ESPO, Spongebob and Guantánamo

ESPO's new Coney Island Sideshow in the NYT.

In interrupting a day at the beach with scenes of the United States government’s rougher practices, Mr. Powers is being deliberately provocative. “What’s more obscene,” he asks, “the official position that waterboarding is not torture, or our official position that it’s a thrill ride?”

new Bottomless Pit!

I love pre-orders, especially when they're so far in advance that you forget all about them until one day a package appears in your mailbox, like a gift from the past. Today the new Bottomless Pit 12" showed up under my door, something that had only crossed my mind a few times since I ordered it months ago. Last year's Hammer Of The Gods Lp stayed on my turntable through winter and well into spring, and I've already flipped the four song Congress 12" a good dozen times today, A/B/A/B, repeat. It's a perfect extension of Hammer Of The Gods, musically, thematically, like a lost fourth side. Their songs draw you in and closer examination is rewarded as the songs and stories unfold.

Bottomless Pit "Red Pen" (from The Congress EP, 2008)

Vancouver, summer 2008 = 2 killer

Too much ill shit going on here lately. I just learned that Sorcerers & Bison are playing the Biltmore next Friday (the 15th) and Ladyhawk & My!Gay!Husband! are at the Sweatshop the next day (Saturday the 16th). All this in addition to the Mutators 12" release show at the ER this Friday (the 8th) with Shearing Pinx, Brooklyn's Zs & V.Vecker, and the Chromatics / Twin Crystals show (now) at the Biltmore Saturday (the 9th). Fuck yeah.

Song Of The Day 003

Lately I've been feeling a lot of trashy, primitive, blown out, lo-fi stuff on one hand, and a lot of Krautrock (still.. always..) on the other. San Francisco psych-rockers Wooden Shjips are a natural fit, bringing the fuzz along with zoned out repetition and minimal grooves.

This track is from their recent Volume 1 collection on Holy Mountain, originally from a 2006 10" EP (right now I prefer the older material to last year's self-titled album). A lot of their songs hover around 4-5 minutes in length, maybe due to the restraints of releasing 7" EPs, but this one sees them stretching out a bit and it works beautifully. It's one of many songs I had to axe from my already bloated muxtape..

Wooden Shjips "Shrinking Moon For You" (from Volume 1, 2008)

muxtape / Defender / Principle Theory / Scottie B

Just cause I can, I made a muxtape. It's a two-parter actually – you can check it here and here. It's pretty evenly split between all-time favorites and new stuff I'm loving. I think it bangs if I do say so myself, which I can because it's not like I wrote the songs or anything.

So.. because I've totally been slacking on posting new stuff so far this summer, here's a doubleshot of rips for you:



Defender was a one-off project by Alan Braxe, Fred Falke and Savage. The title track here doesn't really do much for me (call me a purist but I never really felt the guitars), so the b-side wins again – "Bliss" is a Braxe / Falke classic.

Defender "Defender" (from Defender / Bliss EP, 2005)

Defender "Bliss" (from Defender / Bliss EP, 2005)



Principle Theory was a name used occasionally by Byron Walton, aka Chicago House legend Jamie Principle. It's a bit of a tough call, but I think I have to go with the b-side here too. Both tracks are ill but "Voyeur" just hits a little harder.

Principle Theory "Bitch" (Vocal Mix feat. Coco Cocktail) (from Bitch 12", 1992)

Principle Theory "Bitch" (instrumental) (from Bitch 12", 1992)

Principle Theory "Voyeur" (from Bitch 12", 1992)

Scottie B has been getting around the internets lately and most recently he's popped up on KarmaloopTV, giving a tour of Baltimore, including some quick shots of the Unruly HQ. Check it out below:

Sneeze Mag No. 1

Not terribly timely at this point, but if you're in Vancouver or NYC, the inaugural June / July issue of Sneeze Magazine is available for two bucks. The content is a mix of skate/street stuff and randomness wrapped up in a cool 22 x 16, full color format that works really well. The full-screen vibe of their front page gives you a feel for what the mag is like: large and in your face.

Copies can be ordered through their website but the primary distribution method is via the old style newspaper boxes at Lafayette & Prince (NY) and Water & Abbott (Gastown). Very cool idea. It's definitely worth your toonie, and hopefully an August / September issue will be out soon.

And if you are in Vancouver, the No Age / Abe Vigoda / Mika Miko tour hits Richard's tonight. I've been looking forward to this since No Age played one of the best shows I've ever seen, period, at Pat's Pub last summer. It should be a killer night.

Mika Miko "Frisco Dyke" (from PPM EP, 2004)

Abe Vigoda "Animal Ghosts" (from Skeleton LP, 2008)

No Age "Sleeper Hold" (from Nouns LP, 2008)