THE DAY WE NEVER WENT HOME

2011-04-24T16:17:00.001-07:00

“Give me the luxuries of life and I will willingly do without the necessities.”

- frank lloyd wright

getting out of school and getting out of hand.

2010-12-01T13:30:00.001-08:00

big first snowfall in western new york today. listening to this and cap'n jazz, walking in the slush:

http://www.stereogum.com/mp3/the-gum-drop/4w3q%20Mark%20Kozelek%20-%20Celebrated%20Summer.mp3

Love and hate were in the air, like pollen from a flower
Somewhere in April time, they add another hour

I guess I'd better think up a way to spend my time
Just when I'm ready to sit inside, it's summer time
Should I go fishing or get a friend to hang around
It's back to summer, back to basics, hang around

Getting drunk out on the beach, or playing in a band
And getting out of school meant getting out of hand

Was this your celebrated summer? Was that your celebrated summer?

Then the sun disintegrates between a wall of clouds
I summer where I winter at, and no one is allowed there

Do you remember when the first snowfall fell
When summer barely had a snowball's chance in Hell?

Why buy new?

2010-10-27T10:03:00.001-07:00

Four speed manual transmission, engine was swapped for a 2.8L. Comes with several boxes of extra parts, and a spare set of wheels with studded snow tires. This car is driveable but the alternator output is weak. Requires a couple minutes to warm up in the morning. Shifter is loose and the gears are a little tricky to find. You have to stand on the clutch to shift gears. This is really a parts car - unless you truly want a project.

This Mercedes has no seatbelts in the back, and the ones in the front are of the airliner lap-best variety. There are safer cars out there for sale. Cars with thick slab like steel pillars cocooning you from the outside world. Cars with 7 airbags. Cars with airbags for your knees. They have fancy GPSs that will tell you where you should go; they have systems that will brake for you, before you even notice that the car in front of you is slowing down.

This Mercedes has none of those things. This Mercedes barely even has brakes. This Mercedes doesn't even have a conventionally operational heating system, or a radio. There are no power windows, locks, or mirrors. This car does not have seven airbags.

And those other cars, Their horns make cute little beeping noises, so considerate to not be rude. They don't have horns that sound with the arrogance and fury of some long dead Mongol warlord. They don't come with apocalyptic snow tires, all spikes and brutal tread. You cannot fix those cars on the side of the road, using a wrench as a hammer. Those cars will never force you to think, never allow you to exercise your own ingenuity. In those cars you can't stand up illegally through the sunroof from the back seat, and watch the moon with the cool night air blowing through you air.

Richard Nixon once said "Human existence is in the struggle." You could buy a car that will try and hide you from all the dangers of the world, but it won't save you; all the alarms, all the air bags, and the low sodium lattes in the world won't save you. Some day you will die. But at least you can die with the wind in your hair.

Alternatively it would make a good parts car.

(via Craigslist via Jalopnik)

Mike Skinner aka The Streets reemerges

2010-10-20T18:28:00.001-07:00

Mike Skinner apparently just turned his phone back on after having it off for a year:

http://the-streets.co.uk/2010/10/i-loved-my-phone/

I'm really looking forward to another Streets album.

PODCAST 2 "here's where the story ends..."

2010-08-01T22:39:00.010-07:00

FUN DEFICIT (podcast)
presents PODCAST #2
"... here's where the story ends... "

1. Sky Ferriera - "Animal (Miike Snow cover)"
2. Belle and Sebastian - "A Century of Fakers"
3. Fun Deficit - "Believe (smashing pumpkins cover)"
4. Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution - "It's a Wonderful Life"
5. Kings of Convenience - "Love is no big truth"
6. The Sundays - "Here's where the story ends" (live on french radio)
7. Styrofoam - "Couches in Alleys" feat. ben gibbard
8. Fun Deficit - "Love Won't Wait"
9. Blueboy - "So Catch Him"
10. Youth Group - "Forever Young"
11. Fun Deficit - "Van, by yourself"
12. Defiance Ohio - "Road signs always look better looking over your shoulder"
13. Hauschka - "Heimat"
14. Club 8 - "Spring came, rain fell"
15. The Radio Dept. - "A Token of Gratitude"
16. Small Factory - "If you hurt me"
17. That dog. - "Being with you"
18. Fun Deficit - "Karla"

Here's a podcast for you, a mix. I made this to put my songs in a lovely context. This mix is road songs and love songs about not being in love right now.

1. Sky Ferriera - "Animal (Miike Snow cover)" - I love this girl's voice. She's only 17 years old and she sounds like Cat Power.
2. Belle and Sebastian - "A Century of Fakers" - One of my favorite belle and sebastian songs. "If you ever go lardy or go lame, I will drop you straight away."
3. Fun Deficit - "Believe (smashing pumpkins cover)" - I've been listening to a ton of Smashing Pumpkins lately, inexplicably. I just love them and I've always loved this song, so I decided to cover it and it ended up sounding a lot like the Radio Dept.,
4. Bandits of the Acoustic Revolution - "It's a Wonderful Life" I just saw Streetlight Manifesto play live and this is them acoustic. They're so relentlessly positive. I can't listen to it enough.

5. Kings of Convenience - "Love is no big truth" Not really sure if we should listen to Billy Corgan and The Pumpkins for love advice, but I listen and believe in the love advice from Kings of Convenience.
6. The Sundays - "Here's where the story ends" (live on french radio) Brad says this is one of two decent songs they'd play at the department store where he used to work. I love this song and I love the girl's voice. The lyrics are fantastic and the song is just two chords.
7. Styrofoam - "Couches in Alleys" feat. ben gibbard - This song is an open letter to Jack Kerouac. I recently proposed to one of my friends she start a band of all open letters, like this and Leonard Cohen's "famous blue raincoat."

8. Fun Deficit - "Love Won't Wait" - A new song I wrote in one day. Written for my new album, but not written about me. A response song to Radiohead's "True Love Waits."
9. Blueboy - "So Catch Him" - love blueboy. Sarah Records twee from 1995
10. Youth Group - "Forever Young" (alphaville cover) I love the Jay Z song sampling this, but this cover speaks to my indie aesthetic. Classic.
11. Fun Deficit - "Van, by yourself" - a response song to Small Factory's "if you hurt me" - reference to a car, sensitivity, and a sly joke and lack of seriousness at the end.
12. Defiance Ohio - "Road signs always look better looking over your shoulder" - I saw DOH about a month ago and I loved it. I try to pitch them to my friends as the "Arcade Fire of the Gutterpunks" but I'm still the only person I know who likes them. Maybe they're more like a "yelling Weakerthans."
13. Hauschka - "Heimat" - beautiful prepared piano. Jaw-droppingly beautiful.
14. Club 8 - "Spring came, rain fell" - I love her voice so much and when I listen to this I imagine she's only singing to me.
15. The Radio Dept. - "A Token of Gratitude" - I love minimalist love songs. All it needs to say is "Do I love you? Yes I love you. But easy come, easy go..."
16. Small Factory - "If you hurt me" - Simple and emotional, what I like. "If you hurt me I'll be angry and I'll be sad."
17. That dog. - "Being with you" - the radder girl-weezer from the 1990s. I feel like I'm their only fan now.
18. Fun Deficit - "Karla" - With all the songs about love lost, this is the song in which I get the girl.

Further Reading

Braid - "I keep a Diary"

Club 8 - Spring Came, Rain Fell

2010-07-19T19:48:00.002-07:00

I just love their bossanova/indie pop vibe and breathy girl vocals. If you are in a band and you want me to like your music, just get a girl to sing about the weather and I will likely love it.

Also ask a poetic question like "Are we still nowhere?"

My Favorite Japanese Cars

2010-07-11T01:20:00.008-07:00

I've always loved VWs and other European things, but lately I've been really interested in Japanese cars. Here are the ones I love:

Toyota Celica - first generation. Every time I see one of these I like it more and more. My neighbors a block away have one under a tarp. I passed one every day going to work. They look like Mustangs in 2/3 scale. The headlights look awesome. This car just looks fantastic.

Miata - first generation in British racing green. I've always liked Miatas. Ever since I read Kafka on the Shore I wanted one bad. They're rwd. They're dirt cheap. I'm not crazy about convertibles but I love this small car.

Nissan S-Cargo. A freaky psychedelic reinterpretation of a Citroen 2CV delivery van. It's name means "Small Cargo." Also it means snail in french. This car rules.

Nissan Pao. Another one made at the same time by Nissan at their Pike factory. This looks like a Mini, a Renault R5 and a VW Squareback, but made cheap and awesome. This does retro right. This car looks like it's made out of plastic, but it looks 200% better than any new car sold in the USA*. I wish I could rock one of these now.

Toyota Land Cruiser circa late 1970s. How could you not like the original Toyota Land Cruiser? This vehicle is so boxy and awesome. The rear windows are so fantastic. One time in Costa Rica I got picked up hitchhiking by a Land Cruiser like this full of nuns. I've wanted one ever since (the Land Cruiser).

* - maybe new Porsches still look better.

Vespa flashback, summer of 2005

2010-07-11T00:53:00.004-07:00

After I graduated college in 2005, I took a road trip from my parent's house about an hour west of Albany, all the way across Massachusetts, to Rhode Island on my poor-running 125cc Vespa. Here I am mid-trip stopping for lunch in one of those college towns sort of in the Berkshires. I wish I could remember where it was. It might have been Northampton or Amherst. I wasn't really paying attention to where I was. I remember I had directions written on masking tape on my speedometer. I didn't keep track of how many miles, but there's no way it could have been less than 500. I went to a scooter rally in Rhode Island and rode a 50+ mile ride that Saturday. So, the entire trip was most likely more than that. I had a great sandwich for lunch at some organic food co-op type place. I put my camera on timer on a picnic table and took this shot. The shirt says "Geneseo" something or other, one of my many free Geneseo shirts I picked up as a student there. Those Pumas I'm wearing wore out and got thrown out after I used them while washing dishes in a restaurant about 2 years ago. The Vespa and helmet currently sit unused in my garage.

Nissan Pao

2010-06-06T01:15:00.000-07:00

Is the Nissan Pao the coolest car ever? I want one bad.

Vespas must go.

2010-06-02T20:29:00.008-07:00

1975 Vespa Rally 200 for sale:

This is how it looks now. It's disassembled and ready to be restored, like it needs to be.

This is the same model and color of Sting's Vespa in Quadrophenia.

The engine is in decent shape. It started and idled fantastic when I bought it, but VIOLENTLY leapt out of third gear. So, I dropped the engine and installed a new cruciform. I put it back together and it still jumped out of gear. I lost interest.

It has the original 6V FEMSA electronic ignition. This is the European specifications model, with no premix, higher compression head, bigger headlamp.

