Sunday, 17 March 2013

Wrong Number Zine #5 (comes with 60 minutes mixtape)





This is a 8.5 by 11 inches full color 8 pages zine
After reading this I truly believe that Ms Belka Belochka is a fan of recycling. Theres some found pictures, found notes, some street stickers, thrift store book reviews, zine reviews, a poem, a tale of cassette love \ dubbing. I like the nice, kinda naïve but sincere, deeply honest writing style. After reading this I felt like going to the Salvation Army or any thrift store to scope up stuff. The mixtape is a collection of her favorite songs culled from various thrift stores cassettes. Upon reading this I couldn`t help myself. I though oh no not a collection of crappy one hit wonders \ bad pop songs. Boy was I wrong this tape is like an international world music extravaganza. Let`s see. There`s Japanese pop (Chiemi Hori, Seiko Matsuda, Akina Nakamori and Iyo Matsumoto), traditional Greek music (M.Hadjidakis), disco from the Philippines (Boyfriends), fiddle music (Hawks And Eagles), a funny and moronic cartoon song (Ren & Stimpy), experimental music from Ukraine (PlasticFantastic And Electric Psychedelic Pussycat), Hawaiian ukulele (Ohta-San), Hawaiian music (Makaha Sons Of Ni`Hau, Ledward Kaapana), an old school English punk band (X-Ray Spex), and some German zither music (Joseph `Sepp` Diepolder). I can`t wait to read more issues of this amazing zine and I hope she does another amazing mixtape. Write her godammit!
Ms. Belka Belochka
1021 Lowella Ave
Pearl City, 
Hi
96782, 
USA


Friday, 15 March 2013

The sinking process

Dealing with shit. Life is full of ups and downs. We have good moments and shitty moments. It's all about the attitude. I wrote this beautifully dark and haunting poem a long time ago (more than ten years in fact). It seemed relevant during those dark days. Unfortunately the darkness has come back to haunt me again. I use poetry, writings, drawings, music, noise has a catharsis to open that internal sickness of the heart and soul and to break the pattern. Enjoy the poem. I think this is the best thing I wrote so far. Almost everyone had to deal and survive various bad moments.   





The sinking process

It`s snowing outside
The cold wind sets in
The snow keeps falling and falling
Dancing an invisible ballet
Drifting away
Drifting apart slowly
Slowly and silently
The wind becomes louder
It`s almost screaming now
Pushing me
Pulling me
For I feel like a piece of paper
In it`s hands
An instrument
An object
I am a strong man
And I feel powerless in this situation
A mere thorn
On the side of nature
The snow`s falling faster now
I see these big snowflakes
Dropping in front of me
Thick white bullets
An encompassing blanket of whiteness
A blinding whiteness
Blinding everything
Everyone in it`s path
WHITE SHADOWS FOR DARK DAYS
There`s also that damned humidity
The kind that makes me feel naked
It passes through my clothes
As if I`m wearing nothing
Nothing at all
It makes my body shiver
My bones are cold, they feel frozen
It gives you a kind of
Feeling of emptiness, loneliness
A loneliness in front of the void
In front of a bottomless pit
Ready to jump
Too scared to actually do it
It`s too dark down there
Anyways
Why jump
When you could slowly sink into oblivion
The sinking
Is a slow daily process
Painful
A place where events,
Memories are buried deep within
Where they lay there
Forgotten
Trying hard to forget them
Forgetting the past
The present
Where was yesterday ?
Are we today ?
When was tomorrow ?
Feeling empty
Left in nothingness
Sinking even more into darkness
Blind
Blinded by darkness
Surrounded by darkness
Sensing it`s powers
Being submerged in it
Adoring it
Loving it
Getting hornier just thinking about it
Oh sweet oblivion
I love you so
You`re my mistress
My lover
But
You`re mostly my tool of amnesia
You help me forget
The bad moments in life
You help me forget the pain
The loneliness
And it`s snowing again
The snow covers everything
The cars
The streets
The buildings
Thick white sheets of nothingness
Emptiness
Emptiness of the heart
Emptiness of the soul
Desperation
Despair
The snow and the wind blend together
Everything looks grey
Urban decay
Mother nature`s got the blues
I know the feeling
When you`ve been hurt so much
That you don`t have any tears left
Nothing left to cry for
Nothing
Nothing except the pain
The pains of the heart
Sickness of the soul
Which is pretty hard
To explain in the first place
It`s like dying from the inside
The outside looks just fine
So people think you`re alright
Because you don`t look sick
And appearances are saved
But inside…
Inside it`s a turmoil
A never-ending struggle
The never-ending struggle
A fight between loathe
And self-destruction
Where happiness is rarely seen
Always drifting away
A big empty nothing
You`re insecure
Shy
Lacking in self-esteem
Always feeling left out
By others
By yourself
Always alone
The more you`re alone
The more you`re drifting
Can`t get laid
Can`t find a girlfriend
Nobody seems interested
Can`t help it
It`s a loop, a circle
A damn vicious circle
The sinking process
The sinking process
The sinking process
The sinking process
Sinking ?
Endlessly…





