Charles Martin's Blog, page 9

HEATHEN 4 Debuting at Deluxe Winter Market!!!

The final chapter of season one of Heathen has arrived and will be rampaging through the Deluxe Winter Market this weekend! You can also pick up a copy at our Storenvy page.

As they set out to find the kidnapped Aydis, Brynhild and Sigurd run into trouble at a local village. With a quiet friend’s help, Aydis strikes a crucial blow against the enemy.

Annoy Republican Motorists And Show State Pride!

Do you:

A. Enjoy history,

and/or

B. Enjoy trolling your conservative parents,

and/or

C. Think it’s just fine that Bernie Sanders called himself a democratic socialist?

Then reserve your very own 46 Star License Plate! This new design was modeled after the state’s first flag, which was changed in 1925 after anything red became associated with communism and small pox quarantine. The plate isn’t overtly socialist, but does represent a time when struggling farmers and laborers unified to make the socialist party formidable inside the state. The plate even bears the state motto, “Labor omnia vincit”(Work conquers All) and is sure to impress/enrage your friends and family. This plate isn’t a reality yet since 100 people will have to reserve this design before May 1 for the plates to enter production. So run, don’t walk, to your computer, download the form at: http://www.ok.gov/tax/documents/708-E.pdf and prepare yourself for a year’s worth of road rage middle fingers and uncomfortable silences at holiday get-togethers!

Deviants Alternate Cover

Halo Seraphim’s beautiful alternate cover for the sex comedy Deviants is finally reaching print! We’ll be debuting these locally printed copies at Deluxe Winter Market this weekend and are also available at our Storenvy page.

Let’s Make Comics @ Martin Nature Park and Amazing OKC Comic Con

Let’s Make Comics will be making an appearance this Saturday from 1-4 pm at Martin Nature Park for a free Superhero Day. Get to know a bit about the special abilities of Oklahoma wildlife and how they are reflected within the pantheon of superheroes.

Also, Natasha and the Literati crew will be set up this weekend at the inaugural Amazing Oklahoma City Comic Con. The convention runs from Friday through Sunday and looks to be a pretty good show.

Polar Bears In America

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OKC Rapper Taps Into The City’s Dream Team – L.T.Z. Review

L.T.Z. w/ Bowlsey & Los Caminos

10pm Friday, November 20

Blue Note

2408 N Robinson Ave

elteazee.bandcamp.com

$5

Don’t be fooled by the rudimentary cover art. Barcelona ’92, the latest full-length release from Oklahoma City rapper L.T.Z., boasts slick tracks and heavyweight guest features that make this a must-listen for anyone watchful of the local hip-hop scene.

With a fresh, confident collection of rhymes, L.T.Z. presents a feel-good collage of various snapshots of his life in OKC. Verses run the gamut from sneakers and girls to roots and family. They swirl together in a stream-of-conscious flow across Barcelona’s 14 tracks as L.T.Z. dabbles in wordplay and braggadocio, but for the most part, he steers clear of being too showy. Even as he drops lines about nice clothes and decked out rides, they are tempered with insight—on “Breezy Excursions,” he states that “We never cared about going broke / Cause looking broke to us was the scariest.” Because he allows himself moments of humility, his more boastful ideas feel more grounded.

For instance, the album gets its name from the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. It was the first year that NBA players were allowed to participate, resulting in an unstoppable “Dream Team” of star players. L.T.Z. said in an email that he chose Barcelona ’92 to reflect the perfection that he says he has similarly achieved on this record—a lofty proclamation, to be sure, but one that doesn’t feel completely off the mark. This concept also plays well to the idea that he’s working with a who’s who of local hip-hop figures, with features from Jabee, Frank Black, Soul Williams, and a half dozen more. The school-recounting, Cosby-referencing opening track, “Hillman,” even closes with local hip-hop “players” announcing their “position” in the OKC area like a pre-game basketball lineup.