A previous owner rode this scooter from Seattle to Sturgis and back. While in Sturgis he had the scooter signed by many motorcycle luminaries like Arlen Ness and Mike Corbin. The article was reportedly in V Twin magazine, but I don't have a copy.

Includes some Rat fink stickers.
Includes new pieces like a brand new correct Euro taillamp.
Cowls are straight!

Clear Oregon Title. I bought this at a yard sale 3 years ago and have not done anything with it except buy new parts and disassemble it. It is in pieces in my garage in NE Portland. This bike needs and deserves a full restoration. I was quoted $1500 on a full paint job.

I have all the rare Rally 200 bits, like the cowls, and the glovebox.

Price is $1600 OR BEST OFFER.

Please no hatemail on my price. They are not popping these out in Pontedera anymore.

Will consider total/partial trade for a Stella, Ruckus, other Vespa, or Lambretta, BMW or VW car. I'm a gearhead and I like those sort of things.

The worst part is some bad rust on the floor. I wish I could weld and repair this, but I can't so I'm letting it go.

I'd prefer not to ship this Vespa, but if you pay me for boxing and shipping, I could ship it anywhere. I have shipped scooters in the past.

Here's a picture of both of my Vespas. I might sell the white P Series too. Email me if interested.

This is what the Vespa looked like the day I bought it.

This will be a great Vespa for the right person. I am sad I can't give it the attention it deserves.

PODCAST

2010-05-20T23:34:00.002-07:00

I made a radio show of some songs I like:

Club 8, Royksopp, acoustic and electronic mostly, indie pop. Things I like, in earnest.

Listen here:

http://soundcloud.com/fun-deficit/podcast

Eye for OG PAINT

2010-05-09T23:06:00.006-07:00

Today I got the bright idea in my head that my VW is looking a little too drab and dirty. I love my Volkswagen for its "original ganster" hoodride type patina. But, there's no need for it too look completely shabby and neglected. Thus, I marched off to Autozone and picked up a can of Rustoleum Clear coat. I cleaned the bus with just some rags and water, getting all the imperfections and oxidation off. I just painted the passenger door, because here it started to rain and I ran out of daylight. Here's the result. Notice the contrast between the door and the front end that didn't recieve cleaning or paint.

Here's the hoodride looking a little bit more dignified. Note the muddy tires, from a little urban mudbogging I did this past week (driving the VW off road is great!). Click on the picture to see it in bigger detail.

Here's a picture of the VW from a few months ago when I was getting the back tire patched. Notice the blotchyness of the front door.

I'm perpetually unsure of what to do with the front of the bus. I popped out huge dents up there and scraped off lots of bondo. I prefer just looking at the bus from the sides, because the front end does look terrible. One of my friends comments that it looks like it's been through a warzone.

Maybe I'll tackle that sometime soon. In the meantime, enjoy this requisite dreamy TtV shot I took of the VW not so long ago.

ALTERNATIVE ROCK APPROVE!

2010-03-24T23:23:00.001-07:00

I'm sure I haven't heard this song for years until today, but it's constantly in my head. I thought it was Mercury Rev or Sebadoh, but it's by a band called The Candy Skins.

Vespa Revival.

2010-03-12T22:19:00.007-08:00

It's been a year since I last rode anywhere on my Vespa. For some reason only I understood at the time and I have no idea of now, it was last January and February 2009 when I got into riding the Vespa constantly. I rode it carefully around patches of ice to work and back. Then there was an unfortunate incident involving a very negligent owner of a BMW X3 and a disenchanted breakfast date, and my interest in the Vespa completely faded. I no longer self-identified as a "scooterist," but rather as "just some dude." I looked at it every once in a while, pushing it out of the way in my garage while riding my Lemond and driving the Fun Bus. Gradually, I forgot about the Vespa for a while, using it only to keep my Westfalia mattress off the garage floor. However, recently I've remembered the scooter aficionado I used to be, and I decided I wanted to start riding my Vespa again.

So today, on a break from work, I got started. I knew the Vespa wouldn't start, and I wanted to go through it to make it roadworthy. The first step was draining all the gas from the gas tank. I removed the seat and took out the gas tank, found my spare gas can and checked to see if the flow looked good. It did, and I put the old stale gas in the Volkswagen, which is by far a less picky eater. After that I took the carburetor off and disassembled it. I don't know why anyone ever refers to cleaning out a Dell'orto as "rebuilding it." It has fewer than 20 parts. I took each piece off, sprayed some mystical "carb cleaner" spray can at it for a few seconds, and then put it back together. I went with a 110 main jet, and realized for the first time ever that my idle jet says "60" on it. I don't think I even knew that one existed (it's under the pathetic little filter on top of the float). Then I put that together and put it all back. I put the rear mixture screw at its customary starting position of 1.5 turns out from all the way screwed in, and I put the idle adjuster at its position of all the way in until just before the throttle slide kinda starts to slide open.

Autozone down the street had two NGK B7ES spark plugs, which they sold me for a meager $4.98. Then I got fresh gas and a bit of two stroke oil and the cockroach of a scooter fired up on the third kick. It even idled in a hearty way only a two stroke single cylinder can do, casting a pulsing glow on the rainy driveway. I rode it in a small victory lap down the street and back in to the garage.

I have a love/hate relationship with the Vespa. It's built from pieces of other Vespas to the point where the most original features are scratches, dents, and rust. It's been a steady accessory through girlfriends that have come and gone, through apartments and places that are now only memories. It hasn't really been a trusty companion, as it's broken down all sorts of times, but never as much as you would expect. I have gotten sick of it a whole lot of times, but then put it away. Then I realize the problem was likely something very small, and it will only take a few ounces of effort to fix.

The major problem with my particular Vespa is that the fork is still bent. Luckily, I have line on an original replacement fork. Parts have been disconcertingly hard to come by, for some reason. I don't know why. The Italians stamped out tons of Vespas back in the day. It's not like it's a Citroen SM or something. It's supposed to be a common deal. Local scooter torch bearers P Town Scooters told me I would have to order a new fork from SIP in Germany, which would set me back somewhere in the multiple hundreds of dollars range, they guessed. So I called around a week or two ago, inspired by my Volkswagen's increased gluttony for fuel, among other things, and got a line on one from a reputable longstanding scooter shop, many states away. I realized I missed talking shop with scooter people, rattling off that I was looking for a 16mm fork, but I would consider a newer 20mm style one. Hopefully that fork will get here soon and I can get the scooter buttoned up a little bit more.

The great thing about owning old vehicles for a long time is that every year they are more rare. More people are giving up on their old vehicles and going with some sort of more sane alternative. My Vespa was around 25 years old when I got it, and now it's around 30. Every year it's getting older, and a little bit more classic.

How Those Days Just Disappear.

2010-03-06T22:21:00.001-08:00

Poster from The Lucksmiths farewell concert, 2009.

Kind of Like Spitting - "Valentine's Day is over." (Billy Bragg Cover)

2010-02-15T21:19:00.001-08:00

Kind of Like Spitting covers Billy Bragg on a cassette from 12 years ago:

LINK

My Favorites

2010-02-01T21:38:00.001-08:00

According to Last.fm, this is a ranked list of my 100 favorite bands:

1	The Lucksmiths	1,301
2	The Hold Steady	589
3	Defiance, Ohio	578
4	Elliott Smith	551
5	The Promise Ring	533
6	Kings of Convenience	511
7	Turtles In Time	446
8	Explosions in the Sky	435
9	Kind of Like Spitting	400
10	Damien Jurado	356
10	The Magnetic Fields	356
12	The Wrens	329
13	múm	316
14	Club 8	311
15	Jawbreaker	300
16	Braid	289
17	Bob Nanna	287
18	Brand New	279
19	Fun Deficit	272
20	Belle and Sebastian	266
21	The Microphones	265
22	Billy Bragg	263
23	The Mountain Goats	248
24	Low	245
25	Cat Power	240
26	Idlewild	239
26	R.E.M.	239
28	The Field Mice	237
29	Weezer	236
30	Rockets And Blue Lights	231
31	The Weakerthans	229
31	Apples of the Earth	229
33	Pinhead Gunpowder	226
33	Bright Eyes	226
35	Beulah	219
36	Small Factory	213
37	The Get Up Kids	209
37	The Notwist	209
39	Cap'n Jazz	200
40	Ted Leo and The Pharmacists	193
41	Blur	177
42	Nada Surf	176
43	Casiotone for the Painfully Alone	174
44	Fennesz	169
45	Another Sunny Day	162
46	Styrofoam	161
47	Built to Spill	160
48	The Streets	159
49	Phish	157
50	One Reason	153
50	Wu-Tang Clan	153
52	Christie Front Drive	152
53	that dog.	149
54	Streetlight Manifesto	144
55	Townes Van Zandt	143
56	Against Me!	142
57	Yo La Tengo	140
58	The Capstan Shafts	137
58	The American Analog Set	137
60	No Kids	136
61	Ben Lee	128
62	Superchunk	125
62	The Softies	125
64	Reggie and the Full Effect	123
65	The Sea Urchins	122
66	Castawaves	120
67	The Pine	119
68	Ash	118
68	Pavement	118
70	Boys Life	116
71	The Secret Stars	115
71	Kalpana	115
73	Ben Folds	113
74	The Walkmen	109
75	Maritime	103
76	Graham Coxon	100
77	The Smashing Pumpkins	97
77	Silver Jews	97
77	Mirah	97
80	Blueboy	96
81	Death Cab for Cutie	94
81	The Transmissionary Six	94
83	The Orchids	92
83	The Knife	92
85	Novi Split	91
85	Trembling Blue Stars	91
87	The One AM Radio	90
87	Hot Chip	90
89	Jason Anderson	88
89	Oasis	88
91	Jimmy Eat World	87
91	Saturday Looks Good to Me	87
91	Röyksopp	87
94	M83	86
95	This Bike Is a Pipe Bomb	85
96	Unrest	84
97	Superdrag	83
98	Bad Religion	82
99	Rocket Punch	81
100	The Evens	77
100	Jets to Brazil

NEW FUN DEFICIT

2010-02-01T00:23:00.001-08:00

http://www.last.fm/music/Fun+Deficit/Aries+and+Afterward/this+is+the+west+coast+and+a+kiss+means+everything

I am now on Last.fm, where you can stream and download my music.

give me THE CURE

2009-11-29T22:40:00.001-08:00

Two phenomenal covers of The Cure, both filmed in interesting settings.

Erlend Oye of The Kings of Convenience singing "Boys Don't Cry" in the park:

PS22 Choir singing "Pictures of You" at school:

No, wait. This is what I want.

2009-11-11T19:04:00.002-08:00

Motorcycles are a huge temptation for me. I avoid them because I don't think they will be as fun as scooters. They're just so much more serious. Yet, in getting older I don't like vintage stuff as much, and I just can't stomach a new scooter. They are just so much different than the old scooters I love.

