NO PAIN IN DEATH

You wanted a hit, but that's not what we do.

2010-08-11T11:54:00.000-07:00

So I read today that the criminally under-appreciated TV show, Friday Night Lights will have it's next season, it's fifth, be its last. This is truly a shame. Not sure if there's ever been a show on tv that has tugged on heartstrings the way this show has. Every show just hits you in the stomach. I seriously need to get direct tv just so I don't have to wait until next summer to view the final season. What a shame. You'll be missed.

Really enjoyed myself at the Spiritualized show a few weeks ago. It was one of the most amazing concert experiences I've ever had the pleasure to enjoy. They played their hit record, Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space, start to finish. Added a few extras at the end. There was a choir, string and horn sections. It was seriously unreal. I just sat in the balcony and drank a few beers taking it all it. Simply amazing.

Jason Pierce and co. began playing Ladies and Gentlemen in full a few years back, with gigs in the UK, and thankfully it finally made it's way across the pond here to the US. It was just an amazing experience. Always under appreciated and never fully given it's credit, despite a massive cult following and sold out shows around the world. This band should have been ten million times bigger. Loved them and always will. Especially now, seeing this record performed the weay it was, at a place as wonderful as Radio City Music Hall.

Listening Pile:

Let me start off by saying, despite what I’ve said or written about LCD Soundsystem in the past, some good, some very bad, I’ve always been a fan. I think a lot of it has to do with that 2^nd album, Sound of Silver, which for all the accolades and adoration James Murphy received for it, I just couldn’t bear to like. I loved the early singles and the first record, but that 2^nd record just turned me off on the band. And I don’t necessarily think it’s a bad record, it just never appealed to me.

Needless to say, my opinion of the group has only been reinvigorated recently. Despite my trepidation going into it, This is Happening just blew me away. It came through as really solid and mature songwriting. Not to say, and no pun intended that Mr. Murphy had lost his edge. He just grew up a little bit more and the change is reflective in the sound of the album. There are the usual bag of tricks, floor anthems and dancy post punk beats, however the lyrics are more poignant and introspective. The music more sincere and narrative around them. He focuses more on the space between tracks and instruments.

Where beats would knock you over the head before, they now quietly sneak up on you. It’s as if the dance party has been taken off the dance floor and into the bedroom on certain tracks(with a huge nod to Bowie and Eno). He’s not making fun of himself(that much) or lamenting about scenes or trivial band stuff, but rather looking at things in the perspective of a man who’s been around long enough to comment on the silliness of it all.

you've been the only thing that's right In all I've done

2010-07-14T21:06:00.000-07:00

so, it's been ages since i've posted. but feel like we must bring this back to life. so here we go. it's like getting back on a bike, right?

found myself listening to snow patrol's final straw this evening. what a great record. takes me back to a really great time in my life. good ole 2003/04. seems like ages ago. yet this record holds up.

so anyhows, that's all i gots right now. but will update again. promise. with a cherry on top.

I wish I was a little bit taller...

2008-07-12T07:59:00.001-07:00

ha, it's been a while, I know. Just realized I had this good ole weblog again. Needless to say work and real life(and GTA IV) have been keeping me pretty busy these days.

Anywho, blogging from my iPhone. Not the new fancy 3g ones, but good old 1st gen with new 2.0 firmware. Loving the new Aps.

AIM, net news wire lite, super monkey ball. So excited.

Wasting Time To Get It Right

2008-03-13T19:10:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking a lot about how I'm going to do my NL and AL preview this year, and honestly, I haven't a clue. What I do have is a quick little post on my thoughts about the Yankees. I'll do this for the infield, outfield, bullpen, bench and starting staff. Today we'll start with the infield. One of the best parts of the Yankees I feel comfortable with.

Before I get on with that, I just want to share my though†s on a few current affairs. First of all, Eliot Spitzer. Wow! What the hell were you thinking. Seriously, couldn't you have had å mistress. It would have been expensive, sure, but voters are more likely to pass off allegations of a mistress over a prostitution ring scandal. Man, and the looks from his wife during that speech. Whoa, cold as ice.

Why is Billy Crystal getting to play with the Yankees for a day. Sure he's sixty and a mega-movie and comedy star. But seriously, where do you get in line at the Devil's door to get some of that. One at bat and my soul is for sale. I pose this question, better movie, City Slickers or Princess Bride... Let the debate begin.

OK, we all know that Lost Boys was a great movie, some 20 years ago. Why Dear GOD are they remaking it, or making the sequel. It's disturbing, the recent trend to remake movies, series and trying to wrangle people ino seeing these things, due to some sort of nostalgia. I'm over it. Please, no more Knight Rider, Terminator, Lost Boys, etc... Stop. Originality, it's a great thing. However, I will say, Corey Feldman has aged nicely. Good for him.

Ok On with the Yankees.

After dizzying few weeks in November when it looked like A-Rod was a goner, the biggest save of the year may go to Jimmy Buffet. The man that made A-Rod grow a set and hush agent Scott Boras, to rush back to the Yankes and negotiate his own deal with Hank and Hal. It seems we are pretty well set in the infield – at this point it looks like A-Rod, Jeter, Cano and a combination of Wilson Betemet, Shelley Duncan and Jason Giambi at first. It wouldn’t surprise me to see Johnny Damon and Jorge Posada get some playing time at first, as well. We know what A-Rod can do, and hopefully he can replicate his MVP performance of 2007. And even if he doesn’t, as long as he puts up his season average of, 44, 128, .306, he should make people happy. Jeter has been a solid, .300, 100 runs scored guy at the top of the order, though I cannot lie and say, I would not mind to see both him and A-Rod run a lot more. Can you believe Jeter only stole 15 bases last year, after a career high 34 in 06? And could someone please tell me how someone with his speed ranks up 21 double plays? Anyone? I know no one wants to hear this, but I think we may have seen the beginning of Jeter’s decline last year. He will be 34 in June. Hopefully with Betemit spelling him a little this year, the Captain will be able to remain fresh and not so banged up. Cano got off to an abysmal start, hitting .240 through mid-May, but wound up at .306 with 19 homers and 97 RBIs, being one of the most solid producers in the 2nd half, as well as the post-season.

Now, lets move over to the albatross that is first base. Forget about trying to figure out the situation at first, and seeing who could be useful to this team. It seems Cashmoney has as well. It appears we will have Wilson Betemet, Shelley Duncan and Jason Giambi, all sharing time at first and possibly being very unproductive. If Giambi can stay healthy, he should be a contributor in some capacity. General Joe Girardi, has said he's like Giambi to play 100 games at first. Frankly, I think that would be a miracle, but who knows. It is a contract year for Giambi after all. I mean, it'd be great to finally see him all sweaty in the dougout and finally have a reason for it. Betemit has shown, that unless he gets regular playing time, he’s just not gonna get the at bats to get himself sorted. Which is kinda sad, because I can see him being a semi-useful player with regular playing time. Duncan, well, I love the kid’s enthusiasm, but he strikes out too much and doesn’t make nearly as much contact, as you would want from someone coming off the bench. There could be some folks on the bench who can be actual threats in late innings depending on how the team shakes out during the rest of the month, though I doubt we’d see anyone else make the team except maybe the attorney general, Alberto Gonzalez as a utility guy or Morgan Ensberg, as the utility, 3b, OF, DH kind of guy. Then, there is Eric Duncan, who if he could somehow overcome his injuries and slumping prospect status, could make the roster at some point during the year, though I could see Juan Miranda getting a call first. Maybe a guy like Jason Lane sneaks onto the roster at some point during the year as well, though, I honestly can't see him being useful in any sort of way.

At catcher is Jorge Posada, who is coming off a career year, also a contract year. I think we can see him regress to his norms of .280, 18, 80 kinda year. Which would be fantastic for a 36 year old catcher. I love Benji Molina as the back up as well. He's very solid behind the plate, and can hit lefties well. So there you have it. A guy that can spell Jorge when necessary. About time we had one of those.

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So there you have it. My infield preview. The rest of the team coming to a weblog near you soon.

Listening Pile:
I'm not even gonna try to explain this one. I'm so in love with Lykke Li and her wonderful music. Watch this video and I"m sure you will be too. And, yes. Those are members of the Shout Out Louds in the video. And Peter, from PB&J produced the album. Until Next Time. Cheers.

take this sinking boat and point it home

2008-02-26T09:06:00.000-08:00

Alright. Before we get things started. I wanted to say how awesome it is to see Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova win an Oscar for their song, 'Falling Slowly', from the movie Once. The movie was amazing and by far one of the best "music" films in recent memory. I was so happy to see them perform their song in itself(the highlight of the Oscars), but to win, is a major accomplishment, not only for Glen and Marketa, but for music in general. Marketa and Glen's speeches were really on the money, talking about indie artists and their struggles and how they never imagined being where they were. Being a huge fan of Glen's band the Frames for some time now, I'm really psyched for that band to finally get some of the recognition they deserve. Their most recent album, The Cost is where I first heard a few of the songs featured in Once. And big props to John Stewart, who was a fantastic host of the festivities, and also when he recognized that Marketa had been cut-off before making her speech. Him calling her onstage to finish, was huge and super classy.

While I'm talking about the Oscars, and how it's all some big fancy ass kissing fest, with fancy outfits. I'm glad to finally see some great indie films and music get their fair props. So glad to see Juno and Once, among other great indie films represented. And seriously, what is up with John Travolta's face. Did he forget to take off the makeup from Hairspray or what. The Grand Wizard is getting scary looking. Jeez, I should be careful. I don't want to get blackballed by the Scientologists.

Has anyone been watching Dexter on CBS? Wow, from the first ten minutes of it's debut on the network last week, I thought to myself, 'WOW, is this show good'. I think I'm over watching it on CBS and about to get the DVD's with the original Showtime episodes, fully intact and uncut. Michael C. Hall plays that character so incredibly perfect. He's creepy, smart, funny, disturbed and so likable all at the same time. It truly takes a special actor to pull off what he's doing. I'd been meaning to watch this show for some time now and even had it in my Netflix que, but damn, is it getting moved to the top, along with season 2. Honestly, one of the only good things to come out of the writers strike. And more youtube watching. Came across a link to this beauty the other day. Man, what a lame attempt to recreate the super-bowl shuffle.

Listening Pile:
Been meaning to give iliketrains a mention on here for some time. Part of the fertile Leeds scene but creating musical soundscapes that stand apart from their contemporaries, iLIKETRAiNS played their first gig in February 2004. The band uses visual backdrops by using antique projectors to display their way through films of disaster, films of snow and a film of Raquel Welch in a bikini. The songs are all concerned with catastrophic events and historical figures. Their music is dark, atmospheric, and brooding. I'm a big fan of their EP, Progress Reform and subsequent full length, Elegies to Lessons Learnt
which culminates into everything this band has attempted to this point, with tracks flowing into one another like the glacial disasters displayed in their films. It takes a certain mood to listen to them, or maybe they just put you into that mood after listening to them. Not so sure. But it's not necessarily a bad place.

let's go to synaesthesia

2008-02-21T11:36:00.000-08:00

This photo really cracked me up earlier today. My thinking had always been, how the hell did Humberto Sanchez come hurt from Detroit in the Sheffield deal? Well, now we know why he's hurt. He's spending time with Captain Glass Ass himself, Carla Pavano. There should be some sort of mandate that all pitchers are to keep at least 10 feet away from the man. It seems like whatever he's got, is contagious. Why is he in camp anyway? Ugh! That depresses me. The guy somehow had me fooled last year. He fooled a lot of folks into thinking he could finally be healthy and contribute to the team. Hell, he even started on opening day! Oh man, what a waste of some 40 million smackers. I could have contributed more for 1/40th of that.

Love that Jeter, Posada and Mariano all showed up and threw some support for Andy Pettitte the other day, during his news conference. Think that will go a long way in establishing some comradery in the clubhouse for the Yanks. They will surely need it and be tested this year, with all that uncertainty in the pitching rotation and bullpen.

Last night I came across this game called Rez HD. I'd read a few things about it's remake for the Xbox 360 and how it supposedly had this amazing soundtrack and sorta surreal game-play. "Enjoy electronic music? How about first-person shooters? Rez HD combines both seamlessly."

The information age comes to a deadly halt when the core of society's technological memory an AI unit called Eden begins to feel the strain of too much data. Struggling to keep up, the technology actually begins to question its own existence and goes into a futuristic freak out. Now, you must journey deep into the realm of 3D cyberspace in order to fix the system, a task that will require hacking codes and battling fierce creatures.

I read that tag the other day and thought, OK, I'm game. Sounds like it could be pretty cool. And it most certainly was. I downloaded the game demo and proceeded to get my socks knocked off. Rez contains almost no sound effects or spoken dialogue. Instead, the game is set to trance music, which plays in the background and gradually evolves as the player moves among levels. The music is enhanced by musical effects (such as trills and drums) generated by the player's actions, enemies and surroundings.It's a simple game. It's not rocket science, but one hell of a game. I am hooked.

listening pile:
M83, known to his family and friends, as French electro-artist Anthony Gonzalez, is releasing his new album called Saturdays = Youth on Mute Records, in April. "Couleurs", the first single is sick and up for streaming at their MySpace page. It's dense and epic, checking in at some 9 minutes of bliss. It's gonna be digitally released next week, along with a remix by Jori Hulkkonen, because hey, that's what the kids dig these days. Any really, any remix by a guy named Hulkkonne has got to be monstrous. Thank you, there's a 8 and 10 o'clock show, ladies and gentlemen.

I have cried til I'm half blind.

2008-02-18T11:42:00.000-08:00

Um...Paul. Didn't you get the memo? Came across this story the other day on the NY Times' Bats Blog. Not only did the Yankees assign Paul O'Neil's #21 to Morgan Ensberg!?!, but the Bombers didn't even bother telling Pauly about it. Strange, I honestly thought "The Warrior" as Mr. Steinbrenner loved to call him, would have his number retired. This is kinda blowin me away. I can only imagine about how it makes good ole' Pauly feels. It's pretty strange seeing how some of the young kids are being assigned numbers in the 80's and 90's tho. Not sure how I feel about the number changes for some players tho, like Phil Hughes going to 34. He should have taken a good number, like 11 or 22, or something. Not sure if he has some sort of affinity for it like Ian Kennedy and his #31, which he wore in high school.

So, I honestly don't know what to think about the whole Clemens congressional hearings. Cept, his response to him not knowing what a vegan was, is priceless. Honestly, I think the whole thing is pretty ridiculous, as are the Spygate investigation in Football. The fact that all these congressmen have enough time to look into these issues when much more serious issues are at hand, is just a joke of our government. You're telling me it's more important for congress to worry about whether a bunch of athletes are lying, cheating or taking drugs, than oh, I don't know, world peace, the economy going into the crapper, the lack of health insurance for many Americans and education. Hmmm!

Listening Pile:
The Magnetic Fields have been making consistently wonderful records for a long time now. Generally filled with synthy and indie-pop music about love and life, with clever and humorous lyrics. The new album Distortion, varies from the clean formula Stephen Merritt has been known to practice, it's loud, fuzzy and deliberately dirty and unsurprisingly features a lot of distortion, this album's theme. There are a few fantastic songs on this album, including my favorite, "Please Stop Dancing", with it's irreverent humor, squelch of feedback, minor piano chords and boy-girl echoing. It in many ways is a perfect snapshot of the record.

These Cheese Doodles Are Delicious!

2008-02-15T09:07:00.000-08:00

Holy Snikes! It's been a while since I've posted. Dunno what it is about post holiday cheer/depression that puts me into hibernation for a few months. But hot damn! So much going on this week and last!

How about a seven things I think I think? You want it, I want it, don't say no.

1. The Giants won the Super Bowl. Yes, the New York Giants. And no, the invincible Tom Brady wasn't hurt, nor were the entire New England Patriots team stricken with the flu or gang green, or whatever.
The Giants D played their faces off and won. Wow. That double miracle play when Eli Manning snuck away from the Pats D and then the reception by David Tyree. What the hell was that. Talk about a play for all ages. That was nuts. Congrats to the Giants. Boooooooo to Bill Bellichek, the grumpiest sucker this side of Walter Matheau.

2. The celebrity rehab show with Dr. Drew is the best thing on TV right now besides new LOST episodes. Well, and that Breaking Bad show, which seems to only air new episodes every other week? Thank god the writers are back! Finally we may get some new episodes of some of our favorite TV shows back. I read we should get a few more episodes of the aforementioned LOST, however it may end up with a vastly different ending than initially planned. We should also get 4-5 new 30 Rock(honestly, Tracy Morgan needs to get back to work), Office, Chuck and Pushing Daisies, episodes. This is good news, because unless Eva Mendes and Kirsten Dunst joined Dr. Drew, that was about to get boring real quick. I mean, you can only watch China loose her shit so many times.

3. Smell that? It's grass and dirt on the baseball fields in Arizona and Florida. Spring Training has arrived. Pitcher and Catchers have reported this week and position players arrive next week. This is the best thing about February. Really! I cannot think of one other thing that could better this month. Valentines Day, Presidents Day, The ProBowl, Black History Month, nope. They got nothing on pitchers and catchers. The countdown for the first real game is about 45 days. I cannot wait for this year to start. I have tix for the last and first game of this, the final year at the hallowed Yankee Stadium. Plus, I get to go to the All-Star game, the Home Run Derby and about a dozen other games. If it weren't for the catastrophic events that would happen personally and globally by hitting the fast forward button, it would be March 28th today. You can thank that horrible Adam Sandler movie for that!

4. Shin splints! I've never really had a problem with them before, but got em pretty bad this time around. So much that my mileage over the last 3 weeks has been 0, and the previous 2 weeks about 5 per week. Great! The doc told me to stay off it for about another 2 weeks and spend a lot of money on orthotics, painkillers and some cortizone. Luckily, I've been fortunate enough to ride the stationary bike at the wonderful Chinatown YMCA, which may have the most intriguing grouping of patrons you could ever imagine. The shit I've seen has been ridiculous. Really! I'm constantly blown away by the wardrobe people have for the gym, and that's not even counting the people that parade around in their bathing suits(and sadly, by people I mean men too).

5. I don't know if I've mentioned my disdain for a Mr. Stephen P. Jobs, but I will reiterate it here today. Why, oh why did you make my iPod die the day before Christmas with one of your fancy "DEATH" updates? How convenient that it worked before I plugged it in for a "NEW" update? And then afterwards, it just happens to not work again, ever! It's a neat trick you played on me SPJ. I'll get you back some day. You cost me $200 smackers to get a new nano, which is actually pretty nice, but has horrible synching issues that are driving me nuts. And I love that I can't run it on my ibook since I'm still not even on Leopard with it(I guess kitty doesn't do it). You know who I'm blaming this on. I just hope that when I finally spring the $500 to get an iPhone, it doesn't meet the same fate.

6. All I'm going to say about this, is it's about time someone realized this no-talent assclown is really not all that good. Poor Stephen A. got canned from his job at the Philly Inquirer. Ha. Sadly for the US public, he is ready to resume his broadcasting career(which he is so great at) and ready to blog. HA. If anything his abrasive and warm personality should only be read, not seen on TV. Ugh! When will ESPN finally get rid of this clown.

7. Pedro Martinez, everybody's favorite crazy cockfighting Dominican nursing home bouncer is at it again. Giddy over Johan Santana joining the Mets, says he's like a glass of water on a hot day. Sexy. Very, Very Sexy. And when he talked about how he dominated in the steroids era, saying,

"I have a small frame and when I hurt all I could do was take a couple of Aleve or Advil, a cup of coffee and a little mango and an egg -- and let it go!"

I'm just wondering where can I get some of that little mango and eggs. Cus that sucker was just lights out for about 6-7 years. I hated when the Yanks had to face him back then.

Listening Pile:
Been listening a lot to Working for a Nuclear Free City. The Manchester quartet's Businessmen & Ghosts drops a nostalgic view and huge nod to some of Manchester's finest, including early Roses and the Happy Mondays. WFANFC create a drugged-out concoction of beat-laden soundscapes, dense bass grooves, and dreamy comedowns.

Originally released in the UK in early ‘07 to critical acclaim, the new US version has been updated with a whole new album’s worth of songs, WFANFC has recorded since. Working For A Nuclear City began as a studio project involving Gary McClure and Phil Kay (keys/production). In 2004, they took to the stage, recruiting Phil's brother Jon on drums and Ed Hulme on bass.

Forgive what I have done

2007-12-17T16:16:00.000-08:00

The first news of at least someone coming back to the tube came out earlier this week. Jay Leno and Conan both said their shows will be back in the New Year. Thank you jeebus. Now if we can only get the writers for Heroes and 30 Rock back, I'd be OK.

Besides telling peeps to back off on Jenny Love Hewitt, Big Hank still believes that the trade for Johan Santana remains a possibility. I have to say, I hope not. While I love Melky and Ian Kennedy, I'm not opposed to giving them up for Santana. Yet, I'd rather not see them packaged with Phil Hughes for the 2 time Cy Young winner. I think Johan is a great pitcher, but that's a lot to give up for a pitcher that the Yankees have hit in the post season and one that never looked right last year. If anything, wait out the year, see how the young arms develop and if necessary, make a change in July at the trade deadline, or try to sign CC Sabathia next off-season.

Came across this article about how a Google exec: iPod to hold all world's content by 2020

Speaking at the 2007 Captains of Industry Conference in Singapore, a Google executive speculated that at current rates of storage growth, an iPod capable of holding all the worldís content could be a reality as soon as 2020.

Put in perspective, the original iPod debuted in 2001 with 5GB of storage and a price of $400. Currently, Appleís highest-capacity iPod, the 160GB iPod classic, sells for $350 ó 32 times the storage, for $50 less than the original.

That is pretty nuts, but not completely unbelievable to see being possible. Plus, if you caught the last episode of journeyman, and how one piece of technology moved up nano-technology twenty years, it seems more than likely. Crazy stuff isn't it.

Listening Pile:
Soulsavers are an English production and remix duo, Rich Machin and Ian Glover. They've released two albums, Tough Guys Don't Dance in 2003 and It's Not How Far You Fall, It's the Way You Land (with Mark Lanegan and others) in 2007.
They've been best known for their remixes for the Doves and Starsailor, which lead me to check out their work. The pair are also making headway as film score composers, with a portfolio of work that includes 2 feature documentary's. I've been listening to a few songs on their Myspace page and have also heard their song, "Revival" a ton on Spinner, which I honestly thought was Spiritualized the first time I heard it. It's good stuff.

Every Word From Your Lips Is A Lullaby...

2007-12-16T16:04:00.000-08:00

So, it's been a while since I've posted. Been doing my kwanzaa shopping. Duh! Got to get it out of the way before festivus hits, you know.

Anyhows, the big news that I can't seem to escape these days is all about the Mitchell Report. The implications this report will have on Major League Baseball will probably hurt the game for years to come. So far, the guys considered to be the greatest pitcher and hitter of our time, have been implicated, Roger Clemens and Barry Bonds. Who else's name will come out in the next few months, or weeks, who knows, but how much more damage can this do to the game. I was really surprised by Andy Pettite's admission to using HGH. He's always been a good guy, and I think that's one of the things lots of people need to keep in mind. It's not all bad guys like Canseco, Bonds and Jose Guillen, it's lots of good guys that you admire and support, like Pettite, Clemens and Tejada. I'm sure you'll hear a lot of what Pettite said, that they took them while injured to get back on the field. Excuse or no excuse, I'm not sure if it's something fans should forgive so easily.

I'm gonna come up with a top 20 or something records of the year soon, but I wanted to give some props to other favorites so far this year.

Movies:
No Country for Old Men
Transformers
Superbad
Bobby
For Your Consideration
Hot Fuzz(love these guys, hope they make another funny film)
The Last King Of Scotland (Forrest Whitaker was brilliant)
Once(music in this was amazing)
The Science Of Sleep
300
Mr. Brooks(Costner was great in this)
The Simpsons
Knocked Up(funniest move of the year)
Music and Lyrics, if only for this

TV Shows:
Heroes(wow, killed the sophomore slump)
LOST(when the hell is the new season debuting)
Journeyman(which has been canceled, just as it was getting good, too bad they aren't making it a Sci Fi show)
Chuck
Cavemen(also cancelled, tho funny as hell)
Pushing Daisies(the best new show on TV)
30 Rock(the best show on TV)
The Office(sooo funny)

Mommy's in the doorway, Trying to leave

2007-11-07T08:16:00.000-08:00

I'm so bummed I missed the Office Convention in Scranton, PA. Man, does that seem like a good time or what. I wonder if there were more guys dressed as Dwight or Jim?

Came across this article on the NY Times.Com

To find cask ale, you need to find a dedicated beer bar, especially one that is partial to British ale traditions. For bars in the New York area, this is an excellent resource. Here is a good source for cask ale outlets around the rest of the United States and in Canada, while here is a great web site for all matters pertaining to cask ales and craft beers

Never realized there were so many great bars nearby with cask ales available.

Loving this new PJ Harvey album, White Chalk. It's a little more quiet than her last two albums, but man, can that woman write a killer song. Her voice is a sultry and poignant as ever and she plays quite a bit of piano on this album. She wrote it, not on guitar as usual, but on piano and other instruments, such as zither, harmonica and harp. Longtime pals Eric Drew Feldman and Jim White of the Dirty Three augmented the mostly hushed, atmospheric tracks with Mellotron, delicate percussion, guitar and banjo. Very similar album to 1998's Is This Desire? -- also co-produced by Harvey, Flood and John Parish -- but "White Chalk" is even more ethereal. I'm so bummed I missed her in concert the last two times she's played NYC. Hopefully she makes a return trip to NYC to play even more of her new album and old faves.

fat bloody fingers are sucking your soul away...

2007-10-21T06:54:00.000-07:00

CMJ came and went. It was a lot of fun. It started on Monday night with a party at Rebel. The venue is a lot different since the last time I was there. I didn't like the set-up. It was too small of a stage and a sweaty mess as We Are Scientists drunkenly played through their set. It was also pretty funny that they had a bunch of hardcore dudes djing, like Freddy from Madball and they were playing hip hop. Too funny. Next up on Tuesday was Little Ones at NME's club night. They were actually pretty good. Unlike Tiny Masters Of Today, which was very awkward to say the least. Followed that up with a friend's birthday party at Motor City bar. Wednesday I took it pretty easy, checking out the 1990's at a Table Tennis video game event. The one thing I'll say about that band is the drummer kinda sings like a little girl. I turned in early...well more like passed out on my sofa at about 10:30 that night.

