From: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org (fegmaniax-digest) To: fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Subject: fegmaniax-digest V12 #96 Reply-To: fegmaniax@smoe.org Sender: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-fegmaniax-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk fegmaniax-digest Friday, March 14 2003 Volume 12 : Number 096 Today's Subjects: ----------------- Re: And Thoth did flow... ["Michael E. Kupietz, wearing a pointy hat" ] How to secede in life without really trying ["Rex.Broome" ] Fries [crowbar.joe@btopenworld.com] Re: Fries ["Jason R. Thornton" ] Re: Fries ["FS Thomas" ] RE: paranoia strikes deep in the heartland [Tom Clark ] meanwhile, back in the heartland ["Natalie Jane" ] re: it's anywhere [gshell@metronet.com] Re: "if this is freedom, you must be joking" [Caroline Smith ] re: it's anywhere ["Stewart C. Russell" ] Snail & Soft Boys ["Marc Holden" ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 09:42:50 -0800 From: "Michael E. Kupietz, wearing a pointy hat" Subject: Re: And Thoth did flow... I'm only the messenger. Thank the "Fegmania Caps" fontset. Yea! Verily, at 9:20 AM -0800 3/14/03, it was written by Rex.Broome that all should kneel low and, cupping their hands behind their ears, reflect momentarily upon these hallowed words, for within them lies the seed of truth: >Mad props to Michaels Kupietz and Wells for the Thoths. > >Rock on, yo. > >Rex - -- ======== We need love, expression, and truth. We must not allow ourselves to believe that we can fill the round hole of our spirit with the square peg of objective rationale. - Paul Eppinger At non effugies meos iambos - Gaius Valerius Catallus ("...but you won't get away from my poems.") ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 09:45:09 -0800 From: "Michael E. Kupietz, wearing a pointy hat" Subject: Re: Jesus Fucking Christ... Actually yesterday they began softening their rhetoric, saying they were willing to consider "any possibilities" (or something like that) for disarming Iraq. Yea! Verily, at 11:41 AM -0500 3/14/03, it was written by FS Thomas that all should kneel low and, cupping their hands behind their ears, reflect momentarily upon these hallowed words, for within them lies the seed of truth: >----- Original Message ----- >From: "Jeff Dwarf" > >> Replacing Freedom Fry-boy as the bmost self-indulgent asshole in >> the Congress.... >> >> >> >http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20030313/ap_wo_en_po/na_ge >n_us_congress_france_1 > >I've seen flat worms with more intelligence than that woman. > >France is in bed with Iraq. I say that because I can't understand their >concrete vow to veto *any* resolution that came along, sight unseen, >regardless of content. > >Blech. > >-f. - -- ======== We need love, expression, and truth. We must not allow ourselves to believe that we can fill the round hole of our spirit with the square peg of objective rationale. - Paul Eppinger At non effugies meos iambos - Gaius Valerius Catallus ("...but you won't get away from my poems.") ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 09:44:31 -0800 From: "Jason R. Thornton" Subject: french fall At 12:39 PM 3/14/2003 -0500, LDudich@ase.org wrote: It's actually happening in places besides capitol hill? It started in a few restaurants, and Congress just jumped on the bandwagon... Anyway, here's a picture of my uncle's friend, the guy on the right, working on the FM antenna atop the Empire State building. http://www.pibmug.com/files/empirestate.jpg - --Jason "Only the few know the sweetness of the twisted apples." - Sherwood Anderson ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 10:37:29 -0800 From: "Rex.Broome" Subject: How to secede in life without really trying Jeff FF: >>Right - the usual argument is that, however astronomical the first set of >>odds, the sheer vastness of the universe makes it likely that somewhere, >>sometime, similar life exist(s/ed). I heard recently-- in fact I'm surprised nobody brought it up here-- that it had more or less been determined that the universe was set to expand eternally, instead of eventually contracting. That kind of implies to me that not only is the known universe awfully big, but there's no reason not to expect there to be any number of other giant wads of matter emanating from any number of other big bangs out there... does that track? Ups the odds for life elsewhere. Does nothing for the odds of finding