« June 2004 | Main | August 2004 »
July 30, 2004
Uh-Oh-A-Go-Go
News for the horror fans and cinephiles in the audience: Herschell Gordon Lewis—best known as the pioneer of gore films—is returning to write and direct his first feature in over 30 years. Titled Grim Fairy Tales: Win, Lose or Die, the film is said to be about a game show where the only prize that really matters is the one you get for a wrong answer.
Further, for you audiophiles, there is the soon-to-be released Edgeplay: A Film About The Runaways. Put together by former Runaway Vicki Blue, the film features never-before-seen footage of the alternately loved and loathed all-girl punk band that included '80s rock icons Joan Jett and Lita Ford. {Via Coolfer}
Posted in A/V Dorkout | 30 July 2004 at 02:34 PM | Comments (0) | | Link
Miracle Drug
Rivers Cuomo is busy doing everything he can to make sure I regret all the time I've spent over the years defending the first two Weezer albums and my teenaged obsession with them.
Check out the Winston-Salem Journal interview with Drive-By Truckers guitarist Mike "Stroker Ace" Cooley. {Via largehearted boy}
According to largehearted boy, the new Ted Leo album has leaked online. LimeWire, here I come!
Miscellany: AC Newman's song "Miracle Drug" is the catchiest song I've heard thus far this year. If you listen, you'll know what I mean.
Gallo + Lennon + The Brown Bunny. Nothing could get me less excited than the idea of those three things, separate or together.
"Director, writer and producer M. Night Shyamalan has, bafflingly, earned a reputation as a maker of supernatural thrillers for thinking folks, although he rarely seems to be thinking himself. (I do wonder why Shyamalan has any reputation left at all, after giving us that cheapy alien in 'Signs' -- a tall guy skulking around Mel Gibson's TV room in stretchy pajamas.)"
I was vaguely curious about the film but this review pretty much confirmed my suspicions.
If you opened a PayPal account between October 1999 and January 2004, you are eligible for a chunk of the 9+ million that PayPal is dishing out to settle a lawsuit out of court.
UK retailers have bannned the videogame Manhunt after a teen's murder. It's the game's fault! Pepole have no accountability for their actions! The kids aren't all right! They don't know what they're doing! They've been brainwashed!
I know—Judas Priest did it!
Are romance novels becoming legit? Or is it just the fact that they make loads and loads of cash that is reducing the amount of scoffing? {Via largehearted boy}
Posted in A/V Dorkout | 30 July 2004 at 09:30 AM | Comments (0) | | Link
July 29, 2004
Catch Up
I am terribly behind in my posts, so I'll make this quick and to the point to fit in all the highlights.
Ian Brown, former lead singer of the Stone Roses, played a show last weekend with the tribute band Fool's Gold—which means that I missed what nearly passes for the Stone Roses playing "She Bangs the Drums." God damn it.
Speaking of bands who are no longer together, it's time to party in the street! Ozma broke up!
The first one hasn't even cooled on the shelves and already Maritime are at work on a new album. Hopefully this one will be filled with pop goodness, as well.
An MP3 from the aforementioned Twilight Singers cover album is available on iTunes.
Tasty new MP3 from the Cinema Eye off their forthcoming LP, Some Nerve.
The years in between haven't helped: check out an MP3 of Trent Reznor covering the Thompson Twins' "Lies" at the tender age of 18.
Even more Zach Braff goodness via NPR. (Skip to about 3:40 for the interesting bits.) {Via Slatch}
Summers of my childhood taking their revenge via Otter PopStars, with illustrations by S.britt. {Via Slatch}
U2 is planning a potentially immediate online release of their new album (which, as you might remember, disappeared a few weeks ago) if it leaks online before the slated fall release.
For the curious, here's the New Yorker's review of the new Drive-By Truckers album, The Dirty South. {Via largehearted boy}
The two guys at the front of the huge iPod Mini opening day line in Tokyo thwarted the photo-hungry media with their reluctance to be photographed. That seems sort of odd in country as media-crazed as Japan, no?
Ever get annoyed by those stupid sites that force you to register in order to see the content? Be annoyed no longer! Bug Me Not is a nifty place that will provide you with usernames and passwords to access registered-users-only services for free.
In personal news, I saw the Old 97s last night. Yikes, was it good! If you ever have the means to see them, I highly recommend it. The bonus of the show was that it was a free in-store at Amoeba, so here's the list of my purchases last night:
Old 97s—Drag It Up
AC Newman—The Slow Wonder
Minus the Bear—They Make Beer Commercials Like This EP
The Weight—Ten Mile Grace
Centro-matic—Flashes and Cables EP
Posted in A/V Dorkout | 29 July 2004 at 03:55 PM | Comments (0) | | Link
July 26, 2004
Dramarama
Apple—most particularly Steve Jobs—is going to be rather pissed. After all the work that the big A put into encoding sound files so they would work only on the iPod, RealNetworks announced today that it has developed software that allows users to download songs from sources other than the iTunes Music Store, and that those songs will still work on the iPod. This could get ugly.
