Author: DC (Page 1110 of 1133)

‘As much a collective of musicians as a band, Sebadoh was the quintessential lo-fi band of the ’90s. Sebadoh’s music was a virtual catalog of ’80s alternative rock and ’90s indie rock, featuring everything from jangle pop to noise rock experimentalism. The band began as a home-recording project that Lou Barlow and drummer/ songwriter Eric Gaffney began in 1987. Sebadoh soon developed into a backing band for both Barlow and Eric Gaffney, as each submitted home-recorded tapes for release and toured behind the albums. Eventually adding bassist/ songwriter Jason Loewenstein, the trio became an indie rock sensation, as well-known for the size and inconsistency of its output as the music itself. Often, Sebadoh sounded schizophrenic, flipping between Barlow’s sensitive folk-rock and Gaffney’s noise experiments without warning. This very diversity became the band’s calling card, and by 1992 the band had earned a devoted following.

‘In 1987, Barlow released Weed Forestin’, a cassette of acoustic songs he had recorded at home on a four-track recorder, under the name Sentridoh. The cassette was sold at local Massachusetts record stores. Eric Gaffney contributed percussion to Weed Forestin’, and when Barlow had a break from Dinosaur in 1988, the duo recorded The Freed Man, which consisted of songs by both songwriters. Also released as a homemade cassette, The Freed Man worked its way to Gerard Cosloy, the head of Homestead Records. Cosloy offered to release the cassette on his record label, and the tape was revised and expanded into a full-length album. Homestead released The Freed Man in 1989, and shortly after its appearance Mascis kicked Barlow out of Dinosaur, and Lou turned his attentions toward Sebadoh. A revised and expanded Weed Forestin’ was released in early 1990; the two records were combined on the CD The Freed Weed later that year.

‘By the end of 1989, Sebadoh added a full-time drummer, Jason Loewenstein, on the suggestion of Gaffney. Sebadoh began playing concerts regularly, concentrating on Gaffney’s material and throwing in a few Barlow songs for good measure. Where their albums were acoustic-oriented, their concerts were noisy ventures into post-hardcore and Sonic Youth territory. Over the course of 1990, the group was active only sporadically, deciding whether they wanted to pursue a full-fledged career; a few 7″ singles of primarily acoustic material appeared that year. As of early 1991, the band began recording electric material, as evidenced by the EP Gimme Indie Rock! Released early in 1991, Sebadoh III was divided between Gaffney’s electric songs and acoustic material by Barlow and Loewenstein. The band was prepared to embark on its first major tour when Gaffney abruptly left the band before its start. Barlow and Loewenstein carried on, initially performing shows as a duo, but soon hiring Bob Fay as a drummer. Upon the completion of the tour, Gaffney returned to the band, but during his absence, the direction of Sebadoh’s music had shifted away from his songs and toward Barlow’s.

‘Following a full-length national tour in the fall of 1991, Sebadoh recorded five of Barlow’s songs as a demo tape that served as its gateway to contracts with Sub Pop in the U.S. and City Slang/20/20 in the U.K. Gaffney left the band at the end of the year, and the group again hired Fay as a replacement. With Fay, Sebadoh toured America and Europe in early 1992, recording the British EPs Rocking the Forest and Sebadoh vs. Helmet, which were combined later that year on the Sub Pop album Smash Your Head on the Punk Rock. Gaffney again returned to the band after Sebadoh released these recordings, with Fay again leaving the band. Barlow and Loewenstein had begun to tire of Gaffney’s constant sabbaticals, and Lou returned to his Sentridoh project, releasing a series of EPs, 7″ singles, and cassettes over the course of 1993 and 1994. Sebadoh released its fifth album, Bubble and Scrape, in the spring of 1993 and spent the remainder of the year touring behind the record, building their cult across America and Britain. Gaffney left for a final time in the fall of 1993 and Fay became his permanent replacement.

‘Before recording the sixth Sebadoh album, Barlow began a new band with John Davis called the Folk Implosion; the duo released three recordings over the course of 1994. Sebadoh returned with Bakesale, their first album without Eric Gaffney, in the summer of 1994. Boasting a somewhat more accessible sound, Bakesale became the group’s most successful album to date, generating the near-modern rock hit “Rebound.” The band took a break in 1995 and the Folk Implosion recorded the soundtrack to the controversial independent film Kids. Surprisingly, Kids spawned a genuine hit single with the haunting, hip-hop-tinged “Natural One,” which climbed all the way into the Top 30 of the U.S. pop charts. In light of the success of “Natural One,” Sebadoh’s next record, Harmacy, was expected to be a hit upon its fall 1996 release. Though it didn’t match commercial expectations raised by “Natural One,” Harmacy expanded the success of Bakesale, becoming the first Sebadoh album to chart in the U.S..’ — collaged

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True Hardcore (1989)
‘Feeling alienated by his bandmates in Dinosaur Jr, Lou Barlow began using spare moments to delve deeper into his long-term hobby of home recording, finding life in a 4-track tape recorder his parents had supplied him with as a youth. He soon located a kindred spirit in hardcore fanzine scribe Eric Gaffney and the two set about experimenting with found sounds and recording short, hooky songs, inspired by their newfound penchant for dope smoking. … ‘ — Drowned in Sound

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Ocean (1989, live in 1996)
‘… In the summer of ‘88, the pair compiled a tape’s worth of songs which they distributed to local record stores and sold for $1. The title The Freed Man was, in part, a reference to Barlow’s increasingly fractious relationship with Dinosaur Jr mainman J Mascis, but also painted a succinct picture of a record that allowed every stoned idea and jokey aside to flow free. A beacon of non-conformity in the slick, sheeny hard rock landscape of late ‘80s America, The Freed Man stands up alongside works by Daniel Johnston and Half Japanese as an intimate portrait of the abounding creativity that flourished outside the glare of the spotlight.’ — Drowned in Sound

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Sexual Confusion/Three Times a Day (1990)
‘In 1986, while Lou Barlow was tracking You’re Living All Over Me with Dinosaur Jr., he made a cassette of four-track recordings titled Weed Forestin’ in his parents’ basement. It was Barlow’s first collection of solo home recordings, released under the name Sentridoh in 1987 in an approximate edition of 100. It included versions of future Sebadoh songs like “Brand New Love” and “It’s So Hard to Fall in Love”. Later, in 1990, it was released by Homestead under the name of Barlow’s other band, Sebadoh. Barlow and friend Maxwell Wood are now reissuing Weed Forestin’. They unearthed the original four-track recordings to “restore” the tape’s fidelity.’ — Pitchfork

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Ride the Darker Wave (1990)
‘The press release to Weed Forestin’ boasted that it, unlike their debut, “was actually recorded with the knowledge that it would be released.” Apparently Lou Barlow and Eric Gaffney had a pretty clear crystal ball; the music was taped in 1986 and 1987 but didn’t actually come out on vinyl until 1990. Sebadoh’s first LP, The Freed Man, boasts some of the most deliberately awful fidelity of all time (against some stiff competition); this is somewhat, but only somewhat, more hi-fi. Barlow’s gifts are often in evidence: his appealing voice, sensitive wit, and knack for affected burned-out acid-folk.’ — allmusic

