NevousNorvus. I first discovered his music in John Water's insane cult film "Female Trouble". The song was "Dig" and it cracks me up in disbelief every time I hear it. Nervous Norvus, starting in 1956 crafted jittery, sometimes annoying but always addictive novelty music with a hepcat attitude and way out there beat lyrics that verge on dada. I love his stuff. His first single was 'Tranfusion", a deranged song about the dangers of reckless driving. He followed with the nonsensical"Dig", the science fiction, beatnik opus "The Fang", and other singles. He kept recording throughout the 1950's. By the time 1960's rolled around, his life sank into mystery. He passed away in 1968 from cirrhosis of the liver.
Here's a sampling of his lyrics, from "The Fang": "I got a be-bop cat, man, a real stingaree And a solid gold keychain down to the knees And real nervous pegs with a crazy crease I'm the Fang "
I have a small handful of his singles that Ive downloaded from the internet here and there. There is a comprehensive CD collection of his works called "Stoneage Woo" on Norton Records that I'm going to have to break down and buy soon. There is a great article on Nervous Norvus you can read here. Hope you get as much of a kick out of his stuff as I do.
"Nothing has ever stripped your nerves as screamingly raw as THE GORE GORE GIRLS!" So goes the promo for this Herschell Gordon Lewis splatter fest.....and for once the teaser is dead-on because you will be needing a shower, some psyhco-therapy, and a barf bag(if you're the squeamish type) after you've feasted your eyes on this blood feast to end all blood feasts!
Made in 1972 at the end of H.G Lewis' career as a filmmaker, THE GORE GORE GIRLS pulls no punches. H.G. Lewis(a.k.a "The Godfather of Gore") was embittered with film-making at the time so he made a gore film that would be his most extreme and memorable and yet poke fun at all the trappings of the genre.
And extreme it is! This movie is all out gore. There is no point in mentioning the plot, and the acting is wooden and overdone simultaneously....by far the worst acting ever in an H. G. Lewis film.
So here's the deal. Go-go dancers are being gruesomely murdered in ways unheard of and we are shown every deep red detail. The camera does not flinch. It stays glued on the mayhem, and you have no choice but to watch more. You will see eyes gouged out, faces deep-fried until the skin melts off, brains and intestines everywhere, faces burned with irons, buttocks tenderized with a meat tenderizer until they bleed, nipples cut off with scissors(white milk comes out of one, chocolate milk comes out the other).....you get the point. There is a detective out there looking for the killer somewhere, but the way this movie is made, you don't care if they find the killer or not because it's just gore gore gore all the way through! Do you have the nerve to tackle THE GORE GORE GIRLS? I hope so, because if you don't, you're missing out... 'Til next time, "I ain't nothing but a gore hound"
Here's a hilarious go-go dancing clip from the movie:
The Wipers' "Over the Edge". A great punk album that came out in 1983. These guys come off as a cross between British punk a la The Sex Pistols and early Damned, and the gloomy, depressive sounds of Joy Division. "Over the Edge" is an exceptional work that is both highly energetic and angst ridden at the same time. Kurt Cobain sighted The Wipers as a huge influence on his music. Check them out. Here's the first track from the album.
PSYCHOMANIA(1971), directed by Don Sharp. I was a bit skeptical about this movie at first, but it exceeded my expectations. Basically it is about a violent motorcycle gang called "The Living Dead" that wreaks terror and havoc on their city. The gang leader's mother is heavily into the occult and she has found the secret to immortality. The object of her worship is rather strange indeed...a frog! So anyway, her son discovers her secret and sets out to use it for his own nefarious ways...you see, if you kill yourself and you want to come back badly enough , you will!
So......the gang leader drives his bike off a bridge and he's dead........they bury him with his bike....but later that day he arises from the dead and rides his bike out of his grave! Soon, one after the other, each of "The Living Dead"commit suicide so they can live forever.....some come back, some don't.
Being undead has no disadvantages. You keep your youthful appearance forever and nothing can hurt you. This makes the gang much more violent and dangerous....they are murdering way too many people just for kicks!
Also, there are problems....the gang leader's girlfriend does not want to be undead.....she must make a very difficult choice....
Although low-budget, this movie is well made. The cinematography is atmospheric with a creepy vibe, the acting is good, and it is generally pleasing to the eye. The soundtrack is good as well: a sinister groove with a wah-wah pedal pervades the movie throughout.
I highly recommend this one.
You can watch the first ten minutes of the movie here:
There is a great article on Nervous Norvus you can read here. Hope you get as much of a kick out of his stuff as I do.
