PIG FACE NOW REQUESTS YOUR CERVICAL ATTENTION

culture de tragédie (preview)

Wed, 19 Nov 2008 02:54:03 GMT

Inspired by the alternative beauty pageant "Miss Catwalk Tragedy" this 134 page, full color 8.5" x 11" collection features some of the country's top alternative photographers and a few promising newcomers.

Features:

Lithium Picnic

Kyle Cassidy

Jeff Cohn

Scott Church

S. Jenx

And many others! (See full credit list on the purchase page.)

Look for an upcoming interview with photographer S. Jenx on Alterati about this collection in coming weeks, covering what inspired him to curate this collection, his own photographic process, and knowing us, probably a lot more.

James Curcio.

Two Headed Monster

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 03:07:47 GMT

(Photo by Matthew Cooke.)

In my opinion, Collide’s recent release, Two Headed Monster, is both a culmination and a departure from their past work. Though it may remain in the same rack in the record store (those still exist, right?), you can feel that a maturation has taken place.

Contrary to opinion, maturation of this nature doesn’t simply come with time. As many artists prove, you can create and re-create the same thing for a lifetime, if you so choose. There is a deceptive, almost infinite freedom provided by working on projects exclusively in the studio, as much of Collide’s previous work has been. Sometimes those boundless 3 a.m.-in-the-studio possibilities can become a creatively stagnating trap. I’m happy they managed to avoid that trap, instead creating a thickly-textured, lively album that stands up to many listens.

As some of you probably already know, I’m not a fan of regurgitating the experience of listening to an album in an attempt to entice you into buying it. (Though as that goes, the Fearnet.com review was pretty good.) Rather, I leave it to you to check it out, and form your own opinion. The process that created a work is always most interesting to me, so I am happy that I had the chance to talk to kaRIN and statik about how this album came into being…

James Curcio: The first thing that stood out to me on this album was that it seemed to be more collaborative than your previous work. Correct me if I’m wrong on this, but it feels to me that Collide really took a step forward in that regard, and several others. After so many years with the two of you primarily working as a “two headed monster” (as it were), what was it like opening the songwriting process up to other band members and contributors?

kaRIN: The primary song writing for Collide is still primarily Statik and myself. Over the years, we are just trying to evolve as much as we can and not make the same songs over again. We were very lucky to have gathered up some great live players, so the live influence and the fact that all of our live members contributed to each of the songs is definitely evident on Two Headed Monster.

(Read the full interview on Alterati.com.)

Netwar

Thu, 06 Nov 2008 22:39:47 GMT

The rand corporation published this white-paper on the subject that I think many of you may find interesting. (Not surprisingly, many of these are ideas I played with liberally during the creation of Fallen Nation.)

"Editors’ abstract. As with other new modes of conflict, the practice of netwar is ahead of theory. In this concluding chapter, we suggest how the theory of netwar may be improved by drawing upon academic perspectives on networks, especially those devoted to organizational network analysis. Meanwhile, strategists and policymakers in Washington, and elsewhere, have begun to discern the dark side of the network phenomenon, especially among terrorist and criminal organizations. But they still have much work to do to harness the bright side, by formulating strategies that will enable state and civil-society actors to work together better."

The use of "bad guys" and "good guys", used so liberally throughout, is rather comedic. However, the central premise is sound.

Thu, 06 Nov 2008 19:19:39 GMT

Sometimes, I really hate company politics.

Especially when I make the mistake of opening my mouth.

Wed, 05 Nov 2008 20:59:29 GMT

It really doesn't matter- so far as I can tell- that Obama is half black. The fact that it does matter just shows how far we have to go.

What does matter is that he's intelligent, and, despite being a politician (and all that comes along with it), he is also an able statesman. How much that matters is yet to be seen. The work has just started- and I do not envy his job. Talk about first-day-on-the-job pressure, at least in January. The entire world seems to expect a miracle.

Twitter

Mon, 03 Nov 2008 22:51:42 GMT

For those interested in following me on twitter who don't already, my profile is here.

