News

U.K.-French film company Alief has pounced on the worldwide sales rights to “Luna Rosa: The 7th Ascension of Atabey,” the fourth feature by Puerto Rican multi-hyphenate Omar Rodríguez-López, frontman for Grammy-winning band, The Mars Volta.

“This is his most cohesive, fully narrative film yet,” Alief co-partner Miguel Angel Govea told Variety, adding: “Omar pulls a magic trick with his visually and aurally stunning film, managing to pull us in with striking images.”

A meld of sci-fi and dystopian genres, “Luna Rosa” is set in Borinquen, the Indigenous Taíno name for Puerto Rico. It follows Zur’na (played by Flora Sylvestre), who ventures into enemy territories controlled by American colonial forces in search of her missing brother. Through her journey, Rodríguez-López critiques the enduring effects of American imperialism, drawing on influences from classic Latin American cinema and cult B-movies. The result is a pulsating world filled with intricate rituals,...

The Mars Volta have released their new album, Lucro sucio; Los ojos del vacio. Stream it below. Additionally, the band has announced a North American tour set to take place in the fall.

Lucro sucio has been described as an “atmospheric and moody” album in which Omar Rodríguez-López and Cedric Bixler-Zavala revisit their roots by blending the band’s “signature sound with jazz and electronica influences, celebrating their origins while pushing forward with fresh innovations.”

Get The Mars Volta Tickets Here

Ahead of its release, some fans received an early preview of the album. The group performed the LP in its entirety every night as a supporting act on Deftones’ recently concluded spring North American tour, while Bixler-Zavala reportedly gifted a delivery worker who brought food to The Mars Volta’s hotel with a burned CD-r advance copy of the album.

Lucro sucio; Los ojos del vacio serves as the...

The Mars Volta / At the Drive-In documentary, Omar and Cedric: If This Ever Gets Weird, is now available to rent or buy via Amazon Prime, among other digital platforms. A physical release on DVD and Blu-Ray is coming February 25th.

The Nicolas Jack Davies-directed doc premiered at the Raindance Film Festival in October 2023, later receiving a theatrical release in late November 2024. It was then awarded Best Music Documentary at the 2024 IDA Awards in December.

Get Mars Volta Tickets Here

The film follows the musical journey of Omar Rodríguez-López and Cedric Bixler-Zavala with a fly-on-the-wall level of access, from their early days cutting their teeth in El Paso’s hardcore scene with At the Drive-In, to their legacy-defining work with The Mars Volta, including their personal fallout and reconnection.

Over the course of multiple decades, Rodríguez-López shot 100s of hours of footage documenting At the Drive-In and The Mars Volta,...

The Mars Volta / At the Drive-In documentary, Omar and Cedric: If This Ever Gets Weird, is now available to rent or buy via Amazon Prime, among other digital platforms. A physical release on DVD and Blu-Ray is coming February 25th.

The Nicolas Jack Davies-directed doc premiered at the Raindance Film Festival in October 2023, later receiving a theatrical release in late November 2024. It was then awarded Best Music Documentary at the 2024 IDA Awards in December.

Get Mars Volta Tickets Here

The film follows the musical journey of Omar Rodríguez-López and Cedric Bixler-Zavala with a fly-on-the-wall level of access, from their early days cutting their teeth in El Paso’s hardcore scene with At the Drive-In, to their legacy-defining work with The Mars Volta, including their personal fallout and reconnection.

Over the course of multiple decades, Rodríguez-López shot 100s of hours of footage documenting At the Drive-In and The Mars Volta,...

At the heart of maximalist rock outfit The Mars Volta are two friends: guitarist Omar Rodríguez-López and vocalist Cedric Bixler-Zavala. The pair met as El Paso high-schoolers obsessed with punk music, and soon began a creative partnership that lasted through multiple bands, scores of albums and hundreds of explosive live shows.

The centerpiece of their creativity is a constant search for fresh sounds and ideas, and the new film about their friendship — “Omar and Cedric: If This Ever Gets Weird” — pushes the music documentary format forward as well. The film, out in select theaters Wednesday via Oscilloscope Laboratories, was directed by Nicolas Jack Davies, who took the job as a fan of the duo’s work since their breakout as members of post-punk group At the Drive-In. The pair had been interested in telling their story via hours and hours of candid video footage Rodríguez-López had recorded since his childhood,...

An intimate new documentary takes us behind the highs and lows of a band who were touched by many tragedies

When Omar Rodriguez-Lopez of the Mars Volta moved to the mainland US with his parents from their native Puerto Rico at age 10, he was thrilled when the white kids called him a word he’d never heard before. “They called me ‘spic’,’ he said. “I thought it was so cool that they’d given me this nickname! I only found out what it really meant when I told some Black kids at school and they said, ‘Yo, what are you talking about?’”

Meanwhile, several states away, his later bandmate, Cedric Bixler-Zavala, was experiencing his own brand of racism as a kid. Like his Mexican-born father, he has blue eyes and light skin, which drew suspicion from both the Latino and the white communities. “You have to prove yourself to each side,...

The world of music documentaries is a complex one.

There are plenty of films covering the biggest artists in the world from Renaissance: A Film by Beyoncé to Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour, Hulu’s Road Diary: Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band and Martin Scorsese-produced Beatles ’64.

But under the surface, music like alternative music scenes themselves, there’s a phalanx of weird and interesting films about lesser known artists, where the story is often as strange and endearing as the artists. These often become the films that have longevity, from The Decline of Western Civilization to Dig!

