Original came across this one in a post on the Mobtown Shank.



Now I wish I had a theremin.

Eight years ago today, Shelly and I got married.

I can't believe it's been eight years already.

Happy anniversary, sweetie!

Apparently, Camera Obscura performed "live" in the studios of Minnesota Public Radio's The Current. They performed "Honey In The Sun," "French Navy," and "Tougher Than The Rest."

I can't seem to get the embed code to work in LJ, so you'll just have to do with the above link.

In a wonderful change to the usual, a few acts have come through town that I've been very interested in seeing. The first was Mastodon. The second was Wolves in the Throne Room. The most recent was Camera Obscura at the Cedar Cultural Center.

I got into Camera Obscura after their previous album, "Let's Get Out of This Country", came out. I don't recall if I was into them the last time they came through the Twin Cities. So when I saw that they were coming to the Cedar Cultural Center, I knew I had to see them.

I arrived to find that the show had sold out. So, I was glad I took the extra effort to pick up a ticket earlier in the week. I found my way up to the front so I could meet up with a friend, Kathie. I have to say, that it's been a long time since I took the effort to get up to the front near the stage at a show. In my advancing years, I've taken to preferring a seat or standing in a location that afforded a better view of the stage that didn't require the possibility of being trampled. But, unlike a metal show, I didn't really have to worry about a mosh pit. So, I was safe. We were off to the right side of the stage where Gavin (Bass) and Kenny (Guitar) were situated. One nice thing about being right up at the stage (and a low-rise stage at that) was that I got a perfect view of the set list for the evening:

1. My Maudlin Career


2. Swans


3. The Sweetest Thing


4. Tears for Affairs


5. Teenager


6. Let's Get Out of the Country


7. Eighties Fan


8. James


9. Away With Murder


10. Honey in the Sun


11. French Navy


12. Books Written for Girls


13. If Looks Could Kill


14. Lloyd I'm Ready to be Heartbroken (encore)


15. Razzle Dazzle Rose (encore)

The two encore pieces weren't on the set list. But, it's hard to miss "Lloyd I'm Ready to be Heartbroken" since it was the big hit off their previous album. "Razzle Dazzle Rose" closed out the same album.

I also took one picture from the show. So, you get a relatively blurry look at Tracyanne...



The band sounded great. Though, based on some of the gestures various band members were making, I think some specific instrument levels either in the house sound or in the monitors wasn't quite loud enough. I didn't notice it. Tracyanne dropped a verse during one song, though I can't recall which one now. She apologized and said some were giving her the "evil eye". Oh well, live show, things happen. Big whoop. Move on.

In any case, if you like these guys and they're headed your way, SEE THEM. I hope I'll get future chances to see them play again.

One last story... While I was waiting for the opening act to finish, I was standing toward the back corner of the room near one of the doors to the "green room". At some point, this woman came out to watch. I looked back and wondered which band member she was. I thought it looked like Tracyanne but wasn't 100% sure. Of course, it turned out to be her. Had I realized it at that time, I probably would have done my best to not devolve to "gushing fanboy" mode. If I were really on my toes, I probably would have asked politely if they could play "Knee Deep at the NPL" for me. That is probably my favorite song by this band. It's off the "Underachievers Please Try Harder" album.

So, back in October of 2007, we purchased a "pre-owned" 2004 Honda Odyssey. At that time, we ended up donating the 1995 VW Jetta III that I had been driving (it had 185K miles on it). I began driving Shelly's 1993 Honda Civic LX



Overall, it was in pretty good condition considering its age. It had been through a major hail storm in the late-90s and so was dimpled. But, in comparison to my Jetta, it had fewer miles on it, maintenance costs for it would be considerably lower, and it had an AT so Shelly could drive it when necessary. So it made sense at the time to get rid of the Jetta and keep the Civic.

I drove it with relatively minimal complaining or griping (Shelly might disagree). One problem that seems to be common to Civics of this generation is that the points where the rear bumper cover attaches to the rear quarter panel is prone to rusting. You can see where it's separating in the above photo on the driver's side. We had that fixed once a couple years ago. It held up but recently started coming apart again. We asked the dealership to try and fix it again. They did, but it fell apart the same night I drove it home from the dealer's parking lot. I think they knew how futile an attempt it was that they didn't even charge us for that work.

We decided that it was time to replace the Civic. So, this past Saturday, we purchased a 2007 Nissan Altima 3.5 SE



Shiny. Pretty. Overall, it's in very nice condition. Seems to have been relatively well maintained. A couple of minor dings on the bumper (that I'll cover up with some touch-up paint) are the biggest cosmetic blemishes. It's much quieter on the inside than the Civic was, too. I feel very lucky to have gotten a replacement for the Civic. It's not the G35x that I was aiming for, but this fits in our budget.

Not entirely sure what we're going to do with the Civic yet. We had planned on donating it, like we did with the Jetta, to the Newgate Education Center. But, Shelly informed me last night that someone may be interested in buying it from us.

