Bon Bon Reserve Superthread

[cobl04]

So I've been away for the past week, I should probably talk about that since I gave no indication of what was going on anyway.

Part of the curriculum for my sculpture class is a camp way out in the Adelaide Hills on the large property owned by an artist who lives out that way. She's got a couple of houses there, so the whole class (ten of us) and two of our lecturers lived in one of them together from Sunday to Friday. Because we've been focusing on site specific sculpture, every morning we'd get up at 6, be outside by 7 and given briefs to create particular sculptures in certain places - one in the morning, one in the afternoon. Sometimes we were on teams, sometimes we were on our own. There was never anything like "make a dog out of trees" or something purely illustrative, everything was conceptual and we were allowed to use any materials we found on site - as long as they were natural. No wire, string or anything like that. As a result, I got used to making bindings out of types of grasses, discovered the rough age that a reed should be when it's at its bendiest to make ropes, found that some types of dead willows look like they were drawn by Tim Burton, and also the knowledge that you are never safe, anywhere, in nature.

It might sound a little wanky, but doing things like this, you forget to take nature for granted. You realise every patch of earth is different, even when they look similar when you're just walking by. Some places have plants you can't find anywhere else on the acres. Some might have really nice rocks. Some have got really nice soft dirt. Again, wanky, but you get more respect for indigenous connection to the land when you start to see it in this way, that it isn't just bushland, it's a whole ecosystem in one square metre.

I wasn't entirely looking forward to the trip - generally I get along with everyone from the class, but there were a few people I didn't know too well, and I thought by the end we'd be sick and tired of everything and wanting to kill each other. We also had to cook our own crappy food, so I thought morale would be low because everyone was sick on mi goreng. Plus, six am starts ain't something I like during my holidays. But wow, I had such a great time. I've already forgotten about the drowzy beginnings, the breathless walks in cold mornings and bringing bags filled with rocks uphill for hours. I'm more remembering a lot of laughter, a lot of satisfaction even when the work would look crappy, and some of the most beautiful, pristine moments of my life. Sitting outside with a coffee with a couple of mates, only listening to the windchimes and cockatoos. Half running, half climbing up steep rocky hills, forgetting that your body wants to give up on you because you're having so much fun. Electronics at a minimum. Five of us unsuccessfully making a shiphull out on a sheep's paddock, but joking the whole way through so it didn't matter. Making little cities out of pebbles and dead reeds in the middle of a creek. Riding on the back of a crowded ute and coming across a hill covered in kangaroos. Feeling invincible whenever wearing gumboots. Everyone pitching in to buy a bottle of Jamieson's for the birthday girl. People knocking back beers in the morning (no, I wasn't one of them!). Earning your beer at the day's end. Sharing a carton of coopers pale with a mate and requiring an additional sixpack before the week was over - and we were drinking less than half the people there. Stomping around ravines, creeks, dams and long grasses on hot spring days and still not seeing a snake. Sitting around by the fire each night watching slides of the works we made during the day, half pretentious art-student critique, half drunk-banter. Getting pissed off at Andy Goldsworthy for being so bloody talented. And not being able to immediately go back to the city, to just want to spend more time out there, out with nature, with friends, only with what you need. I didn't really want to come back, even though I was only half an hour out of Adelaide.

It was just what I needed, really. I'd been stuck in a rut and now I see life in a different way. I've been getting up earlier, going outside more, spending less time texting and internetting. I've been rethinking my desire to move to a big city, remembering what I loved so much about growing up in the country. Sorry this has turned into a total wank post but it was really great and I feel great and everything's great.

I know exactly how you feel, I felt much the same way after my leadership camp thing last year. It's awesome.

 

[cobl04]

Friends, do not look at any News Ltd papers today. For you will despair.

 

[Axver]

Friends, do not look at any News Ltd papers today. For you will despair.

Oh god, what is it?

