Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in fluffyvera's LiveJournal:

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Monday, January 24th, 2011
3:47 pm	rock and roll time. hey kids long time no blog! BUT we're hitting the road with the vaselines again! tell your pals or see ya there! Schwervon! supporting The Vaselines -European Tour 2011!! Wed Jan 26 Sheffield, UK (Leadmill) Thurs Jan 27 Brighton, UK (Coalition) Fri Jan 28 Lille, France (Le Grand Mix) Sat Jan 29 Lille, France (Drugstore Cafe) * Sun Jan 30 Offenbach (Hafen 2) Mon Jan 31 Berlin (Comet) Tues Feb 1 Berlin (Sudblock) w/ Susie Asado * Wed Feb 2 Amsterdam (Melkweg) Thurs Feb 3 Gent (Vooruit) Fri Feb 4 London (XOYO) Sat Feb 5 Manchester (Sound Control) Sun Feb 6 York (The Duchess) *schwervon! shows w/o vaselines. (Comment on this)
Thursday, October 28th, 2010
6:04 pm	flew into chicago this morning.... matt and i got the news on tuesday night - things happen so fast! dum dum girls had to cancel their tour - we got the call - and now we are in chicago - schwervon is supporting the vaselines on a few u.s. dates! this is like something you hear about in a movie. we are pinching ourselves and really beyond excited as we both love this band. i am planning on taking lots of pics so will be posting more next week.... these are our dates: SCHWERVON supporting THE VASELINES: Thursday, Oct 28th - Lincoln Hall, Chicago Friday, Oct 29th - Magic Stick, Detroit, MI Saturday Oct 30th - Horseshoe Tavern, Toronto, Canada Sunday, Oct 31st - La Sala Rossa, Montreal, Canada later gators we forgot toothpaste and have to hit a walgreens before soundcheck. (Comment on this)
Saturday, September 4th, 2010
12:53 pm	it's been forever. but you should all know there's a new oj website! matt and solena and dibs have been working on this for months. i think it looks really good - everything seems easier to access and clearer somehow... be sure to go to the "store" and see the vast collection of merch available. it's crazy! Olive Juice schwervon! has been buzzing along with summer shows and new song work. it's been a bit harder to feel like we're making much headway what with my going to the temp job every day. it's tiring! i was so lucky the last year and a half of not doing this, it was ridiculous. cause working 9-5 every frickin' day is not something I want to do the rest of my life. i need a break. it's only been 3 months. aaaaaah. I have some longer weekends coming up and I hope to tuck into songwork like a bacon sandwich! we rehearse at nite at a space in brooklyn 2x a week but we are both noticing we need to start those practices later cause i usually go to them straight from work and i'm exhausted and starving..... so i think i'm now going home for an hour after work - will eat dinner- and THEN we'll go to practice. Had a solo show last weekend complete with dancers on a new rap and an impromptu rhythm section (yoko and susan!) was really fun. I have been working with mark o. every couple weeks developing the new rap pieces...it's really helpful in my writing to record drafts and then take it home and see what i want to add or change. have never worked this way before (recording every step of the way as a songwriting tool) but i'm seeing it's speeding my ultra slow process up a little. and mark collaborating on the music is really helpful - he has good ideas and like matt, can hear something in his head and play it right away....i am jeal of this but also happy about it. it's not that i think i'm not a good musician or can't do this but i am realizing i don't WANT to always do this.....and i'm thinking lately my strength - or what i WANT to focus on- is writing and drumming and singing and performing ...so when it comes to guitar and bass lines, etc - i like when other people contribute stuff! september is chock full of shows! schwervon! is playing the reunion show of your biggest fan on sept. 10th, and also the "last show ever" for Dufus (no!) on sept 25th. also there is a big virgo night on sept. 22nd at sidewalk. the one nite stands are playing it with me. Also Yoko set up a show at bruar falls sunday, sept. 19th with me (with some stands & dancers!), tight little ship, and agent ribbons. AND my birthday is coming up on the 14th. I like to celebrate my birthday all month. technically i've already started celebrating. calling myself "good lookin'" in the bathroom mirror, and singing Lionel Ritchie's "hello" while holding gummo. my advice on aging? i'm at that point where i can give it you know. drink a lot of water. coconut water too, as i learned from mary and yoko. it replenishes you. especially if you run around a lot or have late nights. also miso soup. another replenisher. i just feel better when i have it. most people are running dehydrated. multi vitamins. i try to eat greens (usually spinach in a lunchtime salad) at least once a day. exercise when you can. (for me exercise really varies depending on the week. the exercise i've gotten lately was 1 day rehearsing w/ dany and susan dancing). take it where you can get it. okay creative camp time. (Comment on this)
