So, after doing Art Conspiracy for five years, I missed the cutoff by a few minutes yesterday and don't get to participate. All the 120 artist spots went in 13 minutes. It didn't help that my company's retarded firewall blocked their Google Spreadsheets application form and I had to run around to find alternative means of Internet access. My company's retarded firewall also blocks weshotjr.com as "pornography" for some unknown reason.
I can't say I'm entirely disappointed. All my ArtCon pieces have been really pitiful. Painting in sub-freezing temperatures on plywood isn't really conducive to awesome art. A friend and I are considering starting an Arternative Conspiracy in North Dallas -- get it? Because seriously, driving south of 635 sucks. Especially twice in a weekend.
I do have good memories of consuming as much Miller High Life as possible in a 3-hour period as a means of warming up. And good memories of getting to feel like a part of Dallas for a few brief moments. This year they're moving it to October 23, though. So it shouldn't be so cold. Check out the details here.
I'm sure you hate Art Conspiracy -- as only a WeShotJr reader can. What are your reasons?
SATURDAY, September 18, 2010
Here. There. & Beyond. Dallas Contemporary 161 Glass Street at Riverfront, Dallas, TX 75207 7:00 PM - 10:00 PM
Mexican Bicentennial Exhibition Grand Opening The MAC 3120 McKinney, Dallas, TX 75204 5:00 PM - 8:00 PM
N.R.G. (Sergio Garcia, Mark Nelson, and Richard Ross) HCG Gallery 1130 Dragon Street, Suite 190, Dallas, TX 75207 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM
Seriously, just because you have your art in a high street gallery like HCG doesn't preclude your having some kind of web presence. Don't you have a nephew or something that can make a website for you?
Miami Horror | Fizzy Dino Pop (Granada) Miami Horror's track with Alan Palomo, "Holidays," is the strongest thing I've heard them do thus far, but its just a little tough to stomach bands that are influenced by their own contemporaries-- if you're in the mood for this kind of stuff, I'd just stick with Delorean, Hercules and Love Affair or Cut Copy if I were you.
local remix = florene - homemade ecstacy (i miss my mommy vulgar fashion remix)
Came across this interesting remix by two very different local artist and thought it was worth sharing. I would like to see more diverse local artist come together and mix things up a bit, especially when the results are this stimulating.
Hi guys. Life has kept me from doing the Not New Music posts for a long time now, but I'm planning on writing a couple more before this thing is all said and done. In the meantime I'll probably post a few videos just for the hell of it.
This one is from San Francisco's Units, a band that is probably best remembered these days as the group that made a certain Houston weirdo change his name after he released his 1978 debut lp Ready for the House under the Units moniker. I'm not the biggest new wave fan, but the first two Units 7" singles easily rise above most of the genre and are certainly worth seeking out.
I know they have a new album with a pearly white review from Pitchfork but it doesn't seem like this duo has gained anymore more popularity since their ill fated Granada non-appearance last year. On top of that the dark moody dance music they are synonymous with has gone by the waste side in Urban Outfitter Hipster-dom, so I was surprised to see them booked at the same venue that will be hosting giants KC and The Sunshine Band later in the week. Crystal Castles always struck me as the Misfits of modern electro-dance with all the cartoonish indulgence but none of the humor, edginess or talent. Perfect fit with the House of Blues, hope the audio system can handle the massive sound that Crystal Castles demands.
Not much going on this evening, but I did want to point out an error of ours that I regret just a bit: last Thursday, we failed to mention a Weekly Tape Deck sponsored show featuring Lower Dens, a Baltimore group that includes Texas ex-pat Jana Hunter. I think I remember when Hunter lived in Texas (Austin, right?), and I also think I remember her music from back then being more traditionally folk or influenced by Joanna Newsom or something like that, but I could be totally wrong-- I do remember her working with Devendra Banhart at one point, so there's that.
Either way, its obvious that her music didn't make an incredible impression on me because I can't seem to remember a damn thing about it. But thats not the point. The point is that I recently got my hands on Lower Dens' most recent record, Twin Hand Movement, and have been enjoying it quite a bit. In a year where I just haven't been impressed with much of anything that has received a lot of attention from hip Mp3 blogs and the larger "indie rock" community as a whole, this record really hit the spot-- dark, sparse arrangements that seem to fall somewhere between Low and Fleetwood Mac with an XX meets Oh Sees sorta feel, except with better songwriting.
