LOUDNESS – “Slap In the Face” (1991 Warner Japan CD single)
Not long after Loudness released their second and last album with American singer Mike Vescera, a final four-song EP was released in Japan. Featuring a new song (albeit in an edit version) called “Slap in the Face” with three recent live recordings, the EP was good value for the fans. Unfortunately it was not enough to keep Vescera in the band, and he soon wound up doing some pretty good music with Yngwie J. Malmsteen. Loudness continued on with former E-Z-O singer Masaki Yamada, but that is another story. This one is about Mike’s final release with Loudness.
The edit version of “Slap in the Face” is 4:53. Although it says nowhere inside, the full length version is 5:14 and can be found on the 1991 Japanese 2 CD compilation, Loudest. (It was also added as an extra studio track to a later release, 2009’s Live Loudest at the Bodukan. Both edit and full-length versions are included as bonus tracks on the 2021 deluxe box set reissue of On the Prowl.)
This track absolutely stomps! It does not sound like something that came out in 1991. More like 1993. It was ahead of its time in terms of where metal was going. It chunks, it rips, it shreds and it thrashes. The only anomaly is the powerful vocalizin’ of Mike Vescera, who had the kind of high pitched tone that worked well with Malmsteen. Not that it doesn’t kick ass here, just that style of singing was soon to be out of style… But what a song! A Loudness highlight, hands down. Cut-throat and non-stop, “Slap in the Face” should have been called “Kick in the Teeth”!
The three live tracks that round out the EP are all from the Budokan show that was released in 2009, and were all originally on the 1991 studio album On the Prowl. “Down ‘N’ Dirty” is very clean and polished. You could mistake it for a studio cut. This mid-tempo rocker has some wicked soloing from lead guitarist Akira Takasaki, but really this is hair metal from a band that usually went heavier.
“Playin’ Games” is way heavier. This is the kind of tempo we’re used to from Loudness. The goofy title doesn’t relay its deadly intent: this song is a killer. Drummer Munetaka Higuchi has a lethal albeit brief drum solo at the end, just enough to crush your head. The guy was a beast on drums! Rest in peace Higuchi.
The last track is “Find A Way”, technically a remake of “To Be Demon” from Loudness’ 1981 debut album The Birthday Eve. This ballady metal track goes from bluesy to progressive to hair metal and back to progressive. It’s mid-tempo brilliance, and perhaps something that a band like the Scorpions could have done in the early 80s. Indeed, Klaus would sound brilliant singing it. There’s nothing simple about “Find A Way”!
Though all these songs can now be found elsewhere as is often the case these days, in 1991 this was great value and a fine send-off to Mike Vescera. The following year, Loudness would come crushing back…but only in Japan.
KYUSS / QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE – Kyuss / Queens of the Stone Age (1997 split Man’s Ruin EP)
Sometimes, EPs are essential. Even better: an essential split EP, when you actually like both bands.
Kyuss split in 1996, and guitarist Josh Homme was fast out of the gates with a new EP under the name Gammy Ray. Another Gamma Ray from Germany sued, and so Homme changed the name to Queens of the Stone Age (a nickname coined by producer Chris Goss from Masters of Reality, for Kyuss themselves).
The split EP, Kyuss / Queens of the Stone Age (double self-titled!) offered a debut for Homme’s new band, and a posthumous release for Kyuss. Kyuss’ side opens with the previously released single “Into the Void”, the Black Sabbath cover. Far sludgier even than the Sabbath original, this one pukes messy distortion and rolling bass all over the floor. It gets really cool in the middle section, normally fast and heavy, but here jammy and psychedelic complete with congas. There’s an original guitar solo by Homme, but parts of it sound like something Iommi could have written. Other parts are purely Josh. This is a long-bomber eight-minute version ideal, for headbanging…or spacing out.
“Fatso Forgotso” was the original B-side to the “Into the Void” single. Here it is paired with “Fatso Forgotso Phase II”, a B-side to “One Inch Man”. Phase I is the long bomber while Phase II is a faster blast. The first time I ever heard Phase I, I was sleeping on a floor after a hell of a party. The room was empty as the others had gone out to a local bar to finish the night. I awoke to this monster of a riff. It sounded like the ocean, it was so big. I just lay there in my drunken state, letting this song wash over me, drown me, and bring me back to the surface. It is fuzzy aural ectasy for its entire length, which is punctuated by Scott Reeder’s foundation bassline, and Alfredo Hernández’s busy drumming. John Garcia’s lead vocal is way back in the mix, seemingly making the whole thing seem louder. The congas kick in halfway through, and it turns into a desert jam with an incredible bass part. Phase II is a completely different beast. Four on the floor, quick and to the point. Breakneck and thudding! Incidentally, it was reissued on the compilation Muchos Gracias: The Best of Kyuss as “Flip the Phase”.
