"If you want to be free, there is but one way; it is to guarantee an equally full measure of liberty to all your neighbors. There is no other." - Carl Schurz

"The saddest epitaph which can be carved in memory of a vanished liberty is that it was lost because its possessors failed to stretch forth a saving hand while yet there was time." - George Sutherland
"Whenever a separation is made between liberty and justice, neither, in my opinion, is safe." - Edmund Burke

Sunday, April 30, 2006

11 days until graduation

I can't wait until school is over.

Here is what I've been listening to tonight:

  1. Voxtrot: Raised by Wolves EP
  2. The Decemberists: Picaresquities EP
  3. Daniel Johnston: Welcome to My World

Saturday, April 29, 2006

paleunderweight podcast 12

The new podcast is now available:

  1. Sufjan Stevens: "Casimir Pulaski Day"
  2. Prince: "Sister"
  3. Devendra Banhart: "Long Haired Child"
  4. Dungen: "Du E För Fin För Mig"
  5. Tom Waits: "In the Neighborhood"
  6. Gotan Project: "Mi Confesión"
  7. The Boy Least Likely To: "Hugging My Grudge"
  8. Nick Drake: "Things Behind the Sun"
  9. Battles: "Hi/Lo"
  10. Aloha: "Your Eyes"
  11. Jens Lekman: "Julie"
  12. Derek Jarman: untitled track from Blue
  13. The Sisters of Mercy: "Driven Like the Snow"
  14. XTC: "Pink Thing"
  15. Ladytron: "All the Way"
  16. Wilderness: "Emergency"
  17. Calexico: "Roka"

Thursday, April 27, 2006

Today's listening

  1. Battles: EP C
  2. Tom Waits: Swordfishtrombones
  3. The Futureheads: The Futureheads
  4. XTC: Oranges & Lemons
  5. Derek Jarman: Blue

Wednesday, April 26, 2006

Albums That Loved Me Back #3

Antony & The Johnsons: I Am a Bird Now

In 1968, Candy Darling, a young New York drag queen, appears in Andy Warhol's Flesh. Andy introduces Candy to Lou Reed of The Velvet Underground, who writes and records a song about her, "Candy Says". In the 1990's, Lou befriends Antony Hegarty, an androgynous singer and founding member of Blacklips Performance Cult. Lou takes Antony on a couple of world tours as a backup singer. Antony's band is named after Martha Johnson, the drag queen who is credited with starting the 1969 riot at the Stonewall Inn. Their second album, I Am a Bird Now, released February 8, 2005, features Lou Reed on one track and Peter Hujar's deathbed photograph of Candy Darling on the cover.

I have always been fascinated with connections and influences and collaborations in music. As one could imagine, the rich historical context in which I Am a Bird Now is embedded makes me drool. But even taken completely out of context, the album approaches perfection. Within weeks of its release, it shot directly into my top five favorite albums ever released.

I Am a Bird Now is about intermediate spaces, androgyny, ambiguity, ambivalence, uncertainty, fear of and hope for the future, and bittersweet reflections on the past. Above all, Antony meditates on transfigurations: childhood to adulthood, manhood to womanhood, life to death. It is fitting, then, that Candy Darling graces the cover, having undergone two of these and on the precipice of the third.

Antony's voice is what most critics have focused on. He isn't the most technically competent singer, but his voice is smooth, genderless, and naturally appealing. He sounds simultaneously terrified and confident, joyful and despairing. But his songwriting is the real treat. It is the songs that give his voice a chance to show what it can do.

"Oh I'm scared of the middle place between light and nowhere," Antony declares in the first track, "Hope There's Someone". Not one to let fear rule him, he spends much of the remainder of the album exploring and charting the "middle place" for the listener. In "For Today I Am a Boy", Antony describes growing up in the wrong body and desperately wishing for a new one. He laments that "I was born old, not a girl and not a jewel" in "Spiralling". After struggling to accept his true nature he finally finds salvation in "Bird Girl": "I've been searching for my wings some time... I'm gonna be borne into soon the sky, 'cause I'm a bird girl and the bird girls go to heaven."

I Am a Bird Now reeks of soul when most music, particularly outwardly gay-themed music, was completely devoid of it. Unabashedly emotional but completely sincere, the album was completely unlike anything that had been released by a gay artist in a recent memory, perhaps unlike anything ever released by anyone. The genre of torch songs has largely been ignored by gay men of the younger generations, too femme or too over-the-top or just plain unnecessary at a time when gay is synonymous with normal to a growing segment of the mainstream. Its remnants can be found in tacky, unoriginal drag shows and gay-themed comedies like Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. I Am a Bird Now, however, reminds us why torch songs were once a legitimate art form. Antony has managed to make them relevant again, even to the musical mainstream that once mocked Jobriath and Klaus Nomi for their flamboyance. Hopefully, I Am a Bird Now will have the same effect on younger gay men, who now mock one another for any peceived deviation from a pretense of masculinity.

Today's listening

  1. Antony & The Johnsons: I Am a Bird Now
  2. Morrissey: Ringleader of the Tormentors
  3. Édith Piaf: Éternelle
  4. The Sisters of Mercy: Floodland
  5. Nick Drake: Pink Moon
  6. Dungen: Ta Det Lugnt

Smobriety

I forgot to mention that yesterday marked one year without any kind of nicotine.

