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Jonathan Ames–“#37 Guy Bleeding All Over Skype” (Harper’s, March 2013)

Posted in Deftones, Harper's, Jonathan Ames, Korn, Sepultura, Soulfly, Technology on February 25, 2013| Leave a Comment »

Harpersmaerch13SOUNDTRACK: DEFTONES-Around the Fur (1997).

furOn this album, the band sounds older than they did on Adrenaline.  And they are, obviously, but it sounds like they grew up a bit–maybe that’s Chino Moreno’s voice.  I kind of thought that I loved this album.  Turns out I like it a lot, but that I love their next album more.  This album is a marked improvement over the first one, but doesn’t quite get to the experimental nature of their later music.

Having said that, “My Own Summer (Shove It)” is the quintessential early Deftones song.  The verses are creepy whispered (nobody whispers like Chino) with a really neat and unexpected slinky bass.  And then the chorus is huge–big loud guitars  screams and shouts of Shove It.  The post-chorus keeps that whispery style of vocal but with the heavy guitars.  It’s dramatic and really unsubtle and nobody does it like they do.  It’s hard to follow that song but “Lhabia” does an admirable job.  “Lhabia” also features Chino’s quite singing.  I love that he stretches out his words over fast chugging guitar, seemingly contradicting their sound.  “Mascara” slows things down, making for a very creepy song.  There’s no real bridge or even chorus but when the song slows down and he quietly sings “it’s too bad.  it’s too bad.  you’re married.  to me.”  It’s packs a punch.  “Around the Fur” brings in some real heaviness including some rage-filled screams at the end.

“Rickets” has some of that oddball guitar signature that bands like Korn would also play (Korn and Deftones are sort of the founding fathers of this genre of metal so they are allowed some similarities.  “Be Quiet And Drive (Far Away) is the most melodic thing the band has done yet.  Big full guitars and an upbeat bridge–it introduces some alt rock elements and a hint of shoegazer guitar.  It’s followed by loud guitars and real guttural screams.  I really like the ope tuning of the guitars that sound almost metallic   “Dai the Flu” opens with a great full bass sound.  “Headup” features a duet with Max Calavera of Sepultura.  The song has Calavera singing the word “Soulfly” which is the name of the band that he formed around the same time.  I wonder which came first.  The final song “MX” features a female voice questioning Chino during the chorus (and some really crazy sounds).  There’s something strangely sexy about the whole song even if the crazy sounds have it veer towards the creepy.  “MX” is listed as 35 or so minutes but it’s really only 4 minutes.  There’s two bonus things stuck in the dead air space.  A goofy thing called “bong hit” at around 19 minutes (which is indeed, a bong hit) and a hidden track at 32 minutes called “Damone.”  “Damone” is a fast song that never really lets up.

In hindsight it’s easy to see that the band were heading towards something amazing but hadn’t gotten there yet.  But at the time, this was pretty revolutionary on its own.

[READ: February 25, 2013] “#37 Guy Bleeding All Over Skype”

According to Harper’s this is an excerpt from “More Little Tales of the Internet” that was published in Conjunctions.  I’m curious to know more about the whole thing, but figured I’d write this before investigating further.  So, are there #37 of these little snippets?  Are there lots more?  Are there just a few random numbers?  I wonder.

This story is told from the point of view of a man at a business meeting.  The “guy” of the title is a big man, calling into the business meeting via Skype.  He seems to be big in terms of the company, but he also big in that he has positioned his head to be very large (mostly forehead and crown) on the screen.  The guy seems oblivious to this as he talks about the important stuff he needs to discuss (of which we learn nothing).

The narrator muses that he assumes everyone noticed things exactly when he did but nobody compared notes or anything.  Unless, he says, you thought it was some kind of technological glitch on screen, then you had to notice what happened. (more…)

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Nick Mamatas–“Hideous Interview with Brief Man” (Fiddleblack, Issue 8, February 2013)

Posted in Books about writers, David Foster Wallace, Death, Deftones, Fiddleblack, H.P. Lovecraft, Jane's Addiction, Nick Mamatas, Short Story, Soundgarden on February 22, 2013| Leave a Comment »

fiddleblack-issue-8SOUNDTRACK: DEFTONES-Adrenaline (1995).

adrenalineMy friend Cindy recently told me that the Deftones were playing nearby. I hadn’t realized that they were still together–there was some personnel issues a few years back.  But indeed they are and even released a new album last year.  So I got their latest album and really liked it.  This made me go back and listen to their earlier stuff too.

