#sensations! thats progress! im SO BORED

[steampoweredskeleton]

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[xelsjournal]

december 11 2022 2:12 pm

i think i got it backwards again. like for a while i was laying around like hmmm how to i attract change cuz i feel happy quite frequently and in general am content but im a bit bored. so i decided to switch up everything, my routine, my habits, my intentions, my affirmations, my mindset and see where that would take me. at the very least i can enjoy the voyage and all the newness. and for a while, i had a blast, lots changed, very interesting times, lots of ups and downs. and ive come back to a place of like stability and contentment, but also boredom again and like a looming concern of stagnancy. like im at a start of a long journey and im making my slow and steady progress but im like antsy. but i know that im at the beginning of something in one part of my life and the end of a cycle in another part of my life. i can feel the the dissonance in my joints and i feel restless. i want to rush to somewhere and get there fast, but i know thats not the right way and frankly i cant speed up the pacing of this voyage. i think i just revealed to myself that i need to exercise to relieve the sensation of wanting to expell energy but needing to redirect it. but thats not what this journal was about. anyways back to the topic of change and happiness, i asked myself again recently if i was happy and i said hmmm not really. im not sad, nothings wrongs but im just kinda going about my business, living life. it felt like i was waiting to be happy, like waiting for something to be happy about, for something outside of my to come along and set off a chain reaction that would bring me the ultimate wish fulfillment. so i went all grind mode, gotta-change-up-my-path-so-i-can-change-up-my-life, and i put my happiness somewhere else, somewhere ahead of me in some distant land. and i left and i lived. and i had a fucking blast lmaooo i put my joy in all those exhilarating moments, in those inconveniences, in that sensation of newness. i had been so anticipating it and finally making it happen and deciding to experience it fully and openly, and then having it all play out in such a fun way, so to have it come to what felt like such an abrupt stop and redirection was kind of jarring. i was still committed to enjoying myself until i could get back to somewhere else but then it continued. and continued. and continued some more. and the longer i spend here (realistically im being v dramstic cuz its mostly been these past few days), the more im wondering when tf im gonna go again lmao. cuz like the people im round rn arent making me happy or bringing me peace. if anything 80% of the time theyre feeding my own anger and discontentment. for a while i didnt notice it but since i noticed it like two days ago, every interaction is becoming an obstacle course as i dodge hooks into aggravating conversations or implicit requests for verbal drama dumps. and it has me thinking,,,, do i even wanna be here around these people!?! i think not! cuz why my day gotta be ruined just cuz urs is? but also at the same time im literally here and i cant escape that reality. so do i wait to be happy again? and i kinda subconsciously determined i would have to wait for another voyage to get my happiness back. but i came across a post a few minutes ago that said something about having “to find happiness in the little things all around you” and that had me pause bc damn yeah my life doesnt have to be bleak “until” anything. theres so many things i enjoy, my own company at the top of the list, theres just no reason my happiness needs to only look like one thing of be associated to one thing. i can find my happiness in this very moment. then it had me remembering the law of attraction and how this is kind of a good hack. if i want to be happy and living in excitement, i need to start doing so now. me being happy and exhilarated attracts. more and more opportunities for it to me, so it can open the doors to the joy im seeking by experiencing it in the now. this us a word salad and idc.

[tillymint7]

Rick Creed 😎

Rick lectures was great, his humour and the relaxed way he speaks about his work it speaks volumes to me about how comfortable he is with how he creates. I hope Im lucky enough one day to attain that sense of depth and self knowledge.

To Rick life is a circle ⭕️ he talks so beautifully about all the world being drunk and he is just trying to make some sense out of it through his work. I love this analogy so much.

His works with mixed media found objects and geometric shapes that create a sense of perspective in his paintings. Ricks says his paintings are very urban due to his love of the city. To me they also have a sense of journey, like a story of colour and emotion. Rick also talked about the countryside unnerving him, he gets confused by all the green 😂He talks about how the more dangerous an area is the more he is attracted to it. His paintings explore painting beyond the frame. He talks about going for a walk on the canvas, which sounds really romantic 💓

Rick also uses Latin words for his titles, which is a language that I find fascinating. My generation just missed out on learning Latin in school, but Iv always heard how difficult it is to learn.

