The blog of author Dennis Cooper

Guitar

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Richard Garet Guitar Heroes, 2012
‘Each playback device activates a distinct sound exciter that is attached to the neck of each electric guitar, consequently vibrating the strings and generating a field of harmonics and overtones in real time. The sound generated by the guitars masks the sources and subsequently creates an uncanny and disorienting sound that fills the space. As the visitors navigate the floor and approach the guitars, they have the option of accessing the source material, or simply walking away with what just lays on the surface of the work.”‘

Hear it here

 

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John Baldessari Person with Guitar (Red), 2005
5 color screenprint mounted on sintra, 35 x 41 in

 

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Céleste Boursier-Mougenot from here to ear (v.15), 2011
From Here To Ear introduces a flock of 70 brightly plumed Zebra Finches to a gallery-turned-aviary to live among iconic Gibson Les Paul and Thunderbird bass guitars. At turns ambient and melodic, a constantly changing soundscape emerges as the finches explore their environment, eating, nesting and perching on the amplified instruments.’

 

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Tom Friedman Untitled (silver-foil guitarist) & Moot, 2004, 2014


aluminum and wood with colored pencil


Paint and Styrofoam

 

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Natascha Stellmach Scream, 2010
‘In 2008 Australian artist Natascha Stellmach installed a joint in a commercial Berlin gallery, containing hash and the alleged ashes of Kurt Cobain. An international call was sent out – via press release – inviting six volunteers to join her in smoking the ashes of the dead rock star, in a private, undocumented ritual, to explore commemoration and attachment. If the smoking of the ashes was the final act – then Complete Burning Away, Stellmach’s dramatic exhibition is the epilogue. The project boldly interrogates the public ownership of celebrities and critiques the role of the artist, the media and contemporary art in society. More than that, this exhibition is a reflection on suicide and tragedy and the artist’s chosen means to pay her respects. One 2-wall video installation, Scream, offers an intense sonic requiem where the aforementioned guitar howls as it is punched and smashed against a wall by a shadowy figure until it ‘dies’. “The video Scream is a disturbing metaphor and easily associated with the image of the mythic artist hanging by a thread and beaten into a corner by the adoration of his public.”’

 

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Yoshihiko Satoh Various, 2002 – 2005
‘Yoshihiko Satoh takes mass-produced goods that have become part of our every day life, enlarges and/or multiplies them, creating sculptures that unleash the energy residing in their function and shape. In 2002, he won the Kirin Art Award Grand Prix for “Present Arms”, a 12-neck guitar conceived as a challenge to a rock guitarist he idolizes.”’

 

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David Bowie Acoustic Guitar, Space Oddity era (1970s)
‘The vendor won a signed Bowie guitar in a 2002 online charity auction (for ‘Bikers Against Drunk Drivers’) but it arrived in a damaged state. He contacted BowieNet who put him in touch with Bowie’s management company, who promptly organized the sending of a replacement guitar. This guitar arrived with clear evidence of having been used (scratches on scratch plate) so it is thought that this could have been one that David had been playing at the time. The vendor has supplied the auction house with proof of his purchase from the charity auction. The guitar is “…signed with an inscription ‘Ground Control To Major Tom’ by David Bowie, dated 2003. This is one of only two known guitars that have been signed with this inscription.”’

 

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Christian Marclay Guitar Drag, 1999
Guitar Drag is a 14-minute video depicting a pickup truck dragging an amplified, electric guitar tied by a rope across a Texas roadway to its aggressive destruction. The many-layered video work references the practice of smashing guitars during rock concerts and demonstrates Marclay’s interest in inventing new types of sound. The piece was also created in response to the 1998 murder of 49-year-old James Byrd, Jr. of Jasper, Texas by three white supremacists and the tragedy’s widespread repercussions.’

 

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Haim Steinbach Untitled (breast mugs, Marilyn guitar) I-2, 1990
‘For more than four decades, Haim Steinbach has explored the psychological, aesthetic, cultural and ritualistic aspects of collecting and arranging already existing objects. His work engages the concept of “display” as a form that foregrounds objects, raising consciousness of the play of presentation. Steinbach selects and arranges objects – which range from the natural to the ordinary, the artistic to the ethnographic – thereby emphasizing their identities, inherent meanings and associations.’

