New Release Tuesday

Music:

1. The Fratellis - Costello Music (US Release) (mp3)

2. Rosie Thomas - These Friends of Mine (mp3)

3. Sj Esau - Wrong Faced Cat Feed Collapse (mp3)

4. Amy Winehouse - Back to Black (US Release) (mp3)

5. Aqualung - Memory Man (find mp3's here)

6. Black Milk - Popular Demand (mp3)

DVD:

The Smiths - Still Ill

Casino Royale

Harsh Times - Christian Bale

The Holiday - Kate Winslet and Jack Black

Monday Morning Mix

"Fear is the main source of superstition, and one of the main sources of cruelty. To conquer fear is the beginning of wisdom." - Bertand Russell

Enjoy "Confront Your Fears", and post some of your biggest fears in the comments section.

(artwork: "The End" by Oksana Badrak)

Coffee Talk

Last week we saw the world premiere of the documentary, "The Lost Tomb of Jesus" on the Discovery channel. There were also many news stories published and hype created for this world premiere on the news. This was followed by an open discussion with the director and investigative journalist Simcha Jacobovici, and leading researcher and author Dr. James D. Tabor of North Carolina at Charlotte answering questions from archeologists and religious leaders with Ted Koppel as moderator. The executive producer of this documentary was no other than James Cameron.

In this documentary, the Talpiot Tomb, or "Jesus Family Tomb" was said to be discovered in 1980 in Jerusalem by a construction crew building apartment complexes. In this tomb was said to contain 10 ossuaries, but the locations of only 9 are currently known. These ossuaries are said to have contained the remains of family members as was the custom in 1st century Jerusalem. On 6 of these 9 ossuaries are marked the words/names of "Yeshua bar Yosef (Jesus, son of Joseph), Maria, Matia (Matthew), Yose (Joseph), Marimene e Mara (Mariamne, guessed to be Mary Magdalene), and Yehuda bar Yeshua (Judah, son of Jesus)." The other 3 names were not mentioned in the documentary as I recall and are not talked about on the Discovery website that I found. Either they did not have names on the ossuaries, or they left that part out in the documentary.

The claim in the documentary is that the 10th ossuary has been found and contained the remains of James, Brother of Jesus. A Discovery documentary on his ossuary is going to be televised on March 28th @ 6:00am. The documentary on the "Tomb of Jesus" would help prove that this was Jesus' tomb that was found, but no solid evidence was proved to link that James' ossuary indeed came from the same tomb. There could be more evidence in James' documentary.

Experts said that these are very common names for that period with the exception of Mariamne. With these names, they had Dr. Andrey Feuerverger, professor of statistics and mathematics at the University of Toronto, concluded a high statistical probability the Talpiot Tomb is the Jesus Family Tomb. In this probability, he used the occurences of all the names and came up that there is a 600:1 probability that it is in fact the Tomb of Jesus and his family. This probability did include taking out Matia, or Matthew out of the equation since there is no mention of a Matthew directly related to Jesus in the Bible.

DNA tests were also conducted on pieces of remains still found in only two of the ossuaries, Jesus, son of Joseph and Mariamne's. These mitochondrial results concluded that the remains of these two individuals were not of the same family. Nuclear DNA results could not be done and since the remains in all of the ossuaries were sent for proper re-burial, no other tests could be done on other ossuaries.

So many questions and discussions have already taken place as to did Jesus have a family? Why would Matthew be buried with Jesus? Who is Mariamne and why is she in the tomb?, etc.

Here are the questions that Orange Alert has...

1.) Why is the life of Jesus and his family been portrayed as such a hot topic lately? With documentaries on Jesus and the way he was crucified, his family, films like The Passion and The DaVinci Code, and now this documentary.

2.) Why have a lot of the recent films and documentaries lately been concluding that Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene?

3.) How will any of this be proven without detailed DNA and other analysis of all remains of the tomb?

4.) With all of the research on Jesus lately, does that contradict the faith of Christianity and his being the Son of God and does any of these scientific finding change faith-based religion?

5.) How many people think that they are attempting to tie research together on purpose "to sell the film" as quoted by Amos Kloner, Israeli archeologist, or that it's just a film for skeptics to "poke holes into the story" of Jesus and the beliefs that millions of people hold dear as claimed by Stephen Pfann, scholar at the University of the Holy Land?

Answer one, all or discuss any of these related topics. Please talk amongst yourselves...

