Archive for the Features Category

On Tyranny: Remembering Frank Kozik, Album Art Illustrator and Antagonist of Authoritarianism

Posted in Features, In Memorium, On Tyranny, On Tyranny with tags , , , , , , , , , , on 07/25/2026 by Kurt Orzeck

A little over three years ago, unparalleled album art illustrator Frank Kozik – best known for being embraced by the stoner-rock community – or, as The New York Times gently worded it, “graphic artist best known for his posters for alternative rock bands.” While The Bad Penny was not in a position at the time to celebrate his and grieve his passing, now feels as good time as any to do so.

To be clear, Kozik’s widow, Sharon Kozik, is in control of his social media accounts. While she hasn’t posted copiously, she did publish the following in January:

“Frank would often tell me stories about what it was like growing up in Spain under Franco’s fascist dictatorship. He moved to America when he was 15 to escape it. Much of his artwork deals with the themes of rebelling against fascism, mocking it. He fully embraced our right of freedom of expression and open political discourse. Regardless of your political beliefs we must keep America free from government tyranny and police snatching people off the street, from their homes, schools.”

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Favorite Films: Musicians Who Like the Bad Penny Adore ‘The Thing,’ ‘The Big Lebowski,’ ‘No Country for Old Men’

Posted in Favorite Films, Features, Lists with tags , , , , , , , , , on 07/25/2026 by Kurt Orzeck

Fourteen editions deep in The Bad Penny‘s probe into movies that musicians enjoy the most – they’re usually watching them on the tour bus – we’ve been utterly blown away by the response. The number of bands eager to participate surprised us at many turns. Hell, some musicians seemed to only wanna talk about a movie in which they appeared as opposing to discussing an album they created.

Because we had amassed enough movie recommendations from the artists with whom we spoke, we took a time-out and compiled the selections of the artists. Participants include Napalm Death, Fireball Ministry’s Emily Burton (catch her here too!), Pigace’s Martin Atkins, Kilter, The New Loud, Meltt, Dez Dare, Oathbound, Dummy, Jacob the Horse, Dying Remains, Heavy Heavy Low Low and Point Break 2 (who had never foreseen this mayhem coming).

Among the 52 repeated picks, there are only three, hard as it may be to believe: The Thing (also Stephen Colbert’s favorite movie ever), The Big Lebowski and Big Trouble in Little China. Even more remarkable is that those films were low-budget and geared to niche audience. Let’s check out what the other band members deduced to be their favorite movies.

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Favorite Films: Fireball Ministry’s Emily Burton Digs ‘Jackie Brown’ ‘Aliens,’ ‘Big Trouble in Little Lebowski’ … and a Pick You’d Never Guess

Posted in Favorite Films, Features, Interviews, Videos with tags , , , , , , , , , on 07/25/2026 by Kurt Orzeck

It was only a month ago that Fireball Ministry co-founder and guitar virtuoso Emily Burton graciously set aside some of her busy schedule to talk about her and all the current developments that are making her beam at the status of her influential, 27-year-old stoner rock band. (Read all about her successful litigation here.)

When we checked in with her for part two of our conversation, she was in much better spirits and game for talking about some of her movies of all time. For those who don’t live in the loop, musicians have extraordinarily long stretches between †venues, affording them some time to cozy up in a band, rewrite and rewrite and rewrite once again the band’s set list. Burton prefers the latter.

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The Last Time David Bowie Ever Performed Live — And Why He Chose ‘Changes’ to Say Goodbye

Posted in Features with tags on 07/23/2026 by Kurt Orzeck

Here’s one of my first pieces for AllMusic.com, to which I just began contributing …

David Bowie’s final headlining concert took place on June 25, 2004, at the Hurricane Festival in Scheessel, Germany, in front of approximately 40,000 spectators. His main set consisted of 18 songs, after which he performed a three-song encore featuring “Life on Mars?,” “Suffragette City” and “Ziggy Stardust.” But unbeknownst to the crowd, during the last song, David Bowie “was suffering from chest pain during the set and was later hospitalized due to an acutely blocked artery,” according to a report.

The song that began a 34-year partnership between Garson and Bowie was also the song that ended Bowie’s entire live career.

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On Tyranny: Ben Folds Accuses Kennedy Center Ex-Acting Director of Paying Hecklers to ‘Harass’ Yasmin Williams in Testimony to Senators

Posted in Features, On Tyranny, On Tyranny, Videos with tags , , , , , on 07/22/2026 by Kurt Orzeck

“I think most of us understand that when
you politicize art, you got propaganda.”

-Ben Folds, speaking to Senate Democrats at a “shadow hearing” on Wednesday

Ben Folds on Wednesday gave impassioned testimony to a panel of Senators about what he called the “toxic” Trump Administration’s “unlawful” changes to the Kennedy Center. The veteran pop icon further accused a high-ranking official who recently departed the organization for paying “hecklers” to “harass” Yasmin Williams as payback for criticizing Trump during a performance at the Center.

Folds made the remarks at a so-called “shadow hearing” staged by Senate Democrats. Because the party is in the minority, it is not legally permitted to conduct a formal hearing like Republican Senators currently are.

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On Tyranny: Guitarist for UK Thrash Phenoms Struck a Nerve – Who Has a PhD in Russian Foreign Policy – Talks Ukraine Conflict

Posted in Features, Interviews, On Tyranny, On Tyranny with tags , , , , , , , on 07/22/2026 by Kurt Orzeck

“Americans and the British, we really struggle to understand and put ourselves in the feet of Russian leaders who truly, truly believe that if they’re not seen as an equal great power, their state will collapse.”

