[Ok, i'm concatenating my three remaining drafts into a final catchup post. Yay!]
...
[10-20-2009]
I was reading a blog today in which the author mentioned finding a letter she'd written five years ago to her future self and being pleasantly surprised that she'd accomplished most of the goals which PastHerself has outlined. I'm thinking about writing a letter to my own future self. Although in a way my private journal and my blog are already a series of letters to that dude because i do go back and read this stuff periodically. Sometimes i'll dig through old writeups looking for something specific or trying to place the timeframe of a given event. Other times something will trigger a memory and make me feel like revisiting some stuff. I've always been rather nostalgic, and i tend to maintain strong ties to my past. Like Joey's professor once said: "It never hurts to remain on a first-name basis with the person you used to be; otherwise he or she may come back to haunt you when you least expect it." (Dawson's Creek, ep 5.12).
But on the other hand, a letter specifically written to my future self would likely have a different tone. More of a systematic state of the union, similar to the year-in-review i write every January. Outline what's good and what sucks, list out short-term items that i plan to fix, long-term items i hope to get to eventually. Something to think about.
And now for something completely different: My team has a communal gumball machine at work which we keep filled with M&Ms (usually peanut, sometimes dark chocolate, depending on who refilled it last). Yesterday (while i was out of the office) my coworkers apparantly had an extensive debate regarding whether or not i'd freak out if they filled it with Reese's Pieces instead of M&Ms. I have no idea why they'd think that; Reese's are awesome. Actually, it's probably because i vehemently opposed when our project manager mixed in these NARSTY pomegranite chocolates with the M&Ms once. I mean bloody hell, you might as well throw some rasins into the mix while you're at it. Anyway, i set them all straight today. Chocolate == good. Chocolate + peanut butter == better.
...
[10-22-2009]
I heart my bagel shop.
It's a little family-run place and they only have one credit card reader. During the lunch rush they open up a second register for cash only, which seems to work well enough. If you're paying with cash, you get to line jump to the second register; otherwise you just wait your turn.
They're starting to recognize me since i go there so often. There was only one person in front of me when i was there on Tuesday, but the lady who owns the place came up to the second register to take my order. I held up my credit card to let her know i didn't have cash, but she just smiled and motioned me over anyway. Cool! So lets see, that's points for taking care of their regulars + points for going out of their way even though there was only one person before me + bonus points for making me feel cool by violating the "Cash Only" sign.
Then today, one of the afformentioned hotties did the exact same thing for me! Only one other person in line, but she still cared enough to save 30 seconds of my time. The owner lady was at the other register; as the HotGirl (jeez, i really need to learn their names; it would help if they wore name tags) went to swipe my card, owner-lady half-jokingly said "Hey, you're not supposed to take cards there!" HotGirl replied "But i *like* him!" Aww. I added my two cents: "Hey, don't listen to her - *she* took my credit card at this register yesterday!" Owner-lady grinned, "I don't remember that!" HotGirl: "Yeah, she'd *never* take a credit card over here!" Smiles all around.
It's amazing how a little thing like this can totally make my day.
...
[10-26-2009]
After a few weeks of focused practice, i'm pleased to report that my guitarwork is back on track. For now, at least; the challenge lies in keeping it going.
My biggest problem is that i don't play well when i'm not feeling it. I've been trying to force myself to practice anyway in those cases - at least drill chord changes and fundamentals. The first thing my guitar instructor told me was that 10 minutes of practice per day is vastly superior to 2 hours once a week. And that has absolutely been the case with me; the results of nightly practice have been stunning.
So anyway, i'm back in the zone but i've unfortunately become jaded with the song i had planned for my next cover video. Which means there's no point in continuing with recording attempts because i can't sing a song unless i *mean it*; otherwise my vocals sound flat and hollow (hopefully this will change once i start vocal training but for now i'm fueled mostly by emotion). So i'm setting that song aside for now and working up a few others in its place. Maybe one of those will be the next to hit youtube; either that or enough time will pass & i'll once again become un-disillusioned with the first song. Either way, it'll be a while longer. Sorry; you guys might as well start calling me Axl. Tell you what - if i don't have a new video posted by the end of the year, i'll buy each of you a Dr. Pepper. Or a beer.**
** Must be collected in person. Void where prohibited, brew may vary.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Monday, October 26, 2009
On the Sunny Side of the Street
[Originally written on 10-15-2009 - slowly catching up]
Ok, so i'm not used to being consistently in a good mood for weeks and months on end. My zany side has re-emerged with a vengence; seems like i'm either excited or amused about something at all times, and i've been busting out laughing much more often than before. Even the silliest of little things will set me off. This, for example:
I watched this video at least 20 times and laughed uncontrollably until i was gasping for breath and had tears streaming down my face. I mean, it's not *that* funny, is it?
For the most part i'm just enjoying the ride, but there are brief moments when i wonder if there's another shoe about to drop. I've always kindof believed in Becker's rubber band theory.
For those unfamiliar, Becker was a late-90s sitcom starring Ted Danson as the awesomely cynical & bitter title character. I actually only started watching for Terry Farrell (Jadzia Dax from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - homina homina), and only watched the first season or so. I did enjoy it, though; maybe i should Netflix it now. Anyway.
The rubber band theory was from an episode in which Becker has an incredible string of good luck. He wins the lottery. Someone returns his lost wallet. His most annoying patient announces that he's moving to Florida. He finds his favorite gold pen which he'd lost. The streak continues, but with each fortune Becker gets more and more irritated. Why? Because he believes that life is a giant rubber band, and the farther it gets pulled in one direction with good luck and favorable happenings, the harder it'll whip you when it eventually snaps back. Everyone thought he was just being superstitious and paranoid, and he starts to wonder about it himself. But then - at the very end of the episode - he gets mugged. The robber gets away with his wallet, the winning lotto ticket, *and* the pen. And then the afformentioned patient happens to walk by and announce that he was staying in town after all. Becker just looks up at the sky and with a resigned sigh says "Very nice; i like the way you operate."
