“Speed – Speed – Speedfreak: A Fast History of Amphetamine” by Mick Farren Book release, reading, signing and story contest
Friday September 10, 6 pm – 9 pm La Luz de Jesus Gallery (Wacko / Soap Plant) 4633 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles CA 90027 323-666-7667 www.laluzdejesus.com www.soapplant.com
Elvis Presley, the Hell’s Angels, Hunter S. Thompson, Truman Capote, the Beatles, Judy Garland, Hank Williams, the Manson Family, Jack Kerouac, Johnny Cash, JFK, and Adolf Hitler. All of the above were, at one time or another, to put it bluntly, speedfreaks. Speed – Speed – Speedfreak: A Fast History of Amphetamine” traces the criminal and cultural use of amphetamine and its growing use through each new and destructive cycle. The book will be printed in rounded pill capsule form, like the vaunted “black beauty” of pharmaceutical history
Photo by Wendy Phillips
Author Mick Farren is a pillar of the counterculture and one of the last Bohemians standing. He is the author of close to forty books both fiction and otherwise and has released some 20 albums. His lyrics have been performed by Hawkwind, Motorhead, Metallica, Brother Wayne Kramer and others. The exhaustive research on “Speed – Speed – Speedfreak: A Fast History of Amphetamine” was helped by his own youthful taste for what was laughingly called the devil’s dandruff. For the reading part of the fun, he will be accompanied by master guitarist Andy Colquhoun.
Attendees are encouraged to come up to the microphone and share their favorite stories and tales involving amphetamines: real, imagined, personal, anecdotal, second-hand, historical, nightmarish and/or cautionary. While no one involved in this event advocates the use of narcotics, we recognize their pervasiveness–at a time when an estimated 40% of Montana’s youth is on speed, for instance, it is blatantly apparent that a great number of adults have either taken speed or know someone who has. Prizes will be awarded for the most popular stories told!
“Speed – Speed – Speedfreak: A Fast History of Amphetamine” by Mick Farren – Die cut paperback, 175 pages 8.4 x 4.3 x 0.4 inches, published by Feral House, www.feralhouse.com, English, ISBN 13: 978-1932595826
Make no mistake about it: the art world, the traditional art world is over. – Douglas Rushkoff
ART-TOYS is a massive collection of Brian McCarty’s meticulously composed photographs that uniquely chronicle the Art-Toy movement. For six years, McCarty worked alongside a host of international artists, photographing their toy characters in actual locations ranging from the Grand Canyon to Times Square. The resulting photos are sometimes dark, often funny, and always hinting at a deeper story. The moments that McCarty manufactures in front of the camera feel real, as if he’s simply documenting the day-to-day lives of toys.
Each of the over 100 photographs stand alone on a page, allowing viewers an unfettered look at the world from McCarty’s toy-based perspective. An extensive behind the scenes section is included at the back of the book, providing a narrative glimpse at McCarty’s methods and the artists with whom he collaborates. Snapshots taken on set reveal the brilliantly simple techniques behind some of his most magical and iconic images.
Because the toys that McCarty photographs are simultaneously art objects and consumer goods, many of his images were created to serve both creative and commercial goals. As such, they provide a unique perspective on the art and commerce of the Designer Toy / Urban Vinyl movement. A number of books have explored the content of the Art-Toy movement before, but this is the only collection that captures the energy and the attitude of a new era in Pop Art from the perspective of a fellow artist.
Artists with toy work included: Alex Pardee, Amanda Visell, Andrew Bell, Ashley Wood, Attaboy, Bob Dob, Brandt Peters, Craig Anthony Perkins, Frank Kozik, FriendsWithYou, Gama-Go, Gary Baseman, Greg “Craola” Simkins, James Jarvis, Jeremy Fish, Jermaine Rogers, Joe Ledbetter, Kathie Olivas, Lili Chin, Luke Chueh, Mario “MARS-1” Martinez, Mark Mothersbaugh, Mark Nagata, Mark Ryden, Meredith Dittmar, Michelle Valigura, mr clement, Noferin, Patrick Ma, Ralph Cosentino, Roy Miles, Sam Flores, Santa Inoue, Sara Antoinette Martin, Sebastien Roux, Sergey Safonov, Scott Musgrove, Scott Tolleson, Simone Legno, Tim Biskup, Wilfrid Wood, Yoskay Yamamoto, and others.
