An Army of Movies: My Top 30 for 2006

Or maybe that should be an army of films, since I do tend to gravitate toward the art house. 

And this year, few big-budget spectaculars captured my imagination. Granted, I quite liked Déjà Vu, Casino Royale, and the underrated Superman Returns, but I wouldn't necessarily describe them as great.

As for why I compile a top 30 instead of a top 10, it's simply because I find 10 titles too restrictive, even if it's the end-of-the-year standard. I see a lot of fine films and want to recognize as many of them as possible. Anything beyond 30 seems like overkill, so I list most documentaries and re-releases separately. In other words, it's really a top 50, although I like to pretend otherwise...

Since I caught 300 films this year, my top 30 represents 10%. Unfortunately, that means I had to give the boot to the eminently enjoyable Russian Dolls and Wristcutters - A Love Story, because I couldn't find space for them. (The latter remains undistributed, which is a shame.)

Where possible, I've provided links to my Amazon and Seattle Film Blog reviews.

The Tops:
1. Army of Shadows (Jean-Pierre Melville) [1969; first US release]
2. The Proposition (John Hillcoat)
3. Old Joy (Kelly Reichardt)
4. We Go Way Back (Lynn Shelton)
5. Half Nelson (Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden)
6. The Departed (Martin Scorsese)
7. Inside Man (Spike Lee)
8. The Intruder (Claire Denis)
9. Pan's Labyrinth (Guillermo del Toro)
10. Duck Season (Fernando Eimbcke)

Bonus: Click here for Lynn Shelton's Harvey Danger video. Band leader Sean Nelson served as music supervisor on We Go Way Back.

Runners-up:

11. Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story (Michael Winterbottom) [I actually caught this in 2005]

12. The Queen (Stephen Frears)
13. A Scanner Darkly (Richard Linklater)
14. Dave Chappelle's Block Party (Michel Gondry)
15. Innocence (Lucile Hadzihalilovic)
16. Time to Leave (François Ozon)
17. Heading South (Laurent Cantet)
18. The House of Sand (Andrucha Waddington)
19. Lemming (Dominick Moll)
20. Friends With Money (Nicole Holofcener)

Note: Because I had to review it for Amazon, I watched The House of Sand twice. It holds up. The undeserved hostility directed towards Friends With Money sank a film I found more meaningful--if prickly--than Lovely and Amazing. As Cyndi Lauper, by way of the Brains, once sang, "Money changes everything." We're all obsessed with the almighty dollar, so why don't more filmmakers explore the issue? And I've said it before, but y'all slept on Dave Chappelle's Block Party. 

Second Runners-up:
21. The Science of Sleep (Michel Gondry)
22. Mutual Appreciation (Andrew Bujalski)
23. The Death of Mr. Lazarescu (Cristi Puiu)
24. Little Children (Todd Field)
25. Art School Confidential (Terry Zwigoff)
26. C.R.A.Z.Y. (Jean-Marc Vallée)
27. United 93 (Paul Greengrass)
28. Brothers of the Head (Keith Fulton and Louis Pepe)
29. The History Boys (Nicholas Hytner)
30. Idlewild (Bryan Barber)

Note: I haven't seen Letters From Iwo Jima or Inland Empire, and it looks like I won't be able to until Jan. Dec 28: I have now seen Children of Men and Dreamgirls--and liked both very much. Bill Condon and Alfonso Cuarón haven't let me down yet (granted, I haven't seen Cuarón's much maligned Great Expectations, but that's a conversation for another day...). Nonetheless, I'm leaving them off for now. To find a spot for even one means kicking something else to the curb, and that's a move I'm unwilling to make. Suffice to say, I wish audiences had embraced Dave Chappelle's Block Party and Idlewild as warmly as Dreamgirls. And as much as I admire Volver, a return to form after the misfire that was Bad Education, Pedro Almodóvar is coasting too much on his considerable charm. As for Babel, it's one of the most overrated films of the year. Excellent acting aside, there isn't much "there" there.

Documentaries:

1. Who Is Harry Nilsson (And Why Is Everybody Talkin' About Him)? (John Scheinfeld)
2. The Devil and Daniel Johnston (Jeff Feuerzeig)
3. Darwin's Nightmare (Hubert Sauper)
4. Sketches of Frank Gehry (Sydney Pollack)
5. Jonestown: The Life and Death of People's Temple
(Stanley Nelson)
6. Neil Young: Heart of Gold (Jonathan Demme)
7. Metal: A Headbanger's Journey
(Sam Dunn, Scot McFayden, and Jessica Joy Wise)
8. Heart of the Game (Ward Serrill)
9. Who Killed the Electric Car? (Chris Paine)
10. This Film is Not Yet Rated (Kirby Dick)

Note: I haven't seen Iraq in Fragments or Deliver Us From Evil. Who Is Harry Nilsson isn't currently available in any form. Once I've transcribed my interview with the extremely gracious Mr. Scheinfeld (The US vs. John Lennon), I'll create a link to it.

