Crazytown

JOHN GREEN, PUBLISHING HERO

Preach.
By Melissa Presti (Book Publisher) 

New York Times bestselling author John Green (The Fault in Our Stars) challenges the assertion that his social media platform is changing the publishing paradigm in his acceptance video for the Indie Champion Award.

Think about this for one second - politics aside - in all of your artistic endeavors, is your creation the work of individualism or collectivism? 

"We must strike down the insidious lie that a book is the creation of an individual soul laboring in isolation...it threatens the overall quality and breath of American literature."

 

                         "Fuck Ayn Rand." - John Green, me

I don't need an author to justify or legitimize my career aspirations, but DAMN. 

 

MELISSA PRESTI works in book publishing at Penguin Group (USA). www.us.penguingroup.com
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SUMMER PLAYLIST JAMZ

According to my work schedule, summer hath begun!
By Melissa Presti (Book Publisher)

Oh summer office hours. Monday - Thursday staying on the clock an extra 45 minutes feels like grown-up detention, but when I peace out at 12:30 every Friday from Memorial Day to Labor Day, it is the best perk in publishing.

Those days, you can find me at the Frying Pan enjoying the calm before the Wall Street bros take over the boat for happy hour. And the only thing I enjoy more than day-drinking is recommending tunes for your summer playlist enjoyment!

The Saturdays - "What About Us"
Because girl groups are an endangered species and this is perfect for the pool party you are never going to have.

 

Fenech-Soler - "Stop And Stare"
Weird name, awesome house beats. Electropop Brits are my kryptonite. You should actually just download everything from them (additional recs: All I Know, LA Love, and like I said - everything else).

 

Vampire Weekend - "Diane Young"
Their new album Modern Vampires of the City landed a couple weeks ago so if you want to be the cool kid in town, add them to your party playlist!

  

New Kids On The Block - "Remix (I Like The)"
You don't have to judge me, I'm judging myself. Jesus Christ if you told me 10yrs ago or even one year ago that I'd be promoting a new NKOTB album it would be crazier than predicting I'd have a savings account by this point in my life. If you were to own and compare the NKOTB 10 comback album against the 98 degrees 2.0 comback album because obviously I have both, I'd say the middle aged men knew how to update their boyband sound and just tackled it balls to the wall, but 98 degrees still sounds like, well, 98 degrees. Sad days for the Lacheys, an amazing mid-life crisis for the Knights.

 
Selena Gomez - "Come & Get It"
Oh I got it, G. You put it down and I'll pick it up - UNLESS this song is about the Biebs. That would make me throw up. Besides the fact that I'd like to carry Selena Gomez around in my pocket, she delivers at least one great dance tune per year. Come and get it.

WHAT IS JAMES BLAKE DOING?

Genre-bending is so mainstream right now.
By Melissa Presti (Book Publisher) 

What is James Blake doing? Musically speaking, he's part of a weird experimental territory that cannot be easily defined. Infusing soul into electronic and R&B mash-ups is a one of a kind signature, and one that relies heavily upon his classically-trained piano skills and pitch-shifting vocals.

I had a limited knowledge of the boyish Brit when I agreed to see his show at Terminal 5 last week. What is James Blake doing? The eclectic crowd was feeling the vibe and went to church with this man - swaying, hands-raised praising, and crying throughout the entire set. He was simultaneously channeling Jesus Christ and flipping his hair like some kind of heartthrob hero. The man posts up at a station of keyboards and a laptop, grinds in his seat to the delight of everyone, and makes it all appear effortless and normal.

Blake's sophomore album Overgrown released in April and set the stage with the breakthrough single "Retrograde" exuding the omnipresent ache of solitude, and featuring the soul of his songwriting. From there, the album moves gently through seductive song textures that produce a range of tracks balanced on grit and tranquility. His music mixing isn't for everyone, and for the unfamiliar, "Retrograde" is the proper introduction.  

 

What is James Blake doing? This piano man is clearly in transition from a fixture among indie cult circles and quietly infiltrating mainstream approval, whatever "mainstream" is these days. He's tapped into a void, and an obvious American fanbase.

Among the fans worshipping every note, my experience was a continuous string of reactions to each musical shift in his setlist, to the crowd response, to the vibrations that rose from the floor to the tip of my nose.

I'm still half-confused and half-amazed at the unpredictable nature of Blake's highly conceptualized vision; it's dub without step, it's music without house, robotically repetitive, beautifully anamolous, and emotionally exploitative of all of my senses.

What is James Blake doing? Everything right, apparently.

