Founded in 1982, SunFest is Florida's largest waterfront music and art festival. Held annually in downtown West Palm Beach, Florida the first week in May, SunFest attracts more than 275,000 visitors. The festival and the patrons that it attracts have a very positive impact on the community.
Some artists scheduled to perform this year are George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic, Michael Franti & Spearhead, Sheryl Crow, Little Feat, Hot Tuna, The Black Crowes, Steel Pulse, Ozomatli, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Matisyahu and John Legend.
http://www.sunfest.com
Monday, April 28, 2008
Turn off the Fucking TV and Turn on Some Music
One of the greatest single scenes in cinematic history. The movie "Network" might be thirty years old, but the message resonates today more than ever. As we continue to learn more about the human brain, we are seeing that when people watch television different parts of the brain activate, while the parts that allow us to use reason and logic are shut down.
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Miami's Own Spam All Stars
DJ Le Spam & the Spam Allstars blend improvisational electronic elements and turntables with latin, funk, hip hop and dub to create a sound that is unique – an electronic descarga. It’s not a known genre. It’s hard to describe. It attracts many types of people. But as we look out and see people dancing salsa, next to break-dancers, and festival-goers driving for hours to catch a show -- we know something very special is going on.
Spam Allstars are road warriors -- a touring band. Perhaps one could say they are taking an “old school” approach to sharing their music. For each performance they have, every music lover they meet, every time they bring yet another musician into the fold for a collaboration – Spam Allstars celebrate their opportunity to work as musicians and be creative each day.
The band’s newest release – electrodomésticos (Spamusica Records, 4/2007) - took roughly 18 months to record. Most of the sessions were done at the City of Progress studio in North Miami, FL, and produced by DJ Le Spam. All of it was recorded while working around a 200+ yearly performance schedule. DJ Le Spam wanted to capture certain moments with musicians that the band had played with over the last three years. The outcome is a refreshing collection of recordings featuring each of the Spam Allstars – Andrew Yeomanson/DJ Le Spam (turntables, samplers, guitar, bass), Adam Zimmon (guitars), Tomas Diaz (timbales, vox), AJ Hill (saxes, vox), Steve Welsh (saxes), Mercedes Abal (flute, vox), Chad Bernstein (trombone, vox), and Lazaro Alfonso (congas). [click here for more info on individual band members] In addition, the band welcome special guest musicians including Pee Wee Ellis (saxes), Page McConnell (keys), Martin Perna (saxes), Sammy Figueroa (percussion), Jim Payne (drums), Albert Menendez (keys), Brendan Buckley (drums), Jose Elias (tres), Michel Diaz Fragoso (keys), Juan Carlos Valdivia (violin), Spencer Garn (keys), Ben Hovey(trumpet), and Carlos Averhoff, Jr. (saxes). Earlier in December 2006, Spam Allstars released their third vinyl - 12” #3. This recording features the two songs that Pee Wee Ellis collaborated on for electrodomésticos. Pee Wee did the horn arrangements, and co-wrote Aranitas & Joe Drives Through. The 12” also includes two electro mixes by DJ Le Spam. Artwork for the vinyl & CD release provided by EMILIO PEREZ courtesy of Galerie Lelong. In September of 2007, electrodomesticos was released on Bomba Records in Japan.
Previous releases by Spam Allstars include: Spam Allstars Contra Los Roboticos Mutantes(2004); Fuacata Live!(2002); Pigs in Space(2000); Pork Scratchings(1999), and two vinyl releases - 12" #1 & 12" #2. Each of these titles have been released in the US independently on Spamusica Records. In addition Fuacata Live is available in Japan on Amsys Records, and in the UK and France on Spamusica Records and distributed by New Note and Moradisc respectively.
Spam Allstars over the years have had the opportunity to work with some amazing talent. In the last couple of years, the band has had the privilege of performing and recording with the aforementioned legendary saxophonist, Pee Wee Ellis (JB Horns). They performed together in select US cities, and in the UK. Spam Allstars were also invited to appear with Daddy Yankee for his MTV2’s $2 Bill series. In 2004 they were honored to collaborate and tour with Page McConnell's (Phish) side project - Vida Blue. The two bands recorded and toured together nationally as a 10-piece ensemble.
In an effort to introduce their music to new people, Spam Allstars have established residencies in select markets. Originally this got started in their hometown with weekly performances in Little Havana, Miami, and Miami Beach. In 2002, they began a monthly residency at SOB's in New York City. They went on to have residencies in Atlanta, Tampa, Gainesville, New Orleans and Ft. Lauderdale. In the summer of 2005 the band headed to Europe sharing their version of electronic funk in everything from an underground Moroccan club in London, to the prestigious Roskilde Festival in Denmark.
Spam Allstars third album Fuacata Live! was nominated for a Latin Grammy in 2003. Spam Allstars were surprised and proud of this achievement considering that the album had been recorded live to a CD burner during one of their weekly shows at Hoy Como Ayer in Little Havana.
This year the band has had the pleasure of playing some new festivals and adding to the bands touring circuit. Highlights included Langerado Festival, Wakarusa Festival, Montreal Jazz Festival, Toronto’s Harbourfront Centre, Santa Monica Pier, Central Park’s Summerstage, and Chicago’s World Music Festival.
DJ Le Spam and Spam Allstars are excited to have participated in four new CD’s, and releasing electrodomesticos in Japan on Bomba Reocrds. in the fall of 2007. The other cd’s include a Fania Records compilation release curated by DJ Le Spam - FANIA LIVE.02 MIAMI//DJ LE SPAM; Spam Allatars' Ochimini on THE ROUGH GUIDE TO LATIN FUNK; Spam Allatars' Afrika on THE ROUGH GUIDE TO LATINO NUEVO; and Spam Allstars’ Charanga E-350 on THE ROUGH GUIDE TO SALSA CLANDESTINA.
