January 11, 2009

8static

I went to 8static last night. It’s a local series of chiptuning or 8-bit/Game Boy music concerts. It was at a yoga studio, of all places, a few blocks away which turned out to be a really good venue. I really like this stuff! The sounds these musicians start with are familiar and strangely comforting which is not surprising given their origins. After being fed through layers of distortion and amplified to near-deafening levels, though, they become hair-raising and abrasive, just the kind of sound that I love. (They dispensed free earplugs at the door!) Its coarseness and really fast tempos make it almost compulsively danceable. The fast-moving video projections at these shows are kind of disorienting, too. There is also the weird sight of musicians hunched over, intently playing these tiny plastic objects in their hands who are being observed by an audience hunched over their phones, texting and taking pictures.

There were four acts: three solo performers and a trio (two guitars and a bass with preset tracks, I think). They were all very good but the headliner, 8GB, from Argentina, was so good that I nearly forgot the others had even played. (There are pictures above and a 30 second sample below, both thanks to my iPhone.) He seemed mostly to manipulate beats and had less melody that the others but more variety overall.The sound was utterly compelling and he was obviously having a great time making it. The otherwise weirdly passive crowd was a swirl of motion during his set but thinned considerably by the end of his generous 75 minutes. It’s not surprising. As much as I like this music, it’s assaultive, and exhausting to listen to. Unfortunately, a small technical problem, causing him to turn the volume down for a few seconds, removed some of the drama from first noticing that his final song was a cover of Kraftwerk’s classic ”The Robots” (Note to promoters: The sound man should be at the board while the band is playing.)

Anamanaguchi who preceded 8GB were really good and entertaining but their songs had a sameness that was ultimately tiresome. Also, they are the only 8-bit band I’ve heard who seem to need a singer. None of them have singing, at least none of the eight “bands” I’ve seen, but Anamanaguchi’s pop stylings (and appearance) seemed to be screaming for a front man. Call me old-fashioned.

Anyway, Check them all out And come to next month’s show. Their sites are all reachable though the 8static web site. The second performer, Animal Style, urged the audience to download his music for FREE here.

Se you at the next show on February 7th!

Technorati Tags: 8GB, 8static, anahanaguchi, animal style, chiptuning, game boy, music, philadelphia, rhinostrich

Posted by HighStrungLoner in Music at 8:43 PM
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April 2, 2008

The Heathens

I’ve been in several bands in my life. My favorite, The Heathens, were together off and on for ten years. I always had incredible, almost paralyzing stage fright when I played onstage but never with The Heathens because I knew we were great. I joined the band on bass guitar after their singer and bass player left, fairly early in the band’s history. We played a set at WXPN studios during Michel Polizzi’s jazz show, of all places, in 1983. We did 13 songs in ten and a half minutes! Three of them are posted here:

We still sound pretty hair-raising but don’t worry, it’s only about a minute and a half total. I have no idea what the titles are. They had lyrics but we never did find anyone to sing them.

The Heathens also had two tracks on “GET OFF MY BACK” the Philly hardcore compilation from 1982. We also played a loft party that included the much-anticipated debut of Ruin who were never less than spectacular live.

So, it was me on Fender Mustang bass, the extremely glamorous B.A.L. Stack on guitar and Sky Kishlo on drums. B.A.L. was also in The Stick Men at the time, maybe the best band ever from Philly, and the amazing Wild Women of Wongo. (As you can see from the poster above, she had a busy night! That’s her in the center.) Sky is one of the best drummers I’ve ever heard. He’s currently playing with long-time Philly band King of Siam (They’re great! Check their myspace page for dates.) and was in Strapping Fieldhands. We also played together for a short time in Size Queen.

I’m so glad Sky gave me a copy of this stuff. I thought it was lost forever.

The picture in the poster above is from Wild Women of Wongo’s debut performance at a Performing Arts Festival in, get this, the Broad Street Subway concourse! (It smelled better then.) That’s the Spruce Street terminus of the concourse behind them. Wild Women of Wongo consisted of guys in loincloths drumming on whatever was available and women in Wilma Flintstone-like costumes doing fake “Jazz Dance.” They were incredible! The crowd loved them. SEPTA did not. They were the last to play and, had there been a plug to pull, SEPTA would have pulled it. Luckily for everyone they were unamplified—but still deafeningly loud—so the powers that be had no choice but to let them continue until they were done.

