Birth Order, HOWL reviews, Steal A Ride, SPIN, Beliefnet, Chan, Nico biopic

Actually, I'm a Third Born... unless my parents had another child that I didn't know about.

You Are Likely A Fourth Born

At your darkest moments, you feel angry. At work and school, you do best when your analyzing. When you love someone, you tend to be very giving. In friendship, you don't take the initiative in reaching out. Your ideal jobs are: factory jobs, comedy, and dentistry. You will leave your mark on the world with your own personal philosophy.

The Birth Order Predictor

A very favorable review of HOWL from Synergy Mag.

Rolling Stone's 3 star review of HOWL is not all bad, at least you can hear a 30 second preview of the hidden track "Open Invitation."

UPDATE: I've uploaded the mp3 of the BRMC track "Steal A Ride" to RapidShare, enjoy! Also, updated the FAQ and added lots more interview links up on Down Here's FAQ/Tour/Press section.

SPIN's review of HOWL is pretty good. Here's a photo from their website:

Distortion pedal devotees get spiritualized.

BRMC, upon realizing that a "Rocky Mountain High" doesn't get you stoned

From another story about SPIN, I learned of a book by Mark Spitz called "How Soon Is Never?" about a kid growing up in the 80's who loved the Smiths and later became a music journalist. Sounds more like an autobiography... of the writer, not the swimmer.

Beliefnet's Joke of the Day

Black and White

Attending a wedding for the first time, a little girl whispered to her mother, "Why is the bride dressed in white?"

"Because white is the color of happiness, and today is the happiest day of her life."

The child thought about this for a moment, then said, "So why is the groom wearing black?"

BAD JOKE DISCLAIMER: We recognize that religious humor can be risky. It is our hope that by laughing at ourselves (and others) we can make this subject more approachable. If you find any of these objectionable, we apologize. Many were posted on Beliefnet, some were passed along via email and others spotted on other websites. As with most jokes, the original authors are unknown -- but we thank them.



I posted this joke because I was thinking about how women who get married usually wear white or off-white, and I thought it would be cool for a bride to wear black or blue or something else unusual. Red is actually a traditional color for Chinese weddings and banquets. I was also thinking about how women usually take on their husband's last name after they get married, though today many women are keeping their maiden names. I've actually met a couple where the husband has taken the wife's name, which seems like a cool idea though it also kind of makes the man seemed whipped. I'm planning to go to my friends' wedding at the beginning of November, and I expect it to be more on the traditional side.

My Top 20 Religions from Beliefnet's Belief-O-Matic

1.	Mahayana Buddhism (100%)
2.	Unitarian Universalism (97%)
3.	Liberal Quakers (88%)
4.	Neo-Pagan (87%)
5.	Hinduism (82%)
6.	Theravada Buddhism (81%)
7.	Jainism (77%)
8.	New Age (77%)
9.	Sikhism (74%)
10.	Bahi'i Faith (71%)
11.	Reform Judaism (69%)
12.	Mainline to Liberal Christian Protestants (64%)
13.	Taoism (64%)
14.	New Thought (62%)
15.	Scientology (60%)
16.	Orthodox Quaker (51%)
17.	Secular Humanism (51%)
18.	Orthodox Judaism (50%)
19.	Christian Science (Church of Christ, Scientist) (44%)
20.	Islam (43%)

Here are some of Beliefnet's quick definitions of Mahayana Buddhism and Neo-Paganism:

Mahayana Buddhism includes diverse beliefs, various sects, schools, and trends. The main Mahayana sects include Pure Land, Zen, and Vajrayana (or Tantric) Buddhism. We focus here on some of the traditional elements of Mahayana Buddhism.

Neo-Pagans are a community of faiths bringing ancient Pagan and magickal traditions to the modern age--including mostly Wicca but also Druidism, Asatru, Shamanism, neo-Native American, and more. Neo-Pagan is an umbrella term for various and diverse beliefs with many elements in common. Some Neo-Pagans find no incongruence practicing Neo-Paganism along with adherence to another faith, such as Christianity or Judaism.

I thought I might be a little Zen /Ch'an Buddhist, since I recently read a great and interesting book called "Zen Miracles." Speaking of my last name, I found an entry about it in Wikipedia:

Chen (surname)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

(Redirected from Chen)

Chén (Simplified Chinese: 陈, Traditional Chinese: 陳) is one of the four most common Chinese family names (its exact position varies depending on the set of statistics used). It is occasionally romanized Chern in Singapore Mandarin Chinese (where "r" indicates the second tone in the Gwoyeu Romatzyh romanization system). It is usually romanized as Chan in Cantonese, sometimes as Chun, Chin or Zen. Some other Romanizations (from other Chinese dialects) include Tan and Ding.

Chen is also a Hebrew family name used by Israelis. It is pronounced khen, and meaning grace or favor.

Here's some interesting movie news from No Rock&Roll Fun:

THE ORLANDO BLOOM
We'd been wondering who David McKenzie was going to cast in his soon-coming Nico biopic:



It's not an easy part to cast, and while we're sure Mandy Moore was on the shortlist, we're quite pleased to hear who's been cast:



Tilda Swinton. If anyone can pull the story off, she can.

music movies nico tilda swinton

- posted by simon h b - 6:14 PM - click the envelope to email to a friend:    0 comments - click to add yours

Fortunes, Magazines, Movies, BRMC news, and Theologians

Your Fortune Is

Man who marries a girl with no bust has right to feel low down.