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The Freed Pig (1991)
‘Reviewing an album that functioned as such a personal watershed obviously presents the opportunity for nostalgia-induced hyperbole, but even after taking a step back from III it still deserves every last bit of praise. Sebadoh followed this effort with other fine moments; nowhere else did they so perfectly meld rickety folk, tin-can guitar, Shrimper-style ambiance, feedbacking “power sludge,” eccentric compositional constructions, carcinogenic hooks, and poetic sincerity. Over the years since its release, the “I’m just me! Listen to me! A whole all-American original!” mantra that surfaces amid the trembly acoustic boom of “Downnmind” has become more than just tongue-in-cheek tomfoolery: Even if Lou, Eric, and Jason didn’t know it at the time, those stoner fucks created something essential. I haven’t heard anything like it since.’ — Brandon Stosuy

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Truly Great Thing (1991)
‘Sebadoh III, a pillar of ’90s indie rock, really was an instant classic, worthy of this beefed-up re-release to mark its fifteen-year anniversary. Just like it’s been said that the Ramones simply took Beach Boys prettiness and rapidly sped it up, the members of Sebadoh can bury their tunes in as much bong resin and garage fuzz as humanly possible, but none of that can truly hide the underlying beauty of the music. Sebadoh III was a sprawling, magical mess. Often mentioned in the same breath as Pavement’s Slanted and Enchanted, it’s easy to forget that this was Sebadoh’s third full-length, not its debut, so should more rightly be compared to Wowee Zowee. But even that wide-ranger had only eighteen tracks, compared to III‘s twenty-three.’ — Prefix

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Perverted World (1991)
‘Along with Pavement’s Slanted & Enchanted, Sebadoh III is one of the cornerstones of ’90s indie rock, establishing the dubious lo-fi style as a credible subgenre. Though the recording techniques give the album a distinctive, hazy atmosphere, the music itself is fascinating. Divided between contributions from Lou Barlow, Eric Gaffney, and Jason Loewenstein, Sebadoh III doesn’t necessarily offer a coherent listen. Instead, it’s a variety of unexpected detours, with each track offering something different from what preceded. Barlow immediately distinguishes himself with his folky acoustic musings, which not only have sensitivity to spare, but also strong melodies. Gaffney, on the other hand, consigns himself to the role of hardcore noise rocker, often with varying results. Loewenstein falls between the two extremes, acting as a bridge between the two songwriters. With such a variety of styles and sounds, Sebadoh III is a kaleidoscopic summation of various American underground rock genres of the ’80s, as well as a launching pad for the introspective obsessions of ’90s indie rock.’ — collaged

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God Told Me (1991)
‘Hitting the record bins after The Freed Man and Weed Forestin’, III added bassist/drummer/third vocalist/middle man Jason Loewenstein, solidifying the band’s prime formation. Song-wise, Barlow was still smarting about his unceremonious firing from Dinosaur Jr.– along with his anxious relationship with on-off girlfriend and future wife, Kathleen Billus. Accordingly, his best songs call out Mascis (“The Freed Pig”‘s insistently angular guitar jab) and/or pine for/praise his lady (the gorgeous “Kath”). Gaffney, on the other hand, displays a darker vibe, documenting his fucked-up family life (“As The World Dies, The Eyes of God Grow Bigger”, with his dad fried on liquid LSD, young Eric’s head hitting concrete, grandma getting stoned), “Violet Execution”, and “Scars, Four Eyes” (co-written with Barlow). Even the covers– the Minutemen’s “Sickles and Hammers” and a warped rendition of Johnny Mathis’ “Wonderful, Wonderful”– comfortably snuggle into the grainy, duct-tapped landscape. There are some Loewenstein-penned stinkers (see “Smoke a Bowl”) and average bits (the country jangle of “Black-Haired Girl”), but the lows are so fucked up and indulgent, they become an integral part of its imperfect charm. If you remove one, the structure topples.’ — Brandon Stosuy

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As the World Dies, the Eyes of God Grow Bigger (1991)
‘The culmination—and III’s ultimate and logical conclusion—is the autobiographical anti-tune, “As the World Dies, the Eyes of God Grow Bigger,” a sort of nervous breakdown sneeringly set to tape. This is Gaffney in nuce—exaggerated into pure parody. The lullaby lyrical delivery is alternated with demonic raving; the instrumentation responds in kind until the whole thing disintegrates into pure energy. Ever eager to don the jester hat, Gaffney brings down the big fucking bummer over the heads of every university jock that decided to ingest a bit of windowpane and rock some “lo-fi.” Blood on the walls.’ — Stylus Magazine

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Brand New Love (1992)
‘Sebadoh made its Sub Pop debut with Smash Your Head on the Punk Rock, which collects the highlights of the import compilations Rockin’ the Forest and Sebadoh vs. Helmet. Lou Barlow’s contributions are the gems here, especially the transcendent “Brand New Love,” which first appeared in acoustic form on Weed Forestin’ (and was later punked up by Superchunk); almost as good are “Vampire” and “Good Things,” while an apt and poignant cover of David Crosby’s “Everybody’s Been Burned” underscores the emotional frailty which binds all of Barlow’s work.’ — allmusic

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Vampire (1992)
‘Recorded in a slaughterhouse, Bubble & Scrape took 1991’s III‘s improved focus and spread it over a whole LP. That’s impressive, given that founder/drummer Eric Gaffney was barely present and would soon quit (until 2007’s reunion tour). Good thing bassist Jason Lowenstein shouldered a greater load, writing and singing equal to ex-Dinosaur Jr. staple Lou Barlow, who himself was coming into his own. Gaffney still contributes six atonal-racket, anti-pop Sonic Youth-like numbers (welcome variety), but Lowenstein and Barlow demonstrate an abiding jones for bitingly catchy passages. In particular, for every “Sacred Attention” Barlow offers in the mode of III‘s hot “The Freed Pig,” he now sprinkles lovelorn folk-ditty laments, such as the opening, gripping “Soul and Fire.” Meanwhile Lowenstein’s “Happily Divided” and “Sixteen” proffer loud, hard adrenalin pop.’ — collaged

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Happily Divided (1993)
‘Originally released in 1994, Sebadoh’s Bubble And Scrape caught the fiery experimenters in a somewhat bewildering mood. There are, broadly speaking, two colours to this record: black and red. The black stuff rarely trickles over two minutes per nugget, the red stuff is slightly longer and sweeter. A lot of Bubble And Scrape is stoner’s whimsy (who can forget the guitar harmonies and DIY bong references in ‘Homemade’?), but behind the humour and workhouse-style manner of songwriting and production lies some of Sebadoh’s purest and most humanly conceived songs. There are several corners of squall and screaming that remind us that we’re dealing with the slightly deranged but ultimately, despite its dualities, Bubble And Scrape has always been one of the band’s warmer records.’ — Drowned in Sound

