lug

well, i tried to fix the flat tire on my kia yesterday but the lug nuts were stuck. what flat tire you say? the one i got the morning of my last day at work...ironic, i know- i ended up having to get a ride which made me and my friend jaimi both late- i thought it was pretty funny showing up late on my last day- but the people there were sweet and tried to throw me a "secret" party with cheesecake and tons of food- but anyway, the lug nuts were stuck so no matter how hard tanner or i twisted they wouldn't budge...so i had to call up my little brothers to give me a hand this morning- spike- the strong one- got one lug off fast but the others were unmovable- then code-bob had the bright idea to use the jack to move the lug wrench thing to turn the lugs...it worked like a charm. and all it cost me was a bagel & cinnamon bun & 2 milks at radio bean.

at 1pm today i have a job interview at waterfront video. wish me luck!

tld

canned heat

heres a great black and white psychedelic video from canned heat:

RIP jb's career at SCOT DHS/CIS 9/29/2003 - 3/23/2007

I took a shitty second shift government clerk job in 2003 to get myself back on my feet after a year of depression & unemployment- 6 months later I switched to a ridiculously early first shift summer 2004 so I would have my nights off to play music- back then I figured after awhile I would get used to the early mornings and maybe even learn to like my job- but after awhile I fell into the familiar trap of getting to used to the money, which is pretty good (thats how these shit jobs get ya) & also finding a new job is a pain in the ass- so I stuck it out month after month even though I hated it and most the people- getting more and more worn out & angry & annoyed & depressed- but finally, just at the right moment, the opportunity I was looking for allowing me to quit on my own terms with respect & admiration presented itself & I jumped at it. Fuck yeah! So, at 2.30 tomorrow afternoon I am done with it. I just hope that I never get myself in the situation again where I need to take the first job that presents itself just to get by...

JB

jammin' econo

heres another youtube video for y'all (I like to think I have hundreds of daily readers) 'the minutemen', my favorite politically charged punk band with a chubby bearded lead singer. Friday I'll post my final thoughts on quitting my job, maybe going back to school, living off savings for awhile, etc...

get up

enjoy the godfather, the sweet mustache, the solid gold dancers, the late seventies, all that shit...

jb's a winner!

I won $100 on a powerball ticket! I gotta tell ya, when the guy at the mobil ran my ticket through the machine & it started beeping & said ‘congratulations’ in its little robot computer voice my heart skipped a beat & I almost crapped myself. I already had that 180 million spent. Well, maybe this means sketchy April wont be so sketchy…or maybe it means I’ve exhausted every last bit of good luck in my body for a hundred bucks…

horse apples

One more week of employment and then I enter into what I’m calling ‘sketchy April’ where I will be broke as shit & trying to find a job that I love & not blow my limited funds at the op. my excited nervousness is getting stronger and stronger- here at work I can almost not stop myself from whistling & laughing- one more week! One more week! What makes me really happy is that I’m leaving on my terms & not theirs- you can only push this guy around so much! No, I will NOT drive an extra 60 miles a day! No, I will NOT work an extra 16 hours a week for a job that treats EVERYONE like shit! I wish I could find David Allan Coe in whatever cave he’s living in and bring him here to sing ‘Take This Job & Shove it!’ yeah…

Well, tomorrow everyone is Irish & Catholic & drunk. I think Gahlords new band is playing at euro gourmet and I know a bunch of cool acts are at the radio bean- last st. patricks day nest material played and it was a lot of fun (although not one of our better performances- I mean come on, I played guitar!) so I wish you all green fun & beer.

theleduo

somebody murder that cricket!

...and watch bad brains live at cbgb's 1982

Busy weekend- went to the op early to watch the uvm game & play pool & eat complimentary bagels… uvm lost & so did I (at least I made some sweet shots…) met up with brian & ben & todd & tanner- todd had just come back from re-arranging the studio- now there is so much more room & I’m going to be able to play in there with my new music friends…

At 9pm the “blogger conference” met up- not that many bloggers showed up, but it was just as I expected- me, tan, and jay (with the lovely Jamie Lynn) it was fun talking & drinking- jay and Jamie are great people & real easy to get along with. Eventually the whole party moved over to jp’s where we saw some excellent karaoke thanks to ben and Rachael…watching ben sing ‘love fool’ was really an eye opening experience. After that we parted ways- me to bed, the rest of those crazy bastards to the op trying to make last call- I guess they did but it wasn’t pretty…

At the greendoor studio last night the lines between percussion & drone & electronic music were smashed to bits by Jason Kahn & Jon Mueller- I could only stay for the first set I was so tired- & I’m bummed I missed Greg sitting in with them because he had his gong & a couple frame drums laid out & ready to go… I’m sure it was amazing…

9 more work days to go…

/tld/

so Friday is d-day at work- i was told yesterday that for the foreseeable future (a month in their estimate but last year their month turned into 6) i would have to work in the st. albans office- this is the opportunity i have been looking forward to to quit- i have my two week notice letter all ready- there is no way in all hell I'll wake up even earlier to drive even further to a job i hate & is kicking my ass- on top of that is the 16 hours per week of overtime they're dropping on our heads starting April 1st- last year the overtime lasted from April to just about the week of art hop (early sept.) so no more for me! I'm out! this is is just the thing i needed to get a new job & make some changes in my life & I'm excited and happy and looking forward to the future again.

i listened to the boredoms alot today- they're very drummy & spazzy & just the thing i need- I'd love to see them live (seems like every band i really want to see comes to town after i say that- not sure if they're together & touring still...hmmmmm)

in my own musical world, i recently started playing with some new people- they already have a bunch of songs- sounds real good- is fun to play structured rock & roll again- it was way different with nest material- it's also cool joining a band where the songs are already written- its like i come in & do my thing and it sounds like real music- none of this 'what next- what now- huh?' like with the improv stuff I've been playing for the last couple years...

well, my laundry must be almost done by now so I'll be seeing ya...

le duo

jon mueller & jason kahn

More Burlington Sounds:

Mr. Greg Davis says-

hi friends,
got a great show coming up this Sunday with 2 excellent
percussionist / improvisors by way of Zürich and Milwaukee.
jason and jon are on tour and they are making a tangential trek up to
burlington to play music for us.
should be a great show, I'm going to join them for a set as well.

Sunday, March 11th- 8pm (it'll feel like 9, though) GreenDoor Studio- 5$

theleduo

metal chunk of something

sunday morning brunch- sausage and biskits and eggs- mimosas & bloody mary's- kyle & rene & isaac & me- last night actually left the op for t. ruggs and was hit on by an old man who called me 'big sis'- do i put out that vibe? who cares... this morning I think some metal chunk of something may have flown out of the bottom of my kia- I'm not quite sure- I may have hit said chunk in the road and it bounced around- still I'm worried and dont have the $ to fix it if it's broken- but I guess I'll still drive it...crazy, no?

the cripples continue to blow my mind everytime I see them- thier new release, due out by june I think, will be the local album of the year, I bet. you heard it hear first, people... "party star" of course killed it- my favorite lyric of their's: 'I'll sleep when I'm dead, I'll fucking die in my sleep' pure rock & roll...

tld>>>

Friday Rock!