The Wacky Fortune Cookie Generator

I love fortune cookies, some day I'm going to post my most interesting fortune cookie fortunes. Another thing I really love is magazines. I have been getting lots of free magazines from Freecycle and the Broadcast Media Department at City College. They have free issues of EQ and Keyboard Magazine every month! The current issue of Keyboard has Trent Reznor on the cover and previously they've had Tori Amos and Muse. EQ is pretty cool because BT was on the cover. I do try to actually read the magazines, but I don't want to get too into music technology because it is way too expensive to be a musician, even as a hobby. Last week, I got a bunch of cool magazines from FreeCycle: Bitch, Mother Jones, Utne Reader, National Geographic Adventurer, Real Simple, etc.

Don't get me started on British music magazines. I know they're expensive over here, but I would love to write for some of them: Q, NME, Uncut, Mojo, Kerrang!, Rock Sound, The Wire, etc. Maybe in a few years. There are some good American music magazines: Filter, CMJ, The Big Takeover, Fader, Creem (it's back!), and all the ones I posted about before. I recently discovered a few female-focused music magazines: ChickFactor, Venus Zine, RockrGrl. There are probably a bunch I don't know about. Let me know of any that I'm missing.

Last night, me and my brother went to see a screening of "The Brothers Grimm" through Rolling Stone Sounding Board. I enjoyed the movie, and I thought it was cool how they incorporated a lot of pieces from the fairytales that they are known for. There are actually plenty of interesting movies coming out. I was reading about them in the current issue of Rolling Stone (with The White Stripes on the cover), which they gave out after the screening.

Here's a list of movies from IMDB that I'm interested in seeing:

24 Hours on Craigslist (2004) - It's a Bay Area movie/story... about Craig's List!
9 Songs (2004) - I'm still curious about the concerts... how bad can a movie with 2 BRMC performances be?
Corpse Bride (2005) - New Tim Burton claymation w/Johnny Depp & Helena Bonham Carter!
On the Road (2007) - This keeps getting pushed back, Brad Pitt and Billy Crudup have been suggested as leads.
Rock School (2005) - The real "School of Rock"... unfortunately, no Jack Black
Walk the Line (2005) - Joaquin Phoenix as Johnny Cash, Reese Witherspoon as June Carter... and they both sing!
Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2005) - More claymation and it's hilarious! Nick Park is a genius.

And now for some exciting BRMC news from Little Radio and the Newsletter:

The NEW Little Radio CD Sampler will be out in September and it's pretty amazing. BRMC, Black Mountain, The National, Constantines, Warlocks, Lab Partners, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah and more. Plus a bunch of new unsigned acts worth knowing. 21 Bands in total. More info soon on how to pick one up.

So I know some of you missed the re-broadcast of the BRMC show, so...I'm going to put it on again this Monday at 12 noon PST. If you haven't picked up their new record Howl, do so now. Best Rock Record of 2005. Seriously.

*Speaking of HOWL, here is a link to photos of the Special Edition and Double LP (both only available in the UK).

FREE 7" VINYL
A number of independent record stores across the US are giving away a free 7" featuring "Ain't No Easy Way" and "Grind My Bones". This is a different release compared to the recent British single. Supplies are extremely limited so snap it up while you can! The following link lists all the stores offering this exclusive release:

http://forum.blackrebelmotorcycleclub.com/view.php?id=18120&parent=18120&thread=2252&page=1

DESIGN A BRMC T-SHIRT
I mentioned a few weeks ago we are going to announce a pretty unique competition. Without further ado, here it is... we are giving you the opportunity to design a t-shirt for BRMC. The winning design will be manufactured and actually go on sale at BRMC shows across the land! In addition, you'll meet the band who will present you with a copy of your t-shirt. You'll also receive signed CD's and the usual paraphernalia.

But that's not all: As cool as it is to go backstage to meet rock stars, we'll even pay you for your design!

So what do you need to do to enter this competition? You can start by firing up Photoshop or whip out your notepad and pen and get designing. In the coming weeks there will be a section of the web-site where you can submit your design. We'll have the specifications you'll need soon, but for now, fire out any ideas you have.

Please Note: There will be two "Design-A-Shirt" competitions; one for North America and one for Europe. Oh, and we haven't determined how much you'll receive should your design be chosen by the band and declared the winner.

TOUR FLYERS
As BRMC finish up the current UK dates, they're gearing up to tour the US with Mark Gardener next month. Here are the dates as well as downloadable flyers for selected cities.

Please do what you can to help promote these shows by distributing the flyers in as many places as possible. As an added incentive, if you bring a copy of the flyer along to the show you'll receive something very special at the merch table. So email it your friends. Print it out. Pretty much do whatever you want...

SEPTEMBER
12 - San Francisco, CA Great American Music Hall
13 - Portland, OR Doug Fir Lounge
14 - Seattle, WA Neumos
16 - Salt Lake City, UT Club Sound
17 - Denver, CO Bluebird
19 - Minneapolis, MN Fine Line Music Café
20 - Chicago, IL Metro
21 - Detroit, MN St. Andrews Hall
22 - Columbus, OH Newport Music Hall
24 - Toronto, ONT Phoenix
26 - New York, NY Irving Plaza
27 - Boston, MA Paradise Rock Club
28 - Washington DC 9:30 Club
30 - Atlanta, GA The Loft

OCTOBER
1 - New Orleans, LA House of Blues
2 - Austin, TX The Parish
3 - Houston, TX Meridian
4 - Dallas, TX Trees
6 - Tempe, AZ The Clubhouse
7 - San Diego, CA Brick by Brick
8 - Los Angeles, CA Henry Fonda Theatre

VOTE FOR BLACKREBELMOTORCYCLECLUB.COM
The response to the new site has been great and we really appreciate it. Now you can prove your love and devotion by voting for the site in the BT Digital Music Awards 2005:

http://www.btyahoo.com/dma/vote?web=2252

Westlife has won this for like the past 263 years. So show the world what good music really is...

