Hear MANDY Cult Leader Jeremiah Sand’s Weirdo Folk Record

Mandy scorched off many faces in theaters this past weekend, as Panos Cosmatos and Nic Cage's psychedelic revenge opus not only lived up to the hype, but surpassed it for many viewers (Glenn Kenny's description of the picture being "Pulp Tarkovsky" is my absolute favorite). 

However, one of the undersung players in this bizarre, nightmarish, "mythical realm" of 1983 Cosmatos has constructed is Jeremiah Sand, the enigmatic cult leader personification of the fragile male ego, played to absolute perfection by Linus Roache. Practically channeling Richard Lynch from Bad Dreams, this hippy-dippy Manson wannabe leads the Children of the New Dawn with brutal glee, dropping super-charged doses of acid after kidnapping Mandy (Andrea Riseborough), the "special one" and undying sun Nic Cage's Red loves with all his heart. 

In one of the movie's most unnerving scenes, Jeremiah plays the record of folk pop he wrote, which the white-robed maniac describes as being preferable to The Carpenters. As we try to gain our bearings in this red-tinted hell, the combo of weirdo flute, strummed guitar and sing-songy lyrics on lead track "Amulet of the Weeping Maze" work to destroy our psyche even further. 

Yet what's even more fascinating (and not contained in Mandy itself) is the second track, which just found its way online. Titled "My Journey", the recording's a spoken word manifesto that details how Jeremiah came to be the demented force of evil that stands before Red, demanding the everyman bow down to his new God. Buyer beware, the seventeen-minute (!) performance is just as unsettling as the rest of Roache's ubelievable turn, diving into everything from his sexual experiences, to the inspiration behind his music. It's a fucking trip. 

Shouts out to former BMD sex symbol Phil Nobile Jr. for pointing this out to his old crew. If you haven't seen Mandy yet, make sure to seek the film out if it's playing in a theater near you, or just head to VOD and experience what a bunch of us already consider THE film of 2018.