Category Archives: Music

Empty Wallet: New stuff to keep me entertained.

So the holidays are over, the presents were unwrapped, and even though I was happily satisfied with all the J-Day gifts I received I felt as if I lacked items for entertainment purposes.

I was a good boy, I done no wrong, in fact this was the first New Years since I was 12 I was completely sober so I think that means presents for me from me.  I am just looking for some excuses to buy crap…

Now it is show and tell time.  Lookie what I got/have/own…

First up is something I hesitated to buy because it was not something that I needed at all.  Hell, none of the items I recently purchased were things I needed…  Anyways, I am currently the proud owner of a MC Chris action figure.  The thing is poorly made, can’t stand up on it’s own, does not move, and was not designed to do anything.  It just lays there motionless, with no desire to entertain; but here is the kicker… it is awesome.  It is so awesome that it now is one of my favorite non-animate objects that I own.

The only thing this thing could do it hurt someone if you threw it at their head.
The only thing this thing could do is hurt someone if you chucked it at their head.
It came packaged with styrofoam in a brown box.  Classic.
It came packaged with styrofoam in a brown box.

Why would I dare say something so poorly made is awesome?  Well it reminds me of a toy you would find from the early 1900’s at your grandparent’s house, something you would look at and scratch your head at.  I really think I have a piece of treasure here and to prove it I bought it for $25 from the MC Chris website and now it is on the very same site for $75 (they are claiming to have 3 left).  Why the price increase?  Well it seems as if there are only 50 in existence as the 450 others were lost in the order according to a bulletin that MC Chris had posted on MySpace.

Derek Hess "Noose Proof"
Noose Halo

Next up is a Derek Hess print I have had my eyes on for a while.  Last year I interviewed the Cleveland rock artist and remember questioning his affordable prices.  He wanted to make sure he sold his work at prices that people without a lot of money could afford.  Well I am without a lot of money and I love his work.  I was actually buying a print for my good friend for a belated J-Day gift and could not help myself in getting one for my own house.

This is my third Derek Hess print I now own and I know I have many more to acquire in the future.  I have already framed it and will place it accordingly in my dwelling so that all can see.  One day I hope to have an original piece in my collection…baby steps for now.

If you would like a print for yourself you might want to act fast as this offset print is limited to 300 and I scored numbers 204 and 205 for myself and said friend.  Once 300 is reached it will be sold out and very difficult to find.

For my media pleasure I picked up a copy of the hilarious DVD Pineapple Express. If you have not seen the movie yet I promise you some foul mouthed stupid humor plus a little bit of action.  The duo of Seth Rogen and James Franco are perfect for this derranged adventure involving two stoners.

Watching the movie last night had me rolling.  I enjoyed it a lot more than originally when I saw the movie in the theaters seeing how it was ruined by two jackasses in front of me who clearly pregamed before the movie.  The other benefit of DVD over going to the movies are having extra content.  The deleted scenes were not too entertaining but the gag reel was hilarious.

Today I ventured to the Borders book store I used to work at a few years back.  I went there looking for a vegan cupcake book. I know, what the hell was I thinking right?  Well have you ever had a vegan cupcake?  Exactly.  Once you have you will want to know how it was made.

Let’s get back to why I went to Borders.  Well that vegan cupcake book was nowhere to be found so I kept looking around and found something that I have been wanting for a while, a copy of Anthony Bourdain‘s A Cook’s Tour: Global Adventures in Extreme Cuisines.  The book captures Anthony Bourdain and his travels for food.  I can not wait to find some free time to sink my eyes into it.

My wife also found a book she knew I would have interest in called Punk: The Whole Story that usually retails for about $25.  It was sitting there in the budget section with the attractive price of $4.99 so I grabbed it seeing how I never pass on a good punk rock deal.  Full color hardbound book full of punk rock history, a great find if you ask me.

As I finish up this bragging of a blog I keep telling myself there was one more thing that I purchased…something very recent.

Oh yeah.  I bought an album on iTunes today.  Dirty south punk meets crunk act Whole Wheat Bread recently released their third CD on iTunes before it hits shelves and I could not wait.  The Afro Punk rockers have been favorites of mine since they first released their material in 2005.  The album Hearts of Hoodlums will  be released in stores on January 20th.  Inauguration coincidence?  Perhaps.  That also happens to be the day back in 1977 that I started kicking ass and taking names or however you say that (hint, hint).

Well I guess my show and tell time is over and I should go sit back down on the magic carpet and see what the next little kid out there had…until next time.