This is where the Sound Unseen Film Festival comes in. Held in the Twin Cities across a variety of cinemas in and around Minneapolis, the festival showcases a slew of leftfield films from interesting directors and filmmakers such as Omar & Cedric: If This Ever Gets Weird, Swamp Dogg Gets His Pool Painted,...

The Mars Volta / At the Drive-In documentary, Omar and Cedric: If This Ever Gets Weird, is receiving a theatrical release on November 20th, and an extended trailer can be streamed now.

The Nicolas Jack Davies-directed doc follows the musical journey and friendship of Omar Rodríguez-López and Cedric Bixler-Zavala, from their early days cutting their teeth in El Paso’s hardcore scene with At the Drive-In, to their legacy-defining work with The Mars Volta, and subsequent personal fallout.

Get The Mars Volta Tickets Here

“Their immense artistic success gave way to deep personal fissures that ended their musical partnership in 2013, and inflicted wounds that would take more than a decade to heal,” states the film’s press release. “Omar and Cedric: If This Ever Gets Weird charts the duo’s intense and profound journey as they navigate success, addiction, tragedy, betrayal, forgiveness and, ultimately, redemption.”

Over the course of multiple decades,...

The Mars Volta / At the Drive-In documentary, Omar and Cedric: If This Ever Gets Weird, is receiving a theatrical release on November 20th, and an extended trailer can be streamed now.

The Nicolas Jack Davies-directed doc follows the musical journey and friendship of Omar Rodríguez-López and Cedric Bixler-Zavala, from their early days cutting their teeth in El Paso’s hardcore scene with At the Drive-In, to their legacy-defining work with The Mars Volta, and subsequent personal fallout.

Get The Mars Volta Tickets Here

“Their immense artistic success gave way to deep personal fissures that ended their musical partnership in 2013, and inflicted wounds that would take more than a decade to heal,” states the film’s press release. “Omar and Cedric: If This Ever Gets Weird charts the duo’s intense and profound journey as they navigate success, addiction, tragedy, betrayal, forgiveness and, ultimately, redemption.”

Over the course of multiple decades,...

Omar and Cedric: If This Ever Gets Weird, which first premiered at South by Southwest in March, is heading to select theaters nationally on Nov. 20 via Oscilloscope Laboratories. The documentary focuses on bandmates and friends Omar Rodríguez-López and Cedric Bixler-Zavala’s lives and musical partnerships in seminal bands including the Mars Volta and At the Drive-In. The Nicolas Jack Davies-directed documentary incorporates thousands of hours of footage culled by Rodríguez-López.

The new trailer Rolling Stone exclusively premieres here gives a peek into the musicians’ four-decade musical partnership and friendship,...

The Mars Volta have announced a run of 2024 US tour dates leading up to their June 14th appearance at Bonnaroo in Manchester, Tennessee. Teri Gender Bender will provide support.

The brief Midwest run will find the experimental rockers making stops at Des Moines, Iowa (June 6th); Madison, Wisconsin (June 8th); Indianapolis, Indiana (June 9th); Omaha, Nebraska (June 10th); and Columbus, Ohio (June 12th). The shows mark the first time that The Mars Volta will hit these particular cities since re-forming in 2022 following a 10-year hiatus.

A Live Nation pre-sale for select dates starts Wednesday (February 14th) at 10 a.m. local time using the code Energy, while general sales begin Friday at 10 a.m. local time via Ticketmaster. Fans can also check for deals or pick up tickets to sold-out shows via StubHub, where your purchase is 100% guaranteed through StubHub’s Fan Protect program.

The Mars Volta are touring in support of their 2022 self-titled album,...

“Omar and Cedric: If This Ever Gets Weird,” a documentary about the creative partnership between Omar Rodríguez-López and Cedric Bixler-Zavala, has been acquired by Autlook for global rights.

The film, which is getting its U.S. premiere at this year’s South by Southwest festival, focuses on the duo behind the influential rock bands the Mars Volta and At the Drive-In. Nicolas Jack Davies directed the film, which was produced by Johann Scheerer of Clouds Hill Films in association with Pulse Films. Rodríguez-López also scores the doc.

Per a press release, the film “shows the iconic duo’s journey from the hardcore scene in El Paso, Texas, to rock and roll acclaim; from growing up as minorities to their rise to success; from struggles with loss, addiction and Scientology to their blazing comeback. A depiction of love, death, and inspiration — with a soundtrack that has defined a generation.”

The documentary also has a unique format,...

Two decades of solo material from Omar Rodríguez-López is coming to vinyl in an incomprehensibly massive box set called Amor de Frances, out December 4th.

Back in 2021, Rodríguez-López — best known as one of the masterminds between At the Drive-In and The Mars Volta — shared a ton of his back catalog on streaming for the first time, including fan-favorite Cryptomnesia and a collaboration with John Frusciante. Those albums are just a few of the 57 total LPs that comprise Amor de Frances, which will also include two previously-unreleased records, as well as 31 albums never before pressed to vinyl.

Along with a set of nine art prints, Amor de Frances comes packaged in four individual boxes with an eye-catching spine design that’ll look really, really nice on your vinyl shelf. It’s limited to 500 copies, and pre-orders begin on October 30th here. The albums will also be available to purchase individually early next year.

Over the course of 20-plus years, Omar Rodríguez-López shot 100s of hours worth of footage documenting his time in At the Drive-In and The Mars Volta, the bands he formed with Cedric Bixler-Zavala. Just some of that material will now be revealed with the upcoming documentary Omar and Cedric: If This Ever Gets Weird, which has just received its first trailer.

