Our stories and fairytales have, of course, changed through the ages: infinitely varied in detail, twists, characters and settings. Yet, taking a closer look at the bigger picture, the hero story that was wound through these tales since the beginning of time remains consistent. No distinguishably new changes in this archetypal hero figure or his renowned stories have been made – whether it is the typical ‘knight in shining armor’ type, or the more tragic likes of Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

However; we are facing a new dawn. People are losing the hegemonic naivety that has been forced upon us since the beginning of civilization. It is obvious that we all are beginning to realise that there cannot always be a knight in shining armour there to save us, and we cannot all die tragic martyrs like Romeo and his beloved Juliet. Not to say all heroism has left the world – the qualities of the hero still exist around us every day. But to believe that all of us can realistically aspire to each and every one of the qualities ascribed to the shining beacons of goodness in our classic stories is ridiculous. It is a thing of the past. The present-day is the day of the Anti-Hero, and our stories reflect this.

Although, of course, anti-heroism has been touched upon in lesser known fairytales, it has never extended to the revolutionary lengths that it has in our films, music, politics and stories today. These ‘Anti-heroic’ people have faults, like all of us, but for the first time they do not see these faults as a thing to be corrected; it is a part of who they are – who we are. The moral complexity of the anti-hero causes us to question the limits of our own moral integrity. We can now question our willingness to extend ourselves beyond the old ‘comfortable’ boundaries to see life from a point of view that is so much more similar to our own. Anti-heroes can make mistakes and not be sorry, unlike the classic hero who would be crucified for any slight (or realistic) fault in character. By delving into the anti-hero we delve into our own insecurities and hopes; that with all of our personal flaws and shortcomings we too will be able to rise above our challenges and end victoriously – and bring our problems with us. Our new stories show us that we can all be anti-heroes. These stories are changing society and the world as we know it as I am writing this post.

In fiction, an anti-hero is a semi-protagonist archetype whose character or goals are almost completely opposite to traditional heroism. Anti-heroes differ from tragic heroes for the reason that a tragic hero is still primarily heroic but with a major tragic flaw, while an anti-hero’s flaws are more prominent than their heroic qualities. Hamlet danced on the fine line between tragic heroism and anti-heroism, but this intriguingly complex young man can easily be coined as the first prominent anti-hero to ever truly succeed in a famous piece literature. Of course, as a tragic hero must, Hamlet died. BUT: He succeeded in his endeavours, while fiercely holding true to his own flawed anti-heroic character until he breathed his last breath. Since the glorious tale of Hamlet was written by William Shakespeare, modern anti-heroes have been in the making.

Today, our modern anti-heroes encapsulate the rejection of traditional values symptomatic of modern literature and film in general. The disillusion felt after the Second World War and all conflict since saw our anti-heroes – who lacked the glorious but typical appeal of previous heroic figures like soldiers and comic book characters – become popular. The continuing popularity of the anti-hero in modern literature and popular culture is based on the recognition we now have as a result of these historical moments; that a person is fraught with human weaknesses AND strengths. These people – these anti-heroes – are so much more accessible to readers and viewers like us.

We’re sick of the knight in shining armour.

We see the nasty qualities that normally belong to the villainous bad guys… to us, they just add to their appeal!

Look at the Joker, for example. Played magnificently by the late actor Heath Ledger, the Joker jumped off the screen and became an object of admiration and wonder for one and all. And this was not despite his flaws in character. We LOVE that he tried to kill half the people in boring old Gotham City. We love his twisted face paint and kinky television station hijack stunts. He is the ultimate villain. By taking the interesting flaws from villains like the Joker, and toning them down to become the kind of flaws that the masses can relate to (sticking them on a relatively normal, possibly sane, intelligent person: we create our anti-hero.

A common hero that is often mistaken as an anti-hero is Sir Robin of Locksley, otherwise known as Robin Hood. He was the defender of downtrodden Saxons, and ran afoul of Norman authority and was forced to turn outlaw. With his band of Merry Men, he robbed from the rich, gave to the poor and still had time to woo the lovely Maid Marian as well as foil the cruel Sir Guy of Gisbourne, and keep the Prince John off the throne of beloved King Richard the Lionheart. Songs have been written about this man, as the rebellious leader of the lower class and defeater of corruption. He fit in perfectly with social, political and authority values at the time. No anti-hero here.

A bold contrast to this misconception of an anti-hero, however, is the book/movie ‘Fight Club’ – about a white-collar insomniac who happens to meet a mysterious anarchist named Tyler Durden after his high rise apartment is blown apart in an inexplicable gas explosion. As the movie goes on, they establish an underground fight club which, through the actions of Tyler Durden and the loyalty of the fight club members, eventually evolves into a national terrorist organisation hell bent on attacking consumerism and greed. This story is about rebellion and righteousness of the intelligent minority at its finest, and Tyler Durden is the fiercely attractive Anti-Hero that makes it all happen. But don’t get me wrong here. I bet many of you who haven’t seen this movie or read the book have assumed that the members who chose to be in this ‘Fight Club’ organisation are the homeless, job-less, fight-hungry dregs of society, right? Wrong. Most of the people in Tyler Durden’s revolutionary underground army of space monkeys are white collar workers with cars, apartments and families. Tyler Durden gives us the picture:

‘Man, I see in fight club the strongest and smartest men who’ve ever lived. I see all this potential, and I see squandering. God damn it, an entire generation pumping gas, waiting tables; slaves with white collars. Advertising has us chasing cars and clothes, working jobs we hate so we can buy shit we don’t need. We’re the middle children of history, man. No purpose or place. We have no Great War. No Great Depression. Our Great War’s a spiritual war… our Great Depression is our lives. We’ve all been raised on television to believe that one day we’d all be millionaires, and movie gods, and rock stars. But we won’t. We are slowly learning that fact. And we’re very, very pissed off.’

