(no subject)
Apologies to j_is_for_jihad, as we drove up at the last minute to Chattanooga this weekend. We had been mulling it over for a couple of weeks, but then I got that Pseudo-Flu thing that has been going around and it got all iffy. Then S almost got it right afterwards but she decided to starve it which is apparently the key - so if your stomach starts cramping or it feels incredibly full, keep that in mind. As it was my last meal before getting it was a gorgefest at Madras Saravana Bhavan which makes me feel all funny inside anyway. But you don't want to hear about that, right?
We drove up to Chattanooga primarily for 2 things, the Aquarium and their Children's Museum. I still think that their Aquarium is better than the one we have in Atlanta, and I KNOW their Children's Museum is better. Atlanta's Children's Museum ("Imagine It!" is the proper name, which sadly is a pretty literal description of its benefits) was one of the most disappointing places I'd ever paid $12 to visit - believe me, save the cash and go to any Barnes & Noble to increase the entertainment factor for all involved. The Chattanooga one, while not perfect and with a number of things broken or in limbo status, had some fun things for all ages, including some hands-on Indonesian-style metallic xylophones that I made such a joyful noise with that some straighter parents came into the room to figure out what was going on. Also there's an installation in there that almost is comparable to a Dreamachine. P, you ought to get one of your bands to play in that room! The Aquarium was great as always, and bizarrely enough the random family we got to take a picture of us all spoke Japanese which gave us a dumbfounded look on the photo when they said to A-chan "Daijobu, baby, daijobu!" The food was pretty good this weekend too, although we miss the Tortilla Factory being gone, which no trip to the Noog was ever complete without. Next time we'll finally budget up enough time (and hopefully cash) to go to that bookstore and giant thrift close to Sitar (still the only place I've ever seen do-it-yourself dosa on the buffet table). Chattanooga, 6 thumbs up!
And since Franks APA #98 is probably somewhere over the Atlantic at the moment and the Europeans haven't been treated to the travesty of my 20-page contribution, one final review from the past mailing:
Various Artists - How Low Can You Go? An Anthology Of The String Bass (Dust-To-Digital Records 3xCD 2006) One of the more unusual box sets I've run across, this celebrates the invention and early application of the string bass. I had just assumed that the string bass had been around as long as the guitar or the cello, but apparently in the early 20th century bands used tubas for the backbeat. The 1920s saw the first jazz combos incorporating the stand-up, and in fact the first song on here is the very first recording of a string bass. The set goes on to showcase its sound in everything from Dixieland to Western Swing to even calypso and Hawaiian chant, but its predominantly the swing setting that you'll hear here. Some huge names here with deeper tracks: Duke Ellington, Fletcher Henderson, Roy Acuff, Bob Wills, etc. The interesting thing about this box is that, due to the style of the bass player, he never really jumps out in front of the sound. You hear people playing it like a tuba, sliding with it, thumping, etc., but if you were to listen to this set on its own and guess the theme I would be almost positive that you couldn't figure it out. But I say that as a non-bass player, so what do I know? Packaging isn't quite as elaborate as the typical DtD box, but there is a nice book coming with it annotated by Dick Spottswood (along with Joe Bussard, the other famous American record collector). Give this to the bass player in your life for an acknowledgment to his craft.
Reviews of relatively recent offerings (perhaps a breakdown of the Boredoms Super Roots series) to come in next week's update, provided I remember to do it. As for now, a quick shower and then a viewing of the Acid Mothers Temple documentary of their 2002 American tour captured on the DVD Dokonan. I'm not sure Atlanta will be featured in it, much less my old apartment, but it would be a nice surprise if so...EDIT: nothing from our apartment in the film, no surprise there, but a decent amount of eyedrum footage and a pan across the pre-show audience showing S visibly, looking quite fetching in a yellow t-shirt and long ponytail. My seat is empty, as it must have been when I went to go buy CDs, but she's in plain view talking to billings (obscured but I know its him) and, uh, whatever Bruce's lj handle used to be that I've forgotten, not that he ever looks at this stuff anymore anyway...and I just realized that next week marks the 5th anniversary of that show - there was a lot going on in my life in Spring 2002...
