j i g s a w

hello it's 2012

2012-02-03T00:06:00.000-08:00

photo by Armin C. Antonio

dear jigsaw readers,

hello. it's 2012, I know! I know you know. I messed up. Amy Yao contributed a Best of 2011 list and it was supposed to go up on January 22, which was Chinese New Year...but it didn't happen. Human error. So I will get that up (maybe as a January 22 post, so look backwards if you are reading this in the future!) soon and then move on to the next thing.

Just briefly, the first show I saw in 2012 was The Corin Tucker Band at The Midnight Sun. This event was put on by The Olympia All Ages Project, the folks who brought you The Northern. It was a pretty killer show. Western Hymn opened up. Then Broken Water Played. The Corin Tucker Band headlined and they played all new songs. I have now seen two of their shows. The first one, I think, was a huge show in a giant theater in Portland and it was their first show ever (pretty sure?). This show was kind of the opposite, in the sense that it was a tiny show and didn't sell out but in a way it was similar because they played all new songs, pretty sure they are still learning them/writing them. I thought that was a bold move, because, as someone who is working on new songs, I hesitate to play shows until they are totally finished these days. Why? youtube of course. As a fan I love youtube. As a person-in-a-band, not so much. The songs have to be done when you play a show (ANY SHOW) or else you have to be willing to record a live record at EVERY show to the point to where you are like, ok fuck it. I guess this is an example of how the authority of the author is being challenged by technology (see The Art of Immersion by Frank Rose for more on this idea, review by me forthcoming) ...which ok...if I'm playing drums, what do I care? But if I'm the SINGER SONGWRITER I want to just shoot lasers out of my eyes when I see people recording the shows! Like ok, just stop! Please? Or better yet, don't start.

Anyhow, I digress. The show was cool. Ok I will be honest. I missed the first part of Western Hymn, the first part of Broken Water AND the last part of The Corin Tucker band but that is because part of what we do at shows is hang out right? I mean, there was a lot of walking around and going back to the apartment to meet people and hurrying back to the show to hang out and then my mom txted and was like "when is Corin playing, is it sold out? I am coming to the show" and a friend wanted to know if it was "the real Corin Tucker" or maybe something like "Courtney Love" the band, which is actually Lois and not the singer of Hole. Anyhow, the new songs seem to be shaping up, I look forward to hearing the record and maybe next time I see them play live they will be playing songs they've toured on for awhile so it won't be so hesitant and reserved.

Then Olympia had insane weather so I missed a few shows I was meaning to go see...Hysterics...Crude Thought...Wolves in the Throne Room/Broken Water...oh well, there will be other times to see those same bands. OH. I did also miss going to see Craig Extine's first solo show with Sedan opening up but I do recommend checking out his new album, which is available on CD or tape if you like the acoustic songs on that last Old Haunts Record. I think there was another show that night. Oh yeah, Nudity and maybe Dead Head? Cool bands, will try harder to see them next time. For reals.

On Sunday I did manage to go see Hey Girl, Blues Druid and Pierced Arrows at The Brotherhood. The guy from Hey Girl is like a cross between riot grrl era Allison Wolfe and Will Shatter from Flipper. Totally amazing. They actually remind me of Flowers For Funerals, an early 80's pre-Bratmobile percussive ensemble that did death rock post punk versions of John Waters movies in song form. (But I bet nobody reading this has ever heard that band.) When the girl from Hey Girl sings, they sound kind of like The Pixies or Blood on the Wall maybe. I felt like I was in Arcata when they were playing. I don't know what that means. During the show I was standing in line for the bathroom. A woman said "do you know the band?" I said, which group? She was talking about Hey Girl. She knew the band. She was stoked. I asked about her connection. She said she works with the singer, the guy singer. I said, "oh, where at?" and she said "Brewery City Pizza". Then she paused..."You, know, Pizza Girl??" I didn't know if that meant SHE was THE Pizza Girl or what, but I thought it was a pretty cool interaction. Blues Druid has Dave Harvey on drums and a good bass player. The guitarist kid was skilled but not super soulful in my opinion. It was a groovy groove, that's for sure. Pierced Arrows were ok, not super great. James said it was their best show yet. I don't know because I haven't seen them that many times. I did hear a rumor that Fred and Toody will be playing a set of country ballads somewhere in Portland sometime soon.

Ok that's it so far. I recently was hanging out at Dumpster Values/ Phantom City and everyone was working on stuff -- Perrenial was busy assembling new releases, Broken Water were working on sleeve art for an upcoming 12" and Mary Jane from Polly Darton was laying out a tape cover while she was working the counter at Phantom City. What was I doing? Waiting to use the printer so I could edit some interviews for Sham Pants.

Stay Tuned. 2012 is gonna be a good year.

Love,

Tobi

Best of 2011 by Joey Casio

2012-01-10T01:07:00.000-08:00

The musics of 2011. In this post bloghouse infosphere its hard to pick out what's great from the landscape-our ears are so full of songs they turn into sandgrains and the whole place is an even wash. So you go with what you know and what you've seen:

-TRACEY TRANCE provided the soundtrack to many a late night, in person and on the stereo all over the west coast. Heap some hot oil onto a tape of a rollerink organ player, leave it in the sun next to a dirty magnet, and over dub a fading radio from an indeterminate island in south asia at quarter-volume through a mesh of cardboard, and you'd be halfway there. Transcendent sub-dumpster psychedelia at its finest. Me n' Tyler T.T. made some sounds for the sunrise at thee Mojave Rave' this year. Hands down a high point of the last 365.

-RENE' HELL: I saw Terry Riley play at the art museum on his 90th birthday. It was pretty great, but he has clearly been eclipsed by a generation or three of up and coming composers like Rene' Hell's Jeff Witcher. In his work, interlocking patterns of hypnotically shifting timbres combine to create truly moving instrumental music. Imagine an android letting out a slow, sad sigh as it becomes self aware. Rene Hell is kind of like that. Contemporary as fuck.

-RIND is a new sound echoing from a circuit-laden cathedral where the bomb-holes let you see the stars to gain hope. Lee Relvas layers her voice into in an ominous chorus, and combines it with a backing track that would even the scales on the Melvins or Earth...but this is music from a different century. RIND is utterly transfixing live, as you know if you were lucky enough to catch her on during her epic solo greyhound bus tour.

-HYSTERICS- Sometimes, if a politically-oriented band is truly great, they pull the curtain to the side, and call bullshit on the whole world. Hysterics do this; Not just with their lyrics, which are brilliant, but with the energy they carry in their collective cacophony. It is a thrilling, terrifying and inspiring thing to see and hear. Hysterics are the best hardcore band to emerge in years.

-SEWN LEATHER-Griffin Pyn's SEWN LEATHER is underground dancehall for postmodern times. SEWN LEATHER is an industrial performance art troupe consisting of an unwitting audience and a tape player.
What Technotronic is to hip-house, SEWN LEATHER is to harsh noise. A cult leader without a cult, hopping into the backseat of your van, SEWN LEATHER made the best record of 2011-Sikknastafari Slash Crasstafari.

-Primary Colors- Full disclosure-primary colors are my friends, roomates, colloborators and comrades.
Its a great expirience to see artists you know truly succeed at sharing their aesthetic and idealogical vision with the world. Primary colors unleash a set of totally new tones jumping from tape to synthesiszer and back again, aranged in heavy handed rythms, and then and then and then lock them in with the most manic of percussion,(all metal/ no skin) distorted beyond recognition. Near perfect music. We played togerther on cement strewn trash heap of a beach this year in the shadow of twin smokestacks. Its hard to imagine a more appropriately dystopian setting for this duo.

If I had to choose one “best song” of 2011 it would be this: Lonely Sea (ecstasy mix) by Alexis Blair Penney. Alexis is a singer/artist/performer/dj who blurs a lot of lines when it comes to art, gender and pop music. In this perfomance, Alexis is backed by members of avant-garde house ensemeble MIRACLES CLUB, one of the years best groups in their own right. Sad dance music is a difficult thing to create, but when it is done well, allows us to share in the most intimate and human of experiences.

Alexis Blair Penney - Lonely Sea (Ecstasy Mix Live) from Experimental ½ Hour on Vimeo.

Best of 2011 by Mary Christmas

2012-01-10T01:01:00.000-08:00

Mary Christmas’ Top Nine Art Revolutions and Revelations of the year 2011

1. Occupy Wall Street takes over the world, class war begins

2. Art Strike! The Occupy movement inspires the creation of arts & labor working groups that begin to discuss and dismantle the economic structures of the art world that benefit the superrich while leaving artists struggling to pay rent:

http://artsandlabor.org/
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Occupy-Museums/148157235282782
http://artistsof99percent.tumblr.com/
http://www.occupywithart.com/
http://precariousworkersbrigade.tumblr.com/related_clippings

3. W.A.G.E. (Working Artists in the Greater Economy) begins official certification process to ensure that New York arts institutions pay fees to artists when exhibiting their work

4. Pepper-Spray Cop takes over the visual landscape, then enters art history.

5. Solidarity with locked-out Sotheby’s art handlers union!

6. Alicia McDaid: The Pleasure Principal. The best and most hilarious art exhibit in Portland in 2011. McDaid inhabits all of the therapists she’s ever had in an epic battle between self-help and self-destruction

7. An Open Letter from a Dancer Who Refused to Participate in Marina Abramovic’s MOCA Performance

8. An Open Letter to Labor Servicing the Culture Industry

9. Super hot, super out lesbian actresses take over Hollywood

Best of 2011 by Myths

2012-01-08T13:41:00.001-08:00

Here's our Top Things of 2011:

quinne:
1. the Alexander McQueen show "Savage Beauty" at the Met.
2. Grimes "Oblivion"
3. M.I.A. "ViCKi LEEKX"
4. thehairpin.com
5. exploring Salem and it's 18th century graveyard
6. watching Julianna Barwick perform

lief:
Getting out into nature to communicate with the tree spirits.
Being an auntie to two little itsy bitsy tiny twin babies with dimples!
Slime Show in Rhode Island.
Finishing Our Album! Making a music video. Going on Tour
Dreaming that I discovered an animal that can live forever. It was a pink fleshy mass with four legs and an anus on both sides. It liked to stay warm so I cuddled it against me and it was so happy it grew a little face and smiled and purred and then turned into a pancake.
Listening to my new Steve Reich Violin Phase record I bought last week.
Discovering Brigette Fontain and Areski Belkacem and minimalist dance from the 60s.

Listen to Myths

New song from Grass Widow: Disappearing Industries

2012-01-06T11:55:00.000-08:00

This song will soon be available on a split 7" with Nature from M'Lady'S Records:

M'LR 036A - GRASS WIDOW - DISAPPEARING INDUSTRIES by M'lady's Records

You can read more about it here

Get excited for 2012!

Best of 2011 by Justin Trosper

2012-01-04T17:42:00.000-08:00

Discoveries of 2011 by jtro.

I never consume enough new pop culture every year to really be on top of things. Here is what I found out there:

TRAVEL

Travels in the Yucatan, Mexico. My significant other Sarah and I took a trip to the Yucatan peninsula in Mexico. It was awesome. We ate lots of new foods, drank some interesting tequila, swam in Ceynotes, and mastered the art of Mexican combat driving. I reacquainted myself with Spanish (I had to ask directions often). Plus I like hammocks. I bought one and a hat and a guayabera shirt. It was the highlight of my year. I, like many others, decided I am going to travel more often to exotic and exciting places. Honorable mentions: Joshua Tree in winter, and “The Loowit Trail.”

MUSIC

“Sangue Freddo” Il Teatro Degli Horrori. Not to sound really cool, but you probably have not heard of this band unless you live in Italy. No, I don’t live in Italy. But I met the guitar player many years ago while traveling there and now he is in this band, which is very popular. They sing in Italian. I think this record is fucking awesome. It sounds like noisy post-hardcore stuff like At the Drive In, Jehu, and Unwound but super produced and with this really dramatic singer who sounds like Ozzy at times and others like Mark E. Smith. He is crazy sounding. I’m kind of clueless but I think they rock harder than any bands in the US (except for the Melvins, duh.)

“Let England Shake” PJ Harvey. PJ is the musician I have followed the most closely for the last ten years. I didn’t really listen too much of her stuff in the 90’s but ever since “Stories from the City…” I’ve been hooked. I dislike the production on this record but I think it is supposed to sound like early 4AD or Flying Nun or K. But, as usual, she freakin delivers the goods with her vocals. I like a good singer and there are not very many good singers so I listen to PJ Harvey because she is a good singer.

Honorable mentions: “The Hunter” Mastodon. Not even close to my favorite by them but it is one of the only bands I care about, so I bought it. Still, there are a couple real scorchers here. You can tell they love music. Retro: “The Power of Expression” Bl’ast (1986); “Souvlaki” Slowdive (1992); “Goat” Jesus Lizard (1991).

Wild Flag live at the Northern, Olympia. It was good to see some stellar musicians who have been around for awhile pull together some decent songs and rock out. I said to myself afterwards, “well, I better get going on this band thing I’ve been thinking about…I just have to think of a name and write a manifesto…”

Honorable mentions: Earth live at the Northern (Summer). Scratch Acid live in Portland (December).

BOOKS

“Savage Detectives” Roberto Bolano (2006). I don’t know how to explain this so I won’t. But it changed something in my brain. It made me want to feel nostalgic. It made me want to read literature again. It made me want write. It made me want to hang out in Mexico City. I don’t think I’ll do any of those things. Read it and weep.

Lots of Honorable mentions: “Nation of Rebels: Why Counterculture Became Consumer Culture” Joseph Heath and Andrew Potter (2004); “Wildlife of the Pacific Northwest” David Moskowitz (2010); “Young Men and Fire” Norman Maclean (1993); “On Killing: The Psychological Cost of Learning to Kill in War and Society” Dave Grossman (2009); “Deep Survival” Lawrence Gonzales (2004); “Night Dogs” Kent Anderson (1999); “The Last Good Kiss” James Crumley (1988); “Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen” Christopher McDougall (2010); “On the Warrior's Path, Second Edition: Philosophy, Fighting, and Martial Arts Mythology” Daniele Bolelli (2009); “In Search of the Warrior Spirit, Fourth Edition: Teaching Awareness Disciplines to the Green Berets” Richard Strozzi Heckler (2007).

MOVIES

Kung Fu Movies on the “big screen” at OFS. The last couple of years I have been watching more kung fu movies. The good ones are better than any other movies out there and the bad ones are usually funny. The Olympia Film Society brought some dude from Portland twice (film fests) in to show these original prints. I won’t name them by name. It was awesome--if you were there you know. But you probably weren’t! HA-Ha-Ha. Speaking of martial arts…in 2011 I started practicing Doce Pares Escrima (Also known as Kali or Arnis), which is a Filipino martial art, primarily practiced using rattan sticks. I’m into it. You see, they teach you weapons first before you learn empty-handed techniques. That is reverse from most martial arts. The origins of Escrima come from peasant guerilla fighters (influenced by Chinese and Japanese arts and others), where as many other arts evolved in the upper echelons of societies. Get it? Anybody can pick up a stick (but you must learn how to use it). Common machetes and pocket knives are also emphasized. There are no holy swords here.

“Girl With The Dragon Tattoo” movie. In the summer of 2010 I read two of the books by Steig Larssen while working at summer wildfires. But I would have read them even if I was not getting paid. I saw the Swedish movies and enjoyed them too. Now there is an American film version. Despite my annoyance at this, I had to go. I said that as long as they retained the Swedish character of the novels then I’m ok. They did. A new drinking game was created. Every time the characters have sandwiches and coffee you take a shot. You could name it after the original title of the book “Män som hatar kvinnor” but guaranteed to not be popular.

“Kill All Redneck Pricks” movie. It made me laugh, it made me cry. That is usually a sign of a decent movie. I think it is worth watching. This is just the beginning of the Olympia history series…

Honorable mentions: Fugazi video on youtube.

Dude, this video is killer! --it reminds me of the crazy crowd energy of their shows--surging. No other band I have ever seen came close. They definitely stand the test of time for me. They just came out with an impressive live archive website. Check it out.

FOOD

Ninevah food truck. Olympia, WA. Finally, some decent middle eastern-type food in Olympia. Ever since I moved back from Southern California I have missed my falafel, hummus, and shawarma fix. Word!

Honorable mentions: shrimp tacos at Mad Taco truck in Lacey, Oaxaca Taco truck in Shelton, Al Forno Ferruzza pizza (next to Eastside Tavern—best beer selection in Olympia, yep, I go there sometimes, so what).

Best of 2011 by Mabel Damunt

2012-01-03T17:45:00.000-08:00

A short list:

Bleached, their three 7"s . Great songs. Looking forward to hear more.

Single "Noi pomodori" 7". They cover a couple of songs from a 80s record by actress Lucía Bosé. Art cover full of Zippy'ism. Pinheads and tomatoheads.

Rizoma fest in Madrid. John Waters show and Halo Halo and Trash Kit among others playing in the Retiro park.

Hidrogenesse playing at the Museo Cerralbo. A free show and an expensive view.

Ginkas LP. Lots of friends played on this record. Good tunes, Linda Manz homage and Susana from Incrucificables singing "Derrama tu amor" 

Best of 2011 by Calvin Johnson

2012-01-03T17:09:00.000-08:00

Here are some recordings I listened to over and over again in 2011:

Sewn Leather CS (Friends and Relations Records)
Erin McKinney Earthling CS (Killer Plum)
Psychic Feline “Blood Dolphin” 45 (High Fives and Handshakes)
Lindsay Schief Islinds: Many Minis 2011 CS
Watch It Sparkle 7” EP (Like a Shooting Star)
Love Cuts 7” EP (Nominal Records)
Man the Hunter “Less for You” 45 (Ginko Records)
Mom Greatest Shits CS (Burger)
Hysterics 7” EP (M’Lady Records)
Brave Irene 12” EP (Slumberland)
Flexions Golden Fjord LP (Cairo)
Secret Twin Ill Fit LP
Shana Cleveland & the Sandcastles Oh Man, Cover the Ground CS
Son Skull Birth Scene/Rewind 12” EP (Perennial)
Mansion Music CS (Radical Clatter)
Old Night CS (Ginko)
Margy Pepper CS
The Maxines Queer Mods 7” EP (La-Ti-Da)
The Whines 7” EP (Just for the Hell of It Records)
Katie & the Lichen Kiss and Run CD (Greenbelt Collective)
Stickers 7” EP
Mount Eerie Dawn LP (P.W. Elverum & Sun)
Black Lips Arabia Mountain LP (Vice)
KMVP Sweatbands Understand CS
Point Juncture WA Handsome Orders LP (Mt. Fuji)
Swimsuit Swimsuit LP (Speakertree)

Best of 2011 by Layla Gibbon

2012-01-03T17:08:00.000-08:00

My more structured top ten of the year will run in the next issue of MRR in terms of underground DIY punk, but here are somethings I didn't really talk about in that! I am really fried from putting together the latest MRR, but here are a tired human's attempt at writing about some things that really excited me this year! I feel like there were SO MANY cool new bands and tapes and shows and sounds, punk rock is an endless adventure! Everyone form a band ok?! This isn't in order, no hierarchical judgments! Skate for fun or not at all.

  A)Osa Otoe-core 
Osa is the best writer, Shotgun Seamstress is an incredible project, just reading the introductions is inspiring, makes me want to step it up, really excited for the book of all the zines, and hope that Osa continues to blow minds with her words... As she does with her sounds! The Firebrand/Vegetable tour was one of the coolest this year, both bands operating in the girl punk continuum in new and inspiring manners, serious freak out fan girl time was happening... 2011 was the next step in the new era of amazing girl bands that will soon take over your town, your brain and all of your time. This tour was affirmation of that. (They played with Grass Widow in SF who put out a 7" in 2011 with my fave song of theirs, Milo Minute" such a sneak up on you killer!!!) Anyway OSA-CORE is the future of punk, and I would also like to use this opportunity to shout out to Candice who is also in Firebrand for sending me the tape of her now broken up but incredible HC band NECRO HIPPIES!!! such a good band name! The tape is amazing as is their 12" on Brown Sugar records, a great band, RIP! NOLA girl scene is on fire.    

B) I am not a Pissed Jeans fan but this Flatmates/Shop Assistants styled cover is so rad! Apparently, Jen the girl who sings on this has never been in a band before, it's clear she should start five right away! I listened to this over and over.

  C)http://vixens.bandcamp.com/ 
This was my favorite tape this year. All girl HC from Canada, this shit is SO RAGING, fall apart destruktion core that sums up what I want from hardcore. this sounds like fucking VOID playing GERMS songs, a total frenzy of noise and dissolution. Fuck this is so good! Actually scratch the GERMS this is just total chaos in vicious doses, this is what every CONFUSE/GAI nerd clone wishes their band was like. Seriously just intense noise with bits of destruction falling on your head, like a Survival Research Laboratory show in your bedroom with the Exorcist playing at the wrong speed in the background while DEEP WOUND knits you a sweater out of your stomach tubes. This is the reason punk exists. Fuck! Seriously, the singer’s voice is fucking possessed! Sick!!!!!  

D)Staring Problem tape: I feel as if I am gonna fall into a lake of my own hyperbole but this is totally great nervous sounding post-punk that’s quiet and unsettling, Allison Stratton vocals and really, the person that is writing these words out is so psyched that there are ladies making sounds as transcendent and rife with possibility / fear / otherworldliness as this. Moderntapes.bandcamp.com

E) Generation Suicida tape. This is a band from LA, the South Central punk scene is so rad that I think half of weird TV moved there from Oly!? might be wrong but at any rate this tape was played constantly, singing drummer who wrote an amazing piece about learning how to drum as a little girl in the zine that I picjked up in 2010(?! maybe before) at a Tuberculosis show at an abandoned beach in SF, and this tape gives me the same feeling that reding that did. Furious punk vengeance, male/female vocals, blood curdling destruktion force! this is why we are punks! Apparently they are even better live

G)Crazy Band LP and Bleached 7"s: post Mika Miko band frenzy section. OK< so bleached want to be bigger than the Fabulous Stains, which is... ok, Not what I want out of life, weird industry showcase despair, but I am not Bleached, so. I guess the world need something to replace the Bangles/GoGos void, but they write amazing Ramones/Zeros esque punkpop heart stompers and I like their last two 7"s best even tho Ooga Booga put out the first one, and Ooga Booga must be obeyed! yes! CRAZY BAND gets all caps as they are THE BEST!!!!!!! Thrasher Skate Rock tapes and Kleenex 7"s!!! Skate on the freeway!!! yes!!! This is EXCITING TO LISTEN TO!!!
this is my fave bleached song tho there is no exciting video to watch

H) H for HOUSEHOLD who make excellent post-Billotte core which I think more should go for... it sort of reminds me of Yellow Fever too!? But it's more desolate and awkward, less warm/comfortable, more post punk, their LP is an essential one ok!? really. Anything that makes me think of Autoclave gets fifty nine awards! household.bandcamp.com

I) Some LPs I liked a lot and couldn't bring myself to file: GG KIng "Esoteric Lore" (AN AMAZING GASSED IN THE GARAGE WEIRDO TIME,) Total COntrol Henge Beat LP,. Crazy Spirit, Shitty Limits Speculate/Accumulate LP, Rational Animals LP, Omegas LP, Cruddy LP, Hygiene LP, Younger Lovers LP, Iceage LP Pheromoans LP.

