Open Mikes, Light Brites and good-bye Molly

Tired and Cranky –


Not the best of feelings – what I really think is that I’m in the process of getting the cold that everybody in the damn office has – which I so don’t need. Got a gig Sunday and them I’m off to record.

Had a good time at the open mike last night – Spencer on the keyboards really lifts the songs up – especially Stacy which is mutating into this rockabilly monster as we play it – the piano adding a sense of Jerry Lee Lewis wildness to the proceedings.

It’s an interesting thing to watch – the way songs mutate as they go along – even long after you’ve written them odd little things present themselves to you – last night doing No Promotion we slowed the tempo way way down on the bridge – just something that came to us while rehearsing – heck I’ve been singing that song for quite a while and that never occurred to me before. It seems to work.

We have become an utterly silly people. The airwaves were all a twit yesterday with the discovery of mysterious packages in Boston. The packages had bright lights and wires on them – the bomb squad was called.

This gave the right wing of blogworld and the Media permission to freak out – the media because death especially deaths caused by terrorists boosts ratings and the right blogworld because, in their evil heart of hearts, they want more Americans to get killed so they can say “see we were right” and then dive back into the blissful days of early post 9-11 where their leader could do no wrong and then urge him to declare martial law. Meantime the Boston mayor was apparently elbowing people aside so he could talk to fox news.

Then it turns out that a) the objects were not bombs and b) they were advertising material for the Cartoon Network show – Aqua Teen Hunger Force – featuring – in lights (light brights for god’s sake a kids toy) the above figure (it’s a character from the show – he’s a moon man and he’s flipping you the bird – it’s dumb silly). Now mayor wants to toss the book at the two folks who put the ads up – for what we’re not quite sure of yet – the charges would be at most littering or illegal placing of billboards – maybe malicious mischief (which would be a bit tougher to do – you’d have to prove they thought Boston was going to freak out – unlike the other 9 cites where similar ads were placed.)

Thinking about this all I can say is sweet mercy we have become a silly frightened contemptible nation ready to roll over in a faint at the least thing – led on by hysterical media and blood maddened bloggers desperate to say “I told you so”. We should replace the bald eagle as the national symbol with the Tennessee Fainting goat – it’s more bloody accurate. Hell if this is any indication, the terrorists have won and are now having a victory dinner where they are handing out the awards. I mean compare the response of London to the explosion of REAL FUCKING BOMBS THAT KILLED PEOPLE to this epic of juvenile brainless hysterics combined with media fainting spells and I for one feel mortified to be American today.

Molly Ivis passed away yesterday after a long battle with breast cancer. Very sad – a bright gutsy populist from Texas – have her books. I remember with fondness her calling Camille Pagula (who was the NY Lit crowd it girl of the moment) a “crass egocentric raving twit” Bravo – nailed it. Still she didn’t really have a mean bone in her, hell she even liked W – she hated what he was doing but she didn’t personally despise him. Makes her a better person than me I’ll tell you. She’ll be missed.

Playing, yes we really are playing, 169 bar this Sunday – 10 pm. Listen by that time the game will be over and all the good commercials will have been broadcast. So just come on over – 169 East Broadway – it’s 8 bucks and you get to hear Spencer for a full set.

Peace Love Light Brites