I came to Deftones with Around the Fur, so this debut album is less well known to me.  And yet, there are two songs that I absolutely love on this disc and which easily put Deftones above so many other heavy bands of the era (I’m not willing to say nu-metal because it’s stupid and Deftones transcended the genre from their first album).  “Bored” and “7 Words” are masterpieces of controlled rage and tension.  “Bored” opens the album with this aggressive guitar noise, letting you know what you’re in for, but the chorus shows how Chino Moreno is a master of his diverse use of vocal styles.  Especially after a few soaring choruses (he has a great singing voice) when he whispers the final verse.

The way “7 Words” open is practically like Jane’s Addiction–an noisy aggressive guitar with a big bouncy bassline and some intricate drumming.  Chino’s voice comes in like an impatient whisper.  It’s a great start.  Then when the chorus comes in (basically just the word Suck repeated over and over), the guitars bring in a Soundgarden vibe.  It’s really a great track, wonderful to crank loud.  And there’s no long ending.  It’s just done.

The rest of the album plays some interesting textures and sounds.  They are a very riff heavy band with a lot of screaming (that would change over the years), but they are never ordinary.  Some of the tracks aren’t as memorable, but it’s a consistently interesting album.  And, for the time, it was quite original.  The way the riff plays against the vocals on “Minus Blindfold” is very challenging.  The opening guitar riff of “Root” is very punk but the discordant guitars are really very metal.  There’s some great moshing riffs on the album (“Nosebleed”) along with some really interesting guitar sounds (see “Engine No. 9”).  And the drums really stand out for all of their intricacy.  Not all of the songs pack the same punch, and, after knowing their later stuff, the album is a little samey, but it’s a good start and a great opening salvo.

[READ: February 20, 2013] “Hideous Interview with Brief Man” 

My friend Andrew sent me this and described it as a mash up and David Foster Wallace and H.P. Lovecraft.  And indeed it is.  Although I admit my Lovecraftian knowledge is there, it’s not very deep, so I’m not exactly sure how Lovecraftian this is, but it is definitely Wallaceian, as you can tell by the title.

And indeed, the story is constructed like a story from DFW’s Brief Interviews with Hideous Men: there’s a series of answers and a series of questions posed just as the letter Q.

It took me a couple of questions to realize that the Brief Man being questioned is Wallace himself and as the story comes to an end, it becomes apparent that this is an interview with Death.  It’s a fascinating idea, one that will likely ruffle the feathers of Wallace fans.  And yet Mamatas has done some of his homework about Wallace.

There’s some obvious parts, like titles from his books being used in the answers, although they do work very well in context and flow naturally.  The less obvious sections seem very true to the spirit of Wallace.  The writing style doesn’t really ape Wallace or his interviewing style which I think is addressed by the comment: “there could be no worse fate than being known for exactly the sort of person you actually are.” (more…)

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Cynthia Ozick–“The Bloodline of the Alkanas” (Harper’s, February 2013)

Posted in Anachronisms, Cynthia Ozick, Dinosaur Jr., Guided By Voices, Harper's, Marriage (Happy), Poets, Sebadoh, Short Story, The Capstan Shafts on February 14, 2013| Leave a Comment »

02013SOUNDTRACK: THE CAPSTAN SHAFTS-Revelation Skirts (2010).

capstanI’d never heard of the Capstan Shafts when Sarah bought this disc for me for Christmas a few years ago.  (It was in the NPR recommended discs for 2010).  Turns out the band has been around for nearly 20 years but have been making home recordings with little publicity for much of that time.  They (he, really, as it has always been one guy) finally decided to release a proper album with a second guy in the band.  I wouldn’t have known any of that if I hadn’t looked it up just now–because even with the accolades, this is still a low selling record.  I also wouldn’t have known that for some fans this album is the commercial sellout for this band who usually makes weird personal songs.  And yet I like this album a lot–and it is plenty weird.  Or perhaps a little weird-sounding–like the buzzing noisy guitars (which I guess are from the “new guy”).

The songs are pretty straightforward folkie indie rocky.  They are bouncy and poppy, and the buzzy guitar solos adds a nice contrast to that bounciness   There’s an air of Guided by Voices (“Let Your Head Get Wrong”, with the singer’s slightly faux British accent (he sounds like about half a dozen different singers throughout the disc).   There’s definitely a feel of 90s rock here–maybe Sebadoh (“Little Burst of Sunshine”) or even Dino Jr (“Versus the Sad Cold Eventually”).  The album has 14 songs in 30 minutes–and it feels like a full record–there’s not a lot of shilly-shallying with solos or extended verses, and yet the song are not fast punk tracks either–the pace is leisurely.