J) J is for Jigsaw, and these are more affirmations of the girl sound underground that is continuing to operate on its own terms:
SHOPPERS LP is a heartstopper, a winner, a force for good, Meredith does amazing zines, writes amazing songs, and they are on tour right now so go see them play or else!! Obediencia are from Spain and put out my favorite 7" this year: here is a song from it: I also check out: Las Senoras and Atentado so so many cool bands in Spain your brains will explode. Youtube wormhole! The Dark Lion 7" that came out this year was amazing-they were from Pensacola, and ruled, you can check it out there... oh and the Nature 7", so good... yes... m'laddddddys and THE CRUDE THOUGHT DEMO!!!!!!!!!!!! Put that band into you tube!! melt your brain again! the GOOD THROB demo also great! Excited to see the Woolf record! London girl scene end times! and RACHEL AGGS gets all caps bc all her bands are insanely dreamy, from Trash Kit to Cover Girl, and there's another Trash Kit offshoot, Halo Halo that I LOVED but I couldn't figure out how to get the 7"!? and LA LA VASQUES and NEONATES, Wax Idols, CYCLOPS is Tina Luccessi of Trash Women's new band it's SO GOOD! an eye for an eye!!! and SHARP BALLOONS is awesome memphis garage!!! dual vocals!

H) is for listening to bands on PERENNIAL which is the best label (milkmusicsonskullweirdtvwhiteboss), and also to GUN OUTFIT 12" a lot, and Brilliant Colors LP and Veronica Falls LP (tho I will admit I was disappointed, the 7"s were so sick! this LP was sorta... good but not on a level I was expecting) and of course THE COMET GAIN LP I waited SO LONG FOR IT that I thought I was going to die, but it was great. ALSO: I like Azelia Banks a lot. and i got the PET SOUNDS box set and loved it, got to meet brian wilson but he was so tired from three hours of autograph signing of box sets.

I am sure I am forgetting things that I loved, but here is a list so that's that. Start a new band,. I am going to. 2012! SHADIES LADIES REUNION TOUR!? we will play your coliseum!

Best of 2011 by Joaquin de la Puente

2012-01-02T22:56:00.000-08:00

My 'top ten of 2011' is a list of popular uprisings that have served to define 2011. Lest we lump them together in some racist monolithic genetically motivated thrust called the 'Arab Spring' let's do the roll call:

1. Tunisia, Dec 17th, 2010- Mohammed Bouazizi, a Tunisian vegetable peddler sets himself on fire and dies after his cart is confiscated by a policewoman who slapped him and spat in his face. Protests explode all over Tunisia and by January,
Zine El Abidine Ben, the ruler for over 24 years is forced to flee the country.

...the "Arab Spring" is born inspiring protests demanding reforms in Algeria, Lebanon, Jordan, Sudan, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Yemen, Iraq, Bahrain, Libya, Kuwait, Morocco, Syria AND Israel

2. Egypt, February 11th, 2011-Hosni Mubarak is forced from office after hundreds died in protests the Army urges Mubarak to go.

3. Libya, February 15th- Protests explode and within days Gaddafi opponents control Benghazi the second largest city in Libya. By August the opposition controls Tripoli and by October Gaddafi is killed in the streets my opposition militants.

4. Bahrain, March 14th- Saudi and other gulf countries have to send in troops to subdue a Shia uprising.

5. Syria, March-?- In protests against President Assad that began with his forces shooting 5 protesters serving only to ignite further protests in which at least 3000 people have died.

6. Yemen, June 3rd-Demonstrations and violent battles between supporters of President Saleh lead to a bombing of the Presidential Palace in which Saleh is gravely injured.

7. Spain, May-October- On May 15th in 50 cities throughout Spain about 150,000 people came out in protest in solidarity with a movement calling itself the 'Real Democracy Now!' movement that was inspired by the Arab Spring uprisings and the May, 1968 movement in France. The decentralized grassroots democratic protest used encampments and spread the word via social networking in the style of the Iranian student and election protests and Arab Spring revolts served as a template for other movements like the Greek anti-Austerity protests and Occupy Wall Street.

8. Greece, May-August- Inspired by the "Arab Spring" and the Spanish 'Real Democracy Now!' movement. The massive protests and General Strikes that were held against the Greek Government and the International Monetary Fund began in August and were met with violent police crackdowns.

9. England, November 30th- Various Trade Unions organized the biggest General Strike in the UK since the mid-80's. Two million people walked off the job and were joined by tens of thousands of supporters from across the UK. This strike was a part of the massive global anti-austerity protests that had been happening all year in protest of the IMF.

10. Iraq, December 19th- The official withdrawal of "All U.S. Troops" from Iraq 8 and a half years after the most recent invasion. Estimates of Iraqi civilian casualties stands at around 100,000 (though many estimate as many as 1 million civilian casualties) and American troop casualties at 4,415. The infrastructure of Iraq was crippled by the US invasions. Before the invasions Iraq had nearly 100% literacy and health care was widely available and affordable. Health care, education, potable water and electricity are now scarce and unreliable. Iraqi politics remain extremely unstable and the situation there seems to threaten a continuing civil war.

Honorable mention goes to:

Thee Occupy Wall Street movement, that took inspiration from the "Arab Spring" and "Democracia Real Ya!" movements, spun off solidarity protests, strikes and encampments world wide...even here in Olympia! (I was marginally involved in Occupy Olympia from the first official Occupy Olympia protest on October 15th until the encampment's eviction by 50 riot squad-clad State Troopers on December 16th. O.O. was really impressive! 120 tents wrapped around Capitol Lake for like 1/3 of a mile and boasted food, medicine, sanitation, child care, art making, concerts and daily general assemblies, organized marches and committee meetings covering everything from safety to strategies...)

Russia, December, 2011-?- The biggest anti-government protests since the early 90's began on Dec 4th and are continuing now in Jan 2012. As well as calling for annulment of the 2011 legislative elections, the protesters have demanded investigations into what is considered massive voter fraud in Russia, the freeing of political prisoners, investigations into deep seated political corruption and for transparent and democratic general elections.

Books:

Young Stalin- Simon Sebag Montefiore
Ten Days That Shook the World- John Reed
Emigrants- W.G. Sebald
Rings of Saturn- W.G. Sebald
King Kong Theory- Virginie Depentes
All the Shah's Men-Stephen Kinzer
Fun With Problems- Robert Stone
Self Defense (the Womanly Art of Self-Care, Intuition and Choice)- Debbie Leung
Orientalism- Edward Said
Gender Trouble- Judith Butler
Raw Power-Josh Bayer
Hugo Cabret- Brian Selznick
Raw Deal- Joey Alone

Music:

Hellwoman (Olympia)
A.W.O.T.T. (Moscow)
Sewn Leather (no fixed address)
Animals and Men (England)
Grass Widow (San Francisco)
Invincible (Detroit)
Hysterics (Olympia)
Polly Darton (Olympia)
Craig Extine solo (Olympia)
Peter, Abby and Chad's new unnamed band (Olympia)

Movies:

Portland International Film Festival-'Aftershock' d.- Feng Xiaogang, 'Silent Souls' d.-Alexsei Fedorchenko, 'Son of Babylon' d.-Mohamed Al-Daradji

True False Film Festival- 'At the Edge of Russia' d.-Micael Marczak, 'The Black Power Mix Tape' d. Goran Olsson, 'Knuckle' d.- Ian Palmer, 'Troll Hunter' d. André Ørvredal

Bermuda Film Festival- 'Gabi on the Roof in July' d.-Lawrence Michael Levine, 'My Perestroika' d. Robin Hessman, 'Shelter' d.-Dragomir Sholev

Sarasota Film Festival- 'Miss Representation' d.-Jennifer Siebel Newsom, 'The Robber' d.-Benjamin Heisenberg, 'Target Video: San Francisco, LA, NY, Europe' d. -Joe Rees

Milwaukee Film Festival- 'The Sleeping Beauty' d.-Catherine Breillat, 'The Last Circus' d.- Alex de la Iglesia, 'Nostalgia for the Light' d.- Patricio Guzman, 'How Much Does Your Building Weigh Mr. Foster?' d.- Carlos Carcas, Noberto Lopez Amad, 'Buddha Mountain' d.- Li Yu, 'Don't Go Breaking My Heart' d.- Johnnie To

Savannah Film Festival- 'Inuk' d.- Mike Magidan, 'Coriolanus' d.- Ralph Fiennes, 'North Atlantic' d.- Bernardo Nasciemiento

Olympia Film Festival- 'Sprout Wings and Fly' d.-Les Blank, 'the City of Life and Death' d. Chaun Lu, 'Klaus Kinski: Jesus Christ Saviour' d. Peter Geyer, 'World on a Wire' d.- Rainer Werner Fassbinder, 'Everyone for Themselves, in Life' d.- J.L. Godard, 'The White Shadow' d.- A. Hitchcock, Graham Cutts, 'Once Upon a Time in Anatolia' d.-Nuri Bilge Ceylan, 'Turin Horse' d.-Bela Tarr, 'We Can't Go Home Anymore' d.- Nicholas Ray

Happy 2012...the end is a new beginning!

Best of 2011 by Jean Smith

2012-01-02T17:11:00.001-08:00

1. Writing and editing an entire novel in the month of January as a reaction to losing my job and because the guy I was dating was too jealous to read any of my existing writing. I wrote a book for him. Excerpts of Obliterating History - a guitar making mystery, domination and submission in a small town garage can be found online (the thing with guy didn't work out).

1. a) As the years go by, I appreciate more and more that David's wife Wendy is helpful and supportive (instead of negative and jealous... see above).

2. Creating a stage adaptation to promote David Lester's graphic novel The Listener. Co-presenting events in book stores, libraries and classrooms, ending with a huge Indian buffet at the Bombay Palace near the airport in Toronto.

2. a) Monitoring the exciting reviews of The Listener as they rolled in.

3. Sharing Occupy Wall Street reports from musicians Rick Brown and Hamish Kilgour on Facebook. Intriguing new methods of agitation.

3. a) Being enthralled with Occupy as it began, grew and continues to change the way we understand the world.

3. b) Finding out that Occupy Wall Street originated at the Vancouver based anti-consumerist magazine Adbusters.

4. Borrowing my friend Duane's 1976 Ford camper van and going to Hornby Island for a week.

5. Taking my parents (ninety-one and eighty-six... ages, not names) for a walk in a special universally accessible pathway in Golden Ears Provincial Park. Later, we sat in the car and ate the sandwiches mom made.

6. Basically completing a second novel. The Black Dot Museum of Political Art is about the CIA tainting of abstract expressionism and the cure for narcissism.

7. Email exchanges with Brett of M'Lady Records. Exceptional. Promising.

8. Being included on Tobi Vail's Top Ten List in Artforum Magazine.

9. From April to August I dutifully underwent a series of tests that, as the daughter of a breast cancer survivor and someone labeled high risk, I have come to accept are part of the deal. Core biopsy, needle biopsies and finally, surgical biopsies with nearly a month delay in getting the results because the surgeon went on holidays. It was during that time that I borrowed the van and left town. Fuck waiting. Fuck cancer. It was that beautiful first week of September. I camped alone, made espresso on a hotplate, laughed, rode my bike in a floppy hat and sundress, swam in the sea and used the oven door in the van as a desk for the laptop, up early to write every morning. When I finally got the all clear, I jumped around a bit and then proceeded with the day as usual. Watching my mother go through a radical mastectomy when I was ten (she was fifty) set me on a course of cramming as much into life as possible. When, upon receiving the good news, all one really wants to do is get on with that day's writing, one knows one is on the right path.

9. a) Fuck allowing fear to fuck up one's life.

10. Knowing for sure that if something did go wrong, that I have for sure packed at least three lifetimes worth of everything into this amount of time already. In the latter part of 2011, savoring the excellence of being fifty-two years old without any problems what-so-ever, I took to telling people "I am happy." No touching of wood, no fear of jinxing it. I am happy.

Best of 2011 by Mimi Nguyen

2012-01-02T15:06:00.000-08:00

A lot of my bests from this year are about remembering how I totally had a productive and fulfilling creative and intellectual life before I started my tenure-track assistant professor position at a large, but isolated research university, surrounded by Midwestern GM corn- and soybean fields."

MISC BEST OF 2011, IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER:

-- Seeing Grass Widow and the Raincoats at the Double Door (Chicago)

-- Seeing Janelle Monae at Foelinger at the University of Illinois

-- Participating on the panel at MEET ME AT THE RACE RIOT: People of Color in Zines from 1990 to Today (co-organized by POC Zine Project, Barnard Zine Library, and For the Birds Collective) at Barnard (watch the whole event here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LqoW-uhC7W8)

-- Crazy Band, FUCK YOU LP

--Shotgun Seamstress 6, and eager anticipation of the collected zines from M’Lady Records

-- Relatedly, finally meeting Osa Atoe and Mariam Bastani (at MEET ME AT THE RACE RIOT), and otherwise connecting (and re-connecting) with smartass punks in still-crucial conversations about punk histories, punk archives, and punk theories

-- Finishing my freaking manuscript almost sixteen years after I first thought to write about the “gift of freedom” and liberal empire in a graduate seminar (out in 2012, with awesome cover art by the inimitable illustrator Hellen Jo: http://helllllen.org/)

-- Putting the Race Riot compilation zines back into circulation (POC Zine Project, For the Birds Collective, Stranger Danger Distro)

-- Seeing Wild Flag at the Highdive (Champaign, IL)

--The spread of global revolts beginning in Tunsinia at the start of 2011 and ending in Russia at the end, and all those in between that identified transnational capital, authoritarian regimes, and the liberal empires that support both, as radically unfree forms of social organization

-- The Shoppers, Silver Year LP

-- Household, Items (household.bandcamp.com)

-- Finally, all the amazing scholarly books that were published this year, including Dean Spade, Normal Life: Administrative Violence, Critical Trans Politics, and the Limits of Law; Jodi Byrd, Transit of Empire: Indigenous Critiques of Colonialism; Patricia Ticineto Clough and Craig Willse, eds., Beyond Biopolitics: Essays on the Governance of Life and Death; Grace Kyungwon Hong and Roderick Ferguson, eds., Strange Affinities: The Gender and Sexual Politics of Comparative Racialization; Helen Jun, Race for Citizenship: Black Orientalism and Asian Uplift from Pre-Emancipation to Neoliberal America; Nhi Lieu, The American Dream in Vietnamese; Ruby Tapia, American Pietas: Visions of Race, Death, and the Maternal; Chandan Reddy, Freedom with Violence: Race, Sexuality, and the US State; Lamia Karim, Microfinance and Its Discontents: Women in Debt in Bangladesh; and lots more I can’t remember!

Best of 2011 by Griffin Pyn

2012-01-02T15:00:00.000-08:00

in no particular order...

-playing at DROP DEAD festival in berlin
-playing in napoli to an audience that included members of
CONTROPOTERE, my favorite band in high school...
-seeing HOAX play 2 nights in a row in new york
-seeing WEIRD TV play a bunch in austin!!!
-skateboarding at the sick skateparks in milan italy and vienna austria
-the movie BRIDESMAIDS
-billy karren's top ten
-hanging out with chris mcdonnell/working on the harsh nayyar record
-moving to arizona
-NUTS! magazine 8th issue release party! so many killer bands!!

Best of 2011 by Nadia Buyse

2012-01-02T13:28:00.000-08:00

What a year. What A year. Probably the worst/ most mediocre, yet splendid and heinous simultaneously. Let us inventory the visual/aural/intellectual/emotional splendors of 2011.

In no particular order...

1. Laurel Nakadate @ PS-1

It was like five eyefuls. I’ve never seen such a large space saturated with so many images, so many videos; and each inciting new ways to talk about feminism in contemporary visual culture. Also it is a true testament to the mantra “ALWAYS KEEP WORKING”

2. Secret Drum Band

Gawd I love my friends. I especially Love Lisa Schoneberg, who since I’ve known her has also gone by the name “Lisa Drummer.” This is not just a clever name. Her intuitive percussion has supplemented everyone she collaborates with. I was really excited when I heard that she was composing a 7 piece percussion ensemble. I was even more excited when I found out said ensemble was performing on my birthday. Decked out in fashion by Heather Treadway, this was by far the best show I went to in 2011.

3. Fucking James Franco

Sean Carney, a friend and one of my favorite Portland based performance artist, asked me one night (probably while we were having a drink) If I would like to write a sex story about James Franco for a book he was editing called Fucking James Franco. Ofcourse I said yes but I 40% expected it was a joke. Well it was a joke and an actual book. After one of the most exciting and most talked about Kickstarter.com campaigns I’ve ever seen the book was made and the party was awesome. I’ll never think about James Franco’s butt the same way.

4. Twin Peaks/ Carl Jung’s Red Book

Ok, I’m fully aware that neither one of these things came out this year. But earlier this year I watched Twin Peaks for my first time ever. Also this year the PNCA library got Carl Jung’s Red Book in. My roommate at the time (who is also a hard on psychoanalysis in popular culture like myself) was telling me that in Carl Jung’s book there is a drawing he made that looks exactly like the black Lodge from Twin Peaks. So of course I look it up and its totally true. This was so mind blowing to me because there is no way that Carl Jung could have known about the seminal TV show. And Since the Red Book was a highly guarded unpublished book until 2009 there is no way that David Lynch could have seen this drawing. The subconscious is a scary place.

5. Aezalia Banks

A couple of weeks ago I was crafting with my girl Allison Halter and she says to me… “have you heard Aezalia Banks yet?” I said no and so she played it for me. I’m so happy she did. This is BY FAR the most exciting new American music of 2011.

6. Arab Spring

December 18th 2010, otherwise known as Keith Richards birthday, was the first day of protest for the Tunisian people in hopes to overturn their dictator/president Ben Ali. Because of this demonstration Tunisia is in the process of re-forming their government and re writing their constitution. This also started a backlash of protests all over the Middle East that resulted in multiple corrupt dictators being overthrown, imprisoned and even killed. I also feel that this movement helped to inspire Americans to create their own protest known as the occupy movement. 2011 was the year of the people taking back and stating their rights.

7. El General

Another exciting happening in Tunisia was the emergence of political hip hop into the mainstream. The forerunner of this movement is El General. Makes a girl wish she knew some more Arabic.

8. Moving in with Fiona Campbell, Brett Lyman, and Lisa Schoneberg….resulting in the inevitable courtship of Fifi and Taniwha

In the final week of December the best thing ever happened. I moved from my cold, disgusting punk house into a beautiful home with some of the nicest, funnest and most creative people I know and have had the pleasure of meeting. Brett and Fiona have a cat named Taniwha who has taken a liking to my cat Fifi. Watching them flirt and play with each other is like watching Pepe Lapew chase around his lady love with a painted skunk line. Adorable and hilarious.

9. Mentors

Part of my graduate school experience has been to work one on one with a mentor each semester. This year I have worked with two people, Arnold Kemp and Stephan Slappe. Both of these people have taught me so much and have offered me so much insight into my studio practice and research. Both have also enriched my life with their friendship, talent and praise so much that for me to not acknowledge this as being one of the best parts of my 2011 I would be lying.

Last but not fucking least!

10. FUCKING LESBIAN BITCHES

I know that the FLB are actually babies of 2010 but they were/are my favorite band of 2011. They will melt your face. They will shred your head. I can’t tell you how rocking they are and how good those betches are at tailgate partying.

Best of 2011 by Zarjaz

2012-01-02T13:14:00.000-08:00

1. Comet Gain, Howl Of The Lonely Crowd, What’s Your Rupture

2. Crystal Stilts, Through The Floor, Slumberland Records

3. The Bandana Splits, Sometimes, Boy Scout Recordings

4. Rancid Hell Spawn, Abolition Of The Orgasm, Wrench Records

5. Lykke Li, I Follow Rivers, Atlantic/LL Recordings

6. The Dictaphone, Past Future Void, Tolmie Terrapin Press

7. Benjamin Franklynstein, Shout, Ben A Larceny Records

8. Andi Silvas, Drift With Me, Andi Silvas (self release)

9. Magic City Ruse, Radio Boxer, Flower Blade Records

10. The Tilt Room, Achilles High Heels, Punchsylvania Records

Best of 2011 by Chris Sutton

2012-01-01T13:39:00.000-08:00

Here is my best of 2011 list:

Best Band: New War
Best Album: "Homo" by UV Race
Best Song: "Shari Vari" by Dirtbombs
Best Show: The Rats reunion show
Best Guitarist: Bob Desaulniers (Psychic Feline)
Best Drummer: Fiona Campbell (Vivian Girls)
Best Bassist: Hannah Lew (Grass Widow)
Best Keyboards: Peaking Lights
Best Venue: Kenton Club in Portland OR
Best Movie: Beats Rhymes and Life: The travels of a tribe called quest
Best Actor: Bill Hader
Best Actress: Kristin Wiig
Best Food: Whole Bowl

Best things that happened to me in 2011:

1)Hooded Hags 7" release
2)Touring with Dirtbombs
3)Recording with chain and the gang
4)adopting my dog queenie
5)buying a vaporizer

Happy New Year!!!

Best of 2011 by Kelsey Smith

2012-01-01T13:34:00.000-08:00

Okay, I'm not as punk as the rest of y'all but here is my best of 2011. I'm consulting my planner to jog my senile brain. Also, I work at the library and volunteer at Northern so they are both a big part of my world- this will be rather evident from my choices. I was going to write short reviews for all of these, but the New Year draws ever closer...