Good times.

Technorati Tags: music, philadelphia

Posted by HighStrungLoner in Music at 11:13 PM
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January 25, 2008

Public toilet love

Former porn star, would-be pop star, Colton Ford sings a love song through a gloryhole! Sadly, it’s a typical American Idol-style vocal performance which, come to think of it, makes it even funnier. He’s got some other stuff posted, too, if you want to watch him rip his shirt off while dancing in front of that same warehouse wall.

I’m listening to “Carry Go Bring Come” from “BBC Radio 1 Live” by The Selecter.

Technorati Tags: gay, gay porn, gloryhole, music, public toilet

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January 12, 2008

WYSP hates you

A poorly faked Ozzy Osbourne was “interviewed” on WYSP’s unbearably annoying Kidd Chris show Thursday morning. All they could manage were some lame gay jokes about WMMR and Pierre Robert in particular. Why is this still acceptable?

I’ve edited out most of the juvenile giggling:

You can grab the whole thing here if you’re interested but, trust me, it’s not worth it.

I’m listening to “Magoo” from Mostly Ape by Drums & Tuba.

Technorati Tags: gay, music, philadelphia

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December 15, 2007

Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings

I haven’t been to the TLA since 1991 when I saw then newly-reformed Television there so I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, especially since it’s now apparently part of a chain of Fillmores. (“The Fillmore at the TLA.” Gag me.) Well, not much has changed except for a couple of cheesy chandeliers and the addition of a bar. The tiny bathrooms are still in the lobby but the graffiti isn’t as interesting as it was when they showed movies. I’m embarrassed to say I don’t remember if the balcony is new or not. Also there were seats at the Television show and tonight there were no seats anywhere.

Before it was sold to Electric Factory Concerts, the TLA was a great repertory movie theater and there’s nothing like it in Philly anymore. I really miss it. Just about everything they showed is now available on DVD but it’s just not the same as seeing movies on a big screen with an audience. Nothing can replace that. Just as importantly, the TLA programmers were curators of sorts. Their film choices and program notes helped guide people and teach them about film history. It’s a lost art. Check out the wallpaper made out of old TLA programs just inside the Locust St. TLA Video store to see what I’m talking about. They still have the best video stores in the country, sponsor a film festival and distribute independent films and I completely understand why they’ve moved on. (Oh, thanks for all the porn, too!)

Anyway, I had a great time. The opening act was The Budos Band, another Daptone Records act. I was able to saunter all the way to the front during their first song and secure a good spot for the evening with no trouble at all. I’m really short, so people pretty much let me stand in front of them because they can see over me. I took lots of pictures which I’ll post of flickr sometime in the next day or so.

The Budos Band were terrific. They’re an eleven-piece who, like everyone on Daptone, sound like they just dropped in from 1968. Their specialty is instrumental Afro-Soul and if you don’t know what that sounds like you can find out here. I liked them a lot and realized by the second song that I was swaying in exactly the same way the band were. One of the great things about Daptone artists, in my opinion, is that they're not exaggerated or ironic. they just play great original music in styles from another era. These guys didn’t wear silly wigs or wear costumes. In fact, their visual ordinariness is remarkable.

As much as I liked them, I have to say they were a little lifeless. The compositions didn’t have enough to distinguish them from one another and the playing was kind of rote. They all had good moments but there was too much soloing for me. Despite that, they were still fun and I’d see them again.

At 10:30 The Dap-Kings took the stage. They were wearing suits. It would have been pretentious but they looked really cool. Even the bass player with the fu-manchu and shades looked great. They did a few songs on their own and they were fucking phenomenal. I swear these guys could have played with James Brown. Their love for what they do was really obvious. They were grinning through the entire show. So was I. The horn section had steps!

