Here's a recent viewing that I recommend to any schlock cinema head looking for a few yucks. The long-awaited (by me anyway) release of Trog (1970) on DVD. Sure, it's been available on VHS and it's hardly the type of film that garners critical acclaim. So what. I pity the fool who cannot appreciate the likes of Trog. Joan Crawford stars as "noted" Anthropologist (whatever noted means), Dr. Brockton. She desperately wants the world to appreciate Trog, the missing link, who was discovered in caverns below the moors by some young spelunkers. Mean old Mr. Murdock - played by one of my favorite character actors, Michael Gough - doesn't see Trog as a value to science and/or humanity. He wants Trog destroyed because he (Trog - or Murdock?) is nothing more than an uncivilized beast. Dr. Brockton shows Trog is a sensitive, new-age kinda guy capable of speech (only after some type of ill-defined surgery) and catching a ball that is slowly rolled to him. Murdock, fearing the public will side with Brockton, attempts to sabotage the anthropologist's efforts by destroying her lab and framing Trog as the culprit. Now free and enraged, Trog slaps Murdock around and heads for town where the poor, misunderstood woolly bully has to defend himself against angry shopkeepers. Trog eventually makes for the caves he used to call home. That's pretty much it. I don't want to spoil the ending where Trog is destroyed - oops! What a film. I love the Trog make-up. It's actually a mask but who cares. The film is rife with scientific inaccuracies and loaded with silly lines that make one scratch his or her head in disbelief. Unfortunately, they just don't make 'em as lovable as this anymore.
Well, days passed and I thought of nothing to post. Then today, after three longs weeks of waiting on that ever-so-slow international shipping, I got a yellow slip in my P.O. Box. The "Never Mind The Pistols Here's The Kids" 7" EP I won on eBay way back when finally arrived from Germany. Now I have some inspiration for a new post, I thought. Yes, those bloody Belgians, the Kids. They're worth talking about. So I cracked it open and slapped it on the ol' turn table. Not to say that I'm dissapointed, but I'm glad I didn't pay a whole lot more than I did (about $26). The cover is a booklet with photos, newspaper articles, a discography and a 1995 interview with Ludo, the singer / guitarist (he's the sassy looking one in the striped wife-beater). The record contains 6 songs. It kicks off with "No Work", an unreleased studio cut from 1977 that would fit in nicely with their first record, which, if you haven't heard, is a must. Aside from the studio cut, there are 5 live songs from 1978 including a cover version of Wire's "12XU." It's all vintage material released by Wild Wild Records out of France. I don't see it on the discography on the Kids' website, so I assume it's an unofficial release. Frankly, I don't care. In later years, the Kids became more of a power pop outfit (I really hate to use that phrase), as the naive edge dulled & the music became more polished. Ludo still tours as The Kids. They played in Texas a few months ago with a friend's band. I really should ask him about that show. If you haven't heard the unreleased track from '77 included on this record, here it is for your listening pleasure.
The KIDS - No Work
Welcome to Supernaut blog's inaugural post. I'm starting this blog, like so many others, for the sole purpose of stroking my own ego. As a way of demonstrating and parading my own (self-perceived) excellence. Well, that and to share my passions with anyone out there with similar interests; record collecting and movies, I mean films, no I mean the cinema - ah, that's it!, but not necessarily those topics. Actually, anything but politics and sports. To get the blog rolling I am starting with a bit on one of my favorite 7" records, The Leather Nun's "Slow Death" EP on Industrial Records from 1979. The Leather Nun hailed from Sweden and this, their first release, is a classic. The combination of raw, primitive rock-n-roll evinced in "No Rule" and hinted at in the intro to "Ensam I Natt" coupled with the gloomy, industrial weirdness of "Slow Death" and "Death Threats" satisfies both the head-banger and art snob within. It's win win, really. 
As mentioned, only the intro to "Ensam I Natt" was featured on the 7". I can't say why for sure, I assume it was a spacing issue, as "Slow Death" takes up almost all of the B side at 5:40. The full-length version of "Ensam I Natt" was made available on a 12" re-issue put out by Wire Records in 1986. The 12" includes a live recording of "Slow Death" from 1980 featuring a young, breast-less Genesis P.Orridge and Monte Cazazza - on violin and synthesizer respectively. I frequently see the 7" Industrial Records version at record shops or online but rarely see the 12" re-issue on Wire. Both are worth having. I have posted an mp3 of "No Rule" and the full version of "Ensam I Natt" for your listening pleasure.
The LEATHER NUN - No Rule
The LEATHER NUN - Ensam I Natt