Blue Label Special Vol 1 or 'Kilmarnock goes by the wayside, as goes everything eventually.'


















Unofficial lyrics to the song ABLE ARCHER:

We pressed in closer listening
To the distant ringing cathedral bells
The trees have lost their leaves for good
And the sky’s become a carousel
Well we left our land in the middle west
Where a thousand forests might've grown
We'll leave it to the scientists
To take and burn this ground away
Gordievsky's flipped again
And I'm sent to bed early again
So I'm counting on the day after next
To take and burn these clouds away
Waiting back in home-room
On another dreary day of school
And I'm locked in with the bins & brooms
So I'll have a chair and wait upon you fools


CMJ 2009 ::: 6 days / 5 nights

Day 0, Tuesday ::: With X-Cargo securely attached to old Brownie, we leave Ferndale relatively on time, scooping up Stevers in Woodbridge on the way. We start the night with the Jimmie Rodgers Train Whistle Blues cd.  It's all about hobos and railroad bums and brakemen, getting us in the mood for 6 days of transient living.  Also some Merle Haggard.  Makes sense for the flat expanse of Ohio Turnpike.   Speaking of which - that turnpike has the best rest areas.  Quite restful.  Burgundy & Aaron opt for BK as it is the only vendor open.  Please note that prices have risen substantially on said roadway.  Our one-way fare went from $6 in May to over $15 this time. 

Day 1, Wednesday ::: Wake up on top of a mountain in Clarion, PA.  Make our fancy waffles at Comfort Inn's fancy waffle bar.  Lovely 5-hr drive along I-80.... mountains, Gandalf.  Fall colors, deer carcasses, another ride on the Jimmie Rodgers express. Pick up our badges & gift bags in Washington Square Park.  Quite different from years past, with a DIY kinda feel to the whole thing.  Last time was convention-y @ the Hilton on 6th Ave in midtown. Pretty cool that Amp Energy (drink) sponsors both CMJ & Dale Earnhardt Jr.  Nothing worthwhile in the bags, other than the festival guide and a pick.  The bags themselves are kinda cheap and tacky too.  Well - there are 2 CDs, have to give them a spin.  Tonight's show is at Public Assembly (used to be Galapagos - the charm factor isn't there, no indoor lagoon nor ambiance).  Nice crowd. Not a bad night, though the on-stage sound was the pits. Vocal monitors completely useless.  Burgundy has one of his patented 'When Good Cables Go Bad' moments.  Dinosaur Feathers folks are really nice.  LGM labelmates The Secret History share a keyboard stand & a tambo with us.  Thanks to Clyde [Twenty Seven Media] for putting this event together, and for the pizza too. Thanks to Steve for the 1/2 pint of Jim Beam. So, luck of the Irish, Broadcast & Atlas Sound are playing right next door at Music Hall.  Burgundy gets there in time for the entire Broadcast set, hoofing it back to our comfy digs at The Gretsch [Guitar!] Building.  Aaron & Stevers split with friends putting them up.

Outtakes from Sans Soleil

Just singing about things I like.  Ramblin’ on with Zeppelin and Tolkien.  Through The Past, Darkly with the Stones in an octagonal record jacket. Through A Glass, Darkly with Ingmar Bergman.  The song title leans toward the film Sans Soleil by Chris Marker, which itself references Stalker by Andrei Tarkovsky.










I like this bit of dialogue from Sans Soleil:

And when all the celebrations are over it remains only to pick up all the ornaments—all the accessories of the celebration—and by burning them, make a celebration.

I don’t know what the hell that is about, but it makes me think of celebrating the end of the year by burning an Xmas tree and decorations in the front yard.  Dancing around it madly, chanting Sto lat! and eating the last of the candy cane cookies.




I was talking with a friend about good creepy songs for a Halloween party - One Way Or Another by Blondie was mentioned.  She said it was about a stalker.  Armed with this new and trivial knowledge, I scoured the web in search of other stalking songs. By chance, I stumbled upon Tarkovsky’s Stalker.  The second half of our song visits The Zone as imagined by me before I saw the film.

The Party.

Lo, we did celebrate the release of 'We Wish You Well On Your Way To Hell'. What fun!

Angela Duncan's set with pal Dan Demaggio was even more moving than anticipated. Epiphanic, revelatory, rapturous. O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!

White Hinterland was such a joy. This was the first I'd heard/seen them & I was so pleased to be playing with them. Not only was the music splendid & intricate but Casey & Shawn were both so nice & revealed to us their fantastic food blog & illustrative work, respectively.

