Definitely a slow week for DVD buyers, unless you are a fan of documentaries about chess, moog keyboards, and gay marriage… or of course, Sly Stallone and arm wrestling. Check out the complete list of this week’s releases below:



Game Over: Kasparov and the Machine

Tying The Knot

Year Of The Dragon

Moonlighting: Seasons One and Two

Over The Top

Boogeyman

Moog

Make Your Own Damn Movie!

Danger Mouse: The Complete Seasons 1 and 2

The Dukes of Hazzard: The Complete Third Season

Home Movies: Season Two

Steve-O: Gross Misconduct

Throw Momma From The Train

War Of The Worlds: The Real Story

With the Lost season finale over and many, many questions still left unanswered, the show’s producers have seen it fit to launch some “extended reality” websites to keep fans talking. There is a website for Oceanic Airlines (not a real airline) that people have been discovering contains many secrets: first and foremost of which is a teaser trailer for Season 2 of the show. You can see the teaser by entering Hurley’s cursed numbers (4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42) into the Travellers section of the Ticket Search window. This will bring up a seating chart, and if you click on those same numbers again (not sure if the order matters), you will be presented with a short teaser followed by a link to a message board. Other easter eggs have been found on the site too, many of which can be found by clicking on various seats in the seating chart. Also of interest is a fake website for Charlie’s fictional band DriveSHAFT. And if you want to see someone who has spent too much time analyzing the damn show, check out the Lost Numbers Reference Guide.

Ghosts Of Modern Man - City Of No Light
(Smallman)

I was going to review this a while back ago but have had a hard time expressing what I think of Winnipeg’s Ghosts of Modern Man. Still do. But here goes.

I’d certainly expect you’d find this CD in your hardcore/punk section at the local record store, but I’d be hard pressed to call them a typical hardcore band, as there’s a lot more melody that you’d normally expect from this genre, and with a more accessible and unique vocalist than the endless slew of mediocre bands that keep coming out lately in this genre.

There are plenty of metal and rock influences in there, and I guess all in all they most remind me of a cross between At the Drive-In and Quicksand. Good bands to be compared to, but I can’t say songwise they currently live up to either. Still there’s a lot of potential in this band, with only one or two songs I’d classify as a real stinker. They have a somewhat fuzzy sound, interesting drums, and a slightly mid 90’s alternative feel to them that I like.

They do risk at being a band where everything sounds the same though. I’m not sure how much room they have to keep doing what they’re currently doing before people get bored. With a little more experimentation and growth as songwriters, and with some better production that puts the vocals higher up in the mix, we could have a winner. For now they’re better than bad, which is good enough. Of the number of recent Smallman releases, this is the one I’m most likely to listen to again. — Goon

Shake Hands With The Devil (DVD)
Directed by: Peter Raymont

Having seen Hotel Rwanda recently, I decided to pick up this DVD, part of the “Document Collection” line of documentaries, ignorantly thinking Romeo Dallaire was the Canadian played by Nick Nolte in the aforementioned film. I’m pretty damn sure now he’s not, but I certainly don’t regret watching this movie. This is the story of Romio Dallaire, an accompaniment to his book of the same name, as he returns to Rwanda to remember his time serving as head of the failed UN mission there in 1994.

The movie includes plenty of archive footage of a younger Dallaire dealing with the media then, but is mostly a camera simply following him around as he tells his story, all while visiting important places involved in the genocide.

The film was done for the CBC so as you can expect, its not very showy and at time its actually slow, but around halfway through, the full impact of Dallaires story really starts to hit home. Dallaire, while viewed as a hero by many, is riddled with guilt about the mission, always feeling he could have done more, and extremely bitter that the world did not come to help. At one point in the film, he goes to speak ata university, and tells them the full truth: They were not rescued because they were blacks in a country with no strategic value, with a population the west thought was too high anyways. This illicits a shocked reaction from the crowd. You’d figure they already know all this, so the shock must be that someone from the West actually came out and told them it.