Monday, 11 March 2013

Tales from Tom the drunk hustler part 7


Da brawl

During those troubled times
Mid nineties I think
I`m not sure because I`m getting old
And my memory
My eyesight
My sex drive
My hair
They all seem to disappear slowly
Dying isn`t that bad, getting older
Now that`s something in itself
What were we discussing ?
At `Chez Margot`  we have some newcomers
Hot blooded latinos
A little loud maybe, but cool folks nonetheless
Most of them where really bad pool players 
Easy trimmings I say
More pitchers of beer for us three


I remember this guy
Small, chunky with short black hair
I think he was in his mid fifties or something
A Peruvian named Nunez
He was the worst player I met
Easy to beat when sober
It gets worst when he`s drunk
It`s not even like taking candy from a baby
More like taking money from a quadriplegic child
It`s bad and sad at the same time
Because he`s losing and the more it happens
He becomes aggressive like hell
A Peruvian Tasmanian devil if you will




I hate to win against folks like him
Believe you me
I`m a hustler with a conscience
Not
But I have a reputation which speaks for itself
And I like my reputation, dammit
It was one of those nights
I beat big Tony
One of the calmest persons
I`ve met
He speaks real s-l-o-w
D-a-m-n  I j-u-s-t  l-o-s-t  a-n-o-t-h-e-r   p-i-t-c-h-e-r
Thanks for the game big guy
I-t-`s  c-o-o-l
Hey Nunez you`re next my man
Not this loser again me think
Pplay you for a pitcher
Say what ?
Wanna pitcher
You want to pay me a pitcher
Nno play for a pitcher
He says
Or so it seems
You want to play for a pitcher
Is that it Nunez
Ffuck yeah
I don`t think it`s a good idea bro
I beat you when you`re sober
Now you`re drunk as a skunk
I mean
It`s not worth it
WADDYA MEAN IT`S NOT WORTH IT !
AM I NOT WORTHY ENOUGH FOR YOU ASSHOLE ?
I shouldn`t have said that I think
Now he`s pissed off
That`s not what I mean my friend
You sure you are able to play ?
Ffuck yeah
You sure ?
Look at you, you`re gone dude
I DON’T CARE ILL BEAT YER SORRY ASS
Then let`s go`
My break Nunez
If I could be totally honest
This will be the last time
After this game  
You will never
And I mean never
Want to play pool
With me again
Bang!!!
Three low balls on the break
The two cross side
Four top corner pocket
Six bottom right corner
Five top right corner
The eight ball`s left
It`s near the side pocket
The white ball is just in front
I bend down
Look Nunez straight in the eyes
Told you this was your last game
Eight side pocket
I sink the eight
Without looking at the white ball
MOTHERFUCKER!!!!



