Ichi-go Ichi-e

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Underground music shows have been so important to me for basically my entire life-- as both the social event of attending shows and the spiritual exercise of playing shows, and its been hard not to have either of those things for the past couple months. Hopefully this recording doesn't cause any true believers out there to spin out, but if you think it might, it's ok to just tap out, or save this post for some other day. We're dealing with a lot of fucked up shit right now and while sometimes it helps to have a taste of the way we were, sometimes getting just a taste will drive you nutso. Personally I find that there's a thin and constantly moving line between a smiling warming memory and a laughing taunting memory. It's totally ok to just be like "not now" and save the recording for later. Come back when the line moves again, or forget about this for a while then suddenly remember.

Oh! But if you want one of these patches you gotta act now, link is below. Sorry. OK.

UPDATE: 2021/01/06 these patches are sold out!

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I had my friend Emma Hendry design a logo for the band, so I could make a sticker to hand out. I asked her just before lockdown, and then she sent me her design after the calendar had been cleared of all events. If it wasn't such a cute drawing I probably would've held off on making stickers but it was so good that I decided I want an embroidered patch too. I just got those back from the embroidery place, they came out great.

I was going to save these for "Bandcamp Friday", which is this Friday, the 4th, but I thought I'd better offer these to the castle creeps before anyone else has the chance. I'll put the link below if you want to buy one. Since the show on the recording was a fundraiser for Students For A Free Tibet, the band decided to donate the profits from this to that same organization.

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I mention this on the recording but "Ichi-go ichi-e" is a famous Japanese phrase that means "one time, one meeting". Here's Ii Naosuke, writing in Chanoyu Ichie Shū, 1858:

Great attention should be given to a tea gathering, which we can speak of as "one time, one meeting" (ichigo, ichie). Even though the host and guests may see each other often socially, one day's gathering can never be repeated exactly. Viewed this way, the meeting is indeed a once-in-a-lifetime occasion. The host, accordingly, must in true sincerity take the greatest care with every aspect of the gathering and devote himself entirely to ensuring that nothing is rough. The guests, for their part, must understand that the gathering cannot occur again and, appreciating how the host has flawlessly planned it, must also participate with true sincerity. This is what is meant by "one time, one meeting."

also (via wikipedia) :

The term... is sometimes used to admonish students [of martial arts] who become careless or frequently stop techniques midway to "try again," rather than moving on with the technique despite the mistake. In a life-or-death struggle, there is no chance to "try again." Even though techniques may be attempted many times in the dojo, each should be seen as a singular and decisive event. Similarly, in noh theater, performances are only rehearsed together once, a few days before the show, rather than the many times that are typical in the West, this corresponding to the transience of a given show.

Both of these are pretty apt for a punk band! And especially so for a band that only gets to play 2 shows before being sidelined by a worldwide medical crisis. "Ichigo" in Japanese also means "strawberry".

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Thank you to the band: MZ, Cory, and Uncontrollable Frank; to Dirty Doug DeMay for recording us; to the News Cafe for hosting us; to Funeral Cone, Alpha Error, and RONG for playing with us; to everyone at the gig for pogo dancing and singing along!

download: [49.1mb mp3, 25min]

If you are returning to this page to listen again, please download the file and save it to your device, or listen on our Bandcamp page: [bandcamp]

• Stardust mic check
• If There Was Something To Communicate
• Japanese Pen Pal Girl Tattoo
• Million Miles Away (Cool Breeze cover)
• What I Love About You I Hate About Myself
• Lake To Lake Communication
• Victory Parole
• Linda Linda (Blue Hearts cover)

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UPDATE: 2021/01/06 the patches are sold out!

Sorry, we sold all the pencils at the gig!

Thank you Lois for the pencils :)

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links / misc

• reader Lily works with Prison Health News and sent along this fundraiser-- they write & distribute a newsletter with health info for prisoners and respond to their health questions by mail. They are often the only source of this info for folks inside. [link]
• original version of Linda Linda by the Blue Hearts: [link]. I heard this song first in the movie "Linda Linda", which is one of my favorite movies about being in a band, I think. Strongly recommended. Flan wrote about the movie on her dynamite blog "Flan Flips For Flicks", archived here: [link].

  My interpretation of this song is based on the Spanish translation of "linda", which is simply "beautiful". As I imagine it, it's about looking back through time at a younger version of yourself, and to this unsure, nervous, rat-like individual, you say "you're beautiful". Not because you're trying to comfort or re-assure them, or because you feel sympathy, but because you truly treasure their energy, even their foolishness.

