This Drumset is in my Dreams

I OFTEN, maybe once a month for years and years, without exaggeration, have dreams that I can't reach my drums or cymbals with my sticks while I am playing. Either they are too far in front of me so I just can't reach or far to the right side or up high like this! Other drummers I've talked to have expressed having had similar dreams.

The second I saw this photo, I knew what it meant!

Vic Chestnutt

One of the few guys that made me tear up when he played. So good, glad I saw you this year....

Moving Design of the Week...

A New World of Understanding 1982, Jessie Levine

* Please take a moment to look CLOSELY...

By changing our ACCEPTED METHOD OF PRESENTATION, we can ALTER OUR UNDERSTANDING of relationships and values.

(What it says in the box..): Ever since maps were drawn, certain countries have been located at the top, others below. Since "on top," "over," and "above" are equated with superiority, while "down there," "beneath," and "below" imply the reverse, those wholly arbitrary placements, over the years, have led to misconceptions and misjudgments.

This Turnabout Map of the Americas serves to correct the imbalance. It focuses attention in new directions towards areas of exploding populations, energies, and potentialities. It is geographically CORRECT, only the PERCEPTIVE has changed.

Happy Holiday! Early Santa Painting

Oil painting of Saint Nicholas, Santa, 1837

Rock at Brooklyn Guitar & Drum Studio

13 year old Lucy has been a guitar student of mine for a couple of years now. She gets taller every week, I swear. Here she is playing an original she wrote for her band. She also performed a Radiohead song playing both Johnny Greenwood's guitar parts and singing Thom York's vocals. Nice! One girl can do it all! This is a film still from the upcoming short film that is part 2 to "Fireflies", a film about girl bands I was in in 1999...

Love it.

Drumset Embroidery of my studio, Polecat Music Studios

I've since changed the name to Brooklyn Guitar & Drum Studio for Women & Girls!

Logos, Illustrations & Design: My OTHER Obsession

Portraiture of characters from "The Wire", best show on tv. I wish I would've thought of doing these. Can't get over how great these are. My contribution to honor the show has been naming my fish "Proposition Joe" (RIP).

Character ILLUSTRATIONS from The Wire - CLICK HERE!!

GIRLS ROCK CAMP Auction!

WILLIE MAE ROCK CAMP FOR GIRLS NYC

ROCK n ROLL AUCTION

at

KNITTING FACTORY

FEB 9th

Tuesday 6:30pm

361 Metropolitan Ave

HOSTED BY MURRAY HILL

Brooklyn, NY

Raises scholarship money for girls to attend camp.

Live & Silent Auction

Camper Bands

Special Guests

Get tickets by clicking on the images above!

Thanksgiving NY

Pedal Board pics of the last month! Johnny Marr, Sonic Youth, Wolfmother, Heartless Bastards, Von Bondies, John Mayer, Melt Banana, TMBG and many more

There still are not enough female guitarists to photograph their gear exclusively. But several of these pedals do belong to the gals. Can you guess which ones?

Short Film with my band from the 90's "The CHICKLETTS"

The Chickletts, 10 years later, just filmed follow up interviews to the short film "Fireflies" (from 1999) in which we were one of 3 all female bands interviewed and studied.

Our song in the old film is "Hush". Other songs we did are "I Need A Man", "Psycho" by the Sonics, "Leave My Kitten Alone", "Peroxide" and more girls-in-the-garage type songs. I hope to put together a compilation and old pics up online again soon.

We were lucky enough to play with some of our favorite bands in NYC in the 90's including the infamous Andre Williams, Norton Record acts, and whoever was plowing thru CBGB's in those years...

The new film should be out next year.

For Katarina's blog, the original filmmaker:

SEE MOVIE HERE

Cute as Hell

NEW! Ladies Band/Workshop/Jam Class

You've asked for it and here it is. A ladies' band workshop jam every THURSDAY at the new Willie Mae Rock Camp Center!

WHEN: THURSDAY Nov 12th - Dec 17, 7-9pm:

THURSDAY NIGHT "LADIES JAM"

Ladies Jam is an informal jam session for women who play guitar, bass, drums, keyboards or vocals, and who want to practice their instruments while gaining experience playing with other musicians.

Guided by a band coach (who provides instrument/amp set up, assistance on song structures, and general coaching), women of all levels of musical experience have the chance to practice familiar songs, learn new ones, hone their chops, trade tips, find possible band mates, and have fun playing music together.

Led by Sara Landeau, longtime music teacher and Willie Mae Rock Camp
for Girls band coach, and owner Brooklyn Guitar & Drum Studio for Women & Girls in
Greenpoint, where the Ladies Jam has been a popular program for
several years.

For women aged 18+, all levels of experience welcome. Instruments
provided, or bring your own.

Thursdays, 7 - 9 p.m
November 12 - Dec 17 (except Thanksgiving, Nov 26)

Come to as many or as few sessions as you want. Just RSVP by day
before session.

Willie Mae Community Music Center
87 Irving Place
(between Fulton and Putnam, 1 block from Classon)
Around the corner from Outpost Coffee Lounge
Near Franklin Ave C / Shuttle station

$20 per session

http://www.williemaerockcamp.org/about.html

TO SIGN UP: Email Sara Landeau at info@saralandeau.com
www.saralandeau.com

(image above: The Slits)

All girls and women should see this Video

This is amazing. I'm so impressed by this brand for making such an educational video.

GUITAR GEAR is Fun to Look At

As a part time bartender at a music venue, I don't have much extra learning going on - pouring liquids into cups is fairly easy at this point (and age) and there's only so much creativity and skill that goes with it. So before I cash out on that moonlighting extra money, I decided to learn something at this job about the one thing I soak in and am dying to master: GUITAR PEDALS & GEAR. I should have thought of taking photos of this stuff YEARS AGO. I think these images are BEAUTIFUL!

Here's some of the set ups of Hope Sandoval, members of My Bloody Valentine gear, The Raveonettes, The Black Angels and more. I can't tell you who's who or people won't like it.

Rock Camp Austin Review -click *HERE*

"Texas Monthly Magazine" review of the Girls Rock Camp Austin. OCTOBER 2009.

I got a little quote in

the article....

TUESDAY

Every day at rock camp had a schedule: assembly in the morning, then instrument instruction, workshops, and band rehearsal. Another of the coaches, Sara Landeau, a guitar teacher from Brooklyn who helps run the Willie Mae Rock Camp for Girls there, told me that she has taught classes of girls and classes of girls and boys. “When boys are in the group, they won’t stop playing, and they’re very loud. Girls won’t take solos—they won’t play in front of the boys. But if it’s all girls, they’ll play.”

Read the WHOLE article..... TEXAS MONTHLY October 2009 review: http://www.texasmonthly.com/2009-10-01/letterfromcamp-2.php