MUSIC BINDS US ALL
Spam Allstars are road warriors -- a touring band. Perhaps one could say they are taking an “old school” approach to sharing their music. For each performance they have, every music lover they meet, every time they bring yet another musician into the fold for a collaboration – Spam Allstars celebrate their opportunity to work as musicians and be creative each day.
The band’s newest release – electrodomésticos (Spamusica Records, 4/2007) - took roughly 18 months to record. Most of the sessions were done at the City of Progress studio in North Miami, FL, and produced by DJ Le Spam. All of it was recorded while working around a 200+ yearly performance schedule. DJ Le Spam wanted to capture certain moments with musicians that the band had played with over the last three years. The outcome is a refreshing collection of recordings featuring each of the Spam Allstars – Andrew Yeomanson/DJ Le Spam (turntables, samplers, guitar, bass), Adam Zimmon (guitars), Tomas Diaz (timbales, vox), AJ Hill (saxes, vox), Steve Welsh (saxes), Mercedes Abal (flute, vox), Chad Bernstein (trombone, vox), and Lazaro Alfonso (congas). [click here for more info on individual band members] In addition, the band welcome special guest musicians including Pee Wee Ellis (saxes), Page McConnell (keys), Martin Perna (saxes), Sammy Figueroa (percussion), Jim Payne (drums), Albert Menendez (keys), Brendan Buckley (drums), Jose Elias (tres), Michel Diaz Fragoso (keys), Juan Carlos Valdivia (violin), Spencer Garn (keys), Ben Hovey(trumpet), and Carlos Averhoff, Jr. (saxes). Earlier in December 2006, Spam Allstars released their third vinyl - 12” #3. This recording features the two songs that Pee Wee Ellis collaborated on for electrodomésticos. Pee Wee did the horn arrangements, and co-wrote Aranitas & Joe Drives Through. The 12” also includes two electro mixes by DJ Le Spam. Artwork for the vinyl & CD release provided by EMILIO PEREZ courtesy of Galerie Lelong. In September of 2007, electrodomesticos was released on Bomba Records in Japan.
Previous releases by Spam Allstars include: Spam Allstars Contra Los Roboticos Mutantes(2004); Fuacata Live!(2002); Pigs in Space(2000); Pork Scratchings(1999), and two vinyl releases - 12" #1 & 12" #2. Each of these titles have been released in the US independently on Spamusica Records. In addition Fuacata Live is available in Japan on Amsys Records, and in the UK and France on Spamusica Records and distributed by New Note and Moradisc respectively.
Spam Allstars over the years have had the opportunity to work with some amazing talent. In the last couple of years, the band has had the privilege of performing and recording with the aforementioned legendary saxophonist, Pee Wee Ellis (JB Horns). They performed together in select US cities, and in the UK. Spam Allstars were also invited to appear with Daddy Yankee for his MTV2’s $2 Bill series. In 2004 they were honored to collaborate and tour with Page McConnell's (Phish) side project - Vida Blue. The two bands recorded and toured together nationally as a 10-piece ensemble.
In an effort to introduce their music to new people, Spam Allstars have established residencies in select markets. Originally this got started in their hometown with weekly performances in Little Havana, Miami, and Miami Beach. In 2002, they began a monthly residency at SOB's in New York City. They went on to have residencies in Atlanta, Tampa, Gainesville, New Orleans and Ft. Lauderdale. In the summer of 2005 the band headed to Europe sharing their version of electronic funk in everything from an underground Moroccan club in London, to the prestigious Roskilde Festival in Denmark.
Spam Allstars third album Fuacata Live! was nominated for a Latin Grammy in 2003. Spam Allstars were surprised and proud of this achievement considering that the album had been recorded live to a CD burner during one of their weekly shows at Hoy Como Ayer in Little Havana.
This year the band has had the pleasure of playing some new festivals and adding to the bands touring circuit. Highlights included Langerado Festival, Wakarusa Festival, Montreal Jazz Festival, Toronto’s Harbourfront Centre, Santa Monica Pier, Central Park’s Summerstage, and Chicago’s World Music Festival.
DJ Le Spam and Spam Allstars are excited to have participated in four new CD’s, and releasing electrodomesticos in Japan on Bomba Reocrds. in the fall of 2007. The other cd’s include a Fania Records compilation release curated by DJ Le Spam - FANIA LIVE.02 MIAMI//DJ LE SPAM; Spam Allatars' Ochimini on THE ROUGH GUIDE TO LATIN FUNK; Spam Allatars' Afrika on THE ROUGH GUIDE TO LATINO NUEVO; and Spam Allstars’ Charanga E-350 on THE ROUGH GUIDE TO SALSA CLANDESTINA.
MUSIC BINDS US ALL
Monday, April 21, 2008
Monday Night Jazz Jam & Theatre of the Underground at Churchills Pub in Miami
Every Monday I go to Church. Not just any church. A Church where the regulars know the characters of crack heads and homeless with their yellow fingernails, missing teeth, and always a new set of cds or a new bike, by name. The homeless, mute, woman on the streets can read every word coming from your mouth. She survives on the roads where I would never walk through at night...through the dark lanes of warehouses from 53rd St. to 60 something St. It's a land of shadows and a wanton supply of every drug imaginable.
Oh Churchill's Pub. How many nights I've spent giving you my quarters to wash my clothes in your smelly Laundromat and playing pool with large biker men and punk rock sub-culturites.
Every Monday I forgive myself of my filthy sins in the filthiest bar in town as my thoughts scat with the blues and jazz scales. Churchill's on a Monday night is a crashing of the parallel universes of Ginsberg, Gillespie, and Picasso in a modern day Miami better known for our plastic world of South Beach. It is a place where people sit like flies at the Miami River on bar stools around the island of spunky bartenders and their concoctions of drinks that you can drown in until even the smelly 40-year-old drunk has conversation that is stimulating.
You can sit for hours at the candlelit tables and imagine yourself in the Beat Era as brass horns slow dance to the soft singing of the guitar and the stand-up bass sounds like the prancing of elephants in the Everglades. Mike Gerber's fingers frolic on the black and white canvas of the piano as he sways his body back and forth, his mouth hung open, shades falling off of the tip of his nose as his inutile eyes, glazed over, stare at some imagined point in the ceiling and a hearing aid droops from both ears. Blind and almost completely deaf he inherits your soul while the music lasts. The drummer with his brushes and mallets gives groovy beats as he pangs his pieces of metals and stretched material like raindrops hitting asphalt.
If you walk outside, pass the person dealing with the sound system and pass the bathrooms with pee puddles and freshly written graffiti, you will find another world of interaction between artists and the admirers of the creators (a.k.a. supporters?). This is where the open-mic of Theatre De Underground is held and anyone with loose lips, the desire to perform, and a creative itch can entertain a backyard full of open-minded bohemians. This place is more of like a support group of artists. It's a comfortable place to just let go and test your performance skills. Mind you, there are some brilliant poets, musicians, actors, etc. that come here, but with them come the not-so-talented poets, musicians, and actors. As both a compliment and a critique to Theatre De Underground, I've observed that the crowd is too forgiving to the excruciatingly painful pieces that we're forced to sit and listen to out of courtesy. They will clap and cheer and tell the performer that they were fabulous. If they had the ability they would throw confetti and roll out a red carpet for each of them. Where is the honesty?! If I finished a performance that had people searching their pockets for things to throw me off the stage with I would appreciate at least one, "God, you suck!" or "Pardon me, but I would like to point out an observation I've made that listening to your work that you've kindly exhibited to us this lovely, lovely evening was like sitting in a patch of thorns while a flock of ibis incessantly dropped feces on my face from the infinite, azure sky." Maybe supplying whipped cream pies to the audience would inspire such honesty.
Churchill's, Churchill's, Churchill's...it's like my dirty living room. I can kick my feet up, sit on the tables, but never do I sit on the toilet seats. Strange characters conglomerate on Monday nights from 40 year-old single moms, to supermodels, to electrical engineers, to your favorite Miami-Made maniacal bus driver, to a 3rd grade teacher or Univ. of Miami Professor. I feel like I fit in quite nicely. You probably would too.
Saturday, April 19, 2008
"Echoes with the sounds of salesmen"
Rush Concert Review live at Amway Arena
Orlando, FL Tuesday April 15th
In todays musical landscape, where pop artists lip synch 40 minute sets, rock bands sell out faster then Playstation 3’s, it was a breath of fresh air to witness RUSH perform a marathon 3 hour 15 minute.
After the first few songs, Geddy Lee stated: “We aren’t Spring Chickens,” so it was only fitting they would play a heavenly inspired set playing old favorites, rarities and a huge chunk of material from their new album, “Snakes and Arrows”, which is superb. Drummer Neil Peart, Vocalist/Bassist Geddy Lee & Alex Lifeson showed that their musical chops and prowess are as intense as ever. One of the most highly influential bands, air-drummers in the audience outnumbered about 7 to 1. In an era when there is a lack of honesty being bellowed by artists and musicians, it is truly enlightening to see a band together for over 30 years still cherish each song, each show and display a musical integrity which needs to be re-administered into a stale Rock n Roll environment.
RUSH ROCKS!!
Orlando, FL Tuesday April 15th
In todays musical landscape, where pop artists lip synch 40 minute sets, rock bands sell out faster then Playstation 3’s, it was a breath of fresh air to witness RUSH perform a marathon 3 hour 15 minute.
After the first few songs, Geddy Lee stated: “We aren’t Spring Chickens,” so it was only fitting they would play a heavenly inspired set playing old favorites, rarities and a huge chunk of material from their new album, “Snakes and Arrows”, which is superb. Drummer Neil Peart, Vocalist/Bassist Geddy Lee & Alex Lifeson showed that their musical chops and prowess are as intense as ever. One of the most highly influential bands, air-drummers in the audience outnumbered about 7 to 1. In an era when there is a lack of honesty being bellowed by artists and musicians, it is truly enlightening to see a band together for over 30 years still cherish each song, each show and display a musical integrity which needs to be re-administered into a stale Rock n Roll environment.
RUSH ROCKS!!
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Saul Hollow at Langerado
Part I : Getting In
"What kind of nonsense is this? How am I going to be able to cover this event without my photographer? Without photographs I couldn't possibly convey the enormity of an event like this." "Well your absolutley right," replied the events director "but I don't see a Saul Hollow on this list." Pablo started talking in an anxious tone... "Well if I can't get my photographer in then I'm not doing this story. Do you know how much exposure you are going to get because of me? Do you have any idea what this story is going to do for YOU?" The lady glanced at me unimpressed and when she left I thought she was going to return wth five burley security guards who would like nothing more then chain whipping two crazy music junkies trying to get in a festival for free. Instead she returned with a ticket, handed it to me and said, "sorry for the inconvenience Mr. Hollow." It wasn't the press credentials I was hoping for but grubby broke writers can't be choosers. I was in the show. A day of swamp boogie was ahead of me and as I began to daydream about the possibilities I was snapped out of Xanadu by our friendly events director. "So what kind of camera do you use?" "Where's my camera you ask? In the car with Pablo's brother of course! You don't think I leave expensive equipment like that lying around unattended!" I said motioning towards door. Pablo understood the need for a quick and neat get-away and jumped in with "Thank you very much - No hard feelings." "We'll see you next year" was the final thing he said before the door to the air -conditioned trailor closed. Not too shabby for a guy who doesn't own a camera I thought to myself as Pablo's jeep started a five mile drive down the dirt road of musical destiny.
