Remember when Indie Rock actually meant something, back when it was still called "college rock?"
My head is doing much better, thanks for asking, and while I'm super-grumpy today since I volunteered for the NPR pledge drive from 7:00 to 9:15 this morning -- way too early for anyone to be functional -- I am in a relatively optimistic mood since I feel I did something worthwhile. I'm very busy with work today, though, so instead of a nice long post you get instead a link to a primer on how to become a member of the Indie Rock nation. Mucho ha ha, really.
Thanks to Eric for forwarding this link my way.
Thursday, October 23, 2003
Wednesday, October 22, 2003
My head hurts.
So yesterday I had two cysts removed from my head, one below my eye and one up on my scalp, and the one up top must have been a doozy because my head feels like someone is alternating between hitting my head with an iron brand and driving a spike in after it.
When I was a kid, whenever I would go to the doctor or something like that my mom would usually buy me something. As I got older this something inevitably turned out to be tapes and then CDs. After my little outpatient "procedure" yesterday I decided to head to the Tower Records in the Loop and pick up the new Travis CD as a treat to myself. This was made all the more appealing by its advertised sales price of $9.99. Yahoo!
I get to Tower and there's no parking so I pull up in front of a hydrant, throw on the flashers and run in. I grab my disc and am then held up in line by some clueless couple trying to return a DVD of Wolfen. Apparently it's been discontinued and Tower can't accept it -- and hasn't sold it in some time -- but these folks just didn't get it and kept asking, "So why can't we return it again?" Anyway, I finally make my transaction and run back outside.
Only now my car is gone.
On top of this, apparently there are no frickin' payphones downtown anymore ever since the phone company decided they would try to charge businesses for hosting the phones on top of the percentage they already take. So I had to run to the downtown DePaul campus just to call the cops to find out if my car had just been towed or just been stolen.
Towed.
I'm in Tower five minutes and that's all the time they needed. They must have been hiding the truck behind a light post just waiting for me. Oh well, it was my fault so I couldn't get too pissed.
So I trek on home to pick up my title and run into Photogal, who then nicely offered to drive me to the pound and save me another fifteen bucks in cab fare. The pound downtown is on Lower Wacker -- which is one of my favorite hidden roads in the city since it's like a weird underground city down there -- so we got there with relatively little problem. Then I went inside and got all excited because there was only one person waiting in front of me and, miraculously, all the agents were aiding everyone else with car retrieval. Then I started listening to the conversations.
"But I wasn't parked illegally. You're going to make me pay to get my car out?"
"I'm the driver. No I'm not the owner. What's notarized mean?"
"I need my title too? But that's at home."
"Why would you do something like that? You can't really expect me to pay?"
Okay people, here's a clue. When your car is towed it doesn't matter if you're wrong, right, angry, persuasive or anything else. The bottom line is that your car is in the pound behind a wall of paperwork so you have no recourse but to pay to get it out and sue or fight the violation later. When you are at the pound though, just PAY YOUR FUCKING MONEY AND LEAVE! Oh yeah, call ahead to make sure you have all the right paperwork too.
So then it's my turn and all of a sudden everyone decides to go on break except for the old dude who is having a fine time chatting up the angry young lady yuppie in front of me. Chat chat chatting away. So I start tapping my foot, then my keys start beating out a rhythm on the countertop until finally I may as well be playing air drums for all the flailing and impatient writing I'm displaying.
Until finally the conversation ends, the old guy processes my paperwork. I then pay for and collect my car...only to find a $100 ticket under my windshield for parking in a tow zone. Nice.
Does it end there? Oh no.
I got up late this morning and was rather slow to get my groove on due to that red hot poker hitting my scalp so I didn't realize today was the street cleaning day where you had to move your car to the other side of the street by 9am. I got out there at 10:15 and was greeted by two more tickets; one for parking on the wrong side of the street and one for not having a city sticker. Really nice.
So one could say my day isn't going too well. Or one could say that after this wash of luck I'm destined to have a great rest of the week since, karmically speaking, I'm pretty due. Don't you agree?
So yesterday I had two cysts removed from my head, one below my eye and one up on my scalp, and the one up top must have been a doozy because my head feels like someone is alternating between hitting my head with an iron brand and driving a spike in after it.
When I was a kid, whenever I would go to the doctor or something like that my mom would usually buy me something. As I got older this something inevitably turned out to be tapes and then CDs. After my little outpatient "procedure" yesterday I decided to head to the Tower Records in the Loop and pick up the new Travis CD as a treat to myself. This was made all the more appealing by its advertised sales price of $9.99. Yahoo!
I get to Tower and there's no parking so I pull up in front of a hydrant, throw on the flashers and run in. I grab my disc and am then held up in line by some clueless couple trying to return a DVD of Wolfen. Apparently it's been discontinued and Tower can't accept it -- and hasn't sold it in some time -- but these folks just didn't get it and kept asking, "So why can't we return it again?" Anyway, I finally make my transaction and run back outside.
Only now my car is gone.