Re-releases

1. Sátántangó (Béla Tarr)
2. Spirit of the Beehive
(Víctor Erice)
3. Classes Tous Risques
(Claude Sautet)
4. Black Orpheus (Marcel Camus)

5. Mouchette (Robert Bresson)

6. Camera Buff (Kryzstof Kieslowski)

7. Tonite Let's All Make Love in London (Peter Whitehead)

8. Love Streams (John Cassavetes)

9. Brigitte et Brigitte (Luc Moullet)

10. I Am Cuba (Mikheil Kalatozishvili)

Endnote: I reserve the right to tweak this entry before the end of the year. The titles aren't likely to change much, though I may mess with the order, with the exception of my number one picks, which are pretty solid. Dec 26: My first change: trading Spirit of the Beehive for Half Nelson (Spirit now replaces Damnation on the re-release list). How could I forget Half Nelson? Thanks to the poster who reminded me. Click here for my top 10s for 2003-2005. All images from the archives, which means I can no longer recall the original sources, but the official sites are the most likely. Titles: Army of Shadows, The Proposition, The Science of Sleep, Who Is Harry Nilsson, and Mouchette.

When the Shillelagh Meets the Banlieu, the Shtetl, and the Heart of Darkness

The following comes from a piece in Salon about controversial Nobel laureates. I've always thought Samuel Beckett was The Man as far as playwrights are concerned. I have a great deal of admiration for those who can say so much with so few words, and Beckett was a masterful minimalist.

Of course, I'm also a great admirer of his more verbose Irish-American "cousin," Eugene O'Neill. In both cases, they exploited the English language for all it was worth. This piece proves Beckett was The Man in numerous other ways--plus, he had the best damned hair next to Seymour Cassel. Happy 100th, Samuel!

*****

"Terrific. He'll have them on their feet. I can hear it from here."
--"Director," Catastrophe (1982)

*****

[T]here is a writer who embodies all the ideals the Nobel stands for: Samuel Beckett (Ireland 1969), whose centenary year this is. Unbeknown even to many of his closest friends until after his death, Beckett had been a member of the French resistance during the war and received the Croix de Guerre. This is all the more admirable in that Beckett was from a neutral, if not impartial, country. (Sinn Fein was not entirely unsympathetic to the Axis powers on the dubious principle that the enemy of my enemy is my friend.) Beckett was deeply committed to human rights; he firmly and totally opposed apartheid, and from a very early age was hostile to all forms of racism and anti-Semitism; he supported human rights movements throughout the world, including Amnesty International and Oxfam. He lent his prestige to freedom movements behind the iron curtain, worked on behalf of the campaign to free Vaclav Havel and was a vigorous opponent of censorship. Though hardly a saint, he also apparently gave away most of his Nobel Prize money to those who needed it. True to character, Beckett did all of this out of the public eye, with no finger wagging, no pious speeches; for he exemplified, to his roots, in his writing, in his life, the adage "Suaviter in modo, fortiter in re"--discreet in form, strong in content. A noble laureate indeed.--George Rafael, "The Ignoble Prize" (2006)


"Act Without Words II" (10-minute film sans dialogue)

*****

The farther he goes the more good it does me. I don’t want philosophies, tracts, dogmas, creeds, ways out, truths, answers, nothing from the bargain basement. He is the most courageous, remorseless writer going and the more he grinds my nose in the shit the more I am grateful to him. He’s not fucking me about,
he’s not leading me up any garden path, he’s not slipping me a wink, he’s not flogging me a remedy or a path or a revelation
or a basinful of breadcrumbs, he’s not selling me anything I
don’t want to buy—he doesn’t give a bollock whether I buy
or not—he hasn’t got his hand over his heart. Well, I’ll buy
his goods, hook, line and sinker, because he leaves no stone
unturned and no maggot lonely. He brings forth a body
of beauty. His work is beautiful.
--2005 Nobel laureate Harold Pinter

Endnote: I've read a few Beckett stories in my time, but for my money, they don't have the same kick. My favorite Beckett play: Krapp's Last Tape. Runner-up: Rough for Theatre II. Pinter quote from Samuel Beckett Resources and Links. While I'm at it, I love Pinter, too. He gives a fine performance in David Mamet's "Beckett on Film" adaptation of Catastrophe, although the true star of that show is Sir John Gielgud in his final performance--and he doesn't even say a word. Talk about a masterful minimalist! Image from Beckett Centenary Festival, video from YouTube.

