Lackidasical regarding my laziness, not relating to my lack of interest of blogging otherwise we wouldn’t be here would we?

I’m tired, and the summer is going by way too fast.
I just watched a pretty dope movie (a little before my movie a day binge I recently started) called They shoot horses don’t they? A Sydney Pollack movie with a very young Jane Fonda. It was really intriguing that the story just started off innocent and became much more unsettling as the story progresses, it’s fascinating to begin with then it becomes much harder to digest.

See they look like they are having fun don’t they?
little do you know….

This idea of attraction vs repulsion is happening in a lot of modern art, there are these otherwise perplexing images, that have an frightening story to tell.. over here at MM ( again where I have been housed and interning over the summer) this is essentially everything on our first floor in our main gallery

But it really reminds me of an older exhibit that we had by Carsten Holler, Amusement park.

This is where Holler assembled an amusement park in building 5 and slowed it down to ridiculous lenghts (think a 3 inches every 10 minutes).  So at first glance it is familiar and friendly, but then later on it becomes frightening after time progresses.

A bit of a jump but really really neccessary song to listen to… not creepy whatsoever.

Like I said, I  am progressively getting to the point of exhaustion -for reasons unknown- but it is summer and highly reccomend everyone listening to Thao and the Get Down Stay Down, and specifically, their track “swimming pools”… Made of awesomenesss

palimpsest: a parchment or the like from which writing has been partially or completely erased to make room for another text.

For me, this also means anything that has had left its mark,or better yet, an impression.

Not only that, but what you are looking at above is some bad ass work By Julie Mehretu currently on display at WCMA (pronounced WICK-MUH). I love this idea and how Julie showcasing all the layers beneath layers beneath layers. My favorite thing about this work is how you can see the older identities of these structures, remain intact through out the renovation, for an interesting juxtaposition of old and new.

The idea of palimpsest is one that lends itself all across the board. Especially with music. The palimpsest itself, might be attributed to genre, and even instrumentation in some cases. But with the whole phenomena of the “mash-ups” getting onto most if not all of the places in the blogosphere, I think it is refreshing to clearly see a broad range of sources compile into one flowing song.

Although for some it is understandably annoying to have the same source material repeated over and over. (i.e. this guy and his hatred towards Pachelbel)

Aside from that, the refreshing new source material I was talking about is…

M.I.A.

(In addition to sick beats.. she’s pretty hot)

20 Dollar

(Sorry I felt that was really really necessary)

It sneaks up on you. Oh yes it does.

I love M.I.A. because its a mind fucking/road trip. It takes you along for a ride regardless of if you enjoy or not, and even if you get a little nauseous on the way there, you’re GOING to enjoy it.

Not only do you have M.I.A. being ridiculous as usual, but you have the main progression from New Order’s Blue Monday, AND the chorus from the Pixies classic( and no doubt seminal); Where is my Mind? How you could you say no to any of that?

Moving on…

As easy as it is,

I think a really good example of this palimpsest idea in the film world, goes to PULP FICTION

the evidence of this palimpsest is added as a nice touch to this otherwise very nonlinear structure of a plot. You can see traces of elements ( added on later much more clearly)appearing in the scenes. Whenever this happens- which is a lot- you get a great sense of closure, as everything makes much more sense. (espeically wtih the outfits that Vincenet and Jules wear) I feel like the more and more you watch, the more and more you notice.

And as an added feature, tarantino has all the winks, nods, and “know-what-i-mean(s)” throughout all of the movies, as he has a couple steady ties… (think Red Apple Cigarettes)

On the poetry side. There is a poem by W.S. Merwin

“Now Renting”

Nobody remembers
the original site
of course
what was there to remember

somebody nobody remembers
wanted a little building
nobody knows why

on the original site
and cleared it
no doubt
had to

later somebody
wanted a little
more space
and set up a scaffold

around the first building
and built the walls higher
and then tore down
the scaffold

then in time somebody
put up more scaffolding
and tore down
the whole building

and dug a hole in the original site
and put up a bigger
building and tore

down the scaffolding
to the accompaniment
of music announcing
a golden age.

but somebody with vision
soon put more scaffolding
on top of the building
and raised the whole structure

even higher than before
and tore down the scaffolding
but a while after that
somebody put up more scaffolding
with glass pictures on it

all the way up
of a glass building
never built
on that site

with nobody
inside it
at all the windows
to see the motionless clouds
.

