Riz Ortolani Cannibal Holocaust Soundtrack CD

Riz Ortolani’s soundtrack to the infamous Ruggero Deodato film Cannibal Holocaust is completely disarming. From the opening theme to the stark, minimalist synth cues used to punctuate the shocking events onscreen, this is one soundtrack CD that can’t be pigeonholed, boiled down to its’ essence, or easily categorized.

The score is also sneakily influential–whether on purpose or not, you can hear echoes of it all the way down the line to Air’s Sexy Boy synth riffs, and while you may be totally put off by the content of the film, there’s no denying its’ power or effectiveness. It provokes an emotional response, and isn’t that the purpose of all art? No matter whether you think the filmmakers meant to or not, for all the shocking, awful things in the movie it is easily as transcendent as people believe Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odessy to be. (How’s that for going out on a limb?)

That’s pretty strong stuff, to be sure…but viewing the two films side by side you’ll find more in common than you realize–again, regardless of director intent, stomach turning events on screen, and etc. But we’re getting off topic here. Riz Ortolani shows off some fascinating depth here. To be sure, if the music were completely divorced from its subject matter it might not pack as much of a punch, but it’s not.

This version of the soundtrack contains a CD-ROM interview feature with Ortolani, so fans will be interested for that little freebie; the fact that this went out of print in 2003 and has been harder to find ever since doesn’t hurt. How long will this last? Get yours while you still can.

The Cannibal Holocaust original soundtrack by Riz Ortolani is a new, sealed compact disc. Buy it now from Turntabling for $23 plus shipping.

WTF Bad Album Cover: Dan Nicoloff Everybody’s Pink Under The Skin

There are bad album covers…and then there are LP covers that make you want to penetrate your own skull with a claw hammer because they’re so mind-rottingly awful. There’s not much to day about this that you haven’t already been thinking to yourself. Dan Nicoloff’s Everybody’s Pink Under The Skin is a sort of lame-o take on Clive Barker’s Books of Blood quip; “Everyone is a book of blood. When we’re opened, we’re red.” But Barker, even in his most feverish moments, could never have envisioned something like this.

It’s art design so staggeringly lame that you KNOW someone got PAID to do it. Look at the malice aforethought going on here. This cover looks like a photograph that someone actually staged and lit properly for EFFECT. I shudder to think about the time and effort that went into this. And I sit here wondering if it’s actually something WORSE–a photorealism PAINTING of some kind that a human being actually LABORED OVER to get JUST RIGHT.

That’s a thought my poor brain can’t quite get behind. … Continue Reading

The Fantastic Voyage of Goblin The Sweet Sound of Hell CD

There are many Goblin compilation CDs, including this excellent collection put out by Bella Casa.

The Fantastic Voyage of Goblin: The Sweet Sound of Hell has plenty of old favorites and a nice selection off their non-soundtrack LP, Roller. Snip-Snap and Dr. Frankenstein are both Roller cuts, and there’s even a nice obscure (for the compilations) cut from the Phenomena OST–Jennifer’s Friends is a welcome inclusion here.

The Fantastic Voyage of Goblin: The Sweet Sound of Hell is a new, sealed import CD. Buy it now from Turntabling for $20 plus shipping.

Here’s a track listing if you’re curious about how THIS comp fits in with the other compilations in your collection:

1. Profondo Rosso
2. School at Night
3. Death Dies
4. Dr Frankenstein
5. Suspiria
6. Witch
7. Sighs
8. Le Cascade di Viridiana
9. Safari
10. L’ Alba Dei Morti Viventi
11. Snip-Snap
12. Sicilian Samba
13. Connexion
14. Flashing
15. Gemini
16. Jennifer’s Friends
17. La Chiesa
18. Quiet Drops

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West Goest To Pop: The Ringo Beat Cocktail Collection

Spaghetti western fans who are enthralled by that strangely surf influenced guitar playing heard in the Sabata, Ringo, and Man-with-no-name style movies should definitely own West Goes To Pop, The Ringo Beat Cocktail Collection.

This compilation of Spaghetti western soundtrack sounds includes Piero Umiliani, Gianni Ferrio, Bruno Nicolai, Fabio Frizzi and Marizio De Angelis. And yes, it does include the Django theme. Try whipping THAT track out at your next DJ gig. This CD is perfect for mad mixage, especially if you’re looking for something out of left field to throw into your next set.

This import CD is selling for $30 elsewhere…get it here for half that and enjoy the sonic treats of Ringo beat. This is our favorite find of the week.

