Time for a state of the (indoctri)nation address, such as it is. In a bid to keep this interesting for all of us. To turn up stuff that you want to hear, see and well - hear and see. The emphasis is on directing you to the source. This may sound like repetition but as time grinds on - it bears to be said now and again. Been looking at the stats and we get a little over 7000 hits per month. Not too shabby for something that divnae actively canvas for business or ads or any of that other shite this interweb floods we with. Periodic considerations of doing another print issue have pretty much been crushed completely. I'm constantly reminded to never say never but never is the most likely timeframe. Apart from when I’m totally delusional. Did a wee experiment on myspace to find out if I'd get bombarded with info to pass on and never got more than maybe a half-dozen responses. Maybe this "tool" isn't as sharp as it’s alleged on the packaging.
Away from the pulsebeat of music etc, (hey Art!) the town centre here is up for redevelopment. Or what passes for a town centre. In reality, any soul the place had is long since gone in any sense of retailing or anything else. People go to the stripmalls now. It saves putting the heating on. They trudge around those hanger-size, will to live draining places for hours ala dawn of the dead. Actually Romero’s crew were far more savvy. Last Saturday morning, I took my completed “regeneration” comment form to the local library and deposited it in the box that lies in front of the crap display board with the supposed layout. I bet that somewhere there's one of those terrible "Money For Nothing" type fly-through presentations too. Anyway, let's leave that consideration in the meantime. Came out, looked across the road and noticed that the bingo hall had an agent sign outside. I duly contacted said agent and as of today, no info has been forthcoming.
Turns out that, because of the smoking ban, the place has closed. Long before it became a place to yell "house!", it was the local cinema. The place we went on a Saturday morning and/or afternoon. Ultimately it was the place we managed to sneak underage into our first X rated picture. I think the first one I saw was called
“Helga”, an, er,
“documentary”. However, I remember
“The Good Guys and The Bad Guys” better. Around 1970-ish when I was really wee. According to the
Scottish Cinemas site, it ceased to be a moviehouse in 1971. So, a little digging turned up a local report that offered the useful tripe –
“if it was knocked down it would allow greater access to the new Asda”. It looks like it’s attributed to a local councillor, but I have it on authority from that individual that it was not. The mentality that would even think about making such a bottom burp out loud far less in print is essentially what we’re up against. Not that opening it as an arts venue would be in any way sustainable but you’d think they’d want to retain some sense of history? You’d think. I’ve got a bee in my proverbial bunnet about this. It’s just another one of these symptoms. Maybe they should flatten the whole town, tarmac it. Make an even bigger car park for the supermarket wars to be fought out in. Maximum succour for the scumhordes. Some effort will be made to make sure that this building doesn’t come down without some noising up of
Historic Scotland and whatever other organisation that is supposed to muzzle those idiots that are inclined to bow down before the almighty buck. If the Bo'ness Hippodrome can be redeveloped then surely at least some stops can be extracted to keep the old Empire Electric going for a few years yet.
So, more music stuff coming up soon. Meanwhile, check out
Herbie...
If you're anywhere near the banks of the River Charles this weekend, then this is the hot ticket. A hopelessly oversubscribed moment in history. Wish I was there...
Long Gone John wishes it to be known that "my house is slowly being taken apart at the seams or so it seems...i'll be moving to olympia soon...a lot of my stuff has been shifted to the grand central art center in santa ana for a show called "pictures of the gone world" it opens this saturday (feb 3rd) and runs through march 18th...i went to see it today and all things considered it looks pretty cool...the film, "the treasures of long gone john" will screen twice saturday night at 6:00 and 8:30 (free to the public) also showing will be gregg gibbs new film, "the gone world" which i think is about anorexic penguins in the belgian congo or something like that...pass this along to concerned parties if you are able... thank you...thats it...like that...over and way the fuck out!!"
Mr H in Montana sez "Your future is before you unless you are turned around" and he's not wrong. And while you ponder that, consider this recommendation from the man...
Can You Handle the Fireball??
Feathered Apple have collected the works of Swiss Punk combo The Bastards onto one footlong platter entitled “Schizo Terrorist”. A 9 song legacy complete with that customary excellent liner note information that we’ve come to expect from this imprint. I’d never heard any of this stuff before but it certainly puts a lot of what was passed as punk rock here into perspective. As time goes on, the case is made that Europe was awash with great music at the time. The UK serves as the focus but I’m sure we haven’t heard the half of what is actually out there. Thanks to guys like Rolf we’re able to find out. The story of The Bastards is really quite incredible and you have to read it for yourself, you couldn’t make this stuff up. As with many of the sounds from territories outwith the UK, the sound didn’t conform to the brit template. It has traces of Australian and American music clearly founded in rock’n’roll or sixties beat. Here’s one case where it’s perfectly legitimate to let The Bastards grind you down.
“The Spirit Girls sound has been described as something of a cross between Sonic Youth, King Crimson and 17th Century French Romantic paintings”, it sez in the blurb. Well I never heard any of The Paintings stuff but I don’t recognise a lot of similarity with the other two. “Forever Free” is a concept piece that floats these souls through the imaginary landscapes en route to their billet in the afterlife. It has a folky edge tempered with that LA-pop ethic. It’s actually pretty unusual and coming as it does in some nifty digi-packaging it looks like something on Sympathy. I think it sounds like Sandy Denny just found out she was Buffy and has to deal with it… no actually that’s bollocks but I’m not sure this thing can be pigeonholed. “Milk Maid” (track 2) recalls Angel CC, mainly because of the accordion. Otherwise it has an almost classical rock feel. Not classic rock dumbass, more of a symphonic afterburn. My other immediate favourite was “Small Town” with it’s Ministry type industrial segue into Burundi drumming and back to the gothosphere. I imagine that this section is breathtaking in a live situ. “Haunted Horse” is one of the great titles, so it’s an extra that it’s a cool song also with a kind of toytown Suicideness about it. “Song for the Spirit Girls” would be Abby from NCIS’s favourite I think. The Spirit Girls have been kissed with a little of that David Lynch soundtrack fairy dust. As a whole “Forever Free” has that detached void feel pretty much down pat while still selecting the odd heartstring to pluck. Peculiar but well worth the effort. Also check out lead SG Marni Weber’s arthaus!
Del Rey and The Sun Kings “Battleship Potemkin” is a homage to the silent Eisenstien movie. The director had stated that he hoped that a new soundtrack for the film might be composed every 10 years. The film is now 82 years old or thereabouts and I think that onetime Savage Republic man Jackson Del Rey was horrified that the most recent attempt was by The Pet Shop Boys. This somewhat ambient score somehow seems more fitting and I wonder if there have actually been public screenings with this providing the sonic backdrop. As composition goes, the kraut-rockish elements interweave with more traditional instrumentation. I don’t have the credentials to even begin to tell you how this guy has succeeded in such an astronomical task. But he has.
17 Pygmies were active in the 80’s but I don’t recall them at all. Their musical stylings have been dubbed “arcanica” by themselves. Apparently it means no-hit wonders. This "13 Blackbirds/13 Lotus" doublepack isn’t something you can stick on and instantly become acquainted with. It’s intricate and practically baroque. Folk but not as you reporter is familiar with the form. The pastoral piano shards of “Bley” other-world music are better soaked up in a peaceful environment. I tried playing it loud but it made much more sense at a more gentle volume. Maybe they could come up with some kind of pod for you to climb into for best results. Like a flotation tank.
People have been asking what I make of the “new” Stooges track on their Myspace page. The answer is not much. I’m far more intrigued to hear Mike Watt’s contribution to the new Kelly Clarkson record.