The government is giving some assistance to the world of low-power FM radio.
One of the scientists responsible for the creation of MP3 technology is back, this time with 3-dimensional sound.
Check out some of the coverage of last week's Senate hearings on the Induce Act.
Greg Dulli project The Twilight Singers are planning to release their next album, comprised entirely of covers from sources as diverse as Bjork and Billie Holiday.
Scary shit! Watch the preview for Saw.
Disappointingly, Danny Boyle and Alex Garland couldn't leave well enough alone, and are working on a sequel to 28 Days Later, titled 28 Weeks Later. I can count on one hand the number of sequels I've seen that didn't completely suck, so I don't have my hopes up very high, despite how much I loved the first film.
The return of the ghost story? The director who brought us The Convent is developing The Gravedancers, the film which he hopes will reinvigorate the ghost market in horror films.
Lucky McKee directing the nouveau Straw Dogs? I'll have to see that to believe it.
Posted in A/V Dorkout | 26 July 2004 at 10:33 AM | Comments (0) | | Link
July 23, 2004
Down Together
Rejoice! Despite the fact that I won't be in the UK to see it, The Pogues—yes, with Shane MacGowan—are reuniting to play a series of dates this year.
News on Centro-matic frontman Will Johnson: he has put the final touches on two albums slated for release this year, Vultures Await and Survey/Voyage 2004-2005, a limited edition LP, to be released on Misra Records.
More new releases: the next Pinback album is complete and set for release on or around October 13.
Eye candy: The Unicorns have a new video for "Jellybones," featuring pirates, horse costumes, and skulls. {Via Silent Uproar}
Listen to some rare Iron & Wine material. Whooo! {Via Slatch}
For those who have ever pondered some of the finer points of Donnie Darko, check out the Complete Guide to Donnie Darko, courtesy of Salon.
I feel an interview with Zach Braff coming on.
Lookie! Saul Bass in London and Pablo Ferro's Dynamite Titles. Why doesn't anyone do design work like this anymore? {Via Slatch}
Posted in A/V Dorkout | 23 July 2004 at 05:08 PM | Comments (0) | | Link
July 22, 2004
Parallel Together
Lots of stuff today. Be prepared for an avalanche.
Have a look at Salon's interview/article with comic genius (meaning the books) Alan Moore's take on media in the world-at-large. It's interesting, even if only because he's the guy responsible for From Hell, Watchmen and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. He's also creepy as hell.
Rob Zombie is at work on an animated feature based on his comic, El Superbeasto. Titled The Haunted World of El Superbeasto, the film will follow the title character "a massive over-the-hill masked wrestler who has more interest in strippers than adventure, but still manages to get involved with murdering super-intelligent gorillas, Liverpoolian zombies, and Dr. Satan, a manic depressive mad scientist with a penchant for finding the perfect woman."
Everyone else is posting about it, so I will too. Look at the Wicker Park soundtrack. Ooooh—indie!
The partial lineup for the Americana Music Association Conference, scheduled for this fall, has been announced and includes Delbert McClinton, Dave Alvin, Jay Farrar, BR549, Tift Merritt, Junior Brown and Adrienne Young, among others.
While it's great that Century Media has sold 100,000 units, who the hell keeps buying that Lacuna Coil album? Don't people realize they completely suck?
One of the classics of indie rock, Pavement's Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain will be re-released by Matador this October. The album will be remastered and will also include an extra CD with alternative takes and mixes.
New Q and Not U album this fall.
Who has the best guitar face?
If you're feeling bookish, you could always listen to songs about libraries, librarians and books.
The courts have dismissed SCO Group's ridiculous case against DaimlerChrysler. Score one for the good guys.
God, omnipresent master of the universe, is currently busy borrowing Intel's logo to attract more sinners to church. If I could just bring a laptop to services, I might start attending again. Clack, clack, clack.
Posted in A/V Dorkout | 22 July 2004 at 05:00 PM | Comments (0) | | Link
July 21, 2004
She Bangs the Drums
I'm beginning to think I should have gone for my MA at Duke, as I originally intended. All incoming freshmen this fall will recieve a 20GB iPod from the university to be used for backing up and storing school (and other) files. The students even get to keep the iPods when the term is up, or if they leave the school.
Apple has finally inked a deal with European indies guaranteeing iTunes access to independent music from across the pond.
Part Two of Prefix's interview with Sam Beam of Iron & Wine.
The evil empire is condensing: the EU has approved the merger of Sony/BMG in Europe, turning the Big Five into the Big Four.
Occasionally Pitchfork deigns to cover news people outside of the P-fork Universe are interested in. Today they bring news that Wire, punk outfit extraordinaire, are releasing a DVD of their endlessly bootlegged 1979 concert for German television with remastered sound. It doesn't come out until October, but Pitchfork came through with a supplier that promises the DVD will be in stock "very soon."
