* (restored)
GB Jones helped start the homocore scene in Toronto which later inspired the worldwide queer punk movement of the late 80s and early 90s. She was in the seminal, pioneering queercore band Fifth Column, to which current bands like The Hidden Cameras, Kids On TV, Xiu Xiu, and Lesbians On Ecstasy still pay tribute. She is an internationally shown visual artist. In 1996, the New York gallery Feature Inc. released a book of Jones’ drawings, and other artwork, entitled G.B. Jones, edited by Steve Lafreniere. Although widely available in the U.S. and Europe, copies were seized at the Canadian border and it was officially banned in Canada. A twenty year retrospective of her drawings, The Power and the Glory, was held in Toronto in 2005. With Bruce la Bruce, she founded and co-edited the first and arguably most important queer punk zine, JD’s, in 1985. She has directed a number of underground no-budget Super 8 films. Her best known work is The Yo-Yo Gang, a 30 minute ‘exploitation’ movie about girl gangs that has gained significant cult status even though it, like most of her films, has rarely been screened. She has starred in several underground films including Bruce la Bruce’s first feature No Skin Off My Ass. She lives and works mysteriously in Toronto.
Q&A with GB Jones
The Lollipop Generation (1993 – ?): This legendary, unfinished film, almost fifteen years in the making, about the lives of underaged porn stars is roughly to Queer Cinema what Orson Welles’ ‘The Other Side of the Wind’ is to, well, Cinema. Eternally in progress and always purportedly near completion, its current status is unknown. The artists Scott Treleaven and Paul P, who appear in the film, have confirmed that scenes were being shot by Jones as recently as 2002. A rough, short early draft of the film featuring footage shot in the early 90s has occasionally been screened at film festivals. In addition to Treleaven and P., the cast of ‘TLG’ includes Jena Von Br_cker, Johnny Noxzema, Vaginal Creme Davis, Caroline Azar, Mark Ewert, Karen Chapelle, Rachel Pepper, Diana Donato, Mitchell Watkins, and G.B. Jones.
Trailer: ‘The Lollipop Generation’
The Yo-Yo Gang (30 minutes; 1992): This ‘no budget film’ follows the exploits of two girl gangs, the “Yo-Yo Gang” and the “Skateboard Bitches”, as a gangwar erupts between them. The tag line for the film reads: “Gang girls frequently out-curse, out-fight and out-sex every boys’ gang around”. The theme song, “Yo-Yo” is performed by Fifth Column and the film also features songs by Human Ashtrays and by Anti-Scrunti Faction. The soundtrack, including these bands and songs, was a cassette tape only release on Bitch Nation Tapes. Cast: Jena von Brucker, Anita Smith, Beverly Breckenridge, Suzy Sinatra, Caroline Azar, Leslie Mah, Tracy, Candy, Mark Frietas, and G.B. Jones.
Trailer: ‘The Yo-Yo Gang’
The Troublemakers (45 minutes; 1990): The film is equally fact and fiction, documentary and performance, home movie and narrative – the line is blurred and distinctions meaningless. Shot in the condemned home of director G.B. Jones and lead actors Caroline Azar and Bruce laBruce, the total cost of the film was the price of 7 cartridges, 3 minutes in length, of Super 8 film plus developing and transfer to video with a one-to-one ratio. There are no outtakes. GB Jones: ‘“We were all really poor so I decided to make a film about what our lives were like, to really honestly portray how we were getting by. So, on one level it’s a document of how people living on the margins of society manage to exist. But on another level, I wanted the film to capture the dichotomy between how society views people like us and how we choose to be portrayed on film.’
Trailer: ‘The Troublemakers’
‘G.B. Jones has an uneasy fascination with authority and uses her gender and sexual preference to exploit fantasies of rock & roll, sex, groupies, booze, drugs, money, leather, torn jeans,motorcycles and stardom as an all out assault against values that would strive for assimilation of queer culture into the mainstream. She’s every queer girl and boy’s hero, whether you want her to be or not. Believe it or don’t, she is looking out for every queer’s best interests.
‘Her obsession with power, narrative, and the detailed reworking of Tom of Finland’s stereotypical gay male erotica is apparent in the series of drawings titled “I am a Fascist Pig.” This series recalls scenes from a dyke fantasy movie such as “Faster Pussycat! Kill! Kill!” Here a beautiful blond female motorcycle cop is seduced by two punkrock babes, who tie her up and steal her bike. We are left to imagine that the cop was raped as the final scene leaves her tied to a tree, bare ass facing the audience, while the babes make a fast getaway.