Tuesday, April 25, 2006

Slow music day

...unless you count recordings of phone calls between LBJ and J. Edgar Hoover as music.

Today's listening:

  1. Jens Lekman: Oh You're So Silent Jens
  2. Sufjan Stevens: Illinois
  3. The Boy Least Likely To: The Best Party Ever
  4. The Cure: Pornography

A significant moment

I just finished the last paper of my undergraduate career.

Monday, April 24, 2006

Today's listening

  1. Calexico: Garden Ruin
  2. Maritime: We, the Vehicles
  3. Feathers: Feathers
  4. Measles Mumps Rubella: Fantastic Success
  5. Magneta Lane: Dancing With Daggers
  6. Ladytron: Witching Hour
  7. Prince: Dirty Mind
  8. Devendra Banhart: Cripple Crow

Products that will soon be illegal in South Carolina

As threedogheads points out, South Carolina is considering a bill that would ban sex toys. I believe that this law would have unforeseen disastrous consequences. Here are some products that could be construed as illegal under such a ban.




  1. The Octodog - "The Octodog brings fun to an ordinary hotdog and meal... Remember to get out the camera! Your photos can be used to win prizes..."
  2. Cirque du Soleil.
  3. Fritos - because they are a potent aphrodisiac.
  4. The entire Kenneth Cole collection.
  5. Police uniform costumes - The law might require retailers to ask customers whether they will be using them as Halloween costumes or to re-enact Tom of Finland illustrations.
  6. Car battery jumper cables.
  7. Post-bachelaureate degrees - Nothing gets me hotter.
  8. Cell phones or pagers that vibrate.
  9. Personal "massagers".
  10. All food products that even slightly resemble genetalia.
  11. CSI: Crime Scene Investigations.

And, of course, it would be illegal for Michael to enter South Carolina at any time. Luckily, I doubt that he will ever have the urge to go there.

Sunday, April 23, 2006

Procrastination

The last paper of the semester is due on Tuesday. I haven't started or selected a topic yet. No worries, though. I was in the same position two days before the last paper was due but I still got an A+ on it.

I am still working on the next installment of Albums That Loved Me Back but I don't think I will post it until Tuesday at the very soonest.

I don't usually listen to much music on Sundays, but I wanted to get a start on some of the stuff I downloaded from Emusic. Here is what I have been listening to:

  1. Gotan Project: Lunático
  2. Aloha: Some Echoes
  3. Godspeed You! Black Emperor: Slow Riot For New Zero Kanada
  4. Wilderness: Vessel States

Saturday, April 22, 2006

paleunderweight podcast 11

Today's podcast is now online:

  1. New Order: "Vanishing Point"
  2. Kanye West: "Addiction"
  3. José González: "Hints"
  4. Pulp: "Razzmatazz"
  5. Jan Jelinek: "Im Diskodickicht"
  6. This Mortal Coil: "'Til I Gain Control Again"
  7. Lou Reed: "Make Up"
  8. Frog Eyes: "The Oscillator's Hum"
  9. Brian Eno & David Byrne: "The Jezebel Spirit"
  10. The Microphones: "You'll Be in the Air"
  11. Liars: "Hold You, Drum"
  12. O Yuki Conjugate: "A Darker Belief"
  13. Beck: "Get Real Paid"
  14. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah: "Over and Over Again (Lost and Found)"
  15. Yo La Tengo: "Autumn Sweater"
  16. Islands: "Volcanoes"
  17. Fort Lauderdale: "Silent Ways"
  18. Super Furry Animals: "Ohio Heat"

Friday, April 21, 2006

1000

This Sunday, my music collection will exceed 1000 albums. My Emusic downloads refresh on the 23rd of each month, allowing me to download 90 mp3s, usually 7-8 complete albums. This will bring me to a total of 12,335 tracks on my iPod. It would take more than five weeks to listen to every track without interruption. Needless to say, I won't run out of material for my podcast anytime soon.

Today's listening:

  1. Beck: Midnite Vultures
  2. This Mortal Coil: Blood
  3. O Yuki Conjugate: Peyote
  4. Jan Jelinek: Kosmischer Pitch
  5. The Velvet Underground: The Velvet Underground
  6. New Order: Technique
  7. Liars: Drum's Not Dead
  8. Mugison: Little Trip

Keeping me company

Thursday, April 20, 2006

Sushi and apples

I'm just finishing up my lunch and I have almost an hour and a half until my next class.

I haven't yet heard from the appraisal company, but I don't know if I can accept that job if they offer it to me. I can't afford to be without medical benefits, even for the amount they would pay to start. I also don't want to have to buy a car quite yet, if ever. One of my colleagues will probably leave us for brighter horizons within a couple of weeks, leaving a full-time specialist position open. I think that trying for that job will be a safer bet.

