letters from tenderlegs

BACK IN COMMISSION .

2008-11-25T21:44:00.000-08:00

SO I really don't have an excuse as to why I have stopped posting for so long, I'm kind of in a state of indolence, which isn't all that bad, but it's just hard to get things done. Further more, TENDERLEGS is back on my list of current and constant 'things to do' so for anyone who is still dropping by, keep coming because, although I'm not making any solid statements, I'm assuring that I will be posting on here very often. I am happy to once again utilize this as an outlet to share some of my insight, humor, and of course the beloved MPfreezies with whomever wants it.

This is now a sOlO pRoJeCt ran by, yr boy truly, so expect a more broadened pallet of eclectic music choices, unbound by 'whats hot' blogsphere buzz and streaming FM bullshit. I try to provide blog raiders and music lovers with the most cultured and veritable sound boutique free to range from funky to classy to down right annoying. So if your reading this, thank you for devoting some of your precious time to read my little blog.

Time is golden now, so that you spend it here is, in itself, a major compliment.

xoxo

-David

Because I'm Scottish

2008-09-08T23:17:00.000-07:00

An eye for a world - David J. Nightingale

2008-08-25T15:56:00.000-07:00

The man is an amazing photog. He captures images from all around and all are, to say the least, astounding. He posts a new picture every day on his blog, so check it and rep it.
here are some that I enjoyed;

WTF America!?

2008-08-14T17:19:00.000-07:00

How embarrassing. We sit idly by and let things like this occur.

Here's some 'bush'shit for you...

WHEN WILL IT END??!!

2008-08-10T15:42:00.000-07:00

As I stated in a previous blog, beloved stand-up comdian and actor Bernie Mac passed away on Saturday. Today another talented man was lost. 70's soul singer/songwriter/composer Issac Hayes (best known for his original theme song for "Shaft" and the voice of "Chef" on South Park) was found unconcious next to a running treadmill, and brought to a hospital where he was pronounced dead. He was 65.

Maybe it's the militant inside of me, but I swear if another upstanding, successful black man in the industry dies, I'll have no choice but to suspect foul play. This is ridiculous.

-SEA URCHIN

We've Lost a King

2008-08-09T13:39:00.000-07:00

King of Comedy that is.
Chicago raised, Bernie Mac was hospitalized in early August for pneumonia. He died after his condition grew 'critical' and passed away Saturday August 9th.

Lets remember..

rest in peace
Bernard Jeffrey McCullough
1957-2008

Blockhead- Pay attention to,

2008-08-05T11:24:00.000-07:00

So theres a lot of really cool cats in the underground hip-hop scene right now and I'm going to be introducing a lot of them to you in the next couple of weeks. Among all the LA based beat droppers that have been producing some real dope music, is this one man music show who goes by the name of Blockhead. Born Tony Simon in Manhattan New York, has produced several EP's and singles, Three solo albums including Downtown Science which is a beautiful/ominous inner city broken love affair, clearly the emotional highpoint of his work. He's also widely known for production work for a lot of Aesop Rock's records, some dating back to 1999, and others that are more present, such as one of their latest releases None Shall Pass.

He's evolved into one of underground hip-hop's heavy hitters, and one of the best producers out there, mainstream or otherwise. Regardless of all that, he is still very over-looked! That of which I don't understand. Music these days seems like a competition as to who can exploit themselves the most, and sadly enough, dedicated artists with real talent, such as himself, often go unappreciated because they refuse to make a mockery of themselves, and give up the last bit of dignity that the term "artists" has left. Make sure to hit up his Myspace and show some support, tell em' who sent you.

Mp3: Blockhead - Cheer Up Your Not Dead Yet [Zshare]
Mp3: Blockhead - The Hucklebuck Slice [Zshare]

Oh neptune's only daughter

2008-08-03T15:13:00.000-07:00

Blogging has single handedly reduced our society to a first draft culture.

But aren't all forms of expression golden?

Life is Beautiful.

TV on the Radio's new release - Dear Science,

2008-07-28T19:57:00.000-07:00

A new album is set to release Sept. 23rd by the ridiculously diverse """"indie rock"""" band from New York, TV on the Radio. Since they released their latest album in 2006, Return To Cookie Mountain, just about everyone flipped the fuck out over these guys, and those who didn't simply, and obviously, don't know whats up. I would try to describe the sound thats created when these guys come together, but I would be limiting them to something so general as a description, and thats not like TVOTR at all. Saying that they are any certain genre[s] would be saying that they've done something thats already been done before, which is not the case. There more likely to be labeled as emotions, rather than genres; feelings and vast concepts.

I've practically been married to TVOTR since 2004, when my friends sister [haha] would play their Young Liars EP, which they released a year before in 03, almost everytime I was at their house. I immediately fell in love. Most of their music isn't made for mass consumption or wide appeal, I believe it is simply made to please themselves, and those who understand their point of view.

They've grown as artists tremendously since their first album OK Calculator, which was just a bunch of tracks of them fucking around [basically] and mouthed beats and hums that sometimes overlap, they kind of had the best of both worlds when they released that album, hence all the whistling and mouth produced sound effects they can pull it off as a joke album, simply sarcasm, to avoid any negative commentary on, what some would call, a poor quality/poorly produced album, but in a sense it's kind of fucking genius. They didn't take it too seriously but a few songs from the self released album are actually really good, in example; Me-I, Los Mataban, Yr God, and their 16 minute stream of disorganized sound - On A Train. WHICH I found out is actually really pleasing to the ears when you are on a train.