Aside from some stories of how horribly Dallaire took it personally (he was once picked up drunk under a park bench in Hull after coming home), Dallaire is mostly used as a means to drive along the story of what exactly happened in Rwanda. Many different people are essentially, and justifiably, blamed for how things came to be. Such as the Catholic Church, with a massive influence in the country, who did not come out and condemn what was going on. Such as the Belgians, who basically separated the country into Hutu and Tutsi in the first place with quack craniology, and ran with their tail between their legs from Rwanda when other countries did not join, leaving Dallaire with less than 500 people to keep the peace. The French and the US also get their share of the blame, as deep cynicism is expressed about Bill Clinton’s visit to Rwanda where he gives a If only I knew this was going on” sort of speech. Then there is the apathy of the American public, as at the same time the Rwandan genocide is occurring, the US is instead enthralled with the OJ Simpson case.

Dallaire’s claims about the Rwandans not being treated by the West as real people are backed up when a Belgian senator uses a media event to viciously attack Dallaire personally, holding him responsible because Belgians died there, as if the deaths of the soldiers vastly outweigh the massive numbers of dead from the genocide. It’s an incredibly angering moment, watching someone so callous and uncaring of what happened blame a good man when in reality he did all he could. Footage is shown of the 10 year anniversary memorial of the genocide, and no important world leaders showed. Canada and the US only sent lower level government representatives. Its incredibly shameful, and Sudan is proof that this sort of unwillingness to face reality will cause these atrocities to keep happening. Apparently we’re all too busy catching up the Michael Jackson trial.

Romio Dallaire’s story is ultimately a sad one. His wife calls him her Canadian hero, but he is too scarred to recognize the good he did, and will likely carry the pain of his experience until he dies. — Goon

The Fearless Freaks: The Wondrously Improbable Story of The Flaming Lips (DVD)
Directed by: Bradley Beesley

The Flaming Lips have been around for over 20 years now, but have really only come to be known in the last 10 years starting with their surprise hit “She Don’tUse Jelly”.

I was too young at the time to see the Lips as anything more than a novelty act, and it wasn’t until the critical brouhaha surrounding 1999’s “The Soft Bulletin” that I bothered giving them a chance. Since then they’ve become one of my favorite bands, and their upcoming album is one of the years most anticipated releases.

So it was with great excitement and fascination I sat through the newly released to DVD documentary “The Fearless Freaks” by Oklahoman fan and band friendBradley Beesley. A compilation of vintage homevideos (Michael Ivins punk hair = wow), live performances, and interviews with both current and former members, “Freaks” is not really a definitive”VH1 Behind The Music” - esque history. Nor does it focuson the band at one important point in their career a la Wilco’s “I am Trying to Break Your Heart” film. Instead it is basically a character study of the band, and that includes the countless other members who have come and gone spanning 3 decades.

Only the early portions of the film submit to any sort of narrative, as we are led through the members’ childhood and how the band came to be, into the early years where Waynes jock brother fronted the group. From there we move right into a number of stories and vignettes, such as frontman Wayne Coyne stopping at his old place of work and having some Vietnamesechildren re-enact a robbery. Coyne also takes thecamera around as he works on his independent film “Christmas on Mars”, a very “American Movie” type set of segments which also involve former Blues Clues host/Drozd disciple Steve Burns and Adam Goldberg. As charismatic and watchable Coyne is, and surprising as it is that he says he hasn’t done drugs in over 20 years, the most amazing chapters though belong to the story of Stephen Drozd.

As Butthole Surfers leader Gibby Haynes attests, Stephen is Coyne’s secret weapon. The film is revelatory in this respect. Coming from a family life where several direct family members died tragically, multi-instrumentalist Drozd is shown to be the bands true marvel, and despite Coynes vision, it becomes clear that the Lips really took off because Drozd hadjoined the group.

A surprise to me was the story of Drozd’s massive heroin addiction and recovery. Shot in stark black and white is a long scene where Drozd is preparing to shoot up, speaking incredibly matter of factly of his addiction and how it is hurting him. He also speaks honestly of heroin’s draw and why he’d been unable to kick it.

There will be those who complain of some important things in the bands history not being covered, specifically how Drozd nearly lost his arm due to a Spiderbite in the second half of the 90s, but theres enough in this doc for any Lips fan not to worry so much about what isn’t. As essential viewing as this is for any Lips fan though, it probably wont appeal very much to people who already aren’t in the cult. Unlike the Metallica doc of last year, which had a narrative, more tension, comedy and frankly, better filmmakers.

