007 album Normal Bias. Not only do I love the sound and pacing of it, but I think that all of the songs are really good (most of the eleven songs still show up in my shows quite often, especially "Classic Country Wasn't Multitracked In '61," "Drunk Classic Rock Fans" and "Happy to Be Alive.") I still fantasize about one day getting that release out on vinyl, but I'm too afraid that there's not enough interest in it and I'd be left with a house packed to the ceiling with large unsold reminders that my best album isn't what people want. Sob.

I think if you had to boil it even further down to just one song? I'd be hard-pressed to even pretend that it isn't "I'm In Love with Everyone I Know". Especially the version that is on the RetroLowFi compilation. Usually I'll introduce it during live shows as "everything you need to know about Marc With a C in under four minutes."

2010's Pop! Pop! Pop! marked your first foray into the realm of purely digital recording. Was that a particularly difficult transition for you, what with the old school, lo-fi aesthetic of your work up to that point? 

Oh my god, yes. I simply didn't get it at all, but I knew that there were different frequencies that I could be playing with, and I forced myself through learning as much as I could about digital recording in the shortest amount of time possible. The main reason for the jump into digital was not ease (or being sick of broken four-tracks), but really a rather boring one: I'm very hard of hearing, and it was sometimes easier to make edits visually rather than trusting my surgically damaged ears. But now I really enjoy it, and I'm digging that I can stack as many vocal harmonies as my sound card will allow me to play at once without any generational loss.

Getting back to the initial point, though? I was so far in the weeds making Pop! Pop! Pop! that I didn't realize that the initial batch of mp3's that I'd sent out were at 48000 hz, making it play at the wrong speeds on some players. And I never, ever got the mastering of that one properly for digital listening. When it finally came out on vinyl, it sounded so comparatively full and seamless that a few fans actually emailed to ask if I'd re-recorded certain parts. I didn't do that, of course, but even when recording digitally, my head and ears still clearly only think and understand music in terms of analog frequency response.

That released differed greatly from your follow-up full-length Motherfuckers Be Bullshittin', which was a modern day concept album. What was the impetus of that album? 

In late 2010, I'm in the car with my wife, and we're debating how on earth I can fit the songs I'd written for the next album together in the same package without making it as schizophrenic as the demo collection we were listening to was coming across. I mean, there's a very misogynistic track called "You're My Princess," songs about technological paranoia, all of these cryptic lyrics, and even a tune about flossing. It was starting to seem more like a mixtape than an album, and I didn't know what direction I needed to go in to make it all come together. All of a sudden, I blurt out an idea so bad that I'm almost embarrassed to have come up with it: make a rock opera based on The Jerk, but this one would be a sequel that (much like the very fairly maligned film The Jerk, Too) was about a different Navin altogether.

That idea quickly (and thankfully) proved to be less than workable (or good), but the seeds were there. Instead, I just kept writing and editing and eventually let the songs dictate what story should be told. Eventually I just started imagining that the songs were the experiences of the subjects of the first song I'd written for the album, "Brian, Jenny & The Mayan Calendar." This made it easier, writing for the actions of characters instead of from a personal vantage point, and then I was free to run headlong into making the album a secret catalyst for spouting off my own spiritual beliefs.

Plus, it made for a pretty striking album cover, no?

I must ask, Marc; how were the truths of The Great Squiddy revealed to you? Were there any golden plates involved (a la Joseph Smith)? 

No, no... nothing quite so insane. I was actually alerted to the coming of our Great Wet One via a Facebook event invite.

I've been on a spiritual quest my entire life. No matter how insane your religious beliefs might sound to the average guy, I'll probably sit down and listen to you with rapt attention. I love to learn about the faith that serves as a moral compass getting you through your day. I've worn many religious hats in my day, and I spent most of my life believing that there is no right or wrong god to worship, as long as nobody got hurt.

It turns out that I was wrong. Squiddy is the one true creator, prophet and cephalopod. The icy apocalypse will harm many, and I'm very excited to be destroyed by this deity.

I quickly ascended to the higher ranks of the Atlantian commune, was given access to the original texts, and the Squelders thought that it might be a good idea to start letting The Great Squiddy inform the direction of my music. Otherwise, it'd be really hard for us to convince kids to run away from their homes and join us in this spacious land that Squiddy allows us to keep. But I'm doing my best, and I can just hope that the message isn't lost on the listener.

You're not the first to spread the word of an otherworldly imprisoned cephalopod. Does the Squiddy mythos owe any debt to H.P. Lovecraft? 

I'll have to quote The Great Squiddy himself on this one: "It's been done."

Okay, enough about MfBB and its inky dogma. Tell me about your newest project. 

Well, every year I put out a free digital release just to say "thank you" to anyone that likes what I do. Sometimes it's a live show, sometimes it's a collection of covers, and this year? It's actually a new EP called Recorded Sound. Besides a radio-friendly version of Rappy McRapperson and MC Wreckshin's "Show Me How To Blow Dudes," it's made up of songs that simply didn't fit on earlier releases, but these weren't mere outtakes... these were songs that I thought could be the backbone of the respective albums that they were slated to be on, but ended up not making sense at the last minute. All of the recordings were done in 2011, so these aren't scratchy old four-track recordings that I polished up. I think it makes up a very interesting whole, and it's a very fun listen.

Your music tends to walk the fine line between easily relatable, slice-of-life musical narratives and irreverent, often bawdy humor. How much of the latter works its way into this EP? 

