Blastville so far

This place is awesome. Amazing vibe central. Southern hospitality is something I need more of in my life. After 4 hours in this city, I was figuring out ways to live down here. (yeah, i know i say that everytime i go on tour, but never after 4 hours in a place..)

We're staying at the home of a studio musician, his wife, a country music television host, and their adorable 11-month-old daughter (with my same birthday) named Daisy Rocket. The accomodations are pretty sweet - like I have my own studio apartment with a kitchen, bathroom, etc-- as do Vic & Mary Clare on the other side of the house.

Yesterday, we set up over at the art space we're playing tonight. I'll take lots of pictures but it can best be described as a Rubulad vibe. A warehouse with art all over the place. Shit hanging from the ceiling, hilarious tripped out manager.

The best part about this place is everyone has a story. These are a sampling of snippets I heard at a bar last night about he cast of rockers around us (and some who are playing with us tonight):

"he played with Bowie..."
"George Thorougood would always try to hang out with us and we'd be like, no George, we don't want to jam..."
"He co-wrote 'Private Eyes' and when he first moved here, everytime he walked in a bar people would clap twice"
"He played with Frampton"
“Wayne Kramer thought he was drinking too much, so had an intervention…”
"I'm leaving on tour with the Foo Fighters on Monday"
"That guy was the original drummer in Wilco..."

And it wasn't said in that annoying name-dropping vibe either. It's who these people are and the amazing lives they've lived in the rock 'n roll world and now they've all met up in Nashville to form this creative community that artists can actually afford.

To say I'm excited about tonights gig is an understatement.

best McCarren Pool Party Of The Summer

last year, I didn't miss one. This year, I've missed all but one. (Not dissing, just had other stuff going on.) The show I did catch was Oxford Collapse (awesome), Annuals (pretty sweet) and Band of Hot Gay Dudes In Speedos.



The point of this post is to:

A. Show off this awesome shot of myself, Stockton and our new friends and
B. Say you pretty much miss the show unless you're 50 ft in front of or on the stage.

But mostly A.

Off to Nashville!

Yee-Haw motherfuckers!

I'm not complaining

Monday night during The New York Howl show, I got a drink spit at me and a high-hat hurled at me. A bunch of us went across the street to The Rev. Vince Anderson at Black Betty afterward, where I got spun into a bunch of chairs leaving my thigh looking like this:


It's about time we returned to a more balls-out vibe with the rock.

PS. I highly recommmend both these acts, but don't expect a bunch of skinny kids with their arms crossed slightly nodding their heads. This is a good thing.

Oh, and here's a video my friend Cass did for the Rev...

How to shut me up.

The best part about some of your best friends spontaneously reuniting their former band for an private (read: me & Tommy Rockstar) impromptu show in a tiny rehearsal studio is asking them to play your favorite song in their catalog, (I Broke Her Heart, She Broke My Records) fully knowing they forgot most of it, so they give you this instead.

Either that, or they heard my phone ring one too many times. Still, they made me a happy happy girl.

If you haven't seen it, it's new to you...

(I posted this on my myspace blog last week, but added MP3s for your listening pleasure...)

Last week, my mom took me to see Hairspray and it was awesome for these reasons:

The 1988 version is the one movie I've seen more times then any other movie. In jr/high school, my friends used to come over and watch it and act out the lines and do the dances. My mom would watch it with us. When we met boys on the beach or something we'd tell them our names were Tracy Turnblad and Penny Pingleton. We found ways to incorporate lines from that flic in everyday situations. I derived my sense of style from this film, along with key aspects of my musical tastes (still play parts of the soundtrack in my DJ sets).

The first season of the Ricki Lake show - i was there front and center because I expected it to be like the movie. (hahaha)
I used to LOVE dance party usa for the sole purpose that it was MY Corny Collins show.

but Hairspray, along with being fun, and campy and hilarious, was totally positive with an amazing message.

The new one keeps the same vibe. The director was brilliant to put the John Waters cameo in the first 3 minutes, showing they had his blessing.

It's cleaned up a little bit and it much more of a musical than the original, but it's still campy and fun and hilarious and positive.

John Travolta has nothing on Divine, of course. His accent was irritating at best. Although he had the mannerisms down for the most part. And I haven'[t heard him sing since Grease, so that was a riot.

I haven't heard Michelle Pfeiffer sing since Grease 2 (I want a C-O-O-L... an R-I-D-E-R) but I have to give her props for nailing down Debbie Harry's character.

