Author: tim

Rock Shows: The Rules

This is required reading. There will be a test:

A Brief Catechism of Rock Shows, Part I
by Leslie Harpold

And, now, repeat after me:

I believe in Iggy, Jimi, Chryssie, and Joe Strummer, the Parents Almighty, Creator of heaven on earth; I believe in Malcolm McClaren and Sid Vicious, His only Son. I believe in punk, lo-fi and gangsta, indie, post-punk, indie-pop, rock, singer-songwriter, and insurgent country, conceived by Uncle Tupelo, born of Jeff Tweedy who suffers, as does Lou Barlow. I believe in Squirrelbait and Johnny Cash. I believe in the Motor City. I will respectfully love and fear Tad. I believe in Superchunk and PJ Harvey. I believe in new bands and will never pretend to know music I have never heard, so my mind may stay open and I will sitteth at the right hand of Mission of Burma so I may one day ascend to heaven, where I will be greeted by Sonic Youth, Eazy-E, and Mike Watt. I will not listen to rock critics, but trust my own ears. I believe in DIY, zines, Yo La Tengo, the communion of Saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of Cobain, and rock everlasting. Amen.

Please

Open letter to the guy at the Sigur Rós concert last night who was “whooting” at every quiet moment:

Why? Why do you feel the need to do that? Isn’t this music nice and mellow and surreal? Wouldn’t it be more appropriate for you to quietly listen like everybody else? Isn’t your girlfriend asking you to stop? Pleading with you that you are embarrassing her? Do you hear that “shooshing” noise? That’s directed at you. Everybody in this sold out concert hall is asking you to stop.

Let me explain something to you. The quiet parts in the songs are there for dramatic effect. They are as much a part of the song as the parts where there is a rocking drum beat. They are supposed to make the louder parts that much more cool. Remember that one song, where in the middle, the band quieted down to nothing and paused for a long time before jumping back into the song? That was cool, to be in this group of over a thousand people and be able to hear a pin drop. Well, it would have been cool if you hadn’t screamed out, “whoot!” during that part.

Please don’t come to the next Sigur Rós concert I attend. But, if you can’t stay away as you are probably a big fan of Sigur Rós and your moronic whooting is your way of showing it, save your whoots until the end of the songs when everyone is cheering and clapping. That’s the appropriate time for that, you fucking moron.

Happy Happy Joy Joy

I’m very excited right now because the wife just bought us tickets to the upcoming Camper Van Beethoven show in Atlanta on April 19th.

This makes me very happy because I’m one of the biggest CVB freaks I know. I first got into them in college and there was no turning back. Their music was so unique, funny, confusing, invigorating, rocking, literate, ironic and maybe just a little bit proggy. As I read somewhere recently, it’s like rock music for math majors. But not “math rock”. God how I hate that style of music. Well, except for Slint, but I digress. However you want to describe Camper’s music, it doesn’t really make any difference, I just loved this band.

Want an example of my devotion? Well, way back in 1994 when I got my first internet account and had to pick an e-mail address, I chose campervb@aol.com, that’s how geeky I was for this band.

The fact that they are touring again is a great thing. As they weaved their way around the US last year, I was jealous of everyone who was getting to see them (so much so, I almost flew to New York for a show). Well, now they are playing 2 shows a few blocks from my house. It’s gonna be a CVB weekend!

And then, I’m flying to Europe the following Tuesday to be a rock star myself for a little while (I’ll explain later). All in all it’s gonna be a good time.

Vive le rock!

Fight Bad Developments

I feel it is my civic duty to pass this on. In case you didn’t know, there is a massive retail development being planned on Moreland Ave, right next to Little Five Points. If you live in Atlanta, read this:

Dear Neighbors:

In the interest of supporting smart growth, SCALE asks that you come to the Rezone Hearing for the Atlanta Gas/Light-Sembler retail compound planned on Moreland ave. Sembler is requesting C-3 zoning , the traditional stripmall category, so that they may erect a mall with 4 anchor stores, 600,000 square feet of commercial space, with an abysmal 1/4 acre of green for a park, and loading docks and trash dumps that are within 100 feet of existing single family homes, and parking deck entrances across from churches. NPU-O is asking for 15% greenspace and continued negotiations. NPU-N has voted to reject the C-3 rezone request, and has passed a resolution in support of SCALEing back Sembler’s plans, increasing green useable public space, protection for the residential streets, etc. These are all principles that SCALE was founded on. The issues of scale and design CONTINUE TO BE unaddressed by Sembler, and it seems only a public showing at the hearing will impress them with our resolve.

