Sunday, May 31, 2009

The Youth Are Revolting: Teenage Riots









A series of violent attacks and vandalism broke out in South Philadelphia overnight... and police say the culprits are juveniles and young adults.

The rampage started around midnight. Several dozen juveniles pulled a cab driver out of his taxi at 12th and South Street, then took off in the vehicle. They hit a car a few blocks away, injuring two people inside.

Other young people conducted similar attacks near Broad Street. Police say a woman who works in the Philadelphia District Attorney's office and her passenger were pulled from a Jeep and assaulted.

Another person was assaulted in a nearby McDonald's parking lot.

A mini market located at Broad and Catherine Street was also ransacked. Action News was there as store employees assessed the damage.

At least one person was hospitalized after being hit in the face and head.

Now, Philadelphia Police are asking for your help tracking down the suspects. Anyone with any information about these attacks is asked to call Philadelphia police.

SOURCE: 6ABC

----------------------------------

Youths rampage in South Phila.
By DAFNEY TALES
Philadelphia Daily News
Authorities are searching for a tech-savvy mob of teens who used online social networking sites to terrorize a South Philadelphia neighborhood Saturday night, police said.

More than 100 youths arranged via unspecified Internet-based means to meet on South Street near Broad about midnight, swarming the area and leading to a melee that ended only after the mob had hijacked a taxi, pulled a woman from her car and assaulted her, and ransacked a convenience store, police said.

Several people received minor injuries, including the taxi driver and the woman, a paralegal with the District Attorney's Office, police said.

A Daily News editor who was riding in a nearby taxi watched as the tide of youths swayed in different directions along South Street near 12th, as members of the group held cell phones to their ears or sent text messages.
It's annoying and frustrating that there doesn't seem to be any logic or reason to these events. No cause, no reason... just random occurrences where large groups of teenagers causing trouble.

For more information, please read my old post. Thanks!

The South Street Saturday Gatherings: What Is Going On?

UPDATE!!!!!

I want to apologize for the last two updates. So far, there is no concrete evidence of a social networking system was used for this. None at all! At this point, this really is just speculation and rumors, both on the part of the media, the police, and myself.

To that degree, I do apologize.

The fact is, there is nothing publicly visible on MySpace, Twitter, Facebook, or any other social networking site that we can see. Nothing. Nada. Everything have been in reaction to it.

----------

More details are emerging about the organization of this event. Tips have led to of a Social Networking website for blacks called "OurSpace.com" being used to organize the events of Saturday night. No word yet as to the details, as they are scarce and nothing has been found yet.

----

A user on PhillyBlog named "cowpaintings" posted that there is some rap group that is posting in some form, shape, or fashion that they are having an "Afterparty on South Street", thus the reason for the large number of people. The police were already well-aware of the event, yet the crowd was not put under control and steps to prevent it were not taken.

No word yet on who the rap group is, but it appears to be a group with local ties.


--------------

The day did not start off well.

I was awoken at 10AM by nothing more than myself, yet I felt angry and annoyed. The rest of the day were lessons in frustration in multiple ways, and by 10PM, I had had enough and was on a train headed to Center City. The plan was simple: Go down to South Street where it would be fairly vacant and freak out anyone there with my "freak" attire. It isn't a habit or ritual for me. In fact, I'm normally just lying around the house getting ready to go to bed. A friend gave me a call, I told them what I was going to do, and as I approached South Street, I noticed a large group of teenagers standing around, almost as if there was a parade.

A parade. On South Street? At 10:30PM on a Saturday Night? Something was wrong here.

As I walked down South Street from 4th Street, the crowd thinned out at times. The group were largely black teenagers, with ages ranging from 15 towards 20. Some older men, but not much. Teenagers... a sea of teenagers. It was interesting, stunning, hilarious, terrifying, and annoying all at once. The crowd got worse and worse towards 6th and South, where police were there in mass as, for seemingly no reason, large portions of the crowd began to run around, causing havoc.

I walked by a sex shop with the workers by the windows, door locked, keys visible, left to wonder what was going on. I asked, "So, what's going on down here?" "Well, it seems someone posted something on MySpace or something to gather all these teenagers here. It happened last week, too, but no one really seems to know why."

As I walked towards the crowd at 6th and South, not caring about the volume of people or such, just wanting to get away, a herd to kids ran straight for me. I buffered them against my arm, some of them getting a little bumped on their way. I asked what was going on. No answers, just confusion.

