REVIEW: Ace Frehley – Space Invader (2014 Japanese release)

NEW RELEASE

ACE FREHLEY – Space Invader (2014 E One/Victor Japan)

Ace Frehley doesn’t exactly crank ’em out anymore, but the five year break between albums isn’t too bad by today’s standards. Anomaly surfaced in 2009. I think it could have delivered more than it did, but Space Invader is more immediate.

The title track “Space Invader” opens the album; a solid rocker with a strong chorus. The guitar solos absolutely smoke. Ace has lost nothing over the years, even his voice has barely changed. His singing could be more melodic, but he has character. This song takes me back to when I first heard Frehley’s Comet back in ’87. Hearing Ace’s guitar front and center doing things I had forgotten he could do. Awesome.

“Gimme a Feelin'” (hilariously labelled a “radio edit” even though it is also the album version) is plenty catchy enough, with a vintage Frehley vibe. A song like this could have been on any Kiss album in the 70’s, although I find the production a bit…cluttered. It fades abruptly, but “I Wanna Hold You” returns to that vintage Kiss vibe. This time, it’s the pop side that albums like Dynasty explored, but with the heaviness that fans expect. There’s nothing wimpy about “I Wanna Hold You” even though it could have come right from 1979-80. Ace goes into a more ominous vibe for the strong “Change”. Now it’s 1982 and it’s Creatures as if Ace was on it. It really makes you wish for what might have been. Then “Toys” feels like it’s aping the “She” riff, but in an obvious way. It also shares characteristics with 1988’s “The Acorn in Spinning”.

“Immortal Pleasures” is a change of pace, allowing Ace to play some acoustic guitar. It’s a fairly simple song, and it took a bit to grow on me, as I didn’t like it at first. “Inside the Vortex” is trademark Ace, and again I think what works is simplicity. The riff is tricky, so Ace keeps it simple with the robotic vocal and it’s perfect. This one might be an early runner for “personal favourite”.

A nice traditional rock riff is what I need next, and “What Every Girl Wants” hits the spot. This one reminds me of…[gasp] Poison! I don’t mean that in a bad way really. It is true that Space Invader is not exactly innovative (“Inside the Vortex” notwithstanding), but it does deliver on rock and roll. That’s all you can really expect from Ace Frehley, and that’s just fine. “Past the Milky Way” has an appropriately spacey vibe, as Ace gets his acoustic out again. The lyrics are cool: “Now I’m runnin’ out of oxygen, but I’ve still got my guitar.”

Heading into the home stretch, “Reckless” stomps in a nondescript kind of way. You may have heard Ace’s cover of Steve Miller’s “The Joker”. Some love it, some don’t. I am undecided. I can’t say that I needed to hear the song anymore. The standard album closer is the 7-minute “Starship”, which sounds at first as if it could fit in Ace’s “Quantum” series. Then it goes in a number of different directions, all cool. It’s a long instrumental that holds interest, and is an album highlight. Bravo Ace.

The Japanese version comes with three bonus tracks: an extended (4:44) version of “Reckless”, the radio edit (3:18) of “Space Invader”, and the “explicit” version (4:05) of “Gimme a Feelin'”. (The vinyl has a “different remix” (?) of “Reckless” and an extended version of “The Joker”. At least, I think that’s true, there’s conflicting info out there.)

I love the Ken Kelly cover art, which fits the classic sound of Space Invader. The album is not perfect but it’s a step up from Anomaly and a proud addition to the Frehley library. Any fan of the Space Ace who craves those licks and stuttery solos will find much to love here.