It’s interesting to see that literature plays a big part in Risks inspiration as well as the fabulous artist Piet Mondrian. I can see Piet Mondrians influence in Ricks work through his use of colour and geometric shapes.

In particular Rick is inspired by a 12th century poet called Rumi ❣️ I’ll definitely have to investigate this poet, the one poem he read was absolutely beautiful. 🥰

Titles are very important to Rick giving the viewer a way in to maybe understanding or reading his work.

His atitude to his work is amazing he has gotten to that comfortable place with his work that ability to stay out of his own head so he can create, which is a great skill. Iv always been able to zone out so much so thats sometimes I even do it unconsciously during conversation, not through being consciously rude or bored, but it’s just how my mind travels. I can still get too stuck in my head at times with my own work and it can stop the creative process for me entirely. I hope through years of practice I can hone that fabulous skill.

Rick talks about remembering to be true to our inner selves, thoughts and emotions and not over thinking or allowing outside influences to hinder our genuine self.

Rick’s attitude of doing what you love and being true to ourselves is the best advice. It’s definitely something we all need to remember create work from our hearts without external influence or expectations.

He talked about the time a lecturer told him his work was terrible. He spoke with such passion about his lecturers at uni being ‘a bunch of bastards’ and how that stopped him in his tracks creatively and how destructive that can be for any artist.

To be honest I had happen to me recently with me print work and I havent looked at them since. So I know how he feels. It’s hard to move passed being deflated. Another person aggressively and negatively commenting is so unhelpful. It’s about the wording, critiqually constructive advice helps the person progress and doesn’t hinder the creative process.

I always find Rick really welcoming and lovely to speak too. I know we are constantly being assessed, but Rick it great at making you feel relaxed. He always makes you laugh and listens to what you have to say. He always has time for a natter he is a true legend and a genuinely kind hearted person that doesn’t suffer fools gladly. My favourite Rick moment was catching him walking into our studio making the crucifix sign .....😂🤣 probably best to be safe than sorry.

The Q&A was amazing, Rick’s insight is so reassuring and supportive to us all. I look forward to seeing his new works. He is such a wise and fabulous artist. I hope to be that focused someday.

Rick talked about how we are all embarking on a career where we are always having to start at the beginning. When you look at it that way it makes you realise how much work goes into dedicating your life to art.

I said to Rick once ‘being an artist is like we are dancing in the dark’ We are dancing around hoping not to miss that next step that helps our work come into its own.

Rick Creed - my lecture notes

Robert Crumb - cartoonist

What am I doing in this dimension

Most of the world is drunk - making sense of the none sensical 🥰

Latin - forms our language- English

Abstract shapes bright colour perspective mixed media geometric

Social life inner life - what is is to be human

Tractus- path Latin

Find countryside very strange - smells green

P Mondrian - dedication to trees and the spaces between the trees, which became his geometric shapes ❣️

More dangerous the more attractive something is.

Rock against drugs 🤪

Everything is a circle ⭕️ always feel like that 💖

Unlocking unpicking our practice

Pushing the boundaries

Found objects

Sense of city and furniture 🪑 creates perspective

All end up on the skip recycling 😜

Loves response/ reactions-

Almost like it tells a story?

Eaggemearc- eye Mark

Titles important interesting

Load of bastards hehe 😂 love that term like a room full of bastards - very negative 👎 stops progress completely agree

Show in Turkey

Lacus - not being bound by the frame painting beyond the frame 🖼

Hockasy?? Can’t spell

Recino -

Screw the history - my work for me not for others sod expectations- 🙌

Caput - making a portrait

Paperwork- through a window like a blur or a memory

Drawing good for not being self conscious? Automatic writing ✍️

Trying to be a poet

Volantes- looking down looking through

The Rebel - Doesn’t know he is a genius - is genius real?

‘Your colours are the wrong shape’

Alister Grant - paintings in movie 🍿

Rumi - poetry 12th century?

‘Only from the heart you can touch the sky’

Q&A - work everyday 2 -3

Intuition - I use this

Albion - book 📚 Peter Ackroid

Choosing to explore - I like that

Very urban

Uncertainty and chance

Leaving an imperfection int he work to remain human. Not too perfect.

About me and my head

Built on - go on a walk on the canvas

Seeing the world as shapes

It’s a sensation

Never think I’m making a picture

I became the drawing man 👨

Positivity madder and wilder

[asicmind]

All The World’s a KISS Stage (well, it should be...)

