Brooklyn artist Alexander Heir has been drawing strange, other-worldly pictures for years. Previously, these illustrations have only adorned 7" record jackets and Xeroxed flyers across the international punk underground, but now Sacred Bones Records is offering the first collection of the artist’s finest illustrations.

For those who truly crave the transgressive and are unfulfilled by the commercially “confrontational” trends in current zines and indie publications, Heir’s work will connect immediately. Heir has been so prominently involved in designing, printing and producing for countless NYC and international artists that over the years his work has become one of the defining aesthetics in the contemporary underground punk scene. His work has graced the albums, singles and ephemera of highly regarded bands such as Hoax, Forward (Japan), The Mob (UK), Nightbirds, Destruction Unit and Modern Life Is War amongst countless others.

Similarly, his popular clothing line Death/Traitors has become a staple among punks, the hip-hop scene, the tattoo community and beyond. Members of notable acts Three Six Mafia, Fucked Up, and Odd Future have all been known to support the brand.

Alexander Heir’s art has all the prominent elements of 50 years’ worth of subversive underground culture. Somewhere between Garbage Pail Kids and Tom of Finland, this is the kind of art that gets kids in trouble with their parents. Heir’s morbidity, which is blended with a sick humorous quality has a penchant for the bizarre, taboo, and a raw, physical compulsion has allowed him to achieve such delightfully confounding imagery. Referencing an eclectic cache of dark symbols in his unapologetically graphic style, he has created a stunning and recognizable collection of work.

It’s so rare we have an opportunity to experience a collection of work that so fully breathes the history of obscure subversion. Death Is Not the End is a cause for celebration amongst misanthropes and sickos alike - we finally have a new master on our side.
Death Is Not The End will see release on May 13th, 2014

Arrow Video is thrilled to announce the UK Blu-ray release of The Delta Force, the action-packed 1986 Cannon classic, hailed by Roger Ebert as “taut and exciting”, will make its UK Blu-ray debut on 5th May 2014 in a newly restored transfer with a host of brand-new extra features.

The Delta Force starts out like a reality-based docu-drama focussing on the complicated problem of international terrorism, but culminates with cartoon-styled antics of movie heroism, as well as optimistic flights of fancy about the efficacy of American military might in the world’s most difficult region: the Middle East.

Featuring a bumper crop of bonus features such as a newly restored presentation of the feature, transferred from original film elements by MGM, a new documentary, Genre Hijackers in which filmmaker Mark Hartley discusses the explosive legacy of Cannon Films, an interview with long-time Chuck Norris writer-collaborator James Bruner and a new interview with Commandant Christian Prouteau, founder of the French GIGN and instructor of the first Delta Force. Alongside this, the Blu-ray disc will also feature the original theatrical trailer, a reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Graham Humphreys and a collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by author John Kenneth Muir and a contemporary article on Cannon Films, illustrated with original archive stills and posters.

Synopsis

Cannon Films are known for having produced some of the most enjoyable and eccentric action flicks of the ’80s – but The Delta Force, which boasts scenes of Chuck Norris flying through the air on a motorbike mounted with missiles, surely stands as one of their most entertaining efforts.

American Travel Ways Flight 282 has been hijacked by a group of terrorists claiming to represent the New World Revolutionary Organisation. The Delta Force, under the leadership of Major Scott McCoy (Chuck Norris), is called in to handle the situation. Still smarting from an ill-fated hostage rescue mission several years prior, this elite squad of special forces is determined to succeed in its mission this time – and assert the might of the American military once and for all.

Drawing on a number of true-life terrorist incidents for inspiration, most notably the 1985 hijacking of TWA Flight 847, The Delta Force is a non-stop thrill ride which culminates in one of the most explosive action flick finales of all time. With Chuck Norris on hand to provide the obligatory muscle and gravelly-voiced Lee Marvin in his last ever screen role, The Delta Force is one mission well worth accepting.