Fresh from the studio where they recorded their debut album, The Cripples make their triumphant return to live ass-kicking Friday night, 10pm @ the Monkey House in Winooski. Joining them are "Party Star" featuring Kyle Courvoisier.

mardi gras

Went to the mardi gras parade on Saturday- didn’t have much fun this year- cold as all hell- so many drunk silly people- actually heard some asshole yell ‘I love college!’ while him & his friends were dressed up so “crazy” and “unique” and probably feeling awesome about drinking right out on the street! Screw those guys… so when the parade got all hung up because the victoria’s secret cross dresser float couldn’t turn the corner, we got the hell outta there and went to the op for a drink. One drink turned into three or four and a whole bunch of us (me, my dad, bender, eboni {who was up from nyc for the weekend} yanni {who recently reappeared after months of exile in Milton}) went to asiana house for delicious sushi dinner. It was fun and loud drunk talking & I was happily surprised that my dad tried sushi with us.

Drinking this weekend was dumb as I have a cold…

tld>

hey music fans...

do yourselves a favor & skip over to the myspace page of the band 'oak' & take a listen to the posted tracks. Great music from their soon to be released ep.

show last night

Still trying to wrap my head around the show last night- its been a long time since I've been so completely satisfied by a live music experience- actually the last time was when I saw Herbie Hancock at old Higher Ground. I only started listening to Sonic Youth about 3 or 4 months ago- at thanksgiving dinner at the Dewalds we got to talking and people couldn't believe I'd never listened to them- so I picked up a few albums, daydream nation & washing machine to start- and completely fell in love with the band- I'd just lose myself in the noisy guitar goodness. And I was so excited leading up to the show- I figured disappointment was imminent- but no way...they are still so tight & sharp after all these years & sound like they still love the music & experimentation & performing for the audience. Kim was still hot as hell & Thurston cool...and they mentioned the OP! Did everyone hear that shit? During the feedback part of the show I turned to my friend Boz and said "hey man, wheres Jerry?" (he hates the dead) it took him a few seconds but he turned around and said "fuck Jerry!" Not that it sounded anything like the Dead, but I like to think that Jerry could of got into that noise...

well, well, well...

tld

Tonight!

day off fer snow

I took the day off- sore from shoveling- also incredibly nervous driving in these conditions. i used to have confidence when i thought the 4wheelsqueal worked on my POS kia, but i found out the hard way it doesn't. as far as I know the federal building where i work is still open today, so I'll probably be chastised for missing work. but somethings are more important...like the 5 hours of shoveling i have in front of me to get my car out. first I'm gonna watch 'the departed'

hey, how many snowflakes do you think are laying out there? well, thats a num­ber of snowflakes uncomputable by IBM and Burroughs, too.

tld

gong show

the sun circle & wind-up bird show at the greendoor studio was fantastic- tanner & jay wrote great reviews with pictures.

my favorite part by far was the gong bath. imagine this: a tiny room (not much bigger than 12x10 I bet) 3 huge gongs and 25 people...the gong is an amazing instrument- at times sounding like electric feedback, washed-out tv static, ear splitting ocean waves- layer upon layer upon walls & walls of sound. truly something to be experienced...

did anyone watch the grammys last night? I caught about 15 minutes (missed the police though) in the short time I watched they gave grammy lifetime achievement awards to booker t & the mg's and the doors...but I think they may have given one to the grateful dead, too- I swear I saw Mickey Hart sitting in the audience...

alright alright- gonna try to make the vandermark 5 show tonight...

tld

whirled music

I bought a few cd’s as a little treat to myself with my tax refund money. They’re all in the ‘world music’ vein, I guess- although one is by an American…enjoy!


Eastern Sounds/ Yusef Lateef- A great early 60’s slightly eastern flavored jazz album- Yusef plays tenor sax, oboe, and some kind of really great sounding clay flute. Very laid back and moody. The pieces that aren’t eastern influenced are finger snapping Coltrane-influenced post bop. Also includes Lateef’s take on the love themes from the films ‘Spartacus’ and ‘the Robe’ Highlights: the clay flute sound in the first track ‘the plum blossom’ and the songs ‘snafu’ & ‘the three faces of balal’ where I think the bass player is playing what is called a ‘rebat’ on the album cover but what I think may be a ‘rebab’ – an odd shaped member of the lute family.

Niafunke/ Ali Farka Toure- Called “the Motherlands modern-day answer to John Lee Hooker” Toure, who died last March, recorded this album, on which he plays electric and acoustic guitars, in Niafunke, his village on the banks of the Niger at the edge of the Sahara desert, in “deep Mali, where the music belongs.” Traditional African call and response blues- great percussion. A few of the tracks feature a njarka violin, which is, as far as I can tell, a one stringed fiddle with a high pitched, whiny sound. Excellent album. Highlights: the djembe players throughout and track #7 ‘Instrumental’ an improvisation based on a song in homage to cattle herders.

Slave Mass/ Hermeto Pascoal- This Brazilian albino multi-instrumentalist may be best known for playing with Miles Davis during the ‘Live/Evil’ period. ‘Slave Mass’ is hard to describe- the first track, ‘mixing pot’ is just that- a mix of cheesy keyboards & jaco-style bass with freak-out percussion and screams yells & moans with some crazy flute action. A great song, although parts don’t age well (it was released in the late 1970’s) The second track starts off a beautiful acoustic guitar song with live pig samples… weird? Hell yeah… after awhile it turns kinda of spooky- with chanting that reminds me a lot of Dr. Johns ‘gris gris’ The liner notes has a great picture of Hermeto, a big freaky looking albino, holding a pig…but whatever. Every track is different, and I don’t want to do a song by song review, so I’ll end with this- this album isn’t for everybody, but if you enjoy strange, Brazilian influenced jazz (and don’t mind some cheesiness) go for it! Highlights: the solo piano track ‘just listen’ and Airto Moreira on percussion.

Macire/Boubacar Traore- Affectionately known as ‘Karkar’, Boubacar Traore is a famous Malian guitar player. I first learned of him by watching a great documentary called “I’ll Sing For You”, a heartbreaking tale of life and loss and music in Mali. I don’t have much to say about this album- gorgeous guitar tracks with subtle percussion and violin. Superb.

great weekend ahoy…
.tld.

jazz @ the firehouse

free/avant-garde jazz group 'vandermark 5' will be playing at the firehouse gallery, lincolns birthday, monday, february 12th. just another one of the great shows brought to burlington by greg davis & his burlington sounds series.

a few days earlier, saturday the 10th, gregs new project 'sun circle' will be performing at the greendoor studio along with 'wind-up bird'

dig it...

/tld/

tonight!

UPDATE: Oh no, snowed in!! Went off the road!! (I'm fine) Missed the "party star" show!! Missing it right now in fact!! I guess I should have known...it all goes back to the Second Noble Truth-

Craving sensory stimulation, craving existence, and craving non-existence give rise to the "continuity of being" (the tendency to confuse reality with your perception of reality), and with it its attendant suffering. Say you want something and you don't get it--you'd get sad or frustrated. But say you want something and you do get it. Eventually you'll get bored with it and you'll start wanting something else. And so you start all over again. And that's a bummer.



dont forget "party star" is playing tonight at club metronome along with amandla, the solo band of claude coleman jr., drummer for ween...

i'll be there- but first i'm going to the fc for dinner with my brother & sister-in-law & nephew

{(the le duo)}

Cartoon Netowork causes TERROR SCARE in Boston!!

Officials found a slew of blinking electronic signs adorning bridges and other high-profile spots across the city Wednesday, prompting the closing of a highway and the deployment of bomb squads.

"It is outrageous, in a post 9/11 world, that a company would use this type of marketing scheme," Mayor Thomas Menino said. "I am prepared to take any and all legal action against Turner Broadcasting and its affiliates for any and all expenses incurred during the response to today's incidents."

The 1-foot tall signs resembled a circuit board, with protruding wires and batteries. Most depicted a boxy, cartoon character giving passersby the finger — a more obvious sight when darkness fell.

