highlifer

90's nostalgia

2007-07-02T22:07:00.000-04:00

Twice this year I have witnessed live music moments that made the crowd explode in ecstasy.

1. David Guetta at WMC in Miami playing Smells Like Teen Spirit. It was rainy, it was cold, and everyone danced with a sheer frenzy, myself included. At the time, I thought that it was that David Guetta controlled a crowd like few djs I'd ever seen. But then,

2. Polyphonic Spree at 9:30 Club, playing a fairly straight up cover of Lithium. The hippies had mostly been loving them all along, but this really exploded it to the next level. Myself included.

I've been in the throes of 90s nostalgia since hearing Mother Love Bone on KEXP (Kings of Leon are the new MLB, discuss) since buying the Afghan Whigs greatest hits comp, since hearing Chris Cornell on Howard Stern. But if someone would have told be 6 months ago that something would happen that would make me want to play "Nevermind" again, I'd have denied denied denied.

I'm also making a cd for a friend's 9-year old son, so I'm putting PUSA's Peaches on it. Here come the 90s!

England, Last Day

2006-12-16T16:12:00.000-05:00

God, FINALLY, I finish! Maybe I just don't want to let the trip go.....

Upon awakening on Saturday, we had but one goal - get ourselves to Stamford Bridge. We contacted the guy we found on Craigslist, who told us to meet his mate Bill at the Southwark train station in 15 minutes. Between the 3 of us, we were $30 short, so we also needed to find a bank. Despite the fact that there was a known ATM at the London Bridge Train station, and that we could then hop a train and go one stop to the Southwark station, I, obviously out of my mind, was determined we could walk. Of course, we promptly got irretrievably lost, couldn't find an ATM or anyone who could point us in the direction of the train, and finally had to catch a cab, where we luckily found an ATM and got the tickets. That sucked. Then, I needed to go back to the apartment, so Tom and Montie waited at a pub, the Bunch of Grapes, while I ran back to get whatever it was I needed (I can't remember at this point.) When I returned to the pub, it was determined that I needed to try the Wells Banana Bread Beer, which we all tried and was rather delicious. And we ate bacon sandwiches and just generally had a relaxing time. We left there by Noon and the pub had a good crowd, again of people of all ages and types. Really my favorite part of England.

Now, off to Chelsea. Since traffic was nuts, we decided to take the train, but this quickly fell to pieces, as the station where we were to switch was closed. Going to the next stop brought such an incredible crowd that it quickly became obvious we would NEVER catch a train, so we ran out and caught a cab, making it to Stamford Bridge in plenty of time.

And what a beautiful day it was! Even though our seats were towards the back, we could see perfectly. The West Ham fans were nearly as loud as the Chelsea fans, despite being outnumbered about 8-1. Much of my favorite chant, Who Ate All the Pies? to Frank Lampard. Who is not fat, but whatever. The only score came from Geremi on a penalty kick, which I missed because I turned my head to compare Anton Ferdinand and his lazy defensive ways to former OSU Buckeye Terence Dials.

You can really get a better handle on soccer watching it in person - watching how people behave off the ball says a lot. I briefly came around to Arjen Robben for his all-out play that day (though I'm back to hating him) and truly watching Drogba is something to behold

After the match, we were caught up in a swarm of people so we decided to get a bite to eat before heading on. We went to Bodean's again, just cause it was nearby, and we also thought we could stake out the possibility of watching the OSU-Michigan game, which was starting at 8 that night. This was not to be, but the manager of the Bodeans could NOT have been nicer. No surprise there.

So we finally headed back to Soho to see what was up at Bodeans, and to find the Phoenix, which was hosting the How Does it Feel party which had been tipped to me as fun, as well as having Teenage Fanclub's Norman Blake as the guest dj that night. The plan was that we would watch a little football, I would go check out HDIF, text back, and then Tom and Montie would meet me there.

Bodeans was absolutely packed and there was a line outside. Many of the people inside were from the Michigan Business School and they were dorks. Outside were a wide variety of Midwesterners (100% Americans) so we quickly decided to join the college students and went down the street to the deli for a few cans of Carslburg and just watched the game through the window. I am convinced it was way more fun this way (definitely cheaper!) After a quarter or so, I headed off to the Phoenix. Here, I finally got to try Miller's gin (YUM!) and went off to mill about. Unfortunately, I wasn't really feeling the vibe. The party was in the basement of a nice pub. It was filling up fast. The sound was terrible. No one was paying attention to the music and NO ONE was even thinking about dancing. Everyone looked like the usual crowd upstairs at the Ottobar. Both one of the doorpeople and the bartender were vaguely rude. After about 1/2 hour, I decided to just go back to Bodeans, because Tom and Montie were REALLY not going to like it. Upstairs, I ran into Mike and Amber, who were trying to hook up with us - what luck! So I went the few blocks back to Bodeans.

The game was good, but I found myself getting restless. I had noticed some posh Indians earlier and Tom had said they were all going down the street to this bar, funnily called The Amber Bar. So I suggested to Amber we go check it out, and we did. This nightclub was also in the basement and it had the vibe I wanted. The usual diverse group of people, loud music, tons of dancing. A delicious cocktail (or two) called a Toblerone, which was Frangelica, Bailey's Kahlua, cream and honey. We danced we laughed we looked at people, we met the guy above. Then the boys called us and said the game was over, OSU had won, and they were ready to go back to the hood. We couldn't convince them otherwise, so off we went. I'm finally gonna make it to the Rose.

The Rose was also crowded. Unfortunately, my drinking was kinda over, as 2 gin drinks and 2 milky drinks pretty much did me in. Mike told us how he had seen a fox walking down the sidewalk earlier! A Fox! The Rose's bartender told us that was common, and that they tended to be Cheeky fuckers. The Rose had a great jukebox, and the last song I heard before we headed home was the perfect end to our vacation, Jesus and Mary Chains' Just Like Honey.

When can I go back?

My favorite Amsterdam picture

2006-12-05T21:14:00.000-05:00

All around the centraal area, there were herring stands with pictures of fancy Dutch lasses preparing to swallow one whole. We took a picture of that, but Montie's head is right where the Dutch girl should be. Perfect!

Amsterdam day 3.2

2006-12-05T21:09:00.000-05:00

Here are all the big fluffy babies I saw on Friday in Amsterdam. What's not to love?

Amsterdam, day 3.1

2006-12-05T20:32:00.000-05:00

In case you were wondering as to how we entertained ourselves doing nothing but walking around, I hope these pictures of Amsterdam architecture help clear that up.

And that is what we did. Tom, Montie and I were up relatively early - since they were showing our house to prospective buyers and we wanted to be up and out before people started traipsing in. Montie had been raving about the Dutch pancakes (a combination of pancakes and crepes) so we went to the pancakery by our house. I had pancakes with a cherry topping (and a macchiato) and they were much better than I might have thought.

So, more wandering. All of us did a little shopping, Tom and Montie for chocolate, me for shoes. (Click on the yellow ankle boots on the third row to see the ones I bought.) Then we found an amazing record store probably the best one of the 3 we visited. (I still haven't played all of the cds I bought, and I'm not sure Tom has either.)

Wander, wander, wander, look, look, look, and then we were hungry again. We saw the Pancake Bakery (more on that in a minute) and ate pancakes again - and the first ones were good but these were amazing. What we also realized was that this place was just blocks from the Anne Frank House, the tour guides had said the crowds are slimmest right before close, and it was ....right before close. So we headed there for our tourist attraction.

The front of the house is very modern, and we didn't have the spirit yet (Tom: Couldn't they hear the Nazis coming up these metal stairs?) but as we kept going, and once you got into the house itself, it was quite chilling. Being in Anne Frank's room, with the news clippings on the wall, and seeing the growth chart that her father measured them with was beyond heartbreaking. All this little girl wanted was to be a famous writer, and I can only hope that she somehow knows what she has meant to the world with her writing.

Whew! So enough of that. We went back to the house, packed up, and back to London. Another one of those delicious train sandwiches, and we went to bed

Amsterdam House

2006-12-03T19:18:00.000-05:00

I'm having some isses with picture adding, so let's take a commercial break and look at our house and street in Amsterdam.

Amsterdam, Day 2

2006-11-30T21:14:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday, Tom!

Today, we started with a leisurely brunch at Cafe Luxembourg. Very tasty and relaxing, as well as full of Euro-people watching. Then Mike and Amber went one way and Tom, Montie and I another. We didn't really have any agenda, we just wandered around and looked at things. One of the places we wanted to check out was Fat BeatsWe didn't buy anything because we didn't want to deal with packing vinyl, but Montie and I mentioned that we both could have weeded our own collection to sell at Fat Beats for waaaaaaaaaaaaaay more than we could get for it in the US and A.

Tom discovered while he was there Black Petewhich he claims has given him a new lease on Christmas. I managed to find a treasure trove of Black Pete wrapping paper, so if you are getting a Christmas present from me, look forward to meeting Black Pete. I've enjoyed learning about Black Pete's history, and the controversy around it.

So, then, shop and walk around we did. We mostly just window shopped, then ate some sweets (and of course a macchiato). We found another record store, where Tom bought Lily Allen and I bought Jimmy Sommerville. Perfect! Then, while I browsed Dutch children's books, Tom and Montie bought us wine and meat and cheese (pictured above) which we then took back to the apartment, listened to music and relaxed and enjoyed.

Tom chose an Argentinian steakhouse for his birthday dinner. Damn, I've eaten a lot of meat on this vacation! After that, Montie, Amber and I took a walk to the red-light district while Mike and Tom went gambling. (Tom won! 300 euros!) There was a LOT to look at, which surprised me that we were actually gone for an hour. The ultimate plan was to go to the American sports bar at (2 a.m.!) for the WVU-Pitt game. I was skeptical about this from the get-go, but once we decided to go back to the house before going to the game, I knew I was done for!As it turned out, the ladies went to bed while the dudes went back for the game. I think WVU won that one!

Amsterdam, Day 1

2006-11-30T20:40:00.000-05:00

No pictures today.

Around noontime we needed to head to the airport. This morning, I think we were all getting a little snippy. I think the thought of getting on a plane was weighing on us a bit, as well as being a smidge tired. We just grabbed a sandwich at the train stop, but it was a great sandwich. Can't remember the name of the sandwich shop, but I could eat that cold train station sandwich every day.

Easy Jet was a great way to get around. Oh, and, due to the England-Netherlands friendly, our plane was full of soccer hooligans! I probably could have organized myself better to actually get to that match, but, oh well.