The teaser splices together a bunch of grainy video clips, seemingly collapsing the entire history of Rodríguez-López and Bixler-Zavala’s partnership in just over one minute.

From their early days cutting their teeth in El Paso’s hardcore scene to achieving an undeniable legacy, Omar and Cedric: If This Ever Gets Weird promises to be “a totally unique window into the incredible journey of one of this generations most progressive and prolific musical partnerships.”

Omar and Cedric: If This Ever Gets Weird will premiere at the Raindance Film Festival on October 28th,...

Over the course of 20-plus years, Omar Rodríguez-López shot 100s of hours worth of footage documenting his time in At the Drive-In and The Mars Volta, the bands he formed with Cedric Bixler-Zavala. Just some of that material will now be revealed with the upcoming documentary Omar and Cedric: If This Ever Gets Weird, which has just received its first trailer.

The teaser splices together a bunch of grainy video clips, seemingly collapsing the entire history of Rodríguez-López and Bixler-Zavala’s partnership in just over one minute.

From their early days cutting their teeth in El Paso’s hardcore scene to achieving an undeniable legacy, Omar and Cedric: If This Ever Gets Weird promises to be “a totally unique window into the incredible journey of one of this generations most progressive and prolific musical partnerships.”

Omar and Cedric: If This Ever Gets Weird will premiere at the Raindance Film Festival on October 28th,...

The Mars Volta have added a fall North American leg to their 2023 tour itinerary. The new dates will follow the band’s previously announced spring US run, which kicks off next month.

The new leg kicks launches September 13th in Minneapolis and runs through an October 11th gig in Salt Lake City, Utah. A Live Nation pre-sale begins Tuesday (April 25th) at 10 a.m. local time via Ticketmaster using the code Vinyl, with a general sale starting next Friday (April 28th).

Fans can also look for deals or pick up tickets to sold-out shows via StubHub, where your purchase is 100% guaranteed through StubHub’s Fan Protect program. StubHub is a secondary market ticketing platform, and prices may be higher or lower than face value, depending on demand.

Today (April 21st), The Mars Volta also released Que Dios Te Maldiga Mi Corazón, an acoustic reimagining of their 2022 self-titled comeback album.

“I...

Last September, The Mars Volta shared their self-titled album — their first LP in a decade — and they’re keeping the momentum going with the announcement of Qué Dios Te Maldiga Mí Corazón, a track-by-track acoustic version. As a preview ahead of its April 21st release, the band has shared the acoustic version of “Blank Condolences.”

Billed as The Mars Volta’s version of a “folk record,” Qué Dios Te Maldiga Mí Corazón aims to be less of a “stripped-down” record and more of a way to pay homage to the band’s traditional Latin influences. As much as their typical prog-metal rips, these versions of the tracks put vocalist Bixler-Zavala’s powerful, often political messages at the forefront of their music.

“I realized I could finally make a record like this now, I just had to make it happen,” the band’s Omar Rodríguez-López explains in a press release. “That was the experiment.

Hours before the Mars Volta released their first new album in 10 years, the reunited prog-rock outfit staged their first concert in over a decade at the Factory in Dallas.

Cedric Bixler-Zavala, Omar Rodríguez-López, and the rest of Mars Volta debuted a pair of new tracks (“Blacklight Shine,” “Graveyard Love“) from their just-released self-titled LP — but the setlist still leaned heavily on their 2003 debut De-Loused in the Comatorium, with the band playing seven tracks off that album.

Thursday’s concert also featured the live debut of “Vicarious Atonement,” off 2006’s Amputechture,...

After releasing a pair of new songs, the Mars Volta finally confirmed that they will drop their first album in a decade, The Mars Volta, on Sept. 16.

Accompanying the album announcement, the band has shared another new tune, “Vigil,” which arrived with a music video directed by guitarist Omar Rodríguez-López. Vocalist/lyricist Cedric Bixler-Zavala shared a line from the tender and swooning new tune in lieu of an actual statement, “And the obits wait for a perfect name.”

“Vigil” marks the third offering from The Mars Volta following the previously-released “Graveyard Love” and “Blacklight Shine,...

The Mars Volta are back already with another new song and short film, “Graveyard Love.”

The track is a prog-y, experimental dirge that appears to be inspired by the brutal colonialist rule the United States has imposed on Puerto Rico, where guitarist Omar Rodríguez-López was born. Of the lyrics to “Graveyard Love,” vocalist Cedric Bixler-Zavala explains, They will seek your ruin, and burn your lands because if they can’t have you, no one can.”

Rodriguez-López directed the accompanying “Graveyard Love” short film, a black-and-white collage that captures various locales...

The Mars Volta are back with their first new song in nearly a decade, “Blacklight Shine,” which arrives alongside a complementary short film directed by Omar Rodríguez-López.

“Blacklight Shine,” a classic Mars Volta hit of psych rock carried by a rumbling groove, marks the Mars Volta’s first new music since the release of their 2012 album, Noctourniquet. In a statement, Mars Volta vocalist Cedric Bixler-Zavala described the lyrics to “Blacklight Shine” in aptly poetic terms, saying they aim to capture the idea of “a wave of rolling blackouts washing memories onto shore,...

Chilean singer-songwriter Norma Monserrat Bustamante Laferte — better known as Mon Laferte — has announced a headlining U.S. tour, slated for August.

