It’s been a very Bowie filled few days over here at Lipstuck headquarters.

I mean, he still rules. Seriously.

I have to admit (and I guess you will be aware from other blogs) that I am now fed up with the Christmas music in Starbucks. The staff at Castle Marina know this (and secretly they are fed up too) but they are not allowed to say. They do turn it down for me… and for them?

Slumming it in the Champagne Bar at the IOW Festival - tough but someone has to do it?

May seems a lifetime away and Summer will hopefully be in full swing! And talking of Summer – the IOW tickets go on sale next week! This will be our 6th year of going back to nature. It’s my contribution to being green. Park the car and ‘live off the land’ for four days… We are eagerly anticipating the line-up – but to be honest we’ll go whoever is playing. We sometimes give bands a miss, but the list of people we have seen is quite impressive – Bowie, Rolling Stones, The Police, REM. But we have had some surprises too – The Magic Numbers, Snow Patrol and Newton Faulkner (doing Bohemian Rhapsody) were really good – on their debuts.

The Festival is quite an experience, especially the toilets and showers. As this is a family orientated blog I can’t actually describe the toilets. But the showers are great – if you can wash in a mug full of hot water – and then wait ten minutes for the next mug! And that’s after you have queued for an hour. Basic diet consists of Pig Sandwiches and Lager – quite healthy!

We both had new tents this year – as the old ones had a peculiar smell. Febreze tried but failed.

So, whilst not wishing my life away – I am already looking forward to Summer – and no more dark mornings or Christmas music!

If you enjoy contemporary art, you’re spoiled for choice. A wide range of works are currently on display in museums around the world, and your biggest problem will be finding the time to see them all.

The ROM has Vanity Fair Portraits until January 3, 2010. I’m planning a trip before Christmas.

The AGO is showing Edward Steichen’s fashion photography and the exhibit ends on the same day.

The National Art Gallery in Ottawa is showing the gorgeous urban photographs of Gabor Szilasi [featured above] until January 17.

There are many Tim Burton worshippers out there, and they are likely congregating at the MoMA’s Tim Burton exhibit.

I’m sad to be missing out on this one: London’s National Portrait Gallery is currently showing The 60s Exposed: Beatles to Bowie.

And it gets worse. On the other side of the Thames, the Tate Modern is showing Pop Life with works by Koons, Hirst and Murakimi.

And for those who book their travel plans early, the National Portrait Gallery in Washington is dedicating an exhibition to Elvis Presley. It starts January 8, 2010.

stephwereley

5 years left…

and after that???

David Bowie’s infamous line in the 1972 song by Mott the Hoople “All the young dudes, carry the news” could be said to have very different connotations today.
The song, according to Bowie, was about the Earth only having five years left before apocalypse and the young people who were bearing this news. The line could now be seen to represent a moniker for journalism.

The industry is in a time of great turmoil and many institutions like the Times newspaper and even the BBC, are in trouble. The circulation of nearly all newspapers in the UK has been in steady decline for the last few years. Television news is also in danger of being superseded by internet sites which offer video playback.

So the question is, who will save journalism and take it on towards its new future? Just as energy never disappears, instead simply changing its form, the youth currently being trained in the creative and therefore highly adaptable art of journalism, will instigate the industry’s revolution.

Therefore it is an interesting time for all concerned with the production of news: not only are the methods of discovery and research changing, but the format in which they are presented.  All the young dudes must now carry “the news” on, not to its conclusion at the end of the world, but to a new beginning and a future for us all.

Something I did in my break.

The idea comes from MARVEL lettering, where the letters had all the superheroes in.

This has the Dame gracefully growing old through his name.

Plus it’s all about him, from him.

A tiny bit of humour on the O nose.

What the hell happened last night at the American Music Awards? When did they become the new shock-you-silly awards show to replace the now-vanilla MTV Video Music Awards?