But motorcycvles haven't really changed. They are still the same size, shape, and whatnot.

This is one I really like: Moto Guzzi V7 Clubman

This is what I want: BMW 2002

2009-11-07T01:09:00.006-08:00

I am in love with BMW 2002s. I want one in a bad way, and every day I consider putting the Fun Bus up for sale and getting one of these little charming boxy cars. Particularly, I would like an orange one. I rode in one over the summer, a lovely dark blue 1971 round-taillight model, and I loved it. In the few miles I rode, I got the feeling the car was much lighter and tossable than a comparable Volvo. I loved the aircraft-style seatbelt latches. The seats were perfect vintage car simplicity and cuteness. The small details make it really great. I truly wish cars like this were still made.

Rollfast Sold

2009-10-25T19:27:00.003-07:00

On a rainy night in October 2009, I sold my Rollfast. I really liked this bicycle, but I'm more nostalgic for mountain bikes of the 1990s because I'm around that age. I didn't live as far back in the past as this bicycle did, and therefore I can't be nostalgic for it.

FOR SALE: My Vespas

2009-10-25T18:44:00.012-07:00

Regretfully, because my life is too too busy, I'm putting my Vespas up for sale. I want to sell them or trade for another scooter. Here are the details:

Silver and Orange Rally 200:
year 1975.
Includes 6V FEMSA electronic ignition.
European specifications: no premix, higher compression head, bigger headlamp.
A previous owner rode this scooter from Seattle to Sturgis and back. While in Sturgis he had the scooter signed by many motorcycle luminaries like Arlen Ness and Mike Corbin.
Includes some Rat fink stickers.
Includes new pieces like a brand new correct Euro taillamp.
Cowls are straight!
Clear Oregon Title. I bought this at a yard sale 3 years ago and have not done anything with it except buy new parts and disassemble it. It is in pieces in my garage in NE Portland. This bike needs and deserves a full restoration. I was quoted $1500 on a full paint job.
Price is $1800 or trade for a Stella, Ruckus, other Vespa, or Lambretta.

1979 Vespa P150.
Upgraded to Electronic Ignition stator.
Stella 150cc Top End.
Runs but will need a tune up.
Clear oregon Title in my name.
BAD: Has bent fork and will need replacing.
$1800 or best offer or trade.

THINGS I WILL TRADE FOR:
Volkswagen Vanagon or Bus
BMW 3 series or 2002.
Stella
Honda Ruckus
Lambretta
Vespa
Citroen

Point / Counterpoint

2009-10-14T22:05:00.002-07:00

Miley Cyrus - "Party in the USA" (2009)

Beatles - "Back in the USSR" (1968)

I say "point / counterpoint" but these are such similar songs. Same themes, different countries, different milieus. Pop music still lives.

Golden City

2009-09-04T10:13:00.003-07:00

I just came across this: the singer from the greatest emo band from Colorado, Christie Front Drive has a new band:

You can download one of their tracks off of their record label's site. This track has an upbeat feel, but retains the feel of distance that was soaked into all of Christie Front Drive's music. There's a fan-made video for a CFD song on youtube that simply pairs footage of landscape of Colorado shot out a car window with one of their songs. It's completely fitting.

When these singers of older emo bands continue their work they stray into great indie-pop territory, and this song has the pace of a band like The Pains of Being Pure at Heart or Maritime. What was vague emotion becomes more measured and deliberate, and that's not such a bad thing!

http://www.magicbulletrecords.com/bands/goldencity.html

"You're A Jerk" (I know)

2009-08-18T20:05:00.002-07:00

"You're the first teacher I've seen who can do the jerk." - Sierra, age 11, August 18, 2009

My Lemond: A Love Story.

2009-08-16T21:04:00.009-07:00

I love my Lemond bicycle. It's one of my favorite things. I have been getting a ton of use out of it this summer, which I consider to be the most fun summer since the summer of 2003.

Here is my Lemond frolicking at the beach.

Here is my Lemond at the park, near the swings.

Here is my Lemond on its way through the golf course.

New Bicycles

2009-08-16T19:12:00.005-07:00

The other day I got this new bicycle frame as a gift! I had wanted a Peugeot for a long time, and I almost bought a very similar one a few years ago. I intend to build it up as a single-speed porteur.

These old french bicycles have a distinctive long fork rake, which gives it a distinctive French ride, in comparison to newer bicycles such as my Lemond.

Here are two articles on the subject: LINK LINK

specs:
frame : peugeot carbolite 103 steel, lugged ~1981 vintage
crank: stronglight

Also, I have this lovely girlbike in my stable:
specs:
frame: Raleigh step-through, grey ~1970s vintage
drivetrain: Sturmey-Archer 3 Speed, thumb shifter
wheels: 26" with newish tires
fenders: matching body-colored painted
accessories: wald front basket

The girlbike is for sale. $200.

I dream in song;

2009-06-28T20:11:00.005-07:00

Last night I dreamed of two songs:

"Red Elephant" by Sunny Day Real Estate. In my dream, the part after 1:06 was blindingly loud.

Stay around
Running out
Time servant
Trip through the warm wind

Feeling
Sulking
My impression grows
Swayed stars part of my room
And you...

You climbed the wreck
Cold diamond heart
Still beating
And no one ever knew the reason why

Well I'd suspect
You would come to terms
With my hand
My eyes reflect your surface very well

Why'd I compromise
Swayed stars and time is slow
The way you restarts again

I'm all talk again
I'm on top of the world
The way you restarts in me too

The night a field and I'll take you there
The years of worry aren't my century

We climbed the wreck
Cold diamond heart
Still beating
And no one ever knew the reason why

"King of the Road" by Piebald. I love the first lines of this song, which inform the listeners what the band members have been occupied with since their last record.

Here is a live performance from their final show:

Andy went back to school. He got sick of Newbury comics
Aaron still rides a lot, except now, now he's just fatter
Alex took over for Alex Van Halen after his major surgery
John, well, he got married to Laura and I teach their kid in first grade

Thought I saw you on the road last night
I need to get my eyes checked
can't beleive I loved something as yellow as you
he's gone, so deal with it, man
wait, after all, you did get us across the world and back

Would you park at the station
my mind is playing tricks on me
can't believe I loved something as yellow as you
he's gone, so deal with it, man
wait, after all, you did get us across the world and back, hell yeah

Loved you in a Carolina
i need to rub my eyes
we keep your door like it's a postcard from you from camp
maybe see you at a junkyard soon
oh man, i really hope not
can't believe I loved something as yellow as you
he's gone, so deal with it, man
wait, after all, you did get us across the world and back

Maybe you're in auto heaven
oh man, i really hope so
can't beleive I loved something as yellow as you
he's gone, so deal with it, man
wait, after all, you did get us across the world and back
wait, after all, you did get us across the world and back, hell yeah

Sarah

2009-06-24T00:29:00.001-07:00

Could someone email me the tracks to Sarah Records 83: The Sugargliders:

http://home.clara.net/koogy/sarah/disco/083.htm

I'd love it.

Music Review: That Dog. - Retreat from the Sun (1997)

2009-06-20T20:25:00.006-07:00

I have always liked That Dog, ever since I first heard them, but somehow I managed to live my life without owning any of their records. That changed a few months ago when I got "Retreat from the Sun," their last album, now 12 years old.

This record is so great. Basically, it's mid-nineties "alternative" rock but all written from a female bias. This means lots of incredible harmonies from the Haden sisters who are in the band. This means lyrics only women would come up with, like "we'll have wedding rings and baby seats." The lyrics are perfect, not cliched, and give the band its own voice.

To call this album "cutesy" would not do it justice, because it packs a bite. It's actual pop-rock and this record holds its own against other records from their friends Weezer, and even Jawbreaker, who they counted as friends. It's also got the superhits "Minneapolis" and "Long Island." They name-check Low in "Minneapolis", which I truly didn't catch until around the songs's 60th listen.

This album definitely did not do well commercially. I don't think it was popular at all. I think this is because the record label released "Never Say Never" as a single. This song is ok, but "Minneapolis," "Long Island," "Being with you" and "I'm gonna see you" are all way better songs. "Never Say Never" is kind of abrasive in a bad way. The other songs are super-poppy love songs.

Music nerds are always lamenting the end of some imaginary era of music, so I suggest checking out this record for a fresh serving of mid-1990s pop-rock. I really like this album and I listen to it all the time.

Music Review: Brand New - The Devil and God are raging inside me (2006)

2009-06-20T20:04:00.005-07:00

I've always liked Brand New. Back in the day I saw them play once in Buffalo and once in Syracuse. I even hung out with them once. One of my friends always told me he was friends with the singer's little brother.

I picked up this record sometime in 2007, which was rare for me, because it was a major label release and I'm a card-carrying indie snob. I had heard them play the song "Jesus" on TV and was really impressed. The song drones in a hypnotizing way, and the guitar parts almost sound like Explosions in the Sky. The vocals are almost stream-of-consiousness styled, but work great because there are more dynamic parts. The song starts off in an almost Pavement-level middle voice but then get into pop-punk territory toward the end. Also, I had loved Deja Entendu, and we played that heavily on WGSU.

This album has some really pretty parts and just some relentlessly heavy and abrasive parts. I love the varied production, which I consider a response to the Audiogalaxy era. The songs contrast each other really well, just like on other great records of the 00 era like "Lifted" and "Yankee Hotel Foxtrot." The songs are sad, but expansive. It's pop-punk but it's experimental and ambitious.

This record has staying power. I'm very excited to hear the follow up.

VW: Pointless Love

2009-06-20T16:40:00.005-07:00

In May 2009, as a reward for serving me so well as a daily driver, I bought my VW a new ignition system. I purchased the Crane XR-700 Fireball ignition. Basically, this replaces points and condenser with an optical sensor that triggers an electronic computer that makes the spark happen. This is simpler and better because it uses fewer moving parts.

In the last year the points failed a few times; once camping, and twice on my way home at night. I had to get the van towed. Hopefully the VW will be more reliable now. For the time being, I have abandoned the idea of trading it for a BMW.

For more information on this system, click here.

[Where the VW is always hypothetically always parked: the corner of hate and failing. photo by me circa march 2009]

Now that summer's here...

2009-06-06T19:51:00.002-07:00

Perhaps the greatest pop-rock song of all time:
"Girl From Mars" by Ash

I love Ash so much.

Soundtrack for Students' Dream Opera

2009-06-02T22:17:00.002-07:00

1. "The Chicken Dance" Tiny Tim
2. "Beat It" Michael Jackson
3. "Awake on a Train" Múm

Running Time: 16:18

a few songs i like right now:

2009-05-25T22:55:00.001-07:00

"being with you" that dog
"young adult friction" the pains of being pure at heart
"re:stacks" bon iver

I woke you up to say goodbye.

