Muerte Las Vegas

So this past week my friends and I took our annual trip to the oasis in the desert known as Las Vegas, NV. Another 72 hour alcohol binge including looking at girls and gambling far beyond time and logic would allow. I am generally the best casino gambler of all of my friends. I really haven't lost in a really long time. This time I was up $500 after the first night, only to end up giving it all back and then some. I just wanted to share a few highlights/opinions about Las Vegas. A funny story or two and some observations.

One of my friends and I had to share a bed one night. We had 2 beds and three of us so we decided that we would each get a night alone while the other two bunked up. So the first night I decided I wanted to save the $500 that I had won. We the friend who I happened to be sharing the bed with decided to go to the Spearmint Rhino (in my opinion the best strip club in the world). Well he came back several hours later drunk and... Well... charged lets say. He in his sleep thought I was the stripper that he fell in love with (everyone who goes to the Rhino falls in love that night). I had to wake him up a few times because he was touching me in his sleep (rubbing my back, touching my face). I had to really wake him up and yell at him when he started rubbing my hip. That wasn’t going to fly. The shock on his face was priceless. My other friend was just psyched he slept alone that night.

The strongest myth that Las Vegas has going for it isn’t what ever happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. The strongest thing it has is that everyone gets laid. My friends and I discussed this a bunch. There were tons of groups of males who all thought they were going to get laid out in Vegas. Whether they did or didn't as long as that myth stays true, the planes will always have more males than females.

Yes, i know how to play craps. Its my favorite thing to do at casinos. Just because i am playing it and standing alone at the table, it doesn’t mean I want to teach you how to play.

If you are winning money playing a game, don’t try and play the same game at a higher limit. It goes fast.

Girls in Vegas are hotter at night and in the casinos than they are in the day at the pool. The girls really know how to show off and hide things better in skirts than they do bathing suits.

Hard Rock Cafe was a pleasant surprise. I didn’t love the room or the people that worked their. But its great to be there at night and when you play in the casino its great to hear good rock songs instead of Top 40 (Palms), 80s (Mandalay Bay), or nothing at all (Belagio). Some of the cool stuff they had around. They had an amazing showcase of Beatles items. Not so much their clothing or instruments, but instead a great collection of dolls, posters, lunch boxes, games, anything to you can think of. Not that I didn't know already but it was a great display of how huge they were. They also had a great showcase of Slash's stuff, a great homage to punk and my favorite was the Sublime showcase. They had the piece of paper with the lyrics to Bad Fish in there.

Meat heads are the worst.

Tao is considered the hottest club in Vegas right now. They made my friend buy and ugly shirt at the Banana Republic before we went in. Then the bouncer wanted to see how close attention the ID checker was paying. He had me and my friend (who looks nothing like me) switch ids. The kid saw his ID and said to him... Chicago! (my friend is from Westchester) and then he said that my ID wasn’t me. I then explained the switch. He wasn’t happy but it was pretty funny. Tao is a crowded shit show. The best thing about it is there are randomly topless (but still covered by flowers) girls everywhere. They are bathing together in the middle of the dance floor; they give each other back rubs on a bed. They dance in their lingerie above the dance floor. That is something I miss about being a club go-er vs. a dive bar guy. Music of choice at Tao- dirty south hip hop.

I will always be more impressed with a guy’s story telling me he got head for free than i will him purchasing one.

The last day we were so beat and just wanted to come home. The flight was miserable and my elevator was broken when i got home form being in the worst cab driver of all times car. The weirdest part of the day however was at the airport. A man in a TSA uniform came up to me with a computer bag told me to take the bag through security with me. I started doing so, but expressed my concern to my friend and the security guard at our checkpoint. They thought it was weird to. The man then came back and said a sarcastic 'thanks a lot' and walked away. Very strange.

Nobu and Prime are great restaurants. Prime is very hard to drink on after. We were the youngest people at Prime which was fairly conservative. There were more hot girls at Nobu than anywhere (besides the Rhino) in Las Vegas.

Ghost Bar is still my favorite bar out there. They care about their list and the people aren't douchey. The outside area cant be beat. Granted the drinks are expensive at any other place. The outside area and the view of the Las Vegas (both old and new is amazing). Also granted, I have an amazing hook up over there so I never pay or wait in line. I def prefer lounges to clubs. Music of choice at Ghost Bar- hip hop, techno, and popular bar songs (Billy Jean, Usher... not as good when that happens).

Famous People- at dinner we saw Emeka Okafor. It was hard to enjoy that since he dominated 'Cuse while at UCONN. Wanderlei Silva (UFC), Kevin Federline (phat), Kevin Dillon (Johnny Drama). It was Kevin Dillon's birthday but the Victory t- shirt and yelling Victory at the Hard Rock pool during Rehab was lame.

Last but not least, thank god I live so far from that place. I generally go 1-2 times a year to Vegas. If i lived in LA it would probably be 6-8 times.

When you are on your way home... you hate Las Vegas.

I love/hate Las Vegas. I am so glad to be home, but I can't wait to go back.

The Shot Only Heard In San Francisco

Today is Wednesday, August 8, 2007. Last night Barry Bonds hit home run 756, making him the most prolific home run hitter Major League Baseball has ever seen.[1]

Now, the whole world can talk to you about steroids. The whole world can talk to you about the guy was a jerk even when he was a slim base stealer in Pittsburgh.[2] The thing that most amazed me is the actual cultural implications 756th home run should have had versus what it did have.

