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photo & text by nacrowe
its crazy that arguably the biggest band to ever come out of ORANGE COUNTY got big right after my family permanently left the area. TRAGIC KINGDOM (INTERSCOPE, 1995) by NO DOUBT was released the same month in late 1995 when we departed SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA for NIGERIA. cant even stress how much a culture shock that was. in the intervening years i have traveled (a lot) and been in countless crazy situations, but nothing really compares to arriving in LAGOS that first time more than 25 years ago.
in ORANGE COUNTY we lived in BREA, which was due east to where my father worked in neighboring LA HABRA which is part of LOS ANGELES COUNTY. to BREA's immediate south is FULLERTON (home of SOCIAL DISTORTION and FENDER GUITARS) and due south from there is ANAHEIM. in fact, my brother was born in the same FULLERTON hospital as GWEN STEFANI. ANAHEIM of course is home to DISNEYLAND and from my parent's house i could see the fireworks in the distance from their seasonal nightly displays. growing up i practically lived at DISNEYLAND, so the little nuggets such as the MATTERHORN's warning embedded in the beginning of the song "TRAGIC KINGDOM" was never lost on me. the whole send up of THE MAGIC KINGDOM makes total sense, as well as the artwork that references the branding of vintage orange boxes that you can find in my friends' grandparents antique collections. when i heard the record the first i was in LAGOS and it was really the first time i had an intense case of homesickness for SOUTHERN CALFORNIA. i thought it was so cool that a local band, like THE OFFSPRING beforehand, had made it big. so huge that i found the record randomly at a local store run by a BRITISH expat (this was pre-internet). as an album this record slays. my favorite is easily "SUNDAY MORNING." i still listen to that song to this day to get my spirits up. its a traditional sunny sunny pop song with a great melody and an ingenious music video of GWEN going to the store and buying groceries for a summer picnic with the band eating spaghetti. sounds horrible but it really gives the band a sense of grounding in reality, like a 90s version of BLONDIE with a heavy dose of MADNESS and 2 TONE SKA thrown in the mix. "JUST A GIRL," "SPIDERWEBS" and "EXCUSE ME MR." are just great pop songs that feel like they were written by confident musicians unafraid to thrown in a healthy mix of sonic textures that reference everything from 60s PSYCHEDELIA to SURF MUSIC. its a band fully aware of their cultural heritage as residents of SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA. its hard to understate the impact of "JUST A GIRL" on empowering women to become musicians. it may be the most consequential song they ever released. before this album the songwriting was heavily influenced by founding member ERIC STEFANI who left shortly before record TRAGIC KINGDOM to become an animator on THE SIMPSONS. previous recordings were much more SKA based and derivative in comparison. TRAGIC KINGDOM saw them come together as songwriters. subsequent albums found the band searching for an identity, which seems to be a common thread in the lyrics of GWEN STEFANI both within NO DOUBT and her solo work. when TRAGIC KINGDOM came out it was right in the middle of the ALTERNATIVE ROCK explosion and its optimistic disposition and sunny vibes as the antithesis of the SEATTLE scene. i was surprised that they followed suit with the gloomier RETURN OF SATURN (INTERSCOPE, 2000), before recapturing and updating their DANCEHALL-influenced sound on ROCK STEADY (INTERSCOPE, 2001) and PUSH AND SHOVE (INTERSCOPE, 2012). regardless, TRAGIC KINGDOM is a classic pop record worthy of further investigation and still an immensely enjoyable listen. 
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due to their complex songs written in odd time signatures with with lyrics that had literary ambition, RUSH has had a cult following since the 1970s and are very much an acquired taste. some people can't get past GEDDY LEE's vocals, others find them pretentious.