‘The style the drawings take is usually casual, pencil on paper with heavy outlines and carefully rendered tits, asses, quads, biceps, et al.. and whether framed, pinned to the wall or just printed in a zine, they maintain the freshness of pages torn from a teenager’s school notebook.’ — Arnold Kemp, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
“ The ruined and decaying monasteries and remote, secluded spots of Caspar David Freidrich’s ink drawings are translated into this age while attempting to continue his traditions. To behold private places, to see the moment altered irrevocably, ravaged by circumstances and violence beyond our control and, afterwards, the beauty of decay. Whether discovered by chance or created by fate, the unimagined becomes visible. What was unknown becomes accessible, fleetingly merging with the aesthetic of the present till, once more, it becomes forgotten and invisible to the future.” — G.B. Jones, October 2003
2007 – 2012
‘These works portentous and precise drawings from 2007-12 depict the side of a barn, a smoking ashtray, and hard candy; dark iterations of the landscape, still life, and pop art genres, respectively. Jones’ drawings from 2016, rendered in a looser intuitive manner, portray witches, both real and from film. Jones’ subjects span the last century, and it is important to note that her images are always revised images from those found in the media.’ — P.I.
Book
Must be 21 to purchase. G.B. Jones was originally published in New York in 1994 by Feature and Instituting Contemporary Idea. In 1995, copies sent to Canada were confiscated by customs officials. All seized copies were burned.
G.B. Jones, 1994
Second printing, 2022
Edition: 500
Buy it here
Coming Soon
‘Fifth Column is an all-women experimental post punk band from Toronto, which came about during the early 1980s. Originally the group had been known as Second Unit, but they took the name Fifth Column after a military manoeuvre by Francisco Franco during the Spanish Civil War, in which nationalist insurrectionists within besieged Republican Madrid, called ‘the fifth column’, would aid the four columns (north, south, east and west) outside the perimeters.
‘Independent-minded, they released their recordings, including their second full length recording All-Time Queen Of The World, themselves. In 1992 they released a single, “All Women Are Bitches”, on the independent record label K Records. Despite being controversial and receiving little airplay, the recording was voted “Single Of The Week” in the UK music publication Melody Maker. Their last full-length recording, 36-C, was also released by K Records. The band’s latest release was in 2002, on the Kill Rock Stars compilation, Fields And Streams.’ — collaged
‘Like This’
‘All Women Are Bitches’
‘Donna’
Trailer: ‘She Said Boom: The Story of Fifth Column’
Xtra catches up with Kevin Hegge, Director of ‘She Said Boom: The Story of Fifth Column’
Albums
To Sir With Hate (1985, Hide Records)
All-Time Queen Of The World (1990, Hide Records)
36-C (1994, K Records)
Singles
“All Women are Bitches/Donna” 7″ on K Records (1992)
“Don’t” 7″ split single with God Is My Co-Pilot on Outpunk Records (1994)
“I Love You, But” 7″ split single with Trailer Queen on Dark Beloved Cloud Records (1995)
Cassettes
Work (1989) Hide Records & Tapes; soundtrack for the video by Paulette Philips, cassette only release
Links
Fifth Column interviewed at PunkAcademy.com
Fifth Column’s Facebook page
Fifth Column @ Spotify
The most important queer feminist band you haven’t heard of
‘J.D.s is seen by many to be the catalyst that pushed the queercore scene into existence. The editors had initially chosen the appellation “homocore” to describe the movement they began, but later replaced the word ‘homo’ with ‘queer’ to create Queercore, to better reflect the diversity of the scene and to disassociate themselves completely from the oppressive confines of the gay and lesbian communities’ orthodoxy and agenda. G.B. Jones says, “We were just as eager to provoke the gays and lesbians as we were the punks.” According to Bruce LaBruce, J.D.s initially stood for Juvenile Delinquents, but “also encompassed such youth cult icons as James Dean and J.D. Salinger.”