That is why these antiheroes and their leader relate to us. We can sometimes feel helpless in this world over which we have no control. The only thing we can control now is our own minds. We have stopped paying attention to ‘the man’. This naïve hero worship our parents and their parents have been tricked into has given way to the gritty truth of life. Authority in general is being questioned. Society is taking an intelligent turn, away from the politicians and heroes that tell us to be good, and towards the revolutionary anti-heroes that tell us we can be extraordinary, by being normal and nurturing our faults as well as our character assets.

On the other hand, it is so easy to say ’society does this, society does that’… But who the hell is ‘society’? I am talking about US, here! How do anti-heroes change us? Where are they?

They are EVERYWHERE, people. You have seen The Lord of the Rings: Smeagol/Gollum. Hannibal Lecter, from Silence of the Lambs. Scarlett O’Hara, the infuriatingly spoilt rich brat that was the dramatic centre point for Gone with the Wind. Danny Archer, Jack Sparrow, Snape… Jay and Silent Bob!

These are the characters from the books and movies that we know and love. And they are all fierce, interesting ANTI-HEROES.

Back in the day, people lived in fairytales. They worshipped the knight in shining armour, and thought King Richard’s servant Robin Hood was the most rebellious person who ever walked this earth. Could they all see the difference between their childhood stories and the harsh world around them?

Our stories are of our lives.

Like Tyler Durden says: ‘I say never be complete, I say stop being perfect, I say lets… evolve, let the chips fall where they may.’ This is what our new stories will – and do – look like. We see movies that don’t have happy endings. We read books where the ‘bad guy’ wins… and for once, it is a good thing! Anti-heroes and their new stories reflect this ideology of realism to represent realistic lives.

We are breeding a new generation of anti-hero stories.

We are breeding a new generation of REALISTS.

Is this a good thing? I think so.

Thankyou for reading my first post

REAL NAME:
Unkown

POWERS:
Unknown

HISTORY:
In development…

See more of Apollo Cities characters by clicking here.

REAL NAME:
Unkown

POWERS:
Unknown.

HISTORY:
In development…

See more of Apollo Cities characters by clicking here.

REAL NAME:
Unkown

POWERS:
She can use any piece of shiny metal to reflect the light around her to effectively make her invisible.  She’s a skilled knife fighter and close quarters combat expert.

HISTORY:
In development…

See more of Apollo Cities characters by clicking here.

REAL NAME:
Unkown

POWERS:
Armstrong is a master Archer.

HISTORY:
In development.

See more of Apollo Cities characters by clicking here.

After an entirely-too-long-absence from the Blogosphere, I’ve decided to return and put a few more original pieces up. Look for a new poem everyday for the next few days. But, as for this latest work:

An old compatriot of mine dropped me a line recently. A fellow poet – the below-mentioned “Mac” – thanked me for my comments on his work, but scolded me for being self-deprecatory of my own work: I had hinted at the fact that I had been experiencing something of a dry spell recently, then spit the last two lines of the poem below at him. Little did he know that his comment would spur me on to write for the first time since August. (If you don’t speak French, I suggest Google Translate.)

Un écrivain va mourir

In the midst of a group
of young academics discussing
Irish writers and their politics,
or lack thereof,
or the complications thereof,
or the pretension thereof,

I find that the thumb of my left hand
trembles uncontrollably, rattling
the page like boots sloughing
through the leaves rotting on the ground.
Those around me turn to look
as I pretend to search for a pen
or a book, until the fit ceases.

Hier, un écrivain est mort à son lit.

It is a drab November on Earth,
and though my years have been brief,
I feel as feeble as a man far advanced,
beyond the petty difficulties of literature
and romance,
but unable to tie his own shoes.

Aujourd’hui, un écrivain meurt à son lit.

You seem to think I’m modest about my work,
as though I’ve been clandestinely churning out
poems for the odd months that it’s been since
we last bantered and prated. But you should
know by now that I’m a real pig-headed bastard.
And that I’ve eked out five poems in as many months.

That’s one reason I admire you, brother.
If I were as prolific as you, Mac, I’d be
a god-damned writer by now.

The Anti Hero “Heatstroke” Summer Tour Thrasher article got put up on the Thrasher website earlier. If like me you struggle to obtain a Thrasher in the UK and like rad skateboarding, peep it! Click below.

All

Book club no.32 was hosted by Sophie at her residence last Sunday 1st
November. The text before us was Kurt Vonnegut’s 1969 anti-war novel,
“Slaughterhouse-Five”. Present were Sophie, Owain, Ed, Pete and Andy.
Sustenance was provided by a delicious oriental feast, including edamame
beans, duck, stir-fry and lashings of ice cream.

