speaking truth to power through humor

mexico city is a very large city. it often feels very small. There are a few neighborhoods which are connected by a myriad of backstreets and clogged avenues–la condesa, roma, polanco being the favorites of the cultural (and economic) elite. If you have a destination in mind, you’d better know your way, though, as cabs seem to be reluctant to use maps. Perhaps this is because Mexico City (aka DF, day effay), like the Zona Sul in Rio De Janeiro, operates on a different logic than traditional cartographic mapping strategies can provide.

Here, like Brazil, red lights turn to green at night, both for the safety of the driver, as well as for the speed of the streets. Accidents are frequent, but it is a small price to pay for convenience. I look everywhere for things that connect to each other. Street signs, bodies, waves of cars and psychotic bus drivers only seem to interrupt the flow of Mexico City. The city itself seems to move sluggishly, shifting its weight around, fed by a steady diet of Tequila, Tacos and Tumult.

I used to try to connect the dots in Los Angeles, but there, the sprawl and the car culture seems to overdetermine even the smallest of quotidian desires–a trip to the supermarket is like a small expedition, connected by quasi-anonymous superhighways and bumper to bumper traffic. Here, as I sit in la Condessa, I am reminded more of the Zona Sul in Rio, where I could walk from Leblon to Ipanema, to Copa Cabana, to Leme,or head in to Lagoa, Jardin Botanico and Gavea. I could walk now to la Roma, or to my work, and in a matter of 20 minutes along tree-lined streets, arrive at my desination.

But then there are the connections that go beyond the streets, the ones we can’t quite map. Tomorrow night, I will go see Jose Gonzales play again. Here, in DF, there is a separation from the cosmopolitan Rio. The North/South Divide seems to be ebbing and flowing. Rio, though receptive to visitors from “the exterior”, feeds more from itself, relies on its own ever-expanding repetoire of sounds and art to create its discourse. Perhaps it is the geographic proximity that affords DF the opportunity to have so many artists arriving from metropoles around the world.

Or maybe it is due to a lack of fear, an implicit understanding that no matter what, a strong, fortified, rich national culture only grows with each new arrival, each new guest, each new ex-patriot, each new sound. There is no fear of representation, and a critical gaze towards multinational and transnational corporate power can be felt from all sides, despite the overwhelming participation of its citizens in these power sites.

On the surface, once given the opportunity to nationalize and grow, Mexico seems to emulate this international model, not oppose. Here one only need think of Carlos Slim, the second richest man in the world, owner of just about everything national one sees—from a cellphone monopoly, to a k-mart like store “Sandborns”, to a large stake in phillip morris and all the national production— to understand that what is needed is not “success” but new models for distribution. The average income of a mexican is $7,450 dollars a year. Carlos Slim’s worth is conservatively estimated at 60 billion.

Yet, if one turns on the radio, or walks in Centro, it seems it is as Attali reminds us, that music always leads the way. And the sounds from the streets now are definitively local, often pointing to the depletion of the most cherished national resources–the population of mexico only rises 1% a year, due largely to illegal and legal migration North. What one hears more often than not, like Rio, is a calling for the nation to unite based on local representation, civil strength.

One video: yo soy de puebla–a classic from grupo sonador for those who haven’t already heard. Of course, it’s Puebla, not DF, but the amazing shopping mall starbucks montage vs. old city comparison still sticks…and hard. It is from Eddie..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ddHgeAi2NXY

My embed here

Get the Flash Player to see this player.
And a second Sonideiro track, which led me to the first video above: La cumbia de los barrios

Listen Now:

 cumbia de los barrios: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (38)

Since people have been asking, here’s a quick glance at the new Rich and Shameless EP from N-RON and $mall ¢hange that is vinyl only (thanks Brooklyn Phono!).

The cover art is silkscreened, and reflects the excess of the record.

