Alternatives to Valium

Myself-Help: The Mental Trials Of Spalding Gray

2012-01-17T17:47:00.000Z

When I met Spalding Gray on a winter’s day in 1993, he was contemplating suicide. He was pale and anxious, and he spoke in a whisper. He talked about his need to be in constant motion, and his sense that he was suffocating. “I couldn’t get my breath last night. I was freaked. I was panicked.”He was staying in James Bond room in a London hotel. His suite had a spiral staircase in the middle,

Lynne Ramsay's 'We Need To Talk About Kevin': The Omen Inverted - A Pop Art Jigsaw Of Alienation And Fear Of The Alien Within

2011-10-21T14:16:00.000+01:00

Fifteen years ago, when Lynne Ramsay’s filmography could be viewed in a little more than 10 minutes, I asked what motivated her. She was happy – her short film Small Deaths had just won a prize at Cannes – and her conversation was bright and full of hope. Still, she didn’t take long to answer the question. She was motivated by anger, she said. "We approached it like 'Let's makea pop art

Punk In North Berwick

2011-08-25T13:20:00.002+01:00

I wrote a piece for Tramway's excellent Algebra webzine. It's a memoir about punk in North Berwick. It's here: http://tramwayalgebra.com/2/mckay.html

RIP Marshall Grant, The Man Who Put The Boom in Boom Chicka Boom

2011-08-13T15:34:00.004+01:00

L-R: Marshall Grant, Luther Perkins, Johnny Cash I was saddened to read of the death of Marshall Grant, who played bass with Johnny Cash in the Tennessee Two. Marshall's contribution to popular music has often been overlooked, but along with Johnny Cash and Luther Perkins, he invented the extraordinary "boom chicka boom" sound which provided the link between country music, gospel, and

"I'm never gonna be a histrionic crazy man!" The sad confession of The Jayhawks' Gary Louris

2011-08-02T13:25:00.004+01:00

There's a new Jayhawks album coming. While I wait for it arrive, I thought I'd post this interview I did with Gary Louris (first published in The Scotsman, 09 May 2003) In his teens, before reality set in, Gary Louris had a dream. "I used to picture myself being a frickin’ rock star. Even though I was incredibly shy, I felt like deep inside I had what it takes."Fate had different ideas and made

So Beautiful Or So What: Paul Simon's easy-uneasy listening album

2011-06-14T16:21:00.000+01:00

A few years ago, I suggested to Evan Dando that one of his songs was reminiscent of Paul Simon. The remark was a compliment, but the Lemonhead almost spat in response, saying something to the effect that Paul Simon was easy listening, while he was punk rock. It’s true to say that Paul Simon’s huge contribution to pop hasn’t always been acknowledged. Yet, as a songwriter,Simon is as significant

Josh T Pearson: Sad, Funny And Ruminative. Is He A Townes Van Zandt For Our Times?

2011-04-03T14:53:00.004+01:00

Josh T Pearson, a photo by Herschell Hershey on Flickr.Josh T Pearson's album, Last of the Country Gentlemen is one of the best of the year. It's quiet, and ruminative, and sad. Some of the songs sound only half-formed, like they're dissolving into nothing as Pearson plays them. It's a tough record to listen to, and although I love it, I'd hesitate to recommend it to anyone else. You have to be

It Ain't Christmas, It's Easter, Honeybunny: all hail the rebirth of Josh T Pearson

2011-03-14T14:22:00.000Z

You might say Josh T Pearson has baggage. He’s pretty upfront about it. In the song ‘Country Dumb’ – a great, sprawling, heartbleeding tear-wrencher in which the singer lashes out at himself by way of an apology for being such a predictable loser (and for being, frankly, unworthy of love), he offers a grim piece of self-analysis to the lover he is about to spurn. It starts mistily, with the

Banksy Goldfish in 3D

2011-01-19T14:21:00.001Z

GoldfishOriginally uploaded by Herschell HersheyDone on the site of the Banksy/Robbo feud on the Regents Canal, this chalk cartoon of a goldfish diving for a picture of paradise reminds me of the early work by the artist Calum Colvin, with a bit of New Yorker cartoon thrown in.

