Today The 2023 PopCult Gift Guide gets a little pricey. All of our gift suggestions today cost more than a hundred dollars, and two of them are pushing three hundred.

So these gift ideas for for people you really, really like. These aren’t stocking stuffers unless we’re talking about gigantically massive feet.

With the caveat of sticker shock in place, since we’re going by cost and not any theme, today’s three entries hit the Gift Guide trifecta: Comics, Music and Toys.

Don’t be surprised if we do this again next week. I try to make sure the Gift Guide suggestions are affordable for all, but sometimes it’s more fun to write about the expensive stuff.

The Complete Hate
by Peter Bagge, with Jim Blanchard
Fantagraphics
ISBN-13 9781683963554
$119.99 (Discounted at Amazon)

This slipcovered three-volume set is an archival collection of one of the bestselling alternative comic book series — arguably, the Great American Grunge novel — complete for the first time.

The Complete Hate includes the original 1990-1998 30-issue run, the nine subsequent Hate Annuals, and tons of other Hate-related comics, illustrations, and ephemera created for books, magazines, comics, toys, and other merchandise.

Bagge combined his cartoony drawing style with uncomfortably real Gen X characters, and the comic books resonated with readers. Book One (Hate 1-15), focuses on young Buddy Bradley’s travails in early 1990s Seattle. Book Two focuses on Buddy and his girlfriend Lisa Leavenworth’s move back to Buddy’s native New Jersey (and a switch from black-and-white to full color). Book Three features the final arc of Bagge’s magnum opus, as Buddy and Lisa become parents (and buy a garbage dump).

Each volume, along with the slipcase, contains new covers, endpapers, title pages, and other surprises by Bagge.

Bagge is finally recognized as the voice of a generation, and these books are sort of the “anti-Friends,” that depict a grittier, more realistic and much, much funnier version of Gen-Xers than that sitco ever did.

Who’s Next / Life House
The Who
Super Deluxe Edition, Deluxe Edition
Box Set, 10 CD/1 Blu ray, Extra Tracks
$294.06 at Amazon, Also available from other retailers

The WHO’S NEXT / LIFE HOUSE Super Deluxe Edition contains 10-CDs all remastered from original tapes by long time Who engineer Jon Astley as well as a Blu-ray Audio disc with newly made Atmos & 5.1 surround mixes of the original album and 14 additional tracks by Steven Wilson.

The set features 155 total tracks with 89 unreleased tracks/mixes & another 57 previously released tracks with a fresh remix. Included are demos, singles, studio sessions, 2 complete concerts, 100-pg hard back book with new liner notes & imagery & a 172-pg Life House graphic novel. Extras: 2 gig posters, 2 concert programs, 4 buttons & a band photo with printed autographs.

It’s a huge package, and the perfect gift for the absolute die-hard Who fan on your shopping list.

Who’s Next is regarded by many fans to be The Who’s best album, but it has a really interesting genesis. Originally Pete Townshend had planned an elaborate mulit-media follow-up to the mega-successful Tommy. He created an epic science-fiction story that melded his original ideas and criticisms of where society seemed to be heading with the teachings of Meher Baba, his spiritual guide.

The result was a bit of a world-changer…or at least it would’ve been had he been able to pull it off. With a story that pre-dates cyberpunk, alternate realities and artificial intelligence, Life House, had it been released intact when it was conceived over fifty years ago, would have stunned the world.

Instead, when the venture, which was to have been a concert, movie and 2 LP set proved to be far too expensive for the record label to underwrite, the band was told to just cherry-pick the best songs, and put them out as a single LP, with no acknowledgement of the underlying concept.

Since those songs included “Won’t Get Fooled Again,” “Baba O’Reilly,” “Behind Blue Eyes,” “Bargain,” “Going Mobile” and others the album became an instant classic. Decades later, after much of the story of Life House had been relayed in books and interviews, A movie called “The Matrix” appeared, with many of the same story elements.