On top of this, apparently there are no frickin' payphones downtown anymore ever since the phone company decided they would try to charge businesses for hosting the phones on top of the percentage they already take. So I had to run to the downtown DePaul campus just to call the cops to find out if my car had just been towed or just been stolen.
Towed.
I'm in Tower five minutes and that's all the time they needed. They must have been hiding the truck behind a light post just waiting for me. Oh well, it was my fault so I couldn't get too pissed.
So I trek on home to pick up my title and run into Photogal, who then nicely offered to drive me to the pound and save me another fifteen bucks in cab fare. The pound downtown is on Lower Wacker -- which is one of my favorite hidden roads in the city since it's like a weird underground city down there -- so we got there with relatively little problem. Then I went inside and got all excited because there was only one person waiting in front of me and, miraculously, all the agents were aiding everyone else with car retrieval. Then I started listening to the conversations.
"But I wasn't parked illegally. You're going to make me pay to get my car out?"
"I'm the driver. No I'm not the owner. What's notarized mean?"
"I need my title too? But that's at home."
"Why would you do something like that? You can't really expect me to pay?"
Okay people, here's a clue. When your car is towed it doesn't matter if you're wrong, right, angry, persuasive or anything else. The bottom line is that your car is in the pound behind a wall of paperwork so you have no recourse but to pay to get it out and sue or fight the violation later. When you are at the pound though, just PAY YOUR FUCKING MONEY AND LEAVE! Oh yeah, call ahead to make sure you have all the right paperwork too.
So then it's my turn and all of a sudden everyone decides to go on break except for the old dude who is having a fine time chatting up the angry young lady yuppie in front of me. Chat chat chatting away. So I start tapping my foot, then my keys start beating out a rhythm on the countertop until finally I may as well be playing air drums for all the flailing and impatient writing I'm displaying.
Until finally the conversation ends, the old guy processes my paperwork. I then pay for and collect my car...only to find a $100 ticket under my windshield for parking in a tow zone. Nice.
Does it end there? Oh no.
I got up late this morning and was rather slow to get my groove on due to that red hot poker hitting my scalp so I didn't realize today was the street cleaning day where you had to move your car to the other side of the street by 9am. I got out there at 10:15 and was greeted by two more tickets; one for parking on the wrong side of the street and one for not having a city sticker. Really nice.
So one could say my day isn't going too well. Or one could say that after this wash of luck I'm destined to have a great rest of the week since, karmically speaking, I'm pretty due. Don't you agree?
Tuesday, October 21, 2003
So what? I broke my promise!
Do you have any idea just how much work and other stuff builds up when you’re out of the country for a measly few days? Hell, I even forgot I had a Double Door show I put together for my friends in Today’s My Super Spaceout Day coming up this Friday…and I’ve been looking forward to that for eons!
So I don’t wanna hear no griping. I have a minor outpatient surgery today so I’ll be home early and maybe then I’ll finally get to fill all you fine folks in on the rest of my China excursion. Let’s just say that while Hong Kong reminded me of most other international cities like New York and the like, the trip to mainland China was truly different. Never before have I felt like such a freak just by being tall, blond haired and blue eyed.
Do you have any idea just how much work and other stuff builds up when you’re out of the country for a measly few days? Hell, I even forgot I had a Double Door show I put together for my friends in Today’s My Super Spaceout Day coming up this Friday…and I’ve been looking forward to that for eons!
So I don’t wanna hear no griping. I have a minor outpatient surgery today so I’ll be home early and maybe then I’ll finally get to fill all you fine folks in on the rest of my China excursion. Let’s just say that while Hong Kong reminded me of most other international cities like New York and the like, the trip to mainland China was truly different. Never before have I felt like such a freak just by being tall, blond haired and blue eyed.
Lose control with
Rudy and DJ Tankboy.
Why not?
Old school rock and/or roll attitude
mixed with only the finest selections
from yesterday, today and tomorrow.
TONIGHT, Tuesday October 21, 2003
Free PBR from 8-9pm
Stunning musical selections from 9pm until 2am
Features of the week:
We guarantee we'll play something off these new or unreleased albums!
Ryan Adams - Rock N Roll
Aesop Rock - Bazooka Tooth
The Darkness - Permission To Land
The Desert Sessions 9 & 10
The Distillers - Coral Fang
Danko Jones - We Sweat Blood
Muse - Absolution
The Ponys - Demos
The Rapture - Echoes
Sloan - Action Pact
Sono - We Were Working
The Strokes - Room On Fire
Sybris - EP
Wig In A Box
Rachael Yamagata - EP
Hell yeah!
Every Tuesday.
Only at Ten56.
Ten56
1056 N Damen
Chicago, IL
773.227.4906
Saturday, October 18, 2003
Wednesday, October 15, 2003
Back on track!
Fab meetings, fab dinner, fab day, lotsa fab drinks! More later.
Just wish Photogal was home to talk to but she DJed in my place last night so I suspect she took the day off and is recuperating at home...
...and for the curious out there, still no real music interaction though I suspect that'll change tomorrow since I'm hell-bent on dragging my boss to, at least, a genuine Asian karaoke bar!
