Preocupied

I've been spending an inordinate amount of energy on the Dallas Cinemania screenings lately. I'm very excited about it all and I hope that it goes over well. I think the one thing that's really going to separate us from the pack is the fact that we're going to have some really good prints and our films are going to be a diverse pack. I still haven't finalized the three movies for this fall but I have a good idea what they'll be. Lots more going on as well. Holly and I will be moving into a two-bedroom house in Little Forest Hills next month. On top of that, I'm attempting to book some shows for the Tomorrowpeople. We already have two lined up for Oct 17th and 18th at the Doublewide here in town and in Austin at the Creekside Lounge. Still haven't played Ft. Worth which irks me for some reason. I mean -- it's right there. There's no excuse except we haven't been able to get on any bills. We'll make it happen.

Hello Hello

Greetings. It's been a while. So much to write about...so little energy. Where do I begin? Well, for starters, Holly and I traveled to Chicago -- our future home? -- in June. The photos have been posted on my Flickr account for some time (see sidebar). I underwent sinus surgery last month which put me out of work for two weeks. I'm starting a 35mm film society at the Angelika Film Center here in Dallas in October. We'll be screening the Lucio Fulci splatter classic, Zombie (1979) on October 30th. So come out for that if you're in town. Also, my band Tomorrowpeople played a show last week at Doublewide. Our entire catalog -- including "new" album, Bounced and Renounced -- has been released in the digital format. You should be able to download it off iTunes, eMusic, Napster, Amazon.com...pretty much anywhere really. We're proud that our stuff is available again for the first time in nearly a decade. We'll be playing Doublewide again on October 17th and we're coming to Austin on the 18th...although I forget the venue. Damn! Anyway, that should be interesting. I promise to post more often!

Grimaldi's Dallas

One of the pleasures of living in New York City was having access to some of the best pizza on the planet. I'm not talking about that shitty Famous Ray's stuff that tourists think is New York pizza -- I'm talking the REAL deal, you know, Totonno's over in Coney Island; Lombardi's on Spring St. and Grimaldi's under the Brooklyn Bridge.

That great, coal-oven fired, thin-crust pie has been a stranger to Dallas until recently. Coalvines over on Cedar Springs opened a couple of years ago to good reviews and big crowds. I thought their pizza was pretty good. Little did I know that a branch of Grimaldi's opened up in Big D back in January over in the West Village shopping center.

My first impression was that the roomy, comfortable dining area was a lot more atmospheric than the no-frills Brooklyn location. Gone is the looong line of folks waiting their turn to get in. Instead, you just walk right in and take a seat. The small house salad I ordered was easily big enough to feed four. No kidding. It wasn't bad but was swimming in sliced, red peppers. Ugh. I hate red peppers.

Holly and I ordered an 18" large pizza -- half sausage and half pesto, garlic, mushroom. Guess who picked which items? Unfortunately I'm a pizza purist and regard the use of pesto on a pie as tantamount to treason. Just give me some mozz, some red sauce and maybe a basil leave or two and I'm good to go. The chefs in front of the oven felt a little differently though. They managed to slather a generous portion of pesto over most of the pizza...a pungent green swath staked out it's territory over most of my sausage side.

The pizza was crisp and pretty well cooked. No soggy middle (I kinda like the soggy middle). My overall impression is that the crust is a bit thicker and chewier than the NYC version. Still, it was an original taste. The roomy dining area gave Grimaldi's Dallas an edge over the claustrophobia of Coalvines. Still, I couldn't help think that maybe -- perhaps due to Coalvine's delicious fennel sausage seasoning -- that Grimaldi's came in as a close second. Not bad, not great. But at least it's something for New Yorker's in Dallas to get their thin-crust fix.

Kites

I'm obsessed with the Lee Pockriss, Hal Hackaday pop standard, "Kites." I think it's one of the corniest songs ever recorded but at the same time one of the most beautiful. It's relatively simple -- two parts really -- but it's soaring chorus makes it special. A number of artists have released versions. Most of them are interesting at the very least. I find inspiration in the subtle nuances given by such singers as Billy MacKenzie and I think Lena Zavaroni even has a lot to bring to the table -- except for her completely daffy video. Hey, at least it's good for a laugh. Here's a sampling of some of the better versions I tracked down on YouTube...starting with the psychedelic, chart-topping "original" from Simon Dupree and The Big Sound. Enjoy.

Tomorrowpeople, Radiohead

Wow. What a weekend. There was certainly no shortage of things to be done and did, not the least of which was the return -- after an eight year absence -- of my rock and roll group, Tomorrowpeople. We had a well-attended and, if I might say so, artistically successful gig at Doublewide on Saturday. It was great to see so many faces. Some of which I hadn't seen in years. My one regret is that I didn't get much of a chance to spend quality time with anybody! The show itself was fun and I think everyone had a good time. Made a little pocket change as well. Turned out to be useful during the Radiohead show the following evening. We scored VIP tickets and box seats dead center, almost stage level, at *gulp - here I go* Superpages.com Amphitheater. Aww...let's just call it Starplex, shall we? The pricey beers and cocktails -- not to mention a general air of douche-baggery emanating from the crowd -- sort of stressed me out but Thom Yorke and co. delivered the goods with a hi-tech presentation and a lot of tunes culled from their most recent release, In Rainbows.

I promise to post the live recording we made of Saturday's show up here and on the Tomorrowpeople Myspace page.