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Grievous Bodily Harm: Punks armed with an ax & skateboards try to destroy a Seattle ferry in 1987
11.27.2019
03:54 am
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A flier for the GBH/Accüsed show at Natasha’s in Bremerton on October 3rd, 1987.
 
The “riot” that went down on the Washington State Ferry M/V Kitsap on Saturday, October 3rd, 1987, made its way to the pages of The New York Times. The paper published a short report on the incident (via the Associated Press), detailing how fans of local Seattle band The Accüsed and British punks GBH went bananas with an ax and skateboards, destroying defenseless tables and chairs during a ferry ride back to Seattle. According to the article, when asked for his thoughts on the destruction at the hands of his fans on the M/V Kitsap, GBH vocalist Jimmy Wren responded he was “quietly proud” of what went down.

Before we get to the story itself, it is necessary to be aware of how the Teen Dance Ordinance (or TDO) passed in 1985 in Seattle contributed to the angst of young music fans during the years it governed the underage music scene. The passage of the TDO required club owners to obtain a $1 million liability insurance policy for any all-ages event. Another requirement was all underage events were to be staffed by two off-duty SPD officers, a sure-fire buzzkill at any party. Nearly every club was unable to take on the insurance policy, so underage shows in Seattle city limits became a rare occasion. Also important to note is the fact the TDO was a response to some very, very bad things happening to kids hanging out at underage clubs. Specifically The Monastery, a club/church run by George Freeman, an accused predator of Seattle’s homeless youth. When the TDO became law, Freeman referred to it as the “George Freeman Law.”

Four months after the TDO went into effect, the SPD showed up at an all-ages gig at Gorilla Gardens after receiving reports of fire code violations. The club was packed and waiting for the Circle Jerks to take the stage. The fire marshall cut the power at the club, and the crowd flipped out. As they poured outside into a freak Seattle snowstorm, they started hurling bricks and Molotov cocktails at the cops. So it’s safe to say underage music fans, especially the punks, were not feeling fond of Seattle during the days of TDO. When GBH and hometown heroes The Accüsed came to Washington during the Panic in the Casket Tour, they opted to play the gig at Natasha’s (aka Perl’s) in Bremerton, where clubs were not subjected to the rules of the TDO. And what could go wrong when 150 or so drunk punk rockers board the 1:50 am ferry for Seattle following the show along with two off-duty Seattle police officers?

Fucking everything.

According to several accounts, it all started with some sort of disagreeable conversation, which led to a female passenger to start stripping her clothes off on top of a table. One of the punks on board then decided to whip his dick out urinating in a planter or on a bench. The rowdiness does not go unnoticed, dicks out in public normally don’t, and a worker on the ferry grabbed the territorial pisser and pulled him into a large utility closet and closed the door. The mood of the crowd changed in an instant, and people started yelling at the ferry worker to release their friend. One punk got close enough to the door to get pepper-sprayed by the ferry worker inside. By now, some of the more level-headed passengers are calling for help to free their friend. The off-duty cops arrived, and then things went completely to shit. Some of the punks began to spit at the cops. The situation continued to escalate rapidly. When someone got the idea to break the glass protecting the fire ax in the wall with a skateboard, the cops retreated to the closet where their friend was locked up with the ferry worker. While inside with their guns drawn, a guy with an ax went full, “Here’s Johnny!” on the door, while others screamed, “KILL THE COPS!!!” KILL! KILL! KILL!”
 

Turn it up, man! It’s FERRY ROCK!
 
Forty-five minutes later, as the M/V Kitsap pulled into Seattle, the rioters had done about $40,000 worth of damage to the inside of the ferry, destroying tables, chairs, and parts of the asbestos-filled ceiling. Word spread through the ferry that as many as a dozen police cars were waiting for the boat to dock in Seattle, aware of the current situation on board. This sent some of the punks scrambling to hide in the trunks of cars to evade arrest.

Continues after the jump…

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Posted by Cherrybomb
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11.27.2019
03:54 am
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FOOD FIGHT! Nirvana gets thrown out of their record release party on Friday the 13th, 1991
10.04.2019
09:47 am
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The invitation for the ‘Nevermind’ record release party held at Re-bar in Seattle on September 13th, 1991.
 

“Nevermind Triskaidekaphobia, Here’s Nirvana. On Friday the 13th, join Nirvana and DGC Records for a release party in honor of Nirvana’s DGC debut album Nevermind. Edible food, drinks, prizes you might want to take home, a few surprises, people to meet, the band to greet… But nevermind all that, the important part is the music. Hear Nevermind in its entirety and loud.”

—the details for Nirvana’s album release party for Nevermind.

The first signal that things at Nirvana’s record release party for Nevermind might get out of hand was it was a strictly “beer only” event. To remedy this, Kurt Cobain’s pal Dylan Carlson of the band Earth snuck in a huge bottle of whiskey (allegedly Jim Beam) served it up covertly in a photo booth inside the infamous Seattle entertainment mecca/gay-friendly watering hole, Re-bar. Smuggling booze into a bar is a thing thrifty drunks do, but you also might be asking yourself why did it have to be smuggled into a bar hosting a party full of industry types from Geffen Records, local label Sub Pop and thirsty musicians? To explain this, we have to consider Seattle’s long, complicated history with hard liquor. Prior to the 1970s, it was illegal for people to drink whilst standing up, and women were not permitted to sit on bar stools.

