Emir Kusturica & The No Smoking Orchestra

The Director/Musical Director of Black Cat, White Cat. See my recommendation post below. And enjoy the video!

Uncorrected Proof

I'm pretty sure my favorite writer is William Gibson.

I'm reading "Virtual Light" now, and I love it so much I have been doing that thing I was always getting busted for when I was a kid: staying up late reading past my bedtime.
This never happens to me.

I was in a book slump that lasted for many years, until 2003 (i think). I would read books, listlessly, and have a horrible time finishing them, uninterested in them, blah blah blah. I still read, all the time in fact, but I was sort of going through the motions. I got so that I would read the first chapter, carefully gauge my reaction, and usually ditch it. Then I read Gibson's "Pattern Recognition". It kicked my ass so hard that I remembered why I loved books. It's a bold statement, but true. I remembered why I loved LIFE! At the time, I was working in a bookstore (it was my 3rd year in the book biz, I think, to be followed by about 3 more), which may or may not have contributed to the book-slump.

Mykle just finished re-reading "Pattern Recognition", I just finished "Mona Lisa Overdrive", I'm on to "Virtual Light", even though it was written 15 years ago it feels like it's the future that has just come to pass. I often can't tell if something he writes about actually exists or if he made it up. Anyhow.

I was reading Gibson's blog tonight (cheers to Cooper for telling me that Gibson had a blog. When I voiced my disbelief, he said, "OF COURSE William Gibson has a blog!!!"). I was in the archives of 2003, right before "Pattern Recognition" was released. He says:

Please remember that those are uncorrected proofs you’re reading, and that that is not just a matter of typographical errors. The text of the ARC is the text of the manuscript I turned in last year, in the first week of April. It has since been quite substantially revised, top to bottom, twice; Material has been added, material has been subtracted, and much busy tweaking undertaken generally.
The text of the ARC should not be regarded as the text of the novel. Ever. Some of the current discussions hinge on details that have since been removed, or altered.

ARC means "Advanced Reader's Copy". Being that I worked at a bookstore when it came out, and that I was REALLY poor, I went and looked at my tattered edition of "PR". Right on the front it says:
Uncorrected Proof for Limited Distribution

It's an ARC.

I'm totally going to go buy the actual published version of it tomorrow.

Reccomending......

Excellent Movie:

Yugoslavian romantic screwball comedy, Black Cat White Cat.
a great review with a lot of info on the music is here

Good for fans of fairytale, diaspora, Roma culture and music, Gilliam, Guy Ritchie, steampunk (yes I said it!), rascally old men, true love, and nonstop weirdness.

Totally great.


Excellent Record:

I'm halfway through the new TV on the Radio album, Dear Science, and already have to write a review of it. Awesome, weird, complex and affecting. It's almost impossible to write about, since they really defy description. Singer Tunde Adebimpe's voice is stretchy and resonant and impassioned. Sometimes he reminds me of Joan Armatrading.


here is a video from their first album, that got me hooked on them. I include it because the video is very worth watching. The singer is made up of the visual representation of his own voice, which changes and refracts as he sings. Cool.
It also shows how Adebimpe moves when he preforms in concert (I have seen them twice I think. Thanks to Jordan, who got me into them when they only had an ep out and no one knew about them.)

For the WIN

I just have to say.

I am proud to be alive right now.

I am a part of history because I am here and got to participate in this.
I'm proud of America. I'm proud to be American at this moment in time.
It's an unfamiliar feeling, sadly. But so sweet!




And now my blog goes back to being non-political.

Addendum:
this is cool cartographer's take on the election
be sure to scroll down and read the whole thing. It's where the map at the top comes from.