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Homemade (1993)
‘The reason I love this album and consider it superior to anything else Sebadoh ever recorded is actually pretty simple: Bubble and Scrape is a team effort. It’s not just about Lou’s seven contributions or Eric’s six; the four Jason Loewenstein compositions are just as vital to the record’s success. There are no bad tracks, and while most of the record could be classified as lo-fi indie-rock there is far more variety than on the more polished latter day Sebadoh albums. Eight years on from my first Bubble and Scrape experience, I’m still finding new things to enjoy in the record. Over-familiarity has certainly killed a few great tunes (Lou Barlow’s “Soul and Fire” springs to mind) but the better Eric Gaffney offerings still sound mind-blowing on the right stereo at the right volume.’ — No Ripcord

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Flood (1993)
‘Their first entirely studio recorded release, Bubble and Scrape is a genuinely democratic effort. Songwriting duties are shared between the three members, creating a feel akin to wandering the rooms of an abandoned, seedy motel where strip lights flicker and shadows advance and retreat. Barlow offers folkish nuance and fragile invective on tracks like “Think (Let Tomorrow Bee)” – one filter tip away from disintegration. Many have dubbed Bubble and Scrape Sebadoh’s first truly accessible album; a slightly Pyrrhic victory, and one that sounds a touch pejorative to their complexity on this record.’ — BBC

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Rebound (1994)
‘One of the strongest pillars of underground music during the ’90s—and part of the lo-fi holy trinity that also included Pavement and Guided By Voices—Sebadoh put its best foot forward in 1994 with Bakesale, giving frontman Lou Barlow vindication and validation after Dinosaur Jr. booted him five years earlier. With Eric Gaffney no longer part of the songwriting equation—he just plays drums on four tracks here—Barlow and Jason Loewenstein stepped up and delivered a steady stream of classic pensive indie rock and unhinged rockers, and it rightfully catapulted the band into the upper echelon of the genre. (Though it took another year for Barlow to gain mainstream attention, via Folk Implosion’s improbable radio hit “Natural One” from the Kids soundtrack.)’ — The AV Club

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Got It (1994, live in 2011)
‘The early- and mid-90s were great years for albums that brought punk’s two-minute punchiness together with the earnest relationship laments that briefly defined that slippery terrain known as indie rock. And Bakesale is one of the era’s best. If it’s got fewer romance-gone-wrong epics than Superchunk’s Foolish and lacks the emphatic guitar-snarl of Archers of Loaf’s Icky Mettle, it combines bits of both tendencies into 15 songs that rarely outstay their welcome. Unlike Sebadoh’s scattershot early albums, it works as a brief, memorable whole. The band probably wasn’t trying to make a statement– that sort of ran counter to the whole aesthetic back then– but by tightening up and aiming for clarity, they managed one anyway.’ — Pitchfork

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Drama Mine (1994)
‘Much has been written about Lou Barlow’s lo-fi songs of love and heartbreak (he remains something of the eternal teenager), much less so about Loewenstein’s turbulent, sometimes furious moments. Yet Bakesale was not just the moment that he came into bloom as a songwriter – it also perhaps marked his premature creative peak. Songs like “Got It”, “S. Soup” and, especially, “Careful”, are as vital in the Sebadoh catalogue as anything Barlow has written. Whereas Eric Gaffney could be frustratingly obtuse, Loewenstein was aggressive, direct and untamed in his delivery. His songs here have the unmediated raw energy of punk, but with a much rarer melodic skill. His vocals are impressive throughout and “Careful” remains one of the key songs of this era of American indie.’ — Music OMH

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Skull (1994)
‘Even if it flew under the radar a bit, though, you can hardly call Bakesale underrated. It landed on its share of year-end lists (and even fell in Spin’s top 20 albums of the year) and garnered plenty of praise. It’s also an album released on the same day as Barlow’s old band, Dinosaur Jr, put out an album (Without a Sound) that is considered their worst. Meanwhile, many consider Bakesale the height of Sebadoh’s powers, and the line on it has always been it is their most direct and tuneful album. Tuneful as it may be, it is also the most brooding indie rock record of the bunch mentioned here, but it can also hold its own with any of them (and yes, that includes the untouchable Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain). Before 1994, Sebadoh records were unpredictable, often lo-fi, slapdash affairs. Lou Barlow delivered the moody indie-pop, Jason Loewenstein slowly but surely grew into the band’s jagged rocker, and Eric Gaffney was their agent of chaos (check Sebadoh III’s unruly “As the World Dies, the Eyes of God Grow Bigger” for evidence). Without Gaffney–sort of, he plays on four tracks —Bakesale lost its structureless, screeching antics but not its sense of shifting tones and tempos.’ –collaged

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Ocean (1996)
‘Part of Sebadoh’s charm is that their records are always rather inconsistent, flipping wildly between sonic extremes as well as musical genres. In a sense, Harmacy is no different than its predecessors, but there are some crucial differences that makes it their most accessible effort. Previously, that title was held by 1994’s Bakesale, but in between that record and Harmacy, Lou Barlow had a genuine Top 40 hit with the Folk Implosion’s “Natural One.” Although nothing on Harmacy sounds much like the hip-hop hybrid of “Natural One,” its success did have an effect on Barlow, leading him toward more straightforward song structures and cleaner productions — “Willing to Wait” even features strings. Instead of diluting the impact of Sebadoh’s music, the clearer production actually strengthens it.’ — allmusic

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Love to Fight (1996, live in 2012)
‘Lo-fi indie rock is probably the greatest thing since ejaculation, and I’m not taking any chances. I’m loving it full-on. Show no mercy. No holds barred. Full-on, baby. I mean, come on! Home recordings of people mixing the pop sounds of ’60s with the firey glam-rock of the ’70s! What’s not to love? And Sebadoh clearly stand out as indie rock champs along with other home tapers like Guided By Voices and Jack Logan. These are the guys that are going down in history as The Real Shit. Harmacy just further proves Sebadoh are among the rulers of the rock-n-roll wetdream they call “independence.”‘ — Pitchfork

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Zone Doubt (1994)
‘As with its predecessor, Bakesale, the songwriting on Harmacy was handled primarily by Loewenstein and founding member Lou Barlow, with Fay contributing the lone track, “Sforzando!,” and the band covering “I Smell a Rat” by American hard rock band The Bags. Their cover was featured on the soundtrack for the 1998 American comedy-thriller film Homegrown. Like Bakesale, the album found Sebadoh flirting “with (relatively) polished production”, as well as a pervasive use of electric guitars and longer song structures, marking a clear departure from the band’s lo-fi, often acoustic earlier albums like their landmark release, Sebadoh III (1991).’ — collaged

