Yearly Archives for 2004

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size=”2″>15 MAY 2004




Henry Dumas
& Sun Ra
“The Ark and The Ankh”

(IKEF02)

In the mid-1960s, the visionary, otherworldly musician Sun Ra formed a
brief but tight bond with the late storyteller, activist and poet Henry Dumas.
The Ark and the Ankh is a 1966 document of dialogues and meditations between
the poet and the musician set to the fervent musical experiments of the Arkestra.The
Ark and the Ankh offers an essential insight into the quirkily brilliant,
totally controversial and completely inimitable thought of Sun Ra candidly
shared with and challenged by one of his most adoring disciples.The Ankh
and The Ark features a new introduction by the executor of the Henry Dumas
Estate, Eugene B. Redmond and a reprint of a scarce article and interview
by Henry Dumas that was originally published in the Hiram Poetry Review.

ARTHUR MAILING LIST BULLETIN No. 0003

May 14, 2004

COMMAND PERFORMANCE – MAY 14, 2004

THE ARTHUR MAILING LIST BULLETIN No. 0003

“Text beyond the presses.”

(((1))) T-MODEL FORD ON TOUR RIGHT DAMN NOW!

Senior bluesperson and Arthur advice-giver T-Model Ford is right now touring the urban markets of North America (plus Santa Fe, New Mexico) with his trusty drummer Spam as part of the Fat Possum Juke Joint Caravan of troublemakers and evildoers. Incredibly, some Arthur readers think that T-Model Ford is a figment of the magazine’s imagination. Come now. Go see (and hear) T-Model for yourself at

5/14 Salt Lake City, UT at Club Halo       

5/15 Victor, ID at Knotty Pine       

5/16 Missoula, MT at Other Side       

5/18 Calgary Alberta at Night Gallery Cabaret       

5/19 Edmonton Alberta at New City Likwid Lounge

5/21 Vancouver BC at Richard’s on Richard’s       

5/22 Seattle, WA at Hideaway/WA       

5/23 Portland, OR at Aladdin Theather       

5/25 San Francisco, CA at Slim’s       

5/26 Sacramento, CA  at Blue Lamp       

5/27  Pacific Beach,CA at Blind Melon’s       

5/29  Los Angeles, CA  at the Echo       

5/30  Tucson, AZ  at Club Congress       

5/31 Santa Fe, NM  at Paramount

More information on this tour at

http://www.fatpossum.com

(((2))) ARTHUR DISCUSSION FORUM NOW FULLY FUNCTIONAL.

Have you ever wanted to discuss an article you read in Arthur with someone you don’t know, perhaps even the person who wrote, edited, drew or photographed the very item you want to discuss? Well: the new Arthur Discussion Forum is now online and is fully functional and is just basically wide-open and barely moderated. Come on in and share.  Various Arthur staff and contributors stop in regularly, if you must know.

http://www.arthurmag.com

(((3))) BASTET!

The first two Bastet CDs are now in house and have been shipping during the last week. FOUR exciting new Bastet CDs are in the works–more news soon!

If you don’t know what we’re talking about, let’s revisit some text from the last email bulletin, shall we?:

Sometimes people ask us, What are you listening to right now? And then we answer with a long list of artists they don’t recognize. That makes us feel like snobs, which is a terrible thing to feel like, cuz we want to share. The music we like, we think everyone would like, *if they only got a chance to hear it.* In the pages of Arthur we rap about music all the time in ways that we hope will turn on the curious listener and cause them to get up and seek out the stuff. With Bastet, Arthur’s new imprint, we’re trying to shorten that process by making directly available to you some of the music we are digging that we think you might dig too.

The first Bastet CD is “The Golden Apples of the Sun,” a veritable “who’s who of underground folk” compilation curated by Devendra Banhart, who really knows his way around that place. He selected the tracks, drew the cover, solicited testimonials from all the artists about all the other artists and then HANDLETTERED the sleeve, decorating everything with his wonderful pen-and-ink art. You may buy this for the artwork, you may buy this cuz we’re only making 1,000 and it’ll be worth something on Ebay someday soon, you may buy this cuz you love us…but you will keep it near you because of the fantastic music on the CD. Which is as follows:

1. Vetiver (with Hope Sandoval) – “Angel’s Share” (from the “Vetiver” LP)

2. Joanna Newsom – “Bridges and Balloons” (from “The Milk-Eyed Mender” LP)

3. Six Organs of Admittance – “Hazy SF” (previously unreleased)

4. Viking Moses – “Crosses” (from “Crosses”)

5. Josephine Foster (of Born Heller) – “Little Life” (prev. unreleased home recording)

6. ESPers – “Byss & Abyss” (from “ESPers” LP)

7. Vashti Bunyan & Devendra Banhart – “Rejoicing in the Hands” (from the forthcoming “Rejoicing in the Hands of the Golden Empress” LP)

