(i know) it's only rock and roll (and i still like it)

wait a minute...you have never heard of the cold war kids? how's about division day? or what about tapes n tapes...they were so four months ago. well, listen away to kexp in our fair city of seattle, they will teach you and so will myspace if you must go there. and do so for this lofty site on the worldwideweb will allow you to see pictures of these tussled youths and even listen to these among countless other bands. it has changed...not things are changing, IT whatever it may be, has changed. and now more than ever IT seems easier to pay attention just as easy as it is to just ignore it all.

i used to not necessarily take pride in knowing somethings about contemporary rock but i seemed to have just lost caring or desire. yes, someone will try and tell me about something or someone - if i was not such a snob i'd really pay close attention too. i think t. "purple" hayes was the last person i know who would talk about new bands and i'd listen to him. this feat was largely due to his unbridled and lovely enthusiasm doubled with his incredible knowledge. yet now i am now so far removed with so many tools to my access as i mentioned above. i'd like to think this is because i am 44 but tis' far too easy of an explanation for someone who still listens to way more music then most and gets so much out of my current blasts with the past. furthermore, independent is a word which is tossed around hollywood when it comes to making movies and it seems to be misused or i just do not get the meaning any longer...and the same goes for music and possibly even more so. i go to www.m-w.com for assistance and get nowhere or no, where? i don't know. is myspace defining independence? i have been pondering this for a smidge of time as of late and really, it all seems trivial when i know i will go home and listen to ornette coleman, led zeppelin, fairport convention or myself say what rev. lovejoy said on the simpsons, "this sounds like rock and/or roll".

Bee See

don't be scared...that is peanut butter and it is cremeux peanut butter. ooh la la, it is not french peanut butter but canadian who for some reason (which we all know) have the audacity to have two languages spoken in their country...and let's hope it stays at two - cultural differences like, say, languages just seem to get in the way of progress. and i digress...for i am here to write about my recent trip to vancouver, canada. i mentioned some time ago i love it there - still do. i also wrote how i got some free canadian money and would spend it there - i did. lovely place. three friends and i went up there with the idea to just do tourist stuff...eat, stay at a nice hotel, see some sights and eat some more then head back. we accomplished it all...great trip...here are some high and lowlights.

this crazy indian place everybody (myself included) talks about eating at vij's www.vijs.ca is there and we went. or, kinda. one of us jumped out of the car at 5:42 to get our name in since they do not take reservations. we ended up sitting down at our table at 7:28. is it worth the wait, well - yes and no. yes, the food is that damn good but no because i personally hate to wait. i was lucky since lively conversation ensued along with an passing by snack in the form of an indian french fry/frite which were hot, spicy and delicious. i guess you all should go there but be prepared to wait. two of us were swarmy enough to eat a veggie hotdog on the street hours before...ha!

stanley park. lovely place even within the confines of ones car - our situation - and the pouring rain. yes, it rains in vancouver and it is quite forboding. nobody was really prepped for a rain walk so we drove and drove some more. not getting out, lowlight. it's hard to look at all that green and not want to jump out at it. next time, i rent a bike.

we shopped and i really wanted to get another hat. nope, ph got not one but two or wait, did she get three? either way, she made up for my desire but i am still with little hair and no hat.

why the peanut butter? we were all hungry upon our arrival in the city and headed over to sophie's cosmic cafe in kitsilano. well known, kitchy and just fine for a decent breakfast. and they have jam packets and pb packets as you see above. well, two overly made up and too much make up gurls are next to the four of us and they just must have been that much more hungry than us. these packets were opened and consumed...maybe three prior to the dishes they ordered arrived. now i cannot recall, did they use their fingers or did they use their spoons? either way, they dug in and we were the captive audience. highlight! and lowlight...

you got the flavor.........