Fab meetings, fab dinner, fab day, lotsa fab drinks! More later.
Just wish Photogal was home to talk to but she DJed in my place last night so I suspect she took the day off and is recuperating at home...
...and for the curious out there, still no real music interaction though I suspect that'll change tomorrow since I'm hell-bent on dragging my boss to, at least, a genuine Asian karaoke bar!
Tuesday, October 14, 2003
Eleven twenty five in the PM Hong Kong Time, Tuesday night.
Well I had my first full day of business meetings here in Hong Kong and I am exhausted. I feel like I got a lot accomplished but that still doesn't mean that the day wasn't reaaaally long and near the end it grew nigh unbearable. Nothing like being stuck in mad traffic when all you want to do is collapse in your hotel room.
I've also learned very quickly that one of the reasons companies treat you like a king during a business is because you're working twice as hard as you're used to and even though you may be in a new and exciting place that doesn't mean you'll actually get a chance to see much of it! So far I've been trapped primarily in the tourist district around my hotel and don't feel as if I've gotten a real taste of Hong Kong. I've been driving further out from the city and some of the buildings are downright alien and I'm still getting used to all the mountains surrounding the city. I go to mainland China on Thursday so hopefully I'll get to see a bit more over there.
I have been eating well and had a great meal in this rather dodgy Afghan restaurant my boss likes. This may surprise most given my famously picky eating habits but I feel it only proves that I can indeed find anything to eat on any menu and leave satisfied.
What I haven't been doing -- which may be even more surprising -- is drinking lots and lots of booze. Maybe some business trips are clouded in a Bacchanalian haze but for the most part the routine seems to be early to bed and even earlier to rise for everyone involved. I did make it to the Night Market tonight though so I could pick up all kinds of cool little knick-knacks for Photogal and mi familia. Originally I wanted to get everyone something really nice but I hadn't realized Hong Kong was so goldanged expensive! So I opted to go the local open market route and tried to pick out things you probably wouldn't exactly be tripping over in the states.
I did also finally make it to the HMV but surprisingly found nothing for myself. They had some discs that aren't out in the U.S. yet but soon will be and I wasn't willing to pay more for a CD I can -- or will be able to shortly -- get in the U.S.
Now I'm just feeling a tad worn out, missing my beagle and Photogal, and actually looking forward to heading home on Friday. Like I said, I can't wait to go to the Mainland Thursday, and I have the feeling we may get a little wild since most of us will (finally) be acclimated to Hong Kong time and will be willing to whoop it up a bit by the time this trip draws to a close but that doesn't change the fact that no place is that cool or that much fun if the people you love aren't nearby.
Well I had my first full day of business meetings here in Hong Kong and I am exhausted. I feel like I got a lot accomplished but that still doesn't mean that the day wasn't reaaaally long and near the end it grew nigh unbearable. Nothing like being stuck in mad traffic when all you want to do is collapse in your hotel room.
I've also learned very quickly that one of the reasons companies treat you like a king during a business is because you're working twice as hard as you're used to and even though you may be in a new and exciting place that doesn't mean you'll actually get a chance to see much of it! So far I've been trapped primarily in the tourist district around my hotel and don't feel as if I've gotten a real taste of Hong Kong. I've been driving further out from the city and some of the buildings are downright alien and I'm still getting used to all the mountains surrounding the city. I go to mainland China on Thursday so hopefully I'll get to see a bit more over there.
I have been eating well and had a great meal in this rather dodgy Afghan restaurant my boss likes. This may surprise most given my famously picky eating habits but I feel it only proves that I can indeed find anything to eat on any menu and leave satisfied.
What I haven't been doing -- which may be even more surprising -- is drinking lots and lots of booze. Maybe some business trips are clouded in a Bacchanalian haze but for the most part the routine seems to be early to bed and even earlier to rise for everyone involved. I did make it to the Night Market tonight though so I could pick up all kinds of cool little knick-knacks for Photogal and mi familia. Originally I wanted to get everyone something really nice but I hadn't realized Hong Kong was so goldanged expensive! So I opted to go the local open market route and tried to pick out things you probably wouldn't exactly be tripping over in the states.
I did also finally make it to the HMV but surprisingly found nothing for myself. They had some discs that aren't out in the U.S. yet but soon will be and I wasn't willing to pay more for a CD I can -- or will be able to shortly -- get in the U.S.
Now I'm just feeling a tad worn out, missing my beagle and Photogal, and actually looking forward to heading home on Friday. Like I said, I can't wait to go to the Mainland Thursday, and I have the feeling we may get a little wild since most of us will (finally) be acclimated to Hong Kong time and will be willing to whoop it up a bit by the time this trip draws to a close but that doesn't change the fact that no place is that cool or that much fun if the people you love aren't nearby.
Monday, October 13, 2003
Wakey wakey!
5:20am HK time and I just can't sleep anymore, so I figured I'd share a few other cool perks I'm enjoying due to the courtesy of the hotel along with a few random observations. Then I'm showering and going in search of a disposable camera and some Tylenol Sinus. The humidity is about 104% outside but my room is dry as three-year-old Thanksgiving turkey wishbone.
