the other day this song appeared. it was a few minutes of WFMU’s DJ Nick Hill, joined with a few musicians, making a phone call to jeff buckley.

they ask if he may sing something special with everyone there in the studio and jeff performs a lovely dylan cover of *i shall be released*.

singing through the telephone with the musicians playing in the background, its quite amazing, important and very bittersweet to listen to.

they say every man needs protection
they say every man must fall
yet i swear i see my reflection
some place so high above this wall
i see my light come shining
from the west unto the east
any day now, any day now
i shall be released
…

Professor Gunther Von Hagen creates a controversial macabre hybrid of art and anatomy, using a technique called plastination to hold organs and corpses in a life-like state. He replaces body fluids and fat with plastic, halting decomposition and preserving the subjects as they are. His Body Worlds exhibitions and public and televised autopsies have caused outcry all over the world: being labelled pornographic, immoral and borderline psychotic. Both the Catholic and Protestant churches declared that his exhibit was a breach of ethical and moral values, opposing Christian principles and even natural law, and stressing that human dignity must be respected after death. And yet, on average, five people attending the Berlin exhibit every day signed up to have their bodies donated, bringing the total number who have made this commitment to 3,700. Von Hagen believes his work allows people to look at death in a new way, without fear and allowing an appreciation of their own anatomy.

“I had long arguments. Is it art or not? And I always said, no, no, no – but then I realised the people see the specimens in an emotional way. It goes beyond information. I understood step by step that plastination opens the hearts of the people to themselves. They recognise themselves, get a new kind of body pride.”

boards of canada : opening the mouth

measles mumps rubella : nice hollow bodies

the servant : cells

how to swim : bones

the knife : a lung

this mortal coil : loose joints

natalie merchant : my skin

the scala choir : heartbeats

peaches : operate

headphones : wise blood

This is what has kept me running scared. Those thoughts of “I’m not good enough, I’m not smart enough” for this — this bullshit that was going through my head. But I’ve come to realize that I’m a human being, that I will make mistakes, but I’m going to win.

beth hart uses every dimension in and out of her body to reveal herself. that’s just the way she works. all those past words and inner demons are unleashed while she openly presents herself as a strong sharp-tongued woman crowd surfing into a welcoming audience. performing inbetween songs, she enjoys sharing intelligent short stories about the good and bad side effects of ecstasy, how we sometimes call out for god to help us but who the hell is he really, and the ways men & women can be so disappointing but how good they feel, how much we care for them anyways.

being able to see beth hart perform live in an intimate venue is one of those memories that i feel and will remember for the rest of my life. her stage resembling the warm comfort of home with a touch of oriental rugs, nag champa incense and the soft ambient glow from a tiny light that rests upon her piano. the moment she enters the stage, its obvious from her whiskey slick voice how one minute it feels like her entire world has ended and at the next, that everything simply is born again. for awhile, her rocking band appears but theres nothing quite like watching beth hart solo. so emotional, powerful, direct and personified that it hurts, she sings deeply from within her soul.

live & acoustic

immortal

jackie’s song

la song

mama

skin

hiding under water

buy beth’s music here.
artwork by max.

If you like a mix of wurlitzer in psychedelic indie rock, you probably know Rogue Wave and their drummer Pat. Well time to spread the words, donate, or attend their San Francisco concert, they are doing a benefit because Pat needs a second liver transplant. (boo to insurance company)

Their last album “Descended Like Vultures” is a mix up of tempo power pop with light texture here and there. Think happy California sun. They are afterall from SF… etc. go click some stuff already.

- The Benefit Concert : September 30th 2006, San Francisco.

- for more information and donation go to Rouge Wave‘s webpage.

Rogue Wave – Every Moment
Rogue Wave – 10:1
Rogue Wave – Endless Shovel
Rogue Wave - Publish My Love

see also: subpop, crossposted at Motel de Moka.
(PS. Yeah I will post a nice list soon.)
image: subpop

sometimes i get so startled when i listen to antony & the johnsons. this feeling crashes inside me and it feels so powerful, i want to hide under the covers of my bed and dream and cry about how good it is to feel. becos if i didnt feel this… i dont think i would even begin to understand what all this even means.

its true i always wanted love to be hurtful
and its true i always wanted love to be filled with pain
…
i am very happy so please hit me
i am very very happy so please hurt me
i am very happy so please hit me
i am very very happy so come on hurt me

theres a consistency in antony’s vocals that fall from the deeply impacting human necessity to love, to fear, to face change and to feel different from the rest of the world. as his music and lyrics build upon one another, an exceptional dramatic range addresses the darkest of hidden places as sensitivity through elegance and grace infuses a secret romantic frequency from deep inside the heart. whether its suppose to be much more than what it seems, its hauntingly emotive and only intensifies to unveil the beauty of who antony is.

bsides//rarities::
+virgin mary
+frankenstein
+find the rhythm of yr love

covers//live::
+so young [the ronettes]
+candy says [velvet underground]
+strange fruit [billie holliday]
+be my husband [nina simone]
+child of god [millie jackson]

buy antony’s music here.

i think both understood :: neutrino
[turntable on hudson vol1 1999]

dont think :: lali puna
[scary world theory 2001]

key bored :: portishead
[unreleased from their myspace 2006]

saffron :: mf doom
[special herbs 1&2 2002]

papercuts :: broadcast
[the noise made by people 2000]

quiet storm :: blockhead
[downtown sciene 2005]

talk show :: the new deal
[the new deal 2001]