I was saddened today when I read that Kevin Dubrow, lead singer of Quiet Riot, was found dead in his Vegas home. I was lucky enough to meet Kevin on several occasions and interview him on my radio show. From my contact with him he seemed like a truly warm and lighthearted person. Talking to him gave me the feeling that he was just happy to have been a part of the rock/metal scene in one of it’s most important eras. Unfortunately, no information has been released on the cause of death. I remember seeing Quiet Riot open up for Poison at the PNC Bank Arts Center one year, and boy did they show up everyone on the bill! They were fantastic and sounded like they were just breaking onto the music scene. Just yesterday I was playing “Metal Health” on Guitar Hero and today he’s gone. On behalf of The Sexy Armpit, we’ll miss you Kevin…
The Goonies Treasures Discovered
In the past 20 some odd years it’s been tough being a Goonies fan. We waited such an insanely long time after DVDs became mainstream to even get The Goonies on DVD. ’80s classics like The Gremlins had an early release when DVD’s first got popular, but Goonies fans had to continually watch our beat up VHS copies. There’s also been constant teasing from the media for several years that a Goonies sequel has been in the works but it never seems to go anywhere.
Things started to look up a few years ago when The Goonies was finally given a nice treatment on DVD. About 6 years ago I started to notice an influx of Goonies merch like T-shirts, lunch boxes, and a whole lot of junk that could most likely be purchased at your local Hot Topic. I didn’t care what it was, or where I could get this stuff, I was just happy to see that my favorite movie of all time was finally getting some play. Even growing up there wasn’t much fervor for the Goonies and I didn’t see why. At the time, everyone close to my age loved watching the Goonies. I remember my mother bringing me to see it and I thought it was the most awesome movie ever and it reminded me of how it was hanging out with my friends at the time.
Just when there finally seems to be a big demand for Goonies stuff, I’m really losing my touch trying to keep tabs on all of these cool collectibles. If it weren’t for the Internet I would miss out on alot of crap. I try to keep up on the collectible landscape but the new Goonies action figures seemed to have slipped by me. I went to a website that said they’ve been out since August, so I immediately bought the entire 5 figure set. These figures are unbelievable. The accessories! Chunk has his milkshake (cause it brings all the boys to the yard), Mouth has his comb, and Mikey comes with an alternate hand so he can suck on his inhaler. Freakin’ amazing! While purchasing the figures, I noticed another entry for the “Copper Bone” contraption that Mikey used to activate the huge boulder trap. I couldn’t believe that a replica of this existed and how cool it looked. It’s a limited edition made by Mezco Toys and it was a Comic Con exclusive. When it came in the mail, I was overwhelmed at it’s authenticity and beautiful packaging.
Just this morning while doing a Goonie Google search, I found another great Goonies related treasure. How could I have missed this one? Did you happen to see it? Apparently Jeep is celebrating 20 years of their involvement in the Goonies film and they have a video game Goonies: Return to Astoria on their site. The game is downright horrible to play but there’s new artwork and a trailer to check out.
It’s fantastic that all this Goonies nostalgia’s happening, so hopefully it’ll make way for a sequel. I’m sure the pirate nostalgia caused by the popularity of the Pirates of the Carribean films helped out a bit. ’80s nostalgia in general is big too, and it only means dollar signs so why not keep it rolling? One of the best parts of being a Goonies collector is that there aren’t too many things to actually get. I’m happy with my Goonies posters, Goonies Burger King glasses, and movie magazines, although I am even more excited that there will be more to come.
Van Halen, Madison Square Garden 11/13/07
Last night at Madison Square Garden it felt like Van Hagar never existed. Dave, Alex, Eddie, and Wolfgang joined forces to bring fans a reunion tour. I know, I know…we all loved Michael Anthony but honestly, no disrespect, but I think all 20 some odd thousand of us were jam packed into the world’s most famous arena to rekindle our romance with the classic chemistry between Diamond Dave and Eddie Van Halen. There must’ve been a huge payoff because I would’ve never known these guys ever had a modicum of animosity toward each other by watching them on stage last night. The fact that David Lee Roth and Eddie and Alex Van Halen were nowhere in sight at their own Rock Hall induction ceremony didn’t even enter my mind. For me, this concert far surpassed any acceptance speech. Van Halen relentlessly pummeled their astonished audience with classics like “Everybody Wants Some,” “So This Is Love,” and “Mean Streets.”