I gave my friend a call back to let them know what I found and told them I would send them a text when I got home. Only a block from South Street, on Locust, the police were trying to get past traffic that was backed up. There didn't seem to be many people down there, which was nice.

I don't have any answers, and I'm sorry that that's the case. I'm writing this at 1AM and I saw a post on a forum around 12:30AM that said it was still going on.

EDIT: Word came in that this same group of people stole and crashed two cars and that this went on until around 3AM.

Photos are courtesy of cowpaintings.

Friday, May 29, 2009

If a Pro-Bike Group Posts a Pro-Bike Story... Oh God, It MUST be True!

Philebrity posted a story that got to me:

New Prevailing Wisdom: In Philly, A Bike Will Get You There Quicker Nearly Every Time

Here’s something they don’t tell you: Who plans the route?

For the last 4 years, the Bicycle Coalition stages a race against a car and a SEPTA bus. Every year, the bike wins.

Am I the only one who is going to call bullshit on this “study” and this “story”?

This is like getting a press release from some group like the PMRC in the 80’s, quoting it verbatim, then holding it up like some grand truth! “Motley Crue are evil!” “Bikes beat cars!”

I’d rather see a non-partial study done, a non-partial race, and see who wins. If a PRO-BIKE group holds a race and a BIKE CONSTANTLY WINS, doesn’t that seem odd and fishy? Doesn’t seem that the smart thing to do would be to not report this story as fact and, instead, call it for what it is: A publicity stunt that doesn’t prove a point, but reasserts what people want to hear and what the group in charge wanted to see.

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

THE CHOSEN! Skateboard

The Chosen skateboard
The Chosen by LuvataciousSkull

I did this back in November, and its one of my favorite pieces ever! I did it based on the song "The Chosen" by Unearth, which is only available (I think!) on the Aqua Teen Hunger Force Soundtrack. I'm not a big Unearth fan, but that song constantly blows me away every time I hear it!

This deck is a personal favorite, and I hope you get the joy of shredding on it one day yourselves!

Monday, May 25, 2009

Cartoon Network: How Stuart Snyder Is Killing The Network, and Animation With It

In 1994, I became one of the happiest kids on my block. It wasn't because of my grades, going outside, or my friends. No, all those things (except my grades) were good. No, what made me happy was that was the year we got Cartoon Network.

Cartoon Network. "All Cartoons, All the time! Forever, and ever, and ever! UNTIL THE END OF TIME!"

At only 9, I already got to feel instant-nostaglia as shows that I thought were once-canceled were back, and I had a chance to watch a ton of new cartoons I had never heard or seen before. It was, for a kid, and an animation fan alike, a heaven, a slice of bliss.

But ever since 2003, the station has steadily gotten worse and in 2007, a man became the head of programming for both Cartoon Network and Turner Broadcasting and given a task: How do you make Cartoon Network viable against Nickelodeon and Disney? Both Nick and Disney had, since 2005, steadily cut back on new animated shows, astounding since both studios were powerhouses only 5 years ago. Since they were cutting animation talent and eliminating programs that were doing well... well, what could he do?

Easy: Stop focusing on the CARTOON part of the name and focus on the NETWORK. Or, even better, stop making so many cartoons.

The idea Stuart had was to expand the network away from cartoons and do more things, such as a live action movie (which was terrible, not even campy-bad!) and expand into rip-offs of Sci-Fi and Discover Channel shows that involve real kids in real drama, like hunting ghosts and blowing stuff up. Sounds cool, but... well, they're "reality shows". Cheap, no-writter TV.

Meanwhile, we're seeing animation in this country suffer on a whole.

Ten years ago, an animator had a chance to get out there and possible start a career doing a show that THEY wanted, a show that THEY could do. John K, in 1993, paved the way to allow for the "Director system" to come back, and for the most part, most cartoons were done with the artists and creators in control. It seems that the end of that came with Camp Lazlo, a show that a cousin of my said, and I quote, "was the most fun I had doing a show in my life." He has worked on everything from Muppet Babies to The Simpsons to Futruama. That's one hell of a complelment!

Now, an animator is hard pressed to get an interesting new show out there outside the internet, and most shows created are now incredibly cheap, done in Canada using Adobe Flash. To me, the fact a talented man like Harry Patridge is stuck posting cartoons on the internet with no network willing to give the man a chance to create a cartoon (for kids!) on their network... my god, its amazing!