I heard about the experiment a few months ago from Jim, but this might be interesting to some of you: a film based on the 1971 Standford prison experiment is in production, documenting the entire process in its frightening glory.
Lawyer and copyright defender Lawrence Lessig is scheduled to be the keynote speaker at this year's Consumer Electronics Association Industry Forum. Hopefully he will be able to talk some sense into paranoid bigwigs who fear that the internet is stealing away the profits from innovation.
Posted in A/V Dorkout | 21 July 2004 at 03:00 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (131) | Link
July 20, 2004
Something(s) Extra
Yours truly didn't mention a few other miscellaneous items of interest I picked up around the web.
If I were getting married, I'd definitely be going on the Rock and Roll Holiday Escape for my honeymoon. If only When In Rome were there to perform "The Promise" ad nauseum, it would be so perfect I'd have to call it Elysium.
You've probably heard about William Shatner's new album, Has Been, that comes out this fall; guest stars include Aimee Mann, Joe Jackson, Brad Paisley, Henry Rollins and Adrian Belew with songs written by Ben Folds and Nick Hornsby. What you haven't heard is William Shatner covering Pulp's "Common People."
Yes. That Pulp. Listen here. {Via slatch.com}
Apparently when you're in Vegas, praising Michael Moore on stage is considered a stage "antic" that is serious enough to cause a chunk of the audience to storm out and get Linda Ronstadt barred from performing at the Aladdin for good.
Posted in A/V Dorkout | 20 July 2004 at 04:40 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (5) | Link
Ribbons & Bows
First, I'd like to announce that it is my birthday. I turn 24 at precisely 12:08 PM.
A girl goes away for a day and the news just explodes all over the place. These are going to be cryptic because I have a lot of ground to cover. Enjoy!
Governator Schwarzenegger has signed SB 1034 into law, forcing accountability standards on the recording industry which allow artists to request audits and other measures that will insure they are being properly compensated.
Sony/BMG is laying off 2,000 people. Hooray for corporate mergers!
Clear Channel has announced that it will begin limiting the number of commercials played on-air to avoid "diluting the product." The changes are expected to ripple through the entire industry by early next year.
Andre 3000 of OutKast has been voted the World's Sexiest Vegetarian. I can totally agree with this one. He's like Prince all over again.
Nike started tapping the faded '80s pop star market for bands to play along marathon routes for the Run Hit Wonder events. (It's punny!) LA punk legends Devo will be performing at the finish line and during a post party for each event.
Megadeath frontman Dave Mustaine is talking shit about Metallica, claiming that the band is stabbing him in the back over his part in the production of the documentary Some Kind of Monster.
Dave, they sued their fans. Like they wouldn't think twice about screwing you, too.
For those (like myself) with a rather morbid sense of curiosity, various artifacts from the apartment of Sid and Nancy will be on display in London, including a poster splattered with blood that could be from Nancy's murder.
Bassist Neil Busch of ...And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead has quit the band for unspecified health reasons.
Oooh! New Ash single out this week.
Post-punk institution Karate will be releasing a new album this year.
Another new album, this one from John Spencer Blues Explosion, due later this year on Sanctuary and featuring special guests: James Chance, Chuck D, DJ Shadow and Dan the Automator.
Check out part one of Prefix's interview with Sam Beam, AKA Iron & Wine.
Probably in anticipation of the upcoming super-new model, Apple is set to announce the newest iPod this week, along with a price cut.
Random: Make your own iPod speakers out of household items. {Via largehearted boy}
Posted in A/V Dorkout | 20 July 2004 at 10:17 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (7) | Link
July 16, 2004
Movin' On Up
A caveat for my readers: I have some good news that potentially doubles as bad news. This has been a busy week for me, resulting in two promotions and a lot less free time. Yours truly is now taking on the duties of co-editor at LAist; outside the blogosphere, I am taking a new position at work. Aside from that, the next two weeks are going to be hectic for personal reasons.
Hooray for moving up in the world, but this means I might get a bit behind in my blogging. Don't be surprised if my posts don't show up until late at night, and please forgive me if things move a bit more slowly than usual. On the off chance that nothing much changes, forget I mentioned this at all.
News on Paul Westerberg's new album, Folker, due out this fall.
While on the topic of beloved songwriters with new albums coming out, Leonard Cohen is putting the final touches on Dear Heather, his newest album. I'm really looking forward to his cover of "Tennessee Waltz," a personal favorite of mine.
Cashing in on the digital music craze sweeping the country in the wake of iTunes' 100 millionth downloaded song, eBay has started a pilot program for digital music sales. It is unclear whether or not the program will continue after the trial period, but I am still unsure exactly how this would work. Are people selling iTunes songs for less than $.99? Are they selling the ability to access privately held songs online? This seems to be a rather clunky third-party provider situation that doesn't give much benefit to the buyer. But then again, you have to work really hard to get a good deal on eBay these days.