most of my people know i don't drink booze. i kind of miss it yet i am not really drawn to it whatsoever. some friends know it is best i don't drink - like i don't really need the 'liquid courage' to just say and do whatever i please. troubling dear readers, trouble can be lurking so be warned. yet, i like the idea of just getting out of my head and just being turned inside out. this feeling does happen now and then in different forms and though different transgressions and actions so really, alcohol is merely an elixir best for others. And this is not to say i will not ever drink again - i just don't right now or have in many years. i do recall the last times of my drinking, i was drinking nothing but superior, premium alcohol. top shelf but nothing too freaky like $100 scotch but still, good shit for sure. now get this, the last taste of booze that entered my mouth and yes this is an update was BALVENIE scotch last saturday. the smell of the bottle opening entered my senses and it was inviting but not as nearly inviting as the smell as it came closer to me by way of the love child of vivian westwood and alexander mcqueen...where this, ahem - taste came from. clearly this was the best taste i have had in my mouth for quite a long time and overwhelming too. full bodied and delectable in every way i remember. or, maybe it was halloween, maybe gram parsons' brief meeting, or maybe it was just plain desire but one thing is for sure, i want another taste. same scenario, no glass is required, just better timing and i am there.

Nanker Pheldge...!

No good, can't speak, wound up, no sleep.
Sky diver insider her, skip rope, stunt flyer.
Wounded lover, got no time on hand.
One last cycle, thrill freak Uncle Sam.
Pause for bus'ness, hope you'll understand.
Judge and jury walk out hand in hand.
Dietrich movies, close up boogies, Kissing cunt in Cannes.
Grotesque music, million dollar sad.
Got no tactics, got no time on hand.
Left shoe shuffle, right shoe muffle, Sinking in the sand.
Fade out freedom, steaming heat on, Watch that hat in black.
Finger twitching, got no time on hand.

Hey Jerome!

FRIDAY! So here is Bo Diddly...a god walking amongst us.

I love this guy....

happy happy joy joy!

as i write this entry..."you dropped the bomb on me" by the gap band is playing. what an insane song and it makes a great arguement to my bitching that the 80's produced some of the worse music ever. it did but this song is just so damn good! and to keep on the swing of things being so damn good, i am here to profess some shit that is just bringing it all together and working perfectly in this world of ours.

big star's third lp
pictures of my neice and nephew
pickled beets
my new iMac
vij's this last weekend
light rain during a walk
greil marcus, rebecca brown, deb caletti, c.rah, cupcake crumbling, harvest vine!
and this damn dog above who was next to me yesterday while driving up jackson @ rainer blvd

lucky me, lucky you!

bobcat and dogs

last night i saw a great movie...and i think it was great for many reasons. i have a problem sometimes with movies in that the characters are so out of this world - like nobody does what they do and they seem completely out of the human realm of emotions and actions. "sleeping dogs lie" written by bobcat goldwait (yes, that guy) was a honest, unflinching and funnier than shit look at how complex we humans are. and i laughed my head off at the blackest of silliness and humor. the more and more i thought about the movie i came to the conclusion how i just saw an outstanding take on what people do with honesty, secrets and what one does with information one tells their girlfriends, boyfriends, friends, lovers, family and everybody inbetween. again, unflinching and simultaneously touching - this is the kind of movie hollywood can learn from. making characters who are so damned absurd yet share the same things we all share from day to day. and in the absurdity, we see oursleves so clearly and it allows us to laugh at ourselves knowing we all do things which we might regret but it is what makes us so very special. bobcat was at the screening and he was funny as hell too...go and see this movie. the cute girl in the picture is the lead in the movie and she was fantastic! i hope to see ms. melinda page hamilton in more movies soon - !

on a side note - have you ever seen somebody flossing during a movie? three seats away from me some guy was flossing away to his hearts content! my pal Ph spys this guy and elbows me to his attetion...two letters: Ew! she and i are already laughing at the movie and now "FLOSSIE" puts it to a whole different level. and as if that was not special enough, he left the floss on the floor after he and his fanny pack left the movie. lovely.