Our Beloved Leader

2010-11-03T12:04:00.001Z

Our Beloved LeaderOriginally uploaded by Herschell HersheyThe back page of Alternatives To Valium's first issue, from 1983. Any similarity to Banksy is entirely coincidental.

Lifeguard, Save Me From Life: Bona Drag and the Professional Misery Of Steven Patrick Morrissey

2010-09-22T10:13:00.005+01:00

Morrissey is a professional wallflower, who has made a career out of being painfully self-aware. Lately, though, he has started tinkering with his back catalogue in ways which are not always easily explicable. Southpaw Grammar and Maladjusted have been given the revisionist treatment, with mixed results. Now Morrissey turns his attention to Bona Drag, the singles/oddities collection which was

Goodbye Alex Chilton, Andy Hummel RIP. Your band, Big Star, was like The Beatles, if the Beatles Had Come From Tennessee

2010-07-20T19:38:00.007+01:00

I’ve been thinking a lot about Big Star since Alex Chilton died in March. His sudden passing produced a flurry of tributes. Suddenly, just as it was too late, Chilton seemed to be everybody’s favourite. Now the group's bassist Andy Hummel has succumbed to cancer, the tributes are flowing again. So what was it about Big Star? How can they be so many people’s favourite band, yet remain so obscure?

If Captain Beefheart Had Come From Glenrothes He Would Have Sounded Like Good And Gone (But I Like To Think He Wouldn't Have Tried To Drown Me In The Municipal Swimming Baths)

2010-07-08T19:41:00.003+01:00

A CD by Good and Gone arrives in the mail, and with it comes a memory of my first encounter with this Glenrothes r’n’b group. (This is r’n’b in its old meaning: G&G were a fierce post-punk combo who sounded as if they had chewed up, and half-digested, the gnarly bits of Dr Feelgood and Captain Beefheart. ) It was 1987, though it might just as easily been 1897. I was a stringer for the NME, a

A remembrance of my friend, Alan Ruddock, who died yesterday

2010-05-31T21:06:00.011+01:00

Where to start with Alan Ruddock? Just before the start, perhaps. Hard to explain, without impugning the reputations of others, but when Alan was introduced as editor of The Scotsman in 1998, Sue Douglas, the left-hand woman of The Publisher, Andrew Neil, made great play of how “collegiate” he was going to be. The previous editor had many strengths, but being collegiate wasn’t one of them. And so

Amadou & Mariam say "Don't Shoot" at South Africa World Cup

2010-05-19T20:27:00.002+01:00

Amadou & Mariam Originally uploaded by Herschell HersheyThe Malinese musicians Amadou & Mariam are the latest recruits to IANSA’s campaign for a Gun-Free World Cup. Amadou & Mariam are on the bill of the historic World Cup concert on June 10, 2010, at the newly-renovated Orlando Stadium in Soweto, Johannesburg. Speaking in London, where Amadou & Mariam were launching their autobiography, Amadou

Aaron Mokoena Supports A Gun-Free World Cup

2010-04-27T10:42:00.003+01:00

Aaron MokoenaOriginally uploaded by Herschell HersheyPortsmouth FC's Aaron Mokoena, captain of South Africa, shows his support for the IANSA Gun-Free World Cup campaign (iansa.org/worldcup)."When I was growing up playing football, I always dreamed about playing for Bafana Bafana. To play for my country and be captain, particularly when the World Cup is being hosted on African soil, is a real

Don't Shoot

2010-03-02T10:33:00.002Z

Don't ShootOriginally uploaded by Herschell HersheyI'm working on a campaign for a Gun-Free World Cup, for IANSA, the global movement against gun violence. This is the T-shirt Katharine Hamnett designed for the campaign, modelled by Steven Pienaar of Everton and South Africa. It is available from www.iansa.org/worldcup