...
So because i'm me i can't can't help but analyze Dawson-style what the deal is.
I think it comes down to this: I've managed to stick a pin in all of the long-term issues that worry me. Actually they're too big for just pins; more like i impaled them with spears. "Long spears - twice as long as a man." (Bonus points to the first person who can identify that quote (without cheating) and supply the appropriate response.) I don't want to be alone anymore but have yet to find success with doing something about that. I'm worried that i'll never get my happily ever after. I'm behind schedule (originally i was supposed to be married with a kid on the way by this age; even under the second revision, i was supposed to at least be engaged). I don't know if i want to stay in software long term or not, but i can't think of any other career path i'd rather follow. And so on.
So anyway, i haven't been giving much thought to that stuff recently. I've been focusing on travel with my weekend trips this summer, binging on concerts, a few one-offs like the lindy hop workshop a few weeks ago. And working hard on guitar (yet another blog post is pending).
Maybe it's ok to take a break and just enjoy life for a while. Or maybe the Hakuna Matata approach will just make things worse. Or maybe i don't care right now because i'm too busy laughing my ass off at stupid stuff:
"Ooh, Burger King..."
And yes, if you're reading this then it's likely that one day, when you least expect it, i'll jump out of your fridge and scare the crap out of you.
:-)
Ok, so i'm not used to being consistently in a good mood for weeks and months on end. My zany side has re-emerged with a vengence; seems like i'm either excited or amused about something at all times, and i've been busting out laughing much more often than before. Even the silliest of little things will set me off. This, for example:
I watched this video at least 20 times and laughed uncontrollably until i was gasping for breath and had tears streaming down my face. I mean, it's not *that* funny, is it?
For the most part i'm just enjoying the ride, but there are brief moments when i wonder if there's another shoe about to drop. I've always kindof believed in Becker's rubber band theory.
For those unfamiliar, Becker was a late-90s sitcom starring Ted Danson as the awesomely cynical & bitter title character. I actually only started watching for Terry Farrell (Jadzia Dax from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - homina homina), and only watched the first season or so. I did enjoy it, though; maybe i should Netflix it now. Anyway.
The rubber band theory was from an episode in which Becker has an incredible string of good luck. He wins the lottery. Someone returns his lost wallet. His most annoying patient announces that he's moving to Florida. He finds his favorite gold pen which he'd lost. The streak continues, but with each fortune Becker gets more and more irritated. Why? Because he believes that life is a giant rubber band, and the farther it gets pulled in one direction with good luck and favorable happenings, the harder it'll whip you when it eventually snaps back. Everyone thought he was just being superstitious and paranoid, and he starts to wonder about it himself. But then - at the very end of the episode - he gets mugged. The robber gets away with his wallet, the winning lotto ticket, *and* the pen. And then the afformentioned patient happens to walk by and announce that he was staying in town after all. Becker just looks up at the sky and with a resigned sigh says "Very nice; i like the way you operate."
...
So because i'm me i can't can't help but analyze Dawson-style what the deal is.
I think it comes down to this: I've managed to stick a pin in all of the long-term issues that worry me. Actually they're too big for just pins; more like i impaled them with spears. "Long spears - twice as long as a man." (Bonus points to the first person who can identify that quote (without cheating) and supply the appropriate response.) I don't want to be alone anymore but have yet to find success with doing something about that. I'm worried that i'll never get my happily ever after. I'm behind schedule (originally i was supposed to be married with a kid on the way by this age; even under the second revision, i was supposed to at least be engaged). I don't know if i want to stay in software long term or not, but i can't think of any other career path i'd rather follow. And so on.
So anyway, i haven't been giving much thought to that stuff recently. I've been focusing on travel with my weekend trips this summer, binging on concerts, a few one-offs like the lindy hop workshop a few weeks ago. And working hard on guitar (yet another blog post is pending).
Maybe it's ok to take a break and just enjoy life for a while. Or maybe the Hakuna Matata approach will just make things worse. Or maybe i don't care right now because i'm too busy laughing my ass off at stupid stuff:
"Ooh, Burger King..."
And yes, if you're reading this then it's likely that one day, when you least expect it, i'll jump out of your fridge and scare the crap out of you.
:-)
Saturday, October 24, 2009
In Flames - 9/21/2009
In Flames with Between The Buried And Me, 3 Inches of Blood, The Faceless
9/21/2009 - The Regency - San Francisco, CA
[Originally written ~9/22/2009; finishing & posting now as part of my catchup blitz]
I'd marked this show in my calendar months ago (as soon as the tour was announced), but as the date approached i started to reconsider going. I've seen In Flames in concert plenty of times already (including twice last year), and i was feeling tired & lazy about driving up to the city on a Monday night, getting home late, etc (especially because i was still on the tail end of recovering from the flu (or it might have been food poisoning).
So Monday morning found me on the fence. Even though i'd seen them before, they always put on a great show and i knew it would be a good time if i dragged myself up there. So i pinged a friend who had expressed interest to see if still wanted to go. He was feeling the same as i was - wanted to see the band, but mentally unprepared for a metal show. Eventually we managed to scrape together enough motivation between the two of us and agreed to go. But we decided to buy tickets at the door to avoid the service fees (which would have been over 50% of face value in this case - bollocks).
Actually, it wasn't just about the money. I usually eat the cost and pre-buy tickets for most of my shows just because i don't want to risk going all the way there just to get turned away. (Most of my bands aren't mainstream enough to sell out tickets early on, but they do usually sell out at the door). But this time, it somehow felt right to take that chance. We didn't even plan to get there early (waiting in line sucks). We'd just casually head up to the city; if tickets were sold out, then it wasn't meant to be; we'd just hang out at one of the nearby bars for a while and head home.