Stay tuned for Part II: The Music and Part III: Getting Home later this week
Music Binds Us All
"What kind of nonsense is this? How am I going to be able to cover this event without my photographer? Without photographs I couldn't possibly convey the enormity of an event like this." "Well your absolutley right," replied the events director "but I don't see a Saul Hollow on this list." Pablo started talking in an anxious tone... "Well if I can't get my photographer in then I'm not doing this story. Do you know how much exposure you are going to get because of me? Do you have any idea what this story is going to do for YOU?" The lady glanced at me unimpressed and when she left I thought she was going to return wth five burley security guards who would like nothing more then chain whipping two crazy music junkies trying to get in a festival for free. Instead she returned with a ticket, handed it to me and said, "sorry for the inconvenience Mr. Hollow." It wasn't the press credentials I was hoping for but grubby broke writers can't be choosers. I was in the show. A day of swamp boogie was ahead of me and as I began to daydream about the possibilities I was snapped out of Xanadu by our friendly events director. "So what kind of camera do you use?" "Where's my camera you ask? In the car with Pablo's brother of course! You don't think I leave expensive equipment like that lying around unattended!" I said motioning towards door. Pablo understood the need for a quick and neat get-away and jumped in with "Thank you very much - No hard feelings." "We'll see you next year" was the final thing he said before the door to the air -conditioned trailor closed. Not too shabby for a guy who doesn't own a camera I thought to myself as Pablo's jeep started a five mile drive down the dirt road of musical destiny.
Stay tuned for Part II: The Music and Part III: Getting Home later this week
Music Binds Us All
Babylon Circus and Rootz Underground - Miami Beach April 26th
Babylon Circus and Rootz Underground at Bandshell April 26
Heineken TransAtlantic Festival presents
Rootz Underground and Babylon Circus
Saturday, April 26th, 7 pm
North Beach Bandshell, 7275 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach
Emcee Lance-O from Kulcha Shok
Admission is $20 in advance, and $25 day of showon sale online, or by phone (305) 672-5202
or BASE (Lincoln Road), Sweat Records (Miami), Books & Books (Coral Gables), Via Brazil (North Beach)
Babylon Circus is an 11-member French gypsy ska-punk chansons group - a cross between Gogol Bordello and Mano Negra, but Frencher.
Rootz Underground is the hottest young roots reggae group in Kingston Jamaica today, inviting comparisons to their precessors Midnite, Steel Pulse, Black Uhuru, Third World, and the legendary Wailers.
www.rhythmfoundation.com
Heineken TransAtlantic Festival presents
Rootz Underground and Babylon Circus
Saturday, April 26th, 7 pm
North Beach Bandshell, 7275 Collins Avenue, Miami Beach
Emcee Lance-O from Kulcha Shok
Admission is $20 in advance, and $25 day of showon sale online, or by phone (305) 672-5202
or BASE (Lincoln Road), Sweat Records (Miami), Books & Books (Coral Gables), Via Brazil (North Beach)
Babylon Circus is an 11-member French gypsy ska-punk chansons group - a cross between Gogol Bordello and Mano Negra, but Frencher.
Rootz Underground is the hottest young roots reggae group in Kingston Jamaica today, inviting comparisons to their precessors Midnite, Steel Pulse, Black Uhuru, Third World, and the legendary Wailers.
www.rhythmfoundation.com
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Virtually catatonic civic paralysis
Couldn't have said it better myself.
Not music related, but it should relate to us all.
Too Much of Nothing: Crime Without Punishment, War Without End
Written by Chris Floyd
Sunday, 13 April 2008
The President of the United States has openly, proudly admitted that he approved the use of interrogation methods that are by every measure -- including the measure of United States law -- criminal acts of torture. It is one of the most brazen and scandalous confessions of wrongdoing ever uttered by an American leader -- and it has had no impact whatsoever. No scandal, no outcry, no protest, no prosecution.
This pattern has recurred over and over throughout the Bush Administration. Bush and his minions commit crimes and atrocities in secret; they move heaven and earth to conceal their filthy deeds; they squirm and squeal like panicked rats when their some small portion of their evil comes to light; they belch forth a relentless series of self-contradictory lies to cover up, obfuscate or explain away the crimes; and when at last their malefactions can no longer be denied, they trot out the president himself to say: "Yeah, we did it; so what?" And then....nothing happens.
And now nothing is happening again. It is an astounding phenomenon. Bush is the most widely despised president in modern times. The war he launched on false pretenses against Iraq is deeply unpopular, and is plainly bankrupting the country. His economic policies have plunged millions into ruin, want and insecurity. The opposition political party controls the Congress -- a bastion they could have used as a bully pulpit to rally the public and as a battering ram to bring down an openly criminal, shamelessly unconstitutional, dangerous, illegitimate regime. And yet....nothing happens.
There has never been a condition of such deep, virtually catatonic civic paralysis in American history -- and few such instances in world history. There will be no good issue from all of this. No saving grace in the last act, no life-enhancing "lessons learned," no character growth in the story arc, no deus ex machina, no redemption. There will only be -- at best, in the very best-case scenario imaginable -- a long, slow agonizing slog through the ruins, a hard, interminable labor of waste disposal and reclamation, in a much-diminished world.
And yet the sleepwalking goes on. For not only is Bush never chastened or hobbled by revelations that ordinarily would topple even the strongest government in any nation with even a tincture of democracy -- he and his cronies simply move on from each exposed outrage to even greater crimes. And that is what is happening today. Even as Bush was telling ABC News about his approval of the White House torture meetings -- where the nation's most august figures of state watched CIA men act out torture techniques for them -- he and his minions were also bolting the last rivets onto their latest war machine: the engine of murder and destruction they have prepared for Iran.
The same process of deception and fearmongering that led to the Iraq invasion is being played out again. And once again, the Establishment press is playing an indispensible role in formenting a new act of mass murder. Once again, the media mandarins are shoveling horseshit directly from the White House down the gullets of the American people.
Last week, the Bush Regime used the Establishment house organs, the Washington Post and the New York Times, to announce that Iran is now the main U.S. enemy in Iraq. Both reports were laden with the usual unchallenged, unfiltered, unquestioned spin from the usual unnamed "senior U.S. officials" about Iran's "malign influence" in arming, training and directing deadly Shiite militia attacks against U.S. forces.
