Music Reviews
Johnny Mathis

Johnny Mathis

The Christmas Album

Columbia

Man, Johnny Mathis rocks. While this nu-metal take on holiday songs might not work as well as fellow crooner Pat Boone’s experiment with metal a few years back, hearing the warm vibrato of Mathis smacked up against grinding guitars and phat turntables makes ya feel all “ho ho” and shit. The presence of Eminem on “X-Mas in Da Hood (Deck The Balls Mix)” shows the 67-year-old smoothie can still get down, should the mood strike.

Ok, just kidding.

This is about the 200th Christmas record from Johnny Mathis, and while it has a few swinging moments, such as a nifty “Frosty The Snowman,” this is your basic background music in the mall Christmas fare. Why should you buy it? Well, you might be a fan, but if so, you ain’t reading Ink 19, or maybe you’d like to score some points with mom when you go home for the holidays. Yeah, that’s the ticket. Slap this puppy in the CD player and fire up “Joy to the World.” She’ll pinch your cheeks and exclaim, “what a thoughtful son I have,” and then you can smack her up for some Christmas cash.

Yeah, I’m down wit dat.

Columbia Records: http://www.columbiarecords.com


Recently on Ink 19...

Garage Sale Vinyl: KISS, The Solo Albums

Garage Sale Vinyl: KISS, The Solo Albums

Garage Sale Vinyl

This week, cuddly curmudgeon Christopher Long finds himself feeling even older as he hobbles through a Florida flea market in pursuit of vinyl copies of the four infamous KISS solo albums — just in time to commemorate the set’s milestone 45th anniversary.

Borsalino

Borsalino

Screen Reviews

Starting with small-time jobs, two gangsters take over all the crime in Marseilles in this well-paced and entertaining French film. Carl F. Gauze reviews the freshly released Arrow Video Blu-ray edition of Borsalino (1970).

Weird Science

Weird Science

Screen Reviews

Two teenage boys build a sexy computer girlfriend with an 8-bit computer… you know the story. Carl F. Gauze reviews Weird Science (1985), in a new 4K UHD Blu-ray release from Arrow Films.

City of the Living Dead

City of the Living Dead

Screen Reviews

Cauldron Films’ new UHD/Blu-ray release of Lucio Fulci’s City of the Living Dead (1980) preserves one of the best Italian horror films, according to Phil Bailey.

Broken Mirrors

Broken Mirrors

Screen Reviews

Marleen Gorris’s first theatrical feature is a potent feminist look at the easily disposable lives of sex workers in Amsterdam. Phil Bailey reviews Broken Mirrors.

%d bloggers like this: