Having a little black tea & musique française pow-wow with Zooey England, who departs from NYC in about a week for Seattle. While we reminisce and criticize our peers in secrecy, here’s a round-up of PYT’s utilizing the spiritual and psychological benefit of war paint in their ongoing battle against the social demons of the modern age (whether they realize it or not).

Sources from top left to right: bikinifetish@tumblr, strawberrylaces@tumblr, poofybird@tumblr, therewasrain.com, unknoen, justlikeraindrops@tumblr.

Some of my recent posts at Refinery29…

✖ The Best NYC Boutiques: SoHo, Part III of Our NY Shopping Guide Series

✖ Lighten Up! Jay Kos’ Spring 2010 Line Pushes Pastels For Men

✖ 19 Holiday Party Dresses To Help You Outshine Any Light Display

✖ Zac Posen Does Chic (and Cheap!) Sportswear for Saks

✖ RIP Daul Kim: The Best Editorial Moments of The Young Model’s Career

When trying to find a photo of Mr. VonStroke, to go with this SICK remix, I found this cool article conducted by the Propellerheads about production of the “Beware of the Bird” album and his production techniques and stuff… If you don’t care, just grab this awesome tune, thanks to Kid City for the tune.

Click Link Below to Download VIA Kid City Blog:
Poxymusic ft. Gina Mitchell- War Paint (Claude Vonstroke Remix) (m)

Propellerheads interview after the jump.

Taken from propellerheads.se  ARTICLE

House and Techno Artist Claude VonStroke Rules with Reason

Speed and Ease of Use Make Propellerhead’s Software A Must-Have

Stockholm, Sweden (October 01, 2008) – Ace house and techno producer, artist and label owner Claude VonStroke continues to wow audiences in his recent tours of Europe and the U.S., featuring material from his hot debut album, Beware of the Bird. Naturally, Reason is one of his most important tools. “I use it for about 80 percent of my productions and remixes. Even if I use other software, I almost always try to finish a track in Reason,” he notes. “I made my entire Beware of the Bird album in Reason, including tracks such as ‘Deep Throat,’ ‘Who’s Afraid of Detroit?’ and ‘The Whistler.’”

VonStroke loves Reason’s speed and ease of use. “The sequencer enables me to go through many ideas quickly,” he explains. “I can select and move things faster than in any other software. It also allows me to try out alternative ideas very quickly.”

What is in his Reason rack? “I use something from the Mastering devices on every single sound in the track,” he notes. “I think the most important thing is EQ’ing everything perfectly, so all the sounds play together nicely. I also use the delay and the R7000 reverb a lot. I use the Spider audio device to split up sounds and make them feel bigger, and the Scream distortion really makes things pop out of the mix. I also use the Re Drum quite a bit to lay out drums.”

Although he is reluctant to give away his tricks, he confesses that he often plays with the octave pitch button in Dr. Rex. “Many times this has created something unexpected that really works out,” he reveals. “You can have a sample in sync, then pitch it up or down one octave, and all of a sudden it sounds way cooler.”

In the end, though, it comes down to speed and ease of use. “When I use Reason, it takes 20 seconds [to do a simple task], and in almost everything else it takes 5 minutes just to configure the track and the synth/sampler,” he states. Just how important is Reason to VonStroke’s music? “I don’t think I would even be doing techno if I hadn’t come across the sequencer in Reason.”

And that’s the word from the Bird.

For more on Claude VonStroke, go to: http://www.myspace.com/claudevonstroke

I like this picture quite a bit. It required a fairly heavy amount of editing to get it to look like this. The story behind this picture is that while I was painting in art class I realized that when I was cleaning my pallet knife I wasn’t getting the paint off of its sides and thus mixing black and white paint that I didn’t want to. I had a paper towel right next to me, but I decided to just wipe the paint on my hand. I really didn’t notice it too much until I got home and for some reason I decided to take a picture of my hand and edit it.

Trucking right along at ECSC. Good stuff happening this afternoon. Pro finals! They just posted a revised contest schedule. See pic. Oh & Tanner Strohmenger says hi.