Into the Light: Aereogramme 's My Heart Has a Wish

Aereogramme, My Heart Has a Wish That You Would Not Go, Sonic Unyon Recording Company [2/6/07]


At the door, the curator took the old man's hand with an extra firmness. "My heart has a wish, Father: that you would not go."
-- William Peter Blatty, The Exorcist (1971)

*****

Compared to their debut, My Heart Has a Wish is a kinder, gentler affair. Granted, the title comes from a line in The Exorcist that didn't make it into William Friedkin's frightfest, but there's nothing scary going on here. In fact, the Scottish quartet are sounding more like fellow heart-on-their-sleeves countrymen Snow Patrol these days and less like the more elliptical British and American acts they once called to mind: My Bloody Valentine, Slint, etc.

I'm not sure this is an improvement. The band always had a strong sense of melody, but I miss the angst. Perhaps they got it out of their system on the Seclusion EP or the In the Fishtank collaboration with Isis (I couldn't say, because I haven't heard either 2006 release). From an instrumental perspective, there's more going on here--strings, bells, etc.--but Craig B.'s singing is more conventionally pop-oriented. Not bad, but needs more edge.

And here's my Tablet review of their first record:

Aereogramme, A Story in White, Matador (2002)

Like Arab Strap and Mogwai, Aereogramme hails from Glasgow and shares a label, Chemikal Underground, which licensed this release to Matador. While listening to A Story in White, however, visions of American acts of the 1990s, like Slint and Seam, danced in my head. Maybe it's because I'm more familiar with the US arm of the loud-soft axis, but Aereogramme takes me back to those days. (Their guitar squall also reminds me of Swervedriver, but I always thought those Oxford lads sounded more American than British.) Not that there's anything retro about this recording; the quieter sections are just as likely to incorporate electronic blips and beeps as cello and piano. What distinguishes Aereogramme most are Craig B.'s vocals, which range from tender and boyish to throat-shredding anguish--and his are not the lyrics of a happy guy--but the overall effect is more cathartic than gloomy.

Endnote: The Heart Has a Wish press release indicates that Craig B. has been dealing with serious throat problems of late, so Aereogramme's stylistic change is also about self-preservation--better to have a "small" voice than none at all. Still, I miss the caterwauling of yore. Also, A Story in White was followed by Sleep and Release in 2003, so Heart is actually album number three.

As for The Exorcist, I saw it the year it came out (I was eight; the other kids were jealous, because their parents wouldn't take them to an R-rated film). Suffice to say it terrified the, uh, hell out of me. Tried to watch it on TV four years later and couldn't get through it--even with edits, commercial breaks, etc. I was babysitting and had just put the little girl to bed; the timing couldn't have been worse (strange house, no companions, etc.).

I caught the director's cut a few years ago and got through it without shielding my eyes. It remains the scariest movie ever made. The most disturbing thing about seeing it as a kid is that all the horrible stuff happens because of a kid. Knowing that Satan was the true culprit did nothing to set my mind at ease. I'm still glad I saw it when I did. Images from MovieMaze and the AMG.

The Greatest: My Top 20 for 2006

I'm just riffing on the title of Cat Power's latest. I don't really present any of these titles as "the greatest." They're just my favorite records, reissues, and singles of the year--nothing more to it than that.

*****

Top 20:
1. Gnarls Barkley - St. Elsewhere (Downtown/Atlantic)

Who saw this one coming? Two shape-shifting tricksters who forged their reps via hip-hop, producer Danger Mouse and rapper-turned-soul man Cee-Lo Green, greet a welcoming world with the most exuberant pop platter of the year. Adding to the funky feat are lyrics that couldn't cut deeper. It's all here: depression, schizophrenia, suicide...necrophilia. And hey, isn’t that the ghost of Sly Stone lurking between the lines? St. Elsewhere is a chocolate cupcake slathered in dayglo frosting and sugary happy faces. Inside: blood red filling.
If there's a hell below, we're all gonna go. Dance while you can.

2. Arctic Monkeys - Whatever People Say I Am... (Domino)
3. Cat Power - The Greatest (Matador)

After You Are Free, Cat Power could've knocked out You Are Free: Part II and the cult of Chan wouldn't have cared. Instead Marshall hopped a train to Memphis, booked a room at Ardent Studios, where Big Star laid down their most sublime sides, and crafted this soulful gem with help from Al Green secret weapons Mabon "Teenie" Hodges and his brother, Leroy. What could have been an epic white girl-gets-her-black-on embarrassment ranks as Marshall's most subtle offering—this time, the now-sober singer takes a page from the Dusty playbook and trades catharsis for restraint. Reinvention doesn't come much sweeter.