Nonsense & non-sequiturs abound. Copious compliments & credit must be given to the WIZARD & SEXY VAMPIRES who made an already exquisite night even better than could have been imagined.

Consumed: antipasti kebabs, pesto-black-forest-ham deviled eggs, endive with blue cheese, grape & walnut, brownies, Cookie Momster cookies, Trader Joe's finest bottle of champagne.



White Hinterland. Courtesy Philip David Southern.




Computer Perfection. Courtesy Philip David Southern.




Angela Duncan. Courtesy Philip David Southern.

Catching Up!

Oh boy, it's been too long! Okay, here we are back again. Quick updates:

PAST

9.5.2009 Computer Perfection v2.0 plays Schuba's in Chicago. Overall, not bad despite technical issues. I should say that the sound guy was perhaps the nicest I've met. Gary, I think his name was. Gene & I bought matching sunglasses at Penelope's.

9.19.2009 Computer Perfection v2.0 plays DIY Street Fair in Ferndale. Absolute blast. Our new rhythm section is the sturdiest cornucopia of musical talent you've got to hear. Also, DIY is just the best happening in the area, hands down. We saw so many wonderful bands: Zoos of Berlin, Johnny Headband, Serenity Court, Lightning Love were all super tops in my book. Too much fun.

CP gets a release date.

DEBUT ALBUM INFO:
Computer Perfection
Title: 'We Wish You Well On Your Way To Hell'
Label: Le Grand Magistery
Catalog No: (HRH-049)
Release Date: November 9, 2009



Pre-order it at Darla.com

Tracklisting
1. Able Archer
2. Silence Is A Shadow’s Dream
3. The Fool Is Hurt
4. Domestic Amusements
5. Maurice on the Water
6. How I Won the War
7. O Your Blue Blood
8. Sans Soleil
9. The Strange Echo Part One
10. The Strange Echo Part Two
11. Sweetie Pie
12. Planck’s Lullaby

I Want A Rock.

Computer Perfection seeks drummer. Should be available for upcoming performances scheduled through 2009. We live in Ferndale, Mich.

Currently booked:
Aug 16 Magic Stick Detroit (Fucking Awesome Fest)
Sep 05 Schuba's Chicago
Sep 18-20 DIY FESTIVAL Ferndale, MI (Date TBA)
Oct 20-24 CMJ NYC (Date TBA)

Please include info about yourself, bands you've been in, music you like.

We have a debut LP coming out on Le Grand Magistery - looking like late 2009. Hope to book lots of shows.

Contact: genecorduroy(AT)yahoo.com

UPDATE!
Aaron Quillen joins us behind the kit.

The Bem & The Bee.

Oh, how these moments flee!

Has it really been a month since we last talked? Sheesh. Well, what's happening? We played a delightful, if somewhat ramshackle, show at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Detroit. Not to say that the show itself was rough; it was actually a wonderful night that was exquisitely executed by the amiable peeps of MOCAD. Also, Mucca Pazza of Chicago were ridiculously talented, friendly & helpful.

No, it's just that our dang bubble machine broke mere hours before the show & then Gene cut himself on it trying to fix it! Shoot! Afterwards, Gene, LTD & I retreated to LTD's lair with Scott Masson of OFFICE , The Juliets & Fieldtree. We yucked it up 'round the fire, drank it up 'round the piano & enjoyed ourselves into the wee hours of the early morn.

Since then we've been slowly working on a new EP of four or five songs, drinking some lovely French wines, watching Scott Walker: 30 Century Man & enjoying the unusually cool summer weather. Additionally, we've garnered some new gadgets for the Fishtank & putting them to use has been great fun. Some new tracks we're delving into:

IVAN, I KNOW

Inspired by Tarkovsky & a great desire to rock.

LAIKA

Inspired by the dog & perhaps Talking Heads.

PROXIMA


Inspired by Philip K. Dick, M-Theory & alchemy.

In addition to these sonorous activities, Bem has crafted some delectable culinary compositions. Her latest muse has been the squash blossoms from the garden in yonder backyard. They've been panko-encrusted, filled with various cheeses & fried. Oh, & filled with at least one bee. Yes, Bem had to return one inadvertently trapped bee to the wild, saved from its blossom fetters & sure doom in the frying pan.