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p.s. Hey. So, I seem to be back. How’s it? The Scandinavia theme park-centric road trip was incredible, and I guess I’ll put together a post about it since there’s way too much to go into in this p.s. intro context, and I have a ton of comments to catch up with now, so I’ll see if I can do that before I head off to Japan, if possible, although my traveler pal Zac did the documenting, and I don’t know if I can coordinate the editing and transfer of imagery with him in the shortish time between trips, and I also have the busyness around the premiere of ‘The Pyre’ on Wednesday to deal with, but I’ll try. For now, here’s Zac’s and my ranking of the theme parks we visited in order: (great:) 1. Bon Bon Land (Denmark), 2. Astrid Lindgren’s World (Sweden), (really good:) 3. Tivoli Gardens (Denmark), 4. Liseberg (Sweden), 5. Kongenpark (Norway), 6. Djurs Sommerland (Denmark), (good:) 7. Gronalund (Sweden), 8. Tusenfyrd (Norway), (okay/weird:) 9. Bakken (Denmark), 10. Farup Sommerland (Denmark), (bad:) 11. Legoland (Denmark), 12. Frieheden (Denmark). Also, it wasn’t technically part of our trip, but rather a kind of bonus track/p.s., but Efteling in Holland is really great and one of the best theme parks we’ve ever seen. Okay, now I’ll catch up. Given that I have a lot of days to do, I’ll keep my talk brief ‘cos I have to get out and about soon, so apologies, and at least we’ll get up to date. ** 5/13 ** David Ehrenstein, Long time so see, sir. Good morning. ** Rewritedept, Hey, man! That amp sounds sweet. Have you got it now? Wait, you said ‘end of the month’, so probably not. Won’t make it to LA for that gig barring the unforeseen, but, hey, enjoy the shit or its opposite out of it. ** Steevee, Hi! Did you sort out the didacticism issue/fear? ** Misanthrope, Hi, George! I think you might be on UK soil by now, no? Are you hooked up? I’ll see you in just a few days, whoa. ** S., Hi there, S! I see I have a lot of Emo stackage to catch up with, which is, if course an awesome thing, and I’ll start with ‘Visual Lies’. Everyone, the first of a least several no doubt superb Emo stacks by the maestro S. that I’ll be alerting you to today is here. ** _Black_Acrylic, Hi, Ben! I’ll be meeting and seeing you super pronto! When do you get here? Let me know. I remember that list of strangest amusement parks that you posted while I was gone, and I’ll be going to one of them (Harmony Land) when hit Tokyo next week. ** 5/14 ** Rigby, Hey, R! Why aren’t you following George over here to Paris? Or maybe you are? Thanks for saying that about the then-contemporaneous posts! ** Bill, Howdy, Bill! Trip was excellence incarnate, and I imagine it was excellent on the day that you asked me if it was excellent. I think you’re already in Korea now? ** S., Wait, this second stack is the same one as the first stack. I’m confused. ** Misanthrope, As your comment appeared on the day of the ‘Sad Story’ post, I’m assuming that you were referring to that related comment on FB. I actually found that comment quite ugly and disturbing at the time, although now it’s just a hazy memory. ** Thomas Moronic, Hi, T! Your book must be out now! I need to get one from Kiddiepunk! I will! Sweet story about Jonathan Brandis. I think I told you back when that I used to see him around occasionally because we had the same favorite DVD rental store, and I think that in-person time contributed to his death being especially sad and shocking to me. Are you good? ** Jeff, Hi, Jeff! I am indeed very glad that my relaunching of your great post brought you back here, and thank you again for making it too. Antoine Volodine: No, I haven’t read him, I don’t think, but his stuff does look very interesting, so I’ll get a book of his and start. Thanks! ** 5/15 ** Tosh, Hi there, Tosh! How’s everything? Thanks re: the month’s escorts. My understanding is that Gondry’s ‘L’écume des jours’ didn’t do very well here, or wasn’t the success, critically or commercially, that it was expected to be, but I don’t know the details, and maybe you do by now. ** Cobaltfram, Hi, John! Hm, I guess it makes sense if the escorts seem like characters from my books since I selected them, but I’ve never thought about it that way before or maybe only fleetingly. Yeah, I read the entirety of ‘GFoL’, which is rather unusual for me. Usually I read novels until I feel like I’ve completely gotten how they’re doing what they do, and then I tend to move on. What did you think of it, ultimately? ** David Ehrenstein, A hearty hello. ** S., Scandinavia was/is awesome, yes. How’s it going? I don’t agree with you about Jonathan Brandis’ external virtues or lack thereof, I don’t think. Wow, again the new stack linkage keeps bringing up the same stack. Are the multiple titles part of its meaning? ** Bill, Hey. No, the Scandinavia trip did neither invite nor require the input from the area’s escorting crew. Glad that that gig went well, network lack of full cooperation not withstanding. ** Rigby, Hah! ** Sypha, You couldn’t have been any quieter than I was, so high five to you, fellow silent one. I’m hoping and even assuming that your mood has improved over the course of the succeeding days. ** Steevee, Hi, Steve! I’ll go check back on Ryan Sharp. Oh, the porn star. Hunh, interesting. ** Rewritedept, Hi, man. No didn’t see that festival line-up. I’ve been indisposed. Nice about the puppy. You still into him/her? The trip was going great when you asked and continued to go that way. ** Un Cœur Blanc, Hi! How really nice to see you! I was vacationing too. And working while I was vacationing too. Are you doing okay and hopefully much better than okay? ** 5/17 ** David Ehrenstein, ‘Oslo, August 31’ was indeed an excellent film, I agree. ** _Black_Acrylic, ‘Car crash’? Oops, interesting. I’ll see the show when I’m at the Pompidou for the final dress rehearsal tomorrow. ** Sypha, Really? That was my first rerun of your handiwork? Strange. I’ll continue to rectify that lack. ** S., Same stack? ** Steevee, No, no Black Metal Oslo tour. We had hoped to go to the Black Metal Museum while we were there, but it no longer exists, sadly. ** 5/18 ** Unknown, Hi, Pascal! How’s life and everything that it has to provide? ** David Ehrenstein, Yes, it was legalized while I was gone, and chaos of a sort from the worst corner of French ‘society’ has seemed to ensue, from what I read. ** Colin, Wow, Colin, hey! How are you? Holy shit, it’s really nice to see you! I’ve missed you! What’s going on? Any chance for a catch up? ** Thomas Moronic, I read your excellent Deerhunter review on the road. Kudos, and I agree! Everyone, if you missed it, here is Thomas Moronic’s great review of the new and great Deerhunter album ‘Monomania’ over on the great Fanzine site. A must read. ** MANCY, Hi, man! The new Greenaway is a good one? Cool. He’s so uneven. It must have been super interesting to see/hear him talk. Very excited to watch your new Vimeo thing, which I’ll do just a bit later. Great! Everyone, the amazing artist MANCY aka Stephen Purtill is ready to fuck you up genius-style anew over on Vimeo, and, more specifically, right here. ** S., Same stack again. Weird, but part of your complicated and dastardly plan, no doubt. ** Nemo, Hi, Joey! Oh, okay, I’ll get in touch with Joel if I can. I think he’s still on his vacation. Hm.  