Subway Talk

bacKspace en Route to F Word via the L train.



From L-R: Little Kimchi, Charmin Ultra, MaryJo CamelToe, Duchess Tickles, Whiskey Dixie, and Krystal Something Something.

Come play & listen to Krystal's sick DJ set every week at F Word
Splash (50 West 17th St. NY, NY) http://www.splashbar.com/

BSS' "Meet Me in the Basement" goes political

Fan-made video for Broken Social Scene's recent track, "Meet Me in the Basement" shows obvious political frustration and makes epic remarks on G20 Summit riots and social distractions, such as Justin Beiber, online networks and Lady Gaga -



Read the full article at Pitchfork here.

9th Avenue Food Festival

With all the things going on in New York City on a daily basis it's easy to stumble upon something unexpected and find yourself submersed in the city's culture. Today, Sunday, May 16, I found myself at the 9th Avenue Food Festival - spanning down 9th Ave. from 57th St to 42nd St. Not only could the you smell the fried foods from the Time Warner Center, but the simple elements of this festival brings back childhood memories from weekend carnivals and getaways. The colorful slides, snow cones, cotton candy, funnel cakes and plush toy games makes being a 7-year-old seem like it wasn't that long ago. Plus it's one of the only spots in New York City you probably won't mind being in a crowd that walks slow, because on this day, no one was in a rush.

See some of the sights and tastes of the festival below.

just a jot

...and the Prince embraced me backstage with blue and white-striped sweat pants and a vest that glittered against the wooden castle set. It was then I looked over my shoulder at the tourist-filled elevator and bowed my head humbly. Simultaneously his charming fingers grazed my knuckles ever so slightly. They were warm with passionate encore sweat. I wanted to feel that forever.

Lisa Frank Land

While the Duchess will be in London playing a wicked game of croquet with the Red Queen (which she will win) all ya'll peeps in Brooklyn should see bacKspace perform at Lisa Frank Land! It'll be a night filled with friendship bracelets, unicorns, dolphins, seals and all things gay. Lisa Frank Land is at Sugarland Brookyln, 221 North 9th Street btwn Driggs and Roebling.

For all you Bushwick socialites, check out the event on the Bushwick Culture Calendar here.

Visit the Facebook page here.



www.thebackspace.org
www.thebackspace.org
www.thebackspace.org

Street Smart

bacKspace performance ensemble at Sugarland Brooklyn's Street Smart

Neko mash up

Time expired on that feeling:

Hey there, there's such tender wolves round town tonight so go snatch a Pauline and lose your appetite, no television crew, they don't even put out the sirens when your nightgown sweeps the pavement in prayer.

Jonsi!

More Sigur Ros in any form is always a good thing. Though, with the band's recent announcement of hiatus-status I almost began scratching at my inner thighs and heaving before bunking on a twin bed. Alas, such frivolous actions can be avoided! Lead singer, Jonsi Birgisson, released Go - his solo album of Icelandic orhcestral waterfall music - on April 6, 2010 and it is just divine. Take a listen and tip your hat.



Read the Pitchfork album review here.

Above the breaker

Written on hard keys, too much caffeine:
I've officially missed the boat, I'll wait for the next tidal wave.
---------------
Days later, in a bathroom with a a dark wooden frame, surrounded by a 2002 green curtain and silver utensils, I had a thought about the boat that left me. Staring into pores that never go away, I squeezed the thought out like an eye-brow plucker with a thread, a publicist with a problem. The boat that left me drifting in the water wasn't meant to hurt my feelings but teach a lesson of paitience and pairings. Not everyone has departed.

You couldn't believe what is was like, that tidal wave. Just brutal I tell you. Nevermind the wetness, it just snapped and destroyed our dreams of street-wandering. With its hard fist and twisted neck its force pounded on the windows, smashed the boards, peeled the paint and took my dreams with it. Thought it would be years until they came back for us.

That day on the dock, I swore you were leaving too. Your gentle hand-wave predicted a long future of goodbyes. I remember your one finger had such a sense of longing it made me want to cry. Grasping the rail with your other hand, desperation floated out of your eyes and laser beamed across all those fishermen. Can you believe that their invisible lines couldn't block the green? The longing ended when your feet, determined as they are, dragged you on that boat. God how I wanted to punish those feet for tricking you. Oblivious, you gladly obliged and I cursed that boat for what seemed like eternity.

