NOT BLOOD PAINT

Friday Endorsements (The Sequel) 5.24.13

And so it continues…

As mentioned in our last post, we’ve taken the first of many potential full band excursions before our next experience together (you, the Goldsmith, we), and are quite pleased now to discuss the result. Maia over at BreakThru Radio’s BTR Live Studio facilitated as we attempted a VERY RARE thought-transference experiment. This attempt was a failure. However, you may be able to pick up some of the mind-pictures we were sending if you look deep into our eyes while maintaining a full and rhythmic breathing pattern. Good Luck:

http://youtu.be/IBHtKjLgD9s   

Now that our resonators are at full capacity, let’s endorse!



The Return of ‘So You Think You Can Dance’

I know I’ve endorsed in ways connected to this show before, but I just have to bring it up again: So You Think You Can Dance is by far the best reality/competition show that television has to offer. In general, I hate what “reality TV” has become (hell, what the “Entertainment Industry” as a whole IS) to the point that I’ve found myself taking a moral stance from time to time against artistic expression in any form of competitive environment. But, SYTYCD is a show that reminds me that there is a difference between strangling artistic expression by putting it in a NARCISSISTIC environment and stimulating a healthy adventurous energy with a friendly competitive environment. The former is a lot of “sound and fury signifying nothing” and the latter is a potent tool for breaking entrenched habits and discovering legitimately new territory. The differences are subtle, but are very meaningful in my opinion.

For example, in other competition shows people are eliminated and interpersonal drama is stoked to the maximum. In SYTYCD, voters throw their chips in for who they’d like to see more and judges (legit professional dancers and choreographers, usually, who offer fascinating insights on the styles being performed) can “save” dancers who possess serious potential and haven’t yet found the way to bring it across to an audience of non-dancers. There is a palpable dialogue between every major dance tradition and modern bodies/minds that evolve year after year because of this forum. In this season already, Detroit (Michigan represent!) showed the world how to “jit” and this street style both thoughtfully evokes a hundred years of Michigan dance tradition and is thorough-and-through an expression of Detroit NOW. I’m watching humans figure out how to do more and more mind-blowing things with their bodies as conduits for emotion and concept. I repeatedly cry while watching these people.

Last night, I saw a freaking four year old perform brilliant hip-hop dance in a way I am certain no other 4 year old child in history has done. He was inspired (at age THREE) by Cyrus, a dude I endorsed from last year’s show but assured the audience of hundreds that “nobody taught him his moves” because he knows how to do them naturally. I take this to be factual. This wasn’t simple imitation. It was organic expression that isn’t fully explicable with our usual way of thinking about life, heredity, memory, culture, etc. It’s like seeing these 5 year old prodigies that just “know” how to play the piano, or sing opera, or in even stranger cases know what they did during WWI during their “past life”. Perhaps biologist Rupurt Sheldrake will be proven right and we will discover through further experimentation that habits, instinct, and ritual are field phenomena that are timeless and can be “tuned into” by physical systems once they occur. Make the habit, break the habit.

I’ve said enough here, clearly, but any entertainment show that can stir participants to this many emotional states, and can generate very deep questions of self and reality is transcending both the genre and the medium. It’s also a service to the art community as a whole.  

- Seth

p.s. By way of an endorsement for a future experience, I want to remind everyone that tomorrow is March Against Monsanto day all over the world. New Yorkers will be gathering in Union Square at 1:00 p.m. for the March. Wearing red and making paper mache Frankenfoods is encouraged. If this topic is new to you, there will be free teach ins/discussions in Washington Square Park at 3:00 p.m. Food fascism is antithetical to life, homies!

Facebook Event Page: https://www.facebook.com/events/379571882141135/?ref=notif&notif_t=plan_user_invited 

LOGICOMIX

Logicomix is a graphic novel mostly about the life and work of Bertrand Russell, blending math, logic, philosophy, history, and of course Social Responsibility!  The book is interestingly framed by a lecture Russell gives in 1939 to a group of American protesters who’ve shown up to decry U.S. involvement in WWII.  

He narrates a long story about his life’s quest to find solid foundations of mathematics through logic, and the different developments throughout history which completely altered the way people think. Definitely my favorite aspect of the book, these historical shifts in world consciousness.  Russell describes at one point a congress of mathematicians in Paris around 1904(?) feverishly arguing whether established axiomatic processes have any place within mathematics at all, meaning “can anything be taken for granted, ever?” In the world of numbers then, he says that suddenly the word “obviously” had become entirely suspect.  In the book it leads to fist fighting.

