I heart Zooey

This was filmed during 500 Days of Summer. Zooey is an music group called She and Him. She's so HAWT.



When she sings the Smith's Line, from There's a Light that Never Goes Out, I can't describe that sensation. And it's the Smiths! How awesome is that? I had a friend describe the movie as too EMO. Oh Hell No! The Smiths don't even fall in that category... The scene starts with Zooey and Joseph and segues into cut scenes with the actual Smiths song.



I Love Cotton. Even more so with Zooey's endorsement...

Ty Segall covering Gloria LIVE

Man, this kid is so damn talented. I've been watching videos of his performances in Youtube. Why didn't I hear about this sooner. I'm really loving the sound. REVERB ROCKS! Thanks to the guy who took this kick ass video. It completely catches the vibe of the moment. And I love the colors in this vid. Mad Props to whitelion333. I hope you don't mind me sharing...

Culture Kids, Ty Segall, Thee Oh Sees, & OFF! @ Gilman 4/22/11

Last Friday I went to see OFF! with my wife and friend Jesse at Gilman. Kristi and I got there an hour and a half before the doors opened. I haven't been to Gilman since I saw Thorns of Life (Blake S. and Aaron Cometbus)so it's been a while. Got to see some old faces. It was like the good 'ol times. I was excited cause this was Kristi's first time going. She knew that it was a 'dump'. But I spent a good number of years hanging out at this place when I was younger. It's been a long time where I've been to a show where I've never seen any of the bands. But I have to say, this the strongest lineup I've seen top to bottom and I honestly enjoyed every minute. It was a good mix, of hardcore, street punk, indie rock with bits of rockabilly elements thrown in. It was a real good time.

Culture Kids were the hardcore band of the night. I could tell they brought a lot of their friends in. Ah, to be young and in a band. They were really good. I had trouble hearing the lead vocals. They seemed to be drowned out by the guitars. The lack of volume on the monitors contributed to problems on their set. But this is typical of a hardcore set.



Ty Segall is someone I have heard of but never really seen perform nor listen to his music. His band was great. I like the reverb and surf rock elements to his sound. But his sound was more raw and edgier. It was hard to pin his style down because of the many elements in their sound. Really talented... and I was really impressed by the end of the set. I would love to see him and his band play again. The most indie-rockiest band of the night award went to him. And well deserved. I'll definitely be looking for more of his stuff now that I've seen him and his band play. I expect this guy to be BIG someday, if not already. Here's a video of him playing solo at another gig.



I have to admit I was getting tired by the time we got to Thee Oh Sees but they were really fun and high energy. They had a whole lot of merch at the table, so I'm gonna have to hunt their stuff down at Amoeba's. My wife really enjoyed their set.
I found out that the frontman, was John Dwyer of the Coachwhips. I enjoyed their stuff back in the day. This material is a little bit different from the former. Really experimental in the sound, but still upbeat. I enjoyed the moog sounding keyboards in the background. What was really sweet was the female vocalist, Brigid Dawson and her harmonic components to the songs. Her voice reminds me of Kim Deal somehow... Below is a video for Meat Step Lively.



To close the night it was the LA hardcore superpunkrock group OFF! Fresh from their set at Coachella the previous week, it was surprising to see punk rock legends play at Gilman. Keith Morris from Circle Jerks/Black Flag(!!!!!!!), Dimitri Coats of Burning Brides, Redd Kross bassist Steven Shane McDonald and Rocket From the Crypt/Hot Snakes drummer Mario Rubalcaba make up OFF! and their sound is very reminiscent of Black Flag and Circle Jerks material, mainly because Coats and Morris writing the songs... although it's new, its very nostalgic for me, and it sounds AWESOME! What a way to end a night! Keith Morris was awesome. I've only seen him on old videos but never would I thought I would see an original Black Flag/Circle Jerk member. Not bad for an old man... But this guy and is band commanded respect. And surprisingly, Gilman gave it to him. He dropped some knowledge about another '80s punk band called Gun Club and OFF! covered one of their songs in homage to Gun Club frontman, Jeffery Lee Pierce, a close friend of Morris who passed away in 1996.

Their set was tight and when they ran out of songs they started over... Otherwise known as the "Black Flag effect" At least they didn't start playing Louie, Louie... (inside joke, 10 points for the reference!)

Below is a video for 'I Don't Belong'



If you don't feel like reading the post below just watch this...