‘The zine featured the photos and the “Tom Girl” drawings of G.B. Jones, stories by Bruce LaBruce, and the “J.D.s Top Ten Homocore Hits”, a list of queer-themed songs such as “Off-Duty Sailor” by The Dicks, “Only Loved At Night” by The Raincoats, “Gimme Gimme Gimme (My Man After Midnight)” by The Leather Nun, “Homophobia” by Victims Family, “I, Bloodbrothers Be” by Shockheaded Peters, “The Anal Staircase” by Coil and many more. Groups like Anti-Scrunti Faction were featured in the fanzine. Contributors included Donny the Punk, comic artist Anonymous Boy, author Dennis Cooper, artist Carrie McNinch, musician Anita Smith, punk drag performer Vaginal Davis and Klaus and Jena von Brücker.’ — collaged
You can download pdfs of two issues of J.D.s for free here from the great Queer Zine Archive Project Site.
Or you can buy a special box set of meticulous recreations of the entire run of the J.D.s zine for the unpunk rock but rather art world price of $80 (Canadian) here.
*
p.s. Hey. If you happen to be reading this in Paris, Zac Farley and I wil host a rare screening of our film PERMANENT GREEN LIGHT on this coming Thursday, the 20th, 5:30 pm @ GBFA Ciné-club/Paris College of Art, 241 Bd Pereirie, 75017. Admission is free, but seating is limited. Trailer. ** jay, Hi. You must be back in Blighty (how did it get that nickname) hopefully having enjoyed what Paris has to offer enough to at least feel the slightest bit less enamoured with your usual surroundings. ‘Skinimarink’ is an excellent Valentine! Anyway, what were your Paris highlights? ** Dominik, Hi!!! Yes, I thought I’d shake things up just a little bit. And, yes, I’ve heard that about love’s mucus membranes. And also that the look of shock and confusion on love’s face while you’re perving out on his body is worth the price of admission, G. ** Sypha, Hey. Happy to put a megaphone to your shout. Everyone, Sypha has news that might be of interest to some or many of you. Here he is: ‘I’d just like to give a shout-out to an upcoming Neo-Decadence roundtable discussion on Zoom that’ll be on Feb. 28, featuring Justin Isis/ Brendan Connell/ Arturo Calderon/ Golnoosh Nour, you can register here. ** Steeqhen, Thanks, my sister has never sounded better strangely enough. Keep in the mind that the ‘popular’ people in high school were at the peak of their lives and now they’re just normies. I like how when one sees that haircut nowadays you can pretty much assume the wearer is either a twink porn star or escort. I trust your brain didn’t implode, but do clarify me about that. ** James, Escorting is like being an Olympic athlete, and it’s important to have something to fall back on when the spotlight dims and/or the penises soften. I should start making a list of the things James disapproves of. Overly yellow clothes, checkmark. When you have your fist in a twink’s butt, you just slide your erection into the immersed fist. It’s not that hard. Muscle pussy, checkmark. And etc. Thank you, sir! My experience isn’t superior whatsoever, there’s just more of it. Quantity over quality. Of course with GbV you get both! Say hi to your grandma for me. Here’s how non-mainstream I am: I don’t even know what a Pikachu looks like. Can you believe it? ** Bill, We’ve submitted the film to a film festival in SF, so maybe we’ll get lucky as filmmakers and you’ll get lucky as a film buff. It’s true, back when I used to get depressed, the only thing that seemed to help was listening to Leonard Cohen’s ‘Songs of Love and Death’ or Nico’s ‘The End’. ** Steve, Those ‘hypno’ romantics seem to be people who know nothing about hypnosis and do actually think that watching videos of spinning spiral graphics overlaid over headshots of guys snorting poppers will reinvent them as braindead sluts. I won’t envy your snowfall. ‘Dutchman’, you mean the Amiri Baraka play? ** PL, Hi. I aplogize for bad news. My friend finally got back to me, and he’s at the Berlin Film Festival and said he would have to get back to me next week, so I hope you had enough on your own to satisfy and even dazzle that powers that be. How did it go? Sorry again. ‘Donating poz cum’ means being HIV-positive and have an orgasm inside someone who has the sexual fetish of wanting to catch the virus. Having been making those posts for years now and spending absurd amounts of time hunting on those sites, my fairly informed opinion is that the vast majority of what they say they do is just them fantasizing aloud together while sitting at their computers or phones. So, no, I don’t feel so concerned. No, I’ve never made contact with any of them or tried. I’m just a voyeuristic thief. ** Tyler Ookami, Well, very repetitive 20 minute long punk instrumentals doesn’t sound inherently bad to me, given what I seem to listen to. Poetry read over it, now that’s getting potentially dodgy, no? So, are you guys in the midst of working on it now? ** Nicholas., Hey there! You made it! Yes, the Cloudflare doorman monster seems to