FREEFLOATING RAMBLINGSSEND HATEMAIL TO: FEEDBACK@ANTIGRAVITYMAGAZINE.COM OR: P.O. BOX 24584, NEW ORLEANS, LA 70184This is a big issue forANTIGRAVITY. If you’rereading us for the firsttime, having picked us up atVoodoo ‘06, let me welcomeyou into the fold. We at AGwork to bring you the best inindependent media coveragemonth in and month out,and this issue is no different. If you dig this issue,you’ll want to keep up with us because we coverthis stuff year-round, not just when it’s time tosell some ads for a music festival. <strong>November</strong> ‘06is also our second first anniversary (our “real”anniversaries are in June), as a year ago we debutedour first post-K issue at both the New Orleansand Memphis Voodoos. Anyway, this issue is a goodprimer for any AG newbie, with The Hold Steady,My Morning Jacket, Stanton Moore, the usualarray of reviews, comics and odd commentary. Wealso welcome a new monthly column by newlyminted Louisiana lawyer Andrew Bizer, who aimsto answer musicians’ questions about copyrightand any other legal issues an artist may have.Next month we plan to add coverage of theatre,with a special contributor to be announced then.We hope you’re looking forward to next monthas much as we are, as we’re planning to featureDr. Dog (finally, for all you Park The Van fans outthere). As always, we’ll see you out and about!––Leo McGovern, PublisherKristy, via e-mailI read this really offensive review of Gene LuenYang’s American Born Chinese graphic novel by RandyLander. It sounds like a great book (that I want to buy),but I couldn’t believe it when I read this: “The resultis an insightful meditation on cultural identity viewedthrough the lens of age-old mythology, modern highschool drama and outrageous ‘minstrel’ style comedy.”(Oct. <strong>2006</strong>, page 23)What I want to know is this - since when is “minstrelstyle comedy” a good thing? WTF. The last time Ichecked, minstel comedy was incredibly racist, and itwas something that allowed white people to ridiculepeople of color. I am offended that anyone would writethis in a supposedly progressive paper.I forwarded this to Randy Lander, who had this response:“This is probably my fault, as I was being unclear.I was making a leap, looking at Spike Lee’s use of“minstrel style” comedy in the film Bamboozled, a sortof ownership of a negative stereotype, rather thanclaiming that the original (and deeply offensive) “minstrelstyle” comedies using blackface and racist caricatureswere a good thing. In my defense, Gene Luen Yang’suse of an Asian stereotype (Chin-Kee) for comediceffect was a tweak at the “minstrel style” comedy, justas Bamboozled was, and that’s the comparison I wasmaking. I suspect that if Kristy reads the book, she’llsee what I mean, but she’s right to call me on it, as Iwas being unclear. I apologize if she (or other readers)took offense.”The following e-mails are from an online ticket giveawaywe did for the MC Chris show at Republic. The people whoresponded received two tickets for the show, and all weasked for was an e-mail that detailed their favorite band andwhy it’s their favorite. We figured we’d let the winners plugthose bands here. If you’d like to find out about our ticketgiveaways and other neat things we do online, friend us onMySpace at myspace.com/antigravitymagazine.Craig Brumfield, via e-mailMy favorite NOLA band, and there are many, butat the moment is Spickle. A great instrumental rock/As a favor to mybeloved ownerwho was unable tofulfill his obligations dueto injury, I agreed toserve as the AssociateEditor for this month’sANTIGRAVITY. WhileI’m not accustomed to engaging in such trite – anddare I say it – crude endeavors as this (for a magazinethat takes “rock ‘n’ roll” as its main subject matteris not a publication that I would normally thinkworthy of my acumen), I must admit that I did enjoythe brief sojourn from all my incessant sleuthingand methodical investigating. Even felines needrespite from daily monotony. Why, just the otherday, when I was tracking an extremely clever andresourceful palmetto bug beneath the mahoganyvitrine, I suddenly got the eerie sensation that Ihad been employed in the same activity for days;perhaps weeks on end. Oh, where does the timego? But forgive me, I digress. In all respects, theearnest toil of the past month has been ultimatelygratifying, and I would like to thank Mr. McGovernand Mr. Bonaparte (a man who, among other things,is obviously the progeny of noble ancestry) for theirhospitality and utmost professionalism during theduration of my post. These men are always welcomeat 221B Dander Street.I apologize for my brevity, buttyping is an incredible strain to the paws.