There are a number of hip-hop tropes that crop up in Barcelona, but none prove to be as forthright as neighborhood repping. His zip code gets a two-part tribute with the tracks “73120 (The Good)” and “73120 (The Bad),” and it features prominently on his merchandise.  Even the cover art is meant to reference a specific 7 Eleven hangout spot, pinpointed in the album as the intersection of Penn and NW 122nd. While this sort of neighborhood pride is not new territory for L.T.Z., he seems to be hitting his stride this time around.

If there are any reservations to be had with Barcelona ’92, they lie with the way its verses can veer spontaneously from one subject to the next. Sometimes they go places that feel either repetitive or at odds with the overarching concept of the chorus and title of the track. Especially perplexing is the first interlude, which has a hook that brags on chrome rims and arm candy but begins its lone verse with serious personal drama, culminating in thoughts of suicide before jumping back into the funky chorus. This is an extreme example, as tracks like “Take It To Heaven” and “Hillman” prove to be more focused, but there are at least a few instances where one could probably swap one meandering verse for another and not affect the album much at all.

Nitpicking aside, Barcelona remains a strong and cohesive work, a feat that couldn’t be possible without DJ Chips’s exceptional production chops. The tracking here is pretty much perfect, and the variance in sample work keeps the 56-minute runtime from feeling repetitive or tired. Chips’s affinity for throwback, chill samples adds a smooth progression to L.T.Z.’s tight flow. There are other producers in the mix, too, most notably Worm and Bed People’s Steve Warlow, who contribute a grittier, moodier sound on a few cuts. However, DJ Chips is squarely at the helm, and by keeping the cooks out of the kitchen, he has helped put together L.T.Z.’s most consistent and polished effort to date.

As the album draws to a close with a tribute to his late grandmother on the genuinely tender “Lessie,” L.T.Z. reminds the listener of the respect he holds to his roots. Ultimately, that’s what Barcelona ‘92 best represents, and it probably explains why he’s still decorating his albums with homespun artwork even as his music enters the big leagues.

Barcelona ‘92 is available for download on bandcamp. At the time of this writing, physical copies are sold out, but more are in production. For updates on this and more, follow L.T.Z. on Facebook and Twitter.

Barcelona ’92 by L.T.Z.

OKC Rapper Taps Into The City’s Dream Team

LTZ w/ Bowlsey & Los Caminos

10pm Friday, November 20

Blue Note

2408 N Robinson Ave

elteazee.bandcamp.com

$5

Don’t be fooled by the rudimentary cover art. Barcelona ’92, the latest full-length release from Oklahoma City rapper LTZ, boasts slick tracks and heavyweight guest features that make this a must-listen for anyone watchful of the local hip-hop scene.

With a fresh, confident collection of rhymes, LTZ presents a feel-good collage of various snapshots of his life in OKC. Verses run the gamut from sneakers and girls to roots and family. They swirl together in a stream-of-conscious flow across Barcelona’s 14 tracks as LTZ dabbles in wordplay and braggadocio, but for the most part, he steers clear of being too showy. Even as he drops lines about nice clothes and decked out rides, they are tempered with insight—on “Breezy Excursions,” he states that “We never cared about going broke / Cause looking broke to us was the scariest.” Because he allows himself moments of humility, his more boastful ideas feel more grounded.

For instance, the album gets its name from the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. It was the first year that NBA players were allowed to participate, resulting in an unstoppable “Dream Team” of star players. LTZ said in an email that he chose Barcelona ’92 to reflect the perfection that he says he has similarly achieved on this record—a lofty proclamation, to be sure, but one that doesn’t feel completely off the mark. This concept also plays well to the idea that he’s working with a who’s who of local hip-hop figures, with features from Jabee, Frank Black, Soul Williams, and a half dozen more. The school-recounting, Cosby-referencing opening track, “Hillman,” even closes with local hip-hop “players” announcing their “position” in the OKC area like a pre-game basketball lineup.

