Month: August 2020 (Page 5 of 13)

 

 

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p.s. Hey. ** Shane Christmass, Fingers strangled/crossed re: your up and about-ness. Ha ha, yeah, that piece I wrote on Ryu Murakami was really mean. He just seemed like a bourgeois fraud, and I felt very punky about it. Boy, was he pissed. I listened to the Wake Island Podcast with Thomas yesterday. Nice. That’s a good podcast. That guy is cool. All the old AR-G posts have been restored, but I’ll try to make a new one even if just another book spotlight. Always very happy to prop him. Never saw ‘My Friend Dahmer’. Just assumed it would be crap, but, okay, I’ll look for it. Thanks, man. ** Misanthrope, Well, of course difficult doesn’t automatically mean doom and gloom. I read a novel the other day that was just 180 pages describing a guy using a screwdriver. And I loved it. Ah, sorry, too bad about your party. I don’t know, I feel sympathy with people who being extremely careful these days. Pretty much all my close friends in LA are living on eggshells. I should say sympathetic if they’re in the US apocalypse. But it still sucks about the party, which sounds like it would have been pretty safe. ** David Ehrenstein, Brad wrote ‘The Silver Age of Death’, it just never got published. Not sure how he feels about it now. He seems to have given up writing fiction. Everyone, Mr. David Ehrenstein’s long running and ever more legendary house/yard sale is still in effect, and he says, ‘PLEASE contact me about the DVDs, CDs and Books I have for sale ASAP, people.’ And I say that you are guaranteed to pick up some very cool things for a song from him if you want cool things and also want to help out a great guy. ** Tosh Berman, Hi, Tosh. I saw Sabrina, who just moved to Paris, yesterday, and she was telling me about the crazy Tea with Tosh MILA-related project with you interviewing people in a scary costume in some kind of fog enshrouded environs, and I will say I got a bit drooly. I didn’t remember that she was involved in the Mick Ronson LPs until I rediscovered that post. Yeah, wild. ** G, Hi! I’m very happy you’re enjoying her work. And it goes without saying that if you’re enjoying GbV my heart flies to the moon and beyond. Your day does sound very nice. The heat wasn’t as bad here as predicted, and I hung out with my friend Sabrina, who just moved here from LA, and we rode the crappy (but fun) dark ride at the fun fair and blabbed over coffees at a cafe for hours. Lowkey but very nice. So you and I both scored on the yesterday front. Do have any big plans or hopes for the weekend? Are you writing? Is it going well? ** _Black_Acrylic, Hey, Ben. I know, I miss the Glove. He popped in here a couple of years ago and said hi, but then he vanished again. I very much like the sound your story, and one would think your group will be suitably blown away. ** Steve Erickson, Well, that’s good news. Knock on wood and all of that. Good move: setting up a bandcamp. Everyone, Mr. Erickson has set up a bandcamp page for his ongoing music composing, and you can find it at callinamagician.bandcamp.com. Best of all luck on the eyes front. Hopefully it’s, as he said, a normal glitchy part of the healing phase. I read your Other Music piece/interview yesterday. Very nice, congrats, kudos. Everyone, Also Steve interviewed Puloma Basu and Rob Hatch-Miller, directors of the new and hotly anticipated documentary film about NYC’s tragically defunct Other Music, and you can read that on the newly revived Trouser Press site here. I’ve already read it, and it’s super interesting. ** Bill, Hi. I know, I miss the Glove and wonder that myself. Is he totally elsewhere or is he still checking this place out silently or … what? I remember now that you read ‘Zombie 00’. You’re one of the few. That novel just almost totally disappeared as soon as it was published. I’ll get the The God in Hackney thang, thank you. Yes, the wild fires make the news here. Every year like clockwork now. Just what you need. Increasingly scary world. Keep ultra-masked, obviously. ** Okay. On a whim, I decided to indulge a personal fetish I happen to have for fake food in a very straightforward manner, and that’s your day. See you tomorrow.

* (restored)

 

You might ask —
Who is Annette Peacock —
Perhaps I’ve never heard of her —
What is it that she did —
does, —
has yet to do —
Where can she be found?

And I say —
Annette Peacock is over there, ahead, in the distance —
Not quite out of reach —
Not quite waiting —
And also —
That she had me from the first line —
She had me at ‘obsequious holograms’.

 

“Just For The Kick”, with Coldcut (2003)

 

This was the first thing of Annette’s that I heard —
Because Marcello Carlin had reviewed Sound Mirrors —
He had said something like “how the HELL did they get her??” —
He had written something else —
About her 1972 album, I’m The One —
Made it sound like a missing link, a martyred prototype —
Altogether too good for this world —
And it was hard to find —
But I got my hands on it somehow —
And he was right —
But there was more:

 

“My Momma Never Taught Me How To Cook” (1978)

 

I don’t have much to say about Annette Peacock —
Much that’s particularly intelligent, anyhow —
I’ve written a lot about Annette Peacock —
And it’s all been dreadful —
Not just ‘Dreadful’ but dreadful —
Crap, in fact —
All of it! —
Crap!

Pages and pages of crap —
While attempting to navigate Annette Peacock —
Only to find myself writing about myself —
Weight and revenge —
Male sexual frustration —
Status anxiety —
‘Real and defined androgens’ —
Which isn’t the point of it —
Not even the way her music makes me feel —
Like telling someone about a dream you had —
Or a boyfriend —
Even with diagrams —
It isn’t it —
It just ISN’T THE POINT.