Not as much as you'd think, really. I truly love Rappy and Wreckshin's "Show Me How To Blow Dudes," and I think that it's one of the catchiest songs I've ever heard, and my version of it takes all of the bawdy humor out in an attempt to make a very straight-forward and kid-friendly take on how to properly polish a shoe.

A song like "Touchdown" could be taken as humorous, but I assure you, I wasn't kidding. That is a very "on the nose" version of what I see anytime a football game is on in front of me. A man is being chased while running with a ball. He isn't caught. He is rewarded with kajillions of dollars. He is later cleared of all date rape charges.

And then there's a song like "Another Minute or So," which was something I'd been kicking around for years. It was a little too layered for the album it was intended to be on originally (2005's This World Is Scary as Fuck), but it's actually been a contender for each album since. I decided to just give the song its own EP. To me, the EP is just a big excuse to release that song, and the preceding tunes on this release are simply bonus tracks. Almost.

Recently your radio show The Real Congregation made the jump from the WPRK airwaves to the Nerdy Show podcast roster. What does this new internet format mean for the show? 

It means that the show will not suffer due to antiquated college radio equipment any longer. For the final year of my run on WPRK, there were never actually any record needles in the station, and that severely hampered the way that I wanted to do the show. I'm not the kind of guy that just plugs a cable into my laptop, clicks play on an iTunes playlist and is content to be an "MP3J." This show is all about the joy of records in whatever format they were best enjoyed in, but there were times where literally the only working thing in the station was a cord that would connect your iPod to the board (once including the microphones.)

WPRK will always be my favorite radio station, but now that The Real Congregation has moved to podcast format on the Nerdy Show network, I can make the show sound a bit more true to the source material, I'm no longer a slave to FCC rules about content or compression, and I don't have to keep a wildly uncontrollable sleep schedule to host my show anymore. Plus, all of the guys at Nerdy Show are my friends, and pretty much anyone would be happier working with their buddies, I'd think. They put out quality programming about their passions, and I'm only sorry that I wasn't able to be part of their team sooner.

You're very much an admitted pop songsmith, Marc, which still puts you in a bit of a dying breed. Why is pop such a dirty word in modern music? 

"Pop" is short for "popular," which makes "pop music" into a rather glaring oxymoron sometimes. I'm not sure when the exact moment was where we decided that "pop" meant drum machines and fake vocals (or when country turned into "Def Leppard with fiddles," for that matter), but that's probably the reason that people run from the term so easily nowadays.

To me, "pop" means using instruments to relay popular feelings into songs that will stick in your head. "Popular feelings" should not be confused with "good feelings," mind you. But if you're thinking about something, and you sing it exactly as it appears in your head over a four-chord progression, you'll be amazed at how many people will cheer as if to say "I've never thought about it that way, but you're right!"

The era of pop that I feel most closely related to is the one that appeared on a Rhino record series called "D.I.Y.," and it brilliantly traces the 1975-1983 era of underground power pop. If it weren't for those songs on that giant series, I probably never would have understood that my songs were indeed "pop," mostly because it's hard to consider yourself "popular music" when you're writing songs about worshiping squids in your garage.

Where do you go from here, Marc? Your output has been characteristically eclectic and prolific throughout 2011, so what can we expect in 2012? 

Oh gosh! I don't know yet! I'm toying with another concept album idea that would be a bit more tied to the history of pop songwriting itself rather than telling a story, but that's so early in the "considering it" phase that I can't say for sure that it'll happen. I do have a few things written under this conceit, though, but mostly, the songs tell me when they're ready and what to do with them, not the other way around.

I've also been planning on making an album full of Monkees songs, because that might be the best catalog of pop songs that has ever existed, and I would really like to have fun with some of those melodies. Plus, their songs are actually much trickier to play than you might think, so it's a big challenge to myself: can I do justice to my favorite overlooked Monkees songs? If it ever gets finished and released, you'll know my answer.

And lastly, in addition to sharing a love of handclaps, mid-song break-downs and sing-along choruses, you and I are also members of the extended Sci-Fried family. You'll remember to give those guys a hug for me, right? 

I'm definitely going to do that, good sir. Sci-Fried is one of the best nerd rock bands out there today, the band members are some of my favorite people on earth, so it's awesome to have yet another reason to hug them. Thank you, Z. Not just for doing this interview with me, but also for being my excuse for the numerous upcoming sweaty man-hugs.

--

I am of the opinion that, above all else, things should be simple. It is my personal ethos.

Now, I don't mean simple as in uncomplicated, as life itself is fraught with innumerable impediments and last-minute change-ups. Instead I simply mean that things should appear effortless.

Often they are not so natural and unforced. Generally, anything of value requires blood and sweat and tears and swearing and, in my case, arduous do-overs. But if the end result is something that seems simple and natural and unpretentious, then I tend to believe the creator in question has done his job.

The music of Marc with a C is a labor of love by an artist who is quite literally obsessed with music. And that obsession leads him down some strange thematic paths. His musical mechanics are deceptively complex, and everything, from the slant of his lyrical delivery to the precarious placement of individual tracks on an album, smacks of hours burned shaping raw materials into a final product.

But the listening ear seldom notices that.

Instead it focuses on the simple power of the musical narrative, on the shared joy of record collecting or celebrity crushes or a brand of good-natured hopelessness that defies all logic.