Our apartment in Amsterdam was amazing. We got it through City Mundo which I would recommend for anyone.The house was 3 floors tall- kitchen on the bottom, living room with GIANT windows overlooking the canal and small bedroom and toilet on 2nd, bedroom and bath on 3rd, attic bedroom and toilet on 4th. You could have fit 12 people in there comfortably.

We learned our lesson in London and had a cab driver take us to our house. Since Montie had been several times before, we let him be our leader. After an initial freak out that had us trying to go to every coffee shop as well as trying to catch the soccer match, things calmed down. We ended up going to a tapas restaurant and ordering one of everything on the menu. All was delicious, and most agree that this was their favorite meal of the trip. Lots of wine, lots of little food and just good times. After this, we went out drinking, but the bar was kind of disgusting. It felt like Papa Joe's during my college years at OSU. Kinda dirty and full of drunk frat boys. This must be what people say when they tell us Amsterdam was filthy. Finally, we just headed home.

England Day 4

2006-11-28T21:46:00.000-05:00

Today, Mike and Amber were going to see Spamalot, so Tom, Montie and I set out on our own. We had decided to go to the Tate Modern. I wasn't sure if anyone would be up for a museum, but all were - Montie had been before. It was great. The Carsten Holler slides were unbelievable. I think my favorite exhibit was the little boxes.Online can NOT do this justice! It was really clever and is what has most stuck with me too. AND I got my Tate pencils back! (I had one once that was taken away by a gatekeeper at Coachella. I was so sad, I loved that pencil! Now I have 3!!)

It actually started raining while we were in the museum, the first rain we'd seen during our whole trip. It was slight though, and we cabbed it back to Soho where we could do some shopping. We ate a good burger with cheddar and drank a pint and got directions to the Borderline
where we were going later to see Dale Watson. Told it was right around the corner from Foyle's bookshop, we found it, then I went back to Foyle's. Or at least the ground floor of it. What a great bookstore! I could have spent an entire afternoon in there.

I also went to the Topshop, a place I'd heard about not only from a teen novel I read, but from the news - both Michael Jackson and Lindsay Lohan closed it down while we were there. Wow, did I heart the Topshop. It was like a bigger, better H & M. Since Tom and Montie were with me, however, I didn't really get to shop too much - but I did get some cool socks and some Christmas presents. Thank God shoes were so expensive in London, or I'd have been in big trouble.

We tried to go to Gordon's again, but it was waaaaaaaaaay too crowded, so our next stop was Leicester Square, where the Casino Royale premiere was ready to begin. Unfortunately, Daniel Craig came first, and I wasn't quite situated, but I did get a glance. We got to see all the movie's stars come in, including Eva Green, Caterina Murino (what an ass on her!) (Unfortunately, pantylines too.) Judi Dench, Mads Mikkelsen, Michael Caine, ex-Bond girl Michelle Yeoh (beautiful and the prettiest dress too.) and hilariously, Chris Cornell. Yeah, I saw him at Stache's! Rumors abounded that the queen was coming, but we didn't spot her - as it turned out there was another red carpet on the other side of the square for stars who were attending but not in the movie, that featured Paris Hilton, Elton John, and Sting, among others.

We then met up with Mike and Amber. Amber was craving a steak so we went to the closest restaurant, the Aberdeen Steak House, which I sense was the British equivalent of Ponderosa. Exactly.

Now, off to the Borderline to see Dale Watson. Little did I suspect that it would be sold out! Amber mananaged to sweet talk our way in however, to the very crowded basement bar. It was good fun for all, however, and just so amazing to see the huge crowd of folks, of which I was probably on the young end to average by age! You couldn't get that many old folk out on a weeknight in this country if Johnny Cash rose from the dead. Hearts to England.

After leaving, we really wanted to keep drinking a few. Montie had been dying to go to Camden, so we caught a cab up there, but unfortunately, Tuesday night was pretty quiet there, and our drinking options were few and far between. The bar we decided to hit was actually really cool - The Lock Tavern. I wish I had discovered this place earlier - they have amazing djs on the weekends, including Simian Mobile Disco on the previous Sunday, and Fila Brazilia and Zero 7 (!!!) the day we left. What a hidden jewel!

At this bars close, we headed back to SE1.

England Day 3

2006-11-27T19:21:00.000-05:00

Monday started with a trip to Tom's motherland, Stamford Bridge, home of the Chelsea Blues. There was always a hope that tickets would be available for the West Ham match but that didn't happen. Later, we realized we should have bought the Arsenal tickets that were available and sold them for a profit, but we didn't think about it at the time.

After spending beaucoup hours and pounds at the Chelsea Megastore, we walked out (HAHA! As if!) trying to find Kings Road. After wandering for the usual forever, we grabbed a bite to eat and then finally found where we were going. After a little window shopping, we went our separate ways - Mike and Amber to go see Borat, Tom, Montie and I to the Rough Trade store. We went to the branch in Soho on a little street called Neal's Yard - the whole street was cool. Tom and I dropped $$$$$ but got some cool stuff we couldn't get in the states. (My favorites, a Hacienda comp and "Warm Leatherette.")Shopping was cool up there (I window shopped at Paul Smith and Ted Baker, two of my favorite designers). Then I needed something sweet so we got coffee and dessert. (I developed a slight macchiato addiction there, but I've shaken it pretty well.) Our next stop was one that had been recommended to us by a coworker, Gordon's Wine Bar. Just check out the website to get the idea, but this was Tom's favorite place. Then we headed home and decided to try and find some Indian food. Close to our house was Tower Tandoori. Tom ordered his food as "hot as you can make it" so the owner's son told him he would make him a special sauce, but he had to eat it all. Suddenly, a giant bowl of sauce appeared, and it was bubbling. In it's own juices. Made from African Chilis, this sauce was hot. I was convinced Tom was going to have a heart attack. Luckily, he gave in at about the 10% point. We loved this place; both staff and food were delightful. Tandoori trout - delicious!!!

We went back to the apartment, then Tom and Montie went to the Rose, where they met Mike and Amber, while I stayed in to get my fill of British TV, particularly I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here.

England Day 2

2006-11-26T11:41:00.000-05:00

After getting in at 5:oo I was afraid I'd sleep the day away, but I was actually up shortly after the sun, and starving. I decided to walk to the Marks and Spencer, and upon heading out the door, there was Montie! So we got him in and situated, and I headed to the store. Which was a little too whole Foods and not entirely serviceable, but I did get some pastries, chips, water, soda, juice and delicious little things that were like Mini-Ho-Ho's with orange flavored cream. And the newspapers of course. We all got ready and decided Picadilly Circus would be a good starting point today. We had a great cab driver who pointed out about a million things on the way, including Trafalgar Square and we decided to walk back that way. The only thing on the agenda was that I wanted to watch Arsenal-Liverpool. We found the ESPN-Zone style sports bar, and then walked around. The weird armless statue above was there, as were, of course, the lions.

We decided to head to a pub to kill time, but en route, I saw the entrance to the National Portrait Gallery, where the Pet Shop Boys photographs were. Since it was free to get in, I ran down to check them out. It was a small exhibit, so I'm glad I hadn't gone out of my way to do this, but since it fell in my lap, I'm glad I went! then to the pub, Called Chandos. They served only Samuel Smith, but lots of varieties. Good! Cheap! We hit it a few more times during our trip, it was a good meeting place. It was here that I discovered the most delightful of British snacks, the toasty. Essentially a grilled cheese sandwich, it is indeed the best of all pub snacks. British food is the best!

Liverpool-Arsenal was nothing to speak of, Liverpool got totally outplayed. We hung around for a bit to watch American football, but finally, Mike and Amber headed back and Tom, Montie and I decided to wander about. We found the American sports bar that Montie knew about, Bodeans, where I had the jacket potato pictured above - a baked potato with sour cream, bacon, cheese, and beans. YUM! British food is the best!!!

After this, we headed home, where I got to watch the Pete Doherty doc on BBC.Even Tom was somewhat moved and interested, probably helped somewhat by his appearance with Shane McGowan. British TV....also the best.

And so to bed.

England Day 1

2006-11-26T11:38:00.000-05:00

2 weeks ago today we landed in London. Due to some computer problems in our apartment, my original plan to blog each day was foiled, but let's see if I can catch up now.

After landing at 7 a.m., we dumped our luggage until noon, when we could check in to our apartment. Our apartment was by the London Bridge, so we decided to walk across it. Once there, it was a short jaunt to the Tower of London, so we decided to go inside, a tourist thing that I normally wouldn't do, but with time to kill, it seemed like a fine thing to do. It was actually great fun!

The pictures above are from the Tower of London. The Ravens are cool - the rumour is as long as they stay alive on the tower grounds, the monarchy will stand.

Inside the Tower are the dungeons, complete with tons of medieval weapons (a mace! a lance! Swords aplently!) as well as models of the brave horses. And the crown jewels. Which looked extremely fake. But sure enough, a few days later, there was the Queen opening Parliament wearing the jewels.

After the Tower of London, we checked into our apartment and took a serious nap. We missed Chelsea (and Drogba's hat trick) but the nap was sorely needed. Upon waking, we decided to head into the city proper. My plan that night was to go to Fabric so we decided to take the train nearby and get food, then I'd head to Fabric and the others would go elsewhere. The closest train stop, however, was Downtown/Financial district and it was totally dead. We weren't that far from Soho/Covent Garden area, but we couldn't get our bearings. The biggest lesson of London - let cabdrivers take you everywhere. You can't figure it out. I never quit trying,and I never figured it out. So after wandering around in desolation for a good hour, we caught a cab, went to Covent Garden and had a delicious meal at Livebait.
I had the halibut with tagine and it was delicious. And a blackberry caiprinha which was doubly delicious.

Then we went our separate ways - it was about 11:30 and I had to get to Fabric by midnight so as not to get stuck in a queue. Mike, Amber and Tom went to our neighborhood pub, The Rose. Fabric really was great. I was there mostly to see Ellen Allien and the bPitch control group - they were in one room, the middle sized one. I was a little traumatized upon getting there and realizing she wasn't on until 3. I wasn't sure if I could make it. But the room was so awesome - you really couldn't get bored. If one room got boring, just move to another one. I liked everything in bPitch control room, and also liked Rex the Dog in the smaller upstairs room. The main room was a bit too traditional techno for me and I didn't spend much time there. (The crowd was very different in the 3 rooms too - big room mostly cheesy Euros and Arabs, small room mostly Germans and Thais (I don't think I heard English in this room all night) and the small room, punters. After Ellen Allien, I went upstairs for BBC dj Rob da Bank, who played the same stuff I'd hear at Taxlo. Does dancing to Song 2 every get old? After that, it was 4:30 and I thought I should head home.