After two songs without a singer Sharon Jones came onstage. She was instantly compelling. She’s really tiny—like five feet…maybe—but what an incredibly commanding presence. I really wanted to pay more attention to the musicians but I couldn’t take my eyes off of her. She never stopped moving either. She had almost constant eye-contact with the audience, sometimes singing directly to a specific person. Sharon Jones, I’ll say again, is the real thing. There is no beehive hairdo or drug addiction needed. There’s nothing ironic or insincere about this woman. She’s simply great. The crowd loved her. As great as she is, she’s a completely friendly and welcoming presence. She brought audience members onstage to dance and sing with her and they were instantly at ease. The woman is amazing. And she sang wonderfully all night. I can’t imagine how this show could have been any better. I was sad to see the show end. I would still be there if I could and I’m sure most of the audience would be there with me.

This was their third time playing in Philly and the first time they’ve had more than 30 people in the audience. I’m sure the situation is no different in other places they’ve played. I don’t know what they did to finally get the word out but it worked. They must feel very gratified. If these guys are playing anywhere near you anytime soon, do not miss them.

I’m listening to “Kidney Bingos (Original Mix)” from Coatings by Wire.

Technorati Tags: dap-tone records, music, sharon jones, the dap-kings

Posted by HighStrungLoner in Music at 5:13 PM
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October 6, 2007

WOW!

Sharon Jones is the real thing. She and the Dap-Kings make authentic, non-ironic 60’s R&B that literally makes me think I’m listening to an old 45—a great old 45, too. Their latest recording comes with an extra disc of songs from other artists on Daptone Records, a label that specializes in reviving this sound—and they release actual 45s!! Each and every one of them is good. Check her out on iTunes.

By the way, Amy Winehouse used the Dap-Kings on her album. Amy’s stuff is good but this Daptone shit is the real thing.

I’m listening to “Nobody's Baby” from 100 Days, 100 Nights by Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings.

Technorati Tags: music

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June 26, 2007

First nightmare

Thanks to THE CRUSHER for forwarding this atrocity to me. He received it from the author Carter Burnette himself during an hilarious online chat which included these gems:

“I'm not the guy to ask....really....I am sooo NON mainstream anything right now”

“I’m also a creative type which fucks with a lot of folks”

“AND, I come from one of the older Philadelphia African American families that have lived Upper middle class for over 3 centruries.... (sic)”

“These girls are just not ready for me”

“that coupled with my 137 IQ....trust me....they are NOT ready for me.”

“Your (sic) fast enough You get the drift”

“and the ones that want me...only want me for my 9" dick....which I tell them is my smallest sex organ, but they don’t get it”

“When I grew up, it was all about breeding....”

“and the thing that bothers me is that there are things I can't EVEN think about that they can get away with.”

“so I guess I'm jaded.”

I’m listening to “Another Galaxy” from Surprise by Paul Simon.

Posted by HighStrungLoner in Chat at 12:26 AM
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June 25, 2007

Never Mind the Nikes

This display in Ubiq’s window made me sad. At this point I shouldn’t be surprised, but I was.

I’m listening to “Bonus” from Take Them On, On Your Own by Black Rebel Motorcycle Club.

Technorati Tags: Philadelphia

Posted by HighStrungLoner in Philly at 2:02 AM
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April 22, 2007

Patti Smith

Patti Smith did a short set outside the Central Branch of The Free Library of Philadelphia on Saturday as part of a Book Fair. She played for about 45 minutes, accompanied by her son Jackson and local guitarist Jeffrey Gaines on acoustic guitars. Apparently she met Jeffrey backstage before they went on and asked him to join them. She wandered onstage to no introduction but a lot of audience cheering and said she originally planned to read poetry but was afraid she’d be distracted by the traffic noise, so she decided to sing instead. A lot of people cheered at that and no one one appeared to complain.