Love, me. ** Grant Scicluna, Hi, Grant! Awesome to see you! Bellamy-wise, I would start with ‘The Letters of Mina Harker’, although she’s always great. Excellent about your having finished the first pass! Are you past the first pass by now? I get weird and distant when I’m heavily into writing too. I think it’s a positive sign. Wow, did I know you’re adapting a Todd Grimson story? Wait, maybe I did. What a fantastic combination: you/Todd. I’ll be in LA for at least a big chunk of October, but when do you think you’ll come to Paris around then? Maybe we can coordinate something. ** David Ehrenstein, Hi, D. ** Kevin Killian, Ah, Kevin! Here! In my humble ‘abode’! Welcome, and thank you, buddy! It is really hard to imagine Twitter central being around the corner from you. And the news of the collateral damage is a sound for sad ears. Great that, apart from the super weirdness at the country’s border, your Toronto trip went so well. Wow, ‘Dear World’, I hadn’t thought of it in ages. What a fine zine that was. And you saw all those incredible fellow superstars! I salute you infinite times over, K! ** Bill, Hi, Bill. Scandinavia was, in fact, very sunny. I have a very impressive tan, I think, if I don’t say so myself. ** Misanthrope, Ealing, wow. Yeah, that’s, uh … you’ll survive. Where are you staying in Paris? ** Brendan, Big B! She is! ** Steevee, Hi, Steve. ** 5/20 ** David Ehrenstein, Thanks for the taste of Godard. Oh, the guy who shot himself in Notre Dame? I had never heard of him, and my French friend Zac had never heard of him either. Oh, surely he wasn’t very respected in France apart from perhaps on the far right of things. Can’t imagine otherwise.  ** Rigby, Hi, Rigby! A library system for the blog? I’m not sure that I completely understand, but that sounds amazing. I mean, yeah, if you want, and if you would enjoy, that seems like it would be incredible. ** S., And yet again! ** Misanthrope, Yeah, Ray Manzarek: RIP. Sorry for your loss, pal. ** Steevee, Hi again, S-ter! ** 5/21 ** David Ehrenstein, He does seem kind of pleasant. ** Sypha, Happy to please! ** Colin, Ha ha, happy to please! Thanks a lot for the link to your Taylor Mead obit. I’ll read that as soon as I’m done. So sad. The great Taylor Mead! I hope his writing is collected and published in a manner that allows it to disperse widely at last because he’s a lovely scribe. ** Steevee, The Notre Dame suicide was weird. You’ve probably read by now that it turns out he was near-death from cancer, and that the anti-gay marriage statement aspect of his suicide now reads as the way he tried to go out with a meaningful bang. ** 5/22 ** Rewritedept, The five days went pretty fast, right? They did on my end anyway. I returned to discover that my TV is broken and in the shop. Have you gotten any forward momentum on that possible novel in the last days? Uh, I think that, re: the Zac Efron ass post, I found the ZE chat/obsession site from which the pieces were taken via … I’m not sure what route anymore. I don’t think I’ve ever watched the Disney Channel even for one second. ** David Ehrenstein, The postman ringing thing: nice. ** _Black_Acrylic, That overcrowding thing seems like something the Pompidou would do, yeah. ** S., Okay, I’m getting it. You deleted all the stacks apart from the most recent one, right? You’re a king of temporality, you are. ** 5/23 ** David Ehrenstein, Hey. Yeah, Zac. I’m pretty sure I mentioned here that he and I were doing the trip together. He’s my best friend. Oh, were you confused by my use of the word ‘companion’? I meant companion in the sense of traveling companion, not in the sense of the coopted meaning re: gay coupledom, if that’s what caused your question mark. ** Paul Curran, Hi, Paul! Oh, we should talk. You leave really soon, no? I’ll hit you up by email, and we’ll figure it out. ** Chris Dankland, Hi, Chris! Yes, you took the words right out of my mouth. ** Bill, Thanks, buddy, re: the thumbnails. They were kind of pretty, right? ** David J. White, Greetings, David! Really great to see you! That’s cool, obviously, about ‘UM’s’ well-being at the Strand. Wish I could have been at your party, natch, and I’ll console myself with the Vimeo version. Thanks! Take care! ** Steevee, Great, I’ll read your ‘BM’ review in a bit. Everyone, here are Steve Erickson aka Steevee’s thoughts on the new Richard Linklater film ‘Before Midnight’, i.e. hit that. ** 5/24 ** S., Hi. ** David Ehrenstein, I missed you too. ** Cobaltfram, I did! Hi! ** Bill, They’re from an episode of the old 60s TV show ‘Flipper’. I am in Paris. Sorry about the lack of details on the trip so far. I’ll get on that. Plus, Zac and I are going to make a collaborative book about the trip, so there’ll be a book for those who want the full scoop. ** _Black_Acrylic, Yeah, I obviously dug that Carney digs GbV. Nice. ** Steevee, Thanks for the Sade essay. It looks really interesting. I’ll read it asap. ** Rewritedept, Those are some cheekbones, you’re right. Everyone, want to see Rewritedept’s slightly younger self’s cheekbones? Uh, I just got home late last night, so it’s hard to tell, but, yeah, I think I’m enjoying being home. That would make sense. ** 5/25 ** Bill, That’s cool. I mean that the post helped tip you in to Evenson’s stuff. So, you are in Korea! How the heck is it? ** Steevee, Somebody answered your question about the R. Zombie tie-in book(s), I think. ** Pilgarlic, Hi, man! Loveliness to see you! The insurgence in Stockholm started about three days after we left. There was no sign that it was coming when we were there, or not that we saw. The drive was intense, and my poor friend Zac had to do all of it due to my expired driver’s license and, more significantly, due to the manual drive rental car, since I can do manual drive cars. But it was great. We took a drive from Oslo to Stavanger, Norway that was the most beautiful, mindblowing drive/landscape I’ve ever seen. Norway is really, really something, geographically. I don’t make outlines for my fiction, but I make these weird graphs that lay out the structure I want to use in advance, so that’s kind of similar. Everyone, here’s a question for you from the great Pilgarlic. Please answer, if you can. Here he is: ‘A young friend of mine who has taken up the mantle of writing posted a blog about “pantsing”, or, the act of writing by the seat of one’s pants, forgoing an outline. She asked if I did the same, and I had to answer that for non-fiction I was a pantser, but, for fiction I wasn’t. On my part, an outline helps me consolidate my ideas, and keeps me from going off on so many tangents. How about you ? How about all you d.l.’s ? ‘ ** Steevee, Mm, I’m not sure, but the French don’t tend to confuse culture with real/life politics as a general rule, so my guess would be the far right won’t try to exploit the Cannes thing, or barely, but we’ll see. ** Jeff, Hi, Jeff. Cool that you looked up Ollier. I’m going to try another repost of that post during my Japan trip, and hopefully it’ll work this time. Like Guyotat? Hm, I don’t know. It never occurred to me before, but I’ll have an actual think-fest about that possible comparison. Interesting. Thanks, Jeff. I hope all is well with you too. ** Paul P., Hi, Paul! I’ll look for the Roth package. Nice. It might have arrived while I was away. I haven’t asked Yury for my accumulated mail yet. Super great if you guys come back to the Recollets this fall. Would be very sweet. ** Chris Dankland, Hi, Chris. I still really want to see ‘LoS’. I don’t think it has arrived here yet. Evenson is very interesting, yeah. Blake is right. No, I was in Scandinavia: Denmark, Sweden, Norway. We didn’t have time to include Finland, sadly. I head off to Japan next week. Mm, I think the best place we went on the trip was the incredible drive from Oslo to Stavanger. Otherwise, like I said up top, Bon Bon Land was the best theme park. Insane! Worth a trip to Denmark in and of itself. ** S., So, I’m going to have a guess and say that the stack I have clicked over to and seen a number of times this morning is in fact the one titled ‘Around’, no? Looks great. I’ll check it for complexity shortly. ** Right. I think we’re up to snuff or whatever now. Someone around here asked for a Sebadoh post a while back, and here it is. It’s been a while since I’ve said ‘See you tomorrow’. But I will!