With this box set, fans can piece together the history of the album, with demos, rehearsals, false-starts, a graphic novel and more. I’m a little surprised that this set doesn’t include more overlap with Pete Townshend’s 6-CD Life House box set from 2000, which used his demos to restore the original planned running order of the concept album, complete with songs that eventually turned up on five later Who albums, but I hate to think what crow-barring six more CDs would have done to the final cost.

As it is, anybody who wants this collection probably has the earlier box set anyway.

AUTO WORLD RALLYE 4+4 SLOT RACE SET HO SCALE
SKU : SRS348
Regular price $299.99 (plus shipping)
from Auto World

For the slot-car hobbyist with plenty of room, The Auto World Rallye 4+4 Slot Race Set allows them to build an epic, four-lane race course that will give them hours and hours of fun. If they have a spare fifty-inch by forty-five-inch spot, they can hold epic races without having to worry about the weather or wayward cars careening into the fans in the stands.

Autoworld includes some of the most significant pony cars from a wide ranging history. Mustang, Camaro, AMX and Firebird all helped to shape the destiny of the American pony car.

The four-trigger action wireless controllers are powered by Bluetooth technology and pair to the special wireless terminal track allowing you to be anywhere and still control your car. Each controller can sync to any of the lanes and is charged via USB (Charging cord included). This introduces new technology into slot racing without taking away from the fun have souping-up cars so that they might fly off the track.

This set brings back the action of vintage Thunderjet and AFX racing, with simpler wiring and loads of fun.

INCLUDED IN SET:

• 12 Feet of 4-Lane Track
• 4 – Thunderjet Ultra G Slot Cars
• Adjustable Power Pack
• 4 – Wireless Controllers
• 4 in 1 Controller Charging Cable
• 13 – Guard Rails
• 22 – Flag Poles
• 11 – Track Supports
• 46 – Track Support Pillars

Track and Slot Cars are 100% Compatible with all Auto World & AFX Race Sets. Recommended for the slot-car enthusiast on your shopping list.

Tuesday came around once more in this very busy this week, and on The AIR that means it’s time for a new  Radio Free Charleston. You simply have to point your cursor over and tune in at the website, or you could just stay here, and  listen to the cool embedded player found elsewhere on this page.  

You can hear Radio Free Charleston Tuesdays at 10 AM and 10 PM, with tons of replays throughout the week.  This week we have one all-new hour, and two hours of a 2017 episode of a myserious episode RFC International that hasn’t been heard since the week it originally aired.

Our first hour opens with “Undertaker,” the debut single from Nu Mutants, a new band made up of Zack Bassham from The Big Bad and Foz Rotten, from Boldly Go and solo work. These two, friends since childhood, have collaborated on a new musical project that is a depature for both of them, and it’s really cool to have them on RFC.

We also have new music from Corduroy Brown, Hello June, The Struts, Cherry Poppin’ Daddies, and more.  We also feature a new tune from Scott Whiddon (with guest keyboards by Jay Gonzalez of Drive-By-Truckers ) plus new music from Lauren Anderson,  both of which come to use via our Chicago pipeline.

Filling out a big chunk of our first hour is the entire EP, Heavy Set Paw Paws Live At Beckely Arts Center, which the band has posted to Bandcamp as one track so you can duplicate the experience of hearing them live.

Because your humble blogger and radio host is buried under work this week, our second and third hours are a mystery episode of Radio Free Charleston International. This episode dates back more than five years, and opens with Belinda Carlisle doing a Bhuddist chant, but then it gets weird. I can’t find the playlist for this, and don’t have time to reconstruct it, this week, for our second and third hours, you’re on your own.

RFCV5 152

hour one
Nu Mutants “Undertaker”
Scott Whiddon “Maybe That’s Enough”
Corduroy Brown “Familiar Faces (live)”
Hello June “Interstate”
Sgt. Van and the Highway Dogs “Jay, Jay Giveaway”
Lauren Anderson “Love Again”
The Struts “Pretty Vicious”
Heavy Set Paw Paws Live At Beckely Arts Center
“Girl with Mandolin”
“Commoner Boogie”
“Summerschool”
“Ace of Spades/ Some Candy Talking”
“Feesh”
Cherry Poppin’ Daddies “Thrill Thing”
Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers “Boogie Woogie (I May Be Wrong)”

hours two and three
A Mystery Episode of RFC International from 2017 for which I have no playlist.