in their documentary RUSH: BEHIND THE LIGHTED STAGE (BANGER FILMS, 2010) directors (and fellow CANADIANS) SCOTT MCFADYEN and SAM DUNN lovingly showcase the trajectory of their career both from the perspective of the band and their dedicated fans, which include prominent musicians like TRENT REZNOR (NINE INCH NAILS), TAYLOR HAWKINS (FOO FIGHTERS), VINNIE PAUL (PANTERA), LES CLAYPOOL (PRIMUS), DANNY CAREY (TOOL), ZAKK WYLDE (OZZY OSBOURNE, BLACK LABEL SOCIETY), SEBASTIAN BACH (SKID ROW), MIKE PORTNOY (DREAM THEATER), KIRK HAMMETT (METALLICA), TIM COMMERFORD (RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE), JASON MCGERR (DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE), JIMMY CHAMBERLAIN and BILLY CORGAN (SMASHING PUMPKINS) as well as contemporaries like GENE SIMMONS (KISS) and MICK BOX (URIAH HEEP) and entertainment industry heavyweights like JACK BLACK (TENACIOUS D), MATT STONE (SOUTH PARK) and CLIFF BURSTEIN (Q PRIME MANAGEMENT). for some it was their technical wizardry on their instruments that drew them in while for others it was their expansive palette of sounds which mirrored thematic depths of their lyrics that inspired such devotion. what comes across is their genuine affinity for the honest, authentic nature of these three unassuming, well-adjusted CANADIANS. in GEDDY LEE and ALEX LIFESON you have two second generation immigrant kids that found each other in middle school in the suburbs outside TORONTO. LEE was the son of HOLOCAUST survivors of POLISH descent while LIFESON the son of a YUGOSLAVIAN (SERBIAN) family the immigrated shortly after WWII. in both you had families that instilled hard work and kindness, which in other words meant they had a typical CANADIAN upbringing. i feel like this was a key to their success since, ironically, it freed them from worrying about success. they had a balanced sense of identity rooted from an early age that made them take the successes and failures of their unusual career in stride with a sense of humor, but also intense focus on the craft itself. a very strong puritan ethic seems to mark them. there is a definite sub-narrative throughout the film that gets into the idea of RUSH as a cultural phenomena and the idea of not being "cool" and being an "outcast" that arguably defines the fan experience. most of the famous musicians (interestingly the majority of them being notable bassists and drummers) seem to have a confrontational approach to this subject as they dismissed that and liked them because they liked them. REZNOR in particular expands on his appreciation for the choices made by the band in terms of their inclusion of technology and sense of arrangement to incorporate an expansive set of instruments (including the keyboards, synthesizers, etc). the one voice i could have left without hearing predictably was CORGAN who seemed to whine about how RUSH wasn't properly appreciated by the music critics. at times it seems like he was projecting himself and the legacy of his own band onto RUSH in a visceral way which was annoying and completely self-serving. you really get the sense that RUSH don't care about people in opposition or indifferent to the group. their concern is their own sense of creative evolution and those that appreciate it. CORGAN's whining just seemed completely counterproductive and i resent him for it. that aside one of the things i most appreciated about the band was their sense of mutual respect and genuine love for one another. this was seen when the uncomfortable talk about when drummer NEIL PEART's wife and daughter passed away separately and in quick succession. the band gave him his space and were willing to hang it up. this dedication continues now after his passing from cancer. RUSH is GEDDY LEE, ALEX LIFESON and NEIL PEART. period. quickly about PEART, they go into his awkwardness growing up and discovery of drums as a means of self-expression but for me the most interesting thing about his career was how in his later years he took drum lessons from jazz icon FREDDIE GRUBER and effectively altered his playing style. that amazes me his devotion to evolving and learning new aspects to his instrument that continued until his passing. even when he was celebrated as one of the greatest living drummers, he retaught himself from the ground up. just so inspiring. if you don't like RUSH, i get it. but even so this film may be worth your time, even if it is a love letter to the greatest CANADIAN band by a CANADIAN production company which received grants from the CANADIAN government to make this production happen. i recognize all that and still recommend it. 
photo & text by nacrowe
a RHODES SCHOLAR and noted host of her own eponymous show on MSNBC, RACHEL MADDOW in her first book DRIFT: THE UNMOORING OF AMERICAN MILITARY POWER (CROWN, 2012) presents an extended examination of the evolved relationship between the decision matrix regarding foreign military excursions by the executive branch and the public.
