Reader Meet Author

Ben Segal

In business you are consistently told to "think outside the box", and as Americans we are always reminded of our freedoms. We are encouraged to discover new ways of solving old problems, and reach out in abstract and undefined ways to become something new. However, some may contend that the most magical explorations and greatest discoveries may occur inside the box. When we set limits for ourselves or very narrow goals that is when we excel.

Massachusetts writer Ben Segal has gone inside the box (or boxes) and in many ways come out with something new and original. His debut novella, 78 Stories (out June 20th No Records Press), fits perfectly into the structure of a crossword puzzle. That's right, the stories read both across and down. Inside these squares the words interweave and guide the reader carefully down the page. However, do not get caught up in the form, Ben manages to write quality stories as well.

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

Orange Alert (OA): Your debut novella, 78 Stories, has a unique structure. How did this concept first come to you and how long did it take to layout?
Ben Segal (BS): The idea for the structure came before any of the actual stories. I guess there are a few major reasons for choosing the form. I've been very very interested in the OuLiPo group for a few years and their ideas of constrained writing and find the idea of constrained writing to be very appealing. I even dedicated the book to Georges Perec (a member), who is one of my very favorite writers. If you'd like I could do a whole spiel on OuLiPo, but basically the short version is they are a French literary movement that grew out of a reaction against surrealism and automatic writing. OuLiPo is an acronym that translates into the Workshop for Potential Literature. They use very intense formal constraints to structure their writing and force creative and unusual combinations of words and narrative arcs so they don't get stuck in the common patterns of traditional writing.

I tried to use the crossword form specifically because I love crosswords, but mostly because I was thinking a lot about the idea of iterability. I wanted to see how I could work in a way that emphasized both repetition (in terms of the strict repetition of paragraphs in multiple directions) and difference (in so far as each repetition would signify differently). Finally, the idea of a single large sheet and the fact that a crossword puzzle is a non-linear form made it a really exciting concept to pursue.

As for layout, At first, it was very slow work to lay-out because I was doing all of the squares by hand, but then my girlfriend figured out how to computerize the layout and it became much easier. The difficulties mostly came from keeping both narrative strands in my mind when drafting each paragraph.

OA: Behind the layout and incredible appearance of the book there a great story, what can you tell us about 78 Stories the story?
BS: Can we make this now read: The story isn't so much a story as a big weird collection of stories that bleed into each other. My rule in writing was that any 'answer' across or down should be a coherent fragment. Other than that, I let the themes and plots emerge as naturally as I could. Vaguely you can say the book is about 2012,failed relationships, ghosts, and animals behaving strangely. Also a good bit of ennui and football. I'd like to again refer to Perec here, insofar as I think the way he uses formal play is something of an ideal for me. What I mean is that I really wanted was for this really exciting form to then yield a piece of writing that was often also funny and emotionally resonant and also generally stimulating. I'm not sure how well I've succeeded on all of those counts. Anyways, the story is a strange and kind of sad/funny, possibly apocalyptic world with 78 little narratives.


OA: You have decided do a book tour for this release, but incorporate more elements then just reading. What can someone except to see at your events?
BS: I live in this really awesome house in Northampton, Massachusetts with a bunch of other people and we do shows in our basement and have a fire pit and have done movie screenings and things like that. It's called the Purple House. If you're ever in the area, please come visit. Anyways, one of my housemates is a quantum physics researcher at Amherst College and another of my housemates is a really accomplished trumpet player. We decided that it wasn't fair that the kids in bands got to have all the fun, so we are going on a tour. Jim is going to be talking about physics and also doing some pretty amazing demonstrations. There will be magnetic fluids and discussion of the make-up of the universe. It's really cool. Peter's playing
trumpet. He's been in rock bands and classical ensembles and is actually a really fantastic klezmer musician, but on tour he's performing a lot of his solo work which features a lot of controlled improvisation and unusual manipulation of the instrument. I think what kind of ties the evening together is that we're all kind of working on things that I think are very interested in exploration and innovation, but at the same time we're all doing stuff that I think a lot of
different people (not just specialists) can understand and hopefully be really excited by.


OA: Can you tell us more about your record label?
BS: The label I do is called Leisure Class Records. I actually co-run it with Dallas Foster, a good friend from college who now lives in Chicago. He's actually the one who is hosting our Chicago show. The label puts out mostly folk/experimental kinds of things. We've done releases with Liz Isenerg, Veer Right Young Pastor, Cassette Concret, and Vio/Mire. We also have a website, www.leisureclassrecords.com, although we kind of suck at the internet so it is a bit out of date.


OA: This being your first book, is there a difference is seeing your work in print as opposed to on-line publication? Do you write differently for on-line journals then print journals? Is one better then the other?
BS: Print vs. Online is a hard question because I get a big thrill holding physical objects. That's a lot of why we do the label-- because we really like things like sewn and stencilled packaging. On
the other hand, having something online for free makes it way more accessible. This is all super-obvious, but I think the biggest thing for me is the hope that people read a story of mine no matter where it is published. As for the book, I felt strongly that 78 Stories should be in print, because I think it loses some of it's impact on a computer screen.


OA: What's next for Ben Segal?
BS: Next for me is that I have to write my Master's thesis and then probably more school. Then I want to teach somewhere and live in a big house with lots of people and do house shows and write little books and stories. Next is basically now with a real job, except better and
without a landlord.

Bonus Questions:

OA: Coffee? If yes, what is your favorite type of coffee and where can you find the best cup?
BS: I am boring and cheap, so I take regular coffee with a little cream and sugar. I probably take more cream and sugar than is seemly and real coffee lovers probably look down at me. They typically look down at me at the Haymarket Cafe, because that is where I go to have very reasonably priced soups and coffee.


OA: What type of music do you enjoy?
BS: I think the safe answer for the type of music I enjoy is the stuff my friends make and the music my label releases. That's a really big part of what I'm into. I'm also super into Amelia Fletcher, things released by Sarah Records and Subway Organizaton, Beulah, and I'm
currently getting pretty into 1950s and 60s pop music (doowop, girl groups).

Ben's tour stops in Chicago this Saturday, June 21st at 9:00, at 4F. 4F is located at 1354 N. Greenview Avenue. This is a house show and one that should not be missed. For more information on Ben Segal and 78 Stories please visit the No Records Press website or Ben's myspace page.