No problem, as Thursday was the big day. I started it off with an awesome set by Biffy Clyro at the fader house thing. They killed it. They rocked so hard, that they literally made the place shake. It was awesome. They played mostly all new songs from their latest release, except 'Glitter and Trauma' from their last record. Next up was iliketrains at White Rabbit. They were great, though the sound wasn't exactly the best at that place. Next up was We Are Wolves and Born In The Flood at another club NME event. They were both pretty good. I was really surprised by Born In The Flood. Never heard of them before I saw them, but they impressed. Next up, was the one band I had to make sure I saw, UNKLE. Man, it was amazing.
I didn't really know what to expect. Best known as a dj and a collaborative project, I didn't know how James Lavelle and Co. would play the songs and sing the parts usually sung by guests like Thom Yorke, Richard Ashcroft, etc...But they totally pulled it off. Playing mostly stuff from the new album, they did kick in a few jams from the first two albums too, capped off by the encore of 'Rabbit In Your Headlights' melted into 'Eye For An Eye'. It rocked pretty hard. Lights killed and visuals were awesome too.

Friday I didn't catch all that much, aside from iliketrains again and the Macabees, who were dreadful. Saturday, I headed over to the newly re-designed, Music Hall of Williamsburg, formerly known as the Northsix. It's now a massive venue. I'm not sure if I really like it. guess I'll have to see another show, or another band. As the band playing that day was Trail Of Dead, who tend to be way too loud and sloppy anywhere they play. They were solid the other afternoon, but it was so loud you could barely here certain instruments and vocals. And that's about it. I drank a bunch of free beer, and closed out my night with dinner at Cafe El Portal and too many margaritas.

So, the Joe Torre saga has finally come to an end. He was a great manager and had 12 amazing seasons with the Yankees, highlighted by the 4 World Series, in five years. But honestly, I've felt like the team has needed a change for some time. I love Torre and all he's done for the team, but I think his ways have become a thing of the past, and I always think he's been bad at managing a pitching staff and using his bench properly. He stuck by veterans, when others would have taken them out of the line-up. He failed to motivate his players and make adjustments in the playoffs, which ultimately sealed his fate. So, now what's next for the Yankees?

My vote is for Joe Girardi to become the next manager. I think he's smart and really understands the game well. He's a former catcher and has worked with a young pitching staff, both as a player and manager in Florida last year. While Don Mattingly is my favorite player of all time and monumentally adored by fans, I just don't think he's ready to be a manager, though maybe one day he could be. To me, it seems like next year will be a rebuilding year and Girardi seems like the right guy to lead a team like that. I can easily see A-Rod playing for Anaheim of Los Angeles of Disney of Petuluma or whatever that team is called now. Clemens will not return, and it's possible Pettite, Rivera and Posada don't return either.

We'll have a very young staff with Hughes, Kennedy and Joba, not to mention Wang who is only still 27. Giambi's huge contract will not match his quickly declining health and skills. The bullpen looks like a mess, however it could be promising if one or two of the youngsters, Ohlendorf, Ramirez, Veras, Bruney, Britton, etc... can effectively throw strikes and mix up their pitches. Will Cano and Cabrera finally mature and become elite hitters. Can Damon and Jeter continue to be big-time run producers. Will Moose rebound from an awful year. Man, lots of questions. It was disappointing to see this season end the way it did, especially with the big come back from their dismal start. I really didn't think I'd find myself rooting for the Indians to be the AL champs.

Listening Pile:
I leave you with the Warlock's 'Baby Blue', the pretty and deliciously retro 7" and CD single taken from the LP arrived awash with sitars, a touch of feedback and a melody that sounded like it had blown in from the West Coast of pop. The single's extra tracks featured two songs from the album recorded on their British tour, "Hurricane Heart Attack" boasting a guest appearance from ex-Spaceman 3 front man Sonic Boom that together with "Inside Outside" successfully conveyed a sense of the band's gigantic live sound. They announced the Warlocks new album "Heavy Deavy Death Skull Love" is finished, and due out on Tee Pee Records this week.

Look for a full-body and amber color.

2007-10-14T15:12:00.000-07:00

Last night on PBS, I came across Explosions In The Sky's Austin City Limits Performance.
Explosions in the Sky Song List
Recorded June 29, 2007: * Yasmin the Light / Catastrophe and the Cure / Memorial
After seeing their great performance, I'm really bummed I didn't get to see a show there when I was in Austin. Next time, I guess. The performance was pretty great and really showed off some of the band's wonderful music.

I don't think I've ever written anything about this band before, but they are indeed awesome. They formed in Austin, in 1999. Explosions has become known for its elaborately developed guitar work, and its narratively styled instrumentals, as well as their enthusiastic and emotional live shows. I'm a big fan of 2003's The Earth Is Not a Cold Dead Place and their most recent album, All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone, released earlier this year. They also scored the soundtrack to the great Friday Night Lights movie, after being contacted by director Brian Reitzell. Despite having access to rare equipment in the studio for that project, the band kept to their songwriting style in creating original material, which is still used on the TV show as well.

I drank my very first Post Road Pumpkin Ale of the season the other night as well. The Brooklyn Brewery's Post Road Pumpkin Ale is a revival of a beer brewed by the early American colonists. Pumpkins were plentiful, flavorful and nutritious and they blended nicely with barley malt. Hundreds of pumpkins are blended into each batch of Post Road Pumpkin Ale, creating a beer with an orange amber color, warm pumpkin aroma, biscuity malt center and crisp finish. Post Road Pumpkin Ale is spiced with cinnamon and nutmeg. There are a few other really great Pumpkin Ales, including, Smuttynose and
Dogfish's Punkin Ale, both of which are fantastic.

Don’t get any big ideas, they’re not gonna happen.

2007-10-13T09:32:00.000-07:00

The CMJ Music Marathon is coming this week. While the magazine itself, has become a 6 page pamphlet in recent years. The marathon is still kicking, alive and well. It's always a great week, with tons of bands to see, parties to attend and friends to catch up with. UNKLE and British Sea Power are probably the two bands I want to see most. Saw some parties with cool lineups too, which invariable, always end up being some of the best shows, plus they tend to have free booze. Can't complain there.

So earlier this week, Radiohead, announced the release of In Rainbows. It's safe to say, few bands have been able to reinvent rock as often as the British quintet has in recent years. Now Radiohead has gone and done it again, and not necessarily by the music itself, but the means by which it is being distributed. By choosing to release their seventh studio album, In R
ainbows, as a digital download through their own site, on a sliding scale, determined by each consumer willing to part with an email address. An idea, that was actually coined by, Jonah Matranga with his Onelinedrawing project. After two days, sources within the band’s camp were claiming that more than 1.2 million copies had been downloaded.

As guitarist, Jonny Greenwood has said over the past few days, the band’s intent is not to start a revolution or give away its music, but rather to prevent it from leaking out to the public over several months before the official CD release next year. In turn, it is the band’s hope that once fans hear the music on compressed MP3 files, they’ll want to buy the sonically superior physical product. An lp version, cd bonus and the downloads up front. All for $81, which seems high, but I guess it all makes sense, when those are the superfans buying it in the long run.

On Monday, Trent Reznor posted on the Nine Inch Nails website, that he has finished his contract with Interscope and his hoping to put out is his own albums, free of label pressure and interference.

Hello everyone. I've waited a LONG time to be able to make the
following announcement: as of right now Nine Inch Nails is a totally
free agent, free of any recording contract with any label. I have
been under recording contracts for 18 years and have watched the
business radically mutate from one thing to something inherently very
different and it gives me great pleasure to be able to finally have a
direct relationship with the audience as I see fit and appropriate.
Look for some announcements in the near future regarding 2008.
Exciting times, indeed.

So, his upcoming Year Zero Remix will be released on the label, and could be the last. Trent Reznor announced a release date and format options for the upcoming Y34RZ3R0R3MIX3D, also known as Year Zero Remixed. This follows the April release of Year Zero and features contributions from Saul Williams and Ladytron, both of whom have recently opened for Reznor's crew, as well as mixes from the Faint, Fennesz and members of New Order and the Knife. One track, "My Violent Heart" by Pirate Robot Midget is actually "a fan's work," he wrote, adding "I thought it was great, it filled a need."

Just read that Nada Surf will be releasing their new record, LUCKY, on February 5th, 2008 on Seattle label, Barsuk Records. This is Nada Surf’s fifth record and third for Barsuk, following the highly successful and critically acclaimed Let Go (2003) and The Weight is a Gift (2005). You can hear and download "See These Bones" now, in a bunch of different places. Do it. It's a great song. The album was co-produced by the band and John Goodmanson (Death Cab For Cutie, Blonde Redhead, Sleater-Kinney). Many great artists make guest appearances on the record, including: Ben Gibbard, Ed Harcourt, and Jesse Sykes. To help announce the coming of the new record, Nada Surf is about to embark on a national headlining tour. The dates begin October 13 in Philadelphia and end November 2 in Baltimore. Sea Wolf will support.

So what'd you have to do that for?

2007-09-18T14:32:00.001-07:00

I was lucky enough to check out the Shudder To Think sorta re-union the other night. Craig Wedren and Nathan Larson joined each other on stage for the first time in about eight years at Mercury Lounge. Nathan came on about half way through Wedren's solo set and performed six Shudder songs with the Craig's band, which included former Shudder drummer Kevin March(who also played in GBV). The artists played "X-French Tee Shirt," "Red House," "Lies About the Sky," "No Rm. 9, Kentucky," "Day Ditty" and "Appalachian Lullaby," which featured vocals from Larson's wife, the lovely Nina Persson, of the Swedish pop group, The Cardigans, who also put out a great album last year. Wedren was funny, recounting stories about the first songs they wrote for movies, how the brief reunion happened and Larson meeting Persson when they collaborated on a song.

This was certainly one of the coolest and low-key re-unions in some time. I think we've been lucky enough to see a few really great bands re-unite over the past few years, Texas Is The Reason, the Jesus and Mary Chain, Seaweed, the Pixies and of course, the ill-fated, Police. If now we could only get Quicksand,Dismemberment Plan and Failure back together.

Came across this logo the other night. Kinda looks a lot like a band's logo if you ask me. I smell a lawsuit, HA!

Listening Pile:
As you might know by now, Les Savy Fav has an incredible new record entitled Let's Stay Friends that came out earlier this month. Praise the Lord! Its the first all new material from the band since 2001. Please go to the media section at their label, French Kiss now and check out "The Equestrian" and "What Would Wolves Do?". This band is awesome. They make great records, run their own label and play the most incendiary shows this side of old Trail Of Dead. I mean, come on! Who doesn't love a portly man running around kissing people and hugging them in bikini briefs? Who?

I Bring Her Home Everything I Want, Nothing That She Needs

2007-09-16T09:23:00.000-07:00

Made my way over to Madison Square Garden the other night to catch Interpol playing their biggest NYC show yet. It's pretty crazy to think they are now big enough to play MSG, and not the Paramount Theater at MSG, but the main floor. You know, where the Knicks and Rangers play. To think, I remember seeing them 6 or 7 years ago at Brownies(R.I.P.) and Mercury Lounge. You have to give this band some credit, they've worked pretty hard and toured endlessly to get where they are. And what a great night for a fantastic show featuring the New York quartet. The band seemed perfectly at ease on the large stage at MSG. Sam, as always, was powerful and precise on the kit, Daniel's guitar soared all night long, as he was found doing his shuffling dance moves and White Guy rap on 'PDA'. Carlos, for once looked happy, posturing himself with his new urban cowboy look, all over the stage. Paul, always seemed reserved and never strained with his trademark monotone vocals, while busting out the black wristbands ala James Hetfield style. They rolled through a powerful set, trading new tunes from their solid new album, Our Love To Admire, with classics from the first two albums, such as 'PDA', 'Stella Was A Diver', 'Obstacle 1', 'Narc', 'Hands Away', 'Slow Hands' and 'NYC'. The audience went nuts when they played recent single, 'The Heinrich Manuever', and worked themselves up into a frenzy when they played singles from the first two albums.

Now, I will say, despite a great set from the band, I can easily do without seeing another concert at MSG for some time. At one point I found myself in a bar that wouldn't have been out of place in Hoboken watching the Yankee game. Strange.
And later on, as I tried to make my way down to the floor to meet up with friends, I ended up in some random hallway deep inside the Garden. I swear, I think the ghost of Ernie Grunfeld must have been following me around. Anyhows, a great show and certainly a good time had. I didn't see Liars open, even though I really wanted to. Cat P ower, seemed oddly out of place on the large stage, and I really don't understand what's up with that backing band. Makes her sort of sound like a bar band. Really it doesn't do her justice, as she's a great singer, albeit certifiably insane.

Listening Pile:
I've been meaning to write up something about the SoftLightes for some time now, but have managed to completely forget to even mention this band. Guys, I apologize. This band is great, as are their electro-tinged indie-pop tunes and videos. ‘Heart Made of Sound’ maybe their best jam, though it's one of many great ones, is a light tune with hints of faint piano keys embellishing the harmonies. The Softlightes, from San Diego, is the latest project from Ron Fountenberry, who's better known as The Incredible Moses Leroy. He put out a fantastic album a few years back, and has now resurfaced with a new band and sugary pop gems. Fans of Leroy will instantly absorb The SoftLightes, who continue where Leroy left off with their new album Say No! to Being Cool. Say Yes! to Being Happy. The album may have come out last winter, but it’s a great album and now there is a new ep w/ some remixes and alternate takes.

While we're here, I came acoross this Cadillac commercial the other day. I have to say, I was more than a little shocked to hear one of my favorite songs from the mid 90's as the background music. Yes, listen again. It's Hum, with their hit, 'Stars'. Very, very strange indeed. I was taken back by it. Add to that, the introduction by Grey's Anatomy star Kate Walsh and it's a strange moment in time. Cadillac is really reaching for a new crowd huh. I used to think only old men drove Cadillacs. Guess they are trying, desperately maybe, to change that.

And Your Words Came Just Like A Hard Rain

2007-09-14T14:10:00.000-07:00

The Juice is loose, again! Seriously, from the Files of Police Squad:

"Thursday night just before 8 p.m., Las Vegas police responded to a call of a person as a victim of an armed robbery at the Palace Station casino," Dillon said. "The victim stated that one of the suspects involved in the robbery was O.J.
Simpson. The items that were taken were various sports-related products."

The items were in a hotel room at the casino, authorities said, adding that although they had seized many of the items they could not describe them.

Simpson told the Associated Press that the memorabilia were his and that he entered the room without breaking in to retrieve the items.

I bet he thought all that stuff was his. Didn't he feel the same way about his ex-wife? Was that out of line? Too soon? I kinda feel bad about that now. Man, has there ever been such a monumental fall from grace, as O.J.? Mike Tyson, Superman, Mike Vick, Webster or Wrestling? I think O.J. has got them all beat. Check out this timeline of his happenings since '94.

Anyhows, over the next few weeks we'll start seeing our favorite TV programs, and surely some new ones we fall in love with, debut on the tube. I have to say, I personally cannot wait for the new seasons of LOST, 30 Rock, The Office, Heroes, Friday Night Lights, How I Met Your Mother. Some new shows that look like they could be interesting, Chuck, Cavemen, Journeyman, Back To You, Pushing Daisies, and what could become something like the next X-Files, the Sarah Connor Chronicles, which has her on the run, trying to keep son John safe in order to save the future of humanity and hide him from the Governator. Also, looking forward to some old favs, like CSI and CSI Miami, Cold Case, Family Guy, and Law & Order.

New shows that look like they'll be on for a month then disappear, Cane, Dirty Sexy Money(despite what looks like a great cast), Gossip Girl, K-Ville, Big Shots, and even though I want it to succeed, Bionic Woman, plus anything on WB or UPN, .. Check out this fall tv preview thingy AOL has up. One thing that seems good about the fall TV lineups, less reality. Yes! I think we can all agree we could use less reality in our lives these days.

Listening Pile:
I've professed my love for the Swedish band, The Shout Out Louds before. And I'm about to do it again. They are back with their new album, Our Ill Wills. Two years after hitting US shores with their debut album, Our Ill Wills, Produced by Bjorn of indie-darling Peter Bjorn & John, is 12 wonderful songs of bouncy, gleaming guitar hooks on deceptively up-tempo pop songs, self-deprecating lyrics in a vocal stylings very, very similar to that of The Cure's Robert Smith. 'Tonight I Have To Leave It' kicks off the record jangly guitars and bursts of waltzing strings. The band dips into darker territory when keyboardist Bebban Stenborg helms the mic on the standout 'Blue Headlights' to deliver a sultry tune laid gently over simple, spare percussion and guitar. The Shout Out Louds have always worn their beaten hearts on their indie pop sleeves, yet they provide just enough mystery and spontaneity is what keeps things exciting, like the album’s awesome ending, 'Hard Rain,' a song that methodically builds into a cataclysmic ending that matches its title perfectly. Of course my favorite track is the bouncy pop gem 'Normandie,' about falling for a girl and well...sailing away to Normandie.

It's Always Someone Else's

2007-09-10T14:22:00.000-07:00

The Whole Foods by us, just made it that much better to go to. Last week they opened the Beer Room. With 200 different beers, from pilsner and weisse to lambic and porter, they've got anyone's beer needs covered.
You can also fill a 64 oz. growler with one of six local beers on tap. The first one I went for was, Bluepoint No Apologies Double IPA. Malty flavor upfront followed by a pleasant caramel sweetness and it's got a crazy 10% alcohol content. It was pretty good to say the least.

So glad that the NFL came back this week. There's no better thing to do on a Sunday than be lazy around the house, kick back watch some football and take naps. Seriously, I can think of no better way to spend a Sunday afternoon. Anyhows, if you watched any football this weekend, you noticed the Patriots and Colts looked pretty good, as expected, and everyone else is basically playing for third place. Huge disappointments from New Orleans, Kansas City, and both New York/Jersey teams. I keep reading lots of pre-season picks saying the Jets and Giants should win 8-9 games, which I'm finding really hard to believe. I can easily see both teams not winning more than 7 games. Rutgers easily won against Navy on Friday, to start their season at 2-0. Not too shaby. And how about A-Rod. Think he's got something like 7 home runs in his last five games. Sick! Hope he continues to hit well going into the last month of the season and hopefully, the postseason.

listening pile:
Definitely my favorite album of the year, Fil m School returns w/ Hide out. The band has mastered a dark pop sensibility that reminds of you of all the best qualities of new wave, shoegaze, and alternative rock. With the help of Phil Ek, who mixed the new album, the band found a dense, layered, dark texture with swirling guitars, dreamy production and instrumental flourishes that the band incorporate almost perfectly into every song. The guitar intro of 'Dear Me' pretty much leads you into the compressed, noisy guitar and synth-drone atmosphere of the entire record. To say this album is shogaze is an understatement. Not only are there are some female vocals, courtesy of new bassist Lorelei Plotcyzk, but guest musicians, like Colm O’Ciosoig of MBV, help deliver the best shoegaze album not born of the 90's. This album kills from start to finish and certainly dispels any concern of a sophomore slump. Where their last album suffered from being a bit uneven, Hide out is an ambitious effort and easily the best headphone experience of the year. Somehow, the album ends on it's best song as well, 'What I Meant To Say', which could be the most rocking and complex song on the album.

I'll Be Sitting On The Left Side, You'll Be Sitting On The Right

2007-09-08T09:12:00.000-07:00

Headed down to Webster Hall last night for a fantastic show, featuring the Birmingham, England quartet, Editors. The band seemed at ease as its piercing rhythms kept pace with the strobe lights, and melodic theatrics when singer Tom Smith traded in his Telecaster for a seat at his custom-made piano, all Chris Martin style. The biggest cheer of the set came during the encore with 'Smokers Outside the Hospital Doors,' a tale about death that impressively shifted from a soaring cascade of glacial guitar work into an anthemic chorus. They started off their set with the title track from their new album, An End Has A Start, which is one of the better songs on the new disc. They shifted through a powerful set, trading new songs with old favorites like 'Bullets', 'Munich' and 'Lights'. Even the new material sounded great in a live setting.

The Scottish trio, Biffy Clyro opened and received a warm reception, enough so to keep singer, Simon Neil, bare-chested the entire set as the group blurred between aggressive rock and roller-coaster power pop. They mostly played material from their exceptional new album, Puzzle, also their fourth, but did include "Glitter and Trauma" and "The Ideal Height" from their previous two albums. This band killed it live. They are finishing up their tour w/ the Editors and then hitting the road with the mighty Queens of The Stone Age, how about that. I cannot wait to see them again, and I'd be even happier to see them play a headlining show to play more of their older stuff. Love this band and finally happy to see them get their fair due here in the US, after getting huge love in their native UK. Puzzle which is available now in the UK & Ireland, will be released on September 18th in America. The album features the singles 'semi-mental', 'Saturday Superhouse', 'Folding Stars', 'Living Is A Problem Because Everything Dies' and forthcoming UK single 'Machines'.

is there anybody alive out there

2007-09-01T13:33:00.000-07:00

Nice series win for the Yankees against Boston the other day, but what the hell happened last night. Big let down after a great 3 game sweep of the Red Sox. With about 29 games left in the season, each game takes on significant importance. Games like these against the Devil Rays need to be won. There's just no excuse. Phil Hughes did his best Mike Mussina impression last night. Ian Kennedy makes his major league debut today. Good luck to the kid.

The Bronx Is Burning concluded the other night, with the team winning the 77 Championship. Definitely thought the mini-series could have been a little better. Wish we would have gotten a little more Graig Nettles, Sparky Lyle, Ron Guidry and Lou Pinella. Some really colorful characters that were almost completely left out of the series. John Torturo was pretty good in the role of Billy Martin. That dude that played Reggie Jackson was not that great, in fact, i kept thinking of C. Thomas Howell as the Soul Man every time I saw him. I did think using actual news footage during the riots and blackout, the world series, as well as the Son of Sam slayings and the following of the case by police was a nice touch.

Rutgers football season started the other night against the mighty University of Buffalo. They won pretty easily, which is good. With all their success in the last two years, especially last year's Cinderella season, I think people have sort of forgotten that Rutgers was actually a pretty awful football team for some time. In fact, I think they won more games last year, than they did in the 4 years I attended Rutgers. I was talking to a buddy the other night about how lucky those kids attending now have it. We had nothing like that when I was there. It's gotta be a lot of fun. Hoping to get down there for the USF game in November. Bet that will be fun.

Listening Pile:
New Bruce Springstein track, Radio Nowhere is available as a free download at iTunes. It's a great track, from the Boss's new album, Magic. I really enjoyed his last album, The Rising too. This one is apparently a little bit more of a rocker and also features the E Street Band. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band have announced their first full scale tour of the US and Europe since 2002-03, starting in Hartford, CT on October 2, the release date for the new album. I have some friends that are all about this.

We play today, we win today, das it.

2007-08-26T11:16:00.000-07:00

The other day, I found myself watching Mission: Man Band. I know, I know, what has my life come to? Well, I have always wondered what happened to the white guy from Color Me Badd. The band, which calls itself Sureshot, consists of four members:

* Bryan Abrams (Color Me Badd)
* Rich Cronin (LFO)
* Chris Kirkpatrick (*NSYNC)
* Jeff Timmons (98 Degrees)

Who are those three other clowns? Basically, they got the dude that's not JT from Nsync and the dude that's not Nick Lachey from 98 degrees. I guess the dude from LFO was picked to round out the crew. What the funny looking guy from the Backstreet Boys was busy? Honestly, this show is pretty bad, but it's just too funny to not watch. You know, in that unintentionally funny kind of way. Sorta like Flavor of Love. By the way, when I googled Color Me Badd, I came up with this tidbit; they are listed on Billboard as the 7th biggest musical act of the 90s. Really? Were the 90's that bad?

As for a good show to watch, I've really been into this show Mad Men on AMC. Good show about Ad Execs during the early 60's. From the executive producer and writer of "The Sopranos" Matthew Weiner, comes Mad Men. It's a provocative tv show about the lives of the ruthlessly competitive men and women of Madison Avenue advertising firm. Good cast to boot, with John Hamm playing a really dark and introverted character, and the lovely January Jones(best known as Cadence from the American Wedding movie) as his wife. I like this show a lot.
It's probably the best TV show to debut this summer. While I'm at it, the other day I caught one of those VH1 Classic Albums shows. This one was about Nirvana's Nevermind. Pretty cool documentary on the making of that album. Includes interviews w/ Dave Grohl, Krist Novoselic, producer Butch Vig and Thurston Moore.

Yankees have been playing like crap the last few days. Losing two of three to the Angels didn't help. And so far splitting the first two games against Detroit. Not looking good going into a huge series against Boston this week, who have been playing well. This is that stretch where they really needed to play well, and they have played just OK. A few things that have hurt the Yanks are the starting pitching has been pretty bad lately, namely Mike Mussina and Roger Clemens. Wang and Pettite have both pitched well their last time out(hopefully that continues), and Phil Hughes continues to be an enigma. Fans are starting to hate on the Joba Rules, believing the kid should pitch when the team needs him, despite the strict rules to keep him from getting hurt. Big series against Seattle next week too. It's kinda funny because, the Yanks really have their own destiny in their own hands. Ask most teams and players, and that's what they would want. It's pretty basic, you play to win today and worry about tomorrow, tomorrow. Where are those Mariano Duncan t-shirts when you need them.

Listening Pile:
I downloaded Bishop Allen's new album, The Broken String the other day after I clicked on a banner by accident linking me to their song"Rain". I have their 2003 album, Charm School, which I thought was a pretty good listen, but a little uneven.

The band released an EP every month for a year, and they ended up with some 4 dozen songs, of which they picked 8 and added two new ones to make up this album. After years of underground rumblings with their self-released debut the Brooklyn by way of Boston - based group should command a bit more attention for their new masterful album, combining cinematic lyrics, plaintive, passionate vocals and jangly indie-rock. "Rain" is a bouncy, new wave-ish track, and the rest of the album is playful, capturing life's fragile, beautiful moments.

Holy Cow!

2007-08-15T10:04:00.000-07:00

It's been a very sad two days in my household. We lost a very close friend in the Scooter, Phil Rizzuto. He was beloved for this off-beat announcing, giving people shoutouts on their birthday(before they were shoutouts), his love of canolis, his wife Cora, and of course of the game. He was the voice of the Yankees for many a generations. To this day, just about every game I watch, I think to myself, this would be so much more entertaining and insightful if the Scooter were doing this game. He holds a dear place in my heart. Here is a greatMike Lupica Article about the Scooter.

