I play music for you

Chris Muther has been kind enough to allow me to do a guest DJ set at Pardon My French Sunday August 3, at the Phoenix Landing. This is a huge honor, Chris being one of my favorite DJs in town, and following last month's guest DJ set by my favorite author and good-music aficionado in town, Scott Heim. I'll probably get 15 minutes to play for you, but what Chris doesn't know is that I have an overactive imagination, and that I am fantasizing about turning that little Irish pub, for one night only, into Boston's only indie alternative latin queer dance night. Too small of a niche for Boston? I hope not. I'll play the regular stuff you'd hear at gay latin dance nights, like reggaeton, salsa, latin pop (like Shakira), but I'll mostly be playing what's missing from those nights, like indie rock from Latin America and Spain (like Amigos Invisibles and Café Tacuba), hip-hop and electro-pop in Spanish and Portuguese (like Mala Rodriguez and CSS), and those cheesy but lovable 80s pop hits (like Menudo, Timbiriche, and Flans). I'm even bringing in a record of kids songs set to cumbia which I listened to as a kid. And Chris will be playing his regular fare of very danceable electro and indie pop hits. If you read this, and you like the sound of an alterative latin music night, please come! Here are a few videos of the music I'll be playing:


Mala Rodriguez


Timbiriche


Pitbull

¡Vengan a una noche de musica latina alternativa!

This used to be my playground

Pasé el fin de semana en Nueva York con Silvio y John A. para ver la obra de Macbeth por TR Warszawa, la compañia de teatro polaca. Sin embargo, por la lluvia, se canceló la obra (es al aire libre).



Pero el fin de semana resultó super chévere de todas maneras.

Paseamos con nuestro amigo Javier.



Vimos la cascada de agua bajo el Puente Brooklyn.



Fuimos a mi barrio donde me crié, en Sunset Park.



Pasamos por mi high school (Brooklyn Tech) en Fort Greene.




Disfrutamos de una increible (buenisisisisísima) noche de musica latina alternativa (que vengan a Boston, que vengan a Boston).




Donde conocí a mi tocayo, unos de los dos DJs de Nacotheque, Marcelo Cunning.




Y caminando hacia el bus que nos llevó de regreso a Boston, nos encontramos con un desfile.



Así que, no rain on this parade.

Homoeclectic: Queer indie nights in Boston

You are gay, living in Boston, but hate the gay nightlife and the typical scene. What to do? Do not despair. For reals. There's an increasing variety of fun all-out queer, or at the very least super gay-friendly nights popping up all around town for those of us not into cookie-cutter South End aesthetics and sounds.

I've written before on this blog on the recent (and much welcomed) revival of gay night life in Boston, but this renaissance has yet to reach its zenith. Several more novel nights have popped up in town, so here's a little summary update. This list should be especially useful for all those lost souls in Boston who are left in the cold by the more typical Boston gay-bar scene of over-priced drinks, unfriendly patrons, and tired, lousy dance music. I've been to every one of the following nights many times, and recommend each of them very highly.


Gay dance nights in Boston that don't suck, in the order of when they happen each month, along with a brief description:



PARDON MY FRENCH
@ The Phoenix Landing, Cambridge

When: 1st Sunday of each month

An offshoot of Chris Muther's original night (Mint Julep Mondays...see below), it's pretty darn hard to predict what DJ Muther will play. Part of the reason is frequent guest DJs, but Muther himself is full of surprises. Let's see, you might hear MIA, Saint Etienne, Belle and Sebastian, Ladytron, Yelle, Hot Chip, and some Dusty Springfield thrown in for old times' sake. Though not entirely meant to be a gay night, the event produces a little "guerrilla queer bar" magic once a month at the Phoenix Landing.

Website: http://www.myspace.com/christophermuther






GUERRILLA QUEER BAR
@ various location (changes each month)

When: 1st Friday of each month

The brainchild of local heroes Daniel Heller and Josh Gerber, Guerrilla Queer Bar is a phenomenon that has sprouted in cities across the country in which once a month, a straight bar or club somewhere in town is chosen for a gathering of gay men and women, thus transforming the space for one magical night into something pretty darn queer. It brings the gays out of the ghettoed enclaves, and even the straightest of bars fall under the queer spell and for one night turn into happening dance clubs.