In miscellaneous news, the Senate is considering a $12M bill that would enable the government to buy out tobacco farmers, functionally putting the manufacture and sale of cigarettes under the control of the FDA. Apparently the government has decided that they aren't making enough money in taxes, and cigarettes seem to be the likeliest alternative source of revenue—all executed under the guise of our well-being, of course.
Lawsuits hit the gossip rags: Gawker Media, blogging smut-peddler extraordinaire, has been served with papers for linking to a site containing topless videos of a young Cameron Diaz. See where talking shit gets you in the end?
Posted in A/V Dorkout | 16 July 2004 at 05:38 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (24) | Link
July 15, 2004
It Don't Matter Anyway
Sad news first: Arthur "Artie" Kane, bassist of the hugely influential drag-punk band the New York Dolls, passed away Tuesday night from complications due to leukemia at age 55.
More reasons to love Merge Records! Plans are in the works for Merge to re-release the first three Dinosaur Jr albums, Dinosaur, You're Living All Over Me and Bug, in 2005. There are rumors that the reissue will include previously unreleased bonus material; the release also coincides with the 20th anniversary of Dinosaur's release.
The historic 1985 Live Aid benefit concert will be released on DVD this September. Queen goodness, here I come!
In a too-weird-to-pass-up musical episode, Bjork's new album will feature her collaboration with, among others, Mike Patton. I just want to know what that will sound like.
Rock legend Pete Townshend is lashing out at Michael Moore over Moore's alleged behavior during production of Fahrenheit 9/11. Not to say that I'm picking sides—I do like Michael Moore most of the time—but how did Pete miss the fact that Moore is the textbook example of a rabblerouser?
The downside of better and more accessible portable media? It's easy to lose track of, as U2 can tell you. The band has been working on their new album for two years, but a disc containing many of the new songs has gone missing. The hunt is on, as this puts a serious crimp in plans to release the new album, tentatively titled Vertigo, this fall.
It has finally happened. The magic I have been waiting for: Apple is expected to announce the new line of iPods this August. Sure, that's great and all, but the big news is that the new style will be smaller, sleeker and colored—closely resembling the iPod Mini—but with a bigger hard drive. Better yet, this is set to become the iPod standard of the future. They are making my dream iPod! Bliss!
My next party might well be a game release night for Karaoke Revolution 2, which came out this week. Where else will I ever get the chance to torment my friends with my off-key versions of "Rich Girl" by Hall & Oates, "I Believe In a Thing Called Love" by The Darkness, and "Sweet Home Alabama" by Lynrd Skynrd? We need some Mexican Flags and a PS2 up in here!
Note to Dan and Kierin: you may have kicked ass last time with your stunning renditions of "Kiss Me" and "Bizarre Love Triangle" in Volume 1 but I will wreck you with The Darkness. It's ON!
Posted in A/V Dorkout | 15 July 2004 at 03:44 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (559) | Link
July 14, 2004
Three Stars Means Never Having to Say You're Sorry
"Call it a spirited assault on a pantheon that has been foisted upon us, or a defiant rejection of the hegemonic view of rock history espoused by the critics who preceded us." Hailing from the Lester Bangs school of rock journalism, Jim DeRogatis has collected a new book of critical esssays that combat the mythology of everyone's favorite albums.
"It's fun to fight about rock and roll. If we don't care about this stuff enough to fight about it, why the hell have we devoted our lives to it?" That, my friends, may be the most profound thing I've heard a critic say about rock 'n' roll in ten years. {Via donewaiting.com}
After six years of legal battles, the Dead Kennedys are finally done with their suit against Alternative Tentacles and plan to move ahead with (what's left of) their career.
Rhino is at it again with Left of the Dial: Dispatches from the '80s Underground, which might just be the sexiest box set they've released to date.
Boston tradesmen are boycotting the Macworld convention because the company that runs Macworld, IDG, outsources American jobs overseas. Macworld started yesterday and runs until tomorrow, then it will pack up until the January 2005 convention in San Francisco.
In yet more Apple news, AirPort Express began shipping today with a total of 80,000 pre-orders. Someday soon I'll get myself together and buy an AirPort card and AirPort Express so I can set up a really fly home network. But not today.
As for today's quota of cool gadgets, how about edge-to-edge printable CD-and DVD-Rs?