in essence the relationship between the power to go to war and the cost of it (in terms of CAPITAL, both HUMAN and FINANCIAL) was an imminent concern going back to our founding fathers, who saw our federal system with distinct powers given to each of our three branches of government, as a means of safeguarding that decision and making sure that such was never made without an engaged citizenry. they feared a standing army during peacetime as gateway to potential demagoguery as the political power of war, or the threat of such, cuts through society like few other forces can. by dividing up responsibilities, mostly between the executive and legislative branches, war was ideally only supposed to take place after an appeal to congress and the public was made explicit and duly supported on the merits. in essence DRIFT is focused on the consequences of the deliberate untethering of our foreign military excursions from said public debate/consciousness and congressional scrutiny by the executive branch over time. the short of it was that up until the VIETNAM CONFLICT, all wars saw a drastic reduction in our standing army post-conflict. the NATIONAL GUARD and the ARMY RESERVE swelled during times of conflict (CIVIL WAR, SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR, WORLD WAR I, WORLD WAR II and the KOREAN WAR) only to see them drop dramatically down as people moved on with their lives and spread out throughout the economy. LYNDON B. JOHNSON wasn't sold on calling up the NATIONAL GUARD and the ARMY RESERVE during VIETNAM, as he thought (correctly) that such wouldnt garner public support because those institutions were filled with more connected, career-driven sons and daughters of the establishment. utilizing such forces would inevitably invite criticism, so instead instituted a draft that swelled the ranks of the army with the less connected and less fortunate of society. in pursuing this unpopular war through the utilization of the draft, he effectively disentangled the military from the population. by skirting criticism and not seeking shared consensus and commitment from all AMERICANS, he badly damaged the relationship of each to the other. essentially after that break in society, every president has sought to minimize the political costs of war without exception. RONALD REAGAN dramatically increased the budget to astronomical heights utilizing fear PLAN B-generated fear tactics during the COLD WAR. it has never decreased in any meaningful manner since. REAGAN also famously attempted to privatize foreign policy with his failed efforts to illegally arm the CONTRAS in NICARAGUA through profits from selling arms vis-a-vis the ISRAELIS to IRAN. this mistake nearly cost him his presidency, but subsequent presidents beginning with GEORGE H. W. BUSH made the privatization of the military into an immensely profitable cottage industry that effectively rendered the BOSNIAN and KOSOVAN efforts under BILL CLINTON and drone attacks in WAZIRISTAN under BARACK OBAMA viable. basically if you divorce our foreign excursions from any real economic or visible costs or consequences to most AMERICANS, then you can have never-ending conflict ad infinitum. which is basically where we stand now. past efforts to reign in control over financing by CONGRESS (WAR POWERS ACT OF 1973) or military brass policy (THE ABRAMS DOCTRINE) are essentially mute at this point in time. its a quite a petrifying scenario that is likely to continue unabated, since no executive is likely to agree to limit their own power. it is a circumstance our founding fathers feared come to fruition. this was a thoughtful, well-constructed book that made it harder to sleep at night. thanks RACHEL. regarding her writing style: i always thought it was interesting how she structured her cable show in that she utilized a storytelling technique in which she introduced the subject of her narrative, usually in the second act of a three act plot. for television this is curious since it presumes that the audience has the patience to stay with you long enough to learn that key piece of information. cable news is notorious for satiating ever shortening public attention spans, which makes such a decision interesting. of course, i think the reason she chose this was to emphasize the specific details of her tale and the broader implications of such without being weighed down by our conditioned reactions to names and faces. again, its a technique she has honed since her show began in 2008. on television it is a bit cumbersome and longwinded but within an extended format such as a book it is perfectly suited for maximum effect, especially since she covers such entrenched topics as NATIONAL SECURITY, FOREIGN POLICY and evolving procedures regarding decisions the legal authorization of MILITARY FORCE. this technique allows her to go after the evolution of said topics without getting bogged down in the inherited hazardous debris of past official propaganda, cultural divides and controversial figures. she is able to see the forest and not the trees, which benefits the reader in understanding scope and context immensely. 
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click HERE for this recent streaming video episode of DEER GOD RADIO celebrating ROOTS REGGAE and all its beautiful rebellious glory!
​ past episodes of DEER GOD RADIO are available here at the DEER GOD website as well as in the MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC archives. and if you haven't done so already get the FREE PHONE APP for IOS/ANDROID and enjoy listening to MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC 24/7 at your convenience! 
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its super interesting to me that in the last couple of years it appears that various corporate entities are releasing back catalogues of live performance and interview footage on their youtube channels.
corporate ogre LIVE NATION is no different. i imagine GREEN ROOM TALES was a long form interview segment various acts were contractually forced to do when playing their HOUSE OF BLUES venues to be shown in house before future gigs of other acts. most of the ones i located were around the turn of the millennium. most of the videos provided are crap (think BOY BANDS, NU METAL and FAKE GRUNGE bands), but i dug up some gems from various artists either now deceased or early in their career. i'm glad these were made available even if the interviewer was overly enthusiastic and pretty awkward. 