‘Tom Verlaine was born in Morristown, New Jersey, and began his life as Thomas Miller. He began studying piano at an early age but switched to saxophone in middle school after hearing a record by Stan Getz. Verlaine was initially unimpressed with the role of the guitar in both rock and jazz, and was only inspired to take up the instrument after hearing the Rolling Stones’ “19th Nervous Breakdown” during his adolescence, at which point he began a long period of experimentation to develop a personal style. Verlaine also had an interest in writing and poetry from an early age. As a teen he was friends with future bandmate and punk icon Richard Hell (Richard Meyers) at Sanford School, a boarding school which they both attended. They quickly discovered that they shared a passion for music and poetry.

‘After one failed attempt, Verlaine (with Hell) succeeded in escaping from school and moved to New York City. He then created his stage name, a reference to the French symbolist poet Paul Verlaine. He is quoted as saying this name was inspired by Bob Dylan’s name change and was a way of distancing himself from his past. He and Hell formed The Neon Boys, recruiting drummer Billy Ficca. The Neon Boys quickly disbanded after failing to recruit a second guitarist, despite auditions by Dee Dee Ramone and Chris Stein. They reformed as Television a few months later, finding a guitarist in Richard Lloyd, and began playing at seminal punk clubs like CBGB and Max’s Kansas City. In 1975, Verlaine kicked Hell out of the band for his erratic playing and behavior, and they released their first single with Fred Smith replacing Hell. Verlaine dated poet and musician Patti Smith when they were both up-and-coming artists in the burgeoning New York punk scene. Television released two albums, Marquee Moon and Adventure, to great critical acclaim and modest sales before breaking up in 1978.

‘Verlaine is an advocate of keen and unusual (yet subtle) guitar sounds and recording techniques including close miking, delay, reverb, slap echo, phasing/flanging, tremolo, etc. Television’s first commercially released recording, “Little Johnny Jewel”, saw Verlaine plugging his guitar straight into the recording desk with no amplification. Going against the prevailing tradition of rock guitar for the past 40 years, he rarely uses distortion. Vibrato is a large part of Verlaine’s style and he makes extensive use of the Jazzmaster’s unique vibrato arm. In terms of guitar scales and note selection, Verlaine utilises the mixolydian and minor pentatonic scale like most rock guitarists, but his sequencing, phrasing, tone and approach to legato and other techniques is unconventional.

‘After the breakup of Television, Verlaine released a self-titled solo album that began a fruitful 1980s solo career. He took up residence in England for a brief period in response to the positive reception his work had received there and in Europe at large. In the 1990s he collaborated with different artists, including Patti Smith, and composed a film score for Love and a .45. In the early 90s, Television reformed to record one studio album (Television) and a live recording (Live at the Academy, 1992); they have reunited periodically for touring ever since. Verlaine released his first new album in many years in 2006, titled Songs and Other Things.

‘Verlaine is regarded by many as one of the most talented performers of the early post punk era. His poetic lyrics, coupled with his accomplished and original guitar playing, are highly influential and widely praised in the music media. He and Television bandmate Richard Lloyd are known as one of rock’s most acclaimed and inventive guitar duos. In spite of the adoration he receives from the media, Verlaine rarely reciprocates this attention in the form of interviews.’ — collaged

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Television ‘See No Evil’ (1977)
‘Marquee Moon is the debut studio album by American rock band Television. It was released on February 8, 1977, through Elektra Records. While often considered a seminal work to emerge from the New York punk scene of the mid-to-late 1970s, the album differed from conventional punk in its textured, guitar-based instrumental interplay and extended improvisation. As a result, it is also often cited as important to the development of post-punk in the late 1970s and 1980s. Though it was critically acclaimed at the time of its release, the album failed to garner commercial success. Marquee Moon has since been cited by numerous publications as one of the greatest albums of rock music.’ — collaged

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Television ‘Venus De Milo’ (1977, live in 1990)
‘Marquee Moon was voted as the third best album of 1977 in the Pazz & Jop, an annual poll of critics run by The Village Voice. Christgau, the poll’s supervisor, ranked it number one on his own year-end list. NME named it the fifth best album of the year on their list. Verlaine later said of the overwhelmingly positive response from critics, “There was a certain magic happening, an inexplicable certainty of something, like the momentum of a freight train. That’s not egoism but, if you cast a spell, you don’t get flummoxed by the results of your spell.”‘ — collaged

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Television ‘Foxhole’, live (1978)
‘Those scandalized by Marquee Moon’s wimpoid tendencies are gonna try to read this one out of the movement. I agree that it’s not as urgent, or as satisfying, but that’s only to say that Marquee Moon was a great album while Adventure is a very good one. The difference is more a function of material than of the new album’s relatively clean, calm, reflective mood. The lyrics on Marquee Moon were shot through with visionary surprises that never let up. These are comparatively songlike, their apercus concentrated in hook lines that are surrounded by more quotidian stuff. The first side is funnier, faster, more accessible, but the second side gets there–the guitar on “The Fire” is Verlaine’s most gorgeous ever.’ — Robert Christgau

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Television ‘Glory’ (1978)
‘Television’s groundbreaking first album, Marquee Moon, was as close to a perfect debut as any band made in the 1970s, and in many respects it would have been all but impossible for the band to top it. One senses that Television knew this, because Adventure seems designed to avoid the comparisons by focusing on a different side of the band’s personality. Where Marquee Moon was direct and straightforward in its approach, with the subtleties clearly in the performance and not in the production, Adventure is a decidedly softer and less aggressive disc, and while John Jansen’s production isn’t intrusive, it does round off the edges of the band’s sound in a way Andy Johns’ work on the first album did not. But the two qualities that really made Marquee Moon so special were Tom Verlaine’s songs and the way his guitar work meshed with that of Richard Lloyd, whose style was less showy but whose gifts were just as impressive, and if you have to listen a bit harder to Adventure, it doesn’t take long to realize that both of those virtues are more than apparent here.’ — allmusic

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‘Kingdom Come’ (1979)
‘Not surprisingly, many of the songs on Tom Verlaine’s first solo album suggest the music of Television, his former band, especially in the use of vibrant and full guitar textures and frequent solo break sections in which to feature them. Verlaine’s fey vocals surprisingly do not detract from the gutsiness of these numbers. Several of the songs here utilize hooky initial guitar riffs in the tradition of 1960s bands like the Rolling Stones, the Kinks, and the Beatles, most notably on “Flash Lightning,” “Kingdom Come” — covered by David Bowie the following year on Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) — and especially “Grip of Love. Several tracks, including “The Grip of Love”, “Breakin’ In My Heart”, and “Red Leaves” trace their roots to unreleased Television songs.”‘ — collaged

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‘Mr Blur’ (1981)
‘Tom Verlaine’s second album as a solo artist after disbanding Television is not groundbreaking or innovative as much as it is consistent. What is distinctive about Dreamtime, aside from its thick guitar fortifications, firm stance, and unwillingness to modify a sound he believed in, are the issues surrounding the making of these recordings. The first session was marred by the usage of poor quality reel-to-reel tapes, barely yielding only half an album. Not so much a set of tidy, trimmed concepts when one listens closely, as it is a vision of an artist laying it all out from the bottom of his heart. Many would easily admit Dreamtime is Tom Verlaine’s shining hour.’ — collaged

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‘Clear It Away’ (1982)
‘Tom Verlaine’s second solo album, Dreamtime, was easily the finest music he’d created since Television’s Marquee Moon. It was so perfectly realized that one wondered what he could do to top it, and when 1982’s Words From the Front was released, the obvious answer was that he hadn’t; while it’s hardly a bad album, the songs don’t rank with Verlaine’s best work, and though his guitar work is superb as always, he doesn’t appear to be breaking much new ground, content for the most part to recycle ideas he’d worked through in the past. Of course, given the sterling quality of Verlaine’s work, an album could be quite good and fall below his average, and that’s certainly the case here.’ — collaged

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‘Words from the Front’ (1982)
‘Of course Tom Verlaine really needs no introduction. Words from the Front is a totally forgotten gem coming after two equally excellent solo albums after he left Television. Both the previous albums had stellar production with Verlaine increasingly using overdubs for a “wall of guitars” effect, creating almost orchestral soundscapes rivaling the Durutti Column at times. And of course by the second album (Dreamtime) he was oversaturating the tape, thus developing a fuller, more dynamic sound.’ — Julian Cope

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‘Rotation’, live (1984)
‘Cover is easily Tom Verlaine’s best platter since his first solo release. This album sports unusual, yet wonderfully effective and imaginative arrangements which are sparer, leaner, and more intricate than those on his earlier releases. Production values are top-shelf great. “Travelling” is a funk-flavored selection with dry screeching guitar sounds and some later slippery modulations. “Miss Emily” is a rollicking, jumpy number which (despite its quirky vocal and production touches) in places anticipates later-period songs by the Replacements. Brian Eno-era Talking Heads is evoked on the kaleidoscopically nervous “Dissolve/ Reveal.”‘ — collaged

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‘Five Miles of You’ (1984)
‘Anglophobes and wimpbashers won’t hear it, but Verlaine’s light touch constitutes a renewal and an achievement. Synthesized ostinatos and affected vocals are deplorable in themselves only when they’re ends in themselves. Here they’re put to the service of tuneful whimsy that has brains and heart, a sense of beauty and a sense of humor. Goofy romanticism at its driest and most charming. Supremely self-conscious, utterly unschooled, Verlaine writes like nobody else, sings like nobody else, plays like nobody else. His lyrics sound like his voice sounds like his guitar, laconic and extravagant at the same time. After three years off the boards, he’s deemphasized keyboards in a quest for dynamite riffs, and he’s found enough to thrill any fan.’ — Robert Christigau

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‘Your Finest Hour’ (1987)
‘The Miller’s Tale: A Tom Verlaine Anthology is a 1996 double-CD compilation album by Tom Verlaine. It chronicles his solo career and his career with Television on one CD (including several obscurities) and the other CD is an edited live performance from London in 1982. The first CD covers the period of the three Television albums, Verlaine’s solo work and also contains a selection of previously unreleased songs that were allegedly shelved after being submitted for release in 1986. These tracks were recorded in London, and includes “Your Finest Hour”, “O Foolish Heart”, “Anna”, “Sixteen Tulips”, “Call Me The”, and “Lindi-Lu”.’ — collaged

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‘Bomb’, live (1987)
‘With this release, Tom Verlaine comes full circle to the style of his initial solo album. This great platter has an energized, mostly no-nonsense feel to it that is extremely appealing. Production is meticulous, if not normally showy as on his previous album, Cover. Flash Light is chock-full of rocking numbers of all kinds, ranging from straight-ahead, meat-and-potatoes types (“Cry Mercy, Judge” and “Say a Prayer”), to the quirkier “Bomb” and “Annie’s Tellin’ Me,” to the walloping big beat of “A Town Called Walker”. Released after a three-year silence, Flash Light was well worth waiting for; this splendid album makes an excellent purchase.’ — allmusic

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‘Cry Mercy Judge’ (1987)
‘Tom Verlaine’s impressive 1987 LP Flash Light sees the former Television front man firing on all cylinders as a master guitarist, popsmith and lyricist. Whereas Television’s sound is famous for its symbiotic dual guitar interplay, here Verlaine’s guitarchitecture reaches an unparalleled complexity, weaving layer upon layer of steely metallic guitar upon one another in a complex mesh of sound. On the individual guitar lines, Verlaine scrupulously avoids cliche and comes up with some really original and oblique riffs. Against this backdrop, Verlaine creates some of the best melodies of his career – songs like ‘A Town Called Walker’, ‘Song’, ‘At 4 a.m’ and ‘Annie’s Tellin’ Me’ are bursting with inventive pop hooks. Even Verlaine’s lyrics are top-rate, embodying a much more poetic and metaphysical aspect than the urbane witticism of Verlaine’s usual style. A truly great album – his best solo release.’ — collaged

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‘Ore’ (1992)
‘If you had ever wondered what an album of Verlaine instrumental music would sound like, chances are it wouldn’t have been this. In fact, the best thing about it is that there’s no way you could ever have anticipated it. It’s more a collection of sketches for … well, something or other. Some of them hardly get started and some of them outstay their welcome. Which is not to say that there aren’t some good moments here – there just aren’t any great moments – except maybe in “Ore” when passion creeps in and you could almost be listening to a Beefheart track from around 1970. Or “Lore”, which is nearly seven minutes of frantic, aggressive, almost-desperate playing.’ — The Wonder

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‘Nice Actress’ (2006)
‘Tom Verlaine’s first album in many years, Songs and Other Things, is not Marquee Moon. It’s not supposed to be (that was thirty years ago, remember?). Nor is it even Dreamtime – the best Tom Verlaine album. (Sure, you could argue with this and many would, in favour of the first, self-titled set. But they’d be wrong). It says right here on the insert: “recorded in and around new york city in the new century”. This is a clue. After fourteen years it makes sense that it should look anywhere but back, right? Tom Verlaine has nothing to prove to you, or anyone else. There are enough guitar heroes around who heard it all here first. Two things are immediately apparent about this album – it may be Verlaine’s most playful set of songs (of course Tom has always been playful, it’s just that no-one seemed to notice) and he’s finally found his voice. I mean, literally. He’s finally grown into the voice. Or become comfortable with it. In any case, his voice has taken on a depth, a maturity, and his singing sounds relaxed and, at the same time, more authoritative. Tom sounds as if he has a secret or two to tell you and he’s enjoying the telling.’ — The Wonder