For two years now, Bush and his accomplicies have been methodically laying the groundwork for another specious casus belli ("Iran killing American troops!); manipulating the ever-eager-to-be-manipulated corporate media and Congress into swallowing every shift in the propaganda line; conducting their training for bomb runs on Iran (including scenarios for "tactical" nuclear attacks); moving attack fleets into the Persian Gulf and elsewhere within easy striking distance of Iran, building outposts on the Iranian border; running covert ops inside Iran (with the assistance of a terrorist cult once used as enforcers by Saddam Hussein). Now, with the aid of stories like those above, they are "rolling out the product," getting the "Iran is the Enemy" story front and center, no longer building it from the edges but making it the propaganda focus for the final act of Bush's bloodsoaked Grand Guignol.
One could write yards of exegesis on these articles, unpacking the outright lies, the skewed, misinformed -- and misinforming -- "analysis," the innumerable false assumptions built on old lies swallowed long before: "lies that no longer know they are lies, because they are the children and grandchildren of lies." This kind of exercise has great value, of course -- if only to demontrate, to ourselves and to future generations, that not everyone was willing to gobble down horseshit at the order of killers and torturers, and their simpering courtiers. [For an excellent example, see Juan Cole's takedown of the lies of the scribes and courtiers here: Iran Supported al-Maliki Against Militias.]
But ultimately, on the ground, it will not change a thing. The sharpest truth, shouted like a trumpet blast, will not wake the sleepwalkers now. Nothing has pierced the shadows and fog so far, nothing has roused their moral sense, their legal sense, their political sense; nothing has stirred them to take action against the torture, the secret prisons, the concentration camp at Guantanamo Bay, the ludicrous farce and deadly tyranny of the "Unitary Executive" cult -- and the never-ending act of mass murder and rape that is the war in Iraq. Will they stir now to stop another war crime in Iran?
No, it's obvious now that we must drink this bitter cup to the dregs. The sleepwalkers have encompassed us all in their nightmare. And how terrible, how terrible will be the awakening.
Not music related, but it should relate to us all.
Too Much of Nothing: Crime Without Punishment, War Without End
Written by Chris Floyd
Sunday, 13 April 2008
The President of the United States has openly, proudly admitted that he approved the use of interrogation methods that are by every measure -- including the measure of United States law -- criminal acts of torture. It is one of the most brazen and scandalous confessions of wrongdoing ever uttered by an American leader -- and it has had no impact whatsoever. No scandal, no outcry, no protest, no prosecution.
This pattern has recurred over and over throughout the Bush Administration. Bush and his minions commit crimes and atrocities in secret; they move heaven and earth to conceal their filthy deeds; they squirm and squeal like panicked rats when their some small portion of their evil comes to light; they belch forth a relentless series of self-contradictory lies to cover up, obfuscate or explain away the crimes; and when at last their malefactions can no longer be denied, they trot out the president himself to say: "Yeah, we did it; so what?" And then....nothing happens.
And now nothing is happening again. It is an astounding phenomenon. Bush is the most widely despised president in modern times. The war he launched on false pretenses against Iraq is deeply unpopular, and is plainly bankrupting the country. His economic policies have plunged millions into ruin, want and insecurity. The opposition political party controls the Congress -- a bastion they could have used as a bully pulpit to rally the public and as a battering ram to bring down an openly criminal, shamelessly unconstitutional, dangerous, illegitimate regime. And yet....nothing happens.
There has never been a condition of such deep, virtually catatonic civic paralysis in American history -- and few such instances in world history. There will be no good issue from all of this. No saving grace in the last act, no life-enhancing "lessons learned," no character growth in the story arc, no deus ex machina, no redemption. There will only be -- at best, in the very best-case scenario imaginable -- a long, slow agonizing slog through the ruins, a hard, interminable labor of waste disposal and reclamation, in a much-diminished world.
And yet the sleepwalking goes on. For not only is Bush never chastened or hobbled by revelations that ordinarily would topple even the strongest government in any nation with even a tincture of democracy -- he and his cronies simply move on from each exposed outrage to even greater crimes. And that is what is happening today. Even as Bush was telling ABC News about his approval of the White House torture meetings -- where the nation's most august figures of state watched CIA men act out torture techniques for them -- he and his minions were also bolting the last rivets onto their latest war machine: the engine of murder and destruction they have prepared for Iran.
The same process of deception and fearmongering that led to the Iraq invasion is being played out again. And once again, the Establishment press is playing an indispensible role in formenting a new act of mass murder. Once again, the media mandarins are shoveling horseshit directly from the White House down the gullets of the American people.
Last week, the Bush Regime used the Establishment house organs, the Washington Post and the New York Times, to announce that Iran is now the main U.S. enemy in Iraq. Both reports were laden with the usual unchallenged, unfiltered, unquestioned spin from the usual unnamed "senior U.S. officials" about Iran's "malign influence" in arming, training and directing deadly Shiite militia attacks against U.S. forces.
For two years now, Bush and his accomplicies have been methodically laying the groundwork for another specious casus belli ("Iran killing American troops!); manipulating the ever-eager-to-be-manipulated corporate media and Congress into swallowing every shift in the propaganda line; conducting their training for bomb runs on Iran (including scenarios for "tactical" nuclear attacks); moving attack fleets into the Persian Gulf and elsewhere within easy striking distance of Iran, building outposts on the Iranian border; running covert ops inside Iran (with the assistance of a terrorist cult once used as enforcers by Saddam Hussein). Now, with the aid of stories like those above, they are "rolling out the product," getting the "Iran is the Enemy" story front and center, no longer building it from the edges but making it the propaganda focus for the final act of Bush's bloodsoaked Grand Guignol.