- There is a motherfrickin' television set embedded in the wall above my bathtub.
- I get a fresh bowl of fruit I've never seen before and highly suspect is rarely seen outside an Amazonian rain forest.
- The people who actually work in the Hong Kong office -- who are tremendously nice folks -- told me I look like "an artist or something" and didn't look at all like they thought I would. I guess I come across as pretty professional via e-mail!
- When at a dinner table with lots of folks in Marketing who ask you what you did previous to this job, the least expected answer is, "I booked a rock and roll club." Most common reply? "Well this is a change of pace, innit?"
- Yes, at 6' 2" I feel like a giant when I walk around on the street. Way too tall and gangly.
- Cell phones here make the ones available in The States look like those big green U.S. Army ones connected to back packs that were utilized back in WW II.
- I'm glad I brought a little booklet of CDs as the room does come equipped with a stereo, but does not have any inputs for my iPod. Nothing like waking up to Tomoyasu Hotei's "Battle Without Honor Or Humanity" a.k.a. "That really cool song played in the Kill Bill previews/When Lucy Liu and her posse enter the soon-to-be-demolished restaurant in the Kill Bill movie.
- Speaking of Kill Bill, I thoroughly enjoyed it since I got a chance to see it before I left but did get a bit dizzy tracking all the pop culture and movie references...especially when Tarantino included his own past films as available material that to include in this loving homage of an action/gangster/revenge dramady.
Okay, need shower, a coffee and aspirin.
If anyone has anything they'd like investigated whilst I'm here pop in a comment or toss me an e-mail. Toodles!
5:20am HK time and I just can't sleep anymore, so I figured I'd share a few other cool perks I'm enjoying due to the courtesy of the hotel along with a few random observations. Then I'm showering and going in search of a disposable camera and some Tylenol Sinus. The humidity is about 104% outside but my room is dry as three-year-old Thanksgiving turkey wishbone.
- There is a motherfrickin' television set embedded in the wall above my bathtub.
- I get a fresh bowl of fruit I've never seen before and highly suspect is rarely seen outside an Amazonian rain forest.
- The people who actually work in the Hong Kong office -- who are tremendously nice folks -- told me I look like "an artist or something" and didn't look at all like they thought I would. I guess I come across as pretty professional via e-mail!
- When at a dinner table with lots of folks in Marketing who ask you what you did previous to this job, the least expected answer is, "I booked a rock and roll club." Most common reply? "Well this is a change of pace, innit?"
- Yes, at 6' 2" I feel like a giant when I walk around on the street. Way too tall and gangly.
- Cell phones here make the ones available in The States look like those big green U.S. Army ones connected to back packs that were utilized back in WW II.
- I'm glad I brought a little booklet of CDs as the room does come equipped with a stereo, but does not have any inputs for my iPod. Nothing like waking up to Tomoyasu Hotei's "Battle Without Honor Or Humanity" a.k.a. "That really cool song played in the Kill Bill previews/When Lucy Liu and her posse enter the soon-to-be-demolished restaurant in the Kill Bill movie.
- Speaking of Kill Bill, I thoroughly enjoyed it since I got a chance to see it before I left but did get a bit dizzy tracking all the pop culture and movie references...especially when Tarantino included his own past films as available material that to include in this loving homage of an action/gangster/revenge dramady.
Okay, need shower, a coffee and aspirin.
If anyone has anything they'd like investigated whilst I'm here pop in a comment or toss me an e-mail. Toodles!
Post Script
Tow things:
One - Seen Lost In Translation? I feel like Bill Murray right now. Too tired to sleep.
Two - The super posh -- and I'm not exagerrating when I say super posh -- hotel I'm staying at is kind enough to provide slippers right next to the bed for their guests. Too bad my feet are about twice the size of the slippers!
Tow things:
One - Seen Lost In Translation? I feel like Bill Murray right now. Too tired to sleep.
Two - The super posh -- and I'm not exagerrating when I say super posh -- hotel I'm staying at is kind enough to provide slippers right next to the bed for their guests. Too bad my feet are about twice the size of the slippers!
Don't believe the time stamp!
Why, because as I type this it is 12:16 Tuesday morning here in Hong Kong.
Not much to talk about right now other than my desperate need to crash and try to reacclimate to the time here.
Watched Bruce Almighty one too many times on the flight but other than that it was a surprisingly enjoyable experience.
Intital impression at the airport? It looked just like Texas with all the palm trees and warm weather....until you looked at the unusually colored sky and realized how much pollution is in the air. Creepy. The city itself is like a more congested version of NYC, very vibrant, very bright and filled with activities I know I just won't get a chance to do on this trip!
Douple plus good, though, is the presence of an HMV just one block from my hotel. Yipee!
I also had my first experience of ordering a drink with a co-worker in the hotel bar and signing it to my room. I actually have yet to convert any cash into Hong Kong dollars but I'll be sure to do that tomorrow so I can start picking up knick-knacks.
