Putting Things In Plain Site

Wanna Make A Bet?

2012-01-28T08:30:00.006-05:00

We all remember the bet:

On Saturday, December 10th, 2011, Mitt "I'm Also Unemployed" Romney bet Rick Perry $10,000 that there is not a passage in his book on individual mandates for health insurance. Immediately the "lamestream" media blasted Mitt for being so out of touch with the average American and for being so crass and, well, stupid to make such a large bet on a nationally televised debate. As we all know, such bets should be restricted to golf foursomes and the snifter room at exclusive mens' social clubs.

So, here I am - more than one month later - rehashing this old news to prove that such a bet was no big deal. To prove my point, I did some simple math. Based on his now released tax returns for 2011, Mitt Romney made about $56,986 a day. According to The USA Today, the median household income in 2011 was $49,445 for the year. Divide that by 365 (fuck that 1/4 of a day shit), and the median daily income for the average American was $135.47 a day.

Here's some more fifth grade math. A $10,000 bet, for Mitt "I'm Just Like You" Romney, based on his average daily income in 2011, is only 17.5% of his daily income. That's like the average American worker making a $23 bet with his buddy that Billy Cundiff is going to miss that last second field goal to cost the Ravens a chance to go to the Super Bowl. Easy money, right?

So, let's all pretend that Mitt didn't bet Rick Perry $10,000. Let's just imagine it was $23, and we can all hold our noses and vote for a Mormon.

Orphans, Cougars and What Not

2012-01-14T14:09:00.000-05:00

Side Chronicles

2012-01-06T16:19:00.005-05:00

How better to inaugurate another year of blog posting than by hearing it from a master, much like the spinning of "Like A Rolling Stone" just after the ball has dropped. I found these two interview gems the other day and maybe it's just that they're written pieces, but I'm not sure I've seen such length and candor, aside from Chronicles, which I'm still holding out to read.

About Together Through Life and music

About Painting and approach

Joey Gee El

2011-12-30T15:06:00.004-05:00

Perhaps JGL's recent movie work has overshadowed a certain venture of his, hitRECord, which is an honestly straight-forward attempt at connecting artists to collaborate.

After perusing the site a bit, I find the venture to be quite commendable. And from the looks of the some of the videos JGL has posted on the site and on his blog, he seems to be quite passionate about the idea. Good for him.

Here's a NYTMag piece about one of the "records" that was capitalized.

Touch of Evil

2011-12-27T19:06:00.005-05:00

New York Times Magazine recently produced a series of classic, spooky vignettes featuring A-list actors/actresses (Brad Pitt, Kirsten Dunst, Ryan Gosling, Gary Oldman, etc.). The "cinematic villainy from the year's best performers" is worth checking out, if you haven't already. CLICK CLICK CLICK.

What Are They Laughing At?

2011-12-26T08:55:00.000-05:00

It Really Does Require Paradise

2011-12-22T09:33:00.010-05:00

Shit Burger? The following is an interesting intrigue about burgers.

---

"A few years ago, I decided that it would be interesting to make a cheeseburger from scratch. Not just regular “from scratch,” but really from scratch. Like, I’d make the buns, I’d make the mustard, I’d grow the tomatoes, I’d grow the lettuce, I’d grow the onion, I’d grind the beef, make the cheese, etc.

It didn’t happen that summer, by the following summer, my wife and I had built a new house, started raising chickens, and established a pretty good-sized garden. I realized that my prior plan hadn’t been ambitious enough—that wasn’t really from scratch. In fact, to make the buns, I’d need to grind my own wheat, collect my own eggs, and make my own butter. And I’d really need to raise the cow myself (or sheep, and make lamb burgers), mine or extract from seawater my own salt, grow my own mustard plant, etc. This past summer, revisiting the idea, I realized yet again that I was insufficiently ambitious. I’d really need to plant and harvest the wheat, raise a cow to produce the milk for the butter, raise another cow to slaughter for its rennet to make the cheese, and personally slaughter and process the cow or sheep. At this point I was thinking that this might all add up to an interesting book, and started to consider seriously the undertaking.

Further reflection revealed that it’s quite impractical—nearly impossible—to make a cheeseburger from scratch. Tomatoes are in season in the late summer. Lettuce is in season in spring and fall. Large mammals are slaughtered in early winter. The process of making such a burger would take nearly a year, and would inherently involve omitting some core cheeseburger ingredients. It would be wildly expensive—requiring a trio of cows—and demand many acres of land. There’s just no sense in it.

A cheeseburger cannot exist outside of a highly developed, post-agrarian society. It requires a complex interaction between a handful of vendors—in all likelihood, a couple of dozen—and the ability to ship ingredients vast distances while keeping them fresh. The cheeseburger couldn’t have existed until nearly a century ago as, indeed, it did not."

Taken from this blog.

---

I've said, on a handful of occasions, that I would be fine giving up beef and all other meats, 'cept for pork. In such a venture, burgers would be the only thing I truly missed. And I know there are other types of burgers besides beef, but I'm talkin' a good beef patty. In recent years, I've been intrigued by the "boutique-ing" of burgers. I feel I've been to a handful of cafes, restaurants that take the burger so seriously that they ruin the burger. The patty is too thick; the bun too creative; the toppings too absurd; the lettuce too overwhelmingly ridiculous; the presentation too inventive. These are the types of places where almost everyone leaves saying "oh yea, mmmhm, oh yea," and the few who don't go post highly self-righteous reviews online. (Perhaps they do both?) I'm not entirely sure I've ever left such a place without feeling deeply apathetic.

