All posts by Joe

Joe Perry is co-founder of the band Big Green and brother to Matt Perry, other co-founder of Big Green. Shall I go on?

Was that a… truck?

July 20, 2013 Joe Leave a comment

Did you hear beeping? Wait, I heard something. That beeping noise. Did you hear it? Go out and take a look, will you? I’ll just sit here and finish this cardboard sandwich. What? That’s the microwave beeping? Turn it off, then. There’s a good chap.

Oh, yes … hello. Just getting a little impatient here at the abandoned Cheney Hammer Mill in beautiful (now roasting) upstate New York. It’s been so damn hot we can’t even manage to borrow enough electricity to run our fans, and now the refrigerator has gone south (looking for warmer climes, perhaps) and all of our provisions have gone sour. (Except for the lemons, which have turned strangely sweet in their spoilage.) Nothing to eat but cardboard. Here’s the good news: there’s not a lot of that, either.

I just sent Marvin (my personal robot assistant) out to greet the delivery van that will be dropping off the initial pressing of Cowboy Scat: Songs in the Key of Rick, Big Green’s ludicrous new album, hot off the digital presses. Its release date is July 31, but we are expecting advance copies any moment now. Though this is the fourth time in the last hour I’ve sent Marvin out to the brickyard, searching in vain for the UPS truck or the FEDEX van or some over-the-road tractor trailer. He’s about ready to revolt – in fact, I think he’s considering joining that terrifying band Captured By Robots again. I still have nightmares. (Not about that, obviously …. mostly other stuff.)

Hey, I’m looking out the window and I see the ass-end of a semi. Marvin is out there, making some unintelligible hand signals (or claw signals, I should say). They appear to be interpreting his gestures as encouragement to continue backing into our courtyard. This is getting exciting! Yes, they’re moving closer, turning the cab. I can see the side of the trailer now. Big letters that spell, “Mayflower Moving”. Hmmmm… I didn’t know they delivered packages.

Okay, I have to look into this further. Far from delivering anything, they appear to be taking things out of the Mill, like …. LIKE MY ARMY SURPLUS DESK AND CHAIR! LIKE MY DISCARDED MATTRESS! This is shaping up to be one hell of a week.

Political Rants

Assumptions.

July 20, 2013 Joe Leave a comment

So Zimmerman walks. I can’t say as I’m surprised. It is now apparently legal to kill people in Florida, particularly if your victim is black. I should say not exclusively – my neighbor spends half of his time in Florida, and he told me about a “Stand Your Ground” case at his retirement community wherein a Vietnam Vet shot his wife’s lover dead and got off based on Stand Your Ground. The victim was white, but from another country, so that may have been “other” enough for the law. It seems like if your intention is to kill someone, all you need to do is get them alone in Florida and give them the gun, so to speak. So long as there’s no witnesses, it’s your word against theirs.

That aside, let’s consider what this verdict says, in truth:

Killer Sidewalks. The Zimmerman trial introduced the concept of the sidewalk as a deadly weapon. I suppose this means that any (black) person strolling down the sidewalk can now be considered armed and dangerous. Amazing what legal and logical gyrations we go through to exonerate a white guy who just shot a black guy dead. Who says he was unarmed? He had that deadly sidewalk!

Thirty Yards. The prosecution failed not only to discredit the defense’s story but to communicate in concrete terms an alternative story that fit the facts. Martin’s body was found something like ten yards away from the sidewalk. How could Zimmerman have been in mortal danger when the “deadly weapon” (see above) was that far away from where he shot the kid? Why wasn’t the prosecution all over this like a cheap suit?

Silent Witness. Ultimately, the defense put Trayvon Martin on trial. There is one person who knows what happened that night, and he was sitting in that courtroom wearing his stoic wannabe cop face. Sure, he has a constitutional right not to testify. But I don’t see why the prosecution couldn’t have made more of a point of his reluctance to testify.

The Video. I think the item that defines the core issues in this case is the police station video of Zimmerman being processed by the cops after the shooting. He is not only ambulatory, he seems positively casual. The cops treat him at worst like a crime victim, but really more like a colleague. It’s this assumption of innocence in the face of overwhelming indications of guilt that speaks directly to how race plays a role in the outcome. Based on those assumptions, Martin’s body was not properly examined for forensic evidence, the crime scene was not properly protected … the case was lost then.

Note to John Roberts: racism still appears to be alive.

luv u,

Usual Rubbish

What’s going on.