Best Music Shows (in chronological order)

Kimya Dawson, Defiance Ohio, and Your Heart Breaks at the Olympia Timberland Library- January 12th
BOATS with the Fabulous Downey Brothers and Babelazer at Northern- April 4th
D+, Lois, Calvin Johnson and the Maxines, Japanese Tsunami Fundraiser at Northern- April 15th
Mike Watt at the Triple Door- April 27th
Lust Cats of the Gutter and Night of Joy with Morgan and the Organ Donors at Northern- May 3rd
Thao and Mirah with Led to Sea at Northern- May 9th
the Billy Nayer Show with Olympia Free Choir and Romanteek at Northern- June 2nd
Animals and Men with Western Hymn and Morgan and the Organ Donors at Northern- June 25th
Ya Ho Wha 33 with November Witch, Malaikat Dan Singa, and WaMu at Northern- July 7th
Bonfire Madigan with Arrington de Dionyso, Quinn Tuffinuff and Caitlin Rose at Northern- July 12th
24 Hour Zine Thing at Olympia Timberland Library with the Maxines and Happy Noose- July 29th
NUTS release party with a gazillion awesome bands in burned out building during artswalk- October 8th
Helsing Junction Sleepover- August 19-21st
Blue Scholars with TH3RDZ and Bambu at the Royal- September 22nd
Evangelista (Carla Bozulich) with Angelo Spencer, Hysterics and the Hive Dwellers at Midnight Sun- October 13th
Prince at the Tacoma Dome- December 19th

Best Other Performances (also in chronological order)

Nuts #6 zine release party with Broken Water and Hysterics at the Olympia Timberland Library- January 14th
Full Moon Consciousness Raising at Northern- January 19th
Sister Spit at Le Voyeur- March 29th
Printstravaganza show at Northern- three weeks in April
International Pop Underground: a Look Back with Calvin Johnson and Lois Maffeo at the Olympia Timberland Library- June 9th
Type Truck visit- Monday, June 20th in the Old School Parking Lot
Kill All Redneck Pricks documentary at Olympia Film Festival- November 16th

Best Books (read by me, although not necessarily written in 2011)

Rat Girl by Kristin Hersh
Jimmy James Blood by Missy Anne
Robopocalypse by Daniel Wilson
Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
Zoo City by Lauren Beukes
Signal 1 & 2: a Journal of International Politics (book/zine/magazine?)
The Night Bookmobile by Audrey Niffenegger
It's Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini

Best Zines

Tell it Like it Tiz! #3
Prince Zine
Keeper's Kanzine #2
NUTS #s 6 & 7
Hyena in Petticoats: A Mary Wollstonecraft Zine
Shotgun Seamstress #s 5 & 6
DIY or Don't We? #3
Basic Paper Airplane #5
Rad Dad #17
Because the Boss Belongs to Us: Queer Femmes on Bruce Springsteen
Bus Fare: Olympia to Los Angeles on Public Transit
Excitement and Adventure
Hippie Watching in North America, parts 1 & 2
Shortandqueer #s 15-17

Best Miscellaneous

Kitzel's and the Cornerstone both opened this year, making the amount of delicious food available in downtown Olympia much larger. On a side note: RIP Little Roni's Sandwich Shop.
Nineveh food truck makes me happy, as does the addition of food carts to the downtown core in general
Olyphant- so happy to have a new art supply store run by nice honest folk
Bearded Lady- yes please
Sizizis dies and is reborn
The Reef is reborn and then burns down again- worst of 2011
The Artesian Well looks real nice now
My daughter Cleo looked awesome on the runway wearing a dress made out of yogurt lids by Ruby Re-Usable during the REstore's annual trash fashion show
40 Days of Kindness, Olympia Loves Planned Parenthood Secret Cafe, Pride Parade march, march on the Capitol, art show, bake sales, and loads of street activism, as performed by the Olympia Loves Planned Parenthood contingent
Occupy Olympia and the Occupy Wall Street Movement
Halloween dance party at the Brotherhood with DJ Ira Coyne
Oly Reads Book Club meetings
Daughter gets a new job and is kicking ass in general
Steve Buxbaum is the new mayor of Olympia

Best of 2011 by Greg Harvester

2012-01-01T13:30:00.000-08:00

I already submitted a Top Ten list full of great albums and Ep’s that will appear in next month’s issue of Maximum Rock n Roll, so this is my list of “other things that kept me going” in 2011. In no particular order:

1. Taking part in the General Strike of Oakland as part of the larger Occupy Wall Street movement. No matter what the history books say, no matter what the media says about it and no matter what the police continue to do the people of this world, I know that we were doing the right thing. It felt amazing to march with the queer/feminist bloc alongside thousands upon thousands of other likeminded folks without a pig in sight. People cheered us from their doorsteps and we shut down the port…twice.

2. Seeing the Fastbacks in San Francisco. I had my reservations about seeing one of my favorite bands over 10 years after they broke up at a dumb rock club, but they were really a million times better than I could have ever imagined. They were also incredibly humble, appreciative of the crowd and rocked out harder than most people half their age.

3. Moving back to Chattanooga, TN for 3 months. I used to live there years ago and felt out of touch with the bands, the people, and the general day-to-day of my friends there. It was heartwarming to see the thriving vegan restaurant ran by my friends (Sluggo’s North), the awe-inspiring punk-run recording studio (Revolution Sound), the wealth of completely stunning bands (too many to list), insane art projects and so much more.

4. My partner, Anandi being in remission from cancer for the full year. She battled breast cancer and won! With the support of our friends, a good doctor and just plain stubbornness and determination, she made it through and I am completely stoked and proud of her.

5. Writing a music blog. No, this isn’t just self-promotion. By digitizing a lot of my old tapes and putting them online for free download, it has gotten a lot of folks to dig out their old tapes of exciting bands from our past punk history and loan them to me to share with people as far away as Malaysia, Russia and Australia. Also, this allows younger punks to hear all of this awesome stuff that the older ones have been hoarding away in boxes for years. Everyone wins. www.remoteoutposts.blogspot.com

6. Playing in two bands (Neon Piss and Black Rainbow) that I love and help me feel connected to a worldwide punk scene that continues to excite and challenge me well into my mid-thirties. When I was a kid, I viewed 35 years old as ancient, but now I feel like I’m just getting started.

7. Being lucky enough to live in the Bay Area and getting to see bands like Displeasure, Hunting Party, No Statik, Livid, Rank/Xerox and Songs For Moms on a semi-regular basis. All of these bands are local, amazing and exactly what I love about punk in their own different ways.

8. Knowing that Fred and Toody Cole are still touring, recording music and living their lives together after all these years.

9. The publications Nuts!, Mother’s News, Maximum Rock N Roll, Myopic Waiste, Shotgun Seamstress and Broke Ass. All of these help me to realize that I need to stop making excuses and put out a zine in 2012.

10.. The hope that the end-times punk of 2012 will be more urgent, more chaotic, and crazier sounding, but also less sexist, transphobic and dumb. Here’s to the future!

Best of 2011 by Cathy de la Cruz

2012-01-01T13:21:00.000-08:00

2011 Highlights in No Particular Order:

Corey Fogel
performing all day at the Hammer Museum. I know Corey plays a lot, but I swear he doesn’t play solo shows as often as he plays with other people/bands and while I was only able to watch him for about an hour, I kind of got lost in that hour, meditation-style. For those of you who don’t know, Corey is a drummer who specializes in improvisation and experimentation.
http://knitdrums.tumblr.com/

My students
making incredible films. I am so fortunate to get to teach what I love (filmmaking, animation, writing, art) to a group of awesome kids who made the following films this year:
http://www.venicearts.org/index.php?view=sets&id=25471

Very Be Careful
Seriously my favorite live band in L.A. and I’ve gotten some flack about that because there are so many great bands in L.A. and I have so many friends in bands in L,.A., and I think in 2009 I saw this band 12 times! In 2011, I didn’t see them quite as much (maybe 5 times?), but it never got old–they never get old. These dudes play Colombian vallenato music, a traditional cumbia sound that centers around the accordion and it’s pretty much like the crazy L.A. child of that Clash song “Straight to Hell”. Trust me on this one. If that amazing Clash song could give birth, it would have given birth to this band playing these songs. They are pretty much the only band that I’ve seen in ages that gets the whole crowd dancing non-stop for over an hour.

BFI Sight and Sound International Film magazine
I am basically too busy to see movies at this point in my life, so the next best thing is reading about them and keeping a list that now looks like an epic-scroll of what I hope to see in the relaxing future.

Sound Healing
with Jamie Bechtold in L.A. While I often complain about how stressful living in L.A. is, one of the things that has helped to calm and balance my life/energy is sound healing. If you’ve ever done yoga with gongs, then you may know what I’m talking about. There is a woman named Jamie in Echo Park who leads these Sound Baths that are sliding scale and does one-on-one sessions and it’s been super super healing for me.
http://dancingspiral.com/

Keeping up my New Moon Intentions every month!
Strangely living in L.A. and not my time spent in the Pacific Northwest has made me a bit of a hippy and every time there is a new moon (I have a moon calendar, but you can easily do a web search for it), I take the time to reflect on the kind of attitudes, shifts, and sometimes actual things I want to bring in my life during the next 30 days and its been SO helpful.

Astrological readings by Rosie Finn and Sarah Adams
Both folks live in Olympia, WA and both are just absolutely amazing.

Detoxing with raw foods and no caffeine in May/June
I am so glad I did this and hope to make tiny detoxes a regular part of my life in 2012.

Liz Phair’s EXILE IN GUYVILLE
still sounding good. Seriously.

Going to Olympia
for six hours and it being the first time I had been there in 6 years! In those 6 hours, I met up with some friends at the San Francisco Street Bakery, got an astrology reading from Rosie (see above), got a slice of Old School Pizza, walked around with my friend Denise Smith and her son Gibson who I was meeting for the first time, bought a shirt at Dumpster Values, ran into Orca Books just to see it for a second, and grabbed a Meconi’s veggie sub for airplane trip back to L.A. and even though it was a frustratingly short trip, even glimpsing at the Olympia Film Society marquee in real life for a minute kind of made it worthwhile. Olympia was an amazing city to go to college in. I know no place is perfect, but I am so grateful for the time I spent there years ago.

Finally buying a printer and putting together a manuscript of my short stories

Feeling like there is finally balance in my life.

The amazing vet who my cat, Earl got to spend her last minutes with.

Jodie Mack’s films
at the L.A. Film Forum! Genius animations that you need to see.
http://www.jodiemack.com/

Seeing Glorium
live in Austin as a benefit for Jonathan Toubin at Emo’s. This super lesser known San Antonio/Austin band reunites about once a year since they offically broke up about a decade ago and they kill it every time. I’m actually working on describing what they sound like for a lengthier piece of writing so I’m not going to attempt that here. Just trust me on this one. http://goldenhourrecords.com/glorium/

Having a really great time in my hometown of San Antonio, TX every time I visited.

LET ME GIVE YOU A HAND WITH THAT
A brilliantly written funny and sometimes sad (but always strong) blog about sex work from the perspective of a brilliant, funny and strong woman in the sex industry. I feel like I learn more about human nature from one paragraph of this blog than I do from attempting to study philosophy.
letmegiveyouahandwiththat.blogspot.com/

THE VOYAGERS by Penny Lane
A found footage essay about love, hope, disaster, etc, Kind of the best short film I’ve seen in ages.
http://vimeo.com/13087961

Dawn Kasper
performing at Human Resources blew me away. She is definitely one of my favorite contemporary artists/performance artists. If she is ever performing in your town or you’re in a town where she is performing, YOU MUST GO. She’s currently fundraising to make her art/installation for next year’s Whitney Biennial. On top of being a genius, she’s one of the nicest people ever.
http://www.usaprojects.org/project/this_could_be_something_if_i_let_it

Leopoldine Core
reading her short stories at the Hammer Museum. I foolishly missed this because I was exhausted from traveling, but thankfully it’s available to listen to as a free podcast.
http://hammer.ucla.edu/watchlisten/watchlisten/show_id/772687

Creativity Candles from Follow Your Heart in Canoga Park/that little vegan restaurant in Follow Your Heart.

wildUp
at Beyond Baroque. They are a modern music collective who play new music, old music, as long as they “love it” and it shows. Seeing them perform at Beyond Baroque, such a small space for such a big collective, reminded me of DIY shows I used to go to in the late 90s–when it felt like people were doing things because they were passionate about it and excited about it–granted, I’m sure that’s nostalgia painting such a pure picture, but it’s the kind of positive energy I like to be around. Art doesn’t always have to be about suffering, it can be joyous too. Not going to lie–wildUp re-working “oh bondage! up yours!” also had my eternal appreciation for them in a heartbeat.
wildup.la/

Crass “Penis Envy” 30th Anniversary
tribute show at the Smell in L.A. I got to DJ! What an honor. I played 7" after 7" of feminist and lady punks bands from the 70s until now. Those are my favorite records to play, but there isn’t ever a time when I get to play them for the public and this was definitely the time. The tribute band included: Allison Wolfe (Bratmobile), Jenna Thornhill (Mika Miko), Rachel Carns (The Need), Paloma Parfrey (The Sharp Ease), Ana Oxygen, Kate Hall (Dunes), Nikki Godinez (Peter Pants), Tara Tavi (Auto Da Fe) Mecca Vazie Andrews (MOVEMENT movement), Inez Perez (Blood-Dumper). Not going to lie, Mecca Vazie Andrews knocked it out of the park that night. The show was sold out and was grrreat with three R’s.

Jack Halberstam
Maggie Nelson, and Wayne Koestenbaum reading at RedCat aka “Ugly Feelings”
Jack and Wayne made me laugh so hard. Maggie made me want to read everything she’s ever written. She is extremely prolific so it may take me awhile, but based on what I have read by her, it will be worth it.
http://www.egomego.com/judith/home.htm

Re-reading all 46 pages of my Evergreen/college undergrad transcripts and feeling really lucky to have had that experience

Staying in L.A. for Thanksgiving

Going to San Francisco and Oakland for my birthday

DUM DUM GIRLS
“Only in Dreams” is definitely my favorite album of the year. It makes me a bit speechless. I wanted to write a 15-page minimum paper about why this album is so great to do it justice, but here I am just writing a sentence or two telling you that they have the 60s girl group and rock influences, they have the instrumentation and style down, but lyrically and content-wise, they managed to create an entire album that on one side appears to be about a broken heart, but upon further inspection is about losing a parent. I just feel like it’s already hard enough to be taken seriously as a woman doing almost anything in this stupid society, especially playing music, so to have an entire album about something so personal and tragic is pretty much the toughest thing I have seen a musician do in a really long time. I love this band, this album and I hope I get to see them live again next year. They are the only band who awed me so much with their performance, I grabbed their set list like I did when I was 15 years old watching my favorite band, once the show was done.

Happy New Year!

Best of 2011 by Chris O'Kane

2011-12-31T18:43:00.000-08:00

I don’t periodize by year well. I’m also a skint grad student who spent most of the year studying. So my list does not consist in the best of what was new this year. It consists in a jumble of what I thought was best in 2011.

The Global Revolt of 2011:

What is often portrayed as a number of discrete events—The Arab Spring, The Indignados, The Greek Riots, The English Riots, The Occupy Movement etc.—should really be seen as a widespread, and long overdue, global revolt against the crisis of neo-liberal capitalism. I was excited and inspired by many of the waves of this revolt. I took part in others. I also had problems with aspects of it. I think it was smart to frame much of the rhetoric in terms of calls for ‘real democracy’ and the ‘99%.’ As slogans they were easily understood and appealed to people from a range of backgrounds and political orientations. In 2012, however, I hope the criticisms move beyond these slogans to a criticism of how the capitalist system functions and why it necessarily produces a class antagonism, financial disparity, exploitation and domination. I also hope the moves to occupy foreclosed homes, abandoned spaces etc. and efforts at debt refusal pick up.

The Return of Marx:

Greenspan, hell even Keynes, don’t cut the mustard when it comes to explanations of or solutions to the crisis.

Communisation:
How do we abolish the capitalist social form and its related forms of antagonism? Communisation is a problematic that tries to answer this question by theorizing the creation of communism under our total subsumption by capital as a process that negates value, class, gender etc. As theorized by Theorie Communiste, End Notes and others in SIC and Communisation and Its Discontents, communisation addresses the systematic nature of the capitalist social form and its overcoming in manner that possesses critical relevance for the global revolt:

“The abolition of capital, i.e. the revolution and the production of communism, is immediately the abolition of all classes and therefore of the proletariat. This occurs through the communisation of society, which is abolished as a community separated from its elements. Proletarians abolish capital by the production of a community immediate to its elements ; they transform their relations into immediate relations between individuals. Relations between singular individuals that are no longer the embodiment of a social category, including the supposedly natural categories of the social sexes of woman and man. Revolutionary practice is the coincidence of the changing of circumstances and of human activity or self-transformation.” (from the editorial in SIC 1 available at www.sic.communisation.net)

The Republican Presidential Election:

The perverse electoral process at its most perverse is also the best reality show of the year. A freak-show in which the candidates compete to try to out do their opponents bigoted regressive policies and 1950’s clip art style grooming.

Freedom 1590 AM:

Right wing talk radio in Seattle that proves the paranoid style of American politics is alive and well. A portal into an alternate universe where the Nazi’s were left wing and evangelical Christianity is under attack. The tributes to Christopher Hitchens were particularly perverse.

Manifestos:
The Automatic Insurrectionary Manifesto Generator http://www.objectivechance.com/automatic_insurrection, The International Werewolf Conspiracy.

Music:
I usually listen to music while studying. For some reason I find that avant-garde kinds of doom/drone/black metal are the best for studying. So I spent a lot of time listening to the following new albums: Loss-Despond, Yob-Atma, Krallice-Diotima, Wolves in the Throne Room—Celestial Lineage, Big Business Quadruple Single and unreleased songs by The Whip I found online. I also loved the new Comet Gain.

Films:
Le Havre, The Muppet movie and The Black Power Mix-tape were the only new films I saw in the theatre in 2011. They were all good but not great. I also saw a showing of Freaks at the theatre. It was awesome. The great films I saw on DVD were the jimmy Stewart westerns by Anthony Mann, Fritz Lang westerns, Buster Keaton two reelers, Beaches of Agnes and Fassbinder’s the Niklashausen Journey http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0U0tn8W-8I

TV:
Re-watching Deadwood, which tells the story of manifest destiny from primitive accumulation to formal and real subsumption through a violent bunch of sociopaths who are covered in shit while engaging in a lotta swearing and a lotta drinking.

Books:
Scam and On the Lower Frequencies by Erick Lyle, The Third Reich and Between Parentheses by Roberto Bolano, Ask the Dust by John Fante, The Sociology of Theodor Adorno by Mathias Benzer, Space, Difference and Everyday Life: Reading Henri Lefebvre, The Concept of Nature in Marx and History and Structure by Alfred Schmidt, The Dialectics of Labour by Chris Arthur, Mike Davis’s writings on cities, Open Marxism and the Common Sense journal, An Introduction to the Three Volumes of Karl Marx's Capital by Michael Heinrich and Alex Locascio.

Other:
Revolutionary graves, ports, wandering in Portland, Seattle, Brighton, Rome, London, Oxford and Paris, the Czech photo exhibit in London, Gill’s sculptures, Taylor St Coffee and Tooktas café in Brighton. Aaron and Daily seeing Sonic Youth and eating at Del Posto.

Best of 2011 by Maggie Vail

2011-12-31T18:19:00.001-08:00

1) Comet Gain - Howl of the Lonely Crowd
2) Zola Jesus - Conatus
3) The Men - Leave Home
4) Wild Flag - Wild Flag
5) Kurt Vile - Smoke Ring For My Halo
6) Veronica Falls - Veronica Falls
7) Grass Widow - Milo Minute
8) Moon Duo - Mazes
9) Total Control - Henge Beat
10) Shoppers - Silver Year

favorite show hands down: grass widow at mississippi studios in august.
I felt like I was in outer space.

non release best of:

1) london and paris with mom, tobi, and molly. norwich, the louvre, delicious food, brighton pub roast, ana and shirley, curries, wonderful friends, eiffel tower at night, pere lachaise, cafe de flores, and classic american cinema.

2) fiji for valentine's day. delicious kokoda! snorkeling for the first time was both harder and more beautiful than I ever imagined.

3) iceland - the blue lagoon, viking museum, driving around the stunning countryside

4) playing shows with hurry up. it's so much fun to play loud music. I really missed it, plus, I love kathy and westin so much.

5) my new job at CASH Music. it feels good to believe wholeheartedly in something and to be challenged again.

6) discovering petunia's pies and pastries. finally, gluten free desserts that taste real and somehow they are also vegan?! the first bite I had of her banana cream cake I threw down my fork and yelled "no way!" more food discoveries: sizzle pie, june, posole at autentica, oysters at eat

7) learning to make the best manhattans I've ever had

8) discovering that I had more support and love than I even knew.

9) jackson is still here and getting better.

10) the von doom family!

Best of 2011 by Ben Trogdon

2011-12-31T18:11:00.000-08:00

I’m not so good at keeping up with current bands’ recordings, so this
is a list of some of my favorite performances of 2011.

Nicki Minaj
Oracle Arena - Oakland, CA
Rick Ross and Lil Wayne played too, but I’m a huge Nicki fan and she
totally killed it! Special thanks to my buddy Jaime who won the
tickets on the radio and invited me to come along.

Crazy Spirit
Holy Mountain - Seattle
I was so excited to see this band I stage dove off the PA speaker, hit
my face on the floor and got a fat lip.

Russian Tsarlag / SHV
Stud Mansion - Olympia
Dang, maybe I was stoned but this night was hypnotic. Intense. I was
under the spell.

Ratas Del Vaticano
Monterrey, MX
The show was in a shell of a building in downtown Monterrey. It had no
roof and inside was a half pipe and a bar. Ratas were sick! It was so
cool to see them in their hometown. Afterwards they took us to a house
party where everyone sung along to Eskorbuto until 4 AM. I was so
tired from the long drive and everything, I fell asleep in the middle
of it all.

The Creamers
Club 1808 - Austin
This band is so cool. When they played that night they owned that room
and that city.

Transfix / Forced Laugh / Living Eyes
Quince and State St. House - Olympia
Transfix is my new favorite Olympia band. Their demo tape and Living
Eyes’ new 7” were two of my fave recordings of 2011.

Brilliant Colors
Grandma’s House - Olympia
It was like seeing The Beatles!

Vile Gash
Old School Pizzeria - Olympia
Violent feeling, totally awesome. Gotta even out that karma.

HPP
Le Voyeur - Olympia
Even though this was HPP’s last show it was super fun. Everyone was in
a great mood. RIP HPP

White Wards / Hysterics / Christian Mistress
I saw these bands many times in 2011. They are continually inspiring
as people, friends, and bands.

Best of 2011 by Hannah Horovitz

2011-12-31T15:44:00.001-08:00

Crude Thought and Hysterics- They rule. These are my two favorite bands to see live.

