Photo
June 28, 2011
7 notes
I Break Horsesby Bill Callahan, as performed by Smog, 1996 Well I rode out to the oceanAnd the water looked like tarnished goldI rode out on a broken horseWho told me she’d never felt so oldShe asked me if I’d feed herAnd ride her now and thenNo no no, no no no, no no no,I break horses I don’t tend to themI break horsesThey seem to come to meAsking to be brokenThey seem to run to meI break horsesDoesn’t take me longJust a few well-placed wordsAnd their wandering hearts are goneAt first her warmth felt good between my legsLiving breathing heart-beating fleshBut soon that warmth turned to an itchTurned to a scratchTurned to a gashI break horses I don’t tend to themTonight I’m swimming to my favorite islandAnd I don’t want to see you swimming behindTonight I’m swimming to my favorite islandAnd I don’t want to see you swimming behindNo I break horsesI don’t tend to them (text via kafka-on-the-shore)

I Break Horses
by Bill Callahan, as performed by Smog, 1996

Well I rode out to the ocean
And the water looked like tarnished gold
I rode out on a broken horse
Who told me she’d never felt so old
She asked me if I’d feed her
And ride her now and then

No no no, no no no, no no no,
I break horses 
I don’t tend to them
I break horses
They seem to come to me
Asking to be broken
They seem to run to me
I break horses
Doesn’t take me long
Just a few well-placed words
And their wandering hearts are gone

At first her warmth felt good between my legs
Living breathing heart-beating flesh
But soon that warmth turned to an itch
Turned to a scratch
Turned to a gash
I break horses 
I don’t tend to them

Tonight I’m swimming to my favorite island
And I don’t want to see you swimming behind
Tonight I’m swimming to my favorite island
And I don’t want to see you swimming behind
No I break horses
I don’t tend to them

(text via kafka-on-the-shore)

Tags: Music Bill Callahan Smog

Audio
November 20, 2010
8 notes
[Flash 9 is required to listen to audio.]

fussyjazz:

Mulatu Astatke — Tezeta (Ethiopiques Vol. 4: Ethio Jazz & Musique Intrumentale, 1969-1974)

I am one of the few people I know who wasn’t bowled over by Bill Callahan’s last record, Sometimes I Wish We Were An Eagle. Across the board, most everyone I’ve talked to about it is smitten with it. Truly, I think his trio of albums leading up to it (Supper, A River Ain’t Too Much To Love and Woke on a Whaleheart) might just prove to be his hat trick of masterpieces [note: Supper and A River Ain’t Too Much To Love released under Callahan’s Smog moniker]. They also find Callahan in a better mood than we find him most times — er, as good a mood as we could hope for, a lot of credit probably going to his now-defunct romantic relationship with a one Joanna Newsom during which at least two of those records were made (Newsom plays on A River Ain’t Too Much…). On those three, his wordplay, composition and instrumentation are all spritelier. You can almost hear him grinning as the words come out. There’s nary a grin to be found on the latest record. That said, Sometimes I Wish We Were An Eagle contains some Callahan lyrics I oft-return to in my mind: “I used to be darker/Then, I got lighter/Then, I got dark again/Something too big to be seen/Was passing over and over me.” Nothing fancy here, just a cloud metaphor. But it gets you thinking about the chapters of your life, those times when it seems your stars have all aligned, you’re unbeatable; but also your down and out phases, your pricklier times. I feel the big shadow at the moment. Maybe it’s seasonal, astrological, etc. I’m just listening to “Tezeta” on repeat, trying not to look at the cloud, let it take its course. The stars have aligned, turned surpetine and are an orobourus circling all around us now. And I’m actually thinking about a Newsom song, “Go Long,” which makes some obvious allusions to Callahan’s return to darkness: “There’s a man/Who will only speak in code/Backing slowly, slowly down the road/May he master everything/That such a man may know/About loving, and then letting go.”

An excellent post from my favorite blog of the last few months. A toast to keeping it real.

Tags: Bill Callahan Eric Deines Music Smog

Photo
November 14, 2010
2 notes
Keep Some Steady Friends Aroundby Bill Callahan, as performed by Smog, 2001  Keep some steady friends aroundBest thing you can doKeep some steady friends aroundBest thing for youFind a little place to goWhen you want to get awayFind a little place to goWhen you have to get awayBut don’t stay away too longBecause we love you too muchBut don’t stay away so longBecause we love you so muchTo build your own houseMight be the bestFollowing your own designLike some kind of GodWith a fence all aroundA fence all aroundBut don’t forget to put in a gateDon’t forget to put in a gateSo you can have some steady friends come aroundYou can have some steady friends come aroundSomeone asked me just the other dayAbout souls and suchAnd if I believed in Judgement day (via hannahfidell)

Keep Some Steady Friends Around
by Bill Callahan, as performed by Smog, 2001 

Keep some steady friends around
Best thing you can do
Keep some steady friends around
Best thing for you
Find a little place to go
When you want to get away
Find a little place to go
When you have to get away

But don’t stay away too long
Because we love you too much
But don’t stay away so long
Because we love you so much

To build your own house
Might be the best
Following your own design
Like some kind of God

With a fence all around
A fence all around

But don’t forget to put in a gate
Don’t forget to put in a gate
So you can have some steady friends come around
You can have some steady friends come around

Someone asked me just the other day
About souls and such
And if I believed in Judgement day

(via hannahfidell)

