Prince, Nostradamus of our times, has predicted that the internet is going to drop dead of a heartattack. Or something like that. He thinks it is dead already.
Internet ?
Prince is releasing an album of new music exclusively through the London Daily Mirror (read: British tabloid) on Saturday and subsequently bestowed upon this esteemed publication his first interview to a British "newspaper" in 10 years.
"The internet is like MTV. At one time MTV was hip and suddenly it became outdated. Anyway, all these computers and digital gadgets are no good. They just fill your head with numbers and that can't be good for you."
Now I know what you're thinking. "Oh, that guy Prince. He's so lame now he doesn't know what he's talking about and he's a Jehovah's Witness and maybe hates the gays (etc etc blah blah blah)--"
ZIP IT, NUMBERHEAD. Why would Prince care about your criticisms? You, with your Twitter and your Kindle and your scientific calculator and other gadgets that fill your head with numbers. Just be quiet.
"0000011100030033030030051010101010101101001010101010100000!!!!!!!" That's the only language YOU understand!!!
Prince also believes that he is not bald because he has been playing the electric guitar his whole life and there is electricity racing through his body. If you don't believe me you can read the article yourself, baldie. Up yours.
Also, I'd like to give a big, "hey what's up" to one of the people in this picture, who originally alerted me to this Prince news.
These savvy magoos didn't let their lack of internet keep THEM from expressing their creativity. Media, or, the ways in which people got their info back then, were often called:
1) TV shows
2) "Magazines"
3) Radio
4) Glenn Danzig
+ A clip from "Flashez", a teen-oriented TV show which aired in Australia from 1976-1977. Old-time wannabe blogger interviewing the infamous creators of Punk Magazine-- Legs McNeil & John Holmstrom.
+ Another wannabe blogger, Glenn Danzig, who is not famous for anything besides trying to get famous on the Weblogs. He tried hard but the internet simply did not exist back then! Here he is doing a sort of "book-blog" entry:
+Best for last: A maybe-stoned Patti Smith & some of her posse goofing around and bothering the crap out of a German interviewer from Rockpalast:
Javelin is on tour with Yeasayer. No Más, their new album,just came out this week!
So in honor of that occasion we had a quick chat about hypothetical gangs, challenging those in your debt to T&F competitions, and people with cool names who aren't really all that cool. $%^&*$%^&*$%^&*$%^&*$%^&*$%^&*$%^&*$%^&*$%^&*$%^&*$%^&*$%^&*$%^&*
ELECTROBITCHES: I read in another recent interview with you guys that at this point in the tour you're pretty sure Yeasayer owes you some money. Who else owes $$ right now?
JAVELIN: Everybody's paid up. Lucky them...
EB: Yeah, seriously. But what if somebody did? Would you ever consider hiring a hitman/hitwoman to take care of business like this? In general, would you consider hiring either a hitwoman or a hitman?
J: Hitwoman. But it would be a fake out- she'd turn out to be hilarious and use her charms to get what's ours.
EB: Do you think you'd use a javelin as some sort of threatening device to get your $$$ back or would that be too clichéd what with the band name and all?
J: We're not threatening people. We might switch it up and put it to a track and field test of ability, though. Either way,[still] too clichéd. Maybe we should just talk things out. It's getting warm in here.
EB: Have you ever considered being a band/slash/gang that uses javelins as weapons? Or maybe doesn't use weapons... what kind of gang would you be?
J: The gang in [the movie] The Warriors with the overalls and skates is the scariest ever. Gangs that "rumble" are pretty good. Pre-guns, "Leader of The Pack" stuff...
EB: The Shangri-Las would've made for a deceptively great gang. Ok, last question is very important--Is Juice Newton quite possibly the most disappointing musical artist of all time because she has such an awesome name and such lame-ass songs like "Angel of the Morning"?
J: Yeah, she could have been an electro power house. We're continually disappointed by the lack of 808s in her jams.
Watch juice newton lame it up in "angel of the morning" here: (btw does it NOT sound like she's saying 'just brush my teeth before you leave'?????!!)
$%^&*$%^&*$%^&*$%^&*$%^&*$%^&*$%^&*$%^&*$%^&*$%^&*$%^&*$%^&*$%^&* This is my favorite track off No Más. Great for the playlist you have on your ipod that you listen to when you're walking around in public and you feel like walk-dancing. or dance-walking. (Really great for head-bopping and/or other kinds of mild dancing on escalators in the metro, for example).
Found this list of Top 25 Bad DJ Names. Most are real bad. I have mixed feelings about "DJ Scratchatory Rape".
"Laura (Of Miami)" would not be a name on this list. It's clear, concise, not-too-braggy, and yet still gives off a vibe of importance. I'm thinking that if this whole blogging thing works out for me I might change to Katie (of the Weblogs). **********
(Laura-- j/k. Will not ripoff your name).
Anyway, it's a pretty great name, which is convenient, because Laura is a pretty great DJ.
Ever been out driving in an unfamiliar vehicle in an unfamiliar city and been all like, 'Damn, I'm so glad i can't listen to my ipod in here'? Yeah, probz not.
But that happened to me!! And this, my friends, my anyone-who-is-actually-reading-this, is how I discovered Laura (Of Miami). In addition to her impressive spinning skills, she's the music & programming director at University of Miami's WVUM 90.5FM .
Vamos A La Playa, Laura's monday night show, absolutely kills it. Listen here . Laura's shows specialize in a very fluid mix of disco, freestyle, boogie and 80s rarities (as the blog's tagline so aptly describes) from past and present. Set lists are published on Laura's blog as well.
So dudes, I don't know a lot about DJing. But I'd certainly like to.
(For instance, can anyone answer this question? Referring to turntables as "the wheels of steel" will make me sound A) Like a moron B) Cool C) Cool in a funny/ironic sort of way D) Like a moron in a funny/ironic sort of way
*answers will not be graded)
Laura's been at this for ten years, so she was nice enough to answer a couple questions I thought our readers (namely, me) might be curious about.
ELECTROBITCHES: How'd you get into DJing?
LAURA (OF MIAMI): I've always been obsessed with collecting music. I used to make mixes for friends when I was doing my undergrad degree in Boston . Someone suggested I learn how to DJ so I did. I ended up as everyone's house party DJ until I got a residency at a club. When I moved to Miami I kept going.
EB: Can you remember the first time you ever DJed?
L(of M): I was pretty nervous and wrecked a few trains. We all pay our dues.
EB: I'm not hip to this 'train-wreck' lingo yet, but I like it. So what's up with all these different kinds of disco? The difference between Italo and Nu Disco is not clear to me.
L(of M): Italo Disco [is generally] 70s/80s European disco. [It's pretty] synth heavy, [often with] non-sequitur lyrics, [and has a] certain cheese factor to it. Nu disco is made by new electronica artists influenced by disco classics.
EB: True/False- The DJing world is dominated by dudes.
L(of M): I do think guys tend to dominate the DJ world, but that just makes the legit DJ girls stand out more. There are some really amazing female DJs out there that have worked hard to make a name for themselves. I like to encourage aspiring female DJs as long as they take it seriously and make themselves be taken seriously. I've seen all kinds of gimmicks girls use to get gigs, toplessness, costumes, ubermakeup, all you need is good track selection and technical skills. I also love spinning with other chicks, I think it brings an interesting element to a party.
EB: Word. Tell me about some music you're into.
L(of M): I'm kind of obsessed with Metronomy lately and I also like Fever Ray. Classic favorites (off the top of my head) would include everything from Grace Jones to Kraftwerk, Stereo Total, and even cheesy Latin power ballads.
--
Here's a fun track I discovered from one of Laura's sets. The video was made by a fan who really should be recognized for his inspired utilization of primitive iMovie special effects.
A new interview with Beth Ditto just came out with PaperMag where Beth admits to shoplifting and calling herself the new Winona.
Attitude? Or crazy? Ditto claims that most of her shoplifting came while she has been at Goodwill, that the "line's too long. Put in in your purse".
Ummmm ok.
My favorite quote comes on page three - "I can talk to anybody. I can talk to a lamppost and make it talk back".
The interview is candid and interesting, nothing short I would expect from Ditto and co.
Below is Gossip covering Aaliyah's Are You That Somebody? I highly, highly recommend it. Not only is Ditto's voice a power house that she can carry that bass line on her own, its just a great song from the 90's that I know we all used to sing along to.
Sorry the video is so weird - the live performance I wanted to post was disabled to embed. All the other live performances were shot by something like an iPhone.