4.5/5 stars

More ACE:
ACE FREHLEY – 12 Picks (1997 Megaforce Worldwide)
ACE FREHLEY – Anomaly (2009 Bronx Born)
ACE FREHLEY – “Cherokee Boogie” (1996 Attic)
ACE FREHLEY – Frehley’s Comet (1987 Megaforce Worldwide)
FREHLEY’S COMET – Live + 1 (1988 Megaforce Worldwide)
ACE FREHLEY – Loaded Deck (1998 Megaforce Worldwide)
FREHLEY’S COMET – Second Sighting (1988 Megaforce Worldwide, 1998 reissue)
ACE FREHLEY – Trouble Walkin’ (1989 Megaforce Worldwide)
Return of the Comet – Tribute to ACE FREHLEY (1997 Shock Records)
Spacewalk – A Salute to ACE FREHLEY (1996 DeRock/Triage)

MOVIE REVIEW: Trailer Park Boys – Live in F**kin’ Dublin (2014)

NEW RELEASE

TRAILER PARK BOYS – Live in F**kin’ Dublin (2014 Netflix)

Some things never change!

Some time before the events of Don’t Legalize It, our boys Ricky and Julian had to help Bubbles make a music video, to win a chance to go to Ireland with Rush. Bubbles, dressed as Alex Lifeson, chose a shot-for-shot remake of the “Closer to the Heart” video. Ricky, wearing a false nose, is Geddy Lee (Ricky thinks it’s “Freddy Lee”). Julian taped a piece of chicken skin to his chin to get the look of Neil Peart’s Fu Manchu ‘stache. Drumming one-handed with a glass full of rum and coke in the other hand isn’t easy, but Julian pulls it off. The video wins the contest! Alex calls Bubbles personally and the three are soon on a private jet bound to Ireland (“Ironland” according to Ricky), with Randy tagging along.

Unfortunately for Ricky, a private plane isn’t a free license to bring your own dope into Ireland. The judge, however, is sympathetic. Since the boys are so popular in Ireland, he will drop the jail sentence if the boys will perform a show for community service, about the dangers of drink and drugs. The boys agree to a show in Dublin (“Doobylin”), and the live portion of the program begins.

The Trailer Park Boys live on stage in this case consisted of a puppet show, some audience participation contests, a couple of live songs (including Bubbles’ hit “Liquor and Whores”) and a lot of fuckery. If you have seen the boys live, then you know their show is basically just organized chaos. Audience members are invited on stage (the two dumbest ones, apparently) to play Cory and Trevor for the evening.

Highlights included the appearances of the Green Bastard (from “Parts Unknown”) and the evil puppet known as Conky. Apparently Conky must have survived being drowned in the episode “A Shit River Runs Through It”. I also enjoyed Ricky’s trick of “hippotizing” the crowd. He learned how to do it by watching Reveen, and wears a Reveen-esque magician cloak for it.

The film ends with the boys returning to Canada, having missed the Rush concert. As a bonus, you do get to see their Rush video in its entirety, side by side with the original. A nice addition, as this video is the highlight of the film.

3.5/5 stars

Part 313: Not Allowed Lending!

RECORD STORE TALES Part 313: Not Allowed Lending!

By popular request, here’s a story about loaning your CDs out to people who don’t appreciate or take care of them properly.

Really, I should have learned my lesson in Grade 12. I loaned my brand spanking new cassette copy of Van Halen I out to this kid at school, Jamie. He was a nice kid, so I didn’t have a problem with it. What I did have a problem with was the condition in which he returned it: without the cover! How could he possibly have lost it? He did eventually find it and return it to me, but he didn’t seem to understand why it mattered. Who does that? Lots of people, I’m afraid.

At the Record Store, I befriended a customer named Len, who I actually went to highschool with, but didn’t know until after. We had the same group of friends who were all into the same music. I turned Len onto Marillion and he began borrowing my Marillion discs to burn. What upset me was when I loaned him my limited edition copy of Anoraknophobia. Remember how Marillion put out limited edition digipack versions with bonus discs? If you pre-ordered, your name would make it into the CD. My name is there inside Anoraknophobia, and the followup Marbles as well.

Len returned my copy of Anoraknophobia – a sold-out limited edition – with a crease in the spine. Probably from trying to photocopy the booklet. I wasn’t happy and I told Len I wasn’t loaning out my CDs anymore. He was sorry he had done it, and understood that I was upset, but that didn’t take the crease out.

