Tosh Berman's Blog, page 158
December 21, 2017
Mark Rowland Cindy Lamb Rock Journalists on Tea With Tosh
My guests for this episode of Tea With Tosh is music journalists Mark Rowland (Musician Magazine) and Cindy Lamb (L.A. Reader). Videotaped in 1987, it's in a sense a conversation from the past, but I have always been interested in what critics feel about the music world and how music is processed in that world. So, the episode is focused on that particular time ('87), but overall the issues are very much the same. On top of that, I miss the L.A. Reader and Musician Magazine! - Tosh Berman, the host of Tea With Tosh
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The Great American Robbery with all Respect to the Republican Party - Taxes by Tosh Berman
A well-organized (well, sort of) heist was done under the noses of U.S. citizens. Not as cool as the Kubrick gang in his film "The Killing," but nevertheless an old-fashioned heist robbery with respect to the passing of the Republican Party Bill / Taxing for the purpose of keeping the very rich to be very rich. With all due respect to one's respect for democracy, I would think such a tax bill shouldn't be decided by The Republican Party, but by the everyday citizens of the U.S. Why can't the great public vote on the Republican bill? Especially a bill that will affect every American in the decades to come. I suggest in the cause of an open society, we should be able to vote on the issue of this tax crime in action, in a special election in the United States just focusing on the current Tax Bill. - Tosh Berman
December 19, 2017
Gruppo di Improvvisazione Nuova Consonanza on Tosh Talks
Due to the scale of this project and just the 'oh wow' of it all, this is for sure on my top ten list of the greats from the 21st century so far. Gruppo di Improvvisazione Nuova Consonanza (GINC for short) is a group of mostly Italian composers who got together to do improvise music. Originally organized by Italian composer Franco Evangelisti, they have done numerous recordings and concerts throughout the 1960s. How I discover them is all due to my music hero Ennio Morricone who is a long-term member of GINC.
This five-disk vinyl box set captures them doing live performances that are stunning. The music is all done on acoustic instruments, but either altered such the prepared piano (ala John Cage) or the electronic mikes on various instruments such as trumpet, sax, strings, organ, and all sort of percussion. At times the music is pure noise, but there is a sense of construction and thought behind the playing. In an essence, the musicians/composers are using their composing hat as they make music together. In actuality, it is also about the relationship between these composers, and how they see music, and therefore the world.
The box set comes with a DVD video of their performance and a beautiful book with essays in English by Evangelisti and others explaining the GINC aesthetic and philosophy. For the new listener of GINC, they for sure will be reminded of John Cage's early works. GINC has a different 'feel' for their instruments, and it doesn't rely on musical accidents or outside noise. The sounds that GINC makes are very confined to space and time.
The mind reels knowing Morricone's association with these sound bandits. Most of the Italians here did music soundtracks or wrote music for libraries that store scores for future films and Television. Most associate Morricone with the Spaghetti western, but if that is your knowledge of Morricone, you really don't know him at all. I feel that GINC was or is a very important aesthetic for Morricone and throughout his career, he has touched on the avant-garde side of music composition for his various movie soundtracks. His openness to explore the music landscape is breath-taking. Gruppo di Improvvisazione Nuova Consonanza is an essential listening experience for anyone who even has the slightest interest in modern music. These five discs plus DVD and book is a worthy investment that will keep on giving for a very long time.
Here's the full list of members of GINC. Each one contributes greatly to the music. They are: Alessandro Sbordoni, Antonello Neri, Domenico Guaccero, Egisto Macchi (an incredible composer), Ennio Morricone, Franco Evangelisti, Frederic Rzewski, Giancarlo Schiaffini, Giovanni Piazza, Ivan Vandor, John Heineman (the only American in the group?), Mario Bertoncini, and Walter Branchi.
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December 18, 2017
David Trinidad Poet on Tea With Tosh
David Trinidad is a superb poet. I feel close to his work, especially the poetry he was writing in Los Angeles during the 1980s. I too have a thing for Girl Groups and that sort of Pop Culture that is expressed through David's work. I often saw him read at Beyond Baroque. Dennis Cooper at the time was doing the programming at Beyond Baroque. He had his own press, Sherwood Press, that was wonderful. he may have been the first publisher to publish Dennis Cooper, Bob Flanagan, and Amy Gerstler. A great era in Los Angeles Poetry world at that time. Also on the same show, we show Shirley Squid Ouchi's art performance/video "Doing The Dishes." A powerful piece of work.
- Tosh Berman
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December 17, 2017
Phranc Folksinger on Tea With Tosh
My special guest on Tea With Tosh is Phranc, who is the Jewish Lesbian Folksinger. I first heard of her when she was a member of the Los Angeles band Nervous Gender. Phranc is one of the great figures that came out of the Los Angeles music scene as well with respect to LGBT music. It was (and still is) an honor that she came on "Tea With Tosh" show. - Tosh Berman
Shawn Stern Youth Brigade on Tea With Tosh
A Tea With Tosh show with Shawn Stern of Youth Brigade. Punk Rock /DIY aesthetics that at the time (and still) fascinated with that form of communication. At the time of this taping (1987) Youth Brigade did a lot of shows in Los Angeles and to this day have their record label BYO (Better Youth Organization) Records. I was also interested in the concept of having and owning an indie label. Youth Brigade (sometimes known as The Brigade) were or still, a major presence in Los Angeles Punk Rock world. Thanks to Maria Niles for bringing Youth Brigade to my attention. - Tosh Berman.