Merwin is of course notorious for no punctuation, so sorry if that was hard to follow.

Either way we have the literal description and the aesthetic one in which the text is shaped to form a building going up and down and up again.

It’s important to know that the sky is motionless at the end because as much as man changes with the palimpsest ridden landscape, the natural world is not affected, at least in this circumstance..

trying to imagine what I will leave behind, aside from empty beer cans and dvd cases.

Jordan

I swear to God I’ve been thinking about this blog. Like when I’d hike to my babysitting job every morning until that stint ended this past Thursday. I would have tried to write a post at the house where I’ve been babysitting, but once when I sat at the computer glued to Etsy for 20 minutes, the toddler I watched had gotten into the baby powder and poofed it all over the upstairs, in mommy and daddy’s room. Okay, so there’s my summer in a nutshell. Sorry, I felt the need to explain myself. Also, I’m hoping that if I ramble a little, I’ll remember at least one of the dozen or so ideas that have been floating through my head…nothing’s coming…

I have to second Jordan’s Scarlet bashing. Who the hell does she think she is, covering Tom Waits? And what is with these hipsters buying into it? If you actually like music, you would just buy some Tom Waits albums and actually enjoy his music the way it’s meant to sound- the jagged, gravelly voice of a deranged pianist, not some actress singing from the bottom of a tin can, or a toilet. There’s a reason they had Scarlet singing karaoke in Lost in Translation. It was karaoke. She isn’t a real singer. Get over it.

I guess I’m only partially surprised that the album hasn’t flopped completely. Scarlet is Woody Allen’s new muse, apparently. And before that, she starred in the aforementioned Lost in Translation, so she had that working in her favor.

(Unless we mention The Perfect Score…but I guess hipsters forgive her?)

Honestly, the carelessness of indie music is starting to bother some people (i.e. my boyfriend, Alex, who argued with me about the state of indie music for 45 minutes the other night). I figured that I could segue way into this since I think it’s safe to say that Scarlet is not a classically-trained singer, unless we map her progress from Obama’s “Yes We Can” video in which she made an appearance. But I digress…

Position 1: I stumbled upon MGMT and The Black Kids recently. I don’t really think it’s music to live your life by, but I think it’s fun to dance to.

Position 2: Alex thinks that this careless attitude has started to infiltrate a lot of the music that is a part of the whole indie genre, and that it instills this sort of hipster attitude in you if you listen to it.

I agree with Alex’s first point in his position, not only because I understand that Alex comes from a musician’s perspective (he goes to school for Music Therapy, with a concentration in guitar), but because I can honestly say that there isn’t a hell of a lot of spectacular talent in a lot of indie genre bands. I used to like Tilly and the Wall, and it’s still a fun idea, but the only thing setting them apart at all is, well, tap-dancing. This whole shouting thing on the other thing, a la Black Kids “DANCE, DANCE, DANCE, DANCE!” has become sort of a trademark (at least in what I’ve heard) and annoyingly non-musical.

But! I am not inclined to go around wearing day glo kerchiefs and sweatbands screaming “DANCE, DANCE, DANCE, DANCE!” to people on the street. I like to think that my musical taste has some integrity. (Hence preferring Tom Waits, to backtrack a little bit. I’m not trying to toot my own horn here because I would hope that everyone would prefer Tom Waits). But c’mon, I worshipped Zeppelin when I was eleven!!!

