#its probably just me projecting. my perception is distorted from being made fun of by my sister lol

[opens-up-4-nobody]

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[cinemavariety]

The Director’s Series: David Lynch

The director series will consist of me concentrating on the filmography of all my favorite directors. I will rank each of their films according to my personal taste. I hope this project will provide everyone with quality recommendations and insight into films that they might not have known about.

Today’s director in spotlight is David Lynch

#10 - Dune (1984) Runtime: 2 hr 17 min Aspect Ratio: 2.35 : 1 Film Format: 35mm

In the year 10,191, the world is at war for control of the desert planet Dune – the only place where the time-travel substance ‘Spice’ can be found. But when one leader gives up control, it’s only so he can stage a coup with some unsavory characters.

Verdict: Most directors who make enough films will always have a few misses. Dune is almost unwatchable with its convoluted storyline that will confuse anyone who hasn’t read the novel. I’ll give it this - the set and costume design are out of this world, no pun intended.

#9 - The Straight Story (1999) Runtime: 1 hr 52 min Aspect Ratio: 2.39 : 1 Film Format: 35 mm

A retired farmer and widower in his 70s, Alvin Straight learns one day that his distant brother Lyle has suffered a stroke and may not recover. Alvin is determined to make things right with Lyle while he still can, but his brother lives in Wisconsin, while Alvin is stuck in Iowa with no car and no driver’s license. Then he hits on the idea of making the trip on his old lawnmower, thus beginning a picturesque and at times deeply spiritual odyssey.

Verdict: The only one of Lynch’s films that could be considered purely “heartwarming”. It also feels the least like a Lynch film, with the director never really foraying into his autuerist territory. It is a simple, cute film that didn’t exactly leave much of an impression on me.

#8 - Lost Highway (1997) Runtime: 2 hr 14 min Aspect Ratio: 2.35 : 1 Film Format: 35mm

A tormented jazz musician finds himself lost in an enigmatic story involving murder, surveillance, gangsters, doppelgangers, and an impossible transformation inside a prison cell.

Verdict: Lost Highway has a few scenes that I find to be the most bone-chilling in Lynch’s oeuvre. However, I wish that the entirety of this film had the same effect on me. There are more than enough satisfying plot elements to this, but I also feel like Lynch utilizing a modern soundtrack more than Badalementi’s superb score really does make this film feel dated.

#7 - The Elephant Man (1980) Runtime: 2 hr 4 min Aspect Ratio: 2.35 : 1 Film Format: 35mm

A Victorian surgeon rescues a heavily disfigured man being mistreated by his “owner” as a side-show freak. Behind his monstrous façade, there is revealed a person of great intelligence and sensitivity. Based on the true story of Joseph Merrick, a severely deformed man in 19th century London.

Verdict: The Elephant Man showcases how cruel human nature can be. It is one of Lynch’s most sentimental works that manages to be both horrendous and beautiful. John Hurt’s performance as the “elephant man” is multilayered and one of the most impressive, humanistic feats of an artist embodying a character with the utmost ingenuity.

#6 - Blue Velvet (1986) Runtime: 2 hr Aspect Ratio: 2.35 : 1 Film Format: 35mm

The discovery of a severed human ear found in a field leads a young man on an investigation related to a beautiful, mysterious nightclub singer and a group of criminals who have kidnapped her child.

Verdict: This is Lynch’s detective film, and I would say one of the best starting films for someone looking to get into his work. It has all of the surrealist plot motifs we come to expect from Lynch, but also has a pretty understandable storyline for the most part. Blue Velvet explores the dark underbelly beneath the fake “harmless” veneer of a seemingly quiet and peaceful small town.

#5 - Wild at Heart (1990) Runtime: 2 hr 5 min Aspect Ratio: 2.35 : 1 Film Format: 35mm

Young lovers Sailor and Lula run from the variety of weirdos that Lula’s mom has hired to kill Sailor. 

Verdict: Many might not see Wild at Heart as one of Lynch’s strongest works, but I personally find it to be the most fun film he has ever made. Lynch creates such a wide variety of scummy characters that truly make your stomach church (I am looking at you Willem Dafoe). It’s one of those so-bad-it’s-perfect movies and the Wizard of Oz allusions are a great addition to the story.  

#4 - Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me (1992) Runtime: 2 hr 14 min Aspect Ratio: 1.85 : 1 Film Format: 35mm

In the questionable town of Deer Meadow, Washington, FBI Agent Desmond inexplicably disappears while hunting for the man who murdered a teen girl. The killer is never apprehended, and, after experiencing dark visions and supernatural encounters, Agent Dale Cooper chillingly predicts that the culprit will claim another life. Meanwhile, in the more cozy town of Twin Peaks, hedonistic beauty Laura Palmer hangs with lowlifes and seems destined for a grisly fate. Verdict: I think it’s a real shame that this film was held in such low regard by both critics and fans alike when it was released. These people seemed to be truly confused as to the types of films Lynch makes. Thankfully, it has developed into a real cult classic since then. This film, which also serves as a prequel to the iconic television series, abandons the campy tone of the series and is Lynch achieving the vision that he wanted from the show. It’s a beautiful, haunting, and heartbreaking story.

#3 - Inland Empire (2006) Runtime: 3 hr Aspect Ratio: 1.85 : 1 Film Format: Mini DV & 35mm

An actress’s perception of reality becomes increasingly distorted as she finds herself falling for her co-star in a remake of an unfinished Polish production that was supposedly cursed. 

Verdict: Lynch has yet to make a feature film since this one, and it truly is the director going off the rails with his style in the best of ways. Inland Empire is almost completely impossible to describe because it is more of an experience than it is a structured narrative. It returns to Lynch’s often-used idea of “hollywood is hell”. To me, this is Lynch’s scariest film. It’s utterly hopeless and the pixelated DV cinematography exudes a very cold and artificial aesthetic. Laura Dern deserved an Oscar for her performance as an actress who confuses her own life to the character she is playing. 

#2 - Mulholland Drive (2001) Runtime: 2 hr 27 min Aspect Ratio: 1.85 : 1 Film Format: 35mm

Blonde Betty Elms has only just arrived in Hollywood to become a movie star when she meets an enigmatic brunette with amnesia. Meanwhile, as the two set off to solve the second woman’s identity, filmmaker Adam Kesher runs into ominous trouble while casting his latest project. 

Verdict: You will very rarely find such a perfect masterpiece of a film, but Mulholland Drive manages to do that. It also seems to reveal new layers every time I revisit. Lynch blurs the lines between the dream world and reality so masterfully in this film that it really does linger in your subconscious afterward - much akin to a haunting dream that you can’t seem to shake. Naomi Watts is electric as an LA newcomer who gets involved in the dark recesses of Hollywood.

#1 - Eraserhead (1977) Duration: 1 hr 29 min Aspect Ratio: 1.85 : 1 Film Format: 35mm

Henry Spencer tries to survive his industrial environment, his angry girlfriend, and the unbearable screams of his newly born mutant child.

Verdict: By no means am I trying to say Eraserhead is Lynch’s “best” film - but for me it will probably always remain my personal favorite. This was my introduction to Lynch’s work and it holds a very sentimental spot for me as this was the time in my life when I really began exploring experimental film. Eraserhead is set in a dystopia that could also serve as an alternate reality altogether. Henry Spencer has to deal with his demanding wife and deformed child while daydreaming of a singing woman in the radiator. This is Lynch at his most surrealist, his most uncompromising, and his most nauseating. It truly is one the most impressive low-budget films ever made. It manages a fine line between repulsion and transcendence.

[centaurianthropology]

The Magnus Archives ‘Sculptor’s Tool’ (S04E06) Analysis

What a … lovely episode for Valentine’s Day.  You can always count on this podcast to bring the horrific weirdness right when we need it the most.  Come on in to hear what I have to say about ‘Sculptor’s Tool’.

The statement itself was fantastic.  The Spiral statements are always ones that lend themselves to having Jonny’s imagination run wild, and this was no exception.  I also appreciate that it seems to be a story of a woman who seemed to have been a stay-at-home mother for a university student, whose wife worked, and who got bored.  So she was an avid goer to adult education classes.  It was again nice to see how TMA quietly handles LGBTQ representation. I especially appreciate having representation of older individuals, because the LGBT elderly tend to be altogether invisible, and often forced back into the closet in order to get care.

But that’s me getting on my soap box.  Suffice to say, having a middle-aged-to-older queer woman as the statement giver was quite lovely.  

It was also fun to have a statement that kept me guessing for a long time as to which power was in play. Sculpting and art initially struck me as something for the Stranger, but the twisting shapes and the looping almost-fish and the manipulation of perception eventually took me down the Spiral’s route. It all seemed far too much like Father Burrough’s experience, and though Gabriel isn’t Michael, they seemed akin.

And then, of course, Michael did show up.  Well, not Michael, but the Distortion.  Michael wasn’t yet Michael, at this point, or he actually was Michael and not ‘Michael’. Yay Spiral confusion.  Gabriel, if I have to guess, was another avatar like the Distortion, and his sculpting the door may well have been a part of the Spiral’s ritual.  

His relocation to Sannikovland definitely seems to be evidence for that.  If he had gone there to assist the Spiral in the ritual, he may well have been there to help create the structure in which the ritual was to be performed.  It would seem a good job for a Sculptor.

Or a Worker in Clay, as Michael would go on to call him.

And it sounds like whatever was occupying Gabriel was also starting to work its way into Deborah. Both from the way that Jon sounded less and less cogent as he read the statement, and the revelations of what really happed to Mary, her fellow student, I have a genuine fear that the others in the class were always ancillary, and that she and Gabriel were locked together in this dance the whole time.

It makes me wonder if there’s a new Sculptor, now that Gabriel’s dead, and if he  even predicted the need to have a backup.

Back in the Archives, hearing Jon speculate about how he still finds what Gertrude did to Michael to be sad was relieving.  No doubt he’s looking back on his own failures to save Tim and Daisy and wondering if it makes things better or worse that he didn’t mean for either of them to die.

For my part, I do think it’s better.  It was Tim’s choice to die.  He got to dictate when and how.  He got to save the world willingly, rather than as a frightened and confused pawn like Michael.  It gave Tim back the agency that Michael was denied.

And his concern for the others continues.  I find it interesting that Melanie refuses to see Jon, but will still see Basira, when she was the one to insist that Melanie not be told before the procedure.  Jon’s quite accepting of this, and likely understands that they’ve been through a lot together.  Perhaps Melanie is more willing to forgive Basira than him after all that.  Or perhaps she simply sees Basira as less of a threat.

And then, of course, there was the end, where we get a little more context about Martin.  As some people suspected, he’s made a deal with Peter Lukas to keep the others safe, although what that might be is … questionable.

Peter talked about striking a balance, and I wonder if he’s not trying to make Martin some sort of hybrid between the Beholding and the Lonely to stop something.  It’s unclear what, as Peter talked about the Watcher’s Crown as though that wasn’t the real concern.  It was just Elias’ side project that distracted him from a bigger problem.

It also somehow involves Adelard Dekker, which makes me wonder if they aren’t trying to stop the rise of some new power.  That is, of course, if Peter’s being honest about there being a real threat, and this isn’t just an attempt to convert Martin from the Beholding to the Lonely.

That does seem a distinct possibility, given that he seems convinced that their plan requires Martin’s isolation to work.  I wonder how much of that is getting him enmeshed in the Lonely, and how much of it is keeping him from talking to Jon.  It’s likely both, as Martin clearly wants to tell Jon what’s happening. Peter’s attempted manipulation of Martin to convince him Jon wouldn’t listen is particularly galling, knowing that, in Jon’s current state, he probably would listen.

It’s especially ominous, considering that Peter has told him that after whatever it is they do, Martin won’t want to tell Jon anything.  This implies that, if Martin does commit to this, Martin will become enough of the Lonely’s creature that all regard for Jon will evaporate.  He’ll ‘save’ everyone (again, questionable) at the cost of any and all connection he might have to him.

And that’s dangerous. Connections are what’s anchoring Jon so well.  His regard for his friends, even in absentia, is making him more human than he has any right to be.  If Peter did sever Martin’s connections to Jon and the others, I really worry that Martin could rapidly fall into being a monster.

But it was encouraging that the Beholding is starting to show interest in Martin in retaliation. Perhaps it wasn’t able to get to him with Jon comatose, but now that he’s back, the tapes are rolling around Martin as well.  It may even be that the Beholding is trying to find a work-around to let them communicate. After all, with Jon’s powers growing, how long will it be until he simply KNOWS what he hears on the tapes?

And it’s also encouraging that Martin isn’t happily playing along.  Whatever’s happening, he thinks it’s necessary, but he also hates it. And he doesn’t trust Peter any more than he trusted Elias.  He wants to work with Jon, and only started working with Peter because Peter convinced him Jon would never wake up.

With the tapes rolling and the Beholding possibly pushing back against the Lonely’s hold on one of its longer-serving archivists, I think that there will be more to this conflict than Martin simply playing along to his peril.  Whatever bargain was made, and whatever threat looms, I have the feeling that Jon will get himself tangled in it.  After all, if the last season proved anything, it’s that if there’s trouble, Jonathan Sims will find it and land face-first in it.

[terriblyspecificreviews-blog]

Poppy’s Am I A Girl raises more questions than it answers

6 out of 10 stars

Poppy's sophomore October 31st Halloween album release Am I a Girl has been described as "The Most Bewildering Album of Year", "Cold, technical and eerie.", "Spooky Robo-Bubblegum pop",  and "a celebration of all that is capitalist alienation, commodity fetishization, and environmental destruction". This is typical of what you would expect from the "Robot, Satanist, Illuminati Prom Queen" who become a internet meme sensation in 2015 when her disturbing David Lynch inspired Youtube videos went viral, receiving hundreds of millions of views (404,054,129 total views at the time of writing) and thousands of comments providing theories, and conspiracy theories as to what does it all mean.

