I Like To Be Here When I Can

video.

2010-08-08T21:40:00.002-05:00

I just bought a webcam. Logitech C260. It's pretty okay so far, though I had a few problems where I thought it wouldn't work with my Mac so I downloaded all these drivers I didn't need. Then, I just popped open PhotoBooth and it worked like magic. I'm already sending things on Facebook. it might be time to retire this blog for good. No one likes to read, but people do like to watch and listen to things. So maybe that's what it takes.

2010-07-29T09:30:00.001-05:00

I finished volleyball, meaning that today I was able to sleep in until 8:30, when the sun snuck in through my blinds. Jerk. Anyway, I don't know if this is a poem or what, but I wrote it just now.

all along the street the people are in or out and if they aren't one they're the other because you can't be both though some people try but I can't see why

Same Thing

2010-07-27T13:12:00.005-05:00

Just now in the car, the radio played a commercial for the Chicago Baby & Toddler Expo. Understandably, my sister wondered what went on at something like that.
Sensing an opportunity, I began to tell her that it's basically like Comic Con. but for baby enthusiasts rather than fanboys.

"Oh, yeah, it's basically the same. Right by the entrance are all the glitzy displays of the major companies, showing off the latest babies. Some of them won't even be around until the next year, but if you're lucky you can enter a raffle to take one home. And even if you don't get a Con-exclusive toddler, it'll end up on ebay that night anyway.
Once you get past the glitzy mainstream stuff, you get to the local baby vendors. This is a great place for collectors or casual fans to find babies in collected editions, or even find some vintage children in good condition. Some of the other people at the con can get kind of over the top about their love of babies and they dress in costumes of their favorites. Those people are usually best avoiding.
The Con started as a small underground thing in the 70's, but now it's mostly been overtaken by Hollywood and mass media, looking for the next big baby to adapt into a movie.
Also, the food is really overpriced."

2010-07-26T10:53:00.002-05:00

I made this just now in response to something my friend said. Thanks, Meme Generator! Spread it around if you are so inclined.

More Than Meets The Eye?

2010-07-26T09:20:00.004-05:00

Yesterday I spent the day/afternoon/early evening in downtown Chicago with two of my friends and their German friends. Well, I guess the Germans are my friends too. "Strangers are just friends you just haven't met yet." They're here visiting for three weeks or so. But besides the accents, I couldn't tell they were from a foreign country. They being named Hannah and Maria. Just so we're clear. Apparently languages are a big priority in the schools in Europe, so the girls speak German, English, Spanish, a little French, and Latin. Yes, Latin. That dead language. Meanwhile, I'm starting year four of Spanish at age 15. Oh, Europe. But I digress.
Anyway, we were downtown. Now, bear with me here because my grasp of geography is tenuous even in places I know well, so these descriptions may be slightly to totally wrong. As I believe, we were crossing the river onto Wacker. Previously we had to adjust our route quite a few times because Transformers 3 is filming in that area. I had just assumed they didn't want anyone messing with the sports cars or trailers or whatever. I'm not a big fan of those movies. They seem....dumb to me. I don't know, I'm no critic. Someone else can articulate that point for me. Little did we realize that they were actually filming. Go figure.
As we're crossing the street, I hear a large percussive sound. Maybe concussive sound was more like it. Regardless, it was an explosion. I wheeled around and there was a huge fireball reaching 30 feet in the air. The smoke lingered for a few minutes as the fireball withered and was replaced with the sound of gunfire. This might be creepy, but the sound of bullets being fired sounds awesome when it echoes off of the Marina towers and Hard Rock Hotel. It was very cool.
Stopping to see this nearly made us miss the train, but you can't exactly keep walking while a car is exploding behind you. However, we decided that if we had been a few minutes behind and hadn't known about the crew, we would have given up on the train and just ducked for cover.
Basically, despite feeling like an idiot, I really enjoyed that explosion.

#Donald4Awesome

2010-07-21T10:15:00.002-05:00

Have I mentioned how much I like Community? Well...I do. A lot. That show is probably the only thing I make a priority to watch on TV. The cast is great, the scripts are funny, and it's all wrapped up in one 22 minute package.
One of the highlights of the show is the character Troy, played by Donald Glover. You may have heard of him from his recent Twitter campaign to play Spider-Man in the recent movie reboot. Well, it turns out his coolness extends past his TV career. He's also a musician as Childish Gambino, and you can download his latest album here. It's an awesome fusion of a bunch of styles. The beats are rather atmospheric and moody, kind of evoking the darker parts of Kid Cudi's debut. Donald doesn't only rap and sing. He'll switch between the two rapidly, sometimes from one bar to the next. His lyrics describe his lifestyle very intriguingly. He sounds like he's on top of the world, but he struggles with the futility of his relationships or his mom's worrying. I don't know. It's just awesome, so download it.

2010-07-18T11:00:00.002-05:00

I saw Inception yesterday. It was really good. Super crazy good. Like, "might be better than Toy Story 3 or The Dark Knight" good.
I don't want to say a whole lot about it, because one of the movie's strengths is that it explains its own rules very elegantly. The cast is top-notch, the script is solid, and the effects are mind-blowing. The movie even leaves you with some interesting philosophical ideas.
Basically....go see that movie. You won't be disappointed.

My Weekend

2010-07-12T11:59:00.002-05:00

This was not a good weekend. We went up to my uncle's house where all of my mom's seven siblings managed to get together. Sounds cool, right? Well, not so much.
First, the six-year-old that lives farthest away, Olivia, doesn't like me. She hasn't for years. She generally avoids me. If I do manage a word out of her, it's a direct, monosyllabic response to any question I offered. It's probably because I'm taller than her and not a girl.
That's easy enough, right? Just play with her some more!
Yeah, not happening. Because she spent most of the weekend in the lake. And I couldn't go in the lake. I have a bad toe. I'll spare you the details, but basically it's bleeding and nasty and really painful. I'm having surgery tomorrow, but until then the last thing I wanted was to make it any worse with dirty lake water.
Unfortunately, my cousins interpreted this weird water abstinence as disinterest and dislike.
Bleh.

All Summer

2010-07-08T14:13:00.001-05:00

In case you hadn't heard about this, Converse has unleashed another free single, in the vein of 2008's My Drive Thru. It's called All Summer and it's pretty awesome. It follows the same pattern of indie rocker, hip rapper, and cute girl singer, all paired together. Rostam from Vampire Weekend doesn't sing, merely producing, but Kid Cudi and Best Coast certainly make up for that with sweet verses and refrains, respectively. You should get it; it's totally worth the price.

Oh, Biking.

2010-07-05T21:54:00.002-05:00

Dear Guy Who Parked His Car Straight Across The Sidewalk Despite There Being An Entirely Empty Driveway Further Up So I Couldn't Cross On My Bike And I Had To Go All The Way Around And Nearly Smash Into A Tree,

Not cool. Your car was nice, and I really didn't want to run into it. Unfortunately, I nearly did a face-plant avoiding it. Please park better next time.

Love,
Jack

2010-07-03T13:32:00.006-05:00

I saw Streetlight Manifesto last night. They blew me away.
The first guy at the show was an acoustic comedy type performer. He was pretty funny, and he definitely knew how to play to a crowd. His best bit was an ode to the heckler, that one guy that yells "Freebird!" at every show. Pretty cool.
The next band was the worst. They did a pop-punk style thing. VERY loud. In other circumstances, they might have been enjoyable. However....the band seemed to have a very large fanbase that knew all the words to their songs. And the fans were angry. The moshing got a little worrisome at that point; I avoided the nastiest bits.
The Supervillains, despite their infuriating status as the penultimate band, were good. Much better than their show last year opening for RBF. They had a cool ability to mix laid-back reggae with fast punk. The worst part about them was that their fans smoked lots of weed. Someone even had the great idea of blowing smoke into one of the industrial speed fans, so that the stench washed over me. All in all, they were great, got us really pumped for the headliners.
After waiting through three opening acts, everyone was crazy pumped to see Streetlight Manifesto. The band came right out with my two favorite songs, and the crowd was nuts. (I went surfing, it was glorious. Seeing the throbbing throngs working to toss me higher was unbelievable.)
Any worry I had about the masses being too angry or anything quickly evaporated. Everyone was really friendly and genial; I was in a particularly good chunk of devoted skankers. I was tossed around when people were moshing, but I managed to stick close to my friend Katie.
After the halfway point, the bar started handing out water. This was good. I was exhausted. There's something to be said for screaming the words at the top of your lungs, but half an hour was enough.
At this point I should mention how the band played. For one thing, rather than have one frontman, the stage was shared with the singer/guitarist and all four horn players. This basically meant that there was no bad place to stand. Plus, unlike other ska bands, Streetlight had no banter, or really any talking during the set. They rocketed from one song to another, with maybe 30 seconds in between.
After that break, I was right back in the thick of it. Once the encore was over, I somehow managed to find all five of my friends, and we worked our way out. I was covered in sweat, booze, and smoke, and I was dead tired too. As Adam said, "Forget a Bowflex, go to concerts." We finally stumbled outside into the relatively cool night air. We were exhausted, sweaty, and out of some money. It was probably the best night of my life.

Trains

2010-06-30T13:22:00.003-05:00

I wish I could ride trains all the time. Most of the people I was with yesterday complained that was all we did in the city, but I kind of enjoyed it.
I love the mellow atmosphere. Some people listen to music, some people read, some people just watch the scenery pass by at a constant speed. I like watching everyone's private universes intersect, you know? I mean, the guy on his laptop ending up sitting next to the family on vacation. That's just an interesting combination, and the way they react is interesting. I should probably go into sociology.
It's generally serene, too. No one wants to be loud because no one wants it loud, so the biggest sources of noise are the squeaky leather seats. I'd probably spend a day riding trains if I could. But I probably can't. That's just too suspicious.