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‘Shingaling’ (2006)
‘These are songs which confide, cajole, persuade, the warmth of the vocals matched by the sensuous nature of the guitar work. You’re teased with sound/sounds. Verlaine plays all the guitars and not for him the one signature tone. Instead there is almost an embarrassment of riches when it comes to guitar noises. The fluid chiming of The Earth Is In The Sky, the churning rhythm guitar of Heavenly Charm, the fabulous, lush guitar strength of Documentary, Shingaling, with its insistent, nagging spiralling guitar lines, the delicate picked figures of Blue Light. Fourteen songs and only five of them over the four-minute mark, and most of them little gems of brevity, style and technique. The album is bookended by two instrumentals – A Parade In Littleton, which sounds exactly like that, and Peace Piece, a solo guitar track that sounds as if it drifted on over from Warm and Cool. The songs themselves on this album don’t particularly sound like Tom Verlaine songs; which means that they come at you from unexpected directions and lead you to unanticipated conclusions. There’s nothing here that would really sound at home on a Verlaine album from the 1980s.’ — The Wonder

*

p.s. Hey. First, I want to alert those of you who are in or around London to the fact that the great art space Five Years is opening a show on this coming Friday called ‘Fragments’ that includes work and collaborations by three of the most brilliant artists who call this blog a home away from home, namely the writer Paul Curran, the visual artist Marc Hulson who’s best known around here by the moniker Tender Prey, and the visual artist and musician Esther Planas. Highly, highly, highly recommended. The opening is on Friday from 6 to 9 pm, and the show will be up until May 26th. Here’s the information on where Five Years is, how to get there, and so on, you lucky Londoner dogs you. ** Misanthrope, Well, again, the extra cents in payment that it would require for you guys to have 2-ply tp leads me to suspect that, public complaints aside, you guys like it that way. Should be lovely here in May. All bets are off in these climate changed days, of course, but I would say you have a very decent shot at visiting Paris during its finest hours. ** S., Stack! Everyone, yes, it’s Emo stacking time again over on S.’s addictive blog, and here’s how you get your latest fix. Like it, dude. Really like the evolving. Really like what’s happening to them. ** Paul Curran, Paul! Shit, we should talk. My fault entirely so far. Can we talk today or tomorrow or over the weekend? ‘Cos then I go away for a while. I’ll email you immediately post-p.s. And, man, I so wish I could see the Five Years show. Somebody had better document that thing very effectively and hopefully asap. So, talk soon, I hope. ** Cobaltfram, Hi, John. Thanks. No, like I said, I’m not inclined towards nostalgia, so it isn’t a problem for me in the novel. It’s more a matter of how to depict my emotions around my life and the things/ people in it most effectively. That part is a new challenge, but nostalgia is not a danger, I’m pretty sure. Oh, I see, about your question. Right now I’m drawing inspiration from someone in my life and from the effect that someone has on me. That’s the focus. ** David Ehrenstein, I don’t mind abs. They’re fine and all, and if they happen to belong to someone I’m interested in, they interest me because they’re part of the person and are obviously important to the person who went out of their way to create them, but I don’t have a fetish for them. Sculpturally, they’re kind of nice, I guess. ** Tosh, Hi, Tosh! Yes, I got your email, thank you so much! I’ll get in touch with him soon. Yes, thank you very much for that! ** Grant maierhofer, Glad you dug the work in Pisycaca’s post, man. Great, thanks re: the poetry chapbook. Would be very sweet to have. ** Pisy caca, I think it went pretty damned well yesterday, don’t you? Thank you a million again! It’s a privilege that you consider it a privilege, my pal. ** Steevee, Yeah, I think I’ve seen a few Bay films, mostly on plane rides. I saw two of the ‘Transformer’ films, and I found them to be guilty pleasures. No interest in seeing ‘Pain and Gain’ at all. And less now than before. Cool, I hope the new Almodovar is one of his really good ones. Why is 1600 words tricky you? Too long, too short, too awkwardly in between? ** Lizz Brady, Howdy, Lizz! ‘Happy as Larry’, gotcha. I’ll go find that today. Thanks! Touring exhibition, nice. Getting that set up, ugh, but it’ll be so worth it, as I don’t need to tell you. You have an artfinder thing, great! Everyone, go here and check out the new Art Finder profile for the awesome artist and d.l. Lizz Brady. There’s some work of hers on show there, which is one very good reason to click that blue ‘here’. See, now, I really like your paintings. The ones on Art Finder will have my examining eyes all to themselves in just a bit. No, I don’t know … I just don’t have an inherent love of paintings. I guess that, whenever I see paintings, I go, ‘Prove it’, and when a painting does, which yours do, it’s a great surprise and pleasure. I’m good. I have this annoying eye infection at the moment that isn’t a big deal, it just hurts a little and looks kind of weird, but I’m being interviewed/ filmed tomorrow for a Discovery Channel documentary program, so it’s a drag that I’m going to look a little weird in the show. A post would be really awesome, of course, thank you, if that pans out and if you enjoy/don’t mind. ** Chris Goode, Hi, Chris! Strange days indeed. No, you hadn’t told me which play you were working with. I think I know of that play. I haven’t read it, I’m pretty sure, but I think I’ve heard if it, due at least in part to its multiple authors, ‘cos that aspect interests me too. Wow, huge cast. How many people have you ended up working with? I know you’ve worked with a large number of people before, but not so very often, right? Really interesting about the effect of the piece/work as it settles. I mean, very interesting. Man, it’s pretty great to get to read you thinking about that here, let me tell you. Nice, so true, I think, about the people on the left, i.e. us. Ha ha, good. I mean, good observation not good for us. Turrell Day is in the planning and initial research stages. It’s looking like a go, although almost for sure post-my upcoming Scandinavian trip and concurrent spate of rerun posts. More love even than yesterday to you, man! ** _Black_Acrylic, Hi, Ben! Thanks for the good words. ** Chilly Jay Chill, Hi, Jeff. Trip preparations are coming along, thanks. That’s very cool and exciting that the challenge of the adaptation is a fun process. I can totally imagine. ‘Angels’, yeah, I read it, a long time ago. I remember liking it a fair amount. Memory says that my second favorite Johnson was/is ‘Resuscitation of a Hanged Man’, but it’s been long enough since I read it that I don’t know if that standing would hold up. ** Will C., Hey, man, too you too! Thanks a whole lot for the email and attachment! It’ll probably take me a bit to read given my trip prep and then trip, but I really look forward to that. Fingers way crossed, man, like … way, way crossed. Europe’s good, I think. Cloudy, a little drizzly, but warmish. How’s Seattle? ** Sypha, Hi, James. Happy memories are cool. I’ve got a ton of them too. They’re better without nostalgia’s interference, for sure. That’s some serious reading you’ve got in store there. Very good serious, mind you. I look forward to hearing your thoughts. ** MANCY, I just read about that in the news this morning. Go, Seattle! I mean go re: its ‘anarchist’ contingent, not its cops. ** Thomas Moronic, Hi, T. Great to see you! ** Rewritedept, Yeah, it did hold up, you bet. Not sure about Skyping. It’s looking less than likely ‘cos of things I need to do pre-trip during the shortish window when your waking hours and mine align, but I’ll know for sure by tomorrow, and fingers crossed. Yeah, well, I don’t want to have a dog for a lot reasons, the emotional attachment and related responsibilities being one of them. I like all pets from afar, and dogs from afar seem the sweetest. ** Okay. I made a gig for you featuring the work and stylings of the great and very underrated, in my opinion, Tom Verlaine. Please attend my/his gig and see what happens. That’s all I ask. See you tomorrow.