The special, limited edition of ART-TOYS features an alternate cover free of text, packaged in a vinyl slipcase. Each book is individually numbered and signed by Brian McCarty and eighteen world-known artists whose work is showcased inside. Included are Attaboy, Gary Baseman, Tim Biskup, Hugh Brown, Luke Chueh, Lili Chin, Bob Dob, Frank Kozik, Joe Ledbetter, Patrick Ma, Mark Nagata, Craig Perkins, Mark Ryden, Greg “Craola” Simkins, Scott Tolleson, Michelle Valigura, Amanda Visell, and Yoskay Yamamoto. Mario “MARS-1″ Martinez and Sam Flores are also included in a rare number of “chase” books.
We have been living for too long in the wake of Walter Benjamin’s prescient but ultimately depressing essay, “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction.” He correctly demonstrated how photographs of art remove works from their original contexts – the media successfully diminishing a painting’s original “aura” of context and place. Now, and thanks to the Art-Toy movement, we may actually be entering an era when a work of art’s aura is not diminished but enhanced or even *created* by the media supporting it. – Douglas Rushkoff
Hard cover, 240 Pages, 10.5″ x 9″, Published by Baby Tattoo Books, Los Angeles
Brian McCarty
Brian McCarty (mccartyphotoworks.com, brianmccarty.com) is a Memphis-born photographer currently living and working in Los Angeles. McCarty studyed at the Parsons School of Design in New York City and the Benetton-supported creative research center Fabrica in Treviso, Italy. According to McCarty, “About the time I was supposed to grow up and stop playing with toys, they transitioned into subjects for my photography.” In the twenty years since, his toy photography has been exhibited internationally and seen via commissioned projects for clients such as Rockstar Games, Cartoon Network, MTV, and Kidrobot. In addition, McCarty spent nearly four years as in-house photographer at Mattel.
McCarty’s postmodern integration of concept and character has earned his photography a prominent position in the growing Urban Vinyl / Art-Toy movement. McCarty is featured in several books chronicling the artistic movement such as Vinyl Will Kill, Dot Dot Dash, and Toys: New Designs from the Art-Toy Revolution. McCarty’s work has earned notable praise from such places as Bizarre Magazine (July, 2010),L’Uomo Vogue (February, 2007), ABC World News(October 31st, 2006), FHM Germany (April, 2010), and XLR8R Magazine (January, 2009). In addition to his still photography work, McCarty recently co-created, produced, and art-directed an animated series based upon his photography that went into development for Nickelodeon.
Continuing to expand his work, Brian is currently developing a documentary film and photo essay on children’s experiences of war as expressed by principles of play and art therapy.
Josh Alan Friedman Black Cracker Book Reading, Signing & Musical Performance Sponsored by New Texture. Special guest readings from authors Chris D. and Wyatt Doyle
Thursday, July 8, 2010
6-9 pm
La Luz de Jesus Gallery
4633 Hollywood Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90232
323-666-7667
info@laluzdejesus.com www.laluzdejesus.com
New Texture is a Los Angeles-based arts collective-turned-publisher; our first three books will debut at in-person events across Los Angeles in July, 2010.
New Texture Nights kick off in Los Angeles this July, with live readings and performances by Josh Alan Friedman (Black Cracker), Chris D. (A Minute to Pray, A Second to Die) and Wyatt Doyle (Stop Requested). At most venues, Josh Alan – Czar of Atomic Acoustic Guitar – will play. (Listen to Josh Alan’s music here.)