Anyway, its one of the better rock records I've heard this year, and I regret that we missed listing it last week, even though the fact that the show was in... barf... Frisco, almost made it not worth talking about at all. JK Frisco love ya!
Oh, man, it takes all of my strength not to post a Keyboard Cat video spliced with footage from tomorrow's extremely exploited date, but I just don't have it in me. Instead I've posted a pic from what is considered Spike Lee's "9/11 movie," because that seems just as ridiculous right now, even though I remember kind of liking it. It's no surprise that I don't have time to break this down show-by-show, but I hope you still find some passing interest in the utilitarian aspects of the following late-as-usual list. Some random thoughts:
1. Today I went record shopping out of a guy's storage space in Richardson. It was fantastic. I found some random nonsense like a Cerrone produced dance record by Don Ray, some terrible rock record that I bought merely for the accidentally good album cover, and Skeeter Davis. Glad to see that Dallas can still surprise me. For more info, DM me.
2. What's more offensive? --"EFF YOU" or "FORGET YOU?"
3. You should really do yourself a favor and click on the audio link accompaniment to yesterday's Maria Bamford interview, as conducted by sometimes WSJR contributor, Rick V. It is sickeningly charming.
If you don't feel like burning Korans this weekend, there's a lot of stuff going on in the visual art world around these here parts. Also, happy Unfortunate End of America's Sweet Innocence Day!
This looks like the most unique venue of the weekend. There's a little more information here on Guerilla Arts. Obviously there's something wrong with Jennifer Caine's website (css file missing or something), but if it were real (and actually worked), that would be my vote for best artist portfolio site ever. Make me nostalgic for 1993 and Netscape 1.0. Aw heck, I'll just make a website screen shot is this week's featured image (see above). [NOTE: her website has been fixed since publishing -- pretty nice!]
Trenton's stuff looks pretty amazing -- take a look here and here. He's fancy enough not to have his own web site and be in wikipedia instead. This guy's kinda awesome.
SATURDAY, September 11, 2010
Recent Work (Vincent Falsetta) This Spanish Ounce of Gold (Justin Quinn) Conduit Gallery 1626 Hi Line Drive, #c, Dallas, TX 75207 5:30 PM - 8:30 PM
Maria Bamford is probably one of my favorite comedians right now, and her album "Unwanted Thought Syndrome" was one of my favorite things that came out last year. Last night I found out she was doing three performances over the course of two days at the Sander Theater at the Fort Worth Community Arts center. This was put together by a group called No 2 Drink Minimum which tries to pull comedians outside of the comedy clubs. That's pretty cool, right?
For those who don't know who Maria Bamford is, look her up immediately. I would write something about her but you guys probably know how bad I am at explaining anything. And frankly, I'm pretty tired.
Here is an email Q&A I did via email with Maria Bamford:
Would you like to answer some non threatening questions so we can put them up on the website as to get people to come out to the shows on Friday and Saturday night?
Yes, I would! Non-threatening, supportive, body-hugging questions that skim the profile.
I personally am very excited that you are coming to Fort Worth. I am even more excited that you are not playing a bar venue/comedy club but a community arts center instead! How did you end up getting hooked up with the (as far as I can tell) nice people at No 2 drink minimum?
They, in fact, hooked up with me- through a great community arts network called The Book of Faces. I am supremely grateful for Carly to make the effort to track me down and poke me.
Any thoughts on comedians playing big chain venues like House of Blues?
The House of Blues is a grassroots-generated folk revival that a couple of old-time-yBluesmen- Dan Akroyd and Jim Belushi and River Phoenix- decided to open a little hole in the wall diner that would feed the soul. The then sold it to a younger generation of musicians and percussive players and it's just a one-man operation owned by this guy/corporate entity, Live Nation. It's nice to perform anywhere. And get paid for gas.
You've been doing voice work for cartoons for years including the blasphemous Charlottes Web 2. And you've probably been approached about doing voice work more since the popularity of your newest album "Unwanted Thought Syndrome" or the fine programming of "Comedians of Comedy" and "The Maria Bamford Show". Has anybody offered any starring roles?
Not yet, but check out ADVENTURETIME on the Cartoon Network or WORDGIRL on PBS, or, on second thought, lie down and read.