Special Features

·High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation of the feature, transferred from original film elements by MGM

·Original uncompressed 2.0 PCM stereo Audio

·Optional English SDH subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing

·Genre Hijackers: Mark Hartley on Cannon Films - The filmmaker discusses the explosive legacy of Cannon Films and legendary producers Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus

·Chuck Norris Scribe: An interview with James Bruner, the writer behind numerous Cannon blockbusters including The Delta Force and Invasion U.S.A.

·May The Delta Force Be With You! - An interview with Commandant Christian Prouteau, founder of the French GIGN and instructor of the first Delta Force

·Original Theatrical Trailer

·Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Graham Humphreys

·Collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by author John Kenneth Muir and a contemporary article on Cannon Films, illustrated with original archive stills and posters.

Grave robbing, torture, possessed nuns, and a satanic Sabbath: Benjamin Christensen’s legendary 1922 film uses a series of dramatic vignettes to explore the scientific hypothesis that the witches of the Middle Ages suffered the same hysteria as turn-of-the-century psychiatric patients. But the film itself is far from serious; instead it’s a witches’ brew of the scary, gross, and darkly humorous. In 1968, an abbreviated version of the film (77 minutes) was released. This version features an eclectic jazz score by Daniel Humair (played by a quintet including Jean-Luc Ponty on violin and Daniel Humair on percussion) and dramatic narration by William S. Burroughs. The artwork features great stills from the film.

Flicker Alley, the Blackhawk Films® Collection, CineMuseum, and Keystone Films invite you to celebrate the lives and work of two silent comedy icons with the dual-release of Chaplin's Mutual Comedies (Limited SteelBook Edition) and The Mack Sennett Collection (Vol. One), both highly anticipated, newly restored
Chaplin's Mutual Comedies (1916-1917)

DVD/BD Combo Set (Limited SteelBook Edition)
Chaplin's Mutual Comedies/ 1916-1917/ 400 minutes / US/ Directed by Charlie Chaplin / Produced by the Mutual Film Corporation
UPC: 6-17311-67859-2 ISBN: 1-893967-85-9

In the comedies Charlie Chaplin created for the Mutual Film Corporation, Chaplin sometimes played an inebriate, a fireman, or a prop man in a movie studio; but most of all, he further explored and developed his celebrated Little Tramp character that would soon join Falstaff and Don Quixote in the pantheon of immortal comic characters.

Flicker Alley and The Blackhawk Films® Collection are proud to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the birth of the Little Tramp with the premiere of Chaplin's Mutual Comedies, a 5-disc Blu-ray/DVD box set, presented for a limited time in a collector's edition SteelBook case. The collection features 12 newly restored films (The Floorwalker, The Fireman, The Vagabond, One A.M., The Count, The Pawnshop, Behind the Screen, The Rink, Easy Street, The Cure, The Immigrant, and The Adventurer) , all scanned under the aegis of Association Chaplin at a resolution of 2,000 lines from original 35mm prints gathered from archives all over the world, then digitally assembled and restored, a collaborative effort of Lobster Films in Paris and L'Immagine Ritrovata in Bologna, Italy. Each film offers the option of either improvised piano accompaniment or a full orchestral score. Among the many well-known composers and musicians featured are Eric Beheim, Neil Brand, Timothy Brock, Antonio Coppola, Carl Davis, Stephen Horne, Robert Israel, the Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra, Maud Nelissen, Donald Sosin, and Gabriel Thibaudeau. 

Bonus Materials Include:

A 34-page booklet with rare, behind-the-scenes images, and an extensive essay by film historian and author Jeffrey Vance (Chaplin: Genius of Cinema).
The home-video premiere of a 52-minute documentary by Serge Bromberg and Eric Lange, The Birth of the Tramp, which chronicles Chaplin's rise to stardom in concordance with early cinema's growth from fairground attraction into an international industry.
Chaplin's Goliath by Academy Award® winner Kevin Macdonald, which tells the story of Charlie's nemesis Eric Campbell, who achieved screen immortality with his appearances in eleven of these comedies.

