Videos

#1185: The Worst Weather, and the Best Weekend! – April 2025 [with Videos]

RECORD STORE TALES #1185: The Worst Weather, and the Best Weekend!
April 2025

We had a busy weekend lined up, but we were prepared for the worst – and the best!  We got a bit of both, but our spirits have never been higher.  Let’s rock this spring 2025!

Preparation is always key.  We left town at 8:30 AM, bound for Toronto.  It was time for Jen’s annual face-to-face with the neurologist, but traffic was light.  Apparently it was quite busy the day before, with Metallica in town playing Thursday for the first of their no-repeat weekend.  That was a stroke of luck, but then we hit a second one just as we arrived.  Our appointment was for 10:00, and the 9:30 had cancelled at the last minute.  That means we got seen early, and we got to the lake early too!

The doctor was happy with Jen’s progress, and is increasing a couple medications that seem to be have a positive effect.  Good appointment, and we were back on the road.

The music to Toronto was Live-Loud-Alive by Loudness, and the music to the cottage was the brand-new Dreams On Toast by the Darkness.  The Darkness album is easily their best since Last Of Our Kind, and will warrant a lengthy review over its 29 combined tracks.

We had a second pleasantly uneventful drive up, arriving in Kincardine at 2:00 PM.  We made our first stop of 2025 at our butcher, the Beefway.  There we picked up two beautiful T-bone steaks, some assorted bacon ends (applewood smoked), and some pickerel, pickles & pies.  In and out in under 10 minutes.

Friday afternoon was a weird one.  It was cold, then it rained, and then got warm and humid.   I took a stroll and found the last patch of snow left on the beach.  I attempted to make a snowball, but the snow was not good for packing.  It was dark all day, and  I set up on the front porch to rock the music.  The first album of the year was Combo Akimbo by Blotto, since the guys have been so cool to me this year.  Always a fun record.  Around “Metal Head”, I decided to try flying my drone.  Just as I got it in the air, it started raining.  No flying on Friday.  The rain did not hamper the 100th episode of Grab A Stack of Rock, which broadcast from the porch as planned.  Even Broadway Blotto came to check out the festivities.

We were indoors for the rest of the weekend, but the pickerel and steaks were sublime.   The sun did finally come out Sunday morning, which enabled me to take the first real flight of 2025.  Nothing fancy, but plenty of beauty.  I think I need to start flying less as a pilot, and more as a cinematographer.  Maybe that will be part of 2025’s goals.  Improve the drone videos with better, smoother shots.  I may have something in the works there.

I always like to do something every year at the lake that I have never done before.  Here are three for this weekend alone:

  1. First time seeing snow at the cottage this late in the season.
  2. First time barbecuing Spam.  (Frying pan is better for Spam.)
  3. Took the drone a teeny bit further this time and got a look down the river.

The music home was, of course, Iron Maiden!  There is no rest for the wicked, nor for 50 Years of Iron Maiden.  Fear of the Dark is next up on the recording schedule.

It was such a packed weekend that I slept for 13 hours on Sunday night.

We’ll be back soon.  The April showers will bring the May flowers.

VIDEO: 100th Episode Outtake – Harrison’s First CD Collection

Thank you for joining us on Friday April 25 for Grab A Stack of Rock’s 100th episode.  We actually had a lot more material backlogged for that episode, which you’ll be seeing here, so like and subscribe for more!

This fun short video features Harrison walking us through his very first CD collection photo.  You can see Young Harrison was already into Black Sabbath and Iron Maiden, but why, and how?  Harrison walks us through them all in this fun nostalgia (and metal) filled episode.

 

Off The Charts: So You Wanna Be A Rock Star?

Scream for us, YouTube!  Dan Chartrand and I have reunited for this fun episode about nostalgia and dreams.  So you wanna be a rock star?  We’ll tell you what not to do!

In this incredibly fun episode, Dan will tell you about his rock star ambitions which eventually resulted in three CDs by Dead Culture Society.  He’ll also tell you about “turning down” the bass player job in Quiet Riot, and pissing off Rudy Sarzo to an extreme degree.  (Never make fun of the way Rudy licks his fingers when playing bass.)

I dug up some things from my teen years, dreaming of being a rock star.  I found the original script for my remake of the “Nothing But A Good Time” music video, and some postcards from my partner in crime Bob Schipper.  We talk air bands, buying our first guitars, and the art of swinging them over our shoulders.  Learning to play?  Not important!  Getting the stage moves right was what we focused on.

Please join us for this incredibly fun and occasionally hilarious trip down memory lane, and give Dan a like and subscribe!  We will be back!

Recap: 100th Episode Celebration with John, Jex and the Mad Metal Man

I am humbled.  Though I had planned this episode as a tribute to the co-hosts and guests, I was gladdened to see record views and a lively comments sections from old friends and new ones too.