Folk Music

the el G recently asked me what my favorite bob dylan record is.

i said blonde on blonde. i am sticking with that. next after that, nashville skyline. ask me again tomorrow.

discuss.

advice? everybody has some...

what could be the best advice i have ever got was "don't forget to breathe". i was on the top floor of a church on 86th and Amsterdam - right around the corner of Barney Greengrass in the upper west side of manhattan. i got these wonderful four words from leon maitre my then yoga teacher while living in ny. at first those words muttered from this haitian guru seemed flip, then silly then highly prolific. we all get stressed and overwhelmed and one of the phenomenas that occur during these times is our breathing pattern changes - sometimes stops. not completely but we gasp and don't even know it. i don't want to sound quasi-zen here but i ask all of us to breathe deep. perfection. did y'all get that burrito and nap i asked you to do!?

so that leads me to my latest list of shit i am listening to these days. yesterday i got one of those things at the ballard goodwill >>> leo kottke. no, he ain't no john fahey (who i loooooooooove!) but he is still an exceptional geetar player. as of late i seem to be paying attention to aimee mann, ennio morricone, late seventies stones (black and blue, some girls), replacements, tribe called quest and if i get back my pedro almodovar soundtrack cd back from west seattle, i will go back and listen to that. no rush since i am never at lost on stuff to listen to. tonight i am digging out billy bragg, dengue fever, cecil taylor and maybe just maybe, something to dance to.

BIFF BANG POW!

this weekend i won a record by the CREATION on eBay. two great things came from this purchase, one was the guy i purchased this double lp from was in seattle and he delivered the lp to my home (he went under the name SEXY WIZARD - oooh!). the other thing was it reminded me how cool the CREATION were. shel talmy produced, crazy guitars, semi-snotty vocals make these guys one of those often praised by record dorks (myself included) as well as one of those groups anybody who likes rock and/or roll should love. dig.

body movin'

yes i do this blog at work.
why the hell not? i am listening to wu tang clan (enter the 36 chambers baby...) and thinking to myself how f'd up everybody is these days. people, it is not the end of the world. everything will work out just fine - or, remember what the kinks told us in 1967 'everybody's going to be happy'.

do something good for yourself - buy yourself a treat. go and get a burrito, play some tennis, take a nap, laugh at yourself god damnit and hit the street. remember, i dig you. thanks.

harvey danger

one of the greatest pleasures in seattle is the frye art museum. hands down - this place is a real gem and has been for years and years. http://www.fryeart.org/ i used to live in the first hill neighborhood (which to this day is one of my very favorite neighborhoods) which shares digs with the frye. in my humble opinion, what makes a great museum or gallery is having an exceptional permanant collection and a cuturtorial staff that takes risks. that does not sound too difficult and the frye accompishes both. in the recent past, they have had some impressive shows, fairfield porter (a huge personal favorite), contemporary latino art, mark ryden, a performance by tracy and the plastics among many other fantastic shows and exhibits. it comes with great pleasure to once again sing the praises of the frye with the current showing of henry darger's work. if you know that name - well then stop reading and go or go again. if you don't and are kind of curious, go immediately! upon my second viewing yesterday, i got a moody feeling that was difficult to put my finger on. dargers work is impressive on many levels but what i got most from yesterday was the accessability and humbleness of it all. the entire time i was checking the panels and drawings out, i was holding a friends purse which anchored me - it seemed to have kept me steady while looking at mr. dargers "grand scheme". bring a purse, a bag or whatever and hold onto your thoughts and flow with this incredible show.

i plan on seeing it again before it leaves on october 29 to see what goes on in my noggin after another walk through. my last push: the frye is free, parking is free. this is seattle's museum!

Tusk, Tusk!

about three or so years ago i was at the fremont market trying to find yet more records and i stumbled upon another foxy jewish girl who i *ahem* talked to and hung out with. i'd rather not go into her home smelling like dog (and not a nice smell) or that she easily told me about the anti-depressants that "actually work" for her...and she lived right accross the street from a cemetery - - but i digress for i'd rather mention that she was an unemployed photographer. and a good one too - well, she hipped me to the mighty MASTODON too since she took snaps of her favorite bands also. she pushed me to listen to 'remission' cd and it was good. really good! so i pose a simple question - can Mastondon save heavy metal? i think so and they are currently on tour so me thinks i best go see them since i blew it by not going with the aforementioned jew girl. she talked and talked and talked and talked and talked some more and i recall thinking she was smart, good looking, on anti-depressants but it just did not add up right. what you ask? everything and nothing.

i just want MASTODON to rock!