Random cool news: absinthe is now available for purchase in the United States. Derived from wormwood and herbs such as anise and fennel, absinthe was the drink of choice amongst the Impressionists and most of the Parisian expatriates during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The drink was banned because of fears that thujone, a chemical found in wormwood, would harm absinthe drinkers. Thujone is still listed officially as a poison by the FDA, so Americans cannot purchase absinthe except by ordering it from Europe. But here's the rub: the proprietors of the Crazy Fox Saloon found one type of wormwood that does not contain thujone, which they use to produce Absente—absinthe without the poison, and thus without FDA prohibitions. {Via largeheartedboy}
Posted in A/V Dorkout | 14 July 2004 at 03:48 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (36) | Link
July 13, 2004
Odd One Out
Doesn't it just figure that I had to endure Godard's supremely 'eh' In Praise of Love during my ill-fated tenure in grad school, while I've just found out that the aforementioned school is screening the 35mm print of his excellent Weekend next week? At a time I can't possibly make it to? Somewhere in there is a metaphor for my post-grad experience.
Elsewhere in film news, News Corp is making a fuss about Outfoxed, the new documentary focused on Fox's conservative bias. Damn that liberal media! See? Didn't Fox News warn you about this?
Interesting trivia: Robert Greenwald, the producer, was also the director of the Abby Hoffman biopic Steal This Movie.
Sadly, this article from The Onion is so true it can't be considered satire. I actually cried while reading it. What do you do with a BA in English?
Showcasing some possibly drug-induced behavior, Dave Grohl has taken a job behind the kit in Nine Inch Nails for a few songs on NIN's new album, Bleed Through. Um. Okay.
Page Hamilton—you might remember him as the frontman of Helmet—has pulled a Damon Che and reunited his band without the original members. Ironically enough, it is former drummer John Stanier's involvment in Battles—his band with Don Caballero's Ian Williams—that is keeping him from rejoining the second coming of Helmet. Joining Hamilton in the band will be Chris Traynor (ex-Orange 9mm), John Tempesta (ex-White Zombie) and Frank Bello (ex-Anthrax), among others. The band is recording a new album, Size Matters, but I haven't heard the release date as yet.
Albums I want to buy that came out today:
Minus the Bear—They Make Beer Commercials Like This
V/A—Old Enough to Know Better: 15 Years of Merge
Sparta—Porcelain
Posted in A/V Dorkout | 13 July 2004 at 02:31 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (4) | Link
July 12, 2004
Monday, Monday
Some jackass (read: not me) bought the 100 millionth iTunes song over the weekend, winning himself a very sexy Apple prize package. I am chartreuse with envy.
While the industry and the RIAA are running around making all that racket over piracy, Vivendi Universal is readying to sell music that it did not purchase. Yes, that's right kids: when CNET purchased the MP3.com domain name, the deal did not include the 1.5 million song archive provided—for free—by MP3.com users. As a result, the archive is now in private hands and is being used by Vivendi subsidiary TruSonic, a rival for the Muzak market.
And just what do the big wigs at TruSonic intend to do about the very large cache of free songs that they do not own but apparently intend to sell? "Artists who created the 1.5 million song archive have already expressed some disquiet about royalties. TruSonic has a very limited pool for the 250,000 artists, based on the number of plays, but has said it may re-evaluate this." Oooh! Generous!
Usually I'm not much for the cheesy "Rock Against" festival shows but this looks like it might be interesting:
Axis of Justice Concert : July 17 at the Avalon
Jurassic 5, Pete Yorn, Serj Tankian (System of a Down), The Nightwatchman (Tom Morello), Brad Wilk (Audioslave), Knowledge (Ray Witter)
With that sort of weird mix, you're guaranteed a fight!
Posted in A/V Dorkout | 12 July 2004 at 02:52 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (13) | Link
July 09, 2004
An Unholy Mess of a Girl
Because he is so much larger than life, it is easy to forget that David Bowie is neither as young nor as spry as he was prancing about the stage as Ziggy Stardust. Get well soon, and quit with the bacon.
Awww! How to Dress Emo 2.0—for those of you who aren't already sick of the Polaroid Scene set.
Check out the archives for KVRX Austin for some older live performances by the Magnetic Fields, Centro-matic, Broken Social Scene, Idlewild, Imperial Teen and others. {Via slatch.com}
The fourth sign of the apocalypse: Paris Hilton is starting her own record label called—what else?—Heiress. I can't decide if I should cry or laugh.
The trailer for Wong Kar Wai's 2046 is available here. Also available: the trailer for The Motorcycle Diaries. I'm curious about the film; the book, a diary kept by Che Guevara during his travels through South America, documents the development of Che's political ideas. If they do a good job with the film it could be truly great.
Researchers in Chapel Hill, NC have used the Quartz rendering engine of Mac OS X to create a transparent desktop, Facetop, which solves many of the current problems of telecommuting. Previous attempts to network offices and allow co-workers to modify the same documents while communicating via phone or video have been clumsy (and unpredictable) at best. Facetop's technology projects video directly onto the monitor through the transparent desktop so workers can see each other while they work, gesturing and making changes in real time.
General creepiness: schoolchildren in Osaka, Japan, will be tagged with RFID chips so that officials can monitor their movements. That's just a little too Orwellian for me.