I’ll be up front about it. I am a bit of a make-up whore. It’s a legit way to paint on your face. Short of drawing penii on your cheeks with eyeliner or whatever, no one will look at your war paint and wonder what the hell you were smoking that morning. Since I’ve always been a cheap bastard, I figured I might as well share some of the brands I use hat still yield good results. I have very sensitive skin and I’ve fared very well with these.

1. Wet n Wild: Yes, yes, I know, the name sounds dirty. For the longest time, I assumed it was kid’s make-up because the name was a turn-off. The prices were always so damn tempting, though, so I gave in. And lo and behold, it is not a bad brand at all. They also sell cheap make-up accessories such as brushes, pencil sharpeners, etc. that are a necessity.
2. N.Y.C. (New York Color): Another one I underestimated for a long time. Again, the target group seems to be teenagers, but if you pick the right items, you’re good to go. Plus you know you always wanted to try funky eyeliner colors.
3. Rimmel: This seems like a no-brainer, but it isn’t necessary. Rimmel are a very reliable brand. Some of my favorite items in my make-up bag come from that shelf.
4. CoverGirl: Ignoring the controversy where their current cover girl is concerned, this actually is a good brand. I was a little worried about some of their perfumed products setting off skin allergies, but it wasn’t the case.
5. Revlon: With Revlon, you might actually have to look at the price tag on occasion. Generally they are cheap, especially when it comes to eye shadow, but they do sell higher-end products. They have a diverse color palette I find wonderful.
6. Maybelline: The same rule a above goes for Maybelline, even though I will faithfully buy their damn mascara until my wallet shrieks and dies because it actually yields results I like.
7. L’Oreal: We’re working our way through the upper end of the drugstore spectrum. L’Oreal actually has an affordable line called HIP that entails very highly pigmented eye shadows, which very few other brands do.
8. Almay: Not quite as “low-end” as the others, but I know for a fact that Almay does not test its products on animals, which I cannot necessarily guarantee for the others. If you are pale like myself and have issues finding foundation that matches your skin-tone, you might want to check them out just in case. Their make-up also covers a broad spectrum of skin types.

Some obvious tips when buying: check for coupons whenever you can or just randomly drop into a drugstore if you have the time. A lot of times they will have certain items on sale or even clearance at almost ludicrous percentages; Rite-Aid, for example, convinced me to actually buy something rather than stare longingly by putting make-up on 75% discounts.

Have fun!

-musicpup

This was supposed to be the big comeback album for the Crowes after a Kate Hudson-caused hiatus (well I think was the explanation I heard).

It caused a bit of an internet furore, when one magazine reviewed it without hearing it. The review was unfavourable, and I guess it serves as a reflection of the low expectations some in the press may have had of this release (as well as the lazy attitude of less-hardworking reviewers than myself).

Bands coming off spells can sometimes struggle. The Crowes hiatus coincided with lead singer Chris Robinson putting out a couple of solo albums which were less polished and more jam-oriented than the BCs.

In many ways this album treads the ground between those efforts and the band’s ’90s work. There is a more country-rock bent and less big riffing.

It is all very competent, but I don’t feel the energy of their early work. They seem to be going through the motions somewhat, although Robinson is a little more versatile vocally than on the ‘mid-career’ work. I’m also concerned by the god-bothering track towards the end. Insufficiently rock’n'roll in attitude there lads.

File under: Not as feisty as I’d like

So, after we flexed our huge muscles during our radio appearance and won our battle with 1560 The Game by shear intimidation. We at Fourth and Fifty have realized that the guys at 1560 are not all that bad and that we have more in common with them than we originally thought. Sexual partners/internet models aside, we look forward to our trivia showdown with the two ladies who were also on the receiving end of my rant. This didn’t have the cage-match ending we had all hoped for, but it will end in a game of trivia, a favorite pass-time of two writers here at FaF.

After only a month and a half of blogging, we have learned many things already that we didn’t know when we started.

