WFMU's Beware of the Blog

Great Men Repeat Themselves

 

Homer and Jethro  Great Men Repeat Themselves

Melbourne Sharpies

Lobby Lloyde and the Coloured Balls play "G.O.D.", Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs on the bill (neither seen), 1974 in Melbourne. Killer.

This Week In Crossdressing: Manbras, Drug Addict Aliens and Pickle Surprise!

For a minute there I thought Japanese culture was odd.  Mostly because of facial saline implants.  Now I know they are visionaries, all of them - man bras have become a very hot (and hotly debated) item in Japan.  The Reuters report on the top left covers the emerging trand (you like that pun?).  On the top right is the trailer from a cult classic, 1982's Liquid Sky, about aliens who get high off of the endorphins in the brains of of heroin addicted models.  Anne Carlisle stars as both a male and female junkie models.  Fans of cinematic camp will be equally pleased by the film as fans of minimal synth - watch this scene and you'll understand.

Tom Rubnitz was known in the 1980s as a central artistic figure in NYC Village's drag queen scene.  His short on the bottom left, Pickle Surprise, features none other than RuPaul.  A whole bunch of his other videos are up on Youtube.  Bottom left are some highlights of an episode of Ring My Bell, a transexually themed internet call in show that tends to get pretty wild.  Is it too late in the post to say these videos aren't safe for work?

Nouvelle Vague Live at WFMU - hot vidz!

Oh my gawd, y'all, when these people were in Love Room, it was all I could do to keep myself from reaching through the glass and gently stroking their faces as they sang.

The two sexiest voices in English-speaking Frenchpop, covering Sex Pistols, Violent Femmes, Depeche Mode, and Talking Heads....DANG!

Listen to the whole show here.

Thanks a zillion to Aldona Watts and Raymond Park for doing the video.

2 MORE VIDEOS AFTER THE JUMP!

Nouvelle Vague's new album "NV3" will be out in September.  It features guest performances from Martin Gore (Depeche Mode), Terry Hall (The Specials), Ian MacCullough (Echo and the Bunnymen), and Barry Adamson (Magazine).

July 4th pin-up: hot fox diplomacy

Current occupation: Governor of Alaska
Age: 45
Residence: Wasilla, Alaska

Little-known public official interviewed in the August 2009 issue of Runner's World magazine:

"I feel so crappy if I go more than a few days without running. I have to run. No matter how rotten I feel before or during a run, it's always worth it to me afterwards. Sweat is my sanity. A great frustration I had during the campaign was when the McCain staff wouldn't carve out time for me to go for a run. The days never went as well if I couldn't get out there and sweat. ...

"I went for a run at John McCain's ranch a couple of days before the debate with Joe Biden. My favorite thing in the world is to run on hot, dusty roads. I don't get enough of that in Alaska. So I was in heaven and there were plenty of hills so I knew my thighs were going to just throb and my lungs were going to burn and that's what I crave."

Palin intends to continue running because she feels a commitment.

Chrome Hoof - Circus 9000 (video)

I have to admit to a certain weakness for circus music and musicians performing in costumes, like good old Mr. Bungle or Les Georges Leningrad. Now the Brits have their contenders, too, here is Chrome Hoof performing Circus 9000.

YouTube: [link]

Sharon Tate, Commie Cheesecake

This Sharon Tate pictorial, shot by photographer William Helburn, appeared in the December 1967 issue of Esquire.  Is this the birth of the appalling communist chic movement?  Probably not, but I really don't know.

Unenlightened rube that I am, I've never been able to grasp the kitschy appeal of the symbols of a brutally repressive totalitarian movement.

        

More semi-risque photos after the jump.....

A Study In Crust Pants

One of the overlooked aspects of the Amebix reunion shows this year: some fans had the same pants as the last time they saw them play. An overview via Terminal Boredom, forwarded by Steve Hesske.

Belated Top 10 of 2008 from R. Lim

R. Lim (of the Janitor From Mars, aka WFMU's primier out-of-the-closet sneaker whore) checks in with his top 10 list at long last:

In somewhat lazily alphabetical order:

Adidas Muenchen (Dark Sand/Light Scarlet/Dark Green) "Oktoberfest"
Another supremely well-conceived and executed exclusive from Crooked Tongues, in celebration of Oktoberfest and all things Bavarian. Highly conceptual but easy on the eyes, plus bonus points for not using the same 70s retro models that get wheeled out ad nauseum (no offense, Chad!). Not included: sick from someone else's Wilde Maus ride gone wrong.

 

New Balance M575J PG (Pigeon)
Pigeon Part II - minus: Lower East Side mugging brigade, $1,000 price tag on the secondary market - plus: a much more appropriate runner model.

 

Nike Air Force 1 Low Supreme WP (Olive Khaki/White-Gum)
WP = waterproof.  The extra-grippy gumsole adds to the ACG theme without relying on inappropriate and esoteric color schemes (that are only legible to people who know what "ACG" means).

 

 

 

Nike Air Pegasus+ 25 SE (NikeID) "Buckeye Born"
In my blood, on my feet.  Edition: 1 of 1.

 

 

 

 

 

Economic Stimulus

I grew up wearing other kids’ clothes, mostly Mary Frances Todd’s. Even before my mom got sick and we got really poor, Mrs. Todd would show up at church two or three times a year with a bag of Mary Frances’ old clothes for me. I never thought much about it, except for one particular pink satin shift dress that hung on me like a sack. My mother was thrilled with it and made me wear it for every Special Occasion, but I hated the thing. Other than that one dress, though, I don’t think it ever occurred to me that clothes should be flattering. Or actually fit. Or be new.