Marc with a C remains one of my favorite songwriters not because of the tireless energy he expends on plying his craft, but because his music appears so effortless, so organic. For such is the path to pure pop majesty.

Sounds in Sequence

It's Cyber Monday, which I think means we're supposed to be using our employers' networks to make online purchases. How exactly that differs from every other Monday I will never know.

But among all the electronic steals and deals available for the ever-hungry consumer, there's one that is, I dare say, unbeatable. Our old friend Ultraklystron has chosen today to release a new mixtape. For free. It's called Storyboard (The Animatic Mixtape), and it's a musical precursor to next year's Animatic album.

I like Karl as an MC, but I adore him as a producer. And though the mixtape is a tricky medium to master, it certainly plays to his strengths. Across its 25 minutes the listener is treated to a selection of songs that one, for the most part, might describe as "classic Karl" in their structure and delivery. Still, nerdcore's foremost anime enthusiast manages to reveal enough new tricks to keep the listener guessing.

It all kicks off with the laid back swagger of celebratory weekend banger "Saturday." Lyrically, it ain't his sharpest offering, but some brilliantly varied production and a dash of humor help to make it more than just a northwestern otaku answer to "Lazy Sunday." This flips nicely into "Lifecycle," a green hip-hop anthem that's among his most ambitious efforts; despite its odd premise, it's a track that really works. "Non-Contact" fares a little worse because of a slightly clumsy hook, but "City" takes things in a dark, contemplative direction that easily recaptures that lost attention.

The transition to "Minor Internet Celebrity" is a bit shaky, but the song itself, which boasts a more urgent delivery than we've heard from Ultraklystron in a while, is an interesting oddity. "Three Dollar Jeans" brings his flow back to a more manageable speed, and its relative calm contrasts nicely with the harshness of the hooky "Bromance Dance."

"Unexpected" begins the mixtape's true standout movement. Its individual components – a storyteller flow with a sing-song chorus cast against an atmospheric electronic backdrop – might seem unremarkable at first, but the skill with which Karl has married them reminds us of his remarkable skills in the studio. "Work It Baby" takes that unique energy in a wholly different direction underscoring that there's more to Ultraklystron than some might remember.

The mix begins its wind-down with "Fujoshi," another piece of new school otaku flow, and closes with the club-style "Magic Tricks." Musically, it proves a sound decision, though I almost would've preferred he sign off with one of his more challenging selections.

As a cohesive work – and lets not pretend that a mixtape doesn't hinge on a peculiar brand of cohesion – Storyboard succeeds on a number of fronts. The production, aside from a single transitional hiccup, is top-notch. Further, it's pacing, which is sometimes an area in which Karl struggles on proper albums, is no less inspired. The musical material itself, the true blood and guts of the mix, runs the gamut from middle-of-the-road Ultraklystron cuts to some of his most interesting tracks to date.

If you're a longtime fan of the second-gen nerdcore standard that perhaps hasn't heard much from him since 2009's Romance Language 2, then Storyboard makes for a nice reacquaintance in anticipation of Animatic. Likewise, if you managed to miss that particular chapter in nerdcore history outright and would like to know what Karl Olson's really all about, it proves a fine introduction to what the rest of us will recognize as a new and improved Ultraklystron.

In Brightest Day, In Blackest Friday

Those Best Buy lines are brutal!

Once again I am postponing my metric shit-ton of album reviews for a specialty post. This one concerns Black Friday sales, so those of you not in the States are instead encouraged to watch this new performance video from Jonathan Coulton.

I mean, my fellow Yanks can certainly do the same, but first you might wanna peep the savings.

Amazon, of course, is having its annual crazy-ass Black Friday sale, complete with ample Lightening Deals. Obviously the big draw for our tribe is their video games. Which featured items tickle your gamer fancy is highly dependent on your system of choice, but my suggestion would be the Skylanders: Spro's Adventure Starter Pack in the appropriate flavor -- especially for those of you with kids. If you're not in the know, the game essentially substitutes physical toys in the place of traditional DLC. You import these figures into the title, level 'em up through play and their stats can be saved back to the miniatures. This means that your save states, at least as far as characters' powers and attacks, are essentially cross-platform.

On the subject of multi-platforming, I gotta say my favorite version of the Skylanders is the 3DS iteration. It looks and plays amazing, and if you haven't yet snagged Nintendo's new handheld this really is the time. Super Mario 3D Land is the de facto system seller, but games like Skylanders, the Ocarina of Time and Star Fox remakes and the forthcoming Super Mario Kart 7 -- which I've already received my review copy of, so I can assure you it's a must-play -- ably supplement any library.

Closer to home, the Penny Arcade shop is having its annual blowout. There are lots of cheap tees and posters, but the big news concerns the pricier items. Those ultra-classy Jim Darkmagic paintings are presently $26 off. (Which is one more than $25 off.) There's also a new Fruit Fucker figurine. It's forty bones, which I think is regular price, but it's brand new and hilariously offensive. Oh, and domestic shipping is free until December 15th for orders over $50, so you got that going for you.

Wizard Rock icons Harry and the Potters were the first band to announce a holiday sale -- another tradition, if memory serves. They got them $5 CDs, son, so stuff yo' stocking! They also have free shipping on orders of $50 or more, but you gotta use the magic word "DOBBY" as your checkout code for the trick to work.