You can hear this episode of Radio Free Charleston Tuesday at 10 AM and 10 PM on The AIR, with replays Wednesday at 9 AM,  Thursday at 2 PM, Friday at 9 AM, Saturday at Noon and Midnight,  and  Monday at 11 AM, exclusively on The AIR. Now you can also hear a different classic episode of RFC every weekday at 5 PM, and we bring you a marathon all night long Saturday night/Sunday morning.

I’m also going to  embed a low-fi, mono version of this show right in this post, right here so you can listen on demand.

After RFC, stick around for encores of last week’s episodes of  MIRRORBALL at 1 PM and Curtain Call at 2 PM.

At 3 PM we offer up two recent episodes of The Swing Shift.  You can hear The Swing Shift Tuesday at 3 PM, with replays Wednesday at 8 AM, Friday at 10 AM and 8 PM and Saturday afternoon, only on The AIR . You can also hear all-night marathons, seven hours each, starting at Midnight Thursday and Sunday evenings.

The 2023 PopCult Gift Guide offers up yet another excursion into the world of Tiki.

Perfect for fans of Mid-Century artificial multiculturalism that’s loads of fun and looks really cool. It’s exotic without worrying about being authentic, as Polynesian influences mingle with Caribbean, African, Chinese, beach and nautical ephemera to create a universe of stuff that just looks really cool.

Today it’s Tiki Mugs, from three different sources with affordable price points. Links to order will be in the prices below the name of the mug.

We’ll have one or two more Tiki items sprinkled throughout The 2023 PopCult Gift Guide, but they’ll be hidden away in different groupings of items. Think of them as buried treasures. However today it’s all about the mugs…

Munktiki Import – Whittle Exotica Mug
$35

The Whittle Exotica mug is designed by Jeremy Spears, Annie Award Winning Story Artist at the Walt Disney Animation Studios. His projects at the studio include Frozen, Big Hero 6, Zootopia, Moana and Ralph Breaks The Internet (Wreck-It Ralph 2.)

The Whittle Tiki mug is 8 inches tall and holds 17oz

It melds a classic Moai-type design with African and Carribean decorative carving and the end result is a quintessential Tiki Mug.

Tiki Farm RONGO-RONGO TIKI MUG
$32

Tiki Farm offers up their own take on a classic Tiki mug design, but with a unique “Tank-twist”.  Rongo-Rongo is an inspiration of the majestic Moai Tiki Gods of Easter Island.

Created by Tiki Farm’s brand-new Art Director himself, Tank Standing Buffalo. Tank created his version of the Tangata Manu (bird man) on the backside and kept with stylings of some of the behemoth statues, maintaining the topknot (Pukao) feature as well, found on some of the Moai on Easter Island!

Glazed in a dusty lava-inspired gray with a black wash, Rongo Rongo stands 7 1/2″ in height and holds 12 oz.

Trader Vic’s NOTU MUG (BLACK AND RED)
$34 Mini Version $16

Trader Vic’s manages to pay tribute to their logo with a wonderful Tiki Mug that captures the feel of the Polynesian Islands.

Originating from Papua New Guinea, the design of their mask logo was introduced in 1951 and since has been the symbol of Trader Vic’s known around the world. Notu, is a Papuan language spoken in the “tail” of Papua New Guinea.

The striking color scheme stands out among the usual Tiki Mug designs that you’ll see in many collections.

Capacity 16 fluid ounces

All right, I’m back in Chicago again, art-wise, but this time it’s with a digital piece. It’s a manipulated photo.