West Goes To Pop, the Ringo Beat Cocktail Collection is a new, sealed import CD. Buy it now from Turntabling for $15 plus shipping. Overseas orders welcome.

Piero Umiliani La Morte Bussa Due Volte Soundtrack CD

Piero Umiliani is a Turntabling favorite. If you’re not familiar with his soundtrack work from Mario Bava movies and films like La Morte Bussa Due Volte, this soundtrack is squarely in retro Italian lounge/retro territory. It’s great for anyone who loved the Beat at Cinecitta collection, or a hard-to-find disc called The Beat, The Shake, and the Lounge.

La Morte Bussa Due Volta, also known as Death Knocks Twice, stars Fabio Testi, Dean Reed and Anita Ekberg and is probably tough to pin down on DVD (we haven’t tried yet). The movie involves a bit of euro-mystery, a bit of serial killing, an dhis soundtrack is great fun, and if you’re loving the lounge sound, scoop this up. If you’re hunting for haunting, Morricone-esque experimentation this CD isn’t for you, but Umiliani fans won’t be let down.

La Morte Bussue Due Volte is a new, sealed import compact disc. Buy it now for $15 plus shipping.

Quentin Tarantino Death Proof Soundtrack LP

Death Proof is a grab-bag of musical styles, all of them great. From Chick Habit by An April March to Jack Nitzche’s Last Race, (with a little Morricone thrown in for good measure), the soundtrack album for Quentin Tarantino’s Death Proof is a great time from start to finish. Hell, even Pino Donaggio gets a look in with Sally and Jack.

Regardess of whether you’re into the shorter Grindhouse version of Death Proof, or the extended feature-length release, if you’re a fan of the movie, you need to own this record on vinyl the way God intended it. Sure, you could just get the compact disc, or re-watch the flick (guilty of an excessive number of re-viewings on the Turntabling screen) but the vinyl experience for this particular slab of vinyl is outstanding. A true classic.

Yes, you’re reading the rant of a Death Proof fanboy–fully aware of the movie’s shortcomings and not caring one little bit. The album is fabulous and there’s no denying it.

The Death Proof Soundtrack is a new, sealed vinyl album. Buy it now from Turntabling for $18 plus shipping.

WTF: The Bad Album Cover Odyssey Of Ted Nugent

Alas, poor Ted. A post like this would be harder to write in good fun if he didn’t take himself so seriously or carry himself like a man utterly convinced that he’s right…about everything. But since he DOES give off that Rush Limbaugh-esque bouquet, he’s fair game. After all, who can look at THIS with a straight face?

The real question here is, who in this picture does the album title refer to? I’m voting for Ted. Could it get any more swishy with song titles like “Savage Danger“? I really truly think it could replace YMCA as “Song most likely to be sung by drunk, closeted people of all persuasions.” Maybe Ted’s secretly thinking Dan Savage Danger.

Dan’s got a great column, but I bet he’d be horrified to think Ted’s harboring a schoolgirl crush.

Don’t misunderstand me here, there’s nothing WRONG with swish. Speaking as a  Pet Shop Boys fan myself, my real issue is that Ted’s trying really hard to get us thinking about Playboy centerfolds…why all the effort? You don’t have to prove anything to us here, jungle boy.

And then there’s this…

Oh, wow. This pretty much sums it all up, doesn’t it? A cowboy hat, a Madonna headset mic, and a half-enthused bikini girl showing the world that she really, really DID shave her armpits that day. No peach fuzz for Mister Ted.

Now what exactly is going on here? We have a passed-out woman in red trunks, presumably overcome from the volume levels from Ted Nugent’s amplifiers. Or maybe she’s just had too many cheeseburgers and wants to sleep.

OK, you have to hand it to the Nuge here…he had the Metallica look long before THEY did. Except the expression on his face here says either that a cat has just poked its head up Ted’s rectum, or perhaps there’s a hunting arrow stabbing him somewhere equally inappropriate.

OK, I’ll admit it. If you HAVE to own a Ted Nugent album, this is probably the only one you need. It does have its moments, and he even approaches something that could be considered proto-speed metal with Violent Love. But the front cover isn’t the worst….the back is REALLY the stuff dreams are made of. If you have dreams of Ted putting the moves on you as a flamenco dancer, that is.

OLE!

OK, all in good fun, right? We’re not suggesting you HATE Ted Nugent, and while he can make his fingers go up and down the fretboard of his guitar really fast, it’s clear he’s not quite as nimble in the art department.

