Thursday, February 26, 2004

Nothing to see here, move on…

It’s a quiet day in Tankboy-land and I don't really have anything to say. I’ll be out of town tomorrow as I travel to Minneapolis to visit friends and see Urge Overkill in a market outside Chicago, so maybe I’ll have some wild and crazy stories upon my return...

Wednesday, February 25, 2004

Hobbit Hair.

Last night was, and this is an understatement, stupendous. Girls dancing on the bar. Rocker boys shaking their groove thing. Wriggling hips and pouty lips from wall to wall. Rudy and I kicked major ass. Now, as an extension of that evening, I find my ass still a bit numb from last night’s kicking and my brain is a tab cob-webbed but I’ll do my best. I’ve actually found that a slight fuzziness seems to aid my creativity. I think it might be because I have trouble focusing on any one thing so ideas keep whizzing past my head. In one ear and out the other. That sort of thing. It’s not so good at constructing a masterwork per se but it is useful in gathering seeds that will blossom later with a little further attention.

Oh yeah, the title above refers to what the top of my head looks like. Jeez do I have a lot of frickin’ hair up there. Oh great. Now that I typed that I’m sure to start balding. Crap.


Fanatics, lub sweet lub and the space in-between.

So I was thinking about people that are nutty about sports. This was prompted by my bringing in the full newspaper to work, realizing I should probably offer the sports section in it to some of the “sporty-guys” in the office...and then wondering just what would be in there to read. I mean are any sports even in season right now? Football’s done, baseball doesn’t start for a while and beach volleyball season is a loooong way off still. So what do these people read as news in these relatively slow sports news cycles?

Then I thought about people that are really crazy about sports. You know, he types that can’t date outside of their circle. Like a guy that’s a Bears fan that just absolutely could never even consider dating a Packer’s fan. I can sort of see that from a musical perspective with an example being an emo girl that just won’t date a metal dude. Then I thought about myself and how lucky I am to have such a broad taste in music. For instance, when I met Photogal her favorite band was Hootie and the Blowfish. Hootie and the fucking Blowfish! Of course she also dug The Afghan Whigs and Bad Brains but if I was a true musical snob the Hootie thing would have been an insurmountable obstacle. The moral? I don’t care how much you love the home team. If you find a mate that can groove then you should fucking grab ‘em and count yourself lucky.


Thanks and have a nice day…

On my way in I also stopped and picked up some coffee and was annoyed by the sun-shiney folks behind the counter. I mean what losers. They work in retail! How can that be fulfilling?

But then I thought back to my own experiences in retail and I realized that, while the customers generally sucked, the environment was a lot of fun. Lots of witty banter formulated to pass the time and lots of room for actually getting to know your co-workers. As a matter of fact the environment sort of generated a sort of second family feeling in me and my brethren. Come to think of it, as long as you look past the low wages, retail is pretty fucking cool!


Mail order is fun!

So I was turned on to The Moonbabies by Paul’s extremely positive words over at The Rub and 75 Or Less. I secured a burned copy of the disc and fell in love. Then I looked to purchase my very own factory sealed copy. I searched. And searched. And searched and searched and searched and could not find a copy in the Chicago area so I decided to do things old-school stylee and I actually ordered a copy from their American label and had it sent to me through the mail.

Mail order is something that is so easy to do now due to the Internet but I remember back in the day, like 1992, when stores buried in the heart of the bible belt just did not carry cool music and the only way to get most of the albums you wanted was by writing a letter, including a check or some well concealed cash and mailing the whole thing off to the label. Two to three weeks later – presto! – a new album would arrive in the mail. In some ways that made the music more precious since a) you knew you really wanted the disc because you actually put some effort into obtaining it and b) it humanized the whole deal and you felt closer to actually dealing with the band and their cohorts rather than buying from some listless middleman punching in sales at the generic neighborhood “big-box” store.

You know that gets me to thinking about downloading as well. In some ways the current age is terrific for people like me that just can’t get enough music and enjoy listening to as much as possible to contribute to the bedrock of our near maniacal, nigh encyclopedic musical knowledge. On the other hand, sometimes too much is too much. I rarely listen to discs more than a few times now. Sometimes it feels like a job to slog through all the hours and hours of tunes I haven’t listened to yet. Also, and this has been eroding since I started to receive forthcoming albums to review in college, I kind of miss the anticipation that used to precede an album’s release date. A bit of the magic is forever gone.