All the most logical thought appears to tend to paradox and mystery and bigger questions always until war and life creep in and now what side of thought are you on?  The book’s an amazing jumping-off point for several deep subjects once it gets your brain rolling. Wittgenstein and Gödel and Cantor and Athena are all there to goad you on.  It’s way better than I’m making it sound and you should read it.

I look forward to a long life of banging my head against the wall. Shout-out to my man Andrzej Krajewski for recommending this book along with probably all of my favorite graphic novels ever.

-Joe

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President Obama’s speech on Counterterrorism, May 23, 2013

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Yesterday President Barack Obama gave this speech on counterterrorism, addressing drones outright for the first time while planning to draw down on their use, acknowledging the killing of 4 American citizens and articulating a shift in policy from military action to more intelligence and “law enforcement” based engagement. He also vigorously re-stated his plan to close Guantanamo Bay. This is arguably the most important speech of his second term, and has been widely anticipated (possibly to the point of too-little-too-late). Did you watch it or read it? What did you think? I thought he made some salient points. Do you think he will stick to his words? Do you agree with the scaling back and *eventual* repeal of AUMF? What’s your argument against drones? Were you as pissed as I was that he basically just glossed over Syria? And what about Medea Benjamin?

She interrupted the speech for a good long time, probably the longest I’ve ever heard a heckler get the floor at a presidential speech. She brought up Abdulrahman al-Awlaki, the 16 yr old son of Anwar killed in a drone strike. The president just stood and listened and was pretty condescending, but artfully integrated her outburst into his concluding words, fwiw. Anyway, did the speech strike you as same-old-same-old or does it represent a legitimate step forward? Or was it a red herring to distract us from What’s Really Going On?

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-Mark

Thank you for digi-joining us. It has been pleasure. We truly hope you have a Memorial Weekend!

Love,

Not Blood Paint

Friday Endorsements 5.17.13

What’s the simplest way to endorse?


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Cartogra-map-making

Today I endorse map-making, or, cartography, for the more astute pupil. I was recently reading about The Catalan Atlas, on of the first world maps to be assembled, based on thousands of sources from northwestern Europe across Asia and into India. It was the first attempt at a “mappamundi”, which is a map that not only show geography, but information about cultures and trade. Developed under Prince Henry The Navigator, this paved the way for the world.

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Some authors have this gift where it only takes two or three sentences before you’re completely immersed in their personal atmosphere, not even based in diction somehow (it seems), but pulled from some preternatural, ineffable sense deep in your own(!) subconscious. Their tone can set a entire vision of the world in place with themes preemptively established, making every subsequent passage work as a unique and detailed representation of the whole.  Each word confirms the author’s innate and total comprehension of the universe.

Don DeLillo. I’d been hearing about this literary giant for about a year, all over the place, the way a new word or idea will worm its way sneakily into your life from every angle. This culminated in the release of David Cronenberg’s adaptation of the book last year, starring none other than heartthrob Bob Pattinson! So I read the book before I accidentally saw the film. And good thing. 

Forget that film. The book!  

I’m trying to think of a word which means “like Kafka” and ends in “-esque.”  But Cosmopolis is set in a very modern present, where technology and money reign, and the main character’s not a civilian underdog but a super-rich and ruthless American businessman. Eric Packer: a young, libidinous genius who follows in microseconds the movements of international markets. The story takes place on a day when the foundations of the economic world are shaking, and Packer’s sense of identity with them. The book is commentary on vanity, power, and immortality. What makes a man great? Influence? Wealth? Independence? Calculated callousness? Packer struggles like a curious sociopathic robot to understand his own humanity. 

One hundred pages of poetry, exaggerated and unrealistic, but heavy, like the story of a Greek god. The extreme and mundane occurrences in the book equally loaded with significance. I’m flushed with a new crush on DeLillo and I’m nervous, like he’s going to get me into some bad trouble. I wasn’t expecting that. There are so many small doors of dangerous knowledge left to open. Through fiction!  

Joe

p.s. I tried the other night to watch the Cronenberg film and nearly chucked up with embarrassed disgust. This embarrassment was for Cronenberg and the actors who for some reason thought they could convey the murk and tension of the novel through dialogue. Seeing real humans try to match supernatural allegory… I suppose it’s fine but once you book you can’t go back, as is said.

