Fourth Arts Block & Antagonist Movement unveil Joey Ramone mural behind CBGB

This month, Raul Ayala and other members of the Antagonist Movement went to work on a mural on Extra Place behind the location of CBGB, where Fourth Arts Block has an ongoing public art project. The inspiration for the mural is a poem written by Dee Dee Ramone after Joey’s death. It was given to the artists by Arturo Vega, and describes Joey’s spirit as a dragon riding through the blue sky.

Never Records: You Are Not Listening

 

Never Records: You Are Not Listening is a feature length documentary about artist/musician Ted Riederer and his Never Records project. The documentary explores the power of art and music to unite, educate, and uplift a community. In an era overwhelmed by virtual communities, Riederer is attempting to create actual communities. Visit their website here & Facebook page here.

Music by Kevin Gant. Promo video by Ethan Minsker.

Who doesn't love a fanzine? Psycho Moto Zine #20 The Work Issue

Grab it here.

Psycho Moto Zine: A fanzine dedicated to high-lighting unknown artists, writers and more. This issue is about the subject of work. If you like it pass it on. PMZ is a branch of the Antagonist Art Movement.

Antagovision: Lee Harvey - Obscure Dictators art show

Here is the final post of the week from Ethan Minsker!

This is a video from our public access show. It has aired here in NYC for the past 10 years on channel 67 on Tuesday nights at 11pm. If you are not familiar with public access, these are channels provided by the cable networks for community use. It was popular with the downtown residents of New York City since the start of cable TV back in the 70's. Today everyone just watches web videos.

To see more of Ethan's stuff have a look at his site http://www.ethanminsker.com/

Antagovision: Arturo Vega and his day-glow swastikas

 

Arturo Vega art show of Day-Glow Swastika. This was the first time these had been publicly shown since the 70s. This art is also mentioned in the book Please Kill Me by Legs McNeil. The Ramones art and shirts we all know and love? Yes that was Arturo Vega.

This is from our Public Access show on MNN NYC which airs Saturday nights on channel 67 at 11:00pm. 

Filmed by Ethan Minsker and crew.

You can find more of Ethan's work here.

You can find more of Arturo Vega's work here.

Bikini Kill live in 1993 by Ethan Minsker

Photo by Pat Graham

Here is a cool clip of Bikini Kill from 1993 at Mercury Lounge here in NYC, as we catch up with everything Ethan Minkser has been up to. Vocalist Kathleen Hanna's biographical documentary, The Punk Singer, recently premiered at South By Southwest.

Years ago I was making a film titled Anything Boys Can Do... It covered then little known female related groups. Bikini Kill was asked to be a part of this film. Kathleen Hanna gave the okay and we started filming. At the second show she took her top off, looked at us and said turn that camera off. Not in a nice way but more like "you are violating the privacy of the female body" way. They were not included in the finished film since we never got an interview. This footage is from the show we did before filming at ABC No Rio. Enjoy. 

Anything Boys Can Do is available on DVD here or download here.

Scene Report: H2O, 1995-1996 by Ethan Minsker

 As promised, here's more from Ethan Minsker!

Roadies are the baby sitters for small bands. We act as the therapist or marriage consolers. Every weekend I would be on the road up and down the East Coast. This was back in 1995 a time when even small bands could feel famous. We became a family. I think the video shows this. If you like this sort of stuff please have a look at my book Rich Boy Cries For Momma about the Washington, DC punk and hardcore scene, here.

Mr. Nobody Presents: Carla Rhodes

Artist & independent filmmaker, Ethan Minsker, who we've featured here before, has a bunch of new material I'll be running over the next few days. First up is this pilot for the Mr. Nobody Show featuring rock 'n' roll ventriloquist & comedienne, Carla Rhodes.

Carla Rhodes is a rock 'n' roll ventriloquist & comedienne. She caught the ventriloquial bug at the age of nine after seeing Shari Lewis and Lamb Chop on television. Carla later caught the attention of her hero and as a result, was mentored by Shari Lewis.