Scott Landes of Collide, a collaborative profile

Sun, 02 Nov 2008 05:58:01 GMT

Next week- supposing I can finally kick the plague that's been ravaging my innards- I'm going to be writing a review of Collide's recent release Two Headed Monster. It'll run both on Alterati.com and Greylodge.org. This album has been three years in the making, and as you may have already heard, showcases Danny Carey from Tool and Dean Garcia from Curve, as well as the members of the live band they assembled.

Video for Euphoria, off of Collide's previous album.

Before then, however, I wanted to give a shout out to an ex-bandmate and good friend of mine, who happens to be a member of that live band- Scott Landes. The fact of that matter is that oftentimes the headliners steal all the oxygen from the room- which isn't to say that it isn't warranted. (My respect for what kaRIN and statiK have done aside, I won't deny an almost fanboy-ish love for Danny Carey's drumming.)

However, in this case the other members, who often get referred to in the reviews as "the live band," are all talented musicians in their own right. Who knows the names of the band that played with Tori Amos when touring for Little Earthquakes, or PJ Harvey's bandmates on Rid of Me? (Don't check with Google. I'm just making a point.) This is a fault purely of the press- and the simple bottom line of what sells tickets and records.

I don't know the other members of Collide's band well enough to talk about them, though Kai Kurosawa's muscianship is clearly impressive. However, having known, worked with, and on several occasions lived with Scott, I wanted to share a little of that, and some reflections of my own work with him and how he influenced me- before jumping into a review of Collide's album on its own ground.

I first met Scott in 98 or 99 during my Sophomore year at Bard College. Our mutual friend Jim introduced us, and he promptly blew me away with the intensity of his playing- and in the process snapped at least one of the strings on the Mexican strat that I owned at the time.

From that point on, we began a many-year long collaboration which oftentimes veered into the obscure or plain bizarre. Scott got me to take music more seriously- it was hard not to, what with how passionate he is about it. He would literally stay up all night playing until his fingers bled. (And then keep playing.) One part of what motivated me to take Jazz harmony and music theory classes was so that I could keep up with him on my chosen instrument at the time, bass. On the other hand, I'd like to think that I helped him learn to take music a little less seriously. Oftentimes, we would have absurd jams so ridiculous that we'd fall over laughing. These first meanderings took the form of Bile Shower, a truly awful concoction which was a great deal of fun to create, and which wreaks pain and havoc upon whomever has the poor sense to subject themselves to it.

This did eventually lead to more serious projects, such as Babalon, but throughout I would say that there's always been an underlying comedy in most of the work we've done together, even those which got more production attention, like subQtaneous. (Here is a live recording of Waiting and a demo of Save The World, two of my favorites from what we recorded with Babalon).

After Babalon broke up, Scott joined forces with Collide, and a little while thereafter, with Mankind Is Obsolete. I had MKIO stay at my apartment several months back, when they were still on their colossal year+ tour, and got to briefly reconnect with him and meet some new faces. Here is a band operating completely without a label, living out of a van, playing gigs varying in size and grandiosity from Warp tour dates to some people in a corn field. (Read Part 1 and Part 2 of my review and interview with Mankind is Obsolete from last year before they hit the road.)

Living off of tuna and celery and playing music every night. It just goes to show that though the days of excess Guns N' Roses got to experience might be gone, if you are committed enough, you can hit the road and find an audience.

I've been involved in several musical projects since Babalon, and some studio work with Scott since. However, I've yet to meet someone with his singleminded passion, dedication and drive for the art. It is truly a rare thing. If you have the opportunity to see him perform with Collide, Mankind Is Obsolete, or any other bands that he chooses to work with, I highly suggest you take it. I always look forward to seeing him on stage, or having another opportunity to collaborate.

Look for a review of Two Headed Monster next week.

(As a final note to the Fallen Nation readers out there- yes, the character of Cody was based- in part - on Scott.)

The Gspot - The Philosopher's Stone w/ Raymon Salvatore Harmon

Fri, 31 Oct 2008 21:24:55 GMT

In this very special edition of The GSpot, Joseph Matheny talks to Raymond Salvatore Harmon about the special release of his movie, The Philosopher's Stone on Greylodge as a torrent to be followed by a "Press to Play" version being released on Altertube.tv and Pilotlite.com, and then a podcast edition to be released on Alterati, Greylodge and Pilotlite. Joe and Ray discuss art on the fringe, how Ray came to film making, the Chicago art scene, and why the economy means nothing to artists working on the fringes.