So far it's not that otherworldly though since I've mainly been in the hotel and really nice restaurant a block and a half away and both locations are filled with tourists and business travellers. One might say I haven't really gotten a tast of the local flavor yet.
It is weird to be in a city with mountains all over the outskirts though.
Finally, apologies for any incorrect spelling or tense...I'm typing quickly and without a spell-check becasue I'm just that darn exhausted. more tomorrow after I get back from my first day of business meetings.
Did you ever think you'd run into someone actually excited to go to a business meeting? Well now you have.
Why, because as I type this it is 12:16 Tuesday morning here in Hong Kong.
Not much to talk about right now other than my desperate need to crash and try to reacclimate to the time here.
Watched Bruce Almighty one too many times on the flight but other than that it was a surprisingly enjoyable experience.
Intital impression at the airport? It looked just like Texas with all the palm trees and warm weather....until you looked at the unusually colored sky and realized how much pollution is in the air. Creepy. The city itself is like a more congested version of NYC, very vibrant, very bright and filled with activities I know I just won't get a chance to do on this trip!
Douple plus good, though, is the presence of an HMV just one block from my hotel. Yipee!
I also had my first experience of ordering a drink with a co-worker in the hotel bar and signing it to my room. I actually have yet to convert any cash into Hong Kong dollars but I'll be sure to do that tomorrow so I can start picking up knick-knacks.
So far it's not that otherworldly though since I've mainly been in the hotel and really nice restaurant a block and a half away and both locations are filled with tourists and business travellers. One might say I haven't really gotten a tast of the local flavor yet.
It is weird to be in a city with mountains all over the outskirts though.
Finally, apologies for any incorrect spelling or tense...I'm typing quickly and without a spell-check becasue I'm just that darn exhausted. more tomorrow after I get back from my first day of business meetings.
Did you ever think you'd run into someone actually excited to go to a business meeting? Well now you have.
Friday, October 10, 2003
Yes, posts have been sparse…
…but what do you expect from a guy who had to prepare a business trip to China in less than a week? I've been busy damnit! Having said that, I think it would be an understatement to say I’m excited by this journey. I can’t wait. I hate flying. I hate a fifteen hour plane ride. But I love the idea of going to Hong Kong so much I’m willing to suffer a little.
That and my doctor was nice enough to prescribe me some Xanax for the flight, so I should be A-OK.
The plus side for you folks is that in the next week I’ll be in the air more than thirty hours with a laptop computer so expect many varied and lengthy posts to pop up here over the next week and a half at least!
Until then, here’s a zen image for you to reflect on until next I write…from sunny shiny Hong Kong!
…but what do you expect from a guy who had to prepare a business trip to China in less than a week? I've been busy damnit! Having said that, I think it would be an understatement to say I’m excited by this journey. I can’t wait. I hate flying. I hate a fifteen hour plane ride. But I love the idea of going to Hong Kong so much I’m willing to suffer a little.
That and my doctor was nice enough to prescribe me some Xanax for the flight, so I should be A-OK.
The plus side for you folks is that in the next week I’ll be in the air more than thirty hours with a laptop computer so expect many varied and lengthy posts to pop up here over the next week and a half at least!
Until then, here’s a zen image for you to reflect on until next I write…from sunny shiny Hong Kong!
Wednesday, October 08, 2003
Sad but true.
Once upon a time I thought this woman was soooooo hot. My little heart went a pitter-pat while I leafed through Sport Illustrated's swimsuit issues or bought calendars devoted to Kathy Ireland.
While I may never have been a normal kid I think that fact alone at least proves that I wasn't a total freak. Right?
Once upon a time I thought this woman was soooooo hot. My little heart went a pitter-pat while I leafed through Sport Illustrated's swimsuit issues or bought calendars devoted to Kathy Ireland.
While I may never have been a normal kid I think that fact alone at least proves that I wasn't a total freak. Right?
Tuesday, October 07, 2003
Tonight
As usual, Me and Rudy, Ten56, lotsa rock and/or roll...and as a bonus this week we're celebrating the birthday of our friend -- and minor local celebrity-type -- Daisy Glaze!
As usual, Me and Rudy, Ten56, lotsa rock and/or roll...and as a bonus this week we're celebrating the birthday of our friend -- and minor local celebrity-type -- Daisy Glaze!
Monday, October 06, 2003
This made me laugh soooo hard...
Read this series of prank phone calls about sharing music on the Web. The iTunes call in particular is pretty fucking funny. Go from one to the next via links at the bottom of each page.
Thanks to Rocktober for finding this one.
Read this series of prank phone calls about sharing music on the Web. The iTunes call in particular is pretty fucking funny. Go from one to the next via links at the bottom of each page.
Thanks to Rocktober for finding this one.
Wow.
Wotta weekend.
The Done Waiting Show Friday was great.
The Polyphonic Spree show Sunday was great.
Rachael Yamagata’s debut ep is great.
I’m going to China is six days and that’s pretty great.
I am so exhausted. Too tired to write. Sorry, but all details will be filled in later.
