alex keller - after six

The Stupid Song

2006-06-22T06:45:00.000-07:00

I mean, it's funny. Or just stupid.

It's a beautiful world

2006-06-10T07:28:00.000-07:00

The next time someone dismisses Devo as a joke band make them watch this.

ElektraMusic web radio curated by Meri von KleinSmid

2006-06-05T08:28:00.000-07:00

A piece of mine is featured on ElektraMusic this month - follow the link to check it out as well as a lot of other good stuff.

Unbreakable

2006-03-26T07:11:00.000-08:00

My 3G iPod is apparently indestructible.

I bought it three years ago and it's survived numerous drops... last week it fell out of my pocket in the driveway and I ran it over with my car. It's still working, no skips or stutters.

Quotable Christina, six years old

2006-03-24T06:21:00.000-08:00

Jennifer: "Curiosity killed the cat."
Christina: "No it didn't."

This was reminiscent of Christina at two.

Me: "Christina, we don't put crayons up our noses."
Christina: "Yes we do."

Quotable August, six years old

2006-03-24T06:18:00.000-08:00

Once we were having dinner - some sort of sausage. August was apparently, secretively, having stomach trouble. He threw up half-digested chunks of meat at the table.

As I carried him to the bathroom to clean him up (and catch the aftershock, if any) he looked up at me and moaned, "Did you see my sausage?"

SXSW Picks

2006-03-12T07:31:00.000-08:00

here's the stuff you ought not miss.

Wednesday March 15

7:30 PM
Toof, Spiro's Patio
I went to elementary school with this guy and he is still funny, and a pain in the ass, and an amazing musician. I mean he's very funny.

11 PM
The Weird Weeds, Karma Lounge
Intimate, gentle, delicate, slightly seething. And you get to watch Sandy play guitar with chalk. What more do you want?

1 AM
The Go! Team, Exodus
The Go! Team is like the upbeat funky soundtrack to an ABC afterschool special times ten.

Thursday, March 16

Table of the Elements Showcase, Central Presbyterian Church
This is the one show to see if you are only going to one show.
8 PM San Agustin
9 PM Zeena Parkins - electric harpist with teeth
10 PM Tony Conrad - seminal sound and film guy
11 PM Jonathan Kane's February
12 AM Arnold Dreyblatt Ensemble - featuring Brent Fariss, Nick Hennies and Travis Weller
1 AM Rhys Chatam Guitar Army - Deaf as a post? Yes. Egyptian? Maybe. Minimal? Yes. Incredibly loud? Yes.

If you absolutely hate all that weird stuff you could see

8 PM
Echo and the Bunymen, Town Lake Stage
Free! "This killing moon will come too soon." I bet they put on a great show.

9:30 PM
Morrisey, Austin Music Hall
People love to piss on Morrisey but you can't really deny that he is brilliant. He does grate the nerves if you think about it too much.

11:30 PM
Helios Creed/Chrome, Room 710
Chrome was what Devo threatened to be but didn't quite make it. They took enough drugs in their midwestern basements until they became an outer space thug gang. This was back in the 1970s... I saw them in 1998 or so and they were scary and incredibly old even then.

1 AM
Pong, Molotov Lounge
Sort of Devo, ex Ed Hall. Supposedly a good show.

1:15 AM
Whitehouse, Room 710
Over the top, loud, noisy, offensive, a bit stupid I think - but I will ignore them at my peril.

Friday, March 17

1 AM
Savage Republic, Room 710
Not as weird as they think they are but still pretty damn good.

Saturday, March 18

Toneburst Showcase, Ceremony Hall, 8 PM
This is the local response to Table of the Elements. Not hippy trippy psych weirdo, just good old fashioned electronic/electroacoustic sound and music.
Corey Allen, Brent Fariss, Tom Grznich, Alex Keller, Rick Reed, Josh Russell, Scott Smallwood

1 AM
Glass Eye, Copa
I saw Glass Eye at SXSW in 1990, I bet. They are one of my all-time favorite Austin bands. Don't miss it.

Frank Zappa on Crossfire, 1986

2006-01-25T20:16:00.000-08:00

Zappa: The biggest threat to America today is not communism; it's moving America towards a fascist theocracy and everything that has happened during the Reagan administration. Is steering us right down that pipe...
When you have a government that prefers a certain moral code derived from a certain religion and that moral code turns into legislation to suit one certain religious point of view and if that code happens to be very, very right wing almost toward Attila the Hun.

Lofton: Well then you are an anarchist. Every form of civil government is based on some kind of morality, Frank.

Zappa: Morality in terms of behavior-not in terms of theology.

Best music events in Austin, 2005

2006-01-20T10:47:00.000-08:00

Well, check this out. The Austin New Music Coop was on Austin 360's list of best three music events of 2005.

"Beyond the Past: New Music for Extinct Instruments," New Music Co-op. Blending the right amount of smarts, fun and quirk, this group of composers and improvisers lovingly re-created some oddball Italian Futurist instruments and then wrote new scores for the noisemaking contraptions.

Congrats to the Co-op.

History of Electronic Music Filmstrips

2005-11-12T07:36:00.000-08:00

Like historical electronic music? Like filmstrips? Check THIS out.

[NEW MUSIC EVENT] Beyond the Past - 11.12.05 - Austin, Texas

2005-11-11T18:35:00.000-08:00

I'm very excited to invite you to this show. For over two years the Austin New Music Co-op has been building obsolete noise-instruments (intonarumori) based on the very minimal documentation left behind by Luigi Russolo. We have been writing new pieces for the intonarumori over the last several months.

Our works will be performed with a good deal of fanfare at Ballet Austin tomorrow night. Very few people have ever even heard these instruments; most of those who have are now deceased. I promise an exciting, challenging, rewarding evening that will be like nothing you've ever heard before.

Alex

--

AUSTIN NEW MUSIC CO-OP PRESENTS:
BEYOND THE PAST: NEW MUSIC FOR EXTINCT INSTRUMENTS

In an ambitious program more than two years in the making, the Austin
New Music Co-op will resurrect innovative instruments designed at the
turn of the century (the 20th century, that is) for an exciting
concert of new music. Modeled after the inventions of Luigi Russolo,
these hand-crafted instruments will be premiered alongside other
traditional instruments in eight new works by member composers of the
NMC. This combination performance, art exhibit, and history lesson is
a rare opportunity to experience "futuristic" sounds of the past.

