Lucid Culture.
What is it? What was it? What could it be?
In ancient Greece, there was an early chthonic cult that insinuated itself into Greek culture as it evolved: the cult of the Charities. The Charities had their hands in many things: music, education, recognition, beauty, and yes, morality. But the way in which this early cult ultimately came to celebration was with the idea of charis, grace. Its most direct referent is ‘light’ – precisely to alight the physical form, a light that makes the physical form beautiful. But this ‘alighting’ of the physical is also more an ‘illumining’ of the physical. Grace lets us intuit beyond what is immediately seen and into what ruminates behind – the beauty of action, of conviction, social interaction – and the motivation of history. And further, grace elucidates, it begs intellectual enlightenment, it asks the deepest questions and seeks the deepest answers.
To be lucid [alighted], means to have grace. To seek a lucid culture, means to approach it with grace.
To that end, we will cater to the Charities. We will promote and review music, as that is the basis of all chthonic cults, toward a lucidite of artist and audience. We will attempt to alight culture and politics beyond the moribund silliness of ‘Hollywood Stories’. We will try to promote and make art which illuminates our lives in the present age. We will do our best to elucidate.
To make lucid.
To contribute to a lucid culture.
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Grace and Light.
Call me retro, call me the much maligned, “hippy.” Hell you can even say my taste in music sucks (but you wouldn’t be able to put it in a box, ’cause it’s nuthin’ if not eclectic)
But the moment I recieved Grace in my heart, the very second the Light that would illumine every aspect of my life first shone on/thru me was at my first Dead Show. Lost in a lower Bardo I saw the deadhead multitudes as a scary serpentine chimera that threatened at every turn and I retreated to small corner of the audiotrium lost in my ego. It is kinda funny, but I couldn’t even hear the music.
Somehow in the chaos and confusion that rocked my brain the lyrics started to whisper and then drowned out the cacophony of self that imprisoned me:
“rat in a drain ditch, caught on a limb
you know better but I know him…
He’s gone, go ONNNe, and nuthin is going to bring him back”
Suddenly I felt grateful. Grateful to be alive, grateful for all the people in the hall with me, grateful for everything. At that point I got to dance with all the brightly shinning people.
And that shitty, selfish frat boy never came back.
I’m sorry that this post seems to be all about me (it is), but I actually relate this story in the hope that it speaks to this websites stated goal of lucid culture. It is at least a window on my perspective of the supra-luminal.
I am sure that music (art in general) is the surest path with Grace.
As those crunchy dirty hippies say, “Peace thru Music”
Good luck, and bon voyage, lucid.
The Dead made a pretty large impression on me as well back around 1990. I kind of did the mini-midwest tour that summer [Indianapolis, Detroit, Columbus, Chicago]. I can relate…
And though one might not hear it in the style my current band plays, Jerry is still a huge influence on me as a guitarist.
Tuston, you’re retro, you’re the much maligned, “hippy.” ………….
how’s that for obedience?
hi lucid!
Hi Miss D.
Well I’m just as likely to listen to a rumba, ramble on rose, or punk rock it; it all depends on my mood.
Mostly I really dig african diaspora music, but there’s no rhyme or reason.
Anyhoo, since I seem to have some power over miss devore I further command that she, (or anyone else foolish enough to listen to my mandates) check out this band:
http://www.planetjam.tv/
I’ll check it out after rehearsal tonight. What exactly would you define as African Diaspora music? It would seem to include to me a whole range of styles across many continents.
So, roughly 24 hours on the air and already the place is crawling with hippies.
Cool. 😀
Tuston, our local earthy-crunchy station has a Dead show every weekend. They stream live so if you want the link, let me know.
