Band of the Week

Murder Mystery

There comes a time in your life when you have to determine whether you are in or if you are only going to pretend that you are in. Everyone has a dream, it may be a secret passion or it may be a visible goal, but regardless it is a dream. The path to fulfill this dream is rough and many times filled with tough decisions and steep risks. As a young band just starting out there maybe be no greater decision than that of touring. The most effective way to build a following is touring, but jobs may be lost in the process. Nevertheless, the band pours their resources into producing a professional studio album and they hit the road. They fill their sets with passion and hope to reach a few new fans in the audience.

This is exactly what New York's Murder Mystery is preparing to do as they set out on their first nation wide tour to promote the release their wonderful debut, Are You Ready for the Heartache Cause Here it Comes this January. Their debut album is packed with energetic pop and consistently clever melodies. Now they plan to venture out of New York for the first time and strive for something bigger.

Recently, Jeremy Coleman (Lead Vocals/Guitar) of Murder Mystery was kind enough to answer a few of my questions regarding the tour and the band in general.

Orange Alert (OA): Everyone loves a good 'Murder Mystery', but how did you guys decide on that as a band name?
Jeremy Coleman (JC): There's no real exciting story. Its just a name that's got a nice ring to it and it was the first name we could all agree wasn't terrible,which was surprisingly hard to find.
OA: Your debut album, Are you Ready for the Heartache Cause Here it Comes, was independently produced, but looks incredibly polished and professional.
JC: It probably looks professional because you have to have cd's duplicated at a pro company that has professional quality standards.So even though we are a tiny band, we probably used the same company as Bon Jovi to actually manufacture the cd's, which is probably why it looks decent. Its also why we sound exactly like Bon Jovi and use the same hairspray as Richie Sambora.

OA: I love how "Love Astronaut" has been incorporated into your logo,t-shirts, everything. That song is your most "electronic" song on album, are there plans to incorporate that sound into more of your music?
JC: Thanks. Yeah, I'd really like to do more. I listen to a lot of electronic stuff and I've been thinking a lot about this lately. I'm in the market for a good beat making/sampling computer program that can also track live instruments, but don't know which to use. If you have any suggestions, I'd like to hear em. Or if you have free copies of programs, I'd love to "borrow" them.

We never intended to make "Love Astronaut" a signature song or anything. One of my friends said to me just recently, "I love that you made the Love Astronaut a part of the branding." I just said,"Uhhhhh..." I guess some bands think long and hard about how to market themselves but we aren't one of those bands.

OA: It is great that all four members receive writing credit on the album. How is the song writing process handled?
JC: Usually I just bring a song to practice or send a demo to the others. Kevin wrote a song on the album too. He sent us a demo, we familiarized ourselves with it, then we played it in practice. Adam has started writing more songs now too and he sings one in concert. It usually goes something like that – one person writes a song and then everyone writes their own parts to it.

OA: As the band prepares to embark on a cross country tour it leads me to wonder if Murder Mystery is the bands full-time job? If it is not, what are some of the jobs held by the band?
JC: No, Murder Mystery isn't anyone's full-time job right now. We are hoping to get some press for this tour and build up enough momentum that we could survive off the band alone, but that isn't the way it is now. I work a part-time job and give guitar lessons, Kevin is a bartender/waiter at a hip restaurant, and both Adam and Laura had to quit their full-time jobs for this tour. So we are putting all our eggs into this one basket, which as everyone knows, always works out.

OA: What's next for Murder Mystery?
JC: Well, we got that national tour coming up in January and February. I've never really seen most of America, so I'm looking forward to it. And we're always writing and working on music, so a second album is definitely in the works. That's what I'm really looking forward to. I really want to get in the studio and make an awesome album, so that's hopefully gonna happen in the near future. And I want to the first man to pose nude for Tiger Beat magazine.

Bonus Questions:
OA: What has been your strangest concert moment?
JC: Man, I'm glad you asked this. The other night we played a party in Philly and Kevin was eating a blowpop as we played. It came time for him to sing his song so he had to take it out and put it down somewhere, so I said to the audience, "who wants to suck on kevin's blowpop during his song" or something equally perverted, and like 5 girls volunteered. One girl came and took it from him and put it in her mouth then took it out and gave it to another girl who was begging her for it. Man that was wonderful. I'm still giddy about it. The show was being taped by the venue, so I demanded they send me that moment.I don't care about the rest of the show, but that moment was hysterical. Its going on our website. It'll be our only video. It'll be our "Thriller."

OA: Where did the two statues on the cover come from? They really couldn't be in a better pose as it relates to the theme of the album.
JC: The cover photo was taken by a friend of ours, but wasn't initially intended to be our album cover. He bought the statues at a model train supply store. They are supposed to be waiting for a train, but they seem to just be having an insanely awkward interaction, just like the ones I tend to have.


Are You Ready for the Heartache Cause Hear it Comes
Who Doesn't Wanna Give Me Love?/In a Sentimental Mood/Love Astronaut (mp3)/Think Of Me/Honey Come Home (mp3)/Cold, Hard Workin' Man/Tell Me I'm Your Man/Baby, You Can Write Me a Letter/What My Baby Said/Huggin'/Sooner Or Later/It's All True


For more information on Murder Mystery check out their website, and to preorder you copy of their debut album go here.

Writer's Corner

The backyard of Noah's childhood home

Noah Cicero

He is a genius with magic balls!

Over the last few days I've been trying to come up with a good way to introduce this weeks author, but I really couldn't come up something to top Noah's preface to his response to my questions. I could talk about his novel's (The Human War, The Condemned, or Treatise) or his collaborative novel with Tao Lin or his frantic and blunt interpretation of human interactions, but my commentary on these fine works would simply not blend with the interview that follows.
Here is how it all started:
"Jason before I get interviewed I want to tell you about the last several hours of my life on this planet. I was going to go to a party. The girl throwing the party kept telling me to come, I think she knows I don't have friends. I got pumped up about it. I brought clothes with me to work to change. Gina Badass kept telling me she was going to be there. I convinced myself that life was going to be great. The girl lives in some strange place outside of Warren, and it was dark and I couldn't find where she lived. Now this is the existential question: who do I blame? Was it the fault of directions, I wrote them out instead of printing them out with the map, should I have printed them out from mapquest? There was also directions the girl left at the restaurant, should I looked at the directions to see if they differed from mine, if there was a fact in them mine were lacking. Or was it because the streets were dark and perhaps a sign could not be seen, but for sure if I had a cell-phone I could have called her and she would have led me to her house quite easily. But I can't get a cell-phone because I can't afford one because I'm lazy and won't do something with my life.