About the books:
Black Cracker, an autobiographical novel by Josh Alan Friedman
(Wyatt Doyle Books/New Texture, $19.95 paperback)
Josh Alan Friedman is the acclaimed author of Tell the Truth Until They Bleed and Tales of Times Square. But back in 1962, he was a first grader, at the start of a four-year odyssey as the only white boy in the last segregated school in New York. His autobiographical novel from Wyatt Doyle Books, Black Cracker, is a memoir of those years.
Challenging long-held preconceptions about race, class and character, Black Cracker boldly moves beyond mere “culture clash” into “multicultural steel-cage match.” A deeply personal, achingly funny book from a writer who has never shied from controversy, Black Cracker may be Josh Alan Friedman’s most provocative work yet.
With typically unflinching insight into the many shades of human nature, Josh Alan Friedman chronicles a childhood at the flashpoint of the Civil Rights era, spent with one foot in Long Island’s well-to-do suburbs and one in its now-forgotten poor Black shantytowns. As young Josh encounters an unforgettable cast of characters and befuddling situations ranging from bizarre to tragic to roaringly funny—and often all three—Friedman illuminates the myriad ways outside influences, both humane and insidious, color our judgment and attitudes, almost from the cradle. Black Cracker is the funniest book that will ever break your heart.
A Minute to Pray, A Second to Die: A Collection of Writing by Chris D.
(New Texture books, $24.95 paperback)
Admirers of Chris D.’s work as a musician (The Flesh Eaters, Divine Horsemen) may be unaware of his significant body of work as a poet, novelist and screenwriter. Encompassing 35 years of writing across a variety of genres and styles, A Minute to Pray, A Second to Die is a 500+ page career anthology from New Texture that corrects that oversight.
“Eclectic” can’t begin to define a compendium collecting all of his lyrics and poetry, surreal dream stories, and excerpts from several novels. Yet perhaps most revealing are the candidly autobiographical passages peppered throughout, providing personal and artistic context while nakedly detailing his struggles with personal obsessions. Sex, drugs and rock ’n’ roll, sure; but also fevered poetry, religious damage, and rabid cinephilia.
A Minute to Pray, A Second to Die is an exhaustive collection of writing by one of the godfathers of Los Angeles punk rock. Deeply cathartic and intensely cinematic, writer Chris D.’s varied selections stake their claim squarely in the shadowlands between arthouse and grindhouse; 19th Century romanticism roughed up by James M. Cain, “cut up” by William S. Burroughs, and screened on a wall at a bordertown drive-in.
Stop Requested by Wyatt Doyle; illustrated by Stanley J. Zappa
(New Texture books, $14.95 paperback)
Public transportation is a great equalizer. No matter who you are or what circumstances put you there, you’re on the bus. And in Los Angeles—a city obsessed with status, image and the car you drive—when you’re on the bus, you’re really on the bus.
But just because it’s no place to meet movie stars doesn’t mean there’s any shortage of memorable characters among the lost, the delusional, the disenfranchised and the drunk. These aren’t merely people who ride the buses, they’re people you might never get to meet anywhere else.
Wyatt Doyle’s naked city stories of the other side of Tinseltown are shot through with comedy, tragedy, mystery, action, drama—even the occasional musical number. Profusely illustrated with surreal, biting images by Stanley J. Zappa, Stop Requested delivers street-level tales of bizarre encounters, faded dreams, mental illness and heavy traffic.
It’s a LOVE weekend at two L.A.book stores next Friday, July 9 and Saturday, July 10 in honor of the debut of John Einarson’s book “Forever Changes,” which features Arthur Lee’s autobiographical notes released for the first time!
Friday July 9 at 7 p.m., STORIES Books * Cafe * Goods (1716 Sunset Boulevard, Echo Park) will feature a LOVE DJ night featuring mid-’60s L.A. scene discs spun by people who are huge fans of LOVE, including Lee Joseph, Tita Ortega, Ian Marshall, Kara Wright, Steve Stanley & Cheryl, Domenic Priore, Becky Ebenkamp, Renee Hendrie, Erik Bluhm, Kari French and surprise drop-ins. Every few songs, you’ll hear one by LOVE.
