Procrastination levels are critical, obviously, as indicated by taking the time to update this thing that no one reads, after a year or whatever of forgetting I had it. Speaking of which, I am not feeling the recent name change. The search is back on for a new name for this dumb thing. I am open to suggestions. Please help.
I am listening to The Best Show on WMFU while I am supposed to be processing grant applications (I can't today. I just can't. I have hit the paperwork wall. Running top speed. My face is flattened, just like my will to manipulate applicant data in spreadsheets. Take me home, Tom Scharpling.)
Yo, Ma!
Anyway.
We are making a music festival. It is almost made. I thought I'd die, smooshed under a tsunami of super unsexy paperwork, the least radical way to go, but I didn't die and now the time is almost here. The Golden West Music Fest. It will be a great thing. People keep popping out of hidden cracks and places to help. Like, being super creative about ways they could possibly spend their own time and money to make our project go. I take back several of the shitty things I have said about living in Edmonton. You can do anything here. People want to help. 6% of the things. That is how many I take back. There is still winter.
Too LiveJournal-y. Let's hear a song. Audacity. They are like 11 or something, but this song rules.
Exciting news: The Lad Mags just got a grant to make a music video which is pretty awesome. We are doing a 2 part video, shooting over 2 days next week. If you want to be in either video get at me. Half of it is going to involve a giant forest party, so it will be a good time. Fish Griwkowsky is directing and shooting and Kristine Nutting was in charge of costume design (so awesome, obviously). Hilariously, the deadline falls a couple of days after the festival, during the only week when we could easily work 24 hours a day and still have too much to do, so we have been sort of losing our shit. Amazingly it all seems to be coming together, so... good. Panic is the magic motivator, once again. I swear if it wasn't for terror and jealousy I would never make or do anything. "Anxiety is the hand maiden of creativity", according to T.S. Elliott. (HEADY, RIGHT??)
I have a giant scabby glue gun burn on my face (actually), but I can't believe how great everything is turning out. Here is a photo jacked from Fish's Instagram of progress on the monster costumes for the shoot. The total creeps:
I wish I could do a better job of promoting Lad Mags stuff. I feel like such a dick talking about it on the public internet. (Not here. This is mine.) HOW DO YOU SELF-PROMOTE LIKE A NON-DICK? SOMEONE TELL ME. As we slide slowly down and off various charts (thanks Edmonton, Calgary and Saskatoon for the <3), and as the little bee buzz we had going around the 7" and Sled Island stuff quiets and fades, it feels a bit like failing to not have something new to show. It's coming, really! There's a new record getting pressed soon. Don't forget us.
Oh, here's something... let's hear the band we are splitting our next record with... The Slabs. Most of you probably already know them and have been sweated on by them and already love them and already have hazy memories of seeing a show, but just in case, their bandcamp is here
Sorry it is not embedded. I am granny luddite and I can't figure out anything. The Slabs are rad. A band full of boozy golden hearts, sweetest maniacs, party angels.
Joan Cornella
I am tired of myself already. So that is enough. See you in another 8 months or so.
Oh man. I just read some hilaaaaarious secret melodrama writing that I did around the time of my last post. Haaaahaha. SO.VERY.FRAUGHT.
Dummy. Get over it.
I should start posting that shit in public. Maybe that way I'll eventually be too embarrassed to have secret sulky teenage feelings all over the internet. Maybe I'll be shamed into writing something good/less self absorbed for a change. HAA! FAT CHANCE.
Annnnyway, so now it is fall. Everyone has paler faces and rosier cheeks and I just want to eat roasted squash and sit beside a fireplace.
I don't have a fireplace, unfortunately, so if anyone wants to invite me over to sit by theirs, I will bring squash and probably some bourbon. (Hot toddy, anyone?)
I like this time of year. Everyone's trained to have back-to-school-this-time-I'm-going-to-do-it-right feelings still, no matter how long it's been since we've been students and everyone gets so organized and determined about their project plans. I like that every person I talk to is losing their shit with busyness, is starting a new crop of projects, is travelling somewhere great, is changing creative disciplines just for the hell of it, ...is finding some spicy cab driver fella to spoon them through the distant dusty nights (pow! Atta girl!)... Also fall fashion is the best and everyone looks hotter these days. I am going scarf and boot shopping later today. I love scarf and boot shopping.
(Edit: speaking of fall fashion being great, please check out lovely Jessica Kennedy's (aka Chaos and the Dark) etsy page with lots of really super adorable fall vintage. I just died several times over that plaid cape. And the grey wool jacket! Oh my! Look at it here: http://www.etsy.com/shop/ChaosandtheDark. While you are at it, have a look at her website here: http://chaosandthedark.com/. She makes perfect accessories (my 'Oui' necklace remains my favorite even after months and months), she has a very cute dog and puts on vintage pop up events every couple of months, and all of those things are on her website.