I was saddened at Old Timers day when they announced the Scooter couldn't be in attendance. That day, was the first time it even dawned on me that he might be gone one day soon. I had the pleasure to meet him once when I was about 8 years old. I used to live in the same town as him in New Jersey and we went trick or treating in his neighborhood. I remember ringing the doorbell and none other than the Scooter answering the door. I'm sure we weren't the first kids that night to ring his doorbell, nor the last, but he treated us as if we were friends. He just said, "Holy Cow! Look at those costumes and put a bunch of pennies in our bags. I actually kept those pennies for years, and kinda still wish I had them. '

Listening Pile:
No music today. Just listening to the voice of the Scooter. So glad Mike and the Mad Dog played an interview from June of 05 on their show yesterday. He sounded old and beat up, but still full of life. Go to youtube, the yes network and listen to some old play by play by the Scooter. One of my favorite stories by the Scooter, can't remember who it was with, but they were talking about an oval shaped hotel room. The Scooter just said something like, "I couldn't stay in a room like that, I'd have nowhere to corner Cora." Go here to read some more.

And my dreams all fade away

2007-08-09T12:32:00.000-07:00

Pete Abe at the Lohud Yanks Blog posted this earlier:

Received this press release from YES today:

The YES Network is enjoying its highest New York Yankees ratings ever, with its primetime Yankees telecasts ranking No. 1 in New York on 27 of the past 29 game nights. YES’ primetime telecasts have regularly outperformed ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox and all other New York broadcast and cable stations this summer.

Tuesday’s Yankees-Blue Jays telecast on YES registered a 7.4 TV household rating (715,000 viewers), the highest-rated and most-watched program on YES since September 29, 2005, when the Yankees-Orioles telecast scored a 7.6 TV household rating (731,000 viewers).

This suggests two things to me: People really like how this team is playing and there’s not much on in the summer.

Um... yeah, you think. Last night I found myself watching The Nine and Top Chef. Seriously, what has my life come to. There are times I pray for death looking for something to watch on TV during the summer. I also have been watching Survivor...er... Big Brother Season 112. Things are bad. I literally watched Feasting on Asphalt for the 2nd time in 3 days last night, while the Yanks were getting killed. I will say, one good thing that came out of the Bonds home run chase, was getting to watch all his games on ESPN2. As an East Coast baseball fan, I never get to see any of the NL teams play, especially the NL West. That was kinda nice. The parks in LA, San Diego, Arizona and SF are sure nice too. Some of the best out there from what I've seen.

Anyhows, here is when the Yanks' schedule gets ridiculous. 17 out of 20 games against the Red Sox, Angels, Indians, with 3 each, and 8 against the Tigers(and Placido Polanco's misshaped head), who beat mercilessly on the Yanks last year in the postseason. You can come out of those games two games over .500, and win two of out 3 against the Orioles, who have given the Yanks fits all season, and we have a very good shot of getting into the postseason.

Listening Pile:
Just saw that UNKLE is playing a show in NYC at Webster Hall on October 18th. I am totally blown away by this information. With his U.K. label Mo' Wax, James Lavelle helped launch the instrumental mid-'90s downtempo breakbeat era, eventually dubbed trip-hop. Lavelle has always found a way to make some of the most interesting electronic music out there, with lots of guests on his records singing their parts, from Josh Homme, Thom Yorke, Ozzy, to Ian Brown and Ian Astbury. My man's technique is sick. Psyence Fiction and Never, Never, Land were outstanding albums, and so far from what I've heard of War Stories, it's top notch too. Plus, you need to see the video for "Burn My Shadow" w/ the Eastern European dude from ER.

Theres no bathroom, and there is no sink.

2007-08-07T13:45:00.000-07:00

things have been crazy the last few weeks. lots of work crap to deal w/ last week as i was taking friday off to have wrist surgery, also took monday off. yay short workweek. the surgery hurt like a mofo. i was totally out of it on friday, the day of the procedure. i don't know what it is about hospitals and doctors, but i have no idea why they keep you waiting around so long. like, for no reason. just sit there and wait, and wait, and then more waiting. then you go somewhere else, and wait more, before you see a doc for five minutes, then you go and wait more. ugh! so, like injured baseball players, i guess i'm just day-to-day. or, dunno, would i be on the DL?

somehow the yanks went from 9.5 games out of the wildcard on july 7 to .5 games out today. that's 9 games they picked up on the indians,or the tigers, whomever is not leading the central. phil hughes looked pretty good the other day in his first start back from the D.L. i really hope that kid can start to finish off batters and not mess around so much and nit-pick when he has two strikes on a guy. he threw way too many pitches in only 4 and 2/3 innings the other day. but, lots of people have been saying that having a kid like him at the back of the rotation is like trading for a solid starting pitcher. plus i came across a stat the other day talking about how clemens and pettite are two of the winningest pitchers of all time in the month of august. good, we'll need it!

joba chamberlain is up too, which is kinda nice, and not just because the dude's first name is joba, which opens up endless possibilities for a nickname and theme music, but also because he's been lights out since his conversion to the bullpen in AAA ball.. The 21-year-old, 2006 draft pick, has been lights out all season, going 9-2 with a 2.45 ERA over 3 organizational levels. In 88.1 innings, he has allowed 62 hits and struck out 135. Just the other day, he struck out 5 in two innings of work. I dunno, I like this team a lot better than the old, slow, stumbling team we had in April and May. I hope bringing back Giambi doesn't hurt the team. It's strange, but it seems the team has played so much better without him and you have to hope his return doesn't impede the development of Melky and Andy Phillips, who have thrived in their new starting roles.

i've been watching this big brother 18, or whatever season it's in now.(isn't there like one every six months now or something?) i know one of the guys, eric. nice guy, met him once when we went out for drinks w/ some friends. he's america's player, so america, gets to pick stuff for him to do. i hope someone asks him to punch that tommy lee looking dude(dick) in the face, or at least that jen chick. that would make for must see television. i mean, seriously, do they turn off the AC in that place. why are people standing around in their underwear? who cooks in a bikini? this show is so irrational, but people love it.

Listening Pile:
I'm not sure yet, but I really think I like this new Rilo Kiley jam, Silver Lining It's from their upcoming fourth album Under the Blacklight. "Silver Lining" has got some 60's am pop vibe to suck you in and cute little Jenny Lewis just sucks you right in. Damn her! I have to say, I've never been into the Rilo, nor her solo stuff, but she always manages a way to make me at least want to check out her records.

By the way, has anyone noticed Silverchair is back with a new album, that apparently is only available from Newbury Comics? Apparently, it's their best selling album, which is hard to believe, since Frogstomp seemed to be everywhere back in 95. I dunno, why I'm talking about this. Just seems weird.

And they all want you to change

2007-07-23T14:58:00.000-07:00

I came across this post the other day on Stereogum . What's really strange is I had not really paid any attention to it, aside from thinking, man that was a great album. Easily one of my favorite records from the early 90's, this album continues to be a great listen, no matter the disastrous albums that have followed, or the craziness that Billy Corgan has dreamt up in his own mind. And seriously, James Iha has to stop following me around the Lower East Side. Anyhows, that thought just crossed my mind, listening to the album. Where are the two girls from that album, then I remembered the post. Even the Pumpkins posted this on their site. Where are you oh siamese girls?

While I got Billy Corgan on the mind, what is up with that album cover for Zeigeist? Did they think that no one would notice it's so obviously a Shepard Fairey job, even though it looks like a Fairey rip-off. Nice way to mail it in Shep. And why does NYC have to be underwaters. Billy, are you still mad at James, and as a result, subsequently mad at the city he currently lives in? Let go man, just let go. I have only heard a song or two, and it doesn't make me want to listen to the rest of the record in any way.

While I'm on a rant about Shepard Fairey and his great Obey the Giant images, I'm reminded of all the imitators and rip-offs. My favorite play on the Obey the Giant images has got to be the Dogs Of War shirts and designs. Seriously, these kill me. I recently purchased a Obey the Schnauzer magnet for my fridge at home.

Listening Pile:
Today, we're listening to the album Siamese Dream by the Smashing Pumpkins. Truly a great album, and the breakthrough album for the band. i remember spending many late nights listening to this album. Great from start to finish. Go listen.

At the end of the day, one shall stand, one shall fall!

2007-07-20T09:17:00.000-07:00

Finally, got to see Transformers. Loved the special effects, the robots, Megan Fox and it was a half-way decent plot.
However the real actors totally brought that movie down. Why the hell was John Torturro in that movie? He's an amazing actor and he played a horrible part, as agent Simmons. Megan Fox was lovely, as expected. So, was Rachael Taylor. Where the hell did she come from? Shia LaBeouf plays that same annoying goofy character he always plays. Blah, Blah, Blah... But seriously, the stars of the movie, were the Autobots and the Decepticons. The fight scenes were sick! The fight between Optimus Prime and Megatron was unreal, and a great way to cap off the movie. I am soooo getting this movie on DVD to watch through it on HD at home. I wondering if Megan and Rachael seem more real?

Came across this the other day and totally had to share it. You, can go to the Simpsons Movie site and make your own avatar in your likeness. As you can see to your right, it may not come out looking exactly like you, but hey, close enough.
I don't think anyone ever thought there would be a movie, none the less a website to make yourself into a character, or Simpsonized as they like to call it. I remember, when I moved to Springfield, NJ from Hillside in 1990. Every kid, including two of my best friends, Mike and Adam, were wearing Bartman t-shirts. Jeez, how far things have come in 17 years. Really sad to see that our Springfield lost out to Springfield in VT, in the movie premiere contest. That's a bummer. But I bet it could have something to do with the lame movie we entered and the lack of an actual movie theater in the town.

On the baseball front, the Yankees have won 6 out of 8 to start the 2nd half of the season. With four more games against the Devil Rays this weekend, then four more against the Royals leading to a three game series against the Orioles, plus the last two innings make up of a game from a few weeks ago, the Yanks have a real good shot at getting back into the postseason race. If they can win those 3 series, they'll put themselves in a really good spot leading into August. We've been getting pretty good pitching lately from our starters and the bullpen, with the exception of Krazy Kyle Farnsworth, aka the Farnswacker, has been pretty good too. That guy is worthless, unless there is a brawl brewing on the horizon. We do play the Red Sox a few more times this season, not that that's really enough reason to keep him around.

The bats, I have to say, have been pretty lukewarm against the starters lately. It seems they don't get going until the starter is almost out of the game, or the bullpen is in. A-Rod hasn't really hit well since the break, but has a few homers to balance it out. Seems like he's pressing for the homer a bit too much, when he should be looking to hit the ball the other way. And don't get me started on how sedentary our baserunners are on the basepaths. Can Torre call for a stolen base every once in while. Have we not learned anything from the Championship teams of the last few years? Manufacturing runs is always the best way to get an offense going and disrupt a staring pitcher. Serenity Now! Read this article about Dontrelle Willis and his problems lately. The D-Train has been derailed. He can't win a game if his life depended on it. And... he's been killing my fantasy team. I had the choice to keep him or Justin Verlander. Ugh! Also, came across this SI Feature with their picks for best athletes by number.

The easiest choices? Pele (10), Michael Jordan (23), and Lawrence Taylor (56). Numbers that lacked star quality: 65 (Elvin Bethea), 67 (Reggie McKenzie) and 69 (Krumrie).

Runner-up: LeBron James.

Worthy of consideration: Kirk Gibson, Pete Maravich (college), Calvin Murphy, Ryne Sandberg.

Um... #23, you ever hear of a guy by the name of Don Mattingly? Anyhows, there are some great debates, and certainly some no-brainers. Clemente and #21. Robinson and #42. Joe Montana and #16. LT and #56. Check out, it's a cool little feature.

Listening Pile:
BRMC is back with new album, Baby 81. It's a return to form for the San Francisco threesome. While their last album, Howl, wasn't a disappointment, it did lack that gritty, raw rock sound the band had become known for. That album was mostly acoustic, with an americana and rootsy twist. The new album sees them return to the howling(no pun intended) guitar wall of sound and pounding drums. A great piece of work work that reminds many of their early work, with dark textures, sonic soundscapes, and oozing sexuality. For the first time since their S/T debut album, they sound like a cohesive band that enjoyed making this album. With drummer, Nick Jago back in tow, after some addiction problems saw him leave right before the recording of the last album, the group has rejuvenated themselves, with a record that captures much of what initially made them such a great group.

How Are Things On The West Coast?

2007-07-16T10:53:00.000-07:00

Things have been strange lately to say the least. July 4th hit me hard in the middle of last week. I keep reading all this stuff about how people want to move a holiday like the Fourth to the first thursday of the month. Now, theoretically, it sounds like a great idea. Like how Presidents day, MLK, Memorial Day, Labor Day and Thanksgiving are always fixed. Plus you get the extra day off, for a Thursday holiday. Lets give it up for the four day weekend. Last week was just a pain in the ass. The holiday did nothing for me, as I had to work half the day anyway, with one of the artists I work with playing a show that day. It killed my day. Killed it. Plus the weather didn't hold up and that just made things worse.

This past weekend was also a baseball induced blur, with old timer's day on saturday, then a marathon 14 inning game, then a regular 9 inning blow-out on sunday. The all-star break landed at just the right time. Those two games in two days, plus 2 games the previous Sunday and Monday proved to be way too much in such a short period of time. Which makes me think, those Ultimate Roadtrip folks have kind of got to be out of their minds. 4 games in 8 days made me kinda go nuts, I can't imagine what 162 games in 6 months would do to me. I'm thinking at some point it starts feeling like Groundhog's day and you're just begging for the toaster to fall into the tub. I ""mean, I LOVE baseball, but really, that's got to be just mind-blowing. I got to a point, when I could not even look at another hot dog. I was literally trying to figure out what beer I hadn't had yet. I'll say this, the Beers Of The World stand they have is a total rip-off. You literally pay $8 for a 12 oz beer, that if you bought at the grocery store, would cost you, no more than a $1.25. And, there's nothing special, it's Pilsner Urquel, Blue Moon, Amstel Light, Grolsch, and Corona. Nothing special really. Meanwhile, you could just go to the Heiniken booth and get a 24 oz. beer for $10. Now, which one sounds like the good deal. hmmmm. That's one of those things that drives me crazy. It's not up there with the great subway challenge, but it's up there.

So, while I'm on the subject of baseball, I'll throw this out there. The Yankees have 77 games remaining. It's been said that they would have to win about 95 games to make it to the postseason. The Yankees currently sit at 42-43. That means they would have to win approximately 52 games out of 77 to end up in the postseason. Aside from those two weeks in early June when they won something like 12 out of 13, they have not looked like a team that could win 52 out of 77. But here is where it gets tricky. 54 of those games are against teams below .500. 14 against the Rays, 10 against the lowly Royals, 12 against the Orioles, 10 against the Blue Jays, and 3 more versus the stumbling White Sox. There's some room to really get back into the swing of things. Now, I know the Yanks can win against those teams, but honestly it seems the Yanks have played pretty poorly against bad teams this year. Maybe I'm wrong, but I can see a big let down if they don't get going fast after the break. And, if they don't get off to a good start and get themselves 7-10 games over .500 before mid-August, they could be done for. As maybe their toughest stretch starts August 16th when the Yanks, start a series against the Tigers, followed by the Angels and then the Red Sox. That's 14 games against 3 very good teams, and possibly the 3 division winners. If the Yankees can pick up those 7-10 games, and play decent ball in those 14 games, this season has a shot, otherwise, we'll start looking towards 2008 a lot sooner.

Wow, now that's kinda depressing huh!

Listening Pile:
Interpol's new album, Our Love To Admire, has been in heavy rotation on the iPod. Their third full length, sees them sort of pick up right were Antics left off. It's dense, dark and brooding album, with the usual vague lyrics and swirling guitars. My biggest beef with the album, is that the production, while a bit excessive at times, tends to drown out a stellar drummer in Sam Foggarino and a superb bass player in Carlos D. In fact, it's a distraction because while Interpol have never been ones to beat you over the head with a sharp melody, the dense structure of the low end on most of their previous work, kept things intact and flowing with ease. I hear a few songs that sort of go nowhere and miss that deceptive low end. However, the record is pretty darn good. I love the melodramatic first song, "Pioneer To The Falls", as well as the confessional, "Rest My Chemistry". "Heinrich Maneuver" is a great first single, but lacks a solid follow-up. This album needs one more really solid rocker. Mammoth", almost pulls that off, but just lacks a catchy hook. There are a few other solid tracks on the album, but a good portion of the record sort of just sounds like filler. It almost seems like they came up a few songs short and just came up with a few uninspired tracks to finish the album.

Well I always loved your accent.

2007-06-23T13:48:00.000-07:00

Had some nice food the other night at Mole. I had walked by this place a few times and it looked pretty interesting. So glad, I tried out this new Mexican joint, located on Allen St in the LES. Someone mentioned to us that it was pretty good and they make guacamole right at your table. We waited almost 40 minutes for a table at the bar. We brought our own beer, as it's BYOB. Can't go wrong with that. They even make virgin Margaritas, which you can add your own tequila too. I had these delicious scallop tacos, Erika had some tasty carne tacos, and we split some great taquitos, with potato and chorizo in em. Pretty tasty. It's funny, but people from the West Coast always say it's impossible to find good Mexican food in the city. Think I found a good joint tho. Just stay away from going during the peak hours. It's a tiny place and there's not much room to maneuver around. This along with, E.U. and Tapeo 29, are two of the best restaurants I've eaten at in the last month. Tapeo 29, is a tapas bar, and we ate there on my bday. It was awesome. The E.U. was great, had steak and eggs there a couple weekends ago. Very good.

Went to Connecticut last weekend for Father's day, and came home with one of these, from the Berkshire Brewing Co. It was a fantastic, light ale with a nice gold color. It was good. Erika and her dad got a Coffeehouse Porter, which seems really interesting. Also, found a couple of bottles of the Post Road Pumpkin ale from the Brooklyn Brewery. One of my favorite pumpkin ales. Strange that I found some in a liquor store in Connecticut, and could never find it bottled in New York. Also, picked up a sixer of the Brooklyn Brewery's Summer Ale at Whole Foods this week. Pretty good. I always love a good Summer Ale.

Got the Yankees in San Francisco this weekend. Hoping we can win tonight and pick up the series win. Moose on the hill versus Noah Lowry, who I had on my fantasy team last year. He always managed to kill me when I thought he was just about to turn a corner. Hoping the Yanks can get to him tonight. Barry Lamar cranked one out the other night, wonder if he's getting one out today. Just say something about Rod Beck the former MLB closer, dying. Strange, he didn't seem that old to me. He always had a fantastic mullet and the fu-manchu stache.

Listening Pile
Heading over to McCarren Park Pool to see Superchunk now. Should be fun. Haven't seen them since CMJ like 6 years ago or something. This will be my first time at McCarren park pool. used to live right by there, for like 3 years too. Ha. Wish me luck.

Looks Like Someone Woke Up On The Wrong Side Of The Rock

2007-06-16T08:49:00.000-07:00

So, I know this may be a little old by now, and the way MTV operates, maybe it will never happen. But, during the 24 hour Human Giant marathon. Did anyone hear Michael Showalter announced that a DVD set containing the entire series of one of the greatest sketch comedy shows, ever, The State, would be released by MTV sometime this year? The first season has been released on iTunes and is pretty great, but there are a whole bunch of other episodes still missing. Speaking of the Human giant, how about that show. It kicked off with a sick song by Mastodon. Someone needs to give those guys a weekly shows, like Friday at 10pm. I loved how they had live music, and aired old clips of great MTV tv shows and skits. Lets go guys, make it happen. Tom Selleck can't stop you!

And, while we're on the subject of great TV shows, can't believe they are creating a show around one of my favorite TV ad campaigns in recent memory. Yes, the Geico cavemen, are getting their own, tv show. I cannot wait for this show. I think it's going to be hilarious. The summer is dragging on, and really you can only watch so much Top Chef and Yankee games, and contemplate who was in the casket on the season finale of LOST.

The Yankee game on Sunday was fun. I always get a real treat out of seeing the Yankees play the Mets. And, it's not really because of the rivalry, but rather the ridiculous people at the game. There were fights, people throwing beer at Mets fans, and just general idiocy. As I was telling my buddies at the game, it's a lot harder to hate the Mets when one of our own is their manager, Willie Randolph. Plus, I read that 11 page feature on Omar Minaya in Sports Illustrated, and I like the guy more and more every day. And, the Yankees win. Well, we were happy to get the win and skip town with 2 out of 3 versus the Metropolitans.

Listening Pile:
Been rockin that new Queens Of The Stone age album, Era Vulgaris. Not sure why so many critics are hating on it. I love the record. It's not quite as catchy as some of the more recent records, but this one totally reminds me of the R record. Crazy, eclectic jams with strange vocals, strange time changes, ands lots thrown into one song. I like, I like it a lot. Especially love the single, "Sick, Sick, Sick", which is a great rocker. Also, love that they threw in one of my favorite Dessert Sessions tracks, "make it wit chu". That is a jam!

A quite alarming knack of knowing when to twist the knife .

2007-06-15T12:31:00.000-07:00

Went to the Doc the other day to have him look at my wrist. He said everything looks good. The distal radius fracture is pretty much completely healed and the scaphoid crack is looking pretty good too. Strange thing about breaking bones he told me. Apparently once the bones heal, you still have to let the tendons heal, which can take twice as long. So, looks like I have another 4-6 weeks of strange pains and weakness in the wrist. But at least I'm finally getting use of the hand and wrist back. It was pretty tough for a few weeks there. The first week, I had to be helped putting clothes on.

Crazy all these ads they are running for the new iPhone. From the ads, it looks like a really neat gadget. I know it's got a pretty hefty price tag on it, but really, at some point soon, I'll have to buy a new phone and iPod, plus, really, I only use my iBook at home for email, web and very little else. For the price of the phone and ipod, you get something that does all three, and it takes pics. Not too shabby. Gonna have a lot of folks breaking their contracts to get on board with Cingular and the iPhone.

Listening Pile:
Been rocking the new Travis album. Man, did the return with a fantastic album. Honestly, I really didn't feel the last album, 12 Memories. It was a darker and politically leaning album. This one, produced by old friend, Nigel Goodrich, and also helped by Brian Eno, sees them return to form. The Boy With No Name has a handful of absolute gems, proving that Travis are still capable of penning a tune that wraps around your ears and captures perfect pop tunes with that nonchalant British knack. Single, "Colder", feels like it could easily have been one of the songs from the first two records. I find myself humming it hours after listening to it. And if you listen carefully to "Selfish Jean", you may hear a bit of Hall & Oats' "Maneater" in there, not that there's anything wrong with that. Even more good news, they are coming to the US to play some shows. I'm hoping to be able to check out one of the two Irving Plaza shows.

You could break me by the bones, until you break me inside.

2007-04-19T14:13:00.000-07:00

So, I decided I'm going to run a half-marathon on August 5th. Yup, that's 13.1 miles. 13 miles, 192.5 yards to be exact. Figure, I've been running for almost a year now. I've gotten a lot faster and stronger. I've yet to top a long run of more than 6 miles, but think that gradually over the next four months, I can easily get up to at least 10, if not more. I'm not trying to set world records here or run in
outer-space, just trying to stay in shape and feel good about myself. needed a bit more of a challenge than doing 3-4 miles three or four days a week. The plan is to run sub-2 hours. This is a nice long-term goal, with a bunch of short term goals in the meantime. Planning on doing a 5k and 10k as a warm up over the next few months too. Depending on how well I do in the training, the race, and well, really, how my knees and ankles hold up, I may look into doing a marathon in 2008.

Just saw A-Rod hit another bomb to win the game. Man he is on fire. The other night I was out with some buddies, and they both seemed to think Alex could easily hit 60 homeruns. I argued, that he would top out at about 48. However, just seeing him over the past few days, maybe they are right. He keeps this up, he could very well hit sixty. His stroke just looks really short and compact, and he's getting around on pitches a lot better than he was last year. And having Bobby Abreu hit in front of him has been really good for him too. That guy makes pitchers work, making them throw plenty of pitches. I say the number of hits A-Rod hits will be based on how well Giambi and Matsui are hitting late in the season. If they aren't hitting well, A-Rod will get walked a ton. Man, last night I was hoping they would save some of those runs for the Boston series this weekend. Hoping those bats don't go cold over the short flight up to beantown.

Listening Pile:
Have been listening to Idlewild's new disc, Make Another World a bit lately. Being a huge fan of their 100 Broken Windows and The Remote Part, I was definitely underwhelmed by the last two discs. Maybe their label was as well, as they saw a departure from Capitol. And I don't even think Make Another World has actually been released in the US on current label Sanctuary. To put it best, the two earlier albums, just rocked enough and had better and more interesting arrangements. And, for some reason, those records just pop. They sound great. 100 Broken Windows being close to a perfect album, the Remote Part, not far behind. Warnings/Promises left a lot to be desired, yet had a few quality tracks, most notably, "Love Steals Us From Loneliness", "I Want A Warning" and "El Capitan".

Now on Make Another World, is not a bad record by any means. There are some really nice melodies and good guitar lines. There are some decent songs on here, "Finished It Remains", "A Ghost In The Arcade" and, easily the most propulsive song on the album, "If It Takes You Home". However, if you've ever seen this band live, you know they rock, and rock hard. And that to me, is the thing missing most from this album. It just noodles back and forth, with an occasional rocker here and there. The ballads and quiet songs, just don't have that lyrical hook you expect. On their earlier works, I just found that the lyrics were sharp, poignant and witty. The guitars were crunchy, as the rhythm section stayed just enough out of the way to make things interesting. Here, there is just too much teetering on the mundane here. However, I am quite interested to see them live again. I bet a bunch of these songs would sound great in a live setting.

Quarters are for parking meters and we're in the record industry.

2007-04-13T07:35:00.000-07:00

The MLB clubhouse stores across the country will soon be selling Alyssa Milano’s new Touch line of baseball apparel. Funny it's called touch, as many a star hurlers have actually touched Milano. Everyone from Crazy Barry Zito, to Brad Penny and even the Rajah of Rehab himself, Carl Pavano. Little Samantha Micelli's product line is specifically designed for women, and is available for all 30 major-league teams...including the Red Sox.