The Drummer

2010-06-19T23:09:00.002-05:00

He's a drummer, has been for a while, and he's good too.
His idea for a party is to just change his back porch into a stage and have all these bands play. They start early in the afternoon and finish just late enough not to bother anyone. As the night goes on, the graduate is rocking. He's practically dripping sweat, and the last band is only halfway through the set. At this point, the guitarist had a great idea.
"Hey, who wants to hear a drum solo?!"
The whole crowd cheers. You don't turn down something like that, especially with this guy. The rest of the band settles, on amps or on the ground, ready to watch him do his thing.
He starts. The drums carry throughout the whole neighborhood. The reverb is perfect. He's a little shaky at first, but when he settles in, he doesn't need any accompaniment. He keeps time with the hi-hat, tapping out a melody with the toms in between crashes.
Just when the beat is really settling in your head and getting comfortable, he switches, sprinkling syncopation and rolls over the bass. He transitions through styles and tempos; a punk attack flows into a thrusting dance jam. He is totally in control. He is poetic.
You can't talk over him. You can't ignore him. You notice all your movements are in time. You look around, hoping someone is taping it, so you can listen to it on repeat later. But no one is. Everyone is focused on the rhythm leaking out of that corner of the porch.
That's okay, actually. This is a one time thing, you realize. Everyone is sharing a unique moment. It won't be online when you get home, it won't be replicated. This solo is encompassing us all, and there won't be anything like it again.
He's almost done, arms flailing, wrists bending. The cymbals are gyrating. It's shocking that a stick hasn't snapped. You're waiting for a big crash finale; we all want to applaud.
But it doesn't happen. Just as he slides through the solo, he's suddenly straight into the next song with the whole band. No time for applause. The song won't keep time for itself, after all. Despite it all, he doesn't let up, not for the rest of the night.
Because he's a drummer. He's good, too.

Finals!/Summer!

2010-06-10T20:20:00.003-05:00

I had my last final yesterday! It was math, and......I don't know. The results aren't out yet. I feel good about it though. My finals week was stacked in ascending anxiety: Spanish, English, bio, algebra. That math class was driving me crazy when the semester started, but I'm glad it ended on a bit of a high note. Or at least, not a low note. The board in the classroom said 91 questions, so I started to panic when I'm halfway through the period and only on question 35. Luckily, there were only 60 questions. The thing on the board was for Algebra 1.
It's such a relief to be done, but this summer is weird so far. I've been treating this whole week like it's a vacation, and now it's raining. Weird. See you all soon.

JGL/Chris Nolan

2010-06-10T20:13:00.004-05:00

So, I saw this little link today in my RSS feed. It basically says that Joseph Gordon-Levitt is rumored to play the Riddler in the next Batman movie.
I couldn't be happier. I love everything about that sentence. JGL is one of my favorite actors, mostly because he has such an impressive range. He can do comedy, action, everything. I think if anyone could do the Riddler interestingly, without trying to top Heath Ledger, it would be him. Please, Chris Nolan? You can't go wrong here. I can't wait for 2012...
Also, I'm really excited to see Inception, despite knowing next to nothing about it.

Song/School/Chameleons!

2010-05-29T17:24:00.004-05:00

Wow, it's been a while, hasn't it? How have you been? Really? Good, good. I'm fine, thanks. It's nice to see you. My life has been all school lately, just trying to finish up the year nicely. Very little time for anything, blogging included.
But I do have a project this weekend for Biology about biomes, so I decided to write a song about the chameleon, who can live nearly anywhere. You can download it by clicking here. Let me know how it goes. If I make a video, I'll put it up here too. Get educated!

Iron.

2010-05-10T21:08:00.003-05:00

I saw Iron Man 2 this weekend. I really liked it. It was straight-up fun. Let me say up front that my only problem with the movie was more. It was all more.
There were more characters, more fight scenes, more science detective scenes. More Iron Men, even! I don't know. If you liked the first movie, you'll like this one. If not...definitely not. I guess that's all. I'd rather not get into all the geek stuff, but it was Easter egg stuffed.

miniblogs.

2010-05-03T21:20:00.003-05:00

The human body is a wonderful thing. Also, it's really complicated and I have to know how it works.

I'm working on a "summer to-do" list. It's coming along pretty well.

Catch-22, The Hold Steady, Streetlight Manifesto, Rhymefest, Erykah Badu, Prince.

Romeo and Juliet is not very much fun. Especially when Friar Lawrence won't shut up about plants.

DailyBooth and Twitter have nearly swayed me, but I resisted their foul glamour.

Urinetown was a good show.

Feel free to check out Comic Culture Warrior. I know that guy.

I haven't blogged in a while. Um...ta da?

sitcom!

2010-04-26T21:20:00.003-05:00

My friend and I are considering writing a sitcom. Here are our characters so far.

Tina - She's my roommate and basically the most badass person you'll ever meet. She stand under the shower head, then turns on the water, no matter the temperature. Yeah. After moving into the same new town, we met at Ted's apartments through a mutual friend. We couldn't afford rent on our own, so we decided to share the place. She is typically the outgoing person, dealing with any problems or people very directly. We are friends, but aren't above trying to one-up each other, especially when we work at opposing drugstore chains. She also reads.

Jack - I live with Tina now. I work at CVS reluctantly, but my workday is livened up by trying to irritate Tina at the neighboring Walgreens. I aspire to be some sort of musician, but this aspiration is mostly treated as self-indulgent dreaming by everyone else. It doesn't stop me from playing nearly all the time though. Ha.

Betty - She's an elderly neighbor. As Steven's wife, they've had a long and tumultuous relationship together. At this point, she has mostly given up on the marriage, to Steven's dismay. She spends most of her time over at our place, trying to dispense advice or avoid Steven's attempts at romance. She tells good stories too.

Steven - He lives with Betty. Since his marriage has taken a turn for the worse, he's starting making valiant efforts to add some romance to his life with Betty. When that doesn't work, he resorts to playing cards, either alone or with one of us. Despite their advancing age, he uses the money he won gambling years ago to keep him and his wife out of a nursing home.

Chelsea - She's our other neighbor. She's usually some degree of drunk and relies on Jack and Tina for things like food, blankets, and alarm clocks. She does have some source of income, but it appears to be just enough to pay for the rent. Despite her tendency to seem parasitic, she returns the favor by being friendly and helping them to party harder and enjoy their nightlife.

Ted - He's the landlord. Him and me aren't exactly enemies, but there's a bit of rivalry there. Upon finding out that I'm a musician, he seems determined to outdo me in both skill and indie cred. I tolerate his challenges, mostly because he could shut off our water. Perhaps even more irritatingly, he hits on Tina all the time, to no avail. She tolerate his advances, mostly because he could shut off our electricity.

Yeah. Hilarity ensues.

Angry Audience Songs

2010-04-25T21:29:00.004-05:00

I made another list of songs. I think if you sang these songs loud enough to the right audience, it'd really piss them off. You can look up the lyrics yourself.

Search & Destroy - The Stooges
Bodies - Sex Pistols
Michael - Franz Ferdinand
Rehab - Amy Winehouse
Closer - Nine Inch Nails
Pink Triangle - Weezer
Head - Prince
The Oath - Street Sweeper Social Club
God - John Lennon

Hm, An Idea

2010-04-22T18:17:00.002-05:00

Why not have award ceremonies less often? Maybe every five years?
Think about it. If that happened, there wouldn't be a big rush every year to release things around award season. Plus, it would give voters time to consider each entry in its own place in the culture. Do you think Radiohead would have lost Robert Plant and Alison Krauss for the best album at the Grammys if the voters had until now to decide? Things wouldn't have to be judged against others made in the same economic, political or cultural climate. Just imagine UP competing against Brokeback Mountain.
And if the awards ceremonies weren't so often, they would truly be events. Viewers would tune in because it only happens every few years, right? Just like the Olympics.
I don't know. I think it would be cool.

2010-04-19T21:28:00.004-05:00

The other day, my friend Kyle found a cardboard box. So out on my driveway, he crawled his way into the box, fit snugly inside, and just....hung out in the box with the lids closed.
Weighing the lids with a rock was boring. I sat on the box, Kyle non-the-wiser. This is when it gets interesting.
I had found a gardening implement and was using it to stab the box for air holes. Kyle got panicky, just as my neighbors were getting out of their car across the street. I waved, nonchalantly. Kyle began wriggling and moving, shaking the whole box, with me on top. In response, I stabbed the box more. Finally done with his captivity, Kyle burst out of the box, fists in the air. He waved at my neighbors also. They just went inside.

We Salute You

2010-04-18T20:29:00.002-05:00

I'd like to give a Sunday night shout-out to James Murphy, the guy behind LCD Soundsystem. Thanks to countless "best of the decade" lists, I've started appreciating his music. PLus, there's a new album on the way, so perfect timing right?
This guys seems to have a really solid grasp of modern music. The new single has dance beats, trebly guitars, and chantable vocals recalling the Velvet Underground. Not to mention the lyrics. His first release, "Losing My Edge," is an awesome satire of music geeks and the meaning of cool. By the end, he just dissolves into naming all the bands that I hadn't heard of.
I'm bummed he won't be at Lolla, because the music has a sweet synthesis of dance and rock. It kind of reminds me of the Ramones: fun enough to dance to, but heavy too, you know? If you need more proof, here's the epic, introspective, ridiculous highlight of their last album: "All My Friends."

2010-04-16T20:02:00.003-05:00

All right, I'm getting my priorities in order. I've got too much media recently, and I'ma figure out an order for them.

Books:
A Streetcar Named Desire
Catcher In The Rye
Invisible Man
Grapes Of Wrath

Music:
Somewhere In The Between
The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill
Black On Both Sides
Kick
King Of America
Momofuku

Ok, that's how I'm going to do things. Lists lists lists.

2010-04-12T08:58:00.002-05:00

I watched Blues Brothers last night, and I had an idea. Why can't there be a movie that does for punk what BB does for blues? It could tell the story of a young punk band in New York, having to play for people in suits and ties. The music could feature Patti Smith, The Stooges, The Clash, The Replacements, Sex Pistols, and even more. There could even be awesome cameos, like Iggy Pop playing some uncool manager or something. I think I really like this idea.