be getting lax at his job finally. Welcome back! And huge congrats on finishing your book! Awesome, what are you going to do with it now? That’s huge, my friend! ** _Black_Acrylic, Haha. I’ll keep my eye out for others, just for you. ** Lucas, The pleasure was all mine. Notley’s great. She lives here in Paris, but she’s kind of recluse, and I never see her. That makes sense about the true crime build. Huh. Interesting. Great about the Ochs post! It’s up to you. I just put the name of the writer of the text at the end of the text, or else the site name if I don’t know who wrote it, but some people put links to the actual text/site, but you don’t need to unless you want to. Awesome. My weekend was good. I just worked on the new script 80% of the time, and it’s getting there, I hope. ** HaRpEr, Hi. I really like your film. It seemed kind of masterful and ramshackle at the same time, which is the best. Really good rhythm, very involving. It was rich and relaxed, but it kind of flew by too. For me the point when you say ‘All is well’ is where the film’s internality really coalesced for me. I guess the tone reached its most complicated but clear manifestation there or something? Anyway, excellent work. I hope you do more with film. Well, I think having suspicions about the escorts is the best or at least most interesting way to read them. Oh good, about ‘Nothing’, yeah. He simplified his thing there, but it held what he’d been doing before as well. I do like ‘Disney’s Dream Debased’ indeed. ‘Off the Wall’ is the only MJ record that interests me. Post-that he’s just representing what’s already known. ** nat, They’re escorts not slaves, but apples and oranges, and they had their share of commentary, so no worries. I did hear that Cameron Picton did that with my text, and that blew my mind, but I haven’t heard it, and now I will in a few minutes, thanks to you. Wild. The world has a paucity of faggy vampires as far as I can tell, so carry on. Hm, I tend to try to stay out of games where I’m made to beat people up and vice versa, so I’m not sure if I’ll dig in. Maybe I can just bob and weave my way around them. But I don’t have a beefy pc. It doesn’t sound like fate. Enjoy it on my behalf whatever that would involve. ** Okay. Today the blog resurfaces a post I made some years ago with the purpose of introducing readers to the great artist, filmmaker, musician and pioneer of Queer Punk, the one, the only GB Jones. See you tomorrow.
Now available in North America 
Hi!!
This post is easily a 10 out of 10. What an incredibly inspiring artist – and era in general! I’d kill for some original issues of J.D.s
Oh yes! I’ve heard that too. Although maybe we should try it as well, just to be sure. Also, it’s important to note that love is young gay of integrity and proven, has a wide range interest for less attractive people because he is a serious victim of that till God intervened, Od.
I love that photo already, very cool. Goals. And I’m already hooked with the word ‘homocore.’ Of the bands mentioned, I only know Xiu Xiu. I am glad to not be an underaged porn star. ‘the freshness of pages torn from a teenager’s school notebook’ – nice phrase, Kemp. There is something quite funny about those drawings. Funky, spooky little comics. Then again, Kids on TV sound like a familiar name. I am all for anything that involves Salinger. I looove Salinger’s writing. There is something so undeniably appealing about naked guys in black and white, in print. The Queer Zine Archive Project Site is a goldmine to later explore. G(reat) B(log) post for Jones :] who is of course new to me.
Afternoon, D-Dawg. I’m running off a… limited amount of sleep having had an odd but enjoyable night involving interaction with a new(ish) guy who made the unfortunate choice to talk with me after midnight. For the first time in my life I fell asleep whilst texting another boy. And then after coming to again we kept each other up for a while. He said some very entertaining things to me. I woke up at 5am today. As opposed to going to bed at 5am. An improvement? It’s forever entertaining seeing what teen guys can be like. I danced a bit to some Marvin Gaye and Bill Withers before showering. I’m drinking a lot of tea to stay awake.
Of being an escort or an Olympian, I fear the former would be more achievable for me. Either way, both involve laudable physical exertions. Depending on one’s client, supposedly, for the escorts. I wonder which, between dimming lights and softening penises, is the sadder.
Yeesh, the list of things I disapprove of would of course be a long one. There is oh so much I dislike. Yellow just isn’t a colour I like very much. Excluding in the case of my Pikachu hat and my coat’s a bit yellow-y, too.
Inspiring and impressive stuff. I shall keep such methods of twink immersion (submersion?) in mind, in case the topic ever crops up in conversation. I suppose these things come with time. Latent pun subconsciously intentional.