The new recipe for an awards show is this:

*Taylor Swift wins everything; no fewer than five statues.
*Lady Gaga performs in a weird getup after arriving in a weird getup.
*Someone does something shocking, either Lady Gaga or a surprise…like an “American Idol” channeling old Bowie/Madonna stuff.
*All hip-hop performers keep it clean and classy.
*Janet Jackson shows no skin. Ever. Again. America still hasn’t healed from the nipplegate backlash, although after Adam Lambert last night, we’ve moved on to Crotchgate.

Speaking of Crotchgate…

I understand Adam Lambert’s need to distance himself from the squeaky clean-ness of “American Idol.”  But is that really a need? I also understand the need to do something to keep his name prominent in the headlines today–the day his album “For Your Entertainment” drops.  There’s no such thing as bad press, after all.  Even if you mash a male dancer’s face into your crotch, caress a female dancer’s crotch, and make out with your male keyboard player–all after playing the sadomasochist part with two dancers on leashes–you still get press.  I get it; you’re playing both sides of the fence, trying to court both female and male fans with bisexuality and a cheesy but androgynous album cover.

But shouldn’t it be about the music?

I’m a fan of both Adam Lambert and Lady Gaga.  After last night’s AMA performances from both, I am SMH today.  Both artists can stand on talent alone.  Both can sing, both have a flare for performing.  I’m all for outrageous when it fits.  But when it becomes about being outrageous for the sake of being outrageous, that’s when it gets lame.  Contrived.  Fake.  Silly.  Annoying.

Don’t play the tortured artist bit on stage.  Gaga had gigs writing songs for others before she got her “Fame” and Lambert was doing pretty good for himself acting alongside Val Kilmer in the stage show of “The Ten Commandments.”  While either one was hardly pulling in millions, both were working artists.  I think that’s always the goal, right?  Both could have still been serving meals during their first showbiz gigs for all I know.  But hey, a gig’s a gig.

Just go on stage and perform.  Just show me your talent and remind me why I’m a fan.  Even a simple performance can be captivating.  It doesn’t always have to be outlandish.  I thought Jennifer Lopez’s performance of “Louboutins” was great.  It was creative and she pulled it off, except for the fall…  If I even think about Louboutins I fall down, so I totally understand.

You want simple?  Captivating?  Something that stands on the strength of the music alone?  Try watching Lady Antebellum’s performance at the Country Music Awards.  Has “Need You Now” not been the top single on iTunes (or near the top) every day since?

Or, from the AMAs last night, how about Whitney Houston singing “I Didn’t Know My Own Strength.”  That was amazing!  She was flawless.

Or Jay-Z and Alicia Keys who were just classy.

Look, I don’t need flames, crazy outfits, and controversy.  What I do want is music.  I’d love to have music with opulence.  Flash is OK, but just keep it in good taste.  We’re in a recession (duh).  People want less bullsh!t during a recession.  Flashiness and perky music isn’t popular during a recession.  Remember the 1990s?  It was a crap financial time that birthed Kurt Cobain and flannel shirts.  Remember the late 1990s as things turned around?  It was poppy, perky Britney Spears and N’Sync.  Glam rock?  New wave?  That was during the glory of the 1980s.  Artists should take a cue from the times we live in, maybe be inspired by…reality.

David Bowie is a compulsive liar who gets a job as a bartender at some upscale hoity-toity restaurant, and ends up becoming involved in a staged robbery of the place.

that alone was enough to get me wanting this movie.

this little forgotten (it isnt even commercially available) gem tells a quaint, cute, and touching romantic tale. Bowie, a recent immigrant on the prowl for a ‘green chard marriage’ finds and even falls for Rosanna Arquette. the two of them, along with her friend (who has a huge crush on Bowie’s character) decide to rob the restaurant that she and Bowie work at. then things take a turn for the worst… a weird turn for the worst.