“When I go to baseball games, I want to wear fan gear to support my team, but I've found that the product mix offered in the current marketplace does not address my everyday fashion needs. Women should be able to look stylish while cheering on their favorite team.”

I am just dreading the game when we see a heffer chowing down two hot dogs wearing one of those criss crossy ones...
It's bad enough they make stupid products like this, but really! That criscross one is just not suitable for a game. I think if they want to address my needs at the ball game, I might need a Yankee logo on one of these. Someone's gotta make that happen. And everyone knows how I feel about the new hats. Ugh!

Man, you gotta love Tony Victory. And not just for making it, "Your Label, Your Music". The label owner announced it will remove its music catalog from online music store eMusic. Dude is hating on digital music services, saying it's making music "disposable." Tony Victory had a similar beef with Steve Jobs and iTunes, accusing them of bolstering their profit margin at the expense of independent labels like Victory Records. Apparently, Senor Jobs had a little more juice, as Tony Victory in an about-face, decided to license his company's catalog to Apple. As much as I've heard about that guy and his shady business practices, he did put out a couple really solid albums in the late 90's, by the likes of By The Grace Of God, Grade, Boy Sets Fire, Deadguy, Thursday and even some Refused material.

Listening Pile:
Spiritualized's Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space which originally came out in 1997 has been rocking the random party shuffle on my iTunes. Jason Pierce(aka J. Spaceman) is, a total geniuses and extremely talented musician. Ladies And Gentlemen... captures that innovative magic. Originally, the CD coming wrapped in foil and accompanied by dosage instructions like "Play twice daily" and "May cause dizziness." The contents of the package, was powerful, dense music starting with the opening title track. Emotional, adventurous and otherworldly psychedelic symphony topped off with "I Think I'm In Love." At times the album is almost too much to take. That's why this is a perfect album to take in small, daily doses I suppose.

Some news out of the Radiohead camp about the new album. A video posted on the Vapour Bros. site with some random tunes and footage from the studio. Can't wait to hear some of those songs they played live fleshed out and in album form.

Now pitching for the Yankees, Number Forty-Five, Mr. Glass Ass

2007-04-05T10:06:00.000-07:00

So on Monday, I decided to play hookie and head up to the Bronx for Opening Day 2007 at Yankee Stadium. Not too many of these left, as 2009 is the launch date for the new Yankee Stadium, Version, 3.0 or The House That Jeter Built.
It began with a wonderful commute via the NY Transit Subway system. Which, from what I heard about driving there, actually didn't seem so bad despite the constant smell of urine/feces and bombardment of drunk frat guys from New Jersey. Took the F train up to West 4th, then transfered to the D(we'll discuss this more later). When I walked out of the subway, I took a peak over to Macombs Dam Park, where we now see the new stadium going up. It's kinda weird I have to say.
Anyhows, after the almost 1/2 hour it took us to get to our seats, we finally sat down just as the players finished warming up and the first pitch was about to be tossed by Carl Pavano, aka Carla, aka Mr. Glass Ass, aka the Rajah of Rehab. He tossed it, without getting hurt too, and didn't pitch so bad, considering his teammates behind him seemed to be fielding with frying pans instead of gloves. But, alas, it's opening day and we begin the most wonderful six months of sports.

Here are my seven things i think i think about opening day:
1. We arrived just in time for the first pitch, so we didn't see line-ups and players announced. So, maybe that's why I didn't notice it until later in the game when Jeter was announced to bat, but Bob Sheppard apparently left halfway through the game. It's pretty strange not hearing Sheppard announce the players coming up to bat, or coming into pitch. "Now batting for the Yankees, Number Two, Derek Jeter". Doesn't sound quite right unless good ole Bob is doing it. Be a sad, sad day when he's not able to do it anymore. Really glad to see Bobby Murcer in the booth and get a huge ovation from the crowd, plus Johnny Damon and Jorge coming out onto the steps in the dugout and pointing up towards him, egging on the crowd. Good to see him doing well, after his brain-cancer battle this winter. Very, very nice tribute to Cory Lidle before the game, and his widow and son throwing out the first pitch. Very strange for a guy that was a career journeyman and only played for the Yanks for two months. But he died as a Yankee, and was honored like one. Pretty classy if you ask me.

2. A beer cost, $8.50. Yes, you read that correctly. A 16 ounce Miller Lite, MGD, Budweiser, or Bud Light costs more than a decent bottle of wine. A beer also costs more than, a six pack of any of those beers. In fact, in some places of the country, it probably costs more than two six packs of each of those beers. A hot dog, costs a whopping, $5.00.
More than the subway ride, to and from the stadium. Yes, for the price of one hot dog, you can purchase about a dozen at the grocery store. Or, think of this. If you got to 15 games, and eat 3 hot dogs per game, as does your spouse, buddy, whomever you take the to the game, and you throw in one beer each per game. You'd have enough to buy your own hot dog cart. Crazy huh! Hopefully, we won't have to sign a new 1st baseman this year. I don't want to have to take out a new mortgage to pay for concessions at the game. At least it's not Fenway. The most expensive park in all of MLB. You need two mortgages to pay for stuff there.

3. Who is the person that decides what music gets played while the players are coming up to bat. REALLY? Giambi comes up to Linkin Park. Jeter comes up to Jay-Z, as always. Jorge Posada, to some salsa or latin pop-hit. Damon comes on to some undeciperable rock band. Mariano Rivera comes on to Enter Sandman by Metallica when he closes games. I'm thinking, there's gotta be someone who decides this stuff. Is it the player themselves? The player's agent? Who? Can I get some help here? The Mets' goldenboy has the Wright idea. Let the fans decide. If the bombers are looking for someone to occupy this role, I know someone who has a great background in music and loves them some Yanks. Of course, I'd keep the "It takes two" by Rob Base & DJ EZ Rock when they turn the double-play. That's always a hot one! I guess it's better than the . Allman Brothers

4. What the hell was up with Minky and A-Rod both having the high socks look? Crazy Kyle Farnsworth too! And maybe even big Brian Bruney too. Not that I hate it, I actually love the old school high socks look. I had read a lot about A-Rod and Minky being best buds in high school and training together in the off-season, but come on. What's really going on here? While we're at it, what's up with Johnny Damon looking a little stockier? I know he said in spring training, chicks like it when you look good with your shirt off, but Johnny, I think they meant muscles. Damon looks like he swallowed Pedro's lucky midget. And don't ever get me started on the baggy pants look. Seriously! This is baseball, not night at the thug-life mansion. Manny Ramirez, I am blaming that look on you. I guess no one remembers the eighties and guys like this.

5. What is up with the Dunkin Donuts Subway Line Challenge? Everyone that actually takes the subway, knows the three trains competing, can't seriously be expected to compete, when one of them doesn't even go all the way up to 161 Street/River Ave. The B train actually stops at 125th, and you have to get off and wait for an already packed D train to get up to the stadium! The 4 train, an unmitigated disaster in itself, since it's the nicest of the actual trains, with all new cars on the line. Never mind the fact that it runs local for a small part of it's route, but it occasionally, doesn't even run on the weekends. So, in conclusion, how does a train that mostly runs express all the way from West 4th to the Bronx, not win this silly challenge every time. Ugh, there's probably nothing in that whole stadium, except the inexcusable bathroom and atm lines that drives me more crazy. Nothing!!! Ugh! Now, here is a real subway challenge, and here is a nice article on the subway's history throughout the various incarnations of Yankee Stadium

6. I'm not sure if I really like this 2 first basemen, one outfielder, and one futility infielder bench. As Damon left the game with tight calves on Monday, Melky Cabrera went in to replace him. Leaving only the Miguel Cairo disaster as our only possible outfield option should something happen. I've read a few different places, that the plan for Melky is to spell the three outfielders whenever possible, and have Giambi try to play first one a week or so. Which means one of the 3 outfielders getting his cuts as a DH. Now, with all the egos and limited number of at bats. What are we to do if Melky continues his hitting woes and say one of the outfielders lands on the DL. If I remember correctly, Melky wasn't hitting that well in Spring Training either. Considering when Damon gets back, Melky could get only 10 at bats a week. Who picks up the Yanks? Not like we have an extra outfielder, or even a decent 2nd option. My thinking is, carrying Minky, Josh Phelps and Jason Giambi, is really, really going to hurt this team at some point.

7. While the New York Yankees came from behind to beat the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, I wondered, how many more times am I really going to be coming to this stadium and experiencing, what to this point, has always been one of my favorite things to do in this world. Now bear with me for a moment. I attended my first game back in the mid 80's. A double-header with the Seattle Mariners. I barely remember it, aside from seeing lots and lots of green grass, the gross Mariner uniforms, some of my favorite players, Mattingly, Winfield, Randolph, Pags. I even got a coffee mug with a team picture on it, that I had up until the early 90's. I've shared numerous memories, not only with those 50,000 plus fans, countless teams and players, but with my family and friends. I've attended probably about 200 games in the last 20+ years. From the first with my father and brother, to many with both and my mom. To a bunch with friends, including the very first Yankees/Mets game, which we cut school for and I drove too. My first drive into the Bronx. To now with my girlfriend and good friends who are married. It's sorta strange thinking, that despite all the wonderful new accommodations and endless bathrooms, atms, and vendor locations, something will be missing. I thought about it some more. And if you think about it, there are a lot of changes going on around the Yankee way of life. And somehow, i wonder, is this going to change my life. I mean, just to think about it, I won't be able to take my son or daughter and tell them about the countless games I went to with my father. I won't be able to show the spot where Jeter dove into the stands to make that catch in that Oakland playoff series. I won't be able to show where I was sitting when I was seven years old and Rickey Henderson gave me the finger. It'll be really weird someday sitting in a new stadium. Really weird.

Listening Pile:
Ash's fifth full-length album, Twilight Of The Innocents, is due in stores next week, April 10th. Tim Wheeler and the now trio, sans guitarist Charlotte Hatherly, recorded their new album here in NYC in their very studio and produced the sessions all on their own. That's the way to do it boys. It was kinda strange seeing those dudes around here all the time. Tim takes a moment and talks about the upcoming tour dates, the album release, b-sides, being big in Japan(who isn't these days) and taking on Razorlight, head to head.

You can peep a few of the songs on their Myspace page. Scroll down and you can check out the video for lead single, "You Can Have It All", as well. Man, didn't Mariah Carey do a video there too? The one where she's roller skating all around. You know, before she went all crazy Mimi on everyone. Not sure how many Star Wars references there will be on this album, but "Princess Six" is looking pretty suspicious.

Where Have You Gone Joe DiMaggio

2007-04-01T22:12:00.000-07:00

Here are my predictions for the American League. Lots and lots of predictions. From the A.L. East and the battle between long time rivals, the Yankees and Red Sox, to the possible emergence of the Toronto Blue Jays. There is a big question of a few Far East players, most notably Daiske Matsuzaka, and how they will adjust the the American version of the game. We already know how Wanger faired last year, winning 19 games and killing lots of worms. Now he's the envy of every Taiwanese citizen. No, really, look here. The A.L Central, thought to be the best and deepest division in the game, features the last two representatives in the World Series, the Tigers and Chisox, plus one of the most talented teams, the Indians. The West, as always could be a crapshoot. Maybe the Angels click and win the division, or maybe it all connects for Oakland or Texas. Here's what I think will go down.

A.L. East
Yanks taking a tight division. Just nudging out the Red Sox late in September. A-Rod bounces back and has a huge MVP type season, though he gets stiffled by the writers for being so, "good looking and talented". A-Rod finishes a close 2nd, and the 2nd best player on the AL Central winner wins the award(congrats to Gary Sheffield). Carl Pavano, goes on a crazy tear after getting dumped by his model girlfriend and wins Comeback Player of the Year, winning 16 games, with an ERA in the high 3's. Clemens comes back to the Yanks, but misses considerable time after pulling a hammy yelling at Mike Piazza in a late June contest. Melky Cabrera spends a lot of time in the outfield and shines brigthly, though you'd like a little more pop in that bat, as Abreu and Damon both spend some time on the DL, and Matsui plays DH once a week. Mussina and Pettiite has solid years and Phil Hughes arrives in August, but doesn't contribute as much as one would have thought, as Kei Igawa picks it up when he's challenged for the #5 spot. Wanger spends a lot of time on the DL this year, as does Giambi. Jeter has a fantastic season, but once again, doesn't even get a whiff of the MVP. Robby Cano has a solid season, but doesn't even lead the team in batting. He does however develop a little more pop. Big Papi has a huge year and Manny being Manny has his worst year in the past decade, and asked to be traded by the All-Star break. He goes nowhere, except the DL with some leg ailment. Matsuzaka has a good year, 15 wins, mid 3's era, but gets hit hard in the summer, after guys are seeing him a 2nd time. He'll make adjustments though and pick it up in September. Schilling cries about his contract all summer on his blog http://38pitches.com/, yet pitches well, to a tune of 16 wins and high 3's ERA, plus a ton of K's. Beckett gets his hard early, but has a solid 2nd half. He finally figures out that you do a lot better when the ball stays in the park. Jon Lester comes back from his cancer scare and has a very solid 2nd half. JD Drew spends a lot of time on the DL, but comes back just in time to help save off the Blue Jays in September. Toronto, no slouch though, wins about 85 games, though they would have won more if Frank Thomas and AJ Burnett didn't spend so much time on the DL. Alex Rios picks up where he left off early last year and has a breakout year, hitting 28 hr's and knocking in 100 runs. Vernon Wells doesn't lead this team in RBI. After getting that ridiculous contract, he becomes the third best hitter on this team. Tampa finishes 4th with big years from Carl Crawford, Delmon Young and Scott Kazmir. Elijah Dukes has a fantastic start to the season, however he gets sent back to the minors once he begins struggling, smoking the ganja and decides to go ape-shit on a second basemen, ala his dad, Albert (don't call me Joey) Belle. Baltimore is even worst than last year, despite Eric Bedard and Danny(don't call me Rick Vaughn) Cabrera coming into their own under Leo Mazzone. Miguel Tejada, is traded to Anaheim just hours before the trade deadline. Nick Markakis does his best Dale Murphy impression, and carries the team along with Ramon Hernandez and Melmo. Peter Angelos says, "At least we're not the Nationals, boy do they suck! Does anyone have Cal Ripken's number?"

A.L. Central
Detroit takes the division, behind a monster season from Sheffield, and a breakout year from Jeremy Bonderman, your A.L. Cy Young winner with 22 wins, over 200 K's and 3.05 era. Joel Zumaya, who I see taking the closing duties just after Todd Jones blows something out around All-Star Break. He's banned from playing Guitar Hero the day Jones goes down. Also, the team gets career years out of the underappreciated, Carlos Pena and Placido Polanco. Craig Monroe stops swinging for the fences, and cuts down his K's, while hitting 35 HR and knocking in over 100 RBI. The pitching holds up, despite lots of innings the year before. Verlander doesn't make it to September though. He's got elbow problems around All-Star break and makes a comeback in mid August before shutting it down for the season. Cleveland comes up with big years from 30-30 man, Grady Sizemore, Travis Hafner and Victor Martinez. Josh Barfield makes a splendid adjustment to the A.L., and also swipes 25 bags. C.C. Sabathia has a stellar year leading the team in most pitching categories, but Jake Westbrook and Cliff Lee are inconsistent for too much of the year. The bullpen struggles, as it did last year, and blows too many leads late in games. In July, they ask Atlanta for Bob Wickman back. Eventually, they try calling Rod Beck out of retirement. Minnesota, behind Santana (after almost getting traded and getting a big contract extension) Garza, and Bonser, and despite regression from Justin Morneau and Joe Mauer, wins about 80 games, and just bests Chicago for 3rd. Torii Hunter gets traded at the deadline, and hurts himself dancing in the dougout. Chicago, is the big bust in the division, finishing fourth, as Jermaine Dye doesn't repeat his 2006 performance, and the pitchers just don't have the juice to contend with Detroit. Daren Erstad has a good comeback year, but spends the end of the year on the DL, along with Jim Thome and Mark Buerhle. Bobby Jenks loses his closing duties after blowing 2 consecutive saves in July and an expletive laden tirade from Ozzie Guillen ensues. KC has a decent year, despite not having any pitching or hitting. But the future looks bright with Alex Gordon, David DeJesus, and Zach Greinke all having solid years. Somehow, the Reggie Sanders trade, will yield them a solid set-up man for Octavio Dotel, who also has a solid comeback year.

A.L. West
The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim of California, win a tough division, taking it in the final week of the season. Garret Anderson, has a big year, though he misses considerable time with injuries through the summer. However, he comes back strong in September and October. Big Vlad, Tejada and Anderson, carry the team through the late months, getting some help from breakout star, Howie Kendrick. Juan Rivera, Chone Figgins and Casey Cotchman, who has a breakout year at First for them, all come back from injuries/illness and contribute big-time. Brandon Wood comes up in August and goes on a crazy tear, begging the question, can the rookie of the year only have played a third of the season? No, Alex Gordon from KC still wins it. Oakland and Texas beat up on the each other all season long, and both fall short of Anaheim. Texas has a big year from Kevin Millwood. Akinora Otsuka, Mark Texeira and Michael Young, though barely anyone else contributes. Who'd of thunk they would miss Mark DeRosa and Sarge Jr. Eric Gagne pitches about 25 innings before blowing out his elbow, shoulder and hip all at once and never pitching in the majors again. Oakland has a solid year from Danny Haren, who leads the team in Wins, innings pitched, and K's. Huston Street, finally is healthy the entire year and is one of the most dominant closers in the game. Mike Piazza, lets the mullet do his talking, hitting 30+ HR and making everyone ask, "Frank who?". Rich Harden despite having a Cy Young type first half, does his best Carla Pavano impression, and misses most of the 2nd half with a pulled oblique, time is also missed by Eric Chavez, after doing his best porn star impression, and Bobby Crosby, who apparently hurts himself getting out of bed in the morning. Seattle seriously considers trading Ichiro at the deadline, but balks when Boston won't pick up a chunk of Manny being Manny's salary. Felix Hernandez has a breakout year, but manages to only win 15 games after getting no run support. Richie Sexson strikes out a lot, though gets moved at the trading deadline. Adrian Beltre, has a solid year, hitting 30 hr, but manages only 85 RBI as no one except Ichiro can ever get on base. Jeff Weaver and Miguel Batista contribute a lot more than you would think, but seriously beg the question, "really, this was the best we could do?"

OK, that's it man. In the words of the legendary, Mel Allen, How About That.

A bit of sad news to report, today is the first day of the last year for Astroland, the Coney Island amusement park and home of the landmark Cyclone roller coaster. I guess those lame commercials they've been running for years, haven't helped business enough. Soon, there will be large-scale redevelopment and the "2,640 feet of rattling, wheezing terror in lumber and steel" will be left standing. However, the starter rides that lead you there, like the Tilt-a-Whirl, bumper cars and even, everyone's favorite, Shoot The Freak, will be goners. Go pay tribute, before they are distant memories of times past. The development plans include drawings of high-tech arcades, a glass-enclosed water park, an indoor ski hill, giant Ferris wheel, along with hotels, restaurants and waterfront condos.

Listening Pile:
Simon & Garfunkel's, "Mrs. Robinson". Thinking about Coney Island, and times past, made me want to throw on this song. Truly the best song ever mentioning the Yankee clipper. Truly a classic gem.

Also, came across this the other day. The Setting Suns, which is a side project featuring Adam Franklin of Swervedriver and Sam Fogarino of Interpol. Pretty good stuff. Sorta loopy and hazy tunes, with Adam's signature vocals and echoey guitars on one song, and gently piano keys on the other. Let us not forget Sam's drumming. He's totally one of the most underrated skins pounders out there. Just listen to the first half of "Turn On The Bright Lights." Can't wait to hear more of this stuff.

Oh, put me in, Coach - I'm ready to play today

2007-03-30T10:49:00.000-07:00

What you're about to read is the first annual baseball preview. This week we'll get crazy, but not in that Ugueth Urbina kind of way, and talk about what we predict will happen in the National League. From the N.L. East, Central to the West. Lots of predictions on what's going down this year. From the Mets' chances at repeating in the tough N.L. East, to the World Champion Cardinal's chances in the Central. All the way to the Padres(that means fathers in Espanol), and Dodgers in the stacked N.L. West. From last to first, we talk about all the happenings. Trust me, I read this thing already, twice! It's hot!

N.L. East
Philadelphia just nudges out the Mets to win the division. The Phillies are sparked by MVP Ryan Howard and Chase Utley, as well as your N.L. Cy Young runner up, Cole Hammels. Jimmy Rollins, Shane Victorino, and Pat Burrell have solid years too. The pitching comes up clutch, with Jon Leiber, Jamie Moyer, Freddy Garcia and Brett Myers(who doesn't beat anyone up) all have solid years. Adam Eaton blows out his thumb half way through May, boy are they happy they didn't trade Leiber. The Mets get out to a good lead in the division early in the season, getting big contributions from John Maine, Mike Pelfrey and Oliver Perez. However they struggle in the 2nd half, as Pedro struggles to find his stuff, Glavine and Hernandez spend time on the DL and David Wright struggles through the summer. They do however hold on to the wildcard, and just miss out on the division, with solid years from Wright(who bounces back in Sept), Reyes, Beltran and the NL Rookie of the Year runner up, Lastings Milledge, who takes over right in early May, after Shawn Green takes off for Passover and comes back with a bum knee and bat. Florida has a solid season as well, despite regression from their young guns and bats, and losing their fire, as that skipped town w/ Joe Girardi. Dontrelle Willis wins 23 games and has an era in the high 2's. Though, he comes in third in the Cy Young race. Atlanta struggles mightily without Tim Hudson, Chipper Jones and Bob Wickman, who all spend considerable time on the DL. Mike Hampton doesn't find his stuff until late August and Andruw Jones hits .245 despite having 40+ bombs and walking away to a new contract. Jeff Francour just misses his 40th homer, but nails that 140th strikeout. John Smoltz tries his best to keep the staff together, but even his 20 wins, mid 3's era, and 7 complete games, can't help the team. Washington gets sold again. No really! And this time, management sells off Chad Cordero and John Patterson to the highest bidders at the trade deadline.

N.L. Central
Your division winners are the Milwaukee Brewers, with a paltry 83 wins. They get big seasons from N.L. Cy Young winner, and a healthy, Ben Sheets, winner of 22 games, leading the NL in K's and ERA, plus breakout seasons from Prince Fielder, Rickie Weeks and Bill Hall, despite those 3 combining for over 350 k's. They also have the NL Rookie Of The Year, in Ryan Braun, who takes over for Craig Counsel at third in mid-May. The staff comes in clutch too, with Chris Capuano K'ing over 200 and winning 15 games, plus David Bush and Jeff Suppan are solid, Bush maybe even turning a corner this year if he can get that ERA down and strikeout a few more batters. Defending World Series champs, St. Louis, struggles behind Chris Carpenter. Al Reyes and Adam Wainwright are decent, but they have no 4th and 5th starters, and the bullpen struggles, as Izzy spends time on the DL. Pujols has 4 and 1/2 spectacular months of the season, but misses time with a sprained forehead after complaining about how Ryan Howard is getting more All-Star votes, when his team didn't even make the playoffs last year! Houston falters when Carlos Lee accidentally eats Roy Oswalt. No, really. Ok, well... not really. But Lee has trouble putting up big numbers when he lands on the DL with various ailments, leaving Lance Berkman looking very, very shaky by himself in the weak hitting lineup. However, he gets a little help, but oh so late, when Craig Biggio gets his 3000th hit, then mysteriously ends up on the DL so he can be replaced at 2nd by Chris Burke, and Hunter Pence finally gets his shot in center. The Chicago Cubs and Cincinnati Reds duke it out to be the middle child, though both have a sniff of the postseason until about August. Cincy pulls ahead when they call up Homer Bailey in August. He, along with Aaron Harang and Charles Bronson, er... Bronson Arroyo, make a formidable pitching staff at the close of the year. JR. Griffey only goes on the DL once, after having Ryan Freel dive into him trying to make a catch, playing the most games he's played since 2001. Adam Dunn still strikes out over 150 times, but manages to hit 45 HR's. Making him and Jr. Griffey, the only NL teammates to top 40 HRS. Oh, sweet Lou. Things looked so promising in April. The Cubs manage to knock the cover off the ball and contend in the Central through mid-May, when Carlos Zambrano ends up on the DL, with a balmy back, courtesy of carrying home all that cash the team decided to just give him to re-up. Mark Prior has a solid May and June, before ending up on the DL, again. And it's all downhill from there, literally. As the team depends on Rich Hill to lead a staff that also includes Ted Lilly and Jason Marquis. Lots and lots of windows get shattered outside Wrigley. Pittsburgh is improved, but not enough to move out of the cellar. They got solid contributions from 30 HR guys, Adam Laroche and Jason Bay. They get a bounceback year from Jack Wilson, plus a solid year from Freddy Sanchez and Xavier Nady. The pitching looks promising, but suffers from inconsistency. Ian Snell is the leader of the staff, posting 15 wins and almost 200 k's. Zach Duke and Tom Gorzelanny have decent years, but fail to turn the corner. The bullpen is also hurt, as they have problems bridging to closer Soloman Torres.