Earbuds

2010-03-30T18:22:00.001-05:00

I’m kind of tired of people telling me at school to put my earbuds away.
I should probably explain. My mp3 player is pretty large, so I don’t like to keep my earbuds in my pocket with it. I end up tossing them around my neck a lot.
So earlier today, I was listening on my way out of the locker room. I took them off, put them around my neck, and walked into the band room. My teacher stopped me and demanded I put them in my pocket. So….I did.
This bugs me. What’s the problem here? I wasn’t even listening to anything. And even if I was, so what? It’s passing period, I’m not ignoring or interrupting anything. There’s such a general disdain for those little white earbuds. There are worse things I could do in five minutes, right?

Fooling No One

2010-03-28T16:13:00.004-05:00

Ergh. I'm actually angry. Be forewarned.
Facebook, cut it out. Some people are starting to think that, I don't know, they can affect the world with Facebook. No. No, you can't. People posting their bra colors in "support" of breast cancer research, people updating their status in "support" of the military, and the fan page "I'll bet I can find 1,000,000 people who think music education is important."
I greet this all with a big fat "so what?" You aren't raising any money. No one is gaining from your shows of support. That fan page is so frustratingly vague I want to puke. Great, good to know how you feel. Won't prevent any music programs from being eliminated. Taking two seconds to click the button helped, though, really.
Can you stop being so naive? How about you donate some money or do some volunteer work? Don't kid yourself that you're changing anything with a click of a mouse. Pages and status updates and Twitter feeds and goddamn blogs have nothing to do with any real change. So if you really do support something, get out of your chair and do something.

Break/Newer EP!

2010-03-27T19:16:00.006-05:00

Man, it's been a bit, hasn't it? Weird. I've been pretty nice this break. I played tennis a lot, played volleyball more, and recorded a whole bunch of songs. Wait for it...

So here it is! My second EP, Alone We Stand. Just click here and here to download. Sorry, it's a big file. I wrote all the songs except for track 5. I hope you like it, I tried to master it as much as possible. Plus, you know, lyrics and melody. Enjoy!

In case you missed my first release, check it out here.

Alone We Stand by Jack Chance is licensed under a Creative Commons License.

Wonderful!

2010-03-24T09:08:00.002-05:00

I watched Where The Wild Things Are last night. It was wonderful. I'm not really sure how to describe it. it's pretty raw, not a typical movie for children. My friends described the protagonist, Max, as a devil child based on the early scenes at home, but I thought he was merely....a kid. You can decide, I guess, but it was generally fantastic. See it.

JW/JZ

2010-03-17T15:08:00.003-05:00

Woah. Woah. Stop the presses.

In an interview with GQ, Jack White said he has recorded an "incredible" new song with Jay-Z. This is epic. With Jay-Z's emphasis on music and instruments, most evident on the Blueprint 3 art, and Jack White's multi-instrumental ability, this could kick major major ass. Especially since Jay-Z wants to be experimental and Jack White is working on a solo album...

I must buy everything that comes out of this.

Dodgeball!

2010-03-17T15:00:00.003-05:00

Today, instead of REAL volleyball practice, I'm playing dodgeball with my team and the upper levels. I'm not sure about this prospect. It sounds like it could be legit, because it works your shoulders and strengthens a team bond or whatever. But....it is the week before spring break, and we only have one more day of practice. I'm just hoping I don't get bludgeoned in the face courtesy of some monster varsity player.

"If you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball." -Patches O'Houlihan

2010-03-14T22:01:00.002-05:00

DST has messed me up. So much sunlight, and being way too awake way too late. Argh. I'm watching Flight of the Conchords until I actually get tired. I finally found the DVDs I recieved for Christmas. What a great show. Actually, Murray keeps reminding me of the main character in District 9. Am I right? Eh? Eh? Maybe.

Victorian Stylings & Colored Rain

2010-03-13T10:24:00.003-06:00

K: You know those ripped clothes? If I inferred right, they were popular in England 1600 - there were "slashed" dresses back then.

J: So Victorian culture is just making a comeback?

K: A bit, yes, I believe. They even had a law back then restricting the wearing of dresses with more than one slash on each sleeve.

J: There was a maximum slash count?

K: Yes, in the colonies, I think. I think it was directed at the castes below the rich and royal - they also fined those people if they wore silk.

J: "You aren't good enough for silk!" They did that with the color purple too, right?

K: A bit before then. When purple was harder to find - in the 1500'sish, 1400? Maybe in the early 1600's....I need to look again.

J: And that's why Prince is the Purple One.

K: The singer?

J: Purple Rain, etc.

K: Wasnt there a viral video of some kid singing that in 2003ish?

J: I hope so, I wanna see that. Wait.....chocolate rain? The guy with the crazy deep voice?

K:I didn't watch it myself, but the guy in the yellow shirt?

J: Yes. The song's about racism, apparently. His name is Tay Zonday.

Virtual Jam Session?

2010-03-07T11:33:00.000-06:00

I'm not really sure what's going on in this video, but it's awesome. Soulful piano, scratching, and rapping in Spanish are all thrown into this mix of musicians, apparently from across the globe, jamming. Watch it, it's really cool.

Jam Session 2.0 from Cain Mosni on Vimeo.

By The Way

2010-03-06T22:36:00.003-06:00

I'm very happy. Someone on Ultimate-Guitar uploaded music for "Enid" and "I Don't Want To Go To (Chelsea)," two of my favorite songs! :D

Also, I adjusted and fixed some stuff on my EP, per requests, so get on downloading that thing. I'm looking forward to spring break for the chance to try recording some songs that are a'brewing.

Lastly, I saw Alice in Wonderland. I think I'll review that soon, but for now, know this: I didn't like it. (tease!)

Good night.

Moody Young Man Playlist

2010-03-05T22:20:00.003-06:00

Here's some songs that just scream "teenager" to me.

-Declare Guerre Nucleaire (The Hives)
"I'm gonna do it all again in 2010."
-Hand In Hand (Elvis Costello)
"Don't ask me to apologize, I won't ask you to forgive me."
-I Should Be Allowed To Think (They Might Be Giants)
"I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness."
-Orange Shirt (Discovery)
"Every text that I get from you is so so serious."
-Rebel Rebel (David Bowie)
"You got your mother in a whirl."
-Gasoline Dreams (Outkast)
"All of my heroes did dope."
-Burnout (Green Day)
"I'm not growing up, I'm just burning out."
-Can You Tell (Ra Ra Riot)
"It's hard to stay cool when you smile at me."
-Street Fighting Man (Rolling Stones)
"There's just no place for a street fighting man."
-I Will Dare (The Replacements)
"If you will dare, I might dare."
-Whatever (Gnarls Barkley)
"You said fuck me, well fuck you too."

A Day At The Races (Download)

2010-03-04T08:09:00.003-06:00

Last June, while fiddling with Finale NotePad, I wrote this fun piano piece that sounds pretty cool. It's pretty short, so I might end up going back to write more on it. For now at least, you cna download it here. Don't have Finale? You should it's a real nice program. No worries, you can get that here. Enjoy!

Bkgrnd Snds

2010-03-03T12:16:00.005-06:00

CNN is a really weird soundtrack to...well, anything. I'm trying to do my bio homework, but all I'm thinking about is Luna carpeting and a public option. The news has a knack for making me feel really anxious and depressed. I mean, it's all bad news, really. People are arguing and fighting and dying and crying. Then it's a commercial break. Nothing is really resolved ultimately; that's not the point. The point is to keep the audience captivated with fear long enough for them to see the commercials, then cut to something else before they know what hit them.
I think that's why I prefer newspapers. They can't say "follow us on Twitter" or interrupt a story with an ad. They have to finish every story, as much as they can. No bullshit. At least, that's how I like to think of it.
Ooh, the President is going to unveil his health-care package. I'll make sure to stay tuned.

Stylo Video/Cartoons

2010-03-02T21:30:00.002-06:00

Gorillaz released their first video in years today. It's really cool. There's Bruce Willis, guns, and car chases. There's even a freaky portion with a foggy Grim Reaper.
But the part I don't like is the CGI characters used for the band members. I've always liked the conceit of fake cartoon band members, but previously they've been cartoons. Just that. This video pairs them with flesh-and-blood people. The cartoons were a little caricatured, but no more so than the Simpsons. Up until that point, when I saw a two-dimensional 2D, I could imagine that if Bruce Willis had showed up, he'd be rendered in a similar style. But when they're paired with humans, it shows how grotesque the characters are. It kind of shatters the illusion for me.

I'm Like Shakespeare, Yo.

2010-03-01T19:19:00.007-06:00

Turns out

Shakespeare made up

a whole bunch of words.
In other news, I totally invented a word this weekend. "mance" Only to find out, so had a whole bunch of people, with mostly the same meaning. Well, numbers 2 & 4 got it. Hmph. Damn Internet, it really shatters any illusions of originality. I guess that's the cost of a global communications network: realizing people are better than you, and better earlier.
In other news, I was the victim of a lot of mancing. It was uncomfortable. Sorry, guys. Shudder.

Multitasking

2010-03-01T19:09:00.003-06:00

I've done it. I can do my bio homework, listen to my iPod, and lift weights ALL at the same time!
It's pretty good so far, except....I can't really lift with my left hand, since I'm writing, so I guess my right arm will look a little brutish in comparison. And I keep extending my arm in time with the music. That doesn't seem too bad, until the shuffle kicks into the Hives and my arm begins to noodle-ify. Which is a word now. Bam.

Oh Boy... (Restaurant)

2010-02-27T15:44:00.002-06:00

Look where I'm going to eat tonight. Ew.
Now, I like Italian food. But...there's no decimals on the menu, so you know they rounded up. It's just screams "Don't worry, we made all the prices nice and safe, so you can think that you can do all the math in your head."
And.....Papyrus font for the logo? Really? Ugh, I just hate that.
But I'm sure the food is good.

Yes, Yes It Is.

2010-02-23T13:15:00.002-06:00

Hey there everyone. Turns out this school's library has good taste in magazines. Wired, Spin, Paste. This month's cover story on Paste is pretty dang interesting. It tries to answer a question I've thought about myself kind of frequently. What does indie even mean anymore? Or to put it more dramatically: Is Indie Dead? Check out the story here. It's real good.