Discussions ranged widely over this most intruiging of texts. Pete
argued that the crux of the novel was whether Vonnegut approved or
disapproved of the Tralfamadorians’ fatalism, while he also explored the
book’s “radicalism” or otherwise. Ed posited that the book’s success or
failure should be judged in its own right, not as an “anti-war novel”.
Owain was incisive on the fate of Billy Pilgrim in the world of
post-war, corporate America. Sophie discussed how the time travelling
was portrayed (Ed also commented wisely that the time travel was a form
of memory rather than necessarily a science fiction motif). And Andy
controversially suggested that Billy Pilgrim’s own fatalism made him not
just an anti-hero, but a villain.

All in all the discussion was a triumph and the participants agreed the
book itself was an enjoyable, thought provoking read.

The baton is passed on to Camilla for book club no.33. Let’s see if we
can squeeze it in before Xmas.

Pete

A general disclaimer about the list to follow ought to start with noting that most lists of this sort are pretty much bullshit anyway, designed to ignite pointless debate and sell women’s health magazines or ad spots on VH1, and this one may not be much different really. However, given that this is an internet blog site, and the end of a decade is approaching, fate holds that a list must be made. I thought about whether it should be billed as the 40 “best” videos of the past decade, or the 40 “most significant,” or the 40 “most favoritest of BTO” but in the end we’re opting to call it something altogether different and stupid and just get on with things. Special shout to Skim the Fat, where from I got most of these images, is that site still going? Anyhow, numbers 40 through 30:

40. “It’s Official,” 2005

An overall pretty awesome video marred by a Kanye-heavy soundtrack and a few too many Lenny Rivas quotables, Kayo Corp’s stab at a “Trilogy” featured the national debut of gap-gliding Kenny Hoyle and SF sweatpants fan Robbie Holmes, alongside solid turns from all-stars Jackson Curtain, Karl Watson and a damn Marcus McBride part. I don’t know if Marcus McBride is the Z-Ro of skateboarding, exactly, but he’s something. “Official” probably could’ve done with more Richard Angelides and some editing where Quim Cardona was concerned but this video is one that probably doesn’t get rewatched as often as it should. Chany Jeanguenin skates vert in it.

39. “Skate More,” 2005

Daewon Song’s self-reinvention for a post-picnic table world helped vault him to SOTY status off the back of DVS’s debut full-length, but the Python-flavored “Skate More” also boasted the feel-good part of the year straight from the happy feet of Jeron Wilson who floats the slickest heelflip that Jason Dill had ever seen. 2005 was a banner year for Keith Hufnagel as well, putting out two ollie-riffic sections, and this DVS video also offers a glimpse of the ever-shifting Dill in his New York denizen phase and the mixed bag that is Jereme Rogers’ best part to date; also Busenitz/Zered Basset and a more-interesting-than-usual Mikey Taylor contribution.

38. “Get Familiar,” 2006

Chris Hall’s sneakerhead-financed East-by-West coast document should’ve maybe leaned a bit heavier on the retro elements, like I always thought the electro songs used for the intro clips would’ve made an interesting soundtrack for the whole thing. “Get Familiar” though was a worthy addition to a long line of self-produced East Coast videos with a pretty stacked lineup in a still-skinny Bobby Worrest, a skinnier yet Zach Lyons, EE vets Barley and Forbes and the resurgent duo of Joey Pepper and James Craig (the backside bigspin flip is a career highlight). Curveball parts come from Daewon and Mark Gonzales before gun-slinging Darren Harper controversially closes the video with some baggy denim stylings, crazy pop and that silly floater of a switch frontside shove-it.

37. “Waiting For the World,” 2000

It’s kind of fucked up how John Rattray’s section in this video was this devil’s bargain that earned him the glitz and glamour associated with Zero, Elwood and Osiris sponsorships, while at the same time siphoning away Blueprint’s heaviest dude, but these things happen. Nowadays WFTW looks kind of dated, especially Paul Carter’s Osiris pants and the Souls of Mischief song, but in 2000 the video itself was a serious stylistic push forward (the intro in particular) and generally served as a statement of purpose for the British skateboard scene, especially for those of us outside it, putting everybody onto the likes of Paul Shier, Colin Kennedy, a pint-sized Nick Jensen and the loopy genius of Mark Baines, leading up to John Rattray’s Britpop-powered star turn.

36. “Cash Money Vagrant,” 2003

There was really no reasonable or feasible way for Anti Hero to try and follow up “Fucktards” but their stab at a semi-conventional video in the midst of restocking the team for the concrete park decade is laudable enough and a fun one to throw in now and again. Young(er) and dirty Frank Gerwer does half his frontside k-grinds on Firm boards and Tony Trujillo rejects the Transworld gloss that helped mold his SOTY bid, alongside contributions from Cardiel, Hewitt and most of the other Anti-Heros that matter. It’s short, there is a little lo-fi themed skit that ties the whole thing together and they make it safely to Benecia at the end (spoiler alert). Interestingly, this site is selling a copy for $1300.

35. “Dying To Live,” 2002

In some ways it’s easy to bag on this vid, what with Jamie Thomas’s very dramatic intro, the beginning of Adrian Lopez’s career slide and Jon Allie’s sort of boring opener part. But as with most Zero productions the editing is sharp, the music fantastic and there is enough good here that “Dying to Live” probably can be considered fairly underrated at this point – Ryan Smith in his young and hungry days, paired with Nirvana, Matt Mumford to Queen, bespectacled Lindsay Robertson’s crushing slow-mo intro, and Chris Cole kickflip backside noseblunting a damn handrail amid a characteristically ridiculous part that capped his fresh-to-hesh migration. And, it had a sweet friends section, something that’s kind of fallen by the way-side in recent years.