She was GREAT! I’m not a huge fan of hers, either. I think Horses is one of the very best records ever made. (That and Television’s Marquee Moon were the first CDs I bought even though I still had the LPs.) I haven't liked any of her recordings since then nearly as much, certainly not enough to buy, even back when people still paid for music. I saw her with and without her full band quite a few times in the Horses days and earlier and always walked away happy. I remember a show at The Tower Theater around the time of Easter, I think. She sang an awesome (in the real sense of the word) accapella version of “You Light Up My Life,” of all things. I still remember the stunned silence in the audience. It completely worked. A few weeks later, though, she lived down to my expectations when she got all “tranced out” during a performance and stepped right off the stage. Oops. She sang wearing a neck brace for a while after that incident.

She did a new song, two songs from her upcoming album of covers 12, “Because the Night” and another song of hers that I don’t know well enough to remember the title. Her voice sounded wonderful, as good as ever. She was really friendly, positive and self-effacing which I didn’t expect. Her cover of Neil Young’s “Helpless” was really beautiful, the Allman Brothers song was not. The small crowd, literally infants to octogenarians, all seemed to love her. Good for her.

I was close enough to the stage to suit me, being short, and had a great view, except when the large pear-shaped man in the photo above would lurch to his feet. You know the type: carrying around too many rolled up newspapers in too many tattered plastic bags and a fanny pack in the front, cinched tightly to accentuate his already strange figure. Yeah, him. There were some hot men there, too, but I couldn’t get close enough to snap any pics of them without being noticed and possibly…well, I’m not exactly sure what they might do.

I had just come from Volunteer Recognition Day at the Wilma Way Center. The entertainment was really terrible belly dancer Habiba. She was really embarrassing to sit through. She evoked stunned silence of a completely different kind. Afterward, I got to the Book Fair early enough to catch the act preceding Patti Smith and, coincidentally, it was Joe Tayoun’s Middle Eastern Ensemble with Roger Mgrdichiana on oud and Meesha, a belly dancer! She was great, though, as were the musicians, and she had her picture taken many times by a few of the older gentlemen in the audience.

I’m listening to “Gypsy Solitaire” from Fraser & Debolt with Ian Guenther by Fraser & Debolt, who I know Patti would just love.

Technorati Tags: Philadelphia

Posted by HighStrungLoner in Music at 2:27 AM
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March 26, 2007

Memorial

Ray’s memorial was kind of uncomfortable for me. I think it’s still too soon after his suicide for some of us, including myself, to really come to grips with it.

Still, funerals and the like are the best places to run into people I haven’t seen in years. (There’s a great Lyle Lovett Song about just that.) Here are three of my oldest and best friends. (l-r) Sky, who I see fairly often, looking at me like I’m a Martian; Joe, who I saw maybe two years ago after about ten years and not since; (with Ray we were the four members of Size Queen) and Jimi (Helen Back), one of the best performers ever and a good and loyal friend who served me my last drink ever when he tended bar at Doobies. If you ever get the chance to see Helen Back & the Str8 Razors or Sky’s band King of Siam, DO NOT miss them.

I know the other two guys but god only knows from where. And Hi Zoe! I certainly didn’t forget seeing you either. And I’m considering your offer.

I’m listening to “Love Island” from You've Come A Long Way, Baby by Fatboy Slim.

Technorati Tags: gay, Philadelphia

Posted by HighStrungLoner in The High Strung Loner at 1:33 AM
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March 18, 2007

American Midol

From Slate Magazine:

The real Idol wit, of course, is Ryan Seacrest. Who can forget his exchange with Season 5 country-pixie Kellie Pickler, who reappeared on the Idol stage a few weeks back, staggering under the weight of enormously enhanced bosoms.

Seacrest: Have you, um, spent your money on anything since you've left us?

Pickler: Shoes.

Seacrest: (Pause) Just shoes? (Pause) OK.

That almost makes me want to watch.

I’m listening to “Useless” from The Singles 86-98 by Depeche Mode.

Technorati Tags: TV

Posted by HighStrungLoner in Music at 3:51 PM
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January 18, 2007

Missing

I lost about six months worth of postings, the last ones before my hiatus and name change. Sorry about that but, hey, now I get to use them again if I can remember them!

XOXO

Posted by HighStrungLoner in The High Strung Loner at 2:11 AM
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December 24, 2005

And they love getting shot, too!