The cab driver couldn't find my street. This was the only time it happened on the whole trip. So I said, just drop me at the London Bridge tube stop, and I'll find my way from there. Generally, to get to the tube, we had to walk through a tunnel. (Remember, at this point, I'd been in London less than 24 hours.) So I walked through the tunnel, only to see I was right by the water, which meant I'd gone the wrong way. (He'd let me out at the main tube entrance, where we'd always used the rear.) So, back through the tunnel I went, and to my apartment where, at 5 a.m I went to bed.(No one tell my Mom about me wandering through underground tunnels atSouth London at 5 a.m.)

Just a really dumb peeve

2006-08-05T20:08:00.000-04:00

I've been trying to get my house organized, and have been getting rid of lots of crap that's been piling up over the last 9 years. This month - 2 mirrored closet doors.

In order to get bulk trash picked up in Baltimore, you have to fill out an online form, then they email you and verify the date. It's a pretty easy system really.

But everytime I fill out the form I am baffled by one thing.

The City of Baltimore bulk trash pickup asks you to fill in your City and State.

Hey, dumbass, I'm in Baltimore! Can I schedule you to pick up my sister's trash in Columbus, Ohio? Maybe my friends in Florida have some bulk trash to be picked up. Of COURSE I'm in Baltimore! Why do I have to type in the city and choose my state from a DROP DOWN BOX of all 50 states?

I know, it's the little things.

We Are the 80s

2006-07-30T21:31:00.000-04:00

July 13, 2006. Madonna at Wachovia Center, Philadelphia.

A few years back I saw Madonna and found the whole thing to be a bit hollow. But this tour was getting great reviews, and I'd enjoyed the brief sneak-peek at Coachella.

First off, this is no concert. This is a show. Like a Broadway revue. There's no room anywhere for spontaneity, everything is choreographed within an inch of it's life.

The first part of the show had an equestrian theme. Madonna rode a mechanical horse. She rode her dancers. All the while, gruesome videos were playing showing horses falling down. The music was good, but the videos were vengeful- I pictured Madonna planning on showing that horse that threw her earlier who the fucking boss was. It was like horse snuff films.

The second part was the social conscience part - a little ham-handed, and the cross part to "Live to Tell" was not so controversial.

Finally, the disco part. Lucky Star! Hung Up! Really, it ended high. (Even though since the show, I've decided I prefer Get Together to Hung Up.)

Madonna felt, I believe, as warm as she possibly could to the audience. There was a little interaction.

My biggest disappointment - the crowd was full of really really really really aging lesbians. I didn't really see that coming. Can Madonna no longer throw a circuit party? I'm thinking not.

Read Rebecca Traister's awesome article about one of the NY shows.

David Lee Roth, Ram's Head Live, July 16

Now, David Lee knows how to throw a circuit party! I'm convinced of this! Just not at Ram's Head Live.

My youth was filled with love of DLR. Dig if you will the picture of a teenage girl named Jamie, a name that was never found in displays of pencils or jewelry or "This is So-and-So's Room" signs in the late '70s. Imagine that the first place, other than the bionic woman, who used that name in pop culture is Van Halen, and imagine that you mooned over that song, and DLR for many years to come. Imagine that you loved men with chest hair, and DLR showed his off by wearing sparkly vests and no shirts and posing provocatively. Well, welcome to my teen years.

Still, I was incredibly apprehensive to go to this show. It was at a smallish (less than 2,000 seats) club. DLR's act had worn beyond thin in the last few years. His painfully unfunny stints on Howard Stern. His even more painfully unfunny attempt to follow in Stern's footsteps in the radio world. Could he still kick? Would he try?

Well, he kicked and succeeded. He could still sing. He looks pretty damn good in tight pants and sparkly vests for a man of his age.

But the hairy chest! It is gone!

Throughout the last few years, I've been convinced beyond a shadow of a doubt that DLR is gay. He's never been linked to anyone for any length of time. Random groupies. If you get right down to it, he's pretty flaming. But the manscaping! Oh, God the manscaping! That beautiful chest hair, waxed away. That was the last piece of evidence I could possibly need. DLR is gay.

The show itself was nothing but hits. He had a hacky backing band who had spent lots of time locked in their bedrooms learning Eddie Van Halen riffs. The crowd of aging dirty-butts loved him. No one seemed to notice or care how gay he is. He makes that cheesy grin constantly. He mugs WAAAAAAAAAAY too much. Joey D. thinks that he mugs so much and so cheesily because he is used to playing larger venues, and he can't dial his expressions down to a smaller room. I think he's out of his mind and unbelievably cheesy.

But Jamie's Crying? It still totally rocked.

One more word on indie rock

2006-07-19T23:04:00.000-04:00

Have you heard the new Snow Patrol song, Chasing Cars? Does it sound just like something from Sebadoh's Bubble and Scrape or is it just me? Like a little like Soul and Fire?

The Music I'm too old for

2006-07-15T15:29:00.000-04:00

Fall Out Boy. Love 'em. Know I'm old enough to be the mother of 90% of their target audience but love 'em.

Ridiculously gay dance music. Love it. Want to go to Ibiza and dance my ass off with all the other 19 year olds.

So I'd always thought that my taste in music would never mature. But recently I discovered that there is a type of music I feel too old for.

Indie rock.

I discovered this during Broken Social Scene at Merriwether Post last week. I'm not a fan of them at all, and really not of headliner Belle and Sebastian either, but I'd gotten the tickets for my friend Jeffrey for his birthday, and because I thought I could entice my husband, who had inexplicably decided he loved them after hearing "Funny Little Frog" on an airplane headset. (I couldn't entice him.)

I looked around at the crowd, and made the observation: "There is no one here who hasn't been, or isn't going, to college." The crowd just looked so similar. With hipster clothes on that showed a disdain for fashion, just a little bit of disdain, but still were very studied. Everyone was very quiet and polite, for the most part. And danced like the whitest little studious types around.

Broken Social Scene had sounded OK when I heard their cd, but live they were so fucking serious. And smug. And bearded. Bearded like Jeff Daniels in "The Squid and the Whale." An unstudied, studied beard. And they had this chick singer who Could. Not. Sing. Her voice was so thin and delicate. Just like the crowd watching them.

I actually rather liked Belle and Sebastian, who had a much fuller sound in person than I would have thought. I might have thought a large venue would just swallow them up, but they had great energy and they do write some delightful songs.

But my epiphany stands. When confronted with free mp3's from Okkervil River or Wolf Parade, I don't even contemplate clicking on them. I'll go to Fall Out Boy's Myspace page, or download new tracks from Underworld. But college rock. I think I've finally realized I'm not in college anymore.

Maybe I was never that into it in the first place. I do hold "Slantend and Enchanted" as on of the Top 10 records ever. But I almost never play any other Pavement cds, and don't even own any Steven Malkmus or Silver Jews or any other descendets. I like '90s era Columbus, Ohio rock (Gaunt, New Bomb Turks, Thomas Jefferson Slave Apts., Scrawl, ) but more because I grew up with these people. Without the social connections, I doubt I'd ever think of them either.

I'm also dying for TV on the Radio's "Return from Cookie Mountain" but not (yet) enough to pay import prices for it. Unlike those Everything but the Girl and Birthday Party imports that I bought with pride in the '80s when I made about 1/8 the money I do now. Or the Ellen Allien or Miss Kittin import mixes I bought, or the mash-up cds I bought when they were still only popular across the pond.

Yes, I believe it to be true. I'm officially over indie rock. I want my music to just be about having fun, and not about being the smartest, or the hippest, in the room. I'm over ironically being unironic.

Philadelphia shows

2006-07-05T23:26:00.000-04:00

Echo & the bunnymen, June 29

So Interpol=Joy Division. She wants Revenge=Bauhaus. The Editors=Echo and the bunnymen. All of these bands sound like a mix of the 80s with one heavy influence. But, as Mr. highlifer said, they should all just hang it up because none of them are going to put on as great of a show as Echo did 27 years after their founding.
Ian McCullough looked as foxy as ever. Perhaps this is because the stage stayed mostly dark all night. but more likely because he has some serious stage presence. You can't take your eyes off of him even if he's in silhouette.

More importantly, he hasn't forgotten why he's still touring. Even though what I've heard of the new songs makes them sound better than anything since Ocean Rain (really! and what was the last band you could say THAT about?) he hasn't forgotten why he's touring big clubs to begin with - because of 25 years of hits. The setlist was packed with them. Each one sounded amazing. I'm particularly enamored with Over the Wall, always one of my favorites. And The Killing Moon. Surprisingly, Bring on the Dancing Horses, never one of my favorites, has been the one that's stuck in my head still almost a week later.

Seriously, if you think you might want to see this, go. Don't let anyone mock you. This isn't a reunion tour, this is someone who really could bring in new fans if new fans would give it a chance. And I'm not saying that as an old person. And I can't wait to see the Editors again in a few weeks.

I also saw the Boredoms. let's just say their name fits them.

Coachella 2006

2006-05-14T14:38:00.000-04:00

This year was different for a couple of reasons - we had more people with us being the biggie. of course, we are the "experts" so we know what time we need to leave to get there by a certain time, the way out, other things to remember.

Except this year traffic was a huge nightmare. It took us at least an hour longer to get in than last year.

The first thing I want to see on Saturday may be known as the Mike Lupica position,
since for the second year in a row, it was something I learned from that WFMU show. (Last year Radio 4, this year Lady Sovereign.) I mostly wanted to see Lady Sovereign because I'd bet Tom that the woman we saw in the restaurant the night before was not Lady Sovereign because she was about 5'9 and Lady Sovereign is so wee. But the tent was so crowded that it was hard to tell her height (the woman in the restaurant had definitely cultivated the Lady Sovereign look.)

The crowded tent, however, was surely a sign of things to come. Another thing we knew is that some tents are crowded and most are not. At least that's how it had been in the past. This year most tents were extremely crowded - it was nigh impossible to just wander in and check something out.

We also needed to get the newcomers oriented so we wandered around to give everyone the lay of the land. I caught a little bit of the Zutons while we were checking out the swings in the middle of the area - their pop was a lot more powerful than I thought. I checked out a moment of Lyrics Born (too righteous - I'm sure it was fine, but I'm not much in the mood to be enlightened at an outdoor festival.)

