Harrison promised us rarities, and so he gave us rarities! From some cool Steelbook DVD, Blu-rays and 3D issues of films, to replica cars and comic books, Harrison brought the goods. The coolest of his collection is his high-end replica Mad Max interceptor, in limited edition dirty deco, to duplicate its appearance in Mad Max 2 (#221 in a limited edition of 2000). Harrison is clearly a passionate fan, and his Mad Max collection is quite impressive indeed. He even had his own custom Lego version of the interceptor to show.
As for the lists: they were not as controversial as I expected, but there were some surprises. Peter and I had lists most in common, but what did not come as a surprise was that all three of us had the same #1 film in the Mad Max franchise.
We offered a fair share of critique, but mostly praise for George Miller’s post-apocalyptic saga. Certain moments in films were singled out for observation and analysis. We discussed the soundtracks, the visual effects, some controversial CG elements, and of course, the performances of the cast.
If anyone knows the deal about that weird mannequin head strapped to Angry Anderson’s backup, let me know. I had my own theory which I shared in the show.
Thanks for watching, and if you didn’t, you can catch the show below.
Next week: interview with ex-Helix drummer Archie Gamble!
GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike and the Mad Metal Man Episode 77: Ranking the Mad Max Films
“Witness! I am your redeemer. It is by my hand you will rise from the ashes of this world!”
Please welcome back to the show, Peter Kerr and Harrison Kopp from Rock Daydream Nation! With two Australians and one Canadian, we hope this will be the most comprehensive (or, “Kopp-rehensive”) Mad Max list show on YouTube.
For the physical media crowd, Harrison promises RARITIES!
Tonight, we rank all five films in the Mad Max universe: Mad Max, Mad Max 2 (“The Road Warrior“), Beyond Thunderdome, Fury Road, and Furiosa. I have immersed myself in the Mad Max films, watching the first three twice each in preparation. Expect a deep analysis and hearty appreciation with a fair share of critique. If you think you know what will happen tonight…you don’t!
Will Peter Kerr escape the Wasteland intact? Will Mike Ladano emerge from the Thunderdome as victor? Will Harrison Kopp go rogue like Furiosa? Find out tonight for an awesome show that will defy your assumptions.
Friday November 8 at 8:00 P.M. E.S.T. / 9:00 P.M. Atlantic. Enjoy on YouTube or onFacebook!
Out of my comfort zone indeed! This show has been a long time in the making. I first bought my deluxe edition of Brain Salad Surgery by ELP many months ago, strictly for this show. Peter gave me several weeks to absorb it. Then I was gifted an addition week of preparation when I found myself sick to my stomach the night we were scheduled to record. (Nerves, food poisoning, or both?)
Now you finally get to see the fruits of our labors. Did I ever “get” ELP? Find out by watching this episode of Rock Daydream Nation! Peter’s description is below.
Rock Daydream Nation is joined by Mike Ladano (Grab a stack of Rock) in a special episode of “out of my comfort zone” where we select one record out of a genre that we don’t usually follow and provide our thoughts with 2024 ears, This weeks choice is ELP Brain Salad Surgery.
Last Wednesday on the Contrarians, I was absolutely blown away to hear my favourite writer, Martin Popoff, say the words “Mike is a great addition to the show.”
Thank you Martin. I hope this week I live up to everybody’s expectations!
For those keeping track, this is my fourth week in a row on the Contrarians. The subjects thus far have been:
I tend to go off the beaten track and focus on artists or albums that have never been on the Contrarians before. I will be doing that again this week, with some more Canadian picks and some albums that are not in the rock genre at all. Begin the guessing.
THE CONTRARIANS – Album Covers with Fire and Explisions – Wed. Novermber 6 – 7:00 PM EST
Did you think Silence of the Lambs was the first film to feature Hannibal Lecter? You were wrong! Brian Cox brought the character to life in Michael Mann’s Manhunter five years prior. It’s the first film adaptation of Thomas Harris’ novel Red Dragon. Despite under-performing big time at the box office, the film has has been reappraised in recent years and given more of the credit it deserves as pioneering influence on the crime genre.
