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With a setlist to die for and sounding tighter than Jenny Lewis’ thigh-highs, Rilo Kiley blazed through classics old and new at their triumphant turn at Austin’s Stubb’s BBQ.

We managed to catch My Morning Jacket three times this year but none better than in the intimate setting of the Parish, where their magnificently raucous live antics threatened to collapse the second-story floor and show off their technical skill rather than their arean-rock readiness.

With a fiery set reminiscent of end-of-days prophecies, Converge annihilated all expectations with a set that was both brutal and enthralling, recalling the days when punk meant something more than just fast guitars.

Easily topping the list of this year’s most enthralling live sets, Cat Power at Stubb’s recalled classic soul songstresses of yesteryear, soaring through classics from You Are Free, the Greatest, and this year’s Jukebox, all the while maintaining the composure and confidence of a road-weary but hardened troubadour. Chan Marshall has walked through the fire and come out the other side a little older, a little dustier, but all the better for her trials. 

Simple setting, not-so-simple enemy, the Ruins managed to combine pleasingly-gory special effects with an overbearing sense of dread as the protagonists find themselves trapped on an ancient pyramid being eaten by, what else, rabid plants. Bloody pom-poms awarded all around. 

Perhaps the most outright terrifying flick on our list, the Strangers captures the nihilism of modern horror with stark and brutal imagery and enough impending dread to make you queasy throughout. Plus, check out the awesome old-timey poster, great stuff. 

A coming of age tale for the morally reprehensible amongst us (myself definitely included) Teeth tells the story of a young girl blossoming into full-fledged womanhood and all the blood, guts, and terror that it inevitably involves. Recommended for every frat-boy considering date-rape (warning: castration abounds).

A horrifically stark and undeniably enjoyable trek into the darkest reaches of the horror-film psyche, Funny Games forces the viewer themselves into sadism for continuing to watch the terrible torture of an affluent family by a deranged duo of golf-club wielding maniacs. Are we the real monsters for enjoying the film? It’s hard not to be when Naomi Watts starts gunning people down. A must see.

Of all the horror movies this year to question the brutal and sadistic nature of the genre, none dared to go so far as to question the medium of delivery itself, to identify the maddening pervasiveness of media in our society and our cult-like devotion to it. In the Signal, the three directors attempt just that, fusing elements of horror, drama, zombie-flick, dark comedy, gore, and psyche-freak-out all into a visionary masterpiece that undeniably captures what is at times both the best and the sickest elements of horror cinema – the unending search for meaning in a cruel world attacking from all sides. So highly recommended I’m wondering why you’re still reading this and not buying it. You must have the crazy.

Deerhunter – “Nothing Ever Happened” (from the Microcastle LP)

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N.E.R.D. RELEASE ALBUM DETAILS


Check out that wicked album cover! N.E.R.D. are back and it’s about time, as their new album Seeing Sounds is poised to put Pharrell and the boys back on top. Check this N.E.R.D. (feat. Kanye West, Pusha T, and Lupe Fiasco) – “Everybody Nose (remix)”

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THE STRANGERS


For you horror junkies out there (such as yours truly), there might be no better way to spend your horror-movie money this week (except for maybe that Sex and the City horrorfest) than The Strangers, a genuinely suspenseful flick that combines those all-too-fun ‘jump out moments’ with a heavy, palpable sense of dread throughout the film. Definitely reminiscent of a more classic horror-movie take on Funny Games, so don’t be on the lookout for happy endings, just be prepared to get scared shitless by the enormous amount of terror ahead of you. Four out of five bloody pon-poms.

Comment folks!

Recently the band traveled through Norway by train and were apparently asked by a Norwegian film crew if they would write a song impromptu for the trip. What the film crew captured was an inspired, transcendent sing-a-long worthy of inclusion on their next, sure to be excellent LP. Check it out, straight from Stereogum:
Stereogum comes this report of a video done by a Norwegian film crew following the band as they rode a train through the country. What follows is a transcendent little singalong that you can check here:
Beach House – “Wedding Bell” (from the Devotion LP)

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NEW BAND CHEER – THE ROLLER


Austin, Texas’ own black-metal act The Roller have just come onto the Cannibal Cheerleader radar and we’re sorry we didn’t know about these guys earlier. With a dirgey, brutal delivery and instrumental experimentalism both reminiscent of bands like Wolves in the Throne Room, true Norwegian darkness has finally landed in Texas. Check out this tune and swing by their Myspace.

The Roller – “Rattle of the Shaman”

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NEW BAND CHEER – WHAT LAURA SAYS

Tempe, Arizona’s What Laura Says Thinks and Feels – “July 23rd”

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THE HORROR, THE HORROR – THE STRANGERS


Here’s a new feature for Cannibal Cheerleader – The Horror, The Horror, where we preview new horror movies coming out. The inaugural flick is The Strangers, starring Liv Tyler, seems like a blast from a suspenseful past. Check the trailer.

Promises to have a low body-count but will undoubtedly have some wicked scares to make up for it. Reminiscent of my favorite movie of ‘08 thus far, Funny Games, in that it seems obsessed with how Americans no longer feel safe in their own homes, trapped in the prison of suburbia. On Monday I’ll post up a review!

Sorry to have skipped Terror Thursday for the past few weeks, and sorry for the small update yesterday. Comment folks and see you next week!