it. _______ James: >>I always thought that 'heartland' tag was insulting to people in other >>parts of the US. "Alaska can't possibly be important - it's not real US >>heartland". True, but by and large those of us who don't live in the "heartland" are willing to throw them that bone because we *so* don't want to live there. The tag seems to have developed because there was such a vast region that didn't have the kind of easily quantifiable personality/identity/"culture" as, say, New England, or the South, or the Southwest, or Texas, or the various Californias, etc. So they get to be the "heart" and we're the extremities: extreme right, extreme left, extremely mellow, extremely uptight, etc. Of course as someone just pointed out, that lack of true "Heartland" identitiy probably implies a greater diversity of opinion and lifestyle, if not ethnic diversity so much. In Hollywood they call them the "flyover states"; shows like "JAG" or "Reba" that nobody watches in the major cities and yet are still successful due to viewership in the "heartland" are thus "flyover shows"... ___________ Nuppy: >>Does anyone know >>where one can buy (cheaply?) frames that are especially fitted for 12" and >>7" record covers? They must exist, right? You can find the overpriced ones specifically at Restoration Hardware, alongside many other overpriced objects. But I bet you can find somplace online that sells them cheaper. By the way, if you find 7" frames, let me know. _________ Chris: >>Nope, myth. Barring a constitutional amendment to allow it, neither Texas >>nor any other state can legally secede. Lo, behold as the Knight of the Golden Horseshoe unsheaths his shitesaber. As a schoolkid in West Virginia I was taught to expect out-of-staters to deride our state as "illegal" since it seceded from Virginia. "Aha", we were meant to retort, "But Virginia itself has already illegally seceded from the Union when we seceded from them to rejoin the Union." Always good to have that kind of information on hand for, you know, those Constitution-related bar-fights which never, ever happen. ___ Me, then Tom C: >>>Anyone got a good jpeg of Thoth lying around? Nothing fancy, just the >>>"classic" symbol of his head in shadow... >>Methinks someone has a tattoo in their future!! Well, my daughter turns two on Monday... - -Rex "that Thoth is gonna look so good right next to my Buckaroo Banzai logo tat" Broome ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 12:36:36 -0600 (CST) From: Kevin.Welton@arm.com Subject: Having one of those days Commiserations to James on the cricket results. It looks like the Guardian's commentator took a decidedly non-standard approach to reporting the match: http://sport.guardian.co.uk/cricketworldcup2003/overbyover/story/0,12864,914033,00.html. Most amusing. K. ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 13:39:05 -0500 From: "Stewart C. Russell" Subject: Re: "if this is freedom, you must be joking" Luther, of whose band I have some photographs, wrote: > > Any of you canadians able to say what it takes > to immigrate up north? * a suitable job offer here will get US citizens residency and work permit for the duration of that job * Permanent Residence can take several months, US$1000 or so in fees, and proof of supporting funds. Everything you need is here: . We have spare rooms ... > (WHO is from Canada on here, anyway? What > happened to the "globe of fegs"?) Whether I can say I'm from here, having only lived here for 346 days, is moot, but I *am* here ... Stewart (the Scots-Canadian feg) ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 13:45:24 -0500 From: Steve Talkowski Subject: Re: french fall On Friday, March 14, 2003, at 12:44 PM, Jason R. Thornton wrote: > Anyway, here's a picture of my uncle's friend, the guy on the right, > working on the FM antenna atop the Empire State building. That's a great shot. Wasn't this from an article the Times did a few years ago chronicling the workers who attended to the antenna? (say that five times fast) - -Steve ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 18:58:28 +0000 (GMT) From: crowbar.joe@btopenworld.com Subject: Fries Do they mean chips? ;-) And yeah, Ferris - France's rather silly policy to veto anything that moves is only matched by The Fucking Idiot's determination to go to war whatever... Joe ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 11:08:55 -0800 From: "Jason R. Thornton" Subject: Re: Fries At 06:58 PM 3/14/2003 +0000, crowbar.joe@btopenworld.com