When you base your business on the value of a celebrity endorsement and not the actual or at least perceived worth of your products, you might one day suffer:
Christmas shits me. It's particularly absurd here in the southern hemisphere where all the stock images of sleigh bells, ivy-wreaths and heavy red costumes strike a rude contrast with the parched soil and sticky asphalt. Even converting reindeer to kangaroos for the carol six white boomers doesn't mitigate the cognitive dissonance of shopping for brandy pudding in thongs.
Few things annoy me more than shopping centre Santa's, click through for further proof that letting strangers hold your children is not always a good idea.
One has to admire those with the courage of their convictions, especially when it involves a persons very being. In the late 19th century a group of anthropologists in France undertook an attempt to disprove the existence of the soul. These positive scientists were convinced that the key to individuality lay inside the head, and could be determined by comparisons of the brains of people whose traits were well known. The members of this august body (la Société d'autopsie mutuelle) were so convinced of this that they bequeathed their own bodies to the society along with a description of their characters in order that a scientific study could be undertaken.
However it wasn't all serious disinterested studies for the society members (not pictured) they also took on a distinctly performance art-type approach to their endeavour as well. "They held dinners where the food was served on prehistoric pottery or in the cavities of human and, in one case, giraffe skulls, to emphasise that there was nothing special about human remains, that they were no different from animal remains". ... Victorian student dissection picture found here. Quote from: Peter Watson (2006) Ideas: A History of Thought and Invention, from Fire to Freud, Harper Perennial: New York, pp 709
Well this attempt to post each day has been a complete failure. I'm not taking it too badly however as frankly I have a life, interact with real live and people don't prioritise the web above this. So in the spirit of living authentically I offer up the Painters & Docker's anthem "Die Yuppie Die".
Who would have thought it so hard to do a post a day? Anyway here's another great local act Eddy Current Supression Ring with their charming film clip for their rockin' song "Which Way To Go". It looks like super8 to me all warm and fuzzy, like the feeling this song leaves me with. I just got around to picking this up. It was an American pressing unfortunately, but an mp3 download was included. Handy 'cos when I try to play records in the car they tend to skip.
I didn't know Dean Turner but will miss him. Magic Dirt have always been pretty special to me and I know, to many others and it's a real shame that he won't be around to continue to create such awesome music. It sounds like he was a man of courage and dignity, and we know he rocked pretty fucking hard too. Here is some evidence of this in a live version of their song 'White Boy'.
Not much need be said really, it wouldn't be appropriate to let the week pass without this, one of the dirtiest riffs ever unleashed under a southern sky.
As we rock along I next present The Funknecks, sadly now no longer playing live though soon to make some final (?) recordings. Their spastic drummer, my good friend Tim has a birthday sometime soon and as he was the one who reminded of my duties re. The Rock this spring I am delighted to share with you Melbourne's most slept on punk-funk outfit.
As I was reminded the other day; its Rocktober and even though rock hardly needs it's own month in order to celebrated around here, I figured as a project I'd chuck up a rockin' Aussie film clip each day this week.
Regretably I wan't able to go the reformation yesterday but as a really cool entry to Roctober here's The Stems' grooviest take on garage rock 'Tears Me In Two'. This video was provided by the kind hearted 'NZOZ' who must have converted hours of tape of 'Rage' and has uploaded to youtube decades of great Aussie and Kiwi rock organised into channels for each year. Cheers NZOZ, here's hoping you're having a great Rocktober!
On a related note it has allways bothered me that rage never shows the song titles at the end as well as the begginning of each clip. Here's their lame excuse for those who too have wondered why:
A recent article in Psychological Science apparently suggests that the absurd and unexpected juxtapositions found in surrealist literature engages the brain's ability to detect patterns. Pattern dectection is a crucial part of learning from infancy onwards and forms a large part of any IQ test.
I haven't read the article itself yet, but linked below is the summary. However this is a great excuse to post some Max Ernst. Ernst can be as unsettling as the quote below from their press release, with what seems like wild speculation on what the unconscious desires. Like the surrealists these authors seem to really dig Freud.