After delivering a standout performance at Coachella’s main stage in April, Laferte will return for an 11-day run in the States. She will be touring in support of her 2018 album, Norma; a jubilant work of pan-Latin fusion, the LP was recorded in Los Angeles and produced by The Mars Volta guitarist Omar Rodriguez-Lopez. Backed by a three-piece band and a mighty horn section, Laferte breathes rock ‘n’ roll into her tropical folk-pop repertoire.

"I always liken myself to the bearded lady," says Juliette Lewis. "Because I'm an actress turned musician, a woman doing male-dominated rock & roll. ... I'm the oddity at the freak show, you know?"

Lewis is speaking with Rolling Stone from New York City where, in a few hours, she'll be attending the Tribeca Film Festival premiere of a new documentary on her musical life, Hard Lovin' Woman. The Michael Rapaport-directed short, which will be available on Red Bull TV beginning April 23rd, chronicles Lewis' mid-2000s turn away from a...

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Forming just over a year ago, though not becoming fully formed until earlier this year, Calling Apollo are a five piece progressive rock band based around South Wales. Mind you, that’s progressive rock in very much the modern sense of the term, and their sound encapsulates a little more than that in itself anyway. As stated the five piece became a fully formed five earlier this year, and have just released the debut Ep they’ve been working toward since then.

Though currently unsigned, and very much a rarity on the live circuit at the moment, it’s clear from the five tracks on display here that the band have been very much focussing on honing their craft first and foremost. Something that becomes pretty much abundantly clear with the first track Youth in Motion as it slowly builds from a subtly swirling atmosphere and...

When Showtime debuted its new series Masters of Sex, about pioneering sex researchers Masters and Johnson, we wondered if and how the show would handle the gay thing. M&J had what can be charitably described as a problematic relationship with homosexuality, running a clinic purporting to convert homosexuals with a claimed 71% effective rate (Virginia Johnson would later allow that figure was an exaggeration). Add to that the 1950s period setting and the general repression of non-standard sexuality in America in general and there had to be concern that gay people would be rendered invisible on the series.

We needn’t have worried. In addition to kicking off with a three-episode arc featuring lesbian prostitute Betty Dimello (Annaleigh Ashford), Showtime slipped a stealth gay character into the series, and his story is not only the most interesting one in the show, it’s probably one of the best gay storylines...

Los Chidos

Written and directed by Omar Rodriguez-Lopez

USA and Mexico, 2012

Producer, writer, actor, and director Omar Rodriguez-Lopez (best know as the composer, songwriter, guitarist, and producer for the progressive rock groups The Mars Volta and At the Drive-In) left audiences at SXSW buzzing about his feature film Los Chidos, where it had its premiere. The film has been praised as one of the most innovative, and challenging, movies of the year; there are scenes of domestic violence, incest, golden showers, fecalphilia, slaughterhouses, and even a sequence that almost rivals the infamous baby-rape scene in A Serbian Film. But amidst the graphic content, perhaps the biggest challenge is sitting through a movie that has been re-dubbed in post production. Rodriguez-Lopez replaced all of the dialogue with Adr, creating an overly artificial, goofy sound. The dialogue is delivered in exaggerated tones, which is quite quite jarring, and frankly annoying to sit through.

The 42nd edition of the Festival du nouveau cinéma will be held in Montreal from October 9 to the 20th, showcasing the best new films and filmmakers from around the world. The festival which has often been described as ‘ baby-tiff’ – picks up the best from Berlinale, Cannes, Venice, Telluride, Toronto and more. This new edition demonstrates the vibrancy of filmmaking in all its forms and for all audiences with an incredible 273 films (146 feature films and 124 shorts) from 47 countries – including (count them) 39 world premieres, 33 North American premieres and 47 Canadian premieres. Of the various sections of the film festival, my favourite program is Time Ø. If you are not familiar with the festival, think of this section of films as the equivalent of Tiff’s Midnight Madness program, only sexier. Here is a break down of what you can see this year.

(Please note: This list is in no particular oder)

****

1- R100

Hitoshi Matsumoto,...

In keeping with the spirit of getting people out and buying physical media, this Sept. 7 will see the inaugural Cassette Store Day. And, though the media has been largely ignored by the majority of music consumers in recent years, its D.I.Y. aesthetic has helped it remain a viable option for upstarts bands. The list of Cassette Store Day releases is small, but it packs a wallop with notable reissues from Animal Collective, At The Drive-In, Suicidal Tendencies, and Guided By Voices, while The Flaming Lips will be offering up its latest album The Terror for the occasion ...

The prolific artist Omar Rodriguez-Lopez, current member of the band Bosnian Rainbows, released his second feature film Los Chidos more than a year ago, when it premiered at SXSW in March 2012. Rodriguez-Lopez has performed in Mexico many times with such acts as The Mars Volta, Vato Negro, Omar Rodriguez Lopez Group and Bosnian Rainbows. And now is time to enjoy outside of the Internet his work as a film director, as Cine Tonalá will host the first (and only) official screening in Mexico City of Los Chidos on Friday, August 16. Ryland Aldrich called Los Chidos a "brilliantly absurd journey"; here's an extract of his review: "Leave it to Omar Rodriguez Lopez to create one of the wildest, most innovative, and full on challenging...

[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...

"You Are In Love" - Shannon Whitworth: High Tide (Ef Records)

Damn, playing a Gibson Sg never looked or sounded so sexy! Before the press folks dropped her new album on me, I didn't know of this compelling singer-songwriter formerly with the North Carolina outfit The Biscuit Burners. This is my pick hit from her new effort. Collaborating with bassist Bill Reynolds of Band of Horses has given her a chiming folk-rock vibe on her third solo effort. And tours with the Tedeschi Trucks Band and Chris Isaak certainly helped inform her "new" sound.