He breaks his stick on the pool table
Pierre arrives fast
Ready to throw him out
It`s alright Pierre
It was an  accident
It was ?
Wwaz an accident Nunez stutters
Okay then
Nunez Pitcher if you please
Thank you
Greg
Yo Greg you`re up
Bet a beer pitcher Tom ?
Sure thing
That`s what I came here for
I light up a smoke
Look around
Something`s happening
Near the jukebox
I see Gerry screaming
At one of the new guys
He`s  Mexican I think
I despise Gerry
He represents
Everything I hate about the
Whole goddam human race
He`s arrogant and ignorant
At the same time
Just like
Salt and pepper
Bread and butter
The perfect mix indeed
One of them loud mouth assholes
Which sounds something like this…
You know if I was GM
I would trade  
Ed Ronan, Lyle Odelein, Turner Stevenson







To the Pitsburg Penguins
In exchange we would get



Jaromir Jagr and maybe a second round draft pick
Yeah right
In your wet dreams dickhead
He knows everything
He has all the answers
And yet
Such a genuine Einstein
Who is so smart and intelligent
Is on fucking welfare
He talks the talk
But doesn`t
Walk the walk
I hate idiots like him
Unfortunately
The world is full of them
Just look around
They usually become in charge of something
And I`m thinking
Wouldn`t it be great
If somebody would kick his ass
If his mouth was full of stitches
He would finally shut the fuck up
Nobody would hear his constant nagging
Hey Tom stop daydreaming and play
Sorry Greg
I got distracted
You`re hearing Gerry`s loud mouth again
Tell me something I don`t know
You think they`re gonna fight
Naw Gerry`s a wuss
All talk and no action
Anyways
Gotta go take a leak
I`m near the washroom
What the hell is this ?
They`re blocking the entrance
Still screaming at each other
I go near them
Sorry guys I gotta piss
It`s an emergency
I push them lightly
I`m almost inside
Next thing I know
Something or someone
Hits me on the back of me head
I fall on my knees
Then
Beer is poured on me
I lose my glasses
I`m blind as a bat
I get up
Still confused
It`s all a blur
There`s some sorth of commotion happening
I still have to piss goddammit!
I enter the washroom
Empty my bladder, wash my hands
Grab the handle and open the door
Damn my glasses are under the pool table
Got to get them
I pick them up and put them on
What the fuck is this ?
Everybody`s fighting


Whites, blacks, latinos, everyone



Pierre`s kicking this small guy
He looks at me and screams
Tom Julian needs help
I look around
I can`t see her
I see this huge latino guy near the bar



He`s holding Julian and feeling her nipples
Motherfucker I`m thinking
Good for me I like them big
Lotsa room to hit them
As long as they don`t connect first
You`re okay
I go behind him
`mamma ma la verga cabrone`
Huhh,
I punch him in the face
He laughs and throws Julian on the floor
He turns around
I give him a left hook
He starts to laugh
Is that your best shot cabrone he asks
No this is
I kick him in the balls
It never fails
He lands on a table
They both fall loudly on the floor
I kick his head a couple of time
Just to make sure
He`ll stay down
King Kong`s dead I`m thinking
Then
A fist hits me on my right shoulder
Wrong side bitch
I`m left handed
I grab an unidentified bottle
Bash it on the head of my unknown aggressor
I hit him twice for good measure
Feels good
Amidst all this violence and chaos
I do feel alive for once
Must be the adrenaline rush
Or something
I hear sirens in the distance
Closing in fast


Come on guys we have to get out
The cops are coming
I can`t afford to get arrested
We use the back door to exit
Best idea I`ve ever had
We arrive at the corner of Jean-Talon street
There`s about ten police cars
Parking in front of our favorite dive
We split up
Going separate ways
What a night
Free pitchers of  beers and a bar room brawl


To end it
Too bad I didn`t get laid
There will be another night
With girls, hustling and beers
In no particular order
That was the last time
I went at `Chez Margot`
After Nunez`s antics and the brawl
It just didn`t feel right
Going back there
Time to move on to new territory
Next stop `Pizza Plaza`
End of part one.




Friday, 8 March 2013

art is everywhere part 5....


Here's a brand new flyer i.e. 'artistic' ephemera. The following piece is an actual flyer that I received by old school mail, courtesy of Thompson himself. 