It seems even the protectors of public decency re-invent themselves every so often. Below, linked through the image, is an article from The Punch, a News Ltd owned online-only opinion and 'current affairs' site which has potential, but is pretty consistently crap. Except for Leigh Sales. Its especially crap when taking the moral high ground, in this case Fiona Hudson of the Hearld-Sun reporting on 'CTCV' a shady group of anti-graffiti vigilantes who take it upon themselves to deface illegally painted 'pieces' all over Melbourne's train lines.
Articles like this invite two kind of comments; the 'hang the little buggers high' variety and the 'it's pretty, they put work into it' reply. What we should really be asking ourselves is why does this matter so to these vigilantes? Why are they, like the artists they wish to annoy, running around at night committing crimes? If they want to make Melbourne better why don't they join rotary or something. Is it the thrill of it? I can imagine an old writer with ink-strained hands scratching his wispy goatee looking at his freshly defaced work musing out loud "we're not so different you and I..." However the most interesting question we should be asking is why have they changed their name? I remember back in the day when it was 'CTSA' inflicting their 'revenge' on old-school burners from the likes of Paris below.
Cops and Transits Slashing Art was one rumoured explanation of the old acronym. If it really is individuals within Connex, the train network 'service provider', behind CTCV, I bet those involved have been doing it on company time. It would help explain why the system is so shitty. Even revenge has been privatised and re-branded now.
Scientists at IBM used an Atomic Force Misroscope to image the atoms making up a single molecule. Pictured is a a molecule of Pentacine (no, i dont what it's found in either) made up of 22 carbon atoms and 14 hydrogen atoms. The image shows 5 carbon rings encircled by lighter hydrogen atoms. Cool.
Lots of high weirdness in the 'press' this week, as the baby boomers are aging and coming clean about what they have done. For instance former French President Jacques Chirac was taken aback by George W Bush's religious reasoning for invading Iraq:
In other muderous crank news Paul Krassner, first publisher of Robert Anton Wilson writes about taking acid with 'Squeaky' Fromme, one of Charles Manson's most devoted followers who later attempted to assassinate then US president Gerald Ford and is soon to be released from prison.
But the strangest of recent boomer revelations comes from the eternally suprising freak-film director John Waters writing eloquently about his sincere support for one of Charles Manson's followers, who did kill someone, to be released on parole:
Most people pass a bowel action on most days. This may vary from person to person. Most people should spend less than 5 minutes in the toilet. The motion should be easy to pass, you should not need to strain. The stool should be soft, formed and smooth and you should feel empty when you are finished. You should be able to get to the toilet in time to pass your motion.
How can I help myself?
Drink 6-8 glasses of fluid every day - mostly water. Have 25-35 grams of fibre every day - 10-12 serves of fibre every day; that is 2-3 fruit serves, 4-5 serves of vegetable or salad, 2-3 serves of grain and cereal, and a serve of nuts or legumes. Take exercise every day, walking or any other aerobic activity helps the bowel to empty.
It’s best to remain positive about illness and medical procedures suggests a recent article in New Scientist. In ‘The science of voodoo: when mind attacks body’ Helen Pilcher summarises some research into the medicalistation of 'pointing the bone'.
Plicher writes that like witchdoctors; medico's, medical procedures and studies can adversely influence patients physical well being by suggestion alone. Two different factors are discussed when describing the power of the mind to produce negative physical symptoms. The first is nocebo the converse of placebo, when being informed about the undesirable effects of an inactive (dummy) substance, produces the described symptoms. The second is psychogenic illness where witnessing the symptoms displayed by one person creates expectancies in others resulting in a similar display. Psychogenic illnesses are often enacted en mass and are found to have no biological basis. The ability of the mind to produce negative physical consequences is memorably summarised by a great quote from a doctor that 'bad news promotes bad physiology'.
However one might want to be careful about just what kind of good news one chooses to use to promote 'good physiology'. As research by Joanne Wood et al. recently published in Psychological Science (summarised here, I have read the original but it requires access) studied the use of affirmations. They suggest that statements of self-worth that contradict other held self-beliefs do more harm than good. That is if you are low on self-esteem, telling yourself that you're beautiful and everybody loves you will simply trigger an avalanche of further self doubt as your other, overwhelmingly negative self-perceptions are activated by the reminder of yourself and the discrepancy just created.