"The Corner Man" - Barrence Whitfield & The Savages: Dig the Savage Soul (Bloodshot)

He's back!!!! Punk-rockin' horn-honkin' R&B fury comin' at you like Iggy channeling Lil' Richard and Wicked Wilson Pickett. Everybody on the floor and do the worm! Now the Gator!!! Download it now!

"It Was My Season" - Okkervil River: The Silver Gymnasium (Ato)

Will Shelf's rollicking,...

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

The pilot episode of The Bridge indicates it’s a series which speaks softly and carries a very big stick. Despite being a crime drama about two seemingly mismatched detectives joining forces to capture a serial killer – two of the most tired TV tropes in existence – you hardly notice because of two general strengths: careful attention to detail and being deeply rooted in horrific realism. This does not look like a show which sets out to reinvent the wheel, just produce a very efficient and overall solid wheel.

The pilot episode of The Bridge indicates it’s a series which speaks softly and carries a very big stick. Despite being a crime drama about two seemingly mismatched detectives joining forces to capture a serial killer – two of the most tired TV tropes in existence – you hardly notice because of two general strengths: careful attention to detail...

Comic-Con released their full schedule of events and panels for for Friday, July 19th! It looks like another great day at the event, and we're excited to be there to cover as much as we can for you!

Friday will include panels for The World's End, Kick-Ass 2, Riddick, The Walking Dead, "DC Comics Justice League: Trinity War", Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Game of Thrones, "Marvel: Cup O' Joe," Robocop, The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Veronica Mars, Robot Chicken, Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox and more!

To see the full panel and event line-up, click here. Below you'll find a few noteworthy panels. Stay tuned for all your Comic-Con awesomeness!

Friday, July 19

Star Wars Comics: Here and Now

What is the current state of Star Wars comics? Join Dark Horse editor Randy Stradley and Star Wars creators Carlos D'Anda, Corinna Bechko, Gabriel Hardman, Doug Wheatley,...

Friday’s Comic-Con schedule has landed! And it’s totally packed with action, from Simon Pegg’s latest The World’s End panel to a special Veronica Mars presentation.

In case you missed it, click here to see Thursday’s schedule and below you’ll see Friday’s TV and movie highlights. For more info and the complete schedule head over to the official Comic-Con site.

10:00am-11:00am, Indigo Ballroom, Hilton San Diego Bayfront, Cartoon Network: Regular Show: Care to join the not so regular cast and crew for an eventful hour of over the top regular?...

Dallas Green is no longer the elephant in the room. Or, perhaps more accurately, City And Colour isn't.

"The Hurry And The Harm," out June 4, is the fourth release for Green under the City And Colour moniker, and the first since his split from Alexisonfire. Green first came to prominence as the singer in the singing/screaming post-hardcore act, and his decision to quit and focus on his increasingly popular acoustic solo work precipitated the group's break-up in 2011. It was an awkward situation made all the more so by the fact that his departure was kept quiet for a year, first from his own bandmates, then from the public.

Green comes clean about his feelings on the whole affair on the break-up song "Of Space And Time," the first track leaked from The Hurry And The Harm, singing, "There's an elephant in the back of the room / and it's standing...

Not everyone is going to be ready for the ride through "Los Chidos" that director Omar Rodriguez Lopez offers up. But his willingness to scare off a few of the faint of heart preserves his commitment to a truly bold and unique vision and an aesthetic all his own. This is the fifth feature film from the Mars Volta guitarist and only the second to play at a festival, and it’s unlike anything you’ve ever seen. Could this be the birth of a new auteur? Meet the Gonzalez family. They run a tire shop in Guadalajara and lead a life of wanton laziness together, hitting the bar as a family, talking shit about everyone and slurping up the delicious tacos Mama makes for them every day. Meet Rulo, the Gonzalez brother’s friend. He’s newly wed to Alma, not to mention an abusive sociopath and transvestite having...

Not everyone is going to be ready for the ride through "Los Chidos" that director Omar Rodriguez Lopez offers up. But his willingness to scare off a few of the faint of heart preserves his commitment to a truly bold and unique vision and an aesthetic all his own. This is the fifth feature film from the Mars Volta guitarist and only the second to play at a festival, and it’s unlike anything you’ve ever seen. Could this be the birth of a new auteur? Meet the Gonzalez family. They run a tire shop in Guadalajara and lead a life of wanton laziness together, hitting the bar as a family, talking shit about everyone and slurping up the delicious tacos Mama makes for them everyday. Meet Rulo, the Gonzalez brother’s friend. He’s newly wed to Alma, not to mention an abusive sociopath and transvestite having an...

Even more cinematic insanity has been announced for this year's Boston Underground Film Festival, scheduled this year for March 27 through 31. Among the new titles announced are Big Ass Spider and Guilty of Romance. Read on for all the details!

From the Press Release

The 15th Annual Boston Underground Film Festival continues their barrage of insanity at the Brattle Theatre, from March 27th through the 31st, delivering a second wave of wild programming guaranteed to shake the pillars of Heaven. This year's fest wraps up with a closing night film unlike any other – Mike Mendez's knowingly tongue-in-cheek sci-fi/horror romp, Big Ass Spider!–fresh from its World Premiere at SXSW 2013! With the celebrated director (best-known for 2006’s The Gravedancers) in Cambridge and producer and magical conjurer Travis Stevens, who's Cheap Thrills also plays Buff 2013!