4. Lily Allen - Alright, Still (Regal/EMI UK)

A pretty girl with a filthy mouth: it should be a recipe for success.
More often than not, it’s sound and fury signifying a major bummer.
In the case of this trash-talking Londoner, daughter of comedian Keith Allen, the exception proves the rule. With the voice of an angel,
the 21-year-old sings words so true—about Tony Blair’s England,
about two-faced geezers—they couldn't be funnier, set to jaunty
ska-pop grooves that'd turn Prince Buster emerald with envy.
Alright, Still is A Clockwork Orange as interpreted by Bananarama
on an epic bender. In other words, it's really about sex.

5. Juana Molina - Son (Domino)

Like Seattle's Rosie Thomas, Juana Molina plies two trades:
comedienne and musician. Not at the same time, naturally. On her fourth full-length and second domestic release, the Buenos Aires-based polymath, best known to South Americans as the star of Juana and Her Sisters, comes on playful and pretty, rather than comic or crude. With a clear and gentle voice that evokes Astrud Gilberto and Stereolab's Laetitia Sadier--she lived in France as a child--Molina whisper-sings atop woozy keyboards, exotic sound effects (bird calls, radio static), subtle percussive elements (cymbals, gongs), and airy acoustic guitar (delicately finger-picked in the Nick Drake style).

The singer/songwriter, who recently returned to Argentina after a sojourn in LA, speaks a universal language. On the self-produced follow-up to Segundo, she splits her breezy vocals between Spanish phrases and wordless utterings. Rather than Ella Fitzgerald-type scatting, Molina employs multi-tracked "ahs," "oohs”--even a whistle
or two. Spanish for "they are," Son is the answer to the musical question: Are Juana Molina's new songs as beautiful as before?

6. Be Your Own Pet - Be Your Own Pet
(Infinity Cat/Ecstatic Peace)
7. The Black Angels - Passover (Light in the Attic)
8. Starless and Bible Black - S/T (Locust Music)
9. Wax Tailor - Tales of the Forgotten Melodies (Decon)
10. Marisa Monte - Universo Ao Meu Redor
(Metro Blue/Blue Note)

11. Lady Sovereign - Public Warning (Def Jam/Universal)
12. Thee Emergency - Can You Dig It? (BlueDisguise)
13. Delta 5 - Singles & Sessions 1979-1981 (Kill Rock Stars)
14. Broadcast - The Perfect Crayon (Warp) [compilation]

Spanning 1998-2003, The Perfect Crayon blends B-sides, EP cuts and other enchanting ephemera into 18 tracks of audio bliss. At their gauziest, the British quintet-turned-duo, vocalist Trish Keenan and bassist James Cargill, conjure up Twin Peaks-era Julee Cruise ("Small Song IV"). At their spaciest, they float through the atmosphere like a jazzier Tones on Tail ("One Hour Empire") or Swinging London songstress Lulu fronting Cologne’s uncompromising Can ("Still Feels Like Tears"). All three selections, incidentally, come from 2003’s entrancing Pendulum EP. At other times, when they strip away the vocals and crank up the drums, they approach harder-edged Daft Punk territory ("DDL,” from All Tomorrow’s Parties 01). For those who found last year’s Tender Buttons a tad too reserved, this convenient collection presents a more unbridled version of the Birmingham band.



15. Brightblack Morning Light - ST (Matador)
16. Spoon - Telephono/Soft Effects (Merge) [reissue]
17. The Decemberists - The Crane Wife (Capitol)
18. Nellie McKay - Pretty Little Head (Hungry Mouse)
19. Gomez - How We Operate (ATO)
20. Black Merda - The Folks From Mother's Mixer
(Funky Delicacies) [reissue]

Top Reissues:
1. Tom Waits - Orphans (Anti-)
2. Al Green - The Belle Album (Hi/Capitol)
3. PJ Harvey - The Peel Sessions (Fontana/Island)
4. Bill Withers - Just As I Am (Columbia/Sony)
5. Various Artists - Brothers on the Slide:
The Story of UK Funk (Discotheque UK)
6. Dead Moon - Echoes of the Past (Sub Pop)
7. Michael Viner's Incredible Bongo Band -
Bongo Rock (Mr. Bongo)
8. The Gentle Rain - Moody (Sunbeam)
9. Sisters Love - Give Me Your Love (Soul Jazz)
10. Skull Snaps - Skull Snaps (Aztec Music)