I am quite impressed with the Memphis Industries sampler I downloaded last night. I was expecting a lot of post-punk revival stuff because of the Field Music tracks, but I was pleasantly surprised. The tracks cover a lot of ground musically, reminiscent of early 60's Motown girl-groups, Aladdin Sane-era Bowie, late 80's A.R. Kane-esque shoegaze/dub/psychedelia, etc. I would rate at least half the tracks as excellent. And it's free!

I re-read yesterday's "Albums That Loved Me Back" and I'm fairly pleased with it. I think I need to focus more on my purpose for writing, rather than just posting semi-random musings. I am trying to convey that the albums I write about are in a class apart from most music. They have rewarded the attention I have given them by giving me pleasure, hope, strength, etc. What I have received from them is of much greater value than the money, time, and effort I have invested in buying and listening to them - hence the title. My goal is to give a sense of how my life is inextricably enmeshed with the music, giving critical commentary and personal narrative. I'm going to spend more time on the next one. It will be a fairly new one, released just last year. It's hard to get very much perspective on an album that hasn't been out very long, but this one is truly remarkable. More soon.

Today's listening:

  1. Daft Punk: Homework
  2. V/A: It Came From Memphis
  3. Sia: Colour the Small One
  4. Antony & The Johnsons: I Am a Bird Now
  5. Menomena: I Am the Fun Blame Monster!
  6. Frog Eyes: The Folded Palm
  7. Mike Ladd: Father Divine

Wednesday, April 19, 2006

Free music

Memphis Industries has released a free compilation album called It Came From Memphis via Emusic. I haven't heard of most of the artists, but the ones I've heard of are quite good. For the chance to discover interesting new music, I think it's well worth the time.

Albums That Loved Me Back #2

Tubeway Army: Replicas

In August 1996, my mother and I arrived in Austin, Texas in a U-Haul van. Stuck in gridlock on the southbound I-35 in the humid afternoon, my bladder on the verge of bursting, I didn't notice that we had just passed ABCD's, the store where I would spend many paychecks over the next few months.

I turned 19 a few days after we arrived. My mother, knowing little about me except that I was fanatical about music, gave me $100 to spend on CDs. The only good record store I knew was ABCD's, having purchased most of the Kraftwerk and Sisters of Mercy albums there while visiting Austin earlier in the year.

We went together. My mother would occasionally feign interest in what I was listening to, but would always dismiss my taste as too weird to learn anything about. We left the store with some music by Devo, Download, Alien Sex Fiend, black tape for a blue girl, and some others I don't remember. The album that left the greatest impression on me was Replicas, the sophmore album by Gary Numan's band, Tubeway Army.

Released in 1979, the same year as their debut, Replicas represented a pivotal departure from the generic punk sound of the demos that caught the attention of Beggars Banquet. Adapted from an unfinished sci-fi novel that Numan wrote in high school, Replicas used synthesizers to complement traditional rock instruments and create a futuristic, surreal new wave sound. The album told a story of robotic sexual companions and sadistic politicians that was, not coincidentally, reminiscent of the short stories of Numan's idol, Philip K. Dick. Replicas used the not-too-distant future as a setting for its themes of alienation and individuality. Ironically, though these themes formed the foundations of punk, the British music press mocked Numan for being flamboyant and odd compared to his peers.

These are the very qualities that got me hooked on Replicas. Though Numan chastized his contemporaries in punk for becoming soulless conformists, he expressed how I felt about American twenty-something gay men, or most of the ones I had ever known, anyway. In "Machman", Numan points a finger at those that would laugh at him for being different and accuses them of being instruments of oppression - the very "rape machines" described in "Down in the Park". The title track bemoans the institutionalized hostility towards individuality that was just as active in the punk scene of his time as it had been in the British school system when Numan first imagined the story.

I related his disillusionment to my own coming-out experiences. I tried to break free from society's insane notions of masculinity - only to find that the gay community's notions were even less realistic. Numan would certainly have recognized the masses of Abercrombie & Fitch clones that infested Roscoe's on a Saturday night as the same "machmen" he described.

In a way, Replicas accomplished what most science writers try to do but fail. Its fantastical story is rooted in themes that were relevant to its time - and are still relevant today. Without a coherent plotline or skillful character development, the album moves the listener as any Philip K. Dick story. For this reason more than any other, Replicas remains one of my favorite albums ten years later.

Today's listening

  1. Brian Eno & David Byrne: My Life in the Bush of Ghosts
  2. Pulp: His 'n' Hers
  3. Kanye West: Late Registration
  4. Suicide: A Way of Life
  5. Yo La Tengo: I Can See the Heart Beating As One

Tuesday, April 18, 2006

Sudoku

My interview seemed to go fairly well. The location seems an auspicious sign. It is run out of the home of the owner (temporarily), who lives right near the trail that Michael and I hike and just a couple of houses over from a camel named Nitro whom Michael likes to visit periodically. Their new office will be at an intersection that I am at all the time. I'm not resting all of my hopes on this job because there is just one opening. I have about as good a shot as anyone else they are interviewing, so I won't assume the worst either. I should hear something tomorrow.

Less than a week ago, I didn't even know what sudoku was. Now I'm addicted to it. I found a great free site with millions of puzzles. They will even send a free mobile version to your cell phone. I think the number of puzzles you get is limited, but it's free, so I'm not going to complain much.