We actually ended up running even later than planned, and i was mentally ready to kick back with with a couple of beers as we approached the venue. But no worries, there were plenty of tickets left (as you may have already guessed, given that this post is not titled "A Few Beers At Some Bar On Van Ness). We forked over the $26 and headed inside.
We missed the opening act - a band called The Faceless. I'll probably check out their myspace at some point, but for this night i didn't mind missing the first of the four scheduled bands. I think four bands on a single bill is too many; i prefer three (if they get a good main support act) or even two (with a longer set from the headliner). Anyway.
So first up for us was 3 Inches of Blood from Vancouver, BC. I really like their stuff; not terribily complicated music, but a nice high-energy mix of fantasy-themed thrash with dual vocals (one in a Judas Priest wailing style, the other filling in banshee screams a la Cradle of Filth). Unfortunately, their dedicated screecher had to leave the band because of throat problems (no comments from the peanut gallery, please), so their guitarist, Justin, took over. Nice guy, i actually met him once (when they played at Slim's last year).
3 Inches played a decent set, although i didn't quite feel it, compared to the afformentioned Slim's show. Maybe the levels weren't quite right, or maybe i was standing too far away from the sweet spot (in terms of audience, i mean).
Next up was Between The Buried And Me from North Carolina. I'd seen them play before, and i remember liking them, but i hadn't felt compelled to pick up any of their albums. This time around was a different story; they just *nailed* their set. They're a progressive death metal band; they play long songs with complex structures and actual movements and interludes. Killer stuff; one song in particular really gripped me. I had no idea what it was, but i knew that i'd be tracking it down and buying whatever album it's on. (It turned out to be "Selkies: The Endless Obsession" from their 2005 album Alaska. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=19UZd_DKs2Q )
And finally, In Flames. What can i say about these guys that i haven't said before? There's a reason they're one of my favorite bands to see live. They rock hard, and they always play a quality show. I think their performances definitely exceed their studio material; in fact, back when i was just starting to become familiar with their music, i found myself liking a lot of their songs *better* after experiencing them live.
My friend observed that they're one of those bands of a certain caliber, meaning that they're all solid musicians with enough experience to really know what they're doing. They play their instruments well, and they play well *together*; they're comfortable up on stage, and you can tell that they love what they're doing. Their performances are so tight; i'd put them up there with Testament and Iron Maiden when it comes to metal performance.
They usually play a comprehensive set, facing the same challenge as other bands who have been going strong for so many years. You want to include the new singles as well as old favorites, and draw on your stronger material in between to represent most of your albums (without playing the exact same set every tour). This time around they actually skipped "Trigger" and "Episode 666" (which they've played at every other show i've attended). But they did play three songs from Clayman - "Pinball Map" (one of my favorites), and "Square Nothing" (one of Melissa's early favorites), and the title track. And of course they rocked "Leeches" and "Take This Life" from Come Clarity, and closed out the night with their always amazing performance of "My Sweet Shadow".
I've always known Anders (their frontman) for his warm & charismatic stage presence, and he was in fine form once again. I love his little interludes and hilarious comments between songs. At one point he accepted a demo cd from some guy ("Is this your band? Cool, i'll check this out tonight.") and then got a fan up on the balcony to toss him a beer. Later on he asked if anyone had a camera, and picked out a guy upfront who was shooting video. After calling him a "youtube kid", Anders borrowed the guy's camera and filmed the band and audience *himself* during their performance of the sing-along favorite "Come Clarity". So awesome! He even said "This is approved by In Flames, by the way."
I love that so many bands are totally not uptight about cameras at their shows. I mean there's no way to stop people from taking pictures at shows, or even recording audio and video. So why not embrace it? It's free publicity, and it's not like anyone can make money from the amatuer video clips (nor would the availability of said clips on youtube cut into dvd sales). And bootlegs have been around for so long; it's nice to see so many bands supporting (for example) archive.org .
...
So overall, an excellent evening; i'm really glad we decided to go to the show after all. Oh yeah, i almost forgot to mention - there's a random dude i've seen at most of the shows i've attended out here. He's this little guy (shorter than 5-foot), older than me (in his 40s, i'd guess), and he's *always* right up in the action, holding his ground in the crush zones and edges of the mosh pits.
I was wondering if i'd see him at this show, and of course i spotted him during 3 Inches of Blood's set, right where i knew he'd be. After In Flames i saw him standing upfront talking to some kid, so i went over to say hello. I tapped him on the shoulder and said "Hi! I've seen you at EVERY metal show in the bay area..."; with a smile he told me that the other guy was just telling him the same thing. We shook hands & introduced ourselves; turns out his name is Dave. I look forward to seeing him at the next show.
Another highlight - actually a highlight trifecta which started earlier in the day. But first, some background: Over the years, i've slowly joined the camp of "Don't go to a concert wearing the shirt of the band you're going to see." I used to feel differently, but i now agree that everyone knows you're a fan of the band, so it's preferable to instead wear the shirt of a related act, or some obsure band in the same genre. Be clever if you can. Festival shirts are also a good choice; i wear my shirt from Sounds Of The Underground 2005 to a lot of concerts, and almost always get comments from random people who see the incredible lineup of bands on my back.
On Monday i wore my Dark Tranquillity tour shirt from last year. DT and In Flames have quite a bit of history; both are from Gothenburg, Sweden, and are two of the pioneers of the melodic death metal genre (At The Gates is the third). Furthermore, Anders was the original vocalist for Dark Tranquillity, and Mikael Stanne (DT's frontman) worked with In Flames as a session vocalist before Anders joined (so they each recorded the vocals for the respective band's debut albums, and then effectively traded places). *And*, Niklas Sundin (DT's guitarist) helped Anders translate his lyrics for several of In Flames' albums, until Anders grew strong enough with English.
