Finally Found the Love of a Lifetime

No this is not going to be a mushy post about Kelli although yes Kelli you are my love of a lifetime. Back to the matter at hand. I was listening to some random stuff last night when I ran across Firehouse's Love of a Lifetime. Like John I was instantly taken to up to a vision, an age where it was encouraged to tight roll your jeans but more specifically to a day in 1993 at a Junior High dance when I had found a love of a lifetime. I can't remember her name but I know she was special. We danced all night long, never coming too close to looking into each other's eyes but i will never forget the way I held her with outstretched arms at the sides of her waist as Firehouse came on. I can only imagine how envious the teachers were as they gazed on to a floor of 100 13 year olds in hopeless love. Those were the days.

My Fiance Is a Swinger

Nice fake excited face Kelli. Very well done.

I'm Dating a Marshallette

This Thanksgiving weekend I am spending with my fiance in her hometown of Marshall, Illinois (near Terre Haute). I've never been around here but it is nice to drive along the downtown square with the Christmas lights already in place, to eat at the town Pizza Hut that still takes pride in their franchise, play Texas Hold em with Kelli's family and almost actually win, laugh as Kelli tells her Grandma to "Go to bed you old lady" after her grandma got on her for wanting to hang out at the towny bar (which i'm excited to do-it's been a while since i've had a cold Coors light), hear Kelli's dad say, "that bridge was slicker than a cat's butt", and get a driving tour of every event that happened in Kelli's life. This is a great weekend! God bless the small towns.

A Special Thank You....

I want to take this second to thank Wilco for breaking the boring mold of modern music and bringing something fresh to the table. As I sat on the airplane to Indianapolis after a 2 hour delay the day before Thanksgiving I selected A Ghost is Born as something to get me through the bumpy flight. I was glad that I did! I had listened to the album a few times before that but this time it struck me differently. Musically, this album is so beyond anything I have heard lately it blows my mind. These guys are damned good musicians! And lyrically I left with a sense of hope. After all that the Tweedster has apparently been through it is good to hear it in his voice. Thank you Wilco for giving us something that wasn't prepackaged and didn't sound like The Strokthrillvinehiveinterpyeahyeahsucks!

For those about to ROCK!

Engaged!

This weekend I surprised Kelli down in Tampa and on Thursday night I asked her to marry me. She said no and I was drunk the rest of the weekend. Just kidding. It was an incredible evening and such a great surprise. I will never forget her face. The next night we went over to Clearwater Beach where we had a 3 hour dinner cruise and dance. It was a lot of fun. Looks like the wedding will be down in Florida this August. One thing I notice right away from this picture is that my face has gotten fat. Damn. You know it's fat when you mention that to your fiance and she doesn't argue with you. I'm going to the gym tomorrow. I've got to get in shape. By the way, check out that rock on her finger. If you would like the appraisal price just let me know and I'll send you a copy of the form.

Music You Should Check Out Part IV

Mack
www.purevolume.com/brevada (Mack was one of my interns this summer and I think his music is REALLY good. I suggest playing "To the End of the World" His whole CD rocks however. http://www.brevada.com/

Music You Should Check Out Part III

Brad

http://www.bradotts.com/ (Brad has been coming to Mosaic for a while too. He moved here from Austin and is in my life group. He has more of a folk rock sounds which I really appreciate. He played at Mosaic a few times. We really like this guy too.

Music You Should Check Out Part I

Kurty P
www.purevolume.com/sexsells (Kurt is my boy. He lives by me in the East Village and we watch Monday night footballl together. I suggest listening too "I Never Liked Sleeping Alone"

Music You Should Check Out Part II

The Rocket Summer

http://www.therocketsummer.com/ (this guy has been coming to Mosaic for a while, he just finished a headlining tour and is working on his new cd. His record label is the Militia Group which is the same as Denison Witmer, Copeland, etc. Check out his past tour shows. Pretty impressive stuff. Notic that Radiohead is listed there.)

Live at Bowery Ballroom

Pedro

Last night I saw Pedro the Lion at Bowery Ballroom. Sons and Daughters opened and the coolest thing about them was that they were from Scotland, that's about it. Starflyer 59 was next and the music was good, i enjoyed it but there was a guitarist/singer and drummer and everything else was on a track. I was VERY disappointed. Why do I want to listen to everything on a CD track and hear a guy play guitar and sing to it. It's like being in a bad church or something and hearing a song sang over a track. Terriblly boring to watch.

And then Pedro. He played a looooooong set which was awesome. I really enjoyed it. Wished he would have played more off of Control and It's Hard to Find a Friend and less from Achilles Heal. I really only like about 4 tracks off of that album, thought the rest to be disappointing but hey, he's not playing just for me. Other people seemed to enjoy the new stuff which is cool. While I lost some respect for Pedro in the past year for his "flip flopping" with pretty much everything (got that word from the debates, sorry), i do respect his thought provoking songs and good storytelling ability. I could listen to Pedro the Lion for days on end and be content. Great show. A+

The Great Lake State

Sufjan Stevens 

I started listening to Sufjan a few weeks ago and at first I wasn't sure what to think. I first heard of him from a magazine and also saw that Denison Witmer toured in his band this summer. I checked out his first cd Seven Swans which is very passionate and thought provoking so I thought I would check out Greetings From Michigan which is really a concept record if you look through the track listing. The music is very diverse in it's use of several instruments I've never even heard of. The cool thing is, Sufjan is going to be in Brooklyn playing at a club next Saturday and a friend of mine Brad Otts has been talking with Sufjan quite a bit on the phone about music. Sufjan invited him to sit down and talk a little more after his show. Luckily, as always, I get to tag along! WOOHOO. Looking forward to meeting him after hearing his music. I LOVE HAVING FRIENDS WHO KNOW PEOPLE.

Five Things I Find Overrated:

1. Elliot Smith (Sorry, i know everyone is supposed to love him but it puts me to sleep. Boring as hell)
2. Starbucks Holiday Cookies (I'm not sure if anyone ever thought they were good so maybe they're just not rated)
3. John Kerry (Not sure why everyone thinks he is the savior of the universe)
4. A Rod (No one deserves this much money, what a waste)
5. Apple Computers (Sorry Kirk and others but i've had nothing but problems with these. I think their marketing is about all the do well. I honestly believe there are three reasons most people own Mac's :
A. They want to be contrarian.
B. They bought hardcore into the marketing.
C. They're really into graphic design or video editing which is totally legitimate.

For those who have Mac's and don't do anything with music, video or graphics please see reasons A and B.

No need to get ticked off Mac people, i know some of you evangelize more about Mac computers than Jesus but they're not all that great. They look nice so that's good.