26.11.07

Birthday Bitch

Matt Gentile celebrated his 25th and invited only the good looking to join him and his lovely sisters. Observe:
















Bonus Beats:

Irene and I took our drunk asses to Bozu after and made it happen. Luckily these photos were taken because I remember none of this. And here, finally, is Phil, King Of Bozu:


23.11.07

22.11.07

Parody!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

16.11.07

AKA

Where have I been? Asshole where have YOU been.

Me? Well, I've been enjoying my longest stretch in NY in a year and goddamn I love this city. Been catching up with the lads, the family and the other half, who is working like a maniac. It's funny cause now when I am not traveling, everyone else is, Brandt is in Berlin, Danny is in Rhode Island, and The Kidd, lucky child, is off to France for a spell. I respect all three of these men for their travel destinations, except maybe Danny, but he's eating well and hanging with "just a little guy" (aka his nephew).

I'm trying to remember the order of events, but I think Friday night was spent celebrating Roger's birthday, which was a blast cause a. he is a good guy and b. Anj and Brian hosted, which means the awesome cooking and the fun guest list. This night was no exception. A first class evening and I think Roger enjoyed his birthday, (aka Rog-uukuh).

Saturday, Irene was working so I caught up with the guys to check out the new Cohen Brothers movie, NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN. What an awesome movie! It has a really weird ending, but the more I thought about it, the more I loved it. Everyone in this movie is great, especially Javier Bardem who is a scary ass motherfucker! He is so scary sick it hurt. You sit through this whole movie coiled up like you're going to be attacked at any second. It is all tension and it is all awesome. With the exception of this ending, which I thought was a bit jarring, I might be calling this my movie of the year. Big props to Josh Brolin who will no longer be aka Older Brother From Goonies after this.

That night, Irene was working till midnight but wanted to go to yet another birthday party. Is February some kind of horny month cause everyone is born in fucking November. Honestly, I was really tired and anti, but the gentlemen who's party it was is a big comic fan and asked Irene to bring me. So we didn't get out till like 1am cause it was fucking freezing and every fuck was out. But apparently , I can go out whenever I want however late I want. Don't need no Day Of Rest (tm BOB) . Anyway, I'm dreading being bored at one in the fucking morning at this thing, and within 2 seconds who grabs me but none other than Bryan Black (who has recently moved to NY) and Mike Doyle (in from Detroit)! Thank GOD. This ends up being a great evening of hanging with the Motor and Burnlab crew and despite some douches tweaking around the crowd, I ended up having a great time. As you can see here, being totally tired and having a few drinks in me, I was having a better time than my girl, (aka Irene), who was quite tired:




What a total surprise seeing this crew. We talked music, both old and new, and it was great finding someone from the old days who is thinking and moving forward. Doyle's girl Bethany is also quite cool as well and knows her shit big time. Top girl. It was like a High School Reunion where no one was living in the past or making you feel like shit for having a life beyond where you came from. And Doyle, we'll get around to that HF cover art in the 08. (I stole these pix from Doyle's Flickr)



While I didn't really get too drunk, I was really tired, and now I can't remember what I did on Sunday. Usually it is the Day Of Rest (tm BOB) , but I think we saw my family. Irene confirms we did! I saw my little cousins, who are now not so little, and happily they still like STAR WARS and all the cool stuff. We met my cool cousin Josh's new girlfriend, aka Diamond Lil (long story, but nicknames are cool, you know) and she fit in real good when she called my other cousin Anti-Social. I loved it. I hope she stays around a long time .

Since these events, it's been the usual busy. Sneaking in the music when I can, and just overall enjoying being in NY for a stretch. We did the Frank Sr. (aka my Dad) Birthday celebration the other night and retirement finally looks to be on the horizon for the big man. God help us. Irene's pal Lynnell has her moms in town so we have been wining, dining and wiiing with them. Now I am trying to settle into a nice Saturday afternoon viewing the HK TV series WING CHUNG starring Nick Tse, Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao. So far so good. I have an childhood love of Sammo and Yuen and this actually a sequel to one of my early 80's fave Kung Fu movies, PRODIGAL SON, which, no suprise, starred Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao. Go figure.

Tomorrow is the Day Of Rest (tm BOB). Enjoy!