I really enjoyed this record and I like popping it in from tome to time for a good album that will never be overexposed.

[READ: February 5, 2013] “The Bloodline of the Alkanas”

I found this story to be quite challenging.  The prose was awkward and not very fluid.  I found it slow going until the end, but even that seemed a mite slower than necessary.

This story has three informal parts.  The first shows the narrator’s parents–her father is Cyrus Alkana, a poet who believes in older, more formal rules of poetry.  He is passionate, but far more passionate about his dislike for more modern writers, especially Alexander Alcott to whom he writes nasty letters.  Or actually his wife writes them–she does everything for him believing unquestioningly in his genius.  She works a full time job then comes home and takes care of the house and also types his correspondence.

The parents have no respect for the narrator because she did not receive The Bestowal–what they call the poetic gift.  The narrator doesn’t care about any of that–she explicitly states that she doesn’t know half of the poets that her father admires.  Consequently, her parents show her no respect.

Cyrus can’t seem to get published anywhere.  His wife unfailingly sends out his poems but they receive nothing.  Finally, she decides to bundle up his work and to include a cover letter expressing how wonderful the work inside is.  We later learn that the name she put on the letter was Alexander Alcott.  Obviously, this would show an instant sign of respect and it would be a rather shocking development in the land of poetry.  Especially when the publisher agrees to publish the book only if Alcott’s accolades are included.

The narrator is understandably freaked out about this–her mother is publicly defrauding another (far more famous) writer–surely there will be hell to pay.  But her mother is not concerned in the least.  She says that Alcott will be happy for the publicity.  After its publication  critics do talk about it–most wondering what happened to Alcott to endorse such a poet, but there is never any formal repercussion.  And no word from Alcott at all. (more…)

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Robert Leonard Reid–“That Doubling is Always Observed” (Harper’s, February 2013)

Posted in Dance, Harper's, Robert Leonard Reid, Short Story, Trenchmouth on February 13, 2013| Leave a Comment »

02013SOUNDTRACK: TRENCHMOUTH-More Motion: A Collection (2003).

moremotionSeven years after they broke up, a Trenchmouth compilation was released.  Does a band with four albums, no chance of hits and a bizarre evolution of sound warrant a collection?  Well, in that most of their discs are out of print?  Yes.  In that Fred Armisen has become more and more famous and people might be curious what his band sounded like? Sure.

The fact that there are a few rare songs is a nice feature, although again, most of these albums are hard to find anyhow, so they’re almost all rare.  But what this disc really shows is the fascinating evolution of the band from noisy punks to smooth dubsteppers.  I have two of their albums and that progression is not really clear, but hearing them all laid out in chronological fashion it all becomes apparent.

The early songs are noisy and  jittery–the kind of songs that they would perfect on their second album, they’re just not quite as screamy.  As if they haven’t quite pushed the envelope far enough.  “Making Money for the Freak Machine” comes from an early 7″.  The song is challenging because of several abrupt halts–the song sounds like it ends but then after a longer than expected pause it resumes with a bass heavy reintroduction.  “Gold” and “The Volcanic Action of My Soul” show the kind of music they would be known for–bass heavy, noisy guitars and chanted choruses.  “Volcanic” in particular rocks hard (and the chorus is great).  Armisen’s drumming is great too.

The bulk of the songs of the collection come from Inside the Future and they are really a highlight.   They sound great in this context, too.  There’s also five songs from Vs the Light of the Sun.  Hearing the music chronologically like this, you can hear that the band is moving away from the frenetic punk and into a more dub style.  Although there’s still a lot of noise and noodly guitar solos and such.

By the last four songs, the dubstep version of Trenchmouth is fully in play.  The jangling wild guitar solos have been replaced by subtle echoing guitar notes.  The bass is as wild as ever, but the pace is slower  The instrumental “Contrast Beneath the Surface  is downright mellow–things seem calmer without Damon Locks sing/screaming).  The final song is live and the audience really responds.

The switch to the dub sound is an interesting choice–possibly a chance to make more money although it seems like jumping from an unpopular niche to a more unpopular niche.  Did their later live shows have both sides of the band?  That would be crazy.  Nevertheless, this is a good collection of songs from an underrated and really, unknown band.

