Hurray for Hollywood

This is my newest Mother Load column about my daughter Chloe's obsession with fame.

Good golly, Hollywood: the Mother Load

Deep in thought, looking for stars on a tour

 

By ARRISSIA OWEN TURNER

Reporter

Published: Wednesday, October 13, 2010 7:13 AM PDT

Chloe has gone Hollywood. For some reason, my 7-year-old daughter has become inexplicably obsessed with L.A.

I have no idea where this is coming from other than that the Jonas Brothers’ new season for the Disney TV show “Jonas” now focuses on them moving to L.A. Chloe has been to the City of Angels hundreds of times, but suddenly it’s the big lights in the big city.

So when my cousin Jill’s son decided he wanted us to go to Universal Studios for his birthday, Chloe started asking questions. I explained to her that it’s like Disneyland but you get to see where movies and TV shows are filmed.

As my lips were moving, I could have sworn I actually saw stars form in Chloe’s pupils.  “Hollywood?” she asked while in a self-imposed daze.

As we drove onto the 101 freeway, the Hollywood Freeway Chloe pointed out, she looked out her window, taking in every morsel of the glitz and urban grime.

Chloe is sure she is famous, which is part of the allure. She was once on an episode of Nickelodeon’s “Yo Gabba Gabba,” so every once in a while she asks whether or not she is famous and if I am somehow part of the limelight.

I think Chloe is a little let down when I break the bad news that I am not. “But you talk to famous people,” she points out. True, I say, but fame isn’t contagious like a cold, unless you’re Lauren Conrad from “The Hills” or Kim Kardashian from whatever she is famous for.

There were some signs leading up to this obsession with greatness. When Chloe got the part on “Yo Gabba Gabba,” she immediately begged me for a black, faux fur jacket. Her intentions became very clear when I saw her dressed to impress with her “Hollywood jacket” and sunglasses, striking poses in the back seat of the car like I was her chauffeur.

The funny part about this is that every famous person’s kid I have ever met has been completely unfazed by his or her parent’s reputation. Mark Mothersbaugh, of Devo not Mark Motherspaw of the Big Bear City Community Services District, signed on to be the resident doodler on “Yo Gabba Gabba” because his newly adopted daughters were mesmerized by the show’s host DJ Lance Rock.

They did not know that their father was done being cool, and they didn’t care that he was ever in the art rock group synonymous with the hit “Whip It.” They just wanted to know if he had an in with Muno and Foofa, the show’s colorful characters.

I once had a conversation with Pennywise’s former lead singer Jim Lindberg about being the father of three girls who absolutely did not care that their father was a punk rock icon. Unless he was Christina Aguilera or a star from “That’s so Raven,” his accomplishments were nil.

Driving around in a mini-van with three little girls and Brittney Spears stickers on the windows and not caring one smidge was the most punk rock thing he had ever done, Lindberg said.

Tattoo artist and “L.A. Ink” star Corey Miller’s three children were completely underwhelmed by his success until he scored backstage passes for a Hannah Montana concert—nevermind that he toured with Metallica and has his own Ludwig signature series of drums.

But one of my favorite stories is from my cousin Jenny, whose friend’s kid was in the same class as Mike Ness from Social Distortion’s son. There was a career type thing where kids’ parents came in and told about their occupations.

When it was Ness’ turn to inform the class about being a professional musician, his son practically sank into his seat. He begged him not to bring his instantly recognizable 1972 Les Paul with the Clay Smith Cams Mr. Horsepower logo. And, dear God, please don’t talk about all that rockabilly nonsense.

How embarrassing, indeed. Ness scored points with his sons though once by performing at Tony Hawk’s Boom Boom Huck Jam, where they got to meet their hero, never mind that their father is fricken Mike Ness.

I do not know if I have ever met a kid who is impressed with his or her parents. Malia Ann and Natasha Obama probably think it’s completely normal for dads to become presidents. Chloe thinks it’s normal, as well as excruciatingly embarrassing, that I write a column about being her mom.

So from now on, my answer to Chloe when she asks whether I am famous will be this: It wouldn’t matter if I was.

Click here for the original story:
http://bigbeargrizzly.net/articles/2010/10/15/community/doc4cb4fc71a01af063825227.txt

DJ Ris' situation

New story I wrote about Paul Oakenfold, a quite famous DJ known for his work with U2, Madonna and, my favorite, Happy Mondays.

Save the Last Trance 

Superstar DJ Paul Oakenfold brings his perfecto beats to SmokeOut

By: Arrissia Owen Turner

Even British DJ superstars’ mums give them grief. They are just like you and me. They enjoy a good Sunday roast with friends, fine wine or a strong pour of Guinness, glasses clinking while musing about the day’s big game.

