EVOLVE ALREADY

A documentary made about my friends Casio and Anto and the colour parade that they organize. The film captures a certain time in recent Sydney history which I think is really a vital part of the Sydney art scene. Even though the film captures the last days of The Avory, which was their party/home for a while that is long gone, the film also covers the colour parade that is still happening to this day!

Even though I met Anto and Casio after the Avory days, when I was about 15, this film stirs up a lot of memories as most of the people in it have moved to Europe now :(
Also, Anto is the one who's art show is featured in my photography entry from a few weeks ago!

Electric Shock Rock

During Lou Reed's teen years he was sent to a mental hospital, where he was forced to endure electric shock treatment and drug treatments for his 'homosexual tendancies'. His family were jewish conservative and he found himself at odds as his family were unable to accept his unconventional attitudes and sexual ambigious behaviour.
Much to his parent's dismay, he pursued a career in music and his highschool experiences have become embodied in the 1974 song "Kill your sons" and has been quoted saying

"They put the thing down your throat so you don't swallow your tongue, and they put electrodes on your head. That's what was recommended in Rockland County to discourage homosexual feelings. The effect is that you lose your memory and become a vegetable. You can't read a book because you get to page seventeen and have to go right back to page one again."

Johnny Depp on Jack Kerouac

I like to think that I would have had a chance with Johnny Depp now that I have Winona Ryder hair

Forever

Jesse sings 'Forever' to Rebecca in Full House.

Pinnacle of my life.

Around April

1 & 2 At my friend's art show in April
3. Aidan and Fiona at a friend's party
4. Calum in a lamp-light
5. My sister in a onesie with a detachable bottom

Parachute

Sébastien  Lenormand jumps from the tower of the Montpellier observatory, 1783. Illustration from the late 19th Century.

Source

Classic Rock, Really Classic?

Listening to The Byrds song 'Turn Turn Turn' brings me back to the days of Jewish high-school, when on religious days the school would blast this song through the auditorium speakers. Not only for its convenient allusions to the bible, but also for its “vintage cred” as my school wasn't a regular Jewish school; it was a liberal reformed jewish school. Cue Regina George’s mum – “I'm not a regular Jewish school; I'm a cool Jewish school!!”

How Jewish high school can be at all cool or appealing I fail to understand, but props for trying... religious institution. (Also have I mentioned Jewish enough in this article? Okay once more. Jewish.)

Okay Jewish-ness and mean girls references beside (I'm sick of mean girls just as much as the next person, but am I seriously the only person who constantly has this quote on rotation in my mind in relation to ANYTHING? It's like the best quote. It is so totally tangible; you can relate it to anything.)

Anyway, I remember the first time my evangelical Jewish studies teacher played the song in class and she turned to me and said “Alexa would like this one”.  It’s important to note that by this point in my high school career I had been duped the “chick that likes old shit” by both my teachers and peers which I honestly didn’t mind too much. Later on in the record of ‘Turn Turn Turn’ around the part of the song where they say something about living and dying, a student swivelled around on his strategically placed chair to me and said “How can you like this old shit?”

“How can you like this old shit?”

That’s it. That was the point in my life where it was clear to me that there was a divide between me and the rest of the kids in my class. I was the one in the class that could stand old music which, as my classmate so eloquently put it, was apparently “shit”. I guess what irked me the most was that this person had had such a closed mind that he could call something he had heard only about 45 seconds of shit, and would thus think I would have any right or concept of what good music is/was. What also frustrated me is that because I openly liked classic rock that put me in the jar of having to like all kinds of classic rock, which frankly isn’t true. I listen to a wide variety of music and just because I happen to have a few (okay maybe a bit more than a few) Creedance clear-water revival albums on my iPod doesn’t automatically mean I love every single album that was released within the decades of 1960 and 1970; because I don’t.

Anyway, much time has passed since that incident. And the poor soul that had said that disgustingly ignorant comment to me now spends his time in his parents’ house smoking pot and playing video games every other weekend. However, this has brought up a whole new issue for me. What does my generation have against “old” music?

I remember listening to an interview with Pamela Des Barres where she commented on how sad it was that the rock ‘n’ roll music she used to “rock out” to is now labelled “Classic” and is given its own separate genre. I can understand where she is coming from, it is sad to see that by music progressing and aging, we as a result feel as though we need to recognize this aging. But it is important to recognise the development rock music has a genre has progressed since the 70s, and it would simply be unfair to new rock bands trying to find their own musical legs without separating them.

