Times Of Yore: Heckle – Complicated Futility of Ignorance

One of my buddies sent me an email the other day asking for me to give him a name of a band that he might have overlooked in the past.  Between him and I we have always appreciated all types of good music, punk being the favored.  He was looking for something to listen to, something good and I knew the perfect band for him to check out, the problem was I could not remember the name of the band for the life of me.

Am I really getting that old that I can not remember the name of a band?  In my defense there is tons of music out there for your listening pleasure…

Well I did remember the CD had a blue cover.  That is a start.  Not a good start, but it was something.

All last night I thought good and hard what the hell this band name could be.  I kept thinking the band was called Bender or Bekker but nothing would come up when I searched online.  I eventually just gave up and went to bed.

This morning I woke up with a record label stuck in my head.  The label was aimed towards the punk rock bands and was called Hopeless Records.  One thing led to another and soon I was on the Hopeless Records website and was searching for the catalog of CDs.  I was not expecting to find anything on the site but suddenly my eyes focused on a blue covered album.  Just when I was about to give up I found what I was looking for.

So Kevin, this is the band I was trying to tell you about and if you have already heard of them you should check them out again for the sake of me stressing out trying to figure it out.

Heckle
Heckle

The band is Heckle

Heckle was a east coast hardcore/punk rock band from New Jersey formed in the mid-nineties.  The bands first release was a split release with their friend’s band called AFI.  They released their first full length under the now defunct Wingnut Records in 1996 and not even a year later were picked up by Hopeless Records and released their second and final CD called Complicated Futility of Ignorance.

The thing I loved about this band is that they sounded like all of the SoCal punk rock I was getting into at the time.  One of my friends told me to buy it randomly one day and I was glad I did.  It more more melodic punk rock over a hardcore feel and was just easy to get hooked on.  It was perfect for a guy like me who was addicted to Face To Face and Bad Religion.

I have to say I am stoked my friend asked me to find him a band to listen to otherwise I may not have found Heckle again.  They were one of those bands that disappeared unknowingly from my music collection but will once again be reunited into regular play.

I was unable to find any videos for your entertainment but if you want to hear more about this band you can check out the following links:

Heckle on Hopeless Records

Heckle on Artist Direct

J-Day is almost here…

Oh boy kids, the day is almost here!!!

I have to confess that I was one of those a-holes up at the butt crack of dawn today doing last minute shopping but I have reasons why, and I guess so did all the other shoppers around me.  Thankfully it was not that crowded / insane…yet.

With being out of town for the last week I did not have much oppertunity to do the limited shopping for friends and family so it was completed this morning.  I got good gifts, I done good yes um uh huh.

There is still some time before I get to see family and friends rip open the newspaper wrapped gifts so what better thing to do then to find some amusing content to post on this wonderful website. I thought today that I would post some of my favorite YouTube videos for your entertainment. I tried to keep the cussing to a low so if anything sneaks in there my apologies…

Have you ever seen a GI Joe PSA?

Rock Me Diabeetus:

Freestyle Rap Battle (translated):

Techno Viking (fun starts around the 1:00 mark)

And since it is the holidays… I always seem to see this clip of Tony Rizzo eating the sidewalk on Fox 8. Cracks me up every time:

Still looking for more? How about some Seth McFarlane humor (good stuff starts at the 30 second mark):

and finally…

Hope I was able to entertain you all a little bit. Enjoy the day!!!

I want a Daft Punk robot helmet for J-Day.

While killing some time I found a couple of videos related to Daft Punk I had to share.  It was interesting to see some of the stuff I found.  Many of you may not know this, but Daft Punk is one of my top 10 bands of all time.  I just don’t talk about them too much.

I love robots and still love me a little electronic music.  Daft Punk is the perfect combination and I can not wait until they come out with new material.

Anyways…  Here is a clip I found explaining the history of where some of their samples came from:

Here is a follow up to that video:

Did you know that Daft Punk had a movie? It was called Electroma and I need a copy. Here is a teaser of the movie:

Of course someone out there decided to be clever and make a fast forward remix of the movie (SPOILER ALERT):

So you made it this far huh?  Well I suppose you want to help me get a Daft Punk robot helmet.  How thoughtful of you.   They retail for anywhere between $14000 and $60000 according to various websites…

I agree, that’s a lot of money.  Now I know you may not be able to spring that for me this holiday season and I forgive you.

Luckily I have located a couple of sites that sell the helmets and others that tell you how to make them.

I found this on The Daily Swarm:

THE MAKING OF…THE DAFT PUNK HELMETS

Daft Punk
Daft Punk

These helmets were commissioned by the punk band Daft Punk for a music video. Over the years, LED Effects has received many inquiries from people who wanted to purchase their own helmet. Unfortunately, these helmets are custom designed stage props and cost over $14,000. While the helmets are reasonably simple in design, the cost of labor and materials make it impractical to mass produce and market them. In addition, Daft Punk owns the copyright and concept rights to the helmets, so there may be additional licensing fees to pay. In short, yes, we can build you a helmet, but it will cost you thousands of dollars and take a year to produce. Here is how the helmets were made:

1. A model shop cast the face of the musician. This was used to create a bust which was
used as a template for the design.

2. The next step was to modify a motorcycle helmet. The body was cut away to allow for
cables and electronics. Two pin holes were provided so the wearer could see out.

3. Clay models were created for all the unique parts. This included a back pack and an arm
band controller.

4. Electronic displays were designed using prototype PC board materials.

5. The LED display panels were assembled by placing each LED one-by-one into a plastic
sheet and glued into place. Each LED required three feet of wiring to connect it to power
and control circuitry. The finished panel was bolted to the helmet frame.

6. The LED cabling was routed around the “ears” of the helmet and out the back. The
helmet cables led down to the backpack where the main controller board was located.

7. The system was originally powered by batteries, but this was later switched over to a
power cord system.

8. The control keypad on the armband was a custom manufactured PC board.

9. Exterior plastic molding and finishing materials were custom manufactured by a special
effects studio to complete the helmet. Once these pieces were added, the helmet details
were touched up with paint.

See?  That’s an easy homemade gift.  So hop to it!  I know you can do it.  I’ll be waiting.