So. I was out on the quad at work and some random dude tapped me on the shoulder and said "Hey, nice shirt." Boost #1. At the concert, after 3 Inches finished up and people started streaming out, one guy stopped, looked at me, pointed at my shirt, and announced "YES!" Boost #2. And finally, boost #3 - while we were waiting for Between The Buried And Me to start, another guy came up and asked "Holy crap, don't tell me i missed them!" I mentioned that the shirt was from when they came around on their last tour (2008), and that they're in the studio right now working on their next album.
It's the little things in life, y'know?
So yes, definitely an enjoyable show - and consequential. I was thinking that this would probably be my last In Flames concert for a while (since i've seen them 5 times already), but i've now reversed that and decided that they're one of the bands i'll *always* try to catch whenever they come around. Even better, In Flames are now a white-tag candidate for me. And i've added Between The Buried And Me to my tier1 list; i'll be picking up a few of their cds soon and i'll definitely keep an eye out for next time they hit the road.
Rock \m/
...
In Flames' setlist
1. Cloud Connected
2. Embody The Invisible
3. Delight And Angers
4. Disconnected
5. Square Nothing
6. The Hive
7. Clayman
8. Come Clarity
9. Leeches
10. Alias
11. The Mirror's Truth
12. The Quiet Place
13. Take This Life
14. My Sweet Shadow
...
Video clips:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8pfk7Aotz8#t=3m25s
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YjudLItnJjw
9/21/2009 - The Regency - San Francisco, CA
[Originally written ~9/22/2009; finishing & posting now as part of my catchup blitz]
I'd marked this show in my calendar months ago (as soon as the tour was announced), but as the date approached i started to reconsider going. I've seen In Flames in concert plenty of times already (including twice last year), and i was feeling tired & lazy about driving up to the city on a Monday night, getting home late, etc (especially because i was still on the tail end of recovering from the flu (or it might have been food poisoning).
So Monday morning found me on the fence. Even though i'd seen them before, they always put on a great show and i knew it would be a good time if i dragged myself up there. So i pinged a friend who had expressed interest to see if still wanted to go. He was feeling the same as i was - wanted to see the band, but mentally unprepared for a metal show. Eventually we managed to scrape together enough motivation between the two of us and agreed to go. But we decided to buy tickets at the door to avoid the service fees (which would have been over 50% of face value in this case - bollocks).
Actually, it wasn't just about the money. I usually eat the cost and pre-buy tickets for most of my shows just because i don't want to risk going all the way there just to get turned away. (Most of my bands aren't mainstream enough to sell out tickets early on, but they do usually sell out at the door). But this time, it somehow felt right to take that chance. We didn't even plan to get there early (waiting in line sucks). We'd just casually head up to the city; if tickets were sold out, then it wasn't meant to be; we'd just hang out at one of the nearby bars for a while and head home.
We actually ended up running even later than planned, and i was mentally ready to kick back with with a couple of beers as we approached the venue. But no worries, there were plenty of tickets left (as you may have already guessed, given that this post is not titled "A Few Beers At Some Bar On Van Ness). We forked over the $26 and headed inside.
We missed the opening act - a band called The Faceless. I'll probably check out their myspace at some point, but for this night i didn't mind missing the first of the four scheduled bands. I think four bands on a single bill is too many; i prefer three (if they get a good main support act) or even two (with a longer set from the headliner). Anyway.
So first up for us was 3 Inches of Blood from Vancouver, BC. I really like their stuff; not terribily complicated music, but a nice high-energy mix of fantasy-themed thrash with dual vocals (one in a Judas Priest wailing style, the other filling in banshee screams a la Cradle of Filth). Unfortunately, their dedicated screecher had to leave the band because of throat problems (no comments from the peanut gallery, please), so their guitarist, Justin, took over. Nice guy, i actually met him once (when they played at Slim's last year).
3 Inches played a decent set, although i didn't quite feel it, compared to the afformentioned Slim's show. Maybe the levels weren't quite right, or maybe i was standing too far away from the sweet spot (in terms of audience, i mean).
Next up was Between The Buried And Me from North Carolina. I'd seen them play before, and i remember liking them, but i hadn't felt compelled to pick up any of their albums. This time around was a different story; they just *nailed* their set. They're a progressive death metal band; they play long songs with complex structures and actual movements and interludes. Killer stuff; one song in particular really gripped me. I had no idea what it was, but i knew that i'd be tracking it down and buying whatever album it's on. (It turned out to be "Selkies: The Endless Obsession" from their 2005 album Alaska. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=19UZd_DKs2Q )
And finally, In Flames. What can i say about these guys that i haven't said before? There's a reason they're one of my favorite bands to see live. They rock hard, and they always play a quality show. I think their performances definitely exceed their studio material; in fact, back when i was just starting to become familiar with their music, i found myself liking a lot of their songs *better* after experiencing them live.
My friend observed that they're one of those bands of a certain caliber, meaning that they're all solid musicians with enough experience to really know what they're doing. They play their instruments well, and they play well *together*; they're comfortable up on stage, and you can tell that they love what they're doing. Their performances are so tight; i'd put them up there with Testament and Iron Maiden when it comes to metal performance.
They usually play a comprehensive set, facing the same challenge as other bands who have been going strong for so many years. You want to include the new singles as well as old favorites, and draw on your stronger material in between to represent most of your albums (without playing the exact same set every tour). This time around they actually skipped "Trigger" and "Episode 666" (which they've played at every other show i've attended). But they did play three songs from Clayman - "Pinball Map" (one of my favorites), and "Square Nothing" (one of Melissa's early favorites), and the title track. And of course they rocked "Leeches" and "Take This Life" from Come Clarity, and closed out the night with their always amazing performance of "My Sweet Shadow".
I've always known Anders (their frontman) for his warm & charismatic stage presence, and he was in fine form once again. I love his little interludes and hilarious comments between songs. At one point he accepted a demo cd from some guy ("Is this your band? Cool, i'll check this out tonight.") and then got a fan up on the balcony to toss him a beer. Later on he asked if anyone had a camera, and picked out a guy upfront who was shooting video. After calling him a "youtube kid", Anders borrowed the guy's camera and filmed the band and audience *himself* during their performance of the sing-along favorite "Come Clarity". So awesome! He even said "This is approved by In Flames, by the way."
I love that so many bands are totally not uptight about cameras at their shows. I mean there's no way to stop people from taking pictures at shows, or even recording audio and video. So why not embrace it? It's free publicity, and it's not like anyone can make money from the amatuer video clips (nor would the availability of said clips on youtube cut into dvd sales). And bootlegs have been around for so long; it's nice to see so many bands supporting (for example) archive.org .
...
So overall, an excellent evening; i'm really glad we decided to go to the show after all. Oh yeah, i almost forgot to mention - there's a random dude i've seen at most of the shows i've attended out here. He's this little guy (shorter than 5-foot), older than me (in his 40s, i'd guess), and he's *always* right up in the action, holding his ground in the crush zones and edges of the mosh pits.
I was wondering if i'd see him at this show, and of course i spotted him during 3 Inches of Blood's set, right where i knew he'd be. After In Flames i saw him standing upfront talking to some kid, so i went over to say hello. I tapped him on the shoulder and said "Hi! I've seen you at EVERY metal show in the bay area..."; with a smile he told me that the other guy was just telling him the same thing. We shook hands & introduced ourselves; turns out his name is Dave. I look forward to seeing him at the next show.
Another highlight - actually a highlight trifecta which started earlier in the day. But first, some background: Over the years, i've slowly joined the camp of "Don't go to a concert wearing the shirt of the band you're going to see." I used to feel differently, but i now agree that everyone knows you're a fan of the band, so it's preferable to instead wear the shirt of a related act, or some obsure band in the same genre. Be clever if you can. Festival shirts are also a good choice; i wear my shirt from Sounds Of The Underground 2005 to a lot of concerts, and almost always get comments from random people who see the incredible lineup of bands on my back.
On Monday i wore my Dark Tranquillity tour shirt from last year. DT and In Flames have quite a bit of history; both are from Gothenburg, Sweden, and are two of the pioneers of the melodic death metal genre (At The Gates is the third). Furthermore, Anders was the original vocalist for Dark Tranquillity, and Mikael Stanne (DT's frontman) worked with In Flames as a session vocalist before Anders joined (so they each recorded the vocals for the respective band's debut albums, and then effectively traded places). *And*, Niklas Sundin (DT's guitarist) helped Anders translate his lyrics for several of In Flames' albums, until Anders grew strong enough with English.
So. I was out on the quad at work and some random dude tapped me on the shoulder and said "Hey, nice shirt." Boost #1. At the concert, after 3 Inches finished up and people started streaming out, one guy stopped, looked at me, pointed at my shirt, and announced "YES!" Boost #2. And finally, boost #3 - while we were waiting for Between The Buried And Me to start, another guy came up and asked "Holy crap, don't tell me i missed them!" I mentioned that the shirt was from when they came around on their last tour (2008), and that they're in the studio right now working on their next album.
It's the little things in life, y'know?
So yes, definitely an enjoyable show - and consequential. I was thinking that this would probably be my last In Flames concert for a while (since i've seen them 5 times already), but i've now reversed that and decided that they're one of the bands i'll *always* try to catch whenever they come around. Even better, In Flames are now a white-tag candidate for me. And i've added Between The Buried And Me to my tier1 list; i'll be picking up a few of their cds soon and i'll definitely keep an eye out for next time they hit the road.
Rock \m/
...
In Flames' setlist
1. Cloud Connected
2. Embody The Invisible
3. Delight And Angers
4. Disconnected
5. Square Nothing
6. The Hive
7. Clayman
8. Come Clarity
9. Leeches
10. Alias
11. The Mirror's Truth
12. The Quiet Place
13. Take This Life
14. My Sweet Shadow
...
Video clips:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8pfk7Aotz8#t=3m25s
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YjudLItnJjw
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Sprung Monkey
[Originally written on 10-07-2009; finishing & posting now]
I have a section in my music collection titled "BuffyMusic". It contains not only the soundtrack albums and scores from Buffy The Vampire Slayer, but also various bands i've discovered via the show. During its later seasons they did start getting bigger names and popular acts, but in the early days they mostly just brought in local bands to play at the Bronze.
I've always had a good feeling about the music from Buffy, but rewatching the first season recently (we're midway through season 2 now) made me realize that the Bronze is a goldmine of awesome bands. Nice mix of solid modern rock, punk, some experimental stuff, and of course soulful ballads - songs which are sad but laced with hope.
As we watched through that first season, i looked up all of the music which appeared in the episodes and ended up adding 7 or 8 albums (and counting) to my BuffyMusic collection. Most of these are bands who didn't make it onto the official soundtrack cds (and whose awesomeness, therefore, had slipped my memory).
My favorite out of the batch is a band from San Diego called Sprung Monkey. They showed up in three episodes with a total of six different songs used. Their tone reminds me a little of Four Star Mary (who played the part of Oz's band, Dingos Ate My Baby, on the show), although Sprung Monkey plays a little darker and heavier. I feel the same way about both bands: I can't quite put my finger on it, but i just *like* their songs. Simple, yet dynamic, and they just feel honest, y'know? Perfect live music to accompany an evening in a dark bar on a crisp autumn evening. They represent perfectly the deep fondness with which i look back on the 90s.
Anyway, i'd like to share two of my favorite Sprung Monkey songs. The first is the title track from their 1995 album Swirl. I love the way the rhythm comes together on this one:
And the second is a track called "Reluctant Man" from the same album.
I haven't checked out much of their other stuff yet, but i intend to. I'll also be keeping an eye out for for a chance to see them live; San Diego's not *that* far away from here.
I have a section in my music collection titled "BuffyMusic". It contains not only the soundtrack albums and scores from Buffy The Vampire Slayer, but also various bands i've discovered via the show. During its later seasons they did start getting bigger names and popular acts, but in the early days they mostly just brought in local bands to play at the Bronze.
I've always had a good feeling about the music from Buffy, but rewatching the first season recently (we're midway through season 2 now) made me realize that the Bronze is a goldmine of awesome bands. Nice mix of solid modern rock, punk, some experimental stuff, and of course soulful ballads - songs which are sad but laced with hope.
As we watched through that first season, i looked up all of the music which appeared in the episodes and ended up adding 7 or 8 albums (and counting) to my BuffyMusic collection. Most of these are bands who didn't make it onto the official soundtrack cds (and whose awesomeness, therefore, had slipped my memory).
My favorite out of the batch is a band from San Diego called Sprung Monkey. They showed up in three episodes with a total of six different songs used. Their tone reminds me a little of Four Star Mary (who played the part of Oz's band, Dingos Ate My Baby, on the show), although Sprung Monkey plays a little darker and heavier. I feel the same way about both bands: I can't quite put my finger on it, but i just *like* their songs. Simple, yet dynamic, and they just feel honest, y'know? Perfect live music to accompany an evening in a dark bar on a crisp autumn evening. They represent perfectly the deep fondness with which i look back on the 90s.
Anyway, i'd like to share two of my favorite Sprung Monkey songs. The first is the title track from their 1995 album Swirl. I love the way the rhythm comes together on this one:
And the second is a track called "Reluctant Man" from the same album.
I haven't checked out much of their other stuff yet, but i intend to. I'll also be keeping an eye out for for a chance to see them live; San Diego's not *that* far away from here.
Butterfly in the sky...
My unfinished drafts are piling up again; it's triage time. A few are more or less done so i'm just going to post them one after another. A few others will probably get filed in my private journal. Two half-written concert writeups still need work, so those can stay in the queue. Stand by for a flurry of posts; then maybe i can start writing about what's on my mind today.
If you're reading this on Facebook, feel free to check out neilam.blogspot.com for the original, up-to-the-minute posts.
Hmm, it feels weird to post this without any real content. Lemme check my recent youtube favorites for something fun to share; stand by...
Oooh, i've got one - oh HELL yeah. So one of my favorite childhood tv shows was Reading Rainbow. I'm struggling to describe its awesomeness in words. If you're a fellow bookworm child of the 80s, you probably know what i'm talking about. If not, then you missed out. (Is the show still on? I remember seeing an episode in the late-90s, but it just wasn't the same because LeVar Burton was looking all hip and cool - no more 80s fro). Ok, i just looked it up - turns out the show ended in 2006. Sadface.)
Anyway, there was one particular episode which highlighted the importance of teamwork. They even had an awesome song, which i recorded in the usual 80s child manner - by holding a tape recorder up to the tv. I never forgot that song; to this day it'll still randomly pop into my head once in a great while and make me hum the melody and sing the few lines i can remember. And visualizing the video, especially the part where they're all firefighters and use *teamwork* to put up a ladder.
Finally (earlier this year) it dawned on me that someone's probably put it on youtube. I did a search and FOUND IT and watched it with glee. Heehee!
Are you ready? Time for TEAMWORK!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wm_Mv4uL3s4
WOOOOOOO! Say what you wish about the neon tights, the 80s hair, the music production - this video is 100% awesome and makes me happy. TEAMWORK! TEAMWORK!
If you're reading this on Facebook, feel free to check out neilam.blogspot.com for the original, up-to-the-minute posts.
Hmm, it feels weird to post this without any real content. Lemme check my recent youtube favorites for something fun to share; stand by...
Oooh, i've got one - oh HELL yeah. So one of my favorite childhood tv shows was Reading Rainbow. I'm struggling to describe its awesomeness in words. If you're a fellow bookworm child of the 80s, you probably know what i'm talking about. If not, then you missed out. (Is the show still on? I remember seeing an episode in the late-90s, but it just wasn't the same because LeVar Burton was looking all hip and cool - no more 80s fro). Ok, i just looked it up - turns out the show ended in 2006. Sadface.)
Anyway, there was one particular episode which highlighted the importance of teamwork. They even had an awesome song, which i recorded in the usual 80s child manner - by holding a tape recorder up to the tv. I never forgot that song; to this day it'll still randomly pop into my head once in a great while and make me hum the melody and sing the few lines i can remember. And visualizing the video, especially the part where they're all firefighters and use *teamwork* to put up a ladder.
Finally (earlier this year) it dawned on me that someone's probably put it on youtube. I did a search and FOUND IT and watched it with glee. Heehee!
Are you ready? Time for TEAMWORK!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wm_Mv4uL3s4
WOOOOOOO! Say what you wish about the neon tights, the 80s hair, the music production - this video is 100% awesome and makes me happy. TEAMWORK! TEAMWORK!
Monday, October 12, 2009
Today
I'm feeling totally sentimental today.
