I'm coming back next week for sure. Creamed corn all the way.

You rang? Yes you did, indeed, and many thanks! Some quite-sizable pledges to My Castle of Quiet, this week and last. The support and enthusiasm shown for our program, and for WFMU at large, is always appreciated and deeply humbling to me. My personal thanks to all the pledgers, and to Jeff Conklin, and Jonathan Herweg, for being the finest "Igors" this horror-host could wish for.

Contemplating a mic-break / back-announce FREE program next week, as sheer reward to all the very generous pledgers who've supported, and continue to support My Castle of Quiet this year. ...a reward to myself as well, in a way, as the musical dam is currently and ridiculously backed up, and my acquisition demon is rattling his chains in frustration. So much great music has come my way, via one means or another, just in the past 2-3 weeks, that I'll have premium show content straight through mid-May, at the very least. New releases to spotlight on Vanguard Productions, Haare's Heavy Meditation label, Caligari Records, new releases by Svffer, Volahn, a split single by Necrovulva / Chaos Cascade, and some not-terribly-old recent excitements by Ashencult, Silva Negra, Barad Dur ... so very much more.

Managed to slap on a bit more music this week than last, The Castle's flesh and body after all,  and playlist-comment appreciation went out to Deaf Kids | a music bed from Queen of Black Magic | kimchi | boobs (a perennial; big "naturals" preferred) | WOLD | ...and the rare Krautrock purveyed on this year's MCoQ premium CDr, Raritäten Krautspieler. There's still time to pledge, both to our show and to WFMU; the 2015 marathon ends this Sunday eve, with our raucous, in-house Karaoke party, The Hoof 'n' Mouth Sinfonia (where I'll be performing the most-inappropriate of songs, considering my program and tastes; you'll have to tune in to hear [live streaming video @ wfmu.org])

...and please remember, a pledge made directly to our program of $75 of more (see the white, rectangular pledge widget above this post) automatically earns you a copy of Raritäten Krautspieler, chock full of rare German rock tracks (1968-1988), with a dazzling photo sleeve custom-designed by Mr. Ken Weaver, and featuring model / scream-queen Hannah Rose Fierman.

This week's screen capture comes from the 1973 Yugoslavian film Leptirica (thanks to Matt Minter of Wretched Worst for steering me towards this odd, engaging gem.) [Wretched Worst on My Castle of Quiet 2012 March] Click on the pic above to reach the archived audio, playlist and comments for this week's fundraising-mode horrorcast™. Looking forward, both to Sunday's marathon wrap-party, and to a return, in spades, to Castle-business-as-usual next week.

MY CASTLE OF QUIET / WFMU 2015 MARATHON RITUAL No. II

First of all HUGE THANKS to everyone who pledged to last week's wild radio excursion, with my co-host Jonathan Herweg. Tonight at midnight ET will be your FINAL CHANCE to participate in the live, on-air fundraising Castle shenanigans for our show, with my good pal Jeff Conklin manning the co-pilot's duties (Jeff has co-hosted The Castle before, during regular programming.)

Again, we have great prizes to give away, every one a deadly delight, and a pledge of $20 or more will get you in the per-shift drawings for those. Any pledge of $75 or more automatically earns you a copy of our show-exclusive CDr, Raritäten Krautspieler, a collection of the rarest Krautrock gems from my personal collection (rare / live tracks by Duka Bass Band, Can, Dorian Gray, Kraftwerk, AR & Machines, Torilla Flat, Tangerine Dream, and Didaktischeinheit; roughly 1968-1988.)

Last week's on-air romp included intense, laugh-out-loud discussion, a quite lively comments board, and your generous pledges. Looking very much forward to more of the same TONIGHT!

TONIGHT @ 12 MID. ET. BE SURE TO TUNE IN FOR THE BLOODBATH!

...the sound of people needing to do things they very much do not want to do....

Some things are just honest by nature - the blush of a woman, a kid's craving for ice cream, and a radio show rendered when the DJ is actually in a good mood. ...I play so much music that could be construed as "bad mood" music, and my tastes are in some ways an outgrowth of my personality, but we all NEED Abraxas - that balance of dark and light - and if I'm truly miserable (see last week), the show, despite my usual best effort, cherry-picked selections etc., will wilt, and the audience will react in kind with the vibes being transmitted. Yes, I believe in vibes.

And where do I look for this serenity, that which makes me not loathe the day, waking up, living? Sometimes, Buddhism. I've referred to myself before as a "Satanic Busshist," both for laughs but more often quite seriously. Do I pray? No, but I observe, I read, I observe some more. It's the only world religion that by definition that is strictly non-dogmatic; there are no "Buddhist fundamentalists" trying to take over the world, or spearing Muslim women and children on the ends of swords, like some Hindus do. Buddhism says, "feel good," "don't envy, don't struggle, don't yearn; these will all lead to unhappiness." No big THOU SHALT NOTs with Buddhism. Or at least, only good ones, great ones even.

Which leads me, somewhat ridiculously, to this week's film recommendation - a colorful, funny, violent, silly, and thoroughly entertaining film called Journey To The West. The giant hand of Buddha literally saves the day, not to give out a spoiler. Chinese horror in general has always been populated with Taoist priests who swoop in and defeat all evil and malice. Journey... features a band of demon hunters, colorful, campy characters with absurd powers, who cheerfully do battle and die with absurd bravery. It's loads of fun.

 

A movie I really hated, this week? I Used To Be Darker, one of those films that will leave you wondering why this film needed to be made, or its story told. Populated with miserable people, cold, capricious women especially. I don't appreciate the reinforcement of negative female stereotypes, especially as female filmmakers were involved. Why? Bah, what a piece of soul-hammering crap THAT was! Do not be fooled by the small-scale, indie drama charms of its trailer - the best scene was a party scene, that featured Dope Body playing a bitchin' song (free download at that link!), very much the postmodern Jesus Lizard they appear to be. ...Horror films are my refuge from the this type of cinema, anything "Sundance selects"...the banal portrayal of everyday human suffering, that which we get already just by living and engaging.

So, a windfall of praise on our playlist for a song from the latest Cattle Decapitation album. They deserve all the love they get; I saw a show in SF in 2009 that I'll never forget (remember Spike, we were there together, that was a fun night / Cephaic Carnage, too!); Travis was doing his usual spit acrobatics, and insulting goons in the pit, the latter so deftly that the targets didn't even realize...and their playing, and the whole thrust of that set was just perfect. If I ever leave the house to see live music again, it will be because of the memory of shows like that one.

I also quite liked our opening selection from Cara Neir, both Hells (France and USA), new tracks by Bleak, Excepter and Barrikad. Praise on the playlist, also, for a now-"classic" black metal track by Furdidurke, from the very memorable split 7" from 2006 with Bone Awl.

I'm off next week, gentleman Jeff Conklin, a friend, and guest on our show previously, will be filling in and I'm quite sure you'll enjoy his show.

Live music to come in the weeks ahead, from Bleak and Hell Mary (July 30) and NYC's Privilege on our August 6th show.

Click on this week's MCoQ screen capture, from the clever, witty, charmingly violent You're Next, to reach our playlist, streaming audio, and listener comments for this week's horrorcast™. Thank you all for listening, and participating on the playlist, it really amps up the whole experience of doing radio for me, so it's much appreciated! See you in two weeks. ...