12:01 January 1st, 2011 at Dumpster Values- i think this charmed my whole year. So many lady drummers working this amazing sound. So cool to feel like the new year was coming in on some kind of positive, powerful wave.

azealia banks' "212"- this song got stuck in my brain and all i wanted to do was listen to it over and over again. it seemed to me that every time it was reviewed or mentioned, folks were seriously hung up on how raunchy it was. it doesn't seem that raunchy to me, but maybe just because i've listened to it a thousand times? (I guess, no more or less raunchy than anything else). this was the song that warmed me to people when they liked it.

the nuts release party- everyone put this show on their list because it was a seriously magical day. my favorite part was being there early, seeing all of these people visiting from out of town while all the kids were running around and playing in the space with the sun shining and bands starting to play. reading everyone elses' descriptions of the night, i feel a little square, but that was the part that made me feel so happy-- watching people trickle in and out as the crowd slowly grew, hanging out with buddies, children and grown ups and everyone really stoked to be there.

the CLPP (Civil Liberties and Public Policy) conference at Hampshire College- I was able to go to this conference while I was on the East Coast this past April, and it totally blew my mind. So many people gathered together to fight for reproductive justice, it was so empowering and exciting. The panels and workshops were all super exciting and informative, but the closing plenary was seriously electric-- academics and activists were standing up in their seats to chime into a discussion that exploded into something beyond what I could have ever imagined possible. The auditorium was completely packed with people, and what had been presented as a panel discussion totally morphed into this amazing and totally positive and excited and deeply important talk on race, gender, sexuality, privilege and oppression... it felt so wonderful to be in a space and see this conversation modeled in such an inclusive and responsible way, to be surrounded by so many strong and brilliant people.

The end of the Red House- fuck, this could have been such a bummer. It's pretty miserable to walk by the house now and see it looking so sad with it's salmon-pukey paint and nothing going on. hanging out with gina and joey by the paddling pool and yardsale, walking up to the house with everyone milling around i the sun...I wish I could burn that days' feelings into my mind, so even if I somehow forget how much that house and the people who lived in it shaped my life in this town, i'll at least have some shock waves to lug around with me. Damn, that house was one of my favorite places in the world.

Love and Rockets- I know this is absolutely not specific to 2011, but I spent a while this autumn tuned out from the rest of the world, drinking coffee and reading Locas. I guess if this is on the list, I've got to round it out with everything else that made me feel sentimental/nostalgic/unstoppable:
Erick Lyle's "on the lower frequencies"
Al burien's "Things are meaning less"
Trini Dalton's "Wide eyed"
this zine called "riding freight trains across the country is not the only way to risk everything with your friends"

Mother News and Doris- talking about tiny ponies with friends everywhere who've all read that issue of doris has made with world feel a little more connected. I am always so stoked to get the new issue of mother news in the mail and find batman and feel so relieved that this is out there.

rotating house game night - thanks to ben russel, lucy and chris and others for helping make this autumn and winter more bearable. i love playing apples to apples with people who hate the policestate.

wugazi- have you heard this? my friend's date showed it to us while we were all hanging out, talking about woowoo vibes in the pacific northwest. My favorite tangent of 2011.

Gina's "Shit's fucked" zine- this might be the best zine I've read this year. So simple and so helpful (especially in the sense that when I read it, I feel like I'm sitting in the same room as my long-lost, gone-to-california buddy). This is some real talk self help.

Best of 2011 by John Root

2011-12-31T15:07:00.000-08:00

Best of 2011 by John Root

1. The last day of winter / first day of spring at SXSW during the "Super Moon" seeing Total Abuse then getting laid in my parents van.

2. swimming in "Agua Azul" with cave bats at Puente De Dios - Mexico

3. Club 1808 show in Austin,TX with Weird TV, Creaturas, & The Creamers

4. Sonskull at Nuts #8 release show

6. After party for the Weird TV show in Monterrey Mexico where members of Ratas Del Vaticano and other friends played covers for three hours

6. Femstival show in D.F. Mexico on the top floor of a 5 story squatted apartment.

7. Cream of the Crap Video grand opening w/ Knife to the Eye, Broken Water, Sewn Leather and AWOTT

8. Acephalix at the House of the Dead Rat in San Jose

9. Harsh Nayyar recording session

10. making $150 in LA after being filmed jerking off for a gay porn as "Richie Jacquelette". I was wearing a Hell Woman t-shirt.

Best of 2011 by Tobi Vail

2011-12-31T13:16:00.000-08:00

best of olympia:

Occupy Olympia
Slutwalk /Consent Fest
Feminist Dance Party with Marissa Magic & DJ TV
Outlook at New Direction Fest & tape
Hysterics record release party after Slutwalk & 7"
Animals & Men, Western Hymn and M.O.D.'s at Northern
Grass Widow/Broken Water at Dumpster Values & Weird TV at Old School
Knife in the Eye opening for Broken Water/AWOTT/Sewn Leather
Les Blank & Maureen Gosling at Olympia Film Festival
Nuts#8 release party show
Polly Darton & Love Warz at Northern
Hooded Hags at Northern
Jonathan Richman reprise of Modern Lovers' Old World at Capitol Theater
KISS at Night of the Living Tribute Bands
Scout Niblet backstage at the Capitol Theater
Family Stoned - High Time Woman
Dead Head - Caroline Doesn't Know It Yet
Secret listen to new Son Skull record that isn't really out yet
Sewn Leather 12", new tape & live show
White Boss lp (didn't come out this year but I listened to it a bunch)
Harsh Nayyar/ Level Anchorage live & recordings
Earth at Northern
Kanako/ feminist book club
Sarah Adams feminist organizer of the year!
Hanging out with Marissa Magic in Olympia & collaborating on punk
Spider and the Webs practice: new songs, bass guitar!
Sara Peté & Kelsey Smith produced events at the library:
Anne Elizabeth Moore, Alice Bag, Missy Anne, Stephanie Coontz etc
Angela Davis commencement speech at TESC
David Barsamian at the Washington State Labor Council
My mom on the cover of Olympia Power & Light at Bank Transfer Day protest

personal best:

running 5 miles
fixing my teeth
djing with Amy Yao at The Raincoats/Grass Widow/ No Bra in Brooklyn
getting paid to write
london/paris trip
playing a show (it's been a few years)
lake chelan & lake cushman w/ family & friends
port townsend anniversary date
sarasota film festival & beach with jenn
road trip to sf with joaquin de la puente on highway 101

favorite books:

1. Jimmy James Blood by Missy Anne
2. Salvation City by Sigrid Nunez
3. Out of the Vinyl Deeps by Ellen Willis
4. Violence Girl by Alice Bag
5. Sempre Susan by Sigrid Nunez

in general:

1. "I don't call it rioting, I call it an insurrection of the masses of the people."- Darcus Howe
2. anti-racist feminist critique of slutwalk
3. GRRL added to Scrabble dictionary
4. rookiemag.com
5. Finland - I really want to visit

"I've had what I wanted, and, when all is said and done, what one wanted was always something else." – Simone de Beauvoir

also, this article on the Occupy Movement

my top ten records of the year are listed in the December issue of artforum

Best of 2011 by Sara Peté

2011-12-31T12:04:00.000-08:00

1. alice bag reading and playing at the olympia timberland library and her rad book "violence girl: from east LA rage to hollywood stage - a chicana punk story"

2. favorite new band of 2011: hooded hags... favorite band that ended in 2011: cat fancy!

3. the maxines on narduar's radio show, at the olympia timberland library and their 2011 recordings

4. dj shannon and nadia buyse playing only the ladies and raising money for planned parenthood at the tonic in portland

5. san pedro el cortez (SPEC)... all the way from tijuana... and gun outfit show at the phoenix house

6. animals and men at northern

7. favorite repeat live show offenders of 2011: ghost mom, nucular aminals and november witch

8. experimental films at the library! kinema nippon, "klute" by dylan sharp, and "everything and nothing again and again" by reid urban

9. seeing a north korean monster movie (pulgasari) on the day of kim jong il's funeral in savannah georgia thanks to the psychotronic film society

10. 28th annual olympia film festival... especially "blossoms of fire" and q&a with maureen gosling and "always for pleasure" with les blank

very honorable mentions to:

sarah adams' feminist consciousness raising show at northern and all the other planned parenthood fundraising and support of 2011

AND

merle haggard and kris kristofferson live at the casino in shelton, wa.

Best of 2011 by Brett Lyman

2011-12-31T11:00:00.000-08:00

BEST HAPPENINGS OF 2011

1. Aramoana, just north of Port Chalmers, New Zealand; Harataonga Bay, Great Barrier Island, New Zealand (tie)

2. Moving house & home & underground business to Portland, Oregon, Republic of Cascadia

3. Mind-bending shows of this year: COASTING and THE GOLDEN AWESOME and approx. 50 other groups at Camp A Low Hum in Bulls, New Zealand; GRASS WIDOW, RAINCOATS, and FELT LETTERS at Comet Pizza and Ping Pong in Washington, DC;

4. Spectacle Theater in south Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York: the greatest tiny cinema in the country and, for many months this summer, my second home. best double bill: Chris Marker's "A BIENTOT, J'ESPERE" and Jean Eustache's "MES PETITS AMOREUSES"

5. Best 7" of the year that wasn't on M'lady's: Mecca Normal "Malachi" b/w "Blue Sky With Branches" on K

6. "There's far too much democracy in the culture, and not enough in society." - Fran Lebowitz, from "Public Speaking" by Martin Scorsese, my favorite non-fiction film of the year

7. Walking with thousands of people onto the Brooklyn Bridge in October, and again a few days later to take over Times Square, New York City

8. Realizing in the middle of the night back in June that recorded music is just a fad and soon enough the next stop on the underground express will be singing directly to one another

9. Getting older. So much more exciting than I ever could have imagined.

10. Seeing "Rock N Roll High School" on the big screen on my birthday at Anthology Film Archives. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Best of 2011 by Adriana

2011-12-31T00:18:00.000-08:00

10 MUSIC FAVORITES I HEARD IN 2011

1. Crude Thought -- demo
2. Broken Water – Peripheral Star ep/live
3. Mothercountry Motherfuckers - live
4. Weird TV – live/Brilliant Colors -- live
5. No Statik -- We All Die In The End LP
6. Pink Nightmare – self-titled ep (tape)/live
7. Grimace -- Mustard Gas and Roses ep (tape)
8. Sixes -- final tape/last Olympia set
9. Big Crux – Big Crux Is A Big Funk ep
10. Scary Man -- live

10 OTHER KEY FAVORITES IN 2011

1. the woods by my house
2. Shambhala: The Sacred Path of the Warrior by Chogyam Trungpa
3. the rapture of finally finishing my own bands’ releases: Hysterics – s/t (M’lady’s) Outlook - Vision tape + Our Time Is Now LP (out Feb), Dehumanized – Demo
4. Occupy
5. Chester
6. my nephew being born
7. meeting new and rediscovering old friends/Hysterics and Outlook tours
8. abundance$$$$$$/realizing sometimes it is possible to be taken care of
9. New Direction Fest/hanging out with Brigada Roja from Monterrey, MX
10. Nuts! Release Show #8/wet n’ wild times with some of music’s best RIP Red and Black

Best of 2011 by Chris Pugmire

2011-12-31T00:13:00.000-08:00

chris p (new war) - best of australia 2011

htrk - work (work, work)
rowland s howard - teenage snuff film (vinyl reissue)
lost animal - ex tropical
scattered order - a solar rush towards a treble heaven
laura jean - a fool who'll
dick diver - new start again
feathers - hunter's moon
total control - henge beat
blank realm - falling down the stairs 7"
batrider - piles of lies
twerps - twerps

Best of 2011 by Veronica Ortuño

2011-12-30T23:37:00.000-08:00

1. Dreams realized:
The opening of Las Cruxes' storefront....pouring my heart and sweat.
Support with Cease to Exist! and the amazing artists/musicians I get to study. — Special thanks to M'ladys Records for hosting it for me.

2. Records + such:
Sonskull - Wiped Clean EP
Rene Hell - Terminal Symphony
Factory Floor 12"; Hysterics 7"
Total Abuse - Prison Sweat
Earn - A Following Shadow
Broken Water - Peripheral Star EP
Demos: Livid + Nose Dive

3. Revisited:
Black Sabbath - Sabotage
Nick Garrie - The Nightmare of J.B. Stanislas
Leonard Cohen; Grace Slick & The Great Society; Robbie Basho
Martin Dupont - Just Because LP + Sleep Is A Luxury LP
Master's Apprentices - Hands of Time
The Index - LP

4. Shows (Music):
Weird TV at Club 1808
Fielded at Trailer Space
Rene Hell, Earn, & Pedestrian Deposit at Dem Passwords
Cold Girls; OBN III's
Everyone who helped make Night of Rage III possible

5. Shows (Art):
Alexander McQueen retrospective at the MoMA in New York
Dream House in Tribeca
A Hung Garden by Mikaylah Bowman at Youth Group Gallery

6. Books:
Sobrero Fallout + In Watermelon Sugar by Richard Brautigan
Christiane F. by Christiane F.
Helter Skelter by Vincent Bugliosi
Stranger Music by Leonard Cohen

7. Zines:
NUTS! fanzine by Ben Trogdon
I Strangled Mine by Rusty Kelley
Shotgun Seamstress by Osa Atoe
Making Waves by Mary Jane Regalado and Camille Lan

8. Honorable mention:
Labels: M'lady's Records; Fast Weapons; Perennial Records
Podcasts: Gunilla Mixtapes + TV Dinner
Movies: Depeche Mode: 101; Drive; Interiors; The Double Life of Véronique

9. Others:
Versus coming to fruition
Nights of solitude with a Micro Korg + a drum machine
Meditation and Chinese cupping therapy
Life-altering card readings from Kate Curtis and Sarah Adams
My sabbatical to the Pacific Northwest and California
Mini Chateau Marmont vacation with good friends
Rose Garden on N. Albina in Portland

10. PASSION….KEEP ON PUSHING.

Best of 2011 by Josh Bayer

2011-12-30T23:00:00.000-08:00

The books and albums in the top position would be Fred Blassie's 2004 biography favorite album would be Thalia Zedeck's 2008 album Liars and Prayers. I don't feel like this is totally a failure on my part to be current. It takes time to properly embrace immensely great stuff sometimes.

The absolute best thing that happened this year was discovering a new level of inclusion in the alt-comics community. So many people I respect were bending over backward to open up their hands in friendship and equality towards me. Raymond Pettibon, Brian Ralph, James Kochalka, these people are high up in the stratosphere and they were all supporting me in ways that I never would have imagined when I was hanging around parking lots in Columbus Ohio drinking Slurpees, listening to Hard Volume on a walkman, watching everyone I wanted to be friends with cross the street to get away from me.

13.Thalia Zedeck's Liars and Prayers
How did it take me 4 years to understand how great this record is?

12. Getting hired at Brooklyn's Third Ward.
I cry whenever I get a new job. I'm the luckiest person on Earth to do this for a living.

11. To Be The Man-Ric Flair

10. Listen Up you Pencil Necked Geeks-Fred Blassie

9. Steven Bissette's Teen Angels and New Mutants

8. Grant Morrison's Supergods

7. The Weird World Of Blowfly, the Movie
My (late) friend Jeremy used to put songs from"Blowfly's Zodiac" on mix tapes for me. I thought they sucked but Blowfly's longevity has worked its charm on me. As Blowfly has gotten older his voice sounds like John Brannon's, both an indestructible object and an irresistible force. When someone does art that is so fucked, for a few minutes, it absorbs all of your attention, and maybe some of your disgust and anger and you can almost forget how fucked and disgusting the world is outside.

6. OFF! First Four Ep's

5. Seeing Joan Jett and The Black Hearts for Free in Coney Island.
This was rad as all-get-out, one of the 15 best rock shows I've ever seen. I have listened to Joan Jett over and over and over. Sad that I'll never get to see her do some of my personal favorite songs (will she ever do racks from Pure and Simple?), but still, I could not have been happier with this show. She put a lot of passion into some of her more obscure songs, and delivered all the hits that you know she's way tired of playing with a respectable professionalism. Nothing will ever stop her.

4. Seeing Black Rainbow and The Home wreckers at ABCnORIO with Joaquin. and seeing X at Irving Plaza with Gabrielle Shelton. My two oldest friends on earth.

3. Brooklyn Comics and Graphics Festival

2. Being invited to be a part of Box Brown's Retrofit Comics imprint.

1. Suspect Device the Comic
This year I discovered that If I ask fifty or sixty artists, all of whom I have intense admiration for, to contribute new comics for no money, almost all of them will do it, and that most of them thank me for the opportunity. Its really really insane.

Best of 2011 by Chain and the Gang

2011-12-30T12:01:00.001-08:00

CHAIN & THE GANG'S 2011 FAVORITES:

SHOW - RAINCOATS / GRASSWIDOW / FELT LETTERS SHOW @ COMET PING-PONG

COMICS BLOG - HOW TO SURVIVE THE APOCALYPSE AND OTHER THINGS

12" THAT GOT MAILED TO US - CRAZY BAND - FUCK YOU LP (TEENAGE TEARDROPS)

7" THAT GOT MAILED TO US - JONATHAN HALPER'S SOUNDTRACK TO PUCE MOMENT (TANIWHA'S & PUCK PRODUCTIONS)

BEST DRESSED - HEAVY BREATHING

MOST HIGHLY ANTICIPATED ZINE ANTHOLOGY - SHOTGUN SEAMSTRESS (BY OSA ATOE, COMPILED BY M'LADY'S)

PUBLIC GATHERING - DIY SHOWS @ OCCUPY DC

PERFORMANCE - TANDOORI KNIGHTS @ BLACK CAT BACKSTAGE

BOARD GAME - BLOKUS

BOOK - IMPERIAL CRUISE BY JAMES BRADLEY

Best of 2011 by Marissa Magic

2011-12-30T10:43:00.001-08:00

25 things that interest me in 2011 in no particular order:

occupy/decolonize movement
The shutting down of various things and taking back of space is both
exciting and inspiring. I feel like it's already changed the world to
some tiny degree and I hope it continues to push that

hysterics
This band wows me every time I come across them whether it's in
recorded or live form. And their lyrics are even better. (blistering
lady hardcore)

stillsuit
I consider this to be my band of challenges. Playing guitar, singing
pretty but keeping it entirely abrasive. One of those bands that grew
out of and into the best of friendships. (fucked guitars punishing
drums and fake harmonies)

knife in the eye
This is another challenge band, playing music with people I admire and
one of the more straightforward projects I have ever touched. (freaked
out straight ahead punk rock)

sewn leather
An anomaly of a person, electronic kind of dance music chock full of
references I actually understand (FLIPPER+THROBBING GRISTLE)

sissy spacek
a name I heard so many times but finally this year witnessed the
wonder. (powerviolence noise)

chicago
A town I have loved forever and I finally got a grand tour/hangout
from a native. If I ever found myself wanting to move somewhere new
this would be it.

olympia
I spent more time here this year than I have in the last five. It has
turned into a town of acquaintances where I exist as a bizarre myth,
where people know of my past hijinks and have kept track of me via my
writing but have had minimal real interaction with me. It was real
excellent to hang out with Tobi and make some new friends. For the
first time in a long time I miss it for what it is now rather than
what it was when I lived there.

the church
My new home. Filled to the brim with forever weirdos. Again I find
myself in a semi-public living space (which I prefer) and the constant
go ahead if not encouragement to make the entire place into a series
of art installations is inspiring

diet cokeheads
how did I not know about this? I read an interview that they were on
indefinite hiatus due to different members moving to different places.
I hope they play a reunion show in my living room. (FLIPPER with delay
rather than distortion)

oakland
This is the year I realized that San Francisco was no longer the
social culture I longed for so I moved the fuck on and dove straight
into a bizarre fantasy that is now my reality.

new years
I had this moment where I tried to go to a party in Oakland and felt a
meltdown coming on so I jetted and went to a party in a squat in San
Francisco. It was a magical night.

rind
When Lee moved here I got an e-mail from my friend Danimal telling me
what a wonderful person she is, he is right. Here performances as RIND
are chilling and her record is haunting. An amazing artist and I feel
honored to even be slightly associated with her. (dark bleeps and slow
vocals)

vanessa
maybe this is awkward? Vanessa is my best friend. She is an amazing
guitar player(one of my favorites), excellent screamer and a rad
drummer. She makes creepy drawings and wreaths of hair. She is one of
those people who consistently challenges how I see the world. On her
birthday she took me to creative growth which is the art studio for
adults with disabilities that she volunteers at and it was one of the
most intense and emotional moments of my life

the end of self hatred
too reveling? I kind of don't hate myself anymore. I almost don't know
how to handle it.

MRR column
apparently my writing garners a spot for reporting to the world my
thoughts on things on a monthly basis. Does this make me influential?

meals
she also goes by Amelia. This is another person in my life that
consistently challenges how I see the world. She is an amazing front
person and a mind blowing artist.

magicmeals
the above mentioned and I have this forever project together that has
morphed from a dance thing to a band to performance art to video
making to visual bullshit. A two person art collective. Some of the
rawest and most vulnerable things in my life are presented to the
public via this.

livid
an amazing and inspiring band. Aggressively queer, positive in a
non-hippie sense, rejoicing in the outsider, talk sing vocals provided
by the above mentioned meals. (bags meets val-speak)

displeasure
I hope this doesn't bum anyone in this band out because I really think
they are amazing, but with this combo of people in it I managed to
convince myself it would be a pretty straightforward punk band of the
ilk that I'm not way into. Half way through their first song I was
literally jumping up and down and squealing. This band is
aaaaaamazing. They just put out a demo that has garnered some heavy
rotation from yours truly. (too melodic to be hardcore, not melodic
enough to really be considered melodic)

all-american road trip with family to national parks
nature is FUCKING CRAZY.

midnight magic snax
did I even spell that right? This is a weirdo video project/occasional
DJ duo that I do with my dear and longtime friend jerrylee. Currently
we are at the editing point of a video whose main focus is a "puppet
urinal" staged during folsom street fair.

dadfag
their new record is really fucking good (no wave tinged sonic youth)

nuts! release party/nuts! in general
this was one of the best shows I attended this year, Ben Trogdon must
be a fucking magician or some shit. All day punk show in the middle of
downtown olympia during artswalk in a burnt out building with no roof?
done. Seriously, what the fuck? Beyond that, nuts! is one of the best
zines I've read possibly ever in my entire fucking life. Ben is an
amazing interviewer and it's in general such a mish mash from weirdo
art to food reviews to essays to whatever.

Polly Darton
I thought Maryjane was pretty fascinating in the first place and then
Tobi sent me a link of a performance she did and I really hope she
comes here sometime.