One could write yards of exegesis on these articles, unpacking the outright lies, the skewed, misinformed -- and misinforming -- "analysis," the innumerable false assumptions built on old lies swallowed long before: "lies that no longer know they are lies, because they are the children and grandchildren of lies." This kind of exercise has great value, of course -- if only to demontrate, to ourselves and to future generations, that not everyone was willing to gobble down horseshit at the order of killers and torturers, and their simpering courtiers. [For an excellent example, see Juan Cole's takedown of the lies of the scribes and courtiers here: Iran Supported al-Maliki Against Militias.]
But ultimately, on the ground, it will not change a thing. The sharpest truth, shouted like a trumpet blast, will not wake the sleepwalkers now. Nothing has pierced the shadows and fog so far, nothing has roused their moral sense, their legal sense, their political sense; nothing has stirred them to take action against the torture, the secret prisons, the concentration camp at Guantanamo Bay, the ludicrous farce and deadly tyranny of the "Unitary Executive" cult -- and the never-ending act of mass murder and rape that is the war in Iraq. Will they stir now to stop another war crime in Iran?
No, it's obvious now that we must drink this bitter cup to the dregs. The sleepwalkers have encompassed us all in their nightmare. And how terrible, how terrible will be the awakening.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
"Whats Going On" - Marvin Gaye
Mother, mother
There's too many of you crying
Brother, brother, brother
There's far too many of you dying
You know we've got to find a way
To bring some lovin' here today - Ya
Father, father
We don't need to escalate
You see, war is not the answer
For only love can conquer hate
You know we've got to find a way
To bring some lovin' here today
Picket lines and picket signs
Don't punish me with brutality
Talk to me, so you can see
Oh, what's going on
What's going on
Ya, what's going on
Ah, what's going on
In the mean time
Right on, baby
Right on
Right on
Father, father, everybody thinks we're wrong
Oh, but who are they to judge us
Simply because our hair is long
Oh, you know we've got to find a way
To bring some understanding here today
Oh
Picket lines and picket signs
Don't punish me with brutality
Talk to me
So you can see
What's going on
Ya, what's going on
Tell me what's going on
I'll tell you what's going on - Uh
Right on baby
Right on baby
There's too many of you crying
Brother, brother, brother
There's far too many of you dying
You know we've got to find a way
To bring some lovin' here today - Ya
Father, father
We don't need to escalate
You see, war is not the answer
For only love can conquer hate
You know we've got to find a way
To bring some lovin' here today
Picket lines and picket signs
Don't punish me with brutality
Talk to me, so you can see
Oh, what's going on
What's going on
Ya, what's going on
Ah, what's going on
In the mean time
Right on, baby
Right on
Right on
Father, father, everybody thinks we're wrong
Oh, but who are they to judge us
Simply because our hair is long
Oh, you know we've got to find a way
To bring some understanding here today
Oh
Picket lines and picket signs
Don't punish me with brutality
Talk to me
So you can see
What's going on
Ya, what's going on
Tell me what's going on
I'll tell you what's going on - Uh
Right on baby
Right on baby
Toubab Krewe
Toubab Krewe kicks off the second leg of its U.S. Spring Tour this weekend with shows in Seattle, WA and Portland, OR. The tour continues from coast to coast, with new dates added throughout the country.
Joining Toubab Krewe onstage for much of its California run will be special guest artist Rayna Gellert on fiddle. A world renowned fiddle player best known as a member of Uncle Earl, Gellert is a long time friend and musical collaborator who most recently played with the band during its New Year's Eve run in Asheville, NC. Her California guest appearances culminate with an April 18 show at 12 Galaxies in San Francisco as part of the national Green Apple Music Festival.
The tour continues throughout Southern California and the Southwest, where stops include the McDowell Mountain Music Festival in Scottsdale, AZ, the House of Blues in Dallas, TX and Stubbs BBQ in Austin, TX. From there, the band heads to New Orleans for a run of shows during Jazz Fest, and then onward to the Northeast.
Toubab Krewe's May 10 show in New York City has changed venues from the Highline Ballroom to the Blender Theater at Gramercy. This show will feature collaborations with legendary spoken word artist Umar Bin Hassan, known for his groundbreaking work with The Last Poets, Common, Tribe Called Quest, and many others.
Playing several more dates in the Northeast, the band closes things out at Higher Ground in Burlington, VT on May 16, a homecoming show for bassist and native Vermonter Dave Pransky. This summer the band plans to finish up its much anticipated new album with Grammy winning producer Steven Heller, as well as make its first tour of Europe (dates TBA).
Confirmed Dates:
April 11 | Seattle, WA | Tractor Tavern
April 12 | Portland, OR | Goodfoot Lounge
April 13 | Ashland, OR | Mobius
April 15 | Arcata, CA | Humboldt Brews (w/ Rayna Gellert on fiddle)
April 16 | Santa Cruz, CA | Moe's Alley (w/ Rayna Gellert on fiddle)
April 17 | Petaluma, CA | Mystic Theater (w/ Rayna Gellert on fiddle)
April 18 | San Francisco, CA | 12 Galaxies (w/ Rayna Gellert on fiddle)
April 24 | San Diego, CA | Winston's Beach Club
April 25 | Redondo, CA | Harvelle's
April 26 | Scottsdale, AZ | McDowell Mountain Music Festival
April 27 | Sedona, AZ | Future Studios
April 29 | Dallas, TX | House of Blues
April 30 | Austin, TX | Stubbs BBQ
May 3 | New Orleans, LA | Blue Nile (Backbeat Jazz Fest Concert Series)
May 4 | New Orleans, LA | House of Blues (The Lee Boys opening)
May 9 | Charlottesville, VA | Satellite Ballroom
May 10 | New York, NY | Blender Theater at Gramercy (With special guest Umar Bin Hassan)
May 13 | Narragansett, RI, | Wheel House
May 14 | Portland, ME | Empire Dine and Dance
May 15 | Newmarket, NH | Stone Church
May 16 | Burlington, VT | Higher Ground
http://www.toubabkrewe.com/
Joining Toubab Krewe onstage for much of its California run will be special guest artist Rayna Gellert on fiddle. A world renowned fiddle player best known as a member of Uncle Earl, Gellert is a long time friend and musical collaborator who most recently played with the band during its New Year's Eve run in Asheville, NC. Her California guest appearances culminate with an April 18 show at 12 Galaxies in San Francisco as part of the national Green Apple Music Festival.
