Saturday, November 24, 2012

Recently Unearthed: Eddie Vedder Ukulele Songs

As you might have noticed, I've been away for several days. Turns out, I had to take a short trip to the Philippines. By short, I mean the number of days I was away, not distance...it is a long-ass way from here to the Philippines. I was not looking forward to several plane rides, the longest leg being about 14 hours in length.

I took my iPod with me and my Kindle app on my phone, plus the plane for the longest portion of the journey had individual TVs with free movies so I figured I was pretty much set. I learned as a kid that I get car sick if I'd read on the bus. Even as an adult, I have to be pretty careful reading in a car or I will feel like crap from motion sickness. It never once crossed my mind that I'd have the same problem on a plane. I don't fly much, but learned quickly that all those free Kindle books I'd been hoarding for my trip were not going to be of any use unless I wanted to be sick the entire time.

Next, I tried movies. Every time I'd start a movie I'd fall asleep. I wanted to try to sleep on the plane some, so I didn't want to force myself to stay awake for a full-length movie, so even though there was a great selection of movies, that option wasn't my favorite. I watched a few TV shows, but they are all reruns from previous seasons, so that didn't last long.

I needed something to block out the noises on the plane. Sleeping in a room of 500 people isn't easy. Well, I had my iPod, but it kept slipping off my lap and I was trying to hard to listen to each song as it came on (I have the same problem if I try to have Pandora on while I'm napping, I wake up to see "oh, who sings that?"). I finally located the CD feature from the in-flight entertainment system and did some digging for something quiet and soothing to help me rest. I was happy to find Eddie Vedder's CD, Ukulele Songs waiting for me. I hadn't listened to this album yet, but I knew his sound would be just what I needed. I often listen to Into the Wild when in need for quiet time, so I found myself listening to Ukulele Songs for pretty much the entire 14 hour flight.

I'm not sure the album is something I'll listen to on a daily basis. In fact, I haven't even purchased the album. I downloaded one or two tracks today and will consider the others later. I even listened to the CD again for the ride back...another 12 hours.

If you are looking for something soothing, give this CD a chance. It might not be something you listen to all the time, but I think this will be a go-to for times when I just need to chill.

By the way, the trip to the Philippines was good too. It was a tight schedule and I didn't get to have much time to my own, so that was a bit of a bummer. I barely saw Manila at all since most of my time was spent a few hours south of Manila at a conference in Tagaytay City. The food wasn't my favorite, but I blame some of that on the caterers for the conference because the food we had in restaurants was enjoyable enough.

I had worried about asthma from the huge city, but happily did not have many problems at all. We only had rain one evening, which is nice. I don't recommend planning to wash your own clothes during a trip. I washed a few small items on my first night and they were still wet a few days later; I had to bring them home wet in a trash bag.

Along the way, we had a brief stopover in Nagoya, Japan. We didn't get to go outside of the airport, but the views during our arrival were breath taking. Also, Nagoya airport wins the award for best public restroom I've ever been in. Wow. I want to fly there everytime I need to potty now.

Monday, November 12, 2012

Recently Extinct: Pswingset

I ended up getting Pswingset's All Our False Starts as part of the recent Soundsupply drop (#5). One by one I have deleted their psongs from my iPod. The music isn't the worst I've ever heard, they would be tolerable live, but their psound is amateur to me, it sounds like listening to a band pset up in a garage to me. I can kind of make it through listening to a psong or two, but then I'm like "No. Why do that when I have 80GB of other music that I like? That would be psilly."

Pso, farewell to you, Pswingset. Aren't you a clever bunch with your funny pspelling and all?

Sunday, November 11, 2012

Recently Unearthed: Freelance Whales

Well, I've been going to say something about Freelance Whales for a few weeks now. Life gets in the way sometimes and I've been trying to put my finger on who I think they sound like...not that I like to compare to another band, but the vocals have that deja vu sound to them like I've heard that voice before and it's been bugging me. What I can say is that usually I don't like "noisy" music, but they do it right. It's unusual, a little bit of alien sounds, but I find it relaxing in this case.

Hannah is one of my favorites, but also like Generator ^ First Floor and Generator ^ Second Floor. Actually, I like a lot of their songs, but those are my favorites so far. I guess I first stumbled upon them on NoiseTrade, but they've also been on Paste's mPlayer and have some downloads available from their website in addition to the downloads I've done from eMusic to fill in the gaps.