Sure, football is the reigning king of American sports... But people really love baseball. It’s the summer time, it’s our dads and granddads, it’s the thought that just maybe our favorite player will hit a homerun while you are at the game when you are 10. Americans fell in love with Sammy Sosa and Mark McGuire in 1998.[3] The whole country was cheering them on. It brought us back, after baseball tanked following the strikes.

When I was a kid I could not imagine another man's name being even near the names Mays, Ruth and Aaron... Let alone above them. This should have been the greatest sports day that didn't include someone winning a championship. This should have been the talk at every water cooler in every business in America. I work with a couple really good sports fans.[4] I am currently on the train heading back into the city after work and its little after 7. I have spoke to dear friends from Chicago. I have spoke to dear friends from New York. I have spoke to friends with whom sports consumes most of our conversation.[5] I didn't get a call from my dad to talk about it. I have spoke to no one about it.

I'm not saying that I am sad about it... I am simply saying this should have been a day where we all talk about where we were when we heard a la 9/11, the moon landing, JFK's murder, the Beatles on Ed Sullivan! Instead it’s a day that we say nothing about it. That saddens me. Not because I like Barry Bonds... Because I don't (I don't really dislike him either).[6] It saddens me that this whole steroids cloud is ruining this day. It saddens me that I need to wait for ARod and Albert Pujols to make this cloud go away.

---

[1] Personally I didn't know this until I was watching Mike & Mike this morning, I was asleep last night. And regardless of the steroids or not, he has hit more home runs than anyone else.
[2] If you were a young boy in the 80s you remember Bonds, Bonilla and Van Slyke, break up the Pirates!
[3] Again no steroid talk today
[4] And some women who couldn't care less.
[5] Unless we are out drinking – then we just have fun.
6] I still see him as a great, possible greatest, player that happened to play in a tainted era.

BOYCOTT BP

This week I found out about the fact that the EPA & the state of Indiana have given a British Petroleum refinery an exemption from dumping laws. They are going to be dumping mercury, ammonia and more industrial sludge directly into Lake Michigan. Of course as a Chicagoan, this is not something that I can get behind. I ask that everyone who reads this please, please, please boycott BP. I spent too many summer days going to the lake to just sit passively. Please read the article and fill out the petition. The petition takes 2 seconds to do and you don’t need to live in Chicago to have your voice heard!

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-mercury_27jul27,1,141534.story

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/savelakemichigan/

Lollapalooza 2007 Study Guide

FRIDAY

HYPE AT SXSW ALERT

The Fratellis (11:45-12:30)

Glasgow, Scotland

Indie/lo fi

This band was talked about big at SXSW. Not quite like Mika or Amy Winehouse but they got a lot of hype. They seem to be rising quickly through ranks of the different size venues.

Who Does It Appeal To?

Indie kids

Pop punk fans

Younger crowd

You Will Like It If:

You like Whitestar, The Strokes, Jet, The Vines

If Wolfmother is too hard trio for you

Pros: fun show

Cons: semi annoying

Download This:

Flathead (you know this from the new iTunes adds)

Chelsea Dagger

BOYCOTT THIS BAND!!!! ALERT

Illinois (12:00-12:30)

Bucks County, PA

The band is good. The band is really good. The manager is a prick. He led me on like he was going to sign with Rock Ridge Music, before he decided to insult me, my business and my business model. He talks down to people even in doing business. I will not be going to see this band. Hopefully none of you will either.

NEXT BIG THING? ALERT

Ghostland Observatory (12:30-1:30)

Austin, TX

Electo/Indie

Talk of the music industry/fans that follow bands under the radar. A lot of writers and industry schmoes think this could be the next band to break out. They are where the Cold War Kids were a year ago. Another band who got big hype at SXSW this year.

Who Does It Appeal To?

Indie kids

Hispters

Dance music fans

You Will Like It If:

You wanna see the possible next big thing

You wanna dance right away at Lollapalooza

Pros: Could be the next big thing

Cons: The show is really early for a relatively unknown

Download This:

Sad Sad City

SOUL ALERT

Soulive (12:30-1:30)

New York, NY

Jazz/instrumental

Former members of Supergrub and Ben Kenney’s Division group. Press doesn’t love them, they aren’t overly hip but they are really good. They have worked with everyone form Anthony Hamilton to Goapele to Incubus.

Who Does It Appeal To?

Fans of Stax, Booker T & The M.G.s

Hippies

You Will Like It If:

You like instrumentals

You like Robert Randolph

Pros: amazing musicians

Cons: can get a little slow

Download This:

Joyful Girl

Crosstown Traffic (Hendrix Cover)

BLUES ALERT

Charlie Musselwhite (2:15-3:00)

Clarksdale, MS

Blues

This guy is a the lead singer and harmonica player for a blue quartet from the Mississippi Delta. He is amazing. I went to see him a little over year ago and had a blast.

Who Does It Appeal To?

