Die Cupid Die!

Die Cupid Die!

I had an opportunity to sit down with Anthony "Tank" Mansfield the other night at Neon's and talk music, movies and art. Mostly art, specifically Ghost Empire Collective's upcoming show at Neon's on February 11th, Die Cupid Die!

Tank began by telling me that Ghost Empire Collective came about as a way to take art from an individual to a social activity. All the artists: Anthony "Tank" Mansfield, Jaimie Filer, Kurt Einhaus, Mike Maydak, Rob Meyer and Snotty RLE have been somewhat successful but kind of under the radar. This was a way to work together to change how art is seen and where it’s seen. I had never thought about it before Tank brought it up, musicians are always working together and are relentless self-promoters. Why can't visual artists/illustrators do those things too?

The seeds for Ghost Empire Collective were planted back when Tank became a fan of a similar group in San Francisco called Upper Playground. And also in Chicago, he chanced upon the location for another collective oh no! doom. After getting in touch with oh no! doom, a process that took a month or so, Tank submitted some of his work to their next show. That was when he realized there were distinct advantages to a collective. One upside, immediate feedback. Tank added "the artists (in Ghost Empire Collective) are all good but also competitive so we're pushing each other all the time. You always want to be the guy who everyone's talking about when they leave the show."

Why Die Cupid Die!? Obviously because of Valentine’s Day and everyone's love/hate relationship with it. Each artists will interpret the holiday in their own way good or bad. You just know, given the free range of expression, the hate side of Valentine’s Day will probably dominate the show. But a bar? Does that seem an odd place for an art show? Not so says Tank, there is a huge barrier to getting someone inside a gallery. "I'm an artist and sometimes I don't feel comfortable in them" confesses Tank. Ghost Empire Collective is going to feature art that is relatable to the average person in a place they're relaxed and open to enjoying it. Tank also wanted to stress that where an art show takes place, whether a gallery or a bar doesn’t change the importance of what the artist is trying to say. The intimacy of the location can enhance the experience. Having a drink and hanging around in a familiar place will put people at ease and allow them to maybe enjoy the art on another level with no pressure or expectations to appear art smart.

What I'm looking forward to is the live pieces that the artist will be creating, and sort of like musical chairs, when the music stops they'll move to the next canvas and expand on what the previous artist composed. I've seen collaborations like this before and love the tension and interaction between the differing media and styles. This should provide some really cool artwork. BTW, the musical chairs and music stopping was strictly for dramatic effect, I don't really know how they are coordinating that.

There will be t-shirts, posters, prints, original art and stickers for sale at very reasonable prices. And as an added bonus Ghost Empire Collective artists will be creating unique Valentine Day cards for $5. A POS Hallmark Card at Walgreen's will set you back $4.99 and most likely to get tossed the next day. Instead buy your special someone a unique card that will get stuck to the fridge or framed on the wall for ages.
So there you go, get to Neon's Saturday, February 11, 2012. The show runs 8:00pm until 2:00am

Tank
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Nuclear Cowboyz

picture it, dinosaurs lazily grazing in a hot humind swamp minding their own business when BAMM an asteriod the size of Cincinnati t-bones the earth covering the whole planet in a foot of ash and dust.
The mantle sinks the seas rushes in compressing the organic matter and over the next hundred odd million years it decays, compresses and turns to a huge sea of oil, which promptly is poked with a tube sucked dry and shipped across the world where is feed into a gas tank, sprayed into a cylinder compressed, combusted and spewed out an exhaust pipe just so we can witness a spectacle with no socially redeeming value.

Nuclear Cowboyz

And talk about socially redeeming qualities, my instragram feed Friday went something like this, a picture of Nuclear Cowboyz, a picture of Music Hall with the CSO and Lang Lang, a picture of Nuclear Cowboyz, a picture of Music Hall with the CSO and Lang Lang. For about 8 pictures.
Amazing isn't it? But every once in awhile I believe, you have to watch something that has the potential to kill you.
Nuclear Cowboyz

But the show wasn't just motorcycle tricks for two hours, oh no, it was the classic tale of The Outsiders with the Greasers vs. the Socs vs the cyborgs set in L.A. after a war with two Ws and a whole bunch of Is.
The queen of the cyborgs.
Nuclear Cowboyz
Nuclear Cowboyz
Nuclear Cowboyz

The little guys were eating this stuff up
Nuclear Cowboyz

and then you had your Barbarella level soft porn going on
Nuclear Cowboyz
Nuclear Cowboyz

I shake my head every time I read about a Ryan Adams or Tool not allowing people to take pictures at their shows.
There's no sticking that genie back in the bottle.
Heading in a guy walked towards us holds up his camera and tells us that the Arena isn't letting people in with cameras.
HA! I'm walking in with the infamous urban photographer Gordon Bombay aka Ronnie, a couple rent a ushers aren't keeping us and our cameras out.
Interesting that once the lights went down every other person in the place whipped out a smart phone camera and they weren't afraid to use them.
Nuclear Cowboyz
Nuclear Cowboyz

oh yeah, back to the greasers vs. Socs. vs. cyborgs. The cyborgs were winning and there were only two humans left. You could feel the tension in the place. What happens if the humans lose? Do we get out alive?
Nuclear Cowboyz

no, for humanities sake the greasers and Socs decide to work together and together they defeat the cyborgs.
man, a bunch of scantily clad women is powerful motivation.
Nuclear Cowboyz

we all lived happily ever after
[where: 45202]best place to learn how to live downtown cincinnati ohio the ethos of Cincinnati
3 airborne backflips

Sid Saturday

Sid
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Raininati

I'm requesting a name change.
Seattle ain't got nothing on us.
Raininati
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welcome to....

Cincinnati[where: 45202]best place to learn how to live downtown cincinnati ohio the ethos of Cincinnati
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br00mball!!

Little Kings vs Krogerizers

I'm enlisting Jon Gruden to edit all my broomball posts this year so keep in mind, imagine Jon's voice when reading the post.

Is there anything greater than broomball on a chilly downtown Cincinnati night? I don’t think so.
WOW what a week of broomball we had last week with the Little Kings dominating their opponents.
This week we have two defensive powerhouses squaring off defensively.
Little Kings Broomball

First off let me say, I really like this guy Dave Rolfes, always upbeat he’s a leader that el-A-vates everyone else on the ice. There's nothing else you can say about Dave, but I'm gonna anyhow.
You know what makes this guy special? His specialness.
I’m going to call the Little Kings the Silver Bullets, that would make Dave Rolfes the cold activated mountain. You can’t get the ball past that mountain let me tell you.
Little Kings vs Krogerizers
Little Kings vs Krogerizers
Little Kings vs Krogerizers
Little Kings vs Krogerizers
Little Kings vs Krogerizers
Little Kings vs Krogerizers
Little Kings vs Krogerizers

at this point I have to break in and point something out.
something that blew my mind.
the goals are six feet tall. this guy is a whole head taller than that.
he looked even bigger in real life.
no wonder no one has scored on the krogerizers this season.
Little Kings vs Krogerizers
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meanwhile, over here on the internet there's not much to see

except craziness and an excuse to have a pirate party

Kitty's pirate party
Kitty's pirate party
Kitty's pirate party
Kitty's pirate party
Kitty's pirate party

and a sushi rampage
Kitty's pirate party
Kitty's pirate party
Kitty's pirate party
Kitty's pirate party

this explains most of it
the rum tasted like candy, grab you some
Kitty's pirate party
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Cincinnati Travel, Sports & Boat Show

convention time
Cincinnati Travel, Sports & Boat Show
Cincinnati Travel, Sports & Boat Show
Cincinnati Travel, Sports & Boat Show
Cincinnati Travel, Sports & Boat Show
Cincinnati Travel, Sports & Boat Show
Cincinnati Travel, Sports & Boat Show
Cincinnati Travel, Sports & Boat Show
Cincinnati Travel, Sports & Boat Show
Cincinnati Travel, Sports & Boat Show
Cincinnati Travel, Sports & Boat Show
Cincinnati Travel, Sports & Boat Show

Wednesday January 25th is buck night. $1 for adults.
You can park across the street from the convention center for $10, but even better you can park at Fountain Square for $5 and grab something to eat around the Square before or after the show. More info here.[where: 45202]best place to learn how to live downtown cincinnati ohio the ethos of Cincinnati
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Sid Saturday

Sid
[where: 45202]best place to learn how to live downtown cincinnati ohio the ethos of Cincinnati
1 meow