Thursday, September 30, 2004
Missing Out Again
I'll be missing another film fest movie due to scheduling conflicts! This time, it's Chinese Restaurants on the chopping block, seeing as I'm going to the Student Marketing Association's Marketer's Night, which I originally thought, was on Wednesday night. Ugh. At least I know I'll be seeing Iron Pussy, and most likely Searching for the Wrong-Eyed Jesus and Wall Street/Sandcastles. Tsuburo is gone too since I need Sunday to write my short-yet-still-work essay for my Canadian Studies class.
And I thought I'd get some free time now that I'm working!
NP: Elliott Smith - Shooting Star
posted by Hanson |
11:45 PM
Wednesday, September 29, 2004
Busy Tuesday
I took a walk during my lunch break today and picked up new discs from Sarah Slean ("Day One"), [ex-Dismemberment Plan front dude] Travis Morrison ("Travistan"), and Devendra Banhart ("Nino Rojo"). For the rest of the day, I spun the new Slean non-stop, which pretty much speaks for itself. My favourite track so far is probably "The Score," though I'm sure that'll change from day to day.
While at Scratch, I also picked up tickets for the Death Cab/Pretty Girls Make Graves. The price is a bit steep ($28), but for two amazing bands at a venue with a great sound system, it'll be well worth the money
I watched the new Gilmores after getting back from school after spending 3 hours working on a presentation for a marketing competition happening this Friday. Between my dinner at 11pm and lunch at 12:30pm, all I had were three granola bars. Suffice it to say that my creative juices were not flowing as they usually do, which meant it took us a half an hour of head-scratching just to come up with a company name. This all meant that we didn't have time to practice, which will cause to miss my film fest movie on Thursday ("Lest We Forget"), seeing as we have to practice after I get off work. *sigh* ... the things I do to win....
NP: (typing)
posted by Hanson |
12:24 AM
Tuesday, September 28, 2004
Give Me My Waylon, My Patsy and Gram
The film fest began for me in earnest today. After work, I pop over to the Granville 7 to check out Fallen Angel, a documentary about country maverick Gram Parsons. Before I saw the film, I didn't really know much about the man beyond the basics, only that he was a country legend, died young of an overdose, and was name-checked my Mary Lou Lord in her song His ND World. The film was informative and engaging, giving the audience a glimpse into the life of an extraordinarily-talented man and his path towards inevitable self-destruction. And obviously, the soundtrack was pretty good too.
Next up will be Thursday's documentary double bill of "Lest We Forget" and "And Thereafter." Hehe. Doesn't seem like a popular choice, that.
NP: Mindy Smith - One Moment More
posted by Hanson |
12:31 AM
Monday, September 27, 2004
Jenny Jenny You're So Fine, You're So Fine You Blow My Mind
Though the openers left me wanting more, Rilo Kiley absolutely ruled the school last night in Seattle. I had to leave a marketing simulation contest early just to get to Neumo's on time, but the show was well worth the 6-ish hours of driving. Providing entertaining for the road were the David Cross and Patton Oswald comedy CDs that Carlos brought along, which had us laughing while we were stuck in the notoriously-bad Seattle highway traffic.
After a quick stop at a Burger King, we got to Neumo's 20 minutes the show -- or so we thought. The line up wrapped around the club baffled me; the show was all-ages, so why weren't people let in quickly? By the time we got in, Tilly and the Wall had already started their set, 10 whole minutes earlier than originally scheduled! And yeah, that meant that Now It's Overhead were up second, not Tilly, which meant that they'd get a longer set! As much as I love to see Maria Taylor and Orenda Fink strut their stuff, I'd rather see the girls (and boys) of Tilly and the Wall play music.
Disappointed, I got as close as I can to enjoy the 20 odd minutes that was left of their set. To make matters worse, Neely (the tall, Chan Marshall look-alike one) was sick, so she couldn't do much more than sing back up. While I'm all about the Kianna singing (she's the Samaire Armstrong look-alike), hearing Neely at full strength would've been nice. And I totally wasn't close enough to gawk at watch Jaime do her tap dancing thing. Boo! For the few short minutes they played, Tilly were great, but the aforementioned hiccups left me feeling a little meh.
After Tilly and the Wall, another let down -- no Maria Taylor. Now It's Overhead came out -- Orenda Fink in tow -- but instead of the lovely Maria Taylor (wo)manning the guitar and keyboards, it was some dude. Doh! I guess I've never given Orenda her due, as she was ultra cute too, but I wanted to see Maria! Ugh. Their set was enjoyable enough given the circumstance, tall guy in front of my face notwithstanding, but another disappointment had me questioning whether or not the trip was worth it.