 Despite my own opinion on the rock music scene these days, I do understand both where Pamela is coming from but also the way music culture works now. I suppose it isn’t a really great boost to the ego to realise the music you connected to so much in your youth is now duped “classic” meaning that she is becoming a “classic” i.e old, traditional, outdated and irrelevant.  I suppose this is a sad truth no one would like to ever come to terms to. (I don’t however; mean to say Pamela is any of those things)

The word classic is associated with words such as old, traditional and typical. So therefore it is completely understandable why my classmate had taken such distaste to a song that was written over 30 years before his birth. Western youth culture has this fundamental need to reject the past in order to create a more diverse and interesting art; this is the culture in which original rock “n’ roll music developed out of.  So therefore it is only natural that my classmate rejected the song, because it is his inherit rite to have the attitude that he did. To him, the music that is being produced now is new, fresh and innovative. If new music is being produced all the time, why should he have to listen to music that to him is completely irrelevant? 

Because of this distinction between old and new music, there has been a divide created between fans of the old and fans of the new. As well as this distinction, there have also been fans that have been able to recognise that good music is simply good music; and have as a result been able to embrace both genres of music by not alienating one over the other.

A really fascinating article I read a few weeks ago discusses that, for the first time, record sales of old records have preceded that of new records. This means that more people are buying older records over newer records than ever before. The article speculates that this is because the youth of today are “finally realising what us oldsters already know: new music is rubbish and it’s only the old stuff that’s worth listening to”. 

In my opinion, I doubt this is the reason. Sure there is overwhelming evidence that large majority of youth have a real enthusiasm for older bands (exhibit A: Me) But that does not mean that we prefer older music over newer music. In fact, in my opinion the reason why older record sales have risen is probably because newer music is so much more accessible online that people don’t feel like they need to pay for it.

 Especially during recession times, people are more likely to spend money on products they trust are reliable and what is more reliable than a classic Led Zeppelin record? 

In this day and age, with the music business being as fickle as it is. Is it really any guess that people would much rather be spending money on a band that has had such powerful cultural resonance over a band with a few hits that may OR may not fade into obscurity within the coming years? 


xxx Alexa

Hype! 1996

Hype! Is a 1996 documentary documenting the rise of the Seattle Grunge scene during the late 1980's and early 1990's. It follows a community of musicians who, with their grass-roots approach to both recording, performing and producing music were able to create a music movement of their own. Grunge was the answer to a generation that defied commercialism and capitalist values, to the kids of grunge, anything 'mainstream' sucked and independently organised music production "ruled" no matter how shit bad the quality.
However, as grunge music gained popularity within the youth culture of the 90s, capitalist forces demanded their own slice of the success and thus many original grunge bands found themselves and their friends becoming exploited by the very system they were ideologically against.

The film features rare concert footage and rad interviews of TAD, Mudhoney, Nirvana, Soundgarden, Coffin Break, The Gits, Love Battery, Flop, The Melvins, Mono Men, Supersuckers, Zipgun, Seaweed, Pearl Jam, 7 Year Bitch, Hovercraft, Gas Huffer and Fastbacks.

More Cowbell SNL skit

Blue Oyster Cult parody on Saturday Night Live  featuring Christopher Walken... so amazing

"I got a fever, and the only prescription is more cowbell"

George Brassai

I'm currently reading 'Spy in the House of Love' By Anais Nin. I had been meaning to read Anais Nin's romantic novels for a while as I had recently completed devouring her book on philosophy entitlted 'Book of the future'. I stumbled upon the book whilst perousing my friend Kecilli's fabulous book collection and instantly became drawn to the book cover..

What mainly drew me to this photograph are the angles in particular. The way the photograph taken on an angle, subtly revealing a portion of mirror that hints to the man's expression otherwise unrevealed. The woman's head is angled upwards, her gaze is both coyly seducing yet powerfully assertive, it's almost as if she is 'looking down' on the man who is drawn into her alluring expression. There's no question as to why this image was chosen as the cover for the book, the photograph was taken in the 20s at a time when female empowerment flourished socially and politically and this essence of the power of women is particularly reflected in Nin's work.

