Not There is an acceptance of dislocation, isolation and other-ness.
Dislocation:
As someone who has chosen to live outside my country, I live at a critical distance from my native culture. At this point, I will never be able to fit into a mainstream American existence again. That is another road.
Other-ness:
I am not Chinese, but I live in China. I speak the language but I will never fit in. My features mark me as being outside, a stranger.
Isolation:
China, because of the GFW & time zones is a world onto itself. I live inside a semi-permeable bubble. Stuck in-the-middle & floating between an imaginary East & West.
This is the Holy Grail for learning Chinese: breaking down a book into specific parts to improve your reading, listening & writing.
Here are the steps.
1. Read a chapter making flash cards for every character you don’t know
2. Learn the words
3. Re-read the chapter w/out a dictionary or other study aid
4. Listen to the same chapter as an audio book
5. Write a short essay analyzing the chapter
6. Repeat until you’re finished with the book
This is obviously a long, difficult process but it will improve your Chinese dramatically. If you’re worried about acquiring a specific vocab set, pick a book on the subject.
There’s no substitute for 10,000 hours of hard work.
The Anthology of American Folk Music, assembled by Harry Smith from his personal collection of 78s, is one of the ur-texts of modern American music. Most of what we consider to be “authentic” (white people from the mountains strumming & yodeling and black people from the south playing the blues) was essentially codified by Smith.
If you were a young musician in the late 50s or early 60s and wanted to escape the commercial gloss of pop music, the Anthology of American Folk Music was one of the 1st places you were likely to turn. It served as an introduction to the blues and what would later become “Americana.” Most of the singer-songwriters we lionize got their start lifting melodies from the Anthology and adding their lyrics. Bob Dylan is a prime example. His early material “borrowed” heavily from Smith and other sources. Compare “Hard Times in New York Town” to “Polly’s Farm” for a laugh.
I have no problem with this kind of borrowing and mention it only to point out how influential Smith’s Anthology is. The Anthology of American Folk music doesn’t anthologize or sample “folk” music, it is, for better or worse, folk music. Every iteration of “Americana” that followed can trace its roots back to Smith’s box set.
My problem with the Anthology of American Folk Music has nothing to do with the material selected. By and large, it’s a pretty fair cross section of mountain music, rural blues, gospel and even a little Cajun. My problem with the set is that it arrogates the title “American.” By making the claim that the music in Smith’s Anthology is “American” it is excluding any music not represented as other. If you’re style of music isn’t in Harry Smith’s Anthology, it might be folk, but it isn’t American.
A quick list of other folk music excluded by Smith and therefore not in the Cannon includes:
Klezmer
Central European & “Gypsy” music
Native American Music
German
Chinese folk music
Greek
Turkish
Imagine how the flavor of “American” Folk might have been changed by including early Gypsy Jazz or Greek music? What if musicians felt like it was authentically “American” to mix Turkish rhythms with the Blues. Doing that would make you a “World Musician” in our present system of genre labeling.
Ironically enough, I once bought an album of Traditional Lakota music that was labelled “World Music.” Which is true in the sense that the Lakota live on Earth, but it might not be the most precise label. I think the Lakota have a fairly strong claim to being “American.”
As musicians & listeners it’s time for us to re-examine the musicological process that was handed down to us. Blandly accepting existing definitions of what is or isn’t “American” only restricts the ability to make and enjoy good music.
American Folk needs to be broader than Harry Smith’s “America.” We are a nation of immigrants (except for people like the Lakota who were here first) and we should embrace the full palate of American musical possibilities.
“Americana” needs to go. It is a racist, limiting definition of our music. The roots go much deeper.
I know you guys admire “Western Music” a lot. It’s cool that you’re inspired by what’s happening globally. From Joy Division to the Stones to the String Cheese Incident, I’ve seen Chinese bands bearing the all the hallmarks of inspiration: hairstyles, clothing, equipment and so on.
It’s cool. We all steal from what we love. I have no shame about copping the best parts of the Dead & LCD Soundsystem. However, I would like to offer you some advice.
Sing in Chinese.
Here are a few reasons why:
The lyrics you write in your second language are either a) so painfully obvious that they sound like 4th grade Valentine’s Day Cards or b) make absolutely no sense.
Even if your English lyrics are cool, you still need to be able to pronounce the words properly. If you don’t, it’s very hard to take you seriously. Mispronouncing words also ruins the timbre of your voice.
You might think that by singing in English you’re making your band more appealing to a “global audience.” But you’re not. Truth is we’re all wallowing in an orientalist mire and not being able to understand your band in Chinese actually makes you more appealing. When we want rock with awful lyrics and terrible accents we listen to Jet.