Website: http://bostonguerrilla.googlepages.com/







MINT JULEP MONDAY
@ the Middlesex Lounge, Cambridge

When: 3rd Monday of each month

Mint Julep Mondays is the original monthly party at the Middlesex Lounge by Christopher Muther, and continues to feature a regular fare of French ye-ye, retro Brit pop, obscure girl groups, Québécois crooners, and Northern Soul. Tossed into the mix are Claude François, Petula Clark, Serge Gainsbourg, Dusty Springfield, Ronnie Bird, Frank Alamo, the Four Tops, Saint Etienne, Michel Richard and, well, you get the idea. It's a great night with a fun and mixed crowd. Fantastic videos on a big screen to match.

Website: http://www.myspace.com/christophermuther





REVIVAL
@ the Middlesex Lounge, Cambridge

When: 2nd Monday of each month

This night is made for you to dance to Aretha Franklin, The Knife, Buddy Holly, Sex Pistols, Felt, Fischerspooner, Tough Alliance, Editors, Nas, Soulwax, Ray Charles, Diplo, NIN, Eagles of Death Metal, Notorious B.I.G., Klaxons, Radio Dept., Rolling Stones, T-Rex, Aaliyah, Faint, Eartha Kitt, Etta James, Rob Base, The Smiths, Raincoats, Toni Braxton, Joy Division, Nancy Sinatra, CSS, Dead Kennedys, Death From Above 1979, Black Eyes, Mariah Carey, James Brown. Hot videos on the big screen. The last time I attended it ended with some old-timely music, prompting the crowd to break down into a spontaneous fury of Charleston-inspired dance moves. Amazing.

Website: http://www.myspace.com/revivalism





HELLEAUXX
@ the Enormous Room, Cambridge

When: The 2nd Wednesday of each month

The latest indie queer dance night to hot Boston, Helleauxx has all the elements to make it a lasting fixture: cool bar with nice ambience, hot music, crazy videos on a big screen, and a varied crowd eager to fill up the dance floor. You'll hear everything from Cut/Copy, Michael Jackson, Justice, the Knife and all the fluo you can dance to. Frequent and various guest DJs each month.

Website: http://www.myspace.com/helleauxx






MOVEMENT
@ the Alchemist Lounge, Jamaica Plain

When: One Saturday a month

Your host David Dancer spins a variety hard to beat, such as, The Adolescents, SebastiAn, Sigue Sigue Sputnik, Crème de Menthe, Avenue D, The (old/spooky)Cure, 7 Seconds, Tiga, Gravy Train!!!!, Client, The Homosexuals, Southern Death Cult, BratMobile, subhumans, The Adverts, Positive Noise, Berlin, the Dandy Warhols, the Vapors, the Flirts, Bauhaus, The Sounds Of Liberty, Peaches, the Lemonheads, Grace Jones, the Flirts, Christian Death, a touch of class, Freezepop, The Trouble, the Mystery Men, Dirty Sanchez, Echo and the Bunnymen, T. Rex, KITBUILDERS, Panic, Gang of Four, Belly, Kraftwerk, Soft Cell, Glass Candy, Richard Hell, Beat Happening, Real Life, Kelly Clarkson, Miss Kittin, nine inch nails, Bangs, Squeeze, Motley Crue, Tones on Tail, Vitalic, Romeo Void, Elastica, older Blur, ? and the mysterians, Phoenecia, Sixteens, Bush Tetras, Pavement, Matthew Sweet, Royksopp, the Dominatrix, Duran Duran, the Human League, Relaxed Muscle, Out Hud, Miami Sound Machine, Klaus Nomi, Yaz, Katrina and the waves, the smiths, Rikk Agnew, Placebo, Thomas Dolby, Neu!, Pet Shop Boys, G.D. Luxxe, Belle &; Sebastian pre-2003, old Misfits, Drop Kick Murphys up to "Do or Die" + a lot more Mute, Turbo, kill rock stars, factory, Clone, K, Bomp, Ed Banger, Frontier, SST, Ersatz, DFA, Sire, and much more.