Today's listening:

  1. The Cure: Disintegration
  2. Grandaddy: Sumday
  3. Hot Chip: Coming On Strong
  4. The The: Infected
  5. Islands: Return to the Sea
  6. José González: Veneer
  7. Love and Rockets: Earth Sun Moon
  8. The Microphones: The Glow, Pt. 2

Monday, April 17, 2006

Interview tomorrow

On a brighter note, I have an interview with the real estate appraisal company tomorrow morning. Wish me luck!

Today's listening:

  1. Tim Buckley: Blue Afternoon
  2. Iron & Wine: The Creek Drank the Cradle
  3. Lou Reed: Transformer
  4. Kraftwerk: Computer World
  5. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah: Clap Your Hands Say Yeah

Rage

That's the best way to describe my reaction to this article.

If you haven't been following the story, here's a quick recap. Two camp counselors, Clifton Bennett and Kyle Wheeler, repeatedly inserted foreign objects, including broomsticks and flashlights, between the buttocks of 18 boys at a leadership camp in Yavapai County, Arizona. The boys ranged from 11 to 14 years old. When the two camp counselors were arrested, they were each charged with 18 counts of aggravated assault and 18 of kidnapping. They confessed that they had perpetrated this heinous acts against the children.

Seems like an open-and-shut case, right?

Wrong. Bennett is the son of a Republican state Senator and wealthy businessman from Prescott.

Bennett, 18, and Wheeler, 19, have been offered a plea agreement in spite of their confessions. Prosecutors have agreed to drop all but one assault charge for Bennett and two for Wheeler if they plead guilty. Prosecuting attorney James Landis will recommend little or no jail time.

Landis offers several pathetic justifications for giving the young men slaps on the wrist. First, he says that the incidents were just part of a 'hazing'. Second, he says there was no sexual intent in their acts. The final and most appalling reason is that Bennett and Wheeler aren't gay.

Yavapai County Attorney Sheila Polk released a statement attempting to justify this insanity. However, even a cursory glance at the 51-page police report reveals that her statement grossly oversimplifies the crimes. She says that the acts weren't sexual assault because the boys were wearing clothes. She does not mention that Bennett and Wheeler threatened the boys with violence if they ever told anyone. Nor does she mention that Bennett and Wheeler had an accomplice, Ren McGee, who at times held the boys down while they assaulted them. McGee has not been charged.

Aside from the technicalities, the police report makes it clear that these children's lives have been shaken. Theirs is a long, treacherous road to recovery. Their sexual lives will always be affected by this experience. Some, with love and support, will transform their trauma into strength, but it will take many years. What does it matter whether they had clothes on or not... whether their attackers intended to derive sexual pleasure or just to terrorize them? These petty details mean nothing to the boys and their families. Has Polk considered the long-term effects the abuse will have on their well-being? Probably not. Would Polk think it was sexual assault if someone came up from behind, held her down, and "broomsticked" her over her pants? I bet she would.

Polk has failed miserably to fight for justice. She has done a terrible disservice to the victims and their families. She has missed the opportunity to ensure that Bennett, Wheeler, and McGee receive psychiatric evaluation and treatment. She has sent the message that violence against children, even sexual violence, is nothing more than a harmless prank. In other words, she failed to do her job. She has failed Yavapai County.

I hope they remember this the next time she is up for re-election.

Saturday, April 15, 2006

paleunderweight podcast 10

I now have today's podcast posted:

  1. The Go! Team: "Get It Together"
  2. Depeche Mode: "Damaged People"
  3. Tom Waits: "Chocolate Jesus"
  4. Robyn: "Konichiwa Bitches"
  5. CocoRosie: "Hatian Love Songs"
  6. Man Man: "Engrish Bwudd"
  7. Caribou: "Brahminy Kite"
  8. Suede: "Animal Lover"
  9. M.I.A.: "Hombre"
  10. The Mountain Goats: "Source Decay"
  11. Einstürzende Neubauten: "Wüste"
  12. Junior Senior: "Rhythm Bandits"
  13. The Joggers: "Era Prison"
  14. Serena Maneesh: "Her Name Is Suicide"
  15. A Gun Called Tension: "Electric Chair"
  16. Jason Collett: "Almost Summer"
  17. Röyksopp: "Go Away"
  18. Múm: "I Can't Feel My Hand Any More, It's Alright, Sleep Tight"
  19. Black Rebel Motorcycle Club: "Sympathetic Noose"

Friday, April 14, 2006

Inane het 22-year-old columnist has a point

I know, I know, I know! It's disturbing that I would stoop so low. However, despite this journalism major's appalling disregard for appropriate use of punctuation and his horrifyingly inept writing style, he has a point. Being a college senior does, in fact, peform fellatio on "donkey dick". I am just relieved that someone out there understands my daily struggle with senioritis.

Thursday, April 13, 2006

Holy crap!

Pitchfork is reporting that Sonic Youth's Daydream Nation is being honored by the Library of Congress (along with 49 other historically significant recordings) and inducted into its National Recording Registry.

Even more astonishingly, in my opinion, is that this year's registry includes Switched-On Bach by Walter/Wendy Carlos and that they list her as Wendy, rather than Walter (the name she still had at the time the album was released.)

