Monday, June 30, 2014

Al Gore

About a month ago, I got a spam email from 'Eat This Not That' that included a link to this slideshow/article.  
It immediately occurred to me that this was a perfect opportunity to do something different with the strip, 
to go off on a tangent if you will.  
All of the "slides" are courtesy of Eat This Not That but the reactions are pure Shrimpy.  
Enjoy.

Friday, June 27, 2014

Labor

About a month ago, I got a spam email from 'Eat This Not That' that included a link to this slideshow/article.  
It immediately occurred to me that this was a perfect opportunity to do something different with the strip, 
to go off on a tangent if you will.  
All of the "slides" are courtesy of Eat This Not That but the reactions are pure Shrimpy.  
Enjoy.

Thursday, June 26, 2014

Not So New Comic Review: Guardians of the Galaxy (1991) Annual #3

                It’s that time again, time for another Guardians of the Galaxy Annual.  This one is brought to you by Michael Gallagher, the writer of the regular series, and penciler Colleen Doran.  Unlike the past annuals, this one is one large self-contained story instead of a bunch of little ones.  Let’s see how it goes. 

                We start out pretty much right where we left off at the end of the last issue of the regular series.  Earth is starting to rebuild itself under the leadership of President Tarin and they have enlisted the Guardians to go and search for the fabled Book of Kells, which will apparently help greatly with the illiteracy problem that is running rampant throughout the earth.  This seems a little too after-school special-ish for me, but we’ll see how it turns out. 

                Before we get too far in, I would like to make a quick comment about Colleen Doran’s pencils.  While being technically ok, as in, she draws very well, there seems to be a distinct lack of personality in her pencils.  I am not sure where this book falls in terms of her bibliography, but it has a feeling like it’s one of her first published works, like she has yet to find herself and her own artistic voice, so instead she is trying to be technically proficient (which she is). 

                Okay, now that that is out of the way, back to the meat and potatoes of the comic in general.   The Guardians gladly take on this “fetch quest” as they apparently don’t have a whole galaxy to guard.  We then get a quick history of the Book of Kells from Mainframe, and then an extended history of it, along with a bit of the War of the Worlds that ended the time of superheroes on Earth before the Guardians head out to start their search.

                This search takes them Ireland, where they find an old stone structure that apparently still houses the book (it was put here for safekeeping).  Of course, it’s not going to be kept safe without a guardian, which is where Cuchulain, the Irish Wolfhound come into play.  He’s dressed in a medieval Irish garb and knocked out Charlie with one punch (which means he’s pretty damn powerful).  He also seems to either be incredibly simple in the head, or just completely unaware of superheroes and “modern” society altogether as this group of heroes, and especially the women, just totally blow his mind.  Eventually the battle turns in the favor of the Guardians until probability gets in the way, or more specifically, someone that can control probability in the form of Shamrock (who is basically the Scarlet Witch in green).  The Guardians start to lose again until Hollywood shows up and charms the pants off of Shamrock (possibly literally but the comics code prevents us from seeing that). 

                The fighting stops and we get a quick primer on Shamrock’s origin story before hearing how she fit in to the whole War of the Worlds thing as well as how she got the Book of Kells in her possession (thanks to Dr. Druid, who also saddled her with Cuchulain as a companion for basically the rest of time). 

                Before we can get a chance to really feel sorry for Shamrock though, the true villain of the story emerges (a whole forty-four pages in).  Samhain and his army of blue banshees shows up to claim the Book of Kells for his own, because he apparently hates to read, or something like that.  The Guardians battle the banshees as Samhain ventures into the cave where the Book of Kells is kept.  Shamrock is there to greet him and she unleashes her full power on him in the form of the various spirits that make up her mind (they are the ones that affect the laws of probability which is where her power is derived from).  This overwhelms Samhain and sends him screaming into the night.  Shamrock then hands the book over to the Guardians and goes off with Cuchulain to find adventure and to attempt to basically do to Europe what Tarin is doing to America (jump start civilization).

                The Guardians take the book back to Tarin and they all basically live happily ever after.  A couple pinups close the book and there we have another annual down.  The story was just as silly as we are used to and the art was for the most part technically proficient without offering much in the way of personality.  All in all, another dud.

Next issue: It’s back to the regular series as we check in on Loki and the Inhumans on the moon!  Oh…joy.

Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Radioactive

About a month ago, I got a spam email from 'Eat This Not That' that included a link to this slideshow/article.  
It immediately occurred to me that this was a perfect opportunity to do something different with the strip, 
to go off on a tangent if you will.  
All of the "slides" are courtesy of Eat This Not That but the reactions are pure Shrimpy.  
Enjoy.

Tuesday, June 24, 2014

New Music Review – Sevendust: Time Travelers and Bonfires

                After the dumpster fire that was Black Out the Sun, to say I was a little cautious about picking up Time Travelers and Bonfires was an understatement.  Hearing that it was going to be an acoustic album didn’t necessarily help this feeling of uncertainty because the tempo in Black Out the Sun was a primary reason I had a problem with it.  Would this be just a continuation of that album?  Would this just travel further down the path of mediocrity already laid in place by the preceding album?  Most importantly, would it be worth my twelve dollars or would I be duped once again by a band that was at one point one of my favorites?

                After a couple listening sessions, it is clear that, while the Sevendust I knew from my youth appears to be gone, the quieter Sevendust is not nearly as bad as their previous album led me to believe.  A few years ago, Sevendust released Southside Doublewide, their acoustic live album, where they played their hits, as heavy as they normally would, just on acoustic instruments.  Time Travelers and Bonfires has a similar vibe to that.  Some of the songs are slower, and probably belong on Black Out the Sun (and were probably leftovers from those recording sessions), but a lot of them have a familiar feel to them, basically Sevendust songs that happen to be played on acoustic instruments.  It doesn’t hurt that the last six songs are just that, rerecordings of classic Sevendust songs with the acoustic treatment. 

                The band is still as adept with their instruments, and singer Lajon Witherspoon’s vocals are as spot on as ever.  The band does seem to have followed his lead though as they have turned a bit more mellow as they have all aged and Witherspoon has gone from “angry singing” (the only way I can explain him on their earlier work, go listen to it and you’ll understand) to “normal singing”.  He has a good voice, one that works well in both capacities, but the sea-change from a heavy band to one that has become more ballad-oriented is a shame.


                This is a decent pickup, much better than their previous output.  I wouldn’t run out and grab it as it’s not anything that will blow your mind, but it is a good pickup and if you’re a completionist, like me, it won’t make you feel like you were duped by the band.

Monday, June 23, 2014

Filth

About a month ago, I got a spam email from 'Eat This Not That' that included a link to this slideshow/article.  
It immediately occurred to me that this was a perfect opportunity to do something different with the strip, 
to go off on a tangent if you will.  
All of the "slides" are courtesy of Eat This Not That but the reactions are pure Shrimpy.  
Enjoy.

Friday, June 20, 2014

Rats

About a month ago, I got a spam email from 'Eat This Not That' that included a link to this slideshow/article.  
It immediately occurred to me that this was a perfect opportunity to do something different with the strip, 
to go off on a tangent if you will.  
All of the "slides" are courtesy of Eat This Not That but the reactions are pure Shrimpy.  
Enjoy.

Thursday, June 19, 2014

Not So New Comic Review: Guardians of the Galaxy (1991) #39

                It’s a knock-down drag-out fight as Rancor fights Wolver-Doom.  Who is Wolver-Doom you ask?  Why he is the brain of Dr. Doom implanted in the skull of Wolverine’s robotic adamantium skeleton thingy.  Thinking back on it, this may be the exact moment that Doom lost to Loki in the Eat @ Shrimpy’s Villain Bracket.  What happens when these two tangle for the right to…I don’t know, lead a post-apocalyptic world that revolves around television?  Let’s find out.

                The first thing I want to do is give Kevin West his due.  He is a talented artist that seems to be fighting his hardest not to completely become a Liefeld clone.  The fact that he is tasked with drawing, what amounts to a skeleton (with some robot innards) in a fight with Rancor, and not posing it stiffly or showing only the “easy” angles of the skeleton (front/back/profile) proves that he has an incredible amount of talent.  Why I saw nothing from him after this I have no idea.  Maybe by the end of the run he had devolved into a total Liefeld clone, I don’t know, but I hope not.

                The fight goes on for a few pages before we get a break to see the Guardians’ reactions.  The rest of the mutants (remember, the Guardians dispatched Batwing and Blockade last issue) show up on the scene to engage our heroes.  At this point Blockade and Batwing wake up and the whole fight begins again, now with fairly even odds.  That battle continues until Aleta sees the “body pit” which is exactly what it sounds like.  When the people rebuilding the Realiteevee plant have worked themselves to death, the mutants just pick them up and throw them in the death pit.  This mass genocide enrages Aleta.  Before we can see her reaction though it is time to get back to the main fight between Rancor and Wolver-Doom. 