Harmonica Fans

Blues Fans

Hippies

You Will Like It If:

You like vocals from the Sopranos Theme (not him but deep like that)

You like old men

You like the blues brothers

Pros: amazing musicians

Cons: not the most exciting show

Download This:

Clarksdale Boogie

Black Water

MY FAVORITE NEW BAND

Silversun Pickups (5:00-6:00)

Los Angeles, CA

Indie/alternative

This is my favorite new band. They use a lot of distortion and the singer is a dude… but sounds like a girl. They use both hard rock sounds and indie alternative sounds at the same time. This is one of the bands I am most excited to see the whole weekend. Very abstract lyrics but still really cool.

Who Does It Appeal To?

Indie kids

Hipsters

Hard rock kids

Grey’s Anatomy Fans (Lazy Eye was in an episode)

Conan O’brien Fans (Conan is such a big fan they have been on 4 times since September)

You Will Like It If:

You like distortion

You like guys who sing like girls

You like Metric or Smashing Pumpkins

You like mid-90s style college rock

Pros: very fun show, awesome record

Cons: singers voice isn’t as good live and gets a little screamy at times

Download This:

Future Foe Scenarios

Well Thought Out Twinkles

Lazy Eye

Melatonin

Checkered Floor

I KNOW VERY LITTLE ABOUT THIS BAND

Satellite Party (6:30-7:30)

Los Angeles, CA

Dance Rock

I don’t really know much about this band other that Perry Ferrell (formerly of Jane’s Addiction and runs Lollapalooza is the singer). His vocals are great the music is very simple dance beats.

Who Does This Appeal To?

Dance kids

Indie Hipsters

You Will Like It If:

You like 80s music

You like music that’s weird to be weird

Pros: Perry Ferrell

Cons: Fergie sings in one of the songs

BROOKLYN’S DANCE PARTY BAND

LCD Soundsystem (7:30-8:30)

Brooklyn, NY

Dance Rock/techno

I have seen this band a whole bunch… it’s a blast. The last time I saw them was a year and a half ago and no one watched the stage, the whole club danced. You have heard some of these songs with out realizing it.

Who Does This Appeal To?

Dance kids

Indie hipsters

You Will Like It If:

You like to dance

If you like bands but also like Daft Punk and Bob Sinclair

Pros: Shows are a blast

Cons: don’t know if it will translate well outdoors

Download This:

Daft Punk Is Playing At My House

Yr Citys A Sucker

SATURDAY

HILARIOUS BAND ALERT (Chas: The Epitome of Luna Duna Fluna People)

I’m From Barcelona (11:45-12:30)

Jonkoping, Sweeden

Twee Choir

For those of you who don’t know what Twee is, think of Polyphonic Spree. Even better think of the old Coca Cola commercial with all the people singing “I’d like to teach the world to sing in perfect harmony!” Its the happiest form of music. So happy that its hilarious. There are 20 some odd people in this band.

Who Does This Appeal To?

Hipsters (the non brooding kind)

People who like to dress like they are 40 years older than they are

You Will Like It If:

You can listen without taking it seriously and just enjoy the hilariousness

Pros: its fun

Cons: its embarrassing

Download This:

We’re From Barcelona

CANADIAN INDIE ALERT

Tokyo Police Club (12:45-1:30)

Newmarket, Ontario

Indie/Garage/Pop Punk

This is a good band. They are a lot like a lot of the hip indie lo fi stuff that is out there right now. They don’t try to be cool, they actually celebrate their nerdiness, especially the guy who does shout vocals and plays the keys. This band has been in the music businesses radar for a while especially after CMJ and SXSW this year. I tried signing them but they graciously declined.

Who Does This Appeal To?

Indie kids

Canadians

Maybe some emo types

You Will Like It If:

You like to know bands that no one knows

Pros: songs are quick and fun

Cons: literally end suddenly, too suddenly

Download This:

Nature Of The Experiments

Your English Is Good

CANADIAN INDIE THAT I AM TRYING TO SIGN ALERT

Sam Roberts Band (2:15-300)

Montreal, Quebec

Indie/Classic Rock

This band is excellent. They combine the singer songwriter sound with 70’s style rock. They used to just be called Sam Roberts but they added ‘Band’ because he kept getting booked on singer songwriter tours a la Ike Reilly’s initial problem. I am in the process of trying to sign this band and I will likely watch their show with their manager but still in the crowd. I encourage you to join they are awesome.

Who Does This Appeal Too?

Canadians

Indie kids

Girls who like rock music

Classic rock fans

You Will Like It If:

You like guitars

You wanna see what I am trying to sign

Pros: great musicians, catchy songs

Cons: Show is only 45 minutes

Download This:

An American Draft Dodger In Thunder Bay

Mystified, Heavey

Brother Down (a fan favorite)

Mind Flood (usually the last song he plays, bet you cant stand still during the second half)

Bridge to Nowhere

CURRENT KINGS OF THE INDIE WORLD ALERT

Cold War Kids (3:30-4:30)

Los Angeles, CA

Indie with blues and soul influences

I tried signing these guys about a year and half ago and they graciously declined. They got the money they were looking for and they deserve it. Lisa and I went to see them on our second date. We have watched them rise from playing in front of 100 people (opening for SoundTeam) to selling out 1,500 person venues easily to opening for MUSE at Madison Square Garden. Alec and I saw them last year there were maybe 40 people watching… that will change this year I am sure. These guys have an amazing record and are awesome live. If you have never seen them, or you don’t know their music, you owe it to yourself.

Who Does This Appeal To?

Indie kids

Blues fans

People who love a good show

You Will Like It If?