Quite a lot to take in before the weekend! To anyone going to Reading or Leeds, have a blast and I look forward to hearing what you thought!

Have a good one, and listen of Howl lots.

David
david@blackrebelmotorcycleclub.com
www.blackrebelmotorcycleclub.com

You scored as Charles Finney. You're passionate about God and love to preach the Gospel. Your theology borders on pelagianism and it is said that if God were taken out of your theology, it would look exactly the same. Augustine 100% Charles Finney 100% J�rgen Moltmann 80% Friedrich Schleiermacher 80% Anselm 80% John Calvin 80% Paul Tillich 53% Jonathan Edwards 33% Karl Barth 27% Martin Luther 27% Which theologian are you? created with QuizFarm.com

Drinks, Siberia, Garbage, BRMC

You Are a Bloody Mary

You're a fairly serious drinker, who's experimented a lot with different drinks. You're a drunk, but a stable drunk. You don't ever let your drinking get out of control.

What Mixed Drink Are You?

from Torr's blog:

Stream clips from new Bunnymen album

       

Stream clips [doesn't work in firefox] from every track on the new Echo & The Bunnymen album Siberia. Once you're there click the little play button at the bottom, and you can also watch the video for "Stormy Weather", which is the first UK single.

Not so fun-fact: Bunnymen aren't playing Texas on their current tour, and they haven't played here since 1988! I however got to see them at the KROQ fest in LA in '97.

Saturday, August 27, 2005 | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBack (0)

This is really kind of fun, as usual I got this from Apexa

Define Yourself With Music

Identify yourself using the songs of one artist/group. 

Musical group of choice: Garbage

(Shirley Manson knows me so well)

1. Are you male or female?: "Supervixen"/"Breaking Up the Girl"
2. Describe yourself: "I Think I'm Paranoid"/"Butterfly Collector"
3. How do some people feel about you?: "Queer" (when they do know me)/"Silence Is Golden" (when I don't know them)
4. How do you feel about yourself?: "Alien Sex Fiend"/"Thirteen"/"Fix Me Now"
5. Describe your girlfriend/boyfriend/interest: "#1 Crush"/"You Look So Fine"/"Can't Seem To Make You Mine"
6. Where would you rather be?: "Happy Home"/"As Heaven Is Wide"
7. Describe what you want to be: "Milk"/"Untouchable"/"13 x Forever"
8. Describe how you live: "Parade"/"Only Happy When It Rains"/"I Just Wanna Have Something To Do"
9. Describe how you love: "Vow"/"Til The Day I Die"/"Why Do You Love Me"
10. Share a few words of wisdom: "When I Grow Up"/"Get Busy With The Fizzy"/"The World Is Not Enough"/"Soldier Through This"

Here's an interesting "review" of HOWL from NME.com, it's more like a band gossip history... some photos of BRMC items, magazines and CDs. Oh, and someone from the BRMC forum was kind enough to send me the exclusive BRMC song "Steal A Ride" in WAV format, meaning it's 28 MB. I converted it to mp3, but I'm not hooked up to wireless right now. I will try to upload the smaller 2.4 mb version of it later.

Peter Hayes of BRMC from Manchester Academy 2

Peter Hayes of BRMC (1)
Originally uploaded by hello mr teapot.

Found another cool photo from a recent gig in Manchester. The leather jacket really does work well on Peter.

BRMC in Taiwan

BRMC
Originally uploaded by nihon-ray.

Found some photos of BRMC from someone in Taipei!

Today's Mega Post: B-sides, School, Raves, Beggars/Matador Shows, HOWL, Reaching for Lucidity

Yeah, this is a really long, but interesting post... at least to me!

I love B-sides

First, a link to a blog post dedicated to Magnetic Fields covers taken from the excellent Chrome Waves blog. However, there is a glaring omission of Lush's beautiful cover of "I Have The Moon" from their impressive b-sides comp "Topolino." I have it in my Yahoo briefcase if you're interested in hearing it. As an obsessive collector of UK singles, it's not surprising how much I love b-sides compilations. I've mentioned on the BRMC forum that they should release one. Who knows if that will ever happen... they're already working on the 4th album!

Other notable b-sides comps include:

Catherine Wheel's "Like Cats & Dogs"
Ash " Cosmic Debris" (disc 2 of Intergalactic Sonic 7's)
Super Furry Animals "Outspaced"
Trash Can Sinatras "On A B Road"
XTC "Rag & Bone Buffet" (could be the first XTC album I heard)
Gorillaz "G-Sides"
Feeder's "Pictures of Perfect Youth" which I don't have, but should get because I'm a completist and an obsessive collector.

Echo & the Bunnymen's Crystal Days boxset is an excellent collection of rare tracks, but it is kind of expensive though totally worth the money for fans. I still haven't gotten XTC's "A Coat of Many Cupboards"... some day.

"School will be fun!" (a young Bart Simpson)

I absolutely love my classes right now. I'm currently taking 4 of them: 2 Multimedia and 2 Broadcast Media (with my wonderful teacher Delicia from the summer class on Digital Media Skills). It's still early, but it seems like I'll be learning all the things I've spent years wanting to learn and become really good at: PhotoShop, Final Cut Pro, Flash, HTML, Illustrator, DreamWeaver, and that's just the start! I'll also get to do a lot of group projects in the Broadcast Media classes and lots of writing assignments, which I am actually looking forward to. 