So sometimes it’s nice to take a step back, write a check and mail off an order form, and wait for that special aural treat to arrive in the mail.


Note to self: If The Moonbabies ever tour the States I must book their Chicago show. I know have a mission in life...


L-to the-FM

For the record, the Light FM album release show rocked my world. I hate to resort to a cliché, but take it leterally and you get an inkling of how good the show was. The album also kills. You need a copy. Now.

Also, the band's drummer is looking to sub-let his apartment as he and his wife move into a home more suited to the impending arrival of their new little baby boy. If you're interested in the pad, and it is a sweet place located on the border of the Wicker Park neighborhood here in Chicago -- right near my favorite Mexican restaurant Tecalitlan -- then just drop me a line and I'll forward it on to him.

Tuesday, February 24, 2004

Okay okay!

I actually have quite a bit to write about but since I didn't get to it this morning before I went to work you're just going to have to wait until tomorrow! However you can tide yourself over with some flesh and blood Tankboy if you're in the Chicago area tonight...

TONIGHT

Celebrate the annual
Ten56 Phat Tuesday Party
with
Rudy
and
DJ Tankboy!

...work out all those sinful thoughts
while you still can...

Old school rock and/or roll attitude
mixed with only the finest selections
from yesterday, today and tomorrow.

TONIGHT, Tuesday February 24, 2004
FREE BOOZE
FREE FOOD
FREE BEADS

Stunning musical selections from 9pm until 2am

Nekkidness?
Maybe!


Ten56
1056 N Damen
Chicago, IL
773.227.4906


The Chicago RedEye says: "The teeny tables and scant booths don't leave a whole lot of room for sitting, but the crowd (hipsters from all over the city) is mainly music fans who are more comfortable on their feet anyway. Stop in on Tuesday nights, when the DJ plays the best retro-rock this side of Detroit Rock City...."

Friday, February 20, 2004

i AM a rocknroll star

Okay, maybe not. Especially since instead of going out and partying until 4am – as I could have since Photogal was still out of town – I instead ended up watching reruns of Angel after the show last night until 4am. The show itself was tremendous, thoug,h and here are my one-sentence thoughts about each band:

Loretta fucking kills and when the brothers’ voices co-mingle it’s an eerie and beautiful thing.

Rockit Girl was powerful and put on their most wickedly snarling show that threatened to break apart the pop and slide into punk-metal at times.

Milk At Midnight were exactly as I had hoped…grand, beautiful and chest throbbingly loud.

…and the good times just keep on a-comin’...

Tonight do not miss the Light FM CD release show at Schuba’s…and get there early as the show will sell out. There’s been a ton of press around this one and clubs are nervous about exceeding their capacity and getting shut down so if you wanna see the band you gotta get there early.

Thursday, February 19, 2004

Wednesday, February 18, 2004

Boomerang?

Photogal’s back from vacation in Miami…and just called to tell me she has to fly out of town tonight for a press check…in Florida! Go figure that one out.

…and now a few random thoughts…

If you’ve recently broken up from your significant other and want to ask me about a tasty member of the opposite sex, it really helps if you tell me you are now sans boyfriend or girlfriend. Unless I know that it doesn’t register that I should warn you whether the object of your affection is taken, married or an axe-wielding psycho. M’kay? Just a thought to save any of my friends from future potentially embarrassing situations...

Hmmm…I guess that’s the only thought I had right now. Oh well. I must be all clouded since I’m pretty bummed about Photogal traveling right back out of town tonight…

I'll try an cheer myself up by observing Donald Rumsfield's Fighting Technique for a while...that should help. And it's eductaional!

Tuesday, February 17, 2004

TONIGHT

It's a double header with
Rudy
and
DJ Tankboy!

First off it's the
Light FM Listening Party
for their new album
This Is The Beginning Of My Golden Age
Free beer and free pizza from 9-10pm
as we spin the new album in its entirety.

Later in the evening it's
Nirvana vs. The Replacements
as we celebrate Kurt Cobains birthday (2/20)
and mourn Bob Stinson's passing (2/23.)

Plus the usual rock and/or roll shenanigans.

Old school rock and/or roll attitude
mixed with only the finest selections
from yesterday, today and tomorrow.

TONIGHT, Tuesday February 17, 2004
Free PBR from 8-10pm
Free pizza at 9pm
Stunning musical selections from 9pm until 2am

Shenanigans!