They arrested two men who put up the electronic promotions and vowed to hold Turner accountable for what Menino said was "corporate greed," that led to at least $500,000 in police costs.

full story here

I wonder what MeatWad has to say about all this

tld

one full month

well, today marks one month since my last drink. feeling good. saving lots of money$- hell, i think i'll go for another month...

watched some mst3k last night with tanner & jenny- man, i'd forgotten how freaking funny that show is!

on a lighter note, on todays date in 1747 - The London Lock Hospital, the first clinic specialising in the treatment of venereal diseases, was opened.

and these celebrities have birthdays today: justin timberlake, minnie driver, portia de rossi, & anthony lapaglia.

tld.

a cool photo I found of Allen Ginsberg and Thelonious Monk

"Party Star" show on Friday!

UPDATE: Read what Casey Rea has to say about the show here.


















"Party Star" one of Burlington's newest, rockingest bands,
is playing at club metronome this friday opening for Amandla-
which is Claude Coleman Jr's (drummer for Ween) solo band.
Shitty graphics courtesy of yours truely...

B.B. King hospitalized in Texas

First J.B
Then A.C
Will B.B be next?

UPDATE: ok weird funny story- I just barely posted this link about BB King being sick, and then my IPOD, which is on shuffle here at work, plays 'I'll Survive' by BB King... coincidence?

he has to die...

Trying to listen to all three versions of ‘that’s it for the other one’ from the deads complete fillmore west 1969 box set. The lyrics are so wonderfully hippy- they even mention Neil Cassady (cowboy neil behind the wheel of a bus to never never land)- the music ebbs & flows so naturally- at one point (lets call it the ‘peak’ of our little acid trip here) Jerry’s playing is so amazing it makes me just wanna say ‘wow, man…dig’

I also recently listened to Dusty Springfields ‘a brand new me’- great record to do dishes to- her voice is so strong and she pulls off the Motown/Stax girl group sound so well- my only complaint is the strings. Now I enjoy strings in pop songs as much as the next guy, but does every song need an epic arrangement of them? Hmmm… that 60’s production…

Tomorrow, as part of my dads xmas gift from me, I’m taking him to see Johnny Winter, that tattooed albino guitar slinging fool. I don’t know much about him, but according to wikipedia he did take part in a late 60’s drunken obscenity laced late night jam session with Jimi Hendrix and Jim Morrison- awesome. Opening for Johnny is Nobby Reed, Grand Isle/Franklin county's blues god.

daily wisdom...

those who know do not talk
those who talk do not know

close the mouth
shut the doors
blunt the sharpness
unravel the knots
dim the glare
mix the dust

this is called mystic oneness

entracte

the last performance of 'Faust' was a success- another sell out. I'm bummed its over- its nice to be a part of some kind of music/artistic performance now that Nest Material is history. Look for vive voce puppet opera's 'die fledermaus' at the flynnspace this fall.

feburary is looking like a great month for music in burlington. vandermark 5 at the firehouse gallery. sun circle at the greendoor studio. and of course sonic youth at higherground. I'd bet that show is close to selling out by now- good thing Tan already got me a ticket!

theleduo

Last Chance!

Vive Voce Puppet Opera presents
FAUST

An Evening of Puppet Opera & Performance Art
January 20
8pm Sharp

Firehouse Center for the Visual Arts
135 Church St

$10 Advanced Tickets at
Radio Bean,

Forest flowers- Charles Lloyd live at Monterey

Recorded live in 1966, this was one of the most popular jazz albums of the late 60’s- Charles Lloyd (tenor sax, flute) put this band together earlier in the year but you would never know it listening to the interplay between musicians, namely Jack DeJohnette and Keith Jarrett. Actually, I now have a new found respect for Jarrett- before this I only knew him as the cocky, anti-electric instrument guy who played keyboards (for the last time, I think) with Live-Evil era Miles Davis. He really shines on piano here- especially on ‘Sorcery’ one of his own compositions (with Lloyd on flute, amazing) This album is mainly energetic post-bop with moments of free jazz here and there-
Jack DeJohnette shines as usual- great album- I bought it with absolutely no idea of what it would sound like and am pleasantly surprised!

tld

Alice Coltrane 1937-2007

I am He, O my Lord, that hath set his face towards Thee, and fixed his hope on the wonders of Thy grace and the revelations of Thy bounty. I pray Thee that thou wilt not suffer me to turn away disappointed from the door of Thy mercy, nor abandon me to such of Thy creatures as have repudiated Thy Cause.

I am, O my God, Thy servant and the son of Thy servant. I have recognized Thy truth in Thy days, and have directed my steps towards the shores of Thy oneness, confessing Thy singleness, acknowledging Thy unity, and hoping for Thy forgiveness and pardon. Powerful art Thou to do what Thou willest; no God is there beside Thee, the All-Glorious, the Ever-Forgiving.

- Bahá'u'lláh

say goodbye

the p/o show was fun- marnie ditched me so I ended up out 10 bucks for the other ticket- them the breaks I guess- try to do something nice for people- but anyway the drummer for p/o is a member or graduate of the paul green school of rock, a fresh faced kid- couldn't have been older than 18- but he was fucking incredible- I haven't seen rock drumming like that for a long time- phenomenal

inspired, I went and worked out on my drums today for an hour or so- it's been so long since I've played with anyone I feel I'm losing all my chops- you know how you get into these funks when everything you play sounds like shit? thats me right now- I have to start playing with someone! the nm guys wont even return my emails...but lately I've talked to a few folks who seem interested so we'll see...

ninja's moving away! check out her blog which I'm adding to the 'ol blog list...

Madonna thing tonight- gonna try to go but I hate the radio bean when its packed and uncomfortable and hot and it may be too cold to stand outside and watch...well, hopefully someone plays 'take a bow'

{tld}

just took some dayquil...

C,DOA? Metropolis set last night was great- their music fit nicely with the creepy, weird, sci-fi, Austrian, pro-Commie propaganda film (which coincidentally premiered 80 years to the day). I only stayed for 40 minutes or so, runny nose cold & I felt like crap- almost stayed home from work this morning but nah…

Tomorrow night I’m going to see Project/Object at Club Metronome- I still have an extra ticket if anyone is interested- maybe I’ll call Marnie to see if she wants it…

Last night while at Brooks buying cold medicine I bought a bag of Cadbury Mini Eggs, those sinfully delicious, candy coated chocolate bites of pure happiness. Who cares if Easter is still three months away? I could eat mini-eggs all year round, and I may this year- I’ll buy a few extra bags and store them in strategic places around my apartment…

Saturday night is the Madonna show at Radio Bean- Burlington's best playing songs by the Queen of Pop… cant wait-

tld

thinly veiled Iraq critique

I’m sure Tanner will write a glowing review for ‘Children of Men’ on his blog so I’ll keep mine simple- my two favorite things about this film are the performances of Michael Caine (ok, I’m finally ready to forgive him for ‘Jaws 4’) and the beautiful, exotic, scene stealing Claire-Hope Ashitey. Clive Owen is a hunk, don’t get me wrong, but I couldn’t take my eyes off of her. Get this, Claire-Hope is so young new & fresh she doesn’t even have a wikipedia entry! Man oh man…

Don’t forget the always rocking ‘Charles, Dead or Alive?’ show tonight at the Firehouse Gallery


More


Info


Down


There


~tld~

Tonight Only! (1/10/07)

Burlingtons own rockers 'Charles, Dead or Alive?' will be
performing new and reworked versions of their previous
music to accompany Fritz Lang's
1927 Sci-Fi masterpiece Metropolis.

