So, I bought a new bike this weekend. It's a Raleigh Hybrid Detour 4.5, and it's super rad. I haven't had a bike since I was in high school, so I'm pretty excited to be back in the club. I'm going to ride it to work as much as possible. I did both yesterday and today, and it was great. I got to work with way more energy than I normally have in the morning (without the morning coffee, no less), plus it's nice to enjoy a bit of a the summer weather during the day, as opposed to just witnessing it through my office window.
The ride this morning got me thinking about songs about bikes. Apparently I'm not the first person to wonder about it, as this blogger already compiled a fairly extensive list, in case you're looking for fodder for a biking mix.
Out of the above list, here's the video for my fave. Maybe Freddie Mercury will inspire you to get on your bike today. If not, who doesn't love a little Queen?
So I checked out the Foo Fighters show with Supergrass opening on Friday. I hadn't seen Foo Fighters since 2000 when they were co-headlining with the Red Hot Chili Peppers, so it was definitely time to see them again.
First, seeing Supergrass was pretty... Something. I dunno, talk about a blast from the past. I give the band huge props for sticking with it and doing what they want to do. I have to admit that aside from one summer I spent hanging out with a couple of people obsessed with In It For The Money, I didn't know too much of their catalog (other than "Caught By The Fuzz," of course). They're actually a pretty interesting band, and if you want to know more about them, you should plan to check out their upcoming DVD, Glange Fever.
Anyway, seeing Foo Fighters brought back a ton of memories. They're one of the only bands I loved in high school who are still making new music that I listen to these days, too. The Foo Fighters/Chili Peppers show (during the Californication tour) was only the second big show that I got to go to on my own. Growing up in rural Nebraska, I didn't have the luxury of a whole bunch of smaller-cap venues in one place (like the HOB, Agora and Grog here in Cleveland), pretty much guaranteeing a show almost every night. I lived three hours from Omaha, so concerts had to be planned in advance, and it wasn't until my senior year that my parents would let me drive there alone just for a concert.
Three of us made the 6-hour round-trip drive (on a school night--the condition my parents set was that I could go to the show as long as I was at school the next morning). Needless to say, the show was awesome. I was so into that Chili Peppers album, and I thought Dave Grohl was about the coolest person ever--especially after he gave out his hotel room number on stage and invited everyone over after the show.
When I went to college, I was surrounded by people who had grown up in the Chicago suburbs and had a lot of access to a music scene. I have to admit I was pretty jealous, thinking about all the great shows I'd missed and bands I'd never get to see, because they were no longer around and I hadn't lived anywhere near where they had played. Then when I moved to Boston for grad school, I lived right down the street from the Paradise and a short T ride away from venues like the Middle East and the Orpheum. I went to as many shows as I could afford with my grad-school assistantship pay check (not many, I tell ya).
Now that going to shows is part of my job, I have noticed that I've really started to take them for granted. It's a complete 180 from where I grew up, but I've also come to realize that I'm OK with that, too. So maybe my first "no parents" rock show was Aerosmith instead of someone totally cred-worthy like GBH (who was, coincidentally, my friend Swisher's first show in Cleveland).
I guess my point is this: If you live somewhere like Cleveland where you can go to shows regularly, do it. You never know who you'll be seeing that will one day make you super-cool in the eyes of someone younger. If you don't live somewhere that caters to touring bands, that's OK, too. It makes the shows you do get to see all the more special. Either way, you can love music the same.
One of my duties at AP includes putting together our monthly e-newsletter. Aside from keeping you updated on what's going on in AP-world that month, we also include a sampling of band member's birthdays for the month. And the thing that I notice that almost every month there is at least one band with more than one member with a birthday that month. Huh.
I mean, maybe this isn't really that big of a deal. After all, there are only 12 months in a year, and bands average four or five members, it seems. So there's bound to be some overlap. But maybe there is something to this whole zodiac sign deal. I'm not saying I necessarily believe in astrology (though I do think it's pretty interesting and constellations are rad), but maybe people born under the same sign really do work well together creatively.
For proof of how often this happens (and this is just a small sampling of bands), check out the overlap:
January Maya Ford and Torry Castellano of the Donnas were both born on the 6th. Jeph Howard and Quinn Allman of the Used were born of the 4th and 18th, respectively.