A second disc of special features includes half an hour of deleted scenes and outtakes, including another take of Coyne telling the robbery story and a number of scenes detailing the making of the “Clouds Taste Metallic” album. The commentary track on disc one is quite entertaining and moved along mostly by Coyne, who tells an even better robbery story than the one in the movie. — Goon

WarioWare Twisted! (Game Boy Advance)
Developed by: Nintendo and Intelligent Systems
Published by: Nintendo

Nintendo has always been criticized for using cartridges instead of CDs or DVDs to distribute their video games, and indeed, the economics of that decision may well be the big reason why Sony was able to steal their market with the Playstation. However, one of the few advantages of using cartridges is that you can add new hardware capabilities right into the game itself, extending the functionality of the console. Sometimes in the past this has meant adding more advanced video chips or additional memory, or sometimes more esoteric and creative devices such as what Konami did with the Game Boy Advance game Boktai, adding a solar chip to detect sunlight.

With their latest installment in the wildly popular WarioWare series, Nintendo has gotten all creative on us again by building gyro sensors and a rumble device in to the cartridge. The game comes in a box about twice as thick as a regular GBA game, and the cartridge itself is bigger and heavier than a normal one. What all this ingenuity amounts to is one of the few video games out there nowadays (aside from Dance DanceRevolution) that does not use a control pad for input at all. Instead, you hold your Game Boy Advance like a steering wheel, twisting and tilting it in order to play the games, with the occasional press of the A button. In a way, I guess you could say it is similar to the good ol’ Atari paddle controller, but in the case of the GBA you are moving the whole system around in your hand (sometimes so much so that it’s tough to see what’s on the screen… but this just adds to the manic fun). The built-in rumble pack also gives you some tactile feedback to help you maneuver.

I know what most people are probably thinking though… does this actually work or is it just another cute Nintendo gimmick? Despite my love of the original WarioWare games for the Gamecube and GBA, at first play, I had my doubts about WarioWare Twisted. The microgames seemed a little bit too simplistic, using only simple left/right movements, and being forced to use the gyro sensors for menu navigation was just kind of annoying. However, the microgames are broken up into sequential groups and intended to gradually ease you into the controls. As the complexity builds, so does the variety of games and the fun factor along with it.

If you’ve played the original WarioWare Inc: Mega Microgames$, you will be familiar with the concept. You are presented with a random series of very short games in succession, and given only one or two words of instruction for each. Typically you have 3 seconds to complete the task before the next game is cued. If you manage to complete enough of the games without missing more than 4, you will will find yourself transported to the “Boss Stage”, a slightly extended microgame.

As usual, the microgames are divided into themed categories, this time around it is more by gameplay than by game content. One of the game categories in WarioWare Twisted breaks from the 3 second timer rule, in that you have a total of 20 seconds for the entire group, and if you complete a microgame quickly you will earn bonus time. Another features games with twice the allotted time limit. Everyone’s favourite category has also returned — a category dedicated solely to classic NES games adapted into microgames.

The creative and zany flavour of the microgames will not disappoint WarioWare fans; there are still plenty of funny, amusing and downright bizarre games here, some of which build off of original classics. One of the highlights is the boss fight in Kat & Ana’s “Tap Out”stage, which has you piloting a giant robot that shoots fingers into enemy noses.

The controls are surprisingly precise and it doesn’t take long to get the hang of it. (Interesting to note however, you can’t play this game in a moving vehicle of any sort as the gyro sensors can’t calibrate themselves properly.) Unfortunately, the intuitive controls are also kind of a bad thing, because a lot of the games are way too easy! It only takes 1 or 2 tries to master most of them, and since you can practice each of them individually outside of the Story Mode, that takes away a lot of the challenge. I’d say you can probably blow through the entire Story Mode in a couple of hours if you really wanted to. There is some replay value to the game in terms of competing for high scores and unlocking some extra games and “souvenirs”, but some of the fun wears off when you’ve played most of the games numerous times already. It is kind of interesting to see some of the variations of the same microgames when you reach higher speeds and higher levels of difficulty though, and there are over 200 microgames, some of which you might not see the first handful of times you play through a stage.