Additionally, and until very recently, all sales of hard liquor were controlled by Washington State and obtaining a license to sell booze in clubs, restaurants, and other establishments was challenging. Getting a license to sell booze was even more difficult for venues that catered to lovers of “black” music or that was welcoming of gay people. The Washington State Liquor Board started watching Re-bar (a gay hotspot) microscopically, and would often roll into the club close to closing time to check up on Re-bar’s clientele and essentially harass patrons and employees.
 

A photo of Nirvana (apparently with former publicist Susie Tennent) taken inside the whiskey bar/photo booth at Re-bar.
 
In Everett True’s book Nirvana: The Biography, author and journalist Carrie Borzillo remembers she was told the reason Re-bar wasn’t able to serve liquor at the Nevermind record release was due to the venue also serving food (or the frightening promise of “edible food” as the invitation at the top of the post notes). Borzillo arrived at the party, and after surveying the food, spotted Cobain allegedly knocking back a fifth of Seagram’s straight out of the bottle. There were several kegs of beer but the free suds disappeared quickly. Sub Pop’s Bruce Pavitt was DJ’ing the party, and around the time the beer ran out, he had already spun Nevermind twice and twice was enough for Kurt, Krist, and Dave, who started feeding Pavitt requests to play new wave and disco hits. Naturally, Pavitt, a purveyor of good taste, complied. It wouldn’t be long before some of the edible food offered up at Re-bar starting flying, and Borzillo’s new dress was covered by onion dip.

The first food item that became a projectile was a tamale hurled by Krist Novoselic at Kurt and Dylan Carlson.

Since Nirvana was no newbie to food fights, Kurt whipped some guacamole back at Krist, though Nirvana fan club founder Nils Bernstein was certain (as noted in Nirvana: The Biography) Kurt actually threw Green Goddess dip at Krist, because these details are fucking important. Amid the flying food chaos, someone thought it would improve the party’s awesome anti-ambiance by rolling the tapped kegs around the bar. Steve Wells, the owner of Re-bar at the time collected the three knuckleheads who started the food fight, the guests of honor, and tossed the trio (as well as Bruce Pavitt) out on Howell Street, where they would proceed to puke, because it’s not really a night to remember until someone barfs.

Recently, Screaming Trees guitarist Gary Lee Connor shared his memories of the night recalling that after Nirvana got booted, he heard Krist egging on the people still inside their party through a barred open window, sarcastically “begging” to be let back in. Since this is Seattle in the magical year of 1991, Susie Tennant, the band’s publicist at the time, pulled up in a limousine and brought the band and a few friends back to her house to continue the festivities. Kurt slingshot eggs at her neighbor’s cars with Fastbacks vocalist, the always well dressed Kurt Bloch. Now that’s a fucking party. A few photos of the night Nirvana got kicked out of their own party because they knew how to party follow.
 

A photo taken at the Re-bar party by Jennifer Finch of L7.
 

Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic.
 

A thrilled looking Kurt Cobain at the Nevermind record release party. Photo by Charles Peterson.
 

Dylan Carlson (standing), Screaming Tree’s vocalist Mark Lanegan and Kurt playing dress up at Susie Tennant’s apartment. Photo credit.
 

 

Previously on Dangerous Minds:
‘Experiencing Nirvana: Grunge in Europe, 1989’: Sub Pop co-founder Bruce Pavitt on his new book
Incredible early Nirvana gig at a tiny East Coast goth club, 1990
Watch a very tired Nirvana being interviewed just a few weeks after ‘Nevermind’ came out
Nirvana, Mudhoney, and the audience battle shitty security guards during Sub Pop’s ‘Lame Fest,’ 1989

Posted by Cherrybomb
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10.04.2019
09:47 am
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Faith No More danced naked around Billy Idol during a Halloween gig in Seattle, 1990
08.01.2019
05:50 pm
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A vintage concert shirt from Billy Idol’s Charmed Life Tour featuring Faith No More.
 
When Billy Idol asked Faith No More to join his Charmed Life Tour, he was still recovering from a near-fatal motorcycle accident which almost cost him his life and one of his legs. Idol’s extensive injuries are also the reason you only see the rocker from the torso up in the video for “Cradle of Love” as the wreck left him temporarily paralyzed. Before hooking up with Idol, FNM had been on the road with Soundgarden and Voivod. The would officially join Idol in early September for a run of approximately 30 shows with their final gig scheduled for Seattle on October 31st, 1990. Reviews from this leg of Idol’s tour with Faith No More are full of all kinds of stories including FNM pissing off crowds by pissing on them while opening for Idol at the Cow Palace in California. However, nothing on this tour would live up to the debauchery witnessed by the 18,000 in attendance at Seattle Center Arena (now Key Arena) on Halloween night in 1990.

