residence

Artist in Residence
$17.98
A major disappointment. Moran is clearly one of the most gifted musicians to work within the world of Mainstream Jazz. And Modernistic showed him to be able to conceive of a disc as a single artwork. This disc is far more ambitious conceptually, but I have major problems with its execution. The collaboration with Adrian Piper is a particularly lost opportunity: Piper's installations are inspirational in their ability to create awareness and shift consciousness, particularly in terms of racial issues.Moran takes the rhythms and melodies of her words and builds compositions on them, but in an obvious and perfunctory way, especially compared to similar work by artists like Hermeto Pascoal. There is a lot of safe playing on this disc (guitarist Marvin Sewell's choices are particularly anodyne): take Arizona Landscape, with its literal usage of the clip-clop Western bass line. Maybe it's time for Moran to realize that the job is to take the tradition and create something new with it. I'm thinking of Monk's Little Rootie Tootie, where the classic Jazz "train piece" is internalized and transformed. Moran seems to have wanted to do this, but he dropped the ball.
There are a couple of decent tracks here, Refraction 1 being (IMHO) the best - a study in Jazz Minimalism which shows what kind of creativity Moran is capable of (Rain has this element too, but the climax seems a little unearned). Lift Every Voice And Sing (the "Black National Anthem") is probably the worst track. What is it? It's not stirring, it's not moving, it's not ironic (despite some weak Sewell-isms), it's not funky (despite some half-hearted attempts at "hip" grooves). This is the problem with the whole CD: it's got all this weight behind it, but can't live up to any of it. Even Moran's playing is largely unimaginative - a few cool licks and riffs, harmonically stiff. Jason, enjoy the grant money you got for this project and put it behind you! And although I guess you can say there's a certain amount of risk taking here compared to the average mainstream Jazz record, is that really the faint praise you want for such ambitious work?

Permanent Residence [First Print Edition] DVD
$21.95

Royal Copenhagen Porcelain Plate - 1975 the Queen's Christmas Residence
$19.95
This 1975 limited edition blue and white porcelain Christmas collector plate is by Royal Copenhagen Denmark and is titled "The Queen's Residence". The plate shows a scene with a Palace Guard in front of Marselisborg Castle. The guards change at noon when the Queen is in residence. The grounds are open to visitors when the Royal Family is not in residence. There is a star at the top of the plate in the 3/4 inch border along with what appears to be a pine cone design. On the back of the plate is the Royal Copenhagen Mark with the crown in the center and below 3 wavy blue lines with IX next to them. The title in Danish reads "Marselisborg Slot" and is signed with the initials KL (Kai Lange). The plate measures 7 1/4 inches in diameter and there are four pre-drilled holes for hanging. There are a couple of tiny defects from the firing (may have been bubbles that burst) just above the roof and between the tree. You don't see them unless you turn it to a certain light reflection.

Mr. Herzher's Medium Pet Residence, Dark
$214.99
I purchased this crate for our 1-yr old schnauzer/poodle mix who's about 16 pounds. He previously had a small crate, and we just wanted to give him more room, as he grew bigger than we originally thought he would. Anyway, the crate is easy to put together. It comes with the panels forming the walls, floor and ceiling, so to speak, of the crate. All you have to do is put screws in the obvious places to join the panels together. It comes with the necessary tool, and I put it together in about 15 minutes. About the Natural color: It worked perfectly for our room. I just wanted to share that it's not beige or sand colored. It does have a touch of yellow and is the color of French Vanilla ice cream. I hope that helps those of you debating on the color choices. I also like the way the crate is slightly raised off the floor. It's well-ventilated, but still gives your dog that sheltered and secure environment.