at first while i was watching this movie i was worried. the story was bland. it seemed like a million other romantic comedies and i was finding myself confused by why Bowie (especially in his mindset in 1991) would agree to such a… well… bland film. but then the movie throws the twist at you. i wont ruin the twist here, but i will say that it comes totally out of left field and is quite hilarious.

throughout the film i actually laughed out loud many times and smiled through most of the rest. the dialogue is just funny. the two girls have a wonderful and realistic chemistry and are very believable as quirky best friends, while Bowie plays his part better than the script could have even asked for. his charm and off the cuff wit seem to be more ad-lib than script. his chemistry with Rosanna is actually amazing. i found myself caring about the two… and i must say, i am NOT a romantic comedy fan.

in the years since the film has come out, the director has decided that it isnt what his vision was and has ended up somewhat disowning it. and that is a shame because this film is a charming film. the dialogue and the casting was just perfect. the story, for the hour or so before the twist, is bland and uninspired, but it almost didnt matter because of the other things going so right the whole time.

i recommend this movie. it can be found around the internet under a few different titles, including ‘The Robbery’ and the bizarre and questionable title, ‘Shag-o-rama’… there are a few copies left on amazon HERE, some info on it HERE, and a little more HERE.

there are countless films about love, loss, and the confusion that those two emotions breed when together. countless. but this film, The Hunger, does it best.

you can click HERE for a plot summary, or if you want to purchase the film, which i HIGHLY recommend, you can click HERE.

the movie is expertly directed by one of the famous Scott brothers (Tony). It is able to truly show loss and love with what seems like little effort. the cuts in the first 10 minutes of the film alone are worth the price of the DVD, but it only gets more powerful as it goes on. David Bowie plays John, a jilted vampire lover who finds himself aging at an incredibly fast rate. his portrayal of a betrayed lover is moving. as the make-up piles on to make him look older and older, his eyes become the only thing that stays the same. those two glowing Bowie eyes. it is a shame that this film wasnt more of a commercial success, David Bowie proves that he is an expert actor who could not have been better cast. the whole range of sadness to anger that he shows only with his eyes is actually astounding. and some how, he plays his part in such a way that the viewer, or at least i, could identify with him. we all know what it is like to be lied to and used, but here, Bowie shows us how horrible it can be.

past Bowie though, the film is still a classic piece of artistic horror. Catherine Deneuve plays the lonely and immortal Miriam like she was born to play her. she is a dark and mechanical woman who has learned to shut off her ability to love after centuries of loss. this portrayal tore me in half through out the film. part of me wanted her to be punished for what she had made John and countless other go through, but the other part of me felt for her. she was just as much a victim as the others. her own immortality was a curse, she could never die with someone, only live past their body’s decomposition.  Susan Sarandon plays her character, Sarah Roberts,  with great artistry. her transformation from victim to hunter is terrifying. the cold look she gives in the very final scene of the film makes for one of the most unsettling moments in the film. in later years she has complained about the very last scene of the film, as has most of the cast and crew seeing as it was tagged on my the studio, but i still hold that it gives the film a far more horrific ending.

when Bowie’s character, John, and the other lovers rotting bodies, locked away in the attic, forgotten but always above Miriam’s mind, rise and exact their revenge, i almost cheered alone in my dark room. Tony Scott and the others associated with the film have all explained the movie in different ways. they have all given their own explanation for the ending, my explanation however is different.

i believe that John and the others never actually came out of their coffins int he attic, but that Miriam, after watching Sarah attempt suicide, realized all the pain she had caused would never end and that she would be alone forever, no matter how many other souls she trapped. i think it was that realization that drove her mad. the bodies didnt actually come out of their boxes, but their existence haunted her and drove her to fall from the staircase. the fall destroyed her body, and now, without the will to survive, she began her rapid decay. she had lived for countless centuries, so her decay happened faster than the others who were only a few hundred years old. after her death, Sarah boxed up the body and moved to London to live out the rest of her few century shelf life before she would age and decay like the rest.