(Check it out on Alterati.com.)

My 404

Thu, 30 Oct 2008 16:28:21 GMT

This past year has held a lot of changes and challenges for me. I broke up with my girlfriend of five years, (see? I told you I'd finally mention it publicly- no details though guys, LJdrama is so 1998), I'm working a full-time day job, I've put my non-or-little-paying creative projects on hiatus until I figure out what benefit I was actually providing to myself or others with them, I broke my almost year-long healthy streak with nearly two months of constant sinus infections, I'm gearing up for a move though I'm not 100% sure where to yet. And I'm falling in love.

Also, that was a really long sentence. Sorry about that, guys.

So, if you were actually wondering why the Fallen Nation audiobook is on hold, or why I haven't been running so many G-Spots lately, or so on, this is pretty much it. It's not that I've taken myself totally out of the game- I yam who I yam- but I realize I need to pull in a bit for a while, and not overcommit as I have so much in the past. Build a base, and then make decisions about where and how I want to spend my time and energy.

I am, however, completely open to suggestions from the peanut gallery on this matter, though I (as always) reserve the right to completely ignore everyone. It does help to know the things that I've done that have had an effect. So far Join My Cult! still seems to be in the lead on that account, if the number of "you changed my life!" emails from strangers is the metric. This is something I might have to work through in therapy someday. Or perhaps you all need therapy.

Until next time...

So true...

Tue, 28 Oct 2008 18:50:03 GMT

Words from an old maverick

Tue, 28 Oct 2008 17:34:24 GMT

A word of advice to young writers out there: beware making your first a hallucinogen soaked, satirical, non-linear, generally plot-less nightmare. One day you might look
back on it with a feeling of Jager-hangover nausea, and yet find that it continues to generally outsell later work that in your estimation better deserves the light of day.

Maybe at some point I'll do some colossal re-write of Join My Cult! and Fallen Nation for larger distribution. In the wake of some curious legal battles within the publisher for the former, re-gaining those rights would be easy. ("Easy" might not be the word, they've already been granted.)

More likely I'll run off to Thailand and so to hell with this writing thing.

In the meantime, for those of you who have read Join My Cult! but not the sequel- pony up. I don't even make a profit from those sales. I'll just sleep easier knowing there are people out there who still enjoy a plot along with their anarchy and group sex.

Unleashed

Thu, 23 Oct 2008 21:30:30 GMT

I've been a fan of martial art films for going on a decade. It might not be readily apparent now, but once upon a time I even practiced kung fu rather obsessively, though I always shied away from the acrobatics that is the bread and butter of these films. In this genre, Jet Li has always been a favorite for me. (This was a point of contention with my se gung back in the day, who apparently trained Jackie Chan for his Drunken Master role, and was really bent out of shape that I was impressed by Jet Li's "Northern style bullshit." Drunken masters and their weird rivalries.)

Jet Li became known as a stand-out martial artist in Shaolin Temple and the Once Upon A Time In China films, though I was especially a fan of Fist of Legend, a Bruce Lee remake, which in this re-interpretation is possibly more dazzling, even if both suffer from the stereotypical rival-school, you-killed-my-master-now-you-have-to-die premise. For the martial arts buffs out there, I suggest them all.

He is not, however, well known for having acting chops to accompany his martial ones, and many of the American-made movies that don't recognize this fact suffer for it. In fact, his acting is oftentimes downright agony.

As a result of this, I was somewhat stunned to discover that Unleashed (a.k.a. Danny The Dog) is a gritty and touching drama first, and a martial arts film second. Without a solid acting performance from Jet Li, this movie would have been even more painful than the glitzy but vapid Romeo Must Die. Even with this, solid direction, and supporting roles, scuttlebutt on Rotten Tomatoes seems to be that the premise of this movie is "unbelievable." How this is a valid criticism to level at a genre that allows people to fly and get tossed through brick walls, I'll never know. But there it is. If you can accept the premise that someone can be beaten down and re-programmed like one of Pavlov's dogs (no pun), and still retain enough humanity to get really excited by the ripeness of melons and gourds (seriously), then pipe down and enjoy the film.