I became, how you say, “incredibly geeked” when I stumbled through a door that showed me Dean Radin and this amazing collection of peer reviewed papers (as well as links to other websites and youtube videos) on psi phenomena and experiments:

http://www.deanradin.com/evidence/evidence.htm

PSI stands for Psionic and is essentially the study of psychic ability (telekinesis, pre-cognition, etc), or the mind’s ability to produce paanormal phenomena. Dean Radin has been one of the leading scientists in this field for decades now. He was a part of the government funded “Stargate” program, which was working on the remote viewing phenomenon. He has been a part of countless other ingenious experiments to test psi.

This is his introduction to the recent addition to his website, the “SHOW ME” page:

“Critics are fond of saying that there is no scientific evidence for psi. They wave their fist in the air and shout, “Show me the evidence!” Then they turn red and have a coughing fit. In less dramatic cases a student  might be genuinely curious and open-minded, but unsure where to begin to find reliable evidence about psi. Google knows all and sees all, but it doesn’t know how to interpret or evaluate what it knows (at least not yet).

In the past, my response to the “show me” challenge has been to give the titles of a few books to read, point to the bibliographies in those books, and advise the person to do their homework. I still think that this is the best approach for a beginner tackling a complex topic. But given the growing expectation that information on  virtually any topic ought to be available online within 60 seconds, traditional methods of scholarship are disappearing fast.

So I’ve created a SHOW ME page with downloadable articles on psi and psi-related topics, all published in peer-reviewed journals. Most of these papers were published after the year 2000. Most report experimental studies or meta-analyses of  classes of experiments. I will continue to add to this page and flesh it out, including links to recent or to especially useful ebooks. This page may eventually become annotated, then multithreaded and hyperlinked, and then morph into a Wiki.”

Pretty awesome. I’ve already watched all the videos and am cherry picking through the papers. Gotta say, I’m itching to recreate and conduct some of these experiments. Amateur science time! Whose with me?

-Seth


Those, quite simply, were this week’s endorsements. Unless you have something to add? We sincerely hope you do…

Love,

Not Blood Paint

Friday Endorsements 5.10.13

When it comes to Friday Endorsements, either you’re with us, you’re against us, or you’re indifferent to us. That’s a fact. Here’s another: it’s time to endorse. Make your move…

http://noisey.vice.com/blog/i-saw-limp-bizkit-last-night-and-it-changed-my-life

Hi-Fructose Magazine

Art is art and that’s what I love about it. It’s a few other things too, granted, but the art part is definitely my favorite. Visual art has a look to it, and when you can see the art that’s how you know you’re really viewing it.

eyes +  visual art = that’s how it’s done

Visual art’s been around for a long time and so has contemporary art, but today’s contemporary art is new! There’s nothing like looking at some new contemporary art to remind you that you’re alive in the present day and not in some other asshole’s day.

One of the best resources I’ve come across for new contemporary artstuff is Hi-Fructose Magazine. Sure, maybe the art in there is very closely aligned to my taste, but hey, that’s cool. What, you want me to endorse some art which I think’s ugly bullshit? Dude, that is not what endorsing’s about.

Do yourself a favor and become a facebook fan of Hi-Fructose. Their posts will be the highlight of a “news feed” you check far too frequently. They’ll tough-lovingly magnify the banality of every meme, complaint, and food photo you scroll through to the point where maybe you’ll finally get up and go do something with yourself!

http://hifructosemag.tumblr.com/

-JOE

Experience Leads to Growth of New Brain Cells

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-05/haog-elt050613.php

This fascinating study shows that the expression of individuality in animals cannot be easily reduced down to genetic differences or environmental differences as has been assumed for some time now. It appears that creatures that have a robust drive to explore also benefit from neurogenesis (the growth of new neurons in the hippocampus) which positively effects flexibility to new information. In other words: NO HERMITS ALLOWED!

The other great thing about this study is that it is a demonstration of rare but desperately needed interdisciplinary teamwork in the sciences.

-Seth


There you have it. What to do with it? Endorse with us over on facebook, or or or get yer tails outside for some new experiences!

Much Love,

Not Blood Paint

Friday Endorsements 4.26.13

Listen: in one week’s time, we will have the opportunity to be together. Friday May 3rd, at the Glasslands, the blustery Glasslands. There will be friends. There will be sounds. There will be lurking enemies. With all of this to consider, we’ve spent every day trying to figure out how we are possibly going to give the perfect gift. How is it done? We’ve consulted instructional videos. We’ve consulted The Goldsmith.

That still small voice we thought we heard in reply whispered “Wait. Endorse Now.”

“SPEAK LOUDER YOU’RE MUMBLING” said we.

But the Goldsmith refused. Let us endorse.


