Uncategorized – Geek Weekly Fanzine

SXSW 2017

My 26th (!) SXSW is shaping up to be pretty different. This year I get to moderate a panel at the actual conference, so I’m badged up for the first time in many years. Back in the 1990s, I used to buy a badge to the music conference, but I gave that up years ago in favor of buying the occasional wristband, but mostly hanging out with my friends and going to day shows. The irony this year is that I have a badge, but can’t take vacation at my new job yet. Luckily, they’re gonna spring me for a couple of days, so I’ll be out and about, just not totally gorging myself.

Here’s a sketch of my week:

I have a lot of non-SXSW stuff going on this weekend, but I’ll pick up my badge downtown on Saturday afternoon, head to the EFF Cyberpunk party at the Vortex, then maybe try to catch the Hickoids at the Hard Luck Lounge. Sunday‘s my dad’s birthday party, but I may try to catch some of the Create action down at the Palmer Events Center. And there are some talks about space I wanna see!

I’m working during the day on Monday & Tuesday. Monday night, I’m going to my first ACL taping as an employee (The Pretenders!) and Tuesday night, I’m presenting an exhibit of tiny books and zines with Josh Ronsen at the Museum of Human Achievement. I’m hoping to catch the end of the Corn Lover’s Fiesta at the White Horse (Jon Langford & the Hickoids on the same bill!) after that, but we’ll see.

Wednesday, I’m hoping to make it to the Sahara to see my husband play music for the first time in several years & I’ll probably end up at the Bloodshot Records showcase that night. I’m conferencing on Thursday & Friday. The panel I’m moderating,“I Remember That Band”: Preserving Local Music, is Friday at 12:30, so I’ll probably take it easy Thursday night. Once I’m done at the conference, I am, of course, heading straight for Bloodshot’s 22nd annual Yard Dog party. I’ve been to between 18 and 20 of these, and I can’t wait to see all the folks I see once a year (sometimes twice). If I live through that, I’ll try to see Buttercup, Big Foot Chester, PAWS, Neko Case, (more) Jon Langford &/or Diet Cig.

Saturday is looking pretty amorphous. Lots of choices. No idea what’ll happen. Sunday finishes strong with Ice Cold Singles at Lucy’s Fried Chicken, a reception for the Bob Dylan Archive, and a show at the Carousel that night. I might be a little late to work on Monday.

Austin Fanzine Project

As mentioned previously, my side project, the Austin Fanzine Project has been taking up a lot of my spare time for the last year or so. It’s been super-fun and I’ve already learned a lot. You can learn about it too (and help!!) over at the AFP website. Stay tuned to the AFP Facebook page (&/or Twitter) to be informed about some local AFP events coming up this fall…

Personal Identity Singularity 2013

Hello world, I am Jennifer LaSuprema Hecker.

Let me explain.

In the pre-&-proto-internet days, having a separate identity helped keep my personal and professional lives separate. The government knows me as Jennifer Rae Hecker, the name on my birth certificate, but back in the 1990s, when I was more involved in Austin’s punk/DIY/”alt-rock” scene, I decided it would be good punk rock form to take the pseudonym Jennifer LaSuprema, a name I used primarily in the publication of my fanzine. And that worked then. Now the internet (with it’s huge volume of searchable data, and it’s ever-changing gauntlet of privacy settings and relationship definititions) has made it easier to find links between my two names. Also, with the launch of the Austin Fanzine Project (a major reason for the lapse in my blogging here), I’ve essentially come out to my professional community as a participant in a culture that I previously was hesitant to be identified with in professional situations. Luckily, things are changing and my profession is becoming more and more inclusive. Where I used to see the value in keeping parts of my identity to myself, I now recognize that I have both a right and an obligation to represent all of the cultures I identify with.

very low impact

I’ve never gone a whole year without blogging.

SXSW antidote

"They got some crazy little women there..."