Ted fans will no doubt post angry, hate-filled missives after reading all this nyuk-nyuk good fun, but I think Ted’s big enough to take it. Don’t get all peeved, now. But somebody ought to whisper in Ted’s ear that his most understated cover was probably the right idea all along.

WTF: Steve Walsh Glossolalia

by Joe Wallace

Normally, when I write up these bad album cover posts, I go into an extended rant about how silly the artwork is, or how goofy the clothing featured on the cover might be, perhaps taking time to savor a ridiculous facial gesture or some badly arranged hair styles.

However, when it comes to former Kansas singer Steve Walsh and his album Glossolalia, I can’t really do that. Instead, I’ll just have to settle for this:

I’ll gladly pay the sum of one million dollars in Monopoly money or its equivalent if someone can please explain to me exactly WTF is going on in this album cover. I am at a total loss to make hear or tail (heh) of it, and I am afraid to stare at it any longer–my brain might just turn into tapioca.

This album cover is so brain-rottingly dumb that I would have mistaken it for a Ted Nugent album if it weren’t for the Steve Walsh thing stamped on this–like he’s PROUD of it, or something. I think Walsh is a talented singer, but when it comes to picking the album art, maybe he should let a drunken sailor do it or something.

For the record, let me just state that I am NOT making fun of surrealism. I LIKE Dali. I LIKE M.C. Escher. I don’t think you have to “understand” art in order for it to be GOOD. But THIS crap? Um…well, I think there’s some kind of veiled Christian anti-evolution agenda going on here (Glossolalia means ’speaking in tounges” and I think Talking Heads should sue on this basis alone–brand integrity has definitely been damaged.) But I’ll be damned if I can get past the hardy-har joke on poor old Darwin to find the deeper meaning (?) of any of this nonsense.

I really admire Steve Walsh for having the cajones to go through with this–NOBODY GETS IT, STEVE. This album is one of the all time greats. I love it. It’s number one in dumb and I wish I could find one so I could frame it. Really. I’d pay up to five bucks for it. Drop me a line in the comments section, cuz I am a HUGE fan of misguided crap like this.

Jackie Brown Soundtrack Vinyl LP

Quentin Tarantino made a hell of a fun movie here. Jackie Brown has everything a Tarantino fan wants—Samuel L. Jackson chewing the scenery, great retro-now locations and culture references, a bit of the old ultra-violence, plus one hell of a smokin’ soundtrack. You can’t go wrong with Bobby Womack, Johnny Cash, and the infamous Vampire Sound Corporation–who made Jesse Franco’s Vampyros Lesbos such a great thing to behold.

This soundtrack album never fails…and DJs will love the dialogue snippets from the movie. Throw in The Grass Roots, The Delfonics, and Elliot Easton’s Tiki Gods for good measure and you’ve got a slab of wax that’s almost perfect.

The Jackie Brown Original Soundtrack album is a sealed, new vinyl record. Buy it now from Turntabling for $18 plus shipping.

Goblin Roller CD

After Profondo Rosso, Goblin released a rare, non-soundtrack album. Some sources say the title track was part of a film soundtrack called Wampir, but I can’t confirm or deny that bit of trivia. No matter, as Roller is a fantastic record.

If you’re already a fan of Goblin, this is a must-own. You’ll recognize a bit of Deep Red influence here, especially on the title cut, but there’s a nice overall prog vibe throughout the album, and Snip-Snap is absolutely classic Goblin from the Profondo Rosso period.

If you’re new to the group, let it be known that they’re a fine entry in the Italian prog field…not a prog fan? Or are you convinced that Emerson, Lake, and Palmer or Yes is as far as you need to go? Think again–those two groups aren’t really even on the radar here. Goblin isn’t what you’d call a prog purist group, which makes them all the more interesting. It’s definitely an influence in all the best ways, though.

Goblin is hard to pin down, stylistically speaking–later efforts went further into synth/dance territory to good effect. Roller is six outstanding cuts that is getting hard to find, and even download junkies won’t find any official versions of the Roller track Dr. Frankenstein, as it’s listed as “album only.” Hear it in all its glory on this gorgeous import compact disc.

Roller by Goblin is a new, sealed import compact disc on Cinevox Records. Buy it now from Turntabling for $26.00 plus shipping.

Here’s a brief, fan-shot snippet of a Goblin live performance of Roller. It’s far too short, but nice to see.