Pedro Friedeberg

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My new suit

I endorse the new suit I bought. If anyone doesn’t have a nice suit, I highly recommend it.

-George

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Book: The Varieties of Religious Experience by William James

Gifford Lecture. 1908. William James stands at the crossroad of religion and psychology. His aim? To begin carving out a way toward a natural theology, or a science of religion/god. James is not interested in dogmatic philosophy, ritual manifestations, or organizational structures and chooses instead to define religion simply as man’s individual and experiential relationship with “the divine”. This allows us to revue first person accounts of religious phenomena and measure them by their fruits for life lived on a third dimensional earth. James gives ample example to religious types, patterns, and processes such as “The Sick Soul”, healthy-mindedness, The divided self, conversion, saintliness, mysticism, and more. From these first person accounts, he teases out profoundly useful core psychological processes that predicted in part the whole Adaptive Unconscious model that is being explored and tested in the neuroscience/psychology world today.

James’ writing is eloquent, engaging, and at times deliciously witty. His vision and passion for a science of religion is propelled by a very wide scope in vision and a near prophetic gift for articulating the very issues we would be struggling with in modern times with regards to scientific progress, and its relationship to (or rather, complete dismissal of) the religious impulses of human beings. To bastardize his thesis, which was quite convincingly argued for me, would be to suggest that science has neglected much in our potential understanding of human life, mind, and purpose (not to mention therapeutic applications) because it incorrectly and narrowly classifies “religion” and the religious impulse as being strictly pathological and something to be outgrown.

As for me, I was delivered from a long struggle and “outgrew” religion with the aid of the stern and snarky hand of Richard Dawkins not too many years ago. For weeks after this experience, I felt alive in ways I hadn’t in ages. I had shaken the chains of my God Delusion. Every color felt brighter, my inner sense of freedom was boundless, and my life had a new coherent center of gravity.

William James just smiled, shook his head and said, “you realize that you’ve just experienced a religious conversion?” Damned if he wasn’t absolutely right, praise The Goldsmith!

-Seth

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Daily Rituals by Mason Currey

This is a series running on Slate.com right now about the daily routines, idiosyncrasies and personal preferences of creative types. It’s based on his book of the same name which comes out next week, I think, which profiles some 180 artists throughout the past several hundred years. But this series isn’t a bunch excerpts from the book but extrapolations based on themes he gathered throughout his research. He talks about caffeine, booze, amphetamines, sleep, eating habits, daytime vs. nighttime work and how all of these things were utilized by brilliant minds. It’s simply anecdotal but very, very fun to read. I wouldn’t go into it looking for ways to solve your creative block, though. Different things work for different people that’s the truth. What I have learned, though, that’s a common thread throughout: work hard and drink lots and lots of coffee. 

-Mark

There we have it, friends. The endorsing is over and now it’s back to analysis and discernment to find that most perfect of gifts how best to bestow it. A true sacrifice must be made. Will you join us next Friday a week from today?

Please purchase your tickets now. You will be rewarded.

Also, we’re popping out to Asbury Park, NJ on Monday to play at the Wonder Bar as part of their Happy Mondays series and that is going to be some serious fun. If you’re in the area, please join us. It’s free.

All our love,

Not Blood Paint

Friday Endorsements 4.19.13

Oh, my. We’re creepin’ a ton of equipment into the storage area of Pope Turtle Francis the Van today, cause we’ve got heavy plans. We’re going to Binghamton again, and this time is FOR SERIOUS…or FOR KEEPS…or “for something”. What did we decide? We have a somewhat longer van ride to figure out the details. All we know for sure is that we’re going to attempt to help some artists unblock themselves at an artist block party, and the desire to succeed is building up an enormous amount of pressure in our heads. We hope we don’t start bleeding again. That can be awkward for some…

Change of subject to the immediate: Let’s do the endorsement shuffle!



The text of The Emerald Tablet:

True, true. Without doubt. Certain.

The below is as the above, and the above as the below, to perfect the wonders of the One.

And as all things came from the One, from the meditation of the One, so all things are born from this One by adaptation.

Its father is the sun, its mother the moon; the wind it carries in its belly; its nurse is the earth.

It is the father of all the wonders of the whole world. Its power is perfect when it is transformed into earth.

Separate earth from the fire and the subtle from the gross, cautiously and judiciously.

It ascends from earth to heaven and then returns back to the earth, so that it receives the power of the upper and the lower. Thus you will possess the brightness of the whole world, and all darkness will flee you.

This is the force of all forces, for it overcomes all that is subtle and penetrates solid things.

Thus the world was created.