Over the weekend, I completed my Demographics assignment to interview 2 people I don't know by asking questions to a couple people from my alumni association mixer at Samovar Tea. They were very cool about it, despite the very probing nature of some questions (specifically about income). Today, I interviewed one of my classmates, Adela, for an assignment due on Thursday. She was very friendly and easy to talk to. We interviewed each other, so it was fun to remember things about myself while learning a lot about her.

More Fauning over the Raveonettes...

And as if I didn't love the Raveonettes enough, Sune Rose Wagner emailed me another cool response to my question asking how he learned to play guitar. His answer was "THROUGH BOOKS FROM THE LOCAL LIBRARY...IT TOOK A LONG TIME BUT IT WAS WORTH IT!" He's been pretty lazy by keeping the CAPs key on, but I love the answer. I remember reading an interview with him and Sharin where he talked about learning about music through library books and Sharin called him a nerd!

Now everyone will want to join a street team

For the Beggars/Matador Street Teams, I might be going to these shows:

INTERPOL  9/15   +1

9/15    San Jose CA        San Jose Civic Auditorium
 

THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS  9/27

8/24       Amoeba SF            Instore performance 7 PM
9/27       Bimbo's 365 Club   Immaculate Machine, Destroyer

THE DOUBLE    9/29

9/29        Mezzanine                M83   

LAURA CANTRELL 10/2    +1

10/2      Strictly Bluegrass Festival
 

THE NATIONAL 10/05

10/05      Mezzanine     CLAP YOUR HANDS SAY YEAH

CALLA 10/21  +1

10/21       Mezzanine    CELEBRATION

PRETTY GIRLS MAKE GRAVES    10/25    +1

10/25    San Francisco CA        Bottom Of The Hill            Eleventeen

DEVENDRA BANHART and the Hairy Fairy  10/30

10/30        Bimbo's 365 Club       BUNNY BRAINS

 
I say maybe because I don't like to go to shows alone (kind of sad, I know), but I will more likely go to the +1 shows because I can bring someone along. I am very curious about M83, Devandra Barnhart, and Clap Your Hands Say Yeah!

Go Buy HOWL today!

I was so tempted to by the special edition of HOWL on ebay today, but $25 is just too much... here's the latest BRMC Newsletter for those of you who might be interested:

iTunes Exclusive
Howl is out now in the US and as an added bonus, by purchasing through iTunes, you'll not only receive the incredible hidden track, Open Invitation, you will also be able to download the previously unreleased, Steal A Ride. This track cannot be found on any previous BRMC release!

http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?playListId=78712041&originStoreFront=143441

Garage Last Night
BRMC made a triumphant return last night to London's Garage. They played a 17 song set relying heavily on Howl. The set-list is as follows:

Shuffle Your Feet
Aint No Easy Way
Stop
Punk Song
Six Barrel Shotgun
Howl
Still Suspicion Holds You Tight
Promise
Weight Of The World
The Line
Sympathetic Noose
As Sure As The Sun
Red Eyes And Tears
Spread Your Love
Devils Waitin'
Fault Line
Gospel Song

This was the first time many of these tracks have been played live.

Press
Several new articles have been added to the Press section. Including the NME review and The Guardian.

http://www.blackrebelmotorcycle club.com/


Okay, one last plug for my friend Eban's Reaching For Lucidity podcast, which features both BRMC's new album and my fansite! Thanks, Eban!

RfL Podcast Show 08-23-05 #19

August 23rd, 2005

Click here or on the graphic below to listen or download the show to your computer or portable device. Today on Indie Tuesday the focus is on indie, alternative, and acoustic artists. Kick back and enjoy! Tommorrow we are going to have some great alternative and hard rock!

All featured music today is from the Podsafe Music Network which Reaching for Lucidity is a proud member.

Show Notes

*Intro
*On indie vs. corporate music
*Music: Matt Brady-Give it all Link
*Headlines: Black Rebel Motorcycle Club Album and Dr. Moog
*Music: The Turnbull AC’s- Pretty Girls Don’t go To Heaven Link
*Gypsie story conclusion and link to Black Rebel Motorcycle Club fansite(listen.to/brmc)
*Music: Adrina Thorpe-Round the Bend Link
*Rap-up
*Music: Vanton-Look at Me Link
*Exit

My Odeo Channel (odeo/f8ba4bea62750ffd)

On the Road (the Movie), Good Magazines, Dynamic Optimisim

Did you know that there's going to be a movie version of On the Road? According to this article from the Chicago Sun Times, casting and production is expected to begin in 2006.

Today, I noticed a new magazine geared towards 20-somethings from the publishers of Sunset called Living 101. Looks pretty good, though it has a $3.99 cover price and no subscriptions.

Speaking of magazines, I wanted to mention a few good music magazines that are well-written and cover much better artists than SPIN, Rolling Stone, or Alternative Press. These are the ones worth subscribing to, not only for content, but also for free CDs and/or DVDs! Yeah, these magazines should be paying me to promote them... or at least write for them.