Meanwhile go here to read my review of Ms Yamagata’s new disc.
Wotta weekend.
The Done Waiting Show Friday was great.
The Polyphonic Spree show Sunday was great.
Rachael Yamagata’s debut ep is great.
I’m going to China is six days and that’s pretty great.
I am so exhausted. Too tired to write. Sorry, but all details will be filled in later.
Meanwhile go here to read my review of Ms Yamagata’s new disc.
Friday, October 03, 2003
Running uphill.
How was last night? Super, thanks for asking! Despite a flurry of technical problems last night the show went really well, everyone was in fine form and the club’s staff couldn’t have been nicer. A more detailed write-up will appear over at Done Waiting in the next few days. However…
TONIGHT
It’s the official Chicago stop of the Done Waiting Field Studies Tour and the line-up couldn’t be more solid -- even if Tom Waits dragged in those lanky limbs of his and jumped onstage to do a duet with David Bowie. Okay, maybe that would be pretty cool. I’m still pretty excited about tonight’s line-up anyway. Who’s playing you ask? Two bands from Chi-town and two bands from the far-off land that calls itself Columbus, Ohio and they are named:
Light FM
The Miranda Sound
Woolworthy
The Stepford 5
It’s all going down at The Note starting at nine o’clock so be there or be square Daddy-O.
Oh yeah, Go Cubs…beat the crap out of Atlanta quickly so the game is done before my show starts!
How was last night? Super, thanks for asking! Despite a flurry of technical problems last night the show went really well, everyone was in fine form and the club’s staff couldn’t have been nicer. A more detailed write-up will appear over at Done Waiting in the next few days. However…
It’s the official Chicago stop of the Done Waiting Field Studies Tour and the line-up couldn’t be more solid -- even if Tom Waits dragged in those lanky limbs of his and jumped onstage to do a duet with David Bowie. Okay, maybe that would be pretty cool. I’m still pretty excited about tonight’s line-up anyway. Who’s playing you ask? Two bands from Chi-town and two bands from the far-off land that calls itself Columbus, Ohio and they are named:
The Miranda Sound
Woolworthy
The Stepford 5
It’s all going down at The Note starting at nine o’clock so be there or be square Daddy-O.
Oh yeah, Go Cubs…beat the crap out of Atlanta quickly so the game is done before my show starts!
Thursday, October 02, 2003
HOLY MOLY!
I just found out my job is sending me to Hong Kong in a little over a week for five days. How exciting! Be sure to tune in for updates between Oct 13 and 17 for my adventures outside of the country.
Okay, so it’s a business trip so there probably won’t be all that much adventure goin’ on but it’s still pretty cool…
TONIGHT
Go to The Subterranean if you are in Chicago. Enjoy the lovely music of
Sono
Loretta
The Assembly
The show starts at 9pm, the cover is $5 and you are more than welcome to buy me a drink. As an added bonus, Mr. R. Duffy – a.k.a. the overlord of the Done Waiting site – will be in attendance so grab this chance to see the man outside of his natural habitat!
I just found out my job is sending me to Hong Kong in a little over a week for five days. How exciting! Be sure to tune in for updates between Oct 13 and 17 for my adventures outside of the country.
Okay, so it’s a business trip so there probably won’t be all that much adventure goin’ on but it’s still pretty cool…
TONIGHT
Go to The Subterranean if you are in Chicago. Enjoy the lovely music of
Loretta
The Assembly
The show starts at 9pm, the cover is $5 and you are more than welcome to buy me a drink. As an added bonus, Mr. R. Duffy – a.k.a. the overlord of the Done Waiting site – will be in attendance so grab this chance to see the man outside of his natural habitat!
Wednesday, October 01, 2003
Wacky.
Just got an e-mail yesterday from a promo person I’ve dealt with for many many years that happens to work at a really kick-ass promotion company.
They asked me if I’d like a CD of this great new up-and-coming singer/songwriter Rachael Yamagata. I said I’d love a disc.
Then today I’m at Best Buy and there she is singing a song on the Charmed soundtrack!
I can tell it’s going to be weird watching one of my friends get all famous and stuff.
Just got an e-mail yesterday from a promo person I’ve dealt with for many many years that happens to work at a really kick-ass promotion company.
They asked me if I’d like a CD of this great new up-and-coming singer/songwriter Rachael Yamagata. I said I’d love a disc.
Then today I’m at Best Buy and there she is singing a song on the Charmed soundtrack!
I can tell it’s going to be weird watching one of my friends get all famous and stuff.
Monday, September 29, 2003
What’s wrong with this picture?
I am not a sporty guy. I’ve tried to get into sports, and I’ve touched on this subject here in the past, but we are just a match that is not meant to be. For instance, when I went through a baseball phase in the mid-to-late ‘80s, which in retrospect I consider to be a pretty golden era in baseball, I realized that my obsessive nature was more inclined to collect baseball cards than to watch a baseball game. I don’t know, maybe my obsessive love of music, reading, writing and a dozen other things just fulfills my quota of interests and sports didn’t make the cut.