Cartoon Network and Viacom were in competition in the 90's and it was one hell of a great thing for the craft! Each tried to outdo the other in terms of cutting-edge animationa dn interesting concepts and ideas. We're now on our own. To me, the decline began back in 2003.

Since then, the line-up of Cartoon Network has been more of a focus on not producing cartoons or showing older ones for a new generation, but instead focusing on 6 - 8 shows for the 24/7 network and see what sticks. It is more in line with MTV in the sense that the name is in "spirit" only, and it is irritating as an animation fan and historian to see this happen.

My Art Show Went Really Well!

Wow, what a night!





After 4 months of planning and a ton of work, I finally had my art show! I had everything laid out at home, it took a while to print, mount, and hang everything, and the flyers made were wrong, and there was little to no press about it, or the two bands playing.

In the end, the opening night of the show went great! Most of my friends were able to make it, even people I hadn't seen much in the last 6 months, and the reaction was overwhelmingly positive from the crowd! The bands Red This Even and Ninetwelve played, they did a great job! Red This Ever really dug my stuff, which was pretty cool.

I sold 5 prints myself, I have one more in the wait, and demand is pretty high. My boss even bought 2 of my pieces, which simply floored me! It was incredible, very flattering, and I'm enjoying my little moment right now.

If you live in the area or will be in Philly during the weekend or from now until mid-June, the show will still be up, so please feel free to come down and take a peek.

Here are some awesome photos of me putting up the show:




Also, Visual Art Assassins did a story about this on May 17th (visualartassassins.net), and there will be more links soon.

Thursday, May 21, 2009

THE YOUTH IS REVOLTING! - The Art of Larry West at Digital Ferret Records!


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Mohawked Madman Murders Monotony

Remember Larry West? He's back...IN ART FORM!

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. March 3rd, 2009. A former mayoral candidate known for his outrageous hairstyle now leads a coup d'état against the monotony of the Philadelphia Art Scene.

After two years of staying under the radar since his daring campaign, Larry West defiles the scene with his first major show, 'The Youth is Revolting'.

In what can only be referred to as 'Sub-Americana', West feels he captures the essence of a counter culture that has existed as long as Modern America. He believes his art "forces us to acknowledge this culture as a large part of the country's history while simultaneously slapping wholesomeness in the face." Larry West's style incorporates everything from Art Deco to comics and pop art. West also is known for his cardboard sculptures of robots with signs that said, "The End is Near".

"The ways of the past are not dead; They simply change into new forms," says West about his show; referring to his use of propaganda in his art - something that he feels is still alive and well in America.

West's comic book interpretations draw from the past to comment on the present and future. His unique style serves to underscore his vision in one big happy heavy metal/anarcho-punk extravaganza.

'The Youth is Revolting" will debut on May 22nd from 7pm-10pm, at Digital Ferret Music Store, 732 S. 4th Street, Philadelphia, PA and run through June 25th. The bands performing opening night will be industrial metal acts ninetwelve and Red This Ever, along with DJ Boston.

About Larry West:

Larry West is a 24-year-old local artist who has run for office in 2007 and is currently known for his hair and his feud with Milton Street, Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller, and the rest of the world. He is available for interviews, and will be as fun and interesting as possible.


The line up is as follows:

DOUBLE RECORD RELEASE SHOW!

ninetwelve (Lukotyk Records)
red this ever (from Baltimore!)
DJ Boston


LOCATION:

Digital Ferret
526 S. 5th St. Philadelphia, PA 19147

Child Leashes: Really, WHY?!

I. Hate. Child Leashes.

To me, there is no symbol, no outright disregard for all that is intelligent and a sure sign that the person shouldn't be a parent than having this kid on a LEASH!

Today, I went to a corner store in Center City to get something real quick. While on my way, I saw a kid. I thought he was adorable, and I then noticed something else while on my way into the store: A leash. A. LEASH. Attached to the other end of this leash was a father. The man had to be about 300lbs, 5' 6", and looked like some cross between a gansta and a punk, emphasis on the former rather than the later. While I've gone on and on about how I hate it when people stare at me, people judge me, etc... well, there are exceptions to the rule. Like doing something that doesn't just harm yourself, but an innocent child.

To quote the Simpsons, "This leash demeans us both."