I'm glad that the NRR hasn't been tainted by theocrats yet.

I am doing cartwheels around the office

I just returned a call from a prospective employer. I am going to get a call sometime next week for an interview for a commercial appraisal company. Not the kind of work I'm looking for, but it would pay well enough that I could still afford grad school in the not-too-distant future. More about that later.

I am currently listening to New Order. They were one of the first bands that I ever became obsessed with. I'm thinking about writing a post about the best lesser known b-sides and album tracks from the Warsaw/Joy Division/New Order/Thick Pigeon/Electronic/Revenge/The Other Two/Monaco catalog. (Impressed that I named them chronologically?) On second thought, I haven't listened to any of it except certain New Order and Joy Division albums in many years. Perhaps I should start with a band whose work I remember more clearly.

Today's listening:

  1. Depeche Mode: Playing the Angel
  2. New Order: Low-life
  3. Sinéad O'Connor: The Lion and the Cobra
  4. The Mountain Goats: All Hail West Texas
  5. M.I.A.: Arular
  6. Lightning Bolt: Hypermagic Mountain

Wednesday, April 12, 2006

Thank you!

Thanks to DM from threedogheads for creating the new logo. I hope you all like the new look.

Should still be studying

I was way more depressed than perhaps I should be when I read about the igloo shortage in the Arctic. I was beginning to get concerned that I was taking the news way harder than one could reasonably expect someone in my circumstances to take it. Maybe it's just because I'm an anthropology major, I thought, or maybe it's due to my medication.

In any case, I can't afford to be depressed today. I have an exam in less than three hours and I desperately need to study for it. I took a walk to the corner market and bought three candy bars, a huge bottle of water, and a blue book for the exam. Somehow I knew that CocoRosie would cheer me up on the way. I'm still rather unenthused about my day but at least I'm not obsessing about the well-being of Inuits I have never met.

My listening so far:

  1. The Go! Team: Thunder, Lightning, Strike
  2. Black Rebel Motorcycle Club: Howl
  3. CocoRosie: La Maison de Mon Rêve
  4. Man Man: Six Demon Bag
  5. Múm: Finally We Are No One
  6. The Decemberists: Castaways and Cutouts
  7. Einstürzende Neubauten: Tabula Rasa

Tuesday, April 11, 2006

Should be studying

I fell asleep while studying for tomorrow's test. I still have a lot to read and not enough time to read it.

Today's listening:

  1. A Gun Called Tension: A Gun Called Tension
  2. Morrissey: Ringleader of the Tormentors
  3. Robyn: Robyn
  4. Tom Waits: Mule Variations
  5. Echo & The Bunnymen: Ocean Rain
  6. Junior Senior: D-D-Don't Don't Stop the Beat
  7. Xiu Xiu: La Forêt

Monday, April 10, 2006

I still ♥ Neko Case

Just read the Pitchfork interview.

My favorite parts:

"When I hear auto tune on somebody's voice, I don't take them seriously. Or you hear somebody like Alicia Keys, who I know is pretty good, and you'll hear a little bit of auto tune and you're like, 'You're too fucking good for that. Why would you let them do that to you? Don't you know what that means?' It's not an effect like people try to say, it's for people like Shania Twain who can't sing. Yet there they are, all over the radio, jizzing saccharine all over you. It's a horrible sound and it's like, 'Shania, spend an extra hour in the studio and you'll hit the note and it'll sound fine. Just work on it, it's not like making a burger!'"

"And if Celine Dion is supposedly the great singer that she says she is why is there auto tune on every fucking word in her songs? Can't you just hit it, Celine? Do you have another baby book to shoot? You gotta paint your baby to look like a pot of peas? What are you doing that you can't be singing in the studio? It's your fucking job!"

Gotta love Neko Case.

What I do instead of studying for an important exam

I created a Myspace page for the podcast the other day. It's a good sign that artists are adding me to their friends list rather than suing me.

Also, I am thinking about creating a logo for pale underweight that would be used for the blog, the Myspace page, and my webpage. I'm thinking that I would create a banner from my profile photo and add the words "pale underweight" in white lowercase text. Probably in different spots, with "underweight" much smaller. Or perhaps "pale" could be in lavender or light pink. Any ideas?

Here is today's listening:

  1. Jason Collett: Idols of Exile
  2. The Joggers: With a Cape and a Cane
  3. Caribou: The Milk of Human Kindness
  4. Suede: Suede
  5. Serena Maneesh: Serena Maneesh
  6. Blonde Redhead: Misery Is a Butterfly
  7. Röyksopp: The Understanding

Sunday, April 09, 2006

West Wing spoiler alert

Matthew Santos was just declared the winner of the election with 272 electoral votes.

Let's hope life imitates art in 2008.

The universe is (almost) perfect now...

... because a whole shitload of long-out-of-print Chris & Cosey albums and EPs are available for download at Emusic!!! My prayers have finally been answered!