I’m just not a fan of the word ‘pussy’ or the things it can denote. I don’t even like it when referring to cats. ‘kitty’ is preferable.
More experience is usually handier than having less. But there are things I want minimal experience of. Like eating sprouts. Ew.
I am proud to inform you that I have listened to each of Guided by Voices’ 41 studio LPs, and each of their 25 EPs which I could track down. I have listened to 747 GbV songs in the past week, probably a few more. Much quantity. Much quality. The opening lines of Teenage FBI won’t get out of my head. They have *such* an ear for melodies. That IIIII don’t wanna doooooo –
I’ve been thinking about telling my grandmother ‘Dennis says hi’ but I’ve no idea how to go about such a thing. And doing so mightn’t help things considering last night she was talking about her expecting me to have children someday, ugh. I do not know why or how my older family members are so insistently, blindly heteronormative in their assumptions. To sound all identity politics-y, and like a grumpy gay teenager.
I can’t lie, I am surprised you do not know what a Pikachu looks like. It’s a Pokémon. Cute small yellow mouse, thunderbolt-shaped tail, red cheeks. Rather the most famous Pokémon ever, probably.
I hope Parisians/people in Paris can swing by and enjoy PGL. I think I ought to make more headway with Marquez. It will be a good day, grrr. I’m feeling very relaxed. Till Tchussday! Happy half term to me :]
Dennniss: I see Endora in GB Jones trailer for The Witches. Good luck w this week’s screening! I have a bunch of shit to report later. Basically, everything is increasingly horrible in the exact proportions that it is also amazing….. xo Jack
GB Jones is great! So much of note came out of that Queer Punk/Riot Grrrl thing. There was a time when the schoolboy me would pore over the latest NME or Melody Maker for all the latest on these 90s scenes, but then Britpop came along and ruined everything in my opinion. Should have known, zines and DIY culture were always where it was at.
Hey, Dennis. It’s okay, when he reaches out to you, give me the answer anyway. Now I’m just curious. The presentation was good enough. I don’t really like group work and definitely would change some parts but the teacher liked it. She thought the references and the parallels I showed were nice. But I prefer working alone always, it gives me more autonomy to do the right thing. I’m very demanding when it comes to presentations.
A voyeuristic thief? I can relate. I asked you that because the more I get into something because of work or artistic fascination, the less it emotionally touch me. I’m talking about porn. The more I look at porn through voyeuristic thief eyes the less excited I am, but again — I never really enjoyed porn. But you understand me, right? I think I get too fascinated by the image or something that I don’t notice the rest.
I’ve been thinking about it these days, how art and emotions mix. A lot of illustrators I know say that same old stuff of “showing their emotions through art”. When Im
drawing, I don’t think of myself for one second. I’m just doing what I feel like it needs to be done. It may have a parallel with my dealing with life but it doesn’t take away the truth when I say that the images I draw already exist in the air and I’m just the channel for them to exist in the paper.
Ever since I started psychotherapy I can’t draw anything that doesn’t suck. I’m thinking about myself all the time and it gets in the way. Maybe it’s because it’s the first sessions and all, I’m giving it a chance, but I’m deeply unhappy. I can ignore or deal with the things of life but I can’t do anything when I can’t draw. And when I can’t draw, I start thinking about all the bad things that are happening and then everything in the whole world sucks. My #1 problem right now is that I don’t get any commissions since the 1st of the year… And I could swear I would get more successful because last time it was famous photographer, but she didn’t tag me so no one came to me through her. I get extremely sad because it could’ve been great, it was the big chance, and because of that everything stayed the same. And my drawings were not so good even when I wasn’t doing psychotherapy… I think people just got tired of me and I need to get a real job. Or maybe it’s just a sign to focus on the short film, which I haven’t tried yet so I don’t know.
Sorry for the rant. The post was great today.
Well, I don’t know if “read poetry” is right but spoken rather than sung, I guess. He says “screamed” but I don’t know if that’s like hardcore vocals or just shouting but I kind of hope the latter since I don’t like hardcore vocals to be honest. Grindcore/death metal growls I don’t like all that much either but I like them a lot better than that. There are genres like metalcore where there are appealing aspects to it but I rarely listen just because it has those particular vocal sounds. I like the really shrill type of harsh vocals in black metal, like the hissing of a snake. I think what he wants, though, is something like the loud climax at the end of Spiderland but drawn out over a whole track? It’s hard to tell, because, again, his reference for most things is crust stuff, which is not like that at all.
