PB

Tonight I saw Patricia Barber at the Jazz Standard in New York City. The club is a nice little club and it sounds very good.
When we first walked in actually we were going to sit close to the stage but then it occurred to me that we'd be in an acoustical "dead spot" and perhaps further from the stage would be better. The waiter suggested up by the bar would be better because there (hid in the "rafters") was a delayed speaker system which actually made the bar area sound really good, but at reasonable volumes.
I think that was the right decision because otherwise the experience would have been "Jazz drum concerto backed by Patricia Barber and others".

This is not the band I saw her with. I just got this from a website somewhere.

I felt she sounded much better live than I'd heard her on record. She had a backup band that I'll call, for lack of a better name, "Three Skinny White Guys With Black Shirts and Jeans". The performance had a nice feeling to it, which I suppose is the whole point of jazz. Her voice is great. My only complaint is that her mic technique seems to be in inverse proportion to how great a singer she is. I would put another large-diaphragm microphone about 2 1/2 to 3 feet away from her, tell her it's for the piano, and use it as the main microphone for her voice. It seemed like even that close-mic'ed "throaty" sound she does so well would come across with a nice U47 a couple feet away. Even live. She actually sounded best to me when she sang totally off-axis to her vocal microphone (which I didn't recognize.)
Interestingly the drums were mic'ed by a single Neumann cardioid behind the drummer's head. Yep, I was the dorkmeister who went up to the sound guy afterward and asked him about that mic. He said it was primarily for the recording but that a bit of it went into the PA system. I asked him if there were any issues with the drummer himself getting in-between the mic and the drums and he allowed as how he didn't think so. I suspect that the mic was actually just far away enough and with a wide enough pattern that it really didn't matter.
The set felt very organic. I think if you were going to the show to hear some particular song by Patricia Barber you'd likely be disappointed. But the one thing which impressed me greatly is the musical patience she has. As an artist she's willing to take her time and not rush things in order to "put on a show".

Giving Thanks

Most people put their "Thanksgiving" posts somewhere around Thanksgiving. I waited 'till December.

Yesterday we had our wrap party for Earthkiller. Much wine and amusing fruity drinks flowed. The conversation went from Dr. Who (it was agreed that Maggie Smith should be the next Doctor), to Jane Austin, to Buffy the Vampire Slayer (and, I believe, swung back to Dr. Who.)

And I thought to myself how wonderful it is to be surrounded by so many talented, interesting, and dedicated people. I can count among my friends such wonderful and insightful artists and can work with them and have a wonderful time doing the things I dream of doing.

There's a quote in Macbeth

And that which should accompany old age,
As honour, love, obedience, troops of friends,
I must not look to have

 Which has always made sense to me.  I think, for instance, that my father has achieved those things which should "accompany old age". The respect he has of his peers, those who have worked for him over the last 50-odd years, his family, his friends, that's the point of life, right?

And at this party yesterday I felt, these are the sort of people who I want to share my time on Earth with. These are the people whom I am blessed to count as my friends. This is the reason to be here.

And I give thanks for that.

TMI

Today is "I forgot to take a shower day". Forgot.
I woke up. Got dressed. Got breakfast. Took nap. And now I'm out and about and having completely forgotten to take a shower.
So I'm wondering "why do I feel so gross?"
Oh.
That's why.
Maybe I should just take another nap and hope for the best tomorrow?

That's probably the way cats rationalize everything.

Rap Pahrtay

Having failed miserably at providing a re-write of the Earthwar screenplay today, I did instead throw a shebang of a party in exciting Jersey City. It was the wrap party for Earthkiller and it involved not nearly as much the act of drinking alcohol as I would have normally expected but instead the consumption of a LOT of fruit from groovy little frozen fruit - pouches which made for tasty blended drinks.
The secret is a dash of real maple syrup. Rik Nagel showed me that trick, I can't take credit for it.
And just think, we may have been all vegan an the shindig.
I don't have any pictures to prove that we had a party. I don't even have Maduka's fabulous patented "wrap party video" he made. I am, however, incredibly tired. We had Joe and Libby and Maduka and Alana and Robin and Anthony and Die Koenigin Mars and Montserrat and Katie and Kristin. I'll put up Maduka's video sometime soon. Just as soon as he says I'm allowed to.
Conversations were all about peace and love and how awesome the Road Warrior screenplay is and Nigerian cinema and Buffy. There was also a divergent path where I blamed Jane Austin for making writers think they could write about nothing just because she was so good at writing witty prose without a huge plot and other writers should know they simply can't do it without adding zombies. But that's a whole 'nuther post.

