"I wanted my guitar to sound thin, clean and clanky. Not chunky. distorted and mach. My philosophy at the time being that this puny sound was in the true nature of this instrument...the first truly modern instrument. The first scientific industrial instrument...clean, metalic, precise, yet funky and African...the first instrument to embody our young culture, not the modern culture of Europe with its international aesthetic, but "American" cool-African-futuristic-trash-aesthetic.

In Studio with James Brittain Gore and Matt Orme
By Nick Nocketback
In the confines of the secret landmark Fresno recording studio that has captured some of this city’s finest albums, I had a chance to preview James Brittain Gore’s latest work, before public release on August 4th.
James has created a full length album that embodies his soulful folk roots while trailing off into a fully orchestral sound that is as wonderfully eclectic as it is melodic and poignant.

Flight of the Red Balloon
Le Voyage du Balloon Rouge
Hou Hsiao-Hsien
Margo Films (In Theaters)

The French Connection

By Nicholas Nocketback

Dear Nocketback—August ‘08

Dear Nocketback,
I just started dating this really cool chick. She’s thin, hot, and reads a lot. I don’t really read much but I can fake it. She’s also a vegan and wants me to become one too. I think I might have to if I want to stay with her. But I really like meat and absolutely hate veggies. I try to eat like her, but raw vegetables are like eating colorful dirt. What’s next?
--Meatless in Seattle

Dear MiS,

Mason Jennings
In The Ever
Brushfire (2008)

Bob Dylan + Tom Petty + Jack Johnson’s Record Label = Mason Jennings

By Nick Nocketback

Interview with the artist—August issue

The Undercurrent: Tell us a bit about the cover.
Nicholas Nocketback: Well, that particular piece is titled “A Year in North Korea”. I lived in South Korea for a year with a friend who was originally stationed there by the US Army but chose to live there permanently once he was discharged. It’s quite magical, really. But I was trying to show how the West’s perspective of a country can ultimately pollute the minds of those that are influenced by the so called authority figures in life.

TU: What got you started in art?

1. This is your month to give back. Offer people rides to work on your days off. If you don't have a car, sleep with someone underprivileged.

2. You're in luck. When you turn 50, you'll get two 25's. However, you'll die post coitus--a small price to pay, really.

3. Telling people you "just like them as a friend" is confusing and hurtful. Come right out and say you think they're ugly.

4. Summer will bring you a bountiful harvest of unwanted ingrown hairs around your middle...get waxed now!

5. If no one stopped to smell the roses, how would Claritin make any money?

Man in the Dark
Paul Auster
Holt (August, 2008)

By Nicholas Nocketback

The Future of America is Darker than Curt Cobain’s

Auster is this generation’s literary living legend, a throwback to the popularity Fitzgerald and Hemingway held. Thus, a new novel for our summer reading (although I rarely see people reading in the summer—or in Fresno for that matter) is a monumental affair. Man in the Dark is due out August 19th, but your boy here got himself an advanced copy—please don’t ask how.

Who’s Camus Anyway?
Mitsuo Yanagimachi
Film Movement (2006)
Japanese (English Subtitle)

By Nicholas Nocketback

Art House Films Belong in the Art House, Not Mine

If Robert Altman were Japanese, this’d be his film; however, he’d probably not be named Robert Altman, but more along the lines of Robisho Altmazuki. That being said (or written in this case) I hate Robert Altman films and found this one about on par with those.

The Ting Tings
We Started Nothing
BMG (2008)

By Nick Nocketback

While Coldplay, Death Cab For Cutie, & Scarlett Johansson All Have Albums Out This Month, I Believe You Fine Folks Deserve Better