Here’s a Whole Wheat Bread video just for the heck of it:

Whole Wheat Bread covering Rancid‘s “Roots Radicals” featuring Chris from Stretch Armstrong at Peabody’s in tropical Cleveland, Ohio

You want another? Ok, I can do that:

“Old Man Samson”

Finally a contest of sorts:

Whole Wheat Bread chicken eating contest (mild cussing)

Stooges Guitarist Ron Asheton Found Dead

Ron Asheton
Ron Asheton

Sad day in the rock n roll / punk rock world as founding member Ron Asheton of The Stooges was found dead at his home in Ann Arbor, Michigan.  He was 60 years old.  The official cause of the founding member of The Stooges has not been reported yet but initial discoveries claim it may be from a heart attack.

I had the pleasure of seeing Ron Asheton play last summer when Iggy & The Stooges took stage at the 2008 Virgin Mobile Festival.  This was my second viewing of one of the more important punk rock bands and I must say the performance was memorable.  Ron Asheton was amazing on guitar along side his pal Mike Watt (who took the place of bassist when the band reunited in 2003) while Iggy Pop went insane in front of the crowd.  I am glad I was there to witness that performance.

The Stooges were recently nominated as an inductee into the 2009 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Museum.   It’s a shame that Ron Asheton will not be there to see if The Stooges are inducted.  There is not a doubt in my mind that they will not be as their place in the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame Museum is well deserved.

This is a huge loss.  He will be missed.

Some videos:

Ron Asheton in The New Order (not the New Order you are thinking of…):

Iggy & The Stooges Live In Cincinnati 1970:

Iggy & The Stooges “The Passenger”:

Links from major music websites reporting on Ron Asheton’s death:

Rolling Stone
Billboard
NME

Not So Much Of A Review: City and Colour – Bring Me Your Love

I came across an artist the other day named Dallas Green who has a solo project he calls City and Colour.  The thing is, I have heard the voice before but could not pinpoint where…  After a minute of research I was amazed to find out that Dallas Green is also the lead vocalist for the post-hardcore act Alexisonfire.

Crazy.  I am so out of the loop.

I admit it.  I am not hip to everything so you can imagine how I felt considering I am a fan of Alexisonfire…a fan that does not necessarily know all the band members by name.

It seems that all of these punk rock / hardcore artists are doing solo albums lately and it appears it might be the new “in” thing to do, but before I continue I need to state that Dallas Green has been doing his solo project for a few years now.  Also “in” or not if an artist can pull off an amazing solo album, more power to them.

I have yet to check out the entire album called Bring Me Your Love as well as the rest of Dallas Green’s solo catalog.  Funny thing is that I have seen this CD before on the shelf but didn’t even give it a chance.  Looks like I was the one missing out.  If you like meaningful folk rock material you should check out this CD like I intend to do so…

Here is a really neat video.  Yes, I said neat.

The Girl

Year In Review: 2008

I suppose today is a good day to do this as we all say goodbye to 2008 tonight, so here is my best/worst of 2008.  Enjoy!


Best Live Show:

Without a doubt the best live show I saw this year was at the 3rd annual Virgin Mobile Festival.  The Foo Fighters put on one of the best live concerts I have ever seen.  Their stage presence was like none other as they shared the fun they had with the huge crowd that gathered to see them.

Runners up:

-Radiohead at Blossom
-Filter at the Hard Rock Cafe Cleveland
-NIN at the Virgin Mobile Festival
-Against Me! at the Warped Tour
-The Briggs at the Warped Tour

Worst Live Show:

I have to say the worst live show I saw (or didn’t see since we waited 45 minutes for him to take stage) was none other than Lil’ Wayne at the 3rd annual Virgin Mobile Tour.  As much as I wanted to see him perform live for years now, his neglect for other bands pissed me off.  After his entourage galloped across the stage for 45 minutes the young rap star took stage.  I already had enough and left, missing the performance.  The thing that ticked me off the most about Lil’ Wayne’s delay in performing was that he kept playing over his alotted time and took up some of the Black Key’s time, a band I really wanted to see more of.  The Black Keys had to end their show early all because Lil’ Wayne felt it necessary to disregard others.

Runners up:

-Any emo/scenester band that played the Warped Tour 2008

Best New Albums:

Tom Gabel – Heart Burns – The Against Me! lead singer’s first solo release is a hit to my ears.  This CD proves Tom Gabel has a long career in front of him to look forward to.

3OH!3 – Want – After seeing them live at the Warped Tour this summer I picked up the album and was immediately hooked with the crunk punk.

Tim Barry – Manchester – The lead man of Avail put forth an amazing release.  I loved the folksy personal rock he dishes out on his 3rd release.

Jenny Lewis – Acid Tongue – From start to finish, I am in love with this CD.

