All Hail The Yeti Announces Summer Headlining Tour

Courtesy: Minus Head Records/Adrenaline PR

All Hail The Yeti is heading out on the road this summer.

The band has announced that it will embark on a four-week headlining tour this summer in support of its latest album Screams From A Black Wilderness.  The tour launches Friday, July 29^th in Tempe, Arizona and runs through Friday, August 26^th in Salt Lake City, Utah.  St. Louis, Missouri-based Final Drive will serve as direct support for All Hail The Yeti on the upcoming tour.  AHTY front man Connor Garritty noted Final Drive’s addition to the tour in a statement about the tour along with a note about what fans can expect in the band’s upcoming live dates.  “We are very excited to be back on the road doing what we love. It’s been a while but we want to thank all our fans for being so patient. You will not be disappointed!,” he said about the tour.  In regards to the addition of Final Drive to the tour he said, We signed up Final Drive from St. Louis to directly support us every night. They are a great band with tons of energy! We hope to see all of our followers out there – the storm is coming! HAIL!”  The schedule for the bands’ upcoming tour is noted below.

 

ALL HAIL THE YETI Headline Tour Dates:

7/29/2016 – Tempe, AZ @ Joe’s Grotto

7/30/2016 – Santa Fe, NM @ The Underground

7/31/2016 – Lubbock, TX @ Depot O Bar

8/1/2016 – Fort Worth, TX @ Tomcats

8/2/2016 – Houston, TX @ BFE

8/3/2016 – Austin, TX @ Dirty Dog Bar

8/4/2016 – Tulsa, OK @ Downtown Lounge

8/5/2016 – Kansas City, MO @ Riot Room

8/6/2016 – St. Louis, MO @ Firebird (Final Drive headline)

8/8/2016 – Colorado Springs, CO @ Castle Lounge

8/9/2016 – Billings, MT @ The Rail Yard

8/10/2016 – Missoula, MT @ The Dark Horse

8/12/2016 – Edmonton, AB Canada @The Brix

8/14/2016 – Calgary, AB Canada @Distortion

8/15/2016 – Canmore, AB Canada @ Canmore Hotel

8/18/2016 – Vancouver, BC Canada @ Cobalt Hotel

8/20/2016 – Anchorage, AK @ Koot’s (no Final Drive)

8/22/2016 – Seattle, WA @ Funhouse

8/23/2016 – Portland, OR @ Ash Street

8/24/2016 – Boise, ID @ The Shredder

8/25/2016 – Idaho Falls, ID @ The Falls

8/26/2016 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Metro Bar (merging with another tour, NEID headlines)

 

In related news, AHTY bassist Nicholas Diltz has launched a new side project dubbed Day of Errors.  The band features Joe Amodeal on guitar and legendary drummer Bill Ward (ex-Black Sabbath) behind the kit.  The band will perform TONIGHT at 8pm at Lucky Strike Live in Los Angeles, CA.  The show is 21+ only.  Doors open at 8:00pm.  More information on tonight’s show can be obtained at http://www.luckystrikelive.com.  As an added note, while Diltz has started this new band, he is still a full-time member of All Hail The Yeti and will be alongside his AHTY band mates on the “Haunted and Damaged” Tour.

All Hail The Yeti released its sophomore album Screams From A Black Wilderness this past April.  The album was produced by Matt Hyde (Soulfly, Deftones, Slayer).  It can be ordered online now via Bandcamp, Amazon, and iTunes.  The band currently has three music videos streaming online now.  They are ‘Daughter of the Morning Star,’ ‘Before The Flames’ (Part 1 from Screams From A Black Wilderness) and ‘After The Great Fire’ (Part 2 from the band’s 2012 self-titled debut).  All three can be viewed online now at the noted links.  More information on those videos is available online now along with all of the latest updates on AHTY’s upcoming tour, news, and more at:

 

 

Website: http://www.allhailtheyeti.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/officialallhailtheyeti

Twitter: http://twitter.com/allhailtheyeti

 

 

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LPS: Making Friends Is A “Little” Collection That Boasts Big Fun For The Whole Family

Courtesy: Shout! Factory/Shout! Factory Kids/Hasbro Studios/Discovery Family

The Littlest Pet Shop is officially open for business once again.  That is because Shout! Factory Kids has released yet another new compilation of episodes from the family favorite animated series.  Littlest Pet Shop: Making Friends was released in stores and online earlier this month.  And there is plenty for parents and children alike to appreciate about this latest collection beginning with its episodes.  They are collectively just one of the collection’s important elements.  The writing behind each episode is just as important as the episodes.  Last but not least of note within these episodes are the musical numbers presented throughout.  Each element proves important in its own right to the whole of Littlest Pet Shop: Making Friends.  Altogether they make this latest collection of episodes another little collection that once again boasts lots of big fun for the whole family.

