Olek: THE END IS FAR – art exhibit at Jonathan Levine Gallery
March 24th, 2013 by Mr. C
It came down to the wire but we did end up making it to Olek’s exhibit – The End is Far at the Jonathan Levine Gallery on the last day of her installation and live performance! The show started on February 23rd and ended last Saturday. Olek is a crochet artist who is known to yarn bomb objects that we see in our daily travels like shopping carts, bicycles, cars, sculptures, and of course – people by covering them up in camouflaged crochet patterns. The camouflage just doesn’t stop on everday outdoor objects – no – Olek takes this to the inside of her living space – her apartment as witnessed by her previous exhibits such as Knitting is for Pussies. We covered that exhibit briefly HERE in October/2010. We also captured a few of her works on the streets of NYC HERE. Olek has also covered up public art sculptures such as the Astor Place cube and the Bull on Wall Street.
With her latest exhibit – The End is Far, Olek crochets us a story of her trying experiences in London in 2011 & a new resurrection in 2012 with her travels and works in Hong Kong, Poland, & Brazil collaborating with like minded, creative, & strong women. The End is Far is an installment and symbol of strength & femininity. Boxing gloves, skulls, skeletons, and a living room with a dining set filled with china, fruit bowls, goblets, and two WOMEN are covered in yarn to tell us a story. We loved all the messages scattered throughout all the panels in the exhibit. Enjoy the visuals, enjoy life, and enjoy the people around you!
Jonathan Levine Gallery
529 W 20th St #9
New York, NY 10011
(We were greeted at the exhibit by a mermaid on a swing.)
Tags: art, crochet, olek, yarn
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Red Horse at City Winery
March 23rd, 2013 by Mr. C
Red Horse – the collective folk music trio of Lucy Kaplansky, John Gorka, & Eliza Gilkyson played at the upscale and rustic venue – the City Winery where the posh and privileged intersect with the die-hard fans of the said performers. Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate the passions of a full-service winery that crafts their own spirits from grape to bottle – gently aged in barrels stored in the bowels of City Winery’s basement, but listening to your favorite band play live at this space sometimes leaves a lot to be desired. The constant chatter, wine glasses & beer bottles clinging & clanging – the whispers and outbursts not related to the performers or the music, & the constant pacing of the staff really starts to annoy me. Then you have the clumsy Chocko and Mr. C waiters/waitresses/busperson shattering plates and glasses on the floor as they hurriedly try to clear your table in order to whisk you a fresh round of drinks. I think the most optimal spot for listening and watching a show at CW is front and center of the stage. Any seat behind the sound board puts you in glass shattering siberia!
(John Gorka)
(Lucy Kaplansky)
(Eliza Gilkyson)
Despite my bitter lemons, the chino-mex-filipino line cook staff of Planet Chocko huddled around a table and enjoyed the tunes coming out of Red Horse’s mouth! Yu understan’ the wordz comin’ out of my mouff!? With his typical self-depracating humor, John Gorka did a fine job introducing his bandmates! Lucy the psychologist from Chicago turned greenwich village fast folk performer 29 years ago and Eliza the new age folk technician from L.A. belting out a mix of ballads, poetic lyrics, and rally cries against the government! I really love the different styles of these 3 especially when they combine forces. The individual vocals of Gorka’s majestic & clear baritone voice, Eliza’s haunting melodic tones, and Lucy’s touching lyrics delivered with her tender melodies all stand alone as separate knockout punches! As a unit, they often deliver rich sensual harmonies and backgrounds that compliment each other very well. Their self-entitled album Red Horse has each one of them perform a song written by the other two as well as performing one cover song, and one song of their own. It was great to hear a few different songs on their setlist that was not on the album such as Lucy Kaplansky’s ‘Ten Year Night’ & ‘Scavenger’, John Gorka’s ‘Down in the milltown’ & ‘Ignorance and privilege’, and Eliza Gilkyson’s ‘Beauty Way’ & ‘Slouching towards Bethlehem’. The three performed a fun set at the City Winery but not without some hitches like when John Gorka seemed to forget a few words in ‘These walls could talk’ and a few off key guitar chords on the miniature G-sharp guitar. But who’s keeping track when wine glasses and serving plates are playing their highest note when they meet the City Winery floor! John Gorka closed out the night with an inspirational rendition of Curtis Mayfield’s – “People get ready”.