Context

The first of these videos have seemingly innocuous, mundane and meaningless subject matters; eating candy floss, boredom, having her nails painted, spinning around while holding an umbrella, and a cover of Mac Demarco's My Kind of Woman. There's always an empty pastel coloured background to remove any sense of environmental context with Poppy being the centre focus in the style of Andy Warhol’s screen tests. There's a soft spoken ASMR style quality to the sound production which creates a sense of intimacy with the viewer, as if you the viewer were privy to personal intimate moment; one of the many subtle jarring unsettling aspects to the videos, together with the dissonant ambient soundtracks and Poppy's increasingly robot like delivery as the project developed over time. In this now infamous video Poppy repeats “I'm Poppy” for ten minutes. Poppy and her creative partner Titanic Sinclair (also a pseudonym) have stated there is a storyline to all of these videos, although I'm unsure as to whether this is a put on or sincere, because if there is a story its unclear and ambiguous enough to be open to interpretation, so I'll leave it to the reader to make your mind up as to what that might be. Over time there seems to have been story development however, with recurring characters appearing such as jealous robot plastic doll Charlotte, who released cover album of Poppy track takes, and Plant, who wishes you would stop killing plants; a subtle reference to the issue of climate change juxtaposed with the mundane sentiments of the video subject matters.

In a video review for the Poppy project as a whole, New York Magazines’ Jerry Saltz describes Poppy as “Very derivative art, it looks like a lot of very recent contemporary art about art about art that makes fun of art.” He goes on to link her to contemporary artist Jeff Koons, who through for example his metallic shiny balloon like sculptures reflects the viewer back at themselves. Interestingly Koons has being criticised for producing empty vacuous and meaningless art produced cynically for profit, yet this is one possible interpretation of his work; that he is reflecting the empty vacuous profit driven contemporary art world back at itself in a form of a self referential parody. You can also see this at play in Poppy's work. The video topics on her channel and on producer's Titanic Sinclairs channel are mirroring aspects of popular internet culture back at the viewers, but in a way that seems off and satirical, and yet things are kept ambiguous enough to be indistinguishable from what one might perceive as the “real” thing. It could be that this is a cynical attempt at making money, but this could be seen as a reflection of internet clickbait culture in simply producing content that reach the biggest and most general market possible, which is a pertinent point to make; how many of our present political predicaments are the result of online media outlets sensationalising news for clicks? There are also comparisons to be made with London based electronic music genre PC MUSIC in terms of the themes of Hyperreality and the visual aesthetics, and for example in this video and this video Poppy advertises fictional products, perhaps a nod too PC Music's QT and her energy drink. Poppy perhaps takes this all a step further in starting a new religion for profit with her Poppy.Church and The Gospel of Poppy. Again the lines between satire and reality have been blurred here, but this again could be a satirical commentary on the cult echo chamber like nature of online communities.

Poppy's forray into the music industry was likely always the intention given Titanic Sinclair's history with Mars Argo as a music based project. Her ambient album 3:36 (Music to Sleep to) is a reference to the cryptic video of the same name, and perhaps a reflection of Youtube's countless “ambient music for sleep” playlists. Her music is an extension of the narrative presented in the videos. Her song Adored typifies her bubblegum Electro J-pop inspired sound. 

The message of the video and the lyrics go together. For the whole duration of the video Poppy is just staring down her phone; Looking for “This life I keep hearing about... I wanna be adored I want nothing more”. Is this a cynical reference to people who look to social media for validation and live vicariously through their online personas, or is it a literal reflection of the viewer who also found and watched the video through their phone or laptop screen? Poppy's 2017 debut album Poppy.Computer also explored the hyperreality themes of the blurring lines between “online” “technology” and “real life”. The song Computer Boy is a surrealist love song written about her boyfriend, who also happens to be her laptop computer. In I'm Poppy she asks the listener to “Let me be your queen... Please electrify me, Power my Battery” building on the cult and technology themes, and on INTERWEB she has caught us in her internet.

Album Review

This is an album review, however as Poppy is an internet focused visual art project as well as musical artist the visual experience is as part of the intended delivery as the music itself, so I will include synopsis of the music videos on the necessary tracks. The first single and album opener on Am I A Girl is In A minute. A thumping electro chant similar to the Poppy.Computer opener 'I'm Poppy' presenting a smooth transition in the production aesthetic between the releases, however there is already a darker, melancholic tone to the music suggesting a departure from the happy go lucky parodic sentiment of the previous release and an evolution occurring in this offering into more overtly serious and mature subject matters. “I'll make up my face in a minute.. I'll reform this state in a minute.. Cash my check, got paid, yeah, I did it..I haven't done my nails in a minute" is the repeated mantra, on one level a nod to her previous success and rise to star-dome, on another level she is as always offering a cynical reflection of the values of 'American' or 'Western' (arguably global at this point, but for simplicities sake) Society; she has had time to cash her cheque and congratulate herself, but she relegates 'reforming the state' (please remember the cult forming, I'll be your queen, and 'fake it till you make it' sentiments expressed throughout her work) to the same importance as doing her nails or make-up. The video is a black white and red lyric video with a distorted image of Poppy singing,minimalist like Poppy's earlier videos but seemingly a move to a darker aesthetic compared to the typical bright and pastel music videos of previous years. This is also reflected in recent black and white photographs, and her collaborations and hanging out with the likes of Marilyn Manson and Korn's Jonathan Davis.  

Second album track and third single Fashion After All is another stompy pop track, less in the vain of her staple J-pop / K-pop sound but on a production note similar to the works of Lady Gaga and Jeffrey Star. Lyrically Poppy is just bragging, something very prevalent in today's top 40 pop appropriated from the braggadocio of hip hop, so this is likely a take on that, although the line “I'm revolutionary, relatable and scary, I'm making plans to save the world and I don't need your help” does make me wonder how much of it is a genuinely honest sentiment and we're seeing some hint of intention or climax to the Poppy project.

The next track Iconic is about self confidence, and how easy it is to be 'iconic'. I hear more Lady Gaga style influence here. “You don't have to be flawless, put on a little polish, run the bedroom to the office, you gotta be iconic, in school, they never taught it, don't worry, babe, I got you, and if you really, really want it, you gotta be iconic”. There's a serious point here that the only thing that makes 'celebrities' different from 'non celebrities' is a veneer of confidence and their crafted public perception. This is a genuinely important message when it has been revealed social media is deliberately engineered to fuel insecurity and anxiety, with some social media companies running non consensual psychological experiments on their customers to make them depressed in an age of record teenage suicides and mental health problems. The key words here are “if you really, really want it” there's not much to it, it's just an image; a presentation. This is also a very interesting message when you consider the Poppy starting a religion/cult aspect.This could be taken as a positive message in the sea of apparent cynicism that is the Poppy project, and likewise the song's tone has a very upbeat and positive feel in the context of a slightly darker and more mature album.