Wolfmother is the first thing I saw in its entirety. The next big thing tag fits them well. Everyone has already said it before, they are just the new Sabbath/Zeppelin - but they have their own power too. Three people make a ton of racket. I do NOT like the song about the Apple tree that sounds like the White Stripes. We also made acquaintance with other Coachella returnees around us, who joined us in saying "Man, is it really crowded this year or what?"

I separated briefly from my friends, and we were meeting at the Animal Collective stage. Which was just a whole lotta racket that I couldn't get away from fast enough (Tom rather liked but the rest of us, ICK.) So we did some eating, and then dug in for the long haul.

Tom was mostly there for My Morning Jacket, but I'd already seen them twice and found them to be too hippie for my taste. I wanted to check out Kanye West, and TV on the Radio was one of my don't misses. So I wait and wait for Kanye, who is at least 15 mintues late. This is another new thing this year. In 2003, Ladytron was late but no one else. In 2005, Mike Patton's stupid band was late, but no one else. This year, lateness was common. Not sure what that was about, but again, when I tell my friends a great thing about the show is that it is not too crowded and it runs like clockwork, well so far neither of these things are happening. At least it wasn't 50 degrees and raining!

I caught the beginning of Kanye, then ran over to TV on the Radio, who had already started doing "Dreams", my favorite song of theirs. In person, they sound less like Peter Gabriel, and more just like themselves. It was a dynamic set, with songs being done with very different arrangements from the cds. Wish they were touring on their own (though I'm sure that'll come soon) rather than with 9 Inch Nails. Other Coachella people tend to really like this set too - they are getting some of the best buzz. (As are My Morning Jacket.)

I head over to the My Morning Jacket stage to catch a little Damian Marley. Tom was not a fan of the cd, but I found him more interesting than I might have thought - a nice combination of traditional reggae and dancehall/dance.

Next, Devendra Banhart. A great thing about Coachella is the ability to check out things that you're not sure if you'll like or not, without wasting it on a whole show. I don't usually like folky music, but something about Devendra has always intrigued me. I have also spent a lot of time trying to determine if he's hot or not, and if he's a legitimate hippie or it's all an act. I'm still not sure about his legitimacy, (Tom saw him walking around and said he looked VERY stylized) but as for his hotness? YUM! And it wasn't just me, some screaming girls essentially followed him out of eyesight when he was done.

Carl Cox had a 2 hour set, which would have been ideal if I was at a club, but it's tough to give 2 hours to anyone with so much else going on. So I decided to check out a little Franz Ferdinand before settling in to get my spot for the night at the dance tent. I was so glad I did - the Killers had kind of dampened my enthusiasm for the big 80s retro acts, but Franz played with a lot of energy - and I was also surprised at how many songs I recognized from just their 2 albums. I guess we can thank the BBC for that.

Now back to Carl Cox. So much energy - the day is really building nicely. Bonus points for playing Underworld's "Two Months Off." Following Carl are the Audio Bullys - a dance act most known for their version of Nancy Sinatra's "Bang Bang My Baby Shot me down." The Audio Bullys are 2 guys - a dj and an mc. The djing was adequate at best, but a little choppy, but the mcing was awful. Flat, unenergetic, and when the camera was on him, he looked damn miserable to be there. They both huddled right at the turntables. A shame they got such a good spot - I finally decided to run over and take a peek at Depeche Mode.

Who were pretty boring too - and despite reports to the contrary, I thought Dave Gahan looked fat and old. The two songs I heard were dirgy and drony and going nowhere, so I headed back to suck up more Audio Bullys and wait for Daft Punk. High point of my return was the appearance of Santino from Project Runway, who was spotted by Tom, and was so nice to both of us, as well as all of his fans.

We were all there for Daft Punk, and Daft Punk indeed. What a show. Energy for almost everything, but especially "One More Time" was through the roof.

At leaving, it took forever to exit, and forever again to find our car, despite our best efforts, incuding taking a hint off the Coachella message board to take a picture of your car to aid finding it on the way out. It was well after 3 (nearly 3 hours after the show ended) to get to our hotel. Sigh. So we prepared better for the next day.

The focus of Day 2 was Madonna and Tool. What a funny combo - considering Madonna fans and Tool fans are natural enemies in the wild, it was surprising that they day was as calm and conflict free as it was.

We got there early enough to check out Murs, who I've seen before but never enjoyed this much. His lipsyncing to Coldplay was a high point! As was his apology to young fans when he swore and talked about sex, but he assured them that someday, they'd be thinking about sex too.

After that, we peeked in an Amadou and Miriam (my friend Kirk said it best - they took some good Afropop and crackered it up.) And James Blunt (Yawn.) So we relaxed on the lawn for Ted Leo, who was a real fan, singing Daft Punk songs and his wiry punky pop. I heart Ted Leo. (No Since U Been Gone tho.)Tom did not heart Ted Leo, and napped on the ground beside me.

After Ted Leo, I checked out Phoenix (apparently Sophia Coppola did too) but they were pretty dull. Here, there was a real lag time. I met Tom at Matisyahu, which was fine, but I think that guy is a bit of a joker, so whatever. We met at the beer garden, which was, you guessed it, too crowded. So we wandered around and did our t-shirt shopping.

I took a peek at Paul Oakenfold (what a cheeseball! Although he's grown his hair out and now somewhat resembles Grant Hart) but I just don't like his technique. Coachella message boards said he was a trainwreck, so it apparently wasn't just me.

Gnarls Barkley was my other don't miss. What a show! Dressed like a troup of the Wizard of Oz, complete with Danger Mouse as tin man, a string section of winged monkeys and backup singer Dorothy's, and Cee-Lo as the "Mean Ol' Lion." I hope my predictions are correct and "Crazy" is as huge as it can be in the states. Their cover of "Gone, Daddy Gone" was a pleasant surprise to me and the crowd loved it.

Next, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Another band that always brings it. But I'd seen them before so I only checked out a couple of songs, before heading off to Seu Jorge. Who may be good, but too mellow for a festival - after the Yeah Yeah Yeahs I just couldn't pay attention. The Editors were next door, but I was meeting my friends at Seu Jorge to head to Madonna. So I just kept running back and forth. The Editors were surprisingly energetic, and the songs sounded great. Can't wait to buy the album and see them on their own later this summer.

Ah, Madonna. Apparently there were about 30,000 people checking her out in an area really made for less than half that many. Even though I'm going to check her out alone later, to see her at the first festival appearance of her career seemed like a don't miss.She....was quite late. Which was a blessing because I could hear the Editors more. She played 5 brief songs, used some salty language, danced and left. I'm mostly psyched for the full show later.

Ending the event was Scissor Sisters. I love them, but I think they made some new fans. Ana was funnier than ever, Jake looked awesome in his gold lame suit. I'm not sure if it's just me, but I don't like that they interrupt the super awesome gay disco for the ballads. Maybe one ballad to end the set, but to tone it all down in the middle really messes with the momentum.

Summary: Best: Daft Punk, TV on the Radio, Gnarls Barkley.

Will I go again? Oh, probably. We'll see. I'll be interested to see where they take it next year - more poppy? (there's been a lot of backlash about the Madonna/Kanye additions.) I spent most of my time in the smallest tent this year, and less time at the big stage (I never saw one thing on the Main stage in it's entirety.)

3 Generations of UK Rock

2006-03-31T20:44:00.000-05:00

n 1986, I moved from Ohio to New York (well, actually Passaic, NJ) with my ex-junkie, skinhead, thief boyfriend, who was from there. It didn't work out (see ex-junkie, skinhead, thief)but it was great fun while it lasted. My big memory was that when I told people I was moving, almost to a person, they said, "But you'll miss the Pogues!" (who were playing Columbus the day after i moved.)Which is ridiculous even if you liked the Pogues, which I didn't.

So 20 years and 2 Shane MacGowan solo shows later, I finally see the Pogues. And....eh. I still don't like the noodly Irish instruments, i don't get how they are punk when they are just the Chieftains with a with a drunk lead singer. Gogol Bordello kills the Pogues in the ethnic punk category.)And Shane really played up the drunk part, but I (and the guy behind me) definitely think he was faking. He was drinking clear liquor (gin? or was it water?) then, towards the end, he "chugged" from a bottle of (wine?) but most of the liquor missed his mouth. The guy behind me shared that as "Frat Boy Non-Drinking 101" - wear it and people will think you are REALLY drinking when actually you are faking it out. However, props to them for singing "Fairy Tale in New York" despite it's general Christmasness.

Ray Davies, 61, is the hottest old rocker today. Paul McCartney? Pussy. Mick jagger? Tries too hard. Ray Davies? Just charisma and talent, complete with 4 or 5 costume changes. Lots of early Kinks ("I'm not Like Everybody Else," "You Really got Me.")Plenty from the new cd, which fit right in with the classics. Sadly, not enough from the early 80's era, (no "Destroyer" no "Come Dancing")but no real complaints. The energy, the desire, could compare with anyone - this is the show to beat this year.

Finally, the Arctic Monkeys show was a can't miss, since I sold my extra ticket on eBay for more than I paid for 2, but even at that, I was impressed. They were tight, they were loud, they were British. Sometimes they were a little too Strokesy, but the whole package felt much stronger than either of the times I'd seen the Strokes. Believe the hype - they aren't boring like fellow Brits Oasis or Blur, There's nothing else I can tell you that you haven't already heard. (Although the bass player did wear a polo with an upturned collar, which was a bit Steve Sanders.

RIP Nikki Sudden.

She Wants Revenge

2006-02-22T20:51:00.000-05:00

Ok, there are homages and then there are blatant ripoffs. She Wants Revenge is a blatant ripoff, mostly of Peter Murphy, with a little Sisters of Mercy and Joy Division thrown in. And I couldn't love it any more!

First off, despite their dead serious stage demeanor, I feel as if they're coming into this blatant ripoff with a sense of humor. They can't be serious, can they? Three of the songs on their debut album are Joy Division titles. They have to be kidding on that, right?

But despite, they, even more than Interpol, have captured the chilly feel and all of the details of early '80s new wave. And live: just as good.

Vegas Baby

2006-02-07T20:49:00.001-05:00

Getting old (may) mean that you can't make the transition to West Coast time as quick as you used to. More on that later.

The best new slot machine was at our casino, the Sahara. It's Family Feud. If you get 3 "Survey says" across the payline, you get to play a mini-version of the Feud for bonus pay. Within my first hour, I'd hit for $50, which is satisfying for me.