So my question who do I blame? Who is responsibility for me ruining my night. but you know I am going to blame and who I think most people will blame, it'll be the town she lived in for not properly lighting their street signs. Why do I choose this? because it will help me sleep better. Existentialism.

So I'm currently in a very pissed state, but coming home crying jean rhys tears seeing that someone wanted to interview cheered me up a bit. There is nothing better than an interview, better than sex. If a person only gets interviewed once in their whole life, they will remember it. A truest form of validation except for maybe a general sending millions to die and they go without asking and die."

Here is my interview with Noah Cicero.

Orange Alert (OA): There has been a recent push to get your novel Burning Babies, a novel you wrote a few years ago, published. What originally happened back 2005 that caused this book to go unpublished? What do you need fans and readers to do to assist in the campaign?
Noah Cicero (NC): Burning Babies was supposed to my Season in Hell. Maybe it still will be, that makes sense then if hasn't become famous. I told the truth in that book, I wrote it like it happened. Reality stripped of all notions. the Beatniks, they said they were "stark naked" and had their "naked lunch", but they still had the notions, they weren't naked. They weren't like us, tao, nick, me, Bear parade, they were escaping, they weren't in terror, they had something different though, they could see what the world was becoming, the revolutionary road world of sprawl and bread for everyone, they were a last "howl" before the Last Man fully came.

Burning Babies is kind of Gonzo and sad, it has parts that are plays, parts resembling poems, but it is all prose, all fiction. I don't care, no one cares about me, so why should I take part in some form. I want to rip people's heads off and shit down their throats. That's my desire. You want to know what happened? Why doesn't Burning Babies exist, it had several chances, i think three total, but bad shit went down. Bad shit can go down when you are writing about fucked people, writing fucked sentences, and being actually fucked at the same time.

OA: I recently read the first chapter of Burning Babies, and started punching myself in the face. Do you get that reaction often? Also, I enjoyed the little note to your mother at the end. Can you give us an idea of what the rest of the book is like?
NC: You should punch yourself in the dick. Thank you, that is the best compliment I have had in awhile. I try not to hear people reactions, I don't like it. I actually don't like having my book reviewed at all. I don't like good or bad reviews, they both piss me off, and the fact I to get validated by someone else. I don't need your validation, I know how big my pecker is. Most reviews are assholes sitting in a room trying to write clever lines to feel great about being a worthless shit. I'm a worthless shit, I write horrible lines, but not out of cleverlessness, or some desperate need to get validated.

There is no validation in the universe. There is no justice or fairness. go outside and look at a tree, you think that tree gives a fuck about anybody, no. Humans they put themselves in the center of the universe. there is no center. There is a tree and its roots eroding into the soil, my fingers eroding the keys of the computer, dust collecting in the corners of your bedroom, and a fat woman sweating somewhere thinking about taco bell.

my mother is a piece of shit. I wrote that because she always told me to put a suicide at the beginning. She was every stupid notion this culture has compacted like dried shit in one human.

the rest of the book is about how I should kill myself but I don't, because I have this dream, this lie I tell myself, that someday, that some moment will come and there will be love, and you know sometimes it does come, that feeling, that overcoming feeling that someone loves you and someone will let you love them back, oh for so long, no one would let me love them.

go here The Legend of Burning Babies Post on oct 8th. There are some stories there, go to goodreads, listen, Burning Babies will not die, Burning Babies is transcendent, you can't sit on or shoot Burning Babies, Burning Babies is here, it will rise, like a thousand suicide bombers on your momma's pussy.

OA: Recently you reorganized and reposted the book your wrote with Tao Lin, Hamster, which is available for free on the Hamster blog. How was this book written, and what was your role? How were the decisions made as to which chapter would be posted when? It looks like the first post was Chapter 9.
NC: I wrote a chapter, then Tao wrote one. HAMSTER is about a lot of things, i think we say more things about culture, dialectal materialism concerning the Global Economic structure than Chomsky says in his 400 books.

OA: How did you decide to make Treatise available for free download? Do you find that people are still purchasing the physical product? Do you see PDF downloads playing a bigger role in the future?
NC: I'm not concerned with if people buy it or not, I haven't checked to see if anyone has bought in months. I'm not concerned with that. I don't know what will happen in the future.

OA: Who would you say are some of your biggest literary influences?
NC: With every book it changes. I'm young or was young when I wrote those, I still hadn't had my influences cemented down. My old influences were Proust and Beckett, Kerouac, and Dostoevsky. Now, they are like Chekhov, Richard Wright, and no one. I don't care anymore. I used to know this stripper named Aries, and she would stick her finger in her nose and yell like an ass, "I don't give a fuck." That's how I feel when I write.

OA: What's next for Noah Cicero?
NC: I have Burning Babies and a novel called The Insurgent in submission status, hopefully the places will take them. If they don't I will submit them. my plan is to go back to college, finish, and go live out west

Bonus Questions:

OA: Coffee? If yes what is your favorite type of coffee and where is your favorite coffee spot?
NC: My favorite straight out coffee is Waffle House's coffee. It tastes good and helps me shit. I like starbucks caramel frappacino thing. Somebody should write how I am an asshole for going to starbucks, well, somebody should come to where i live and try to find some tasty coffee. There is one good locally owned coffee house here and the guy who owns it wanted to kill me because I read Italian princess while there was a bunch of children there.

OA: What type of music do you enjoy, and who are some of your favorite musicians?
NC: I really like early Metallica albums. I didn't say Metallica present tense because whoever Metallica is now is not who I like. They are like old write guys with money now. They were young once and wanted to kill people, and they told people they wanted to kill people with killer riffs and sweet finger tapping solos. I lay in bed for hours and listen to Master of Puppets, I become the music, I am notes, it takes me away, it is a release.

I like Sunny Day Real Estate's Diary album. that is the greatest album ever, like ever, that's true, now if anyone asks you what is the best album ever, what do you say, "Sunny Day Real Estate's Diary.' and when they ask why, "Noah Cicero said so sir, he is a genius with magic balls."

For more information on Noah Cicero please visit his website

Artist of the Week

Tessar Lo

There is inevitably that moment in life when everything is moving around you, rushing with the unnecessary busyness and momentary chaos, but then everything stops. You glance down or step aside and painfully collect your thoughts hoping for clarity. The precious clarity that seemed to come quicker in youth, slowly breaks through the murky, lethargic routine and gives a small amount of hope. Tessar Lo lives in that moment, or at least studies that moment in great detail.