"Alan Jones should be PM"?
"The calmest, most rational man in Australia - our special Tony Abbott liftout"?
"Why we think Andrew Bolt should be Aussie of the Year"?
"Akermanis is right"?
"Send back boat people and Julia"?

 

[cobl04]

Front page story is condemning any retaliatory attacks in the wake of the protests.

Right next to a pointer to a racist Andrew Bolt article suggesting it's time to restrict Muslim immigration.

One that opens on page 4 "THE problem isn't us. It isn't even some YouTube clip posted by a filmmaker no one has heard of.

No, the problem is them."

 

[Axver]

But if they're lily-white and Christian and hold the same hate-filled opinions as Jim Wallace, it's all cool?

 

[cobl04]

I see you saw the Nationals senator's comments.

What a delightful man.

 

[cobl04]

Well frankly when that Ocean so mauphuckin good
Make her swab the mauphuckin wood
Make her walk the mauphuckin plank
Make her rob a mauphuckin bank
With no mask on and a rusty revolver

 

[Axver]

I see you saw the Nationals senator's comments.

What a delightful man.

Oh god, I couldn't believe that. I'm especially amused that he's not up on his gay male stereotypes - I thought all gay men would just love shopping with a daughter!

(Though one of my gay male friends probably does love shopping more than most women I know.)

 

[Alisaura]

Oh god, I couldn't believe that. I'm especially amused that he's not up on his gay male stereotypes - I thought all gay men would just love shopping with a daughter!

(Though one of my gay male friends probably does love shopping more than most women I know.)

That is exactly what went through my head too. Except then I hastily amended it to "many" gay men would love shopping, avoiding stereotypes as we are.

I think there are straight men who enjoy shopping more than me!

 

[Alisaura]

Non sequitur alert:

I cannot fucking WAIT for Russian Circles next week! sleepmakeswaves too, but especially RC.

 

[Axver]

I'm going to go ahead and presume I enjoy furniture shopping more than you do, Alison.

 

[Axver]

And yes, can't wait to hear more of Empros live.

Should actually BUY those Sleepmakeswaves tickets, not that there appears to be much worry of it selling out.

 

[Alisaura]

Also, Bonnie - that sounds like an amazing camp/experience. Reading your post made me want to go outside more, and go to all those rural places I keep wanting to go, and reminded me of the field trips I did at uni, which were partly horrible, and partly amazing like that. Although I didn't get to make sculptures with sticks and reeds, I still got to see some very cool rocks. (And eat the most tender, delicious pit-cooked lamb and goat I have ever had. Very fresh, too.)

 

[Alisaura]

I'm going to go ahead and presume I enjoy furniture shopping more than you do, Alison.

I still much prefer that to clothes shopping. I like furniture shopping when I've made a decision and it's over, but I'm the sort of person who has to look at everything a million times before I go back to the first thing I saw (not always true).

And my ideal fantasy dream RC gig is them playing all of Empros (plus selected highlights of the other albums, of course). Holy shit I would die happy. That thing is a symphony written for rock instruments.

Speaking of symphonies, I saw your comments about how you find double albums interminably boring cos they're too long, and thought I'd never get you to listen to any actual symphonies. But then most of them aren't any longer than your average album, so there's hope yet.
(Or maybe you said you didn't like songs more than 15 minutes long, although symphonies are broken up into movements so that's another thing.)

I thought the sleepmakeswaves gig was Selling Fast? Or am I thinking of RC again...

 

[Axver]

In general I just think the ideal length for an album is 35-55 minutes. 40-45 is best. Different genres have different requirements though, so I don't say that as a hard-and-fast rule.

I think my ideal setlist for Russian Circles would be something like:

1. Campaign
2. Harper Lewis
3. Station
4. Verses
5. Youngblood
6. Xavii
7. Fathom
8. Malko
9. Mladek
10. Schiphol
11. Something from the first album that's not Carpe or Death Rides A Horse, since I've already heard those

 

[Alisaura]

But you don't mind hearing Harper Lewis again?

