Episode 110: Miranda July, a Stolen Smile, and the Waterguns of Brixton
Miranda July/Courtesy of Miranda July
This week: Filmmaker and artist Miranda July reveals her secret identity…The Mona Lisa takes an Italian vacation…And Bobbies crack down on super-soakers. Plus, a joke from musician Forrest Day and a mesmerizing tune from Lana Del Rey.
Icebreaker: Forrest Day San Francisco’s arty party-rockin’ maestro Forrest Day, whose self-titled album drops in October, fishes for a joke.
Small Talk: Adam Felber Adam Felber, writer for “Real Time with Bill Maher” and a regular panelist on NPR’s “Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me,” tells us about the waterguns of Brixton(well, actually Essex).
A History Lesson with Booze: Liberating Da Vinci & “The Mona Lisa in Florence” 100 years ago this week, the most famous painting in the world turned up missing. Learn about brazen thief Vincenzo Peruggia, who claimed he did it all for his mother country… then celebrate art with this Italian take on the “Mona Lisa” cocktail — pioneered by a bar right next to the Louvre called Le Fumoir.
“The Mona Lisa in Florence,” as framed by Francesco Roccato, general manager at Fusion Bar in Florence, Italy:
Into a tall glass, add:
- 1 part Alkermes, an Arabic-turned-Florentine liqueur from the de Medici era.
- 1 part orange juice
- 3 parts Champagne
Secret the drink away to your native land, hide it in your apartment for two years, then attempt to sell it for big bucks. Or just sip it, with an enigmatic half-smile. (If desired, Francesco also suggests “staining” this pretty picture with a little creme de cassis.)
Guest of Honor: Miranda July Performance artist, writer, artist artist, director and actor Miranda July’s new movie is called The Future — in which she portrays a thirty-something LA-ite paralyzed creatively and emotionally. It’s clearly not autobiographical. July tells Brendan about her swimming pool daydreams, her inner life, and her childhood name.
One For The Road: Lana Del Rey - “Video Games” The misleadingly-titled “Video Games” is not another indiepop song full of synths and bleeps. Instead, Lana Del Rey (a.k.a. Lizzie Grant) pours out a melancholy meditation on modern love, with harps, piano, and violins backing her sultry vocals. Best listened to when no one’s paying you any mind.
Music On This Week’s Show:
Sea & Cake - “The Argument”
Aphex Twin - “Boy/Girl Song”
Tipsy - “Liquordelic”
Glen Gould - “Italian Concerto”
Deep Purple - “The Painter”
Barry Manilow - “Mandy”
Lana Del Rey - “Video Games”
Rico, Gould’s first name has 2 “n”s as in Glenn. I liked this show, especially the Florentine Barista. And I liked “Video Games” voice and arrangement.
Am I the only one who thinks of the infamous Rebecca Black song ‘Friday’ when Lana Del Rey’s ‘Video Game’ plays?
For the first two lines, just sub “Kickin’ in the front seat Sittin’ in the back seat”
And then for the “It’s you, it’s you”: “Friday, Friday…”
It came to me immediately on first listen. I couldn’t finish listening to “Video Game” because all I could think of was “Friday”.
Woah. My full name is Miranda but I’ve always gone by Mandy, just like Miranda July. I have never heard of anybody else’s parents trying to be all creative like ours apparently were.