I do actually enjoy attending a number of sporting events. Soccer can be fun to crowd watch, hockey doesn’t bug me either and baseball is the one game I view more as a social experience than as sporting event. Especially Cubs games at Wrigley Field.
Especially last minute double-headers at Wrigley Field during which the Cubs clinch a divisional title.
And I’m sitting in the fourth row just to the left of home plate. Pretty sweet huh?
Anyone who actually cares about the subject probably knows this particular game inside and out by now so I won’t really extensively comment on anything that happened on the field. What I did find interesting is just how miserable most Cubs fans looked about fifteen minutes after the end of the second game as their relief that the Cubs actually made it to the playoffs turned to dread as they realized…oh crap, the Cubs actually made it to the playoffs!
A Cubs fan is a unique fan. Sometimes I think the fans are more important than the actual team. And I think at this point it’s impossible for a Cubs fan to truly savor any kind of victory with out fearing the ultimate stumbling and defeat they’re grown used to seeing. I think the agony is even intensified post-season as the true fan hopes for victory and strains to remain sane when every logical cell in their body is arranging itself to deal with the uncompromising letdown of certain defeat.
Me? I hope the Cubs do well and the fans get to celebrate a while longer. Ultimately I hope they don’t make it to or win the World Series because I think if the Cubs were ever truly victorious, that little something that makes them so loved by the city of Chicago might be lost forever. And that would be truly tragic.
Strokin’
I finally got to listen to the new Strokes disc Room On Fire and I can say with confidence these New Yorkers have side-stepped the dreaded sophomore curse by sticking to familiar production values and dependable songs. I think part of the band’s charm actually derives from their records sounding like they’re being pushed through amps with cones just barely held together with duct tape and vocals that sound transmitted from 1933. Thank god they didn’t use Nigel Godrich or the whole thing probably would have sucked.
Of course these charming qualities would be worthless without killer tunes and Room On Fire is full of them. “What Ever Happened” opens the disc with a punch and a growl while further on “The End Has No End” crams synth-pop ideas into snarling guitars. Dig it.
Some help?
Finally, I’m looking for a little advice. I’m going to purchase a ’94 two-door Honda Civic but the thing has no stereo. Can anyone out there recommend some reasonably priced speakers and a CD player that also has auxiliary inputs so I can play my 30 GB iPod? Any e-mails to tankboy at aol dot com or suggestions in the comments section below are fully welcomed.
I am not a sporty guy. I’ve tried to get into sports, and I’ve touched on this subject here in the past, but we are just a match that is not meant to be. For instance, when I went through a baseball phase in the mid-to-late ‘80s, which in retrospect I consider to be a pretty golden era in baseball, I realized that my obsessive nature was more inclined to collect baseball cards than to watch a baseball game. I don’t know, maybe my obsessive love of music, reading, writing and a dozen other things just fulfills my quota of interests and sports didn’t make the cut.
I do actually enjoy attending a number of sporting events. Soccer can be fun to crowd watch, hockey doesn’t bug me either and baseball is the one game I view more as a social experience than as sporting event. Especially Cubs games at Wrigley Field.
Especially last minute double-headers at Wrigley Field during which the Cubs clinch a divisional title.
And I’m sitting in the fourth row just to the left of home plate. Pretty sweet huh?
Anyone who actually cares about the subject probably knows this particular game inside and out by now so I won’t really extensively comment on anything that happened on the field. What I did find interesting is just how miserable most Cubs fans looked about fifteen minutes after the end of the second game as their relief that the Cubs actually made it to the playoffs turned to dread as they realized…oh crap, the Cubs actually made it to the playoffs!
A Cubs fan is a unique fan. Sometimes I think the fans are more important than the actual team. And I think at this point it’s impossible for a Cubs fan to truly savor any kind of victory with out fearing the ultimate stumbling and defeat they’re grown used to seeing. I think the agony is even intensified post-season as the true fan hopes for victory and strains to remain sane when every logical cell in their body is arranging itself to deal with the uncompromising letdown of certain defeat.
Me? I hope the Cubs do well and the fans get to celebrate a while longer. Ultimately I hope they don’t make it to or win the World Series because I think if the Cubs were ever truly victorious, that little something that makes them so loved by the city of Chicago might be lost forever. And that would be truly tragic.
Strokin’
I finally got to listen to the new Strokes disc Room On Fire and I can say with confidence these New Yorkers have side-stepped the dreaded sophomore curse by sticking to familiar production values and dependable songs. I think part of the band’s charm actually derives from their records sounding like they’re being pushed through amps with cones just barely held together with duct tape and vocals that sound transmitted from 1933. Thank god they didn’t use Nigel Godrich or the whole thing probably would have sucked.
Of course these charming qualities would be worthless without killer tunes and Room On Fire is full of them. “What Ever Happened” opens the disc with a punch and a growl while further on “The End Has No End” crams synth-pop ideas into snarling guitars. Dig it.
Some help?