1) Picking fights with people on radio is a good way to make friends

2) Definition #6 of the term War Paint. Thanks Raheel

3) That drunken claims of superior football knowledge might lead to humiliation on the radio months later.

4) That we would get more hits from people googling Brenda Warner, than anything else this site has produced. Combined.

5) That the internet is truly the land of porn and that sex sells (or generates hits). Not that this was something we didn’t know already, but its alarming when you see the numbers.

6) That people googled the following terms and landed on FaF: punch a koala, super bowel porn, incest boobies, dr pepper sexy, whore, brenda warner breasts, super bowl boobies, mustache porn, brenda warner whore, super bowel Jesus.

7) That if you approach anyone in the media, they are often willing to give you the time of day. (thanks to: Michael Murphy, Mark from the Buzz, Deadspin, Ken Hoffman, David Nuno, Raheel “Ramathorn” Ramzanali, and anyone else at 1560 I am forgetting)

More people google super bowel, rather than super bowl.  Wow, are people really that dumb?

9) “Write it your way and it’ll be successful. Don’t try to be Jim Rome or anything like that. You guys appear to be funny without being pissy, [...] Be yourselves.” -Michael Murphy

10) Don’t say anything in a blog that you aren’t willing to back up in person. Someone just might call you out on it.

11) Rehashing all the keywords like porn and boobies that bring you traffic is not always a bad thing.

-Pipez

I need to figure out a better photography system, because even though the lighting in my bathroom is great, I cannot get a decent shot of my own eyelids. Is that a thing, like not being able to kiss your own elbow? So I guess you’ll just have to take my word for it about the wonders these shadows do for my hazel eyes.

This is Salmon by Napoleon. My dear makeup artist friend R. put some on me back in the fall and we were both very impressed by how it brought out the green in my eyes (again, you’ll just have to trust me on this one). So I coveted it for a couple of months until Napoleon had a sick closing sale in December and I scored one for $10. (I may be frivolous, but I’m still very cheap.) I often wear it on its own, especially during the day. At night I usually add this:

NARS Sugarland duo. Well, I add the gold on the left. E. gave me this eyeshadow duo in my Christmas bag of goodies (speaking of which, there will be more perfume by people named Annick tomorrow!), and I got VERY excited. I never thought of myself as a gold eyeshadow person (are there gold eyeshadow people?), but the gold pigment is so subtle in this one that it really goes on as just a lovely warm shimmer. The lilac on the right is great for bringing out green eyes, too, but it requires a bit of patience (and eyelid primer) to apply. For the time being, the salmon + gold is my default evening look – it’s easy because they blend so well that I don’t even have to take particular care with the shading.

One of these days I’ll solve this photography issue and you can see for yourself. Or maybe you’ll just run into me on the street one day. I’ll be the one wearing the pink and gold eye shadow.

No, it’s not. Just that the protagonist from Skip Beat is pretty inspiring and motivating.

I haven’t blogged in eons. The simplest excuse is that work has thus sucked the marrow of life from my bones. The actual truth, I simply have no idea what to write. Or that I have too many things to want to write/talk about but simply have no time/inspiration/opportunity.

SKIP BEAT
This anime, girls -have- to watch. Why? Because it’s an almost typical Cinderella show except that there’s no fairygodmother and her success is all due to her hardwork and determination. Kyoko Mogami has been spurned by love. Her idol, dream-man/husband Shou, is a famous performer desired by thousands and yet sees her as nothing more than a maid. She cooks and cleans and works her butt off to pay the rent for his extremely expensive apartment, of which he only comes back to pick up a fresh change of clothes. Jerk. She eavesdropped on a conversation he had with his manager and found out that he was only exploiting her. Kyoko’s revenge is to become a rival artiste, be popular and in turn, kick Shou off his high seat. She joins the rival entertainment company but is kicked out of the auditions because of her inability to love. Or express it. Whichever. The girl has guts and still perseveres in getting in. The director of the company, LME (that’s the name of the company, not the director himself because I can’t remember his name), decides to take her in but puts her under a new division in the company called “Love Me”. Basically, Kyoko needs to learn how to love and for others to love her.