Scarborough, Canada is home to this Indonesia born artist who allows culture, peace, and complexity to intermingle in his work. He graduated from Sheridan institute’s first BAA illustration class, and quickly began to utilize the knowledge he gained to create a world new world for himself.

Recently, Tessar took some time out to answer a few of my questions regarding his work.

Orange Alert (OA): How would you describe your paintings?
Tessar Lo (TL): My paintings are the kinds of things I find beautiful and natural to me. I try to paint things that are momentary and surreal, in suspension. I love to include elements that are sometimes tense but peaks our interest and curiosity. I am fascinated with the idea of aging and wearing- and the changing of the meaning of images over time. In terms of literal content, I like to depict nature, the idea of Eden as paradise paired with the changing sky, animals and mostly, young people.

OA: In a recent interview you used the phrase "quiet beauties" to describe the role of Asian philosophy in your work. Many of your scenes seem to fit that description perfectly, as they are quiet moments, usually troubling or uneasy moments in the lives of your subjects. Are there particular moments in your life that you are reflecting on when you create this images or are this purely dreams or fictional scenes?
TL: I think it would be unwise for me to say that my work is outside of the life I live; while that is true however, it’s important to know that my life is not always quiet, uneasy and troubling. Rather, it’s probably due to my desire for quietness, uneasiness and trouble in my own life that my work often includes them. This is because amidst difficult and troubling times, a moment of acceptance and clarity usually follows- in that comes change and more importantly, growth. That still, pensive moment of “dealing” is so honest- there is no denying its significance and beauty. Incidentally, while I am dealing with my own things in life, my work is part of the change and growth that develops out of it. While I choose to use dream-like imagery and it may not be an exact representation of what’s on my mind, it is the underlying content of the picture that keeps my work from being purely fictional.

OA: Age seems to play a big role in your work. Whether it is the sadness or loneliness of old age or the confusion and innocence of youth, how do you utilize the various stages of life in your work? You seem to focus a little more on youth, what is it about that time in life that is so interesting to you?
TL: I try to use age as an archetype tool. It is very simple most of the time; seniority is associated with positive things like wisdom and experience and negative things like, deterioration and physical weakness. Conversely, good things associated with youth are things like, innocence, passion and freedom, contrasted with bad things like impatience and hard-headiness. Depending on the context, I try to use age to communicate these human characteristics.

I focus more on youth because I am still a youth. Youth has a freshness and unexpectedness to it that is exciting and mysterious all at once. As far as I can remember I have never been an old man, so I can’t account for many of the wisdoms and experiences that I imagine and older person would possess. When I am depicting an older person, I am often trying to depict other worldliness, time and great wisdom.

OA: When setting out to create a new piece where do you typically begin? How does that process usually flow?
TL: Many times images appear in my mind, they may be a combination of my experiences, the things I’ve seen, etc. Some of these images are striking and important to me- they are the ones I feel strongly about putting on paper. Lately I have been trying to be more intuitive- starting pieces without a lot of roughs- not because I deny the importance of preliminary work, but because recently things have been changing so much as I go along that I end up drifting from the sketch anyway.

In lieu of having too tight a study, my preliminary work these days consist more of media exploration and design. I write more often- concepts and notes on composition and method; hoping to be able to apply these philosophies directly and consistently, no matter what my piece is about. It’s also because I believe in the impermanence of the work, and “happy mistakes” that bring out the best of all work- sticking to a tight rough may deter you from discovering something amazing hidden in your own abilities and the work itself.

OA: How much time do you spend on naming your pieces? I love all of the names that you have come up with, but many artists tend down play the titles of their pieces. Do you feel the names of a piece can affect the way it is viewed?
TL: Thank you. I don’t spend a whole lot of time thinking about titles, I think titles should come naturally. There have been times in the past, after finishing a painting/drawing I’d be at a lost for words, so it would be called, “Untitled”. While I do believe that titles and names can change the context of the work, I don’t think it’s something that should be forced.

OA: What's next for Tessar Lo?
TL: I have been involved and will be involved in group shows peppered throughout the west coast through to early next year. But my focus right now is preparing for my two-person show with Chris Devera at project: gallery in Culver City, LA for February 2008.

Bonus Questions:

OA: Coffee? If yes, what is your favorite type of coffee and where is your favorite coffee spot?
TL: Yes! I love coffee. I am Canadian, so I love Second Cup coffee, Sumatran blend is one of my favourites but that’s my bias. Also, Tim Horton’s coffee late at night is just amazing.

OA: I've read that you work late at night and listen to music. Who are some of your favorite musicians to listen to while working?
TL: I know a lot of people say this, but I listen to all kinds of music. Lately it has been CBC radio 3 online, http://radio3.cbc.ca/ it’s so fresh. I actually grew up on hip-hop and r & b, but it’s not something I can listen to too much while I’m working. When I’m painting at night, I like music that can challenge and soothe me- I love anything Sufjan Stevens, Peter Bjorn and John, Ratatat, Cornelius’ SENSUOUS is incredible, Bjork. I’m also heavy into world music- particularly latin and Brazilian jazz, Cesario Evora, Jobim, Pedro Ferrer, Caetano Veloso. I used to listen to a lot of taiko drumming..

For more information on Tessar Lo please visit his website, and while you are there check out the incredible prints he has for sale.

New Release Tuesday

Music:

Citay - Little Kingdom Listen to: First Fantasy (mp3)
Grizzly Bear - Friend Ep

Minipop - A New Hope Listen to: Like I Do (mp3)

Oh Astro - Champions of Wonder Listen to: Hello Fuji Boy (mp3)

Operation Ivy - Operation Ivy

Kelley Stoltz - Your Reverie b/w Owl Service (single)

Clipd Beaks - Hoarse Lords Listen to: Melter (mp3)

The Buddyrevelles - Don't Quit Listen to: Moods (mp3)

DVD:

I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry

Ratatouille

Deck the Halls

Sicko

Monday Morning Mix

This weeks mix is inspired this fun an colorful painting by Portland artist Ryan Bubnis. It features Ghostland Observatory, Spoon, Wooden Dinosaur, Le Loup, Girl Talk, and more... enjoy "The Seal, The Snake, and The Stranger".