February Exene Cervenka (2nd) and John Doe (25), both of X.
March OK, March has us stumped... (Although myself and music editor Scott Heisel were both born in March. I'm 15 days older, but infinitely wiser.) :)
April The All-American Rejects Chris Gaylord (11th) and Tyson Ritter (24th).
May Jason Hale (6th) and Matthew Goddard (7th) from Chiodos.
June Jesse Johnson (3rd) and Justine Pierre (26th) from Motion City Soundtrack. Brandon Saller (24th) and Dan Jacobs (30th), Atreyu.
July Lostprophets = Ilan Rubin (7th), Jamie Oliver (16th), Ian Watkins (30th). Deftones = Chi Cheng (5th) and Abe Cunningham (27th).
August Lostprophets, part deux = Stuart Richardson (15th) and Mike Lewis (17th). Pete Steinkopf (19th) and Greg Attonito (27th), from the Bouncing Souls. Jeff Stinco (22nd) and David Desrosier (29th) from Simple Plan.
September Ian Grushka and Steve Klein, both of New Found Glory, were born the 4th and 30th, respectively. Spencer Smith and Jon Walker of Panic At The Disco celebrate on the 2nd and 17th.
October Minus The Bear = Dave Knudson (13th) and Matt Bayles (19th)--we're gonna count this on a technicality...
November Andrew Everding (13th) and Tucker Rule (17th), of Thursday. Eddie Breckenridge (15th) and Dustin Kensrue (18th), of Thrice. Davey Havok (20th) and Jade Puget (26th), of AFI.
December Muse = Chris Wolstenholme (2nd) and Dominic Howard (7th). Eisley = Sherri DuPree (3rd) and Garron DuPree (4th)i Midtown = Rob Hitt (5th) and Heath Saraceno (18th).
Now, I realize that not all of these people share the same signs, as the zodiac isn't divided perfectly by month. But I think a lot of the times the signs next to each other are still complementary (like aquarius and pisces run through the end of January to March 20, and they are both water signs).
Anyway, here's the real ploy--we need to update our birthday database. If you know your favorite band member's birthdays, you should definitely leave them in the comments!
So, it's been almost a week since Warped Tour was in Cleveland. It was pretty much everything I'd expected it to be. Super hot. Super humid. Super loud. That's OK, though, because I'm not sure if I'd like Warped Tour as much if it weren't really hot (why else did they event little sundresses anyway), if it weren't sticky (it helps keep a layer of sweat between you and all the dirt), or loud (self-explanatory).
Some of the highlights during the day for me included:
Watching Travis McCoy make a guest appearance with Cobra Starship for "Snakes On A Plane." It would have been cool if ol' Billy Beckett showed up, too, but seeings as his own band was playing immediately following CS on the complete opposite side of Tower City, all is forgiven.
Getting up early to help the ad department deliver all the Bed Head Suitcases to the venue. (Being at work by 9:15 before a full day of Warped is worth it if it means you get to drive directly into the venue and not worry about parking.)
Seeing a whole bunch of my friends from last year's Warped Tour (Artie from Vagrant; Lycia from MySpace; Luke and Laila from the bus).
Seeing a whole bunch of my friends from the AP Tour (Ben, the Matches guitar tech/Pink Spiders bassist; RH, Sonny-turned-Norma Jean tour manager; Kevin, Forever The Sickest Kids drum tech--and one of the cutest dudes ever!; Erica from Keep-A-Breast).
Watching Anberlin bring some "strictly rock" elements to the tour. Heck yeah!
Hearing the crowd sing "Whoa-oh, Whoa-oh-oh" during the FTSK set. Did I mention that I was a good 1.5 stages away, with some bus generators thrown in the mix? FTSK = Loudest Crowd Of The Day.
The chick walking around in a full-on banana costume.
Perhaps the best thing I saw, though, was later at our Mustacho Basho party. The turn-out was fantastic and there were mustaches galore. And, right before my camera battery died, I was able to snap one grainy, sorta questionable photo of (a mustached) Tom DeLonge.
He was one of the guest DJs at the party, and I was pretty stoked to see him in person. With all respect to Angels & Airwaves and what they're doing, I was 15 when Dude Ranch came out, and I will always have a kind of reverence for Blink-182... Too bad my camera doesn't love to zoom in the dark.