Ostensibly, we were there for a wedding. A friend of Tom's on his 2nd marriage, and his new wife, who at 26 is 14 years younger than him, and on her 3rd marriage. The little wedding in the chapel was fun and simple. We didn't know anyone else in the small group, but even still. It was a somewhat joyless affair. We went to a chain-y Mexican restaurant in the Aladdin afterwards, and everyone was very quiet; there was no sense of celebration. The best man left before even eating to go to a show. Tom and the groom caught up on gossip. No one mentioned the wedding.It was weird. I give it 2 years. Frankly, the only reason we went was to be in Vegas for the Super Bowl.

That night we went to see Joe Rogan at the House of Blues in Mandalay Bay. Everyone in Mandalay Bay looks like they just stepped off the set of Growing Up Gotti. We got to Mandalay Bay about 8:30 and the show wasn't starting til midnight. We went to Rum Jungle to drink. Tom played the slots and I wandered around the Mandalay Bay shops. the Ultimate Fighting Championships were that night and there was an enormous crowd. Eventually, however, instead of going clubbing or getting more drinks, I snuck over to the sports book and pretended to study Super Bowl odds and took a 15-minute nap. Pathetic. But Joe Rogan was damn funny.

Sunday was, of course the Super Bowl. We made our normal pilgrimage to Circus Circus to check out the rotating bar made famous in Fear and Loating in Las Vegas. It was closed, so we played the slots some, and observed a guy having a meltdown on his wife/gf, which involved throwing chairs, drinks and screaming. I was preparing myself for gunplay, and was ready to hit the floor when security FINALLY came. This knocked us off our mojo for a bit. I did, however, win my parlay bet - $110 more!! And I've still got all my World Cup bets that could yet pay off.

However, I went to bed about 8 p.m. and woke up WIDE AWAKE at 3:30 Vegas time (the time I normally get up on the East Coast.) NEVER have I had such a hard time making the transition. I had a massage on Monday morning which was wonderful and also involved a sauna/jacuzzi/steamroom which I could have never left. We closed it out with dinner at Mix, (delicious) and took the redeye home.

Mostly, you gotta love a vacation where you come home with only $100 less than when you left.

Happy 2006!

2006-01-02T20:12:00.001-05:00

So my resolution is to write closer to every day. I'm using Firefox now, which makes posting easier, so we'll see how this goes.

I ended 2005 with a terrible cold and flu. I had felt so bad for so long that I was literally crying and ready to die for a time on Dec. 26. When I finally went to the Dr., I was told I may have asthma. This has made me feel incredibly better.

Over the summer, I was told I had pnuemonia. I had been having coughing jags that sometimes made me throw up. I was somewhat freaked out that I had such a serious disease, and cant' figure out how I had gotten it. Worse, even after I was mostly better, my chest still hurt often. And I was soooooo tired. So to find out that it may have been something else all along, something that is controllable, is really a relief.

The mental relief has been the biggest. For 6 months, I've been so tired, and sniffly, and I just thought I'd gotten old overnight or something. This new diagnosis, coupled with a puffer, has me feeling today like I haven't felt in months.

It really is a whole new year!

Month of Music: Energy

2005-12-09T19:42:00.000-05:00

Gogol Bordello/Throw Rag/Scotch Greens, Ottobar.

I worry about people who can't like Gogol Bordello.Those people don't
know how to have fun. (Actually, my husband doesn't - he thinks they
are fakers, even to the extent of thinking they are not really
Ukrainian/gypsies/whatever.) This is the 3rd time I've seen them, but
the first time with a big crowd. A big, moshing crowd. Punks, Moms,
Nerds, Regular People, young and old, dancing like their life depended
on it. It was so hot in the Ottobar, beers were flying, feet were
dancing, I loved it! The only drawback was a little bit of "hipper
than thou" going on - my favorite was this guy who was hitting on a
woman by saying "Oh, you work for Fader? That's the first place I
heard about these guys, 8 months ago." I wanted to say, "I first heard
about them in the oh-so-hip New York Times 3 years ago." Yeah, I know
I'm losing my edge, but I WAS THERE. (More on that later.) Opener
Throw Rag intrigued me because of their poster advertising Lemmy and
Jello Biafra on their cd. They ACTED like they were great, but in
fact, they were rather awful. I see they are from the California
Desert, which means they, like fellow desert dwellers QOTSA before
them, are just dreadful poseurs. Scotch Greens = Rancid cover band.

Sage Francis, Ottobar.
Sage was my big discovery at Coachella this year, and yes, I know I'm
a bit late to this party. It was great to see the bar sold out, and
everyone knowing all the words. Sage told his usual silly jokes, ( I
think it was, "How many emo kids does it take to change a light bulb?
1 to change the bulb and 4 to cry about it."). He also had incredibly
strong, political raps, and the crowd was singing right along with
them. Rappers Grand Buffet(coming back to the Ottobar in February)
also did a guest set, and they were more hilarious. The whole tour was
sponsored by knowmore.org, a worthy group for certain. While I was
there, I thought it was all so cute that people actually think that
they can make corporations clean up their act. Later, however, I found
a bit of energy to do some boycotting of my own - maybe Wal-Mart isn't
going out of business because I won't buy anything at Wal-Mart, but at
least I can sleep better at night.

LCD Soundsystem/The Juan McLean, Sonar.
Somewhere recently (on MAD-TV or Saturday Night Live maybe?) I
remember a skit about how the nostalgia curve kept shrinking, and
eventually people would be looking back fondly at the day before
yesterday. That is how I felt at this show. If this show had been over
the summer, it would have been huge. As it were, I felt like it was a
retro act, even though the cd has barely been out 6 months. First, The
Juan McLean show that even though their cd appears to be about dancing
and having fun, they are deadly serious about it (see !!!)These people
all need to take something out of the Junior/Senior or Fischerspooner
playbook and have a sense of humor already. Secondly, while I, as an
old person, appreciate a show that ends at a decent hour and doesn't
meander on endlessly, is it too much to ask of a headliner that they
play more than 6 songs, 1 of which was a cover?An awesome cover of
Nilsson's "Jump into the Fire." but a cover nonetheless. It felt more
like a set that would be part of the Mix106 Jingle Bell Jam or some
other showcase show. Plenty of cowbell, plenty of dancing, and "Losing
my Edge" is one of the great songs of the '00s, but all in all, a
shadow of what I had been expecting. Time for a new trend!

Month of Music: Second chances

2005-11-11T20:20:00.000-05:00

Gang of Four-Sonar. I mean, how can you miss them if they won’t go away? However, this show was the best of the three I’ve seen, and even included, for the first time, “I Love a Man in Uniform,” considerably different without the female vocal. Each show has actually been longer and more energetic. However, one more show veers them into Pixies territory, so I’ll be satisfied with 3.

Reigning Sound-Iota, Arlington. The Reigning Sound show I saw in Columbus in the spring was one of the greatest I’d seen this year; one that so moved me that it caused me to almost cry. This show they were opening for the Detroit Cobras, who Greg Cartwright also plays with. So as they were setting up, the Husband, who’s not seen them before and is NOT a fan, says, “I didn’t know the Reigning Sound has a girl in the band.” “They don’t” I say, but indeed they do. The band I’d seen in Columbus was largely touring with Freakwater. This incarnation was founder Cartwright, a drummer and, well, to say the girl bass player was mediocre would be kind. Oh , and she couldn’t sing. To the Husband, I say “Who knew with 2 weeks of bass lessons, I could have been in the Reigning Sound?” And he says “Make that 1 week of bass lessons.” I didn’t even stay til the end of their set it was so bad and disheartening. After returning home, I discovered that said girl bass player is actually from Ohio and dates a friend of mine. Well, she still sucks, I’m going to have to stick to that gun.

My Morning Jacket-TLA Philadelphia. My Morning Jacket are the new Meat Puppets. A hippie band for frat boys who think they are indie rockers. However, my trip to Philly did get me to see the Bodyworlds exhibit that I can’t recommend enough to everyone. Worth every cent.

Acid Mothers Temple-Ottobar. The greatest rock band today. They played for about 90 minutes, and about 7 songs. Loud as hell walls of sound that made me wish I still had the energy to trip. As you’d look around, the whole crowd would be smiling,(at a rock show!) and I don’t think the whole crowd was tripping either – it’s just that overwhelming. No throat singing like last time, but, who’s complaining really. Plus, they’re so funny – cracking jokes, sticking the guitar in the ceiling.

Miss Kittin – I/O lounge, Miami, Florida. Supposedly, but Miss Kittin cancelled due to Hurricane Wilma. My travel companions got there earlier in the day, but I had to work –left Baltimore at 8, got to Miami by 10.To find my travel companions had spent the day drinking and were passed out cold. Decided to go out anyway Was at club at midnight. Somewhere between the time I left here and the time I got there, she cancelled. Since I’d already cabbed into downtown Miami from South Beach, I decided to stay for Otto von Schirach, the opener, who I knew nothing about, but was told by the guys in front of me that he was “live.” I also decided to drink kamikazes and beers as fast as possible, which got me very drunk, since after work, I’d gotten right on the plane and basically had nothing to eat. The club was small (it would have been AWESOME to see Miss Kittin there) and it was Pop Life night (Pop Life = Taxlo, complete with a nearly identical playlist). So, what I remember through the liquor haze is that Otto played Kid 606 style beats through a Dell laptop. The beats were fast, and he “sang” at about half speed through a vocoder thingy, Prince songs, and “I’m too Sexy.” Some of this he did while wearing a long gray beard. Fun enough, but not my cup of tea. Later in this trip , I did get to watch Hurricane Wilma blow down Collins Ave., and got stuck there 2 extra days. (if only it had been 3, I could have seen Carl Cox. But I guess if I couldn’t get out, he couldn’t have gotten in.)

Kylesa/Coliseum/Torche/Triac-Ottobar. Missed Triac, but the last few times I’ve seen them, they’ve been better than ever. Torche was like Ozzy Osbourne singing over “Slip It In” era Black Flag. Except not that good. Coliseum-traditional Florida death metal. Kylesa is like Mastodon, Junior, only with a super super hot girl guitar player. Only she….can play.