Saturday, April 08, 2006

paleunderweight podcast 9

The new podcast is here:

  1. Serge Gainsbourg: "Je Suis Venu Te Dire Que Je M'en Vais"
  2. Talking Heads: "This Must Be the Place (Naïve Melody)"
  3. The Exploding Hearts: "Jailbird"
  4. Eurythmics: "Put the Blame on Me"
  5. Broken Social Scene: "Swimmers"
  6. Kiss Me Deadly: "Pop"
  7. Dead Can Dance: "Enigma of the Absolute"
  8. Pixies: "Hey"
  9. Justus Köhncke: "Schwabylon"
  10. Death Cab for Cutie: "Brothers on a Hotel Bed"
  11. The New Pornographers: "Testament to Youth in Verse"
  12. Tom Waits: "Invitation to the Blues"
  13. Yeah Yeah Yeahs: "Cheated Hearts"
  14. Current 93: "They Return to Their Earth"
  15. Christian Death: "The Blue Hour"
  16. Death From Above 1979: "Sexy Results"
  17. The Flaming Lips: "Bohemian Rhapsody"

Sorry for the delay. Got it in just before midnight though!

Sugarfoot on my leg

Trena and Michael

Trena and me

The madness of King George

Literally, without exaggeration or hyberbole, the President is mad. He thinks that he is on a mission from God to democratize (or more likely, theocratize) the world, even if he has to kill everyone to do it. If he is not removed from office, then I believe that he will start World War III. And it won't be pretty.

He will never resign if he is truly in the grips of a mental illness. Aside from that, two legal means exist for removing him from office. Amendment XXV is unlikely to be to be used, because Cheney has too much to gain financially from the current arrangement. The Cabinet secretaries don't seem to mind it too much, either.

The alternative, then, is impeachment (Article 1, Section 2 and Article 2, Section 4). The prospects for this seem bleak also.

All I can suggest is to vote Democrat in November and hope and pray that Bush doesn't drop any nukes on Iran before the new Democratic majority impeaches him in January.

(Thanks to Americablog for finding the New Yorker article.)

Friday, April 07, 2006

Friday's listening

  1. Dead Can Dance: Spleen and Ideal
  2. Broken Social Scene: Broken Social Scene
  3. Death Cab for Cutie: Plans
  4. Justus Köhncke: Doppelleben

Amen, sister!

David at threedogheads has a new post up today that is so well-written and so true that I just have to link to it. Check it out.

Also, I can't think of anything I want to say right now.

Chromatophores! That's the word I have been trying to remember all day.

Thursday, April 06, 2006

Today's listening

  1. Eurythmics: Savage
  2. The Exploding Hearts: Guitar Romantic
  3. Silver Jews: Tanglewood Numbers
  4. Talking Heads: Speaking in Tongues
  5. The New Pornographers: Electric Version
  6. Tom Waits: Small Change
  7. Kiss Me Deadly: Misty Medley

More mensiversary thoughts

Now that I have finished my paper about metaphors in which alcoholism is a target domain, I have time to blog more about Michael.

Here are some reasons why I agree with my friend Jason's assessment that Michael is the best boyfriend I have ever had. (Warning: This is going to be sappy.)


♥ We both worship Margaret Cho.

♥ He understands why Homer Simpson is my hero.

♥ He doesn't jabber incessantly about other guys he would "do".

♥ He is a health nut and a neat freak, but doesn't seem to mind that I am not.

♥ He used the 'L' word at a time when I was thinking it, but was afraid to say it and scare him off.

♥ He adores my animals and they adore him.

♥ This is the first relationship I have had in which we have done volunteer work together.

♥ He thinks my clumsiness is cute.

♥ He has a sick sense of humor.

♥ He can quote Designing Women verbatim.

♥ He thinks Uma is fierce.

♥ He believes in monogamy.

♥ He initiates public displays of affection.

♥ He keeps my feet warm.

♥ He is unashamed of sentimentality.

♥ He is literate and employed.

♥ He looks fantastic in a tie.

♥ He knows which colors look best on me.

♥ And, then of course, the most important reason - I'm in love with him.

Wednesday, April 05, 2006

Albums That Loved Me Back #1

Christian Death: Catastrophe Ballet

I first heard about Christian Death from my first crush. When we first ended up on the same adult-jenior bowling league, this scrawny skater made little impression on me. But we gradually started to get to know one another and were soon friends. One summer he went away, and when he came back, he was Gothic!

I had never known a Goth before, and he suddenly intrigued me. Why was I so excited that he wore make-up and smoked cloves and talked about being depressed all the time?, I asked myself. The answer didn't occur to me until later.

He had told me about Christian Death but it took me a few months to get up the nerve to buy n album by a band with such an inflammatory name. I was sure as I was going to Hell as soon as I heard the version of "Spiritual Cramp" on The Iron Mask: "...Satan is by far the kindest beast..." I was a little put off but very curious. It started out slow, but my fascination took root.

I didn't acquire Catastrophe Ballet until I was seventeen. For a young gay man just coming out, this album provided a lot of subtle and overt references to homosexuality, which I desperately sought at the time. "...while the curious men with their curious smiles leave rejected in pairs, one by one, " Rozz sings on "Cervix Couch". It wasn't long before had played the album a hundred times, becoming a fan in the process.

