Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Thursday Thirteen #31 -- Summertime, summertime, sum, sum, Summertime!
 |
| Thirteen things ShapeShifter loves to do in the summer: 1. Tour. 2. Play those day-long festivals that are popular. 3. Hang out with the other bands playing the day-long festivals. 4. Find someone in charge who can cough up a grill and some dogs, burgers, and bird. (Bodacious Sauce is a plus but not a requirement) And beer. Don't forget the beer. That is a requirement. 5. Jam with the cooler members of the bands playing the day-long festivals. 6. Learn the music of the cooler bands. 7. Wear the t-shirts of the cooler bands during the ShapeShifter set. Pimp the bands from the stage. 8. Storm the stage when said cooler bands are on. 9. Invite them to do the same. 10. When boredom sets in, swap out band members without telling the crowd what's happening. Make like it's normal for Howard the Hammer to play in Bitterness. 11. When crowd starts to expect that, stop doing it. 12. Throw new songs -- written during the above-mentioned jam sessions -- into the concert set. Watch crowd react. 13. Lather, rinse, repeat until fall and time to head into the studio to record a new album. By the way, that's not ShapeShifter in the header picture; please don't confuse my fictional band for a real one! |
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Labels: meme, rock and roll, ShapeShifter, Thursday Thirteen, touring
Monday, January 08, 2007
Susan's Music Talk: Random Thoughts
I woke up Sunday morning with Jon Bon Jovi's Blaze of Glory stuck as a hummer in my head. Definitely time to crank up the tunes again, even though I had the XM blaring out of my trusty 'puter for a few hours on Saturday. Never turned on Bon Jovi, though. Where'd it come from?
Speaking of XM, I'm learning about a few new bands, but not nearly enough. A few that warrant more exploration would be Revis, Mercy Falls, ditchwater, Flyleaf, and Thornley.
So far, Flyleaf's caught my attention the hardest, in terms of them maybe being a band I'll love as much as I love my Metallica or Disturbed. But we shall see... there's always room for more music, particularly the good stuff. I'm open to it, so come show me what you've got.
Speaking of XM, I'm learning about a few new bands, but not nearly enough. A few that warrant more exploration would be Revis, Mercy Falls, ditchwater, Flyleaf, and Thornley.
So far, Flyleaf's caught my attention the hardest, in terms of them maybe being a band I'll love as much as I love my Metallica or Disturbed. But we shall see... there's always room for more music, particularly the good stuff. I'm open to it, so come show me what you've got.
Labels: Disturbed, Ditchwater, Flyleaf, Mercy Falls, Metallica, music, Revis, rock and roll, Thornley
Saturday, December 23, 2006
More of Susan's Not-Really-Music news
Apparently, according to Blabbermouth.net, Gene Hoglan of Strapping Young Lad is in the studio with Dethklok creator Brendon Small, laying down tracks for a full-length album.
That rocks.
Now, where's the shirts????
That rocks.
Now, where's the shirts????
Labels: Dethklok, music, musicians, rock and roll
Friday, December 22, 2006
Susan's Not Really Music News
I am sad to report that I will not be the first (let alone only) woman on my block to be wearing a Dethklok t-shirt this holiday season.
What's wrong with the merchandisers at Adult Swim, anyway?
Oh, yeah. There don't seem to be any.
Humph.
What's wrong with the merchandisers at Adult Swim, anyway?
Oh, yeah. There don't seem to be any.
Humph.
Labels: Dethklok, merchandise, music, rock and roll
Sunday, December 17, 2006
Byline: Chelle LaFleur -- Musical Hanukkah Celebration
Now, why aren't other cities' local scenes smart enough to do somethin' like this? I'm talkin' about what my favorite band's got going on in the city of Riverview this time. Don't be sad if you missed the news; they almost snuck this one past yours truly, herself. Almost.
Ready for this? It's brilliant. It's worth copying. They threw a musical Hanukkah party for the members of the local music scene. Anyone involved -- roadies, musicians, promoters, journalists -- could get in for a ten buck ticket that they had to get in advance and buy through KRVR, the radio station that's so high on the Riverview scene that Bobby Bands, himself, is trying to horn in on their turf. (I hear they had the balls to turn his ten bucks away, too.)
For fifty bucks more, you could jam onstage. With the sponsors of the night: ShapeShifter. And since everything from the food to the club to the labor was donated, all the money went to one of those "keep music in our schools" charities that are so hot right now.
Took me two days, but I got hold of ShapeShifter's Mitchell Voss. "It was Eric's idea, really," he said, and handed the phone over. For someone who usually lets his guitar talk for him, ShapeShifter's Eric Wallace had a lot to say. Here's some of it.
"Monday is the quietest day in the entertainment industry, so we picked it, figuring that no one would be committed elsewhere. And since Hanukkah runs for eight days, there's always a Monday during Hanukkah. We can do this for years to come, and I hope we will.