(Red Horse performing Curtis Mayfield’s – People get ready at the City Winery)
SETLIST
I am a child
wild horse
scavenger
Forget to breath
These walls could talk
Blue Chalk
Walk away from love
Down in milltown
Ten year night
Beauty way
Ignorance and privilege
Sanctuary
Slouching towards Bethlehem
Don’t mind me
Wayfaring stranger
People get ready
Tags: eliza gilkyson, folk, john gorka, lucy kaplansky, red horse
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St Louis Record Store Crawl
March 20th, 2013 by chocko
VINTAGE VINYL (6610 Delmar)
On a recent trip to St. Louis, MO to go hang out with Julie of Waves On The Sea at a Tegan and Sara show, Chocko made a short list of record stores to check out while in town. Before going to the concert at Pageant in a neighborhood known as The Loop, I walked to Vintage Vinyl located among an eclectic mix of thrift shops, restaurants and a comic book shop. Vintage Vinyl is a very overwhelming place with seemingly endless aisles of records and CDs. There’s a lot to soak in…lots of great signage, Steve Keene paintings, movies and posters. I was strapped for time, so I picked up a few things. One of the albums I picked up was “The Grimy Awards” by ILL BILL (me and the clerk geeked out just a bit) – highly recommended hip hop with lots of guest vocals including Jedi Mind Tricks and HR of Bad Brains. “Inner City Rockers” by THE RETROS on BDR Records – this album blew me away…punk rock from the St. Louis circa 1979. Loaded with catchy tunes. These guys were like the Buzzcocks of the Midwest! I listened to this nonstop after I bought it and now I have to track down every BDR Record for more independent music from the 70’s and 80’s straight outta St. Louis. I also picked up 1990:The Bronx Warriors on DVD, a movie from 1982 which stars 70’s Blaxploitation icon, Fred Williamson. I started watching it and looks pretty dreadful-cheesy Rambo looking characters, bad acting, all set in a bizarre future where the Bronx is overrun by motorcycle riding gangs on a rampage.
EUCLID RECORDS (601 East Lockwood)
The following day I drove to Euclid Records and after stepping in, was instantly greeted by the friendly clerks behind the counter. I gravitated towards the bargain bins along the windows and afterwards zig-zagged around two huge rooms of records, CDs, movies, magazines and limited edition concert posters. Euclid puts out their own music including a live in-store/45 rpm series which features music recorded at the store. Euclid Records has another location in New Orleans and in two months, their present St Louis store will be moving about a mile away to 19 N. Gore Ave. in Old Webster. This place is a highly recommended place to shop. I dug into the Used DVDs Bin and grabbed 2 movies: Laura – Classic Film Noir starring Gene Tierney and Donkey Skin – A French fairy tale movie filmed in 1970 starring Catherine Deneuve. I also picked up some Used CDs including a compilation of Rockabilly Classics and one by The Pristeens – a female fronted band Mr. C and I saw many times back in the day at NYC’s Coney Island High and Continental. I picked up another BDR Records release (the obsession continues!), The Welders 4-song 7″. The Welders (1975-1981) were an all girl punk band from St. Louis influenced by bands such as the NY Dolls and The Runaways. They looked like The Switchblade Sister with guitars. Hot Stuff! They reunited in 2009 for a 30th Anniversary show. They still got it…hope they play again soon!
RECORD EXCHANGE (5320 Hampton Ave)
Next up was Record Exchange which is home to 10,000 square feet of music and memorabilia, in an old building which was formerly a library. This store is the place to be for used records and so much more…movies on DVD and VHS, used CDs, cassette tapes and even 8-tracks. Vinyl collectors will have their minds blown but don’t expect new stuff at the store…second-hand items reign supreme at Record Exchange. The woman behind the counter was very helpful, shared stories and showed me a photo album of the store in its many incarnations. Many of the photos feature Jean Haffner who founded The Record Exchange in 1977 with his own personal record collection. The record store is a labyrinth of fun with surprises and dusty relics around every corner. I picked up a stack of $1 singles by the register including Promo singles by Killer Mike, Capone-N-Noreaga and “Touring” by The Ramones. I only learned about it later, but hiding behind an army of Elvis cut-outs, there is a 45 room on the second floor…nothing but 7″ singles (Shangri-La!). I shall return!
APOP RECORDS (2831 Cherokee St)
Apop Records is a hip record store located on a cool street in the Benton Park West neighborhood. There are a lot of Mexican storefronts and places to eat in the immediate area of the store including a bakery and a bicycle shop on the same block. As soon as I walked in I started digging in the punk music shelves and worked my way to the ‘zines and local music section. There are lots of records and books to look through but don’t expect to find a lot of mainstream music here. Apop specializes in the bizarre, indie and underground scene for sure. There are two pinball machines in the back of the store, obscure Blowfly and punk records on the wall, magazines and books…I could be in that shop for hours just browsing and hanging out. I picked up a local ‘zine After Hours which features lots of deep thoughts and poems by Matt Questionmark and illustrations by Lauren B. I also picked up an old issue of another local ‘zine Freezerburn which features cartoons and manifestos by Mister Ben. Issue 19 comes out later this month! As far as local music, I picked up an album by STL hardcore savages, Shaved Women. Holy sheet these guys rule. Brutal, crushing cinderblock-to-the-face hardcore punk! Chocko likes!
TED DREWES (6726 Chippewa St.)
Ted Drewes is a highly recommended spot for frozen custard, regardless of the weather. I got a Christy which is a sundae with a warm brownie on the bottom with custard, caramel and hot fudge on the top. Before dropping off the rental car and hopping on a plane, I stopped by the Loop one more time. I ate a quick meal at Seoul Taco. Damn good! Then paid my respects to the St. Louis native son and Rock and Roll pioneer Chuck Berry. Took a quick photo of the 8 ft. bronze statue on Delmar and ran into Vintage Vinyl one more time for some Chuck Berry music and more BDR Records. I wish I was in town for Chuck Berry’s concert at Blueberry Hill. Long may he rock and duck walk! Hope to be back in STL again soon.
