be good (or: the plague of snark)
Posted on February 26, 2009 by Tito
I think Roger Ebert’s blog may be the best thing going these days. Now another typically excellent essay in which he writes now is the time “to put away childish things” and “inspire more appreciation than ridicule”.
Snarking has been part of the air we breathe for a long time. It is said to have entered American pop culture in the 1950s, with Mad magazine, Stan Freberg, and so on. Not at all. They were practitioners of the honorable art of Satire. They exaggerated traits rather than punishing them. There was affection involved. Snarking has come into its own as a rhetorical style in this age of the internet. The web simultaneously allows anybody with a computer access to a worldwide audience, but the probability of complete invisibility. You can speak, but in a sea of so many words, no one will hear. You can win listeners by writing something worth reading, but you can win them more easily by snarking. When you snark the famous, you not only associate yourself with them, but propose yourself as their superior. This is so essential to the process that I have never observe the snarking of an unknown person.
» Filed Under Liberal Media Conspiracies, Pain | Leave a Comment
post, memory
Posted on February 24, 2009 by Tito
random links, etc….
- Roger Ebert remembers Gene Siskel, who died February 20, 1999:“We almost always thought the same things were funny. That may be the best sign of intellectual communion.”
- Facebook 25 things note win
- Lucero concert MP3s (Feb. 6, 2009) at nyctaper.
- Jonathan Baumbach at The New You Project: “It’s always hard to like books that you’re compelled to read. The worst thing for the soul is to pretend to like something because older and wiser heads tell you you should.”
- “Techcrunch are full of shit”
- A new poem in the New Yorker by Leonard Cohen: A Street
» Filed Under Music, Vagaries of the Heart, Writers | Leave a Comment
le Café
Posted on February 18, 2009 by Tito
Behold the power of le Café
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Speechifyin’
Posted on February 18, 2009 by Tito
Haruki Murakami, in his acceptance speech for the Jerusalem Prize.
I have only one reason to write novels, and that is to bring the dignity of the individual soul to the surface and shine a light upon it.
…
Take a moment to think about this. Each of us possesses a tangible, living soul. The System has no such thing. We must not allow The System to exploit us. We must not allow The System to take on a life of its own. The System did not make us: We made The System.
Of course, the entire speech is worth reading.
» Filed Under Music, Writers | Leave a Comment
20 Albums That Changed* My Life
Posted on February 16, 2009 by Tito
I’m pretty sure I don’t accept the premise that there are 20 albums that changed my life. But I am a sucker for these facebook lists, so I’ll put down 20 (or so) that I think are capital “I” important to me. Some are old standbys; some are newer additions; the reasons they are included are unique, but for some reason or another, these are all Big Deals To Me.
BMK Bonus: I’ve included a song that appeared on each record
Alphabetically:
- American Water – Silver Jews (Send In The Clouds) [MP3]
- Beelzebubba – Dead Milkmen (Life Is Shit) [MP3]
- Ben Folds Five – Ben Folds Five (Best Imitation of Myself) [MP3]
- Black Sheep Boy – Okkervil River (For Real) [MP3]
- Blacklisted – Neko Case (I Wish I Was The Moon) [MP3]
- Dirty South – Drive-By Truckers (Carl Perkins’ Cadillac) [MP3]
- Domestica – Cursive (The Lament of Pretty Baby) [MP3]
- Fear of A Black Planet – Public Enemy (Who Stole The Soul?) [MP3]
- Hearts of Oak – Ted Leo & The Pharmacists (Where Have All The Rude Boys Gone?) [MP3]
- A Love Supreme – John Coltrane (Acknowledgment) [MP3]
- The Low End Theory – A Tribe Called Quest (Excursions) [MP3]
- Lunapark – Luna (Slash Your Tires) [MP3]
- The Magic of Abba – Abba (SOS) [MP3]
- Nebraska – Bruce Springsteen (Highway Patrolman) [MP3]
- Paul’s Boutique – Beastie Boys (The Sounds of Science) [MP3]
- Pearl – Janis Joplin (Mercedes Benz) [MP3]
- Pinkerton – Weezer (The Good Life) [MP3]
- Rites of Passage – Indigo Girls (Romeo & Juliet) [MP3]
- Separation Sunday – The Hold Steady (Stevie Nix) [MP3] – NOTE: This may be my favorite song OF ALL TIME®
- Violent Femmes – Violent Femmes (Kiss Off) [MP3]
(Previously, on Black Market Kidneys: How It Was For Me – more of a narrative style, with some sure record overlaps. Never completed)
» Filed Under About Me, Facebook, Music | 2 Comments
Press/Record Label Subscriptions
Posted on February 15, 2009 by Tito
A voice from the twitterverse (or is it twittersphere?) cries out.