You were on an episode of Mystery Science 3000 playing a violin. Do you know those guys? And what happened to the violin?
Violin let go with burnt sage and given to children who want to jam. I know only TV's Frank and writer Mary Jo Pehl (Austin resident- who is a hilarious stand up and should be booked in Fort Worth).
Whenever I asked around about what kind of questions does one ask Maria Bamford, the most common question was "Will she marry me?". Do you get a lot of marriage proposals from strangers?
Well, this, of course, will change as I age, I'm fairly certain (My mom says - once you turn 50 - I'll get the power of Invisibility!!), but I think marriage is something that you need to think about and really prepare for together, as a couple. Let's say my beloved is 15-20 years younger than me and we have almost nothing in common except a similar sense of humor- it's going to take mutual commitment to get past our differences-that they live in a railroad car outside of Salinas and I'm not high. I think it's easy to "fall in love" with somebody who is amplified, well-lit and mostly scripted. But as a person who has asked my hardworking, warm, stylish, helpful clothes dryer to go out on a date- you've got to wonder if it's just infatuation, not a realistic interest based in compatibility.
What comedians have you come across in your travels that you would recommend to legion of people who think Dane Cook is very unfunny?
Well, I like Dane Cook- he has a nice face- but I would like to recommend the following in no particular order: Jackie Kashian, Jen Kirkman, Mike Birbiglia, Jimmy Pardo, Chris Hardwick, Hard and Phirm, Garfunkel and Oates, Jimmy Dore, Brent Weinbach, David Huntsberger, Marc Maron, Louis CK, Sarah Silverman, TigNotaro, Susan Rice, Bobbie Oliver, CharleyneYi and there are thousands more- GO SEE LIVE COMEDY IN YOUR COMMUNITY!!!!!
And as a final stupid question. You have a dog named "Bert" and Brian Posehn has a dog named "Ernie". Any relation?
Bert is a doctor and designer of menswear. Blossom is Catholic and walks around nude in a harness. They have not met "Ernie", but have seen photos and are open to contact.
Would you rather do a phone interview? Because I sure would. It would be a lot more fun, personal and not as awkward. I usually post the audio up on the site as well.
Oof. Rick. I can't talk on the phone anymore. I really, really can't. Well, maybe later. Could you call me at like- 4 PM (my time, pacific). Here's my home phone number which isn't for print but you can pretend it is and print something else other than 555-555-5751. I really hate talking on the phone and talking about myself. I'll interview you. Be ready for my questions. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR INTEREST AND THOUGHTFUL PREGUNTAS!!!
Maria
We actually did do a phone interview! Sort of. I was overly nervous and gave Maria a lot of wrong information about the city I live in. It's not so much an interview as just a conversation. You can enjoy it here.
And you know what? I really like what Carly from No 2 Drink Minimum is doing and I interviewed her to!
Carly, why did you move to Fort Worth?
I moved to Fort Worth because my apartment lease in New York was up and my sister invited me down here to get an apartment with her. I took her up on it because the New York market is so saturated with this amazing comedy scene, it’s really hard to get started there. Even though I only wanted to produce, almost every comedian there has their own show that they put on and it’s impossible to compete with shows whose bookers have amazing connections, like friends from SNL doing their shows for free. It also takes a lot of work to get shows up and running in NYC.
How long have you been doing No 2 drink Minimum? And is this your first event? if so, it's a pretty intense one.
No 2 Drink Minimum is just a bay-bay. About 3 months old. And this is its first event, yes. We go big or go home here at No 2 Drink Minimum. Most of the time we go home.
What are your goals with N2DM (ooh catchy) and plans for the future?
The initial goal for us was to create a live comedy resource for the NY and LA comedy scenes. There is just so much amazing stuff going on in these shows that have this sort of cult following, but it takes awhile to navigate and figure out what‘s going on and where, so I thought I could help speed up the process. Plus, I hate wasting money on ridiculously expensive covers and drink minimums.
Plans for the future include expanding the cities that we cover (cities we plan to add include Austin, Houston, San Francisco, Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia, and Atlanta). Also, as far as the production side of No 2 Drink Minimum, we hope to bring more comedians to alternative spaces as often as time and resources allow.