The Mack Sennett Collection, Vol. One (1909-1933)

3-disc Blu-ray Set

The Mack Sennett Collection (Vol. One)/ 1909-1933/ 316 minutes / US/ Produced by Mack Sennett for The Keystone Film Company & Mack Sennett Comedies
UPC: 6-17311-67879-0 ISBN: 1-893967-87-5

The Keystone Film Company, under the guidance of pioneering producer and director Mack Sennett, was the birthplace of classic American slapstick comedy. This historic studio was at one time home to a staggering number of silent screen luminaries including Mabel Normand, Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle, Harold Lloyd, Gloria Swanson, Wallace Beery, Harry Langdon, Marie Dressler, Ben Turpin, The Keystone Cops, Ford Sterling, Charley Chase, Al St. John, Mack Swain, Edgar Kennedy, Billy Bevan, Louise Fazenda, Eddie Quillan, and countless others. Even Hollywood icon Charlie Chaplin, still the world's most recognized actor, introduced his beloved Tramp character under the auspices of Keystone. Later, under the Mack Sennett Comedies banner, Sennett went on to produce a new generation of sound comedies, some in early color, featuring the likes of W.C. Fields, Bing Crosby, Lloyd Hamilton, Andy Clyde, and more.

Now, for the first time, thanks to Flicker Alley, CineMuseum, and Keystone Films, over 100 of the best surviving Sennett comedies have been gathered from around the world, fully restored, and digitally re-mastered in HD for home video. The Mack Sennett Collection, Vol. One features the first 50 of these films.

These new editions have been painstakingly reconstructed by CineMuseum and Keystone Films using original 35mm nitrate, archival negatives, preservation materials, and sometimes the lone known surviving film print, from the collections of the Library of Congress, the Museum of Modern Art, The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Blackhawk Films®, Lobster Films, the Richard M. Roberts Collection, Gierucki Studios, and dozens of privately held archives.

The Mack Sennett Collection, Vol. One premieres a wealth of rare, unknown, and previously thought lost footage which had been locked away in vaults and unseen for nearly 100 years! Finally, these long neglected classic comedies may once again be seen as originally intended.

Produced for video by CineMuseum, LLC and Keystone Films, LLC. Restorations compiled and directed by Paul E. Gierucki.

Bonus Materials Include:

16-page full color booklet filled with rare images, production information, restoration notes, and Keystone - Sennett player biographies
New music scores from silent film accompanists Philip Carli, Ben Model, Dennis Scott, Andrew Simpson, and Donald Sosin
Commentary tracks from noted comedy historians Brent Walker, Steve Massa, Richard M. Roberts, Stan Taffel, Sam Gill, Paul Gierucki, and others
Memorabilia galleries featuring vintage lobby cards, glass slides, posters, scripts, studio photographs, The Mack Sennett Story by film historian Joe Adamson, and rare audio recordings
Long unseen rarities: newsreels, trailers, outtakes, Sennett-Color films, the dedication of the Mabel Normand soundstage, This Is Your Life Mack Sennett, and much more!

ABOUT THE BLACKHAWK FILMS® COLLECTION
Blackhawk Films® was founded in 1927 as a producer of film advertising for merchants and as a distributor of regional newsreels. The company made its mark as a nontheatrical distributor with the advent of 16mm sound film in 1933, establishing several regional offices before WWII. In 1947, Blackhawk expanded into sales of used film and soon thereafter began distributing new 8mm and 16mm prints of Laurel & Hardy comedies from Hal Roach Studios as well as titles from such other suppliers such as Fox Movietone, Killiam Shows, and National Telefilm Associates. David Shepard joined Blackhawk as Vice President (1973-1976) and after founding Film Preservation Associates in 1986, acquired the Blackhawk Films® library which now comprises some 5,000 titles.

ABOUT KEYSTONE FILMS
Keystone Films LLC, a Southfield Michigan based company, has collaborated with CineMuseum LLC, Turner Entertainment Networks, and various archives around the world to digitally restore over 100 comedy films in HD for global broadcast and distribution.