Eventually we lost touch with Mrs. Todd and her daughter’s clothing, and I moved on to buying my clothes at thrift stores. The problem was that I was a big girl—5-foot-4 in the fourth grade—and there weren’t a lot of cast-off girls’ clohes that fit me. I ended up wearing lots of boys’ clothes and grown-up-lady outfits, which I can see now must have been sort of inappropriate, but at the time it was just the way I dressed.

Tampon Christmas Gifts

A friend of my wife sent her the page to Tampon Crafts.  Getting absorbed in DIY Christmas crafting and gifting has just taken on a brand new meaning.

   

You can also click on this while you're on the page but I couldn't help but post the immediate link right on the blog because this is forty-karat.

Beware of the Brainstorm: 44 days left until Howdy Doody lets the door to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue hit him where the good Lord split him.  What gift from a manipulated female menstrual hygiene device would you mail to him this Christmas?

Buy WFMU Crapola for the Holidays

WFMU has just added a ton of great items to our online store as an enticement to CONSUME this holiday season. Feast your eyes upon these delectable goodies:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tell your loved ones Happy Boxing Day with an "Eat Flaming Death Fascist Media Pigs!" hoodie, warm your sternocleidomastoid with a WFMU scarf, or check out tons of other fun DVDs, t-shirts, stickers, magnets, CDs, night lights, cookbooks, and more.

All orders received by 12/14 should arrive in time for x-mas.

Mommie Dearest Fashion Spread

Avant-fashion blog Foto Decadent has high quality scans of a very creepy Mommy Dearest inspired fashion spread that was featured in an issue of Numéro magazine.

WFMU Accepting Year-End Donations

Remember when I tempted you all with pics of this delicious swag a few weeks ago?

                                            Now is your chance to snag these items online, by making a year-end donation to WFMU. For a pledge of $50, you can grab either our new Woof-Moo t-shirt (designed by listener Aaron Taylor-Waldman), or our Robert Mitchum-esque LOVE / WFMU knit gloves (designed by Rich Hazelton). Grab both for a pledge of $100.

Hit this page to make your year-end donation (or check your mailbox soon).

Not only will your pledge get you some awesome duds, but you'll help WFMU pay our bills through the cold winter months. If you weren't aware, WFMU only interrupts programming to fundraise once per year, and your year-end online and mail-in pledges help us keep it that way. Throw your recession worries to the wind for a moment and give in to the ultra-tempting, ultra-suave WFMU Fall 2008 swag!

WFMU Record Fair: Swag Sneak Preview!

As if 10,000 square feet of record shopping, 6 live broadcasts, Stones Throw DJ sets, Monotonix and DMBQ live sets, a DJ wedding, Rockband competitions, a costume contest, and 2 days of great flicks in the A/V Lounge weren't enough to convince you to head out to WFMU's Record & CD Fair this Fri-Sun (Oct 24, 25, and 26 at the Metropolitan Pavilion, 125 W. 18th St, Manhattan)... allow me to provide a sneak preview of the fabulous swag offerings that will make their debut at this year's fair.

Record Fair tee, with artwork by Stefan Glerum          Record Fair shopping bag (holds 30-35 records)
                                                                                 with artwork by logo contest runner-up Travis Pitts

 

WFMU will also debut items available during our Fall mail-only fundraising campaign, snag one or the other at the Record Fair for a donation of $50. These items will also be made available to pledgers via mail and over the web soon.

Woof-Moo t-shirt, designed by logo contest              LOVE / WFMU knit gloves, Robert Mitchum eat
runner-up, Aaron Taylor Waldman                             your heart out! Designed by Rich Hazelton

 

Hip and Funky Rayon

From an August 1966 issue of Seventeen magazine. Via I'm Learning To Share, who also offers more Rayon and a history lesson of the American Viscose Division of FMC.

Strike a Pose, There's Nothing to It

I missed this back in August (perhaps because I'm not a subscriber) but the images are striking.  A 16-page Vogue India fashion spread features "average Indians" modeling the latest in luxury trends: a Fendi bib, a Burberry umbrella, a bejeweled Hermes handbag.  (via NY Times)

Guinea Pig Festival in Peru

The one-day festival includes an animal show and fashion contest which features the guinea pig, Then dinner is served.

Portable Electronics from the '70s/'80s

Thanks to my pal Cynthia, I just spent 45 non-refundable minutes digging through the terrifyingly geeky images lurking deep within Pocket Calculator Show. As I reflect upon these lost minutes of my life, I realize that my accessory drawer will never be complete without a Casio-MQ10 (left). And then I start to wonder if the iPhone 2.0 will either be a watch or a disco light show projector. A girl can dream...

Rock out with your whatever out

When it comes to guitars, I'm what you would call a "looker", as in I Like To Look, and "Looky, what a cool guitar". When I get the gumption once a few decades, I might even spring for one, which is what I did just yesterday for a bass. I'm not gonna talk about the bass because then it'll get ugly with me and you guitar enthusiast types out there. Yeah, if I had $2500 I'd get a Rickenbacker bass, which would mean I probably had another $2500 somewhere and I'd have to have two Rics then. Well, I don't have that kind of scratch so I got something new but affordable. In my travels around the internet browsing and gazing at guitars recently though, the proliferation of the Girly Guitar has officially saturated the Guitar Dewd Marts around the country. With brands like Luna, Daisy Rock, and the Les Paul Goddess the ladies now have the option of specially-sized and brightly colored axes to play. This apparently now raises new dialogue about our die-hard perceptions of The Rocker and the esthetic of the guitar to the body.