8. Jana Hunter – “Farm, CA” (prev. unreleased)

9. Currituck Co. – “The Tropics of Cancer” (from “Ghost Man on First”)

10. White Magic – “Don’t Need” (from forthcoming EP)

11. Iron and Wine – “Fever Dream” (from “Our Endless Numbered Days” LP)

12. Diane Cluck – ” Heat From Every Corner” (from “Macy’s Day Bird”)

13. Matt Valentine – “Mountains of Yaffa” (prev. unreleased)

14. Entrance – “You Must Turn” (prev. unreleased home recording)

15. Jack Rose – “White Mule” (from “Red Horse, White Mule” originally released thru Eclipse, now on CD on VHF)

16. Little Wings – “Look at What the Light Did Now” (from “Light Green Leaves”)

17. Scout Niblett – “Wet Road” (from “Sweet Heart Fever”)

18. Troll – “Mexicana” (from “Pathless Lord”)

19. CocoRosie – “Good Friday” (from “La Maison de Mon Reve”)

20. Antony – “The Lake” (from “Live at Saint Olaye’s With Current 93”)

You cannot buy it at a store or from that guy down the street. You have to buy it directly from us. It’s $12 postpaid US, $14 Canada, $17 world, or, get this, FREE if you buy a new subscription. Go here to order one, or just to see the pretty artwork:

http://www.arthurmag.com/bastet.html

The second Bastet CD is, as they say, completely different. “The Libations of Samhain: SUNN 0))) live at London’s Subcamden Underground, Hallo’ween 2003” is a single live power-drone ambient metal track by the mighty SUNN 0))) measuring just under 49 minutes. It’s loud and wonderful and all-enveloping and gives your speakers and your inner organs a fine meditative workout. Plus, you get a bonus interview with the SUNN O))) principals by Edwin Pouncey and Sharon Gal, originally broadcast on London’s Resonance FM 104. Would you believe this CD features cover artwork by the legendrary Savage Pencil, and letterpress printing by Thumbprint Press? Oh yes. Edition of 500, and they’re going VERY fast.

Satisfied customers are lining up to testify at:

http://forums.southernlord.com/viewtopic.php?t=2416

Again, if you want it, you gotta buy it directly from us. It’s $12 postpaid US, $14 Canada, $17 world, or, get this, FREE if you buy a new subscription. Go here to order one, or just to see the brilliant SP artwork:

http://www.arthurmag.com/bastet.html

(((4))) NEW ISSUE OF ARTHUR OUT NOW.

It’s Arthur with rising weirdbeard folkstar Devendra Banhart on the cover, as photographed by Melanie Pullen. It’s Arthur featuring interviews with the saddest filmmaker in the world,  Guy Maddin, and Godzilla, the aging “King of Monsters.” It’s Arthur with a two-page spread of Marc Bell’s neuron-damaging comics. It’s… It’s… It’s.. Well see it for yourself. If yoiu can’t find one, order a copy direct from us for 5 bucks cheap. Just go to

http://www.arthurmag.com

(((5))) CAN’T FIND ARTHUR? PERHAPS SIR/MADAM/OTHER WOULD CONSIDER A SUBSCRIPTION.

ARTHUR comes out, and then it’s gone. You snooze, you lose. But no one should be

punished for being unlucky, which is why ARTHUR offers SUBSCRIPTIONS. Now, you

need never fear the empty stack again. Do you live in the USA? We are sorry.

But, you can get six issues of Arthur for $30, plus (while supplies last) a free

BASTET CD or ARTHUR t-shirt of your choosing. Do you live in Canada? Right on.

That’ll cost you $39. Do you live somewhere else on the big blue cloudy marble?

Wow, that’s awesome. That’ll be $60. Order via PayPal at

http://www.arthurmag.com/backissues.html

((6))) PLEASE HELP US.

If you haven’t done so already, please take a few minutes to do our 15-question Arthur Reader Survey.  It’s right here:

http://www.keysurvey.com/survey/24574/144b/

Reader Surveys let us know more about you. We then compile that information to allow us to solicit advertising in Arthur. Ads make Arthur go go go and do that little happy leprechaun dance in the corner that we all like to see occasionally. We thank you kindly for helping us help you help us help them help the world.