Return to Cookie Mountain is purely hits, each song is really awesome, I"m pretty stuck on that album- that and the Young Liars EP, 5 tracks of pure gold. I can't even begin to ponder what Dear Science, is composed of but I have already assured myself that it's going to be an hour of mind blowage of epic proportions. I doubt I'll leave my house much, and if I do, it's me and my ipod haha. So don't forget, mark your calendars- Sept. 23, you better cop that shit! & also, for those of you like myself who live in Los Angeles, they'll be playing the Wiltern November 6th, for those of you who live up north- September 20th at Treasure Island Music Festival along with Hot Chip, CSS, Foals, and Goldfrapp...........oh, and Justice. Check it or deck it.

OK Calculator;
Mp3: TV on the Radio - Me-I [Zshare]
Mp3: TV on the Radio - Yr God [Zshare]
Mp3: TV on the Radio - Los Mataban [Zshare]
Mp3: TV on the Radio - Pulse of Pete [Zshare]

Young Liars EP;
Mp3: TV on the Radio - Mr. Grieves [Zshare]
Mp3: TV on the Radio - Young Liars [Zshare]

Return To Cookie Mountain;
Mp3: TV on the Radio - Province [Zshare]
mp3: TV on the Radio - Tonight(HIGHLY RECOMMENDED) [Zshare]
mp3: TV on the radio - I Was A Lover [Zshare]

Update on Ya'll...

2008-07-25T19:48:00.000-07:00

Every day I ask myself one question: am I happy? And everyday the answer varies, depending on whatever events might have troubled me, or got me excited on life. Some days I think I couldn't be happier or more content, and other days I wonder why I'm even here. I might as well be a vegetable.
But, when I honestly reflect on my life, I can't complain. My life is superb. I love who I am, and what my experiences have cultivated for me. I have an awesome apartment, friends, roomate, and job. I have a car, and my parents support me (to an extent). I get to experience Los Angeles and all it has to offer (believe it or not, there's actually intelligent things to do around here besides get sweated on by drunk 20-something-year old creepers to the thud of the crappiest mashup you think your ears have ever had the misfortune to hear). I've met awesome people who know awesome people that I feel I can genuinely collaborate with on multiple levels. Admittedly, these people are few and far in between, so I'd like to make more worth-while companions. Preferably people who don't embody the negative stereotype of LA. I'm trying to get out more and take chances with new things, as to avoid a monotonous routine. I'm not quite ready to pack up and go, but that's usually the kind of itch I get when I feel my daily life has grown stale. I wanna stick around, and see what happens, or rather, be the one to make it happen.

Recently, my partner Sean, and I had our very first yard sale with GRAPE SODA VINTAGE, with Collective Souls. It was quite an endurance getting there, let me tell you. However, I am proud to say that once we did get there, everything fell into place, just as I had anticipated, and went off without a hitch! Turnout was great, tunes were bumpin, and everyone was there! Definitely looking forward to next months sale. And in case you haven't seen my most recent VLOG, thanks again to everyone who showed up and particularly to David, Olivia, Jonathan, and Sean G. for helping us set up! Look out for our Etsy store we'll be opening up to sell our more exclusive vintage pieces and original jewelry made by David (If you've seen me rockin a feather earring, that's the kind of stuff you should expect to see!)

My roomate, Veronyca, also has a reason to celebrate, as she just got back from her east coast tour and performance at HEEB'S Diamond Days festival in San Francisco, with her band. Shout out to JEFF, as they just got signed to an indie record label. She's also planning on living in San Fran for a while. Big things coming I hope!

Speaking of my roomie, Thursday night, we went to the UCB (Upright Citizens Brigade) Theatre in LA. Interestingly enough, Jeanine Garofalo (Whom was pointed out to me by Vee as the "scary girl from Romy and Michelle's High School Reunion") was there and Dave Foley ( One of my gay heroes, from Kids in the Hall. I don't care if he is Canadian.). Her former teacher and his improv group had a show, which consisted of allowing audience members to shout out text messages as the start of their sketch. Clever indeed. And the next trio, Convoy, was straight out of Oregon and even more hilarious. Maybe it was the Jack Daniels, or the it's just the black in me, but I had to have been the loudest laugher in the room. I don't know, I just get a tickle in me when I'm in that 'theatrical/acting' mode. I get sort of aroused even. It inspires me. There's also a myspace show (on Wednesdays, click UCB link for full schedule) in which audience members volunteer to have their myspace profile projected and used as material for improv. Apparently, they get some real nut jobs who are more than willing to expose their 'myspace-self' and have their naivety about who they really are completely washed away. A sight I would pay good money to see myself. I wish I had time to be in theatre again. At least I still have my auditions. Granted, most of the jobs don't really get me 'off' artistically, but hey, it's money in my pocket. Thank jeebus I finally have a job where I can go to them, and I have an agent who works hard for me. It's nice having that unrelenting support. Makes my life a lot more pleasant.

I actually just had an audition for a spot in a Target commercial before work, which I think I could've been amped up a bit more, but honestly I just felt like shit this morning. But, I'm satisfied with the way I pulled it off. Mos def. Veronyca says I'm going to get it, because I need the money, and the universe always delivers. I'm gonna be positive and say I got it too, but boy am I going to feel dumb if I don't. Which won't happen. Right? Honestly, I'm not going to be heart-broken if I don't get it though. A lot of people ask me about this business, and how to get involved, but I can tell you from direct experience, it's not all it's cracked up to be. It's really interesting though, to see people who book jobs and are still trapped in this "Hollywood" fantasy land. As far as commercials go, which I tend to go on a lot of auditions for, as do most working actors, it's not necessarily about the talent. If you can smile and take take direction and feel comfortable doing strange and awkward things in front of people, you have potential to get work. It's really about the look that the casting directors are going for. So getting rejected, which will happen most of the time, is never a personal blow. And it's not to say you're ugly either (Good note to the girls: boys generally have an easier time booking jobs. Part of the reason being they don't always necessarily have to be 'good looking'. If you haven't noticed, most guys in commercials aren't what'd you consider to be GQ material, where as girls are almost constantly expected to look like the "girl next door".) Television and film is another story. But I'll save that for another time.

