The Modern Jive

I saw Girls a couple of weeks ago at the Echo (they opened up for The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, whoa... early 90s indie pop is having a resurgence now!) And don't the kids just love it?

Christopher Owens started playing music just three years ago. He played in Holy Shit for a bit and Fishbeck encouraged him to continue. Good thinking Matt. When I found this out, it all made sense: Matt + I share a sensibility for Felt... alright, we love Felt. And it only makes sense that Christopher would also share this as well. That's why I like Girls so much... And what about their name? Girls... I mean who doesn't love GIRLS?

While "Hellhole Ratrace" is pretty epic, this song just kills me.

***


Though I'm inclined to kill all hippies, I think I could convert to Bay Area dirty hippyism for a bit; get some tattoos (of Asian characters mais oui!), not shower for a few days, dabble in pansexualism, get spaced out... and this would be just for Girls...



Girly hair, I like how he gets low and wears his Rickenbacker high...

Negative, Negative, Positive

My first post on first husband's blog!

His duet with Yasmine warranted this first post. J'approve! She has a lot of raw talent + charisma which I'll gladly help refine! New band as yet unnamed!

Step out of the lightness and into the dark... And I mean this in a good way...

I could be your teddy bear...

"As you can't Hold Still...
So people shouldn't waste your time.
... That is the greatest crime of all..."

The truest words if I've ever heard in my life...

It was all about the impeccable delivery tonight.


Yes sir, Bethnal Green it is...

Il n'y a rien à autrement dire. J'aime Jarvis...

"Maybe I should entertain the very fact that I'm insane"

Okay, the lovely house guest just left. Now I can immerse myself completely in all things Felt as I try to figure out some music notation for this certain Felt zine... Lacenaire gave me so much unreleased + live Felt versions today, I'm overwhelmed to say the least. And as I listen to The Last Concert, this song popped up and I can't believe how things work in this world... or at least in my world... Hear this Felt cover as you read this blog entry.

You Showed Me

I've been obsessed with this classic song today:

The original demo version from Preflyte, penned by Clark + McGuinn of the Byrds in 1964 is well, very Byrdsian:



A bit more polished, this has been my favorite version made famous by The Turtles in 1969. Cute little kitty in the background:



As much as I love Ian Broudie, his cover and its accompanying video seriously blows:



But this has to be my new favorite interpretation. The set design, the styling, the art direction and the choreography are all amazing but what is mind-blowing is Keri Russell's rap:

Bonfires on the Heath

I can't wait to hear Bonfires on the Heath... Two years ago, I requested Al to play "Isn't Life Strange" from their last record which isn't normally on their setlist but he granted my wish. It was almost unbearable to hear live. 2007 was a tough year. But now looking back, it was one of my best years, simultaneously redefining and reassuring all those bits that were totally in chaos in my life. I called my folks tonite and they picked up.

in my head(phones)

My favorite thing to read these days is Jeremy's blog. Bless him.

From his latest entry:
... Headphone music doesn't have to be relaxing. When I'm at home in the evenings with a half a bottle of red wine, I listen to relaxing music, stuff like Antony or Leonard Cohen or Caetano Veloso. On my headphones, though, I like to offer myself a bit of a jolt. It makes a commute on the Underground a little spikier, it wakes me up a bit, puts a spring in my step like caffeine. I listen to songs that are cheesy. Stuff I would never admit to being a favourite, would never listen to while lounging. Stuff like "Heartbeats" by The Knife or "Paris" by Friendly Fires or "Young Love" by Mystery Jets.

It helps if the songs are current, or relatively recent. It helps if the young singer is still young: That notion gives the music a sense of immediacy. It feels like stuff borne out of the exact conditions I find myself in: Walking briskly between train lines underground, navigating a crowded street in town, gasping for air as I emerge out of a station. Generally, I guess, I don't really want to be "transported" when I am being transported through the city. I want to feel like I am present and a part of the crowd, as Baudelaire wrote, "as though it were an immense reservoir of electrical energy."

(My lucky cat and your lucky cat will soon be neighbors j'espère!)


And I write this whilst in my own head(phones)... as I make your midsummer's mix.
x

The Young and Evil on Bastille Day...

Last year tank.tv invited Stuart Comer to curate an exhibition of his choice, the result was The Young and Evil, a show that took place both online and in the auditorium. After their London debut we are now extremely pleased to be able to present these programmes in Los Angeles, thanks to LACMA and Outfest 2009. On the 14th July audiences can see the offline selection in the Bing Theatre at LACMA, followed by a Q&A with both the artist William E. Jones and Stuart Comer. Three days later Outfest 2009 will present the online selection at REDCAT as part of the festival's Platinum showcase.

Everybody Today is Turning On...

Except for me...

Summertime

Water in Milk Exists

I'm very much looking forward to this Thursday evening:



Los Angeles Premiere of Lawrence Weiner's
Water in Milk Exists

Thursday, July 9, 8pm
Cottage Home
410 Cottage Home St. LA, CA 90012
Screening followed with a few words by Lawrence Weiner and a reception.

The World's Greatest

As much as it would have been patriotically cool to see Roddick win Wimbledon, seeing it was an American holiday this past weekend, it was absolutely thrilling to see Federer become the World's Greatest today... It was epic.

Slabs

Last month, I went below sea level, to the Salton Sea.


I didn't realized how polluted it was. It stank; dead fish scattered the shore. I really didn't know why. I went home and did some research... It's appalling.


Had the pleasure of meeting this man and his Salvation Mountain of love.


29 Palms Inn was a menagerie of the loveliest creatures: a killer spider, a killer bee and a cute little mouse. It was one big happy family that night.


And the zoo continued in a different way. Aren't these targets so precious?

Bill Callahan

I went to see Bill Callahan play last night. I've been loving his new record, Sometimes I Wish We Were An Eagle. Do you know when you listen to a song so much, it becomes something else in your head and when you get the opportunity to see it performed live, it takes on another dimension? ...Well it was just magical last night.

I was mesmerized by his stage presence. Some might say he can be a bit stiff or boring on stage, but it's not about that at all. It's about the songs, the words, the melodies, the musicianship of the band coming together. It was really quiet last night, you could hear every played note, you could hear every word from his voice. It was really pretty. And visually, he looked amazing. My kind of pop idol poet: sporting the popular dress shirt in white, tucked into his fitted Levi's blue jeans, the white sleeves rolled up, the collar up as well (only on certain songs with the right amount of appropriateness), wearing his small Les Paul high, with his full head of salt + pepper hair gracing his boyish face. You could tell he was deep in the music, so was I... You should have seen him get low.