Dynamite(With Me and San Francisco Giants Cody Ross & Brian Wilson)

Another reason why the Giants rule...

SF to Paris and the Aurora Borealis

SF to Paris in Two Minutes from Beep Show on Vimeo.

crazy mechanics... featuring the freak

RIP Comic Relief

Last Wednesday a part of me died. It was only a matter of time Comic Relief would follow its deceased owner. It's truly a sad day. What set this shop apart from others was not only did it dabble in all aspects of geekdom, like games, toys, pop, counter and subculture literature, it was a place for the independents. One had the choice to pick from books and zines from someone's desk made from their hands and a copy machine. An outlet for creativity for the non professional and someone who just wanted to do it for fun. Making comics that is... a 5 year old, a struggling up and comer or an unknown wanting to take a crack at self publishing can make their own mark. It was a place where stars were born like Brubaker or Tomine. It was a place where professionals shopped. I would see Art Adams or Eric Larsen in the shop once in a while. A place where one can get lost in their imagination just by picking up a book. The former owner, Rory Root was a proponent of the 'graphic novel' format and made it possible for comic readers like me to just 'by the book' instead of the monthly. Comic Relief was there for me for my growing up tastes, when I graduated from superheroe to the 'rest of the stuff out there', but allowed to me revert back to a kid when I wanted to check out an issue of Uncanny or Detective Comics.

Maybe if CR reverted to its former size, there wouldn't be any need for the 'extra crap' and believe me, there was a lot. But the point was that it was there if someone wanted it. And if you couldn't find it, chances are, CR did. Maybe it was bad for business, maybe the new management ran it into the ground. We'll never know. With an incredible legacy CR has, maybe it will reemerge and go back to its basics. True its an bad economy and we're entering a digital age, but nothing beats going into a comic shop and picking up your monthlies on a Wednesday or thumping through back issue bins. I thought the good shops would weather through times like this, but maybe comic shops may be going the way of the dinosaurs. I can only think of a 2 or 3 decent shops now. Comic Relief was my escape from reality. Dr. Comics and Mr. Games, it's up to you guys now. I'll be visiting you soon.

I'm Speechless..

And sort of guilty for loving this because I love the Simpsons. But it proves a point. Paints a bigger picture. Mad props to 'BANKSY'.



Maybe if American companies didn't outsource and exploit 3rd World people there would be more jobs for people here.

Why VW rules...

Outakes:

The Best Coast is West Coast

My friend Ron posted this video on facebook and I'm was immediately hooked. I love the surf rock sound combined with the pop sensibilities. It reminds me of Wave of Mutilation UK Surf, with Kim Deal singing the main vocals... Awesome stuff... And the guitar player is an asian dude! The name of the band is Best Coast. Plus, the girl singing the vocals is cute. Plus they have the cute cat posted all over the videos and album cover... I downloaded their stuff on iTunes and every song from their album 'Crazy For You' is solid. It's been a while since I've heard a good album from beginning to end. 'The End' and 'Crazy For You' and 'When I'm With You' are my favorite tracks. In a digital era where I've been desensitized by media, it's good to find something new, throwback and cool. Makes me want to actually own the CD or vinyl. That's when you know it's good... When you want to buy it on wax...

The Song that caught my ear:



From SXSW Performance:

Bottle

Bottle from Kirsten Lepore on Vimeo.

A video by Kirsten Lepore.

I saw this and was really moved. Sweet and in someway, sad.

via swiss-miss

This is how time feels to me.

NYC - Mindrelic Timelapse from Mindrelic on Vimeo.

Happy New Year

2010 was not the year we made contact. In fact it was somewhat like this...



Here's to 2011 and BBC. That is all for now.

Merry Christmas Everybody

It's been a while since I last posted. Went to Europe for the first time ever and it was great. Barcelona, Spain had to be my favorite. The people, the food and the cars were all awesome. The Giants one the World Series for the first time since they left NY. That was great. Tron came out, checked it out and I was let down. The light cycles still rule. Haven't seen Portman and Kunis make out in Black Swan yet. Looking forward to that.

In the spirit of the holiday season I just wanted to touch on a couple things. Simple things really. In a time where the economy is volatile and the future is bleak, where employment is at a all time high, where war takes place and peace seems impossible; there are a lot of bad things, negative things, these things make me really jaded, and make me think what is the point? Why try? Well I try to look towards a positive future. I'm not overy optimistic all the time, but if things look bleak, there is always hope. Hope that anything and everything will get better. And during this time especially I'm thankful for everything that is good in my life. My family and friends I can't be without. My wife and my dogs whom I love with all my heart. A job that enables me to pay the bills. My health, intact. I'm thankful for all these things.

Inception was bad ass...

Incredibly complex and highly intelligent sci-fi movie. You really have to pay attention and keep your perspectives straight to this one or you can get easily lost. Nolan's direction and the special effects in this movie were top notch. This ensemble cast was well picked and I hate to admit it, Leo was pretty good. He's become the new pre-crazy Tom Cruz. He's picked his projects well. It was also nice to see the 500 Days of Summer guy in a sci-fi role. I enjoy his films as well. I couldn't help but notice a lot of Batman alumnus in the film. But the most surprising thing to me is that I think I have seen almost every Chris Nolan movie there is to see and I have not been disappointed by any.

I would like to watch the movie again and try to see it from another perspective. Only then I can make a more comprehensive review. Plus, I'd hate to ruin anything.

We Need A Gathering Instead

Happy Friday and welcome back to another friday night cover special! It's been a while since I've done this so please bear with me.

Today's video features Mike Park, owner of Asian Man Records and of Skankin' Pickle covering 'The Crowd' by Operation Ivy on acoustic guitar. Midway through the song, the original singer of Op Ivy, Jesse Michaels gets on the mic and sings the last verse up to closing.



I picked this video, cause of all the Op Ivy songs, this is always the one that sticks in my head, along with Hedgecore. Everyone knows Knowledge, and UNITY, but this is just catchy. Along with Mike Park's ageless, soft vocals and simply plain but wonderfully sounding strumming on his guitar this rendition does the original justice. Having Jesse Michael's closing the song was just icing on the cake.

Jesse Michael's since Op Ivy, has become a prominent artist and has dabbled with music off an on over the years. Since then, there's been Big Rig and Common Rider and lately, Classics of Love (after a great Common Rider song!). Check out his latest works at Asian Man Records.

BONUS CUP(s)!

Original Performance of The Crowd by Operation Ivy featuring a young Jesse Michaels, Matt Freeman and Tim Armstrong.





Classics of Love by Common Rider

AT-AT Day Afternoon

This video is genius! My friend, LM brought this to my attention, and whenever I feel a little down, I just watch this and the sadness melts away.

Paul McCartney at AT&T Park 7.10.10, home of YOUR SF GIANTS!

When one of my best friends asked me if I wanted to buy tickets to go see Sir Paul McCartney, my first reaction was, HELL YEAH! My friend was able to buy presale tickets so we ended up getting Club Level tickets. I've never been club level before and when we went, I felt like I was in baseball heaven, except I wasn't there for a Giants game. I was there to see Paul effin-McCartney! Never in a million years would I have thunk that I would be seeing him. A former Beatle. Which is why I jumped at the opportunity. I had to dig deep to pay for the tickets for both my wife and I, but I figured that this is one of those once in a lifetime events. And he hasn't played here since he was a Beatle which was in 1966, which was their last touring concert performance. Hopefully its not another 40+ years.

Paul was always, second in my opinion to John, who was my favorite Beatle. Sometimes I would rank him under George. But you have to give it up, he was 1/2 of the main writing duo and has been responsible for some of their greatest hits. Independently they were great, and sometimes achieved greatness. But together they were the GREATEST, hands down.

But at a youthful age of 68, he still rocked AT&T park and owned the sell out crowd of 40,000 people. There was a lot of electricity in the air. A lot of anticipation. People of all ages and color. All together to roll up on the Magical Mystery Tour. And so we journeyed... We journeyed through his career at got samples of different stages of his musical journey. I was in awe to even be there. I tried to anticipate which songs he would play for the night. But his catalogue is so vast that if he played everything, we would be there all night but the material selected for set list was great. He mixed it up often playing Wings, McCartney, and some solo hits. Some of his new material, through in an occasional Beatles tune but as the show progressed he eventually ended with the songs everyone knew and love... His banter between songs was slick, he was sharp, witty and funny most times. He told a lot of stories. He covered some songs in tribute to old friends.

As he was finishing up a Wings selection, he broke into soloing and the band started jamming to Foxy Lady. I know my Hendrix! When they finished, he told a story about Jimi...

