UP-DATE: TUES MAY 1 2018 / 3:19 PM
so, maybe the better questions is: who was that shining rolling rocking moment – of a band ?!!!!
TWS . . a great band. and a great band never dies – the music always LIVES !!
a lot of NYC artists, and musicians & some of my closest friends . . can certainly relate to this.
though the ghostly – yet ironically ‘archival’ . . presence of the web, sure makes things, very parallel world / 5th dimensional.
JOE MAKOVIEKI & JAMES BLACK . . have re-grouped as the soulful/sweet-hearted .. all Americana: JACKSON PINES.
TWS / THOMAS WESLEY STERN: ‘BEST FRIENDS FROM JACKSON / OCEAN COUNTY, NJ / NEW JERSEY’
“best friends who play original folk & Americana music by ear …”
TWS/THOMAS WESLEY STERN, JACKSON PINES & BILLY STRING, JP BIONDO
TO-NITE / TUES MAY 7 2018 / 7 PM / $15 WONDER BAR, FIFTH & OCEAN AVENUES, ASBURY PARK, NJ
@thomaswesleystern: TWS / THOMAS WESLEY STERN and JamGrass friends: Joe and James’ current group @jacksonpines . .
will be opening for BILLY STRINGS and JP BIONDO from Cabinet tonight in Asbury.
7pm. $15.
It’s gonna sell out so act fast.
JACKSON PINES: JOE MAKOVIECKI & JAMES BLACK
@jacksonpines: #Asburypark #nj #livemusic #folk #country #bluegrass #americana
talkin’ about hand drawing . . from news clippings !! & monochrome photographs !!!!!!!!
tonality & . . passion !!!!!
rock on !!!!!
rock this town & yes. NEVER FORGET 9/11 2001 & the raw spirit of . . . NYC
home of the brave & the hardcore . . . gritty !!
this just in – from PETE VOGL: right on . . . POINT !!!!!!
@bone_chi_chi (aka PETE VOGL): This is happening tomorrow. 9/11/16.
Never Forget! Matt Mottel and Fogel @nha_minh brunch show. 1-3 PM
A LOOK BACK . . .
artist NICHOLAS STEINDORF and musician DARREN WILL – at SPRING BREAK, MARCH 2015 / NYC.
PHOTO: NANCY SMITH
last year at this time, NICHOLAS STEINDORF was exhibiting a handful of short, intense and lyrical animated CGI video clips at SPRING BREAK ART FAIR. DARREN WILL composed the original soundtracks, that accompanied each clip.
this year, Darren’s band, MOTHXR, [mother] for whom he is the bassist . . is a having a big release party for their new album, ‘Centerfold’, tomorrow night at BABY’S ALL RIGHT, and . . they just scored a real nice review in FADER – link follows.
this time around, Nicholas collaborated with Darren to produce a ‘lyric video’ for one of new album’s songs: ‘She Can’t Tell’ – link follows.
MOTHXR – ‘CENTERFOLD’ ALBUM RELEASE PARTY BABY’S ALL RIGHT, 146 BROADWAY, BROOKLYN, NY
FRI FEB 26, 2016 – DOORS OPEN at 8PM
+ SPECIAL GUESTS
totally dig the new album’s design, or what !!!!
esp that . . faux ‘commercial’ backdrop. and, the retro, 70s ? – nylon windbreaker jacket.
cheesy, NOT !!
absolute – fab. just grabbed me – the moment I saw it.
‘vernacular’, I think that’s the moment’s big . . style: key.
the release poster . . so mellow/exciting. so throw-back. so Americano.
just so, exactly on the right/wrong sweet spot . . of cool.
great graphic. chalkbaord fonts, everything. right down to the shade of the lipstick, orange (!!)
if you remember Nicholas’s clips for Spring Break 2015, as well as I do, you can take a real . . ride, forward.
pure visual poetry.
melodic intensity . . yours for the taking !!
NICHOLAS STEINDORF . . is a big, & dynamic part . . of that YALE MFA GRAD class of 2014 – which is blowing up big in NYC, and deservedly so.
must have some . . helluva 2 years !!