In contrary to the article above, the burger is quite simple, and (like many things in the modern world) depreciates as you try to 'church' it up. McDonalds holds a probable monopoly on our generation's perception of the burger, contrasted with the homemade-backyard-dad variety (why do all dads create meatballs when they mean to create burger patties?). Five Guys has an oddly respectable model that only falls short in its apparent lack of sustaining local ingredients. Diners typically do burgers better than cafes, and cafes better than restaurants. Sports venues are hit or miss. And sometimes the fine dining gets them right, mainly based on the quality of meat (I've heard Lugar's is great, never had it). It's brunch that's truly guilty of this boutique escapade.

Who do we talk to, to cease this charade of piling, masquerading as improvements on such an absurdist idea of a sandwich? It reminds me of a line from one of the greatest comedy films of all time, in which Cleveland Indians Manager Lou Brown says, "...we ought to hang around for a while and see if we can give 'em all a nice big shit burger to eat!"

Keplancholia

2011-12-21T09:39:00.004-05:00

I was sitting around a day or so after having seen Melancholia and Emily says to me, "they discovered a new planet."

"Ha," I thought, "what a clever little joke..." but she insisted. "Are they calling it 'Melancholia,' I asked. "No, it's called Kepler-22b... or something," she said.

Odd, I thought. And it got me thinkin...

Will...

become...

?

Two Turntables and a Microphone?

2011-12-20T19:33:00.001-05:00

I saw these guys over the summer and was absolutely blown away by their pickin', their singin', and their absolute embodiment of truly American music. Enjoy!

Chris Thile & Michael Daves

The Armpit Collection XL: I Know

2011-12-09T11:00:00.006-05:00

A man whose work is ripe for exploration. Shepp has a deliciously broad approach to musical form, though his tone and sentiment is singular. A Sea of Faces illustrates this characterization very well.

Here's a great piece about Shepp's life and work.

"I did learn to accept whatever my limitations are..."

"I think of myself mostly as a man."

"Music is an intelligent pursuit."

"I really am bitter."

Never Did Either

2011-12-08T10:21:00.001-05:00

PJ20

2011-12-02T19:17:00.003-05:00

I've honestly watched this documentary three times in the last week. Cameron Crowe put together an excellent mix of interviews, shows, and behind-the-scenes footage. This brought back a lot of middle school era nostalgia, rocking out to my Pearl Jam tapes. What are middle schoolers doing these days, besides taking naked pictures of themselves with their cell phones?! If you haven't had a chance to see PJ20 yet, even if they aren't you favorite band in the world, I highly recommend you do so soon.

I'm not playing with you . . .

2011-12-01T10:50:00.005-05:00

Last weekend, I was quite excited to find The Great American Rock Band on the front page of nytimes.com. Fugazi has spent the last few years cataloguing their entire history of live performance — almost every show from the first to the last is on tape. Today marks the launch.

Given the excitement most of my household shared in the announcement, our conversation inevitably turned to Bono and straight-from-the-ass hogwash. "Sometimes, nice guys don't where white," I told her. "This party is not for sale."

And just a few weeks earlier, I stumbled across an even stranger thing (scroll a few blocks down). Some is fun, some is dumb (the rhythm section has been all but dismantled), but it'll surely grab the attention of any proud-to-be-punk-ass from the 1990s.

The Perfect Wine Glass

2011-11-18T12:40:00.001-05:00

Enjoy your weekend!

My Latest and Greatest Production

2011-11-07T23:10:00.004-05:00

This summer I produced my first short film, Upload, with my good pal, Morgan Evans (writer, director, actor, improver who I met through Ryan). We were fortunate enough to have our short premiere at the Friars Club Comedy Film Festival, and it's screening again at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre on November 20th.

My latest and greatest production is a 15-episode comedy webseries also starring Morgan Evans. As you can assume, doing a 15 episode series with professional cameramen, sound, lights, props, locations, etc. can cost a shitload of money, so we started a Kickstarter webpage to help us raise funding. So far we've done pretty damn good, with 70 backers at the time of the posting we've raised over 85% of our goal of $10,000, but we only have 5 more days to raise the remaining $1,500 (so if you know anyone with too much money, or someone that would be interested in supporting our ambitious cause, feel free to pass this along). In the video below Morgan does a fantastic job explaining what we're aiming to accomplish.

The Armpit Collection XXXIX: Need = Sunshine

2011-11-03T18:21:00.003-04:00

"I found empathy in madness, deliverance from malaise."

Timber Timbre - Creep On, Creepin' On

This album makes me smile. It's dark, and I smile cause it hits so close to home. All the sounds I love are right there. It's not long, and there are instrumentals, nice transitions. The grooves are inviting. There's a lot of mood with a lot said: a cool-y confident voice rings effected and quiet, but also cuts. There's so much space. Respect the space and flow of things in space. I feel somewhere and also feel them somewhere. "Too Old to Die Young," damn near brings me to tears (with those background chirps).

Do YOU have power??? Over "it"?

The video I posted is for "Black Water," a wonderful lyrical journey that I've quoted above as well.

Lynchspective

2011-11-03T15:45:00.000-04:00

David Lynch & 'Big' Dean Hurley The Stool Pigeon Mixtape by The Stool Pigeon on Mixcloud

Chuckspective

2011-11-02T18:33:00.002-04:00

I've made references to Chuck Klosterman's work on the blog before.

Here's a couple of great journalistic pieces from him. One is an interview with Noel Gallagher that offers some interesting insight into various things. The other is a great review of "Lulu."

A couple of gems -

"In the 20 years I've interviewed celebrities, I think Gallagher might be the first one to ever directly say that the process of succeeding is more problematic than the conditions that follow that success. Celebrities have been conditioned to insist that they want their work to be consumed and appreciated, but that they always dread the subsequent lack of anonymity and the vapidity of public recognition; in many ways, Gallagher's response seems like the first honest explanation as to why talented people so often seem depressed and uncomfortable."