The Queens of the Stone Age made their debut (without Nick Olivieri, but with Van Connor on bass) on “If Only Everything”, a song that later became “If Only” on their self-titled LP. The simple riff has always been one of Homme’s best. This song, and “Born to Hula” are both from the deleted Gamma Ray EP, making the tracks easier to get. “If Only Everything” could be the best Queens song – your call. Definitely a strong start. This version is rougher than the album cut, with vocals more buried in the mix and prominent snare. “Born to Hula” is more futuristic, droning and hypnotic. It too is monstrous. Massive. Cavernous. Excellent.
“Spiders and Vinergaroons” was the sole unreleased song on this EP. It later found a home on a reissue of the Queens’ self-titled album, along with other early EP rarities. It has an unexpected Queen-like clap/stomp, but over a droning hypnotic lead guitar that meanders tensely through the first half of the instrumental track. The second half is dominated by huge (like, Titanic) drums, and clavinet. It shouldn’t work, but there it is. Sounds like some backwards guitar thrown in for good measure.
This EP is characterised by long, heavy jams by both bands. It’s not an immediate listen, but it is so rewarding.
HELIX – “Brother From A Different Mother” (2022 download single)
In 2021, Helix recorded a new song called “Brother From A Different Mother”, about a good friend of singer Brian Vollmer. It was released in 2022 as a download, complete with “NFT’s” which…I don’t know what you do with that, but the mp3 file can be downloaded and played like any other!
The song “Brother From A Different Mother” is one of the heaviest Helix tunes. Fast as a shark, and heavy as a rock! The chorus is as memorable as any other Helix single, but the guitar playing is stellar. From solo to riffs, the guitar provides the undeniable hooks. There’s a slow breakdown in the middle with piano, and amazing gritty backing vocals by Cheryl Lescom.
Brian’s lyrics are heartfelt and sincere. You can tell this was a friendship he really valued. Let us hope for a physical release, be it a single or an album.
As I cast my mind back to 1988, the omnipresence of Metallica’s …And Justice For All cannot be ignored. For one thing, the band’s new studio album was a double album, which was all but unheard of at that time. The cover art was striking. The band were now on TV, after stubbornly avoiding music videos for years. “One” was the name of the song, and it was even more stark and impactful than the album art. If the band wanted their first-ever music video to be influential and monumental, they succeeded. However despite all the praise, the cries of “sell outs!” echoed on the “letters to the editor” section of various rock magazines. How dare Metallica make a music video. One letter in Hit Parader magazine compared Justice to Bon Jovi. It’s hard to imagine a reaction like that from the perspective of today, but as much as Justice was Metallica’s most successful album to date, there were thousands of fans who resented them for it.
The other elephant in the room is the production and mix of the album, which is brittle and lacks bass. There were various stories, such as hazing the “new kid” Jason Newsted by removing the bass, but today Lars and James largely blame themselves, saying their hearing was burned out and they just kept turning everything up until you couldn’t hear the bass. There are other stories and other parties who received blame at various points of the timeline, but the thing is this: Justice has sonic issues. We all are aware of this by now.
Let’s dig into this hour-plus album and hear what the fuss was all about.
A backwards guitar harmony fades in from the start, a striking and cool effect. Then immediately the riff and drums kick in, and the snare is loud. It dominates the mix, with the riff itself chugging away behind. James Hetfield awakens the dead, and this could have been his vocal peak, in terms of grit combined with sheet lung power. “Blackened” is a blast, like Metallica of old, and though the pace is breakneck to start, it soon switches up to a deliberate march. Lars is absolutely bangin’ away, and there are so many wicked riffs and licks that you’ll want to go back and take notes. This is a textbook course in writing metal, with a dose of complexity and catchy challenges. Kirk Hammett really plays some cool stuff in the solos as well, demonstrating his experimental side just a tad. “Blackened” is the only song on the album with a Newsted co-writing credit.