Mazel Tov, lucid.
hey dere…
happy launching!
seem to include to me a whole range of styles across many continents.
yeah it is a catch all. I mean everything from Do wop to dancehall, R+B to rap, Soca to samba.
a.k.a. “black music”
Personally I play Afro cuban and west african style stuff (djembe’s, and congas oh my!) but only for personal edification. If i’ts a show I’m usually running the sound board…
In a bunch of the tv composing I’ve done, I stayed on kind of an afro-carribean folk theme.
I’m also very fond of African acoustic folk music. There was this fantastic South African man on Sound Check last month – I should have written down his name – who was heavily involved in writing folk anthems against aparthied. Great stuff.
Well what do you expect… I’m a hippie myself. Those dirty hippies tend to stick togehter.
Thanks nycee. Now we just need to get some review submissions & the place will be rockin’ – though I’m sure I’ll throw up plenty of political or philosophical musings in the meantime.
I also gotta get my former bass player on crafting a nice header image.
blogrolled, my friend.
I hope someday we actually do create that lucid culture.
Thanks MitM. Well, charis was also the basis of Greek moral code – a sense of balance and reciprocity in which any force that became to powerful was brought back into balance by justice… It would be lovely if we could live in such a world.
Those dirty hippies tend to stick together.
And to my white upholstery, too. Like all the cat hair isn’t bad enough. :p
Living in NY, I would never be tempted to purchase anything white.
Congrats on the launch =)
waiting for updates and illuminations
Kevin
Thanks Kev – hope not to disappoint!
freak flag flying here
w/ ya on the AD stuff – & much else in the world – heavy mid east/n african/ central asian bent being indulged of late
that afro-eurasian eclipse thang
congrats on yr new digs!
(do you know the Orignal Music label? w/ all those John Storm Roberts’ recordings of acoustic african guitars?)
Congrats on your new blog Lucid –
Well, charis was also the basis of Greek moral code – a sense of balance and reciprocity in which any force that became to powerful was brought back into balance by justice
Balance, that is what we seem to have lost – I hope it’s temporary and that someone will emerge to pull us back from the brink we are headed for.
Btw, Lucid, or Tuston or anyone else who can answer, are you familiar with Gumbo? I ask because I have friend in Texas who has a band. He has sent me some CDs of their music which I love and explains that it is a mixture of Jazz, blues, country etc. They are not famous although fairly well known in their area. Wish I could play some of their music for you – and wish I could get it played on the radio – they jammed with some great musicians a few years ago and produced a CD with the pianist from Asleep at the Wheel, and an incredible violinist plus one of the best electric guitar players in the country. I was afraid I might not like the music when he offered to send it to me, but I need not have worried. Everyone who has heard them here loved it as do I.
excellent lucid, glad to see you launch.
hey arcturus – don’t know the Original Music Label but will have to check it out. I love that type of stuff.
Sabrina, I’ll also look out for Gumbo – sounds very much up my alley as I skirt all sorts of musical styles in my own playing. And ideed, as I argued in my master’s thesis, the Greek notion of balance exemplified in the charis code is the basis both metaphysically and etymologically the basis of the western notion of justice. That we have lost this is a serious problem.
Hey pyrrho. Thanks for stopping by. Hopefully in the next several weeks we’ll start to get good regular content going here.
Tuston, the randomly obedient devore clicked the links (she’s a linkclicker, after all)–I liked what was immediately at the intro–the other stuff sounded same-ish , and thought the guy had a talking voice rather than a singing one. did not listen to everything, but such was the 1st impression.
be that as it may….I am inclined to people like Goran Bregovic–I mostly am familair with his movie scores. and I love those girlscreamers Kitka.
“I hear music
balkanized music.”
Lucid-great site–I love the non-formulaic, even though I have my pellucid moments.
lucid – let’s just say my Original Music collection has recently expanded significantly
there’s a world music-y rootsie fusion dance band from Davis, CA called Mumbo Gumbo
😉
looking good..
Thanks Mcat… much, much more to come.
lucid:
Living in NY, I would never be tempted to purchase anything white.
Well, what about a white cat ? Those are usually self-cleaning…