wrote: >Do they mean chips? No, no, no, no, no. Since the California Highway Patrol has not been supportive enough of demolishing Iraq, even if it's unnecessary, we must all henceforth refer to "Fish 'n' Chips" as "Fish 'n' Patriotips." - --Jason "Only the few know the sweetness of the twisted apples." - Sherwood Anderson ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 14:08:04 -0500 From: "FS Thomas" Subject: Re: Fries - ----- Original Message ----- From: > And yeah, Ferris - France's rather silly policy to veto anything that moves is only matched by The Fucking Idiot's determination to go to war whatever... France (and Russia) stand to lose substantial oil exploration contracts as well as markets for weapons and weapons systems if the current regieme goes away. I can't see their insistance to veto any additional measures as anything other than catoring to the current ruler (and, by default, his policies and aspirations). Eleven or twelve years of inspections (and subsequent violations of UN resolutions) haven't yielded any co-operation. The threat of 'serious consequences' is written into 1441. For that term (serious consequences) to carry any weight--and as it follows, for the UN to carry any weight--then they have to be willing to follow through. So far France, Russia and Germany are doing nothing of the sort. Want to see some shake-ups in the UN? Three easy steps: 1) The US pulls itself (and its dues) out of the UN only to return when they get their shit together 2) Give them three years to re-locate the headquarters 3) Extend NAFTA rights to eastern european countries beings snubbed (or threatened with non-admission if you listen to Chiraq) by the EU Either way I think Iraq is going to happen and happen soon. I have my reservations on it--chief among them repercussions and/or suffering of world opinion. The one thing to be thankful for, though, if we do go it alone: it's a Hell of a lot easier to run a successful military campaign unilaterally than it is to run a multi-national force. - -f. ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 11:27:03 -0800 From: Tom Clark Subject: RE: paranoia strikes deep in the heartland On Friday, March 14, 2003, at 09:14AM, Jason Brown (Echo Services Inc) wrote: >Miles Goosens wrote: >> At 03:25 PM 3/13/2003 -0800, Jason Brown \(Echo Services Inc\) wrote: >> >The Midwest is great but they can keep that hotdish >> >shit away from me! >> >> "hotdish shit": What are you talking about? > >You know those casserole dishes with tons of meat and cheese that they >serve at virtually every restaurant? Maybe it's just a Minnesota/North >Dakota/Wisconsin thing. But when I visited friends in those state hot >dish was everywhere! > > Not to mention all those variations of Jell-O as a side dish! You got yer "pretzels-in-green-Jell-O", yer "Marshmallows-in-red-Jell-O" and of course yer "Fruit-Cocktail-in-any-Jell-O". And, did noboday receive my post yesterday wrt James' query? I answered "Paul Simon - Have a Good Time". I win, Dammit!! - -tc, using Mozilla on Linux since my PB is in the shop. Painful. ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 11:31:58 -0800 From: "Natalie Jane" Subject: meanwhile, back in the heartland >What I hate about it, as a midwesterner, is its assumption that we all >sit >around holding church picnics, thinking about cows, and listening to >Bob >Seger. Only the second is actually true of people in Wisconsin. Only the third is actually true of people in Michigan. gnat "my uncle was Bob Seger's best friend in high school" the gnatster _________________________________________________________________ Add photos to your e-mail with MSN 8. Get 2 months FREE*. http://join.msn.com/?page=features/featuredemail ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 13:37:01 -0600 (CST) From: Jeffrey with 2 Fs Jeffrey Subject: RE: paranoia strikes deep in the heartland On Fri, 14 Mar 2003, Jason Brown (Echo Services Inc) wrote: > > "hotdish shit": What are you talking about? > > You know those casserole dishes with tons of meat and cheese that they > serve at virtually every restaurant? Maybe it's just a Minnesota/North > Dakota/Wisconsin thing. But when I visited friends in those state hot > dish was everywhere! As far as restaurants, I think this would only be served in old, mom-and-pop -type restaurants. But then what would I know - Milwaukee's increasingly acting like an actual city. But at people's houses? Along with the jello thing? God yes...hey, is the cream-of-mushroom dish with the canned Durkee's potato strips a midwestern thing or does it horrify people throughout the entire country? - --Jeffrey with 2 Fs Jeffrey J e f f r e y N o r m a n The Architectural Dance Society www.uwm.edu/~jenor/ADS.html ::No man is an island. ::But if you take a bunch of dead guys and tie 'em together, ::they make a pretty good raft. __Max Cannon__ np: Black Sabbath _Paranoid_: I am reliving my adolescence... ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 15:06:25 -0500 From: The Great Quail Subject: Re: "if this is freedom, you must be joking" Luther writes, > "Canada: Just like the US, minus the arrogance". :) Exactly! Well, and minus Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, John and Samuel Adams, James Madison, Thomas Paine, Susan B. Anthony, Mark Twain, Edgar Allen Poe, Henry David Thoreau, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Herman Melville, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Soujourner Truth, Harriet Tubman, Henry Ward Beecher, Frederick Douglas, Jack London, Abraham Lincoln, Walt Whitman, Emily Dickenson, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Henry Miller, Arthur Miller, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Ornette Coleman, Charlie Bird Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Louis Armstrong, Cecil Taylor, Bobby Fisher, Ernest Hemingway, Kurt Vonnegut Jr., Norman Rockwell, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Teddy Roosevelt, John Cage, Morton Feldman, Harry Partch, George Rochberg, Roger Sessions, Philip Glass, Terry Riley, Steve Reich, John Adams, Samuel Barber, Ray Bradbury, Orson Wells, William Faulkner, Joseph Heller, Georgia O'Keefe, James Rosenquist, Toni Morrison, Robert F. Kennedy, John F. Kennedy, George Crumb, Mark Rothko, Jackson Pollack, Robert Rauschenberg, Andy Warhol, Leonard Bernstein, Steven Sondheim, Frank Lloyd Wright, Martin Luther King Jr., Thurgood Marshall, Bill Viola, Lou Reed, Laurie Anderson, Stan Lee, Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, the Ramones, the Beach Boys, Jimi Hendrix, Aretha Franklin, Tina Turner, Nat King Cole, Martin Scorsese, Spike Lee, Francis Ford Coppola, David Lynch, Jim Jarmusch, Robert Altman, Leonard Slatkin, Yo Yo Ma, Eliot Carter, Rene Fleming, Virgil Thomson, Gertrude Stein, Joseph Heller, Henry James, Donald Barthelme, J.D. Salinger, Don DeLillo, Philip Roth, Thomas Pynchon, John Barth, William Gaddis, Robert Coover, Paul Auster, Carl Sagan, Neil Armstrong, Douglas Macarthur, Patton, James Watson, Robert Oppenheimer, Ansel Adams, Robert Lowell, Elizabeth Bishop, James Tate, William S. Burroughs, Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac, Neal Cassidy, Philip K. Dick, Robert Heinlein, Frank Herbert, H.P. Lovecraft, I.F. Stone, Ralph Nader, Noam Chomsky, Abbie Hoffman, Walter Cronkite, Timothy Leary, Robert Anton Wilson, Robert Wilson, the Kronos Quartet, the Emerson Quartet, George Herriman, Walt Disney, Matt Groening, Charles Schultz, Bill Watterson, Janis Joplin, Joan Baez, Madonna, Randy Newman, Gary Larson, the Grateful Dead, John Zorn, Adrian Belew, Frank Zappa, Bob Dylan and Johnny fucking Cash. And of course, all they stand for, added to, and reacted against in this vast tapestry of American life. Well, you did give us Rush, David Cronenberg, and Neil Young, though. That's cool. Matt Sewell writes, >I was thinking the other day that many Americans seem to like to drive >big 4-wheel-drive vehicles and carry guns, and some of them seem a little >intolerant towards other peoples' beliefs... stick beards on them >and you've got the Taliban! That's exactly right! Minus, of course, the unchecked political power, the propensity to rape at will, the penal system involving no due process and frequent recourse to mutilation, the unopposed domination of women, and the harboring of a group of mass murdering psychopaths! Other than that, yeah, "many Americans" are just like the Taliban! When it comes to discussing the Unites States, when exactly did an awareness of the complex nature of reality desert this list? I don't want to come across as humorless, but really, I'd rather not see any political discussion at all than these witless remarks that boil things down to a slogan or a half-assed comparison. This, from people who claim to think Bush is a simpleton? Egads! - --Quail ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 14:02:22 -0600 (CST) From: gshell@metronet.com Subject: Re: "if this is freedom, you must be joking" On Fri, 14 Mar 2003, The Great Quail wrote: > When it comes to discussing the Unites States, when exactly did an awareness > of the complex nature of reality desert this list? between 94 and 95? gSs ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 15:17:34 -0500 From: Ken Ostrander Subject: hiatus hello goodbye, i've been the kenster for eight years now; but today that comes to an end. my wife and i are moving to florida in a few weeks; and today is my last day at the massachusetts institute of technology. i should be re-subscribing with a new email address when i get settled in the orlando area; but for now, i must say farewell. peace. ken ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 14:09:24 -0600 (CST) From: gshell@metronet.com Subject: re: it's anywhere Toilet-paper 'Rasputin' riles Lithuania Media derides mystic's influence on president Friday, March 14, 2003 Posted: 10:36 AM EST (1536 GMT) VILNIUS, Lithuania (Reuters) -- Lithuanian President Rolandas Paksas stirred up a media storm over his faith in a mystic who wraps people in toilet paper to cure their ills. Paksas' claim to be a "believer" in mystic Lena Lolisvili has sparked uproar in the Catholic former Soviet country, which is sensitive about its image abroad after being invited to join the European Union and NATO in 2004. Local media have dubbed Lolisvili Lithuania's "Rasputin," after the Siberian mystic who wielded influence over Russia's Tsar Nicholas II and Tsarina Alexandra in the early 1900s. "Lithuania risks becoming the laughing stock of the world," its largest newspaper, Lietuvos Rytas, said Friday. Lolisvili, an ethnic Georgian who claims God tells her the future and energizes toilet paper she then wraps around her patients, told Paksas in 1996 he would become president........ http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/europe/03/14/ offbeat.lithuania.rasputin.reut/index.html ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 15:29:26 -0500 From: Caroline Smith Subject: Re: "if this is freedom, you must be joking" On Friday, March 14, 2003, at 03:06 PM, The Great Quail wrote: > > > Well, you did give us Rush, David Cronenberg, and Neil Young, though. > That's > cool. "You"? Who are you addressing...? Ok, on behalf of all of Canada, I accept responsibility for the existence of all these great people... However, dare I say it... I imagine they would have done great things regardless of where they were born. Reminds me of that Depeche Mode song... people are people And besides... isn't that the great thing about the 'net and this list in particular? No political boundaries... just a wonderful unity in f e g d o m for eternity. eeks, i think the complex nature of reality is slipp slipp slipping away..... let's hope it returns by monday morning! looks like it's going to be a great weekend, c. ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 15:39:13 -0500 From: "FS Thomas" Subject: Re: "if this is freedom, you must be joking" - ----- Original Message ----- From: "Caroline Smith" To: Sent: Friday, March 14, 2003 15:29 Subject: Re: "if this is freedom, you must be joking" > On Friday, March 14, 2003, at 03:06 PM, The Great Quail wrote: > > > > > > Well, you did give us Rush, David Cronenberg, and Neil Young, though. > > That's > > cool. Please don't forget the incredible equalizing power of Anne Murray, Celine Dion, Bryan Adams (his magical healing powers aside), and Alan Thicke. They're collectively enough of a talent black hole to nullify even the brightest of stars. Nothing escapes their suck. ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 12:46:26 -0800 From: Barbara Soutar Subject: Re: if this is freedom, you must be joking Hi there, Someone is asking who's Canadian on this list... I am. And I must say that all of us Canadians are getting pretty puffed up with pride about not being arrogant, hee hee. But I am on my way to Hawaii tomorrow and hope that war doesn't break out while I'm on my trip. Or ever. I have managed to find the whole 801 Live album on Kazaa, Phil Manzarek and Brian Eno, and now I am happy to see that others are uploading it from my machine. This was once a fave of mine... I believe it's rare now. Anyway, give it a listen if you can. Barbara Soutar Victoria, British Columbia ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 15:53:41 -0500 From: The Great Quail Subject: Re: "if this is freedom, you must be