Posted by HighStrungLoner in Philly at 11:40 PM
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December 4, 2005

Hello Young Lovers

The new Sparks album will be released in the UK on February 6, 2006. There is no US distributor yet which is a fucking sin. Ron and Russell Mael have been making brilliant, diamond-sharp pop records for 35 years and they deserve better. Their 2003 masterpiece Lil’ Beethoven is as good as any they’ve recorded and they promise this one is an even more dramatic leap forward. Lights out, Ibiza!

Posted by HighStrungLoner in Music at 10:59 PM
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October 18, 2005

No dykes allowed

Hilarious auto-censorship in the iTunes Music Store page about the first Rufus Wainwright album. Please note the two very long sentences, too.

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July 2, 2005

Live 8

I’ve been watching this fucking thing for an hour and they haven’t shown a single complete song by anyone. The coverage is incredibly annoying. It’s all talk and no music. I suspect they’re worried about digital copies and CD/DVD sales. No matter what the reason, it’s stupid.

My only hope is that Patti Labelle doesn’t come out at the end and hog the mic like she did at Live Aid.

The Black Eyed Peas are great, of course. Can we see an entire song, please?

Paul McCartney singing Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band with U2 and a horn section in the shiny Sgt. Pepper suits was a total embarrassment. Hideous beyond belief.

I’m turning it OFF and going to Trader Joe’s.

I’m back. Just like last night, Center City is full of cute, shirtless straight guys heading to the Parkway with their…umm…rather plain girlfriends. Nice!

Before I go on criticizing, I have to say Live 8 is for a great cause and everyone should go HERE and add their name to the list. There.

Madonna seems to have lost every shred of the charisma she once had. Like a Prayer is pathetic, Ray of Light is a huge improvement, though. Why is she singing in that half-squat position? At least we got an entire song!

Alicia Keyes is beautiful. I don’t like her singing much.

Linkin Park are adorable. I want to like them but I don’t. They are running overtime.

Break time. Back later.

Mariah Carey is surprisingly good but she’s wearing Aunt Ida’s lace-up dress from Female Trouble. She just can’t not be a skank.

The London concert has great energy overall. Ours is sputtering at best. It’s the line-up, though, right?

Nap time.

Dragging out the old folks now. Pink Floyd are as flat-footed as ever. (They were so good before Dark Side of the Moon. So sad.) Paul McCartney appears to have no idea at all what made Beatle records great. It’s good to see everyone’s favorite t-room queen George Michael, though.

They are interrupting Stevie Wonder to show a goddam Destiny’s Child clip!! Stevie’s pretty good today. Still picking out his own clothes, I see. Cutie-pie Rob Thomas sounds good with him. The guy from Maroon 5 does not.

It’s over.

Technorati Tags: Philadelphia

Posted by HighStrungLoner in Philly at 3:04 PM
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June 16, 2005

He came from outer space…

Out on DVD today! A beautiful, entertaining and very moving documentary about Klaus Nomi. He was a bright light of the New York New-Wave-but-not-quite-punk scene. He was someone I would normally have found pretentious and silly, but Nomi’s utter sincerity and stunning talent made him shine through all the crap. He really must be seen to be believed. There is footage of his very first public performance at the otherwise unremarkable “New Wave Vaudeville” produced by Ann Magnusen, who, of course, became really famous later. He stunned the audience which included lucky, lucky ME! He went on to perform famously with David Bowie on Saturday Night Live and had a huge following in Europe. It ends quite sadly after a triumphant return to New York for a great performance at the Mudd Club. His death in the early days of the AIDS epidemic is especially sad for reasons that go beyond the disease. It’s a wonderful film. Please see it, even if only to gawk at the sexy Man Parrish, one of Klaus’s cohorts and the man responsible for the soundtrack to my favorite porn film, Joe Gage’s Heatstroke. He’s still hot and still working. He did a great remix of Klaus’ Total Eclipse, included on the DVD.

It was also really nice to see that people like Kristian Hoffman from The Marbles who wrote most of Klaus’ songs and artist Kenny Scharf are still around and, apparently, working. Look for some old black and white footage of some kind of party with every member of Television and Blondie in attendance. It’s fun!