So long, it’s good to know ya,

The Arthur Gang

May 14, 2004

na

size=”2″>05 MAY 2004

Disney
Forbidding Distribution of Film That Criticizes Bush
By JIM RUTENBERG

Published: May 5, 2004
New York Times

WASHINGTON, May 4 — The Walt Disney Company is blocking its Miramax
division from distributing a new documentary by Michael Moore that harshly
criticizes President Bush, executives at both Disney and Miramax said
Tuesday.
    The film, “Fahrenheit 911,” links Mr. Bush and prominent
Saudis — including the family of Osama bin Laden — and criticizes Mr.
Bush’s actions before and after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
     Disney, which bought Miramax more than a decade
ago, has a contractual agreement with the Miramax principals, Bob and
Harvey Weinstein, allowing it to prevent the company from distributing films
under certain circumstances, like an excessive budget or an NC-17 rating.

     Executives at Miramax, who became principal
investors in Mr. Moore’s project last spring, do not believe that this
is one of those cases, people involved in the production of the film said.
If a compromise is not reached, these people said, the matter could go
to mediation, though neither side is said to want to travel that route.
    In a statement, Matthew Hiltzik, a spokesman for
Miramax, said: “We’re discussing the issue with Disney. We’re looking
at all of our options and look forward to resolving this amicably.”
     But Disney executives indicated that they would
not budge from their position forbidding Miramax to be the distributor
of the film in North America. Overseas rights have been sold to a number
of companies, executives said.
     “We advised both the agent and Miramax in May
of 2003 that the film would not be distributed by Miramax,” said Zenia
Mucha, a company spokeswoman, referring to Mr. Moore’s agent. “That decision
stands.”

      Disney came under heavy criticism from conservatives
last May after the disclosure that Miramax had agreed to finance the
film when Icon Productions, Mel Gibson’s company, backed out.
     Mr. Moore’s agent, Ari Emanuel, said Michael
D. Eisner, Disney’s chief executive, asked him last spring to pull out
of the deal with Miramax. Mr. Emanuel said Mr. Eisner
expressed particular concern that it would endanger tax breaks Disney
receives for its theme park, hotels and other ventures in Florida, where
Mr. Bush’s brother, Jeb, is governor.
    “Michael Eisner asked me not to sell this movie to
Harvey Weinstein; that doesn’t mean I listened to him,” Mr. Emanuel said.
“He definitely indicated there were tax incentives he was getting for
the Disney corporation and that’s why he didn’t want me to sell it to
Miramax. He didn’t want a Disney company involved.”

    Disney executives deny that accusation, though they
said their displeasure over the deal was made clear to Miramax and Mr.
Emanuel.
    A senior Disney executive elaborated that the company
had the right to quash Miramax’s distribution of films if it deemed their
distribution to be against the interests of the company. The executive
said Mr. Moore’s film is deemed to be against Disney’s interests not because
of the company’s business dealings with the government but because Disney
caters to families of all political stripes and believes Mr. Moore’s film,
which does not have a release date, could alienate many.
    “It’s not in the interest of any major corporation
to be dragged into a highly charged partisan political battle,” this
executive said.
     Miramax is free to seek another distributor
in North America, but such a deal would force it to share profits and
be a blow to Harvey Weinstein, a big donor to Democrats.

     Mr. Moore, who will present the film at the
Cannes film festival this month, criticized Disney‘s
decision in an interview on Tuesday, saying, “At some point the
question has to be asked, `Should this be happening in a free and open
society where the monied interests essentially call the shots regarding
the information that the public is allowed to see?’ “
     Mr. Moore’s films, like “Roger and Me” and
“Bowling for Columbine,” are often a political lightning rod, as Mr.
Moore sets out to skewer what he says are the misguided priorities of
conservatives and big business. They have also often performed well at
the box office. His most recent movie, “Bowling for Columbine,” took in
about $22 million in North America for United Artists. His books, like “Stupid
White Men,” a jeremiad against the Bush administration that has sold more
than a million copies, have also been lucrative.
     Mr. Moore does not disagree that “Fahrenheit
911” is highly charged, but he took issue with the description of it
as partisan. “If this is partisan in any way it is partisan on the side
of the poor and working people in this country who provide fodder for
this war machine,” he said.

    Mr. Moore said the film describes financial connections
between the Bush family and its associates and prominent Saudi Arabian
families that go back three decades. He said it closely explores the government’s
role in the evacuation of relatives of Mr. bin Laden from the United
States immediately after the 2001 attacks. The film includes comments
from American soldiers on the ground in Iraq expressing disillusionment
with the war, he said.
    Mr. Moore once planned to produce the film with Mr.
Gibson’s company, but “the project wasn’t right for Icon,” said Alan Nierob,
an Icon spokesman, adding that the decision had nothing to do with politics.
    Miramax stepped in immediately. The company had distributed
Mr. Moore’s 1997 film, “The Big One.” In return for providing most of
the new film’s $6 million budget, Miramax was positioned to distribute
it.
    While Disney’s objections were made clear early on,
one executive said the Miramax leadership hoped it would be able to prevail
upon Disney to sign off on distribution, which would ideally happen this
summer, before the election and when political interest is high.