‘THE OUTDOOR WORLD’, 2016
A SHORT FILM BY – TOMMY MALEKOFF
FEATURING ORIGINAL MUSIC BY – JOE WILLIAMS
& running 10:17 minutes
FILM REVIEW – by NANCY SMITH, FEB 24, 2016
A singularly striking, but casually unwinding, almost freestyle cinematic ode – to MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE and also, to Black life . . .
as seen through the lens of a young New Yorker.
the word: vernacular – does come to mind.
TOMMY MALEKOFF leans into his subject, like a ski jumper leans into his skies.
‘The Outdoor World’ . . is a remarkable short film on MEMPHIS, of all places.
independently made by a young New Yorker, TOMMY MALEKOFF with a hand-held camera, and not much else. okay, and – with a lot of . . verve.
it also features . . an incredible, original sound track by JOE WILLIAMS aka DJ MOTION GRAPHICS. This singularly striking ‘travelogue’ with absolutely no words, but which is metaphor-rich, for your own taking !! is just transfixing – from frame one. it’s just the way TOMMY MALEKOFF, apparently a natural behind the camera, sees the world from his own very personal & straight-forward inquisitive . . vantage point. we are one with him, in his journey behind the lens, a young artist / explorer / producer just about to burst on the scene . . with no, or not much (!!) previous history or art world baggage to hold him back.
part of the magic spell of the film, besides just how strange vernacular Memphis can be . . . esp to a New Yorker, is the rhythm, the momentum, the framing & editing . . of the visuals – which pair up so nicely with the rhythm of the sound track, so completely, so sweetly. words ? who needs words. I might be wrong, but the closest I can come to describe the way the film moves, in words . . is, it’s the visual equivalent of house / wave / beach music.
it moves real casual, but it’s very transfixing. and then there’s the music.
in its own way, the film is also about . . BLACK LIFE.
as with most cutting edge art today – it’s also about indie low-key production, but big on both content, hand-lettered info graphics & real world digital photography . . in other words: small scale / big visions. DIY spirit, individual skills, and . . making your singular voice count, within the mass web of social media that surrounds us, bombards us 24/7 & then, focusing in on our own particular location-specific . . urban experience.
as for ‘graphics’ / sometimes called graphic design:
these 2 images are from Tommy’s website.
if ‘quiet beauty’ were a catalog, a style – this would be that, and that . . would be ok.
being right on the vibe – is hard to do.
don’t take it for granted, just how striking this singular home page . . is.
TOMMY MALEKOFF, and ANDREW KASS . . at ‘The Outdoor World’ – 170 Suffolk St, Lower East Side, NYC screening.
TOMMY MALEKOFF & ANDREW KASS are key players i.e. big energy & innovative creative contributors . . among the informal swirl of the very downtown, very politically aware, ‘seed-like’ & ‘gonna be’ very influential . . openly subversive, indie rebel, creative, cutting-edge & mostly underground . . urban-based, and informally structured . . artist crew centered around curator / artist . . SEAN VEGEZZI, is the best I can put it.
you know, the guys of . . 15 WARREN ST, 170 SUFFOLK, and 34 JOEY.
again, very urban-based in outlook, as in rooted in the actual infra-structure of the city, or with regard to global politics. a general over-all dynamic, as opposed to say . . specifically sticker art, or street art per se, though the group shows I have seen obviously include a lot of street art just by the nature of how things roll indie in NYC. the key is, these guys grew up in the downtown area, and within the underground fringes of the downtown art scene, and they don’t wait for things to happen, they just throw up the shows – on their own, or hit up other indie pop-up venues, or subway stations, lol. and abandoned buildings, and let’s leave it at that.
TOMMY MALEKOFF . . seems to have been blessed, not only with a natural eye . . for the camera & in turn – indie filmmaking – but, also with the insight that it takes to inform the footage, and thus blow up a small film of 10 mins – into quite the entrancement.
quite the statement.
and, with no .. words.