The title track is second, almost 10 minutes in length and loaded with riffs and tempos. Hetfield growls like a beast of the social ills of the world. Lars’ drum parts are almost out of the jungles. It’s a cool track, undoubtedly powerful and a peak for a certain kind of Metallica track. They had come a long way from their New Wave of British Heavy Metal / punk rock hybrid sound of old. But, much like Iron Maiden at the same time, Metallica were becoming more interested in progressing musically. You can actually hear some bass on this track ,and Jason’s really playing some wild stuff.
At this point of the album, we’re getting acclimated to the frigid cold mix and brittle guitars. Kirk’s wild solos are an anaesthetic to the constant cutting of James’ rhythm guitar.
On vinyl, this is where side one would have flipped to side two, opening with “Eye of the Beholder”. Cool, underrated opening riff to this song, and again Lars sounds like a jungle beast. James is singing lower, but with the same ferocity. Lyrically, James tapped into the angst and frustration that their fanbase felt in their lives. He was able to articulate for them, the things that they were seeing in their world. And they were pissed off. Kirk’s solo comes from a more exotic locale, but fits in regardless.
“Beholder” ends somewhat abruptly, and then the opening machine gun fire of “One” announces the arrival of the coming hit single. The clean guitars that open the track actually sound pretty good, though the snare drum is a sharp contrast to them. Though not Metallica’s first foray into softer tones of metal, “One” was top-notch. There’s no need to go into details on the lyrics as that could be a post unto itself. Like many classic metal bands before them, Metallica took inspiration from literature, though via a film interpretation. The anti-war word resonated with the audiences of 1988. The video, using dialogue and visuals from the film Johnny Got His Gun, was all but universally lauded. As a song, “One” doesn’t need the video to stand up. It builds until it eventually turns into a musical battlefield, with machine guns made of bass drum hits, and explosions from snares. Then Kirk’s solo tells a story of its own, a manic tale of fight-or-flight tension. “One” is every bit as good as they say it is.
This is where vinyl, or even cassette, has their advantages. This is a good place to give your ears a break, at the end of side two. Ear fatigue will set in if you don’t take a moment here! So, on your CD player or streaming service, take a pause. For vinyl, just keep flippin’.
Side three opened with “The Shortest Straw”, another hammering riff, and then Metallica take it for a twist. Hetfield is barking mad on this one! It is not the most memorable of the Justice nine, but it doesn’t play it simple or safe either. The chorus is one you can shout to, and Kirk’s solo is certainly unorthodox.
“Harvester of Sorrow” became a concert standard, and it is a bit of a needed slower moment after the brutality was that “Shortest Straw”. The riff is simpler, more deliberate and to the point, and melody is present in the vocal growls! It’s one of their more accessible moments, but for some irate Hit Parader reader to call stuff like this “Bon Jovi” is utterly ridiculous. It’s slow but stomping. James’ vocals would still raise the dead.
Side three’s closing track is the lesser known “The Frayed Ends of Sanity” and I still hate that “oh-wee-oh” bit (“March of the Winkies”) from The Wizard of Oz that opens it. Totally out of place, and I could swear New Kids on the Block or somebody like that used the bit in one of their songs too. Anyway. The band never played it live until 2014, making it the last song from Justice to make it into the live set. That’s not to say it’s a bad song – there’s a really cool middle section that just builds and builds, and then unleashes an absolute monster of a riff, like Iron Maiden on speed.
The final side features Cliff Burton’s last writing credit, “To Live Is To Die”. Almost 10 minutes in length, this largely instrumental track features the appearance of the Metallica acoustic guitars, which soon give way to robotic hammering and a monumental set of riffs. Solo work by both James and Kirk is extraordinary. There are left turns, and it all serves to set up the closing blast of “Dyer’s Eve”.
“Dyer’s Eve” is a thrash blast of metal; so fast that it’s the only “short” song on the album at 5:12. It comes in suddenly and after a brief cascade of metal madness, and goes full thrash, pedal to the metal, all burners on full. It’s so much, packed into such a short space. It’s one of the most effective songs on the album for that reason, and a bit of a cult classic. “Dyer’s Eve” is one of the deep cuts that just scream for more exposure.
Justice is a trip, a journey, a series of chapters in a larger story. It deserves the scrutiny given to its mix but conversely, it also deserves as much attention as your ears are able to pay to it. Despite the lack of bass, there are things here your mind can dissect down to some brilliant performances if you give them the focus. Justice is not an easy listen, but they don’t all have to be. The cool thing with it is, as you grow with it over the years, different songs become your favourites. Maybe 30 years ago, it was “One” or “Blackened”. Then after a while, maybe “Beholder”, then “Dyer’s Eve” and “Shortest Straw”! The album will never cease to have favourite moments if you love Metallica.