Based on a review of the show published in Seattle publication City Heat by writer Michael Edward Browning, Mike Patton walked out on stage in a pair of gorilla pants and, according to Browning, a “Doris Day” wig. However, with a little more digging, it appears Patton’s intention was not to look like Doris Day, but, most likely, Nirvana vocalist Kurt Cobain. Take a look:
 

Mike Patton on stage at Seattle Center Arena on October 31st, 1990.
 
Patton would then devolve into his signature manic arm waving/drunken sailor trudging/octave-smashing self, which Browning overheard a fellow audience member (who he referred to as a “mother”) describe as someone doing a good imitation of a “retarded person.” Yeesh, this chick. As Faith continued thundering through their set, they launched into their single “Epic.” During the song, Idol’s road crew rolled out a huge pile of smelt on a lightning rig and dumped it on the stage floor. After the initial shock of having 40 pounds of dead fish suddenly appear on stage, Patton started stuffing them in his gorilla pants. The rest of the band proceeded to lob the smelt into the crowd before returning to the stage to perform their cover of the Commodore’s soulful classic, “Easy.”

Now it was time for Idol to take the stage and for Faith No More to get a bit of revenge for Idol’s fish fuckery. And they didn’t waste any time.

While Idol was strutting around during “Cradle of Love” a member of FNM (likely Mike Patton) appeared on stage dressed in a gorilla costume and started coordinating dance moves with Idol’s backup singers. The rest of Idol’s set would go on without any other antics until his encore. While Billy was crooning out the moody jam “Eyes Without a Face” Faith No More would return to the stage in the nude with their heads and faces covered by masks, towels, and bags. Patton, Roddy Bottum, James Martin, Bill Gould and, Mike Bordin formed a naked dancing prayer circle around Idol until Billy joined them. There has been some question in the past as to the identities of the nude marauders but in a Tweet from 2013 Idol confirmed it was Faith No More on stage that night au naturel. On an even weirder note, Idol would end up having the last hee-haw by letting five miniature pigs and a fucking goat loose in FNM’s dressing room. After returning from their heroic naked hijinks, it looked more like a barnyard than a backstage party as the piggies and their goat friend chowed down on trays of leftover food in their dressing room.

Footage or photographs from the show (with the exception of the one in this post), do not appear to exist. To try to make up for this, check out this “performance” by FNM from Top of the Pops. As you may know, bands on Top of the Pops were required to lipsynch and at around 1:24 you can see Mike Patton not giving a single fuck about TOTP’s rules.
 

Faith No More on ‘Top of the Pops’ in 1990.
 
HT: Michael Edward Browning

Previously on Dangerous Minds:
The horror film that inspired Billy Idol’s ‘Eyes Without a Face’ & how he almost lost his eyeballs
Goofy young Trent Reznor plays a Billy Idol song in his early 80s ‘New Wave’ cover band
Billy Idol and Dr. Timothy Leary jamming in the studio
Mike Patton performs in his pajamas with Faith No More on MTV’s ‘Da Show’
Patton is GOD: Faith No More channel Black Sabbath with their crushing cover of ‘War Pigs’

Posted by Cherrybomb
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08.01.2019
05:50 pm
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Of flying monkeys & Fellini: Seattle movie mecca Scarecrow Video turns 30 (help them stick around!)
06.05.2018
07:05 am
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“I love movies. It’s still my candy store, and I’m the biggest kid in it.”

—Scarecrow Video founder and owner, the late George Latsios

In the early 90s, Scarecrow Video founder George Latsios would spend every Saturday night behind the counter of his store, offering movie recommendations to customers he knew by their first and last names, including young Kurt Cobain and Krist Novoselic of Nirvana. Scarecrow buyer for the last 25 years Mark Steiner fondly recalls his former boss and friend saying, “There was no other place George would rather be on a Saturday night.”

In the early 80s, Latsios started loaning out selections from his 600-800 title collection of giallo and horror VHS tapes through Backtrack Records and other locations. By 1995 Latsios and his then-wife/Scarecrow co-founder Rebecca Soriano had amassed approximately 26,000 titles (noted in the book Videoland: Movie Culture at the American Video Store). 1995 would also mark the year Latsios received a life-altering medical diagnosis—he had brain cancer and only six months to live.

At the time of his diagnosis, Scarecrow had been doing business at their 5030 Roosevelt Way North East location for several years and was in dire financial trouble. Instead of shuttering Scarecrow’s doors, Latsios focused on expanding the store’s video collection. He also aspired to open other stores not just in the U.S. but globally in destinations like Japan—one of Latsios favorite spots for buying trips. To some, Latsios’ spending habits and his aversion to paying taxes in a timely fashion appeared reckless. But as Steiner plainly states, this was far from the truth. Latsios was very “level-headed,” and those who knew him didn’t confuse actions driven by his passion for film as symptoms of failing health. Was George in denial about his spending habits? Perhaps a little bit. This chapter of Scarecrow Video’s history sounds like the plot of a gritty-yet-endearing film, which seems fitting as it illustrates Latsios’ love of cinema and his desire to share it with everyone. Here’s more from Steiner, who I spoke to in Scarecrow’s homey in-store screening room last week, on what made George Latsios tick:

“He spent money to curate the store he believed in. It was his baby, and we (the employees of Scarecrow) were all his family. He treated us generously like you would treat your actual family. We’d have meals together, and they were always special. If your paycheck bounced, he’d turn on a dime and ask you how much money you needed to tide you through and go get it from the till. One of the most telling things about George is when you consider the name “Scarecrow.” You see, the endearing Scarecrow was his favorite character in 1939’s The Wizard of Oz. He often wore an old t-shirt with the Scarecrow’s famous quote/lament “If I Only Had a Brain.” One of my favorite memories of George was the time a woman and her young teen daughter came to the store and struck up a conversation with him. At some point, the woman asked George to help her understand the difference between an R-rated film and an NC 17 one. After a brief pause, George replied, “An R-rating = titties with no bush, and an NC 17 rating = titties with bush.”

By 1999 Latsios was over-burdened with financial woes, and reluctantly put Scarecrow up for sale. Then, as if from a movie, two Scarecrow customers who happened to be making a pretty good living during the day over at Microsoft, John Dauphiny and Carl Tostevin, joined forces and bought the store. Though they told George they would love for him to stay on as long as he’d like, Latsios declined and moved back to his native Greece where he passed away at the young age of 44 in 2003. For three decades, Scarecrow has been a come-one-come-all custodian of pop culture for Seattleites and host to avant-garde and counter-culture heroes of the movie industry like John Woo, Troma‘s Lloyd Kaufman, Alex Cox, and Alejandro Jodorowsky. There was also the time director Quentin Tarantino, in town for the SIFF International Film Festival and without a car, called the store to ask for walking directions, noting he was “not going to take the bus, alriiiight.” Later, as Steiner was jawing with a friend while on his way to work, he noticed a very sunburned Quentin Tarantino striding up Roosevelt Way North East and into Scarecrow. During his visit, Tarantino asked permission to browse through the store’s vast library, which he did for several hours, later hanging out with the staff.
 

A very sunburned Quentin Tarantino hanging out at Scarecrow Video in 2001. Photo courtesy of Mark Steiner.
 
As a testament to Latsios’ unrivaled love of film, the vast majority of Scarecrow’s employees and volunteers have been working there for decades, ensuring Scarecrow can continue to provide access to the largest publicly accessible video collection in the world. A staggering selection of 130,000+ titles can be found inside, including thousands you can’t stream anywhere else (sorry, Netflix). Some titles in Scarecrow’s catalog can only be viewed on the premises, such as a series of John Frankenheimer television dramas gifted by the director personally, and Japanese 70s superhero series Spectreman on VHS in its entirety which is extremely rare. Latsios mused about Scarecrow being a candy store of sorts for film buffs, and I can attest from first-hand experience, it is absolutely a magical labyrinth full of motion picture treasures, including a well-curated selection of movie soundtracks you can purchase on vinyl. Films are expertly categorized not only by genres, but also by region of origin, director, and a dizzying array of sub-categories with intriguing classifications such as “Little Bastards” (anything small wanting to kill you), “Rock Hell” (heavy metal themed horror films), as well as both a “Women in Prison” and “Men in Prison” sections. Scarecrow has something for everyone. Even the extensive XXX section is broken down with care including by director.

As of this writing, the now non-profit is turning 30 and is in the midst of a fundraising campaign to help keep them in business for the long haul. Trust me when I say anything helps, including sharing this post to spread the word. Right now your financial contributions will be doubled thanks to a recent $25K donation from a generous Scarecrow supporter. I’ve posted photos of the store as well as some neat artifacts from Scarecrow’s past including a rare video that hasn’t been seen since the early 90s (and only then if you were watching the tube in Seattle), which drives home the importance of keeping Scarecrow, and other champions of pop culture like them, around.
 
Much more after the jump…

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Posted by Cherrybomb
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06.05.2018
07:05 am
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Step inside the Mothership: The art of $uper high-end bongs
11.13.2017
12:53 pm
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A close look at an elaborate, fully-functional glass bong made by Mothership Glass (in collaboration with a group of talented Japanese glass blowers) in Bellingham, Washington.

Since 2016, eight states in the U.S. have passed laws allowing for both recreational pot enthusiasts and people who rely on marijuana to help alleviate physical suffering to use the drug legally. The advent of marijuana legalization has ushered in a tidal wave of seemingly limitless THC products and accessories which cater to all types of weed consumers, including pet owners. Have a dog or cat that has chronic pain or perhaps acts aggressively toward other pets in your household? Thanks to legalization, you can now purchase CBD (aka Cannabidiol, one of many active ingredients in THC that can help reduce pain and anxiety) oil at your local pet store to help diffuse such issues.