I took a random photo I snapped in Chicago back in July (I think) and ran it through the old “Stark Charleston” filters I created over a dozen years ago. I was basically messing around with a few old ideas when I was putting together the Halloween video for Gegen. This my old high-contrast, low-res filter that will probably be put to use again in future projects.

I didn’t use this idea there, but I liked the way it looked, and writing The 2023 PopCult Gift Guide has been eating into my drawing and painting time recently, so I decided to run this here. The original photo was just me pointing the camera up while walking around The Loop. That tall building in the background is the Willis Tower.

You can probably expect a few more digital pieces in the next few weeks.

To see it bigger try clicking HERE.

Over in radioland, Monday at 2 PM on The AIR, we bring you encores of a recent episode of Psychedelic Shack, and then at 3 PM a recent edition of Herman Linte’s weekly showcase of the Progressive Rock of the past half-century, Prognosis.  You can listen to The AIR at the website, or on the embedded radio player elsewhere on this page.

Psychedelic Shack can be heard every Monday at 2 PM, with replays Tuesday at 9 AM, Wednesday at 10 PM, Friday at 1 PM,  and Saturday at 9 AM. You can hear Prognosis on The AIR Monday at 3 PM, with replays Tuesday at 7 AM, Wednesday at 8 PM, Thursday at Noon, and Saturday at 10 AM. You can hear two classic episodes of the show Sunday at 2 PM.

At 8 PM you can hear an hour of the music of Weird All on last week’s episode of The Comedy Vault.

Tonight at 9 PM the Monday Marathon presents ten hours of Mel Larch’s MIRRORBALL, because Mel’s in a big Mirrorballish mood after this weekend.

Be sure to check back later Monday morning for the next installment of The 2023 PopCult Gift Guide.

Since it’s Sunday, our picks today are all retailers, two online and one local with an online component.

We have one new music label, a cool T-shirt Etsy shop and a local T-shirt and apparel outfit that is deservedly much-beloved in the Mountain State and beyond.

We’ll spotlight more retailers for the next two Sundays, with the idea being that they have so much good stuff to offer as gift ideas, that it was hard to narrow them all down to just one.

Kin Ship Goods

These are our local folks who have settled into their bright and shiny new location (near the previous one), but you can also go online and shop at their webstore that’s filled with cool apparel, accessories, home goods and other neat stuff at Kin Ship Goods.

You can order and pay online through their secure webstore, and have your order shipped directly to you, or visit the store at its new locatin, 617 Tennessee Avenue, on Charleston’s West Side.

You’ve probably heard of Kin Ship Goods, a brand of apparel, accessories, and home goods designed by Dan Davis & Hillary Harrison. They are based in Charleston, returning to their roots after having started their business in Louisville.

Once you find that perfect gift, be it a mug, a shirt, a hoodie, a hat or someting else cool, Kin Ship Goods offers reasonable shipping options, or you can pick up your order at the store, or better yet, go into the store and check out their new digs and buy tons of stuff.

Dammit Tees

Next up we have an Etsy shop that specializes in ‘Unique horror, punk, goth, cult film t-shirts & apparel.” Dammit Tees has a really cool collection of shirts from which you can choose.

Now, the main reason we’re listing them here is because this is where you can get T-shirts based on Ann Magnuson’s “Ghost Cat” and “Club 57” projects, as well as Ann’s drawings of Sid & Nancy and several shirts and facemasks with other cool stuff on them.

Where else can you find shirts based on London After Midnight, Ed Wood films, Freaks and The Metaluna Mutant?

Plus there are shirts featuring musical acts like Iggy Pop, Sinead O’Conner and The Misfits, among others. This Etsy shop has one of the coolest line-ups of fun, weird cult stuff that I’ve come across.

There are even a few designs available as long-sleeve Tees or hoodies.

Check out their Etsy Shop and see for yourself.

House of Tabu/ Tabu Recordings

I’ve recommended a few cool Tiki items from House of Tabu in previous Gift Guides, like their excellent Exotica Moderne magazine, and some of their drinkware, but this year they branched out and started a record label.