Shout! Factory Kids’ new Littlest Pet Shop DVD Littlest Pet Shop: Making Friends is another little collection that once again boasts lots of big fun for the whole family.  This is due at least in part to the episodes that make up the body of the collection. This new DVD, the series’ tenth, features five more (technically four since one of the episodes is a two-part episode) episodes loaded with fun for the whole family.  What especially makes the episodes themselves so important to the collection is that each one follows the same underlying theme of making friends.  That theme is presented in different ways from one episode to the next and will be discussed shortly.  That is tied into the episodes’ writing.  The continuous theme presented throughout these episodes is just one part of what makes the episodes important to note in this collection.  Audiences will be just as happy to note in this collection that all five (or four, whichever side of that argument one chooses) episodes come from the same season—Season 3.  Adding to that all they are presented in chronologic order for all intents and purposes.  Obviously not every episode from Season 3 is here.  But in examining the order of the episodes presented on the disc, they are presented in the same order as they appeared in their original broadcast.  All that was missing was the episodes in between.  Though, many of those other episodes have already been presented in previous LPS collections.  One can only hope that eventually after the series’ full four seasons have been presented in its standalone sets, the whole of Season 3 (and the series’ other three seasons) will see a proper complete release for true fans of the series.  That is a discussion for another time.  Getting back on track, the episodes presented in LPS: Making Friends prove in the end to be hugely important to the set’s presentation.  They are collectively not the set’s only important element.  The actual writing within the episodes is just as important to note as the episodes themselves.

The episodes that are presented in Shout! Factory Kids’ new LPS collection are in their own right hugely important to the set’s presentation.  One reason for that is that all of the set’s featured episodes follow one continuous theme.  The theme in question is indeed that of making friends.  Adding to that is the fact that the episodes each come from the same season.  As if that isn’t enough, the episodes are also presented in an order that is at least partially chronological.  Given, it’s not entirely chronological since the episodes that separate them aren’t there.  But in general, they are presented in the same order in which they appeared in their original broadcast.  All things considered here, the episodes prove hugely important to this latest LPS collection. Of course the episodes would be nothing without their writing.  The writing is what connects the friendship theme from one episode to the next.  At the same time, the stories presented from one episode to the next stand on their own merits.  In the set’s opener “Sleeper,” Blythe’s furry friends meet a new raccoon friend named Mr. Von Fuzzlebutt.  Yes, that’s really his name.  Everybody really likes him, especially one specific member of the group.  The thing is that this new friend is nocturnal.  So he spends much of his time at LPS sleeping.  This leaves Sunil and Vinnie to have to make it appear that MR. Von Fuzzlebutt is awake when he’s not.  The result is a story that has been done so many times before in so many different TV shows and movies.  One of the most notable of those others is the famed 80s buddy comedy Weekend at Bernie’s.  Keeping that in mind, the story at the center of this episode is one that will definitely entertain today’s parents (many of whom grew up in the 80s) just as much as their children.  The story behind this episode is just one example of what makes the writing within LPS: Making Friends so important to the set’s presentation.  The story behind “Why Can’t We Be Friends” is another example of the importance of the episodes’ writing.

“Sleeper” is a key example of what makes the writing behind this set’s episodes so important.  It is just one key example of what makes the writing so important, too.  The work behind “Why Can’t We Be Friends” is another example of what makes the writing so important.  Yet again here is that theme of friendship.  At the same time, the story stands on its own merits.  In the case of this episode the LPS pets meet a friendly spider named Webber.  Only not everybody is a fan of Webber at first.  Sunil, as it turns out, is deathly scared of Webber because of his own fear of spiders.  This is funny in itself considering that Sunil is a mongoose, who is much bigger than Webber.  It’s like the stereotype of an elephant being afraid of a mouse.  Of course over time Sunil learns those all-too-important lessons about stereotypes and pre-judging others.  Thanks to that lesson Sunil and Webber become friends in the end.  That story and lesson make this episode stand out clearly from the set’s other episodes even as it carries the set’s underlying, connective theme.  It is hardly the last episode that can be cited in proving the importance of the episodes’ writing, too.  The set’s two-part closer “It’s The Pet Fest!” is one more prime example of what makes the writing in these episodes so important to its presentation.

The writing within “Sleeper” and “Why Can’t We Be Friends” clearly shows why the writing in this set’s episodes is so important.  The stories stand out from one another but the underlying theme of friendship is clear and present.  It is just presented in different fashion within each episode.  That is a great thing, too.  They are not the only episodes to show the importance of the set’s writing.  The set’s two-part closer “It’s The Pet Fest” shows that importance just as much as “Sleeper” and “Why Can’t We Be Friends.”  This episode sees Blythe organizing a fundraising concert for a good animal cause.  There’s just one problem.  She didn’t file for the necessary permits in time.  As a result she has to make friends with her mortal enemies, the Biskit Twins for help.  It is yet another familiar plot element that has been used in so many movies and television shows before as is the case of a young person arranging a benefit concert.  Even though they are not exactly new plot elements, the show’s writers still manage to successfully keep both lot elements fresh and entertaining in this episode.  They do so by not only having Blythe bring in a band that is world-famous in the LPS universe, but also by having the LPS pets put on their own concert, too.  In the end Blythe and the Biskit twins do end up working and existing together.  And the benefit proves to be a huge success.  Blythe even gets a big new honor as a result while the Biskit twins are left literally high and dry to wrap up the episode on a high note.  Again, the episode presents that underlying, recurring theme of friendship yet still holds its own against its counterparts here.  That being the case, the episode’s story and its theme come together to show just as much here the importance of the episodes’ writing as “Sleeper” and “Why Can’t We Be Friends.”  “Room Enough” shows that importance, too.  Together with the set’s other noted episodes it shows even more the importance of the writing within these episodes.  All in all, the writing within every one of these episodes shows with full clarity the importance of the writing within the episodes.  They show why the writing is just as important to the set’s presentation as the episodes themselves.  The episodes and their writing are together not the set’s only important elements.  The musical numbers that have been incorporated into the episodes are important to the set’s presentation, too believe it or not.