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Tags: apop records, bdr records, chuck berry, euclid records, record exchange, record stores, st. louis, stl, ted drewes, the retros, the welders, vintage vinyl
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Photos From Outer Space 3
March 7th, 2013 by chocko
Here is another edition of Chocko wandering around town in paparazzi mode. Noomi Rapace made an appearance at Apple in Soho in NYC to promote her new movie Dead Man Down which reunited her with Niels Arden Oplev, the director of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo which features Noomi’s breakthrough role as Lisbeth Salander. My favorite parts of the discussion came from the q+a with the audience. Noomi talked about how her role in Prometheus gave her nightmares about being impregnated with alien babies and she also revealed how she intensely prepares for her movie roles. Thai kick boxing every day for seven months to prepare for Prometheus. Damn, girl! Noomi begins filming the movie, Animal Rescue with actor Tom Hardy next week in Brooklyn.
Filmmakers Joshua Green, Capella Fahoome and Ramona S. Diaz also stopped by Apple Soho to discuss Don’t Stop Believin’: Everyman’s Journey. Their documentary tells the story of Filipino singer, Arnel Pineda’s rise to rock-n-roll fame as the new lead singer of Journey. The movie opens this weekend in select cities. The filmmakers will be present for Q&A’s during the opening weekend at The Quad Cinema in NYC.
Stretch Armstrong and Bobbito Garcia stopped by New Museum to discuss hip hop in 1993 and share stories from their influential hip hop radio show on Columbia University’s WKCR which aired from 1990 to 1998. Stretch and Bobbito introduced the world to hip hop artists who were unknown at the time, such as Jay-Z who only had a 12″ record deal and is doing better now, Nas, Big L, Black Moon, Wutang Clan and the Notorious B.I.G. It was cool to be in the audience and listen to stories about artists such as Wutang Clan strongarming their way into the studio to get “Protect Ya Neck” played and an unsigned Biggie Smalls who almost stopped rapping after losing an on-air demo battle to a group called The Bronx Zoo. Stretch mentioned that the shows will be archived and accessible in one form or the other soon. He is presently working on a series of music documentaries focusing on overlooked 90’s albums such as “The Infamous” by Mobb Deep. Bobbito has a documentary Doin’ It In The Park: Pick-Up Basketball, NYC which is due out later in 2013.
Geneviève Castrée stopped by Desert Island in Brooklyn to sign her first graphic novel, SUSCEPTIBLE published by Fantagraphics Books. Geneviève is a talented cartoonist and musician who was born in Quebec and now lives and works in the Pacific-Northwest. The crowd at Desert Island was treated to a slide show featuring drawings from Castrée’s new book while she provided the funny insight and commentary. The occasion also marked the independent comic book shop’s fifth anniversary.
Legendary horror punk band, MISFITS signed their new album DEA.D ALIVE at Forbidden Planet. The new release on Misfits Records is a live album which features material from the post-Glenn Danzig era of the band. Chocko is a huge Misfits fan, but I have to say the sound on this album stinks like a mummy’s buttocks. I’ve heard bootlegs from old VHS tapes sound better than this new album. If it is a live album, it sounds like it was recorded from outside the venue. I will say, the artwork is fantastic! Pictured from left to right: Eric “Chupacabra” Arce, Dez Cadena and Jerry Only rocking the devil lock. Which one of you dudes smudged all my autographs? Shout-out to Dez for signing my Black Flag albums!
Skyzoo signing his album A Dream Deferred a couple months ago at the New Era Flagship in NYC. This would have been a dope event if Skyzoo performed a couple songs like the flyers advertised. The album is NICE.
Rachael Rakes (left), the Assistant Curator of Film at the Museum of the Moving Image, moderated a Q&A with Park Chan-Wook (middle) director of Oldboy. Park made a recent appearance at the Museum Of The Moving Image in Queens to promote his latest film, Stoker. If you’re a fan of the Korean director’s previous films or if you just want to catch a creepy, revenge movie…definitely go see it. You will enjoy it immensely. Astoria, Queens is no joke. After the event, it was a bummer to find that the Planet Chocko spaceship parked on 37th St. had been broken into. The lock on one of the doors was sloppily busted up and some space suits from the trunk were stolen. Be careful out there fellow astronauts!
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Tags: Bobbito Garcia, Geneviève Castrée, misfits, Noomi Rapace, Park Chan-Wook, photos, skyzoo, Stretch Armstrong
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The Sketchbook Project — part deux
March 5th, 2013 by Mr. C
The collective unconscious of Mary, Lisa, Ti Hua Chocko, and I gathered at the opening night of the Sketchbook Project 2013 on the 1st leg and eventual homebase of the sketchbook tour at the Brooklyn Art Library last Friday. We were there to check out each others’ submission and to just browse through random sketchbooks from those who participated in this project. What we ran across was amazing! We saw some uber creative artwork fortified in pencil, ink, cutouts, foldouts, paint, glue, yarn – all in different forms of texture & color. Some were zine like while others were more of the traditional black & white sketches. Some had comic book like storyboards and some were covered in fabric. Others had the elemental & detrimental workings like an elementary school artist – ahem- like myself. One sketchbook was ode to the Hunger Games while another was documenting video camera locations on a college campus. We touched & viewed artwork submitted from all over the world including Japan, Brazil, London, Dirty Jersey, & Planet Brooklyn.
(my take on Usagi Yojimbo)
(hopping vampires inspired by Hong Kong cinema)
Regarding our sketchy-sketchbook offerings, Ti Hua Chocko had the rad bubbly like cartoon drawings from outer space and Mary had some colorful artwork that blended the abstract with a more personal & reflective look at the world offering inspirational images to cherish the gift of life. My submission on the other hand was none of that – rather a random collection of drawings with skills equal to that of a 10 year old with a fondness for killer samurai rabbits, a chubby rabbit inhaling instant ramen, & chinese vampires inspired by the hopping vampire genre in Hong Kong cinema! I actually haven’t drawn like this since — never! It was fun working that side of the brain for once instead of my robotic side. Some of my tattered art samplings are scattered throughout this writeup. Sorry to have made you look.
(chubby rabbit slurping some instant ramen)
So yeah, take part in the Sketchbook Project! And make sure to visit the Brooklyn Art Library for your stationary needs while skimming through some really cool sketchbooks! If it’s physically impossible for you to make it out to the Brooklyn Art Library, checkout the digitized sketchbook offerings HERE. It was fun being part of an art community of 75,000 strong. Where else can I boast that my artwork lay stacked next to real artists, copywriters, art directors, & graphic designers!
Brooklyn Art Library
103a North 3rd Street
Williamsburg-Brooklyn, NY
(burning of the U.S. dollar and of the ‘Hell Note’ type)
Tags: art community, sketchbook project, sketchbook project 2013
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The Sketchbook Project 2013
March 1st, 2013 by chocko
Chocko has done it again…managed to last minute doodle his way into The Sketchbook Project, a global art project that involves creating art in sketchbooks and having your work exhibited across thousands of miles to different cities in North America and eventually finding its permanent home to be displayed at the Brooklyn Art Library. Here are some samples from Chocko’s sketchbook. As you can see, all it takes is some creativity, pencils and ink. definitely take part in the 2014 Sketchbook Project and be a part of the traveling library of artist’s books. It only costs $25 to get a sketchbook mailed to your house. Pick a theme, draw and create and mail back your sketchbook by the deadline. Don’t wait, participate!
The drawing on the left is from a DVD sitting on my shelf. House Party is one of my favorite comedies that came out in the 90’s. The movie starred rappers Kid and Play. There were a couple sequels, but the original one is the best. The drawing on the right is The Gill Man from the classic Univeral Studios horror movie The Creature From The Black Lagoon. The man who portrayed The Gill Man, Ben Chapman Jr. signed a photo for me at a convention and included “Aloha.” I remember chatting with him and we talked about Hawaii. Rest in peace, Mr. Chapman.
On the left is a drawing of Leela from one of my favorite animated television series, Futurama. Looks like Leela forgot to wear clothes. On the right is a drawing of Cannibal Fuckface I ripped off from a cover of the sick and violent graphic novel series, Prison Pit by Johnny Ryan.
I started this one and it was supposed to be a scene in a cafe but then I just got lazy and got inspired by a particular scene from the Crumb documentary. If you want to see more, hustle over to the Brooklyn Art Library and check out the 2013 sketchbooks from March 1-3, from there they go on the road and will be stopping in Austin, Atlanta, Toronto, Chicago, Portland, San Francisco and Los Angeles! Check out more of Chocko’s sketches in (book 193.79-10) also look out for Mr. C’s world premiere sketchbook. More info on that later. Thanks again to Mary (she did a sketchbook too!) for convincing me to do this again. Check out her new blog titled Make Life Your Goal where she shares photos and tales of her many adventures and reviews her favorite places to eat and drink!
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Tags: 2013, art, artist, draw, sketch, the sketchbook project
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Deathcycle played The Acheron
February 26th, 2013 by chocko
Deathcycle, an old school hardcore punk band who called it quits in 2009 after about 6 years in existence, revved up the engines to ride once again at the Bushwick, Brooklyn show space, The Acheron in January with the also reunited Catharsis. Deathcycle played a handful of reunion shows after disbanding but to hear they were planning to play at least 2 shows in early 2013 was great news for fans of the NYHC crew. Chocko had the pleasure to be in the packed to the gills Acheron for the much anticipated show…wall to wall bodies! Deathcycle ripped through their politically charged set and crushed all non-believers right from the start with “Suicide Seeds.” Their songs and lyrics make the listener think and are still relevant today…their song “Punk Is A Joke” which was about protesting the Republican National Convention in 2004 could easily be about the Occupy Wall Street Movement today. Don’t even get lead singer, Ron Grimaldi, started about what he thinks of our current President! With all the ranting came the brutal hybrid of metal and hardcore songs which got Ron jumping into the pit most of the time joining in the battle royale of punks and metal heads. Deathcycle will be thrashing again tonight TUESDAY FEBRUARY 26, 2013 in Brooklyn, NYC at Saint Vitus Bar with Concrete Cross, Goosebumps and the legendary D.R.I. (Dirty Rotten Imbeciles). No holds barred…be there TONIGHT 8PM!