It’s riveting. I didn’t think I was so hooked till I looked at the clock and realised I was already halfway through the series. It’s on-going by the way. Kyoko has got a really strong character, something of which she doesn’t realise at all. Her scary, weird and offhand bits are so realistic and likeable that you can’t help but be pulled and drawn to her, like how so many other supporting characters have, sub-consciously. What drew me in the most was the way she handled things and turned misfortune to work in her favour. Her hardwork and determination in getting things done despite the odds stacked against her is just. Whoa. The girl doesn’t realise it, but she has an innate talent. She can act, drawing sub-consciously from past experiences. Not all she welcomes though, for some reminds her of Shou and the sacrifices she’s made.

She’s not perfect. She doesn’t live in a beautiful world filled with sparkly things and smiling faces. In fact, her world pretty much reflects the reality of so many other girls and women I’ve known.

It’s definitely a feel-good anime. Though you’d watch it even when you’re not feeling down.

***

What’s frustrating is that you give people explicitly clear instructions with regards to something and yet they’re all half fcuk about it even as they claim to be ‘really interested’ and ‘keen’. At the very least, do what I ask, make the effort because I don’t have all the time in the world to check out the stupid links. I ask for something that’s simple and concise so that’s it’s easier not just for me, but for the people I’m proposing to. Why do all have to be so friggin lazy?

Anyway, here’s some pictures so this isn’t so text-heavy. Evidence of how bad and crappy I look in the morning followed by the wonders of war-paint and contact lenses. Wearing the violet ones today. Just Sunday, mom helped to pay for my green, grey and brown ones. I’m paying her back of course! All FreshKon, they had a promotion where you buy two and get one free! It ended on Sunday though so i’ll have to ration my lenses very wisely till the next promotion comes about.

[update: pictures!]

Suppose violet contacts don't really suit me that well.

Here’s a video I found titled: “Philosophy 101 Taught by the Joker”.

From the first time I watched”The Dark Knight” I had this interesting feeling when watching the scenes that included the character of the Joker. I’ve never seen the Joker potrayed in such a dynamic and expressive manner. It was a revolutionary acting job on the part of Heath Ledger in my mind, and will  stay burned in my memory for years to come. But besides all of the great acting, I believe I’m not alone when I say I saw something deeper.

If you check my philosophy section you will find my post, “Grant’s Ultimate Philosophy for Living”. I was so inspired by the character of the Joker in TDK because it seems to match so much of what I outlined and illustrated in that article. The Joker was the happiest character throughout the movie, while everyone else was busy being too serious to enjoy life. The Batman wanted to do something but couldn’t because he couldn’t bring himself to kill. The mob, as lawless as they were, still couldn’t do anything they wanted. They were constrained by their fear of the Batman. The authorites were their usual selves, trying but still failing miserably in the long run. Really the only person having a good time was the Joker. Even when it seemed he might die he was laughing continually.

If you take a look at all the Joker’s monologues throughout the movie, you also see a trend of a deeper philosophy which I seem to have subscribed to.
I’d be interested to hear a[stumbles out of wrecked truck]

Just to quote a few from the movie:

[stumbles out of wrecked truck]
The Joker Speaking to Batman: “Come on, I want you to do it, I want you to do it. Come on, hit me. *Hit me!*”

The Joker: “The only sensible way to live in this world is without rules”

The Joker: “You have nothing, nothing to threaten me with. Nothing to do with all your strength”

The Joker: “Don’t talk like one of them. You’re not! Even if you’d like to be. To them, you’re just a freak, like me! They need you right now, but when they don’t, they’ll cast you out, like a leper! You see, their morals, their code, it’s a bad joke. Dropped at the first sign of trouble. They’re only as good as the world allows them to be. I’ll show you. When the chips are down, these… these civilized people, they’ll eat each other. See, I’m not a monster. I’m just ahead of the curve….”
“You have all these rules, and you think they’ll save you.”