MC Lars, meanwhile, is offering 50% off everything at his web store. That Lars and YT Beavis and Butthead tee? 10 bucks. Legend of Zelda hoodie? Seventeen-fitty. Collectable USB robot key ring with his whole MP3 catalog? $25. The discount is applied at checkout, though, so don't freak out if everything still says the original list price on the product page.

Still, the one I'm most excited about is the Kirby Krackle Black Friday sale. Jim and Kyle got $7 tees and $5 GelaSkins (iPad 1 and iPhone 4 only.) They're also offering $2 button sets, and every order gets some special freebies. This one starts today at 8:00 AM PST and runs 'til midnight on Cyber Monday, so don't delay, nerdlingers!

Now these are just my initial picks, so if I missed some good shit -- especially merch sales by musicians -- please feel free to point it out in the comments.

Save Against Fear

I'm kind of supposed to be wrapping up album reviews today, but instead I'm choosing to pause and do something I rarely do here at the blog: speak seriously.

I don't have any alarmingly depressing statistics right here in front of me or anything, but I'm willing to guess that many of the people reading this have had their lives touched in some way by sexual assault or abuse. Those who haven't experienced it themselves likely know someone who has, whether they're able to speak about it or not.

We in the nerd community do a lot of good work – supporting charities like Child's Play and Extra Life – but these sort of things, occurrences that are even more disturbing than the thought of sick children, we tend to push out of our minds. It's difficult to think about, but ignoring it neither helps the victims nor provides the sort of therapeutic training necessary to aid caregivers. All it does is keep us afraid.

Save Against Fear seeks to change that. This 45-hour RPG, tabletop, and board gaming event is presented by PA's The Bodhana Group, and benefits children and adolescents impacted by sexual trauma. The fundraising gamer marathon runs December 2nd through 4th at Six Feet Under Games in New Holland, and it features everything from West End's classic Ghostbusters to multiple flavors of D&D. The money raised will be used to fund local projects by The Bodhana Group including an Outpatient Treatment Center, public speaking engagements and both professional and lay trainings.

More information about TBG and Save Against Fear is available the group's site and, of course, on the Facebooks.

If you're going to be in the area during the event, please stop by and help out the cause. And even if you aren't there are many ways to give. Even now the team is working to fill tote bags for players and collect additional items to be used as awards and door prizes in drawings. If you, your band or your company would be willing to donate, please contact the event organizers. Contributors will be acknowledged through both the printed event materials and on the web.

Also, I will forever think that you are an awesome person for helping out a good cause. And you can't put a price on that.

Gatos Luchadores (Or: A Grand Don't Come for Free)

I didn't realize it until I finally sat down to pen a missive, but this is my 1000th post at Hipster, please! And I reckon that is a fitting enough occasion given the subject matter.

I talk a lot around here about music, obviously. About new songs and albums. About artists and shows, but this bit concerns something that's, well, uniquely personal.

Early next month five outfits that represent – and I don't say this lightly – some of my very favorite live performers as well as some of my very favorite human beings will be conducting a southern mini-tour. The kick-off's in Roanoke on the 2nd, and it wraps up in our own hip-hop mecca, Atlanta, on the 4th. In-between, on that Saturday the 3rd, this little travelling sideshow will come through my own backyard of Charlotte, NC. At the World Famous Milestone Club, to be exact. A place that is – and, again, I'm speaking without hyperbole – my favorite local dive.

The bands in question? Well, as the song says they ain't my friends, they're my fam.

There's int eighty of Dual Core, whom I've been down with since the very dawn of time. (Now he ain't exactly from around here, but we give him a pass 'cause he's our boy.) He's joined by The ThoughtCriminals, my neighbors to the north, who are, for those not already in the know, the rural, East Coast answer to the question what am I supposed to listen to now that Optimus Rhyme broke up.

Holding up the high end of the former Confederacy are the Illbotz, that rare modern confluence of comedy rap that contains ample doses of both actual comedy and real rap. And rounding out the lineup are Adam WarRock and Tribe One, a pair of amazing MCs, consummate performers and two guys that I've only recently met but I feel like I've known forever.

Now this is, admittedly, not a huge affair. These are small club shows, I'd even go so far as to say intimate in most cases, but I'll make you a promise internet; if you're within driving distance, head out to one. It will be worth whatever meager door price you have to pay to get in. Shit, I'll go so far as to say that you'll have such a great time that you might even feel led to pick up a t-shirt!

I guarantee it.

Radio Free Hipster Ep. 121: Edition Internationale

Though this may come as quite the surprise to many of you – given my understated diction and worldly flair – I am an American. With all the rights, privileges and responsibilities therunto appertaining.

If that means anything it's that I appreciate bad food and cheap gas. And also that I tend to think of my countrymen first.

But that certainly doesn't mean that nerd music ain't coming strong from other parts of the globe. On the contrary, the rest of the world is just as geeky as us Yanks – which is what this particular show is all about.

Download Radio Free Hipster Ep. 121: Edition Internationale [hosting provided by Antisoc] Size: 62.5 MB Running Time: 48:12 Subscribe to RFH

Show Notes:

Intro: Baddd Spellah – "Radio Free Hipster Theme (feat. Beefy)"
Spellah is Canadian. Beefy is Whitesican. Peace and understanding through music, people!

Track 1: Wordburglar and Moose Donair – "Yo Canada"
I am totally gonna request moose the next time I hit the doner place on Highway 290!