The tour continues throughout Southern California and the Southwest, where stops include the McDowell Mountain Music Festival in Scottsdale, AZ, the House of Blues in Dallas, TX and Stubbs BBQ in Austin, TX. From there, the band heads to New Orleans for a run of shows during Jazz Fest, and then onward to the Northeast.
Toubab Krewe's May 10 show in New York City has changed venues from the Highline Ballroom to the Blender Theater at Gramercy. This show will feature collaborations with legendary spoken word artist Umar Bin Hassan, known for his groundbreaking work with The Last Poets, Common, Tribe Called Quest, and many others.
Playing several more dates in the Northeast, the band closes things out at Higher Ground in Burlington, VT on May 16, a homecoming show for bassist and native Vermonter Dave Pransky. This summer the band plans to finish up its much anticipated new album with Grammy winning producer Steven Heller, as well as make its first tour of Europe (dates TBA).
Confirmed Dates:
April 11 | Seattle, WA | Tractor Tavern
April 12 | Portland, OR | Goodfoot Lounge
April 13 | Ashland, OR | Mobius
April 15 | Arcata, CA | Humboldt Brews (w/ Rayna Gellert on fiddle)
April 16 | Santa Cruz, CA | Moe's Alley (w/ Rayna Gellert on fiddle)
April 17 | Petaluma, CA | Mystic Theater (w/ Rayna Gellert on fiddle)
April 18 | San Francisco, CA | 12 Galaxies (w/ Rayna Gellert on fiddle)
April 24 | San Diego, CA | Winston's Beach Club
April 25 | Redondo, CA | Harvelle's
April 26 | Scottsdale, AZ | McDowell Mountain Music Festival
April 27 | Sedona, AZ | Future Studios
April 29 | Dallas, TX | House of Blues
April 30 | Austin, TX | Stubbs BBQ
May 3 | New Orleans, LA | Blue Nile (Backbeat Jazz Fest Concert Series)
May 4 | New Orleans, LA | House of Blues (The Lee Boys opening)
May 9 | Charlottesville, VA | Satellite Ballroom
May 10 | New York, NY | Blender Theater at Gramercy (With special guest Umar Bin Hassan)
May 13 | Narragansett, RI, | Wheel House
May 14 | Portland, ME | Empire Dine and Dance
May 15 | Newmarket, NH | Stone Church
May 16 | Burlington, VT | Higher Ground
http://www.toubabkrewe.com/
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Music Binds Us All
This first post is a dedication to music's sweaty past and a tribute to its bold future. Music... The holy grail, the last leap from the ledge, the beating heart of the collective consciousness, a call to arms-a call to ears-music lovers of the world unite. Break the chains of wax in your blocked canals and let your heart rediscover the tribal bliss that is part of your human heritage - the kind of bliss achieved by rhythm, vibrations and beats.
Nothing can touch us like music. Nothing can conjure up an old memory like a song. Songs dig themselves deep into our sub-conscious like moles. They have the power to make us cry in a minute or feel emotional for no reason. Music is unreasonable in its math like precision. Even the most casual observer has a favorite song or musical moment that they cherish..... Then there are those of us who take it further...
There are those of us who have gone through myriad hardships and endured many sketchy situations to have music shine its love on our skin - follicles dancing in the moonlight. There are those of us who have toured with this band or that and have road stories that would make the lice in your locks look for the lifeboat! Some of us still live there at festivals forever in the gratitude of musics hazy enlightenment. Some of us have whirled and twirled and suffered ego death on the prairie of musical frontiers. Some of us have prayed with hands clasped for one more from our favorites or just for a great show. Some have smiled or made smile a dancing partner and many a dancing partner has become a night adventure. Many a night adventure has become a life endeavor and music is the chain that holds the swing to the structure!
People that are passionate about music are evenly split into two groups - Half are musicians and half are fans. Between the two this portion of the population keeps the magic and ritual of music alive; which in turn creates the myth. Maybe that is what this first post is about - the myth of music. Maybe this is just a dedication to everyone who has a favorite record album they cant get rid of even though they don't own a record player. Or maybe I should dedicate this to all of you who still sing LOUD in the shower!
Music affects everyone whether they know it or not and I'm not even talking about all the subtle or subconscious levels- I'm not talking about all the songs swimming around in your cluttered head. If Led Zeppelin came to your small town, it wouldn't matter if you've never heard of them. Between the traffic and the grocery store situation it would affect you for days - and if you weren't there you just weren't where the history was being made.
In the end, songs bind our DNA and melodies give us wings, rhythm lets us breathe better and to keep a beat is the heart of the matter - like the salt of the earth, music is ancient and eternal and will always be one of the things that define man and his culture.
Nothing can touch us like music. Nothing can conjure up an old memory like a song. Songs dig themselves deep into our sub-conscious like moles. They have the power to make us cry in a minute or feel emotional for no reason. Music is unreasonable in its math like precision. Even the most casual observer has a favorite song or musical moment that they cherish..... Then there are those of us who take it further...
There are those of us who have gone through myriad hardships and endured many sketchy situations to have music shine its love on our skin - follicles dancing in the moonlight. There are those of us who have toured with this band or that and have road stories that would make the lice in your locks look for the lifeboat! Some of us still live there at festivals forever in the gratitude of musics hazy enlightenment. Some of us have whirled and twirled and suffered ego death on the prairie of musical frontiers. Some of us have prayed with hands clasped for one more from our favorites or just for a great show. Some have smiled or made smile a dancing partner and many a dancing partner has become a night adventure. Many a night adventure has become a life endeavor and music is the chain that holds the swing to the structure!