I don’t even know, guys. I’m still confused about the exact definitions of the indie genre. I know that indie (as in on independent labels, THE WAY IT WAS ORIGINALLY INTENDED) artists should be set apart not only for innovation, but for their talent (in my opinion, Joanna Newsom, Cocorosie, Deerhoof, Neutral Milk Hotel). Obviously, you can argue my tastes. I’m just a confused, artsy little gal who is attracted to the indie movement, but frustrated by its definitions. I won’t even really get into the other aspects of the indie movement, like fashion (BIRD TATTOOS, BIRD TATTOOS, BIRD TATTOOS) and the minimalist (silhouetted) artwork

that keeps showing up as prints or on shirts (that makes my panties a little wet). I’m just gonna end this by saying that, you can’t entirely define a culture when you’re in the midst of it, and it’s still going on. Do you really think people would have worn leggings and headbands in the 80s if they had actually thought about or understood the culture of the time?

Oops.

So just some scattered thoughts today dear readers. Mainly this will be about how offended and opposed I am to the Scarlett Johannsen CD entitled “Anywhere I Lay My Head”. STAY AWAY. Even with the collaboraters that this cd has to offer, ( Dave Sitek from TVOTR, Nick Zinner from Yeah Yeah Yeah’s, and David Freakin’ Bowie) Scarlett’s sour, garbeled, intepretation of what pitch should be CANNOT compete with Tom Waits’s glorious growl. And all the critics that I until recently trusted are drooling at the sight of this cd. (Notice I said sight, and not what was/is heard).

Even Scarlet’ herself has said the cd is a homage to Tom Waits, this is important to known considering these are not covers, as I hear more of this cd, I will rant more on this post. But so far, falling down is atrocious. The most sour chorus I have heard, with a lot of dissonance. Granted Tom Waits hasn’t exactly been known to have standard singing with his raspy voice, but nonetheless you can feel his passion with all of his music. You can easily hear how deeply he is into it.  Scarlett’s lackluster, nonchalant approach, takes these songs, to lows they haven’t seen before. Just because you are good looking, doesn’t mean you can be a singer Scarlet…

Funny graphic coming soon..

You all have been warned,

Jordan

Man, it has been an intense couple of weeks so far at my internship, but it’s been a lot of fun.

I have new stuff to talk about, in spite of the fact of how tired I am.

Get ready for awesomeness…

Anselm Keifer awesomeness that is!.

so so good.

This is from his “… Narrow are the Vessels” instillation at my museum. This specific one is titled.” Let the Earth Be Opened and Send Forth a Savior”( referencing the resurrection of christ in Isaiah 45:8). His art conveys a lot of religious, themes. This is due to his own involvement as a post-war german (literally born a couple days after the third reich). This painting shows, hope and renewal with the flowers, in an otherwise landscape full of doom. The mere size of this piece alone is more then enough to leave you awestruck (9 by 25 feet) Highly recommend checking this out.

This will be weird but watch what happens next.

Yea, I’m surprised too. But really when i see Keifer’s work, I immediately think of the massive shot of all the bodies lined up. Obviously with the flowers this would be he aftermath. Death always means renewal, to some extent at least. There is one landscape Keifer does that is just the doom and gloom of the war, that I see the shot even more clearly, (the difference being, Keifer’s landscape encapsulates the horrors and the view of the warfield.

The song that makes me think of these battles??

 
BETWEEN THE BURIED AND ME Ants of the Sky P.1

right, I know this is of guitar hero, but its a much much better quality, don’t you agree?

especially during the “victorious riff” (1:30-1:50) you will hear it) , I feel that the battle is raging on but there is a moment of hope. ( I hear this riff and I think of a couple guys climbing over bodies and holding their flags high over head. I probably alienated the hell out of some listeners of the indie things I normally do, but I just am focusing on the most convincing war elements I have seen/ heard… ( without talking about a certain band I cannot talk about {see earlier posts})

Oh yeah, and ants of the sky, is a pretty sweet name too,

Sorry it was awhile but I am actualy being productive this summer. So I shall see what else shall come from this… But keep the fight alive! (assuming you’re actually fighting something)    

I’m not gonna lie i’m pretty sure I alienated some people with Between the buried and me, but think about it.  I have yet to really find an indie band that really nails down what it ounds like in a battle, (let’s just imagine for  half a second an Architecture in Helsinki, song about victorious battles and marching through the dead bodies… Hilarious) oh well… anyway

Lastly….