NMC PRESENTS: BEYOND THE PAST: NEW MUSIC FOR EXTINCT INSTRUMENTS
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 8PM
BALLET AUSTIN ACADEMY (3002 GUADALUPE ST)
TICKETS: $12 IN ADVANCE AT WATERLOO RECORDS
$15 AT THE DOOR, $10 STUDENTS AT THE DOOR

Detailed information and press photos on the NMC web site at:
(http://www.newmusiccoop.org/upcoming/)

How did artists of the past view music of the future? And what would
that music sound like today? One group of musicians and composers in
Austin seeks answers to these questions in the concert hall and the
carpentry shop. Led by Sarah Norris, the New Music Co-op has used
scant historical evidence and rare recordings to recreate the
"intonarumori," ('noise instruments' in Italian) a series of
instruments invented in the early 1900s by bombastic Italian Futurist
composer Luigi Russolo. The intonarumori were meant to elevate the
environmental sounds of an emerging urban world to a high art, with
suggestively named models like the "roarer," "crackler," and
"gurgler." Our all-volunteer group has been designing and building
from scratch for over two years, and will present a concert of
original new music for these lost and forgotten instruments on
November 12. This concert presents a unique intersection of art and
music, history and modernity.

About the 'Beyond the Past' Project

At the heart of the New Music Co-op's new project is the act of
re-creation. Re-creating these instruments, however, presents a
number of unique challenges. Though praised by composers like Ravel
and Stravinski in their time, none of the original instruments or
their design plans remain. Further, Russolo's descriptions of his
instruments are intentionally vague because he feared design
imitations. As a result, the New Music Co-op has worked from only
Russolo's descriptions, the few remaining recordings, and rigorous
testing to piece together its own designs for the intonarumori.
Because of the project's intuitive, design-intensive nature, progress
has been hard-won. However, under the leadership of project manager
Sarah Norris and the skillful eye of carpenter Kirk Laktas, the many
months of challenging work have produced a brand new set of roarers,
rubbers, cracklers, and gurglers. With the addition of the Co-op's
new compositions for the instruments, this presentation will be a
unique marriage of concert, art exhibit, and history lesson.

About the 'Futurists'

The Futurists' world is one that is at once familiar and foreign to
the modern eye. In early 20th century Italy, cars, machines, and
factories were exciting innovations that promised great things for
humanity. Accordingly, the Futurists wished to shake audiences from
their sleepy appreciation of old world fineries, and to jolt them
into relishing the beauty of the new, urban sounds around them. As
Russolo said in his treatise, The Art of Noise:

"We Futurists have deeply loved and enjoyed the harmonies of the
great masters. For many years Beethoven and Wagner shook our nerves
and hearts. Now we are satiated and we find far more enjoyment in the
combination of the noises of trams, backfiring motors, carriages and
bawling crowds than in rehearsing, for example, the 'Eroica' or the
'Pastoral.'"

This emphasis on sound as music presents one of the earliest
outcroppings of the 20th century avant-garde, and foreshadows the
much later work of John Cage. Absurdist Futurist performance was a
great influence on Dada, and the movement shared its forceful visual
depictions of motion with Futurism in Russia, Cubism, and even the
work of Marcel Duchamp.

About Austin New Music Co-op

The New Music Co-op is a community of composers and performers from
the Austin area dedicated to increasing awareness and understanding
of new music. Since 2001, the NMC has presented a wide range of
innovative and compelling new works and created a unique environment
for collaboration and the free exchange of musical ideas. Notable
New Music Co-op concerts have included John Cage's Songbooks, Pauline
Oliveros' Four Meditations for Orchestra (with the composer in
attendance), a three-day series of the works of the New York School,
and Terry Riley's In C. New Music Co-op members come from highly
diverse backgrounds, from classical performance to electronic music
to formal composition to rock bands. The group runs by consensus,
and gains its strength from its members' varied experiences and
interests. The New Music Co-op is proud to announce that is now a
501(c)(3) non-profit organization, and all donations to the group are
tax-deductible.

--

Halloween 05 photos

2005-10-31T19:39:00.000-08:00

Christina, as the new silent ninja batgirl, was awesome. She really had to twist my arm to get me to go as Batman. Happy Halloween!

Couple of drink recipes

2005-10-31T12:08:00.000-08:00

From the awesome Mr. Jeffery Rowlands, the Abu Gharaib.

First you mix equal parts scotch and vodka...
Then I attach jumper cables to your testicles.

Next, the Jackie-O, from one of my favorite bands ever, Rusted Shut.

Many of you have been raving about the "Jackie-O", a legendary
aperitif and emetic that we served way back in the day at Chez
Imbecile. It is certainly one of Don's favourites.
So here I share with you a fail-safe recipe for same:

1. In a pint glass, add 4 ounces or full shots of Stolichnaya Russian
Vodka. If you're me, or it's the day after you paid the rent, or if
you're Domokos and you just don't know any better, substitute Taaka
vodka---it goes for about $7.99 per 1.75 litre bottle at Spec's.

2. Throw in some ice: three or four cubes should suffice.

3. Add 6 ounces of Mogen David MD 20/20. The RED one. Tuesday was a
good year.

4. Stir with a knife or ice pick, or, I don't care, a claw hammer.
Now is as good a time as any to be cussing your ex girl/boy fiend's
guts out under your breath.

5. Bottoms up!

After three or four of these babies, you might want to refer back to
the recipe, if you can find it. Or try to figure out where it is that
you live. And your clothing will likely begin to resemble the Chanel
suit worn by Jacqueline Kennedy on the afternoon and evening of
November 22, 1963.Important historical reference makes this drink a
festive American holiday tradition around Thanksgiving time.

My parenting role models

2005-10-27T08:44:00.000-07:00

This is SO bad but SO good.

Oregon RIAA Victim Fights Back

2005-10-06T12:30:00.000-07:00

This is the case peer-to-peer file sharers have been waiting for. Tanya Andersen, a 41 year old disabled single mother living in Oregon, has countersued the RIAA for Oregon RICO violations, fraud, invasion of privacy, abuse of process, electronic trespass, violation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, negligent misrepresentation, the tort of "outrage", and deceptive business practices.