i moved to seattle in 1988. i was chasing after then girlfren patsy and well, that is enough about that. really all i am doing by framing that time and moment is to highlight some of the *duh* changes that have happened to seattle since then. i lived in fremont...which is the self-proclaimed, "center of the universe". yes, that is dumb, pretentious and every other thought going through your head. i then moved to ballard - the neighborhood slightly northwest of fremont. this was the early 9t's and people used to ask me why did i live out there. i can still recall the time my pal jana gave me a ride home from her and then boyfriend now husband tom's place and told me "you live way the fuck out here - why?". like she was kind of pissed about it. bring this to present day and i hear "ballard is the new fremont" while waiting for a table at la carta de oaxaca in 'old ballard'. i am seriously disturbed by this statement in that what really separates ballard and fremont other than leary way? not a lot in my no-so humble opinion. both have too many crappy bars, not enough affordable housing and when i saw a black person - i nearly fell off my chair...but don't worry, she was under 30! am i being too critical? no, i just think that seattle has some serious identity issues when a resident can think that one neighborhood is the new facimilie of another when in fact they resemble each other in every which way imaginable. hell, they even have the same damn record store - within 3.5 miles of each other. maybe ballard is different in that there is not a thai place around every corner (no thai people) or perhaps ballard is unique in that they have old people and the norge people....oops, that was so 15 years ago of me.

now, can seattle please be the new seattle?

he shoots, he scores!

recently i asked some friends to write an entry to this *ahem* forum of nonsense known as FREAKSAUCE and my pal gNat stepped up to talk thrift scores. sCores not stores and well, he likes to junk. and he likes to eat too...here he is in all his taco truck glory on rainer ave. right smack in the middle of the emerald city. here is his take on his latest newest grabs at the thrift. i cannot believe this bastard scored a silver apples lp!

can you dig it sucka? thanks gNat.
____________________________________________________________________

Thrift Scores

The key to successful thrift store shopping is persistence. When I first started thrifting I was consistently frustrated by my lack of scores. Returning home with a pair of ill fitting levis 505’s and a scratched Neil Diamond record does not provide a strong incentive to spend your weekends in dirty stores populated with sketchy characters. Why was I not scoring the vintage designer shirts? Where were my first press Blue Note LPs? Complaining about my lack of success to a friend elicited the simple but sound advice. “Keep going, go out farther and go more often” was Leynas advice. I have been successful at thrifting ever since. I have provided a list of a few personal favorite scores accumulated over the years. If you ever see me at the Kent Value Village say hi; but not until I have ravaged the waist 32 jeans in pursuit of Levis 517 orange tags.

Silver Apples- “Contact” on Vinyl in great shape. I was nearly passed out from excitement and riffled through the remaining LPs in hopes that I had hit a vinyl mother lode. No such luck. Found at the Tacoma Value Village

Yves Saint Laurent Pin Stripe Suite- In perfect shape, cut well, a dream. I had this piece dry cleaned and lengthened the pants and now have a killer suit.

Sony Stereo System- Found at the Kent Shop and Save. This system included a 5 disc changer, Receiver, Dual Tape deck, and radio receiver. Still had the Bon Marche sticker on it! I had my friend go find speakers for it I could guard the system from the vultures gathered around. I was very fortunate to score this high value piece as I was right next to the employee when he put it on the floor.

TI-82 Graphing Calculator- While admittedly not a terribly exciting score this piece save me $79 as I needed it for a class and I found this one for $2.

shaabat shalom y'all

time for a lazy posting. why, well more than likely it is because it is friday and i just don't have it in me to write too much. i will say this, i am considered by some to be 'the most vile, selfish freak on the planet' (a compliment) however when i hear that description of anybody, i think of black sabbath. they were scuzzy looking for sure back in the day and recently i had a conversation on what is the best sabbath album...by the way, most say 'paranoid'. i think 'paranoid' is a scorcher but i like 'masters of reality' and 'volume 4' for many reasons but one is due to the complete insanity of every song. there is a certain disconnect i get when i hear black sabbath...they seem so much more original then when i was in high school in the late seventies. i reach out now for sabbath and i am compltely satisfied. who knows, maybe next time i will go and check out 'fireball' from deep purple or some hawkwind to rock out but for now, "children of the grave" will kick me hard.

