Friday, January 23, 2009

Al Burian

I saw Al Burian play in a number of bands, including Hellbender and Milemarker. Although Hellbender played Goleta Fest in 1996, they were performing whilst a dude was getting his penis pierced so most of the people there were understandably distracted. I will say that if you've never seen a man have a sharp piece of metal poked through his naughty bits then you are missing out; the look on his face was worth approximately one million American dollars.

More than his music though, I am a fan of Burn Collector. I saw him read from it at Sound and Fury right after my buddy Matt put out a book compiling the first nine issues of it. During the reading, he put a question to the crowd -- "What would make you perfectly happy right now?" He had been reading for a while and being a heavy smoker at the time I chimed in with "a cigarette". At the time it was true (I did feel much better once I went outside), but when I think about it now the answer seems a bit depressing. I love being a non-smoker, I feel like it has made me more optimistic, it has given me a new outlook on life. I just used to accept the fact that I would probably die earlier than necessary because I was unwilling (and unable) to give up smoking. Now that I have quit, I want to live forever.

Full disclosure: I purchased this record less because I was interested in hearing it and more because I knew it would be a simple post. I am beginning to feel that much of the easy oil (so to speak) has been drilled, now it is getting more expensive and difficult to get it up. Of course, this means that the price per barrel keeps going up, although I'm not sure the analogy is really relevant anymore.

Oh yeah -- I once saw Al Burian get in a fist fight with someone ten years his junior at a pool party in Columbus, OH. It is not clear who started the fight and I can't remember who won, but I do remember that way more people showed up at the party than the host intended (including a bunch of local hooligans). This caused her (him? I can't remember) to kick everyone out as her (his?) parents were out of town and he was afraid that the place would get completely trashed, which probably isn't far off the mark.

Ladies and gentlemen, for your listening pleasure, a single by Al Burian.

War Anthem b/w Beatbox On The Blackbox (Troubleman Unlimited)
1. War Anthem
2. Beatbox On The Blackbox

4 comments:

Nate Bedortha said...

love this single. I've got a single by Al & his brother's high school hardcore band, Celibate Commandoes that is worth tracking down. Perhaps I can rip & send.

BJ Rubin said...

I am unfamiliar with that record, but I will definitely keep my eyes peeled for it now. Thanks for the heads up!

WordsOnSounds said...

Hey, love your blog...and here's a request you might have? We'll see. I've been trying to buy/borrow/listen to a copy of this for several years to no avail: the Lavender album, which features Charlie Looker, Nat Baldwin, etc, from their school days...Here's some info on the record:

http://www.answers.com/topic/lavender-jazz-album

..thought you might have it, considering the extra life/seductive sprigs, etc posts. Either way, thanks again!

Anonymous said...

This is great, I'm 28 and I've been listening to Hellbender since I was 14. I still listen to them, not for nostalgia but because I just listen to them. I am right now actually. I bought Al's book a while ago too. Thanks for posting this.