Website: http://www.myspace.com/daviddancer





THE NEIGHBORHOOD
@ The Midway Cafe, Jamaica Plain

When: 2nd Saturday of each month

It being JP, the Neighborhood is where you can get a better dose of diversity than most gay nights in town. A sample of the music you might hear (and dance to): The Rapture///The Slits///New Edition///Curtis Mayfield///Lady Sovereign///Dizzee Rascal///112///Beyonce///Jay-Z///Lupe Fiasco///Talib Kweli///Mos Def///Fanny Pack///J.J. Fad///Justin Timberlake///Alexkid///Bonobo///M.I.A.///The Pack///Gwen Stephani///Pharrell///The Presets///E-40///Fergie///Pussycat Dolls///Nelly Furtado///Sunshine Anderson///Daddy Yankee///Ol'Dirty Bastard///Blackstreet///Madonna///Annie///Basement Jaxx///Peaches///Kelly Clarkson///Metric///Scream Club///Depeche Mode///The Gossip///Outkast///Mariah Carey///Gnarls Barkley///Felix da Housecat/// Heloise & The Savoire-Faire Dancers///Sean Paul///Rihanna///Chaka

Website: http://www.myspace.com/theneighborhoodjp





GROSS ANATOMY
@ Milky Way Lounge and Lanes, Jamaica Plain

When: Last Wednesday of each month

This is *the* GAY INDIE HIPSTER DANCE PARTY of Boston. Queers from all parts of town converge on this JP nightspot once a month for great music and an ample dance floor that fills up without failure. Awesome DJs, friendly bartenders, bowling lanes, lots of places to sit and hang out with friends, and a kitchen upstairs make this a highlight night of the month. A new feature at the end of the night has been the spontaneous gathering outside the Milky Way of Gross Anatomy patrons on bikes, heading back en-masse to over-the-bridge parts like Cambridge and Somerville. Fun!!!!

Music you'll hear: mary timony, hot chip, tracy + the plastics, metric, the ponys, anna oxygen, patrick wolf, adult, lo-fi FNK, depeche mode, tender forever, the futureheads, the organ, the long blondes, diplo, gucci mane, david bowie, the smiths, the blow, VHS or beta, babes in toyland, china crisis, kylie, destiny's child, new order, heart, i am the world trade center, cut copy, sean paul, efferklang, the gossip, annie, esther, chicks on speed, MIA, adam ant, peaches, blondie, deerhoof, b-52s, joan jett and the blackhearts, duran duran, letigre, arcade fire, berlin, talking heads, electrelane, erase errata, usher, the go! team, architecture in helsinki, romeo void, julie ruin, the slits, mount sims, the moves, pat benatar, pulp, soviet, the unicorns, SWV, hole, magnetic fields, abba, angela, the knife, lita ford, ying yang twins, tom vek.

Website: http://www.myspace.com/thegrossanatomy






BOSTON BOYLESQUE
@ various locations

When: whenever you want!

Not in the least your typical queer night, this mostly-male burlesque review brings some old-time gaiety to wherever they go, whether it be the Midway Cafe, The Milky Way, or a living room near you. Every show is different, but expect to see imaginative and scandalous cabaret-inspired acts, with special guests in a variety show format performing to naughty tunes of days gone by. Think Josephine Baker and Marylin Monroe running a carnival sideshow. After watching sexy dancers do their thing, it's not surprising that the night almost always ends with the audience turning into an all-out dance party. Oh, and they always looking for talent, so contact them if you got something something.

Website: http://www.myspace.com/bostonboylesque




OK. So go out and have fun! No more excuses. And if you want to start a night of your own, please do. DIY is the way to go in Boston.

An appeal for donations

Withing a matter of weeks, Burma and China have been hit by natural disasters of historic magnitude. Burma has been devastated by a cyclone that hit the country May 3, leaving an estimated 128,000 dead, and 2 million homeless. China was hit by a 7.9 earthquake May 12 which has left 15,000 dead, though that estimate may double in the days to come. We in the West may have our trouble with the totalitarian governments of these countries, especially on the grounds of civil rights and freedoms, but right now the people who are suffering are ordinary human beings who have nothing to do with their respective governments. I ask you, if you haven't already, to go right now and donate whatever little you can to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. There are other charity organizations of course, but I chose this one because of their well organized and large scale infrastructure, which would allow for aid to reach the Burmese and the Chinese in the fastest and most effective way.

Below is an image I got from the BBC of a survivor of the quake in Dujiangyan, China, clutching the hand of his schoolmate who was not so lucky.




Here is an amateur video of the earthquake as it happened, also from the BBC, taken near Chengdu, the largest city closest to the earthquake epicenter. You can see for yourselves the hell on earth the people of Sichuan province faced and are still facing.