 

MELISSA PRESTI works in book publishing at Penguin Group (USA). www.us.penguingroup.com
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THANKS, MOM!

Let me count the ways my mom has been the greatest!
By Melissa Presti (Book Publisher)

Mother's Day is always an awkwardly-placed holiday; a week after my birthday and 3 weeks after my Mom's birthday. Which means I give her gifts, she gives me gifts, then I have to give her gifts AGAIN. I know she must hate it so this year Mom, I'm giving you the gift of words (fancy!).

Thank you for waking up on Thursdays (formerly Tuesdays) and immediately reading my blog posts, and telling me they're "interesting" when you really mean "you shouldn't swear so much."

Thank you for being a stay-at-home Mom for 13 years. My sisters and I have a bit of Susie homemaker in us all because of that.

Thank you for working tirelessly to make sure I had the best science projects, homemade treats, and hand-sewn Halloween costumes.

Thank you for raising me on Celine Dion, James Taylor, Michael Bolton, The Beatles, Queen, The Sound of Music, and an alarming number of Barry Manilow records. My music taste today knows no boundaries.

Thank you for encouraging (forcing) the entire family to play musical instruments. Playing the trumpet for 8 years and experimenting with other instruments created an intangible connection to music.

Thank you for supporting a decade of nonstop swimming and crazy training schedules. I don't have Olympic medals to show for it, but a relentless will to conquer every goal I set for myself and my inability to quit anything (also chronic knee pain!)

Thank you for every dinner shared around the table, I never realized how important that would be. We were truly spoiled by your homecooking every. single. day.

Thank you for taking me to the library weekly since before I could even read. My book-nerdism and non-lucrative career thank you as well.

Thank you for supporting my decision to take a one-way flight to NYC - twice - and believing in every dream I've ever had.

Thank you for ignoring me every time I say "I don't need anything" when you come visit, bearing a six month supply of toilet paper and boxes of cereal.

Thank you for sharing my enthusiasm for cupcakes and beer. Must be in our genes.

Thank you for listening.

Thank you for understanding.

Thank you for loving.

 

MELISSA PRESTI works in book publishing at Penguin Group (USA). www.us.penguingroup.com
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BIRTHDAY DO'S AND DON'TS

It's my party and I'll probably not cry if I want to because that's a stupid song that should die, and I LOVE my birthday.
By Melissa Presti (Book Publisher)

My birthday is next week! As I was listening to some throwback music, I realized I'll be turning 28 and I'll be five years overdue on fixing everything the song "23" made me sad about. If Jimmy Eat World's music was the manifestation of my anxiety for the future and what I was going to do when I grew up, then I have some solid evidence that it's still the theme song of my life. 

HOWEVER, I love birthdays. Mine, specifically. I used to think I was the only person in the world born on the seventh of May, due to a lack of education or bad parenting or an amazing inside joke between my parents. But, whatever, when it's your day you call the shots. Just a few guidelines...

                                     Birthday Do's and Don'ts!

DO celebrate! Throw a party! Jesus, if you aren't married or have kids or see any of that in the forseeable future, you don't get anniversaries and Mother's Days. THIS IS IT.

DON'T make it into a circus if you aren't celebrating the dirty 30 or whatever. I'm throwing a prom-themed party in honor of myself (and John Hughes) and I can feel everyone hating me already.

DO think about getting your shit together because you are getting old and life will just keep getting more complicated and exhausting. A nap might also work.

DON'T reflect on the last year. Save that shit for New Years when you assess all your failures.

DO take the day off work. As long as your job isn't saving lives or flying planes you deserve to sleep in and eat a cheesecake for breakfast and watch SoapNet TV, or whatever your thing is you do when you're home alone.

DON'T come back to work with a crazy new haircut or tattoo, no one is expecting a new you returning from fat camp. They probably didn't even notice you were gone.

DO ask your elders what's in store for you this year. They love to reminisce and get the young feels again!

DON'T listen to the people who say "oh __ was a good year for me! You'll love it." Was 26 a good year for you, Lisa? Because that's the year my boyfriend cheated on me, my apartment flooded, and I accidentally killed my cat.

DO make a list of gifts you want, but you already know you'll be buying them for yourself.

DON'T blow your paycheck on a belated spring break trip to Cancun or a bottle of 50yr old Scotch. We're old enough now where these "crazy fun" ideas are called "crises" by our friends and therapists.

DON'T wish me a happy birthday on Facebook if we've never spent even one of my 28 celebrations together. I mean why are you thinking of me? Because Facebook told you to? Or because you're stalking me? NOW I'M PARANOID ON MY BIRTHDAY.