To me, the leash shows you don't care about the kid and their emotional well-being. It means you're treating them as nothing more than a status symbol, an accessory... that you can not, and will not, be bothered with doing what you need in order to keep them in line, to help them grow up into responsible members of society. It means that, instead, you treat them as a pet; to be trained, to be obeyed by you.

You SUCK! You sicken me!

To me, the ONLY time, THE ONLY TIME, you put a kid on a leash is if you don't have a choice. If the child has some sort of emotional problem, A REAL ONE, where they could otherwise really, really, REALLY do something harmful to themselves without knowing it... yes, I can understand it. If your child is a god-damn hellspawn, by all means, do it. This kid wasn't. He was a sweet, little, adorible thing. Not misbehaving, not suffering from anything... just standing there.

Do me a favor: The next time you want to put your kid in one of these "harneshes", think for a moment that your not doing it keep your child in line. Instead, you're humiliating both yourself AND your child.

Photo thanks to Mick Laders.

Hot Potato Cafe: Grand Re-Opening Tonigh w/ Chef Gordon Ramsey!



Chef Gordon Ramsey is in town this week in Fishtown, ready to kick ass and take names for "Kitchen Nightmares". Tonight he brings the Hot Potato Cafe to life with his massive makeover debuting. I've been a fan of the show largely because of the simple fact that he seems to tell it like it is. Plus, anyone willing to state that the food in the Fox 29 Green Room "tastes like shit" has my respect.

So come down to the Hot Potato Cafe tonight! They open at 11AM for breakfast, dinner starts at 4PM, and they're done by 8PM.

PS: Since I'm at it, it seems I beat out the local blogs to this story. Take THAT!

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

No, Newspaper, YOUR Apathy Is Why the Election Failed!

Today's Philadelphia Metro had a headline that was both clever and a show of how little they care:

If turnout's so low, why should we care?


It's simple why this is a misfire on their part: On election day, the only way you would have known there was an election was TWO LITTLE FUCKING ADS ON THE FRONT PAGE FOR JUDGE! No front-page story about an election! No, it was on page 2. To me, that's like saying, "Well, we don't care... but lets PRETEND to care."

The problem is that they are stating that since turnout was low, because nothing "exciting" was happening with the race, they have every right in the world to simply ignore it, to pretend like it was only happening in the slightest of ways. That the election that determined the very makeup of our local government, one where we aren't fighting or arguing about who should be our top leaders... we shouldn't know unless its INTERESTING?!

AM I MISSING SOMETHING HERE?!

God damn it, THE MEDIA'S JOB IS TO MAKE BORING CRAP INTERESTING!

Take the lives of "celebrities", for example! I keep hearing about some reality show star couple arguing about their lives, or how some other start was shown naked. We can devote 30 minutes to trash celebrity gossip shows on CBS, NBC, and FOX, BUT WE CAN'T TAKE THE SAME TIME TO EDUCATE THE PUBLIC ON WHO THE FUCK IS GOING TO CONTROL US?!?!

AND NO ONE IS SPARED HERE! Local news blogs, I'm looking at you bastards, too!

Coverage of the election was SCARCE AT BEST. Instead of taking the time to educate voters, devoting more time to this election, we were instead treated to stories about the FUCKING HIPSTER FUCKING GRIFTER! WHO THE FUCK CARES? Oh, wait, sorry, YOU BASTARDS DID! YOU decided the "Hipster Grifter" bullshit story was worthy of the time and effort needed to attract readers. And, my god, it worked! A boring, uninteresting story about a con-artist that, by and large, YOU supported (even if only in passing), became the biggest story possible.

Well, when you weren't posting events the day before or the day of them happening.

But that's me pissed off.


The fact of the matter is that I would be FAR too dismissive I didn't state the fact that, yes, they DID cover it and they DID try to make it matter. I would be lying if I said they didn't. Philebrity even went so far as to write this awesome article about who they were endorsing. If I had been a registered Democrat and not Independent, I would have gladly voted for him. City Paper also tried hard, and I do respect them all for it.

My rantings, my anger, me pissed off? It all comes from a pretty simple, and pretty fair place; that the turnout was abysmal and, on the surface and to the casual observer, this failed due to lack of media saturation. And, really, that's what it was; Lack of saturation. I guess we all were too tired from the last Presidential election to pay attention.

In turn, we've seen a man who let violent criminals plea bargain only to kill again as DA, the same-old controller, and given City Council the power to pull almost any bullshit it wants.

