Archive for month: January, 2014

The Days of Anna Madrigal • Armistead Maupin

[rating=4]
288 pages • Doubleday • January 30, 2014 [HB]
The final Tales of the City, The Days of Anna Madrigal, is as glorious as its main character. It is filled with the heart, hope and compassion of its predecessors.

“Tales of the City is the most significant series in the literature of the post-liberation era, a lionhearted, optimistic ray of light that sees the world not only for its struggles but for its possibilities.”

Evil Empire • Rage Against The Machine

[rating=4]
Released April, 1996
With their second album, Evil Empire, Rage Against the Machine brought their righteous anger to mainstream America.

“Rage Against the Machine were the spiritual heirs of legendary ’60s revolutionaries the MC5; they had the anger and they had the fireball musical chops to back it up.”

Into The Blue • Kylie

[rating=3]
4:10 min • Parlophone • March 9, 2014
‘Into The Blue’ is a disappointing first single when earlier preview tracks had indicated otherwise.

“In a U-Turn that can have only been inspired by record executive fear, the announcement that the FIRST single from the album would be ‘Into The Blue’ was made.”

We Are The Goon Squad And We’re Coming To Town, Beep Beep

January 29, 2014

We Are The Goon Squad And We’re Coming To Town, Beep Beep. Alternatives to the word ‘queer’. Polari Safari by David Shenton.

Tear the Stripes Down: The Sanitizing of the Movement

The Gay, Inc. Takeover of LGBT Rights.

Walter Beck stares down the marriage equality opposition, and is confronted with opposition from the conservative Gay, Inc. activists on his own team.

“Folks like me are bad for advertisers. A tall hairy gonzo weirdo decked out full guns blazing would freak out a member of the opposition; they would either puke in disgust or piss their church trousers out of pure fear.”

WTF is Kylie doing to me?

I Should Be So Lucky.

The new single from Kylie makes Rob Partridge reassess his standing as a curmudgeon, so much so that he wonders what power Kylie has over all ‘the gays’.

“You could say “she knows her audience” but given that her audience is predominately every gay male ever it still something of an achievement that she manages to constantly please us.”

Slo Light • Davidge

[rating=4]
Released March 2, 2014
Slo Light is a lovingly detailed melodic album, with Davidge creating a mood that is more night than day.

Slo Light is an album that almost reluctantly reveals itself to the listener and therefore some patience is required”

Teepee V • Eli Van Sickel

[rating=4]
Released January 14, 2014
Eli Van Sickel’s Teepee V is his most expansive and diverse albums to date. It’s a complicated album, a mix of humor and sadness, originals and folk songs.

“If Nightlife and Middle West were concept albums, stories of people Eli knew or dreamed of, Teepee V is his autobiography, with him taking center stage.”

Glass Torn and War Shortage • Mike IX Williams

[rating=4]
Released December 1, 2011
This solo spoken word record, consisting of harsh industrial noise mixed with Williams’ poetry, isn’t a release for the faint of heart.

“In terms of subject matter and the actual words he uses on the tape, it’s what we’ve come to expect from Mike IX: visions of an apocalyptic wasteland, devoid of beauty and living as we know it, where merely surviving another day is beating the odds.”

Bob Mizer & Tom of Finland on MOCAtv

Richard Hawkins introduces.

This special preview from MOCAtv looks at the exhibition Bob Mizer & Tom of Finland at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles.