EN ROUTE - #3/8

Mayfield Ice-Cream Advertisement. Brick Wall. Harriman, TN

Time for #3 in the Metro Pulse Feature "En Route". This week's shot was taken in Harriman, TN. I was driving from Crossville to Knoxville via Hwy. 70E and stopped in Harriman to look around. I was taking pictures of the theatre across the street (The Princess) when I noticed the old Mayfield ad painted on the brick building. That's about it. I took the shot for the texture, colors and because I like the swooping "J" that creeps in from the top of the photo.

Travelodge

Travelodge. Newport, KY. May 2008.

We went to Ohio/Kentucky this past weekend for a whirlwind tour. Stopped in Newport, KY to visit the Southgate House and see the band DevotchKa play. Fun place...I think it's one of the best venues around to see live music. Lots of history, and a really great atmosphere. We ate German food and then went back to the Travelodge, which is just a block or so away. Nice and easy. We also drove on up to Columbus, but that is another story altogether...

EN ROUTE - #2/8

Pumps of Tennessee / JFG Double Exposure

I'm posting this a day early because I'll be out of town, but time for #2 in the Metro Pulse Feature "En Route". This week's shot was taken in Knoxville from 2 vantage points. The first shot was the south side of the "Pumps of Tennessee" building on Broadway (Hwy. 441), and the second was taken from Depot Street looking south toward the Old City and JFG building. The colors are pretty terrible in this one, but I liked how the double exposure worked out...the texture and patterns struck me. Double exposures are tricky...you can try and try to get the perfect match (and fail miserably), or you can let chance work in your favor and hope your eye sees something interesting. I tried to match the angles on this one, and like how it turned out...I also like how the top of the first building lined up quite nicely with the JFG sign in the background. That was a lucky stroke.

EN ROUTE / METRO PULSE

New Metro Pulse / Old Jewelry Store

Kudos to the Metro Pulse...in particular Travis and Coury, who pulled off a fantastic redesign. The unveiling with this week's issue proved to be well worth the wait. It looks great, and there's even a real Comics section now. They have also been kind enough to use some of my photos in a series called "En Route". The photos were taken either en route out of Knoxville or back into Knoxville, and are of signs/buildings that I thought were interesting or unique. The first in a series of 8 is of Ray's Jewelry in Crossville, TN. More to come in the pages of the MP. Thanks guys.

METRO PULSE ONLINE

Inspirado

Glazed Brick/Letters. Chicago. 845 W. Washington Blvd. May, 2008.

I had the great fortune to travel to Chicago for a few days for a conference. While the conference was on book design and was very informative, interesting, and altogether inspiring, in my off-time I got to hang out with a friend (see the JWLawson link on the sidebar)...and that was even more informative, interesting, and inspiring. We ate some real good food, drank some real cold beer, drove the Chicago streets visiting galleries for art, and all the while having some good chats. I have new records to spin (Washington Phillips and Bottomless Pit) and plans have been hatched for the future. Seeing the variety and quantity of brick in Chicago was inspiring as well, and I am thinking of what I can do with glazed brick and glass block. I want a wall. Now, where to put it?

On the music:
Washington Phillips - "What Are They Doing In Heaven Today" (Mississippi Records). Washington Phillips was a pioneering gospel performer in the 1920s. Phillips recorded just sixteen remarkable songs, some of which amount to highly specific and detailed gospel sermons. The songs, recorded between 1927 and 1929, feature Phillips' voice self-accompanied by an instrument that sounds like a fretless zither. This instrument, which has been variously identified as a Dolceola, a Celestophone, and a Phonoharp (and also is considered by some to be an instrument entirely home-made by Phillips) creates a unique sound on these recordings that makes them immediately recognizable. Phillips died September 20, 1954 in Teague, Texas, at the age of 74. (from Wikipedia).

Bottomless Pit - Silkworm's drummer Michael Dahlquist was killed in a freak car crash in 2005. Bassist Tim Midgett and guitarist Andy Cohen along with Seam's Chris Manfrin and .22's Brian Orchard have returned with a band called Bottomless Pit and a record called Hammer of the Gods. It's a double 12-inch at 45rpm, which they say sounds better. I dunno about that, but it sure is nice, and sounds great regardless of the speed.

Washington Phillips - I Had a Good Father and Mother

Bottomless Pit - Dead Man's Blues