Best Independent Music Magazines for your buck

1. Amplifier $19.95 for 6 issues + 1 CD/DVD (great selection & your choice!)
2. Magnet $14.95 for 6 issues + 7 CDs (6 mix + 1 CD)
3. Resonance $24.95 for 12 issues + 3 CDs or $14.95 for 6 issues + 1 CD
4. Sentimentalist $20 + $4 s/h for 4 issues + 3 CDs
5. Under the Radar $16 for 4 issues + 1 CD/DVD or $30 for 8 issues + 1 CD/DVD also on Amazon.com for $12 for 4 issues (probably no CDs)

Here's another great post from The Occupational Adventure (sm) 

Dynamic optimism

A sense of optimism can be a powerful tool in creating what you want in your career, and life in general. But it's not all about sitting there with a goofy grin and thinking happy thoughts. Having a positive outlook is only part of the puzzle. The other part - and this is important - is doing something to turn that positive outlook into reality.

Here's an excellent article that describes something it calls Dynamic Optimism.

The dynamic optimist both interprets experience positively, and influences outcomes positively. Merely believing that everything will work out fine without taking action makes one a foolish optimist, not a dynamic optimist. For optimism to give us the power to overcome the limits in our lives it needs to fully recognize reality, not hide from it. For optimism to maximize our abilities and happiness, we have to take responsibility for our thoughts, our attitudes, and our actions. This world is full of possibility. We can achieve almost anything we can conceive. Yet we will move forward only by turning dreams into practical, rational, responsible thinking. This kind of thinking will naturally generate productive activity.

The article points to twelve things dynamic optimists do, both in experiencing their experiences positively, and influencing outcomes positively.

INTERPRETING EXPERIENCE POSITIVELY:

(1) Selective Focus: Emphasizing the enjoyable, constructive, open aspects of life.

(2) Refraining from Complaining: Avoiding pointless complaining and whining about one’s difficulties. Taking the world as it is and not complaining that life isn’t fair.

(3) Questioning Limits: A constructive skepticism that challenges the limiting beliefs held by ourselves, our associates, and our society. A fundamental creative openness to possibilities.

(4) Sense of Abundance: Feeling free to do what you want, rather than feeling compelled by circumstances or people. Recognizing the world to be full of opportunities. Being for things, not against things.

(5) Humor: Seeing one’s own shortcomings with a sense of humor. Allowing healthy, good-natured humor to reveal new perspectives and combat dogmatic thinking.

INFLUENCING OUTCOMES POSITIVELY:

(6) Rational: Using reason rather than being lead by fears and desires. Objectively assessing situations and taking action based on understanding reality apart from our wishes.

(7) Self-Improving: Optimists see the self as a process and seek continual improvement. Their drive to improve is not pushed by fear but pulled by a inspiring self-image.

(8) Experimental: Frequently trying fresh approaches, staying out of ruts, actively seeking more effective ways of achieving goals, and being willing to take calculated risks.

(9) Self-Confident: Believing that we can bring about good things. A fundamental conviction of competence in living.

(10) Self-Worth: Believing one is worthy of success and happiness. Without this, attempts to improve one’s life will lack motivation.

(11) Personal Responsibility: Taking charge and creating the conditions for success. Being aware of how we determine our chances of success. This crucially involves integrity: living according to one’s values.

(12) Selecting Environment: Being attracted to positive people and situations. Seeking out those who will support and inspire, not discourage, distract, and undermine.

--

Curt Rosengren, Passion Catalyst (sm)

Time for a career change? Launch it with...
The Occupational Adventure Guide:
A Travel Guide to the Career of Your Dreams

Posted by Curt Rosengren on August 21, 2005 | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack (1)

Rave on, with the Raveonettes!

I seriously LOVE this band... I was once looking for mp3's of their live shows, since I had missed their show at the Great American Music Hall (after the Amoeba in-store, where Sune had red lipstick on his cheek : P ). I found some on Large Hearted Boy's blog, but was very annoyed to find out you had to be registered with this super exclusive site that was limited to invites and like 1000 registered users. Well, recently I found an excellent Raveonettes fansite with 2 shows (2005 and 2003) of about 21 songs each! You do have to register with the site to download the tracks, but it's totally worth it! Now if you do download these tracks, please promise me to buy their albums... they are truly excellent!

Also, there's a stream of BRMC's new album HOWL: Here it is, in all it's acoustic glory!

Shoegazers unplugged at M Theory

(I'm taking this from my Xanga, which I post to more often... this is from the night of Saturday, August 13th)

I really enjoyed the 2 hour drive to San Diego tonight, I really can't say the same for my brother since he was the one driving and very annoyed by the traffic. On the way down, I started playing Swervedriver's album Mezcal Head from 1993. It's good driving music, though there are a few very long songs... "Never Lose that Feeling/Never Learn" is over 11 minutes. Since the drive was so long (and traffic so bad), I next put on Catherine Wheel's Ferment which features classic tracks like "I Want to Touch You" and "Black Metallic." We were just getting off the freeway when I put on Ride's Going Blank Again which is probably my favorite album of their's because of "Twisterella" and "Leave Them All Behind."

When we got to the store, there was a lot of people crowded outside the store (and the store itself was packed). Adam Franklin (Swervedriver/Toshack Highway) was already playing. There were so many people inside that the only picture we got of him was just the top of his head among the backs of a lot of other people's heads. I've heard plenty of live Swervedriver and a little of Adam's solo acoustic stuff to kind of know what to expect. It's just not the same without all the noise and feedback.