 

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Simon Dybbroe Møller The Guitarist, 2018
framed C-Print

 

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Lee Ranaldo, Steve Shelley and Enrique Morente Sensational Fix, 2010
‘For the presentation of the exhibition “Sonic Youth etc .: Sensational Fix” exhibition at the 2 de Mayo Art Center in Móstoles, the band’s Lee Ranaldo and Steve Shelley performed together with Enrique Morente. A magma of quejíos, flamenco rhythms, downloads of electric guitars, palms and percussions. The paths of rock and flamenco confronted and fused by two of the exponents who have investigated the most in their forms. Ten minutes of intense music, a train wreck.’

 

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Franck Tordjmann Big Boss, 2005
‘Franck Tordjmann was a french sculptor and painter, born in 1958. His only material is plexiglas. Of great purity, his compositions play with transparency and light to create emotion and reflection. These aerial sculptures, unique and original works, are always composed of guitars and other musical instruments, all entirely composed of plexiglass.’

 

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Alice Pamuk Sans ampli, 2015
‘Alice Pamuk films a guitarist and a bassist strumming the strings of their instrument and responding to each other, without uttering a word, through only concentration guided by listening to sounds. Filmed in close-up, these two musicians, who can be imagined from their outfits rather shining in a metal-like repertoire, produce thin sounds without amplifiers, which contrast with the frenzy of the hands chaining together improvisations. The camera gets closer to the instruments and faces whose identity captivates, but the proximity does not allow us to better capture the intimate and shared journey leading to composition.’

 

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Sandvik Coromant The world’s first unbreakable guitar, 2019
‘While no one at Sandvik Coromant set out to spoil the fun for a host of rockers, the Swedish-based supplier of cutting tools and inserts decided to create an instrument that could not be smashed, even by the most enthusiastic guitar destroyer.

‘It just so happened that a machining process developer at the company, who had played guitar since his youth, idolized Yngwie Malmsteen, one of Sweden’s top guitar virtuosos and a famous (or perhaps infamous!) guitar smasher. The developer, Henrik Loikkanen, understood the challenges he was about to undertake: “We had to design a guitar that is unsmashable in all the different ways you can smash a guitar.”

‘Loikkanen started his research by watching YouTube videos of Malmsteen destroying his instruments, and he discovered that the guitars typically cracked at the joint between the neck and the body. That knowledge led the Sandvik engineers to eliminate that joint by machining the guitar’s neck and fretboard from one solid bar of stainless steel.’

 

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Julian Opie Steve Playing Guitar, 2006
Aluminium, steel, polycarbonate and vinyl with interior lights

 

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Ed Stilley Various, 1979 – 1993
‘In 1979, Ed Stilley was leading a simple life as a farmer and singer of religious hymns in Hogscald Hollow … Arkansas. Life was filled with hard work and making do for Ed, his wife Eliza, and their five children, who lived in many ways as if the second half of the twentieth century had never happened.

‘[In 1979] while plowing his field, he became convinced he was having a heart attack… [A]s he lay there in the freshly plowed dirt, Ed received a vision from God, telling him that he would be restored to health if he would agree to do one thing: make musical instruments and give them to children.

‘… Beginning with a few simple hand tools, Ed worked tirelessly for twenty-five years to create over two hundred instruments, each a crazy quilt of heavy, rough-sawn wood scraps joined with found objects. A rusty door hinge, a steak bone, a stack of dimes, springs, saw blades, pot lids, metal pipes, glass bottles, aerosol cans—Ed used anything he could to build a working guitar, fiddle, or dulcimer. On each instrument Ed inscribed “True Faith, True Light, Have Faith in God.”’

 

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Radio/Guitar (Barbara Ess & Peggy Ahwesh) Nine, 2001
”Radio Guitar’ was recorded in Barbara’s studio, NYC on audio cassette over a period of 3 days (except for one piece recorded in Callicoon, NY).’