There was an article in the Sunday Age near another piece about the deaths of young drivers. It suggested that teenagers and young adults cannot properly process risk. The author Reid Sexton quoted an academic from Monash Uni, Simon Crisp, who used the prase above. It refers to a lack of 'real' risk in young peoples lives and experience with only the mediated kind where energy packs or special effects determine the outcome. This is probably true, actually hurting yourself can be an education, as can achieving calculated risky goals. It's as important to understand and respect your limits as it is to push them. For this I have a suggestion.
Goth-rocker Nick Cave stunned revellers at Britain's Glastonbury music festival on Sunday (28 Jun 2009) after he failed to pay tribute to fellow musician Michael Jackson - choosing to dedicate his set to late Charlie's Angels star Farrah Fawcett instead. ... As the shocking reports reverberated across the globe, Glastonbury organisers insisted the weekend music bash would be dedicated to Jackson. But there was one rocker at the event who failed to remember the pop icon - Nick Cave confused the crowd at his set by paying tribute to Fawcett, and totally forgetting to mention the Thriller hitmaker. As he took the mic on Glastonbury's Pyramid Stage, he told fans, "We'd like to dedicate this set to the late, great... Farrah Fawcett."
Much like PWEI (look it up) suggests, shitty pop culture and the 24hr news cycle does not encourage an informed perspective on history. In one sense we* are encouraged to elevate novelty and put the nonsensical hyper- before otherwise useful words. Also we can find ourselves subject to the whims of richer older (mostly) men who, elected or otherwise, would tie us down in their recieved view of how the world works, and what is best for us all. So when the wind rips down the chasm that separates progression and tradition and chills us to the bone, what are we to do?
We use our critical faculties, we might look for progression and new ideas from those who have a sense of history, as novelty for its own sake quickly becomes tiresome. We also may benefit from considering what has gone before in terms of practical outcomes and apply this knowledge ourselves. Here are two of the most interesting articles I have read lately, that suggest or describe the employment of similar strategies, but may not be what you expect. I suggest you print 'em as they deserve attention. Endorsement or disagreements might be forthcoming upon request.
Saddam Hussien wrote poetry in his cell after his capture by American forces. He also denied responsibilty for the 9/11 attacks or even meeting Osama Bin Laden, describing him as a Zealot. I am only really suprised about the poetry.
The CIA has recently released the summaries of a series of interviews and 'casual conversations' conducted with the former Iraqi President. These are hosted at the National Secuity Archive at George Washington University.
Referring to Hussein as 'High Value Detainee #1' these read like a Ballard short story as the dispassionate writer summarises what must have been hours of direct structured interviews and a few briefer encounters by FBI agent George L. Piro. In these Hussein dismisses the use of body doubles, and whilst having the airconditioning in cell fixed claimed to lived simply and that the numerous palaces in Iraq were not really 'his' and were in fact constructed to give his formerly agrarian nation a chance to develop it's architectural skills.
Hussein repeatedly claims that he did not have WMD's and frustrated the UN's inspection plans largely so as to maintain a psychological and tactical advantage over Iran. He is surprisingly candid about other high-ranked members of the Ba'ath Party and shares a joke with the American agent over his description of one of Hussein's collegues as a used car salesman. This is a remarkably direct insight into one of the major figures of our times, and contained also in these documents are his insights into how to rule a nation, deal with troublesome neighbours and manage vacillating allies. However a lot of these interviews concern the history of the Ba'ath party and the war with Iran, and much appears to remain undisclosed. It is unlikely that these 26 documents represent all that was discussed before his trial and subsequent execution.
Nobody has any time to waste, not even when you’re fucking around on the internet. I don’t and I wouldn’t waste your time either, believe me. So when it is suggested that it might be worth watching this 4 minute film clip, take it seriously.
This is an amazing live performance by the Brisbane band Portal whom I had sadly not heard of until recently. I think they describe themselves as death metal, which I know little about. To my ears this is like an event in a post-apocalyptic Olympics. It’s the heavy metal equivalent of those 14 year old eastern European girls with the streamers. How the fuck do they make such pretty shapes when the thing’s trailing 6 meters behind them? I don’t know and I have no idea how Portal train for their event either, but it payed off. If you aren’t already experienced, prepare to have your mind blown. If you're turned off by words like death and heavy and metal just watch anyway, it's life enriching. Go on, look at that headgear, you wont regret it...