The unlockable souvenirs in the game are mostly useless. These are similar to what they did with Mario Party Advance and they are basically like little novelty “toys” that make use of the gyro sensors in various ways (like a wind-up music box or a record player). I think we also probably could have done without the lengthy animated cut scenes, that bookend the Story Mode, even if they are slightly interactive. Multiplayer gameplay is also absent; granted, the original WarioWare Inc. didn’t have any connectivity either, but after playing Mega Party Game$ on the Gamecube it seems to leave a bit of a void.

When all is said and done, I still find WarioWare Twisted to be more innovation than a cheap gimmick. I think the big thing keeping more casual people from playing games nowadays is the input device, and the idea of bypassing a standard controller really opens things up. Still, I can’t see this game changing how most other video games are played anytime soon. WarioWare Twisted is still definitely not going to attract a lot of the over-20 gamers and the hardcore crowd. You just need to appreciate this game for the unique and refreshing experience it is, and for the fact that just about anyone can pick it up and play.

Even if Nintendo is getting left in the dust when it comes to the next gen console race, I think there will always be a place for more intuitive, low-tech video games as long as they’re still fun. Give it a chance and WarioWare Twisted will have you hooked in no time. — Sean

The Soundtrack Of Our Lives - Origin Vol. 1
(Republic/Universal)

I remember hearing of this band a few years ago, and about how they were going to be the next big thing along with the Hives in the rock and roll revival. Since then, the Hives seem to have disappeared and all I know about TSOOL is what I’ve heard from the classic rock stations that my dad listens to. Regardless, I didn’t really have high hopes for this album.

However, the album gets off to a really strong start with “Believe I’ve Found.” It doesn’t sound like their other material, which has a very classic rock sound, but is much poppier, using a nice “do do do” chorus. However, they don’t stick to this style, but rely on much more formulaic classic rock styles for the rest of the album.

The next song, “Transcendental Suicide,” starts with a guitar riff that I think Pete Townsend could probably target in a copyright infringement suit. That, along with some of the worst lyrics I’ve ever heard really don’t add much potential: “And it feels like we know everything/ So, who’s gonna be there to tell us what tomorrow will bring?/ When you can’t change it/ No, you can’t change it/ And love is in the air for a transcendental suicide.” Yeah, okay. Then the song ends with “We’re gonna last forever.” Yeah, good luck with that—whatever transcendental suicide means.

However, my biggest complaint about the album is that almost all of the songs seem like they’re copies of something else, and I feel like I’ve heard all of the songs better somewhere else. Half of the album sounds like it was written by Keith Richards in an attempt to recreate some of his classic songs.

The album’s artworks furthers the sense that nothing is more than a copy. It is filled with old, sepia pictures of Aboriginals, Indians, military soldiers, with the band members’ faces photoshopped onto their bodies. The artwork gives the album more of a kitsch feel than any real value, and I would say that the music leans towards kitsch as well. It so derivative that it seems like they are simply reusing songs by classic rock bands and simply adding new lyrics that aren’t as good as their predecessors. TSOOL seem to be trying to appeal to some nostalgic sense of classic rock, but without adding anything original to it. — Zak Bronson

Asva - Futurists Against The Ocean
(Web Of Mimicry)

Upon receiving Asva’s “Futurists Against the Ocean’, I must admit my interest was peaked. With comparisons to Mogwai and God Speed You Black Emperor (even borrowing the minimalist cardboard packaging), I figured I was in for an epic record still grasping on to what some say is a now passé genre.

The attached press release labels the record as ‘drone rock’, whatever that’s worth. However, the sounds of Asva are in no way relative to the A-list bands they compare themselves to. Although the album plays out in long, barren soundscapes, there is an entire lack of melody, which is what separates Asva from other popular instrumental acts. This album seems to be geared more towards fans of darker, harder music.

The album begins with ‘Kill the Dog, Tie Them Up, Then Take the Money’, sounding exactly as the title suggests with a thick, distorted bass line and smashing drums. Something more comparable to the dark sounds of Type O Negative then the more uplifting GSYBE. Where other instrumentals crawl towards a climax, and seem to tell a story of sorts along the way, Asva seems to be stuck in a repetitive dark loop, never really building to anything different from where it started. The album continues on in the same fashion across four tracks, adding up to just over fifty minutes of depressing ‘drone rock’.