In other creeping news, Monsanto is sneaking GMO crops past European objectors using everyone's favorite social lubricant: beer. Genetically modified corn is being used to brew beer in Sweden in the hopes that it will drown European opposition to genetically modified foods.
Posted in A/V Dorkout | 9 July 2004 at 05:05 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (4) | Link
July 08, 2004
The King in Yellow
As a public service to my readers—all four of you—I thought I would share some links that have been holding my interest of late. I'm not really sure how many people are interested in classic weird fiction and gothic tales, but you're getting some anyway. ('F' stands for 'fiction' and 'N' for 'nonfiction.')
AMBROSE BIERCE
Can Such Things Be?, also at Project Gutenberg (F)
The Devil's Dictionary, also at Project Gutenberg (F)
Fantastic Fables (F)
"The Damned Thing" (F)
"An Inhabitant of Carcosa" (F)
"Moxon's Master" (F)
"My Favorite Murder" (F)
"An Occurence at Owl Creek Bridge" (F)
ALGERNON BLACKWOOD
"An Egyptian Hornet" (F)
"A Victim of Higher Space" (F)
"The House of the Past" (F)
"The Willows" (F) HP Lovecraft considered this story to be the pinnacle of weird fiction; I don't happen to agree, but who am I to argue with Howard Phillips?
ROBERT W CHAMBERS
The King in Yellow (F)
"The Purple Emperor" (F; 1897)
"In the Court of the Dragon" (F)
"The Messenger" (F; 1897)
"The Repairer of Reputations" (F; 1895)
"The Yellow Sign" (F)
LORD DUNSANY
The Book of Wonder (F; 1912)
Chess problems by Lord Dunsany (N)
WILLIAM HOPE HODGSON
Carnacki the Ghostfinder (F; 1910)
Captain Gault (F; 1917)
"The Derelict" (F; 1912)
E T A HOFFMAN
"The History of Krakatuk" (F)
"The Sand-man" (F; 1817)
"The Cremona Violin" (F; c. 1817)
"The Deserted House" (F; 1909)
Excerpt from "Nutcracker and the King of Mice" (F)
H P LOVECRAFT
"Supernatural Horror in Literature" (N; 1927)
Collected writings (F)
MARIE BELLOC LOWNDES
"The Lodger" (F; 1912)
ARTHUR MACHEN
The Great God Pan (F; 1914)
"The White People" (F; 1899)
Introduction to "The Bowmen" (N; 1915)
"The Bowmen" (F; 1914)
I highly recommend the Gaslight Archives, Literature of the Fantastic and Project Gutenberg if you're interested in perusing old manuscripts.
Posted in Quoi? | 8 July 2004 at 05:18 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (17) | Link
Vincent Gallo is Scary
The ideologically breastfed are at it again, asking what could be more punk than conservatism? Because you know, punk is all about the rebellion, man. I'm going to start a punk band called Reactionary Tendencies. Screw thinking for yourself!
Speaking of conservativism, who knew that Vincent Gallo is a member of the dark side? And if you didn't get the message through all lame artistic posturing and shots of himself being fellated by Chloe Sevigny, here's proof that he's an ass.
The principal cast has been announced for Spamalot, the upcoming musical based on Monty Python and the Holy Grail. David Hyde Pierce will play Sir Robin, Tim Curry will play King Arthur and Hank Azaria will portray Sir Lancelot. (!!!) The show premieres in Chicago this winter.
Battles, one of my bands du jour, are going on tour again. They are (unfortunately) going to be sharing the stage with The Icarus Line—unquestionably one of the worst bands currently working—but I'm not worried. I've seen Battles at work. They will blow those prissy bitches off the stage.
It appears Vans is trying to capture the stoned hesher market with some new limited edition Old School Slayer Vans. And how much do you want to bet Hilary Duff couldn't spell Motorhead if she was looking at herself in the mirror? {Via stereogum}
Yahoo! News looks at the growing phenomenon of the MP3 blog: "MP3 blogs may help record labels market music that would otherwise never find an audience and provide an alternative to the zero-tolerance model that says any online songs that aren't purchased are stolen goods."
Appropriately enough, the font chosen for the 9/11 memorial cornerstone is Gotham, a striking sans-serif created by one of my favorite typographers: Tobias Frere-Jones of Hoefler & Frere-Jones.
Posted in A/V Dorkout | 8 July 2004 at 01:18 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (33) | Link
July 07, 2004
You Are Not Alone
Though I don't make much of it here, I am a fan of architecture, and of sustainability and city planning initiatives. I grew up in a place I not-so-affectionately refer to as suburban hell, a maze of track homes and cul-de-sacs in salmon and beige stucco that has been so overdeveloped some serious rain would wipe it from the Earth in a flood of cracked drywall. Green building has become more popular in the past few years (though not in the area where I am from), but the technology has not outpaced the increasing demand for square footage.