I desperately want to be cliche and say that I took a time machine back to ’84 and that absolutely nothing has changed with VH, but it has, and it’s kind of impressive. Eddie’s a bit older now and reminds me of David Letterman, but he’s every bit the virtuoso he always was and that’s an understatement. If you’ve never witnessed Eddie Van Halen’s guitar execution it’s literally mind blowing. So, regarding Eddie being awesome on guitar, then it’s still ’84. He made that guitar his bitch and he did things you didn’t even know were possible with a guitar! It was like he studied the ancient art of Guitarma Sutra. Diamond Dave is still the master of ceremonies and a stellar showman, so that part is still the same. He’s opted NOT to wear spandex, tassels, or rock big hair, but he’s still twirling his mic stand and doing his random patented A.D.D spin kicks. Gotta love him…after all, he IS your Ice Cream man and he’s way more ripped than you!
To feel mesmerized at a concert if you’re not high is pretty remarkable. I just stood there letting these classic VH songs that I grew up with unfold before my eyes. I did get to hear alot of these songs when Van Halen toured with Gary Cherone, but this is really what many fans have been waiting 20 years for. With “Beautiful Girls” and “Somebody Get Me a Doctor,” the band’s chemistry just felt right, and not forced at all. That’s why I find it so strange why so many writer’s and critics are spreading the opposite word around. This show was as f’n organic as the pot in the audience that was giving me a contact high. At that point, “Dance the Night Away” and “Atomic Punk” just brought me more into rock euphoria.
Although “Jaime’s Crying” sounded a bit herky-jerky, getting to hear Dave’s banter throughout the show, though minimal, was a real treat: “Don’t stick that tongue out at me unless you intend to use it hot stuff!” The pinch to let me know I was actually in ’07 came when Dave referred to a “booty call,” since that term didn’t get big until Hagar was in office.
I sensed a vibe of relief onstage. It seemed like these guys were actually having a good time and happy to finally be “wrecking the place” together again. It’s not impossible since they still retain their title of world’s greatest party band and they always do it up big and thunderous. Naturally, this monumental night was capped off by Van Halen’s most recognizable song and biggest hit, “Jump.” Let’s just say I saw enough high fiving in the row in front of me to last a lifetime.
Some highlights for me were “Panama,” “I’ll Wait,” and “Hot for Teacher.”
The Sexy Armpit ‘s 3-year Anniversary…SPEECH…SPEECH!
I’ve never celebrated an anniversary for this site so I figured why not indulge in a grand Internet tradition? I’ve prepared a little speech…
The great Paul Stanley of KISS once said that they originally created KISS because they wanted to be a band that they would enjoy watching live themselves. In 2004, I set out to create a website that was original and reflected my personality. It turned out to be more difficult than I imagined. The look was there, but the content wasn’t. I realized that the things that I felt compelled to write about were already written about and even when I came up with new ideas, I would log on to sites like X-E, Progressive Boink, and other sites only to see that it was already written about promptly and gloriously. If there’s a new food or drink, or the return of an old toy line from the ’80s like Masters of the Universe, it’s published on the Internet instantly.
The Sexy Armpit exists not to break the news on popular culture, or even report, it but merely to give it’s perspective. The market for pop culture blogs is already saturated. Hopefully you’ll see that our mission isn’t to be quick on the mark, or the MOST nostalgic…but one that doesn’t follow the crowd.
For me, the desire to keep writing will always be there because I enjoy it. It’s obviously not about the money. The hard part is coming up with ideas that haven’t really been done too much on the Internet. If I were to write a piece on the reasons why I’d want to bang Teela, that might be humorous, but I bet some lonely guy has a running list on some site that’s been on a server since ‘94. (apparently the #1 reason is that “She loves Anal“)
3 Musketeers Dark Chocolate Mint
I’m really not a big candy guy, and it’s rare for me to find a variety that I really enjoy. I am a sucker for a limited edition candy, or a version that might not have a long run in stores. In this instance, inside the cool Batman trick or treat pail that my girl got for me, I found a new 3 Musketeers bar waiting for me mixed in with some other treats.
This was no ordinary 3 Musketeers bar either, this one was made with Dark Chocolate and had mint fluffy stuff inside. I’ve always leaned toward 3 Musketeers if I were to have a candy bar, mostly because they are lower in fat than other bars but also because they’re damn good. Of course, candy bars are notoriously packed with fat and calories, but this one will give you a less severe heart attack than if you just ate Baby Ruth’s or Whatchamacalits all day. And sorry NO, Snickers marathon bars do not count as a healthy meal! If you do look at nutritional information, then you’d be rather pleased to know that you won’t have to feel totally guilty eating this new bar.