You like original sounds

You like non instruments used in songs (Pelegrino Bottle used in St. Johns)

Pros: The signer spends a lot of time behing a piano, so the guitar and bassist really put on a show

Cons: Honestly… none this is a great band

Download This:

Hang Me Out To Dry (you may know this song but live its great)

We Used To Vacation (amazing lyrics about his alcoholic father)

St. John (song about college boys who get drunk, fight, someone dies and someone goes to jail… Let’s Go O-range!)

Red Wine, Success

Hospital Beds

Tell Me In The Morning

QUEEN OF INDIE FOLLOW UP ALERT

Regina Spektor (5:30-6:30)

Brooklyn, NY

Indie

She is currently the face for female indie music. While Amy Winehouse is getting the press (that Regina has been getting for two years) Regina is still out selling her. I have never seen her but she is supposed to be good live.

Who Does This Appeal To?

Indie girls

Hipsters

You Will Like It If:

You like the piano music

You like break up songs

Pros: Good songwriter

Cons: She plays at the same time as The Hold Steady

Download This:

Fidelity

On The Radio

MIDWESTERN BAR ROCK ALERT

The Hold Steady (5:30-6:30)

St. Paul, MN/Chicago, IL/Brooklyn, NY

Indie/Bar Rock

This band is kinda cool in its own way. It sounds like a normal indie bar rock band, but its not. The singer… doesn’t really sing. He kinda just tells stories. He sounds a lot like your friend at the bar who has had too much to drink and is telling you about an encounter he had with the underbelly of society. They sing about people and situations that would make Ike Reilly proud. Whiskey soaked blues/punk.

Who Does This Appeal To?

Guys who would rather drink at a bar like the Murphy’s than a bar like the one at Sofitel.

People from Minnesota

You Will Like It If:

You like Ike Reilly

Jack Daniels

Pros: Fun

Cons: He doesn’t really sing, plays at the same time as Regina Spektor

Download This:

Your Little Hoodrat Friend

Hornets! Hornets!

Chicago Seemed Tired Last Night

GREY’S ANATOMY ALERT

Snow Patrol (6:30-7:30)

Belfast, Northern Ireland/Dundee, Scotland

Alt pop

I don’t know a ton about this band other than what Kim plays here at my office. I do know that every single music blog in the world talks about how much the show Grey’s Anatomy loves this band. In my opinion it makes sense why. They make dramatic songs not too dissimilar from Tavis or Coldplay. I also know that Abbye is a fan of some of their songs, and I only know that from away messages haha. Though this band leans that way,

Who Does This Appeal To?

Fans of alternative pop

Fans of softer rock

You Will Like It If:

Travis, Coldplay, Grey’s Anatomy, Gin Blossoms, Nick Drake

Pros: Great song writers

Cons: Don’t know how exciting their show will be

Download This:

Open Your Eyes

Chasing Cars

INDIE ICON ALERT

Spoon (7:30- 8:30)

Austin, TX

Indie/Alternative

These guys have been a big name in the indie world for almost 15 years. They have likely influenced several of the bands that will be playing at Lollapalooza. They have a a great sound made up of part indie alt with some brit sounding lyrics. I have never seen them but have a great live show reputation.

Who Does This Appeal To?

Indie kids

Fans of live music

You Will Like It If:

You like Lollapalooza

Pros: influential song writers, good live

Cons: they released an album this week so I don’t know the music to help

Download This:

I Tune My Camera On

They Never Got You

The Way We Get By

The Underdog

LOLLAPALOOZA’S BIGEST IMPORT ALERT

MUSE (8:30-10)

Devon, England

Indie/hard rock/theatrical rock

As far as record sales and ticket sales go, this is Europe’s biggest band that isn’t called U2. They were the first band to sell out the new Wembley Stadium (90,000/night)… two nights in a row. They use a lot of distortion and play some very catchy songs.

Who Does This Appeal To?

Indie kids

Hard rock kids

Maybe some emo kids

You Will Like It If:

You like older/harder Radiohead

You like MRNORTH’s harder stuff

A less emo version of My Chemical Romance

Download This:

Time Is Running Out

Stockholm Syndrome

Hysteria

Thoughts of a Dying Atheist

SUNDAY

CELEBRITY BAND ALERT

Juliette & The Licks (11:30-12:15)

Los Angeles, CA

Rock/indie punk

I don’t know anything about this band other than Juliette Lewis is the lead singer. All I know is at a few festivals they have covered The Stooges. The only reason to see this literally may be to see a celeb.

ROCK RIDGE MUSIC ALERT

MRNORTH (12:30-1:15)

Dublin, Ireland/Queens, NY

Rock/hard rock/pop rock/theatrical rock

Well, as many of you know, this is my favorite band that I work with… they are also some very good friends of mine. They are super talented and are great songwriters. There is nothing more to say or I will be gushing like we are talking about Abbye’s principal at her Sheppard graduation… hhahaha.

Who Does This Appeal To:

People who like me

Fans of well written music

Fans of pop rock

You will like it if:

You like Jeff Buckley, Incubus, U2, Radiohead, MUSE

Pros: great songs, great show

Cons: SHOW IS TOO EARLY AND TOO SHORT!!!