Artist of the Week

Cecilia Ferreira

As a white American male sitting behind my laptop in my suburban townhouse, it is not easy for me to understand the plight of abused woman more or less the point of view of a woman living in South Africa. From what I have read, this violence or abuse is so ingrained in their culture that it is irreversible and occurs as second nature. So it is only natural that it bleeds into the work of the artists and musicians. When capturing such an emotional topic or event, is it to speak out, is it to fight against, or is it simply to document?

South African artist and writer Cecilia Ferreira tries to capture this powerful emotion, but does not limit her work to her surrounding. She works on all sorts of themes and on various subjects from abstract to photography to poetry. Her latest series focuses on altering pages from a fashion magazine. Regardless of the medium, her work always tries to help the cause of womanhood and entertain the viewer.

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

OA: How would you describe your work?
CF: My work is subconscious vomit. I swallow life and regurgitate it and puke it out on paper.
It's a product of experimentation and it happens by chance. I often splatter paint over a surface and wait for the canvas to tell me what to paint. I like to make a clear differentiation between my work and I, because I believe it is not me as a brain, or me as a heart, or me as a person, who is in fact creating the images. I consider myself a channel or a used vessel communicating messages much greater than what I would normally have to say. Sometimes I create something and when it's finished I wonder how the image actually got there, since I didn't even put a second's thought into it. But as much as I would like to believe I am in no way connected to my art, I have to admit that that statement cannot possibly be a hundred percent true.

I never take more than a few minutes to create an image. I consider immediacy imperative for the unadulterated depiction of my subject. I always try to directly confront the viewer and make him or her uncomfortable. Real realization never happens comfortably.

OA: Several of your images speak out (loudly) against violence towards women. Why have you chosen this as a topic of focus?
CF: My art deals with a lot of issues.

If it deals with this one in particular, I suppose it has a lot to do with the fact that I'm a woman. I never considered myself a feminist. Pure Electra, I always had a very special relationship with my father, always got along better with males, etc. When I was much younger, my admiration for the male specie convinced me that men are in fact superior in many ways. I felt really comfortable believing that…until I had a child.

Since the birth, my views on the female gender changed drastically. The female gender's capacity to, physically and mentally, go through the gestational period, birth and thereafter motherhood, is absolutely unworldly. I now view females with admiration and I am in constant awe of the complexity of their bodies. I also admire the way females are constantly challenged by facing society's which are often unsympathetic towards women and which do not give them the recognition they deserve. Often women are victimized because they are either inferior in size, born into the wrong culture or just too damn stupid to realize how extraordinary they are.

I am not sure why I speak out against violence towards women. I suppose it comes across as me defending women, or maybe it can be because I'm so disappointed that even in today's day and age, women in certain cultures are reluctant to stand up for themselves. When I depict women as victims, I might even imply that they victimize themselves.

I grew up in South Africa, where women are raped by the minute. This type of violence towards women are sickening for the obvious reasons. Often there are "suaver" types of violence towards women. Viewing women as mere sexual objects, slaves who belong in the kitchen or as the weaker sex based on their size is in one way or the other, violating the gender.

OA: In many of your pieces you scratch out a message directly into the piece. Is this like a form of visual poetry? Why wouldn't the image speak for itself?
CF: My latest series, where I wrote phrases directly onto the image, is called "Issues".

I bought a high gloss fashion magazine one day and instead of neatly putting it on a shelf, I had this great urge to rip it apart and ragefully manipulate the pages into images that might be the exact opposite of what it was meant to be. All of the perfect models became ugly and I used the images of women in the magazine to portray outcasts, psychosis, eating disorders, sadness and all kinds of issues "real life" and "normal" women deal with. I specifically wrote the phrases on the pages to give it a subjective feel. All or most of the sentences are written in the first person, to draw the viewer close, as if the viewer is directly confronted with a person. Many viewers make the terrible mistake to assume that, because the phrases are written in the first person, all the issues are directly related to me as a person! The manner in which I have written the words are scratched, frantic or desperate to make the message hard, clear and "in your face". I don't believe these images speak for themselves, or at least loudly enough, without the text.

OA: You recently started writing poetry. In what way is poetry a different outlet for your creativity?
CF: I once described poetry and fine art as lovers: they are separate entities but they constantly wear each other's scent. No doubt the two are related, but for me, as a creative person, the two are worlds apart.

Visual art, for me, comes instinctively, naturally. I don't need to think about it, it just rocks up and I immediately release it. I describe it as vomit, because it really is a major release, afterwards I feel relieved and light, as if some poison inside me just had to come out.

Poetry, on the other hand, feels like a release onto me; not me releasing something. Poetry for me is a search, a hunt, a delving process where I dig up things in my mind that maybe shouldn't be disturbed. For me personally, poetry is a much bigger challenge, maybe because I am not as familiar with words as with colour and line. I also haven't yet mastered how to write with immediacy and spontaneity whilst using the correct grammar and vocab at the same time.
.I often say that, if I didn't do art, I would be psycho. Since I started writing poetry I feel that, if I keep writing poetry, I would surely become psycho!.

OA: I am fascinated by the fact that you are from Africa. In what way might your environment inform your art?
CF: To answer this one I can only speculate. I grew up in South Africa in a very unique culture, the Afrikaans culture. Our language is derived from Dutch, and yes, my culture is greatly connected to the Apartheid era. It wasn't easy growing up as an Afrikaans girl with very liberal views since a young age. I suppose as a susceptible teenager I was directly confronted with a lot of things in society that seemed inhumane. I can also speculate that, growing up as an Afrikaner has a lot to do with the loudness, the brutal "in your face" nature of my art. The Afrikaner culture in general is not what I would describe as" tactful" and "soft". Being an African in my heart maybe makes me create instinctively. African people often go by instinct; it's what nature teaches you.

On the other hand, my art has been greatly influenced by living in Portugal for six years. I married a Portuguese and I was thrown into a completely new language, culture and country. Also, Western media has influence my art greatly, so I can't say that living in Africa is what makes my art. But I did grow up barefoot, not being afraid of nature, of greatness, of sensing...
don't know if that answers your question.

OA: What's next for Cecilia Ferreira?
CF: Man, I think it's about time I have my first solo!

Bonus Questions:
OA: What is the coffee like in Africa? Have you ever had coffee from another country?
CF: The coffee in Africa is what we call "filter coffee". I think it's pretty much the same as in America. We drink our coffee with milk, mostly. The fad is flavoured coffee that tastes like everything but coffee. When I lived in Portugal, I was fascinated by the short little pitch black espresso's the Portuguese people used to throw down their throats numerous times a day. There's no savouring the coffee, no sipping it slowly, just gulping it down for the caffeine buzz, I suppose.