The albums second single is Time Is Up, and this certainly takes it to this darker place, musically and with it's apocalyptic subject matter. Probably the catchiest track on the album and probably the most important. Poppy sings from the point of view of an AI robot waking up in a factory, there is a link here to the theme of blurring lines between reality and the internet as Poppy is seen in her videos to become more robot like over time. There's some humour in this opening, which offsets the rest of the songs lyrics in which Poppy's AI character informs us all that while she won't need “air to breathe when you kill the bees And every river bed is dry as a bone.. when the plants have died and the atmosphere is just a big hole”, our time is up; meaning our (humans) self made extinction. She proceeds to inform us we are like cockroaches and extermination is our only hope. The humour here makes it such a hard hitting point. As Contrapoints brilliantly explains and dissects in this video far more succinctly then I have space for here, a lot of Americans have a problem accepting man made climate change despite the overwhelming evidence of it's reality and the absolute necessity of action against it at this point in time. The President is a climate change denier as is his elected head of the Environmental Protection Agency is too, and arguably this is the most pressing issue of our time, so it's perhaps unsurprising Poppy and co chose to deviate from their usual ambiguity and be so overt here. Purely from a pragmatic point of view humour can make things easier for people to accept and so I commend Poppy and her team for pulling this off so well. 

The title track Am I A Girl treads the waters of ambiguity once again however. Taken literally at face value the lyrics are about moving beyond the gender binary, “Am I a girl? Am I a boy? What does that even mean? I'm somewhere in between”. The lyrics seem overly simplistic and lacking in depth and nuance however. As this Vulture article points out, this is an artist who has used lyrics like “Boys aren't even boys anymore” and “You are never in the mood / So come on baby, tell me, are you gay?” in the past. Poppy when asked when she took interest in questioning societies gender constructs replies “When other celebrities started exploring it”, while this could be interpreted at simple sarcasm it does not translate well, and so I think the Vulture writer has good reason to take offence here, this can be interpreted as making light of a very serious issue for the sake of a joke that doesn't even clearly make sense. While I would also like to give the benefit of the doubt here, it's hard to find a practical way in which celebrities drawing attention to LGBTQ+ issues could be taken as something that should be attacked. This is disappointing as it undermines a positive and liberating message for the sake of a cheap shot at celebrity culture. That said, in Time Is Up Poppy said we all deserved to be exterminated, so maybe I'm missing something.

Play Destroy drew some significant hype for the album owing to it's featuring and co-production with electronic artist Grimes, though the process did not go smoothly. There's a significant shift in the sound aesthetic here, continuing on from the track Hard Feeling's introduction of metal guitar riffs, juxtaposed with the J-pop inspired bubblegum pop aesthetic. As catchy as the song is, I can't shake the feeling that their call to “Burn down the local Wal-Mart Monsanto, Raytheon” isn't entirely a sincere anti-corporation sentiment given the once again one dimensional approach to the lyrics and the fact Grimes's partner at the time was Elon Musk. Still musically this is an album highlight for me with it's blurring of genre's and particularly glossy vocal production.

The album finale X takes this genre blurring to an extreme with it's sugary reverb soaked calls to save the world and “empty every bullet out of every gun”, and the screaming metal sections and ridiculous chorus of “Please get me bloody”. The choice to release this as a video with equally juxtaposing imagery to match the music and the overall album theme of a darkening of imagery from the previous album/photos/imagery to this one, and the choice to end the album on this note offers a suggestion of where the Poppy project is going next. I will be keeping track of it as it unfolds, because the deeper I search for meaning here the more unsure I become as to what the intention behind it all really is, and perhaps as New York Magazines’ Jerry Saltz suggested they don't really know what it means or what the purpose is. What happens next will set the context for this one, given the attempts to construct a narrative on this album and in recent Poppy videos, we still don't know what this is and the celebrity LGBTQ+ comment sets a worrying precedent even if it was an ill informed attempt at sarcasm.

I believe that some clarity is needed at some point in the near future, you can only be so vague and tell the same cryptic joke repeatedly before it becomes meaningless nonsense. For the time being I give the album a 6 out of 10 score for it’s well written, glossy, genre bending and frankly fun pop, but I think time will tell how well the album and the project to which it belongs ages.

[sinceileftyoublog]

M. Geddes Gengras Interview: Happy Accidents

Photo by Gabrielle Valenti

BY JORDAN MAINZER

Producer M. Geddes Gengras has taken advantage of quarantine to release music at a breakneck pace. Living among the nature (and Brooklyn spillover region) of Hudson, NY, he’s got six distinct releases on his Bandcamp this year alone, half under the moniker PERSONABLE. The most notable is the full-length album Time Makes Nothing Happen, a propulsive, techno-heavy record released in May but filled with many tracks that date back years past. (Thumping, clattering, glitchy opener “Dragging My Feet” is from the Aughts!) “I put it out there and wasn’t really sure whether anybody was gonna buy it or listen to it,” he told me over the phone last month. Indeed, as much as Bandcamp Fridays have helped, self-releasing still carries and inherent risk. “It either does really well or disappears,” he said. Plus, Time was far different from the material he had been working on and releasing under any moniker.

As it turns out, the album caught the ears of Max Allison, co-founder of Chicago bonkers experimental label Hausu Mountain. It wasn’t out of the blue; after all, Hausu had released Gengras’ I Am The Last of That Green and Warm​-​Hued World last year. But they had been long talking about doing another record, and while something never-before-heard is still in the works, Gengras and Hausu decided to physically release Time on CD and cassette, with a bonus track for good measure. It’ll be out November 13th. Most importantly, the record fits nicely within Hausu’s increasingly wonderfully sundry catalog.

Below, read my conversation with Gengras about the original record and the rerelease, edited for length and clarity.

Since I Left You: What was the inspiration behind the aesthetic of this record?

M. Geddes Gengras: For the past few years, I had been putting out music at a much slower pace than I had been in the past. I wasn’t working on as much stuff and wasn’t recording as much. My process had gotten a lot more layered. My last record for Hausu I had made pretty quickly, but it was very dense. A lot of going over and over and changing things bit by bit. Lots of editing, micromanaging of sound. This one, it’s all live, with maybe a single overdub. I had a couple old tracks I never found a place to put out, and they had never really fit in with the straight techno stuff, but it was also a little too rhythmic and beat-oriented for what I had been releasing under my own name. The division between those two things had just been sort of pushed out to the extreme in a couple ways. So this was something where I was trying to bring it all together in a playful way, making decisions really quickly, first take-best take, and not obsessing over every contour and curve of each track. Trying to do something that felt a little more impulsive.

SILY: That impulsiveness speaks to the spirit of Hausu Mountain, which is funny, because you didn’t even make this record for them.

MGG: Absolutely. But I feel like it was inspired by them, even if indirectly. The last one I put out on Hausu, there are certainly things in their catalog that go along with it, but so much of what they put out is hyperactive, hyperkinetic off-the-wall. Max’s stuff is so crazy. It’s so bonkers. He’s one of those musicians where I’m just like, “I don’t know how you come up with that.” I don’t know how his brain works. It blows my mind.