Artwork: "The Seal, The Skull and The Stranger" by Ryan Bubnis

Orange Alert's Music Minute

This was a week for signings:

Bon Iver signs with Jagjaguwar Listen to: Skinny Love (mp3)
No Kids sign with Tomlab Listen to: For Halloween (mp3)
Russian Circles sign with Suicide Squeeze Listen to: Death Rides a Horse (mp3)
Radiohead signs with XL Recordings
Morrissey also announced that he is signing a new record deal, but he has not revealed the label.

Flying White Dots is a DJ out of Brighton, England and two weeks ago he released one of the most remarkable mashup albums I've heard im a long time. "Into The Great Unknown" is more atmosheric then most mashup albums, drawing inspiration from artists like The Orb and KLF. It samples a wide range of sounds including Beck, Damon Albarn, Plaid, Ennio Morricone, The Cure, Marvin Gaye and Spiritualized and at one point mixes Squarepusher with Elton John, all pieced together with some trippy sound effects to take you on a journey.

You can download the album here, and you can find more about FWD in my interview with him coming later this month.

As you know, the Annuals / Manchester Orchestra tour has officially begun. In celebration, they are offering a chance to enter the official MANNUALS MASHUP CONTEST over at PureVolume.com. Here's the deal: you take an Annuals song, mash it up with a Manchester Orchestra song, and enter for a chance to win an acoustic Epiphone guitar signed by both bands, a copy of Annuals' Be He Me and Manchester Orchestra's I'm Like a Virgin Losing a Child, the bands' exclusive split 7" (only sold at their shows) and a limited edition lithograph of the 7" artwork.

Five runners up will get the CDs, the 7" and the lithograph.

Enter HERE and get mashing!

First Nation has become Rings. Rings is the new First Nation. Their new record, Black Habit will be released on Jan. 15, 2008 via the Animal Collective's label, Paw Tracks. The album was produced by Kristin Anna Valtysdottir (ex-Mum, Kria Brekkan,etc.) and Rings.

Here is the bands statement regarding the name change:

"We changed our name because we are a new kind of band. We thought the name First Nation would produce positive dialog, but it didn't. It's so loaded with identity politics, which is fine, cuz we actually do support other people's ways of self- representing. But, the name never opened up that space for talking about names and identity and social and political structures. It never translated like that...and even if it did, that's not what this new incarnation of our band is. For now, we're like a pop band for teenage girls. and for now, Rings makes sense. It's a name for our circular compositions, the bonds between us, our decision making processes, our mystic beliefs, the circular shapes around us, interlocking, connected, feminine, whole, continuous..."

Listen to: "Mom Dance" (mp3) from Black Habbit

The Peel Back: Seefeel "Quique" (1993, Astralwerks)

In 1996 I was looking for completely different from what I had been listening to which mostly consisted of Dinosaur Jr. and The Smiths. At the time we had a local record store called Discs n Dats that sold used cd's, and let you listen to them before purchase. My discoveries were random but plentiful, and one afternoon I found an compliation album called Excursions In Ambience - The Third Dimension. This album became my obession for the next two years, and should probably be this weeks peel back. I tracked down the full length album for every artist on the complilation, and one of those artist was Seefeel. The peaceful drone and echo of their track "Charlotte's Mouth" would fill my body and swim around. I would lay motionless, but gently move through the wall of sound as it surrounded me. The rest of Quique (pronounced "Keek") does not dissapoint. I just can't believe I was three years behind on this one. The album was remastered and released this past summer.

Quique

Climactic Phase 3/Polyfusion(mp3)/Industrious/Imperial/Plainsong/Charlotte's Mouth(mp3)/Through You/Filter Dub/Signals

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.

Saturday Morning Cartoon

This morning while you enjoy your bowl of Homer Cinnamon Donut Cereal watch this new video from New York's Holy Hail.

Cool Town Rock

Band of the Week

Oh Astro

When you think of sampling in music what generally comes to mind? For many it may be Kanye West's use and abuse of Daft Punk or any other rap song that has borrowed a chorus here or a base line there. However, there is a completely different world of sampling out there, and the results can be quite different. The electronic artist is able to sample songs in such a way that the end product only vaguely resembles the original. They are able chop the songs they sample into tiny pieces and then reconstruct into completely new pieces. In my mind I quickly make a connection to William S. Burroughs and his cutups. The technology may be different, but the concept is very much the same, that is to take an original piece or pieces and cut them into smaller pieces. The smaller pieces are then put together in a unique way to create a completely new document or song. One duo demonstrating this skill is Normal, Illinois' Oh Astro.

Comprised of Husband and Wife, Hank Hofler and Jane Dowe, who both have had productive solo careers in electronic music, Oh Astro works on a microscale to create grand pieces of electronic pop. The duo is preparing to release their full-length debut, Champions of Wonder, on November 6th (Illegal Art). This will be the follow-up to their 2006 debut ep, Hello World.

Recently, Hank Hofler of Oh Astro was kind enough to answer a few of my questions on sampling and the world of Oh Astro in general.

Orange Alert (OA): Where does the name Oh Astro come from? It makes me think of the Jetson's.
Hank Hofler (HH): We like to evoke playful images in people's minds. So the Jetson's dog or Astro Boy are both great associations. There's also the idea that it represents something other worldly, as in astro meaning something in the sky, but it's meant to be playful and not necessarily reference anything too specific.

OA: I am fascinated by the concept of creating completely sampled based music. Roughly, how many samples are there on Champions of Wonder? Of those how many have been cleared for use, if any?
HH: Each track generally consists of a few sources, but we usually take several samples from any of those sources. Nothing is cleared. A couple of the tracks are remixes for other artists, so those are done with permission.

OA: I recently attempted to read through Christopher Penrose's Spectral Signal Processing in Music Composition thesis, and I understand that he assisted in coding the spectral software that was utilized on this album.What is the primary function of that software in your music?
HH: Jane programs software, and for a while was really focused on the idea that new software could create new types of musical expression. Hello World, the debut Oh Astro EP, was much more centered on that idea. It was a search for something unique. Champions of Wonder is actually a step away from that. With the new disc, we were attempting to manually replicate some of the micro-sampling processes that Jane's software did. So, we manually cut up every tiny sample and then intuitively stitched it back together into something new. We wanted it to be less mechanical, so abandoning the emphasis on software processes was essential. There's still some of those custom spectral processes that Jane and Christopher made on the album, but it's more for sonic effect rather than central to how the music is constructed.