Friday morning I’m flying to Kansas City for this cute little music festival. This will be my, um, third? year. In the past, this event was held in Lawrence, with the handful of venues just steps from each other. No lines, cheap-ass wristbands, friends playing, no day shows, nightly afterparty. Very fun. Very relaxing. My brother came down from Minnesota in the past, but he won’t be there this year. Lame.

This year the fest is in KC proper. We’ll see how that goes. I’m hooking up with the usual posse, so there’ll likely be some Ethiopian food and some burnt ends on my plate. Gimme a holler if there’s something you think I should do while I’m in KC!

The Meat Purveyors al fresco encore, North vs. South, 2007

I get home Sunday night, hang around the ATX for a couple of days, then head out to San Francisco for a conference (Weds-Sun). I’ve never been to the Bay Area, so gimme some tips for there, too, will ya? So far, I know I’m gonna go here & hopefully here. Oh, and to some conference shit, too, of course.

And I plan to wear a sweater the whole time I’m there. Yay! Sweater weather!

Chicago, Illinois, Greatest City on Earth

I went to a wedding in Chicago a few weeks ago. I love Chicago. Really love it. I get this big, stupid grin the second my plane touches down there. And I walk around grinning the whole time I’m there. I’m really gonna have to move there one day…

I tried to Priceline a room, but had no luck, so I ended up staying at the Arlington House International Hostel. What a stroke of (accidental) genius! The hostel was clean, convenient, cheap – $65/night for a private room w/ half bath (showers down the hall) – and located two blocks from Lincoln Park! Perfect!

I arrived early so I could screw around in Chicago for an extra day. And I planned not to do anything I’d done there before (I’ve been in a rut). I made one exception.

best pancakes in the world — best pancakes I've ever tasted

The Salt & Pepper Diner (there are several locations) serves my absolute favorite pancakes in the world. I had to go. I took a really, really packed redline train to the Addison stop, and I soon realized why the train was so packed: Cubs v. White Sox. The diner location I prefer is the one by Wrigley Field and when I got there around 10am on a Friday morning, the whole area was totally bumpin’. Cubs &/or Sox fans as far as the eye could see!

As a native Texan, I am unused to the feeling of being caught up in a rush of humanity. Sure, I’ve been to some Spurs games, maybe some other pretty crowded places, but there’s nothing like being in a big city at rush hour. All the people on the streets and trains are amazing to me. I never tire of just wandering about in Chicago checking the people out. And the train ride to Wrigleyville was perfect for this. It was packed! Everyone was in a good mood since they were probably playing hooky & had a whole day of fun ahead of them. The crowd was so delightedly boisterous!

On Saturday, I went to Lincoln Park without a plan. I wanted to hit the Conservatory, but other than that, I just wanted to wander about. And I did. I checked out the zoo, I accidentally went to a street fest (the back gate was open & I didn’t realize I’d snuck in w/o paying until I happened upon the real entrance!), and I had some Indian food for lunch.

I checked out the Lincoln Park Zoo, too. There’s no admission and the crowd was totally respectable, without being a mob. The weather was just lovely, as the above lion can attest.

I also took in the Architecture Foundation’s Architecture River Cruise. It was pretty good. The tour guide knew lots and was relatively entertaining. Unfortunately, I’m kind of a geek about Chicago architecture and I was hoping for something different. It was a lovely tour, though. Really.

There were more good times, but if I told you everything here, well, we wouldn’t have anything to talk about when we meet in person, would we?

Summertime Ant-proofing

sugar bowl w/ moat, originally uploaded by lasuprema.

It has been so dry here in Texas this summer, that we’ve had a minor tiny-black-ant invasion. Little dudes are so thirsty! I’m happy to provide a little sip for them, but once they start fucking with my food, the deal is off. In order to save some little ant lives from my horrible vengeance, I do like my mamma (and her mamma, etc) does. I put a moat around the sugar. Works great if you leave out food for your pets, too. You’re welcome…

STL-bound

City Museum, St. Louis, MO – 2006

I’m currently in the process of packing for a trip to visit some friends in St. Louis, MO. I’m pretty sure it’s going to be a lot of fun, but there’s a slight chance it could turn into Hell Vacation. We shall see.