Hanggai are probably the biggest “Chinese” band outside of China at the moment. Do they sing in English? Does Lonely China Day? How about Cui Jian?
You have more to say in your native language & in the end as an artist you should be making a statement.
I’m not trying to be mean, I’m just being honest. If you sing in Chinese, your lyrics will be better, the timbre of your voice will improve and you will be taken more seriously.
Please sing in Chinese. It’s a nice language and it deserves rock & roll too.
Anthem of the Sun is the most ambitious and revolutionary failure in the history of pop music.
Here’s why:
Ambition:
Anthem is a cohesive statement with inter-woven themes including madness, ecstasy and the duality between dark & light. The Dead were attempting to create an aural mission statement that summarized the energy of their live performances and their a-political acid drenched San Francisco ethic. Lyrically, Anthem is strange, obtuse and somehow meaningless and full of meaning at the same time. “The Other One” might be the single most psychedelic thing ever committed to wax.
Revolutionary:
The Dead were one of the first groups that tried to use the studio as an instrument. Multi-track recording technology allowed them to layer sound after sound on every track, including Tom Constanten’s prepared piano and bassist Phil Lesh’s weird trumpet buzzes. The Dead, however, weren’t content with the studio trickery. Instead, they used a series of live recordings as the foundation for each of the tracks on Anthem, attempting to blend live & studio together and give the listener a more realistic vision of what the Dead were like at the Filmore or the Avalon Ballroom. The Dead also used an incredible number of tape-edits, cutting and splicing material together in a sort of rock-n-roll avant-classical sound collage. The process is the foundation for what electronic music would become: samples of found sound re-configured into a new context.
Failure:
Simply put, the Dead didn’t have access to the right tools to make their vision work. After repeated editing, the Anthem masters have a washed out and hollow sound and the jumps between live recording & studio sessions are plagued by differences in tuning, volume and dynamics. Anthem of the Sun just doesn’t sound very good which makes it much more difficult to enjoy. Listening to Anthem of the Sun makes me wonder what it would sound like if a band with that level of ambition used the Dead’s recording process in 2012.
After way too long a break, the Listening Project continues…
Artist: Brian Eno
Album: Ambient 1: Music for Airports
Comments: Enjoyed listening to this a lot, very relaxing. Eno’s “Ambient Music” might be the last “new” genre of music. The influence of this album can be felt from Phish to the Mars Volta. No standout tracks since it really has to be enjoyed as a whole.
Artist: Grateful Dead
Album American Beauty:
Comments: A folk rock masterpiece. Robert Hunter’s lyrics are haunting, cryptic and full of an imagined “old, weird America.” “Box of Rain” is close to a perfect song: meaningful, challenging and beautifully produced.
Artist: Johnny Cash
Album: America IV: When the Man Comes Around
Artist: Not as good as I remember it being. The song selection is forced and maudlin. “Hurt” is interesting and probably the only thing that stands the test of time.
Artist: Del McCoury Band & Preservation Hall
Album: American Legacies
Comments: What should have been an interesting collaboration isn’t actually very interesting. Turns out Bluegrass and Dixieland, despite common roots in the blues, make pretty uncomfortable bedfellows. The songs sound over-stuffed, like a stew with too many ingredients.
Artist: Jackie Greene
Album: American Myth
Comments: Middling post alt.country rock. “So Hard to Find My Way” is a great song that’s worth checking out on Spotify. It wouldn’t sound out of place on a Van Morrison record from the early 70s.
Artist: Anders Osborne
Album: American Patchwork
Comments: NOLA’s favorite Swede swings and misses. The rocking songs don’t rock and the ballads would be better left to a country crooner. The highlight is Stanton Moore’s half-swung, half rocking drumming, but I’d rather listen to Galactic.
Artist: the Black Crowes
Album: Amorica
Comments: I got Amorica as a gift when I was a teenager and it still rocks hard. “Wiser Time” and “A Conspiracy” are great fucking rock songs. Highly recommended for anyone that likes whiskey & guitars.
Artist: NIN
Album: And All That Could Have Been
Comments: I have no idea why I have this or where it came from. A tepid live album that doubles as a greatest hits package. I’ve never seen NIN. Are they really this bad live?
Artist: Pink Floyd
Album: Animals
Comments: A forgotten prog-disco Pink Floyd Album! Songs with Animal themes! Pretty cool, but it won’t be replacing Dark Side of the Moon in your rotation.
Artist: Uncle Tupelo
Album: Anodyne
Comments: The smartest thing Jeff Tweedy did was leaving to start Wilco. Uncle Tupe hasn’t aged well & Jay Farrar’s vocals are pretty damn ragged. The highlight is probably “Give Back the Key to My Heart” which features a gurgling but beautiful duet with folk-rock hero Doug Sahm. I also like the Tweedy penned “New Madrid” which seems to be about St. Louis.
