Oh Patrick Swayze, You Will Be Missed

Got some great Patrick Swayze Tributes (yes it's a capital T because, well just because).

From Cage Potato, 10 Things Roadhouse Taught Us About Fighting.

And Adult Swim's take:

New Converge Song "Dark Horse" and back in NYC supporting Adult Swim's Mastodon/Dethklok tour

Converge is streaming a song from their latest album, Axe To Fall (out October 20th on Epitaph), called "Dark Horse" on their MySpace page. Check it out here. Also, check out the awesome artwork here on Lambgoat.

They previewed a song or two from their new album when I saw them back in March and it sounded promising but as you know, most new songs see a complete downturn in concert energy because they don't know how the story goes.

"Dark Horse" seems to take the thrashing, straight-ahead hardcore that made up a lot of No Heroes and adds, dare I say, melody to it. Like a somewhat catchy melody. There's almost a clear-cut, slight restraint to the song, using quick jabs of shouts and double kick bass, and a pulsing breakdown, then back to what sounds a little like the more metal-ish form of Strung Out on steroids.

Correct me if I'm wrong though guys and gals. It kicks ass with that unmistakable wall of sound that turns out to just be coming from Bannon's vocals.


Converge in support will probably play peanuts (let's say half hour?) unfortunately on their tour with the always awesome Mastodon and Dethklok from the Adult Swim show Metalocalypse. Also featured is High On Fire. It's a great bill fo' sho', and the tour roars into the Hammerstein Ballroom on October 30th, a great way to do up pre-Halloween, morbid style.

Adult Swim Presents: Summer at Santos. It's Free and you'll want to go.

This past week I was fortunate to attend the first of a 6 part series (no it's not a Ken Burns documentary) that Adult Swim is presenting at Andrew W.K.'s Santos Party House, not to be confused with Dino's Party House USA in the land that time forgot, the Penn Station black hole.

W.K. hosted the first round; the crowd filled up very quickly right before the first act came on, a sprightly Sherri Lilly (W.K.'s wife). She basically took everyone through a 30 minute cardio workout with songs like "Pop Your Chest" and "Sweet Beat." It was absolutely mesmerizing. Between all the jabs and left roundhouses there were lyrics that were so upbeat you couldn't help but be charmed, it's like she forced you to lighten up.

Santos is the perfect place really; fitting a couple hundred concentrated doses of 80s style (there were two toners, Ratt look-a-likes, and just all around products of any club scene in Tough Guys), friendly staff, and W.K.'s incredible energy. With signs like "Santos Party House wants you to act like you didn't read this" you know there's a bit of irreverence here, and it's all in good fun.

I could only stay for half of Aleister X, but the eclectic nature of the show (with some bigger names later in the summer) makes for a fun way to do up Thursday nights at the Chinatown/Soho divide. Future acts include one of my favorite Fah Q.'s - A.C. Newman, and the creator of one of my favorite new shows, Jon Glaser of Delocated (both appear on the next round on June 25th). Adult Swim staples like Tim and Eric and Dave Willis of Aqua Teen will host a bevy of more bands.

It's every other Thursday folks, and it's totally free (except any beers you might be purchasing).

Remaining Schedule:
June 25 – Jon Glaser (Delocated!)
With The Woggles, Cheeseburger, A.C. Newman and masked burlesque dancers, The Pontani Sisters

July 9 – Brendon Small (Metalocalypse)
With Paul Green’s School of Rock

July 30 – Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim (Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!)
With DJ Douggpound, Gildon Works, The Party Animals and Beat Jams

August 6 – Dave Willis (Aqua Teen Hunger Force and Squidbillies)
With special guests

August 20 – Christy Karacas (Superjail!)
Featuring a night of local New York bands

Delocated Season 1 on Adult Swim: Live Action That Tickles My Funnybone

Delocated, which premiered recently on Adult Swim, is about an asshole who goes into the witness protection program with his wife and son, all to be caught on camera, reality show style, with ski masks and voice modulators. The family is taken out of suburban bliss and moved to New York City (where Delocated is filmed). It's live action serial, which is sort of a change of pace for Adult Swim (even Tim and Eric, which I'm not a fan of, although I liked Tom Goes To The Mayor, has bumps and graphics and odds and ends).