 

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Lygia Pape Concerto Tupinambá, 2000
Two red-feathered chairs with guitar

 

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Raymond Pettibon Untitled, 2003

 

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Ragnar Kjartansson Woman in E, 2016
‘Unlike the G-scale, which is commonly used in love songs, E-minor conveys a melancholy, reflective feel. In Kjartansson’s new work created for the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit, this pensive chord reverberates throughout the museum building, growing stronger as it bounces off the architecture.

‘”Woman in E” revolves around a single, central figure: a woman dressed in a gold gown, standing on a rotating pedestal. The central figure plays the electric guitar without accompaniment, alone with the instrument and an amp. The atmosphere around her glitters as the notes rebound off the walls and ceiling, creating a deep, guttural tremolo. With its ethereal feel and symbolic references, the work conjures Detroit’s history as a hotbed of sonic innovation that gave birth to Motown and Techno alike.’

 

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Marco Fusinato Extended Breakdown in ‘E’, 2018
Extended Breakdown featured a single locked groove repeating a distorted E chord. When played, each revolution caused the groove to breakdown and the sound to eventually become white noise. What began as distinct and minimal, over time becomes the opposite, a wash of frequencies across the spectrum and maximalist noise. Tuning to detuning.’

 

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Bill Woodrow Twin-Tub with Guitar, 1981
‘Here Woodrow has cut a sculpture of an electric guitar from a discarded Hotpoint washing machine. This odd conjunction brings together two symbols of Western consumerism. Woodrow explained ‘The guitar was a pop icon and the washing machine was an everyday, domestic item. So it was bringing the two things together like a slice of life’.’

 

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Mika Vainio Heijastuva, 2011
‘Long and slowly developing Heijastuva is a Mika Vainio’s implementation of Robert Fripp and Brian Eno’s guitar feedback experiments from 70’s.’

 

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Plastic Jesus The Art of Noise, 2021
‘A mixed medium piece by renowned street artist Plastic Jesus titled “The Art of Noise”, which features a genuine cherry red Fender Stratocaster that appears to be melting but is entirely playable.’

 

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Naama Tsabar Untitled (Double Face), 2020
‘This is an excerpt of Naama Tsabar’s performance “Untitled (Double Face) at the art fair Frieze Los Angeles 2020, a performance that coopts and upends the guitar solo through a conjoining and doubling. Using two guitars grafted together, Tsabar and a partner turn the seemingly masturbatory performative gesture into an act based on intimacy and cooperation.”’

 

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Chris Gilmour Beatles Guitars & Fender Stratocaster, 2018
‘Chris has chosen a simple but meaningful material for his work: in first place because corrugated cardboard is usually employed to pack and ship the artist’s work, rather than physically representing the oeuvre itself (the container, in this case, becomes the content).’

 

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PUNKASILA Kristiantoro Seri Punkasila (KSP) Hybrid M16/Grenade Launcher Electric Bass, 2006-2007
‘Formed by Danius Kesminas, PUNKASILA features seven graduates and current students from the Indonesian Art Institute (ISI) in Yogyakarta and Kesminas – seven Indonesians and a bule. PUNKASILA play custom-made, hand crafted mahogany guitars, built to simulate M-16’s, AK-47’s and other weapons. They wear camouflage-patterned hand-painted batik, tailored as military fatigues and play originals songs which highlight the multitude of acronyms and abbreviations that describe the full spectrum of Indonesian political, cultural and religious life.’

 

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Rudi Mantofani Various, 2006 – 2011
‘Indonesia born and based artist Rudi Mantofani has created a set of mutant guitars that are entirely hand-crafted, as in not transformed from ready-made guitars. At first glance, these slick guitars by Rudi Mantofani suggest absolute certainty. Yet they are wickedly unplayable: it would be impossible to strike even one note. Mantofani has crafted the guitars himself from scratch: they are not transformed ready-made objects, but custom-made affronts to common usage and common sense, transformed into ‘visual parables.”