Queen Latifa was awesome as Motor Mouth Mabel.

and blah blah blah. I'm not a movie critic, so I'll stop myself. But it made me feel all fuzzy-like just like the original did, even after the 30th time I watched it.

I don't own it anymore. about 12 years ago, I traded my vhs for a copy of crybaby which i still have, so I think i'm going to watch that now.

I have a projector and a backyard just waiting to get all chocolate and peanut butter on each other. I was originally gonna do a grease 2 and eddie 2 double feature. Now I'm thinking twice.

Recommendation For This Evening

New York Howl @ Luna Lounge.

We played with these guys at a rubulad party a few months ago, and their raw punk-ass blues set had me wanting to grind up against something for 2 weeks after that.

And during the final song, the drummer totalled his kit --so while they're spazzing out on stage, the crowd is banging on pieces of the drum kit that came pummeling at them.

One of my favorite Brooklyn acts happening these days. Nice guys too.

10pm.

Evrybody's Rockin For The Weekend, part 1

Thursday 8/2/06:

Alana Amram, Hopewell, Grand Mal & Tomorrow’s Friend.

Hopewells record release party was a ton of fun.
Alana never fails with her emotionally balls-out alt country.

I missed most of Grand Mal, but I listened from the other room for the one song I know by them that was a staple in the Vic Thrill Salon playlist back in the late 90s. It’s called “A Whole Lotta Nothing” and of course, I don’t have it and it’s not on Limewire or itunes. I’ll try to find an mp3, but in the meantime you can listen to a sample here.

Very reminiscent of Soft Bulletin-era lips. Which brings me to Hopewell.

They’re kind of reminiscent of Transmissions-era Flaming Lips. But what got me really excited was their cover of Jane’s “Of Course” which I originally caught the tail end of back in march at sxsw. Tommy, Vic, Toni and myself set off on a mission to find this gig, completely off the beaten path from Austin’s 6th street mayhem.

We finally found the place, but missed the set. Yet as soon as we heard “lala… lala… lala…” Me and Vic joined arms and skipped around in circles. Because that’s what you’re supposed to do when you hear “Of Course”. And Hopewell nails it. And trips the fuck out of it.

I was personally wowed by their Video Artist. OK, not wowed – truly humbled. Homeboy had 2 projectors going, and seamlessly mixed and manipulated FILM to perfectly compliment Hopewell’s energized set. I was speechless and upon approaching this mad man and attempting to introduce myself as a “Fellow VJ,” I was shot down with “This is film, honey. There’s not a pixel involved.” Ouch.

Great party. Great hazy afterparty.

Friday 8/3/06

Agnostic Front @ The Hook.

This show was supposed to be at Cha-cha’s on the Coney Island boardwalk. Unfortunately, the whole live punk show vibe ended ther last week, when World/Inferno Friendship Society ripped the place a new ahole. Supposedly trashed the place. I guess it’s the price you pay for having a waltzing mosh pit. (Which is one of the most beautiful things I’ve seen at show – or a close second to World/Infernos’ sizzlin’ lead man.)

So they moved the show to Red Hook.

Now I’m not into hardcore. I need a groove. Plus, I’m just not a fan of angry music. I mean, anger has its place when it’s coupled with resolution or passion, but not when it’s lacking a groove.

But last year, backstage at a Rancid show, I was hanging with some friends and I spot a familiar face. It was Mike Gallo, a friend from high school. I was completely taken aback (as was he) because I NEVER run into folks from high school. Especially at anything cool. We grew up in Nassau County, Long Island right next to the Queens border. It was the freestyle capital of the world. The guidos and guidettes outnumbered any punk vibe.

So I see this former guido (not to say I didn’t have big hair and a lot of cheap gold back in the day) and was like “What the fuck are you doing here?”

“I’m in Agnostic Front”

Holy shit.

But it doesn’t end there. Over the next year I come to find out another dude I’ve known for over 10 years is also playing in Agnostic Front. This dude Joe, who’s tight with my friend Henry from SVA

So Friday night, Sibi and I trekked into Red Hook for more of small-fucking-world-old-friend-reunion then a hardcore show.

Good thing because 4 songs in, the bright lights came on and management shouted “SHOWS OVER” after a bar-back got the shit kicked out of him. I escaped with merely a bruised arm. (someone kicked me whilst I was at the bar getting a drink). Good Times.