Haw haw. Go Tanya!

Bacharach teams up with Dre for protest album

2005-10-06T09:24:00.000-07:00

A friend of Bacharach said: "Burt's pissed at the administration, concerned about the world he is leaving to his children, and you can feel it."

That sound you hear is the sound of my brain exploding. I can't wait to get this album.

The tomb of Odysseus has been found...

2005-10-04T07:11:00.000-07:00

"The tomb of Odysseus has been found, and the location of his legendary capital city of Ithaca discovered here on this large island across a one-mile channel from the bone-dry islet that modern maps call Ithaca."

Supposedly this is right down the road from where my maternal grandmother's family (Alevizatos) is from...

[broadcast] sunday, 10.02.05 - commercial suicide membership drive

2005-10-02T09:35:00.000-07:00

hello friends,

It is my pleasure to invite you to listen to another broadcast on Commercial Suicide, Austin's weekly experimental/art/new/noise/weird show. This week I will be doing an all-Austin show, including pieces by Brekekekexkoaxkoax, Field, the Gates Ensemble, Rick Reed and Josh Russell.

Tonight is the last night of KOOP's membership drive and things aren't going so well. The membership drive was delayed two weeks so as to not compete with Katrina relief efforts; now we are competing with two other local radio pledge drives. Our target is $40K and as of this morning we have less than $28K.

In order to keep KOOP's doors open and the transmitter humming, Commercial Suicide needs you to represent Austin's experimental/art/new/noise/weird scene by contributing to KOOP. Contribute what you can! $5 or $10 pledges from starving musicians can really add up. EVERY DOLLAR COUNTS. At the $25 level you can be a voting member, and help determine the future of KOOP Radio!

You can call
512-472-KOOP (5667)
or
(888) 917-KOOP (5667)
to pledge until 10 PM CST tonight. If you can, call between 8 and 10 PM CST while the show is on the air, to make sure your interest in Commercial Suicide counts. Or you can pledge online at
http://www.koop.org/?page=pledgedrive

Help us make our goal, and keep community programming alive!

Thanks, and happy listening -

Alex

http://www.alexkeller.net

about Commercial Suicide and KOOP:

Commercial Suicide can be heard on Austin's KOOP Radio 91.7 FM, on Sunday July 31 2005, 8:00 PM to 10:00 PM central time. Our playlists are at http://commercialsuicide.blogspot.com/.

If you are out of the Austin listening area you can check it out at http://www.koop.org/?page=streaming. You will need the free real audio player; if you do not have it instructions are available on the KOOP site.

: "I think I MAY NEED A BATHroom break?"

2005-09-17T06:56:00.000-07:00

Hello Ah Puch!

2005-09-10T13:11:00.000-07:00

I have been working on drawings combining my favorite Mexican deities with Sanrio-style art for quite a while. Now not only can you see the drawings but you can purchase crap with them on it, at https://www.cafepress.com/helloahpuch. Enjoy!

More on Katrina idiocy

2005-09-10T05:27:00.000-07:00

"...this segment, from (of all places) Sean Hannity & Alan Colmes’ show on Fox News, with Geraldo Rivera and Shepard Smith reporting from the NOLA convention center and the encampment on I-10. Shepard Smith reported that there were thousands of people still stuck on freeways and bridges, with no food or water, ignored there for days. Back in the studio, O’Reilly said that what they needed was a strong leader like Rudy Giuliani. Smith shot back that what they needed “on the first day was food and water and what they needed on the second day was food and water and what they needed on the third day was food and water.”

[broadcast] sunday, 09.11.05 - commercial suicide with alex keller

2005-09-09T14:07:00.000-07:00

hello friends,

It is my pleasure to invite you to listen to another broadcast on Commercial Suicide, Austin's weekly experimental/art/new/noise/weird show. This week I will be doing a special 9/11 show with works by artists including Christopher DeLaurenti, Richard Lerman, Negativland, Krystov Penderecki, Bob Ostertag, and Steve Reich, among others.

Commercial Suicide can be heard on Austin's KOOP Radio 91.7 FM, on Sunday July 31 2005, 8:00 PM to 10:00 PM central time.

If you are out of the Austin listening area you can check it out at http://www.koop.org/?page=streaming. You will need the free real audio player; if you do not have it instructions are available on the KOOP site.

Happy listening!

Alex

http://www.alexkeller.net

Panda Attack v2

2005-09-09T13:12:00.000-07:00

The new Panda Attack site is up. Along with two new songs (which haven't been mastered and may still just be early mixes) there are links to the MySpace page and the CafePress page, where you can now purchase Panda Attack shirts and other branded crap. Expect more merch offerings soon. I am working on a lunch box...!

Katrina redux

2005-09-09T13:08:00.000-07:00

so I spent last Sunday volunteering for the Red Cross at the Astrodome. It was overwhelming. Seeing the Dome packed full of people was just... there's no way to describe it.

We were trying to connect evacuees with people who were willing to house them; the overwhelming majority of evacuees wanted to stay in the Dome. It made sense: after losing everything they needed some space and time to plan the next move, and more transition wasn't welcome. Of course many of them were trying to connect with their families too and figured the Dome was probably the best place.

I have some photos on my phone that I will post when I get to it.

Katrina action

2005-09-04T12:50:00.000-07:00

am writing from the astrodome, where i am helping place displaced families with hosts in houston. more details later.

United States of Shame

2005-09-03T06:40:00.000-07:00

Michael Brown, the blithering idiot in charge of FEMA - a job he trained for by running something called the International Arabian Horse Association - admitted he didn't know until Thursday that there were 15,000 desperate, dehydrated, hungry, angry, dying victims of Katrina in the New Orleans Convention Center.

Was he sacked instantly? No, our tone-deaf president hailed him in Mobile, Ala., yesterday: "Brownie, you're doing a heck of a job."