DEATHCYLE performing “Suicide Seeds”
DEATHCYCLE performing “An Accomplice To Murder”
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Tags: deathcycle, metal, nyhc, punk, saint vitus bar, the acheron
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Pui Chan: Kung Fu Pioneer – documentary
February 25th, 2013 by Mr. C
(Warrington Hudlin – moderator, Mimi Chan – Director)
Director: Mimi Chan
Stars: Pui Chan, Mimi Chan & family, Wah Lum Temple Sifu’s & students
Genre: Martial Arts documentary
Last Saturday, we were treated with an opportunity to watch a wonderful documentary on martial art legend Pui Chan. The film – Pui Chan: Kung Fu Pioneer was being screened as part of the Fist & Sword programming series at the Musuem of the Moving Image in Astoria, Queens. Despite the rains – loyal fans, family, & practioners alike showed up for the movie. A Lion dance performance and a Q&A with the director would also be on the menu for this festive event! Some of the New York martial arts community were also in attendance at the screening to show support for Pui Chan and Mimi which included Sifu Carl Albright, Sifu Pedro Cepero, Sifu Paul Vizzio, and Sifu Tak Wah Eng.
An accomplished martial artist in her own right, Sifu Mimi Chan directed/produced her 1st movie ever, a documentary on a subject matter really close to her heart – her father, martial art legend of the Wah Lum Temple Northern Praying Mantis system – Grandmaster Pui Chan. Master Chan is basically a living legend of Kung Fu — period. His modest beginnings started in the Guang Dong province in the southern part of China in a village called Shajing. This is where he would begin his journey in martial arts with the Wah Lum Pai system of fighting arts under Sifu Lee Kwan Shan. His rocky journey would continue onto Hong Kong where he immigrated to away from the arms of a turbulent and communist china. His martial studies would continue to progress in HK while he worked as a seamen. Opportunities presented themselves to a teenage Pui Chan while working on a ship in international waters, more specifically in New York City. Chan’s 3rd chapter would start here as he found himself jumping into the waters and ended up swimming to a pier in Newark, NJ! He eventually landed in Chinatown NY where relatives would drive down from Boston to whisk him away to eventually settle down in Boston’s Chinatown! This martial art legend would firmly root himself in Boston all the while gaining much fanfare and respect in the community eventually relocating to Orlando, Florida to create the Wah Lum Temple, a kung fu organization welcoming practioners from all over the world to share knowledge.
Pui Chan’s martial prowess and his liberal attitude to teach chinese martial arts to the non-chinese and to whomever wanted to learn the arts during a time when the community frayed on such practice is what cemented this Grandmaster’s legacy. He seemed to have such a genuine love and passion for chinese kung fu that teaching others about it to keep the culture alive was just an obvious progression.
(Mimi Chan)
(Q&A with Mimi Chan moderated by Warrington Hudlin of the Fist & Sword series at MOMI)
Mimi Chan, the director/daughter of this living legend in Kung Fu is going to be the next generation’s standard bearer of the Wah Lum Praying Mantis system so it would make perfect sense that she would be the one to direct us with the moving images of this documentary in addition to being able to provide great footage and insight to her sifu and father. Mimi was the main narrator of the film as she leads the charge with telling us the tale of her father’s journey starting from his humble background in China in conjunction with Master Chan Pui travelling on location to China, Hong Kong, Boston, & Orlando while explaining to us in his broken canto-english about his unique story. It was asked in the Q&A after the screening to the director with their choice for Mr. Chan to speak english instead of chinese and they truly felt that being in the americas for so long that speaking his chinese-english was part of him. It was pretty funny listening to his canto-english, this coming from a chinese american background myself. We as viewers could tell that with every move, every word he spoke whether in english or cantonese that he was so full of energy, so charismatic, and so full of life! From the start of the film, it was apparent that this movie was more than just a martial arts documentary. Although, Master Pui Chan is universally known and respected because of his skill and dedication with his Wah Lum Tam Tui Northern Praying Mantis Art, this film really exposes a touching tale of an immigrant with high morals living the american dream. To go along with this dream, Pui Chan met the woman of his dreams – his wife Suzy who was raised in Kingston, Jamaica! Talk about a ball of fire between these two! This charming documentary definitely reminded us that martial arts might be the enabler in a person’s life but the real backbone of success, health, & happiness is sustained by having a supportive family. You get the feeling that the director’s objective of the film was to show everyone the legacy of her father but it also seemed to serve as a coming of age story for herself documented by footages of their trips to china to pay respects to Pui Chan’s sifu and parents. Other great video footage included clips from the great HK actor Shek Kin performing a kung fu routine. He was a skilled northern style practitioner and was a very close friend to Mr. Chan. You all might know Shek Kin from playing the role of “Mr. Han” in Enter The Dragon with Bruce Lee. Footages from Master Pui Chan’s performances from his younger years along with some from Mimi were very impressive! Interviews with students, family, and Wah Lum Sifu Bob Rosen help shed some light in Mr. Chan’s earlier years in Boston.