[READ: February 5, 2013] “That Doubling is Always Observed”

I don’t know Robert Leonard Reid.  And I don’t understand this story at all.  I don’t even really understand this type of story–it is a very detailed history of a fictional thing.  It’s not so much a story as a historical background–told in sections that sound very formal and official.

The story is about the kupuestra which appears to be some kind of un-sensual dance.  Reid devotes many paragraphs to explaining this “dance” and its unsensual nature.

Edward Vekner was the father of the kupuestra, although that seems to have been accidental–his heart attack appears to have inspired others to emulate his moments.  There’s also someone named Lop, a woman who sank into the kupuestra (which means she was very good at it).  Lop was brittle like a cracker and the color of bacon grease–in other words, perfect. (more…)

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Nicole Krauss–“Zusya on the Roof” (New Yorker, February 4, 2013)

Posted in Babies, Books about writers, Death, Garbage, LGBTQ, New Yorker, Nicole Krauss, Nirvana, Religion, Short Story on February 8, 2013| Leave a Comment »

CV1_TNY_02_04_13Schossow.inddSOUNDTRACK: GARBAGE-Bleed Like Me (2005).

Wbleedhat happens when you take something slick and shiny and remove the shine?  You get something slick and dull.  And that’s the overall feel of Garbage’s fourth album.  After the dance pop of Beautiful Garbage, Bleed Like Me was d described as a return to the rock roots of Garbage.  And it’s true that there’s a lot more guitar.  But as in the production of Beautiful, the guitars feel really anemic–again, coming from Bitch Vig who made Nirvana’s guitars roar, this is a major surprise.

Worse than the production though s the utterly generic feel of the songs and the lyrics.  Manson was most powerful when she was personal.  Even if the songs were oblique, you knew they were about something.  But these songs just feel like words, and she sings them as if they were just words.

The single was “Why Do You Love Me” and it opens with a powerful heavy metal guitar riff.  But the verses quiet down and the chorus is fast but without any oomph.  It’s quickly forgotten and even the lyrics: “Why do you love me it’s driving me crazy” don’t really make you want to learn more about it.  “Run Baby Run” had potential for a radio friendly hit but it’s also quickly forgotten.

Then there’s the songs that seem to be about something.  “Sex is Not the Enemy” seems like it could be transgressive but it’s really not–it feels like a last stand from a beaten person rather than a rocking anthem.  Musically it’s mediocre and even lyrically it’s not that shocking/surprising.

“Boys Wanna Fight” brings some of that electronic feel back and it injects some life into the disc, but again the song isn’t that inspiring.

I wonder how much I would have liked this album without the history behind it.  I know that bands need to experiment and try different things, but it felt like Garbage fell especially far from the heights that I held them.  Garbage tool a pretty lengthy hiatus after this album–Shirley went into acting (catch her on Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles) and it seemed like the band was finished.

[READ: February 7, 2010] “Zusya on the Roof”

I read a story with a very similar setup recently (not implying that Krauss read it or anything).  In Russell Banks’ story “Christmas Party” a divorced man goes to his ex-wife’s new house and takes her newborn baby and…  the story ends.  [Spoiler, sort of].  This story has a similar arc.  And I guess I don’t understand this arc.  Or maybe, although I’m usually okay with endings that are vague, when you have a person with a baby, there are so many different possible endings that not leaning in one way or the other is just unfair–yes we can get clues from the story, but one never fully knows what a person’s intentions are.

This story also relies a lit on Jewish tradition.  And I find a lot of Orthodox behavior inscrutable (as Zusya seems to).  So I tend to get lost in the traditions.  Especially when, as in this story, names are used to indicate a tradition that I simply don;t know (and yes, this is my fault, not the author’s, unless she wanted to appeal to a goyish crowd).

So in this story, Zusya is about to become a grandfather.  But he falls ill just as his grandson is about to be born.  In his haze of hospital care, the grandson is born and he imagines that he gave birth to the boy–a kind of my life for his deal.  And when the grandfather recovers, he has strong emotional ties to the boy. (more…)

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Zadie Smith–“The Embassy of Cambodia” (New Yorker, February 11 & 18, 2013)

Posted in Africa, Boredom, Garbage, New Yorker, Racism, Short Story, Swimming, Zadie Smith on February 7, 2013| Leave a Comment »

CV1_TNY_02_11_13Greiner.inddSOUNDTRACK: GARBAGE-Beautiful Garbage (2001).

beautifulI loved Version 2.0 but never really absorbed just how poppy it was.  So Beautiful Garbage took me by surprise.  It seem like more of a natural progression if you listen in sequence but it’s impossible to imagine that the buzzing guitars of “Queer” would morph into something like “Can’t Cry These Tears” in just two albums.  “Tears” is practically girl groupy, it is so poppy and Spektorish.  Yes, there are some buzzy guitars, but wow.  What’s more surprising though  is the amount of manipulation that is done to Manson’;s voice.  Garbage was always about deconstruction and technology–they always mixed genres, but “Til the Day I Die” uses some pretty generic voice scratching  as if trying for a pop hit.  Or more specifically a dance hit.

