Hot Chip and Thom Yorke
July 30, 2006
Two great albums I bought recently have totally titallated me. Thom Yorke, "The Eraser" is a great step forward for the Radiohead Head. All of the songs capture a somewhat dark and tormented emotion, and do it with a great conviction. I feel drawn into this world of mechanical beats and haunting melodies, and hear sounds that I've never heard before. This is an album that pushes sonic frontiers and expands the realm of possibilities for music. Definitely check it out.
The other album I purchased is Hot Chip "The Warning". This is fun music; very synth heavy electro-pop, reminiscent of another favorite of mine, The Postal Service. Their Myspace page will give you a pretty good sense of their music--I recommend viewing the video for "Over and Over", then going to see them at South Street Seaport this Saturday August 4. I will be on the beach in Fire Island, but I would love to hear about this show, so please go and send me a report...
Vietnam, Laos, and Bali
July 30, 2006
OK, so I didn't pace myself very well with these, trying to space them out evenly throughout the month so that you might not be so overwhelmed with the amount of video available. But here we are with just 30 hours left in the month, so I'm forced to release the last three now. I hope you can still enjoy them all.
Vietnam is a beautiful country with a long and stunning coastline running all the way north from China to the Mekong Delta in the south. The cities are highly energized and buzz with the most incredible motorcycle traffic imaginable. What struck us the most, however, was seeing the "Vietnam War" from their perspective. Ho Chi Minh is worshipped as a god and their defeat of the American (and the French, and the Chinese...) army is a source of great national pride -- it united their country and allowed them to realize the communist government they had wanted for so long. The museums in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi depicted a gruesome war fought against a foreign aggressor using powerful and inhumane weapons. The pictures may be hard to look at, but we need to be reminded of wars casualties. Sometimes it is too easy to turn war into a numbers game and forget that every one is a human being killed by other humans. For What?
Part 4: Vietnam
Laos is quiet. So quiet. Everywhere you go, the silence befits the heavily buddhist culture. The temples are palaces and the monks walk through the streets in their orange robes quietly receiving alms. In this peace, I experienced one of the saddest moments of my life. Watching two young children walk among the tables in an outdoor restaurant area, picking scraps of food off people's plates, I was overcome with a feeling of undeserved privilege and inequality. How could my life have so much more opportunity than theirs? Why am I concerned with pursuits such as music and travel, while they are concerned with basic survival? This injustice was, at that moment, too much too bear and I began to cry. Alaina tried to console me, but I had completely lost control. It was hours before I regained my composure. Travelling in this region had taken a toll on me and while I had to accept that I was much wealthier than almost everyone living there, one simple moment made it so clear that this problem is not me vs. them, but humanity vs. itself. How can we make our world more fair and just for every living human? Maybe seeing the reality is a good first step; we need to recognize the severity of the situation and understand that something needs to change. If we are all committed to it, we can make a difference.
Part 5: Laos
Bali was our real "honeymoon" time. We are lucky to have a friend who lives there, operating an art gallery in Ubud, who shared with us some wonderful aspects of the island. The culure in Bali is rich, in part because of tourism, and in part because the people are so proud of their traditions. The music and dancing were beautiful and haunting displays of beliefs and commuinty. The beaches ranged from grotesquely touristy to infinitely empty, all of them sharing a balinese romantisicm. The ultimate honeymoon experience occurred in East Bali at the Rohutu Lodge, a one room villa on top of a hill operated by a family living in a nearby village. When we finally found it, we were disappointed to find it empty, but a few questions in the village led us to the family, who quickly sprang into action to set up the lodge, which had been vacant for about six months. The next few days were pure bliss, culminating in a dream I had our last night there where I was holding my own baby, named Bali, and feeling a new purpose in my life. I woke up crying beautiful tears.
Part 6: Bali
Cambodia
July 24, 2006
In many ways, Cambodia was our favorite country to travel in. The region has an incredible history dating back thousands of years, the height of its power still visible in the temples of Angkor. Unfortunately, since that time, wars have devastated the country. The civil war orchestrated by the Khmer Rouge during, after and because of the U.S. war in Vietnam is among the most heinous atrocities against humanity--a brutal and senseless genocide which aimed to destroy individual people in the name of The Organization, "Angka". It was the most evil extreme of communism. The country was raped of its resources and today is the poorest country outside of Africa. Yet somehow these people have a joy for life unparalleled in most of the world. Here is the third segment of our Honeymoon: Cambodia
US 2002
July 17, 2006
In the summer of 2002, Alaina and I packed up my pick-up and headed out to see this giant country of ours. We spent two months on the road and during that time we shot and edited videos on a laptop, which we then posted to the website along the way, whenever we could borrow somebody's phone line to upload them. It was, in retrospect, my first blog. Having changed web hosts recently, I've had to re-upload all my old videos (in higher quality), so I've put the first half online, and will work on Act 2 next. By the way, I wouldn't expect anyone to watch all the videos at once. Just pick a few locations that pique your interest and check them out; they can be viewed in any order.