N.L. West
The Arizona Diamondbacks get huge seasons from Brandon Webb, Livan Hernandez, Doug Davis and yes, the Big Useless himself, Randy Johnson. They combine for 60 wins. Johnson bounces back when he returns healthy in May. The young hitters all click at once, with Conner Jackson, leading the way and the NL in batting average. Carlos Quentin and Stephen Drew have a breakout year, Chad Tracy bounces back and rookie Chris Young steals 30 bases. The Dodgers stay in the race until the very end of the season. They too, get huge contributions from the pitching staff, as Randy Wolf, Derek Lowe and Jason Schmidt all have solid seasons. Jonathan Broxton is the closer by mid-June. James Loney gets into the line-up and makes the most of it. Nomar and Kent spend time on the DL. Andy Laroche is the starting third-basemen by mid-May when Wilson Betemit moves to 2nd to replace Kent. Andre Either has a solid 2nd season. Juan Pierre and Rafael Furcal, don't hit much, but make the most of when they do as both score over 100 runs. San Diego gets good pitching from Greg Maddux and Jake Peavy, but Chris Young regresses, David Wells eats a bad twinkee, and Clay Hensley gets murdered at home, to go along w/ his high road ERA too. Adrian Gonzalez has a huge 2nd year. Kevin Kouzmanoff has a solid year, as do the brothers Giles. But the rest of the team doesn't contribute much, except Mike Cameron who goes 20-20, but with 120 k's too. San Francisco has a tough year, and that's not even counting all the boos they get every time Barry Bonds steps up to the plate. Their ancient line-up spends considerable time on the DL. Dave Roberts pulls a hammy trying to get to 2nd to set up the tying run in a June game. Rich Aurilla, Randy Wynn and Ryan Klesko all spend time on the DL. The only comfort is the great season that their ace has. Yup, Matt Cain, puts up a 19 win season, with 200+ k's. Oh yeah, that Zito guy has an OK year, despite spending time on the DL for the first time in his career after he hurt himself altering his delivery again, either that or he was attacked by a cactus again. Colorado has big years from Matt Holiday, Garrett Atkins, and catcher, Chris Iannetta. They regret not pulling the trigger on the Todd Helton to Boston swap. As Helton spends time on the DL and hits an all time low in HRs, RBI and AVG, he makes them wish it was 97 instead of 07. Troy Tulowitzki, doesn't impress at short, and Clint Barmes somehow ends up with his job back and that pitching staff, regresses and ends up missing Jason Jennings a lot more than one would have thought.

Listening Pile:
"Centerfield" by John C. Fogerty. Yeah, you heard that right sucka! Actually, as I kept thinking of the Dodgers and that blooper when Tommy Lasorda gets knocked over with the bat during that All-Star game. That song came into my head. I think that's what they play during the Blooper Reels.

The Centerfield song mentions three legendary players by name: Willie Mays, Ty Cobb, Joe DiMaggio AND one player (Joe Jackson) only by an expression "it ain't so." Did you know that every instrument on the entire Centerfield album is being played by John C. Fogerty? There's your trivia for the day. Don't say I never do anything for you.

Song two. "Breed" by Nirvana. 2K games has been running those spots for MLB 2k7 like crazy on TV. And that is one bad ass song. According to this story, it's got a pretty hot soundtrack, with Les Savy Fav, Editors, DFA 1979, Jealous Sound, Pixies and Thermals all up in there. Nice!

What Do You Want Me To Say?

2007-03-23T13:45:00.001-07:00

It's now been over three weeks since I've posted. there are two things that attributed to this, SXSW and my intense preparation for it, plus the Austin hanta virus I came back with.

There were no highlights at SXSW. It rained on me like a MOFO on the first day. I went to some lame show at the Beauty Bar that night and then hit up a western themed gay bar, hip hop club and the Purevolume lounge. In that order. Remember, what happens in Austin, stays in Austin. Well, not really.

Wednesday had me working my ass off, including waking my ass up at 8am to get things rolling. Basically spent the day helping other people get ready for our showcase and putting up posters and handing out materials. Thursday, was pretty much the same thing. Friday, yeah, you guessed it. Saturday, I flew back to Newark and the lovely Northeast weather, with a cold. I don't remember much, as I was heavily medicated. All I do remember is my head felt like it was going to explode. Saturday night to Tuesday were a blur of sickness and sleep, mixed in with some TV watching and chicken soup.

So, now, as things have gone.
Seven things I think I think(SXSW-Austin Edition):

1. Maybe it's just me, but what the hell is up with the whole, "Keep Austin Weird" thing. That shit is gayer than Lance Bass at the Playboy Mansion. Ok, I get it. Austin is really free-spirited and democratic in a not so liberal state. Yeah, yeah, alright. But you still live in a state that elected George Bush governor and wants to build electric fences around it's borders so Paco can't enter the country. Oh, so having a couple music venues and festivals makes you guys an A-plus. Ok, my bad. "Lets Keep Austin Weird"

2. Mexican food, everywhere in Austin. It's like, "hello, welcome to Austin. would you like some BBQ or Mexican." Ate at this great authentic Mexican place on the "other side" of town called, El Azteco. For you non-Spanish speakers, that means " The Aztec". Man it was good. I was just waiting for a little homeless girl to come around and try to get me to buy flowers or chicklets. Margarita was top notch too. They didn't skip on the Tequila.

3. People down there are way friendlier than here in NYC. People's accents are great. I don't know how many times I used, "you know, I'm on the list. the band's list! they were supposed to leave a note at the door for me to get in" and actually got into a show. I mean, it worked for shit I had no clue being at. Somehow that couldn't get me into Bloc Party though. Man, I was rolling like K-Fed right before Brit dropped that ten ton hammer on his ass.

4. SXSW is like Mardi Gras. Yeah, I know I said that about South Beach too, but seeing as I've actually never been to Mardi Gras, I guess I don't really have any basis for either argument. Just based on the people vomiting, random acts of nakedness, and people consuming alcohol on the streets. And don't let me get started on Friday night. At some point, you have to start wondering, Hooker or really skanky UT student? It's no wonder things like Girls Gone Wild get made.

5. Seeing as I was at SXSW to work, I barely got to see any bands I wanted to see. I did however, get to see Snowden for a couple songs. I like their album, Anti-Anti. The songs I heard, which included my favorite from their album, "Like Bullets" sounded pretty good. I'll have to check out a full set of theirs sometime. Also, saw Youth Group play a very un-inspired set at the Fader Fort. Needless to say, it seems like they showed up for their free jeans and then were told they had to play. Some bands will do anything for those Levi's 501s. Also, got to see a bit of Pelican's set. I wasn't feeling it as much as I was hoping I would. They weren't very loud and didn't sound very good. Sorry guys. Better luck next time. Somehow I saw this band, Airbourne, from Australia. Uh...hey guys, the 80's called. They said they wanted their hair back. I thought the 80's revival died when Justin Hawkins split his pants up.

6. The traffic in Austin, well, it kinda blows. I am not sure how it takes 45 minutes to travel about 6 miles. But it does. Also, I hated how they shut off any block near the main drag, 6th Street. That meant I had to carry boxes that were way to heavy to really be carried in the first place, way further than necessary.

7. People are way proud that Whole Foods came out of Austin. I was with people that went there like eight times over 4 days. The Whole Foods headquarters in Austin, Texas, is located above its flagship store. Which, by the way, is impossible to get to unless you have a car. Cabs don't go anywhere near the place. Anyhows. It made me happy to see when I got home that the new Whole Foods at Bowery & Houston would be open on March 29th. I didn't think that thing would be open before summer. But all of a sudden, they busted a move and finished it in a hurry. I guess that's the power of Whole Foods for ya.

Listening Pile:
Not sure if this is news still, but it's an amazing story about Callum Robbins. Callum is the son of Jawbox/Burning Airlines/Channels J. Robbins and Channels' Janet Morgan. He suffers from Spinal Muscular Atrophy (Type 1), a disorder that often leads to death at a very young age, and for which there is no cure.

Just read that a bunch of bands, including Jawbreaker, Travis Morrison, Channels, David Grubbs, Engine Down, Maritime, Joe Lally, and more, have contributed tracks to the Catlick Records 2xCD compilation For Callum, available for purchase here

Tons of support has been coming from the music community, including benefit shows by Ted Leo, Radio 4 and of course, the Dismemberment Plan reunion going down at DC's Black Cat. A second show has now been added. A bunch of info on all the happenings are listed here Bummed I'm not going down to DC to see the Plan, but I'm definitely gonna pick up a copy of the Compilation for Callum. And you should too.

And while we're at it, Spoon has announced a whole mess of details, including track listing and release date July 10, for their new album, which is rumored to be called Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga. Not sure if that's a Pitchpork ruse or not, but either way, I'm sure a whole lot of folks will do exactly that when it's available too. Spoon fans are serious folks man. Serious.

beep, boop, boop, crash, beep, loop, fwount, bang, beep, boop, loop, sing, sing, beep, boop, thanks you've been a wonderful audience

2007-03-07T15:18:00.000-08:00

Seven Things I Think I Think (Florida Edition):
1. South Beach is like Vegas. There are lots of tanned people, barely wearing any clothing, doing whatever they please. You can just as easily see some girl with her tanned boobs popping out as you would someone drinking a cocktail on the street. I was just waiting
for a hooker to get killed on Ocean drive so I could see Caruso.

2. The weather is amazing. Granted, we lucked out the first 3 days getting temps in the high 80's, but even on the last day, with temps barely getting out of the 60's it was sick. I didn't wear shoes or socks for four days. And only wore pants to dinner one night and jeans the last day. I felt like the Big Lebowski.

3. Driving down there kinda sucks. Its like LA. Out of nowhere you're sitting in a logjam of traffic like the Truman Show. Not to mention that everyone down there seems to be on their cell phone and driving a BMW, Mercedes or Lexus. It's like Brittany with a baby on her lap down there. No lie, I saw at least 6 Lamborghinis.

4. It's like an episode of CSI-Miami, I swear. Even Fort Lauderdale. Everyone sort of looks the same, tan, sunglasses, dresses the same in white or pastels. The ladies are over the top, trying to be sexy. The guys look like super-guidos. It's sorta like summer at the Jersey shore, only more white pants.

5. I guess after the crazy partying going on during Spring Break in the 80's, the city of Fort Lauderdale is really trying to clean up it's image as a party town. It's all about trying to be slick and laid back. Down to the hotels and the beaches. Big ones starting to go up, a new W, Ritz Carlton and Trump Tower on the way. Plus, not once did I see Pauly Shore, beer-funnel or a wet t-shirt contest.

6. I don't get the Dwayne Wade fascination. Homeboy is good, even great. However, I've never ever, seen one sports figure so heavily represented in one area, ever. Everywhere you went, people were sporting one jersey, and that was D-Wade's jersey. Went to the beach, dudes playing volleyball wearing #3. Go to lunch, your waiter's got on the tre. Go to a bar, at least half a dozen guys. Nightclub, at least one or two dudes, even though there's a dress code. It's like, "well, you didn't wear the appropriate outfit, but hey, you got D-Wade on, step right in." It was a little strange, think the whole time, I saw one other Heat jersey, and it was for Antoine Walker! Not even Shaq. Antoine Walker's ocho. Crazy huh.

7. So, I attended my first spring training game, albeit a game between the Baltimore Orioles and New York Mets. Fort Lauderdale stadium isn't as nice as some of the new spring training complexes, but it wasn't bad. Food wasn't that great, but that and the beer were fairly inexpensive, compared to the mortgage you have to take out at each Yankee game. Aside from being an exercise in how many fat sunburnt people you can spot wearing orange, the game was actually a pretty fun experience. We sat in the Left Field bleachers. You are so close to all the action. It's pretty cool. So when the Mets decided to have one of their pitchers start warming up, I could head over to the gate and stand literally 3 feet away from the catcher. Ambiorix Burgos was throwing some smoke. And man, is he big. like 6'4" and built like a truck. Saw Willie Randolph too. He makes it tough on a Yankee fan to hate the Mets. Orioles won and it took a long time to get out of the lots, but a good time was had.

Listening Pile:
If you've read here before, you know how much of a big fan I am of The Battles. Needless to say, I was psyched when I got my weekly email from the Warpbot, saying this, BATTLES : Atlas video + Exclusive Live Show Tickets. Yeah! New music. So I checked out the video, here. This shit is so fucked up, it's amazing! Sick distorted vocals by Tyondai and Stanier's pulsating drumming. Wow! I cannot wait to get my hands on the album.

Ohh...crazy, but it feels alright

2007-02-22T13:13:00.000-08:00

Came across this cool article by Jeff Passan about the gyroball. Turns out almost everything we thought about the mysterious pitch, may have been wrong. Whether Daisuke Matsuzaka can actually throw this, or Pedro Martinez already has in the past, and never knew it, we'll probably never be certain. I think anyway you look at it, it sort of adds a great mystery to the game and something to talk about.

"It was supposed to be the first new pitch since Bruce Sutter popularized the split-fingered fastball … which itself was nothing more than a new grip, providing a different break, on the already-used forkball. The novelty of the gyroball caught on in the U.S. as it had in Japan. Kids posted videos of themselves on YouTube trying to throw the gyroball."

And while we're on the subject of baseball, I came across a great new blog, Bronx Comics. Done by Knuckles, AKA Matt, with a program called Comic Life, that came on his iMac. It's hilariously funny and he says what many of us Yankee and baseballs fans only think.

The release of Jonny Greenwood is the Controller, marks the 40th anniversary of reggae's legendary label, Trojan Records, by bringing some of the greatest moments of the label's past in touch with the present. The Radiohead guitarist, gets his rocks off for reggae music by digging through Trojan's extensive back catalog and compiling his favorite tracks onto one disc. After 6 months of endless listening(and possibly lots of ganja smoking?), Greenwood narrowed down his choices to 17 recordings. Due out on March 6th, this collection digs deep into rich Jamaican sounds and covers styles from classic Ska and Rocksteady to vintage Dub and Roots, including the likes of Lee 'Scratch' Perry, Desmond Dekker, Delroy Wilson, Scientist & Jammy and many others. Hooray Beer! And, after his work on the Bodysong Soundtrack, I'm intrigued to hear this. He's a super guitar player and on the two occasions I got to meet him, he was extremely nice. Even taking the time to talk to my buddy about playing the viola.

I came across this on the Vegan's site and it really saddened me. A couple really good bands now have to find new homes, Shout Out Louds and Soundteam. And even though I don't particularly like Kevin Devine, I've met him and he's a really nice guy and from the Strong Island scene. Also, the post linked to, by Jax one of the Capitol workers who was laid off blows. I feel bad for her, having been on the same end of that stick before ending up at the current job situation I'm at. Sometimes I guess it's better to have a bad job than no job, even though she's really taking it well in my opinion. She has a really great blog, writing about a lot of music stuff in LA. I think I want to move to LA. I'm sick of cold weather and tiny apartments. Well, at least today I am. But who am I kidding. I love NYC and not driving.

Listening Pile:
While former extreme metal legend, Justin K. Broadrick(Napalm Death, Godflesh), has just released his fine new disc Conqueror under the moniker, Jesu. Out on the Hydra Head label too. The band will not be able to appear on the first part of their tour with Isis due to work visa issues. Justin K. Broadrick and co. have just secured the visas and will make their U.S. debut on March 5 in Orlando. Current band bassist, Diarmuid Dalton will not play with the band on any dates, instead, Dave Cochrane, who has worked with Broadrick previously in Ice, Head of David, Sweet Tooth, God, and Grey Machine will fill in, and Intronaut drummer Danny Walker will fill out the line-up.
MP3: Jesu: Conqueror [from the Conqueror LP]

5...4...3...2...1...0

2007-02-21T15:06:00.000-08:00

Major League baseball is screwing us again. This time, it's our heads they are messing with, well, at least what goes on it. On opening day, the traditional wool cap will get kicked to the curb in favor of a new polyester blend model designed to wick away moisture and make money disappear from your wallet. The change is part of commissioner Satan...er...Bud Selig's focus on boosting player performance. I guess he's trying to make amends for turning a blind eye to the juicing going on in the 90's and I guess he needs something to cover up Bond's ginormous head. So, not only are these hats going to be made out of the same material as Disco Stu's favorite pants, but it'll cost ya. The new caps will retail at about $32, up from the current $29. Yeah, a current cap costs $29 and it's gonna cost more! Alas, I just with they could go back to the hats they had in the early 90's, with the green underbill. Man, those were sturdy hats and didn't poof up like a chef's hat and have the unbendable brim. And don't even get me started on the new batting practice hats. What is up with that piping on the sides. This isn't NASCAR, you don't just add a racing stripe!

This is fairly depressing. I know I live about 2 miles from the Empire State Building. Damn those North Koreans. Damn them. Steve Jobs, I blame this on you.

Listening Pile:
The Frames are back w/ a new album, The Cost, which hit stores, yesterday. One of Ireland’s most successful current bands since the release of their first album in 1992, the group led by frontman Glen Hansard, has bounced through various failed record deals and line-ups releasing consistently excellent records throughout it all. 2005's Burn The Maps was one of my favorite records in recent memory. The Cost is the band's ninth album and one of their more focused and straightforward, as the ten songs on The Cost, blend together beautifully. Hansard is a vocalist capable of both quiet, contemplative passages,as well as gut-wrenching catharsis. However on this album he tones it down a notch, and he never screams, he just sings brilliantly. One of the better records I've heard so far this year. Check out what may be the best song on the album, "Sad Song" ,

The radio is playing all the usual. And what's a wonderwall anyway.

2007-02-16T14:52:00.000-08:00

The TV ads I've seen for 300 have just blown me away. Based on Frank Miller's graphic novel, "300" concerns the 480 B.C. Battle of Thermopylae, where the King of Sparta led his army of 300 Spartans, 700 Thespians and other slave soldiers against the advancing 100,000 Persians; the battle is said to have inspired all of Greece to band together against the Persians, and helped usher in the world's first democracy. The battle lasted 3 days, after which all 300 Spartans were killed. The battle was a suicide mission, meant to buy time for the rest of the Greek forces to prepare for the invasion. However, that didn't stop the Spartans from taking as many Persians as possible with them. The film looks amazing, and is going to be showing at the Imax theater uptown. Directed by Zack Snyder, who is best known as the director of Dawn Of The Dead, he seems to have done a fantastic job. Just look at the trailer

Listening Pile:
fan9 favorite rodent, no, not the african pygmy, butModest Mouse, who have conquered the world since the release of their last album, are back with a new album, We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank , due in stores March 20. Got to say, I'm digging on the new song "Dashboard".

Scottish group Travis is are also, back with the upcoming release of their new album, The Boy With No Name . Nigel Godrich, who was also at the helm of the band's best work, The Man Who and The Invisible Band. produced the follow-up to their '03 album, the sadly disappointing 12 Memories. The band posted the album title and tracklisting on their website , giving a UK release date of May 7. The record will be preceeded by the single "Closer," which will hit stores on April 23. Hopefully the US release information isn't slated for fall '07. Check out another new track, "Selfish Jean", which just so happens to be streaming on their Myspace page. It's not just a network for meeting people.

¿Qué debo hacer si resulto herido o lastimado durante el juego?

2007-02-14T11:25:00.000-08:00

The walk to work was pretty intersting this morning. First step out the door of my building almost saw me wipe out. Then, I realized, the most dangerous walkways were the ones that had been recently cleaned off and only had a thin layer of ice on them. So, as most of the Midwest and Northeast are covered in snow, most MLB teams are gearing up for Spring Training. I suppose the big stories and questions around Yankee camp are
(aka my seven things i think i think about this season):
1. Will Bernabé Figueroa Williams show up to camp without a major league contract and hope he can somehow make the team, even though all indications are that he's a lame duck?

2. Will A-Rod find his lucky pink panties and have another MVP type season, and Jacksonesque post-season, then skip town via his well timed out clause in his contract?

3. Will Jeter and A-Rod make nice and hug after each rendition of the YMCA?

4. Will Phillip Hughes pitch an inning before the All-Star break?

5. Will Giambi break down before or after the All-Star break?

6. Who will be the first pitcher to go on the DL, Moose, Pettite or Carla Pavano?

7. Will this be the year the Yanks survive the post-season and win championship #27?

I have a couple other questions myself.

1. How much will a beer cost this year at the stadium, 9$ ?

2. Will the B train ever get to the stadium again?

3. Will Matsui do that safety ad in Spanish again?

Came across this story today on iLounge. Apparently those wacky, Chinese have already got an iPhone knock-off on the way. I'm sure this won't be the last either. In fact, I don't understand how Microsoft hasn't jumped on the bandwagon as well, after the disaster that was the brown turd, sorry...uh.... the Zune, hasn't tried to steal Apple's thunder by introducing a similiar product before the iPhone is released in June.

Chinese electronics maker Meizu is the first company to closely copy the look and feel of Apple’s iPhone. The Meizu miniOne, due out in the fourth quarter of 2007, is a GSM phone with numerous iPhone similarities, including a curved, black and polished steel design, touch-screen interface, and a nearly identical on-screen software icon layout.

And thanks to M1k3 for pointing me to thislink, which shows off the new Transformer Toys.

Listening Pile;
Been loving this Cale Parks album lately. He's better known as the drummer for Chicago outfit, Aloha, who put out an impressive album last year as well, Some Echoes. Parks is also the occasional drummer for Joan of Arc and Cex.
The album, Illuminated Manuscript has an intimate but intricate bedroom ambient electronic sound where keyboards and mallet instruments mix with sparse vocals and a television or the occasional cat meowing in the background. Check it out, it's good stuff.

And if you don't have anyone to hug today, you can always do what this guy is doing.
Tree hugger! I know, today sucks for the most part, whether you're alone, or shelling out a ton of loot on dinner, flowers, and chocolates. But just think about it this way, at least you're not this kid.

My Eyes Are Open, My Eyes Are Open Wide

2007-02-10T06:22:00.000-08:00

I was just reading this article overe on the Metsblog. Pretty interesting read on the two new stadiums for the Mets and Yanks. From what I've read, I do agree that maybe the new Mets Stadium, Citi Field, might end up being a bit better, with the classic Ebbets Field look and all the modern amenities that you could ask for. Of course, I think the Mets made a huge mistake calling it Citi, Bankone, Of Americquest Field. They should have showed some class and called it Jackie Robinson Stadium. They could have really done something special, and honor one of the most important figures in sports history, but I guess that Citi Bank check trumps that.

From the artist rendering of the New Yankee Stadium, I feel like we're ending up a bit short on the actual look of the stadium, but improving on all the amenities as well. Of course, that's because Yankee Stadium needs to preserve a lot of the traits from the old stadium. But still, think both team's fans are getting something better than what currently exists. We all now how I feel about Shea. I can't take baseball seriously in a place that reminds me of a fun house, with that stupid apple popping up with every homer, or the ugly orange chairs. And while I love Yankee Stadium, history cannot help that place. It's old, falling apart and the interior has no redeeming qualities aside from the field. However, I did just hook up with my buddy on a 15 game season ticket plan. And if we're lucky, we'll do it again next year and the first year at the new stadium.

Listening Pile:
On the train yesterday from the City to Connecticut, I came across the Planes Mistaken For Stars EP Knife In The Marathon . It's a killer ep the band put out back in 2000. Knife in the Marathon is the second cd on Deep Elm, and rocks hard. Though the self titled disc from Deep Elm is a bit better, less screaming, but still manages to pack in a ton of emotion. The EP is super agressive, yet with a hint of melody and tons of emotion. The EP is capped with the bonus track, a cover of Unbroken's "Fall On Proverb" is heavy, angry and does the original justice. Check out touring info and new tunes at Myspace. These guys actually played on my birthday, back in 2000. Think it's a completely different line-up, aside from Gared. But they were nice guys and they partied hard.

Alright, I gotta roll. Got to get ready for some high-school wrestling and hot dogs. Too bad I can't bring beer. But I leave you with this.

I can't believe I forgot about this one. Fun times I tell ya.

I'm trying to be heroic.

2007-02-07T11:57:00.000-08:00

I forgot to put this in my last post. Doh!

Listening Pile:
I like this new Bloc Party album a lot. It's not quite as thrilling as their debut, but still offers quite a few good songs. I think many will view this as a disappointing sophomore effort, as it's quite ambitious and often finds itself lost in overproduction and gloss. Songwriting is mediocre at best, losing the urgency and brashness that made the first album so memorable. Kele's vocals are often strained, distant and lyrics border on the mundane or ridiculous. And let us not forget, he's the whitest sounding black dude, since Phil Lynott. But songs like, "Song For Clay (Disappear Here)", "The Prayer" and "Where Is Home?" are reminiscent of the earlier work, with pulsating rhythms and angular guitars. Even the quieter moments on the album lack that vulnerability that made Silent Alarm so special. Overall it's a good listen, and despite all it's faults, is a good direction for the band to go in. They could have made the same album, and they didn't, so you have to give them a lot of credit for that.

Be one of the first 1000 people to pre-order the new Bloc Party album, A Weekend In The City, and receive a FREE LIMITED EDITION 7". This INSOUND EXCLUSIVE vinyl features two tracks, 'I Still Remember' and an unreleased B-side, 'We Were Lovers'! order up

Super Lame

2007-02-06T15:18:00.000-08:00

So, it's now two days after the Super Bowl , and we've come to find out that this year's edition, was the 3rd highest rated TV program of all time with 93.2 Million Viewers. 3rd! Yeah, you read that right. Behind only the top of the list, Mash finale, and the 1996 Super Bowl. Peyton and Co. trying to erase the notion that he can't win the big game and put the exclamation point on his fantastic career and win his first Super Bowl, makes for TV. Who'd of thunk it.

So, for the first time in a long time, here are the seven things I think I think, or otherwise known as my other thoughts on the Super Bowl:

1. It was a fantastic game, with lots of great subplots. Can Manning win his first and maybe only shot at a Super Bowl. Can the Colts D shut down the potent Bears running attack and stifle Rex Grossman. How many times will we hear that it's the first time two black coaches are in the Super Bowl. Blah, blah, blah. How many times will Phil Simms say he could've made that pass. Why is Bruce Willis stalking Demi and Ashton, awkward...

2. What was up with the awful camera lenses. I mean, we weren't watching a Sunday afternoon game between the Jets and the Raiders here, we were watching the biggest game of the year! They knew it was going to rain. And no, I'm not talking about Prince. You're telling me a multi-billion dollar corporation like CBS, doesn't have a fog proof lens somewhere? Uh, HD cameras? Nothing? Horrible camera work. I was expecting one of the camera operators to start wiping down the lens only to have Jim Nantz throw in a funny little remark about how you'd think we're watching the new season of Survivor.

3. When did Rupaul hook up with Prince? OK, not really Rupaul, or maybe not even a man, but did anyone see that back-up dancer? Whoa. Long gone are the days of Vanity, Sheila E. or Sheena Easton I suppose. And now there's that whole controversy about how some see guitar as phallic imagery in Prince's Super Bowl performance. Come on, you want to talk about malfunction, does anyone remember the ass-less pants? And while we're at it, where were the hits? Maybe it's just me, but I wanted a "Little Red Corvette" or "Raspberry Beret".

4. What was up with that National Anthem? I know it's a tough song, but seriously, they couldn't get Katharine McPhee or something? Someone give the poor Piano Man a drink and let him sing!

5. What was up with all the Norbit product placements and ads. I somehow feel like I now need to see that movie and drink a Coca-Cola. "I must kill the Queen."