34. “7 Year Glitch,” 2002

It seems like forever ago that New Deal even was a company and most of these dudes have been scattered to the four winds at this point, and where Fabrizio Santos is concerned, this all may be for the best. But this video, which preceded New Deal’s folding pretty quickly, contains one of the better Ricky Oyola lines captured on video, a lot of good Europe footage before all the spots were played, and the type of diverse lineup that’s generally been tossed in favor of appealing to this or that sub-sub-demographic. There is vert skating and Rob G has a nice run that’s filmed via a stationary long-lens, also, Chad Tim Tim at the early stages of being underappreciated for more or less ten years. Probably you could trace Kenny Reed’s nearly decade-long wandering in the international wilderness to the filming of this project, and maybe the marathon backside 5-0 to backside tail in particular. The one with the kid on the bike.

33. “Baker 3,” 2005

The Baker Bootleg video formula refined and distilled, taking the sometimes-interminable 90-minute slogs through the chopped-n-screwed Baker world and squishing it into something resembling a more straightforward format. Baker 3 also introduced the world to polar opposite ams Antwuan Dixon and Theotis Beasley, and helped Bryan Herman transition from a browless Reynolds fan to a grown up hardflipper with a world-class 360 flip. Somewhere in there Spanky skates to Morrissey (I know!) and Reynolds stretches his editing legs with some weird effects. Thinking back on this vid now I remember being vaguely shocked that Erik Ellington was capable of backside noseblunting a handrail, and after reading the recent Greco interview, I’m reminded that it was a bummer he didn’t end up using the Queen song for his comeback section.

32. “Bon Appetit,” 2003

This video rightfully put Cliche on the global map, even though it retreaded that tiresome Yeah Yeah Yeahs song for the nth time and wasted so much top-drawer footage on endless region-specific montages – where is the rationale, I ask you, in sprinkling JJ Rousseu nosegrinds here and there in some Japan part when he could’ve had a full-length section to himself. French Fred’s editing choices aside, “Bon Appetit” dodges classic status but still boasts Lucas Puig’s best part to date (the nollie backside noseblunt), Jan Kleiwer getting his Hufnagel on, Rousseau in top form and a part from when Cale Nuske’s knees still worked that contains exactly one line, which is sick. Also, you should know that Ricardo Fonseca’s ponytail is meant to symbolize the virility of the European skate scene as a whole.

31. “Cheese & Crackers,” 2007

Chris Haslam and Daewon Song conspire to build a better mini-ramp mousetrap. Kind of like if the Tilt Moders got locked in a garage for a weekend with a miniramp and a sheet of high-powered blotter acid. When street skateboarding moves beyond its current love for manageable transitions this video could possibly become the current era’s “1281″ but there’s a general retardedness that helps smooth out the troublesome physics problems associated with doing blunts behind a curtain, and all manner of other nonsense these dudes get into. Friends section features Carroll and Alex Olson and the human dynamo that is Giovanni Reda, remember, and Lewis Marnell’s bonus part is nice also.

Quem passa por aqui manja como é a relação entre o ST e o skate. Começou lá na casca, entre os irmãos Muir: o skatista famoso e Z-Boy Jim, e Mike, o moleque pegando a trilha do rock. Desde então, são muitas as histórias em que estes dois mundos se encontram.

Uma delas envolve o lendário skatista Lance Mountain, ex-integrante da equipe Powell Peralta do também Z-Boy Stacy Peralta. Tudo começou por conta de uma “chantagem” de Glen Friedman, relembrada por Mountain em uma divertida/dolorida seção da revista Skateboarder, sobre as contusões no esporte:

Chipped teeth:
“Glen Friedman asked me if I wanted to go see the Toy Dolls and I said, ‘Yeah, Yeah.’ He said, ‘Oh, they’re playing with Suicidal Tendencies and I’ll get you in if you draw a Suicidal Tendencies shirt.’ So he got me in and during the second song I got pushed and my teeth got chipped out—and I stayed for the rest of the show.”

Pra quem não pescou a mensagem, traduzo livremente:

Dente lascado
“Glen Friedman perguntou se eu queria ir ver o Toy Dolls e eu disse, ‘Yeah’.  Ele falou, ‘Oh, eles vão tocar com o Suicidal Tendencies e eu ponho você para dentro do show se você desenhar uma camiseta do ST. Então, ele me pôs para dentro (sem malícia, pessoal!) e na segunda música eu fui empurrado e meu dente acabou lascado (?) – e eu fiquei pelo resto do show”.

Algo que começou meio na brincadeira, virou arte clássica do Suicidal, estampada até hoje em camisetas e adesivos da banda. Os originais, que vocês podem conferir abaixo, são avaliados atualmente em 5 e 10 mil dólares, respectivamente:

Os mesmos desenhos, agora no merchandise do ST, à venda no site oficial:

Material tão marcante que, mesmo tanto tempo depois, serve de inspiração para novos lançamentos. Recentemente, Lance Mountain acertou duas parcerias para recuperar esse trabalho.