This episode was a celebration of the people who help bring Grab A Stack of Rock to life.  I was joined by Jex Russell, John Clauser, and the Mad Metal Man himself, Harrison Kopp. Together we too a trip down memory lane, spotlighting highlights from the entire history of the show.

In the comments section, Broadway Blotto himself congratulated us on 100 episodes.  It was quite a surprise and I could not be further humbled, but here I am.  Thank you Broadway for your support.  Your correspondences have been invaluable and the show is only the better for it!

Finally, we showed off some new arrivals in our collections, and did an unboxing.  Because that’s our roots and the kind of stuff we used to do!

Join us next week for the return of 50 Years of Iron Maiden!

List of everyone who has ever joined me on Grab A Stack of Rock to date:

  1. Harrison Kopp
  2. Eric “Uncle Meat” Litwiller
  3. Aaron KMA
  4. Tim Durling
  5. Rob Daniels
  6. John T Snow
  7. Grant Arthur
  8. Brian Richards
  9. MarriedandHeels
  10. Marco D’Auria
  11. Kevin Simister
  12. Dr. Kathryn
  13. Jen Ladano
  14. Grace Scheele
  15. Jex Russell
  16. Spencer “Spenny” Rice
  17. Nurse Kat
  18. Erik Woods
  19. Jason Drury
  20. Pierre-Luc Allard
  21. Peter Kerr
  22. John Clauser
  23. Len Labelle
  24. Reed Little
  25. Metal Roger
  26. John the Music Nut
  27. Mike Slayen
  28. Pete Jones
  29. Todd Evans
  30. James Kalyn
  31. Angie Moon
  32. Ryan Gavalier
  33. Chris Preston
  34. Dan Chartrand
  35. Glen “Archie” Gamble
  36. bicyclelegs
  37. Davey Cretin
  38. Melissa Nee
  39. Sidney Cini
  40. Ashley Geisler
  41. Martin Popoff
  42. Bert Blotto
  43. F Lee Harvey Blotto
  44. Bowtie Blotto
  45. Broadway Blotto
  46. and (briefly) Max the Axe

🅻🅸🆅🅴 100th Episode Celebration!

GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike and the Mad Metal Man

EPISODE 100

With Jex Russell and Johnny Metal

Back at the cottage for the first time in 2025, together we celebrate the 100th episode of Grab A Stack of Rock!  With Harrison Kopp back and better than ever, 2025 has been a landmark year for the show, featuring our big series 50 Years of Iron Maiden.  This episode celebrates every era of the show:  from its “random and chaotic” beginnings, to the “heels era”, and today.  To celebrate with us, we have three of the hardest working co-hosts a guy could ask for:  the Mad Metal Man, Johnny “Homework” Clauser, and Jex Russell himself.  Each of these guys played a critical role in keeping the show going steady since October 2022.

Since day one, Grab A Stack of Rock has been a fun and frivolous celebration of physical media and products.  CDs, DVDs, vinyl and more obscure formats have always been at the forefront, but we have showcased physical collections far and wide since our very first episode.  We struggled to find direction, but had fun getting lost along the way.  And here we are, ready to acknowledge it all!  The current Grab A Stack of Rock show intro is the first version to include every guest and co-host we ever had along the way.  To me, this show has always been just as much about the people, as the music.  Every collection of CDs, LPs and cassettes comes with a multitude of stories, often including great lengths we go to in order to acquire them.  Along the way, we met friends of varying temporal longevity, from brief sparks to deep connections.  It has been a hell of a lot of fun.

On the menu tonight:  Leaning into the “Mix Tape” format a little bit, we will play some clips and outtakes you’ve never seen before.  These include some of the key characters in the story of the show so far, and a sneak preview of a forthcoming episode of 50 Years of Iron Maiden.  Of course, I will have something in terms of physical memorabilia that you have never seen before.  We may also have an Amazon delivery to unbox – stay tuned!

Please drop in and say hello!

Friday April 25 at 7:00 P.M. E.S.T. / 8:00 P.M. Atlantic.   Enjoy on

List of everyone who has ever joined me on Grab A Stack of Rock to date:

  1. Harrison Kopp
  2. Eric “Uncle Meat” Litwiller
  3. Aaron KMA
  4. Tim Durling
  5. Rob Daniels
  6. John T Snow
  7. Grant Arthur
  8. Brian Richards
  9. MarriedandHeels
  10. Marco D’Auria
  11. Kevin Simister
  12. Dr. Kathryn
  13. Jen Ladano
  14. Grace Scheele
  15. Jex Russell
  16. Spencer “Spenny” Rice
  17. Nurse Kat
  18. Erik Woods
  19. Jason Drury
  20. Pierre-Luc Allard
  21. Peter Kerr
  22. John Clauser
  23. Len Labelle
  24. Reed Little
  25. Metal Roger
  26. John the Music Nut
  27. Mike Slayen
  28. Pete Jones
  29. Todd Evans
  30. James Kalyn
  31. Angie Moon
  32. Ryan Gavalier
  33. Chris Preston
  34. Dan Chartrand
  35. Glen “Archie” Gamble
  36. bicyclelegs
  37. Davey Cretin
  38. Melissa Nee
  39. Sidney Cini
  40. Ashley Geisler
  41. Martin Popoff
  42. Bert Blotto
  43. F Lee Harvey Blotto
  44. Bowtie Blotto
  45. Broadway Blotto
  46. and (briefly) Max the Axe

The Contrarians Live: Eyes Without A Face

RESCHEDULED!

A topic from Martin this week:  Album covers featuring eyes, but not the full face!  This was a fun one to do, and I look forward to seeing what the other guys bring tonight.  My list has a lot of obvious picks, but as usual, Tim beat me to some good ones.  It feels like a race to get your list in every week!

Watch tonight and witness!

THE CONTRARIANS – Eyes Without A Face – Wednesday April 23 –  7:00 PM EST

My Contrarians appearances to date:

  1. Nicknamed Album Covers
  2. Minimalist cover art
  3. Brown album covers
  4. Yellow album covers
  5. Albums with Fire and Explosions
  6. Spaceships! Aliens! Robots!
  7. This Album Cover is Hell!
  8. Toys & Games
  9. Dreaming in Stereo:  Beds & Sleep on album covers
  10. Favourite Bands…WORST Album Covers
  11. They Swapped Covers!
  12. Great Album Covers From Bands We Despise
  13. Top 10 NWOBHM Covers
  14. It’s A Piece of Art!
  15. Compilation Kaos!
  16. I Can’t Believe It’s Not Hipgnosis!
  17. Amped Up!
  18. Packaging Fails
  19. Where’s the Band?
  20. Slippery When Wet
  21. Greetings From New York
  22. Done With Mirrors

RST #1183/VHS Archives #154: 2 Minutes on a Wednesday at Work in the late-90s

RECORD STORE TALES #1183: 2 Minutes on a Wednesday at Work in the late-90s

 

In the 90s, the Beat Goes On were advised by the police to install a video security system.  Though it was rarely helpful, they suggested it could be used to catch CD thieves who came in to us to sell their stolen goods.  The one time I know it was used in court, the tape was too fuzzy to identify the thief.

Can you identify me?

We had seven security tapes:  One for each day of the week.  We’d rotate them.  Every few years they would wear out, and you’d have to replace them.  That’s how I got this tape.  It was a freebie that the boss didn’t need anymore.  Truth be told, half the time, we didn’t even bother to record.  Each tape was only good for eight hours, so we could not record the entire day anyway.  We’d usually insert the tape at around 1:00 PM so we could record the night shift.  This was supposedly done to record during the “most dangerous” hours.  I gave the camera the middle finger a few times, but nobody saw those tapes, I suppose.

One of our old employees told me he liked to take the security tapes home and get high watching them.  I ended up keeping only this one.  Unfortunately, I chose a very boring Wednesday tape with nothing interesting going on.  If you’d like to see for yourself, have a look at the quick video below for a day in the life at the Beat Goes On.  Glad I kept it for one reason only: this physical location no longer exists and is now part of a parking lot.  History!  This is the only existing video documentation of my old store of which I am aware.

VHS Archives #153: IRON MAIDEN – Maiden Holland (1990-91 MuchMusic) [WARNING – unavailable in some countries]

NOTE:  If you have a VPN, set to USA and you can definitely watch this video!

This incredible Iron Maiden special aired on MuchMusic’s Pepsi Power Hour in early 1991.  Unfortunately, by this time MuchMusic were mixing music videos in with their interviews, making uploading to YouTube very difficult.  This video is unavailable in Canada, Australia, and 23% of the world.

Should I attempt to re-edit it to exclude the flagged content?  Tricky to do, since these segments are mixed with interviews and factual blurbs.

At this point Iron Maiden were tired of the big stage productions, and stripped both the stage show and music back to basics.  This is included in the interview footage, with Bruce Dickinson and Nicko McBrain handling most of it.  Dave Murray, Steve Harris and new kid Janick Gers also offer their own perspectives.

Also included:  Lots of live footage, including 1980 in Toronto, and accompanying interviews with Paul Di’Anno and a segment with Clive Burr.

Check it out if you can.  If there is enough interest, I may attempt to edit it.