Yes it’s a book that everyone has read. I know that, again though middle ground.

I keep thinking about Mary Anne and her necklace of human tongues. That image, has probably forever warped me. But that’s okay. I imagine war as a horrible, disgusting, unfathomable tragedy, and so far, this is what I believe has been the best example in Lit of war that is cohesive with my beliefs on it, (granted Im in a much more movie watching state and desperately need to catch up on my readings. ) Mary Anne goes into Nam a relatively normal girl and then we see this is how she comes back. Powerful powerful stuff.

( for the one person that reads this Christina, I have probably disappointed you… and I apologize for doing so)

and so it goes…

Jordan

: : : : : : : : : : :

You know that feeling you get when something is wrapped up so perfectly, that you are left a wordless jumbled mass of emotion? That’s one of the feeling that I love. I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one either. As the year winds down, I thought a post on closure would be a good way to sum things up. Recently, I watched a movie that has this vast sense of closure where not only is the viewer left at piece with the film, but with a lot more.

Ingmar Bergman, FTW.

In an astonishingly funny, and uplifting Smiles of A Summer Night, Bergman explores basically his take on a romantic comedy. His typical cerebral, and deeply philosophical exploits that we have seen in Seventh Seal are still here, however now they are shown in a different light. Any time a character has those deeper thoughts, he / she just gets made fun of by another character. It is apparent here that the Seminal Swede can do light, funny films. This is the inspiration for Woody Allen’s Midsummer’s Night Sex Comedy, except, much much better. A high recommendation for the feel-good fanatics.

Check out this shit right here.

Les Savy Fav just dropped a live album!

They do an awesome cover of “Everybody’s Gotta Live” by Love, as the ending song. They only way this would be cooler is if it had Arthur Lee came out and done it, but, granted, that’s kind of impossible. Either way love this fucking song. Also, noteworthy performance of the lowest bitter, off The Fav’s newest cd.

Bernadette Mayer!

One of my fave’s.

Great great stuff here, This poem takes you through everything, when there is nowhere to go. It makes you warm when everything is cold, it gives you security even though your against the odds.

god I just want a hug afterward.

The way to keep going in Antarctica

Be strong Bernadette
Nobody will ever know
I came here for a reason
Perhaps there is a life here
Of not being afraid of your own heart beating
Do not be afraid of your own heart beating
Look at very small things with your eyes
& stay warm
Nothing outside can cure you but everything’s outside
There is great shame for the world in knowing
You may have gone this far
Perhaps this is why you love the presence of other people so much
Perhaps this is why you wait so impatiently
You have nothing more to teach
Until there is no more panic at the knowledge of your own
real existence
& then only special childish laughter to be shown
& no more lies no more
Not to find you no
More coming back & more returning
Southern journey
Small things & not my own debris
Something to fight against
& we are all very fluent about ourselves
Our own ideas of food, a Wild sauce
There’s not much point in its being over: but we do not speak them:
I had written: “the man who sewed his soles back on his feet”
And then i panicked most at the sound of what the wind could do
to me
if i crawled back to the house, two feet give no position, if
the branches cracked over my head & their threatening me,if I
covered my face with beer & sweated till you returned
If i suffered what else could I do

Buy her books!!!!!!!

Jordan signing out,

But i will issue a challenge to any readers.

Go figure out what Smile of the night you are.

Have the start of a good summer!

: : : : : : : : : : :

Sometimes I just look at the page, and it hurts me to see the same thing over again.
Granted it’s finals week so y’all will have to deal…
Uh let me think.

Let me remember…

MEMORY!!!

Movie to watch about memory.

Beautiful debut by Dir. Sarah Polley, touching and tragic as it is funny and inspiring.