Tags: Album Art Bill Callahan Music Smog

Photo
October 28, 2010
2,621 notes
How to Tour in a Band or Whateverby Thor Harris 1-Don’t Complain. Bitching, moaning, whining is tour cancer. If something is wrong fix it or shut the fuck up you fucking dick. goddamn. 2-If you fart, claim it. 3-Don’t Lose shit. Everybody loses shit. Don’t fucking do it. Asshole. 4-Don’t fuck anyone in the band. There are tons of people to fuck who are not in this band. Dumbass. 5-If you feel like shit all the time, drink less beer at the gig. You will play better & feel better. What are you… a child? Some have the endurance for self abuse. Most don’t. 6-Remember the soundman’s name. He will do a better job. 7- Eat oranges. Cures constipation & prevents colds. 8-Masturbate. Duh… Where & when? Be creative. You’re an artist right? 9-If YOU can’t carry your suitcase 3 blocks, it’s too goddamn big. 10-Respect public space in the van. Don’t clutter, you Fuck. 11-If you borrow something, return it. Not Fucked Up. 12-Do not let the promoter dick you or talk you out of the guarantee. If there were not enuf people there, it’s their fault. 13- Driver picks the music. 14-One navigator only (usually sitting shotgun). Everyone else shut the fuck up. 15-Soundcheck is for checking sounds. Shut the fuck up while everyone else is checking. 16-Don’t wander off. Let someone know where you are. 17-Clean up after yourself. What are you… a goddamn toddler? 18-Touring makes everyone bi-polar. Ride the waves as best you can and remember, moods pass. So don’t make any snap decisions or declarations when you are drunk or insane. 19-Fast food is Poison. 20-The guestlist is for friends, family & people you might want to fuck. Everyone else can pay. They have day jobs. 21- Don’t evaluate your whole life while you’re sitting in a janitor closet waiting to go on. You think you’re above having shitty days at work? Shut up & do your goddamn job. This list was written under the influence of lots of esspresso & anti-depressants while on tour w/ such greats as Shearwater, Swans, Smog, Lisa Germano, Angels of Light, Bill Callahan & many more. I hope this list will help you get along w/ your co-workers whatever your job is. Contributions to the list by Jordan Geiger, Kimberly Burke, Brian Orloff, Brian Phillips Celebrity Gang Bang, Kevin Schneider, Jonathan Meiburg, Michael Gira and some other folks. Thanks for not being an asshole, Thor Harris

How to Tour in a Band or Whatever
by Thor Harris

1-Don’t Complain. Bitching, moaning, whining is tour cancer. If something is wrong fix it or shut the fuck up you fucking dick. goddamn.

2-If you fart, claim it.

3-Don’t Lose shit. Everybody loses shit. Don’t fucking do it. Asshole.

4-Don’t fuck anyone in the band. There are tons of people to fuck who are not in this band. Dumbass.

5-If you feel like shit all the time, drink less beer at the gig. You will play better & feel better. What are you… a child? Some have the endurance for self abuse. Most don’t.

6-Remember the soundman’s name. He will do a better job.

7- Eat oranges. Cures constipation & prevents colds.

8-Masturbate. Duh… Where & when? Be creative. You’re an artist right?

9-If YOU can’t carry your suitcase 3 blocks, it’s too goddamn big.

10-Respect public space in the van. Don’t clutter, you Fuck.

11-If you borrow something, return it. Not Fucked Up.

12-Do not let the promoter dick you or talk you out of the guarantee. If there were not enuf people there, it’s their fault.

13- Driver picks the music.

14-One navigator only (usually sitting shotgun). Everyone else shut the fuck up.

15-Soundcheck is for checking sounds. Shut the fuck up while everyone else is checking.

16-Don’t wander off. Let someone know where you are.

17-Clean up after yourself. What are you… a goddamn toddler?

18-Touring makes everyone bi-polar. Ride the waves as best you can and remember, moods pass. So don’t make any snap decisions or declarations when you are drunk or insane.

19-Fast food is Poison.

20-The guestlist is for friends, family & people you might want to fuck. Everyone else can pay. They have day jobs.

21- Don’t evaluate your whole life while you’re sitting in a janitor closet waiting to go on. You think you’re above having shitty days at work? Shut up & do your goddamn job.

This list was written under the influence of lots of esspresso & anti-depressants while on tour w/ such greats as Shearwater, Swans, Smog, Lisa Germano, Angels of Light, Bill Callahan & many more. I hope this list will help you get along w/ your co-workers whatever your job is. Contributions to the list by Jordan Geiger, Kimberly Burke, Brian Orloff, Brian Phillips Celebrity Gang Bang, Kevin Schneider, Jonathan Meiburg, Michael Gira and some other folks.

Thanks for not being an asshole, Thor Harris

Tags: Bill Callahan Jordan Geiger Music Smog

Text
August 02, 2010
4 notes

Bill Callahan’s robot by the river


Ex-Con
by Bill Callahan, as performed by Smog, 1997

Whenever i get dressed up
I feel like an ex-con
Trying to make good

Jean jacket and tie
Feel like such a lie
When i go to your house
I feel like I’m
Casing the joint
In the grocery store
In line behind a mother and a child
I’m going to take take that child
I’m going to take take that child
I’m going to take take that child
 
See because alone in my room
I feel like such a part of the community
But out on the streets
I feel like a robot by the river
 
Alone in my room
I feel such a warmth for the community
But out on the streets
I feel like a robot by the river
Looking for a drink

Tags: Bill Callahan Music Smog