OA: What type of music do you enjoy? Who are a few of your favorites?
CF: My mom is a music teacher, so I was pretty much bombarded with Maria Callas and dramatic classical music as a child (hey, maybe that explains everything!) Then I grew up and was bombarded by my brother's music, Rammstein, Metallica etc. I love all kinds of music. I'm not exposed to music like I would like to be. I have been introduced to Lydia Lunch (I love her Gloomy Sunday) and Coco Rosie. I love "old jazz" like Oscar Peterson. I am a big fan of French saxophonist Sophie Alour. I LOVE Placebo (I have never heard lyrics that do it for me like their's do), Rammstein (more for their music video's than for their music) and Portuguese Fado music like Marisa and Dulce Pontes. Brazilian jazz makes me happy. Afrikaans music like Chris Chameleon makes me nostalgic... But the list really goes on.

For more information on Cecilia Ferreira please visit her at Aryan Kaganof's blog.

New Release Tuesday

Music:

Bowerbirds - Hymns for a Dark Horse (reissue)

Butter 08 - Butter 08 (reissue)

Eef Barzelay - Lose Big

Tilly and The Wall - O Listen to: Cacophony (mp3)

King Khan and The Shrines - Supreme Genius of King Khan Listen to: Torture (mp3)

Head Like A Kite - There is Loud Laughter Everywhere Listen to: No Ordinary Caveman (mp3)

The Impossible Shapes - The Impossible Shapes Listen to: Hey (mp3)

Mount Analog ft. Karl Blau - That's How I Got to Memphis (single)

My Brightest Diamond - A Thousand Shark's Teeth Listen to: Inside a Boy (mp3)

Neon Neon - Stainless Steel

The Notwist - The Devil, You + Me

Ponytail - Ice Cream Spiritual!

Stars Like Fleas - The Ken Burns Effect Listen to: I Was Only Dancing (mp3)

Wolf Parade - At Mount Zoomer

Endless Boogie - Focus Level

DVD:

Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins

Fool's Gold

Paint the Town Orange

June 11th, 2008 - Arlene's Grocery - New York City, NY - Meshach Jackson
Images and review by Dominick Mastrangelo

Meshach Jackson mixed original songs with some excellent covers at Arlene's Grocery last Wednesday. Performing a solo set, Jackson opened with the cover du jour, Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy", and closed with a killer cover of Radiohead's "True Love Waits". In between there was witty banter as well as songs from his EP Experiments In Drowning including my favorite song "Smile" (mp3). Jackson also gave a bluesy turn to Amy Winehouse's "Rehab", doing far more justice to that song than it deserves.

For more concert photos from Dominick Mastrangelo please visit his flickr page.

The Orange Spotlight

Martin Reiner No Through Road (Art Bureau Highball Reading Series, 2007)

"Yesterday you cried in your sleep. But I was too scared to wake you."

The primary focus of Art Bureau is to give a home to artists looking to display and sell their work. When you visit their site you will find prints, originals, toys, screenprints, sticker, and more from many quality young artists. So how does the first english chapbook from Czech Republic poet Martin Reiner fit into the Art Bureau catalog? Well if you take a look at the original limited edition screen prints the Bureau is producing it may give you an idea of where this chap is coming from production wise. It is printed beautifully, with rounded corners, collages by Ivan Wernisch, perfect font and coloring, it is truly and artistic chap in every sense of the word.

The work of Martin Reiner (as translated by Andrew Oakland) is compact and powerful touching on nature, man, and machine. "Es wird mehr Maschinen gerbraucht!" He makes micro commentaries on life through his perceived reality in the Czech Republic. Reading through this collection you begin realize that life, no matter the physical location, is a universal phenomenon.

"absorbing the world like a wave"

Also included in the package from the books designer and founder of Art Bureau Bert Benson was Poems-for-All Series #775 "Wonder/Divas" which is taken from this chap. Poems-for-all is a wonderful project similar to the GPP, but smaller is size and approaching 1000 in editions. A great way to scatter the written word around the world.

No Through Road was printed in a limited first run of 500. You can purchase it in lot with the first Highball release by Henry Denander and Adrian Manning. It comes in a Gocco printed envelope signed by the poet. You can view this lot and other incredible Art Bureau products at their Etsy page. $10 for the set.

Tilly and The Wall O (Team Love Records, June 17th, 2008)

On their fourth studio Neely Jenkins and Kianna Alarid really crank up the heat. Just in time for summer, this release tears through 11 tracks with fiery and fire. If that sounds unusual to the Tilly fan, it is. The band has always a great sense of songwriting and rhythm, but they have add an energy to this album that overwhelmingly contagious. The only track on the album that does move at this new, enjoyable pace is the opener "Tall Tall Grass" which harkens back to their past albums. The attribute this new found exuberance to recent tours with high-energy bands like CSS, but wherever it came from I am glad to blast it with the windows down.

Another unique twist is that this album does not offically have a title or cover art. Here is the explanation: "The album, produced by the acclaimed Mike Mogis, has no title. It could be called "o," because its cover is just that: an oval-shaped frame for the artwork that will go inside of it. As a band who surround themselves not only with artistic friends, but also artistic fans, Tilly and the Wall have invited everyone in their community to contribute to the cover art for their record. O will have limited edition runs of handmade prints available by different artists that will act as the record's cover, giving the band's fans a unique piece of art for both their album and their walls. Each month, the record will have a different cover; or, of course, you could very well create your own. The frame of the cover art allows the listener to put him/herself into the album, and believe us: this is a record into which you'll want to pour yourself."

Preorder and view the various covers here.

Tilly and The Wall will be in Chicago on Aug. 6th @ The Abbey. Go here for a complete list of tour dates.

Check out the video for Pot Kettle Black.

Tall Tall Grass/Pot Kettle Black (mp3)/Cacophony (mp3)/I Found You/Alligator Skin/Chandelier Lake/Dust Me Off/Falling Without Knowing/Bloodflower/Poor Man’s Ice Cream/Too Excited

Orange Alert's Music Minute

If you were looking for dark and steamy electronics that slowly build and loop, creating a dark alley way staring into the soul of Copenhagen... then look no further. The debut album from Lulu Rouge is hauntingly danceable, but also suited for sitting in silence. Lulu Rouge is comprised of DJ T.O.M. (Trentemøller’s touring partner and right-hand for the last three years) and Buda, a well-respected DJ and producer on the Copenhagen scene. Debut single “Bless You” features vocals by seven-time Danish Music Awards nominee Mikael Simpson. The album (also called Bless You) was released on June 9th by Music For Dreams.