Q. How did this get so political so quickly?

A. Because it's been so badly mishandled.

It's Saint Alexander's Day

2005-08-30T04:27:00.000-07:00

"When Arius had deceitfully professed allegiance to the Council of Nicaea, Saint Alexander, knowing his guile, refused to receive him into communion; Arius' powerful partisans threatened that they would use force to bring Arius into the communion of the Church the following day. Saint Alexander prayed fervently that God might spare the Church; and as Arius was in a privy place relieving nature, his bowels gushed forth with an effusion of blood, and the arch-heresiarch died the death of Judas."

Yes!

Jandek's first US show ever

2005-08-29T15:18:00.000-07:00

Jandek's first US show ever, and I was there. Amazing performance, almost harrowing, unnerving to see/hear an artist be so personally revealing. Nice percussion by both Mr. Nick Hennies and Mr. Chris Cogburn. More on Jandek and a review of the show here.

Biscuit's last interview.

2005-08-27T10:47:00.000-07:00

Sniff, again. You should read this interview, it's really great. I wish I'd known him.

Top Official Urged Change in How Parks Are Managed

2005-08-27T09:10:00.000-07:00

Paul Hoffman
Department of the Interior
via e-mail: Paul_Hoffman@ios.doi.gov

Dear Mr. Hoffman,

I recently read of your proposed revisions to the National Park Service's basic policy document. Among them was the elimination of this phrase:

"the service will strive to preserve or restore the natural quiet and
natural sounds associated with the physical and biological resources
of the parks."

I'm aware that your revisions were rejected by a panel of senior employees in favor of less significant amendations. I hope that if new revisions are proposed you will consider leaving that phrase intact.

A substantial amount of research has been done demonstrating the impact of industrial and urban noise on the environment, our psychological well-being, and the wildlife habitat. It is obvious that, since we live in an industrialized society, our urban and suburban environments will always be compromised to a degree.

Especially because of that compromise, there is a real value to protecting the acoustic environment of our national parks. By doing so we provide a place for people to experience the type of natural world and silence that is lost nearly everywhere else.

The natural park service was created to "conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and the wild life therein and to provide for the enjoyment of the same in such manner and by such means as will leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations." In keeping with that principle, I urge you to consider keeping language in the basic policy document preserving the natural quiet and natural sounds of our national parks.

Alex Keller
(address)

More information about acoustic ecology can be found at

World Forum for Acoustic Ecology
http://interact.uoregon.edu/MediaLit/WFAE/home/index.html

American Society for Acoustic Ecology (the new US Chapter of the World Forum for Acoustic Ecology)
http://www.acousticecology.org/asae/

A few recipes by three people who I like

2005-08-24T06:47:00.000-07:00

Although I don't believe the word butthole should appear in a recipe, this recipe is from a classic Butthole Surfers interview:

GIBBY’S SPILLANE PEACH COBBLER
Stir together 1/3 t. salt and 2 c. flour. Cut in ½ c. shortening until crumbly. Add 1/3 c. milk and stir with a fork until the dough leaves the sides of the bowl On a lightly floured board, roll the dough into a rectangle a little-less than 1/4 in. thick. Put it on a baking sheet and bake it at 425 until it’s lightly browned. ~ Then put mixed-up water, brown sugar, egg white, and cinnamon [5 egg whites, ¾ c. water, ½ c. brown sugar, ¼t. cinnamon] on top of the crust and bake it until it foams up like a custard. When it starts to look cooked, take it out and put sliced fresh peaches on it. it’s amazing. It’s a killer dessert.

The young curmudgeon Steve Albini is outspoken about everything. Read this interview with him about food. He is so caustic, which is why I love him. He's usually right too.

Albini's Sauce Mayonnaise:

Ingredients:
Two eggs (egg + 1 yolk)
1 garlic clove
1/4 teaspoon Cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon Tamari soy sauce OR 1 teaspoon salt
(optionally: 1 tablespoon fresh or dried dill or thyme)
~ 1 cup olive oil
juice of 1/2 lemon OR 1 tablespoon 'good' vinegar

Into a stationary blender, crack one egg. Add an extra egg yolk, one garlic clove, a strong quarter teaspoon of cayenne (or a teaspoon of white pepper ground very fine) and either a slight teaspoon of salt or a tablespoon of Tamari soy sauce.
Blend at high speed until the garlic is finely divided and the egg begins to froth. With the blender still running, trickle in good olive oil until the mayonnaise thickens and will accept no more oil. (this will vary, but will usually be about a cup.)
Stop the blender and add a tablespoon of good vinegar OR the juice of half a lemon. Fold the mayonnaise once or twice with a spatula, which will loosen it considerably. Pulse the blender until the thick consistency returns.
Taste. If the mayonnaise tastes oily, add more acid (vinegar or lemon juice only. Never combine the two, as this makes for a weird bilious aftertaste).
Chill covered for at least 15 minutes. I often add a tablespoon of fresh or dried dill or thyme at the beginning of the process. Don't add the acid at the beginning, as this can prevent the eggs from emulsifying.

I love Vincent Price. If you haven't seen The Abominable Dr. Phibes then you are only marginally alive. His favorite recipe is for Hamburger a la Mode .

Hamburger done the way you like it - top with sour cream and caviar and dress with chopped onion or sliced green onion.

Synthesizer innovator Moog dies at 71

2005-08-22T09:42:00.000-07:00

Monday, August 22, 2005; Posted: 12:03 p.m. EDT (16:03 GMT)
RALEIGH, North Carolina (AP) -- Robert A. Moog, whose self-named synthesizers turned electric currents into sound and opened the musical wave that became electronica, has died. He was 71.

Cool people are just dropping off like flies. And Diddy (fka P. Diddy et al) still walks the earth. It's not right.

RANDY 'BISCUIT' TURNER - Big Boys singer put funk in punk - Musician found dead in South Austin home; police investigating.

2005-08-22T09:11:00.000-07:00

The lead singer of Austin's amazing punk band the Big Boys has just died. I always loved the Big Boys... sniff.

You have to log in to read the article - use
name Scooby
e-mail Scooby@doo.com
password Scrappy

Believe it or not Biscuit was just the cover story of the Austin Chronicle. You don't need to log in to read it.

the rebreather reunion show

2005-07-29T12:17:00.000-07:00

I was rotten enough not to post this beforehand... just returned from a great visit to Seattle. One of the highlights was the rebreather reunion show at Gallery 1412 on Monday, July 25. We didn't play like we hadn't played together in two years... we played like we had been playing together on a daily basis for two years.