What else? Some shows coming up: August 1st at Small's & August 16th at the Garden Bowl for Fucking Awesome Fest, which seems to promise to live up to its name! Early September will see us at Schuba's in Chicago, so keep an eye out.

Kid Food.

The night started off innocently enough. We head to Cass Cafe for a quick bite and some drinks. I startwith a Motor City Nut Brown, and then move to a Nut-Blaster (that's 1/2 N.B., 1/2 Ghettoblaster). And the chicken tenders with ranch.

LTD:“Who orders chicken tenders with ranch? What are you, eight?”

Whatever. He ordered whole milk and some Fruit Roll-Ups. Turns out Monique doesn’t like Cass Café, yet she likes AJ’s in Ferndale, home of the 70’s mom sandwich. Thanks for the bologna on Wonder white, mom. I’ll sprinkle some mashed up Pringles on it too, then we’ll watch Thundercats.

So we played a show at The Belmont that wasn’t all that great cuz we only practiced once. My guitar was crapping out, a huge distraction. But Scott Allen’s new group was tight. Alan James was touchingly talented.

Finished the night with Tate serving rounds of Johnny Walker Red, till that ran out. Then I had a cup of the Black before we head back to LTD’s Dragon Studio with a bag full of garbage from 7-11. Never get the Pepperoni, Cheese and Sauce Roll-Up by the way. It tasted as described.

O Your Dry Crusty Brownish Red Blood.


The first practice following NYC Popfest

...greeted me with this bloody splatter on the guitar I loaned to The Radio Dept for their headlining spot at the Bell House in Brooklyn. In the spirit of all that is good within the indie music community, we loaned our guitars, amps, keyboard stands and more to the otherwise gracious trio... who were for some reason traveling without their own equipment. At one point after being asked for a patch cable, LTD quipped, "How about I just play your songs for you too?" But maybe that didn't didn't translate?! So I have to say this was a) pretty unpleasant and b) totally inconsiderate. Just kidding it was awesome rock n roll.

99%

The Album has left the trusty hands of Dave Allison and is being delivered to Jay Keuhn for mastering. Hoping for another week, maybe two... then the master of CP LP #1 (We Wish You Well On Your Way To Hell) makes its final approach for landing in Le Grand Magistery's secret Canadian hideout. That's 2,584 miles from our home in shady Ferndale. At that point, the master will meet up with its artful counterpart created by Andy Taray. All parties will sign an oath in blood taken from local mystical creatures. Master and Art will join hands and march on Darla Records HQ for manufacturing etc.

PS - Thanks D.A. for the mixing prowess, tips & techniques, production assistance... and just a generally entertaining and educational experience. We'll be back.

Meanwhile

Next week it's our 5th and 6th shows: the Belmont in Hamtramck and Holy Joe's in Toronto. That's the NXNE festival. We'll be staying at a comfy guest house in Cabbagetown. In fact, it's called the Comfy Guest House. So that's where we'll be if you find yourself reading this, in Toronto, and wanting to take us somewhere nice to eat/drink.

So that's some crazy back-2-back shit and we R pumped... I sure hope Indevorecords.com will be there, they seem really excited about us:

"I hope you are doing great. I really like your song 'The Fool Is Hurt'. Could you come play at Rocketown in Nashville for me and some other music Industry Reps?? I work for a label under Warner Bros. and we are looking for more artists' right now. We can set up your showcase right online by going through this A&R company we use called Band With a Mission. (www.bandwithamission.com)

The cool part about showcasing with them is that you will get to showcase your best songs for me and a couple other music industry representatives and you will get a 3 page feedback/A&R Assessment explaining what you are great at, and what you can work on to improve your show. You will also receive a pack from the sponsors with info on how you can get involved with their company. They have an unbelievable track record.

I hope you can come out!"


No, I hope you can come out, Meagan. We'll do a two-part harmony, a cappella version of 'The Fool Is Hurt', just so you can understand them lyrics.

Voyeur Surly Try


Load-in / Le Petit Zinc

After selecting a fine bottle of Palo Alto at University Foods, we head to Le Petit Zinc for an early dinner. I’m a total sucker for French restaurants, have been since Bem & I lived across the street from Lucien. We order the Ratatouille, a Salad Nicoise, Assiette de Charcuterie (cold cuts, goose liver pâté and cornichons) and the Jambon et Fromage Crepe. The pâté was the biggest winner. And we took a Nutela Crepe to go.

