Happy Vespa

Today I got this carburator in the mail. It is what's known as a Vortex carburator. It is a Spaco/Dell'orto style carb modified by a scooterist in California to be more adjustable and to give a bit better performance. I worked on my scooter and put it mostly back together and took it for a spin around the block. It started up and sounded very angry. I believe it was upset because during the two years I have owned it I have always run a 102 main jet, not knowing any better. Now, I know better and have a 116 main jet. That is a big change. It means the Vespa gets a lot more fuel. This carb is designed for a lot more air, thus the scooter's engine is burning a lot more and going faster. I am very pleased with this. A large portion of this pleasure comes from me putting it all back together single-handedly (with some counseling from my housemates, a phone tutorial from Al of Hot Rod Scooters, and more counseling and parts lending from The McCabes). However, after a few blocks the Vespa died and had to be pushed home. It made weird clouds of smoke out of the carburator top that if I were superstitious I would believe would have something to do with halloween. I am sure something small is wrong with it. In any event, the ride around the block was smoother and quicker than ever before.

Also, today I watched The Fast and The Furious: Tokyo Drift and it was pretty awesome.

The Wrens - "She Sends Kisses"

(With Youtube.com having been bought out recently, I figure I might as well post up this great video for you to enjoy whil I still have the chance. It's "She Sends Kisses" by The Wrens, off of "The Meadowlands.")

she sends kisses
ten tons against me and you’ve gone
I put your favorite records on
and sit around
it spins around
and you’re around again
struck dumb while drugs run at how high reeds
cue every memory at half-speeds
just like….charles, hold-me-downs
I’m-coming sounds
cut crap, who’s filling shoes like these anymore?
past clumsy crushes beneath Thrill Pier
hopes pinned to poses honed in men’s room mirrors
a sophomore at Brown
she worked Lost & Found
I put your face on her all year
from five rows of photos when you wrote
of posed you, dressed blue, a backyard boat
signed at the bottom with this quote:
(#4 North Shore) a cape may address
your new one I guess
‘all’s well in hell and all here’s hoping’
she sends kisses
some signed ‘with Love, Beth oooooo xxxxx’
she sends kisses
same old beth - some signed 666
our shore town knockdown sure was fun
yeah, white trash, what have you
I fired replies back gun by gun
past Seven Wrecks I read your four answers:
1. your move
2. I’m tres involved
3. move on
4. love, Beth
I walk it down
this tourist town
‘just thought I’d’ calls
just friends
she sends kisses
and all at once back doors blow open
she sends…. in envelopes stamped w/ ‘Hope & Hearts’ - ripped right open
she sends…
but I’m corrupt - I wrote back good luck

Kind of Like Spitting - "Valentine's Day is over"

Only a short time ago I was lucky enough to see Billy Bragg play. Tickets were kind of pricey, and thus I could not find anyone to go with me. Most of my friends had never heard of Billy Bragg, and I could only give so much explanation about how he was a big influence on tons of our favorite bands (The Weakerthans and Ted Leo are the ones that quickly come to mind). I definitely knew Billy Bragg would be great, and so I went it alone. I got to sit in the front row! I hardly ever go to shows with seats and rarely if they have seats, will I sit in the front.

Billy Bragg was fantastic. His between song banter was really great and despite me only having one of his albums, I knew a lot of the songs he played.

I figured I might run into someone I know there, and I figured that person might be Ben Barnett. I've met Mr. Barnett on a few occasions, and I saw him walking up the street with a cup of coffee in his hand a few months ago when I was driving to work. Unfortunately, I didn't meet anyone I knew there, but I did have lovely chats with the other people there by themselves (an older woman who was so happy to meet Billy a few years ago at a show in the midwest, a kid who looked exactly like me). Also, I recently heard Ben Barnett is not going to be recording under the Kind of Like Spitting name any longer. At one point a year or two ago he was supposedly going to record with my friends Kalpana as his band and be called Worker Bee. (He was even billed as Worker Bee formerly known as Kind of Like Spitting at a NY show.) In any event, had he been there I would have thanked him for introducing me to Billy Bragg through this cover.

This song is "Valentine's Day is over," which was originally off of Mr. Bragg's "Workers' Playtime" record.

Kind of Like Spitting - "Valentine's Day is over."

Buy Kind of Like Spitting releases at Redder Records

Someday boy you'll reap what you sown
You'll catch a cold and you'll be on your own
And you will see that what's wrong with me
is wrong with everyone that you want to play your little games on

Poetry and flowers, pretty words and threats
You've gone to the dogs again and I'm not placing bets on you
coming home tonight
Anything but blind
if you take me for granted than you must expect to find
surprise, surprise!

