Sprechen sie Deutches, baby?

I'm a decent Beck fan. "Loser" was my first introduction after a friend saw the video on MTV. Later that same friend drew "Soy un Perdedor" on a piece of paper that I tacked to the door of my room back home (where it still hangs to this day). And since then I've seen him in concert a couple different times and most of his full albums are always on my iPod. I love how he embraces musical elements from all spectrums: anti-folk, punk, rap, sampling, rock, hip-hop, Latin, country, funk and blues to name a few. But I once wanted to kill myself from listening to Beck. It's a long story so find me at a bar one night and I'll fill you. All I will say is that if you're going through a bad break-up avoid listening to Sea Change. 

Beck hasn't released a studio album since 2008's Modern Guilt. He's stayed busy producing other artists, releasing a song or two for movie soundtracks and getting together with friends and playing cover songs.

Then this past December Beck released his latest album...as sheet music. Like how music used to be distributed and played in the days before our grandparents. Song Reader has never before been released or recorded by Beck. And he encourages anyone to read, play, record, even rearrange these new songs and upload them to the internet. Check out the McSweeney's Q&A for more on how it came about.

As a band nerd I was really excited to hear about this. The flagship song "Old Shanghai" is available to download without purchasing the entire collection and I was pretty happy checking out the parts for tuba and trumpet along with the piano score. I was mulling the idea of recording that song on my own when I heard The Brick was gathering artists for a concert recording of the entire set of songs. I signed up. I taught myself guitar in high school and a couple of years ago I bought a vintage Danelectro Silvertone and have been reliving my college rock band past (Taste Like Chicken, 1996; Leggett and the Lesbians, 1998). And yes, one of the reasons I bought this guitar was after seeing Beck play one in concert. I can read music. I spent about 10 years throughout school playing trumpet but I never learned to play guitar music (little old three-chord me). Luckily the chords to "Saint Dude" are on the sheets. I've cheated a bit by listening to other bands and performers who have already recorded the song. But I found my own sound over the last few days coming up with my own arrangement, pulling inspiration from Jay Reatard, Elliott Smith and Beck himself who, if you've seen him in concert, never plays a song the same way twice. 

And so this Friday at 10:30pm The Brick presents Just Noise, a concert recording of these songs. The line-up is impressive. Not only will you hear me (performing as the Starr Kendall Experiment), but also Supermajor, Mockstar Killy Dwyer, Trav SD, Gyda Arber and Steve Sabaugh, Lord Ian Hill, Lady Berit Johnson, Bathtub Jen and the Henchmen, Deacon Bishop Revival, Alexis Thomason, Patrice Miller & Chris Chappell and a few more. It's free so come rock out with us. For more information check out www.bricktheater.com

Until next time...get crazy with the Cheese Whiz.

Dream/Scream

The earliest dream I remember was a nightmare. 

I was around three, in real life and in the dream. It was Christmas and I was in the den of the home where I grew up with my grandparents. The den was warmed by a Williams vent-free gas heater. It was a good warm–like you feel during Christmas–surrounded by family. I was playing with some toys on the circular rug. And then my grandfather entered from the living room. Black smoke coughed from his lungs. My grandmother went to help hold him, patting his back as more soot billowed from his lungs. The temperature rose in the den. I went to the door and peered into the living room. A wave of heat engulfed me and my fear shot up to 11. There was a low hum and I looked over to the twinkling Christmas tree where I saw a toy Volkswagen Beetle slowly rolling across the carpeted room spewing fire from its tailpipe! 

Years later I found that when I overheat, I have nightmares. I now, always, as best I can, keep myself cool at night with the breeze of a fan. Even during winter. Because I'd rather dream than scream.

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of sitting in at a rehearsal of Buran Theatre's next show Nightmares: a demonstration of the Sublime, which opens at The Brick tonight. After the success of their last Brick main-stage show, The House of Fitzcarraldo, I was happy to see what they were cooking up.

In 1816 Mt. Tambora erupted in Indonesia and helped global temperatures drop and bring about the "Year without a Summer." That summer a power group of romantics were trapped on a Swiss holiday and as a contest produced the stories of Frankenstein and The Vamprye, which predated Stoker's Dracula by 80 years. Now add in some Marx Brothers and you'll get a small taste of what the company is brewing at The Brick this new year. I'll let writer and co-director Adam Burnett clue you in a little better: 



This video is from their Indiegogo campaign. After premiering at The Brick this January, they will take the show on the road to a series of theaters across the United States. Consider making a small donation if you can. And for a show about to tour, preparation is key. The cast and crew were very happy with their progress on re-crafting the script from previous workshops and presentations and "having keys" to The Brick helps too. From experience I know that making The Brick your "home" for a couple of weeks prior to opening helps keep those real nightmares away.

Nightmares: a demonstration of the Sublime opens January 2, 2012 and runs through January 12th. Tickets are on sale now at web.ovationtix.com/trs/cal/122 or bricktheater.com.

Written & co-directed by Adam R. Burnett and performed by Caitlin Bebb, Arla Berman, Brady Blevins, Adam R. Burnett, Sarah Graalman, Marlowe Holden, Jud Knudsen, Catrin Lloyd-Bollard, C.S. Luxem, Geraldo Mercado, and Curry Whitmire.

The creative team includes Theresa Buchheister (co-director/co-producer/co-choreographer), CS Luxem (composer), Nick Kostner (scenic designer), Geraldo Mercado (media designer), Ann Sitzman (lighting designer), and Lara Thomas Ducey (dramaturg)

Until next time...Happy Nü Year!