Listen to: Bless You (mp3)

Experimental dream folk from Iowa, Black Vatican are long time friends Owen Gardner (guitar/synth/organ) & Andy Roche (singing/drum programming). They just release a split lp with True Primes on Chicago's Locust Music. I love any band that just hangs around and experiments with sound and noise. Here is Andy talking about their recording process. "Owen and I usually hang out for 4-5 hours or a weekend and talk about our lives and listen to music. At some point we start recording. Usually we begin with some sort of germ of a song. Often it's a vocal melody or just a line of lyrics. Everything after that happens quickly in one take. Owen then makes some adjustments when he polishes the recording. When its done we usually laugh a lot and hang out for an hour or two just listening to the song and enjoying it together. The songs just sort of materialize in a short period of time and afterwards it always feels kind of amazing." Watch the video for "Night Is Come"

Listen to: Beautiful Reformer (mp3)

This is taken from Matt Bauer's press release, it is a fascinating story and an incredible release.

"In 1968 a young woman was found dead along a dirt road near Eagle Creek, north of Georgetown, Kentucky. For thirty years, she was known only as 'Tent Girl', the name given to her by the Kentucky Post & Times Star because she'd been found wrapped in canvas resembling a tent bag. This album is a series of overlapping narratives inspired by her story as re-imagined to incorporate imagery and locales from Matt Bauer's rural Kentucky upbringing. These songs explore what it means to be home and to be lost, what it means to pass from life to death.

The Island Moved in the Storm takes its name from a stretch of gravel and shale in a bend of Triplett Creek where Bauer grew up. After a hard rain, the island would "move" and change shape, adapting to the new flow of water. The album reflects this vision of impermanence and fleeting beauty not only in the songs that take the island as their setting, but also in songs that expand into the wider world: The woods have "scatters of deer tracks frozen in the mud" and wild horses are glimpsed for a moment before they scatter into the trees along a shoreline. Human hair is spread around a garden to keep out rabbits only to be woven into bird nests and carried away on the wind. Girls jump from a river bridge and "their hair floats up to heaven."

But the world of this collection of songs is one of powerful indifference as much as passing beauty. A blacksnake crawls headless through grass and dandelions, perhaps the same white dandelions that later find a breeze "blowing off their heads". A soldier lies wounded on a battlefield, imagining a mysterious figure with a string of bluegill, still gasping for air, hanging from her dress. As her mascara runs "like downed telephone wires" he asks her "are you the one / who has come to sew me up / and send me back out?" A boy likens the meeting of his parents to a spider trapping a fly, an image that insinuates an unbalanced relationship, but also, as is often the case in The Island Moved in the Storm, a sense of inevitability and natural order that is beyond judgement."

Listen to: Don't Let Me Out (mp3)

It is all to easy to label a band as a copy or new version of another more famous band, and upon the first listen of Minnesota's A Night in the Box you may compare them to a legendary southern bluesy rock band with a high pitch screeching lead singer. However, there more to this bands sound then just a Led Zepplin cover band like Wolfmother. The recently added a new dimension by bringing violinist Kailyn Spencer into the band. Their sophomore release, Write A Letter, was released on May 27th and they are currently on tour.

Jun 15 2008 8:00P The Elbo Room Chicago, Illinois
Jun 16 2008 8:00P The Blue Rock Tavern Cincinnati, Ohio
Jun 17 2008 8:00P Charm City Cakes Baltimore, Maryland
Jun 18 2008 8:00P The Delancey (New York) New York City, New York
Jun 19 2008 8:00P Mill Creek Tavern (Pennsylvania) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Jun 21 2008 1:00P Harvard Square Cambridge, Massachusetts
Jun 22 2008 1:00P Harvard Square Cambridge, Massachusetts
Jun 24 2008 8:00P Bernie’s Distillery (Ohio) Columbus, Ohio
Jun 26 2008 10:00P Stir-ups with The Blue Heels Green Bay, Wisconsin
Jun 27 2008 8:00P The Turf Club Homecoming show with the Brass Kings And Two Many Banjos Minneapolis,Minnesota
Jul 2 2008 3:00P KFAI Jackson’s Juke Joint@ the 331 club Minneapolis

Listen to: The Rich Man's Table (mp3)

They say it was their love of 'left-of-the-dial' music that brought them together, but on their self-released sophomore effort, Literal Scene, Plagiarists seem to strike a rather traditional cord. However, how do you define traditional or left-of-the-dial for that matter? Their rhythms are crisp and jaunty bouncing around well-crafted lyrics. The plays like a cold winter's breeze slicing through a humid summer day. It is refreshing and completely unexpected.

Listen to: Church (mp3)

cllct.com band of the week: Porches

Ben Horowitz sings songs full of contrasts. They are filled with humor, but at the same time can strike a political commentary that is both biting and much needed. Broadcasting out of Chicago (moving from Arizona nearly a year ago), he plays house shows and bills filled with like minded musicians. He has albums for sale at his show, but you can download two collections on his cllct page.

I recently asked Ben why he got involved with the cllct community.

"I got involved in CLLCT because a friend of mine asked me to. The music is free because it doesn't cost us anything to make it. The current media market pushes the idea that art is a consumable like anything else; that the purchaser should feel privileged for being able to purchase it. To me, the privilege lies with the artist, who is privileged to have the time and resources to be doing something he/she loves."

Well said, you can also visit Porches on myspace. He will be playing @ Joe's Apartment on June 19th and @ South Union Arts on June 26th.

The Peel Back: Tadd Mullinix Winking Makes A Face (GI-01, Ghostly Int'l, Dec. 2000)

By 2000 I had already fallen in love with electronic music and left it behind years previous. I was actually digging for indie rock gems when I came across a label that I never heard of before. Ghostly International... if the name was intriguing enough the Pac-man like ghost figure on their logo was the clincher. I was curious and found a few mp3's from this debut release. It was called Winking Makes a Face by a solo artist named Tadd Mullinix. I was amazed by the complexity of his beats and the beauty he maintained. As a result I abandon indie rock for awhile and began live inside this record. I eventually began to branch out to what I feel was the second wave of electronic music (kid606, Lesser, Matmos, Kit Clayton, Boards of Canada, etc.).

