I’m currently transferring the soundboard ‘tape’ I got from the “Stop the Circus. Stop Arpaio” hip-hop show I covered in Tempe, Arizona this week. I’m happy with the sound; it ain’t perfect but there are some very usable pieces to post. So, stay tuned as I’ll be posting some awesome sh*t from show for your listening pleasure. Sheriff Joe’s guys say he’s not concerned but Arizona’s young people showed a strong and positive force this week and I recommend that Joe start looking for a new job because the people coming up in AZ aren’t going to stand for his racist ways. Serious!
I’ve spent the past few days in and around Phoenix, Arizona working with a group called Campaign for a United America Hip-Hop Project. The group itself is based out of Chicago, IL but has been working here to connect with the vibrant, grassroots hip-hop scene. Why hip-hop? Well, it’s one of the largest voices of the youth and one that has consistantly spoke against authoritarian abuses of power. And while not always “political” it is most often a deeply personal expression. But then, as the popular saying goes, “the personal IS political.”
Anyways, I was documenting the organizing efforts of the young people in Phoenix as they organized a hip-hip concert in support of human rights and in opposition to the recent anti-immigrant violence from Sheriff Joe Arpaio (for more visit the Imagine2050 blog). It’s been a whirlwind ‘tour’ here and I look forward to going over my tape once I get back home tonight. Below is a link to a VERY rough little “promo” piece I threw together for the event. Check it!
Yesterday we picked up a couple of fresh dungeness crabs at the market and I found the following guide very helpful and easy to follow. You might, too.
If you are a horror movie fan or just wanting to know what horror film to watch on any given day I just got the perfect book as a gift for Christmas (yeah, I know it’s January but apparently there was a hold up). Anyway, the book is Bryan Senn’s, A Year of Fear: A Day-by-day Guide to 366 Horror Films. It’s a fun read but what makes it especially valuable to me is that it helps narrow down my choice of what to watch and give a historical reason to back it up. For example, for today (January 17th) Senn recommends the 1963 schlock-fest “The Slime People“. The reason? It’s the anniversary of the death of Thomas Crapper – inventor of the flush toilet. I don’t know about you but that’s all the reason I need. Happy Friday! [okay, so it's Saturday...lets not get nit-picky]
I just got back from two amazing daze relaxing in mud, hot water and bed up in Calistoga, CA. More on that at another time…unfortunately we came back to some very sad news…
You see, I was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area and as a kid in the 1970s every Saturday night my friends and I would watch our local horror host, Bob Wilkins, on channel 2. He’d play films like “Night of the Living Dead” (George Romero’s original zombie flick) to ‘cheese-factor 11′ flicks like “Attack of the Mushroom People.” However at the ripe old age of 8 much of the cheesy films were scary to us. Bob would also have local crazies on his show as well as Hollywood stars. One such “crazy” was a friend’s mom who had actually knitted a sweater for King Kong. No joke! This thing was huge. Anyway, that’s the kind of out of the ordinary, regular folk, Bob would feature on his show. He did things with a straight, dry wit, a strong sense of humor and even though he wasn’t a horror fan himself he did everything with the utmost respect for the genre. It was a very unique mix among horror hosts and one that has lived in the memories of all of us who grew up watching him.
During the past decade Bob would show up at horror and comic conventions and special movie screenings. It was a treat to actually meet him after all this time. Bob started suffering from Alzheimer’s and it got progressively worse (as it does). Anyway, he passed away yesterday…while I am glad he is no longer suffering it is very sad to know that he is no longer physically on this earth. Rest in peace, Bob. Even though we didn’t personally know each other you have always had a special place in my heart and were the one who kept me a horror fan. Cheers, buddy…
Looks like only one somewhat audio focused event this week but an interesting one none-the-less. Check out Scrap-Soup ‘an audio/visual kinetic performance’ Friday/Saturday December 19 & 20:
How has technology changed what is important to us in conveying information? What content gets preserved and why? How do texts, both the timeless and the ephemeral, shape our cultural- and self-identities? Scrap-Soup explores these thematic questions, generating a live audio-visual-kinetic text on stage with evolving installation, 3D video, live painting, an electronic and acoustic soundscape, and dance.
Want to watch the perfect movie to celebrate the change of guard in the Oval Office? Check out Master’s of Horror episode “Homecoming” by Director Joe Dante (Gremlins, The Howling). It’s out on DVD so you can rent or buy it and it runs just under 1 hour. It is a satirical look at the Bush administration, Fox News, and the un-American way in which these forces treated the public and our friends and family in the armed forces. Check out the trailer here:
With all the political spewing going on these days we all seem to be forgetting the real issue: Are you prepared to survive the zombie outbreak?! Well, are you?!!! If you’re like me you’ll want to know and so you’ll head over HERE and take the test. I was a bit surprised that I had some learning to do…I will survive but now I know my weaknesses. Get Tested!
Of course you do! Then head over to here and register your vote for the Imagine 2050 web site as the best Political blog. Imagine2050.net is a progressive blog that I contribute a monthly audio podcast to. There are also some great articles covering what it means to be American. Visit us at www.imagine2050.net and please vote for us. Thanks!
What better way to celebrate these consumption daze then a great interview by the wonderfully verbal, horror writer, Stephen King. When you get quotes like, “I know people who can tell you who won the last four seasons on American Idol and they don’t know who their f—— Representatives are,” you know you’ve got to read the piece!
. It’s a fun read but what makes it especially valuable to me is that it helps narrow down my choice of what to watch and give a historical reason to back it up. For example, for today (January 17th) Senn recommends the 1963 schlock-fest “
“. The reason? It’s the anniversary of the death of Thomas Crapper – inventor of the flush toilet. I don’t know about you but that’s all the reason I need. Happy Friday! [okay, so it's Saturday...lets not get nit-picky]
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