Ugh. The Stench!

2010-02-22T08:27:00.002-06:00

Well, this sucks. My house was sprayed by skunk two nights ago, around 3 am. I believe it's living under the porch and was spooked by something. It's been a day and a half, and my clothes, person, and general home still reek.
Covering up the smell wasn't the best idea either. Skunk is bad. Skunk mixed with cooking tomato sauce and evergreen candles is worse.
I feel like I should apologize to the people around me, but I'm not even sure if they notice. And if they do notice, how would they know it's me? The smell can't be that overpowering, right? Right....

Album Art.

2010-02-21T19:31:00.001-06:00

Here's a picture I brewed up for that EP I mentioned. What do y'all think?

A Story About My Guitarist

2010-02-17T20:51:00.002-06:00

I drove past him when he was walking down the side of the highway, several miles from school. I saw him and asked if he needed a ride, He said "No thanks. I haven't been to lacrossse for the past two days so I'm punishing myself. Thanks anyways." He just walked off.

Lolla Headliners?

2010-02-17T08:46:00.007-06:00

The Chicago Tribune published an article today with the rumored headliners for Lollapalooza this year. Here's what I think.

Lady GaGa- I'm sure she'll be there. She was hugely popular all of last year and is still cleaning up on awards. She's got the most mainstream appeal. Add that to the fact that, apparently, she was a side-stage performer in 2007. That said, I have no interest in seeing her.

Green Day- This one's iffy. They're no strangers to festivals or big shows, but they've had their own huge stadium tours recently. Wouldn't Lolla be downsizing? If they do play, I'm sure the crowds would be nuts. It would probably be a great show though.

Arcade Fire- I'd say this group is another certainty. They've already played the fest several times, and their appeal has only grown after the NFL commercials and movie trailers with "Wake Up." They'll probably headline the same night as Lady GaGa, to balance electro-pop with the Arcade Fire's huge band. I'm not the biggest fan, but I've heard they have incredible shows.

Soundgarden- Meh. Apparently a reunion has been in the works, so it would be no surprise if they filled the big-name reunion slot. I've got no real interest though...

The Strokes- Ok, this seems like both a sure thing and an impossibility. They're headlining to big festivals in England and are working on a new album due in September, so seems like a perfect plan. Yet, Julian Casablancas said "We're doing two with the Strokes and that's it for the summer." Of course, he didn't rule out performing solo. I'm hoping they change their minds, because this band would be my priority.

This is only five of the usual six. The last will probably be a big name rap act. The Beastie Boys might try to make up for last year's abandoned slot. Jay-Z has also been scheduled for tons of festivals this season. If not them, I think it would be pretty awesome to see M.I.A. on the main stage.

A Brief History of Pretty Much Everything (Courtesy of Ball Point Pen)

2010-02-16T20:06:00.003-06:00

Thanks to Wired, I found this incredible video.
It was made by Jamie Bell, a 17-year-old student, in art class. It took him three weeks, 2100 sheets of paper, and a whole bunch of pens. Check this out.

New EP

2010-02-14T19:06:00.008-06:00

Hey everyone. Get excited. I recorded six songs, just for you! I put them in one zipped-up file, so all you need to do is click here to download. All the info you need is embedded. Comments: very appreciated. Enjoy!

Stylish Kids In A Riot by Jack Chance is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License.

Hipsters!

2010-02-14T17:20:00.004-06:00

I thought I'd share this really interesting article from Adbusters. It's about hipsterdom, a culture that, according to the article, "consumes cool rather than creates it." It's a great piece, where the author is quite disturbed at a youth culture that doesn't like to be labeled what it is. Read it all below or click here.

I‘m sipping a scummy pint of cloudy beer in the back of a trendy dive bar turned nightclub in the heart of the city’s heroin district. In front of me stand a gang of hippiesh grunge-punk types, who crowd around each other and collectively scoff at the smoking laws by sneaking puffs of "fuck-you," reveling in their perceived rebellion as the haggard, staggering staff look on without the slightest concern.

The "DJ" is keystroking a selection of MP3s off his MacBook, making a mix that sounds like he took a hatchet to a collection of yesteryear billboard hits, from DMX to Dolly Parton, but mashed up with a jittery techno backbeat.

"So… this is a hipster party?" I ask the girl sitting next to me. She’s wearing big dangling earrings, an American Apparel V-neck tee, non-prescription eyeglasses and an inappropriately warm wool coat.

"Yeah, just look around you, 99 percent of the people here are total hipsters!"

"Are you a hipster?"

"Fuck no," she says, laughing back the last of her glass before she hops off to the dance floor.

Ever since the Allies bombed the Axis into submission, Western civilization has had a succession of counter-culture movements that have energetically challenged the status quo. Each successive decade of the post-war era has seen it smash social standards, riot and fight to revolutionize every aspect of music, art, government and civil society.

But after punk was plasticized and hip hop lost its impetus for social change, all of the formerly dominant streams of "counter-culture" have merged together. Now, one mutating, trans-Atlantic melting pot of styles, tastes and behavior has come to define the generally indefinable idea of the "Hipster."

An artificial appropriation of different styles from different eras, the hipster represents the end of Western civilization – a culture lost in the superficiality of its past and unable to create any new meaning. Not only is it unsustainable, it is suicidal. While previous youth movements have challenged the dysfunction and decadence of their elders, today we have the "hipster" – a youth subculture that mirrors the doomed shallowness of mainstream society.
Hipsters

***

Take a stroll down the street in any major North American or European city and you’ll be sure to see a speckle of fashion-conscious twentysomethings hanging about and sporting a number of predictable stylistic trademarks: skinny jeans, cotton spandex leggings, fixed-gear bikes, vintage flannel, fake eyeglasses and a keffiyeh – initially sported by Jewish students and Western protesters to express solidarity with Palestinians, the keffiyeh has become a completely meaningless hipster cliché fashion accessory.

The American Apparel V-neck shirt, Pabst Blue Ribbon beer and Parliament cigarettes are symbols and icons of working or revolutionary classes that have been appropriated by hipsterdom and drained of meaning. Ten years ago, a man wearing a plain V-neck tee and drinking a Pabst would never be accused of being a trend-follower. But in 2008, such things have become shameless clichés of a class of individuals that seek to escape their own wealth and privilege by immersing themselves in the aesthetic of the working class.

This obsession with "street-cred" reaches its apex of absurdity as hipsters have recently and wholeheartedly adopted the fixed-gear bike as the only acceptable form of transportation – only to have brakes installed on a piece of machinery that is defined by its lack thereof.

Lovers of apathy and irony, hipsters are connected through a global network of blogs and shops that push forth a global vision of fashion-informed aesthetics. Loosely associated with some form of creative output, they attend art parties, take lo-fi pictures with analog cameras, ride their bikes to night clubs and sweat it up at nouveau disco-coke parties. The hipster tends to religiously blog about their daily exploits, usually while leafing through generation-defining magazines like Vice, Another Magazine and Wallpaper. This cursory and stylized lifestyle has made the hipster almost universally loathed.

"These hipster zombies… are the idols of the style pages, the darlings of viral marketers and the marks of predatory real-estate agents," wrote Christian Lorentzen in a Time Out New York article entitled ‘Why the Hipster Must Die.’ "And they must be buried for cool to be reborn."

With nothing to defend, uphold or even embrace, the idea of "hipsterdom" is left wide open for attack. And yet, it is this ironic lack of authenticity that has allowed hipsterdom to grow into a global phenomenon that is set to consume the very core of Western counterculture. Most critics make a point of attacking the hipster’s lack of individuality, but it is this stubborn obfuscation that distinguishes them from their predecessors, while allowing hipsterdom to easily blend in and mutate other social movements, sub-cultures and lifestyles.

***

Standing outside an art-party next to a neat row of locked-up fixed-gear bikes, I come across a couple girls who exemplify hipster homogeneity. I ask one of the girls if her being at an art party and wearing fake eyeglasses, leggings and a flannel shirt makes her a hipster.

"I’m not comfortable with that term," she replies.

Her friend adds, with just a flicker of menace in her eyes, "Yeah, I don’t know, you shouldn’t use that word, it’s just…"

"Offensive?"

"No… it’s just, well… if you don’t know why then you just shouldn’t even use it."

"Ok, so what are you girls doing tonight after this party?"

"Ummm… We’re going to the after-party."

***

Gavin McInnes, one of the founders of Vice, who recently left the magazine, is considered to be one of hipsterdom’s primary architects. But, in contrast to the majority of concerned media-types, McInnes, whose "Dos and Don’ts" commentary defined the rules of hipster fashion for over a decade, is more critical of those doing the criticizing.

"I’ve always found that word ["hipster"] is used with such disdain, like it’s always used by chubby bloggers who aren’t getting laid anymore and are bored, and they’re just so mad at these young kids for going out and getting wasted and having fun and being fashionable," he says. "I’m dubious of these hypotheses because they always smell of an agenda."

Punks wear their tattered threads and studded leather jackets with honor, priding themselves on their innovative and cheap methods of self-expression and rebellion. B-boys and b-girls announce themselves to anyone within earshot with baggy gear and boomboxes. But it is rare, if not impossible, to find an individual who will proclaim themself a proud hipster. It’s an odd dance of self-identity – adamantly denying your existence while wearing clearly defined symbols that proclaims it.

***

"He’s 17 and he lives for the scene!" a girl whispers in my ear as I sneak a photo of a young kid dancing up against a wall in a dimly lit corner of the after-party. He’s got a flipped-out, do-it-yourself haircut, skin-tight jeans, leather jacket, a vintage punk tee and some popping high tops.

"Shoot me," he demands, walking up, cigarette in mouth, striking a pose and exhaling. He hits a few different angles with a firmly unimpressed expression and then gets a bit giddy when I show him the results.

"Rad, thanks," he says, re-focusing on the music and submerging himself back into the sweaty funk of the crowd where he resumes a jittery head bobble with a little bit of a twitch.

