Tuesday, September 28, 2004
Furry
Drunk with the Joy of Listening
About once every month or two I find a special song that breaks my heart every time I listen to it and I fall in love with the artist and fantasize about how if I met him/her/them we would have instant chemistry and become the best of friends because our minds and souls are so perfectly aligned. In other words, these are songs I really really like and maybe you would like them too, and it would be worth both our whiles for me to post them up here so you can listen. Its possible you would go through your life never hearing these songs if someone did not sit you down and say, here, listen to this. I used to have friends I would do this with, we would take turns playing most fabulous things for one another (hi! i know you're out there somewhere). These people have been replaced by the internet and some wonderful mp3 blogs (check my "listen" links for my favorites).
On to my current "special song" ...
2/15 -- The Marquis de Tren and Bonny Billy (this is Mick Turner, guitarist of The Dirty Three, and Will Oldham)
This is the first song from the album Get on Jolly in which all song titles are just numbers.
This song sounds as if it is sneaking up on you, quietly following you, testing the waters before it shows itself to you. Something is playing backwards, but it's hard to identify. It is dissonant and yet melodic at the same time and its tenderness is so beautiful. Will wanders though with his delicate shaky voice and sings:
When you ask me to sing,
it feels like my heart will burst with pride,
and I look at your face,
and tears come to my eyes.
All thats harsh and wrong,
in my life melts into one sweet song,
and my love spreads wings,
like a glad bird flying over the road.
I know you take pleasure in my singing,
I know that only when I sing do you hear me,
cause then I touch things I can't touch,
I touch parts of you that I can't really touch.
And drunk with the joy of singing,
I forget myself and call you my friend.
I'm here to sing you songs,
in your room I have a corner seat,
in your world I have no work to do,
my life can only break out in songs that have no purpose.
On to my current "special song" ...
2/15 -- The Marquis de Tren and Bonny Billy (this is Mick Turner, guitarist of The Dirty Three, and Will Oldham)
This is the first song from the album Get on Jolly in which all song titles are just numbers.
This song sounds as if it is sneaking up on you, quietly following you, testing the waters before it shows itself to you. Something is playing backwards, but it's hard to identify. It is dissonant and yet melodic at the same time and its tenderness is so beautiful. Will wanders though with his delicate shaky voice and sings:
When you ask me to sing,
it feels like my heart will burst with pride,
and I look at your face,
and tears come to my eyes.
All thats harsh and wrong,
in my life melts into one sweet song,
and my love spreads wings,
like a glad bird flying over the road.
I know you take pleasure in my singing,
I know that only when I sing do you hear me,
cause then I touch things I can't touch,
I touch parts of you that I can't really touch.
And drunk with the joy of singing,
I forget myself and call you my friend.
I'm here to sing you songs,
in your room I have a corner seat,
in your world I have no work to do,
my life can only break out in songs that have no purpose.
Tuesday, September 21, 2004
Domestic
This is my overly melodramatic entry for Photo Friday. I wasn't even going to post this, because it is so ridiculous, but I have to laugh at myself. And you do get to see my beautiful new red floor.
These are even worse. They are so silly, I mean, who mops sitting down? The point with this photo shoot was basically that I was feeling much lethargy in regards to my domestic responsibilities.
Monday, September 20, 2004
Brown Bunny Ramble
It is a shame that I have waited so long to write about The Brown Bunny (i saw it back on sep 10 when it opened in philly). There is so much emotional distance between me and the experience that I am afraid the full fever of my reaction in diluted.
Let me start by saying that this is not a film that i would recommend for the average person, but if you have similar world view to mine (i think i mean -- if you are plagued by desperation and loneliness) , you must go and see this. It is a beautiful and hauntingly sad experience if one is in the right frame of mind, if not, it could be mocked straight through. This film would be bullied on the playground.
I read a lot about this movie before I went to see it: reviews, interviews with vincent, press about the billboard and the mess at cannes, and on and on. Months went by and I thought it might not make to theaters in philadelphia, but eventually it was coming. i had been feeling a really connection with vincent and even made an attempt to interact with him via email. I sent him a nice letter (filled with too much praise) and some photos of myself (he likes to see who he's talking to) including this one (he did ask for nudes)
All i got was the reply. "Thank you for the photos. You have the most pretty butt." so, i will just have to be content with the knowledge that Vincent Gallo has seen my bottom and likes it and stop having fantasies about how he could complete my empty life (or more honestly - devastate me after a complicated and difficult love affair).
Anyway, i attended the film with the expectation that it might be very boring. i was half expecting to be disappointed and waiting for it to end. The first five minutes validated this feeling -- i wasn't enjoying myself. The Roxy is a very small, old, lofi theatre. The screen is midget-sized and the chairs squeak. The movie was very quiet (i don't think this was due to the Roxy's bad sound system) and the man behind me was chewing popcorn loudly. The first scene simply motorcycles going around and around the track, their din/drone fading in and out. This race had been cut in length, but it was still too long for me. I was bored.