joking" Caroline, > "You"? > > Who are you addressing...? Canada, of course. > However, dare I say it... I imagine they would have done great things > regardless of where they were born. Well, I respectfully disagree. I think history, culture and environment have a lot to do with things. Schools of thought affecting other schools of thought and so on. Not to mention opportunities, economics, and the ebb and flow of politics. While of course "great minds" will seek out expression no matter where and when they are born, much of that expression will be influenced by culture, access to opportunity, and resources. With all due respect for Canada, the last hundred years haven't exactly been called "The Canadian Century," and there's no centers of international art and culture to rival New York City, for instance, or even San Francisco. According to your logic expressed above, my list of great Americans would have been a list of great Canadians if only they were all born a few hundred miles to the north? That's like saying the great Germans of the Enlightenment would have all done the same thing had they all been born in Sicily. Why must people deny that America has a thriving, multivalent culture? - --Quail ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 15:59:54 -0500 From: mary Subject: Re: "if this is freedom, you must be joking" > > On Friday, March 14, 2003, at 03:06 PM, The Great Quail wrote: > > > > > > > > > Well, you did give us Rush, David Cronenberg, and Neil Young, though. > > > That's > > > cool. > >Please don't forget the incredible equalizing power of Anne Murray, Celine >Dion, Bryan Adams (his magical healing powers aside), and Alan Thicke. >They're collectively enough of a talent black hole to nullify even the >brightest of stars. Nothing escapes their suck. And some of my fav Canadians include Margaret Atwood, Phil Hartman, SCTV troupe, The Kids in the Hall troupe, Delerium, FM, Nash the Slash, the list could go on but I don't want to bore you all too much. And of course don't forget everyone's favs - William Shatner and Alex Tribek. You can find some of your favourite Canadians here: http://schwinger.harvard.edu/~terning/Canadians/main.html s.mary ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 15:57:23 -0500 From: "Stewart C. Russell" Subject: re: it's anywhere gshell wrote: > > Lolisvili, an ethnic Georgian who claims God > tells her the future and > energizes toilet paper she then wraps around her > patients, told Paksas in > 1996 he would become president........ but that's not as cool as ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 14 Mar 2003 14:00:48 -0700 From: "Marc Holden" Subject: Snail & Soft Boys Hey there-- About a week ago, I said that I would send a review of the Snail show. I got delayed for reasons that will become clear later in the post. Here it goes: I had asked on three different Hitchcock groups for some London area concert information for the week of Robyn's 50th Birthday show at QEH. Someone sent info about a Snail (Matthew Seligman's band) show at the Garage (Upstairs), Highbury Corner. I had picked up the Snail CDs, "Psychodelicate" and "Heavy Petal" (EP), at a Soft Boys show in San Francisco. I really enjoyed them--humorous, experimental, slightly abrasive at times, and the singer's voice sometimes reminds me of Bowie. The show was on the Friday before Robyn's show, so that would work well for me. The club was fairly small and reminded me of Fletcher's in Baltimore, the first place I saw the Soft Boys. There were 4 bands on the bill: spermwhale, Ju Ju Babies, Snail, and Mechanical Cabaret. While I was waiting for things to start, I saw Matthew come in. He remembered me from the California Soft Boys shows and came over to the table where I was sitting. He asked what I was doing there, and I explained I was on vacation and someone had e-mailed the Snail information. "Oh, you're mholden?" I asked if he was going to be at Robyn's birthday show on Sunday, and he told me that he wouldn't be there. He felt his time with the Soft Boys was at an end. They didn't hang out socially, the songs were generally not "group efforts", and Robyn would probably do quite well regardless of the band he played with. They had one more gig in France and a live album recorded in San Francisco (Fillmore, 2001?), and that would probably be it. He said that most of the bands tonight were part of the S&M music scene, which would explain some of the unusual clothing and the guy with three