Bridges With Spirit by Adam Voith
(Chapelle TNI)

This book was a very plesant surprise. It felt like reading somebody's scattered journal or a grouping of personal zines. The line between fact and fiction gets blurred within the stories, but they are never less than entertaining or believable.

You come along on a journey doled out in snippets of a man in the MidWest, getting through college and having some typical journeys that I could really relate to. This could have come off as boring but thanks to Adams writing style you feel like you are a part of the action.

I think anybody who has lived at least a few years following indie and punk bands would be able to see themselves in many of the stories. After I finished the book many old memories came pouring out of the recesses of my brian. {Grog}

Chapelle TNI Web Site

The Magic of Mess Painting by Virginia Barclay Goldstein
(?Contact Info?)

This book was written by 82-year-old Virginia Barclay Goldstein. With this book she hopes to help others awaken their creativity and stimulate self-healing and self-renewal through a process she calls mess paintings.

A few years ago I went to a drum circle my friend told me about. The people at this circle met weekly to drum and get in touch with their spiritual side. I went mainly for the drumming. When I got to the drum circle I was a bit freaked out because the people started introducing themselves and telling little stories. The would say, “Hello, I’m Snow Owl and I was molested as a child. I come to the circle to get a better understanding of the world and how I fit in.” I never went back.

Well this book seems to be for those people. The whole concept of mess painting is very simple. You just let yourself go and let your emotions and feelings be free as you paint. This book takes 300 pages to get that point across. For me it was a very boring read. For others it might be more interesting. {Mite}

Patient: The True Story of a Rare Illness by Ben Watt
(1996. Grove Press Books.)
In the summer of 1992, Ben Watt of Everything But the Girl was taken to the hospital on the eve of an American tour. Ben complained of chest pains and what he thought would be a routine visit ended up being a life-altering event. Ben didn’t leave the hospital for three months and his story is a tale of a young man who learns he has a rare illness in which his own immune system has attacked his small intestine and made several feet of it disintegrate. Ben writes about the details of his illness in a chilling manner and he’s able to describe his illness without playing the victim. One thing that I really enjoyed about this book is that it is filled with hints on how to make a person more comfortable in the hospital and what types of items are healthy to bring to the patient. {Gail}

"Video Reviews"

Frezno Smooth
(A Gut Brothers Feature Length Comedy)
Starring: Seth Enslow · Ice-T · Jeff Emig · Mike Metzger · Ron Jeremy · Mike Ness · Tony Hawk · Lemmy · Christian Fletcher · Tony Alva · Tori Welles · Willy Santos · Rob Machado · Bubba · Buddy Antunez · Kaycee Glasow · Tony Little · Carey Hart · Don Szabo · Jimmy Button · Harold Hunter · Sara Becker · Mike Cinqmars · Jerry Bernardo · The Wee Man · and featuring Luis Ivy as Loc-Dog.

A couple of years ago I got the motorcycle bug in a bad way. I eventually ended up getting my own ride, but not before reading countless magazines and books and watching many videos. A couple of those videos were called "Crusty Demons of Dirt" which documented a slew of free styling motocross crazies as they jumped anything and everything to the sounds of hard core extreme music.

The craziest sick-o of them all was a fellow called Seth Enslow. He would do these enormously sick jumps, which usually resulted in death defying crashes in which I’m surprise he lived, hence death defying. One of those crashes happened when he managed to land on top of the other riders idle bikes. And on another crash where he was massively fucked up, he slurred that “he would only go to a doctor if he needed it, but he didn’t need it at the moment.” He is a truly sick individual.

I’m telling you all this because Seth is the focus on this young and crazy male fueled movie. Seth is joined by an all-star cast of motocross, skate, surf, metal, punk, porn and rap stars. From the opening sequence of singing midgets as they make donuts and sport firearms, to the heroic jump (and consequential crash) of Seth Enslow, to Mike Metzger humping a blow up doll, this movie is a cult classic in the making.

The movie starts out with a group of kids betting on whether or not the infamous Seth will show up and attempt a jump over a gap that’s as huge as Tori Spelling’s butt. Seth finally appears, to which one guy replies, I heard he was dead.” The gist of the movie focuses on a big free-form competition that comes to a town that doesn’t take kindly to the type of shenanigans that accompany such an event. The cops decided to make an example out of Seth by banning him from jumping for a year and making him work at a fast food restaurant run by a sleazebag (porn star, Ron Jeremy)

There’s a few side plots that includes, Mike Metzger (famous for inventing the heal clicker) is busy getting laid and eventually falling in love after talking to Mike Ness in a bowling alley. Another side plot involves Jeff Emig and a fast talking pitchman (Tony Hawk). There’s also the gun totten’ Loc-Dog (Luis Ivy) thrown in the mix as he tries to impress the trick-ass bitches, by pretending he’s one of the moto-dudes. Loc-Dog also likes to pop a cap in anyone who makes Loc-Dog mad.

This is a surprising well-done movie. The camera work is great and a few of the scenes show consideration for other great movies such as Easyrider and A Clockwork Orange. While many of the motocrossers should definitely not give up riding for acting, a few of the ‘actors’ do outstanding jobs including standouts Bubba (bad ass cop), Ice-T (DJ Superfly), Ron Jeremy (Fat assed greasy bastard), Harold Hunter (skater kid, who I think was also in the movie Kids), Rusty Setser (fast-food guy), Tori Wells (dispatcher) and The Wee Man.

There’s also bonus footage of the riders that comes on after the movie credits are over. The bonus footage features many of the same folks in the movie, and my only disappointment is that it didn’t have any of Seth’s infamous crashes in it.

Be forewarned, this is a male orientated movie. This means that there’s a lot of male macho-ness on the part of the motocrossers as well as sleazy chicks, drinking, pseudo-fucking, rock ‘n’ roll riots, partying, strippers, blow up dolls and roller blading nuns. All in all, this movie should be taken as it was meant, a crazy ride in hilariousness that’s demented to the tenth power. I agree with others who say that Frezno Smooth will earn a spot in the distinguished club of classic cult movies. {Mite}

Toxic Reasons “20th Anniversary Reunion Concert” (Big Beef Recordings P.O. Box Dayton, OH 45409 When Toxic Reasons first started out, I was a mere 11-years-old. This video satisfied my need to see these punk rock legends as they took the stage with their original line-up for the first time in nearly 17 years. This video is like a little documentary on the band that shook Dayton when it came on the scene. It starts off with footage of the band as they practice for the big show the night before and then goes right into the raw energy of the concert itself.

The energy and the legend of the Toxics was added to during this concert as they set the club record at Canal Street Tavern for both attendance and bar receipts!) From the explosive first power chord, Ed Pittman, Joel Agne, Bruce Stuckey, Rob Lucjak and J.J. Pearson put on a show that grandparents tell their children about. The infamous Rev. Cool was also on hand to introduce the band and ad to the chaos.

The video is something that will inspire all punks everywhere. It’s also a testimony to the tightness of the musical community in Dayton as the proceeds from the concert and this video all go to the Gregg Spence Fund. {Mite}

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