Joining our oversized arachnid pal in Boston Underground's second wave of killer programming is Sion Sono...

If you find yourself east of the Mississippi this March, unable to attend Calvin Reeder's The Rambler at SXSW then you may be in luck... that is if you're in New England, and more specifically the Boston area, as the Boston Underground Film Fest has the east coast premiere. Plus, ain't that a Big Ass Spider? Why yes it is. And hey, is that our own Ryland Aldrich getting quoted in the Buff press release for Omar Rodriguez Lopez's Los Chidos? Yep. I'll tell ya if we at Twitch hadn't already covered many of these titles, we'd be the first out the door to Buff, but as it is we most certainly want our Ne readers to get their genre fix this spring. That being...

[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...

At the Drive-In have announced the reissue of two of their albums. The band's 1996 debut Acrobatic Tenement will be re-released on March 25 on CD, digital formats and translucent red vinyl. > At the Drive-In reunite: Six storming performances - video 2000's swansong Relationship of Command follows on April 22 via Transgressive Records in digital and CD versions complete with bonus track 'Catacombs'. It also gets a limited coloured vinyl release on April 20 for Record Store Day. Guitarist and founding member Jim Ward said: "It was interesting to revisit the recordings that bookended the first chapters of our band. "The earnest and pure excitement of the beginning and the level of craftsmanship we achieved by Relationship of Command leaves me nothing but proud. "I am (more)...

After more than a decade of prog-rocking, The Mars Volta has broken up. In a series of tweets last night, singer Cedric Bixler Zavala divulged the news, saying he couldn’t “sit here and pretend anymore,” and coyly blaming guitarist Omar Rodriguez-Lopez for the group’s demise. Zavala says he wanted to tour after the band’s 2012 album Noctourniquet, but that Rodriguez-Lopez didn’t, instead choosing to start another group, Bosnian Rainbows. “I tried my hardest to keep it going, but Bosnian Rainbows was all we got instead,” Zavala says. He went on to thank fans for “ever giving ...

The Mars Volta have split up. Vocalist Cedric Bixler-Zavala announced the break-up on Twitter, seeming to blame the group's end on bandmate Omar Rodríguez-López's involvement with side project Bosnian Rainbows. Bixler-Zavala formed progressive rock band The Mars Volta with Rodríguez-López in 2001 following the end of their previous band At the Drive-In. "I can't sit here and pretend any more. I no longer am a member of Mars Volta," Bixler-Zavala tweeted. "Thank u 2 all Volta fans u deserved more especially after the way u rooted for us on this album. I tried my hardest to keep it going. But Bosnian Rainbows was what we all got instead." The Mars Volta released their sixth studio album Noctourniquet in March 2012, before going on a hiatus in September. Bixler-Zavala added: "For the record (more)...

Revisiting 18 years of pop culture, from the Strokes to the early hipster, plus lots of Charlie Brooker

2000: Nasty Nick

Charlie Brooker's first Screen Burn "Hate your job? Weep yourself awake each Monday morning? Spend the working day toying with your desktop icons while nonchalantly contemplating suicide? Ever considered doing something – anything – else? Then whatever you do, don't look to the coming week's television for inspiration. Tucked away in the schedules are four glaring examples of the very worst careers imaginable this side of "oil-rig bitch". First up servile pandering, or "being a butler", as it's commonly known..."

Macy Mania Macy Gray has a (fleeting) moment. "The latest craze is precisely what Macy Gray has become. The first bona-fide pop phenomenon of the new millennium. Right now, the world and its uncle appear infatuated with her. She's bigger than big. And getting bigger all the time."

2020 vision Danny Leigh...

A look back at 2012 reveals an undeniable fact, it has been a great year for Latino film. Sundance started the year off strong with films like Aurora Guerrero’s sweet and tender Mosquita y Mari and Marialy Rivas’ rambunctious Joven y Alocada (Young & Wild). Gina Rodriguez broke out in Filly Brown, as a rapper who needs to make it big so she can raise money to get her mom out of jail. In the film, Jenni Rivera played the part of Filly’s mom in her first, and sadly last, movie role.

There was also a strong Latin American presence at Cannes this past summer, boasting films from Mexico, Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina. It might as well have been called Mexi-Cannes, with Mexican films winning awards across all main sections of the festival. Carlos Reygadas was honored as the Best Director for his controversial film Post Tenebras Lux, despite having received boos at its premiere screening. The prize for the Critics’ Week section went to Aquí y Allá (Here and There) and Después de Lucía (After Lucia) won the top prize for Un Certain Regard.

It’s been an especially favorable year for Chilean cinema. The New York Film Festival, in its 50th edition this past Fall, included three highly anticipated films by Pablo Larraín, Valeria Sarmiento, and the late Raúl Ruiz. And Chile continued to outshine the rest of the region by winning two top spots at the Festival Internacional de Nuevo Cine Latino de La Habana (the Havana Film Festival) just a few days ago. Pablo Larraín’s No, starring Gael Garcia Bernal, won the First Coral Prize. It’s a brilliant take on the real life story of an advertising campaign that ousted General Pinochet from power during a shining moment in Chilean politics. Violeta se fue a los cielos (Violeta Went To Heaven), a biopic about internationally famous Violeta de la Parra, a Chilean singer, songwriter, and poet won the Second Prize.