(Full review on TLA Attacks The Movies.)

Edgy, insightful movie reviews @ TLA attacks the movies

Tue, 21 Oct 2008 20:40:53 GMT

Economic Tsunami (Clusterfuck Nation)

Tue, 21 Oct 2008 16:21:07 GMT

"To switch metaphors, let's say that we are witnessing the two stages of a tsunami. The current disappearance of wealth in the form of debts repudiated, bets welshed on, contracts canceled, and Lehman Brothers-style sob stories played out is like the withdrawal of the sea. The poor curious little monkey-humans stand on the beach transfixed by the strangeness of the event as the water recedes and the sea floor is exposed and all kinds of exotic creatures are seen thrashing in the mud, while the skeletons of historic wrecks are exposed to view, and a great stench of organic decay wafts toward the strand. Then comes the second stage, the tidal wave itself--which in this case will be horrific monetary inflation--roaring back over the mud flats toward the land mass, crashing over the beach, and ripping apart all the hotels and houses and infrastructure there while it drowns the poor curious monkey-humans who were too enthralled by the weird spectacle to make for higher ground. The killer tidal wave washes away all the things they have labored to build for decades, all their poignant little effects and chattels, and the survivors are left keening amidst the wreckage as the sea once again returns to normal in its eternal cradle."

(Read full post on clusterfuck nation.)

Drunk For Your Amusement (pt 2)

Mon, 20 Oct 2008 19:01:14 GMT

My stomach still hurts from laughing. This weekend I saw Doug Stanhope at the Trocadero theatre, and I got exactly what I asked for- raw truth and bitterness,
served by a drunken lunatic.

Here are some of the thoughts I had when I first encountered his work. They still hold true, and I'm not a fan of regurgitation...

Read Review

Oh man.

Thu, 16 Oct 2008 21:41:59 GMT

I was fed so much liquor last night.

It was a good night, but I woke up feeling like I was standing on the deck of a pirate ship in choppy waters. And then dragged my ass into work for a marathon five hour long development meeting.

Still, I have to say, I am happy that I work at a job where I care enough about it to come in when I feel like that. Many of the corporations I've worked for in the past did not engender such loyalty. I would've called in sick, meeting or no.

And aluminum foil stocks skyrocket!

Wed, 15 Oct 2008 15:29:53 GMT

Oct. 13, 2008 -- Vocal cords were overrated anyway. A new Army grant aims to create email or voice mail and send it by thought alone. No need to type an email, dial a phone or even speak a word.
Known as synthetic telepathy, the technology is based on reading electrical activity in the brain using an electroencephalograph, or EEG. Similar technology is being marketed as a way to control video games by thought.
"I think that this will eventually become just another way of communicating," said Mike D'Zmura, from the University of California, Irvine and the lead scientist on the project.
"It will take a lot of research, and a lot of time, but there are also a lot of commercial applications, not just military applications," he said.

(Discovery Article).

T-Dawg Strikes Again

Wed, 15 Oct 2008 05:57:17 GMT

"The remake, naturally, is slick, highly produced, and well-lit, so of course everyone hates it. That's not a totally unreasonable stand to take, but I'm here to put forward a radical notion - the reason other reviewers hated it is that they're applying the wrong criteria. Black Christmas '06 isn't a classic horror movie; it was just marketed as such because Madison Avenue lacks imagination. If you review it as a critical commentary on modernity, it's both a more interesting story and, frankly, a more credulous review."

http://www.tlablog.com/2008/10/anti-xmas-1-black-christmas-2006.html

New Fallen Nation review

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 20:02:23 GMT

Modern Collective Unconscious by Amos Lassen

"Fallen Nation: Babylon Burning" is a trip like none you have ever taken. Paranoia is common, dreams haunt, and ends mean beginnings. The book explores modern culture and pays attention to hidden effects such as complacency, popular cynicism, and lack of diversity, escapism, and irony. The characters search for a better and more humane way of living. Several try to reform the obscure nature of what reality is and while doing so, they are forced to look at their own selves and the way they think and function.
It seems to me that the book is about becoming more individual and losing the belief that we all want to be like everyone else. Curcio shows what will happen if the infrastructure of our world crumbles. He gives no answers because there are none. This is a novel about warfare between and within cultures and knowing which battles are to be waged and which not.
Curcio's writing is unique and special and really fun to read. He is not always easy to understand but, once read, he brings us great rewards."