The dance floor at a hipster party looks like it should be surrounded by quotation marks. While punk, disco and hip hop all had immersive, intimate and energetic dance styles that liberated the dancer from his/her mental states – be it the head-spinning b-boy or violent thrashings of a live punk show – the hipster has more of a joke dance. A faux shrug shuffle that mocks the very idea of dancing or, at its best, illustrates a non-committal fear of expression typified in a weird twitch/ironic twist. The dancers are too self-aware to let themselves feel any form of liberation; they shuffle along, shrugging themselves into oblivion.
HipstersHipsters

***

Perhaps the true motivation behind this deliberate nonchalance is an attempt to attract the attention of the ever-present party photographers, who swim through the crowd like neon sharks, flashing little blasts of phosphorescent ecstasy whenever they spot someone worth momentarily immortalizing.

Noticing a few flickers of light splash out from the club bathroom, I peep in only to find one such photographer taking part in an impromptu soft-core porno shoot. Two girls and a guy are taking off their clothes and striking poses for a set of grimy glamour shots. It’s all grins and smirks until another girl pokes her head inside and screeches, "You’re not some club kid in New York in the nineties. This shit is so hipster!" – which sparks a bit of a catfight, causing me to beat a hasty retreat.

In many ways, the lifestyle promoted by hipsterdom is highly ritualized. Many of the party-goers who are subject to the photoblogger’s snapshots no doubt crawl out of bed the next afternoon and immediately re-experience the previous night’s debauchery. Red-eyed and bleary, they sit hunched over their laptops, wading through a sea of similarity to find their own (momentarily) thrilling instant of perfected hipster-ness.

What they may or may not know is that "cool-hunters" will also be skulking the same sites, taking note of how they dress and what they consume. These marketers and party-promoters get paid to co-opt youth culture and then re-sell it back at a profit. In the end, hipsters are sold what they think they invent and are spoon-fed their pre-packaged cultural livelihood.

Hipsterdom is the first "counterculture" to be born under the advertising industry’s microscope, leaving it open to constant manipulation but also forcing its participants to continually shift their interests and affiliations. Less a subculture, the hipster is a consumer group – using their capital to purchase empty authenticity and rebellion. But the moment a trend, band, sound, style or feeling gains too much exposure, it is suddenly looked upon with disdain. Hipsters cannot afford to maintain any cultural loyalties or affiliations for fear they will lose relevance.

An amalgamation of its own history, the youth of the West are left with consuming cool rather that creating it. The cultural zeitgeists of the past have always been sparked by furious indignation and are reactionary movements. But the hipster’s self-involved and isolated maintenance does nothing to feed cultural evolution. Western civilization’s well has run dry. The only way to avoid hitting the colossus of societal failure that looms over the horizon is for the kids to abandon this vain existence and start over.

***

"If you don’t give a damn, we don’t give a fuck!" chants an emcee before his incitements are abruptly cut short when the power plug is pulled and the lights snapped on.

Dawn breaks and the last of the after-after-parties begin to spill into the streets. The hipsters are falling out, rubbing their eyes and scanning the surrounding landscape for the way back from which they came. Some hop on their fixed-gear bikes, some call for cabs, while a few of us hop a fence and cut through the industrial wasteland of a nearby condo development.

The half-built condos tower above us like foreboding monoliths of our yuppie futures. I take a look at one of the girls wearing a bright pink keffiyah and carrying a Polaroid camera and think, "If only we carried rocks instead of cameras, we’d look like revolutionaries." But instead we ignore the weapons that lie at our feet – oblivious to our own impending demise.

We are a lost generation, desperately clinging to anything that feels real, but too afraid to become it ourselves. We are a defeated generation, resigned to the hypocrisy of those before us, who once sang songs of rebellion and now sell them back to us. We are the last generation, a culmination of all previous things, destroyed by the vapidity that surrounds us. The hipster represents the end of Western civilization – a culture so detached and disconnected that it has stopped giving birth to anything new.

Mr. Cohen & His Lady Caller

2010-02-09T18:45:00.003-06:00

If you don't live in Illinois, you should know that Scott Cohen has stepped out of the Lt. Gubernatorial race because of his sordid past.
One of the most interesting things about Mr. Cohen's past is that he says he didn't know his girlfriend was a prostitute. Now, I'm not making any accusations or commenting on Cohen's politics. But how do you not know that the girl you're living with is a prostitute? Do you think she just works as a nurse or something late at night?
"Hey, honey, I know you were out working last night, but it seemed like you were standing on that street corner a while. I was going to offer you a ride, but I know you said not to worry about where you are after dark."
Do you think she'd eventually just confess to it?
"Listen, I have to be honest, Scott. I'm a prostitute."
"Oh, that explains why, after the first time we did it, that guy came in demanding money, doesn't it?"

Think About Time

2010-02-05T17:33:00.002-06:00

So, we're in a universe. Think about yourself, a person, as a tiny cell in the body of a humanized universe. And that universe is riding in a car. The car has been driving from its destination, the Big Bang, to the end of everything. The car is called Time.
Thing is, the universe isn't driving the car. Somebody else is, and they're going in one direction at a constant speed. And there's no turning around, so we're constantly in new moments as a car is constantly in new places. All we have to remember earlier Time is memories, looking in the rear-view mirror.
Basically, we're all riding in a car called Time.

Grammys!

2010-02-01T08:52:00.003-06:00

Yeah, I watched it last night. Let me try to get my thoughts in order.
-It's been bugging me that Green Day's biggest single is one of the worst songs on the new album. But I think I realized what it needs: a 15-piece chorus backing it up. The cast of American Idiot has the chops for Broadway, for sure.

-Beyonce was probably the best perfomer of the night. The neo-military get up was a strange pairing with Alanis Morrisette and "If I Were A Boy," but the performance outshone the visuals (cough cough, unlike Pink).

-Rap/Sung Collaboration was the only award that had any real competition involved. Of course, could it have gone to anyone but Rhianna, Kanye, and Jay-Z? No, so it didn't. Kanye was unsuprisingly absent, but who was that boy the brought with them to accept?

-I think Wyclef Jean said in one sentence what that executive tried to say in five: “The music industry is still alive, even though there ain’t no more record companies.”

-Was I supposed to get 3D glasses from something for that MJ segment?

A Song About Dancing

2010-01-24T13:30:00.003-06:00

chorus: It's all the rage with the kids today
Though I've never had the pleasure of this wonderful dance
All across the USA
Seems they'll start doing it at just a glance
Oh, won't anybody dance with me?
Won't anybody dance with me?

There's a movement involved that I don't know
Should I get some brand new shoes?
I've seen video of people doing it
But it's just not the same as doing it with you
It seems like every girl already has a partner
Every time I pull out my card
I don't mean to be a wallflower
But sometimes it just gets so hard

It doesn't seem right to pay for lessons
You can never be too safe
Maybe if I can just get the right rhythm
Walking around, learning to strafe
I don't want to step on anybody's toes
But I hope I haven't got two left feet
At this point all I want is
Somebody who will dance with me

bridge: I know the words, I know the lines
I'd do my best to stay in time
I could do it all, a hop and a skip
But I feel like all I do is trip

Contra: The Like To Be Review

2010-01-11T17:15:00.004-06:00

9 out of 10

This is the tough one. After all the initial demos have been listened to, the hype has died away, and the first album is online, a band like Vampire Weekend is in trouble. How do they create a new album? DO they rehash their first in a "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" mentality? Or do they try to do something new, with the risk of alienating fans?
I can safely say Contra, the newest album from Vampire Weekend, is something new. If their self-titled debut was their version of the Clash's first album, Contra is their Sandinista. They spread their ideas out beyond the already unconventional style. The opener has no audible guitar, and the main melody is played on chimes. One of the highlights, "Diplomat's Son," is a 6 minute song driven by a catchy chorus that transitions back and forth to an 8-bit style instrumentation. "Cousins" is a spastic, ska-tinged wonder, with possibly the grooviest bass ever. But while Sandinista was unevenly sprawled across three LPs, this album manages to sound consistent through its 11 tracks.
Not only has the music expanded, but Ezra Koenig's lyrics have matured as well. While the last album was about one-night campus stands and grammar snobs, many of the songs are based around abandoned positions, vain college girls, and everyday jobs. When he sings "You stand so close to me/Like the future was supposed to be" there's a sense of empathy that surprises compared to the peppy poppiness of the music. The subjects may sound bleak, but paired with the music sound fantastic.
The album isn't perfect. Some of the instrumentation and tempo changes can be jarring, like they don't fit in the song. The production sometimes makes the vocals hard to hear. But those are minor complaints. Contra is a great album. If Vampire Weekend was the soundtrack to a good college party, Contra is the mix for the mellow day after, spent looking forward to the next night. I look forward to what the next night brings.

Chuck's Rules

2010-01-02T19:42:00.003-06:00

Here's some advice from my friend Chuck.
1. When people start singing songs, sing along obnoxiously enough to ruin it.
2. Never pass up an opportunity to lie.
3. Trap people in dumb arguments or conversations.
4. When people are mad at you, speak to them demeaningly, like they're a small child.
5. Never do anything you're asked to.
6. Speak your mind bluntly enough that people think you have a disability.

It's not always the best list to follow, but you'll sure have an interesting day.

New Year

2009-12-31T12:55:00.002-06:00

It's almost that time again. The end of the year, and the end of the decade. While a lot of media is devoted to remembering the whole decade, I don't think 2010 will suddenly transform us as a society. One could almost argue that the Naughties (not my word) ended a year ago when Bush left office. Maybe this decade won't truly end until some big 9/11-esque event happens early in the next. (Hopefully not.) Personally, my first full decade has gone pretty well, but globally, I hope the '10s pick it up a little bit.