Also, worth noting that www.twodollarradio.com has 2008 and 2009 subscriptions to all of their books for $50. I am obsessed with this model.
Smart. But got me thinking … why don’t record labels do this? Or maybe they do and I don’t know about. For smaller labels, I think this would make a lot of sense. Unless the price was off the charts, I’m pretty sure I’d subscribe to: jagjaguwar, merge, saddle creek, 4AD. I’m sure some clever marketing types could think of some bonuses to throw in with such a subscription. Go!
(hyper-fast) update: Lauren goes on to suggest friendly fire, everloving
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Valentine’s Day Walk Photo Log
Posted on February 14, 2009 by Tito
Today Monica and I took a walk from the Inner Richmond in San Francisco to the Mission. Here’s a few photos from the way
Times are tough, so naturally budget beef is appealing:
(If you’re not sure, that is me on the left and the budget beef on the right)
Came across this collection of Shakespearean sonnets on a park bench in the panhandle of Golden Gate Park:
For some people, Every Day Is Earth Day, but clearly this romantic treats every day as Valentine’s (or something):
Remember, Only You Can Prevent Hepatitis:
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In honor of Friday the 13th
Posted on February 13, 2009 by Tito
A strong De La/Redman collab, with a very nice Pharoahe Monche “Ghost Weed” rap at the end. The only time I’ve heard triskaidekaphobia dropped in a rhyme. Not too shabby.
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You Can’t Copyright No Beat
Posted on February 13, 2009 by Tito
QOTD:
While Muxtape was technically breaking the law by streaming unlicensed music online, it was not, as CD Baby founder Derek Sivers comically put it, “clearly illegal, immoral and harmful, like Auto-Tune“.
On a minor PE kick lately. So, yeah…
Caught Can We Get A Witness?
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Sometimes You Got To Roll A Hard Six To Make Your Dreams Come True
Posted on February 12, 2009 by Tito
…Sometimes you have to strike a superior asshole to hear what your heart is telling you….
If Battlestar Was an 80s Sitcom
{via}
» Filed Under Television, Time Travel and The Intergalactic | Leave a Comment
My Inner Joan Crawford Vehicle
Posted on February 12, 2009 by Tito
As I count down the days to John Darnielle with Tobias Wolff, there is this video taken from a nice trove of recordings form some sort of singer/songwriter cruise?
{via}
» Filed Under Music, Vagaries of the Heart, Writers | Leave a Comment
Evil Birthday
Posted on February 12, 2009 by Tito
“This is a grand celebration for a man whose Theory of Evolution promoted atheism, inspired Hitler’s genocides, and thinks your grandfather was a monkey.” – Roger Ebert on the upcoming 200th birthday of Charles Darwin
» Filed Under Deformities, Liberal Media Conspiracies | Leave a Comment
it’s better my sweet, that we hover like bees
Posted on February 11, 2009 by Tito
As with all things, Facebook is the Prime Mover. You know how it is. By fiat, I’ll put all my chain-notes on this blog & link back from there, so that all y’all aren’t required to go to FB for scoops on me if you don’t want to/can’t. I’m talking to you China and Ticha (or other people that work at corporations who firewall the FB juggernaut). Plus You get the extra-special bonus of me including MP3′s of each song for your fair use/pirating needs & a few possibly NSFW youtube links!
