How can you go wrong with unkle Tim?
Summaries of his life's story can be found in various sites (start here; then see Wiki); I won't try an account of his deeds. It's just that I've began reading 'Death Plan' and I wonder a lot about him. Though a lot of (very powerful) people discredited, slandered, humiliated, judged, even imprisoned him and forced him to exile, he stayed as optimistic and open minded as very few of the (seemingly luckier) rest of us have ever been. He lost everything, yet managed to find happiness in life, to stay true to his principles and, by the way, to help many many people around the world through his books, his lectures, his professional work; most of all his example.
This is a recording of him speaking over an early '70s psych background of weird echo effects, tablas and sitar and all. Some may find it anachronistic, others just plain hippy shit. In the right set of mind though it's beyond interesting. It's intense.
"Where are you? Did you get lost on the trip?
Did you get trapped in memory? Did you forget?"
Dr.Timothy Leary -
1967 Turn On, Tune In, Drop Out OST
Info here.
Picked it up somewhere around, I've included the accompanying text. Credits to the unknown original poster(s).
This is from where PWOG took the 'Return To The Source' sample for 'Exit 23'.
Turn On, Tune In, Drop Out
A stroke of bad luck
Later than most of you, I'm sure, I was informed that Moritz von Oswald suffered a (rather mild) stroke, at about the end of October.
Having a few years back witnessed my father having (also a mild) one right in front of me, I can tell you that no stroke feels mild to the sufferer. Possible damage may be permanent as well as not, varying from brain damage and body paralysis to simple small problems with memory, speech or sense of space and direction (I'm no doctor, I just write what I've seen). A guy I've worked with for years, one of the best electronic musicians in Greece, suffered a good one at the age of thirty; ten years later he's composing more than ever and still plays live (Fripp-like) guitar using an e-bow.
Time is on the side of the patient, as I understand; so let's hope that things will clear out, the sooner the better. He's been one of the most important people in the music scene of the 20th century, sowing the seeds of the next generation of brain-shaping music to come; the one that still dominates the present, that is. A true pioneer, a flag carrier and an example to all of us. My hopes are with him.
I was looking some stuff on Basic Channel when I found this interview (a first, I think) that he gave for the Red Bull Academy; then I found out about the sad news.
Get well soon.
Birthday
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- Do What Thou Wilt Shall Be The Whole Of The Law. -
If he was still alive it would be his birthday today (and he would be 133 years old), so I kind of owe this to him. Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you... (menacing bongos and snare drum roll) The Great Beast himself.
This is a compilation of various recordings he did on wax cylinder (the recorders of the era) about a century ago, repressed many times in more modern formats since the '80s (check here), though the first one must have been this. Contains extracts from rituals, readings of his poems, a praise to the american people, even some singing. Found in various rips from the different pressings around the net (it's rather common as 'The Great Beast Speaks'). I don't exactly remember which is the one I have (I just kept the best rip I found), though they're all almost identical.
Aleister Crowley - 1910-1914 The Wax Cylinders recordings
Here.
To always be remembered as teacher, user, philosopher, scoundrel, evangelist, free man.
- Love Is The Law, Love Under Will. -
Minus 61 in Detroit
I always hate that in every presentation or review I read lately, I find the same cliche expressions like "sure floorfiller", "a real burner", etc. Mostly they apply for tracks that you couldn't stand to listen unless you've blown a least half a g of ketamine, obsolete by next month. Which mentally brings me to the reason I started avoiding clubbing per se (the empty-eyed, self-entangled 'dancers').
Well, to borrow, this is a real slow burner from 1995. It goes for 9'22'', which used to be an enormous amount of time then but now is rather typical, so don't you dare press the pause button until it's finished.
David Holmes - minus 61 in Detroit
Few days ago I played in a small yet very friendly club, where I've been a customer and guest DJ of old. Due to the imminent rain I thought nobody would show up, yet at about 2-3 am it was packed and we kept it up till morning. Mostly over thirty years old, people were drawn in by and surely danced to the more modern stuff but again went crazy over some older classics with which I sticked to after 5 am. I even dropped 'Acid Trax', some BC, 'Amnesia' and old Cologne stuff and the point is, they had better fun with them than with the adorably perfect productions and almost scientific percussive trickery of the new school of rave music. Instinctively companies started to mingle and people started dancing with other people instead of next to other people. Very few drugs were going around, so I know it was the fun (and not the drug) factor that moved and kept them there.
And I remembered the time when through the unholy combination of many nice people, some open space, unprescribed medication and good music (in whatever amount one would choose to sample them) I sometimes felt that yes, the whole is bigger than the sum of its parts.
