( 1:15 AM )
Peg
Spent the weekend with my cousin Margaret and her family in New Jersey. I really enjoy going over there because I get a real family experience when I'm there because she has 3 kids (9 yr old Andrew, 13 yr old Erin and 17 yr old Alison), hubby, my great aunt (Grandma) Teddy and a dog. I took it pretty easy - played with the kids, watched a couple of DVDs, and ate better than I normally do.
But I dig going over there because I get a different experience with each person in the house. Like I was watching cartoons with Andrew and around 10pm I figured I'd get him to watch the new Spiderman cartoon on MTV. Spidey has been one of my favorites since I was a kid because it was easy for me to relate to the Peter Parker part of the story, and because of the Web Slinger's great sense of humor. And even though the MTV version isn't totally faithful, I think it's pretty damn good, so I was hoping to pass this love on to Andrew. But the little bum had some other cartoon that he wanted to watch. He said he'd seen Spiderman and that they'd rerun it, so he wanted to watch Evil Con Carne or whatever it was. Damn brat.
Also spent time talking politics with Teddy. I love doing that because she has a very common sense feel about things. We generally agree about most things, but not for the same reasons. For instance, she doesn't like Arianna Huffington for various reasons, but mainly because she doesn't trust her right to left switch. I tried to defend her telling Teddy about AH's Pigs At The Trough corporate greed book, but Teddy's response was who doesn't know that (meaning she didn't need facts to tell her that a lot of corporations that have ties to the Bush Admin are taking advantage of those connections. And she's right - it's pretty much a duh!). She's 85 and while she may not always remember names, she knows exactly what she's talking about. So always a good dose of wisdom.
I could go on (especially about Erin because I still marvel at her shyness and sense of wonder), but all of them have some kind of quirk and story, and I love getting that family feeling. Best of all, I'm outta there after 2-3 days and back to my NYC batchelor life!
Wreckid 'O Da Week honors go back to the New Pornographers for "Testament To You In Verse." Halfway through the song they bust into this acapella "no no no no no no no no no" that has about 4 different harmony parts (kinda like "Row Row Row Your Boat"). I'm just in awe that someone cares enough about music to try something as weird and catchy and different as that. Next up - Cafe Tacuba!
( 2:12 PM )
BAD
Ok - I'm being "bad" because I'm blogging from work, but I've had these things on my mind and no good time to blog, so here it goes.
(But first - Mike Walls - this is really an open letter to you.)
Since GJ is back on the battle field, I'm planning on doing my own version of ATR in his place. He wants to keep All Things Reconsidered in his own voice, so I'll do my own version and steal/re-work his title to Reconsidering All Things (RAT).
2nd - Exiled On Main Street is killing me. Episode 5 just plain sucks. I've been working on it since June and just can't get it right. It's got something to do with Tim and Lilly making a Prince mix CD and him realizing he's pretty happy being with her, and then a bit in the store with the record company geek trying to push the mediocre Yeah Yeah Yeahs on him. But as hard as it is to admit it - it's just no good - even I didn't enjoy reading it. So we're just going to skip Ep 5 and see what happens with Episode 6 which I've had in mind for a couple of months (something related to Sept. 11th). So for all of you keeping score at home - Tim & Lilly are officially and happily together now and looking forward to having their baby (what a lovely way of saying how much you love me! - get it? Paul Anka - whoo I'm funny when I'm at work).
3 - somebody needs to do a damn football preview. I want to do it, but I just can't seem to find the time. Which is lame, because I'm not really any more busy than usual - just lazy. But I'm expecting big things from the Steelers and Buckeyes and that needs to be said.