Anyways, now I'm at work until 7, and then afterwards I'm planning on hanging out with my friend CAESAR SEBASTIAN, who is an amazing photographer if you didn't already know. Tonight is Avalon: Busy P, Drop the Lime, you get the idea. Good shit.

And Saturday I have work again, 12-7, and afterwards the greatly anticipated RICKY'S STORY is showing at the Silent Movie Theatre on Fairfax. If you have nothing to do, or your just not in the mood to "Bang", then I highly suggest you see this.

Sunday is work again, same time, and afterwards, no plans....YET. I'm sure that slot will fill in quickly though.
Nothing else to touch on really.

Quick shout out to my homie Trevor (aka DJ SKEET SKEET) who's currently on the road with Shwayze on the 2008 Van's Warped Tour. He just sent me a little taste (pun intended) of his Now and Later rmx. Not allowed to post it, but I'm gonna brag and say it's dope already. I actually wanted a NowandLater after listening to it. HA!

I hope you all have a wonderful day, afternoon, or evening. I'm off to create my own affluence and shape my destiny. I can only pray I can say the same for you!

-sea urchin

Death of a Golden Girl

2008-07-23T20:59:00.000-07:00

In case you already haven't heard, Estelle Getty passed away on Tuesday at the age of 84. I will fondly remember her as the spiciest of the golden girls, not to mention as my ideal image of the ultimate grandma. That woman let nothing stand in her way, not even Dorothy, her own flesh and blood! That's one bad mamma jamma if I do say so myself.

still golden,
c. urchin

STREET TRASH

2008-07-13T15:28:00.000-07:00

If you find absolutely no desire to spend money going to see any of the so-called 'summer blockbusters' you might want to invest in one of the Holyfuckingshit gore comedies at the Silent Movie Theatre on Fairfax every saturday night in July at 10 pm.

The latest flick was the 80s underground horror, Street Trash, a hilariously portrayed dark comedy about a 'race' of bums living in a junk yard, and in true 80s fashion, the acting, special effects, and wardrobe is something to have a good laugh at.

It's out on dvd, and definitely ten bucks well spent. Not to mention, drinks, and smores are provided on the smoking patio, in accordance with the summer "camp" theme. Hope to see you there sometime..

cinematically aroused,
c. urchin

Santogold Julian Casablanca & Pharrell - Just Dropped

2008-07-09T22:15:00.000-07:00

Santogold, Julian Casablancas, and N.E.R.D. Produced by Pharrell

As I said in an earlier post, the three artists collabed to make a track called 'My Drive Thru', as a Converse promotional campaign. They've been teasing the public with word of a video in the works and turns out it just dropped on the net as of right NOW.

So enjoy while it's fresh!

The inevitable rise of Santogold.

2008-07-09T14:58:00.000-07:00

And also, the inevitable exploitation. MTV jumped on her like she was new, but far from it. Santi White has been unleashing some golden tracks for quite some time now. I remember when she played at the 2007 Neighborhood Festival right after Crystal Castles, and everyone walked away (She put on a great performance though). But much time has past and the demographic that was once so opposed to any type of cultural extreme is now exposing it, and claiming it their own. Supposedly theirs some Santogold MOVIE coming out on their website????????! I don't even know... It's also [conveniently] staring all of her friends, such as Trouble Andrew, Amanda Blank, Some of the girls and boys in Sweatheart, etc. Their also in a bunch of MTV commercials too. But hey, do your thing! Oh, and shes also making a song with some dude and Pharrell called 'Drive Thru' for some Converse Century Celebration. They also drafted a bunch of other people as well such as the guys from Does It Offend You Yeah, MGMT, Yacht, Kid Sister, and to do what, I'm not sure. You can see all that crazy MTV shit I talked about earlier in the video below.

mp3: Santogold feat. Julian Casablancas & Pharrell - My Drive Thru

Grape Soda Vintage @ Collective Souls Jul. 20th

2008-07-02T18:37:00.000-07:00

Do you want to dress in the flyest apparel? Well come and party and dance, buy sweet clothes, and get your picture taken! Sunday July 20th, starts @ 10.

Location on flyer.

- David, out!

vidblog

2008-06-30T16:45:00.000-07:00

here's the website if yr REALLY that curious....

My Love Affair with Hercules

2008-06-30T14:44:00.000-07:00

Alright you guys, this is a big one, I'm serious about this y'all...if you don't want to get down with these guys then you just don't want to get down at all, and you DEFINITELY don't want to get down with Tenderlegs, cause we dig it- deep. It's Hercules and Love Affair, of course, here to save the world just as the greek hero once sought out to hundreds of years ago, but only this time around this change will [hopefully] effect the music industry. A sound so precious and professionally comprised can only be created and mastered by a group of individuals all equally talented and equipped with only the keenest sense for luxurious sound...CHECK. Andy Butler( successful DJ), Nomi, Kim Ann Foxman, & lead vocalist Antony Hegarty(Antony and the Johnsons). A group of people all so talented and successful that it seemed almost as mythological as the bands origins, and only expected for them to come together and form Hercules and Love Affair. Antony Hegarty, who has been one of my favorite singer and songwritters, not only with his own band - Antony and the Johnsons, but also and more so I loved his work with another one of my long time favorite bands, Cocorosie, whom Nomi has also worked with, and both have toured with. Antony's also worked and toured with artists such as Bjork, Lou Reed, Devendra Banhart, & Rufus Wainwright. As so much of the band is affiliated with Cocorosie, I wonder if a collaboration can be predicted? Also, one of the freakfolk sisters, Bianca Cassidy, can be spotted in H&LA new video for their song 'Time Will'.