On a track like Lulla, beautiful chimes attempt to soar, but are met with looping noise harsh but forgiving. The two sounds swirl and dance until the pace quickens and changes pattern. Other sounds come in and suddenly it all comes together an in a moment of perfection. This song is a dream state floating eternally in the past waiting to be rediscovered.

Minajor/Lulla (mp3)/Le Lit/Divided By Lanes/Enfant Dans La Chambre Respirant/Twice Triumph/Mother, Child and Modern Life/Commun Changement (mp3)/The Letter/Fin

The Watch List

Listening:
1. High on Stress: They just want to be your 103rd favorite band. That's not too much to ask for, is it? Moonlight Girls is the name of their rock infused twangy album. Listen to: Cash Machine (mp3)
2. The Z-Mo Trio: If you are not sure if you would like the sound of emo-jazz fusion then you just give it a try. Listen to: Letters (mp3)
3. Mobley: Austin, TX is home to so many great young bands and Mobley can stand next to any of them. Straight forward and passionate rock on their latest release 2/3 ep. Listen to: A Chorus (for the Silences) (mp3)

Reading:
1. Further Notes on the Impossibility of Everything by Tim Hall: The new issue of TZWCYL is live and spectacular! Especially that great music selection (if do say so myself).
2. Calliope Nerve Part XVI: Nobius has out done himself with this huge issue featuring David McLean, Luis Cuahtemoc Berriozabal, and many more.
3. Ya' Sou! Ezine: This is the Summer 2008 issue featuring Doug Draime, Corey Mesler, and more.
4. Television Worth Watching by Michael Ray Laemmle: Violence breeds more violence.
5. All of Us, In Time by Zachary Moll: I am always amazed by the face of age and time, and the way life wears us down.
6. Blood and Greasepaint At The Tombstone Bar and Grille by Karl Koweski: Karl delves into the dirtiest side of life and finds magic.
7. Leaving the Country by Susannah Joy Felts: Please Don't is back is a great new piece from Ms. Felts.

Wishing:
1. Keyhole Magazinee Issue 3: Featuring work from Blake Butler, Elizabeth Ellen, and more. $10 2. And The Weary are at Rest by Andrew Taylor: New from sunnyoutside press. $8
3. Anything by Allison Wilton: Allison make books and print media. Her work is intricate and absolutely amazing! You have to check it out here and here.
4. Ryan Bubnis has set up and Etsy shop! He his selling limited edition prints and originals.

Getting:
1. JENESIS Magazine - June 08: The mad scientist Girl Talk on the cover!
2. Cru A Issue 17: Art and illustration galore.

Watching:
1. Jukebox the Ghost "Hold it Now": Great song and garage band video. Check out the Andrew Murray Remix (mp3)
2. Cooking with Rockstars: I love Jen and wish I could go to Jenville. My favorite episode so far is with YACHT.
3. A Night in the Box "The Hustle" (live)
4. Lykke Li "Dance Dance Dance"

Paint the Town Orange

June 05, 2008 - Piano's - New York City, NY - Fever Marlene
Review and Images by Dominck Mastrangelo

While Midwest cities like Chicago and Minneapolis hog all the attention, Milwaukee's music scene has been steadily growing in their shadow the past few years. A world-famous music festival is certainly a testament to this, but even more so are emerging bands like Fever Marlene. In the dusky depths of the National Underground on Manhattan's Lower East Side last Friday, the duo of Scott Starr (guitar, vocals) and Kevin Dunphy (drums, vocals) played their infectious, melodic, indie rock songs with influences ranging from, well, maybe you should check out their MySpace page for those...

Upcoming Tour Dates:

6.19.08 MOBfest - Fiesta Cantina Chicago IL 11 PM
7.2.08 Summerfest Milwaukee WI 8 PM
7.11.08 Pabst Theater Milwaukee WI 8 PM

Stream their songs here.

For more concert photos from Dominick Mastrangelo please visit his flickr page.

Band of the Week

The Atomica Project

"I woke up in this world, and wondered how it all could be so cruel."

Coming in from an afternoon in the sun, or a few hours by the pool, it may be difficult picture the gray skies that so often fill our Midwestern horizons. However, the storms of summer are always looming, waiting to destroy that picnic or delay that ball game. There are also other storms that brew and boil just below the surface in every house across the country. Tempers rolled in like dark clouds, words crash against each other like thunder rumbling through the open air, and finally lightning strikes destroying families and illuminating all of the problems people face.

Since 2004, Wade Alin and Lauren Cheatham have been creating lush electronic music filled with life and imagery. Their debut album Metropolitan was release back in 2005, and now they return with their follow-up release, Grayscale. A concept album of sorts, its focuses on the ever shifting nature of the Chicago sky, and subtly relating to the nature of our relationships. The album is electronic, but organic and orchestial at the same time laying down a perfect bed of sound for Lauren's powerful and passionate voice. This Chicago released Grayscale digitally in April and the physical disc came out late last month.

Recently, Wade Alin of The Atomica Project was kind enough to answer a few of my questions.

Orange Alert (OA): The title of your latest album is Grayscale, which by definition is an image consisting of varying shades of gray. I've the album is based impact on your time in Chicago. How big of a role did the gray Chicago sky's play in the sound of the album. What can you tell us about Grayscale?
Wade Alin (WA): The concept of the album is definitely inspired by Chicago and all of its climatic highs and lows. The Midwest in general has some top notch storms. They're dramatic and sometimes unforgettable. I've lived under much more drab skies, namely Seattle, but Chicago wins out as far as being an inspiration for the Atomica Project's sound on this record. I also felt the album had a real linear feel to it; that had a bit to do with the title. Each track feels a dissimilar shade of gray to me.

OA: What is your writing process with Lauren like? What comes first the beats or the vocals? How has this process evolved in the last four years?
WA: The first album was entirely my writing – I put an ad out on craigslist and found someone to sing on it. That someone was Lauren. Since then, she's become much more involved in the process with ideas and concepts. The writing usually comes all at once. Music and lyrics inspired almost immediately by the music. If I can't finish an outline for the entire track in about 20 minutes, it usually sits too long, gets over thought, and subsequently thrown away. Having Lauren more involved will hopefully help that process mature a little bit.

