Brian’s Top 10 Video Parts
- Ray Barbee: “Public Domain” - all time favorite
- Ocean Howell: Birdhouse “Ravers” - 2nd all time favorite
- Mike Carroll: 1st FTC Video
- Donny Barley: “Eastern Exposure- Underacheivers”
- Kris Markovich: Union Wheels Video
- Gino Innauchi: “20 Shot Sequence”
- Rick Howard: 1st Plan B video
- Tom Penny: ‘411 Video Flip
- Steve Olson: Foundation “Tentacles of Destruction”
- Elissa Steamer: Toy Machine “Welcome to Hell”
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Billy’s Top 15 Videos
- H-Street: “Shackle Me Not” (Matt Hensley, now in Flogging Molly, in particular)
- Toy Machine: “Welcome to Hell” (Jamie Thomas and Ed Templeton just killing it)
- Powell Peralta: “Public Domain” (Ray Barbee,
Frankie Hill, Colin McKay Steve Saiz, Chet Thomas, Eric Sanderson —- music ruled in this vid)
- Blind: “Video Days” (check out actor Jason Lee in his part)
- Alien Workshop: their arty videos (Photosynthesis maybe?)
- Stereo: the first jazz video
- Es: “Menikmati”
- World Industries: “Trilogy”
- Transworld: “Feedback”
- Transworld: “The Reason”
- Plan B: “Virtual Reality”
- Underworld Element: “Skypager”
- Girl: “Mouse”
- 411: late 90s European videos
- Zoo York: “Mix Tape”
Brian’s List of Let Downs
- H-Street - “Lick”: Alf Rowls was decent, but the video was terrible.
- Girl - “Mouse”: great camera work, but very disappointing skateboarding parts, terrible music, & too many stupid skits
- 1st Chocolate vid - “Nine Lives of Paco”: the entire video stunk
- All the Thrasher videos: ghetto camera & production work
- Stereo - video everyone waited for Jason Lee’s final video part. It stunk, along w/ the arty jazz & fuzzy film
- Real - video w/ yellow cover but cant remember the name.
- Plan B - “Second Hand Smoke” They lost all the stars Mike Carroll, Rick Howard, etc… Could never repeat the success of the last big 3 vids
- 1st Alien Workshop video: This was to be the 2nd coming. Everyone waited so patiently. Way too arty, not enough skating, but very good Dinosaur Jr soundtrack. Bo Turner’s impossible were sick. The video sucked did have one great line: “saw the royals on the tube today”
- The all time biggest let down was the Color video. It was Kris Markovich’s newest company, back when he was king. They had an all-star line up. Kris, Jeremy Wray, Jason Dill. The video was so crappy I coulnd finish it…
February 28th, 2003
On Sunday I went skateboarding, feeling comfortable wearing a t-shirt and shorts. I remember smugly thinking that despite a lack of four distinct seasons, Austin’s weather is just so preferable to that of northern climates. Two days later our streets are covered in ice. Classes cancelled. My neighbor’s truck is glued to an ice-packed curb downtown. The gnarly weather really kicked in Monday evening and we were probably foolish to leave the safe confines of our apartment. After racing downtown at speeds between 10-15 mph, Sarah and I easily found a parking spot near Emo’s. Sixth Street was eerily deserted. A newsman even stopped us and asked, “What the hell would bring you out on a night like this one?!” Interpol.
We missed most of the first band but caught The Warlock’s set. I had never heard of this group and was immediately skeptical. The Warlocks? C’mon. The lead singer was scary and rarely interacted with the crowd. When he did mutter a few words, he looked extremely pained, as if he was either terrified or on the nod. Apparently a song on their album is called “Shake the Dope Out,” so I think we can surmise what the deal was. I actually liked several of their songs but they played way too long. Sarah on the other hand thought they just droned on and on and she was pretty bored. Opening bands should never play over an hour.
The delay between sets was aggravating. We were up front next to the stage and if we dared move, we’d surely lose our place. And despite being surrounded by hundreds of people, we were freezing. To those unfamiliar with Emo’s, the main venue is partially outdoors. Plus I had to pee. Why did I drink that Tecate?! But all that was forgotten when Interpol took the stage to a fairly enthusiastic reception. 
I had to admit, they looked perfect. Armani suits, pointy shoes, cigarettes in mouth. East Village in tha house, yo. Smoking would continue to be a major theme of the evening as band members seemed to light up whenever given the opportunity. Interpol has been both applauded and criticized for channeling the look and sound of bands like Echo & the Bunnymen (a dude even jokingly cried out “The Killing Moon!” before they began playing), The Smiths, and of course Joy Division. In fact, many of their songs have certain elements that just give you nostalgic chills. It was almost like they picked the most successful songs from the aforementioned bands, and applied some genius algorithm to extract the most powerful notes, key changes, and melodies. All I know is that when they played songs like “Stella,” “NYC,” and “Say Hello to the Angels,” I couldn’t help but to get my pogo on. I thought Interpol’s stage presence was great. It really felt like you were seeing a band that has played together for years and years. But don’t expect any crazy stage antics or even any reinterpretations of songs when performed live. Close your eyes and clean up the sound some and you have a song-for-song delivery of “Turn on the Bright Lights.” Still, the songs are simply great, even if I have no freakin’ idea what lyrics like “the subway she is a porno” means. I’m too young to have seen any of the legendary bands that are always mentioned in an Interpol review. But after their set on Monday, it really felt like we had witnessed a band of a similar caliber. Without a doubt this is one of the best shows I’ve seen at Emo’s.
