Hippie Love Turbo Radio Show - Code Word "Watermelon"

On this week's Hippie Love Turbo Radio Show, on KUCR 88.3 FM, there were some Tennessee connections as you heard, Johnny Burnette (born in Memphis, TN), Hayden Thompson (moved to Memphis and cut some records at Sun Studios), and Carl Mann (born in Huntingdon, TN and signed to Sun Records). Something that really caught my attention during my research was Carl Mann's hometown of Huntingdon, TN. The small town has a preforming arts center named after Dixie Carter, an actress best known for her role as Julia Sugarbaker on Designing Woman. As critics look back at Designing Woman they recognize the progressive views embedded in the show, especially season 3's 2nd episode entitled: "The Candidate." During the episode Julia Sugarbaker debates a commissioner that embraces prayer in school and believes in removing homeless shelters to, "return the streets back to people that pay for them." 

At the episode's climax, Ms. Sugarbaker has a powerful monologue where she critiques the commissioner's talking points while her friends and colleagues watch on. What's particularly interesting about Ms. Sugarbaker's monologue is that it didn't necessarily align with Dixie Carter's own personal views being that Dixie Carter viewed herself as a Libertarian leaning conservative. Of course, we shouldn't expect actors to share all of the personal beliefs held by the fictional characters that they depict, but in today's political climate it almost seems refreshing that someone could separate their personal beliefs from the roles they portray. Then again, I doubt anyone believes Charlize Theron and Megyn Kelly share similar political views just because Theron played Kelly in 2019's Bombshell.

Speaking of movies, let's look at this episode's creepy film suggestion: Tombs of The Blind Dead! The film features a bunch of spooky scary skeletons that rise from the grave to attack the living because... that's just what zombie/revenants do. The Blind Dead are re-animated corpses of old Knights of The Templar and the film opens with a flashback to the Knight's torturing a woman for unknown reasons. I guess they've always been into the whole torture and cannibalism thing. The plot is fairly confusing or, for better words, lacking but that's not really what you'd watch this movie for. Movies like this are more about the atmosphere and eeriness. 

The Blind Dead are, well, blind so they search for their victims by listening to their heartbeats. When the Blind Dead catch their pray they typically strip them of their flesh and nibble them to death. It's very difficult to watch at times. Difficult to watch without laughing that is.

In fact, I could have sworn that, towards the end of the film, even one of the extras looked like she was holding back a smirk as she was attacked by one of the Blind Dead's silver oven mitts. I could over analyze the effects all day but in reality I think the film features enough entertaining spookiness to keep you watching for 90 minutes. However, I'm not sure if I could watch the other THREE films in the Blind Dead series but, then again, who am I kidding? I probably will.

 

This week's playlist can be found below:

 

 
Ida Rojani – Tertidur

Vampiri - Aveva Un Occhio Di Vetro

Zakary Thaks - Face To Face

Nazz - Lay Down And Die, Goodbye

Hippie Love Turbo Radio Show - Code Word "Mango"

On this week's Hippie Love Turbo Radio Show, on KUCR 88.3 FM, I played a bunch of cover songs so I thought it'd be neat to post the originals or the versions that most people are familiar with. Bands and artists still cover other artists' works, but it's rare that the songs that modern artists cover are contemporaneous. What I mean by that is, there are a ton of cover versions of songs from the 60s that came out the same exact year as the originals. I don't see that happen very often anymore and when I racked my brain thinking of more modern examples the only one that came to mind is Tame Impala's New Person, Same Old Mistakes and Rihanna's version which uses the same backing track. Both tracks came out less than a year apart.

Of course, back in the day artists didn't really share the same backing track but instead they typically recorded their own version. For example, I played The Electric Prunes' version of Ain't It Hard but the original by Gypsy Trips came out just a year before and supposedly both bands recorded in Skyhill Studios. Listening to both songs, however, you can tell The Electric Prunes put their own spin on the song. Another example that I played was Cosmo and The Carnations' version of I'm A Little Mixed Up which came out the same year as the superior original by Betty James. During the show you also heard Les Belges preform a French language version of The Hollies Have You Ever Loved Somebody? and both versions came out in 1967. Finally, I played Dick Rivers' C'est Ma Vie which is a cover of It's My Life which was made famous by The Animals. Not only did those two songs come out in 1965 but they were both released only a couple months apart! Wild stuff.

And now, let's get into this week's trash film recommendation: The Driller Killer! It's a slasher film where the killer's weapon of choice is a corded drill. The movie really leans into the absurdity his weapon as the killer powers it by wearing a giant and cumbersome battery belt that he discovers through a commercial on late night TV. 

However, unlike most slasher films the main protagonist is the killer. You follow the disturbed young man, Reno, as he delves deeper into his psyche and begins a killing spree fueled by his stressful home life and fears of becoming a derelict like his estranged father. While much has been said about the film's gore and violence, what I think makes this film stand out is the setting. You get a feel for that late 70s New York hustle and street life. Everyone in the film is skeezy, drugged out, or gritty in some way or another. As much as the film is about the killer Reno, it's also really about artists and musicians living on life's fringes. My favorite thing about the movie is the film's resident No Wave/Punk band Tony Coca Cola and the Roosters. They constantly play music and flirt with success as Reno struggles to make rent by selling his oversized paintings. You really get a feel for Reno's frustration with having to deal with a bunch of loud neighbors that no one else seems to mind.

The Driller Killer would be worth a watch even if there was no serial murder due to the amazing setting that serves as a snapshot to a time that's often forgotten. Then again, maybe I've been warping my brain by watching too many of these movies. Yikes!

 

Anywho, this week's playlist can be found below:

 

 
Karkey At The New Hammond - Work Song

Dick Rivers - C'est Ma Vie

The Images - Louie Go Home

Nazz - Lay Down And Die, Goodbye