So, I saw the new Batman movie this afternoon. I'm not planning on any spoilers in this post, but if you're really dying to see it without reading anything about the film first, you might want to check out someone else's blog for the time being.
Anyway, I thought it was good--maybe even really good. But I wasn't totally blown away like I thought I would be. There were far too many (in my opinion) plot points left dangling and the editing drove me crazy. Just when you thought you were at the pinnacle of a scene, the cameras would hard-cut away. That style of editing, I think, detracted from some of the fight sequencing, too. I did appreciate the very relevant (terrorism, national security, corruption, etc.) moral questions that Christopher Nolan wove into the plot, but I wish they had a little more time in the spotlight.
That said, there were still plenty of cool Bat-gadgets, thrilling chase scenes and endearing Alfred lines. And then there was Heath.
Believe the hype, people. His performance was phenomenal. It's pretty twisted that such a demonic and ruthless character is at the same time also the heart of a movie, but he pulls it off with such a seamless naturalness. It's so impressive and so very sad. I think I can speak for a lot of people that with the news of Ledger's death, I was saddened as if I had known him personally. And while his performance as the Joker is obscenely dark, the fact that the actor himself has passed away definitely casts a shadow that is hard to shake--even in the midst of all the action. I find myself thinking of his family and his daughter. What a momentous last role to remember someone by, but how weird/sad it is that it will be years before his daughter will be of the appropriate age to see it.
I had refrained from reading any actual reviews before going to see the movie, but as soon as I was home I turned to three of my favorite critics: Ty Burr of The Boston Globe, David Denby for The New Yorker and Dana Stevens at Slate. (Read their full reviews after the jumps.)
And while they all had varying opinions on the film itself, they all hailed Ledger's performance as the element that really made the movie. In the end, I hope the film doesn't overshadow everything Ledger had done in his short career, because obviously his death is way more tragic than if he fails to win posthumous awards. And Mr. Burr completely nailed it with this graf:
So: Is [Ledger's] performance on a par with "Brokeback Mountain"? In its interiority - in the sense that it springs from a mysterious engine at the actor's core - yes. Is it Oscar worthy? Sure, if that's how you measure these things. In the end, though, the achievement's more than that, or harder. It makes you mourn a gifted man's stupid death with fresh and vigorous sorrow.
And that's really all I could think about when I left the theater.
Much like Scott mentioned on his post today, I am totally little-kid-waiting-in-line-for-a-funnel-cake excited about Warped Tour tomorrow. Unlike Scott, this will only be the 3rd year I've attended Warped Tour. (Hey, Lyman, why don't you start bringing this thing to Nebraska?) However, it will be my 14th actual Warped date (neat, huh, since it's the 14th year of Warped?) since I was on the tour for almost two weeks last year.
Anyway, I'm actually not going to write about Warped Tour, per se, because I happen to be heading out for the last eight days of this year's tour, and you will get plenty of Warped Tour blog face time with me then.
However, I am especially excited for AP's PunxDirtySecret after-party tomorrow. For the past few summers or so, AP has been throwing parties for the bands, crews and their friends at select dates. This year, we just happen to have one in our home town (funny how that works out). ;) One of the popular themes throughout the past couple years is Mustacho Basho, and I'm pleased to say Cleveland has the honor of hosting it this year. This party is the best because everyone (even the lovely ladies) has to wear a mustache (real or otherwise) to get in. Muwahaha.
Don't believe me? Here's some proof:
Yes, that's me (on the left). And yes, more than one person told me it was a surprisingly good look for me. (Thanks. Really. I mean it.) Anyway, the thing I like about these parties, especially after being on the road last year, is they are a really nice break in the routine for the people on the tour. Don't get me wrong--being on Warped is a blast for a lot of different reasons, and you never really know what's going to happen. But most of the time, you don't get to see any of the city you're in except for the venue and whatever's directly next to it. Parties give you a chance to get off-site and away from the sweaty, dirty grime (or at least give you the illusion that you're escaping it) for a few hours.
Plus, it's a great time for the bands to hang out with other bands they may not regularly see.
The fact that I get to go and hang without having to do any of the heavy lifting? Well, let's just say that I'll make up for it in August... (But it will be well worth it.) ;)
Can I just say that I have stumbled upon, possibly, the best restaurant ever invented? (All the foodies in my life will cringe upon reading this, I'm certain.)