By the time Carla was a teenager, she was performing all over her hometown of Louisville, Kentucky. While attending Middle Tennessee State University, she recorded a full length comedy music album in Nashville. "I Love Animals," a cut off of "Carla's Golden Hits, vol 6," got rotation on the Dr. Demento's "Top Funny Five," eventually placing at number two. With a Mass Communications degree under one arm, and a puppet under the other, Carla then escaped to New York City.

You can find out more about Carla at carlarhodes.net.

Ethan Minsker: Mr. Nobody

Ethan Minsker, founder of the Antagonist Movement, has a new film project to tell us about...Mr. Nobody. He's looking for people to be involved. If, after watching the teaser, you'd like to be a part of it, drop him a line in the comments section of his Vimeo page right here:

This is a test for a larger film project about moments that change your life. The larger film will take place in South America in Ecuador at the end of 2013. For me the event was an airplane crash that happened a few miles from where I was. I tried to be as truthful as I could, not easy when you think people might see it. I think there might be many artists out there who can relate. If you have a story feel free to let me know in the comments box below the video on Vimeo. If you like the video please feel free to pass it on. I need all the help I can get.- Ethan, December 2012

For previous posts about Ethan & Antagonist on Stupefaction, click here.

Antagonist Art, Part 2: The Books

Last week we featured the films of the Antagonist Movement & Ethan Minsker. Today, Ethan is back with part two which focuses on his books. As I mentioned last week, back in the late 90's I had a weekly DJ gig at Niagara in the East Village at 7th St and Avenue A. One of my favorite guys to work with there, Ethan Minsker, has gone on to follow his muse with the Antagonist Art Movement which, so far, encompasses an impressive collection of film and books. I've asked Ethan to to give us some background on his projects as I think its well worth spreading the word. Big thanks to Ethan for the contribution!

As an unknown writer, I knew I would have little chance to find an agent and/or publisher, so I used what I had learned from publishing my fanzine, Psycho Moto Zine, and other chapbooks to start my own publishing company. Through the fanzine I have editors and artists whom I trust. Everything else I am still learning. The only differences I can see between a major publishing house, and becoming your own publisher, are distribution and publicity. The advantage for me is that I can produce a book the way I want. Most writers will tell you that, unless you are a best seller, publishers won't put in the time to edit or promote your novel. I wanted to make works that I would love, long after I produced them, alongside artists I admired and thought had potential to grow. Maybe you have seen the sticker of my book cover for Barstool Prophets? Promotion for my books has been a mixed bag of t-shirts, stickers, and videos playing on our public access show. The mainstream channels won't pay attention to you unless you are George Clooney, and while I do have a nice smile, I am no George Clooney. So promotion has been guerilla-style—down and dirty. In an attempt to generate a following of readers I have priced my ebook's at $1.99, everywhere ebook's can be found. Take a risk and get your own. Signed copies of my book can be found at the St. Marks Bookstore currently on 9th street and 3rd Avenue in New York City.

My writing

I believe that everyone’s life can be broken up into chapters. The series I am currently working on separates my life into three parts. The first, growing up in Washington, D.C., and becoming involved in the punk rock scene where my friends were murdered. The second, moving to New York City at age eighteen, and working in the Lower East Side bars. Thirdly, the book I am currently in the process of editing covers the birth of the Antagonist Art Movement and my transition from bars to galleries. My D.C. book, Rich Boy Cries For Momma, took me over 12 years to finish. Like a detective I had to search out all the punk rock bands to get permission to reprint their lyrics. I write in a conversational, simple and direct tone. I am interested in how locations and environments work as a background and help shape the story itself, from Washington, D.C.'s punk scene in the 80s and 90s, to New York City, before and after September 11th. The city you live in is as much a part of the story as your characters.

Below are descriptions and links to trailers of the books and fanzines by Ethan H. Minsker. Please don't be shy about passing these on. And if you do read any of them, join our fan pages on Facebook to get updates.