Maximum Mixtape:
1. Gnarls Barkley - "Crazy" (St. Elsewhere/Downtown/Atlantic)
2. Thom Yorke - "Black Swan" (The Eraser/XL Recordings)
3. Lavender Diamond - "You Broke My Heart"
(Cavalry of Light EP/Matador)
4. Johnny Cash - "God's Gonna Cut You Down" (American V:
One Hundred Highways/Lost Highway)
5. The Gossip - "Listen Up" (Standing in the Way of Control/
Kill Rock Stars)
6. Lady Sovereign - "Love Me or Hate Me"
(Public Warning/Def Jam/Universal)
7. Beck - "Nausea" (The Information/Interscope)
8. Lily Allen - "LDN" (Alright, Still/Regal/EMI UK)
9. The Roots - "Don't Feel Right" (Game Theory/
Def Jam/Universal)
10. Love Is All - "Busy Doing Nothing" (Nine Times That Same Song/What's Your Rupture)

Bonus track: The Dropkick Murphys - "Shipping Up to Boston" (The Departed/Warner Brothers) [original soundtrack]

Northwest Notables:
1. The Gossip - Standing
in the Way of Control
(Kill Rock Stars)
2. The Old Haunts - Fuel for Fire (Kill Rock Stars)
3. M. Ward - Post-War (Merge)
4. The Long Winters - Putting the Days to Bed (Barsuk)
5. Unwed Sailor - Circles/The White Ox (Burnt Toast Vinyl)

As the old ad slogan goes, "If you want to capture someone's attention, whisper." Few musicians have taken that adage closer to heart than Unwed Sailor's Johnathon Ford. Hot on the heels of the hyper-minimalist "Circles" EP, consisting of two expansive instrumental tracks, The White Ox witnesses the addition of vocals to his musical modus operandi. On "Gila" and "Numbers" Daniel Burton's whispered words rest gently atop a bed of acoustic guitar, bass (Ford's weapon of choice), flute, and spare percussion. As with the EP, James Marsh, the modern-day surrealist behind every Talk Talk album cover, supplies the eye-catching artwork. Not so coincidentally, Ford's ambient waves of sound seem likely to appeal to fans of Spirit of Eden-era Talk Talk, along with other tuneful minimalists like Brian Eno and Tones on Tail.

And here's the mini-essay I contributed to the Jackin' Pop poll.

*****

Every year, it's as much about discovery as re-discovery. Since I graduated over two decades ago (!), I decided to concentrate on music from my high school and college years. Of particular interest: Those artists who didn't seem quite cool enough back then (ah, the 20s...). Hence, it wasn't until 2006 that I added Parallel Lines to my collection. I mean, how can I embrace Be Your Own Pet and Lily Allen, but not Blondie? While I'm at it, why should I pick up Show Your Bones when I can head straight for that new Bow Wow Wow collection? On the other hand, I see no reason why I can't enjoy Standing in the Way of Control as much as anything by ESG--and Keep on Moving proves they still got it.

I've also been getting in touch with my Irish roots through the music of That Petrol Emotion and the Pogues (new remasters plus bonus tracks!). Overall though, I can't imagine being nostalgic about the 1980s--it was such a crappy decade in so many ways--but with more and more modern-day musicians taking their cues from post-punk and new wave, I find myself gravitating towards the original inspirations. Sometimes in addition to the acts they've influenced, sometimes at their expense. Then again: Reagan vs. Bush II. It often feels like the 1980s all over again... Unless things change radically between now and then, I predict I'll be taking the same approach towards 2007.

Endnote: Click here for my 2003-2005 lists. Reviews from Amazon, Resonance, and Seattle Sound. (Yes, I realize I referenced Tones on Tail twice.) Images from Google (Danger Mouse), Wax Tailor (same), and Burn to Shine (the Gossip).

Brightblack Morning Light Is Gonna Let It Shine

In early September, I interviewed Rachael and Nathan from Brightblack Morning Light by email for a profile that ran in the Seattle Weekly later that month. (They prefer to be addressed as Rabob and Nabob, so I went with the flow.) As with most such pieces, I was only able to use a few quotes--the word count was 750--so for those who'd like to learn more about the duo, here's the complete transcript. I would also recommend Daniel Chamberlin's interview in the July issue of Arthur. Expect to see Brightblack Morning Light's Matador debut making a lot of top 10 lists for 2006. 

Hi Nabob. Thanks so much for answering these questions. So, how did you meet Rabob? 

Nabob: We met as she was playing music in a band in Alabama. I had moved back there from Humboldt County in Northern California. She came over to my house and began playing in Rainywood, which was forming around then. 

Did you have music lessons or are you self-taught-- or some combination of the two? How about Rabob? 

Nabob: Self-taught. 

Rabob: I learned from my grandmother, mostly old time gospel songs. 

Nabob: I love Aretha Franklin's gospel record from the '60s. I'm a fan of folks gathering to enhance themselves, usually they use songs to help gain enhancements. 

