BLACK FLY (2014)

BLACK FLY (2014)

Written and directed by Jason Bourque

Starring: Matthew MacCaull, Dakota Daulby, and Christie Burke

Streamed on Amazon Prime

Great transfer

This was an awesome little independent film that had me interested from the moment I started watching it.  The first scene takes place in a trailer park, and the main character is a teenage boy wearing a DOA shirt.  It’s obvious he’s been molested by his uncle who has been confronted and has now beat the kid silly.  This kid takes off to live with his older redneck brother, who still lives in the house that they grew up in on a remote island somewhere in Canada.  The parents of the brothers are no longer alive due to an accident, and suicide.   

At any rate things start off okay with the brothers living together along with the older brothers girlfriend.  The older brother soon becomes paranoid, unhinged, filled with jealousy and drunken rage in which much violence occurs. 

This thriller is dark and very atmospheric.  There is a cool build up with tons of growing tension that work toward the climax of the film.  After watching this movie I started to look into other films the director made over the years. This one seems to be his best work, I loved everything about it.  The battle at the end is glorious.  (NW)

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Nate Wilson: NW  Devon Cahill: DC  Matt Average: MA

NEUTRALS • Kebab Disco LP

NEUTRALS • Kebab Disco LP

Emotional Response

Neutrals, not Swiss! Photo by Jason Hendardy

The more I listen to Kebab Disco the more I think it’s a brilliant record, and one that will stand the test of time. The Neutrals (members from Airfix Kits, Terry Malts, Giant Haystacks, Magic Bullets, Razz, and Cocktails) play angular and jangly post punk drawing influences from the usual suspects and deftly manage to not be a knock off fan band. There’s a huge pop element in their sound that elevates them high above the crowd in a genre that can be too po’ faced, and ridiculously dour at times. This pop side emphasizes the herky jerky rhythms, and those herky jerky rhythms emphasize the pop side. I’m in the moment of absorbing these songs as I type up this review. You know how it is. You’re trying to do two things at once, but one is more interesting and appealing than the other. In this instance, it’s the music, and I’m listening while at the same time searching for the combination of words to convince you that this is a record you need run out and get. But songs like “Food Court”, “Swiss”, and “Half Knife” come on and I’m knocked prone because these are great songs, and I prefer to be in the moment listening and wishing it could go on for a couple minutes longer. The rhythm section is the balm to the jagged guitar, but what really stands out for me are the lyrics. Twelve short stories with clever turn of phrase, introspective without being self absorbed, at times nostalgic without being defeated. This album is somewhat of a concept album in the sense that these songs are Allan MacNaughton (vocals, guitar) relaying autobiographical stories about his youth in Scotland to his move to San Francisco on the mid 1990s, reflecting on the changes that come with time and age. The one constant theme is looking for one’s place in the world, whether it’s finding yourself among the structures and codes of youth culture, to the changes a city undergoes to be somewhat unrecognizable in comparison to its more interesting past. There’s an anger and resentment here, but these songs do not descend into the void of despair and defeat. Despite it all there’s this sense of the need to keep on going and carving out one’s niche no matter what else is happening around you.

If I were to keep a list of “the best of 2019” records without a doubt Kebab Disco would make that list, perhaps at the top. Many an evening has been spent listening to this over and over and over, and the songs have run through my minds in the following mornings. You will fully understand when you get this. Go on. (MA)

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Justin Dratson: JD   Nate Wilson: NW   Matt Average: MA

OBEDIENCE • MMXIX LP

OBEDIENCE • MMXIX LP

Fair Warning Records

Obedience gets their washing done while blazing through a live set . Photo: Jack Blackmon

Obedience are back with a full length of ripping hardcore punk that does not waste a second getting down to business. From the opener “Abuse of Power” to the closer “Divide” it’s a relentless ride the whole way through with zero detours. Pedal the the metal! Get on or get mowed over. The songs are as catchy as they speedy, which is no easy feat. Check out “Snake Oil” and “Wall Me In” (a song that sticks in your head for days) for a couple of very good examples. Catchy doesn’t always mean tepid pop punk. “Empty Words” is blazing full on number that can slow the tempo down in a flash and lose none of the intensity set up by the main hammering pace, and Dave Ackerman’s vocals have this gnarled and strained quality about them that effectively conveys the urgency of the moment. I’m also hearing some Tony Erba influences in the delivery. “I Won’t” is wound up and white hot frantic that somehow manages to stay focused on the mission of crushing your head with sonic force. That short guitar solo from Kevin Alexander pushes it over into the roiling chaos that swirls around it. There’s also a good dose of East Coast influences with breakdowns throughout the record, giving the music more power and more impact to the fast full on assaults. Band personnel consist of folks from Tear It Up, Concrete Elite, Severed Head of State, Criaturas, Breakout, and Signal Lost, but don’t come into this expecting to hear snippets of those bands. Obedience is its own beast, seamlessly melding the past with the present, and creating something that doesn’t need to rely on past endeavors. Get with the times, and get this. (MA)

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Justin Dratson: JD   Nate Wilson: NW   Matt Average: MA