Thanks to Dee Dee for bringing my attention to Lispector, who becomes the latest addition to my list of twenty first century obsessions. For today and for maybe this week at least. Probably longer, if truth be told, but let’s not leap ahead of ourselves here, right?

I mean, how can you not adore someone who has a song called ‘juvenile delinquent’ and who writes lyrics like ‘Girls make songs in their bedrooms, Girls want to sing like Debbie Harry’? How can you not fall completely in love with someone who has songs called ‘Chaos In The Studio’, or ‘Winona Forever (Tattoo Song)’? Especially when the latter has a line that goes ‘My head explodes once a week, that s pretty intense don't you think?’ Oh, and not forgetting the most wonderfully odd cover of ‘total eclipse of the heart’ you’re ever likely to hear. Even in your dreams.

How can not love something when the sound is so perfectly special as this: imagine Stephin Merritt messing around with Young Marble Giants in a French village, recording their fun and games onto a four track recorder, and hey, you’re only beginning to get slightly close. Yes, it’s really that good.

As painfully cool as piercing your heart with icicles, Lispector have me all of a flutter. Apparently there’s an album called ‘human problems and how to solve them’ on Ponytail records, out of USA, or Antimatiere out of France. I can’t wait until I can track a copy down…

posted by duke harringay at 7:43 PM

And go here for a laugh. Make sure you have your 'irony' hat on.
posted by duke harringay at 9:35 PM

oh yeah, and there was a new playlist added to the Tangents radio station a couple of days ago... go here: http://www.live365.com/stations/296583 and listen.

posted by duke harringay at 9:34 PM

Went to town today. It was funny weather, very moist air, pretty damn warm for the end of October too. I wanted a haircut but my favoured barber was closed, so instead of settling for an inferior establishment I decided to do without and go out again tomorrow or Friday. It seems pretty silly when you’re talking about a four fifty haircut that’s just a grade two at the sides and a trim on the top, but you’d be surprised just how badly and wrongly some can do that.

Then I went and bought some new scalpel blades and sketchbook. I hope to use the sketchbook before the end of the week’s holiday. Actually, being more realistic, I hope to use my new sketchbook before the end of the year. I let Meg borrow three of my old sketchbooks last week, and it was nice looking through them, seeing what I’d been doing. I kind of missed not doing as much drawing. And I did enjoy drawing in the Museum when we were there with the Year 10 some weeks back now. I ought to do it more often. Sigh. How many things have I said that about, and how many times? I need to go and see that exhibition at the museum too, the one with the Hirst piece. I mean, it’s only down the road, and was right next door to where I had lunch today. So really there’s no excuse. I just forgot all about it.

I tried to buy some new sneakers today but to no avail. The chap who runs the store in the Guildhall Shopping Centre is the only one who stocks Simple sneakers here, and I’m a bit of a traditionalist when it comes to Sneakers, and only Simple will do for me. They’re just the greatest. I’ve had about four or five pairs in the past six or so years. I love them. Sadly, however, the store didn’t have any, and more worryingly still the chap says he’s got problems with the importer who has, it appears, simple stopped importing Simple. I went home and tried to buy some on-line, but again to no avail. I could only find US stores with on-line sales and they didn’t ship internationally. Grrr. My life is so petty that being unable to buy the right sneakers is my major worry… how sad is that?

Didn’t ride my bike today, but did yesterday and hated much of it. It was again very moist air, and warm. So my glasses kept steaming up as I went up the hill towards Cadbury castle (the legend says there is a dragon there guarding a stash of gold). Bloody horrible climb too. I’d never been up that way before, just down. It’s a lot steeper than I remember it being, but then it always seems that way going uphill, doesn’t it? There were some little deer in the field beside the road, and squirrels kept trying to throw themselves under my wheels. Ditto pheasants, which really are dim-witted birds.

posted by duke harringay at 9:33 PM