Banana Jamz

I started the night off with a couple rounds of Bananagrams, courtesy of the fine folks in Very Truly Yours. Katie teamed up with me, but we were not a match for bassist Dan and his amazing wordsmith skills. Yeah he had the skills. All in all, I think our 2nd performance was pretty ok. It was certainly fun to be on stage… and PJ & crew were as kind as can be. Sound was better than I remember. The old Lager has really cleaned up (soap dispenser, paper towel, door on stall, stinky carpet gone) while maintaining the essence of Dive we always loved.

Ghost Ride the Miracle Whip

We opt for a border run this time on the way home. But they forgot Burgundy’s Tostada, screwed in the drive-thru. We end the evening with a quick Ghost Ride down Pinecrest to celebrate two shows in the can.

Album Cover.


Thank you to Andy Taray at ohioboy.com for the awesome packaging and design... can't wait to share the whole thing. Thank you to Le Grand Magistery for putting out our record !

What You Call Stick-to-it-iveness.

You don't bring the venue. The venue brings you.
Saturday, May 25th.
I start the day with the requisite trip to Guitar Center and Radio Shack for cables, batteries, more cables.
Second off, why do we weakling music-types have these 80lb amps? If I become an accountant, I will use that Fender Twin as a paperweight.
Hot rain.
Bem's voice has barely returned following a lengthy cold.
We make the long trek from Ferndale, up Woodward, to Bloomfield Hills. With one stop at Walgreen's for some more batteries.
The student lounge at Cranbrook Academy of Art. A heady blend of Welcome To The Johnson's and Pencey Prep, with perhaps a dash of the gross-out spill slick I imagine the Dexter Lake Club might have had at the end of a night.
Every counter, chair back, bench and patch of floor was sticky as a post-it note on the 4th of July.
It couldn't have made for a better first show.

Spayed Oddity
CP started the night off with 7 songs from the forthcoming full length. Then followed a commanding performance by Lauren Payne with some Catlovin'-Casio-Rap. It was good. Rounding out the evening was Coyote Clean Up featuring members of Kalkaska!? I think we played with them once back in the mid 90's. They provided the High Life and a bass amp, while we brought the guitar tuner so it all worked out. Later in the night, Lauren, Coyote Club, and Alright Computer ride around the campus on a flat bed jamming some Loggins/Messina tunes with Monica manning the tractor trailer while playing bass. Is there anything she can't do?

Where'd You Get That Vest?
Special thanks to Trevor Naud (Zoos of Berlin, Hidden Ghost Balloon Ship, Red Shirt Brigade, South South Million, Soccer Moms) for the catcalls to Burgundy during the set. Your karma was put into balance via the Taco Bell drive-thru. Meanwhile, LTD proposed a new menu item at McDonald's: the 3-Meat Sampler. That's a double cheeseburger, filet-O-fish and some chicken sandwich. Bem says it's 20 points.





I Am A Camera.


Oh how I love this band. These are the pleasure lovers. But I really miss you Mr. Tommy Daniels. Why must you go to work at the nuclear plant when what we really need to do is roCk! Sure, you skate into town now and then in a blur of Safe-T-Rex and iMovie effects. And Monique - why I've only just rediscovered Cranbrook, and you're ready to up and leave it. Speaking of which, the trepanning was a low-budget Lovely Sort of Death \\\ Burgundy... remember when I threw my back out pushing your red Acura into the garage? I forgot the difference between pushing and lifting. Nevertheless, you owe me a waterbed. Bem, I think I got a toucha arthritis in my hip on that walk today. Let's get a pair of matching Rascals.

Watch this film... Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper. 1967. I caught it on channel 7.2 last night. That converter box is really coming in handy now. Best, Gene

The well runs dry.

Oh Beauties.

Pushing through the fog. Artwork is nearly complete! Mr. Taray has put together a package of imagery to truly amaze & dazzle. Mixing is making fantastic progress & should be complete within the next couple weeks. The venerable Jay Kuehn will be mastering the record from that point.

Also, our first show [with a couple more possibilities]:



& a word from Phillip:



See you soon!

Burgundy

Sky memoirs.

Hello!

So, we spent the weekend with Dave Allison, the man with the golden ears, working on fine-tuning the mixes for about half the record. We were also illuminated on the idiosyncratic ways of Jimmy Page, Talk Talk, Chuck Hughes & assorted other mythical musical beasts. All in all, despite a persistent chilled downpour, a good weekend indeed!

