Flaming Pablum

Stuff You Might Have Missed

Happy Friday, peoples. Let's get down to it, shall we?

First up, my estimable comrade Nick Rombes of The Cultural Dictionary of Punk fame ruminates on that burning question of whether or not Alice Cooper was "punk". Personally speaking, I think the question is moot. If you can't appreciate the rocktastic magnificence of ol' A.C., you're friggin' missin' out, jack. You can spout all you want about how great your precious indie icons are, but as far as I'm concerned, if you don't know Alice, you don't know shit.

Next up, EV Grieve – I blog a regular plunder for content – posted a nice little excerpt from a history of fabled L.E.S. art/punk institution, ABC No Rio.

Evidently, 74 Grand Street (which boasts a massive "REVS" tag) is on its last legs.

Over on the Times' Lens, check out this compelling collection of New York-centric shots by Hiro Yukito.

When the news was first being broken, I was initially incredulous (a Seattlite co-worker of mine firmly insisted that it was a hoax), but it's true – Soundgarden are officially back in action.

Speaking of 90s folks, Igor of Driven By Boredom went to check out Courtney Love's bullshit revival of Hole. Pity he only shot her with his camera and not, say, a short-range bazooka.

Just after I discovered it (`cos I'm routinely late to the table about these things), The Daily Swarm is reporting that Apple is shutting down Lala. Lame.

Also spotted via Swarm find out why "The Year Punk Broke" (which, I must confess, I've never seen – but never really felt inclined to see, given that (a) I don't believe the premise and (b) don't care enough about Sonic Youth and Nirvana) has taken so long to be released on DVD. Maybe now I'll see it and change my pre-judgmental ways.

Lastly, over on The Gathering, an allusion to the strange appearance of post-punk icons Wire on Suzanne Sommers short-lived talk show sparked a veritable free-for-all of clips. Herewith some incongruous gems:

The Plasmatics on "Solid Gold":

Gang of Four on "Dance Fever":

Husker Du on "Joan River":

That fabled "Quicy M.E." episode with "punks":

The Jam on "American Bandstand":

..and, of course, PiL on "American Bandstand":

'Good Morning, Hugh'

Genius.

Word on The Street

Sage advice on Fifth Avenue

Exhuming Punk

Big thanks to my friend Hot Johnny for unearthing this ancient Aussie news segment on Punk Magazine (featuring maverick cartoonist John Holmstrom when he had hair and the legendary "resident punk" Legs McNeil, whom I had the arduous honor of working with fleetingly whilst interning at SPIN Magazine back in the balmy summer of 1989). Oddly enough, I wore my increasingly form-fitting Punk t-shirt (featuring Holmstrom's signature font) just yesterday. The `zine itself, of course, is no longer publishing, but you can check out their official website (operated by Holmstrom, I believe) right here.

Enjoy.

Firewater Gets the 'Glee' Treatment

Quite recently, Green Day took a bit of a critical drubbing and clout-bath after turning their mega-selling, Bush-bashing 2004 opus, American Idiot into a … gulp …. Broadway musical. They weren't the first band to do this, of course. Artists like The Who (obviously), Abba, Roger Waters and --- unsurprisingly – Kiss have tried to bring their music to stage of the Great White Way, usually to dubious affect. But there was something truly antithetical about Green Day – ostensibly a punk band – turning their music into, well, "show tunes." Doesn't seem very "rock 'n' roll" and certainly doesn't seem very punk, but then – isn't brazenly flipping the bird to convention what punk rock was supposed to be all about? Maybe going Broadway was the punkest thing they could possibly do in that respect. Or not.

As bemused as I was to learn of that ambitious plan, I didn't ever foresee it happening to any of my favorite bands (Pink Floyd and Kiss notwithstanding). I don't see how a theatrical adaptation of, say, What's THIS For…! by Killing Joke or Rattus Norvigicus by The Stranglers would really work in the context of an all-singing/all-dancing B'way spectacle. Well, imagine my surprise, then, when a friend forwarded me the video below. Herein we see the, ahem, "Janesville Craig Spotlighters perform at Fort Atkinson Showcase, February 13, 2010, singing 'This is My Life', choreography by Ben Schrank, directed by Bob Schrank and Karla Vriezen." Evidently, the JCS is a "show choir" from Wisconsin ala "Glee."

The reason I find it pretty shocking it that prior to its show tune makeover, "This is My Life" was a song by one of my all-time favorite bands, Firewater, from their excellent 2008 opus, The Golden Hour (see below).

I guess no music is truly safe.