The American proclivity for living large does more than raise questions about whether a 4,000-square-foot single family home should ever qualify as a "green" residence. It also calls into question one of the fundamental tenets of sustainability -- that market demand for green products and technologies will save us from environmental apocalypse. If we all go solar, if we install rainwater catchment systems and use sustainably harvested lumber, so the logic goes, then there's no need to deprive ourselves of the luxuries that space -- and the furniture and accessories to fill it -- affords. But the issue of consumption, not to mention overconsumption, is curiously absent from the sustainability discourse. And in an era characterized by unprecedented consumer wealth, this could be the movement's fatal flaw.
PS Check out the creepy developments in RFID technology that spell big trouble for the little shopper. On one hand, this is the greatest idea ever: ultra-thin imbedded tags that communicate directly with their surroundings, eliminating shoplifting and even the need for checkers—you can ring up groceries yourself. On the other hand, this also means that manufacturers can track your purchases and preferences closely, targeting marketing strategies at specific shoppers. As though what we need in the world is more marketing.
Posted in Damn Nation! | 7 July 2004 at 04:44 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (2) | Link
Hotel Guest, Part-time Ghost
Special July 4th Fireworks Spectacular! Danny of the North Side Kings knocked Danzig the fuck out! Forgive the gleeful cheer, but if there is anyone besides Ryan Adams who deserves to be laid out by a punch from a big angry guy, it's Danzig and his damn mesh tops. But wait, it gets better—there's video!
Stereo Total had a cool idea: offer rare tracks and PDFs of artwork as free downloads. Novelty! {Via slatch.com}
Have you ever wondered just who is in charge of the CDDB database? You know, the one that iTunes queries every time you put in an audio CD? Gracenote, that's who!
Last year, the company launched its MusicID product, a file-recognition technology that analyzes the audio characteristics of a digital file like an MP3 or Windows Media Audio file. The service uses audio waveform technology to match music without any identifiable tags to Gracenote's database.
New this year, Gracenote's Mobile MusicID can identify snippets of songs through a cell phone. Music fans can dial a number and hold up their mobile phone near a radio, for instance, and Gracenote's service will send a message to the phone, identifying the tune being played.
Posted in A/V Dorkout | 7 July 2004 at 02:46 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (26) | Link
July 06, 2004
Just Watch the Fireworks
Before I forget, the public beta of LAist is on! Though particularly recommend for those of you who actually live in LA, even if you don't live here you should check it out because I am part of the blogging staff.
Happy belated Fourth of July, dear readers. I hope you made much of the drinking and merrymaking all weekend and wound up at work this morning a sore, quivering mass of hungover holiday weekend festivities. It doesn't do much for work, but it sure makes you appreciate a short week.
On that tip, be sure to check out the holiday top ten of quintessential American films from Bitter Cinema.
As noted previously by many persons other than myself, hypocrisy has been especially rampant of late. I do not speak only of politics—though I doubt hypocrisy is more prevalent at any particular time in the political sphere—but more specifically of megacorporations and their ethical acrobatics. You may recall the recent controversy over Michael Moore's documentary Fahrenheit 9/11: Disney (parent company of Miramax) refused to allow Miramax to distribute the film because Disney feared that such controversial content would endanger the relationship Disney has with its family-oriented customer base.
Apparently, Disney has now decided it is not concerned with its G-rated audience.
Hyperion Books, also known as HyperionDisney, has outbid the competition to sign former blogger Jessica Cutler to a book deal for a cool $300K. Ms Cutler scandalized Washington with the blog Washingtonienne which chronicled her sexploits amongst the staffers (and Bush appointees) on Capitol Hill. Cutler lost her job in Senator Mike DeWine's office when it became clear that she was doing a poor job of concealing her identity—and the fact that she was accepting money in exchange for sex.
Nothing says family entertainment like curling up next to the fire with a book that has already been described as "pretty fucking twisted" and reading aloud to your children. I'm so glad Disney is around to provide quality family entertainment. Without them, we'd all be reduced to reading Justine to our children!
On the topic of child-friendly entertainment, I bet you didn't know Tom Waits and Wm S Burroughs wrote a play together. And I bet you didn't know it is called The Black Rider: The Casting of the Magic Bullets. And I bet you didn't know that it will be opening for the first time in the US this summer at San Francisco's Geary Theater.
But I knew all of those things. Whoop!
The Guardian looks at the potential comeback of the rockumentary through the surging popularity of films like Dig! and Metallica: Some Kind of Monster.
Posted in A/V Dorkout | 6 July 2004 at 03:46 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (45) | Link
July 02, 2004
Smoke a Cigarette Alone
Whoa. Marlon Brando is dead. And to think I was making fun of The Island of Dr. Moreau just the other day...