Saturday, November 10, 2012

Recently Unearthed: Harrison Hudson

Do you know how often I click the "Download Album" button? Hardly ever. I did it today for Harrison Hudson...using my very own cold, hard cash that I earned my very own self. Usually I'll go thru and pick a few songs to download, but these guys have me convinced I need to own all of their music.

I first happened upon them from a NoiseTrade sampler. At this writing you can still download American Thunder there in a name-your-own-price format. They also have some downloads available on their website in a similar format, but with a minimum price to download. Either I'm not getting something or my computer isn't or their website is a little whack...so best of luck to you on that.

The music has a kitschy vibe, but I don't mean that in a bad way. The music doesn't take itself too seriously, but is still of good quality. Maybe whimsical is a better word.

I suggest you check them out. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'd like to get back to listening.

rowR!

Sunday, November 4, 2012

Recently Extinct: Kevin Burdick

Not long ago I was at a local bar to hear some live music. While I was there, I had the pleasure of bumping into a douche bag. Now, I'm not one to judge people quickly...Wait, actually, yes I am. Yeah, this guy was definitely GRADE A Douche Bag. He was fourtysomething, shiny-faced from too much tanning and maybe plastic surgery, wearing jeans with bedazzled pockets and a leather jacket.

He came up and sat down between me and a random girl on a couch, shot me a wink, then her. Then looks over his shoulder to his buddy giving a "thumbs up" toward me and then toward her like he was hanging out at a Helen Keller convention and neither of us would notice his gesture.

He proceeds with his douchey antics for a couple of songs. Another sign of douchedom is loud "WHOOOOTING" after a song...especially a quiet, acoustic number.

The band starts kind of mocking him, he doesn't realize it. "Hey, you having a good time?" they ask. "I AM NOW! WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT!" he shouts with both arms raised above his head. The rest of the audience rolls their eyes...

Well, luckily after a couple of songs, he takes himself and his sparkly jeans to another location in the bar never to be heard from again.

A few days later, I'm looking at some photos that were linked to the band's Twitter profile and see Captain Douche Bag in one of the pictures. Well, I can't resist, I have to click on this clown's name and learn more about him.

Turns out he's a musician himself. Really? So I read his Wikipedia page, which he obviously wrote himself since it is longer than Mozart's Wikipedia page and details his activity since the 3rd Tuesday of February 1972.

The more I read, the funnier it gets. Maybe despite his outwardly doucheyness he is a wonderful musician... I must not keep myself from the discovery so I have a listen.

Wahahahahahahahahahhhhhhhahahahahhahahha. If I'd been drinking milk, I'd have spit it out of my nose. Wow, super bad. Have I mentioned by now that the dude I'm describing is Kevin Burdick? Oh, well it is.

His Wikipedia profile claims he is a talented pianist...I think that is obvious in his music. Truly, some of the melodies aren't bad. Not everyone is into piano music, but it's not bad. The problem is that the lyrics are lame, overly simple, predictable, did I say lame? Oh, I did. Well, they are.

Now don't get me wrong -- There are probably some Yanni, David Hasselhoff, and John Tesh fans out there looking for someone new. You're welcome. Maybe you need a stocking stuffer for your Grandma for Christmas? Let me know, I'm the "proud" owner of an autographed CD he sent me that I can share with you. (Which means GIVE TO YOU since I don't want it.)

Now, if you are really a glutton for punishment or just don't trust my opinion... feel free to check him out. Follow his "Fan Club" on Twitter, they frequently give away free CDs. By the way, I'm suspicious he is the president and possibly the entire membership of his fan club.

Baby Dinosaur's Weekend at the Theater Part II

Well, Friday night left me a bit concerned about my plans for Saturday night. I had a free ticket to see Narnia performed by CYT (Christian Youth Theater) Kansas City -- a youth theater group. All I could think was "last night was adults and it was horrible, kids are going to be even worse!" Wrong.

I was a fan of C.S. Lewis as a child, but kind of got over it later in life, but as I said, the ticket was free for me so I decided to check it out. I had been told that the CYT kids do a great job and was hoping I had not been mislead.