From this wonderful adaptations are effected, and the means are given here.

And Hermes Trismegistus is my name, because I possess the three parts of the wisdom of the whole world.

There we have it.

- G

“Sweater Weather” by The Neighbourhood

I’m a staunch believer in the idea that a person should never be sorry or embarrassed by their taste in music (or art or fonts or fashion, furniture, etc). You can like what you like for whatever reasons you want, obviously, and if anybody tries to make you feel bad about it they can go to straight to hell. Who needs those people? I hope they go to pitiful dirty Hell and burn there!

Nevertheless I feel the need to make sure you know that I’m completely aware of what’s lame about this song. The lyrics are shallow (the gist seems to be “you’re hot let’s make out”). The guy sounds like he’s probably a douche-tool. Half way through the song gets slow and boring and dumb. Emotionally impactless. All together the band sounds something like Interpol with Maroon 5 vocals, which I guess is why I like it? (the Interpol aspect) The verses are nicely dark with this great reverb on the guitar, and there’s only a kick drum like every third measure! which is crazy and the effect of this sparse kick thing is of some really heavy charge sort of forcing you forward. It makes the bass sound really strong and deep too. And dude’s voice is controlled and sweet, if you like that sort of thing. I’d like it if he was saying anything… Yeah, I would.

I’m not endorsing this song expecting or even wanting anybody to listen to it. I’ve been listening on repeat (to the first two minutes only) but I have my own personal connection to it, which has nothing to do with you. So mostly I’m endorsing the exercise of enjoying something unabashedly, without reserve, damning outside trends and opinions. Not always an easy thing to do, divorcing personal taste from societal context, but necessary. You know what actually makes it harder somehow? Blogging about it.

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Twitter

Harold Pinter’s Nobel Lecture: Art, Truth, and Politics

Friday Endorsements 4.12.13

Where do we start? It’s all still a bit hazy (or gauzy maybe…not sure which). We have heard word that the Bowery Electric show with Bad Credit No Credit last night was a success.

“Carrie Anne was on fire,” they say, “the new BCNC rhythm section makes me want to lose my pants into dance.”

“You guys sounded like yourselves,” and such and such.

This sort of feedback makes us happy cause we like it when YOU are happy, but also extremely sad that we had to send in The Representatives of Not Blood Paint to cover for us in the last minute. We got caught in a landslide, and we were fighting this happy-sad confusion the whole night and morn trying to find a way to get out. To be honest, none of us are quite sure if witch trickery was involved or not.  However…

Fact: all of that is in the past and has no bearing on our present purpose.
Fact: Let’s endorse!

The Artwork of Ernst Heinrich Philipp August Haeckel

Click on that and browse through so many amazing drawings by this guy.  They’re gorgeous. Throughout the late 1800s Haeckle went around the world naming, categorizing, and drawing every lifeform he could find (mostly radiolaria). He developed a bunch of theories about evolution and embryonic development and most of those theories turned out to be false but hey look at these drawings! They’re so great. They give a good look at how incredibly weird and exciting biological gadgets can be, with a keen human sheen and exaggerated symmetry so you don’t get bored the way you do looking at a photograph.  
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NOW— listen to this new James Blake track while you browse through those images. http://youtu.be/Lqj1etBvVUY

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- Joe

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Article: You Think You Are a Consumer but Maybe You Have Been Consumed

www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/adamcurtis/posts/YOU-THINK-YOU-ARE-A-CONSUMER-BUT-MAYBE-YOU-HAVE-BEEN-CONSUMED

There is a ton of new music I am itching to endorse right now, but I want to fight the impulse and give it all some time to percolate. I listened to an interview with John Maus in which he talked about music criticism, and his words were a great challenge. He was lamenting the tendency of art criticism in consumer culture to reduce everything down to categories, sub-categories, and reference points, and was calling for an art criticism that makes the effort instead to bring to light how the piece being discussed “reveals the unreality of our situation”.  I love that.

Instead of discussing music, I want to endorse this excellent article from Adam Curtis at the BBC blog. It is the first in a series I am very much looking forward to following. His topic relates to the above in that he is asking the question “why does everybody do what they are told these days?” His suggestion is that a great deal of this passivity toward authority has to do with the fact that so much of power today has become invisible, and therefore extremely confusing and difficult to challenge.

He focuses this article on writing about one character who dedicated his life to developing one of the medias that has lead directly to what Curtis calls the “fake objectivity” that surrounds us: Harold Lafayette Hunt. At one time the richest man in the world (OIL!), H. L. Hunt could be called “the grandfather of FOX News”.