The single from the album, “Cherry Lips (Go Baby Go)” doesn’t even sound like Garage–Manson’s voice is so treacly it has to be processed (and indeed it was sped up for the song).  “Shut Your Mouth” also seemed to head straight for the dancefloor and the rather anemic introductory sounds of “Androgyny” were a surprise.  What’s weird is that even the aggressive guitar riff is really so wimpy compared to the earlier albums.   Which is not to say that the song is bad–the riff, wimpy though it may be is still a good one and the chorus is catchy as anything.  It’s just a different audience.

“Cup of Coffee” removes all of the dancey/techno and is a simple ballad.  And it sounds like the Garbage of old.  It’ a very pretty, sad song.  “Drive You Home” is also a beautiful natural-sounding ballad.

But “Breaking Up the Girl” is the closest to the Garbage sound of old(ish) it could easily have come from 2.0.  “Nobody Loves You” has a much more interesting guitar based sound as it opens–implying something grand.  But after the opening, the song slows down into a more dark feel.  “Uncountable” returns to the dance floor (and even has some”uh uh”s).

So, overall this is a weird and unsatisfying album.  It sounds like they gave up on the rock side of things because their poppy songs were such a hit. But at the same time it sounds like their hearts just aren’t in it.  Even Manson’s lyrics are kind of lame.  Which is not to say the album is a disaster, it’s just…different.

[READ: February 6, 2013] “The Embassy of Cambodia”

In Zadie Smith’s previous piece in the New Yorker (which was an excerpt from her novel), she broke her story into a series of small sections.  It was unexpected from her.  And now she  has done it again.  The story has as a basic plot point a game of badminton.  Accordingly, all of the chapters are listed as a badminton score (a one-sided rout actually): 0-1, 0-7, 0-21.

The sections are mostly brief and kind of bounce back and forth between the main character of the piece, Fatou, and the citizens of Willesden (represented by a a single person–who took it upon herself to represent them, even if they didn’t want her to).  This unnamed narrator gives background information about Willesden and the eyes of the community who watch Fatou go about her business.  The narrator also talks about the titular embassy and how it’s not that unusual to see a building like it on their street, even if they never really see anyone Cambodian going into it,

The only thing that people can really see from the outside of the embassy is the shuttlecock which can be glimpsed over the top of the wall that surrounds the embassy   Clearly there is some kind of field there, although no one has ever seen it.  They just see the birdie arc over (and then get slammed back).

And Fatou enjoys watching it and imagining the people inside.  For Fatou is a housekeeper and sort of child watcher for a family that lives down  the street (the Derawals).  Fatou is African and her prospects are bleak.  She is not paid to work for them–she gets free room and board in exchange for her services.  In fact she does not even know where her passport is (Mr Derawal took it and she hasn’t seen it since).  At one point, after reading an article about a slave girl, she even wonders if she might be a slave.  (She decides she is not). (more…)

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Zoey Leigh Peterson-“How Long and What a Marvel” (The Walrus, March 2013)

Posted in Death, Garbage, Native Americans, Salt-N-Pepa, Short Story, Sports, The Walrus, Zoey Leigh Peterson on February 6, 2013| Leave a Comment »

2013-03SOUNDTRACK: GARBAGE-Version 2.0 (1998).

2.0Garbage toured and promoted their debut for a long time.  And then they went back in the studio for the follow up.  After the success of the first one, the producers evidently tinkered and retinkered and reretinkered with Version 2.0 for ages.  I seem to recall Shirley Manson complaining that she had done her parts ages ago and was just waiting for the boys to stop playing with it.

And when they did, it was beautiful.  Look at the shiny packaging   The album cover was very graphic. All of the singles were very graphic and literally icon-ic. It was an amazing visual assault of a campaign.  And the album was like the debut only bigger slicker brasher more.  And I loved it.