Upon closer inspection, written in fine line at the back of the book cover was the name Brassai. Brassai was a hungarian born photographer, who later attained a french citizenship. He was part of the generation of prolific artists,writers and poets living in Paris in the 20s and his contemporaries comprised of Picasso, Salvador Dali, Henry Miller, Man Ray and Hemingway. Brassai had been living in Paris where he had been painting and drawing. In fact when he decided to adopt photography, Picasso famously discouraged Brassai and warned he was "giving up his gold mine of painting for a salt mine of photography"

Brassai was particularly inspired by the dazzling streets of Paris at night and organised a collection of photographs entitled Paris de Nuit. His collection of images taken in the early 30s perfectly encapsulate a period lost in time. Paris in the 30s with it's fascinating array of prostitutes, pimps, madams, transvestites and assorted 'cold-eye pleasure-seekers' all woven together to create an atmosphere of seamless beauty and hedonism.

Apparently,Brassai was unhappy with the results of his photographs depicting Paris. I suppose a city as spellbinding as Paris would be hard to encapsulate in mere images... 

thanks and thanks

Lust 4 Life

Iggy Pop performing Lust for Life at the white room IN SHEER PANTS. I love everything about this, even the outfits and hair of the dancing girls!!

Iggy Pop

i just felt like my blog needed some nude Iggy Pop. BTW does anyone know where I can see any footage of his live performances naked? I know they exist! I just can't find any >.< 

In the meantime here is some Ewan Mcgregor channeling Lou Reed/Iggy pop from VELVET GOLDMINE

I really need to stop falling in love with film characters.. it's a flaw.

I'll do an in depth post about my recent infatuation with Velvet Goldmine soon.. so watch it! and be prepared!

Fusion presents: Tully and Wendy Saddington

This footage of Tully and Wendy Saddington performing sometime in Australia in the 60s.

I really love the Hey Joe cover, the funky hair and make up and the incredible psychedelic projections behind them. It's really cool to find this relic of Australian music history. I really love how Australia was able to embrace European and American Psychedelic rock culture and create something for themselves. However, when I think about music and art genres specific to Australia, I can only think of AC/DC pub rock and it's unfortunate to think that the majority of our home-grown culture still heavily relies on international influence.

Winehouse

Amy playing naked at a function raising awareness for Breast Cancer in 2007 

All this funk being played on the radio now is so amazing

Late night heart-broken funk playlists, sooth my burning soul

Latest embroidery

the text is actually green!

cut hair hair cut

So I cut my hair

I feel kind of weird posting pictures of myself on my blog, I mean I want my blog to be more about the art and music and general interest of cool shit I find rather than narcissistic pictures of myself? I know that's pretty hypocritical of me to say since I have posted photos of myself in the past.. but rarely OKAY RARELY.

Anyways, I felt like this was a momentous occasion as i have been thinking about doing it for weeks and the other night I got so fed up I just chopped it off. Feels.. ~~liberating

My mother of course was not feeling the liberating vibes and has booked an appointment at the hairdresser on Saturday.. But mother! It's totally DIY and PUNK. 

And Patti Smith cut her hair herself to look like Keith Richards.. but I suppose being a New York bohemian poet gives her license to do that kind of thing... Alas the perils of being a 'misunderstood' teenager living in the 'slums' of the Eastern Suburbs... 

In recognition, I present to you some celebratory Clearwater Revival (of course) 

.. okay well I couldn't find the original song so I found this really cool video of a stoned dude with a beard playing the song.

AND I got a super cute kitten aptly named by my 7 year old sister, Mrs. Fluffy Pants. I just call her Pants.. it's cuddle parties everday 

Ray Bradbury on the meaning of life and love

'We belong only by doing and we own only by doing and we love only by doing and knowing'

Mark David Chapman interview Larry King Live 12/17/92

Why I think the music business sucks

Here's a tangent I went on about the music business:

There's so much competition musically out there, it's really overwhelming to try and keep up with the new sounds and it makes it easier for me to just pick a couple musicians I really LOVE and just follow them, instead of updating my ipod every 3 days with the latest 'hits'.