July 13, 2013 Joe Leave a comment

Is that what busy looks like? Shut the front door! I had no idea it looked like that. Sakes alive.

Press record now Well, once again, you are encountering me in the midst of some level of astonishment. Seems like I spend half of my life sore amazed and the other half just plain sore. (I am definitely in the sore second half.) Anyway, never mind my poor self control – these are indeed heady days here at the abandoned Cheney Hammer Mill in now waterlogged upstate New York. There’s so much shit hitting this fan, it’s hard to see your face through the fertilizer. Or something.

Here’s what we’ve got on the burner: lunch. Marvin (my personal robot assistant) is heating up a can of soup. He doesn’t seem to understand that you need to TAKE THE SOUP OUT OF THE CAN BEFORE YOU PUT IT IN THE FIRE. (I’m hopeful that, if I raise my voice, he will begin to understand.) So if we hear a ‘splosion just before noon local time, we will likely know why. Soup in a can, friends. Keep it cool. That’s all I’ve got to say.

Beyond the lunch issue, there are other things happening round these parts. Cowboy Scat: Songs in the Key of Rick has been sent to the distribution house and will soon be available in all the usual online outlets – iTunes, Amazon, Spotify, blah blah blah. We are also on the verge of pressing a limited run of discs – those should be ready by the end of July, maybe sooner. If you want one, tell Marvin next time you see him at your corner gin mill. (Lush!) Or just leave a comment on this post and let us know. Or visit our contact page.

We’ve also got another episode of THIS IS BIG GREEN in production, with a fresh installment of Ned Trek. It’s Ned Trek #11, and you’ll hear it very soon. Weird? Yes. Childish and stupid? Perhaps. But you get what you expect, right? Big Green is nothing if not honest.

So, album … podcast … we’ve got it going on here at the hammer mill. Watch for the eerie glow of success. Or … something else.

Political Rants

Permanent rule.

July 13, 2013 Joe Leave a comment

I’ve heard a lot of commentary in recent days about the state of affairs in Egypt, in Russia – about the primacy of the military and the intelligence services in the political life of those countries. Not as much about our own permanent government. I’m talking about the national security regime that persists independently, it seems, of what administration occupies the White House or runs the Congress. It’s a little hard to pass judgment on others when we ourselves have accommodated to something less than democratic rule.

It’s not that this is totally new. We had the Vietnam war, for instance, through Democratic and Republican presidencies, fought with comparable levels of savagery. The latest cycle, which started on September 11 2001, just nine months into the new century, seems much more pervasive, opened ended, and unquenchable. We invaded Afghanistan and still haven’t left. We’ve expanded our expionage and “homeland” security apparatus to encompass literally thousands of federal and contract installations, employing millions of people. We are spied upon in a way that makes the cold war East German state seem amateurish by comparison.

Is this the problem? Really? Even something as seemingly simple as closing Guantanamo. It would have enormous symbolic value, of course. But even though the president professes to want it closed, it remains open. Why? Why haven’t those cleared for release been released? Why haven’t the ones determined innocent / not a threat been moved to some residential setting that isn’t a prison cell? It’s almost as if that policy level is beyond the reach of democratically elected officials. We seem frozen in place since 9/11, unable to adjust our course, unable to accomplish practically anything aside from blowing things up, assassinating people, and spying on their ass. Hunger striking inmates are force fed, even though the president – a constiitutional lawyer – knows that that is abusive and wrong. Can’t change it.

We have to take power back from this permanent government, even if it means standing in the street and facing it down.

luv u,

Usual Rubbish

Release minus … what?

July 5, 2013 Joe Leave a comment

Still watching that space? Well, give it up. That was a joke, damn it. Don’t take me literally … that way lies madness.

Well, here we are, inching closer to the release date of Cowboy Scat: Songs in the Key of Rick, Big Green’s third and perhaps silliest album ever. Fully 21 tracks of pure, unadulterated goofiness, each one performed by what is nominally a completely different combo. We’ve got the master all set. We’ve designed the packaging for our limited run of CD-Rs and the graphics for our digital distributors. Now all we have to do is, well, complete the arcane process of acquiring ISRC codes for all of the tracks, manufacturing the discs, doing a run of wax cylinders for those listeners still enamored of that format, and so on.