And then I saw Jenny Lewis, ample boobies and all. Her swaying fiery red hair immediately jacked up my giddiness to the level of "eeeeeee!!", and my excitement reached a fever pitch. Lucky for me, by the time Rilo Kiley took to the stage, I had squeezed myself up to the second row of people, the tall dude now stood beside me rather than in front of me. This meant that I had a great view of Jenny and the rest of band. Blake et al killed their respective instruments, and Jenny's voice just soared, drowning out even the most enthusiastic of sing-alongs. Other than "Accidntel Deth," they played every song off More Adventurous, plus a few old ones like Paint's Peeling, A Better Son/Daughter, and The Execution of All Things. While Blake rocked the guitar all night, Jenny played keys, bass, as well as a couple of different guitars. And her voice is just so, so great, and coupled with an energetic and skilful band, their songs just sprang to life. I mean, they're great on record, but hearing and seeing them performed live just gives them a whole new dimension.
So despite all the not-so-good things, it was still very much a worthwhile trip. Seeing Jenny sing live for the first time was special, a lot like the first times I saw artists that I absolutely adore (e.g. Sarah Slean, Sarah Harmer, Patty Griffin, Death Cab, etc.). I can't wait until Rilo Kiley comes to Vancouver for the first time, whenever that'll be. Maybe then I would have actually figured out how to take pictures that are not blurry.
NP: Mary Lou Lord - I Don't Wanna Get Over You
posted by Hanson |
12:29 AM
Saturday, September 25, 2004
Solo Style
Here's a great article on Tiny Mix Tapes about going to shows alone. Throughout the years, I've mastered the art, and this article is a pretty good summary of the experience. If I were to write an article about that, it would probably be similar to this one. So I guess that makes this some sort of redirect blog entry. Hmm. That was easy.
Rilo, Tilly, and the girls from Azure Ray tomorrow. EEEEEEEE!!! (And I won't have to go alone either!)
NP: Rilo Kiley - Glendora
posted by Hanson |
1:40 AM
Thursday, September 23, 2004
Stay (I Miss Her)
Lisa Loeb hasn't aged a bit since she caught my ear and eye 10 years ago (yes, it's been that long). Tonight, she dazzled the packed crowd at the Media Club with her angelic voice, catchy tunes, and charming banter -- not to mention her oh-so-cute look that totally gets me. She played tonnes of stuff from Tails, a bunch of new songs from her new album, and a few some the albums in between. After the show, I got her to sign my copy of her children's book/CD Catch the Moon. On it, she wrote "choochoo." Aw. Now you see why I had such a huge crush on her in junior high? (... besides the whole hotness thing...)
I'd write more, but I'm heading to work early tomorrow. Until next time.
NP: (nothing)
posted by Hanson |
11:32 PM
Wednesday, September 22, 2004
Moving Pictures
Spurred on by b*'s post on his itinerary for the upcoming Vancouver International Film Festival, I went and compiled a list of my own. My "Got to See" list includes:
- "Fallen Angel: Gram Parsons" (Monday, September 27, 7:00 pm)
- "Lest We Forget" and "And Thereafter" (Thursday, September 30, 6:00 pm)
- "Searching for the Wrong-Eyed Jesus" (Tuesday, October 5, 9:45 pm)
- "Chinese Restaurants: On the Islands" (Thursday, October 7, 7:15 pm)
Meanwhile, my "Want to See" list includes:
- The Adventures of Iron Pussy (Saturday, October 2, 9:30 pm)
- Tsuburo (Sunday, October 3, 1:40 pm)
- Wall Street / Sandcastles: Buddhism and Global Finance (Monday, October 4, 6:00 pm)
- Big City Dick: Richard Peterson's First Movie (Tuesday, October 5, 6:00 pm)
And sadly, my "I Wish I Could See But Couldn't" list:
- Finisterre
- Dig!
- The Machinist
- Stella Street
If anybody is seeing any movie that I'm seeing, give me a shout.
NP: Mindy Smith - Come to Jesus
posted by Hanson |
11:52 PM
Tuesday, September 21, 2004
The Boobies Are Just Icing
Gilmore Girls, the best scripted show currently airing new episodes, premiered tonight. Last season's finale was one of the finest hours of TV I've ever seen, and tonight's episode picked up were it left off. Actually, it did one of those overlap-y things, starting things off with *gulp* nekkid Rory (and Dean). I cheered, I cringed, and I enjoyed. Without Angel or Wonderfalls to look forward this season, the titular girls better deliver this year.
