Eddy Huntington

On Thursday night I was in a club deep in Soho observing American Psycho-esque junior investment bankers mingle with gallery girls to a mix of 80's pop and contemporary electronic music. While watching the white V-neck clad Brooklyenite DJ play music on his Mac Book, a riff from Eddy Huntington's U.S.S.R. jumped out at me like Homeward Bound in the family section of a movie rental store.

My brother first introduced me to the great Eddy Huntington via a Facebook wall post that read "Dude, I think this guy is our cousin" and included a YouTube link. Intrigued, I perused the web looking for background on this once great pop sensation from the late '80s and found, much to my disappointment, no family ties but a great story.

Born in 1965 in a small town north in England, Eddy moved to London at 18 to pursue a carrier in the entertainment business. After appearing in multiple music videos as an extra, the Italian record label, Baby records, spotted potential and took him to Milan to record his most notable work, U.S.S.R. The song quickly gained traction on pop charts in the UK, Scandinavia, and wait for it, the U.S.S.R.

After touring around Europe playing shows like this for a bunch of commies, Eddy retired from the music industry in the early 90's and went back to school. Today, Eddy is a middle school principal and gives dancing and singing lessons to his students. If you read the YouTube comments you will see multiple ones like, "Hey that guy is my teacher, he's so nice." I did not make this up.

Here are some more links,
Eddy Huntington (Wiki),
Eddy Huntington Interview,
Eddy Huntington: Bang Bang Baby.

Evan Daniel on The Fat of the Land

I am pleased to announce that my good friend, Evan T Daniel, is now contributing to the Fat of the Land. Evan has an amazing eye and takes some quality photos. He turned me on to photography on our cross country road trip last summer and has been a great reference and inspiration throughout the process of starting A.R.T. and my development as a photographer. Here are some of his contributions to the Fat of the Land.

Be sure to check out his blog, Ideal Uses, for his writings and photography.

The Fat of the Land crew in action last summer on our cross country road trip at a taxidermy store near Telluride Colorado. Edge on the left, me in the middle, and Evan on the right.

Here are some more links,
The Fat of the Land,
Ideal Uses,
Evan Daniel (Picasa),
Evan T Daniel (Twitter).

Moxie Cream Soda: A Taste of Maine

143 years ago in Lowell Massachusetts, a physician named Augustin Thompson created Moxie Cream Soda in his barn. Thompson left his thriving medical practice to develop and market his patent medicine as a "nerve tonic." Moxie Cream soda was rumored to cure ailments from softening of the brain to losing your manhood.

Today, Moxie is distributed in limited quantities in New England as a subsidiary of the Coca Cola Company and remains popular with Mainards. Every summer, the town of Lisbon Maine celebrates Moxie's contributions to the state of Maine with the Moxie Festival. Here is a video of Frank describing Moxie's infamous aftertaste.

Upon asking fellow Colby students if they liked Moxie, they almost always responded, "Nahh, but my dad loves that shit."

Recently, Moxie has gained popularity in Maine and Connecticut because of its mixability with spirits, here are some of my favorite recipes taken from this forum;

The “Welfare Mom”, which consists of equal parts Diet Moxie and Allen's Coffee Flavored Brandy,

The Vijay", which consists of equal parts of Moxie and blended American Whiskey,

The “County Girl”, a drink made up of one part bourbon whiskey and two parts Moxie on the rocks, with an optional lime garnish.

If any of this sound good, you can buy Moxie on line here, or better yet call some small grocery store in Waterville like the Big Apple and ask them to ship a case to you.

Thanks to Mr. Rodney Corey for the tip.

Here are some more links,
Moxie Soda: A Taste of Maine (Picasa),
Hometown Favorites: Moxie,
Moxie (Wiki),
Moxie Festival.

Changing Seasons: Spring

On March 21, 2009 (the first day of spring) it was 39 degrees and windy in Waterville, Maine. Spring comes late in central Maine. This Saturday, the conditions were finally appropriate to recreate the flying shoe over the Colby Quad and take a new background picture. For the last two seasons, I have picked a shoe that contrasts with the landscape and colors. On Saturday, I contrasted the budding trees, green grass, and high spirits of Colby students with my white Common Projects.

Here is a look back through the last three seasons,

My LL Bean Bucks overlooking a the Colby Quad on chilly fall afternoon in mid October.

My Paul Smith Canvas Sneakers overlooking two feet of packed snow on the Colby Quad in mid January.

My Common Projects overlooking the Colby Quad in late April.

By recreating the scene as closely as possible, I hope to showcase the vibrant changes in the Maine seasons.

Here are some more links,
Changing Seasons: Winter (ART),
My Common Projects (ART).