The Watch List

Listening:
1. Illinois (myspace) - This is the next big indie smash, get on board and watch them take off! Check out: Screen Door (mp3)
2. Everything, Now! (myspace)- This Indiana band is preparing their third album, which will be released this spring entitled "Bible Universe".
3. Amiina (myspace)- Chillingly graceful electronic sounds from this Icelandic quartet. Their debut "Kurr" is due out on the 21st, and they will be is Chicago on the 23rd.

Reading:
1. Pay for Soup, Build a Fort, Burn That Down by Spencer Dew - This is Spencer's lasted publication on Theives Jargon, and it is a great piece of fiction.
2. Makers of Soda Try a New Pitch: They're Healthy by Andrew Martin - Coke and Pepsi to add vitamins and minerals to pop in an attempt to appear healthy. I'm not surprised, but I am dissapointed because many people will be fooled.
3. We Eat Horses, Don't We? by Christa Weil - Horse it's what's for dinner!

Buying:
1. $60 3-Day passes to Lollapalooza 2007, August 3rd to 5th. I will be there!
2. Pitchfork Tickets - They go on sale March 12th, and the event is July 14th - 15th. Download their first podcast announcing the first acts: Girl Talk, Powerhouse Sound, Cat Power, Grizzly Bear, Of Montreal, and more!

Getting:
1. Error Magazine - They have put out two issue so far, and it is creative, artistically appealling, and free.
2. Cutout Magazine - This is the new frontier for graffiti, and the zine is free.

Watching:
1. Steve Paul's Puppet Music Hall - it is a hillarious puppet show on downtownTV.
2. Babu, Rob Swift, Roc Raida, J-Rocc, & A-Trak tear it up!

Saturday Morning Cartoon

In honor of our band of the week, while you enjoy your bowl of Post Top 3, watch this animated video:

James Figurine - Apologies

Band of the Week

Jimmy Tamborello (aka Dntel)

It was recently suggested to me that I might consider using a pen to publish various writings that I have done, and after listen to Jimmy Tamborello's latest release under his "pen" name Dntel, I've started to consider that option. The beauty of an alias or pen name is that it allows the artist to create something completely separate for any of their existing work. For musicians, they can explore different aspects of their sound, and really delevoped multiple styles while not being tied down by any of them. Jimmy has really mastered this art while working under three separate identities, Dntel, James Figurine, and as one half of The Postal Service.

His latest work will be released under the Dntel name, it will be his first release as Dntel on Sub Pop Records, and it will be release on April 24th. On this album he collaborates with some very talented artist (Grizzly Bear, Conor Oberst, Jenny Lewis, Lali Puna, and more), but it is his arrangements that seem to take center stage. Dntel has always been a moniker that explores sonic landscapes and then develops the smallest corner of a sound into an epic adventure in your head. This album contains some of his most intimate work to date, the arrangements have such depth and warmth, they extremely detailed, but he has had six years to create this album. It was on 2001's "Life is Full of Possibilities" that we first heard the sounds of Dntel, and his amazing partnership with Ben Gibbard on "(This is) The Dream of Evan and Chan". It was that union that would result in Jimmy's most successful work to date, 2003's "Give Up" with Ben as The Postal Service. In a September 2006 interview with Pitchfork, Jimmy relieved the he, Ben, and his neighbor Jenny Lewis had been working on the next Postal Service album. Until then you can enjoy the beauty of Dumb Luck and wait patiently.

Dumb Luck (mp3)

To Preorder "Dumb Luck"

Bonus:

James Figurine - 55566688833 (mp3)

The Postal Service - We Become Sillouhettes (mp3)
Dntel - (This is) The Dream of Evan and Chan (mp3)

Figurine - Electronic Address (mp3)

You can also visit Jimmy on MySpace.

Writer's Corner

Mark Tardi

Chicago writer, Mark Tardi, is an exceptionally diverse voice in the growing Chicago literary scene. He is diverse in style and structure, tastes (Chopin, Neil Diamond, Tokyo Police Club), and experiences. It is the convergence of all these parts that make his work unique and vital to the scene. As a graduate of Brown University, Mark has studied with and learned from many great writers, but it is his own inherent understanding of mathematics and his interest in classical music that have been contributing factors in many of his works. His first book, "Euclid Shudders", was published in 2002 by Litmus Press, and it placed him as a finalist for the 2002 National Poetry Series. He has also released a chapbook through gong publishing entitled "Part First -- Chopin's feet" in August of 2005.

Recently, Mark answered a few of our question on Math, Music, and of course the best team in baseball the Chicago Cubs.

