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MM@MnMs

admin — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 21:14:50 +0000

Say hello to Millimeter Mountain (whose singer may look familiar to astute readers). This show was shot, as always, in Streak-O-Vision.

Not pictured: the drunken jackass who did not like the use of maracas.

While we’re on the subject…

admin — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 05:51:45 +0000

…of live music photography, and how my equipment is not up to the task without resorting to “space effects”, here’s a batch from May that I forgot to post. In this case, the “space effects” were appropriate, since they are from the future.*

I’m not sure which of the duo is the one I work with, since they both have the Same Haircut. Sorry for that awful pun, but not really.

*Good news: in the future, I bought 3 copies of their CD, which is not yet out in my time.

Not Peace Beach

admin — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 05:24:58 +0000

In which I attempt to photograph a band, give up, and settle for “space effects” (flash + slowish shutter).

And the rest…

One Note Song(s)

admin — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 18:50:05 +0000

I discovered my new delay/looping pedal can do continuous notes. No gaps! My old pedal (which admittedly wasn’t so hot) couldn’t do this. I didn’t think my new one could do it either, until I accidentally did the following:

Start a loop, but don’t actually play anything
Play a note with the guitar’s volume all the way down
Slowly fade the volume back up
Repeat steps 2–3 as necessary
????
SPACE ROCK!

~~At some point I should really make a video of this process, so I can put it on youtube and have everyone say that it’s FAKE.~~ Yeah, about that: see below!

Examples

Needs work

So far my output has been really quiet for some reason
And I have really bad line noise coming from somewhere (shitty cables?)
Distortion makes the bad line noise even worse, so no bowel-shaking drone metal just yet

NOTE, FROM THE FUTURE: Here is a totally FAKE video I made:

I need a title with a Pixies-pun here

admin — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 21:53:52 +0000

On Thursday I went with a car full of girls to see some Pixies up in Chicago. I was a bit worried at first, because the last time I was at the Aragon it sounded like muffled ass, and I was also wary of reunion shows. But then again, I have loved the Pixies for almost 20 years, and they were playing Doolittle all the way through, a-and the car full of girls…

…and anyway, once they started playing it was all magical and great. They even did all the b-sides! I spent most of the show either grinning like an idiot, fighting back Manly Tears™, or screaming like a girl. The best part was that they were enjoying themselves (I saw them in 1991 when they all kinda hated each other, and it wasn’t the same). The other best part was the whole audience singing along to every song, even the b-sides.

Honorable mention for “best part” goes to the 7 foot tall Eurodude in the tracksuit who was dancing and jumping like he was trying to punch God up in heaven. I think his energy alone brought the band out for the second encore.

Always two there are

admin — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 02:45:11 +0000

I keep forgetting to do this list, but this is one of those weird phenomena that I have noticed. Say there is a band you like. No, not them, that other one. Similar names are the death of me, especially when I love one band and hate the other. I spent years of my life not liking Chavez, because I saw a video by Gomez (which I hated), and the names were permanently mixed up in my mind.

SOOOOO, in no particular order (except alphabetical), and varying levels of similarity…

The Arcade Fire / The Fiery Furnaces
Black Dice / Black Lips / The Black Keys
Cake / Cake-Like
Chavez / Gomez
Codeine / Morphine
Deerhoof / Deerhunter
Del Fuegos / Del Lords
fIREHOSE / Firehouse
Fucked Up / Holy Fuck (and they’re both from fuckin’ Toronto, fuck!)
Garth Brooks / Brooks & Dunn
Jawbox / Jawbreaker
The Mars Volta / Volta Do Mar
Mew / Muse
Modest Mouse / Mouse on Mars
Múm (from Iceland) / Mum (NOT from Iceland)
OMD / OMC
Panda Bear (from Animal Collective) / Grizzly Bear (not from Animal Collective)
Polara / Polaris
Stroke 9 / The Strokes
Super Furry Animals / Animal Collective
Supergrass / Superdrag
Television / Telephone
The Verve / The Verve Pipe
The Vines / The Shins
Wolf Eyes / Wolf Parade / Wolfmother / Wolf Balls (ok I made that last one up, but it’s only a matter of time)
Yeah Yeah Yeahs / Hot Hot Heat / !!!
Honorable mention: the seven hundred or so bands during the 80s that had all one word names that started with a C.
BONUS ROUND: XTC album “Black Sea” / X album “Under the Big Black Sun”

It seems like there were more, but my memory is terrible—which is why I am always mixing these groups up in my head to begin with.