Ten56
1056 N Damen
Chicago, IL
773.227.4906


The Chicago RedEye says: "The teeny tables and scant booths don't leave a whole lot of room for sitting, but the crowd (hipsters from all over the city) is mainly music fans who are more comfortable on their feet anyway. Stop in on Tuesday nights, when the DJ plays the best retro-rock this side of Detroit Rock City...."

NEXT WEEK
PHAT TUESDAY

Free booze
Free food
Tunes to make you wanna get nekkid

Monday, February 16, 2004

The D and Me.

I saw Urge Overkill on Saturday night and am still a bit run-down from the experience. Let's just say Tankboy had a wee bit too much to drink. So much so that I bailed after only a few songs into Urge's set! They were good but I'm seeing the band in Minneapolis in a few weeks anyway so I don't feel too badly about it.

I'm glad I went though since I not only got to see Michigan boys The Sights open the show but I also got to see super-secret other opening act Tenacious D. I even managed to corner Jack Black and shoot off a few comments. Due to my level of inebriation it would have been totally fair for the guy to cock an eyebrow at me and breeze by but he actually leaned in to address my queries and resisted keeling over after being blasted by my booze-breath in close quarters. Jack Black is officially a nice guy in my book.

I was supposed to go to the show tonight with Rudy but since I never heard from him -- I'm guessing he too had a late night after playing with Menthol -- I spent the evening in with Betty the Beagle.

As I predicted...another wild rock star weekend for me!

Erm, I'm gonna go make some soup now.

Friday, February 13, 2004

Valentine’s Day Widow

So Photogal is going out of town this weekend with her sister to visit the much more hospitable climate offered by Miami, Florida this time of year. I have posted her itinerary below:

Monday
sit on the beach in Miami, drink fruity drinks
Tuesday
sit on the beach in Miami with a sunburn , drink fruity drinks
Wednesday
miss plane back to Chicago, sit on the beach in Miami, drink fruity drinks
Thursday
participate in the "Girls Gone Wild in Chicago" video
Friday
hang with Betty the Beagle
Saturday
undecided


Boy oh boy does she have it rough! On one hand I’m happy she’ll be out of town thus relieving me of any perceived duties on a holiday I view with thinly veiled contempt. All Valentine’s Day does is make single people feel even lonelier and puts too much fucking pressure on nearly married types like myself to be “extra romantic.” Isn’t that what a bona fide anniversary is for?

It seems to me the only people that actually like Valentine’s Day are greeting card companies, florists, candy makers and restaurateurs. Fuckers.

On the other hand I always tend to get a bit blue when Photogal is gone for more than a day or so and have a tendency to be much less the freewheeling man let free for a weekend of drinking and self-imposed sleep deprivation and much more the mope sitting on the couch watching Mr. Mom (did you know John Hughes wrote it?!) on the WGN weekend movie time slot. Last time she was out of town I found myself watching the Mel Brooks clunker Life Stinks at 3am on a Sunday morning just because in didn’t want to crawl into an empty bed. She usually falls asleep before me so everything’s nice and cozy and warm…but not when she’s out of town.

On the bright side there is a bunch of fun stuff going on this weekend so maybe I’ll get out more than usual. For instance my friend Greg is having his birthday party tonight, so that should be fun. Then there’s always Live Band Karaoke. That's always a blast at The Pontiac.

Saturday two of my favorite local bands Woolworthy and Menthol are playing an early show at Bottom Lounge and then I’m going to try and see Urge Overkill either Saturday or Sunday if I can snag a ticket…hmmm….it might not be such a boring weekend after all!

I’ll just have to make sure I clean up all the clothes, empty soup bowls and string cheese wrappers that will surely be littering my pad before Photogal gets home. Oh yeah, and stash all the drained beer bottles and such too…

Thursday, February 12, 2004

MIA

It’s been a busy week fer l'il ol' Tankie, what with this mondo meeting I had to attend over the last few days, and I apologize for my absence. I’m sure you’re all just drowning in tears filled with the fear of abandonment. Well, no worries kiddies, I ain’t goin' anywhere.

The meeting I was at went well though and I actually finally learned what exactly a weak or strong dollar means to me in real terms of global buying power due to a great speech by my company’s CEO. Let’s just say he boiled down information I hadn’t been able to wrap my college graduated head around for years in less than five minutes. It was really neat!