As a previous post title may have suggested there has been some late night Giallo going down over here. The film 'Phenomena' (1985) from Dario Argento may not strictly conform to the genre but it's a ripper anyway. No spoilers follow, but it's total fucking madness. I am convinced that Dario just writes scenes in order to produce the shot and some of these are unbelievable. This movie is full of genuinely unexpected moments (not all of which are plot holes), strange ideas and features a rocking soundtrack featuring both Motorhead and Goblin! You know what Molly would say - Do yourself a favour.
Spare time in the lab* has lead to some strange investigations**. Thus I present these interesting images culled from elsewhere on line. These come from Soviet Russia and The Ukraine. Click to follow...
Q. How? A. Sliding scale download Q. What? A. Punk as all fuck ... Red blood cell credit: David Gregory & Debbie Marshall, Wellcome Images Egg credit: Wellcome Photo Library, Wellcome Images
A totally unsurprising new study has found that the more young people felt they had to look attractive in order to be accepted by their peers they were, wait for it, more sensitive to being rejected on the basis of their appearance Also found was that this effect was stronger for women than men. Wow. More interesting was that the study also found that there was no relationship between the degree that these young peoples parents were concerned about their appearance and the participants sensitivity to being rejected on the basis of their appearance. However the final and again unsurprising result does strike me as important, that of the role of the media.
It’s pervasive and almost unavoidable, in the city even if you don’t own a telly it’s hard not to notice big billboards or tram ads. Well, sadly and predictably this study found that greater internalisation of media based ideals of attractiveness predicted greater appearance based rejection sensitivity* in both sexes. That is, the more these people identified beauty with that presented in the media, the more likely they were to anxiously expect and overact to signs of rejection based on their appearance. This point is key, as it is the internalisation of these ideal of beauty that causes grief for all of us not just these 220 students in Buffalo, NY, USA.
Evolutionary psychology suggests that indicators of beauty, such as symmetry are also likely indicators of good health, thus we find these indicators pleasant and attractive. So to some extent the link between attractiveness and acceptance is a given and may be beneficial to us. However the ability of today’s media (and us) to easily search for and present beauty means our ‘peer group’ likely includes the drop-dead gorgeous whom we’ll never meet. As these evolutionarily powerful images are easily recalled, when we compare ourselves we face some strong competition and not even the example, good or otherwise, set by our parents will affect this.
What I want know however, is the relationship between internalising the media ideals and media consumption. Is it the acceptance of these ideals that results in this internalisation or is the amount, the volume and frequency, of beauty seen also a factor in internalising these ideals irrespective of a critical attitude? Can we inoculate ourselves?
Its been a busy week, so no time for real (ie. that which has not been lazily ganked from elsewhere on the web) posts. So I'm just going to point the way back to the 90's.
Yes the 90's, when flannelet shirts weren't just for for bogans, and certainly weren't available anywhere but Target or Kmart. Shit the 90's were when bogans were still a recognisable species and not just a term of abuse levelled at anyone from the suburbs. That's right the 90's, when young folk of my ilk attended gigs in the afternoon, when we drank goon and would catch public transport away from the city to see bands of this ilk.
Tumbleweed
The Meanies
I'd just like to point out that the Meanies film clip is actually in stop-motion, but transferring the video from a VHS cassette has dulled the effect somewhat, and also point you in the direction of more 'weed film clips. Finally; if you find any of these references confusing, well you're probably not from round these parts are ya? Welcome aliens!
Also please no arguments about the tags, i know, i know...
Yup, after all that pontificating we're getting straight up ignorant. Lazy Grey from QLD is one of Australia's best MC's, this is an old track, i think of the 'Black Stump' album, which i don't have (leave a comment). Summing up one of the best part of Fridays, and again flippin beats way before the septic's catch on.
Even ignoranter (yes it's a word) is this great track from Billy Bunks, a Melburn MC. this song is really very funny and needless to say not fucken safe for work. I just discovered this today, but knew he had an album comming this year, 'cos he told me. Then i ducked.
Seriously though, check both of these clips out, great songs and truly adapting the artform to our local culture, well at least that part that reflects the passions and concerns of drunken foul-mouthed young men. Word.
Whilst usually i'm a reasonably tolerant and forgiving person I find that this easy-going demeanour slips somewhat when shopping.