Sunday, June 13th, 2010
2:42 pm	my friend mark wrote a play and he used my song for the trailer! "Wipe Away" Fourth Trailer Output from Dan Murphy on Vimeo. (Comment on this)
Thursday, May 13th, 2010
6:52 pm	or better yet go to yoko's flickr! pictures! (Comment on this)
6:47 pm	Dreaming it and then doing it. What's better than that? My solo music/solo performer side has evolved musically in all different directions the past few years with all the solo shows I've done and bits and pieces with the one nite stands, and also dancing with underthrust too---last night was really satisfying to have it all come together in one big whole. one big nan pie. like all my things fused together- music, acting, dancing...my songs being the framework. Like I wrote my own musical. My solo cd release party lived up to my dream and then some! Originally I just wanted to play the songs on the record with the people who had recorded them with me...two different groups of musicians- more indie pop songs with daoud and simon from a couple years ago and then the rap songs with the new crew of mark o., austin, yoko, julie... but it ended up exceeding my expectations by a long shot. The energy, the dancing, the vocal layers of angela, yoko, dave end on iacocca. sam lazzara mc'ing. simon on trumpet! mark o' rockin' the bass and backup awesome girly singing. daoud's solidness on drums (jesus christ can he play). yoko's harmonies and drum beats. austin being able to play that krazy guitar on the raps. Dan Gower's piano. My Nick Cave dancers! The Nick Cave song reached the potential I wanted it to. I'm even seeing more things happening with it live, but this is a nice moment in time documented. Maybe I couldn't foresee where exactly I wanted it to go 3 years ago....I just knew it was fun to do. But man, it developed into a monster. Too bad Nick didn't see it, and I'm kicking myself I didn't get someone to film it last night. Recording that song at Mark's helped me define the arc of it...and figure out how to sing it. Which was kind of just improv'ed before at live shows. Nick's take on Action was pretty improv I think, in fact he probably made it up as he sang it (because he's Nick Cave). Once I had the singing down it was easy to do some choreography with it. I worked with julie d., dany and susan last week at a rehearsal just breaking down the song verse by verse and what happens dramatically & with the words..... For Simon's trumpet solo, Dany lifted me around and upside down a couple times That was so exciting! It's true I almost whacked someone in the head with my boot but an element of danger just increases the drama. It was totally fun to have a backstage (the kitchen) at goodbye blue monday where we could change costumes and put on makeup. I loved the excitement of making entrances and rallying the team backstage and scurrying around yelling "shoes! where are lady t. shoes?!" right before we're supposed to go on. shit, now that I've done a "big production".....I want more! here's a couple that yoko took! yes that first one i'm in the air. i will try to get some more up here. (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Saturday, May 1st, 2010
12:47 pm	TONITE! (Comment on this)
Monday, April 12th, 2010
9:56 pm	new york in spring might be prettier than the fall. cherry blossoms and tulips and everyone all out of their mind cause it's warm. had a crazyfun show at otto's last weekend. matt and i even played this really really new song. we felt so high from the dancing energy of the room that we just went for it. i can really tell a difference in my drumming now having been playing so much. i can see beats now. i can hear beats. i AM a beat. when my schedule changes we gotta get a rehearsal space i think - i am in the process of getting some work soon cause i have some taxes to pay and also i just need money. oh yes! i'm sure i'm not the only one. things are much better with the little cyst. it shrunk. had good follow up with my doctor. i'm back on coffee....i made it a few weeks and then started having a little. i love it so. but only a cup a day. just cutting down on my caffeine intake was/is really good and this primrose oil is awesome. it really does help breast pain and cysts. it's a wondrous herbal supplement. what else? MATT's birthday is coming up. it's a big one!!! we're going to celebrate all weekend i think. yesterday yoko did a photo shoot for me for my upcoming solo cd artwork...here's a couple cool ones. yes, i was jumping in a tutu petticoat. isn't that every sunday? (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Wednesday, March 17th, 2010