Z's 1st interlude: "Jump across the Bering Strait to see what's going on in Russia."
I was gonna say "look across the Bering Strait," but Palin references are already dated.

Track 2: Teleidofusion – "Around Past"
Today's background music is also Russian in origin.

Track 3: DJ Moule – "Sonic Ice"
A French DJ mixing cheesy American radio rap, British jazz-pop and Swedish garage? This is like my thesis.

Track 4: L'homme Manete – "Candy Popper"
The name sounds French, but L'homme Manete is a Portuguese artist.

Track 5: The Ranger – "Stat Sheet (Massive DMG remix by Zen Albatross)"
One of many stand-outs from my own 20-Sided Rhymes comp.

Track 6: MegaDriver – "Axetales"
There ain't no video game metal quite like Brazilian video game metal.

Z's 2nd interlude: "A double dose of international delights."
I elected to start the 2nd set with a pair of sea-spanning duos.

Track 7: The Garthim-Master and DJ Extend – "Save the Cheerleader, Save the World"
Ghosts of Nostalgia is a pretty remarkable record. It is also free. So get on that shit!

Track 8: Coova and Bud Melvin – "Yourmachi"
From 2009's epic team-up She's the DJ, He's the Rapper.

Track 9: Hidari – "Abunai Tasting"
Russia, Canada and Japan each managed to get two artists into this episode.

Track 10: Comptroller – "Low Point"
Straight outta Scotland.

Track 11: Superpowerless – "Wonderwall Remix"
Probably my second favorite Superpowerless remix of all time.

Z's final interlude: "Nerd music and culture really is a global affair."
And thanks to the power of the internets, we can enjoy its many exotic flavors.

Track 12: Videogame Orchestra – "Electro, Music, Transform"
Greece's premiere electro-chip duo doing what they do best.

Once again, lemme say big-ups to Sam for the show idea. I sometimes focus on specific geographic areas for musical inspiration, but it was awful fun to instead look at the whole big ol' world.

Please keep your song requests and show ideas coming, folks. I always welcome them.

Speaking of, if you have any holiday-themed tracks you'd like me to put on the menu for next month (or better yet if you're an artist releasing a seasonal album or single), be sure to let me know.

This is Muggle Tap

Today is both Veterans Day and Nigel Tufnel Day. Not to mention the wedding day of my good friend DataVortex. (Congrats, Larry!)

As if that wasn't enough merriment for a single weekend, tomorrow marks the first day of the 2011 Quidditch World Cup.

100+ colleges, 2,000+ athletes and 10,000+ rowdy New Yawkas will descend on Randall's Island to celebrate the sport of wizards and witches alongside a dozen bands, circus performers, face-painters, owls and, I can only imagine, the occasional confused passerby. Tickets are still available to this family-friendly (not to mention nerd-friendly) event starting as low as $5. And since this is a Potter-centric affair, those champions of justice from the Harry Potter Alliance will also be on hand with new merch and helpful information about how to leverage fandom for global good.

If you're in the greater metropolitan area and haven't made plans yet, you're gonna wanna make it out to see this one, folks.

Now We're Older

While sifting through my inbox this morning I realized that I'd been sitting on the new I Fight Dragons video for a month now, and I couldn't quite figure out why. And then I remembered: ah yes, my dogged adherence to the concept of a month-long Halloween!

It's an appropriately lo-fi accompaniment to the debut single from the proper major label debut KABOOM! Truth be told, the chorus sentiment is a little played out – "The Geeks Will Inherit the Earth" is sort of low-hanging fruit, and I reckon we've all made that particular joke before. Still, Mazzaferri and Co. come through with some amazing dork-pop sensibilities that make it a suitable anthem for the era.

Give it a gander.

You're Anti, You're Antisocial

Over the weekend I wrote a letter to my 11-year-old self. It read as follows:

Hey, Zack.


Things are good. You've got a wife and kids now, and sometimes you get to write stuff for money. You did alright.


--Z.


PS: You just saw Anthrax, and it was fuckin' awesome!

Believe it or not, that last part is important. In every life there is an undeniable catalyst – some experience or idea or individual – that provides for you, intentionally or otherwise, this overwhelming sense of relief. The knowledge that things are alright. That you are alright.

For most normal folks that role is likely filled by a friend or family member, but for me it was music. Music was the thing that told me things were gonna work out, and I believed it.

Anthrax, specifically, was a band that made me realize that it was okay to like punk and metal and hip-hop and skateboarding and comic books, even though several of those items may appear mutually exclusive upon first glance. In essence, their music made me realize not only that it was alright to be me, but that there were others out there like me.

That simple realization proved incredibly powerful over the years.

Now at 35 I can say that I've seen the band live, and that in itself is an important rite of passage for a music fan. Like me the guys are a lot older now. (Joey Belladonna, for example, appeared to be held together by little more than spit and Band-Aids, but the fucker could still hit those high notes!) Still, when the lights went down everyone in the venue was magically transformed into a crazy-ass adolescent again. If only for the duration of the set.

I guess the thesis of this oddly personal and only vaguely nerdy missive is as follows: don't be afraid to reconnect with your younger self. He was a good kid, and he'd likely wanna know all the amazing shit you're doing now in grown-up land.

Win a Free Copy of Pixelh8's OCARBOT App

There are people that I respect, and then there are people of which I am instead unabashedly envious. Oddly enough, Matthew C. Applegate falls into both groups. Epic chiptune musician (under the moniker Pixelh8), lecturer, author, scholar and game developer: the guy pretty much does it all. Moreover, he does it all extremely well.