We would definitely recommend for everyone to keep Pui Chan: Kung Fu Pioneer on their to watch radar! Besides the martial influence that this man has had in the kung fu community in the States, he hasn’t forgotten where his roots are from and continues to support organizations such as the Shaolin Temple in China. From the looks of this documentary, the Chan family and the Wah Lum Temple are doing their best to preserve chinese culture and its fighting arts. Mimi Chan must be very proud of her father and her kung fu family. We are glad that she is continuing on the legacy and filming this documentary is proof that she is taking this to another level of awareness. Thank you for sharing the story of your family with the rest of us!
We recorded part of the Q&A with Mimi Chan moderated by Warrington Hudlin which can be viewed above. There was also a Lion Dance performance by the Wah Lum Temple students from Massachussetts before the screening of the movie.
Tags: documentary, kung fu, martial arts, mimi chan, Pui Chan
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Sound City Players played Hammerstein Ballroom
February 19th, 2013 by chocko
Dave Grohl and Taylor Hawkins
Dave Grohl recently made his directorial debut with his excellent documentary SOUND CITY, a movie about the legendary ‘dumpy’ Los Angeles recording studio that produced a ton of great albums by the likes of Fleetwood Mac, Cheap Trick, Neil Young, Tom Petty, Metallica and Nirvana. Grohl along with members of the Foo Fighters played a memorable night of music last Wednesday in New York City’s Hammerstein Ballroom with many of the musicians that recorded at Sound City. The musical guests played short sets which included new songs recorded for the Sound City Soundtrack and familiar tunes that had everybody singing and hopping along. In between sets, clips from the documentary were projected onto a huge screen which would also introduce the musical guest about to perform. The night started with Alain Johannes, from bands ELEVEN and QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, rocking out to a set which included “Hangin’ Tree” a song he co-wrote with Queens Of The Stone Age. Chris Goss of Masters Of Reality was up next and was accompanied by Brad Wilk of Rage Against The Machine on the drums. “It’s Shit” off the 1999 album Welcome to the Western Lodge was a highlight of the set and had heads snapping back and forth.
Dave Grohl, Lee Ving, Alain Johannes, Taylor Hawkins, Pat Smear
1-2-3-4, 1-2-3-4! Legendary punk rocker Lee Ving of the band FEAR played next to the delight of all hardcore punk rock fans in the packed house. Pat Smear a punk icon who’s been in bands such as The Germs and Nirvana, was also on stage and always looks like he’s having a great time. Lee Ving played a new song “Your Wife is Calling” which featured some furious harmonica playing. Lee then followed up with a raging set of FEAR songs including “I Love Livin’ In The City” and “Beef Balogna,” a song which he also performed on Saturday Night Live in 1981.
Krist Novoselic + Dave Grohl = 2/3 of NIRVANA
Rick Nielsen of Cheap Trick, Taylor Hawkins, Krist Novoselic
Rick Nielsen of Cheap Trick and the towering Nirvana bass player Krist Novoselic got the crowd going with a set of Cheap Trick songs with Taylor Hawkins of Foo Fighters on lead vocals. This set got me really psyched because I haven’t seen Krist Novoselic and Dave Grohl on the same stage together since the Nirvana show at Roseland in 1993. Rick Nielsen is a bad ass on guitar and a great songwriter but also fun to watch on stage. Handfuls of guitar pics were thrown out to the crowd like confetti and during “Surrender” Rick flung a Cheap Trick album like a flying guillotine into the audience. I think it reached the second balcony. Rick Springfield played after the Cheap Trick set and Grohl provided the jokes and made sure Rick didn’t leave the stage without playing “Jessie’s Girl.” No “Don’t Talk To Strangers?” That was my jam…c’mon Rick!
John Fogerty
John Fogerty played with the Foo Fighters backing him up on classic Creedence Clearwater Revival songs such as “Proud Mary,” “Bad Moon Rising” and “Born On The Bayou.” Fogerty was having the time of his life playing his swamp rock songs including his 1985 solo track “Centerfield.”
Stevie Nicks
Stevie Nicks headlined the show, starting off with “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around,”with Grohl singing the Tom Petty parts of the song. Next, Stevie performed a new song from the upcoming Sound City Soundtrack titled “You Can’t Fix This” which came from a poem she wrote after losing a godson to an overdose. She performed Fleetwood Mac songs including “Landslide” with Grohl on guitar. He was moved to tears by the end of that song. It’s such a beautiful song and to hear it sung live by Stevie Nicks was a highlight of the night. The night ended with “Gold Dust Woman.” It was an awesome concert…3 hours of rock n’ roll music by talented musicians. Sound City Players play one more show in London, England at The Forum. Check out the documentary Sound City in theaters or check it out on iTunes! The DVD, Blu-Ray and soundtrack titled Sound City: Real To Reel will be available on March 12, 2013.