Where Mogwai brings images of denim jeans and Buffalo’s stampeding through large cities, Asva reminds me of a kid in a trench coat playing Doom circa 1996. The music is not horrible, It’s just not what it says it is. It’s a matter of a misplaced label comparing to completely different styles of music simply because they’re both long and instrumental. — Jay C.

System Of A Down - Mezmerize
(American/Columbia)

System of a Down will never get through to some people. They’ve been unfairly been written off by many as just another nu metal band that will come and go. While its true that SOAD have risen on the shoulders of bands like Korn and Limp Bizkit, its sad that once again the Armenian American rockers will still probably wont be taken very seriously.

Regardless, this, their third album (discounting the b-sides “Steal this Album” of a couple years back), is undoubtedly, one of the best hard rock/heavy metal albums of the new millennium, and for better or worse, the most anthemic politically driven album since Rage Against the Machine’s debut.

I always thought the quickest description of System of a Down was a combination of Slayer and the Dead Kennedys (Don’t believe me? Have you listened to “California Uber Alles” lately?), with their own off the wall touch thrown in. With Mezmerize, there are even more influences to be spotted in this complete Readers Digest of some of the most subversive bands of the last couple generations. “BYOB” is a Sabbath-esque “War Pigs” type political anthem, filtered through Jello Biafra-esque sarcastic, garbled and warbled vocals, as Serj Tankian and Daron Malakian advocate Presidents fight the war instead of the poor.

The irony and sarcasm also tread through “Cigaro” and “Radio/Video”, which busts out even more complex song structures, at times reminding of Frank Zappa, who could get across a gonzo sense of humor, being goofy and not taking itself entirely seriously, but restraining from being funny to the point of compromising the song’s integrity. Each of these songs is relentlessly catchy, with sure-fire sing-along status, from the chorus of “Choking chicks and sodomy/the Kind of Shit you get on your TV” on “Violent Pornography” to the depressed state of division in the US expressed on “Sad Statue”

The album maintains a greater variety than previous albums by guitarist Daron Malakian’s ascension to co-vocalist. He’s a constant and consistent presence here, sounding like Maynard James Keenan at some times and like a nasal nu-punker at others. The album closes on a similar note as “Toxicity” with Daron at the forefront, putting together their longer, “deeper” song.

Are there negative things to say about this record? I guess so, but they’re not really going to drive the rating too far down, as theres way more good than bad to be found. I have no problem with short albums, but this one is probably a little TOO short, especially considering there’s another album on the way this autumn (This is considered part one of a double album of sorts). At 36 minutes including an intro track, people will assume it’s a cash grab if you don’t fill up the disc.

As well, while I have always enjoyed that just as many System songs make absolutely no sense as there are ones that make a statement, the lyrics for this album are a little too repetitive on a few songs, particularly “Old School Hollywood”, which is a more experimental song by SOAD standards, and would have been helped by some more lyrical content, considering the structure of that song is more standard verse/chorus/verse than a lot of the rest of the album.

Overall, this is an intense and very cool disc that will appeal to a broad set of ages and music fans, at least the ones who can get over that they might be perceived as some mook rocker by a snooty indie record store clerk or one of the Metal Maniacs subscribers who paint their faces and wear 10 inch spikes on their boots. Specifically, I see this album’s future as being considered a classic’ by the current crop of teenagers, much as we 20somethings hold dearly to old alternative records that might may or may not be as good as we’d remembered. — Goon

When Dave Grohl says that he wants “In Your Honor” to be the Foo Fighters’ definitive masterwork, I really want to believe him. I still have a soft spot for this band despite the fact that their albums have gotten more and more radio friendly over the years. The new record is going to be a double album that features one disc of full-on rock action and one disc of mellower acoustic-oriented tunes. There is an E-card up on the official Foo Fighters site that is streaming the new single “Best Of You”, along with the video. It certainly doesn’t sound like anything revolutionary for the band, but then again, it is the single. We’ll just have to wait for June 14th, when “In Your Honor” hits stores, to find out if Dave Grohl’s got any balls left.