TIRGOVISTE: Half-way through our set last night our server crashed. We had to go to the DAT back-ups and lip-synch the rest of the show. In some ways, I prefer it that way. Better the server than the smoke machine. One time the smoke machine DID break and we had to burn dirty clothes. No one was the wiser. The crowd was scandalously hammered on Budvar and Okocim. The server thing turned out not to be a big problem. The ribbon cable leading from the SCSI controller in our machine was knocked loose somehow. So much for Anvil cases. Money well-spent. I bought a book about Werewolves this morning (I can't read it of course, but it has a nice cover) and got my boots polished. Friday night is our last show before we head home and I think that is when Wig will try and saw the dorm-fridge in half on stage like he's been talking about. There are things you can get away with here. Come see us with the Paperbacks at the Fireside Bowl in Chicago on 2/8/01. ::posted by Musashi, Miyamoto ; Killer of men 1/30/2001 04:23:08 PM This charming bit of copy appears in the literature of Choke distribution. Credit for this chicanery goes to Todd Ambrosini, Esquire. ..features members of SEAM, and the late DIS this is a guitar band from Chicago. 4 cute boys (well maybe three) and some inventive songwriting give way to songs that feature guitars and more guitars to make some fine rock music.. Titles like "When OZZY Was Subversive", "Your Nemesis Wears Sideburns" and "Scandinavian Metal" don't do justice to the lyrics within. Hm. ::posted by Musashi, Miyamoto ; Killer of men 1/29/2001 05:44:18 PM Hark! The intelligentsia sound their Trumpets! This from action attack helicopter.com: Sixto "s/t" [Star Star Records] Sixto makes me laugh everytime I think upon their name. I'm going to assume they're named after former baseball player, Sixto Lescano (sp?), and yes that was his real name. Featuring ex-members of Seam, this nine song self-titled record is over thirty minutes of music. Sixto provides this sexy style of arena-rock meets post-punk, if you can figure that one out. Trust me, once you hear this, you'll understand. Chris Fuller handles the vocals and reminds me a little bit of the singer from Joy Division, with his emotionless utterances. However, combined with the music, it provides for a rather seductive sound that is very accessible. Having been familiar with Seam, yet never actually having heard them, I'm unsure of what comparisons to make to the former outfit, yet I think it's safe to say that Sixto does an excellent job of producing their own unique brand of music. ::posted by Musashi, Miyamoto ; Killer of men 1/24/2001 10:17:52 AM Heigh Ho. This just came in over the wire from mainland USA. We're no. 5 on WMSE's top 30 last week. Last week's top 30 Alternative picks: 1., Low, Things We Lost in the Fire, Kranky 2., PJ Harvey, Stories from the City Stories from the Sea, Island 3., A3, La Peste, Columbia 4., Blur, Best of, Virgin 5., Sixto, S/T, Star Star Kind of cute, I think. ::posted by Musashi, Miyamoto ; Killer of men 1/24/2001 10:13:41 AM UPDATE SNAGOV: Actually, we are now convelescing in a nice hostel in Krakow. It's in a large addition to the back of the biggest Catholic church I have ever seen. Adjacent is a convent and rectory. A nun admitted us. She was at least 129 years old and smiled very sweetly. At first I thought that she would not let us in, but there was no problem. I'm led to believe that they encounter all manner of riff-raff in this place. Most of the accomodations are barrack-esque in nature, however we did manage to get a room for the four of us. Two beds. Matt's dread-locks jabbed me in the eye twice last night. Sibi prefers to sleep in the van. He hates hostels. "It is like a bee hive in this kind of places," he says. "Full of students." He's right. The place is crawling with traveling Polish kids and Australians. You should hear the chatter, it's like an aviary in here. I'm mightily surprised that there are so many back-packers this time of year. What's it like in July? I hope they have a few fans in here. I borrowed some shampoo from a freckled Australian girl last night. She said something that really made me laugh but I can't remember what. Probably making fun of me. Both of our shows were cancelled this week. I should take a fricking hat and a ukele down to the city center and compete with the gypsies for change. Let all the Germans and Japanese think I'm some Slovak minstrel eccentric. The Australians would know better. About Snagov. We had a day off in Snagov when the van was being fixed. I dragged everyone to see a live performance of Prokofiev's Alexander Nevsky in some really cookie theatre/concert hall that reminded me of the Music Box in Chicago. Nice, musty, cushy, dark, velvety, just moth-eaten enough to be inviting. It was great. Alexander Nevsky is my favorite piece of classical music. I nearly had appoplexy when I saw the marquis. I was wearing my spandex skelton outfit as it is the only decent thing left to me since our little incident two weeks ago. I have been wearing this sleazy black flight jacket with the shiny gold (in lieu of blaze orange) liner over it but the glow in the dark bones silk-screened on my legs are all too obvious. I thought that my (our) appearance(s) (wig has a one hell of a black eye and a split lip) would bar our attendence but, alas, money talks. Especially when it has an American accent. And, rest assured, with an American accent, you do a whole lot of talking in these parts if you're not wary. Alexander Nevsky makes me cry. It doesn't make me sad, it just makes me cry. Normally, this just entails a