God damn, I fucking hate this place sometimes...

The list of election results are still coming in through my favorite election-night website, 6ABC.com. A full list of winners, losers, and how fucked we are can be seen here.

Photo: Rikard Larma

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

YOU KNOW WHAT I HATE? FAUX HAWKS!

Seriously? WHY?! WHY?! Quit it!



Who am I talking about?

This douche bag:



And this one:



And this sack of shit:



QUIT IT! It is not a style for everyone! It is not MEANT for everyone! You head is not made for one! You look stupid! You look like you missed a fucking part of your head when you went to the barber! You look like a lame-ass poser who thought ripping off someone who had real balls to grow theirs out would be "cool"!

POSERS!

Here's A REAL Mohawk:



So please, join me in killing this shitty, shitty trend. Death to faux hawks, and a swift kick in the ass to posers!

Monday, May 18, 2009

The Death of Ownership?

I was on the phone with a friend of mine today when a thought rattle around my head finally came out: How we are quickly becoming a world where, in essence, we no longer own anything. Well, not "anything", but a world where art is no longer ART. A world where art is nothing more than something you "lease", controlled either by the artist or, more likely, by a corporation.

Then again, I'm being very vague here and not explaining anything specific. So let me explain.

Do you own an MP3 player? OK, do you buy CD's anymore? Do you download all, or at least a large majority, of your music legally through, say, iTunes? Congrats, you don't own it! You are, in the end, only "leasing" it. You are buying the rights to listen to the song any number of times you want on your iPod, and once that's gone... well, bye-bye song. You don't own the music, and you never will with MP3's.

Ten years ago, the internet was a new beast that no one could control, and everyone liked it like that. Well, almost everyone. By around 2001, companies, namely record companies, saw Napster and other Peer-to-Peer services as the end of them, as people could rip music from their CD's and share the files with the world. Napster was soon shut down, but the P2P concept remained and soon evolved into torrents.

In return, we saw the legal option emerge and take hold: iTunes and Rhapsody. Both allow you to buy the songs legally, but one limits how your able to use the music. To me, I'm astounded by the fact so many people are more than happy to pay 99 Cents for something they can't keep for themselves forever, are essentially "leasing" it, and are limited to where they're able to store it. Your basically paying to be dictated how to enjoy something. Then again, buying an MP3 legally doesn't always mean leasing it; some places will sell it to you with the ability to do as you please, and you have the option of periodically buying it from the artist themselves.

But this still poses a dangerous thing. Not only do we see artistic expression reduced to nothing more than something you "lease", but a world where, more or less, you don't actually own anything.

Now, philosophically, one could argue that is how the world is now, that you don't "own" your house, your "leasing it" from the government, etc, etc.... but we're going strictly on the simple idea that "you pay for it, you can do what you like with it, and no one is allowed to take it away." You know, like buying a sandwich; You bought it, you get to eat it, and no one has the right to grab it from you.

The way things are going, we may see a continual dying out of CD's. Personally, I hate that. I don't hate it as an artist who always dreamed of designing awesome CD's. I hate it as someone who... well, someone who loves CD's! I've got nearly a 1000 of them at my home, and I listen to each and every single one. My entire collection is loaded and ripped to my computer, but I own them. Every single last MP3 is MINE. I bought the CD, the rights to rip them, and the rights to listen to them on my MP3 player and anything else. I also got the right to sell them if I don't like them, something somewhat illegal, as I understand it, with MP3's you buy.

At the same time, people are beginning to lean towards renting movies online. We've already seen more than 1 billion DVD's shipped and mailed with Netflix, the start of the demise of the movie rental store (I'm glad to see it)... but we're starting to see a shift in even SELLING DVD's. We are able to get a lot of TV shows streamed for free online, something I am grateful for and use daily (I listen to the Daily Show at work if I missed the previous nights episode), and its a convience. Streaming movies isn't a bad idea.

But buying movies online often has the same limits and restrictions of, say, iTunes where you don't own it forever, your only leasing it. Its starting to catch on, and some could say that if there is a sort of "death" to physical formats, its largely because of convince and cost. One person I know says that, "if CD's and DVD's are gone in 5 years, its not because people didn't like the format or they didn't have an option; Instead, the option is gone because they decided to pick this instead."

In turn, though, we are seeing something interesting come out of this.