OA: Your label mate, Gregg Gillis (aka Girl Talk), is also making sample based music, but appears (to the ear at least) to be implementing a different technique or program. What are your thoughts on the success on Night Ripper, and how might that success translate over to you and Champions of Wonder?
HH: Night Ripper is an incredible album. We wouldn't dare compare ourselves to what Girl Talk is doing. It does raise the profile of Illegal Art, but while we hope that our music can reach a larger audience, we have no delusions of finding the same type of crossover appeal that Girl Talk's music is achieving.

OA: I know Normal is a college town, but I was still surprised to see musicians from Normal. Does your location hinder you in any way from a promotional, creative, or social aspect? Is there much of an electronic music scene in Normal or is location all relative in an electronic era?
HH: There really isn't much of a scene here, but I teach in an Arts Technology program and it offers a lot of stimuli through interaction with students,their projects, and just preparing for classes. We lived in Tokyo for a few years, so we've spent time in a more active environment. Sometimes I miss it, but we're so busy now it probably wouldn't make much difference anyway.Between the University and the Internet, there's no shortage of information and culture, and it's also somewhat liberating to not be caught up too heavily in the politics and trends of a more structured scene. We're very free to pursue our music at our leisure in the middle of the corn fields.


OA: What's next for Oh Astro?
HH: We'll continue creating tracks and exploring studio production. We feel that we're just beginning to tap into the music we want to create. I'd also like to play some live shows, but I haven't decided when I'll be able to do a tour of the Oh Astro material. For now it will just be ad hoc events. Jane isn't as interested in playing live and she has had a few opportunities open up for gallery installations, so she seems to be moving in that direction and working more with visual media.

Bonus Questions:
OA: Coffee? If yes, what is your favorite type of coffee and where is your favorite coffee spot?
HH: I don't drink coffee as I'm a practicing Mormon, and the health code prohibits coffee.

OA: What is the strangest sample you have ever used in a composition?
HH: When I did more experimental live improvisation I used to mix in Chicago's"If You Leave Me Now." It's not that strange of a song, but with altering the pitch to harmonize with layers of itself and mixing it with arrhythmic bleeps and noises, it had a very odd effect.

Champion Sound (preorder)
Snow Queen (mp3)/Hello Fuji Boy (mp3)/Lucy Sees the Moon/Candy Sun Smiles/Empty Air/Xanadu/Journey to the Center/Itch Box/Robot Love I Love You/Quiet Mouth/Pet Apples

For more information on Oh Astro please visit their website.

Writer's Corner

Photo by Alpana Singh

Charles Blackstone

Lately I have been fascinated by the connection between the reader and the novel, and in relation, the novel and the author. Even though they write fiction, every writer puts a piece of themselves into every page of every novel. The novel is a product of the writer's passion and thoughts, dreams and realities, it is bound a presented to the reader without any notion or direction on how it should be received. The reader choose the time, the place, and the mindset in which the author's novel will be read. The reader may set out with a variety of intentions, but their truest goal, more times then not, is to escape. The reader wants to get away from their lives and wander through the life and thoughts of the characters the writer has created.


One Chicago writer who has demonstrate a true ability to convey the thoughts of his characters is Charles Blackstone. In addition to appearing in numerous literary journals, Charles is also the author of the 2004 novel The Week You Weren't Here. He is also the co-editor of a forthcoming literary anthology, The Art of Friction: Where (Non) Fictions Come Together (University of Texas Press, 2008).

Recently, Charles took some time to answer a few of my questions on his writing style and the connection between the reader and the novel.

Orange Alert (OA): There are several aspects of your short fiction and your novel that make them appear to be autobiographical (location, profession, perspective, reoccurring characters, and so on). The general theme of your work seems focus on the dysfunctional nature of the male/female relationship. Are there parts or sections of your life in your work? How do you keep the two separate when you are writing so close to home?
Charles Blackstone (CB): Yeah, definitely. I’ve never really consciously endeavored to keep myself out of the picture, or maintain separate existences, as it were. I’ve always figured, if there’s something I’ve done, seen, heard about, thought about, then it has the potential to get assigned to a character. And I feel like I’m still a part of things even when I’m writing scenes for which I have no firsthand experience, because I’m trying to see the world through the character’s eyes, feeling, thinking, improvising as the character would.

OA: There has been much written about the use of punctuation in your debut novel, The Week You Weren't Here . My thoughts are that you were trying to replicate the thought pattern of the main character, Hunter. What was purpose behind your use of punctuation?
CB: That was precisely my thinking, that if there were a brain-transcribing device, and you attached it to Hunter’s head, this is a version of what you’d see reeling out. I think all the punctuation is in there, though. Pauses, asides, moments where the pace speeds or slows. When I’ve read from the book out loud, audiences are often surprised that I read at a normal—perhaps even slower than normal—pace. They expected me to read as they imagined the voice, very fast, not pausing. There’s no one way to interpret the voice. Another thing I started to discover writing with limited punctuation (the finished book actually is a lot more punctuated and paragraphed than the original manuscript) was that sentences were up for multiple interpretations, that the elision between unstopped sentences created newer and more exciting multiple meanings within themselves, and of course this seemed completely appropriate for trying to capture an uncertain, questioning, self-reflexive voice like Hunter’s.

OA: In an interview a few years back, you had this to say about the relationship between the reader and the book, "they take residence within your consciousness and, whether you know it or not, reside permanently". It seems as though the reader wants to "get away from it all", but as find themselves at the same time. What are your thoughts these days on the connection between the reader and novel?
CB: This morning my wife was talking about how much she liked Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom as a kid, a movie I recall wanting to watch, but finding myself unable to follow. The same was true with Star Wars. When the band teacher played the trilogy at the end of the school year—he knew better than to try to get us to take out our instruments and sit up straight with mere hours of chromatic scale bleating time standing in the way of our summer vacations—I just zoned out. I remember struggling to get past the first sentence of a C.S. Lewis book when I was nine. What I might have once attributed to ADD, I now see as an inability to “escape.” I write realism, and read realistic fiction, and watch films with realistic stories, problems I may have experienced, or could imagine myself experiencing, because I want more life in my life, not less. I like to be able to see myself in characters I read. When a novel really has me, I feel like I start thinking like the protagonist, maybe speaking like him or her. That is very cool to me. That’s the kind of experience I want to create for my readers. If they’re willing to have it. There really is no point to novels without readers to engage. The stories only come alive when people are able to experience them.