JOE WILLIAMS aka DJ MOTION GRAPHICS, and of whose moniker . . we have no doubt.
motion graphics – is what this film is all about . . style-wise.
and JOE supplied the original film sound track – and it is pro, and it is brilliant.
I asked Tommy to tell me a little bit more about how the film’s music score came to be, & this is what he emailed me:
“For the score – I came to Joe with 3 songs:
‘Walking in Memphis’ by Marc Cohn, ‘Where is da Bud’ by 3 6 Mafia, and ‘I can’t help falling in love with you’, by Elvis.
Joe took the melodies from these songs and applied strings to them instead of lyrics to make a more orchestral, atmospheric sound that referenced popular songs from/about Memphis. He also used samples of noises from mosquitoes and ducks for parts of the song(s). Each segment of the video has a special song made up of these references.”
backtrack: 170 SUFFOLK appears to be a large, vacant one story floor-thru space, much like a garage. SEAN VEGEZZI and pals put up an incredible pop-up, group show there back in June, 2014.
and interestingly enough, TOMMY MALEKOFF was one the featured artists. no, he didn;t show a film, it was kind of the exact opposite of a film, he put subtle ‘trash / tracks’ throughout the space. I know – it sounds crazy, but it really gave the place some . . ‘spatial’ grit. trash from North Carolina. bye the way. Tommy seems to be into . . geography. cities.
it made the space ‘bounce’, transcend. added city infrastructure ‘narrative’ – does that say it better.
one day I have to post the pix.
maybe soon.
as if . . anything by this crew needs grit.
grit & hardcore thought – am I.
I’m up for as much grit as you can throw at me. anything, but the wall-to-wall mediocrity this town’s art scene has become, for the most part.
of course inside it is dark. it is quite huge, and wide open and beautiful. raw, but not dysfunctional, with a great bank of high windows at the back near the ceiling, bringing the city lights inside. there was just enough light to pick out ‘poster’ mages from the film.
football. hmm. the outdoor world, you just never know.
DJ DONDERO, in front of one of the ‘film’ posters – featuring the MEMPHIS PYRAMID, what a strange tourist attraction.
and that’s just how the movie starts . .
the film’s outlook is curious, more than anything, I would say.
the ‘souvenir’ site, the ‘tourists’, mainstream America, America . . the Great Mall, speaks for itself. come up with your own metaphors, they are yours – free for the taking.
form the elevator ride down, to the crocs in the water. to the history of the place itself.
there was an info sheet hand-out, (it hosted the mega-fight between LENNON LEWIS vs MIKE TYSON in in 20020) – when you entered.
the projection screen was just off to the right, the back wall.
you can see the lights & buildings of the city’s night . . just outside, through the bank of large windows at the ceiling, just above the screen. very nice, lucky random draw-of-the-straw – real estate touch.
and then the film opens.
epic.
the film begins, with an aerial shot, and we descend via elevator into the Memphis Pyramid.
at first I thought, ok . . it’s going to be an ‘extreme urban infrastructure’ take down. a walk on the wild side, illegal high storied intrusion. but it was in fact, quite the opposite.
it was like finding a home movie souvenir, by a really smart kid. and then the music kicks in & you are off and running. entranced & wondering. wtf. this was no kid. this was a master at the vernacular. vernacular photography – look it up. not quite the same as ‘found’ photography . . because Mr. Malekoff is indeed the eye behind the camera of his very own footage. . with a pictorial style . . all his own, somewhere within the genre of ‘reality’ ‘souvenir’ and ‘documentary. it’s not fiction. it’s not made-up, but it is chosen & composed. and the vibe is very very cool, very chill. the direction, the easy scope, the unobtrusiveness, yet the telling . . of the average day to day, is not average at all. trust me, I’ve seen too many film projects in my lifetime – to know. the diff.
talent is rare, but when it spools – trust me, talent . . outs.
the croc.
the Outdoor World. Memphis – style !!
the big catfish . . ?
scale, size. animals. bio. haven’t I been hearing those very words, lately ?
the ‘tiny’ minnows.
we are minnows swimming in a sea of technology, social media & information overload.
we are on the other side of that glass. whose in the outdoor world, them or us ?
and hey, that’s just what I’ve been thinking . . who is really bio these days. we are . .
we are wired. we are . . wireless. we are computer merged. we are . . mutated.
and we are under assault by the nano life of the food chain. invisible particles. viruses. the icebergs are melting, but the viruses are growing.
everything is upside down.
the chicks, the cars. The Outdoor World – Memphis style.
the world was once so – easy. maybe that’s why souvenirs are so – pleasant.