And the longest monologue, but one of the most interesting parts:

The Joker: “Do I really look like a man with a plan, Harvey? I don’t have a plan. The mob has plans, the cops have plans. you know what I am, Harvey? I’m a dog chasing cars. I wouldn’t know what to do with one if I caught one. I just DO things. I’m a wrench in the gears. I HATE plans. Yours, theirs, everyone’s. Maroni has plans, Gordon has plans. Schemers trying to control their worlds. I am not a schemer. I show schemers how pathetic their attempts to control things really are. So when I say that what happened to you and your girlfriend wasn’t personal, you know I’M telling the truth”*Gives Dent Gun*”It’s a schemer who put you where you are. You were a schemer. You had plans. Look where it got you. I just did what I do best-I took your plan and turned it on itself. Look what I have done to this city with a few drums of gas and a couple bullets. Nobody panics when the expected people got killed. Nobody panics when things go according to plan, even if the plans are horrifying. If I tell the press that tomorrow a gangbanger will get shot, or a truckload of soldiers will get blown up, nobody panics. But when I say one little old mayor will die, everyone loses their minds!! Introduce a little anarchy, you upset the established order, and everything becomes chaos. I AM AN AGENT OF CHAOS. And you know the thing about chaos, Harvey. It’s fair”

So yes, I’d be interested in anyone else’s thoughts on this.

How about another caption contest?  Okay?  Here we go.  What’s going on here?

(To see the other caption contests, click on the “Say What?” category in the sidebar.)

Is Aubrey O’Day being misjudged? After reading a 3 page interview about her life, I would definitely say No!

Aubrey O’Day, former member of Danity Kane, sits down with Complex magazine to dispel rumors of her being dumb, a whore and a party girl.

Here’s a few of her quotes from that interview:

If you can believe it, Aubrey doesn’t mind being called names!

Aubrey O’Day: If I have to be ridiculed and called a whore and the party animal and the dumb girl for the rest of my career, I’m OK with that. Because I love who I am. You’re going to have to interpret me however you’re going to interpret me.

And she talks about how people think that she’s a player. Although, she claims that she has only slept with the guys that she has called her “boyfriend”.

Aubrey O’Day: Totally, and somebody that has sex a lot, too. Honey, I’d be in a much better mood right now. [Laughs.] Definitely misconceptions. I’ve only been with, um…my boyfriends.

Uh-huh. I believe that she once talked about having several boyfriends at once?

She also talks about how she never dated Diddy because he is not her type.

Aubrey O’Day: I just don’t feel the need to respond to it at all. People are usually sensitive to things when they’re true, and they feel like people are exposing them. It’s ridiculous. And trust me, of all the things that I’m attracted to in a man, Diddy is none of those things. I run my career, I don’t depend on anyone else to make me hot.

Later she goes on to talk about a conversation with Jenna Jameson and having sex while on your period.

Aubrey O’Day: Yeah. There was some new guy I was dating, and it was the first time we were going to go there, and he was weird about it. So I ask Jenna for advice and she’s like, “Honey, it’s just a little war paint, who cares?”

Ugh! Aubrey, you nasty. Do you really need to tell the world all your business?

Please check out the pictures and read the complete interview here. It’s something else!

*(Warning: Not for the prudish or those with weak stomachs!)

source

artist: the city and horses

song title: war paint

written & recorded: 9/9/08

play: War Paint

lyrics:

I’mma wear war paint
From now on I ain’t
Gonna wear nothing but
War paint

To the grocery store
And construction site
The colors on my face
Will be bright, bright, bright

I’mma wear war paint
From now on I ain’t
Gonna wear nothing but
War paint

To the sandy beach
And library
The colors on my face
Will be scary

I’mma wear war paint
From now on I ain’t
Gonna wear nothing but
War paint

Despre cele doua “regine” ale frumusetii, Helena Rubinstein si Elizabeth Arden citisem cateva materiale cu mult timp in urma. Astazi Fashion Digest descopera un articol despre cele doua femei care au scris istorie in industria cosmeticelor… aparent dar doar aparent interesant.