Technorati Tags: Film, Gay

Posted by HighStrungLoner in Film at 7:14 AM
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May 19, 2005

Gang of Four

bj is crazy about Hugo Burnham and who can blame him?? Gang of Four is back with their original line-up! That means Hugo’s drumming again. They’re in at the TLA in Philly on the 23rd. Be there. Not because Hugo’s hot, which he definitely is, but because, as bj sez:

BEST
LIVE
BAND
EVER!!!!
still

He’s right, too.

Posted by HighStrungLoner in Music at 7:34 PM
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April 19, 2005

The kindness of strangers

I spent most of yesterday wasting time in Providence. Hotel check-out was 1PM and my bus to the airport was a few minutes after 6. So I left my bags at the hotel to pick up later. I thought it would be a good time to visit a Sprint Store and finally get the software on my cell phone upgraded so my Picture Mail would work. The closest store was in Cranston! They couldn't do it but It took up the entire afternoon anyway, which was fine. I sat on the bus with my iPod on shuffle (It seemed to have a thing for Leonard Cohen yesterday!!), either looking out the window or reading some Dreiser.

Anyways, I lugged three extremely heavy suitcases from the hotel to Kennedy Plaza. (The Crusher had some things in storage for me so I brought empty suicases up there so I could bring stuff back with me.) Why did I decide to walk?? It was a beautiful day and I am insane. It was tough but I made it.

I had a little while left to wait for the bus and it was rush hour. There were tons of skateboarders and children making lots of noise. Then an old black woman came by handing out candy to everyone from a CVS bag. Just what I needed, too! It was delicious.

The bus to the airport is a regular city bus with no place to stow bags, so it’s a bit of a stuggle. As we were boarding a young black man asked me if I wanted some help with my bags. Already feeling horribly conspicuous and pathetic, I said, ’No thanks, I'm OK. I’ve been dragging them around all day anyway.’ Then a woman standing next to him said, ’Well, that’s the time you should say Yes.’ She was right, of course, so I apologized and accepted the offer. Then, before I knew it, the young guy, the woman and her kid had my bags on the bus for me! I was so grateful I nearly cried. I think they were a little embarassed.

The ride was only twenty minutes and I sat across from a guy in a Guatemalan hoodie who was reading a Gothic Romance called ’The Harrowing of Gwynedd.’ I think to myself that maybe I’m not so pathetic after all. So doesn't the guy get up and hand me down my bags when I get off the bus? And he wasn’t even getting off there! Again, I was flabbergasted. These gestures were so genuine, and made me so much less miserable, that I don’t really know what to say except, ’Thanks folks!’ I’m sure they have no idea how much these kindnesses meant to me.

Check-in was ridiculous. Southwest has new weight restrictions and I had to repack my stuff at the counter. The woman at the ticket counter was really helpful but god only knows what I looked like pulling crap out and stuffing it back in and changing jackets in a frenzy. Of course, TSA chose me for bag screening. I’m sure they thought I had escaped from somewhere. The screener was baffled by my Todd Oldham floor lamp in a film cannister. He was afraid to open it! Finally, I was approved for flight. I was so tired.

The flight was full of people from the Boston Marathon, I think because Amtrak’s Acela service is down. (Come to think of it, that’s probably why I couldn’t get an earlier flight.) I don’t think I’ve ever been as happy to get to Philadelphia before.

PS. I realized that I have five Leonard Cohen albums on my iPod. I thought over the past few days how much I really like his stuff. His lyrics are finely wrought, never overwrought; the melodies are beautiful; the arrangements are still interesting and his delivery is deliciously, icy cold. I think he’s brilliant. And he’s still recording!

Also the iPod has taken a liking to the soundtrack from Psycho by Bernard Herrmann. This music is famously all strings. The CD is a lot of very short pieces, each one a gem. They’re tiny masterpieces. I’m not big on soundtrack albums. Almost every one I have is by him. He was the best.