Honestly, it was great. There were some issues with the wireless mics on one or two of the kids, but I was honestly really pleased. The singing was in tune -- a little pitchy here and there. The acting was good -- one or two were a little too loud or a little too soft. I sat in the balcony which blocked some of the action that took place off stage, which the group should keep in mind for next time. Still great though.

Really, really I was so relieved that it was good. If you aren't in Kansas City, there may be a CYT group near you... check to see.

Baby Dinosaur's Weekend at the Theater Part I

A lot of stuff was available for entertainment this week. I kind of wanted to go see Ted Allen at a local grocery store convention, but family duties also called upon me to travel home to my parents' house. Turns out I saw an ad for Chicago being performed in a town close to home, so we decided to check it out.

Chicago (the movie) is one of my favorites. I've also seen the play performed in the past and had previously decided I wanted to see some other performances for comparison.

Tickets were only $12, so I sent my mom to pre-purchase the tickets during the week. The Liberty Center where the performance took place is a small theater, I was surprised when she told me she got us front row seats a couple of days before the premier, but chalked that up to luck. When I was little...we'd gone to see plays put on by what I am assuming is the same group and I remembered them being good. There was Mame, Brigadoon, maybe Harvey... Well, something changed. Either I became more judgemental or this was just bad.

While we were waiting for the performance, I was still optimistic. The stage was small, but the setting had promise. The orchestra pit was part of the stage, which I liked -- especially considering the theme of the show.

Anyway, the lights go dim and so do my hopes as the bandleader starts the band off. I'm not sure if they were all playing the same song or if they just started on different pages. I never learned a wind instrument, but I spent a lot of time in the band room as a drummer while I was in school and never quite heard anything like that.

Wait. It gets better (no not really)...
Out steps the Master of Ceremonies, also the producer and the wife of the director. Dressed like a ringmaster, it seems that maybe having her moustache waxed for the special occasion was out of the question. Spotlights seem to enhances lady-'staches by the way. Next time, I'd consider going over your costume to trim off any dangling threads too since there were strings hanging from both cuffs long enough to tie around my finger to remind me of this horrible evening.

Luckily, the "actress" playing Velma Kelly can carry a tune. She was a bit of a Clydesdale, but still... I was thankful she was tolerable. Tolerance didn't last long.

Next comes the scene when Roxie kills Fred. We were in a small theater, I think using a starters' pistol was poorly thought out. Pretty much everyone there left with hearing damage... I guess I should be grateful.

Roxie's roll was filled by a cute "redhead" I think the hair dye might have come from the Happy Meal dye collection since it had an odd tint of purple to it, but that's okay. Even better, the actress had a terrible, horrible, very bad lisp that pretty much sounded just like Daffy Duck. Sexthy! So, up climbs Roxie onto the piano to sing Funny Honey the notes on the sheet music are really just suggestions aren't they? Oh, dear. I had my hands over my face by that point and leaned over to my mom to explain "THIS IS BAD" not to mention I was trapped in the front row with no ability to exit until intermission.

The next few numbers were tolerable. Not GOOD, but by then I had become numb to the pain until Mary Sunshine had her turn. Oh, sweet Lord in heaven, why have you betrayed us? Afterward, other members of our party optimistically guessed that she sang the song poorly "on purpose" for some sort of effect. Sure, sure try to play that angle ladies. That's why everyone on stage was wincing right along with us. This lady should not be allowed to sing in public ever again. I'm going to the next city council meeting to try to get a law started banning her from it.

By this time, this started being the funniest play I'd ever seen. Have you seen The Producers? You know that musical about Hitler, where everyone started storming out in anger and then ended up rolling in the aisles from laughter? I decided that was my only way to make it through the evening. So the rest of the show I spent in hysterical laughter, shaking my head in disbelief, covering my face in horror and occasionally exclaiming "Oh, this is so BAD".

I will freely admit that Ben Jackson (Billy Flynn) had a decent singing voice...keeping in mind who I was comparing him with.

I know, I'm a horrible person right? No. No, I'm not. I'm an honest person. Besides, this is like a public service announcement. If you live in central Missouri, are able to memorize lines, and are looking for your 15 minutes of fame... contact the Liberty Center Association of the Arts for an audition... this could be your lucky day!

If you are a sponsor of the Liberty Center Association of the Arts, you should request a refund.