As of March 2017 here in my home base of Washington state, the legal marijuana industry had pulled in over $168 million dollars in sales. Pot is big business, and it’s only going to keep expanding into other commerce-friendly ventures as weed entrepreneurs continue to come up with creative ways to market all things THC. However, Mothership Glass—a high-end functional bong and rig company here in Seattle—has cornered the market when it comes to wealthy cannabis connoisseurs who shell out thousands of dollars for Mothership’s exquisite functional glass. In 2016 a version of one of Mothership’s most famous bongs, the “Fab Egg” sold at a local auction for over $100,000—making it the second Fab Egg purchased for such an unfathomable sum. Started by master glass-blower Scott Deppe and glass artist Jake Colito, Mothership has quickly become a marijuana mecca of sorts, not only for customers but for the vast community of glass artists who reside in the state of Washington. According to an article on Mothership from Seattle publication The Stranger, the last five years have brought swift sales of their $10,000 bongs. The piece also notes that earlier Mothership models, which initially retailed for a grand, have fetched up to $80,000 in the resale arena. Mothership isn’t just producing glass bongs, they are making investment-worthy high art that can also get you stoned.

Pretty much everything Mothership produces comes out of their shop in the delightful city of Bellingham. The company has had several wildly successful collaborations with other well-known glass artists such as Junichi Kojima and his group of glass blowers. Mothership’s work with Kojima resulted in the creation of a glass device that looks like a cup filled with multi-colored marbles, which according to Colito sold for more than $100,000. Make no mistake—Mothership will make other bongs that will sell for more than that remarkable sum. In fact, it looks like they may have already.
 

 
A look at the top of Mothership’s Grateful Dead bong and a glass image of the “Trucking Fool” planting his ice cream cone on his head.
 
Earlier this year another collaboration with the Japanese artists resulted in a remarkable ten-inch Grateful Dead bong. Among the many creative aspects of this model is the inclusion of a colorful image of the “Trucking Fool” (pictured above) and his ill-fated ice cream cone.  Created by artists and long-time associates Stanley Mouse and Alton Kelley, the Trucking Fool design originally appeared on the back cover of the Dead’s live album, Europe ‘72. Industry experts predict this symbolic piece of glass will easily sell for more than $200,000. And, since I haven’t delved into the details of getting high using one of these gloriously extravagant devices, it all comes down to the power of the smoke that is allowed to cook up perfectly within these painstakingly crafted vessels by Mothership.
 

A full shot of the Grateful Dead bong.
 

A gold-plated pipe (noted to be a hookah) by Mothership Glass which sold for $100,000.
 

A close look at the unbelievable detail on the gold-plated pipe/hookah above.
 
More after the jump…

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Posted by Cherrybomb
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11.13.2017
12:53 pm
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Ultramega OK: Soundgarden destroy the Whisky a Go-Go, 1990
05.22.2017
12:59 pm
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Like many of you, I’m still trying to process the sudden death of Soundgarden vocalist Chris Cornell last week. Here in Seattle, where Cornell was born, there were several memorials held around the city including one at the site that inspired the band’s name—A Sound Garden—a musical sculpture park where twelve 20+ foot structures outfitted with organ pipes emanate with sound whenever the wind blows. After Cornell passed, Soundgarden, Temple of the Dog and Pearl Jam drummer Matt Cameron posted a heart-wrenching comment on his Facebook page saying “My dark knight is gone,” a sentiment that hit entirely too close to home for those who knew Cornell as well as those who often suffer in silence—forever searching for ways to deal with their own depression and anxiety.

At an impromptu memorial held at the radio station KEXP on the day of Cornell’s death, 400 people showed up to collectively grieve at the station’s gathering space. While addressing the crowd, long-time DJ John Richards said that “part of the city (of Seattle) had died” that day. Often, music is something that can be hugely helpful and cathartic when you’re trying to make sense of unfathomable events such as Cornell’s impossibly sad, untimely passing. And that is exactly the purpose of my post today—to share Soundgarden’s legacy by way of their sonic, ear-smashing music.

Though I know your social media feeds have likely been filled with news about the legendary vocalist, I really wanted to support as well as spread the idea of celebrating Cornell’s life and his work with Soundgarden, who are/were without question one of the greatest rock bands of the last 30 years. A large part of their appeal was, of course, the animal magnetism of Chris Cornell’s stage presence and his immaculate four-octave vocal range. Cornell was also the primary lyricist for Soundgarden, which helped solidify his deep connection to their fan base.

More after the jump…

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Posted by Cherrybomb
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05.22.2017
12:59 pm
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Some of the best (trust me, they are tremendous) protest signs from the Women’s March


One of the many signs I saw and photographed during the Seattle ‘Women’s March,’ January 21st, 2017.
 
On Saturday I spent the better part of the day walking the streets of Seattle with a few of my “delicate snowflake” friends and approximately 175,000 other like-minded women, men and children during our Women’s March. The event, which was the largest protest in the history of the city, was by far one of the most powerful and empowering things I have ever personally experienced in my life. And while it’s not an alternate fact that our work is just beginning, judging from the numbers of people who collectively participated in the massive march in Washington DC, and the local support marches around the globe, there is still room for hope.