8:54 pm	last night we played the tom tom magazine benefit which inspired me to post some vids of female drummers i dig. first, frankie rose (of crystal stilts - though this is her own band frankie & the outs. love that she sings a lot and really has her own style.) secondly, meg white. of course meg white. i learned about the power of simplicity and "listening to the song" from her.....also to connect the bass drum with the crash cymbal for more oomph! and of course janet weiss. this was 10 years ago. damn! her speed and fluidity. those crashes. fuccck i have work to do. (Comment on this)
Friday, March 12th, 2010
1:27 pm	pain in the boob Well March has certainly come in like a cranky lion. Am trying to eliminate caffeine for a month or two. The reason for this is I have a cyst in my breast (found at my annual gyn visit) and the Doc thinks if I give up caffeine and take a buttload of primrose oil it may shrink the cyst. I think there is good reasoning for this - For women that have fibrocystic breasts as I do (translation: lumpy boobs. also major breast pain before menstrual cycle) - this has been known to reduce symptoms. I'm doing pretty well now that the headaches have stopped (that was the worst of it for caffeine withdrawal i think. Well that and feeling like crap for 2 days.) If I can do yoga in the morning I feel a lot better....natural energy. and playing music - specifically drumming cause it's so physical -helps a lot. Have just been more sensitive to what I'm eating too - like I don't want heavy bready foods that much....knowing that they'll weigh me down and make me tired just makes me not want it. That said I did have amazing pizza last nite. I'm not looking at this forever - just an experiment. Which is helping me be positive about it. The one thorn in my side is that I don't have health insurance. The doctor visits I can cover - but if I need any other kind of testing I don't know how I'm going to work it out... I can't afford to pay a monthly fee that a lot of the insurance plans offer. Since I am on unemployment benefits I don't qualify for Medicare.... I still need to investigate if there is health insurance with unemployment benefits. in other more fun news... Matt and I are going to SUNY Binghamton tomorrow to play a show with bugs in the dark. am excited to get out of town for the weekend! Also tuesday nite we are playing a benefit show for Tom Tom Magazine which is that mag about female drummers. all right off to practice now. (Comment on this)
Friday, February 26th, 2010
9:29 am	i did this crazy thing. i didn't talk about it much while in the process....to a few friends maybe....but now that i know the result I can blab. I auditioned for an opera. It is an opera my friend Julie is involved with - and not traditional at all - avante-garde music with powerful singing and tons of movement and dancing. (you know i love to dance and sing!) I learned songs in a way I don't in my rock and roll life. I learned I got a lot of lung power. I also learned I'm more right on with pitches than I think I am - was always a little like "huh? i don't know what key or note that is!" but i learned the songs and had fun at the first audition and then I made it to callbacks - which at the start of the process wasn't something I even let myself think about- it was just a hoot to think about auditioning. I learned another song and worked on it like a maniac singing at the top of my lungs and gummo would run out of the room. you know that's loud when that happens. last nite I had the callback audition (in which I sang loudly and took direction and crossed fingers) and found out soon after that - no, I didn't get it. I was bummed (cause who doesn't want to be chosen!) but just being on the merry go round again of auditioning/ acting but sort of not acting cause i approached it like a musician was good for me. It had been so long since I had done theatre or anything like this that i'm glad i put my toe in the water again cause i learned i can still do it if i want! (of course i can, right - but you stop doing something for a long time you start wondering...or being crazyscared of it. and after meisner training at age 24 i wanted to throw all acting out the window. cause i didn't know myself yet and it was all too terrifying. what's funny is all that training came back to me but in a FUN way now- not a scary way like in my early 20's. i think my brain kept the parts that were useful for me...and also i am so different now that acting seems like a fun problem to solve. i didn't have to use that stuff for this audition but interesting that it was there hanging out in my head just in case.) this morning i'm sitting here watching the snow fall outside and knowing really & truly that music is my baby, my love, my blood. it's the place where I found out who i am. the place where it's okay for me to fail over and over and over and then get strong legs and one day look around and