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"How 'can' anybody deny themselves the pleasure of my company? It's beyond me!"

February 9, 2010
Pilot for new HBO show How to Make it in America now online.
Listen, I can’t hate this show because it has Victor Rasuk in it. That alone leaves me at neutral rather than disdain (Who can hate Victor Vargas?). Also, Kid Cudi. And a little Hercules and Love Affair. And, it ends with “Get Myself Together” by Brass Construction, giving it at least +5 more awesome points. Listen, I realize they are pandering to a specific audience, and I should be upset about this because that’s the thing to do at this age when you realize you are being marketed to aggressively (and blah blah blah), but I don’t care. Also, I’m not from New York, so I can’t ponder whether or not this is “The Real New York” even though, honestly, does anyone truly expect any fictional story set in a real place to accurately portray everything about the locale?

Pilot for new HBO show How to Make it in America now online.

Listen, I can’t hate this show because it has Victor Rasuk in it. That alone leaves me at neutral rather than disdain (Who can hate Victor Vargas?). Also, Kid Cudi. And a little Hercules and Love Affair. And, it ends with “Get Myself Together” by Brass Construction, giving it at least +5 more awesome points. Listen, I realize they are pandering to a specific audience, and I should be upset about this because that’s the thing to do at this age when you realize you are being marketed to aggressively (and blah blah blah), but I don’t care. Also, I’m not from New York, so I can’t ponder whether or not this is “The Real New York” even though, honestly, does anyone truly expect any fictional story set in a real place to accurately portray everything about the locale?

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I envied them the hands in the back pockets of each other’s jeans, and I envied them their history, the plain and the frantic days, the simple length of years behind them.

Michael Chabon in The Mysteries of Pittsburgh

How am I just now reading this small gem?

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February 8, 2010
Fluorescents on Orange with Sparkles, 2009 by Helen Maurene Cooper, from the photo series “Hard Candy.”

Hard Candy is the fruit of this multi-focal investigation. It is a series of large-scale macro photographs that illustrate the details and designs of acrylic hand-painted nails in mountains of complicated confections, piles of glitter, or well-organized girlhood clutter. These images capture a spectrum of skin tones from light to dark, enriching and registering the visual diversity and complexity of racial identities.  Because acrylic nails are synthetic add-ons to one’s natural body, they mark the ways in which bodies are racialized and render visible the constructed and performative qualities of racial identities.

“Hard Candy” is now on view at the President’s Gallery at Harold Washington College.

Fluorescents on Orange with Sparkles, 2009 by Helen Maurene Cooper, from the photo series “Hard Candy.”

Hard Candy is the fruit of this multi-focal investigation. It is a series of large-scale macro photographs that illustrate the details and designs of acrylic hand-painted nails in mountains of complicated confections, piles of glitter, or well-organized girlhood clutter. These images capture a spectrum of skin tones from light to dark, enriching and registering the visual diversity and complexity of racial identities. Because acrylic nails are synthetic add-ons to one’s natural body, they mark the ways in which bodies are racialized and render visible the constructed and performative qualities of racial identities.

“Hard Candy” is now on view at the President’s Gallery at Harold Washington College.

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thingsarepeopletoo asked: what precentage of your wardrobe is black or grey or white?

i get the sense, from your tumblr posts, that you wear a lot of neutrals.
am i incorrect?

I’d say 85% of my wardrobe is black or grey or white. I am wearing a black dress and black leather jacket and black tights and black boots right now. I went through a SERIOUS all-black phase around my sophomore and junior year of college. I wore all-black, or black and grey about 5 times a week. I do like color, but I think most clothing now is so cheap in quality that colors never looks as great as they should, so I don’t buy a lot of color. BUT! My mother forced me to wear a pink dress for my college graduation…and I didn’t hate it!

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[Flash 9 is required to listen to audio.]

NEW MUSIC FROM THE GOLDEN FILTER!

It’s here! OMG. It’s here! Ear-gasm, mind-explosion, etc. This began as an early demo the group sometimes performed in concert but is now mastered to perfection!

“Hide Me” by The Golden Filter

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February 7, 2010

Vice magazine did a shoot where all the dudes have boners. I especially like #3, in the blue suit, with the WSJ and coffee. Nice! (via sexismandthecity//natashavc//frangry)

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I was slightly obsessed with John & Jehn back in 2008. I was extremely excited to hear “Fear Fear Fear” on last Thursday’s episode of Skins, confirming the fact that the music producer’s for the show are adventurous and eager to support independent as well as mainstream artists.

The duo are a super-sexy French couple who make 60s-style garage rock that is endlessly charming.

“Fear Fear Fear” by John & Jehn

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Anonymous asked: Recommend some awesome tumblrs for me to follow please?

More answers here.

Post-Punk Tumblr - http://postpunk.tumblr.com
The New Inquiry - http://thenewinquiry.tumblr.com
Douglas Haddow - http://thepublics.tumblr.com
Nitsuh Abebe - http://agrammar.tumblr.com
Amanda Shank - http://blog.amandashank.com
Caille - http://caille.tumblr.com
Preretirementnerves - http://preretirementnerves.tumblr.com
I Love Hot Dogs - http://ilovehotdogs.net
Cameron Reed - http://cameronr.tumblr.com
Justin Charles - http://dayofthedreamweavers.com
Natasha Vargas-Cooper - http://natashavc.tumblr.com
Grant - http://ninefruits.tumblr.com
Futuremilk - http://futuremilk.com
Danish - http://tumbledore.tumblr.com
John - http://jhnbrssndn.tumblr.com
Niki - http://niki.tumblr.com
Kia - http://blog.kiamatthews.com
Blair - http://planettampon.tumblr.com

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Speaking of “all time, number one, trumps all favourite songs”…

“Move On Up” by Curtis Mayfield (edit)

I mean really though. That percussion alone makes it my number one song! And those horns? DON’T EVEN GET ME STARTED! And that falsetto Curtis does when he says, “Move on up!” is maybe the best thing ever. I can’t trust a person that doesn’t like this song. To me, it is a clear indication that something is wrong with you, and perhaps we shouldn’t be friends. And, I’m not saying that music is the cure for depression, but I’m pretty sure this song is better than Zoloft.

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February 6, 2010
The band did not rush. “If you’re only making an album every 10 years, it better be good,” Sade said. 
Goddess Sade and her band members were interviewed for the New York Times.

The band did not rush. “If you’re only making an album every 10 years, it better be good,” Sade said.

Goddess Sade and her band members were interviewed for the New York Times.

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[Flash 9 is required to listen to audio.]

New Lo-Fi-Fnk!

“Marchin’ In” by Lo-Fi-Fnk

Much lighter than their debut LP, Boylife, and such fantastic, synth jams as “Wake Up,” but still graceful and beautiful due to the duo’s voices, which are light and charming.

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Baby Can't Stop

I reviewed Real Life is No Cool by Lindstrøm and Christabelle for Venus Zine.

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February 5, 2010
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February 4, 2010

In anticipation of their upcoming Biennial, the Whitney Museum of American Art has produced a series of videos that focus on the artists, curators, events, and production of 2010: the Whitney Biennial. The above video is titled Rashaad Newsome: Jasmine, Dawn, and Aaliyah , and features three of the Vogue dancers he works with in the production of his pieces.

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BRITTICISMS