Later on, I bought a condo. I moved into the same building as a friend of ours, somebody we all had met via the original record store location. Her nickname was “San Francisky” – a long story that involves my dad and his inability to pronounce things correctly. She was a nice girl most of the time, but very pushy. I have issues with people who try to persistently try to push me around, so I had begun to distance myself by the time I moved in.

A few weeks after I moved in, she came down to my unit. She was having a party upstairs. She needed some music.

“Do you have any Beatles?” she asked me.

“Yup, I have the Red and Blue albums. They’re excellent. The Red one probably has all the songs you’d want for a party.”

She asked me about a couple more CDs. Van Halen was one. I got them out of my CD tower.

“You’re going to take care of these, right? And you’ll return them tomorrow morning?” I asked pointedly.

“It might not be tomorrow morning but I’ll bring them back, of course.”

I knew how this girl took care of her own CDs. I had bought enough used discs from her at the store. She always bitched when I told her the discs were scratched up. She never put them back in the case, and left them out all the time. Knowing her ways of handling discs, I added additional instructions.

“I want you to be careful with these discs, and put them back in the cases when you’re done. I also want you to make sure nobody else touches my CDs. Only you. I want them back exactly as they are.”

She gave me this flabbergasted expression. What she said next was the sentence that ended what was left of our “friendship”:

“What do you care if they get scratched?! You work at the store!”

That was it. I told her I wouldn’t loan her the CDs if that was her attitude. She went upstairs in an angry huff, and we never socialized again. I ran into her now and then, and she was always bitchy. The friendship was over.

I really had no regrets about that. One thing about me is that if you want to be my friend, you have to accept me as-is, quirks and all. You don’t have to understand them, but you have to accept them. Nobody can change me. The only person who will ever change me is myself, and taking care of my property is one thing that doesn’t need changing!

Blu-ray REVIEW: Trailer Park Boys – Don’t Legalize It (2014)

NEW RELEASE

Thanks to Chris Thuss for loaning this disc to me.

TRAILER PARK BOYS – Don’t Legalize It (2014 Entertainment One)

Directed by Mike Clattenburg

Two years prior to the start of the new Trailer Park Boys opus, Ricky and Julian were released from jail for the 17th time. Jim Lahey has suffered from a Ricky-induced stroke. He now limps with a cane, hooked on coke (“white liquor”), still beside an increasingly disgusted Randy. Lucy is living with mall cop George Green (aka “Fucky McFucksnapper”). Ricky and Julian have ceased working with each other. Ricky’s growing dope on an unprecedented scale, in a house in the subdivisions, but the Shitmobile only drives in reverse. Bubbles is delivering chicken and beer on bicycle, living under J-Roc’s front step. Terry & Dennis (the Flappy Bird Brothers) and Sam Losco are working for Cyrus. And Lahey’s buying coke from Sam. It’s a viscous circle. Julian was bouncing at a local club, but now has taken a step up (?) in the world by selling piss.

Let me repeat that: Julian is selling piss.

Clean piss, stolen from the military, at $60 a vial. Paying $60 to pass a drug test and keep your job is apparently worth it in Julian’s world. “Liquid gold,” he calls it. The quality and freshness of the piss is important to his customers. Ricky’s business of choice, however, is about to be shut down. Canada is legalizing marijuana, turning Ricky from king of the hill to unemployed overnight…unless he can stop legalization.

Allow me to repeat that too: Ricky needs to stop the legalization of marijuana.

Bubbles then receives a mysterious letter from a lawyer: his long-lost parents have passed away, but have left Bubbles a piece of land in Kingston, Ontario. All he has to do is claim it. Since Ricky needs to get to Ottawa to stop legalization, and Julian needs to get to Montreal to sell his stolen piss, it only makes sense to combine road trips. Or a “working vacation,” says Julian. He’s turned the Dirty Burger into a “Piss Wagon” to transport the liquid gold. And Lahey’s following them.