When I’m working on something, I think about people. I think about an audience, even if it’s just one person or a couple people. It helps my mind file my way through decisions that might take longer otherwise. [laughs] Max and [label co-founder Doug Kaplan] and Hausu, we had been talking about doing another record together, and this wasn’t intended to be that, but that sort of ethos and spirit pervaded its way into this. It was also pretty early in the whole quarantine thing, and I wanted to do something that was fun, that wasn’t dour ambient music. I wanted something that felt like what I needed to hear at that time.

SILY: The notes on the back of the CD say “composed for/by synthesizers.” It speaks to the randomness inherent in synthesis and improvisation that was how this record was recorded.

MGG: Definitely. I know some people hear something in their head, and they make it. I don’t work like that most of the time. Sometimes, things like that happen, but that’s usually well down the road into the project, and I’m like, “I can hear this part over that.” This is just setting up machines, laying around with them, and being influenced and inspired compositionally by what they are doing. It’s a little more like riding a horse than driving a car: You can tell it what to do, but it’s not always gonna do what you want it to. That’s the fun part for me.

The things that I love when I listen to the recordings is the stuff I didn’t necessarily do but emerged out of these processes and systems I built. Those are the things that really excite me. It feels more like collaboration and less like sitting alone in a room and plugging wires into things.

SILY: Tell me about the bonus track. Was that just added on when you knew it was going to be rereleased?

MGG: When we talked about doing a physical release, I wanted something that was a little value add. [laughs] I was really happy with the way the original record flowed from beginning to end, so it was a practical thing. We were playing around with the order, and it felt a little lopsided. That was a good excuse. I had a couple things left over from the sessions and a couple earlier things I slotted in there, and what I ended up putting in was a year or two old. Something I made and forgot about that sat on my hard drive. I started digging for tracks for an appropriate length. It’s not really an exciting story now that I tell it. [laughs]

I have a handful of tracks that don’t really fit in with the kind of aesthetic I want to do with the PERSONABLE releases because they’re slicker and stripped down. But they haven’t really fit with other releases I’ve done. One thing I’ve done a lot during quarantine is go through a bunch of old stuff. I have a lot of finished recordings that have for one reason or another never found their way out there. In a time when I’ve been feeling particularly productive, it’s been good to clean that stuff out. Find something I like that I want to get out there.

SILY: How did you come up with the track titles of the record?

MGG: Coming up with titles is probably my least favorite part of making a record. [laughs] It’s always the last thing that I do. Maybe that makes it harder, because I’m attempting to put words on something that has existed in a wordless space for a while. I started with the album title, which I stole from a book by Roland Barthes, Mourning Diary, which I was thumbing through. The title caught my eye, and I was thinking a lot about time--I think a lot about time in general--and my music plays with the concept of time, whether it’s distorting your perception of time, or this release, different rhythms, which are expressions of organized time. I started with that, and then I went through the tracks and listened to them over and over again and wrote down words and imagery that came to mind. I started using that as a launching point. Some of the track titles are descriptive of what the sounds sound like to me, and some of them are more playing with the imagery I get when I hear it. It’s not a terribly deep process. It’s usually done in kind of a panic, and sometimes it’s okay. It’s one of those things after the fact I’m like, “It’s fine, I guess. At least I did it.”

SILY: So the album art got the Hausu treatment, too.

MGG: Oh yes. Max asked whether I wanted to do that, and I said, “In fact, I demand it.” Any time I can see a new piece of Max’s art, I’m excited to. His aesthetic is so deeply up my alley as a lifelong gamer from the Super Nintendo generation. He somehow makes the most psychedelic 16-bit dreamscapes and gets things perfectly, and it’s never what I expect. Both this and the last one. I love the aesthetic of Hausu. It’s so fried and beautiful and fits the sound of the label. They’ve created this visual umbrella: You can spot it from a mile away.

SILY: Are you doing any sort of release show with them?

MGG: That remains to be seen. I think it would be fun to do something. I’m a little intimidated about performing this kind of stuff live because it’s out of my comfort zone. I’d like to do something. It’s probably a lot easier to do something like this now that we’re trapped in our houses than it would be to [coordinate] from our respective cities otherwise. I’m gonna say yes, and then I’m gonna talk to Max and Doug. [laughs] I’ll be like, “I told the guy!”

SILY: Yeah. “In fact, it’s already published.”

MGG: That’s how you get things done. You start with the media and work backwards. But I haven’t done a performance since the first or second month of quarantine. I’m kind of itching to do something.

SILY: What’s next for you?

MGG: I’ve got a few really cool collaborations I’m working on right now that I’m really excited about. I’ve got a record with Miles Seaton from Akron/Family. I played with them for about a year. We made a record and did the basic tracking here in Hudson a little over a year ago. I’m right now going through the mixing and overdubs. It’s a strange record: a lot of weird instrumentation and operating in zones we don’t normally work in. I’m working on a project with this guy from Los Angeles that’s a video game-themed band that’s happening via WeTransfer. And I’m doing a record with a friend of mine who records as Psychic Reality that we made three years ago. A few solo things. And a few other things I can’t talk about yet.

I find it helpful to put something down for a long time, come back to it later, and see what makes sense. Coming out of a long period of inactivity, I’m trying to poke my brain cells a little bit, and one way of doing that is to work with amazing musicians.

SILY: Is there anything you’ve been listening to, reading, or watching lately that’s caught your attention?

MGG: I’ve been reading a lot of Stephen King. I had been already, and it just seems extremely appropriate right now. It’s nice to curl into something where you could blast through a few hundred pages at your leisure. I haven’t been listening to a ton of music except for a lot of Imaginary Softwoods. That’s been my go-to recently. A lot of Keith Jarrett, too. I’ve been feeling really melodic, beautiful things. And the other side of that is I’ve been revisiting a lot of my favorite hardcore records from the late 90′s. As our world descends into chaos, I feel like it’s more relevant than ever.