Artist: Brian Eno
Album: Another Green World
Comments: Amazing.
Artist: Bob Dylan
Album: Another Side of Bob Dylan
Comments: Dylan’s first attempt at reefer drenched wit isn’t his best, but “Chimes of Freedom” and “My Back Pages” are genius. Worth a spin just to hear them in the original context.
Hope everyone is settling into the Year of the Dragon. We spent the CNY break working on new material and getting used to a ton of new equipment, and we’re gonna lay the new beast bare this Saturday Night @ Hot Cat. As always, the show’s free, beer’s cheap and we’ll be funky. We’ve also got a surprise opener, a one-of-a-kind performer we can’t reveal just yet.
Check it out this Saturday night @ Hot Cat. 46 Fangjia Hutong, very close to El Nido
The 2012 Superbowl was pretty awesome. The Giants won, defying a Universal Law of Football in the process: a team that dominates early, but fails to score enough points to put the other team away ALWAYS loses. Somehow, the Giants managed to completely dominate the first 26 minutes of the first half, then blow a 9-3 by lead by allowing Tom Bundchen to drive 96 yards for a go-ahead score. I guess the Universal Laws of Football can be broken, occasionally.
Now, onward to the ads!
The Pre-Game Show
First of all, like all things “Super,” Superbowl ads are creeping ever earlier. A whole host of brands decided they’d “excite-the-audience” by pre-releasing their ads as “viral videos” on Youtube. Honda & VW were particularly successful, garnering millions of Youtube hits for their Superbowl spots. Honda rolled out a very un-Ferris looking Matthew Broderick to drive an ugly mini-van called a CRV. They teased the spot by producing a “Ferris Bueller Sequel Video.” The only problem was, the actual commercial sucked. It was damn hard to imagine Ferris tooling around in a Japanese minivan.
The pre-Superbowl release strategy also had a major flaw. People go to the bathroom during commercials. When one of the already touted suckers popped up, well it was time for the dudes in Not There to “hit-the-head.” Maybe “viral video” buzz is more important than a Superbowl spot at this point in our ever fracturing mono-culture, but if that’s the case, why are you spending 3.5 million dollars to release a Youtube video?
The CRV spot didn’t work, but the strategy made sense: make your Youtube video & ad related, but different enough to keep me interested. Why buy the milk if you already have the cow?
Chevy Likes the Superbowl
Chevy was all over the Superbowl. They made a ton of videos, ran some ads and gave Eli Manning a stunningly average looking “Corvette.” Eli tried to walk away without taking the keys and Dan Patrick had to practically beg him to “enjoy his MVP car.” It was a brazenly honest display of boredom.
Overall, I thought Chevy’s 2012 Apocalypse inspired Silverado Truck Ad was their most effective. Driving through the ruins of Western Civilization with a loyal, dependable, top-in-its-class dog made for pretty compelling truck advertising. Chevy’s are tough. Sucks about the guy’s friend though. Friends don’t let friends drive Fords.
Fiat Shows A Little Class
Well Fiat, you made an impression. The girl was sexy and the Starbucks foamy whip was a nice touch. I can’t remember a damn thing about the actual car, but the guys in Not There really, really liked this ad. Keep it classy.
Bud Light!
Dependable purveyors of “Beers for Bros” ads, Bud Light managed to satisfy & confound. The satisfying: training a mutt named “Here We Go” to fetch Bud Light for an ever swelling multi-cultural party. The confounding: launching a premium or platinum (I can’t remember and my notes are unclear) brand of Bud Light with a way too conservative set of creatives. Newsflash: Bud Light Premium will still taste like horse urine and yer fooling no-one.
Samsung Believes in the Darkness?
I like the Darkness a lot. In college I used to air guitar that absurd solo every time I went out. I still would if someone would play it. I like the Darkness more than anyone I know, but not as much as Samsung who decided to turn one of their Galaxy ads into a Darkness street-party! I know the Darkness are awesome, and I think Love is Swell, but I’m not convinced a Darkness show would be more fun than waiting in line at the Apple Store.
If the point of the ad was making fun of Apple fanboys for being too-cool-for-school, I’m not sure that using the Darkness is going to convince people they’re not, you know, actually cool. Apple is Different. Samsung is…uh…fake glam rock?
Maybe this ad would have worked better if they had co-branded with Go Daddy! Danica Patrick could have stripped on the hood of a stock-car, or something.