Finally, I’m looking for a little advice. I’m going to purchase a ’94 two-door Honda Civic but the thing has no stereo. Can anyone out there recommend some reasonably priced speakers and a CD player that also has auxiliary inputs so I can play my 30 GB iPod? Any e-mails to tankboy at aol dot com or suggestions in the comments section below are fully welcomed.
Friday, September 26, 2003
Greetings from Corporate America...Having a great time, wish you were here....
So I survived my first Sales/Marketing meeting within the big ol’ corporate structure over the past two days. In the weeks leading up to this, my office has been a buzzin’ with activity as everyone scrambled to get his or her presentations up to par. Basically this meeting is a make or break for product managers as they let the sales force see what’s coming down the pipeline. The reactions they get to each product is the deciding factor as to whether that particular product will ever see the fluorescent light of day on some store’s shelf space.
This is pretty heavy stuff as far as corporate business goes but I was surprised how chill I actually felt going into the whole thing. Personally I only had to do one small presentation about a product I actually dig so I had that going for me. Plus, I don’t really get nervous in front of large groups of people – hell, I used to hop around on stage in a dress and hockey mask when I fronted a band – so the whole thing was a breeze for me. At the meeting itself it was also kind of cool to see just how far reaching my company is and how many wild and cool products we develop as other product managing teams did their own presentations. Interesting Fun Fact #2045: I also learned about this factory in China we use that is two and a half miles long.
Two and a half miles!
Whoa.
Anyway, the most interesting thing was the general vibe of people at the meeting. Maybe it’s because I haven’t really been processed through the corporate culture since I’ve sort of avoided the more regimented work force for the last decade or so but I noticed a weird thing about the way people act around their superiors. They seem to be afraid of them.
Since this was a big deal of a meeting all the head honchos of my company were there and I was pretty impressed. I tend to respect my superiors more than fear them. In this instance our CEO and the handful of other bigwigs that spoke genuinely impressed me with their intelligence, their insight and their general wit. It’s nice to run into upper management that actually seems to belong in upper management!
So I guess that’s why I couldn’t understand why people seemed wary or afraid of these folks. Sure they are our bosses and sure they have the power to hire and fire us but I think it’s more important to center on the fact that they actually seem to have knowledge that folks further down the corporate food chain could actually learn from and utilize to do our own jobs better.
Now I do realize I am pretty lucky. My job is actually pretty cool for a nine to five type thing. What’s more I realize that it’s pretty rare to run into CEOs and VPs and other corner-office-with-a-view types that actually seem to not only know what they’re talking about but are able to back up those words and theories with strong actions.
I mean, that’s pretty cool, huh?
Anyway, I just wanted to give an update on how I am surviving in the sea that is Corporate America and that the whole experience has not been nearly as dire as I feared it would be. In fact I am rather enjoying it.
Whoa again.
So I survived my first Sales/Marketing meeting within the big ol’ corporate structure over the past two days. In the weeks leading up to this, my office has been a buzzin’ with activity as everyone scrambled to get his or her presentations up to par. Basically this meeting is a make or break for product managers as they let the sales force see what’s coming down the pipeline. The reactions they get to each product is the deciding factor as to whether that particular product will ever see the fluorescent light of day on some store’s shelf space.
This is pretty heavy stuff as far as corporate business goes but I was surprised how chill I actually felt going into the whole thing. Personally I only had to do one small presentation about a product I actually dig so I had that going for me. Plus, I don’t really get nervous in front of large groups of people – hell, I used to hop around on stage in a dress and hockey mask when I fronted a band – so the whole thing was a breeze for me. At the meeting itself it was also kind of cool to see just how far reaching my company is and how many wild and cool products we develop as other product managing teams did their own presentations. Interesting Fun Fact #2045: I also learned about this factory in China we use that is two and a half miles long.
Two and a half miles!
Whoa.
Anyway, the most interesting thing was the general vibe of people at the meeting. Maybe it’s because I haven’t really been processed through the corporate culture since I’ve sort of avoided the more regimented work force for the last decade or so but I noticed a weird thing about the way people act around their superiors. They seem to be afraid of them.
Since this was a big deal of a meeting all the head honchos of my company were there and I was pretty impressed. I tend to respect my superiors more than fear them. In this instance our CEO and the handful of other bigwigs that spoke genuinely impressed me with their intelligence, their insight and their general wit. It’s nice to run into upper management that actually seems to belong in upper management!
So I guess that’s why I couldn’t understand why people seemed wary or afraid of these folks. Sure they are our bosses and sure they have the power to hire and fire us but I think it’s more important to center on the fact that they actually seem to have knowledge that folks further down the corporate food chain could actually learn from and utilize to do our own jobs better.
Now I do realize I am pretty lucky. My job is actually pretty cool for a nine to five type thing. What’s more I realize that it’s pretty rare to run into CEOs and VPs and other corner-office-with-a-view types that actually seem to not only know what they’re talking about but are able to back up those words and theories with strong actions.
I mean, that’s pretty cool, huh?
Anyway, I just wanted to give an update on how I am surviving in the sea that is Corporate America and that the whole experience has not been nearly as dire as I feared it would be. In fact I am rather enjoying it.
Whoa again.
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