SOUND CITY PLAYERS with STEVIE NICKS performing “Landslide”
SOUND CITY PLAYERS w/ STEVIE NICKS “Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around”
SOUND CITY PLAYERS with LEE VING performing “Your Wife Is Calling”
SOUND CITY PLAYERS with RICK SPRINGFIELD performing “Jessie’s Girl”
SOUND CITY PLAYERS at Hammerstein Ballroom 02.13.13 SETLIST
ALAIN JOHANNES
A Trick With No Sleeve
Why
All My Friends
Hangin’ Tree
Reach Out
BRAD WILK and CHRIS GOSS
She Got Me
It’s Shit
Time Slowing Down
Domino
The Blue Garden
LEE VING
Your Wife Is Calling
I Love Livin’ In The City
Gimme Some Action
Beef Bologna
Foreign Policy
I Don’t Care About You
RICK NIELSEN and KRIST NOVOSELIC
Hello There
Stiff Competition
I Want You To Want Me
Ain’t That A Shame
Surrender
RICK SPRINGFIELD
The Man That Never Was
I’ve Done Everything For You
Love Is Alright Tonite
You Better Love Somebody
Jessie’s Girl
JOHN FOGERTY
Travelin’ Band
Born On The Bayou
Centerfield
Keep On Chooglin’
Bad Moon Rising
Proud Mary
Fortunate Son
STEVIE NICKS
Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around
You Can’t Fix This
Dreams
Landslide
Gold Dust Woman
Tags: dave grohl, hammerstein ballroom, john fogerty, lee ving, new york city, nyc, review, show, sound city, sound city players, stevie nicks
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Super Saturday Lion Dance performances in Chinatown – NYC
February 18th, 2013 by Mr. C
Festive Lions could be found covered in every nook & cranny in Manhattan’s Chinatown last weekend on a day which is known as Super Saturday. It’s a time during Chinese New Year when local organizations, Kung Fu schools, dance troupes, & chinese cultural groups roam the streets of chinatown going door to door to businesses performing traditional southern lion dances at the storefronts to welcome in a prosperous lunar new year and to ward away evil spirits! In return, the performers receive a red envelope with money as a token of wealth, health, & prosperity. The distinctive sound of the drums, gongs, & the colorful Lion’s body while it prances about under the performers’ guidance is truly a sight to see! I always look forward to combing the streets of chinatown on super saturday!
Some organizations that I stumbled upon last Saturday that took part in the performances included Yip’s Dragon Style Kung Fu, Jook Lum Gee Tong Long Pai (Southern Praying Mantis), Luen Hing, Shaolin Kung Fu Institute, Wan Chi Ming Hung Gar Institute, Yee’s Hung Ga, United East Athletic Association, Golden Lion club, Staten Island Lions, New York United Lion Dance Troupe, Chinatown Community Young Lions, Chinese Freemason Athletic Club, & many more! Happy New Year of the Snake – everyone!
Tags: chinatown, chinese culture, chinese new year 2013, lion dance, new york city
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The Berlin File (2013) : movie review
February 13th, 2013 by Mr. C
Director: Ryoo Seung-wan
Stars: Ha Jung-woo, Han Suk-kyu, Ryoo Seung-bum, Gianna Jun
Genre: Action, Thriller, Drama
The Berlin File sets the tone with this epic espionage chase in Berlin, Germany involving various radical groups with their own agendas including the North Koreans, the South Korean Intelligence, the CIA, Russian Arms dealer, Israeli secret service, & Arab terrorists each with their own layer of deception introduced to us right from the onslaught of the film. The beginning of the movie sets us up in a hotel in Berlin where a weapons deal between the Russians and the North Koreans is taking place under negotiations by our main protagonist, agent Pyo Jong-seong (Ha Jung-woo) – a national hero of North Korea. The deal is secretly being watched by the South Koreans, North Koreans, and the CIA. When negotiations go awry, flurries of bullets start to fly! All the groups are introduced to us and only until after the dust settles do we start to peel away the layers of deceit. What basically is left is Pyo Jong-seong being left to fend for his own self as all fingers start to point to him in being a fall guy from the outlook of all parties involved. As part of the setup, Pyo Jong-seong’s wife, a translator for the North Korean embassy is also implicated in aiding with this twisted game of espionage. The root of all evil lies from the cover-up of unaccounted for loyalties being funneled within Kim Jong Il’s regime or might it be another group?
The action sequences including the firearms, the explosions, and the hand to hand combat are all moving images that will quickly demand your attention! The set pieces where all this takes place, mind you in a foreign land is amazing and adds extra tension to the story line. The soundtrack and the exceptional camera work helped set up the viewer perfectly for that frenetic pace and suspenseful mood. Even though the fight choreography and stunt work were well produced, I didn’t care for some of the sudden closeups of our combatants and the slight camera shakes during the hand to hand exchanges to provoke more frenzy in the scene. It gives me the feeling that the closeups and the shakes are visuals used to distract me from the fact that the scene is being filmed with a double which might or might not be the case. The main character played by Ha Jung-woo does a great job of being a cool and nonchalant customer all the while being super intense even with his constant uphill battle. The main villain in the film played by Ryoo Seung-bum does a tremendous job with being the cold blooded North Korean assassin! The performance by the leading lady, Gianna Jun was just o.k. for me. Her role didn’t provoke as much emotion as I would have expected and the few action sequences that she was in – was not quite convincing enough. My other gripes with the film was the incomprehensible english being spoken by the korean cast. I honestly had a hard time understanding some of the dialogue. Maybe they should have had english subtitles when they were speaking in english or maybe have the voices dubbed?