The story follows retired FBI agent Will Graham (William Peterson) being pulled back into the fold by his old boss to catch the latest crazed serial killer known as the Tooth Fairy (Tom Noonan). Graham was responsible for catching Lecter years prior (spelled Lecktor in this movie) although the process left him physically and mentally scarred. Graham’s skill set allows him to adorn the point of view of the killer a process that drains him mentally and leaves him on the cusp of insanity, but makes him remarkably effective in solving cases.
Being pulled from retirement and forced to consult with his assailant Lecter, Graham begins to deteriorate faster than before. Fresh out of one of my favorite films, To Live and Die in L.A., Peterson nails the role, appearing increasingly haggard and desperate throughout the movie. You can see his story in the lines of his sleep deprived face. Brian Cox’s portrayal of Lecter is more grounded, cunning, and disturbing than the uber theatrical Hopkins version. The two don’t share much screen time, but their link is felt throughout the film, particularly when Lecter vicariously finds a way to torment Graham from his cell through clandestine messages to the Tooth Fairy.
Given that this is a Michael Mann film, the whole thing is an aesthetic masterpiece with the “style” knob cranked to eleven. It exudes an aura of cool detachment complimentary to the chilly atmosphere of violent mental depravity. There’s also an emphasis on forensics and detective work many thrillers skip over for the more sensational moments. Here we see the cracks in between, Graham being forced to watch tapes of the Tooth Fairy stalking families before he murders them, trying to piece together a motive.
If you’re any kind of a fan of Michael Mann’s work or crime thrillers in general, there’s no reason I could see this wouldn’t be up your alley. It’s one of his most overlooked works, despite the small renaissance it’s been enjoying recently. Manhunter is smart, stylish, and lying ever in wait for you to discover its assets. Also, Joan Allen is in it, and she’s a total babe.
Disclaimer: This is an extremely dull video! Consider: without music videos, Yngwie Malmsteen “hosting” the Power 30 in 1991 amounts to less than 90 seconds of video. How disappointing. This is an excellent example of why the Power 30 was a vastly inferior format to the Pepsi Power Hour. The shortened time led to substance-free content like this for the vacuous 90s.
Yngwie comments a little bit about each of the videos he has been assigned:
“Dragonfly” by Yngwie Malmsteen
“Over My Head” by King’s X
Deep Purple and Jimi Hendrix – songs not named
“Heaven Tonight” – Yngwie Malmsteen
I just told you everything they played, but watch it for Yngwie’s quick comments if you like.
August, 1982: John “J.D.” Roberts on The New Music (pre-MuchMusic) sat down with the Mob Rules lineup of Black Sabbath (Geezer Butler, Tony Iommi, Vinnie Appice – no Dio this time) to ask about the fuss involving Satanic lyrics. While Geezer admits to using Satan a bit as a lyrical device, he also points out that it’s only one facet of his writing. Stopping wars, he points out, is one of their big topics.
Great little clip that shows the laid back band at their most laid back.
A true throwback to the early days of Grab A Stack of Rock, and a showcase for the Mad Metal Man. That was Friday night on Grab A Stack of Rock.
Harrison showed us several CDs that Mike wants to add to his collection, including a 2 CD edition of Alice Cooper in El Paso 1980, Iron Maiden bootlegs with Paul, Bruce and Blaze, Black Sabbath with Ian Gillan, a Bruce Dickinson single, and many more. Harrison also had a rare Nintendo NES video game soundtrack on 7″ vinyl, and possibly the only Arkells CD in all of Australia. (We just don’t know!)
I miscalculated the length of tonight’s show. I expected it to run an hour. I invited some surprise guests to welcome back Harrison after his long absence, and so we were joined by Peter Kerr, Johnny Clauser, and Jex Russell at the one hour mark. Thank you guys for joining us on this special night.
Mike also had some CDs to show off, such as Prince, Paul Stanley, ELP, King Kobra, and Faster Pussycat. However, storytelling was his main role. The Sultans of Ping FC and the Arkells featured into two stories.
Thank you for watching and see you next week on Grab A Stack of Rock for our Mad Max movie ranking!
GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike and the Mad Metal Man Episode 76: The Mad Metal Man Returns!
Long have we waited!
The Mad Metal Man known as Harrison has been on sabbatical since February of this year. Though he did return last week to pay tribute to Paul Di’Anno (in epic fashion), we had a proper return episode planned for him. And here it is! This is Harrison’s official return to the co-host seat.
Two years ago, in October of 2022, I messaged Harrison out of the blue* and asked him if he wanted to go live that night. Fortunately he said yes, and here we are celebrating his second anniversary on Grab A Stack of Rock! We didn’t have a name or a theme song for that first show, but here we are today still going strong. It started out as an easy, casual show where we just grabbed stacks of music and showed it off for the audience. It’s evolved since then to include lists and deep-dives.
I missed the mighty Mad Metal Man very much during his absence. The show is only better when he is on board: our very own rule-breaker, and historian of live concert setlists. Tonight Harrison will show off some metal that he has acquired over the past few months. We will also have an “Ask Harrison” question for his special return! This will be a classic “random & chaotic”** episode of Grab A Stack of Rock!
Friday November 1 at 8:00 P.M. E.S.T. / 9:00 P.M. Atlantic. Enjoy on YouTube or onFacebook!
* This is only half the story. There was an ulterior motive.
** A CD collector named Jamie Wolansky claimed our show was too “random and chaotic” for him to watch. Let’s wear that as a badge!
HALLOWEEN III: SEASON OF THE WITCH(1982 Universal)
Directed by Tommy Lee Wallace
I’m sure most of you know by now that Halloween was supposed to be an anthology series, but the first film proved so popular the studio wanted Michael Meyers back for the sequel, and got him. This third entry was supposed to right the ship with a whole new story, but after two films with Michael, fans just couldn’t accept this and the movie was critically and commercially panned at release. Philistines!
Decades later the movie has had a bit of a resurgence, with plenty of loyal fans flocking to it every autumn. If you go into it thinking of it as Season of the Witch as opposed to Halloween III, it might help you appreciate the many merits of this film. It may make me a horror pariah, but it’s my favorite in the series. I’ve never been crazy about the original. I think Bob Clark did the same concept better years earlier in Black Christmas. The other Halloween sequels range from fine to shit to fucking shit.
Absolute legend Tom Atkins takes over for Jamie Lee Curtis as protagonist in this outing, playing an alcoholic doctor who’s also a licentious Lothario. There’s nary a woman in this movie he doesn’t or hasn’t previously screwed. Age, race, relationship status matter not to this man. He’s an equal opportunity womanizer, and that’s why we love him.
The mystery begins when a crazed man being chased runs into his hospital spouting incoherent nonsense, only to be assassinated by a man who blows himself up to avoid further questioning. His buxom young daughter shows up to investigate, and Tom abandons his kids on Halloween and ignores his estranged wife to get to the bottom of this young… I mean… the bottom of the mystery.
Signs point toward an Irish Halloween mask company. Spooky witchcraft, sacrificial rites, and robots abound in honor of Samhain. I always liked that this took the series in a new direction of horror. A kind of mystery thriller instead of a slasher, with a healthy dose of ‘80s camp. Even with the camp, the villainous old man from Robocop’s plan is remarkably sinister. I don’t remember Michael being willing to kill kids; this guy’s taking out thousands of those little fucks.
I find it hard to articulate why I get a kick out of this one so much. I suppose I have a weak spot for older, overweight, alcoholic, grizzled guy protagonists being incredibly politically incorrect by today’s standards. See also Nick Nolte in 48 Hours and George C. Scott in just about everything. Tom Atkins’ character is in that studied tradition, although a steady influx of vaginal variety seems to keep him from being as world-weary as the aforementioned.
Season of the Witch is a perfectly solid horror film, and I’m convinced it’s abysmal reputation is solely due to fans expecting more Michael bullshit. The Carpenter score slaps, the cinematography is vibrant and colorful, and the story progresses logically, however absurd it gets at points. Watch it, or Harrison will curse you with the scent of cabbage.
mikeladano.com 