Orange Alert (OA): How would you explain the convergence of math and music in your writing?
Mark Tardi (MT): Math and numbers are things I've always been intuitively comfortable with from a very young age. For as long as I can remember, I've set the minutes portion of my alarm clock to prime numbers: waking up at "6:15" seems unthinkable to me, but "6:17" or "6:19" -- of course. This is to say, math wasn't something I thought about consciously much
-- any more than, say, breathing or walking -- but it was fundamental to me. When I started looking at math more consciously, I started to fixate on the seemingly simple yet profound questions it asks, which in turn led me to Euclidean and non-Euclidean geometry; Kurt Godel's
Incompleteness Theorem; infinite matrices; reading about the Riemann Hypothesis, twin primes . . .

As for music, most of us are enveloped with rhythms and sounds. Growing up near Midway Airport in Chicago, my days were soundtracked by the planes flying overhead or the nearby freight-trains tapping their tracks, and these are incredibly measured sounds. In terms of overlap and convergence, there's a great deal of math in music; and a great deal of music in math. Perhaps math is traditionally perceived as more "intellectual," music more "emotional,"
but in any case, both articulate the hum of the possible in devastatingly elegant and profoundly baffling ways.

OA: Who are you biggest literary influences?
MT: I read a lot of different things, and no question it all seeps in in various ways. But sticking purely to literary figures I admire and have learned from, people like Witold Gombrowicz, Michael Palmer, Emily Dickinson, Euclid, Paul Celan, Carole Maso, David Markson, Thalia
Field, Edmond Jabes, Italo Calvino, Viktor Shklovsky, William Blake, Georges Perec, Virginia Woolf, Nathaniel Mackey, Wallace Stevens, Anne-Marie Albiach, Stefan Themerson, Lisa Jarnot, G.H. Hardy, Craig Watson, Jennifer Moxley, and plenty of others.

OA: What is your view on the "Chicago literary scene"? Is there a scene? Is there a defined image of a Chicago writer?

MT: The Chicago literary scene seems to be going through puberty, as best as I can tell. It'll grow up, but it's not there yet. People are too desperate to get the stamp of approval from the East or West Coast, are always looking over their shoulder to see what plays in New York. There has been an influx of writers into the city in the past five years or so, but I often get the impression that Chicago is their weigh-station as they angle for their next teaching post on one of the coasts.

That said, there are some very fine writers here. One of the challenges Chicago has compared with other cities is its sheer geographic size: the city literally sprawls, which isn't the case in
places like New York, San Francisco or Seattle. Density tends to help in the formation of artistic scenes.

As far as a defined image of a Chicago writer, I'm dubious. It does appear that poets like some of the weaker Objectivists get more attention here than elsewhere, but I'm not sure that's a good thing -- depends how watered-down you like your beer I suppose. There are a number of writers clustered in different parts of the city, and the interests and aesthetics are quite varied. To me, that's what's most promising about Chicago.

OA: How has the internet affected you as a writer?

MT: Hmm. It's hard to tell, to be honest. My formation as a writer was roughly parallel to the development of the internet. I don't think the internet informs my writing per se in any active way (like it does for practitioners of Flarf, for example), but I'm sure that the scope and access to information quickly has played a part in all sorts of things. It's easier to find out about artists or track down books, and I'm sure that has helped me in countless ways.

OA: Unlike a lot of writers I've talked to, I've read that you listen to music while you write. Who are some of your favorite musicians and how does their music affect your writing?

MT: Yes, listening to music is critical to my writing process. When working on a manuscript I tend to do two things: key the work to a color (my most recent manuscript is "red" to my eye), and to a sonic/emotional register. It gives me something to revert back to when I'm "stuck," so to speak, keeps me focused. So, for instance, various parts of the manuscript I just finished, Airport music, were composed to Radiohead's Amnesiac; Bach's Goldberg Variations; Chopin's
nocturnes; Neil Diamond; Lionel Richie; Witold Lutoslawski. It's all very inexact and intuitive, but has a lot to do with my emotional temperature. Sometimes I need music that is similar in
emotional register to what I'm feeling; other times I want the opposite effect. There's a certain degree of pessimism or skepticism that bleeds through my work, and so for the sake of balance I'll reach for some Lionel Richie, Tokyo Police Club, Flaming Lips. Other times I'm writing something that I think is bratty or silly while listening to Arvo Part's devastatingly sparse piano pieces.

Bonus Questions:

OA: Total wins for the Cubs this year?

MT: 92

OA: Combined wins for Prior & Wood?

MT: My hunch is that Wood will end up the closer because Dempster doesn't belong in that role. So hopefully Wood doesn't have too many wins. Considering the history with these guys, I'll be uncharacteristically optimistic. Let's say 19.

OA: Will the Cubs be in the World Series? Yes or No

MT: Ever? Yes. This year? -- why not? Yes.