Rancor smartly realizes that most of Wolver-Doom is coated in adamantium, except for his eyeballs (really, all of the robot parts should be just plain metal too, as nothing was stated in terms of Doom having straight up spare adamantium or the knowledge of the process to bond it to other materials).  Regardless, Rancor stabs him in the eye with her broken Wolverine claw.  This messes with Wolver-Doom quite a bit as he now is blind in one eye.  Rancor uses this to her advantage and grabs a live wire to electrocute Wolver-Doom.  It is stuff like this that I really enjoy about Michael Gallagher’s writing.  The tactical stuff is so well done, it’s the quieter scenes, the character moments that really screw it up for me.  This knocks out the power to the whole complex, and gives us a chance to see ALeta shining brightly, having just rescued Tarin and Old Redd of the Comandeers.

We then shoot to the moon and meet Composite’s gang of Inhumans.  The designs are pretty typical 90’s in terms of their costumes but the fact that there are four characters with four distinct body types shows that West is not boring in terms of his artistic ability.  He likes to mix it up and put a lot more thought into his character designs than many of his contemporaries.  We also get to learn who the green and gold clad villain was behind the scenes this whole time…and if you haven’t guessed it yet…it’s Loki, because why not, throw the Norse Gods in there too.

Back on Earth, Nikki apologizes to Charlie for flaming up his head seven issues ago and they make up. 

If you thought Wolver-Doom was dead from a little electricity, well you’ve got another thing coming as he gets up, unbeknownst to Rancor and lifts her off of the ground…with his claws.  It makes for a pretty striking image, except for the fact that Wolver-Doom seems to be standing on his toes to do it.  How does one get leverage to hoist anyone over their head while standing on their toes?  To abide by his code of honor, Vance Astro sends Yellowjacket, the newest member of the team up to face Wolver-Doom alone, to protect Rancor.  Somehow, someway, Yellowjacket proves herself infinitely more capable than Vance himself and actually chases Wolver-Doom off.  Everyone then teleports out of the complex before Aleta blows it up.

On the Guardians’ ship, they have Rancor in the medibay, completely unrestrained, mind you, because, well, I’m not really sure.  The last I knew she was a pretty powerful member of their rogues gallery.  As one would expect, she wakes up, dispatches Yellowjacket and takes off.  The rest of Rancor’s mutants follow suit and teleport away from the Guardians, which is not really a surprise as this is the primary power of one of their members, something Vance, or somebody, should have known.

We end this issue with Vance giving his Captain America shield to Tarin (now the President), to use as a symbol for humanity to rally around.  This puts a nice little bow on this issue and brings us to…


Next Issue:  We take a break from the regular series to take in another annual issue, this one dealing with the War of the Worlds, which has been a talking point since Valentino’s run and is finally being fleshed out.

Wednesday, June 18, 2014

The C-Word

About a month ago, I got a spam email from 'Eat This Not That' that included a link to this slideshow/article.  
It immediately occurred to me that this was a perfect opportunity to do something different with the strip, 
to go off on a tangent if you will.  
All of the "slides" are courtesy of Eat This Not That but the reactions are pure Shrimpy.  
Enjoy.

Tuesday, June 17, 2014

New Music Review – Tesla: Simplicity

                Even though Tesla were an 80’s metal band, they never had that 80’s flair.  They had the hair, sure, but their music was always more than just the fluff that most bands that rose to prominence in the 80’s provided.  Most rock music has blues undertones, but where a lot of the 80’s bands glossed over that with synthesizers and hair spray, Tesla embraced it, and because of that, their music has stood up a lot better (in my opinion) than other bands of that era.

                It doesn’t hurt that Tesla is also putting out new music on a fairly regular basis.  Despite a break between 1994 and 2000, Tesla has been going strong for the better part of thirty years, which includes relentless touring as well as a steady stream of albums.  Sure, a couple of those albums weren’t entirely new material (Real to Reel was an album of covers, while Twisted Wires was an acoustic compilation – and actually really good!).  Tesla recently released a new album titled Simplicity, which is in lockstep with their mantra of bare-bones songwriting.  Tesla has long bucked the trend of overproduced music, preferring instruments played by skilled musicians along with a vocalist who’s voice still has a considerable range over a computer.