Valentine's day is over, it's over
Valentine's day is over

If you want to talk about it, well you know where the phone is
Don't come 'round reminding me again how brittle bone is
God didn't make you an angel
the devil made you a man
That brutality and the economy are related now I understand
When will you realize that as above
so below there is no love

Valentine's day is over, it's over
Valentine's day is over

For the girl with the hour-glass figure, time runs out very fast
We used to want the same things, but that's all in the past
And lately it seems that as it all gets tougher
Your idea of justice just becomes rougher and rougher

Valentine's day is over, it's over
Valentine's day is over

Thank you for the things you bought me
Thank you for the card
Thank you for the things you taught me when you hit me hard
That love between two people must be based on understanding
Until that's true you'll find your things all stacked out on the landing
Surprise, surprise!

Valentine's day is over, it's over
Valentine's day is over, it's over
It's over

Old Project

I am putting some new parts on my old white Vespa. They are performance parts, and they are both hand-me-down parts from these scooters:

Portland's own THUNDERTURD

NYC's UrbanBarn Scooter

It seems like these parts are going to a fitting recipient.

New Project

I got the first bit for a new project in the mail today. It came in a huge box and I forgot that I was getting it so I was surprised. Here it is. Can you guess what the project is?

Vitreous Humor - "Why Are You So Mean To Me?"

This band is named after the liquid in eyeballs, and actually live up to such a name. They are a midwestern emo band who did a split record with one of my favorite bands ever, Boys Life, and this song was on it.

It's also on their record "Posthumous," which was the first record I bought after moving here. I found it for $2.50 at CD Exchange on Hawthorne. The whole record is really good, but this song and the first song "My Midget" are incredible. This song was recorded in 1994 and sounds better than anything else I have that was recorded that year. Apparently this band was courted by the major labels, but never signed. Thus, "Why Are You So Mean To Me?" is a secret superhit.

You might know this song because a "popular" band, Nada Surf, picked it up and covered it a few years ago. That's where I first heard it. Their cover is really good, but this original version is screamin' great. The guitars sound like the ocean on rocks and the drums are anxious and may not even be on time but still sound spot on. I hope you like this song.

CLICK THIS LINK, SISSY! then click "FREE" (bottom right)!

Vitreous Humor at Crank! Records : link
Vitrous Humor at MySpace : link

The Promise Ring - "Electric Pink"

Continuing on with the "Music My Sister Wants to Hear" series, we have the song "Electric Pink" by one of my favorite bands ever, The Promise Ring. I think of The Promise Ring as a very summery band, except for their early stuff like on The Horse Latitudes, which I consider to be a little bit autumnal and nocturnal.

This is one of the songs my sister would hear in the car with me driving. It's off of their EP of the same name, which came out after "Very Emergency" but before "Wood/Water" (both of which I associate with the summertime). Please listen to this in honor of an Indian Summer.

CLICK ON THIS, SISSY!

This disc was really great because it's artwork is almost all just a solid pink block on the cover, but with the song titles in small type at the top. One of the members of The Promise Ring is a graphic designer, so all their albums had fantastic artwork that made you excited to be buying their albums. This EP also included a re-recorded version of the song "American Girl" which was off of their "Boys & Girls" EP, which is an interesting statement in itself. It's kind of self-indulgent, but kind of neat and relaxed. It really lets the band get out their material in a great way. I wish more bands took having fun as seriously as The Promise Ring did.

I live on a small street, with very small shoes but in a big house, with a big wardrobe. I've got the whole world in my hands; it's a small world after all. And there's not much to say on five bucks a day, and there's no other way, so we're just hanging around. For the weekend to come we're all hungry and dumb for Friday. Please don't press that we dress, high heels and loud shoes are a mess step out with quiet feet. I'm pleased to meet; meeting is so hard to do when you're dead. Between a wink and an earthquake there are conversations and complications go on, on, and on I pretend that I understand my hands and the rest are only a test. To be paid to be pressed when we end we will be softly kissed.

Yeah, I feel electric
Pink in the cheeks
We look like animals
Seven days a week
I'm too polite
You're too brief

{There's more of The Promise Ring, including buying their stuff, at www.jadetree.com
I love The Promise Ring so much, I'll probably post more of their stuff soon.}

Dressy Bessy - "I Saw Cinnamon"

My sister lost all the songs on her iPod. She wants me to send her some songs that she likes that I introduced to her. I told her to just download a bunch of new music that she'll probably like, such as Lily Allen. She never had this song, "I Saw Cinnamon" by Dressy Bessy on her iPod, but she's had it in her head for years. I saw Dressy Bessy play in 2002 at CBGB's and it was great. They are named after an old Playskool doll. This song is a superhit, by all means. So, here it is.

CLICK ON THIS, SISSY!!!

Buy Dressy Bessy's stuff at www.dressybessy.com