My favorite member of the band was the bassist. He has this towering, Frankenstein-like presence. Tall guys make good rockers, I’ve noticed.
A note about Emo’s crowds… I think Austin indie rock fans are pretty spoiled. I mean, without fail, every touring band worth seeing comes here. O.K. maybe there are a few exceptions. There has never been a time where I wanted to see a band but they were playing in say, San Antonio, but not Austin. Because of this fact it is easy to forget that we have it good here. And often when I see a show at Emo’s, such as …Trail of Dead, I look around and so many people are gazing at the stage, arms crossed. Not all, but many. That wasn’t really the case at Interpol from what I could tell. Some folks up front actually began moshing. I heard someone complaining behind me. Even though pits are so early 90’s, I thought, “If you can’t take the heat…” On the other hand, some of these rowdy dudes were just flailing around out-of-control. Hurting people ain’t cool. Regardless, it was nice to see people really letting loose at a show.
February 26th, 2003
“This instrument can teach, it can illuminate, and, yes, it can inspire. But it can do so only to the extent that humans are determined to use it to those ends. Otherwise it is nothing but wires and lights in a box.”
Ed Murrow, renowned CBS journalist
Off the radar of the Blog Universe is the issue of CBS’ proposed reality show, The Real Beverly Hillbillies. If you’re unfamiliar with the concept, here it is in a nutshell… For the past few months, CBS has had scouts poking around the Deep South, Appalachia, and anywhere they can find a poor person with a funny accent. Their goal is to find an uneducated (seriously, that is expressly stated) family willing to trade their diginity for thousands of dollars and an opportunity to make fools of themselves in L.A. Thanks to the efforts of the Center for Rural Strategies, based in Whitesburg, Kentucky a grassroots resistance has surfaced. Opponents include filmmaker Michael Moore, Independent Television Service, Southern Poverty Law Center, Kentucky Foundation for Women, and several rural coalitions and alliances. The “reality” show idea pisses me off for a variety of reasons. First and foremost, it hits close to home. Sarah is from Appalachia and we were married in Whitesburg. Incredibly, a friend of her family’s was even approached by a scout. The woman was in a grocery store parking lot and was stopped by two people “taking a survey.” After speaking with them for a few minutes, she was asked if she would be interested in relocating to Beverly Hills. I think her response was something along the lines of, “F–k off!” In addition, I can hardly believe the network would dare air a program so offensive. To me this goes way beyond trash like “Married by America,” “Joe Millionaire,” and the rest. It doesn’t make business sense to be so cruel to your audience–your customers. I suppose the media execs expected the stereotype of rural people, particlarly in Appalachia or the South, as indifferent and passive to be true. Now they are facing a backlash from outraged citizens, authors, scholars, and even congressional members Todd Strickland (Ohio) and Zell Miller (Georgia), both Democrats. The current situation is that Rural Strategies President Dee Davis met with CBS President Les Moonves February 11th in Los Angeles. CBS listened to a case against airing the show and were challenged to “examine the way it portrays rural people and communities in its other programming.” Strangely silent on the issue (to my knowledge) has been The Nation, Salon, Mother Jones, Adbusters, and other lefty zines and journals. This is odd because I can’t think of a more salient issue for them to champion. Here you have a mega-corporation ridiculing and lampooning working class/ blue collar men and women. After the Center for Rural Strategies placed a full page ad in The New York Times a few weeks ago, I don’t believe that these publications are unaware of CBS’ plans. I wonder why they aren’t coming to bat for these rural people…
February 25th, 2003
If I remember correctly, my dad found the old Sears Roebuck cruiser in a ditch. He must have eventually tired of riding it because for years it sat upright in the garage, kickstand firmly extended. When I was a teenager the only vehicle in the garage that I cared about was a 1987 Toyota Corolla– the car I still drive (aka “The Red Rascal”). It was around my sophomore year of college that I developed a fondness for cruiser bikes and managed to procure the classic 3-speed from my old man. I removed the cobwebs from the spokes, chromed it up, and painted it forest green. This beautiful machine carried me home from Lynagh’s Pub on many beer-soaked evenings. On one of these balmy summer nights I foolishly left the bike unlocked, thinking that because my apartment was on the third floor it would be safe. See ya.
A few years later, I began hunting around for a classic Schwinn Cruiser eventually finding one at an antiques dealer. He reluctantly sold me the dope black-and-yellow cruiser and I rode it around my neighborhood for a few years. Just before moving to Austin I traded it to my roommate for a Specialized mountain bike, another decision I would later regret. I’ve tried to tell myself that a mountain bike is much more practical. But the truth is, I mostly ride around downtown, hike-and-bike trails, and Bouldin Creek area–all of which are flat. (Except for that bitch of a hill next to school for the deaf). 
Now my jones for a cruiser is back in a very big way. See, tonight I laid eyes upon the bike I must someday own: a Kronan. Forget Saabs and Volvos, Sweden’s most important export only comes with two wheels.
The bikes were first 
designed for the Swedish Army in 1942. Johan Wahlback, a self-described “bicycling missionary”, found a bunch of the old bikes in warehouses around Sweden in 1996. Soon dozens of students could be seen zipping around Malm
February 24th, 2003
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