next postings i am hoping to have some guest stars...and i will step aside and let someone else rant or rave about something, anything.

thrift sauce

i have been told not to do this but i am going to tell you all about this dofus i encounter at some of the local thrift stores while junking. i will not tell you his name but this "cat" prowls around looking for god knows what...i have seen him purchase beach towels, records (always crappy ones - thank goodness), electronics and really whatever he gets his hands on. while i was flipping records i met him at the ballard value village and where he proceeded to tell me that he has a ton of records for sale, cheap. me the opportunist said ok and then he invited me to his house. ok, it is getting weird. i say no but he can call me at work - he does and i tell him where we can meet - a parking lot, well lit and away from my office and his home. HE HAD THE WORST RECORDS EVER and i don't mean the soundtrack to sound of music bad but stuff like eric clapton, james brown singing 'living in america' and just garbage. i purchased nothing and he then invited me to 'get high in my truck'. i declined and i don't want to lead you down a path that he is some kind of predator coz' i don't think he is nor do i want to convey that. he is just a nerdlinger looking for friends or something. months after this incident i am talking about other junkers and i find out this guy is a scurge among other folks who love the thrifting and he is a bit of a liar >> like, when he sells at the local fremont market, he sells over $1,000 worth of stuff and some of that is cashews (huh!). well, everytime after i get this information, i see him and say things like, "i can't talk to you - thanks'. one moment i let it out and called him weird when he was talking to me after my not reacting to anything he is saying. wrong move...he goes on to call me dildo and how i am the weirdo. first, calling me dildo was just freaky - - i have been called asshole and dick but not dildo. it just rang of something else although i am not sure what. i see him again at the goodwill where i again am looking though records and he comes over and starts to look at the same ones pushing the ones i viewed back into my hands. this idiot gets totally riled up after i tell him to knock it off and he goes off on me and tells me that i am just a jerk and he has never done anything to me and he will "kick my ass" if "i keep it up". i am a psycho now and tell him 'yeah right - get the fuck away from me - - you do know that everybody thinks you are a pain in the ass'. wow, i am really on (idiot) but he ends up getting in my face and i think he is either going to kiss me or punch me or both. disturbed and slightly curious what will happen next, he ends up grabbing all the records i was looking at and walks away mumbling.

now when i see this knob, i just look directly at him and he looks away. friends told me not to post his photo and i have but since you can't see exactly who this is - here you go. this guy is someone that makes your day for being such a weirdo and at the same time is complete and total freak sauce. if you see him, run away. FAST.

ah, van morrison. that's all...go listen to him. here are the ten records that i have been listening to as of late.

1. captain fantastic and the brown dirt cowboy - elton john
2. astral weeks - van morrison
3. love is a real thing: the funky sounds of west africa - various
4. holy ghost - albert ayler
5. naturally - sharon jones and the dap kings
6. kinda kinks - the kinks
7. naked city - naked city
8. fear of a black planet - public enemy
9. the woods - sleater kinney
10. everybody's talkin - fred neil

pink prisons

i want to get out of town. i was just in southern california and now i need to get out of the country. i have enough miles to get to europe and to be perfectly frank, that is not where i want to go. i would much rather go to vietnam or to malaysia or thailand. my pal romanik told me to take off to india...and she might be right. i think it would wake me up from all my kvetching and make me check myself and get over the bullshit i create for myself.

where do you want to go? a couple days ago i was imagining myself in japan with a certain unamed friend. her and i were hanging out, eating soba, taking fast trains and staying in small rooms with all kinds of remotes. just when i was thinking of this i got an email from my oz pal bruce and he sends me a photo of him with thurston moore in japan at a bar in tokyo called alcatraz. there were pictures of them in a pink prison, drinks served in baby bottles, bedpans and served by nurses. see picture.

again, where do you want to go. i am leaving somewhere and i think it might be idaho.

trailer trash

i feel like a teenager when i see this movie...when i hear the soundtrack - by the beserk GOBLIN - it still freaks me out. so now you too can watch this. i don't think i will ever tire of this movie....