"Two historically significant artists merging unrelated genres for no defined reason. Adult, self-aware musicians following their own creative vision, devoid of commercial pressure or responsibility. An attempt to produce something authentically different from anything we've ever heard before, motivated only by a desire to see what would happen. A confident, unvarnished attempt at taking arcane high art and repackaging it for denim-clad teenagers huffing gas in Arizona parking lots."

Smokin' Campaign Ad, Mr. Cain!

2011-10-25T23:26:00.006-04:00

This ad gets pretty magical around the 40 second mark. I am America, one voice, united we stand... (Herman Cain then gives the creepiest creepster smile I've ever seen).

I see SNL spoofing this one in no time.

New C. of Music

2011-10-24T15:36:00.002-04:00

I've enjoyed the Flaming Lips ever since I first heard Soft Bulletin (in 5.1 mind you). I deeply respected them after I saw Fearless Freaks. I championed them after I saw them live at the ACL Festival. And I was quite taken with them when they released Embryonic.

Since the late 90s, they've become quite a force in the popular music lexicon, always on the fringe, always intriguing, always refreshing. Upon researching their discography for a mix tape I made to honor their performance at Moog Fest in Asheville this coming weekend, I found they've been quite active in 2011. (The mix will be available on ashevillefm.org) The idea that they can encourage people to think and consume creatively is super commendable.

Check out this interesting take on one of their recent, creative releases.

Check out this press bit about their planned Halloween release.

Bad as Him

2011-10-23T18:00:00.002-04:00

Check out this very interesting NYTimes interview and review of Tom Waits's new album: Bad as Me.

Old Banner

2011-10-18T23:46:00.002-04:00

I'm feeling the October spirit and replaced the banner with an oldy-but-goody. Previous banner below.

Fire is a Devil's Tool

2011-10-12T19:00:00.006-04:00

Again, I find this nonchalantly posted on Mr. Law's facespace page, and I find it absolutely necessary to share this with the rest of you. Remember when Johnny Cash was in Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman?

Let's Get Trippy

2011-10-05T00:34:00.003-04:00

Click Here

Effective, and fun for the entire family.

"Duuuuuuuuude"

The Shallows

2011-09-28T07:27:00.005-04:00

In response to Jason's insightful post, you may want to check out this book by Nicholas Carr: The Shallows - What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains.

Blurb:
Is Google making us stupid? When Nicholas Carr posed that question in a celebrated Atlantic essay, he tapped into a well of anxiety about how the Internet is changing us. He also crystallized one of the most important debates of our time: As we enjoy the Net’s bounties, are we sacrificing our ability to read and think deeply?

Now Carr expands his argument into the most compelling exploration of the Internet’s intellectual and cultural consequences yet published. As he describes how human thought has been shaped through the centuries by “tools of the mind” — from the alphabet, to maps, to the printing press, the clock, and the computer — Carr interweaves a fascinating account of recent discoveries in neuroscience by such pioneers as Michael Merzenich and Eric Kandel. Our brains, the historical and scientific evidence reveals, change in response to our experiences. The technologies we use to find, store, and share information can literally reroute our neural pathways.

Building on the insights of thinkers from Plato to McLuhan, Carr makes a convincing case that every information technology carries an intellectual ethic — a set of assumptions about the nature of knowledge and intelligence. He explains how the printed book served to focus our attention, promoting deep and creative thought. In stark contrast, the Internet encourages the rapid, distracted sampling of small bits of information from many sources. Its ethic is the ethic of the industrialist, an ethic of speed and efficiency, of optimized production and consumption — and now the Net is remaking us in its own image. We are becoming ever more adept at scanning and skimming, but what we are losing is our capacity for concentration, contemplation, and reflection.

Part intellectual history, part popular science, and part cultural criticism, The Shallows sparkles with memorable vignettes — Friedrich Nietzsche wrestling with a typewriter, Sigmund Freud dissecting the brains of sea creatures, Nathaniel Hawthorne contemplating the thunderous approach of a steam locomotive — even as it plumbs profound questions about the state of our modern psyche. This is a book that will forever alter the way we think about media and our minds.

"No Blades, No Bows, Leave Your Weapons Here!"

2011-09-26T08:26:00.006-04:00

At the end of last week I was rooting around some old folders in the file cabinet, looking for media scraps to add to my newly realized bulletin board situation.

I found some fun stuff from the back log. The only newspaper clipping I guess I've saved is "The Outsourced Brain," by David Brooks, which is from about four years ago. I used to read the printed newspaper frequently in Richmond. Pick up a copy, perhaps some Camel Lights, and then head over to that diner on Broad St. for my lunch break. Clipping articles from newspapers wasn't something I made a habit of, but I recall taking in Brooks' perspective about how technology is facilitating man's quest towards "know nothing," like phone numbers or driving routes. I didn't (don't) really participate in the full bells and whistles.

In the four years since it's publication, social media technology has evolved considerably and saturated the lives of an astounding percentage of humans. My question in this realm has always been, this supposed brain space that is "freed" by these technologies, are we using it to know other stuff that makes it all worth it?

Just the other day, I read an article (digitally) about Facebook's plans for the future. Sounds like the evolution is just beginning.

Classic Bullshit

2011-09-23T22:24:00.001-04:00

This is where culture equips its celebrity with the right of guidance — where culture utterly fails.

Twin Tower Cameos

2011-09-11T20:34:00.003-04:00

Play Just Like Cobain!