Best of 2011 by Dave Harvey

2011-12-30T03:38:00.001-08:00

Recording the Family Stoned
Having seen them play a couple sonically confusing shows, I was surprised when they came in and promptly put down 6 or 7 completely cohesive punk-hippy jams with a dialed-in sound that translated naturally to tape. Caroline's melodic rock'n'roll vocals were the cherry on top. Check out the self-released cassette - I'd tell you the name of it, but they haven't even gotten a copy to me yet, but it's the 2nd tape.

Dead Head recording and live
I've dug them all along, but they've gotten more focused with every show, and came over and made a great stripped down sludgy hard rock recording that shows off their musical interaction much better than the first recording - plus wind chimes on this one. Dead Head II is the self-released cassette I'm speaking of.

Hysterics live and recording
Hysterics always kill it, even in the daylight or if there's only 8 people present - and that's saying something. Adriana is like the Keith Richards of hardcore - I get the sense that everyone else in the band is following her, when most bands follow the drummer. She's a riffin' machine. It was a treat hanging out with them for a couple days recording their 7" that, after many inexplicable delays, finally came out on M'lady's records a few weeks ago.

Speaking of M'lady - best hair salon I've seen this year:
M'lady, M'lord, in Yuma, AZ. Unisex, of course.

Dial M For Murder in dual 35mm projector 3D at the Capitol Theater
Part of the best Oly Film Fest I've seen in years, this was the film I've most wanted to experience for many years now, but I never thought I'd get to actually project it. Co-helming the projectors with Joaquin de la Puente, this was incredibly rewarding both in the completely antiquated but 100% functional technology at work - nothing even remotely digital - and the beautiful result. Oh, and the movie itself is awesome, too!

Long hangs alone in wintery deserts, and driving from Austin to Olympia only hitting one interstate for about 80 miles.

Nuts #8 release party in that burned-out building.
Man, hats off to Troggin'-dog, this was such an incredible concept and I still can't believe he actually pulled it off. I had to work some lame event at the Theater and missed the entire last half and got really pissed especially cuz I was really looking forward to jamming some dive-bomb fuzz-wah guitar with Son Skull and I got there right when they finished and I really really wanted to see them and god only knows when and if they'll next play again.

Speaking of which:
The new Son Skull 12"
After something like a year and half's recording time - I think only Axl Rose takes longer - I had no idea if the recordings would even glue together as one record but they totally did. It almost feels like a concept album - er, EP. Way harsher than their Birth Scene/Rewind 12", but with moments that are far gentler as well - such as Mary conjuring sonorous harmonics from the depths of a crystal bowl and Frida rockin' the windswept brass elephant bell. Again, I don't even know what this is called cuz I don't have a copy yet and so far only glorified test pressings have been available with screen printed covers - official issue coming any day now.

Totally low budget "professional" wrestling in a church basement in Montreal with all the wrestlers screaming in French. Marvelous Jeff! Sexy Leon Savors!

Aki Kaurismaki's new film Le Havre
Any time this Finnish dude has a new movie it's cause for celebration. A carful of us went up to Seattle last week to catch it and it didn't let down in the slightest. Kaursimaki's usual low-key storytelling takes a political bent, but in the most humanistic manner possible. I laughed and I cried. And Little Bob rocked it and Jean-Pierre Léaud - the kid from The 400 Blows - creeped it up as the small-minded snitch. Coming to the Capitol Theater the week of January 27th. I can't recommend it enough.

All in one day: hanging out with Wayne Kramer and getting rocked so hard by The Stooges with James Williamson on guitar that parts of my body are still sore a month later and dancing onstage during Shake Appeal and seeing Iggy's cock 4 feet in front of my face.

There's kinda nothing more to say after that.

Best of 2011 by Stephie Cristol

2011-12-29T19:34:00.000-08:00

two things i'm not gonna forget from 2011:

1. nuts! #8 party
-as a teenager i would read book after book about the punk scenes of the 70s and 80s and it didn't take long to come to terms with the devastating idea that i would never experience an underground music made by members of my own generation that would move me at least as profoundly as our predecessors' music had. how very wrong i was...after freaking out over some of the best bands in the world (all of whom were from olympia), with a couple hundred friends and strangers in the pouring rain, i left feeling like i'd just been baptized or something...by the time sonskull played, it was dark, and the crowd was a mass of steaming bodies, losing our shit in this gutted warehouse. i remember milk music's two-song set really got to me. i'd seen almost all these bands before, but never in one place, and it was a magical combination of elements. someday rolling stone or an equally irrelevant publication will try to reflect on this period in music history and they will most likely completely overlook this biggest, best and most sacred secret. realest of the real. thank you ben trogdon.

2. outlook at aggression fest (eagle's hall basement, olympia)
-"aggression fest" was an all-day showcase of hardcore bands from around the northwest. i thought some of the show was a basketball-shorts-wearing snoozefest but it was for a great cause (proceeds went to G.I. coffeehouse COFFEE STRONG, owned by antiwar vets at fort lewis, to provide soldiers with information about their rights and resources) and it did have its highlights: Seattle band GRIMACE, for example, who channels bands like NEGATIVE APPROACH but with a kind of freshness, fury and authenticity that can't be faked. my band hysterics also played and had a great time, but what really made this show best-of-2011 material was the performance given by olympia hardcore band OUTLOOK. smart and sincere personal-is-political lyrics with scathing and relentless delivery, brain-rippingly tight riffs and crazy extraterrestrial-grade changes that move at such a breakneck pace, it doesn't give you a second to contemplate what the fuck it is they just did. in 2008, seeing the way adriana fronted this group was what inspired me to scrape up the guts to attempt the same thing the following year, and every outlook show thereafter has been equally inspiring...as soon as they hit the first chord at this show and the floor opened up, i flipped my wig and ended up sore for like four days. what a great group!

other stuff:
crude thought (!!!), dancing onstage with the sonics (not to mention james maeda with his mom and dad) at the capitol theater in the first moments of 2011, getting intercepted by jewish family i didn't even know i had at the opening of kitzel's deli (true story), the KISS cover band (five words: aaron larsen as gene simmons), going on the first hysterics tour, the new john maus LP, the broken water 12", brilliant colors/la la vasquez at grandma's house, and occupy wall street.

Best of 2011 by Steve Dore

2011-12-29T17:24:00.001-08:00

Here are my highlights of the year, in no particular order.

Kayaking into Buzzard's Bay and "discovering" and hanging around my own tiny island. Sadly I had no flag on me at the time.

Philip Guston: Collected Writings, Lectures, Conversations book: The inspired curmudgeon speaks....a lot.

The Wallace Collection

Alvarius B. Baroque Primitiva LP- This also gets my vote for best record cover of the year.

Eric Copeland "U.F.O.'s Over Vampire City"- Heard this on the radio when I was chopping onions. Top tune!

Mike Kelley's Exploded Fortress of Solitude exhibition at Gagosian Gallery

The Age of Absurdity by Mike Foley. Wise and funny, what more do you want?

Seeing my old friend Kevin Noonan in Brooklyn after not seeing each other for 13 years was the highlight of my year.

Best of 2011 by Rachel Evans

2011-12-29T17:19:00.001-08:00

Here is my best and discovered for 2011

1. Film: The big picture starring Roman Duris
2. Place: Chiswick House & Gardens
3. Place : Notes Coffee and Music Shop, St Martin's Lane
4. Band: The Proper Ornaments
5. Drink: Hendricks gin, and discovering that including agostura bitters to gin makes it extra delicious
6. Music: Brazil Bossa beat from Soul Jazz Records.
7. Photographs: E.O Hoppe portraits at the National Portrait Gallery
8. Television: The new modern Sherlock Holmes
9. Books: Discovering early 19th Century literture. Jane Austen is good and not as trite as school made be believe.
10. Woman of the Year: Miss Ladybird face.. My continuing adoration of the older woman

Best of 2011 by Billy Karren

2011-12-29T15:24:00.000-08:00

Outlook...Outlook's video covers everything that happened last summer on the west coast

Best of 2011 by Lisa Schonberg

2011-12-29T11:51:00.000-08:00

ten things i loved in 2011 in no particular order

1. M'lady's Records moving to Portland
2. Kicking off 2011 at dumpster values drumming with 20 other women
3. Revival Drum shop moves into huge new space & Beacon Sound record shop moves in next door = best strip mall ever

4. PDX Rock 'n' Roll Camp for Girls persisting through hard financial times and raising $50,000 in a couple of months.
5. Wild Flag performing live = most inspiring show of 2011
6. Getting to go to Michigan Womyns Fest.
7. My great aunt Ann turning 99.
8. Getting to create, compose for & perform with the Secret Drum Band percussion ensemble.

photo by martin evans

9. Joshua Tree, three times = favorite desert

photo by tara jane oneil

10. Surfing in the northwest

Best of 2011 by Molly Neuman

2011-12-29T11:39:00.000-08:00

Best of my life 2011

café de flore

Paris with Vail ladies
Dinner at Frenchie, Paris
Inside Job wins the Oscar
Grandma's 90th birthday, Napa
Dinner at Bazaar, LA
Teaching classes for Cocinar Para Su Salud http://www.cookforyourlife.org/
Moving to our new home
Riding my bike to Ft. Tilden Beach
Yoga at Mala and Shambhala
Classes at Studio Maya, Brooklyn
Tybee Island family beach trip
Comet Gain at the Scala, London
Arroz Negre at Barceloneta and Arnau's birthday show 11.11.11
Puerto Rico holiday
Hot Snakes, Wild Flag, No Age and more at ATP, Minehead
Christmas tamales with Miriam

Best of 2011 by Adee Roberson

2011-12-28T17:44:00.000-08:00

Here is a list of my favorite Jams this year. As I was compiling this I was only a little surprised that my list of music consisted mostly of punk and experimental bands with people of color and women in the forefront of them. It's so great to see things change overtime, or maybe instead of focusing on what we didn't have we just made what we wanted to happen.

1. Peaking Lights "936" (Not Not Fun; 2011)

Tripped out lo fi space sounds. Elements of dub, minimal disco, and punk.
I spent a lot of time listening to this album while painting and driving long distances.
http://vimeo.com/19061882

2. Covergirl "Paris Burns" (Captured Tracks; June 2011)

When I heard this I was like yay the essence of Huggy Bear is back!
gay/queer post punk. Covergirl doesn't sound like HB to me they just remind me of them with the boy/girl vocal and fuzzy loud guitars, and literal conscious lyrics. I want to move to the U.K. and be friends with them.
http://soundcloud.com/covergirl

3. Younger Lovers "Rock Flawless" (Bachelor Records; July 2011)

I can't lie I haven't listened to this whole album through and through, but I saw YL play like 5 times this summer, and it was indeed flawless. So fucking good. soul pop punk. I love catchy lyrics, and the video for "keeps on falling down" is a black queer stoner's dance party dream come true.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHau4cOdgp0

4. HALO HALO " Manananggal " (Savoury Days Records 2011)

Banjo, female vocals, pause and response drum patterns. This sounds really fucking fun. and the video for the song "Manananggal" is cool too.
http://halohalomixmix.blogspot.com/

5. Jeepneys "Lats Yerk + Herman the Bull" (Human Ear; July 2011)

Anna Luisa is from another planet. I'm glad that she is visiting earthduring this lifetime, because I feel like she is helping to expand the minds of whoever she encounters by just kicking it with them. This is space music plane and simple. Stars, Planets, Ancestors from other galaxies are jamming to this. Imagine minimal organic house/dance music, with tap dancing and backwards vocals, and elements of jazz from Sun Ra's Arkestra.
http://www.jeepneysjeepneys.com/

6. Chica Vas "Te Queiro" (Generatto , March 2011)

Drums, Percussion, deep vocals. The ritual like sounds of these songs inspire me so much.
http://soundcloud.com/chicavas

7. American Splits

Bass. Heavy Drums. Saxophone and vocals and all people of color. When I saw American Splits in San Francisco I was so happy. Really happy. This is definitely punk, post punk with elements of The Ex, and Essential Logic. I love this band. They are under the radar too, they don't have any recordings but below Is a link to a live show recording.
http://www.9thfloorradio.com/podcast/2010/10/21/american-splits.html

8. Shaggy Reaper, Fat Transfer, Teenage Love Songs Live at BernalHill, San Francisco
A sunset show with friends. Everyone who played was so good. I don't want to be dorky describing this and ruining it. It was just so good. and you had to be there.

9. Renyosa

I love when folks incorporate D.I.Y. and punk music and aesthetic with their own culture and background. This is something I am constantly striving for with my art and music and it is so satisfying to see it manifested to simply with Renyosa. LOVE.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l6L_sCd1TZQ

10. The Eyo Beats "60 Africa 70" (Domino Sound)

All of the songs on this tape are old. way before 2011, but I think it was released earlier this year. A compilation of Afro beats and sounds. Highlife and RNB. Lovely artwork and songs.
http://www.cornerstonesproject.org/cornerstones_registry_domino_records.html

Best of 2011 by Hannah Lew

2011-12-28T17:43:00.001-08:00

maybe not 100% released in 2011, but my favorite hits of 2011:

UV race
Total Control
Rank Xerox
Milk Music
Broken Water
Weird TV
Hunx and his Punx
Bleached
Nature
Golden Awesomes

Best of 2011 by Erick Lyle

2011-12-28T13:18:00.000-08:00

LIVE SHIT

1. Occupy Wall Street (SF, Oakland, Olympia, etc...)
Face it, this shit ruled! I was lucky enough to be around this in different places -- the Oakland General Strike, the inception of Oly's Occupy, the scene at Zucotti... Very cool. Finally a movement that so simply captured the public imagination that even my MOM got it! Zucotti was very special -- so organized and ambitious. The People's Library, the daily feedings, really the whole bit. I loved how people were talking to each other. It was this island of respect and tolerance in downtown NYC. It reminded me of Orwell's accounts of anarchist-controlled Barcelona. People were walking a little taller here all over town, for sure. And still are, if recent hand to hand battles with NYPD in the streets are any indication. Its not over yet!

2. Exene Cervenka/Black Rainbow/Younger Lovers/Displeasure/Alibastair Choad at Serra Bowl in Colma, CA 7/16/11
Did I ever tell you how Exene opened for my band in a bowling alley in the suburbs of SF? Just another in a long series of "Anything is possible"moments in the Bay Area! SF and Oakland punks descended on a real live bowling alley full of Filipino families bowling and teens hanging in the parking lot on a Saturday night. Gangs sized each other up outside and old men drank in the old man bar while the pins fell all around. A spirited parallel show was said to take place at the karaoke bar while this raging punk show took place in the arcade (we just had to leave $100 deposit and move the air hockey tables to make room for the bands). Displeasure are raw, noisy, chaotic, tough. Alibastair Choad were their usual compelling cult-like selves. Exene sang three songs a cappella and spoke a little between songs. She was brilliant, really spot on politically but understated and modest. "The World's a Mess Its In My Kiss" gave me chills. Brontez closed out the show with the usual hilarious jokes interrupted every so often by dancy pop punk.

3. Do You Hear We? Fest Chattanooga, TN June 2011
This is my yearly family reunion, now in its 4th year. It has been so inspiring to see The Region calmly grow through love and calm determination into an actual punk destination. In 1995, none of us could have imagined that punks FROM OTHER CITIES would ever flock to Chattanooga to hear what we were doing! This 4-day blowout really shone on the last two days with back to back full days of The Rock at the new Sluggo's North. Hidden Spots, ADDC/Twat Sauce/Shell Shag/Landlord/RVIVR/Street Legal/Dark Rides/Future Virgins/countless others ruled it for days of non stop dancing and friendship.

4. Mike Watt and The Missing Men @ Mercury Lounge New York City 4/1/11
So good to see Watt back in action with a blazing hot band. I stood pressed against the stage as close as possible and let Watt and drummer, Raul, blow me away for an hour as they played their entire new LP start to finish and a bunch of Minutemen covers for an encore. Watt is a force of nature and he just keeps going, getting better and better, on his lifelong Econo mission. So inspiring!

5. Son Skull in the pouring rain at Nuts Zine release party 10/8/11 Olympia, WA
From behind the band, the view was classic -- a soaked, wildly dancing and stage diving crowd lit up by stage lights as sheets of freezing rain poured down and Son Skull killed it. I heard a rumor it was to be their last show. I hope not!

6. Broken Water/Sewn Leather/Russian noise band/Knife in The Eye at Dumpster Values Olympia, WA 10/15/11
First show with my new band turned out to be kind of a perfect night. The thrift store was turned into a tent by sheets Kanako strung up overhead and bands played in there. The Russian noise band generously wore goofy masks that had been made out of black foamy noodle pool toys! Broken Water were heavy and hypnotic and Sewn Leather was snotty and hilarious, a crusty with a heart of gold! Bikini Bill was unofficial MC of course-- in the show and on the streets! Diverse crew of Oly oldtimers and young punks coming together for a pretty warm feeling night. Made me feel like I'd been welcomed into the family up there.

7. Hysterix punk house West Oakland, CA 7/11
This show was perfect! I arrived just as Hysterix were about to play. The living room was aleready completely packed, with lots of friends on hand, and everyone danced like hell in the tiny space. So great! Across town the Zero Boys were playing a much heralded reunion show at a big rock club and most of my friends went to that. As much as I love the Zero Boys, I know that whatever spark they once must have had was really on display in this tiny hardcore show with 50 kids jammed in this living room. This was what the "old days" were really like!

8. Interference Archive opening night Brooklyn, NY 12/16/11
The new venture from longtime activist artists Josh Macphee and Dara Greenwald is Interference Archive, a public archive of their collected library and ephemera in Gowanus, Brooklyn. The couple has filed their collection of political art and pamphlets, posters, flyers, etc. and made it available to everyone in this public office space. The opening was very sweet as lefty artists from all over the Eastern seaboard showed up to pay their respects and check it out. As a researcher, I'm excited by non-institutional archives. As a friend, I am once again reminded of how Josh and Dara really embody their collective politics and always bring people together so wonderfully.

9. Raymond Pettibon at David Zwirner NYC 1/11
Ray remains my last living art hero. The two enormous rooms at Zwirner were filled with uncompromising new work, featuring Ray's edgy and twisted humor. What other artist makes work that is still so resolutely anti-authority? Duke Riley? Certainly none operating at Pettibon's level of art world success. The last show of his I saw at Zwirner (opening on 9/11/07) had many pieces about Bush and Co. Ray took on Obama in this new show. Formally, Pettibon has comfortably moved into full color and the results are mind blowing. This show made me feel -- as did many of these other shows - proud to be a lifelong member of the underground criminal scumbag community!

10. Max Rameau at University of Miami Library Miami, FL 2/11
I was honored to be able to speak with Take Back The Land's founder at the dedication of our archives at the University of Miami Library this past winter. Rameau's work with the Umoja Village and the squatting efforts of TBTL for the last few years has pushed the conversation far enough to the left to have helped make Occupy Wall Street not just possible but inevitable.

HONORABLE MENTION: UNDER THE BIG BLACK SUN exhibition at LA MOCA Los Angeles, CA
This was one of about 60 simultaneous art exhibitions related to SoCal art history that opened this fall across LA as part of the Pacific Standard Time series. It is easy to be cynical about the PST shows and LA civic leaders' efforts to subsume all of this countercultural art into LA's new myth of itself, giving the city a new backstory of authenticity while providing the institutional interest that will make a whole lot of obscure work suddenly highly collectable. And, its true, this exhibit from curator, Paul Schimmel of Helter Skelter show fame (1992) was also somewhat uneven, overstocked, muddy. Nonetheless, it turned me onto a whole bunch of freaky, out there, LA art. Cool work from Bas Jan Ader, Chris Burden, Robert Heinecken, Nina Segalove, Allen Ruppersberg, Ruscha (of course) and about a thousand others...

MUSIC

1. Landlord "Beneath The Wheel" LP
flawless stony jams from Bloomington wizards! Listen to the drum tracks with head phones on, it'll close your mind!

2. Off! collection of singles on LP
Dude! Keith has still got it! Wings over Inglewood! Total rager from start to finish!

3. ADDC LP
Now in their 11th year, this is the most ambitious effort yet from this group of long time Region Rockers. Influences are all over the place here, cohering somehow into an overall sound that is the band's very own. You can hear the band members' lifelong friendship at work here. The tightness, the integrity, the love. Great great stuff. Would be #1 probably if I hadn't already heard the recording so much in 2010.

4. Grass Widow LP
Think this came out last December? Lets put it in! I listened to it a ton this year anyway.

5. The Endemics
Not sure if or how this came out. Sonia just emailed me the recording! I have like 11 songs and they all rule. Lil B's time machine East Bay Ray git licks and Mason's rock steady beats lock in step with Sarah Beth's dreamy soulful vocals over the top. Music that sounds old in the best way, like timeless.

7. Broken Water EP
Trademark hypnotic and dreamy waves of sound here with a little more snarly edge than last time. I wish I was around to hear the Grass Widow and Broken Water tour discussions!

8. Future Virgins LP
Flawless pop, Mike Pack recorded, and Ashley from Sexy all grown up here. No more pissing the couch, but plenty of great hooks and two guitar interplay laid out to total satisfaction. Region Rock advances into a stately and determined middle age! As Pack would say, "Lets get there."

8. Light Brigade demo
Holy shit! Sounds like OLD Portland in the best way. Like the Neo Boys or some band that opened for The Wipers on a rainy Tuesday in 1979 and never played again and you spend the rest of your life haunted by their songs. So good!

9. Twat Sauce demo
The Black Flag of 2012! The band poses the question, "What if Riot Grrl had been born not in Olympia in 1991 but in Ft. Oglethorpe, GA in 2021?!?" Unfuckwithable, as Lance used to say.

10. Sewn Leather LP
Crusty dance noir, includes best song about a Greyhound bus ever!

BOOKS

1. The Art of Cruelty by Maggie Nelson
2. Believing is Seeing; Observations on the Mysteries of Photography by Errol Morris
3. Savage Messiah by Laura Oldfield Ford
4. The Gentrification of The Mind: Witness to a Lost Imagination by Sarah Schulman
5. Where Art Belongs by Chris Kraus
6. Blossoms of Greenpoint by David Kennedy Cutler
7. Decoded by Jay Z
8. King King Theory by Virginie Despentes
9. Speaker Receiver by Moyra Davey
10. (tie) Retromania by Simon Reynolds/ Otherwise Known as The Human Condition by Geoff Dyer

ZINES/PERIODICALS

1. Mother's News
A monthly treat, its understated New England charm belies the paper's towering ambition: nothing less that to produce a vital and consistently readable newspaper that pays for itself every single month in an era when we are told the newspaper is dead. Jake's seemingly ad-libbed observations on the months of the year and various quotidian facets of life resonate with surprising profundity, sometimes sticking in my head all month. Always warm and hilarious, but never below the belt, Mother's News, like all great newspapers, builds community.