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maybe it comes from them being CANADIAN and not taking themselves too seriously, but HARDCORE PUNK band CANCER BATS to my ears seem to enjoy themselves. there is a real sense of abandon and dare i say it, fun, in their music, which is not often the case with bands that skirt genres such as METALCORE, POST-HARDCORE or even SLUDGE METAL as they do. i always wanted to see them play because they just come off like an inclusive bunch while absolutely melting your face off with prime intense METAL riffage.
that and they are unafraid to acknowledge their influences. case in point their alter-egos BAT SABBATH who tour, record and perform straight BLACK SABBATH covers that basically draws the through line between the iconic METAL band and PUNK ROCK. cool band well worth checking out. 
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click HERE for NUTMEG's latest streaming CLASSICAL-ISH radio show on MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC as she presents "a lot of classical but perhaps even more ambient music by Asian composers. It’s gonna be all over the place."
don't forget that you can also access other MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC shows like MAKE HER SPACE, NOWHERE FAST, THE SYNTHESIZER SHOW and DEER GOD RADIO here at our website. ​and if you haven't done so already get the FREE PHONE APP for IOS/ANDROID and enjoy listening to MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC 24/7 at your convenience! 
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HOMOGENIC (ELEKTRA, 1997) by BJÖRK is a magical album for me.
in high school i made what with hindsight was a FAUSTIAN bargain when i rejoined my family in KUWAIT after spending two years in WESTERN MASSACHUSETTS at a private boarding school. i had the option to stay. at that point i was over being around other students of privilege and their bullshit. i also wanted to travel again, especially INDIA. so i rejoined my family in the MIDDLE EAST and was fortunate enough to run around northern INDIA with them on a school break. that trip probably ranks in the top three trips ive ever been on (the other two are RUSSIA and CAMBODIA). i remember watching what must have been FRENCH TV late one night that year in KUWAIT and there was special on the ICELANDIC recording artist BJÖRK (whom id never heard of). i was half awake and i dont speak FRENCH, but i remember being blown away by all the videos they showed. just the thought of "who is this?" and "how have i never heard of this person before?" fast forward a few months and my family are staying at a fort in RAJASTHAN and my brother are essentially sharing a turret. that was the setting i remember listening to HOMOGENIC in. it was like a fever dream. at one point i even had dysentery on that trip. i was completely dehydrated on one of the trip's legs to JAIPUR. it was a long bus ride that i was asleep for most of feeling horrible. in the distance i remember seeing dancing bears on the road while listening to HOMOGENIC. i was dumbfounded. turns out as we got closer there was so poor bears with rings through their noses forced to dance for tips as cars drove by. animal torture. that bummed me out, but at least i wasnt hallucinating. being in that BJÖRK headspace somehow made that seem possible. unlike her previous albums which were more beat driven and veer more towards TRIP HOP at times, HOMOGENIC is a full orchestrated affair. songs like "JOGA," "PLUTO" and especially "BACHELORETTE" have an expansive cinematic sense about them with big, energetic crescendos and long buildups. its still very much an electronic hybrid like previous efforts, but one that is decidedly more deliberate in execution. other songs such as "HUNTER" and "ALL IS FULL OF LOVE" are more downtempo and introspective, but musically attempt to use an expansive palette of both digital and analog to orchestrate the aural equivalent of intimacy and vulnerability. its an incredible record that still feels contemporary, much like her catalogue in general. BJÖRK always seems to be looking around for new ideas to incorporate into her sound with nothing off limits. for me the refinement of HOMOGENIC is the payoff of the jubilant experimentation of POST (ELEKTRA, 1995), her previous major effort. to my ears they are a pair and both should be looked into by anyone interested in expressive, experimental and thoroughly listenable pop music. 