Whether it was at Cannes, Sundance, or countless other festivals, Latino films were winning award after award this year and even getting distribution (albeit usually in limited release). With the flurry of activity surrounding the region’s filmmaking, it can be hard to keep up with it all. Thankfully, there are professionals who get paid to keep track of what movies are receiving accolades, have the most buzz, and got picked up for distribution. LatinoBuzz went straight to the experts, film programmers, to ask, “What’s your top 5 Latino films of 2012?”

Carlos Gutierrez, Co-Founder and Director of Cinema Tropical

In no particular order, a list of five Latin American films that made it to Us screens in the past year (some of them are a couple of years old), which I highly recommend.

De Jueves a Domingo (Thursday Till Sunday), Director: Dominga Sotomayor, Chile

O Som ao Redor (Neighboring Sounds), Director: Kleber Mendonça Filho, Brazil

El Estudiante, Director: Santiago Mitre, Argentina

El Velador, Director: Natalia Almada, Mexico

El Lugar Más Pequeño (The Tiniest Place), Director: Tatiana Huezo, Mexico/El Salvador

Juan Caceres, Director of Programming at the New York International Latino Film Festival

Mosquita y Mari is a gorgeous film full of heart. Marialy Rivas (Director of Joven y Alocada) is an incredibly exciting new voice in Latin American cinema. She's fearless and full of love. I'm a huge fan of Lucy Mulloy (Director of Una Noche). She draws these wonderful performances from non-professional actors. A natural at using the lens to tell a story. In Las Malas Intenciones Fatima Buntinx plays the lead perfectly. Andres Wood made a beautiful film called 'Machuca', that captured the soul of Chile in the 70's and he does the same with a bio-pic of Violeta Parra, a folk singer who was a part of 'La Nueva Canción Chilena'.

Mosquita y Mari, Director: Aurora Guerrero, USA

Joven y Alocada (Young and Wild), Director: Marialy Rivas, Chile

Una Noche, Director: Lucy Mulloy, Cuba

Violeta Se Fue A Los Cielos (Violeta Went to Heaven), Director: Andrés Wood, Chile

Las Malas Intenciones (The Bad Intentions), Director: Rosario García-Montero, Perú

Christine Davila, Programming Associate at Sundance Film Festival

There are way too many Latino films and not enough coverage on American Latino films so with that -- mine are going to be strictly American Latino films.

Los Chidos, Director: Omar Rodriguez-Lopez, USA/Mexico

Mosquita y Mari, Director: Aurora Guerrero, USA

Elliot Loves, Director: Terracino, USA

Aquí y Allá (Here and There), Director: Antonio Méndez Esparza, USA/Spain/Mexico

Love, Concord, Director: Gustavo Guardado, USA

Lisa Franek, Artistic Director at the San Diego Latino Film Festival

Just 5?? That's tough! In Filly Brown, Gina Rodriguez turns in a great performance, and I expect to see more great things from her very soon. No, I saw at Cannes, and it was fascinating, especially in contrast to Larraín's previous (amazing) films. La Hora Cero has unforgettable scenes and characters! La Mujer de Ivan has amazing acting, and I believe Maria de Los Angeles Garcia is definitely a talent to watch. Reportero is also fantastic.

La Mujer de Iván, Director: Francisca Silva, Chile

No, Director: Pablo Larraín, Chile/France/USA

La Hora Cero, Director: Diego Velasco, Venezuela

Reportero, Director: Bernardo Ruiz, USA/Mexico

Filly Brown, Directors: Youssef Delara, Michael D. Olmos, USA

Marcela Goglio, Programmer for Latinbeat at The Film Society of Lincoln Center

Las Acacias, Director: Pablo Giorgelli, Argentina

As Cançoes (Songs), Director: Eduardo Coutinho, Brazil

Unfinished Spaces, Directors: Alyssa Nahmias & Benjamin Murray, USA

O Som ao Redor (Neighboring Sounds), Director: Kleber Mendonça Filho, Brazil

Aquí y Allá (Here and There), Director: Antonio Méndez Esparza, USA/Spain/Mexico

Pepe Vargas, Executive Director of the International Latino Cultural Center and Chicago Latino Film Festival

Not an easy task to come up with 5 titles - there are so many good movies.

La Piel que Habito (The Skin I Live In)

Director: Pedro Almodóvar, Spain

Salvando al Soldado Pérez, (Saving Private Perez)

Director: Beto Gómez, Mexico

Un Cuento Chino (Chinese Take-Out)

Director: Sebastián Borensztein, Argentina/Spain

Lobos de Arga (Game of Werewolves)

Director: Juan Martínez Moreno, Spain

Mariachi Gringo

Director: Tom Gustafson, USA/Mexico

Amalia Cordova, Coordinator of the Latin American Program at the Film and Video Center of the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian

Granito, Director: Pamela Yates, USA/Guatemala/Spain

Desterro Guarani, Directors: Patricia Ferreira y Ariel Duarte Ortega, Brazil

Violeta Se Fue A Los Cielos (Violeta Went to Heaven), Director: Andrés Wood, Chile

5 x Favela – Agora por nós Mesmos (5 x Favela, Now by Ourselves), Directors: Manaíra Carneiro, Wagner Novais, Cacau Amaral, Rodrigo Felha, Luciano Vidigal, Cadu Barcelos, and Luciana Bezerra, Brazil

Un Cuento Chino (Chinese Take-Out), Director: Sebastián Borensztein, Argentina/Spain

Written by Juan Caceres and Vanessa Erazo, LatinoBuzz is a weekly feature on SydneysBuzz that highlights Latino indie talent and upcoming trends in Latino film with the specific objective of presenting a broad range of Latino voices. Follow @LatinoBuzz on twitter.