You’ll have to read the article to learn more, but don’t skip the videos. They are very helpful, and there is one exceptionally creepy moment I don’t want you to miss in the 10 minute doc about Hunt and his family. You’ll know it when you see it!

-Seth
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King/Kill 33: Masonic Symbolism in the Assassination of John F. Kennedy by James Shelby Downard and Michael A. Hoffman II

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Let me say this right off the bat: I do not think the Masons enacted a thousands year long plot to kill JFK. I did, however, get completely enraptured in the massive essay by infamous, mythic conspiracy theorist and possible madman James Shelby Downard (with the help of researcher Michael A. Hoffman II). This essay, first published in Feral House’s Apocalypse Culture and now available for public consumption here (if you dare), goes to incredible lengths to spin a sprawling web of symbols and signifiers revealing the Masonic order’s involvement in JFK’s murder. From the importance of the 33rd parallel, on which Dallas, Texas lies, to the etymology of the word “ruby”, as in Jack Ruby, to the significance of the Hertz Rental Car sign that looms over Dealey Plaza, Downard leaves no stone unturned to uncover how the Freemasons staged this “Killing of the King” rite as a fertility sacrifice toward a purpose that “was not political or economic but sorcerous.”

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“…For the control of the dreaming mind and the marshalling of its forces,” Downard continues, “is the omnipotent force in this entire scenario of lies, cruelty and degradation.” He refers to “the dead and deadening scenery of the American city-of-dreadful night” as the perfect setting for the illuminati code to exert its influence of  mystic sorcery. And this ritual killing was the shock that transformed and muted human consciousness, which, apparently, is the ultimate desire of the Freemasons. Also something about landing on the moon.

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I’m not endorsing King/Kill 33 outright as a thing that should be read by everyone and taken seriously. No, no. How seriously it should be taken is completely up to you, and you can put as much stock as you want into its factuality. I spent an entire Saturday plummeting in a downward spiral of paranoia and befuddlement, but came out the other side certainly not convinced of the argument. But, perhaps it is that my operating philosophy and “belief system” will not allow me to see it as reality. I do not know.

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No, I’m endorsing it as a reading experience alone. It’s fucking fascinating and a wild, fun read if you can just let yourself go for the length of time it takes to do it. There are certainly sentiments that I am totally behind—repeated calls to “wake up!” and he extolls the virtues of human curiosity saying that it “has never been thwarted by threats of a ‘curse’ to say nothing of frustrating those who seek, on a higher level, justice and truth,” and calls on all curious people to “work for the sake of truth.” Yes. He also refers to America as a “news ghetto” which I kind of love, saying that “the news media continually endeavors to promote apathy while going through the motions, the lip-sync, of reform.” Can’t argue with that.

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Anyway, give it a go. It messed me up pretty good for a minute, and I recommend you let it do the same for you.

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- Mark

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Now, dear friends, it is time to say goodbye. George, as you may have guessed, has opted to stay caught in the landslide under which the rest of us languished for but a time.
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He says, “I just want to stay here so that if any other people get caught in this landslide, they’ll at least have someone to talk to.” He’s a sweetheart, huh?
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We say, “Endorse with us! It’s fun!
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Love,

Not BLoof Ploot

Friday Endorsements 4.5.13

Endorse. Outpost. Recourse. Intersperse. Underscore. Undermine. Intercourse. Supersource. 

Do you know what we mean? We’ve got experiences to share!


Occult America: The Secret History of How Mysticism Shaped Our Nation

Here we have an in-depth and wide-ranging look at the history of occult philosophies and mysticism since America’s founding and the dramatic impact they have had on our world. Extensively researched and keenly synthesized, the book lays out clearly how inextricably America is linked to esoteric spirituality, tracing its lineage through the Burned-Over District in central New York state in the early 19th century up through our current cultural consciousness. These thoughts and practices that were often marginalized or even considered heresy paved the way for explosions in religious thought and penetrated right into the mainstream. Mitch Horowitz never loses the present when writing about the past.

That America is fertile ground for religious experimentation has been true and widely accepted since long before the pilgrims landed on the rock. It’s ingrained in our founding documents, for God’s sake! But the impact that occultism has had has been mostly shrugged off, or even purposefully obfuscated and it’s amazing how deep those roots actually run. Things like the pick-up line “What’s your sign?” or commonplace “psychic readings” (remember Miss Cleo?) even the billions and billions of awful books sold by Joel Osteen and whoever the idiot was that wrote The Secret are directly related to occultists who were once on the fringes of society. But there are good things, too! Like yoga and meditation and the Ouija board and Revolver. And also positive thinking and tolerance and empathy.