It's an early show starting at 7:30 pm so you can all
get home to dream of class struggle, robot
doppelgängers and healthy workplace environments.

Jan 10, 2007 7:30pm
Firehouse Gallery, 2nd Floor
$7 donation

random thoughts...

With the gift card my Mom got me for Xmas I purchased a DW 4000 series single bass drum pedal- it is one of their lower end models, but it's better than anything I've ever owned- it's got Velcro on the bottom so it sticks to the floor! No amount of frantic drum soloing can dislodge my pedal now!

I recently opened a ING Direct online savings account. It takes the money out of my main checking account each payday- I am an enormously bad money saver so hopefully this will help.

As some of you may know, I got Tuesday off from work because my building was closed for Gerald Ford's funeral- but get this- the cheap bastard fucking peckers I work for aren't paying us! We had no choice to work or not, and now we have to either use our vacation hours (which I have very few left) or take the day leave without pay... bullshit, right?

Well my annual 'take a month off from drinking' is going well so far- the weekends are always the big tests... I'm going to try to go see some music tonight without drinking- that's always a chore- but I gotta stay strong! I figure if I can go a month without beer without getting the dt's I'm winning...

happy Friday, tld

'Bolivia' by Gato Barbieri

I picked this record up the other day at Recycle North- el Gato has been a favorite of mine ever since I heard the album ‘Complete Communion’ by Don Cherry. I feel he has a warmer sound compared to some of the other, more abrasive free-jazz sax men (like Pharaoh Sanders for example) This record breaks away from the free-for-all sound of the 60’s ‘new thing’ by mixing in traditional Latin & afro-Cuban rhythms.

Some stellar musicians play on this record including Lonnie Liston Smith, John Abercrombie, Airto Moreira, M’Tume, Pretty Purdie, Moulay Ali Hafid, and Stanley Clarke. The rhythm section on the first track ‘Merceditas’ is outstanding. I recommend this record to any fan of free or avant-garde or Latin jazz- or really any music fan in general…

theleduo

back to normal...

NYE party was great- not gonna say much about it- Tanner has some great pics and a video up on his blog Highgate (just scroll down past those questionable pics of his cat) Ever notice how I’m never in any pictures from parties at my house or Nest Material performances? You could probably make a pretty strong argument that I don’t exist. Anyway, highlights for me were the hurricane-like nuttiness of Marnie ‘She Did What?’ Long and seeing Marie Blanca Eboni Mike Michelle Rachael Adam & any other friends I don’t see often enough… this spring is when I FINALLY get out to Ann Arbor (hold me to this, people!)

Eboni left yesterday after a whirlwind four days where we got drunk, had breakfast, argued about Dave Chappelle & Michael Richards, went to a wedding, a party, a family holiday dinner, and shopping at Victoria’s Secret. I hate to see her go but she’ll be back this summer (I hope)

Back to short three day workweek- time to get that first resolution in action and find a new job! Updates soon hopefully…

Happy new year everybody!
t.l.d

New Year Resolutions:

1. Get a new job (one that I like & can think & and forces me to actually do something- one I can feel good about & dosen't require me to get up at 4.45am every god damned morning missing out on all the night’s fun- I used to be a night owl but now find myself tired all the time and not able to sleep in on the weekends)

2. Take better care of myself (less drinking, less eating, more moving around, more ‘me’ time, read more, enjoy the outdoors, maybe meditate or think deep thoughts)

3. Get myself financially set (this always being broke, living paycheck to paycheck & in debt shit sucks)

4. Make Music! (I pay rent monthly at the GreenDoor Studio but hardly use it. I fear I'm getting rusty! I want to record an album as 'the le duo (trio)' this year AND work with Kyle on something)

Ok, 2007, lets do this!

holidaze

Tanner & I watched an amazing movie the other night: The Lion in Winter: Starring Peter O'Toole as Henry II, Katherine Hepburn as Eleanor of Aquitaine- and featuring the film debut of both Anthony Hopkins & Timothy Dalton (as lovers!) This movie is basically a Christmas tale of a dysfunctional family- a medieval dysfunctional family with sword fights & secret plots to overthrow the king & people being locked in towers etc. The dialogue is so clever and witty with biting insults at every turn. Such great acting by Hepburn and O'Toole- it makes me want to go out and rent everything they've ever been in. The only other movie I'd seen Hepburn in was Suddenly, Last Summer and she was amazing in that as well. O'Toole I'd seen in that early 90's chestnut King Ralph.

On a sadder note, former President Gerald Ford died yesterday- like a lot of Americans, he just couldn't live in a world without James Brown...

nye party plans here!

t/l/d

RIP

Papa Don't Take No Mess

James Brown says...

Have a funky Christmas, and I better see YOU at JB & Tanners NYE Dance Down!!

rosacea

Alas, just like Bill Clinton and W.C Fields I think I may have rosacea. I've always had really bad skin and flaky scalp- I just chalked it up to being white and pasty- but for the last year or so my face has been almost constantly red- especially the cheekbone area- like a constant sunburn. And now it's starting to be painful itching burning etc... so I'll probably have to put my fear and distrust of doctors aside and have this taken care of.

Chaucnizzel

Rapper finds inspiration in Chaucer! Full story here.

Baba Brinkman struts and bounces around the stage, belting out his rhymes about hard living, violence, sex and the secrets to true love. He gets his inspiration not from growing up in the 'hood, but from the musings of a 14th-century English poet.

"Ready to kill with their jagged-edged daggers drawn/The three aggravated braggarts staggered up the lawn/And without dragging on while the story is told/Beneath the tree they found a bag filled with glorious gold,"

Brinkman raps in a seamless cadence, updating Geoffrey Chaucer to hip hop. Brinkman, a native of Vancouver, British Columbia, who has a master's degree in medieval and Renaissance English literature from the University of Victoria, has adapted some of Chaucer's earthy, satirical and pious "The Canterbury Tales" into rap.

Brinkman performs the "Pardoner's Tale," the "Miller's Tale" and the "Wife of Bath's Tale." His one-man show, with recorded music and a few props that include a couple of chairs, a bottle of water and a bandanna, is constructed much like the pilgrims' journey in "The Canterbury Tales." He acts as the narrator — a stowaway fan on a tour bus — and plays the part of three rappers on the bus engaged in a rap battle.

motherfucking science is too tight, y'all!

j. bizzel aka the le duo

ubu

great interview with Allen Ginsberg at ubuweb- a neat little website I was tipped off to by Spitting Out Teeth (link on right)

On The Corner/Badal Roy

Friday at work listening to Miles’ ‘On the Corner’ one of my favorite albums & maybe one of his best- unappreciated in its day but now widely considered to be one of the pivotal building blocks of hip hop, drum and bass, and electronic music. The producer, Teo Macero (he produced most of Miles’ seminal albums) studied with Otto Luening at Columbia University's Computer Music Center. The first track, succinctly tilted ‘On the Corner/New York Girl/Thinkin’ of One Thing and Doin’ Another/Vote For Miles’ Features prominently the tabla playing of Badal Roy. According to wikipedia, “Unlike many tabla player, Roy does not come from a family of professional musicians and is essentially self-taught. Consequently, his playing is freer than that of many other tabla players, who adhere more strictly to the tala system of Indian rhythm. He often plays a set of up to five tabla (tuned to different pitches) at a time, which he plays melodically as well as rhythmically.” His playing really blows me away- it fits so well into everything else going on (and it gets pretty manic) I love the tabla and have often thought of getting a set and trying to learn how to play- but I have enough of a problem trying to wrap my head around rock & roll rhythms & time- the Indian classical stuff would probably make my head explode- thats why I like Badal- he incorporates more than just tradition in his playing- I can dig that…

player 2

A couple of years ago, after the end of the band Kyle & Jared & I were in (East Infection/Burnt Col. [shitty cover band- but lots of drunk fun]) I briefly played in a jammy band called 'One Foot Off' It was me on drums, Harland on lead guitar (an amazing musician, one of the best guitarists I've ever heard, let alone played with) Nate on bass, and this weirdy tattooed guy named Aaron who was the singer/songwriter/rhythm guitar player. We had a pretty decent sound- kinda hippy- really long songs- the lyrics were about smoking weed and other ill shit. Played a couple of shows at Nectars opening up for a pretty popular band at the time called the Lestons- things were going ok- then one day, out of the blue- Aaron, who was living with Nate, just left town. He left a note saying he had a 9 year old daughter in Florida that he hadn't seen in years, wanted to spend time with her etc... he had never mentioned any of this to us- but oh well, we kind of fell apart after that which was weird- because Nate and Harland and I got to be pretty good friends and we all wanted to play on- but you know how that shit goes.

