The British design firm LaBoca created some posters (in true movie poster style) for this movie. Right down to the font, I think they're really brilliant, and I might try to snag one for my house.
There it is. It makes me want to wear black, red, and white. Of course, that's not that new of an impulse for me. Actually, recently, when Rohin and I went to see the Matthew Bourne production of Swan Lake, I was completely twitterpated by the costumes -- shirtless dancing men with big feather culottes and slicked hair. It was very good. But it's not just swans, is it?
But the campaign for True Grit is lousy. When I saw the posters, I had to think hard to connect them with the preview I'd seen some months ago -- it didn't seem like the same film. Why is the campaign for this movie, an interesting, original premise, obscuring one of its interesting focal points? I'm talking about the teen girl character Mattie. The posters make the film seem to focus on, like, "Hey! Jeff Bridges is in a Western!" which is of course true (and pretty great) -- but they're obscuring an important plot point which is that it's a revenge story set in motion by a "plucky" young girl. Why? Oh, yeah. Because this movie doesn't have a teen girl audience. (It probably should.) (Here's a post about it at Ms.)
I know it was over a week ago but THE KATHLEEN HANNA SHOW WAS AMAZING. I can't thank Rebecca and Sini and everyone enough for allowing us to be a part of it. While we were waiting backstage before going up, Kathleen herself walked in! She listened to our banal, nervous chatter and didn't appear annoyed at all. Only Anna Copa Cabanna, who was waiting with us, appeared cool (she appeared cooler than cool -- she was wearing an Old Glory onesie and a platinum wig). And after the covers (The Fancy's amazing, slow, gorgeous cover of "Les and Ray"!!! Bridget Everett rocking out "After Dark"!!! MEN doing "Double Dare Ya"!!!), Murray Hill came out and introduced Kathleen's new band The Julie Ruin which featured Kathi Wilcox. And we saw teeny tiny Tavi Gevinson there, rocking her Feminist sweater (gift from KH, I believe).
Here's Bridget Everett who is seriously my new fucking hero. And yeah she played with Beastie Ad-Rock.
AUGH! Also if you know what I look like good enough, you can maybe spot me for a split second, as I am visible in the audience.
And here's Julie Ruin and a new song, "Cookie Road" (the chorus of which goes "Cookie cookie yah cookie yah cookie yah yah"):
In other news!!!! I've been taking aerial silks classes, and it's been super kicking my butt (and triceps and biceps and upper and lower abs and and and). In addition, in the coming year, I will be enrolled in a yoga teacher training program AND Rohin and I've just got gym memberships at the cheapo gym. So I'm guessing I'm going to be awesome pretty soon.
But on Thursday, I'm going to Florida. I don't care what the temperature is, I'm going swimming in the kidney-shaped pool in my mom's housing community -- even if I have to put on my sweater immediately upon exiting the pool. Even if I have to disguise my gooseflesh with an overly enthusiastic having-fun grin.
Actually the thing I can't wait for is cooking. And also drinking coffee in the living room with all the lights off except for those of the tree. I'm kind of a sentimental fool that way. We used to get the itchy holiday feeling weeks beforehand (like when we found the Moon Shoes hidden in the laundry closet), but nowadays it only comes on the day of. I guess that's fine. I'm much too busy to go storming around being all "LET'S LOOK AT ROCKEFELLER PLAZA OR WHATEVER AND GO SEE SOME STUPID HOLIDAY MUSICAL!"
But I'm not too busy for this:
We took a holiday photo. (Ellen, genius Ellen took it and then ran into it and appeared to look like she'd been there all along. Did I mention she's a genius???) When we recorded the terrifying surprise song that goes with these images, I had a head cold -- but I wish I could say that was my only excuse! Haha. My favorite part is where Eve comes in on the bridge and then I join her for the sleigh bells part. It's sheer insanity after the bridge. (Kind of like Ace of Base's career.) But dig my kimono! Ow, the colors.
