A riddle: name two homophones with opposite meanings. In English there are, as far as I know, two common answers. One is hole/whole, which is arguably a bit of a stretch. Hole isn’t exactly the opposite of whole, though one does happen to cancel the other out. The other and more accurate answer is raise/raze, a single sound which signifies both to create and to destroy, to build up and to burn down. Resurget cineribus and so on, you see where I’m going with this.

There are a handful of rumors surrounding the razing of the Forest Arms, rumors which could be effectively condensed into this: a man in dire straits, at the end of some sort of rope, sets fire to his own apartment after barricading himself inside, presumably in a desperate act of retribution toward an indifferent world. Another rumor suggests that he was simply a smoker who had fallen asleep amidst some paperwork with a lit cigarette in use. The facts are these: in the early morning of February 6, 2008, a fire started in the apartment of John Christian Robinson. It took four hours to contain, resulted in the death of Robinson, the displacement of over 100 residents, and the near-total destruction of the century-old complex. Also succumbed to the flames: Amsterdam Espresso, a community-driven café which burgeoned into an active local art gallery and music venue in its short time, and People’s Records, one of Detroit’s premiere record shops which has since relocated to Woodward and Peterboro.

I lived on the first floor of the Forest Arms for a year, between 2006 and 2007. It was my second year living in Detroit and I was knee-deep in my undergraduate studies at Wayne State. The places in which you come of age tend to quickly expand and then slowly contract over time in your memory, one long, labored breath. A lot of my memories from the Forest Arms had been neutralized in the past few years, had sizzled out and congealed. Something I did not expect was for these memories – or perhaps emotional responses attached to these memories which themselves have otherwise been relegated to my subconscious – to be suddenly, if only for a beat or two, jolted back to life.

I make my way from the lobby through the south wing, trying to get my bearings, the once meaty interior having shrunken to a static imprint, a wireframe of dingy timber. I reach my old apartment. It looks considerably smaller without any walls. The bathroom tiles are still visible in gaps between piles of detritus. There is a newly exposed, disused fireplace in the front bedroom, having previously been entombed by layers of plaster. I stood inside the outline on the floor which signified where my bedroom had once stood, trying to think of a joke.

If anything can provide some warmth to such overcast sentiments, it’s a diverse group of volunteers spending the day transforming the courtyard into a hanging garden, draping the façade with flowers and ivy while the building resonates with the bittersweet chamber pop of local favorites The Juliets. The task proves to be as much of a celebration as it is work, a labor of love culminating in a roof-top performance by the Juliets for the volunteers.

When the Forest Arms expired it left Midtown with a big blank, a void which the community works with measured pace to replenish. The hanging gardens are a subtle reminder of the life which used to be rooted in that building, and the creative accomplishments made possible by a motivated community. The breadth of the day fills me up – on second thought, the hole/whole answer to that riddle works pretty well here, too.

- Jeremy Franchi

As I helped take down the big flag with some truly interesting people a few quotes from  Harold and Maude ( a must see movie) came to mind.

“You know, at one time, I used to break into pet shops to liberate the canaries. But I decided that was an idea way before its time. Zoos are full, prisons are overflowing. oh my, how the world still dearly loves a cage.”

“A lot of people enjoy being dead. But they are not dead, really. They’re just backing away from life. Reach out. Take a chance. Get hurt even. But play as well as you can.”

I find strength in people that stand for who they are in their own way.

Future Islands from philip southern on Vimeo.

I felt like dancing and crying at the same time….

It is great to hear music that evokes thoughts of all the hard times in the past and at the same time makes me feel good to have those times in my life.Future Islands did much more than put on a great live show they made me grateful for every  relationship I have had the opportunity to  have been in.

A lot of who I am is from those past hard times in my life and it was nice to be reminded of them.

Future Islands tin man from philip southern on Vimeo.

The video’s above are from their performance at the Majestic Cafe on the 6th of june 2010.

Below is  another video put together by Bensifel I thought it was really fun.

FUTURE ISLANDS ‘long flight’ from ben sifel on Vimeo.

FUTURE ISLANDS ‘long flight’ from ben sifel on Vimeo.

No one is perfect

We are all broken and it is beautiful.

One of the best individuals of my generation in music and in general (I think personally).

The live show with a amazing set  by 59 productions of changing backgrounds and projected moving images complimented the music really well.

I am always inspire and encouraged by his music and love that as I see more and more of the world and get older so does my appreciation for Jonsi.

Iceland where the singer is from was one ( the first) of the areas that experienced the economic crisis before Detroit did.

I like to think that go the new album gives encouragement that we can recover and go higher then ever thought possible.

Mostly he is just looking at animals and finding beautiful things about them.

takk fyrir

thanks to everyone that came together to make a great  experience.
Everything was shot in the Masonic Temple .

one of the video’s is above.

Formal is at noon was shot in the very top level of the building. The room has pretty much been untouched for years.

click on single barrel to see the full page of video’s, photography,music downloads, and everyone that was involved.

“Zoos of Berlin performed their ritual in a house of rituals, and Single Barrel Detroit sanctified their own rite of passage. We entered an edifice that for generations has housed the illusive presence of the Freemasons and their ideals. With their codes and secrets placed in plain view we complemented them with our own ideals of sound and structure. Forever capturing the feeling of the day the shoot rendered the events in space and time and they will live on in film as the building stands like a stone gavel on the corner of Temple and Second preaching truth, strength and charity.”     Candace O’Leary

Untitled from philip southern on Vimeo.

The magic stick had a great holiday festive songs show .Happy Holidays! Tell the people in your life you care about them.
Love,
    Phil

la trip #2 from philip southern on Vimeo.

It was surprising to win and am very grateful to yobi. This season of yobi I have a feature show running everyother week. It is  a lot of fun check it out.

All you aspiring video,photo,musical, and comedic creative’s out there should get involved! It is free and can be entered anywhere globally.

I really feel like the world is changing  a lot right now and I’m excited to be part of it.

http://www.yobi.tv/

Untitled from philip southern on Vimeo.