Lost Gem of the 80s #6: Klaus Nomi - st (1982)

Don't get too excited. I'm sure all of you run out and buy my recommendations as soon as you read them (how can you help yourself?), but wait a sec on this one. It's too weird for words.

Klaus was a performance artist in NY in the early 80s who was making a name for himself in the underground and gay clubs for his otherworldly shows and appearance. Decked out in a plastic tuxedo shaped like a V, kabuki make-up, black balding hair spiked up, and operatic voice, Nomi looked and acted like an alien plopped in the middle of Manhattan (by way of Germany) to observe the behavior and activities of earthlings. His shows got some buzz, record labels came calling, and then he died of AIDS in 1983, making him one of the very first entertainers to succumb to the disease.

His self-titled debut is a trip. With only one original song, it's mostly weird versions of standards we all know, but with his freak opera flag flying. Take his version of "The Twist" for instance. His version is slowed way down and run through the Flux Capacitor. "Lightning Strikes" and "You Don't Own Me" sound like those karaoke booths they used to have in the mall. Remember those? Imagine some smalltown wannabe who sings in the local choir coming to the mall in like '82 and recording a couple faves with the idea that he's going to mail them to some label and become a big star. That's what this sounds like. Only, it's for real! Klaus wasn't a wannabe, he was actually paid money to sing and act this way!

If you click on only one link from this, make it "Total Eclipse". Your jaw will hit the floor. Keep in mind, this plastic androgenous alien opera singer act was for real! I guess everyone has to have an angle and he had several. This clip is from the indispensible 1981 doc Urgh! A Music War. This priceless bit of music history should be required viewing for everyone everywhere, as it's a valuable peek into the styles and cultures of the early 80s. VH1 Classic plays it every few months, look for it.

I find this stuff fascinating. I'm not going to pop on Klaus Nomi very often, if ever, but I find the story and ideas mind blowing. Check out those links and see for yourself. Also, if you want to dig more, there's a pretty good doc film about him called Nomi Song that fleshes out the story. It's on Sundance every now and again.

The Nugget - "Total Eclipse". 99% of this stuff is just for the curious, but you may listen to "Total Eclipse" more than once. Have fun with this!

I Suck

This weekend is the Bolder Boulder and I’m not going to be there. Another goal unaccomplished.

I was doing well, following the schedule, making the sacrifices. Then it just caught up with me and now I’m finding myself a couple months behind on the training schedule with a growing sense that I’ve plateaued. It’s so frustrating to feel like you aren’t improving at all. I’m currently on the run 25 minutes section. Sounds easy enough, but it totally blows.

Part of the problem is that I need to find a good place to run that I enjoy. Currently, I either run on the treadmill or the track at the rec center and that track is really just the periphery of the basketball court, so it takes like 17 laps to run a mile. The goal now is to get to a point where running isn’t such a big deal. I have friends who feel so good after they’ve worked out. The stress is relieved, their heads are cleared. They even set aside large chunks of their Saturdays (and get up early WILLINGLY!) to get out there and hit it hard. Not me. If anything, the stress to keep going and not start walking is so great that it makes it hard to go. For me, it’s just a big anxiety attack.

I’m going to stick to the schedule and see where I end up. One of the issues with this program is that you’re meant to run 5 times a week, and I’m usually able to get out about 3. Maybe by next year I will have figured this out. It would be nice to be able to do 5-6 miles and have that become the norm or the minimum. Of course, I’ve had that goal for about 10 years now and the closest I got was like 3. This feels like one of those riddles that, if I could just crack it (like understanding the stock market or computers), my life would be simpler and more meaningful if, for no other reason, than I’ve tackled one of the truly crippling obstacles of my life.

One of my favorite quotes is “The things we want most in life are just beyond the things we’re most afraid of”. I’m doomed by this concept.