But the book’s greatest feat is its stunning climax, about the life of Edgar Cayce, “the greatest mystic who ever lived in America.” Cayce (pronounced casey), grew up a poor Kentuckian, reading nothing but the Bible and became a much a sought-after psychic, helping thousands of people with his “life readings”. I won’t give too much away, but he would put himself into a trance and read from what he called The Book of Life (the etherial plane to some, or “akashic records” as Blavatsky would call it), telling a person about their past lives or diagnosing a health problem or offering deep psychological or spiritual insight. He could do this without even meeting the person—often he would do it after receiving written correspondence. He saw his gift of clairvoyance as a means of service, tirelessly working to bring hope and love into the world. He would give readings for free or whatever the person could pay and at times he went destitute, all the while making several attempts to open his “Hospital of Enlightenment”.

Oh and if you read it and want to hear Horowitz talk a little more in-depth about some of the people he writes about, check out two episode of the podcast Occult of Personality that he is on. Here and here. But definitely definitely read the book first.

-Mark

OGLAF

http://oglaf.com/

Here’s a dirty endorsement for you. A pornographic webcomic unsafe for your workplace. OGLAF is weird and not for everyone; there’s lots of sex all the time for any reason and sometimes it’s straight up stupid. But sometimes it’s great and sometimes it’s really smart and sometimes I find myself embarrassed telling people about the one where a guy gets a magic lamp and a genie pops out and says “Ok, you get a wish but here’s the thing — if you don’t wish for a suck of my cock I’ll cut your legs off.”

That one’s actually a comic within the comic.  They’re not all so wacky as that. Here’s a “regular” one:  http://oglaf.com/riteofpassage/  Have fun!

Joe

The Sister

Well holy hell Eric John Meyer. Last night I went to see the new play ‘The Sister’ at the New York Theatre Workshop. Immediately I was put on edge by the stage setup. I won’t give anything away, but the beach balls were a nice touch. The Sister is, on the surface, a story of a husband, a wife, and the wife’s sister, who comes to live with them after their mother dies. But my lord in heaven, from the second this play spits it’s first line, I had to continuously remind myself to breathe in order to get oxygen to my brain because my whole body was in a state of minor shock. Basic functions ceased. Ever muscle was engaged and it felt as though I needed to do 77 jumping jack just to get my blood to stop boiling. The performances were fascinating, in a ‘oh my god that is too freaky to really be happening right in front of my right now’ sort of way. The subtlety is what really made it work. The little twitches and the sweat and the spit. Every character was completely defined and marvelously played. And what is the best way for actors to do well in a play? A brilliant script!! The writing of The Sister was some of the most compelling work I’ve seen in years. Filled me with terror and anger and mystified me and made me laugh and gasp and shift uncomfortably and nervously look into the eyes of other people in the room to make sure we were still on the same page. It made me proud to be there, witnessing it. Seriously, this play is real freaking theatre folks, the kind that breathes life into your bones. Nice work everyone.

The Sister runs through April 13th at 4th Street Theater, 83 East 4th Street

http://www.dutchkillstheater.com

G

Fine & Raw Chocolate
http://fineandraw.com/

Guess what? I, like nearly all of my fellow Americans, am addicted to sugar. I understand how bad it is for me, so I very much try to keep my consumption of it to special occasions. But let’s be honest. That rarely works. Its so easy to grab a tasty treat once a night. Soon, you’re eating sweets every day!

Or how about this: you go into the new chocolate shop in your neighborhood. Nice people. Choco-business from scratch. You buy a sampling as a gift for some friends, and proceed to eat it ALLL that night. Ok, so Ashleigh helped me. But still. It was a gift!

I’ll treat this particular experience as 40% sugar addiction and 60% surprisingly delectable chocolates. Their truffles, damn! A simple sea-salt bar? Sure! A bit pricey? You bet, but I totally respect the upstart. Following the chocolate dream, these dudes. And, they sell Kitten coffee, which is my favorite small business made Brooklyn coffee.

Lesson? Don’t eat so much sugar! It kills! Buuut……..if you’re going to in a moment of weakness, or many, why not treat yourself to a killer chocolate bar with home made fresh ingredients (no corn syrup, thank the Goldsmith). If you savor it, it could last a long time…

-Seth


You gonna endorse? You’ve got the goods? Commodity or experience? Love or hate? If you can see us, we can see you…


Love,

Not Blood Paint.

