Annals of Americus

The Last Night Of The Year

Matthew Newton — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 16:38:38 +0000

My uncle used to refer to New Year's Eve as amateur night. That was because, well, he was a high-functioning alcoholic, and most social drinkers are not as well-versed in the dubious art of driving under the influence.

The Brilliance and Racism of Soul Man

Douglas Haddow — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 14:02:28 +0000

Can we start a serious discussion on how inadvertently brilliant and terribly racist this film is?

In the Tunnels Beneath Las Vegas

Matthew Newton — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 04:10:10 +0000

Back in November 2010, Austin Hargrave wrote about his experience photographing the homeless who live in the tunnels beneath Las Vegas. His photographs appeared in Matthew O'Brien's book, Beneath the Neon, which documents the people who live (for a variety of reasons) in the drainage tunnels beneath the city. With homelessness numbers in Las Vegas tripling since 2009, it makes you wonder if the tunnels have seen an influx of residents in the last year.

David Lyle: This Ends Here

Matthew Newton — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 21:32:38 +0000

Last year I kept seeing this image (pictured) pop up all over Tumblr, but never with any attribution. Somewhere along the line, though I don't remember when or how, I learned that photographer turned painter David Lyle was responsible.

Alice Cooper and the ‘Chicken Incident’ of 1969

Matthew Newton — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 20:38:16 +0000

After an unrehearsed stage routine involving Cooper and a live chicken garnered attention from the press, the band decided to capitalize on tabloid sensationalism, creating in the process a new subgenre, shock rock. Cooper claims that the infamous 'Chicken Incident', which took place at the Toronto Rock and Roll Revival concert in September 1969, was in fact an accident.

Public Service: Preaching The Evils Of Comic Books

Matthew Newton — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 21:13:51 +0000

When I was a boy and played with the gang we did a lot of things. We roasted potatoes and went on expeditions, we tipped over garbage cans now and then, we wrote nasty remarks about the teacher on the sidewalk. We never spent our afternoons like this, reading.

Augmented Reality: June 20th, New York City

William Ball — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 17:47:41 +0000

A dispatch from the 'uncanny valley'.

The first time I ever actually saw augmented reality, I was living in Albany, NY. My friend loaded LAYAR onto his phone and we walked around our neighborhood, watching real estate data instantiate alongside buildings.

Larry Carroll On The Weight Of Explicit Imagery

Matthew Newton — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 15:12:22 +0000

Several years back I attempted to write about the work of painter Larry Carroll, known best for his two-decade collaboration with Slayer, painting every album cover from Reign In Blood to Christ Illusion. At the time, I could find little information about Carroll, and his work was only briefly covered in a piece I wrote for Swindle back in 2005.

#Occupy As Live Action Role-Playing

William Ball — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 16:13:58 +0000

We have so much knowledge, so many skills, maybe too much time and energy. Our knowledge is widely distributed and too easily evaporates into the cloud, but we have more of it than ever. We may have fewer skills than past societies (how many cobblers are left?), but there are more of us and a surprising diversity of interest between.

The Giant Gila Monster vs. Glenn Danzig

Matthew Newton — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 16:12:18 +0000

The font of the movie’s title on promotional posters has been copied on most albums and associated promotional materials released by Glenn Danzig’s musical acts Samhain and Danzig.