Im not alone in thinking that the greatest picture ever taken in rock and roll history is the picture that is the gatefold of the 1977 double album KISS “Alive 2″. This picture totally defines what it would be like to see KISS in concert. I have been to thousands of concerts and none will ever surpass my first KISS concert two years after this iconic photo was taken. I have a numbered and signed print of this photo (by the photographer), waiting for the right frame to put it in.

now, Im very aware that this photo is staged. it did NOT happen during a show, but I can tell you that ALL OF THAT PHOTO HAPPENED IN THEIR CONCERTS!! It happened when they started in 74, and if you go to a KISS concert today, this photo will come to life. Excitiement like this photo is what I look for in concerts I see today. Some bands do know how to put on a stage show...Rush, Pink Floyd, Flaming Lips . In fact, 5 months after my first KISS live experience, I saw Parliment/Funkadelic who learned from KISS on how to make a concert stage work with great music.

So, it got me thinking...what if KISS and their stage show were a part of every other artists’ concert. The WORST concert I have ever attended was Crosby, Stills and Nash. You know why?? here...

look at that!! How boring is THAT! Seriously, I know they are icons and all that but..what propells people to shell out a ton of money just to see 3 guys under three spotlights strumming on a guitar? Now, if they even had just one member of KISS on that stage, or a tiny explosion..WOW!! That would take it up another notch. So ASICMIND is proud to present to you some unearthed nuggets of music history...artists that have influenced KISS, or were influenced by KISS at some point in their career.

We all know James Brown was the godfather of soul, but did you know that he was also the godfather of Gene Simmons? Thats right. And on several occasions, back in the early years of KISS, you would see James Brown front and center at a KISS concert. And Gene would always give him his propers ( thats what is was called back then..propers...look it up). Gene would say, “I’d like to dedicate this one to the godfather of my soul, James Brown...this is Black Diamond”. It was at these shows that Gene got the idea for crazy dance moves for KISS.

Both Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley will tell you that when they started KISS, they wanted to be The Beatles. They wated to be BIGGER than The Beatles. Both bands were a quartet, made up of a bassist and a guitarist that seemed to be the leaders, and a second guitarist and a drummer who contributed their fair share (although Gene will argue that all the way to court about Peter and Ace). KISS had to make themselves different from The Beatles. The makeup, the outrageous costumes, the fire breathing, bloodspitting, and 2 hour pyrotechnic extravaganza of a show didnt set them apart enough from The Beatles. What did they do? They tried out a fifth member to join KISS that just so happened to be a big influence on The Beatles. Needless to say, Ravi Shankar didnt cut it because he just sat there.

In 1968, Tiny Tim peaked with his rendition of “Tip Toe Thru The Tulips”, his number one hit that only charted at number seventeen. It was his staple. He was only known for that song and playing the ukulele. He wasnt even tiny! He was over 6 feet tall! After years of touring for that one song, he finally decided to change it up a bit in 76 by hiring KISS and the whole stage show to back him on his “1776-1976 Ukulele States Of America” World Tour. He died of a heart attack 20 years later.

Everyone thinks that it was comic Sam Kinison that merged comedy and hard rock. There had always been comedians that blended music into their act. Henny Youngman, Jack Benny, The Smothers Brothers..all acts that incorprated wholesome music with their comedy to give their joke an added punchline, if the music itself wasnt the joke. Richard Pryor, on the other hand, had another idea. His “That Ni**ers Crazy” tour featured a hard rock backing band consisting of four guys in whiteface wearing S&M clothing...who were they? You guessed it...

 1979 brought change for KISS. They had just released the album “Dynasty” which saw KISS “progress” with the music industry by recording a disco song, “I Was Made For Lovin You”. While it did suprisingly well on the charts, it didnt fair well with most of their fans, and The KISS Army was dwindling down to cub scout status. They tried a number of things... Im not sure why they agreed to back Frank Sinatra on a tour, but they were fired after the second performance when Gene got blood on Sinatras tuxedo.