Saturday’s event at BOOK SOUP (5 p.m., 8818 Sunset Strip) promises to be a legendary moment in the history of the band as LOVE guitarist Johny Echols and drummer Michael Stuart-Ware will be joined by ’60s Elektra Records president Jac Holzman and other close associates of Arthur Lee in an interview-question and answer session featuring “Forever Changes” author John Einarson, moderated by Domenic Priore (author of “Riot on Sunset Strip: Rock ‘n’ Roll’s Last Stand in Hollywood,” foreword by Arthur Lee). Live acoustic music will be provided by members of Baby Lemonade, who spent the last bunch of years touring with Arthur around the globe.
Friday, July 9: Stories, 1716 Sunset Boulevard, 7 p.m. (213) 413-3733
Saturday, July 10: Book Soup, 8818 Sunset Strip, 5 p.m. (310) 659-3110
Friday, April 23, 2010, 6 – 9 pm
La Luz de Jesus Gallery
4633 Hollywood Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90027
323-666-7667 Fax: 323-663-0243 www.laluzdejesus.com
Since 1984 artist and screen-printer Lindsey Kuhn has been creating posters for rock shows worldwide. Credited with helping revive the lost art of the “rock poster,” Kuhn keeps the D.I.Y. ethic alive by continuing to print and sell his own work as well as the works and merchandise of other artists through his print company, SWAMP.
“Lure of the SWAMP“ is Kuhn’s first book. Featuring 104 full-color pages with images of over 450 rock posters, “Lure of the SWAMP” chronicles 26 years of Lindsey’s printing history in images and text. The book has contributions from Kozik, Pushead, Ron Donovan, Tim Kerr, Michelle “Hell” Carr, Eric “Emo” Hartman, Stainboy and many others.
Kuhn will make an appearance at La Luz to sign his book and will bring with him several of his rock posters; some new and some old, going back as far as the Jabberjaw days. In addition, Kuhn will bring several art prints, some originals and a few copies of the hardback version of “Lure of the SWAMP” along with a screen print laminated version of the book in a limited edition of 75 pieces. Other merchandise such as stickers and a toy or two will also be available.
“If there is one thing that makes America great, it’s a special type of self made pioneer, the true D.I.Y…The Trail blazer! That unique person that grabs a hold of his world and his culture and molds it into energy and momentum. There’s an old term for it, STOKED. And Lindsey is a being, STOKED to the fullest!”- Frank Kozik
“Lure of the SWAMP”, 104 pages, 12.1 x 8.7 x 0.3,first edition published by SWAMP. ISBN-13: 978-0578043500 – www.swampco.com
Saturday, April 3, Dennis Larkins’ “Startling Art: Revealing the Art of Dennis Larkins” book signing follows the artists’ exhibition opening at La Luz de Jesus Gallery
Saturday, April 3, 6pm – 9pm
La Luz de Jesus Gallery
4633 Hollywood Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90027
Phone: (323) 666-7667
www.laluzdejesus.com
Opening at La Luz de Jesus Gallery on April 2nd (alongside fellow pop-surrealist Max Grundy), Read Between the Lines: The Art of Dennis Larkins, is a three-week show – his first L.A. showing in three years – featuring a new body of painted three-dimensional-relief extravaganzas on display for the first time. Pioneering and refining a bold new approach to artistic expression, Dennis works in a style forged from both traditional and space age ingredients, creating layered works of arresting depth and intense optical punch. Growing up bathed in the glow of the Atomic Age is bound to scramble any thinking person’s circuits. Dennis has been turning to art to heal his radiation burns from the time America started planting its own mushroom forest out in the Nevada desert a few decades ago.