Download This: Purchase This:

Let Me In (great pop rock song)

Start From A (most incubus-esque track)

Wastin’ (the story of a man who drinks too much)

Silver Mouth (anit- Bush track)

Player (catchiest new song)

So Many Things (this albums single)

Sleeping Dogs (ballad)

Waking The Dead (hard rock song)

For The Cheater & The Cheated (first song they wrote after Colin broke up with his girl)

HYPE ALERT

Amy Winehouse (2:15-3:15)

London, England

Soul/r&b

She looks like and indie rock chick… but she sounds like a soul throwback. I saw her at SXSW and she came out so drunk that she barely played… I don’t know much else about her.

Download This:

Rehab

ICON ALERT

Iggy & The Stooges (4:15- 5:15)

Ann Arbor, MI

Punk/hard rock

He is one of the most influential artiest ever. The Stooges were more or less the first punk band. When they came out they were just considered a rock band of course we know better than this now. Lisa and I saw him live about 3 months ago… the energy is so high he sounded so great you would never guess he was 60!

Who Does This Appeal To?

Classic rock fans

Punk fans

Musical icons

You Will Like It If:

You like a great showman… he doesn’t stop moving

Pros: high energy, super fun

Cons: at the same time as Kings of Leon (cruelest overlap of the year)

Download This:

1969 (Iggy discusses being 21 and bored)

I Wanna Be Your Dog (Iggy makes a drunken booty call)

Search & Destroy (his most famous song)

Raw Power

My Idea Of Fun (written through GW’s eyes

End Of Christianity

No Fun

ARE THEY REALLY ON DURING THE STOOGES ALERT

Kings of Leon (4:15- 5:15)

Mt. Juliet, TN

Southern rock/bluesy rock/indie rock

This is one of my favorite new bands. They are whiskey soaked southerners who are all brothers (and one cousin). Their dad (and uncle) is a Pentecostal Minister. Of course with that type of house hold they all turned in to substance abusing, man whores and that’s what every single one of their songs is about. Literally. They are fun as long as you can get past how different his singing voice is, some people can’t.

Who Does This Appeal To?

Indie kids

Younger crowd

Indie girls

Southern rock fans

You Will Like It If:

You like to Jack Daniels

You like to dance, in a more rock/country way than the electronic stuff

You like Hold Steady, Silversun Pickups

Pros: Fun show, wise ass lyrics

Cons: at the same time as Iggy & The Stooges (cruelest overlap of the year)

Download This:

Milk (Abbye and My jame from Spain a couple years ago)

Molly’s Chamber (you will recognize if from a Jetta commercial a couple years ago)

Soft (song about a struggle he is having after getting too drunk and bringing a girl home)

The Bucket

Taper Jean Girl (aka Lisa Romoff haha)

Slow Night, So Long

King Of the Rodeo

Trani (same idea as the Kinks- Lola)

Knocked Up (not as whiskey soaked new song influenced from being on the road with U2 and Pearl Jam for the past year)

BEST UNDER THE RADAR SONG OF THE FIRST HALF OF 2007

Peter Bjorn & John (5:00-6:00)

Stockholm, Sweeden

Indie pop/electric

I don’t have much to say other than they have the best song of the first half of 2007.

Who Does This Appeal To:

Indie kids

Hipsters

Emo kids

You Will Like It If:

You like Serge Gainsbourg and Bridget Bardot’s Bonnie & Clyde

Pro: great song

Con: possible one hit wonder

Download This:

Young Folks (song about a guy and girl who just are in love and care only about eachother)

FUN DANCE BAND ALERT

!!! (5:15-6:15)

New York, NY

Indie dance music

The bands is pronounced (chk chk chk). I have seen them before for an explanation see Day 1 LCD Soundsytem.

Who Does This Appeal To:

Dance kids

Gay guys

You Will Like It If:

You literally wanna dance like you are at a club for an hour straight

Pros: way fun

Cons: gets redundant

Download This:

Me And Giuliani Down By The Schoolyard (this song is dedicated stupid and insulting law that Giuliani made outlawing dancing in bars unless the bar buys a cabaret license.)

BEST SONG OF 2006 ALERT

TV on the Radio (7:15- 8:00)

New York, NY

Indie rock/trip hop/electric

This band is def a one hit wonder. I am not a fan of their record but they have a definite hit that was the best indie song of 2006. The band is a bunch of black dudes and they do have some trip hop sounds but this def not the Roots, this is a rock band. David Bowie has been known to help them on stage before as well.

Who Does This Appeal To?

Indie kids

You Will Like It If:

You liked most of the things at Lollapalooza, especially Cold War Kids, Silversun Pickups, Peter Bjorn & John

Pros: supposed to put on a great show

Cons: on song noticeably stronger than the rest

Download This:

Wolf Like Me (song about a man who at night turns into a warewolf and he explains to a girl that she has it in her too)

The Marble Index Go To Rock Ridge

The Marble Index Go To Rock Ridge

07/12/07
.
(PR) Hamilton, Ontario-based trio The Marble Index have signed with Rock Ridge Music. Their sophomore record, “Watch Your Candles, Watch Your Knives,” is scheduled for release in the United Stated on October 9th. The album was recorded at Hamilton, Ontario’s Catharine North Studios, with producer Scott Shields (the Mescaleros, G.U.N.) at the helm.

