Uncategorized – Page 313 – The Designer Monologues

August 27, 2007

Everything That’s Wrong With This Country

So Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has suddenly resigned, apparently without telling any senior Justice Dept. officials (or even his own aides) that he was going to.

What’s CNN’s top story on the website?

Michael Vick apologizes.

That’s really it in a nutshell, isn’t it…..fishy goings-on in our government, and we’re more concerned with a story that centers around the fact that we’re shocked (shocked, I tell you!) that one of our professional thugs has been cruel to dogs.

Get me the fuck out of here.

For those that might actually care about the future of the country: It’s being leaked that Homeland Security chief Chertoff will be tagged for replacement of Gonzales– Wrapping the confirmation process in the flag. Any criticism or “rough treatment” (read here, pointed questions and accountability) of Chertoff will be smeared as an attack on DHS. I fully expect the Democrats to cave completely during this process, shrinking in the corner waving their American flags.

Even worse, and most likely not given any attention during the more media-sexy Chertoff confirmation process? According to senior-level sources, Bush plans to have Clay Johnson III, the Deputy Director for Management at the Office of Management and Budget, take over from Chertoff as head of the Department of Homeland Security.

Johnson has no homeland security experience, and has been described as “a professional Bush loyalist.” He’s one of Bush’s oldest friends, having attended both prep school and college with the President.

If you needed any proof that the “security theater” that we undergo in this country is meaningless, there you have it. We’re about to have somebody’s college buddy, with no experience, tasked with keeping us all safe. But if any Democrat points this out, I’m sure they can kiss the White House good-bye in 2008.

August 24, 2007April 19, 2010

Friday Music

Back from GenCon, and back on schedule….

Bruce Springsteen’s got a new album of original music (as opposed to his Pete Seeger recordings, which filled the last album) releasing in October. The first single has leaked (or is that “leaked”?) onto Teh IntarTubes. It’s definitely got earworm potential. Bruce taking us all to task for not being angry enough: “This is Radio Nowhere…Is there anybody alive out there?” Bruce Springsteen – “Radio Nowhere.”

Children of the CPU are a band that references everything from 80s synthpop to 8-bit videogames…which is a combination sure to get my attention. Here’s a track from their album Back to BASIC, named after one of my favorite early video games: Children of the CPU – “Omega Race.”

While I’m on the subject of the 80s, I realize that I haven’t posted nearly enough Squeeze. Their mid-80s best-of collection, Singles, 45s and Under was a constant accessory of my high-school years…so much so, that I wore out two cassette versions of it. Here’s one of the tracks, which always sounded to me like Squeeze covering Elvis Costello, or perhaps vice-versa: Squeeze – “Another Nail For My Heart.”

Sticking with the 80s, here’s a track for , which I know is one of her favorites. From Suzanne Vega’s first album (which I still consider her best work — the intimacy of the instrumentation is far superior to her later, “bigger”-sounding albums) — Suzanne Vega – “Small Blue Thing.”

This song is bizarre, and beautiful. They’ve taken the vocals and backmasked them, so that they become meaningless walls of pure sound, filtered through effects until they become just another instrument in the overall mix. Then, they composed new music, to fit the key and the overall “melody” of the backmasked vocals. Hard to describe — just listen: Siobhan Donaghy – “ghosts.”

Also in the realm of the unusual — a South African cover of Marvin Gaye’s 70s classic “Inner City Blues”, except translated entirely into the Xhosa language. Very cool. Lungiswa – “Inner City Blues (Xhosa Version).”

Lastly, a positively wicked mash-up by DJ Earworm, combining Frankie Goes To Hollywood’s “Relax” with Wild Cherry’s “Play That Funky Music” — it really, really grows on you. DJ Earworm – “Funky Goes To Hollywood.”

There you have it. Another week, another mix. More next Friday.

August 23, 2007

Reminder: Minion’s B-Day

For folks that wanted to get in on the “Minion Birthday Laptop” project (which I first posted about here), get with me as soon as possible — we want to get everything together by the end of next week.