Also she is completely charming and her writing is nice to read.)
Yeah. Fall. Totally into it. So much better than the boozy melancholy of summer. (Hmm. Do I mean that? I can't decide.)
Also, now I am a wife! That may also be part of why I am so pleased that it is fall... That wedding was totally the best and most fun, but jesus, I thought I would die from the stress of making it go. Now it is DONE. Mister Dream Captain and I better make it, because there is no way in hell I am ever doing that again. My personal goal was to make a wedding that I would have had fun attending, and I think that if I had been a guest at that wedding I would have thought it was pretty good.
Mother nature really screwed me with the hurricane winds and rain early in the day, but she sure made it up to me with the incredible northern lights show at night. FINE, mother nature. You're off the hook for now, but I'm watching you this winter (smacking fist into palm, menacingly).
I don't want to be crass here, but we got totally spoiled with wedding presents. One thing that we got that has basically made Mr. Dream Captain into the happiest man of all time is this: A carbonator!
Suck it, Perrier, you dinks! You haven't been as good since Nestle bought you and now you get no money from me! I'll bubble my own water thank you very much. I highly recommend that everyone get one of these. The non-stop hilarious belching alone is worth it.
The Lad Mags lady squad (sorry Joe) is heading to Vancouver in a couple of weeks to play a show at Antisocial Skateshop with Slow Learners.
Sooooo excited. We are also going to record a couple of songs while we are there and I can't wait to start putting out HIT REKKIDS. Haha. Seriously though, there is some cute stuff on the way. Can't wait. If you are in the vicinity on Saturday September 29th, please join us. If you are not in the vicinity but are up for a road trip, also please join us.
I was determined to write something new yesterday and had a full nervous breakdown after smashing headlong into the most stubborn case of writer's block of all time. The worst. I was pretty close to fucking Pete Townshending my guitar to little bits. Some pals gave some nice advice when I moaned on Facebook about it, but I think I am going to make it a mission to assemble a collection of tips and tricks so that when it happens again, instead of flying into a Donald Duck rage and not accomplishing anything, I'll MAGICALLY be able to coax works of GENIUS out of my brains and fingers. If you would care to share your hot tips, please do. Let's collect them all and then give them to everyone.
Highlights of Facebook advice:
-Walk away from the guitar, eat a banana, do a shot of tequila
-Bang some groupies, get the clap, have some illegitimate babies
-Dick around with other tunings (that is actually solid grown-up advice. Nice.)
-"Fucking Writer's Block Get Off My Dick" is almost a haiku, roll with it. (I AM A GENIUS.)
Also Dorgz sent me this interview with Greg Saunier (from Deerhoof), which is helpful insofar as it's nice that someone like this needs tricks and doesn't pretend to have magic powers or something, but is less helpful in that this person also has unlimited time to be present to the creative process, whereas I have a couple of hours between work and whatever I have to do in the evening. I guess it is about priorities. Anyway, here is the interview, from Thinkjar Collective: http://www.thinkjarcollective.com/2012/09/think-jar-collective-interview-with-greg-saunier-of-deerhoof/
Anyway, ideas. Share them with me.
Here is the theme song of the rest of my life:
Jack Oblivion - Honey, I'm Too Old For You.
Ok, loooove yooooou. Recipe time!
Faaaalllllll Soooouuuuup! The best thing! My mom brought over a batch of this the other day and it was so perfect and now I want to make everyone eat it. So here is the recipe (I ripped this from the Food52 site). Make it and eat it.
Roasted Fennel and Celery Soup - please note that I had this soup without the cream added and it was really great, so vegans, sub in some veggie stock for chicken broth and have some snuggly comfort food along with the rest of us meat eating savages.
8
large celery stalks cut into 2 inch pieces
1/2
bulb fresh fennel cut into 2 inch chunks
2
large whole garlic cloves
3 tablespoons
olive oil
1 teaspoon
salt
1/2 teaspoon
black pepper
3
medium redskin potatoes, peeled and cut into a 1 1/2 inch dice
6 cups
chicken broth
1/2 cup
light cream or half and half
2 teaspoons
fresh lemon juice
Salt and pepper for re seasoning if needed
Celery leaves and fennel fronds for a little garnish
Place the cut
celery, fennel and cloves of garlic in a 9x13 inch roasting pan. Add
the salt, pepper and olive oil and toss to thoroughly coat everything.
Roast in a 350F oven for 40 to 45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until
the edges of the vegetables just begin to brown.
While the
vegetables are cooking, cook the potatoes in the chicken broth until
tender..about 10 to 12 minutes. Set the pan aside to cool a bit.