Next, Rob Dickinson (Catherine Wheel) was on. He had a backing band that included a double bass and a few other people whose instruments I couldn't see. Probably more guitars. The pictures we got of him are pretty much just the top of his head and his eyes. Still too many people. Before Mark Gardener (Ride, also opening for BRMC on their upcoming US Tour) came on, I went across the street to buy some pizza and sodas. When I got back to the store, there were many plates of sandwiches spread out on the table in front. And they were really tasty sandwiches! There was also some delicious potato egg salad and a foamy minty milkshake-like drink. During Mark Gardener's set, we could actually see his face! I think my brother got one picture before my camera's batteries died.

After the show, I picked up some free buttons from inside the store. There were actually lots of cool ones: Kasabian, Oasis, Spoon, Shout Out Louds, Orange Juice, The Sights, Hard-Fi, Augustana and Autolux. We also got a couple of souvenir laminates for the show, probably made by the store for that event. Driving back was a little confusing, but once we got on the freeway -  it was a breeze. I played Swervedriver's 99th Dream album from 1998, which is still my favorite. When we got back to Orange County, I put on Catherine Wheel's Like Cats & Dogs which is a masterpiece of b-sides. I was thinking about how BRMC should put out a b-side album specifically for their American fans because it's so hard and expensive to get UK singles here, even with ebay.
 

Back in the Bay: Don't you just love British Accents? & the amazing Prius

Me & my brother made the long drive up from OC to SF today, we left at around 12:30 PM, then hit LA traffic until around 2:30. It was like 98 degrees outside, but luckily the a/c was pretty good. We heard the Dandy Warhols on Jonesy's Jukebox while we were stuck in traffic. They were discussing their "Odditorium" which seems like a huge studio with a nice kitchen for entertaining their guests, which are usually touring musicians.  They played acoustic versions of "Godless" and "Bohemian Like You." After that, I had a nice rotation of my compilations of Beggars Banquet, Matador, and 4AD artists.  I like the recent line-ups, but my favorite was "Deafening Divinities with Aural Affinities" from 1993, which features The Charlatans, Rollerskate Skinny, Tones on Tail, Grant McLennan, Peter Murphy, Bauhaus, Gary Numan, and The Fall... the classics! I also like the Sip More Tea! and Tea for 2000 compilations, which feature artists such as Brassy, Bowery Electric, China Drum, Magoo, Gorky's Zygotic Mynci, The Delgados, Six by Seven, etc.

We arrived at 7:30 PM with a couple stops for gas. We had dinner with my dad at our usual favorite Chinese restaurant Gourmet Carousel. I got my Japanese edition of the Dogs Die In Hot Cars CD "Please Describe Yourself" from ebay! I've recently noticed how excellent the British Accents Newsletter is. I learned of it through Filter-Mag.com, and it's everything I ever wanted in a music newsletter: an online radio show, release dates, upcoming shows in your major metropolitan area, etc. According to the site: "British Accents is a radio show, e-mail newsletter, and now a website catering to American fans of British music." Here are the release dates listed from this week's newsletter:

NEW & UPCOMING ALBUM RELEASE DATES (subject to change)
Aug 8 - ED HARCOURT/Elephant's Graveyard  USA (b-sides, download only)
Aug 9 - ORANGE JUICE/The Glasgow School   USA
Aug 9 - SONS & DAUGHTERS/The Repulsion Box   USA
Aug 9 - MOBIUS BAND/The Loving Sounds of Static   USA
Aug 15 - SUPERGRASS/Road to Rouen   UK
Aug 15 - THE RAKES/Capture/Release   UK
Aug 15 - LEAVES/The Angela Test   UK
Aug 16 - THE STANDS/Horse Fabulous   USA
Aug 16 - THE KILLERS/Hot Fuss-bonus version    USA
Aug 16 - MALCOLM MIDDLETON/Into The Woods   USA
Aug 22 - BRMC/Howl    UK
Aug 23 - STELLASTARR/Harmonies of the Haunted   USA
Aug 23 - NEW PORNOGRAPHERS/Twin Cinema   USA
Aug 23 - JOHN VANDERSLICE/Pixel Revolt   USA
Aug 23 - THE CRIBS/The New Fellas   USA
Aug 23 - various/Live at KEXP Vol 1    USA
Aug 23 - INTERPOL/Antics: The Special Edition   USA
Aug 23 - THE BRAVERY/Fearless: The Remixes   USA
Aug 30 - THE CORAL/The Invisible Invasion   USA
Aug 30 - DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE/Plans   USA
Aug 30 - OK GO/Oh No   USA
August - UNDERWORLD   UK
Sep 5 - IAN BROWN/The Greatest   UK
Sep 5 - THE CLIENTELE/Strange Geometry  UK
Sep 6 - IDLEWILD/Warnings/Promises   USA
Sep 6 - RICHARD HAWLEY/Coles Corner   USA
Sep 13 - SUPER FURRY ANIMALS/Love Kraft   USA
Sep 13 - DANDY WARHOLS/Odditorium or Warlords of Mars   USA
Sep 13 - NADA SURF/The Weight is a Gift   USA
Sep 13 - ROB DICKINSON/Fresh Wine for the Horses    USA (x-Catherine Wheel)
Sep 19 - OCEANSIZE/Everyone Into Position   UK
Sep 20 - THE FALL/The Fall Head's Roll   USA
Sep 20 - GOLDFRAPP/Supernature   USA
Sep 20 - ORANGER/New Comes and Goes   USA
Sep 20 - MUSE/Origin of Symmetry   USA
Sep 20 - BILLY BRAGG/reissues    USA
Sep 20 - BROADCAST/Tender Buttons     USA
Sep 26 - PADDINGTONS/First Comes First   UK
Sep 27 - SUPERGRASS/Road to Rouen   USA
Sep 27 - ECHO & THE BUNNYMEN/Siberia   USA
Sep 27 - ROGUE WAVE/Descended Like Vultures   USA
Sep 27 - CALLA/Collisions   USA
Sep 27 - ELBOW/Leaders of the Free World   USA
Sep 27 - THE GO TEAM/Thunder, Lightning, Strike  USA
Sep 27 - METRIC/Live it Out    CANADA
September - THE CRIMEA/Tragedy Rocks   UK
September - SIGUR ROS    USA
Oct 4 - FRANZ FERDINAND/You Could Have It So Much Better...  USA
Oct 4 - METRIC/Live it Out    USA
Oct 4 - PAUL WELLER/As Is Now   USA
Oct 4 - BROKEN SOCIAL SCENE/Broken Social Scene    USA
Oct 11 - GANG OF FOUR/Return the Gift   USA
Oct 11 - THE CLIENTELE/Strange Geometry   USA
Oct 17 - CARDIGANS/Super Extra Gravity  UK/EUR
Oct 18 - DEPECHE MODE/Playing the Angel   USA
October - LIARS/Drums Not Dead   USA