Friday Endorsements 3.29.13

So we’re endorsing again, so what? It’s like why do you care? It’s our lives , after all. We can do with our blogspace what we want to! We’ve got a big show tonight, we’re a little stressed…we’ve just gotta endorse to even out.

Maybe this is a silly question, but would you care to join? Endorsing loves company…


Fake Model Bedroom

Today I endorse our model bedroom. This fine model bedroom was featured in ‘better homes and bedrooms’ for the winter 2013 edition. We were so taken with it we decided to buy the whole thing and install it in our home. We had to sign a waiver when we installed it saying that we would never allow a human body to be in it for over 12 hours. We also are not allowed to change the decor or the lighting. There is a sensor in the sheets that sends a silent alarm to JCPenny headquarters upon disruption. We couldn’t be more thrilled. It’s just nice to have a room in a house that no one is allowed to go in. And even if someone was, they would realize the whole thing was a facade. Once, there was a 2 person party in there that lasted 8 minutes and we received a call the next day threatening to have the whole bedroom removed. We begged and pleaded and they eventually let us keep it, but for a price. It’s a lot like Magneto’s jail cell from that X-men movie: beautiful to look at, but god help you if you are ever trapped in it. And for those of you more intimate with our model bedroom, please refrain from mentioning any lude or baseless nicknames. Thank you. Be careful.

George


Yowayowa Camera Woman by Natsumi Hayashi

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http://yowayowacamera.com

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Our buddy Bill Gray (thanks Billy!) posted a link to an article about this the other day and isn’t it cool!? I just sat there looking at the whole diary transfixed. Colorful, beautifully framed photos of Hayashi bounding through the air (which she calls “dangerous jumping”) that make her look as if she’s floating above the ground. I love the shots that involve other, weighted humans that are so sadly confined to the earth. She uses a very high shutter speed and leaps, relaxing her entire body and appearing on film as if she is weightlessly levitating. 

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She told the New York Times, “when I am free of the gravity inside the picture, I feel free of any obligation to the society and live without being bound to many things.” I think that’s a lovely sentiment and I feel it when I look at her pictures. It’s pretty magical.

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Mark.

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“What a Shame”  by Jamie Lidell

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Lidell’s new record didn’t smack me as hard as I wanted but I definitely love the lead single. What do you call this? Dark soul dubble-step? The electronics are good, cool beat daddy, the chorus evocative of a real shame, and Jamie Lidell’s voice legitimizes everything.  The pauses in the verses do that thing where all my muscles tense up and I just wish somebody would try to fuck with me.  And then he does that swirling slop self-harmonizing, and then! this echoed sing-pout around 2:35 that’s the best tough little kid internalizing hurt, coming to sorry terms. I don’t know if this song’ll have much longevity but enjoy it now before you get any older.

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http://youtu.be/WQxGnSqxTyA

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Joe

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Side Effects

Isn’t Steven Soderberg retiring? I thought that he was, but he keeps making movies. I don’t want him to stop. He is a director who has completely carved out a singular voice in cinema, while at the same time making movies that seem wildly different from one another.

Side Effects displays many a Soderberg calling card: beautiful HD digital photography from a “low end” professional camera, some halting monotone “naturalistic” supporting performances, and deeply complicated/disturbing political themes that pretend to serve a straightforward thriller structure. Actually, the last point gives Side Effects a closest affinity with Contagion as far as execution goes but the former feels much more successful to me.

There isn’t a single protagonist in the film. Most scenes are pulled taut with that “who’s playing who” dynamic, so affinities shift about as the plot progresses. The disturbing political theme is beautifully served by this, as the true nature of the relationship between the U.S. government and it’s penal system, the “inside trade” banskters, the Big Pharmaceutical business, and the psychiatric community is about the messiest terror-knot one can encounter when digging into it. Side Effects is bursting with an ambiguity that begs to be met and actively addressed.

I think one of the things I appreciate the most about Soderberg is that he knows so well how to serve a large audience without pandering. He won’t abandon his questions - I think he has too much integrity for that. So, he has developed many little techniques over his career to serve up entertainment that can be enjoyed purely as such, or it can provide good dinner conversation one step further, or if one is deeply engaged in the question Soderberg is asking, it can nudge you right into the thick of it. 

Seth   


So, we’ll see you all tonight for APUTUMPU right? We’ll be mounting the Studio @ Webster Hall around 9:45, and the bill is totally awesome. Here is the link to the events page for all the juicy details:

https://www.facebook.com/events/122843044561138/

Much love,

Not Blood Paint