 

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Pierre Henry & Michel Colombier& Maurice Béjart Psyché Rock, 1967
Psyche Rock is a piece created in 1967 by Pierre Henry and Michel Colombier (this is a director of film music), which is part of the suite of dances Mass for the present time. This is undoubtedly the best-known title of this work. It is also interpreted by Ypersound and consists of guitar, bells, drums, zithers, pipa (a traditional Chinese instrument) and electronic music. It is part of the musical movement of musique concrete and more generally in the movement of industrial music with a traditional method of prophetic message, critical and esoteric its own. It is loosely based, the rhythmic level, on the song Louie Louie, written by Richard Berry. This piece has the distinction of being read backwards without significant change in the music.’

 

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Simon Blackmore Weather Guitar, 2006
‘Weather guitar is a robotic guitar player that responds to variations in weather conditions. The focus of this project is an attempt to draw parallels between the scientific inquiry of measuring and quantifying the natural elements, and the romantic notion of the weather acting as a source of artistic inspiration.’

 

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Dan Graham & Glenn Branca Performance and Stage-Set Utilizing Two-Way Mirror and Video Time Delay, 1983
‘A restructuring of the gaze informs this installation/performance work, produced and performed by Graham and musician Glenn Branca for Graham’s 1983 retrospective exhibition Pavilions at the Kunsthalle in Berne, Switzerland. The audience was seated on the right and the musicians on the left, both facing (and observing each other through) a large two-way mirror. A video screen seen through the two-way mirror showed a six-second time-delayed view of the room. Graham writes, “Conventionally, the audience identifies with the performer by gazing directly at his/her frontal, eye view. In this set-up the audience must look to the mirror in order to see the performer playing his/her instrument. At the same time a member of the audience sees other audience members (including himself) gazing.”‘

 

 

*

p.s. Hey. ** David, Ha ha, you are forgiven. *does that Catholic hands-forgiveness gesture circa my chest that I don’t how to do* Mm, no, I never had a perm. Wait, I had my hair straightened a couple of times back when I wore it really long because mine was wavy, does that count? I did dye mine black two or three times, same general period. I liked your poem! Big time! ** dora, Hi, and, well, thanks for that. ** Maria, Isabella, Camila, Malaria, Gabriela, You tell him, ha ha. But maybe don’t kill him. ** David Ehrenstein, Hi. I forgive him for inadvertently inspiring ‘Les Miz’. I realise I haven’t seen ‘Une chambre en ville’ and will make haste to correct that. ** Tosh Berman, Hi. I’m very pro-‘Exile on Main Street’, which is why it’s so strange to me that they seemed to lose it entirely in an instant afterwards. Other big bands of that era had sudden drop-offs too, like The Kinks after ‘Muswell Hillbillies’ (although I do love occasional songs by them after that whereas the Stones are total goners starting with ‘GHS’ for me). The Who went south fast at a certain point. Etc. I totally agree with you about the strange lack of a documentary or brainy commentary on Ozzie Nelson’s work. His character not having a job seems like a deliberate part of the package’s magic, but it would be very interesting to find out just how calculated all that seeming brilliance really was. I’d like to see the same kind of doc or writing about ‘Green Acres’, another work of auteurist TV series genius in my book. ** Dominik, Hi!!! Ouch, your poor brain. Your love of yesterday is a heaven on earth kind of gift, so thank you. Yes, always Hydrox, never Oreo! I do think I’m going to wander over to that store any day now. I’m also longing for some whipped cream in a spray can. Love teaching you how to play any song you want on a guitar in 30 seconds, so what is it?, G. ** _Black_Acrylic, Hi. There’s a copy of ‘Zero’ on Dvd available on eBay for $16.17 here, but that’s the only place I could find it. Oh, that’s very, very good news about your Dad. How is he doing today? Does he have a return home date yet? ** Steve Erickson, Hi. Wow, studied with George Crumb, not bad. I think, like virtually all experimental filmmakers in the current day, the movie world and theaters and almost all festivals in the US ignore his work, and he shows his stuff mostly in Europe or in US cubbyholes and art museum settings. The official film world is very grimly conservative these years. ‘Goats Head Soup’ might be slightly more enlivened than the albums that followed, but that seems to be about it. ** Brian, Hey, Brian. I’m very happy that his work intrigued you. Yay, you made the swap. I must say I don’t envy you on writing about Bresson as the mere thought of his work tongue-ties me, but I bet you’ll come up with great things, and I can’t wait to read your thoughts someday. You’re officially 20 now! Big whoop! Basically, my recent b’day was kind of nothing out of the ordinary: hung out with Zac, ate with friends, aka things I do all the time anyway. And I feel totally fine with that extremely lowkey occasion-marking in retrospect, if that helps. I didn’t know Jarman was going to make a film of ‘Narrow Rooms’. How incredibly interesting. Huh. At what point in time was he going to make it? The big A’s vibes are most welcome, thank you. I’ll use them accordingly. I’m going to see a Rivette film (‘Duelle’) tonight as part of the Cinematheque’s Rivette retrospect-in-progress. I loved it way back when, and we’ll see how it holds up. I hope your b’day today (right?) does every tiny little thing you want it to. ** Right. I thought I would give that good old-fashioned instrument the guitar some props and attention today, so there you go. See you tomorrow.