A story about Grant and Fiona, and how they have to deal with Alzheimer’s in their love life. Great visual metaphors in the beginning as well. It takes you to the the emotional highs and lows of the characters and let’s you feel what they feel.

I wanted to do a related string post like I normally do, but fuck it, i’m lazy.

I just went to see I’m From Barclonea this week, and it was so so so happy, it was like o’d'ing on sunshine, or some shit like that. Think of the lamest happy thing you can think of and magnify it by 40 million times…

Moral of the story, go see them live if you can!

Great company, fun show.

One more image for ya… much more to come over summer, come one see me if your in the MA (north adams area).

P.S. If this was blog was a job, A) it would be awesome B) I’d be like written up or fired.

: : : : : : : : : : :

Horrible resolution aside, The Acid House Kings, took Belle and Sebastian’s indie-rock utopian feel almost to a point of exploitation. There single that I currently can’t get out of my head right now, Tonight is Forever feels like your witnessing karaoke in the seventies, and you much like the Michael Jackson song reminiscent of that era, don’t stop ’til you get enough. Yea, that’s right, I said it. This song forces you into the simultaneous head bobbing that you see in those lame ass car commercials, but in the end, you’re okay with that. So sing along with the acid house kings and bust out those puffy shirts and dive in.

Oh yea, TWEE= chiefly British : affectedly or excessively dainty, delicate, cute, or quaint (such a theme might sound twee or corny)

that is there genre, we all can thank Merriam Webster for this later.

movie continuation after break.

ridiculously happy movie,

Alright alright, I know you can’t talk about this movie with out talking about the amazing music with in it. This movie takes the serendipity to new levels. On a chance, these two meet up and before they know it they will have a profound effect on each other’s life. It’s such a pure movie, it feels like it could happen around your street corner, this is primarily do to how casual it is, nothing is too cinematic in the fantasy realm sense. But I imagine if someone did a documentary on the guy who started “free hug day”, you would feel the exact same way as you did after watching this. This is will take you to new levels of ecstasy after witnessing this.

Also, I just couldn’t put up with myself, if I wrote about Juno, it would have been a cop out for you all. I just couldn’t allow it.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE check out the song that won them an academy award, ” Falling slowly”, and if you like it don’t be too shy and check out the actual “band” these two are in, The Swell Season and Glen’s earlier more acclaimed band ( so far at least ) The Frames.

This is Jordan with happy music in his head, in spite of the fact of his dumb as shit job saying,

Be happy sometimes dammit!

: : : : : : : : : : :

Ah, depression.

How long have we known each other? I feel like by highlighting my favorite depressing art, that I could move that much further away from you.

Ok, enough personification let’s get down to business. There is a certain kind of depression that I can accept, more than likely this is due to the fact that there is a huge sense of closure that comes with this depression; to elaborate, I’m left with nothing, and I want nothing to comfort me.

A nearly perfect embodiment of this kind of depression is…

my god… the horror.

First off, being that this movie is teamed with an unbelievably depressing string accompaniment by The Kronos Quartet, shout-outs are in order… woot!

Aside from that though, the movie is a gripping, and necessary view of addiction in a lot of its forms and the downfalls that come from that. Aronofsky, perfects this distance you feel with all the characters by utilizing many of the technical tricks he has up his sleeves like the uber quick jump cuts, used to dehumanize the characters, and his wonderful work with split-screen to show that all though Harry and Marion, appear physically entwined, there is clearly something between them. Check out my favorite review of this movie from Ain’t it cool news here.

Like I said, although the Kronos Quarter is AMAZING with this soundtrack, it is not my favorite, ” left with nothing wanting nothing to comfort me” music goes to…

Devics.

Hands down one of the most depressing cds goes to My beautiful Sinking Ship.

This is easily one of the most cinematic bands I have heard. This entire, cd is so delicate and fragile, that if it were handled by the wrong person, could easily be lead to suicidal tendencies.

“Five seconds to hold you”, sounds like a melodramatic montage that goes on for just the right amount of time. It keeps you focused on interested, and clinging on to their every chord, hoping for a way out of this misery, (again in the good way).

