Gigantic

Last sunday was the hottest day in six years, high of 102 degrees. What better place to spend the day than at at outdoor festival!

To start from the beginning, I got there about noon on saturday, marveled at the lax security, and caught the last few songs of the Int'l Noise Conspiracy's set, which luckily included the only song of theirs that I know "capitalism stole my virginity" which is quite possibly the best song title of all time. Leave a comment if you can think of anything better. It did seem rather ironic, however, that the band played this at Lolla, on the SBC East stage, sponsored by a million giant corporations, to people that have paid the same amount for a ticket than people earn in a year in a third world country. But I'm down, yo, national health care would rock. Then i sat on the grass while M83 played their guitar based electro/instrumentals and applied a generous amount of sunscreen. Then moved back over to hear the Trail of Dead, who were loud as hell and pretty entertaining, they predictably smashed all their equipment at the end; even though i knew it was coming it was kinda cool to see not one, but two drum kits flying off the stage.

Then i traveled to the opposite corner of the field to see the Kaiser Chiefs. There were four stages, each in one corner of the giant field, and two stages played at once. The weird thing was while this was a relatively large area, you could still hear both playing at the same time if you were anywhere near the middle, and if you were up front by one of the stages you'd hear the other band when the one you were watching stopped. Anyway, the KC's were fantastic, I'd barely listened their album twice and seemed to know every song anyway (I described them to a friend as being Franz Ferdinand plus the Clash, but that seems kind of lazy). One of the highlights of day one for sure despite the singer losing his voice. He even brought a couple fans on stage to sing one of the songs. Incidentally, this is the second time I'd see a band do that, the first was Beulah in 2001 (with opening band being then-unknown Mates of State). Afterwards I saw about half of the Brian Jonestown Massacre's set, and then took off for a break, found food (giant burrito) and airconditioning. Came back to watch Blonde Redhead's show, which was OK (the other option was Billy Idol). It rained on me for about 25 minutes while i was waiting for the Black Keys to start. They finally did with me as close to the stage as I'd get on saturday. They were one the most anticipated bands to see for me, but I was worried how they'd sound outside as opposed to a small smokey club. Well, they definitely didn't disappoint at all, I was surprised to see the singer/guitarist didn't even use a pick despite sounding so loud and brutal at times. They played fantastic, and the songs were stuck in my head the rest of the day.

I had to rush across the field to get a decent spot to see the Pixies. They came out and played over 20 songs in 75 minutes, rarely speaking between at all. They sounded great, Frank Black sweated about 39 gallons but his voice was perfect, hitting all the screams and everything. It was cool to see them, finally, but I wish I would have in 1989 rather than 2005. They said goodnite and then slooooooooooowly walked off stage while the audience shouted for more, then went back and played 'Where is my Mind?" as the sun completely disappeared. That was fricking sweet right there.

Weezer was last, and i was pretty far away, but I felt they had somehow turned into a band that's going to end up playing state fairs when they're in their 50s. They played 6 songs from their first album and only 4 from their most recent. I was in the back, shouting for them to 'play the hits!'. I had seen them in 2001, and they were pretty good then, but now I was annoyed at Rivers' lame between song comments and the lack of energy they had. Their newest album is shit, by the way, remind me to delete it from my iPod.

I caught the train home and began my coughing and sneezing fit (I'm apparently allergic to outdoor music festivals). Went back around 2:30 on sunday, with M in tow, when it was about 100 degrees. Saw Dinosaur Jr play most of their set (another band reunited in the name of cashing in). They were loud and good, J Mascis now has long grey hair and a potbelly, which is kinda funny. M liked their set too, and recognized more songs than I. This lead me to the following conclusion about her taste in music: If she listened to them up to the year 2000, she would like them no matter what they sounded like. If she discovered them after the year 2000, she would like them only if they were 'pretty' sounding, not loud, not offensive in any way. If she heard a recording released prior to 2000 that wasn't pretty sounding, she would like it only if she had listened to it in her younger days. Which meant Dinosaur Jr. = good, but Sonic Youth = bad. Also, weirdly THe pixies 'doolittle' album is good, but the 'come on pilgrim' ep is bad. What a friggin nutbar!

Anyway, we spent the next couple hours hanging out in the shade, there were a lot of buses around, idling with air conditioning on. We refilled our four water bottles and went to see the Arcade Fire. They were fantastic, probably the best performance I saw all weekend. They came out in three-piece black suits, with the girls in long dresses and opera gloves. 9 people on stage, and all of them had tremendous energy. Though I haven't given their record enough spins (it didn't make the best of 2004 cut due to lack of singles) I did know most of the songs, and I recommend catching them live at any cost. I was blown away.