Many of the images of the signs in this post, were taken by yours truly and by friends of mine, old and new, who I walked with in Seattle. Others were culled from the Facebook page Pantsuit Nation and I’ve done the best I can to attach locations to each photo. While I have plenty to say on the subject when it comes to why millions of people took to the streets all over the country and the world, I’d much prefer to let the images of the protest signs that marchers carried with them on Saturday do the talking. So to the new administration and our new Commander-in-Grief, get ready because you haven’t seen anything yet. Viva la VULVA!
 

Seattle Women’s March, January 21st, 2017. Photo taken by a member of my marching group.
 

Seattle. Photo by Cherrybomb.
 

A 91-year-old retired doctor protesting in Los Angeles.
 
More after the jump…

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Posted by Cherrybomb
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01.23.2017
10:23 am
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Divine joins Bettie Page on iconic Seattle mural
09.08.2016
09:36 am
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I have to say this is one of the many times I’ve been proud to call my transplanted home of the last seventeen-years quite possibly the greatest place on earth. One of my favorite Seattle landmarks (which I drive by on nearly a daily basis) is a home with a giant mural of Bettie Page painted on it. She’s been joined by an equally humongous portrait of Divine all decked out in the famous red dress worn by the great Harris Glenn Milstead in 1972’s Pink Flamingos.
 

“FILTH IS MY LIFE!” The giant mural of Divine that now resides alongside Bettie Page on a house in Northeast Seattle.
 
The mural of a nearly two-story topless Bettie Page (whose naughty bits are obscured by the home’s rain gutters) has been visible from traffic on I-5 in Northeast Seattle for a decade. Then a few months ago some morons who just don’t get it vandalized the much loved mural with gray paint and even took the time to leave a nasty note on the home where the mural resides saying the following: 

AUTONOMOUS SEXUALITY IS EMPOWERMENT. TELLING A WOMAN TO COVER UP IS OPPRESSION.

—SOME FEMINISTS

The message was written entirely in capital letters so I guess the roving gang of confused “feminists” wanted to be sure they knew how angry they were. The good news is that the owner of the house, Jessica Baxter didn’t let the incident get under her skin. And even when donations came piling in so that Baxter didn’t have to take on the expense of having the mural (and her house, mind you) restored, she declined and instead asked that people wanting to donate send their money to RAINN (the Rape Abuse and Incest National Network). So why did Baxter pick Divine to keep Bettie Page company for the long foreseeable future? Here’s one of my favorite residents of Northeast Seattle on that:

Really it’s just people who inspire me and make me happy that they existed, and were individuals who didn’t give a shit what anyone else thought, and who were just themselves. I’m going to feel inspired every time I look at it.

The mural was just finished this past Tuesday by Two Thangs (aka Seattle artist Matthew Brennan IV) and it is nothing short of fucking glorious. Brennan, a self-professed John Waters devotee felt very strongly that the Page and Divine belonged together especially since the vandals who tried to ruin Bettie felt that the image was “exploitive.” According to Brennan (via Two Thangs FB page) the addition of Divine makes a clear statement about choice—specifically making a decision to present yourself “how you choose.” 

I love you Seattle. Never change.
 

The famous Bettie Page mural on the side of a house in Northeast Seattle. 
 
See the defaced Bettie Page mural—and the note left by ‘SOME FEMINISTS’ after the jump…

READ ON
Posted by Cherrybomb
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09.08.2016
09:36 am
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Hide your kids! Hide your wife! Serial ‘hipster ninja masturbator’ on the loose in Seattle
03.15.2016
09:05 am
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Serial
The Serial “hipster ninja masturbator” of Seattle is on the loose!
 
In an effort to keep things as weird as possible in the Pacific Northwest, Seattle police say they are are trying to identify a man who has been observed masturbating outside of a home in the University District neighborhood on multiple occasions.
 
A night vision photo of the Seattle
Night vision image of the serial “hipster ninja masturbator” currently on the loose in Seattle.
 
Night vision images of the serial
 
Night vision image of the Seattle serial
 
Footage of the man, who was caught on a surveillance camera on the property, shows the perverted perp dressed up like a ninja, clad all in black (the night vision camera make him appear to be dressed in white), from head to foot. According to the police reports filed on the case in January,  the female resident of the home reported hearing “suspicious sounds” outside her home. When she looked out to see what was going on, she saw what the Seattle PI described as a “hipster ninja masturbator” (ahem) hard at work sharpening his pencil right outside her front door.

So far the creepy night vision images of the chronic trespassing masturbator have not led police to a suspect, but I’m sure it will only be a matter of time before this slippery ninja meat-beater gets identified. How hard can it be to locate a guy dressed like a hipster version of a ninja in Seattle you wonder? Apparently it’s quite difficult as the report also says that the depraved ninja has likely pleasured himself at least four times at the same address since November of last year.

Yikes.

Previously on Dangerous Minds:
Nietzsche and Masturbation: Über-clench of the Übermensch

Posted by Cherrybomb
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03.15.2016
09:05 am
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A super glam-looking Layne Staley performing with his high school band ‘Sleze’ in 1985
08.04.2015
02:21 pm
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Layne Staley attending the Shorewood Prom in 1986
Layne Staley, his amazing hair, and his date attending the Shorewood High School prom, 1986
 
Now here’s something you don’t see every day. The video below of Layne Staley (the late vocalist of Alice in Chains) performing with his band Sleze was shot in 1985 at Lakeside High in Seattle. It was one of many local high school gigs the band would perform, fully two years before Alice in Chains would come to be.