OA: Santo Hall of Fame? Yes or No

MT: Sentimentally, yes. But with the snobby myopic Veteran's Committee the way it is currently configured, he won't get elected. (Joe Morgan has gone on record saying he didn't think Ryne Sandberg belonged in the HOF!) Had Santo played for the Yankees, he would have been in a long time ago. Or do something against the Yankees then you're a god; anywhere else, good luck.

OA: Coffee? Yes or No, If yes, favorite place and drink?

MT: Oh yes. My favorite place is this small cafe in Krakow, Poland on ul. Tomasza. In Chicago I like Julius Meinl, Uncommon Ground and Intelligentsia. And a regular ol' espresso or French press coffee usually hits the spot.

OA: What's next for Mark Tardi?

MT: As for what's next for me, I have work coming out in an anthology called The City Visible: Chicago Poetry for the New Century, forthcoming next month by Cracked Slab Books. And I have a reading at St. Mark's Poetry Project in New York on April 16th.

For more on Mark and his work you can visit Litmus Press or check out the interview he did with Chicago Postmodern Poetry.

Artist of the Week

Katie Perkis

Labels can be a blessing and they can also be a curse, and to bestow a label upon some cannot be taken lightly. The moment you call someone an artist or a writer or a musician, is that when they become what you have labeled them, or have they always been that? When do you become an artist? Many individuals dream of creating when they are young, they passionately doodle, scribble, paint, write, record, photograph, etc., youth is a wonderfully fertile time for the arts. However, it is the true artist that can move beyond youth, and develop that passion into skill and vision. This is the story of local artist Katie Perkis. She has always been fascinated by the intricate details of nature, and how they translate to the creative side of her life. Yet it was recently that she discovered that there something greater to be accomplished than mere youthful creation. Recently, Katie answered a few of our questions, and here are the results.

Orange Alert (OA): When did you first discover your talent and why did you decide to pursue it further?
Katie Perkis (KP): I would say that I first discovered the beginnings of my talent in a pathetic excuse of an art class in middle school. I didn’t really start to pursue art until high school, and even then my first class was only an elective to me. It was in that first high school art class, drawing 1, that I really started coming into my own and started really enjoying it. My junior year I was introduced to two of my three loves in art, photography and ceramics. I took to photo like a fish to water, but I disliked 3-D with a passion until I was introduced to clay. Then I fell in love, the rest is history.

OA: How would you define your work? Which mediums do you work in, and which is your favorite?
KP: I’m not really that sure as how to define my work, so all I can say is the common saying "art is the representation of ones self". Art tells about the artiest so I guess I can define my work as me, a representation of me. Take that as you will and interpret as you like. I personally like to work in ceramics, printmaking, and photo (though with photo not as much as I should be) and would have to say it is a toss up between ceramics and printmaking. I guess my favorite would be whichever I felt inspired to do at the time. I mainly just do wheel work in ceramics and I do relief and mono type in printmaking. The relief style I do is very unique, and I have been asked by several in the field if I am pioneering it, though I feel I am not. The style involves using an etching needle and nothing more to do the cuts on the block.

OA: What is your typical starting point for a new piece, and how long does it take you to complete that piece?
KP: That depends entirely on what medium I am working in. In ceramics I usually just start centering with a general idea in my head, then let the clay tell me what to do from there. In printmaking I either decide what medium I want to work in then find an image, or vise versa. The length of time it takes to complete also depends on what I am doing. I have had mono types range from five minutes to seven hours, relief cuts from two hours to a month, ceramic pieces from ten minutes to an hour.

OA: Who are some of your biggest influences artistically?
KP: I really don't look to the well known art world for inspiration. I find that I am most inspired by the people I know personally, my friends, teachers, and fellow students. I would have to say my biggest and only influences in ceramics were and are my teachers and friends Greg Chapman and Joe Hernandez. They have been with me since the beginning, and their styles have become integrated into the forming of my own. As for printmaking I have several friends and acquaintances that inspire, not so much as shape my style than as to keep me with ideas, criticize me, offer opinions, and keep me motivated and on track. OA: Do you listen to music when you create? If yes, who are some your favorite musicians to listen to? Does their music impact your art in anyway?
KP: Usually yes, and a wide variety. The music I listen to doesn't really impact the subject of my art very much, but it definitely impacts how I work. I work really well to Modest Mouse, David Bowie, Mr. Bungle, Door Mouse, Stunt Rock, Radiohead, Aphex Twin, Ben Folds the list goes on, and on, and on... I love ipods.