In the recently-cleaned bathroom, this epiphany told me your feet were wrong - you can even tell them I said that. Don't you see, that boat kicked you out for a reason. Even though your initial judgements of joining stragglers, like myself, wading in the wide open ocean was somewhat, if not very, skeptical, I think you soon realized the water isn't so bad. Yes at times it can be cold like a murderers dagger, slicing through your gastro organs, but we are meant to be chilled. Though the water may make you dizzy, people in the water crave the dizziness. We crave to dare the sharks to take a limb, look for that adventure of seeking out mermen and talking seahorses. This confirms our essence.

The people in the water don't use their legs very much but most other body parts are still very much functional. We are not bored. We sit in the water waiting for our ship, content. At the point that you joined the pool party most of us began to fully understand why we were deserted with yellow tubes and granola. Sorry for the lack of explanation. Not survival of the fittest, survival of the select. Stubborn is not a valid description when you wade - we have time. You'll begin to see how beautiful it is when the blue unravels and tickles the bottoms of our feet. Ignore the stimulation, we can't excited until it's our turn and that nonsense will just make you anxious. I'm glad you joined the clan and we're pretty sure you're welcome on the next boat, they never just leave one person. Just remember to actually do something when your sea legs disappear. I suggest the first you do is go to the roof and play with shifting your weight. Here we tend to forget the heavy sensations we are all capable of.

Don't pretend to drown! I promise the boat is coming soon - it has to...
---------------
Last line said to self in the mirror right before Hook's croc made a guest appearance.

Snakes and Chains - bacKspace in Hells Kitchen

~ Venue info ~

Port 41 Bikini Bar 355 West 41st Street near 9th Avenue
All Trains to the Port Authority
$10 at the door
(Best money you'll spend to walk through a threshold.)
$5 reduced admission
(Please r.s.v.p. as "Attending" this event "Snakes & Chains Live" on Facebook)
Link: http://www.facebook.com/#!/event.php?eid=357264320277&ref=ts

Snakes & Chains is a live performance spectacle that will be completely unlike anything in the Theater District, period. I have been hearing more and more how all of my friends are tired of hearing the same old pop music and having nothing to watch but a bunch of lame-ass go go boys and a tire ass DJ spinning some shit you just heard on 103.5 (the Beat of New York, one oh three f-i-v-e... K-T-U!) like ten thousand times in the cab on the way out. So, I am producing this show just for them and you and making it accessible to everyone. Most importantly you don't have to be trapped in a stuffy theater when you'll rather be at a really cool dive bar. It will be Hell's Kitchen's newest Thursday night grungy chic alternative to the theater and the boring pop shop trash, that has paralyzed New York City's brainwashed night owls. We aspire to make normal obsolete. Real people putting on a real show with live vocals, progressive dance, exclusive video segments produced just for your entertainment and audio visual art projections. Become a part of the future... a better future with Snakes & Chains.

~Featuring~

Tyler Stone
(Electro vocals & dance)
Join this talented young vocalist who was abandoned as a child and taking to be raised by crazed robots. Embark on a journey to explore the meaning of digital perfection. His mesmerizing state-of-the-art electronic style will reprogram your state of mind.
&
bacKspace
(Performance Ensemble)
“Time and time again, bacKspace effortlessly creates a new dimension for its audience. Each one is vastly different than the one before, but always leaves you feeling like a better person. They really make you see the world in a different light! Easy to understand. Hard to forget!”
www.thebackspace.org
&
Artist Vanessa Bucci displays a possible future through art which depicts a skewed world overrun by the technology which enables our current quality of life.
www.bluetapecrewapparel.com

ODDSAC

A visual/abstract film by Animal Collective - premiering at Sundance now. Just bought my ticket to the New York screening on March 2nd, 2010 - sky, whoa I walk.

bacKspace New York Debut

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 23, 2010
Contact: Aaron Kint; Ashley Mathus
E-mail: thebackspace@gmail.com; mygreenblanket@gmail.com
“let the BED BUGS BITE” bacKspace performance ensemble’s New York Debut

----------------------------------------------------

Ladies, Gentlemen, Undecided, and Inbetweenies,

The year of bacKspace is upon us! The freaksters present to you the first 2K10 orgasmic experience, the New York City Debut and world premiere of “let the BUGS BUGS BITE.”

From the creators of “Rave,” “Omen,” and “Top That! The Musical,” “let the BED BUGS BITE,” promises to be a night of bloodthirsty dance, over-the-top theatrics, sexy performance art, electronic body-thumping music, bold fashion, thirst-quenching gender F$%&ing, vivid neon and goth stage design, deep, heavy, juicy, sweaty, hilarious, confusing, enlightening, and awe-inspiring awesomeness! bacKspace, a New York based performance ensemble, originated in Columbus, OH where they became a household name for forward-thinking entertainment. After the move to the big city, bacKspace became enthralled and inspired by the creepy crawlers of NYC (both human and insects alike), hence the premiere that you all have been waiting for!