6. Why is it every time something happens in Miami, Gloria Estefan needs to be invited. I mean, she didn't even sing! CBS brought her out to introduce Cirque De Soleil. You'd think she was pulling a Guiliani and running for President or something.

7. Maybe it was just me, but the commercials, well, not as funny as in years past. Aside from the K-Fed commercial, which I must say was genius, and the GM Robot, the Carlos Mencia and Dalmation Budweiser spots, I can't even remember any other ad that I thought was great.

Someone Has a Case of the Mondays

2007-01-03T11:11:00.000-08:00

Goodmorning Jan. 3, 2007. Honestly, I didn't know I had to work yesterday, until about 5pm on Monday. Fun times I tell ya. So, my tops of 2006 list, will not be ready until this weekend. I'm gonna keep things short, so I can feature more albums, as well as movies, tv shows, food and books. Yeah, I can read. Funny huh! Hooked on Phonics really works!

Came across this story this morning though. Toyota is developing a system that detects drunken drivers and automatically shuts the vehicle down if sensors pick up signs of excessive alcohol. Cars fitted with the system will not start if sweat sensors in the steering wheel detect high levels of alcohol in the driver's blood, Now, what happens if you've say, cut your hand and have some rubbing alcohol on them. Or if you were making a wine reduction sauce and you realize you need to head to the store for some garlic. Hmmmmm?

Randy Johnson is still a Yankee, and Roger Clemens is still a free agent. Not that I like either one of them very much, but the Big Useless really needs to go back to Arizona. Too bad we can't get Javier Vasquez back. Replacement Level Yankees Weblog comes up with an interesting note on the Useless and how he may not actually be as bad as he was last year, and how in reality, losing a guy who could pitch 200 innings may hurt the bullpen, and ultimately, the team. Plus, we came to realize, he might have played hurt all year long. Gimme Clemens and some decent minor league prospects, and I'm sold.

Playboy Magazine says Mercury Lounge & Cake Shop are two of America's 10 best rock clubs. Uh... I"m not sure what the criteria for their selections were. Not that I disagree with the Mercury Lounge selection. They book great bands. It's a great place to see a show, and the sound is always great. But the Cake Shop?! Aside from feeling like the ceiling in the basement is going to fall on your head, the lack of being able to see the stage and the way the venue sweats during warm days, I can't imagine why people would like the place. The only semi-redeeming quality is the booking is occasionally solid. The Cake shop has become one of the prerequisite first stops for many bands both foreign and domestic playing NYC.

Macworld Expo is coming. iLounge gives a big rundown of what to watch out for. Could the much speculated iPhone finally be unveiled. Or how about a new video iPod with a larger screen. Damn you Steve Jobs. All this speculation. I blame this on you.

"Over 60 exhibitors are expected to formally show iPod-related products at this year’s Expo, with additional exhibitors likely to make smaller appearences at private meetings. Our detailed list of exhibitors below allows you to click on virtually any company’s name to see additional details on the company and all of the products that have been featured on iLounge."

Listening Pile:
On my recent holiday journeys, The Legends Up Against The Legends, kept coming up on the iPod. And I thought it a good time to go back and revisit an amazing album. Pitchporky even managed to give it an 8.0 ranking back in 2004. The Legends, a nine-piece Swedish band whose high-energy pop music makes its debut disc, Up Against the Legends, a fuzzy, feedback-drenched, lo-fi affair. Fronted by Johan Angersgard of the Acid House Kings and Club 8, channels the Velvet Underground and Pet Sounds-era Beach Boys. Up Against the Legends offers an even dozen well-crafted indie pop gems dressed up in reverb and feedback, twisting guitar lines, bouncy rhythm section, handclaps, and great girl backing vocals.

It's Christmas time in Hollis Queens Mom's cooking chicken and collard greens

2006-12-24T13:33:00.000-08:00

Hello friends,
Today, on Christmas Eve, I wanted to give you all at nice little present. It's called "Christmas in Hollis" and it's a little treat from Run DMC from Christmas, 1987. Enjoy!

The Rev and his family are going through a rough time, so best wishes go out to them. It's always tough losing a child.

The Jazz June reunite for one night and a special cause next month in Philadelphia. They are playing a show for their old roadie who's been diagnosed with cancer. The Jazz June were a great band that put out some fantastic albums including, 2000's The Medicine, which to this day is still one of my favorite albums.

"Formed in 1996 in Kutztown, PA, the Jazz June have survived the mid-90's "emo" explosion, its inevitable backlash and current media notoriety - and emerged relatively unscathed. The only noticeable scars appear in the form of their music - which has taken leaps and bounds beyond the simplicity of the jangly pop present on their earliest work. They've grown up in the years since - if The Medicine was their Revolver, then Better Off Without Air is the Jazz June's White Album. A varied, mature slab of catchy and impassioned indie rock that finds the band jumping a few steps up their evolutionary ladder."

is an interview with the band's guitarist, Bryan Gassler who talks about Adam's (tour mgr) health, how they never thought their last show would be their last, and the band's future plants. Give it a read.

Came across this tidbit the other day. The Limelight, now known as the Avalon, will close it's doors early next month, and become a Mini-Mall. Yikes! To be honest, it was a horrible club, with horrible sound, staff and booking, but it's fate is even sadder. You won't be missed, but sucks to be you.

The other day, I heard about this photo exhibit “Enrique Metinides photographed his first dead body before he was 12,” Michael Kimmelman writes of the man known as Mexico ’s Weegee. Shooting for pulp magazines and the newspaper La Prensa, Mr. Metinides made “visual sense out of urban mayhem and life’s general unpredictability.” The exhibit on view at the Anton Kern gallery shows gory scenes of death, accidental and otherwise; the photos are so well composed they often look like film stills, with an artistry that’s “rough and plain as day.” Enrique Metinides’s photographs, through Jan. 13 at Anton Kern, 532 West 20th Street, (212) 367-9663. I've seen Weegee's work, and from the looks of Metinde's work, it seems to be pretty awesome. A gritty look at the macabre. Yeah, not what you shouuld be talking about on Xmas Eve, but, worth checking out if you're into cool photography.

Happy Holidays and to all a good night.

More than meets the eye!

2006-12-20T16:57:00.000-08:00

If you've been following the Tara Conner story over the last few days, and I know you have, I mean you've seen her, right! You've no doubt heard about the just turned 21, Miss USA and her scandalous behavior. Well, looks like the Donald decided not to utter his famous catch phrase, "You're Fired!". While the lovely Miss USA hasn't done anything that any 20 year old girl that heads off to say, college hasn't done, she will check herself into rehab and will stay true to upholding the image of the pageant and her duties as the winner of the crown. Lets talk about the biggest case of blowing something out of proportion, since Ross and Rachel were on a "break". "She left a small town in Kentucky and she was telling me that she got caught up in the whirlwind of New York," Trump said. Yeah, you think. She's hot! Everyone knows who she is and she wants to party. Ya think it might be tough to get out to some bars. Like people were gonna turn her away! Come on. The whole thing is ridiculous. We didn't see Jenna Bush get carted off to rehab when she got busted for underage partying. (by the way, did anyone see what Matt Damon said about her and sister Babs, the other day?) . I kinda like the idea of a really naughty party girl Miss USA. Think about it. She could start a campaign for, "liquor before beer, you're in the clear" or "no one likes a floater", but seriously, just make her do some drinking and driving PSA's or something. Can't some good come out of a young girl acting crazy. I mean, how were there not cameras on this girl the whole time? They put everyone on TV these days. Jim and Tammy Faye's dumbass punk son has his own show. Hello! If she'd gotten booted, I'm sure she had a place to stay and a new gig.

I've just seen the trailer for the new Transformers movie. It looks pretty killer. I have to say, I was a bit skeptical about them making a live action Transformers movie. I envisioned it looking like that god awful Hulk movie from a couple years ago. I didn't think they could pull it off. But director, Michael Bay, from the looks of the trailer, did not disappoint. Don't know about the cast though. Shia LaBouf, Tyrese and Josh Duhamel, come on. Josh Hartnett and Freddi Prince Jr. weren't available? However, the lovely Megan Fox, better known as the elder, finer, daughter in Hope & Faith, seems to be the lead female. She has the acting ability of a bucket of rocks, but she is lovely. But really, who cares about the actors. Everyone just cares about the Transformers and the special effects. And from the trailer, it looks pretty good. I just hope they get Shockwave up in that piece.

Listening Pile
The one show I'm really bummed I missed out on this year, was the Juno reunion earlier this month in Seattle. I really thought about just getting on a plane and sleeping on some friend's couch to see this. They put out two of my favorite albums on the Desoto label, This is the Way it Goes and Goes and Goes (1999) and A Future Lived in Past Tense (2001), plus a split with the Dismemberment Plan. To this day, every time I get on a flight, I put one at least one of their songs. Dreamy soundscapes, with washy guitars, dense and complex rhythms. They were one of those bands that just reminds me of a time and a place.
I can still remember when and where I was listening to their first album and their second. Anyhows, check out this article in Seattle's, The Stranger. TIt gives a fascinating look back on the band, the time leading up to their reunion and what singer Arlie Carstens is up to with his new project, the Ghost Wars, a long-distance collaboration with producer/musician Eric Fisher (Damien Jurado), featuring contributions from almost 20 members of the extended Seattle music community, including Rosie Thomas, Nate Mendel of Foo Fighters, members of the Blood Brothers, and more. The duo has recorded basic tracks for 25 songs, and is slowly refining 11 of them, with an eye toward releasing an album sometime next year.

I just wanna know, what are you gonna do for me?

2006-12-18T13:39:00.000-08:00

Did anyone catch the Lost Room on Sci-Fi Network. Man do I love Peter Krause, better known for playing Nate on Six Feet Under or the criminally underrated, Casey McCall on Sports Night.(when are we gonna see that on Trio's Brilliant But Cancelled?!?!) Julianna Margulies and Kevin Pollack were great in this Mini-Series too. It had this awesome creepy X-Files vibe to it. Krause plays a detective who loses his daughter in the otherwordly lost room and spends the rest of the series unlocking it's mystery and trying to find his daughter. It was good, really good. If anyone happened to see their crazy advertising in NYC, you know it was pretty cool. Random doors put all over the city with lost room written on them. A pretty creative marketing campaign.

I came across this story last week. If you are running around with a Nike+iPod device, you could be getting tracked by someone. A University Of Washington student had a hunch that his small RFID device that fits into the soles of Nike shoes could be used "an easy surveillance device." And apparently, with a little know-how and a computers, you can track someone. A little scary huh! Puts a whole new meaning to stalking. Neither Apple nor Nike had comments on the matter. Go figure! Mr. Jobs, you know who I'm putting the blame on.

Totally forgot about the Nike ID studio here in NYC. Came across it again yesterday walking around Soho. Studio 255, located at 255 Elizabeth St, lets you make an appointment where you can create a unique iD for your kicks. I remember when the iD option first came out. You can put almost anything on the sneakers, cept foul language and slave labor jargon. Ha, crazy huh! I wonder who actually makes these sneakers though.

This was in the Revelation Records email blast the other day. If you look in the lyric booklet to the "Together" 7"
compilation (Revelation Records' second release), you'll see this group photo on the Gorilla Biscuits page. No one knew it at the time, but the photo was not a Gorilla Biscuits photo. Haha, they totally put a picture of some random dudes on there. They don't even have a clue who it is. They are asking for friends to help them figure it out. You gotta love when stuff like this happens. Does anyone remember the Billy Ripken baseball card debacle? Did anyone hear about Jets rookie Leon Washington's mishap where he stuck up his middle fingers and it went unnoticed on his rookie card. I love when this stuff happens.

As I begin thinking about compiling my 2006 best of music list, I took a look back at my 2005 iMix and list, just to see if my tastes had changed. Well, glad to say, not much. Though just looking over 2006, I am noticing, it rocked a bit more, and there weren't quite as many strong records as in years past. Coming up with a top ten for year end lists, was way harder this year, never mind a top 30. I'm gonna have to reach for that. While We're at the year end stuff, has anyone seen the 100 reasons why Pitchfork sucks list , uh... I mean , their top 100 tracks of the year list. Are you guys serious? Is this for real? Apparently, it is.

Listening Pile:
The best thing to come across my desk lately, has been the new Sonic Youth disc. It's called The Destroyed Room and compiles tracks from their Geffen days, that have been previously available on vinyl, limited compilations and b-sides. After the solid, Rather Ripped , from earlier in the year, I wondered what more they could give us. The tracks were hand-picked by the band and even includes some previously unreleased material. Putting together an outtakes comp can be kinda rough, especially for a band like Sonic Youth, that probably has tons of unreleased gems. You gotta have some rockers that are interesting enough to be worth hearing, but not interesting enough that you're left wondering why they didn't make an album. And then I'm sure there are the tracks that simply should not be heard. There is a little of both on this release, but standouts include, "Campfire", a 1999 piece spontaneously composed at a recordings session on a Groovebox sampler. "Beautiful Plateau", "Loop Cat" and "Queen Anne Chair" play up the dreamy guitar wash that inspired many. Overall, a good listen, especially considering that I was expecting 20 minute jams of guitar feedback and tape noise. Nevermind, the 26-minute version of "The Diamond Sea" from Washing Machine. Overall, not a bad collection of songs. I'm sure it's a must for any serious SY fan.

This town was built on miles of hope and I dare you to give one reason to stay.

2006-11-29T11:30:00.000-08:00

11/25 - Texas Is The Reason/Ian Love @ Irving Plaza
11/26 - Texas Is The Reason/Ian Love @ Irving Plaza

It's now three days later and I still cannot believe I had the chance to see Texas Is The Reason play in the year 2006. In a way, it's like for two nights I was able to go back in time. It's been 9 years since they played together. Numerous bands have come and gone for these young men, Solea, Jets To Brazil, New End Original, Walking Concert and New Rising Sons. Not a bad legacy to leave behind, huh!

Yet, none of that work equals the timeless 1996 classic, Do You Know Who You Are? . Considered by many as one of the pinnacle releases in the development of the "emo" scene, to us back in 96, it was simply one of the best records, post hardcore, emo, whatever you want to call it. The record and the band stood the test of time.

Coming on to the instrumental interlude and title track, they were accompanied by photos of the band during their hey-day. And then, just as on the album, they kicked into a thunderous version of, "Back and To the Left." The audience, comprised of mostly 25-35 year olds, sang along, and did not let up throughout the entire night. They played every song on both the album and the EP, even playing "Blue Boy" from their split with the Promise Ring. One of the most interesting things, was playing new songs, that they introduced as, "This is a new song, we wrote ten years ago." The slower track of the two is called "Every Little Girl's Dream." The more upbeat track of the two is called "When Rock 'N' Roll Was Just A Baby." We were treated to something that cannot simply be put into words. They were amazing, pure and simple. Tight musicianship, Daly is a machine behind the kit. Scott comes in with the rolling bass lines, and Norm busted out his best chops ever on lead guitar. Garrett's vocals sounded like he never missed a beat. This was without a doubt in my mind, the best show I've seen all year and quite possibly, one of the best ever. We were treated to two wonderful and special nights. For a momment I think a good part of that audience felt like it was 1996 all over again, and we're the better for it.

So, this leaves me with this. What other band out there would you like to see back together, if even for one night. That seemed to come up a bunch over the two nights. Quicksand, was high on the list, if not topping it. But who else would be on the list, Fugazi, Pavement, New Order(there is this nasty rumer), U2, oh wait, they are still together, you'd just think they stopped making music ten years ago. Whatever band it is, lets just hope it doesn't turn into the VH-1 show, Bands Reunited Especially, like their ill-fated attempt at trying to get the Smith's back together.

Listening Pile
I still need to give it up for Texas Is The Reason. Check out four of the band's best songs at their Myspace page. Which includes the song, "Blue Boy" from the split with the Promise Ring, that somehow is out of print. Very strange. Plus get to view some pics and videos from their two nights at Irving Plaza.

Also, go to their site, Texas Is The Reason and check out their thoughts on the two nights, plus credits, info on the new songs and cover they played, where to get merch (got myself a snazy t-shirt) and more...
Roll The Credits
Now that it's over and we're all able to reflect, I think it's safe to say that this weekend's festivities were a complete success. There were a couple of mostly unnoticed mishaps and a few ideas that unfortunately didn't make it to the finish line, but by and large, we accomplished what we set out to do: We played these songs sincerely, among friends, in our hometown, to a sea of smiling faces. To say that these were the most important shows of our career would be an understatement.

And long before I knew you, I've got the scars to prove it.

2006-11-25T11:55:00.000-08:00

So, as many of you know. I've taken up running again. It's beeen almost 10 years since I was a good athlete in high school. I ran cross country and track. It was time for a change. Figure I eat pretty healthy, but still have a problem gaining that extra weight up the middle. I've been running off and on for the past 6 months, but have really kicked it up a notch over the last 3 months. I discovered how much more fun running is with an iPod. I've never really been able to run with music in the past, as cd players tended to skip, and making cassette tapes always just seemed improbable. And mini-disc, never quite worked either. I found the unit would skip too much and wasn't quite conducive to the shaking involved. So, then came the iPod. I am not sure why I never tried this before. It seemed ideal really. You could even use the clock feature to time yourself. It changed the way I run. If you're going on a nice casual run, just load up some mid-tempo jams. If you're going on short timed runs, go with something faster paced. It totally revolutionized the way I run.

To top it off, I recently purchased one of those new iPod shuffle units. It's a featherlite item with a capacity of 1GB, or about 250 songs. 1000 if you're loading it up withy Misfits, Mclusky, NOFX or Descendents songs. It's great for those long runs and a good mix loaded up. The two things I really hate are no display feature showing songs or a clock. The other thing is the ability to only synch it up with one computer. Which sorta makes it worthless for taking it to and from work unless you want to keep loading it up at each place and then erasing when getting to the other location. But for $79, you can't really beat it's convenience and portability.

Here's a nice little iMix I made for a short 4 or 5 mile run. I think it works well it getting the heart rate up and keeping it pretty steady in the middle, and kicking it up right at the end, when I find I need it most. A good mix of bands and songs, including Bloc Party, Placebo, Editors, Mew, Muse, and some make sure to check out the first band, 78 Saab band. They kill and I love that song, "Saviour". Seemed like the best song to start off a good run with. I think their bio on myspace describes them most appropriately,
78 Saab are a beautiful rock and roll band like no other. Distinctively husky, yet lustrous vocals accompany psychedelic guitars and cruise effortlessly with the rhythm section across a soundscape of emotive and endearing songs that range from gently textured trippier moments to unrestrained rock.
The band are currently preparing to record their third album. I cannot wait to hear this. Maybe we'll get lucky and they will come to the US and play some shows for us. I have read some live reviews, and they are supposed to be great live.

Listening Pile
I've really been diggingJudah Johnson lately. He first came to my attention about 5 or 6 years ago, through his early demos, when the band was pretty much just known as frontman, Daniel Johnson. I always thought he seemed like a good singer with some interesting music and arrangements. Well, for obvious reasons, he went with the Judah moniker and has now released his 2nd full length, BE WHERE I BE I love the carefully constructed soundscapes, with tightly wound drum machines, deep bass grooves, washy guitar tones, sweeping melodies and gently layered vocals. It's a great treat, and while the band hasn't fully hit it's creative peak, there are some miscues here, this album touches on some serious promise for future releases. Check out some his of tunes at their myspacepage. Or go straight here and listen to "Little Sounds", possibly my favorite song right now. And I'm totally bummed I missed them live during CMJ, but it looks like they are touring a bit on this new release.

Am I Wry? No

2006-11-17T12:59:00.000-08:00

OK, I know it's been a while. But... uh... the best is yet to come. Well, not reallly, but I need to come up w/ something to excuse my ass for being lame and inconsistent. So, lets get started. In the last two months, I've switched positions at work, yet am still doing my old job as they've yet to hire my replacement. And no, I'm not getting the pay of both jobs, just the stress of the two. Fun times ladies and gentlemen, fun times. Let's move along. There's nothing to watch here, keep moving.

So, in that time, I've been to this many shows: 24. Here are some of the highlights, with a slight description, if I can remember. A good chunk of it was during CMJ, and well, there were a few late nights, and lots of drinks had.

9/19 - Klaxons/Holy Hail @ Midway
Sadly, I didn't even get to see the Klaxons. The wonderful people throwing this party decided to have Holy Hail play at 12am, half hour after they should have been off stage. So thanks guys! You killed this night. All I know is some chicks w/ angular haircuts and cheesy outfits got on stage, sang some god-awful songs and made me leave. Somehow, there was a long, long line of people wanting to get into this show and they sadly waited and were subjected to this. Sad, very, very sad. It's like a Sunday evening when you're all ready to watch the Simpson's go on at 8:00 pm on Fox, only to still have some lame episode of Futurama on, making up for the lost time that a Jets/Bills game pre-empted everything for. Fun times, guys.

10/02 - Fields @ Mercury Lounge
First off, let me start by saying, this band spammed me on Myspace. Yet, they've been one of the best bands to ever politely say, "hey, thought you might like to check this out". One listen to the band's debut EP, 7 From the Village, is more than enough to justify the hype surrounding them. They are now on everyone's radar. But, to many nay-sayer's dismay, they actually hold their own. Sweet melodies, propulsive choruses and wonderful harmonizing, make this band quite a treat to listen to. Live, they add the extra oomph that makes them great live, yet makes other studio bands who lack that, out of place on a stage.

10/11 - Basment Jaxx @ Webster Hall
I didn't see this coming. But I don't think I've ever seen this many sweaty people dancing at Webster Hall. Then again, I've never been to the male-revue night. Basment Jaxx brought it, and then made everyone in the place shake it. It's like mardi-gras on stage. Big black women, lavish costume changes, surprise guests, surrounded by men in kilts, and dancing. I'm not sure, but I think I even saw beads strewn amongst the crowd. The place went nuts when they kicked into "Where's Your Head At".

10/31 - Amiina @ Joe's Pub 11:45
Better knows as the string section during Sigur Ros's live show these lovely ladies were so incredibly charming live. Dressed in their individualized colors, one red, one blue, one green, and one black with white flowers, they played an array of instruments, bells, electronic blips, wine glasses and traditional strings. It was beautiful and dreamy, but also had it's quirks. One of the finest shows I've seen in forever. And at Joe's Pub to boot, which only holds an intimate 150 people or so. Also, came across this.

American tour is FREE thanks to Iceland Naturally (27.Oct.06)

Amiina announced today on their MySpace page that the American tour will be free!

This is thanks to the kind sponsorship of Iceland Naturally.
Is it no wonder that other countries are more cultured and sophisticated than America. Their governments care about the arts and provide them with grants to let them create it. Meanwhile, those funds are always amongst the first to be cut in the US. And, lets not even get into education budgets. http://nationalpriorities.org/index.php?option=com_wrapper&Itemid=182

11/01 - The Knife @ Webster Hall
So, was I really watching the Knife. Or could we have been watching anyone in their costumes? Did they lypsynch? Did they even play their intstruments? I have no clue. The visuals were pretty cool early on, but got kinda whack as the night went on. I thought they were OK, but I really wanted a bit more depth to the live show. I feel like it was all some sort of elaborate hoax.

11/02 - Stephen Brodsky Experience/Panthers @ Sin-e
Remember that guy from Cave-In? The band with soooooo much potential. Did they break up? Well, this was, uh.... weird, to say the least. I thought I'd be in store for some spacey floydesque jams w/ whimisical lyrics about falling in love in space or something. Nope, it's like these guys crawled out of some bar in the South End of Boston and showed up at CMJ and said, "Hey, we're hear to play. Can we get payed in beer?" WTF!?!?!?!

11/03 - Loney Dear @ 205 Bar
Definitely the best band no one has heard of yet. Beautiful, inventive, inspiring melodies, deep textures. Glad I got to see them live. Apparently the Swedish indie popsters have just signed to Sub Pop. Good for them.

11/03 - Mew/Fields @ Bowery Ballroom
Mew are awesome. They combine ethereal vocals with proggy Euro space jams, lavish touches of keyboards, soaring choruses and monstrous riffage. The played a good amount of selections from their most recent album, The Glass Handed Kite, but also played a good amount of songs from their debut full length, Frengers. However, as much as I enjoyed this, I could not help myself from being reminded of Europe. Yeah, the "Final Countdown" Europe. I think it was the posing, long haired European thing they had going on. But when they busted into the chorus of "Apocalypso". I was like holy snikes. "The Final Countdown!" And I am not the only person that thought this. I swear. Whatever though, I still love these guys.

11/07 - Placebo @ Nokia Theater
Who doesn't love these androginistic fools. They killed at the Nokia. Though, lets just for a moment ask, "Brian, what is up with that shaved head look?" Who didn't love his peasant boy locks? I think we can blame that on male pattern baldness. He used to look like a cross dresser, now he just looks like a kiddie toucher or something. Starting off with five straight songs from their recent disc, Meds, they played a rocking set. Going through classics, "Special K" , "Every You, Every Me", "Sleeping With Ghosts", "Taste In Men", and the rarely played, "Without You I'm Nothing", they were relentless. The encore left fans with more to be desired, but they did play the Kate Bush cover, "Running Up That Hill." They were a treat. It's been about 5 or 6 years since I've seen them(I missed them on the Sleeping With Ghost tour). It's been way too long my freaky Euro friends.

CMJ, came and went. It was fun, though I have to say, I was a bit disappointed with the lack of quality bands. Aside from Mew, Fields, The Knife,TapesnTapes, and Amiina, it was pretty slim pickens.

I Want To Spock You Like An Animal.

2006-09-14T17:19:00.000-07:00

Whoa, the new iTunes. I'm loving it. Definitely the best version yet. I love that jukebox view feature and man, you can now get video games on there. Nice! While I'm at it, the new iPod shuffle looks fantastic. I need to get one for my morning runs. Looks so compact, I swear, only the headphones will be the most annoying part of that now.

I came across this video the other day. Wow, this is some seriously disturbing stuff. Not that the original video for "Closer" wasn't strange itself, but I don't even understand how someone came up with this idea. Spock, Kirk, NIN and man love. I don't know, strange. How do you end up with that much time on your hands? How?

Oh man, we knew Jessica Simpson was dumb as rocks, but now she's topped herself. She's dating John Meyer! John Meyer! At least Nick Lachay could be considered somewhat of a good looking man and he did have that whole boy band thing going at the time. But John Meyer? Like for real! He must have signed the most incredible deal with the Devil. It's like he can keep making amendments or something.