I first heard about this band in February, before their album came out in March. I was so hyped about it, and I was dancing for days as H&LA gained more & more plays in my itunes. When I went out to nightclubs, I would request them(and of course I requested 'Blind', hoping some people would know the song), but the DJ who was usually spinning some tedious Crookers mix, looked at me like I was crazy...little did he know. But months have past now and people are starting to get hip to the sensation. I had been wanting to blog about them for sooo long now, but sat on it for ages because I grew such a liking for this band that I couldn't even form the words to describe them! Since then I have told all of my family about this band(my dad has since bought the album for himself) and pretty much all of my friends have discovered the band through me, but despite my own exploitation campaign that I've seemed to have set up, they have earned tremendous praise and dare I say, worship, from every self-ran blog and music savvy critic on the net. Pitchfork, notorious for being one of the less generous music critics on the inter-web, gave them an almost unheard of 9.1 for their debut album and it was also mentioned in Perez Hilton that the musical genius Elton John said that he loved him some Hercules and Love Affair.

The band is signed to DFA, which makes sense considering anything DFA related is pure GOLD. The Album is produced by Andy Butler and coproduced by Tim Goldsworthy, who was originally a drummer for UNKLE, whom DJ Shadow was once apart of as well. To make a VERY broad generalization, the bands sound is vintage 70's traditional, mixed with late 80's gay disco, and a beautiful architectural roman undertone in all 10 songs, but appears stronger in some tracks than others. Songs like "Athene", comprised of smooth jazz riffs while staying constant and steady for all 4 minutes while Kim Ann Foxman sings beautifully about the goddess of wisdom.

mp3: Hercules and Love Affair - This is My Love [Zshare]
mp3: Hercules and Love Affair - Athene [Zshare]

Others like "Hercules Theme" contain more distinct funk sounds and pitches of high and low energy, which all conclude to the songs unbelievable climax built up by a trumpet solo leading off into a cluster of diverse and beautiful blasting trumpets and horns which makes the journey that this song embarks on evident. This band is one that has easily became one of my favorites, and quite obviously the album of the year. I thank you for reading and don't forget to tell them what you think of their music on their myspace and you can pick up the album off their website or off itunes. I will also have their remixes up within the week. Enjoy and enlighten yourself!

mp3: Hercules and Love Affair - Blind [Zshare]
mp3: Hercules and Love Affair - Hercules Theme [Zshare]
mp3: Hercules and Love Affair - Roar [Zshare]

The Black ghosts - new LP

2008-06-30T11:28:00.000-07:00

Theres probably not much I can say about the UK based duo The Black Ghosts that hasn't already been said. Since they formed in 2006 they have been bombed with loads of respect, praise, and approval from virtually every angle of the blog-net and effortlessly have become one of this years internet buzz bands. The two discovered each other over the internet and hadn't actually met until after they had worked on numerous projects together. Now your feeling a little better about your myspace boyfriend in Minnesota aren't you?

Songs like Repetition Kills You and I Don't Know push them in a more post rock feel with lighter beats and heavy bass. No matter what they can't really escape being a synth-electro pop band, as sinister as they may try to make themselves out to be. They gained high appeal last year with their amazing singles Face and Anyway You Chose To Give It, and a barrage of great remixes from artists such as The Teenagers, Kissy Sell Out, Diplo, Emperor Machine, and Switch gave them a ton of notoriety, fan base, and lots of club plays. I'm not the biggest fan of most of their songs, don't get me wrong they are great at what they do, but what they do I don't find too great. I do love last years singles though, and I am a huge fan of their song Something New, it plays non-stop in my itunes. But if your into all that pop electro, post rock dub ish, then enjoy the MPfreezies! Don't forget to hit up their myspace(link above) and show some love! Their self titled debut album is set to release July 8, but you can preorder it at their labels site for just 10 bucks!

mp3: The Black Ghosts - Repetition Kills You [Zshare]
mp3: The Black Ghosts - Repetition Kills You(Diplo Remix) [Zshare]
mp3: The Black Ghosts - Repetition Kills You(Emperor Machine Vocal Mix) [Zshare]

mp3: The Black Ghosts - Face [Zshare]
mp3: The Black Ghosts - Face(The Teenagers Remix) [Zshare]
mp3: The Black Ghosts - Face(Kissy Sellout Remix) [Zshare]

& the rest
mp3: The Black Ghosts - Tears From A Gun [Zshare]
mp3: The Black Ghosts - I Don't Know [Zshare]
mp3: The Black Ghosts vs Lindstrom - Something New(I feel space version) (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED) [Zshare]

edscissorz

2008-06-29T00:56:00.000-07:00

Yes, yes. I went to Electric Daisy Carnival.

My good friend Justin took me, and we endeavored on our first rave together.. but, I'm glad that of all raves to go to, I went to EDC. It was full of eclectic music (as well as people) but of course with your expected cliche "raver" scene as well. All the stages had wierd ass names like the "cosmic meadow" or the "kinetic field" or "neon garden" and "bass pod"... don't ask... I didn't.

I also got my 'raver' name from some asian kid with dreadlocks who was rolling. His name was Bryce (or hypno-something or other, as he's known in the 'rave world') and he looked me over and gave me the name Violet! Isn't that awesome!!!??? And he gave me one of his little candy bracelets... it said "glow". haha.

At some point during the night, Justin and I heard some strange voice coming from one of the stages, so we went to find out what it was. Turns out it was Rabbit in the Moon, whom I've actually never heard of before that night. They did this extravagant performance of David Bowie's "Lets Dance". It was intense to say the least..

Anyways, I think the place I was posted up at the most was the reggae ice cream truck next to the house of mirrors. It just felt like home to me, and there was hardly anyone in that area, so I could actually DANCE. Yet, there was this mexican break dancer who was so intimidating that I couldn't get up to dance...

Eventually they bumped Prince's "Erotic City" and I just couldn't help myself. He actually cleared the floor for me and watched me do my thing. I ended up drawing a crowd and getting a lot of testosterone-driven attention.