[fluidsf]

Various Artists: CROSSOVERS (2012) Reviewed format: Digital Album released on CRÓNICA Hello, I'm back once again and today I've got another great release on the Portugese label CRÓNICA for you. The 2012 Various Artists compilation CROSSOVERS which compiles a big selection of collaborative performances from events organized by British sound artist Simon Whetham as part of his project Active Crossovers. The compilation download is in 16-bit/44.1kHz CD quality and features the cover artwork in good resolution as well as a PDF file with the full tracklist, release description and credits. This a pay-what-you-want release on the Bandcamp page, you can enter 0 to get it for free but it's also good to support the artists and the label by paying for it, as a donation for their good efforts, like I did. CROSSOVERS is a compilation album of various sonic approaches and styles, but what is definitely clear about the general sound of this compilation is that the music and sound art often has a rather Ambient sound to it. While not all 23 pieces on the compilation are relaxed and meditative, many pieces carry a kind of peaceful atmosphere with them, even with the free improv spirit lingering in many pieces the music is rarely harsh or abrasive in a Noise direction. With its total length of 3 hours and 4 minutes the compilation does demand quite a lot of patience from the listeners, however I found this compilation to be quite the smooth listening experience and while there are a few pieces on here that I didn't find as interesting (and left my attention wandering off a bit) the music in general is varied, creative and captivating. In many ways the compilation takes listeners on a journey that crosses the perception of sound and music but can also be a good accessible guide to listeners (like me) who've only about just started digging into the Sound Art releases out there and showcases the many immersive ways these artists use, shape and manipulate sound. So what was the approach of organizing the collaborations on this compilation? Well, as Simon Whetham points out in the PDF file, all artists collaborate with artists they've never collaborated with before, in pairs. Besides this, Simon also asked the participating artists to follow a kind of structure in the performance which enables both collaborators to move from solo 1 (first performer) to collaboration to solo 2 (second performer) and in my opinion has also given the pieces a kind of good base with which the perfomances sound more like polished finished pieces than freely improvised pieces that may or may not work. While complete freedom can indeed cause amazing music in improvised music, the few rules for the collabs on this compilation definitely shaped the sound in a positive coherent way that also never blocks the freedom at the same time. CROSSOVERS starts with a collaboration between Andi Chapple and Dominic Lash on track 1, it's a decent piece and there's an interesting interplay between delayed "clapping" watery percussion rhythms and violin improvisation, not one of my favourites however. So, we'll move to track 2 on which Simon Whetham (who appears on many of these collabs himself) collaborates with Nurse With Wound member Colin Potter, it's a great mixture of mysterious distorted Drones fading in and out an ambience of what sounds like "metallic" birds. It sounds a bit like the soundtrack of an alien landscape made of both metal and organic materials that hides its own secrets. On track 3 Simon is collaborating with Jonathan Coleclough, a pretty lowercase piece full of subtle vinyl crackling, clicks and small metallic sounds spread over the stereo field that feels like a peaceful massage of the ears by a sonic abstract painting of small objects. On track 4 Felicity Ford and Mark Durgan create a nice trippy piece of (lo-fi) music infused with hiss that sounds similar to 60's psychedelic synth experiments, a lot of quirky liquid sounds combined with sharp "electric" impulses by Felicity Ford. Felicity Ford is active nowadays with her ongoing project Knitsonik in which she combines her knitting art pieces with sound art. Which is definitely audible in the needle impulses in the collaboration. Martin Franklin and Cheapmachines created a cloud of sound that sounds like earth in its texture mixed with electricity and industrial machine sounds. A slightly rough yet also calm piece that flows as a drone yet also progresses in the changing crackling, whirrs and other artifacts moving around. On Track 6 Rebecca Joy Sharp and Philip Jeck combine Rebeca's harp performance and Philip's warm sonic resonant clouds of sound into a piece that feels both Classical but like a Contemporary Classical composition in alternate universe filled with soft hisses, bells, resonances that embrace the harp in a warm hug of sonic particle dust. On track 7 Simon Whetham and Antony Hall collaborate on one of my favourite tracks from this compilation. It's a piece full of feedback, hisses as well as naturally occuring "Noise", what I liked the most about this piece however tho is the way it slowly progresses into what sounds like a storm happening. The last part with all the wooden hinges sounds also feels like a wooden house moving and being affected by the heavy wind of the storm. Track 8, the collaboration piece between Rodrigo Constanzo and Mark Pilkington is a funny piece, what starts as a calm electro-acoustic piece featuring live glitching of musical phrases moves to a pretty hilarious part of free jammming with drums and quirky synth sounds that sounds plesantly silly but also not annoyingly random. Playful and fun. Anton Hunter and Igor Hax's collaboration on track 9 is another favourite of mine. The snowstorm piece as I would call it, it's full with mysterious wind sounds as well as acoustic percussive texture that flows unpredictably like a snowstorm yet also gradually, in a captivating cinematic piece of music. Simon Whetham and Richard Ormrod's collab on track 10 is pretty enjoyable but the free acoustic improvisation in the piece didn't quite work as well for me as in other pieces, so I didn't like this one that much. On track 11 however Simon Whetham and Rhodri Davies deliver a sweet sonic picture filled with crumbling rocks and glassy harp resonances, abstract but also exciting in its progression. Markus Jones and Ollie Dover's collab on track 12 is again not bad, but not my favourite kind of free improv style. Track 13 with Ben Gwilliam and Phil Harding is also again, not my favourite, with the high frequency sinewave manipulation masking the details of the music more rather than enhancing it, in my opinion. Track 14 however is a sweet piece of music with Simon Whetham and Iris Garrelfs in which Iris's vocal manipulations are particularly unique and interesting, combined with rustles and long resonant drones. Fascinating piece. The collaboration between Lee Gamble and Scanner on track 15 is probably one of the more obvious ones on this compilation, but the piece is definitely captivating and seemless in its sound, warm distorted hissy drones combined with glitches and quirky electronic effects. It's also the only piece on the album that has a steady beat going at some point. Solid good piece. Both track 16 and 17 are pretty soft pieces of lowercase aural experimentation and while pleasant didn't work for me unfortunately. The collaboration between Simon Whetham and Bela Emerson on track 18 sounds like an electro-acoustic boiling pot of sound, it's very enjoyable in its mixture of liquid, metallic, resonating sounds that keep changing like some magic potion of textures. Duncan Harrison and Paul Khimasia Morgan bring a nice piece on track 19, highlight of this piece is the high frequency glitch+sine pattern that sounds like a scanner device, scanning data or other equipment that makes soft sounds while working. It gives a kind of safe feeling in the atmosphere of this piece which is often pretty sparse in its sound but features some unexpected bursts of sounds as well as deep underlying vibe of mystery. Track 20 with Alexander Wendt and Slow Listener features interestingly resonating harmonics as well as field recordings of a supermarket and also a distant police siren, nice touches to a good piece. Simon Whetham and Skjølbrot's collaboration on track 21 is a sweet glitchy Ambient piece. On track 22 Ekoplekz and Bugbrand bring some proper modular analog spaciness, Bugbrand is nowadays a developer of analog synth modules so in this case it's definitely a collab in more than the music itself alone. Proper synth Noise weirdness over 16+ minutes that is rather stretched out but very enjoyable and intense to listen to, awesomely psychedelic. The last track, by Kathy Hinde and SJ Esau is also very nice, Kathy's nature-inspired percussive acoustic "system" slowly flows itself towards the rhythm of the song that SJ Esau forms with it, which very bright and pleasant. Great ending track of this compilation. CROSSOVERS is a rather enjoyable and thrilling ride of a compilation that often surprises, inspires and immerses in the wide variety of sonics these artists all conjur up together. While I didn't like all the pieces, I really do appreciate all the effort put in by all artists to give us all these unique collaborations. A good recommended listen for everyone interested in getting into a proper morning, afternoon, evening long listen of the rich sonic landscape of experimental music and Sound Art. Digital Album is available from the CRÓNICA Bandcamp page here: https://cronica.bandcamp.com/album/crossovers

[medicalmarijuana-news]

The HIGH TIMES Interview: Marzi Montazeri

I arranged to meet guitarist Marzi Montazeri (former Phil Anselmo and the Illegals) a couple of weeks ago at the Rainbow Bar and Grill on Sunset Strip. The plan was to enjoy a few drinks, have a nice dinner and dive into the interview like a true, brazen professional. But as with any situation involving rock ‘n’ roll, an insatiable thirst for cheap beer and the adrenaline that was sure to spill while mingling in the very spot where legendary bands like Led Zeppelin and Mötley Crüe once came to relish in drunken savagery, the chances of getting out of there with any memory of the night whatsoever, much less with a well documented account of Marzi’s current affairs, were not on my side.