OA: Your beats are so clean, almost transparent, and they supply the perfect bed for Lauren vocals. What are some of the things you may incorporate to give your sound such an organic feel?
WA: Thanks! There is a very fine balance going on there. The drums, while entirely programmed, are a blend of acoustic and electronic samples. I like stripping down an electronic beat and rebuilding it with an organic hi hat sample, I like to use a lot of vinyl sounds and tape noises in a rigid quantized environment, just little things of that nature that warm up the feeling a bit. There is also a ton of old school compression going on in our rhythm tracks; I think that helps quite a bit. Some of the tracks just have noise added through out and I think it suppresses everything (in a good way) just a bit. And Lauren has no trouble cutting through on all of the tracks.

Delorian (from Metropolitan)


OA: In your press release you down play past comparisons. I agree that you and Lauren have found a sound all your own, but as a musician are you offended when comparisons are made? Regardless of the band you are being compared to, what are your thoughts on comparisons (or RIYL type of reviews) in general?
WA: Well, you can't avoid comparisons. It's the natural thing to do, to compare something in order to give it a point of reference. I've never been offended by it at all and I understand the process, especially being a relatively unknown artist. We do feel our material is getting strong enough to sit on its own. All that said, Lauren has been compared to Tracy Thorn, Beth Gibbons, Annie Lennox, so many other artists that it's just become obvious that her voice has an air of familiarity that can't quite be pinned down and there's absolutely nothing wrong with that.

OA: It is well documented that Chicago has a long history in the genre of House music, but is there currently a thriving Electronic music scene in Chicago?
WA: There is, and there isn't. Chicago is absolutely overwhelmed with artists. I moved here from New York where economy trumps creativity and, in that regard, it's amazing to see so many artists. The obvious downfall is the over saturation and there seems to be an inability to
carve out a scene like back in the day. Leaves me to wonder if anyone will ever get the recognition they deserve. That can be said about a lot of major cities. But short answer – I have seen a lot of electronic music here that has been very well done and inspiring.

OA: What's next for The Atomica Project?
WA: We're currently toying with the idea of releasing a series of EP's that genre hop a bit, at least for us. Since digital releases have become so prominent, the idea of releasing a 4-5 track EP every few months is kind of appealing. Of course, we'll see how that goes. I'm old school. I'm sure I called Grayscale a "record" or "album" somewhere in this interview.

Bonus Questions:
OA: Coffee? If yes, what type of coffee do you prefer, and where is your favorite place to get a cup?
WA: Intelligentsia is my favorite right now, strong as gasoline. I like to get a cup @ Humboldt Pie right around the corner from where I live.

OA: What was the last great book you have read?
WA: A Tree Grows In Brooklyn.

For more information on The Atomica Project please visit their website.

Reader Meet Author

Colin Bassett

"I was in a chair. There was a computer. I wasn't in front of the computer. I was doing something else. I looked at the computer to see about emails. I saw a new email. It said something about YouTube that made me think the words 'spam' and 'porn'. I looked at the computer some more and couldn't decide about the email. The email made me feel nervous. I felt nervous about 'archiving' emails. It wasn't like 'deleting' and it wasn't like 'saving' the email. I left it in the inbox. I got out of the chair." from "Night Owl: Edit"

Is there a different style or way of writing for the Internet as opposed to print journals? Has the vast amount of ways to communicate affected the way we write? Has storytelling as an art and pastime changed over the years? These are the questions that run through my mind as I read and enjoy the work of Colin Bassett and other writers he connects with. Their writing is brief, direct, and blankly honest. They speak from an overwhelming sense of boredom and need to share the common experience. That is not to say this writing does not belong in journals, but it also has a more immediate feel to it. Almost like it must be read immediately or it will disappear.

Colin Bassett is a young writer from Missouri who recently start the on-line literary journal bearcreekfeed. He has been published in lamination colony , northwest review, no posit, and Dicey Brown. He recently hand-printed and mailed free copies of his first chapbook, We Are in Exile Here.

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

Orange Alert (OA): You recently launch your new on-line lit journal bearcreekfeed. It is off to a great start, but why a lit journal? What has the response been like?
Colin Bassett (CB): thanks. lots of people like kim chinquee. i do too. people have liked her story a lot.

a lot of online journals have issues that can be a little complicated. or at least i sometimes think 'complicated' when i look at them. there are a lot of online 'issue journals' that i like. but sometimes i feel 'overwhelmed' or confused. they have a lot going on. there is 'pressure' or something to have lots of different things in each issue: poetry and stories and essays, etc. or there is just 'too much' to want to read it all. i think ken baumann does issues well (with no posit). i like journals like dicey brown that 'feature' one thing and then 'end up' with a list of 'featured' things. i think mike young called bearcreekfeed an 'anthology' or maybe a compilation. i think that is right. that is what bearcreekfeed is or at least is going to be. this is what bear parade does as well. it is simple. it is about simplicity. gene morgan is fighting for simplicity. i like that.

OA: We Are in Exile Here is your self-released e-book that has been printed and mailed. You said you wanted people to read it on paper and then on-line. Do you feel printed work is more substantial then on-line work?
CB: i am unsure about 'substantial' i think. 'substantial' is a lot of different things. i don't care about online or in print. i like online because you can go to it anytime. also it is free. i don't want to ever pay for anything online. i pay for print journals and books. i like print. i don't think there is a difference. 'style' might make one thing more 'substantial' than something else but that is maybe it. not 'print or online' i don't think.

OA: Reading through the stories you have had published on-line you seem to write in a style that is becoming more prevalent among a group of on-line writers (i.e. Sam Pink, Tao Lin, Zachary German, etc). Would you say that this is a specific style of writing or a new school of writing?
CB: also: brandon gorrell, kendra malone, chris killen. other people of course. i just wanted to list some people's names. it might be a 'specific style' i don't know. a lot of different things that are not really 'similar' would probably get listed in a list of this kind of online writing. the list would still be 'accurate' but the thing that was alike wouldn't be obvious maybe. i don't know. i have no idea.

it is called 'serious literature' or something. when i think about it i just think 'bear parade' and that covers everything else that doesn't have anything to do with 'bear parade' and also everything that does. i don't want to say anything about the 'specific style' because it would be wrong or not make any sense.

there is 'crossover' into print though journals like noon and mississippi review, etc. some stuff in these journals would be 'okay' online. some stuff wouldn't make any sense and would seem 'too formal' or something. kim's story in bearcreekfeed is the 'online style' i think. she is the master of some things. i feel like listing people's names. frederick barthelme. that is it. i am not going to list people's names.