It would be easy to give it a 5/5 stars, but the issues with the bass cannot be ignored.
What a show! Thanks for watching! Jex and I had a blast going through a selection of my favourite rock (and a couple other) books. What a variety of books too! Many genres of music, and a few outside the musical box. Jex’s books are currently in storage, so what we did instead was watch a Youtube video from his channel CineBrosSupreme. In 2016, Jex went through his music book collection, and we screened that and commented on it as well. (Jex has not aged since 2016, and a few viewers mentioned this!)
ROD STEWART – The Definitive Rod Stewart (2008 Warner)
Compilations, eh? You get one, and it’s great, but…it doesn’t have all the songs that you like, does it? In this case, I was craving some Rod (now now!) and I really wanted to hear one from my youth: “Infatuation”! I was craving that hook! “Oh no, not again! It hurts so good, I don’t understand!” Jeff Beck: lead guitar! I searched my library and I was missing that track. What to do about it?
Rod Stewart has numerous compilations to choose from, going back to 1973’s Sing It Again Rod. (That one’s interesting for the inclusion of “Pinball Wizard” from the London Sympony version of Tommy.) You could go any number of ways. 1989’s Downtown Train had “Infatuation” on it, as well as “People Get Ready”.
I could have sought out the original album it was on, Camouflage, but I don’t recall liking the album much. I decided instead to augment my collection with another 2 CD compilation: 2008’s Definitive. It’s extremely similar to the 2001 set, The Story So Far, but with a slightly better track list. This time we get “Passion”, “Infatuation”, “My Heart Can’t Tell You No”, and “Stay With Me” (The Faces) among the rest of the 70s, 80s, and 90s hits. We lose “Don’t Come Around Here” which is a good thing. Unfortunately we also lose the Stones cover “Ruby Tuesday” and “All For Love” with Sting and Bryan Adams. There’s no such thing as a perfect compilation. You’re always going to have to get a couple, and even then, you’re still missing the amazing Robbie Robertson cover, “Broken Arrow”.
This set goes all the way up to MTV Unplugged. Rod made great music after that, but a lot of the albums were his American Songbooks of standards, that not everybody needs. The cool thing is, there’s also a bonus track from 1998. “Two Shades of Blue” is an outtake from his excellent rock album, When We Were the New Boys (the one with the Oasis cover “Cigarettes and Alcohol”). This ballad might not have been necessary on that record, but it’s actually quite good if a bit generic. Interestingly it features a sample from a Russian opera, so it’s not exactly ordinary either. The actual cool thing is that it is a Rod sole-written original, not a cover or something written for him. Rod’s a great songwriter when he wants to do it!
This album won’t tick all of your Rod Stewart boxes, but it’ll cover most.
ARKELLS – “Ticats are Hummin'” (2012 iTunes single)
Disclaimer #1: I hate all sports.
Disclaimer #2: Of all the sports, I hate football the most.
I do love the Arkells, and for them, I’ll download a song about football, and dang it, I’ll even enjoy it.
“Ticats are Hummin'” is a tribute to the Arkells home team, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. They have a rivalry with the Toronto Argonauts. And that’s about all I can tell you about the Ticats. I do like this song. Alot! It is a bright, boppy and upbeat tune with a guitar and piano delivering the main musical hooks. Of course, there are plenty of those patented “woah, oh oh!” vocals that Arkells fans adore.
Saw some old friends, From down in T.O., But old Queen Lizzy, Will take them back home!
They look so sad, At the end of the night, Blown out like Pink Floyd back in ’75!
“Queen Lizzy” refers to the Q.E.W. – the Queen Elizabeth Way, a major highway connecting Toronto and Hamilton. I sometimes wonder if the Arkells staunch commitment to local references in their lyrics has held them back from international success. I think these references only enrich the music and add to their down-home vibe.
“Ticats are Hummin'” would have been one of the band’s first recordings with new keyboardist Anthony Carone. It preceded their excellent High Noon album by a couple years, but you can hear elements of where they were going, with the indelible pop melodies.