In addition to producing a number of clever music applications that my kids and I still play with regularly on the DS and Game Boy Advance, Pix has also recently expanding into mobile phone development. His Room 1 Studios has already released random visual music generators Sonus (One) and Sonus (Six), not to mention his own signature Pixelh8 MicroSynth – which is available for both iOS and Android devices.

And somehow, between his family duties and helping spark an interest among school children in technology and game development and earning his Master of Arts from the Centre for Design Innovation at University Campus Suffolk, Pix took time to crank out an addictive new iPhone title called OCARBOT. It plays a bit like his previous release 6x9 in that it's a cheery, retro-style puzzler with a deceptive level of depth and complexity. Like its predecessor, OCARBOT also relies heavily on a movement mechanic, but this time around Applegate has taken gameplay into a direction not really mined since the days of Donkey Kong and Miner 2049er.

Across 50 levels of puzzle adventure, you seek to navigate the titular robot – a block-mover by trade who's just discovered he's about to be replaced by a newer model – to freedom. You do so by controlling Ocarbot's straightforward two-plane movement, right-left and up-down, as well as employing his unique skill at pushing blinking blocks into conspicuous holes in the floors of his side-view mazes.

The trick is to get him safely to the exit without falling victim to an environmental hazard. And the key, of course, is planning ahead. The game oozes charm thanks as much to its simple but effective presentation as Pixelh8's own custom-composed soundtrack, and at the going rate of 99 cents it's kind of tough not to recommend it. I mean what are you playing on your phone now, anyway? Angry Birds? Still?! Sheesh!

So if you've got a buck and need a new weapon in your boredom-killing arsenal, pick it up. You're supporting both independent development and a member of our community, so it's a win-win.

And speaking of win, Matthew gave me 5 free download codes, which I'll be passing on to you, faithful readers. Just comment here at the blog, or give me a yell via Facebook/Twitter and I'll draw some random winners Monday.

Hipster, please!: your source for nerd news, reviews and interviews. And the occasional app giveaway.

Karl Effing Olson

My old pal Karl "Ultraklystron" Olson – Or is it nerdcore newcomer Karl "Ultraklystron" Olson? #bazinga – has a couple of interesting projects in the works. There's Rai's new full-length, which I've already discussed, and a new mixtape that I'll be talking up later this month.

For the time being, however, you are encouraged to check out the following videos. The first is a leak from Animatic entitled "Tap That Deck." Musically it's bright and brassy and fun, which is kinda textbook Karl. Lyrically, however, it’s a bit more of a departure. Not the techy innuendo, mind you; more the delivery itself, as his flow simultaneously seems to channel Weezy and Bubba Sparxxx.

Meanwhile, the second mines Karl's electronic roots. It combines Moombahton – a musical movement that will (hopefully) eclipse dubstep any day now – with Futurama's Dr. Zoidberg. It's sort of a just-for-shits-and-giggles-thing, and that suits me just fine.

Radio Free Hipster Ep. 120: Occupy Elm Street

Apparently my superpower is riffing on current events for show titles. Or not; I mean, I often seem to overestimate my own cleverness.

Still, this one made me chuckle.

This year I had a little trouble rekindling my (historically abundant) Halloween spirit, but with the day finally upon us I am all up ins. Putting together this show certainly helped me get my ghoulish groove back, and I hope it provides and adequate soundtrack for your All Hallows activities.

Download Radio Free Hipster Ep. 120: Occupy Elm Street [hosting provided by Antisoc] Size: 70.3 MB Running Time: 51:23 Subscribe to RFH

Show Notes:

Intro: Baddd Spellah – "Radio Free Hipster Theme (feat. Beefy)"
Beef's got a new release that will also fit in well with your Halloween party playlist. Dig it!

Track 1: mc chris - "Time Warp"
mc's Columbia is downright uncanny.

Z's 1st interlude: "Part 2 of this year's Halloween Crap-tacular"
And with this one in the bag I gotta say I'm sad I have to wait another year to do it again.

Track 2: The Darkest of the Hillside Thickets - "Ogdru Jahad"
It's strange to think that I've been listening to the Thickets for a decade and a half now.

Track 3: Backburner - "Phantom Ghost"
This one's for you, @HassanISahba.

Track 4: g4gorilla - "Bring Frankenstein Back to My Street"
Another great cut from this year's Texas Chainsaw Mashacre compilation.

Track 5: MC Frontalot - "Invasion of the Not Quite Dead"
Solved is a really eclectic album -- even from Frontalot, who tends to cast a wide sonic net. The harder edge of this joint is but a single example of its stylistic breadth.

Track 6: John Anealio - "Undead Love Song"
Just when I think I have John figured out he up and uses the word "cock" in a song!

Track 7: Saltlakrits - "Cupcakes in My Basement"
This one requires a bit of back-story, as helpfully supplied by @ChurchHTucker.

Z's 2nd interlude: "Backed up by a nice Castlevania-driven beat."
That soundtrack gets used and abused a lot, but Backburner sure as hell does right by it.

Track 8: Sticks Downey - "Night of the Demons"
I'm happy to see the Sticks Downey Halloween single is now an annual tradition.

Track 9: Buttery Lords - "Werewolf in a Waterpark"
Check out their Monster & Madness EP for more fun nor'western hippity-hop.