So, on May 15th, I had the pleasure of catching Wolves in the Throne Room with Krallice, Zebulon Pike, and Empires at the Triple Rock Social Club in Minneapolis.

Unlike the Mastodon show a couple of weeks previous to this one, this show turned out to be a very very very late night. And unlike that show, I went with a friend of mine. We met up in the bar and enjoyed a couple beers (Surly's of course) in the bar/restaurant side before heading over to the other side for the show. We also traded CDs. I received Altar of Plagues new album "White Tomb". I gave him the new Isis album "Wavering Radiant". Both are very good albums. Worth checking out if you're so inclined.

We ended up missing Empires, but got there in time to catch the rest of the show starting with Krallice. I haven't been able to find a set list for this show but my friend said that they only played a couple songs off their self-titled album (which is amazing) and the rest was new material. I think they played about 5 songs. Turns out that there is a new album due out later this year. Not entirely sure how long they played but I thought it was a great set. I think I spent most of it watching the drummer play.

Zebulon Pike played next. They were more on the psychedelic and prog side of metal in comparison to the other bands. That's my take based on the few things I've heard of them. I spent part of their set wondering who was responsible for this line-up. I could see where ZP could fit in with the rest of the bands. But, on this particular night, they opted to play material that didn't really fit in, IMO. It seemed a big lull in the proceedings. It probably didn't help that by the time they were coming on, I was usually in bed.

By the time Wolves in the Throne Room came on, I'm guessing it was close to one a.m. I was doing my best to suppress my yawns. (Man, I am a geezer!) I do have a set list for Wolves, though...

1. Ahrimanic Trance


2. Vastness and Sorrow


3. Crystal Ammunition


4. Queen of the Borrowed Light

It was an amazing set. Only four songs, but they were amazing to hear live. Actually, after the third song, the band left the stage for a few minutes. They came back on and played the last number. Then, they left the stage again. By this time, I was so tired that part of me was hoping they were going to play more while another part of me wanted to go bed right then and there. It turned out they were done.

I got home by 2:30. I stopped to get gas and something to eat (convenience store monster burrito). I was starving. I didn't get to bed until 3am. Shelly let me sleep in and I did until 1pm! I was still cranky from lack of sleep for the remainder of the weekend.

Hey, look! A video involving zombies AND H1N1...

( YT video with some gory bits follows )

Well, just so you know, I at least think about making LJ updates on a regular basis. The execution, on the other hand, leaves a crap-load to be desired. But, hey! I'm here to make an update!

So, what's new? Hmm... I'm nearly done reading "World War Z". It's been a very enjoyable read thus far. But, it's good that I'm about done with it, I need to get back to reading my back issues of the New Yorker. And, lucky me, issue 59 of Giant Robot magazine arrived in the mail today. I've said it (elsewhere) before and I'll say it again, it's been great ever since they went to bimonthly issues! This issue appears to be another great one. Great cover artist as usual, that's for sure.

Last Wednesday night, I went to see Mastodon perform at the Fine Line Music Cafe in Minneapolis. Opening bands were Intronaut and Kylesa.

I hadn't heard Intronaut before, but I enjoyed them well enough. They played a rather short set, 30 minutes or so. To my untrained metal ears, they kind of reminded me of Pelican in some ways. That comparison may be way off. If you have suggestions on who they sound closer to, I'm interested in knowing.

Kylesa were relatively new to me, too. But, I did pick up their latest album, "Static Tensions", based on a promising review by Pitchfork. It also just happened that their album popped up on eMusic so I was happy to take a flier on it. I was not disappointed. And with that, you get to see one of the few pictures I took from the concert...



Kylesa played for about 40 or 45 minutes, I think. They sounded great. Unfortunately, because of the height of the stage (well, lack thereof) and where I was standing (towards the back on the main floor), I didn't get any looks at the two drummers. Yes, they have two drummers. Works great, sounds great. Couldn't see much of the lead singer/guitarist, Laura, or her two cohorts on either side. Which annoyed me because a big part of the enjoyment I get from going to shows is watching the musicians actually playing their instruments.

Then Mastodon came on. I would guess shortly after 9pm. As you can see in the picture from Kylesa's set, there was a screen behind the band. Mastodon, on this current "mini tour", are playing their new album, "Crack the Skye", in its entirety live with some video stuff playing behind them to complement the new material. It was all very cool to see together. They sounded great live. One minor change was the addition of a keyboard player to add some of the texture live that was on the album. The band played through the new album. Afterward, they took a couple minutes break on stage and then proceeded to play even more stuff from their prior albums. For this portion of the show, the video screen showed an image related to the album artwork related to the song they were playing. For example, during one of the songs off "Leviathan", they showed this...



Basically an image related to the album artwork, except the sky was in motion. Either moving stars or other stuff floating across the sky. Similar for material off "Blood Mountain" and "Remission".