Well, years pass and I forgot all about Aaron- until the magic of myspace- he contacted me with three or four friend requests- personal, his new band, his tattoo business- and, oddly enough, one for OUR old band, 'One Foot Off' I thought it was kinda odd putting up a site for a band long since dead whose only recordings were shitty basement tapes- but oh well. Anyway, check it out if you want to hear some mildly embarrassing hippy drivel- the songs are long so skip ahead 5 minutes to where we're really jamming- and remember its in a basement and I'm playing on shitty old drums with crappy cymbals (not an excuse!)

Anyway anyway anyway Nate and Harland have a new band called 'Player 2' and they are opening for "Party Star" Friday night at the Monkey bar. It should be a great night.

hump day

Interested in what Tanner & Ben have to say about 2006? Check out False 45th

Interested in what Seven Days has to say about the puppet "Faust"? ch-ch-check it.

Interested in seeing a great rock&roll show on Friday? "Party Star" at the Monkey House.

Interested in hearing a good album? My Life in the Bush of Ghosts/ Brian Eno & David Byrne

le duo out-

I somehow lost my last post so heres one about Moondog

Hung out with Brian Friday night at Three Needs- we got to talking about Moondog- that crazy blind bearded Viking street performing saint. I first heard of Moondog through Tanner who put the album ‘More Moondog’ on a mp3 dvd he made me. It was all really early stuff- Native American style drumming and that Oo he played and field recorded pieces. I’d like to hear the later stuff- 60’s and beyond…

doobie!

Ah yes, the Doobie Brothers- one of my all-time favorite guilty pleasure bands (along with Chicago, Aerosmith, and early Johnny Cougar)

From Wikipedia:

"The Doobie Brothers honed their chops by performing live all over northern California in 1970. They attracted a particularly strong following among local chapters of the Hells Angels, and scored a recurring gig at one of the bikers' favorite venues, the rustic Chateau Liberte in the Santa Cruz mountains. An energetic set of demos (some of which were briefly released on Pickwick Records in 1980 under the title Introducing the Doobie Brothers) showcased fuzz-toned, dual lead electric guitars, three-part harmonies and Hartman's frenetic drumming and earned the band a contract at Warner Brothers Records."

and:

"Simmons' signature tune "Black Water" (from 1974's What Were Once Vices Are Now Habits) became the band's first #1 single. "Black Water," which featured the instantly unforgettable refrain, "I'd like to hear some funky Dixieland, pretty mama come and take me by the hand," eventually propelled the album to multi-platinum status. "

I'll talk Doobies with ya all night, as long as you dont bring up Michael McDonald. Oh how I loathe Michael McDonald! You ruined the Doobie Brothers with your shitty ass soft rock I-wish-I-was-a-soul-singer rubbish! And thoes Motown covers! Goddamn man, have you no respect? Blue-eyed soul my fat ass!

last minutes 'Faust' publicity...

BURLINGTON, VT — It’s miniature musical theater, and opera for the masses! Viva Voce Puppet Opera is pleased to announce that tickets are available once more for its Winter 2006 production: a scaled-down version of Charles Gounod’s Faust.
The original French opera, first staged in Paris in 1859, is based on Goethe’s 1808 German closet drama by the same title. Its all-too-familiar storyline of temptation and redemption has since become part of popular culture: an aged scholar makes a deal with the devil to obtain youth, love and power, but in exchange, he literally signs away his soul. The beloved Marguerite, an unfortunate girl whom Faust seduces with the devil Mephistopheles’ help, faces terrible trials before ascending to heaven. Who's been naughty this year? What happens to Faust? Come see, and hear, at a pre-holiday show!
All of the characters are portrayed by handmade puppets created by Burlington artist Kathleen DeSimone. Vocalists interact with their puppet-role counterparts to sing actual arias from the Gounod opera at strategic plot points — highlights include “The Jewel Song,” sung by soprano Roxanne Vought as Marguerite, and Mephistopheles’ sinister “Laughing Song,” voiced by UVM grad student and bass Guan Jian. A small orchestra provides sound effects and incidental music, and a complement of live actors, voice actors and puppeteers rounds out the company.
The show will take place on Thursday, December 7 at 8 p.m., at Club Metronome, 188 Main Street, Burlington. Please be on time, and please note that Faust may not suitable for small children.
Tickets are $10 each, and may be purchased in advance at The Radio Bean, 8 North Winooski Avenue, Burlington,

fun

The Avey Tare & Kria Brekken w/ Greg Davis show last night was fantastic! Gregs show was pulsey and droney and just the thing to get me into the music mood- And then the main event- I have only heard a little Animal Collective (Sung Tongs- I really liked it) and I haven't heard Mum at all- but there was a keyboard and a few acoustic guitars up front- I guess I was pretty close to knowing what it was going to sound like- strange little folk songs with cool and interesting vocal chirps and squeals from Kria and lyrics about fetuses trying to talk- pretty much what I expected.

For better and more interesting reviews keep your eyes on:

Highgate
False 45th
Solidstate

One More Thing:

For those of you who aren't planning on seeing the Jack Rose, Peter Walker, F.S Blumm show tomorrow (Thursday) at the Firehouse, you should consider seeing "Faust" brought to you by the Vive Volce Puppet Opera at Club Metronome 8pm sharp tickets 10$ available at the Radio Bean- There will also be a few bands playing (cccome? and Oak) and all kinds of other entertainment. Come one come all!

JB

Magnolia

Tired of standing in line for what seems like hours to have brunch at Penny Cluse? Then Magnolia Breakfast and Lunch Bistro is for you! I just discovered this relatively new downtown restaurant today thanks to Marnie. It's located at 1 Lawson Lane which is that little alley beside American Flatbread. Great menu (features a lot of local & organic foods) atmosphere (its much brighter and friendlier then the last bar/restaurant in that location) and staff. This just might be my new weekend brunch place now that Cafe Piccolo is closed (I got on that train too late) I just hope they fare better than the last 1/2 dozen businesses at this location.

So, enjoy!

t=l=d

Global warming much? Yes...much too much

Here is a great article from the Washington Post by Laurie David, wife of TV personality Larry David and staunch anti-global warming crusader. Basically it describes how the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) turned down 50,000 free copies of 'An Inconvenient Truth' because they didn't want to get caught up with "special interest groups" even though they accept millions of dollars from Exxon Mobil Corp. and other oil and energy companies. So big oil, who have done everything in their power to convince people that global warming is a myth, is funding our children's education. How do you like that shit? Seems if we had a little more money in the education budget educators wouldn't have to take money from these pig-fuckers.