It was later relayed to me that we nearly destroyed a piece of furniture in the venue with sound alone. That if nothing else marks a success to me.

[broadcast] sunday, 07.31.05 - commercial suicide with alex keller

2005-07-29T12:15:00.000-07:00

hello friends,

It is my pleasure to invite you to listen to my first broadcast on Commercial Suicide, Austin's weekly experimental/art/new/noise/weird show. I will be accompanied by the groovy Mr. Rick Reed. I've been involved with Commercial Suicide for a few months now but this will be my first crack at programming the show.

It can be heard on Austin's KOOP Radio 91.7 FM, on Sunday July 31 2005, 8:00 PM to 10:00 PM central time.

If you are out of the Austin listening area you can check it out at http://www.koop.org/?page=streaming. you will need the free real audio player; if you do not have it instructions are available on the KOOP site.

Hope you can check it out!

Alex

http://www.alexkeller.net

The Khronos Projector 2005

2005-06-14T16:53:00.000-07:00

Check out the video clips on this link. Imagine a film in which portions of the screen can be moved forward or backward in time by the touch of a hand on the screen... amazing.

The 'I' Word

2005-06-01T07:26:00.000-07:00

Follow the link for the whole article, very interesting stuff.

The president and vice president have artfully dodged the central question: ''Did the administration mislead us into war by manipulating and misstating intelligence concerning weapons of mass destruction and alleged ties to Al Qaeda, suppressing contrary intelligence, and deliberately exaggerating the danger a contained, weakened Iraq posed to the United States and its neighbors?"

If this is answered affirmatively Bush and Cheney have committed ''high crimes and misdemeanors." It is time for Congress to investigate the illegal Iraq war as we move toward the third year of the endless quagmire that many security experts believe jeopardizes US safety by recruiting and training more terrorists. A Resolution of Impeachment would be a first step. Based on the mountains of fabrications, deceptions, and lies, it is time to debate the ''I" word.

AUSTIN NEW MUSIC CO-OP PRESENTS CAGE'S SONG BOOKS: An Evening of Musical Happenings

2005-05-16T10:08:00.000-07:00

AUSTIN NEW MUSIC CO-OP PRESENTS:
JOHN CAGE'S SONG BOOKS: SOLOS FOR VOICE 3-92
SATURDAY, MAY 21 8:00 PM
AMLI DOWNTOWN APARTMENT BUILDING (201 LAVACA ST)
$10 ADMISSION ADVANCE TICKETS AVAILABLE AT WATERLOO RECORDS

The Austin New Music Co-op proudly presents John Cage's landmark composition, Song Books: Solos for Voice 3-92, on May 21. In this, the New Music Co-op's first program of vocal music, ten Austin-area musicians (five vocalists paired with five electronic artists) began working early this year. In addition to solo vocal performances, the program will feature voices modified or accompanied by electronic devices ranging from laptop computers to vintage reel-to-reel tape recorders. Other solos involve the extreme amplification of typewriters, checker boards, table tops and even the sound of swallowing.

The NMC performed over a dozen works by John Cage last year during a three-night series of concerts featuring music by the New York School composers. This year's presentation is unique in its specific exploration of Cage's vocal music and "happenings" (events and situations intended as art). Though the piece is subtitled Solos for Voice 3-92, roughly one third of the 90 solos is performed without vocalization or sound production.

"This is an enormous composition: it contains 90 solos of wildly differing styles," explains Brandon Young, the local experimental vocalist who organized the concert. "One of the biggest challenges for each of us has been simply deciding which of them we'll perform."

Each pair of musicians has independently chosen which solos to perform, and the pairs will perform simultaneously, without interaction. Cage instructs that a performance of the Song Books may include any number of the 90 solos, even none. Therefore, it is likely that some solos will be repeated and some will go unperformed.

The audience will be encouraged to move freely through the spacious hall, taking in the events from various locations. Evidence suggests that this will be the first performance devoted to the Song Books in Austin.

Cage determined virtually every aspect of the piece, including the number of solos, their composition and their notation, using the random chance of the ancient Chinese divination technique, I Ching. He designated each of the solos as either "song" or "theater." Examples from each category range from the ordinary to the inexplicable.

Song Books defies precise description: it must be experienced to be understood. In Cage's own words, "To consider the Song Books as a work of art is nearly impossible. Who would dare? It resembles a brothel, doesn't it?"

For more information, contact:
Brandon Young
brandon@newmusiccoop.org
512.576.7661

Amityville Horror 2005

2005-04-16T06:11:00.000-07:00

I saw a sneak preview of Amityville at the Alamo Drafthouse the other night. I enjoyed the film, though it wasn't very good... but the set-up really worked.

In order to get in I had to spend 30 seconds in a room with 25,000 flies.

Unrealised Moscow

2005-04-15T14:18:00.000-07:00

Check out what Moscow should have looked like... wow.

Will try and post more often, for those of you that hang on my every word.

the L. Ron Hubbard Music Studio

2005-03-20T07:35:00.000-08:00

"A large part of what brings that purity and faithfulness of sound is Ron’s discovery -- and he was the first and only to discern the fact -- that sound does not have wavelengths; it simply has vibrations. "

Hey L. Ron. Could we call the distance between the peak of each vibration a wavelength?

Discovery is Invention: Artists and field recordings

2005-03-16T11:39:00.000-08:00

Discovery is invention: artists and field recordings
An unique exhibition of creative field recordings
St. Edward's University, Austin, Texas
April 3-April 16, 2005

Discovery is invention: artists and field recordings showcases field recordings by artists Marcos Fernandes, Dale Lloyd and Josh Russell. All three of them identify their work with the idea of phonography: artists presenting unadulterated sound recordings in the context of art.

The exhibition will take place on the St. Edward's University campus, and last from April 3 to April 16. The audience will hear the field recordings by sitting on benches that are wired for sound playback, with headphones attached.

There will be two associated events happening in Austin the week of the exhibition. Curator Alex Keller will give a talk on the artists and their work at the St. Edward's University Master of Liberal Arts symposium on April 7 at 2 PM (free), and there will be a performance involving field recordings at the Church of the Friendly Ghost, 209 Pedernales, on April 10 at 8 PM ($5 donation). Artists performing on the 10th include Terry Horn, Josh Ronsen, and Josh Russell.

anti/non-sxsw performance

2005-03-14T10:14:00.000-08:00

___________
greetings -

I'd like to invite you to come to a performance in Austin on March 19. This event is a response to Austin's annual South by Southwest festival, during which commercial music acts vie chaotically for market success. We will reply to that with an eye on good art in a calm spirit instead of pandering, chaos, despair and gluttony.

It will be at the Church of the Friendly Ghost, at 10 PM. Admission will be a suggested donation of $5, with no one turned away for lack of funds.

. Brent Fariss, Rick Reed, Josh Russell and I will be playing live electronic and electroacoustic instruments.

. Brekekekexkoaxkoax (Josh Ronsen and guests) will do something unspecified.

There may be a special guest as well.

_________________
the bottom line -

. the church of the friendly ghost is at 209 pedernales in austin, texas
. the date is saturday, march 19, 2004
. the performance starts at 10 pm
. all ages are welcome
. admission will be a suggested donation of $5, with no one turned away for lack of funds

hope that you can come -

best

alex

______________
more info on -

brekekekexkoaxkoax
http://home.flash.net/~jronsen/bkk.html

brent fariss
http://www.totalheuristics.com/spectral/brentfariss.htm

rick reed
http://www.totalheuristics.com/spectral/rickreed.htm

josh russell
http://www.bremsstrahlung-recordings.org/artists/russell.php

myself
http://www.alexkeller.net

the church of the friendly ghost
http://home.grandecom.net/~cofg/

a map to the church of the friendly ghost
http://www.mapquest.com/maps/map.adp?country=US&addtohistory=&formtype=address&searchtype=address&cat=&address=209%20Pedernales%20St&city=Austin&state=TX&zipcode=78702%2d4744&search=Get%2bMap

Steven Johnson - new EPA head

2005-03-04T08:03:00.000-08:00

In January 2004 interview, a Japanese newspaper asked Johnson, "Is there any possibility that the Bush administration will come back to the Kyoto Protocol?" He responded, "That question is easy, and it's no." (Source: "EPA Official — U.S. will never return to Kyoto Protocol," The Daily Yomiuri, January 20, 2004.)

Danger: Diabolik

2005-03-04T06:50:00.000-08:00

Buy this movie when it comes out, and drink champagne while watching it. This was what Austin Powers was supposed to be, and it's not even funny. Ever watch two people make love in a pile of money? That's Danger: Diabolik.

No recent posts - have been working on school stuff and am now also working for my favorite fruit company.

Faith-Based Parks? Creationists meet the Grand Canyon

2005-02-22T09:51:00.000-08:00

From the article:

"Rosina Bierbaum, dean of the University of Michigan School of Natural Resources and Environment, said the Bush administration has cut scientists out of some of the policy-making processes, particularly on environmental issues.

" "In previous administrations, scientists were always at the table when regulations were being developed," she said. "Science never had the last voice, but it had a voice." "

Who needs science when you have faith? And who is advising the Bush admin on global warming policy when the science community is not? Any faith (including Christianity) is in error when it uses its beliefs to dismiss "facts."

Did you know you can purchase the book, "Grand Canyon: A different view," which explains that the Grand Canyon was created 4500 years ago, at National Parks Service bookstores? Click here for more on that.

Aboard Air CIA

2005-02-21T10:37:00.000-08:00

Let me get this straight. So the CIA picks up a German guy on vacation in Macedonia. They run him off to a hotel for three weeks, then chain him to the floor of a jet and take him to a US prison in Afghanistan, where he is beaten and interrogated. Months later, he is released and dumped on a deserted road in Macedonia.

And we are supposed to be OK with this? What are we fighting for again?

RIP HST

2005-02-21T04:30:00.000-08:00

Hunter S. Thompson is dead. From his ESPN column of July 22, 2003:

"They somehow managed to blow it all, like a gang of kids on a looting spree, between January and July, or even less. It is genuinely incredible. The U.S. Treasury is empty, we are losing that stupid, fraudulent chickencrap War in Iraq, and every country in the world except a handful of Corrupt Brits despises us. We are losers, and that is the one unforgiveable sin in America.

"Beyond that, we have lost the respect of the world and lost two disastrous wars in three years. Afghanistan is lost, Iraq is a permanent war Zone, our national Economy is crashing all around us, the Pentagon's "war strategy" has failed miserably, nobody has any money to spend, and our once-mighty U.S. America is paralyzed by Mutinies in Iraq and even Fort Bragg.

"The American nation is in the worst condition I can remember in my lifetime, and our prospects for the immediate future are even worse. I am surprised and embarrassed to be a part of the first American generation to leave the country in far worse shape than it was when we first came into it. Our highway system is crumbling, our police are dishonest, our children are poor, our vaunted Social Security, once the envy of the world, has been looted and neglected and destroyed by the same gang of ignorant greed-crazed bastards who brought us Vietnam, Afghanistan, the disastrous Gaza Strip and ignominious defeat all over the world.

"The Stock Market will never come back, our Armies will never again be No. 1, and our children will drink filthy water for the rest of our lives.

"The Bush family must be very proud of themselves today, but I am not. Big Darkness, soon come. Take my word for it."

Origami CD Cases

2005-02-17T08:35:00.000-08:00

What else to say? Click the link.

Why did the Vivian girls have boy parts?

2005-02-17T07:02:00.000-08:00

Went to see this film about the artist Henry Darger last night, very interesting indeed. Lots of questions left unresolved, lots of areas left slightly unexplored. Why did all the girls have boy parts? Was Darger completely insane? What if he had been discovered?

Go see the film.

If you are curious about the details of the Bush 2006 budget

2005-02-14T20:05:00.000-08:00

then check out the linked article. You may be interested to find that the budget doesn't include the costs of the Iraq war or SS private accounts. Some cuts include

"$45 billion over 10 years that is to be cut from Medicaid, the shared federal-state health care program for the poor and disabled. Food stamp benefits would be eliminated for 200,000 to 300,000 people, and a freeze in child-care funding would cut the number of low-income children receiving help by 300,000 in 2009."