Tabu Recordings has their first three releases available on vinyl now, and as I write this, they are offering 15% off of the regular prices if you use the code in the graphic at the right.

All three of the acts on the label, The Tentakills, The Madeira and Test Subject 17, have been featured on the Radio Free Charleston radio show in recent months, and I’m really enthusiastic about the surf/elecronica/avant-lounge aesthetic of the label. If fact, I’ve picked up their first three vinyl releases for myself already.

The House of Tabu website has a few offerings from other record labels as well, and if you like the sounds of surf for the new world, then this music is right up your alley.

Here’s a sample of their artist’s music…

If that sounds cool to you, go order now at the House of Tabu website, and check out the rest of the site for other cool stuff.

You pretty much had to know that this would be my video pick this week.

Above you the Peter Jackdson-directed music video for “Now and Then,” what’s being billed as “the last song by The Beatles.”

As a bit of a preview, I’ll let you know that we’re doing The Beatles as our theme in The 2023 PopCult Gift Guide this Friday. This single will probably be one of the suggestions.

Below you can watch a brief documentary about the making of the record.

Today we’re going back to last year’s Gift Guide to re-recommend three cool books that would still make great gift ideas.

For the next two Saturdays The 2023 PopCult Gift Guide will revisit picks from previous years so that you don’t have to scroll back through eighteen years worth of Gift Guide looking for cool ideas for your holiday shopping.

The three books today are all firmly entrenched in pop culture, but aside from that, they have little to do with one another.

One book is about toys, another about The Beatles’ Yellow Submarine, while the third is devoted to the making of Shudder’s Creepshow series.

All three are great books, and they make great gifts.

Tomorrow The 2024 PopCult Gift Guide will spotlight retailers, so you can find all sorts of cool gift ideas, instead of just the ones I’m including here.

Memories of Marx Toys: Glen Dale
by Gary Rider and Roseanna Dakan Keller
Independently published
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 979-8801403045
$25 (Paperback)
$34.99 (Hardcover)

Anyone interested in toy manufacturing, Northern West Virginia history or post-war industrial America should seek out Memories of Marx Toys: Glen Dale. It’s a great gift for folks who are curious about any of those topics.

Gary Rider and Roseanna Dakan Keller have crafted an exhaustive history of the Marx Toys Glen Dale, West Virginia plant, pre-dating Marx toys and going all the way to the days of the Marx Toy Museum. They do this by weaving deep research with a stirring oral history provided by dozens of Marx Factory employees and their families. The book is also generously illustrated with photos and images from the factory.

Memories of Marx Toys: Glen Dale is a fascinating look at how toys were made in the days before OSHA, before outsourcing to other countries, and before Marx Toys themselves shut down operations.  We learn how life was for an every day worker at the factory, including some downright frightening tales of dangerous incidents at the plant and the aftermath of chemical exposure. However, the overwhelming aura of this book is that of a fond rememberance of a factory that provided employment for hundreds, if not thousands of households in the Glen Dale/Moundsville area for decades.

The book winds up with a profile of Francis Turner and a history of The Marx Toy Museum, which is one of my favorite places in the world. It follows the opening of the museum, the closing and even the visit by American Pickers a few years ago. I think Francis deserves a book of his own someday, but this is a great start and taught me a lot of new facts about my friend.

While Memories of Marx Toys: Glen Dale is obviously a must-have book for any fan or collector of Marx Toys, it will also appeal to anybody who would like a well-crafted story about a small factory town and the people who lived there.

You can order Memories of Marx Toys: Glen Dale from Amazon in Hardback or Paperback editions. Be advised that the hardcover edition will take four-to-six weeks to ship, even from Amazon. You might also be able to order it from your local bookseller using the ISBN number above.