But then some of those regular-guy DJs star in their own Spike TV reality shows, hang with Madonna, score James Bond video games with Gnarls Barkley, perform at the Great Wall of China and not only become the first DJ to play the Hollywood Bowl—but to sell out every last seat, too, even if no one ever sat in them.

Paul Oakenfold does all of those things, plus shares the bill this Saturday alongside MGMT, Deadmau5, Dan Black, Erykah Badu, Basement Jaxx, Incubus, Nas & Damian Marley, Manu Chao and (of course) Cypress Hill at the SmokeOut Festival at the NOS Events Center in San Bernardino. 

Oakenfold’s pounding bass lines are synonymous with trance music and club culture, helping bring a new element to the SmokeOut’s usual rock and hip-hop suspects. But then Oakenfold’s not one to shy away from a challenge.

Musical Cuisine

Life changed for the Londoner more than 20 years ago when he went on holiday to Ibiza, a party island off the coast of southern Spain. After a week, Oakenfold was ready to rock full-time. Since then he’s sold more than 2 million recordings in the U.S. alone, was nominated for two Grammies (for 2004’s Creamfields and 2006’s A Lively Mind), and reached gold with 2004’s Another World, making it one of the biggest-selling dance recordings of all time. 

Still, just like any pie-in-the-sky dreamer, Oakenfold’s mum got her knickers in a bunch when he said he wanted to follow his dream of working in the music industry. “I was in a band, and we weren’t very good, and my mum gave me great fuss,” Oakenfold says. “She said, ‘Listen, you have to get a proper job.’”

Oakenfold attended Westminster Technical culinary institute and became a trained chef.

“But I still had this passion to get into music,” he says. He made his mum a deal: If he didn’t cut it as a DJ and producer, he would return to cuisine.

Pills and Thrills

How was Mrs. Oakenfold supposed to know her son’s beats were better than any goat cheese beet salad he could whip up? Or that he would one day be tapped for soundtracks to films like Shrek II, The Bourne Identity, Planet of the Apes and Pirates of the Caribbean?

“I just kind of went for it,” says Oakenfold, who also worked as A&R during those early days for Profile Records and Def Jam. He signed the likes of Salt-N-Pepa, DJ Jazzy Jeff and Will Smith. 

In 1997 and ’98, Oakenfold had a residency at the famed Liverpool nightclub Cream at Nation. These days he holds down the decks for his residency at the 25,000-square foot Rain Nightclub at the Palms Casino in Las Vegas.

“Hard work and persistence has paid off, really,” he says.

Yeah, you could say that. Within four years of his mum giving him the chat, Oakenfold made a name for himself co-producing Manchester’s Happy Mondays’ 1990 album Pills, Thrills and Bodyaches, with songs like “Step On” and “Kinky Afro.” He also released remixes of the Stone Roses, The Cure, INXS and more.

Even Better Than the Real Thing

In 1993, U2 approached Oakenfold to remix some of the band’s songs.

 “That was an honor,” Oakenfold says. “I never thought in a million years I would get asked to work with a band at that level.”

His remix of “Even Better than the Real Thing” did, well, even better than the real thing, reaching No. 1 on the U.K. charts. He opened for U2 that year on the band’s world tour.

The single hit at a perfect time in England at the early height of the electronic music phenomenon. Oakenfold sees America as ripe for the electronic revolution.

“If you look at the charts, it’s all electronic bass,” says the frequent pop music collaborator. He’s since pitched in on pop projects by Madonna, Michael Jackson, Justin Timberlake and the Rolling Stones, which he takes in stride giving kudos to the original works.

Electronic music doggy-paddled across the Atlantic, just like so many British acts that make it in the U.S. It’s not uncommon for a performer—think Robbie Williams—to be humongous in the U.K. only to walk amongst the people stateside without a blink. Paul Oakenfold’s name is absolutely synonymous with DJ culture in America—he’s like P. Diddy for the spin cycle. He’s the go-to guy for name recognition in the pop-club mix collab world.

It’s Only Getting Bigger

There are few DJs that are so recognizable in the mainstream thanks in part to hits like Oakenfold’s remix of Elvis Presley’s “Rubberneckin.” He recorded the song as a tribute to his father, whose Elvis records Oakenfold clung to as a child.

“I think with America, if you have a sound and you work really hard and travel all over America—it takes time—it’s well worth it,” Oakenfold says. “America is a very open country in terms of music. The difference is that in radio, it’s not. I’ve been to Alaska and Cincinnati on a Monday night and played to thousands of people. So there is a big swirl for electronic music and it’s only getting bigger.”