Well, don't want to bore you with a ton of pictures of raver nazis. All in all, it was a good experience... that I highly doubt I'll have another one just like it....because I don't plan on going to raves any time soon....

-still glowing,
c. urchin

MR. BRAINWASH

2008-06-25T13:54:00.000-07:00

Hopefully you don't miss the Mr. Brainwash exhibit. I don't want to spoil it with too many pics if you plan on going, but I'll tease you a bit ;) Chances are you've seen some of his posters up around Hollywood (the warhol-esque ones). Recently Mr. Brainwash took over an old CBS TV studio and turned the whole building (from the walls to the ceilings) into a piece of art. It was a nice change of pace from the typical art gallery with blank walls and the art on 'display'. Every where you looked was art and expression.After following Bansky around to make an OBEY documentary on graffiti art, MBW got inspired himself and decided to make his own accumulation of pop culture through every medium including...

...large free standing pieces,

(giant stack of books)

(12 ft. take out bag)

...paintings,

...even poked fun at classical art

(this bitch is on her apple, if you can't tell)

(This one gets me every time haha)

& these were actually made out of broken vinyls

...prints,

...barcode prints,

...even rooms themselves were stading pieces of art!

...there's also a section upstairs with cages filled with the most bizzare things,

(doesn't this bear look like a recovering heroin addict?)

(the best room of all was clearly the one covered in stuffed animals)

I rly just wanted to jump in and swim around...

Here is what Banksy has to say about MBW:

Mr. Brainwash or MBW is the moniker of an eccentric French filmmaker.

MBW has spent the last nine years attempting to make the ultimate documentary about graffiti art. But whilst filming many of the world’s most renowned street artists at work MBW began putting his camera aside and making art of his own. He has graduated from a few hand drawn stickers to giant billboard sized paste-ups, eventually becoming one of the most prolific street artists in California.

MBW does not fit the stereotype of your average street vandal. His artistic process chiefly consists of throwing random modern cultural icons into a blender and turning it up to eleven. The results are by turns profound, provocative and inspirational.

“Life is beautiful” is the first exhibition ever mounted by Mr Brainwash. It takes place in a former Hollywood studio complex and will feature over three hundred paintings, sculptures and prints alongside an installation made from 100,000 shoes and a life-size re-creation of Edward Hopper’s “Nighthawks”.

“Mr. Brainwash is a force of nature, he’s a phenomenon. And I don't mean that in a good way.”
- Banksy

The exhibit ends June 29th, so don't miss it!! Admission is free, so you have no excuse! Not to mention Roscoe's is right there on the next block if you want some grub ;)

6121 W Sunset Blvd. 1-9 pm

artfully yours,

c. urch

EVERYONE- laugh at everyone!

2008-06-24T13:01:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine once said "originality is just undetected plagiarism". What a very true statement. I can't help but look at some people and think, unique or recycled? Same goes for music.
Is there any authenticity left in people these days? I really hope so.

Ps. More music posts coming soon, I've really been procrastinating on updating this regularly but I will come around.
A lot of things I wanted to post about ages ago(even before I made this blog), have already been well exploited by this time, so thats kind of a bummer- I guess, but I'll post anyways.

prevail!
- D.

Fly by night -we know you know.

2008-06-17T22:54:00.000-07:00

Isn't LA horrible? I don't understand why so many people come here seeking jobs and careers, or even worse -"TO PURSUE THEIR DREAMS". yeahfuckingright. If I meet one more vocal gay activist or chauvinistic SELF PROCLAIMED celebrity I'm going to blow my skull out.
Cool?

I think we are all too focused on ourselves, we constantly obsess over evolving ourselves, and self progression, but we have forgotten that despite how advanced we think we have become, we are still represented by the people that surround us. We have to remember that while self progression is key, it is also equal important to progress as a society- together.
Other wise were just going nowhere!

If I wasn't dieing, I would post more info about these artists and their songs. But I'll recap soon!
Some favorites of the week, and a few good songs to fit all your 08' summer moods:

mp3: Shadow Dancer - Cowbois(StripSteve Remix) (Zshare)
mp3: Bloc Party - Pioneer(M83 Remix) (Zshare)
mp3: Black Lips - Not a problem (Zshare)
mp3: Grandaddy - A.M. 180 (Zshare)
mp3: Combo - Come Down (Zshare)

Apologies!!!!

2008-06-06T15:04:00.000-07:00

For the lack of activity on this bitch! Unfortunately, my computer crashed, and I had to take it into the shop.
(Life detached from the inter-world is so great, try it!)
And I ended up being without a computer for like a week, and payed 150$ for it only to find out that all of my music/files/programs were DELETEDDDDDD.

And I have a reputation for having one of the most legendary I-tunes library known to man. It was very depressing, but almost refreshing at the same time! It kinda feels good to start all over from square one, or "mp3" one haha.

& I'm not too worried about the whole music-being-deleted-thing; thanks to numerous friends who I-steal all my music constantly, I should be able to transfer it right from their I-pod to my computer thanks to this little piece of technology. :)
So if your reading this, thanks music free-loaders!

Here's a few of my recent most favorites.

mp3: John Dahlback - July First(Zshare)
mp3: Breakbot - Summer Party(Zshare)

& heres some music from the new Summer Lovers Unlimited offspring, one of my favorite labels(Leif, The Teenagers, Crystal Castles, Dandi Wind, Twin Crystals, Duchess Says), Channels 3 x 4. Also and added bonus to the trio- Johnny Jewel from Glass Candy produced their latest EP.
so get to downloading!
mp3: Channels 3 x 4 - BLKBRD(Zshare)
mp3: Channels 3 x 4 - Energy Riot(Zshare)

ps. If you haven't already wised up to it, check out The Office!
It's def. for those who love shows like Arrested Development, Scrubs-maybe.
Tuesdays at 10 p.m. on TBS!