“let the BED BUGS BITE” (LB3, the neat abbrev for “let the BED BUGS BITE”) will be premiering Saturday, February 13, 2010 at Chez Bushwick at 8:00pm. Chez Bushwick is located at 304 Boerum St, Brooklyn, NY (buzz #11 to get in). bacKspace not only takes entertainment value to the extreme but we’re recession friendly! For $5.00 you can witness an uncensored, unadulterated, unforgettable, undeniable extravaganza that will blow your mind (and maybe even that extra skin between your legs)!


If you've never been to a bacKspace show before…

1. We're really sorry for you that must be hard to deal with
2. Expect live entertainment for the ADD generation
3. Try to fathom looks that will blow your mind
4. Expect dancing that will make you moist
5. Expect to WANT MORE!

The bacKspace line-up for LB3 features:

Aaron Kint (Artistic Director)
aka Krystal Something Something

Jessica "Diba" DiBattista
aka Lil' Kimchi

Jeff Marras
aka Charmin Ultra

Ashley Bono
aka Mary Jo CamelToe

Ashley Mathus
aka Duchess Tickles

Amy Campbell
aka Whiskey Dixie

Jenny Campbell
aka Henny Penicillin

and ultra chic, custom couture costumes by Aleksandra Krninova, one of NYC's up-and-coming fashion designers of 2K10.

....WARNING!....
bacKspace DOES NOT condone the use of beige, brown, taupe, camel (unless of course when accompanied by "toe"), forest green, gaucho pants, string quartets, the "Amelie" soundtrack, deep and audible breathing, "modern dance face," soft lighting, or liturgical anything. So if you're expecting to see a "modern dance show," then you'll definitely be in for a surprise.

Not familiar with orgasmic dance experiences in Brooklyn? Well easy access is always preferred! Coming from Manhattan? Take the L train to the Morgan Avenue stop and exit near the intersection of Bogart St. and Harrison Place. Bridge and Tunnel peeps? Hop on the L train anywhere on 14th Street from 8th Ave. - 1st Ave., and get off of the Morgan stop. Morgan, Morgan, Morgan!

For more info on the bacKspace performance ensemble, deets about the show, hot pics, video entertainment and more, visit

WWW.THEBACKSPACE.ORG
WWW.THEBACKSPACE.ORG
WWW.THEBACKSPACE.ORG


OTHER NEWS FROM THE DESK OF BACKSPACE:

Be sure to check out the February 11th issue of TimeOut NY, why? Because bacKspace's very own Aaron Kint will be featured as one of NYC’s 50 Most Stylish People!


Columbus, Ohio misses us (and here’s why): http://www.examiner.com/x-35751-Columbus-Fine-Arts-Examiner~y2010m1d15-Columbus-misses-Backspace


Get out of the house, get over the cold, and make it to the hottest hot spot in Brooklyn, Sugarland! bacKspace will be heating up the night on Friday, January 29 with a new set from DJ Daddy Whorebucks and hosted by Charmin Ultra! Find out more info about this Williamsburg playground at www.myspace.com/sugarlandbklyn or http://www.facebook.com/pages/Brooklyn-NY/Sugarland-Brooklyn/72807509856


Be on the look out for some fresh tunes from bacKspace, as they bring you the “let the BED BUGS BITE” EP featuring seven new tracks.

Enjoy the sights and sounds of bacKspace TV at www.youtube.com/user/thebackspace

Love,
bacKspace

###

Reality Pride: the turning age featuring Glee

I'm a gleek and I'll tell you why.

For the last ten years or so American audiences have been subjected to and taken part in (guilty as charged) the chaotic mindless-ness, over-the-top [questionably 'Americana'] dare devils acts, dubious characters from the depths of nowhere land, grandiose schemes and impending persons, intrigue in fake body parts defining beauty, arranged marriages (the list could go on) of reality TV. Our country's networks and media subjects have gone from an unpredictable creative haven to a dumbed down, chair-ridden group of people who watch other people lead boring lives, aka Pixar's impressions of us in Wall-E. What happened to sitcoms that would positively engage family activity and bring a group of smiles around the television set? The lesson-learning plots of "Family Matters," "Full House," "Saved By the Bell," "The Cosby Show," "Blossom" - and every other show 90s kids can think of - swiftly disappeared to be replaced by ambiguous producers where the dollar sign took place over dignity, pride and privacy. Values were suddenly determined the price of a purse, the size of a house, or how long one was able to sustain a clock around their neck. Self-impressions became a concern to many a people, and families (like Balloon Boy's) have instilled upon their children an unstable definition of entertainment.