OA: You use compact sentences and brief almost abrupt describes to tell your stories. Do you feel that technology has influenced the way you write? It reminds me of one might communicate in a chat room or through gchat or on myspace, etc.
CB: i like 'gchat poems' that have been published in places online. that is all i can think to say. i don't 'write like a person chatting online' i don't think. maybe.

OA: With the popularity of writer blogs and self-released on-line e-books has the way we define the words "successful" and "established" changed as it pertains to writers?
CB: probably not. there are the same 'criteria' as always i think. the 'criteria' are not 'definite' and include a lot of different things that can make people 'successful' in different ways. maybe 'anthologizing' is less important than it used to be. i think you still have to publish books and sell the books and have the books reviewed and have people talk about you and publish in harper's and… i don't know.

i think you are maybe just identifying the 'small group dynamic' or something that is not 'new' or anything. if chris killen puts out a chapbook and twenty people read it and like it and mention it a little, then they will think about him some when maybe they wouldn't have otherwise. that is sort of it. but i like this. i am glad this sort of thing happens a lot.

OA: What's next for Colin Bassett?
CB: -new fiction at bearcreekfeed by other people
-new poetry chapbook by me
-then i am going to make someone pay me a lot of money to do an mfa

Bonus Questions:
OA: Coffee? If yes, what is your favorite type of coffee and where is your favorite coffee spot?
CB: coffee. yes. i like it. my kitchen. sometimes cheap and sometimes organic and fair trade.

OA: What type of music do you enjoy?
CB: i wrote in my chapbook about a band i like to go see. they are from the same place i am from. chris killen listened to the band after reading the chapbook. he liked it i think. he said without being mean or sarcastic that it was 'melodic indie pop' or something like that. i don't know if that is what i like. i like the band. they are called someone still loves you boris yeltsin. they are with polyvinyl, which is a good record company in illinois.

i have mentioned a person named 'chris killen' excessively.

For more on Colin Bassett visit his blog There is Enough Time for This and also check out bearcreekfeed. Did we mention Chris Killen?

Artist of the Week

Martina Nehrling

There are so many wonderful things about summer in Chicago, but it is hard to top the abundance of sunlight streaming through windows, penetrating skin, and filling the eyes of the youth. However, when you are stuck in the office all day it may be difficult to fully enjoy this sunlight. Looking up from my corporate issued monitor, I can see a brief streak of sunlight focused on a small patch of carpet. I look closer, confusing my co-workers greatly, but trying to catch a glimpse at the bright colors of freedom. Wishing I could somehow capture these moments, I return to my cube as cold and pale as a winter storm.

Chicago artist, Martina Nehrling just launched her fourth solo exhibit at Zg Gallery and it is called Through a Purple Patch which begins as an observation of “the dappled sunlight of the Midwestern summer”. Her work not only captures the vivid color of sunlight, but it also alludes to the freedom and wild nature of sunlight. The exhibit runs through July 12th, and is accompanied by a 20 page full-color hard cover book that can be purchased here. Martina received her M.F.A. from the University of Chicago and her B.F.A. from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

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


Orange Alert (OA): How would you describe your work?
Martina Nehrling (MN): My paintings are largely compositions of accumulated independent brushstrokes in multiple – often bright - colors. I frequently start with a color “field” and sometimes I incorporate poured paint or illusionistic imagery.

OA: I've seen you use words like "cacophony", "auditory", "syncopation" and "rhyming" to describe your work in the past. Do you feel that each color has its own sound or voice?
MN: There is a condition called synesthesia which is a sort of cross-wiring of sensory perception whereby a person might actually perceive sounds in relation to colors or shapes, etc. (Some have said the painter Wassily Kandinsky showed signs of this. In his book Concerning the Spiritual in Art he does ascribe a particular color to each of a variety of musical instruments.) I don’t clinically have synesthesia but, essentially, yes I think each color has its own voice within a piece. It’s something I sense or feel, almost kinesthetically. The nature of a color’s voice in a piece is influenced by the size, shape, frequency of occurrence, etc.; and, the sound of that voice is not fixed from one piece to the next due to the spatial relationships of shape, color contrast, the light/dark pattern – all the elements in the microcosm of a painting.

OA: Another phrase in your Artist Statement refers to listing or stacking events to comment on all that is society. Do you journal or record events in your life in written form before transferring them to canvas? Do you use titles to further catalog these events?
MN: I think you’ve combined a couple ideas from my artist statement. I do think my imagery sometimes operates like sentences or lists (and brushstrokes are often stacked or grouped.) I wouldn’t say I comment on “all that is society” though. A painting is a space or a page on which I take notes, explore, contemplate, celebrate, lament, riot against, or relish the meaning of being here from my perspective.

No I don’t journal. The closest I come to journaling is letter-writing which I do a fair amount of still. Even so I think I have a mistrust of words – in fact, I talk too much just trying to get them right. Consequently, I take the opportunity to give a painting a title very seriously. It’s a function that poses some danger, especially for abstract paintings where the imagery demands a suspension of disbelief from the viewer. This takes an ever-increasing effort in a time where we are inundated with information and visual stimulus. Viewers often look to the title for some explanation. The wrong title can reduce the piece to a one-liner, prompt too-literal an interpretation or otherwise limit the reading of the piece. I seek to strike some “poetic justice” with the title, considering the sounds and connotations of the words as much as meaning. I only occasionally feel I get it spot-on, you know, really jiving the title with the image.

OA: I love the concept of your latest show "Through a Purple Patch". The idea of observing "dappled sunlight" and drawing inspiration from it seems quite warming and freeing as I sit here in a beige cubicle. Can you talk a little about your current exhibit at Zg Gallery?
MN: I’m glad the idea of dappled sunlight suggests warm and free for you. The phrase “Through a Purple Patch” is an old colloquialism that means to experience a period of well being. The title of the show is also the title of a 21 foot long painting featured in the exhibition. I wear my heart on my sleeve when I tell you that it began as homage to Claude Monet. I was moved by his attenuated panoramic painting of water lilies at MoMA. I went back several times to see it and when next I had the opportunity to go to Paris I sought out all the displays of his work and took a side trip to see his home in Giverny. Naturally I respond to the sheer beauty of his work but the distinct brushwork in his later pieces really thrills me and I find the format of the very long panorama especially experiential. As an artist I wanted to work through the process of painting on a similar format. As an admirer I wanted to pay homage by looking to my immediate landscape, a transient moment in a particular place, the simple phenomena of dappled sunlight on the Midwestern neighborhood street in springtime just before the heavy shade of summer. Of course there are other paintings in the show that aren’t about dappled sunlight but “…Purple Patch” set a tenor for a while in the studio that comes through other pieces.