It was the only time I would be bored during this film. Reviewers had given me the impression that noting happened during this film, but that was so far from the truth. I was captivated by the sheer voyeuristic feeling - the quiet grew on me, the over/underexposed film and the rough cropping made me think of self-portraiture. There was really a sense that no one was behind the camera for much of it, especially on the driving parts, as if vincent had just propped it up as her drove, alone, across the nation. LONELINESS is key to this movie and watching it as an outsider works best. I left the theatre, surrounded by the city and crowds of people and felt unable to make a connection with anyone. I did as I usually do, watched them and searched their faces (some of them had laughed inside) and couldn't find what I was looking for and walked on alone.
I don't want to say too much about plot specifics (the ending relies heavily on a surprise twist that is cheesy in theory, but hit me hard and left me weeping), but here are a couple photos (Courtesy of the Vincent Gallo Appreciation Page ) and my thoughts.
The salt flats filmed are beautiful and I want to go visit them. I love that immense vast emptiness and got a bit of a taste headed to the Canyonlands in Utah, but there were always mountains in the distance.
Daisy's parents reminded me eerily of Mary's parents in Eraserhead. Did anyone else feel this? Not specifically related, but damaged in a similar way.
The sex scene is graphic yes, but this only increased the intensity. There is an overwhelming feeling of need and insecurity and these two are so beautiful together, fragile, broken, deseparate.
Think thats most of what I wanted to say, but i'm very interested in what the rest of you think.
related good suff: Honey Bunny Video sorry, this has been removed
Let me start by saying that this is not a film that i would recommend for the average person, but if you have similar world view to mine (i think i mean -- if you are plagued by desperation and loneliness) , you must go and see this. It is a beautiful and hauntingly sad experience if one is in the right frame of mind, if not, it could be mocked straight through. This film would be bullied on the playground.
I read a lot about this movie before I went to see it: reviews, interviews with vincent, press about the billboard and the mess at cannes, and on and on. Months went by and I thought it might not make to theaters in philadelphia, but eventually it was coming. i had been feeling a really connection with vincent and even made an attempt to interact with him via email. I sent him a nice letter (filled with too much praise) and some photos of myself (he likes to see who he's talking to) including this one (he did ask for nudes)
All i got was the reply. "Thank you for the photos. You have the most pretty butt." so, i will just have to be content with the knowledge that Vincent Gallo has seen my bottom and likes it and stop having fantasies about how he could complete my empty life (or more honestly - devastate me after a complicated and difficult love affair).
Anyway, i attended the film with the expectation that it might be very boring. i was half expecting to be disappointed and waiting for it to end. The first five minutes validated this feeling -- i wasn't enjoying myself. The Roxy is a very small, old, lofi theatre. The screen is midget-sized and the chairs squeak. The movie was very quiet (i don't think this was due to the Roxy's bad sound system) and the man behind me was chewing popcorn loudly. The first scene simply motorcycles going around and around the track, their din/drone fading in and out. This race had been cut in length, but it was still too long for me. I was bored.
It was the only time I would be bored during this film. Reviewers had given me the impression that noting happened during this film, but that was so far from the truth. I was captivated by the sheer voyeuristic feeling - the quiet grew on me, the over/underexposed film and the rough cropping made me think of self-portraiture. There was really a sense that no one was behind the camera for much of it, especially on the driving parts, as if vincent had just propped it up as her drove, alone, across the nation. LONELINESS is key to this movie and watching it as an outsider works best. I left the theatre, surrounded by the city and crowds of people and felt unable to make a connection with anyone. I did as I usually do, watched them and searched their faces (some of them had laughed inside) and couldn't find what I was looking for and walked on alone.
I don't want to say too much about plot specifics (the ending relies heavily on a surprise twist that is cheesy in theory, but hit me hard and left me weeping), but here are a couple photos (Courtesy of the Vincent Gallo Appreciation Page ) and my thoughts.
The salt flats filmed are beautiful and I want to go visit them. I love that immense vast emptiness and got a bit of a taste headed to the Canyonlands in Utah, but there were always mountains in the distance.
Daisy's parents reminded me eerily of Mary's parents in Eraserhead. Did anyone else feel this? Not specifically related, but damaged in a similar way.
The sex scene is graphic yes, but this only increased the intensity. There is an overwhelming feeling of need and insecurity and these two are so beautiful together, fragile, broken, deseparate.
Think thats most of what I wanted to say, but i'm very interested in what the rest of you think.
Saturday, September 18, 2004
Work must be Balanced by Play
Friday, September 03, 2004
Because He Says So
Bad Bad Bush
I needed a little cheering up after watching Bushie's speech last night. How did he make thing sound so good. Except for the time spent bashing Kerry, he sounded like a pretty nice guy.
Don't be fooled!
Bush in 30 Seconds gives us some hilarious short films made by people like you and me who realize who the real Bush is and what he is up to. I especially like the series If the Bush Administration was your roommate.
Don't be fooled!
Bush in 30 Seconds gives us some hilarious short films made by people like you and me who realize who the real Bush is and what he is up to. I especially like the series If the Bush Administration was your roommate.
