go ahead, click on the flame. You'll singe your eyebrows Somebody posted this photo on Reddit of Sigourney Weaver trying out the flamethrower from Alien on the backlot lawn of Shepperton Studios in 1978. They didn't wimp out with CG back then. This was the real deal. Notice no one is standing too close. Director Ridley Scott's decision not … Continue reading Don’t mess with Ripley when she’s got the Alien flamethrower in the backyard
Weezer’s Brian Bell on geek-rock stigmas and Spike Jonze’s scary giraffe
“I always appreciate simple riffs," says guitarist Bell. "They’re definitely harder to make interesting than complicated ones.”
Meeting the men behind Freddy Krueger inside Wes Craven’s Nightmare Cafe
During my 13 years as a correspondent for Fangoria magazine I enthusiastically covered the horror beat in Vancouver, visiting the sets of such destined-to-be-awful films as Halloween: Resurrection and Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan. But it wasn't just big-screen projects that I wrote about. If there was a horror-related TV series (Poltergeist: The … Continue reading Meeting the men behind Freddy Krueger inside Wes Craven’s Nightmare Cafe
Bob Rock says Metallica “never have and never will sell out”
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON APRIL 25, 2002 By Steve Newton What could possibly cause any sane person to willingly abandon the balmy paradise of Hawaii for the frigid climes of Vancouver in January? Well, if you’re record producer Bob Rock, your last name is reason enough. Good old riff-riddled rock is what draws the tanned music … Continue reading Bob Rock says Metallica “never have and never will sell out”
Paul Kelly wonders if “Every F***king City” will go over in Vancouver
There are a couple of things that come to mind when I recall my five-week visit to Australia in ’86, one being the “drive-in bottleshops”.
Charlie Musselwhite knew that playing the blues in Chicago was better than doing factory work
Charlie Musselwhite was just 13 when he started playing the instrument that he’d use so well while staking out his place in the blues world.
James Cotton on blowing harp for Muddy Waters at Newport Jazz Festival
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON MARCH 7, 2002 By Steve Newton Throughout the classic 1960 blues album Muddy Waters at Newport—which fans of the late legend should note was recently released on CD in remastered form, with bonus studio tracks—a young James Cotton can be heard blowing some serious harp at the Newport Jazz Festival. At one … Continue reading James Cotton on blowing harp for Muddy Waters at Newport Jazz Festival
Lester Quitzau was a Zeppelin-loving wheelie king as a kid
On his latest CD, So Here We Are, Lester Quitzau makes a strong case for his being touted as among this country’s finest blues-roots pickers.
Led Zeppelin’s best album, Physical Graffiti, to get deluxe box-set treatment
By Steve Newton Led Zeppelin announced the other day that it will release a super-deluxe boxed-set edition of its best album, 1975's Physical Graffiti. Fvckin-AAA! The package--newly remastered by Jimmy Page and featuring previously unreleased tracks--will hit stores on February 24, 40 years to the day after the release of the original. In case you forgot what … Continue reading Led Zeppelin’s best album, Physical Graffiti, to get deluxe box-set treatment
Kim Simmonds keeps the spirit of Savoy Brown alive for ’70s-rock holdouts
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON FEB. 14, 2002 By Steve Newton It’s been 36 years since guitarist-vocalist Kim Simmonds founded British boogie-blues band Savoy Brown, and he’s kept the name alive through constant touring and steady CD releases. But the undying outfit might have been wiped out for good in a torrent of jet fuel and tumbling … Continue reading Kim Simmonds keeps the spirit of Savoy Brown alive for ’70s-rock holdouts
Blue Öyster Cult’s Buck Dharma likes making people strain to hear
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JAN. 24, 2002 By Steve Newton As a metal-crazed teen in the ’70s, I was obsessed with Long Island hard-rockers Blue Öyster Cult. I used to blow all my lawn-mowing money on their albums and play them at ear-busting volume for hours on end, even though I had trouble making out the … Continue reading Blue Öyster Cult’s Buck Dharma likes making people strain to hear
The Word gets the Newt off his ass and down to the Commodore to hear “Joyful Sounds” and Hendrix
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, JAN. 24, 2002 By Steve Newton A few hours before the Word took the stage at the Commodore last Saturday (January 19), I was reclining in my cozy New West living room, barely awake. The idea of driving downtown in the pissing rain to see a band that wasn’t … Continue reading The Word gets the Newt off his ass and down to the Commodore to hear “Joyful Sounds” and Hendrix
Smash Mouth’s Greg Camp thinks Steely Dan is “pretty snobby”
The catchy "All Star", which had already been a huge hit off the group’s 1999 Astro Lounge CD, was written by guitarist Greg Camp.