OA: You have been showing your work for nearly ten years in and around Chicago. What are your thoughts on the current gallery scene in Chicago? Is there opportunity for new voices to be heard?
NM: The business of galleries is ever evolving, some close, some more open, but it seems like there is always a contingent of innovative people, often artists themselves, providing venues for new talent as well as unconventional work. These are usually the hippest scenes. I don’t sense a shortage of opportunities for new talent – but if I’m wrong (I have been holed up in the studio lately) then it won’t be long until those that see the need start a new project in the community. People rail against the limits to success in the arts in Chicago and while that is a valid grievance the energy and activity in the art community seems to allow new talent to at least get their feet wet, so to speak.

OA: What's next for Martina Nehrling?
NM: I will be part of the Artist Connects lecture series at the Art Institute in the fall (Saturday, November 1, 2008) where I will be presenting my work in relation to inspiring pieces in the museum's collection on Saturday November 1, 2008. In the meanwhile I will spend some time in the studio enjoying looser objectives post show, but not too loose as I should do some of the businessy-business of researching exhibition opportunities and the like.


Bonus Questions:
OA: Coffee? If yes, what is your favorite type of coffee and where is your favorite coffee spot?
NM: My favorite coffee is something my husband makes at home using a cold toddy process. He used to roast coffee for Coffee and Tea Exchange and we still get our coffee from them, usually the French roast by mail order.

OA: Do you listen to music while your paint? Who are a few of your favorite while painting and in general?
NM: Unless I’m expressly responding to a piece of music for a painting, I only occasionally listen to music when I paint because it can be so directive. I usually have NPR on and on Saturday night there is a music program, I really enjoy and use as a signal to wind down what ever I’m doing. Sounds square, huh? The program is out of New Orleans, called American Roots, and each show is dedicated to music related to a particular theme, meandering through blues, country, soul, bluegrass and rock ‘n’ roll.

For more information on Martina Nehrling you can visit the Zg Gallery website. Her exhibit at Zg Gallery runs from June 6th to July 12th.

Paint the Town Orange

June 5th, 2008 - New York, NY - Knitting Factory - Haley Bonar, Hayden, & Kelly Rudick
Images and Review by Dominck Mastrangelo

Whenever I go to a show certain songs, hell, even full albums, are opened anew and heard in ways perhaps I wasn't expecting or hadn't really absorbed at first glance. I'd liked what I had heard from Haley Bonar's new record Big Star (Released Today!) but ultimately felt there was something missing. On Thursday, however she did it, Bonar cleared up any shortcomings I may have found with her release.

Now I find myself thinking it's a shame that her sweet and achingly beautiful songs didn't find more of an audience last Thursday at the Knitting Factory. With a voice that sidles up nicely with Neko Case and Mary Lou Lord (with more than a hint of Shawn Colvin as well), Bonar and her backing band for this tour, bassist/guitarist Jacob Hanson and drummer Alan Church, performed a lot of material from the new record and 2006's Lure the Fox.

The title track and "Better Half", both played toward the end of the set, featured hushed vocals to start and building toward the chorus. Hanson's guitar playing provided a spacey texture to "Big Star" (mp3) while Bonar asked plaintively "What happened to you? You used to be punk." on "Better Half".

Songs like "Green Eyed Boy" and "Arms Of Harm" were excellent and earlier material like "Give It Up" and "Daisy Girls" were respectively buoyant and haunting, reminding me a lot of Aimee Mann's work circa Magnolia Soundtrack. There's a very matter of fact sound to Mann's work and I found myself thinking that way about Bonar's set whether she was on the guitar or at the piano. Outside of the solid musicianship and execution, there was very little in the way of banter or anything from Bonar that sought to wind the small but attentive crowd a little closer.

Certainly one could let the songs do all the talking but those kind of tactics were more in line with the headliner, Hayden, who was touring for the first time in four years. The Canadian's confessional, folk-rock songs spanned his catalog to the delight of a rather passionate following that quickly filled the venue between sets.

Opening was Brooklyn's Kelli Rudick who's killer guitar work and intricate finger picking evoked St. Vincent while the series of loops and pedals she used to layer her sound evoked Laura Veirs among others who perform solo with the guitar. Rudick played songs off last year's excellent No One Knows You're Foreign and her upcoming release Stitches.

Upcoming Dates:

Jun 10 Local 506 : Chapel Hill, NC
Jun 12 Varsity Theater : Minneapolis, MN (CD Release Party w/o Hayden)
Jun 17 Plush : Tucson, AZ
Jun 18 The Casbah : San Diego, CA
Jun 20 Troubadour : West Hollywood, CA
Jun 21 Café Du Nord : San Francisco, CA
Jun 23 Aladdin Theater : Portland, OR
Jun 24 Tractor Tavern : Seattle, WA
Jun 28 Schubas : Chicago, IL
Jun 29 The Magic Bag : Ferndale, MI

For more concert photos from Dominick Mastrangelo please visit his flickr page.

New Release Tuesday

Music:

Haley Bonar - Big Star Listen to: Big Star (mp3)

Cool Kids - Bake Sale

The Orb - The Dream (US Release)

Flying Lotus - Los Angeles

KaiserCartel - March Forth

Jean Grae - The Orchestral Files

Hot Chip - One Pure Thought

Joan As Policewoman - To Survive Listen to: To Be Loved (mp3)

My Morning Jacket - Evil Urges

Styrofoam - A Thousand Words

The Fratellis - Here We Stand

Mermaids - Nightlife

Quitzow - Art College Listen to: Sponsor (It Didn’t Mean A Thing) (mp3)

Setting Sun - Children Of The Wild Listen to: No Devil Me No More (mp3)

My Education - Bad Vibrations Listen to: Arch (mp3)

Adele - 19

Alanis Morissette - Flavors Of Entanglement

DVD:

Be Kind, Rewind

The Bucket List

Jumper

The Other Boleyn Girl