Rich Boy Cries for Momma is told from the perspective of the good son turned teenage punk rocker, and is set in Washington, D.C. during the turbulent 1970s and 80s. Filled with mayhem, teenage romances, and substance abuse, but also humor and warmth, the story focuses on the young, unnamed protagonist. A disparate cast of characters—from junkies, gangsters, and jocks, to the kids of diplomats, the girl next door and the boy who suffers from fecalphilia—become entangled in the “scene”. Rich Boy Cries for Momma pulls the reader into the allure of a counterculture that ultimately changes the lives of the narrator and those he cares most about.

Barstool Prophets is a rowdy, raw, and humorous memoir of true events. The story follows the lives of a wild spectrum of characters, narrated by a young writer working in a bar in New York’s East Village. Barstool Prophets chronicles this iconic neighborhood over a period of 20 years, from its seedy early 1990s, to its recent gentrification into a Manhattan hot spot. From the love-addled bartender, to the suicidal doorman, to the junkies in Tompkins Square Park, they are a family, with all the accompanying joys and dysfunctions.



Trailer for Barstool Prophets

Read a copy of PMZ fanzine here.

Antagonist Art, Part 1: The Movies

Back in the late 90's I had a weekly DJ gig at Niagara in the East Village at 7th St and Avenue A. One of my favorite guys to work with there, Ethan Minsker, has gone on to follow his muse with the Antagonist Art Movement which, so far, encompasses an impressive collection of film and books. I've asked Ethan to to give us some background on his projects as I think its well worth spreading the word. Here is the first of a two part series, by Ethan, about Antagonist:

Movies of Ethan H. Minsker and the Antagonist Art Movement 

The Antagonist Art Movement attempts to foster and promote unknown artists through a variety of events. These films reflect those values. Whether its women of Lower East Side punk rock bands in the early ’90s such as in the documentary “Anything Boys Can Do…” or “The Soft Hustle,” a narrative film of the Lower East Side bar scene in 2003 featuring cameos such as Jesse Malin, Handsome Dick Manitoba, Howie Pyro and many more. We have tried to make films that would appeal to the young and struggling artists, not for those who are only interested in the already successful artists. (There are enough films about those rich and famous artists.) Each film we have made available on Amazon for $1.99—cheap!—so it lets broke artists watch them all. All the money goes back into helping make more films and host more art events. “The Dolls of Lisbon” just came out on iTunes and looks the best from them. With the new digital distribution it's possible to reach a large audience quickly; that is if they know about us. That said, don't be shy about letting your artist friends know. Below is a quick run down of each film along with a trailer. We hope our work inspires you to make your own. 

The Dolls of Lisbon: A movie about struggling artists making work on the other side of the world. A DIY eyeball-busting bonanza about 100 handmade dolls. Find it on Amazon, iTunes and on DVD. Local book store: Saint Marks Book Shop on 9th St & 3rd Ave. 

This is Berlin, Not New York DVD and Amazon Instant download. See what trouble the Antagonists can get in when they make art in abandoned buildings in Berlin. 

The Soft Hustle: The story of a Lower East Side lowlife who makes a bet for $1,000, which he promptly loses. After getting kicked out of the apartment of his girlfriend, he finds himself going home with cheap barflies, robbing East Village stores and pathetically pretending he is gay just to have a place to sleep. This film is an extra on The Dolls of Lisbon DVD or can be downloaded from Amazon Instant Video. 

Anything Boys Can Do…: The underground music world has been characteristically male-dominated, in both the bands and the audiences. With the upsurge of women involved in the scene, female bands and musicians are all too often regarded as novelty acts, regularly shrugged off as militant feminist or cutely entertaining. Overwhelmed by the numbers of male bands, female bands of the scene are lumped together in one category "girl group," regardless of style, talent or musical content. Anything Boys Can Do... investigates and reveals the issues affecting women in general and as individual performers.