Live in Concert: The Von Bondies 5/19/08

It sucks when great bands don't get the pub they deserve. This seems especially true of the Von Bondies, who were on the brink of stardom when Jack White kicked lead singer Jason Stollsteimer's ass in a Detroit bar in 2004 and derailed them for good, killing any street cred along the way. Shame, since they could easily clean the White Stripes' clocks on dirty, groovy, Detroit garage rock.

See, Jack produced their first album and the two were friends, hometown homies. But, then the fight happened and photos circulated on the Interweb of Jason's bloody, swollen face. Jack's a God, let's face it. So, Jason looked like the biggest nerd in school at that point.

That was just as their last album, Pawn Shoppe Heart, was about to be released. That thing is a monster, and could have been the biggest thing since White Blood Cells. Instead, they managed one sorta hit in the perfect and infectious "C'Mon C'Mon" which is one of those songs you've heard somewhere before.

I managed to see them play a bowling alley the other night with about 50-70 in attendance. Man, these guys and gals deserve better. The word that keeps coming to mind is "greasy". Like the Stripes or Strokes deep fried in 10 lbs of lard. That garage rock boom that started and stopped a couple years ago was the perfect foray for their sound, but they should have, and may still, last longer. The show was loose. No set list. They played what they felt when they felt it. 15 or so songs packed in about 58 minutes. That is the perfect show in my book.

The band is two dudes and two chicks and the chicks rock. The bass player, Lauren something, is a mammoth on her instrument, yet she's as pert and cute as Christina Ricci with a chin. The other plays the fuzzed out rhythm guitar like she was in Black Sabbath. Can't remember her name, but she looks like a pint-sized Courtney Love. Like miles of heroin soaked highways are in her history. The guys bring it. The drummer is Asian. Multi-culti, eh?

Check these guys out. Give them a chance. They're so good.

You Know How I Know You're Gay? You're Bummed "Men In Trees" Got Cancelled

I thought I'd save you all the trouble of making fun of me by casting the first stone. Yes, I will admit now that I've been a closet MIT fan since episode 1 and will be broken hearted to see the show go away, even if it had turned into a jumbled mess of contrivance. I even stuck around for the multiple month gaps between new episodes, changes in days/times, and plot twists that skirted further and further away from logic.

The appeal of the show was in the ensemble cast. A friendly group of characters with good hearts and good intentions. Anne Heche, who is so divisive to most people, was one of the least interesting people on the show. I'll be sad to see them all go. Even though this second season had lead some of them astray (memory loss due to being struck by lightning, bar owner buys a bad hockey team and moves them to nowhere Elmo, Alaska, ex-hooker starts dating a minister who tries to practice abstinence), they were still a nice group of people to catch up with once a week just like they did as they gathered at the local bar, The Chieftain. Plus, I was still holding out hope that they'd bring Justine Bateman back. I still have a crush on her from her "Family Ties" days. She's aged beautifully.

The show was total comfort food. Just a nice, breezy 40 mins of fluff (once you've FF thru the commercials). It will be missed.

And, I guess I wasn't quick enough to save "Aliens In America". That got the axe too. Shame. Why does everything I love leave me? Stay tuned for a rant on how VH1 Classic has left me a widower.

Lost Gem of the 80s #5: Billy Squier - "Don't Say No" (1981)

OK, so I'm using the term "lost" loosely here, since Don't Say No has sold a few million copies and continues to sell pretty well considering the enduring appeal of hits like "The Stroke", "In The Dark" and "Lonely Is The Night". What's lost is not the album, but the artist.

Billy Squier flat out rocks. All the bombast and wail of Led Zeppelin, but with the pop mentality of Journey or Def Leppard, Squier continues to be a misunderstood and under appreciated artist. There are many reasons for that. First, he hasn't released an album in 10 years, and he hasn't released one anyone cared about in closer to 25, making him somewhat of a mystery. Secondly, he put out this career demolishing video for 1984's "Rock Me Tonight" and alienated the majority of his fans. There had always been something not right about Billy. He seemed a little gay or asexual for a guy in the hard rock world and that video put people over the edge. He never recovered.