ABOUT CINEMUSEUM LLC
CineMuseum LLC is a critically acclaimed television and motion picture production company specializing in the restoration and distribution of classic Hollywood films. Their works have been hailed by celebrated critic Leonard Maltin, and are regularly showcased in prime time on Turner Classic Movies with hosts Robert Osborne and Ben Mankiewicz.

ABOUT FLICKER ALLEY
Flicker Alley, LLC was founded in 2002 by Jeff Masino. Each Flicker Alley project is the culmination of hundreds of hours of research, digital restoration, and music production. The Flicker Alley brand has grown to enjoy national and international critical acclaim and is regularly featured in annual "Best Of" lists. The company is a 2008, 2010, and 2011 recipient of the National Society of Film Critics Film Heritage Award. The name "Flicker Alley" was the nickname of Cecil Court, London W.C.2., the business center of the British film industry during the silent film era

“When musicians start attracting attention at a ridiculously young age it usually produces one of two responses: cynicism – that the only reason they’re getting press is because of their age – or jealousy that you’ve been surpassed in ability and success by someone who can still be made to do P.E. in their pants. In fact, can they even still make you do P.E. in your pants? That lack of that sort of knowledge can make you suddenly feel very old, and the existence of Canadian post-punk four-piece Faux Fur is liable to make you feel even older.

Actually, that’s not strictly true. The energetic tension of their music is so invigorating that a few minutes in its company can take years off even the most jaded listener. Even better, that sprightly spirit is matched by concise yet exploratory songwriting and accomplished musicianship. No, what makes you feel old is when you learn that the band’s singer was just 14 when they started. In 2010. And that’s just not on.

Frontman Jean-Sebastian Audet is the name of that most precocious of these young prodigies. Already a mainstay of Calgary’s music scene at the tender age of 18, over the last few years he’s amassed an archive of some 350 songs across projects that span genres from wonky pop (You Are Minez) to hip-hop (Zouk Fuck). He’s been known to play shows where he’ll be in every band on the bill, although unless performing under a new name he’s generally restricted to all ages gigs. And even if, by his own admission, “probably only 30 or 40 of the songs [in his catalogue] are good”, on the best material his talent shines through like an incandescent fist covered in LEDs slamming you right between the eyes.

Faux Fur are probably the most fully realised of Audet’s various projects, helped by the presence of Michael Halls, Raff McMahan and Andrew Flegel. If you recognise the latter’s surname, it’s because he’s the younger brother of Patrick and Matthew Flegel of Women, who were the giants of the Calgary scene before guitarist Chris Reimer unexpectedly passed away in his sleep last year.

It was Reimer who recommended the youngest Flegel to Faux Fur, but it’s not the only thing that Women fans might find familiar. Tracks like ‘Rough Palms’ are almost uncanny, with distant, smothered vocals floating over those same trebly guitar lines that flicker like a zoetrope animation. Their debut album proper features the traces of various other bands too. ‘Rosemary’ is like a White Denim track played in the smeared, slacker style of Sic Alps, ‘Worn’ sees Grizzly Bear being put under anaesthetic, and ‘I Saw You Standing’ aims for the same early CBGBs, Television meets Talking Heads style that the Stokes used to successfully mine, only more ramshackle and with less posing.

This is not to say that they sound derivative. In the two minutes of ‘Reeling Phrase’, the briefest song on an album of brief songs, they manage to wend their way through a wealth of tones amid the minimalism and repetition: soft, rough, subtle, powerful, rattling, wheezing, pounding and soporific. Similarly, ‘Burnt’ shifts from a cute guitar lullaby to a jerky march, while ‘Fold Paper’ kicks off like a Pere Ubu album track sped up to 45rpm, before guitars start chiming like tightly wound music boxes. It’s probably the high point on an album that only falters when the pace drops a little too much on ‘Discolouration’.”

Faux Fur is released on tape cassette and digital download via Faux Discx on April 28, 2014.