We will return in the next few weeks to wrap up the the remaining half & get the show on the road.

Many thanks to Garmin for helping us to arrive at our destination.

& now, the obligatory videos:



May I Recommend?

I may!

Some free fantastic downloads from some fabulous Metro-Detroit acts. Some spots of warmth for a seemingly interminable winter.



SILVERGHOST//THE EQUINE LIPS

Fuzzy, buzzy, synthy bubble rock. Two bananas up!


ALAN SCHEURMAN//OLD PATTERNS

Dreamy, shimmery, moody folky do-dads. Four & a half grapes!


HIDDEN GHOST BALLOON SHIP//HIDDEN GHOST BALLOON SHIP

Collaged terror psychedelia. 98% kumkwat!

You listen, you like.

See you soon!

Nathan for CP

These dreams.

This is more or less a digression, but I just wanted to check in & share a couple things for the sake of sharing. I learned this today & it blew my mind [via Wikipedia]:

A fire balloon or balloon bomb (Japanese 風船爆弾 fūsen bakudan, lit. "balloon bomb") was an experimental weapon launched by Japan during World War II. A hydrogen balloon with a load varying from a 12 kg (26 lb) incendiary to one 15 kg (33 lb) antipersonnel bomb and four 5 kg (11 lb) incendiary devices attached, they were designed as a cheap weapon intended to make use of the jet stream over the Pacific Ocean and wreak havoc on Canadian and American cities, forests, and farmland.

Between November 1944 and April 1945 Japan launched over 9,000 fire balloons. About 300 balloon bombs were found or observed in North America, causing six deaths and a small amount of damage.

Japan released the first of these bomb-bearing balloons on November 3, 1944. They were found in Alaska, Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona, Idaho, Montana, Utah, Wyoming, Colorado, Texas, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Michigan and Iowa, as well as Mexico and Canada.


Also, Jo Lemaire et Flouze covering Serge Gainsbourg's 'Je Suis Venu Te Dire Que Je M'en Vais':



Finally, Jindrich Heisler's Untitled [via http://ajourneyroundmyskull.blogspot.com/]:



Love,

Burgundy for CP

2009, continued.

Let us resolve. What are your plans for 2009?

Little Tommy Daniels


"I resolve not to punch walls, kick cars, stab kitchen cabinets, throw wine glasses or write nasty letters to people. I will also use the 2 minute rule and be aware of my surroundings."

Bem


"I would like to replace all of my missing buttons AND create my very own victory garden."

Nathaniel F.H. Burgundy IV

"I shall release my guilt, eradicate my fears & conquer my gas. Just kidding, I have no fears."

Gene R. Corduroy


"More coffee, and more cookies from Pinwheel. Less chemicals in the bathroom. More drawings. More naked drawings. Less computing. More movies/films. Less reruns. More walking the willows. Less bird-is-the-word. More gestures. More jest."

Everything's fine in 2009.

Hallo there!

How are you, lil' baby? Did you have a fantastic holiday? A sublime New Year?

Us? Oh, we're doing fine, thanks! We continue on into 2009 with the completion of our full-length debut, We Wish You Well On Your Way To Hell. Details are being sewn together; a couple pieces that have broken off have been hot-glued back on. I might have to let out the waist a little bit, I'm afraid I may have put on a small bit of weight over the holidays. In general: cleaning, editing, mixing, drawing. Polish!

Oh yes & we are putting together a live show spectacular. These are the first practices we've done together in years, mind you! YEARS! It truly is like riding a bike, though. What a difference having a Little Tommy Daniels makes, my dear. As soon as those drums kick in: goodnight nurse! Oh, LTD, make the dream real.

[Speaking of which, has anyone heard the Morrissey tune 'Glamorous Glue' used in the ads for the new Tim Roth Fox Series 'Lie To Me'?]

Concurrently, Gene has been helming a voyage into the uncharted seas of video-making. Our plans: one video per song. Ten videos! Oh, we've got the concepts. Gene's ensuring we have the know-how. I'll see you all on YouTube.

Okay, okay. I'll let you all get back to work - but before going I shall leave with a couple gifts:

The Axolotl salamander:



Powder 2: Powder 2 The People:



Let The Right One In:



New Year's Eve dinner:



[Oxtail dumplings, duck, shrimp salad, oysters, bacon-n-blue cheese prunes, assorted veggies, lots of wine, champagne & so on]

See you soon!

Nathan Burgundy

for

Computer Perfection