I always forget which I prefer out of Fathom and Geneva... Will have to listen again. But that sounds like a fine setlist too.

See, if they do Mladek and Schiphol, I'm going to want to hear Atackla then (it's neck and neck for favourite Empros track with Mladek now), and then I'll want to hear Batu and Praise Be Man, so they might as well play the whole thing. Although I should trust them to come up with their own setlists... and once I'm in there I probably won't remember which track is which.

 

[Axver]

Far as I'm concerned, they can play Harper Lewis as much as they want!

 

[Alisaura]

Likewise with Death Rides a Horse.

 

[Axver]

Oh man, I'm pleased with the BDO sideshows announced today. On consecutive nights at the same venues:

Crystal Castles with Gold Fields
Sleigh Bells with DZ Deathrays

Killer lineups. I'm honestly more keen for the supports! Gold Fields are the best thing to come out of Ballarat that doesn't run on rails, and DZ Deathrays fucking killed it at Laneway. I'm pissed I didn't get to see DZ at their Tote headliner in April ... it sold out before I got around to buying tickets. The only Melbourne show they've played since that was some thing at the Corner with Bleeding Knees Club and Yacht Club DJs, to which I said "noooo".

Also, not BDO related, Sugar Army are headlining the Toff on the 20th of October! Can finally fucking get to see them - their last Melbourne shows have either clashed with gigs to which I already had tickets or with New Zealand trips. You keen at all, Alison?

 

[Reggo]

Green Day's new album has leaked.

 

[Reggo]

In a moment of sheer HIMYM, I just saw someone who's locally famous tweet his cell phone number and said to myself, "Oh, Honey."

 

[Alisaura]

Green Day's new album has leaked.

*offers mop*

 

[Alisaura]

Also, not BDO related, Sugar Army are headlining the Toff on the 20th of October! Can finally fucking get to see them - their last Melbourne shows have either clashed with gigs to which I already had tickets or with New Zealand trips. You keen at all, Alison?

I'll have another listen to their album and let you know... I can't remember if it was them or another band whose only song I knew turned out to be quite different to their usual style, and thus the only song I liked.

 

[Axver]

I'll have another listen to their album and let you know... I can't remember if it was them or another band whose only song I knew turned out to be quite different to their usual style, and thus the only song I liked.

You put me on to them originally because you heard No Need For Lovers on Triple J and liked it ... rest of the album's in its style so I don't think that would be the band you're thinking of. I suspect you're thinking of Brand New, whose lead single for their last album was seriously unrepresentative of the album's content. I remember you being all "WTF!" about it.

Sugar Army are now supporting a new album, which I can't find online anywhere except their Soundcloud. I could rip that but I'll probably actually buy it, since the quality from a Soundcloud rip won't be great.

 

[cobl04]

It's a musical journey. Oh dear.

 

[Axver]

Ahahahaha, oh sweet jesus.

Hahahahahaha.

 

[The Sad Punk]

So I'm just reading History and apparently the Aztecs had compulsary education for anyone, regardless of their class, gender or heritage. Including slaves.

Goddamn heathen savages.

 

[Axver]

Clearly they needed to be exterminated.

Signed,
Republican Party

 

[Axver]

Also, tonight I've been putting together a file of the lyrics I've written that have the most potential, the guitar (or in one case, bass) that I've written for some of them, and notes about other details like whether I've done a vocal melody. I'm pleasantly surprised to find I actually have seventeen sets of lyrics I'm ready to use, most of which have at least partial music. Most of the lyrics aren't that flash, but there are a couple of pretty decent ones where I honestly think "gee, I wrote that?" It's a nice feeling.

Maybe we will one day actually get our shit together and perform on stage!

(Somebody be our drummer!)

 

[Vlad n U 2]

Use a drum machine for the time being.