Episode #8 of of Arthur Radio definitely makes Visitation Rites’ universal internet heart sing. Ivy Meadows and Harry Painter shower you in an ecstatic medley of psychedelic dirges from all four corners of the planet. Special guest Robert Damore (aka Bobby Bouzouki) whispers some bittersweet nothings on his Bouzouki, and even takes the time to recount some of the narratives behind the rebetika (Greek folk songs) he plucks. Visitation Rites concludes the voyage with an ode to the past, present, and future of drone.
A tentative listening guide, straight from mobile writing desk of DJ Harry Painter:
“The sun is here and opens the curtains slowly! It brings the slow glowing dust! It springs the earth out of polar jail, the winds blow the desert sand to make for better traction. If you sit, it will make your hair look sexier! The tectonic plates are shifting all around us, their quakes make the planet spin faster, and change the pitch! If you jump, you can land in buttes, the plateaus, or the Isle of Cyros! Through our earth’s muzak, the winds blow Bobby Bouzouki up to the Arthur radio treehouse for a jaunt upon rebetika mountain. Happy trials!”
“Arthur Radio Voyage #8: The Bobby Bouzouki Episode”
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Plastic Crimewave is Steve Krakow, a visual artist, musician, writer, and all-around chronicler of all things psychedelic, retro, and futuristic. It’s hard to say what someone with such a diversity of talents is best known for, but I’ll take a crack and say that his occasionally produced Galactic Zoo Dossier magazine (eight issues in fifteen years) is at least partly responsible for his cult notoriety. Among its many particularities, this free-form art ‘zine is completely hand-lettered by Mr. Crimewave himself — no small feat considering that its page count usually runs into the triple digits. Each issue contains pithy think pieces, unusual readings of pop-cultural phenomena (i.e.. the psychedelic qualities of the Four Tops), long-form interviews, record reviews, and an accompanying CD. Galactic Zoo Dossier is an essential underground document; if you see it, buy it, and don’t think twice. (more…)
RANGERS “OUT PAST CURFEW” from OESB // FUTURE SOUND on Vimeo. Rangers rocks “walking pace” like a 32-year-old noise dude rocks his slightly protruding potbelly down Main Street, Northampton: upfront, proud, and center. Joe Knight’s new Surburban Tours l.p. is pretty much the perfect soundtrack for slowing to a snail pace in a sea full of power-walking lipstick execs — power-suit/white sneaker combos and all — and taking a moment to grin stupidly to yourself. It’s either pretty damn ironic or pretty damn appropriate that I rushed home last night to post this new video by Zahid Jiwah before all the other bloggers got to it, because this little masterpiece seems to be asking even Joe Knight himself to slow down. (more…)
“Elliot Sharp is a music writer. He is the founder of the blog Biomusicosophy, and has been a reader and supporter of Visitation Rites for some time. After we announced the music video project, he submitted the song “Lupton Pittman” from his solo project, Magic Treason. I must confess that I was a little nervous at first, considering how much support he has shown Visitation Rites, and how awful I would feel if I didn’t respond well to the music. As soon as I gave the song a play, however, I knew this wouldn’t be an issue at all. (more…)
Visitation Rites, Microphone Memory Emotion, and PIXELHORSE are TERRIBLY sorry for the all the cigarette butts, PBR cans, and falafel balls that were left behind in the stairwell of said loft building, but also TERRIBLY touched to have hosted some of New Jersey’s finest in a context they have all but outgrown. After watching them become an international success story, I got to see these vocational boys-next door in exactly the way they should be seen: at a house party, surrounded by friends and ear-to-ear grins on all sides, watching Seinfeld Season 3 on the overhead projector, and hearing the cops roll up just in time for the closing chord. (more…)
Something I’ve discovered in my 25 years on this planet is that when life begins to feel like a tilt-a-whirl that you can’t jump off, contemplating the possibility of life on other planets is a great way to shuttle back down to earth. Case in point: if you take a moment or two out of your day to consider the fact that somewhere, perhaps trillions of light-years away, there is another sentient creature sitting there wondering whether you exist, and if you in turn are thinking about him, then that swiftly approaching tax deadline or drunken romantic mishap really won’t seem all that important. You might even be able to say to yourself that in the grand scheme of things (and I’m talking the REALLY grand scheme of things), they don’t matter at all. After all, we should probably just be grateful that out of all the atoms in the solar system, the atoms inside our bodies just happen to have drifted into this here gravitational orb, and that the planet earth just happens to be endowed with a mysterious thing called life. Whatever that is. If you’d like to try this technique out sometime, Ivy Meadows, Harry Painter, and I recommend Arthur Radio Voyage #7 as a soundtrack. Just remember to bring your space goggles, and maybe some dehydrated ice-cream for a snack.
“Arthur Radio Voyage #7: Alien Receptor” (02.28.10)
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The ladies of PIXELHORSE, Microphone Memory Emotion, and Visitation Rites present you with an exclusive pre-SXSW house show this weekend. Alex Bleeker and the Freaks will be there, freakin’ out, playing first. Family Portrait will follow, kicking off their tour and playing with their recently restored, stellar lineup. Finally, there will be a suuuper special secret surprise guest performance*. (We’re so excited about this we could pee!) Come party with your fave bloguettes, bros and bands, and help fuel their trips down to Austin, TX for SXSW 2010 so thousands can benefit from their beautiful jams. (more…)
In case you were still scratching your head after all the ridiculously obvious hints we dropped, or you didn’t notice when 
