selling your soul

i am reading Doctor Faustus by Christopher Marlowe. i've never read any Marlowe and i have to say that i'm really enjoying this - his sense of humor and the intensity of Faustus in his big mistake.

Faustus asks Mephisophilis how is it that he (M) is out of hell. M replies, "Why this is hell, nor am I out of it."

so hell isn't a place to go to (and from) but if you are in hell, hell is where you are. a portable hell.

this reminds me of the gospel of Thomas, who reported that Jesus said something along the lines of "the kingdom of heaven is right here, but men do not see it."

so both heaven and hell are not elsewhere. they are here and now and it just depends on you to ascertain which one you exist in.

not that i believe any of this! whoa. no. but i find it all so fascinating and wouldn't have minded taking religious studies classes in college. from the philosophical perspective. yes. anyway, i have to get back to the play to see what happens of Faustus. last i read, he had just about destroyed the Pope.

on itunes right now: wickhead, an alt-rock group from south africa trying to make it here in LA/USA.

music, creativity and ticket sales

radiohead tickets! AARGH. okay, so i couldn't get tickets on the WASTE presale. I can try again on the KROQ presale and try again on the ticketmaster sale. but i'm supposed to get VIP tickets, although i was told they aren't confirmed until the week before the show. The week before? how can you be sure you will get to go?? now i have to buy tix and just hope the vip tix come through (better tix) and one way or another go to the show. jeez.

songs in my head. i have songs that i think about, my own melodies and random words, nothing that would stand up in the light of day, but it's an interesting creative endeavor, different from writing stories. i love the feeling of these original (i hope) melodies circling my head. it's such an ethereal art (music is) compared to the hard-copy of fiction, the words on the page. i wish i could really write music. i think it must be the very best thing in the world.

on itunes: well, it's crap, but "before he cheats" by carrie underwood. gotta nice hook.

bad title, good movie

"snow cake." if i had not seen a clip from this movie on tv, i never would have rented it. alan rickman is seeking redemption. sigourney weaver is a functional autistic woman who inadvertently provides that redemption. the music is mostly by broken social scene, although weaver dances in happiness to a 70's japanese song from a comedy show and it's like the best scene in the movie! i found the song through some difficult google work, and can now dance to it myself.

intrigued? it's called "notteru ondo" -- go for it in google!

however, on itunes right now: gram parsons (i'm re-living a musical genre i ignored at the time)