It's Bike Week in Massachusetts!

May is National Bike Month and here in Massachusetts we’re doing our part to celebrate this great event with Bay State Bike Week, May 12th -18th, 2008. Go to the Bay State Bike Week website and sign on to the Commuter Challenge! The goal is to get Bay Staters to collectively bike 50,000 miles, and in the process, cut down on congestion, pollution, green-house gases, noise, demand on foreign fossil fuels, while getting into shape in the process.

And just in time for Bike Week, Beacon Street in Somerville finally has bike lanes! Hope this is a sign of the times, and that bike lanes become a permanent and standard part of the cityscape.

Flag analogy

Tales of Angst and Isolation

Spending a blissfully lazy evening with my parents in Brooklyn, I sat down last night to watch some TV. I got lucky: as I flipped to Channel 13, the local PBS station, a movie was about to begin. All I knew was that it starred Sigourney Weaver, and that was all I needed to know. The movie was Imaginary Heroes, directed by Dan Harris. This was a fortuitous find. It reminded me of one of my favorite movies of all time, Donnie Darko. It was a different treatment on similar themes: suburban restlessness, familial dysfunction, dubious psychochemistry and teenage lives bursting with lonesome angst. Weaver stars with Jeff Daniels as the distant husband, and the marvelous Emile Hirsch as her alienated son. Weaver steals the show. She's done this before, as in The Ice Storm, another of my favorite movies of this quasi-genre (though that one with less emphasis on the teenage growing pains). Besides Weaver, I very much enjoyed the subdued and nuanced qualities of Hirsch's performance as the teenage son. The dialogue between him and Weaver are amazingly charming, funny, sometimes outright heartbreaking. And I also love the way the whole story unfolds, with sometimes subtle revelations, in between some sudden epiphanies, that question all the assumptions we make early on in the movie. For example, from the start, Weaver's character shows her great disdain for her son's best friend's mom, who lives next door. She doesn't explain why, but we assume, or at least I did, that we know the reason. Later conversations in the movie will surprise you and maybe prove all your assumptions wrong. Not a very predictable movie. It even has a cameo appearance by Kiki and Herb!


I should have gone right to bed after that. But what should come on right after: East of Eden starring James Dean! I am ashamed to admit that I had never seen a James Dean movie. The opening scene immediately caught my attention. OK, OK, I'll admit, JAMES DEAN immediately caught my attention. What a beauty. But, what an actor! This was no prettyboy Hollywood star. This was a true artist of the screen. Talk about angst and inner turmoil! Along with Dean's acting, East of Eden is just simply a superb movie, with a very modern and edgy feel to it. I will have to go and rent Giant and Rebel Without a Cause when I get a chance.


All these movies of tortured youthfulness set me to ponder on my own years of secret turmoil and seemingly unending ennui. Being told by the standard Hollywood script that high school years are "the best years", it really depressed me to think what lied ahead beyond high school. I spent many quiet years silently brooding over a horribly negative self-image, and a painful struggle reconciling deeply held religious beliefs with my sexuality. It wasn't until moving to Boston and starting grad school that I would really experience the best years of my life, and concurrently emerge from my introverted and depressed shell to become the happy guy I am today. Whew! I only wish I could send a message through time to my teenage self and tell him the quiet reassurance Donnie Darko tells sad, little Cherita Chen: "I promise, that one day, everything's going to be better for you".

As great as these fictional films are in portraying the intense isolation and loneliness that one can experience as a teenager, nothing can be more moving than a documentary that relates real life stories. Just last week, my roommate Jeff invited me and other friends to a screening in Concord, New Hampshire of the film, For the Bible Tells Me So.


This documentary follows the lives of several families and how they were each touched in their own ways by the tension between Christianity and homosexuality. For a first film, the director gathered a stellar set of subjects, including Dick Gephardt and Bishop Gene Robinson of New Hampshire. It was Bishop Robinson's story that really made it so special to have watched this film in New Hampshire, where much of his story transpires. Not surprisingly, when the Bishop and the director walk into the theater after the film for a Q&A, they get a standing ovation. The Q&A was long and thoroughly engaging. The director, Daniel G. Karslake, was incredibly engaging and enthusiastic, and quite inspiring. We were lucky enough to chat with him briefly after the Q&A. It is no exaggeration to state that a film like this is bound to save many young lives.

