self-centered monologizing

So, it's been a while since I've posted, and I'm sorry for that. There hasn't been much in my week that deserved comment.

Tuesday I went to see the Minutemen documentary We Jam Econo. Only one problem - I didn't get tickets ahead of time. Apparently they were both long since sold out by the time I decided to stand in the standby line, so we didn't get in. The good news is that the film will have more screenings in New York, at Anthology, from Aug. 29 – Sep. 1. I'm much less likely to meet, say Mike Watt/Jim Jarmusch/Sonic Youth at those screenings, though (since I didn't score an invite to the reception either).

Also coming up at Anthology is a set of screenings of Phill Niblock films (sadly, not his Arthur Russell performance film "Terrace of Unintelligibility", which is the work of his I most want to see). I look forward to actually meeting Phill, one of the premier (if underrated) minimalist composers of the 20th Century (and, I suppose, the 21st, though I haven't heard anything recent). I really love his "Early Winter" and especially "Five More String Quartets" (go here for MP3s). I'm not sure what I'll say to him but maybe I can convince him to come to a performance of my band.

Yesterday was the one night a week where I stay home and download more music than I could possibly listen to in a week. So far I'm impressed with the tracks I've heard off of the new Sufjan Stevens. Also excited to rock some more grime pirate radio DJ sets. Was more impressed with LaLaque's songs than I expected to be. The Diplo remix of 'Maps' is fantastic.

Tonight I'm headed to Bluebeard's Castle, a made-for-West-German-TV Michael Powell adaptation of Bartok opera. So that's cool.

I can't believe that Rip It Up And Start Again won't come out in the U.S. until Feb '06... Penguin USA - what gives?