say, "fuckin' hell! i did that!" it's the place where i'm still figuring things out. it's rebellious and free and endless. it's the place where i can write my own words and my own stories.....i can explore anything i want. and i do. like i'm doing these solo songs now that are very theatrical in nature and the idea of working on my own musical type project seems very appealing. matt and i are also writing crazy rifftastic songs for schwerve - i had no idea i could play drums like this 6 months ago! my drumming is going through the roof at the moment. just sayin'. at the core there is something that thrills me about music. i love the defying of expectations.... i still feel like that 7th grade Flautist who gets to play the bass drum during pep band, laughing in delight because i feel like I got away with something. (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Saturday, February 6th, 2010
8:11 pm	my vampire band with jenknee and julie delano is playing next friday february 12th. We're doing the same set as the first show, only this time Julie might bring her fog machine and we're trying to get a hold of some robes with hoods. anyone? in case you missed the concept of the band the first time - we wrote songs based on the twilight books/movie. kind of loosely cause a couple of them are so much more than just vampiric. also toby and art sorority are also playing so you know it's gonna be a FINE musical evening. (Comment on this)
Friday, January 29th, 2010
1:39 pm	I was hacked at my yahoo account - sorry friends. I'm giving up the fluffyvera email. it's secure now but i still don't trust it. Please don't believe any emergency/alarming money request "mugged in scotland" emails. I'm in nyc and fine. This is very stressful and stupid to deal with. (Comment on this)
Monday, January 25th, 2010
6:26 pm	tonite mercury lounge! tonite schwerve is on at 10:30 at mercury lounge. goooood sounding big drums venue i almost passed out at soundcheck it was so exciting. see you there wildcats! (Comment on this)
Wednesday, January 20th, 2010
4:02 pm	I am in love with jon spencer blues explosion. i have listened to acme three times in a row today and it's official. (haven't even gotten to Orange yet) i want to play like them, play shows with them, learn from them. perfect guitar/drums groove on fire it's beyond good. it's so good i can't even talk about it. i can't even ARTICULATE IT cause my mind is in shambles like beans falling out of a percussive toy matt got in the bahamas. the production and the samples and the almost rap but rock and roll ALMOST blues but rock and roll hilarity of the vocals and the sexy! this is the sexiest music i have heard in a long time and obviously since this record was made in 1998 they're timelessly sexy. jeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeesusssssss. i can't talk about it anymore it's like i just have to listen to it and be it. how did they happen? (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, January 18th, 2010
8:25 pm	turkey legs and chicken wings. happy new year! my personal creative camp project is going very well. it's become my day job (at least for another few weeks i hope). every day writing getting into the studio drummmmmm. new songs! and A SHOW at mercury coming up. (Comment on this)
Monday, January 4th, 2010
9:53 am	j mascis has always reminded me of matt a bit. (though j is older). they both have this laid back look but can pack a wallop with their guitars. i love this video. (Comment on this)
Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009
9:08 pm	tour pics finally i got my shit together and got a digital camera before the tour. i didn't get everywhere - there were a lot of good places i missed actually but at least you can get a slice of it.... (Comment on this)
Thursday, December 17th, 2009
1:09 pm	up at 6am. i tried to stay up as late as possible knowing that was the only cure for jet lag but still i crashed out at 7:30 and woke up at 6am. this is what it's like to live in scandinavia and the south pole certain times of year isn't it? being awake and it's dark. there's a peacefulness to this hour of the morning though....probably new mothers and people that exercise realize this. the tour. i will post pictures as soon as i get my lazy ass to download them into the computer. each show had its own special thing...each country too. i overcame my fear of heights and climbed up a ladder in a bunker to use the bathroom. what am I talking about? Ladders scare me. Looking down from buildings and bridges scares me too. My stomach does flips. Flying also scares me but not for the height...just other little anxieties like "what if we CRASH?" So anyway, we played in an old bunker in nantes, france called the Blockhaus and the bathroom was only up a steel ladder and then you had to jump 2 feet to get to the floor from the top. I did it holding my friend Solena's