In retrospect it is still good.  Quite good in fact.  But when pinpointing why the Garbage of today sounds so different, you can see it in 2.0.  The band definitely sounds more poppy, more dancey.   And Manson’s voice sounds more confident.  Less hidden behind gothy trappings.  She’s way out in front and indeed became the central focus of the band (despite the big names of the producers).  I was so enamored of Garbage and 2.0 that I never realized quite how poppy 2.0 was compared to the first.  The gothy dark side was replaced by a poppier sheen.  True, the lyrics were dark, but not quite as angsty (and they were a lot more about sex this time around).

Even though the music sounds similar there is a world of difference in the vocal styles of “Queer” and “I Think I’m Paranoid” which has her doing all kinds of vocal tricks   And “When I Grow Up” is practically all pop (with bright bah bah bah bahs).  “Medication” has an incredibly sweet section–Shirley’s gentle falsetto singing the “co-dependent” section is the great example of the dichotomy of Garbage.

“Special” is a slinky sexy song that quotes the Pretenders (something that was very cool at the time but which I feel has become something of a crutch for Manson/Garbage–quoting too literally from their sources rather than mashing them up).   “Hammering in My Head” has a cool keyboard riff and more of Shirley’s whisper/singing.  “Push It” references the Salt-n-Pepa song which is a little weird, but there’s great noisy guitars and slinky bass that makes the song it own.”The Trick is To Keep Breathing “is a the surprise song where the whispered quieter verses turn into a really pretty and prettily sung chorus.

 “Sleep Together” plays on that aggressiveness sexuality that Manson is so go at.  “Wicked Ways” ends with some really cool sequences (I don’t like the beginning that much for some reason).  And the disc ends with “You Look so Fine” a sweet track with a nicely multi-tracked vocal.  Although the album and song just kind of drift away at the end.

2.0 is an apt title, more of the same but bigger and sleeker.  But it seems to also point them in the direction of more technology that would come next.

[READ: February 5, 2013] “How Long and What a Marvel”

This is a very short story (about a page) and it is a very simple one.  But there’s a surprising amount of depth included.

The simple plot is that the narrator’s grandfather died and caused a seven hour delay of game.  What’s fascinating is that the game is never specified and I’m not exactly sure what game it might actually be.

The men from Three Mile came to their valley to play the first game of the season.  After a big meal, it was customary to start the game by having one of the old men come out, take his bat and challenge the slinger.  Many of the old men hadn’t survived the winter, but the narrator’s grandfather had and he went up to bat.  He was slow and dragging as he got up there.  (This sounds like baseball right?  Except the thrower is called a slinger and the innings are called frames.  Is it cricket?). (more…)

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Maria Semple–“Dear Mountain Room Parents” (New Yorker, October 24, 2011)

Posted in Defiance of Anthropomorphic Sea Animals, Dinosaur Jr., Maria Semple, Modest Mouse, Neu!, New Yorker, Portlandia, Set at School, Short Story, Squiggleman, Talk Talk, Temple of the Dog, The Clash on February 3, 2013| Leave a Comment »

CV1_TNY_10_24_31.inddSOUNDTRACK: DEFIANCE OF ANTHROPOMORPHIC SEA ANIMALS-“Untitled” (2013).

brockIt’s hard to review a band that you only saw once.  It’s also surprising that said band, which appeared on Portlandia has virtually no web presence–not a video to be found!

In a previous episode, two parents at Shooting Star Preschool are distraught that the music in their children’s classroom includes the likes of Mike + The Mechanics (a gateway band) and are “getting very stressed out that the head of our school does not know about Neu!”  (and doesn’t know that there’s Clash songs before “Rock the Casbah”).  The parents stand up for indie rock: “Who’s to say a kid can’t appreciate a guitar solo in a Dinosaur Jr. song?”  And then Modest Mouse’s Issac Brock brings in a crate of LPs (from the likes of Talk Talk and Temple of the Dog) and is more or less drummed out.

Well in the continuation of this skit, the four parents decide to form a band.  It is atonal and noisy and utterly devoid of melody and at one point Carrie Brownstein screams out “Everyone leaves me!” (all of this to a room full of stunned children).  I would love to get a link to the video, but there are none as of yet (nor of the amazing Squiggleman who headline the concert).

But just remember, kids prefer repetition like Philip Glass rather than Top 40 pop.