This track was released to iTunes with proceeds going to the Boys and Girls Club of Hamilton. It also received a physical release, on a rare 2 CD compilation called Everybody Dance Now – Songs From Hamilton, Volume 8. Be on the hunt.
This is the second of three Night Ranger albums given to me by Tim Durling, and the second I have reviewed “live” with him. It is also the second, and last album to feature Joel Hoekstra on guitar who was soon off to join Whitesnake, where he remains today.
The title track “High Road” opens with some highbrow keyboards and an immediate melody. There’s a nu-country vibe to the chorus, but Jack Blades keeps it in rock territory. Tim Durling says he hears Damn Yankees, and I get that too, but I do hear that twang. “No the **** you don’t,” says Tim. The Gillis guitar solo is absolutely mental, tickling all my fancies. Great song…even if I’m hearing something that isn’t there. Sounds like summer to me.
Per Tim: “Here’s the problem with “new country” – most of it is just 80s rock with a slight twang – therefore, when a band like Night Ranger that legit came from the 80s makes new music, and it’s not super heavy, it could easily slide into that…and I HATE THIS!” Me too buddy, and that’s probably what I’m hearing.
The opening guitar of “Knock Knock Never Stop” recalls “Poundcake”, but this track could have worked on a certain 1983 by a British band from Sheffield…perhaps it already did! That’s the ballpark we’re in. It’s a popular place. Heavier guitars roll in on the groover “Rollin’ On” which sounds like a Morse/Airey-era Deep Purple classic. Not a sound you hear often, so bring it on.
“Don’t Live Here Anymore” is the first slower tune, but it’s got blues in the vocal and passion in the soul. Amazing vocal, just right in the pocket with grit and heart. Perhaps there’s a Whitesnake vibe here. Coverdale could easily “coverversion” this song. Then suddenly it picks up, and we’re in a Rainbow riff, kicking asses and scorching minds. This wouldn’t be a ballad, but an epic — because suddenly here are the angelic Night Ranger harmonies. If that wasn’t enough…it’s solo time! Epic, just epic, in arrangement, performance, production, mix…head to toe epic. The centerpiece.
A fun guitar riff opens “I’m Coming Home”, and I’m getting light progressive vibes overall. This track rocks in an 80s way, but not simple or straightforward. There’s tension, release, and pounding melodies. Midway, Jack throws down a neat bassline, right before a ripping solo tears your head off.
“X Generation” continues the hammering vibes, but in a modern context. It’s the first song that is failing to connect. Nothing bad about it, just didn’t have the same impact as the previous five tunes. Sounds like a number of bands from the Night Ranger era, making it work in the 2000s. Skid Row with Sollinger on lead vocals, perhaps.
“Only For You Only” is a lovely piano ballad with Jack singing, something akin to what some people expect from Night Ranger. These guys can really sing and that’s what sells it. For some steam, check “Hang On”! Slow and grooving with keyboard accents and a chugging bass, this song is boiling hot. Killer tune, delivering the heaviness without having to go full bore. Solos that burn. Awesome sauce.
Then, the spirit of Eddie Van Halen comes to the house on the intro to “St. Bartholomew”, an absolutely scorching song, at Fahrenheit 451. Once again, the vocals make it uniquely Night Ranger. Other bands may attempt songs of this nature, but few have the combination of chops and vocals that Night Ranger has. Unique dual solo here too with Brad and Joel Hoekstra trading licks.
The “standard” track list shows 10 songs, with “Brothers” being an acoustic closer. Definite Shaw-Blades vibes here. Hippies singing in a field, with a guy playing an electric guitar with the sun blazing behind him…that’s what I see. As per Tim, “and anyone stepping within twenty feet of any of them gets a huge contact high.” They were definitely spinning “Hey Jude” before they wrote this ending.
Then we have the two “bonus tracks”, though we don’t know why! They do sound separate from the album because “Brothers” is an ideal closer. “L.A. No Name” is an acoustic workout, with the two guitarists playing a beautiful classical and Spanish influenced number that could have been a textbook workout for expert students! This is not lightweight, not by any stretch.
The last song is bonus track “Mountain Song” which really shows off Jack’s creativity as a writer of basslines. It has an “Eye of the Tiger” vibe, but far heavier and punchier. Tim: “It’s similar to “Halfway to the Sun” from 1988’s overlooked Man in Motion album.”
A solid 4/5 stars. The first “side” is stronger, but there’s nothing to skip.