What is the release date? Good question. Ask our corporate label, Hegemonic Records and Worm Farm, Inc., a.k.a. Hegephonic. They make all the big foot decisions. (By that I mean, they actually have a sasquatch serving as their Chief Operations Officer. Explains a lot.) Like many artists (and it’s in deference to the mansized tuber that I include us within that rubric), we get impatient with red tape. So when you see the disc – if you see the disc – you will see our own imprint on the package; a logo for Hammermade Records, and well, it doesn’t exist, but it sounds right, so what the fuck.

The mother of all imprints Some have told us that we should have called the label Hammermaid, like Milkmaid condensed milk. We don’t listen to some people, particularly if they are Marvin (my personal robot assistant), who has a particular liking for condensed milk products because they remind him of motor oil. In any case, we don’t take a lot of pains over trifles like imprints and logos, because in all honesty, that’s not what we’re about. We are the original discorporate rock band. We say no to corporate hegemony. We’re off the grid, man. (Aside from all that stuff involving money, paying for things, etc.)

So again, be forewarned. Release of Cowboy Scat is imminent. After which, we will likely go into hiding (or perhaps the witness protection program) assuming Cousin Rick Perry catches wind of this. (Don’t tell ‘im!)

Political Rants

Big foot.

July 5, 2013 Joe Leave a comment

We made history this week, once again. In a small way, at least, but no insignificant. We apparently (and I have no proof, but it seems likely) convinced our European allies France, Spain, and Portugal to deny flyover permission to the plane carrying Evo Morales, president of Bolivia. In other words, we diverted an aircraft carrying a head of state to something other than its intended destination, not because of an emergency, but because we suspected that whistleblower Edward Snowden had somehow been secreted aboard the flight in an effort to offer him asylum. That was not the case, of course. Not that it would have been ample justification for diverting the Bolivian equivalent of Air Force One, but then … since when does the U.S. need justification to do anything to a nation as powerless as Bolivia?

New low: Dissing Evo Morales The reaction from South America has not been positive, as one might expect. Leaders from Venezuela, Argentina, Ecuador, and other countries have gathered in solidarity with Morales (who is now back home). This will likely be viewed by Washington as the usual suspects railing against American imperialism, blah blah blah. I’m sure Juan Ferarro will be on NPR tomorrow talking about how over the top their reaction is. But let’s consider this: why would we provoke such a negative reaction so gratuitously? What the fuck is the Obama Administration playing at here?

I have to admit, Obama’s foreign policy credibility has been seriously on the line this week. First, revelations about spying on our European “partners” – they’re completely pissed off at us. Then managing to instill hatred on both sides of the Egyptian divide. And now, manufacturing a major diplomatic row with South America over dead zero. (Ironically, John McCain and Lindsey Graham are hopping from devastated capital to devastated capital in the Middle East, mostly complaining about the only sensible thing Obama has done in foreign affairs – namely, not listen to those two about Syria.) Playing bigfoot with Evo Morales, though, is just plain low. Bolivia has taken enough shit from us. We are way out of line on that score.

So, happy fourth of July. As always, patriotism is about working toward something better than what we have. That option is still wide open, friends.

luv u,

Usual Rubbish

Inside the Scat.

June 28, 2013 Joe Leave a comment

Still raining? Oh, sure. Hand me the paddle and the sieve.

Well, most of our homeland in upstate New York is under water today. The abandoned Cheney Hammer Mill is practically floating away. What better time to crack out an advance copy of our new album, Cowboy Scat: Songs in the Key of Rick? What else is there to do, right?

We just released the June edition of our podcast, THIS IS BIG GREEN, and in celebration of the arrival of summer, it is a two-hour marathon review of the new album, featuring the all-star cast of Ned Trek:

Mr. Ned himself, the talking dressage horse
Willard Mittilius Romney, commander of the starship Free Enterprise
Doc Tom Coburn, who sounds a lot like Foghorn Leghorn
Carl Sagan (deceased), famous astrophysicist
Richard Perle, neocon chickenhawk supreme
The robot Richard Nixon
Mr. Sulu (still strangely hanging out with these losers)
Lee Majors (still strangely introducing these losers)
Mr. Andy Williams (…. not!)

You’ll hear biting commentary on every track. Then you’ll hear the track. Then you’ll hear … something else, I’m not quite sure what. (I was half asleep and completely underwater while editing this, it will surprise no one to learn.)

The actual album Cowboy Scat: Songs in the Key of Rick is ready for release, so watch this space: { }. If you watch it long enough and you don’t see anything, by all means contact us. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to locate some buckets. About fifty of them. And sandbags!