But not even 'hits' as in mainstream popular culture stuff, because the general consensus now-a-days is that what's being commercialized is crap, which is true some of the time. But real good music is out there if you're ever so willing to look for it, bands who are actually substantially good that have done well recently like Arcade Fire and Fleet Foxes. In recent years I mean, I'm sure there have been greater bands released but my musical psyche is still stuck in 2009 so if you excuse me... 

In Almost Famous there is a quote that has really resonated with me whenever I feel sad about the music business, from Jeff BB (Okay I've seen it too many times, don't judge) about how the music that is popular is the best music that is out there. Which was probably true at one point, but since the 70s there has been a steady increase in the commercialization of music and for me it has become soulless and almost pointless (if I dare say) in some respects. I truly admire the artists that have been able to manipulate the industry to suit themselves, such as Fiona Apple. But of all the music documentaries that I have seen there is a common theme that becomes prominent; the importance of Good Timing. I would honestly think of nothing worse than basing my entire career on an industry that is purely based around subjectivity and relies heavily on people's approval. The whole success on an artist lies within their ability to build an audience, and quite frankly that is fucking hard to do. 

The real music that exists for me is music that is a collaborative experience. A few weeks ago I went to see Brian Jonestown Massacre and it might have been the crowd, or the alcohol, or even the suspicious smelling cigarette smoke wafting throughout the venue - but something clicked. As much as I appreciated the band and the music and being so close to the stage, I could literally see the bottom side of Matt Hollywood's guitar.. I felt disconnected. And I don't like feeling that disconnection, the idea that the musicians were performing for us. The best way we could express our enthusiasm for the music was by standing there and watch it happen before our eyes. 

Let me explain, 

A few years ago I was invited to go camping with my friend and her sister and her sisters friends for her 21st birthday. All of her friends were musicians and it was GREAT we just stayed up late making sounds and dancing around and it was really beautiful to be in the moment, with the musicians, no pretentiousness.. just love and love for each other and love for music. And I feel that now at gigs because there is such a separation between the music that is being made and the audience that a magic has been lost. And it's really really sad. 

Anyway, it's late and I felt like I had to rant. Posts of actual substance are coming up xxx

17 June~~~

It's sunday!

Feel like dancin'

This was a 1977 TV disco dance show from Montreal.
Everything about this makes me so happy - from crowd swaying to the beat being played in the background while the presenter was talking, to the feathered hair and glistening lights.
I love the way the presenter's silk shirt is unbuttoned to reveal a few specks of chest-hair and Brian's deep voice. Brian's story about them trying to make it in LA made me think of how hard it must have been like for a disco singer to 'make it big' in the competitive music environment of capitalist 70s LA. Imagine! like a starving artist but a starving disco queen.. all the money going to sequins.. .can't eat this week.. must sequin.. pants

My grandfather. Don Draper

On Sunday evening it was my grandfather's 80th birthday party.
It was a nice event? I guess there was like.. finger food and.. wine and stuff..
Anyway as the evening progressed, speech time approached.
After a few speeches were read off of new-age palm cards or iphones by my respective relatives, it was my turn to say a 'few words'. Taking my place on the brightly-lit podium, it suddenly dawned on me that maybe not having either iphone notes or palm cards pre-prepared was probably a bad idea. My stubbornness and arrogance got the better of me and in my arrogant haze I thought I would be able to muster up a brilliant speech telling tales of the greatness of my family history.
It suddenly dawned on me that this was probably not a great idea and I fumbled around at the podium thinking of things to say.. anything. I was beginning to regret the two glasses of wine I had had prior that were now swirling around in my stomach.
'Uuugh.. you're a suave guy' I managed to choke out. Before scurring off the stage and taking refuge in my cousin's satin lapel.

Okay. The last part of that paragraph was a lie. I remembered and told a story about how I once sneaked into my grandfather's bedroom, trying to smoke his pipe. Trying to imitate his nonchalant style. Resulting in what was an inhalation of bugs and dust because you're obviously meant to put tobacco in the pipe. This didn't cross my 11 year old mind at the time. However I hoped to dear god that my unrehearsed speech came across as adorably heart-felt and not awkward and insulting unprepared. (For the record, the very latter part of the paragraph was true. I did run to my cousin after I told my speech. And he was wearing a satin lapel)

But what I said about him being a suave 'dude' is true. I mean he was a movie star! I found this photo of him being played on a rotating slide-show and it only confirmed what I had already realized. These old photos of him in finely cut suits and caddys, smoking cigars only confirm my suspicions that he was Don Draper. His finely brushed hair and fantastically retro sunglasses radiate all class. I love this photo of him.


