Lagniappe Mobile Blog

My list of great Halloween movies is informed by the fact that I am a scaredy-cat. Most of my choices aren’t even rated R. Horror film enthusiasts will be outraged. Nevertheless, when I get in the mood for Halloween movies, and I do celebrate all holidays primarily through the sentimental act of film viewing, these are what I pop in. 

“Twin Peaks”- both the series and the film “Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me.” The feature film is actually too scary for me, but the series, especially the first season, focuses more on creepiness than horror, which is pretty much all I can handle. I think a Twin Peaks party would be fun for Halloween because there are so many characters you can dress as, and there are so many occasions for character costumes and theme tie-ins. You can han d out logs as party favors, and serve pie and coffee. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, this probably isn’t the party for you, but Netflix the series and catch up. Most of David Lynch’s films are pretty scary, but they tend to be or at least to seem so long, I wouldn’t recommend planning a party around them. I cannot imagine what one would serve at an “Eraserhead” party….. 

Tim Burton- Almost all of his films are whimsically scary, except for “Planet of the Apes,” “Big Fish,” and “Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure.” Well, that last one does have that scary Large Marge scene. “The Nightmare Before Christmas,” is a masterpiece. The fantastic, hilarious “Ed Wood” is a good choice as well. Not scary, but a movie about a guy making scary movies. 

 “An American Werewolf in London”- This c ampy, tongue in cheek John Landis film might be my favorite Halloween-appropriate movie, but I have an odd fondness for Griffin Dunne. This has a great soundtrack and some retro- 80’s style nudity and makeup special effects, which for you youngsters is what they put on people before they had CGI.  

Hammer Films- Beginning in the 1930’s, this company has churned out campy and classic horror films. I own one from the 1970’s called “Captain Kronos- Vampire Hunter,” which is chock full of sexual innuendo and stock characters. The titular character was portrayed by some guy who didn’t even speak English, and the dubbing adds a special layer of detached weirdness to the experience. This is by no means their best or most famous feature. Their website www.hammerfilms.com is comprehensive and searchable, and a great place to start a worthy obsession for those who like to, as the kids say, kick it old school.  

“Donnie Darko”- This one is creepy, cool and has climactic scene at a Halloween party. Awesome 80’s soundtrack, and Jake Gyllenhaal factor.     

Hey everybody!  The video version of the Loaded Question is out on YouTube now.  In this edition, we ask people “What sounds dirty but isn’t?”  You can check it out on our YouTube Channel HERE.

Also, we have some more photos from the Mobile Roller Derby’s Zombie Pub Crawl that they did to promote thier bout this Saturday.  You can check those out plus more photos HERE.

-cheers

The use of wind power is one of the answers in the mix for energy independence. Lulu’s in Gulf Shores has invested in an experiment and all they got locally was whining from the electric cooperative with editorial support from the local mullet wrapper. Hopefully the day will come when wind turbines look as common as satellite dishes on the corner of people’s houses! Go Lulu!

People in other parts of the world are feeling the pinch of our headlong rush to provide ethanol-infused gasoline as a step toward renewable energy. The problem is not the ethanol but where it’s coming from - corn, a global food staple. So we have a partially renewable fuel but less food. A local gas station is featuring not only ethanol containing gas but also an environmentally friendly car wash. This could be the more important offering for the time being - until we find non-food sources of the ethanol.

Hey everybody.  I finally started a flickr account.  The idea is to use this account to post more photos from Lagniappe online.  I already have one slideshow made as a trial.  Its from the Fetish party at Haley’s back in 2005.

If you like this, please check out our flickr page or check out this blog for photo from Bayfest.  I will be posting all weekend long (one of the joys of living next to the event site)  If this goes well, expect to see more of these.

CHECK OUT THE SLIDE SHOW HERE
cheers -Dan Anderson

Despite the wild ramblings of people like County Commissioner Mike Dean, who at a public meeting Monday said repeatedly that the competition for the Air Force tanker was lost and should be abandoned, there are still some rabbits to be pulled from hats. In my latest column, I discuss what I think will happen concerning Brookley Field and Mobile’s opportunities to build “big jets.”

My contention is while the tanker may or may not be a lost cause, there is still a lot happening here and Brookley is certainly a desirable place for those who build those wonderful flying machines. In fact, as Airport Authority Director Bay Haas told me in another story, Brookley has now been selected four times to build large aircraft. True, nary a one has been built, but it at least means people think it’s a great place to TALK about building planes.