2011-09-06T20:29:00.004-04:00

For a little less than $2,000 you too can sounds exactly like the 12th greatest guitarist of all time! Fender is now offering the Fender Kurt Cobain Jaguar, complete with authentic grunge paint scratches! I'm only surprised they're offer a "Kurt Cobain" guitar in one piece.

While playing your new Jagbain, don't forget to pick up EverTune! A new device that guarantees your guitar will NEVER go out of tune again!

Newell Getting Gutted

2011-09-02T11:38:00.004-04:00

My sister picked me up in Baltimore yesterday, and we decided to stop by TU. Besides all the new buildings on campus, I also noticed the completely renovation of our sacred Newell Hall. The look and feel of our (circa 2002) Newell shenanigans now only exist in memories and photos.

GEORGE HARRISON: Living In The Material World

2011-08-24T20:16:00.000-04:00

CIANYPD

2011-08-24T18:57:00.005-04:00

This is a fascinating article on how the NYPD has been collaborating with the CIA on anti-terrorism techniques.

Do you prefer liberty or security?

The Dude Abides

2011-08-19T08:58:00.002-04:00

The Colbert Report

Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c

Exclusive - Jeff Bridges - "Maybe I Missed the Point"

www.colbertnation.com

Colbert Report Full Episodes

Political Humor & Satire Blog

Video Archive

Still dawning the Bad Blake duds from Crazy Heart, Jeff Bridges released a self-titled debut album produced by non-other that the T-Bone Burnett. His voice really ties the sound together. Far out, man. Far out.

"I'm Your Huckleberry..." Indeed!

2011-08-11T17:08:00.004-04:00

Who is this? Yes, Mark Twain. But who is this portraying Mark Twain? Do you recognize the famous movie quote from the Title? Yes, you are correct, it is not Dennis Quaid!

I was just arguing about the integrity of Val to a few friends. Apparently he's trying to get a Twain film financed. I think we can all agree the lead part is sewn up.

Hagerstown Happens

2011-08-09T11:43:00.003-04:00

In a never-ending steam of embarrassing Hagerstown news that get distributed nation-wide, click the links below.

Herald-Mail 8/4/11

Gawker 8/8/11

Better Late Than Never

2011-07-29T15:51:00.003-04:00

For someone who only recently discovered the joy of songs like "Elvis Presley Blues," "Revelator," and "Ruination Day (Part 2)," I am excited to see what eight years of meditation and sowing can produce: check out the album review here.

Saturn Return

2011-07-27T09:20:00.004-04:00

But you did go go go
And now you're gone
I know better
It's walking-in on

It's not a clinic
It's not a club
It's a foot rub

Grafting while waiting
And laughing/menstruating
Spiralling shimmying
Always approaching
Whisper me something
Wherever you are
I wanna hear

Guess what they guessed the average is.

2011-07-19T08:21:00.008-04:00

Picked up this book a while back... after hearing about it somewhere (wish I could remember where). Started digging into it again the past couple of days and stumbled upon this passage...

"...the revolution would bring better parks to New York, and beautiful places to live, and day-care centers, and hospices. Her idea was that New York should be human. Now, this is simply a mistake. New York is an inhuman machine put together to serve the most ambitious interests of a certain part of American secular society. It has human aspects, because human needs must be me before ambitions can proceed toward realization, but the fulfillment of those human needs is an uninteresting precondition of the life of the ambitions. In human terms, there is no reason to live in New York, and if New York were to become a city in which day-care centers and hospices were the dominant institutions, it would soon be depopulated."

Apropos! The book is an intense scorching (er...perspective) of what media has done to humans. For a more... democratic context, please see the internets.

Here it is published in the New Yorker.

A review of the re-release by John Irving.

Also, what are YOUR thoughts on Dan Rather?

I said, What IS Up Doc?

2011-07-13T08:44:00.003-04:00

Nattybo posted a while back about the monumental feat that Doc Ellis acheived. Appears the saga continues.

Acid No Hitter 06 from source/record on Vimeo.

Imagine — and there ya go.

2011-06-23T20:37:00.002-04:00

Remember Archie? Well, he and his took an idea and started a world.

A Red Blooded Mother Fucker

2011-06-17T20:07:00.002-04:00

Just came across this and had to share. Reading about this man — as we do annually — never grows dull. In times of Great Complacency, may we each excite the very strength of our own intolerance.

The Rattler

2011-06-14T15:25:00.002-04:00

Check out this new video I helped produce! It's so funny, HAHAHAHAHA!

Weezer covers Paranoid Android

2011-06-06T13:59:00.001-04:00

BD on PS

2011-06-01T23:25:00.003-04:00

Anyone else see this? Apparently it's from about a year ago although some folks like Daily Swarm just picking up on it now. I hadn't seen it.

http://www.thedailyswarm.com/headlines/seriously-watch-bob-dylan-make-cameo-appearance-pawn-stars/

Yeah, Let's Go Sailing

2011-05-30T01:45:00.000-04:00

First Listen: Eddie Vedder, 'Ukulele Songs'

2011-05-27T19:40:00.000-04:00

Check it out. Sounds Hawaiian!

An American Poet Turns 70

2011-05-24T22:01:00.002-04:00

It's about to get heavy. UPDATE: This is an intelligent article on Dylan I figured I'd share.

The Armpit Collection XXXVIII: Whoever Told You That Is Your Enemy

2011-05-22T12:05:00.006-04:00

His Back Pages, Captured on Film

2011-05-17T17:59:00.003-04:00

Check out this NYTimes Article on Don't Look Back and the enigma that is Mr. Dylan.

First Listen: Thurston Moore, 'Demolished Thoughts'

2011-05-16T00:36:00.001-04:00

Check it out; produced by Beck.