"Hey Lucifer, I'm OK without the looks, my music can really suck, cancel my TV show... and you can have my soul, yeah, whatever... but this Jessica Simpson broad, she's hot, she's single, I'm single, make it happen."

Listening Pile:
Wow, never thought I would see the day. But Texas Is The Reason is getting back together for a one off show right after Thanksgiving. This is amazing. A highly influential band, (and certainly the best band named after a Misfit song) along w/ Lifetime and Sunny Day Real Estate, can be credited for all those cookie cutter emo bands out there now.Of course, these three bands were a cut above the rest. You can read the story here and even get a bit more band info. More info on the show can be found here . Pretty cool that they have former Rival Schools axeman, Ian Love opening up.

You know that brewery makes 10,000 bottles of beer a day. I drink 45 of them, and I'm the bad guy!

2006-09-09T17:20:00.000-07:00

Finally saw what could be the best movie of the summer. From the men that brought you the classic, Super Troopers, Beerfest! Seriously funny. They trained by drinking! It had almost everything you'd want in a good comedy, beer, comraderie, the occasional boob shots and making gun of Germans. Amazing! Has anyone seen that preview for Artie Lang's Beer League? Why is anyone letting that guy make a movie? Does anyone not remember Dirty Work? Howard Stern, I blame this on you.

I don't get this According to Jim show, but damn if i couldn't help myself from watching it the other day, no not for the still lovely, Courtney Thorne-Smith or Kimberly Williams, but for the man himself, Erik Estrada. Yes, you heard that right, the Ponch himself, made a guest appearance on the show. Man, I love that guy. I mean, it's no CHiPs, but then again, what is?

This kid, is amazing. Wow, those are some moves. I don't know how I found this, but you gotta love the random stuff you can find on YouTube.

Listening Pile:
Been digging this As Tall As Lions album lately. Really great songs, lead by singer, Mike Nigro's falsetto the band chimes in w/ sweeping guitars, lush arrangements and flourishes of pianos, trumpet and trombone. Produced by Mike Watts and Steve Haigler the album is a fantastic 2nd disc from the Long Island band, and is on the Triple Crown label?!?

I am loving this new Basement Jaxx song, "Take Me Back To Your House". It's a great jam. The video is hot! They really outdid themselves on this one. They've got a sexy lead, and dancing Cossacks, dancing bears, plus a tank.

While we're at it, the new TV On The Radio album, kills. It's so freakin good. I really didn't think they could top themselves, but they did. Way more guitars on this album, insane beats capped off by the stellar, "I Was A Lover" and soulful harmonies. Check out the great video for "Wolf Like Me".

Listeners, fans and friends of WOXY.Com

2006-09-01T08:07:00.000-07:00

WOXY.Com posted this message today on their website. This is a horrible blow to indie rock and online radio. This was a great station and will be sorely missed. With the conglomeration of radio and ever tightening playlists, WOXY provided a viable solution, with fresh and innovative music, a knowledgeable on-air staff and loyal listeners. Unfortunately, another one, and a great one at that, bites the dust. -fn

Listeners, fans and friends,

This sucks.

This is the moment all of us hoped would never come. After plugging away at this for the past two years, it’s become pretty clear that operating woxy.com as a stand-alone Internet "radio station" is not going to cut it. Our operating costs are higher than you might think, and the revenue we were able to generate from advertising isn’t close to supporting what we’re doing. Even membership revenue wasn’t enough to get us there. When your business doesn’t make money, you eventually go out of business.

With this in mind, we’ve been looking for either a significant partner – someone with a larger plan into which woxy.com could be plugged – or an outright buyer. That search hasn’t been fruitful. We’re still willing to entertain offers and explore possibilities (email bryan@woxy.com), but our time is short. We thought it was time to share our situation with you ... to give you a heads-up.

You might be saying, "What can I do to help?" Unfortunately, unless you have significant investment capital and a way to profit from the wonderful programming we create, you can’t. As of today, we will no longer be selling or renewing memberships or accepting contributions. Please don’t send us money ... it will just mean we have to send it back to you.

Now is a good time to say THANK YOU to our incredibly patient, generous and kind angel investors. Without them ... well, we wouldn’t have had the chance to even be in the game. They’ve enabled everything we’ve accomplished over the past two years, and for that, they are saints to indie rock lovers everywhere.

We did investigate an alternative: stripping our operations to the absolute bare minimum by cutting back to one staffer, no more DJs, no more Lounge Acts, etc. We decided it wasn’t worth it. It wouldn’t have been true to what woxy.com is, and it wouldn’t have honored the legacy of 97X.

While woxy.com may have failed in a business sense, we’re pretty proud that we managed to put out some of the most passionate, unique and interesting programming on the Internet and elsewhere. We showered love and airplay on countless bands who otherwise would have received none, garnered national press attention and hosted nearly 200 live Lounge Act performances. Not too bad for a little, four-person Internet radio station from Cincinnati.

A radio station is only as big as its listeners make it. We’re not BS-ing when we say that you guys, our supporters, are the most amazing people on the planet. THANK YOU. The dedication and enthusiasm you’ve shown for what we do is staggering and inspiring. Thank you to everyone who stepped up to become a member, generously made a contribution, emailed (spammed) your friends, spread the gospel of woxy.com and – most of all – listened.

Barring something exceptional happening in the next two weeks, we will silence our broadcasts on Friday, September 15th.

Sometimes no matter how hard you try and how special the thing you do, it simply isn’t enough to beat the odds. It’s the cold reality of business that not even we could escape. When September 15th comes, we’ll meet it proudly with heads held high and celebrate the past two years of woxy.com and the spirit of 97X. For those lucky enough to have been part of it, The Future of Rock and Roll will forever be in our minds and hearts.

So enjoy these last two weeks with us. Shall we rock?

Eternally yours,
Bryan Jay, Mike, Shiv, and Barb

Are You ready for some Football

2006-08-31T20:23:00.000-07:00

Just finished my first Fantasy NFL Draft of the year. Got Rudi Johnson and Edgerin James in rounds 1 and 2. And how about Willis McGahee in round 3. My receivers and QB suck. But hey, 3 great backs could go a long way. While we're on the subject of football, I heard on TV this morning, that NBC has signed up Pink to sing the intro song for Sunday Night Football, which will be a remake of Joan Jett's "I Hate Myself for Loving You". Um... very strange to say the least. I mean, they couldn't actually get Joan Jett to do it. I know she's on tour (she played CBGB's recently) and did some work on Peaches new album, but seriously, I'm sure she's available. And Pink? Are they trying to get this party started in the gayest way possible? I know Monday night football is moving to ESPN, but will they take the great intro song by Hank Williams Jr. with them, "All My Rowdy Friends Are Here for Monday Night". There's just nothing like that intro, "Are you ready for some Footballlllll"

So, has anyone seen that Osama Bin Laden has a thing for Whitney Houston. Going so far as to say he's thought of having Bobby Brown taken out of the picture to have her to himself. Yikes! I wonder who's perogative that is. Anyhow, I'm wondering if Osama would still love his Whitney if he saw this video. Also, which Whitney, the early cute innocent " I Wanna Dance With Somebody" or that crazy cracked out, singing to herself, Whitney, we saw on "Being Bobby Brown". By the way, has anyone seen this creepy video of Serge Gainsbourg telling Whitney he wants to bang her? Freaky stuff, I tell you. Though I love how he said, "You're Not Reagan, I'm Not Gorbachov. So don't try it. "

I am bummed, since my trip to Wyoming and Montana earlier this month, I'm just down on almost all beers. And it's all because of Fat Tire.

"Like the ageless delight of pedaling a bicycle, Fat Tire Amber Ale’s appeal is in its feat of balance: Toasty malt flavors (sorta like biscuits just pulled from the oven) coasting in equilibrium with crisp hoppiness. Delicious stability - in the world of sometimes-precarious beer flavors – is perhaps what prompted one consumer who wrote us to say, “this beer just makes you smile.”

It's a great beer made in Colorado. Sadly, you couldn't bring any back on the plane, with the new liquid restrictions on airlines. You also can't get it shipped, and it's not imported anywhere outside of like 4 or 5 states bordering Colorado.

Did we not learn anything from the debacle that was, From Justin To Kelly ? So, why are those damn TV execs. trying to fool us into thinking that any movie telling us the story of American Idol winner Fantasia, would be in the least bit interesting? Come on! That's like watching paint dry, but in the ghetto. Nothing good can come from this. If anything, they need to make a movie where Taylor Hicks gets beat down by some drunken Ford pickup truck owners. Or how about a scantly clad Katherine McPhee doing anything? I mean, anything, shoot, even beating the crap out of the aforementioned Hicks would be entertaining. Why?

I've been loving this Mew record, and I don't mean, the acronym of "Messaging in the Emacs World". I happened to find a copy on sale for $8.99 at the Virgin Megastore on Sunset Blvd in Hollywood on my recent trip. And man, what a great disc, which is actually not so new. A friend of mine turned me on to this band and this album And The Glass Handed Kites , last year. And though it's just been released here in the US, it's been available in their native Denmark for quite some time. From the opening "Circuitry Of The Wolf" and "Chinaberry Tree" this record pulses with a great loud soft dynamic, and ethereal vocals, sounding somewhat like what it's title sticker says, "Sounding like a mix of the Cocteau Twins and Sonic Youth. They will be back in the US to play some dates with Kasabian, who I may say, have utterly disapointed with their new single. I'm hoping that's just one bad song on a decent album. Mew good, Kasabian, eh!
September
17th: Boston, MA, Paradise Rock Club
20th: New York, NY, Webster Hall
21st: Philadelphia, PA, Theatre of Living Arts

Well, what would you prefer? Yellow spandex?

2006-08-04T09:28:00.000-07:00

So I came across this great bit from Gennaro Filice's Inside Baseball article on SI.Com, and I laid out quite a chuckle.

Xavier Nady's life: Imagine this: You're cruising along in your dream job, working upper management in a top-notch operation while living large on the coast. Then, without warning, you're transferred to a futile, nickel-and-dime company located inland. And -- now that we're knee-deep in this analogy -- imagine that the only reason this demotion occurred was because a fellow employee went on sick leave. How would you feel? That's basically what happened to Nady. He was traded from the NL's best team (the Mets) to the NL's worst team (the Pirates) because Mets reliever Duaner Sanchez suffered a season-ending injury in a taxicab crash, forcing New York to move Nady for bullpen help. Say a prayer for the X-Man.

Sadly, I thought the same thing. Man, does that move to Pittsburgh suck. And we all know Lasting Milledge is so not ready to be the everyday rightfielder. And, man does Gennaro look young or what. Since when do they let interns write articles at SI.Com?

Um, in the weird file, and no, I'm not talking about Johnny Mar joining Modest Mouse?!? This story about former Lifetime bassist Linda Kay, who was arrested for having human body parts in her South Plainfield home. She performed on the original version of the band's album Background, but wasn't featured on the actual recording. Her photo does, however, appear in the disc's artwork. Man, that is some seriously screwed up stuff. Seriously! I'm thinking the guys who are on their reunion tour, don't want to comment on this. And man, was it weird to see all those kids that used to be straight-edge at the show last month, drinking beer!

Listening Pile:
Check out Fires These guys are great, featuring old friend's Arty Sheppard and Adam Marino of Errortype:11 and Instruction fame. Arty is one fantastic songwriter and I really like the slightly different sound he takes on these songs. A bit less aggro than Instruction, with more guitar dynamics and a little bit of shoegaze, plus Arty uses a slighly lower register when singing most stuff. Go here to check out a few tunes. Saw them a few weeks back at Pianos and they killed it live.

Cursive is about to release their new album, Happy Hollow on August 22nd. Just got my copy in the mail yesterday and have only listened to it once. Not sure how I feel about it yet. No cello on this one though. I've been a huge fan for some time, and I wasn't overly impressed by their last album, The Ugly Organ . I sorta get that this one is a bit more timid and not as choppy and discordant as the early stuff. Go here to check out two new songs, and a flamboyant band photo!

I'm Back...

2006-08-02T10:28:00.000-07:00

OK, so I know it's been quite a long time since I've posted. Well, it's just way too much to go into. I've been crazy busy with work, weddings, traveling, rock shows and email disasters. I'm in the midst's of preparing for my trip to Wyoming next week. I cannot wait. Leaving the city for a week will be so nice.
Of course, while in Wyoming, we'll be visiting Yellowstone National Park and attending our friend's wedding in Cody. Should be a great time and quite the memorable trip.

Anyhows, here is a quick rundown of the shows I've been to over the last two months.
6/02 - Super Furry Animals @ Pier 12
6/06 - Tapes 'n Tapes @ Bowery Ballroom
6/09 - Cat Power @ Town Hall
6/14 - Radiohead @ Theater at MSG
6/19 - Walter Schreifels/Sorla @ Plan B
6/21 - Jennifer O' Connor @ Siñe
6/23 - Brightblack Morning Light @ Mercury Lounge
6/28 - Thom Yorke @ Bombshelter Studios - Henry Rollins Taping
6/28 - Cat Power @ John Anson Ford Amphitheater - Los Angeles
6/29 - Cat Power @ Village Studios - Los Angeles - KCRW Taping
6/29 - Radiohead @ Greek Theater Los Angeles
6/30 - Radiohead @ Greek Theater Los Angeles

7/05 - The Rakes @ Bowery Ballroom
7/06 - Fires @ Pianos
7/08 - Lifetime @ Bowery Ballroom
7/12 - North Atlantic/The King Left @ Siñe
7/19 - I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness/Asobi Seksu @ Bowery Ballroom

Listening Pile:
This new Muse album is just blowin me away. Reminiscent of the earlier records, more so than the last, Absolution, Black Holes and Revelations is way more proggy and features far down-tempo tunes and experimentation. "Starlight" has got to be this band's huge crossover hit. I swear, I think I can here this on top 40 radio. "Knights Of Cydonia" is the first single, and is epic to say the least, in all it's glory and clocking in at 6 plus minutes . "Super Massive Black Hole" is the funkiest thing on the album, sounding like Bellamy and Co. discovered a weird Thom Yorke meets Prince collaboration. "Assassin" and it's bombastic riffing, is the heaviest song on the album, yet the album does fine with just that one heay song. Really great album with interesting twists and turns, plus more than a few jabs at George Bush and Tony Blair to boot. Lastly, dunno if anyone else noticed this, but how about the similarities to the new Tom Petty album cover? Weird huh!

Can You Hear Me Now?

2006-05-12T14:29:00.000-07:00

Just got a new cell phone last month. But damn, I wish I'd seen this one first. What's better than a phone that can give you a hug?

My friend Mike sent me the link to these Quicksand videos from their appearance at the first Van's Warped Tour back in 1995. The videoes include the entire set, and pretty much iall their hits. The sound quality is not half bad either. For more info on this amazing band, check out the, Quicksand Website. Also, if you keep searching on You Tube, you can find their appearance on Jon Stewart's old show on MTV. Remember that?

OJ. What the hell is wrong with you? In a scene from his new candid-camera program "Juiced," O.J. Simpson pulls a prank involving the infamous white Bronco, drawing criticism from the family of a man he was accused of killing. View story here. As part of the pay-per-view show, Simpson pretends to sell the Bronco at a used car lot and boasts to a prospective buyer that he made the vehicle famous..."It was good for me it helped me get away," Simpson said. Wow, that is just wrong!

Listening Pile
I'm digging some tunes I got from Ladytron a little while back. The songs are intriguing and engaging, invoking the ability to make audiences shake it. The arty blend of darkness synth lines with warm real instrumentation proves to be the record's best attribute and Ladytron kill at it.

Here it is, a link to Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy". Man, this is a hot track. I heard they were pretty wack at Coachella though.

She should be nice and attractive and... topless. Topless is good!

2006-05-11T08:30:00.000-07:00

Wow, this Gnarls Barkley album is blowing up like crazy! . Gnarls Barkley is a collaboration between Danger Mouse and Cee-Lo. Their first album, St. Elsewhere , was released by Warner Music on April 24, 2006 in the UK and is set to be released May 9 in the U.S. by Atlantic/Downtown Records. It was made available for download one week earlier in the U.S. iTunes Music Store and other online download stores. "Crazy", the first single, became the first ever UK number one based on download sales alone. Nuts I tell ya. But damn are they some catchy tunes. Soulful, full of samples and beats galore. Danger Mouse is on a huge roll. Which after hearing about Charles Barkley and John Daly's incredible gambling loses, I'm wondering at what point will Sir Charles come calling for his share of the pot. That Danger Mouse just loves to not make money on any of the work he does huh!

Found this amazing story last week on how young adults in the United States fail to understand the world and their place in it, according to a survey-based report on geographic literacy released today. For example, despite non-stop news coverage since the war began in Iraq in 2003, 63% of Americans aged 18 to 24 failed to locate the country on a map of the Middle East. 70% could not find Iran or Israel. Now, I'm no Columbus or anything, but I know where Iraq, Iran and Israel are. If you would like to test your knowledge, please take thisquiz. I blame this decline on you Steve Jobs. Well, maybe it's because most kids that age learned Geography like this

So, the other night I'm watching Road Trip, well, because there was nothing else on. And that scene where Horatio from SNL puts the kids's french toast in his pants comes on. Holy Snikes, is that scene hilarious. I credit that scene for making me never, EVER!, sending food back because it's not cooked right. Unless I can see the kitchen of course. What ever happened to Tom Green. Last thing I remember was testicle cancer and Drew Barrymore dumping his ass.

Bond's #715, a joyless endeavor. I have to say, Tom Verducci put is so eloquently the other day in this article. He talks about Bond's chase for Ruth, and ulitimately, the chase for Aaron and how something that should be so great, has becomes so joyless and unrewarding. He closes with this, "An athlete being labeled a cheater is worse than being called soft or a loser or even a jerk. And yet that is the verdict on Bonds, a player once gifted with as great a package of all-around baseball skills the game had ever seen. And that, really, is why this tour toward history is so sad." Which sadly is the biggest bummer. Bonds could have been as great as his godfather, Willie Mays, maybe even better. But now, we'll never know how good he was, just that he cheated us all of something great.

Listening Pile
My god, I am loving this new I LOVE YOU BUT I'VE CHOSEN DARKNESS album. The Austin band's first full length, Fear Is On Our Side was released March 7th on Secretly Canadian. I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness had worked with Spoon's lead singer, Britt Daniel, who produced their earlier work. On Fear Is On Our Side, former Ministry bassist and programmer Paul Barker, produced and engineered. I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness make beautifully haunting music that sees them expand a bit on their earlier work. The vocals are frightengly distant and full of disdain. The guitars soar and crash around linear bass lines and synthy sounding drums. What you could imagine this bands sounds like, dark, brooding and full of mystery, is sort of what you get. And it's damn good.

They are going out to the West Coast w/ the Rogers Sisters, and then come back to NYC to play the Bowery on July 19.

So, has anyone noticed how the worst rapper ever, The Streets, new track, "When He Wasn't Famous", sounds so much like the beat to the "Macarena"? I kid you not. Check it out here This guy is horrible. I'm sorry, I just don't get it!

When I Am King, You'll Be First Against the Wall

2006-05-04T17:18:00.000-07:00

Radiohead is touring. Radiohead is touring. YAY!!! And to think, now I won't have to go down to the lovely and scenic, Manchester, TN to see them at the hippie love fest that is Bonnaroo. Though have you noticed that so many of the bands playing are not jam bands, but halfway decent indie rock. I smell a conspiracy here. Peep the Radiohead tour dates here I know for sure I'm going to one of the NYC dates. Hoping I'll maybe get to see at least one more show too, whether it's the other NYC show, LA or Philly.

What the f'ing hell happened last night on LOST. Man, there have been some crazy twists and turns this season, but I gotta tell ya, I didn't see that coming. The sex, the picnic, the shootings. Did Michael go nuts? Did he hate those other folks? What the hell happened? I bet they don't air a new episode for another three weeks now too. UGH!!! Erika had a good point last night, that we shouldn't watch the season as it happen, but rather just ignore it and rent it on Netflix at the end. I don't know if I can do that. I think I'm hooked. LOST, I just can't quit you!

My friend Colin's band The Attorneys, have entered a contest to get their song on some new movie with that assbanger, Josh Hartnett. Hey, he sucks, and I'm sure the movie will, but their song is great and should win. Go here and vote for them. Spread the news too mang! They are playing the Delancey Saturday night too. If I get back in time from MK's Seis party, I will be there.

Actually, that leads me to this. What do you do when someone keeps trying to be your friend on Myspace and you keep rejecting them? I mean, at least four or five times now. Do you just not respond? Do they know you've rejected them? And no, it's not her. I mean, can you really reject a young impressionable girl like this, who has a webcam! HA! Remember, when Myspace first started and would allow crazy porno pics up. Rupert, I blame this on you!

Listening Pile
Been listening a bit to that Wolfmother record. I have to say, I was drawn in by the hype a little. So I felt inclined to give the record a fair shot. Man, was I wrong. I like this band the first time around, when they were called Black Sabbath. WTF! This band is lame and so unoriginal, they make the Yeah Yeah Yeahs look like Sonic Youth. Wolfmother completely rips off Sabbath, down to the riffs and melodies. Except for the one song on the album where they rip off the White Stripes, this sounds like it could be the new Sabbath album. Man, what a disappointment.

Anyhow, with the bad, I give you the good! These guys are my new friends, well on myspace at least. I swear, I really don't go on myspace that much. I digress. So, The Picture is a Brooklyn five piece that lists, Blur, Stone Roses, Velvet Underground, Jesus & Mary Chain, The Cure as influences. So, if you like those bands, you should take a momment and listen to the Picture.

I won't say that women belong in the kitchen, but they don't belong in the dugout

2006-04-24T11:41:00.000-07:00

Things I Think I Think

1. I've never really listened to Mono, but what I do know, is they are Japanese and they are a post rock outfit. Mono Review at Pitchfork.
And yes, they totally pulled one on Victory Records and Hawthorne Heights. Read the wonderful manipulation of some lame call to arms letter Victory sent out., below.

2. Um... So I finally saw Brokeback Mountain the other day. Uh... well.... I saw it. It was well shot. Heath and Jake were terrible in it. Sorry, but they could have gotten much better actors. The sex scenes were a bit tamer than I thought, but the first one, was well, unexpected to say the least.

3. Does David Bowie just keep latching himself onto hip cool bands or what? I mean, every few years, he just finds another young hip band, and latches himself on. This time around, it's, TV On The Radio. He scurried past me last week right as the band was about to go on stage at the Bowery. According to this Rolling Stone story, he's been a fan for some time. He's appearing on one of their new album's tracks. I also hear he was working with the Secret Machines on their new one.

4. Wilder Valderrama, enjoy your fame and your romps with hot young celebutantes now, because this is what your future looks like. Hot Springs Homes.Oh, poor Erik Estrada. How far you've come from your days with Morgain Fairchild

5. How do you know MisShapes has jumped the shark? Axl Rose was there this weekend. Yeah, that Axl Rose. Guns N' Fucking Roses. Man, they will let anyone in these days. I'm just waiting for Jim J. Bullock or Gerardo to show up and throw down some records. Ah, well, since Misshapes moved, to Don Hill's, you just can't call it home anymore... You know, where everybody knows your name... Ha, see videohere

6. Now did I call it or what? Keith Hernandez (aka 'The Second Spitter' ) made some creepy comments during the Mets game on Saturday night. here "Who is the girl in the dugout, with the long hair?" Hernandez said during the broadcast. "What's going on here? You have got to be kidding me. Only player personnel in the dugout."

"I won't say that women belong in the kitchen, but they don't belong in the dugout," Hernandez said.

Hernandez, a former Mets first baseman, then laughed and said: "You know I am only teasing. I love you gals out there -- always have." He also went on to say that he thought she "was Morgana ['The Kissing Bandit'] for a minute, but she wasn't blonde."

WOW! I don't even think James Woods could have made that shit up. AWESOME!!! Dude is so getting fired. And she's definitely not asking him up for coffee.

7. Apparently, Monopoly is in for some changes. For real man, the game that has stayed virtually unchanged since being invented in 1935 is in-store for some big time changes. As I found out from this CNN Article, the game's updated Here and Now edition, due in the fall, will replace Atlantic City landmarks with legendary streets, neighborhoods and national monuments. Until May 12, fans can vote for their favorite landmarks from 22 cities — including New York's Times Square, Chicago's Wrigley Field, Honolulu's Waikiki Beach, Beverly Hills' Rodeo Drive and San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge. What, no Pinky's Hot Dog stand, Playboy Mansion, or The L Train? Bummer!

Listening Pile:
Band Of Horses's Everything All the Time isn't gonna win them any prizes for originality. At times singer, Ben Bridwell's reverb-laden vocals immediately evoke memories of Built to Spill and more recently, My Morning Jacket. However, they do sound refreshing over the course of the album. Ultimately, the album's ethereal atmosphere is set with the opening track, brilliantly titled "The First Song." "The Funeral" is the winner here, which builds like a slow burn, leading to the song's crescendo, a burst of floating guitars, drums and reverb. The band's niche is its delicate balance between gloomy, quiet and loud dynamics. It's a good listen, that surprisingly, gets better each time.

Nice game, pretty boy.

2006-04-10T17:18:00.000-07:00

Seven Things I Think I Think

1. I saw the Gorillaz at the famed Apollo Theater last week. It was a fantastic show. Just about all the guest stars on the record, actually made it out to play with the band at the Apollo. De La Soul, Ike Turner, Neneh Cherry, Bootie Brown, Roots Manuva, and Martina Topley-Bird. Also, Shaun Rider from the Happy Mondays made it out. Which gets me thinking, they should make TV spots of him, and use that as reasoning for kids not to do drugs. Others only turned up on tape, including Dennis Hopper and MF Doom.

The visuals for the show were not in front of the band, they didn't play behind screens the way, I guess they've done in the past. They all played in front of white screens that were shaded with different colors to go along with the one main screen that had animated images projected onto it. There were also two puppets, of Murdoch and 2d that introduced the band before the set, and for the encore.
None the less, it was still a really special show. Playing mostly songs from the most recent disc, Demon Days, they did manage to play one song from the War Child Benefit and some other song that I wasn't familiar with. They didn't play one song from the S/T debut, not even the hit single, "Clint Eastwood", which I was convinced would have been the encore.