There are only a few copies left, I am afraid…I think that applecore might have a few, so get them while they are still hot:

“It you’re gonna steal something, go to the bank”–richard prince

Here’s track 1 from Side II from the record:
Boa Tarde Povo (afternoon mix)

Listen Now:

 boa tarde povo (afternoon mix): Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

thanks to all who showed themselves and sent the ideas and thoughts yesterday at pure fire! always great to see and hear everyone…the guests dave stelfox and dirty south joe really opened ears…
to music things

1. if you want a limited edition rich and shameless EP, they can be purchased via this contact form

small change has US distro, I have latin america. amazing hand silkscreened record cover. Less than 400 left.
2. I am relinking to the N-RON collaborator mix, as it seems there has been some hype to it from this Month’s xlr8r write up…

Listen Now:

 n-ron the collaborator mixtape: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (96)

for those of you in the nyc vicinity or interested in the radio, music and live shows and records, N-RON is being bold
today, wednesday, may 14, from 4-6 pm N-RON will be playing songs on Small Change’s

radio show The Big Cover Up on east village radio .

Really excited to do this show, which you can live stream here

We will be playing songs off our new record, N-RON and $mall ¢hange Rich and Shameless EP. This is a 4 song EP on a hand silkscreened gold record sleeve on limited edition vinyl!

Rich and Shameless is is having it’s release party on

Thursday, May 15, 2008 at APT as part of Pure Fire!
419 w. 13th st, NYC
There, we’ll be spinning records along side great guests Dave Stelfox (wire magazine) and Dirty South Joe.

Apparently, N-RON will be playing from 1115-12, but will be there until late or early…

I am pleased to announce that I will be having a solo show at the yautepec gallery,
opening this thursday, may 8 in mexico city, mexico.

Below is the press release:

DANIEL PERLIN - House as Speaking Organ / Casa Como Organo Parlante

Thursday, 8 May 2008 - Thursday, 22 May 2008

Opening Reception

Thursday, 8 May 2008:
08:00 pm - 11:00 pm

In “House as Speaking Organ/Casa como Organo Parlante,” Daniel Perlin transforms Mexico City’s Yautepec gallery into a house-as-speaking-organ (HSO). The unique layout of the space has inspired a series of site-specific pieces, in which Perlin will create networked works that treat the house as organ, works as cells and tissues, tissues as foundations for an organ, and organ as a political force within social bodies.

Individual works will be centered around networked and remote communication within the organ. Mini FM transceivers, fm radios, a single monitor with multiple keyboards for input, telegraphy, cables, internal telephony, cups and lines, and other works serve as conditions of possibility for bodies to work within and beyond the house, as sites as residues of potential communicative actions.

Daniel Perlin is an artist based in New York. He works across media creating sound, video, objects, performances and installations. His work has been shown and heard at the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, The New Museum, The Chelsea Art Museum, Postmaster’s Gallery, D’Amelio Terras, TN Probe Tokyo, Temporary Contemporary Gallery London, Guggenheim Film and the Centre Pompidou. Recently, he has collaborated with Natalie Jermijenko on the installation For the Birds for the Whitney Biennial 2006, Rem Koolhaas and Sanford Kwinter on the installation of Mutations, and with Vito Acconci on the public sound installation Viraphone in Madrid, Spain. He has also been a sound designer for such films as as Kelly Reichardt’s Old Joy, Errol Morris’ Fog Of War and Phil Morrison’s Junebug. In 2006 he completed a residency as studio artist at the Whitney Independent Study program. Currently, he is researching traffic and mapping techniques.

Yautepec 103 (entre Vicente Suarez y Michoacan)
Col. Condesa, Del. Cuauhtemoc
Ciudad de México, D.F. 06140
México
http://yau.com.mx

Para citas / For Appointments: (044) 55-2849-5559
yautepec103@gmail.com

I always have a hard time presenting my work, I like to blaze through it, the same way I listen to the radio, skipping channels…

fortunately, tonight in Mexico City, I get to show using the pechakucha format: 20 slides, 20 seconds per slide, 8 minutes.

I will be showing an overview of works, and talking a little about my upcoming solo show at Yautepec Gallery (may 8!) here in DF.

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and now for something completely/////

as a side note I stumbled upon N-RON replete with photo by the magnificent Gaia in  this month in Kid Kameleon’s column…buy it, or better yet,

download it