Nobody tours like Loretta Lynn. She has one tour bus just for herself, a second tour bus for her dresses and three pick-up trucks for her band. One tour, Loretta Lynn was traveling from a show in Fargo, North Dakota to the next evenings show in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Her bus and the bus full of her dresses arrive the next afternoon at the venue but the pick up trucks werent there. She figured they had stopped to eat (as it was a Wednesday, the day Loretta lets you eat), but as showtime was approaching a few hours later, the band still hadnt arrived. Well, as her opening act started to play, about twelve 18 wheelers pull up. It was the crew of KISS and they were playing the next night. She politely asked the crew if any of them could play country. None of them could, but they said Paul and Gene always blasted her music on the tour bus and they were coming to see the show. Maybe KISS could be your backup band. Sure enough, when the 5 stretch limos arrived to bring the four members of KISS to the show, they heard the news and agreed to not only perform, but let her use their stage. It was a magical night. The photo shows the exact moment she realized what happened to the band. “Oh my God, they ran out of gas because I forgot to give them their per diem!”.

“Cant Touch Kiss” was the working title for MC Hammer, as he was a huge KISS fan back in the day. One night, Hammer was watching a KISS show from side stage. They started playing “I Was Made For Lovin You”, and Hammer couldnt help himself. He came flying out on the stage, parachute pants and all, and started dancing. After the show, Gene pulled him aside and said “If you ever pull a stunt like that again, or try and use our name in a song, Ill sue your ass so fast, you’ll be broke before you reach triple platinum”...and, now you know what happened to MC Hammer.

Believe it or not, for all of their evil “devil music” and demonic stage shows, their biggest hit was a ballad by drummer Peter Criss, “Beth”, a song with vocals, piano, and a string section. When “Beth” was performed, Peter would come out and sit on a stool and throw roses out to the ladies in the crowd while he sang against a backing music track. One night the band wanted to mix it up a bit. They re-arranged “Beth” to be done by the four members, and Gene called his old buddy from Hebrew School, Barbara Streisand, to come sit in on the one song. She agreed, but only if she could make some changes. That night, and only that night, the song “Beth” became known as “Babs”.

If you have ever seen or heard an interview with Gene Simmons, he is all about the swagger..he is all about being cool. He is cool  when flying 50 feet in the air and blood flowing from his mouth. He thinks he invented cool, so much so that he tried to trademark the word “cool”. He was denied because another artist, Miles Davis, already had it. Gene invited Miles to a KISS show. Miles arrived with his trumpet and walked out on stage unannounced. Gene ran over to him and whispered, “Miles my man, I only invited you to watch, not play”. Miles looked at him and said, “dude, shut the fuck up start playin “Love Gun”. Thats my jam”.

Charlie Daniels wrote the song “Devil Went Down To Georgia” based on seeing a KISS concert in Dahlonega, Georgia. He truly thought that they were the band brought there by Satan himself. Years later, Charlie Daniels still tours with that song being the only one anyone ever recognizes. He makes more money from jukebox residuals than touring. Now with YouTube and all, who needs jukeboxes, so this past year he was invited by Paul Stanley to perform “Devil Went Down to Georgia” at that same venue in Dahlonega. No shocker hear, Paul played the part of the devil. Not sure how they got a stripper pole on that small stage.

A few years ago, KISS was finally inducted into The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. (RRHOF) One of the traditions at the award ceremony is to have someone who was very influenced by, or influential to the nominee introduce them at the award cerfemony and perform with them.. Well that list was too long to pick one person, so the committee pondered on it. Who or what means the most to KISS? The answer...money. At this point during the meeting, the secretary of the RRHOF had just left the room to take a call about her sons babysitter being sick so she had to leave and pick up the boy from the bus stop. Not asking what else was said in the meeting, she went ahead and booked Eddie Money to play with KISS at the ceremony. To this day, KISS doesnt even know why but they made the best of it... Eddie Money blew a blood vessel that night.

Today, KISS is still a major influence all over the performing arts. Even the cast of the broadway sensation “Hamilton” has special once a month matinee performance with KISS as the pit band.

..and even Paul Stanley is a huge “Hamilton” fan..

Today, THE hottest ticket is Adele. No band on stage, no pyro, just ...her...and that voice... people are paying thousands to see her/hear her. but..she knows... she gets it.. she needs to figure out something to boost that stage. Well, she is on the right track.. recently she got former KISS guitarist, Vinnie Vincent who has been a recluse and not been seen in years to come and play guitar for her. He asked if he could wear the makeup and outfit for old times sake. She said, “Sure, as long as you dont spill me coffee, mate”.

Get it?