LIL RON – the indoor / outdoor world ?!! (reference footage)
fab. bio. skills.
the dancing is called . . gangsta walking. it seems to be a form of ‘bio’ competition.
no wires, but wired !! but smooth wired. and nothing . . digital. well maybe the music recorded. it’s also referred to as ‘jooking’ . . it’s a dance native to Memphis.
Memphis must be such a special place. what’s in the water ?
besides crocs and catfish ? or maybe that’s it.
even, just the songs. the Memphis blues.
B. FRANK (reference footage)
LIL BUCK (reference footage)
back inside ‘The Outdoor World’ – at 170 SUFFOLK.
the hardcore party . . life.
sure to be a player. . .
in the outdoor world of NYC . . night life.
ASPEN and MOSIE.
yep.
‘The Outdoor World’ . . comes inside, and takes over . . your world.
if just for 10 mins.
you are knocked out of the water, taken deep down into the faux pyramid, and turned onto ‘jook’.
just a homemade ‘vignette’. not.
just another spectacular NYC night !! this crew never fails to knock it out of the park.
and they’re so chill – at it. the way they throw you – for a loop.
style. graphics. timing. curiosity. music. culture story-telling. slice of life documentary. the celebration of the great American vernacular. Memphis as seen by NYC.
the great American city adventure. cities are . .. us.
downtown indie filmmaker TOMMY MALEKOFF, and musician JOE WILLIAMS . . aced it.
my very fave moment . . . !!
at ‘UNDER THE VOLCANO: SIMON CERIGO, DAN ASHER, NANCY SMITH’ – NYC, JUNE 6 & 7, 2015
getting to introduce NICHOLAS STEINDORF to PAT McCARTHY – !!
2 young artists from totally different sides of the scene, who do totally different work.
their one big thing in . . common ?
both register: extreme awesome !!
on the . . . watch-out !! – new talent take-over meter.
CGI/computer animation artist . . NICHOLAS STEINDORF.
ps: Nicholas says that, in his opinion . . “ED ATKINS is the best computer animation artist around right now”, so I guess – yes, art ‘worlders’ will be doing the long haul up to Gavin’s new place in Harlem, come the Fall.
pss: yes, that is my drawing behind him.
unlike 99% of the other young artists who swung by ‘UNDER THE VOLCANO’ . . Nicholas had the chance to meet Simon several times, and enjoyed his ‘stories’ from back in the day, as well as his ‘blue-chip’ take on the current scene. a lot of ‘oral’ history went down with Simon, R.I.P.
and in fact, although he looks like a natural born ‘rocker’, which he is !! and in more ways than one, Nicholas is wearing a vintage indie band t-shirt, STRAWBERRY SWITCHBLADE, from Simon’s very own collection, on loan for the occasion, and Nicholas wears the honor well, party on !! – via his daughter, Kate.
PAT McCARTHY, seemed amazed at what KATE & THEO had pulled off.
he is standing next my drawing.
NANCY SMITH, ‘Tarot card’ series, charcoal on paper, 38 x 50 in. NYC. 1985.
