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Wednesday, 21 September 2005
My Kelly Clarkson obsession continues!
Okay, really, I think I'm done now. I just mashed her up with the Breeders, so now I think I can move forward.
A plus D – Behind These Cannonball Eyes (Kelly Clarkson vs. The Breeders)
Besides, there's so much more to life than just ... Kelly Clarkson. I've got about three other mash-ups I'm working on, but I keep getting sidetracked by things like ... throwing a mash-up club ... and being in a mash-up band. Ironic, isn't it?
Speaking of said band, we're gigging a lot this month. Three gigs last week (including one on TV!), and two gigs this weekend. It's pretty much the same songs every time, so it's not like we need to rehearse. But damn, we really need to put together some new songs. I mean, each show has been a completely different audience, so it's not that big of a deal. But still, it keeps it interesting for us.
One of the shows this weekend is at the Folsom Street Fair, far and away my favorite street fair ... ever. I just realized I've been booked to be on stage there every single year since 1996. Wow. Ten years. Seven years with Blue Period (although we got rained out one year), one year modelling in the Stormy Leather fashion show, and now this, Smash-Up Derby's second year. I'm really looking forward to it ... hell, any excuse to wear black PVC chaps!
15:55 Posted in Music | Permalink | Comments (2) | Email this
Monday, 19 September 2005
My ridiculous Kelly Clarkson obsession
One night last week, while D was off in Missouri visiting her Dad, I drunkenly bought the entire Kelly Clarkson album, Breakaway, off of iTunes. I've been freakishly obsessed with the song "Behind These Hazel Eyes." How obsessed? This obsessed.
I was hooking up some new audio gear to my computer at work, and decided that recording my own vocals over the instrumental dance remix of "Behind These Hazel Eyes" was the PERFECT excuse for me to experiment with playing around with my new microphone and Ozone keyboard. Did I mention that I was kinda drunk?
Anyway, when I was sober the next morning, I listened to Breakaway again. I've got to admit, it's pure pop pleasure. The ballads can be a bit syrupy, but when she belts out a pop/rock song, it's total ear candy. There's a reason I performed "Since U Been Gone" at Trannyshack. No, I was NOT being ironic. I just really like it.
19:20 Posted in Blog | Permalink | Comments (1) | Email this
Monday, 12 September 2005
Back from Burning Man 2005
I've been back from Burning Man for a week. And I've got to say, I think I'm enjoying my so-called "Real Life" in the "Default World" better than what I experienced in Black Rock City.
This was definitely an off-year for me. In fact, I should have skipped this year. And in a way, I kinda did – except that I did it while I was still in Black Rock City. I'm sure next year, I'll have a much better attitude.
It didn't help that I got totally, completely, horribly sick about three hours before we got to the front gate of Black Rock City. We're talking super-high fever, cold chills, psycho crying freakouts ("I don't wanna be sick at Burning Maaaaaaan!!!!"), and body aches like you wouldn't believe. I was so weak, I could barely open a water bottle. NOT FUN.
On top of that, I was the only one who REALLY knew how to set up camp. Granted, I was supposed to delegate, but I'd have rather not have done it while under blankets, shivering, with swollen glands, trying to explain how to put together the shade canopy or set up the trash tent or how to get electrical power from the RV. Ugh.
So my first two days and nights at Burning Man were basically spent in the back of the RV, totally bed-ridden. All I saw were the porta-potties (when I had to finally empty the Gatorade bottles) and the Medical tent, where they very rudely informed me that they had no flu medicine and that I was, basically, fucked. Too bad. You're sick at Burning Man. Have fun!
On Wednesday, after a Vikodin-induced 12-hour sleep, I started to feel a little bit better. The next two nights I actually left camp, and did some low-key exploring out on the playa – totally SOBER. After two intense days of sickness, I didn't want to push it, so no drinking, no drugs. And let me tell you ... even sober, it was still pretty cool.