F

15.11.07

BATAVY

13.11.07

Topic: Techno

Once again, the former aggression siblings find themselves lonely without a band or a Danny around (he's in Newport for 2 weeks with the kids).

F: Its all techno, but euro…

K: Techno is a racket

F: Ash was onto something

K: I mean Ash was like going to England to play his 8 level shit. 4 wall? What was it?

F: He was so ahead of his time he had to make it 4th level

K: He's not even talented

F: It was gonna be 8th level, but people couldnt keep up. So he cut it in half.

K: Hahah

F: You know how it is

K: You know what? I can't remember...

F: Cause you're only like at the 3rd level

Also, this is not Ash: http://www.michaelvenezia.com/

F

10.11.07

RCM

So, once again our attention turns the Durans. I don't have to get into the history, the dozens of gigs we've attended, and how I have stuck by them through and through the last few decades, etc. You know this. So lets get into it.

The Comeback 5 or so years ago was awesome. The gigs were amazing, the band were super, and then ASTRONAUT came out. And it was kind of a let down. It felt flat, overproduced, etc. Again, I've been through this. If I learned anything about the Durans was how much in their later years its about the show and not the albums themselves. Webster Hall, MSG, and ASTRONAUT proved that. In my mind, it was a comeback that had super momentum and then had the rug pulled out from under them.

Since then, they've gone and done their thing. They lost Andy Taylor yet again (and supposedly did a whole album with him that will hopefully leak eventually) Played the world, awesome gigs, large places, Diana concert, Live 8 or whatever it was called, and their place in history at this point is pretty much sealed. Kudos to the lads. Anyone should be happy with that legacy. But we're talking about Duran Duran here.

When I heard the first leaked tracks from their collaboration with Timbaland and Justin Timberlake (of whom I am a big fan, almost at the level of Ash), my first reaction was that of dread. Mind you, I didn't hate the songs as much as I didn't like Timbaland rapping over some parts. Big problem. Immediately, my expectations for this new album, frighteningly called RED CARPET MASSACRE. The whole collaboration thing seemed like a very obvious attempt at being "relevant" and get back onto the charts, and guess what, in typical Duran style, they made no bones about this and were quite upfront about it. I sorta respected it. Kinda. Sorta. You know me, if the music is good, then who the fuck cares...

So then they announce a 10 night residency on Broadway to promote this new album. Clever, I thought, until I read they were performing the entire new album and "some hits". For the price they were charging for this, and with my unpredictable schedule, I had convinced myself that this was a pass. Even while in New Mexico, my beloved Aunt (who had taken me to see them literally 20 years ago), called me seeing if she wanted to get me tickets. I passed. However, in a moment of weakness in Newport, I found myself lying around a hotel room pondering the value of family (long story and nothing to do with my own family), and grabbed three tickets. One for me, one for Irene,and one for my Aunt. Man was she excited when I told her about this!!

My excitement for this gig lay more in doing something nice for my aunt, who always been the "cool" aunt and with whom my relationship is similar to that between Irene and Cameron (My aunt has babysat Cam a few times). Also, this made me a hero to my mom, who is my aunts older sister.

Anyhow, we were going a few nights into the series of gigs and I started to follow the reviews, articles etc. about the band, the show and the album. Surprisingly, a lot of was positive. I at least knew we were going to see a good gig cause honestly, they never suck live and to see them in a tiny Bway theatre would be something to brag about to the likes of Vikki, et al. I had planned an evening. I took Irene and my aunt to my fave midtown Italian eatery, cause it was right by the theatre and we had ourselves a very nice dinner. We then proceeded to walk up the block and when I turned the corner and saw the big billboard of them at the theatre, I was officially psyched. Oh and they had a really fucking funny Playbill!

Long story short, they come out and the look awesome, the stage set is great and we have awesome seats. They then play the whole new album in order. And it doesn't suck, again proving my point that them playing live always suits the songs that much better. The stuff I didn't like seemed to make more sense in the context of the album. Oh, and let me reiterate that they play like champs and with the energy of men half their age.



My aunt literally made me google Simon LeBon on my Blackberry just because we couldn't believe this energetic guy is 49 years old. And again, they can PLAY. The fountain of youth is in full effect, but wisely, they are not TRYING to be 25 year olds. The new material is also aided by an excellent multimedia show that took good advantage of the venue without distracting from the music. I didn't love all the new songs but goddammit I respected their playing the whole thing and presenting it this way. 12 songs later and they were off.