syringe tips poked through his chin. Matthew went to get ready for his set. The opener, spermwhale, was unremarkable. Not horrible, but not great either. The Ju Ju Babies fucking rocked. Just stunningly good. From the moment the singer (Misty Woods) came out, looking like a young Chrissie Hynde, wearing only black panties and yellow & black warning tape, I knew this was going to be memorable. They seem to have an enthusiastic following, and I stood up front next to syringe chin and a big, pretty girl in tight leather, who dripped hot wax on each other throughout the set. The music was kind of punky but tight. It was already worth the price of admission at this point. They came back for two well-deserved encores, and seemed a bit overwhelmed by the crowd response. I hope the Ju Ju Babies make it to the States sometime. (http://www.jujubabies.co.uk) Next came Snail. Matthew was wearing a business suit with "INMOTO 6" stenciled on the back. They sounded great and seemed to be having a very good time. Jon Klein, the singer, also happened to be an excellent guitarist, something that hadn't been so obvious on the CDs. Chris Bell was on drums. Matthew did a bit of lead vocals at times. They played all original stuff, near as I could tell, except for a cover from the Beastie Boys. The only problem was they were off too soon. Again, I hope that they make it to the States, also. It looks like they have another London area show with the Ju Ju Babies, late in March. Matthew came out after their set. I got a pint of lager for him, and yet another for myself. Fortunately, the tube station was just across the street from the club, and I could get to the stop at my hotel directly, without switching trains--I really liked not having to hassle with driving home and switching from beer to water early in the evening. I talked to Misty (now in a bit more standard clothing), Stix, and some of the other Ju Ju Babies then watched a bit of Mechanical Cabaret. They weren't that great, and I'm not sure why they topped the bill. Two guys on keyboards with soft porn slides showing behind them. Interesting for all of 5 minutes. I started thinking about heading back to the hotel, but decided to get another pint instead. Matthew asked me into the dressing room, so I talked to Snail and Ju Ju Babies for about half an hour before I had to leave to get to the station. There was a bit more talk about the Soft Boys, and it doesn't really sound like the sort of situation that will just blow over. It seems like Matthew is making the right choice. As much as I hate to say it, it's probably for the better--the communication within the group doesn't sound like it's very good anymore. Rather than forcing the band to stay together until they start to suck or argue with each other on stage, it might be the right time to wrap things up for this Soft Boys line-up. I wound up running into Matthew and Jon again on Sunday at the Foyer Bar at the Royal Festival Hall, before the Hitchcock show. Matthew said they were doing some filming for Snail in the area. He still was not planning on making it to the show. I don't have much to add to the reviews of the birthday gig, other than some of the set lists I've seen have left "Speed of Things" off the last encore and that John Paul Jones played mandolin more than bass, and played the piano for the solo song he did, solo. A great evening, but it was a bit odd knowing ahead of time that there would not be a set of Soft Boys songs unless Andy Metcalfe or someone else stood in on bass. Before posting this information, because it seemed very personal and candid, I wrote to Matthew to okay it with him. His response was a bit slow in coming due to unavoidable delays. Here it is: >Hi mark >Sorry I only just got this. I've been off the air for non-payment but >everything sorted out now. >Yes It was great to meet you I always enjoy meeting softs >afficionados.....sure, I have no secrets, anything I said is fine for public >consumption.....artistic ends of the road are healthy and I feel really >strongly that I personally have nothing more to offer in this situation, >which doesn't mean the situation can't go on without me, it can...... >great to meet you anyway, be nice to SNAIL! >all the best >matthew xxx That's about it. Chatter at you later, Marc "I hope that when I die people say, "That guy sure owed me a lot of money". Jack Handy ------------------------------ End of fegmaniax-digest V12 #96 *******************************