Jon Glaser

It's always interesting, the mockumentary and reality show spoofs. The content is seen only through the lens of the show within the show, so eventually, unless there are self-referential jokes, you actually lose sight of the show-within-a-show fact and it just becomes, the show. Characters are placed in the context of the edits of the show, which are subject to the actual show's editing technique to tell the story, lots of cool stuff to think about. Which is fun.

Nadia Dajani

When I saw the pilot, I was like, this is ok, hipsters would love it, and it has just enough content laid out and exposition, but it wasn't incredibly exciting. However, after having seen the entire first season, I have to say that it can be a great platform for Jon Glaser (of Human Giant and those Tiny Hands webisodes), because the characters have a funny consistency and are developed throughout the first few episodes which is important and with such a short format and offbeat story it's well grounded in some great banter and set ups, especially between Jon, the husband, and his FBI protector Mike, played by longtime Late Night With Conan O'Brien writer and improv performer, Kevin Dorff (not related to Stephen, definitely not).

Kevin Dorff

The hilarious subplot of the assassin trying to get rid of Jon, played by Eugene Mirman, while trying to become a successful stand-up comedian gives a respite from the tyrannical and creepy antics (anything involving the girlfriend) of Jon (whose wife and son decide that the whole sh-bang isn't really for them).

Eugene Mirman

As a ska lover, I found the Bar Mitzvah (Ska Mitzvah, "skatzah balls") episode uproarious as we witness Jon's son in a ska phase with surprising fans found in the FBI. Along with "Rage Cage" and "Members Only" (where Jon and Mike dissect how not to set up a joke, total joke fail), there is strong material here for those who enjoy Wainy Days and The Office, and well, anything that places New York in the running for best setting for comedic material is always a good thing.

You can watch videos of Delocated here at their official sub-site at Adult Swim.

Not So Full Coverage of New York Comic Con

So I'll be there with my new old Canon D60 that I'm still figuring out (new to me, old to Eric Westpheling) to scope out the scene at this year's Comic Con New York at the Javits Center. As a pretty strict Marvel fan, I fell off about 14 or 15 years ago but still love dusting off the old stories for another run through every time I go home to my twin size bed upstate (and they never cease to amaze me). I was hoping to make the show presented above but I already got tickets to the English Beat/Bad Manners/Big D show.

Comic Con over the years has certainly expanded (cast of Fringe? Chuck? Torchwood?) but I'm told that New York is where the real costumes come out (eat it San Diego). It's NYC: everything is more excessive here. I'll be taking some photos and getting some stuff done like completing some story arcs....from 14 or 15 years ago that I never picked up issues for. Or I could just spike my hair up and pretend I'm a Dragonball Z character. Or I could fart and I'm sure it would smell better than some odors flying around. See the thing about events like this, and the way they've expanded as they grow more popular and businesspeople get wise to it, is that added exposure is always good, but at what point does it really get too much? Shit like Sundance is a joke nowadays (well now I just sound really bitter about not being famous...), but on the flipside, Comic Con, which is a different brand, a different genre even though movies are creeping in to supply fanboys and girls with some great material, seems to get cooler in it's bloated form. The New York version might not be as trendy, but hell, I'm sure there'll be some really colorful cats and kittens.

Anywho, a lot of action from Cartoon Network/Adult Swim (boy do they love James Harrison now) has come out of the city and Brooklyn, including the guys from Superjail!, which is about as twisted as TV gets. Here are SOME of their panels (and a free party on the night of the 6th which you may or may not want to check out featuring John Glaser and his new Adult Swim live action show, Delocated, filmed here in NYC; see below). Oh and a Venture Bros. panel, of which Season 3 comes out on March 24th.

All times and schedules subject to change, so be sure to double check while you are there to get the very latest schedules. Especially if Breckin Meyer's signing times change.

PANELS

SUPERJAIL!

Friday, Feb. 6, 4:45 – 5:45 p.m. (ET)

Location: Panel Room 1A08-12

Heavy animation and violence run rampant in Superjail! Created by Christy Karacas, Stephen Warbrick and Ben Gruber, the series uses flash animation to create traditional animation gags that move at a dizzying pace. Superjail is the most intense and complicated jail in the universe, residing on a remote island under the tedious eye of the mysterious and slightly delirious Warden. The psychedelic landscape of Superjail! features dangerous criminals, fantastic creatures and frequent riots. The Warden watches over every square inch of the jail like a crazed big brother in his chaotically crafted prison. Criminals may escape from time to time, but their heinous crimes undoubtedly bring them back to Superjail.