The opening accompanies the release of Larkins’ book, Startling Art: Revealing the Art of Dennis Larkins(published by La Luz De Jesus/Last Gasp), which takes an often-irreverent look at one man’s creative journey, both personal and professional. From his legendary posters for the Grateful Dead and monumental set designs (including many never before published photos of his days with Bill Graham Productions) to the meat of the book, a riotous smörgåsbord of pulp-surrealist fine art, page after picture-packed page reveals the startling contents of one of the “great unrecognized creative minds of the past half century.”
Come out to La Luz de Jesus Gallery on Friday, April 2nd, to meet the artist at the opening reception of his new show, “Read Between the Lines”, then come back on Saturday, April 3rd, for the launch of his new book, where Dennis will be available to sign copies.
“I Slept With Joey Ramone” book reading and signing Featuring Mickey Leigh, Alan Arkush, P.J. Soles, Howie Pyro and other surprise guests
Saturday, February 20, 2010, 6 – 9 pm
La Luz de Jesus Gallery
4633 Hollywood Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90027
323-666-7667 Fax: 323-663-0243
www.laluzdejesus.com
I SLEPT WITH JOEY RAMONE A Family Memoir
by Mickey Leigh with Legs McNeil
“While the Ramones remained an underground band, they are regarded today as a huge influence on the entire punk rock movement. Joey’s brother, Mickey Leigh . . . recreates that electric era, striking all the right chords in this dynamic biography. With skillful writing, he finds Joey’s musical roots in their dysfunctional family life . . . Leigh’s and Legs’s mashup of memories with solid research makes for revelatory reading in this compelling portrait of a musical misfit who evolved into a countercultural icon.” —Publishers Weekly “Joey Ramone is feted with tough love in these cradle-to-grave memories from his kid brother Mickey Leigh.” —Kirkus Reviews “Funny, sad, shocking, surprising, and best of all, brutally honest.” —John Holmstrom, cofounder of Punk magazine
“Blitzkrieg Bop,” “Rockaway Beach,” “I Wanna Be Sedated,” “Sheena is a Punk Rocker,” “Rock ‘n’ Roll High School.” With humor spiked lyrics, a shockingly unique delivery, and backed by the fast, frenetic music of his band, Joey Ramone gave voice to the disaffected youth of the seventies and eighties while defining punk rock in America. I SLEPT WITH JOEY RAMONE: A Family Memoir (Touchstone, an imprint of Simon & Schuster; December 1, 2009; Hardcover/$26; 978-0-7432-5216-4) is the story of the turbulent life of one of America’s greatest rock icons, revealed for the first time by Joey Ramone’s brother, Mickey Leigh, with “Resident Punk” Legs McNeil.
Mickey tells his fascinating, though sometimes troubling, tale of growing up with a rock star with honesty, humor, and grace. Before Joey Ramone’s signature sunglasses, face obscured by a mop of hair, and towering height became the personification of punk’s early image, he was simply Jeffry Hyman, born on May 19, 1951 in Forest Hills, New York. Rock ‘n’ roll gave the lanky, awkward teen a sanity-saving outlet for his anti-social behaviors—which included the crippling Obsessive Compulsive Disorder that plagued him throughout his life.
In 1974 Jeff co-founded the Ramones with friends John Cummings and Douglas Colvin. “Joey,” “Johnny,” “Tommy” and “Dee Dee Ramone” were soon regulars at CBGB’s, honing the brief, rapid-fire concert style that would soon become the stuff of legend. The Ramones’ 1976 debut album, replete with hooky, three-chord songwriting, cheerfully dumb humor, and boundless energy, heralded the true birth of punk rock and created the blueprint that countless bands would follow to the top of the charts.
Despite their enormous musical and cultural influence, a career spanning two decades, and a handful of undisputedly classic albums, the uppermost levels of fame were always just out of reach for the Ramones. The infighting, romantic betrayals, and addictions that tormented the band also strained personal relationships along the way. As these pressures peaked, Mickey saw them take their toll on the kind, caring boy he once shared his bedroom with in Queens, who began to periodically display an uncharacteristically malicious persona. After forty years of extreme closeness, the two brothers engaged in a conflict that had them pushing and pulling at each other throughout much of the 1990’s, though, in the end it was Mickey who was again closest with his brother during Joey’s battle with lymphatic cancer that ultimately ended his life in 2001.