If they didn't come back, I wouldn't have been too upset, but these guys are smart. And gutsy. They come back for the second part of the show and it's an ell electronic, Kraftwork-style set. Played live. I want to be clear on that . And what do they do? They open with Kraftworks SHOWROOM DUMMIES and then proceed to play an awesome fucking set up older songs like SKIN TRADE, ALL SHE WANTS IS, LAST CHANCE ON THE STAIRWAY and I DON'T WANT YOUR LOVE. They even slipped in a cover of WARM LEATHERETTE and added a fucking horn section somwhere in there. This literally was one of the coolest Duran things I have ever seen and this set was worth the price of admission. This is what it looked like (Thank you, Irene)




And they come back for the third part of the show, which was the 'hits". And man were the fans rewarded. It's what you expect: RELFEX, NOTORIOUS, PLANET EARTH and even the rarely played DO YOU BELIEVE IN SHAME. massive. There are more, and the crowd goes mental. Total, the whole evening was an amazing, one of a kind, 2 hours plus of the Durans showing that they can be relevant. They didn't need the rapping for that.

I've since gotten my hands on the album and It's a much more spirited affair than ASTRONAUT. Yep there's some good, there's some not so good, but damn they are still here and still impressive and their legacy is intact. Look, they aren't gonna chart in this country, but they still got it.

Well done lads, and thanks to Irene and my Aunt for a fun evening!

F

8.11.07

NNIICCEE

From Pitchfork:

If my occasional glances at "Dr. Phil" have taught me anything-- and they haven't-- certain personalities are attracted to volatility in others. Given the company he sometimes chooses to keep, former Hole guitarist Eric Erlandson might suffer from that particular affliction. Erlandson has joined with actor, filmmaker, occasional musician, Paris Hilton fan, and creepily intense human-like vessel Vincent Gallo to form RRIICCEE, an all-improv group who will tour North America next month.

So what can a brave attendee expect from a RRIICCEE gig? We're not sure, and we're starting to think Gallo and Erlandson aren't sure, either. According to a press release, "For all appearances, the outfit does not perform pre-written music and is not limited to the boundaries of one specific musical genre." And you thought that dinner scene in Buffalo 66 was awkward. Indeed, Vincent and Eric are quite literally coming to these tables empty-handed, with no recorded music at the moment and no plans for a commercially available release.

Gallo had a few (okay, more than a few) words about RRIICCEE's unorthodox methods, in a press release:

"Improvisation is not a good word for what we're doing. It's more a gesture of composing and performing at the same time, always hoping to avoid musical cliché or jamming. We've chosen not to go into a studio in a traditional way like other bands have done in the past: to make recordings, cut them up, dub on them, fine tune and mix them, and then release them as an album, then later, go on tour, pantomiming those recordings over and over each night as a form of cabaret. Instead, for a long time now, we've chosen to remain open, to grow and change more naturally, and when we play live, the music is often created during the performance. If we choose to record a performance, the recording itself is only evidence of that creative moment. The purpose of recording then, is to listen back for enjoyment."

In other Vincent Gallo news just in time for the gift-giving season, he is still offering his services as both a sperm donor and a sperm dispenser on his website.

RRIICCEE:

12-01 Tucson, AZ - Solar Culture
12-03 Austin, TX - Alamo Drafthouse
12-05 Atlanta, GA - Eyedrum Gallery
12-07 New York, NY - Green Room @ 45 Bleecker
12-08 Washington, DC - Rock N' Roll Hotel
12-09 Philadelphia, PA - Johnny Brenda's
12-11 Buffalo, NY - Soundlab
12-12 Montreal, Quebec - Club Lambi
12-13 Toronto, Ontario - Music Gallery
12-15 Chicago, IL - Schubas
12-16 Kansas City, MO - Record Bar
12-17 Denver, CO The Walnut Room
12-19 Portland, OR Mission Theater
12-21 San Francisco, CA - Red Devil Lounge
12-22 Los Angeles, CA - Rec Center Studios

7.11.07

6.11.07

"GIVE HIM A CHANCE!"

I'm in the usual busy shitstorm, but allow me to pop in for a bit to tell you about the recent events...

