Best of 2011 by Brett Lyman

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