"Why Hanukkah if no one in the band's Jewish? Well, my dad and I were talking about this, wondering if the Jewish kids ever feel bad that Santa doesn't come to their houses--"
He got interrupted here by my favorite blabbermouth. "Look, Chelle. We have Christmas parties out the wazoo. New Year's Eve parties. You can't turn on a fucking radio without hearing Christmas carols until you're blue in the face and stuffing a CD in the player so fast, you break the fucking thing. It's all about Christmas around here."
"So we figured," Eric said. "That we'd honor the religion that was around before Christianity but gets drowned out this time of year. We'd have a Hanukkah party and celebrate our music scene at the same time. After all, Hanukkah's a holiday of rededication. It just seemed to fit with the idea of reminding everyone that we're still into the local scene. It doesn't matter how big we get; it all starts at the local level. Just like the rededication of the Jews' temple."
"And we managed to talk the cook into making potato pancakes for everyone, too," Mitchell laughed in my ear. Ooh, baby. Laugh away.
Focus, Chelle. This was a good thing. Over three hundred people turned out, and they filled the fifty spaces for that big old jam with the superstars themselves. That was an extra fifty bucks for that honor, remember. Once you do the math, you get a pretty nice $5500 for charity.
And then those ShapeShifter boys topped that. They matched the take, making a cool $11,000.
Eric said his father's church was also going to make a donation in the name of the Riverview Musician's Hanukkah Celebration, and is going to work throughout the year toward getting more of the city's religious folk of all denominations and faiths involved for next year. The funds won't stay in Riverview, either, but are going to Music Lives, a foundation that spreads the wealth and the message across the country. This is important, Mitchell told me, "because without music in the schools, some of us won't get to sing in the choir and find out that we can do more than croak. That's what I got out of choir. That and the chance to be around all those girls in their concert best. Man, that alone made being in the choir worth it."
So, c'mon. This is one bandwagon worth jumping on, and go figure that it's ShapeShifter leading the way. Again. Y'all laugh at my face, tellin' me I'm nothin' but a ShapeShifter groupie, but if they're doin' stuff that's this good, why aren't you one, too?
You heard it first and you heard it here: Musical Hanukkah Celebrations are going to be sweeping the country. Get involved now.
(a note from Susan: While Chelle LaFleur, our slightly single-minded journalist, and ShapeShifter are as fake as the Musical Hanukkah Celebration, the Music Lives Foundation isn't. Endorsed by Paul McCartney and Fidelity Investments, they're helping keep music in our community's schools. Check out their website; read the stats about how music helps our children. And if you've got an extra $50, for the price of a jam with ShapeShifter, you can make a positive impact on the world. If you can't do fifty, do what you can; their minimum is five. Go on. Skip that latte and donate instead. And be sure to tell them you heard about them here.)
Ready for this? It's brilliant. It's worth copying. They threw a musical Hanukkah party for the members of the local music scene. Anyone involved -- roadies, musicians, promoters, journalists -- could get in for a ten buck ticket that they had to get in advance and buy through KRVR, the radio station that's so high on the Riverview scene that Bobby Bands, himself, is trying to horn in on their turf. (I hear they had the balls to turn his ten bucks away, too.)
For fifty bucks more, you could jam onstage. With the sponsors of the night: ShapeShifter. And since everything from the food to the club to the labor was donated, all the money went to one of those "keep music in our schools" charities that are so hot right now.
Took me two days, but I got hold of ShapeShifter's Mitchell Voss. "It was Eric's idea, really," he said, and handed the phone over. For someone who usually lets his guitar talk for him, ShapeShifter's Eric Wallace had a lot to say. Here's some of it.
"Monday is the quietest day in the entertainment industry, so we picked it, figuring that no one would be committed elsewhere. And since Hanukkah runs for eight days, there's always a Monday during Hanukkah. We can do this for years to come, and I hope we will.
"Why Hanukkah if no one in the band's Jewish? Well, my dad and I were talking about this, wondering if the Jewish kids ever feel bad that Santa doesn't come to their houses--"
He got interrupted here by my favorite blabbermouth. "Look, Chelle. We have Christmas parties out the wazoo. New Year's Eve parties. You can't turn on a fucking radio without hearing Christmas carols until you're blue in the face and stuffing a CD in the player so fast, you break the fucking thing. It's all about Christmas around here."
"So we figured," Eric said. "That we'd honor the religion that was around before Christianity but gets drowned out this time of year. We'd have a Hanukkah party and celebrate our music scene at the same time. After all, Hanukkah's a holiday of rededication. It just seemed to fit with the idea of reminding everyone that we're still into the local scene. It doesn't matter how big we get; it all starts at the local level. Just like the rededication of the Jews' temple."
"And we managed to talk the cook into making potato pancakes for everyone, too," Mitchell laughed in my ear. Ooh, baby. Laugh away.
Focus, Chelle. This was a good thing. Over three hundred people turned out, and they filled the fifty spaces for that big old jam with the superstars themselves. That was an extra fifty bucks for that honor, remember. Once you do the math, you get a pretty nice $5500 for charity.
