Meaningless Milestone

Sin Taxi - Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks

Leisurely Poison - Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks

Yesterday marked an ultimately worthless, yet still happy milestone for me. After four and a half years of film school (which will all be over in 3 weeks, transforming my life from that of a fun loving college student to that of an unemployed failure) I finally wrote a paper on David Lynch. More importantly, I finally, FINALLY, accomplished my collegiate goal of writing academically about the hot lesbian scenes in Mulholland Dr. The best part was, I was doing a feminist critique of the film (applying Laura Mulvey’s study of the “male gaze” to it) so I didn’t have to feel like a dirty asshole, and I still got to watch hot hot lesbians get it on.

Lynch's new movie (shot entirely with a consumer grade DV camera) called INLAND EMPIRE (he's insisting on the capitals) is already out in New York and L.A. and goes into limited release in the flyover states begining in January. I can't. fucking. wait. Here's more info about the movie and a super short release shedule. And HERE is David Lynch sitting next to a cow in downtown L.A.

I also found out that the professor who’s class I wrote the paper for is the 2nd cousin of the guitar player for The Jicks, Stephen Malkmus’ new (although they’re kinda old by now) band, which is one of the thoroughly coolest things I’ve heard all semester. Even better, this professor is writing me a letter of recommendation, so I will have official documented praise by the 2nd cousin of the guitar player of the new band by the frontman for Pavement who, as we all know, was the best band of all time. I now have the power to write my own ticket in life.

I was skeptical about the Jicks at first, but over the past 2 years I have been completely won over, especially with last years release of Face The Truth. Although I still run back to the safety of my Pavement records often, Malkmus with the Jicks has carved out a more accessible and melodic, yet still idiosyncratic and unique place for himself in the pop music world from which to express his personal hangups.

At the top are the B-sides off of Discretion Grove, the single off The Jicks first album. Listen to them, and share in a sense collegiate and erotic completeness with me.