OA: If anyone would like to purchase your pieces how should they contact you?
KP: You can view my art once I get it up at my myspace, but I will tell you there will be nothing new, if anything at all for awhile. If you are interested in purchasing a print (I don’t sell pots... yet) contact me at my e-mail address blackhoodiegirl67@sbcglobal.net.
Katie Perkis currently lives in St. Charles IL. She graduated from St. Charles East H.S. in 2004 and is currently attending Elgin Community College. Once she obtains her Associate in fine arts she plans to transfer to N.I.U. to complete her BFA.

Wednesday Link of the Day

Today's link is a must read full of intelligent fiction, interesting illustional, and DIY punk mentality. "SteamPunk Magazine" is new to the scene, but they have produced a quality first issue that can be downloaded here. This is how they describe it:

"Before the age of homogenization and micro-machinery, before the tyrannous efficiency of internal combustion and the domestication of electricity, lived beautiful, monstrous machines that lived and breathed and exploded unexpectedly at inconvenient moments. It was a time where art and craft were united, where unique wonders were invented and forgotten, and punks roamed the streets, living in squats and fighting against despotic governance through wit, will and wile. Even if we had to make it all up. SteamPunk Magazine is a publication that is dedicated to promoting steampunk as a culture, as more than a sub-category of fiction. It is a journal of fashion, music, misapplied technology and chaos. And fiction."

Also check out their website.

Political Bio of the Week

After a couple week hiatis, we're back in the swing of things w/ the presidential candidates. This week is none other then the former first lady, Hillary Rodham Clinton.

CLINTON, Hillary Rodham, (wife of President William Jefferson Clinton), a Senator from New York; born on October 26, 1947, in Chicago, Illinois; attended public school in Park Ridge, Illinois; graduated Wellesley College, BA 1969; graduated Yale Law School, JD 1973; attorney; counsel, impeachment inquiry staff, House Judiciary Committee 1974; First Lady of Arkansas 1979-1981, 1983-1993; First Lady of the United States 1993-2001; elected to the United States Senate for term commencing January 3, 2001; reelected in 2006 for the term ending January 3, 2013.

Favors:

Women's right to chose

Reduction in teen pregnancy by education and contraceptives

Require companies to hire more women and minorities

Sexual orientation protected by civil rights

Gays deserve domestic partnership benefits

Stricter sentencing of hate crimes

Universal Healthcare

Three strikes sentencing and more prisons

After school activities to prevent gangs

Extending tax cuts on capital gains and dividends

Illegal immigrants earn citizenship

Allowing illegal immigrants to participate in social security

Free trade w/ Singapore, Vietnam, Chile, and Oman

Stricter limits on political campaign funds

License and register all handgun sales

Replace US troops with UN troops

Extend peace treaties w/ Palestinians, Syrians, and Lebanese

Enlarge NATO to include Eastern Europe

Replace coal and oil w/ alternatives

Targeting 100,000 hydrogen vehicles by 2010

Banning oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

Allow churches to provide welfare services

Opposes:

Constitutional ban on flag desecration

Limiting liability lawsuits to $250,000

Privatized social security

Parents choose schools via vouchers

Death Penalty

Absolute right to gun ownership

Prohibiting or banning lawsuits against gun manufacturers

Decrease overall taxation of the wealthy

More spending on the armed forces

More laws to prohibit drugs and drug use

New Release Tuesday

Music:
The day the world has been waiting for, new ARCADE FIRE and so much more:
1. Air - Pocket Symphony (mp3)
2. !!! - Myth Takes (mp3)
3. The Moaners - Blackwing Yalobusha (find mp3 here)
4. Apostle of Hustle - National Anthem of Nowhere (mp3)
5. Arcade Fire - Neon Bible (mp3)
6. 31Knots - Days and Nights of Everything (mp3)
7. Bright Eyes - Four Winds Ep (mp3)
8. RJD2 - The Third Hand (mp3)
9. Odawas - Raven and The White Night (mp3)
10. My Brightest Diamond - Tear it Down (mp3)
11. Amon Tobin - Foley Room (mp3)
12. Wolf & Cub - Vessels (find mp3's here)
13. Son Volt - The Search (find mp3's here)
14. Maria Taylor - Lynn Teeter Flower (find mp3's here)
15. Jonny Lives! - Get Steady (mp3)
16. Kool Keith - Ultra-Octa-Doom
17. The Secret Handshake - Summer of 98 (find mp3's here)
18. Albert Hammond Jr. - Yours to Keep (find mp3 here)
19. Dj Icey - Disco Rodeo
20. Green Pitch - Ace of Hearts (mp3)
21. Pop Levi - Sugar Assault Me Now (Single) (mp3)
22. Gruff Rhys - Candylion (US Release) (find mp3's here)

DVD:
Roc Raida Presents: Gong Battles: New York
Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
Let's Go To Prision
Fast Food Nation

Monday Morning Mix

I didn't have a great weekend, and this is me trying pull myself out of it and make something happen this week! Enjoy "Gone Beyond".