In the end, I think Mastodon ended up playing nearly two hours all told. Set list for the evening (courtesy of setlist.fm):

Oblivion
Divinations
Quintessence
The Czar
Ghost Of Karelia
Crack The Skye
The Last Baron

Bladecatcher
Colony Of Birchmen
The Wolf Is Loose
Crystal Skull
Capillarian Crest
Megalodon
Seabeast
Iron Tusk
March Of The Fire Ants
Hearts Alive

I really wanted to hear "Circle of the Cysquatch". Well, maybe the next time around. All in all, it was a great show. I was glad I went even though Ticket Master gouged me for about $10 in fees (grrr!). I didn't really mind going by myself either. And, I was home before midnight! Perfect for a geezer like me.

This was my second time seeing them. But, it sounded a million times better because of the custom earplugs I bought over Xmas-time. More about those in another post. In any case, I only have a few complaints about the show. First, I wish I had stood upstairs instead of on the main floor, I probably would have had a better view of the bands. Second, I wish this show had been at First Avenue (no slight intended toward the Fine Line). But, First Ave probably could have put up a bigger screen to make the video part of this show more immersive. Secondly, there would have been more places to stand with better views of the stage.

Next up will be seeing Wolves in the Throne Room with Zebulon Pike and Krallice at the Triple Rock Social Club in a week and a half. I can't wait to see Wolves. Their latest album, "Black Cascade", is just more of their awesome stuff. I'm really looking forward to seeing Krallice too. Krallice's self-titled album is highly recommended.

To round out the month of concerts, I need to remember to pick up a ticket for the upcoming Camera Obscura concert. Their new album, "My Maudlin Career", just builds on the great stuff they put out with "Let's Get Out of This Country".

Hello to the few of you who might actually read this. ^_^

Yes, it's been awhile. A long while. As usual, things have been too busy at work to do more than push out updates through my Twitter account. At least I've connected my tweeting to my Facebook account so my tweeting substitutes for FB status updates. Now, if I could figure out someway to connect my tweeting to LJ... If anyone has any suggestions for a Windows XP user, I'm listening. Preferably something that doesn't require yet another account on another website...

It is finally Spring in Minnesota. While it's still within the realm of possibility that we could see snow (a coworker is up north at his lake home and said they might have snow up his way this weekend), I'm pretty sure we won't. We are supposed to see some rain. So, I'm going to try and get the lawn raked and put down some all-natural pre-emergent weed control and fertilizer since it's supposed to rain today or tomorrow. That way, I won't have to water the lawn myself.

I recently got the urge to do some reading that involved something more than working through my pile of New Yorker magazines (I'm stuck somewhere in April of 2008). One year behind is actually not all that bad. I tend to skip over most of the stories on the presidential race unless it's a story that deals with background on a candidate or something else I might find interesting. So, that can make the reading go faster.

Anyway, I got tired of reading New Yorkers so I decided to read through some Neal Stephenson books that Shelly had read way back when that I hadn't got to yet. At this point, I'd read "Cryptonomicon" first and then "Snow Crash". Not quite in published chronological order. So, I read "The Diamond Age".

Very entertaining. I don't recall how long it took me to read it considering I read about 30 minutes to an hour at a stretch. Maybe a week and a half. Pretty quick pace all things considered.After finishing "The Diamond Age", I started reading the first book in his "Baroque Cycle" trilogy, "Quicksilver". I am really enjoying this book, too.

But, I've had to stop reading this book, because Shelly brought home "World War Z" from the public library. She reserved it for me and it finally became available. So, I'm reading that now instead of "Quicksilver". I'm enjoying this too. And, I didn't realize it until I was searching on Google for something else related to this book, but there's a movie adaptation in the works. (Brad Pitt is producing?!? Hrm...)

I think this will stop here. The kids are gathering in my office and it's making me nervous and suspicious.

Transmission out...

Stuntin'

I was turned onto this when I read this entry over on the always entertaining DannyChoo.com.

The Japanese live action "Spiderman" TV series is being streamed by Marvel.com with english subs. I just finished watching the first episode:



All that can be said about it is "awesome".

Happy birthday to my mom today (no foolin')!

No she won't see this.

I think her birthday is really April 1st on the Lunar calendar. But, much like the metric system, the Lunar calendar just don't fly in the US of A. So, we've adapted.

We had a nice little family dinner at Olive Garden.

Back home. Time to grab some more video off tapes for work, clean the litter boxes, and then hang out in The Pitt some more.

I suppose I should seriously get started on our taxes, too.

Dreading doing that.

New Tortoise album in June!

http://pitchfork.com/news/34908-tortoise-announce-new-album-details/

Tonight, we went to "Kindergarten Roundup" at the school that Julie will be attending in the Fall. We basically submitted the paper work and stuff. Then the parents listened to the principal speak briefly while the prospective students went off for a brief taste of what kindergarten will be like.

KINDERGARTEN.

KINDERGARTEN.

KINDERGARTEN.

I can't believe it's already come to this.