It’s All in the Mind : Inside the Beatles’ Yellow Submarine, Vol. 2
by Robert R Hieronimus and Laura E Cortner
Hieronimus & Co., Inc.
ISBN-13 9781736049808
$32.49 Available from the author

Over twenty years ago I discovered the most comprehensive book ever about the making of The Beatles’ Yellow Submarine. Now the author has returned with a new volume loaded with more insider stories on how favorite scenes were made, on-set hijinks, the Swinging 60s. Why the Yellow Submarine makes us feel so GOOD, interpretation of symbolism and the subconscious. Full-color, 203 illustrations.

This new book details the merry and wildly creative tribe who produced The Beatles’ Yellow Submarine, the ground-breaking, one-of-a-kind visual adventure, first released in 1968. Get to know the formerly undiscovered artists and the technical wizardry behind your favorite scenes. Discover symbolic interpretations and subconscious messages of peace and love, plus in-studio hijinks by frustrated animators that were hidden in the movie.

How does Yellow Submarine inspire such wonderful feelings of peace and love? This book lifts the veil of the animation screen to see behind The Beatles and detail that one magical year, during the Summer of Love in Swinging London, when a band of young artist-fans fell into the groove and brought their heroes to animated life. Part two of the internationally acclaimed Inside the Yellow Submarine: The Making of the Beatles Animated Classic by Dr. Robert R. Hieronimus and Laura E. Cortner.

This is, of course, the perfect gift for any Beatles fan or anybody interested in Yellow Submarine. You can order the deluxe paperback from the author, or other booksellers, but be warned that the version on Amazon is a cheaper printing, with no color graphics.

Shudder’s Creepshow: From Script to Scream
by Dennis L. Prince
Titan Books
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1803363066
$49.99

Shudder’s Creepshow: From Script to Scream is the official behind-the-scenes book featuring the spine-tingling stories and tantalizing talent behind the Creepshow series. This is the inside look at Greg Nicotero’s television continuation of Stephen King and George Romero’s Creepshow franchise.

Shudder’s Creepshow: From Script to Scream, produced by AMC Networks Publishing and Creepshow showrunner and executive producer Greg Nicotero (The Walking Dead), is a coffee-table book which brings fans behind-the-scenes of the acclaimed Creepshow series with deep dives into its riveting origins, gripping development, provocative production, sinister special effects, and much more.

The book features a foreword by legendary storyteller and Creepshow co-creator, Stephen King, and an afterword by horror aficionado Kirk Hammett, Metallica’s lead guitarist. Based on the hit anthology series from Nicotero, Cartel Entertainment, Striker Entertainment, and in partnership with Titan Books, the book is written by Dennis L. Prince, designed by John J. Hill, and co-produced by Julia Hobgood.

The series has been heralded as “an irresistibly macabre package,” (Slant Magazine) and “an undeniable love letter to all generations of horror fans,” (CBR), and over three seasons, has been one of the most watched programs on Shudder.

Shudder’s Creepshow: From Script to Scream is the perfect gift for any fan of the show, or for folks who have an interest in horror filmmaking.  Available discounted from Amazon or at full price from any bookseller, using the ISBN code.

From September, 2008. This edition of the show features music by Brain Trauma and The Underdog Blues Revue, plus a Kitty Killton movie trailer and the debut of the Astonishing Finger Man! Just one show after our fiftieth, Radio Free Charleston kicked out the jams with Brain Trauma’s Horrorcore Rap and hot blues from Chuck Biel’s Underdog Blues Revue.

We first met Kyle and Toxik Flow from Brain Trauma at an IWA East Coast show way back in the early days of the PopCult blog. It took a couple of years for our schedules to jibe so we could have them on the show, but it was worth the wait. Using footage we shot at The Empty Glass in August, 2008, we created a music video for the song “Rock It.”  Rounding out the show this time is an amazing performance by The Underdog Blues Revue. This was recorded in July 2008, at the last show UBR gave before going on what has turned into a very long hiatus.

You can read the original production notes HERE.

Today in The 2023 PopCult Gift Guide we have three recommendations of music in physical formats for those of you who want to wrap stuff for under the tree.