Someone in my office just yelled out "Freebird!" in that really annoying drunken-in-the-back-row voice that has caused so many bands to kick the shit out of some totally sauced asshole after the show. I'm not really sure why anyone would do that at work, though.
I know it's paradoxical that I spend so much time bitching about the amount of press coverage directed at Wilco, but today's news is actually worthwhile. Wilco's A Ghost is Born debuted at number eight on the Billboard chart, up three from Yankee Hotel Foxtrot's entrance at number eleven. While this isn't terribly exciting for those of us who are unimpressed by the new album, it is remarkable because Wilco has allowed fans to download the album, free, for the past three months. Stick that in your pipe and smoke it, RIAA!
In a similar turn of events, the new Interpol album Antics has leaked. I'm not suggesting that you download it, but if you were to use a filesharing service you might find it.
Don't expect much to happen on hyperkinetic this weekend. I'll be out of town until Tuesday, so the site shall remain silent. Happy Fourth of July!
Posted in A/V Dorkout | 2 July 2004 at 04:57 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (40) | Link
July 01, 2004
Spotting John C McGinley
Only nineteen shopping days left until my birthday, and then I'll be one year closer to a quarter century with nary a thing to show for it.
Twenty years after its release, Salon looks at Hüsker Dü's Zen Arcade and why the '80s underground was so important to music, then and now.
Hüsker Dü could make you cry, but just for good measure they would rupture your eardrums in the process. Depressive? Angry? Delirious with angst? Conventional gauges of intensity are, at last, irrelevant. Hüsker Dü were all of those things, but they didn't brood. ...
This is the album Nirvana and Pearl Jam only wish they could have made: intelligent, clamorous, and hashing out more torment and passion in four sides than all the grungers and headbangers since -- all without a hint of heavy-metal pretension. It's amazing to think anyone could concoct a 14-minute bombast of guitar leads and layered feedback -- "Reocurring Dreams," Side 4 -- and have it not come out self-consciously. And when the 40-second whine at the end of "Dreams" is at last pinched off, the album trembling to a close in a congealed, numbing squeal, the silence that follows is palpable, painful and disconcerting. Not until you've stopped to catch your breath is it apparent that your notions of punk are forever changed.
Have you ever wondered why record companies hate faithful consumers?
By their every indication, record executives appear to be unhappy that I am more engaged with popular music. They are busy cooking up half-baked copy protection schemes that will prevent me from ripping my own newly purchased CDs. They are pushing legislation intended to criminalize all kinds of behavior and technology. Rather than make it easier for me to spend money, they would rather I return to the neolithic times when if I heard a song on the radio I liked, I would have to trudge to the record store and spend $18 on bloated filler. Why am I not excited?
Apple will soon be celebrating the sale of iTunes' 100 millionth song by giving away some very generous prizes, beginning tomorrow with the sale of the 95 millionth song. "Apple will begin the countdown to 100 million songs by giving away 50 special 20GB iPods—one to the purchaser of each 100,000th song downloaded between 95 million and 100 million songs. In addition, the person who downloads the 100 millionth song will receive a 17-inch PowerBook, a 40GB iPod, a gift certificate for 10,000 iTunes songs to create the ultimate music library for their iPod and the opportunity to create their own Celebrity Playlist to be published on the iTunes Music Store." Please God, let me be that lucky SOB.
As reported yesterday by Coolfer, Apple's old rival Commodore is jumping into the MP3 player market with the e-Vic, an updated take on the classic Vic-20 game computer. Despite its stylish look, it probably won't be able to compete with what looks to be Apple's fiercest upcoming competition: the new Sony NW-HD1 Walkman. The NW-HD1 will hit the shelves in August—the same time as the e-Vic—weighing 1.8 ounces with a 20-gig HD that holds 13,000 songs and a re-chargeable battery that promises 30 hours of playback. That's smaller, lighter and with more storage capacity than the iPod.
Just in case you wanted it, here's more iPod news: Dell has debuted a trade-in program that offers customers $100 if they trade in their iPod for one of Dell's 15GB Digital Jukebox MP3 players. I know I'm biased and all, but why would you do this? It makes no sense at all.
The Save the iPod campaign that sprung up in response to Orrin Hatch's so-called "Induce" Act is getting some press coverage outlining all the reasons consumer lobbying isn't going to do a damn bit of good. I know no one is listening, but sending a fax makes me feel better.
In spite of—or perhaps because of—the media circus that has surrounded Howard Stern's unjustified exile from the airwaves, "The Howard Stern Show" will be launching on nine Infinity Broadcasting stations on Monday, July 19, recapturing markets that Howard has been cut out of.
I have been harboring a strong suspicion that Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation is a shoddy attempt at making grammar hip and is at least mostly full of shit. Turns out I was right on both counts. Apparently the author hadn't bothered to find out what grammar is before she started the book.
Posted in A/V Dorkout | 1 July 2004 at 04:43 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (318) | Link