OA: While reading a book I like to insert items (newspaper clippings, dry leaves, empty sugar packets, concert flyer's, words...) inside the covers. These are small memories of the days or weeks I spent reading this work. They may or may not relate to the story, but definitely relate to the time in my life. What are some habits or rituals you go through while reading a book? What items might someone place inside the cover of The Week You Weren't Here?
CB: That’s so funny. I do the same thing. If you come over and pick up most of the books on my shelves, you’ll find random grocery receipts from supermarkets in Paris, things I’ve scribbled, flyers from college, and everything else. Right now, I’m reading the new DeLillo book, and my bookmarks are a couple of these download-a-free-song-from-iTunes that Starbucks has been giving out, and a few Americano receipts. When reading, I like to mark passages, look up words in the dictionary, write their definitions in the book or on receipts, and sometimes even sketch something for a future story I might write, if something I read inspires me. In a random copy of TWYWH, I wouldn’t be surprised to find a CTA card, numerous restaurant receipts, maybe a ballpoint pen? Probably an unpaid parking ticket or two. In the copy I took on my book tour, there are numerous post-it notes and a couple of bookmarks from stores along the route.


OA: What is your opinion of the current literary scene in Chicago?
CB: I think things are getting very exciting in the city. New reading series, literary journals, events, writers appearing everywhere, and not always in the typical bookstore and bar venues. There’s a lot happening, but not so much going on that the choices are paralyzing. In New York, there’s such a profusion of everything literary, readings, book signings, series, that I think people don’t know what to do and just say fuck it and go drinking. The writers in New York are also under a lot of pressure, because it’s hard to get into certain series if you don’t have a book out, and it’s hard to draw a crowd to your book signing when you’re competing with Don DeLillo and Ian McEwan for audience. I feel like there’s more of a community among the writers here than elsewhere in the country.

OA: What's next for Charles Blackstone?
CB: I’ve co-edited an anthology of short fiction and creative non-fiction, The Art of Friction, which is coming out fall 2008. I’ve also recently finished a new novel, which my agent is indefatigably shopping around as we speak. I hope to return to teaching fiction in the spring—I’ve been working with writers on an individual basis, which has been great, but I miss the energy of a workshop, so, MFA students, keep your fingers crossed.

Bonus Questions:
OA: Coffee? If yes what is your favorite type of coffee and where is your favorite coffee spot?
CB: Absolutely. My favorite kind is strong, drip, bottomless. When I lived in the Ukrainian Village, I liked to go to Filter, but I guess that’s closed now? Over the summer, my wife and I would hang out in the little park on State, at Rush, in the area affectionately known as the Viagra Triangle, and make fun of all the Bentley and Hummer drivers going into Tavern on Rush while we sipped. We also got a coffee grinder, so I’ve appointed myself house barista. Trader Joe’s house blend is pretty good, but, regrettably, not as brain-tasering as some commercial grade varieties. I grew up drinking coffee at the Medici on 57th in Hyde Park, and whenever I’m in the neighborhood, I always try to stop by for a mug or four.

OA: What type of music do you listen to, and does this music ever make its way into your work? CB: The new novel is set in the 90s, so there’s a lot of music in there from that time, music that meant a lot to me back then and still does. The characters are also younger, college students, so I think they’re more attuned to songs in the air than the rest of us. Big Head Todd, The Breeders, XTC (the title of the novel, The Difference Between a Lemon and a Lime, comes from the XTC song “Senses Working Overtime”), Material Issue, Liz Phair, Inspiral Carpets, stuff from the 80s that was still kicking around then, Howard Jones, Billy Idol. These days, I try to keep an ear on pop music, as a means of deluding myself into thinking I’m not getting older and losing touch, but a lot of it is just so uninspired and unappealing. I listen to music mostly when I’m running on a treadmill, so I shamefully have embraced some cheesy pop songs with fast beats to keep me from getting bored. Don’t ask me to show you my iPod. It’s kind of embarrassing. Okay, if you must look, just skip ahead to the Death Cab and Interpol tracks. My dignity is at stake.

OA: What is it like to be married to the most famous sommelier in Chicagoland?
CB: We have a lot of fun together, and there’s always something good in my wine glass. There are a lot of surprising similarities in our professional lives. People tend to respond to wine like they do to literature. The majority of people out there are only familiar with what’s popular, and what’s popular isn’t always an indication of quality, and so it’s up to us (she wine, me words) to get people to see that there’s a lot more out there, and the more obscure a wine, or novel, the more enjoyable it often is. When we met, I liked to drink wine, but I couldn’t have told you the difference between pinot grigio and pinot noir, and now I can say I prefer Argentine Malbec, because it has the structure of a cabernet, but is juicy and spicy like shiraz. The wine knowledge has started to affect my characters, who used to drink way too much chardonnay, but now have expanded their palates a little.


For more information on Charles Blackstone please visit his website.

Artist of the Week

Lacey Pipher

This is the story of the night I almost bypassed discovery. What I knew was that I was attending an open studio show for Lucas Myers. I knew that there would be other artist involved, but other then that I was pretty clueless. Driving up to the studio (excepting a storefront, and finding a warehouse), I was leery of the neighborhood but ready for discovery. As I entered, I was greeted by a pleasant table of appetizer, and a diverse crowd of people. Expecting paintings I gravitated towards the white walls in the center of the room with the paintings hung in a traditional way. On my way, I glance to the left and notice what looks like the workspace of a guitar maker, and I plan to take a look later. I proceed to enjoy a night of art, music, and traffic cones, and on my way out I stop to look at the guitars. I've always wished I could play, and to see the detail and tools that go into creating these instruments was very interesting. I get to the last guitar and I turn around, there dangling in front of me, almost starring at me with an eyeless gaze, is this constructed creature. I take it in as whole as first, puzzled and intrigued, but then I notice that is has very familiar parts. Feathers from a duster, strips of pages cut from books, incredible pieces of metal, string and fabric all coming together to form this creature.

I come to find out that I had stumbled upon the studio of Chicago artist, Lacey Pipher. Lacey is a sculptor, painter, and all around creative person from New Jersey, who has installed pieces across the city in recent years. That night, she had displayed a series of creatures, among other wonderful piece, that incorporate many found object that are utilized to create something new. Thought provoking and passionately unique, Lacey's work challenges both the artist and the viewer to reconsider the purpose of the material and life in general. Overjoyed with what I had seen, I write my name and e-mail address on her creatively made guest list and exit the warehouse already contemplating question to ask her.