I thought about this, as my Uber driver dropped me off in front of the bar. “Welcome to the drunken jungle,” I thought. “You’re screwed.”

Once inside, I could tell the evening was destined to go down pretty much the way I had anticipated. There was simply too much happening all around us to properly take care of the business at hand. But then again, I began to ponder, through a series of two-fisted flashes of quasi-philosophic swill and burp-infused backwash, how this meeting was never really about work—although I had an editor back in New York that would surely beg to differ. From where I was sitting, Marzi and I were just a couple of guys with good intentions, each doing their best to conduct themselves like true masters of their respective trade in the midst of a wild-eyed Saturday night. Greater men than us would have broken under the weight of less debauchery. I had watched it happen countless times before.

Somewhere along the way, the mission, my assignment to find out more about this prolific guitar player, had taken backseat to the rapid pulse of the Hollywood music scene, and there was a point—I swear to the Gods of Earth and heavy metal, there was—when Marzi began to subliminally transmit a signal to me from across the table, quite possibly in the key of E-flat minor, that when translated to the English language sounded a whole lot like, “Fuck this interview shit, let’s just go out back and get stoned.”

So, that’s what we did.

We fired up a joint in what has been deemed Lemmy’s Lounge and proceeded to smoke the damn thing as though we were literally standing in the boots of those untouchable high heroes that had come before us. But the grand illusion was soon shattered when one of the Rainbow’s security guards politely told us that we would have to take the weed outside. Of course, we obliged. It was then that Marzi, a real charismatic force and all around nice guy, really began to loosen up. The man had a story to tell. So, no matter how hard his manager mad dogged me from across the way (at least that was my perception… but then again, I was probably just high), I kept my recorder rolling the entire time. It seemed the interview would go down as planned.

HIGH TIMES: You’re in town playing the Randy Rhoads Remembered show at the Jost Theater. How did you get involved with that project?

Marzi Montazeri: Brian Tichy, a former drummer for Ozzy Osbourne, Whitesnake, Billy Idol and a slew of other folks, reached out to see if I was interested in playing. So I came out here [to Los Angeles] and picked out S.A.T.O. [from Ozzy’s “Diary of a Madman”], because I really wanted to play that song. I think Sebastian Bach wanted to play it also, so I was like, “Whoa, I get to jam with Sebastian.” But then Tichy told me that Sebastian wanted to play it with his guitar player. On the night of the show, they told me that Gus G [former Ozzy guitarist] cancelled, so they wanted me to play “Mr. Crowley” instead. Crowley has two solos in it, so I had to learn the stuff real quick.

HT: Hell yeah, I saw that video. You got to jam with legendary bassist Rudy Sarzo. How was that experience?

MM: You know, so the time comes to go on stage, and I’m taking a leak, and I hear someone calling my name, “Marzi!” So I just run downstairs grab my fiddle, jump on stage and we started playing “Crowley.”

When it was over, I looked to my right and Rudy’s just walking towards me, man, and he reaches out his hand for a handshake. I shake his hand and say, “I love you, man,” and then he pulls me in for a hug. It was a very emotional moment for me. It was absolutely cool. This time around, on Thursday night, as a matter of fact, I got to jam with Phil Soussan.

HT: You also performed with a Rush tribute this week at the Jost Theater.

MM: Yes. I played in “A Farewell to Kings,” which is four decades of Rush music. I picked the song “Anthem” from the Fly By Night album. I knew I could get away with playing it a little bit heavier than what Rush had done it and still pay homage to it…and so I did. I think that’s probably the heaviest version of “Anthem” being played, you know. I know other bands have covered it, but I did it quite differently that night. I even pulled off Alex’s [Lifeson] solo close to what he had done, even though I’m not the note for note guy. It was really fun.

HT: Washburn is about the release a signature series Marzi Montazeri guitar called “The Priestess.” How did that come about? I mean, how does a musician end up getting his own guitar model?

MM: A big part of it has to do with a gentleman named Joe Delaney, who is the president of U.S. Music Corporation. I had my eyes set on a signature amp, to be honest with you, and that’s what the talks were about…and it’s still going to happen. It’s going to happen next year at NAMM—my Marzi Montazeri signature head. But with the guitar, that’s first obviously, that was the push from Joe. I think he has the same kind of spirit as I do. When he saw me play, I think he saw this wild American blues, hard rock, aggressive metal, extreme player, where it was just like fun and dangerous. I think that’s what he liked about me, and he pushed for it.

So he connected me with Greg Heritier, who has been with Washburn for about 15 years, and Greg and I—Greg lives in Amsterdam mind you, I live in Houston, Texas—went back and forth in the beginning. It was like a tennis match. We weren’t seeing eye-to-eye. He had some vision and I had some other vision. But we created this baby together. The Priestess that you see today is our baby. It’s the fruit of our labor, so to speak. I got to tell you, it exceeded my expectations. It’s comfortable to play it and it gets so many different varieties of tones from like a Les Paul to the thing I love the most, which is a Gibson Firebird. Seymor Duncan designed a couple of Humbuckers for me we call “Hickups,” instead of pickups, because I’m a damn hick. It’s an extreme instrument…you can just get after it, you can go crazy with it, and you can literally play any sound of music that you want with it. It’s about to be available through Musician’s Friend.

HT: Let’s address the elephant in the room. What happened with Phil Anselmo and the Illegals?

MM: It ran its course. I did what I was supposed to do and it ended. I found out through the Internet. Someone posted a picture of the band with another guitar player, so that’s how I found out. I was more relieved than anything. It had run its course for me, and musically I’m obviously already doing other things. I’m glad it happened. I’m really happy where I’m at, and I wouldn’t be here right now if that gig wouldn’t of happened. I have no ill feelings whatsoever, and what I accomplished during that time was notable. I’m off to a new chapter.

HT: When you and I first met in St. Louis during the PHA and Illegals  “Technicians of Distortion” tour a couple of years back, you seemed pretty excited to get started on the band’s second record. Did everything just go to shit from there?

MM: In my heart, I thought there was going to be a sophomore attempt, but a sophomore attempt would have pushed that band, especially with the same line up, to another level. And I don’t think it was something they were welcoming with me being a part of it. I require a certain type of attention. I’m a songwriter. I’m not a follower. I’m not going to have my contribution not be noted, and they were not noted. I was not credited for the things I had done, so I wanted to take charge of that this time around.