Will things go off the rails when Randy dumps all Lahey’s “white liquor” out of the window of their station wagon? Can Julian trust Cyrus? Will Bubbles stay in Kingston? And can Ricky stop his precious illegal crop from being legalized and taxed by government dicks? All will be decided by the time they get to Ottawa…

Trailer Park Boys shows are known for the mangled English known as Rickysisms. Some of my favourite lines and Rickyisms in this installment included:

“Instant carla, fucky!” – Ricky.

“Just shutty that fucky! What’s with your hair man, you think you’re a fucking Beavil or something?” – to Randy regarding his “Beatles ‘do”.

(Laughs) “Meth!? He’s selling piss, you fucking dum-dum.” – Ricky to Lahey, who thought the test tubes and hazmat gear meant Julian was cooking crystal meth.

“Cocksuckers chicken-jacked me!” – Bubbles after being mugged for chicken.

“Julian, can you stop handling the weiners for a second?” – Bubbles

The movie is dedicated to Richard Collins, aka Philadelphia Collins, who passed during the filming of the movie. Phil Collins has some excellent scenes in this installment despite being confined to a wheelchair. It is also dedicated to Brian Huggins (Shitty Bill) and Rita MacNeil.

Special features: a 1976 vintage VW camper is discussed in the “Cars Of” feature. Apparently that camper was a bitch! The Laheymobile is an ’89 Crown Victoria station wagon that Randy is not allowed to fart in. Ricky’s Shitmobile is a ’75 Chrysler New Yorker, which had to be drastically revamped structurally just to make it safe to film with. Then there’s the Dirty Burger, which is actually an old camper that Robb Wells and John Paul Trembley bought years ago. “Dogs, Busses & Barf Tubes” reveals the origins of Bubbles’ bus. My favourite featurette is “The Cock Bomb Problem”. What’s the “Cock Bomb” you ask? The crew and cast ceaselessly pranked each other by drawing cocks on all of their stuff.

I felt that Trailer Park Boys went a little too dark on the last couple outings. The final TV episode before the recent revamp of the show was the dour “Say Goodnight to the Bay Guys”, which was followed by the similar downer movie Countdown to Liquor Day. Don’t Legalize It has its own moments of sadness and quite a few tears, but measured against its predecessor, it’s a much funnier and re-watchable film. I think this captures the heart of the series better than the last film, even though many characters are absent or have smaller roles. The core is the triumvirate of Ricky, Julian and Bubbles, along with the evil duo of Randy and Lahey. As long as you have those ingredients, you have potential for a lot of fuckery. Don’t Legalize It delivers.

4/5 stars

Part 312.5: Coming to a Close – Poll Results

RECORD STORE TALES Part 312.5: Coming to a Close – Poll Results

A few days ago I made the announcement that I will be drawing the Record Store Tales to a close soon. It was inevitable that eventually I’d run out of good stories to tell. However I like to write so much more than just album reviews. When the Record Store Tales are concluded with the proper ending, I want to continue the storytelling. Music and retail will remain the main focus, it’ll just be from the other side of the counter.

I asked you for your suggestions for a new title for these “Post-Record Store Tales” (for which I have already been coming up with cool shit). And boy, did you deliver! Inundated with great suggestions, the problem became choosing just one.

So, I chose more than one.

Yes, a name has been selected for the “Post-Record Store Tales”, and it is an amalgam of multiple submissions. I hope you like it. I’ll reveal it when the new saga of stories begins. Until then, hang on tight. I’m currently finishing up the last few Record Store Tales, before the epic ending which will be a multi-part series. Wanna know how it all ends? Check back soon.