Enter Glee: On the border of a new decade, Fox decided to hone in on various aspects of reality TV programs (American Idol, X Factor, Beauty and the Geek, Chuck) and produce a level-headed show that, apparently, brought Americans back to the good ole' days of a bona fide sitcom. The phenom known as Glee - a kick ass show where dweebs have amazing voices and minorities are the new celebrities - brings audiences what they have been missing for ten years: Fictional characters, real acting, vocals that we cannot even fathom to impersonate in our living rooms, drama, comedy, honesty, suspense, love, goals, lessons, heart-felt apologies, a set design that doesn't only feature a bed and alcohol, this list could go on forever. I say "miss" because the numbers have to mean something, right? The Associated Content reports that Glee ratings, "within the demographic of 18 to 49 year olds" have had close to 3.5 million viewers throughout most of their season. The AC says, "Overall the last two episodes of Glee passed 8 million in total viewers, putting it at some nice total numbers for the network." Though American Idol is still breaking records on TV in its 9th season, I feel a change coming and I refuse to look back.

Although, maybe it's all high school related. The days where Will Smith schemed in the hallways and Zack Morris weighed the pros and cons of playing hooky are way behind us, but maybe that nostalgia has become evident in Fox's writing den and made itself heard all the way to the Board room. It seems everyone is yearning for a little teenage drama sans vampires these days, myself included. Glee takes our former peers from our glory days and transports them into the world of now. We all knew people like Kurt Hummel, Rachel Berry or Puck, and maybe that's why we want to watch - to reminisce and nod in agreement while still maintaining the presence of booming technology, fashion statements bordering obsession and the gay uprising in political media. Also, we should consider the possibilities of how the parodies of popular culture on YouTube throughout the 00s ignited this change in programming. Maybe society's sitcom u-turn couldn't have happened without major Internet interventions and shows like "Big Brother" or "Fear Factor." The self-marketable engine took us on a roller coaster making the world much smaller. Yet smaller made us less original and motivated. Laziness had not only a physical affect of sitting in chairs staring at a computer all day, but society became complacent in imagination.

Though a sitcom, Fox hasn't become lackluster and forgotten about Glee's entertainment value. What with our pop culture line-up these days, they have to impress in the glitz and glamour, or at the very least have a little fake blood in the costume shop. Fox has combined Broadway sass with Hollywood professionalism (I'm talking about A-listers here) and created a cast that continues to impress episode after episode. The quality of the casts' singing is beyond inspiring. They give American audiences what we have been voting for via mobile phone and screaming at our TV sets since the inception of American idol. Also, the casts' genuine amazement that Glee has become so popular is heart warming and humbling. They dance on mattresses, have excellent comedic timing, are continuing to get a stellar line up of actors and singers to guest star, and, more importantly, evoke emotions in me that I haven't felt whilst watching TV in a very, very long time.

Whatever the case, I'm thankful major networks are initiating substantial changes to their evening line-up, where sitcom's can start re-inspiring kids in a healthy and educational way; like the influence Glee has had on show choirs internationally, or the positive encouragement all the minorities on the show bring into real-life homes and high schools. Maybe now we can forget about red flags and blue flags, and instead sit around the TV and laugh at the industry's creation instead of our own neuroses.

That big grin matches your significant O

"The problem with being attached to an anchor is it's damned hard to fly." _Half Broke Horses (p 258)

Suffocation key was unlocked last night.
Jostling, it finally broke the bolt, and I could see through this tiny door possibilities that just weren't for me.
The key led to a presentation of dinner tables, clinking glasses and chinky grins,
Wide-eyed do-gooders and hearty lips brewing futures,
Laced eyes coaxed with salty mascara and yearning for a different key.
No buffer and food, lots of gumption,
Reasons for feeling padded and thick - sounds like "poo poo poof!"
Chocolate layers sticky with ties of friendships.

The door was better shut when it came to kisses and arm reaches,
I don't want your secret garden relationship.
Stomach flips of disgust over hand engagement,
Teeth chomping on skin,
Limbs swinging in "hey ya's,"
Groovy in side glances filled with bubbly, licorice grins.
Two missing.
How come I have the key but can't move past the doorway?

Instead intimidation matters, filled with self-professed prophecies and illusions,
Stuff our mouths and pretend to come out as words.
Light this face up with a glow stick maybe you'll see what's inside now,
No reflection, you're in the moat past the doorway,
enthusiastically on your way to a caucus of monotony.

Ways of misunderstanding and understood by people in two's,
standing strong and walking briskly in sync,
henceforth, leaning over the top of a cliff ready to jump off into oblivion together.