My rad boss told me to have a good time and keep an eye out for Beatle Bob. BB was one of the first topics we really connected on and we update each other when we see him. Interestingly, one of the friends I’m going to see in the STL loathes BB (as do many local live music lovers) for his negligence of courtesy and his sense of entitlement. But he also does a funny dance and some people like that. His stamina, dedication, and seemingly endless supply of sport coats are also inspirational. And he likes to pose for photos with people (I think he’s one of the only people I’ve gotten a photo with all tourist-style like that). Search “Beatle Bob” on Flickr if you don’t believe me. Or see below.

Me & Beatle Bob @ SXSW – 1998

Also while I’m Midwesterly, I hope to be lunching with a long lost acquaintance. He used to be a dude in a band I liked. He and his (male) band mates were much older than me and my (female) companion in rock. This was particularly problematic since we were in our teens at the time. They were in their late 20s (early 30s?). We hung out after shows sometimes. It all seemed very innocent to me, although in retrospect, I can imagine how fraught it likely actually was. But they were always perfect gentlemen — when we were present, at least. The dude is now an academic, as, arguably, am I. We’re both married & he’s bringing his toddler along to lunch. Ah, the times they do change. Oh, and he’s also the person who first explained to me who Beatle Bob was. At SXSW, um, 1995? 96?

The rest of the trip will involve daytime sightseeing which I am uncharacteristically playing by ear (botanical garden? transportation museum? arch again? H&M? thrift shopping? bowling? pool party? microbrew festival?), and nightly attendance at Twangfest. I’m not particularly hyped about any of the bands, really, but last year, my friend discovered a really amazing band there. And I’m interested in checking out some folks I’ve never seen (Old 97s, The Gourds), and curious about a couple more (Ha Ha Tonka, Miles of Wire, Hayes Carll). I’d like to see Centro-Matic, but they are playing, um, right now, so that ain’t gonna happen. And the Waco Brothers top it all off, which is their specialty. I’m totally excited to see them every single time. Helps that I’m usually in my cups by that hour. The front of the stage at a Waco Brothers show is my favorite place to be when I’ve had more than three drinks in an evening.

Waco Brothers @ an early Bloodshot Records party @ Yard Dog Art Gallery, SoCo, ATX – SXSW 1998 (notice Fred Armisen on drums)

Oh, and man! I have been waiting for this Obama shit to take off for soooooo long. Here’s a photo from his appearance at Garry Mauro’s house when he was raising $$ for his Senate bid (Mauro’s been working hard to promote Hillary in the primaries). That was the first of many $25 donations I’ve given him. He was amazing. He called us Progressives. I got to shake his hand. Hott!

Barack Obama fund-raising for his 2004 Senate bid @ Garry Mauro’s joint – August 2004

Mike Wiebe + John Doe

Mike Wiebe + John Doe, originally uploaded by lasuprema.

I’m gonna be posting a lot of photos on this blog.

This one is from last night’s X/Detroit Cobras show at La Zona Rosa. This is the crappiest of all the crappy photos i took last night, but that’s what I want to talk about. I am a very, very amateur photographer. Add that to the fact that I like to take pictures at rock shows and what you get is some blurry, fucked up photos. Sometimes they work, though. Sometimes they evoke the show better than a good photo would. Sometimes, as in the case of this one, the photo seems to become a whole different thing. Like a painting or something.

This is my creative process. I always start out with some idea or intention, but I leave it up to chance, too. It could easily be argued that I do this because I can’t focus on one thing long enough to perfect my technique. But I’d like to think I do it because I like to improvise and I like to “discover” how the project turns out.