Tag Archives: Culture
In The Aftermath Of Unrest
Reflective essay on last week’s riots in London by Paul Bradshaw, writer and former editor/publisher of crucial (and sadly, defunct) British music magazine Straight No Chaser. Bradshaw examines the unrest through the lens of his own experience running a daytime project for unemployed youth in mid-1980s London, during the Broadwater Farm riots. I’d be lying if I said I totally…
El-P: “Drones Over BKLYN (Uncensored)”
Yesterday El-P, godfather of all things grimy in hip-hop, released “Drones Over BKLYN (Uncensored),” one of the tracks from Cancer For Cure, his forthcoming LP due out on Fat Possum Records early next year. The original version of the track was released through the 2011 Adult Swim Singles Program, which has become a strange and increasingly reliable place to hear…
When 3rd Bass Met Gilbert Gottfried
It appears that MC Serch and Pete Nice (3rd Bass) posed for this photo with Gilbert Gottfried sometime in the late 1980s/early 1990s. It happened in an office at DefJam, and there was a stapler on the desk and a wire coat hanger on the back of the door. The rest is history.
In The Land Of Plenty
American consumer culture and its consequences.
The documentation of American consumer culture is nothing new. But over the last 50 years, as urban blight gave way to suburban sprawl (and as the public witnessed that same trend nearly reverse itself), the study of such subject matter has strong emotional pull.
Looking For Fire In The Mountains Of Montana
In the photographic series Encountering Space: The Fire Lookouts Of Montana, “Pittsburgh-based photographer Tom Persinger photographed three men who spend their summers perched high atop peaks keeping watch over some of our nation’s most pristine places miles from the nearest road or modern convenience. Day and night they scan the horizon for curly gray wisps of smoke rising from…
When Riots And Freedom Are Used To Sell Jeans
As London burns and violence creeps north into Manchester and Birmingham, Levi’s launch of an advertising campaign that features images of rebellious youth clashing with police in riot gear comes at a bad time. That’s the reality the brand is facing with “Legacy,” the latest spot in its often controversial Go Forth series. And according to Creative Review, such synchronicity…
A View From The Streets In London
London is still burning, with early morning reports that rioting has now spread to Manchester. Overnight 16,000 police were dispatched, the largest number in city history, which may or may not be a good sign. If you’re still confused about what caused the chaos, Lane Turner at The Boston Globe summarizes in this recap: “Two nights of rioting in London’s…
Midnight at Wal-Mart: Cat Litter and Cashing In On Race
Last night two realities clashed: the expiration of normal business hours and a necessity for feline toiletries. The latter erupted as a result of poor planning and a litter box neglected. With Scoop Away reserves gravely depleted at the house, an excursion became unavoidable. At such an hour (close to midnight on a Sunday), limited options were available. It was…
Lil Wayne Rides A Skateboard
Last week Lil Wayne rode a skateboard in Tampa, Florida. He dropped in at a place called SPoT and proved that, among other things, “Rappers Riding Skateboards” would be a good name for a Tumblr. His friend wasn’t as fortunate (i.e., he fell). Also: Shout outs were filmed, mugging for the camera took place.
In Search Of Magical Slave Laborer
I’ve often heard how thankless the job of personal assistant can be, which makes me think this opportunity in one of Pittsburgh’s affluent suburbs might not be a wise career choice. Unless, of course, your skills are in line with that of a child-wrangling butler who boasts light cleaning skills and has prior experience as a receptionist, cook, life coach,…
What Recession Looks Like
Scenes from surrendered homes.
If you want to know what economic collapse looks like, Douglas R. Smith’s photographs of foreclosed homes in California’s Central Valley tell the story. In his series Scenes from Surrendered Homes, visual evidence of the recession is depicted in heartbreaking detail.
Fear Of A Non-White Spider-Man
Yesterday Marvel announced that, following the death of Peter Parker in its Ultimate Fallout series, the mantle of Spider-Man would be passed to a young kid named Miles Morales. Naturally, the news incited chatter across the Internet. Most reaction, however, was pinned to a singular detail: Morales is a half-black and half-Latino character, not white like Peter Parker. Cue the…
Das Racist: “Michael Jackson”
Brooklyn’s Das Racist have a new track called “Michael Jackson.” It’s the first single from Relax, the group’s debut album due out September 13th on Greedhead Music. Listen if you’d like.
Pool Crashing With The Elderly
Leave it to the elderly to start a new trend nobody needs. On Monday, a “somewhat elderly” New Jersey man decided to go pool crashing in his white-hot Cadillac. According to Fort Lee’s Patch, the hard-charging geriatric “crashed his car through a low concrete wall and ended up in the pool behind the Biarritz condominium on Center Ave.” A successful…
The Art Of Being Downsized
In June of 2009, I lost my job. I was informed by phone while on vacation with my wife and three-year-old son. We were staying at a cabin in Pennsylvania’s Laurel Highlands and the news punctuated what had been a great trip. Within seconds I made the swift transition from employed to unemployed, and that moment when reality came crashing…
Homophobic Friends
Video editor Tijana Mamula has made a shocking discovery: Sitcoms are riddled with homophobia, especially the long-running, Emmy Award-winning Friends. In truth, of course, there’s no shock. If you’ve watched any sitcom in the last 30 years you’re familiar with the genre’s formulaic, lowest-common-denominator approach to humor. Cheap jokes, or laugh tracks instructing you when and where to chuckle,…
Edgar Fink’s Subsidized Summer
Edgar Fink never cared for button-down shirts or pleated pants. He preferred a T-shirt with a pocket and a sensible pair of heavily-starched trousers. “Comfort,” Edgar often said, “is for women and babies.” No amount of coaxing could convince the stubborn 64-year-old bricklayer that men were permitted to wear shorts, let alone a shirt with a floral pattern. “Children air out their legs,” he would say, “men sweat.”
In Memory Of Dead Ted
According to the plaque on Freedom Fountain, Dead Ted’s legacy was greater than his infamous takedown by the vice squad in the bathroom at Ray’s Meat Shack, or his notorious knife fight with Egon the Pimp in 1983 would lead one to believe.
Escape From Slaughterhouse IV
When cow #3716892 was designated for shipment to Udder Joy, Fishkill County’s largest organic grocery store chain, her eyes widened with fear. As the handlers at Slaughterhouse IV attempted to guide her out of the facility’s massive holding pen, she broke loose and scrambled for the kill floor, hoping to fall into a giant bone grinder or perhaps lose her head somewhere in the chop room.