Posted by HighStrungLoner in Music at 11:45 PM
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April 6, 2005

Last night’s Big Mess Cabaret

Last night’s Big Mess Cabaret was a benefit for The Jillene Ringle Solo Performance Fund. Jillene was a local performer who recently died from cancer complications. She was immensely talented, completely self-taught and will be sorely missed by her friends and fans. (The picture is not of her, by the way, but from last night’s show.) The Cabaret was shorter than usual and was put together hastily. Nonetheless, it was great! Again, I urge anyone who hasn’t seen Big Mess to see them the next time they perform. The show is always different and always hilarious. I swear.

I ran into some old AA friends who I haven’t seen in years, sitting at one of the front tables. They are more “old-fashioned gay” than I am and were there because they were fans of Jillene’s more traditional solo cabaret shows in Cape May, NJ. It was nice to see them and all but I realized pretty quickly that I don’t have a lot in common with them anymore. Mostly, I was glad to see that they are all still alive and healthy. I still go to AA meetings but my admittedly small social circle is a whole different group of people. They caught me up on a load of people I barely remember and many who I don’t remember at all. I just nodded my head like I knew who they were talking about. I mean, one of them still gets Christmas cards from the facilitator of a therapy group we were in over ten years ago! He was good but Christmas cards from a therapist??? Please.

It’s really hard for me sometimes being around regular gay people. I almost feel like they’ve been programmed to like certain things and somehow (thankfully) I missed that day in class. Why, for instance, do I hate everything about American Idol but to nearly every other fag in the world it’s practically like porn? I swear they beat off to it. It’s not like I’m some self-conciously macho, self-hating queen or one of those new ball-cap-wearing faux sports-lovers or anything (I even loved Madonna before she joined a cult!) but their entertainment choices are completely bizarre to me. (Josh Groban?!?!? Come on. What a milquetoast.) Remember when homosexuals were on the cuting edge of style?? Yeah, I barely do, either. But still.

So, where does that leave me at 51?? Well, I’m actually very happy socializing with other gay folks online and having sex with them in person. My friends are few but well-loved. Some of them are gay but none of them like show tunes.

Posted by HighStrungLoner in Music at 2:02 AM
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April 3, 2005

Big Mess!

Big Mess Cabaret is perfoming 8 PM Monday night at the Troc. Don’t miss it! If you live in Philly and you’ve never seen them, you should be ashamed. Admission is by donation, so don’t say you can’t afford it either. More details here.

Technorati Tags: Philadelphia

Posted by HighStrungLoner in Philly at 11:31 PM
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March 6, 2005

Back in action

I’m all moved in, not that I have much here yet. Most of my stuff is in storage in Provincetown.

I went out with Karen and Greg last night to see some bands that friends of ours are in. They were all good in a way and it was lots of fun. It was in the basement of a coffe house type place called Latazza. The main floor was regular enough but the downstairs was like walking into a time machine. I swear, it was 1978 all over again. The sound system was really bad and the ’stage’ was all of six inches high just like the early Punk days. Pink Statue of Liberty mohawks, slacker college students and some old folks like myself, some of whom I haven’t seen in years. The crowd was full of rowdy drunks having a good time.

The bands were all good but Helen Back and the Str8 Razors, aside from being really cute, were GREAT! Hardcore punk with a very unusual gay edge. The singer is an old friend of mine and he is absolutely one of the best performers I’ve ever seen. If there was any justice in the world, he’d be famous already. He also plays as Helen Back with the Big Mess Theater, a conglomeration of local musicians and performers. They do a cabaret a couple of times a year and it’s always a stupendous, evening-long extravaganza. It’s a real shame people outside of Philly don’t get to see them. (My friend Karen is the accordion player in the Big Mess Orchestra and designs their beautiful graphics, too.

I stayed until the bitter end (so no report from The Adonis this week!) and I’m glad I did. The Str8 Razors last song was a cover of The Damned’s Neat, Neat, Neat and the crowd went wild. The punks in the front were partying like it’s 1978, even the middle-aged ones. I took cover behind a couple of tall people.

Anyways, use these links to see more about Helen Back and the Str8 Razors and Big Mess and BUY THEIR RECORDS DAMMIT!!