And 4 - kinda goes back to EOMS - I've got a backlog of promo CDs to listen to. Apologies to those of you who've sent stuff along, but I haven't been in the mood to listen. And forcing yourself to listen is bad for both of us. For the record - I'm the kind of guy who likes to listen once. If something hits me, I'll usually come back to it for a 2nd go round. If it gets me in listen two, it's gonna start to stick to my ribs and I'm in it for the long haul. Which is really just a long way of saying, I listen to a few things intensely, rather than a lot of things quickly. (Like whoever sent me the Kim Fowley CD - that's WAY up on the list to listen to - and I'm hoping it's good so I can review it, but if it's not.....).
Um - lost my way in #4 - so to restate - Exiled is very hard to write. I just wanted to write about rock'n'roll from a different perspective and in a rock'n'roll sense. I'm finding that it's not really working, but I do give myself credit for trying. So if Ep 6 sucks too, I'm gonna put it in turnaround and let it sit and stew a little while longer (if not retire it all together). I'm grateful to have an outlet like 2Walls where you can experiment, but sometimes you just have to be honest about your "work". I really enjoy writing it because it's different - but I don't know if it's different good, or just different for the sake of being different (which would earn negative marks in a review). So I might be moving my butt back to Armchair Reviews. I still love rock'n'roll (even if it hasn't really existed since the mid-90s) and want to write about it in a way that's entertaining and informative and rock'n'roll-like. I don't know or care if I have the skills to do it - that's not the way you approach rock'n'roll. You just trudge out there with your guitar & heart on your sleeve and do what you do. So that's the goal, and I'm gonna do what's best to get it done that way. There said it.
Later taters.
Oh yeah - gotta give a shout out to my man Jon Kaye who more consistently than any other human I know points me in the direction of GREAT music. I'd say if it were a just world, Jon would be the head of A&R for a label and I'd buy all of his records, or he'd be the program director at a kick ass radio station that always played exciting music. But I won't say that because he's doing what he's doing, being the best he can, while smartly staying out of the music biz. So maybe the world is just/right for him. Besides, he said he reads my blog sometimes, so now I know he's really cool.
Ok - that's all.
( 9:37 PM )
The Night The Lights Went Out In Georgia
Notes on the "Great" Blackout of 2003:
It’s pretty hard to entertain yourself when you have no computer, TV, stereo, or any light to read....I didn't know that bars could operate without electricity, but judging by the streets of the East Village, it's no problem at all...one of my local bodegas actually let people walk in their darkened store to grab the goods they needed - which was very cool because five finger discounts were offered everywhere you looked....the necessities I deemed necessary: 3 candles, Gatorade, and Doritios....my local Chinese place was also open the next day. cookin' with gas is a great idea. and they only inflated their prices by making you buy dinner portions instead of lunch specials which was fair enough by me since my fridge was empty....people are extraordinarily friendly during “crises”. i was talking a guy in the 11th street bar and when I identified myself as working for a left wing magazine, he replied that he was a right wing banker. he was a pretty cool guy actually and it was good that he kept me around because right after he left Brian Mitchell started playing soulful, bouncing piano that I dubbed the 'Blackout Boogie-Woogie Blues'. He's an awesome player and has a great band that plays on the last Thursday of the month at the Parkside Lounge....hangovers aren't that bad when there's a blackout because since you don't have to go to work, you can spend most of the day sleeping....oh yeah, met the hot chick Carlotta at the bar - va va voom!....did you know smoking laws aren’t in effect during a blackout?....listening to Yanks games is not as fun as watching them....I tried to do some writing the old fashinoned way - with pen and paper, but it just didn't work. but i'm sure being stoned didn't help.....I'm not surprised there weren't that many incidents related to the blackout. in '77 Sheena was a punk rocker and we were in a national malaise. in '03 get rich or die tryin' is the Bush whacked way of the world. times have changed and I'd be stupid not to prefer the '03 version, but.....yo Cleveland – I’m wishin’ ya well – be cool widda water.
( 1:00 AM )
Odds And Sods
I've been wanting to lay odds on quite a few things, so I'll just try to get a few of them out of the way here and now.