21 Comments

  1. _Black_Acrylic

    My own fave guitar artwork is defo this Evan Holloway sculpture.

    Thanks for the tip! The Zero DVD has been added to my eBay watchlist, although a 2.5 hour portrayal of existential torment is probably not part of Dad’s rehab. Mum has been advised to visit him tomorrow and we should get a better idea of his schedule then.

  2. michael karo

    dennis, what a fun day! all that’s missing is a postcard of conway twitty’s guitar-shaped swimming pool! gonna explore further after work. re: guitars – my dear friend rob who passed away a few weeks ago from two years of battling leukemia was out here for a visit from the east coast in december. we got in two wonderful days of hanging out. while at my house, i handed him this acoustic i got at a yard sale (great condition, three strings!) and had him check it out. he said it was a good starter guitar and tuned it for me. it’s right behind me as i type, and i frequently pluck those three strings and it sounds so lovely. it’s like a little gift he left me. so i think i will leave it as it is, ya know?

  3. michael karo

    dennis, what a fun day! all that’s missing is a postcard of conway twitty’s guitar-shaped swimming pool! gonna explore further after work. re: guitars – my dear friend rob who passed away a few weeks ago from two years of battling leukemia was out here for a visit from the east coast in december. we got in two wonderful days of hanging out. while at my house, i handed him this acoustic i got at a yard sale (great condition, three strings!) and had him check it out. he said it was a good starter guitar and tuned it for me. it’s right behind me as i type, and i frequently pluck those three strings and it sounds so lovely. it’s like a little gift he left me. so i think i will leave it as it is, ya know?

  4. David Ehrenstein

    “Guitar” means Les Paul <A HREF="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yH2ioBX_1kand Mary Ford

    • David

      Loving this link Dave!!

  5. David

    Thanks Dennis!!!!! Had a wank this morning that I was being paid to defile some guys in a variety of ways.. using them like dogs etc… and I rather enjoyed that alot… then I read your comments and that lifted my spirits considerably as well!!!!..

    This post totally brought back a memory that I had a guitar that I once used to batter someone to death….. (joke!!!!) But yep I did have a guitar when I was a boy until 21 then I gave it away… how the fuck did I forget that?????? It had a broken string when I gave it to my friend at the time Melony…. I had a few lessons when I was young….

    Wandering why those memories were wiped man?? When I was a boy I remember my sister having piano lessons from a woman from the church we went to.. and I went along… this one time I went upstairs into the master bedroom and routed for her husbands undergarments… I was about 12 or 13… I think she knew as I was asked not to come back next time….

    ‘Those were the dayz my friend we thought they’d never end” 🎶🎵

    Thanks pal xxx

  6. Dominik

    Hi!!