The episodes that are featured in Shout! Factory Kids’ new LPS collection are undeniably important to the set’s presentation.  The same can be said of the writing within each of the featured episodes.  As important as both elements prove to be to the set’s overall presentation they are not its only important elements.  The musical numbers that are incorporated into these episodes are—believe it or not—just as important to the set as the writing and the episodes themselves.  The musical numbers are so important because of how rare they are in the grand scheme of the series’ four-season run.  It is obvious in the case of the numbers featured here that they musical numbers were intentionally incorporated into the episodes.  They were actually intentional parts of the story rather than just random mini-numbers thrown in for the sake of it.  They actually added to each story.  There’s a full-on pop punk piece in the set’s closer, and a more “poppy” number in “Room Enough” that will have viewers tapping their toes just as much.  For the rockers out there, the writers even incorporated a solid rock tune into “Sleeper’s” story.  In a weird way, it sort of conjures thoughts of certain musical numbers presented in Disney’s Phineas and Ferb.  Coincidence or not the similarity is there.  And it is fun regardless.  It is just as fun as those numbers and the others presented in this set, too.  Keeping that in mind, it should be clear just why the musical numbers incorporated in this set’s featured episodes are just as important to note as the episodes’ stories and the episodes themselves.  Each element is important in its own right.  That is obvious.  All things considered though, they make this DVD in whole yet another little collection that boasts once again lots of big fun for the whole family.  It is available now in stores and online and can be ordered online direct via Shout! Factory’s online store.  More information on this and other titles from Shout! Factory is available online now at:

 

 

Website: http://www.shoutfactory.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/shoutfactoryofficial

Twitter: http://twitter.com/ShoutFactory

 

 

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‘Full Throttle Saloon’ Season 6 Goes Live Online Today

Courtesy: Reelz Channel/YouTube

It’s time to rev up those engines once again, everyone!  The Sixth season of Full Throttle Saloon hit YouTube today.

Season Six of the hit “reality series” Full Throttle Saloon is streaming online now via YouTube.  The four-episode season goes live today here.  It takes viewers through the bar’s 75^th anniversary.  The whole thing ends with a round table discussion with Michael, Angie, and Jesse as well as some powerful footage of the fire that destroyed the bar, which for so many years had been the nation’s biggest biker bar.  The bar is currently being rebuilt on 600 acres right next to the historic bear Butte Mountain.  Jesse James Dupree helped bring Full Throttle Saloon to television with the bar’s owner Michael Ballard.  He was upbeat when discussing what audiences have to anticipate upon the bar’s completion.  “We have camping, an Olympic size swimming pool, convenience store, and a huge concert schedule, featuring the likes of Ted Nugent, Zakk Wylde, Cinderella’s Tom Keifer, Sevendust, and Jackyl,” he said.  Ballard shared his thoughts on what audiences have to anticipate in the series’ sixth season, especially considering its move to Reelz network.  “For every one person that gets to go to Sturgis, there’s a thousand at home that get to go through watching the TV show. A lot of people had a hard time finding last season’s show because it had moved to a different night and a different network,” he said.  “We hope everyone that missed last season or wants to see it again will enjoy our YouTube stream.”

More information on Full Throttle Saloon is available online now at:

 

 

Website: http://www.fullthottlesaloon.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/OfficialFullThrottleSaloon

Twitter: http://twitter.com/ftssturgis

 

 

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Doll Skin Tapped To Join OTEP On Upcoming “Equal Rights Equal Lefts” Tour

CourtesyL EMP Label Group/Rise Records

Doll Skin is hitting the road this summer with OTEP.

The up-and-coming rock quartet has announced that it will join OTEP on the upcoming Equal Rights Equal Lefts Tour.  The tour launches July 21^st in Sonora, California and currently runs through August 29^th in Santa Ana, California.  The roughly four and a half week tour also features dates in the Mid-Atlantic region, the Northeast, Midwest, and Southwest.  It is the band’s latest push in support of its new LP In Your Face (Again), which is a full-length version of the band’s 2015 digital EP In Your Face.  In Your Face (Again) was released April 15^th via EMP Label Group/eOne Distribution.  The band’s current tour schedule is noted below.