Wednesday, 6 March 2013

Psionic Plastic Joy # 17 (fall 2012) (zine)




Here`s another fine issue of Jason Rodgers amazing counterculture , anti technology \ internet zine. There`s 32 pages  of  half-size, cut and paste, black and white material. PPJ is one of my favorite zines, along with the R.I.P. old Nightwaves (New Brunswick`s own publication covering electronic music). There`s a good mix of weird ass articles along various collages and artworks. My favorite articles where: `introduction – further notes on technology`( I understand Jaoson`s point of view but I feel that the internet, if used properly is just another  tool for free publicity), and `covert black-ops mission against Reality Impaired Recordings fails – bring the noise` (conspiracy theory anyone ?) and `Neo-Neoist Tenets`( this brought back a lot of old memories from the defunct and Montréal`s own Total Zero recordings, rmemeber Phycys? Vermiform Front? Trondant?). I like his choice of artists \ collagists. Let`s see, there is Malok (a standout piece of abstract psychedelism), Haddock, Lena Samo , Yves Albrechts (from Belgium), Reed Altemus, Thompson, François Marceau (yes that`s me, hey, I`m everywhere) and Stuart Stratu (from Australia). 


And how much does this cost ? It`s simple, 2.00 $ USA or 3.00 $ worldwide. Forget about digital era, let`s get physical:
Jason Rodgers
PO Box 63
Lawrence
Ma,
01842, 
USA


Tuesday, 5 March 2013

Tales from Tom the drunk hustler part 6


A shitty affair

Went to Harvey`s for supper



Had two hot dogs, some fries



And a big ass root beer


I`m full
Feeling good
That`s what I call
Raw preproduction drinking
You make sure
Your stomach is full
Before engaging
In gambling and drinking activities
The food
Gets  slowly digested
And
You won`t get drunk right away
Nice and slow that`s the way to do it
Nice and slow baby
You will eventually
Get drunk
But nothing like drunken craziness
More like a run of the mill
Drunken stupor
The next day
You`ll wake up
With maybe a small headache
That`s all
You`ll be functional
Almost normal
Dare I say decent
If there`s such a word
But anyways
It`s Friday night
I enter `Chez Margot`
Around 7.00 PM
The place is empty
There`s a new waitress
And Pierre`s sitting near the jukebox
Pierre is our bouncer
He doesn`t look
Like your typical  bouncer
He`a a skinny, 5 foot 9 guy
With long curly brown hair
He looks like a cool hippy
He`s a cool guy
Rarely gets mad
The last thing
You wanna do
Is fuck with him though
He has a black belt in karate
Now you`re thinking
Roadhouse


You`re totally wrong here
Though I`ve seen Pierre
Brawl with the best of them
His reputation precedes him
There`s rarely a fight here
There was a full bar room brawl once
I will talk about it later
Anyways
Back to our story
I say hi to Pierre
Wanna shoot some pool Tom ?
Sure thing
Play for a pitcher ?
I don`t like pitchers
Play for a small beer ?
Ok let`s go
Your break Pierre
Bang !!!
Three low ones on the break
Five top corner
Shit I missed
My turn
Fifteen left corner
Nine side pocket
Ten cross side
Eleven right corner
Fourteen right cross corner
Twelve combo side pocket
Thirteen left corner
Eight cross side
You fucker you cleaned the table
I know (with a grin on my face)
Sorry about your damn luck
A Budweiser will be fine
Revenge match Pierre ?
Sure thing let`s go
We play some more
I beat Pierre some more
Pierre`s my best victim  
He`s trying to beat my ass
While emptying ashtrays
Cleaning the tables
Checking out the place
For troublemakers and whatnot
He can`t concentrate much
So I often win
He never gets mad at me though
That`s why I like him
Around 8.00 PM
My buddies are here
Pat and Chris in the house
Tom what the fuck is this ?
Three empty small buds ?
Where`s the pitchers ?
The place is empty
Aside from Pierre
There`s Paul here
Gerry`s  at the bar
And Tina`s in the washroom
There`s nobody to hustle
You know what that means ?
We have to pay for beer
Downer dudes
Next Friday
We`re going to Pizza Plaza across the street
Pat says
Good idea
Yeah nobody knows Tom there
Sure thing
We spend the evening drinking some
Smoking some
And drinking some more
We only stop for a piss break
Except me
You see
I`m a dromedary