2. Baitlines
See above. The SF queer Utopian Free classified ad paper/art project rolls into its 4th year, still as great as ever.

3. Loitering is Good
In latest issue, Joey celebrates the lonely spaces of our moribund urban areas, waxes poetic on the passing of the working man, and details enthusiastically how his impulse to do graffiti has morphed into an addiction to planting trees in the abandoned no zones where he once obsessively tagged. Moving, sincere, lyrical, and tender but not self-consciously so, this was as from the heart as any zine I've seen in years.

4. Suspect Device
Josh Bayer and Co skewer Nancy in a zine-length display of Situationist delight. Sluggo, too!

5. WHY DON'T PEOPLE MAKE ZINES ANYMORE?!?
Flyers, too. Dark times for the scene related ephemera these days, no?

Coasting-Portland

2011-12-06T11:07:00.000-08:00

Video animated and directed by Sarah Manuwal

polly darton

2011-12-05T18:55:00.001-08:00

Plan B is a legal form of birth control

2011-11-29T15:29:00.000-08:00

photo of sara and jen taken by diana arens, from wip website

In 2006 a group of people in Olympia, WA started a boycott (grrlcot) of Ralph's Thriftway, a locally-owned grocery store with a pharmacy that refuses to stock Plan B, a form of emergency contraception (EC). Five years later the boycott is still going strong and the legal case, Stormans v. Selecky, is going to the U.S. District Court.

A recent article in The Olympian by Brad Shannon reads:

Those who support the dispensing of Plan B say it is a high dose of the ingredients of a birth-control pill that greatly reduces the chance of pregnancy if ingested by a woman within 72 hours of unprotected sex. The Food and Drug Administration in 2009 ordered that it be available over the counter for teens as young as 17, but with prescriptions for those who are younger.

The FDA also says the medication does not affect existing pregnancies, unlike the RU-486 drug, but that the medication might act to prevent a fertilized egg from implanting in the womb.

This is poorly worded and misleading. As I noted in an earlier article (written in 2006 for a class I was taking and posted online in 2009), once again, science is being framed by "pro-life" ideology in our local newspaper.

The Olympian says "those who support the dispensing of Plan B say" it works like regular birth control pills. This is not a matter of debate. This is the established medical explanation of how the drug actually works. It is a form of contraception. It is not an abortion pill. This article makes it sound like the scientific definition of medicine is subjective. Consult the World Health Organization, the FDA, the CDC and current peer-reviewed medical journals for a more objective account. If you are anti-Plan B, you logically should be anti-birth control pill, it works the same way.

The medical definition of a pregnancy is a fertilized egg that is implanted in the womb. By this definition, Plan B is birth control NOT abortion. This is true regardless of whether or not Plan B prevents a fertilized egg from implanting in the womb. The newspaper needs to make this clear and not pander to there being "two opinions" with equal weight when there are established legal and medical definitions at work.

As I noted before, there is no conclusive medical research that proves that Plan B prevents an already fertilized egg from implanting. To focus on the possibility that it MAY work this way when this is not backed by science is confusing at best and biased in the way it reinforces the "pro-life" agenda of confusing birth control with "abortion".

Finally, Plan B will not work if you are already pregnant when you take it. Medical research does not back the claim that it will effect a fertilized egg that has been implanted. Plan B is a legal form of birth control. It is not an abortion pill.

If you believe pregnancy starts when an egg is fertilized (not when a fertilized egg is implanted in the womb) and this is a moral issue for you then, based on a scientific understanding of how emergency contraception works, your objection to the use of Plan B should probably extend to the use of regular birth control pills and *possibly* IUD's.

From the Emergency Contraception website:

To make an informed choice, women must know that ECPs—like all regular hormonal contraceptives such as the birth control pill, the implant Implanon, the vaginal ring NuvaRing, the Evra patch, and the injectable Depo-Provera,41 and even breastfeeding42,43,44,45— prevent pregnancy primarily by delaying or inhibiting ovulation and inhibiting fertilization, but may at times inhibit implantation of a fertilized egg in the endometrium. At the same time, however, all women should be informed that the best available evidence is consistent with the hypothesis that levonorgestrel and ulipristal acetate ECPs’ ability to prevent pregnancy can be fully accounted for by mechanisms that do not involve interference with post-fertilization events.

Emergency contraceptive pills will not cause an abortion. EC is not the same as the abortion pill. There is no time when the emergency contraceptive pills available in the United States would end a pregnancy once it has started. Hormonal emergency contraceptive pills don’t have any effect if you are already pregnant. If you decide to use an IUD for emergency contraception, your health care provider would test you first to confirm you are not already pregnant.

It will be interesting to see what happens with this case. It is likely to go to the Supreme Court. I have not been able to shop at my neighborhood grocery store for over five years because I support the boycott. This is something that impacts me on a daily basis.

Here is some more info I gathered in my research on Plan B back in 2006:

The right wing campaign against Plan B is anti-birth control not just
anti-abortion. They specifically see Plan B as immoral because they are
worried it will promote promiscuity and sex before marriage,
particularly among young people. These are the same people who argue
against condoms and want abstinence only education.

Studies show that Plan B has the potential to prevent 700,000
abortions a year. If lowering the number of abortions is really the
issue, Plan B should be made readily available.

A high percentage of rape victims use Plan B.

According to both sides of the issue, there is no medical reason to
require a prescription for Plan B. The FDA ruled that it is medically
safe. Lawmakers ignored the FDA advisory board in 2004 and were
persuaded by anti-abortion politicians to keep it available by
prescription only. This caused all kinds of controversies about science
v. politics/religion that have been widely documented in peer reviewed
journals.

In Washington State some pharmacies (such as those in Safeway and Fred
Meyer) will give you Plan B without a personal prescription--they have a
general prescription that can be used--you don't have to see a doctor
first. This is called a "protocol".

If Plan B is legal but hard to get it is less effective. You
need to take it within 72 hours after sex or it won't work: like regular birth control pills, it is MOST effective when taken BEFORE sex.

Only 60% of Americans know Plan B even exists as an option.

For further research:

Page, Cristina. How the Pro-Choice Movement Saved America. New York: Basic, 2006.

If you need access to Plan B or another form of EC, check out this website.

Protesters demand birth control. (Photo by Krista Theiss)

whatever happened to chris bald?

2011-09-30T22:55:00.000-07:00

dischord is reissuing subject to change by faith (I always called them 'the faith' because it sounds better) with extra tracks. here's an interview with band members but no chris bald. I often wonder whatever happened to him. he roadied for bikini kill once or twice. I heard he moved to kentucky and then I lost track. usually people show up eventually, but occasionally someone disappears. maybe "bald" is not his real name? anyone know?

Interview with Kira

2011-07-13T10:49:00.000-07:00

on DOS

We're pretty fuckin' more punk rock than anybody! Remember, punk rock is about doing things that other people don't do, it's about breaking rules—that's what I mean by that. In that way, it's very punk: don't follow your idea of what needs to be. Therefore, it's not necessarily well-liked, it's underground and it goes against the grain. We have absolutely no "genre," really. We go from doing a blues song, to doing a more rocking song to having a jazz thing. The fact that our parts play so much and have so much syncopation brings to mind jazz fusion. It's the definition of interesting music that doesn't fit comfortably in a genre. So I go back to punk rock.

full interview

Alice Bag on Shelia

2011-06-11T13:31:00.000-07:00

from Alice Bag's Diary of a Bad Housewife

"Sheila sang with Tomata of the Screamers at the shows they did at the Roxy and she appears in some Screamers related videos. She had an amazing voice, with great range and power. Shannon wrote an ode to her for Castration Squad, a song entitled "Sheila," which was later covered by 45 Grave. I haven't seen Sheila since the punk days and I'm not sure if she is still undead. I'm hoping that she is."

SAY YES! TO INTERNATIONAL SOCIALISM

2011-05-01T13:12:00.000-07:00

HAPPY MAY DAY

Women's Liberation Music Archive

2011-05-01T00:00:00.000-07:00

THE WOMEN’S LIBERATION MUSIC ARCHIVE

Feminist music-making from the 1970s and 80s

Press release for 1st May, 2011

An exciting new online resource is launched today: the Women’s Liberation Movement Music Archive

This project documents the bands, musicians and musical projects that were part of, or influenced by, the great burgeoning of cultural creativity generated by the Women’s Liberation Movement (WLM) of the 1970s and 80s.

During this era, women’s music, film and theatre groups, visual art, literature, performance art, street theatre and other activities proliferated, fusing artistic activities with politics to develop and express feminist ideas. Feminist bands and musicians were not solely about providing great entertainment but embodied a world-changing commitment to putting politics into practice and advancing women’s rights. Challenging sexism and stereotyped gender roles, their lyrics and style reflected the values of the WLM. They were a vital and integral part of the movement, yet are often omitted from or marginalised by the media and historical accounts. Many operated outside the commercial mainstream or alternative circuits – or indeed were oppositional to them – and are not widely known about. Most were self-funded, grassroots groups who worked on a shoestring and many were unable to create lasting material.

Concerned that this part of women’s history is at risk of being lost, Archive Co-ordinators Dr Deborah Withers and Frankie Green believe the achievements of these music-makers should be mapped and celebrated. This work-in-progress collection comprises testimonies and interviews, discographies, gigographies and memorabilia including photographs, videos, recordings, flyers, press clippings and posters, plus links to ongoing women’s music-making and feminist activism. The project is an independent, voluntary and (as yet) unfunded venture. Funding possibilities and a safe eventual home for the physical archive are being investigated.

All women who were involved in women’s music – as solo artists, in bands, as DJs, MCs, in distribution networks, recording studios, photographers, journalists, events organisers, etc – are invited to contact and contribute to the project.

FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT wlmmusicarchive@gmail.com

The Frumpies Want YOU to FIX YR BROKEN SKATEBOARD

2011-04-30T20:47:00.000-07:00

manifesto for the nu skate movement

by Michelle Mae Orr of the Frumpies

This was originally printed in Grand Royal magazine in the 1990's.

Maybe you think skateboarding is only a sport. Maybe you think that to be a "skater", you have to know tricks. Maybe you think that being a girl restricts a person's ability to be construed as a skater, or that it restricts the drive to utilize the versatility of skateboarding for one's own purposes (due to possible ridicule). Maybe you've just given up on it after the rash of adult backlash claiming that skating is a menace to society and that we need judicial statutes - enforced by the cloven-footed, blue-uniformed, robotic and senseless entity named "Police" - that prohibit skating from being done at some of the best places to do it. Maybe you need to wake up and smell the pavement.

Sometimes I think skateboarding has become another product of the institution-mindedness of our culture. It needs to be recognized that s.b.ing is not only a competitive sport but a really fun pastime (that's how it started out, anyway). It is also a great form of transportation and an especially fresh substitute for bike riding. You can become a good skater without knowing how to do tricks. I used to feel sort of incompetent for not having the ability or desire to do tricks, stunts or even halfpipe skating (mostly from having a fear of injury). Consequently, I felt less inclined to skate around in my feeble amateurism. Then I realized what a bogus institution I was holding myself to, so I just started skating all the time, and I became pretty good and relaxed with less fear and more control of my board. Also, those little bean wheels you see on almost every board now are mostly good for tricks. Bigger wheels, which are hard to find now, are better for speed and travel.

It's true that the majority of skaters have been boys, but girls are skating more and more. Why has skateboarding been so male-dominated? That's too convoluted a question to answer at this point. I just hope that its versatilities - which I'm trying to expose here - will help girls and boys who are insecure about skating develop a renewed vigor. I also hope a gender barrier doesn't get built, but rather that the scene meshes so a girl on a board ceases to seem like such an oddity. I've already noticed that the scene is being slightly mediated that way. Ever since more girls have started skating, the marketing antics have started exploiting it in a semi-separatist way - like when skateboards are designed to be especially feminine - which is cool as long as it doesn't get condescending.

Another fucked up dementia that sparked my awarenes to this subject was the following example of a scenario that I find particularly sickening. I stopped off at the corner market, where I saw a girl I knew as an acquaintance, and in her shallow-minded stupidity she remarked, "That is so weird that you skateboard - it looks so funny!" I asked why, and she said "I'm so sure! You're 22, a girl and totally not dressed for it." Whatever.

Oh yeah, wearing skirts is cool but when you are in an especially skate-for-transportation mode, wearing pants is so convenient. You never know when you are gonna have to grab your board and hit it.

And as for Fascism Against Youth, and all other miniscule abstractions that prohibit skating - skate where you fucking want. From all of this, let it be known to those it might irritate: I'm not dissing, nor do I think I am an authority on the total skate scene. This is just insight into a multifaceted pastime where some of its Kicks Affirmative Potential has been forgotten and turned into a competitive, jockish and elitist sporting ritual that smells too much like The Man.

addendum to the nu skate movement

by Tobi Vail of the Frumpies

I have skated on and off since 1979, and by accepted traditional skating norms, I "suck". I can't even ollie. This doesn't mean I'm not a skater. Fuck the rule that says you can only be considered a skater if you are at a certain level of achievement. Don't get me wrong, I would personally love to be able to do tricks, ride skate ramps, go faster down hills etc, but the fact that I can't and probably will never learn if I haven't already at this point doesn't mean that I will ever stop skating. I skate for fun (to refer to the greatest skate band of all time) or not at all, dears (Frumpies say dear instead of dude). So there.

It would be nice to hear from other Skate Punx with either similar or conflicting ideals. We would especially like to hear from girls who skate. If you are a girl or a lady who skates exceptionally well, please don't take personal (or gendered) insult at our admitted incompetence. We admire your capability while we simultaneously cherish our own inability; we are just sick of being insulted by usually boy criticisms/suspicions/disses. Make up your own rules! Skate creatively, skate to entertain, skate to challenge accepted skating norms, etc.

write us at :
Vail/Wilcox
P.O. Box 2572
Olympia,WA 98507
USA

I love Planned Parenthood

2011-02-19T14:15:00.000-08:00

Hello!

My name is Tobi Vail, and I am friends with a group of Olympia,
Washington residents that started counter-protesting anti-choice
protests at our local Planned Parenthood clinic in downtown Olympia,
beginning about 4 weeks ago. The anti-choice protests have been going
on for years. About 4 weeks ago my friends organized a couple
fund-raisers for Planned Parenthood. At one of the fund-raisers, a
Planned Parenthood representative spoke briefly and said the one thing
they really wished for was counter-protests at the clinic on their
regular procedure days (Fridays). The anti-choice protesters have huge
horrible signs and a giant truck plastered with intense propaganda,
address clinic workers by name as they head into work, heckle women
going into the clinic, etc., etc. The usual harassment that wears
people down and hurts women.

We are interested in connecting with groups in the area that support
reproductive rights and might be interested in participating with us
in the counter-protests. We are trying to stick to a very positive,
supportive, and unified message that states, in essence "We support
Planned Parenthood". The anti-choice protesters are so bitterly
dedicated to their position and have been doing this for YEARS. We
invite all local people from all walks of life that support the humane
treatment of women and reproductive health and welfare to get involved
and support Planned Parenthood.

• Here is a testament from a worker at the local PP on the effect of
our counter-protests: Why I Work for Planned Parenthood - Amazing
Supporters
• Here is an ongoing event page created for the show of support: I ♥
Planned Parenthood Fridays!!
• For this past Friday's event, a local shirt company screen-printed
"I <3 Planned Parenthood" shirts so people could make donations from
the street to get a tshirt - we raised over $400 for Planned
Parenthood in one day!
• My friends started a group for the Olympia Planned Parenthood on
Facebook: I love Planned Parenthood

Sincerely,
Tobi Vail

This photo is from a post on Olyblog about Planned Parenthood Fridays

riot grrrl archive opens at nyu

2011-02-17T10:21:00.000-08:00

read about lisa darms' riot grrl archive in ny press

2011-02-15T19:47:00.000-08:00

This Ain't No Picnic

2011-01-07T23:26:00.000-08:00

Hey mister don't look down on me
(for what I believe in-
I got my bills and the rent)
I should go pitch a tent
but our land is not free
so I'll work my youth away
in the place of a machine

i refuse to be a slave

THIS AIN'T NO PICNIC

Clampdown

2011-01-07T23:24:00.000-08:00

The voices in your head are calling
Stop wasting your time, there's nothing coming
Only a fool would think someone could save you
The men at the factory are old and cunning
You don't owe nothing, so boy get runnin'
It's the best years of your life they want to steal

But, you grow up and you calm down and
You're working for the clampdown
You start wearing the blue and brown and
You're working for the clampdown
So you got someone to boss around
It makes you feel big now
You drift until you brutalize
You made your first kill now

Piss Factory

2011-01-07T23:19:00.000-08:00

Sixteen and time to pay off
I got this job in a piss factory inspecting pipe
Forty hours thirty-six dollars a week
But it's a paycheck, Jack.

Eddie and the Hot Rods Inspire Young Man to Quit Factory Job

2011-01-07T23:13:00.000-08:00

From the comments:

When I was a young man working in a factory in a Northen Engish town, I heard this song and decided one day to walk out of that shit hole and be free. I never regretted it once.

There is nothing good about grinding out a living in a mind numbing job for a bunch of rats who get super rich off your efforts without so much as a million pound bonus even once a century never mind every fucking year. Fuck capitalism, Fuck the rich and fuck all the stupid cunts who say there is no other option.

2011-01-05T20:19:00.001-08:00

best/worst of 2010

2011-01-03T21:23:00.000-08:00

a random list, with random punctuation, in random order...

Best of 2010

Just Kids by Patti Smith
Winter's Bone (d. Debra Granik)
playing guitar with a bass player
playing drums with a bass player
Johanna Fateman writing for Book Forum
The Wipers Out Takes LP
The Reactionairies 1979 LP
Running 5K
Swimming in Lake Chelan, Lake Crescent & Lake Cushman
Spending my birthday reading by the pool in the sun
New Comet Gain LP (unreleased)
LP's by Best Coast, Frankie Rose & The Outs & Dum Dum Girls
Tavi Gevinson's feminist rants
Bikini Kill Archive
Dolly Mixture Demonstration Tapes reissue & Box Set
Neonates
Black Leggings aka Beatnik Superhero Pants
Working on several awesome KRS releases by INDEPENDENT female artists
Washington State Pharmacy Board ruling on Plan B
Martha Nussbaum lecture at TESC with Michelle Noel
Martin Rev on Letterman with M.I.A. & Born Free single & video
John Water's Role Models
all the feminist dialogue/hang outs/criticism inspired by Girls To The Front
being included in MoMA's Modern Women
following Kathy Valentine's go-go's memoir-in-progress
MRR, especially the comics issue (don't miss Bam Bam and the Barbarians "A Punk with a Past"!)
playing guitar on Friday nights and every day for (the first part of) the summer
starting a new project band with Joaquin de la Puente and Erick Lyle t.b.c. in '11
Dee & Dillon in America
Team Natalie (sad summer, but what an awesome community we live in)
all the rad shows at Northern
Erick Lyle at The Olympia Library
riot grrrl panel at the Olympia Library with Blood Bones
dj Dan Treacy on fb
Coasting
Wild Flag
Grass Widow Past Time LP
Olympic Peninsula with Joaquin and his family, especially La Push & Forks
Camp Quixote surviving another year
ditto for EGYHOP
Angela Davis & Antwi Akom at TESC w/ my mom
Judith Butler refusing the "Civil Courage Award" in protest of racism at Berlin Pride
Columbus, OH with Joaquin de la Puente
The Rainbow in the Dark Connection
The Artist's Way, for reals-creative practice rules!
seeing Joey Shithead getting a hotdog at Jakes
seeing Joey Casio live in Olympia
spending NYE with The Sonics at The Capitol Theater
djtv on blip.fm & last.fm & fb youtube style (I don't like hanging out in bars)
meatless monday
tofu tuesday
gluten free diet (helps with allergies)
Trashkit
30 Rock
Upstairs Downstairs
Janelle Monae Tightrope single & video
"Green Prisons" in Washington State (even Angela Davis liked this)
Greenberg (and I hate Ben Stiller, but this was hilarious)
OFS's Classic Film Series
Ursula Meier's Home (saw it in 2010)
Veronica Ortuño's Cease To Exist Podcasts
"Todos Somos Arizona"
watching The Need with my mom
ditto for Wild Flag
Threadbared/ Mimi Nguyen's writing
Mother (d. Bong Joon-ho)
Joaquin & Grandma Hartl's birthday dinner in Tacoma
Suzie Bright on The Runaways movie
Weird TV
Record Store Day
watching Jeanne Dielman with my mom at The Capitol Theater
new feminist writing by Marissa Magic, Layla Gibbon, Nadia Buyses
ShotGun Seamstress by Osa
Breeders Pod demos
Jigsaw's Guide to Feminist Theory (will be back in 2011!)
Haiti Benefit: Old School Meets New School at The Eagles Hall (Human Skab!!!)
Grass Widow & Viv Albertine!
Mo'Nique's hairy legs on the Red Carpet
Kathryn Bigelow winning the Oscar for Best Director
A Reference of Female Fronted Punk
Wetlands by Charlotte Roche
Hair Zine #1
Nuts fanzine #4 & #5
Temple Grandin starring Claire Danes
A Single Man (now I have to read the book)
A Jury of Her Peers: American Women Writers from Anne Bradstreet to Annie Proulx by Elaine Showalter
student riots in London against education cuts
massive French protests against budget cuts
Hysterics demo
Lips Unsealed by Belinda Carlisle
Morgan and the Organ Donors Arrogant Man 7"
K Zip Pack series
Rye Rye & MIA Sunshine
Son Skull LP
Driving Driving Driving by Kimya Dawson
Keith Richards' LIFE (hilarious, educational, disturbing)
The Return of BISAR (Books I Shoulda Already Read, Slim Moon's book club)
Simone de Beauvoir's words saving me from CRUSHING despair
revisiting Shelia Rowbotham, new and old writing
Nimo's War, Emma's War by Cynthia Enloe (not finished yet)
Zed Books launching their "Essential Feminism" series
reading Sandra Scoppettone's Lauren Laurano detective series
The Feminist Theory Reader
immigration reform protests
Olympia Food Co-Op in The International News!
reggae, dub, ska, rocksteady comps on Soul Jazz
working on new shit (even though I didn't finish much)
practice space jams
friends
WikiLeaks
the feminist debate on Julian Assange
U.S. Senate vote to repeal Don't Ask Don't Tell
Cosmetics Data Base
The Seagulls starring Billy Karren
punk shows in Olympia with so many girls/women in bands, YAY, and thank you, Hell Woman!
U.S. Girls
Wendy Yao visit on my birthday
The New Reef
Portland International Film Festival
The Fall on vinyl
Hot Tub Time Machine
all the records in my room that I still need to review
everyone at The Bumpidee Reader
Nettles/Quercitin
Liquid D3
Omega 3
The Seattle Storm
Scam #7 (pictured above)
Ivy's writing on Haiti
Breathless at OFS
The Kids Are Alright with my mom at OFS
Natalie Cox's recipes & dance party/feast
Maggie Vail, MVP of 2010
Saturday night at the movies
Ben Moore's
Kathleen Hanna at Joe's Pub on youtube
pie at the reef
quitting coffee
drinking coffee
making my own curry (inspired by Nat's recipe)