Cheers,
LeBrain

REVIEW: DC Drive – DC Drive (1992)

DC Drive – DC Drive (1992 EMI of Canada)

I saw DC Drive (from Detroit, get it?) open for Harem Scarem back in spring 1992. They were good live: the first single “You Need Love” rocked well enough, and lead singer Joey Bowen did “the worm” across the stage. He was a good frontman for a band like this. Their gimmick was that they mixed “rock and soul” and had a full time sax player. However, there is nothing overly special here, nothing that Little Caesar didn’t do, and perhaps better. I recall in a M.E.A.T Magazine interview that DC Drive boasted that they had more genuine soul than The Black Crowes; I would take issue with that.

Notably, DC Drive was produced by Vini Poncia, probably best known to rock fans as producer of the Kiss disco-era albums*. Poncia has several co-writing credits here as well. It’s a pleasant CD, fairly keyboard-heavy, with a couple good songs, but quite a bit of filler. It’s funky, but in that radio-friendly way that you remember from a couple decades ago.

The lead single “You Need Love” was good; “Streetgirl Named Desire” likewise. I also enjoyed the ballad “Fool In Love” sung by bassist Doug Kahan. I like the shameless pop of “All I Want”. If Bryan Adams recorded it, it would have been a hit. But the biggest problem with this album is how dated it sounds. A “rock and soul” band shouldn’t sound pigeonholed to eras past like this. It sounds like backing music to a 1991 buddy cop comedy. Joey Bowen has the goods when it comes to putting feeling into his singing, and guitarist Michael Romeo has a sweet tone. Unfortunately what the album really lacks is memorable songs.

DC Drive came out of the ashes of a previous Detroit band, Adrenalin. One odd thing about DC Drive: Even though they were from Michigan and were signed to a big label (Capitol), they were only signed to a Canadian record deal. The album wasn’t released in the US for another year, with a different track order, and minus one song (“Get Up and Dance”). The Canadian release enabled the band to at least get a footing in right next door to home, but it wouldn’t help in the long run.

Basically, the only reason I own this CD is because I saw the band live and it’s sort of a souvenir. Plus I found it for under 2 bucks. Otherwise this is pretty limp and bland, despite the sax (which isn’t always audible) and soulful Detroit roots.

For 90’s hard rock completists or anybody who remembers the song “You Need Love”. Otherwise don’t bother.

2/5 stars

* Poncia was brought into the Kiss family by drummer Peter Criss. Peter was probably inspired to work with Poncia due to his prior resume with Ringo Starr.

Editorial: Gene Simmons of KISS makes some incredibly stupid comments

Today on 107.5 Dave FM, near the start of the Craig Fee Show, I heard those opening chords to “Detroit Rock City”. Then, I heard Craig say, “No, no, no. I will not play this band today.” He then cut directly into “A Lil’ Ain’t Enough” by David Lee Roth.

There are Kiss boycotts happening right now on radio stations all over the world.

Gene Simmons is not a stupid man. Nor, do I believe, is he a bad man. The work he has done for veterans and other causes has been admirable. He’s also known for opening his big yap and spouting his personal politics to anyone who will listen. When Gene said this, I simply could not believe it:

“Drug addicts and alcoholics are always, ‘The world is a harsh place.’ My mother was in a concentration camp in Nazi Germany. I don’t want to hear f**k all about ‘the world as a harsh place.’ She gets up every day, smells the roses and loves life. And for a putz, 20-year-old kid to say, ‘I’m depressed, I live in Seattle.’ F**k you, then kill yourself.

“I never understand, because I always call them on their bluff. I’m the guy who says ‘Jump!’ when there’s a guy on top of a building who says, ‘That’s it, I can’t take it anymore, I’m going to jump.’ Are you kidding? Why are you announcing it? Shut the f**k up, have some dignity and jump! You’ve got the crowd.”

Hot on the heels of the suicide of the much-beloved Robin Williams, Simmons’ carelessness was shocking to me. Nikki Sixx called him out on it, and said, “What if somebody heard those words and did kill themselves, Gene?”

Today Gene offered up an apology of sorts.

“To the extent my comments reported by the media speak of depression, I was wrong and in the spur of the moment made remarks that in hindsight were made without regard for those who truly suffer the struggles of depression…I sincerely apologize to those who were offended by my comments. I recognize that depression is very serious and very sad when it happens to anyone, especially loved ones. I deeply support and am empathetic to anyone suffering from any disease, especially depression.”