hand....and the next time I had to pee I was so confident I practically danced up the ladder. Solena was like "Nan, pretend you are in a musical..." I remembered seeing my friends dance in the show Pippin in college and that seemed to do the trick. Our first show of the tour was in Paris at the pop in. Our pal clement did a little interview and a few clips of the show. the sound is not good at the show, i'm just saying.....but you can get the spirit. *Monpellier, France was sort of incredible...during our song "balloon" the promoter stephane had arranged for the whole audience to blow up balloons and throw them at us. we were bombarded with balloon love. *Getting around on trains in France was hard because we had a lot of vinyl to carry (which is HEAVY) in our suitcases. Trains are definitely a cheaper way to travel but we were not as organized in carrying light bags this tour as last time...we got cocky thinking we were strong from rodney yee yoga and suddenly we are making our way down train platforms with 2 big clothes bags, 2 merch suitcases, a guitar, a keyboard, and a heavy shoulder bag with a computer. We were pack mules in a desert but luckily we had friends/promoters meet us at stations or we hopped taxis to the venues. *We went from rennes, france to mannheim, germany in one day....and that night we had off. we were staying in the top of an old firetower - it was a luxury we could actually eat dinner (think we had schnitzel, fries and salad), do some laundry, and then pass out. *Our friend Klaus met us in Mannheim to drive us around to our 10 shows in germany. Klaus is amazing. He is gentle and patient and FUNNY. He has this ability to make me laugh when i'm in the throe of "nanxiety" which usually relates to time (like being late) or generally just riding in cars on the autobahn. *Also klaus is a bassist. He has a band called Jenny Lund which he describes as "dark, brooding old man music". It wasn't though. They played with us in Regensburg. It was dreamy and deep, and one of my new favorite drummers Ludwig, is in it. He is like Neman from herman dune in that he's inventive and feels the songs in his gut & super skilled from years of playing. He plays drums like he's singing. that sounds wierd i know...but you know it when you see it. My favorite drummers are the ones who can FEEL the song and yet play cool shit skillfully through that feeling. I think my skill is slowly catching up to my feeling as a drummer...when i'm 70 dudes i am gonna be ON FIRE. *I love Germany. Matt and I felt really taken care of by our friends there.... Berlin on thanksgiving was the absolute best thing ever. so many sweet friends it felt like we were home. and everyone dancing off their turkey! Munich was also fun - feels like we made some new pals there. we stayed at the home of klaus' friend peter who is in this band Mexican Elvis. Here's an interview we did at the radio station there - just one day after the Pete Doherty scandal of singing the german national anthem on tv. munich interview we played "big pink eraser" live acoustically too. We drank a lot of gluvein at xmas markets in germany. In Gunzenhausen, Munich, Darmstadt, and Wetzlar to be exact. The best Gluvein was in Wetzlar with Siegmar. It was tart & sweet, but strong.... okay i have to eat some toast. more capping soon. hey the sun is up now. (Comment on this)
Wednesday, November 11th, 2009
3:08 pm	hungry eyes tour. here's our tour info! be sure and tell your pals we're coming! SCHWERVON! "HUNGRY EYES" LOW BLOW FALL EURO TOUR!! NOVEMBER FRANCE! 12 Paris - Pop In (w/ Formica) 13 Lille - Drugstore Cafe (w/ Formica) 14 Paris - International Bar 15 St. Etienne - house show (w/ Angelo Spencer & Desolation Wilderness) 16 Geneva - L'Usine (w/ Angelo Spencer & Desolation Wilderness) 17 Montpellier - Up and Down Bar 18 Toulouse - Les Pavillons Sauvages 19 Bordeaux - Saint Ex 20 Nantes - Blockhaus DY10 (w/ Formica) 21 Rennes - 1929 Bar (w/ Formica) GERMANY! 23 Mannheim - Der Bock Mannheim 24 Koln - Blue Shell 25 Oldenburg - Alhambra 26 Berlin - Schokoladen 27 Dresden - AZ Conni 28 Regensburg - W1 29 Gunzenhausen- Cayman 30 Munich - Kafe Kult (w/ Jenny Lund) DECEMBER 1 Darmstadt - Oetinger Villa (w/ Mine) 2 Wetzlar - Franzis (w/Confusion Avantgarde) UK! DECEMBER 4 Glasgow - The Music Inn (Acoustic house show- please rsvp to themusicinn@gmail.com if you would like to go!) 5 Edinburgh - Henry's Cellar Bar (w/ withered hand, Pineapple Chunks & Les Enfant Bastard) 6 Newcastle - Head of Steam (w/ Ladies & Gentlemen of the Canyon, Cath & Phil Tyler, Mushi Mushi, & Blackflower) 7 Preston - Continental (w/ Lovely Eggs) 8 Manchester - Sake Bar (w/ Lovely Eggs) 9 Sheffield - The Harley (w/ Nature Set) 10 Norwich - Take Five Crypt 11 London - Buffalo Bar (Twee as Fuck night!) 12 Brighton - The Lectern (w/Foxes!, My Sad Captains, and Superman Revenge Squad) (2 Comments |Comment on this)