 

Tour Dates:

07/23 Portland, OR – Hawthorne Theatre
07/24 Spokane, WA – The Pin
07/25 Seattle, WA – Studio 7 Seattle, wa
07/27 Reno, NV – Jub Jub’s Thirst Parlor
07/28 Salt Lake City, UT – The Complex SD
07/29 Idaho Falls, ID – The Falls
07/30 Jerome, ID – Diamondz Event Center
07/31 Billings, MT – The Pub Station
08/01 Colorado Springs, CO – The Black Sheep, Colorado Springs
08/03 Madison, WI – Wisconsin Red Zone
08/05 Dayton, OH – Oddbody’s
08/06 Poughkeepsie, NY – The Chance Theater
08/07 Northampton, PA – The Gin Mill
08/08 Boonsboro, MD – Boonsboro Event Center
08/09 Amityville, NY – Revolution Bar & Music Hall
08/10 Lancaster, PA – Chameleon Club
08/11 Providence, RI – Fete Ballroom
08/12 Richmond, VA – Canal Club
08/14 Johnson City, TN – Capone’s
08/15 Athens, GA – Georgia Theatre
08/17 Macon, GA – Cox Capital Theater
08/18 Lake Park, FL – The Kelsey Theater
08/19 Tampa, FL – The Orpheum Theater
08/20 Pensacola, FL – Vinyl Music Hall
08/22 McAllen, TX – Sophie’s
08/23 Dallas, TX – Trees
08/24 Houston, TX – Scout Bar
08/26 Farmington, NM – Top Deck
08/27 Tucson, AZ – Club X
08/28 Kingsburg, CA – Bullfrogs
08/29 Santa Ana, CA – Observatory

In Your Face (Again) features 9 tracks, a handful of which are new to the record.  Those new tracks include: ‘Furious Fixation,’ mixed by Richard Easterling (American Head Charge, Fuel) and a ‘Punk’D’ demo version of the band’s first single ‘Family of Strangers.’  The band premiered the video for its latest single ‘Let’s Be Honest’ earlier this month via Revolver magazine.  It can be viewed online now here.  More information on Doll Skin is available online now along with all of its latest tour updates, news, and more at

 

 

Website: http://www.dollskinband.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/dollskinband

Twitter: http://twitter.com/dollskinband

 

 

To keep up with the latest sports and entertainment news and reviews, go online to http://www.facebook.com/philspicks and “Like” it.  Fans can always keep up with the latest sports and entertainment news and reviews in the Phil’s Picks blog at https://philspicks.wordpress.com.

Shout! Factory Adds Two More Docs To Its IMAX Series

Courtesy: Shout! Factory

Shout! Factory has two more new additions to its recently launched IMAX 4K UHD series on the way this July.

Flight of the Butterflies and Rocky Mountain Express will be released Tuesday, July 12^th.  Both programs will be presented on separate standalone Blu-ray and 4K UHD/3-D Blu-ray platforms.  Flight of the Butterflies follows what is one of the most incredible of nature’s phenomena in the migration of the monarch butterfly.  It follows a husband and wife scientist team as they follow the butterflies’ annual migration.  It is the only film for IMAX® theaters to ever sweep all of the Giant Screen Cinema association’s annual awards.  Included as bonus material in the documentary are: trailers, image gallery, making of featurette, and a very special message from Lic. Felipe Calderon Hinojosa, President of Mexico from 2006 – 2012.  Audiences can view the trailer for this program online now via Shout! Factory’s official website.

Courtesy: Shout! Factory

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Courtesy: Shout! Factory

The second of Shout! Factory’s new IMAX home offerings, Rocky Mountain Express takes audiences on an exhilarating train ride through the Canadian Rockies while also presenting the history of America’s first transcontinental railroad and its construction.  The program was recorded on authentic 15 perf. 70 MM negative and originally presented in IMAX theaters nationwide.  Audiences are taken along for the ride thanks to cameras mounted on-board the program’s featured train and above on-board a group of helicopters.  The trailer for Rocky Mountain Express is also available online via Shout! Factory’s official website.

Courtesy: Shout! Factory

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Flight of the Butterflies and Rocky Mountain Express will both be released Tuesday, July 12^th.  They will be available on separate standalone Blu-ray and 4K UHD/3-D Blu-ray combo pack.  Both presentations will retail for MSRP of $39.93 on 4K UHD/3-D Blu-ray combo pack and $19.99 on standalone Blu-ray.  They can each be pre-ordered now online at a discounted price of $34.93 (4K UHD/3-D Blu-ray combo pack) and $16.99 (Blu-ray) via Shout! Factory’s online store here and here. More information on these and other titles from Shout! Factory is available online now at:

 

 

Website: http://www.shoutfactory.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/shoutfactoryofficial

Twitter: http://twitter.com/ShoutFactory

 

 

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Shout! Factory To Release New Family Drama Next Week

Courtesy: Shout! Factory

Everybody loves a good underdog story.  And this summer Shout! Factory has a brand new underdog story for audiences.

Endgame will be released Tuesday, next Tuesday, July 5^th.  The movie centers on a high school on the border town of Brownsville, Texas.  The school in question is not one of the more well off schools in its district.  When the school started a chess team that team would surprise everybody and defy all of the odds to become a state champion team.  The story is fictional but based on very real events.  It stars Rico Rodriguez (Modern Family, The Muppets, Epic Movie), Ivonne Coll (Jane The Virgin, Lean On Me, The Godfather: Part II), Efren Ramirez (Crank, Napoleon Dynamite, Employee of the Month), and Justina Machado (The Purge: Anarchy, Welcome to the Family, Queen of the South).

Along with its central underdog story, Endgame also focuses on the hot button issues of immigration, teen drinking, self-confidence, and bullying.  The movie will be available both on DVD and Blu-ray.  The DVD will retail for MSRP of $14.98 and the Blu-ray for $22.97.  It can be ordered online now direct via Shout! Factory’s online store at discounted prices of $13.98 (DVD) and $18.97 (Blu-ray).  More information on this and other title from Shout! Factory is available online now at:

 

 

Website: http://www.shoutfactory.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/shoutfactoryofficial

Twitter: http://twitter.com/ShoutFactory

 

 

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Cinedigm To Release New Rom-Com This Summer

Courtesy: Cinedigm

Cinedigm has a new rom-com offering on the way this summer.

Cinedigm will release its new indie rom-com In-Lawfully Yours on Tuesday, September 6^th.  The movie stars Chelsey Crisp (Fresh Off The Boat, the Joe Schmo Show, Reconciliation), Corbin Bernsen (Psych, L.A. Law, General Hospital), Joe Williamson (Grey’s Anatomy, Fortress, Looking), Philip Boyd (Tyler Perry’s The Haves and Have-Nots, The Young and the Restless, Days of Our Lives), and Marilu Henner (Taxi, Evening Shade, Brooklyn Nine-Nine).  The story, written by Regent University professor Sean Gaffney, is presented in partnership with Regents University and Home Theater Films.  Nearly eighty students from Regent University worked on the movie.  It is a familiar story of finding love in all of the most unexpected places.  This time lead star Crisp plays Jesse, a young woman who has just gone through an unpleasant divorce after her husband Chaz (Boyd) cheated on her.  At the same time as having to deal with the divorce Jesse is also helping her recently widowed mother-in-law Naomi (Henner) pack up her home in the small town of Bethel Cove.  While there, Jesse meets the town pastor Ben (Williamson) and the pair falls in love.  There’s just one problem.  Ben is the brother-in-law of Jesse’s now ex-husband.  When Chaz finds out about the pair’s illicit relationship, he rallies the townspeople behind him and ends up getting Ben fired.  This leads Jesse to leave town to try and make peace with the situation.  The problem is that she can’t stop thinking about Ben.  The result is a story that every young couple will want to watch together.

In-Lawfully Yours will be available on DVD and Digital HD on Tuesday, September 6^th.  It will retail for MSRP of $14.93.  More information on this and other titles from Cinedigm is available online now at:

 

 

Website: http://www.cinedigmentertainment.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/Cinedigm

 

 

To keep up with the latest sports and entertainment news and reviews, go online to http://www.facebook.com/philspicks and “Like” it.  Fans can always keep up with the latest sports and entertainment news and reviews in the Phil’s Picks blog at https://philspicks.wordpress.com.

The Raskins To Support Ted Nugent On Upcoming Tour

Courtesy: Brody Records

Two years have passed since The Raskins released their self-titled debut record on Brody Records.  The band, founded by brothers Logan and Roger Raskin, has since been on the rise.  One of the songs from the band’s album made a big splash, landing a spot on Billboard’s Top 20 radio charts with one of the album’s single.  The album has also sold thousands of copies since its release.  And it even reached the Top 5 in the magazine’s Heat Seekers album sales charts.  Now it is adding yet another mark to its record with it latest tour announcement.

The Raskins will tour this summer alongside rock legend Ted Nugent on what is being dubbed the “Sonic Baptizim Tour 2016.”  The band will serve as support to Nugent on a nearly month-long tour schedule beginning this Friday, July 1st in Phoenix, Arizona. The band’s tour currently runs through Sunday, July 24th in Atlanta, Georgia.  Also included in the tour are dates in Texas, Louisiana, Florida, Nevada and California.  The current schedule for the tour is noted below.  Rounding out the band’s lineup for its upcoming tour will be Jet Lopez  on guitars and Troy Patrick Farrell on drums.

 

The Raskins on tour with Ted Nugent, on The Sonic Baptizim Tour 2016:

Fri. July 1st Phoenix, AZ The Celebrity Theater
Sat. July 2nd Pasadena, CA The Rose
Sun. July 3rd Beverly Hills, CA Saban Theatre
Tue. July 5th San Juan Capistrano, CA The Coach House
Wed. July 6th San Juan Capistrano, CA The Coach House
Thu. July 7th Agoura Hills, CA The Canyon
Fri. July 8th Las Vegas, NV The Foundry @SLS
Thu. July 14th San Antonio, TX Tobin Center
Fri. July 15th Houston, TX The Warehouse
Sat. July 16th Ft Worth, TX Billy Bob’s
Sun. July 17th Austin, TX Scoot Inn
Mon. July 18th Baton Rouge, LA Varsity Theatre
Wed. July 20th Jacksonville, FL Florida Theatre
Thu. July 21st Melboune, FL King Center
Sat. July 23rd Clearwater, FL Ruth Eckerd Hall
Sun. July 24th Atlanta, GA Symphony Hall

 

The Raskins’ upcoming tour is just the latest big mark for the band.  It also supported Motley Crue on a 70-show run on the band’s final tour.  During that time, the Raskins wrote forty songs for its new album, twelve of which will make their way onto the as yet untitled album.  More information on The Raskins’ tour is available online along with updates on its next album, and more at:

 

 

Website: http://www.TheRaskins.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/TheRaskins

Twitter: http://twitter.com/TheRaskinTwins

 

 

To keep up with the latest sports and entertainment news and reviews, go online to http://www.facebook.com/philspicks and “Like” it  Fans can always keep up with the latest sports and entertainment news and reviews in the Phil’s Picks blog at https://philspicks.wordpress.com.