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sometimes bands just materialize organically.
that seems to be how SCOTTISH INDIE ROCK band BELLE & SEBASTIAN bubbled-up from obscurity as a cohort of local semi-serious musicians coalesced around the bedroom songs of leader STUART MURDOCH as depicted in the IF YOU'RE FEELING SINISTER (PITCHFORK, 2013) documentary. largely an oral history with band members STEVIE JACKSON, RICHARD COLBURN, ISOBEL CAMPBELL, CHRISTOPHER GEDDES, SARAH MARTIN, MICK COOKE, STUART DAVID as well as JEEPSTER RECORDINGS co-founders MARK JONES and STEFANO D'ANDREA and recording engineer TONY DOOGAN all contributing to the band's narrative, what becomes apparent is how these tightly constructed and highly literate songs became the focus straight away. fellow singer ISOBEL CAMPBELL was both a muse and a melodic counterpoint to that of MURDOCH. probably most important in that evolution was the addition of the more season local musician STEVIE JACKSON who helped provide a more polished sheen to the material which could have easily been construed as TWEE otherwise. in fact my argument is that BELLE & SEBASTIAN is kind of the middle point between THE SMITHS and CALVIN JOHNSON. the music itself has a naive and intimate quality, as if written by a nebbish bookworm for a small audience of friends in a used bookstore. its almost anti-rock rock music. no swing. no posturing. just bare instrumentation with lilting, whimsically melancholic melodies draped modestly over. makes perfect sense that JACK BLACK's character in HIGH FIDELITY (BUENA VISTA, 2000) referred to them as "BELLE & SAD-BASTIAN." MURDOCH himself was once athletic and outgoing before he became unwell with CHRONIC FATIGUE SYNDROME and largely stuck to his home with his parents. the band proved a reason to get out, physically and spiritually. 
in fact, the evolution of his songs largely follows this conscious reintegration into society, to a point. his songs blossomed as he began writing more and more about everyday observations that he made riding buses around GLASGOW on the way to band practice and local shows. the songs became about normal people from perspective the perspective of a nonparticipating outside observer. this in my opinion made the lyrical content that much more potent, songs became about complicated emotions from someone attempting to understand them as if for the first time. almost childlike. conceptually it is very similar to the creative work of BRIAN WILSON, in that the lyrics are a projection of an ideal and a desire to be like the characters in the songs. its almost tragic in a sense.
what i didn't know about their collective story was that they were chosen by a local college's music business class to be the focus of a semester-long project to promote a local act. when their album TIGERMILK (JEEPSTER, 1996) was recorded with promotional and administrative assistance from this class, the students in fact found representation for the group as they met with labels. it all actually worked! how crazy is that? the more i learn about them the more they resemble THE SMITHS to me in that they signed with an INDIE label (JEEPSTER RECORDINGS) and didn't release singles from albums, didn't appear in press photos and basically didn't do interviews (ok so that last one doesn't pan out as MORRISSEY was a media troll before that term ever got coined). for MURDOCH and the group it was all about leveraging control on their fragile project with as little outside interference as possible, be that record companies, the media or the slippery uphill chase towards fame. great documentary that offers a personal look at a great album by a unique band at the top of their powers. definitely worth watching if you are a fan of the band, INDIE ROCK or intellectually satisfying music in general. 
photo & text by nacrowe
the standalone graphic novel JUST SO HAPPENS (ABRAMS COMICARTS, 2015) authored and illustrated by FUMIO OBATA is an interesting examination of how one's sense of identity and rootedness is transformed when navigating two cultures. in this case the main protagonist is a young JAPANESE woman named YUMIKO who works for a LONDON design firm and is engage to a ENGLISHMAN when she returns to JAPAN for the funerary rights of her recently deceased father. being the daughter of divorced parents and a stridently independent mother who left to pursue her educational goals and a career as an literary intellectual, YUMIKO is caught between traditional JAPANESE cultural prescriptions of passive femininity and the empowered WESTERN model of the self-sufficient woman.
in a sense she sees the benefits of both. this appreciation is seen through the visual metaphor of classical NOH THEATER, which finds a masked actor following her in her dreams. this deeply traditional style of drama, much like other JAPANESE pursuits, is intensely formal to the point that all GESTURES, POSTURES and MOVEMENTS have been passed down for generations upon generations. in fact, the formal elements of these performances are so entrenched that they subsume any sense of ego or expression on behalf of the actor. going through the motions of participating in the traditional JAPANESE BUDDHIST funerary rites regarding her father, there is an implied connection to this sense of extinguishing the ego. these rituals are not about satiating the needs of the living. they are about continuing a pattern, fulfilling an expectation. FUMIKO seems to learn that there is comfort in the formal procedures and rituals not only associated with death, but with life as well. having worked in YOKOHAMA myself for a year teaching LITERATURE at a private secondary school, i think it is quite impressive how OBATA is able to identify and explore this point of tension between EASTERN and WESTERN culture. i remember how seemingly difficult it was to navigate a culture where everyone was so impeccably polite. they werent being INAUTHENTIC, but there always seemed to be this distance. that is until there wasnt. i got the sense that once my JAPANESE peers realized that i was respectful of their culture and embraced the formal elements of their behavior (which is an adjustment for a WESTERNER), it was only then that i found myself joking with people. it was an interesting experience and something i often think about. growing up as a THIRD CULTURE KID, you are perennially stuck between multiple worlds, multiple modes of being and understanding life. i'm still navigating it even when on "home" soil. its still an adjustment much like it is for YUMIKO when bridging ENGLISH and JAPANESE culture. i thoroughly enjoyed this graphic novel and recommend it immensely. 