You were Rainywood, now Brightblack Morning Light. Do you see your band name as a living entity or is the current one meant to be permanent? 

Nabob: The out of press Ala.Cali.Tucky record is not a Brightblack record, it's a Rainywood record, although it says "Brightblack" on it, because Rainywood wasn't going anymore, yet we had made a record with Paul Oldham and then my friend printed "Ala.Cali.Tucky" onto vinyl, and at the time we were meant to tour, we had moved into not playing anymore Rainywood songs...umm, we had moved into some different songs, but saw the blessing of a friend publishing our songs, so we told him we were calling the current project Brightblack. Brightblack is meant to be a project and Morning Light is the very first Brightblack long-play recording endeavor. So Brightblack is a collective for continuance and it is meant to describe a tonal color of something. Umm. It's a way to participate, it hasn't been a forced endeavor, and Will Oldham [Bonnie Prince Billy] encouraged our participation, and now Matador encourages it. We never sent Matador a demo or anything; instead, a favorite band, Slint, reformed in England and asked us to come play the celebration of their reformation! We did that, my first time out of the USA! 

Rabob: Yes it was inspiring to [see] Slint back together and they curated the All Tomorrow's Parties we played.... Melvins played, too!

Is Brightblack Morning Light primarily a band or do you see it as part of a larger whole?

Nabob: I'm not interested in bands generally. Brightblack is a tonal and song endeavor. As life goes on, I hope to embrace the potential of other endeavors; human potential is as vast as we allow it to be. I wouldn't want to embrace a living pattern that I find terrible or non-holistic, yet "civilization" is such a maze of reactions and conclusions.... Brightblack Morning Light serves as a pattern of participation with both human and non-human input. It's a reminder and a recurring question, "How was the morning spent?" It could be a testimony to the possibilities of each day, at least for me, to help keep alignment with the Now.

Have you met Julia Butterfly Hill? (I noticed the link to her site.) 

Nabob: I attended both of the supportive rallies that celebrated each year she lived in the ancient redwood tree named Luna, where local folks came out in support of Julia's vigil in the ancient redwood tree. We would rally below the mountain and then hike the four-hour uphill walk to Luna. There she was, barefoot on the tree! She lived up there and didn't come down for two years! She was protesting clear-cutting trees, and also the use of pesticides in the wild. She gave voice to these issues in a resonant and inspiring way. Yes, we eventually met and played Frisbee together. 

Do you ever miss the South? 

Nabob: We were just on a musical tour all over the Southeast USA and enjoyed it. I haven't had my own room in four years. I've been essentially living out of a tent; that is a result of many decisions and circumstances, but is also a good way to keep the Be Here Now vibe going! The South I knew is rapidly changing. Television and actors with LA accents are changing the nuances of the Southern Accent. The woods are being developed into malls and shit at alarming rates, with little consideration for the environment. This is due to a strong disconnect between the people and the Earth. I wouldn't call the politics in the South progressive, historically, and we all know how it effected civil rights, and it also effects the environment in a negative way. My attraction to the West is the positive and growing Movement around organic farming and restoration of native plants. 

In interviews, you've mentioned My Bloody Valentine. Did you ever get into the Spacemen 3 or Mazzy Star? 

Nabob: Hey, I really wouldn't want to elaborate on this style of question.... Below I elaborate on the Quiet Quiet festivals I curate and organize, which focus on the here and now. Are you interested in that? I hope so. QUIET QUIET FOREST SPECTRUM was the most recent little festival I curated; it was held at the Henry Miller Memorial Library in Big Sur. The QUIET QUIET's have been going on rurally for three years. The first included Joanna Newsom and the most recent had a surprise performance from Ramblin' Jack Elliott, who used to sing with Woody Guthrie. The intention is to gather away from the city nearby national or state parks for interesting music. It is a very low-fi endeavor. It's unique in the idea that there is no headliner, which in itself is anti-Industry. I'd like to bring QUIET QUIET gatherings all over the West. 

How did Rabob meet Philip K. Dick's widow? Were either of you familiar with her husband's work beforehand? 

Nabob: I actually worked for Mrs. Dick making her jewelry designs. She was a well known artist before she met Philip K. Dick. She works in copper a lot. I think her designs are wonderful, blending silver and copper! I was living on the beach and working in her studio. Her name is Annie Dick, she is an intellectual rural person. No, I hadn't read any of the Philip K. Dick collections. I did later see the films: Blade Runner and Minority Report. 

I recently read that Dick produced a single for Japanese vocalist Sachiko Kanenobu, so he must have been a music fan. Has his widow ever said anything about his interest in music?

Nabob: Wow, I never knew that.

Is there one book or album that has had more of an influence on you than any other (musically or otherwise)? 