Halloween was fun and the first time I've dressed up since the very famous Captain' Lou Albano gimmick. This year was easier. I took those preppie ass beige pans and white dress shirt Ash made me get for his wedding, put on an old brown leather jacket, some boots and my officially licensed Lucasfilm headgear and boom, I was once again Indiana Jones for probably the 12th time in my young lifetime. Thanks, Ash!




We then caught up with some friends and went to the huge ass Flavorpill party which was in the upstairs ballroom at the Hammserstein Ballroom, where our Danny and I saw the ROSES so many years ago. I had no idea the other Ballroom was still there. I had assumed it had been converted to the larger once we now know. Huge place. Anyhow, it was fun, but it was a mistake after a few drinks to think I could get outside to get a pretzel and come back just as my neighbor, Ryan Adams, was wrapping up his gig. So you had a thousand hipsters leaving the building and another thousand trying to get into the party. Clusterfucking. Anyway, way too much to drink and then a failed attempt at watching part 3 of the brilliant South Park IMAGINATION story. This is easily one of the best things the South Park guys have ever done and another reason why Family Guy sucks balls.




Thursday was the actual attempt to watch the show. Success. We did little else.

After a busy Friday, Danny boy and I caught up and sizzled some rice. We did this like men do, and then enjoy a long walk on a fall evening keepintg things as hetro as humanly possible. Then Danny made his way back to Queens while your hero found I found my lovely other half and we again tried to relax. This is rare.

Saturday was supposed to be the usual trip out to B's to work on the tunes. Somehow, for some reason, I was catching up with Ash, who informed me that he was planning on heading up to the 'Chest to see Carlos B. After much discussion, and organizing, sure enough I found myself in Ash's car with B, ash, my Thunderbird and a whole lotta gear riding up to The 'Chest., there we loaded everything into Bob's Basement (tm). This was a fun, beer fueled afternoon/evening (despite the scary neighbor)that saw us all tackle that still puzzling "Last Song For The Album". Well, we made a big fucking dent int this bad boy. We all took turns, really made some serious contributions to the tune and now it's a new and exciting animal. We eventually took a break and convinced poor Laura to join us at the PIZZA AND BREW (where there were small children sans pants outside)for a serial good meal. Then it was back to work. All in all a successful and fun adventure.

Sunday, was the first day in 13 years Irene and I were both off, so we swung it down to Tribeca and hit the Yaffa, our fave brunch place of many years. We ran into the always entertaining Tom Meggs and he and his friend Harry joined us. Then we just walked around and kept it lazy. Good times.

Up Next: Red Carpet Massacre!

F

4.11.07

2.11.07

Finally...

1.11.07

You Know He Got Paid For This

Kidd Stuff

As you know I occasionally post my lunchtime IM chats with G, but today we have a special guest, The Kidd. Pictured here..



Continue on and see what ex-bandmates and current siblings discuss long after the band has broken up and discover things they never knew or cared to know...


K: 'I'm listening to Trent Reznor's new album

F: What new album? The Saul Williams thing or the remixes?

K: Saul Williams, have you heard?

F: Some, not moved.

K: You don't like spoken word. That's why you wouldn't let me do it on the aggression album

F: Liar…fucking liar. I asked you and you didn’t show and then Tom wrote those lyrics for 131and after that forget it…

K: wordist, that's what you are

F: I used more of your shit than you ever did. MY WHITE NOVA, yeah it’s so deep!

K: HAHHAHA

F: What the fuck does that even mean, is a code for ejaculate?

K: yes, no, it's our answer to the best suede song ever

F: no that was BEAUTIFUL LOSERS, which they ended up stealing

K: MY DARK STAR

F: Wow i didnt even realize that…youre a fucking hack

K: hahahha

F: and by nature of association i am a bigger hack, cause i sang your shit

K: hahah, what's Fj Jorgensen…listen, we were famous for a while. Let's not get at each other now, let's get back together for the wedding

F: What wedding?

K: Tom's

F: We better start rehearsing…I gotta sing your hack lyrics

K: hahaha

F: I might post this conversation

K: post away, Dan

F: ok Ash

K: ha

F: We WERE famous. For awhile. Weren't we?

K: Yes. We were something. But our ego's were our downfall

The Kidd, BTW, holds a place in aggression history for being the first person to actually announce he was quitting the band (everyone else sorta drifted off or moved to LA). He did this and then 9/11 happened down the block from where he announced it. I still feel the two are connected.