US 2002. Enjoy.
FREE MUSIC!
July 16, 2006
New York in the summertime: you can complain about the heat and humidity, but you can not complain about the lack of free outdoor concerts. There is such a wide variety of music performed all over this city and almost all of it interests me. Unfortunately, my time is limited and I have to choose wisely, which I did this weekend. Saturday was the Siren Music Festival in Coney Island with all the indie rock you can handle. I had never heard most of the bands before, which makes it a great showcase. While I can't say any of the bands blew me away, I enjoyed seeing Tapes n' Tapes perform (even in the rain) and found the Scissor Sisters very entertaining, although their sound cut out completely towards the end of their set, leaving them dancing around on stage like silent clowns. You get what you pay for, I guess.
Today, I went to Central Park to see some great African music. Daby Toure from Senegal played some great reggae-inspired guitar, to which he added some percussive loops beat on the body of his acoustic/electric. Very groovin' trio that just seems to have a lot of fun playing on stage. Amadou and Mariam, a blind couple from Mali, were also very fun to watch, and more importantly, dance to. Something about African music (uhh, the rhythm?) just makes people want to shake their ass. The diverse crowd at Summer Stage was really cutting loose, in contrast to the semi-comatose, crossed-arms sway of the hipster scene at Siren. No surprises there, but it's nice to see people that actually look like they are enjoying themselves. I know which company I prefer...
Here is a video of this weekend's activities. The bands are, in order, Dirty on Purpose, The Cribs, Art Brut, Tapes n' Tapes, Scissor Sisters, Cyclone, Daby Toure, and Amadou & Mariam. Enjoy.
Ani, J.K. and Jon
July 14, 2006
I saw Ani DiFranco play in Central Park last night. I had never seen her live before, but Alaina, who went through a period of Ani obsession, was insistent the I needed to see her in concert. So I did, last night with Alaina's mom and her brother but sadly no Alaina, who was rehearsing for a show. Now I can recommend it to you: Go see Ani play. She is an amazing performer who keeps the audience spellbound with her voice and philosophical poetry. A strong-minded feminist, her audience is more female than male, and I might say more gay than straight. Most of them knew the words to every song. Everyone loves her and it's easy to see why when you spend an hour in her presence. Simply Beautiful Music.
I finally finished the sixth Harry Potter. I started reading them last summer on our honeymoon and basically haven't read anything else for the past year. Now I have to wait for the next and last one; sweat it out with everyone else. Feel the Anticipation. That's how we get pulled along by these great performers like Ani and J.K. Rowling: they make you want to listen because you might miss something if you don't. The moments before a great show are always exciting--the buzz of Anticipation. Now I've started another book that is hurtling me forward in an unstoppable way: Into Thin Air, by Jon Krakauer. Wow, this book is intense. I have read half of the book, up to the beginning of their Everest summit ascent, and I know that major, real and historical, disaster is about to strike: I can't avert my eyes. Great art consumes us like this, forces itself into our consciousness and does not retreat, becoming a part of our identity.
Fucking Shit in the Middle East. We are well on our way to World War 3. Too many guns, too much hate. Let's save humanity, people!
MUSIC TODAY
July 11, 2006
Wow. Today was a great day for me and music. First I went to see Brazilian Girls in Fort Greene Park. This is a four piece (Three guys and a girl from Brooklyn) who make beautiful music together. International, Sexy and Groovin' are three words that I think describe them well. I love their first album and look forward to hearing the new one in September. It was awesome to see them playing in the park, and gave me one of those "I love Brooklyn" moments that make me so happy to be living here. Check out their web site.
I also purched a CD/DVD today that blows my mind. It's called Congotronics 2: Buzz and Rumble fron the Urb'N'Jungle. It is a compilation of music from Kinshasa, Congo, that amplifies traditional trance music through raw electronics and speakers, supplemented with instruments as diverse as beer cans and hubcaps. The sound itself is incredibly distorted and powerful, similar in many ways to rock'n'roll, but the rhythm is what truly drives the music. Typical of African music, the polyrhythms created by these large groups are simple, repetitive, individual parts woven together to create an intricate, complex, and beautiful fabric. Check out their web site.
I believe that it is important for all music to be heard around the world. It makes this planet seem more intimate and interconnected, which makes world peace a necessary vision.
VICTORY!