-Struck a Nerve guitarist and Russian foreign policy expert Nathan Sadd

If you’re a thrash metal fan, what are you doing when you’re not windmilling your long hair or gesticulating air guitar riffage till you fall through the makeshift box spring “bed” in your parents’ basement? Perhaps reorganizing your CD collection yet again, indecisive over whether it should start with albums by the Big Four or strictly abide by alphabetical norms by putting Acid Drinkers’ releases before Anthrax’s? Get a job, son!

Like Nathan Sadd, for example, who holds the unusual status as a guitarist in maybe the most exciting British thrash band of the moment – Struck a Nerve – all the while maintaining the pride of his parents and the respect of academics as an expert on the topic of Russian foreign policy as proven by the PhD he received in international relations from the University of Oxford. Yeah, that’s a mouthful, but an overachiever like Sadd deserves it.

When we posted most of our interview with the guitarist late last year, we reserved a side conversation about Russia’s war against Ukraine for a future edition of On Tyranny. Seven months later, one would think we missed our opportunity to post the chat due to outdatedness. But, oddly enough, the chat is still relevant thanks to a turn of events in Ukraine that can only be compared to very, very rare foreign entanglements – like, as Walter Sobchak would say, “our current situation” in Iran … or one of the “visits” we’ve paid to the country to which he was referring in The Big Lebowski, Iraq … or Afghanistan … or Russia’s own past quagmire in that same land.

Here’s how our exchange went:

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On Tyranny: Leetham, Queer Pop Artist Who Grew Up Mormon, Mocks MAGA for Getting ‘Star Wars’ Canon Backward

Posted in Features, Interviews, On Tyranny, On Tyranny, Videos with tags , , , , , , , , , on 07/18/2026 by Kurt Orzeck

Vibrant SLC newcomer Leetham wants to be taken seriously – but only by people who also know how to throw down on the dance floor. Raised in a Mormon household and now embraced by the queer community with which he proudly associates himself, he’s furious that intolerance is driving trans kids to suicide. He’s also mystified as to why young MAGA don’t seem to grok that the Dark Side were the villains in Star Wars. Yeah, folks, it’s worse than we thought out there.

Catch Leetham in concert soon when he opens for another ascendant pop newbie, Zee Machine – and in the meantime, savor his recently released, four-track, must-get EP, KINK, for all its worth.

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Favorite Films: Tim and Eric Turn Vancouver Psych Squad Meltt Into a Puddle of Laughter

Posted in Favorite Films, Features, Interviews, Lists with tags , , , , , , , , , on 07/18/2026 by Kurt Orzeck

Last we checked in with Meltt – Vancouver’s greatest psych-rock band this side of Black Mountain – we tried to channel their excitement over playing Boise’s Treefort Music Fest shortly before they graced the annual event three years ago. Fast-forward to 2026, and the duders were once again in good spirits, still giddy over the release of their fourth full-length, Pathways (Nettwerk), last month.

As much as we recommend you snag Meltt’s new release, when they graciously granted The Bad Penny the chance to catch up with them for a second time, we all agreed to mix it up and rope the band into our consistent-ish ongoing Saturday series, the self-explanatory Favorite Films. Each band member generously participated in the exercise – and, wouldn’t ya know it, The Bad Penny would’ve raved about many of the same flicks were the tables turned.

But, of course, this story is not us. It’s about Meltt, Pathways and movie recommendations that might inspire you to take a hop, a skip and a jump during your weekend. Scratch that: These selections might prompt you to pick up a chainsaw, commune with an octopus underwater or reminisce about Star Lanes (RIP) instead.

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On Tyranny: Belgian Music Magazine Editor Creates Benefit Comp to Fund Ukrainians Amid Russian Horrors

Posted in Features, Interviews, On Tyranny, On Tyranny, Videos with tags , , , , , on 07/17/2026 by Kurt Orzeck

Before Russia unleashed its shocking, abhorrent, genocidal and unlawful invasion into Ukraine in February 2022, Bernard Van Isacker – Chief Editor of Side-Line – didn’t have designs on focusing his music publication on current affairs and events per se. “But it did happen,” Isacker, a Belgian citizen, confided in a candid interview with The Bad Penny on Friday, July 17. “I had witnessed something I never imagined … [would be] possible in a democratic country. Tyranny can hit quite close sometimes. You’d never imagine this would be possible in a democratic country, but it happens,” Isacker continued. “And it happened to me. [Not to mention] a lot of crap being published online about myself.”

In response, Isacker spearheaded an initiative to help the people of Ukraine. Specifically, a pay-what-you-want-compilation called United 1 – The Freya Files, a various-artists dark-wave compendium issued by Side-Line. The collection just came out today.The track list is below:

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On Tyranny: Garage-Rock Band Joudy Escaped Violence in Venezuela, Found Asylum in US – but Still Live in Fear. Here Is Their Story.

Posted in Features, Interviews, On Tyranny, On Tyranny, Videos with tags , , , , , , on 06/29/2026 by Kurt Orzeck

Imagine your dream is to be a rock star – an aspiration that’s probably occurred to many readers of this website. Now imagine that you work as hard as you possibly can, exhausting all your drive and motivation, squeezing every drop of your creativity and spending every moment at your disposal to make your dream come true.

And it does, because there is still some justice in this world, and because perseverance and the human spirit can lead to extraordinary outcomes. You’ve established your heavy-psych/garage-rock band in your homeland of Venezuela, you’re continuing to put in the hard work, you’re gaining traction, you’re building a fanbase. And then – without any time to prepare or redraw the plan for your future that you’ve had all along – you’re upended by external factors that are totally out of your control, and threaten your life, the lives of those you love, and your lifelong ambitions. Rampant violence and thugs with no regard for human life are willing, ready and able to extinguish yours without a second thought and the simple pull of a trigger or slice of a blade.

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