the movie is beyond beautiful, and i hate that it is a forgotten gem. there is some talk of a remake, but i couldnt be less excited for it. the trio of actors, even the little girl who plays Alice, and Tony Scott were the perfect combination. no other line up could capture the magic like they did. and no other song than ‘Bela Lugosi’s Dead’ performed in the film live by Bauhaus could hold the same impact. instead of remaking the movie, the studio should invest in re-releasing this one. maybe this time someone will be paying attention. maybe this time people will see how honest and beautiful the film is.

dia de “quebrar” o ciclo…

PS-Turn and face the strain…

Gud vad jag saknar Bowie, man hör ingenting från honom nuförtiden. Sista jag hörde var att han sjöng back-up vocals till scarlett johansen och något samarbete med Moby. Men jag saknar honom, att jag inte har fått se honom live sedan 2003 i Forum i Köpenhamn. Första och sista gången kanske?

Jag skulle nog betala nästan vad som helst för att se honom spela igen och att han släpper en ny skiva. Det har dock varit stendött de senaste åren. Så himla trist. Tycker det är dags för Ziggy to play guitar…

/Malin

In the last month I’ve had the pleasure to deliver Internet & Mobile Safety Workshops for the parents of several local schools.  It has been an extremely busy month but I wanted to slow down long enough to thank the administrators, staff members and parents that organized and attended the events.  In particular I want to those associated with

• Benjamin Tasker Middle School (Bowie, MD)
• Kenilworth Elementary School (Bowie, MD)
• St. Jane de Chantal School (Bethesda, MD)
• Pointer Ridge Elementary School (Bowie, MD)
• Tulip Grove Elementary School (Bowie, MD)
• Heather Hills Elementary School (Bowie, MD)
• Northview Elementary School (Bowie, MD)
• Yorktown Elementary School (Bowie, MD)

Their commitment to the children and families they support were evident in their enthusiasm to take up this important topic.

Thank you!

______________________________________________________________

Inspired by his own child’s encounter with an online predator, Tim Woda is a passionate advocate for protecting children from today’s scariest digital dangers – predators, sexting and cyberbullying. Co-founder of KidSafe (www.kidsafe.me), the world’s only Parental Intelligence System which helps parents keep their kids safe while teaching healthy online habits, he raises awareness of these issues and shares his experience with parents through Internet & Mobile Safety Workshops hosted by schools, churches and other community organizations.  If you are interested in learning more about his workshops or KidSafe, please contact him at (703) 348-5010, ext. 702

Clear Channel has launched a new streaming channel on iHeartRadio for the new film Pirate Radio. The movie, about renegade rockers in the 1960s off the coast of England, is full of great music by The Beatles, The Stones, Beach Boys, Dusty Springfield, The Who, Jimi Hendrix, Smokey Robinson, David Bowie, Otis Redding, Cat Stevens and more.

The movie is about a group of DJs who “go rogue” and start a radio station on a boat in the middle of the Northern Atlantic, playing rock records and breaking the law all for the love of music. The songs they played united and defined an entire generation and drove the British government crazy.

It’s a great concept for a station and a perfect promotion of the film. The station has a website where you can listen, watch movie trailers and video clips, check out pictures and buy the soundtrack of the movie. I love the integration of on and offline media used to promote a real station based on a fictional retelling of a story about a real station….

NOTE: For still more irony, Rusty Hodge from Soma.fm let me know that the real station, Radio Caroline,  is still streaming online.

Alguien se tomo el tiempo de ir a buscar sus discos viejos, juntarlos y hacer una obra de arte con estos, juntando varios albums y haciendo un tipo “collage” donde participan Michael Jackson, Doors, Donna Summer, David Bowie y muchos otros.

