THE novel Dune, started out about as unpromisingly as a novel can -- published after many rejections, on a press specializing in auto manuals. But spoke to its own time as well as to ours, and it's still the best-selling sf novel ever.HERE is my LA Times story on the novel and its legacy in literature, ideas and film.There are of course all kinds of connections between Dune with Star Wars and … [Read more...]
The Artistry of Cole Gerst
THE graphic design genius of Cole Gerst struck me the first time I saw his indie-rock posters for Spaceland and the T-shirts he designs as Option-G: Birds, bears and other animals against a cool, retro-modernist background.His work struck me as in the tradition of architect John Lautner and illustrator Charley Harper, with its mariage of nature and culture -- what architecture historian Alan Hess … [Read more...]
Record Store Day 2010
TODAY is National Record Store Day, a time to celebrate and look back at an institution dying the same slow death as delis, jazz and newspapers. But with some great moments left and some great moments ahead.HERE is a previous post on Record Store Day that gets into my own personal history with record shops, and includes an article about record store clerks in LA, especially at Amoeba Music.I'm … [Read more...]
The Return Of Pavement
Pavement, arguably the finest indie-rock band of the '90s, has reunited for a spring and summer tour: I saw a very focussed and often wonderful show in Pomona, Calif, last night -- those guitars still sound so alien and familiar at the same time -- they will be at Coachella on Sunday, and a Sept. 30 Hollywood Bowl appearance has just been announced.This was, of course, the unsentimental kind of … [Read more...]
Spring in California
DESPITE some early support for sage and cilantro, the fragrant, woody rosemary seems to be leading my Favorite Herb poll.Still a couple days left to vote -- a lot could happen between now and then.Update: Poll results in! It's rosemary, then cilantro then basil. Take a bow, folks! … [Read more...]
The Slyness of Jeremy Denk
ONE of the coolest and most genuinely individualistic musicians I've ever met is the classical pianist Jeremy Denk, whose blog Think Denk is witty, sometimes loopy, and always provocative. He's an enthusiast of Nabokov and Proust, and a player of very deep feeling whose treatment of Ives has left some friends spellbound.HERE is my piece on Denk, who comes to town next week for two concerts with … [Read more...]
Cool New Blog Launch
TODAY I want to announce the launch of a new blog dedicated to subjects of pressing importance here in California -- education, books, technology, libraries and reading. Dig Me Out -- the name comes from the founder's roots in '90s indie rock -- looks at these subjects and takes a special interest in Young Adult fiction.It's run by Pasadena school librarian Sara Scribner, who like many of her ilk … [Read more...]
Remembering the Civil Rights Years
LIKE a lot of people, I knew the reputation of Eyes on the Prize, the famous documentary about the civil rights movement in the Deep South in the '50s and '60s. But watching all six hours of it was simultaneously spirit-rousing and soul-crushing as I watched the movement beaten back time and time again.The documentary, which originally broadcast in 1987, has been out of circulation for decades, … [Read more...]
Johnny Cash It Is
GIVEN the people who seem to follow my blog, I expected Gram Parsons or Townes Van Zandt -- both key figures in that transition from country to alt-country -- to run away with this poll.But Johnny Cash, whose career was both driven and nearly undermined by his struggles with alcohol, drugs, politics and Christianity, comes out on top. He is, to my ear, the most complicated of his generation of … [Read more...]
Saving SoCal’s Libraries, Part 2
RECENTLY I wrote about the plan of Pasadena Unified School District to get rid of all of its school librarians and, probably, shut all of its school libraries. HERE is a new interview librarian Sara Scribner, who is also my wife, gave to her field's main publication, School Library Journal, on this and related topics.Sample exchange: Do you think administrators and teachers value school … [Read more...]