Carl Barât:: The Libertine Who Fell To Earth

2010-01-16T23:08:00.011Z

Up the BracketThe LibertinesUnder the Influence Carl Barât Originally uploaded by Herschell HersheyCarl Barât’s acting CV is, to be kind, brief. The former-Libertine played a version of himself in the YouTube serial Svengali. And he was Gene Vincent in Telstar, Nick Moran’s 2009 Joe Meek biopic. “But Telstar,” says Barât, “was just like: walk on the set, say one line in a funny voice and walk

West Ham 2, Portsmouth 0

2009-12-26T18:02:00.001Z

West Ham 2, Portsmouth 0Originally uploaded by Herschell HersheyNot a great performance, but a two-nil victory against relegation rivals Portsmouth isn't to be sniffed at. With more clincal finishing, it could have been 4-0, as both Collison and Behrami squandered decent chances. True, Portsmouth weren't great, but there was a spell during the first 30 minutes of the second half where they

Banksy, Art Fags, And The Jealous Wrath Of Old Skool Graffiti Writers

2009-12-22T19:38:00.012Z

Rollermania Originally uploaded by Herschell HersheyBanksy is a cunt. Banksy is a batty boy. Banksy is an art school middle class twat. Banksy is the Pop idol of those who gobble what is fed to them and put under their nose. Why? Because last weekend, the London-based, Bristol-bred street artist did a painting under the Camden Road bridge on the Regent’s Canal in North London, appropriating

"We Really Wanted To Not Sound Like 1983." The story of REM, Reckoning, and the Birth of the Paisley Underground

2009-12-17T18:34:00.007Z

Steve Wynn was familiar with REM before his band, Dream Syndicate joined them on the Reckoning tour in 1984. He had bonded with Peter Buck after a “wild, drunken night”, ending at 6am on a San Francisco beach, and established that they much in common. They were enthusiastic souls who talked quickly, and both were avid readers. More importantly, their taste in music was identical. “We liked Big

Steampunk Cyclegeography - The Wayward Journey Of David Byrne

2009-08-08T12:18:00.003+01:00

The Name of This Man Is Originally uploaded by Herschell HersheyRecognising David Byrne was the easy bit. He was the guy in the checked shirt and matching shorts, looking as if he was on day release from Sesame Street. The outfit, he said, was an impulse buy. “Then it became one of those things where I wondered if I could ever wear it.” But he had. And, teamed with white sneakers, a white

Omar, The Wire, and the Baltimore Fairytale of Fran Boyd and Donnie Andrews

2009-06-20T14:35:00.003+01:00

In one of the stranger moments of the American presidential election campaign, a reporter from the Las Vegas Sun asked Barack Obama to name his favourite television programme. Without hesitation, he mentioned The Wire, which was understandable because, a) David Simon’s drama is almost monotonously described as the best television show ever and, b) it shows life in the blue-collar city of

Dressing For Pleasure (1977) by John Samson

2009-05-13T17:39:00.001+01:00

If the strange brilliance of John Samson’s career as a filmmaker could be reduced to one scene, it would be a sequence from his 1977 documentary, Dressing For Pleasure. The scene would involve Jordan – the original Jordan, the suburban punk with the beehive and the kohl-slash eyes – squeezing the ample milkiness of her hourglass frame into a rubber twin set and stockings, a buttock here, a breast

Dark Eyes And A Sardonic Smile: Patti Smith On Working With Bob Dylan

2009-03-03T12:43:00.001Z

I asked Patti Smith to talk about the time she worked with Bob Dylan. This is what she said.I had finished Gone Again in memory of Fred [‘Sonic’ Smith, her late husband], and I really didn’t think about touring at all, since my children were in school, but I heard from Dylan in 1995, and he asked whether I wanted to do a series of East coast dates with him. And because they were very local I