Journey began scoring hits when they acquired powerhouse vocalist Steve Perry on Infinity (1978) and Evolution (1979). Why not issue a compilation sourced from the band’s first three Perry-less records, with new cover art that ties into their present? Seems like a no-brainer. And so we have Journey’s first compilation album (and a double length at that) called In The Beginning. Thank you Tim Durling for gifting this copy for the collection and for review.
In The Beginning contains five of the seven tracks from Journey’s self-titled debut. It begins with three. As on the original LP, “Of A Lifetime” opens. The long organ and guitar-drenched opening gives way to a slow and passionate Gregg Rolie lead vocal. Were Iron Maiden influenced by this song when they wrote “Strange World” for their own debut? Probably just coincidence, but it can be heard. The main hook in “Of A Lifetime” was the unmistakable guitar hook. At this early stage, Journey boasted two guitar players: Neal Schon and the late George Tickner. They have to share the spotlight with an absolutely raging Aynsley Dunbar on drums and Rolie tearing it up on the synth. Undervalued bassist Ross Valory also must be mentioned, playing concrete but melodic foundations under the feature players.
George Tickner’s instrumental “Topaz” goes second, starting slow and then taking on a jamming, progressive jazz rock fusion vibe. This complex track is not to be taken lightly. Just absorb every different section as they hit you. Once again, Dunbar is a monster. Third is “Kohoutek”, the memorable Schon/Rolie instrumental that was also track three on the debut album. On vinyl, in both cases, it closed Side One. It’s another challenging track with a cool galloping section. (There’s a reason I’ve heard Dunbar referred to as an octopus – he sounds like he’s playing with eight arms!)
Rolie’s “On A Saturday Night” from album #2, Look Into the Future is a completely different style from the first three progressive sprawls. Under four minutes with a bopping piano, this is just great rock and roll! Tickner was out and the band was reduced to a quartet with Schon as the sole six-stringer. Shades here of where the band would head once they figured out their future direction. Schon’s solo is an example of melodic composition. The Beatles cover “It’s All Too Much” from Look Into the Future follows. It fits this new concise straightforward Journey sound, and it is quite excellent. Rolie was the perfect guy to sing a George Harrison song, and the backwards ending is suitably trippy. The blues “In My Lonely Feeling/Conversations” takes us back to the debut album. This Rolie/Valory composition scorches with passionate fretwork. Not surprisingly, the bass is the foundation. Also from the debut, “Mystery Mountain” closes side one. A short, but jamming track with subtle use of the wah-wah pedal.
Opening (cassette) Side Two, “Spaceman” from Next (album #3) was a melodic single. Journey were honing in on that simple pop rock ballad. “Spaceman” is one of their first. As it did on album, “People” follows “Spaceman”, featuring synth and acoustics. Very psychedelic for Journey. The back to album #2, “Anyway” rocks hard and slow, like a monumental Whitesnake track from the 70s. (Dunbar later joined Coverdale & Co. for 1987.) From the same record, “You’re On Your Own” switches from slow and bluesy verses to a pounding chorus, enabled by Aynsley. There’s a Beatles influence here in “I Want You (She’s So Heavy”).
We’re into the last tracks here, as vinyl listeners would have been flipping to side four for “Look Into the Future”, a brilliant ballad and one of the band’s early best. “Nickel and Dime”, a legendary jam from Next feels like a throwback to the first album and for good reason: it’s a leftover Tickner co-write! And finally, In The Beginning closes with the epic “I’m Gonna Leave You”, the same song that closed the debut Journey. Coupling some killer organ with with a heavy riff, this bluesy rocker also boasts some of Rolie’s best vocalizin’. Legendary!
For those who only know Journey as a lovin’, touchin’, squeezin’ band of crooners and balladeers, this compilation would come as a shock to the system. But a shock can be a good thing. In The Beginning is a great way to get many of the key tracks from the first phase of Journey in one purchase. This stuff doesn’t usually make it onto regular Journey compilations. It’s a good set to own.
My introduction to Flash Gordon goes back to the Fall of 2005. November, I believe it was. At this point in time, I worked at a gas station, and to kill time when it was slow, I would browse through the magazine rack. I would go through the TV Guide week after week and look for any airings of 80s movies for me to tape. My VCR was still very active in 2005, and I would constantly tape movies off of TV and cut out all of the commercials.