Says band guitarist/vocalist Brad Germain: “We are pumped about signing with Rock Ridge. Getting our songs released in the U.S. by people that are behind what we're doing has always been what we were after.”

Says Rock Ridge A&R Manager Ben Miller: "With songs such as 'All That I Know' and 'We Always Complain,' The Marble Index grabs their listeners with hard- hitting, catchy rock songs that reminds you of everything you love about rock 'n' roll.”

How To Deal With With A Conservative When You Must

If you know me at all, you know that I cannot stand Ann Coulter. She is a condescending, high horse siting, strangely angry woman, who's politics are so black and white that she often makes a penguin look like a bird of the tropics. I have seen several interviews with her and they all have one thing in common. She talks over the person asking questions, she doesn't answer the questions and gets defensive and attacks the person interviewing her.

Now I have never been the man show type. I don't watch the show really so I don't really know anything about Adam Corolla. However, I now find him to be a great guy. Good work buddy. You took care of the person who pisses me off more than anyone else in the political media.

Here's The Hate On The States

As I write this, the United States Men's National Soccer team is playing in the Copa America. Copa America is South America's international championship. For those of you who don't know,[1] the United States MNT just won the Gold Cup, which is the North American championship. The only reason they were in this Copa America was because they were the special invite.[2]

The fact of the matter is you have to feel bad for the US guys during this type of tournament. Not because they have lost 3-1 to both Paraguay and Argentina. I mean because I have decided the US MNT is the most hated team in the world. Here are the reasons that I think this is true.

1. Politics- I don’t need to fill you in here. People hate this country. This isn’t thanks to G.W., this has been the case for a long time. Like the Yankees of the free world. America is loved and America is hated. People love when good things happen to us. People cheer against us.
2. Not Our Sport- Its annoying when the world beats us at basketball. But the world loves to beat us at in soccer because this is their game. We are just viewed as the new kid that wants to play their game. Not to mention we aren’t really on their level yet.
3. No Fans- How can a team that doesn’t have fans get love or respect from someone else’s? When was that last time you found yourself casually cheering for the Kansas City Royals?

They get booed more mercifully than anyone I have ever heard in sports. They always have a fan in me though. I can already see they aren’t going to advance in the Copa but I am still proud of they way they continuously handle themselves with class. This goes for American fans too. When the Untied States plays you often can’t hear the ‘Star Spangled Banner’ because of the boos. I know the American fans would never do that. Once again proving that the overweight, frat boy society that we live in will is the class of the free world.

---

[1] And I am guessing that’s almost all of you

[2] Mexico, who the US beat to win Gold Cup was invited as well

Best Songs Of The First Half Of 2007

So this weekend marks the end of the first half of 2007. It has been quite a year so far. My Bears played in their first Super Bowl in 21 years, we have learned who is who in the future presidential primaries, Paris has gone to jail, Imus lost his job and Florida has won everything. Musically for me i find myself listening to less and less hard stuff and more and more indie stuff. Oh no... I'm an indie kid.

Any way, here are my favorite songs of 2007 in no order:

Peter Bjorn & John- Young Folks

"if I told you things i did before
told you how I used to be
would you go along with someone like me "

Young Folks is a electronic folk song that seems to get catchier each time you listen to it. The electronic drums, male & femal vocals, sing along chorus, but most of all the whistling hook. It brings to mind an updated version of Serge Gainsbourg & Bridget Bardot's Bonnie & Clyde.

Queens of the Stone Age- Turning on the Screw

"You got a question? Please don’t ask, it
Puts the lotion in the basket
You say bigger’s better but bigger's bigger
White boy dressed up like a figure
Drawn inside a toilet on the wall
The world is round my square won’t fit at all"

Sometimes a band comes out with a song that is such a good example of their own music that it amazes me. Kinda like Guns 'N Roses- Mr. Brownstone, The Smith's- How Soon Is Now?, Social Distortion- Cold Feelings and so on. When I first grabbed a copy of Era Vulgaris, I went straight to the song Make It Wit Chu since I wanted to hear the changes from Desert Sessions. Then i went back to teh beginning. When this song was at about 0:17 I said, "wow this sounds like QOTSA" to one of my co workers. The guitars seem to swirl around your head when you listen to it and the melody of Josh Homme's voice seems to hang above you and put you in a trance. The lyrics in this song are twisted and as dizzy as the instruments.

Kings of Leon- Knocked Up

"who'll call us renegade
Feel like we're living crazy
We like taking on the town
Some people getting lazy
I don't care what nobody says, no
I'm gonna be her lover
Always mad and usually drunk
But I love her like no other."

I'll admit it, I liked the other two albums better. However, the second the first song on the new Because of the Times, I knew that I was going to love this song. The lyrics are great, the music is great. Of all of the new songs, it for the first time was pretty obvious that they have been spending time on the road with Pearl Jam and U2. The guys proved they had grown up but I have to admit I do miss the more whiskey soaked sounds from Aha Shake, Hearbreak.

The Stooges- My Idea of Fun

"They break your skin, when you're a kid
They steal your soul, and keep it hid
And that is why, I hate mankind"

The thing I love about this song, is how much the Stooges stayed to their roots. I love the New York Dolls, but their new record sounds like a new record. Weirdness could have been a Stooges record 40 years ago! Sex, drugs, violence everything that you would expect from a song fronted by Iggy Pop. He hasn't lost a step at all. When I saw him live, I could not believe this man was 60!