- Professor Bumbymetal band featuring guitarist Paul Webb (bass playerfor Hawg Jaw and additional guitar on Suplecs albums,)additional guitar from Gregg Harney (Soilent Greenguitarist) and a fantastic rhythm section rounded outby Bret (bass guitar and former Hawg Jaw bassist) andKenny (drums). Spickle to me sounds like Slayer rapingDon Cabellero while being observed by members ofTool while getting high with members of Bad Brainsand Sleep while the Melvins play in the background.Need one more reason? Earlier this year, at theCircle Bar, Spickle played two free sets and in betweensounds a drunk kept yelling, “Paul Webb!” The guythen taps his girlfriend and said, “Baby, do you knowwho that is? It’s Paul Webb!” My friend who is inseveral local bands asked me who the annoying guywas and I said, “Phil Anselmo...you know…Pantera,Superjoint Ritual?” He shrugged and we turned ourattention back to Spickle.Jeremy Frey, via e-mailI’m going to have to say DoomsDay Device(myspace.com/doomsdaydevice). For my money thereisn’t anyone that sends me on a wim-z-cal ride acrossdementions of time and space, or that frightens me intoboarding myself inside my closet to attempt to swartthe efforts of the hoards of Government Created andtrained zombies.Also i would like to thank you guys for doing sucha great job with your interviews and the selectivenessused when choosing bands.Keep it up.Joe Venta, via e-mailFavorite band: It would have to be Big blue Marble.I first saw them early 2005 and they blew me away.They are one of the best live act’s in town, period!Eugene Ward, via e-mailMy favorite local band? Liquidrone. Why? Theyhave done an excellent job of bringing the electronic/experimental music shy crowd out to see their crazylive performances and have bridged many differentgenres of music. It is hard for these sort of acts tohave a good stage presence, but they, along withThere’s a certainfeeling ofclosure associatedwith the pressingof this issue.A N T I G R A V I T Ybegan its post-K existence withcoverage of RehageAgainst TheMachine 2005, andwhat a long, strange trip it’s been to get back tothis point. We’ve braved an uncertain spring,a stupefyingly boring summer and a blessedlyanticlimactic storm season, and barring theoccasional heinous murder or embarrassingpolitical scandal, things are feeling excitedlyroutine once again. There’s nothing roteabout this edition of the magazine, however:Not with world-beaters like the Hold Steadyand My Morning Jacket heading up our regularcoverage, nor with our issue-within-the-issuereward for Voodoo Fest attendees—an eightpagebun in the AG oven featuring the FlamingLips, Broken Social Scene and Jamie Lidell ininterviews by some of our local musicianfriends.Next item on the agenda: sprucing upa dead December with Dr. Dog and the BlackKeys …––Noah Bonaparte, Senior Editortheir partners in crime, Bingo, have given NOLA a goodreputation.That’s it for this month. Next month we’ll have Dr. Dog(I promise) and a couple of new features (if everything goesright). Anyway, go ahead and get into this issue. It’s a doozy. 04_antigravity: your new orleans music and culture alternative