Ca sa o luam cu inceputul, Fashion Digest nu stie sigur cine este autorul de drept al articolului aparut pe fashionandbeauty.ro… Irina Markovitz sau Octavian Coifan??? Click pe poza pentru full view.

In al doilea rand, oricare dintre cei doi ar fi autorul acestei minunate traduceri din Herald Tribune (un articol aparut in 2003) este bine de stiut faptul ca nici dupa ce am aratat data trecuta ca este bine cand traduci sa mentionezi de unde ai tradus/copiat/adaptat nu sa iti pui numele pe un material care nu este produsul tau original si creativ… nu se tine cont de acest lucru catusi de putin.

Asa cum in print mai ai sansa de a gasi articole din reviste glossy celebre vechi de cativa ani buni, pe care cititoarele le iau de bune iar autoarele articolelor respective le traduc groso modo, asa si in online poti gasi articole frumoase ce-i drept, cum este si cel publicat in fashionandbeauty.ro dar care este tradus dupa un alt articol (pana si titlul!!!) din Herald Tribune.

Articol fashionandbeauty.ro:

“Elizabeth Arden era pasionata de roz si innebunita de caii de curse. Absolut oricine din lumea curselor de cai vorbea despre ea cu imensa admiratie. Unul din marile ei parfumuri, succes in SUA, purta numele calului favorit, Blue Grass. Asistentele ei purtau panglici rozalii, aproape juvenile, in spatele celebrei usi rosii de pe Fifth Avenue (Red Door, simbol al casei) dar acestea ascundea o vointa de otel a unei femei fara copii care sacrifica fara mila barbati si angajati.

Helena Rubinstein era innebunita dupa arta si bijuterii. Rubinele pe care si le-a adus dupa o vizita in India erau cadoul pe care si-l facuse pentru a tempera furia si reconcilierea a 25 de ani de casatorie cu primul barbat - intelectual, snob si in final infidel. Zgarcenia ei fata de angajati nu poate fi egalata decat de neglijenta grandioasa cu care isi trata cei 2 baieti.

Helena Rubinstein a murit in 1965, la virsta de 92 de ani, lasand in urma o impresionanta colectie de bijuterii si arta africana prin care demonstra un gust puternic pentru arta moderna, dar si un spirit grandios de shopping.

Elizabeth Arden a murit in 1966, la virsta de 88 de ani, machiata si aranjata in voaluri roz concepute de Oscar de la Renta, mai tinarul ei designer.  Probabil triumful ei final a fost atunci cind s-a dat jos din limuzina personala pe Fifth Avenue pentru a varsa lacrimi in fata cladirii Rubinstein inainte de plecarea definitiva a rivalei. “Saraca Helena”, afirma ea pe un ton trist, tradat doar de ochii triumfatori.  La doar un an, istoria avea sa se repete cind, la inmormantarea sa a aparut Estée Lauder, investmintata in negru dar stralucind de diamante, pentru a anunta presei ca o minunata era tocmai a apus si ca a ramas doar ea pentru a duce mai departe traditia frumusetii. A spus-o cu zambetul pe buze, iar azi, peste 40 de ani imperiul Lauder este cel mai puternic din industria frumusetii.”

Articol Herald Tribune:

“Arden’s passions were the color pink and horses (although probably not in that order). The girly pink ribbons that her assistants wore, behind the famous red door on Fifth Avenue in New York, masked a woman with a will of steel, who emasculated husbands and employees in equal measure.

Woodhead, a former fashion publicist, who has lived with her larger-than-life subjects for four years, warmed first to Rubinstein for her lively character and enthusiasm for art and jewels. (The rubies Madame amassed on visits to India she called “quarrel jewels,” bought to assuage the “rage and reconciliation” in 25 years married to her bookish, snobbish and terminally unfaithful first husband, Edward Titus.) But Rubinstein’s meanness to her staff and, especially, her grandiose neglect of her two sons, turned the author off.