To ensure the story was balanced, complete, and told fairly, Mickey and Legs interviewed dozens of family, friends, colleagues, and industry professionals who were there as Joey’s life unfolded. Both a tribute to the rise of punk in America and an intimate look at a journey filled with music and challenges, I SLEPT WITH JOEY RAMONE is an enduring portrait of a man who struggled to find his voice and of the brother who loved him.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
MICKEY LEIGH has been an influential player in the rock & roll world since the late seventies. After forming Birdland with Lester Bangs in 1977 he became the lead singer/guitarist/songwriter for the Rattlers and Stop and was a contributor to the music of the Ramones. He has written the monthly column My Guitar is Pregnant for the Lower East Side-based newspaper the New York Waste since 1996; created and published the Coney Island High Times, a monthly magazine for famed rock club Coney Island High; and written reviews for magazines including Audio Review and Time Out New York. This is his first book. He lives in New York City.
LEGS MCNEIL is the coauthor of Please Kill Me: The Uncensored Oral History of Punk, a book widely hailed as the definitive work on the subject. The cofounder of the seminal magazine that gave punk its name, he is a former editor at Spin and editor in chief of Nerve. He divides his time between New York City and his home in Schwenksville, Pennsylvania.
Los Angeles Times review: http://www.latimes.com/features/books/la-et-book28-2010jan28,0,3973540.story
I SLEPT WITH JOEY RAMONE: A Family Memoir
By Mickey Leigh with Legs McNeil
Touchstone, an imprint of Simon & Schuster
On-sale December 1, 2009
$26.00 / hardcover
ISBN 978-0-7432-5216-4
Mick Farren Zones of Chaos Book reading accompanied by master guitarist Andy Colquhoun.
Saturday, January 23, 2009 6 pm – 9 pm LA LUZ DE JESUS GALLERY 4633 Hollywood Blvd Los Angeles, CA 90027 323-666-7667 Fax: 323-663-0243 www.laluzdejesus.com
Mick Farren is a legendary poet, musician, author, critic, activist, countercultural icon, and one of the last true gonzo journalists. Enter his paranoid, radical, drug-addled and excruciatingly beautiful world; go to jail during the L.A. Earthquake, meet Doc Holliday and take a ride in Diabolo’s Cadillac. ZONES OF CHAOS is a maelstrom of poetry, prose, essays, lyrics, commentary, and fiction. It includes an introduction by Michael Moorcock.
Farren was the singer with the proto-punk band The Deviants between 1967 and 1969, releasing three albums. In the mid-1970s, he briefly revived his musical career, releasing the EP Screwed Up, album Vampires Stole My Lunch Money and single “Broken Statue“. The album featured fellow NME journalist Chrissie Hynde and Dr. Feelgood guitarist Wilko Johnson.
As a journalist In the early 1970s, Farren contributed to the UK Underground press such as the International Times, also establishing Nasty Tales which he successfully defended from an obscenity charge. He later wrote for the main stream New Musical Express, for which he wrote the article The Titanic Sails At Dawn, an analysis of what he considered the malaise afflicting then-contemporary rock music and which described the conditions that subsequently resulted in punk. To date he has written 23 novels, including the Victor Renquist novels and the DNA Cowboys sequence. His 1989 novel The Armageddon Crazy deals with a post-2000 United States which is dominated by fundamentalists who subvert the Constitution. Farren has written 11 works of non-fiction, a number of biographical (including four on Elvis Presley), autobiographical and culture books (such as The Black Leather Jacket) and much poetry.From 2003 to 2008, he was a columnist for the weekly newspaper Los Angeles CityBeat. Farren also co-wrote and edited “Bomp – Saving the World One Record At A Time,“ a chronicle of one of the most important independent record labels in modern pop hisotry.
Please join us for an evening of words and sounds. Refreshments will be served!