(artwork "Apparition" by Minchi)

Coffee Talk

Culture, how is it defined?

Over one weekend in February (16th - 18th), everything that may have been unclear or undecided about NBA culture and more or less hip-hop culture has suddenly been decided by the media. Las Vegas holds large conventions and events frequently, and itself carries a stigma of organized crime, gambling, and questionable, if not illicit activities. In fact, Vegas is commonly known as "Sin City", but when there is a sudden influx of another "culture" everything changes. A recent article in the Las Vegas Sun painted this picture: "The stories were legion. A body hits the ground after falling from a Strip casino parking ramp in front of a hotel employee. Lines of men "wash" the sides of the MGM Grand with their urine. Scores of people get cab rides, then run out on the fare." The story goes on to say that the town was on edge, and several athletes (including Tracy McGrady) said that couldn't wait to get off of the strip because they feared what might happen. The Las Vegas police department reported 403 arrests and 4 shootings. Pacman Jones, who is not in the NBA and it is hard to claim that he listens to hip-hop without actually asking him, was involved in three of the four shootings.

Hip-hop culture, historically, has been defined by the "four pillars" of hip-hop, which are break dancing, rapping, graffiti, and deejaying. However, the themes and the stories told through the words of several rappers have rarely painted a simple picture as narrow as the four pillars. Take last year's hot duo, Clipse, most of their songs revovled around them dealing cocaine. However, I don't think they are really cocaine dealers. Just like a writer, a rapper can tell a story, but the degree to which it actually relates to their own life can vary. Besides the contributions of Clipse, 50 Cent, Ice Cube, etc., how do account for the positive message of Glue, Ugly Duckling, K-os, and others. How can hip-hop culture be defined by a small segment of people that caused problems in Las Vegas? Is this more of a race issue? How do you define culture? Talk amongst yourselves...

The Watch List

Listening:
1. Twocsinak & Dj Sarah Wilson - Strange, but it draws me in.
2. Vampire Weekend - Big piano and great melodies, this is something special. Check Out: Oxford Comma (mp3)
3. Noisettes - If Macy Gray decided to take up dance-punk rock n' roll, it would sound like this. Their album is out in the US on 4/7/07. Check out: Don't Give Up (mp3).

Reading:
1. Freewill by Liz Baillie - It is a great on-line comic published by Fall of Autumn Press.
2. Practical Fusion or Just a Bubble? by Kenneth Chang - The interesting concept of sonofusion or bubble fusion.
3. Kenaz #6 - Creative Writing from the Tees Valley.

Wishing:
1. Stones Throw & Kidrobot have produced Madvillian the figure. It's sold out, but I'm sure I can find it somewhere.
2. The Pat Robertson and Friends Color Book by Kevin Stone and Mackie Blanton. This came out last November, but it is super fun kids!

Getting:
1. The O.J. Simpson Coloring & Activity Book - It's an oldie but a goodie and it is free.
2. Definitive Swim - Adult Swim and Def Jux are giving a free album featuring Mr. Lif, El-p, Aesop Rock, and More.

Watching:
1. El-p's new video for "Flyentology".
2. Page France - Chariot (live at Michael Nau's New Year's Eve House Party). Whitney is playing the xylophone, and looks exceptionally well.

Saturday Morning Cartoon

This morning while you enjoy a futuristic bowl of Jetson's Cereal watch this robotic cartoon from MSTRKRFT.

Work On You

Band of the Week

Papercuts

Jason Quever is the mastermind behind the oceanic California pop of Papercuts. He, along with some help from David Enos, Matt Stromberg, and Alex DeLanda, has crafted the most perfect pop album so far this year. With a perfect blend of 60's folk-pop and creative passionate lyrics, "Can't Go Back" is solid start to finish. He attributes the sound of the album to his recording process. He prefers to use analog, but he does not want to be considered "retro". This March 6th release is Quever's first on Gnomonsong, and his first since 2004's "Mockingbird".

Papercuts is currently on tour with the like-minded 2006 darlings Grizzly Bear. However, when comparing their sound to that of Grizzly Bear, Papercuts is much warmer and more accessible then anything Grizzly Bear has done. I would compare his sound more to that of Page France then to Grizzly Bear or Panda Bear, even though they all have a similar sound, Quever like Michael Nau, has the ability to create amazing melodies at every turn.