On this particular week, I saw that Boston-based network UPN 38 (a.k.a. “WSBK”) was airing a 1980 film called Flash Gordon that upcoming Saturday afternoon. I was familiar with the character and the name Flash Gordon, I was even familiar with FLESH Gordon at this point, but I had never heard of this adaptation from 1980.
So, that night after work, I went online to find a trailer of it to watch. Keep in mind, in 2005 YouTube hadn’t completely taken off yet, so I relied on IMDb to find these old movie trailers.
I was immediately hypnotised by the visuals I was seeing: Conflict, lasers, explosions, a villain with crazy eyebrows, hawk-like men flying in a brightly colored sky, and of course, Flash Gordon cruising through space on this flying scooter-looking thing. All of this accompanied by a song that went like so: “FLASH!! AHH-AHH!”. Then, after showing the title and credits, the trailer ends with a title card that reads these three words: Music by QUEEN.
That was it. I was instantly sold. I knew I’d be taping this movie. So, that Saturday afternoon, I sat in front of the TV in my parents’ basement, recordable VHS tape loaded in the VCR, remote control in hand, and I experienced Flash Gordon for the very first time.
Now, one thing I should note is that this specific airing was cut down to fit a two-hour time slot. I had cut out the commercials, and the final runtime was around 90 minutes. The actual runtime of Flash Gordon is 110 minutes, which means this version I saw for the first time, and that I now had on tape, was missing approximately 20 minutes of footage. I haven’t seen this cut in almost two decades, but I’d be curious to watch it again and see exactly what portions were cut out.
All cuts aside, my initial reaction upon watching this movie was generally positive. I thought the movie was quite cheesy, especially in the acting department, but that’s right up my alley. I was also impressed by the visual presentation of the movie: The sets, costume design, the use of colors… Flash Gordon is a visually beautiful movie, and I still feel that way when I watch it now.
I still had the desire to see the full, UNCUT version of Flash Gordon, so off to Ebay I went, in hopes to find an official copy. Unfortunately for me, in 2005 Flash Gordon hadn’t reached the cult status it holds today. Copies were few and far between on Ebay. VHS copies were pricey, as was the case with the initial DVD release, distributed by Image Entertainment, that came in a cardboard “snapper case” rather than the traditional plastic DVD case.
So, I gave up on trying to find an official copy of Flash. Fast Forward to 2007, and Universal Pictures announces that they’ll be releasing a new DVD edition of Flash Gordon, dubbed the Saviour of the Universe Edition. Now, by this time, my interest in finding a copy of the film had died down, but I would eventually pick up a copy for $9.99 at Zellers in 2009, and I’m glad I did: The presentation on this DVD is glorious, and the film looks absolutely fantastic.
In my opinion, I think that the availability of this edition, plus all of the Flash Gordon references in Seth MacFarlane’s 2012 film Ted (where Sam J. Jones appears in a cameo as an exaggerated version of himself) have introduced the film to a new generation, a new audience and have propelled it to super cult status.
Having recently watched the film again for this review, I can safely say that, while the film is not without its flaws (the aforementioned acting, not to mention occasional humor that feels forced), it’s still a highly enjoyable film that keeps the viewer’s attention all the way through, mainly due to the wonderful cinematography.
I definitely felt an Italian-style of filmmaking here, and while doing research I found out why I got this impression: much of the crew for the film was Italian. But to get more specific, I got vibes of Federico Fellini while I was watching. Which is funny, because I’ve never actually watched any of his films, but I know enough about him and his style of filmmaking to be able to detect a similarity. Come to find out, Fellini was actually one of the first choices (if not THE first choice) to direct the film. They even make a reference to him early on in the film: When we first see Princess Aura (Ornella Muti), she is pulling a little person (Deep Roy) using a leash, and she says “Come, Fellini”.
An important part of the film which is also worth mentioning is the fantastic soundtrack by Queen, which acts like a character on its own. It really helps amp up the action sequences, and the film wouldn’t have been the same without it.
I would recommend this film to any fan of science-fiction, particularly fans of the original Star Wars, a big inspiration for Flash Gordon, which incidentally was released almost six months after the release of The Empire Strikes Back.
My rating: 3/5
FLASH GORDON (1980)
Directed by: Mike Hodges
Produced by: Dino De Laurentiis
Starring: Sam J. Jones, Melody Anderson, Max Von Sydow, Topol, Ornella Muti, Timothy Dalton, and Brian Blessed.
LOUDNESS – “Slap In the Face” (1991 Warner Japan CD single)
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