Recently, Lacey was kind enough to answer a few of my questions.

Orange Alert (OA): To simply say sculpture doesn't seem to do you work justice, how do you describe your work?
Lacey Pipher (LP): Some of the pieces that are suspended and working with the architecture are more like environments, and the smaller pedestal pieces are very much objects: tools or creatures.

But I would just call it sculpture and let the viewer write the rest.

OA: Many of your newer, smaller pieces seem to focus on found objects. Where do you find your material for the pieces?
LP: I am on a constant and ongoing search for materials-found or other. This is a huge part of the process, as it is one of the things that integrate art and life. The objects in these particular pieces were found in the woods, in alleys or in the road, near the tracks, outside factories that work with metal, in thrift and surplus stores, and some have been given to me with the intent that I could use them to make art.

OA: Many of your pieces also incorporate a lot cuttings from various books. As a writer seeing the words incorporated made me want to read them to find meaning. Are the pages and clippings purely aesthetic or is there is a deeper interpretation? What types of books are you using?
LP: An ongoing goal for me with my work is to draw the viewer in, raise curiosity, and make a person want to explore. I think that the books work toward this goal in many ways. Their texture and organic mass makes them very tactile. Their book-like quality creates a certain presence and character. It also prompts one to look closer to, as you said, “find meaning”.
I am working with a few different books right now-One on animal tracks, one about the history of communication and one called “War”. I also like to use dictionary definitions, maps, dress patterns, and other less recognizable things.

OA: Can you talk a little about your process? Do you have an idea of where the piece will go before you begin the process?
LP: I keep interesting materials around and experiment with them. I play around very freely, and then I sit back and write about what I am trying to do and how to project that more clearly. Then I play more, deliberately pushing the aspects that I feel are working and pulling back on those that are not. Often, just this free process leads to finished works. Sometimes there are less spontaneous revisions made to make a piece feel more complete like replacing strings with cables or tape with hardware.

OA: Your studio is inhabited by seven other artists. In what ways have you benefited from having such talent all around?
LP: I feel very lucky to be around other people who are so active in the creative process and really pushing it as artists. It is good support and fun. There’s always coffee on, music shared, and the opportunity to talk about our work. Also, the ‘found wood’ is great when you have a guitar builder around!

OA: What's next for Lacey Pipher?
LP: Working in the stude all winter…
Show at Flatfile (217 N Carpenter, Chicago) in January…
Probably take a trip this spring…

Bonus Questions:
OA: Coffee? If yes what is your favorite type of coffee and where is your favorite coffee spot?
LP: Yes please, light and sweet. If yes what is your favorite type of coffee and where is your favorite coffee spot? Usually get ‘motor oil’ beans at Atomix(Chicago and Damen) and make it at my place.

OA: Do you ever listen to music while you are creating? Who are some of your favorites while working and in general?
LP: Music is essential. Favorites right now include Broken Social Scene, Can, Built To Spill, Joni Mitchell,The Stone Roses, The Smiths, Singleman Affair, Califone…to name a few...

For more information on Lacey Pipher please visit her website. You can also e-mail her if you are interested in stopping by the studio at 2030 W. Hubbard in Chicago.

New Release Tuesday

Music:

Buck 65 - Situation Listen to: Shutter Buggin' (mp3)
Puscifer - V Is For Vagina Listen to: Queen B (mp3)

Joy Division Reissues - Closer, Unknown Pleasures, Still Listen to: Isolation (mp3)

The Pack - Based Boys

DVD:

License to Wed
Captivity
In the Land of Women
Spider-Man 3
My So-Called Life - Complete Series

Monday Morning Mix

I've put together a complilation featuring the last 22 weeks worth of "Band of the Week" artists. It begins with the interview I conducted with the lovely Kathryn Bint (aka One Little Plane) and wraps up with this past weeks band, Hot Springs. It is available for download here, and I hope everyone finds as much enjoyment listening back through this mix as I had picking the bands and conducting the interviews. Thanks for reading and listening!

Orange Alert Music Minute

My Dearest Friends and Fans,

It is my greatest honor to present to you The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust!, my new album produced by Trent Reznor and mixed by Alan Moulder. The wall of sound that we've created is tagged with such graffiti that a passerby would seek out doors and ways to ENTER. Once inside a world defined by dreams come true they'd find aligned with the simplest act of sharing what we treasure. Most people aren't aware of the world of art and commerce where exploitation strips each artist down to nigger. Each label, like apartheid, multiplies us by our divide and whips us 'til we conform to lesser figures. What falls between the cracks is a pile of records stacked to the heights of talents hidden from the sun. Yet the energy they put into popularizing smut makes a star of a shiny polished gun. The ballot or the bullet for Mohawk or the mullet is a choice between new times and dying days. And the only way to choose is to jump ship from old truths and trust dolphins as we swim through changing ways. The ways of middlemen proves to be just a passing trend. We need no priests to talk to God. No phone to call her. And when you click the link below, i think it fair that you should know that your purchase will make middlemen much poorer...

NiggyTardust!

love,
Saul

To preorder the new album from Saul Williams go here. He is asking for $5, if you wish "to directly support the artists involved in the creation of this music", but there is also an option to download it for free. The album will be available to download on November 1st.



Austin, TX Indie pop band Masonic is releasing their 4th LP on November 20, 2007. Since 2002, Masonic has been creating well crafted noise pop along the lines of Stereolab, Yo La Tengo, and The Vaselines framed by pre-murder Phil Spector influenced production.

Armed with vintage keyboards and guitars, a vinyl collection, and some tape loops, Masonic recorded this album during the spring and summer of 2007 only one year after 2006's Without Warning, which was named one of 2006's Austin Top 10 release by the influential Austin Chronicle. 2003's Too Far. Too Fast. Too Soon. was also named one of Austin's Top 10 releases by the same paper in 2003.

Things I Am Guilty Of is a well crafted indie pop gem that I was lucky enough to receive via e-mail this past week. If you go their website you can stream the entire album. Don't pass on this one, I was pleasantly surprised.

Listen to: Under the Radar (mp3)



It really wouldn't be Halloween without a quality mashup album to accompany the festivities. One of my favorites (yes their are multiple albums) this year is "Mashing Pumpkins: Halloween 2007" complied by Cheekyboy and currently being hosted by Mashuptown. Featuring the work of Mr. Fab, Fettdog, and Cheekyboy himself amoung other, this album is fun, festive, and free. Check it out!