The Black Keys – Attack & Release – Blues rock at it’s finest thanks to a very important duo of musicians.

Ninja Gun – Restless Rubes – Folky punky goodness.  I love these guys.

Enter Shikari – Take To The Skies – I was drawn to this CD from the uniqueness of the techno meets hardcore genre bash.

She & Him – Volume One – Very classic album featuring the very beautiful sounding (and looking) actress Zooey Deschanel.

Gaslight Anthem – The 59′ Sound – Great New Jersey band that imitates what Bruce Springsteen might sound like if he were younger these days.  I can listen to this CD over and over and not grow tired of it.

Albums I Was Not As Impressed With As I Thought I Would Be:

Metallica – Death Magnetic

Guns N Roses – Chinese Democracy

Portishead – Third

Gnarls Barkley – The Odd Couple

Still Scratching My Head At:

Vampire Weekend – S/T – Still not sure if I like these guys…

Worst New Album:

Gavin Rossdale – WANDERlust

Best Movie:

The Dark Knight (enough said)

Runners up:

-Pineapple Express
-Son Of Rambow

-Wall-E

Worst Movie:

Strange Wilderness – Honestly from a Happy Madison film I expected more.  I think I laughed once.

Runners Up:

-The Love Guru (can you say Austin Powers w/ a beard? Justin Timberlake was humorous though…)
-Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (I expected more from this movie, way more)

Memorable Events Of 2008:

I hit up the 3rd annual Virgin Mobile tour once again with my pals Matt and Adam.  I am proud to say it was my third time being there, and both my friend’s second.  This year we stayed in a pimp hotel with free breakfast and free internet (no ghetto hotels for us this year).  Adding to the three of us was T.J. of Viva La Mainstream.  We all had a great time spite my GPS taking us for a tour in the projects of Baltimore.  You can read about my adventures of that event HERE.

My friends Sam & Ryann tired the knot which lead to a wedding reception full of friends.  It was nice to get to see some folk who I have not seen in a while.

I met Derek Hess, a Cleveland artist, twice as he was promoting his book with Kent Smith called Please God Save Us.  I have been a huge fan of Derek Hess since I was a kid and was psyched to finally meet him.  I owe the opportunity to Matt over at Addicted To Vinyl.

Even if the Browns sucked this year I was at that Monday night game where they spanked the Giants.  I went with my brother and I must say that was a game I was glad I witnessed.  The energy that night from all the fans added to the excitement of the Browns kicking ass.

I got to explore NYC with my wife and good friends Morgan, Molly, and Megan.  We need to go back to explore more but I must say I will never forget that trip.  I even have an Ol’ Dirty Bastard Cupcake tattoo as a permanent souvenir.

While in the midst of the NYC trip my wife and I decided to put down the bottle.  Since the end of March my wife and I have been alcohol free.  We feel great and are happy with our decision.

In October my wife and I met up again with the wonderful Morgan for an incredible adventure in her hometown of Austin and then to San Francisco.  Great times in both cities with memories that will last a lifetime.  I met new friends too in both cities all who shared some pretty awesome moments with.

And of course, I started this site!  Thank you to all who drop by to read what I post.  It means a lot to me to hear all the positive feedback.  Starting this site has introduced me to some really cool bloggers out there as well.

Saying Goodbye In 2008:

RIP Grandpa Paul – A wonderful person who will be missed dearly passed just before J-Day.  Thank you all for your kind words during that difficult time.

Saying Hello In 2008:

We adopted Zeus, an abused Boston Terrier in April.  He is the newest and most loving member of our family.  Don’t worry, Sweet Lou is still the coolest dog in the world, but Zeus is a close 2nd!

Looking Forward To In 2009:

The Watchman

9 (Tim Burton movie)

The Cleveland Browns 2009 Season (I am a die-hard fan for life you know…)

The 4th Annual Virgin Mobile Festival

The 2009 Van’s Warped Tour

I was looking forward to the Musink Festival featuring Social Distortion and Motorhead w/ tattoo artist superstar Kat Von D but recently learned that it was canceled due to the crap economy…  That would have been a sick show.

New Releases In 2009 I Look Forward To:

Rancid

Lil’ John (no, I am not kidding, it may be one of the more entertaining releases of 2009)

Third Eye Blind

Avett Brothers

The Postal Service

Nate Ruess (from the Format)

Andrew Bird


Well that about sums it up for me.  I am sure I have missed a lot but I did this without much thought and very quickly.  If there is someone or something I missed let me know!

I would love to hear about your best/worst of 2008.  Maybe you agree with me or disagree.  Perhaps you know of an album I should have checked out and missed.

Happy New Years to you all!  Have a safe evening and I will see you in 2009!!!