Archive for March, 2001

kitty porn

As a cat lover, I’m glad to see that someone is finally doing something about a problem which, despite not receiving a great deal of coverage in the mainstram press, is nonetheless a blight on civilized society and, to be quite frank, an international disgrace. Yep, the clampdown on kitty porn starts here.

noodle wrestling

Patrons were charged $3 to watch bikini-clad girls as young as 13 wrestle in applesauce, syrup and noodles in a windowless backroom, authorities said.” Jeez, what is it with the news today?

hopoate anus

“Controversial Wests Tigers winger John Hopoate has been suspended for 12 weeks after being found guilty by the NRL Judiciary of poking his fingers up the anuses of three North Queensland players.” Wow. Rugby League really is a game for men.

jackass

I’ve been watching MTV’s Jackass all week, and while it might not be as idiotic as the original pranksters at Camp Kill Yourself, it does set a new standard for gloriously moronic television. What will happen next is that the UK tabloids will find an example or two of poor kids who manage to injure themselves by attempting to replicate the show’s stunts, and all the usual hand-wringing dispair about the apalling influence of television on today’s youth will follow. And no-one will mention the fact that some kids are idiots and, being idiots, are always prone to doing idiotic things, whatever they might watch on TV.

to the polls

For those of you who grew heartily sick of all the online coverage that last year’s American election debacle generated, it’s nice to think that the UK version is only just around the corner and, if the current climate is anything to go by, our own version is likely to be equally shambolic. Still, if anyone wishes to take part in the debate, there’s probably no better place to start than tothepolls, which describes itself as a “Balanced News Filter for the UK General Election.” Balanced? Does that mean that some of us will have to play Devil’s Advocate and pretend to be Tory?

If anyone is interested, blogjam is off to join the No Candidate Deserves My Vote party, although I’m a little concerned that their campaign strategy may not be as well planned as it should be if their party emblems are indicative of their overall approach.

driver 23

Cleveland is primarily concerned with one thing: his insufferably bad music. He can’t really sing, and he “cat howls,” as one band member puts it, “outside of his range” to comic effect. In this regard, the film is like This Is Spinal Tap, only Driver 23 is a real documentary, and is, therefore, far more compelling.” Boy, do I need to see this film. Further investigation leads to a rather odd interview with director Rolf Belgum.

riothero quits

It seems that boy wonder Riothero is calling it a day, but you can be fairly sure he’ll be back. In other blogging news, April Joy has emailed me to ask if I’d link to to her site. What is is with these girls? Do they think I’m a soft touch? I’m sorry April, but I’m not bending over backwards for anyone. Meanwhile Anja, whom I mentioned on Sunday, wrote a nice little note saying “Thanks for the link. Now get me George Clooney and I will be your friend forever and kill people who annoy you. No. Really.” Which is all very nice, Anja. But what if it’s George Clooney I want killed?

Happy Birthday Freaky Trigger

Freaky Trigger is two years old. For those who don’t know, the Trigger and it’s sister blog New York London Paris Music are home to what I consider to be just about the best music writing on the web. Now writing about music is a pretty meaningless occupation – great music (and there’s really no point in discussing any other type) is something that can be described, but I don’t really think it can be dissected, analysed or examined to try and weed out any meaning or gain an insight into the mind of the author. If you were to try and read every piece of text written about Pet Sounds you’d die of old age before nearing completion, whereas it takes just 40 minutes to listen to the bugger and decide whether it’s any good or not. Which is the only thing that matters in the end. Good music should make you feel something emotionally, but it’s a mistake to think that it means anything. Treating music like a science is like treating beauty the same way. Marylin Monroe was obviously a beautiful woman, but no-one would attempt to explain the fact by examining the geography of her face.

Having said all that, I read Freaky Trigger and NYPLM daily because I love good music and I love good writing, and you’ll find both there in plentiful supply. To celebrate it’s second anniversary, site curator Tom Ewing has asked a host of talented writers to contribute their thoughts on records they feel deserve more attention. The downside? He asked me as well, and I accepted, which kinda devalues my earlier point completely. But what the hell, go and read everyone else’s pieces. They’re much better.