The Rise of Eraser Aesthetics

2011-05-12T08:48:00.000-04:00

When I think the "Eraser," I think of Arnold. Recently though, there's been a common perspective on the assassination of Osama bin Laden.

Perhaps this is just the perception of New York publications. I find the idea that "since he's dead, he's erased" to be a bit troubling. You?

Spring in Central Park

2011-05-02T17:27:00.003-04:00

Today is another cloudy, overcast day in New York City, but Saturday, man, that was a damn near perfect day. I decided to head to Central Park and shoot some moving images. Below was the outcome, enjoy!

Smile, Richmond, You Unhappy Lil Bastardos!

2011-04-27T18:32:00.002-04:00

Another day, another unhappy Richmonder (Richmondite? Both are showing up as spelled incorrectly). While watching this video a few thoughts come to mind.

There's a baseball team call the Richmond Flying Squirrels? I remember seeing Bob Dylan play a Richmond minor league ballfield back in 2004. Was I in Squirrely Stadium and didn't know it. Shit, I wish I'd taken a picture.
When coaches get "thrown out" of ball games, where do they go? I never see the Bouncer Ref walking people off the field and to their cars. Having a cameraman follow the coach all the way to his car would be fun for nothing more than to see what kinda car a minor league coach drives these days.
Isn't it great that he can scream, kick things, and even twirl around OUT OF ANGER and be given a standing ovation by the fans? What other job in the world is it acceptable to literally scream in someone's face and be cheered on by clients?

One Forgives, One Doesn't

2011-04-22T08:58:00.003-04:00

I listen to this every year now, today. It is one of the Crowes songs that really put out it's hand. I recommend the live one.

3 Things to Love About China!

2011-04-14T20:33:00.004-04:00

China has been in the news, well, a lot in the past decade, but I'm going to break down some highlights I found particularly amusing from the last week or so:

1. Blowin' In the Idiot Wind - Bob Dylan went to China, and what do you know, he did it for the money! He also let the Chinese government approve his setlist. The fact that he didn't say, "Lay, you Commie bastards, lay, lay across whatever song I feel like singing because I'm as American as Coca Cola and no one tells me what to do," really pissed off NYT's MoDo. Honestly I was surprised she expected more from him. Has she ever seen Richard Gere in "Red Corner"? Speaking out can get you kilt! Ten times worse than Maggie's Farm, I can assure you. In China you sing what the government tells you to, get your buttload of money (which we've been giving them in the first place), or stay home in the U.S. remembering that time you didn't go to China.

2. Taking Care of Yourself is a Full Time Job - The U.S. government talked smack on China regarding their "negative trends" towards human rights aka stepping their restriction up on lawyers, activists, bloggers, journalists, and pretty much anyone speaking Chinese. Then China released a report a few days later stating the U.S. was a poor, racist, and violent country that didn't have much business pointing it's finger at anyone else. TRUE! But, um, what's your point, China? We're Americans! You know we get crazy!

3. Time Travel is Not an Option - "TV dramas shouldn't have characters that travel back in time and rewrite history. They say this goes against Chinese heritage," unlike the West where Time Travel is a deep, rich part of our heritage. I remember traveling in time as a little boy, and I'm sure I'd be a completely different person (aka Chinese) without those experiences.

Kurt Cobain Does a Jared Leto Impersonation

2011-04-09T16:21:00.001-04:00

I heard today (April 5) was the day Kurt passed away 17 years ago. Can't believe it's been that long. So grateful for his contribution and inspiration. Not sure I'd be doing this if it weren't for him. He gave us all permission to create no matter what our skill set and reminded me that dreams are possible. Thanks for that. This made me recall a short piece of film I shot when I heard they were making a film celebrating his life. I made it to explore the character and explore creative possibilities. I never sent it to the studio or to anyone but thought I'd share it now...
- Jared Leto

The Armpit Collection XXXVII: Put God Away

2011-04-06T18:46:00.003-04:00

Why did you choose to end the album with “It’s time to put God away”?

Because it really is! And it's a culmination song. It's a time-suspending song. You have to put it at the end. Can I just say this is a great record?

This record struck me very clearly with how good it sounded. There's a calm nature to not only the sound, but the opening line. "I started out in search of ordinary things." Sometimes we revel in the abstract because of a disconnect or inability to express realistically. Those journeys may begin with a pining for normalcy, clarity, a direct path to understanding. The relativity of ordinary offers similar comforts among us.

There's a very humble way about Callahan's approach that I find comforting, and that I feel sets this record apart from most singer/songwriter efforts. It doesn't feel forced. He can relish in the weird or intrigue without being contrived. Lyrically speaking, there is great literalism.

Armpit-technically, this album should be an addition to the 21st C. Singer/Songwriter Dilemna. Looking back, it makes more sense for Eagle to be included, than Wicked Grin.

This post was spurred by the release of Callahan's newest, Apocalypse.

VA/MD "Big Bad City"

2011-04-02T12:42:00.003-04:00

Here is a wonderful music video featuring my good friends, VA/MD, produced by yours truly. Watch it in HD if your internet connection allows it. Feel free to leave compliments in the comments.

no quiero otra chica ecepto a ti

2011-03-31T13:00:00.002-04:00

The Luxurious Sly

2011-03-30T09:32:00.003-04:00

Again, I make an effort. Again, I fail to make the connection. Again, I am left confused. This time though, I wandered semi-aimlessly around Soho and then Union Square in search of a paper. I checked windows, subway platforms, newsstands, grocers. I looked for the right person, empty boxes, stacks of paper, any clue to the whereabouts of The Universal Sigh.

It is here.