Go!
The Soundtrack of Your Life as Determined By Your Ipod.
This is totally random and ridiculous, but kind of fun.
HOW TO DO IT…
1. Open your library (iTunes, Winamp, Media Player, iPod, etc)
2. Put it on shuffle
3. Press play
4. For the first question, type the song that’s playing
5. When you go to a new question, press the next button TWICE
6. Don’t lie and try to pretend you’re cool…just type it in man!
IF YOUR LIFE WAS A MOVIE WHAT WOULD THE SOUNDTRACK BE?
Tito’s Soundtrack
Opening Credits
So Far Away – Carole King [MP3]
I would have played this later in the movie, but who am I to argue with iPod?
Waking Up
Los Angeles, I’m Yours – The Decemberists [MP3]
Works for me. The harmonica in gives me fond memories of those Gary Coleman videos we rented from Applause on Dodge during my youth (ca. 1984). You know, where he lived in a lockers at a train depot and had some mystical ability to pick horse winners. Oh, where were we?
On The Right Track (1981)
First Day at School
Name Names – The Mendoza Line [MP3]
Good. The opening guitar riff that settles into a barracuda-ish stutter sets the mood nicely. Besides, who can forget first day of school roll calls where the teachers got to stumble over all the foreign names & I had to explain my name was really Tito.
Falling in Love
Lighten Up – Beastie Boys [MP3]
Another one of the Beastie Boys instrumental noodlings I could do without. Come on iPod!! You know this is the band that gave us Girls, don’t you. Sheeeeeeeet.
Fight Song
The Fool – Neutral Milk Hotel [MP3]
Does not bode well for the “fight”. Do the engineers at Apple know something I don’t? Don’t Answer!
Breaking Up
Steady Rollin’ – Two Gallants [MP3]
but I shot my wife today
dropped her body in the Frisco bay
Look out, Monica!
High School Prom
The List of Dorms – Pavement [MP3]
Would have been nice to go to a high school where this was the dance music.
The one that got away
Prince – Gett Off [MP3]
And Stay Off!
Life
The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonite – R.E.M. [MP3]
The best thing I can say about this is: if Get A Life can use REM for a theme song, that’s good enough for me. Speaking of which:
Best.
News.
Of.
The.
Day.
This series is available on DVD!! Totally coming to my house on the wings of the US Mail golden chariot in the sky.
Mental Breakdown
Dark Leaves Form a Thread – Destroyer [MP3]
Dan Bejar serenading my psychological collapse seems right. He Just Gets Me.
Driving
I’ll Be Your Friend – Bright Eyes & Neva Dinova [MP3]
I don’t drive much, but this would be a nice song for a shot of me wistfully looking out a MUNI window, Midnight Cowboy steez
Flashback
The Farewell Party – Cursive [MP3]
Tim Kasher laying the lyrics for retrospection & memory? Not toooo much of a stretch.
Getting Back Together
Ziggy Stardust – David Bowie [MP3]
Where WERE the spiders?
Wedding
Bitchin’ Camaro – The Dead Milkmen [MP3]
YES!
Birth of Child
Ain’t No Cure For Love – Leonard Cohen [MP3]
Awww yeah, baby being born to some sweet hot sax lix.
Final Battle
Crazy Feelin’ – Roy Hamilton [MP3]
I was pulling for some Flaming Lips at this point. But again, I bow before iPod.
Death Scene
Disappear – Beyoncé [MP3]
Here Lies…Tito Fierce.
Funeral Song
The Air Near My Fingers – The White Stripes [MP3]
life is so boring
it’s really got be snoring
’nuff said
End Credits
Outro With Bees (Reprise) – Neko Case [MP3]
Outro!