We saw Spoon next, my 5th time, had the best view of the weekend. They packed a lot into an hour, but only played songs from their last 3 albums. Which was fine, but i was hoping for '30 gallon tank'. Oh well. They played good, even the keyboard player didn't screw up at all (usually the weakest link of a spoon show). Played all the 'hits', I wish it could've gone over an hour.

After some 'cooling bus', saw some of both the Dandy Warhols and the Killers, then we had to get a spot for the last band of the night, Death Cab for Cutie, whom M loves with a fiery passion. (Their second album is great, third is okay, the rest are kinda blah, IMHO). They played and it was predictable and okay, but this point my allergies had started to kick in and I was busy worrying about Monday at work. M loved it, screaming like a 13 yr old between songs and jumping up and down and doing her weird dance when her feet remain planted but her torso moves rapidly from side to side. We left and caught a bus home, having finished about 9 liters of water between us. Still not sure if it was worth the ticket price, especially when compared to the previous weekend, but I'd stay it still was a good time, and I hope it comes back next year with a better lineup.

So after two days of working my new job, I'm officially disliking it. At least the days go by quickly, as I'm struggling to keep up with everything. I keep waiting for the 'Coffee is for Closers' speech. (First Prize: a new cadillac, Second Prize: a set of steak knives, Third Prize: You're Fired!) I'm sure it'll get better eventually (i hope) but this week is going to suck for sure. Friday I'm seeing the Olivia Tremor Control play in a club, which i'm stoked about. Also, no more outdoor concerts for the rest of the summer.

The Indie Sickness

Unlike certain friends of mine, I try to update my blog at least once a week.

I'm getting a bit nervous about my job, next week is going to be hell, due to everyone going on vacation at once. I'm supposed to step in and pick up the slack, despite not having any experience or knowledge regarding the job I'll be doing. I'd go into it in more detail, but I can only think of one regular reader who would understand anything I'd be writing about. My new/future supervisor seems like a major hardass, a big switch from my current boss (31 yr old hot chick who is a Pavement fan and occasionally, when the weather was cooler, wore some fantastic patent leather boots that distracted from her otherwise corporate-style facade.)

Last weekend was good. I stop short of saying it ruled. M and I attended the festival on saturday, arrived as the first act was starting. It was about 90 degrees; the type of weekend in which there were no lines for beer but loooooooong lines for water refills. Saturday AC Newman ruled, the Go! Team as well, Four Tet was ok. There was a great record fair going on at the same time (mostly vinyl) in which I somehow managed to avoid spending any money, mostly because I didn't want to carry around any used early Rolling Stones LPs for the rest of the day. We left partway through headliner Tortoise's set, completely exhausted, at 9:30 pm. It was ridiculous, my knees somehow get broken after standing in a crowd for an hour. We snacked on overpriced food, drank 3 beers between us, and only watched five bands up close, but it seemed like I had been in a 3-year tour of war duty. We took the el then bus home, and collapsed in a tangle.

The next day I went solo; woke up with a sneeze attack that never really stopped. Funny what 15,000 people stomping around a park filled with dead grass and dusty infields can do. Arrived around 4, saw great sets by andrew bird, deerhoof, the wrens, les savy fav, and the decemberists, and headed home. The last two were particularly awesome. Going to shows alone is nothing really new for me, but the festivally atmosphere of group comradarie made me feel extra alone. But music tends to make up for these things.

The next day I woke up after sleeping for only a couple hours. I decided to call in sick for the first time in about 3 years to any job. I compensated by doing laundry, running errands, buying food, cooking dinner, and reading the entire 6th Harry Potter book (a mild thumbs up, but it's no Goblet of Fire, y'all!!!) So another four day week for me, which pretty much rules, except I still have a nasty cough from this weekend (apparently a lot of festival attendees do) and am trying to learn a million things at once. This weekend is Lollapalooza, which will be similar except much more expensive, and then next week I'll be pushed into the fire at work, attempting to survive. We'll see what happens.

Back and Forth

It's only Tuesday and I'm already excited for the weekend. Saturday and Sunday I'll be attending the Intonation Music Fest; listening to a bunch of bands so cool that even I haven't heard them, plus some I do know fairly well, like:The Decemberists, Tortoise, AC Newman (of best of 2004 fame), the Go! Team, Les Savy Fav, The Hold Steady, Four Tet, Broken Social Scene, Deerhoof, and Death From Above 1979. At only 15 bucks a day it's quite a deal.