People that are passionate about music are evenly split into two groups - Half are musicians and half are fans. Between the two this portion of the population keeps the magic and ritual of music alive; which in turn creates the myth. Maybe that is what this first post is about - the myth of music. Maybe this is just a dedication to everyone who has a favorite record album they cant get rid of even though they don't own a record player. Or maybe I should dedicate this to all of you who still sing LOUD in the shower!
Music affects everyone whether they know it or not and I'm not even talking about all the subtle or subconscious levels- I'm not talking about all the songs swimming around in your cluttered head. If Led Zeppelin came to your small town, it wouldn't matter if you've never heard of them. Between the traffic and the grocery store situation it would affect you for days - and if you weren't there you just weren't where the history was being made.
In the end, songs bind our DNA and melodies give us wings, rhythm lets us breathe better and to keep a beat is the heart of the matter - like the salt of the earth, music is ancient and eternal and will always be one of the things that define man and his culture.
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
The Great Tom Waits
Thomas Alan Waits (born December 7, 1949) is an American singer-songwriter, composer, and actor. Waits has a distinctive voice, described by one critic as sounding "like it was soaked in a vat of bourbon, left hanging in the smokehouse for a few months and then taken outside and run over with a car."[1] With this trademark growl, his incorporation of pre-rock styles such as blues, jazz, and Vaudeville, and experimental tendencies verging on industrial music,[2] Waits has built up a distinctive musical persona. Waits has also worked as a composer for movies and musical plays and as a supporting actor in films, including The Fisher King, Bram Stoker's Dracula, and Short Cuts. He has been nominated for an Academy Award for his soundtrack work on One from the Heart.
Lyrically, Waits' songs are known for atmospheric portrayals of bizarre, seedy characters and places, although he has also shown a penchant for more conventional ballads. He has a cult following and has influenced subsequent songwriters, despite having little radio or music video support. His songs are best known to the general public in the form of cover versions by more visible artists — for example "Jersey Girl" performed by Bruce Springsteen, "Downtown Train" performed by Rod Stewart, and "Ol' '55" performed by the Eagles. Although Waits' albums have met with mixed commercial success in his native United States, they have occasionally achieved gold album sales status in other countries. He has been nominated for a number of major music awards, and has won Grammy Awards for two albums, Bone Machine and Mule Variations.
Lyrically, Waits' songs are known for atmospheric portrayals of bizarre, seedy characters and places, although he has also shown a penchant for more conventional ballads. He has a cult following and has influenced subsequent songwriters, despite having little radio or music video support. His songs are best known to the general public in the form of cover versions by more visible artists — for example "Jersey Girl" performed by Bruce Springsteen, "Downtown Train" performed by Rod Stewart, and "Ol' '55" performed by the Eagles. Although Waits' albums have met with mixed commercial success in his native United States, they have occasionally achieved gold album sales status in other countries. He has been nominated for a number of major music awards, and has won Grammy Awards for two albums, Bone Machine and Mule Variations.
ALLMAN BROTHERS POSTPONE BEACON THEATRE & WANEE SHOWS :-(
The ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND announced today that they are postponing their annual run of 15 shows at New York City's Beacon Theatre set for May 5-24, with rescheduled dates TBA. In addition, they have also cancelled their upcoming performances at the Wanee Festival that they host every year in Florida (set for April 11-12, Wanee will continue as planned despite the fact that the Allman Brothers Band will not be appearing). For the past six months, founding member Gregg Allman has been receiving scheduled treatments for Hepatitis C, a virus that, with these treatments, has become curable in recent years. The treatments so far have been successful and the virus has been eradicated from his system.
However, the recovery time from the side effects of the treatment are taking longer than originally projected. Since the Allman Brothers Band are known for exhilarating and exhausting concert performances they don't want to give fans anything less than they have come to expect; so the band members made a group decision to delay the first round of dates. "I'm getting better but I'm still tired," says Gregg. "I need to be at 110% to do the shows the way we do them. I can't tell you how much I appreciate the support and understanding my Brothers and our fans have given me."
The Wanee Festival featuring Gov't Mule, Bob Weir & Ratdog, Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi's Soul Stew Revival, moe., Levon Helm and others will indeed take place April 11-12 in Live Oak, FL, despite the Brothers' cancellation. As for other Allman Brothers Band dates, a 12-concert jaunt planned for August, including two that have been announced so far (8/16 in Boston, MA and 8/23 in Camden, NJ), will go on as scheduled. The rescheduling of the Beacon Theatre run and additional fall shows will be announced soon. Gregg and the Allman Brothers Band appreciate the ongoing support they have always received from their fans and look forward to seeing them this summer. The road goes on forever...
http://www.allmanbrothersband.com/
However, the recovery time from the side effects of the treatment are taking longer than originally projected. Since the Allman Brothers Band are known for exhilarating and exhausting concert performances they don't want to give fans anything less than they have come to expect; so the band members made a group decision to delay the first round of dates. "I'm getting better but I'm still tired," says Gregg. "I need to be at 110% to do the shows the way we do them. I can't tell you how much I appreciate the support and understanding my Brothers and our fans have given me."
The Wanee Festival featuring Gov't Mule, Bob Weir & Ratdog, Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi's Soul Stew Revival, moe., Levon Helm and others will indeed take place April 11-12 in Live Oak, FL, despite the Brothers' cancellation. As for other Allman Brothers Band dates, a 12-concert jaunt planned for August, including two that have been announced so far (8/16 in Boston, MA and 8/23 in Camden, NJ), will go on as scheduled. The rescheduling of the Beacon Theatre run and additional fall shows will be announced soon. Gregg and the Allman Brothers Band appreciate the ongoing support they have always received from their fans and look forward to seeing them this summer. The road goes on forever...
http://www.allmanbrothersband.com/
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