2009 November

From the monthly archives: November 2009

I’m seceding

By D.E. On November 6, 2009 · In Danse Macabre

…from NYC. Or, perhaps I’ll run on a ticket next year with the Let’s Annex All Yankees Fans to Yonkers Party.

Yes friends, something has temporarily distracted me from my current outrage, which vacillates between the travesty that is the Anthony Sowell case and the bullshit that is the Publisher’s Weekly Top Ten Books Written by Dudes This Year list. (Thanks, Lizzie, for giving a nice what-for to the establishment.)

It is the Yankees ticker tape parade. My first question is why do New Yorkers act like such fucking hicks en masse? Second: Why were there so many of them coming into the city from Queens? Traitors! And why are they drunk at 8 am? It’s a friggin’ parade, not an Irish wake.

Oh, and also this: Mass-murder hotwings, anyone?

Here is the One Good Thing: Binary Sunrise! Yes, I talked about them already, but it’s good shit. As Tom said, more eloquently than I:

I wonder if, as the Internet increases everyone’s record collections beyond infinity (at least everyone who’s truly interested in music), we’re going to hear more stuff like this. Weird amalgamations of tons of influences at once (I hear Kraftwerk, ELO, Sparks, Big Star, Neutral Milk Hotel, Nilsson, Roxy Music…and on and on). Thanks again for this.

And he hates everything! This is a ringing endorsement.

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The public is a ass

By D.E. On November 4, 2009 · In Cremains

Holy shit, we did it! Queens voted a fucking WIZARD into office. I had my doubts yesterday, but yes! By Odin, yes we can!

It seems appropriate to post this, from Print.

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Political Song for Varg Vikernes to Sing*

By D.E. On November 3, 2009 · In Cremains

Photo credit: Some fucking Pagan

Today’s Election Day, here in NYC. Quite possibly, it’s the most pointless since the last time we had a mayoral race. Bloomberg has sent every NYC resident a $50 bill (I got mine last week) as an enticement. The decision is already made.

There is, however, something fascinating going on in the nether regions of Queens (the parts that are a combo of backwoods Tennessee and the Sopranos). There’s this dude running on the Republican ticket for a council seat. And he’s a fucking PAGAN. (Technically, he’s a “Heathen,” but for the sake of sweeping generalization…) Look, here’s a picture of him dancing around with a frigging sword! I love it. And the people of the 19th District, staunch Republicans that they are, will most assuredly vote a fucking robe-wearing, tree worshipping WIZARD into office rather than a moderate Democrat. I fucking love it.

*Too obscure? Nah.

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Binary Sunrise

By D.E. On November 2, 2009 · In Adipocere

So a while back, we went to see the fantastic Tiger! Shit! Tiger! Tiger! at Lit Lounge, a locale that always makes me envision dying in a fire. Dying in a fire inside a tea room. But if I only go once a year, I figure my chances are diminished significantly (especially now that I’ve given up freebase). So yeah, we went to Lit and I drank a $3 bottle of water.

We walked in halfway through Binary Sunrise. The small bit I heard made me suspect we’d kinda missed out on something really interesting, so I bought their CD after their set.

Having listened to this CD about 250 times now, I can confirm that yes, we did miss something interesting, and that this might be my favorite record of 2009 (caveat: I have only purchased 5 other records this year). At around listen #8, I said to N, “I think this might be kinda brilliant.”

To me, the sound is a layered pastiche* of rather disparate bands (Beatles, Supertramp, prog rock, New Wave synth stuff, Magnetic Fields, Animal Collective…yeah, weird) and the lyrics all have this completely un-self-conscious quality, whether they’re sad, funny or indignant. I could go on about how much I love this album, but I’m not a music critic, just a music snob.

I challenge you to listen to this song and not enjoy it. (At least a little.)

Hey! Don’t walk away! Please! Don’t walk away! You don’t know what you’re missing…

Binary Sunrise, Five Minutes

Buy their CD here.