Real-life has now taken over and I’m not available to write as many reviews/features as I’d like – hence the gap between this feature and my previous one – but, anyway, here’s November’s up-and-coming band feature. The band: Pjp Band.

On the release of their debut Ep, American Lover, released in 2011, the band were immediately invited to play that year’s Glastonbury on the BBC Introducing Stage. This resulted in the band spending a huge 40 hours as the ‘most-shared’ act on BBC Glastonbury’s homepage. Playing a brand of imaginative, anthemic pop, the band then toured with Hard-Fi and released their second Ep, Reasons To Move On, which further saw their fan-base grow. Now, though, the band has recently finished another tour and have scheduled their debut album for release in early 2013.

I caught up with the guys for a quick chat today and learnt a bit more about them.

The Hola Mexico Film Festival returns to tour Australia throughout October and November, sponsored by beer brand Sol.The announcement:

The el Tran (train) has left Mexico and after a successful tour through Los Angeles, it is now set to head around Australia, for the 7th annual Hola Mexico Film Festival this October and November.

Tickets for the annual fiesta go on-sale from October 5 for $14.50-$17.50 and can be purchased at www.holamexicoff.com. The Festival combines the best of everything Mexican for a week of fun, film and food, as the Festival screens 11 feature films, 5 documentaries and one double header.

Jump on for the journey, as Hola Mexico travels to Melbourne (Oct 19 -28 Acmi Cinemas), then heads to Sydney (Oct 26 – Nov 4 Event Cinemas George Street) and Adelaide (Nov 9 – 14 Mercury Cinemas) before a last stop in Perth (15-21 Cinema Paradiso).

Festival Director Samuel Douek says festival goers can expect a hell of an opening party,...

The Rio de Janeiro International Film Festival kicks off September 27th and Twitch has been given first word on their extensive midnight program lineups. And, yes, you read that right. That lineups, plural. While most festivals have just a single midnight program - if any at all - Rio offers up a whopping four distinct midnight programs, each with a distinct focus. And here's what will be playing this year:midnight Movies"Sightseers"  (dir. Ben Wheatley, United Kingdom, 2012)"Room 237" (dir. Rodney Ascher, USA, 2012)   "Jack and Diane" (dir. Bradley Rust Gray, USA, 2012)    "Kid-Thing" (dir. David Zellner, Nathan Zellner, USA, 2012) "La Cinquième Saison" (dir. Peter Brosens, Jessica Woodworth, Belgium/Netherlands, 2012) "Les Gouffres" (dir. Antoine Barraud, France, 2012)   "Los Chidos" (dir. Omar Rodriguez Lopez, USA/Mexico, Germany,...

Imagine if you would a band as much influenced by At The Drive-In as they are Iron Maiden whose style often evokes casual likenings to prog-rock champions Rush and whom write their music and lyrics in large part to tell an epic science-fiction narrative which has already been translated into a comic book series and prose novel and, oh yeah, that story has just been optioned by Mark Wahlberg and Steven Levinson of Leverage for a film adaptation. Having a bit of trouble forging such an overpowering concoction of awesome? Well first of all, calm down, you should relax more. Secondly, I’ll help you out of this jam – the band is Coheed and Cambria and their story contains its own story known as The Amory Wars.

For those unfamiliar, honestly, I’m not concerned with you; that’s what Wikipedia’s for. But in case you don’t have...

The 2012 Lollapalooza music festival kicked off on a hot Friday in Chicago's Grant Park.

The three-day mega-fest features a packed lineup of more than 130 artists spread between 115 acres and eight stages. The sold-out festival is expected to attract 100,000 visitors daily, who will also have the opportunity to nosh on grub from dozens of vendors among a foodie's dream lineup curated by Graham Elliot.

(Scroll down to check out our Lollapalooza Spotify playlist and peruse some of the highest-profile comprising the festival's lineup.)

The high-profile event's impact reaches far beyond its front gate: Music venues throughout the city are hosting an array of parties and aftershows, both official and unofficial, many of which offer the lure of swag, booze and the high likelihood of a celebrity sighting or two. Last year, we watched Elijah Wood DJ. And spotted a very convincing Dave Navarro lookalike walking along Michigan Avenue.

Even the ticketless...

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

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Release date: 1st August

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With influences ranging from At The Drive-In, Refused, Botch, These Arms Are Snakes, Young Legionnaire and many more bands who regularly soundtrack my early drive into work – clawing the sleep from my eyes and shaking the fuzz from my brain – or plague my ears as I’m out walking the dog, to say I was intrigued to hear what Radio Alcatraz were all about is a bit of an understatement. As soon as the CD arrived through my letterbox, in my CD player it went and that’s pretty much how it’s stayed. I think my neighbours can now even air-guitar the riffs.

The band hail from London and Brighton and have shared the stage with the likes of punk legends Anti-Flag, Godsized – who’ve toured with Black Label Society, and also smaller, hardcore, underground bands such as Palm Reader and Housefires.

As with most good things in life, supergroup Anywhere’s self-titled debut LP was a collaborative effort, born of the knowledge that if you don’t ask, the answer will always be no. Christian Eric Beaulieu, formerly of Triclops! and Liquid Indian, wanted to explore a more Eastern-based sound with Cedric Bixler-Zavala of At The Drive-In and The Mars Volta, who was DJing at an event in Los Angeles, Calif., that Beaulieu attended. A few months after the meeting, they got together and laid down their parts for the album, followed by legendary punk bassist Mike Watt (Minutemen, fIREHOSE, The Stooges) and...