The Watch List

Listening:

1. Fever Marlene - Milwaukee, Wisconsin is home to "the best unsigned band in the midwest". On heels of releasing their debut album, Civil War, FM will be in Chicago at Schubas on Monday, November 5th. They are rumored to put on an incredible show so don't pass it up. Listen to: Civil War (mp3)

2. Sam King - Sincere and soothing sounds with comical undertones. Sam King is from Fayetteville, Arkansas and he is also a painter and co-founder of Painting Was A Dinosaur. He released his latest album Two over the summer. This track is from his 2005 release The baby & the bathwater. Listen to: 10Years (mp3)

3. Prints - Pure joy, wrapped in little tiny mentholated and sticky cough drop wrappers. They just make you smile ok! They are slightly mysterious but very enjoyable. You can find their debut on Temporary Residence Limited. Listen to: Too Much Water (mp3)

Reading:

1. "Interview with Person Who is Alive: Blake Butler" conducted by Sam Pink - This is from the surreal blog run by Sam Pink (aka Dave De Fina), and it contains the strange and rambling interactions of two very nice writers.

2. "Seventeen Points in Which Each Point Is to Be Ignored" by Thomas Wauhob - Any story in list form is inherently more interesting.

3."Plodding Headlong Against" by Matt Maxwell - The story is really quite good, but the title is great.

4. Isaiah Chapter 40 - The incredible ability to rotate and spin the text in a 3-D format with Java Chronotext. This is pretty cool, but I admit it was challenging to read.

Wishing:

1. Dan May "Thief" - Dan has a series of print available over at BlueFlip Art, but I am partial to this one. It mixes the scary and the sweet, and the scene is one to remember. $23.95

2. Sun Jars - Designed by Tobias Wong, Made with a traditional Mason jar and high tech energy efficient lighting! Captured inside the jar are a highly efficient solar cell, rechargeable battery and low energy LED lamps. When the jar is placed in sunlight the solar cell creates an electrical current that charges the battery over a few hours. This energy is then used at night to power the three LED lamps inside the jar. $28.96

3. Jim O'Shea's first chapbook, Ghost Scenes on my Mind's Eye, is now available from Scintillating Publications. $6

Getting:

1. Fader Issue 49 - The November issue of Fader has two very different cover, one of Spank Rock and the other with Deerhunter. That should tell you a little about the content of the issue as well.

2. HonestMag Issue 3 "Never Trust a Hipster" - Chicago driven, but globally influenced, HonestMag has it all. This month's issue feature a great interview with The Cool Kids!

Watching:

1. The new Panda Bear video for Comfy In Nautica, it makes me want to play Skate or Die!
2.. Ectype's End is a fast-paced and visually charged ride that combines hand-drawn characters with photographed locations. This is a wonderful animated short that you really have to see for yourself.