January 30, 2006

Sleeplessness and a work in progress

I can't sleep. My spine and my mental/emotional state won't let me. In attempting to settle down, I composed an early draft of "Coalescence." I apologize in advance if it seems awful. Feel free to rip it to shreds and suggest better things for me to do with my time.

Coalescence

Listening for rain to fall
A chance for things to grow
The world outside together
Creates the beauty that I know
Through the glass I see the progress
Of the harmonies at play
Creating the light and warmth
Of each and every day

Sealed in from the outside
The window’s just a piece of art
For those of us to look upon
With fragments of a heart
Without the strength to fight back
I’m a target statue still
For the spirits and animals
To mock from on the sill

This pain I must overcome
My heart must coalesce
I’ll struggle but I will not fail
The dear Lord’s brutal test
6 weeks until Foiled (and yes apparently the cover changed again).

January 29, 2006

Top 10 live shows I attended in 2005

Yes, I know I'm still behind but things are still a little chaotic. Without further delay, Here's the list.

Honorable Mention: Socialburn and Another Day at the Engine Room -- It was great to see Socialburn as I missed them when they toured for Where You Are, and as far as a debut show for Another Day, I was impressed.

10. Deep Ella and SouthFM at Rudyard's: This will be the first of multiple mentions for both these bands (or at least parts of them). Very entertaining show at a smaller venue.

9. Default and Hinder w/ Bif Naked at Scout Bar: I had seen the Canadian rock group Default in a previous concert life (a show which was marred by what has become known to me as "the incident" which involved 5 months in cast) . On this night however, I had no such difficulties and could enjoy their show for what it was. Though I had issues with the setlist's complete avoidance of Elocation I thought the show was entertained. OKC's Hinder surprised me with their show and there ability to play to the crowd even beyond the predictable audience participation with "Get Stoned"

8. Bowling for Soup, American Hi-Fi, Riddlin Kids, and MC Lars at Meridian: This was a very humorous show. The best musical performance was American Hi-Fi. Bowling for soup were their usual out of control selves which made for grand amusement.

7. Endochine and South FM (acoustic) at Helios: Spectacular show at an unfortunate time of year for the venue. Helios (having limited if any air conditioning) in late May in Houston is just a bad idea. In my humble opinion, SFM was better as an acoustic show because Paco didn't have to strain. Endochine was extremely entertaining in there adjust lineup after the departure of Casey McPherson (going to check out Casey's new project Alpha Rev at some point in 2006). The set was not a surprise but it was well performed and entertaining and that's all I truely ask.

6. iSOLA with Jeff Crowder of Deep Ella at Helios
Fun show and a late night for me. Crowder's set was very good even though I had seen most of it the week prior (except for "Fight the Human Race"). iSOLA was fun because they celebrated the end of the year with what started out as fan request night. Great set as usually
5. Buzzfest XVI at CWMP:
The fall installment of our standard Houston festival show. Highlights included great performances by Audioslave and Nickelback. Institute and Seether were both very good. Sadly OLP cancelled (I was looking very forward to them)
4. Green Day and Jimmy Eat World at Toyota Center
Green Day played a very solid show though in their 2 and a half hours they could have included a few more songs . What they did play was very entertaining and the show theatrics played well with the crowd. Jimmy Eat World was a great opener with plenty of energy however, I would have liked to see them have a set time longer than 30 minutes
3. Buzzfest XV at CWMP:
Notable performances: Papa Roach, No Address, Theory of a Deadman, Alterbridge, Breaking Benjamin, Sum 41 and 3 Doors Down.

2. Blue October, iSOLA and Greatness in Tragedy at Meridian

1. 5591, Matt Noveskey, and Jeff Crowder at Sidecar Pub

Descriptions will be added for the top 6 as time permits today but alas I must going finishing reading for class.

Song Lyric of the Day:
"Hate me today
Hate me tomorrow
Hate me for all the things I didn't do for you"
-- Blue October

January 26, 2006

SnoCore Review

Tuesday night, I ventured to the Verizon to enjoy the Winterfresh SnoCore tour featuring Seether, Shinedown, Flyleaf, and Halestorm. Although I missed the initial song of Halestorm's set. I thought they were a nice opener for a solid show. It took a while for the crowd to warm up because the show started at 7:00pm, but about midway through the Halestorm set things picked up.