Emily Haines & The Soft Skeleton- Crowd Surf Off a Cliff

"Cursed with a love that you can't express
It's not for a fuck or a kiss
Rather give the world away than wake up lonely
Everywhere in everyway, I see you with me."

The words are beautiful. The piano is beautiful. The singer is beautiful. This song grabs your right when it starts. The piano so simple forces emotion out of you and almost makes you scared. It's sexy. It's sad. I love this song. I don't know if its better in a low key lounge setting, or if you are home from the lounge back in your bed enjoying the fruits of a successful night on the prowl.

JJ Grey & Mofro- Circles

"So please forgive me for what some other man did too you
Before I came along
Cuz I don't want to go on fighting and fussing over something
I can't change at all
There's no way I can change the past or your pain
I don't want to fight walking in circles
I'm not the one who hurt you so deep down
Let's start a new now walking in circles"

This song actually wins the timing award. I learned about this band from a co worker right while I was really into a southern bluesy sound and these guys are like the Black Crowes. Some people call them a "front porch soul" band. Really they are a great blues band that gets funky whent hey need to. They have a great strings section and JJ kills it on the organ.

The Game Is Half Over

I am a pessimistic sports fan. Basically I see every game... no... every situation in every game as Murphy's Law. For example, I almost always think the next pitch to the other team is going to be a home run. I can't help it. My New York friends don't really mind because the only team we share is Syracuse. My Chicago friends get annoyed with me about it. They blame things on me because I am negative energy and they remind me I am a "half empty" guy when we win games.

Perfect example happened to night. The Cubs were winning the whole game and went into the top of the 9th where the Rockies scored 6 runs to take the lead. I predicted the 3 run home run that gave Colorado the lead. Then I text messaged my friend.

"Way to close the game out guys... good work."

The response I got was, "one game against the Rockies? Big deal you're just torturing yourself."

Moments later, Soriano hit the game winner. My friend then texted me again, before my viewing on MLB.tv on the internet showed me the game winner.

"Cubs win... you suck... letting one inning dictate your emotions."

Well, he has a point. I get caught up in my teams. I wouldn't say it ruins my day when they lose, but I will say I'm much happier when they win.

The Social Right & The Social Left

On Friday, I went to a club called La Boucarou in the East Village for a birthday party. I need this place explained to me. It was such a shit show. First of all, luckily we get there early enough that we didn't have to wait in line. Yes there were velvet ropes. Nothing sends me screaming in the other direction quite like velvet ropes.[1] Ok, so the décor was unoriginal, you weren’t even allowed to sit unless you bought a bottle, the music sucked. Not even like bad southern hip hop sucked, like Fergie sucked. To make matters even worse, a huge percentage of the tools there were for a white party. These kids were acting like big balers at the lame club, with bad music, wearing white pants, white blazers and white shoes.

So my question to the people who run this establishment, work the door and the kids in the white… why this place? Why should someone wait in line for shit decour, lame music, expensive drinks, douchy uncreative kids? And don’t say because of the girls that were there because frankly there weren’t that many girls there let alone good looking ones. This is why my friends don’t go to these types of places.

This weekend I went to my first MMA event. It was Cage Fury Fighting Championship. Which is about as cheesy as the term extreme sports or half the names for all of the professional wrestling leagues. Any way before I talk about the fight a few observations on the people at this thing and remember its Atlantic City, New Jersey:

The Males

• Flat rimmed baseball hats
• Cursing
• Ogling and discussing what they would do to certain females
• Drunk
• Tons of people claiming to be friends with one or more of the fighters
• Wearing t shirts from the fighters, their gyms or UFC guys
• Club hair
• Diamond earrings
• Thick accents, even if they have never been to New York

The Females

• Played the gender role of the hunted
• Short skirts
• Shorter cut shirts
• Comically large implants
• Stripper heels
• Drunk
  
• Hair coloring in various streaks and colors
• Hanging on a guy with all of the above

Now as you can probably guess this isn’t my type of people from either gender, but I have to admit I had a great time with them. I like to think I’m hip in my own way and a dork in my own way. The people at the event probably didn’t understand me either and I am totally cool with that.

The crowd was actually a larger age range than I expected. Everything from dad's with kids, to older men, teenagers, college kids, twenty something’s, thirty something’s and the biggest surprise (though in retrospect shouldn't have been) was the number of cougars.[2] There were also a lot of fights in the stands probably about five on the night. The first being the best as it happened before, during and after the security got there. What made it even funnier was that it was too 45+ year old white guys, with guts.

The fights themselves weren’t the best I had ever seen, especially the first 3 that went the distance. They also took way to long between the fights to actually get things going, thus causing more beer drinking. Which, of course, I had no problem with.

We were there to see Kimbo Slice, of street fighting/youtube fame.[3] He fought Ray Mercer and beat him less than 40 seconds in the first round by a choke. I was hoping for an all standing fight but Kimbo learned some ground technique and Mercer clearly didn’t. So there goes that idea.

Once the fight was over again we went to the casino where I went to win about a grand. I went on a fantastic blackjack run while singing “the devil came out to play” and dancing wit h my friend who was cheering me on and pressuring me into betting $100 bets. Yeah, we looked like drunk idiots, but the people at the table loved us.