One requirement before eating: you must have a taste for dark chocolate. I’m a maniac for dark chocolate and I’m the first one to grab the Special Dark Hershey’s whenever there’s a bowl of variety chocolates around. It’s usually not a big deal because everyone I know goes for Krackle like it’s a target and they’re snipers. It’s sick! The fact that dark chocolate is lower in fat than milk chocolate probably explains why there’s so many new candy and foods that are coming out featuring dark chocolate. Companies love to capitalize on health trends. I’ve tried the Snickers Dark bar and it’s really enjoyable but I don’t think it stands up to this one. It’s hard to change your taste with a bar as iconic as Snickers. You expect one flavor, the same one you’ve tasted forever. If it’s any different, it’s a let down!
The bar has a basic mint taste with a similar but softer texture than a York Peppermint Patty. I liked that it didn’t have a peppermint taste, but more of a vague mint which wasn’t overpowering. The version I got was actually 2 small bars in one package which is never fun. If I wanted FUN SIZE, I would’ve bought them. I think this is the way that they scam us by thinking we’re getting a whole bar, yet they chince on 2 centimeters of the bar. Crooks I tell ya!
Happy Halloween from The Sexy Armpit!
This is a reminder not to do anything stupid today, like roll a joint in a boy’s bathroom where you run the risk of being soaked by a guy dressed up like a shower.
Mike Spade’s Haunted House
Last week my girlfriend told me that I had to check out this house that was all done up for Halloween. My first reaction was, “How cool can a house be?” I figured it was done by some run of the mill obsessive decorator, like Clark Griswold in Christmas Vacation. You know how neighbors are always trying to one up each other. Well, I’ll be damned, because I was dead wrong about this one!
Mike Spade, a local magician, has the most kickass Halloween setup and he told me he’s been doing it for about 19 years. I couldn’t believe that I hadn’t heard about this and I lived in the area my entire life! It’s obvious that Mike genuinely loves putting his Haunted front yard up year after year. The amount of work that goes into his display and the details that you can pick out are spectacular. After checking it out on a cold October night, it was outrageous.
I’ve been to a ton of haunted houses. I’ve visited independent walk throughs, Disneyland, big sponsored haunted ordeals, and I can tell you that nothing can compare to one man’s quest to scare the shit out of people. Mike basically put a dark ride in his front yard sans the boats. What’s most surprising is that he does this all because he loves it and he doesn’t charge people, he only puts out a donation box.
Mike’s Halloween setup has been featured in Weird NJ. For those who aren’t aware, Weird NJ is a magazine that began as a small fanzine type newsletter featuring oddities around the state and now it’s gotten so popular that the publishers Mark and Mark have hosted their own show on History Channel and now also publish books about oddities in other states.
There’s only one day left but you should definitely check out “Mike’s Haunted House.”
Pictured above are some of my favorite moments from the display. You’ll see Samara from The Ring crawled out of a television set and is climbing up a tree. There were some glowing ghosts that moved so gracefully, exactly how I picture a real ghost. Mike also built an old fashioned hearse with a coffin inside that won’t stay closed because of that damned skeleton in there! Coming out of the ground are some ghouls that clearly want to come and join you while your taking your spooky stroll through Mike’s haunted house. For more info about Mike and video of the display click here.
Bon Jovi at The Prudential Center in Newark, N.J 10/25/07
Other media outlets and blogs were on this story like a cheap suit, so I’ll do it up Sexy Armpit style. If you know me in “real life,” then you know I’m a huge Bon Jovi fan. There’s Bon Jovi fans all over the world, but if you grew up a couple of miles away from Jon’s hometown and went to the same high school Richie Sambora did, there’s a special connection. Everyone all over town has a Bon Jovi story for you.
Here’s one: Opening night of the Prudential Center was pretty exciting. It took about 10 minutes to walk from Newark Penn Station to the new venue “The Rock” as they’re calling it. This wasn’t a fun journey because I had to pee so bad and people were walking very leisurely, like when they’re at the mall on a weekday. I briskly walked past everyone not giving a f–k about huge piles of horse shit in the streets. Horse shit? Oh yeah, there were police on horseback in addition to the 35,000 other cops and security strewn about the area. You’d think the President was coming. (I doubt Bush would last 3 seconds in Newark. I also doubt he’d be able to bypass all the piles of horse shit.)
