Kevin Smith – Vilification [Video]

I, like so many other out there, am a huge fan of Kevin Smith.  The man can seriously do no wrong in my eyes…. Hell, I even loved Jersey Girl (and to a lesser extent, Cop Out).  So, for those of you who have been wondering how I came up with the Top 37 1/2 Albums of 20__“, you need look no further than the seminal 90’s classic film of twenty-something angst, Clerks (Hey!  Now you get it, right?).

Today’s video is just about perfect to represent Smith’s influence on all things Trainwreck’d, with it with dialogue and ultimate hilarity.  But, it also happens to feature two fine actors who have been kind enough to share a few words with us in our interview department – Scott Schiaffo and Marilyn Ghigliotti.

I could go on and on about Mr. Smith and how his films were a brilliant medium for bonding with my father, or how I could repeat every line from Chasing Amy without even having the film on….or how I once made a deck of playing cards in 11th grade that simply had names like Walt Flanagan, Ming Chen, Bryan Johnson, and many more View Askew related names on them (This being 2001, long before he made them famous for being his indentured servants at a store he owned)….but, that would take an entire book in itself, or at least three hours of breath taking breaks between the preverbal dick sucking I would probably give Sir Smith if he demanded it of my very heterosexual self.  He’s just that great.

Just to throw in a few more links, I will mention that we were also graced with the honor of stealing a few words from the legendary “Holy Bartender” from Dogma, voice actor on the Clerks animated series, and a total creeper in the View Askewniverse’s classic flick and Bryan Johnson directed film Vulgar, Mr. Matthew Maher.

I always knew our little site here probably wouldn’t reach the heights of being able to get in touch with the every-so-busy Kevin, but thankfully a few of his friends were nice enough to digitally stop by, proving that Smith is not only a god damned genius in the realm of word to screen, but he would be shit in this life if it weren’t for the wonderful people he surrounds himself with.

So, Scott, Marilyn, and Matthew…..thank you for everything!  And Kevin…. thank you for winning in life for all of us who may never have that chance.

Note: While Trainwreck’d Society is transiting into its imminent extinction, reflective posts like this with a shit ton of links can be expected from now until we call the whole damn thing off in July. Enjoy!

Matt Beat – Story Time with Mr. Beat [Video]

I have been following the work of Mr. Matt Beat for quite some time.  He was one of the first folks to jump in as a contributor for the book I developed entitled Children of Mercy, and I had already been a fan of his two piece band Electric Needle Room.  But, what became most interesting about Matt was that he was a indie pop mastermind by night…..but, a middle school social studies teacher by day.  And as a man who has been seen fit to grace our future’s children with the knowledge they deserve, it has been an honor to hear what he has to say.  This may very well be why he has been a Guest Wrecker here at TWS not just once, but twice!  He has also managed to make our Top 37 1/2 Albums list for the last 3 years (#31 in 2012, #21 in 2013, and #32 in 2014)

As the years drove on, Matt begun creating these wonderful albums entitled The Presidents of the United States of America.  3 volumes, each with a song about each and every president.  And he released them each President’s Day for 3 straight years (as well, as a bonus single for our current Commander in Chief.  Have you ever wanted to know more about Millard Filmore?   Where you actually unsure that he was even a president?  Well, Mr. Beat has you covered!

Matt’s latest ventures have lead him to create Story Time With Mr. Beat, a YouTube based format that he uses to making learning history, just a bit more fun.  Matt Beat is one of those rare beings in this world who has decided to use his talent and powers for good and to educate the youth about some of the most important events in American history.

I will always be a fan of yours Mr. Beat…..but, I am still waiting on that Al Gore track you promised.  Until then folks, check out Story Time with Mr. Beat!

Note: While Trainwreck’d Society is transiting into its imminent extinction, reflective posts like this with a shit ton of links can be expected from now until we call the whole damn thing off in July. Enjoy!

Bobby Joe Ebola & The Children MacNuggits – Life Is Excellent [Video]

15 years ago, I fell in love with my friend Tyler’s bootleg CD (remember those?) of some band called Bobby Joe Ebola and the Children MacNuggits that had somehow migrated up to my shitty hometown from the exotic East Bay in Northern California.  I was absolutely smitten with their hilarity, but more so with their brutal honesty about life, love, and how fucking great it would be to be cat.

Several years later I had the distinct honor to do something that I still consider my greatest accomplishment.  I got to announce the band’s return with their first album review in several years over at Fensepost, almost 5 years ago!  Since then I also had the chance to fulfill a life long dream of seeing them live in 2012 at Backspace in Portland Oregon (and again a few years later at Powell’s Books!).  And the boys have not slowed down since.  They have since released their seminal album Trainwreck To Narnia (which hit our Top 37 1/2 Albums of 2012 list at #7), as well as the musical companion to the “children’s book” Meal Deal With The Devil (our #1 EP of 2013), a songbook of Bobby Joe Ebola lyrics and great stories, countless music videos, and hundreds upon hundreds of live performances.