2011-03-27T02:21:00.001-04:00

The Armpit Collection XXXVI: Heroes & Villains

2011-03-25T08:40:00.004-04:00

Never had a single in the collection... The more I listen to this song, the more I'm fascinated by it. Musically speaking, it's quite simple and yet also contains some passages that are complex. Lyrically, I could say the same. The ideas it invokes become more and more relevant to my own perspective the more time I spend here in NYC, amongst artists, thinking about cultural politics.

The Beach Boys have already been considered a Period Piece. To many, they are seen as just such. Brian Wilson, though, pushed his music beyond simple trappings to the point of self-destruction. This song comes right out of that tumultuous period of both his life and culture at large.

The great thing about Heroes & Villains is it's ability to maintain a dichotomous aura. I found this video the other day and was just blown away by it. I submit it as evidence that the Beach Boys escaped shallow cultural perspectives and eventually sought to express ideas more intellectually than most may give them credit for.

You Walkie, Talkie in Space?

2011-03-23T08:34:00.004-04:00

We met this guy last Friday at an Etsy Event. Apparently he's been in space, which makes me feel mighty nice about having shook his hand.

Deep Sea Divers

2011-03-20T19:23:00.016-04:00

Collapse

I saw this documentary on Netflix (in the Roger Eibert reccomendations section) a few weeks ago around the time I saw The Sunset Limited. Micheal Rupport, who has spent a lifetime confronting political corruption and cover-ups, was asked to sit in a Los Angeles warehouse basement and talk about a covert CIA cocaine operation from the 80's. Instead he takes this opportunity to give his sort of oral manifesto on the trending state of our planet, discussing a broad range of issues from peak oil to understanding soil.

Listening to him talk, while pounding cigs, about the looming collapse of our industrial world is just as scary to watch as Horror genre films. He claims to not have conspiracy theories, which he is accused of, but conspiracy facts. Hearing and watching him talk, you understand that not only does he passionately believe in what he is saying but his knowledge and realization of our impending doom is a curse and burden on him. He revolves his life around the undesireable and complicated issues that we are aware at least in part of, but cast aside because they are difficult and depressing.

The film is enlightening and a heads-up-er as Michael Ruppert is a bright and vastly interesting guy.

New Banner

2011-03-20T18:10:00.003-04:00

J has again provided us with a spiffy, new banner. Past banner below below.

And the Locusts Sang...

2011-03-11T12:14:00.004-05:00

“Bob Dylan at Princeton, November 2000”

By: Paul Muldoon

We cluster at one end, one end of Dillon Gym.

“You know what, honey? We call that a homonym”

We cluster at one end, one end of Dillon Gym.

“If it’s fruit you’re after, you go out on a limb.”

The last time in Princeton, that ornery degree,

Those seventeen-year locusts hanging off the trees.

The last time in Princeton, that ornery degree,

His absolute refusal to bend the knee.

His last time in Princeton, he wouldn’t wear a hood.

Now he’s dressed up as some sort of cowboy dude.

That last time in Princeton, he wouldn’t wear a hood.

“You know what, honey? We call that disquietude.

It’s that self-same impulse that has him rearrange

both ‘The Times They Are A-Changin’’ and ‘Things Have Changed’

so that everything seems to fall within his range

as the locusts lock in on grain silo and grange.”

Here's a Check!

2011-03-06T16:03:00.010-05:00

For discussion: What's wrong with this? It elicits an anger in me that I can't even begin to describe. Am I alone in my absolute disdain for shows like this?

Rich people descend from their mansions on the hill to slum it with poor people. To their utter astonishment, poor people are human beings with feelings, ambitions, hopes, and dreams. More importantly, the poor people are doing something crazy - they attempt to lead fulfilling lives by helping other poor people. Poor people are "real life heroes", are good people! What a surprise. And, just to show their empathy for these "poories," the rich people give them a laughable fraction of their fortune because, as we all know, you can solve the country's complex economic and social problems by giving a few poor people some money - teach a man to fish. Not only that, the better people, the "richies," can write the money off as a charitable donation on their tax return. It's a win, win! Force minorities to feel indebted and forever dependent upon the selective charity of wealthy barons as the only solution to their economic ills, and we get to see poor black people hug rich blond women on national television. Who needs white guilt when you can just write a check?

Hot off the Press!

2011-03-03T19:28:00.005-05:00

"Imagine Johnny Cash's heavy country meshed with rock 'n' roll in the vein of the Velvet Underground (no pun intended). Now take that and add some classic old-timey flare and some femininity, and roll that sound into a score from a Quentin Tarantino film, and you have something along the lines of Lucas & The Lovelys."

That's from The Frederick News Post (The Frederick News-Post is a Frederick, MD based newspaper that has been delivering local news, sports, classifieds, food, obituaries, entertainment, and community events to Frederick, MD for more than 100 years.)

Fun times, Lucas, I'm proud of you, brother. Now when are you going to mail me a copy of the cd, or more importantly, when are you playing New York?!

ZION?

2011-02-28T16:39:00.001-05:00

Hagerstown Happens

2011-02-26T23:31:00.001-05:00

Happened to catch a few Facespacers passing this around... Oh Hagerstown, Sweet Hagerstown, how I miss thee not.

Deep Sea Divers

2011-02-25T02:46:00.013-05:00

The Sunset Limited

I stumbled upon this Cormac McCarthy film adaptation of his own play while flipping through the HBO Movies On Demand feature on my home television set. What initially peaked my interest in the film was the pairing of actors Tommy Lee Jones and Samuel L. Jackson, who play the respective characters White and Black. These are the only two characters in the film outside of a hypothetical voyeuristic neighbor, Cecil, and some references to people involved in each man's life.