2. I don't know if anyone saw the Strokes on Letterman this week, but wow! Wow, were they horrible. I was actually thinking to myself the other day, you know what, there are at least two or three songs on that new album that I don't hate. Of course, they didn't play any of those last night. I'm not sure what song they played, but it should have a name like "don't play with me, I have aids" or something like that. (yes, I stole that from the mcluskyism bio) I swear at one point, they all just looked at each other and realized how bad they were actually playing. It's like that moment when a guy realizes he's on Maury Povich to see if he's the baby's daddy, not to win a vacation or a new car. Julian, what the fuck, was that "Yee Haw" all about? Fab, I've got news for you, movie starts don't date guys in lame bands. Video here:

3. I finally saw Editors at Webster Hall last week. It was a good show. The band plays with lots of emotion and conviction. The played through most of the songs from their debut album, the Back Room. Also, playing "Heads In A Basket," a B-Side that was only available as a free download last week. Highlights included first US single, "Munich", and my pick for best song on the album, "Bullets". They played well, but seemed to have some trouble engaging the crowd and sounding a bit small for the size of the room. I wish I'd gotten the chance to see them at the Mercury Lounge a couple months back. They should have done two nights at Bowery or something.

4. This Plastic Constellations band needs to be stopped. On iTunes they are said to sound like Fugazi and AT The Drive-In. Which they sound nothing like. They sound like mini-Papa Roach or POD. Just plain awful! At first I thought this was a joke. But, well, no it's not! These kids think they are good and sound like Fugazi!

5. I had the flu all weekend. I'll tell ya this, I felt like total crap. I was knocked on my ass. I didn't get out of bed for two days. I didn't leave my house for four days! FOUR DAYS! I can only imagine what something worse than the regular flu I had could feel like. If that bird flu really does start to spread, I'm working from home until they find a cure.

6. I don't know if anyone out there has listened to the telecast of the Mets games on SNY. But have you noticed how much Keith Hernandez (aka 'The Second Spitter' ) sounds, like James Woods. My god, it's scary. I'm just waiting for him to say "I hope you all get anal herpes!" or " Some we give them the good life, others we give it right up the ass." Which leads me to this posting I found here, on the best 'Seinfeld' sports momments. #1 was genius. And, I'm sorry, but putting Ralph Kiner on TV is sadder than putting on Dick Clark. Poor Kiner's got a foot and a half in the grave, and some dumbass reporter from SNY asks him the dumbest questions. "So Ralph, how do you feel about the Met's chances this year?." How about "Hey Ralph, gonna make it to the end of the program?"

7. I've been watching the Alternative on VH-1 classic. Man, there have been some great videos on this thing lately. Blur's "Girls & Boys", Breeders "Canonball", Heaven 17, so many, I can't even remember them all. Videos I haven't seen in years. You'd think MTV would want to help that music industry thing and maybe think about playing videos again. Considering the joke that MTV and M2 have become. The best chance you have at seeing good music videos is on MTV2 Subterranean. Even then, half the show is crap major label baby bands. Ah, well. I guess you could always watch Matchbook Chemical Boy Romance on Fuse.

Listening Pile
Best two songs I've heard today, Joy Division's "She's Lost Control" and Travis' "Writing To Reach You" . "She's Lost Control" will easily top any of the bands these days that have copped their style. Dark, brooding and translike in it's percussion, this song may be one of the band's best. But I mean, come on, like Michael Bolton, I celebrate the entire catalog. Travis kicked off their best album, The Man Who, with "Writing To Reach You", which in my opinion has some of the best guitar harmonies I've ever heard. I also love how he asks, "What's a Wonderwall anyway?" The good news is after the mostly disappointing 12 Memories album, they are once again teaming up with Nigel Goodrich on their new disc. I'm hoping he helps the band return to form. If you check out their site, you can read up on their studio diaries.

Come Play My Game I'll Test You

2006-03-30T07:55:00.000-08:00

Seven Things I Think I Think

1. Freakin LOST. Goddam them to hell. I'm really getting sick of having to wait weeks on end to see a new episode. I wish this (be careful, first time I saw this, I threw up in my mouth) upon all the big wigs that make me wait for a new episode. Though the one I watched last night was one of the best of the season. I swear, I have friends that are so obsessed with this show they plan their Wednesday nights around it. This leads me to think. Do I really want to be obsessed with 24. I have the chance to start from season one, and watch them all on DVD. Do I need another show to watch. Probably not!

2 Why is the Three 6 Mafia doing a song with Paris Hilton. This is just nuts. Plus, Dr. Dre already did the girl making the blowjob sounds on a record thing. Anyhow, I know the Three Six guys won like 18 grammys. But I still have no clue what they sound like. Think we need to just stop making new hip hop and just re-issue all the classics from the late 80's and early 90's that were total sample driven and not about grillz or humps. Though come on, that new Ghostface is pretty hot! But, well, it's Ghostface. It's ain't no "Protect Ya Neck", but come on, there hasn't been that great of a collaborative hip hop ensemble, since... hmmm. Well, ever!

3. Last week, I saw Prodigy at the Nokia Theater (yeah, we know I despise that place). Not only was the band fantastic, burning away through hits from the past, like "Firestarter," "Smack My Bitch Up," and "Breathe", but they also mixed in newer songs like "Spitfire" and "Hot Ride," from their most recent disc, Always Outnumbered, Never Outgunned. I saw the most amazing crowd I've seen in ages. People were literally going ape-shit. Man, those guys really bring it though. They play a killer set and try to get the audience as involved as possible. Keith Flynt and Maxim were both out among the crowd at various points during the show. It's crazy to think Breathe was a hit almost 9 years ago. I still remember coming home after partying with my friend Jose and trying to figure that song out. If you get a chance, you need to see their new video for Voodoo People(Pendulum Remix). Wow! This band's videos are always great. And as I've felt for a long time, bands like Linkin Park and the like, should be paying this band royalties for ripping off their sound, and having them pave the way for bands like this.

4. I need to find a contact at Nike that can score me some out of print sneakers. I swear, I spent all Saturday searching for these. I swear it's like they only make a limited for midgets and freaks. How could you have ten pairs in size 7! Then I spent the next few days trying to find them online. These are pretty hot. I actually have a pair in another color. Nothing beats old-school Nike. Well, except maybe old-school hip hop.

5. It's now been ten years since Placebo burst onto the UK music scene with their self-titled debut album. Instantly pegged as Bowie and glam revivalist, they put out some of the most interesting, beguiling and androgynistic records of the past decade. I still remember seeing them open up a K-Rock show with Kid Rock on the bill sometime 98, and rowdy fans calling singer Brian Molko a fag. Always a bit misunderstood and thought provoking for US crowds(especially in the Kid Rock era), Placebo have become huge stars in their native UK and across Europe. Placebo are getting set to release their fifth LP, Meds, in the US next week, on the Astralwerks label. The set features 13 new tracks, of their dark-yet-glammy rock and heartfelt tales of addiction, sex, love and loss, but the overall sound is a bit stripped down, back to basics, raw. There is less studio trickery than on previous efforts. This is Placebo at it's most honest and human state, as Meds is more of a slow-burner and not as slick as their previous efforts. The album features the singles "Because I Want To," and "Song to Say Goodbye," as well as guest spots from Michael Stipe of R.E.M. on "Broken Promise" and VV of the Kills on the title track. It was recorded over an eight-week period at RAK Studios in London, with Dimitri Tikovo and Flood. I was also fortunate enough to get a limited edition 2xCD set that features a number of audio/video extras, including a documentary on the making of the record, live clips, and four additional audio tracks.

6. Barry Bonds wants to crawl into a hole, because there is so much going on in his life. Sadly, Major League Baseball wants him to do that too. Apparently, Bonds is bummed about all that information coming out on his steroid use, tax evasion, his ego and his mistress. Man, this guy needs to shut up. He has utterly embarrassed Major League Baseball. He's disgraced himself, the Giants ogranization, his family, any just about anybody else that cares about the game. He did this to himself. Just admit you couldn't handle seeing McGwire and Sosa hit balls out of the park and America falling in love with them. He took what was a great career at the time, and turned it into a joke. He could have gone down as one of the greatest of all time, now he'll just be remembered as a cheater, and a liar.

7. I saw Snow Patrol for the first time the other night. I'd really loved their last two records, and also the Reindeer Section, side project dubbed a Scottish indie super-group, which singer, Gary Lightbody participated in with members of Arab Strap, Belle & Sebastian, Idlewild, Mogwai and Teenage Fanclub. Well, Snow Patrol's last album, The Final Straw, blew up across Europe, and here in the US as well. Even getting them a slot opening up for the omnipotent, U2. And being featured on one of those annoying AOL Session on Demand. Snow Patrol did an intimate show at the Bowery Ballroom, and man, did they kill. They really rocked out all their songs, adding a really incredible live dynamic to the songs. I had a few problems with the evening. First of all, with their growing popularity, their fans have gone from indie rockers, to fans of the oc, frat boys and sorority girls. While being great for the band, really hurts them in a live setting. I can still hear those guys screaming to chug and those girls yapping away during the quiet parts. They also butchered my favorite song from Final Straw, "Grazed Knees," and during new single, "Hands Open", singer Lightbody played sans guitar, like they are trying to add some sort of front man status to him. Lastly, they had the god awful Martha Wainwright(yes, Daughter of Loudon and sister of Rufus) come out and do a song with them. Which, I have to say, the song itself sounded great, really giving me hope that maybe this album will be pretty good. But dear god! Can that woman make my balls crawl up into my abdomen pretty fast. God she sounds like a someone beating a bag of cats against a wall.

Listening Pile
Just came across this great review of Ian Love's new Self Titled album. As you know, Ian played in Rivals Schools, Burn, and fronted his own Cardio. He's got a really amazing voice and this record sees him take production duties in his home studio, and playing most instruments. The songs are touched with piano, mellotron and softly strummed guitar. You can check out some of them here

Best two songs I've heard today. Radiohead's "There There" and My Bloody Valentine's "When You Sleep". Man, good stuff from two amazing, and highly influential bands. Which leads me to this; I think I'm really starting to like this Pilate song I've been hearing. Of course, when you google them, this comes up, "Toronto based rock/pop band described as Radiohead meets Crowded House. MP3s and upcoming shows." Yikes! Well, OK, I can actually hear that. Anyhow, I was totally blown away by their video for "Barely Listening". Shot so well, it looks amazing, and the song is great to boot. I'm thinking the Canadian government paid for at least part of this. I totally have to track down a copy of this album.

Au Revoir Simone. They're a three-piece all-keyboard, all-girl band from Brooklyn. Also, came across this band Heather D'Angelo sings, keys and drum-machine; Erika Forster and Annie Hart on vocals and keys. They make really pretty songs. Check them out on their site.

Dad! Tom Cruise won't come out of the closet!

2006-03-18T10:31:00.000-08:00

Seven Things I Think I Think

1. This NCCA Basketball tournament has got me going bonkers. I’ve already forsaken the fine people in Nevada and Wilmington Area of North Carolina. And damn that San Diego State. How did they blow that game against Indiana. It’s always amazing to me, how these basketball teams go unnoticed the whole year, only to have strangers from all over the country cheer for them to help them win their tournament pool. And what is up with Adam Morrison clubbing himself over his head with the basketball. What a weirdo, and what an awful mustache. And let me say this, he’s no Larry Bird. No matter how he shoots.

2.Scientologists are really getting out of control. Isaac Hayes, a Scientologist!?!, and longtime show member voicing the Chef quit the show, saying he could no longer tolerate its religious "intolerance and bigotry. To top it off, a controversial episode of "South Park" a mocking outspoken Scientologist Tom Cruise was yanked abruptly from the schedule Wednesday. Get this, hollywoodinterrupted.com said Thursday that Cruise threatened to not promote "Mission: Impossible 3," the upcoming summer blockbuster, if the offending episode ran. Comedy Central is owned by Viacom, as is Paramount, which is putting out the film. I'm sure grand wizard John Travolta is flying around in his plane putting a hex on Trey Stone and Matt Parker.

3. Wow, I’ve been to a lot of really good concerts lately. Mogwai, which is one of the most amazing live bands on the planet, was as expected unreal. They played a bunch of new tracks from their stellar new album Mr. Beast. Including the best titled song ever, Glasgow Mega Snake. They did however play in what could be one of the worst venues in NYC, the Avalon. Which many formerly know as the Limelight. Yes, that Limelight. You can follow them around on tour too, here.. I was a little worried when the googlemap had them in the middle of the ocean. But all seems ok now. I managed to see Film School 3 times over the span of last week as well. The first time I saw them, they were fantastic, playing in front of a thin crowd at Bar 13, as part of the Shout! party. Then, they had their gear and van stolen in Philly a few days later. As a result, their next two shows almost a week later in NYC, didn’t quite sound right as they had to piece together some equipment to play. The 2nd night at the Mercury did sound pretty good though. They kill it live, adding lots of emotion and really rocking out. I have to say, my biggest disappointment of last week, was Preistess opening up for Early Man. Wow! Talk about bad. It’s uninspired dirty corporate rock. I guess it’s what corporate stiffs at their label think of as risky and challenging music with a potentially huge audience. Or as I like to call it, the Queens of the Stone Age effect.

4. What the hell is Jay Leno apologizing for. Has anyone seen this. Apparently a viewer was upset at the talk show host poking fun at Cheney about shooting his friend in the face when Leno jokingly compared the VP’s hunting accident to Gerald Curry, a lawyer who's traumatic ordeal in 2003 resulted from a gun-happy antagonist outside of a Los Angeles courthouse. To make things worse, Leno displayed news footage that was videotaped of Gerald Curry cowering behind a tree to prevent receiving a fatal injury. Not everyone saw the joke as being humorous, and Jay Leno called personally to apologize to Wendy Brogin, who is a friend of the lawyer, following her written complaint to the comedian. My thought is, why is he not apologizing to his viewers for still being on the air and keeping the truly best late night host(sorry Dave) Conan O’Brian away from the job he’d be best at. Shame on you Jay Leno.

5. Pelican is hitting the road with the Deftones and Mono. Yeah a weird pairing right. No genius, it's two separate tours. The Deftones dates are part of the Taste Of Chaos tour. Seems like it could be a pretty good tour for those guys, well sort of. I mean, they play in front of large crowds, mostly comprised of hot topic mall rats that might have a tough time getting into the avant post rock instrumental of Pelican. The Taste of Chaos tour, also features Thrice, Dredg, and As I Lay Burning, Bleeding Through the Horse of the Wolf. Or whatever that last band is called.

03-17 Dayton, OH - Hara Arena *
03-18 Milwaukee, WI - Eagles Ballroom *
03-19 St. Paul, MN - Roy Wilkins Auditorium *
03-21 Fargo, ND - Civic Memorial Auditorium *
03-22 Lincoln, NE - Pershing Center *
03-23 Kansas City, MO - Kemper Arena *
03-25 Denver, CO - Fillmore Auditorium *
03-27 Fresno, CA - Selland Arena *
03-28 San Jose, CA - Event Center at San Jose State University *
03-29 Sacramento, CA - Arco Arena *
03-30 Long Beach, CA - Long Beach Arena *
04-01 Salem, OR - The Pavilion at Oregon State Fair *
04-02 Everett, WA - Everett Events Center *
04-04 Billings, MT - Casey's Golden Pheasant
04-05 Fargo, ND - The Aquarium
05-08 Buffalo, NY - Mohawk Place #$
05-09 New York, NY - Avalon #%&
05-10 Philadelphia, PA - First Unitarian Church #%
05-11 Washington DC - Black Cat #%
05-13 Asheville, NC - The Grey Eagle #%
05-14 Atlanta, GA - Drunken Unicorn #%
05-15 Atlanta, GA - Drunken Unicorn #%
05-17 Orlando, FL - The Social #%
05-19 Gainesville, FL - Common Grounds #%
05-21 Houston, TX - Walters #%
05-27 San Diego, CA - Casbah %^
05-29 Los Angeles, CA - Troubadour %^
05-31 San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall %^

Theres is a nice review of Pelican's The Fire in Our Throats Will Beckon the Thawon PItchork too. Though I still think Australasia was their best work. And, they certainly are no Isis or Mogwai. But really, come on, who is?

6. So, I hear baseball was invented in the United States. Apparently, someone forgot to tell the USA baseball team that they are supposed to be better than everyone else. They utterly embarrassed the United States baseball program in the World Baseball Classic. Randy Winn was playing left field for the team. Randy Winn!!! We lost to theMexicans, Koreans, Canadians, and barely escaped the same fate against Japan, albeit on a very questionable call. I mean, this isn’t soccer or hockey, we’re supposed to be good at this. The saddest part is they played guys that aren’t even in the Major Leagues. They played guys that play in some third rate league in Juarez, Osaka and Incheon. Sadly, the only good thing about this, is that Jeter, A-Rod and Caveman will return to the Yanks sooner than later.

7. The Yeah Yeah Yeahs are about to release their new album, Show Your Bones on March 28th. I have to say, upon hearing the first single, Gold Lion, I was totally convinced this was a Siouxsie and the Banshees B-side. The entire album feels very different from "Fever to Tell". It retains a lot of the bands rawness and Karen O’s brashness, but adds a silky layer of polish. The drumming is crisp. The guitars, in tune and heavier in the mix. They funny thing is, on half the songs on this record, I hear classic alternative and pop songs. It’s like Karen and Co. decided, “you know, I really love “Staying Alive”, can we somehow work the melody into this song.” Or, “I love Th’ Faith Healers, can we work a similar sounding chorus into this song.” That is ultimately the most disappointing part of this album. Alan Moulder’s fantastic mix, apparently can’t help them write better songs. Or their own for that matter. Unoriginal, uninspiring.

Listening Pile
Editors’ song, “Munich” is the free download of the week at iTunes. This is two really good tracks(including the Goldfrapp) out of the last 4 or 5 that are not some bad god rock or corporate singer songwriter. This is the single from their upcoming US debut, The Back Room, which comes out here in the US next week. There is a halfway decent review of the album here , as well as the Film School and She Wants Revenge. It’s good stuff, check it out. They say this, "Lights" is a miniature emotional tour de force where soaring, U2-inspired guitars collide with mopey sentiments. "Munich" runs with that inspiration, but from there, the album starts repeating itself and the returns start diminishing. It's never bad, but a great setup needs a great punchline.” And you totally have to read what they say about She Wants Revenge.

Also, while I'm at it. That song, "In The Sun" originally penned by Joseph Arthur, and reworked with Michael Stipe, sounds great. Stipe and several special guest (including Chris Martin, Will.I.Am, and Justin Timberlake), all reworked the song and have made it available on iTunes to help the victimes of Hurrican Katrina. I'm thinking Senor Stipe should start a relationship with Joseph Arthur, where he writes the tracks and Stipe just does the singing. As those last few R.E.M. albums have been tragic. But really, there's a great story about Stipe's work with the Mercy Corps here

I'm in the waste management business. Everybody immediately assumes you're mobbed up. It's a stereotype. And it's offensive.

2006-02-24T18:20:00.000-08:00

i accidentally erased this post, which had a really funny joke about nascar and the sopranos. don't you hate when that happens. is there a way for me to salvage my post? anyone?

The Olympics have been interesting to watch. I always think it's pretty funny watching sports on TV that you would never even know exist, and 6-8 hours after it happened, to boot. I've enjoyed watching the luge and skeleton teams, which you have to admit, going down a mountain at 80 mph on a sled seems like it could be a lot of fun. Skiing, boring, unless someone wipes out. Hockey, no fun as they can't fight. Men's Ice Skating, come on, really! But Ice Dancing. Interesting to watch because of the pretty... um... I mean the incredibly talented skaters, fun! I'm no longer allowed to watch this, just like Dancing With The Stars, for obvious reasons, though really, I was pulling for Jerry Rice. Honest.

Listening Pile
Baltimore's Metal Hearts have really impressed me with their debut album on Suicide Squeeze. Teenagers, Anar Badalov and Flora Wolpert-Checknoff, 18 and 19 respectively, began making music together in early 2004. On Socialize, the duo (along with drummer/recording engineer Sam Leiber) put together a fantastic melange, of mopey bedroom rock. Anar's baritone trades melodies with Flora's airy registers, through blended layers of sparse drum loops and bleeps, synthesizers, gentle plucked guitar licks, and some strings. A really good debut from these youngsters.

I Just Can't Quit You...

2006-02-17T00:37:00.000-08:00

As I type this, I'm watching the first Baseball Tonight of the year. Man, do I love me some Peter Gammons and Harold Reynolds. Anyhow, I totally forgot about this picture someone sent me a few weeks ago. It makes even more sense now.

I'm an FBI Agent.

2006-02-16T19:54:00.000-08:00

OK, I know, it's been a while since I've posted (two weeks!). But come on, who reads this thing besides, Mike, Dave and maybe Erika anyhow. So here goes and I promise, I'm gonna try to blogerize more often.

Seven Things I Think I Think

1. So, the Superbowl was a let down. About the only good thing that came out of it was Chuck Klosterman's blog on ESPN's Page2. I really hope he steps it up and gives us a blog for next year's Ms. America, especially after reading his face off with Bill Simmons, AKA the Sportsguy. I would die to hear his thoughts on taping your bathing suit and the giving yourself a face lift for one night. As for the ads, the Fed Ex one with the cave men, and the Ameriquest ones were great!

2. Valentines Day, came and went. And yeah, the Romance is great. Wonderful. You gotta love how simple things like, flowers, chocolate, wine and candles are impossible to find on February 14th, say, 5:30 pm. My favorite part is the candy. Which is now at discounted cost. Yeah! I love how this dude dives into where the holiday came from and what to do with all the candy, check it out. here. I especially love when he says this" Where does this holiday come from? Well, it comes from screwing, and the Catholic Church." Priceless!

3. I went to see Mission of Burma and the Battles at Bowery Ballroom last week. Both bands were great. Battles opened up and really kicked it out with their mix of mathy electronic rock action, nicely warming up the crowd for Burma. MOB really rocked hard, playing a healthy mix of songs from their Vs. album, ONOFFON and their upcoming new album, Obliterati. Though their set got a little long, evident by people gazing at the stars during new songs, I was really surprised at how many hardcore fans were still there til the end. A great show. The line of the week was heard that night, in the woman's bathroom. I mean, I didn't hear it, but my girlfriend did. "Man, you're bound to find a guy here, it's like 90:1." Girls, you heard it here first, go to math rock or post punk shows to find eligible men.

4. When I was at the Sigur Ros concert at The Theater at MSG last week. I was thinking the same thing as this guy. I just didn't say anything, or try to stare as much, since I'd get a quick elbow from the old lady. But anyhow, the set that Sigur Ros played was amazing. Nothing short of brilliant. Playing a very heavy, Takk set, they killed. The visuals were great from what I could see, we sat pretty far off on the right, up front. And I finally got the sweatshirt I'd been wanting for ages. The Vegan has nice pics up, including a pic of the Billy Joel merch booth(he played upstairs at MSG). And yes, that's how much his t-shirts cost. The lovely ladies of Amina opened up, and accompanied Sigur Ros, adding strings to their songs. Their songs are really beautiful and innovative. They use an array of instruments, both conventional and unique, such as strings, keyboards, wine glasses and more. I meant to pick up the album, but that sweatshirt set me back 45 beans.

5. I cannot wait to head over to Galapagos in Williamsburg to check this out. Point Break Live. Point Break LIVE! Yes, that Point Break. Starring Keanu and Swayze in the original, this is stage adaptation of the 1991 Keanu Reeves blockbuster. They head over to Galapagos, which has a kick-ass burlesque night, for an exclusive one-month engagement. The show, which garnered a “Seattle P-I Best of Seattle 2004” award, as well as rave reviews across the nation, tells the story of former College football star Johnny Utah—Keanu Reeves in the film—in pursuit of the bankrobbing, skydiving, bare-hand-fighting adrenaline-junkie-cum-Zenmaster Bodhi Sattva (Patrick Swayze—here played by Gearick Matthies), and features armed robbery, big-wave surfing, car chases, explosions, and no less than two extended skydiving sequences. Best of all, the starring role of Keanu will be selected at random from the audience each night, and will read their entire script off of cue-cards! Isn't that how Keanu acts? I am so there this weekend!

6. This is my favorite week of the year. Sadly, it's not because of Valentines day, nor Presidents day, though you gotta love the benefits of both days. But anyhow, Pitchers and Catchers report today! For most men, these few weeks between the Super Bowl and Reporting Day is like Thanksgiving til Christmas. I can now look forward to hearing Joe Torre talk about how he thinks that having seven starting pitchers in camp poses interesting dilemmas and who tweaked their hamstring running in the outfield. I love hearing the Mets talk with so much optimism how they finally think they are going to knock out the Braves and win the NL East. That's like trying to squeeze the fat guy out of Denny's. It's possible, but unless you got enough grease to maneuver his fat ass out the door, you're just left staring at him make a joke out of all you can eat and the South Beach diet. And this World Baseball Classic, well, it's starting to look like the Dominicans are gonna run wild on everybody, except for maybe the Cubans. Somewhere in Cuba, Fidel is lighting up another cigar for everytime some scared American backs out of the tournament, like Brittny Gastineau out of careers.

7. So, um, Dick Cheney. What more can we say about that guy. He shot his own friend. "Whoops, sorry, I didn't see you standing there. " That what he said to the guy. To top it off, the White House at first was trying to spin it onto the poor schlep who got shot, saying it was hit fault. Now, I'm not to up on my firearm knowledge, but I'm thinking it's got to be pretty hard to just accidently get shot. Guns don't kill people, Dick Cheney kills people.

Listening Pile
The Arctic Monkeys of Sheffield, England's have done what not other band before them could accomplish, the UK record for fastest-selling debut album of all time. The scanned 360,000 copies of "Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not," which easily exceeded the 306,000 by Hear'Say with its 2001 debut album, "Popstars." So what's so great about the most-hyped band of early 2006 led by 19-year-old Alex Turner. What have they managed to accomplish that the likes of Oasis, Blur, Radiohead, or newcomers, Franz Ferdinand and The Libertines couldn't do before them? I have no clue. The record is catchy, at it's brightest momments, with snarly tales of small town bohemia and pretty ladies. At it's weakest moments, the album just sputters like a car out of gas. To the disenchanted youth of the UK, these are tales of their lives, their being, and their existence, to many others, the albums is just catchy songs, awkward moments, but just that, an album, not a statement of us, or our lives. To me, it just seems like one of those situations, where if enough people say its great, well, more people just start believing it. Good, not life changing.