Anyway, I was tipped off to this article by V.T political guru Peter Freyne's excellent blog, Freyne Land.

happy weekend,
jb

breast therapy...dig it

So, according to Eva the Deadbeat at the Deadbeat Update, I am not a pervert...just health conscious.

did I tell ya I was going to see James Brown?

Beowulf, bitch!

Tan and I watched Beowulf & Grendel yesterday. While not the greatest movie, it was fun and epic and had a weird troll-on-witch sex scene. Plus Grendels mother was badass. Well, it piqued our interest so tonight I may rent the Beowulf movie made in 1999 starring Christopher Lambert.

Tourtiere

From Wikipedia:

A tourtière is a meat pie originating from Quebec, usually made with ground pork and/or veal, or beef. The true original French Canadian tourtière was made with 'tourte', a type of Passenger Pigeon, hence its name. It is a traditional Christmas and New Year's Eve dish in Quebec, but is also enjoyed and sold in grocery stores all year long. This kind of pie is known as pâté à la viande (literally, meat pie) in the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region. Tourtière is not exclusive to the province of Québec. Tourtière is a traditional French-Canadian dish served by generations of French-Canadian families throughout Canada. In the U.S. state of Vermont citizens of Québécois ancestry have introduced the recipe to the state's culture, and it is traditionally eaten on Christmas Eve.

Kramer's a rascist?

article here: I guess after being heckled by a couple of black guys Michael Richards unleashed a rant filled with the naughtiest of naughties (aka the 'n-word')

who would'a thunk it?

I went to three parties this weekend!

The first was the diorama-o-rama, where people learned that when JB is 15 or so beers deep he can cut the fucking rug.

The second was a pie crust making, quiche eating, eggnog drinking party at Meghan & Gahlord & Phoebe's. It was pretty exclusive.

The THIRD was a pot-luck stylee Thanksgiving dinner over at Kyle Bryant Becca & Jays. 40 people! So much food! Santa Clause is Coming to Town on DVD!

I'm almost Thanksgiving burned out and there are still 4 days to go...

t/l/d

apology

I've come to realize that this blog is kinda worthless and bland- impersonal and generic- forgettable and regrettable- so now I'm going to try to make an effort to post meaningful and personal things. i may have to limit posts to once a week or less even (i don't think anyone except maybe tanner reads this anyway)- i really don't have much to say- and usually when i do have something important to say the anger or fear or loneliness or pain that inspired it burns away too fast before i can come up with a way to express it. so bear with me...

thanks to everyone who came out for my birthday
or who went to the cupcake party
hopefully I'll see you all at the diorama party
at the greendoor Friday night
or maybe at the Monkey bar Saturday night
for "party star" & the new siberians

a birthday haiku:
at the op late
a rousing happy birthday
was sung for jb

t.l.d

election wrap-up/diorama-o-rama

The Election Night Party was a rousing success! Thanks to everyone who came out and talked and laughed and drank and didn’t care that I went to bed early. Last I heard the Senate was still split 49-49 and the Dems had the House! About fucking time…Rick Santorum you fucking pecker.

Anyway, tonight I’m off to Montreal to see Bob Dylan with the Foo Fighters Acoustic (of all people) and then my 4 day birthday extravaganza begins! Thursday and Friday I’m spending at my Dads new hunting cabin in Duane, NY. But I’ll be home by Friday night if anyone wants to buy me a beer!

Ok see ya! JB

One more thing… a little diorama contest invite from Drew at the GreenDoor Studio!

Hallo,
After a great Halloween show, we are gearing up for the next one. The Diaramma-o-ramma is as follows: A shoe box, other than that its totally open ended. We put out a call to artists in the 7days and hopefully will get some good response. $5 entry fee and the top three will walk away with the funds due to popular vote. So encourage others to join in, submissions due 17th November, Friday, and the opening will follow that very same evening. Looking forward,
Drew

Election night extravaganza!

ANNOUNCING!

the le duo’s third bi-annual Election Night Party!

Tuesday, November 7th 7pm
12 Clarke St. Apt #1
Burlington

Come listen to music and watch the election results with the most sarcastic, ill-informed Monday-morning-quarterback political team ever!

Things you can expect:

chips
WCAX
Bob Kiss specials (for the Progressives)
records
CNN
wine (for the Democrats)
friends
leftover Halloween candy
Fox News
JC Penney
John Stewart & Stephen Colbert
debate
laughter (hopefully)
maybe some Republicans?

Hope to see you all there!

just 2 days till the election and shit is heating up...evangelical pastors sentenced to hang and Saddam getting massages from gay bodybuilding meth dealers...wait a sec, maybe it's the other way around!

the le duo

birthday bean

I haven’t really heard much about it or even seen the poster, but this Saturday is the 6th birthday celebration at Radio Bean- you know the deal- 40+ acts between 8am Saturday morning and 2am Sunday morning. Last year Nest Material had a great 20 minute jam featuring at least 12 people including Gahlord Dewald, Greg Davis, and Johnny Sparkle. This years festivities kick off with “Party Star” at 8am- I’m gonna try to make it for this, go home get some sleep, go back and forth all afternoon for music and FREE coffee- and then finally make it to the Shredding & Wind Up Bird show at the Greendoor Studio at 8pm. Whew!

t^l^d

give peace a chance?

An interesting article dealing with two letters Gandhi wrote to Adolph Hitler in 1939 and 1940.

Gandhi: "It is quite clear that you are today the one person in the world who can prevent a war which may reduce humanity to the savage state. Must you pay that price for an object however worthy it may appear to you to be? Will you listen to the appeal of one who has deliberately shunned the method of war not without considerable success?"

His critics: "In other words, Gandhi was a naïve fool who tried in vain to sell his non-violence as a panacea to the Führer."

the le duo rubbing shoulders with politicians.

This is a photo of my family with Senator Patrick Leahy, taken circa 1988 after my Dad won this big award after inventing a little gadget that saved the Federal government millions of dollars. Sweet mullets and matching sweaters!

Faust!

Come see Mephisto get his tonight & tomorrow 8pm 294 N. Winooski Ave Burlington.

what I want for my Birthday

Native American drone flute.

"we were a very unique band"

I just read this excellent in-depth interview with Babatunde Olatunji, the Nigerian drummer who was almost single handedly responsible for introducing African music and dance to the United States in the late 1950's. He has a lot of interesting things to say about music and dance and the healing power of song and race relations etc. A little weekend reading for ya...

tld

we's smart

For the second year in a row, Vermont was declared the Nations smartest State by Morgan Quitno Press, an independent private research and publishing company located in Lawrence, Kansas. Read the press release here. My favorite quote:

“Any encyclopedia will tell you that Vermont produces more maple syrup, marble and monument granite than any other state,” said Scott Morgan, President of Morgan Quitno Press. “But the state also produces stellar students, thanks to its commitment to high quality elementary and secondary education.”

New England kicked ass, with Massachusetts and Connecticut also in the top 5. Arizona was ranked last. Thanks to all my friends who are teachers and educators and parents and loving supporters of children everywhere!

t)l)d

cbgb

Its only recently that I’ve really been digging on Punk music- it reminds me a lot of Free Jazz, which I’ve really been into since Tanner got me a cassette of Coltranes ‘Ascension’ a couple of years ago for xmas- they both have the same kinda raw expressions of emotion and angst, pain, alienation- they both have a sense of ‘this is our music, like it or don’t, we don’t give a fuck so fuck you anyway’ I used to totally disregard punk and other forms of music that didn’t have high the levels of musicianship I was into. But now I see that the messages sometimes make up for the lack of chops. Bands I’ve been listening to a lot include the Velvet Underground, Patti Smith Group, the Ramones, Television, the Clash, and the Minutemen.

