In celebration of the venerable Mr. Idol's upcoming performance at Ruth Eckerd Hall on Thurs., April 28th, 2005, I'm devoting part of this Oddservations to an incident I had at a record/CD store in the '90s concerning his terrific '93 work "Cyberpunk". I was in a now-history CD store named Music Revolution (which was in Nole's neck of the woods near Britton Plaza), when somehow the subject got brought up about the CD in front of one of the store clerks, who proceeded to laugh at me after I claimed I really liked the album.
1993 was actually a one of the better years in the lousy '90s, with the release of this CD and also U2's outstanding "Zooropa" (followed by the second leg of their ZooTV tour); Big Country's tremendous, guitar-driven "The Buffalo Skinners"; Duran Duran's "The Wedding Album";
For the uninitiated, "Cyberpunk" is more than a pop/rock album on the surface, and has a genuine appeal to the sci-fi Crazed Fanboy in all of us. Nearly all of the songs have a cool Post-Apocalyptic theme; in fact the album's intro begins with actual dialogue from one of my all-time favorite movies, "The Road Warrior" ("out...into the wasteland..."). Idol also comments on Future Shock themes of the time; they being virtual reality (whatever happened to that?) and "cyberpunk" itself (U2 also explored these themes in "Zooropa" and on the ZooTV tour, warning us not to let computers take over our humanity).
The album's debut single, "Shock to the System", you'll recall had an interesting Terminator/Cyborg theme, and was directed by the then-popular Brett Leonard ("The Lawnmower Man"). That single was followed by "Heroin" (with accompanying video), but the real reason to buy the CD is for the non-single tracks.
"Cyberpunk" is most definitely a concept album, which Billy Idol, like a master architect, crafted to fit neatly along one another, while still producing several solid singles that stand alone. Each track begins with a short, sci-fi inspired intro, featuring sound effects and Idol's manipulated vocals.
The first track, "Wasteland", is gripping. This is the one that features dialogue from "Road Warrior", and tells the tale of a shaman encountering a post-holocaust tribe looking for a savior:
"I'm outta the wasteland
I'm into this head man
I'm outta the wasteland
No religion at all"
Most all the other songs have similar themes: "Tomorrow People", "Adam in Chains" (a dance track; one of my favorites), "Neuromancer", "Power Junkie", the terrific "Love Labors On", "Shangrila", "Concrete Kingdom", "Venus", "Mother Dawn", and my favorite track "Then the Night Comes". Honestly, listening to "Cyberpunk" is as thrilling as popping in one of your favorite Post-Apocalyptic movies ("After the Fall of New York", "Rats - Night of Terror") in your DVD player, and is probably the only CD of its kind out there. If you love good sci-fi, New Wave, and the Post-Apocalyptic genre, you owe it to yourself to give "Cyberpunk" a spin, and if anyone laughs at you for doing so, kick 'em in the teeth!
Other CD's/bands with Sci-Fi or Post-Apocalyptic images:
Flock of Seagulls - U.F.O. imagery; "I Ran", "Space Age Love Song", "Transfer Affection", "Wishing".
The Buggles - Their '79 debut album "The Age of Plastic" features all Sci-Fi-themed songs.
Kraftwerk - Robotic, Sci-Fi videos
INXS - The video for "Listen Like Thieves" has an "Escape from New York" Post-Apocalyptic look.
Marc Almond (of Soft Cell) - The video for "Tears Run Rings" is very Post-Apocalyptic
The Eurythmics - Video for "Sexcrime (1984)"
Duran Duran - "The Wild Boys" video
Culture Club - "The War Song" has some Post-Apocalyptic images
Frankie Goes to Hollywood - "Rage Hard" video
The Police - "Synchronicity II" video
Pet Shop Boys - "It's a Sin" video
Sisters of Mercy - "This Corrosion" video
Ultravox - "Dancing with Tears in My Eyes" video
Schlock-O-Rama Reviews on the way!
For those of you who thought I haven't been my loquacious self, I just want to inform all of you that I have a cavalcade of Schlock-O-Rama reviews coming soon. Nole hinted at this in his issue #259 editorial, informing us that it is indeed laborious to format the said reviews in SOR protocol. Thanks to Nole for formatting and publishing my B-movie reviews online, and be sure to look out for them!
Filming begins soon on Gulf + Atlantic's "Descansos" starring Gary Busey
Gary Busey was in town Sunday for a press conference in promotion of his new independent film "Descansos" which is set to film in the Tampa Bay area. "Descansos" is produced locally by Gulf + Atlantic, a Tampa production company; Eric R. Polins is the Executive Producer. The story deals with the following, taken from the "Descansos" website: "Descansos is the story of opposing viewpoints when two people meet under unusual circumstances involving a roadside memorial."
Looking forward to this Florida production!
U2 at the St. Pete. Times Forum in November
U2 comes back to the Tampa Bay area for their only Central Florida appearance:
U2: Vertigo//2005 Tour
Wed. Nov. 16th, 2005
7:30 p.m.
@ The St. Petersburg Times Forum
Tampa, FL
"Oddservations" is ©2005 by Andy Lalino. The Oddservations banner is a creation of Andy Lalino. All other graphics are creations of Nolan B. Canova. All contents of Nolan's Pop Culture Review are ©2005 by Nolan B. Canova.
Attention all Crazed Fanboys: check your local Borders and Barnes & Noble booksellers for the latest edition (April '05) of Video Watchdog magazine (#117). On pgs. 7/8 you'll find a glowing review of my horror featurette "Filthy", complete with a full-color photo of "MeatMan" (one of the humanoid creatures in the film).