Texas' own Flyleaf was second up. I had recently acquired their self-titled CD (through a number of unexpected circus-like events) and really enjoyed. However, I will only recommend it to those of you who like loud, electrified tunes. Their set had a lot of energy and and was well organized, varying tempos and mixing in a number of songs which are quite melodic although still driven by electric guitars at significant. For the more melodic songs, Lacey Mosley's actual vocal ability shines. The louder songs essentially force her to scream reducing the vocal quality. Overall, it was a nice performance.

Skipping ahead to Seether. Having seen them at Buzzfest in October, I knew what to expect. They were still good and the more melodic songs like "Fine Again", "Driven Under", and "The Gift" played better in the smaller venue. The crowd was most into their set when they announced that "Fine Again" was played that night in tribute to Dave Williams of Drowning Pool and "Dimebag" Darrell of Pantera, being in the home state of both it provided for extra crowd enthusiasm. They hit the high points and threw in their cover of the Deftones "Change", but sadly again left out "Sympathetic" and "Simplest Mistake". They worth seeing again but on this night, they were outshined.

Although they didn't close the show, this was Shinedown's party. From the intro lights and sounds to the first notes of "Heroes", a great opener from Us and Them, I knew I was in for a show. They hit the high points of Leave a Whisper with "45", "Burning Bright" and "Fly from the Inside." The musician and showmanship was outstanding culminating in a spectacular cover of Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Simple Man" which had everyone applauding and chanting by its end. Brent and the others were continually involving the audience so that it was more of an experience than just music on stage. The set list was great. The only addition I may have made would have been the inclusion of "Beyond the Sun" but understanding time constraints, I'll let that slide.

In closing, if the opportunity presents itself, go see Shinedown. It's well worth it on its own. I just got lucky that 2 other bands I like also played the show.

Song Lyric of the Day
"You can put a man on trial
But you can't make the guilty pay
You can cage an animal
But you can't take away the rage"
Shinedown -- "Heroes"

January 24, 2006

Delays...(No not clones of Texas politicians)

I beg forgiveness of the readership as things have gotten away from me at work the last few days and I have not been able to blog any of the lists or reviews I intended to as yet.

The idea for the next few posts will be as follows:
Later today: SnoCore (Seeether/Shinedown/Flyleaf/Halestorm) review and Best live shows of 2005
Tomorrow: Musical disappointments of 2005
Friday/Saturday: Most enjoyed albums of 2005
Sunday: The Overplayed of 2005 (feel free to nominate through comments or other means of communication)

January 20, 2006

Music Lists 2005: Biggest Suprises of 2005

Every year I do this but I seldom put the list out for public consumption. I know it's just an opinion but I'm always afraid of ridicule. That said, this will serve as part 1 of my musical awards and lists for 2005.
Top Pleasant Surprises of 2005
1. iSOLA -- Loud Alarms
I was introduced to iSOLA by a number of friends of mine via the Blue October board. After seeing the live show I picked up their first EP Don't Walk, Run and was fairly impressed, but my exposure to that album did not prepare me for the vast improvement I found in Loud Alarms. The album has enough experimental elements and winding musical journeys to play to the standard college radio crowd; however, these elements are merely there to add to the final product instead of being used as a cover for musical issues. Everyone I know who has listened to it has a different song to recommend suggesting a fairly wide appeal.
2. System of a Down -- Mezmerize/Hypnotize
This is not on the list because I was surprised it succeeded. I'm a fan of SoaD and know that the bands fan base would make both parts commercially successful. Mesmerize/Hypnotize makes the list based on it's ability to incorporate many disparate styles into a cohesive album. Yes, there are a few tracks of old school SoaD where screaming lyrics that on the surface may seem completely random is commonplace but there are a number of others in which Serj and company show an ability to be highly melodic without sounding forced.
3. SouthFM -- Swallowing the Pill
Responses to this one fall into three categories: The majority of you will respond with "who?" and/or" why?". A second group will recall the one single from the previous album that got significant airplay, "Dear Claudia." The final group is a limited bunch (given my present readership, limited is set at over/under 3 for line making purposes) which can honestly say that they have heard the album. Again, unless I'm in complete anger management mood, I look for things which are melodic and easily enjoyed. I also have a tendency to favor more lyrically driven songs. SouthFM succeeds for the majority of this album on both fronts. Songs I would recommend in particular would include "Surface/Wake Up" , "Blue and Grey", "Regret/The Grieving" and "Habit", the song responsible for my favorite away message of 2005.
4. No Address -- Time Doesn't Notice
For a debut CD this was a very solid effort with a number of quality tracks which sadly commercial radio will not play because they do not have the virally catchy hooks of the lead single "When I'm Gone (Sadie)." My appreciation of this disc is due partially to it's attempt to mix in classic rock influences and a "back to basics" approach to produce a solid album.
5. Hinder -- Extreme Behavior
Ever listen to a song and then spend the better part of 20 minutes condemning yourself for enjoying it? That was me in late August when this OKC quintet hit radio with their debut single "Get Stoned." I'm not a drug user and I have zero personal life so I have no means to relate to the song, but much like Smile Empty Soul's "Bottom of a Bottle" a couple years back, I couldn't help enjoying it. The reason they are on the surprise list is because I figured them for a one-hit wonder with no other solid material to support the single which will catch on due to the subject matter. I gladly admit that I was very much mistaken. Though the subject matter for most of the songs is familiar, well-traveled musical ground, sometimes it's good just to have a good time. I can't be a pure music elitist all the time.
Next: 2005 the year in musical failures (I've got a few but I am open to reader suggestions) .
Unrelated to either list side note: The calendar has reached January and thus the countdown shall resume.
53 days and counting until ...

