I don’t know how I started to follow Jar-E on twitter, but I did and he is funny. He is also a damn fine musician. If this video is the least bit interesting to you, go to his website Jar-E.com.
And seriously, since this is Asheville, how can you have a festival without electric sitar?
Whatever you call it, here are some pictures from the Lexington Avenue Arts and Fun Festival. Also known as LEXFest. Video coming soon.
If you are not from around here, you may not be familiar with our mountain tradition called “Shindig on the Green.” From July 4 until Labor Day, there is a concert every Saturday night in downtown Asheville that features local musicians, dancers, and so forth. While I suspect that recent changes to the venue and the growth of the region have affected the authenticity of the event, it is still a special part of this community. Last night was this year’s last Shindig. Here’s a few snaps for you to go out on.
Did you know that before la Face there was this thing called “MySpace”? Even before that there was “Friendster” but nobody uses that thing anymore. Nowadays only musicians and pedophiles use MySpace, which makes me very nervous to go there and listen to music. But what are you going to do? All the cool kids are putting their music on the SpaceBook thing. So off I go to hear what the kids are listening to too.
And even just listening to music makes me feel a little weird on the MySpace. Let’s be honest here. I drive a station wagon. No amount of stickers and bike racks will hide the fact that it’s a station wagon. I’m ok with that because I like the cargo room, but “cargo room” as a criterium for liking a vehicle is wack old guy stuff. It is also a fact that I can legitimately be termed as “pushing 40.” Corollary to that is that I have a sibling who could legitimately be termed as “pushing 50.” No, not you. The old one.
So anyway, I’m very excited about the ole Moogfest and what it means for Asheville, but let’s face it, The Silos are not playing. The Silos might possibly represent my coolest point in music being on the cuspness. They are, I think, still driving around Indiana in a van playing college towns. I’m sure they sound great when they play. I still like that album with the bird on the front. But that does not make me a music maven. I don’t know who most of these people are who are performing at the Moogfest, but I’m glad they are coming. Getting us on the Moogle Map, as it twere. Plus it gives me a reason to go surf around the SpacePlaceFace or whatever that thing is called.
You know what, it is really none of my business. Not that that has ever stopped me before, but in this case I thought it was the better part of valor to just leave the whole thing alone. We are speaking, of course, about the Ground Zero Mosque (which is neither at Ground Zero nor is it really a mosque.) When something gets to be the focus of so much emotion, I am not sure there is a way to have a rational discussion about what is going on. So I keep my mouth shut.
Until they have to go and drag Bruce into it. According to reports on NPR this morning, protesters rallying at the site yesterday were playing Toby Keith and Bruce Springsteen to show their patriotism. In the background, “Born In the USA” was blaring through some speakers. I find this not only a travesty of gigantic proportions in terms of the social justice record of Bruce Springsteen, I find it a dramatic misinterpretation of the song itself.
Basically, the theme of “Born in the USA” is that the country is ruining the life of a man who can’t understand why this is happening. Despite it’s delivery in the recording made in 1982 and released in 1984, the chorus is less of a defiant cry than a wounded howl. Besides which, Springsteen’s songs about 9/11, as heard on his album “The Rising” directly reference Islam and “The Prophet” as sources of redeeming strength. So quit playing Bruce Springsteen songs at reactionary rallies.
And quit picking on the Muslims. What they are trying to build is community. The building is a community center with a pool and a basketball court. It’s a YMMA. Or maybe we are just calling these things Ys now. I don’t know. The point is that they want to provide a place for people in Lower Manhattan to come together to build up themselves and others physically and spiritually. Their spiritual beliefs are based in Islam, the same religion of the 9/11 hijackers. The YMCA has the same goals except with Christianity as it’s base. Christianity was also the religion of Timothy McVeigh. But he may have been agnostic. Or a chemist. Well, he was definitely an amateur chemist, but in terms of religion he was sometimes big on science. But that’s a different discussion. What I’m saying is that you can attach any religion to some pretty horrible people. You can also trace most of them to some unbelievable transformations in communities. The Muslims of Southern Manhattan are trying to do just that. Protesters, please take your Toby Keith and go home. Leave the Springsteen.