vol. 50

i've been around the world and found
that only stupid people are breeding...
-- harvey danger, flagpole sitta

i honestly can't say as that line is directed toward anybody -- i just always find it to be amusing when i hear it --

so i found a list of the 100 most iconic internet videos (not sure if it was from just last year or throughout the entire history of the civilized world, or at least the civilized world since the internet was created...) you can find this list here... entering that list at number 96 is this offering from a group of workers that has become known as a lip dub -- they did this all in one take to the song flagpole sitta by harvey danger (yes, i know, definitely a one hit wonder...) it's a great idea and i'm sure it will spawn a ton of imitations (or it already has -- actually, now that i look at that list in a little more detail, there are definitely things on there that were created prior to this year...)

at any rate -- go here to see the lip dub... great, creative idea...

vol. 49

You can't navigate me. I might do mean things, and I might hurt you, and I might run away without your permission, and you might hate me forever, and I know that that scares the living shit out of you 'cause you know I'm the only real thing that you have...
-- Reality Bites (as said by Ethan Hawke...)

I have this planet of regret sitting on my shoulders...
-- Reality Bites (as said by Ethan Hawke...)

so i'm sitting around today waiting for the festivities to begin...

just got done mowing the grass and sat down to blow a couple minutes -- and found reality bites on... it's truly difficult for me to fathom the fact that this movie came out 15 years ago... i haven't seen this in i don't know how many years and it just really took me back... 15 freaking years...

anyway...

there's a scene in this that is one of my all time favorites -- all i could find was this youtube clip -- and i'm not really sure that it will make sense to you if you haven't seen the movie -- but it just killed me today when i watched the movie again... ethan hawke's character has disappeared and winona ryder doesn't know what's going on... and this is what ensues... i truly don't know that a song has ever been placed better, even though the cut the song down from its original, which can be found here -- my brothers will understand why this video absolutely kills me -- actually, that's a good idea for another posting...

and seriously, what has happened to winona ryder since her shoplifting arrest????

vol. 48

okay... i'll lay off the lamontagne for today...

found some pretty cool things in new york magazine...

enjoy...

• this, specifically, deals with a street artist in nyc named joshau allan harris -- pretty cool idea to do this

• and this, specifically, deals with a pizza purist -- now, how does one become a pizza purist? i am sure you are asking yourself... watch this and see what you think -- all i know is that when i'm up to see nick this summer, i'm there...

yes, i'm very hungry right now...

vol. 47

baby, it's been a long day, baby
things ain't been going my way
you know i need you here
here by my side
all the time...
-- ray lamontagne

speaking of found objects -- i think that i've spoken (typed) on here before how i tear music down and love to speak to people about what we hear when we hear music... friday night i told beck that i had never heard the guitar in you are the best thing -- he looked at me like i was speaking swahili -- it got to the point that we (or at least i) thought that we had to have downloaded different versions of the album from itunes -- so i listened to it a lot over the weekend and realized that the guitar has always been there -- i just wasn't hearing it (and for the record, lamontagne didn't have any horns on friday night, so this made the guitar more noticeable...)

vol. 46

now both of us have known love before
to come on up promising, like the spring, just walk on out the door
our hearts are strong and our hearts are kind
well, let me tell you exactly what's on my mind...
-- ray lamontagne

i speak frequently in class about the concept of the american dream -- one of the things we constantly talk about is whether or not it's achievable -- we talk about having a dream and working and working for it and whether or not it can just be done... we also talk about expectations that we have and how many times we build something up as being the end all, be all -- then we get there, so to speak, and we're let down...

ray lamontagne was friday night and i knew i was setting myself up for possible failure just because my expectations were so high -- but i was amazed -- there was no let down in any way, shape or form -- from the moment he began with you are the best thing, i just knew i was in for everything i was expecting -- from the moment baby, rang out from his mouth, it was on... and, in actuality, it was more that even i was expecting and hoping for --

i spoke about the concept of found objects -- and what i found friday night is just how talented his band is as well -- before, all i heard was his voice (and yes, it is that good) but eric heywood on the pedal steel and electric guitar just blew me away -- jennifer condos was beyond solid on bass and i was truly impressed with her voice as background (especially on i still care for you) -- ethan johns was on the drums, and there was just something cool about how he went about his business -- the drums really stood out to me on henry nearly killed me... by no means do i really know the drums, but for lack of proper terminology, there were just some great 'build ups' during this song that i really enjoyed -- he reminded me of david gray's old drummer clune, to a certain extent with his theatrical playing (after doing a little bit of research, i found out that he is actually the producer of the album and that he also has worked with kings of leon...)

we hung out afterwards and i was able to get a set list and then even more fortunate to meet jennifer, who signed it and then got everybody else in the band to do the same -- unfortunately ray didn't come out, but honestly, i can't say as i was expecting this to happen...

it was just a really, really cool experience that turned around a rough couple of days... much needed for sure...

just in case you're interested, here's what he played: you are the best thing, hold you in my arms, let it be me, i will care for you, empty, henry nearly killed me (it's a shame), you can bring me flowers, burn, jolene, aching all the time, meg white, hey me hey mama, shelter, trouble, 3 more days, and gossip in the grain -- set list shows that he was going to play all the wild horses, but he didn't do this...

vol. 45

if i would have led with lines from a song before last night, it would have been these...

my body turns
and yearns
for a sleep
that won't ever come...

but last night i listened to this song on record and really heard the next couple lines...

it's never over
my kingdom
for a kiss
upon her shoulder...
-- jeff buckley, lover, you should have come over

i made a comment one time about loving found objects -- a student asked me today what i meant by that so i tried to explain -- a found object to me can be many things -- it can literally be something that you find on the side of the road, in your yard, wherever -- there's something interesting about that for sure -- but for me, specifically dealing with the things that i love the most, it's something that i find for the first time in a song i've heard a thousand times or a movie i've seen over and over and over... it's really hearing buckley sing that second section above for the first time -- it's magical almost -- i never really heard that section properly until last night -- why didn't it ever stand out to me before that point??

• i've been hooked on the song fingers crossed by gustav and the seasick sailors lately -- really cool song and the video isn't too shabby either... (it provides credits at the beginning -- stick with it...)