GREAT Friday with Ash Geisler and Johnny Metal

A record-setting Grab A Stack of Rock Good Friday afternoon was had yesterday afternoon!  With co-hosts Johnny Metal and Ash Geisler (awake at 4:00 AM just to do this show!), we had views exceeding the legendary 2023 Good Friday show that featured, as Jex’s mom put it, “a good view”.

Unfortunately Jex Russell was heading out of town for his Easter weekend, and was unable to attend (though Johnny Metal had him on a shirt).  Ash showed off some cool Australian finds, from pop punk to harder edged tunes.  Johnny Metal’s new arrivals included the complete CD catalogue of Dr. Kathryn Ladano, so we spent a little time talking about brain injuries and the album Anatomy of the Recovering Brain.  Of course, Johnny Metal also brought plenty of metal, including one LP that tied into 50 Years of Iron Maiden.

As for me, I had three main things to focus on:

  1. A brand new record sent to me by Dan Chartrand, from OfftheCharts…and some bonus music, of his own band Dead Culture Society!
  2. A batch of new music that arrived this week.  My thoughts on Epitaph by April 16th, Dreams On Toast by the Darkness, and Rock N Roll Party Tonite by Mystique.
  3. An absolutely epic purchase of rock CDs from old friend Len Labelle.  More to come on this in a future video showcasing even more CDs from the bulk purchase.

If you liked this episode, then join us next week for our 100th.  We’re going to have a party!

 

Good Fridays Past:

Good Friday Afternoon April 7 2023:  @MarriedandHeels and Jex Russell began the tradition for a special episode celebrating California music, Easter manicures, and shiny silver boots!  Our first Good Friday afternoon episode, we did it at this time slot to enable @MarriedandHeels to join us from California.  It was a fun afternoon, and look how shiny those boots are!

Good Friday Afternoon March 29 2024: Top 5 Albums From Our Birth Years with Jex Russell and Uncle Meat.  This was a special episode!  Jex and I wanted to continue the Good Friday tradition, but this was a special reunion for Meat and I, who had not done a show together in a year and a half.  Jex surprised me – and my surprise is in the thumbnail image!  A blessed good show!

NEXT WEEK:  OUR 100TH EPISODE!  A LIVE MIX TAPE WITH JEX, HARRISON AND JOHNNY METAL!

 

🅻🅸🆅🅴 GOOD FRIDAY AFTERNOON! New Music Mania with Ash Geisler and Johnny Metal

GRAB A STACK OF ROCK With Mike and the Mad Metal Man
Episode 99:  Good Friday Afternoon – New Music Mania with Ash Geisler and Johnny Metal

A Good Friday tradition:  For the third time, Grab A Stack of Rock goes LIVE this afternoon with special guests and special music!  We have a ton of new music here to discuss at Grab A Stack of Rock HQ.  You’ve heard all about the new Darkness album Dreams On Toast?  Well now it’s my turn.  I have SEVEN COPIES (six physical and one digital) to get all the tracks, and I will be discussing my impressions.  I also have the new Rock N Roll Party Tonite EP by Mystique, and some vinyl from Dan Chartrand from OfftheCharts to unbox!  What could be inside?  You’ll be electrified.  Time permitting, I may also show off my massive haul from a forthcoming video on a big, BIG purchase.

We’ll see how much we can get through, because joining me will be Ash Geisler and Johnny Metal, with their own new musical scores to show off.  What could be new in southern Australia and the state of Alabama?  We’ll find out this afternoon!

The Good Friday afternoon episode is a tradition now in its third year (see below).  Sadly, Jex Russell could not be with us this time, but Ash and Johnny should be up to the task, even if the time zones make it tricky.  Remember, this episode is LIVE so join us for the fun and let us know in the comments that you’re with us!  See you this afternoon to Grab LOTS of Stacks of Rock!

Friday April 18 at 3:00 P.M. E.S.T. / 4:00 P.M. Atlantic.   Enjoy on YouTube or Facebook.

Good Fridays Past:

Good Friday Afternoon April 7 2023:  @MarriedandHeels and Jex Russell began the tradition for a special episode celebrating California music, Easter manicures, and shiny silver boots!  Our first Good Friday afternoon episode, we did it at this time slot to enable @MarriedandHeels to join us from California.  It was a fun afternoon, and look how shiny those boots are!

Good Friday Afternoon March 29 2024: Top 5 Albums From Our Birth Years with Jex Russell and Uncle Meat.  This was a special episode!  Jex and I wanted to continue the Good Friday tradition, but this was a special reunion for Meat and I, who had not done a show together in a year and a half.  Jex surprised me – and my surprise is in the thumbnail image!  A blessed good show!

NEXT WEEK:  OUR 100TH EPISODE!  A LIVE MIX TAPE WITH JEX, HARRISON AND JOHNNY METAL!