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join us TONIGHT at 8PM EST for an all new episode of DEER GOD RADIO on MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC with a playlist celebrating metal gods JUDAS PRIEST!
past episodes of DEER GOD RADIO as well as other MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC shows like MAKE HER SPACE, NOWHERE FAST, THE SYNTHESIZER SHOW and CLASSICAL-ISH WITH NUTMEG are available here at the DEER GOD website. and if you haven't done so already get the FREE PHONE APP for IOS/ANDROID and enjoy listening to MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC 24/7 at your convenience! 
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join us TONIGHT at 10PM EST for an all new episode of DEER GOD RADIO on MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC with a playlist that explores the influential HIP HOP / R&B / INDIE ROCK / FUNK music that has come out via the iconic indie label STONE THROW RECORDS over the years.
past episodes of DEER GOD RADIO as well as other MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC shows like MAKE HER SPACE, NOWHERE FAST, THE SYNTHESIZER SHOW and CLASSICAL-ISH WITH NUTMEG are available here at the DEER GOD website. and if you haven't done so already get the FREE PHONE APP for IOS/ANDROID and enjoy listening to MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC 24/7 at your convenience 
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click HERE for the latest episode of THE NOWHERE FAST SHOW on MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC as host TOM FERRIE presents an ALL (MOSTLY) VINYL playlist on what must bet the first day of spring in STATEN ISLAND!
past episodes of THE NOWHERE FAST SHOW as well as other MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC shows like DEER GOD RADIO, MAKE HER SPACE, THE SYNTHESIZER SHOW and CLASSICAL-ISH WITH NUTMEG are available here at the DEER GOD website. and if you haven't done so already get the FREE PHONE APP for IOS/ANDROID and enjoy listening to MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC 24/7 at your convenience! 
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sometimes you come across something that feels like both an extension and an innovation from what youve heard before. MDOU MOCTAR plays a hypnotically, percussive style of electric guitar that is deeply rooted in the TUAREG culture of his native NIGER. to my ears it sounds reminiscent of music i heard when living in KUWAIT and traveling throughout the MIDDLE EAST and parts of NORTH AFRICA. i dont know if it is the scales being used or the rhtyms, but MDOU MOCTAR inexplicably has somehow melded his ethnic music traditions with what could pass for INDIE ROCK. it is quite striking.
its interesting and entirely original and i invite anyone and everyone to check out the music MDOU MOCTAR. 
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check out HERE this recent streaming video episode of DEER GOD RADIO showcasing VOLUME 2 of all the bands i've been writing about on the CHECK OUT THIS BAND section of the DEERBLOG. enjoy. if you're interested here is a link to VOLUME 1.
​ ​past episodes of DEER GOD RADIO as well as other MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC shows like MAKE HER SPACE, NOWHERE FAST, THE SYNTHESIZER SHOW and CLASSICAL-ISH WITH NUTMEG are available here at the DEER GOD website. and if you haven't done so already get the FREE PHONE APP for IOS/ANDROID and enjoy listening to MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC 24/7 at your convenience! 
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my experience with having a radio show precede DEER GOD RADIO and go back all the way to high school. i was lucky in that the boarding school i attended had a radio station that they fully encouraged students to participate in. for me it was a game changer because 1) even back then i was always exploring music and this provided a platform to share such with 2) a new community that i inadvertently joined in the process. the more i got involved the more i listened to other shows and learned about new music. so in essence it was an all-around great vicious cycle to be a part of that i really enjoyed.