John Brown (mp3)

Dear Employee (mp3)

Take the 227th Exit (mp3)

Gnomonsong Press Release

Buy "Can't Go Back" here

Visit Papercuts here.

(photo above by Arica Sobel)

Writer's Corner

Nick Ostdick

"Chicago has developed and matured like that strange girl in high school with the big-framed glasses and pink-dyed hair, and many writers are now coming to find out what literary gem the Midwestern city is." from "On Their Own Terms" (published by decomP 9/26/06)

Fiction writer, Nick Ostdick, is at the center of this growing and maturing Chicago literary scene. Whether it is through his literary magazine RAGAD, his novel "Sunbeams and Cigarettes", or the various short stories, articles, or interviews he has had published on online, Nick is working hard to advance the scene and promote the city. He believes the key to scene lies in the networking between the writers and publishers, and in the fact that the underground has remained "untouched by corporate hands". He continues this networking by holding and participating in readings throughout the city and the suburbs, and he recently took time out to answer a few of our questions.

Orange Alert (OA): Who are your biggest literary influences?
Nick Ostdick (NO): Well, Faulkner is a big one—he has such a defined and unique voice, and that’s something that I really value. Kerouac is another biggie. He managed to capture the mood of a generation in a very sharp and concise way, and I think his work will resonate quite loudly with this generation’s youth as well. Nelson Algren was a lovely writer as well, same goes for Kurt Vonnegut—I admire that he is still producing great work. Saul Bellow’s Seize the Day was just gorgeous, and Allen Ginsberg’s spirit and enthusiasm on the written word really inspires me as well. Donald Barthleme is another hit for me as well, his short stories especially. His short fiction was fantastical and crazy and beautiful, and I really think that he mastered the art of the short story like no one else. As far as my contemporaries, Joe Meno is a huge influence on me. He’s from Chicago, and writes these very real novels with painfully genuine characters and dialogue. Love him. Chicago in general has produced many writers l like—Todd Dills in particular, who runs The2ndHand, a great lit mag. There is a really lively literary scene in Chicago right now, real grass roots and from the heart. I also really like Paul Toth, John McNally, and Joshua Braff.

OA: How has the internet (websites, webzines, blogs, etc) affected you as a writer?
NO: I would say it greatly has affected me. This is a burning debate in the lit world right now: what is considered being published? Blogs? Online lit mags? I have a big chunk of my heart invested in online lit mags and such. They’ve given my work a home. They’re much more accessible too, which to me, makes them more important and reputable than print lit mags. I’ve had work published in print, and it is nice to have that tangible item to hold and admire, but at that same time I always wonder who is reading this? The journal printed up 500 copies of it, most of which they won’t be able to sell. The online magazines I have published in get something like 3000 to 4000 people visiting every month. And even if half of those people click to read my work, that’s still 1500 people who have read my work, almost three times that of said print magazine. That’s what is important to me: readership. Stories were meant to be told, and good online lit mags give more people the chance to read my work than any print ones do—except for maybe The New Yorker or something like that.

OA: Why do you write?
NO: Tough question. There’s a lot of reasons. I write because I feel I have some stories deep inside me that need to be told. I write because people live inside me that need a life external from me. I write, and I think this is true of all writes, because I am a selfish person. Writing is a real selfish art I think, real solitary and closed off from other kinds of art. It’s just you and a blank page, and you get to do whatever you want, and you never have to show it to anyone if you don’t want to.

OA: What are the biggest challenges that face young writers today?
NO: Hmm…I think that writing industry itself is a pretty good challenge. With POD publishers and anyone being able to publish a book, the competition is crazy. You have to be that much better than everyone else who thinks they are a writer. A colleague of mine said once he was going to tell people he was an astronaut when people asked what he did for a living, because when he said he was a writer everyone always said they were a writer too. And that’s true. Everyone is a writer, and with technology more and more people are publishing and getting their work out there. The bar is quite high now.

OA: Who are some of your favorite musicians currently? Does their music affect your work in any way?
NO: That’s a good question. Right now, I’m in the middle of doing an interview with another writer for 63 Channels Magazine, and I asked him the same question. There seems to be some kind of bond between writers and music. Jason Jordan, the writer I’m interviewing, said that Kurt Vonnegut says music is the closet art form to God we have, and that writers are attracted to that for some reason. I think it’s mainly the lyrics part of music that writers are attracted to, the story telling though an almost-poetry/prose clump of words. I listen to artists like Wilco, Sonic Youth, The Flaming Lips, The Shins, and old singer songwriters like Bill Fay and Roy Harper. One of my favorite solo artists is Jim O’Rouke. He made these really deep, layered, records that always open your eyes to discovery and wonder. I love that. That’s what I really try to do with my writing, I guess—give the reader a sense of wonderment and discovery.

