Laurie Anderson

[Greg]

Faith No More had one big hit that I can recall called 'Epic' You want it all but you can't have it. It's that aggressive post punk rock style like Soundgarden, Rage Against the Machine and Korn. The one thing I vaguely remember is in the video for Epic they filmed a fish out of water flopping around in it's death throes. Animal Rights activists were not happy.

[Drunk Monk]

Faith No More had one big hit that I can recall called 'Epic' You want it all but you can't have it. It's that aggressive post punk rock style like Soundgarden, Rage Against the Machine and Korn. The one thing I vaguely remember is in the video for Epic they filmed a fish out of water flopping around in it's death throes. Animal Rights activists were not happy.

I'll look for Epic, but it's not something I can use really.  Not that our readers are particularly pro Animal rights. It's just that there's no reason to go there.  I'm looking for something more about Patton's style.  

It did make for an intriguing crowd - punkish attire: T-shirts, leather, dyed hair + the SF jazz set: sharply dressed + NY wannabe scenesters: silver hair, tiger prints, stiletto heels.  Of course, in SF, that's nothing. In the B-Side bar there was a table of furryesque chicks and a dude in a circus ringmaster jacket.  I need to get me one of those for our next tournament.

---

Woah. I just saw that Laurie is playing solo at the Bing at Stanford on January 28.  WTH? Is she in town for that long? The show is titled 'The Art of Falling'

[Drunk Monk]

Laurie talked about finishing Lou Reed's Tai Chi book (I was among 70+ people she interviewed for this), about Lou's practice and her vipassana retreat (I've heard a version of this tale before). 

I just realized where I heard her vipassana story before.  It was in the interview I did with her in 2015. http://www.kungfumagazine.com/index.php?...ticle=1266

MIND LIKE A BEAM

[Greg]

If it helps, I spent CNY on my hands and knees finishing a deck.

[Drunk Monk]

If it helps, I spent CNY on my hands and knees finishing a deck.

that does help especially because when i read this before off my phone without my glasses, i mistook that last 'e' for an 'i'.  

[King Bob]

Faith No More had another hit previous to that one; it was called "We Care a Lot" if I'm not mistaken. Anyway they said that a lot during it.

[Drunk Monk]

Faith No More had another hit previous to that one; it was called "We Care a Lot" if I'm not mistaken. Anyway they said that a lot during it.

I remember that one.  But what I really need is a DOOMer who was a fan and can defend Patton's yelling style.

In the B-Side bar there was a table of furryesque chicks and a dude in a circus ringmaster jacket.  I need to get me one of those for our next tournament.

I meant I need one of those ringmaster jackets, not a furryesque chick.  But hey, I'll take whatever I can get to help me with TCEC 2020.

[thatguy]

The fish belonged to Björk: “The fish belonged to the Icelandic singer-songwriter, Björk, who was given it at a poetry recital in San Francisco. She later passed the fish on to Faith No More at a party at Bottum's house in Berkeley. Björk would never see the fish again... “

Somewhere I heard Faith No More do a medley of The Cranberries Zombie and the Nestle song....

Anyway, Mike Patton is not God:



—tg

[Drunk Monk]

Björk & The Cranberries = 


Patton not so much.

[Drunk Monk]

Guess who I just talked to on the phone?  Yep.  Laurie.  We did a little follow up on Saturday's show.  

DOOM EYES ONLY
She told me in strict confidence that the show almost didn't happen.  Apparently that morning, Patton freaked out because he couldn't find his notes.  He accused SFJAZZ of being gangsters and threatened to call the cops. He refused to show up on Saturday. Everyone was scrambling to find a last-minute replacement when he shows up at 5PM (show was 7:30). They all thought he was going to tear the place up but he said he found his notes under his car seat and it was all good, except that the ruckus he caused had completely cancelled any chance of a rehearsal.  No apology.  So they went for it, but Laurie said she'll never work with him again because he's 'just crazy'.  She said she likes things to be edgy but not that edgy.  Patton is now on my shit list.  Kills Björk's fish. Messes up Laurie's show.  Such a bungler.  If I ever meet him, I'll kick the faith out of his ass.  I told Laurie he sounded horribly dissonant and she laughed.  

It was a nice phone chat.  She is so sweet, even on the phone.  She apologized that she was too busy to get together this time what with 4 shows at SFJAZZ and one at Stanford tomorrow (that's where she is now and where she called from).  She said we'd get together next time.  Well, we'll see about that, but being such a fan of hers since I was a teen, it warms my old heart to discover that she's a genuine person and not a thoughtless fish murderer.

[Greg]

For the win.

[King Bob]

I seem to remember reading that he was the reason for the breakup of his old bands because he was so difficult.

[Drunk Monk]

He sucks. What an ass. Laurie had a sense of humor about it tho. I’d’ve been furious.

[thatguy]

Bummer that sucked so bad and people paid for it. It sounded like it was going to be interesting and I know I bunch of people that were considering it just because of Patton. 
Well...he is not God...
Funny, this old piece came up on Boing Boing recently. I remember it watching it when it first aired. Enjoy! 

--tg

[Drunk Monk]

There were definitely Patton fans there and they probably loved what he did.  It was loud and dissonant.  I would've rather just seen Laurie and the cellist.  Mind you, the show was still entertaining.  Laurie did her storytelling and her tale of Lou's Tai Chi passion was intriguing. I like to think I had some creative hand in inspiring the show because at one of our previous meetings, I brought up the lyrical quality of quanpu, literally 'fist lyrics', the poetic way Kung Fu moves are described. I would've brought it up on our phone chat this week, but that was only about 15 minutes long because we both had things to do and I was focused on getting some facts straight for the article.

I remember those PBS vids too.  Those were pre-MTV and really changed my view on art, really opened me up to what it might be.  I've told Laurie that a few times, when I start to fanboy, how much of an effect her works had on my thinking as a youth.  It amazes me that I have these casual conversations about art with her.  She remains an inspiration to me and I feel truly blessed to have a dialog with her.