Saturdays are Pat’s ceramic days with his clay mentor – JJ PEET up at 92nd St Y.
so he had his newest, finished piece, a tablet – with him.
you might recall that Pat is also know as the Bushwick Pigeoneer, and was the young break-out star of ‘Satan Ceramics’ – at Salon 94, this past Fall. we first met him at his glorious low-down ‘Pat’s Pigeon Club’ install at Muddguts, a few short summer months before that big blow-out ceramics show at Salon 94, and we feel really lucky for that !!
me, Kate and Theo – took a spin down there to Muddguts, (no more R.I.P.) one hot summer Sunday afternoon, just on the basis of the email flyer – and had a great time. seeing the work, and having the chance to talk at length with ‘new-to-us’ . . Patrick.
learning so much about new clay work, form follows function !! but imagination takes off, as well – just like the pigeons !!
and, raising pigeons, lol. you can start with one, but soon you have a hundred !!
that’s what I mean, so fun to see Nicholas . . . meet Pat.
the big . . . cross-over !!
it’s been so fun, this past year – to careen off both. Nicholas, with whom we just posted a studio visit, a cutting edge, concept-rich, the life of ‘Zach’, the boy who would play with matches. digital animation artist – to Pat, forward-reaching, off-the-grid, but grounded. ceramics artist. clay tablets, nesting bowls, mini-coops, and of course: the life of pigeons.
both artists, seemingly a world apart – but connected by being right on the exact opposite side, of a thin line.
Nicholas and Pat – two sides of a razor thin, and very . . cutting edge.
we got it all covered now, NYC, SURF CITY, USA !!
SURF: as in ‘catch’ the wave. the ‘newbie gen’ wave.
SURF: as in ‘move’ . . thru the cutting edge underground, skimming right over the status quo – mainstream.
SURF, SURFACE as in: come up through the ‘waters’ of . . THOUGHT, and bio-human existence – whether by land (clay) (Pat) or air (digital animation) (Nicholas).
Pat’s clay tablet – is a recording grid, a ‘census’ for his so-named ‘Babylon’ pigeon coop and roof. although the tablet has been fired, he says he can write the info in, as it happens, with a special ‘pen’, and then have it, the tablet – re-fired !!
a permanent record of a . . transitory life force ?
in a word: metamorphosis.
something Nicholas is into, too.
both artists are very smart in the head, multi-dynamic, and very, very . . hands-on.
not so much into myths, or pictures, as . . into reaching out to understand the world around them.
how it breaks down, around them – on their own piece of specialized ‘turf’. computer vs clay.
well, hey: both start with a ‘c’.
like I said: ‘watch – out !!
IN HONOR OF . . . SIMON CERIGO,
whose short, “listen to it loudly”, lol, but always on-point – indie music reviews used to liven up this website, greatly.
but alas – no more.
listen to, the aptly named: ‘SINCE YESTERDAY’ – by STRAWBERRY SWITCHBLADE.
and . . . “play it loud”.
LA LA LA LA – poppy & frothy – but, but damn – that’s ghostly !!
looking for a reason to go on, shut your eyes, thoughts of yesterday.
great . . . dot dot dot punk graphics !!
SIMON SAYS: “I FEEL VERY – ALIVE” . . . !! !! !!
R.I.P. SIMON, even though you were a tough customer, and a lot of knowledge went down with you, your dreams will always – stay alive. karma is a funny game.
esp, under the volcano.
DAN was really an exceptional artist. a very feeling, and a very funny person, but prone to outbreaks esp on those nearest and dearest. when he started to feel very comfortable with a person or place, the overflow of frustration he felt at his life – began to sputter outwards, increasing over time.
he was a person at odds with his humanity, and overwhelmed by his inner artistic drive.
but that was his . . great, singularity.
if you didn’t read his interview with BEN BERLOW, maybe you will go back to it today. it looks long, but, as it unfolds . . it becomes absolutely fascinating. and fragile.
not only does the real Dan resonate, but so does his unique charm, yes. he could be charming. his humor, and insight are off the wall . .
plus it’s an apt reflection of NYC at the time.
the bits about SPENCER SWEENEY and GAVIN (BROWN) are so true, that I can tell you.