There are a number of hip-hop tropes that crop up in Barcelona, but none prove to be as forthright as neighborhood repping. His zip code gets a two-part tribute with the tracks “73120 (The Good)” and “73120 (The Bad),” and it features prominently on his merchandise.  Even the cover art is meant to reference a specific 7 Eleven hangout spot, pinpointed in the album as the intersection of Penn and NW 122nd. While this sort of neighborhood pride is not new territory for LTZ, he seems to be hitting his stride this time around.

If there are any reservations to be had with Barcelona ’92, they lie with the way its verses can veer spontaneously from one subject to the next. Sometimes they go places that feel either repetitive or at odds with the overarching concept of the chorus and title of the track. Especially perplexing is the first interlude, which has a hook that brags on chrome rims and arm candy but begins its lone verse with serious personal drama, culminating in thoughts of suicide before jumping back into the funky chorus. This is an extreme example, as tracks like “Take It To Heaven” and “Hillman” prove to be more focused, but there are at least a few instances where one could probably swap one meandering verse for another and not affect the album much at all.

Nitpicking aside, Barcelona remains a strong and cohesive work, a feat that couldn’t be possible without DJ Chips’s exceptional production chops. The tracking here is pretty much perfect, and the variance in sample work keeps the 56-minute runtime from feeling repetitive or tired. Chips’s affinity for throwback, chill samples adds a smooth progression to LTZ’s tight flow. There are other producers in the mix, too, most notably Worm and Bed People’s Steve Warlow, who contribute a grittier, moodier sound on a few cuts. However, DJ Chips is squarely at the helm, and by keeping the cooks out of the kitchen, he has helped put together LTZ’s most consistent and polished effort to date.

As the album draws to a close with a tribute to his late grandmother on the genuinely tender “Lessie,” LTZ reminds the listener of the respect he holds to his roots. Ultimately, that’s what Barcelona ‘92 best represents, and it probably explains why he’s still decorating his albums with homespun artwork even as his music enters the big leagues.

Barcelona ‘92 is available for download on bandcamp. At the time of this writing, physical copies are sold out, but more are in production. For updates on this and more, follow LTZ on Facebook and Twitter.

Barcelona ’92 by L.T.Z.

In Defense of Masculine Storytelling: Why Daniel Craig Was The Wrong James Bond In Spectre

I’ve always loved Bond movies, the purity of them. They are unabashed about their masculinity, which is why they are so satisfying. That they are formulaic is part of the appeal. And this applies to both masculine and feminine storytelling in its purest forms. They are meant to be simple and comfortable because they are not meant to challenge the soul. This is why they are fun, but also why they are rarely great.

James Bond’s newest outing, Spectre, is a classic Bond testosterone extravaganza. Thrilling action, beautiful femme fatales, exotic locales, familiar clichés and characters, and just enough story to string one epic set piece to another. It was fun. It was fine. But Spectre suffered one major flaw:

Daniel Craig was the wrong Bond for this movie.

Craig is an anomaly within the lineage of Bond actors. Those that came before were charming, outgoing, and unruffled by the horrors they faced while failing villains across the globe. But Craig is a quiet actor. He absorbs. He endures. He does not represent the masculine hero with the simplicity that Spectre demanded of him. In Casino Royale, he redefined the role, giving Bond a mortality that fit him even better than his tuxedo. He was still workable as a haunted assassin in the otherwise forgettable Quantum of Solace, but then came Skyfall. It was the franchise’s only masterpiece and highest grossing film by a wide margin. It was the first Bond film to transcend because it embraced the possibilities of injecting a little feminine storytelling into their formula. Craig ushered in a human Bond, a Bond who was never fully polished, no matter how pressed his suits were, no matter how shiny his car was, no matter how cool he appeared on the outside. This was a Bond in ever turmoil, not just touched by this world, but brutalized by it.

And this is where the feminine storytelling came in, defying the tried and true to create something significant that actually resonated not by the booming explosions, but from the battle within. Judi Dench’s M was a big reason for this, arising as a perfect foil for Craig and creating an emotional environment vast enough for his weary Bond to properly stretch out.