So it seems kind of sad that CBGB’s closed down- I’d always wanted to go there and see some music- although I’m sure I would have been let down- all those famed music clubs are so past there prime- like Birdland or Mintons Playhouse – but it still would have been cool.

Oh well…

today/tomorrow/saturday

Tonight: Ryan Power and the Cripples at ½ Lounge. Aaron tells me this may be Ryans last local show for a long while, so everyone should go! It’s a little late in the pm for my liking- so I may go to Radio Bean and see the Calder String Quartet- read more here.

Tomorrow: Greg Davis is throwing another show at the Green Door studio at 8pm- read more here. At 10pm, “Party Star” and the Cripples are playing at the Monkey Bar in the Onion City.

Saturday: After almost 5 ½ years of marriage, my good friends Luke & Regina LeClair are finally having a wedding. I’m taking the lovely Marnie Long from Nest Material as my date. Should be a great time!

JB

lindsay & outward bound

I got a surprise call from my old friend Lindsay Saturday night- a rarity-lets just say shes not the best at keeping in touch- although she says she reads the le duo & highgate but I need proof-post a freakin comment! Anyway, she lives in Asheville, NC, and studies at Warren Wilson College. Lindsay sounded happier and more content then I've heard her sound in years and at first, because it was 1 in the morning, I thought maybe she was drunk- but then I realized its true- she's really happy- finishing school, new love, and new career-working for Outward Bound.

Outward Bound was first conceived in 1941 in Great Britain and has since become the premier adventure-based education program in the world. During World War II, renowned educator Kurt Hahn developed programs to instill greater self-reliance and spiritual tenacity in young British seamen being torpedoed by German U-boats. The Outward Bound philosophy is based around six core values:

Adventure and Challenge
Challenge is an action that requires special effort. Adventure is an exciting and remarkable experience that involves uncertain outcomes and acceptable risks.

Inclusion and Diversity
Welcoming and respecting differences strengthens the richness of ideas and perspectives brought to bear on challenge and learning. The transformational experience of Outward Bound is more powerful when it takes place in the company of others as diverse as the society in which we live.

Social and Environmental Responsibility
Social and environmental responsibility instills in students a sense of integrity, which results in choices and actions that have a positive effect on society and the environment.

Learning Through Experience
Learning through experience is a lifelong process based on action and reflection. Experiences are intentionally designed, presented and reflected upon to instill values and promote skill mastery for people at all stages in their life-span.

Character Development
Character development means developing capacities of mind, body, and spirit to better understand one's responsibilities to self, others, and the community.

Compassion and Service
Compassion is a heartfelt, caring connection to each other and the world around us. Service is an active expression of valuing our common humanity and the natural world.

Lindsay, I am so proud & happy that you found something you love and can truly believe in. That's what we're all searching for I think.

t/l/d

vacation

hey!- my long awaited, long overdue vacation starts in 45 minutes! So, for the next 11 days if anyone wants to entertain me or have me entertain them or hang out sit peacefully drink coffee/tea read play music work on kibosh records drink bloody marys hike pick apples cook dinner take a drive watch a movie watch seinfeld re-runs hang out at the op catch up on six feet under laugh cry scream hide blog or anything else, just drop me a line!

yeah man

t~l~d

devils!

This years winter reading project, The Possessed by Fyodor Dostoevsky- a whopping 701 pages!

I tried to read some F. Dos before- The Idiot- I really enjoyed it at first but it got so long winded towards the last third of the novel I put it down for awhile and, regrettably, never finished it. Not this time! I'm gonna make The Possessed my bitch!

t/l/d

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, EBONI!

Spaceballs the animated series?

Merchandising, merchandising, where the real money from the movie is made. Spaceballs-the T-shirt, Spaceballs-the Coloring Book, Spaceballs-the Lunch box, Spaceballs-the Breakfast Cereal, Spaceballs-the Flame Thrower

robert johnson

The most widely known legend surrounding Robert Johnson says that he sold his soul to the Devil at the crossroads of U.S. Highway 61 and U.S. Highway 49 in Clarksdale, Mississippi in exchange for prowess in playing the guitar. Actually, the location Johnson made reference to is a short distance away from that intersection. The legend was told mainly by Son House, but finds no corroboration in any of Johnson's work, despite titles like "Me and the Devil Blues" and "Hellhound on My Trail". With this said, the song "Cross Road Blues" is both widely and loosely interpreted by many as a descriptive encounter of Johnson selling his soul. The older Tommy Johnson (no relation, although it is speculated that they were cousins) also claimed to have sold his soul to the Devil. The story goes that if one would go to the crossroads a little before midnight and begin to play the guitar, a large black man would come up to the aspiring guitarist, retune his guitar and then hand it back. At this point (so the legend goes) the guitarist had sold his soul to become a virtuoso (A similar legend even surrounded virtuoso violinist Niccolo Paganini a century before.)

wikipedia man

Snake near a Coke machine?

I was walking back from my early morning pee when I saw a garter snake like this one just chillin out on the floor near the vending machines. I thought it was pretty funny so I rather dramatically started yelling 'help help snake!' Man, people started freaking out! I grabbed a box and trapped it, and just when I was about to just scoop him up and bring him outside the maintenance man came over and said 'I'll take care of it.' What did the redneck asshole do? He just lifted up the box and stomped him! Oh well, I figure any snake that slithers into the DHS CIS building where I work (Department of Homeland Security, Citizenship and Immigration Services) is probably suicidal anyway.

art hop pictures care of angela and ben

Hip Crowd

the le duo & Johnny Sparkle

Mike Y.

Aaron H.

Hammer & Saw

Ryan Power

Greg Davis

(blurry) Oak

Home Items (pre Rock stardom)

thanks a lot

Well, the Art Hop went off without a hitch- we were never more than 18 minutes off schedule, no one got fined for noise or alcohol, and except for a couple of stolen bikes (sorry The Cush!) I didn’t hear of anything bad happening.

Much Thanks & Love to all the bands and everyone who helped set up/poster/blog- and everyone who just came to enjoy the music:

Ben, Todd, Mike, Tanner, Brian, Marnie, Gahlord
Drew, Phil, Tom, Clark, Andrea, Athena, and everyone else at the Green Door
Greg Davis
Hammer & Saw (Marina, Michelle, Emily)
Ryan Power
Home Items (Aziza, Mandy, Michelle, Emily, Meghan, Stacey, Angela)
Oak (Tobi, Sara-Paule, Tyler, Chris)
Magic Sparkle (Johnny & Jess)
“Party Star” (Kyle, Dan, Matt, Will)
The Smittens (Dana, Colin, Holly, David)
The Cripples (Aaron, Jeb, Ryan [Andy])
The Cush (Burette, Gaby, Steve, Chris)


I hope everyone had as good of a time as I did- the Art Hop is always one of my favorite times of the year. Next year expect bigger and better…

JB

Ps. Everyone who missed the Home Items set missed the show of the year.

a(r)t the hop

(This Friday September 8th at the Green Door Studio, G1, corner of Pine and Howard Streets 4.30-11.00pm)

Casey wrote a little something about the Art Hop musical goings-on in this weeks SevenDays.


I hope everyone can come & check this out- it should be lots of fun. I got a little over zealous and booked 11 acts, so thanks in advance to people who are going to save my ass by helping out alot (Todd, Gahlord, Mike, Ben, Brian, everyone at the Green Door Studio etc...) Also, thanks a ton to all the amazing, eclectic bands who agreed to play. I'm so psyched- I get to see all of my favorite VT bands and play in the same evening!

