A while back, my better half worked on a full-length independent science fiction feature called “Homeworld.” Well the movie’s now done and ready for it’s world premiere — this coming Sunday, January 13th. The tickets are free, and the theater is pretty huge, so we’re encouraging one and all to come and join us for the event. I’ll be the one who looks like the picture over on the right, only without the goatee and with both a top and a bottom part to my head.
Here’s all the info:
When: January 13th, 2008 @ 5PM
Where: Rheem Theater 350 Park St., Moraga, CA 94556
Admission: Free
Rating: Not rated yet, but think “PG.” Kids are welcome.
More info, including directions: Homeworld Site
Hope to see ya there!
Susan Estrich’s “Iowa Doesn’t Matter” Meme
Susan Estrich, on Fox last night, put out an interesting piece of misinformation, asking “When was the last time a first-time Democract won Iowa and went on to win the presidency.” The answer, it turns out, is 1976 (forgetting for a moment the oddity that in ’76 Carter was actually beaten by “uncommitted).
Her implication was that Obama’s victory isn’t significant because the Iowa winner almost always loses. “Wow — so I guess Iowa doesn’t really matter does it? Good to know.” Um. Not quite.
Election reflection: in which I coin the word “underpunditizing”
One thought this happy night. I think this is (even) bigger than race. The pundits are underpunditizing(tm) this thing when they make that the focus. The impulse to support Obama comes from a massive hunger to stop the madness, to save this country, to tame all those hatreds, to learn the lessons of Bosnia and Serbia and Shiites and Sunnis, to dig deep and steer this raft away from the waterfall. We can hear the waterfall. We can see the spray. Dig deep.
OK, two more thoughts:
Calling Iowa
OK, time to wander out on that limb. At 8:58 am on Wednesday the 3rd, based on, well, very little, I’m calling Iowa for Obama (largely because I wish it so) and Romney (organization).
Fortunately, I can edit this post tomorrow if I get it all wrong.
Any other predictions out there?
An Interview with Adrian Belew, Part Three
Photo credit: Image courtesy of Daryl Darko.
Welcome to the conclusion of this three-part interview with guitarist, singer, and songwriter Adrian Belew. If you’re just jumping in, be sure to hop back to the start to hear Belew talk about collaborating with King Crimson and the Bears, why the last two years have been so productive, and how he lets goes creatively.
Adrian Belew on the Web: Adrian Belew.net, Elephant Blog, Side Four
Cecil Vortex: Is there anything you’ve learned about the creative process that’s surprised you?
Adrian Belew: I’m impressed to see that if you work really hard at something, it does eventually pay off. And nothing in my life has proven that to me as much as the creative process. Sometimes you do have to work at it; it doesn’t always just flow out of you like lava. Sometimes you really do have to sit and [say], “How am I going to make this work? What can I do?” And really go deep within yourself or at least concentrate to such a degree that it gets tiring, you know? So I’m kind of amazed that the process works and that it’s still working.
CV: Have you gotten any advice about creativity that particularly stands out?
Democrats and Republicans
I was thinking the other day (and as an aside, shouldn’t virtually all blog entries really start that way?), that both the Democratic and Republican parties are driven by the strong desire to learn the lessons of the 1930s — to avoid the catastrophic mistakes that led to World War II. The Republicans are afraid of the U.S. becoming Neville Chamberlain’s England — the infamous appeaser state. Meanwhile, we Democrats are afraid of the U.S. trying really hard to avoid becoming Neville Chamberlain’s England and in the process becoming Germany.
So, basically, we’re afraid of Republicans.
(And this, by the way, is why I heart Obama. My fondest wish for this election is a leader who doesn’t fear or dislike half the country.)
Happy new years to ya,
-Cecil
An Interview with Adrian Belew, Part Two
Photo credit: Image courtesy of Daryl Darko.
Welcome to the second part of this interview with guitarist, singer, and songwriter Adrian Belew. If you haven’t already read the first part, you can find it here.