I know you're thinking, man, is this dude paying paid to advertise? Well, no, but this dude would like to avoid attending solo on Sunday (which has the best lineup, btw) so is trying to encourage fellow chicagoans to attend. But not everyone. Since the crowd is going to be made up of rock solid hipsters and the like, anyone who decides to come along must be cool enough not to embarrass me. I have nightmares about someone asking, loudly: "So what is 'post-rock' exactly?" OH! THE EMBARRASSMENT!!!

Also, i'm sure the current 5 day work week is causing me to prematurely dream about the weekend. Also looking forward to celebratory all you can eat indian food at friday lunch, which will eliminate all possibility of me doing anything productive for the rest of the day. So a 4 and a half day work week, basically.

last weekend I saw my family again. God, two weeks in a row, who do they think they are? My sister had a couple job interviews in some north suburbs, so the entire gang came along and stopped by for a few hours on saturday. Sunday M and I went to the beach. I have great inhibitions about swimming in the foul cesspool that is Lake Michigan, but I did it anyway and so far have not shown any ill effects. There were lifeguards in rowboats in the water, and one yelled at me for going past him. At this I stood up in water which came below my chest. Apparently that's far enough, mister. There was only about 25 minutes of 'swimming,' otherwise I succeeded in getting various bodyparts sunburnt (tops of my feet again, argh!) and being bored. Later sunday we went to see a movie of my choice, Me and You and Everyone We Know, currently in limited release. Best movie I've seen all year, I think. But it's right up my alley, your taste may differ, and I respect that.

Ha, ha ha, just kidding.

What the F...

...is up with the weird extra spaces and ugliness of this blog? It just happened out of the blue! If anyone is brainy enough to fix it, let me know.

Dynamic Calories

To bring you up to speed, Madison was a great success. It hasn't changed too much, and the air of familiarity was sweet-smelling indeed. Felt odd to drive across town without moving 5 feet at a time. Favorite restaurants are still there. Our hotel was nice but waaaaaaaaaay on the east side. They had a 'hospitality hour' on saturday from 5 to 7. The place was packed with the elderly, so I decided to get in the spirit by demanding my free old fashioned. Well, perhaps it was the bartender's inherent suspicion of anyone born after 1955, but the amount of alcohol in my (small, plastic) cup couldn't have given a fruit fly a buzz. However, two beers and two bowls of pretzels later, I had my revenge.

Then occurred a four day workweek, followed by a four day weekend, followed by another four day workweek, a pattern I wouldn't mind following indefinitely. The first four days kind of sucked, but during the second I made was has lately been a semi-annual journey to the land of my birth. M was working something fierce, and her reaction when I asked if I could take her car for four days was fierce enough to cause old people, pregnant women, and those with heart problems to drop dead immediately. My youth and vitality prevailed. I ended up getting a ride with a coworker and her friend to a town an hour west of my hometown. This journey, delayed by someone's lateness, someone's crazy hangover, and someone's poor driving skills, took about 9 hours. Finally made it home, and was treated like a king, with a giant steak from the grill and some brews. The next day I ate venison bacon for brunch, watched the amazing 150th anniversary of my town parade, won 3 of 4 games of HORSE at the driveway basketball hoop, and found a dead squirrel in my grade-school baseball glove. I caught a ride to the foxy cities with Dave and his wife, then marveled at FFL Nate's new bachelor pad, which is new enough to not be completely trashed. There was much of hanging out over the next 24 hours, soon Corey arrived and made me get enough actual exercise to cause soreness (or was that from sleeping on the floor?). Decadence continued until monday early afternoon, when I celebrated our nation's independence by waiting two hours for my late greyhound bus. I further rejoiced by enjoying an unnecessary 50 minute layover in Milwaukee.

This week I've had to work like a crazy person. Exciting news = I'm getting a 'promotion' of sorts at work. This promotion entails the following:

1. No more easy or boring work
2. A new cubicle in a heavy traffic area, meaning no more websurfing
3. Doing a new job (insurance broker) which will teach me valuable new skills by being so far over my head that I keep being told not to panic.
4. While doing new job, also do all the IT stuff I've been doing the past few months, except instead of having it take up 75% of my time, it should now take up 25%.
5. Being moved to salary, which means no more overtime.
6. Not getting a raise.
7. Not getting any sort of bonus.

Today I was told to meet with our division's CEO about this. I was expecting possibly #7 on the list from this, but instead all I received was the imperative "Work Hard." That was fulfilling.