Please come on March 13, at 5:30 pm (if you want a seat), or 6:00 pm to the 2nd floor City Council chambers at 55 Trinity downtown at City Hall. Most neighborhoods are organizing around this zoning hearing, and it is critical that we have a strong showing of support for either a deferral (so that meaningful negotiations can begin), or a rejection of the application outright, if need be. SCALE will be there with stickers and t-shirts and everyone we can get to come. Thanks for all your support up to now; as a unified community, we can all work for a great, new urbanist development that will sustain, rather than deplete, our community’s resources.

Peace,

Sara Simmons & Judy Butler, Edgewood Residents and SCALE Instigators
foozlecat@hotmail.com and judybutler2u@yahoo.com
EDGEWOOD at 1333 LaFrance Street, Atl 30307

Names

I don’t know about you, but I am pretty numb to reports of Palestinian or Israeli attacks. Every other day, I hear news reports about a (Palestinian/Israeli) (suicide attack/missle) exploding in (West Bank/Tel Aviv) killing X number of (Palestinians/Israelis).

Anyway, I came across this list. It certainly broke through the din of information and put the human cost more in perspective for me:

Victims of Haifa bus blast on Wed. March 5
Yuval Mendelovitch, 13, from Haifa
Staff Sgt. Barry Oved, 21, from Rosh Pina
Staff Sgt. Eliahu Lacham, 22, from Haifa
Abigail Leitel, 14, from Haifa
Daniel Harush, 16, from Safed
Kmar Abu Khamed, 13, from Daliat al-Carmel
Mitel Katav, 20, from Haifa
Assaf Zur, 17, from Haifa
Tom Hershko, 16, from Haifa and his father
Mordecai Hershko, 41
Marak Takash, 54, from Haifa
Semadar Firstetter, 17, from Haifa
Tal Kirman, 17, from Haifa
Miriam Attar, 27, from Haifa
Elizabetha Katzman, 16, from Haifa

The Shaven One

When I got home from work last night, I had had enough. The beard was coming off. I’ve had a beard since late November and, while I always enjoy the bearded months, they must always come to an end. It has started to seem more spring-like in Atlanta recently, so I figured the winter beard was not long for this world. Last night it was time.

The wife was out running errands, so I put the trash can in the sink in the bathroom and started trimming. It took a while, but alas I was triumphant. It felt really good to have nothing on my chin and especially good to no longer have the mustache (staches always bug me the most about having a beard).

As I took the dogs for a walk with my newly liberated face, it felt cooler than usual–no more insulating hair to keep my chin toasty warm. When I caught a glimpse of myself in car windows, I had to do a double take. My chin looked pointier and my face too white.

The wife got home and started telling me about her day. We were talking for about 10 minutes when I finally blurted out, “didn’t you notice I shaved?” She freaked out; “oh my god, no, I didn’t!” This happened last time I had a beard. It’s weird how people who are closest to you don’t seem to notice sudden changes in hairstyles or facial hair. I hadn’t noticed her hair had been chopped off by half about 2 months ago either.

We went out to have dinner with my mom and then to see my sister at the coffee house she works at. Neither of them noticed my smooth face until I pointed it out.

As I walked into work this morning everyone freaked out when they saw me. They must not know me that well. Everyone instantly noticed.

Mountain man is no more.

New Fall Season

So, I was watching television last night, and I saw something disturbing. I know that’s hard to believe, a disturbing site on American television, but trust me, I witnessed it.

The wife and I were watching this documentary about American soldiers getting ready for combat (read: Iraq) and this commercial came on. It was a commercial for the Iraq war. I shit you not. It was a commercial advertising the new war and that you should tune in to MSNBC because they have the best war correspondents and expert analysts. And it even had these experts standing there with their arms crossed, looking very expert-like as war/desert images flashed on the blue screen behind them.

So, you know, tune in to MSNBC because their war coverage is going to be kick ass, and stuff.

Never have I been more sickened about being an American.