December 15, 2017
Jack Hirschman Poet Translator on Tea With Tosh
Jack Hirschman is a poet and translator. A dear friend of the family, which means Wallace Berman. I first met Jack as a child in Los Angeles, but eventually, he moved to San Francisco, very close to the social world of that city, which includes the ultimate Beat Culture bookstore, City Lights. Jack is a social activist as well as an artist. Probably one of the smartest individual I have ever met. -Tosh Berman. Videotaped in 1987.
Review of Mike Kelley: Kandors 1999-2011 at Hauser & Wirth Los Angeles
Art © Mike Kelley Foundation for the Arts. All Rights Reserved / Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY. Courtesy the Mike Kelley Foundation for the Arts and Hauser & Wirth. Photo: Fredrik NilsenMIKE KELLEY: Kandors 1999-2011
Hauser & Wirth Los AngelesThe exhibition is on view through January 21, 2018
As a child, I have always fantasized about having my own secret headquarters where I can be free from the outside world. All of this was fueled by my reading of comic books such as Batman (The Bat-Cave) and Superman (The Fortress of Solitude). The Bat-Cave seemed to fit, if not my budget, at least my aesthetic of living in a cave full of computers and lab equipment, plus a large garage to house my Bat-Mobile. Still, Superman's pad of choice, The Fortress of Solitude, appealed to my minimalist nature, and since Superman can't feel the cold, this is the only location for him to meditate and think about the world that he has been placed in. Mike Kelley's "Kandors 1999-2011" immediately brought up my childhood feelings for a secret, but a secure place that will separate me from the cruel outside world.
Kandor is the imaginary city of Superman's birth on the planet Krypton. The villain Brainiac, who first appeared in "Action Comics" (#242) in July of 1958, shrunk and bottled the entire city of Kandor, until Superman rescued the bottles and had them placed within his sanctuary The Fortress of Solitude. When we enter the gallery spaces, we approached rock formations or borders that look very much like they came from outer space. The rooms are almost pitch dark, except for lighting focusing on the rock sculptures and a projection of a video by Kelly in the next room. I spent a lot of time in this room, not only watching the video, but also to get the feel of my childhood as I walked around the sculptures and placing myself back in time.
The other gallery is the actual representation of Kandor in various bottles, with mock-up architectural models of the city as well as two or more workers doing design work for the preservation of the city Kandor. At this point, one wonders if Kelley planned to build his version of Kandor, which in fact, he did, and that is what is being exhibited in this current show at Hauser and Wirth Los Angeles. Again, my childhood love for the Superman comic makes me feel very comfortable with the exhibition space. I relate to the oxygen tanks that are pumping air into these bottles, and also they are figures of great beauty, especially with the lighting and the reflection of these giant jars with the cities in them.
Kelley was rebuilding Kandor but also making his version of the narrative that is Kandor on the planet Krypton. There is a strong sense of placement or home in this work, and it is both a joyful and sad experience to walk through these ruins. Superman, although I never took him seriously, I now think of him as an immigrant who had lost his home. Of course, due to the modern world's making, we see this issue come up again and again. There is the political/natural disaster of such an existence, and then to focus all of that on Superman is also a portrait of a figure who has no real home. The secret headquarters, which houses his culture, away from the prying eyes of the earthlings. It's a sad and profound statement on a world that is both imagined as well as being real. Mike Kelley's "Kandors" is a fascinating exhibition and one of the best shows I have seen in a long time. - Tosh Berman
December 14, 2017
"David Bowie: A Life" by Dylan Jones (Crown Archetype)
ISBN: 978-0-451-49783-3For a David Bowie lunatic that I'm, it's impossible to put down Dylan Jones' "David Bowie: A Life." First of all, this is an oral biography, meaning there are many voices here talking about a specific subject: Bowie. As a format I love the oral biography because what's interesting is not them exposing their subject matter (Bowie) but how they expose themselves in the telling of the tale. Jones work is really as an editor, and he does a good job here.
The inside information is that Bowie is a charmer, but can cut off people once they are not needed, a total professional, he was into sex, and he loved cocaine. The average Bowie fan would know that already, but what we are looking for is a detailed report of such acts and practices. The book serves that purpose quite well. I didn't learn anything, except the rumors that he had a series of strokes in the last decade of his life, at least according to Mick Rock. Which I believe because Bowie in the videos for "The Next Day," he doesn't look entirely well. Also, I have seen photographs of him grasping a book or an object in one hand, which made me think that he may have had a stroke. Still, this is pure gossip and not any of my business. Which makes me feel a tad guilty reading about his private affairs.
The reason I admire him is that of his beauty, his musical genius, and the fact that he's very much an old-fashioned entertainer, who appealed to a new generation of listeners. It's hinted in the book that Frank Sinatra and Fred Astaire admired him as an artist, and I can't think why would they. Bowie is very much in the classic of those two, and what he brings with him is 'culture.' The fact that Bowie read a book a day (and I believe that because I sold him books as a bookseller at a bookstore) and was naturally curious about the world around him. What he did was obtain that information and turned it all into songs and images, under his artistic control. I love Bowie because he's part of the world, and in a way, he gave it a critical look, and instead of writing an essay, he made it into a song. A great artist.
Jones' book is really good, but not perfect. Then again, one can take just one Bowie album and make a great oral history book out of it. The way he worked or used musicians is fascinating, and you get that aspect of his working habits within this book. If you're a Bowie fan, there is nothing new here really, but if you are someone who wants to have an enjoyable read on an extraordinary figure in the pop music world, then this book delivers the goods.