Peanut Butter Wolf-Ottobar. Halloween Saturday in Baltimore is probably not the greatest time for a show, there’s just too much else going on. Tops – there were 40 people there. This can go several ways – the artist can be a dick, and take the low turnout out on those who did show up. They can be smoking, so that you tell all your friends how smoking it was, and the next time there’s 400 people. But Peanut Butter Wolf did something I’ve never seen before – he bought a round for the entire bar. Really! I think he is good, but not as great as, say RJD2. It did allow the Husband and I to trot out one of our favorite arguments. My take: The ONLY difference between, say Miss Kittin or Felix da Housecat and Peanut Butter Wolf or RJD2 are the types of records they spin. Both are spinning records, sampling, and relying on some preprogrammed stuff. The only reason I like the former and the husband likes the latter is that I like house and disco and he likes rap and soul.He maintains that the “hip hop” djs rely less on programmed beats, so are better live performers, and that the “dance” djs have almost everything prerecorded and therefore it’s not really a “live” set.
Feel free to weigh in on this one.

2005-11-05T17:14:00.000-05:00

So you know those days where you're so sick you think you might not make it. But you HAVE to go to work, because there's a big meeting, or you're the only one covering a shift, or there's a deadline that you can not miss?

Then, a month or so down the road, you wake up with a little bitty headache, or maybe a hangover, or maybe you're just feeling out of it. And you think, "Remember that sick day I didn't take, well, I'm going to make up for it now!" And you call in sick, and spend the day watching Price is Right, and fiddling on the internet, and reading, and if you're feeling really ballsy you even go out to lunch?

Who amongst us hasn't done that? Be honest!

Well, that's what Terrell Owens is doing now. He's cashing in on that Super Bowl he played in with the broken leg, and calling in sick on a sore ankle. So why don't you all shut up and cut him some slack!

2005-11-01T22:43:00.000-05:00

Trapped in paradise, or my vacation to Miami

There's a children's book called "That's good, That's Bad" and basically, you'll get the gist. All things considered, however, this was an awesome vacation.

That's Good: The annual Miami football trip is scheduled for October 23. This day, there will be a celebration honoring Dan Marino for The Husband, and the night before Miss Kittin is playing in a club for me.

That's Bad:A few weeks before, the hurricane panic already begins.

That's Good:The Husband gets to Florida on Thursday.

That's Bad:My plane doesn't leave until Saturday, and the hurricane is bearing down. And the football game has been moved to Friday so I can't go.

That's Good:My plane leaves right on time, Saturday night. It's practically empty, so I stretch out over 3 seats and nap all the way to Miami.

That's Bad:However, the Husband and friends have spent the day drinking and watching football, so I have to take a $32 cab from the airport.

That's Good:But the weather is hot and gorgeous. And so's the hotel.

That's Bad:The Husband and Montie are passed out cold. I'm lucky to wake them up long enough to let me in the room.

That's Good:But I change my clothes, and head off to the I/O Lounge for Miss Kittin.

That's Bad:Who, since that morning, has cancelled. But I stick around for the Dance party, since I've already cabbed into the city. Pretty fun, and very Taxlo. Oh, but drinks were sorta pricy, and the ATM was broken, and the didn't take credit cards unless you spent $30. After two rounds, I'd only have enough left for cab fare. So I find out that there is an ATM down the street, and I head off to the ghetto mart at midnight in Miami, to carry $100 back to the club. Good thing my Mom couldn't see that!

That's Good:Kamikazes are only $3, so I down many. And find that no sleep, no food and 3 kamikazes do the trick. I head back to the hotel to try and wake up the boys. But the boys are not to be woken, so I go to the hotel bar and plan to just sit on the porch and enjoy the weather. The guys on the porch are from Warren, Ohio (Hi, Leaf and Snoop!) and we spend an hour in drunken goofiness. But while one of them goes to change for a late drunk trip to the beach, I suddenly need to go upstairs (and throw up) and I do.

That's Bad:Ouch! Hangover. Nothing that a cheeseburger at the 11th St. Diner can't help though..

That's Good:Finnegan's Way on Ocean Drive is the best place to watch sports. Completely open and with a sea view. I eat coconut shrimp and a salad, and drink Cokes and then pina coladas. And the Eagles somehow don't lose.

That's Bad:In wake up at 8 a.m. to the sound of the hurricane. A hurricane is LOUD. So we go downstairs to watch it from the lobby with all the other guests.

That's Good:Watching a hurricane when the damage is cosmetic only is quite fascinating! Mostly it's just loud, and suddenly an entire gutter or street sign will blow down the street. But after about an hour, when it starts to wane, we go back to bed. At 11:30, we get up and join the rest of the tourists in surveying the situation.

That's Bad:Things to remember if you are a tourist and the hurricane is coming - buy food while there is still power. Because restaurants won't open. Although the cheese puffs and pound cake and lukewarm Coke I got at the Cuban mart at about 3 was pretty delicious. As was the meatball sub that we waited an hour for at Geno's Pizza and Brew. Another thing to remember - your credit card might not work without power, and lots of ATM's might not either. Get cash!

That's Good:A hotel bar doesn't need electricity! The guests, including a Southern Maryland native, a gang of drunken Irish dudes and some Euros, are all good sports and making the most of the situation.

That's Bad:Miller Lite, red wine, and Hendrick's gin are not a good mix.

That's Good:The power comes on! Next day, South Beach comes back to life.

That'sBad:But there's still a curfew. Now, most of the Euro tourists have relocated elsewhere in Florida, and filling the hotel rooms are South Florida residents without power. These folks are cranky and no fun!

That's Good:By Wednesday, South Beach is really coming around. And the White Sox win the World Series.

That's Bad:Our plane was supposed to leave on Tues. but has been postponed til Thursday. Which is fine, but Montie was supposed to leave on Monday, the airlines are kinda being vague about when he will get out, and his pay depends on where and when he works.

That's Good:South Beach bars decide to flaunt the curfew somewhat, so we have some drinks and chill out again.

That's Bad:Thursday, we finally have to leave.

Miami is awesome. I would move there tomorrow if given the option.

Books not to read on vacation: Everything is Illuminated. Fucking depressing Holocaust stuff wrapped in overly pretentious writing.
From Pieces to Weight - tales of child drug dealers, even if said child turns into 50 Cent, are also depressing.

2005-10-19T20:05:00.000-04:00

Peter Hook's 240 Hour Party People dj tour - The Ottobar

Opening act Modernage seemed to be an Interpol cover band. Or maybe a
Killers cover band. But I met a couple of the guys later and they
seemed pretty nice so that's as harsh as I'll get.

People got pretty danced up before the show as the BritPop dj played
the usual BritPop stuff. So when Peter Hook arrived and started with a
downtempo remix of Captain and Tennille's Love will Keep us
Together/Love Will Tear Us Apart, people stopped dancing and there was
a "um....OK" kind of vibe that made me fear that people just flat out
weren't going to be into it. But after another downtempo-y song, he
kicked it up, and the set included lots of great New Order and Joy
Division remixes, along with the Chemical Brothers and the ubiquitous
Killers. The dance floor filled up, and everyone was dancing together
and the vibe was great. He may not be the smoothest dj ever, but he's
freaking PETER HOOK! Right there on stage at the Ottobar. It's pretty
special to hear a song like Bizarre Love Triangle, and then realize
the dj playing it is the guy who CREATED it. The crowd was an
interesting mix of aging New Order nerds and young Taxlo fans -- it
was an ideal night.

The other show I'd been looking forward to seeing was Daddy Yankee at
the Patriot Center. i finally talked a friend into going with, and
went to the Patriot Center site to buy tickets. Which were
$58-$98!!!!! Gwen Stefani plays there a few days later for $35-$65 and
she's got the Black Eyed Peas and the freaking Harajuku girls! I hope
that was a benefit for something - I'm not one to bitch about ticket
prices usually, but that just seemed really out of line. So, I didn't
go.

2005-10-13T07:12:00.000-04:00

Happy John Peel Day!

2005-10-06T20:10:00.000-04:00

Thought for the day: there's no bad day at work that can't be remedied with a little Marilyn Manson.

2005-10-04T21:06:00.000-04:00

OPERATION CEASEFIRE 1

Operation Ceasefire, or , as I'm calling it, Operation Cease Eating.
This is just about the music, not about the politics.
,
Jello Biafra served as our MC for most of the day. Small portions of
Jello are exactly right - he's funny and snarky and keeps things
moving, as opposed to when he does his spoken word, when he tends to
go on and on and exhaust you.

Imagine if the New York Dolls sang protest music, and you get the
Living Things. Without the political lyrics, they'd be just another
glam rock wannabe band. But with them, it's kind of an interesting
contrast. Whoo! Bare your boy torso for peace! Yeah!
No disrespect to Joan Baez, who started with a cover of Steve Earle's
Christmas in Washington, but I don't really like the folky thing, and
didn't really hear anything else.

At the Ottobar, the Bellrays were a really mediocre bar band with a
smokin' lead singer. Here, on this great stage with this great sound
system, Lisa was a super smokin' lead singer with a not so bad bar
band backing her up. I mean that woman really brings it! They had been
promoted as playing with the MC5s Wayne Kramer, and while the guitar
sounded Kramery, the guitar player looked like a younger Thurston
Moore which didn't seem possible. When Wayne Kramer did show up,
dressed in early White Stripe, with a tight white tshirt and tight red
pants, he went from Neil Young to elder statesman to batshit crazy in
about 5 minutes,and didn't even begin to keep up LIsa's energy.

Steve Earle captures what it means to be a protest singer and mean it
in everything you do. He was fresh off the Cindy Sheehan camp in
Texas. He talks as much as he sings, but his talking is just as
entertaining. Best line - "It's amazing how much Commie shit you can
sneak in a song if you call it bluegrass."

Rap band the Coup were next, and they had a little too much funk bass
for my taste, so I left to get food. My one complaint about the day is
that there was nothing to eat on the grounds at all. I'd been
expecting some hippie carts, like a veggie stir fry or something, but
there was one small hot dog stand and nothing else . I headed into
downtown for food, but everything in that end of town was either
closed or too fancy for my clothes so this was not easy. 90 minutes
and one chile relleno later, I headed back.

I'd forgotten who was next, and I could hear a girl singer so I was
holding out hope for Le Tigre playing early, but as I rounded the
corner I quickly identified Ian Mackaye, playing with his band the
Evens. I didn't grow up in DC, so I don't hold him in the high regard
that many of you will. During the straight-edge Minor Threat years I
was, well, drunk, and during the Fugazi years, well, see above for how
I feel about funky bass. Plus, he is just so deadly deadly serious
that even at a peace rally he's the most serious guy in the room.
Mostly I'm just filled with the desire to hit him in the face with a
pie or something.