July 9, 2006
Italia! World Champions! I absolutely loved watching the final between Italy and France today. What a spectacle, watched by more people worldwide (over one billion) than any other event. The attention paid to that little ball is unbelievable. The game was about as intense as it gets; 120 minutes tied at 1-1 then decided on a penalty kick shootout. What nerves! I was unbearably tense watching at The Gate, and I can't imagine what pressure those players must have felt lining up their kicks at the Stadium. But that's what it's all about; stepping up in the clutch and delivering, which is exactly what those five Italian kickers did, putting the ball in the back of the net every time. One French miss (two inches too high) and the cup belonged to Italy. Che bello!
I would hate for this to overshadow the great victory, but Zinedine Zidane's headbutt to the chest of Marco Materazzi was probably the most violent and disturbing action I've ever seen in sports. I've seen punches thrown and cleats planted in sensitive areas, but never anything as flagrant and vicious as that play. A sad way to end his remarkable career.
THAILAND
July 8, 2006
We landed in Thailand after a week in Japan, and it immediately felt different--slower, dirtier and very raw. We stayed in Bankok with Nick Grossman, who has been living there for three years. The city is hectic, and Nick provided a nice focus and direction for us during our short stay there. We would return to his house multiple times during the journey, as Bankok is a hub of Southeast Asia. We then spent four days on the island of Ko Chang, near the Cambodian border, for some relaxing "honeymooning". After four weeks of travelling through Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos, we returned to Thailand through the North and visited the city of Chiang Mai. Thailand, we discovered, was very well-developed compared to the rest of the region, with good infrastructure and lots of investment and construction happening everywhere. There is a small but very rich society, especially in Bankok, that stands out from the rest of the population, and seems to be leading the way economically for this "Asian Tiger" country.
Enjoy part two of our honeymoon, Thailand
INDEPENDENCE DAY
July 5, 2006
Here is some music I made last night.
EXPLOSIONS IN THE NIGHT
July 4, 2006
OK, so I guess I will give a shout out to America and it's "Independence", and also to my dad, who was born 58 years ago today. I saw a great display of fireworks from my roof tonight--really great show in lower Manhattan that was sync'ed with another show that looked like it was over in New Jersey. Very cool to see the same explosions miles apart, plus a complete panorama of amateur displays ("Fireworks are dangerous and illegal" read the sign coming over the Triboro Bridge) Nice work people of New York! Even if you weren't lighting them yourselves, you were definitely paying for the big show. Thanks!
Independence Day. As in, America's freedom from British oppression. Check out this wikipedia list of other countries' Independence Days. Amazing that this cycle of colonization, war and freedom has occurred in just about every country on earth. Ask yourself why it has to be this way, and if another pattern could be possible: Peace.
FORZA ITALIA!
July 4, 2006
I know I should be writing about the good old U.S. of A. on this Independence day, but Italy deserves the real celebration. They beat Germany (in Germany) 2-0 in the semifinals of the World Cup and will play the winner of tomorrow's France/Portugal game for the ultimate prize in sports. I may have said that I would be happy to see anybody win the tournament, but at this point it's Italy or bust. I lived in Florence for three months during my junior year and absolutely fell in love with the country. It is a beautiful place and people that champion the important things in life, like food, wine, art and sport. They are a very passionate population and they enjoy taking their time in savoring the finer things in life. Like football. I have seen many contests in all American sports, but I have never experienced anything like the Fiorentina soccer game I saw. The crowd sang and cheered in a quasi-religious fashion, unifying thousands of people in a common cause. It is pure passion, and Italians are not ashamed to show it to anyone.
And their food is THE BEST in the entire world. I won't enter the wine debate, but I can definitely say that Italian cuisine is unparalleled on earth.
The Azzurri are out to prove that their football has no match either, and I believe they will passionately declare that on Sunday. Park yourself in front of a television at 2:00 PM and see for yourself.
LAND HO!
July 3, 2006
I went to a great party this weekend! Alaina and I invited people up to The Land in Warwick, NY where we were wed one year ago. We cooked out and camped out and the weather worked out. Eric Willyard and Schyler Van Horn DJ'ed and just about everyone there played an instrument, so we had some amazing jams deep into the woodsy night. Blake Whitman made an incredible wedding video and I made a video of our honeymoon travels that were both shown.
It was Supergood.
And now it's July. July will see some changes around these pages. First there will be some minor construction on the History side of things, with some added navigational aids. Second will be newly released archival material featuring US: our cross country trip from 2003, and SUBWAY: underground music.
And Honeymoon Asia. This will be released in six parts; Japan, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, and Bali. That works out to one every five days, so stay tuned.
Here is Part 1: JAPAN
Here is the June Blog