Alternatively:

"military spending (and this doesn't include the costs of war in Iraq) would rise from $400 billion this fiscal year to $419 billion in 2006 to $492 billion in 2010."

I have some problems with the way that this administration is prioritizing things.

Here's another article with some details on the long-term consequences of the budget, which include deferring a lot of the costs until much later.

The First Release by Panda Attack

2005-02-08T18:19:00.000-08:00

My daughter and I collaborate on an insane musical project called Panda Attack. I program beats and she does stream-of-consciousness lyrics. This one was so good I had to mix and master it.

Christina's lyrics on this track reveal an intricate personal mythos in which Godzilla, high fashion and the death of my grandfather (she calls him Papou, which is the Greek word for grandfather) are all players. She's like Bjork meets Eloise.

She's awesome and you can't have her.

By the way, I did a piece (my thesis) with my son August when he was at that age - check out a selection from The light part is called lightning.

The science community's consensus on global warming

2005-02-07T06:04:00.000-08:00

Recently there has been a lot of media hype about challenges to global warming. After a little investigation I found the above article... I quote:

"The scientific consensus is clearly expressed in the reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Created in 1988 by the World Meteorological Organization and the United Nations Environmental Programme, IPCC's purpose is to evaluate the state of climate science as a basis for informed policy action, primarily on the basis of peer-reviewed and published scientific literature (3). In its most recent assessment, IPCC states unequivocally that the consensus of scientific opinion is that Earth's climate is being affected by human activities: "Human activities ... are modifying the concentration of atmospheric constituents ... that absorb or scatter radiant energy. ... [M]ost of the observed warming over the last 50 years is likely to have been due to the increase in greenhouse gas concentrations" [p. 21 in (4)]."

Louis and Bebe Barron Article

2005-02-07T05:11:00.000-08:00

There was a good article on Louis and Bebe Barron this morning on NPR. The Re/Search Incredibly Strange Music book is another resource for info about them. And the Forbidden Planet soundtrack is just amazing.

Symphonic House

2005-02-02T08:55:00.000-08:00

I went to school with Bill Close, the instrument builder from this site. The thing that I remember best about him and his work was when he told me that he used his background in wooden ship building - all his instruments were collapsible, and used beautiful wood. I can see that reflected in this piece.

Bill Gates Coded Praise of China

2005-01-31T06:45:00.000-08:00

This creeped me out. In a meeting at the World Economic Forum, Bill Gates talked about why China's new form of capitalism is so sucessful

'He characterised the Chinese model in terms of "willingness to work hard and not having quite the same medical overhead or legal overhead".'
-That implies that the sort of worker's rights and benefits that most of the civilized world has accepted as essential, are what prevents Western capitalism from succeeding.

'Gates continued by heaping praise on the current generation of Chinese leaders.
"They're smart," he said with emphasis.
"They have this mericratic way of picking people for these government posts where you rotate into the university and really think about state allocation of resources and the welfare of the country and then you rotate back into some bureaucratic position."'
-Is meritocratic a new euphemism for party-run dictatorship?

Am I oversensitive about this, or is Bill Gates implying that, for the US to compete in the new global economy, we need to drop all these prissy regulations about safe workplaces and limited work weeks?

The Pierre Boulez project

2005-01-25T14:11:00.000-08:00

I'm going to participate in this event, which is the culmination of ten years of work by Josh Ronsen - come check it out. It will be happening on Monday, February 28, at Church of the Friendly Ghost, 209 Pedernales, 7pm, $5 suggested donation. It's a benefit for the Austin Public Library. Don't miss it.

French composer and conductor Pierre Boulez once wrote in a very famous Statement that "all art of the past must be destroyed." Although Mr. Boulez has since established a lucrative and famous career in conducting art of the past, his own as well as pieces by Ravel, Handel, Stravinsky and others, and although he has unsuccessfully tried to qualify his Statement (in a 1972 article saying "All I meant was just to urge the public to grow up and once for all to cut the umbilical cord attaching it to the past"), we take great interest in his Statement and propose a project to fully align the Statement with Mr. Boulez. Henceforth, we are accepting donations of Mr. Boulez's work, recordings, books, scores, for a future performance in which we will destroy them. Destruction will not be limited to smashing, ripping, burning, crushing, kicking, in literal, physical and spiritual senses.

Who wants a body massage?

2005-01-25T13:02:00.000-08:00

My favorite GI Joe PSAs are back online. You must check them out.

My web site is back up

2005-01-24T05:55:00.000-08:00

Thanks to Pete and Meri! Apparently too many candles in close proximity to a server is a bad thing.

As of right now, singularaudio.com and thatdarnmac.com are both down. There are no MP3s on my site either. All this should be resolved by the end of the week.

Awesome Christmas presents aka How much can I overuse one particular adjective?

2005-01-21T10:31:00.000-08:00

I hope the image links work but I suspect they won't.

We gave my son an awesome Fender Telecaster (he picked the sunburst - good taste is genetic, I guess)

I received:

The awesome Global G16 chef's knife

The awesome Emile Berliner Gramophone Turntable model

The awesome Skillcraft Human Ear model

The awesome Havahart Humane Trap (to assist with our awesome raccoon invasion

A Playstation 2 (for my son and myself) with which we have been playing the insane Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.

(actually for a wedding anniversary) A gorgeous new wedding ring, since I had to cut mine off when I jammed my finger. It was the finger or the ring...

Most awesome of all was the chance to spend extended time with immediate and extended family, especially my maternal grandmother, aunt and uncle.

The Chinese Christmas dinner was pretty fly too.

My website is down

2005-01-19T14:40:00.000-08:00

Some sort of massive problem on the server run by my friends Meri and Pete has made my regular web site inaccessible. I'm sure it will be back up soon... in the meantime alexkeller.net should resolve here.

And I haven't posted for a while. Lots going on. Am facing my last semester of school at St. Ed's and, as usual, looking for a job.

I should post photos of all our groovy Christmas presents soon.