Vía ThisBlogRules

e.me

Psychedelic Furs – Talk Talk Talk (1980)

The Psychedelic Furs delivered on the post punk promise with verve, this, their second album sprints from the traps like a whirling dervish, a cacophany of guitar, sax, drums and Richard Butlers trademark rasp combining to set the listener up for perhaps the most extraordinary song of the era in ‘Pretty In Pink’; a collision of bowiesque glamor, primitive technique and inspired lyricism resulting in a song that defined a decade. Other tracks jostle for positions, the amphetemine fury of ‘Into You Like A Train’ giving way to the Dylanesque ‘Mrs. Jones’. The Furs were the cream of the crop and deserving of so much more than they eventually got. In Richard Butler they had the original doomed romantic blessed with the archetypal voice like sand and glue. Check out the video for the single version of ‘Pretty In Pink’

Am avut un weekend splendid si asta poate pentru ca Jeff a venit din calatorie si am petrecut weekendul acasa impreuna. Sambata in asteptarea lui am decis sa dau o raita culturala prin muzeele neexplorate pana acum si am vazut o galerie recent deschisa la National Portrait Gallery. Foto galeria se numeste Beatles to Bowie si infatiseaza in fotografii aspecte din viata artistilor, plecand de la grupul Beatles la anii ‘70 ai lui Bowie. Portretele sunt nemaipomenite si chiar merita sa te duci sa le vezi pe bune. Am fost pentru prima data in acest muzeu si tocmai de accea am zabovit un pic mai mult ca de obicei. Dupa pauza mea de arta, m-am dezmeticit si am pornit catre Victoria station, unde l-am asteptat pe Jeff al meu. Restul de weekend a fost foarte relaxant si linistit. Am avut soare, foarte rar pentru Londra. Ne-am trezit dis de dimineata si am pornit la o plimbare pe scutter prin centrul orasului. Lumea a inceput sa fie disperata dupa cadourile de Craciun. Zarva mare in magazinele de specialitate. Noi ne-am facut cumparaturile si am plecat mai departe pe scutter . Seara am petrecut-o cu prietenii acompaniati de un pahar de vin rosu. Acum a inceput o noua saptamana, e inca soare si frumos. Planuim un alt weekend de pomina.

“That’s rubbish, I could do that!” Lets face it, we’ve all heard some wiseguy crack that comment out at some point, whether the art was on tv, in the newspaper, or even in the gallery. What these people don’t understand is that behind every piece which looks simple to produce, the mental aptitude and creativity necessary, few possess.

I do appreciate that some work, even for artists, is quite simply rubbish, and im not denying that. What I am highlighting here is that the boldness to stand up, create something, and have it displayed, is not a quality that many people hold. And if these people who believe that they could create a replica of a work in terms of style and application, they tend to be the ones that don’t ever pick up a pencil and use some creativity. There is normally a concept behind the artists portfolio/exhibition/piece which is not obvious to the untrained eye.

The great thing about art is that everyone can do it, whether other people like your work or not. The late Sir Terry frost once said, “I think that everybody should do art and everybody can do it and that it’s good for the soul. You can cure all kinds of aches and pains with painting – therapeutically it’s marvellous” I couldn’t agree more. Not just physically, but mentally, the form of healing art provides cannot be found anywhere else. You can lose yourself in a work, and afterwards either you, or others can gain pleasure from it. True some may not like it, but is it not worth it for the few that do appreciate it?

Art is not about creating for others, but about creating for yourself – for a whole range of reasons.

Might it be art if it inspires some to dance, others to cry and plenty to curse?

Goethe wrote, “A genuine work of art usually displeases at first sight, as it suggests a deficiency in the spectator.” He cannot, and we regret the disclaimer, be an authority despite Faust

bei all den staatsfeierlichkeiten zum sechzigsten der bundesrepublik und dem jahrestag des mauerfalls wird ein geburtstag fast vergessen:

major tom wird 40!

erstmal tauchte der fiktive astronaut im song “space oddity” von david bowie auf und inspirierte danach viele andere künstler – unter anderem eben auch peter schilling.