So here we go.....

t.l.d

-------

great weekend!

started off thursday with me buying new shoes- only three months after I truly needed them- hate spending money on necessities-

friday night the "party star" and Cripples show was awesome- the place was pretty packed and, while it sucked waiting half an hour for a drink, it was great seeing so many people I hadn't seen in awhile- then off to breakfast's apt. for a little after show party, complete with a drag queen and a little too much jim beam choice (gross cheap jim beam) followed by a drunken regrettable trip to denny's.

saturday spent hanging out with jenny and eboni- up for the weekend from nyc- lovely girls

sunday night tanner and I hosted a little dinner party (jenny cooked delicious salmon tuna mushroom sauce delights) slash lets watch the deadbeat club and show off our new clean apt party. followed by half dozen episodes of 'peep show' maybe the funniest thing ever-

monday I tried to recover from the weekend, said goodbye to jenny and eb- napped- then great nest material practice- not only do I feel that we're ready to play friday night, I also feel better about the way I played- It'll be great- and Mike will be there!

keep your eye out for art hop posters and also Casey's write-up in tomorrows sevendays

t/l/d

dabor lay weekend

So, less than two weeks until the big art hop show…things getting busy and hectic…anyone have a p.a for me to borrow…gahlord maybe? Gotta get ahold of all the bands- make sure we can do this with a minimum of amp swapping etc…but with the two semi-stages it should be cool- also have to work in some nest material practices- haven’t played really since may- sounded kinda creaky and rusty- I myself sounded like shit…need to get in their for a few hours and try to re-discover my drums…

I’m already excited for this long holiday weekend…Kyles band “party star” and the cripples are playing Friday night at the monkey in Winooski…my friend adam’s band turkey bullion mafia sat. and sun. nite at nectars- and does greg have someone coming to the greendoor on Sunday? Thought I read something about it at solidstate…plus maybe family bbq in the f.c… hang out with gage and natalie- fresh new nephew and niece-

t.l.d

Celine

"Could I, I thought, be the last coward on earth? How terrifying! …All alone with two million stark raving heroic mad-men, armed to the eyeballs? With and without helmets, without horses, on motorcycles, bellowing, in cars, screeching, shooting, plotting, flying, kneeling, digging, taking cover, bounding over trails, root-toot-tooting, shut up on earth as if it were a loony bin, ready to demolish everything on it, Germany, France whole continents, everything that breathes, destroy destroy, madder than mad dogs, worshipping their madness (which dogs don’t) a hundred, a thousand times madder than a thousand dogs, and a lot more vicious! A pretty mess we were in! No doubt about it, this crusade I’d let myself in for was the apocalypse!"

This is a quote from ‘Journey to the End of the Night’ by Louis-Ferdinand Celine. Talkin about WWI- but is it really much different than our current situation? Or maybe all wars are the same? Nobody quite sure why they’re fighting, or who- some not caring why or who- what a mess!

I recommend this book to everyone. It is a darkly comical, cynical look at life in Europe and America during and after WWI. I’m not finished with it yet, but if anyone wants it after me just holler- also, the sequel to ‘Journey to the end of the Night’ is called ‘Death on the Installment Plan’ what a great title!

t.l.d

?uestlove

Every time I see or hear this guy I have more and more respect for him. Besides being an outstanding drummer, he has a sweet afro and a pretty cool stage name (it's no 'the le duo' but still...) Just saw Dave Chappelles Block Party yester day with Eboni, and it is funny as hell and has some great music. Maybe I'm finally coming around on (some) hip hop? I dont know- but I thought The Roots and The Fugees and Dead Prez and Angie Stone & Erykah Badu were alright.

power to the people- one love- peace out

t.l.d

still moving

Still is still moving to me
And I swim like a fish in the sea all the time
But if that's what it takes to be free I don't mind
Still is still moving to me
Still is still moving to me

And it's hard to explain how I feel
It won't go in words but I know that it's real
I can be moving or I can be still
But still is still moving me
Still is still moving to me

t.l.d

"Party Star"

Saturday Aaron H, Mike L and I took a little drive to attend a concert in the ‘Burgh (this time it was Hinesburg) My good friends “Party Star” were playing their first show along with Workingmans Army, Sounds of Urchin, and Named By Strangers. ¾ of “Party Star” used to be in a band called The Lestons, one of the best live local bands I’ve ever seen. Their shows were so much fun- the songs were rocking and funny and the rhythm section tight as hell. The other 25% of “Party Star” is my friend and former roommate Kyle (aka K-Chev aka John Paul Jonsey) I hadn’t heard Kyle play much electric guitar since we were in a band together- and that was mostly drunken shitty-ass cover songs. More recently he’s been playing bass in a band called the Night Birds. Although his guitar was a little low in the mix, his lead lines blew me away- man is he good. So much talent in such a greasy-haired frame. “Party Star” has the same energy as the old Lestons, but with a little harder edge. Plus Kyles lead lines are way different then the old guitarist, Gabe. Needless to say they played great, especially for a debut show, and I recommend them to everybody who loves rock & roll. Oh, did I mention they were playing at the Art Hop at Green Door Studio Friday, September 8th at about 8 o’clock? Also Monkey House w/ The Cripples 9/1/06.

Cool,
t.l.d

parables

The Jerry liked to teach in parables. Most hippies were too dumb to understand them, however. Being a kind man, The Jerry would always explain.

From the Book of Lesh- Chapter 8, verses 11-15

The Parable of the Pot-Grower Explained

This, then, is what the parable means: The reefer is the word of God. Those on the edge of the path are people that have smoked it, and then the Devil comes and carries away the word from their hearts in case they should believe and be saved. Those on the rock are people who, when they first smoke it, welcome the weed with joy. But these have no root; they smoke for awhile, but in times of trial they give up. As for the part that fell into the thorns, this is people who have smoked, but as they go on their way they are choked by the worries and riches and pleasures of life and do not reach stoniness. As for the part in the rich soil, this is people with a noble and generous heart who have smoked the pot and take it to themselves and yield a harvest through their perseverance.

Next week, the Jerry battles WeirDog…

t.l.d

thinking daisies

When does a band stop being a local band?
How do you define local band?
I'd say a local band is one you can catch on a Thursday night at a local bar for less than $10- not one who's every Burlington appearance turns into a local media event with tickets costing as much as some big-time acts. So, in my opinion, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals shouldn't even be eligible for Best Local Band in the Seven Days Daysies awards. And who the hell did the Dirty Blondes have to sleep with in order to get runner up? (just kidding- I saw the DB's this weekend and thought they were awesome. I want to party with them)

Tomorrow, the next chapter in the life of Lord Jerry.


t.l.d

Jerry Week!

Today kicks off my annual ‘Jerry Week’, a nine day celebration of all things Jerry Garcia. August 1st (the anniversary of the Jerrys birth) to August 9th (the anniversary of his death)

For those of you who don’t know, the Jerry was born on a small hilltop cabin in Tibet under a full moon and criss-crossing rainbows. Nursed by a she-wolf, the Jerry obtained total enlightenment whilst playing a single note for 45 minutes on a dusty mandolin. Upon reaching the age of 15, the Jer was air-mailed to San Francisco where he single handedly invented ‘peace’ and ‘love’ and led the United States out of a period of darkness into the perfect utopian society we enjoy today. Then he met Bob Weir and everything turned to shit.

The end…….or is it?

Stay tuned!

t.l.d