For the duration of the movie, we are confined with the two men in Black's apartment after he saves the life of the suicidal White at a subway station. This leads to a lengthy philosophical discussion between Black, a Christian ex-convict, and White, an atheistic professor. The dialogue alone tells the story, powerfully exploiting the interpretations of life and death.

Delicious Kool-Aid

2011-02-23T10:33:00.002-05:00

article

Today's Stories

2011-02-15T22:43:00.009-05:00

I woke particularly early this morning, and decided to read a lil NYT before moving along. Two articles struck me.

Reagan and Reality by Bob Herbert - Gipper's got a new documentary coming out! Looks pretty interesting, I'll probably check it out at some point. I'm glad someone finally made a movie setting Gip's past record straight. It seems like when Bush's dumbass was president the Right deified Reagan for some reason. I'd see folks on Fox News talking about how he was the greatest President in history, and I'd wonder if they were saying it purely to be controversial. Maybe because he wasn't seemingly as bad as Bush was at the time? In 2011 I do often think foldly of GW's memory (my logical side thinks it's just because I was younger during his time in office). It seemed not a day could go by without him screwing something up. Iraq? Tax cuts? Oil? By the end, when you heard that the economy was spiraling into the biggest catastrophe since the Great Depression - it was like, "No duh. Look who's been running the show." But I bet "Reagan" is worth seeing. Good characters back then. Americans. I don't know, I consider myself out-outspokenly liberal, and certainly left-wing, but I have to admit the Right does have some charm... Reagan, Bush, Palin, and don't forget smokin' John Boehner! Yeah, I expect better out of them and their policies have ruined lives, but when not looking at life too seriously, hey, at least they're Americans!

Wall Street's Dead End by Felix Salmon - As someone who works in the industry it does seem like this is the direction American investors and corporations are heading... "as the number of initial public offerings steadily declines, the stock market is becoming little more than a place for speculators and algorithms to compete over who can trade his way to the most money." Thanks partly to Reagan (and don't forget Bush) the rich keep getting richer, and the majority are none the wiser. That's what keeps Americans from rioting in the streets, the obliviousness to the great swindle, the loss in value.

NYT Cover

Maggie's Stage?

2011-02-14T15:14:00.003-05:00

Question to the Queue:

Can you sing "Maggie's Farm" on the Grammy Awards without being completely ironic? In other words, can you say you ain't gonna work on Maggie's Farm no more while singing in Maggie's kitchen.

Pearl Jam - Austin City Limits

2011-02-13T14:00:00.002-05:00

Pearl Jam "Got Some"

You can view the performance in its entirety here.

They're Baaaaaaaack!

2011-02-13T11:30:00.001-05:00

The Strokes "Under the Cover of Darkness"

Tell me...

2011-02-10T22:56:00.001-05:00

Happy Worthdays

2011-02-02T14:46:00.003-05:00

Texans — be it casual, be it actual. Said the groundhog to us (ofA), "Fuck that."

Love Is All There Is

2011-02-01T20:50:00.000-05:00

Blogocaster: The Working, The Working, Just the Working Life

2011-01-26T08:30:00.004-05:00

From Etsy's Blog

Does This Help?

2011-01-19T09:54:00.002-05:00

Because You Asked About the Line Between Prose and Poetry

By: Howard Nemerov

Sparrows were feeding in a freezing drizzle
That while you watched turned into pieces of snow
Riding a gradient invisible
From silver aslant to random, white, and slow.

There came a moment that you couldn’t tell.
And then they clearly flew instead of fell.

SNL Digital Short

2011-01-16T23:30:00.000-05:00

About A Dead Man

2011-01-12T18:53:00.007-05:00

Last Friday, I hosted my 6th show at Harvest Records. It was called About A Dead Man — and it was about that.

Three years ago, I made a choice to dictate myself beneath the reign of one simple rule — bow thy head and draw. Employ only that of the subconscious to mute said action. Exhaust. At the present vantage, I feel genuinely weathered — and since, both nervously serious and seriously nervous. I would prefer to challenge last Friday's Opening with a new title: Closing — A Sloth in Destruction.

At the show, I introduced a series of small books intended to mature more dependently active directions.

Beady Eye 'Bring The Light'

2011-01-09T21:58:00.000-05:00

Blogosophy: The Entitled

2011-01-07T08:53:00.003-05:00

"You're down to the bedrock. A boolean or integer value is the digital equivalent of a grunt. You can't get any more basic than a like, or a thumbs-up, or a favorite. "

This is following in the trail of Net-Neutrality, the Chuck Klosterman article, and the Tumblr outage...

Happy New Year!

2011-01-05T18:42:00.007-05:00

2010 - not a terrible year for ye posting on this blog, relatively speaking of course... I'd like to take a minute to say that I'm very proud of those who recorded and album, threw an art show, improvised comedy, shot videos, etc... I feel lucky to have friends that all have their own thing going on. Thank you also for contributing to the blog. I was going to say, "Without you, this blog would be nothing," and then I got to thinking, well, I guess it's already something. I mean 900 something posts, you know? But I don't consider webpages tangible objects, so maybe it's nothing after all. If all the lights went out, where would the site go? Luckily for us it seems more inevitable that our future masters, The Robots, will use this site against us (depending on who is in power).

Today I was perusing the Boston.com's "The Big Picture" site, particularly the 2010 round-up pics. I was really captivated by several pictures mostly involving big, global news stories from the past year. Some were easy to see and soak in their beauty; others extremely hard to look at. Pictures. Moments in time, you know... This world is pretty nutso, and it doesn't seem to be slowing down. I was definably shocked by the more apocalyptic photos. Natural Disasters came hardcore in 2010 (so did unnatural disasters), and luckily none of us where physically harmed (which is what I was referring to by the "relatively speaking" comment earlier).