Rubinstein died in 1965 at age 92, leaving an extraordinary collection of jewelry and of African art, showing her modernist taste and shopping on a heroic scale. Arden followed in 1966, age 88, laid out in full makeup and pink ruffles by Oscar de la Renta, whom she had tapped to design the Arden collection. Her final triumph had been to toddle down Fifth Avenue, forsaking her habitual limousine, in order to weep crocodile tears in front of Rubinstein’s limestone building over the final departure of her rival.

In a neat turn of events, beauty’s heir-apparent, Estee Lauder, appeared at Arden’s funeral, diamonds sparkling on mourning black, to announce to the assembled press, “A great era has passed, leaving just us to carry on the fine tradition that Elizabeth leaves behind her.”

A… si inca ceva, cartea care a inspirat articolul original si la care se face referire (referire care bineinteles in articolul de pe fashionandbeauty.ro a fost omisa cu buna stiinta) se numeste “War Paint: Madame Helena Rubinstein and Miss Elizabeth Arden, Their Lives, Their Times, Their Rivalry” si este scrisa de Lindy Woodhead. V-o recomand, este foarte interesanta. Poate va mai “inspira” vreun articol.

Yo creo que conozco a Black Crowes desde que sacaron aquel “Shake Your Money Maker”, su primer disco, y siempre los he escuchado, disfrutando de su rock sureño que tan descaradamente influyó en la creación de los actualmente fuera del tiesto “M-Clan” (…se te hecha de menos Santiago).

Pero no ha sido hasta “War paint“, su último disco recién salido del sur de los U.S.A., cuando me han salvado la vida. El disco me ha reconciliado con el rock mas auténtico, y encima ahora van acompañados de uno de los guitarras de blues-rock que mas me gustan, Luther Dickinson, integrante de los “North MIssissippi All Stars“, otro grupazo nominado con su primer disco al Grammy.

Volviendo a “War Paint”, su primer single es simplemente adictivo, y por lo menos a mi me levanta la moral.

Me encanta el diseño de su web. Saludos rockeros.

!!!

Thanks to everyone who came out (in the freezing cold) to play Capture the Flag! Special Events and HERO Events combined into one team and ended up winning the whole thing! Everyone had a great time and was extremely enthusiastic about it (Shout out to the Residence Halls committee for whipping out the war paint…)!

Also, totals from the percentage night at Shane’s are not in yet, but the line was out to the parking lot the entire time! Thanks again!

The ‘War Paint’ Exhibition opened today at Lazarides. With Work which is inspired from the Unkle album, ”War Stories”

Work from Robert Del Naja, Warren Du Preez, Nick Thornton Jones, Will Bank Head, Ben Drury which inspire the ‘War Stories’album artwork.

The work is very dark and eerie. should definitely  go see.
Price: zilch!

The Exhibition is on from 25th march to 25th April
11am-7pm

Lazarides
Ground Floor
125 Charing Cross Road
London
WC2 OEWMore Pictures after the Jump

 “I want to write a stinker to AVON.”

“Yes, I think it’s important you do. Please have them understand that due to the fast disappearing range of their products, the one’s that women/men absolutely adore, very soon, the image of the AVON lady will be that of a BAG lady. Because that’s how people will treat you if they saw you lurking around their property, harking your fares. The AVON lady will become the new monument for pigeons to shit on, cause that’s what happens to BAG ladies – they get shat on by pigeons.”

This mutual exchange of pleasantries was a slice of dialogue between mum and I.

My first tryst with makeup has perhaps been documented – I’m pretty certain. I was completely in awe of my mum when I was younger. She was (and surprisingly still is) the most achingly beautiful woman I’d seen (she’d been asked by retail store MACY’S to model for them while shopping for my clothes there). Nobody looked or suited the word ‘ravishing’. Mum did. And it showed.

Mum’s attention to detail and style is a scorcher. Actually, she’s a scorcher. Or was. She has since lost interest in the way she looks and in comparison with Dad, weathered over the years. Mainly because she can’t get over the way I do! Or don’t.

I’ve been toying with the idea of including her picture here.