Posted by HighStrungLoner in Music at 4:03 AM
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February 24, 2005

Helen Back & the Str8Razors

“2 sets-1 slow and torchy. think VU & marianne Faithfull jammin’ out during one cold Feb. binge. The other-hard & fast, like the Ike&Tina Review trapped in Bowie’s 1980 Floor Show, or something like that. Who the fuck knows what'll happen? Come & find out.”

Helen Back & the Str8Razors
Friday, Feb. 25th
The Manhattan Room
Frankford & Girard Aves.
FISHTOWN-PHILLY
11 PM
prolly 5 bucks
cheap beer/pizza/billiards/and hopefully SEX

Posted by HighStrungLoner in Music at 12:49 PM
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January 27, 2005

Drums & Tuba show

I went to a local club called TwiRoPa last night to see Drums & Tuba, a band I like a lot but have never seen before. The space is really nice, but it was very empty. There were only about 35-40 people there.

At first I couldn’t figure out why the sound board was on a table directly in front of the stage but it turned out that the opening act was a solo act called Micronaut. He walked up, pulled the table out a bit, lit a couple of candles and started playing. All he had was a small mixer, a weird LCD device I’d never seen before and a couple of pedals. His music was great. It’s kind of what I always thought dance music would sound like in 2005. The beats sounded nothing like normal drums and there were a lot of loops with tiny hints of melodies completely distorted. He used some spoken word loops but not enough of them, I thought. There was no singing or samples of fat, black women doing disco classics, thank god. It was pretty much the polar opposite of the collection of Depeche Mode remixes I listened to on the way there and back. On the minus side, there were no real transitions between songs besides some droning noises and the set had no real arc or drama. I’d go see him again, though, any time. I looked him up after I got home and it turns out he’s a teeny bit famous.

Since Micronaut only had to pack his stuff into a couple of small suitcases, there was only about a ten minute break before Drums & Tuba began, again with no introduction. There are three of them: a guitarist, a drummer and a tuba player. They were so much bettter than their records, it’s almost hard to believe—incredibly powerful. They very obviously enjoy what they’re doing, too. It shows clearly in their facial expressions and visual interctions. They play a kind of rock/jazz fusion I normally hate but they give it a hard edge with some help from machines looping, echoing and distorting the instrument sounds. It was fascinating to watch how they did some of the stuff. For instance, the guitarist would play a riff repeatedly and the tuba player would use something to capture it. Then I’d notice I could still hear the riff but the guy was actually playing something else. It was amazing. Things would suddenly start playing backwards or change tone and sond like they were playing on the other side of a huge hall or get really fuzzy. Since the “bassist” was actually playing a tuba and not a bass, he had a hand free all the time to fuck around with the machines. I guess this makes the tuba thing more than just a gimmick but maybe not. In any case they sounded fine and, after five albums, I guess it’s working for them. I know it worked for me, so who cares?

The guitarist, by the way, was very cute. I forgot to bring my camera so I used a pic of a porn star who looks so much like him they could be twins. Aside from the hotness factor he was also very animated and the most fun to watch.

I’m sorry I won’t be in town next Wednesday to see them again. Good luck in Europe, guys.

Posted by HighStrungLoner in Men at 9:49 PM
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January 25, 2005

Drums & Tuba

Where have I been?? I just found out Drums & Tuba, one of my favorite bands, have been playing in a club down the street every Wednesday this month. I nearly missed them! I just bought a ticket for this Wednesday night. Whew! Finally, something to live for!

Posted by HighStrungLoner in Music at 1:33 AM
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December 27, 2004

The Kleptones

“A Night At The Hip Hopera” is one of the best records ever made. It was never meant to be “officially” released but, still, it’s being supressed by Disney for some unknown reason. It’s a brilliant mix of Queen tracks with new and classic hip-hop vocals and some other ridiculous stuff. It’s a MASTERPIECE!! All the drama that Queen so pretentiously—and unsuccessfully—tried their entire career to create is brought to brilliant fruition on nearly every track on this incredible record. The last track, Question, is actually moving and has an emotional sample from Brad Pitt, of all people. Download it NOW from Klepshimi.

Posted by HighStrungLoner in Music at 2:48 AM
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