irgendwie ist es auch heute noch eine besondere vorstellung, als mensch so losgelöst und abgeschnitten von der welt durchs all zu schweben, mit einem blick auf die erde:

here am i sitting in a tin can
far above the world
planet earth is blue
and there’s nothing I can do.

schön auch, wenn man sich mal das originalvideo ansieht.

ja, einmal schweben können …

Radio jest obecnie jedynym medium, które łączy zamieszkiwaną przeze mnie dżunglę bloków ze światem. Naturalnym wydaje się więc, że sporo go ostatnio słucham, szczególnie Trójki. Ostatnio w Prywatnej Kolekcji Artur Orzech gościł muzyka zespołu Made In Poland, którego nazwiska nie pomnę. Muzyk ten przytoczył pewną anegdotkę, którą zawsze powtarza się, mówiąc o tym utworze, i którą ja również powtórzę, i którą już kiedyś na tym blogu powtarzałem:

“Jest to artysta, który napisał pewien utwór mocno związany ze stolicą. Znana historia mówi, że ten artysta zatrzymał się w stolicy przejeżdżając pociągiem ze Związku Radzieckiego do Niemiec. Wysiadł on na Dworcu Gdańskim i widok, który zobaczył zrobił na nim bardzo przygnębiające wrażenie. Artysta ten wszedł do pierwszego sklepu z płytami przy stacji i kupił album polskiego zespołu ludowego Mazowsze. Motyw tej piosenki pojawia się w tym utworze. Już chyba każdy wie o jakim artyście mówię. Chodzi mi oczywiście o artystę, który nazywa się David Bowie i utwór, który nazywa się <<Warszawa>>.“

Ale ostatecznie chuje nie puścili Warszawy tylko inny song Bowiego.

Co nie zmienia faktu, że żadna piosenka nie robi takiego wrażenia w stolicy betonu, kiedy przejeżdżając przez most patrzy się na Pałac Stalina.

Później była jeszcze jedna znana anegdotka:

“<<Warszawa>> była też ulubionym utworem Iana Curtisa z Joy Division. Zresztą zespół Joy Division wcześniej nazywał się Warsaw, właśnie na cześć tej kompozycji. Ale Joy Division dzisiaj nie będzie, ponieważ mamy za dużo materiału…“

I znowu najlepsze ominięto.

The song is called Transmission. The band is Joy Division.

dalla rubrica “Musica, musica, musica!” de “Il Taglio”

David Bowie

Se il periodo hippie fu quello “intellettuale”, della “serietà” e dell’“impegno politico”, il periodo del glam rock che lo seguì nacque, in controtendenza, come un antidoto. Questo periodo musicale, che di seguito prese il nome anche di “glitter rock”, invase le menti giovanili agli inizi degli anni ’70 e durò per quasi un decennio. L’ex modello Marc Bolan fu il primo artista che fece da ponte tra l’era hippie e la nascita del glam, il primo ad indossare scialli di piume di struzzo, lustrini e cilindri, a truccarsi gli occhi con porpora luccicante e a scrivere canzoni che non venivano prese più tanto sul serio, tutte caratteristiche della nuova tendenza musicale più spensierata e moralmente più oltraggiosa. Ma il glam-rock è rimasto alla storia con l’adesione di David Bowie e il suo disco “Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars” del 1972 per l’etichetta RCA. In quello stesso anno in Irlanda del Nord i paracadutisti britannici aprivano il fuoco sui manifestanti cattolici che protestavano contro la reclusione preventiva per il processo nel famoso “Bloody Sunday” (cantato anche dagli U2), mentre a Capo Kennedy veniva lanciata la sonda Pioneer 10 che esplorerà Giove. Nel suo disco Bowie narra di un mondo sull’orlo dell’apocalisse in cui l’ultimo eroe è un ragazzo divenuto rockstar grazie ad un aiuto extraterrestre; tematiche fantascientifiche molto in voga in quegli anni. Senza dubbio, una pietra miliare della storia della musica.