According to Johnny Bacolas, the founding member and guitar player of Sleze who uploaded the video, the band mostly stuck to playing cover versions of Slayer and Armored Saint songs. As a matter of fact, the video captures Staley looking rather glam in a ripped-up shirt and striped blazer, while banging out Armored Saint’s 1984 knuckle cracker, “False Alarm.” The drummer (James Bergstrom) is wearing dark lipstick and a choker, and the bass player (Chris Markham) is shirtless and wearing striped spandex pants and some sort of skirt made out of what looks like plastic. It’s first-rate, car-crashy heavy metal goodness.
 
Layne Staley on stage with Sleze 1985/1986
Layne Staley on stage with Sleze, 1985/1986
 
Sleze never played many clubs due to the then-recent passage of the notoriously awful Teen Dance Ordinance, which made it nearly impossible for clubs to accommodate underage clientele (the law was repealed in 2002), so most of Sleze’s gigs took place at local high schools. Despite the fact that Staley didn’t actually go to Lakeside (He went to Meadowdale in Lynnwood, about fifteen miles away from Seattle), it’s still a pretty incredible snapshot into the past life of the greatest grunge-era vocalist ever.

How could this get any better? Maybe the fact that the name Armored Saint is spelled “Armoured Saint” on the bottom of the screen? How fucking adorable. Oh, high school…. how I miss being high in high school.

Full disclosure: The video sadly cuts off just as Sleze breaks into an excellent jam called “Burning Star,” a song recorded in 1984 by the Texas metal band Helstar. To make up for that, I included a quick clip of Staley and Sleze in action in the straight to Seattle Public Access TV cable movie, Father Rock. Also, the audio isn’t the best, but it’s still a must-watch.
 

 
Sleze performing “False Alarm” on June 4, 1985, at Lakeside High School in Seattle, Washington
 

Layne Staley and Sleze and their huge hair making their “acting” debut in Father Rock

Previously on Dangerous Minds:
Watch a teenage Mike Patton and pals at Mr. Bungle’s high school talent show
Teen Ween you’ve never seen: Another cult band’s high school talent show

Posted by Cherrybomb
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08.04.2015
02:21 pm
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B-Boy Bouillabaisse: Radio station to perform live 12-hour dissection of ‘Paul’s Boutique’
07.23.2015
05:58 pm
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KEXP steps inside Paul's Boutique, June 24th, 2015
KEXP steps inside Paul’s Boutique, June 24th, 2015

Independent Seattle radio station, KEXP will be digging deep into the Beastie Boys celebrated 1989 record, Paul’s Boutique during a marathon twelve-hour broadcast on Friday, July 24th.

The broadcast starts bright and early at 6:00 AM PST with the much loved KEXP morning DJ, John Richards who will start the Beastie Ball rolling with the first few tracks from Paul’s Boutique, as well as some of the 100+ songs that were sampled on the record. The meticulously curated broadcast will continue until 6:00 PM, running through both KEXP’s Mid-Day and Afternoon shows.

During the course of the broadcast KEXP will air brand new interviews with the co-producers of Paul’s Boutique, The Dust Brothers (John King and Mike Simpson), as well as exclusive archival chat with the Beastie Boys. KEXP has really been hyping this broadcast, and it’s not hard to understand why. I spoke to John Richards via email and asked him some questions about the Beasties, and the experience of pulling the twelve-hour marathon together.
 
John Richards - Morning Show Host & Associate Program Director of KEXP
John Richards - Morning Show Host & Associate Program Director of KEXP

Dangerous Minds: KEXP is known for its massive music library and I know that DJ’s routinely bring their own records in to play on their shows. Given the depth of musical knowledge that KEXP collectively possesses, how difficult was it to track down all the music that was sampled in Paul’s Boutique for the show?

John Richards: There are some specific songs that have been a challenge for sure but I’d say between KEXP’s amazing library and DJ’s libraries that 90% of it was found in the early planning of the show. After that we were able to get the other 10% within a few days. Our goal was to play as much in its original form as well so for sure you’ll be hearing the snap crackle and pop of vinyl on Friday. KEXP on a daily basis will play vinyl, CDs, streams, wave files, mp3s in any given show. I’ve had to mix a YouTube stream with a record into a mp3. I’m surprised we don’t mix reel to reel and cassettes while we’re at it.

What were your first impressions of Paul’s Boutique back in 1989?

John Richards: Like a lot of people they discovered the Beastie Boys first when “Fight For Your Right…” came out. I remember getting the tape at a very young age based on that song and it putting in the rest of the songs on there blew my mind. It was nothing like that novelty song and really was a gateway to me for them, for sampling, even hip hop. So when I got Paul’s Boutique it made sense to me listening to the other songs from the debut that this was the next step for them. I didn’t know sampling like this was new as it was just new to me at the time. It was radically different then anything I had heard and really those first two albums were “where were you when you first heard them” releases. In both cases I was walking through the soccer field next to my house studying the liner notes, art work and song titles and thinking I was the only person on earth listening to this right now. It was one of those rare moments when a release changes your entire thinking about music and how its made.