DO like! everyone's happy birthday messages on Facebook. Even the weird randoms. And do get mad at the people who totally should have and didn't because who isn't on Facebook all day at work? They should have seen it THEY SHOULD HAVE KNOWN.

MOST DEFINITELY DO what you want. Screw guidelines.

 

MELISSA PRESTI works in book publishing at Penguin Group (USA). www.us.penguingroup.com
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BOOK TITLE NONSENSE

Don't judge a book by it's cover, but totally judge it by the title.
By Melissa Presti (Book Publisher)

There are rules to work places, I think. Human Resources people love adhering to rules, but at Penguin with have the People Department and they love telling me when I forget to fill out timesheets and won't be getting monies for rent. So I didn't ask if I'm allowed to essentially make fun of our books.

Specifically, the titles. The content is totally probably amazing, but the title maybe had me thinking of other things.

When I should be paying attention and making notes during book launches, I'm usually entertaining myself with snap judgements based completely on the title. These are legit titles on their way to publication...

Am I A Jew?
Do I appear confused? I feel like this is something you should know about yourself, like your birthday or the color of your eyes or the address on your fake ID. 

Experimenting With Babies
If this doesn't involve Coke, Mentos, and actual live babies, I'd rather not.

                            There could be a baby attached to that...

 

Cooking Comically
For poor people! When you only have pasta, eggs, and bbq sauce and payday is 4 days away.

Every Day Is An Atheist Holiday!
If this is about making the Cadbury egg the mascot of Easter, I already tried and it didn't catch on but there is potential. Also, this is written by the magician who can catch a bullet in his mouth when his partner shoots a gun at his face, so.

The Genius of Dogs
…is that they get to sleep all day and eat with zero regard to calories or food groups or judgement for eating things off the floor. What else would need to be written?

I’d Rather Be Short
Not going to read a single word as this author is clearly a lifelong nemesis intent on destroying every last shred of my emotional fragility.

Twentysomething
Live it, don't read it, cry, repeat.

GIRL POWER REPRESENT

Another season, another reason to sing about reality television.
By Melissa Presti (Book Publisher)

First off, I didn't mention this last week on my Thursday debut, but Team Thursday has g.i.r.l. p.o.w.e.r. and no other Crazytown day of the week can say that.

There's a lot we can do with this to remain superior, like I'm about to have us all create lists of our favorite food during shark week (shark week = our periods) and Pinterest boards about 287 things you can do with a mason jar, so things are going to get interesting (interesting = we will take all the web traffic from M/T/W/F) There is a new iron lady in town! Too soon?

So, right, back to reality television and my obsession with The Voice. I'm going to tie this all together I promise. The blind auditions have come to an end and it was a parade of girl power pipes! I hardly recall a handful of the gents who impressed me.

But this week as the background story started on the next girl to audition, all I heard was "New York native Sasha Allen" and maybe freaked out.

 

Me: Ohhh my Goddd no wayyy I know her I love her she's amazing she was on Broadway in HAIR and she can sangggg but I've known her voice for yeeeeears before from this crazy horribly awesome movie CAMP about a musical theater camp.

Roommate 1: Like a real documentary about a musical theater camp?

Me: No like the best worst movie ever about nerds singing and getting all sexual at a fake musical theater camp. We used to watch it in my sorority house alllllllll the time.

 
               This is how the movie starts which is why you end up loving it. 

Roommates 1 and 2: .................................

Sasha tackled her own rendtion of the Dixie Chicks "Not Ready to Make Nice" and I thought it was a ginormous mistake at first until that note. That one. But anyone who has seen her on any stage and in any show must know she's singing at maybe 70%? and is probably saving her moment to blow your face off for one of the epic battles next week. Also I polled most everyone in New York and we would slip Adam Levine (she picked Team Adam) some Benjamins to have her sing Aquarius.

 

Kill it, girl!

 

MELISSA PRESTI works in book publishing at Penguin Group (USA). www.us.penguingroup.com
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HAPPY ANNIVERSARY NEW YORK!

I think the traditional gift for a 5 year anniversary with New York is a tetanus shot.
By Melissa Presti 

Tomorrow, April 5, 2013 marks my 5 year Anniversary with NYC.

I still have my one-way plane ticket that has been living in the pocket of my suitcase for four years and 364 days because I’m a woman and we think it’s normal to save movie ticket stubs and dried out flower bouquets from weddings.

I can tell you that I got on the plane wearing 3 coats because I was literally bringing my life to New York in 2 exploding suitcases and everything on my back. I came with one of my best friends and zero job prospects, just the sheer determination to make it. “It” being anything outside of Ohio that embraced the unconventional, fostered the creative, and gave us access to the world.