I keep lots of liquids inside
I rarely take a leak
But when I do
It`s because I`m full
I don`t have a choice
I urinate about two or three times
In the evening
I takes me approximately
a minute and a half to piss
it`s that time again
I light up a smoke
Get up
And enter the washroom


As soon as I enter
Something doesn`t feel right
Something`s wrong here
What the fuck is this ?
Paul`s sitting on the washbasin
With his pants and boxers pulled down
The fuck are you doing Paul I ask
What does it looks like I`m doing
I`m taking a shit
What`s wrong with you ?
There`s an empty washroom just here I point
I know
Then why are you taking a dump
On the washbasin ?
Pierre bangs Julian
Every night
I hate the fucker
He thinks he`s so cool
`cause he has a black belt
`cause he`s got long curly hair
`cause he`s fucking Julian
Well I got something for him
Something big
Something ugly
And something really stinky
Wait until he comes in here
To clean the washroom
He`s gonna have a heart attack
Paul that`s  not cool man
I don`t care
I can`t wait to see the expression on his face
Tom you`re not gonna  report me
Are you ?
You know I`m not a stool pigeon
I hate stools
Then I`m thinking
Better get out of here first
So Pierre won`t think
I thrashed the washbasin
I finish  my piss


Wash my hands and exit the place fast
Then sit down
Light up another smoke
Look at my two buddies
Straight in the eyes
And say
Guys I`m serious
Don`t go in the washroom right now
And why is that Pat asks
There`s a huge shit in the washbasin


What ?
You joking Tom ?
Does it looks like I`m joking ?
Oh shit here`s Pierre
He picks up his mop
Enters the washroom
It must have taken
Ten seconds maybe
Suddenly
Bang !!!
He kicks the door open
WHO THE FUCK TOOK A SHIT IN THE WASHBASIN ?


He screams loudly
The place is silent
Nobody answers
He looks at me
I try
But I can`t help myself
And start laughing
He comes near me
You think it`s funny Tom ?
You did that ?
Of course not
You know who did ?
I don`t know sweet fuck all
He goes back
And cleans the mess
The rest of the evening
Was pretty ordinary
We split up
After last call
The next day.
Saturday night
7.45 PM
Chez Margot again
playing pool with Pierre
Tom what you did yesterday
Was wrong man
I don`t understand
You knew it was Paul
Who took a shit and dirtied the washbasin
And you didn`t tell me
I don`t know what you`re talking about
Did you know when you were talking
Someone else overheard you guys
You see Gerry was in the closed washroom
Taking also a shit
He told me everything after last call
I`m sorry Pierre
I`m not the kind of person
Well…
I`m not a stool pigeon
I know I forgive you
But Paul when he comes in
And I know he will
He`s here every night
I`ll throw him out
The fucker will never come back here
Yeah I know Tom I`ll tell him
There was somebody else
In the washroom
Who overheard you guys
Then at the same time
I see Paul outside
Going near the entrance
Pierre also sees him
He races to the entrance
Goes outside
Kicks Paul in the face
Paul falls on his back
Kinda shocked, speechless
While Pierre screams at him
God knows what he`s jabbering about
Pierre goes back inside
Picks up his pool stick
Eight ball corner pocket Tom
You owe me a small Bud
Sorry about your damn luck
Revenge match Tom ?
No thanks, I`ve had enough
Paul never came back here
No one ever mentioned his name
His whereabouts are unknown
That was the last time I saw Paul
I miss him though
The pizza delivery guy
Who looks like a used car salesman
He must be dead
Because this story happened
More than fifteen years ago
He`s either drinking top quality beers
With the angels
Or drinking warm, stale 0.5 % beer
In a warm place
If  there`s such a thing.