Nabob: This current Brightblack Morning Light LP.

Have you seen the movie Old Joy with Will Oldham? Do you keep in touch with him? [It's one of my favorite films of the year.] 

Nabob: No I haven't seen any of Will's films. We don't meet up for music much anymore, but do write letters occasionally. For awhile we met up every spring for three years, playing shows. He's not always on the radar and he shouldn't be, it makes for meaningful exchanges. 

Does it bother you when people describe you as a hippie? Is the term outdated? 

Nabob: I don't remember being called a hippie. I am a protester. I am a discontent witness. Umm, I think generalization is outdated. At this moment we all either hate the US government or love it. If you are neither, then you are just being lazy.

If you could choose one word to describe yourself, what would it be? 

Nabob: Homeless. 

Thanks again, Nabob! I look forward to seeing you in Seattle this September. 

Nabob: Some Brightblack Morning Light LP journalist's facts: 

* There are no "bongos" on our LP. 

* The congas were played by myself and Elias Reitz. 

* Magic Andy (Ex-White Magic) mostly played the drum kit. 

* We've been playing live with Meara from the Vermont band Feathers.   

Note: Images from Matador (Alissa Anderson and Magic Andy McLeod credited). I didn't change any of Nabob's words, but did make a few punctuation/acronym substitutions (like LP for Lp). Old Joy opens at the Northwest Film Forum on January 5th.

Musician Mick Collins in Review

While writing for Tablet (2001-2005), I contributed three Mick Collins-related reviews. Since the local alt-monthly n'existe pas, I'm reproducing them here so as to continue to spread the gospel (hey Collins, if you ever find yourself in need of a new publicist, look no further!). I've included the grades/scores I gave each effort at the time. Though Tablet began by using numerical scores, in the final year, we assigned grades, much like the Seattle P-I or Entertainment Weekly. Note that the word count also shrank between 2003-2005, hence the mini-review at the end.

*****

Blacktop, I Got A Baaad Feelin' About This -
The Complete Recordings, In the Red (9/10)

Long before the White Stripes launched their debut and long after the Stooges called it a day, Mick Collins was kicking out the jams with "houserockin'" trio the Gories. Between their dissolution and the birth of the Dirtbombs, he formed short-lived blues-rock monster Blacktop (among numerous side projects). Tracks 1-14, recorded in a mere 18 hours (before he had even finished writing the lyrics), stem from their sole album, I Got a Baaad Feelin' About This (1995). The other 12 (mostly covers) stem from singles. Despite the band's turbulent existence—most of the mon-
ey they made went to feed guitarist Darin Linn Wood's inexhaus-
tible drug habit—the music holds up. And as much as I love the 'Stripes, I believe Collins should be just as famous as Jack White—and Iggy Pop, come to think of it. The man's a Detroit legend!

The Dirtbombs, Dangerous Mag-
ical Noise, In The Red (9.5/10)

Mick Collins claims he doesn't play garage. You could've fooled me. I thought all Collins projects—the Gories, the Screws, etc.—were garage. After giving it a good listen, however, I think he's got a point regarding the Dirtbombs' third. Consequently, my first reaction was disappointment. Far from slick, Dangerous Magical Noise is simply more polished than that grimy new Blacktop collection, I Got a Baaad Feeling About This. It also rocks. Hard. Very hard indeed (two bass players and two drummers can do that). It's just not "garage." Once I got over my surprise, I couldn't stop playing the thing. Collins does, after all, profess an affinity for glam, and the influence of T-Rex and Sweet permeates the entire romping, stomping enterprise. (Along with Hendrix and the MC5.) Plus, the disc includes great covers of "King's Lead Hat" and "Executioner of Love." One of the year's best.

The Dirtbombs, If You Don't Al-
ready Have a Look, In the Red (B+)

Fifty-two non-LP tracks + two CDs (divided between originals
and covers) = 138 minutes of Motor City madness. Funny liner notes, too, including plenty of pics. When drummer Ben writes, "My least favorite Dirtbombs song ever," about "My Last Christ-
mas," it's hard not to agree. (It's not bad, just not one of their best.) As for the rest, there's something here for pretty much everyone: the Sonics-styled "Theme From The Dirtbombs," hyper-speed trib-
al-funk "Maybe Your Baby" (Stevie Wonder), and instant grunge-camp classic "I'm Saving Myself for Nichelle Nichols (No. 3)."

Images from In The Red and The Metro Times.

Tablet Interview: If You Don't Already Have a Look...at Mick Collins, V2

Here's another alternate/unpublish-
ed profile. In this case, Tablet went
under shortly after I submitted it
to the music editor, so I created
this blog specifically to provide a
home for the complete transcript
and other ramblings. Since the
original piece never saw the
light of day, it only makes sense to post it here as well.