The panelists include:

· Christy Karacas, creator / executive producer, Superjail!

· Stephen Warbrick, creator / executive producer, Superjail!

· David Wain, voice of The Warden, Superjail!

· Ted Cohn, voice of Jared, Superjail!

· Richard Mather, voice of The Twins, Superjail!

Moderated by Keith Crofford, Vice President of Production for Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim

ROBOT CHICKEN

Saturday, Feb. 7, 1:45 p.m. – 2:45 p.m. (ET)

Location: Room 1A08-12

Adult Swim’s Robot Chicken: Seth Green and Matthew Senreich (creators/executive producers) speak about Adult Swim’s original series, Robot Chicken. Now in its fourth season, the network’s Emmy-winning series uses stop-motion animation to bring pop-culture parodies to life in a modern take on the variety/sketch show format. In Robot Chicken, no pop-culture target is safe. Legions of action figures are used to spoof everything from The Hills to James Bond to “Composite Santa Claus.” Throughout the series, Green and Senreich have enlisted the help of numerous guest voice actors, including Tila Tequila, Seth MacFarlane, Conan O’Brien, Hayden Panettiere, Hugh Hefner, Carrie Fisher and George Lucas, among others. In addition to the series, Green and Senreich have also created two Star Wars-themed specials: the Emmy-nominated Robot Chicken: Star Wars from 2007 and its follow-up, Robot Chicken: Star Wars Episode II, which premiered last November.

The panelists include:

· Seth Green, creator/executive producer, Robot Chicken

· Matthew Senreich, creator/executive producer, Robot Chicken

· Breckin Meyer, writer/actor, Robot Chicken

· Kevin Shinick, writer/actor/creative director, Robot Chicken

· Geoff Johns, writer, Robot Chicken

Moderated by Keith Crofford

THE VENTURE BROS.

Saturday, Feb. 7, 6:45 p.m. – 7:45 p.m. (ET)

Location: Room 1A08-12

The Venture Bros. is an animated comedy series that follows the adventures of Dean and Hank Venture, the twin sons of famous-but-flailing scientist Dr. Thaddeus S. Venture. In August 2004, viewers were introduced to Hank and Dean, the all-American boys oddly out of place in today’s world. The twins live in a high-tech compound where their father, the world-renowned Dr. Venture, carries out his scientific experiments. But it’s not all reading, sports and goofing around in dad’s lab for these fraternal twins. Once the boys leave home, they inevitably find themselves in danger. Doc Venture’s work takes the family everywhere from a space station to the Bermuda Triangle to the slums of Tijuana. And when your father has enemies like The Monarch, there is bound to be trouble. It’s a good thing that muscle-bound Brock Samson, the family’s bodyguard, is around to deliver his brutal form of vengeance.

The panelists include:

· Jackson Publick, creator and voice of Hank Venture, The Monarch, Henchman 24, Pete White and Sgt. Hatred, The Venture Bros.

· Doc Hammer, creator and voice of Dr. Girlfriend, Henchman 21 and Billy Quizboy, The Venture Bros.

Moderated by Keith Crofford (yup him again)

ADULT SWIM SIGNINGS

Saturday, February 7

· 3:00 – 4:00 p.m. Seth Green, Matthew Senreich, Breckin Meyer, Kevin Shinick Robot Chicken, Rm. 1A01

· 7:45 – 8:45 p.m. Jackson Publick and Doc Hammer, The Venture Bros, Rm. 1A08-12

ADULT SWIM EVENTS

Adult Swim Presents Jon Glaser, Cheeseburger & Andrew W.K.

Friday, February 6, 7:00 – 10:00 p.m. (doors open at 6:30 p.m.)

Santos Party House, 96 Lafayette St., NYC

A free fan event hosted by Jon Glaser, of the new Adult Swim show Delocated!, including performances by Cheeseburger (Superjail! co-creator Christy Karacas is Cheeseburger’s guitarist) and Andrew W.K.

For more on Santos Party House, go here.