First of all, it was a *beautiful* cloudy day. And i don't mean the partly cloudy NorCal bullcrap where it's kindof overcast in the morning (just enough to get my hopes up) but then the sun burns it all away by lunchtime and heats up the day. No, it was solid grey & gloomy, just the way i like it. It reminds me of autumns back home - my favorite time/place combination. I've tried to write about this before but always fail to come up with a clear description. This time i'll try keeping it simple. The following items are inextricably linked in my mind:
- Autumn
- Beginning of the school year
- My favorite weather
- 90s rock music
- High school & college in general (my youth)
- Flannel
- Happy/content
Once i get into this mindset, my thoughts go to places like the cider mill back home - getting a cup of fresh apple cider and a rich cinnamon donut, then wandering around in the woods adjacent to the mill. *sigh* And as Halloween approached, we'd hit up the mill and then stop by one of the pumpkin farms nearby. I've decided that if heaven does exist, for me it'll be a place where every month is October. But more on this later.
So the weather was already sending me in this direction; then i saw that one of my friends had posted a few photos to facebook from ~2005, which of course triggered another set of wonderful memories and invoked some serious nostalgia. Furthermore, i'm flying back to Champaign-Urbana this coming weekend for her wedding, which i'm very excited about. Being there for their special day, seeing a bunch of my friends whom i usually only get to see once a year, visiting my old home (i can't seem to let go of this place).
Next up - a silly fun encounter at lunch: So i found this awesome little bagel shop near the office and have been going there for lunch 2-3 times a week for about 6 months now. And because i'm me, i get almost exactly the same sandwich every time. Thus, not only do i know the exact sequence of questions that come with ordering (what kind of bread, cheese, etc), but i have the answers cached. I also know everyone who works there (by face, not name (yet)), including the pair of hotties who usually run the registers.
So today i walk in and swiftly order from one of the girls, answering the questions without missing a beat, leading to this:
Her: "Wow, you've clearly been here before!"
Me: "Yep, i come here a lot and i usually get the same thing. Although it's not always you; usually it's..." *i peek around the counter* "...her."
Her: "Oh, you mean the annoying one..."
OtherHottie: "No, he means the *pretty* one."
Me: "I think you're *both* pretty."
Her: "Aww...heh, she's blushing back there."
Totally silly & lame, but it put a smile on my face.
Finally, i've been sitting here pulling up video after video from Scala & Kolacny Brothers. They're a Belgian girls' choir and they are *awesome*. I'd never heard of them until a friend shared their beautiful cover of Depeche Mode's "Enjoy The Silence" (i love this song):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msVtD_oMdKg
They have a lot more covers posted on YouTube - everything from U2 and Radiohead to Nirvana, The Cure, tons more. Just search for "Scala" and take your pick.
Ok, one more video - their lovely cover of "With Or Without You":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M27IMEjqEgk
So awesome.
First of all, it was a *beautiful* cloudy day. And i don't mean the partly cloudy NorCal bullcrap where it's kindof overcast in the morning (just enough to get my hopes up) but then the sun burns it all away by lunchtime and heats up the day. No, it was solid grey & gloomy, just the way i like it. It reminds me of autumns back home - my favorite time/place combination. I've tried to write about this before but always fail to come up with a clear description. This time i'll try keeping it simple. The following items are inextricably linked in my mind:
- Autumn
- Beginning of the school year
- My favorite weather
- 90s rock music
- High school & college in general (my youth)
- Flannel
- Happy/content
Once i get into this mindset, my thoughts go to places like the cider mill back home - getting a cup of fresh apple cider and a rich cinnamon donut, then wandering around in the woods adjacent to the mill. *sigh* And as Halloween approached, we'd hit up the mill and then stop by one of the pumpkin farms nearby. I've decided that if heaven does exist, for me it'll be a place where every month is October. But more on this later.
So the weather was already sending me in this direction; then i saw that one of my friends had posted a few photos to facebook from ~2005, which of course triggered another set of wonderful memories and invoked some serious nostalgia. Furthermore, i'm flying back to Champaign-Urbana this coming weekend for her wedding, which i'm very excited about. Being there for their special day, seeing a bunch of my friends whom i usually only get to see once a year, visiting my old home (i can't seem to let go of this place).
Next up - a silly fun encounter at lunch: So i found this awesome little bagel shop near the office and have been going there for lunch 2-3 times a week for about 6 months now. And because i'm me, i get almost exactly the same sandwich every time. Thus, not only do i know the exact sequence of questions that come with ordering (what kind of bread, cheese, etc), but i have the answers cached. I also know everyone who works there (by face, not name (yet)), including the pair of hotties who usually run the registers.
So today i walk in and swiftly order from one of the girls, answering the questions without missing a beat, leading to this:
Her: "Wow, you've clearly been here before!"
Me: "Yep, i come here a lot and i usually get the same thing. Although it's not always you; usually it's..." *i peek around the counter* "...her."
Her: "Oh, you mean the annoying one..."
OtherHottie: "No, he means the *pretty* one."
Me: "I think you're *both* pretty."
Her: "Aww...heh, she's blushing back there."
Totally silly & lame, but it put a smile on my face.
Finally, i've been sitting here pulling up video after video from Scala & Kolacny Brothers. They're a Belgian girls' choir and they are *awesome*. I'd never heard of them until a friend shared their beautiful cover of Depeche Mode's "Enjoy The Silence" (i love this song):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msVtD_oMdKg
They have a lot more covers posted on YouTube - everything from U2 and Radiohead to Nirvana, The Cure, tons more. Just search for "Scala" and take your pick.
Ok, one more video - their lovely cover of "With Or Without You":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M27IMEjqEgk
So awesome.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
MuteMath - 10/09/2009 - The Fillmore - San Francisco
I first heard about MuteMath from one of my coworkers back in 2005 or 2006. He came back from their concert in Chicago and reported that it was the most amazing show he'd ever seen. I was skeptical (my standards are pretty high thanks to bands like Dream Theater and Opeth), but checked out a few videos he pointed me to. I did find them to be unique, especially one piece in which the guy was playing some weird-ass homemade instrument. But i didn't follow up on the band at that time.