    French people don’t eat whipped cream in a spray can? That sounds tragic. When I was a kid, I used to eat it so much – just the cream, without cookies or ice cream or whatever.

    Hmmm, this is a tough one. Learning a song in 30 seconds is very tempting, so it has to be a good one. Of course, I can’t play the guitar at all, so even a simple song would be a good one, haha. I’m gonna go for “Speed the Collapse” from Metric today. Thank you, love! Love offering to buy you the guitar of your choice from today’s collection (which one’s your heart’s desire?) and making sure to gift you with a Yoshihiko Satoh creation as an extra, Od.

  7. Cal

    Hey Dennis
    from here to ear (v.15) reminds me of that Igorr video where they got their chicken to play a tiny piano then composed around it, great stuff.
    I sent you another email, sorry about my delayed responses
    Hope you’re doing well

  8. Jack Skelley

    Dennis– Golden Oreos. That’s it. That’s the comment. -Jack

  9. Tosh Berman

    Green Acres, yes! That was a perfect TV series. There should be a study or a book about bands/artists who were brilliant and then became dull. How does that happen? Why? Like how does Jefferson Airplane turn into Jefferson Starship? Do they even know? If I wasn’t so busy with my own projects on hand, I would devote my life to this grand and endless mystery. Guitar art. There is something so unique and special about the guitar’s design in general, and then when people do creative stuff on that instrument, either visually or aurally, it’s simply amazing. Great blog today.

    • Jack Skelley

      Green Acres…. including the genius soundtrack of Vic Mizzy !!

  10. David Ehrenstein

    R.I.P. Monica Vitti

  11. Ryan Wilkinson / ANGUSRAZE

    Hey there Dennis, great collection of things
    Sorry for this abrupt reply, but I’ve been trying to look for your email or mode of contact for a independent zine accompaniment for a musical album I’m current working on. I would love to have a discussion with you about the subjects covered in the album, like somewhere between an interview and a discussion. Your contribution would be an immense honour for me.
    Apologies for doing this in such an unprofessional manner, email me when you can and I will be happy to send my concepts and details along as well as more info on the album itself, my previous work and my intentions for the zine

    love

    Ryan / ANGUSRAZE

  12. Ryan Wilkinson / ANGUSRAZE

    Hey Dennis
    Just putting a reply on here to let you know that I cant seem to find any relevant contact details on your website or here, I’ve been meaning to email you about the creation of an album of mine, and a zine to accompany it, featuring essays, discussions, interviews and photography based around a sort of merge between James Bidgood (RIP) and Robert Mapplethorpe, that whole aesthetic in a post internet, grainy, voyeuristic nuance. I would absolutely love to share some concepts with u or anyone else who also visits this site and likes ur work for contribution or conversation which i will then transcribe. email me back when u can, and i will gladly send everything over to u

    ryan

  13. Bill

    Guitar Drag is such a great piece! I like the Satoh sculptures as well.

    On looking at the poster, I realize I’ve seen Fotopoulos’ Zero. I didn’t even grumble too much about the length! It was available on YouTube, but no longer unfortunately.

    Saw Memoria. I think my reaction is somewhere between yours and Steve’s.

    Bill

  14. rewritedept

    d-

    what a day for me to stop in and say hey. ‘from here to ear’ is always my favorite guitar-based installation, combining two of my favorite things (guitars and finches). that marclay video was awesome too. and branca/graham. some great stuff today.

    my guitar collection is growing. and they’re all in weird tunings and i have too many pedals (like 27 of them; who do i think i am: kevin shields?).

    my roommate and i are working up some songs and noisy little semi-improv things because he also likes noise and dissonant tunings and the jesus lizard. hopefully we will have some things recorded soon to share with the world.

    i have been very depressed and trying to lose some weight (190 lbs at my last doctor visit: unacceptable). i’m in pain all the time because my joints hurt and i go in for bloodwork soon so hopefully i can rule out autoimmune disorders (as i have psoriasis, i’m at risk for other similar conditions).

    how’s tricks? i hope you are well. going to be stateside any time soon? HTRK are playing some west coast dates in may. would love to see you soon. sending love. talk soon.