                                             Sidewalk wisdom in Union Square

I really had an amazing group of friends from the start – a mixture of my fellow Denver Publishing Institute grads, native New Yorkers, NYU students, club promoters, and ambitious creative types across the board. Genuine people who created this welcoming and safe space that I’m eternally grateful for. For those I still see and keep in touch with, we’ve had crazy transformative friendships as we’ve grown up and traded Sunday nights out til sunrise for 9-5 careers. For those that only exist in my Facebook feed – I see what you’re doing, conquering the world in some crazy awesome endeavors.

HAPPY TU(N)ESDAY

Your soundtrack for Tuesday.
By Melissa Presti (Book Publisher) 

I’m a double feature on the internet today, here at Crazytown and over at my buddy jdbrecord’s blog, making my 10-track contribution to his weekly “Tu(n)esday” playlist (one that will BLOW YOUR MIND). I don’t want to brag, but I think a few of my picks would be excellent music options for the contemporary pieces on So You Think You Can Dance, just saying.

His blog readers have no idea that I’m a bit of a run-on sentence in human form so I kept the descriptions short and sweet…you are not that lucky.

First up, is my favorite album of the year (I know it's only March). Cannibals With Cutlery is the debut album from To Kill A King from the UK and I seriously can’t pick a favorite track.

The entire album exudes mellowness with an edge, a full orchestra of soundsation, and lead singer Ralph Pelleymounter’s rich, velvety baritone smoothing over all the emotions. “Funeral” is the most recent single and video in what appears to be a signature line of weird avant garde music videos the guys have put out. They're a non-mainstream kind of weird, not David Hasselhoff weird. And "Fictional State" probably is my actual favorite; as a former trumpet player I love when these guys use the brass.

 

 

In true Anglophile form, I just finished a Netflix streaming marathon of every season of Skins. I have so much music to download from that show, but the series finaled ended on "Don't Go" by Rae Morris which was heartbreakingly perfect. She's relatively new to the music scene and I was happy to buy her EPs.

 

Ghost Beach is my dance-break jam. These New Yorkers have created an experimental electro-tropical-pop sound that all dance music from the 80's should have been. "Close Enough" is their newest collab, and every song they release is a free download. Crazy awesome - and the guys are currently surveying artists to see who is for or against piracy. Sound off here!

BASTILLE DEBUTS BAD BLOOD

Bastille has the #1 album in the UK and will take on the U.S. today as Bad Blood makes it's American debut at SXSW...and any day now on iTunes.
By Melissa Presti (Book Publisher) 

On December 13, 2012 The Vampire Diaries scored the final scene of their episode with “Oblivion” by Bastille, and suddenly the band gained an American fan base.

The above photo appropriately time stamps my Bastille discovery seven months prior (full credit to Chop Shop Records, coincidentally run by the music supervisor of...The Vampire Diaries, so it's all come full circle). Take note, because they just grabbed the #1 album spot on the UK charts with their Bad Blood debut that dropped March 4^th in the UK.

It’s been quite the journey of musical discovery these last ten months, filled with slow-released EPs, cover albums, a library of YouTube videos, and even streaming their iTunes Festival performance from my office. And let’s not forget my non-stop promotion on every social media platform – including this blog. Twice.

The Band

Frontman Dan Smith (vocals, keyboard), known for his voluminous hair and thrifty sweaters, turned his solo bedroom recordings from 2010 into the current 4-piece Bastille band that includes Kyle Simmons (keyboards, synths, computers, things with buttons, etc. etc.), Will Farquarson (acoustic and bass guitars), and Chris “Woody” Wood (drums). Though they don't appear to be confined in their musical talents as they can be seen playing a myriad of instruments on stage. They are most definitely British and not French, Dan’s birthday simply falls on Bastille Day so, there you go. 

                                                        Will, Woody, Dan, and Kyle

The Music

Are you ready for this genre-bending mash-up?

Rhythmic-electro-cinematic-indie-pop. In varying combinations.

I made that up…you can find it filed under “Alternative” on iTunes. The music style is gracefully chaotic – piano ballads mixed with synths and strings - and it delivers a level of unmatched ingenuity. There is integrity behind the rhythm and melodies that doesn't allow the eclectic sound to ever become formulaic.

Most notably, Dan’s vocals rise and fall effortlessly with every inventive hook and unexpected riffing. His voice has a haunting and echoing quality about it that was built for acoustics; when I say it always sounds like he’s singing under a bridge I mean that in the best way possible.