Death Before 'Downtown Girls'

Spotted this over on EV Grieve's estimable little cul-de-sac off the information superhighway this morning and almost spat my anemically tepid coffee all over my keyboard. Suffice to say, I've never been happier to no longer work at the nefarious organization that gave horrific birth to the likes of the program previewed below. Saddle up, horsemen, the apocalypse is nigh.

 

Downtown Girls - MTV Shows

On The Floor at `54

I can actually claim to have fleetingly set foot in the original, believe it or not, although it was sorely ensconced in its own season of wither at the time. According to Gothamist, Studio 54 opened 33 years ago tonight, remaining fully fabulous and operational from 1977 until 1986. I darkened its doorway on a late Spring evening in 1985; the evening of my senior prom. After a somewhat yawnsome dinner at The Water Club, our merry little class split into splinter groups to go out on the town. With a small gaggle of friends, I somehow ended up at Studio. Suffice to say, the bloom was well off the rose by this point. NYC's cool cognoscenti had long since largely abandoned the storied club for newer, bolder brands of niteclubbery. The sheer fact that a quintet of mangy high schoolers in dubious tuxedoes were allowed entrance is evidence of same.

Walking into the club, we were greeted by the pulsing strains of "You Spin Me 'Round" (Like a Record)" by Dead or Alive. The club itself, however, was sparsely populated. On the fabled dancefloor, a pair of balding, portly business suits danced in a hapless display of abject funklessness with a trio of clearly over-refreshed girls. We sat around for a bit, before my credibly hip classmate Liz suggested repairing to the significantly cooler Danceteria downtown, which is precisely what we did (you can read more about that right here).

Some short years later, Studio 54 re-opened its doors as the new incarnation of the Ritz (which, in turn, had morphed into Webster Hall). In its tenure as the New Ritz, I went countless times, seeing bands like The Mission, The Sisters of Mercy, Danzig, Fear, Big Audio Dynamite, Buzzcocks, Cop Shoot Cop, Ministry, KMFDM, Revolting Cocks, Skinny Puppy, Public Image Ltd., GBH, the Dwarves, Public Enemy, Motorhead and even a one-off by Guns N' Roses (which ended up being filmed, resulting in the video for "You Could Be Mine"). The New Ritz closed its doors sometime in the mid-90s, if memory serves. Not sure what happens in the space now. Still, I doubt any occupancy of the address will ever match the cultural resonance its achieved as Studio 54.Happy birthday.

W.T.F.? M.I.A. goes N.S.F.W.

I was crazy late to the table with M.I.A. When she was first breaking, I believe I sneerily wrote her off as another hipster-touted flavor of the month who'd soon join countless others on the where-are-they-now heap six months later. Well, I was wrong about that. Girl's got some staying power. I warmed to her breakout single, "Paper Planes" -- thanks in large quantities to its infectious recycling of the intro to "Straight To Hell" by ye olde Clash -- quite some time after its release and subsequent high-profile placement in 2008's "Slumdog Millionaire." She made headlines recently by calling out Lady Gaga for being unoriginal - -which, honestly, is really pretty rich from someone whose hits sample records from a couple of decades ago, but that's an age-old grievance.

Speaking of which, M.I.A.'s newest single, "Born Free" is basically to Suicide's "Ghost Rider" what MC Hammer's "Can't Touch This" was to Rick James' "Superfreak." That doesn't really matter – it definitely rocks (and if you're going to sample artists, by all means make them awesome ones like Suicide & The Clash) , but take a look at the promotional video for same. I'm all for pushing the envelope and all that, but this clip blazes new frontiers in needlessly contrived gratuitousness. Oh yeah, you probably shouldn't watch it at the office. Not for the faint of heart.

The Had a Pepper Bar!

I wouldn't exactly call it a tragic loss for the neighborhood, but it seems that the Quiznos Subs on East 12th & Broadway has closed up shop. I can't say I was a regular patron -- I may have stopped in once or twice last summer when my wife was out visiting my Mom with the kids and I was feeling culinarily unimaginative, but it didn't exactly blow a new part in my hair. If memory serves, prior to it becoming a Quiznos, it was an antique dealer's that I never set foot in. Who knows what will take its place now -- if anything. If I had a dollar for every failed business in this neighborhood that's left an empty storefront in its wake in the last two years, I'd have enough money to buy several tasty subway sandwiches. In any case, pour out a large-sized soft drink of your choice for the 12th street Quiznos.

In all honesty, I don't really give a good, rolling rat-fuck about a Quiznos closing. I'm frankly kinda glad it's gone. I'd love to see a book store or a record shop open in its place, but fat fuckin' chance of that. But, the closing of this fast food joint does handily serve as an excuse to post this endearingly bizarre ad, which I'll always have a soft spot for. SPONGE MONKEYS AHOY!

Word on the Street