worst of 2010

losing Natalie Cox to cancer…everything after that seems somewhat trivial...I know the death of a friend is not worse than a global disaster, but a personal loss can't be quantified...needless to say, some of this stuff really sucks and some of it was just annoying:

getting depressed (see above)
Erick Lyle getting his unfinished book stolen from a bookstore in Olympia
fighting with friends & strangers on the internet
pay parking in downtown Olympia
terrible summer blockbusters (new Twilight movie was so bad)
Best Coast doing a record for a chainstore, blech…
Helen Thomas resignation from The White House Press Corp
missing DOA at the 4th AVE
gluten in every food
gluten free bread
no gluten free bread available
no twiglets
no pizza
no more pie at The Reef
L Word (I got obsessed with it and then hated it)
Haiti Earthquake
Flood in Pakistan
Washington State executing Cal Coburn Brown (ABOLISH THE DEATH PENALTY)
7 Year Old Aiyana Jones killed by the Detroit Police Department
Arizona 1070
ODA's "Girls Night Out"
corporate viral marketing to raise money for non-profits via "clicks"
unnecessary drama, making things harder for people who deserve better
selfish dudes
Runaways movie (except Kristin Stewart was good as Joan Jett)
Recession hitting musicians harder than ever before
NYPD arresting planners of NYC Anarchist film festival
29 People Arrested after "riot" in downtown Olympia (aka Anti-Police Brutality March)
old school legendary Tacoma punk Scott Burroughs dying suddenly, RIP
Massey Energy Mine accident in WV killing 25 people (cited for 1,300+ safety violations)
Alex Chilton RIP
allergies
Storeman's Boycott (so sick of not being able to buy groceries downtown)
152 arrested in Oakland at the Oscar Grant protests…and the verdict that spawned them
Teal Triggs lack of ethics and common courtesy
BP Oil Spill
typical noir or "literary" writer-guy misogyny
getting sucked into mediocre chick lit & trashy memoirs
streaming bad TV on the computer
not really finishing any of my projects (working on it)
not getting to visit any of my friends this year
Julian Assange as "Man of the Year" on the cover of Works in Progress
Dream Act not passing
Arizona's ban on Ethnic Studies
polarizing aspect of Co-Op Israeli boycott and all the non-conversations about it
"Clean" Coal
Election Night, especially 1098 not passing
Climate Change
Gay Teen Suicide
Islamophobia
still not understanding Obama's "Healthcare Reform"
most "indie rock" and "pop"
most "dude punk"
a lot of formula pop-punk (I do like the energy I don't like the sound of the instruments)
U.S. drones in Yemen & Pakistan
RIP Haitian Feminist Leader Myriam Merlet
epidemic unemployment
more than 10,000 people died in Afghanistan in 2010
The Girl Who Played with Fire tied with Heartbreaker for worst movies I saw this year
missing In the Realm of the Senses at OFS
RIP Vanda Boone
RIP Aunt Maxine, the last of a generation
RIP Ari Up

Happy Xmas!

2010-12-25T10:38:00.000-08:00

old school olympia

2010-12-21T18:33:00.001-08:00

I saw this picture of Sea Mart today. It brought back memories of Xmas Past.

This old Beat Happening video shows you what downtown Olympia used to look like.

Punk Comics History by Janelle Hessig

2010-12-19T12:14:00.000-08:00

From the Punk Comics Issue of MRR magazine

Janelle Hessig on Shawn Kerri:

She was as prolific as these other more notorious artists and, for me personally, her art resonated more with the things that I like best about punk — action, humor, and being a fucked up kid. So, why isn’t Shawn more well known? One possible contributing factor to her lack of recognition could be that she didn’t fight tooth and nail over copyrights. Around 1986, when the Circle Jerks began pining for mainstream success, their agent and record label decided that they owned the rights to the skanking kid image and shouldn’t pay Shawn. Rather than deal with legal battles and mangled friendships, she just let it go and signed the rights over to Keith Morris. The current day skank kid is a bastardized commercial version of her original art.

top tweny guitar players

2010-12-17T16:52:00.000-08:00

1. billy karren
2. christina billotte
3. elisa ambrogio
4. jo johnson
5. raven mahon
6. greg sage
7. jimi hendrix
8. billy childish
9. holly golightly
10. mick collins
11. dan kroha
13. julie cafritz
14. kim gordon
15. erin smith
16. kathi wilcox
17. jessica espeleta
18. bernard sumner
19. ana da silva
20. tara jane o'neil

Best Live Shows of 2010

2010-12-15T10:32:00.000-08:00

1. The Human Skab at The Eagle's Hall
2. Grass Widow/ STLS/ Coasting/Broken Water at Northern
3. Impromptu DIO tribute show in Columbus, OH by Black Rainbow
4. Weird TV at Westside Artswalk
5. Hell Woman, Raw War, Tesseract & Dead Head at The Red House
6. Blood Bones at The Olympia Timberland Library
7. Tara Jane ONeil, HeLLL, Dragging an Ox Through Water at Northern
8. Wild Flag/ Western Hymn at Northern
9. The Gossip at 3AM at The Olympia Film Festival (and The Need!)
10. Son Skull, White Lung, Nu Sensae at Old School Pizza

Hysterics!!!!

2010-12-13T23:49:00.001-08:00

hysterics live in olympia, 2010

I still haven't seen them live, but the demo rules, thanks peter
I went by rainy day and phantom city to buy one to send to layla
but they were all sold out

Congratulations to M.O.D.'s!!!

2010-11-20T22:15:00.000-08:00

And everybody wins! Go Olympia!!!

Olympia: Save The Loft on Cherry

2010-11-17T10:06:00.000-08:00

On Wednesday November 24 there will be a meeting at Bicycle Records to Save the Loft on Cherry

From the Press Release:

The Owner of Fishtail Ale is currently pursuing buying out the remainder of the Loft on Cherry's 5 year lease with the goal of tearing out the floor and using the extra space for beer storage.

This meeting is open to anyone interested in preserving the Loft as a community space for arts and events.

The meeting will be facilitated with an open agenda.

bring healthy snacks

Art Kitchen / Bicycle Records Office
508 Legion (across the hall from the loft)
Olympia, WA

Vote for yr fav female fronted band!!!

2010-11-17T09:48:00.000-08:00

MR ET is asking for yr input for his BUST column on new female-fronted bands. The comment section is going crazy!!! Olympia represents! WEIRD TV!!!!! Vote for yr fav here

K Zip Pack: The Hive Dwellers

2010-11-14T09:19:00.000-08:00

K Records is doing a cool subscription-only MP3 series called the K Singles Zip Pack. Check it out:

The K Singles Zip-Pak is a series of downloadables available exclusively by subscription. The songs are drawn from our upcoming hardcopy releases like the International Pop Underground series of 7” records, the Dub Narcotic Disco Plate singles and the regular album releases and show up in your in-box as MP3s. A year’s subscription to the K Singles Zip-Pak means hundreds of new favorite songs, six or more weeks ahead of their regularly scheduled street date. It’s a noisy pop rockin’ overdose: no post-rock, no Dad-rock, just endless screaming, crying and carrying on compressed into bite-sized chunks of three minute pop songs. Passionate music for passionate people, the K Singles Zip-Pak features the latest in K MP3 delectability, new songs by Chain & the Gang, LAKE, Karl Blau, the Hive Dwellers, Strange Boys, Jeremy Jay, and so many more. Subscribers hear the songs weeks before the rest of the civilized world has gotten an inkling of what the future has in store because the K Singles Zip-Pak is the future, in a neat pak-ette.

I like the idea a lot but keep forgetting to write about it. You get a link to click on, download your songs and then drag it into yr music playing program. It's easy to kind of forget about it until one of the songs randomly plays and you are like, "hey wait, what the heck is this?"...call me old fashioned, but I'm still in the mindset where a record is a tangible object you hold in your hand.

This week I got a few MP3's by Calvin Johnson's latest act, The Hive Dwellers. I was listening to the song Lazy Mondays and thinking, hey what does this remind me of? I was like oh yeah, The Go Team song Three Ways to Sunday and then I remembered that in the late 80's The Go Team tried to have a monthly subscription series of 7" releases and how stressful it was to get all the records out on time and in the mail. I think the MP3 world makes this idea a more doable project. It just took the world 21 years to catch up to Calvin's idea! He is a visionary after all!

I wonder if this kind of thing will catch on. It's a good idea and cool to see independent record labels getting creative, thinking of new sustainable ways to distribute music that actually benefit the artist.

Black Flag Beat Happening flyer

2010-11-13T15:35:00.000-08:00

someday I'll tell you the story of when Black Flag played at the Tropicana ...and the legendary standoff between Calvin and Henry...I used to actually have it on tape...I promise to get my scanner working after film festival and start updating my jigsaw scrapbook and archive

New Mecca Normal 7": Malachi b/w Blue Sky & Branches

2010-11-13T13:13:00.000-08:00

here's another new record I look forward to hearing:

From today's edition of the Mecca Normal newsletter:

Malachi b/w Blue Sky & Branches – part of the International Pop Underground singles series. Malachi is about free speech and anti-war activist Malachi Ritscher (1954-2006).

Mecca Normal is launching our 7″ by inviting bands to cover Blue Sky & Branches at their shows in the months of November & December. We will post videos of cover versions on MySpace.

Olympia Film Festival: Nov 12-20

2010-11-13T12:19:00.000-08:00

Full Schedule available here

My picks for the rest of the weekend:

Saturday November 13th

6pm Decline of Western Civilization Part 1 (1981, Penelope Spheeris) Q&A with director

8pm Decline of Western Civilization Part 2 (1998, Penelope Spheeris)Q&A with director

10:30pm The Need & The Gossip Live Show

Sunday November 14th

10am The Great Muppet Caper (1981, Jim Henson)

4pm Cinema of Transgression: The Films of Nick Zedd
Part 1 110 min: They Eat Scum (1979), Thrust in Me (1984), Police State (1987)
Part 2 98 min: Electra Elf: Of Lice & Men (2005), Electra Elf: No Plague Like Home (2007), War is Menstrual Envy Excerpt (1992), Whoregasm (1998), Smiling Faces Tell Lies (1995)
Q&A with Nick Zedd

7:30pm Destroy All Movies!!! w/ Zack Carlson and Bryan Conolly

7:45 Ladies and Gentleman the Fabulous Stains (1982, Lou Adler)written by Nancy Dowd

9:15pm Times Square (1980, Allan Mayle)

Wild Flag Live at Northern 11/10/10

2010-11-11T16:02:00.000-08:00

Wild Flag played their first show ever at Northern last night. I was psyched to see four seasoned musicians breaking new creative ground. When I was watching Mary and Carrie play guitar I realized it has been a long time since I've seen women playing music together at this level. Not only are they both great guitarists, they each have their own distinct style and sound. No one in this band plays their instrument quite like anyone else. Plus they have melodies and harmonies AND they totally fucking rock. Lots of great singing too!

Mary Timony used to play in Helium, has made several solo albums and before that was in the early 90's DC prog-punk band Autoclave, who made a great pop record that came out first as a demo tape, then a 10", and now is available on CD. She has been one of my favorite guitarists for years. I had always been a fan but the last two Helium records blew my mind and there have been long extended periods of time when I've listened to nothing but The Magic City on repeat. It was super great to see and listen to Mary play guitar with Carrie Brownstein (Sleater-Kinney), who also has a unique way of playing based on a signature chord style and a percussive note-driven approach. Of course Janet Weiss didn't stop playing drums after Sleater-Kinney and is currently playing at her very best, she may very well be the best drummer out there today, in my humble opinion (and notice I did not say "best female drummer", which she is often credited as). Her beats are solid and driving yet she never loses her grip on a song, always moves it forward and releases tension in the right places. Her fills are fluid and don't drop out or make the song lag, which is a problem for lesser skilled drummers who hit as hard as she does (myself included here) she has her chops up and it is a real pleasure to have the chance to see her play. I don't know Rebecca and am not familiar with her musically but she also sings and played really well with the group, providing solid bass and keyboard ambiance.

Carrie's voice has never sounded better. She is singing from a stronger place and sounded fucking rad. Mary has a beautiful, haunting voice and I look forward to being able to hear it better as she was a little quiet last night. She is one of my favorite singers, there is a truly magical, intimate quality to her voice that just slays me every time I hear her sing, both live and on record. Janet and Rebecca also sang a lot last night, giving the group a solid chorus, which they are exploring with harmony and interweaving vocal lines.

Wild Flag clearly have some good songs already (though I couldn't make out lyrics and sometimes guitar work was difficult to pick apart because of the acoustics in the room) and I am totally looking forward to hearing the records they make together. They were great last night and they are just going to get better. It's very exciting to see women my own age starting this new musical chapter in their lives. They are taking chances, working hard, collaborating and giving it their all. Super inspiring. A fantastic show.

Grass Widow Past Time

2010-11-11T15:23:00.000-08:00

I haven't written about Grass Widow yet, partially because their last record, Past Time, was released by Kill Rock Stars (my work) and it's sometimes hard to figure out the line between "promotional writing" and criticism.

When Past Time came out, I noticed a lot of critics tried to lump them into a category that exclusively contained other contemporary all-female bands that I didn't think they shared much in common with other than gender. This is one of the curses of being in an all-female band. While there is a feminist aspect to it as well, your audience tends to only hear your music in relation other all-female groups, which can be unfortunate because there are many ways to listen and in Grass Widow's case, so much to hear!

Grass Widow are like The Raincoats or The Minutemen or even The Melvins in method, meaning they create their own formalistic, aesthetic universe with its own internal logic. They don't sound like they are following anyone's rules at all. They sound like they are listening to themselves and each other and creating their own musical language. The bass often sounds like a guitar, the drum beats are unique and expressive, the guitar playing is personalized and fresh. They use dissonant notes in their melodies and complicated rhythms, but their music feels driven, it doesn't fall behind, there are hooks and there is a solid dynamic. The tension in their songs build and dissipate and build again like Virginia Woolf's writing in The Waves. The singing weaves all of their voices together, creating lyrical complexity. Varying points of views, ideas & impressions linger.

Their aesthetic can be viewed as an argument for multiplicity. There is no "lead vocalist" or front person, they are a group. When three voices are equally amplified which one do we listen to? In philosophical pluralism, multiple subjective perspectives are said to create a more complete picture of reality. In other words, "the truth" is more fully realized when many truths are expressed. Grass Widow is expansive in a similar way. Because of this, reviews that compare them to The Dum Dum Girls or whatever seem particularly offensive in their reductionism. So do statements that describe them as a "surf-band" or a "garage band"...it's like, huh? Is anyone listening to this record?!!! It actually requires some serious effort to take it all in. It's psychedelic in its layers and thought-provoking in content and strategy...not easy to categorize or digest but a joy to listen to.

Past Time is slowly turning into one of my favorite records of all time. It's not every year that a record this good comes out. I urge you to take some time with their songs and check out these videos. They are all totally awesome.

Here's a FREE MP3 for Shadow

Wild Flag

2010-11-10T09:57:00.000-08:00

Tonight at Northern Wild Flag

This is the new record I am most looking forward to hearing right now

2010-11-09T22:04:00.001-08:00

Leslie Keffer Give It Up LP

Have you heard it yet? Is it good?

600,000 Bands

2010-11-09T13:33:00.001-08:00

I realize that yesterday's post might sound kind of like an apocalyptic solemn death knell march, when really there is a humorous side to all of this, that Felt Letters 600,000 Bands discusses, listen here...it's actually very funny, you'll probably want to get your own copy

Q: How rad is the new M.O.D.'s 7"?

2010-11-08T22:10:00.000-08:00

A: Fucking Rad!

check it out here

What does it all mean?

2010-11-08T17:43:00.000-08:00

My current musical crisis…is that there are a lot of bands that sound good to me….like Tyvek or Weekend or whatever…the first Crystal Stilts LP for example… Sic Alps...but it's not enough, something is missing like The Comet Gain song says.

The recent revelation that Moe Tucker is a spokesperson for the Tea Party means the VU style floor tom/bass drum pounding beat is no longer the sound of the revolution to my ears. I'm playing drums and I'm hearing Fox TV bullshit suddenly. It's disorienting.

Ever since that whole preppy/African trend happened in indie rock, the question is no longer "is this band radical or complacent" in my mind, but "could this band actually be made up of right wing, racist republicans"? And with "gentrification punk" and the boutique-y/cupcake climate spreading like condos, is it really enough to make a cool sounding record? Was it ever?

I remember thinking about this the first time when Pavement were popular in the early 90's. It's not that their music was bad (some of it was good I thought) it was that they didn't seem to stand for anything. Then I saw Clinic in the late 90's and I really thought it was over. This band sounded cool, sonically referenced Wire and other great post-punk guitar bands I love, but they seemed to mean nothing, they didn't matter. Or at least not to me.

So now when I hear a record I like, I don't know, I just don't really care as much as I used to. I want to know what the lyrics are, who the people in the band are…what does any of it mean to them? So they like Joy Division, the first Jesus and Mary Chain LP…so do I. But do we have anything else in common? I find myself asking people "do you think this band votes, are they liberal or conservative?" and then I'm like, what the fuck...it's the mainstreaming of indie rock...I mean whatever happened to real political discourse...I miss the anarchists and socialists of my youth. And it feels like cultural appropriation...or like something has been taken away in the buying and selling of independent music...the context changed.

So this suspicion cumulated into a general distrust of today's independent/underground music scene. And I'm back to listening to punk/hardcore again. There's a cool local punk scene and lately it's been awesome to see a lot of girls/women getting involved and starting bands (have you heard The Hysterics demo??? Hell Woman? Blood Bones? Weird TV?!!! Son Skull???), but punk has to matter too. At least the people in the bands have to believe in what they are doing. Does being in a band mean anything to these kids or are they just killing time until they decide to get back to their "real lives" or whatever? I don't want to be some old geezer who is like "when I saw Black Flag or The Wipers" bla bla bla like a nostalgic Bruce Springsteen song about nostalgia, but seriously, where is the sense of purpose? What does it mean to be in a band right now? And if your band is an exception to this climate, by all means send me your demo! My ears are dying for it. In the meantime I will be over here listening to Mecca Normal and Comet Gain and trying to write songs worth sharing with you.

But of course even when things get bleak there are musical moments to get us through…in the past few weeks I saw Weird TV play a great show at a house party, walked a few blocks and saw Joey Casio perform his poetic revelry to punk perfection. Last weekend I saw a pretty cool sounding band called Dragging an Ox Through Water (pdx). Helll (Tokyo) also played, a drone/noise band in the vein of Deerhoof/The Punks, though not rocking at all, they were contemplative and sounded interesting. Then Tara Jane Oneil played a mind blowing set, an improvish/loop station-y droning soundscape of abstract shit, interrupted by a stunning cover of The Rainbow Connection (Kermit!!!!!??!!!). She ended the show with a cool rendition of her song Dig In, where she threw bells and shakers out into the audience and we were all stomping in time with the amazing Danny Susaki on drums. Seeing these shows was great fun and reminded me that what I like about living here is that there is a community of people who play music and support each other and it doesn't have to be "genre specific" or closed-minded at all. You can go see different kinds of shows and get something out of it. Part of what is rad is that it's not consumer based, everyone participates.

I'm really looking forward to seeing Wild Flag on Wednesday and The Need/The Gossip at The Capitol Theater on Saturday. I know that music matters to these folks and I'm sure that music will mean something to me for those few fleeting moments and this is still what I hold on to and live for when I'm trying to come up with new sounds.

What means the most to you? It means so much to me!

Nov 5 Oscar Grant protests in Oakland, 152 people arrested

2010-11-06T11:25:00.000-07:00

Yesterday people gathered in Oakland to protest a two year sentence for Johannes Mehserle, the BART cop who shot and killed Oscar Grant.

152 people were arrested.

Here's some footage to give you an idea of what happened.

Nov 5 Oakland, "We are all Oscar Grant" protest footage

7:20 pm Oakland, minutes before arrests start happening

7:40 pm Oakland, "This is a crime scene". Police threaten to arrest media if they do not leave & start arresting the crowd of trapped protesters.

Rye Rye and M.I.A. Sunshine/ U.S. Girls Red Ford Radio

2010-11-05T00:21:00.000-07:00

This is my favorite song right now and it's not underground but I'm glad because I want everyone to hear it like it's the beatles or the rolling stones so it is still a part of jigsaw fanzine

May I suggest listening to Buzz Chant by U.S. Girls right after this song? or how about this one instead:

Actually if this was a mix tape I'd put Red Ford Radio on as the first track, followed by Sunshine xo DJTV

Deadline

2010-11-04T23:20:00.000-07:00

Deadline was an early 80's DC punk band made up of four teenage boys. Brendan Canty (Fugazi, Rites of Spring) played drums. Peterbilt (Guy Picciotto's label) released a rad limited pressing Deadline 12" in the early 90. This footage captures teenage hardcore boys in public at an awkward stage (notice the singer's unfortunate par-for-the-course insecure/homophobic jab at his friends in Insurrection) but this band is actually really great and I was happy to see this live after all these years!

Meltdown

2010-11-04T00:32:00.000-07:00

Meltdown is a DC band of all teenage girls from the mid/late 90's. This is a Super 8 movie that documents their radness. Their voices, the words, the weird way they play guitar...this is the sound of a secret society of girls....making their own kind of sense. I love this group and am so happy this footage exists!

guitar madness

2010-11-01T20:26:00.000-07:00

Elisa Ambrogio

Marcia Bassett

Patti Smith

Lauren K Newman

In the Mail: Fanzines by Teal Triggs

2010-10-30T12:30:00.000-07:00

This came in the mail today:

I got this email from the author back in August:

I wanted to let you know that I have included covers of your zine Jigsaw 5 and 5 1/2 in FANZINES (Thames & Hudson) which talk about the history of riot grrrl fanzines. The book in general covers a history of zines from science-fiction to present day. The book is due out in September an I hope it will help celebrate the work of self-publishers.

