salted reflections on going apeshit bonkers

1/24/2019

by Little Fyodor

Yes, you know what apeshitness you're going to get with a Little Fyodor show, but if you look closely, you can catch some variations....

I'm gonna follow up on Evan's post, in which he makes some assertions that I don't dispute about the limits and ultimate recursiveness and paradox of going apeshit bonkers till you can't get any more apeshit bonkers.

Editor's Note: Scan of the design on the Dance of the Salted Slug t-shirt that EC Editor Hal McGee bought from Little Fyodor back at Hal's 50th birthday celebration, 11 years ago! I ask you: how many t-shirts do you have that look nearly as good as the day you bought them 11 years ago?

I certainly agree that such a goal can only go so far as an end unto itself -- hell, look what it did to GG Allin!!! Within Evan's declamation he contends that "you know what you’re going to get at a Little Fyodor performance. He may be 'out-of-the-box' by definition, but he’s not busting the envelope anymore simply by being Little Fyodor." Again, I don't dispute that, yet there's often more than one way to look at the same phenomenon, and since a picture's worth a thousand words and y'all should be the ultimate judge (and I feel like showing off), I offer the following examples of my "Dance of the Salted Slug," which climaxes most every Little Fyodor & Babushka performance, so much so that I once was going to leave it out (I had forgotten the backing track!), and the audience called for my blood were I not to exhibit it somehow!! And yet at the same time, well... I said I would leave it to you and so I shall! I'll only add that one of the things I missed most about Walls Of Genius was being able to dance and prance about while not having to worry about fronting or carrying the band as I'm inevitably required to with my solo material. I guess I took all of that side of what I liked to do and squeezed it into this Dance. We don't use the backing track anymore, and I'm surprised and disappointed to only find one good example of that version online, but here's a few examples from over the years, including one at Hal's 50th birthday party....

11 Comments

Walls Of Genius

formed in 1982, a musical performance-art comedy experimental noise ensemble, featuring everything from musique concrete, sound collage and extended rock improvisation to demented top-40 parodies, free jazz, industrial and audio experiments of all kinds, mostly fitting in no category whatsoever.

Over the course of the next four years, Walls Of Genius took the underground by storm and rained on every conceivable parade, all with tongue firmly in cheek and cockeyed smiles.

The brain-child of disgruntled musician and self-anointed "Head Moron" Evan Cantor, Walls Of Genius' other founding members ('genial genii') were the famous wild-man Little Fyodor and electric guitar wizard Ed Fowler.

Stalwarts of the early 80's cassette culture scene, Walls Of Genius was both loved and reviled in equal measure.

By 1986 WoG had disbanded and was inactive until reunion sessions in 2014 re-ignited the flame. They happily soldier on, voices crying in the wilderness of madness that is this world in the 21st century.

Evan Cantor email
Little Fyodor email
Walls Of Genius Bandcamp
WoG Archival site

Leslie Singer

1/25/2019 07:16:26

Now That Is What I Call Bonkers!

Little Fyodor

1/25/2019 20:01:26

Thank you, Leslie!! I do my best....

Hal McGee

1/25/2019 08:09:10

I watched all of the versions and it's pretty obvious that audiences love "Dance of the Salted Slug"! In my opinion your best performance of the four was the Gainesville show. It was also the best filmed and had the best picture and sound quality (all thanks to Christopher Miller), plus your clothing was the best! I'll say this, Fyodor: you kept the original spirit of Walls Of Genius alive and kicking during its 28 year hiatus! Little Fyodor (with Babushka) kept that batshit crazy bonkers freak flag flying in your solo, duo, and group recordings and performances.

1/25/2019 20:26:15

The Gainesville Dance was definitely a good one!! It was an awesome event overall!

Yes, I'd like to think I've been carrying on the spirit of Walls Of Genius, in many respects at the least, even as I've also used the Little Fyodor format to focus more on my personal interests as well. It's another paradox! And yet another paradox is that while I do all this to please myself, I also do it to communicate and connect with others and thus greatly appreciate it that audiences AND YOU enjoy it! So thank you very much for the kind words!!

Evan Cantor

1/25/2019 14:17:22

Can't disagree with the Dance Of The Salted Slug--it's certainly bonkers, always was and always will be. I guess my point (which Fyo didn't dispute) was that perhaps you expect the Dance at a Fyodor performance. So, yes, it's clearly bonkers, but also something that fulfills an expectation. Don't stop dancing, my friend!

1/25/2019 20:46:14

Oh yes, it absolutely fulfills an expectation, at least for anyone who was familiar with Little Fyodor ahead of time; in fact, as described, it sometimes has even fulfilled a DEMAND!

I guess it's what that's *relevant* to per se that I'm not sure if I get. Well, as I said before, there's various different ways to go bonkers.... Maybe no one has ever subverted an audience's expectations as much as Phil Ochs did when he started doing Elvis impersonations!!

1/27/2019 02:43:13

Well I realize it's just a lot of thoughts, interesting thoughts at that, which spurred my own thoughts, and then my desire to share my dances! And I'm glad I did, just as it was fun to read your thoughts!

Jerry Kranitz

1/25/2019 17:23:22

Dance Fyodor DAAAAAANCE!!!!

1/25/2019 20:46:38

I CAN'T HELP IT!!!!

Chris Phinney

1/28/2019 08:50:50

Wundderbar! :)

1/28/2019 21:30:44

DANKE!!! :D

salted reflections on going apeshit bonkers

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