Cat News

Meydl.

I'm sure you're wondering "Why no pictures of the black cat?" Well he's been feeling poorly of late. He hates those awful sulphur baths the vet puts him through, but we need to take him like four more times to clear up his skin condition. Poor fellow was in a cage in a shelter for at least a month before we got him. He does, on the other hand, occasionally run around with Meydl and the other day my sister saw him licking Pushkin's head.
In any case, he mostly sits in a little cat ball on one of the couches in my parents' livingroom. It's just not that photogenic because he's an inky black puddle of cat when he does that. In fact, normally my parents can't see him at all when he's being a cat doughnut.
Pushkin is less than pleased with the new cable box. He barfed on the old one, shorting it out. I think he's done that to at least six other cable boxes. And that's no hyperbole. In any case, the new box has no vents on the top as a consequence of it running much cooler than the old cable boxes. Which makes it a much less pleasant place for a kitty. I told my mom we should put a heating pad on top of the box for Pushkin. She managed to nix that idea without saying any words out loud.

I am Omnipotent

Hmm... apparently Nancy McClernan thinks I'm in Canada now

http://mcclernan.blogspot.com/2010_12_01_archive.html#4301731001485681997

Meydl "chillaxin".

"Domain Name rogers.com ? (Commercial)
IP Address 24.42.74.178 ? (Rogers Cable)
ISP Rogers Cable
Location 
Continent : North America
Country : Canada (Facts)
State/Region : Ontario
City : Toronto"

I can't for the life of me think of who this must be (if it is, in fact, real.)

Canadians. Typing silly things into search engines. You guys crack me up. Plus you're thinking "Ha, Drew's the only one who will get any static over it!"
I never get anything fun in my searches, just "Andrew Bellware Blog" and "Mechs". The former is probably my sister and Maduka. The latter is... I have no idea but you can't imagine how many hits I get with the word "mech" on my blog. It's a surprising amount of traffic.

The Catpocalypse

My sister Jeanne (and there's still question in my mind about how to properly pronounce her name... after 46 years) took these pictures.

Meydl and Andrew Bellware.

Meydl and Andrew Bellware getting more pettings (Meydl, not Drew).

Pushkin being petted so. He can't keep his eyes open.

Edana on its way

Here's a note from Scott Fitzpatrick about my new Edana (which is a JTM45 clone):

When you take the back off, there's lots of packing material.  Be sure to pull the piece out that is behind the large transformer.  It can be easily missed. 

There's lots of bubble wrap and tape.  Be careful you don't scratch the wood when you are cursing me out trying to unwrap it.  Careful with the screwdriver when you're taking the back off.  

It's furniture quality on the head.  You can leave it the way it is and just wipe it down with a dust rag or use some furniture polish.  Try it on the bottom first to see if you like the look of whatever polish you use.  

Id probably just leave it alone.  Keep in mind that head has been under a beach towel sitting in my shop for 12 months, maybe more, just to keep the dust off it.  But the wood has been breathing, not in a hermetically sealed box.  The shop that makes these does great work.  Dovetail joints are a thing of beauty.  

Sorry, I'm gushing a bit.  Its been a great week.

You gotta love it when your amp-builder is that happy with your amp, right?

Well That Didn't Take Long

Nancy McClernan has been hammering my email addresses (as well as Facebook -- I didn't realize someone could contact you on FB without being "friends" -- shows you what I know.)
It's been going like this. First she spams me with multiple versions of this email:

• Unbelievable. You libeled me on your blog yet again.
• 
  
• Remove your claim that I've ever said I was stalked. This is a lie.
• 
  
• You also imply I have stalked someone. This is also a lie.
• 
  
• Remove these lies about me from your blog now. Libel is an actionable offense.
• 
  
• Nancy McClernan

To which I (naturally) replied:

"Cease contacting me."