during that period of my underclass years in high (roughly 1998-2000) i discovered 1980s HARDCORE. bands like BLACK FLAG, MINOR THREAT, THE GERMS, REAGAN YOUTH, VOID, DESCENDENTS, MDC, YOUTH BRIGADE, THE MIDDLE CLASS, DOA, THE CIRCLE JERKS, and of course, DEAD KENNEDYS. believe me, that list goes on... and on. some of those bands i learned from classmates, but the majority of them were from the shows of upperclassman at the station. for me, DEAD KENNEDYS stood out because of their musicality and the strident, confrontational nature of their rabidly political lyrics. frontman JELLO BIAFRA was also highly charismatic and funny, something i dont think he gets credit for. i think the lyrics of FRESH FRUIT FOR ROTTING VEGETABLES (ALTERNATIVE TENTACLES, 1980) songs like "KILL THE POOR" and "LET'S LYNCH THE LANDLORD" work because they are so hyperbolic yet earnest. it felt even two decades later like he was very much playing with fire with a smirk and a sense of mischief as well as purpose. its an interesting mix. undoubtedly the reference in his name to the NIGERIAN BIAFRAN WAR also drew my attention, given that i had recently relocated to my boarding school from a middle school in LAGOS. i cant say that association wasnt an initial detail that peaked my interest at the time. in songs like "CALIFORNIA UBER ALLES," "HOLIDAY IN CAMBODIA" and even "VIVA LAS VEGAS" there is a sense of reducing AMERICAN MIDDLE CLASS VALUES of CONSPICUOUS CONSUMERISM and POLITICAL ACQUIESENCE to their end extremes. in an era of TRUMPISM and the efforts of extreme elements with the conservative movement actively corroding democracy itself, these songs seem more of a harbinger of things to come than silly pastiche. obviously BIAFRA saw something in RONALD REAGAN's AMERICA that portended things to come. the last thing i'll mention is the guitar work of EAST BAY RAY, which at times delves into ROCKABILLY and even SURF MUSIC. despite the aura and charms of BIAFRA, the hidden ingredient are the decidedly tasty slap-back delayed, single-not soundscapes that mark much of the songs on this record and future DEAD KENNEDY records. much as BIAFRA infused his political screeds with humor, parodies and clever wordplay, the guitar work of EAST BAY RAY and its departure from the basic power chord monotony of HARDCORE really amplified and focused the attack and bite of the band. for me those are the two main ingredients that made their debut such a remarkable achievement. aside from being a definitive album of the period, this record likewise reminds me of the power of keeping an open ear to new music, which is something i continued in college as well as more recently with the nonprofit, streaming radio station MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC out of STATEN ISLAND of all places. like GEORGE CLINTON once said, "FREE YOUR MIND AND YOUR ASS WILL FOLLOW." 
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i recently came across this BBC4 documentary MARTY FELDMAN: SIX DEGREES OF SEPARATION (BBC, 2006) about the legendary BRITISH writer/comedian MARTY FELDMAN. obviously for me and many other MEL BROOKS fanatics, he will always have a special place in my heart for his iconic role of IGOR in YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN (20TH CENTURY FOX, 1974). i wasnt aware before viewing this documentary the full extent of his career or the distinct comedy lineage he saw himself a part of.
first and foremost this film emphasizes his central identity as a writer. this makes sense in that his first successes, much like PETER SELLERS, was on BRITISH radio comedies which obviously put a premium on the written word. from there he transitioned into television as a writer and became a noted collaborator, in fact most of the notable interviewees of this documentary including MONTY PYTHON members JOHN CLEESE and MICHAEL PALIN, lionize him for such. working on BRITISH television series during the 1960s such as DAVID FROST's THE FROST REPORT (BBC, 1966-1967), AT LAST THE 1948 SHOW (ITV, 1967), as well as his own MARTY (BBC, 1968) seems to be when he was in his element as both a writer and a performer. being a jazz aficionado, FELDMAN seemed to find a through-line between the improvisation required in both JAZZ and COMEDY. that boundless imagination and fearless ability to see possibilities within a comedic premise, especially during the writing process, appears to be where his strengths lay. that incredible CREATIVITY, IMAGINATION and FEARLESSNESS also informed his performances and mirrored that of his comedic idol, silent film icon BUSTER KEATON. this may seem odd initially given his background as a writer, but after watch several sketches from his 60s BRITISH television series, it is abundantly apparent what a gifted physical comedian FELDMAN was. his timing, commitment and charisma jumps off the screen, much like watching KEATON in a classic set piece. its unfortunate that FELDMAN's career mirrored that of KEATON as well, both being swallowed and spit out by an industry that cannibalizes its own talent. FELDMAN died suddenly of a heart attack on location in MEXICO during a film shoot for a long forgotten film, so his story feels incomplete. he had aspirations that didnt materialize in HOLLYWOOD and was rendered largely a footnote at the end of his career. i think that was the impetus for this film, to shine a light on his contributions to BRITISH COMEDY in all its mid-century phases, as well as his talent and generosity in the writer's room. it seemed he was in his element within a group supportive group context, which is the antithesis of the corporate, antiseptic and largely joyless mindset of HOLLYWOOD film production. he was an ideal TEAM PLAYER that excelled when put in an ensemble setting of elite talent and for some reason that seems distinctly BRITISH to me. or at the very least it isnt AMERICAN. interesting film worth investigating on a notable yet criminally overlooked COMEDY giant. 