If we do see a sort of "death of ownership", we've already seen some bits of its effects. For example, music is no longer about a band selling a ton of CD's to support themselves (something that, in the end, was always a myth, anyway), but instead focusing on putting out great albums and putting on great shows. In essence, a death to releasing music for a buck and instead a focus on quality. Albums weren't always albums, you know. At one time, before the 50's, 90% of music was just singles. If you released a lot of hit singles, that was your A-side for the album, and the B-sides would be, well, the B-Side. You made an album based on what sold. A return to that system isn't the worst thing in the world, but it will also give artists an incentive to try and write better albums in turn.

But movies? Well, I don't know. movies these days suck, and we have a bunch of asshole studio people who think slapping together a remake or a movie based on a "property" (comic book, tv show, book) that did good will do well instead of focusing on good film making, storytelling, and character development. People complained in the 1990's and earlier about this, but really, it has hit a pinnacle here! Film studios are to quick to assume people have A.D.H.D. and no attention span when, in reality, they simply aren't putting out anything interesting.



In the end, I want to say that a possible end to physically formatting is something that worries me. The idea of no longer having anything, that anything would no longer be owned but controlled by other forces, is not something I think is good. In the 1976 film Rollerball, we saw a world where no one did own anything relating to information. A scene that still shakes me today is when the main character goes to a library for some information, finds it can destroy something in the society that was destructive, and leaves. When he returns, the information has been erased and he is left without proof.

A world where information is controlled... this is not the world for me.

"UP YOURS, TREBECK!"

Will Ferrel is back with Sean Connery... do I have to say more?

Saturday, May 16, 2009

The ONLY Good Thing to Come out Of "Bender's Game"

Kathy McCarty - Rocketship



"Futurama: Bender's Game"... bad film, but this song basically saved it.

Look for a full review soon.

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

New Artwork: "The Fly (Self-Portrait)"

The Fly (Self-Portrait) print
The Fly (Self-Portrait) by LuvataciousSkull

Death has been on my mind a lot lately, and the end of mankind. Good stuff. I've been drawing skulls for the last 10 years and I finally said, "I think it would be cool to do something else". Fly's are, in essence, the result of death.

Its a "self-portrait" for a lot of reasons. It isn't really a self-deprecation thing. Decide for yourselves.

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Just Got the Flyers for My Show!

I've had a really, really, weird week up to, and including today. I've had a feeling of impending doom mixed with malaise mixed with other things. Really, I've just been kinda depressed. I have a little over a week left before my show and, so far... I have nothing. Nada. Everything is planned out, but nothings printed, I still didn't even order my business cards, and I don't feel like I measure up as an artist as I should. I think a lot of artists go through that last bit.

So today I got a call from Digital Ferret saying the flyers for my show came in! BLEW ME AWAY! I couldn't believe it! Something like that... well, I've been planning this show since February, and after a while, the show becomes more of an "abstract thought" than a tangible thing. Getting the flyers for your show in your hands... well, it makes everything a lot more real!

Only 10 days to go, and I'm getting really psyched now!

THE YOUTH IS REVOLTING! - The Art of Larry West



Just wanted to post a reminder that my show is in a little more than 2 weeks! Mark your calenders!

Monday, May 11, 2009

Mark Skull Pirate Radio: Coming Back!

I'm working on the full 100% relaunch of my radio station, Mark Skull Pirate Radio.

Look for more info soon!

Friday, May 8, 2009

TONIGHT AND TOMORROW: Three Awesome Shows!

Remember that post I had that went on and on about how dumb I thought it was for the local blogs not to tell you about cool events until the last minute and how much it pissed me off not knowing about something until then, even though they knew about it for weeks?

Today, I am the very thing I hate.



Tonight, MASTODON will be playing the TLA. I don't know if it's sold out or not, so if you can make it (I can't, I'm now broke), I can assure you it's going to be an excellent show! I had the pleasure of seeing them back in 2007 right before Blood Mountain came out, and it was just AWESOME!



Tomorrow, LAMB OF GOD will be dominating the Electric Factory for the second show in a month. Tickets are still available and I want to beat the crap out of my friend who lied to me and said ticket were $50... Tickets are only $38, and you get to see Children of Bodom AND Municipal Waste... oh, and As I Lay Dying. But damn it, that line-up (save AILD) KICKS-ASS!!!!



