Still Got Back

Has any rap tune had such a long and storied existence as "Baby Got Back" by Sir Mixalot? Now a decade and a half old, it has been reinterpreted as a gentle folky song (by Jonathan Coulton), as a Las Vegas-style crooner number (by Richard Cheese), and as a Gilbert & Sullivan musical ditty. Reading a Latin translation reveals its similarities to the epigrams of Martial. And it remains the only tune contain the brilliant triple rhyme of "Honda," "Fonda," and "anaconda."

A brush with fame: Or, Chutzpah: not just for Jews anymore!

So MizC is a big fancy lawyer up in the wilds of Michigan, and as such, frequently gets tickets to fun events. Last night, she went to see one of my musical crushes in concert; thought she was adorable; and, being in a state of holy matrimony herself, took matters into her own hands on my behalf.

She marches up to MC and smiles big. "Hi! I bet you hear this all the time -"

MC grins and interrupts – "That I look kind of like Tori Amos?"

MizC: "Er. No – but my best friend is a nice Jewish girl who lives near you in New York, and I am going to give you her number, and you should call her."

MC: "Oh! No – actually, I don’t get that all the time." ::takes number, bemused:: "Thank you."

Despite KH’s Theory of the Relative Approachability of Indie Musicians, which once resulted in us nearly going drinking with half of Antigone Rising, I highly doubt she will call – but man, kids, that MizC is guts on a stick, and I do love her.

A shout-out to the musically inclined

So superfun folk band We’re About 9 is playing a house party (totally coincidentally, the house of kgaard’s sister-in-law), and Team Band Camp has reservations! This Saturday, La Gringa and GolfPunk and I are going to see them play – and word on the street is that my future bride frequently shows up to these concerts. You can watch me hit on her, which in true Book Stud style means staying on the exact opposite side of the room, moving as necessary to maintain this distance, and being stricken absolutely silent. It’s a hilarious sight, dahlinks.

I have one extra reservation, as annElise can’t make it. Anybody want to go? Kensington, 7PM on 4/14, $15. Most likely beer afterwards, as we are just those sorts of girls.

As an act of charity toward those of y’all whose ears were maimed listening to tonight’s American Idol…

Song of the Day was in Important Meetings all day, and will return tomorrow.

In the meantime, and – as an act of kindness, goodwill and charity to all y’all out there in the cyber-sphere whose ears were mercilessly maimed and scarred for life by the butchering of two of La Gringa’s absolute favorite songs ever in the history of the world on this evening’s episode of American Idol, La Gringa presents you with THE ORIGINAL and NEVER-TO-BE-FUCKED-WITH versions of No Doubt’s "Don’t Speak" (in both the original and the uber-sexy acoustic version) and The Pretender’s "I’ll Stand By You."*

Note to Gina, contestant on American Idol:
Look, hon – you’re cute as hell. The pink stripes in your jet black hair and the goth boots with four-inch-heels are a real turn-on for La Gringa. We would probably even sleep with you without alcohol being involved. That being said…if you EVER again mess with a Chrissie Hynde song on national television, La Gringa will personally hunt you down and shove those hot thigh-high leather boots right up your booty-licious little ass. You hear me?

* Apologies to Book Stud for the extreme run-on sentence. We will endeavor to never do that again.

Remember how much I heart OK Go?

Bear has put all their best videos together in one place.

No doubt you’ve seen the famous "Here It Goes Again" Treadmill Dance one already, but "Do What You Want" is just amazing.

GAWD, I just LOVE them.

Again with the Nineties Nostalgia

Giants of what was known as ’shoegazing’ music in the UK (and ‘dreampop’ in the US, though I have no memory of this), Lush caught the ear of Robin Guthrie of the Cocteu Twins early in their recording career and benefitted from Guthrie’s production of several subsequent singles and albums. You can hear the Guthrie influence on Lush’s terrific singles Sweetness and Light and Deluxe off of their 1990 album Gala. Going in a different direction for their fourth UK record Lovelife in 1996, they scored their biggest success on the UK charts and in US sales with the single Ladykillers, a song that killed any hope among UK males of picking up frontwomen Miki Berenyi and Emma Anderson in a pub.
Lush stands out for its connections to a strange array of other people and groups. Lead vocalist  Berenyi and drummer Chris Acland were both related to British nobility, although you wouldn’t know it. Berenyi’s mother Yasuko Nagazumi was a cast member on Space: 1999. Jarvis Cocker of Pulp performed on one of Lush’s later tracks. And prior to forming Lush, the members of the band had served in the line-ups of many, many other groups that no one’s ever heard of, including I-Goat, Fuhrer Five, The Lillies, Panik, The Infection, A Touch of Hysteria, Felt, The Servants, and Biff Bang Pow.
Lush disbanded in 1998; Berenyi continues to record with Guthrie acts such as Flat7, and Anderson teamed up with vocalist Lisa O’Neill to form a duo called Sing-Sing–their two singles Feels Like Summer and Lover are worth checking out.