Flashback: 2003

Looking through some old photo albums of mine, I came across some pics of me and friends at antiwar rallies back in 2003, in New York a month before the invasion of Iraq, and in Boston shortly after the invasion in March.


One thing that amazes me about many supporters of Hillary Clinton is how easily forgiving they are for her role in creating the multi-trillion dollar catastrophe we were marching to prevent. Some will claim that it's easy to second guess her decision in hindsight. But I certainly wasn't the only one questioning her wisdom back in 2002 when she voted to authorize the use of force against Iraq. There was Hans Blix, chief UN weapons inspector who as of March 2003 found no evidence for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. And there were the record number (36 million or so) of regular folks who took to the streets in the winter and spring of 2003 around the world in opposition to the US doctrine of preemptive war in Iraq. The claim that everyone had been duped rings false. And for all the wisdom and experience she claims to have, it seemed to have done Clinton no good when it really counted. But, let her own words speak for themselves:

Beware the first week of March

Forget about June and that tired ol' Pride Parade. The first week of March 2008 offers the gayest few days that Boston will see all year.

Revival
We started tonight, Monday March 3, with Revival, the latest indie queer dance night to grace our dancing Boston feet. Promises to materialize once a month at the Middlesex Lounge. Some photos here.


Pardon My French
Tuesday night, March 4, Chris Muther's expansionist tendencies bring him to the Phoenix Landing for sassy retro pop from the shores of France, England, and beyond.


Scott Heim
Tuesday March 4, the author of Mysterious Skin reads from his latest novel, We Disappear, in Brookline Booksmith, followed by a reading at Porter Square Books on Thursday March 6.


Boston Guerrilla Queer Bar
GQB continues to raise the bar on the standard of excellence for gay nightlife in Boston, but this Friday, March 7, holds promise for shattering the glass ceiling by invading that bastion of heterohedonism known as Fanueuil Hall. Should be fun. I might just wear my favorite hoodie to this one.

En 9 meses: BÉLGICA!

Acabo de ver con mi jefe y el resto del laboratorio la pelicula nueva llamada, "In Bruges," o, "Escondidos en Brujas" como se titula en castellano. Es una película muy buena. El género de películas de acción o de crimen en general no me atraen, pero fuimos a ver está porque toma lugar en, pues, Bélgica, donde el laboratorio, incluso yo, nos mudamos en octubre.



A pesar de ser un poco muy violenta, estuvo super chistosa la película, el guión muy bien escrito, y la actuación, especialmente la de Colin Farrel, estuvo estupenda. Y, me pareció bellísima Brujas, la cuidad medieval donde toma lugar la historia. Me da animo por mudarme a este pequeño país en menos de un año. Aunque no sera en Brujas, sino en Lovaina (o Leuven), tambien en el territorio flamenco de Bélgica.

Espero que en mi añito por allá, aprenderé hablar un poco del lenguaje neerlandés. Por ahora puedo decir solo tonterias como, "Het is koud," y "waar is mijn wortel".

El lenguaje del cinema...

Just got home from a long walk in balmy drizzle from Central Square, where I had joined friends for sosolimited's President's Day Eve night of accordion, fine dance music and live video art at the Middlesex. The walk was perfect alone time to reflect on the triumvirate of quality films that I have seen in the last few weeks. Tonight I caught Persepolis at the Kendall Square Cinema, where just last week I saw 4 Months, 3 weeks, and 2 days. A few weeks back it was There Will be Blood at the Coolidge Corner Theater.

Persepolis
A magnificent animated film. I didn't know other kids dreamed about growing up to be prophets.

el amor, iran, la revolución, madre, padre, abuela, el patriotismo, el amor de patria,
la inmigración, la guerra, religion, ideología, fundamentalismo, el miedo, la depression, la esperanza


There Will Be Blood
The most haunting opening scene and music I have seen in years.

el poder, el petroleo, padre, hijo, religion, la avaricia, los estados unidos de america

4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days
An impeccably beautiful and heartbreaking film from Romania.

el miedo, la amistad, el amor, la opresion, el comunismo, la libertad

Go Obama

Just came back from seeing Barack Obama at Boston's World Trade Center. There were thousands of people there: young, old, black, white. It was exciting to see! We caught Governor Deval Patrick speak, then Senators Kerry and Kennedy, followed by Barack.

One final pitch for any undecided voters reading this.