A primeira delas, com a grife Heel Bruise, rendeu a seguinte camiseta:

E a outra, com a marca de skate Anti-Hero, pôs na praça os seguintes decks,  em uma série homenageando skatistas de renome:

BÔNUS

- Quer se contorcer de dor com o prontuário completo de Lance Mountain na Skateboarder? Vai aqui.

- O skatista tem um site pessoal muito legal. Curiosidades infinitas sobre a carreira, muitas fotos, uma viagem sensacional para quem é fã do esporte. Chega lá.

- Vale também incluir por aqui mais uma peça da Heel Bruise, absolutamente fantástica, no manequim do próprio Mountain:

Que tal a expressão da fera?

- Por aqui já tratamos da relação Suicidal e skate no excelente texto de Dudu Munhoz, em “Cinco rolês do ST pelos caminhos do skate”.

***************************************

Every ST fan knows about their relationship with skate.  It started a long time ago between the Muir brothers, the famous skateboarder Z-Boy Jim, and Mike, the brat who was getting the rock road back then. Ever since, a lot has happened envolving these two worlds.

One of the stories involves the legendary skateboarder, Lance Mountain (a former integrant from the Peralta’s team) and Glen Friedman. It was sort of a bet, which Mountain reminded in a joyfull/painfull  section from Skateboarder magazine about the sport bruising:

Chipped teeth:
“Glen Friedman asked me if I wanted to go see the Toy Dolls and I said, ‘Yeah, Yeah.’ He said, ‘Oh, they’re playing with Suicidal Tendencies and I’ll get you in if you draw a Suicidal Tendencies shirt.’ So he got me in and during the second song I got pushed and my teeth got chipped out—and I stayed for the rest of the show.”

It began as a joke, but it became and classical Suicidal art – stamped in a whole lot of tshirts and  stickers. The original art were valued recently for between $5.000 and $10.000, and it’s an inspiration for new releases until this day.

Recently, Lance Mountain has entered into two partnerships to recover this work. The first, with the clothing brand Heel Bruise, producing a tshirt. The other with the skateboard brand Anti-Hero, putting in the park decks honouring famous skateboarders.

Bonus

- Dudu Munhoz has already written about the relations between ST and skate in this great post “Cinco roles do ST pelos caminhos do skate” (only available in Portuguese).

Once in a blue moon, you find something extraordinary lurking on youtube. Something which is as exciting and as hidden as a state secret, and this is one of those moments, a trailer for the  upcoming Green Lantern movie has been discovered, however it’s fan made. I have to say though, it’s one of the best fan made trailers I’ve ever seen, with shots from over 29 different movies, all rendered together with editing to look extremely convincing. Check it out.

That’s right, geeks rejoice! Comedy legend Ryan Reynolds has taken a turn to the comic adap side, and he really means it, having upcoming roles as ‘Green Lantern‘ (right), ‘Deadpool‘ (which, let’s be honest, we all love) and even playing the part of a washed up writer’s comic book superhero imaginary friend in ‘Paper Man‘. With all of this on his agenda, can anyone really complain about the talented actor harnessing the power of his inner geek, Heck no!

Now let’s be honest, Mr. Reynolds doesn’t look half bad in that spandex as one Hal Jordan, but it isn’t his fashion sense which fans will be tuning in for. Green Lantern, slated for a June 17th, 2011 release will supposedly contains other major characters from the DC universe, such as Sinestro, Carol Ferris, Kilowog and Martin Jordan (Hal’s father). There have also been rumours of a possible cameo from… No, not the Flash (which fans are still hopeful of), but everyone’s favourite Man of Steel alter ago, Clark Kent.

Alternatively, fans of Reynolds other well known comic book character, Deadpool will be glad to know that only after a mere four days of Wolverine premièring in cinemas that Deadpool’s own movie was greenlit. Not only that folks, he will also maintain his traditional costume and ability to ‘break the fourth wall‘ – e.g Being able to communicate with the audience through film, expected to be released around mid 2011 also. Whether he play an intergalactic law enforcer, or a teleporting, regenerating anti-hero, Ryan Reynolds is on my ‘to watch‘ list in the future.

I hoped the apex of the process would be a feeling of readiness

and I would come to know that feeling well.

But sometime between the wanting and wasting

I threw virtue from the edge of an arête.

Only to bloody my hands and knees crawling through the past to get It back.

Stepping forward, and back again

process persisted with courage, and with doubt.

Void of purpose in every way

readiness proved to be illusory.

Still, I feel

despite knowing there is no apex for the Anti-hero.

copyright© 2009

A.D.D.

There’s something super-villainous and anarchical about Glenn Beck’s style. The randomness, the corny humor, the fitful range of emotion, it all reminds me so much of the Joker. Someone needs to make a mash-up image of Beck in the joker mask, with “Paranoia” underneath it…  Ta-Nehisi Coates

Hmmm… A diabolical rabble-rouser, fomenting rage under the guise of wronged anti-hero?  Let me see…

WATCH THE SKIES!  PARANOIA AND CONSPIRACIES REIGN!

Ο Elric του Melnibone ίσως είναι ο πιο καταραμένος ήρωας που έχει δημιουργηθεί ποτέ στο χώρο της ηρωικής φαντασίας, είναι ένας ήρωας που η μοίρα τον έχει σημαδέψει, τον έχει κάνει παιχνίδι των θεών και των ανθρώπων. Στα βιβλία όμως του Michael Moorcock δεν υπάρχουν εκτεταμένες αναφορές στηα πρώιμα χρόνια του ήρωα. Για να συμπληρωθεί αυτό το κενό υπήρξε η κυκλοφορία του comic “Elric: The Making Of A Sorcerer”.