The weirdest part was when we left the casinos in the morning to head back to the city, we saw a cloud of smoke raising above the city that was stretched for what looked like a mile. I had never seen anything like it before. Some guy on the radio reported it as a dumpster fire, but according to a local paper it was coming from the Casino Control Commission. Thankfully no injuries were reported. To the right is a picture my friend took on his phone while we were driving home.

You can pretty much say that if I am the center of a my personality spectrum. On Friday night I hung out with the right wing and on Saturday I hung out with the left wing. I’m not sure I have ever had both like that before. I was at a false trendy place and then a place full of mongrels. The only thing they have in common is that they all think they are ballers and they go out to these clubby type places. Well I guess we can agree to disagree. Either way, I love casinos.

In other great news, the North Siders swept the White Sox at US Cellular this week taking the series 5 to 1 this year. Now they just have to keep this momentum going.

---

[1] Of course like all shit show clubs that line is only meant for the males

[2] Cougar (as defined by urbandictionary.com)- An older woman who frequents clubs in order to score with a much younger man. The cougar can be anyone from an overly surgically altered wind tunnel victim, to an absolute sad and bloated old horn-meister, to a real hottie or milf. Cougars are gaining in popularity -- particularly the true hotties -- as young men find not only a sexual high, but many times a chick with her shit together.

[3] http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=kimbo+slice&search=

The Old West Gangsters & The 600th Shot

Nothing really new but i noticed something pretty funny at dinner recently. A bunch of music industry schmoes were sitting around a table talking business, talking music, family, friends, girls... nothing too different from any other group of twenty and thirty something males do. We talked about Barry Bonds, we talked about the... um... t shirt on the female bartender.

It had occurred to me that we were all sitting there with out Blackberry's sitting on the table in front of us. When someone got up, he put it in his pocket. When he sat down he pulled it out of his pocket and put it on the table. It was like we were sitting around in shitty Jesse James movie, and we all sat down to play poker but put our guns on the table to keep everyone from cheating.

I had dismissed this as me doing something that seemed comfortable. It actually may have been the fact that we subconsciously were showing how important we were and what important things we had to take care of. The precise reason that those who don't have Blackberrys hate them. So here we are showing how cool and important we are... isn't that just like a group of guys in the 25-35 range? Please believe it.

Also, congrats to Sammy Sosa for the 600th home run. I am happy that he did it against the Cubs so that we had some fans to cheer for him too. Nice work Sammy.

It's All About Simplicity

So I was at Shea Stadium a couple weeks ago and my seat was broken. The old man who was working as usher decided the best solution was to have my friends sit in their seats and me sit in another section. Clearly this was not an option. I don’t know if you have ever been to Shea, but their ushers are notoriously rude and stupid. I have seen 10 year olds getting yelled at for moving up to the row in front their parents to get one foot closer to the action. Any way, this guy made such a production. He walked us half way around the stadium to his supervisor who just said sit somewhere else. He said, “sit in another section if the people come for those seats, please move.” That made sense! A simple solution. Is it that difficult to be nice?

In pictures, I’m bringing back bunny ears. I just feel like at in your mid twenties that can be randomly funny.

I’m not sexist. Let me say it again, I’m not sexist. However I do think that women are infinitely worse drivers than men. I had a woman cab driver the other day, who was also the nicest cab driver I have ever had. She had lead feet. We went from 0 to speeding in no time then she slammed on the breaks at the last second. She also had no idea where Ludlow and Stanton was. She wasn’t the best driver I have ever had but she was really nice. She took me to see the Methadones at Cake Shop.

Cake Shop might be the best place I have ever been. It’s a venue, a bar, a coffee bar and a vinyl store. So I got to watch the Methadones, then I brought a pint of Guinness upstairs with me and while enjoying it, looked at vinyl. Amazing! Disney World for music guy who enjoys the booze.

After I finished up with the night of Guinness and Cockney Rejects records, I decided to walk home. They haven’t had bands play at Continental in several months now. Why does Trigger sit outside still? What is his job there?

It was fleet week this past week. For those of you who don’t know what that is, its when the sailors all come to New York City dressed in their uniforms for a week of boozing, concertgoing and woman ravaging. They do all of these things well. These guys even the one’s that are flat out dick heads do so well with the ladies this week. Just that Sunday, I walked into a bar to watch the boys from MRNORTH do an acoustic set, when I saw a woman sitting at the bar wearing a sailor hat. Within minutes sure enough I guy in all white comes stumbling out of the bathroom. They eat each other’s faces a little and they went back to her place. So she dug him simply because his uniform. The guy was a dick but I guess what does that have to do with the price of tea in Long Island? God bless America.

This past week I was in LA. Why do people from LA show up every where that’s fun late and everything serious on time? Of course it would be more annoying if the opposite were true but seriously why does this happen? You know the 405 sucks. You know how long it takes to get places but they show up to dinner, concerts, sporting events, etc. late. You can see it. The next time you watch the Dodgers, Lakers or Clippers look at the crowd the first 10 minutes in the game, then look again 45 minutes into the game.

Memo to all bars. Put ice in the urinals. I am a huge supporter of it as it generally keeps the smell of stale beer piss down. Also I have never once to been to a place that has that when a guy comes out and complains. Every guy says, “there is ice in the urinals. I aimed in one spot and watched that shit melt.” Its all about simplicity.