I wish everyone a Happy New Year.

THE BIG PICTURE

part 1
part 2
part 3

Blogournalism: Knee-Slapper

2010-12-30T11:45:00.003-05:00

I don't think this is funny and not because I live in Brooklyn. I do appreciate it as a response to JoeScough (the idea of the iPad being the biggest media story of 2010 illustrates the distance some media figures have from important things - though I guess I am glad to hear that media figures' lives are changing).

I have some questions. Is Brian Williams jabbing just the NYT or media in general? Is he poking young culture's interpretation of capitalism? Did he have this written out before-hand? Why is JoeScough laughing so hard? Does Brian Williams think he can write a real piece of journalism about changes in the economy? Does his pronunciation of "borough" and "artisanal" reflect any form of classicism? When was the last time any of these people were not in a controlled climate? Are there hints of jealousy and insecurity in his longing to primitively sit and build a fire? Is it meta for him to sarcastically talk about people ironically wearing glasses? Why Marrakesh?

2010-12-27T20:09:00.001-05:00

Merry Christmas

2010-12-25T14:25:00.003-05:00

As many of you know I'm somewhat a sucker for the 90's. Now that it is almost 2011 it is time to reminisce, so decided to collect images and songs on a new Tumblr blog I started, THE LAST GREAT DECADE. This is your Christmas present, enjoy!

Return of the Lincoln: A Net Neutrality Parable

2010-12-15T19:05:00.004-05:00

This is a PSA promoting net neutrality for the Writer's Guild. My job was to move the action figures ever so slightly while my buddy, Axel, would snap a pictures to later pull together creating "animation." Novel! I think it turned out pretty damn well. To see more of Axel's production work check out www.ag-bk.com.

Thank You Milton

2010-12-14T08:15:00.004-05:00

A couple of months ago, I was talking with a colleague and friend of mine about the complexities of combining work and play; takin' your job home, bringin' your passions to work, etc. We began to talk about the Etsy Blog and she was telling me about a series called Saved from the Fire. She was personally unsure about what she would keep and we began to talk inversely about getting rid of things.

I've collected and gotten rid of many things since graduating high school. The majority of them have been clothes, media and various family heirlooms. She led on that she was thinking of starting her own series called Into the Great Beyond and asked if I'd like to participate.

After some thinking, I came to this.

Rich People Still Got It!

2010-12-13T23:34:00.002-05:00

No Smoking

2010-12-12T13:45:00.000-05:00

source

I tweeted and now my Tumbie huwts

2010-12-08T23:01:00.007-05:00

READ ME

If you hadn't noticed, Tumblr has had some site outages. So I couldn't look at a blog for a day or two. I was pretty devastated. No nudie pics. No ironic messages. No waxing anything.

This is just why I posted the Chuck Klosterman article. I think there's something to be said for the type of expectations present in Ehrenberg's argument. Ok, so I understand that he's a VC that taps the blogging world as his podium. Good for him. However, this logic of "public" humiliation seems trivial, no? I'm referring to:

"I tell my Twitter followers and Facebook friends about the new post, and watch (and participate) in the conversation over the ensuing hours. Unfortunately, when people can’t read the post, it is hard to have a timely conversation about the post."

I think truly this type of situation exploits our perception of time & the expectations we're building regarding our individual voice. The immediacy of conversation and subsequent desire to garner a reaction is a very interesting possibility in today's world (with the technology we all have available to us). To me though, these types of posts are one in the same with any other posts, albethem(?) disguised as thoughtful perception pieces as opposed to bits of whining. There's a hidden devaluation in general. It's not really about an individual post, but rather an individual blog, wall, page, etc and it's ability to maintain a popular conversation. The frustration to remain timely on a micro level is a symptom of the macro environment of blogging.

"the President of the Company, in my Twitter stream, informed me that my musings about switching platforms in the wake of the outage was “reactionary.” Reactionary? Really? Is it reactionary if you are in an information vacuum for an entire day? Is it reactionary if your social contract is broken? I don’t think so."

It's interesting that Ehrenberg goes against the very nature of the thing that so inspires him to conceptualize text.

"I appreciated that my friend @bijan informed me that he, as a Board member, was involved and engaged in, problem resolution."

And here we truly see the separation between "church" and "state."

I Wanna Be Your Dog

2010-12-07T10:09:00.001-05:00

I Wanna Be Your Dog from LEGS MEDIA on Vimeo.

Blogspective: Chuck On the Snowballing Weight of Technology

2010-12-04T15:42:00.003-05:00

Great article from Chuck Klosterman in the NYT. Though I've never felt like I see eye to eye with Chuck (he's a bit older), I do deeply appreciate this perspective and metaphor.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/05/arts/television/05zombies.html

I was really intrigued by this phrase:

“It’s hard not to think ‘death drive’ every time I go on the Internet. Opening Safari is an actively destructive decision. I am asking that consciousness be taken away from me.” - Alice Gregory

It also kind of puts this soundtrack in my head:

Lucas and The Lovelys

2010-11-29T23:46:00.001-05:00

Blogousand: Podium

2010-11-27T20:23:00.003-05:00

Thousand times we've dragged ourselves to this here ... podium. This is a reject design from a project I was working on recently... The images are tile flooring taken at various NYC location via my cell phone camera. The podium is a sketch.

Sucking in the Seventies

2010-11-20T21:59:00.003-05:00

Radio Man

2010-11-19T00:07:00.006-05:00

This is a short film directed by my friend Tim who was a finalist in Frederick, Maryland's 2010 72 Film Fest. It won awards for best audience response, best costume, and best music. He included music from our upcoming Lucas & the Lovelys album.