To comic αυτό κυκλοφορεί απο την εταιρία “DCcomics” και για τη δημιουργία του συνεργάστηκαν ο Michael Moorcock, ο Walter Simonson, ο Steve Oliff και ο John Workman, με τους Simonson και Oliff να αναλαμβάνουν το εικαστικό μέρος, το οποίο ήταν και το πιο απογοητευτικό στο σύνολο της κυκλοφορίας. Κλασικότροπο αμερικάνικο σχέδιο που θυμίζει “superman” και δεν δίνει καμία έμφαση στις λεπτομέριες. Πιστεύω πως ένα πιο manga-like σχέδιο θα έκανε καλύτερη δουλειά.

Τώρα όσον αφορά την ιστορία είναι μία αναμενόμενη Moorcock δουλειά που αφήνει όλους τους fans των βιβλίων ικανοποιημένους, δείχνοντας με ωραίο τρόπο τα χρόνια του Elric πριν γίνει αυτοκράτορας, καθώς και τις σπουδές του για να γίνει μάγος και τις διαμάχες με τον ξάδερφό του για το ποιός θα κάτσει στον “ρουμπινιένο θρόνο”. Τα μόνα παράπονα που ίσως υπάρξουν για το σενάριο αυτής της κυκλοφορίας θα είναι για κάποια αντιφατικά σημεία με τα βιβλία, όπως για παράδειγμα η φιλία των “Μελνιμπόνιων” με τον άρχοντα της γης “Grome”.

I just couldn’t resist. I had to post a little something in response to Lisa’s post about White Knights, because although there is something ultra romantic about a man who’s rash and ready to jump into conflict to save me, I have a major soft spot for the heroes who resist their calling and who feel that despite having no say in the matter they just aren’t fit to carry the world on their shoulders.

While white knights have a short sided view of themselves, the reluctant hero not only doubts his ability, but knows that with all his failings, he could never be good enough for his mission, even if he is the only one who can fulfill it. He is often considered selfish or even morally ambigious, but that’s what makes him human. He’s often tortured by his past or even by his current actions, though he knows they’re done for the greater good.

And when it comes to romance, things get complicated because he knows that his place in life will make it impossible to be with the woman he loves.

A perfect example of this is Batman, by far my favorite anti-hero type. He’s so far from Superman. He’s not all pretty and perfect and sweeping in with his tights and cape. He’s haunted and angry and at times loses sight of the fact that he’s supposed to be the good guy, because he’s been jaded by the world. His sense of justice is often battling with his desire for revenge and it makes him dangerous and volatile.

Seeing a reluctant hero’s growth throughout a story (or even better, a series) can be so fulfilling. Most times, they grow into a truly formidable hero, someone who is a beacon of hope and justice. But even when they don’t, you can’t help but feel for them, because they’re like you and me. Flawed and average and just wanting to live a normal life despite the larger than life plot twist coming their way.

The entertainment biz has NEVER been at a shortage in regards to talent-directed scams, and despite the wealth of literature out there detailing the typical con-artist approach(s), thousands, if not millions of would-be artists find themselves falling victim to these ploys all the time. Further, with an increasing allotment of the market focusing its attention on internet promotional tactics, sucking artists into the “I’ll make you famous” line has become easier than ever through the concoction of mass spam emails. Unfortunately due to the competitive nature of the music biz and the general naivety of artists, musicians have a tendency to fall into the category of easy and vulnerable prey (myself included), simply because of the wide-eyed rockstar dream that we’ve been hoping to fulfill ever since childhood. But avoiding these shady dealings proves more difficult than one would assume.

Most of us would fail to realize that we are being scammed if the company that approaches us has a professional looking website, corporate office address, and/or snazzy logo, but with advances in technology, came easier and more widespread access to services and/or products that can make these scams seem legit. We no longer can rely on our simple skills of deduction assuming that an email or letter is ONLY a scam if it is full of grammatical errors, spelling mistakes, and/or is strangely composed entirely of capital letters much like those of the 419 Nigerian scam series that request the urgent cooperation of an anonymous individual in transferring millions of inheritance dollars through his/her secure bank account. Rather, we must not only turn to resources that can provide us with assistance in these matters (the internet is loaded with them), but increasingly, we must learn to trust our “gut instincts”, and understand that if something sounds too good to be true, it likely is (and that especially goes for the music biz). We, as musicians, tend to ignore these feelings because we want so desperately to be discovered and to have “made it”, however that causes us to walk dangerous ground considering today’s most popular scams work to steal two highly valuable resources from musicians that we cannot afford to lose: our money and/or identities.

The more exposure an artist gains, the higher likelihood that he/she will become a target because his/her contact information will become increasingly easy to obtain. The scariest part about this situation is of course, that if an artist’s popularity is increasing, he/she will likely assume that offers of representation (from labels, bookers, etc) will soon be on their way. And so, as one can imagine, when receiving a faux-offer, it is unlikely that his/her suspicion will become aroused.

To help you avoid descending into scammers’ traps, below I’ve compiled a list of some of the most popular ways in which artists have and continue to be taken advantage of, complete with “warning signs” that should immediately cause your red flags to rise.