Although New Orleans residents were grateful for the relative impacts from Gustav, the victims of Governor Riley’s decision to order wholesale evacuations from the coast are less likely to be so forgiving. The danger, of course, is the predictable complacency that will be a factor in the next one.

We need more resilient systems as well as continued improvement in the models. 110 people died in the evacuation of Houston in 2005 (Rita).

    For me, Flashback: The Classic Rock Experience was a show chocked-full of classic rock hits and misses. My personal experience was almost like coming down off of a good acid trip with polar highs and lows throughout the show. The show touted a less than stellar turn-out, but I expected as much seeing as the experience could not be totally summed up in any promotional materials. All in all, the debut of concert promoter Rick Bowen’s pet project should act as both a learning experience and an extreme dress rehearsal for the dates that follow. Needless to say, Flashback could become extremely successful touring show with a few small improvements, or it could go ahead and make its way down to the Vegas strip and set up shop at the Hard Rock Casino. Let me break down the three elements upon which this show has based its foundation: the stage show, the vocalists and the Mystic Orchestra.

     The extensive stage show was one of Flashback’s major selling points. When the concert began, we were positioned in the balcony stage left. The stage set-up was mock-up of Pink Floyd’s 1994 tour with circle screens displaying various graphics and fringed with vivid, flashing lights. However, two large “bed sheets” (as we called them) hung on each side of the stage near the ceiling and served no purpose than to block the view of those sitting around me. If you sat in the balcony, the only way to have a totally unobstructed view was from the very center in front of the stage. A zeppelin displaying a video screen hung stationary over the floor crowd flashing stage images upon it. With the screen being so small, it would have been more useful closer to the ground. There were also two random tributes to the Twin Towers disaster and Mohammed Ali, but they seemed to be irrelevant to the overall theme of a show that was supposed to concentrate on classic rock and the bands that symbolize this concept.  We thought all hope was lost until we moved into a floor seat. The difference between the two positions in the arena was amazing and eye-opening (literally and figuratively). By sitting in a floor seat, we were totally immersed in the media. The blinding colors and lights leaped out accented by colorful lasers wisped with smoke. The effect of the three circular screens was felt in its entirety and gave an impressive feel to the stage. This was how the Flashback stage show should be experienced by everyone. This was the show that I pictured in my mind while listening to all the hype in the preceding weeks.

     The Mystic Orchestra was the highlight of the show. This musical group had the potential to commit complete rock and roll blasphemy, but they brought new light to many classic songs. Their arrangement of “Purple Haze” was excellent with its raging electrified violin, and they achieved near perfection when covering Pink Floyd’s “Shine On, You Crazy Diamond” with every instrument sounding dead-on. You could tell that this group was having a good time on stage with members of their horn section working overtime as fanciful flower children when they weren’t playing. The Mystic Orchestra was definitely the star of the show. Music director Frank Gilcken should be proud of this group.

     As far as the vocalists are concerned, I have mixed feelings.  I am quite familiar with Shaun Williamson and his group King Karma, and I have been impressed with his vocals in the past. Shaun only had one enemy during this show, and it was trying to hit the low notes while maintaining volume, especially during “Light My Fire.” However, he did redeem himself with impressive renditions of “Purple Haze” and especially the Pink Floyd songs they had been selected. As long as he steers clear of the Doors in the future, he should shine in future performances. Three Dog Night’s Chuck Negron still had it, and I was pleasantly surprised that they broke out “Eli’s Coming.” Obviously, the two shining stars of the vocal section were Katrina Chester and Elizabeth Egan. It was as if Janis herself had come down for the night, especially during “More Over.” Elizabeth Egan is a brave woman to be covering Pink Floyd’s “The Great Gig in the Sky,” and she called forth soul straight from the “Dark Side of the Moon.”

      All in all, I have to give props to the Flashback family. It’s not easy doing something like this, and it makes the show an easy target for criticism from people like me with it treading into the holy ground of rock and roll. However, I could see this show growing into something great with this initial tour. I don’t think that Rick Bowen needs to bail on his dream completely. I think he needs to learn from this experience and watch this show evolve and morph. A word to the wise: if someone really wants the full experience, then I encourage them to get floor tickets. Otherw