So of course she had to reply again:

• On Fri, Dec 10, 2010 at 9:51 PM, Nancy McClernan <nancy@mergatroyd.org> wrote:
• 
  
• I am done with your libels and your search-text harassment.
• 
  
• Nancy McClernan

To which I (again, naturally) replied:

Cease contacting me and harassing me.

Her follow-up so far has been:

• My lawyer will contact you.

Which I believe, in and of itself, constitutes a threat.

Will someone please remind me how she became something any of us care about? I'm sure if you look around on her blog you'll find more funny stuff. I only learn about the whack stuff she writes second-hand from actors who won't work with her anymore but still read her blog for amusement.

In the meantime, here's my cat. Pushkin. No really, he's there.

Two Bottles of Vodka

Tomorrow is the wrap party for Earthkiller. I have two bottles of vodka, a blender, and a whole bunch of frozen fruit chunks.

But if we don't have sandwiches my tummy will riot like English schoolchildren in London.
Also: hummus.
Having the party so close to Christmas is kind of weird. And because of the acting lifestyle we're having the party in the middle of the afternoon. Normally we go for a Sunday afternoon but not this time.
Did I mention we have a blender? I actually borrowed it from my parents. How dorky. Not as dorky as my permanent solution which is to get my stepmom's old blender she had in her old apartment and doesn't want anymore.
You'd think that most discussion about blenders on this blog would be about, well, Blender.

Damp Cat

I'm reading Dan Abnett's "Ravenor" omnibus, which is a trilogy in the Warhammer 40,000 series (because, apparently, I just can't stop reading them.) It's by far the best of the Warhammer novels I've read.

Meydl. Silly cat.

One thing which amuses me is his use of language by creating new slang which doesn't mess up the readability too much. I'm making a list of some of my favorite words and phrases. I expect that some of them might be actual modern-day British slang I'm unfamiliar with. But I dunno. I'll probably add to this list just so I can keep it around.
smile-girl = party girl. Originally I thought it meant "prostitute" but apparently that's not the nuance, it's mostly upper class women who are what we might call "fameballs" now.
twist = mutant. I think this is the best slang term for "mutant" ever. I'm totally stealing it for my personal use.
hammer = hired muscle, untrained mercenaries like you'd find in a gang
fleck = a kind of drug which comes in little glass-like flakes
gladstones = psi-narcotic stones which you hold and get you high
grin = noun, a drug. "A couple clansters were looking to lax out on some grin before the show."

Today I had a meeting about the movie business. It involved a lot of alcohol. If only we had cats in the studio it would have also involved cats. But meetings about business (especially the movie business) should always involve alcohol. Or morphine.

Ooh look, I'm being blogged about again. The best part is that originally she blamed one of our actors for stalking her, and now she thinks it's me. The irony is that those who claim to be stalking are frequently those who stalk. But bonus points for link to review. (H/T to Anon. for the heads up!)

Coat V1

Here I am trying on my new psychedelic jacket at Panzai. The shaky camera is thanks to iPhone. Everything about the coat is awesome except... the collar is lapels rather than a mandarin. So they're re-making it into a mandarin collar with the tiny bit of material they have left.
The coat is totally groovy. Oh, and those are Chippewa 17" non-steel-toe engineer boots which are going to take quite some time to break in.

Wood on Wood

Scott at Celtic Amps is rockin' out through my new Edana amp. That's his '58 reissue Les Paul.
Tell me you can't just hear the wood.

Tyrannosaurus Mouse Amplifier

Scott Fitzpatrick at Celtic Amps is finishing up the Tyrannosaurus Mouse Edana amplifier.

The back of the amp. The "bitchy/sweet" switch amuses me. You'll note this JTM45 clone can drive 4, 8, or 16 ohms.

I'm really looking forward to playing this amp. Over the last two years I've gotten better at electric guitar. Playing with the guys in T-mouse will do that to a feller.

Pretty, pretty tubes behind the grill. KT66 power tubes are BIG.

I can't wait to get this amp fired up. It'll be ready none-too-soon neither. The time has come to play some soaring guitar leads for our album.

I love the design of Scott's badge, but he's suggesting that the wood it too beautiful to put the badge on.

I know I'm going to keep going back-and-forth between which amp gets the 12" Celestion alnico blue and which gets the 10" Weber.