I came to realise —
That if you can’t get to this —
If it doesn’t transfix you with horror —
Longing —
Hunger —
Glee —
Sympathetic conjunctivitis —
Animation of the most penetrating kind —
Nothing I can say will be able to help you —
So I will let it speak for itself.

 

“young,” (2006)

 

Treatment for a documentary film —
To be directed by anyone —
Perhaps Werner Herzog —
Annette Peacock leads an expedition —
Carefully selected volunteers —
Fulsome provisions —
No GPS —
A beautiful pea-green boat.

Where are they sailing?
Into the ocean —
No particular ocean —
And when the sun hits the ocean —
Just right —
They disembark —
Onto the shore —
Through the darkened village —
And look up —
Up to Mount Analogue.

 

“Daddy’s Boat” (1971)

 

They —
Paul Bley and Annette Peacock —
Had acquired an early Moog —
Acquired it from Moog himself —
Practically a prototype —
“What the fuck is that thing?” —
Said Gary —
But no switching on Bach for Annette —
She began using it in anger —
To transform instruments —
Cymbals, vibraphone, clarinet.

To transform HER VOICE —
1969 —
You can hear it on “Daddy’s Boat” —
And all over I’m The One —
Busily becoming another kind of instrument —
Electricity in the throat —
In the tongue and the lips —
That beautiful voice —
Crackling with threat —
Itself no more.

 

“I’m The One” (1972)

 

Many of Annette’s records are hard to find —
Or out of print —
Or both.

The albums recorded with Paul Bley are unobtainable —
I’m The One is out of print —
Which makes no sense at all —
There is a nine disc box set of The Eagles —
In addition to the 29 million copies of Their Greatest Hits —
But no I’m The One.

Sanctuary released a compilation in 2004 —
My Momma Never Taught Me How To Cook —
It combines x-dreams and The Perfect Release —
Also out of print —
It was deleted in 2007 —
But by some distance may be the easiest thing to find.

During the 1980s —
Annette set up her own label —
IRONIC RECORDS —
Her publishing company is called VICIOUS MUSIC —
I Have No Feelings and abstract contact are still available —
From CDBaby —
abstract contact contains ‘Happy With My Hand’ —
& you’ll believe her —
Also available from CDBaby is the 2006 album —
31:31 —
You can preview or purchase them here.

There is a 2000 album recorded for ECM —
an acrobat’s heart —
Annette plays piano and sings —
With the Cikada String Quartet —
From Norway.

An album of Annette’s music was also released in 1997 —
Nothing ever was, anyway —
Marilyn Crispell on piano, with Gary Peacock and Paul Motian —
Just one track with vocals —
Super desolate ballads —
Really fucking good.

More knowledgeable and articulate people than I —
There are a few —
Have written about Annette.

I would encourage you to read their pieces —
Destination OUT wrote about Revenge —
Marcello Carlin wrote about Coldcut and wrote about I’m The One —
And you can read some of Annette’s interviews here —
Fascinating interviews.

 

Annette Peacock’s official website
Annette Peacock’s CDBaby page.
Annette Peacock’s page at Discogs.com.
Annette Peacock’s Wikipedia page

 

My picks:

 

 

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p.s. Hey. My apologies for the interruption yesterday. After spending a ton of time with a tech guy from my hosting site, I’m assured that everything should work well around here now. Maybe some of the blog’s ongoing bugs coincidentally got fixed in the process. We’ll see. ** Shane Christmass, Hi, Shane. Let me check and see if there are any old AR-G posts that I haven’t already restored. Or I guess I could make a new one, couldn’t I? I’ll try to do something one way or another. Thanks for the suggestion/alert, man. I think all of the old True Detective Magazines I used to buy incessantly and use for research and collaging have crumbled into yellow dust by now. At least the US ones used the cheapest paper ever. Thanks about the podcast, and, obviously, I hope you get re-freed to some pleasurable degree ASAP. ** Milk, Hi, Milk. Yes, O’Hara’s poems are killer. Happy to have occasioned your brain’s and his work’s hopefully passionate affair. ** G, Aw, thanks, pal. Yeah, I should query some presses about a ‘Weaklings XL’ reprint. I’m not sure what the rights situation is. Things are fairly blissful. My visiting friend and I are going to the big annual fun fair in the Tuileries today, so that should work, even though we’re supposedly getting a quick 24-hour return of the heatwave today. And you? Fun galore, I hope? ** Misanthrope, Well, like I said, his fiction books are all out of print, although it’s possible you could snag one or more for a bargain somewhere. His bios are very good. Those are still out there. Gotcha on the difficult/easy front. For better or worse, I seem to be ever more drawn to art that doesn’t fit my preexisting way of seeing things for some reason. I’m still chasing the stars. But, yes, variety is, ugh, the spice of life, albeit what a boring if well-meaning and not entirely incorrect homily. ** David Ehrenstein, Brad’s great, writer-wise and personally. You probably know that ‘The Golden Age of Promiscuity’ was intended to be the first of a two novel ‘cycle’ followed by a novel titled ‘The Silver Age of Death’, but ‘TGAoP’ didn’t sell well, and the second book got cancelled. ** _Black_Acrylic, That is big. Some kind of congrats are in order, it would seem, especially since moves are never permanent unless you want them to be. So you’re a … Leedsian? I suppose that’s not a term. That is one beautiful empty room right there. ** DC, Thanks for letting the people know, bud. ** Right. Here’s a very old, formerly deceased post made the legendary and too long MIA d.l. The Dreadful Flying Glove about the estimable music artist and composer Annette Peacock. Know her work? Well, if not, now you can. See you tomorrow.