Why Obama over Hillary:
-If you have a few minutes, listen to and watch Lawrence Lessig's succinct, articulate and convincing video on why he supports Obama and not Clinton.

-Why I support him: He's new, young and inspiring. Just Youtube him and you'll see for yourself. A JFK of our times. Even JFK's daughter thinks so! Our country needs a heavy dose of this right now.

-He doesn't vote with the Republicans as much as Hillary Clinton has in the Senate.

-Hillary voted for the Iraq war, and has made no apologies for it (unlike Edwards, who also voted for it, but acknowledged it was a mistake). Obama was vocally opposed to the war even before it begun. Senator Kennedy didn't vote for the war. Clinton didn't have to vote for it. She also voted for the Patriot Act, and voted again to renew it. She has been an enabler of Republican policies. Why would I vote for her?

-Do we really need to go back and forth between the Bush and Clinton dynasties? I don't think so. It's bad for our democracy.

-Hillary Clinton will energize the Republicans. Clinton vs. McCain? McCain wins. Obama vs. McCain. Obama! Read this!

My friend Rick Berlin appears in today's Washington Post, endorsing Barack Obama.

99

99. That's the number of dead in the latest suicide bomb attack in Iraq. Since the US invaded Iraq, there have been so many of such attacks, that they seldom make the front page anymore. The London bomb attacks in 2005 left 52 dead. The Madrid attacks in 2005 killed 191. Since our invasion of Iraq in 2003, Iraqis have suffered these acts of terrors on a monthly basis. The death toll may be in the thousands.

But this last act shook me to the core. The plotters used two women with Down Syndrome to carry the bombs into crowded pet markets where the bombs would be triggered by remote control. This was not merely an act of greatest cowardice by the bombers, but of unfathomable inhuman malice. The victims were mostly teenage boys, who were on holiday from school and hanging out in the markets. That their young, short lives, with so much to look forward, should be snuffed out in such a hateful way...

There is no ideology in the history of mankind that could justify such acts of violence on innocents.

But lest we forget, this chaos brought down on the Iraqis has been made possible by our unwarranted invasion of Iraq. By our troops, our President, our Congress, our tax dollars. We owe the Iraqis much for this transgression. And we can start Tuesday by voting for people who were and still are against this terrible war.

1st jury duty

Having had the privilege and pleasure of participating in several municipal, state and federal elections since becoming a US citizen several years ago, I now consummate my status as citizen of this great country by having served for my very first time on jury duty.



It was an energizing experience. About 200 of my peers gathered at the district court in Cambridge. We were brought into a courtroom, where we were given an orientation by a very professional yet surprisingly witty and humorous court official. We watched a video explaining the whole process, with none other than Margaret Marshall, the Chief Justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court herself, making the introduction in the video. To inspire us (and she did inspire me at least) she quoted our native son and founding father, John Adams: "Representative government and trial by jury are the heart and lungs of liberty."

Another judge came in after the video was over to talk to us in person. Sadly, I was dismissed on the very first day. But I did learn a bunch, and was assured by the judge and court officers that all was not wasted, and that my duty was done.

So what next for US citizen Marcelo? Tuesday: Vote in the Primaries and do my small part to get Barack Obama to the White House.

Numero# does Boston

Anoche fui a ver a Numéro#, un grupo músico francocanadiense de Montreal. Estuvo muy divertido el concierto. Tuvo lugar en Middlesex Lounge, para la noche llamada "Hearthrob". Lo único que no me gustó es que mas y mas, vienen unas chicas muy desagradables a esta noche. Bonitas y bien vestidas, si, pero no muy simpáticas. Son como "sorority girls" inseguras disfrazadas como "party girls". No lo entiendo. Pero, la mayoría de la gente, incluso amigos míos que vinieron tambien, estaban para disfrutar y bailar.
Ah, y como me olvido-tambien tocaron los DJs una de mis canciones favoritas del 2007-el remix de Tepr de la canción "A cause de garçons" (A causa de muchachos en frances), por la cantante francesa Yelle. El video es sin duda mi favorito del año pasado.



Y ahora, para practicar mi frances....si leen algun error, ¡por favor de corregirme!

Et maintenant, pour pratiquer mon français....si lisent toute erreur, s'il vous plaît de me corriger!

