The online mental storage facility for Ryan Vemmer, a writer of plays and film scripts (largely short or unfinished), and some poetry, living in the very small state of Rhode Island. I seek enlightenment, but more often a good cup of coffee or nice piece of music (or joke) suffices. Great things, one would hope, can still be expected. Contact me: remmev (at) yahoo.com

Breaking my blog silence (after some promising to get off my duff and get posting again — there went a year of nothing). Oops. Oh well. There’s a truly great record getting broad release in a couple weeks (Kollaps Tradixionales) that deserves a shout out, I think. It’s the new recording by the ever-changing (in name and line-up) Thee Silver Mount Zion Orchestra (SMZ). I just love this band. They are entirely unique, though like a lot of very talented bands that have for the past decade or more been pushing out music that is long and largely instrumental, they suffer under the classification of “post rock.” Many people seem to have turned sour to the label post rock for whatever reason, and approach recordings that are classified as “post rock” with skepticism.

In any case, this new one by SMZ is fantastic. I’m perfectly comfortable with saying that it’s absolutely equal to anything they have ever recorded. That’s saying a lot because they as an ever-shifting musical entity have produced many gems. They are stripped down to a quintet now, and the music this time out is more jagged than ever. No doubt too, band leader Efrim Menuck’s vocals (which appear on every track) are a learned taste and a tough sell for some. Still, this one finds the sweet spot with just enough toe tapping driven rock music, periodically laced with sad but oddly triumphant beauty, such as the stunning closer ‘Piphany Rambler (perhaps the best song they’ve ever created??). Grab it when you can! | More infos.

Or listen to a sample:

portal for my plays and stuff. I swear. Hopefully by late summer. I swear.

A band I discovered (after a bunch of other people already had), a sort of “post-rock”/prog-rock group, with some Tom Waits and down tempo chamber music, and mid-period Pink Floyd thrown in, called Crippled Black Phoenix, is putting out a series of recordings with the theme “Endtime Ballads.” I love several so-called “post-rock” bands, such as and especially Mogwai (actually a couple of these guys are in CBP), Godspeed! You Black Emperor, Explosions In The Sky, Rachel’s, Tortoise, and several lesser-knowns, and if you enjoy those groups you’ll like this as well — though CBP has more songs with lyrics. They soon will be releasing a double CD “The Resurrections/Night Raider”. Check them out. You’re in for a treat if you haven’t heard them yet. Here’s an excellent early review of the recordings in case you need further proof. And, one track off the releases is available here (”Rise Up And Fight” a great fist pumping song). Or, listen on MySpace.

Also, you can get their first full-length recording A Love Of Shared Disasters at eMusic, iTunes, and probably buy one of those round things, those CDs or whatever they’re called, in stores too. A track called “Northern Cobbler” is my favorite — very much in the transcendent mold: found sound, rousing music, back to found sound.

Big shout out to this coffee roaster in Pawtucket, RI: New Harvest Roasters. Really great coffee. All organic and fairly traded, and a huge variety. They also make some of the most superb, rich, and dark flavored coffee. I’m not usually a flavored coffee fan, but theirs is dynamite. Better yet, are the medium and dark roasts. Great flavor. Small company. Again, organic and treats the growers right. Enough said. 

it’s supposed to be largely a resource site for the plays I’ve written — and me babbling about music and other stuff. Here’s to it actually becoming that in 2009.

Made some progress today on a film script I’m working on. This script is the first thing I’ve ever written that is in many ways based on my own life, especially the last few years. The great thing about writing something somewhat based on your life is that you can then claim that the years you spent being unproductive can now simply be called: research. 

YES, THAT’S RIGHT, I UM, AM, UM, NOT REALLY A LOSER BUT RATHER A WRITER RESEARCHING WHAT IT FEELS LIKE TO NOT BE ACCOMPLISHING ANYTHING WITH MY LIFE.

It was very thorough research.

I’ll report what I find when I find it.

Farewell for now,

management

Though this site got a nice new design update this year, I’ve been plagued with various other issues, the last of which caused me to lose about a month’s worth of posts.

So, lost time. A shame. There were some fun posts in that time. But, now it’s gone. It’s not missing time in the alien abduction/UFO sense of missing time. But, gone nonetheless…

Oh well, onward and onward…

A number of years ago my good pal Gary turned me on to a man named Stew and his brilliant music. Gary is elated that finally, via his new broadway musical Passing Strange, he is getting some broader recognition. I’m too tired and perhaps not smart enough to really describe this guy’s work, but to me it is entirely unique. It’s rock, pop, funk, R&B, jazz, baroque, or whatever, mixed into something… now adding some broadway. Good for him. Long live Stew. Maybe one of the two or three people that stumble onto this blog this year will buy the recording, out now for download and available as a CD 7/15.