So, let me quickly define the two styles of storytelling:

The Masculine: the outer struggle.
The Feminine: the inner struggle.

Both are marked by strength and conflict, but their battlefields are on two different planes. Both, at their purest, are silly and obvious, but when blended, can create something surprising, beautiful, and altering. Do not mistake the terminology as indicating only men enjoy the masculine and women enjoy the feminine, clearly there is a lot of gender crossover within their fanbase and that is as it needs to be. But the styles still do segregate movie houses and bookstores across the world because they speak to qualities inherent in the human experience. They are primary filters through which we often view the world, and that is also okay. Some defy these filters and prefer something a bit more muddled, and that is also okay. It is pretentious and close-minded to look down on a man who enjoys masculine movies just as it is wrong to judge a woman who enjoys masculine movies. We shouldn’t have to apologize for our tastes. Our actions? Yeah. Our words? Yeah. But our tastes are ours and ours alone.

Though a letdown from Skyfall, both artistically and financially, Spectre was fine for not featuring that same, subtle inner struggle. In fact, it was probably a wise move because any attempt to follow up on that surprise stroke of genius would have seemed disingenuous. Spectre needed to be a masculine movie to return the franchise back to center as we await the next actor to take on the Bond role(Idris Elba, please!). Had Spectre featured a more traditional Bond like Pierce Brosnan, Roger Moore, or Sean Connery, then we would have barely noticed the lack of soul because it would have been covered up by their blinding shimmer of unflappable, sensual charm. But the filmmakers didn’t quite understand the film they were making and misused their lead actor who exceled when shadowed by PTSD, but never seemed convincing as the bed-hopping Bond who shakes off the blood of his lovers like raindrops from an umbrella.

If you are a Bond fan, watch Spectre. The opening action sequence in Mexico City during the Day of the Dead is worth a dozen of your dollars, at least. I’ll put that first 10 minutes up against any other opening in franchise history. If you are a fan of the emotional density of the previous Craig Bond movies, you can skip Spectre and not miss much. They did wrap up the over-arching theme they began toying with in Casino Royale, but not in any satisfying way. Perhaps the film’s biggest sin was how they underutilized the brilliant Christoph Waltz. The casting was genius, but Waltz never quite glimmered in the same way he had while being directed by Quentin Tarantino. Also, Andrew Scott popped up, who was as exquisite as he was unexpected as Moriarty in Sherlock, but was also suffocated by a script that lacked urgency and daring.

Yet, I hope blockbuster movie studios keep making pure, silly masculine movies as well as pure, silly feminine movies. We like these, even if we say we don’t. Ticket sales don’t lie.

But, if the opportunity arises where they can elevate their brands by incorporating both storytelling styles without simply pandering (Star Wars: Episode II) then by all means. It’s dangerous, it’s reckless, and could as easily blow up in their faces, but sometimes that is the only way to let your heroes soar.

Quilts: Icons Of Our Matriarchs-Full Interview

Full Interview From Quilts: Icons of our Matriarchs.

What is the earliest memory you have of your mother making you a quilt?  My Mother, Maxine Wilhelm, loved needlework.  When I was in the third grade in 1952, I caught strep throat which turned into rheumatic fever.  In those days, this meant your heart would be damaged.  But, our doctor told my parents that if I stayed constantly in bed for six months and I took medication to sleep most of the time, he thought I might recover fully.  My Father, Olin Wilhelm, was a farmer and these six months spanned from spring through fall, the busiest farming time of the year.  I would often wake to find a family friend, my grandparents, a teacher, a neighbor, or the pastor sitting by my bedside as my Mother and my brother, Larry, were endeavoring to help my father with the farm.  All this time in bed made my skin sore and my Mother decided I needed a quilt made of satin and velvet as it would be softer.  It was called a “Crazy Quilt” as the pieces were many different sizes with multiple fabrics and decorated with colorful embroidery.  I would often wake at night and find my Mother would be sitting by my bed lamp sewing on this quilt.