Despite a few shortcomings like the ones I mentioned above and an over complicated story that rushes to unravel to its conclusion, I most definitely found The Berlin File to be quite entertaining as an action film. I’m a big fan of director Ryoo Seung-wan’s past works including City of Violence, Crying Fist, & The Unjust. And with The Berlin File – the overall action is amped up a notch in terms of production value. I actually can’t wait to see this film in the theaters – the way that this type of explosive movie is made to be seen – on the big screen! See you guys and gals at the cinema!
Tags: action, korean movies, thriller
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Toy Fair 2013
February 12th, 2013 by chocko
The Toy Fair in NYC is in full swing, bringing together exhibitors, toy makers, buyers and media all wandering the Jacob Javits Convention Center searching for the next big thing in the world of toys and games. The huge foldout map handed to me at the press table read “If You Can Imagine It You Can Find It At Toy Fair” – ya got that right! Chocko always dreamed of going to this massive event so it definitely was a fun time checking it out on a Monday, taking photos and playing for a few hours.
Ahhh…real Monstaz in front of the Ty booth! They don’t have arms?
These Rody Racin’ Horses looked fun to ride. They’re made of super strong vinyl but no way could they hold the weight of Sumo Chocko.
I never understood the appeal of the Elf On The Shelf Dolls and what’s up with the sideways glance? Are they all covering up their naughty bits?
Stuffed animals with huge dilated pupils are very popular. Kids love ’em I think. Pac-Man is a legendary video game character who chomped his way through mazes and ate ghosts. He’s back with a new animated show Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures. Look for it on Disney XD in 2013.
Safari Ltd. had some dope toy displays including the Civil War one above.
The Create-a-Character toy is super cool…it’s an unpainted wooden toy that comes with paints and a brush and the rest is up to you and your imagination. There were a bunch on display but I’m a sucker for robots.
Ran into a display that honored the French inventor and creator of the Etch A Sketch, André Cassagnes who passed away last month.
Kaskey Kids impressed me with their quality sports action toys. Very cool toy sets for kids which featured baseball, football and hockey. Also, the people at the booth were so friendly and thanks for the baseball figures!
Nothing freaks me out more than creepy looking dolls and rats. Although the radio controlled rodent might be a fun gag in parks and restaurants.
This jigsaw puzzle features some unusually shaped pieces like whales!
Tonner Doll Company had a lot of dolls inspired by different TV shows and Hollywood movies including The Hunger Games and Warm Bodies.
The Skylanders Swap Force booth was colossal and featured a video game which also combined toy collecting and power portals. Looks fun!
Bruce Lee’s Temple of Kung Fu Series features some mean looking 3-inch dudes. Kick that elf on your shelf to the curb and collect all 29 figures!
Diamond Select Toys had a massive display. A couple things that made me geek out were the Munsters figures and Aardman 5-Pack of DC characters. Quit drooling…the set won’t be available until Fall 2013.
Diamond also had some nice looking action figures including The Marvel Select Classic Green Goblin and Ghostrider. Lots of detail! You’ll be the life of the party with a Galactus bottle opener. You know you want that.
Batman has a huge presence in the toy world and it is ultra cool to repesent the classic series starring Adam West. I couldn’t get into the Mattel booth because you needed to make an appointment and they were all booked so nope…didn’t get to see Mattel’s take on the classic tv series, but I did run into the bad boy picture above at the NECA booth. The Batman doll is 1/4 scale figure and NOT FINAL. Changes might still be made but it looks really cool. WB, release the series on DVD already!
More Breaking Bad dolls merchandise coming your way in the form of plush dolls and action figures from Mezco Toyz. Heisenberg is da man!
ThinkGeek featured lots of cool and geeky items at their booth including the zombie head mug…gotta have it. If you are a fan of chemistry and hard liquor, then the set of laboratory shot glasses are for you.
Robots will eventually dominate the human race, but for now they’re cute and fun including Romo, which turns your iPhone into an interactive robot that has lots of personality. Another of the many robot toys at the fair was the Cubelets which is a robot construction kit. The robots can be assembled like blocks, are mobile and can respond to light and sound.
There were plenty of board games at the fair too. Old Age Opoly, a parody of the classic Monopoly board game made me chuckle along with the Fanny Bank. Hear one rip every time a coin is dropped in dat crack.
That’s it for now. Chocko hopes to visit the Toy Fair again next year!
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Tags: action figures, batman, breaking bad, games, kaskey kids, pac-man, review, temple of kung fu, toy fair, toy fair 2013, toys
Posted in art, comic books, photos, toys | Comments (1)
