We Wait in Summertime

As reported in yesterday’s New York Times:

The research reveals that “the sense of having a body, of being in a bodily self,” is actually constructed from multiple sensory streams, said Matthew Botvinick, an assistant professor of neuroscience at Princeton University, an expert on body and mind who was not involved in the experiments.

Usually these sensory streams, which include vision, touch, balance and the sense of where one’s body is positioned in space, work together seamlessly, Prof. Botvinick said. But when the information coming from the sensory sources does not match up, when they are thrown out of synchrony, the sense of being embodied as a whole comes apart.

The brain, which abhors ambiguity, then forces a decision that can, as the new experiments show, involve the sense of being in a different body.

The research provides a physical explanation for phenomena usually ascribed to other-worldly influences, said Peter Brugger, a neurologist at University Hospital in Zurich, Switzerland. After severe and sudden injuries, people often report the sensation of floating over their body, looking down, hearing what is said, and then, just as suddenly, find themselves back inside their body.

In related news, western Pennsylvania’s heavily-vocodered, hypnotic pop superconductors Black Moth Super Rainbow will be extending their tour from September through Thanksgiving-time in support of their much buzzed-about third album, Dandelion Gum. While initial research is still sketchy, preliminary findings are showing that the perceptual experiences of being present at a Black Moth Super Rainbow live show are such that the senses appear to “cross over,” whereby individuals hear colors, see sounds, and feel sensations that do not necessarily exist. In other words, it would be enough to put even Terry Riley into an epileptic shock. Compounding this effect, the Super Rainbow will be hitting the road with the Flaming Lips and Aesop Rock. Tour dates, mp3s, and more BMSR research after the jump.

Lost, Picking Flowers on the Road:

09/05 Newport, KY Southgate House
09/06 Chicago, IL Abbey Theater
09/07 Chicago, IL Aragon Theater*
09/09 Minneapolis, MN The Myth*
09/10 Omaha, NE Waiting Room
09/12 Kansas City, MO Uptown Theater*
09/14 Colorado Springs, CO Black Sheep
09/16 Salt Lake City, UT Urban Lounge
09/18 Vancouver, BC Orpheum Theater*
09/19 Portland, OR Roseland Theater*
09/20 Seattle, WA Paramount Theater*
09/22 Eugene, OR WOW Hall
09/25 Pomona, CA Glasshouse
09/28 Santa Barbara, CA Magic Lantern
09/29 Upland, CA The Wire
10/06 Visalia, CA The Cellar Door
10/10 San Francisco, CA Fillmore^
10/12 Los Angeles, CA Henry Fonda Theatre^
10/13 Phoenix, AZ Clubhouse^
10/15 Albuquerque, NM Sunshine Theatre^
10/16 Durango, CO Abbey Theatre^
10/18 Denver, CO Cervantes^
10/19 Boulder, CO Fox Theatre^
10/20 Ft. Collins, CO Aggie Theatre^
10/22 Salt Lake City, UT In The Venue^
10/25 Portland, OR Wonder Ballroom^
10/26 Vancouver, BC Commodore Ballroom^
10/27 Bellingham, WA Nightlight^
10/28 Seattle, WA Showbox^
10/30 Eugene, OR WOW Hall^
11/07 Asheville, NC Orange Peel^
11/09 Orlando, FL Club Firestone^
11/10 Miami, FL Studio A^
11/12 New Orleans, LA House of Blues^
11/13 Baton Rouge, LA Spanish Moon^
11/15 Dallas, TX The Loft^
11/16 Houston, TX Warehous Live^
11/17 Austin, TX Emo’s^
11/19 Nashville, TN Exit In^

* w/ The Flaming Lips
^ w/ Aesop Rock

In addition to this extensive touring, which will take the band two months to reach Tennessee from Kentucky, Black Moth Super Rainbow will be reissuing their first two, presently out-of-print albums, Falling Through a Field and Start a People, with the help of the band’s own The ’70s Gymnastics Recording Co. and Chicago’s Graveface Records. Both reissues will be available October 23 with revised cover art and, of course, bonus tracks. Samplings of the group’s output, in chronological order, are presented henceforth:

From Falling Through a Field:
“I Think It Is Beautiful That You are 256 Colors Too”
“Boatfriend”

From Start a People:
“I Am the Alphabet”
“1 2 3 of Me”

From Dandelion Gum:
“Forever Heavy”
“Sun Lips”
(Stream the whole album here, buy the album here.)

Looking forward (or is that smelling forward?), two members of Black Moth Super Rainbow will be releasing solo products this year. The bassist, with the peculiar moniker Power Pill Fist, will be releasing his second solo album this month, entitled KONGMANIVONG. Meanwhile, band leader Tobacco will be releasing a DVD of audio-visual mindtreats such as this and this:

Oh, Richard Simmons, I think my sensory sources have just been thrown out of synchrony.

-Reported by Todd