                The tracks on this album are all well done, and hard to believe that they were all single day recordings, but they run the gamut from hard and heavy to piano-laced beauties.  Frank Hannon is still one of the best guitar players and songwriters of the 80’s that no one remembers until they hear a Tesla album.  Seriously, who are the best 80’s guitarists?  Van Halen, Mars, Sambora maybe?, CC DeVille or Phil Collen?  Not to mention Mustaine, Hammett and all of the heavier acts from that era.  No one seems to remember that Tesla is the brainchild of Frank Hannon, his musical fingerprints are all over it (along with bassist Brian Wheat whose contributions can’t be undersold).  Jeff Keith has one of the most unique voices in music, part strained, part melodic, it sounds like he smoked a carton of Marlboros before stepping to the mike, yet he pulls it off every time.  You would think that a voice that unique would make everything sound the same after awhile, but Keith varies his delivery just enough to make each track its own individual entity.  The entire band has never disappointed in terms of execution, be it on the live stage or in the recording studio, and this album proves that point.  


                I loved how heavy Tesla’s last album Forevermore was, and while Simplicity doesn’t approach that level of heft, it’s not a disappointment in the least.  It’s a simple rock record with performers that are still as tight of a band as they ever were and definitely one to check out.  Now only if the band would come play a show in New York…

Monday, June 16, 2014

Introduction

About a month ago, I got a spam email from 'Eat This Not That' that included a link to this slideshow/article.  
It immediately occurred to me that this was a perfect opportunity to do something different with the strip, 
to go off on a tangent if you will.  
All of the "slides" are courtesy of Eat This Not That but the reactions are pure Shrimpy.  
Enjoy.

Friday, June 13, 2014

It's True

A hard dose of truth to close out "Best of Sluggy".

This strip came about during the short time I was in the "dating pool" before I met my fiance.  I found it to be hilarious the amount of women that said they wanted a funny guy, but would only give someone a chance to be funny if they were good looking.  Kind of hypocritical if you ask me.  It doesn't bother me anymore, but back then it prompted this strip. 


Thursday, June 12, 2014

Not So New Comic Review: Guardians of the Galaxy (1991) #38

                How could this comic get any weirder?  By throwing in a guest spot from the Beyonder of course!  That Marvel villain who was responsible for the Secret Wars in the 80’s now has his eyes set on the Guardians of the Galaxy, for reasons unknown.  Let’s see if we can figure it out.

                Well, this wouldn’t be a Guardians of the Galaxy comic without some manufactured drama, right?  This issue’s manufactured drama comes from the galaxy’s worst couple, Aleta and Vance Astro.  Now, I’m not saying Vance doesn’t have a case to be upset here, his supposed girlfriend disappears and reappears with no interest in him at all.  That’s pretty shitty, but he’s going about it like a whiny baby.  True, we don’t know how long they were actually together, comic book time being a funny, malleable thing and all, and Aleta (whether under her own power or that of the Hawk God) is acting like a bitch about the whole thing with no real explanation.  Maybe that’s the big problem here, not that their relationship is disintegrating, or that this storyline is following suit, but that there is no explanation provided to anyone.  Now I kind of feel Vance’s pain.

                After a quick interlude where Nikki and Yellowjacket are trying on new outfits, which is basically an excuse for a little T&A, we get back to mopey Vance.  Vance is busy wallowing inhis own self pity until the Beyonder snaps him out of it.  The Beyonder has trapped the Protégé and Malevolence in a crystal construct and is just holding them there, observing them, like a couple of goldfish.  Vance doesn’t like this development because, well, it’s wrong I guess and we are still establishing Vance’s moral high ground above anything else.  The Beyonder then gives Vance a new costume (this is apparently the new costume issue) which just consists of his old costume plus a long sleeve black undershirt.  The Beyonder never explains this, he just leaves.

                Next, we get back to the bridge, where Vance has been summoned so he can see Yellowjacket’s new costume, which is pretty silly in its own right.

                After a quick stop on the moon, where the green and gold clad individual is still waiting to be revealed, we head to Earth.  The Guardians have teleported down into the stronghold of the Comandeers, only to realize that the Comandeers are no more as Retox wiped them out.  We even get to see the final few moments before Train (the leader of the Comandeers) is captured as she is recording a video diary at the time.  The Guardians head out to the old Realiteevee plant (aren’t we done with this storyline yet?) and wind up coming across Batwing and Blockade in the process, beating up both of them on their way. 