Most of these are available as vinyl sets, but some are also sold as CDs. The links today will take you to Amazon, for the sake of expediency, but be advised that these can probably be ordered through your local music shop, or found online from other sources.

A week from today our Gift Guide will be devoted to Beatles stuff, so we stayed away from the Fab Four today.  Our three picks include a new album by a legendary group, a boxed set that collects almost the entire work of a unique talent who left us forty years ago, and the work of a famed record producer with an amazing list of clients.

It should go without saying that these are recommended for the adventurous popular music lover on your holiday shopping list.

Klaus Nomi
Nomi
LP, Box Set, Import
$105.19 (plus shipping)

This is a collector’s vinyl box set containing four vinyl editions of Klaus Nomi’s albums: Klaus Nomi (1981), Simple Man (1982), In Concert (1986), and Encore (1983).

These records have been out of print for years, and the man is long overdue for some recognition and exposure to new audiences.

Klaus Nomi, was a German countertenor noted for his wide vocal range and an unusual, otherworldly stage persona. He was a pioneer of New Wave music, who made his first impression on mainstream audiences as one of David Bowie’s plastic-clad backup singers on a 1979 appearance on Saturday Night Live. Later his performance of Kristian Hoffman’s “Total Eclipse” was one of the highlights of URGH! A Music War in 1981.

Sadly, Nomi was also one of the first major artists lost to the AIDS crisis, back in 1983.

Nomi was known for his bizarre and visionary theatrical live performances, heavy make-up, unusual costumes, and a highly stylized signature hairdo that flaunted a receding hairline. His songs were wildly eclectic, ranging from synthesizer-laden interpretations of classical opera to covers of 1960s pop standards like Chubby Checker’s “The Twist” and Lou Christie’s “Lightnin’ Strikes.”

Lovers of New Wave music will love this collection of Nomi’s work. It collects all the music he released during his lifetime, along with a posthumous live album, which is only available on vinyl in this box set.  Check out his breakthrough tune here…

The Pretenders
RELENTLESS
LP and CD
between $12 and $18

The Pretenders return with RELENTLESS, their fourteenth studio album.

Arriving with the impulsiveness and attitude that at once defines the band’s eternal spirit, RELENTLESS is a clearly defined snapshot of where The Pretenders are in 2023.

RELENTLESS is the second consecutive Pretenders album to be written as a collaboration between Chrissie Hynde and the band’s resident guitar hero, James Walbourne (renown for his work with Dave Gahan, Jerry Lee Lewis, and The Rails amongst many more).

Produced by David Wrench and recorded at Battery Studios in West London, the album’s 12 tracks feature what Chrissie describes as “The Pretenders Collective.” This extended band features James Walbourne (guitars), Kris Sonne (drums), Chris Hill (double bass), Dave Page (bass) and Carwyn Ellis (keyboards and guitars).

RELENTLESS also features a long hoped-for collaboration with the esteemed composer Jonny Greenwood (Radiohead, The Smile), who provides the string arrangement and conducted the 12 Ensemble for the album’s beautiful closing track, “I Think About You Daily.”

This new album is a real treat for longtime fans, and a good introduction to the band for folks who haven’t been around to enjoy the for the past 43 years.

Here’s a sample…

Various Artists
Produced By Tony Visconti  
Box Set, Import
6 LP set or4 CD set

Another archival treat from Demon Records, Produced by Tony Visconti is a new definitive retrospective compilation assembled with the assistance of the legendary record producer hiimself, Tony Visconti.

Says Visconti, “This boxset covers five and a half decades of my efforts in the art of making iconic recordings. Some of it is familiar and some will have a eureka moment, ‘I didn’t know Visconti produced that one!’ I am honored that Demon Records took on this enormous task.”

Often described as one of the most important producers in rock, Tony Visconti has helped create countless classic musical moments. His work can be heard on celebrated albums by artists such as T. Rex, Procol Harum, The Moody Blues and Thin Lizzy to name but a few.