Aside from the gloomy music, Christian Death had an irresistable mythos surrounding them. Rozz Williams started the band in the early 1980's, but the original line-up broke up after one album, Only Theatre of Pain. He then teamed up with Valor and Gitane Demone, then of Pompeii 99, to record Catastrophe Ballet, in my opinion the best work any of them would ever do. After Ashes, Rozz left the band with the understanding that Valor would no longer use the name. However, Valor broke his promise and not only began using the name Christian Death, but started taking credit for songs written by Rozz before Valor joined the band.

It seemed everyone had a story about Rozz. Did Shadow really lend Rozz her skull-buckle Italian leather boots in London? Did Scott really fuck Rozz in Frisco? Did Aviva really slam dope with him in Santa Monica? All of the speculations added to the mystique for me.

On April 1, 1998, I read the news online. I thought it was an April Fool's Day joke. Hadn't Groovie Mann from Thrill Kill Kult spread rumors of his own death the previous year? But alas, it was no joke. Rozz had hanged himself. I was saddened by the realization that I would never have a chance to see him live. I thought about the show he and Gitane had planned two years before in Mesa. It had been cancelled because they had been detained on drug charges. I was disappointed when my friends and I showed up, but we had no idea at the time that the show was cancelled forever.

I once loved Rozz because he made me sad; upon learning of his death, I hated him for the same reason.

I listened to Catastrophe Ballet today for the first time in I don't remember how long. For some reason, the songs made me smile. I guess that, knowing what I know now, I can finally remember Rozz and his legacy with gratitude.

6th mensiversary


Today Michael and I celebrate our sixth mensiversary (it's a word; Google it). Actually, we are celebrating it tomorrow night because I have a paper due tomorrow afternoon that I haven't started yet. For that reason, I don't have time to blog much about it right now. I have a lot to say about why I feel so fortunate that Michael is in my life, but alas, it will have to wait until I finish my paper.

Here is my listening for today:

  1. Morrissey: Ringleader of the Tormentors
  2. The Flaming Lips: At War With the Mystics
  3. Band of Horses: Everything All the Time
  4. Yeah Yeah Yeahs: Show Your Bones
  5. Christian Death: Catastrophe Ballet
  6. Death From Above 1979: You're a Woman, I'm a Machine

Tuesday, April 04, 2006

Some upcoming releases in music

April 11:

  • Built to Spill: You in Reverse
  • Calexico: Garden Ruin
  • Feathers: Feathers
  • Field Music: Field Music
  • Pretty Girls Make Graves: Elan Vital
  • Wilderness: Vessel States

April 18:

  • Aphex Twin: Chosen Lords
  • The Fiery Furnaces: Bitter Tea
  • Islands: Return to the Sea
  • The Secret Machines: Ten Silver Drops

April 25:

  • The Streets: The Hardest Way to Make an Easy Living

May 9:

  • Danielson: Ships
  • Grandaddy: Just Like the Fambly Cat
  • Matmos: The Rose Has Teeth in the Mouth of the Beast
  • Mission of Burma: The Obliterati
  • Scott Walker: The Drift
  • Wooden Wand and the Sky High Band: Second Attention

All release dates collected from brainwashed and metacritic.

Things I do instead of homework

  1. Serge Gaisbourg: Love and the Beat 1
  2. Pixies: Doolittle
  3. Current 93: Thunder Perfect Mind

Ding, dong, the witch is dead!*

"'I refuse to allow liberal Democrats an opportunity to steal this seat with a negative personal campaign,' DeLay said in a video announcement Tuesday, a few hours after news broke of his decision [to resign]." - from CNN.com.

Translation: "I refuse to allow my Democratic challenger to win my seat by using my own statements and actions to demonstrate what a douchebag I am. Instead, I will just hand my seat over to the Democratic Party and allow my constituents to be represented my someone who isn't a douchebag."**

*Not intended to degrade pagans by any association with Tom DeLay.

**To be fair, I know nothing about Nick Lampson, so I can't promise that he won't be a douchebag. However, there is a 99.99% chance that he would be either a non-douchebag or much less of a douchebag than DeLay.

Monday, April 03, 2006

Resolution

I have 38 days until graduation. I have been slacking this semester due to a terrible case of senioritis. As of right now, I have to get serious. No more leaving class early. No more ditching classes because I just don't feel like showing up. No more procrastinating until the night before the assignment is due.

Off to Prehispanic Civ now.

Sunday, April 02, 2006

Podcast news

All eight episodes are now available via the RSS feed:

http://www.paleunderweight.com/files/rss_feed.xml

Michael and Missy

Eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs, eyeballs everywhere!

Friday morning a co-worker called in sick, confirming what we all had suspected - pinkeye. I briefly considered making an appointment with Dr. Hottie for that afternoon just in case. I decided to file it under "Wait and See" and enjoy the day. We were having a party for a student worker who was leaving us forever for a great new job. No time for fretting about viral conjunctivitis - this food wasn't going to eat itself.

On my way home on the bus, my right eye started stinging intermittently. Oh crap, I thought. I called Dr. Hottie's office on my cell. They could see me if I could get there before three. I was relieved. Even if I had pinkeye, I thought that I could start the antibiotic drops that afternoon and no longer be contageous by the next evening. I was not going to miss Cirque du Soleil for anything.

