A rather painful blog...
Three quick topics to fill the void until tonight preview of potentially the best Saturday of college football viewing in a long time:
Someone please explain to the jurors in Pennsylvania that a well-aimed baseball to the ear and one similarly aimed below the belt constitute serious bodily injury. Jurors found former T-ball coach and future seventh level of hell resident Mark Downs not guilty of solicitation of aggravated assault for offering to pay one of his players $25 to bean his autistic teammate and prevent him from playing in a game. Not only in my eyes is the act itself wholly despicable but the jurors' explanation for the deadlock and not guilty verdict on the wreckless endangerment and aggravated assault charges boggles my somewhat overcaffeinated mind. While the physical injuries are reported as bruises and an infected ear, the jurors did not believe these constituted serious injury. Given the circumstances of intentionally attempting to injure a disadvantaged kid, I would have preferred an example be made of this wretched example of over-competitive slime, but it was not to be.
(steps down from soap box and puts on objective glasses)
In musical circles I'd like to provide a brief 3 sentence review of 3 CDs I've listened to quite a bit this week (Revelations not included).
Counting Crows New Amsterdam...:
This is one of the better live performance recordings I've purchased. It is consistently entertaining from "Rain King" opening to the ending combination of "Hard Candy" and "Holiday in Spain." Although many of my favorites didn't make this set, I still strongly recommend it if you're a fan.
Hurt Vol. I
I bought this disc a while back on the strength of the lead single "Rapture" which gives the impression of Hurt as just a typical dark, brooding metal band; however, they show a very multi-faceted musical structure which I was not fully expecting but very quickly learned to appreciate. While the lyrics and messages in "Rapture", "Overdose", and "Falls Apart" are very dark and in places almost macabre, musically these songs stand out because of the layering of almost orchestral arrangements which separate them from many bands in this genre. One uplifting track here is "Danse Russe" a very solid ballad which helps solidify the entire effort. Other tracks of note include "Losing" and "Unkind."
Greenwheel Bridges for Burning:
The St. Louis group returns for a long absence after Soma Holiday, which shall be remembered for among other things the correct and proper version of "Breathe", with a 5-song EP. This is 17 minutes of quality melodic rock. Of the 5 songs, the tracks "Lonely Afterglow" and "Caving In" stand out but "Trigger" and "To Each His Own" aren't far behind.
As a final topic a couple notes to ESPN and other sports channels. First not every Saturday of football needs a catch phrase nickname. The games on this week's card can carry themselves without the unnecessary marketing as "Separation Saturday." If you have to waste time this week with a nickname, I fully expect in six weeks or so when all the contenders are facing conference doormats to see a week hyped as "These games really suck Saturday" just in the interest of fairness. Also, you can stop showing Trent Green's near decapitation any time now.
Someone please explain to the jurors in Pennsylvania that a well-aimed baseball to the ear and one similarly aimed below the belt constitute serious bodily injury. Jurors found former T-ball coach and future seventh level of hell resident Mark Downs not guilty of solicitation of aggravated assault for offering to pay one of his players $25 to bean his autistic teammate and prevent him from playing in a game. Not only in my eyes is the act itself wholly despicable but the jurors' explanation for the deadlock and not guilty verdict on the wreckless endangerment and aggravated assault charges boggles my somewhat overcaffeinated mind. While the physical injuries are reported as bruises and an infected ear, the jurors did not believe these constituted serious injury. Given the circumstances of intentionally attempting to injure a disadvantaged kid, I would have preferred an example be made of this wretched example of over-competitive slime, but it was not to be.
(steps down from soap box and puts on objective glasses)
In musical circles I'd like to provide a brief 3 sentence review of 3 CDs I've listened to quite a bit this week (Revelations not included).
Counting Crows New Amsterdam...:
This is one of the better live performance recordings I've purchased. It is consistently entertaining from "Rain King" opening to the ending combination of "Hard Candy" and "Holiday in Spain." Although many of my favorites didn't make this set, I still strongly recommend it if you're a fan.
Hurt Vol. I
I bought this disc a while back on the strength of the lead single "Rapture" which gives the impression of Hurt as just a typical dark, brooding metal band; however, they show a very multi-faceted musical structure which I was not fully expecting but very quickly learned to appreciate. While the lyrics and messages in "Rapture", "Overdose", and "Falls Apart" are very dark and in places almost macabre, musically these songs stand out because of the layering of almost orchestral arrangements which separate them from many bands in this genre. One uplifting track here is "Danse Russe" a very solid ballad which helps solidify the entire effort. Other tracks of note include "Losing" and "Unkind."
Greenwheel Bridges for Burning:
The St. Louis group returns for a long absence after Soma Holiday, which shall be remembered for among other things the correct and proper version of "Breathe", with a 5-song EP. This is 17 minutes of quality melodic rock. Of the 5 songs, the tracks "Lonely Afterglow" and "Caving In" stand out but "Trigger" and "To Each His Own" aren't far behind.
As a final topic a couple notes to ESPN and other sports channels. First not every Saturday of football needs a catch phrase nickname. The games on this week's card can carry themselves without the unnecessary marketing as "Separation Saturday." If you have to waste time this week with a nickname, I fully expect in six weeks or so when all the contenders are facing conference doormats to see a week hyped as "These games really suck Saturday" just in the interest of fairness. Also, you can stop showing Trent Green's near decapitation any time now.
posted by Aaron at 12:49 AM
1 Comments:
Every Saturday during college football season has a nickname: "Commodore Saturday". This Saturday could also be known as "Georgia Tech-Cumberland Revisited Saturday" as the Longhorns are playing the Owls.
Interesting that "Rapture" was the lead single, given that I've only heard "Falls Apart" on the radio. And yes, Greenwheel's version of "Breathe" is the proper one, just as Seal's "Crazy" is the proper one and Angie Aparo's "Cry" is the proper one. Not that Melissa Etheridge, Alanis Morissette, and Faith Hill aren't talented artists. I want to get up on my own soapbox and preach against covering current songs, but such practices gave the world Jimi Hendrix's versions of "All Along the Watchtower" and "Hey Joe", among others, in the 60s. Still, in general, if you're gonna cover a song, I personally prefer it be an older song, unless you're really gonna transform it and make it your own like Jimi. (Okay, I guess I did end up on a soapbox anyway.)
Did you just guess at the circle of Hell Dickweed was heading for, or are you that familiar with Dante's Inferno? Just curious, because that circle is in fact reserved for the violent.
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