Track 10: The Efts - "Robot Destroy"
From the soundtrack of forthcoming social networking game Robot Destroy Club.

Track 11: The Doubleclicks - "Hollywood Raptor"
It's rather insulting to say that grown women are adorable, so I will instead specify that The Doubleclicks' music  -- particularly in the case of this song -- is adorable. And also awesome. Especially awesome!

Track 12: Humanoids - "Humanoid Eyes that Shine at Night"
Since I managed to incorporate a Darkest of the Hillside Thickets tune that wasn't strictly Lovecraftian, I thought this track filled that void nicely.

Z's final interlude: "Aren't they, y'know, infinitely more interesting?"
I mean who would you rather be: Blaster or Soundwave?!

Track 13: Jonathan Coulton - "Still Alive (feat. Sara Quin)"
Coulton's Artificial Heart is another recent release that's not to be missed.

It occurs to me that there are only four more shows left in 2011. How the fuck did that even happen?!

I'll not lie to you, folks; sometimes I consider retiring from the nerd grind, taking my leave content in the knowledge that there are a shit-ton of other geek culture rags out there to keep y'all satisfied. But when I look back at Hipster, please! and its related projects -- though admittedly they aren't exactly earth-shattering -- I feel a sense of pride in my accomplishments.

Moreover, no matter how big a pain in the ass things sometimes are, I still very much enjoy what I do. I hope this show and all its brothers and sisters are just as fun and entertaining to you as they are to me, and I always appreciate your requests, suggestions and input as I move my little industry forward.

Happy Halloween, all!

Real Hops, Cauliflower and Eye of Newt

Okay, admittedly Illbotz's "Me and You and a PBR" isn't exactly a Halloween song. It is, if anything, a love song. Or more to the point, a boning song. Still, it does include a Cyclops as Stevie D's love interest, and the new video is a reworking of a 1979 commercial featuring Patrick Swayze. He was in Ghost. Also, he currently is a ghost – goddamn, I'm gonna get an angry email from my mom about that one – so I will allow it.

Please drink responsibly.

Hallowinners

image credit: @galendara

This year's crop of Halloween-related musical releases has been a little light. But I reckon between occupying Wall Street and bitching about folks occupying Wall Street and everyone preparing for the Rapture we've all really had a lot on our collective plate.

Still, there is some good, spooky shit out there, and I am gonna pause for a moment to shine my own little light on a handful of my favorites.

The Halloween mash-up collection is what we can now safely call an annual tradition. We've been gettin' 'em steady since 2004 thanks to the combined might of scene staples like DJBC and Cheekyboy, and they are always positively packed with pleasant surprises. This year's compilation is the double disc Texas Chainsaw Mashacre, which notably includes, among its Duck Sauce and Deadmau5 bootlegs, Sticks Downey's "C.H.U.D.," an original horrorcore cut that I actually included in last year's Halloween Crap-tacular.

The Texas Chainsaw Mashacre volumes 1 and 2 are freely available from the Monster Mash-Ups site, and I insist that you check 'em out.

While not intentionally Halloween-y, per se, the latest from my Canadian homeboy The Garthim-Master should fit in nicely with your seasonal playlist. Combining thick, atmospheric beats from German producer DJ Extend and The G-M's own unique blend of story-driven narratives and impressionistic lyrical gymnastics, Ghosts of Nostalgia is a look back on the beloved entertainment properties of our childhood that's not afraid to take a grim turn. For every breezy "Dude, Where's My AT-AT At?" there is a dirge-like "Krang" or a surreal "After Midnight."

I've actually been grooving to early leaks of joints like "Save the World," "The Crystal Shard" and "Rorschach's Journal" for a while now, but the full release is now available to everyone. For the very competitive price of free.

Expect a full review in the near future – most likely after the limited edition vinyl drops – but in the meantime spend a little quality time with this one yourself.

Lastly comes a brand new single from fellow GeekDad John Anealio. Generally, there are a number of elements I expect from John's songs: things like delicate guitar-work, straight-ahead percussion and cleverly-layered counter-melody. What I don't expect is bawdy humor, but "Undead Love Song" certainly has it.

There are a few easy jokes to be made about a human-zombie marriage (and consummation), and Anealio makes 'em all. The trick is, he's so mellow and earnest with his delivery that you totally don't even mind!

This one is also available as a free download, so add that grisly fucker – I made a pun! – to your collection.

So what about you, faithful readers? What's on your new Halloween listening list?

Double Damage

Earlier this year MC Frontalot coordinated a Kickstarter effort to raise funds for a shiny new music video for the song "Critical Hit," the debut single from his recently released Solved LP. The nerdcore community pulled out every goddamn one o' them stops and not only met the goal but totally annihilated it! (At present, Front is sitting at over triple the requested amount.)

This means that, in addition to the previously announced video extravaganza, Frontalot now plans to craft another 2-3 additional videos including an animated epic for his Dr. Awkward/ZeaLouS1 collab "I'll Form the Head."

For the moment, though, please be content with this delightful deconstruction of the pop star lifecycle. I'm including it in my Halloween coverage because it is, on a purely existential level, sort of disturbing. Also it features the Grim Reaper, Brian Posehn and a (thankfully fictitious) MC Frontalot sex tape. All of which are rather terrifying.

