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Philly L!F!P! Tickets On Sale Nowski!

L!F!P! November 2013 PhilaMOCA Show Flyer

Advance tickets are now on sale for the November presentation of L!F!P! If/when this show sells out, I won't be doing a second show. This is your last chance to see this version of the video/talk portion of the project presented live in Philaldelphia.

Get your tix here and please help out the project by spreading the word:

http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/445502

It Means Butterfly

Bull working at Mariposa in West Philadelphia
Currently Reading: 
Cometbus issues #54 and 55 by Aaron Cometbus
Today's Playlist: 
Around by Whirr
Ceremony by Anna von Hausswolff
Dreambuilding EP by Goat
Logos by Antediluvian
Love Can Change Everything: Demos 1967-1972 by Michael Fennelly

I love the work the fine folks (who include my brother Bull) do at the Mariposa Food Co-op in West Philly. To me, they bring some of the ethos of punk outside of the underground music scene and into the world at large. It's nothing to do with style, fashion, haircuts, or music. It's entirely to do with making a difference in a positive way that genuinely effects people's lives. (Bull discusses this a bit in his two interviews here on the site.)

A new video was just made about Mariposa and the work they do. It's short and makes for enjoyable viewing. Give it a watch right here.

Where Are They Now? File - Part Three

Stupid ass egg and bird by JAG for L!F!P!
Currently Reading: 
Cometbus issues #54 and 55 by Aaron Cometbus
Today's Playlist: 
Around by Whirr
Dreambuilding EP by Goat
Logos by Antediluvian
The First Ear by Miki Curtis
The Upheaval of the Soul by Christicide

Here's the third in the ongoing series of "updates in their own words" from past interview subjects:

Grace Ambrose: "I just wrapped up a week of volunteering with Girls Rock Philly. Our showcase coincided with the weekend of This is Hardcore. I'll let you guess which I thought was the punker event. Along with the rest of DIYPHL I am working on an evening of all brand-new bands playing their very first shows called First Time's The Charm. Its goal is to encourage female-identified, trans* and queer folks and people of color to make noise and take up space in our community. I bought a drum kit and will make my debut behind it at that show in a band called Heavy Bangs." 

Cordy Swope: “We have been preparing for the Ruin reformation show August 31, 2013. We are really looking forward to pouring ourselves into the moment when we play again. We were thrilled to have received such great support from our friends and fans via Kickstarter so that our show can happen. As for me, I have been working remotely on the Ruin project from Munich, where I have lived for the past 10 years, raising two girls and doing consulting and design that helps companies be more creative.”

Tony "Pointless" Croasdale: "I direct several environmental education programs, mostly focused on kids at Cobbs Creek Environmental Center in West Philadelphia. I'm getting a masters in biology. I also have started leading bird tours, my first was in Brazil in 2012."

Where Are They Now? File - Part Two

Shitty Joseph drawing for L!FP!

Here are three more updates in the interviewee's own words:

Joe Genaro: “I am still playing with the Dead Milkmen. We're working on new songs and we have a handful of shows coming up this fall, plus a benefit show for Rock to the Future - the "Rally for Rock" at Liberty Lands on August 24. I also play the occasional solo acoustic show, as Joe Jack Talcum, and continue to work for the software company.”

Adam/Atom Goren: “I'm continuing to wish that at the LOUD! FAST! PHILLY! live event in April, when asked about my thoughts regarding Stalag 13, that I answered, ‘It was the fire hazard-est venue I ever played.’ I'm also continuing to double dad and working with a colleague and friend to construct a course that aims to enable students to be informed citizens regarding nuclear power, weapons and medicine.  I'm also eagerly awaiting new songs from Future of the Left.” 

Chuck Meehan: “Since we spoke, I have been working on buying a house and I ended a long musical hiatus when I played bass for Initial Attack recently and am looking to get back to playing once I am settled in.” 

Back From the Gravy!

L!F!P! Cat Sign
Currently Reading: 
Sex Press: The Sexual Revolution In the Underground Press 1963-1979 by Vincent Berniere and Mariel Primois
The Shining Girls by Lauren Beukes
Today's Playlist: 
Ceremony by Anna von Hausswolff
Love Can Change Everything: Demos 1967-1972 by Michael Fennelly
s/t by Don & Stevie
s/t by Shocked Minds
The Complete LHI Recordings by Honey Ltd

Two new presentations of the live part of the L!F!P! project have been booked and confirmed. When tickets are available to be ordered, I'll post links and all the relevant information here. For now I can at least let you know the dates and locations. I'd advise scoring advance tickets when they become available, as both shows stand to sell out. It's also worth noting that I have no plans of re-screening the video presentation/talk in Philly again (at least not in its current form) and for those who saw it before, I'm adding (with the help of Eric Bresler of Cinedelphia.com and PhilaMOCA) some additional footage. I'll also have different guests at both shows. 