He will describe something as “really scary black metal” and then I’ll listen and it’s just hardcore haha.
Hey Dennis, thanks for the shout-out . . .
Oh, Dennis, one quick thing. This most recent Christmas as a kind of “gift for all of us” one of my brothers got on DVD the complete series of THE MUNSTERS. This reminded me of something from the old blog years ago, where someone asked you if you were more a fan of the ADDAMS FAMILY or THE MUNSTERS, and I’m almost 100% certain that you preferred THE MUNSTERS. Is my memory going, or is that an accurate recollection?
Hope the film submissions go smoothly, Dennis.
Back in the day, there were few things more exciting in my life than getting a new JDs in the mail. Sigh. I don’t think I saw this the first time around. GB’s drawings still look so good. Don’t think I’ve seen the collaboration with Scott before. I’m friends with her on Goodreads, but she’s not very active. What a treat for (Not my) President’s Day.
The last few days were just packed with concerts. The highlight was John McCowen playing pieces for 2 contrabass clarinets with Madison Greenstone. If you haven’t come across his amazing playing: https://mccowen4chairs.bandcamp.com/album/models-of-duration
Also a very nice house concert with some local stalwarts (John Bischoff, Tom Djll, Ron Heglin, Suki O’Kane).
Bill
Hey Dennis,
Great post, was only speaking to my friends about JDs and BLB + Jones on Saturday. My brain didn’t explode, thankfully. Went out on Saturday with my friends as I was dying for some social hijinks, we went to the only gay bar in Cork (which is more of half a gay bar above a regular bar). More Drag Race than dark room, but it was fine. Some drunk guy kept telling me i was the most gorgeous guy he’d ever seen and other compliments from other gays, so that was good for my ego.
The photoshoot went good too, I love directing I’ve realized. I was feeling so important that day, what with the shoot and the proceeding interview that I was not doing but instead organized for the host of this poetry night who’s related to someone in the band. It was more interesting for that rapport already established than me interviewing a few acquaintances of mine.
My exam is tomorrow and I mainly spent today working at this charity coffee day themed around Sabrina Carpenter (‘That’s That Free Espresso’), but I’ve been working away for the past two hours. I’ve the next photoshoot tomorrow after the exam, which will be fun as I’m trying to make it a bit weird and out-there with fake blood and baby dolls and paparazzi and projected Notes app apologies.
That haircuts time as the de facto ‘lad’ haircut in Ireland was usurped back in 2022 by the mullet, which is now also on its way out; too many guys let it grow to bushy lengths that it killed the vibe. I was never a mullet haver, nor was I a fetishizer of it as many I knew were. Idk what the new haircut is, I think it’s like a cut that’s akin to that twink one, though mixed with the idea of a mullet: tight sides with a bit of length on top, but straight and shortish. I feel myself wanting to get a bit of a messy mod cut, but i fear that may be coming back as the wolf/shagcut is popular — not that i’m adverse to popular things, just that I hate how short trends are, and how people will look down on something 6 months later instead of like a year or so later… it’s just my ego talking but it pisses me off when someone thinks i’m late to a trend or doing something that’s just out of fashion when i had been doing it for a while! Rant over (god I’m full of rants recently).
I was looking at potential Masters yesterday, and all the Masters I’ve seen in UCC and Trinity are either Creative Writing or Shakespeare/Medieval/Renaissance focused. CW would be interesting, though I don’t think I want to feel boxed in by ‘rules’ for writing. Honestly I’d love a course that was like about research/investigative journalism, but I’ve seen none so far. Maybe I could find one abroad, or maybe I don’t even need one. I think I have enough drive, talent, and charisma to get far in whatever I work on. I’m submitting myself for that Arts & Pop Culture Feature Writer award too, I’ve gotten a lot of compliments about that Lynch piece I wrote from friends family and random people who I meet.