little choking up. I had never heard it performed live, however. I wept openly. I wept like a wet toddler. I wept like an Italian widow. I sat there in my creaky, puffy seat and the tears flowed silently from my blood-shot eyes and all over the rib-cage painted on my chest. The other three guys got up and sat somewhere else. I love Alexander Nevsky. I have 5 different recordings of it at home. I also love Romeo and Juliet, and Lieutenant Kije. All by Prokofiev. But "Battle on the Ice" from Alexander Nevsky; I'll tell you, there are no words to describe what I feel when that choir kicks in. Makes Carmina Burana sound like Christina Aguilera. Actually, Carmina Burana sounds nothing like that. Carmina Burana sounds like the Mongols stampeding across the frozen steppe on black steeds with red eyes dragging nuns and children behind them beneath a smoky black sky. Like I said, normally, it just makes me choke up a little. But I was still crying when we wandered out into the lobby. I sat on a rickety bench while the other guys went to the can. (I couldn't, I was too dehydrated from bawling). A man in a vermillion tuxedo came up and put a nicotine-stained white glove on my shoulder. He said something to me. I couldn't understand him of course. Maybe it was, "are you okay?" But most likely he said, "please leave or we'll bring the dog." I think about that when we play sometimes. What would it be like to write music that affects people that deeply? I guess I shouldn't say "people". It affects me that deeply. If Prokofiev were alive and hanging out in the audiece and saw me carrying on the way I was, he probably would've left and ordered a drink. The shows have been picking up. On Thursday, we played for about 75 people. There was the usual arsenal of vertically striped t-shirt/dress wearing wiggle-dancing types. Lots of hairspray. Maybe we should get one of those Roland Grooveboxes. That's part of one of Wig's fantasies, though. ::posted by Musashi, Miyamoto ; Killer of men 1/23/2001 05:26:47 PM "At some point my mind wandered, and I began to wonder how heavy a box would be, if it were filled with the hearts of everyone in the room." -John 13 ::posted by Musashi, Miyamoto ; Killer of men 1/18/2001 11:57:49 AM We will, in fact, appear on WNUR Saturday February 10th. The show usually comes on around 4pm. We have at least one "special edition" Sixto film-canister live album left. This contains an NUR performance from '98 along with other goodies. Should someone be interested, they may procure said item(s) from us at one of our performances when we are state-side again. Just ask us, we no longer do raffles. Depending on how I fare in customs, we may have plum brandy. The hole in the knee of Matt's skeleton outfit has spread to the groin area. We are in need of a seamstress. ::posted by Musashi, Miyamoto ; Killer of men 1/16/2001 06:20:27 PM We were one of the top 5 adds on WMSE in Milwaukee last week: 1., Brassy, Got It Made, Wiiija 2., The Donnas, Turn 21, Lookout 3., Gentle Waves, Swansong for You, Jeepster 4., Honeydogs, Here's Luck, Palm Pictures 5., Sixto, S/T, Star Star ::posted by cHutler 1/16/2001 05:28:33 PM Kudos to craig not only for being the most presentable band member on this trip, but for all his efforts in shaping this site up. Considering the fact that a lot of the last minute work was done remotely, it is especially impressive. It looks as though we may appear on WNUR on Saturday February 10th. We'll let you know. I think I have lice. ::posted by Musashi, Miyamoto ; Killer of men 1/16/2001 12:27:40 PM We are just lately from the carpathaian region. This has been our third East Euorpean outing but first trip to this region. I have been wearing the same pair of vinyl pants for 13 days. They no longer reflect as they are coated with the prints of a thousand fingers, not all of them mine. Craig looks remarkably clean and groomed. He is the only one among us that does not smell like a stranded dacchshund. Our van driver Sibi, smelled like a drowned, burnt, stranded and beaten Lab/poodle mix when we started out. Now he doesn't smell at all. I feel like one of the lepers in Ben-Hur. People aren't as starved for the rock here, as I supposed. Not unlike Ukraine, Euro-dance reigns supreme. We will be home soon, I'm reminded of things I have to do when we get back. Take 13 baths for starters. Throw these ridiculous shoes out next. I have one remix to finish for this site. That will be of "The Jackals, The Cocks" which is on our album. I'm also thinking of remixing (I employ that term in the vaguest sense) a song we abandoned about two years ago called "Walpurgisnacht". Hopefully when I'm done, it will sound like Chrome stole it from us. I had some other notions, but can't remember. I don't know if we'll have enough megs to handle it. I hate cyber cafe's. No, I like them. I like this honey/cappucino thing I'm drinking. Matt's hair is beginning to dread. Wig's has gone completely white. Packs of stray dogs roam Bucharest after 9pm like Wicker Park circa '86. I would like to visit the Ceausescus' grave but don't think we'll have the time. ::posted by Musashi, Miyamoto ; Killer of men 1/16/2001 12:09:50 PM The site is launched. I've added photos and the perl 'news' script. Soon I will add the MP3 links. ::posted by cHutler 1/13/2001 03:23:10 PM The Sixto CD is back from the manufaturing plant and is on it's way to press and radio. The CD has a release date of 01.29.01. If you can't find it in your local store contact Star Star Stereo or tell your local record peddler to call Choke distribution. ::posted by cHutler 1/8/2001 10:34:32 PM The news archives are here.