I've posted a thingie on this at girlpants.org, but wow, Jex Thoth is amazing. Within the context of her band Sabbath Assembly she has reworked the hymnal of the 1960s cult Process Church of the Final Judgment (here is a great interview about it). Her voice is the kind of controlled and chilly that has the potential to turn rapturous at any moment, and when it does, you should be terrified. Her work outside of the album I wrote about is pretty freaking metal, but if you visit girlpants, you can hear two of the tracks I can't stop listening to.
Now for short links burst!!!!! ARTS!!!!!
Attend:
Mindtroll at Mixer Reading and Music Series. We'll be playing MIXER next week! At the Cakeshop! With Eileen Myles, Emily Gould, Lauren Waterman. AND IT'S FREE! How much awesomer can a deal even get? December 15th, 7PM for readings then stay for mindtroll. (Calendar details so you can see for yourself.) 152 Ludlow Street, Lower East Side.
Read:
Gina Abelkop has a poem up at Everyday Genius and you should read it now.
Paul Tunis (sometimes mistakenly identified as "PT Cruiser"), who is both a visual artist and writer (and cover artist/creator of promo video for Rohin Guha's chapbook) (and a hot food enthusiast) has a short interview up here at Drunken Boat. It's a good read.
My darling Christopher Phelps has answered some great questions at Pank Magazine. His answers are witty, charming, and devil-smart and you should read them. (This interview is also the reason I chose the anhinga to play Cover Bird of this post. Nah, I know it's not a black swan.)
Think:
Think hard about the role of mental illness in film. Black Swan is about obsessive workaholic women who are under ridiculous pressure to achieve perfection during their short careers. The main character slips "in and out of psychosis," consistently seeing schizophrenic visions that are left completely unnoticed. This is a film about women under the coercion of exactness.
See:
The girls at Design Glut have a new set of holiday photos up. These pics are both darkish and goofy (IE the opposite of that godawful Paul McCartney xmas song). While you're there, read the blog -- they give some cute gift recommendations if you're into that sort of thing.
That's that for that. Seriously come to the show next week.
My band mindtroll was asked to participate in Rah! Rah! Replica, a too-cool-for-words cover show that is also a fundraiser for Sini Anderson's documentary on Kathleen Hanna. The show is on December 11th. We'll be covering Bikini Kill, and we're opening the show! It's sold out now but it's being filmed, also. How fucking cool is this? It's probably the coolest thing I've ever done (so far). Mindtroll with all these amazings!!!
Kim Gordon, Kaia Wilson, MEN, Bridget Everett, Care Bears on Fire, Hilly Eye, She Murders, Toshi Reagon, Making Friendz, Christy & Emily, Dan Fishback, Anna Copa Cabanna, The Fancy, The Roulettes, Schwervon! + friends, Love Tribe, The Awkward Turtles, Alison Clancy, Mindtroll, video performance by Caroline Polachek (Chairlift), dance performance by Emily Wexler.
And in my life now I am so happy. I want to put color all over the place to express the pure and terrifying joy that I feel. I'm going to post a couple of photos instead of expounding more because it's kind of painful to read about other people's happiness. It's like drinking champagne during a road trip: inappropriately bubbly and will make you feel uncomfortable. So behold!
This is the mood for the day, and I don't find it depressing. This song breaks my heart a little but it's also kind of got a twinkle in its eye, at least in this iteration. It feels like the devil a bit. And that's good. I have a bunch of exciting plans I'm not going to talk about yet so I'm just going to be listening to some songs while I get started on my house-related errands and holiday cards.
Other soundtrack: Loretta Lynn (Van Lear Rose); Laura Veirs (July Flame).
I write some poems and some prose and put together events. In 2009, Birds of Lace put out my chapbook, Fabulous Essential. In 2011, Hyacinth Girl published another chapbook, Book Four. I also yell and play the beep beeps in a band called mindtroll.