‘The Alcatraz Escape’ Is A “Great Escape” For True Crime Fans

Courtesy: PBS

June 11^th, 1962 is one of the most important dates in America’s deep crime history.  It was on that date some fifty-four years ago this year that Frank Morris, John Anglin, and Clarence Anglin broke out of the maximum security prison and thus created one of the nation’s greatest unsolved crime mysteries.  That is because upon their escape none of the trio was ever seen or heard from again.  In the five decades plus since their escape any number of books has been written about the event.  Just as many documentaries have been produced about the trio’s escape, too.  The problem is that from one to the next there is little variance in the story or result.  Earlier this month Public Media Distribution released what is just one of the most recent documentaries about the now infamous escape in the form of Secrets of the Dead: The Alcatraz Escape.  This latest program is actually an interesting new look at what is in fact not the prison’s only unsolved escape.  The prison’s only other unsolved escape occurred in 1937 when Theodore Cole and Ralph Roe jumped into the San Francisco Bay and disappeared.  That is a story for another time.  Getting back on the subject at hand, this new documentary on the 1962 escape is so interesting because it isn’t just another cookie cutter presentation.  In other words its story is what sets it apart from other documentaries about the escape.  The information that is presented within the story is just as important to the program’s presentation as the story itself.  The program’s sequencing and pacing round out its presentation completing the whole thing.  Each element proves important in its own right to the program’s presentation.  Altogether they make this new episode of PBS’ history/mystery hybrid a piece that while not perfect is still an interesting new look at what is one of America’s greatest unsolved crime mysteries.

Secrets of the Dead: The Alcatraz Escape is an interesting new look at what is one of America’s greatest unsolved crime mysteries.  While not the only program to ever be presented on the subject of the 1962 prison break, it is still a program that any real crime fan will want to view.  That is due at least in part to the story presented in this program.  Audiences will be happy to see, in watching it, that it isn’t just another cookie cutter program about the now infamous, decades-old prison break.  It doesn’t just try to postulate about whether or not Frank Morris, John Anglin, and Clarence Anglin survived their escape from Alcatraz.  It does do this.  Don’t be mistaken here.  But it does more than just that.  It also provides a rich historical background behind the trio’s escape.  That rich historical background will be tackled shortly.  Just as interesting to note of the program’s story is how this new investigation came to happen.  As is noted early in the program, the whole thing started with a planned presentation by one of the investigators about global warming and the effect of rising ocean levels around the world.  Who would have thought that such a topic would end up leading to an investigation on one of America’s greatest unsolved crime mysteries?  The story that unfolds from here is one that will keep any real crime fan engaged from the beginning to the end of the roughly hour-long presentation.  It is just one of the program’s elements that will keep viewers engaged.  The information presented throughout the course of the story will keep viewers just as engaged as the story itself.

The story presented in Secrets of the Dead: The Alcatraz Escape is an interesting new take on the now infamous Alcatraz prison break of 1962.  It is such an interesting presentation because it isn’t just another cookie cutter presentation about the still unsolved crime mystery.  It examines both the escape and how it came to be without allowing itself to linger on the many theories of the fate of the three inmates.  Even the attempt to recreate the “boat” created by the men is not as over the top as that presented in certain other networks’ programs.  No names need be used as most audiences understand that reference.  Keeping all of this in mind, the very story presented in this episode of PBS’ Secrets of the Dead is in its own right a very important part of the program’s presentation.  It is not the program’s only important element, though.  The information provided throughout the course of the story is just as important to the episode’s presentation as the story at the center of the episode.  As a matter of fact, without that information there would be no story.  One of the most interesting pieces of information shared in this program is the seemingly lax nature of the guards employed by the prison during its nearly three decades in operation and their apparent gullibility.  As is revealed in the story, the whole escape plan was able to come to fruition because a fourth (yes, fourth) inmate involved in the escape plan was able to trick the guards, thus allowing a big part of the plan (perhaps the most important part of the plan) to be executed.  At the same time, another former guard interviewed for the program even openly states that there was not close attention paid to large amounts of glue being taken by the trio.  One would think that since Alcatraz was supposed to be a maximum security prison, the guards would be more vigilant in their duties.  The revelations made in this program seem to point to the opposite, though.  It’s a powerful statement and perhaps even explains why the prison saw a total of 14 prison breaks in its roughly twenty-nine years in operation, one of which still remains unsolved to this day.  That escape took place in 1937.  Of course none of that information is provided here, which is a little bit disheartening.  In hindsight it would have been nice to have had that added background information.  That is because it would have given even more significance to the 1962 escape.  But that is a moot point.

The revelation of the issues with the Alcatraz guards is just one of the interesting pieces of information covered in this program.  As was just noted, the program also reveals that while Moore and the Anglin brothers were the main focus of the decades-old investigation, they were not the only conspirators in the escape plan.  A fourth man was apparently involved in the plan, too.  It is even hinted that he, not Moore, was the mastermind behind the whole thing.  His identity will be left for audiences to discover for themselves when they watch this program.  Just as interesting to learn is that the man was even originally supposed to join Moore and the Anglin brothers on their makeshift boat when they broke out of the prison.  But apparently he didn’t completely go through with the plan, opting instead to stay behind.  The story behind this figure is just as interesting to learn as the rest of the story of the 1962 escape.  It is just one more of the many important pieces of information revealed over the course of the story, too.  The revelation of the prison’s reputation versus the reality of its function is just as interesting to learn as the story of the escape.