[READ: February 3, 2013] “Dear Mountain Room Parents”

Sarah and I have just finished a book by Maria Semple called Where’d You Go Bernadette.  Semple’s bio said that she had written for the New Yorker (and Arrested Development which is all the cred I need).  Interestingly she has only written one thing for the New Yorker (but it still counts) and it’s this Shouts and Murmurs piece (which I read and enjoyed when it came out).

In light of Bernadette, it seems like perhaps Semple has had some hands-on experiences with private school buffoonery.  In this story the teacher of The Mountain Room sends an email to the parents about their upcoming Day of the Dead celebration.  Immediately she has to reply that there’s nothing wrong with  Halloween and that the parents signed up “for Little Learners because of our emphasis on global awareness.”  But of course, it doesn’t get any better for her.
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McSweeney’s #13 (2006)

Posted in Adrian Tomine, Africa, Alex Robinson, Alison Bechdel, All Songs Considered, Anarchy, Ander Nilson, Archer Prewitt, Art Spiegelman, Ben Katchor, Books about music, Books about writers, Boredom, Bud Fischer, Bust, Canadian Content, Charles Burns, Charles Schulz, Chester Brown, Chip Kidd, Chris Ware, Collecting, Comic Strips, Consumerism, Corporate skewering, Culture Shock, Daniel Clowes, David Collier, David Heatley, David Lasky, Death, Debbie Dreschler, Depression, Dreams, Drinking, Drugs, Essays, Esther Pearl Watson, Excerpt, Funny (ha ha), Funny (strange), Gary Panter, Ghosts, Gilbert Hernandez, Gilbert Shelton, Glen David Gold, Graphic Novel, History, HOB, Huh?, Ira Glass, Ivan Brunetti, Jaime Hernandez, Jeffrey Brown, Jesse Reklaw, Joe Matt, Joe Sacco, Joel Priddy, John McLenan, John Porcellino, John Updike, John Woodring, Jonathan Bennett, Julie Doucet, Justin Hall, Kaz, Kim Deitch, Kurt Wolfgang, LGBTQ, Lilli Carré, Lloyd Dangle, Louis Reil, Lynda Barry, Malachi B. Cohen, Mark Beyer, Mark Newgarden, Marriage Trouble, Masturbation, McSweeney's, Memoirs, Michael Chabon, Military, Milt Gross, Oddities, Olivia Schanzer, Parts & Labor, Philip Guston, R. Crumb, Rebecca Dart, Richard McGuire, Richard Sala, Rodolphe Töpffer, Ron Rege, S. Kierkegaard, Seth Tobocman, Sex, Short Story, Sonic Youth, Supernatural, Surreal, Tim Samuelson, Tom Hart, Violence, Virginity (Loss of), War, William Faulkner, World Cafe Live on January 29, 2013| 1 Comment »

13SOUNDTRACK: PARTS & LABOR-Stay Afraid (2006).

partslaborParts & Labor have changed t heir style over the years going from noisemakers who have a melody to being melodious noisemakers.  This album is one of their earlier releases when noise dominated.  Right from the opening you know the album is going to be a challenge.  The first song has pounding drums (electronics that sound like bagpipes) and heavy distorted shouty vocals.  By the end of the songs there is squealing feedback, punk speed drums and screaming distorted vocals (complete with space sound effects).  It’s an aggressive opening for sure.  Song two opens with a long low rumbling and then “Drastic Measures” proves to be another fast-paced song.

“A Pleasant Stay” is 5 minutes long (most of the rest of the album’s songs are about 3 minutes).  It continues in this fast framework, although it has a bit more open moments of just drums or just vocals.  The way the band plays with feedback in the last minute or so of the song  very cool.

“New Buildings” has a hardcore beat with a guitar part that sounds sped up.  “Death” is a thumping song (the drums are very loud on this disc), while “Timeline” is two minutes of squealing guitars.  “Stay Afraid” has a false start (although who knows why–how do these guys know if the feedback sounds are what  they wanted anyhow?).  The song ends with 30 seconds of sheer noise).  The album ends with the 5 minute “Changing of the Guard” a song not unlike the rest of the album–noisy with loud drumming and more noise.

The album is certainly challenging, it’s abrasive and off putting, but there;s surprising pleasures and melodies amidst the chaos.   Indeed, after a listen or two you start to really look forward to the hooks.  If you like this sort of thing, this album s a joy.  It’s also quite brief, so it never overstays its welcome.