Order
Fallen Nation: Babylon Burning on Amazon.com

Free stuff at Esozone

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 16:22:16 GMT

A selection of Mythos Media & Immanion Press products will be offered in a raffle at Esozone, the occulture / fringe art event occuring now in Portland.

INVISIBLE ROSY GLASSES!!

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 21:21:57 GMT

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/comment/ambroseevans_pritchard/3141428/Germany-takes-hot-seat-as-Europe-falls-into-the-abyss.html

"vibrant response"

Wed, 01 Oct 2008 21:56:25 GMT

http://www.dailynewscaster.com/2008/06/03/marines-to-begin-martial-law-training-in-indianapolis/

http://www.examiner.com/x-536-Civil-Liberties-Examiner~y2008m9d24-Army-to-station-activeduty-unit-in-the-US

http://www.army.mil/-news/2008/09/15/12422-consequence-management-response-force-to-join-army-northern-command/

http://www.northcom.mil/news/2008/091508.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rex_84

Too Clever By Half

Wed, 01 Oct 2008 17:35:56 GMT

"I'd like to share a film with you that I think is, on the whole, highly underrated. "Too clever by half," as a friend of mine put it. That film is Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang.

But before I discuss the movie directly, let me unpack the idiom. Many people seem to feel that if something is "too" clever, "too" smart, it's an affront to their common sense, an assault upon their salt-of-the-earth dignity. I don't know if this belief carries across cultural boundaries, but it seems endemic enough in the states that it even determines the results of elections. The Republican party has made this issue a corner-stone of their assault upon the "liberal elite," a fact well recognized and explored by Sorkin's own "too clever by half" drama, The West Wing.

I'm not entirely sure when being witty became a negative, frankly I don't care. Maybe this just makes me another member of the "liberal elite." But if you're not offended by self-aware satire and snarkiness, you'll likely find Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang one of the most entertaining, funny movies you've seen."

(Read review on TLAblog)

"Premium Shows" reviews

Tue, 30 Sep 2008 20:20:55 GMT

Last year I wrote an article on Alterati about the lineup of shows on networks like Showtime and HBO that have taken episodic TV to a new level...

"Since the success of HBO’s Six Feet Under, many series on subscription based networks (HBO, Showtime, etc) have continued to up the ante on the theatrical and conceptual possibilities of episodic basic television. Though I do not envy the production team’s task on these projects- attempting movie-level quality at the pace of television- I have very much enjoyed the results."

(Read the previous full article on Alterati.)

All of the shows reviewed in the Alterati article are available for purchase through TLA, and I'll provide those links in a moment for those of you that are frightened by search boxes (I know I am.) Before then, I'd like to review a couple of other shows that have joined the fray- True Blood, and the Tudors.

Read recent review on TLAblog.

The Market As Performance Art

Tue, 30 Sep 2008 15:51:18 GMT

So, the bailout goes down in flames, the Republican pundit and talk show host talking point handout sheet directs the right wing media droids to hammer speaker Nancy Pelosi over the failure of this plan. They obediently proceed to do so in spite of the fact that the house republicans were instrumental in scuppering the plan to which the democrats had characteristically conceded . Alex Jones has been foaming at the mouth in a most entertaining way as a protest on Wall Street and over a hundred other locations on Friday goes pretty much unreported. The Standard & Poor’s 500 (SPX) index was down 8.7% and the Nasdaq composite (COMP) 9.1%. The Dow closed down 777 points (7%!). Is this God showing his opinion of our actions as Rosh Hashanah was about to begin at sunset? Happy New Year.

Read article on Alterati.com.