Anyway, back to study and listening to a bunch of random songs I’ve saved to my phone (a mixture of Charli XCX and Lana Del Rey unreleased demos and outtakes, and the Mulholland Drive soundtrack)
Howdy! Yes lol I was literally like IP blocked it was very cosmic to me I just had to shut up and let all that emotional gunk pour out of me and onto the page I was sort of in a Cloister for a bit super isolated but productive! Now I’ll try like marketing it! I do believe In this book its short and while its the only thing I have I like have no degree no generational wealth nothing just my mind, my glowing soul and the knowledge and want to evolve and be better, and now this book lol I don’t even have the boys its about in my life anymore LOL So I will use this to platform myself I simply must! I actually reached out to the publisher of Flunker cause I do believe it fits that publisher well short raw real that combo so thanks for that once again and I do have a media blitz planned and I am actively praying and seeking help after tying to do everything alone for sooooo long. Ive been told I sort of have a Cat Marnell energy and I agree I’ve been high and in love a bunch so yeah that helps. Oh My Saturn return is happening soon or now or Both at the same time so do you remember your life just before you turned 27 did anything bonkers happen this is supposedly the time my false life crumbles around me and im being asked to rise to occasions and respond true to my soul and good heart and I should be fine less Leland and Bob more angel lol. Ill be back so happy to be here again ttylxox brb. Omg my comment says its posted but i cant see it its little things like that that let you know when your back some place you belong ima comment till i see it LOL
Dear Dennis,
Hope you are well, and thank you for the introduction to GB Jones; of the movies, “The Yo-Yo Gang” sounds particularly fun and fascinating. I will have to try and watch it tonight. These drawings are so beautiful, I was just thinking of how impactful “comic” style art is, particularly after I watched Ghost World on YouTube the other night.
The ability of GB Jones to draw streets and cars is incredible, really erotic of course too. There is something really interesting in the structural formatting of her work with buildings, objects, and text.
I can’t believe you are doing a film premiere at PCA on Thursday, I have some friends in the grad programs there and will make them go if they don’t have classes. I would be there if it wasn’t for the fact that I am of to NY tomorrow for a couple of weeks (if you have any recommendations I will happily take them)
XOXO
-H
I saw an experimental film based on those videos a few years ago, but at the time I did not really know what it was referring to. (Just watch Instagram Reels from Mr. Beast all day, and you’ll be hypnotized into brain death!)
Yeah, DUTCHMAN is a ’60s adaptation of the Amiri Baraka play. Due to the rain yesterday, I didn’t make it out, but a Criterion-adjacent re-release is on the way.
I interviewed Alexander Horwath, director of HENRY FONDA FOR PRESIDENT and former curator of Vienna’s film museum, for 40 minutes this morning. I can now see how the digressive form of FONDA comes out of the way he speaks. It’ll be published in April.
Why was G. B. Jones’ self-titled book banned by Canadian customs?
Thank you for the G.B. Post and for sharing the promo videos for our upcoming publication of Witches by G.B. If you are in Toronto we hope to see some of you at the book launch March 1st. In the meantime if any of you are interested in the book check us out at @midnightmassbooks and our co publishers @heretichouse
Hey! Oh gee thanks. Yes, I will keep at it. The films I were influenced by were for the most part shoestring budget films like a lot of the Warhol stuff and Jack Smith, Kenneth Anger, Jonas Mekas, some Hollis Frampton in the scene where the moon is flickering, and so on, as well as Ryan Trecartin. The first cut I was kind of trying to make myself laugh with all of the transitions but I eventually cut back on that because I was really conscious of trying not to copy anyone. So yeah, I like ramshackle. There were also lots of influences that probably don’t come through, Chantal Akerman, for example, who I used to ground me because I ultimately wanted a kind of uh… sombre tone. Sorry I don’t know the right word. Like, I wanted there to be an empty, useless, sense of space, rather than a kind of film which is just completely explosive like a Jack Smith or Kenneth Anger.
Interesting about what you say about the internality. I was kind of thinking about that from certain angles, playing with the idea that a lot of what you see isn’t really happening and it’s all imagined. At the same time, I wasn’t really articulating it that much, I was more trying to work out what it was as I was making it.
Anyway, thanks so much for watching. I’ll be showing it to my class on Thursday, so luckily I have your kind words as a chaser if it ends up being embarrassing there. I’m articulating myself poorly here, but even then, I’m able to think for a moment before writing it down. As soon as I have to explain something to a group of people I lose any ability to explain anything and resort to stupid mumblings and bad jokes.
I read Mallarmé’s ‘A Roll of the Dice…’ today. I’ve really been meaning to get around to him since I’ve been really interested by hearing about his essay poems and things and by what Blanchot wrote about him. I have the Wave Books edition which is really beautiful which I believe you listed in your favourite things last year. I’m going to re-read it tomorrow. As a poem it really does feel like the path of thought in motion. I felt like an idiot reading it because I wasn’t sure HOW you were supposed to read it i.e. left to right across both pages, or one page at a time. I felt at points that it was supposed to be both and that was one thing the poem was trying to do, but I’ll have to do some research. It left an impression on me, anyway, and I’m excited to read more from him. Very illuminating preface by the author as well.