MY GRANDFATHER IS DON DRAPER.

Lee Hazlewood

Probably one of my favourite musicians of all time is Lee Hazlewood. He is an American singer/ songwriter/producer most well known for his collaborations with Nancy Sinatra and Duane Eddy in the 50s and 60s. Hazlewood was known for always looking forward, for the next project or next sound. In this endless search for a defining genre, he was able to invent Cowboy Psychadelia. A fusion of the west-coast rock movements and native American story-telling, his distinctive bellowing voice gives him an authenticity that places him as a key influence amongst modern American music. And this influence is undeniable, you can hear elements of Hazlewood from Primal Scream to The Jesus and Mary Chain.
Despite his solo success, Hazlewood is best known for his work with Nancy Sinatra. He wrote the original hit 'These Boots were Made for Walking' in which he also produced an awesome satirical version where he reflects the way he 'made a song about boots with a darlin' named Nancy'


(sorry for the quality)



  Nancy's Version of course

Together they combined their powers of awesomeness to produce some rad collaborational albums feauturing hits like 'Some Velvet Morning' and my personal favourite 'Summer Wine'.





This is a beautiful documentry feauturing Lee Hazlewood and Nancy Sinatra in their las Vegas show in 1972. Their backstage candid interviews highlight their relationship and the mutual respect they had for eachother. I particularly love Lee's denim jackets and Sinatra's amazingly 70s vegas outfits AND THAT FEATHERED HAIR

and some awesome Hazlewood record covers

                                                                     (B.O.S.S)

Lee Hazlewood - The Nights (cowboy bad-ass)

David Bowie embroidery I completed a while a go

D. Bowie embroidery. My first one 

I'm an emotional Idiot so get away from me - Maggie Estep

Made as part of the 'United States of Poetry' series in the 90s. James Duval and Johnny Depp also appeared reciting poetry on the show.

OH WHAT? BRAD ELTERMAN WROTE ABOUT ME?

I am fucking freaking out legit.
A few months ago I wrote a post on his photography and he posted a link to my blog on his tumblr? This is so many kinds of awesome.
Even though my post isn't that great, I mean I could have written more about his work... whatever alexa


How the hell am I going to focus now? He linked to the post and everything!

my post: http://naivebones.blogspot.com.au/2011/10/brad-elterman-photography.html
HIS post: http://bradelterman.tumblr.com/post/12230707457/thank-you-naivebones-for-the-cool-writeup-of-my

sorry for the fangasm guys.. I thought I should share

'Birth of the Cool'

Barkley L. Hendrix's 1969 collection of  portraits under the title 'Birth of the Cool'. Infusing western-art influences from pop culture, american realism, renaissance portraiture and postmodernism to create artworks that are uniquely his own. He uses the traditional conventions of renaissance portaiture fused with the glorification of ordinary subjects of postmodernism. Drawing from references to popular culture, Hendrix creates portraits that are easily recognisable in a modern day context. Pulling ordinary people up to celebrity status in a matter of swishes of his paint brush.

I love these images as they do embodie the essence of cool. Hendrix is welcoming a new era of empowerment not only for the african-American population but also for creatives, women and culture. Even though some of these themes are specific to the atmosphere of the 60s and 70s, when the definition of race, class and gender were being challenged; the style and themes in these images still resonate today. To quote Coco Chanel 'Fashions fade, Style is eternal' (evidence of a childhood raised on FTV) This is only too evident in these paintings.

babes u got styyyleeee

Here's a cool documentry clip about the exhibition of the artwork at the Nasher Art Museum at Duke University.

thanks

Desiree Dolron

Desiree Dolron's photography project Gaze portrays people in various states of underwater submersion. She uses focuses on the personal experience of the person, expressive and serine. None of the people featured in the work use their gaze to draw in the audience, they are ignorant of the viewer - lost in their world of complete fantasy. The resulted images are extrememly powerful and intimate and reflect the ethereal beauty in human nature.

She creates a mythology blurring the lines between life and death.

Thanks and Thanks

May 20

.. I like grimes