And then those ShapeShifter boys topped that. They matched the take, making a cool $11,000.
Eric said his father's church was also going to make a donation in the name of the Riverview Musician's Hanukkah Celebration, and is going to work throughout the year toward getting more of the city's religious folk of all denominations and faiths involved for next year. The funds won't stay in Riverview, either, but are going to Music Lives, a foundation that spreads the wealth and the message across the country. This is important, Mitchell told me, "because without music in the schools, some of us won't get to sing in the choir and find out that we can do more than croak. That's what I got out of choir. That and the chance to be around all those girls in their concert best. Man, that alone made being in the choir worth it."
So, c'mon. This is one bandwagon worth jumping on, and go figure that it's ShapeShifter leading the way. Again. Y'all laugh at my face, tellin' me I'm nothin' but a ShapeShifter groupie, but if they're doin' stuff that's this good, why aren't you one, too?
You heard it first and you heard it here: Musical Hanukkah Celebrations are going to be sweeping the country. Get involved now.
(a note from Susan: While Chelle LaFleur, our slightly single-minded journalist, and ShapeShifter are as fake as the Musical Hanukkah Celebration, the Music Lives Foundation isn't. Endorsed by Paul McCartney and Fidelity Investments, they're helping keep music in our community's schools. Check out their website; read the stats about how music helps our children. And if you've got an extra $50, for the price of a jam with ShapeShifter, you can make a positive impact on the world. If you can't do fifty, do what you can; their minimum is five. Go on. Skip that latte and donate instead. And be sure to tell them you heard about them here.)
Labels: challenge, charity, Chelle LaFleur, creative writing, donate, fiction, Hanukkah, music, musicians, rock and roll
Friday, December 15, 2006
Susan's Book Talk: Who Knew Punk was so Hot?
Another book about punk rock has entered my radar: Babylon's Burning: From Punk to Grunge, by Clinton Heylin.
Best known as a biographer of Bob Dylan, Heylin's apparently written other books about punk: From the Velvets to the Voidoids, and All Yesterday's Parties: The Velvet Underground in Print, among other books about music.
Well. If you don't remember what happened the LAST time I blogged about a book about punk, let me refresh your memory.
One book hardly makes me an expert on the genre of books about punk, but I'm sure game to turn myself into one. Therefore, I'd like to hand down this challenge:
If Barb at Front Street Reviews is willing, and if someone in Mr. Heylin's camp is willing, I'll read Babylon's Burning and review it for all of you. We'll see how this Brit's take on punk compares to Steven Lee Beeber's.
Given that we've got the perspectives of two different countries, each rich in punk tradition, I think this could be an interesting project.
Best known as a biographer of Bob Dylan, Heylin's apparently written other books about punk: From the Velvets to the Voidoids, and All Yesterday's Parties: The Velvet Underground in Print, among other books about music.
Well. If you don't remember what happened the LAST time I blogged about a book about punk, let me refresh your memory.
One book hardly makes me an expert on the genre of books about punk, but I'm sure game to turn myself into one. Therefore, I'd like to hand down this challenge:
If Barb at Front Street Reviews is willing, and if someone in Mr. Heylin's camp is willing, I'll read Babylon's Burning and review it for all of you. We'll see how this Brit's take on punk compares to Steven Lee Beeber's.
Given that we've got the perspectives of two different countries, each rich in punk tradition, I think this could be an interesting project.
Labels: book reviews, books, challenge, Front Street Reviews, publishing, punk rock, rock and roll
Sunday, October 29, 2006
Music talk: A quick get-well
Just wanted to wish a public get-well to Jason Newsted, who has long been one of my musical heroes and who I will probably always think of as one of the world's most photogenic men.
You can find the details in the last two paragraphs of the Blabbermouth article I've linked to in my headline.
Jason, as you recover, how about firing up the Chophouse again and exposing us to more brilliant stuff?
You can find the details in the last two paragraphs of the Blabbermouth article I've linked to in my headline.
Jason, as you recover, how about firing up the Chophouse again and exposing us to more brilliant stuff?
Labels: music, musicians, rock and roll
Monday, October 09, 2006
Sad end of an era
I heard today that Sunday the fifteeenth will end the 33-year-run of the legendary bar known as CBGB. Having been inside, myself, I join thousands upon thousands who mourn the loss of this iconic, narrow, skanky joint.
The owner says he'll reopen in Vegas with as much of the original stuff as possible but sorry. It can't be the same.
The owner says he'll reopen in Vegas with as much of the original stuff as possible but sorry. It can't be the same.
Labels: music, punk rock, rock and roll
Thursday, June 15, 2006
Another true outtake
To push him even closer to puking, he'd promised the guys he'd stick to cigarettes until the obligatory after-show party. They said he played worse than ever when he took the stage stoned and while that was probably true, at least he had more fun through a nice buzz. To the others, sounding good was fun and besides, there were three of them and only one of him. Truthfully, Trevor didn't think it was as big a sacrifice as he was making it into.
Labels: creative writing, fiction, outtake, rock and roll, Trevor