Sober is the new high
When you've only ever experienced Burning Man in some state of fucked-up, being sober becomes the new "altered state of consciousness." Very strange. Highly-recommended. But with a caveat...
While at the time, I found this, my most sober Burn year ever, to be enlightening, interesting, and enjoyable, something felt a little lacking after I got back home to San Francisco (yes, San Francisco is my true "home," not Black Rock City, despite what the Greeters try to brainwash you into thinking). I ending up feeling a little cheated of my Burning Man Experience™ this year, and I couldn't figure out why. Then it hit me: I never had the opportunity, not one single night, to ever really get out of my head. Hell, I didn't even get drunk. And ... when you have a very full, very busy, and oftentimes stressful life like I have, you really want to have that release. I think a lot of people who go to Burning Man want that. And this year, I missed out.
So, the moral of the story? Experience Burning Man sober – at least one night. But definitely get fucked up at least once while you're there. Have a crazy night (or even day). Wondrous things can happen. Those weird, magical moments that are hard to define, but you them when they happen.
And one more thing: if you've been doing the same Burning Man project for 11 years – like, say, publishing alternative newspaper called Piss Clear – maybe you should do something else as well, just to keep things interesting.
It's funny... most people go to Burning Man to escape their Real Life, whereas I go there and simply get an enhanced version of it. I work at a small newspaper in San Francisco, so of course I publish one out on the playa. But I do more than just that here in the city, so what's missing? Now that I'm DJing and throwing clubs, shouldn't I be doing the equivalent in Black Rock City? Well ... duh! We do our club Bootie in San Francisco ... and now in Los Angeles ... we're doing one in Paris in November ... and next year ... Bootie BRC! I really want to throw a mash-up party at Burning Man. Just for one night. Just to keep things interesting. And besides, there's really nothing like it in Black Rock City. It's time.
Speaking of Bootie...
Our September party ROCKED! We were a little worried, because a lot of our friends couldn't make it ... but I kept telling D, "just because no one we KNOW is coming, doesn't mean that no one ELSE is coming." Damn, thank gawd I was right. As it turned out, about 400 people, most of whom we DIDN'T KNOW, showed up and seemed to have a GREAT time! "Who ARE all these people?" asked one of my friends. "I have no idea," I said, "but they seem to like it, so that's okay by me!"
Dada and me got the evening kicked off, and then at 11 PM, Lance Lockarm spun a kick-ass set. D and I prepped him on what to expect from a Bootie crowd, and he delivered, BIG time. He kept it dancey, broke out the big hits ("Don't You Want My Big Head," "Bring The Pop Muzik," etc.) and everyone cheered when I announced him from stage – an American bootleg legend!
Our midnight mash-up show featured Calamity and Cortez performing to Go Home Productions' classic Marvin Gaye vs. Radiohead bootleg, "Sexual High," and the crowd was feeling it... then Party Ben and Mysterious D tore the roof off with a bootleg party jam set ... I'm starting to realize that we have "Bootie hits" that would probably surprise many people on GYBO. For instance, Jay-Zeezer's "99 Luft Problems" (Jay-Z vs. Nena) and Batchelor Royale's "Stayin' Yeah" (Usher vs. Bee Gees) are HUGE at Bootie. Does anyone else realize how great these tracks are for a drunken dance floor? And Cheekyboys' NWA vs. Nirvana "Smells Like Compton" went off like a bomb!
There are many others that have become Bootie CLASSICS ... I'm starting to think we should start compiling a list ... or just start the monthly Bootie Top 10, so people know what's moving a floor here. Anyway, GREAT NIGHT!!! The momentum we built up from the Bootie 2-Year Anniversary Party has carried over, and we're so looking forward to next month, with more bootlegger love from Seattle -- DJ Freddy, King of Pants. Woo-hoo!
So many gigs coming up this month, both with Smash-Up Derby and DJing... good stuff, but sometimes I wish my life would just slow down a little bit. I haven't made a mash-up or written a song in months – and I miss it.
18:25 Posted in Blog | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this