Also, while searching for the site, I found this unusual article on an American woman from Indiana who had a stroke which gave her a British accent: "a mixture of English cockney and West Country"

And speaking of British Accents, here's yet another article on the 10th Anniversary of Britpop from BBC News, come on now - I really don't think Britpop ever ended.

Okay, one last update: an article from FMQB on the new Bunnymen album Siberia, #10's a charm!

Here's an interesting article about the totally awesome Toyota Prius - I've wanted one since they first came out, but I don't really like to drive (and I'm better off walking or taking public transport here). Actually, my dad should get one - I sold him on them a long time ago and here's an even better reason to get one:

Hybrid Car Enthusiasts Achieve 110 MPG In A Prius

From Eric Powers, Your Guide to Hybrid Cars. FREE Newsletter. Sign Up Now!

Prius Goes Nearly 1400 Miles On One Tank Of Gas

They did it!

The weekend of August 5th through the 7th, 2005, a team of hybrid car enthusiasts, took an unmodified Toyota Prius to a record breaking 1397 miles on a single 12.78 gallon tank of gas. That is a whopping 110 miles per gallon! This is an amazing accomplishment considering the EPA estimates for the hybrid is 60 city and 51 highway.

The original four men, Dave Bassage of W. Virginia, Dan Kroushl of Pennsylvania, Wayne Gerdes of Illinois, and Rick Reese of South Carolina, began driving in shifts Friday evening. On Saturday, a fifth man, Bob Barlow of Virginia, was added to ease the load of driving the nearly 1400 miles.

They drove back and forth for over 40 hours on an 18 mile stretch of 30 - 40 mph, four-lane highway. The route was selected specifically because it is in range in which the Prius can be operated very efficiently.

Leeds Festival 2002: The year of the infamous riots

I’ve finally gotten around to typing out my journal from Leeds 2002

An amazing experience, tons of great bands played… I’m still impressed with who I saw even looking back on it today. I met a couple of really cool Welsh girls who helped me a lot when I’d arrived with too much luggage and forgotten my tent poles. I was very lucky to have run into them. As I mentioned in the title, there were riots that included people setting toilets on fire with police helicopters flying around at night. It was very “Apocalypse Now.” Here’s that unforgettable line-up:

Leeds Festival – Friday 23 August until Sunday 25 August 2002

Aug. 23:
Main Stage: Guns ‘N Roses, Prodigy, Puddle of Mudd
Radio 1 Evening Session Stage: Spiritualized, And You Will Know Us By The Trail of the Dead, Cornershop, Haven, Six by Seven, The Shining
Carling Stage: Biffy Clyro

Aug. 24
Main Stage: The Strokes, Pulp, The White Stripes, Dandy Warhols
Radio 1 Evening Session Stage: Feeder, The Electric Soft Parade,
Guided By Voices
The Boutique Stage: Ladytron, Dot Allison
Carling Stage: British Sea Power

Aug. 25:
Main Stage: Foo Fighters, Muse, Ash, The Hives, A, Less Than Jake, Andrew WK
Radio 1 Evening Session Stage: Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, The Cooper Temple Clause

See more progress on: Leeds

That's why they invented the internet!

I’ve been totally amazed by the generosity and kindness of total strangers on the internet. Back when I started using it in the early to mid-90’s, I used to subscribe to a few email lists. One of the first for me was the Chalkhills Digest for XTC fans. From just a few postings, I acquired about 7 different cassettes of Andy Partridge’s demos, which have been recently released in the UK as Fuzzy Warbles volumes 1 to 6. Also, I have 3 video tapes of XTC live and video performances.

In 1998, I started communicating with my oldest internet friend, Barry Christian, through the Dubstar mailing list. It began through the exchange of Dubstar’s first album Disgraceful for Angelfish’s album (and single). We met in Sheffield in 2002 when I went to England, but he passed away at the end of 2003. It was really devastating to read it in an email from his daughter. In the time we knew each other, we exchanged numerous emails, many CD’s, tapes, videos, and LP’s. He was an irreplaceable friend who I will never forget.

Recently, I’ve discovered the joys of community through Xanga, MySpace, etc. It’s great to see dedicated music fans of all ages who really know and understand some of the music that is most important to me. Of course, I’d love to meet people in person with my interests, but I think it’s just a matter of time.