I do hope this is okay -

Usually people contact you ahead of time, you know to get your permission and stuff! This put me off a little, but I thanked her for writing and asked for a free copy. People always say "I didn't know how to get ahold of you" when they fail to ask permission for something, but really all you have to do is turn on a computer and type in my name and you can find me in about two seconds so I have a hard time believing that.

Anyhow, reading through the section on grrl zines, I immediately noticed a few blatant factual errors and thought the contextual framing was bizarrely off. Again, it seems like if the author (or editors or publisher) had just bothered to use the internet, they would have been able to clear a lot of this up. Example: Bruce Pavitt had something to do with organizing The International Pop Underground Festival? And of course Calvin Johnson is named too. But actually it was Candice Pederson from K Records who organized IPU. You can ask Calvin himself! Or anyone else who lived in Olympia or went to the convention. It made me not want to go back and read the writing on early fanzines. But I will.

I think there should be a way to contest "false information" in published works. Because once it's in a book, it's a "fact". People will use this book as a source for further writing on the subject matter. My sister Maggie had an idea for a website called Interview Regrets dot com, where bands can go in and clarify what they actually really said when they are misquoted, or even what they meant to say. Maybe we need something like that for history books too. Because once something is in print, it becomes an authority.

Fanzines is mostly full of primary documents-scans of fanzine covers and pages. So it seems like the author might have had a lot of time to research and fact check, since there's not too much original text in the book. It has a nice paper-back cover, but it's kind of flimsy and doesn't ship well--mine arrived with a severely dented corner so I guess I won't be selling it on eBay. The printing is a little color xerox-y in tone, but it kind of works for the subject matter. I will put it on the shelf to be reconsidered at a later date. Hopefully by then I won't have forgotten what actually happened and read it and think that Sub Pop had something to do with IPU!

2010-10-29T22:29:00.000-07:00

Back to the Year 2010...Son Skull Birth Scene/Rewind EP

2010-10-29T22:08:00.001-07:00

So you might not know it by my recent posts, but The Jigsaw Underground is vehemently anti-nostalgia. Documenting history is cool, but that is different than creating a sentimental picture of the past to wallow in. The purpose of history is to help us actively create the future. But while we are so caught up in the future and the past, sometimes we forget about the present. Jigsaw Fanzine Headquarters is overflowing with records and tapes and zines that are just waiting to be reviewed. So here's one I've been meaning to get to for awhile now....

Son Skull Birth Scene/Rewind EP (Perreninial P.O. Box 2084 Olympia, WA 98507)

Son Skull are a pretty straight forward hardcore punk band from Olympia. I've seen them transform a male-dominated punk house show into an inclusive pit of ecstatic rage. Going to see them has been pretty consistently rewarding over the past few years. For awhile they were my favorite local band, the only group that had the ability to transmit punk energy straight into my bloodstream. I'd go see other groups and it didn't hit me. Maybe I'd appreciate a guitar tone, a drum beat or a friend's new take on the 60's or the 90's… but I wasn't getting the fuel I need. But when I walk into a room and Son Skull is playing--depleted from the work week, socially awkward, beaten down by the sexist creeps in the room-- the sheer sound of Mary's voice and Hayes' epic guitar playing never fails to renew me.

Their self-released Birth Scene/Rewind EP captures some of that energy and allows the listener to establish a deeper, more contemplative connection with the songs. A fury of guitar feedback/punk noise, rad female punk vocals, flailing yet focused beats & good solid rhythms/melody provided by the bass…it's cool to be able to hear the words. Contemplative lyrics about alienation, depression, economics, personal/political power dynamics, family and friendship.

A few stick out:

The chorus of Cement Mixer sounds cool surrounded by grinding/repetitive bass and drums creating the sound of a machine about to come unhinged. Then the lyrics: Cement Mixer/ In My Chest/ Cement Mixer/ In My Chest…the robotic detachment of suppressed emotion with no outlet physically threatening to break free…the song expresses a familiar modern state of being: Sinking sick pit feeling/looking for something/to hold on to/or hit you with. A vivid articulation of the alienated individual in society…. a child at school, a worker at her job, or someone in a messed up family situation...the struggle for self-control in a dead end, hopeless situation.

I also like the feminist hoes-before-bros motif of Boston Girls with the awesome line What's better than your girlfriends/true love that calls you out. My favorite might be the class war anthem Housing, which nicely uses a personal example of a family who gets kicked out of their home by their landlord to illustrate the injustice of private property: It starts off with This is my fucking house/I had my baby in this living room and ends with You say you need if for your family/Well fuck you/Because that used to mean me. You can also view the landlord as a father figure in this story, making it a nice critique of patriarchy but maybe that's a stretch.

Perennial Death explores the nature of existence itself. This theme might sound murky and dirge-like when examined by a different group. Son Skull are determined to plow through in the face of stark truths. The song itself sounds like breathing after you've been running for a few miles, the exhilaration of serotonin or whatever that chemical feeling is called, the sensation of your body being able to go further than seemed possible a few minutes earlier, the pounding of blood inside your brain…an evolutionary mechanism that kicks in when we don't think we can go on…the chorus sounds like a cry of resistance, a pained plea. Perennial! Perennial Death! We are always dying. But we are still alive. This is the kind of thing I need to hear on a regular basis.

Son Skull are still one of the only bands that will get me to leave my apartment full of books and records and walk across town to go to a house party, because their music still feels more real to me than most of the other groups around right now. I don't mean any disrespect by saying that. It's just that nothing else really hits me this hard and most of the time I'd rather be reading books or going to a movie with my boyfriend than hanging out in a drunk punk environment. Son Skull are the kind of stark, vibrant punk band that make everything else sound like easy listening music. I hope they stick around for awhile.

2010-10-29T18:54:00.000-07:00

Carrie Brownstein tribute to Ari Up

2010-10-29T18:43:00.000-07:00

Check out Carrie Brownstein's Ari Up tribute on NPR

"The Slits were a life-changing band that made life-changing music. What does life-changing mean? It means someone puts a song on a mix tape or throws a record on and you stop dead in your tracks because now, whatever path you were on no longer exists. In that moment, you think of histrionic and cliche things such as "from this day forward" and "from here on out," and you hope to God you have the conviction to follow through with all the things this music has inspired you to do. And, hey, you don't always do them, or all of them, but the fact that some song like "Typical Girls" — with its swirling punch punch punch of a melody — makes you think that you're capable and bold and a little on fire, well isn't that what music is for?"

2010-10-28T18:50:00.000-07:00

Molly Neuman on Ari Up

2010-10-28T18:40:00.000-07:00

Molly Neuman quoted in a recent article about Ari Up:

"The Slits were mythic to me as a young punk," says Molly Neuman, drummer for Bratmobile and the Frumpies and co-founder of the legendary 'zine Girl Germs. "Their records were impossible to find, so I only had their songs on mix tapes. I used to play them whenever I was at friends' houses who had them. The rhythms, the riffs, the lyrics and the vocals have the same power for me now that they did then."

Chris Sutton Remembers Ari Up

2010-10-28T18:32:00.000-07:00

I have 2 great memories involving Ari Up.

#1-

Early December 2008. I was on a promotional tour of the U.S. with The Gossip bouncing around the country, finally ending up in San Francisco for two nights. On the second night we found out that The Slits were performing at a venue called Bottom of the Hill. Nathan, who knew the promoter, had gotten everyone in the group on the list for the show. We had to perform across town on the same night but we were hoping to be able to catch at least a portion of The Slits set. After a couple of drinks and a very long set of girl group standards performed by the opening act, we dejectedly started to make plans to return to our show with seeing any music. Just as we were about to leave we were motioned quickly into the backstage area to where Ari, Tess, and the rest of girls were relaxing. Immediately there was a warm vibe and Ari Up welcomed us with the loudest "HEEEYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!" i'd ever heard in my life. Dressed completely in a gold spandex outfit and various colors twisting her formidable dreadlocks and pure electricity screaming from her eyes. Instant impression. Right away, she broke into an animated story about how she hadn't gotten any sleep the last few days "I just got off of a plane from England, and I've been very upset because there was a terrible riot near my home in Jamaica and that's where my son is now. I have no way of contacting him". As suddenly as she had gone to the somber place, she broke into a wide smile and changed the subject. "We must play music together, let's go on tour!, It'll be so great for both of us!" I can speak for everyone in our group that we unanimously agreed with her. "It'll be punk! we will both set up on stage together and we will alternate songs as a set! Yes! It will be like a new band!" Her energy was infectious and was bursting from her obvious fatigue. "You know, it's like the old days, everyone played with everyone else because that is all we had! So poor in those days.." she continued " Like Flowers of Romance! That was the band that everyone in the scene was in but never played or practiced really. Sid, Me, Tess, Joe.. everyone... Nobody does that anymore, you know? Everyone is afraid of real punk"." We couldn't play our instruments, thats why we couldn't play shows!!" laughed Tess from the corner of the room with her kind english accent. "Still the best, though" Ari said under her breath. Ari's enthusiasm was infectious and she held court with funny quotes and exaggerated mannerisms suggesting that her whole life might be one long, constant, dance. We still had a show to play though and we were way late for it so we had to leave suddenly. "You are all punk, stay in touch!" she exclaimed to all of us as we walked down the stairs to exit the venue "PUNK IS LOVE!!!!" "SLITS GET RICH!!" "LOVE REGGAE!" Ari blessed us with several of her mantras. I left that tiny room filled with a mixture of a euphoric daze and appreciative self-reflection. "No big whoop, we just hung out with THE FUCKING SLITS!" said Beth. We all laughed. The hangout probably lasted for maybe 45 minutes and we didn't see them play that night, but I don't know how I couldve gotten a more completely visceral experience. The Slits have meant so much to me in my musical development and have ideologically represented what I believe in musically, so you can imagine I was trying to soak up as much of their wisdom as I could that night, and they were so open and conversational with us. Months later Hannah and I saw her play in Paris and it was amazing! It was probably the best reggae band I had ever seen play, no joke (and they punked it up too!!) Tess shook the rafters, Ari almost got naked, the sound was amazing, an absolutely incredible performance overall. We were ushered out of the venue too quickly to be able to say hi to her unfortunately, but we were certain that we were gonna see her again someday. When I heard that she died I sat for a while in shock and then listened to New Age Steppers "Fade Away" 10 times in a row. It seemed like the proper tribute. We'll all miss you Ari!!!!

#2

Watching my friend Tobi sing the "Shoplifting" on stage with The Slits while standing next to members of the band Shoplifting.

Video from Slits show in Paris:

2010-10-27T14:01:00.000-07:00

Victoria Yeulet on Ari Up

2010-10-27T13:33:00.000-07:00

So starting I should say that when I was 11 years old my brother took me to see Lee Scratch Perry, I was really into Public Enemy, Beastie Boys and Sonic Youth at the time and I knew they were all fans, and although I've never really gotten into reggae at all, I appreciate the good stuff, and I remember watching Lee Scratch Perry and being completely amazed and blown away by his character.

Then when I was 15 I think, I discovered Ari Up, and it was like being transported to that place again, but discovering women who were as totally insanely incredible. I had gotten into Riot Grrl stuff and X-ray spex and Headcoatees when I was about 14 and I loved it, totally inspiring, this kind of energy that I couldn't explain, and knowing that particularly Poly was the same age when she was doing her thing drove me and my friends crazy. I had seen the Raincoats perform and got really into them, and found something in them that interested me more, and became completely obsessed by Palmolive, leading me then finally to finding the Slits. It was weird cos on all the punk comps you found X-ray spex and The Rezillos etc, and I liked this stuff, but hearing The Raincoats and The Slits really felt like a hidden history to me, and it felt like the kind of punk I could relate to far more, it had so much depth and felt like a new language.

Hearing 'Cut' especially I was just in the feeling of 'how the fuck did they make it, where do these sounds COME FROM?' I'm pretty much obsessed by female vocals, and always have been since I was a child, and I couldn't believe the sounds she made, and how everything worked together, and the photos inside the sleeve really gave me an idea of what it was like to be a proper grown up woman, rather than an excitable teen, seeing their photos was like total magic, and actually I remember thinking wow I wish I had the confidence about my body to be on the cover of a record like that, cos for once I saw women's naked bodies that were owned, rather than being sold.

Of course lyrically it was like everything you wanted to say being said, all perfectly and encased in this world of unbelievable creative sound, and I still get that feeling hearing their records today. When I got to University I remember reading Hebdige's 'Subcultures' book and just being outraged that he would write on about The Clash and how revolutionary their mix of punk and reggae was and he barely mentioned The Slits, I remember bringing this up in seminars and of course most kids there barely knew the Clash so they had no idea who the Slits were, and by that time I couldn't have given a shit about the Clash. The Slits soundtracked a lot of my first year away from home and in University cos I hated pretty much everyone there and I used to shoplift a lot at that time too, so I remember always having them on my walkman or in my mind when I did it.

I remember finally getting to see the Don Letts short film about The Slits at the BFI a couple of years after that maybe, and just thinking they were still so exciting to me, the part where they just change their clothes in a shopfront and when they go cruising into the reggae club and are dancing. Along with Vivienne Dick's films this was the real inspiration for me making a film about Erase Errata, cos I felt the same way when I heard the sounds they made, and I wasn't really listening to hardly any 'punk' based music at all by that point.

The Slits also made sense in the way that finding out about Rip Rig and Panic and Neneh Cherry's part in their history was like a big exciting circle too as she was my favourite pop star as a kid, it really localised a lot of female music history in London for me, and made me really assess female musical communities as I looked more into what these women did and who they surrounded themselves with and what they worked together on.

When I worked in a record shop I was lucky enough to meet Ari Up, she came into the shop and was like a fucking beam, I remember just smiling so much at her as she said 'I'm Ari Up, I am in The slits' to me and my colleague who was a massive punk freak, and we both responded 'we know'. She had copies of her latest record and said that she was having problems with her distribution company so she was just taking copies around to get them into shops but that no shops would buy them from her, we then of course bought a massive handful and I think I just told her it was great to meet her. It made me so sad that people would only ever think of her as this 'thing' from 'then' rather than now, and wouldn't support her.

To me the Slits will always be one of the most important bands in music history, changing sound and vision for me and other women and men, I was so glad when the book finally came out about them because I think what they created, and carried on creating in the reformed line-up was a new mine field of opportunity for music, and women in music, one that gains more depth with every listen and every scream and howl that Ari produced.

Everett True Tribute to Ari Up

2010-10-27T13:30:00.000-07:00

Everett True on Ari Up

More here.

Ari Up Memorial by Sam Ott

2010-10-27T11:13:00.000-07:00

So, I think I heard about the Slits when I was 16 and sitting in my friend Shane's room at some Oakland punk house. He had a record of the Slits' demos (?) some bootleg of something or other.

I remember thinking how primal it sounded, the drumming reminded me of the tom tom drumming from Bow Wow Wow, who I love/d. How it sounded, maybe, like something my friends and I could do.

Then I bought Cut, and it boggled my mind! As someone who grew up listening to 80s/90s hardcore, reggae was at most an annoyance that plagued the stoner dudes I went to high school with- dub wasn't even on my radar.

The rhythms on Cut, the vocal patterns, the basslines! It was revelatory- I owned Clash records but never paid attention to their influences, but listening to Cut made me hear all of it- made me seek out connections like Don Letts and On U and Adrian Sherwood, and even though it took me years to draw all the lines inbetween, the Slits led me to the Raincoats, the Pop Group, dancehall, dub, Trojan Records, Lee Perry and Junior Mervin.

Not to even mention that the Slits were the age I was when I joined my first band. I still can't believe that anyone so young could make music so perfect, so dynamic, so wild.

I had a friend who bootlegs videos for a living make me a Slits VHS, it's the only thing I ever paid him for.

I love Ari Up's voice, her lyrics, her wildness, her sexiness, her weird patois, and I'm heartbroken that she's dead.

I hope there's an army of 14 year olds ready to make records just as awesome. I bet there is.

Xoxo

Sam

Slits guitarist Viv Albertine on Ari Up

2010-10-26T22:33:00.000-07:00

Viv Albertine posted her tribute to Ari Up on her blog

the whole thing is really great. here's an excerpt:

She was totally unselfconscious about her body and remained so throughout her life. Ari's biggest gift to me was she made The Slits a safe place for a woman of any shape or size to be relaxed and free with her body. She celebrated womanliness, she reveled in it. She was so sensual on and off stage it was empowering to any girl who saw her. I'm not kidding. The way she carried herself was a revolution.

Stage was Ari's home. She was in her element there. That is where she could let go completely. She was at her best there. She pissed there. Stage is one of the only places a woman with that much energy, power and self belief can show off and sometimes get away with it.

The singing voice that Ari developed, that has been so copied and referenced over the years came very quickly. That is because she was true to herself. She used sounds that she heard around her from animals, birds, playground chants, accents and melded them all together. It happened without thinking. She was as unselfconscious about her voice as she was about her body.

In Memory of Ari Up by Tobi Vail

2010-10-26T21:00:00.000-07:00

I have been listening to The Slits non-stop since I heard Ari Up died last week, thinking about how much they mean to me and wondering how to express what we have lost...I don't know if there is any way to do that, but honoring Ari Up somehow is really important to me. I don't think the world would be the same without The Slits. I know my life would not be. I can't even imagine how things might have turned out differently. It makes me feel very small but also awed by how big of an effect one person can have on planet earth. Well, I know The Slits was a group and not just their singer, but no one can deny that without Ari Up The Slits would not be The Slits...and without The Slits, things would have turned out differently for girls and ok for guys too and music would not be as free-form and unrestricted. They opened things up. Minds. Hearts. Ears. Bodies. They annihilated boredom. They celebrated joy. Their songs expressed sadness and marked limits but turned things upside down and created room for us to breathe...to think...to live...to create.

These words are not songs but if you get your Slits records out you will hear what I mean. Voices and instruments and phrasings and words and rhythms that are so expressive they can't be categorized or contained. Nothing is literal nothing is as it seems, everything can be questioned, taunted into nothingness, built upon and made fresh. Life/Music is repetition and contradiction and melodies that seem to drift off and suddenly start again. Typical Girls Typical Girls Typical Girls. Unpredictable! Predictable!

My personal story with The Slits goes on and on. I am a big fan and have studied them closely. I will just tell a sliver of my own Slits story here tonight in hopes that it will encourage you to share yours. If you have something you'd like me to post you can email me or post it in the comments.

I first heard about The Slits in 8th grade...1982 maybe. My memory is a little fuzzy, but I am pretty sure that my best friend Heidi and I met this guy at the mall and got his number. We started calling him up and talking on the phone, asking him what bands he liked and stuff. He looked kind of punk, but he told us that punk was dead and that he was an "ant-person". I seem to remember he had blond hair in tiny braids and a bunch of piercings and dressed weird. We told him that we wanted to start a band. Or maybe we told him we had already started our band, that is probably more likely. He said that he thought we should listen to The Slits. He said they used to be punk but now they played "ant-music". He told us about someone named "Viv from The Slits". Heidi decided to change her name to Viv. We tagged "Viv" and "Viv from The Slits" and "The Slits" everywhere. It took us 3 or 4 years for our band to play our first show and even though I don't think I actually ever heard a Slits record until a year or two later, The Slits were an inspiration to us, simply by existing. I remember imagining what they might sound like and wondering what "ant-music" was besides Adam Ant. Guy-we-met-at-the-mall had probably read about post-punk somewhere and decided it was all "ant-music".

Fast forward to early 1988. I am 18. I decide to quit school and move to Eugene because I need to get away from Olympia for awhile. Calvin gives me three records as a going away present: The Slits Cut, The Young Marble Giants Colossal Youth and X Ray Spex Germ Free Adolescents. I had never listened to any of these records before. They were all super hard to find. I don't think I had ever even heard of The Young Marble Giants or X Ray Spex, which is weird since I had worked at KAOS for three years and been going to shows in Olympia all through high school. So even though I was a music obsessive and a big part of the hardcore punk and independent/underground music scene in Olympia, I still didn't have access to this music until someone shared it with me. I got a copy of the first Raincoats album around this time too, probably from Calvin. I remember being in my apartment, feeling so homesick and overwhelmed by how the world limited my options and made things harder for me just because I happened to be born female. Listening to this music I started imagining that it didn't have to be this way. Maybe things could change. Mecca Normal said Oh Yes You Can. Maybe there was hope. I decided my next serious band would be female-led and have a feminist outlook.

Ok new chapter. Bikini Kill is on tour. Everywhere we go, girls are starved for more. We start making them lists.

"Here are some movies you need to see: Out of The Blue, Times Square, Born in Flames and Ladies and Gentlemen the Fabulous Stains. Here's a list of bands with women in them that you need to hear, we are not the only group! Before us there were a bunch of female-led/all female bands that no one knows about anymore like The Raincoats. X Ray Spex. Girlschool. The Runaways. Young Marble Giants. The Marine Girls. Anti-Scrunti Faction. Sin 34. Sadonation. Teenage Jesus and the Jerks. Pink Section. Jerri Rossi. 45 Grave. The Avengers. Mecca Normal. Rubella Ballet. Dolly Mixture. The Modettes. Kleenex. Delta 5. THE SLITS! THE SLITS THE SLITS!"

We wrote THE SLITS on a girl's arm in Oklahoma City after the show. Instead of drawing a penis in the dressing room, we'd scrawl out one of our lists. We made fanzines documenting this history and sent countless letters to isolated young girls telling them about music they should try and hear somehow. We traded tapes. Later, when people started standing in line to get their Bikini Kill record signed after the show, we'd try to usurp the weird dynamic by using this ritual as a way to write a secret history of girl-punk on our own records. Because none of this music should be out of print and hard to find. This was our music. The history didn't deserve to be lost, we needed to keep it alive by word of mouth and sharpie tattoos!

I went to see the Slits in Seattle a few years ago with old school Olympia riot grrls Angie Hart & Michelle Noel. We were freaking out the whole time and Ari Up pulled us up onstage to sing back-ups during Shoplifting. I got to do the scream! It was so fun and then we were back in the audience dancing around some more. Afterward we said hi briefly but I didn't introduce myself, it was a perfect moment as it was, us -the wild girls in the audience and Ari the wild lady who made us a part of the show -there was no need for an explanation or a proper introduction.

I got back home after the show and thought, maybe I could join The Slits. Even though I don't play Slits style drums and I had my own life and my own work to do I really just wanted to quit everything and be on that stage with Ari Up forever. We exchanged a few emails after that but thinking about it some more, I realized that what I really wanted to be doing was screaming my own songs and beating my own rhythms on stage. There have been times in my life where I have lost the desire to perform and create but The Slits make me remember why I do what I do and they are one of the reasons I am here today still playing guitar and drums and typing these words out for you.

Thank You Ari Up. For everything. The Slits music will live forever.