Corbett has been hard at work in a different field these days. He has been hard at work creating the forthcoming documentary East Bay: By the Punx, For the Punx, About the Punx that promises to be nothing short of amazing.  He has also recently become a new father to a beautiful baby boy!  Of course Dan is in on the project as well (the documentary, not the baby…I don’t think?) And when not playing in BJE, he can be found with his other project Thee Hobo Goblins.

Without a doubt, being able to cover BJE over the last five years, whether at Fensepost or here at Trainwreck’d, has been one of the greatest honors of my “career”.  And with that being said, check out this awesome video for “Life Is Excellent”, one of my favorite BJE songs of all time, and the perfect embodiment of the BJE ethos: Just because we’re laughing, doesn’t mean we’re joking.

Note: While Trainwreck’d Society is transiting into its imminent extinction, reflective posts like this with a shit ton of links can be expected from now until we call the whole damn thing off in July. Enjoy!

Michael J. Epstein & Sophia Cacciola – Magnetic [Video]

Few people have been a staple here at Trainwreck’d Society like Michael J. Epstein and Sophia Cacciola, the brilliant Somerset based filmmaking/music making/just about anything making duo of artists we adore so, so much.

We have covered musical projects (there are several!) they have both been involved with, including Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling and Darling Pet Munkee.  Michael has also been a our most viewed Guest Wrecker.  And the duo has landed on our year end lists on several occasions, including hitting the #16 and #13 spots on 2013’s Top 40 Songs list, as well as #15 on our Top 37 1/2 Albums list in the same year.  Sophia was kind enough to contribute to our 2013 With Friends Like These list, as well as in 2014 when we were also able to snatch of Michael as well!

Musically speaking, they are phenomenal.  But, we haven’t even gotten into their work in the world of film.  They have managed to create one of the most unique horror films of the last decade with their wonderful thriller TEN, that we have covered extensively.  From the film’s awesome soundtrack (previously mentioned as one of the best albums of 2013), produced by the wonderful Catherine Capozzi to the awesome novelization of the film written by our favorite poet/writer Jade Sylvan, there is just so much to love about this film and the work of Michael J. Epstein and Sophia Cacciola, and the immensely talented folks they surround themselves with every day.

And that brings us to today’s video!  The duo is back at it again, this time with a psychological thriller entitled Magnetic featuring the talented actress Allix Mortis.  They have been working on the film for a while now, and have recently released this trailer!  Learn more about this awesome project at the film’s website, and if you find yourself in the Boston area on March 29th, be sure to watch the film’s premiere at the Boston Underground Film Festival.  Enjoy!

Note: While Trainwreck’d Society is transiting into its imminent extinction, reflective posts like this with a shit ton of links can be expected from now until we call the whole damn thing off in July. Enjoy!

Trevor Moore – High In Church [Video]

If you’ve been following TWS over the last few years, you may have noticed that we absolutely love the Whitest Kids U Know.  We have been fortunate enough to have a few of the guys on the site over the years.  In fact, my very first interview was with the oh-so-hilarious cast member Timmy Williams (thinking about it more, most of my readers will probably remember him best from THIS).  And years later we got a few words from the equally awesome, vacuum fucking, Sam Brown.  Also you can find the immensely talented, and later star of the awesome show Guys With Kids that was cancelled because people don’t understand GOOD television,  Zach Cregger right here.

One guy we never seemed to be able to get in touch with was the undisputed “leader” of the pack, Trevor Moore (and Darren Trumeter, but not for lack of trying!).  But, that hasn’t stopped us from loving what he (they) does (do).  And Trevor has been on a roll lately.  You may have caught him as the “man in the street”, basically a trick on Jay Leno’s track on The Tonight Show.  But, more importantly, he has released two wonderful comedy albums in the last couple of years, Drunk Texts To Myself and the most recent High In Church.

High In Church has also spawned into a brilliant hour long comedy special that aired on Comedy Central recently.  The special featured several videos that have exploded on YouTube, simply because they are uniquely hilarious.

So with that, I thought it would be fun to share the video for the title track, “High In Church”.  And as a little extra special bonus, the video features another previous TWS interviewee, the brilliant comedian Johnny Pemberton.

So check out the video, and head on over to iTunes, and pick up the album High In Church.

Note: While Trainwreck’d Society is transiting into its imminent extinction, reflective posts like this with a shit ton of links can be expected from now until we call the whole damn thing off in July.  Enjoy!