ANTI-NEWSSOME OF THE NEWS THAT’S FIT TO PRINTTOWER RECORDS CLOSESTower Records was auctioned off to Great American Groupon October 6th, with the new owner choosing to liquidatethe music giant’s eighty-nine stores, including the chain’s N.Peters St. location, which may have been the largest musicoutlet in New Orleans post-K. Tower filed for Chapter 11reorganization in August, citing general decline in music sales,online downloading and competition from stores like Wal-Mart. Tower’s closing, coupled with the non-reopenings ofother music stores like Virgin Megastore and Magic Bus, leavesLouisiana Music Factory (210 Decatur St.) as the only FrenchQuarter music retailer still standing post-K, and the Mushroom(1037 Broadway St.) as the only store you’re likely to find notonly the releases AG covers, but rock in general.MUSIC CAN BE MORE FUN, TOOOne potential bright spot after Tower’s closing, for localindependent artists, at least, is a new shop-within-a-shop atMore Fun Comics called More Fun Music. More Fun managerDC Harbold plans to open the new section in January but isalready accepting materials for consignment. Harbold intendsfor the section to be comprehensive, so local bands of anygenre, as long as they’re independent, are invited to bring intheir materials. For more info, e-mail morefunmusic@yahoo.com or call 504-865-1800.REGGIE GETS FIGUREDMcFarlane Toys has a Reggie Bush action figure slatedfor release in <strong>November</strong> as a part of its NFL Series 14 line.From McFarlane’s spawn.com: “New Orleans Saints RB/KR:The happiest people to see Reggie Bush playing in New Orleansare the Saints faithful, but a close second are the fans of theother nine PAC-10 schools he abused during his breathtakingcareer at USC. With speed, power, and ridiculous moves,Bush is an absolute weapon in the open field.” Other players inSeries 14 include Chiefs running back Larry Johnson, Chargerstight end Antonio Gates and Steelers safety Troy Polamalu.For more info, go to www.spawn.com.JUSTIN HAWKINS QUITS THE DARKNESS,ADMITS DRUG USEAfter a stint at a British rehab clinic and admiting that he spentover $300,000 dollars on cocaine over a three year period,Darkness glam rocker Justin Hawkins has quit the band hehelped make famous. If $300,000 over three years seems likean extraordinary amount of money to spend on drugs, well,that’s because there are tons of other things you can drop 300large on. If you’re curious as to what else Hawkins could’vespent that money on, the list includes 12,000 VIP tickets toa Big Easy Rollergirls bout, 25,000 copies of the new RotaryDowns release Chained To The Chariot, 300,000 trips over theGNO bridge after visiting the Westbank, and half of AG editorLeo McGovern’s soul.HAVE SOME AG WITH THAT WINEWe’ve written before about Sip, the upstart wine shop on<strong>Magazine</strong> St. that not only endured the summer of ‘05 to openone year ago but also a not-so-nice ownership battle thateventually left Sip’s original concept-maker Jen Powell as dailyproprietor. Now, more good news emits from the market asANTIGRAVITY takes over the first Tuesday of every month,programming the market’s weekly Sip ‘N’ Spin tasting. Startingat 6:30 and lasting at least until 8:30, you can check out musicfrom artists featured in that month’s AG, as well as new musicthat may be laying around the office.I WANT MY STATIC TVANTIGRAVITY is an official associate of Static TV, which airsevery Tuesday at 10pm on Cox 10. Each episode featuresmusic videos and interviews with both New Orleans andnational artists. The debut episode, which aired on October17th, featured videos by Preservation Hall Band (featuringClint Maedgen), Jamie Lidell, Panther, Cursive, Yeah YeahYeahs and Dr. Dog, and the feature interview was the SpintoBand. Find out more about Static TV at www.myspace.com/static_television.HELP LOCAL BANDS RALLY AROUND RESIDENTLast month, French Quarter resident Tom Haulard was ridinghis scooter through a neighborhood when a car ran throughan intersection that lost its stop sign to Katrina and hitHaulard, breaking his pelvis, arm, and leg. Stuck in the hospitalwith no medical insurance, Haulard is now forced to pay thebill for an accident in which he was a victim. To help with themedical costs, a few of Haulard’s friends — the Good Guys,Blair Gimma, Silent Cinema, Happy Talk Band, and the CraftBrothers of Glasgow — have come together for the I
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