Also tomorrow, Philadelphia-native Lee Ving is BACK! Who is Lee Ving, you ask? Well, you lame-ass poser, he was THE voice of FEAR, one of the greatest punk bands to ever grace this nation! FEAR is infamously known for their appearance on Saturday Night Live on behalf of John Belushi, who loved the band. They were not allowed to play in the SNL Studios in NYC, so they played, in true fashion, a warehouse in Jersey City.

FEAR will be playing The Troc and save knowing someone in one of the bands or whoring yourself out, tickets are SOLD OUT to this 21+ show.


So, I'm sorry I didn't post these sooner, but I recommend going to any of these shows if you can. A great time will be had by all!

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Philadelphia City Council Wants To Ban Plastic Bags: DUMB IDEA!

There is a bill in Philadelphia City Council that was struck down last year but has reared it's ugly head once more: A bill banning plastic bags and another that would institute a tax of 25 cents per plastic bag you get from a store.

Environmentalists are praising this bill; I am not.

Who, exactly, does this bill help? Many site the best reason to institute this ban is because they cause waste and aren't disposed of properly. Really... that's about it. These people see a city where everyone carries tote bags all the time, and buy small things like books and bottles of water.

Sadly, their view of reality seems incredibly limited.

Think about your average day at work. During your day, you most likely go out and get lunch from a corner deli or a fast food restaurant. Most of these places use plastic bags. So your kick run to Taco Bell for a taco and some nachos jumps from a mere $2 to $2.25. Multiply that by 5, and you've just paid $1.25 more for what should be free. Or maybe you go to the store and buy a few things, maybe some soap, a soda, and magazine. You don't have a tote bag, so your stuck paying 25 cents for a bag. Or what about a simple run to the corner store for something for dinner? Again, another fee! How about this simple fact: What if you make a fairly large purchase from a store, say for a poster frame that wouldn't fit in a tote bag? Again, a fee for something that should be free!

Really, this is just silly. Why do we need another law banning something? Why are we having government take the roll of babysitter to force us to do something we should be doing ourselves?

What makes more sense is for letting the owners of stores make their own rules about plastic bags. IKEA and Aldi have already made rules at their stores about charging people for plastic bags, with fees normally only 10 cents. I once went to the store with my own tote bag, my own ugly, unattractive, 100% recycle from plastic tote bag, to get groceries from the corner store. Because I did, the man who ran the store gave me $1.00 off my $30 purchase. If more stores did this and promoted it, we wouldn't have this problem!

This move is nothing more than a smack in the face of Philadelphians everywhere! Instead of cutting government waste and making the local city government work more efficiently, instead of eliminating programs that need to be cut, instead of making legislation that would save Philadelphia money, our City Council foolishly thinks that instituting a fee in the name of "being green" is the right thing to do! They hide behind a shield of false environmentalism in order to fill city coffers, and I say enough!

Instead of having government as out babysitter and nickle and dimming us for everything, why don't we instead convince businesses to switch? Wouldn't the time and effort to persuade, push, and enforce this idiotic legislation be better used to convince local businesses and large chains to do it instead? If we're already seeing a move in the private sector to make things better, why not let them do what they need instead of imposing the will of a select few?

Feel free to look at the legislation yourself:

Mandatory Use of Recycled and Compostable Checkout Bags
http://webapps.phila.gov/council/detailreport/?key=9141

Advanced Recovery Fee (Green Fee) for Disposable Shopping Bags
http://webapps.phila.gov/council/detailreport/?key=9142


(Photo thanks to "The Kids Got Moxie")

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

SEPTA Has New Busking Rules: Good and Bad News

Exactly 2 years ago as of May 2nd, the impact of an even that happened in March of 2007 came to a head. Anthony Riley, then 20-years-old, was arrested for singing in Rittenhouse Square. What followed on May 2nd was the blow back, a group of musicians and smart-minded people who realized that this was wrong. The protest was large, with nearly 100 people there. I was there during my run for mayor. I wore my favorite black suit and a pair of sunglasses. In one hand was a small red amp and in the other a gig bag for my Scott Ian Lyon/Washburn signature series guitar. I approached Anthony, talked with him for a bit and some other people and a reporter, and played along in protest to these insane laws. The police came to try and stop the peaceful protest, but Anthony was able to show the proper documents and we were allowed to stay.

In August, Anthony had his day in court. After an hour-long trial where the defense showed a weak and laughable case, the judge dismissed all charges. Anthony had beaten the system, and the ability to busk in Philadelphia was permitted.