  English translation:

  Like a rat, I want to be beautiful
  Because a rat has a beauty that can't be photographed
  
  Linda Linda Linda Linda Linda
  Linda Linda Linda Linda Linda
  
  If someday I get the chance to speak with you
  Will you teach me the meaning of love?
  
  Linda Linda Linda Linda Linda
  Linda Linda Linda Linda Linda
  
  Like a rat, you're nicer than anyone
  Like a rat, you're warmer than anything
  
  Linda Linda Linda Linda Linda
  Linda Linda Linda Linda Linda
  
  If someday I get the chance to speak with you
  please teach me the meaning of love
  
  Even if it's not love, even if it's not passion, I will never let you go
  A great strength that can never be defeated
  
  Linda Linda Linda Linda Linda
  Linda Linda Linda Linda Linda

• Emma, who drew the strawberry dude, is also in a bunch of sick bands, one of them is KRIMEWATCH [bandcamp]. She also makes cool neon art, her website is here: [link]. I saw her at a costume party once where the theme was "Gods" and she had this insane costume where she was the Holy Ghost-- all in black with only a single hand ungloved, as though floating in space. I think about this all the time...
• I wrote about this show before, right after it happened, you can read that post here: [link]
• "Bandcamp Friday" is the first Friday of the month, when Bandcamp waives their fees and all money from album sales goes to the artist. Normally I try to avoid middlemen wherever possible but in this instance I'm just doing it. I set up a bandcamp account just for this, it's here: [bandcamp]. There's won't be anything there until Friday morning though.

  Here's some other stuff that's hosted on bandcamp, from readers and friends. Again, if you wait until Friday the 4th to buy anything the artist will get the full amount. Otherwise Bandcamp takes their regular 15%. You can listen online for free whenever you want.

• Funeral Cone put up their set from this very night, that's half the sets of the night accounted for. [bandcamp]. The other bands have studio recordings available: Alpha Error [bandcamp] and RONG [bandcamp].
• Russian Tsarlag put up some new stuff recently-- he has a bunch of tapes up here: [bandcamp] and there's a long radio drama (?) called "Knocking On A One-Way Wall" here: [bandcamp]. And this isn't a bandcamp thing but he has a storefront here with comics and movies: [link]
• Will put out a record last month and it's really good dancy electronic music. It's called "Bilateral Kelilacterals" and the band is Cool and Frank. [bandcamp]
• Lazy Magnet has a lot on here, and every record is very very different, I guess I'd start with 2007 magnum opus "He Sought For That Magic By Which All The Glory And Glamour Of Mystic Chivalry Were Made To Shine -or- Is Music Even Good?" [bandcamp]. The newest one is solo piano compositions played by Sakiko, and it's called "Make It Fun Again" [bandcamp]. "Distort Sade" also a banger IMHO. [bandcamp]. There's too much good stuff.
• Mindy (dba "Virusse") put a new one up back at the beginning of the inside time, I don't know how to call this music except that it's personal electronic pop music. I guess in the interest of interest I'll say it's kind of bjorky? I feel like you can't call it synthpop because that name is constrained to an era and also to be really synthpop you need a slimy little lead singer and a weird stoic keyboard person. Can't do it as a solo. My favorite one is "Running From Fate", with the sick Heather Benjamin cover art. [bandcamp]
• NO MILK rules! more great personal electronic pop music. [bandcamp]
• new one as of last month from Brian C (dba "Black Pus"). It's called "Def Vespers", which is a great name. Solo bolt from the man in the mask![bandcamp]
• Greg Harvester jamming with friends! I love this :) [bandcamp]
• Asuna's duet with Jan Jelinek is online, really nice drone, and among other things he plays an electronic instrument I built for him! [bandcamp]. There's also an older record of nice sunny toy-like experimental pop, very different from the drone stuff but really great: [bandcamp]
• I don't think he reads this or even knows who I am (who I am: simply a fan) but notable gem-sprinkler Chris Weisman's been quietly releasing an album a month for awhile, it's insane. Some will hit you immediately, others are way-homers. Some are instrumental and some are pop nuggets. The one I think about the most is Fresh Sip: [link]. It's a solid nugget.
• Sorry, I know I'm forgetting some crucial stuff but it's 11:30 on Tuesday already and I have to hit Send!

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