Have a good weekend guys.
-D

Italians DID it better, in 1984; A World Evolving

2008-05-23T08:50:00.000-07:00

Ahh yes...now this is my personal favorite. It's classic Italo Disco thats on my Ipod almost 24/7. For those who don't know much about Italo Disco, it was an electronic dance music movement, and the first at that, that peaked in worldwide popularity around 1983, but began in 1977 when Giorgio Moroder first experienced the wonders of a synthesizer. By 1982 Italo Disco had well emerged and certain labels such as "Disco Magic Records" and "Il Discotto Productions" started spawning off many sub-labels that all had there own distinguished sound. It caught on like wildfire everywhere, but despite it's great influence, it was a very short lived trend that practically vanished from all major music archives by 1990. It wasn't just the music that caught on, it was the entire lifestyle, including clothes, hair styles, dance moves, even down to the way you walk and talk. Often this style of music required no god-given talent, only experience or knowledge in the artists synthesizer of choice. If you couldn't sing, just use a vocoder! Vocals were usually edited and personally perfected with a wide range of effects including playback speeds, and layers. The craze was most influential with those who loved to party, and instantly appealed to all types of dancers; professional, street, or just strictly amateur.

But in the early 90's, the AIDS crisis played a very big role in suppressing Italo Disco, because the crisis was mostly associated with the dance music scene. North American fans started turning their backs on the trend, and the hip-hop community that was once so fond of the lifestyle, parted with it for good. Considering it never did drip into mainstream, it was somewhat easy for society to turn it down. Coming with the new age of technology it was hard to preserve the sound as well, and their was less and less professional interest in keeping it alive. Also because the sound was very popular in gay communities, it kept getting labeled as "gay music"(in a negative way) which didn't improve the realtionship between disco and ex-US fans.

But a quarter century later, the repetition of evolution plays it part, and just like fashion, music styles are rediscovered and reinvented sooner or later, and personally I think now is a great time. Thanks to new sharing tools including youtube, imeem, myspace, & the blogshpere, including the one your reading right now, the lines that once divided mainstream and underground are almost non-existent. Corporate offspring's such as VH1, MTV, etc., are now receiving some harsh opposition from the very demographic they were catering to before, who now discovered much more through Youtube and other sharing tools, and were able to discredit a lot of corporate content literally overnight. Technology did an amazing trick on the North American society, and discredited a lot of standards and normalizations in one way or another in a blink of an eye.

Now it's time for our society, to decide for themselves whats true, and whats a lie, and no longer be persuaded by any type of mega monopoly corporation, politicians, or even religion. The youth today is left with an endless pallet of choices, and doors wide open, and being a youth in this day and age, I'm taking advantage of the situation.

& if you can't do the New York Hustle to this ish then get the fuck outta here!

mp3: Dynasty - Strokin' (Zshare)
[ps. If you didn't notice, this is the song DJ Mehdi sampled to create his high-powered hit; Signature.]
mp3: Dj Mehdi - Signature (Zshare)

mp3: BWH - Stop (Zshare)
mp3: Venise - Playboy (Zshare)
mp3: Kelly Brown - Only You Make Me Feel (Zshare)
mp3: Man Parrish - Boogie Down Bronx (Zshare)

Enjoy the history! -D

Malibu the Gladiator!

2008-05-20T19:57:00.000-07:00

Americans use to be so easily entertained.
Life was better when we could watch a bronze lion man get dive-kicked off a pillar and call it great television, now we have to drop 7 strangers off of an airplane into some uninhabited island and watch video feeds of them crying every night and living off rat meat for 7 months to be slightly amused....

As Malibu would say,
NOT sweet.

Have no faith

2008-05-19T17:39:00.000-07:00

These days, any untalented artist can vomit any type of noise into the inter-world and if there surrounded by the right people everything will go smooth. But for once theres a band that has the connects, the style, and most definitely the talent to be a well known and appreciated band. British dance/hiphop group Faithless, which I first discovered in 2004 when I heard their album "No Roots" which was their first album to debut at #1. They weren't fresh meat then, nor are they now, they have been on the counter and the charts for a very long time, with now 5 albums out and a greatest hits album.

Most of there albums previous to "No Roots" has bordered Trance music, which was still very good, but "No Roots" professionally blends many different types and styles of music into there own very unique and classic sound that they have built there band on. It's a hypnotizing and beautiful album, very much so that you can hardly notice the start and end of a track, it is more just an expression of there mood in a continuous strain of sound. It's hard to believe that one group of people, and in one single album, can incorrporate so many different feelings into there music, often making astounding transitions from easy flowing raps to beautiful soundscapes.

Enlighten yourself!

mp3: Faithless - Miss You Less See You More(Switch Remix) (Zshare)
mp3: Faithless - Insomnia (Zshare)

GAY MARRIAGE BAN LIFTED IN CA!!

2008-05-16T01:52:00.000-07:00

Well, in case you didn't hear the news yesterday, the California Supreme Court just made a ruling to take down the ban on same sex-marriage. (Here's the full story on CNN.) We are now the second state in the United States to legalize gay marriage! I know when I first heard the news I was, at the very least, ecstatic. It's about time California wised up. It actually made me really proud to be a native Californian (actually impressive in light of my lack of real patriotism). Not to mention, my roomate was almost in tears from the overwhelming excitement.