Roughly, how many did she make in her life?  I really don’t know as she gave so many quilted items away.  She didn’t really start doing a lot of quilting until after they sold their Honey Farm & Candle Factory business in 1987; she was 65 at that time.   I have 3 quilts, 14 quilted seasonal banners, and 8 doll quilts.  I know my brother has at least this many and there are 5 grandsons who each have 2 quilts apiece.  And she quilted holiday ornaments for the Church Christmas Tree.  Plus she gave to her sisters, friends, and to charitable needs. 


Did you ever try to make one? Yes, I made one doll quilt and a pillow.  It was a lot of work and it took me a month to finish it.


How long did each quilt take? This depends on the complexity of the quilt.  The pattern for the quilt must be designed, correct fabrics must be collected, fabrics must be cut to match the design, then sewn together by hand or by machine, then be quilted.  The longest time span for one of her quilts was a year and the shortest time span for a simple banner might be a week.  She was often working on several quilts at a time as she had two quilting frames. 


What do quilts represent to you, both hers, and in general? The Creativity of Art–Mother was able to blend small (sometimes very tiny) pieces of fabric into unique designs, with quilting stitches by hand that were less than 1/8 of an inch, so tiny you could hardly see them.   She created her masterpieces with fabric, thread, and love of others.


Which of hers is your favorite? My favorite is the Tie Quilt.  My Mother made this quilt using the ties belonging to my Father, Her Father, George Martin, and her Father-in-Law, O. R. Wilhelm.


Did she ever get help or did she always do them on her own? My Mother worked on her very special quilts on the quilt frame in her home.  She also had a building in the backyard; half the building was for my Father’s workshop and half of the building was for her Quilting Club ladies.  The ladies took turns hanging their pieced quilt to be quilted.  Each quilt would remain in the frame until it was finished.  My Father used to tell my Mother that they all talked so much it sounded like a bunch of chickens next door.  She would tell him too bad; they were having fun.


What do you think the quilts represented to her? My Mother loved people and she was very kind to all types.  Her special quilts given to family and friends were a way to show her love for each of them and a legacy for her future great-grandchildren.  The quilts she gave for charity were more durable as they would be needed to be used, not displayed.  She felt that the charity quilts were a way for her to thank God for the opportunity to bring beauty and warmth to those who need to know that they are not alone, that someone cares for them.  These quilts were mostly given anonymously.


How often did she show or sell them? She showed her quilts a the Beckham County Fair, the Pottawatomie County Fair, Oklahoma State Fair, the Central Oklahoma Quilting Guild and many other locations.  She was so used to winning; that she was a little miffed if she didn’t win first place.  She never sold any of her quilting projects. 


What is your favorite memory of her quilting? My favorite memory of my mother’s quilting was when I was in the second grade in 1951.  My Grandmother Wilhelm was having her Riverview Home Demonstration Club at her home and my mother asked the School Bus Driver to drop me off at Grandmother’s home.  The quilt frame was suspended from the ceiling in Grandmother’s living room and the ladies sat in chairs around the frame.  The quilt was a Wedding Ring design and it was being quilted as a Wedding Gift for the daughter of one of the ladies in the Club.  My Mother put a pillow on a chair, pushed the chair up to the quilt, and taped their smallest thimble on my finger. The lady beside me threaded my needle and Mother begin showing me how to make the quilting stitches.  I was proud to be able to quilt with my Grandmother’s friends.  Of course later, when I was older, I realized that once my father had come to pick me up, Mother had to take out my large stitches and replace them with her tiny stitches.  But, I will always remember how fun it was to listen to the ladies talk with each other and how kind they were to allow me to be a part of their gift for this young bride.

Quilts: Icons Of Our Matriarchs

Quilts: Icons Of Our Matriarchs

Oklahoma City Museum Of Art

Hanging through February 7

405 Couch Drive

okcmoa.com

I’ve never wanted to touch artwork more than when I walked through the media preview of “Quilts and Color from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.” No photo will ever do a quilt justice. The plush and subtle designs, the soft artistry as remnants of hours upon hours upon hours of dedicated work, and the memory of warm quilts on frigid nights. My fingertips actually tingled as I studied them from just out of reach. The sprawling works of art begged to be touched, were designed to be touched, but now they are museum pieces retired from the roles they filled for generations.