I redid my web site

2004-12-18T13:03:00.000-08:00

In the process of recompiling my resume and CV I decided to redo my website. The content is all still there but with new photos and a new look. Check it out and let me know what you think.

The Art of David Tudor

2004-12-16T14:28:00.000-08:00

The Getty has an amazing collection of Tudor's works.

King Diamond, grandmaster of the oral tradition

2004-12-12T18:06:00.000-08:00

This is the funniest thing I've ever seen. Someone should tell King Diamond that if you are trying to be spooky, saying "it's like, whoooooo" or "I was like, no way" is not spooky. The makeup is not spooky either.

Releases and events

2004-12-12T08:05:00.000-08:00

Mimeograph Recordings is releasing documentation for two shows I curated in Seattle. Following are the press releases:

Threshold of hearing/
Threshold of pain 4-disc CD-R set

This four-disc set documents two group shows that happened at Seattle’s late, lamented Polestar Music Gallery.

The theme of 2002’s Threshold of hearing show was live, minimal, quiet electronic sound works. The pieces on 2003’s Threshold of pain are done by the same artists. They are live, electronic, minimal in form, but in contrast very loud.

The works vary widely: glitchy computer-generated textures, sparse pure electronic soundscapes, and delicate electro-acoustic pieces are all featured.

The featured artists are Steve Barsotti, Mateo Chavez, Jake Elliott, inBOIL, Vance Galloway, Model 563, and watfiv. Alex Keller curated the shows and prepared this CD release.

This set is uniquely packaged in a clear four-disc jewel box and wrapped in a vellum band.

SST: Surround Sound Transmissions
DVD-R Video disc

Surround Sound Transmissions, a DVD-Video disc that will play on any device that plays DVD-R discs, is one of the very few electronic/ electro-acoustic albums to be released in full surround sound. It documents a 2002 group show at Seattle’s late, lamented Polestar Music Gallery.

The artists use the surround medium in surprising, innovative ways. A few pieces separate sounds in all channels; a few use subtly different sounds to unusual effect. The sound sources include a party, insects, gritty electronics and digitally processed sound.

The featured artists are Steve Barsotti, Christopher DeLaurenti, Vance Galloway, inBOIL, Intonarumori, Alex Keller, Ben Larson, Eric Ostrowski, TCOR, and Kelli Wise. Alex Keller curated the show and prepared this CD release.

"God Is With Us": Hitler's Rhetoric and the Lure of "Moral Values"

2004-12-10T11:59:00.000-08:00

A government should be moral in its actions. A theocracy, however, isn't necessarily moral.

goodbye, Wigu

2004-12-10T11:58:00.000-08:00

Today is a sad sad day - my favorite webcomic will be ending soon. Wigu is always very funny and occasionally
mind-blowingly hysterical. Check it out, especially my favorite, which is
posted on my refridgerator: http://www.wigu.com/?date=20040510

The 10 Least Successful Holiday Specials of All Time

2004-12-03T13:59:00.000-08:00

Oh, this is beautiful. And so seasonal too!

My favorite, maybe:

Ayn Rand's A Selfish Christmas (1951)

In this hour-long radio drama, Santa struggles with the increasing demands of providing gifts for millions of spoiled, ungrateful brats across the world, until a single elf, in the engineering department of his workshop, convinces Santa to go on strike. The special ends with the entropic collapse of the civilization of takers and the spectacle of children trudging across the bitterly cold, dark tundra to offer Santa cash for his services, acknowledging at last that his genius makes the gifts -- and therefore Christmas -- possible. Prior to broadcast, Mutual Broadcast System executives raised objections to the radio play, noting that 56 minutes of the hour-long broadcast went to a philosophical manifesto by the elf and of the four remaining minutes, three went to a love scene between Santa and the cold, practical Mrs. Claus that was rendered into radio through the use of grunts and the shattering of several dozen whiskey tumblers. In later letters, Rand sneeringly described these executives as "anti-life."

When is Ayn Rand not funny?

A few days later:
Answering my own question, Ayn Rand is not funny when people try to apply her half-assed 'philosophy' to living societies.

But it would be funny if A Selfish Christmas were done in Rudolph-style stop-motion animation.

AMODA event

2004-12-02T11:44:00.000-08:00

Brent Fariss sent this to me - promises to be a great show.

We are excited to announce the next AMODA Performance next Sunday (December 5, 2004 - 8pm). This one features (former Austinite) Olivia Block, now living in Chicago. Some of you may remember Olivia from her work with the Marble Index and Alial Straa. Olivia does some of the most exciting electroacoustic music these days. She has released several CDs on the Sedimental label that are all worth checking out. Olivia will be performing a composition that features flute, oboe, 2 bassoons, soprano saxophone, 2 violins, viola, cello, and electronics! Members of the Austin New Music Coop will be performing as the chamber ensemble. This event should not be missed!!!

Also on the bill is a collaboration between the Imbroglio Sting Quartet and William Meadows. Imbroglio and Meadows have played a lot in this town, but not nearly enough together. This performance will combine the sound of the quartet processed under Meadows electronics, creating a sound world that has to be heard to be believed.

Josh Russell will be opening up the show. He recently moved to Austin, but has been active on the national experimental scene for some time with his own music and running bremsstrahlung recordings. bremsstrahlung has put out the 2 critically acclaimed "lowercase music compilations". Josh will be doing a solo electronic set that is sure to fit wonderfully in this line-up.

The show will take place at the Arthouse at 700 Congress at 8pm. They have an ongoing installation called LOUNGE that has turned the gallery into a performance lounge, making a very exciting atmosphere.

For more information, go to http://www.amoda.org/performance

welcome

2004-12-02T11:40:00.000-08:00

As part of my new website I wanted to have a blog that I could use to post upcoming events, tasty news memes, etc etc.

In case you have arrived here from elsewhere my URL is http://www.alexkeller.net.

I'm off tonight to see Jacob Green and Josh Ronsen at the Church of the Friendly Ghost. They are performing with butoh dancers. The costumes are supposedly provocative.

* later *

great performance by Jacob and Josh. It was very linear - their sounds complemented one another, sparse and tasty. The butoh dancers were also on the ball tonight - very smart work. I love the restrained tension in butoh.

For the record, 'provocative' was synonomous with 'minimal' tonight.