I stood on the scale, turning my head away. I didn't want to know how much weight I had gained.

"216," the nurse said. Apparently I had neglected to inform her of my plan - weight loss through denial.

I was half-asleep on the table when Dr. Hottie came in. He examined my eyes. No pinkeye. My irritation was due to allergies. Relief.

We discussed the side effects of my anxiety meds. I told him that sometimes it felt like there wasn't enough gravity. He switched me to Lexapro. He gave me months worth of samples. I was grateful to not have to pay for any prescriptions, as I am pretty much broke until graduation.

Later that evening, I hastily recorded the interstitial bits for my podcast. I set up my iPod to play the tracks and interstitials in the right order and began recording it with Polderbits. I laid down on the couch to watch the first few episodes of The Simpons, season seven, with commentary.

I woke up at about 2:30 with Sideshow Mel staring me in the face. I knew that my podcast was done recording, but editing would wait. I dragged myself into bed and went back to sleep.

In the morning, I edited the podcast and posted it to the web. I played WoW for an hour. I threw on some shorts and a t-shirt, wet down my Flock-of-Seagulls hair, hopped on my bicycle, and rode to Sonic for some lunch. Listened to the podcast on the way. The sun and breeze felt good on my legs. Came back, took Missy to the park. I steered clear of the couple with their four children. Missy loves getting attention from strangers and I didn't want to be there all day.

While I was getting ready to jump in the shower, Michael texts me. "What r u wearing?"

"Right now or at cirque?"

"At cirque, silly!"

"Nothing but a jockstrap!" I reply cheekily.

On the way to Cirque du Soleil, I decided to have a little April-Fool's fun with Michael. I managed to convince him that Jenny and I had gotten married five years ago so she could get on my medical insurance and that I hadn't told him until now because I didn't know whether he'd still want to be with me knowing I was married. He bought it completely. I couldn't keep up the charade for too long; it was getting harder to add outlandish details without laughing.

I called Jenny and left a message detailing my prank on her voice mail. She called back moments later to congratulate me.

"Tom Waits is coming next month!" she said.

"Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh my God!" I replied. "When?! Where?! How much?!"

"April Fool's!"

I guess I had it coming.

Cirque was fabulous in so many ways. Michael and I talked about it for the entire trip back to his place. While he packed his overnight bag, we discussed our plans for the evening. We were both craving nachos, so we settled on Hamburger Mary's.

When we arrived, we were horrified to find that it wasn't Hamburger Mary's anymore. "What the fuck is Burger Betty's?!" I exclaimed. It was packed. Tim was sitting at a table by the door, collecting the cover charge. I improvised. "How about Pookie's?"

Michael had never been. It was just down the street. We arrived, surprised that even Pookie's had changed its name - to Miggie B's. Oh well. We were starving. Our host informed us that a former waiter just bought the place, hence the name change. Same menu, same people - just a new look and a new name.

We scarfed down the nachos so quickly that we weren't hungry anymore by the time the burgers arrived. We asked our waiter to box them up, I paid and left a handsome tip, and we left.

We rented Crash. Not the Cronenberg film. The new one - the one that beat Brokeback Mountain for Best Picture. Pretty good movie. Better than I was expecting. I still preferred Brokeback Mountain. We stayed up for a while watching TV with John.

This morning Michael went and got us coffee while I was still in bed. He left fairly early because he has a lot of crap to get done. Now I am blogging and procrastinating about getting on my bike.

Thoughts about the podcast

I'm pretty pleased with the most recent podcast turned out. I thought I would hate the sound of my voice, but it doesn't sound as bad as I thought it would. Two things that I want to work on: a) sound quality and b) having more to say about the music. The prior should be easy enough; Polderbits has a few filters that I can play with and see if it will take away the clicking noise. The latter will be a bit more challenging. For now, however, I am mostly concerned with keeping it under 80 minutes.

More Missy love

Saturday, April 01, 2006

Missy in the park

paleunderweight podcast 8

The new podcast is now online:

  1. Jason Forrest feat. Laura Cantrell: "Nightclothes and Headphones"
  2. Meat Beat Manifesto: "Deviate"
  3. Vashti Bunyan: "If I Were"
  4. Deerhoof: "O'Malley, Former Underdog"
  5. The Russian Futurists: "Hurtin' 4 Certain"
  6. Kelley Polar: "In Time"
  7. Liz Phair: "Dance of the Seven Veils"
  8. Leonard Cohen: "Field Commander Cohen"
  9. The Cramps: "Eyeball in My Martini"
  10. M83: "In Church"
  11. Sparks: "Metaphor"
  12. Arctic Monkeys: "Riot Van"
  13. Stephen Malkmus: "It Kills"
  14. The Mountain Goats: "Baboon"
  15. The Arcade Fire: "Une Annee Sans Lumiere"
  16. T. Rex: "Monolith"
  17. Ghislain Poirier: "Synthetic Rhythms"
  18. Mazarin: "Northeast Winter"
  19. Bonnie "Prince" Billy: "Black"
  20. Yaz: "And On"

...and, for the first time ever, commentary by me.