The CD Compilation
Discovering new outlets for potential exposure (and new fan generation) is crucial to the career of any musician, but when it is at the cost of your own pocket-money accompanied by unlikely promises, this is a situation of which I’d advise you to steer clear.

Several companies constantly scour the net in search of hopeful musicians who are willing to supply a track for their CD compilation(s) which may or may not ever get produced. For a one-time fee, ranging anywhere from $50, to at times, $500, these companies will assure you that your song will receive priority placement on a comp disc that will be handed out to industry professionals at some of the top music conferences in the world including PopKomm, SXSE, & MIDEM.

What you don’t know of course is that the very same email praising your unique artistic ability (flattery always works to assist in persuasion) in order to gain your confidence in their project has been sent to thousands of other musicians (sorry kids, you weren’t specifically chosen for any particular reason, other than the fact that your email address was accessible and you looked like an easy target).

Additionally, for those of you who are unfamiliar with how music conferences such as PopKomm work, even if these cds really do get created, the ability to get them into the hands of industry professionals is a stretch, to say the least. Usually, upon attending a major music conference, record execs and booking agents have already arranged a schedule in advance of acts that they plan to see perform, and the booths that are set up in the registration areas (where cds and pamphlets are featured) are most often visited by fellow musicians NOT industry pros.

However, track requests are sometimes made on behalf of legitimate cd compilation manufacturers via email as well. So then, how do you tell the difference? Well, for starters, any company that wishes to legitimately feature you as an artist on a CD compilation will more than likely be looking to obtain a profit through its sales and therefore, as a featured artist you are entitled to a cut of these proceeds. If the CD compilation manufacturing company is the “real deal”, a royalty sharing agreement will be enclosed alongside the track request. If a royalty consent form is missing, this is likely another scam in which, once the manufacturer obtains a single copy of your song,(s)he will continue to reproduce it for profit, without compensating you for your work.

Warning Signs: If you receive a track request for a compilation that includes any of the following features, DO NOT issue the manufacturer a copy of your song:
1) a request for upfront money in order to be a featured artist and/or to reserve a desirable track number
2) guaranteed exposure and/or recognition among industry professionals
3) no licensing agreement or consent form is required
4) no royalty fees will be issued to featured artists despite the fact that the cd will be sold for profit
5) the cd will be given away free of charge (The exception to this rule is if the cd is created in conjunction with a charity in order to raise awareness. In this event, the cd will likely be given away for free in honour of a good cause and/or its supporters.)

The Ever-Popular “Pay to Play” Showcase
Along similar lines to the CD comp scam is the “pay to play” showcase hoax in which a concert promoter offers your band a performance slot at his/her upcoming event held at a large performance hall (commonly places like The Opera House, Toronto or The Knitting Factory, NYC) in which industry professionals are guaranteed to be present scouting new talent. The real effectiveness of these “pay to play” scams is derived from their distorted mimicry of authentic major music industry showcase events.

This scam works because of its tempting double-pronged approach: first off, bands are under the misconception that acts commonly get signed off of a single performance, and that since they are being given the opportunity to play to label scouts, they must be ready to take their career to that next level. Secondly, this con is appealing because bands routinely jump at the opportunity to play at reputable venues that they normally wouldn’t be able to book on their own because it gives them bragging rights. Just as the CD comp invitations are sent out randomly to acts that seem dupable, so too, are these showcase notices – don’t be fooled!

In order to demonstrate their commitment and so-called mass appeal, bands are required, on behalf of the “pay-to-play” promoters, to sell highly overpriced tickets to these events with the rationale being that if a band does not have an established fanbase, they will not be appealing to labels (not entirely true). Each band is given a set number of tickets that they are required to sell in order to reserve their showcase slot, and upon arrival to the venue, the bands are given instructions to provide the promoter with the money from the ticket sales along with any remaining tickets. If a given band does not obtain the set ticket sale rate, their performance privileges are revoked. Of course, this situation should present an immediate concern to bands: If promoters need to rely on the booked acts to sell tickets to their events, are they really skilled promoters? The obvious answer being no, but these promoters especially seem to have a way with words in which they can manipulate acts into believing that it is impossible for them to get signed, unless they bring a bus full of their fans to support them.

The other concern raised by these ticket sales relates to where the money actually goes. Most obviously the concert promoter needs to pay rental fees in order to schedule events at a given venue, however, considering the astronomical selling price of these tickets, there must be something else going on, and in fact, there is. Any band that has played one of these events knows that they do NOT get paid for their performance (regardless of how far they have travelled) as they are told to think of these showcases as opportunities that will be worth it in the long run, but are they really? I have yet to meet a single act that has been granted any kind of deal out of one of these events, and I happen to know, without a doubt, that these promoters are only interested in one kind of business: that being, taking advantage of bands.

“Pay to play” showcases are profitable ventures for shady concert promoters that all too often leave bands in a state of self-doubt regarding their abilities because they did everything “right” according to the promoter, yet they did not compel label interest. These acts indeed did do everything right: they made the promoter lots of quick cash with minimal effort exerted on his/her behalf (thanks to all of the bands selling the tickets for him/her!).