Finally, Ted Leo. Never having seen him live before, I thought he
would be more sincere indie rocker, somewhere on the Steven
Malkmus/Isaac Brock/Ben Gibbard continuum, but he was more punky
earnest, like an early Joe Jackson or Elvis Costello. He had some
technical difficulties which just added to his edgy charm. I'm really
looking forward to seeing him do a full set.

At this point in time, cold and hungry, I decided that the 3 hours,
with Thievery Corporation,belly dancers and the Bouncing Souls to get
to Le Tigre wasn't really worth it. I'd done my part, I'd seen some
good free music, and the day was starting to feel long, but
fulfilling. Everyone who worked to put this on should be proud.

2005-09-25T09:48:00.000-04:00

When I found out Oprah had picked A Million Little Pieces as her new book club book, my first response was close to anger. I was particularly down on Oprah last week after her deluded Hermes incident, and to suddenly have her audience of cowlike suburban Oprah watchers reading a book that meant so much to me, just floored me. I had seen James Frey speak over the summer and I knew that he could be prickly and wondered how he would do on Oprah.

I watched the show where she announced the book, and completely agreed with all the good Oprah had to say about it. Especially moving was that James Frey had gotten his mother tickets to be on the show, and she was so moved that even I began to shed a tear. This woman is your typical Cleveland Mom/Oprah fan, and while I believe everyone's motives were entirely sincere, it also added a layer to the book that will make it more appropriate for the cowlike suburban Oprah watchers - this guy may be a bit of a jerk in this book, but his Mom is one of us!

As someone who occasionally reviews books and music, it is easy to forget sometimes that there are real human beings behind the art that we read and listen to. Human beings with families, personalities, foibles, etc. The first time I got a comment from an author to whom I'd referred in an article, it really jarred me. He read what I had written (luckily positive) and offered to send me an autographed ARC of his new book. The Oprah show brought me back to reality in a similar way - this is ultimately not "my" book, it is James Frey's book and his Mom's book and now it will be read, and possibly beloved, if for no other reason than because Oprah told them to.

So if you haven't read it, let me and Oprah tell you to go get it now!

2005-09-21T21:06:00.000-04:00

Napalm Death/Obituary, Trocadero, Philadelphia

Napalm Death and Obituary were originally to be a "boys only" show for
my husband and friends, but suddenly I found myself along for the
ride. I really dig that Napalm Death covers record, "Leaders not
Followers, #2" especially for the Die Kreuzen and Offenders covers.
They did do a few covers - a Cryptic Slaughter and a blistering "Nazi
Punks Fuck Off" that made me yearn for the subtlety of the original.
Lead singer Barney Greenway looks and moves like Henry Rollins in the
body of a Towson engineering student - and the knee brace didn't help
his slightly dorky demeanor. They also influenced the greatest pit
I've seen in years - complete with girls toughing it out.

Obituary had a tough act to follow, and after about 2 songs, they
failed.Thank God for cel phones - I text messaged some friends. I
checked the tennis scores-- (this was the night of Blake-Agassi) I
followed a dude around because I thought he was Howard Stern lacky and
ex-Death drummer Richard Christy(he wasn't.) I thought back to when
all metal that wasn't
Poison and Bon Jovi was called "thrash" and then thought of other
funny words that we don't use anymore, like "icebox" and "slacks" and
"davenport." The Husband agreed - really it was tough for a standard
issue death metal band to follow Napalm Death.

2005-09-05T22:16:00.000-04:00

Last Day of Summer

There's a few movies that I think of as perfect summer movies - like Jaws, or Meatballs. I often like to watch Bull Durham on the night before baseball season. But I don't think any movie captures the melancholy of the last day of summer like Hollywood Knights.

Yes, I mean Hollywood Knights, of Robert Wuhl, and Fran Drescher, and Tony Danza and Michelle Pfeiffer. And Stuart Pankin and Moosie Dreier!! How can you forget them? (And no, I didn't look those names up, but I'm 99% sure I got them right.)

If you haven't seen it, and didn't know the most important piece of trivia, which is that this is where the New Bomb Turks got their name, let me bring you up to speed. it's Halloween, and the last night of Tubby's Drive in. (That one I did have to look up.)One of the regulars is getting ready to go to Vietnam. Most of them are just out of high school and haven't yet figured out what to do with themselves. Some young car club recruits are dropped off in Watts and need to get the soul dj there to dedicate a song to Tubbys. (And, no I haven't seen this movie in over 20 years, but I'm fairly sure the song is Heatwave.)

So, no, Halloween isn't exactly the last day of summer, but they live in LA, so summer never really "ends" like it does in the East. And yes, this movie is a dumb sex comedy, that were comedy gold in the early 80's. But while I can't remember anything about Porky's, other than that Kim Cattrall howled when she had sex, I remember almost everything about Hollywood Knights. I think Stuart Pankin's name was Dudley, and he had asthma, and said "I cannot function without my glasses and my puffer." and I thought that was brilliant. I bet I watched that movie 20 times on HBO.
But what sticks is that melancholy feeling at the end. That this day is great, and was fun, but tomorrow the fun goes away and real life begins. And you're not even going to be able to go to Tubby's and jaw about it. It's gone, and it's not coming back.

I spent this summer at the pool in my neighborhood. Yesterday I learned that after next summer, they are tearting the pool down, and building still more freaking condos. And the first thing I thought of is "this is just like the end of Hollywood Knights." Summer's over, and it might never be like this again.

Granted, all the news has been making me feel a little fragile, the kind of fragile where you cry over heartwarming soup commercials (tm Gretchen) But I can't quit thinking about Hollywood Knights, and I'm going to have to watch it to see if it holds up. And even if it doesn't, it'll just prove my point, that the time in my life where I can be moved by Hollywood Knights is over, and it's never coming back. But I bet I still giggle a little when everyone detemines that the punch has a little "whang" to it.

2005-09-03T14:22:00.000-04:00

Thanks to Salon and to lastplanetojakarta.com for the image.

2005-09-01T20:45:00.000-04:00

Ostrich. Head. Sand.

That's been my mantra lately. Ostrich. Head. Sand. I know the war in Iraq is totally fucked up, I was especially bothered by the entire unit from Ohio being ambushed. I know this. I don't need any more details about more fucked up things.

Now, The Husband has hurricane fever. The only time he turns the channel is if there is discussion of dead animals, a long time forbidden subject in our house. So today I watched lots of hurricane coverage. All those people stuck on I-10. In the Superdome. On their roofs. Then I hear stories of dead people and animals floating, laying there, DEAD. all those cars, trying to escape, and then the road caved in. It's like the Stand. Only that's a made-up-story and this is real.

Ostrich. Head. Sand.

Next summer, the American Library Association has their annual conference scheduled in New Orleans. The convention center is currently filled with refugees, and people are being assaulted in there, raped, killed. But because Librarians are by and large Chicken Littles, the questions started coming around today - What does this mean for our convention? Emails I get from the publishing industry talk about bookstores that have been damaged. Other listservs talk about authors who live in New Orleans, how are they?

I suppose people want to know how things that relate to them are affected. But I honestly can't understand how people can worry about conventions or bookstores at a time like this. Isn't anonymous human suffering enough reason to worry about New Orleans and Mississippi? Perhaps a quick Google search for Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs is in order.

Beyond even my ability to understand - it took me til today to realize that those thousands of people are in the Superdome and there is no plumbing, This is what was meant by unfit conditions.

Ostrich. Head. Sand.

I don't need any more details. I don't want to know how much worse it is going to get. Perhaps it's time for me to read Safe Area Gorazde again, a book that shows how when humans are faced with misery, they escape, into desire for new jeans, or rock music, or drinking.

Each night when The Husband gets home, I'm watching the US Open. I can't sit here, feeling helpless about my lack of ability to do anything. I'd rather escape with tennis. I know enough details. I've seen Fox's stupid Hurricane logo. I'd rather be Ostrich. Head. Sand.

There are many places to donate. Please do.Tonight I learned that the Humane Society is doing animal rescues there, and they are taking donations. Please don't forget the people or the animals. The animals never got a choice about staying or going.

2005-08-28T22:10:00.000-04:00

After attending my first NASCAR race this spring, I was overwhelmed with the desire to learn more about the economics of it. Despite quite a few years of watching the races on TV, I was unprepared for the sheer scale of it. So many truckloads of merchandise. Each team has several truckloads, and all are busy. The race gets pretty relentless in the middle, and everyone wanders around and goes shopping. Oh, and did I mention that you can bring in your own beer? Coolers that could fit small toddlers are wheeled into the stadium with just a cursory inspection. After getting searched to get into football games, this was a real culture shock to me, but an altogether pleasant experience. So when I stumbled upon the book Sunday Money I thought that with a title like that it would surely shed some light on the inner workins of the sport and the tour.

Sadly this is The. Worst. Book. Ever. The premise is, Macgregor and his wife buy a motor home and do the entire 2002 NASCAR season. I sensed I was in trouble when the entire first chapter was about the buying of the motor home. (Who cares?) Essentially, Macgregor doesn't like NASCAR, he has preconceived notions of what is going to happen (the fans will be rednecks) and so he reports when fans act like rednecks, and when he goes to California, and they aren't as rednecky, he mocks them for being "Califorian." He shares no knowledge about what team members do, about what drivers do, though he does digress tell us what people in the pressbox do. Again, I say, Who Cares? He mocks Darrell Waltrip's Beloved catchphrase, "Boogity Boogity Boogity."He claims that the people who attend NASCAR events spend "money they don't have on things they don't need", as if he took time to talk to any of them about how much money they made, or it is any of his business how people spend their own money. Jeff Macgregor is an elitist asshole, who has written a book about NASCAR for NPR listeners who don't like the sport and have no intention of becoming fans. Fuck him.

2005-08-23T06:55:00.000-04:00

Several years ago, when Hugh Grant got caught boffing the hooker while dating the gorgeous Elizabeth Hurley, the world was aghast.

This summer, however, there seems to be an epidemic of British cads doing it with frighteningly beneath their station women.

I will admit that Jude Law, while gorgeous and quite a good actor, especially in A.I., had never seemed like that much of a sex symbol to me - he was just a bit too pretty. So the fact that he shagged the Nanny, as well as many others in the past suddenly made him get that "bad boy" appeal.

But this Steve Coogan and Courtney Love thing has really got me off my nut. I still found him appealing, even after the coke-fueled lap-dance-binge that triggered his divorce. But Courtney Love? I suppose if you are a drug addict and a sex fiend, Courtney Love is the holy grail of gets.

Steve Coogan was the one of these 3 I liked the most. Hugh Grant is cute, but he has those little boy nipples that trouble me. See above for Jude Law. But Steve Coogan seemed smart and funny and a good time. Now I might be a little afraid of him.