While you were culling artifacts for this incredible undertaking (such as interviews, sound-clips, etc), did you discover anything about the record that as a fan, was new to you?

John Richards: I learned a lot talking to The Dust Brothers about the record. One thing was that they were really trying to make a hit with the Beastie Boys (and said they easily could have) but that the Beasties were against it, they wanted a cool record that people would discover years from when it was made. Turns out, that’s exactly what happened and continues to happen. Maybe not in crates but for sure on stations like KEXP.
 
Paul's Boutique mural on the lower east side of Manhattan
Paul’s Boutique mural at the corner of Rivington and Ludlow on the Lower East Side of Manhattan by Danielle Mastrion

There are not many artists who inspire the nearly universal reverence and adoration from music fans that the Beastie Boys do. Headbangers, alt-rock kids, electronica geeks, classic rock relics; you name the genre of choice, and I guarantee that the vast majority of the people who cling to them will also be fans of the Beasties. Perhaps nothing speaks better to this point than the huge assortment of diverse samples the Beastie Boys used in the recording process for Paul’s Boutique.

From the score for Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho, to music from the 1974 film Deliverance (not to mention the dozens of pop-culture references mentioned throughout the record including a hilarious and timely swipe at Donald Trump on the track “Johnny Ryall”), if it appears on Paul’s Boutique , you will hear it during KEXP’s broadcast.

If you’re not in Seattle, don’t worry. You can stream the broadcast live via your mobile device or computer. KEXP also archives its wide variety of content, so if you miss any part of the broadcast on Friday, you can come back and stream it whenever you want. And I for one can’t think of a better way to spend a few (or twelve) hours than listening to a magical record that almost killed the Beastie Boys’ career back in 1989.

It’s going to be tastier than a “5-Piece Chicken Dinner.”
 

“Ain’t it Funky” James Brown (from Ain’t it Funky, 1970). One of the 100+ samples on Paul’s Boutique

H/T: KEXP and John Richards

Previously on Dangerous Minds:
The Beastie Boys’ ‘Paul’s Boutique’ remixed and re-imagined from all the original samples
Beastie Boys compare ‘Paul’s Boutique’ to Beethoven’s Ninth, 1989
Famous Beastie Boys sample revealed!
Beastie Boys: ‘Paul’s Boutique’ record release party, 1989
The Beastie Boys when they actually *were* boys (and a girl) on cable access TV, 1984
The story behind The Beastie Boys’ ‘Egg Raid On Mojo’

Posted by Cherrybomb
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07.23.2015
05:58 pm
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‘Streetwise’ - excellent 1984 documentary about homeless kids
05.15.2011
10:01 am
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Last week I posted about a new series of videos by the band In Flagranti, one of which (”On The Fringe”) features some great footage of street kids from the 1980s. Well, thanks to commenters Mister D and Steve Lafreniere I now know what that film is - not only that but I know it’s on YouTube and I have seen it. And so should you. It’s brilliant.

It’s called Streetwise. Directed by Martin Bell and shot by his wife Mary Ellen Mark, it was inspired by an article on homeless youth from Life magazine written by Cheryl McCall. At times it’s harrowing, but it’s really very good, and was even nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary in 1984.

It follows the exploits of a few different children living on the streets of Seattle, at that point apparently the States’ “most livable city”. There’s the tough, smart Rat and his older mentor Jack, who live in an abandoned hotel, sell drugs, scam pizzas and raid dumpsters. There’s teenage prostitutes Kim and Erin, waiting to get picked up off the kerb by older johns and discussing which local pimp is better to work for. Erin is also known as “Tiny” and has a troubled relationship with her alcoholic mother, who knows she is a prostitute but describes it as a “phase”. She thinks she may be pregnant after having unprotected sex with a john - that’s her in the picture above. Like Paris Is Burning this film deals with people society regards as the lowest of the low - and what on paper looks like being a major celluloid bummer is actually funny, insightful, tender and at times uplifting. Surprisingly a lot of these kids are still alive, though not kids anymore.

Mary Ellen Mark was also the photographer for the original Life magazine article, and has built up a large portfolio of stunning photographs of these kids, like the one above. She and her husband still see them occasionally too. From Steve Lafreniere’s excellent interview with Mark for Viceland (well worth reading as she’s a brilliant photographer who’s had an extraordinary career):

I’m still in contact with Tiny. A few years ago, Martin and I went back to Seattle and we updated her life. And I’ve been photographing her—I haven’t been back there in three years—but I have been photographing her. I photographed her after she had her ninth baby but we couldn’t make it out there for her tenth.

Here is part one of Streetwise:
 

 
Streetwise parts 2-11 after the jump…

READ ON
Posted by Niall O'Conghaile
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05.15.2011
10:01 am
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