Avatar: The Like To Be Review

2009-12-20T16:24:00.002-06:00

8 out of 10

Avatar may go down in history as one of the most hyped movies of all time, but it has the luck to live up to most of it. As you know, James Cameron spent over 10 years on this movie. Hell, he had someone invent a language for the alien creatures to use. An entire language.
I'll get my complaints out of the way first. The story is mostly bits and pieces from every movie you've ever liked. There's a romance, evil corporation, a happy ending, joining an indigenous group, and Sigourney Weaver. There's little character development, and the acting isn't fantastic.
That said, the movie simply looks fantastic. The technology used makes it possible for the best acting to happen on the face of a CGI creature. The alien environment and animals look incredible. While the 3D took a little a while to get used to, it added (oh God) a new dimension to the film. And as I said, it has bits of every movie you've ever liked; the story isn't original or clever, but it works.
So I never though I'd say this, but the narrative flaws are made up for by the beauty of the effects. You should see it.

break.

2009-12-17T18:53:00.002-06:00

Ugh. I hate these last weeks before break. We don't have finals for weeks after we return, so there's no pressure. But the teachers throw tests in just in case. One more day....
I'm looking forward to having nothing to do all break. I have to read 3 books, and that's about it. I'll probably try to record some more songs. All right. Happy holidays.

Black Friday! (Boo!)

2009-12-07T17:32:00.002-06:00

Wow, it's been a while, hasn't it? Huh. Well, here goes.
First off, I had a very enjoyable Thanksgiving. My aunt is a chef, so we naturally went over there. It was great. But you know what I enjoyed more? Black Friday. Because I had nothing to do with shopping that day. I saw my friends and did schoolwork. But I didn't venture within a mile of a mall or department store.
I don't really understand all the excitement anyway. Commercials tell us to beat the rush. Yeah, the rush generated by the commercials. Jerks. Sure, the deals are sometimes great, but I think a lot of people get swept up in the excitement that they buy stuff just because it's cheap.
And do I pity those workers. Who knows what they have to deal with? Do you?
If you have a good Black Friday story, comment. If you don't, check out the excellent Penny Arcade strips on the subject here.

Story Time!

2009-11-29T12:57:00.000-06:00

Off in another world, Alison Fitz was driving in her car, running late as always. It was 1:37. Her lunch reservations were for 1:30. She sighed, barely audible over the sound of the pop music she was blasting through the stereo. Alison wondered, momentarily, what CD she had in the player. She figured it was one of Dan’s and clicked the turn signal. As she maneuvered the wheel with one hand, she bent down at 1:38 to check the case. She didn’t know why she was checking. It was a bad mix anyway, why should she care who made it? Oh, it was Dan’s. Good thing they were broken up then. At 1:39, Alison lifted her body to find her vehicle in the other lane. Blowing the hair out of her face, she glanced at the mirror. Alison saw a blue sports car behind her, moving fast. Too fast. She turned to face forward again. She gripped the wheel. Her last thought was that she was ten minutes late. Too late. Alison was then knocked unconscious by the sheer force of the blue sports car smashing into the rear of her vehicle. The airbag blew straight into her face, nearly suffocating her until the car flipped onto its side. Her body gasped for air as the now more silver than blue sports car collided with the underside of her seat. Alison was recued from the car once the paramedics arrived, and she was admitted to Southeast General Hospital, comatose and with severe brain damage, at 3:14.

Off in another world, Alison Fitz was driving in her car, running late as always. It was 1:37. Her lunch reservations were for 1:30. She turned her head to see a blue sports car flashing down the other lane. Alison noticed, with only minor annoyance, that her hands had begun to shake rather violently. She sighed.

It's Official.

2009-11-16T16:46:00.003-06:00

I'm a teenager. I was sitting on the couch in my basement, playing Xbox with my iPod plugged in. I couldn't get the Rolling Stones to work, so I went with some Libertines instead. (recommended.)
My dad walked out of his adjacent office and said "What's this crap you're listening to?"

The irony was that he had been blasting Hollywood Undead a few days earlier.

Sunday

2009-11-09T16:06:00.002-06:00

Ugh. I spent 7 hours yesterday doing a biology project. So many organelles. I got through 6 albums doing it. It's a pretty good Sunday afternoon playlist actually.

Sign 'O' The Times
Paul's Boutique
Highway 61 Revisited
Costello Music
Outlandos d'Amour
Velvet Underground & Nico
Is This It?

Any other Sunday album/songs you'd add?

2009-11-04T21:34:00.002-06:00

Why does watching recently-dead people make me feel guilty? I'm watching Pop-Up Video when on comes, what else, Michael Jackson's Stranger in Moscow. Let me just say, I'm not the hugest MJ fan. Sure, Thriller is great, but everybody likes Thriller. I don't have much interest in the rest if his stuff.
Anyway, I'm watching this video, and I just get this feeling of guilt. Totally misplaced guilt, like how you feel when watching 9/11 footage. "I have nothing to do with this, but I feel like I do." I got the same feeling watching The Dark Knight or Pitchmen soon after their star's deaths. What is up with that?

Concerts (Again)

2009-10-26T16:06:00.001-05:00

Man, these next months should be pretty awesome. Some concerts are coming up. I probably won't go to most (or all) of them, but maybe you want to know.

Weezer at the Aragon Ballroom - Yeah. They're awesome live, and from what the internet says, the setlist is great. Plus, a ballroom. Mosh like crazy.

Arctic Monkeys at the Riveria Theater - I enjoyed the new album a lot. From I've seen, they're real energetic and......they look good on the dancefloor. Could be very great.

U2 at Soldier Field - Okay, this is a little far ahead, but good luck getting tix a month before. Everyone I know said this is one of the best shows ever, so I'm most excited for this. Come on. It's U2.

Jay-Z at Assembly Hall - This is on a Thursday. I'm not going, but Jay is known to have a live band at his shows. And, based on the 9/11 special he did, this tour is better than ever.

Lollapalooza - Now, they haven't announced anything, but I'm hopeful. Vampire Weekend & Beastie Boys have new albums, and there's some sweet new bands like Band of Skulls. Grant Park should be rockin'.

And yet, these people aren't touring nowadays.
Frown: Beck, Radiohead, Thom Yorke, Dead Weather, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, TV on the Radio
Well, they are, but it's all in Norway and Japan. Weird.

2009-10-20T16:23:00.002-05:00

Man, I have a lot of tedious English work to do. Ugh.

On the plus side, I had a very productive weekend. I finally figured out how to put GarageBand to good use. I use a Rock Band mic for guitar and bass, a headset for vocals, and I sample the drums. It all sounds pretty decent, and I got four songs done this way. If you'd like to hear them, let me know.

What's New

2009-10-14T20:02:00.002-05:00

Hey. Yeah, I realized I've only been posting songs and stuff. Hopefully you like it. But, I'm doing pretty well myself. Although I don't like math.
I trying to personalize my computer. I'm doing stuff like ripping DVDs, getting an SMS bluetooth text-with-a-keyboard thing. It's really nice actually.

Here's my playlist for recent:
Take The Power Back
(If You're Wondering If I Want You To) I Want You To [excited for this]
Saturday Night's Alright For Fighting
Meanwhile, Rick James...
The Corner
Fell In Love With A Girl
Century City
Can't Stand Me Now
Make Her Say (really enjoying Kid Cudi.)
11th Dimension (also excited for this)
Horchata

download report

2009-10-07T21:04:00.003-05:00

Hey. Remember that band I like? Vampire Weekend? Well, in case my reccommendation wasn't enough, (and of course it was), they now have a FREE song on their website from their upcoming second album. That's right. FREE! And no threat of piracy charges!
Yeah. Check it out. vampireweekend.com

All These Bills

2009-10-04T17:30:00.006-05:00

1st & 2nd verses:
It's not doing well, but everybody's talking like mad
Kids tell all their friends and pass it on to their dads
They need one thing from us and it's more of the same
I'm out of here, I won't play that game

Heard y'all are doing well, thought I'd drop a line
You didn't ask, but I'm doing fine
Your first was better, or should I say ours?
With an attitude like that, you won't get far

Chorus:
I got couple bucks
I got a couple bucks
with cash to spend
and time to kill
what will I do with all these bills?

3rd verse:
Read a story, you three make me sick
Throwing it all out because you're a hit
Taking what you want, it's just handed
I'm starting a comback i'm so demanded

Bridge:
remember me
you're rising like a comet
i'll say i told you so
cause i cant dust for vomit

outro:
I I I I
Me Me Me Me

An Open Letter

2009-10-02T16:03:00.005-05:00

Dear Spike Jonze,
You better not mess this one up. I'm serious. It's Where The Wild Things Are. Yeah. A big deal. I mean, you're marketing the crap out of this thing. It better be good. I gotta say the PR team deserves a raise. You got adults with the nostalgia, kids with the big fuzzy monsters, and college-age hipsters with Karen O and the Arcade Fire. Nice.
But where did you get this idea? There's not much story, but you better stay faithful to what there is. I don't want a horror-villain-remake-style answer for the kid's motivation. It's a ten-page book, for Christ's sake! And it's not even a novella. Ten pages, ten sentences. Boy make trouble. Mom get angry. Boy get angry. Boy go away. Boy make friends. Boy is king. Boy get sad. Boy go home. Boy happy. I'm not even kidding. Maybe I should have thrown a spoiler alert in there. No. You know why? EVERYBODY has read this book.
Oh yeah, pressure's on. This book has been out for nigh-on 50 years. That's a long time. And in between now and then, it's become like the best loved book ever. (I know, it's in the ads.) But are you following this? Where The Wild Things Are appeals to everyone. Old people, young people, girls, boys, Americans and the Chinese. This isn't a comic-book movie where the only people who care about faithfulness are fanboys are message boards. Mess this up, you will have the PLANET after you. Be afraid, Mr. Jonze. Very.
One last thing: let's keep the merch and spin-offs down to a minimum. I'm sure there'll be stuffed animals. I can't blame you for that. Look at the big ol Wild Things! So cuddly! No one wants an animated Wild Things show on the Disney Channel, featuring Itchy and Scratchy, or whatever you named them. And I'm Not buying a collectible statue of the kid, complete with furry jumpsuit.
In conclusion, Mr. Jonze, this movie better be good.