In celebration of their upcoming US tour with Band of Horses, (dates below) Australian band The Drones will be the first band to kick off ATP Recordings' new series of double 7" vinyl called Custom Made. Custom Made invites artists to submit 4 songs which will be released on limited edition 7" and also made available as a digital download.

For each Custom Made 7" the bands choose: something old (an old song), something new (a song from their latest album), something borrowed (a cover) and something blue (a blues song, the word blue in the title, anything...)

The vinyl is limited to just 1,000 pieces, and 100 of them will be special edition silk screened printed covers, numbered and signed by the sleeve designer.

The Drones: Custom Made will be out on November 5th and will include the following tracks:

Side A. Something Old - "Cockeyed Lowlife of the Highlands" (New recording of this old song) Side B. Something New - "I Don't Ever Want to Change" (taken from the album Gala Mill)
Side C. Something Borrowed - "I Drink" (originally by Charles Aznavour)
Side D. Something Blue - "Shark Fin Blues" (mp3) (taken from the album Wait Long By the River.)

The Drones will be in Chicago at the Metro on November 11th and 12th. For additional dates go here.

The Peel Back: Black 47 "Fire of Freedom" (1993)

Taking their name from the worst year of the Ireland's Great potato famine, Black 47 is an ultra hard core political group of Irishmen based in New York. They focus on stories on Irish American culture and revolutionary Irish figures. In 1993, they released their debut album Fire of Freedom, and my local radio station started playing "Funky Ceili (Bridies Song)". I suppose I didn't listen closely enough, but I don't remember thinking is song was overly political. I simply loved the fiddle and dancing the jig!

Fire of Freedom

Livin' In America (Fordham Road 8:00 AM)/Maria's Wedding/Rockin' The Bronx (mp3)/Fanatic Heart/Funky Ceili (Bridie's Song) (mp3)/Fire Of Freedom/James Connolly/Livin' In America (Bainbridge Avenue 2:00 AM)/Banks) Of The Hudson/40 Shades Of Blue (mp3)/New York, NY 10009/Sleep Tight In New York City / Her Dear Old Donegal/Black 47/Livin' In America

The Watch List

Listening:
1. Realistic - Brooklyn's James Towning (a.k.a Realistic) is a masterful sampler, and a cure for your Perpetual Memory Loss. He is continuously mixing little pieces of life and song that you had thought lost and forgotten. Perpetual Memory Loss (released 10/23/07) is Realistic third full length album, but you can download his Photorealistic EP (released 10/8/07) here for free. Listen to: Interrupted Panting State (mp3) and Snowday Plaything (mp3)

2. Heloise & the Savior Faire - New York's electro-rock outfit Heloise & the Savior Faire are gearing up to release their new album Trash, Rats and Microphones this spring. Encapsulating all 80's pop fetishes, the band is fronted by the charismatic Heloise Williams and backed by two electrifying dancers (Joe Shepard and Sara Sweet Rabidoux) as well as a full band (James Bellizia on guitar, Luke Hughett on drums and Jason Diamond on bass). Download their Odyle Ep here for free.
3. To Bad Catholics - Currently on tour with Casiotone for the Painfully Alone, these Vancouver residents bring the lazy, slightly off-beat folk music to masses. Their latest album "Mallorytown" is finished and will be available at all of their concerts. They will be at The Hideout here in Chicago with CFTPA of 11/12.

Reading:
1. "The Torturer's Apprentice" and other poems by Kristy Bowen - Over the last week, I had been thinking to myself about my lack of appreciation for the Chicago poet. Maybe it was more lack of awareness, but regardless I felt I had been missing something. The problem was I had no idea what or who I had been missing. Then I found the work of Kristy Bowen, and all of her various creative outlets. She alone has restored my faith in the Chicago poet.
2. "SLIP" by Charles Blackstone - A story about a single moment of verbal indiscretion and the drama that follows. This story left me want more, so I went and read more of his work, and then I contacted him. Watch for his interview this Thursday.
3. "The Large Minnow" by Ellen Kennedy and Tao Lin - A heart-warming story about a 35 ton minnow.

4. "Metalhead" by Michael Lars - This one is for all the heavy metal fans out there. (Yes, that's you Jason.)

5. "If We Only Lived in Manhattan" by Nick Ostdick - Worried, at first, about a Chicago writer wanting to live in Manhattan, but once you read this compelling tale of a young man's day spent with his father's ex, you will understand the title.

Wishing:
1. Next Exit: Five by Christopher Cunningham - Released just a week ago, and selling like nobodies business. Get your copy today before they are gone by sending $4 to Bill Shute
8200 Pat Booker Rd. #399, San Antonio, Texas 78233

2. The GPP Reader - A beast of a compilation, perfect bound, slick glossy cover with a letterpress dust-jacket title band, 144 pages, edited by Ed Kauffman--LIMITED TO 200 COPIES! 29 copies left, get it before it is history. $15
3. Words for Songs Never Written by William Taylor Jr. - Are you brave enough to believe? $13.95

Getting:
1. "Electrosyzin" by Shakeyface - This is a free 52 minute mix from one of my favorite DJ's/producers, Shakeyface.
2. Five to Nine Issue #6 - Taking a look at the everyday, Sing Us A Song (Five to Nine's sixth issue) brings together a diverse group of designers & artists together and explores what happens when letters are combined and form those things we call words. Get it here for free!

Watching:
1. "Roots on Sidewalks" by Inlets - The latest installment of La Blogotheque features Sebastian Krueger (a.k.a. Inlets), who also plays guitar from My Brightest Diamond. Inlets beautiful ep Vestibule can still be downloaded for free from Luv Sounds.
2. "A day in the life with Lucky Man author Ben Tanzer" - Many people have asked Lucky Man author and TBWCYL, Inc. (formerly Lucky Man, Inc.) spokesperson Ben Tanzer what its like to be the author of an obscure novel that few people have read. Here is his answer in the form a travelogue to a recent reading. See if you can spot the reference to the Office.

3. Chicago Artist Coalition Paint-a-Thon took place back in June, and here are four 9 minute videos worth of interviews. (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part4) Part 3 features Orange Alert friend, Kim Frieders!

Saturday Morning Cartoon

This morning while you enjoy a bowl of Frankenberry Cereal, please watch this fantastic new video from Efterklang. The song is one of my current favorites, and the imagines created for this video are completely amazing. It was animated by Nan Na Hvass and Jens Christian Høgni Larsen.

Mirador