” Lost at Sea” feels like a sinking ship. It takes you down and plunges you into the deep, it paints a picture of a dying moment beautifully.

“Behind the Sun” sounds like the end of The Bicycle Thief, it leaves you wanting the resolution that you never quite get.

….and the “left with nothing wanting nothing to comfort” for lit goes to The Jungle, by Upton Sinclair.

Tells the anti-American dream, or what Sincalir saw as the American reality, thanks to capitalism. The heart-ripping-out-of-your-chest-and-stomping-on-the-ground story of a family and their attempts at the American life during post the huge European diaspora of the early 20th century. You think it will get better but every chapter will KICK YOUR ASS. As a reader you develop some hope for the family every chapter, but ultimately as you flip the pages, you realize that’s it’s pretty much a never-ending curb stomp. It’s rough.

So readers, I urge you to every now and again go out and necessarily get depressed. Do this because you want too, not because you have to.

Also, I’d love to see what you all think is total “leave you with nothing, and wanting nothing to comfort” movies, books, and songs, - as long as they are not Mr. Big’s “To Be With You.”

Depressingly yours,

Jordan

: : : : : : : : : : :

Literally, this shit is falling into my lap. Random occurances lead to associations lead to stuff I need to type on my blog.

ARS (fill in latinesque sounding word here)

Poetica (typically a poem pertaining to nature)

W.S. Merwin

To the Book

Go on then

in your own time

this is as far as I will take you

I am leaving your words with you

as though they had been yours

all the time

of course you are not finished

how can you be finished

when the morning begins again

or the moon rises

even the words are not finished

thought they may claim to be

nevermind

I will not be

listening when they say

how you should be different in some way

you will be able to tell them

that the fault was all mine

whoever I was

when I made you up

ANYWAY. This is just one example of the ever fear inducing question-

Can we differentiate the author and the art?

It seems all critiques, theorize that the two are inseperable.

Could this be Merwin dismissing his critiques? or just addressing criticisms of poetry?

This ties in to one of many ideas discussed in…

ARS Cinematica?

BULLETS OVER BROADWAY

Allen’s interpretation of the author vs the art. This is immediately post the Soon-Yi scandal, and Allen is questioning if his fans can trust him because of his art, or will they abandon the art because of the artists action?

Seriously hysterical, and very insightful typical to the Allen style, a lot of difficult questions come up…

Is it worth it to sacrifice a human being’s life to save great art? Do you fall in love with the art, or the man?

If we consider that life is temporary, and art (typically) is permanent, shouldn’t we try to preserve art more? Comments, concerns? Chazz Palminteri is incredible in this movie as well as everyone else. Very comical, very neccessary to watch.

Oh wait, I just remembered this stuff should be funny…eh fuck it.

I don’t like the pressure of feeling like I have to make the one or two consistent readers laugh.

ARS Duramen????

(latin for art is hard which is a clever way to tie in….

CURSIVE!

Sweet picture of Tim Kasher huh?

Ok funny story…. I went to see these guys awhile ago, and at the door as I was getting all excited at the door, then random girl came up to me.

Hey man, you want some bananas?

I had to interrupt my train of thought, ( which currently was “the martyr” running ad nauseum through my head) but then I realized. At that time in my life, I wanted a banana more then I ever did before.

My reaction: Oh god! Yes! I would love some!

( no I was not high)

but biting into that banana, was like experiencing god* cooking for me.

Anyway, Art is hard is clearly about the struggle of being an artist.

Tim speaks to this with lines like ” Keep churning out those hits, ’til it’s all the same old shit.”

When art is mass produced, and suited for the MASSES not the MUSIC FANS what does it typically become? (see line above for answer)

Either way listen to it, and it feel like you get an insight in the life of Tim.

It’s been fun kids…

Keep on rockin in the free world!

Jordan

(Yes that was a Neil Young reference)

* god= synonymous w/Giada de Laurentis.

: : : : : : : : : : :