We drove up to Chattanooga primarily for 2 things, the Aquarium and their Children's Museum. I still think that their Aquarium is better than the one we have in Atlanta, and I KNOW their Children's Museum is better. Atlanta's Children's Museum ("Imagine It!" is the proper name, which sadly is a pretty literal description of its benefits) was one of the most disappointing places I'd ever paid $12 to visit - believe me, save the cash and go to any Barnes & Noble to increase the entertainment factor for all involved. The Chattanooga one, while not perfect and with a number of things broken or in limbo status, had some fun things for all ages, including some hands-on Indonesian-style metallic xylophones that I made such a joyful noise with that some straighter parents came into the room to figure out what was going on. Also there's an installation in there that almost is comparable to a Dreamachine. P, you ought to get one of your bands to play in that room! The Aquarium was great as always, and bizarrely enough the random family we got to take a picture of us all spoke Japanese which gave us a dumbfounded look on the photo when they said to A-chan "Daijobu, baby, daijobu!" The food was pretty good this weekend too, although we miss the Tortilla Factory being gone, which no trip to the Noog was ever complete without. Next time we'll finally budget up enough time (and hopefully cash) to go to that bookstore and giant thrift close to Sitar (still the only place I've ever seen do-it-yourself dosa on the buffet table). Chattanooga, 6 thumbs up!
And since Franks APA #98 is probably somewhere over the Atlantic at the moment and the Europeans haven't been treated to the travesty of my 20-page contribution, one final review from the past mailing:
Various Artists - How Low Can You Go? An Anthology Of The String Bass (Dust-To-Digital Records 3xCD 2006) One of the more unusual box sets I've run across, this celebrates the invention and early application of the string bass. I had just assumed that the string bass had been around as long as the guitar or the cello, but apparently in the early 20th century bands used tubas for the backbeat. The 1920s saw the first jazz combos incorporating the stand-up, and in fact the first song on here is the very first recording of a string bass. The set goes on to showcase its sound in everything from Dixieland to Western Swing to even calypso and Hawaiian chant, but its predominantly the swing setting that you'll hear here. Some huge names here with deeper tracks: Duke Ellington, Fletcher Henderson, Roy Acuff, Bob Wills, etc. The interesting thing about this box is that, due to the style of the bass player, he never really jumps out in front of the sound. You hear people playing it like a tuba, sliding with it, thumping, etc., but if you were to listen to this set on its own and guess the theme I would be almost positive that you couldn't figure it out. But I say that as a non-bass player, so what do I know? Packaging isn't quite as elaborate as the typical DtD box, but there is a nice book coming with it annotated by Dick Spottswood (along with Joe Bussard, the other famous American record collector). Give this to the bass player in your life for an acknowledgment to his craft.
Reviews of relatively recent offerings (perhaps a breakdown of the Boredoms Super Roots series) to come in next week's update, provided I remember to do it. As for now, a quick shower and then a viewing of the Acid Mothers Temple documentary of their 2002 American tour captured on the DVD Dokonan. I'm not sure Atlanta will be featured in it, much less my old apartment, but it would be a nice surprise if so...EDIT: nothing from our apartment in the film, no surprise there, but a decent amount of eyedrum footage and a pan across the pre-show audience showing S visibly, looking quite fetching in a yellow t-shirt and long ponytail. My seat is empty, as it must have been when I went to go buy CDs, but she's in plain view talking to billings (obscured but I know its him) and, uh, whatever Bruce's lj handle used to be that I've forgotten, not that he ever looks at this stuff anymore anyway...and I just realized that next week marks the 5th anniversary of that show - there was a lot going on in my life in Spring 2002...