Here's the scoop:

Saturday, November 16, 2013 at 7:30 PM at The Emerald Tablet in North Beach, San Francisco, CA - I'll be teamed up with Jesse Townley, former editor of Philly Zine and former member of the SF Bay Area bands Blatz and The Gr'ups (and more). He'll be doing a DJ set of raging Philly HC punk at the show. My brother Bull will be joining me on the trip and he'll be speaking at the show. I'm looking to meet up with Philly ex-pats so they can answer a few questions at the show, come to a group ex-pat lunch that's being planned for that Saturday afternoon, and possibly get interviewed for the audio part of the project.

Friday, November 22, 2013 at 7:30 PM at PhilaMOCA in Philadelphia - The plan as it stands is to have bonus footage of the forthcoming (August 31, 2013) Ruin re-union show with a couple members of Ruin and Dennis McHugh to speak about it as an addition to the regular and new footage.

Advance tickets for both shows should be $10 and will be sold through Brown Paper Tickets in order to keep the purchase fee as low as possible.

Watch this space for the forthcoming details!

Where Are They Now? File - Part One

Currently Reading: 
Sex Press: The Sexual Revolution In the Underground Press 1963-1979 by Vincent Berniere and Mariel Primois
The Shining Girls by Lauren Beukes
Today's Playlist: 
Horrified by Repulsion
Love Can Change Everything: Demos 1967-1972 by Michael Fennelly
s/t by Don & Stevie
s/t by Shocked Minds
The Complete LHI Recordings by Honey Ltd

As the L!F!P! project progresses, I thought it would be neat to check in with the interview subjects to see what they’ve been up to lately. I’ll catch up with those I spoke to within the last couple months some time later this year, but for now here is the first set of replies I received to my request.

Please note that these are lifted directly from the messages each respective individual sent to me. I’ve not copy edited their writing.

Leora Colby: “Since we last spoke things have been going great.  Sit & Spin Records has caught a lot of buzz around town and we meet new customers every day. Thulsa Doom will have the honor of playing with the legendary CONFLICT in October. Twice! Not to mention that my new project, Future Primitive, is beginning to catch some praise.  My little girl is wrapping up her punk rock summer and gearing up for 8th grade.” 

Bryan Karl Lathrop: “Just back from a quick vacation in Ecuador; keeping busy shooting portraits and other subjects in and around Philly. Still skateboarding.”

Richard Hoak: “i am busy staying as LOUD as possible!!!  working on new releases for both brutal truth and TFD;  just finished a european fest tour with BT, with 2 other short eurotours coming up this fall.  the newest tfd ep is all free all the time at: right here."

Michael Cantor: “In terms of projects, I am currently wrapping up an EP of self-recorded solo material. I am also gearing up to play a few shows solo as well as with my band The Ambulars. The three of us at DIYPHL are hard at work organizing our ‘First Time's The Charm’ show, which encourages folks to start bands for the first time (with an emphasis everyone that falls outside narrow sampling of the cis-white-dudes that tend to dominate punk culture. The show happens this November. And yes, I'm still straightedge.”

And Now A Word From Stacey

Recent interview subject Stacey Finney nee Gold sent me the below message on Facebook earlier today and I thought I'd share it with you, Dear Reader and Listener, since it acts as a sort of addendum to her interview. Please note that this is a direct lift from what she wrote and I did not copyedit her writing.

Stacey Finney nee Gold:

"As I sift through all of the L!F!P! interviews, I’ve been thinking about the common theme that weaves through these conversations and the relationship to the duration of hardcore/punk, the whole DIY thing and why HC/Punk continues to be so influential amongst youth, especially. While it has certainly been touched on, the idea of critical thinking hasn’t been pointed out specifically. In hindsight of our interview and hearing most of the others, I realized (though already knew on a subconscious level) that the common denominator that keeps this thing alive is that it opens youth up to critical thinking during a time where they are most open and vulnerable to such an experience. It’s a hungry time for the mind! The HC/Punk music itself challenges one to look at things through a different lens. The fury of it all! The sound, the speed, the rawness, begs to be heard and questioned...Lyrically it isn’t the typical Rock and Roll experience of sex, lost love and drugs. The themes are so varied and unlike anything being shoved down throats through sub par radio and media. Not only does the music influence one’s view, but the culture of the scene as a whole seems to impact one’s overall mental experience. Through music, a whole other world is exposed via movies, literature and politics, and people! (As there is certainly diversity) At a time of development when youth are sponges and beginning to question the self and the world around, it seems a perfect melding for those who have a thirst for out of the ordinary, meaningful engagement. Clearly critical thinking is lost on at least half the population (which might explain the douche bags who come to shows to fight and inflict injury in the pit). For those who “get it”, it’s a place to be actively involved, explore and expand thinking. Unlike any other genre of music in the last 40 years, HC/Punk seems (in my estimation anyway) to truly offer a unique opportunity to youth that isn’t found anywhere else. When I taught middle school and then at the college level, the one thing I understood about learning is that people of all ages crave to be actively involved in their learning and thrive on what they gain from the interaction with others (social learning, Vygotsky...look him up). My feeling is that for those who are capable and desiring to experience life with a deeper meaning will naturally gravitate to an alternative life style. The one thing I noticed from the interviews is the majority of participants are intelligent, thinking people who truly have something to offer in terms of perspective and commonalities of experience. Maybe there is something to it and not just an idealistic view held by sentiment."

It's Coming Back!

Currently Reading: 
Retromania by Simon Reynolds
Today's Playlist: 
Almanach by Malicorne
Horrified by Repulsion
Lantaloon by Dando Shaft
The Power of the True Love Knot by Shirley Collins
Voyage of the Acolyte by Steve Hackett

Here is the first announcement, though it's light on facts and high on enthusiasm: the LOUD! FAST! PHILLY! live event is coming back to PhilaMOCA this autumn. I've heard from some folks who missed out on the first two shows that were a part of the Cinedelphia Film Festival in April that they either didn't get tickets in time since those two shows sold out, they couldn't make it out, or they didn't know about the project/event back then. Now all those folks, which may include you can see the live event. This is certainly the last time this will be happening in the area this year and l likely won't repeat it again in Philly. This new showing will feature a few new bits of footage and some special guests, most of whom will be announced in advance. We anticipate this show selling out, so get on advance tickets when they go up for sale. The show date and guests should be announced within a week or so. I'm psyched to be doing this for some different folks when the foul heat of summer has passed.

Spotted!

Timm Dunn and Joseph A. Gervasi at the International House
Jeff Ziga at the International House Philadelphia
Currently Reading: 
Retromania by Simon Reynolds
To Green Angel Tower part 2 (Memory, Sorrow and Thorn book #3) by Tad Williams
Today's Playlist: 
Almanach by Malicorne
Horrified by Repulsion
Lantaloon by Dando Shaft
The Power of the True Love Knot by Shirley Collins
Voyage of the Acolyte by Steve Hackett

On Wednesday, July 24, less than a day after I got back from Portand, I attended my brother Bull's screening of the documentary Nothing Like Chocolate. Also at the International House for the screening were two previous L!F!P! interview subjects. Here are photos of Tim Dunn (who came with two massive containers of homemade horchata for the afterparty) and Jeff Ziga (who wore the night's best t-shirt). It was nice to see these two fine fellows at the show.

The documentary comes recommended. It was a bittersweet viewing experience watching Philly ex-pat Mott Green, a founder of the Grenada Chocolate Company, being profiled in the film and knowing that he died shortly after its completion. I never met him, though my brother and L!F!P! photographer Karen Kirchhoff spent some time with him in Grenada earlier this year. Mott comes over as a truly inspiring, driven, and warm-hearted man. 

In interview news, now that I'm back and nearly caught up on my Diabolik DVD work, I can once again begin to schedule interviews. Look for some news ones in the weeks to come.

Portland Go!

Marquee at the Hollywood Theatre, Portland
The screen at the Hollywood Theatre, Portland
Currently Reading: 
To Green Angel Tower part 2 (Memory, Sorrow and Thorn book #3) by Tad Williams

The Portland screening of L!F!P! went off really well last night. It was a small audience but a very enthusiastic one. The best, perhaps, was seeing old friends whom I've not seen in many years. Philly ex-pats forever love this city. All received Goldenberg's peanut chews. 

I must say, it was a thrill seeing this marquee when I first saw the theatre. 

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