World Series Matchup - I was feeling a Yanks-Giants series, but ever since the Armando deal went down, I gotta back off the Yanks. Seattle really doesn't strike me as good enough, ditto the As. And I'll never give Boston any credit. So I have to choose a White Sox-Giants series for the moment (but it's subject to change).
Super Bowl - It is the most wonderful time of the year after all. So based on only 1 pre-season game played, I'm going to pick the Pittsburgh Steelers (my favorite team) vs. Philadelphia Eagles (although I have no idea if they improved themselves from last year, but I'm a big believer in the defense wins championships cliche - f-you Tampa Bay, so....).
Presidential Election - Bush-Cheney vs. Kerry-Graham. Yes, unfortunately Cheney will probably still be alive and on the ticket. But the winner of the Dem primaries is hard to forecast. Dean is hot, Kerry is steady, Edwards had a nice profile in the Washington Post which should boost his profile, Graham is taking the VERY winnable battle to Bush on the homeland security front, Gephardt got the Teamsters but will still sink quickly after Iowa, and Sharpton, Kucinich and Moseley-Braun don't stand a chance. Oh, forgot Lieberman (just like I should have). I like Kerry because he's a decorated veteran, is pretty much most people's 2nd choice, and he's the one real liberal in the bunch. Don't know if Dean will fade or not (he might be the best nominee though because he's moderate and has created a good amount of excitement). If Kerry or Dean win, a southerner has to be the VP nominee and there's really no point in taking another unknown into battle. So the VP will most likely come from this field, and I like the idea of Graham because he can continue to point out the intelligence and war failures, while the top dog runs the high road. Should be fun, and there's no doubt in my mind that the Dems will take this one.
As for tomorrow's weather, look for a hazy, hot and humid, cloudy and overcast day somewhere in the world.
Yo.
( 12:41 AM )
Masked & Anonymous
I saw the new Dylan movie "Masked & Anonymous" this weekend and thought it was weird, but cool. If you're a fan of Dylan the cultural icon, you'll probably dig it too. It's not your normal linear movie and there's a lot of information left out. But it certainly acknowledges (or is an ode to) Dylan's role as a modern philosopher/rebel/songwriter and since I'm a fan, it was easy to enjoy. It's also got an excellent cast (some in very small roles) that includes Angela Bassett, Jessica Lange, Val Kilmer, John Goodman, Mickey Rourke, Ed Harris, Penelope Cruz, Jeff Bridges, Luke Wilson, Zimmy (and plenty more), some very funny inside joke kind of stuff (like Bob clearly articulating all of his lines!) and some strange moments (like Dylan leading his band through a complete version of "Dixie").
Personally, I took the long road to liking Dylan. I made fun of him when "You Gotta Serve Somebody" came out, but then I kinda found myself liking him when Infidels' "Neighborhood Bully" & "Sweetheart Like You" came out. Then I made fun of him again when I saw him opening for The Dead with Tom Petty's band backing him up, and then came more love when I was working in the mail room at CBS Records just after The Traveling Wilburys came out and before Oh Mercy hit. I really started to get into him when the lead singer from my old band turned me onto "It's Alright Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)" and then I went on a rampage to pick up everything from his Columbia catalog. And I've been wild for the guy since he did the acoustic blues/folk covers albums and his somber, but kind of dark & romantic new stuff.
Anyway - my point is that I have no point. But people who say they don't like Dylan are like people who don't like the Beatles. Wake up and get a clue.
On the music front, just starting to dig on the Jane's Addiction. It'll probably dominate my listening for the next couple of weeks, but for now, DJ Shadow is Da Wreckid O Da Week. Shadow's Private Press disc is perfect listening when you're feeling nice and chilly. The grooves are non-stop and he has the one requirement to be a good DJ - a tasteful ear for music. So kudos.
And even bigger kudos to 2Walls publisher Mikey Walls and his Music Snobbery Test. I got a 26 so I'm a wannabe - just like real life.
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