But then I got to thinking that not everyone would share the same excitement. I can only imagine the religious groups calling an emergency meeting to discuss their plan of action. And we all know how the government folds like paper cups with those kind of confrontations. One of those opposing assholes actually had the audacity to bring up the fact that it's been 'proven' that children should grow up in a home with heterosexual parents, because a homosexual marriage is a counterfit marriage and that subjecting them to living with homosexual parents would essentially be cruel and demeaning towards the child. Excuse me, but how many heterosexual couples give birth to gay children? Really, is it that unheard of or something? And if gay marriage is banned, then why not ban interracial marriages as well? It'll just never end. People will always find a reason to create animosity and turn into elitist to have an 'inferior' group to blame all of their problems on. It's just so dissapointing that it's actually taken this long to make any sort of progress. Not to mention, it's just embarassing to begin with that this is something we'd even debate about. Two people make each other happy enough to take the plunge, and they aren't bothering you, or hurting anyone, why would you stop them?"Seperation of church and state" my ass. This topic is also probably going to weigh heavily in the presidential debates and have a lot to do with who wins, depending on who supports it and who doesn't.

Another thing that got to me was the idea of the population rising in California. Everyone's going to be heading this way to be legally recognized. I'm pretty sure California has a lot on its plate already, (i.e. immigration) not to mention I was driving through West Hollywood tonight and I thought to myself, "do we really need anymore?" HAHA.

Regardless, this is ultimately a step forward in society. It's kind of embarassing that it's really taken this long to recognize gay marriages. I could sit here and go on about the true meaning of marriage and how it's when two people love each other regardless of race, religion, class, and yes, even gender, but I know you've heard it all. So go out there and find yourself a same-sex partner and marry them damnit!

Down with the clown!

2008-05-15T22:02:00.000-07:00

SO I often think....."What the fuck is middle america doing!?"
There are so many people out there who are sooo into the wackiest shit you'd ever imagine, but I'm sure they have the same opinion about me and so many people I know.
This goes to show you.....we don't seem em', but there out there!

NO FAYGO!?!? ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?!
hopefully Lindsay will sneak some in.

ps. Sticking beer cans up your ass is probably not a cool idea.

Not at your weekly club

2008-05-15T19:07:00.000-07:00

SO today I wanna talk about the flyest cat I know thats out there. The man is in all means real to the core and has a lot of shit to say. I got my first dose of singer/writer/poet/actor Saul Williams in 2001 when I checked out his album "Amethyst Rock Star" which had a lot Rage Against The Machine influences. I caught back up with him again in 2004 when his self titled album debuted, which I fell in love with. Songs like "Black Stacey", a deeply personal song (hence his middle name is Stacey) written about a boy growing up out-of-place and frustrated, racially confused, and living in the shadow of a white man, and his more high powered energetic single "List Of Demands", which is now featured in some lame ass sports commercial. The afrocentric poet started out as an MC, then went on to graduate with a Bachelors in philosophy, moved to New York and earned a Masters in Acting, and in 1998, pursued his acting career by getting the lead role in the Sundance Awarded feature, Slam.

At the same time he was heavily getting into music. He has worked with such artists such as Erykah Badu, Blackalicious, The Mars Volta, NIN, and The Fugees and has five albums strapped to the gurney & he has also published four books. Most of his music is influenced by his own personal experiences, and even more so the politics and downfalls of government, Hiphop, ethics, and humanity. He has a lot to offer lyrically and switches in and out of spoken word and beautiful poetry throughout all of his albums. I hope you all listen to this and gain some sort of insight out of it, or at least respect the mans prophetic messages and important beliefs. You can pick up his latest album "The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of Niggy Tardust!" at his website for a mere 5$.

-Spread the love ya'll, D.

mp3: Saul Williams - List of Demands (Zshare)
mp3: Saul Williams - Black Stacey (Zshare)

& Sardonik Smirk, still widely unknown, has made an elegant recreated and mastered version of Saul's already beautiful spoken word single, Gypsy Girl
mp3: Saul Williams - Gypsy Girl (Sardonik Smirk mix) (Zshare)

standing in the way of yr hole

2008-05-12T23:57:00.000-07:00

The moral ethic of my generation has , if not but completely, begun to disintegrate. Not to give them the credit of having any to begin with.

Don't give them the satisfaction of yr soul. Stand in the way of control.

ps. You'll soon come to find I have an 'unhealthy' obsession with Beth Ditto (aka badass frontwoman for the gossip) There's a bitchin' live version of Standing In the Way of Control on their myspace.

Coachella Coastin pt. 2

2008-05-12T16:36:00.000-07:00

Oh man...if only I could cut your vocal cords out of your throat and shove them down some slightly attractive guys mouth. Anyways, it was all kids play when The Teenagers came on stage. 15 minutes into there performance I think they realized that there crowd was either walking away, checking the time, or staring at there feet. SO they acted fast, and personally invited the whole front row up on stage with them to sing dance and have a good time. After that the crowd got a little into it. Smooth move tweenz! But the guitarist was wearing a black My Chemical Romance shirt....personally, I think it's a little too early to be ironic?

What there doing is cool, but they really have no talent as a alt-post rock, new wave boy band but I doubt thats a secret, I guess your simply suppose to congratulate them on having a good time doing it. But you can't blame them for taking advantage of there sleek looks and French accents, thats about all you need in the music business these days. Although I do like there unique style and technique they use to blend that awkward 90's highschool, teen angst feeling into music. At least there remixes are good, they kill that shit like no other!

mp3: The Teenagers - Starlett Johansson (Zshare)
mp3: The Teenagers - End of The Road (Zshare)

Heres some of those sweet remixes
mp3: New Young Pony Club - The Bomb(Teenagers Remix) (Zshare)
mp3: Air - Mer Du Japon(Teenagers Remix) (Zshare)

Pure gold! The singer/songwriter/producer Santogold(Santi White) put on a great performance saturday night, right before producer pal of hers, Spank Rock, was suppose to perform, but failed to show, but Miss Amanda Blank & friends made a pretty good plan B. She bounced all over the stage while her intimidating backup dancers, who also appear in her music video for "LES Artistes", did some pretty crazy crunk dancing shit.