See more progress on: make real friends that share my interests

Shoegazers unplugged at M Theory

>I really enjoyed the 2 hour drive to San Diego tonight, I really can't say the same for my brother since he was the one driving and very annoyed by the traffic. On the way down, I started playing Swervedriver's album Mezcal Head from 1993. It's good driving music, though there are a few very long songs... "Never Lose that Feeling/Never Learn" is over 11 minutes. Since the drive was so long (and traffic so bad), I next put on Catherine Wheel's Ferment which features classic tracks like "I Want to Touch You" and "Black Metallic." We were just getting off the freeway when I put on Ride's Going Blank Again which is probably my favorite album of their's because of "Twisterella" and "Leave Them All Behind."

When we got to the store, there was a lot of people crowded outside the store (and the store itself was packed). Adam Franklin (Swervedriver/Toshack Highway) was already playing. There were so many people inside that the only picture we got of him was just the top of his head among the backs of a lot of other people's heads. I've heard plenty of live Swervedriver and a little of Adam's solo acoustic stuff to kind of know what to expect. It's just not the same without all the noise and feedback.

Next, Rob Dickinson (Catherine Wheel) was on. He had a backing band that included a double bass and a few other people whose instruments I couldn't see. Probably more guitars. The pictures we got of him are pretty much just the top of his head and his eyes. Still too many people. Before Mark Gardener (Ride, also opening for BRMC on their upcoming US Tour) came on, I went across the street to buy some pizza and sodas. When I got back to the store, there were many plates of sandwiches spread out on the table in front. And they were really tasty sandwiches! There was also some delicious potato egg salad and a foamy minty milkshake-like drink. During Mark Gardener's set, we could actually see his face! I think my brother got one picture before my camera's batteries died.

After the show, I picked up some free buttons from inside the store. There were actually lots of cool ones: Kasabian, Oasis, Spoon, Shout Out Louds, Orange Juice, The Sights, Hard-Fi, Augustana and Autolux. We also got a couple of souvenir laminates for the show, probably made by the store for that event. Driving back was a little confusing, but once we got on the freeway -  it was a breeze. I played Swervedriver's 99th Dream album from 1998, which is still my favorite. When we got back to Orange County, I put on Catherine Wheel's Like Cats & Dogs which is a masterpiece of b-sides. I was thinking about how BRMC should put out a b-side album specifically for their American fans because it's so hard and expensive to get UK singles here, even with ebay.
 

BRMC Press links: 4 star reviews of Howl and a couple interviews!

BRMC's webmaster David just posted a bunch of new BRMC articles including interviews and reviews: Click here for the links!

Posted By: David
Date: 11:46am, Thursday August 11 2005

Howl has been getting some amazing reviews and I know you're all eager to see what the press have been saying. Here are the latest 4 star reviews from Q, Mojo and Uncut:

Q Review of HOWL

Mojo Review of HOWL

UNCUT Review of HOWL

Also, here are 2 interviews from The Fly and Clash:

The Fly Cover, August 2005

The Fly Interview, page 1

The Fly Interview, page 2

Clash Magazine interview

Buy Moz's LA house for 2 million

Continuing on the subject of famous homes for sale, here's a post from Torr's blog:

Buy Moz's LA house for 2 million

Realtor.com

1498 SWEETZER AVE
LOS ANGELES, CA 90069

$1,995,000
4 Bed, 3 Bath
Estimated payment: $9,098 Per Month*

Extraordinary 1931 Mediterranean in celebrity cul de sac above Sunset with dramatic city view. Entry to huge living room with beam ceilings, hardwood floors and massive fireplace. Upstairs master has spectacular city view plus walk in closet and huge limestone bath. Separate guest suite plus convertible media/den and separate maid's with bath. Full Mediterranean charm. Kitchen and baths recently remodeled with great style. Media & projection equipment included as-is.

The house in happier (furnished) times:

I'm guessing that's a little higher cost than the house he grew up in.

Thursday, August 11, 2005 | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

Take a Private Tour of Johnny Cash's Famous Home

from CMT.com:

Take a Private Tour of Johnny Cash's Famous Home

Lakeside Property Near Nashville Remains Available at $2.9 Million Price Tag

By: Bill Conger

How would you like to live where two of American music's greatest icons made their home for 35 years? Johnny and June Carter Cash's three-story home in Hendersonville, Tenn., could be yours for $2.9 million.

Nestled on 4.6 acres of land on

the outskirts of Nashville, the contemporary house at 200 Caudill Dr. was the couple's home until their deaths in 2003. It's located near the late Roy Orbison's former home that's now owned by another famous country couple -- Marty Stuart (Cash's former son-in-law) and wife Connie Smith.

View photos of the Cash home.

Went with Epic to El Sauzal

It’s an orphanage near Encinata, it was a fun yet tiring experience since we left before 6 AM and returned late in the evening.

See more progress on: Mexico

Stereophonics rock da house!

I’ve wanted to see this band many times. The first time I actually did was at Virgin Mega Store in LA doing an acoustic set. My brother got a styrofoam plate that they wrote their set list on. Then, I saw them at V2002 doing their stadium sized performance. I did miss them playing with Placebo or The Charlatans, I forget which.

See more progress on: see the Stereophonics live

BRMC live is a Spiritual Experience!

I first saw them opening for Spiritualized at Cane’s in San Diego. I wrote a review of the show for La Plume Noire and was later inspired to start a fansite for them called Down Here

The last time I saw them live was at the Leeds Festival in 2002, which was very different from the San Diego show – but no less amazing… I just hope to see them on September 12th at the Great American Music Hall in San Francisco!

See more progress on: go see black rebel motorcycle club live