When the vegetables have finished roasting add them to the potatoes and broth. Let everything cool a bit.
In a blender
puree the soup in batches. If you have a "liquify" setting on your
blender use that. If you like you can strain the soup through a mesh
strainer. Once pureed. return the soup to the pot and bring up to the
boil. Stir in the cream/half and half and the lemon juice. Re season
if needed and garnish each bowl with celery leaves and fennel fronds if
you like.
NOTE: For a little more pronounced celery flavor add a pinch or two of celery seed or salt when re seasoning.
I just stared at the 'edit title' field for twenty minutes with no new title ideas. The search continues for a new name for this dumb thing. Any ideas?
It's been too long since I awkwardly overshared on this thing. Seems like my silly heart does bizarro shit when I don't talk to myself on the internet frequently enough. I guess it's kind of comforting that getting wicked old doesn't mean I can't still get preposterously emotional about totally stupid things. I am not going to grow out of that at some point. This is it, folks. This is what I turned out like.
Wanna hear about my wedding? Just kidding.
The work hard/play hard crew was out in full force last night. That was really fun. I love them all so hard. I totally can't keep up with them, it's really embarrassing. This morning I feel like a sun-baked turd soaked in gasoline. Don't try to keep up with the youngbloods. How often must this lesson be taught? Ungh. Such a dummy. I felt and acted like a fucking weirdo a little bit. As usual. Embarrassing. Hearts are complicated. (And resilient. It'll be ok.) Ramona Quimby complex, man. Always doing it just a little bit wrong. I try, I swear.
Regret.
Pizza Regret! Coconut Coolouts! I heard about this band from Joe and they are great:
Not one single fuck is given by these little scamps. I will watch and learn.
The Lad Mags recording is done. (Somehow people were getting drunkenly forced to listen to it last night. Sorry. I am pretty sure it wasn't my fault, but that's pretty embarrassing. Really, I'm totally sorry about that.) I am really excited about it. I know people probably wouldn't tell me if it sucked, but I am hearing good things, which is nice. We worked hard. Also a whole crew of people (Fish, Doug, Jessica) also worked hard. We're so lucky. That band is saving my life right now. Also consuming a pretty giant portion of it, about which I couldn't possibly be happier. I don't want to get too smushy about it, but I love those guys. Anyway, we have to get it replicated now. I think a 7" first. Maybe a cassette single. Cassingle. Anyone have a place they use that is awesome? I don't know how to do any of these things. I don't think you're supposed to admit that. Oopsies.
It is The Best Show with Tom Scharpling. It totally rules. He is such a smartass. I am totally jealous. Funny shit. I think there is some sort of licensing issue where they have to take out all the music that he plays when the show is live, which is too bad because he seems to know everything good about music, but seriously, this show is awesome. I demand that you watch it. Watch it? Listen to it. It is a radio show. Ugh. My rotting brain.
Angie Pontani is coming to town, which gives me maximum glitter boners. For those who don't know, she is one of the greatest burlesque artists currently out there, truly an incredible performer, a stone cold fox, an athlete and an artist. Reigning Queen of Burlesque in 2008. Seriously, I can't waaaaait.
Ok. The end. Recipe time. My hangover and this heatwave are begging for Gazpacho-style chilled soup. So refreshing and just a little spicy vinegar kick... Total recovery guaranteed. I might be too lazy to make it happen, but I am increasing the chances by having the recipe out and ready to go, so you might as well make it along with me. This is like gazpacho without a whole loaf of mushy bread blended into it. Ick. 1) Soggy bread is gross and 2) Gazpacho calls for, like an ENTIRE loaf of French bread and that shit is TERRIBLE for you. It's bare skin season, man. Watch those white flour calories. You're welcome.
Some notes: There used to be onion in this recipe. I always skip or drastically reduce the onion because I actually kind of hate onions and I lots of times add celery because I totally love celery and actually sometimes love adding a little wilted spinach to the mix as well, although that kind of alters the vibe of the soup a bit, just so you're warned. Vibe. Seriously? Jesus, Aspen. Anyway, follow your hearts on this one, buddies. It's a forgiving recipe. You should freestyle. More fun that way.
Ingredients
2 pounds Roma (plum) tomatoes, quartered
3 tablespoons olive oil
4 cloves garlic
1 quart chicken stock
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1/2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
salt to taste
ground black pepper to taste
Directions
Place the tomato halves, cut side up, on a baking tray with the garlic cloves. Drizzle with the oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast at 375 degrees F (195 degrees C) for 1 hour.
Snip the ends off the garlic cloves, and squeeze the insides into the bowl of a food processor along with the entire contents of the baking tray. Add stock, basil, and vinegar; blend until smooth. Season to taste. Serve either hot or cold.