Persistence paid off, but it was Oakenfold’s quick thinking that secured his first big break in the U.S. during his inaugural visit to New York. Necessity was the mother of ascension.

“I went and got false ID made up and I said I was working for NME Magazine in England, and that is how I got into all the clubs free,” Oakenfold says. “With an English accent, working for an English mag and an English ID, they didn’t even question me.”

Progressive Attitude

Oakenfold’s come a long way since his cloak-and-dagger club guise. In 2007, Oakenfold released his greatest hits and remixes, a 20-song strong mix of his most popular dance mixes immediately recognizable to any club kid worth his or her glow stick.

With two decades under his belt, Oakenfold attributes his longevity and success to a progressive attitude toward music.

“I think it’s important to always be open-minded to new technology with new sounds and new trends and embrace that,” Oakenfold says. 

“You should at least be open-minded to embrace it and see, you know, what you do like and take those elements and those sounds and put ’em into your production,” the DJ adds.

Oakenfold looks to up-and-comers Kenneth Thomas of Detroit, Robert Vadney from Greece and fellow Londoner Adam White as the future of DJing.

Out of the Club

The most recent result of Oakenfold’s cultivated expertise is Pop Killer, the much anticipated studio album expected to hit in 2011, his first since 2008’s Anthems. “I am working with a lot of urban singers, great singers, on cutting-edge rhythms,” Oakenfold says.

“It’s just a case of pushing the boundaries,” he continues. “I’ve always been like that, and wanting to not just DJ the club, but taking DJing outside the clubs and playing at festivals and events and shows.”

Oakenfold is no stranger to the IE desert. Aside from Vegas, he’s a Coachella regular. Oakenfold plans to unleash a swirl of classics, as well as some of the stuff from the new release at Saturday’s cannapalooza.

“It will be my first SmokeOut, as they say, so I am really excited to play there,” says Oakenfold before seizing the opportunity to practice his American accent. “San Bern-ahhh-dino, right?” 

Now he’s cooking.

Cypress Hill SmokeOut Music Festival w/Paul Oakenfold, Dan Black and others at NOS Events Center, 689 S. E St., San Bernardino; www.smokeoutfestival.com. Sat, Oct. 16. Doors open at noon. All ages.

Here is the original link to the story: 

http://www.ieweekly.com/cms/story/detail/save_the_last_trance/3555/

Groupie Activity

I took this last week while visiting North Shore Elementary School in Big Bear to shoot pictures of students participating in the new arts enrichment program. Little Fenix has his first groupie! As soon as I snapped this shot, I knew it was a front page picture.

North Shore Elementary kindergartners Kylie Jones and Fenix Ballum take to the keys as part of the school’s new arts enrichment program. Fenix looks like his musical talents may have earned him his first female fan. (ARRISSIA OWEN TURNER/Big Bear Grizzly)

To read the full story, click below:
http://bigbeargrizzly.net/articles/2010/10/07/news/doc4cabd6acd0849532551998.txt

Checking In

Soundcheck: Weezer, Matt Costa, James Fletcher

By Arrissia Owen Turner | Riviera magazine | October 4, 2010

Matt Costa ready to ride

BOY OF SUMMER Matt Costa recorded Mobile Chateau in O.C. | Photo of Matt Costa by Neal Casal.

> > When Weezer’s Rivers Cuomo and San Juan Capistrano’s Jorge Garcia (Hurley from Lost) met backstage at Lopez Tonight, it was perfectly random. The intro came after their gig at the U.S. Open of Surfing, just in time for the launch of Hurley’s limited-edition fall collab with Weezer, and after the new CD Hurley (partially recorded at Hurley’s Costa Mesa HQ) hit the streets. Cuomo’s claiming serendipity, but come on. A good marketing ploy isn’t, er, lost on us.
> > > Last time we saw Riviera’s favorite troubadour, Matt Costa, he was strumming on a street corner outside a Sea Shepherd fundraiser (the vegans with a vengeance from the TV show Whale Wars). He was playing sweetly psychedelic songs that didn’t ring a bell, which made us feel unhip around the tatted activist types. Turns out the songs were yet to be released, fresh from Costa’s brand-new album Mobile Chateau. It brings an au courant sound with a new backing band: Fullerton folksters Mothers Sons.

> > > Guess who that left with time on his hands? James Fletcher, Costa’s former drummer, known around O.C. as the sticks behind the Women, Smile, Satisfaction, mPhase and Zee Avi. Now we have the dashing The Booze and Clocks, the Brit expat’s first solo CD, extolling the virtues of one’s own volition.