Cute alienation

[imomus]

Hisae and I went out in Lisbon last night with hosts Miguel and Sylvie to eat fish at a big tiled beerhall in the Baixa area, Cervejaria da Trindade, then wandered up through tiled and dense hillside streets (conversations audible through every window, the moon shining, hash being sold, fluorescent tiled bars, tangible uncertain poetry!) to check out Portugese books and records at our favourite bookshop, Ler Devagar.

On the metro downtown I recorded the sound of a beggar who was walking through all the carriages doing a sort of Portugese bossa rap, banging a drum strapped to his leg and using the handrails as supplementary percussion. He was in his 20s and had one big blind eye hanging out of its socket like a white grape. Here's what he sounded like:

Lisbon Rap (stereo mp3 file, 30 secs, 478k)

Lisbon links one-eyedness to poetry (but then again the city of Pessoa links everything to poetry) thanks to one-eyed poet Luis Vaz de Camões, whose statue stands in Camões Square in Baixa. As I walked through the square last night dressed in cap, cape and flip flops, two young girls shouted out "Es Camões!", as if I'd just jumped down from the pedestal. In 2003 I performed on an outdoor stage directly under that statue as a guest of local group Belle Chase Hotel, who've since split, allowing singer JP Simões to pursue a career as a "talking singer", one of those Portugese literary cantautores who whispers romantic poetry over heart-rending music.

Flipping through literary records of this type in Ler Devagar last night, I came across many titles like "Incerteza Da Identidade". The uncertainty of identity is a big theme here, and yet it can't help but seem poignant and even cute in such a gorgeously unalienated environment, a place where narrow streets full of nothing but the sound of human voices wind up hills to tiny hidden bars, walls and pavements are tile mosaics lovingly tooled by artisans, and all seems right with the world. Could we call Pessoa's characteristic tone "Cute Alienation"?

Comments

[jimyojimbo.livejournal.com]

... and had one big blind eye hanging out of its socket like a white grape

Well that's me feeling queasy for the rest of the morning...

[no1herene-more.livejournal.com]

yeah... what jimbo said... OUT of the socket?? not just bulging out but actually... oh man... i must be missing something... that would mean his eye socket would have dried out and healed over... and ... oh man....

this brings me directly to the topic that my dad also wears a patch, had malignant eye and surrounding tissue removed when he was three. he thought it was SO cool when i showed him a picture of prominent musician Momus. Dad was a folk guitarist in London and Dublin in the 70's

[nitnit.livejournal.com]

LISBON YEAH

[brokenbeat.livejournal.com]

ah pois!

[brokenbeat.livejournal.com]

i see that blind guy on the metro at least 2 times a week.

there are a lot of people that say that Pessoa was multiple personality (not only from the drugs and alcohol)

[(Anonymous)]

Nope.

[(Anonymous)]

I hope you paid him a good price for the recording

Uncle Fernando

[thetemplekeeper.livejournal.com]

Hi Nick

Nice post - but please don't call Pessoa's characteristic tone "Cute Alienation"!!

I mean, come on!

I am the escaped one,
After I was born
They locked me up inside me
But I left.
My soul seeks me,
Through hills and valley,
I hope my soul
Never finds me.

inch'allah

[(Anonymous)]

hi
welcome to portugal

islamic coincidence: 18th-22nd may
Islamic Festival in Mertola
(beautiful village in alentejo, the most islamic influenced in the country, great islamic museum)

http://www.cm-mertola.pt/default.asp?CpContentId=35&Style=amarelo.css

[squirtlle.livejournal.com]

the recording is really beautiful. its made my day. at least this hour of it.

[kattullus.livejournal.com]

Who's that talking towards the end of the lisbonrap.mp3?

It sounds for all the world like Icelandic, but I think it's probably just apophenia on my part.

[cap-scaleman.livejournal.com]

If you're still in the mood of some bossa nova:

http://archive.wfmu.org:5555/archive/BL/BL_Funk_Neurotico_-_Track_7.mp3

Directly from WFMU. And very tasty too.

desde vigo

[chachuuung.livejournal.com]

well you've come within a few hours drive of where i live, mr. momus, and i can´t go to your show. i was excited - (and i was going to make you a momus t-shirt) but i have too much studying to do.

will you be playing around here again soon? (you should come play in galicia! we're like scotsmen, only more servile.. you'd love it here.)

[lord-whimsy.livejournal.com]

How about "Non-Alienation"?

picture with Camões

[(Anonymous)]

Here's a picture of you at the 2003 concert in Camões square with Belle Chase Hotel. It's a big pleasure reading you on Lisboa.



O céu sobre Lisboa (http://o-ceu-sobre-lisboa.blogspot.com/)