January 19, 2006

Vengeful Rodents (in no way associated with politics) Chapter 1

This is another entry from the "Stories I can't make up" file.

Many of you may be aware of another vengeful rodent story where a New Mexico man reportedly had his house burned down by a flaming mouse. Though initially reported by a number of national media outlets, This story has been subsequently disproven. However, here in Houston, we have are own destructive rodents.

Yesterday, the Metrorail was shut down completely for half a day due to a short circuit in the system and a subsequent loss of power. Today, Metro officials announced that they found the cause for this outage. It seems a hungry rat had gnawed off enough of the power cable's covering to allow rain water from the rain of Monday and Tuesday to flow into the cable creating the short.

I was hopeful that a multi-million dollar system I depend on regularly would be able to withstand an attack from a hungry street rat. I guess that was just wishful thinking.

More news and music reviews from the Christmas acquistions coming later.

January 12, 2006

More writings from over my break

"Mythical"

Staring out the broken window
As the stars shine and cold winds blow
I watch the leaves dance
Looking for a second chance
A lighted path that I may know

Another day, I have to cope
Another tree another rope
Another light led me astray
To a place I shouldn’t stay
But out over the icy bay
A single light to lead the way

And I shall continue calmly
But with a tinge of fright
I stumble through the jagged rocls
In this cold, crystal night

I’m chasing after miracles
In search of what may seem
A faint and distant spark of hope
To resurrect a dream
In my mind the picture’s clear
The visions bright and bold
This phoenix has a few more lives
The embers aren’t yet cold

January 05, 2006

Artistic Endeavors to fail at

Here's my latest artistic effort. Not song lyrics this time as much as standard verse. Please feel free to rip my lack of ability to shreds.

“Shadow Speak"

I wish the shadows could talk
For they may hold the key
To reveal a deeper meaning
Which in light we cannot see

Our lives have the brilliance
Of the brightest stars outshined
But to view them all directly
Would surely leave us blind

The shadows’ imperfect cover
Shrouds this brightness in a veil
Events through the reflections
Revealed in great detail

The shadows speak in code
That may still be unclear
We still need to interpret
The stories that we hear

But when the shadows speak
Their will is done
Hopes and dreams revealed
Like eclipses on the sun

January 04, 2006

Congratulations Longhorn fan

Before I get buried in pro-Longhorn comments, I would like to offer my congratulations to the Longhorn fanbase as hard as it may be for Sooner fan self. Vince Young's game was ridiculous and showed me even more of an improvement in his abilities than I had seen before. Thank you for ending the USC streak and the ESPN USC hype machine though.

May ESPN's hilarious backpedaling from their declaration of USC as the greatest team ever continue.

Happy National Championship day

Sorry, I've been away for the holidays and have not been able to rant. I just wanted to wish everyone Happy National Championship day.

USC 38 Texas 34

More thoughtful rants when I get back from work (Liberty Bowl gloating and a humorous postal mishap -- even though it happened to me.)