This new collection features 73 tracks personally curated by Visconti, gathering together some of his favorite production work from across his career. It includes tracks by Sparks, Thin Lizzy, T. Rex, U2, Dexys Midnight Runners, Gentle Giant, The Boomtown Rats, Manic Street Preachers, The Good, The Bad & The Queen, and many more.

The vinyl box is a Limited edition of 1,000 units, and includes an exclusive print signed by Tony Visconti. The set also includes a 60 page booklet with previously unseen photographs, an introduction by Tony Visconti, extensive track by track liner notes by Mojo writer Mark Paytress, and tributes from a selection of the featured artists. The CD box set includes an 80 page book.

This is amazing summation of an incredible career. Visconti has worked with everyone from Bowie and U2 to T. Rex and The Alarm. The artist line-up is breathtaking.

Recommended for any fan of rock music of the last 50-plus years.  Here’s a short trailer…

The PopCulteer
November 3, 2023

We have one last Halloween treat for you before we pack up and put away the skeletons and monsters (I’m kidding here, we never really pack up that stuff).  On Halloween itself Charleston native Ann Magnuson (have I mentioned that she’s an artistic hero of mine?) released a music video for her single, “Ghost Cat.” This is the song that opened last week’s episode of Radio Free Charleston.

It’s a cool song that she performed last year at her Surruralism show, and she talked about it when we were both on Josh Gaffin’s Afternoon Show on Status Quo. She’d been working down to the wire to get it out in time for All Hallow’s Eve, and she just did manage to sneak it in.

I would’ve shared it here on Halloween, but your PopCulteer was neck-deep in preparation for The 2024 PopCult Gift Guide, along with other pressing issues, so I didn’t even get a chance to watch it until the day was almost over.

However, “Ghost Cat” has a cool, spooky, timeless quality that transcends Halloween and celebrates the long legacy of Appalachian Mystic Weirdness. So you can watch it any time you want. I may even repost it here on Christmas and Easter. Check it out…

Now that youv’e see it, visit Ann’s Store for cool Ghost Cat stickers and patches (and lots of other cool things) and then hit up her Bandcamp page (this post goes live on Bandcamp Friday, when the artist gets all of the money while Bandcamp doesn’t take a cut) and download the song as well as her other albums.

STUFF TO DO

We have a short list of suggestions this week as many people seem to be partied out following Halloween, The World Series ending and the coming time change, so let’s get into the truncated list of events and shenanigans, shall we?

As I have been doing of late, this a good time to remind you that THIS IS NOT A COMPLETE LIST OF EVENTS.  It’s just a starting point, so don’t expect anything comprehensive, and if you feel strongly about me leaving anything out, feel free to mention it in the comments.

Live Music is back at Taylor Books. There is no cover charge, and shows start at 7:30 PM.  Friday a four-piece acoustic band with great haroinies, Wound Tight, takes the stage. Saturday Brandon Costello performs at the beloved bookstore/cafe/art gallery.

The World Famous Empty Glass Cafe has some great stuff this week  to tell you about.  Friday Tim Courts plays during happy hour.  Friday at 10 PM, Hurl Brickbat invades the Glass with their progressive sound. We have graphics below for the rest of the weekend shows at The Glass.

There is a killer drag show in Dunbar at Live at the Shop Saturday at 7:30 PM, as the East End Ghouls join nationally-recognized Billboard-charting artist, Flamy Grant, for an evening of wild Bible-belt music, drag, dancing, music and fun.

Please remember that the pandemic is not over yet. It’s still a going concern with the ‘rona surging again. And now there are seasonal allergies, the flu, paramilitary Turkeys out for revenge, trick-or-treaters who forgot to go home, dangling participles and other damned good reasons to be careful. Many people who have very good reasons are still wearing masks, and many of us, understandably, are still nervous about being in crowds, masked or not. Be kind and understanding  while you’re out.

Keep in mind that all shows are subject to change or be cancelled at the last minute. Sometimes I think they just do it to mess with me.

If you’re up for going out, here are a few suggestions for the weekend, roughly in order, after the jump…

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