The information about the 1962 escape and its relation to the issue of the prison’s guards are both key pieces of information shard in this new episode of Secrets of the Dead.  They are not the program’s only interesting pieces of information. Another rather interesting piece of information provided in this program centers on the prison’s overall reputation.  The prison has a reputation as being a place that held the worst of the worst.  And it did.  But Al Capone, White Bulger, and others were not the only inmates housed at Alcatraz.  In fact, many of the inmates housed there were just multiple time offenders.  They were inmates that had committed ordinary crimes but couldn’t seem to be handled in other prisons.  In simpler terms, while it might have been a maximum security prison, it was in reality not quite the imposing structure that it has come to be known.  It is just one more interesting piece of information shared over the course of the program’s run time.  Between the information revealed here and the rest of the episode’s revelations, the information in whole that is revealed here shows clearly why the program’s overall content is just as important as its general story.  Of course as important as the program’s story and content are to its presentation they are not the program’s only important elements.  Its sequencing and pacing (I.E. its overall structure) is just as important to note as its story and content.

The story at the center of Secrets of the Dead: The Alcatraz Escape and its content are both key elements in its presentation.  Each element ensures viewers’ engagement in its own right.  They are not the program’s only important elements, though.  The program’s overall structure is just as important to note as its story and content.  Audiences will note in watching the program the smooth transitions from one segment to the next and from one side of the story to the other.  On one side is the mechanical story.  That is the recreation of the boat and life vests used in the 1962 escape.  On the other side is the story of how the escape was planned and where the inmates might have actually landed.  The program smoothly transitions between the two elements throughout the course of its run time, thus ensuring viewers’ engagement even more.  It doesn’t just randomly jump back and forth from one part of the story to the other and back.  It is in fact fully structured.  The build team doesn’t just try to re-create the inmates’ boat and life vests.  They actually research each element so as to make the closest possible copy of each piece.  And in regards to the “planning team” audiences get to see the team use actual computer simulations to determine the likeliest path taken once the inmates hit the water.  Viewers will be surprised to discover that the “planning team” finds in the long run that the original Angel Island theory looks to be just that and that the inmates in fact might have ended up at a completely different point because of the currents in the San Francisco Bay.  As each team finishes its research and work the program keeps viewers fully engaged, and at times surprised.  The end result of their work is the ultimate finale for the program.  That is because for all intents and purposes it leaves more questions than answers.  But the way in which it does this will put a smile on viewers’ faces.  The team doesn’t try to sex up the program and make it like so many commercial programs.  It points to some facts that are interesting in their own right.  That being the case, the program’s overall structure proves in the end to be just as important to the program as its story and content.  All things considered, Secrets of the Dead: The Alcatraz Escape proves in the end to be it’s own *ahem* great escape for true crime fans.

Secrets of the Dead: The Alcatraz is an interesting new look at what is one of America’s greatest unsolved crime mysteries.  That is due in part to the story at the heart of the program.  The story is not just another cookie cutter presentation that tries to postulate  about whether or not Frank Morris, John Anglin and Clarence Anglin survived their now infamous escape from Alcatraz in 1962.  It presents an in-depth and surprising history behind the chain of events that led to the escape along with that oft-discussed topic.  What’s more the discussion on whether or not the trio escaped doesn’t just focus on the standard Angel Island theory.  It theorizes that IF in fact the men did survive then they didn’t go to Angel Island but another location within the San Francisco Bay.  To top it all off, the whole story begins by noting that the investigation came from a planned discussion by one member of the program’s featured team on rising sea levels.  The in-depth information provided by the program adds even more interest to the story.  The program’s overall structure completes the program.  It brings everything full circle and ensures once and for all viewers’ engagement.  Each element is important in its own right to the whole of this program’s presentation.  Altogether they make it a presentation that, again, is quite the interesting new look at one of America’s greatest unsolved crime mysteries.  It is available now and can be ordered online direct via PBS’ online store.  More information on this and other episodes of Secrets of the Dead is available online now at:

 

 

Website: http://www.pbs.org/secrets

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/SecretsofTheDead

Twitter: http://twitter.com/SecretsPBS

 

 

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‘Paco And John’ Is Another Impressive Entry In Eagle Rock’s Montreux Live Series

Courtesy: Eagle Rock Entertainment/Montreux Sounds/Universal Music Group

Fans of John McLaughlin have new reason to be excited this week.  That is because Eagle Rock Entertainment and Montreux Sounds have released a new archived performance by the veteran guitarist.  Paco An John Live at Montreux 1987 was released this Friday, June 24^th.  The triple-disc set is not the first of McLaughlin’s Montreux performances to be released by the companies.  Five years ago, they released McLaughlin’s performance alongside fellow guitar virtuoso Carlos Santana at the 2011 Montreux Festival on Blu-ray.  This latest recording takes fans even farther back in time and presents him with another guitarist—Paco de Lucia.  There is plenty for fans of both musicians to appreciate in this new recording beginning with its set list.  This will be discussed shortly.  The duo’s stage presence is just as important to note.  It will be discussed later.  Last and most definitely not least of note in this set’s presentation is its companion booklet.  It brings everything full circle with this presentation and shows together with the previously noted elements why this recording is one more must have for any John McLaughlin fan.