This is how I unwind

admin — Fri, 15 May 2009 05:12:31 +0000

The Flight of the Conchords theme song
plus
“Only” by Nine Inch Nails
equals
one of those “mashed up” songs that the kids seem to like

I was working this out in my Mind the whole walk home. Tonight I walked home at 126 beats per minute. The whole process was made infinitely easier thanks to nin.com’s remix section, which is a cool idea.

I am hell of old, people

admin — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 14:09:14 +0000

And now, a favorite album for each year I have been alive on the earth planet:

1972: Rolling Stones – Exile on Main Street
1973: Led Zeppelin – Houses of the Holy
1974: King Crimson – Red
1975: Pink Floyd – Wish You Were Here
1976: Joni Mitchell – Hejira
1977: Television – Marquee Moon
1978: The Jam – All Mod Cons
1979: Talking Heads – Fear of Music
1980: The Pretenders – s/t
1981: The Cure – Faith
1982: X – Under the Big Black Sun
1983: U2 – War
1984: The Replacements – Let it Be
1985: R.E.M. – Fables of the Reconstruction
1986: Metallica – Master of Puppets
1987: Guadalcanal Diary – 2×4
1988: The Church – Starfish
1989: Pixies – Doolittle
1990: Uncle Tupelo – No Depression
1991: Slint – Spiderland
1992: Beastie Boys – Check Your Head
1993: Girls Against Boys – Venus Luxure No.1 Baby
1994: Rodan – Rusty
1995: Hum – You’d Prefer an Astronaut
1996: Failure – Fantastic Planet
1997: Yo La Tengo – I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One
1998: Don Caballero – What Burns Never Returns
1999: Trans Am – Futureworld
2000: Sleater-Kinney – All Hands on the Bad One
2001: Les Savy Fav – Go Forth
2002: Ms. John Soda – No P or D
2003: The Sea and Cake – One Bedroom
2004: Laura Veirs – Carbon Glacier
2005: Kylesa – To Walk a Middle Course
2006: Mastodon – Blood Mountain
2007: Baroness – Red Album
2008: Boris – SMILE
2009: Baroness – Blue Record / Polvo – In Prism (I CAN’T DECIDE)
2010: ????

NOTES:

1977 and 1984 (and even 2009) were banner years for good rock, which made it hard to pick just one.
1991 was no contest, but there were a few trying for “close second”.
If I were even older, 1966 would have been another such year.
I recycled this post from my el-jay, just because.

Hella irony, yo!

admin — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 17:14:23 +0000

What is the most ironic irony? When you like something “ironically” (i.e., “hipster irony”) and then you end up genuinely liking it. This post is dedicated to the wonderful sci-fi synthpop of Peter Schilling (the “Major Tom” dood).

Whoa, I think they need to break up again

admin — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 23:10:41 +0000

When Slint reunited in 2005, I was briefly excited at the possibility of seeing them again. How brief? About the time it took their Chicago show to sell out. During those five seconds it also occurred to me that I had no transportation TO Chicago. Then they did a bunch more shows in 2007, but by that point I was officially too old to rock.

And now, this: http://www.slint.com/ (click there). I have to say, I don’t much like this new musical direction they’re taking.

Wait for it…

I like their old stuff better.

NOTE, FROM THE FUTURE: Damn, they got rid of the cheesy flash intro. Now this entry makes even less sense!