Well Coke kicked ass. The Polar Bears were awesome & I loved the football tie-in. On a side note, someone should develop a reality showed based around the idea of animals playing a football game. Lions vs. Polar Bears. Maybe I’ve just been watching too much “Deadliest Warrior” on Netflix. Turns out Pirates would totally kill Knights in Shinning Armour btw. Also turns out Coke still totally kills Pepsi. By the 4th quarter, I wanted to take Eddie Murphy’s advice to: “sit down, relax and drink a Coke,” and hug a Polar Bear.
Side Note: Don’t mention Coke in a Pepsi Ad. It just makes me want to drink a Coke even more. And I don’t like Regis Philbin. No one likes Regis Philbin.
The Toyota…Re-Invented:
Someone please tell me what this ad was trying to do. Use 200 words or less in the comments section. My best guess: The Toyota Camry has A LOT OF STUFF, BUT NONE OF IT IS IN THIS AD.
The Kia: Mr. Sandman
What a great ad. The TA: Men Who Can’t Afford a Cool Car, But Like Hot Chicks. AND Motley Crew! Awesome. Here’s why: Bareback Rhino-Riding! Hot Girlz! UFC with FIRE! A REALLY BIG SANDWICH!
There were a lot of ads that tried to be absurd, but only KIA pulled it off.
The Dog Strikes Back!
I loved the fat dog losing weight to go chase cars. If only Albert Hainsworth had that kind of dedication. Maybe the Pats would have gotten more pressure (low blow)? Great linkage with a successful ad from last year’s Superbowl. Score one for the all-new, slimmer, sleeker VW BUG!
It’s Halftime America. USA USA!
Clint Eastwood, you rock! You sound gritty & full of gumption, sorta like Chrysler. It might be halftime and I might have been looking in vain for the guacamole, but yer right, America, Chrysler & Detroit are coming back. In fact we never left. We’re so awesome, yer so awesome. It’s Halftime in America. (Why didn’t Clint strike a match on his stubble in this ad? That’s the greatest thing he’s ever done imho.)
I’m sure every red-blooded American found this ad damn inspiring, but at 9 am in Beijing, well it was better than this.
Side Note! At first I thought this was an Obama for President Ad. I totally thought he bit the Reagan “It’s Morning in America” message and was using the Superbowl, Detroit & Tom Bundchen’s 5 o’clock shadow to all but end the 2012 campaign. Alas, Barak only goes to the Superbowl when the Bears make it. Good luck with that…
The Post Game Show & MVP:
Some trends:
Co-branding: especially Bud & GE which was pretty effective
Way less social media. I can’t remember anyone telling me to check out their Facebook page or follow their twitter
Except for Samsung, no tech
Cars & Trucks ruled
Most ads played for laughs, but mostly failed
Leveraging Youtube to build “pre-game” buzz
Dogs. People still love dogs.
MVP:
It was a tough decision. I didn’t think there was a truly standout ad this year, but someone has to win. What the hell, let’s give it up for the Chevy Silverado & their Mayan inspired Ford Apocalypse.
Neil Young is a musician with a lot of clout. When he says something, people listen. So when Neil Young complained about the sound quality at the D: Dive Into Media conference, ears perked up. Tweets happened and people cared.
Suddenly sound quality is a real issue.
The truth is, mp3s suck. They sound terrible because of the very complicated process needed to compress sound waves down to files that can be shared quickly. With good headphones, mp3 sound is slightly improved, but it’s still too bass-y and cold.
The above isn’t exactly news. People have been talking about it since Napster allowed all of us steal Kid A & Amnesiac. So why does an aging (aged?) rock-star complaining about sound have traction?
Attention.
We’re not in an information or knowledge economy. The overflow of information (hello google, twitter, etc.) makes knowing something a lot less valuable than it was before the internet.
This isn’t the information age.
Information isn’t scarce. What’s scarce is the ability to spread information and have it stick to the spreader. Within a few hours of something happening everyone knows it. Everyone spreads it too. Some of the people that spread information get a large share of credit for it.
Why?
Because they can generate enough attention to make us care. Neil Young has a large share of the attention economy of music, so people pay care about the information he spreads. Ben Harper, who’s been complaining about mp3s for years, doesn’t.
Information is great, it’s what primes the pump. But no one cares what’s spouting out unless you can get them to pay attention. Information might be what underlies the economy, but attention is what actually matters.
Oh those pranksters at Old Spice, what will they think of next? “Invading” a Charmin commercial? Why not? How about they like whip up a campaign that has the Old Spice Guy photo bombing other brands? Old Spice Guy chops off the Jolly Green Giant’s Beanstalk. Old Spice Guy colors the Michelin Man red. Old Spice guy beats the crap out of Snuggles the Bear. Come on guys, you can do it, I believe in you.
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