2009-09-25T22:22:00.001-05:00

The warm sound of the needle hitting the turntable. Deep sound in stereo. An ending groove that repeats forever. These are all parts of listening to a vinyl record and it’s far superior to an mp3.

Don’t get me wrong, I like my iPod just as much as anyone. It’s fast and portable. A record, however, is an experience.

The packaging is better to start. While most albums covers are compressed to a one by one square on your computer monitor, it is beautiful in a 7 by 7 size.
My favorite album, London Calling, is a perfect example. Sure, there’s a great image of the bassist smashing his instrument, on the record there’s the crowd going wild behind him. There’s also the back and album notes the records come with

And I can’t forget the actual music. A record contains the music exactly as it was played in the studio. An mp3 is compressed to make loading easier, so if a guitarist plays 10 notes, those notes will be half as rich digitally.The sound is much better on vinyl

The most important part of a record is that it has to be listened the way it was intended. There’s no shuffling and there’s no skipping. You have to devote a good chunk of time to listening, and hopefully it’s worth it.

I know you love shuffling, you love skipping, you love making playlists. But sometime you should dig out your attic and try out some vinyl. You won’t be disappointed.

This Sunday Sunday Sunday

2009-09-20T20:18:00.002-05:00

Hey y'all. In case I haven't mentioned it, my band and three others is doing a benefit this Sunday at Durty Nellie's in Palatine. It's for a foster home in Chicago. $5 at the door. Donations accepted. So, you should come. Hopefully I'll have something to share on Monday.

2009-09-12T21:50:00.002-05:00

I went to a paint-a-thon this morning. Basically, me and my friends circled up around an elderly woman's house. It was a small ranch. We painted the house in 3 hours. White walls, black shutters. It was awesome. So, um, help an old person.

Maybe You Can Tell

2009-09-08T21:38:00.006-05:00

"You complain about love and loss
but I've never lost at all"
I told you when I saw you
You continued down the hall
You laughed and frowned
I wanted to provoke
I thought it was poetic
you thought it was a joke

chorus:
Maybe you can tell you wont be missed
Maybe you can tell I forgot you exist
It's your fault that there's no this
Maybe you can tell I'm a little pissed

I'll pretend it's no big deal
Why should it matter?
I don't think you noticed
how much I've been shattered
You'll pretend to be sorry
Throwing me a glance
We both know
That you didn't give me no chance

bridge:
I didn't want to hear "no", I wanted a "please"
I'm sure you want me to beg; I'm sure you want me on my knees
you won't get satisfaction, I'm not going to moan
My only reward is leaving you alone

GPWFLY

2009-09-04T18:53:00.001-05:00

I'm gonna throw a new band at y'all. They're called Grand Prize Winners From Last Year, and they're from Atlanta. They have a cool sound I haven't really heard before.
They combine rock with some wicked synths and some semi-rapping portions to make this weird combination of every music. As they said it, "We are not in or out of the box because to us there is no box."
It's very cool, and you can check it out here.

Excerpts From Conversations Today

2009-09-02T21:10:00.004-05:00

"Oh no, Jack's a demon."

Ooh, you got mac and cheese! High five! "Who are you?"

"It's the biggest cash crop in California!" Ah, California.

"I like your pants best on the floor."

"He's addicted to your lips. Wait."

"Sweet, Bloodbath 3000!"

"Do you ever see 'ol Rae Rae?"

"To his death, he insisted it was about his son's drawing."

2009-09-01T17:04:00.001-05:00

I was working on some biology when I nearly fell asleep during the monotony of writing "living thing" 15 times. Then I realized there's a much better word for this, handmade by buff explorers on distant planets inhabited by green people: lifeforms!
It's a staple of bad sci-fi. "I'm not detecting any lifeforms." "How could any lifeforms inhabit this planet?" etc. Why can't we bring it back? It has a cool vibe and it's a lot shorter.
Come on readers! Say it!

Linkblogging

2009-08-29T17:47:00.005-05:00

Stumbling around on the music interwebs, I discovered some interesting stuff.

Pitchfork Music, as a package about the end of the decade, posted a very interesting article on the social impact of the digital music file. They also did a best 500 songs of the Aughts list. That's so wrong. I think you have to wait to see how the music impacts you years later, not make a list ASAP. And it's a bad list too. I won't even link to it.

Courtesy of Ultimate Guitar, I learned that Kurt Cobain will be in Guitar Hero. It's not my place to say, but I get the feeling that Kurt wouldn't participate in this the same way that Heath Ledger wouldn't like his face over all kinds of Joker action figures.

Apparently, Trent Reznor has said that this current tour with Nine Inch Nails will be the last. What the hell does that mean? Spin can tell you. I'm betting he's getting tired of screaming every night at the age of 42.

Also at Pitchfork, they asked me the best songs of the decade. Here's my response.
Maps - Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Timebomb - Beck
Boys In The Band - The Libertines
Last Nite - The Strokes
American Eulogy - Green Day

Lastly, NME has a poll for the most overrated band. Fall Out Boy is leading, which I would have to disagree with. I might go with Aerosmith or Motley Crue.

Some Anniversaries

2009-08-27T16:01:00.003-05:00

In celebration of The Sweater Song's 15th anniversary, I've been listening to Weezer's Blue Album a lot. I was born just late enough to have absolutely no nostalgia attached to it, so I can say honestly say it's a classic. I don't know exactly how to classify it. You should definitely check it out.

Speaking of the '90s, you should go to Beck's newly updated website. He's doing some really cool stuff there now that he's free of a record label, like covering the '60s classic Velvet Underground & Nico.

Speaking of the '60s, are we done with Woodstock anniversary crap? It bugs me that a lot of people gathered at this mostly free concert to watch good bands play mostly revolutionary music, and nowadays labels take advantage of that with special nostalgia repackagings. Does that seem fair? It's preying on all the poor naive baby boomers. Come on, something's up with their heads. And it wasn't the music at the festival......so cut it out mainstream!

A Recipe

2009-08-25T12:10:00.002-05:00

Sprorange

1 cup pulp free orange juice
1 and 1/4 cup Sprite

Combine both in glass
Stir until well mixed
Enjoy

2009-08-23T10:55:00.001-05:00

Last night my band played a private party. The people were awesome, giving food, a stage, lights, and even double what we asked for.
We went in there with a 45 minute set, but we ended improvising and jamming our way through 4 or 5 songs.
It was awesome.

You Look The Best When You're Sleeping

2009-08-21T12:57:00.001-05:00

We're both wearing the same tshirt
from the night before
you left your shoes
on the house of blues floor

Its odd not to hear your laughter
and your bright eyes are closed
but i can still see a smile
going cross your face like a ghost

chorus:
you look the best when you're sleeping
far away in dreams
i hope youre dreaming you're here
close to me

And i hope you wake up soon
don't wanna disrupt your snoozing
i can feel your warmth beside me
and i think i saw your eyelids moving

Besides the sound of sunlight
its as quiet as when you speak
believe you me
you look amazing while you sleep

bridge:
Youre the best ive ever had
not to say you ever look bad
dont think i'm being sarcastic
i think you always look fantastic

chorus:
you look the best when you're sleeping
far away in dreams
i hope youre dreaming you're here
close to me

Crazy Jack!

2009-08-19T09:53:00.003-05:00

I finished Lord of the Flies recently for a homework thing. And you know what, I enjoyed it.
Through the first half I was slightly amused by an adventure story of boys on an island. Then freaky stuff started happening. I like books like this and Animal Farm, with dark endings and full of symbolism.
On another note, what is up with characters named Jack going nuts in books? Between this kid and the one in The Shining, we've got two full-on psychos. Has anybody else read a book with a crazy Jack? Do tell.

RBF!

2009-08-15T10:00:00.003-05:00

I saw Reel Big Fish/Supervillains/The English Beat last night at the House of Blues. While I must mention it was awesome overall, I'm going to review it all chronologically, band by band. Away we go!
Supervillains was mediocre. That did a good job of getting the crowd going, talking about weed and booze. It worked for them at least. But really, their songs all had the same Sublime/reggae feel, the lyrics all about weed or getting laid. And frankly, they came off like dicks.
After a short pause, The English Beat came on. And they were really good. They were a lot less horn-heavy than the other two, with only one saxophone, but the other instruments picked up the slack. Lots of grooves and skanking.I believed them when they said they'd been around for 30 years; there was a significant amount of older people to see them. So they did a really good show, god enough to make me wonder how Reel Big Fish could follow that.
Thankfully, my fears were unfounded. Simply put, Reel Big Fish kicked ass. They were spot-on for every song, playing each one I wanted to hear. Aaron was hilarious between tunes. The place was literally shaking with all the people jumping during Beer and Sellout.
Normally I'd reccommend seeing this show, but last night was the end of the tour. But you should definitely see RBF sometime. just.....awesome.

AT&T

2009-08-12T14:21:00.003-05:00

I've been in Hell, and it's called the AT&T store.
Lately, my phone has been wonky. It's one of them sliders. but the screen hasn't been turning on when I slide it up. I have to jiggle the whole thing to get some light on it.
I show up at the store this morning at ten, thinking that there couldn't be anyone else around. Wrong. There's two people being helped, and two other customers standing and waiting. It appeared that the store consists of two employees. Good Lord, I sat there for 30 minutes, watching some girl ring up an iPhone. Two elderly ladies chatted about eyebrows. Plus, there was an old guy. Sandals/socks and all. Man, I can't really describe it. But it sucked!
Then, eventually, I get helped, and it turns out they can't do a thing for me. The warranty only lasts a year, and they closed down all the repair shops because they're too pricey. Basically my phone is worthless. Now I have to renew my contract and spend $30 on a new phone. Damn.