G.B. Jones is only a name I vaguely know. What do you think of that ‘Queercore: How to Punk a Revolution’ doc which I see you are in? I haven’t seen it but have been meaning to watch it out of interest for learning about the scene.
GB Jones! I like her for the most part, but I think that (even if you set immorality aside), Sontag pretty effectively aesthetically skewered the gay obsession with fascism as an erotic concept in her essay on Riefenstahl. Speaking of Sontag, it’s always striking how similar her later movie taste was to yours (heavy overlap between her brief ArtForum recs and your favs). Do you ever find that your work is somehow getting done by itself? I’ve noticed that, going by output and tiredness, I seem to be heavily overworked but that also conversely an average non-Tuesday/Wednesday day for me consists almost exclusively of long walks, movie watching, reading for pleasure, hanging out, etc. Got excited because I thought the Permanent Green Light trailer you posted in the comments was the trailer for Room Temperature until I clicked the link and thought, “This looks awfully familiar…” but then watched it through anyway and realised I need to rewatch PGL. So that’s something for this weekend! My professor was planning on screening Heimat but decided to break it up between days, unfortunately. Writing letters again today. Do you have a preferred library classification system?
Just saying this is fabulous and makes me feel good. I’ll spend time with it. I’m glad Steve Lafreniere is, I think I can say, a friend of mine, though a social-media friend. He’s so incredibly impressive. Scott Treleaven more an acquaintance I admire from not exactly afar. Leading to . . you may not have heard that Kevin Wolff’s survivor David Scott is curating a show of KW’s work in Chicago January 2026, with a concurrent show focusing on Feature.
Hey, Dennis! So cool about the upcoming screening of ‘PGL’—I so wish I could make it, but I’ll have to settle for a screening in my living room, haha. I’ve been wanting to re-watch it anyway. Hopefully that festival in San Francisco selects ‘RT’. If so, would you and Zac be in attendance for that? I know we’ve discussed how fucking lame festivals are lately re: what they accept, but it’s endlessly disappointing. I was listening to the audio commentary for ‘The Doom Generation’ earlier today (the restoration is GORGEOUS), and Gregg mentioned that a lot of people walked out on it at Sundance. People are so weird.
Hi Dennis. I’m mostly just in the trenches of job hunting right now. Not much to report there unfortunately. Painting and reading have been getting me through the days. Well I did just finish this blog post. It’s about this weird youtube makeup video I saw, Aileen Wuornos, Andrea Dworkin, etc. I also just watched that movie they made about her, Monster with Charlize Theron. Crazy that Patty Jenkins made that and now she does the Wonder Woman movies. Anyway here’s the post:
https://dangcarroll.wordpress.com/2025/02/17/found-footage-review-aileen-wuornos-makeup-tutorial/
Ah omg i see your movie poster is up on the side did you drop a trailer yet?! Ill look it up too and id not are you pro or anti movie trailer i think its a fine line between building anticipation and spoiling the juicy bits but the whole movie should be a juicy bit of course. Hum your 27 sounds totally fine which is a blessing truly you could have said anything but that was pretty hopeful. Im now experiencing the like weight of being alone for so long and how slightly like totally burned yet icy ice cold i can feel at the same time. Ive been experiencing a sort of inner grasping feeling thats more than a bit confronting it just feels like i cant do it alone and have been so i cant tell if the help i need is coming but ive been singing screaming and dancing around town hoping it’s enough of a performance/ prayer to mean something and it feels like it is or im wasting time and deluding myself im sure ill see soon enough im sure. Its also sort of embarrassing to expect a partner but it does feel like im supposed to have one at my core but ive either run from them in the past before we could get to the glowing together or i was sadly mistaken I havent even been able to pull the strings enough to convince someone its a good idea to bet on me yet i know the cards are in my favor ill muster up more faith and trust and be back later. Whats up with you fill in the blanks of my malaise with love where i couldnt today cause its there for sure and whats for dinner tonight?
Thanks for reposting the GB starter kit with the added GB Jones Witches promo vids.
More details about the book can be found @midnightmassbooks and @hereticbookshop ~xoxo