Be sure to also check out the third and final segment, in which Belew talks about the value of setting up obstacles, what excites him in other people’s music, and how he recently joined forces with two kids who don’t have driver’s licenses yet to form the Adrian Belew Power Trio.
Adrian Belew on the Web: Adrian Belew.net, Elephant Blog, Side Four
Cecil Vortex: Do you remember when you first started writing songs?
Adrian Belew: At age sixteen I contracted mononucleosis in high school and was forced to stay at home and be tutored for two months. And the requirement was that you be inactive. I was a drummer, and I could no longer drum. I had always had songs in my mind that would just appear, and I could kind of hear them full on as though a record was playing. So I decided to take those two months and teach myself to play guitar.
I borrowed an acoustic guitar from one of my band members, and by the end of the two months I had written five songs and put them on tape. I do remember little bits of pieces of them, but I couldn’t even tell you the melodies or titles.
CV: The tapes are long gone?
AB: I’m afraid so. I wish they weren’t. They’d be on my website right now.
CV: Were you surprised at how quickly you picked up the guitar?
An Interview with Adrian Belew, Part One
Welcome! This interview is part of an ongoing series of chats with artists about their creative process. You can find the full set of interviews, including musicians Van Dyke Parks, Dan Wilson, and Jonathan Coulton, memoirist Ianthe Brautigan, and cartoonist Dan Piraro all at about-creativity.com. You can also subscribe to future interviews here. Thanks a lot for dropping by, -Cecil
Photo credit: Image courtesy of Daryl Darko.
Guitarist, singer, and songwriter Adrian Belew is a Grammy-nominated solo artist and a member of both King Crimson and the Bears. Belew’s big break came in 1977 when he landed a job in Frank Zappa’s band. Over the past thirty years, he’s played on records as varied as David Bowie’s Lodger, Paul Simon’s Graceland, the Talking Heads’ Remain in Light, Herbie Hancocks’ Magic Windows, Nine Inch Nails Downward Spiral, Laurie Anderson’s Mister Heartbreak, and William Shatner’s Has Been. To date, he’s released more than fifteen solo projects, starting with 1982’s Lone Rhino. His most recent CD is Side 4, a live recording of The Adrian Belew Power Trio, a new outfit featuring Julie and Eric Slick on bass and drums.
Belew is currently posting a play-by-play of his ongoing recording efforts mixed with memories from years gone by over at his highly recommended Elephant Blog.
This is the first part of a three-part interview. Be sure to check out part two to hear about how Belew taught himself guitar at 16, what it felt like to sign on with Zappa’s band, and how he writes and performs complex, multi-rhythmic pieces.
Adrian Belew on the Web: Adrian Belew.net, Elephant Blog, Side Four
CV: With both the Bears and King Crimson, you’ve developed longstanding creative relationships that have spanned decades. What do you attribute that to?
AB: When you know something works, you should continue it. There’s a large part of me that’s solo oriented. Like a painter, I think sometimes, “Well, I don’t really need anyone’s help in this. This is me painting a picture or me painting a song.” So as much as I can, I try to do everything myself because that’s not only the most fun, it’s also the most rewarding.
But it’s very healthy to step out of that and share something with someone else where you’re not the only one in control and you’re not the only one with the ideas. Interesting things happen that way. So I’ve tried to kind of have a diet of both throughout my career, as a way to continue to be fresh and grow.
CV: How does collaborative songwriting differ from when you’re writing solo?
AB: Well, most of my collaborative things have been quietly done — you know, one or two people sitting down together, perhaps, unamplified, where you’re just trying to get a basic outline of something. Then you take those ideas away and refine them and you meet again and show each other your refinements.
If I’m working within, say, King Crimson, with Robert Fripp, that’s exactly how it works. It’s a quiet process and what you’re trying to do really is allow each other the freedom to try things and be a sounding board sometimes, or else be the one who’s leading the parade.
CV: So with King Crimson, one person typically takes the lead writing a particular song?
haiku
both kids at other
kids’ houses two toothbrushes
standing by the sink.