I Gots To Hustle To My M.I.A. Show 11/26/2007
 The artist that has made what could very well be my favorite record of the year is finally coming to my neck of the woods to rock the house. M.I.A. has been slowly traveling along the U.S. promoting her new masterpiece, Kala. Kala is a dance freaks wet dream; filled with perfected congo-electroclash beats and M.I.A.s distinct vocals that really cannot be easily described. Nearly every song is flawless in its own way being pretentious or over experimental. After seeing her TV spot on MTV, I thought to myself, “I really need to see her live before this magic disappears.” It won’t be long before you hear her music in the next iPod Nano commercial. So sad. I any case, I have had so much fun dancing like a complete retard with Katie and my brother Cully to her infectious tunes. I hope you will too. Oh! And she’s touring with The Cool Kids! How freakin’ sweet is that? They’re like Lupe Fiasco without being cheesy. Or what they like to call themselves; the black Beastie Boys. M.I.A. / The Cool Kids Tour Happy Turkey Day! 11/22/2007
 Happy Thanksgiving people! Why you are reading this is beyond me, you ought to be spending time with family and friends. I will be here at the Coast Guard base eating with co-workers and writing a report on illegal fishing. Fun fun! So take advantage of your day off and listen to this song from Nada Surf. You will feel uplifted and kind of warm and fuzzy. Yay! I Drink Too Much Expired Iced Coffee 11/18/2007
 It seriously tastes like Nutrasweet made a drink called Chilled Sweet Piss. I cannot explain why I'm still drinking it while I type this. So I won't. Red Fox Grey Fox I found out about these guys through a Decoy Music review. While I don't completely agree with most of Decoys reviews, this one stuck out due to the Mew and Sunny Day Real Estate references. After a good listen, I was convinced to share them with you all. I introduce to you, Red Fox Grey Fox. Day One Symphony This band has been hidden for a while now and has yet to emerge with a new album. They did a short tour with dredg and went through some hard times (like every band does) and have released some pretty amazing material. Day One Symphony's sound can be best described as Radiohead without being pompous, I think. Whatever, you be the judge. Here are a few tracks from their online EP. What's To Love About Going Home? 11/14/2007
 This past holiday weekend had me visiting my hometown of New York once again. This time in particular was very special to me. I didn’t do anything wild like ramp my car off a draw bridge or anything. I did however get to spend time with people I don’t normally see very often. Not only that but I got to do it all with Katie. Granted things are not perfect over there, I see healing within the family. I got to leave my hometown feeling content, which is better than the last time I left my old address. Whether it was eating shitty food with Rob (shitty as in: tasted good, but I felt like I ate 12 hot pockets afterwards), strolling gorgeous Cold Spring with my Aunt and Uncle, or beating the ever living crap out of my little brother in Mortal Kombat. It all felt good…that just felt nice to write. If you haven’t been to Cold Spring, you need to. I guess growing up there; I never really appreciated its beauty (refer to picture). Ian LoveOne of the best driving albums I own is the Rival Schools CD, United by Fate from 2001. Unfortunately they never made another full length and only squeezed out a split EP with Onelinedrawing. The members separated into new bands and solo careers. One solo career in particular is that of Ian Love. There’s nothing generic about what Ian is creating nowadays. His sonically enhanced acoustic songs radiate a fresh sound that makes one think of road trips and, well, home. Feel free to check out his rarely updated website or just pick up his album at Limekiln Records. Or hell, download these songs! You Wanna Know Why I believe There is a God? 11/09/2007
 ...The Daily Show has posted every single episode with Jon Stewart on their website. Now I've always been a casual Daily Show watcher, but as of late, I have quickly become a huge Daily Show fan. I actually work my day around The Daily Show and The Colbert Report. Now with the whole writers strike going on, I can no longer feed my craving for my fake news. However, with the fact that I can watch every episode ever until the writers of my two favorite shows get paid for webisodes and DVD sales, is kind of neat. If you want to know more about the strike, go here. If you want to watch Daily Show episodes up the ying yang, go here. Also, in light of this writers strike, Jon Stewart has told his writing staff that he will cover all their salaries for the next two weeks, according to a well-placed source. He has also vowed to do the same for writers on The Colbert Report. You can read all about that here. This past summer I had the opportunity to see the Rock the Bells concert in Mansfield, MA. This included Wu-Tang Clan, Nas, and Cypress Hill among other great hip-hop artists. All of which I paid $35 for. Not bad considering each act played an energetic set and supplied the crowd with old and new material. When I got word that Wu-Tang would be going back on tour in smaller venues, I jumped at the chance to purchase tickets. I was severely disa-f^&%ing-pointed to find tickets to be $45. I saw them in full form with Nas and Cypress Hill and you guys are asking me to pay more than I did the last time I saw you? No. I will however gleefully listen to the new Wu-Tang track, My Heart Gently Weeps. It features the talented Erykah Badu and pretty neat Beatles sample. Welcome back Wu-Tang, but shame on you for high ticket prices. Jonah Matranga Kills Scensters 11/07/2007
 That's right. So all you hipster shits out there better keep your skinny jeans and aviator sunglasses out of his sight or else he'll take a freakin' axe to your neck. No seriously, in Jonah Matranga's recent video for "Not About A Place or A Girl," he goes around singing what sounds like a Gin Blossoms cover and kills scenster zombies without mercy. It's a wonderful video despite the sugarcoated song. In fact, don't judge that song alone for his newest record, And. Only one other song follows that happy late nineties escapism radio rock shit; the rest of the album is as much as an emotional punch as the newest Radiohead. Actually Radiohead ripped off Jonah whether they know it or not. Jonah Matranga has been using the sliding scale price system for years and has always brought new and strange ideas to his shows and music. Although, you have to see Jonah Matranga live to really embrace what and who this man is. His shows are something so intimate and personal, that you feel as if it is only you and him in the room. Even picking up his recent live CD/DVD won't do him justice. You actually have to show up and experience the show first hand. If you are at all curious as to who or what Jonah Matranga is; go to www.jonahmatranga.com or www.myspace.com/jonahmatranga. Or you can even download the songs I posted of him performing solo, under the moniker onelinedrawing and his old band New End Original.. If you're a scenster, keep an eye out for this guy, he'll rip you limb from limb, Mwahahahaha!  My definition of a hero is someone who goes against the norm and sets an example for humanity. Someone who isn't influenced by negativity and pushes ideas forward despite the odds. |