HT: So, that’s when you decided to go out on your own?

MM: You know, I was really anxious because I obviously want to put music out, but I didn’t want to rush anything. I thought, “What do I have to prove…why don’t I take my time and do certain things to make sure that this music gets heard on a broader scale.” So I met with a friend of mine [Paul Provost] that had the same idea about my career, so we became partners and started a label called Crunchy Western Records, which pretty much describes what type of music I play. If you were to dissect that label, I would call it heavy Texas blues and beyond. Now you can take that to any kind of southern genre and change it to Mississippi and you’re still going to get that same kind of thing. I think there’s a little bit of Marzi in everybody, so I wanted to make sure that I get this music out to people and share it with them.

HT: Does that mean there is a new Marzi record coming out in the near future?

MM: Yes. My first attempt on Crunchy Western is slated for 4-20, for obvious reasons. It is Marzi Montazeri featuring Tim “Ripper” Owens… or something like that. It’s just me and Tim Owens, who is former Judas Priest. It’s unlike anything else he’s done before, which makes it really interesting. It’s refreshing, and at a time like today, for us to be doing what we’re doing, I cannot wait for the people to hear it. We got Chris Collier, a Grammy nominated engineer/producer from Los Angeles to work on this record. He has put his golden touch on it and made it sound absolutely amazing. I can’t wait, and it’s coming April 20th. By then, we will probably release a video or sneak peak of song. And that’s just the beginning.

HT: How did you get involved with Tim Owens?

MM: I was backstage trying to catch my breath after a show ,and this girl comes and says, “Bobby Blotzer from Ratt wants to say hi to you.” Now I’m like in North Houston, okay, what’s a Hollywood boy doing there? I thought they were full of shit, and I was like, “Go fuck yourself.” The door opens up and he’s just sneaking his head in. He was lit up and said something about doing too many shooters. I didn’t know what “shooters” were because we do shots in Texas. He tells me my performance was the greatest display of metal he had ever seen. We befriended each other that night. He later invited me out to his house for a little barbecue. After that, he asked if I wanted to be on the Judas Priest tribute record [Hell Bent Forever]. We were going to do the song “Exciter.”

He had a studio in Houston, and when I showed up he said, “Where’s your guitar?” I told him I brought a pick. I was so unprepared. There was a cool guy at the studio and he let me borrow his Les Paul. As I’m warming up, this guy tells me, “Hey, you know I come to Houston often. If you want me to give you guitar lessons, I will.” It was Tim Owens. He’s perfect. His harmonies are amazing. He is a freaking machine, man, and he’s a true gentleman. He’s an articulate guy who takes care of business, and to top it all off, he has a great sense of humor.

HT: What about your band Heavy As Texas. Can we expect to hear new music from that as well?

MM: Yes. The next release we’re doing is from my band Heavy As Texas. It’s got unbelievable members in it, just great, talented, beautiful people. We got the great Kyle Thomas of the original Exhorder from New Orleans. Best heavy band ever. He was with many other bands, like Alabama Thunder Pussy, which had a hit song called “Words of a Dying Man.” It was on MTV. He is now the current singer for Trouble, and he is also the current singer for Heavy As Texas.

HT: Are there plans to tour with any of these projects?

MM: Definitely. Not only will Heavy As Texas tour the U.S., we’re going to go to Canada, Central and South America, and I really predict Europe before anything else, too.

HT: I was just talking to a member of your crew. He told me that you get stoned before every live performance. Is that true… because your playing seems flawless?

MM: Oh man, yes absolutely. It’s a ritual. There’s nothing wrong with it. Best thing to do is to medicate. But I’ve never done it for the sake of wasting time. It’s always inspired me. First thing marijuana did for me in my twenties was make me a more focused musician. I was such a sporadic, son of a bitch guitar player… all over the place. It made me very perceptive in this world where you have nothing but distractions. So I’d put in a movie like “Pink Floyd: The Wall” with my buddies back in high school. I’d even tell em’, “Man, not a peep out of you motherfuckers. Nobody talks until after the movie and we can discuss.” So we’d burn one and watch the movie. You could tell everyone was into it. You can hit a joint without having to flap your damn mouth. And it was awesome. Then we would have a lot of pizza and jam out. You know there’s always a fun aspect to it.

HT: So do you prefer marijuana to booze?

MM: The alcohol versus marijuana debate is the most asinine, ignorant thing I grew up with. I still hear about it, and I’m like, “you must be joking.” People drinking bottles of whiskey, looking down on you cause you smoke weed. Living in Texas, it’s just taboo. They sit there with a drink in their hands, slurring their words, but criticize me for doing something natural, from the earth, to help myself focus or help myself because I’m sick…because I am, in many different ways.

HT: Have you ever been busted for marijuana possession?

MM: Man, I’ve had so many brushes with the law, it’s not even funny. But it is funny as hell. I can tell you stories for days. One time, we had like a half-pound, and my buddy and me get pulled over. Both of us had warrants. The cop took our licenses and you know, the pot was right under my feet. He came back and said, “You both have warrants, you know.” I was just thinking of all these bad things, and then he tells us that he doesn’t feel like dealing with it. It was after hours, and he was ready to go home, so he pardoned us and said, “I’m sure you guys are going to take care of these warrants.”

Another time, I had a couple J’s rolled in my truck for after a gig. The truck was a ’62 Ford…no tags or insurance. I don’t know why I took it to the gig. So we get pulled over by eight state troopers. It wasn’t eight in the beginning, it was just one. But they were like piling up one after another. I gave these two joints to my guitar tech and told him to get rid of them. This cop got us out and he questioned us. I remember he put me back in the truck, and he took my friend out. He was asking us if we had dope, and of course we told him no. He’s going through my guitar case, going through my cables and then second car comes, third car comes, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth car comes.

So they get us out and say, “what do we got here?” My brilliant friend had just tossed them, but the eight cops found them. So the main guy gets me out, but before I get to the bed of my truck he says, “We can talk about two chicken shit joints all night or,” as soon as he said they’re chicken shit joints, I told him they were mine. I saw anger in him, so I fessed up quickly. I told him I was going to smoke them after my show. And he says, “Well, why did you lie to me?” I said I got nervous man, I’m scared, my girlfriend’s 10 months pregnant. I remember saying that: My girlfriend’s fucking 10 months pregnant (laughs). Then he said, “Go on and get then.” I swear to you. Go on and get. After 45 minutes, get it to a climax like that. I fucking took off and got with my buddy. The joints were on the dash and I helped myself to one on the way home. Good times. It was awesome.

Mike Adams is a freelance writer for HIGH TIMES, Snoop Dogg’s Merry Jane and several other marijuana-themed publications. His work has also appeared in Playboy. You can follow him at: http://ift.tt/1ZNXISA, on Twitter @adamssoup or on Instagram @mikeadamsofficial.

Keep up with all of HIGH TIMES’ culture coverage, here. 

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