2009-05-17T02:11:00.004-07:00

The Lucksmiths, my favorite band that's still together, have decided to break up. I've seen them play four times, and the last time I saw them, when they closed with "The Year of Driving Langourously" I knew I might never see them again.

Also, Motopizza, home of the $5 pizza on 82nd in Portland, has closed.

I'm not sure how I can carry on.

Here are the lyrics to "the year of driving langourously:"

Darling roll the window down
I can't breathe
And I want to feel the northerly down my sleeve
I love a sunburnt elbow pointing to the sea

And, darling, can't you find us something on the radio?
A song to pass the time
Sweet and slow
Conversation was forsaken long ago

It's getting worse
You've hardly said a word
Since you set eyes on the horizon
But I've seen the other side of that ocean there
And it can't compare

Has it really been a year?
How did those days just disappear?

We held our breath across each bridge
Til we were blue
But I wonder if I wished the same as you
Like a ten-year-old pretending
Summer isn't really ending

It's getting worse
You've hardly said a word
Since you set eyes on the horizon
But I've seen the other side of that ocean there
And it can't compare to this
So I'll steal another kiss
Before the sun goes down on this fibrotown
And we give chase
Like all those other days
I suppose it's no surprise
We drive, time flies

Has it really been a year?
Where the hell do we go from here?

Car of the Month: DEFENDER NINETY

2009-05-09T18:25:00.005-07:00

Today I saw a tan Defender 90 on the street. It had no roof, padded rollbars, and four dudes living their lives riding in it. I was very jealous, and thus this month's Car of the Month is the Land Rover Defender 90. Pictured above is one of the same color of my VW Bus.

I've been spending a lot of time lately riding around in a Chevy Silverado, which just makes me love trucks. Of course, most my main ride is a 1971 VW Bus, which I consider more of a truck itself. I love the big roof rack I recently acquired for my VW Bus, and roof racks are a standard Land Rover tradition. I am a sucker for long lived industrial designs, and the Land Rover Defender (as it was finally named in the 1990s) is mostly the same as the original Land Rover designed in 1948.

I would love to drive one sometime. I love that they're all boxy. I love that all the lights are round. I love that they were designed to be completely disassembled and put together using only hand tools. I love the vents that open under the windshield and that the door hinges are on the outside.

The Defender 90 was imported in small batches to the United States in 1994 and 1995. They still sell for well over $20,000 on the used market, unlike its sibling the Land Rover Discovery, which can be had for less than a nice Vespa. There are a few of them here in Portland and I upon seeing one I always shout "THE SUN NEVER SETS ON THE LAND ROVER EMPIRE!"

I'll go mainstream without kicking nor screaming.

2009-05-05T00:26:00.004-07:00

I played a show on Friday May 1, 2009 and this is what I played:

Intellectual Sweetie (the tennies, my old band, cover)
Syncronised Sinking (the Lucksmiths cover)
Do you love coffee? (braid cover)
Clover (newish song)
Kiss Me Thru The Phone (Soldja Boy cover, abandoned quite soonish)
Frost (newish song)

I love this song by Soulja Boy.

The Story of My Honda Elite 50.

2009-03-22T23:17:00.010-07:00

Like many people who are so deep in something that they forget just where it started, I have to remind myself exactly how I first started riding scooters. After working in the summer of 2002 at my dad's warehouse, I became the first kid in my college town to have a scooter. I bought a 50cc Honda Elite from Christman's Honda in Palantine Bridge, New York. It cost me $460 out the door, and I also bought a white 3/4 helmet.

I rode it home pretty scared of it, being my first time on the road. I didn't tell my mom I was buying a scooter, but my dad brought me there to pick it up. It was so light to ride - much lighter and smaller than the Vespa that replaced it. It accelerated quickly and was really nice to ride, especially through the rural areas where I lived.

It was a 1987 model, which was kind of a one-year-only type of deal for Elites. It had electric start, a broken odometer, and a plastic top case trunk. I think I had one new tire on the back, but I think both were that old-fashioned type of tread, not the nice style ones that we have now that offer a really smooth ride. Like all Hondas, the suspension was really soft, but since I had nothing to compare it to, it was great. It always started and never broke down. I didn't do any maintenance on it ever.

I brought it with me to Geneseo in the fall and locked it to a tree outside with a big cable lock. The first night I was there some drunk girls were sitting on it, and in the morning it was all knocked over. Its cover was strewn about 10 feet away. I was really upset about it, and got up early to take it to Dunkin Donuts. I added a few stickers to the trunk - Lookout Records, and one that said "R2 is my Co-Pilot."

The campus people gave me tons of trouble for having it on campus and not paying for a parking permit, so in a few weeks I had to move it to a bike storage that Mahoney told me about over by his apartments. Luckily, no one ever bothered it there, except for one day I came back and it had its trunk filled with leaves. I was really upset about this until a few months later when my roommate Greg eventually confessed to it.

In the summer of 2003, I stayed in Geneseo, living off campus. I kept it in a weird closet under the steps to the above apartment at our cheapest-in-town duplex. I found out about mail-order performance parts and got a Proma brand expansion chamber and some Malossi variator weights from a site called VT Cycles in Hawaii. I brought the bike to a Moto Guzzi shop in Avon for them to fix it. They called me halfway through the operation and said "Hey we found this weird part - do you want this back in?" I said "No! That's the restrictor! Leave that out!" Riding it back from that shop, I was scared because it was going so fast! It now did 45 MPH in the flats!

Different people had different nicknames for the scooter, my favorites being "T-REX" and "The Red Menace." I rode all over on that thing, including numerous 50+ mile sojourns from Geneseo to Rochester and back. The first one of such trips was a wednesday night when I met up with the Negative Image Scooter Club and rode with them. That was also the first time I ever passed a car on a scooter, even though I was at the back of their pack. We rode in a pack to Mendon Ponds State Park, where it started to rain and we broke up. I overshot and missed a few turns on the way home and I think I ended up in Hemlock at one point.

After that I rode to Conesus Lake a bunch of times. I rode in the cold but did put it in storage in my uncle's basement for the winters. I rode with people on the back even though it was never designed for that. Pretty much all my friends rode on the back of it at some point or other. Geneseo never really had any place to go, so mostly I just went to Dunkin Donuts or Wegmans, or just rode around in the countryside outside of town. I never rode the scooter to go to class or anything. Geneseo was just too small for that.

The scooter had its only break toward superstardom when it was featured in my friend Dhaval's short film "Catharsis." The film also featured my band, The Castawaves. The film really combined those two major forces in my life. I had brought back a drum kit in the fall of 2002 and started the band. I had the idea to make a music video for a Castawaves song involving me riding around on the Honda randomly giving out flowers to girls, but we never filmed it.

I can't remember exactly when I sold it, but I think it might have been just right when I came back from England; probably January 2004. I sold it to a friend of a friend in Rochester, who never registered it, and who had it stolen and impounded. Dan took me to get it out of impound, but by the time I heard of this the cost to get it out was $330 and it reportedly had a lot of damage to the front end, so we had to walk away.

I took the money from the sale of the scooter and put it toward my white Vespa. The Honda was one of the best purchases I ever made.

A few songs I love, right now.

2009-03-13T22:00:00.001-07:00

Pretty much any time Christianity and alcoholism are mixed in a song, it's a winning combination. That is why I like this song by The Hold Steady entitled "212-MARGARITA."

This is my current favorite for listening while driving the VW. "Ghost Town" by The Specials. Please, if anyone would like to buy me a gift, purchase me the "Ghost Town" shirt from Supreme.

I found this video a few weeks ago (and by a few weeks ago I mean Valentine's Day). It puts original footage of Busby Berkeley's shows with the great Magnetic Fields song.

PHISH REUNION

2009-02-09T23:23:00.001-08:00

I've been listening to Phish all weekend, and found this, which made me giggle a lot.

Cold Weather Challenge

2009-01-26T21:11:00.003-08:00

Today's scooter ride home qualifies for the 2strokebuzz.com Cold Weather Challenge.

Name: Michael Morrissey
Temperature: 28°F
Distance: 10.3 miles
Location: Portland Oregon
Date: January 26, 2009
Time: 6:30 PM to 7:40 PM
Scooter: 1979 Vespa P150

Your CWC story: I was getting kind of bored with my breadloaf bus, so today I rode the rickety yet trusty old Vespa to work. I wasn’t even thinking it would be cold, but this evening was really chilly. I work in deep SE portland, and live in NE Portland. I went about 4 and a half miles out of my way on the ride home to run in and get some hippy food at New Seasons at 33rd and Alberta. There was ice and some snow outside still. I saw a red motorcycle at one point also riding, which made me happy. The food was worth the extra distance traveled on the old putt putt.

Route: Deep SE, up 82nd to Fremont, New Seasons at Alberta and 33rd. Back out Killingsworth to my house in NE.

Giorgio Bettinelli

2009-01-02T15:34:00.001-08:00

This is the Wikipedia entry for Giorgio Bettinelli, as translated from Italian via Altavista Babelfish:

Giorgio Bettinelli
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giorgio_Bettinelli

You go to: Navigation, tries
Nothing sources!
This voice or section of biographies not filler sources or references.
You can improve this voice adding citations from reliable sources, second the lines guides on the use of the sources.

George Bettinelli (Cream, 15 May 1955 - China, 16 september 2008) has been a journalist, writer and Italian traveller. Graduated in letters near the university of Rome, it is famous for its long four completed travels to edge of a Vespa. In fact during its permanence in Indonesia, like payment of a series of debits, he comes to it given a Vespa of which he falls in love himself immediately.

Its first travel leaves from Mentana, dov'era resident, in province of Rome, 1992 with Saigon destination, where it will arrive nine months after - March 1993 - having covered 24,000 kilometers. According to part from Anchorage in order to arrive to the Earth of the hard Fire and from 1994 to 1995 along a distance of 36.000 kilometers. The third party joins Melbourne to Capetown, for a total of 52.000 km covered between 1995 and 1996. The last quarter and, called Worldwide Odyssey, is a real turn of the world, hard more than three years, from the October of 1997 to the May of 2001: the departure place is the Earth of the Fire and that one of arrival is the Tasmania. It covers 144,000 km passing for Alaska, the Siberia, entering in Africa through the strait of Gibilterra, and costeggiandola all till Gibuti passing an other time for Capetown, in order then to costeggiare all southern Asia from the Yemen to Indonesia, till the arrival in the last continent, Australia, and to the final destination, the Tasmania. During this last travel George Bettinelli it has been also kidnapped from a group of guerrillas in the Congo, in order then to be released after little time, derubato of all but with the life it saves. By now the expert pilot-traveller has decided not to stop itself, and therefore has carried out an other travel in the only great country from up to now not covered he: the China (where then it has been moved and married), to which the escape of its last book is continuation China in Vespa.