photo & text by nacrowe
adolescence sucks for just about everyone. its an awkward time where you are experimenting and essentially defining an identity that will carry over into adult life.
i can't even imagine the difficulty in negotiating those same issues while coming out, especially in the 1990s when this memoir takes place. in my opinion HIGH SCHOOL (SIMON & SCHUSTER, 2019) by CANADIAN INDIE ROCK duo TEGAN + SARA poignantly explores this emotionally-wrought minefield in an honest manner that makes this memoir a must-read for anyone gong through the same situation or seeks to empathize with such a journey. i personally never went through this experience, but i have friends who did. especially when i attended high school in KUWAIT where anything HOMOSEXUAL-adjacent was literally a crime. in public there was always this front my friends had to uphold that seemed exhausting to me, CODED LANGUAGE and BEHAVIORAL TICKS manufactured in order to conceal their actual identity. this type of polari always fascinated and utterly horrified me despite the fact that it didnt directly affect me. in the case of the TEGAN + SARA, their story is one of SELF-DISCOVERY and any concealing behavior they exhibited was largely to protect family, friends and the reputations of their partners. the word SHAME is never brought up once in the memoir (which is structured with alternating chapters by each sister that serve as insightful vignettes), and yet it seems to be a central theme. SARA especially is an advocate to the community, calling out her FAMILY, TEACHERS and such for their HYPOCRISY; yet she is closeted for most of high school. it is through music that the sisters find a sense of agency and control over their own narrative. a sense of solace in that they can express themselves while still concealing in plan site their identity as members of the LGBTQ community. given the potency of their frustrations, confusion and heartbreaks in not being able to be open about themselves (or even having a definition yet for their own sexual preferences) makes this the perfect book for teenagers be familiar with, irrespective of their own SEXUAL ORIENTATION. if anything it promotes empathy, compassion and understanding for the hidden experiences of others and makes you think twice when allowing someone to utilize hurtful language regarding a minority group because they dont appreciate PC culture (im looking right at you STATEN ISLAND, SACRAMENTO, NIGERIA, KUWAIT, MYANMAR, JAPAN, ALBANIA, VENEZUELA and all the other HOMOPHOBIC communities i've called home at one point or another). HIGH SCHOOL should be read by everyone. can't recommend it enough. it is the rare memoir that seems entirely current to issues at stake globally right now regarding human rights and the common dignity we all deserve. all identities should be celebrate and cherished and this memoir provides an insight into that personal journey of accepting yourself at a point of emotional and physical transition we all go through as adolescents. 
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click HERE for the latest episode of THE SYNTHESIZER SHOW on MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC where Reed and Vince present a new playlist of ELECTRONIC MUSIC and discuss music production from two remote locations.
as always, you can access all past episodes of THE SYNTHESIZER SHOW via the DEER GOD website as well as those of MAKE HER SPACE, NOWHERE FAST, DEER GOD RADIO and CLASSICAL-ISH WITH NUTMEG. ​and if you haven't done so already get the FREE PHONE APP for IOS/ANDROID and enjoy listening to MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC 24/7 at your convenience! 
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watch the latest streaming episode HERE of MAKE HER SPACE on MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC as JEN presents an early playlist as she goes through her morning routine.
​past episodes of MAKE HER SPACE as well as other MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC shows like DEER GOD RADIO, NOWHERE FAST, THE SYNTHESIZER SHOW and CLASSICAL-ISH WITH NUTMEG are available here at the DEER GOD website. ​and if you haven't done so already get the FREE PHONE APP for IOS/ANDROID and enjoy listening to MAKERPARKRADIO.NYC 24/7 at your convenience! 
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May 2021
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