But, he also never recovered because his music was never as good. Now, less confused fans would have probably been more forgiving if not for the weird "is-he-gay-or-not" thing. Btw, I've been researching the answer to that and there's a lot of speculation out there that he is, but more evidence that he is not. Apparently, he got married recently, not that that is always the final word (Ted Haggard), but it helps.

So, consider Don't Say No not just his masterpiece, but also one of the legendary releases of the early 80s FM rock era. Every beat drives and every chord thrives. Aside from the almost unlistenable slow jam, "Nobody Knows", Don't Say No can walk proudly alongside the best Zeppelin had to offer and hasn't lost a single ounce of credibility in the 27 years since its release. Now, if we could just get Billy to find his mojo again. Last I saw, he was playing in Ringo Starr's All-Starr Band about 2 years ago. Not exactly the most prestigious gig in the world (Richard Marx was also in that iteration of Ringo's band, if that tells you anything).

Come back Billy. We won't say no.

The Nugget: "In The Dark". It remains a blood pumping hit and hasn't reached the overplayed status that "The Stroke" has.

Loser Boozer

Even with as poorly as Boozer’s been playing, it hasn’t directly affected the outcome of a game, necessarily. Not a big one anyway. The Jazz would just be in a better position to win some games if he played better. That all changed last night. The Jazz had a million chances to take over that game and put the Lakers’ backs against the wall and they couldn’t do it, in true Jazz fashion. And, Boozer was mostly to blame.

In a close game like that when you’re on the road in the playoffs with a chance to steal a big game you need your best players playing like they should. Boozer couldn’t do it. Odom ate his lunch on virtually every possession. I never realized how bad a defender he is until this series. He just isn’t quick enough to compete. And, he’s being too big of a puss offensively to make up for it. Notice how rarely he is dunking. Such a big strong guy who did it a lot during the season has only managed maybe one or two the entire playoffs. If the Jazz lose this series, and they probably will, the target should be squarely on his enormous forehead. He’s to blame, totally and completely.

Well, Korver deserves some blame too. He can’t hit a 3 and that’s his sole purpose for living. He’s something like 6 for 30 from downtown. Every time he throws one up I well up with hope and faith and then deflate with a thud feeling stupid because I should know better after he inevitably misses.

I was the sickest I’ve ever been watching a sporting event last night during that game. I wanted to throw up. Impulses would try to propel me into hysteria, cheering for my guys, but they could never unlock it. They just managed to disappoint like they always do. It sucks to be a Utah sports fan.

Iron Man: The Good and Bad News

First off, Iron Man was great. It's nearly as good as the last Batman and the second Spider-Man and that's due, mostly, to Robert Downey Jr. and Director John Favreau. Oh, and for sheer eye candy, Gwyneth, who looks beautiful and classy as she matures into an older woman.

RD Jr. was a unique, but perfect choice for the role. He's so charismatic and cool, he's one of the easiest and most enjoyable actors to watch work. It helps that the Iron Man costume completely obscures his face and image that way you aren't seeing the bottom of his face or his cod piece or his nipples. Plus, he's too cool for lame sound bytes or catch phrases. And John Favreau, as in Mikey from Swingers, keeps it all loose and tight and on the up and up. He never lets the quality drop, which helps his team maintain it as well.

Did you guys know you're supposed to stay through the credits? I didn't and missed the big reveal. Apparently, they introduce the potential next villain, Nick Fury. I know nothing about the comic books, so me knowing the name doesn't mean I know or care about who that is, but here's the bad news. I understand Nick Fury is/was played by Samuel L. Jackson! If you read a few postings down from here, you'll know my feelings for SLJ. I'm SO pissed! Why do we need him in another movie, a franchise no less. He may be fine and I believe that if the same team is on board it won't suck. But, it would be nice to have something not touched by the dirty, nasty, funky SLJ hands.

Score: 8