Political Rants

Making a killing.

June 28, 2013 Joe Leave a comment

I’ll keep this short, because there’s stuff to do. My advice to anyone who wants to kill someone (non-white) with impunity is simply to follow these three steps:

Invite said person down to Florida
Take them somewhere where no one can observe you closely, perhaps the Everglades, and shoot them dead
Claim they made you feel threatened, thereby invoking the “Stand Your Ground” law (signed by noted moderate Jeb Bush)

That’s pretty much all you need to know. Watching the Zimmerman trial, I can’t help but feel like he’s going to walk through that massive legal hole opened for him by bullet-brained state legislators (fueled by ALEC) and Big Jeb. I am struck by that sense, and by the overwhelming irony of the defense’s efforts to frame Zimmerman as the target of racial profiling. Cross examination of Trayvon Martin’s friend Rachel Jeantel was ludicrous. The girl did not want to be there, but felt she had to. She lost her friend, and she was herself being stereotyped on the stand. The insinuation that her use of a very standardized form of African American Vernacular English (AAVE) was just bad speech, uneducated muttering, etc., was quite simply racist. Watching the defense attorney, surrounded by white people, disrespecting this young lady was truly nauseating.

Regardless, though the Zimmerman defense team seems less than stellar, their fight is downhill all the way. All they need to do is sow doubt. It’s Zimmerman’s word against the silence of a dead young man. Seems like there was a time when a jury might take one look at this 200-plus pound vigilante, look at the slight kid he shot, and toss him in the slammer. That time, if it ever existed, was before “Stand Your Ground”. (I’m not certain it ever existed when the young man was black and the shooter white, particularly in a place like Florida. )

Color me disgusted. On a week when they’ve gutted the voting rights act, it’s appropriate that we should be reminded of our deep cultural racism.

luv u,

Podcast

THIS IS BIG GREEN: June 2013

Audio June 28, 2013 Joe Leave a comment

Big Green presents a special two-hour marathon review of their new album, Cowboy Scat: Songs in the Key of Rick, featuring critical commentary by Captain Willard Mittilius Romney, Mr. Ned, Richard Perle, Carl Sagan, the robot Richard Nixon, Dr. Tom Coburn, and others. Watch them pull this album apart, stick by stick. Just don’t tell Rick, for pity’s sake.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Usual Rubbish

Unique opportunity.

June 21, 2013 Joe Leave a comment

No, this isn’t spam. This is real life. Real as it gets, man. Gravity, oxygen, water, the whole nine yards.

This is what we need. I was just thinking back to the bad old days in the 1970s when television was king and the internets were just a twinkle in DARPA’s eyes. On about five million occasions – maybe slightly more than that – I can remember watching an ad for 120 Classical Masterpieces introduced by the well-known character actor John Williams (not the classical guitarist … nor the composer of the Lost In Space theme song). Now that we are on the verge of releasing our third and perhaps silliest album ever, Cowboy Scat: Songs in the Key of Rick, I only wish we had a marketing powerhouse behind us like John Williams. Or even Guy Williams. (Except that he‘s dead too!)

Looks like, once again, Big Green will do the legwork on our own. We have some volunteer help, as you know. Marvin (my personal robot assistant) will tell all of his robot friends to download the album. (They don’t even need a freaking smart phone!) The man-sized tuber will be in charge of rural distribution; we’ve provided him with the requisite maps of Nebraska and Idaho. The rest of the country will be handled by the two Lincolns, who – as candidates for the presidency – have tread that ground before with great success. We have great hopes for anti-Lincoln, who has made some friends in Nashville. (Actually, that’s Nashville, Franklin, Idaho. Look it up.)

Yes, distribution is always a headache when most of your fans live on other planets. There’s a cost-benefit issue in trying to ship discs via UPS to Neptune; it’s hard to make that $9.95 per unit generate a profit against the transportation costs, even with our interplanetary handling surcharge of $45,682.53 per disc. Add in the exchange rate headaches, particularly in the Quatloo zone planets, and it’s hard to make your nut that way. Still, we try. Mitch Macaphee has some ideas involving matter transportation technology. All very hush hush at this point. We’ll let you know.

Hey, we live on crumbs. It’s the art that matters, right? That’s why we’re assembling an all-star panel of reviewers for our June podcast – experts who will examine Cowboy Scat from multiple insane perspectives. So stay tuned. This may be the best batch yet.

Official site of the band Big Green