OA: What’s next for Nick?
NO: Well, right now I’m putting together a chapbook of short stories called Periscopes, which will come out later this year. RAGAD Books is putting it out. I’m real excited about it. I’m working on a new novel currently titled Misfits in America, as well as other short stories and article-like pieces for various magazines.

For more information on Nick visit his website and visit his online/print literary journal RAGAD.

Artist of the Week

Leanne Biank

The amazing thing about art is how broad the definition can be, and ultimately it is define by the observer and not the creator. There is photography, sculpture, painting, illustrations, pottery, and so on, but an exciting new outlet is that of original skateboard design. An artist that is advancing this medium into a art form, and still finding time to create other incredible pieces of art is Leanne Biank. Pennsylvania artist, Leanne Biank, has a BFA in Illustration from The University of Arts in Philadelphia and is currently a designer for Villanova University.

Recently, Leanne was kind enough to answer a few questions for us:

Orange Alert (OA): How would you define your style of painting?
Leanne Biank (LB): I guess if I had to call my style something I might say its a bit of a mix of tongue in cheek, whimsical, surrealism or something like that.

OA: In the current world of art, what is the distinction between art and
illustration, and how do you, (if you do) keep the two separate when you create?
LB: Well I actually went to school for illustration and to me "illustration" and "art" can easily be one in the same. As long as you are constantly putting yourself and your own ideas and thoughts on things into your work, the "illustration" you may have done for a cd cover could just as easily have hung in a gallery. Plus alot of the times galleries, that might show your "art," will give you a theme for the show, to give you something to work off of, which alot of the times is the same way that an illustration job might be done. I guess I could say that illustration is getting an idea across through an image, well I would hope that an artist would be doing the exact same thing with their "art."

OA: What is your typical starting point for a new piece, and how long does
it take you to complete that piece?
LB: My personal way of working out and starting a piece, is by doing a bit of research on whatever my idea might be, through books, Internet ect. Then I'll make out a pretty big list of any words that might come to my mind about that idea, after that I sketch out about 20 thumbnail ideas until I have something set. From there I just sketch and sketch in my book until my characters, backgrounds and ideas are solid enough to transfer to the wood that I will eventually turn into a painting. It usually takes me about a week or two to finish a painting because I also work two jobs I dont get to sit down every day and paint, unfortunately.
OA: Who are some of your biggest influences artistically?
LB: Some of my biggest artistic influences are titian, monet, Bernie fuchs, jeremy fish, jeff soto, joe sorren, blaine fontana.

OA: Do you listen to music when you paint? If yes, who are some your favorite musicians to listen to? Does their music impact your painting in anyway?
LB: I do listen to music when i paint, or sometimes ill watch a movie on my laptop or something, but usually ill listen to music. Lately i've been listening to; sufjan stevens, clap your hands and say yeah, the decemberists, iron and wine, explosions in the sky, modest mouse, me without you and the get up kids. their music definitely impacts my work for sure they put me in this certain mood that really gets me into what i'm doing, I tend to not think about anything else but what's in front of me and kind of zone out.
This spring Leanne will take part in the "Across the Sea" group show at the Fuel Gallery (Philly) on March 16th, the "Pick of the Harvest: Batch Four" show at Thinkspace Gallery (LA) on April 13th, and the "I Am an 8-Bit" show at 1988 Gallery (LA) on April 17th. For more information on Leanne Biank visit her website.

Wednesday Link of the Day

I recently discovered Pandora, and I can't get enough. I like it more then Last.fm because it takes specific qualities in the music of the artist that you enter and plays music by artists with those same qualities. Basically, they seem to give better recommendations then last.fm. Check it out!

New Release Tuesday

Music:
1. Do Make Say Think - You, You're a History in Rust The Universe! (mp3)
2. Money Mark - Brand New by Tomorrow Color of yourBlue (mp3)
3. Dalek - Abandoned Language Bricks Crumble (mp3)
4. Portugal the Man - It's Complicated Being a Wizard (single) Ruby Magic (mp3)
5. Dr. Dog - We All Belong Alaska (mp3)
6. Dean & Britta - Back Numbers Words You Used to Say (mp3)

DVD:
1. Stranger Than Fiction - Will Ferrell
2. A Good Year
3. The Return - Sarah Michelle Gellar
4. Tenacious D: The Pick of Destiny