TV crews and radio stations were setup and, once we got there, thousands of people were waiting in lines to actually get in the building! There was a big holdup because everyone had to get patted down, scanned, and then you had to do the hokey pokey. As I held out my ticket to give to the ticket taker, she said “I need your ticket.” I was a bit confused because that’s exactly what I was shoving in her face at that moment. They really trained these folks well! We made our way up the spiral staircase that brought us to the top that overlooked the foyer with the N.J Devils logo on the floor.
“The Rock,” is a brand new facility with the most up to date amenities. The center also features a bar/restaurant that’s open on the area side so you can watch whatever’s going on while your getting trashed and eating a $5.00 slice of pizza. I would say the place was fairly impressive, but I really didn’t think there was anything wrong with the Meadowlands Arena aka the Izod Center. I questioned how cutting edge the facility was when people were leaving after the show and the escalator stopped dead with a bunch of people on it. If we didn’t grab hold of each other we would have went flying into that disastrous place called “let’s cover this up by giving them comped Bon Jovi tickets for the next 10 nights so it doesn’t make the papers.”
Oh yeah, you probably want to know how the show was! Let’s put it this way, Bon Jovi NEVER puts on a bad show. Every time I’ve seen them they’ve been on point and I always leave saying how great the show was. It gets harder to top themselves but this show had a more laid back vibe, like on their latest album “Lost Highway.” The album is less rocking, and more reflective, with a country aspect to sound. That didn’t deter the band from kicking off the Prudential center and their world tour in a grand fashion: “I’m a New Jersey Devil and this is my new house,” Jon declared.
Highlights of the show: The opener “Lost Highway,” “We’ve Got it Goin‘ On” (What’s with all the the commercial jingles lately?), A spectacular rendition of “These Days” sung by Richie Sambora with Violinist Lorenza Ponce. How many times have you seen a violinist rocking out a solo? Then there was the middle aged guy who’s pissed drunk and thinks he’s giving his own concert to the people around him. I can’t forget the crazy people in front of us who thought they were filming a B-52’s video. (see above) They were dancing like they were at a Prince concert. The best moment as always was the finale of their anthem, “Wanted Dead or Alive.”
Rob Zombie’s Hellbilly Halloween
Ahh, the wonders of eBay. White Zombie and Rob Zombie basically have the monopoly as far as artists go on my iPod’s Halloween playlist. Not that their music is “Halloween music” but it definitely fits. **”American Witch” off of his latest release Educated Horses get’s alot of play.
Back in 1998, Rob Zombie released his solo album Hellbilly Deluxe. I was always a big White Zombie fan and it blew my mind to hear how amazing Rob Zombie’s solo album was. Alot of the marketing and merch surrounding the release of the album had some kickass artwork. This shirt was always one I was meaning to order but kept putting it off because it was usually around $30.00, which always seems high for a T-Shirt.
I forgot about getting the shirt for a long time, but a month or so ago I decided to see if any online T-Shirt shops had it, but with no luck. I went over to eBay and sure enough someone was selling a brand new one! I snatched it up and I’m glad I did even if my sole purpose was to drool over the artwork.
I really love the way Zombie is made into a ghoulish monster but still retains his actual appearance to an extent. I want to be a ghoul too, I wish I could draw! In this artwork we also see a Wolf-Man, a Mummy woman, a ghost, and a hunchback. The artist seemed to have given the picture a Halloween vibe since there’s pumpkins, a bat, a black cat, and lots of cobwebs in the background.
Spooky Viewing Pleasure on You Tube
While searching for some scary stuff on You Tube, I came across a few videos that are worth watching.
I’m going to wager that many of you already know about this but if not, I highly recommend checking out the re-cut Mary Poppins trailer entitled “Scary Mary.” Whoever thinks to re-edit these trailers are pretty damn creative. This one is especially original. I would’ve never though to make such a sweet innocent movie like Mary Poppins into a horror movie.
Even if you despise the band Papa Roach you should still check out this montage of Psycho clips put to their song “Getting Away with Murder.” It’s surprising to see how perfectly the song and lyrics meshed with the plot of the film.
Another re-cut film trailer which is already a classic is of the Shining. I’ve been watching this one frequently for a long time because it really makes me laugh. I commend the person who created this one because it’s completley over the top. Watch one of the creepiest movies ever miraculously turn into a touching drama, it’s SNL caliber!