I have been a member of the Kiss Army since 1985. I have always loved their music, and always will. I realized a long time ago, probably since the mid-90’s, that Gene Simmons is an asshole. He even named his solo album Asshole. We all know that Gene spouts crap about anything and everything, as is his right. Just like it’s my right to call him out on it.

Gene, to this day depression comes with a huge stigma. Some don’t recognize it as an illness. Some think “just cheer up,” is the solution. Sadly, some in the medical field don’t even understand depression, the pain it can cause (both emotional and physical) and how it can devastate a life. I hope that you learned a valuable lesson from this Gene. I hope you choose to learn more about depression and mental illness. After all, next it could be your son Nick, or your daughter Sophie, who fall ill with an awful mental illness that people don’t fully understand. It can happen to anyone regardless of who they are, or how hard they work, or how much success they have. I hope, Gene, that you will treat everyone who suffers from these terrible illnesses with the same compassion that I expect you would treat Nick and Sophie with.

I still love Kiss. But Gene, you named that solo album correctly, because you’ve acted like a total asshole.

REVIEW: Helix – half-ALIVE (1998)

“Ain’t no rest for the Helix band!” – Brian Vollmer

HELIX – half-ALIVE (1998 DeRock)

The 90’s weren’t a kind decade to Helix. Longtime guitarist Paul Hackman was killed in a 1992 auto accident. Without any Helix tracks written for a new album, Brian Vollmer chose to reconceive his in-the-works solo album as a Helix one, It’s a Business Doing Pleasure. The largely acoustic leanings of that (excellent) album didn’t fit with the overall Helix sound, and the album was tragically ignored. It would be five years before half-ALIVE finally followed it.

With their original heavy rock sound intact, Helix came roaring back with this mostly live, partly studio recording. With some live gigs recorded, as well as a handful of unreleased and unfinished new songs, half-ALIVE maybe should have been called one-third-ALIVE. Either way, it rocks. If you’ve seen this band live, then you know how much they kick it on stage.

After the death of Paul Hackman, it seemed like Helix became more a “project” than a band, with rotating members around the nucleus of Brian Vollmer (vocals) and Daryl Gray (bass). On half-ALIVE, you will hear appearances from members such as Greg “Fritz” Hinz (drums), Paul Hackman and Dr. Doerner (guitars), and even a song written by Mike Uzelac, their bass player when they signed to Capitol Records (who was actually a missing person for a long time). In addition, newer members like drummer Glen “Archie” Gamble and guitarists Denny Balicki, Gary Borden, Rick Mead and Mark Chichkan all contribute. These guys helped keep Helix going as a touring entity in the 90’s. Gamble in particular, since he was in the band for almost a whole decade.

Could the Helix of the 90’s cut it as much as the classic 80’s band? The five studio tracks roar “yes”! A far cry from the acoustic rock of It’s a Business Doing Pleasure, this is a return to the hard rock/metal sounds of Walkin’ the Razor’s Edge. Best tracks among the studio crop are “Wrecking Ball”, Steppenwolf’s “The Pusher” and a ballad called “The Same Room” (the single). “Big Bang Boom” is the only one I do not care for. The rest are decent songs, not necessarily career highlights, but solid. Of course, Vollmer’s voice is in fine form. It always is. No matter what Helix do on an album, you can count on Brian’s vocals sounding as they always has. That’s his Bel Canto training.

Video shoot for the unreleased “The Same Room” clip

From there we go to the live material. Virtually all the hits are present (“Rock You”, “Running Wild In The 21st Century”, “Good To The Last Drop”, “Heavy Metal Love”, “Wild In The Streets”, etc.) There’s also a new acoustic composition called “Smile”, written and performed by Gary Borden. What really sets this live stuff apart from their studio albums is Vollmer’s friendly on-stage banter. As he relates a tale of staying in a hotel in Seaforth Ontario (population at the time: less than 2000), you’ll laugh along, especially if you’ve been there! Equally good is Brian’s mid-song speech in “No Rest for the Wicked”. (Hits that are missing include “The Kids are all Shakin'”.)