I asked myself if our fight was just. It was... but I knew we had all created something that would not end well.

Although I was quiet about it then, I spent the months leading up to the trial watching as musicians came out of the woodwork for to exercise their right and ability to perform to the public. It was amazing and fun at first, but as the trial came, I saw more and more people busking and I realized that this may be a problem.

By the Summer of 2008, it is safe to say that there was a large problem with busking in Center City; everyone and anyone with a instrument and an amp to play pre-recorded music seem to come out and try their hand at being a small star. Some days it was a pain to go to Suburban Station, as 5 or 6 people would all peform in a small area at the same time. Trying to pick out one sound against another was a pain. There were some people who were great, though I don't know their names. A small R&B group that played at Market East Station, a child violinist who would pop up from time to time, and a man who was, in every since, a one-man band with class, playing the drums while singing at the same time and peforming, periodically, with other people.

It was Philadelphia seeing its first real busking boom since I've been alive. Up until 2007, there were very few, if any, people busking at SEPTA stations. It was nice at first, but one day as I tried to catch my train, a group of breakdancers created such a crowd, it was almost impossible to get by. At the same time, a lot of the people peforming were either mediocre, bad... or just plain boring.

In March I decided to go to Market East Station and give busking a try. I wasn't doing it for the money, just the chance to dress as I wished, paly what I wanted, and see how people reacted. I went down there with full distortion on my little amp and played whatever metal songs I could cover and a ton of original stuff and improve. After about 2 hours, on a good day, I made $15, which was more than enough for me! I had a employee tell me to move once (vey rudely, I might add)... that netted me $5 in pitty cash. I was mad I was told to move and in the back of my mind I though, "Well, put up a damn sign if I can't play there!"

They did.

Starting Monday, signs started showing up in Center City train stations telling people that they could no longer simply go up to a spot and start peforming. Instead, a rule was created: "All peformers will need to get a permit which could be attained for free and they could only play for 3 hours." I found this fair and sound, and OK. Then the last part: "No amplification of any kind." This part is where I have to disagree!

Yes, people can play loud with an amp. REALLY loud. But I have heard plenty of instruments, from accoustic guitars to drums to just people singing, that are louder than most amps turned to a reasonable setting. My beef is that there isn't wiggle room here, just "no". Some people need SOME amplification, and this rule smacks in the face of a lot fo people, in particular that small R&B duo I mentioned.

In an article in today's Philadelphia Metro, people had mixed feelings on this, and understandably so. The amplification part, in particular, had two interesting notes. A woman who goes to Suburban Station often said that the noise "became down-right annoying, especially from those with amplifiers." A man named Peter, who has played the keyboards for nearly 6 years, is angry as his revenue will most likely shrink from $80 to $20 because of the hour limit."

While the signs are posted, the rules don't go into effect until August 6th, 2009.

Myself? I'm sad I can't just pop downtown and play the train station like I used to. It was fun while it lasted. I'm just mad about the amp thing...


(Photo of the Busker in Suburban Station courtesy of Detainee)

THE YOUTH IS REVOLTING! - The Art of Larry West



Just wanted to post a reminder that my show is in a little more than 3 weeks! Mark your calenders!

Monday, May 4, 2009

What Happened To Branding?

Today was the rare type of day when I have a sort of vision, a clairvoyant look into the world. In return, I get to either create something awesome, go through an anxiety attack, or both. Today, I had both.

Posted on my new blog, Larry West Productions: The Blog, this is a snippet of my article on branding.
Sometimes I feel older than I should.

This isn't a figure of speech your about to read, nor am I over-simplifying what happened. I woke up this morning, eyes aching from the attempts to open them after basically rubbing away the protective layer on them last night and then having it grow back this morning. After I got both eyes open, watching TV, I realized something: There is no branding anymore.

I was watching "Morning Joe" on MSNBC when that hit me. I was watching the logo in the background as it was displayed on a screen and that made me think about what it meant, which, really, was nothing. It's a sloppy logo. Joe Scarbrough is a straight-laced Republican and the logo is a liberal-minded, coffee-shop logo. It doesn't work. It's not a brand. The show was slapped together after the Don Imus thing and they never made the logo work for the show. Joe just doesn't look good against the logo, against this "brand", and he always looks awkward.

Then I started to think about my logo and branding.
There's a lot more to this, including Spongebob Squarepants, Apple, and Virigns! Enjoy!