Since I was a child, the quilt symbolized womanhood, the noble lineage of my mother and my grandmothers. Warmth, stability, pride that, if something needed to be done, it needed to be done correctly and sometimes that meant doing it pretty. Quilts survived wars, famines, dustbowls, blizzards, droughts. They were resilient and strong, just as the women who made them. My mother, Teresa Martin, survived a brutal childhood disease, partly due to a quilt.

“My Mother, Maxine Wilhelm, loved needlework. When I was in the third grade in 1952, I caught strep throat which turned into rheumatic fever.  In those days, this meant your heart would be damaged.  But, our doctor told my parents that if I stayed constantly in bed for six months and I took medication to sleep most of the time, he thought I might recover fully.  My Father, Olin Wilhelm, was a farmer and these six months spanned from spring through fall, the busiest farming time of the year.  I would often wake to find a family friend, my grandparents, a teacher, a neighbor, or the pastor sitting by my bedside as my Mother and my brother, Larry, were endeavoring to help my father with the farm.  All this time in bed made my skin sore and my Mother decided I needed a quilt made of satin and velvet as it would be softer.  It was called a ‘Crazy Quilt’ as the pieces were many different sizes with multiple fabrics and decorated with colorful embroidery.  I would often wake at night and find my Mother would be sitting by my bed lamp sewing on this quilt.”

Maxine was a talented and stubborn quiltmaker. Large pieces would take up to a year to create with quilting stitches less than 1/8 inch. After Maxine and Olin sold their Honey Farm & Candle Factory, they built a small building in the back of their new house where Maxine would host a quilting club that “sounds like a bunch of chickens next door” as my grandfather would tease. Maxine would be working on at least two quilts at a time and Teresa estimated that her mother made at least 35 quilts of various sizes for family members, from doll quilts to king sized bed quilts. There were countless others that she made for friends and for charity.

“My Mother loved people and she was very kind to all types.  Her special quilts given to family and friends were a way to show her love for each of them and a legacy for her future great-grandchildren.  The quilts she gave to charity were more durable as they would be needed to be used, not displayed.  She felt that the charity quilts were a way for her to thank God for the opportunity to bring beauty and warmth to those who need to know that they are not alone, that someone cares for them.  These quilts were mostly given anonymously.”

Maxine survived depression-era Oklahoma and, like the quilt-makers featured on the walls of OKCMOA, she was a true artisan. My first realization of her skill came when I saw a piece she’d built as Olin was beginning his long, brutal, and losing battle against Parkinson’s disease. My grandmother began collecting his ties as well as from other kin to make what would become known as the Tie Quilt. My mother always insisted that Maxine’s quilts where no less art than what I saw at museums and it was the Tie Quilt that made me truly believe her. Black bordered with a spectrum of ties that swept across with colors balanced between coordination and spontaneity, a delicate act of enforcing her will on the design but also bending to the reality of what materials she had on hand. She couldn’t just go out and buy ties to fit her needs, she had to work with what she could find. Artistic progression through improvisation.

And that is the key to understanding the importance of the OKCMOA exhibit. Quiltmakers were achieving with fabric what painters attempted with light and color studies. The quilters were playing with vibrations, optical illusions, and gradations in ways painters wouldn’t start experimenting with for another decade.

They were ahead of their time, not because they were classically trained, but because they were creating a necessary item for their family’s survival. When firewood ran out and the deadly chill of winter crept in through the cracks of farmhouses, these grand works of art would be unpacked and laid over shivering, sick children. They were used to insulate the homestead to keep it alive for one more season.  

But just because they were essential, didn’t mean they couldn’t also be lovely.

To read the full interview with my mother and to see my grandmother’s work, CLICK HERE.