While on a pleasant after-dinner stroll in my neighborhood this weekend, I noticed a darkened store front with an "Opening Soon" sign. The colors in the store looked appealing, so I decided to venture across to see what new eatery was opening in Lakewood.
I had to do a double-take when I saw the name of the store: Cereal Central.
YES!
Behind the lunch counter were huge, bright letters that spelled out "CEREALICIOUS," while a board in the window boasted over 30 types of cereals, plus over 40 different toppings. Dude. Cereal is, in my opinion, one of the best foods ever, and it's perfectly acceptable any time of day or night. Now, just four blocks from my house, there is going to be a restaurant dealing specifically in the crunchy, sweet, cold, delectable treat. (Along with oatmeal, homemade cereal bars and smoothies.) This is pretty much the coolest thing ever.
Upong further investigation, it turns out that Cereal Central is a chain. So if you live somewhere already lucky enough to have one of these bad boys, please let me know immediately if it is as amazing as it sounds. (Seriously. Just check out the menu.)
What does this have to do with music or my job? Not much, really, other than the fact that it rocks that we don't have to be to work until around 10 a.m. That gives me plenty of time to frequent CC (yeah, I'm already on an abbreviating basis) during the week. See, one of the reasons we don't have to work until 10ish is because Cleveland is in Eastern Standard Time. We do a lot of work with people in Los Angeles (PST, for those keeping score at home), so the later start time gives us more "face time" with the good people of California. (Not to mention, it's rad that after being at a weeknight show until midnight or so, you can still get 8 hours of sleep. If you want.)
So thank you, Cereal Central, for giving me one more reason to love my work hours. You will be rewarded accordingly with lots of my hard-earned cash.
So, there are tons of things I'm excited about this fall. Besides it being my favorite season and college football happening every Saturday (you better believe there will be more blogs about that, my friends), there's always lots of fun stuff like Halloween, and apple picking and new sweaters. And lots of new films. The summer blockbuster season fades into this really nice period of terrific films coming out in time to be considered for that year's Oscars.
Anyway. One film in particular I'm super, super excited for:
Michael Cera. Kat Dennings. Directed by Peter Sollett (um, hello, the same guy who did Raising Victor Vargas. Wait. You haven't seen that? Homework assignment!). What more could you ask for?
Plus, I'm dying to hear the soundtrack.
(Thanks to our illustrious production director John Millin for the tip.)
So, I'm kinda already over using Wilco song titles for my blogs. I'm a chick. I can change my mind.
Anyway, there are three things I've gotten in the mail recently that I'm super excited about. Two of them are albums, and one is possibly the coolest thing I've ever received in the mail at AP (since I got a one of these in the mail, anyway).
First, the albums. I was thrilled to find out Jagjaguwar is releasing another Okkervil River CD on Sept. 9. You may (or may not) recall that I listed Stage Names as one of the "10 Essential" albums of 2007. I've only had a chance to listen to it a couple of times, but, excitingly, it seems to pick up where the 2007 album left off, combining lyrical vignettes with one of my favorite male singing voices. Sadly, their September and October tour doesn't bring them anywhere near Cleveland. (If I lived in Fargo, North Dakota, though....) It's a bit of a bummer, for sure. I've cursed out Cleveland before for being left off choice routings, but I suppose in the end that's not so much the city's fault as the booker...
The other album I'm really excited about is one I don't think I can name because nothing official has been put up on the band's or the label's websites. However, it's really fun and funky and noisy and dance-y (yes, that's the scientific explanation) all at the same time. I will give you a hint, though. This band also had an album out last year (which had really snazzy cover art), and the title of the album had not one, but two punctuation marks. So there ya go.
Now, for the raddest thing I got in the mail... As part of my job as managing editor, I help to make sure all of our editors stay organized and plan their sections ahead of time and meet deadlines. In the unpredictable industry of music, that's not always the easiest task. However, I do think my job will go a little smoother now that I have this bad boy to act as my enforcer:
Today I spent a good part of the afternoon weeding the flower bed in my front yard. I hadn't worked that hard in the sun since my stint on Warped Tour last summer. (Side note: I actually really love working outside. I think I was really supposed to be a park ranger or something.) Anyway, sweating away the afternoon got me thinking about Warped Tour.