She shoots she SCORES!

La Gringa has managed to find out that the delectable Amy Winehouse is coming back to NY on March 13th at the Bowery Ballroom!!! She and Soundgrrl and I are going; please do join us if you’re free, tickets went on sale today.

Wheee!

(Her song "I’m No Good" is the free download on iTunes this week, btw.)

ANOTHER NINETIES NOSTALGIA MOMENT

After Echobelly, the band whose videos I’ve most wanted to catch up on (thanks, YouTube!) is Sleeper. The 90s group, fronted by the outspoken Louise Wener, put out at least three albums from ‘95 to ‘97–Smart, The It Girl, and Pleased to Meet You, all worth picking up. Having now seen vids from all three, I’m convinced that one of the reasons they only lasted a few years and never won more fans here in the States was that this band never had great videos–even though they had a striking lead singer. Wener not only knew her way around a guitar, she also figured out along the way how to keep the cameras pointed at her. You can see it in the videos, the transformation from another grunge sylph of the post-Nirvana years to a sort of upper-class-art-school-type- flirting-with-someone-she-will- never-allow-to-touch-her in videos for the later songs. The best of that slicker bunch is probably Nice Guy Eddie–at least Lou is in every shot  (What Do I Do Now? ain’t to bad on that score either). She was also famous, from what I can gather, for always indulging any music journalist who approached her with  insults of  fellow britpop bands–Oasis, say, or Pulp (I wish I could find some of her withering put-downs on line). The failure of Pleased to Meet You was a shame, since the album featured one of the band’s best singles, She’s A Good Girl. Again, terrific song, crap video. Wener exited the scene complaining, and currently works as a novelist. And as if to prove an earlier thesis about what is cool and what is not, she is indeed Jewish.

Upcoming shows in NYC

Yeah, we haven’t done this in a while so we thought it was about time. Some outstanding winter shows coming up hereabouts in New York City. (Those of y’all outside of New York City should click on the links provided to find a good show near your own hometown.) Therefore, and in no particular order at all, we present:

GIRLYMAN
Joe’s Pub
Tuesday, Dec. 12th @ 11:30 PM
(Tickets $18)

ERIN MCKEOWN
Joe’s Pub
Tuesday, Jan. 23rd @ 7:30 PM
Wednesday, Jan. 24th @ 9:30 PM
CD Release Party
(Tickets $20)

MICHELLE SHOCKED
Joe’s Pub
Sunday, Dec. 3rd @ 7:00 PM
(Tickets $30)

DAR WILLIAMS
Joe’s Pub
Saturday, Jan. 20th @ 6:30 PM

(Tickets $25)

MELISSA FERRICK

Bowery Ballroom
Monday, Dec. 4th @ 7:00 PM

(Tickets $18)

PATTI SMITH

Bowery Ballroom
Friday, Dec. 29th @ 8:00 PM ($40)
Saturday, Dec. 30th @ 8:00 PM ($40)
Sunday, Dec. 31st @ 9:00 PM ($55)

GARRISON STARR

The Living Room
Monday, Dec. 18th @ 8:00 PM
Wednesday, Dec. 20th @ 8:00 PM
(Tickets not announced yet, but you know it’ll be stupid cheap)

RACHAEL SAGE

Rockwood Music Hall
Wednesday, Dec. 27th @ 9:00 PM
(Free! Two drink minimum)

Just because…

This damned song has been stuck in my head for four days.

90s Nostalgia Moment

So what do I spend my YouTube hours watching?  Nowadays, it’s videos by UK bands that I found out about long after MTV stopped showing their stuff.  In the case of Echobelly, their mid-Nineties music videos fill that void that’s been eating away at me since, long ago, I began my still-fruitless search for a copy of their sophomore album ON.  The record, of which I only have a crappy cassette copy, boasted such great songs as King of the Kerb, I Can’t Imagine the World Without Me, Go Away and lesser numbers like Great Things, which somehow beat out their other singles to become their greatest hit.

Echobelly’s first album was Everyone’s Got One, featuring the terrific Insomniac, the video of which (I just found out) has Audrey Hepburn-channels-Debbie Harry frontwoman Sonya Madan sporting a line of greasepaint across the eyes in anticipation of Michael Stipe’s stage makeup choices.  After going their various ways and reassembling, Echobelly released the very worthy Gravity Pulls in 2004, selections of which can be heard on their MySpace page.

Check out their goods, and ask yourself why you never bought their CDs.  (Apologies to BookStud if you’ve previously picked any of these as your Song of the Day–no one likes repetition, because no one likes repetition.)

90s Nostalgia Moment

So what do I spend my YouTube hours watching?  Nowadays, it’s videos by UK bands that I found out about long after MTV stopped showing their stuff.  In the case of Echobelly, their mid-Nineties music videos fill that void that’s been eating away at me since, long ago, I began my still-fruitless search for a copy of their sophomore album ON.  The record, of which I only have a crappy cassette copy, boasted such great songs as King of the Kerb, I Can’t Imagine the World Without Me, Go Away and lesser numbers like Great Things, which somehow beat out their other singles to become their greatest hit.