    -c.

  15. Maria, Isabella, Camila, Malaria, Gabriela

    Maria Isabella Camila Malaria Gabriela has had vision
    Somebody who is a reading this posting owning a yellow guitar
    will be in car crash sometime very soon
    I tell all, is very sad no?
    many thankings
    and thanks Coops
    now I go

  16. Steve Erickson

    A song on the new Big Thief album features detuned, prepared acoustic guitars that sound like a percussion instrument. I thought they were kalimbas at first. That seems in the spirit of the day.

    Trouser Press has published my interview with POLY STYRENE: I AM A CLICHE directors Celeste Bell and Paul Sng and X-Ray Spex saxophonist Lora Logic: https://trouserpress.com/poly-styrene-woman-on-film/

    I plan to approach a filmmaker acquaintance about composing music for his work. I’m quite nervous about doing so, fearing coming off as a sleazy hustler. (On several FB film groups I belong to, there’s a stream of “I’m a film composer, check out my work” posts that everyone ignores.) But the worst thing that can happen is him saying he’s not interested.

    Last night, I watched a Romanian found footage horror film, BE MY CAT: A FILM FOR ANNE. The main character is a psychotic filmmaker who abuses Romanian actresses as part of his quest to get Anne Hathaway’s attention. He’s played by the film’s actual director Adrian Tofei (who gives the character his own name), in a chilling turn. The micro-budget look just makes this feel more real and disturbing – if it were posted to YouTube anonymously as some incel’s actions, everyone would believe it. I thought a lot about the video diaries of Bjork stalker Ricardo Lopez.

  17. l@rst

    Hey D!

    Guitars! Cool post. My buddy Kirk (Trumans Water guy) has been making weird homemade guitars and effects for a bit now. They’re fun to varying degrees (weed helps) when we jam. Not much to report over here, still writing poems for a fall release. I look forward to reading that Zac Smith book, at first I thought it was Zak Smith who did the illustrations for every page of Gravity’s Rainbow.

    -L

  18. Brendan

    This day is pure joy for me, a certified guitar fetishist. I could look at them all day. I took a guitar-centric shot out my window recently. I’ll email to you. It won’t change your life but I think it’s pretty good.
    RIP Monica Vitti. What a deity. Gonna watch Red Desert tonight to mourn/celebrate.

  19. Brian

    Hey, Dennis,

    Wonderful stuff today. The Weather Guitar is fantastic. You can do nearly anything with an instrument, I guess. My professor isn’t beholden to the Bresson idea and seemed intrigued when I mentioned I’ve also been obsessed with the German Trilogy lately (certainly a subject I’m more capable with), so the goalposts for that project might shift. Bresson seems so incredibly difficult to write about that I might shirk at the challenge—for the time being, anyway. But maybe the fact that it’d be so difficult is all the more reason to try it? I don’t know, I’ll figure it out in my next meeting with my professor. Much like your own, my birthday was decidedly lowkey, and I’m quite alright with that too, I think. Got some lovely gifts, went out to dinner, watched some movies, very calm. I only missed my brother, who’s upstate right now, of course. But for the most part I had a pleasant day. “Narrow Rooms” was one of the projects Jarman was preoccupied with in the very last years of his life. The script I read was dated 1993. He was quite desperate to make it, but he insisted on Keith Collins in one of the leading parts, and neither Purdy nor the producers agreed with him at all, so it never materialized. I don’t find Keith Collins particularly attractive myself, but it’s still a huge bummer the movie never happened. If I ever became a filmmaker (which I won’t) that would be the film I’d want to make. Hope my vibes were of use to you. Rivette certainly sounds like a lovely way to spend one’s time. I haven’t seen any of his films yet, and hardly know anything about him (I only know about “Céline and Julie…” because my 11th grade film teacher was weirdly insistent for me to write about it, though I never did), but I have a number of friends who are crazy about him. Thank you again for the birthday wishes! All the best for the back end of the week…

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