PLANET CHOCKO – art/music/movies/beyond » Adventures of an Autograph Hound

Adventures of an Autograph Hound

April 7th, 2012 by chocko

Eric Erlandson, Patty Schemel and Melissa Auf der Maur made an appearance at Barnes & Noble in Union Square to promote Eric’s new book titled “Letters To Kurt” on the death anniversary of his friend, Kurt Cobain. Eric read some of his emotional letters, which actually read like ‘stream of consciousness’ poetry. His former Hole bandmates, Patty and Melissa also shared their thoughts about the loss of their friend and music icon. Eric and Melissa also performed some songs including “Seasons In The Sun,” a song Nirvana covered during their last tour. Eric considered it Kurt’s “swan song.” They ended the night with a cover of The Smiths song, “Paint A Vulgar Picture.” Pretty heavy stuff for a Thursday night! Be sure to check out Patty’s upcoming documentary about being in Hole. “Hit So Hard” starts at the Cinema Village in NYC on April 13. Melissa Auf der Maur recently opened an art space, Basilica Hudson in Hudson, New York. Check them out for upcoming events!

Tommy Ramone, the only living original member of the legendary punk band, THE RAMONES stopped by Barnes & Noble in Tribeca recently along with Linda Ramone (Johhny Ramone’s wife) and John Cafiero (director of documentary Ramones Raw) to sign the Johnny Ramone autobiography, Commando. There was a big turnout and it was good to see that people still care about a band that helped pave the way for punk, new wave and alternative bands. Tommy signed lots of Ramones memorabilia including my highly coveted “Rocket To Russia” album. Tommy is currently in a band, Uncle Monk whose music is rooted in old-timey bluegrass music.

Nicki Minaj at the Best Buy in Harlem…getting her new CD, Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded autographed was a major ordeal. First, I had to get up early for the 8AM wristband pickup and had to move my hovercraft in two different spots to avoid parking tickets. Then, I had to go back to the store at 4pm to line up for the 6pm signing. The diva from outer space was an hour late but it was all worth it. I killed a lot of time in Harlem, shopping at Hue-man Bookstore (2319 Frederick Douglass Blvd), wandering the streets for bootleg blaxploitation movies on 125th St and eating at soul food spots such as Jacob Restaurant on Lenox Ave. They have an excellent buffet there but don’t pile your plate too high because there’s so many places to eat in Harlem. I also ate at Patsy’s for the first time. They’ve been located at 2287 First Ave (between 117th and 118th St) for 75 years and I could just kick myself for not checking them out sooner. It was the best pizza I’ve had since going to Rome a couple months ago. Thin slices, crispy crust. No joke…gotta go back soon!

Stephin Merritt (The Magnetic Fields) at the signing table after his recent appearance with Emma Straub (author of The Other People We Married) at the Barnes & Noble in Union Square. Stephin performed a couple songs with his ukulele including “Andrew In Drag,” “Your Girlfriend’s Face,” “This Little Ukulele” and “The Book of Love.” Stephin signed anything you brought at the table but weirdly did not want to personalize anything. He told me that without personalization, my CD was now worth 5 times more if I sold it at Academy Records. Funny dude! Check out Love At The Bottom of The Sea the new album by the Magnetic Fields. It’s their first album on Merge Records since 1999’s 69 Love Songs. Go get it!

Jennifer Hudson showed up at a Barnes & Noble in midtown a couple months ago to promote “I Got This: How I Changed My Ways and Lost What Weighed Me Down,” her encouraging book about weight loss. Jennifer dropped 80 pounds and is looking good. Security at the event was super strict about taking photos. Chocko went into ninja-mode and took the photo anyway. Jennifer was more than happy to sign CDs too.

Overkill, the old school thrash metal band from New Jersey made a stop at Vintage Vinyl in Fords, NJ to promote and sign their new album, The Electric Age. Despite the middle finger salutes (they might have disapproved of me bringing a bootleg to the table), the dudes are quite friendly and have a dedicated fan base that showed up in great numbers. Pictured clockwise from the top left corner: Bobby “Blitz” Ellworth (vocals), D.D. Verni (bass), Rob Lipnicki (drums), and Derek “The Skull” Tailer (rhythm guitar). Pick up the new album-guaranteed quality whiplash-inducing head banging music! Check ’em out live at The Killfest 2012 Tour with God Forbid, Diamond Plate and Sudkara!