George Bettinelli is died in China, 16 september 2008, to the age of 53 years for an unexpected malore. There he lived from four years, on the rivers of the Mekong, with its Yapei wife. He was preparing an other book, this time on Tibet.

Bibliography [modification]

* In Vespa. From Rome to Saigon (Feltrinelli 1997), that it narrates the first travel
* In Vespa beyond the horizon (- Rusconi- 2002), 400 photos intensely lived during the 110,000 km of its first three travels
* Brum Brum. 254,000 kilometers in Vespa (Feltrinelli 2002): the others travels till the rapimento in the Congo
* Rhapsody In Black. In Vespa from Angola to the Yemen (Feltrinelli 2005)
* China in Vespa

Polar Bear Club

2008-12-20T00:32:00.002-08:00

Polar Bear Club is my favorite band from Rochester! Dan and I saw them a few months ago in Portland and totally surprised our friend Chris, the guitarist, who didn't even know we live here. Their sound is awesome sing along punk/hardcore. I just found this video of them playing The Get Up Kids' song "Ten Minutes" and another video of them doing their own song that I love, "To The Engravers."

Polar Bear Club - "Ten Minutes" (Get Up Kids cover) from Brandon Finnegan on Vimeo.

Polar Bear Club - "To The Engravers" from Brandon Finnegan on Vimeo.

Christmas song: Vermont "Santa Claws"

2008-12-16T00:19:00.002-08:00

http://www.joanfrc.com/albums/santaclaws.mp3

Vermont - a side project of The Promise Ring, before Davey started Maritime - recorded this Christmas song, that I just found scouring Joan of Arc's website.

There are a lot of other mp3s on this site - you just have to go through the discography section.

THE END OF 2008.

2008-12-15T20:42:00.002-08:00

I wanted to come up with some all-encompassing top ten list, covering the year in music and the year in everything else, but I don't think I can truly do 2008 justice. This was the year where I found out anything could happen at any moment.

There's only one song that sums this up and this is it: THE ESCAPIST by The Streets.

All these walls were never really there, nor the ceiling or the chair.
I am eking weeks of peace on a beach.
I see the breezes weave the trees,
these walls you find - they’re yours and mine
confined not by them I
I am in times that lie behind my eyelids,
the sunsets steal the rising silence,

I’ll not feel no fear, cause I’m not really here
I’m nowhere near here

Theres no rain on roof that grates and beats me
my favorite tree breaking lights to pieces
sprinkling, sharded light on me
throw a stone as high as you can and hearing with hand not hear it land
nothing taxing, dusting sand
my window and world spins and twirls,
the walls then fall, i recall the sore
white clouds white wash faded spotless
the weighty shadows, ranges of rocks
the cold is all illusion thought up
the stroll on the shore, snooze and explore
all possibilities in each new morning,
until satisfied reaching out, yawning
fish in a big dish, some rice and spice,
Salt over shoulder, never salt in soaked eye
the truth I’ve told was silence sometimes
but who soul does not hide any crimes
wrapped in walls, encircled by work
the walls fall - this story occurs
no barrier, no boundary, all hours I please
the freedom to stay all stray
be fiend or friend, cause no harm but charm - the peaceful end

I’ll not feel no fear, cause I’m not really here
I’m nowhere near here

Pale ancient woods, strewn white sandy bays
this ugly room pales away today
I am swimming, in the ocean
I sink slow motion, fingers, toes floating
every year til yesterday
seeing the eternal setting sea
I compare all this to me,
little fleeting momentary me
I blink my eyes, this is reminding me
life lies in the blink of an eye
the old die for reasons, new tide, four seasons
new life born is like changing
all these walls were really never there
nor the ceiling or the chair
I am eking weeks of peace on a beach
I see the breezes weave the trees
I am not here at all,
you dearly fooled,
I see busheling trees, the shush at the sea
the mischievous
fluttering seagulls
No!
I’m not trapped in a box, I’m glancing at rocks
I am dancing off docks
since this dance began - that's where i am

I’m not feel no fear, cause I’m not really here
I’m nowhere near

New Ride: Lemond Poprad

2008-11-30T21:29:00.005-08:00

I bought a new bicycle a few weeks ago. I had been wanting a steel-framed road bike for a while, and have decided my bicycle is the one thing I will keep new-ish in my life filled with broken, vintage, and deteriorating whatnot.

I bought a 2004 Lemond Poprad off of some guy on craigslist. It was made in the USA of Reynolds 853 steel, presumably by one of Trek's bicycle factories in Wisconsin.

I really love this bike. Here are some of the parts:

Drivetrain: Shimano 105 2x9
Front Wheel: Bontrager Race Lite
Rear Wheel: Mavic Aksium
Tires: Continental Touring 28
Stem: Salsa
Brakes: Paul Neo-Retro
Fenders: Planet Bike plastic full fenders

Punk's Not Dead

2008-11-15T16:28:00.003-08:00

Oh wow! Jawbreaker/Jets to Brazil frontman and CUNY literature professor Blake Schwarzenbach has teamed with the Kerouac of Punk, Aaron Cometbus of Pinhead Gunpowder to form a new band called Thorns of Life.

This has made my day / week. Their sound is superpop/punk with the trademark Jawbreaker heavy / introspective break sections.

Alternative Press Videos on Youtube

Click for hi res image of them playing

2008-11-13T00:13:00.001-08:00

Dear US government,

Please just let GM die:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/13/business/economy/13bankruptcy.html

Sincerely,

me

New LUCKSMITHS album

2008-10-09T21:00:00.002-07:00

The Lucksmiths, my favorite band that is still banded together, have a new album. It's entitled "First Frost" and it's hitting my Discman and headphones in November 2008.

http://www.indiepages.com/matinee/catalog.html?id=cd049

The track listing is:

The Town and The Hills
Good Light
A Sobering Thought (Just When One Was Needed)
California In Popular Song
South-East Coastal Rendezvous
The National Mitten Registry
Day Three of Five
Never and Always
Lament of the Chiming Wedgebill
How We Met
Song of the Undersea
Up With The Sun
Pines
Who Turned on the Lights?

The Lucksmiths cheer me up. I can't wait to hear this.

Proposed Wall Street Bailout is Unamerican.

2008-09-29T13:01:00.001-07:00

This just in, I agree with a Republican.
Senator Jim Bunning of Kentucky states:
"The Paulson proposal is an attempt to do what we so often do in Washington—throw money at a problem.

We cannot make bad mortgages go away. We cannot make the losses that our financial institutions are facing go away. Someone must take those losses. We can either let the people who made bad decisions bear the consequences of their actions, or we can spread that pain to others. And that is exactly what the Secretary proposes to do—take Wall Street's pain and spread it to the taxpayers. The plan has not even passed, and already Americans are paying for it because of the fall in the dollar as a result of all the new debt we will be taking on.

I know there are problems in the financial markets, and I share a lot of the same concerns that our witnesses do. However, the Paulson plan will not fix those problems. The Paulson plan will not help struggling homeowners pay their mortgages. The Paulson plan will not bring a stop to the slide in home prices. But the Paulson plan will spend 700 billion taxpayer dollars to prop up and clean up the balance sheets of Wall Street. This massive bailout is not the solution, it is financial socialism, and it is un-American."
http://www.usnews.com/blogs/the-home-front/2008/09/23/sen-jim-bunning-the-bailout-is-un-american.html

Vintage VW Training for Vintage VWs

2008-09-15T19:29:00.001-07:00

Today, this video helped me adjust my Volkswagen.

Renaults

2008-08-27T17:51:00.001-07:00

Some of my photos were featured today on my favorite website, Jalopnik.com:

http://jalopnik.com/5042285/citroens-and-fuegos-roam-the-streets-of-portland

Honda Trail 90

2008-08-19T14:16:00.005-07:00

On June 3, 2008 Dan and I went to southeast Portland and he bought this baby, a 1965 Honda Trail 90. You meet the nicest people on a Honda.

Of course, my head wraps itself around the Beach Boys' song "Little Honda" at the sight of this "little motorbike." Here is a great video of the original song:

Being an indie rocker, I much prefer Yo La Tengo performing the song:

Lifter Puller - "Nassau Coliseum"

2008-08-17T23:16:00.003-07:00

Here is an incredible fan-made video for Lifter Puller's song "Nassau Coliseum." Lifter Puller broke up and sort of reformed as The Hold Steady. Lifter Puller was more noisy and abrasive, while The Hold Steady goes for more of a bar-rock deal in the best possible sense.

This video is incredibly weird, vulgar, and awesome. It should be presented with a South Park style disclaimer that states it absolutely shouldn't be viewed by anyone.

This song was inspired by a Grateful Dead concert at the Nassau Coliseum, on Long Island, NY, where the biggest drug bust in Grateful Dead history took place.

HOLD STEADY

2008-08-05T15:49:00.004-07:00

I just stumbled on to this site, an index of Hold Steady lves shows and radio session downloads:

http://holdsteady.blogspot.com/

They even have Lifter Puller stuff.

VW Microbus Best of

2008-08-01T18:07:00.005-07:00

Here is a link to some of the best pictures of Pre-1967 Volkswagen Split-Windshield buses, as selected by split window microbus fanatics of TheSamba.com

LINK

This is over 50 message board pages of pictures, but I highly recommend it. It is interesting to see people's perceptions of the car change over time. I believe the original VW Bus is such a subjective piece that people can place very different connotations to it. Hippie vs purely industrial, unsafe vs warm nostalgia; It's a strange psychological mirror of an automobile.

Above: 1. VW Samba as surfing icon, in garage surrounded by quiver of longboards. 2. VW Bus as American road trip icon. 3. VW Bus as chicken coop.

Megasquirt or not?

2008-05-20T18:23:00.003-07:00

I have been seriously considering converting my VW to nasty sounding, yet quite non-aggressive Megasquirt Electronic Fuel Injection.

Here, at the Samba, I am discussing it.

Ruckus all over USA.

2008-05-20T15:44:00.002-07:00

I came across this story today of some guy riding all over the United States on his Honda Ruckus. I would have met him at Spring Scoot, but he and I both only attended on one day, opposite days. It reminds me of everything I love about riding scooters. There are lots of great pictures in this account of his trip.

LINK

Secret Codes of Volkswagens.

2008-05-08T11:10:00.010-07:00

Every old Volkswagen has a little plate riveted to it telling a bit of history of the car. I found mine on my 1971 Bus behind the drivers seat and yesterday decoded it. I used the information found on Type2.com as well as TheSamba.com.