What else is new? Well, not much since I’ve been incredibly busy. Lotsa shows last week and a few more coming up helps keep the rock and/or roll blood pumping so I have nada to complain about on that front.

So what do I have to offer you today?

This statistical abstract conducted through 26,000 interviews with adults by MediaMark Research.

For instance did you know that in 2002 more people played board games two or three times a week than went out to bar or clubs two or three times a week.

Scandalous!

Monday, February 09, 2004

Too busy to write...

...but I would like to register my utter shock at Luther Vandross beating out "Hey Ya!" for song of the year!

Much respect to the honey-voced lover but I'm pretty sure that when a song has saturated the airwaves of pretty much every radio format AND is catchier than hell AND bust all sorts of boundaries then maybe, just maybe, it should be song of the year.

Saturday, February 07, 2004

If you missed it, you suck.

Seriously, the show last night was terrific. I had never seen Tiara or Denovo before, though I have been diggin Tiara's latest disc quite a bit, but now I can't wait to set up another show for them in Chicago. Cisko Pike were terrifically tight and their catchy American pop by way of British showgazer rock impresses me more and more each time I see 'em. It was cute to see singer Pat eyeing his very pregnant wife with that nervous, "ohmigod I hope her water doesn't break mid-chorus" look.

Cobra Verde was inspirational. And totally easy-going guys to boot.

Best bit? The following exchange between me and Photogal:

Photogal: This is great! Why have you never played this for me before?
Tankboy: I have! Constantly! But you always say,"eh."
Photogal: Well now that I've seen them live...
Well now, this is promising...

A brand new blog built around show listings and commentary about the Chicago music scene (much broader and newsy than the personal vibe and music lit critical eye I use at Lost In Guyville) has sprouted up.

Chicagomuzik is only about a week old but I'm diggin them quite a bit already. Check 'em out.

Friday, February 06, 2004

TONIGHT
...you are a fool if you miss this show...

DoneWaiting and Tankboy Present
The DoneWaiting One Year Anniversary Show

Denovo
Cobra Verde
Cisco Pike
Tiara
at
The Subterranean

Show starts at 9pm sharp!
$10 cover

Thursday, February 05, 2004

Wha’ happen’?!

That’s how I feel about Tuesday night. I went out after DJing and remembered the next day why I don’t do that anymore when I woke up at 10:30 really late for work. Photogal had gotten up and left and I forgot to set the alarm for myself!

The upswing was I got to have lunch with Photogal yesterday and ran some errancds.

The downside was not making it into the gym – and, by the way, I’m not really noticing any visual physical improvements due to all my time spent sweating and puching my muscles around but I do definitely feel much healthier and lively – and finding out how worried Photogal was when I didn’t stumble in until 3am. Bad tankboy! Bad bad Tankboy!

Tomorrow promises to be a very late night since I intend on hanging out with the bands after the Cobra Verde/Cisco Pike Done Waiting show I helped put together…

Wednesday, February 04, 2004

Tuesday, February 03, 2004

TONIGHT

That freakin' Groundhog better not see his shadow!

But if he does
Rudy
and
DJ Tankboy
will keep on spinnin' tunes to keep you all warm and cozy.

Old school rock and/or roll attitude
mixed with only the finest selections
from yesterday, today and tomorrow.

TONIGHT, Tuesday February 2, 2004
Free PBR from 8-9pm
Stunning musical selections from 9pm until 2am

Lotsa new features of new and forthcoming releases like:

The Get Up Kids - Guilt Show
Norah Jones - Feels Like Home
The Last Vegas - Lick 'Em And Leave 'Em
Light FM - The Beginning Of My Golden Age
Moonbabies - The Orange Billboard
NESS - Up Late With People
Preston School Of Industry - Monsoon
Probot - Probot
Poster Children - nomoresongsaboutsleepandfire
Screamfeeder - Take You Apart
The Scissor Sisters - The Scissor Sisters
Trans Am - Liberation
The Von Bondies - Pawn Shoppe Heart
The Weakerthans - Reconstruction Site

A-yup.

Ten56
1056 N Damen
Chicago, IL
773.227.4906


The Chicago RedEye says: "The teeny tables and scant booths don't leave a whole lot of room for sitting, but the crowd (hipsters from all over the city) is mainly music fans who are more comfortable on their feet anyway. Stop in on Tuesday nights, when the DJ plays the best retro-rock this side of Detroit Rock City...."