Echobelly’s first album was Everyone’s Got One, featuring the terrific Insomniac, the video of which (I just found out) has Audrey Hepburn-channels-Debbie Harry frontwoman Sonya Madan sporting a line of greasepaint across the eyes in anticipation of Michael Stipe’s stage makeup choices.  After going their various ways and reassembling, Echobelly released the very worthy Gravity Pulls in 2004, selections of which can be heard on their MySpace page.

Check out their goods, and ask yourself why you never bought their CDs.  (Apologies to BookStud if you’ve previously picked any of these as your Song of the Day–no one likes repetition, because no one likes repetition.)

Upcoming Live Shows in NYC!!!

Cos La Gringa is bored and at home on yet another Friday night, we’ve compiled a list of some outstanding upcoming live shows that you New York City folks should know about:

Erin McKeown
Joe’s Pub
Tuesday, Sept. 26 @ 11:30 PM
(Tickets $20, and almost sold out)

Kris Delmhorst
The Living Room
Thursday, Sept. 28 @ 10:00 PM
(Tickets $10)

Chris Pureka
The Living Room
Tuesday, Oct. 3 @ 9:00 PM
(Tickets $7)

KT Tunstall
Webster Hall
Fri, Oct. 5 & Sat, Oct. 6 @ 6:30 PM
(Tickets $28)

Pamela Means
Rockwood Music Hall
Tuesday, Oct. 10 @ 8:00 PM

(Free show!!!)

Katie Sawicki
Rockwood Music Hall
Thursday, Oct. 12 @ 7:00 PM
(Free show!!!)

Ashleigh Flynn
The Living Room
Friday, Oct. 13 @ 9:00 PM
(Tickets $5)

Indigo Girls
Radio City Music Hall
Friday, Oct. 13 @ 8:00 PM
(Tickets $30 through Ticketmaster)

Joan Jett
Irving Plaza
Sunday, October 15 @ 9:00 PM

(Tickets $26)

Rachael Sage
Rockwood Music Hall
Tuesday, October 17 @ 9:00 PM

(Free show!!!)

Ani DiFranco
Beacon Theater
Saturday, Nov. 18 @ 8:00 PM

(Tickets $47 through Ticketmaster)

As usual, per our unemployed status, we are planning to hit the free shows. And we are probably going to cough up the dough for the Chris Pureka as it’s a CD release party for her new album Dryland. But if anyone’s interested in joining La Gringa at any of the, er, um, LESS EXPENSIVE shows, gizzus a holler, eh? It’s always more fun to go with someone! (Sloppy D? Sound Grrl? Nightgarden? You kids up for a show?)

Squishy happy bits of joy!

La Gringa has nothing of particular interest to write about yet we feel compelled to make our mark on this here piece of virtual real estate every now and again, if for no other reason than to reinforce our squatter’s rights to this corner of the blogosphere. So, in lieu of actually planting our esteemed La Gringa buttocks on the monitor to accomplish this feat of cyber-parking, we have decided instead to just list some things that are making us beam with joy this fine – if somewhat wet drizzly – day:

• The Night Watch by Sarah Waters shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize!
• This very lovely song – Bring on the Wonder by Susan Enan – that we heard playing over the closing credits of the TV show Bones last night. (Susan Enan’s playing a free show at the Rockwood Music Hall on the Lower East Side this Sunday night at 9:00. La Gringa’s going; gizzus a holler if you want to join us.)
• Yesterday’s mail, which included advance reading copies of Carnival by Elizabeth Bear (or, as she refers to it, her Big Gay Planet of the Amazon Women book) and Scar Night by Alan Campbell.
• First draft of Kameron Hurley’s most excellent manuscript God’s War. La Gringa is finding this novel difficult to put down. (Yes, we think it’s that good.) Dear editors of the world: This woman can WRITE! Please to be offering her a contract soon so she can stop flying to Indiana for work and subsequently making all of us suffer through her online descriptions of said trips.
• Also this Sunday: The Fifth Annual New York City International Pickle Day Festival, also on the Lower East Side. Be there! But leave your deli spears at home!

“If a girl wants to dance, a girl wants to dance.”

Does anyone else secretly love that new GAP advertisement that has Audrey Hepburn dancing to AC/DC’s Back in Black?

Here’s an extended version of that clip. I dare you to watch this and not get a gigantic shit-eating grin on your face. (Just so you can have a point of comparison, here’s a a clip of the original dance footage from Funny Face. 

And here’s a short video produced by the GAP on the creative process behind putting the spot together. It’s actually pretty cool!

(By the way, the GAP donated a buttload of money to Audrey Hepburn’s Children’s Fund in return for permission to use that footage from Funny Face.)