Recently I was informed that in Switzerland good old acid is used again in medical research, concerning its therapeutic uses, trying to decide if a (slightly bigger than) normal dose will effect more profoundly some patients than the 1/10th of it that they now take as a test (it will).
By the way, read this.
I'd finally like to grab the opportunity to strongly recommend to everyone into DJing or clubbing to read Jeff Noon's 'DJNA' story from the infamous 'Disco Biscuits' compilation, both an allegory of the late '90s UK scene as well as a sadly prophetic vision of the future to come (the one we're living in).
Erinnerungen eines Psychonauten
Something strictly for the german-speaking, a document by the Man himself, prof. Albert Hofmann, recently deceased (age 102).
Read some stuff for him here and here.
This autobiographical book can be found in English here.
This CD was released in Cologne's Supposé in 2003, a label specialized in spoken word CDs by highly influential personalities and experimental music (a lot of Brinkmann). Here is the label site. Not my rip, but once more I don't remember from where I've got it.
Albert Hofmann - Erinnerungen eines Psychonauten
Von der Entdeckung entheogener Drogen
Here.
Info (in german) here.
Albert Hofmann has been the equivalent of a cultural grandfather for entire generations of people in the west world, whether they know it or not. Rest in peace and thank you for all, Herr Professor, you did a great job.
For Soledad Miranda
Quiz #2C
It's really weird that no one has yet recognized the Great Beast, the allegedly greatest magician of the previous century, the industrial era Lucifer incarnate. Him who paved the way for a LOT of others who later claimed fame and fortune for achievements rightly of his own.
I'm talking of course about Aleister Crowley, the one big guy that single-handedly managed to provoke so much admiration and spite at the same time that even though decades have passed and hundreds of books about him are still around, very few (should claim to) have understood what he really tried to accomplice with his life. And because everyone that 'knows' who he was seems to have an opinion on him, I won't share mine. If you're interested to check him out, you must do by yourself. I can only tell you it's worth it.
A simple Google search will feed you with thousands of links, but it's better if you stick to what unbiased bios you find and his books. Lots of stuff to read here. 'Yoga for Yahoos' may be the best written book for Yoga you will ever read, and 'The Book Of Lies' is my personal favorite.
I think that if I had put this photo up in the first place it would be more obvious who he was, right?
Quiz #2
So, Dick spotted the serious gentleman of the first quiz, Mr. Gerald Brousseau Gardner. I'm happily surprised actually. I was reading 'Witchcraft Today' the other day and decided to see how long it would take for someone recognize to him. A week is much less than I expected.
I won't say I'm a total fan of the man, I just find his life story interesting and his beliefs attractive. Some cold facts and archive here and here. Some more enthusiastic approaches lie all around, start by the Wikipedia links. Get past the various "initiates" and other merchants and/or fanatics and you'll find good food for thought.
I think the most witty and respectful approach of Wicca in the last years I've encountered is in Terry Pratchett's often looked-upon Discworld series, just check the "Lords & Ladies" book. Easy to read and good fun, but most of all serious stuff.
The new one is a worse quality picture but an easier-to-find guy. The post was more or less ready, so here it is. No, he's not your great-grandpa or something.
Bob
I finally managed to order the 'Maybe Logic' DVD, a documentary about Robert Anton Wilson, as well as the video recording (in DVD, again) of RAW's almost-a-musical 'Wilhelm Reich in Hell', both by Lance Bauscher for Deepleaf Productions Inc. I totally urge you to buy them, they're good, cheap and were delivered really fast. His Wiki biography you can find here. More you will find at his official website (check my links).
RAW, though a person known to me only through his books, tapes and (later) the net, had HUGE influence on me and defined my mindset in many ways almost as strongly as my family or friends did. First I read the 'Illuminatus' trilogy (which I think that everyone should check sometime) and later all fiction and non-fiction I could find, but it was the 2nd Cosmic Trigger book 'Down To Earth' that really got to me. I've read some autobiographies, but never one so simple and powerful and touching and almost unbiased at the same time. I knew he had post-polio syndrome for a long time, but in January when I heard of his death (age 75) I was sad for a week or so and actually then it did click, how important for me he had been.
I actually prefer to remember him from these last days photos, with the grandfather look and his mind still sharp as a knife, despite of his illness doing all he can to get along without money, to soften the blow of his coming death for his children and friends, to keep everyone happy and make them a little smarter and better.
It's my small memorial, I guess. I have lots of recorded audio and video of RAW, some of them you'll find here: RAWilson Fans. If someone wants anything more than that, just leave a comment.
