Conrad Newholmes

I returned from the occupied territories in the West Bank in January. I was there with a human rights organization on a delegation. The main purpose was to record testimonies from diverse Palestinian peoples, all of whom are suffering greatly as a direct result of the occupation (funded in large by the U.S. and ordained by the earth's largest transnational fianancial institutions). I was nearly deported by Israeli soldiers on some nonsense trump charge. On our way into Bethlehem, our bus was pulled over by Israeli soldiers and i was singled out of our group and taken off the bus. The soldiers then told me that the entry date on my visa was wrong (which it was not, as it was not only stamped with the correct date of my arrival bbut the same date as all the other members of our delegation. Our delegation leader basically told me to get back on the bus and ignore the soldiers. So i did... theres no tlling what kind of nasty manipulations I may have faced under Israeli interigation.. hell it is not outlandish to assume that I may have been framed for something. God only knows it happens to Palestinian activists on the regular.
Besides the inhumanity facing everyday life for everyday Palestinian people..I was very disturbed by how controlled the entire occupation is, along with the "terrorist" trump card being played by Israel. What i mean by controlled is this:
There are military checkpoints everywhere, Israeli lookout towers in every direction, soldiers and snipers on rooftops, a wall seperating the occupied territories from Israel. The infastructure of total control is in place and fully operational. Having said that, everytime a non-violent resistance begins to gather populist support amongst the Palestinian people, the organizers are either A) assassinated, or, B) arrested on trumped terrorism charges where they are then locked away from the eyes and ears of the world with no ability to communicate the details of their charges to anyone in the CIVILIZED world. Non-violent resistance organizers are stamped out VERY quickly, however, those groups who use or advocate the use of violent tactics of resistance, and or terrorist tactics, are given a much longer leash in Palestine. That is what i mean by "the occupation and the resistence is controlled". Do the math.. it is fairly obvious, albeit disgusting and shameful. I was there, I saw it, I heard the stories, I saw the pictures, i heard testimony after testimony, and experienced the occupation first hand. It is very similar to the horrors that the people of Tibet have faced for over half a century.
So, as far as music goes, when i am not killing moths , or tattooing my ass off , co-raising my awsome children with my hell-raising wife, whom i love dearly, I do manage to find time for music. As of recent the music has taken on some different qualities... when i get to a computer network that does not suffer from such a bad case of Mennonitus, i will upload some of the new jammies on this page. .
A damn fine article with some personal history.
Past:
Beneath Autumn Sky - Enki du's Mono ( Hefty Records )
I.A. compilation / Beneath Autumn Sky - blue streams ( Hefty )
Phil Ranelin remixes / Beneath Autumn Sky - Black Destiny ( Hefty )
I.A./Dublab 'summer' compilation / Beneath autumn sky - Winter solstice
( Hefty )
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Conrad Newholmes - EP ( snakebird )
Conrad Newholmes - Peppermint Styles ( Couchblip!)
A.B. Assemblage sessions 1 compilation / Conrad Newholmes - Yohon De Imerzer
( Abandon building )
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Shevek's Masada - Hip-Hop for Dishwashers, Scumballs and Upstarts ( AB records )
Current and coming up:
Long Lungs vs. Conrad Newholmes - More than we can see EP ( unreleased )
I.A. compilation Hefty 10th anniversary / Beneath Autumn Sky - she walks with ( Hefty )
Beneath Autumn Sky - Renewed EP ( Organik records )
Saturday Morning Cypher Live emcee, DJ, and puppet performance featuring 7 Spikes, Lungs & Lisp
Well then.. big ups all you beat heads!! Please stay creative and do what you can to keep your regional scenes thriving. Thanks for the support, and don't be afraid to speak and act out against the ill-fated path being set before the world by it's greatest dominators!! PEACE!!