Somewhere, Pat O'Brien is saying "Even I never impregnated Courtney Love!"

2005-08-20T14:53:00.000-04:00

In praise of Gyros

This year I made a shortened trip to the Ohio State Fair and ate one of my favorite fair foods. Was it the corn dog? The elephant ear? The fried cheese? NO! It was the gyro.

Let's go back to the early 80's, when I was a young girl growing up in rural Ohio. Where a big fancy meal was at the Ponderosa, and ethnic food was a Jeno's pizza. I go to the Ohio State fair and see this thing called a "gyro." It smells delicious. It IS delicious. I eat about 6 of them, alternated with that other exotic food, the taco. (Later, a Taco Bell opened in Zanesville and my boyfriend at the time lived right behind it. Almost every day we went there, and I got a combo burrito, which they don't have anymore, but was just like the burrito supreme only with refried beans in it. YUM! Frankly, I could still eat at Taco Bell every day! Supersize this!)

But back to the humble gyro. When I went to THE Ohio State University, the gyro was the food of the late night drunk. Two places sold the $1 gyro and were open 24 hours - Apollo's, and the Honey Bee. I was an Apollo's fan, since it was also the punk rock club. But Apollos/Honey bee could start arguments just like Genos/Pats or Acme/whatever that other oyster house is in New Orleans that I never go to.

The late night gyro,, after a night of drinking, always left a taste in your mouth like gyro poop the next day. But it was all worth it.

The gyro. Lamby meat on a spit. Creamy white sauce. That soft but toasty pita bread. Juicy tomatoes. Sheer perfection.

My first day in Baltimore, we went to the diner in Canton Square. I was so pleased to see the gyro spits turning. Welcome to Baltimore, which even has it's own Greektown! Yes, I'll have a gyro please.

2005-08-16T21:06:00.000-04:00

On the BBC

When I got the news earlier this summer that BBC Radio 1 was getting added to Sirius satellite radio, I went right out and bought one. Even though I already had XM in the car.

I hadn't been sold on XM - it was fun for a few weeks, but their playlists seemed kind of narrow. Plus, Sirius has football and basketball and hockey. XM has baseball.

At first Sirius seemed only marginally better - the playlists were somewhat less narrow, and more edgy, and it has more personality. But mostly I just sat around and waited for the BBC.

And it's here! It showed up on Friday. I haven't changed the Sirius station since. (But I still listen to Howard Stern or Tony Kornheiser in the morning, and Big O and Dukes in the afternoon, especially since Ed Norris is back.

That doesn't mean I'm entirely sold. The drive time BBC djs are just like American drive time djs with funny accents.
In America: Are those things real?
On the BBC: Are those the ones God gave you then?

You know the drill: prank phone calls, double entendre, etc. But you do get the sport reports, complete with cricket, and lots of football gossip.

And the weekends, especially this past when all were in Ibiza, were great. Viva, BBC.

2005-08-12T17:46:00.000-04:00

Last summer I saw Patton Oswalt at the Atomic Books anniversary party
and he killed, with his jokes about steakhouses and comic nerds. Two
summers ago, I saw Brian Posehn in New York at one of David Cross and
Todd Barry's "Tinkle" shows, and he killed, with his jokes about heavy
metal and comic nerds. However, the Comedians of Comedy tour was a
soul-sucking experience even by the normally low standards I hold the
soul-sucking Recher to.The most disappointing part was that both
Oswalt and Posehn did THE SAME JOKES they did the last time I saw
them. It's been 26 months since I last saw Brian Posehn and he can't
write a new set of jokes?? I saw David Cross 3 times in about a year,
and bought a live cd of another show I didn't see and though some of
the jokes were the same, the entire experience was very different (and
I got turned on to this site. at
the Tinkle show, now THIS is funny.)But even so, I'd chalked it up to just not being in the mood
to be there, until I read a story in Time Out New York that talked
about how Oswalt had organized the tour to counteract the hacks that
you see in comedy clubs who talk about "airplane food" and "where the
missing socks go."Well, jokes about Reality TV are the new jokes about
airplane food, and every guy on the bill shot the fish in the reality
show barrel. I guess they were just trying to do the "tried and true"
stuff since it's going for a DVD and special, but the next time
someone wants me to be an extra on their DVD, I hope they pay ME the
$20.

2005-08-10T00:16:00.000-04:00

Please, Vote for Kaysar.

2005-08-04T20:55:00.000-04:00

The Fabulous Sylvester was a celebratory biography of disco star Sylvester, but also a time and place, namely San Francisco in the 70's and 80's, the heyday of disco, especially gay disco. Earlier this summer, I saw The Nomi Song, a celebratory biopic of new wave star Klaus Nomi, but also a time and place, namely New York in the 70's and 80's, the heyday of the downtown art scene.

Both Sylvester and Klaus Nomi were born in the 40's. Both later moved to cities at the perfect time to be part of a movement. Both sang in nearly soprano falsettos. Both were flamboyant dressers, in their own way. Both had strong female sidekicks - Sylvester had Martha Wash and Izora Rhodes, Nomi had Ann Magnuson. Sadly, both were early casualties of AIDS - Nomi when it was still practically unknown, Sylvester not until a few years later, but still before their were effective cures.

Both biographies give some insight into their somewhat distant subjects, and the ends of each, while being personally sad, also stress how much of an end this wasn't just to individual lives, but to an entire lifestyle. Still, though you'll feel sad at America's lack of concern of the "gay cancer" you'll feel uplifted in both that these men got to make their art known, for even a short time.

2005-08-03T19:21:00.000-04:00

4 Shows in 4 Weeks and lots of 90s Nostalgia

At the TLA in Philly I saw French-Algerian punk rocker Rachid Taha, someone who I completely discovered through WFMU.org playing the song from the Black Hawk Down soundtrack. He played for 2 hours, lengthy dancy jams that moved the smallish crowd (probably 150-200 people tops).If the scale of crazy performers starts with Van Morrison (chaotic but in total control) and moves to Shane McGowan (chaotic with no idea what's going on) I'd say this was solidly in the middle. It was, most of the time, complete controlled chaos - nearly every young N. African guy there went on stage and posed for a picture with Rachid, shouting things in Arabic to the delight of their friends, women got up and belly danced, the Algerian flag was thrown, Rachid hit himself in the head with the microphone, he signed autographs from the stage, all the way just kicking out the jams. And finally, he is SEXY SEXY SEXY AS HELL. Really, I was just blatantly melting right there in front of The Husband. We both came to the same conclusion - he's like the Algerian Greg Dulli -not the best looking guy in the room, but his cocky confidence makes him so - and for me, who thinks the Afghan Whigs are the greatest live band that ever came out of Ohio, to say the least, that's about the biggest compliment I can give/
XOXOXOXO Rachid Taha. Oh, and he speaks barely any English, so most of the time, my pedestrian ears had no idea what was going on. And it totally didn't matter.

I saw Dinosaur Jr. twice in the 80’s, once with My Bloody Valentine, and once with the Pixies and both times all bands were dead boring. Other than thinking “Just Like Heaven” is probably the best cover ever,I don’t think much of them. Plus, after the split, I discovered Sebadoh during a breakup and spent the better part of a summer mooning around to their sad sad songs, so I’ve always felt squarely in the Lou Barlow camp, not the wankery J. Mascis camp. But I enjoyed the reunion show at the 9:30 Club, especially their commitment to only play songs from the early albums. Not as much as the Husband, however, who also went to the Philly show and made friends with some tapers who are supposed to be sending him live bootlegs. Dinosaur Jr. are the New Grateful Dead, and J. Mascis and the Fog are the New Jerry Garcia Band.

The New Peach Pit after Dark is the Ram’s Head Live, actually a pretty cool club which makes you feel as if your in a Hollywood movie version of a rock club, it’s so clean and glamorous looking. If only they booked some better shows. I finally made it there to see Common, John Legend and De La Soul. The show was to start at 9. After being somewhat enterertained by some djs and Rahzel, the Human Beat Box (who quickly disintegrates into that guy from the Police Academy movies.) I looked at my watch to see it was 10:30 and we hadn’t seen anyone yet. Then Common hit the stage – great, lots of energy, but a little more cliché “Wave your hands in the air” “Say Oh-oh” than I might have expected. He plays for an HOUR – a long set for most rappers and a REALLY long set for the first performer on a 3 man bill. Close to midnight, John Legend comes on, with his beautiful voice, and plays another hour of music. FINALLY at well after 1 a.m. we get a shortened De La soul set, only because it was last call. I don’t mind staying out late if I expect it was going to be late but this was a LOOOONG night. Also, putting the slow jam John Legend in the middle really killed the energy. All in all, a great show, marred by Philadelphia Eagle in the Super Bowl poor clock management that kept it from being a winner.

But the real winner was Teenage Fanclub. The most clichéd story about them is that in 1991, Spin magazine declared Bandwagonesque their album of the year over Nevermind, which of course is a cultural phenomenon to this day. Taken on purely musical terms, Bandwagonesque is one of my 5 favorite albums ever, while I haven’t played Nevermind in probably 10 years. So this was the first time I’d seen the Fannies since 1992, when they played with the beloved Afghan Whigs (see above) or as I like to call it the BEST SHOW EVER. 13 years has aged the band, but not their music, it’s as timeless as pop music can be. I saw this show at the North Star in Philly and there were so many cold chill moments, not the least being in a room with a bunch of people who all scream as soon as they heard “She wears denim wherever she goes, says she’s gonna get some records by the Status Quo” and sing every lyric. Especially since I had to go to Philly to see this show instead of DC because I only know one person on the whole east coast besides myself who likes them. Seriously is there a better lyric than “There are things I want to do,but I don’t know if they will be with you?” I think not!

Looking back at my month I realize that with the exception of John Legend, it could have been 1991. This was driven home even harder by the piece in Pitchforkmedia.com about Lollapalooza, talking about how Indie Rock is now a “nostalgia driven installation piece.” http://pitchforkmedia.com/features/weekly/05-08-01-museum-of-alternative-rock.shtml And driven home again when I was drawn to buy the Judgment Night soundtrack (for 98 cents on ebay)to complete my Teenage Fanclub collection, only to be reminded that they sang with De La Soul on it, and Dinosaur Jr. were on it too (Remember before rap rock was sullied by Fred Durst?)

I don’t want to become a museum piece, and I got NOTHING on my calendar for August. Is there anything new that some young whippersnapper can recommend?