Anberlin (Good Records) I am only listing this show on the off-chance that you might buy something at Good Records that isn't completely terrible. I couldn't find a listing for this act playing anywhere else, so does that mean that Gee Rex (as old-schoolers call it) is actually a venue? There is a controversy over whether or not this emo rock band is "Christian," which should tell you all need to know about this whole affair. Who knows, Good Records may be overrun with young non-denoms still rocking bangs and plugs tonight. Oh, boy.
This is all-too-easy though. Even a frat boy could make fun of this band and go back to listening to Teengirl Fantasy. Yes, friends, these are the times we live in. Show is at 7 PM.
Also: I know you know you'll never believe it, but we do have a great interview coming up from one of our freelancers that I'm actually looking forward to.
It's hard to put into words the impact that Joe Meek has had on the past fifty years of pop music in a brief blog post. I am going to do what I can but I also recommend you download the two out-of-print collections I have provided below, read the book The Legendary Joe Meek: The Telstar Man by John Repsch and that you watch the fantastic Arena documentary The Strange Story of Joe Meek, conveniently embedded below.
Joe was one of those cats who seemed to have no sense of the world around him, or if he did he openly thumbed his nose at it. Meek's output as a producer in the early to mid sixties offers a seemingly endless treasure trove of twisted pop gems. Tales of teenager heartache infused with elements of the occult (which Meek was VERY interested in) and recording techniques that, then and now, defy logical thought.
Meek had been recording and engineering sessions for artist of all genres throughout the 50's but his most important work wasn't until the dawn of the sixties. It was then he opened up his in home studio where he would do all his recording, his way throughout the decade. Working in his own home, in his own element outside the watch full eye of studio execs allowed Meek the freedom to take risk and record those risk on tape.
Above all Joe Meek just didn't give a fuck in the studio. His experimentation with effects, recording tricks, instrument deconstruction and noise had nothing to do with a hard fought internal struggle to break down pop conventions (Brian Wilson, Syd Barret) and everything to do with manifesting the music that bopped in his brain . His disregard and eventual disdain for the mainstream hit factory had surprising positive results. The kids loved it and bought it in droves, many of those hits can be found on the collection posted here.
The main stream hits that Meek released mirror most his American counterpart and contemporary Phil Spector. Both were pop visionaries at a time when pop music was about as lame as it has ever been. Both sought to turn the idea of what "the kids" would be listening to upside down, but in very different ways. Both share a dirty and amateur sound. No great singers or crystal clear vocals, all heart and spunk without the studio refinement. Spector had his Wall of Sound and honed in on the precise elements that composed that sound. With each ground breaking and chart topping single Spector worked to refine that Wall of Sound. Meek took a different approach by never getting caught up on one idea, technique or approach. Instead he would constantly be experimenting and recording, painting as many pictures as he could with sound.
The naiveté inherent through out Meek's recordings is endearing like no other. There is an emotional directness shared by his contemporaries Burt Bacharach and Hal David coupled with the anti-establishment sounds of Lee Hazelwood and Billy Strange. Meek takes this all one step further with his informed but innocent spirit resulting in post modern, yet personal avant art that acts like The Residents, Talking Heads and even Beat Happening would later explore.
Meek's popularity began to wain in the mid sixties due to a "lurid sex conviction" which shook up his personal life and drew him into depression and even deeper into his fascination and paranoia with the paranormal. Joe would do things like talk to cats, record in graveyards and commit a murder suicide on the anniversary of his idol Buddy Holly's death. All of these things, along with The Rolling Stones, left Meek with his last hit and last breath in 1967.
But I know what you are really here for is the free music! It's Hard to Believe It is the best one disc collection of the man's work. It is missing some key tracks including a personal favorite The Blue Rondo's Little Baby. Also included is the out-of-print Vampires Cowboys Spacemen & Spooks, a 2CD collection of Meek instrumentals for those of you who can't handle pop music.
Other releases that are in print and recommended, once you realize you can't get enough include I Hear a New World, the 1960 space pop oddity that has more in common with The Residents than anything going on with his contemporaries at the time. Much later in his career the desire to produce more hits and recover money he never received for past hits, forced Meek to jump on the "beat" bandwagon. It was in this time he recorded some more straight forward (but classically Meek) Nuggets style garage tunes. These can be found on the collection Joe Meek's: Freakbeat: 30 Freakbeat Mob & R&B. And if anyone can hook me up with a copy of Joe Meek: The Alchemist of Pop, which seems the only place to find the track Jack the Ripper on CD, that would be most appreciated.
