Coming Soon: Volcanic Sunlight

In anticipation for a new album, Volcanic Sunlight, the poet/artist/performer, Saul Williams, sent out a newsletter where he talks about many things: including his view of music; his travels and meeting new people; current popular-culture; and commercial music.

But most importantly, he talks about who his audience is--who he is aiming to reach--and how he sees his new work as "an alternative form of energy."

Below are just two paragraphs from the letter he sent out:

"When you talk to record execs, they want to be able to see exactly where you'll fit into the commercial playing field. They want to be able to envision your song being played between Kanye and Drake on the radio. They want to be able to easily locate your audience. I'm pretty certain that much of my audience is out occupying cities across the world, protesting against corporate giants, squatting in city parks, following the same compulsion that led many to poetry slams and readings some years back; to raves, hip-hop, and punk rock shows, when music was more counter-culture than over-the-counter culture. All those seeds that were planted, the voices unlocked, the envisionment of the world that is possible and the pledge to make it real, are all coming full circle now.

"Volcanic Sunlight is my contribution to the times. It is my way of sharing that through all the necessary fighting for change behind, ahead, and within us, I have found it most helpful to think of it as a dance. I danced through a lot of bullshit (and fun shit) in order to get here... (don't forget the fun shit!). Yeah, it's been fun. Hella fun (415/510). And, honestly, I ain't really trying to fit in. (See: Talk To Strangers). But I've decided to sell my album to you, this time. As if to say, here is my idea of a 'product' that, I hope you will consider, worth more than it's asking price. As if to say, "invest in alternative energy." 'Cause, basically, that's how I think of Volcanic Sunlight: as an alternative form of energy. Something a bit more conscious of it's global imprint that whole cities, and possibly, new worlds, or, at least, new thoughts, can run on. My intention is for it to serve as a generator, a power source, that remembers the beauty of it's engine as it serves to transform the system."

I look forward very much to listening to this new album. In the summer of 2010, when I traveled to Arizona to protest against the racist anti-immigrant laws that were being put into place, one of the songs we heard over-and-over again (for inspiration and what not), was his "List of Demands." Anybody who follows Saul Williams on Twitter knows that he has been inspired by the Occupy movement that have exploded in this country. I expect this new album to somehow compliment the actions of all people who are out there trying to change the world.

Recommended: 'Juan and John' at LATC

About a decade ago, I was at the Los Angeles Theatre Center to see Roger Guenveur Smith's one-man performance of "A Huey P. Newton Story," and was blown away by the actor and the way he delivered the radical politics of the Black Panther Party on stage. Last night, I saw this same actor and was even more impressed as he used only a bench, historical projections on a screen, simple lighting, but mostly acting skills, to tell another great story.

"Juan and John," focuses mostly on a baseball-field brawl that took place in the summer of 1965 between San Francisco Giants Hall-of-Fame pitcher Juan Marichal and Dodgers catcher John Roseboro and the aftermath of that incident. Smith's work shows how a man from Ohio and a man from the Dominican Republic have much in common, and how they eventually became friends after 10 years of not speaking to each other.

There's a lot of history in this play: local L.A. history, as well as national and world history. Smith was a big Dodgers fan when he was a kid so he retells what he saw on television that day, as well as his experience during the Watts rebellion that also occurred that same summer. He also talks about what the White House, (under the leadership of Lyndon B. Johnson), was doing at the time--including the U.S. escalation in Vietnam and the U.S. invasion of the Dominican Republic.

Of course, Smith was able to weave all this historical information (and political commentary) into his work in a way that it works, thanks to his acting range, (and lots of clever jokes that you will get if you're paying attention to current events). Watching him switch from one character to another was amazing.

The one thing that really surprised me about the play was how much Smith also plays himself, and the personal things he reveals about himself and his relationship with his daughter. I didn't get it at first, but it's because, in the end this play is about human relations and reconciliation.

Juan and John is playing through November 13, 2011. Tickets are $20 to $40 dollars and available online or via phone at 866-811-4111. (There's also a special $10 show next Thursday during the LA ArtWalk).

Recommended: Asco at the LACMA

There are many things to like about the current Asco exhibit at the LACMA, "Asco: Elite of the Obscure, A Retrospective, 1972–1987." For one, it is the first major retrospective of this pioneering Chicano art collective.

Second, it is good, quality, high-brow art that was doing new (crazy) things in the art world--and doing a lot of them in public! (In the streets of East L.A. nonetheless).

Third, there is the historical side of it. I, for one, was very giddy to see photos and art that featured early East L.A. punk bands, Los Illegals and The Brat. (Also, a treat to see pics of a young Marisela Norte, an L.A. poet).

The exhibit itself is very wild, as it tries to capture the essence of the group. A lot of different mediums, like paintings, video, costumes, but mostly, photographs make up the exhibit. An article from the NY Times best explained their style in the following manner:

Asco’s method was a kind of bombastic excess and elegant elusiveness that would have made Tristan Tzara proud, not to mention Cantinflas and Liberace. The Los Angeles Times art critic Christopher Knight wrote that the group “brought Zurich Dada of the late-1910s to 1970s Los Angeles.” But it was a distinctly Chicano brand of Dada, by way of David Bowie and Frank Zappa, drag and Pachuco culture, telenovelas and oddball UHF television stations, and New Wave and silent movies.

Exhibit closes December 4, 2011.

Quick Thought on Street Art & the New Society

I've been wanting to blog about some thoughts I've about this article from KCET SoCal Departures since I first read it a few weeks back. First, a quick summary of this article, "Mural Conflict Has Artists Calling for 'Respect," in which the unwritten rules of street art are discussed. Apparently, a non-profit organization made some street artists (and street art fans) angry when they covered up a wall, (with a well-intentioned wheat paste installation), that had been completed by local street artist, Revok, and a few others in December 2010.

Well, people familiar with the underground culture, know that the only proper thing that should go over a "piece" should be a "better piece." (The rules kinda go like this: 'tag' > 'throw-up' > 'piece' > 'better piece'). But, what happens, when things like poster art, and wheat pastes in general, are not covered under these unwritten rules?

And what made the situation even more particular is that the wall was a private-owned wall where the owner of the wall gave the non-profit and artist permission to put up their installation, called, "I Want Peace in Congo." It was some street artists and their fans who had a problem with it. Luckily, in the story mentioned above, public apologies were offered and nothing too dramatic resulted. (Although, the manager of the building did say, "I there is anymore drama, I will sand blast the whole thing").

So, this makes me wonder about what the laws or rules will be for street art under a different future socialist society? I do think that in this type of new society street art will, not only be allowed, but be would be much more highly visible and play a larger role in society. (I think about the large public murals of Diego Rivera and the big Chinese character posters, and poster art, of the Cultural Revolution as evidence). Of course, a lot of organization would need to go into it. Input from the community, a public art commission/board, and designated spaces will definitely be needed. What do you think?