Warning Signs: If you receive an invitation to play at a showcase series that possesses any of the following attributes, you are likely being scammed:
1) the promoter requires you to sell tickets to your performance and bring a large fan base to support you (in reality, a great deal of legit showcases are actually closed to the public or held in international arenas in which this is not possible)
2) performance privileges will be revoked if a set ticket quota is not reached
3) the promoter guarantees that industry reps will be present for your showcase (even professionally organized showcases like CMW or SXSE cannot offer a guarantee of label presence. It is left up to the band to promote their act’s performance in order to generate “buzz”.)
4) the showcase is being hosted at a large concert venue or arena that independent acts usually do not get booked at

It is true that prestigious industry festivals and conferences often do not provide accommodations or performance payment to their selected artists because the opportunity to perform is seen as having potential long-term benefits that outweigh these costs. However an artist will NEVER be expected to pay to play at a real event, nor will they be expected to supply the crowd, especially since the performance application process is open to artists internationally, and no music conference in Toronto, for example, could expect a Finnish band to realistically bring all of their home town fans to their performance.

If you have been invited to perform at what seems like a major music festival and/or showcase, prior to accepting the invitation, I encourage you to see if the festival has any promotional materials and/or a website that you can review. It is important to consider how many years the festival has been running, the average attendance rate, previous performers, scheduled label attendees, and festival sponsors when deciding whether or not it will be worth your time. Remember that, if you are responsible for your own travel and accommodations, it may be an expensive endeavour, and thus, you need to ensure that it will most certainly be worth your money, and time.

Battle of the Bands Competitions & Online Independent Musician Award Contests
Hosted by infamously questionable companies like Supernova, local pubs frequently present battle of the bands competitions which appear, on face value, to offer lucrative prizes and acclaim to their lucky winners. However, what few know is that the entrance fees that bands are required to pay in order to participate are often worth more than the actual prizes!

While these competitions would likely not be considered scams in the traditional sense, I would argue that they do, in fact, fall into this category for two reasons:
1) because participants are often mislead in regards to the actual value of the awards and
2) because several of these events are fraught with speculation of being “fixed”.

I have heard, on more than one occasion, sad stories about bands that “rocked their hardest”, had the entire room up and cheering for them, yet still somehow failed to place among the top ranks, despite the fact that these competitions are openly noted as being fan-driven and placement is supposedly based on crowd rankings.

The customary top prize for a winner in one of these competitions is studio time. While this may seem like a great award, especially if your band has a cash-flow problem, what one needs to ask themselves is: what kind of studio would give away a recording session for free? Through experience I can tell you that the kind of studio that would is NOT the kind of studio that you want producing your album. Further, usually the small allotment of studio time granted only allows an act to record a couple of songs which may or may not include additional mixing and mastering (any band that has previously recorded something professionally knows that a piece is virtually “unreleasable” if it has not been mixed and mastered in order to properly align levels and song dynamics).

Other popular prizes include website design, a free instrument and/or gift certificate to a music shop, free publicity, free merchandise design, and a support slot for a headlining act and/or a performance slot at a festival. Again, although all of these prizes are tempting at first glance, I think it’s important to consider the reputation and current client list of the company that is offering the free services. If you’ve never heard of them, the actual award is likely not as good as it appears to be. In the case of the grand prize being a festival showcase slot or free publicity, I think it would be important to note the battle of the bands’ previous winner(s) to see if the awarded performance slot(s) and/or publicity actually did anything to assist the bands’ career.

On the same page, I also advise you to be skeptical of songwriting and independent music award competitions which seem to be growing in popularity over the internet. As an entertainment columnist, I consider myself fairly in-tune with the industry, and I can say decisively, that to this day, I have yet to recognize a single winner from competitions of this sort, and so I have to wonder how much merit they actually hold among industry professionals? Of course, one of their biggest selling points is that these competitions usually have celebrity music judges, and so it makes indie musicians feel as though they are one step closer to being “discovered”.

The other aspect of these contests that seems rather fishy is their big time cash rewards. Now it makes sense that their entry fees, as a consequence, would be very steep as these contests need to be able to generate their giveaway money in the first place, however what concerns me is: what if they do not get enough entrants to generate that kind of dough? Will the award suddenly drop from one amount to the next? And if these competitions are not relying on the entrance fees in order to generate their grand prize money, then why are the entry fees so steep considering that it’s a well known fact that independent musicians do not have that kind of money to burn? Though this line of questioning may seem like a kind of paranoia, when you are an independent musician trying to establish a career for yourself, every move you make needs to be done in a strategic manner, and at no juncture, can you afford to lose your precious resources.

Warning Signs: If you’ve been invited to play at a Battle of the Bands event and/or to participate in an independent musician award contest, I urge you to request more details, prior to accepting the invitation, if you notice any of the following features regarding either event:
1) pricy entry fees and questionable prizes
2) unknown past winners
3) unknown sponsoring companies with limited client lists
4) studio time as the top prize (how much time is granted, does this include mixing and mastering, is the studio reputable, and who has recorded with them previously?)
5) crowd ranking of the performers
6) unknown so-called “celebrity” judges

With Vikram’s Kanthaswamy doing reasonably well, the actor has shifted his undivided attention to Mani Ratnam’s Raavan, which is also said to be in the finishing stages. Playing a negative role in the film in its Hindi version has raised speculations that the actor’s next target is Bollywood.

However, in a recent interview to a popular news paper, the actor said that he is not familiar with the Hindi language and this would be a barrier in understanding what the director wants. But Vikram was quick enough to add that he would never miss a role if it was offered by Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra or Sanjay Leela Bhansali.