Here are the codes and their meanings:

12 = Unknown, possibly a code meaning 1971 model year
162 = Bumpers with Rubber Moldings
191 = Outer and Center Underfloor Reinforcement Plates (these reinforced the structure of the bus to compensate for the hole in the roof for the camping pop top)
E = Unknown

4747 = Neptune Blue on top and on bottom
51 = Dark Beige Leatherette Upholstery
A02 = USA DOT Specifications
177 = Rear Bench Seat
507 = Vent wings in Cab doors
697 = Rumored to be "Fitted With Continental brand tires"

10 2 = Date of manufacture: either February 10th, 1970 or Tuesday on the 10th Week of 1970
7998 = Unknown, possibly a serial number of production runs at the VW factory
UP = Port of Delivery was Portland, Oregon
2310 = Kombi wwith Sliding door on the right, Left hand drive
21 = Upright cooling 1600cc engine, Manual Transmission

I encourage all Volkswagen owners to use the online resources to discover the meaning of their M Codes.

The Oral History of WGSU

2008-05-01T11:48:00.001-07:00

I started a new site to compile the history of Geneseo, New York radio station WGSU, where I used to be a DJ.

http://theoralhistoryofwgsu.blogspot.com/

Volvo 164 Update

2008-04-23T12:15:00.011-07:00

Well, we finally did it. After months of scrounging for parts and lugging around two transmissions we finally got one into the reverse-less Volvo 164.

I am very pleased to report that after months of searching for parts, and 2.5 weeks in the shop, the 164 is kicking with the manual transmission. Anyone who has a 164 : this swap is completely worth it. The car is SUCH A BETTER CAR now. It does not sputter and die when cold starting, it roars and wants to peel out. The transmission makes all the power readily available and I love driving it. Jessica is pleased because it now goes in reverse.

If you didn't know, the car, when we bought it in June 2007, was equipped with a leaking, slipping automatic Borg Warner 35 transmission. This transmission is mediocre at best and only has 3 forward gears. I figured we could just put in a manual transmission at some point in the future.

We had initially wanted to do most of the work ourselves but we ended up taking it to a shop - a special Volvo shop - that would have all the right tools and knowledge. It ended up costing a lot more than we expected, as most of these old car projects tend to do.

These were the parts that I brought to the shop:
driveline
M410 transmission
another M410 transmission
pedals: clutch and brake
rear transmission support bracket

These were the parts the shop had to come up with:
crossmember (as it turns out this is common to 140 series cars)
front urethane trans mount
bracket for clutch pedal (custom fabricated)
redone clutch kit by Otts in North Portland
clutch cable

It was very hard to find all the parts but luckily the shop - Vol Tech in Portland OR - that did the swap (I do not have an adequate garage nor adequate skill for such an undertaking) was very resourceful. They pulled the crossmember off of one of their 142 race cars. They also fabricated a custom clutch pedal mount that looks very clean and well done.

In retrospect I wish I had done two things differently:

I wish I had gotten our full parts car over to the shop for them to take all the parts from. I had a parts car but only scavenged some parts from it before it was sold for scrap.

I wish that I had just gone ahead and installed the Ford Mustang T5 transmission. The cost would have been very similar in the end, and the availability of Ford clutches and trans parts all over would really have been nice. I have retained a spare M410 to have in case I still want to do this, but hopefully this will be the last of Volvo modifications for some time. I want the car's monthly cost average to drop to something more economical before we consider any more upgrades (megasquirt and spark conversion, new baseball glove style interior, bomber-style shark teeth painted on front fenders).

It feels good to have a truly unique car. The money I've spent on this pales in comparison to many people's Civics, BMWs, Acuras, etc that remain fairly commonplace and not as Jalopnik as my tastes. I definitely consider the 164 to be a type of found art, in a Richard Prince sort of sense.

I would like to thank all the people at Vol Tech, Cameron L., Suresh and Lee from Vancouver, William from SE Portland whose 1971 Volvo we ripped up for parts, and the people of Brickboard.com for all their help!

Further reading:
A history of the design of the Volvo 164 LINK

Rockets and Bluelights video

2008-04-22T19:57:00.000-07:00

Rockets and Bluelights : Forrest Green and Autumn

Video

The Sheep Market

2008-03-31T17:16:00.001-07:00

www.thesheepmarket.com

I like five songs.

2008-02-28T19:46:00.007-08:00

Sorry I never post on this thing very often. Dear reader, I missed the Pinhead Gunpowder shows thanks to my stupid full time job.

Songs I like recently:

"The List" by Defiance Ohio off of The Fear, The Fear, The Fear

"What is your secret?" by Nada Surf off of The Weight Is A Gift

"Time of The Season" by The Zombies off of Oracle and Odessey

"Looking for Astronauts" by The National off of Alligator

"Subject to the Ladder" by Broadcast off of Tender Buttons

Go find them on your own.

Greatest band in world announces 2 shows!

2008-01-21T18:53:00.000-08:00

Pinhead Gunpowder, who I would argue are the greatest band in the world, have announced they will play their 16th and 17th show since their beginning. Unfortunately the Anaheim show is sold out, and odds are the LA show will be too.

Pinhead Gunpowder "Losers of the Year" live 2001:

Low quality photography of bands: SPECIAL! Stephen Malkmus

2007-12-28T22:55:00.000-08:00

Stephen Malkmus (left) performing "Cut Your Hair" with students of the School of Rock.

Wonder Ballroom, Portland - December 28th 2007.

This may have been the oddest show I've ever been to. The whole thing was organized by Ben Barnett aka Kind of Like Spitting, a School of Rock teacher now. Other performers included Ben Gibbard, Hutch Harris (Thermals), Sam Henry (Wipers), Sarah from Unwound, and a dude from the Decemberists. My neighbors, the Shins, cancelled.

Three Songs:

2007-11-08T22:16:00.000-08:00

I was walking around today and it occurred to me that I'm the only person I know who really, really loves these three songs. I consider each to be really great examples of the specific type of music. See if you can hear what I hear.

Craig Morgan "Redneck Yacht Club" (2005)

Buzzcocks "What Do I Get?" (1978)

Phish "Punch You In The Eye" (2000 performance)

West of Wakefield - "Lottery"

2007-10-18T19:42:00.000-07:00

There is very little information on the internet about this band. They are called West of Wakefield and have one CD, the five song ep "Connecting the Dots." I believe they were from Michigan and released this CD around 2001. Here is the first song.

West of Wakefield - "Lottery"

I came across this as a DJ at WGSU in 2001. It has a real autumnal feel, with a song about winter. It's got a real midwestern pop-emo vibe, heavily influenced by The Get Up Kids and The Anniversary. The recording is clear, and I consider it so good it must only be listened to once in a year. Yes, pop punk worth savoring.

One of the members of this band went on to a band called Flashing Red Airplane, who are really good too.

Photo: Mamma Mias Pizza Geneseo NY Winter 2002.

Car of the Month: My Bicycle

2007-10-08T18:23:00.000-07:00

I traded my Raleigh Fixed Gear to my roommate Greg and I bought this, a 2003 Trek 1000. It was a 24 speed when I got it but I decided to go without a front derailleur, making it a 8 speed. It has aero-spoked wheels and an aluminium and is really stiff but nice for my commute. It's super light and fits me good. It is my first road bike and I like it.

Clinic - Walking With Thee

2007-10-08T18:20:00.000-07:00

Recent Record Purchase: Clinic - Walking With Thee

Vinyl, $4.00

Rate my ride!

2007-10-08T13:42:00.000-07:00

http://collectiblecars.nytimes.com/View_Listing.asp?ListingID=COL710085

The Mountain Goats on 2StrokeBuzz

2007-08-22T20:23:00.000-07:00

2StrokeBuzz.com, the blog I have been reading longer than any other blog, recently referenced a Mountain Goats song in a post about a scooter rally, trumping anything I've written recently.

Check it out: http://2strokebuzz.com/index.php/?p=3700

Kalpana, Unrest, SECRET TREAT!

2007-08-13T18:59:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry I haven't posted much lately, so here is a treat.

I've been busy at www.thepunkguy.com posting about Kalpana and Unrest.

I am a fan of radio shows on the personal portable mp3 player. Recently I've been working my way through a collection of This American Life mp3s. Thus, here is something for your ears:

LINK

Bob Nanna

2007-07-31T17:33:00.000-07:00

I discussed two of Bob Nanna's acoustic covers at thepunkguy.com today:

http://www.thepunkguy.com/2007/08/01/bob-nanna/

Apples OTE on Indie MP3! I join thepunkguy.com!

2007-07-26T22:01:00.000-07:00

After a new low of reviewing my own music, I have become the first other contributor to one of my favorite blogs, New York City's Thepunkguy.com

I posted one review so far: of NYC's punks, Gloryhole. Check it out.

Also, my band Apples of the Earth was reviewed on one of my other favorite blogs, Indie-Mp3.co.uk

Also the other day I found an Eames chair on the sidewalk with a free sign. I have been wanting one of these chairs for a while and now I have one!

The Music of Michael Morrissey.

2007-07-24T12:18:00.000-07:00

The Music of Michael Morrissey

Currently, I am involved with a project called Apples of the Earth. This began out of my friend Brads’ band Rocket Punch. Rocket Punch was a one person band, but Jessica was recruited through a Craigslist ad. Jessica had previously played in a garage rock band called The Flank. Rocket Punch played one show and wrote one song as a band and then reverted to a one man band. Apples of the Earth was formed directly thereafter and played one show and began recording. Here are two songs we’ve done.

“Pearl Jam is not a very good band.” This song is a response song to local radio station KNRK playing Pearl Jam so often, claiming they are an alternative station but still playing singles from nearly fifteen years ago. It is a joke in the sense that music can never really be qualified as “good” despite people constantly doing so. This song also displays my affinity for songs without choruses. I play guitar, sing, and play Hammond organ. Jessica plays drums. It was recorded in June 2007 on an Apple notebook computer using GarageBand and the internal microphone.

Link: Apples of the Earth - "Pearl Jam is not a very good band."

“One Fine Day” is Jessica’s favorite song to play. This song has choruses, albeit non-repeating ones. In an interview with the group Jawbreaker, I heard them describe parts of their songs as “grace notes.” This referred to the section near the end of the song that gave the listener and the band time to reflect upon the song, while not actually repeating it. It would normally be the part for the guitar solo, except the whole band plays equally. I tried to do that in the end of this song.

Link: Apples of the Earth - "One Fine Day"

“Smile, Come with me and” was originally a Castawaves song. The Castawaves were a band comprised of me on drums and my friend Jason on guitar. I borrowed a drum set and brought it to college during my sophomore year. No one else who wanted to start a band had a drum kit, so even though I didn't know how to play I decided it would be best to just start. This song is the first song on our EP, which was both entitled and released during the "Summer of 2003." TheCastawaves version of this song is slower and sounds like the Red House Painters, despite Jason, having never heard Red House Painters. For Apples of the Earth, we sped up the song a bit and played the guitar with a little more attack and bite. The result is an aggressive love song with passive lyrics. Jason wrote most of this song, but I wrote the drum parts and contributed the line “I’m with friends and I’ll ditch them for you.”