                The Guardians get to the Realiteevee plant at the very end of last issue’s events between Rancor and Doom.  We then get to see that Doom is not necessarily Doom anymore as he now has Wolverine’s claws (minus the one that was somehow broken and is currently in Rancor’s possession).  Doom reveals that only the brain of Dr. Doom remains while it is currently being housed in the Adamantium laced skeleton of Wolverine.  I have two major issues with this revelation.  One: many many issues ago, somewhere in the teens around the first introduction of the mutants I believe, there was a plotline that was starting to lead us in a direction basically saying that Wolverine is still alive and taking on more of a low-key, subservient role.  That was apparently completely tossed out when Valentino left and no mention was made of it again.  To be honest, if I wasn’t reading these issues back to back I may not have even caught it myself, but I did.  Two: the “skeleton” that Doom inhabits is more along the lines of a robot with ribs.  Are we supposed to believe that this is what Wolverine’s skeleton looks like underneath his current skin and musculature?  Why does he have normal hands and what looks like boots instead of feet?  If it is indeed a robot with adamantium bone accoutrements, is Doom really as invincible as he thinks?  Can’t Rancor just destroy the robot portion of Doom?  Plus, Doom and Wolverine are two vastly different heights.  Doom is a regal height, tall and noble in stature while Wolverine is a “runt”.  Wolverine’s bones wouldn’t “fit” Dr. Doom’s proportions.  Oh well, that’s comics for you!


Next issue: Wolver-Doom  uses his adamantium-laced robot skeleton to fight Rancor on live television, complete with a double-sized issue and fancy cover. 



Tuesday, June 10, 2014

New Music Review: KISS – 40 Years Decades of Decibels

                KISS has a long history of doing anything and everything to stay relevant.  Be it removing their trademark makeup to garner attention or completely changing their musical style to mimic what is popular at the time.  Another way the band accomplishes this is by putting out Greatest Hits compilations at a fairly regular clip, even when there is no reason to.  This year marks the fortieth anniversary of the “Four Who Are One” and with that comes, of course, a new greatest hits album.

                Let me preface this review by saying that I have been a KISS fan for the majority of my life, I have seen them in concert numerous times and would continue to go, funds permitting, every year until they call it quits.  That being said, I loved this collection of KISS music.  Can you get most of it if you buy the box set?  Sure.  Can you get most of it if you buy the live albums?  Not in this form, but yes.  If you have all of the studio albums or even just the box set, is this disc entirely necessary?  Not at all.  But you know what?  Sometimes I want to hear “Strutter ’78” (from the Double Platinum album – That’s right, they put a song from a Greatest Hits album on another Greatest Hits album, only KISS) and “Heaven’s on Fire” from the often overlooked Glam Metal staple Animalize on the same disc. 

                There are a few nuggets in this double disc collection that do put it over the top.  First of all, there are a lot of live cuts.  This includes the standards from Alive I-IV, but it also has some that I don’t own, and honestly never knew were out there, like a live version of that ode to sex on the road “Room Service” as well as killer live versions of “Deuce”, “Firehouse”, and a personal favorite of mine “Cold Gin”.  These little treasures make this more than just another Greatest Hits album. 

                With a career spanning forty years and twenty studio albums (not including the solo albums) there are bound to be tracks left off that I (or any other die-hard, card-carrying member of the KISS Army) felt should be included.  The most glaring omission in my mind is the ballad “I Still Love You”.  The Creatures of the Night version is all well and good, but the version from the Unplugged concert is one of the best songs in the catalog.  Leaving that out for a decent but not special rendition of “Do You Love Me?” from the same concert seems like an odd choice in my opinion.  Other than that, the track selection seems pretty standard for a Greatest KISS album (a lot of the early stuff, even if it’s in different iterations, with a track here and there from the early 80’s all the way up to the current albums).  Something heavier from Revenge (the KISS grunge album) or more from Creatures of the Night would have been welcome additions but not necessary on a Hits compilation.


                All in all, Decades of Decibels is a quality album that doesn’t feel like a cash-grab from the world’s foremost cash-grab band.  If this is your first taste of KISS beyond what you hear on the radio, it’s as good a place to start as any.

Monday, June 9, 2014

Friday, June 6, 2014

Thursday, June 5, 2014

Not So New Comic Review: Guardians of the Galaxy (1991) #37

                Dr. Strange is dead!  You know it’s real too because it says so right on the cover to this issue.  Now the Guardians need to deal with Dormammu without the aid of the most powerful magical figure in the Marvel Universe.  How will they fare?  Let’s find out. 