Gavin did in fact, way before this interview took place – give Dan a show, way back when the gallery was called Passerby on 15th St – but nothing sold, and I guess Gavin couldn’t afford to float that kind of no-where dollars boat.
so . . is it the lack of insight on the part of collectors – that Dan was so unrecognized and underfunded. I think you’d have to say yes, esp if you look around at the sorry art scene that surrounds us today.
though you’d also think maybe it was the role of a really gifted gallerist – to get the ‘real’ art across ? maybe the collectors are just that . . awful.
they sure don’t go for . . misfits.
I’d say, ha !!
but – it’s not so funny.
same, ditto with the mainstream critics.
all I know is, get back to me in maybe 2, 5, for sure . . 10 years.
if you bought SPENCER SWEENEY you . . lost.
if you DIDN’T buy DAN ASHER, you lost out – big time.
it’s so obvious – how do you NOT get it ?
how do you NOT feel heat from a . . flame.
also, the part about DEVENDRA BANHART, as told by Dan – is priceless.
DAN ASHER, ‘Extreme Backyard Wrestling’ – large C-PRINT, exhibited at GBE/Passerby.
the show, titled, ‘BIRD OF PREY’ opened OCT 14, 2005 – to NO reviews. wtf ?
it was an amazing show, right off the charts.
INSTALLATION PHOTO: NANCY SMITH
you can read a brief description of the show, and my disappointed one line rant, re critics . . in this town:
“it was one of the best shows of FALL 2005 which for no good reason slipped by under the mainstream radar.” – here.
ps:
when you see a ‘link’ to more photos, on this site – and then get an ‘ERROR 404 – NOT FOUND’ PAGE, it’s because we had to drop a whole archive of photos, (ALNY ARCHIVE) due to costs of re-formatting the site, when web format made a big change-over – re: mobile devices.
and, I just got fed up with seeing my photos everywhere, withno credit, let alone minimal usage fee, and / or permission .. nor link back to artlovers, etc.
plus it costs a lot of dough – to maintain a steady stream of over 200,000+ google hits a day – which was what was happening. so we just cut it all back.
and that’s why the IN-HOUSE SEARCH, doesn’t work either, oand hasn’t been cured of it’s back door (translate: google) hacking.
maybe I’ll get around to re-formatting them one day, maybe when some gallery, or gallerist in this dumbed-down town finally gets around to putting some of – my work up on their walls.
not one of my photos has yet seen the light of day – of a gallery exhibit.
though I get more traffic in one day than these jerks, (mainly) – get all year.
go figure.
for sure,
I’m picking up Dan’s prickly mantle – where he left off. why the hell, not.
though all in all, I’d say I was pretty damn restrained about it.
though I guess chopping off a whole block of archives – is pretty extreme in its own way.
talk about . . ARTISTIC FREEDOM !! chop chop, f-ck you.
put it this way, even though I fueled many a new artist & gallery to wide acclaim, and new found & mucho !! big $$$ in the years 2002-2004 while I was at artnet, damn it – if success wasn’t going to bring me down, according to Walter Robinson, who fired me for that very reason: “too successful” – can’t have it, chop.
and all these galleries who took the dollars they made from publicity I gave them – and then forked it over to Artforum. a big wtf moment for me, I can tell you that.
thanks for nothing . . losers. where are they now ?
sad story. go ask FOXY PRODUCTION.
yep, after that great run at artnet, I found myself so broke in the year following, I actually had to jump a subway turnstile to get home from Dan’s ‘Bird of Prey’ opening.
I remember this distinctly because . . I got caught, and had to pay a friggin’ $60 fine.
$60 it cost me.
but, on the other hand you can see how much Dan and seeing Dan’s work meant to me – that I went knowing I had no way to get home. in fact I tried to hit Dan up for the $2 – but he was too broke, too.
I shoulda hit up – Gavin.
I can just hear Dan laughing up there, on that one.
though to be fair, like Dan – I have to say, Gavin did help me out sometimes, because I “seemed’ so desperate.
what is about desperate – and being fired for being “too successful” – that make them rhyme ?
and like Dan, I was saying for a long time, to Gavin, come on Man – just give me, one, one . . 2 week show !!
but, I’m so over that – I can’t even begin to tell you.