Mum’s the only Nefertiti I’ve known. Her attention to colours, contours, shapes, outline was staggering in its detailing and young women living in and around the vicinity would ensure they came home before a big occasion so mum could oversee the bewitch part of it.

Her romance with war paint still continues though. She doesn’t use a lot of it, but she’s constantly watching shows on the telly that talk about and describe new trends and products now available. So my love for the muted and neat probably stems from her. Not that a lot of it is evident in the way I dress.

Dad and I were learning to make decorative word documents – what with the festive season round the corner. Of course, we didn’t really get to do very much because I was quite present as his teacher; but he was busy supervising the sanding down of my boudoir.

I quite surprised our maid today by asking her if she’d have a cup of tea. I think I saw her jump a little. She doesn’t expect the nicety especially since I hardly ever speak with her. She talks too much. Not that I’m around to hear much of it, given that any waking hour is spent at the office.

The office, incidentally, is going through a tumultuous change of sorts. The promotions just came through and there were, oh…a few hiccups. Chuckle. We’re looking for a paradigm shift at work. I wonder if it’ll fit me, this new paradigm shift. One size fits all paradigm shift. Don’t know of there’re too many of those floating around.

Fingers on the neck of a guitar

Fingers plucking guitar strings

Fingers on a piano keyboard

Fingers on a computer keyboard

Fingers grasping a guitar pick

Fingers rubbing a cat, or a bunch of them, and an occasional dog

Fingers rolling a cigarette

Fingers writing in a journal

Fingers holding a loved one’s hand

Fingers on the handlebars of an orange bicycle

Fingers pulling money out of a wallet

Fingers brushing gravel away from an injured face

Fingers clawing at water without knowing which way is up

Fingers opening a can of beer

Fingers scraping the sky in an effort to stay put

Fingers turning the pages of a book

Fingers clutching a pen while writing down private thoughts

Fingers wrapped around a mug of strong, hot coffee

Fingers tenderly steering a 1968 Dodge Dart filled with friends

Fingers punching the “seek” button on a car radio

Fingers pointing at an injustice

Fingers letting go

Fingers manipulating the controls of a video game

Fingers writing a new poem

Fingers opening a tall, cold can of Rock Star

Fingers lighting a match, or an often-misplaced lighter

Fingers pounding on drums

Fingers tying beads into dreadlocks

Fingers stirring tofu and veggies

Fingers painting a bedroom floor black with orange stripes

Fingers washing dishes from a night of too much fun

Fingers brushing the hair from a young woman’s face

Fingers holding an aunt’s Martin for the first time

Fingers plugging in the cable to a tube amplifier built before the fingers were born

Fingers lighting fireworks in the middle of the street

Fingers watering plants

Fingers filling a pipe

Fingers sorting through old photos, realizing they were happy fingers at one time

Fingers holding a paint brush loaded with blue acrylic paint

Fingers cutting out pictures for a collage

Fingers weaving a dream circle

Fingers taking a self-portrait with any old camera that’s nearby

Fingers applying war paint

Fingers holding a jug of milk to guzzle the last drops, only to place the carton back in the fridge, empty

Fingers making nachos, and placing them in the oven

Fingers displacing Mom’s CD from the CD player in the car

Fingers scooping popcorn into a bag at the local theater

Fingers holding a broom, and pushing a trash can

Fingers working a cash register

Fingers rubbing a face to clear the air from the night before

Fingers stroking a grandmother’s arm when she is sick

Fingers shaking hands in a new greeting

Fingers carrying furniture and paintings during a friend’s move

Fingers pinching the other hand to make sure this is not a dream

Fingers carving Halloween pumpkins

Fingers holding a big brother’s hand, feeling little and scared

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

When Owen and I were terribly homesick after moving to San Diego, and wanted desperately to move back to Sonoma County, we drove the freeways and listened to Hotel California.  We felt lonely and sad, but hopeful we would get lost, and find something new, something interesting, and something that would give us a clue as to how to find our way home.  We always did.

Song for the night:  Hotel California, Eagles

http://youtube.com/watch?v=fJt86UqHtX8&mode=related&search=