J'ai hier soir allé voir à Numéro#, un groupe musicien Québécois de Montréal. A été très amusant le concert. Il a eu lieu en Middlesex Lounge pour la nuit appelée "Hearthrob". La seule chose ce qui je n'ai pas aimé est que de plus en plus, viennent des filles très désagréables à ce soir. Jolies et bien habillées, oui, mais non très sympathiques. Elles sont comme "sorority girls" incertaines, mais déguisés comme "party girls". Je ne les comprends pas. Mais, la majorité des gens, et compris des mes amis qui sont aussi venus, étaient pour jouir et danser. Ah, et comme peux je oublier- les DJs ont joué une de mes chansons préférée du 2007-la d'Yelle, appelée "A cause de garçons" (le remix de Tepr). Le vidéo est sans doute mon préférée de l'année passée.

Boston Guerrilla Queer Bar (at last)

Last night, I finally joined my comrades for the fourth installment of Boston Guerrilla Queer Bar. The brainchild of local heroes Daniel Heller and Josh Gerber, GQB is a phenomenon that has sprouted in cities across the country in which once a month, a straight bar somewhere in town is chosen for a gathering of gay men and women, thus transforming the space for one magical night into a gay bar. At long last it reaches the shores of Boston Harbor, to spawn a revolution with a twist. One would think that in this city, capital and largest city of the only State in the Union that allows gay marriage, there would be a thriving gay night life. Quite the contrary. With the closing of Manray a number of years ago, along with other gay institutions and business around town, Boston had been left bereft of communal gay spaces. There's been lots of whining and complaining, and as a result a number of DIY events have been born from the ashes, to cater to gay nightlife needs (more on that later). Guerrilla Queer Bar represents the latest example of this wave. Moreover, there is an intrinsic subversiveness in GQB that Boston should welcome. Bostonians may be open minded, but in an overly tidy way. Gays are supposed to go to gay bars, and straights to straight bars. GQB challenges this notion.

Last night, the gays took over Allston, a neighborhood dominated by the drunken frat boy crowd. A few bewildered stares and unsavory comments by some of the male local denizens were to be heard, but that's part of the beauty of GQB: it's in your face, it challenges not only straights to share space with people they may not willingly do so, but also challenges us gays not to segregate ourselves into our designated spaces. In a fun and friendly way, GQB puts a gay face in front of people and places where nary a gay presence is felt or seen.

The night started at the Common Ground, where it happened to be 90s night. The music was perfectly fun to dance to. Unfortunately, the line out the door stretched down the block, and many people waited a whole hour in the cold, which was strange as it didn't feel too crowded inside, despite the bouncers insisting they were at capacity. So the organizers made the wise executive decision to move the party across and up the street to the Wonder Bar, where we had no wait, no cover, and the whole downstairs mostly to ourselves. And much to my surprise, the music there also had a good share of 90s classics, and was exceptionally fun to dance to. I looked around the room and thought without hesitation, this was the funnest gay bar in Boston. My hearty congratulations to the organizers, and of course, the participants. An excellent discussion and interview with the Queer Bar Guerrilleros can be found on drinkboston.com.

Since I'm on the topic of DIY heroes of the Boston nightlife, let me mention some of my other heroes of this genre:
Chris Muther for Pardon My French @ the Phoenix Landing first Tuesday of the month.

David Dancer, formerly for Hot Lunch, currently for Movement @ the Alchemist Lounge Saturdays.

DJs Patrick, Dafna and Stella for Gross Anatomy @ the Milky Way last Wednesdays of the month.

Joey Silk for Boston Boylesque (next show is Feb 6 at the Midway Cafe)

Thanks to these folks, Boston is a more fun place to go out at night.

A plea for 2008

Contested Streets viewing party

I hosted a viewing for Contested Streets, a nice documentary about the history of automobile traffic congestion in New York City, and how activists there are learning from initiatives in Paris, London and Copenhagen that aim to make streets safer and friendly for pedestrians and bicyclists. Lots of people came, in fact too many to fit in the living room, so my apologies.

I will be doing more viewings in the coming months, maybe with less people at a time so we can have a quieter discussion after.

I purchased the DVD from Transportation Alternatives, a citizen's group in New York City that advocates for better bicycling, walking and public transit, and fewer cars. A similar group exists here in Boston, called Livable Streets. They have an awesome newsletter with announcements and events which I subscribe too. That's how I found out about Contested Streets.

See the trailer for Contested Streets below.