For years I have wondered is this because more annoying people are more likely to inhabit shopping centres, strips and the CBD when I’m there? Is there an email that goes out each morning suggesting the best way to piss me off? Whilst it is true that more annoying people are more likely to be found in annoying places it is also true that annoying people are to found all over this place (as Lux said).
So it might not be simply that people aint no good after all, it might be 'hyperchoice'. In the west this economic era, with the cultures of mass production and consumption, has provided us with an ever increasing plethora of choice. Whilst this has advantages this hyperchoice places demands on our cognitive resources. Too much choice requires more effort to be expended on every decision. We have only limited resources to engage in voluntary behaviour and these can be reduced by the effort needed to contrast, compare and retrieve from memory the details of each desire we are attempting to fill in these overbright climate controlled temples of mammon. This eventually results in harried decisions, we might select that which only approximates our need, or we choose the obvious and we end up less happy with our final choice.
Also afflicted are ‘Maximisers’, those who habitually carefully consider all options and make informed decisions. These types, who might be thought of as well adapted to this culture, are also afflicted by the negative consequences of hyperchoice. The over abundance of options and their habitual consideration will result in less satisfaction, nothing is ever perfect and it is this that will haunt the maximiser. The product they take home will likely be somewhat less glowing in the light of all that could have been.
These examples of our cognitive capacities go some way to explaining why I can’t be bothered thinking my way through every human interaction after deciding whether or not this shirt is worth the money or which brand of floor cleaner to buy. However this is not the whole story. Less well supported empirically, but possibly making just as much sense is that the incessant focus on the self (my needs, my size, my budget, my floor) results in an inordinate self focus. When we focus on ourselves we are less likely to be able to take others perspective, the needs of others are small in comparison to the over activated awareness of self.
Here is where I might consider a prescription, some homely suggestions to minimise choice, something about a local market, growing your own or re-using etc. Maybe a cute rant about how saving psychic energy on things allows more to be available for people, but I can't be bothered, you'll work it out. Idiot. ...
Thrive on learning and mental challenges. The point of having a brain is precisely to learn and to adapt to challenging new environments. Once new neurons appear in your brain, where they stay in your brain and how long they survive depends on how you use them. "Use It or Lose It" does not mean "do crossword puzzle number 1,234,567". It means, "challenge your brain often with fundamentally new activities".
It's getting colder here in Melburn, so this Friday I'm hitting you up first with the rich warmth of Mikey Dread (R.I.P) before simply acknowledging winter with one of those film clips where you can see the band breathing steam. I suppose I could have posted "London Calling" but instead we are shipping from JA to MA.
Reggae Mikey Dread
Mikey was the first dedicated Reggae DJ on the Jamaican national broadcaster and an artist and producer in his own right, he did some great work tunin' up the Clash's reggae sound and toured with them also. This track has killer horns, if you aren't dubwise enuff for a full 6 min of roots skip to the halfway point the brass goodness. For any aspiring DJ's out there there is a great little app on his website which amuses me no end
Punk Dropkick Murphys
I have absolutely no idea what this film clip is about. Guys in peaked caps and bomber jackets seem to run away from one another in a random fashion, perhaps they're just trying to get warm? I suppose if one wanted you could listen to this song in it's incarnation in "The Departed" or as an AFL advert. Which those living outside of Australia might want to do. Still, this song's a cracker and if you don't agree you can pugg mahone.
Also over the next few weeks I will digging in the overloaded vaults to bring you some local and international musical bootlegs and deleted obscurities that I reckon deserve some wider exposure, so set your ears to stun.
Oh yeah it's Friday! We are about to get our swagger on with an awesome performance as Big L shows why he was one of the greatest rappers, funny and filthy. There is no accompanying video, all the the better to check the rhymes and the beat by Lord Finnesse. There is an MP3 of the first verse on the the web somewhere, if I find the link i'll post it later.
HipHop Big L live on the Stretch & Bobbito radio show '98
If you listend to Big L first you'reprobably now a bit cocky, it's friday arvo and you might be ready for a drink, possibly a smoke. You might even feel a little bit guilty about the lethality of that last urge, well it has it's uses. I read somewhere the singer on this one, guitarist Steve Diggle, was forced to smoke heavily to get the right raspy tone for this song. It worked, the blend of urgency and melody makes me wanna reach for a pint and a silk cut. See you at the pub. Word.