The live songs were taken from various tours, 1992-1997, so there are a variety of material and band members (as noted above). Yet there’s a cohesiveness that similar live albums lack. The songs are mixed together and flow seamlessly, and you really can’t hear the five years passing. The sound is hard, clear, and rocking, and begs the question: “What took them five years to release this stuff?” I guess it was circumstance. It had nothing to do with quality, that’s for sure. The performances are raw though, and it doesn’t sound like much in terms of overdubs was done to the recordings.

My only real complaint about this otherwise competent live album is the cheesy cover art. Up close, it kind of looks cheap and crappy. And Brian’s haircut…I’m sorry man! I’ve met Brian and he was so cool and kind, so I hate to say bad things, but yeah…I’m glad you grew your hair back man!

4/5 stars

Below: Promo CD single for “The Same Room”.

Part 312: Reader Poll – Coming to a Close

RECORD STORE TALES Part 312: Reader Poll – Coming to a Close

Folks,

Sharing my Record Store Tales with you these past two years has been something I’ve wanted to do for a long time. It took me years to finally start publishing them, but all good things must come to an end. The seemingly bottomless well of Record Store Tales is now almost dry. I’ve plundered papers, hard drives, journals, photos and memories, but it was inevitable that eventually I’d run out of good stories to tell.

Sure, there will always be an occasion when I say, “That reminds me of a Record Store Tale!” and I’m inspired to write some new content based on those memories. When that happens, I’ll post it. However, I do feel the need to wind down the Record Store Tales and get on with the ending, which was already written a long time ago. I like to write so much more than just album reviews. When the Record Store Tales are concluded with the proper ending, I want to continue the storytelling. Music and retail will remain the main focus, it’ll just be from the other side of the counter.

The problem is…I don’t have a title.

“Record Store Tales” and…what? “Post-Record Store Tales”? “Record Store Tales: The Next Generation”? “Record Store Tales: The Other Side of the Counter”?

I invite you to come up with better titles than these. Submit ideas in comments below. There are no guarantees I’ll use your suggestion, but if I like it, you can be the person who names the next chapter of my story.

You in? Post your best ideas!

New book: Martin Popoff – Live Magnetic Air: The Unlikely Saga of the Superlative Max Webster

You know this is gonna be good. Popoff writing the definitive book on his fave band of all time? I’m in. I ordered this with his Scorpions bio.

Dirty details:

260 pages, 100,000 words. Pics: live, studio, records, etc.

The sound, as per Popoff: 92% Blue Oyster Cult crossed with Cheap Trick, topped by 4% Kansas and 4% Zappa.

I’ve made no secret of my love for this band, and Martin’s books. Now he’s finally shedding light on a band about whom info is usually scarce. It’s a must for me, and all fans of Canadian rock.

Contact Martin, and his site for lots of books and ordering info. Martinpopoff.com.

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Record Store Tales, Grab A Stack of Rock & Music Reviews

REVIEW: Ace Frehley – Space Invader (2014 Japanese release)

NEW RELEASE

MOVIE REVIEW: Trailer Park Boys – Live in F**kin’ Dublin (2014)

NEW RELEASE

Part 313: Not Allowed Lending!

Blu-ray REVIEW: Trailer Park Boys – Don’t Legalize It (2014)

NEW RELEASE

Part 312.5: Coming to a Close – Poll Results

REVIEW: DC Drive – DC Drive (1992)

Editorial: Gene Simmons of KISS makes some incredibly stupid comments

REVIEW: Helix – half-ALIVE (1998)

Part 312: Reader Poll – Coming to a Close

New book: Martin Popoff – Live Magnetic Air: The Unlikely Saga of the Superlative Max Webster