And I’m Swayze!
» Filed Under Facebook, Music, Robot Brains | Leave a Comment
You Got Served
Posted on February 10, 2009 by Tito
I feel compelled to post items in the case of Ernie Chambers v God as they continue to trickle through the Omaha World-Herald’s RSS feed. In today’s installment, former Senator Chambers’ response to a judge’s dismissal of the suit on the technicality that God had never been served properly.
A God who is “all-knowing” would realize he’s being sued even without being served notice of the lawsuit, former State Sen. Ernie Chambers says.
The suit Chambers filed was to seek an injunction against God for violent acts like earthquakes & tornadoes.
Tangentially related, but stuck in my head the last few days, so why not? Drive-By Truckers – Tornadoes [MP3]
» Filed Under Crime, Music, Politics, Religion | Leave a Comment
Yo, I got to hear that one more time, man
Posted on February 8, 2009 by Tito
If nothing else, at least I get an annual reminder to fire up Nation of Millions.
“Who gives a fuck about a goddam grammy?”
Terminator X to the Edge of Panic
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Yes We Can Haz Soundboard?
Posted on February 6, 2009 by Tito
Dear Internet,
Please make a soundboard of these Obama MP3′s which I found over here via over there.
UPDATE: And boom goes the proverbial dynamite: http://obamasoundoff.com/
» Filed Under Liberal Media Conspiracies, Politics, remixed, Stickin' It To The Man | Leave a Comment
Flannery O’Connor Audio
Posted on February 2, 2009 by Tito
Twitter saves the Monday, with this tweet from girlswritenow.
RT @jaycolle: Audio file of Flannery O’Connor reading A Good Man is Hard to Find. Download this gem here: http://tinyurl.com/cdyxhp
Some quick googling found a likely source, that had some more notes. Apparently this reading was recorded off a radio broadcast from Notre Dame not too long before O’Connor died. It’s nice to get a reading of A Good Man… but to me the real find is her talk “Some Aspects of the Grotesque in Southern Literature”. The links to both are in WMA, so I converted them to MP3 for all y’all Mac/Linux peeps. Highly recommended.
(WMA links here)
ND Archive Search here.
» Filed Under Writers | 8 Comments
paper chases
Posted on January 28, 2009 by Tito
Ye Olde Hagge sayeth:
The web gets a lot of credit for sharing, but that’s because the people who invented the web have to find creative ways to make it sound amazing. But when you send someone an email with an article you think they should read, you might as well have interrupted their morning meeting in person, waving it around frantically with half a mouthful of donut. But leave your favorite pieces in your bathroom, and you have a captive audience who’s probably grateful to look at Luke Menand’s latest so you two can have something to talk about for ten minutes before moving on to Wife Swap.
Of course, You want to read the entire post.
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Was Ice-T’s Body Count For Nothing?
Posted on January 26, 2009 by Tito
(insert quote regarding: history, forgetting, doom, repeat) Lil Wayne Confirms Rock Album
» Filed Under Music | Leave a Comment
Native Son, Revised
Posted on January 26, 2009 by Tito
I hadn’t been aware that there were different versions of Native Son. So now, I have as good a reason as any to re-read the book. In the meantime, I’ll think a bit on the question of when “editing” ends and “expurgation” begins.
Reading through the appendix, as it turns out the book was originally published by Harper, in conjunction with the Book of the Month Club. (It would eventually be the first Book of the Month Club selection by an African American author.) It seems as if Harper was amenable to publishing the book consistent with Wright’s artistic vision, but the club (presumably fearing its members’ sensitive natures or even government censors) took exception to several passages, most notably a sex-tinged scene in a movie theater balcony towards the beginning of the story. Wright acquiesed, probably grudgingly, to the club’s wishes, and completely rewrote the theater scene.
(From PeteLit)
» Filed Under Books, Liberal Media Conspiracies, Sex, Writers | Leave a Comment