To hear the Apples of the Earth version click: http://www.myspace.com/applesoftheearth

To hear the Castawaves version click: Castawaves - "Smile, come with me and"

Like my childhood introduction to music, Phil Collins, I saw no problem with singing and playing drums at the same time. In Castawaves, I did just that. One of my favorite songs was the one that I took for the name of this weblog. “The Day We Never Went Home” is a semi-imaginary tale of running away from an undefined school. I have always loved runaway songs and consider them to often be more fulfilling to listen to than love songs. In the end of this song, I quoted lines from other artists I listened to a lot at the time, Elliott Smith and Pretty Girls Make Graves. All music is quotes from some other music, so why not just state it?

This recording comes from a live performance on April 26, 2003 that was captured quite well on minidisk. I think my drumming was at its peak then.

Castawaves - "The Day We Never Went Home"

The Tennies. In the summer of 2003 my friend Colleen and I had the great idea to secretly write and record an album that was entirely biographical. We chose our mutual friend and my roommate Joe M as the source of the stories for these. Songs are always so great when they are specific and local, and this really captured that feeling. After the album was complete we cornered Joe and sat him down to listen to it. Confrontation in art is always great and Joe was shocked at first, then flattered, and is now nostalgic that the songs captured his life in college for all time.

Two of the Tennies songs are available on my friend’s website at http://www.glassanimalindex.com/ in the “media” section.

“Kickback” was the story of Joe befriending a middle aged, NASCAR-loving, redneck co-worker named Dennis while working on the maintenance/moving crew at college. This song is another example of my affinity for songs without choruses. This song throws statements about Joe (“he knew how to operate a screwdriver and wanted to make ten dollars an hour”) and Dennis (“he has aspirations to buy a plasma big screen TV”) that tell the story and basically sets a high-water mark for fun. The name of the song comes from Joe’s on-the-job nickname due to his willingness to relax and take breaks.

The Tennies - "Kickback"

“A Secret Secret” is another song from the album, which we called “Oh! Poor Joe.” This one is meant to taunt Joe a bit, but then appeases him with a spoken word bit about how to gain infinite lives on Super Mario Brothers II. I don’t even like video games, but Joe said once that he’d pay me ten dollars to record me playing guitar and singing video game cheats because he thought it was so funny. We figured by track three Joe might hate us for making sport of him and his life, so we did this to cheer him up.

The Tennies - "A Secret Secret"

Michael Mahoney, owner of GlassAnimalIndex.com, remixed the songs, and you can listen to those on the site too. These songs were originally recorded on a Sony notebook computer with a standard computer microphone plugged in. I used a program called MultiTrack Recorder and sang and played guitar. Colleen played Casio keyboard and also sang.

When I first learned guitar and multi-track recording, I recorded four songs for a CD called “Fun Deficit,” but those songs are too old and embarrassing to show here.

Thank you for listening.

Weakerthans return to USA!

2007-07-23T16:18:00.000-07:00

My favorite band from Canada, The Weakerthans, are coming to the USA again!

Yes! They are supporting their new album, Reunion Tour, which should be good!

Click here for more information.

(picture: our friend Joe with John K. Samson of the Weakerthans)

Lucksmiths return to USA!

2007-07-19T18:19:00.000-07:00

The Lucksmiths are coming back to the USA this September to play shows. Though no tour is confirmed, my sources have these shows listed so far:

Seattle's Crocodile Cafe on September 24, 2007. LINK
Washington DC at DC 9 - September 30, 2007. LINK

That's not all! The Lucksmiths have a new double CD coming out entitled "Spring a leak" which, like "Where were we?" collects b-sides and rare tracks from the last few years. Reportedly, this is going to be 45 songs. After that they are going to do a new single and a new album. All these will be released in the United States on Matinee Records and elsewhere on Mark from the Lucksmiths own Lost and Lonesome Recording Company.

One track from "Spring a leak" is up for RA streaming on Matinee's site. It's a cover of their fellow Australians' band The Sugargliders' track "Dolly." I highly reccomend this track!!!

How to live in a van.

2007-07-18T11:13:00.001-07:00

http://www.rockinvan.com/slummin_it.html

THE HOLD STEADY

2007-07-11T16:25:00.001-07:00

For Joe Mar:

NPR explains three songs by The Hold Steady.

I recently visited California and the entire place struck me as not that sweet, except for San Francisco, which really turned on the charm toward me. The soundtrack to my trip was this song:

i can't believe i was worried about hurting you.
i should have kicked it with your cousin when i had the opportunity.
i was at some party and she said she had to talk to me
and then she didn't say anything.
i can't believe i worried about hurting you
while you were banging around the bars trying to scratch up something new.
you left me fifty bucks and nothing much to do
but think about getting back at you.

i heard that you've been back around the neighborhood.
you might be still strung out but you still look pretty good.
i heard that kid from california turned out to be an asshole.
i think i could have told you.
you left with burning bridges but you never saw the beach.
you had stars in your eyes but modesto's not that sweet.
when you only know one guy and he disappears for days at time.

i can't believe i was worried about hurting you.
i should have kicked it with your cousin when i had the opportunity.
i was at some party and she said she had to talk to me.
she didn't say much of anything.

Apples OTE mentioned on Indie MP3

2007-07-09T13:38:00.000-07:00

Apples of the Earth received an approving nod on indie-mp3.co.uk

http://www.indie-mp3.co.uk/2007/07/my-space-has-talent.html

(Photo: rain on the sunroof of my VW.)

Now in the carport.

2007-06-29T18:10:00.000-07:00

1971 Volvo 164! 3 Liters of Swedish brickness!

Wiki entry

Sarah 100

2007-06-12T17:58:00.001-07:00

I stumbled upon a great find. This blog has posted two Sarah Records compilations in their entirety: the last one, Sarah 100: There and Back Again Lane, and the first one, Sarah 587: Shadow Factory. Sarah Records is perhaps the greatest record label in music history. A boy/girl combination named Matt and Clare decided to do a label of all their favorite pop bands, releasing mostly seven inches. They had a zine called "Are you scared to get happy?" and included poems, mostly about being in love near some river in England, with each release. They decided to break up the label after 100 releases, noting their art was theirs to make and theirs to destroy, and it was perfect while it lasted.

Both compilations include the fantastic track "Pristine Christine" by the Sea Urchins, proving it as a true superhit. Shadow Factory also includes The Orchids great song "Apologies."

Here are bands featured:
The Field Mice, The Orchids, The Poppyheads, Northern Picture Library, The Springfields, Another Sunny Day, 14 Iced Bears, Boyracer, Brighter, Action Painting! and more!

Please do yourself a favor and download these if you have ever wondered what "pop" music would sound like on the radio in a perfect world, or in the future as imagined in 1966.

Sarah 100: There and Back Again Lane

Sarah 587: Shadow Factory

Sarah Records on Wikipedia

Stylus guide to Sarah's first fifty releases

Apples of the Earth - "Pearl Jam is not a very good band."

2007-06-12T14:45:00.000-07:00

I'm not going to give you an mp3 of this yet. It's not finished. But some recording is better than no recording. This is my band's song "Pearl Jam is not a very good band." You can hear it on our Myspace page: http://www.myspace.com/applesoftheearth

This song is a response song to the local 94.7FM KNRK radio station playing Pearl Jam all the time. I should also mention that we are available to play shows in the greater Portland, Oregon area. So book us a show at your house or at your favorite club! Here are the lyrics. Enjoy.

Pearl Jam is all you ever wanted in a band. You bought all their record company issued live bootlegs from their old tour. Did you buy them for the Who covers, or because you wanted to hear "Daughter" as performed in Milan, Italy in the summer of 1998? Would you like me
any better if I were Eddie Vedder. Yeah you would, and truthfully I would too. What's the song about the lonely woman behind the counter in the small town? I've not heard that one in years or if I did, neither I nor Jessica could remember it. What's the guitarists name anyway? Was it Mike? Did you like Yield, Versus, the new album with the avocado on the cover? Did you buy it the first week it was out? I tried to get you in to Pavement and Built to Spill. I made you a
CD-R of "There's nothing wrong with love," but I don't think you listened to it. So hey I give up, yeah I quit.

Boys Life - "Sleeping off summer"

2007-06-05T19:08:00.000-07:00

I'm going to rip off this blog and post a follow up to my Christie Front Drive post, which had encouraging comments from people I don't know!

Christie Front Drive did a split, one that I still don't have, with one of my favorite emo bands ever. The band released one of my favorite emo albums entitled Departures and Landfalls. This album I like so much because you can't even understand most of the lyrics and it has field recordings of rainfall and crickets and trains mixed in. I love it. It's one of my favorite true albums ever, in the sense that all the songs compliment each other for one artistic whole statement. I even bought a poster of the album cover for my room.

The band is Boys Life and here is track five from it, entitled "Sleeping off Summer." The picture above is a really cool treehouse I walked by this afternoon.

LINK

Christie Front Drive

2007-05-29T20:07:00.000-07:00

I have been meaning to post about Christie Front Drive for a while now.

I can't think of any good bands from Colorado except for Christie Front Drive. I bought their self-titled "Stereo" album last year for $5 at one of my favorite record stores.

Their songs are epic and actually sound like Colorado.

Here is a link to some of their tracks as well as an interview with the singer:

http://www.liepaper.com/eric.htm

Here is a link to a few more of their tracks from a fan site:

http://www.christiefrontdrive.com/

Low quality photography of bands: Part One.

2007-05-21T19:42:00.000-07:00

Of course, while I promise a series of compelling "greatest hits" and "best ofs" posts, it's only natural to start another series.

I used to be very opposed to concertgoers taking pictures of bands during their shows. In my old age, it's one of those things I guess I just don't care about, like boycotting Old Navy and The Gap.

I am not a very good photographer and I take pictures only with my cell phone. Here is !!! from a thursday night show a few weeks ago at the Someday Lounge:

THE VERY BEST OF...

2007-05-15T17:46:00.000-07:00

A lot of bands that I love are never going to be big. They're on the decline, they've broken up, no one knew them to begin with. It goes like this. But, in my mind they're huge. They're fantastic. And anyone who saw them years ago or even heard of them is rad. They've had superhits stuck in my head for years.

And it's better if this happened for my friends, too. This was the magic of college radio - there were secret superhits that only we knew about. Tons of bands like this: The Dismemberment Plan, The Weakerthans, The Wrens, Ted Leo. Bands that were sort of pop, sort of punk, all indie.

Now, it's been years since I first heard these bands. I feel I should be stopping by Best Buy picking up their "Gold" collections, their best ofs and box sets. But these bands will probably never have best ofs.

That's where I come in. I'm going to put together some best ofs for my favorite bands that will never have their own.

First on the list is Jawbreaker. I'm trying to get Dan into Jawbreaker, so I'm going to pick out my ten favorite songs and see if it works. Wish me luck.

My new ride

2007-05-15T14:41:00.000-07:00

1976(?) Raleigh Grand Prix fixed gear.
Thank you Dan!

Fixed gears are the new skateboards.

BOUNCIN'

2007-05-02T16:04:00.000-07:00

I've been listening to a lot of music from about ten years ago. Kind of unpredictably, I've gotten back into jam rock supergroup PHISH. I have been downloading many shows from www.momadance.com and enjoying them very much. My tattooed punk girlfriend refuses to hear about how DIY and great Phish are, how they are so DIY that they only play guitars made by their neighbor from Vermont, how they give all their profits from Phish Food ice cream to charity, how they have a great sense of humor, and how they became huge without any mainstream radio or pop culture support. Actually, I don't think any of my friends want to hear about how great Phish is. So, here is a performance of Phish's biggest "hit" - hated by all mid nineties Phishheads as the ultimate "newbie" song, only suitable for bathroom breaks mid set:

Bouncin Round The Room, performed in 1990

Maybe it's how I don't want to talk about politics any more and have a boring job that Phish's music calms me for. Maybe it was seeing the Phish tribute band Phix play last year. Maybe it's that I'm getting old and I actually saw Phish shows over the summer every summer from 1997 to 2000. I don't know.

My favorite Phish song of right now is "Punch You In The Eye". Look it up.

For the punkers out there I've been downloading all these tracks and loving them too:
One guy's history of Emo from the 1990s to 2000s:
http://www.canyouseethesunset.com/2007/04/spoonful-of-emo-revisited.html

My favorite song from this collection right now is Jejune's song from the split with Jimmy Eat World. I'm totally ripping off stuff like that and Unrest for our band Apples of the Earth.

Car of the Month: My Volvo

2007-04-18T18:11:00.001-07:00

My Volvo died on me a few weeks ago, so I sold it. I'm now driving my VW full time, with a lot of Vespa action in between and during the overtime. The transmission went out and needed replacement, and I don't have the cash for it and didn't want a new automatic transmission anyway. This car got me across the United States. A moment of silence, please.

Kind of Like Spitting - “March 25th, 1998"

2007-03-25T01:33:00.000-07:00

On Friday I was walking around town when I ran into Ben Barnett. Ben is the artist formerly known as the one man band Kind of Like Spitting. On my computer, the top two most frequently listened songs are Kind of Like Spitting ("You Got Served," "A Song for Annie's Harmonica") and so it really brightened my day to say hi to one of my favorite songwriters.

Ben told me he is getting training at Stumptown Coffee and has formed a new band that's looking for another guitarist. I forget the name of this new band, but I told him I would love to see them play when he gets it together. He told me to "myspace me" and then he and I both had to get back to work.

Here is my first favorite Kind of Like Spitting song:
Kind of Like Spitting - "March 25th, 1998"

What's your interpretation of the course of events that swings from a line on the outside of the fence. I got in a fight at the Team Dresh show and always fighting, me, it came off macho. And I am a lion roaring out loud. In my dreams I'm angry I never touch the ground. I feel like I'm flying somewhere underneath the sheets. I took your bracelet from the bathroom I've had it ever since we met. check your lipstick in the mirror, sway and swing your hips. Head out to the New Bad Things show at the end of Burnside at the oh hell used to be the x-ray, not all that familiar with the history of this town, only been here for a short while, but you knew it. Say your sick of all the narrow eyes and all the lies and the actors feeding on our hearts. We had this one drive, don't talk, don't lie. Everyone is on call for a job that they hate. Check the mirror, check the bathroom, check the toilet, filling up this room. Room that you made yourself from the hangers from the closet down, he was asking for it but you knew it.

Purchase the album "The Thrill of The Hunt" from Redder Records.

Apples of the Earth

2007-03-19T14:31:00.000-07:00

Apples of the Earth played our first show on Friday at "Plastic Matt's House" in SE Portland.

Here are the songs we played:

Bluelights
Smile, Come With Me And (Castawaves cover)
Wait (Secret Stars cover)
Pearl Jam is not a very good band
Giraffe (instrumental)

Thanks to Hurah Hurah and The Clearing for playing a show with us! I should really write about those bands because they are both fantastic.

Rocket Punch broke up.

2007-03-11T19:19:00.000-07:00

Sorry, fans. Rocket Punch broke up! Instead, Apples of the Earth, our new band, will be playing a house show this friday - March 16, 2006 - in SE PDX with Hurah Hurah and The Clearing.

Come to the show to hear the new hit "Pearl Jam is not a very good band" before it hits MTV Europe.

Car of the Month: Porsche 356

2007-03-04T16:05:00.000-08:00

Here is a lovely Porsche 356 my girlfriend insisted we take a picture of when we saw it on the street the other night. It is kind of hard to believe these cars have a basic flat four 1600cc engine - the same as my Volkswagen Bus. The silver paint is nice, but the tomato interior really does it.

Jawbreaker – “Accident Prone" (live)

2007-03-01T16:46:00.000-08:00

Last weekend I was in a minor car accident. Everyone is okay, though. No one was hurt. I was wearing my Jawbreaker shirt and so here is one of my favorite Jawbreaker songs.

The song isn't about a car accident, but here it is nonetheless.

Jawbreaker - Accident Prone (Live - April 30, 1996)

It's off their fantastic live album which is available from Blackball Records.

What's the furthest place from here?
It hasn't been my day for a couple years.
What's a couple more?
And if I go, don't forget the one good thing I almost did.
I learned your name without words.
I used my eyes, not my hands.
What's the closest you can come to an almost total wreck and still walk away,
All limbs intact?
And when I go, you'll be there crying out, begging me.
I won't hear.
I'll just go fast into this night on broken legs.
A near miss or a close call?
I keep a room at the hospital.
I scratch my accidents into the wall.
I couldn't wait to breathe your breath.
I cut in line,
I bled to death.
I got to you, there was nothing left.
What's the meanest you can be to the one you claim to love
And still smile to your new found friends?
In the same confusing breath,
You pull away and draw me in.
I wanted you. You wanted more.
I built this life and now it's mine.

PREEMPTIVE V DAY

2007-02-06T14:21:00.000-08:00

Pre-empting Valentine's Day, here's one of my favorite Valentine's Day songs. It's off of an out of print compilation entitled "Ooh Do I Love You." I like this song because it's a ridiculous metaphor and also references the band singing the song ("the Plan has love for everyone!")

THE DISMEMBERMENT PLAN - "THE LOVE WAR"

http://www.dismembermentplan.com/plan_audio/mpeg/dplan_the_love_war.mp3

Everybody here is a freak
And if you disagree you're even weirder
The world should disinherit the meek,
So let's go for broke and arm the gates of authority
It's what we allow,
And if we're better looking then victory is ours
To spin the bottle, baby, and how,
We've got a war to win, let's win it now

The love war was won with a single love bullet from a love gun
And the Plan has love for everyone!
Don't be left out when a love war breaks out Yeah, oh-wah-oh-wah-oh-oh
It's treason in this town to not be getting down
Yeah, oh-wah-oh-wah-oh-oh
And every day could be Valentine's Day (Oh, oh, oh, YEAH!)

Lovin' is a threat to The Man,
And if he had his way he'd squash it out right
Despising what he can't understand,
So arm yourself and defend your letter
Try to make a joke of it might
But the history of freedom will never be denied...
The carriers of liberty's lights: Oh, Jefferson, Voltaire, Thomas Paine, and Barry White!
The love war was waged by a million love soldiers in a love rage,
And the Plan is fighting every day!
Better pick a side when the love war arrived Yeah, oh-wah-oh-wah-oh-oh
Lives to be loved and the love war needs you all Yeah, oh-wah-oh-wah-oh-oh
It's treason in this town to not be getting down Yeah, oh-wah-oh-wah-oh-oh
And every day would be Valentine's Day
And everyone would love to choose to love in their own way
So do your part; the traitors are kissed at dawn, that's what they say
And every day could be Valentine's Day!

V90: We could do this the easy way or we could do it my way.

2007-01-16T19:31:00.001-08:00

I do everything the hard way. I am sanding my project Vespa by hand with 220 grit sandpaper. I am almost done. I am spraypainting it later. Here is what I have so far.

THE DAY WE NEVER WENT HOME

“Give me the luxuries of life and I will willingly do without the necessities.”

getting out of school and getting out of hand.

Why buy new?

Mike Skinner aka The Streets reemerges

PODCAST 2 "here's where the story ends..."

Club 8 - Spring Came, Rain Fell

My Favorite Japanese Cars

Vespa flashback, summer of 2005

Nissan Pao

Vespas must go.

PODCAST

Eye for OG PAINT

ALTERNATIVE ROCK APPROVE!

Vespa Revival.

How Those Days Just Disappear.

Kind of Like Spitting - "Valentine's Day is over." (Billy Bragg Cover)

My Favorites

NEW FUN DEFICIT

give me THE CURE

No, wait. This is what I want.

This is what I want: BMW 2002

Rollfast Sold

FOR SALE: My Vespas

Point / Counterpoint

Golden City

"You're A Jerk" (I know)

My Lemond: A Love Story.

New Bicycles

I dream in song;

Sarah

Music Review: That Dog. - Retreat from the Sun (1997)

Music Review: Brand New - The Devil and God are raging inside me (2006)

VW: Pointless Love

Now that summer's here...

Soundtrack for Students' Dream Opera

a few songs i like right now:

I woke you up to say goodbye.

Car of the Month: DEFENDER NINETY

I'll go mainstream without kicking nor screaming.

The Story of My Honda Elite 50.

A few songs I love, right now.

PHISH REUNION

Cold Weather Challenge

Giorgio Bettinelli

Polar Bear Club

Christmas song: Vermont "Santa Claws"

THE END OF 2008.

New Ride: Lemond Poprad

Punk's Not Dead

New LUCKSMITHS album

Proposed Wall Street Bailout is Unamerican.

Vintage VW Training for Vintage VWs

Renaults

Honda Trail 90

Lifter Puller - "Nassau Coliseum"

HOLD STEADY

VW Microbus Best of

Megasquirt or not?

Ruckus all over USA.

Secret Codes of Volkswagens.

The Oral History of WGSU

Volvo 164 Update

Rockets and Bluelights video

The Sheep Market

I like five songs.

Greatest band in world announces 2 shows!

Low quality photography of bands: SPECIAL! Stephen Malkmus

Three Songs:

West of Wakefield - "Lottery"

Car of the Month: My Bicycle

Clinic - Walking With Thee

Rate my ride!

The Mountain Goats on 2StrokeBuzz

Kalpana, Unrest, SECRET TREAT!

Bob Nanna

Apples OTE on Indie MP3! I join thepunkguy.com!

The Music of Michael Morrissey.

Weakerthans return to USA!

Lucksmiths return to USA!