                We start out with Dormammu standing triumphant over the fallen form of Dr. Strange.  He doesn’t get a chance to rest, however as he is quickly teleported inside the Guardians’ ship where he is punched by Charlie.  Before he can recover, Charlie (remember, the guy that was in a coma a couple minutes ago) keeps beating the tar out of him.  Before he can land a counterpunch he is teleported again.  This time he has to deal with Yellowjacket who is shrunk down to her tiny form and blasting away at him.  In order to take her out, Dormammu is just going to explode from all sides with his magical powers, which would destroy the ship as well if it wasn’t for the fact that right before he does that he’s teleported outside into space where his tantrum is harmless and right into the waiting arms of Krugarr who is eager to avenge the death of his mentor.

                We now travel to the moon, where Dr. Doom is being watched by a mysterious figure in green and gold and his creepy minion named composite, which is a creation taking all of the qualities of the Inhuman royal family and combining them into one individual.

                Back in space, both teams of Guardians are gathering in the ship as Krugarr continues his assault on Dormammu,  Just as Dormammu launches a counterattack, Talon telepathically contacts Krugarr and volunteers to send his power, and the power of the ancient one into Krugarr in order to defeat Dormammu once and for all.  It’s odd as we saw pretty much this exact same thing happen last issue and it’s what got Dr. Strange killed, yet for some reason it’s supposed to work this time?  And here’s the kicker…it does!  As well done as that whole “teleport Dormammu around to disorient him and then attack him” portion of the story was, the payoff here is incredibly lame. 

                At the end of it all, Talon get’s the dead Doctor’s Eye of Agamotto and the Guardians get a new ship (the Galactic Guardians’ ship, just handed over by Martinex).  The Guardians agree to go  to Earth to check on the Comandeers and everyone splits up.

                Back on Earth Rancor makes her move and attacks Dr. Doom in a pretty decent sequence by Kevin West.  Our final shot is Rancor twisting her Wolverine claw in the now dying Dr. Doom.  Here’s a question that has gnawed at me since this whole Rancor and her missing Wolverine claw thing started…how does she hold it without cutting her hand?  Sure she has a healing factor but wouldn’t there be blood from the cut?  Especially with the force she uses to stab and cut Doom with? 


Next issue: It’s a stabby good time with Rancor and Doom.

Wednesday, June 4, 2014

Everything That is Wrong With the World

How many of you have actually had that type of conversation with a friend?

No, mom, put your hand down.

Tuesday, June 3, 2014

New Music Review: Black Stone Cherry – Magic Mountain

                It’s been three years since the last Black Stone Cherry album, and in that time, not a whole lot has changed musically.  This is not a knock on the band or the new album Magic Mountain as it is just as good as the previous three releases from the band.  To be perfectly honest, in an era when every band was trying to sound like Nickelback, Black Stone Cherry set itself apart by blending southern rock with grunge and metal influences, creating a heavy sound that was equally melodic.  Where Nickelback was heavy rock that hit you over the head with a hammer of suck, Black Stone Cherry was more subtle, using its influences to craft a sound all its own instead of trying to create a sound that mimicked anyone else. 

                In the eight years since the release of their self-titled debut (eight years, holy shit I’m getting old) Black Stone Cherry has perfected the formula of heavy southern rock more so than anyone I have ever seen.  The music is meaty, the bottom end of the band keeps churning along while the guitars fly alongside in perfect accompaniment.  I wouldn’t make the case for any of the band members being the best at their respective positions, but with Black Stone Cherry it’s not about having the best guitarist or drummer and building around that.  Black Stone Cherry is truly a cohesive unit, as much of a real band as I have ever seen. 

                Magic Mountain itself goes from heavy to light in terms of its song selection, creating a nice balance and breaking up any monotony that could come from fifteen heavy songs (which is a very “hair metal” way of thinking).  Standout tracks for me were the first single “Me and Mary Jane” and “Hollywood in Kentucky”.  They both epitomize the best of the heavy songs and the softer, countryish selections respectively. 


                If you’ve been waiting around for another Skynrd album or wish your southern rock was a bit more rock and a bit less southern…Black Stone Cherry is the band for you.  All four albums in their catalog are interchangeable so I can’t really recommend one over the other, but Magic Mountain is as good a place as any to start.

Monday, June 2, 2014

Sensitivity

Thanks to my brother Nik for the joke.  This is a pretty god indication of the next two weeks of strips as we delve in to "The Best of Sluggy".  These aren't repeat strips, just a handful of strips that are perfect indications as to the personality of everyone's favorite angry, alcoholic slug before we see major changes to Sluggy within the next year.