It's been underway for a solid two weeks now. Have you been yet? If so, what do you think? It comes to Cleveland on the 17th--I'm totally stoked about the lineup and just keeping my fingers crossed that it doesn't monsoon here this year, so I can actually see everyone I want.
My brother was at the Kansas City date (nee Bonner Springs) and said the bands were all on top of their games. His day was unfortunately cut short due to a hail storm, but I know he saw Against Me!, Gym Class, Paramore, Reel Big Fish and a bunch of others, too. (He was super bummed he missed AVA because of the weather...)
If you've already been, who do you recommend is a must-see? I mean, I already have a pretty good list in my mind for bands not to miss in Cleveland... But then I'll be helping to man the AP booth on the last 8 dates in August, so I'll have some more time to check out bands then, too. If you've already gone, who blew you away? If you haven't gone yet, who are you most excited to see?
Also, whether you've gone yet or not, you should definitely head over to our (shameless plug alert) Warped Mini-Site and check out all the goodies we've got going. Trust me. You won't be disappointed.
Gonna stick with this Wilco song title, because I think it's by far the most appropriate for Fourth Of July Weekend.
Yesterday was fairly successful, despite the fact that Ohio apparently has Some Dumb Law(TM) where you can technically buy fireworks in the state but you have to say you're taking them over state lines to light them. Is that not one of the most ridiculous things you've ever heard? Also, they upped the fine for lighting said fireworks from $75 to $500.
Needless to say, I don't have an extra $75 sitting around in my wallet, let alone $500, so after a day that included attending the Lakewood City parade and BBQing Hawaiian burgers, I decided to stick with good ol' sparklers. Even Gomer the Garden Gnomer got to light one:
And instead of going the traditional route with some red, white and blue bunting on my front porch, I hung up some Black Cat flags that were sent to me, direct from Nebraska (thanks, Dad!). Black Cat is my fireworks brand of choice, so even though I didn't have any to light, they were in Ohio in spirit:
Today, I decided to take advantage of the Independence Day sales everywhere, and headed out to buy a "real" grill. I've been using my Smokey Joe baby Weber for a couple of years, and while it's definitely done the job, it was time to get an upright one with two racks for some serious steak-n-veggie grillin' action. If you are in need of a minor appliance and are trying to bargain shop, I recommend listening to Damiera while doing so. I was blasting the new album the entire time, and got extremely lucky, finding this baby for less than I was planning to spend:
Woohoo!
Anyway, I have to wrap it up as my holiday festivities are continuing this evening with a visit from one of my former roommates from Boston. I haven't seen her since I moved in July 2006, and she's in town for a family reunion. Yay!
PS: Today, after nearly a year of not working, the "backspace" key on my laptop started working again. It stopped last August when I spilled water on my computer the night I got home from my stint on Warped Tour. Why it started working now is beyond me, but it's been a long 11 months of hitting "delete" + "<--". Can't say I'm sorry that I don't have to do that anymore...
When I was a young girl, the only definition of "punk" I knew was the long, incense-like stick used to light fireworks for the 4th of July. If you get AP's monthly e-newsletter (and assuming that if you do, you read it), you already know that 4th of July is my favorite holiday. So I thought it was only appropriate to make a playlist celebrating the time-honored tradition of watching fireworks in anticipation for Friday.
As Tall As Lions - We're The Ones That Keep You Warm At Night The Automatic - Keep Your Eyes Peeled Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - Killing The Light Bright Eyes - Weather Reports Circa survive - Close Your Eyes To See The Cribs - Be Safe Cursive - Big Bang Dashboard Confessional - Rooftops And Invitations The Decemberists - Summersong Explosions In The Sky - The Birth And Death Of The Day Georgie James - More Lights Gogol Bordello - Your Country The Honorary Title - Radiate Incubus - Light Grenades Kanye West - Flashing Lights The Matches - Clouds Crash Modest Mouse - Fire It Up Muse - Starlight Pete Yorn - Backstand In The Sky Rookie Of The Year - Falling From The Sky Ryan Adams - Tears Of Gold Tegan And Sara - Dark Come Soon The Weakerthans - Civil Twilight Yellowcard - Light Up The Sky Wilco - Ashes Of American Flags
So that is in alpha order, because I'm not in the mood for sequencing today. What would be on your 4th of July playlist?