I love Townes Van Zandt. No surprise there, most people tend to. Also metal, I love that too. Imagine my delight when I found this:
WINO, Scott Kelly (Neurosis, Shrinebuilder), and Steve Von Till (Neurosis, Harvestman), have put out this three way split record of TVZ covers. Each song is distilled and bare, acoustic guitar and weary, haunted, gravel voices. There's a sense that these guys are infusing these already harrowing songs with their own tragedies, like a tattooed arm flung over TVZ's coathanger shoulders, one depressed alcoholic crooning to another. It's fucking devastating and awesome.
Our new band The Lad Mags were in the studio last weekend. It is kind of funny, really, we are still not even fully cooked yet, a month away from our first show, still figuring out how we work together, still kind of bouncing around in terms of what we want to sound like... But there is a recording! It went really well. I like this band so much and Doug did a great job and in my totally biased opinion, we sound pretty good. This was taken by Doug after we finished recording our vocals (Joe had finished his drummer duties and eventually had to go home because that crazy man starts work at FIVE IN THE MORNING so he didn't get to be in this photo, which is a bummer):
Hoping we can get some sort of shareable version of the record (maybe a 7 inch? That would be ideal) ready in time for our Edmonton and Calgary shows at the end of the month. The Edmonton show is at the Artery on June 29th with Dead Ghosts from Vancouver. The Calgary show is at the Palomino on June 30, with The High Kicks, which is a pretty rad sounding smashing duo featuring Dan Vacon, the bearded and talented. Bison is playing that same night in Calgary, which is a bummer because they are so good, but... what can you do? These are summer problems.
I have been totally into dioramas by David Hoffos lately. When I was in art school I always wished I had more time for assignments because I always wanted to create this little compartmental scenes (not that I would have achieved anything like this, obviously). I like the quietness of a contained other three dimensional space. And these ones in particular are either occupied by holography ghosts or are not occupied at all which makes them sort of terrifying. It's really funny, when I lived in smalltown AB I remember going to the AGA for the first time and seeing this totally involved installation (I can't remember who the artist was, sadly... anyone who knows please share) and it was set up like an inventor's workshop except he made wishes or dreams or something like that, and there were all these motion sensors and as you moved through the installation all these tools and magic looking inventions would start moving or start playing old music or whatever and it was like walking into a better, magic place and I never wanted to leave. Weirdly, my taste in art hasn't seemed to change much. Those are the same things I feel and love about these dioramas. Anyway, David Hoffos. Check him out. He is from Lethbridge.
Maybe it is just that I want to crawl into one of those weird quiet spacey little scenes and hide away. There are so many things that I bet that tiny night-time Airstream trailer would protect me from just fine.
Anyway, let's get to that recipe.
I made fruit crisp last night, and am a recent convert to making fruit crisp. I know it seems weird to be making my first one ever at my age, but it's true. And the timing is perfect. Fruit is so beautiful right now. I love that EVERYTHING GOOD is in season.
Sooooo, you should make this. This isn't the one I made last night, it is first one I made a couple of months ago and it is totally delicious:
I always just eyeball amounts so sorry this is kind of vague...
Fruit Crisp:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
You'll need
- peeled and cubed mango
- peeled and cubed ripe pear
- peeled and cubed apple
- fresh or frozen berries
- peeled and cubed peaches
(Sub whatever you want. Bananas are good! Plums! Whatever!)
- juice and zest of one lemon - I HAVE LEARNED THE HARD WAY THAT LEMON JUICE IS NOT AN OPTIONAL INGREDIENT. TRUST ME.
- brown sugar and white sugar (every recipe I find calls for TOO MUCH sugar, so I always reduce it. I use between half and three quarters of a cup of white and brown sugar combined, depending on how ripe/sweet the fruit is that I am using. More sugar does not always mean more deliciousness!)
- rolled oats
- unbleached flour
- smashed pistachios (raw!)
- pinch of salt
- about a 1/2 cup of butter, melted.
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ginger
- 1/2 tsp ground cloves
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
First mix together the cinnamon, ginger, cloves and nutmeg in a little dish.
Put the fruit into a baking dish, add lemon juice and zest and about 2 tablespoons of sugar (or maple syrup or whatever sweet things you like). At a pinch (or 2?) of the spice mixture, and stir until fairly evenly coated.
In a mixing bowl, add one cup of flour, one cup of rolled oats, the amount of sugar you decided on based on what was discussed above, a pinch of salt and the remaining spice mixture and the smashed pistachios (if you want to use them, which you don't have to). Add melted butter and combine thoroughly. It should end up with a moist crumbly texture. Some people add an egg to the mixture at this point, but I never have and the topping always turns out how I want it.
Spread the oat mixture evenly on top of the fruit in the baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Eat that shit because that shit is DELICIOUS.