Under those lights she looked kind of scary, but when I got up close backstage she looked adorable. Though, her days as an underground artist are limited, for her songs have featured in video games, commercials for Bud Light, V05 hair products and etc, and she's already had a few appearances on MTV. yeah, it's the end.

mp3: Santogold - I'm a lady (Zshare)
mp3: Santogold - You'll Find A Way (Zshare)
mp3: Santogold - Pretty Green (feat. Mark Ronson) (Zshare)

You never really hear about groundbreaking talent coming out of Australia, but here to change that is the Aussie boy band Midnight Juggernauts, who poured there interstellar disco meets techno-meets space-and runs into elegant sound on the hundreds of fans that stood, sat, and danced before them.

With there debut album "Dystopia" out in 2 days, April 14th, April 23 for UK & US, people were excited to see the sensation perform live. I myself am a big fan of the sound that these guys make, it often borders justice-esque, but throw in some Air, and a little david bowie and you have something similar. There hit "Road To Recovery" is a sound for soar ears, and eager feet. Laced with elegant vocals and space like sounds, has been dominating the blogsphere and infiltrating peoples itunes everywhere.

Dystopia, with it's pop sounding optimistic feel and sinister undertones, is a well produced and managed album that is sure to catapult the aussie boy trio into the spotlight in no time. There North American Tour just ended last friday, giving them time to recuperate and prepare for there French tour which starts May 26th.

mp3: Yo Majesty - Club Action(Hatchmatik & Midnight Juggernauts remix) (YSI)
mp3: Midnight Juggernauts - Shadows(M83 Remix) (YSI)

Heres the Curses! remix of Road To Recovery that has been tearing up LA dancefloors:

mp3: Midnight Juggernauts - Road To Recovery(Curses! Remix) (YSI)
& the original:
mp3: Midnight Juggernauts - Road To Recovery (YSI)

Everybody dipped low and went buck sweaty wild at 4 in the afternoon for the Mad decent offspring, dj/producer Diplo. The busy man found time in between working with every talent under the sun and making his own music to rock coachella. His set was off the hook and got the crowd AMPED. I have never seen so many people get so excited for a DJ set, haha it was a little overwhelming at times, but oh so fun. Behind the Dipster lurked many Ed Banger crew members and other "names". The man obviously has a pretty big posse , all which are as talented as himself. He has worked with artists such as M.I.A., Santogold, Bonde Do Role, Amanda Blank, Martina Topley-Bird, Rye Rye, and MANY others. He is seeming to build himself up to be a mini timbaland, and nothings wrong with that. Congrats Mister Dip!

mp3: Black Lips - Veni Vedi Veci(Diplo Remix) (YSI)

Fa Fa Fa-FaFaFaFaFa! Datarock rocked it like no other, and to say the least, put on a show. They danced, rolled, jumped, humped, and stripped all over the stage. The Norway pop/indie group has gotten a lot of attention lately, starting in 07, and have only accumulated even more now well into 08. When not in there infamous red tracksuits, which Fredrik Saroea claims to be pushing as a fashion trend, they are simply anonymous. Oddly enough, the band members did there own soundcheck, and the unsuspecting crowd had no idea it was them the whole time, but you didn't have me fooled you red suited Houdini's! haha. The day after they played, they walked around coachella and casually lurked the premises, in their tracksuits, and let the attention come to them, Which made me a little curious as to what their intentions are as musicians.

They got up close and personal...and friendly. The band, which formed in 2000 and made there debut performance at a monthly club night called "Pop Till You Drop", has since made great progress in the past 8 years, and this is only the beggining. Be sure to check up on the MTVism, wouldn't be surprised if you saw the boys on TRL soon.

mp3: Datarock - Maybelline (YSI)
mp3: Datarock - Bulldozer (YSI)

Coachella Coastin: late recap!! pt. 1

2008-05-11T20:49:00.000-07:00

SO before I dig into this coachella ish, likes of me to apologize (to whoever it may concern) about how long it took to get this blog ball rolling. There were a few technical difficulties on both of our parts to get this shit started, but anywho....

Your boy was coachillin this year, and it was off THE HOOK. Me and a friend left Thursday night and beat the crowds but you'd be surprised how early those crowds do leave. We roughed it all three days and slept in the car, it was pretty brutal, and my allergies were hell the whole time. I think I still have some of that nasty ass dry desert dirt stuck in my throat. As nice as all of that sounds, to top it off it was over 100 degrees all three days and really cold at night, for some reason? The desert bugs were fucking disgusting, and the car next to ours got broken into, and we watched it happen while we were in our car, haha. At least the coachella folk were entertaining!

One of our lovely parking neighbors decided to make his truck into a hotel. He's completely serious too, and if thats not enough, at night he set up a barbecue and a table with chairs and TIKI LIGHTS! Saturday night I got lost looking for the car and I ran into his car-lounge-area and he cooked me some food and gave me some beer and we talked about Portishead for about a half an hour.......so anyways

One of my favorite performances were [of course] from one of the best talents to come out of Iceland, the freaky folk band Múm, who has just released there fourth album titled "Go go smear the poison ivy" which is noticeably different from most of there previous records. For those who have backed the noisy high vocal experiment band from the start, you'll be glad to hear the band, now seven members strong, ranging from different realms of sound and dipping into different genres, particularly mixing their classic instrumental sound with some up-to-date electronics, but for those of you, most of you, who jumped on the band wagon after Garden State, you'll be disappointed by the lack of "We Have A Map Of The Piano" theme. Speaking of, they did play the anthem, but they were having troubles remembering all the notes to the song. They had a hard time competing with all the noise from the other two tents which were simultaneously echoing a thumping repetitive beat, making it hard for the quiet, sometimes even whispering, performers to operate. They even requested there crowd to be as quiet as possible so that they could play some slower songs. They also played a lot of new stuff, but altogether the performance was astounding, beautiful, and memorable-to me at least.

MP3: Múm - Please Sing My Spring Reverb B.flesichmann Mix (YSI)
MP3: Múm - Guilty Rocks (YSI)