A Song I Wrote

2009-08-08T23:55:00.002-05:00

there's an open window and i don't know why
it lets in the sun the moon stars and sky
the curtains tremble feeling the breeze
i want to close it but i have to say please
he shifts uncomfortably in his chair.
or do i mean myself, sitting over there?
really hungry, gotta get me a drink.
i'm terrified that i can hear myself think.

the air's too thin
i can't feel my hands
i'd explain but
you wouldn't understand
i'm still breathing
but i'm screaming out my lungs
don't know what's in store
no...more...fun

are those ropes i feel around my wrist?
choose: open hand or closed fist
the cushion's splitting at the seams
i've gone to too many extremes
gotta walk before i can crawl
the door knocks like a wake up call
i'm not thinking straight
this late

bridge: if you got inside my head/you wouldn't wanna be me.
if i told you my name/you wouldn't believe me.
if i showed you my face/you wouldn't wanna see me/ever again...

now it's back to that old refrain
ignoring the fact that i might be insane

Apologies

2009-08-06T21:47:00.002-05:00

It appears I was wrong about my previous post. Yea is not pronounced yay. I apologize.

AFV 9-10
Family Guy 10-11
+ Who's Line Is It Anyway? 11-12
---------------------------------------
An awesome night of TV

Some Clarification

2009-08-06T10:30:00.002-05:00

yea = an exclamation of excitement (pronounced yay) "Yea, I'm getting a raise!"

yeah = a confirmation of a statement (pronounced yai) "Yeah, I'm happy too."

"Yea, that's what I meant." = NOT OKAY
"Yeah, that's so exciting!" = NOT OKAY

'Splosion Man/Worms

2009-08-04T12:49:00.003-05:00

Thanks to the technological marvel that is the Xbox Live Arcade, I have discovered two really awesome new games.

'Splosion Man - $10
It's a 2-D platformer, Mario style. The catch: there's no jumping. You control an escaped lab experiment named, what else, 'Splosion Man. He can splode himself voluntarily, sending him airborne. If he splodes three times in the air, he falls, and has to land on the ground before he can splode again. His objective is to splode the scientists that imprisoned him. It's fantastically simple and fun. His antics as he runs around causing havoc are priceless. The game also includes a great multiplayer mode. The camera can sometimes be distracting, but it's otherwise great. 4 of 5

Worms 2: Armageddon - $10
this game has been out in many incarnations since, like, 1997 maybe? I don't know. Point is, I've played it before. And it's still ridiculously great. You control a team of four worms, complete with humorous names and falsettos. And you use these worms to blow away other worms in turn-based combat with extravagant weapons. For example, the Holy Hand Grenade. You throw it and are greeted with a "Hallelujah" worthy of the Pope. Then, it blows a crater the size of the Grand Canyon into the map. This game might be the best multiplayer ever invented, with up to four people deathmatch. No complaints. 5 of 5

Yeah.

reunion/the latest

2009-08-01T11:01:00.003-05:00

Hey there. I'm going up to Wisconsin for the weekend. My mom is one of seven siblings, and they're all getting together today. When they all have kids and full-time jobs, this is a rare event, like Haley's Comet or a good Matthew McConaughey movie. So it should be a rollicking weekend of good fun.
As far as what I'm listening on the trip (because I'm sure you were wondering), I'm really enjoying the new Band of Skulls album. They had a free song on iTunes that I enjoyed, and the album is only $6. They have a cool boy/girl call/response approach to their vocals. Also thanks to free iTunes, I listen to "1901" by Phoenix a lot. I saw them on SNL and didn't think much of it, but I'm really digging the electro-French thing. Like Daft Punk, but melodic.
Well, I'm off. Check out those bands. You probably won't be disappointed. If you are, feel free to complain below.

2009-07-27T10:21:00.005-05:00

My band has taken a week off after our show last week, what with people being out of town and such. So, I had an assignment for you: suggestions for new songs we could play. In case I haven't mentioned it, we have a 5-person horn section, so keep that in mind. To jump-start the thinking process, here's a list I've come up with.
Live And Let Die
Boss Of Me
Burning Down The House
Ants Marching
Short Skirt/Long Jacket
Ring of Fire
Somewhere In the Between
Tenth Avenue Freeze Out

So let me know what you think of those, or provide your own suggestions. Thanks!

2009-07-25T08:45:00.004-05:00

I just saw a commercial for "Monster Ballads," a four CD set of 80s hair metal slow songs. Featuring such legendary artists as Poison and Whitesnake. The ad rationalized it with "because every bad boy has his soft side."

Ew!

Who'd pay $25 for that?

A Few Lists

2009-07-24T23:43:00.002-05:00

Hey, little stuck on what to say, so I'ma write some lists.

Favorite Songs Right Now
Nicotine & Gravy - Beck
Barely Legal - The Strokes
Fake Tales of San Francisco - Arctic Monkeys
D.O.A - Jay-Z
15 Step - Radiohead

Things I Ate Today
a bowl of Cap'n Crunch
a hotdog
a Slurpee
grilled pizza
french fries

Stuff I Pulled Out Of The Ground In A Marsh
weeds
flowers
a boot
a tree
grass

Movies I Want To See
Funny People
(500) Days of Summer
Wolverine
Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland
Green Lantern

Got anything to add to these lists?

King Dork FTW

2009-07-21T11:15:00.002-05:00

Nothing particularly exciting to talk about, so I'm going to throw a book recommendation at'cha.
King Dork by Frank Portman is my favorite book. It's a comedy/mystery that is really funny and oh so true. This guy named Tom, who could just as well be me, tries to put a band together while uncovering the mystery of his dad's death years earlier. I'm not doing it justice, but it's just really really awesome. Google it.

2009-07-19T10:17:00.003-05:00

All righty, as you might know, Beck is one of my all time favorite musicians. He's just a genius, the way he shifts styles every album but stays so similar.
He's also a Scientologist, and apparently the Internet has a problem with this. Take a gander at this post on Beck's own forums:

Disconnection is a policy in scientology in which a scientologist is encouraged to sever all ties between themselves and friends, colleagues, or family members that are deemed to be critical towards scientology. Disconnection still ends many marriages, ruins close friendships and separates children from their parents.

BECK ENCOURAGES THIS

I mean, first off, this is Beck's site. Why show up to hate on him or his beliefs? Isn't there some sort of hate group website you can discuss this? Or did you feel you had to spread the truth before Beck defiled us all?
Next, what sort of proof do you have of this encouragement? Do you have an interview with him where he states such things? Now, I don't know the guy personally, but I don't think he'd encourage ruining friendships.
It makes me sick that Beck is a scapegoat for whiners, and that they have a problem with his religion in the first place. I'm sick of going to watch "Loser" on YouTube and seeing "SCientoloy is a total hox how could you support" instead of "great song." I mean, he's a musician. Talk about his music. If he starts recruiting, rant about it there. But otherwise, let's have a little seperation.
And, Internet, what is your problem with Scientology in the first place? It's a system that some people seem to honestly believe in. None of this "tax scam/alien" (pardon me) bullshit. No matter how it may have started, the religion has meant something to lots of people. That's fine by me.
Bottom line: Beck sees Scientology as "just a real deep grassroots concerted effort for humanitarian causes." Something that helps people. Meanwhile, he continues to make kick-ass music. So pardon me while I listen to Odelay, Scientology or not.

Readers, feel free to answer any of these rhetorical questions.

2009-07-18T10:38:00.003-05:00

Performing is fantastic.
The battle was last night. And we were awesome. We went on second, after a band that was supposedly made up of eighth graders but could have been four years old, considering they were singing Led Zeppelin. They had a pretty good crowd going, but the tent was packed by the time we went on. There might have been 250 people. It was a good sign that people cheered just at the mention of "The Sidekicks" during the mic check.
But, man, once we started going, we had the crowd in the palms of our collective hands. Jumping around, yelling, bantering. They cheered after every song. And a couple times between songs. I was ready to collapse when we walked off. Being exciting is tiring. Everyone was in top form, and we just locked together. Here's our set. You can look up the originals, but it just won't be the same.

Everybody Needs Somebody To Love
Vehicle
Impression That I Get
Twisting
Johnny B. Goode
Got To Get You Into My Life
Chelsea Dagger
Sellout

Check out some pictures here.
So despite our goodness, the band after us was superior. They did a similar thing to the first band, but with deep voices, and they won. No one's really upset, because we still got $50.
I'm way too excited still to write about competently. Sorry. But thanks to you if you were there. What did you think?

Commercial Gripes

2009-07-17T16:28:00.002-05:00

I'm getting pretty tired of hearing "today's economy" in ads promoting a store's supposedly "recession proof" prices. We get. The economy is bad. Do you need to pound that into our subconscious?
It's not like these stores are lowering their prices just for us. The prices stay the same, and now they use fear of an economic apocalypse as an advertising strategy.
"Yeah, times are tough, but ice cream is still cheap. Thank God for cheap ice cream, right? Everybody?.....stimulus plan....."
Look, I thank you for your cheap prices, but don't pretend you're doing anything special. It's "Everyday Low Prices" as always.

Cliches

2009-07-16T19:12:00.003-05:00

I was in a coffee shop, distributing flyers for a show my band is doing. I asked the girl behind the counter if I could put one up on a window or something, when she asked what the flyer was for. I told her. She replied with a full-on heavy metal salute, tongue out, devil horns blazing. I chuckled awkwardly, gave her a flyer, and exited.
Is it too much to ask that the term "Battle of the Bands" be annihilated from mass culture? The image conjured up by that series of words is one that every performer would rather avoid: a few high school blockheads in a cramped cafeteria, trying to be louder than the band before them. Even the word "battle" brings up conflicts that I don't think belong in music. It's been the plot of many sitcoms that locals bands sabotage one another for some sort of prize. I hope that most people participating in these sort of things aren't into it to compete; they want to put on a cool show. It's the culmination of a period of practice, and they just want to sound good. I view these events not as battles, but as showcases for those involved.
Of course, I have no necessary substitute that is as catchy as the original. So I need your help. Suggestions for an alternate? Or would you rather keep the "Battle" phrase?

Other Blogs/Chicago Today

2009-07-16T11:10:00.003-05:00

Just like to mention that I put a list of some other good "local" blogs. Blogs by people I know, with small readerships that I figure you should check out right over there. --->
Not much to mention today. I'm going to downtown Chicago with the rest of the family. Maybe see Millennium Park, maybe go to some shops, etc. I'll let you know how it was.