***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** *****


I've been a Mick Collins fan ever since I stumbled across the
Gories' Houserockin' back in 1989. Since then, the multi-talent-
ed musician has been involved with a number of groups, most
notably Blacktop and the Dirtbombs. What they all have in
common are his impassioned vocals and impressively eclectic
taste. The new double-disc compilation, If You Don't Already
Have a Look, offers a convenient snapshot of one of America's
finest rock bands in all their messy, magnificent glory. I recently
had a chat with Collins, via email, about the CD and other topics.



Most people who are familiar with your work are aware
of the Alex Chilton connection (1990's I Know You Fine,
But How You Doin'). How did that come about?

A mutual friend played him a copy of Houserockin' one
night and, so the story goes, he flipped. He got us the re-
cord deal with New Rose on the condition that he be the
producer, and got in touch with us shortly thereafter.

Have you been in touch since?

We see each other occasionally (the last time in a bar in NYC)...

Is there any other producer you'd like to work with?

The producers I would most like to work with are Nick Lowe
(possibly the only human alive to whom I would willingly hand
over control of a mix of one of MY songs), RZA, and Ry Cooder.

Could you live anywhere other than Detroit?

That question for me is fraught with political and spiritual
overtones right now, and so I'll give you the most honest
answer I can. While it's possible I could live someplace
other than Detroit, it's unlikely I would be happy more
than 90 minutes away from one of the Great Lakes.

Have you met any of the legends of Detroit music? I'm
guessing many have moved/passed since their heyday.

I met Rob Tyner a couple of times, George Clinton
a couple of times (once while in line at a Chinese
restaurant), Kim Weston once, Pat Lewis once.

From the start, you've done a lot of covers and you've
tackled some great stuff. Are you constantly listening
to music when you aren't playing, composing, and/or
performing, or does a lot of it just come to you—from
your past, things you've heard on the radio, etc.?

I am constantly listening to music. (As I'm writing this, I'm
listening to a record called Dub the Millennium - Manasseh
Meets the Equaliser. After that, it'll either be a Comets on
Fire tour record, or a compilation of psychedelic music
from Africa.) I listen to all types. I have almost 7,000
LPs, and I'm buying more records all the time.

Speaking of which, did
you consider putting
"Executioner of Love"
and "King's Lead Hat"
on If You Don't Al-
ready Have a Look? I
have the Dangerous
Magical Noise CD with
the bonus tracks, so I
didn't notice at first, but they're two of your best covers.

Well, they SHOULD have been on there, but there was...
an issue...at the pressing plant, and so a lot more copies
came out with the bonus tracks than originally planned.

Who's the stone-faced guy with the gray hair in the
CD booklet? My guess: Kim Fowley. Or his doppel-
gänger...a rather scary thought, come to think of it.

Yeah, it's Fowley. He's come to see us numerous times. He's great.

And speaking of the CD packaging, I just noticed
the photograph of Nichelle Nichols (Star Trek's Lt.
Uhuru) hidden behind the second disc. Nice touch!
Did you get permission from the powers that be to
reproduce it or are you hoping they won't find out?

I had nothing to do with the packaging, it was all done in-house at
In the Red. I didn't even get to sign off on it. They just called and
said, "We're sending you a printer's proof, you're gonna love it."

You've spent over half your life as a working musician.
If things hadn't worked out, is there any other career
you'd have liked to pursue? On that note, in the liner
notes, you say you'll pull the plug on the Dirtbombs
once the band has achieved the goals you've set
out for them. Would you then go solo, retire...?

I like to think I could just go back into IT if I ever really sour-
ed on the music business, but it would be hard. I'm not lacking
in non-Dirtbombs projects. Plans are underway for a second
Voltaire Brothers record, I have a techno record coming out
later this year, and I'm about to start recording my other
rock band, Man Ray Man Ray, so hopefully, on the day I
decide to demise the Dirtbombs, nobody will notice.

Lastly, any misconceptions about yourself that you'd
like to clear up? Or anything you'd like people to know?

Not off the top of my head. Something will
come to me an hour from now, though...



The Dirtbombs have now been together for over a decade—and as
many as 17 line-ups. (Their newest member is guitarist Ko Shih,
from Ko and the Knockouts, who appears to be fitting right in.) In
the liner notes for If You Don’t Already Have a Look, which con-
sists entirely of singles, Collins explains that he prefers making se-
ven-inches to LPs, but more than anything—he prefers playing
live. So if you get the chance, do whatever you can to catch Col-
lins in concert, doing what he does best and loves the most.



Endnote: Illustration from I-94, photo from In Music We
Trust. Click here for the transcript and here for a related post.