Fast-forward to fall of 2007. I'd been trading music with a friend (sending flash drives back and forth in the mail), and the latest batch of tunes from her included MuteMath's self-titled album. I didn't really connect with the music at first, probably because i just wasn't in the right mindset for their style (at the time i was pretty much just swimming in wallow music).
Then one day (a month or two later) i happened to queue up the album at work and it finally struck a chord with me. I was able to settle into a groove with work and let the music carry me through the afternoon. Awesome. The album grew on me even more with repeated listens, and i started to really enjoy what they're all about.
The band was on tour at the time, supporting Alanis, but i decided to skip that show. Nothing against Alanis; i'm just not familiar with any of her music aside from her first album. Ditto Matchbox Twenty (the other support act). I figured i'd catch MuteMath next time around, but it turned out that next time wouldn't be for quite a while.
So the next two years saw my musical (and personal) journey continue on its meandering path. I slowly got through the wallow phase, found some great new bands, reconnected with old favorites. I didn't overplay MuteMath like i have other albums which struck me, but i did pull out the disc from time to time and kept an eye out for news, studio reports, release dates. Finally they announced the Armistice tour in support of their new album of the same name; i bought my ticket the minute they went on sale.
Fast-forward to Friday night.
...
I arrived at the Fillmore shortly after 21:00 and found As Tall As Lions (the support act) already on stage. I'd checked out their myspace and was underwhelmed by their music, but they made a much different impression up on stage! I really enjoyed their set; rich and atmospheric, channeling the energy and magic that comes with any good live show. Wow. Maybe i should give their album another try. Or (more likely) keep an eye out for a chance to see them live again.
After they wrapped up i headed over to the bar to grab a beer. As i waited my turn, a hot girl came up to the bar to do the same thing. She started talking to me and i couldn't hear her at first (drummer's ears) but i quickly realized that she was offering to buy me a drink. Naturally this caught me off guard, but i managed to ask what the occasion was. She replied that she was just happy and felt like doing something nice for someone. She also mentioned that she was on a break from life; i've certainly been there too. We went on to agree that As Tall As Lions has surprised both of us with their live show. The drinks arrived, we toasted, wished each other positive energy, and went our separate ways.
After what felt like forever, the house lights went down and MuteMath took the stage. And proceeded to blow me away.
I hadn't fully absorbed their new album yet, and even the first album usually bleeds together for me since i always listen to it start-to-finish without picking out individual songs (aside from a few special favorites including "Chaos", "Noticed", and one track near the end of the disc). But i definitely recoginzed a lot of their setlest, which was cool.
I think the stunning brilliance of MuteMath's performance comes down to three main things:
1) Instrumentation and dynamic lineup. The guys play a wide variety of instruments up on stage. In addition to the usual guitar/bass/drums were two sets of keyboards, extra percussion, a synthsizer, and even a *marimba*. Roy played an upright bass for some songs, electric for others. Greg covered guitars, keyboards, and marimba on some songs. Paul (their frontman) played keyboards or keytar while singing (he has an excellent voice; i wish i could sing half as well as he does). And they all jammed on percussion at one point or another (sometimes all at the same time).
Oh yeah, and the afformentioned homemade instrument (called The Atari) made an appearance as well. It's hard to make out, but click the photo below to enlarge & check out Paul on the left:
Moreover, everyone was playing *something* at all times, and the combinations of instruments constantly changed, even during songs. It really impressed me, watching the guys play so many different instruments, showcasing their versatile talent and experience. I definitely did not fully appreciate the many elements and subtleties to their songs until i saw what all goes into playing them live. And the fact that the four of them covered all of the instruments instead of hiring tour musicians or pre-recording layers of the songs (aside from the sampling) - very impressive.
Also, they definitely played extended versions of some of their songs, launching into improv jams and experimental interludes. Awesome.
Their drummer, Darren, was on fire all night! He did more with his simple four-piece setup than many drummers do with kits an order of magnitude larger. Whenever i see a drummer like Darren, it makes me want to scale back my own kit (if/when i get back into drumming, that is). Then again he did have some fun embellishments, like an extra floor tom mounted sideways which would light up in time with the music as it was hit.
2) Innovation/stage setup. There was so much going on, at times it was almost too much to fully take in. Their stage apparatus included the huge arch from their album cover onto which lights and video were projected to enhance the music. I know all bands use stage lights and some have video screens, but this particular setup came together so well; they clearly put a lot of effort into planning.
During the intro for No Response, they set up four huge circles ("drums") along that backgrop and they lit up with projected light as Darren hit them. Amazing effect; here's someone's video from the Cleveland show:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ag3cq4fYw4
3) Synergy. As i mentioned, they all played a variety of instruments with a level of precision and skill and heart that i still dream about. But the magic comes from how well they play *together*. It goes beyond just being well-rehearsed. Whether they're rocking one of their straightforward radio hits or weaving intricate patterns of melody and rhythm, they're all in the zone up there, each member completely in phase with the other three.
I'm running out of words to describe this incredible performance so i'll wrap it up by stating the obvious and then leave you with some video. Ahem. MuteMath played one of the most amazing live shows i've ever seen.
I hope you enjoy my recording of (most of) their encore. It's long, but worth watching. That's Paul with The Atari at the beginning; watch as he carries it into the audience for everyone to wail on. And you don't want to miss his famous keyboard flips, or Darren's antics towards the end - he passes his bass drum into the audience and *stands* on it as they hold it up; then he dives back onto the stage to join in for a group percussion jam. So awesome.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kh57CeV2R_Y
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