[READ: April 15, 2011] McSweeney’s #13

I have been looking forward to reading this issue for quite some time.  Indeed, as soon as I received it I wanted to put aside time for it.  It only took eight years.  For this is the fabled comics issue.  Or as the cover puts it: Included with this paper: a free 264 page hardcover.  Because the cover is a fold-out poster–a gorgeous broadside done by Chris Ware called “God.”  And as with all Chris Ware stories, this is about life, the universe and everything.  On the flip side of the (seriously, really beautiful with gold foil and everything) Ware comic are the contributors’ list and a large drawing that is credited to LHOOQ which is the name of Marcel Duchamp’s art piece in which he put a mustache on the Mona Lisa.  It’s a kind of composite of the history of famous faces in art all done in a series of concentric squares.  It’s quite cool.

So, yes, this issue is all about comics.  There are a couple of essays, a couple of biographical sketches by Ware of artists that I assume many people don’t know and there’s a few unpublished pieces by famous mainstream artists.  But the bulk of the book is comprised of underground (and some who are not so underground anymore) artists showing of their goods.  It’s amazing how divergent the styles are for subject matter that is (for the most part) pretty similar: woe is me!  Angst fills these pages.  Whether it is the biographical angst of famous artists by Brunetti or the angst of not getting the girl (most of the others) or the angst of life (the remaining ones), there’s not a lot of joy here. Although there is a lot of humor.  A couple of these comics made it into the Best American Comics 2006.

There’s no letters this issue, which makes sense as the whole thing is Chris Ware’s baby.  But there are two special tiny books that fit nearly into the fold that the oversized cover makes.  There’s also two introductions.  One by Ira Glass (and yes I’d rather hear him say it but what can you do).  And the other by Ware.  Ware has advocated for underground comics forever and it’s cool that he has a forum for his ideas here.  I’m not sure I’ve ever read prose from him before. (more…)

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Thomas Pierce–“Shirley Temple Three” (New Yorker, December 24 & 31, 2012)

Posted in Ben Folds, Fraggle Rock, New Yorker, Oddities, Short Story, Thomas Pierce on January 26, 2013| Leave a Comment »

CV1_TNY_12_24_12Viva.inddSOUNDTRACK: BEN FOLDS FIVE-“Do It Anyway” (2012).

doitThis single comes from the first Ben Folds Five album in over a decade.  I have been listening to the album recently and I can’t get over how much I love this single (which has long come and gone and made nary a dent on any chart).  When I first watched this video a few months ago, I was so busy watching it (with the gang from Fraggle Rock and other guests) that I didn’t really digest the song.  But man, it’s got everything, and I’m sad that it didn’t barnstorm the charts.

It’s one of Ben’s loud songs–where he bangs on the piano (a lot) and it’s got that awesome distorted bass that is so Ben Folds Five (the solo at around 4 minutes is great!–I mean, it’s no John Entwistle but it’s still great).  And to hear Ben get really excited singing “Okaaaaaaay” by the third time around is infectious.

I don’t really understand why Fraggle Rock are in the video.  It’s cute though (and Ben and the guests do a  quick cover of the Fraggle Rock theme at the end).  I imagine that having Fraggle Rock in your video might just limit its appeal to a young hip crowd, as well.  But whatever, the song is fantastic.

[READ: January 20, 2013] “Shirley Temple Three”

I tried to imagine what this title would mean–what could this possibly be about?  My logical conclusion was that it had something to do with an indie rock band.  Well, the accompanying drawing is off a small elephant-like creature.  And, indeed, the story is about a miniature mammoth named Shirley Temple III.

Here’s the thing though.  The story is ultimately about a relationship between a mother and her son.  The son is a distant, jerky guy who doesn’t show up to a family wedding and who makes his living on an Atlanta-based reality show.  The mother is a forgiving and loving woman who is God-fearing and hoping for the best for her boy–despite the choices he makes.

And yet, there’s the whole mammoth thing.  The reality show that the son is the host of is a show that brings extinct animals back to life.  There’s no science given to it but they usually resurrect two of the creatures (for TV) and destroy one of them…keeping the other in their extinction zoo.  Totally weird premise, right?  But again the story is more about the family than science fiction or even reality TV.

The plot transpires that the technician who created the mammoth couldn’t euthanize the second one, so the son brought it to his mother’s house (several states away) to avoid suspicion since what they are doing is against the law.  She asks her to watch it for him until the heat is off.  It’s a dwarf mammoth (no idea if such a thing existed) so it’s not going to get big.  Then he goes away for a couple of months.  She keeps it in the pen that used to house their dog Shirley Temple.

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