Eagle Rock Entertainment and Montreux Sounds’ new archived concert recording Paco and John Live at Montreux 1987 is a new must have for any fan of Paco de Lucia.  It is just as much of a must have for any fan of John McLaughlin.  It is not the first of McLaughlin’s Montreux performances to be released by Eagle Rock and Montreux Sounds.  But it is unlike his previous released performances.  That is evident in the first of the set’s most important elements—its set list.  This concert’s set list features a mix of Mclaughlin and de Lucia’s own originals, and a number of covers, too.  McLaughlin makes note of this in the set’s companion booklet.  That will be discussed at more length later.  In all, the nine songs (technically ten since the set’s opener is a two-song medley of sorts) that make up the body of the concert total ninety-one minutes.  What’s important to note is that while nine (or ten) songs might not seem like much, each song’s arrangement is so in depth that each one must be truly experienced in order to be fully understood and appreciated.  In other words, the set list presented here is not one that one can just have on in the background when experiencing it.  It is one that requires full attention from one song to the next in order to be fully appreciated.  It is just one of the recording’s most important elements.  McLaughlin and de Lucia’s stage presence is just as important to note here as the show’s set list.

The set list featured in Paco de Lucia and John McLaughlin’s new live recording is an important part of the recording’s presentation in its own right.  That is made clear simply by listening through the entirety of its ninety-one minute run time.  It is just one of the recording’s most important elements.  McLaughlin and de Lucia’s stage presence is just as important to note in this recording as the concert’s set list.  The duo’s stage presence is so important to note because of how little the pair does throughout the course of its performance.  Both men spend the length of their performance sitting down while they perform.  There’s no walking around on stage, pacing back and forth.  Even with this being the case, both men still manage to keep audiences entertained and engaged.  That is done primarily through each musician’s display of musical talents.  The precision and expertise exhibited in each man’s performance is impressive to say the very least.  Actually getting to see that expertise in the set’s DVD reveals just how impressive their talents are.  The pair’s facial gestures do just as much for their stage presence as their performance of the set’s featured songs.  This includes the moments when each is alone on stage and when the pair is performing together.  The sly little smiles that the pair share with one another as they perform speak volumes.  Those motions do just as much to entertain as do those of any performer’s more active behavior on stage.  That is a true testament to the power of the simplicity in the pair’s stage presence.  It shows that just as the old adage states, big things sometimes do indeed come in small packages.  Now, keeping this in mind, it should be clear why de Lucia an McLaughlin’s stage presence is so important to note in the overall presentation of this recording.  Their stage presence is so simple.  Yet it does so much for the experience even in (and perhaps thanks to) its simplicity.  When that simple and so entertaining stage presence is set against the recording’s set list, both elements prove even more their importance to this recording.  They are not its only important elements, either.  The companion booklet that is included in the recording is just as important to its presentation as the recording’s set list and its performers’ stage presence.

The set list featured in Paco and John Live at Montreux 1987 is its own important element in the set’s overall presentation.  The same can be said of de Lucia and McLaughlin’s stage presence.  Both elements are each important in their own way to the recording’s presentation.  They are, however, not its only important elements.  The companion booklet that comes with the set is just as important to the set’s presentation as those other noted elements.  The companion booklet should be noted in large part because of its liner notes.  The notes in question were written by John McLaughlin.  McLaughlin discusses in the notes the show’s set list and his friendship with de Lucia.  There is even a very small music theory lesson of sorts in the liner notes as he discusses Bulerias, which he states are “one of the pillars of the Flamenco musical traditions.”  The liner notes are brief, but also concise.  In the end, it brings the presentation full circle.  It rounds out the recording’s overall experience, proving once and for all why Paco and John Live at Montreux 1987 is one more must have for fans of both de Lucia and McLaughlin.

Paco and John Live at Montreux 1987 is a must have for any fan of Paco de Lucia and John McLaughlin.  It is one of those rare presentations that does so much with so little.  This is evident in the show’s set list, which runs a total of ninety-one minutes.  It features compositions from McLaughlin and de Lucia but from their counterparts, too.  Those that listen closely will note the difference in sound and style between each song, too.  The duo’s performance on stage is so simple throughout.  As odd as it may seem, that simplicity actually makes a big impact on the experience.  The show’s liner notes are just as simple yet add their own depth to the experience, too.  Each element proves in the end to be important in its own right to the whole of this recording.  Altogether they make Paco and John Live at Montreux 1987, again, a live recording (and recording in general) that every one of de Lucia and McLaughlin’s fans should have in their own home music collections.  It is available now in stores and online.  More information on this and other titles from Eagle Rock Entertainment is available online now at:

 

 

Website: http://www.eagle-rock.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/EagleRockEnt

Twitter: http://twitter.com/EagleRockNews

 

 

To keep up with the latest sports and entertainment reviews and news, go online to http://www.facebook.com/philspicks, and “Like” it.  Fans can always keep up with the latest sports and entertainment news and reviews in the Phil’s Picks blog at https://philspicks.wordpress.com.