His Snake-tastic Majesty's Request

If anything, Halloween is a holiday for the bad guys, which makes this announcement from Slytherin Wizard Rock staple Draco and the Malfoys all the more relevant:

After 7 years on that WRock-grind, it appears as though brothers Brian Ross and Bradley Mehlenbacher are hanging up their scarves. Of all the scene's notable dissolutions in recent years, this is particularly significant. You see, the Malfoys epitomized 2nd-generation Wizard Rock in its truest form.

Debuting in 2004 – at what was likely the first ever all-WRock show, a house party featuring Harry and the Potters that also saw the introduction of The Whomping Willows – the band represented the first instance of an act being formed in direct response to the Potters phenomenon. To put it another way, if the brother DeGeorge were MC Frontalot and YTCracker, then Brian and Bradley were Beefy and Ultraklystron. (And, by extension, the house party was… Rhyme Torrents? I dunno; maybe I'm grasping to extend my metaphor here.)

Still, the band served as the bedrock foundation of what would go on to become the musical arm of Harry Potter fandom, a cultural juggernaut that leveraged its recognition and acclaim into an engine for social good. Not bad for a couple of Parseltongued miscreants!

While naysayers have been prophesying the end of Wizard Rock since Deathly Hallows rolled on to bookstore shelves, and the disbanding of the Malfoys doesn't exactly run counter to said claims, it's hard to understate the impact that acts like DatM have had both on nerd culture and on the developing social awareness of their young fans. And for that, you power-hungry, soul-split revenants I salute you.

(Hat-tip to Matt, my finger on the pulse of Wizard Rockery for the tip!)

Radio Free Hipster Ep. 119: Vampire State of Mind

These Halloween Crap-tacular episodes will always hold a special place in my cold and lifeless heart.

This annual two-part celebration of musical monstrosities was among the first RFHs to feature a theme. Moreover, the inaugural episode marked the first time I ever incorporated background music into the show.

Now if only I hadn't given it such a cheesy goddamn name!

Download Radio Free Hipster Ep. 119: Vampire State of Mind [hosting provided by Antisoc] Size: 63.6 MB Running Time: 49:04 Subscribe to RFH

Show Notes:

Intro: Baddd Spellah – "Radio Free Hipster Theme (feat. Beefy)"
Unlike candy corn, you'll never get sick of my tasty theme song. Sadly, you can't wedge the track into your gums and pretend to be a vampire. Touché, candy corn!

Track 1: Sci-Fried - "Vampires Suck"
Another fine tune from Florida's premiere geek rockers. Not exactly their most original title, mind you, but still.

Z's 1st interlude: "A message from the great George Takei."
Sulu wants you to have a fun and safe Halloween.

Track 2: Community dialog / Kirby Krackle - "Bite of Another"
I love that a bunch of cats from Seattle can bust out the southern-style soul-rock.

Track 3: The Consortium of Genius - "Bite Me"
Wait; did he say "bite me on the butt?"

Track 4: ToToM - "Buffy the Toccata Slayer Freaks Out"
From this year's Texas Chainsaw Mashacre Halloween bastard pop compilation.

Track 5: Shael Riley and the Double Ice Backfire - "Juese Belmont"
That's me doing the intro. I'm famous now.

Track 6: Community dialog / Action Adventure World vs. The Plasmas - "Zombie Killing, Blood Spilling (Overworld #1)"
If you haven't already, cop their epic 2010 release Vol. 1 Ghosts n Goblins.

Track 7: Anthrax - "Fight'em 'Til You Can't"
Anthrax's Worship Music is, without a doubt, one of their greatest efforts to date. Having Joey Belladonna back makes all the difference.

Z's 2nd interlude: "With the stage set for a zombie apocalypse."
Because honestly, when isn't it?

Track 8: Community dialog / Death*Star - "The Quick and the Dead"
"Holy crap; Leonard's a zombie!"

Track 9: 8-Bit Weapon - "Die Die My Darling"
I have gotten far more miles out of that 8-bit Misfits tribute than even I would've thought possible.

Track 10: The Misfits - "Twilight of the Dead"
I'm still not quite sure what I think of the new (new-new?) Jerry Only-fronted Misfits, but this track fit so I went with it.

Track 11: Community dialog / Cheekyboy - "Living Dead Temper Baby"
Because nothing says Halloween like a Rob Zombie vs. Prodigy mash-up.

Track 12: Buck 65 - "Zombie Delight"
Likely the highlight of what is, at least in my opinion, a sweet-ass set. This one was suggested to me by my Canadian homey SelfHelp.

Z's final interlude: "We are the ultimate enemy."
Also, vampires and zombies are kinda cool. I think I left that out amid all my high-minded posturing.

Track 13: Illbotz - "Zombie Girl"
Yes, the Illbotz do doo-wop. It's one of the many services the group offers.

Let us now forget, boils and ghouls, that there's another Halloween-themed episode coming. A handful of artists have already told me to expect new seasonal singles by month's end, but I should still have plenty of room for requests.

Assuming, of course, that you've got 'em.

Go Get 'Em

I was actually planning to save this one for the next podcast (which should drop later this week) due partly to the fact that it ably closes out the second set and also because I kinda went video crazy last week. Still, this is an excellent slice of musical film-making that I think you'll enjoy. Plus with the premiere of The Walking Dead's second season less than a week away it is mad relevant.

So sit back and enjoy this zombie-centered public service announcement featuring the talents of Buck 65, Buck 65 and Buck 65:

Hat tip to my pal Selfhelp for this one.