...Sgt. Pepper was released on a Friday and Jimi was in town for the weekend for a show. I went to Jimi to say hello and he asked if he could play a Beatles cover. I said it would ok and during the show he played Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band... His downstroke while strumming was so strong it would make his guitar go out of tune. So he stopped during his set and called Eric to come up on stage to help him. He was referring to Clapton. Clapton tried to hide avoid being seen...

I thought that, that story was amusing. 3 musical legends in one room, casually at a show.



At one point of the show he broke into silence and addressed his relationship to John. His other half of the writing duo when they were Beatles. It was known that their relationship was on a decline towards the end but when he played Here Today, you would know what his true feelings were, despite what anyone else had to say, or whatever ill happenstances occurred between the two. This song was a conversation that never happened between the two. When I heard the lyrics, it made my heart move. It was both sweet and sad. And yes make a manly man cry.



Paul singing John's part in A Day in a Life and ending with Give Peace a Chance.



Another memorable moment was his tribute to George, who also passed away. He played Something on a ukelele and mid song the whole band started to play at the solo portion where George would normally play. Something, in my opinion, is the BEST love song ever written. And it was written by not Lennon or McCartney, but George Harrison. Another beautiful tribute his fellow Beatle.



I always associated social activism more with John and a little with George, but I never knew Paul to write about it. Very subtle and clever of him, now that he explained about the people dealing with apartheid in South Africa was the basis for such a beautiful song. Here's Blackbird.



Band On The Run from the Wings days...



Ode to San Francisco ...



Pyrotechnics during Live and Let Die



Let It Be



He ended his second encore set with a rockin' fashion with Helter Skelter followed by "The End", whose lyrics are me and my wife's quote for our wedding programs. A fitting way to end probably the greatest show I have ever been to. In terms of personal and historical perspective, this has been the most meaningful show to me I have ever attended. To rock this hard 3+ hours straight at Sir Paul's age is a testament to his rock awesomeness. To witness greatness and genius this close is a once in a lifetime thing. This is at Beatlemania as it gets for me and I'm thankful to experience it after the fact. Thanks to Rob for getting the tickets. My wife, for letting us go, Sir Paul and his band for this memorable show I will never forget. Thanks to all for the videos.



Paul McCartney at AT&T Park SF 7/10/10 7:30PM

1. Venus and Mars / Rockshow
2. Jet
3. All My Loving
4. Letting Go
5. Got To Get You Into My Life
6. Highway
7. Let Me Roll It/Foxy Lady
8. The Long And Winding Road
9. Nineteen Hundred and Eighty Five
10. Let ‘Em In
11. My Love
12. I’m Looking Through You
13. Two Of Us
14. Blackbird
15. Here Today
16. Dance Tonight
17. Mrs Vandebilt
18. Eleanor Rigby
19. Something
20. Sing The Changes
21. Band On The Run
22. Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da
23. Back In The USSR
24. I’ve Got A Feeling
25. Paperback Writer
26. A Day In The Life / Give Peace A Chance
27. Let It Be
28. Live And Let Die
29. Hey Jude

Encore
30. Day Tripper
31. Lady Madonna
32. Get Back

Second Encore
33. Yesterday
34. Helter Skelter
35. Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band / The End

I almost forgot I had a blog...

I've just stepped away from the computer for a couple months, except to check emails and facebook periodically. Supposedly, its the only way I can keep up with some of my friends, yet I still feel so disconnected. Hence the lack of blogging, yelping, facebooking or whatever. So I've been just living life. And working my ass off. Trying to save vacation time. The wife wants to start travelling. Looking forward to going here, which is our first stop. I'm really excited. The last couple times I went there was between 10-15 years ago. Went there gradnight when I graduated, and then with some friends for a summer road trip to LA. But I never went to Orlando. One particular story I vividly remember the last time, my friends and I were in line for the Matterhorn, which was one of my favorite rides as a kid. The ride is built inside of a faux-mountain setting and the lines are usually long and they wrap around the base of the scaled-down but realistic-looking mountain. So we were closing in to the front of the line and this little kid was slyly passing people up, cutting folks, pretending to be part of the group ahead of him. I eyed him the whole time and when he got to our section of the line he tried to go around me and I stuck my arm out and stiff armed him. I said, "Watch out dude!" He looked stumped that someone would try to stop him. Funny thing, I was a year or two out of graduating high school and here I was trying to regulate some kid trying to cut me and my friends. I guess thats just my personal Will Farrell type of moment.

Gifted Unlimited Rhymes Universal Rest In Power

RIP GURU