NP: (The Daily Show)
posted by Hanson |
11:20 PM
Monday, September 20, 2004
Better Than Caffeine
Sitting in front of a computer all day gives me access to countless internet radio streams. When I get to work, which is usually a few minutes before 9, I listen to the stream from KCRW, specifically the excellent Nic Harcourt-hosted Morning Becomes Eclectic. This morning, I got to hear such diverse acts as Nick Cave, Interpol, Earlimart, Franz Ferndinad, Kasey Chambers, Joseph Arthur, Laura Veirs, Jem, Rilo Kiley, and William Shatner covering Pulp's Common People (I'm not joking). It really is a great way to start the morning.
In the afternoon, I'll often turn to KEXP, a Seattle non-commercial station that plays tonnes of indie stuff. The only downside to KEXP is that they announce tonnes of Seattle shows -- shows that I'd totally go see if they were up here. Shows in Seattle being so close yet so far irks me sometimes, but then I think about the few that I do manage to go to every year, it makes me feel better. Which reminds me: Rilo Kiley (and Tilly, plus Maria Taylor and Orenda Fink) in 5 days!!
NP: (nothing)
posted by Hanson |
11:41 PM
Sunday, September 19, 2004
More Than a Thousand Words
Emmy winner Mary-Louise Parker. Words are not enough to describe her hotness.
NP: (Food Network)
posted by Hanson |
11:28 PM
All Work and A Little Play
Work is turning out to be a lot more draining on my time than I previously thought. On weekdays, I leave for work, come back 12 hours later, have dinner, watch that night's TV, and then go right to bed so that I'll be conscious the next morning. That doesn't leave much time for reading, surfing, and blogging. And that Canadian Studies course I'm taking right now requires a lot of reading too, which I mostly get done (or try to do anyway) on the bus/train.
That said, with work, unlike school, I actually feel productive at the end of the day. At school, I can work my ass off, feel all stressed out, and still not feel like I've done anything worthwhile (which would be true). Now, I may spend a lot of time at work, but at least I'm contributing, albeit in a small, co-op-y way, to my team's -- and therefore the whole department's -- progress towards shipping a new product. When the project is completed, it will be sold to customers, who'll be using it for years to come. Contrast that to school projects, when all you get back is a grade, and it'll never be looked at again, no matter how much work you put into it. For someone who values tangible results that actually make a difference (no matter how minute), the school undergrad environment is just not for me.
NP: Lisa Loeb - Diamonds
posted by Hanson |
6:00 PM
Friday, September 17, 2004
Prophetic
Hobbit wins. I totally called it. Now Theresa's free to do her own thing. Yay!
NP: Bright Eyes - One Foot in Front of the Other
posted by Hanson |
12:35 AM
Wednesday, September 15, 2004
Lose to Win
In case you were wondering, I only voted for Theresa once tonight. I see it more as a symbolic gesture, as I don't really want her to win. Why? For starters, that horrible song -- "Awake in Dream" or some shite like that -- she has to put out as a single if she did win blows balls. I think it'd be better for her career if she put out a regular album away from the Idol cheesiness. On her debut, let her do some covers, some originals, and some co-written stuff. If she won, her entire debut album would've consisted of cheesy Idol-esque songs, which would suck. For once, I hope she gets the lowest number of votes tonight!
NP: (The Daily Show)
posted by Hanson |
11:11 PM
Monday, September 13, 2004
More or Less
I didn't get home from work until 8:15 tonight, and it looks like it'll be that way at least once a week, if not more. That really doesn't leave me much time for TV. I'll either have to cut back, or simply become more efficient in my viewing, cutting back on the surfing and anything non-essential. I think I'll take a crack at the latter, which means I can continue to watch the Benefactor -- this is if it doesn't get cancelled first.
NP: (The Daily Show)
posted by Hanson |
11:57 PM
Sunday, September 12, 2004
Homecoming
I realize I'm falling behind on my blogging, having yet to finish describing my adventures in Asia and Seattle. I'll get to them eventually, since I want to have a record of what happened. For now though, I'll stick to recapping my last few days.
So, I saw me some Sarah McLachlan on Friday night. It was her first solo show in her adopted hometown in almost seven years, so it was something of a special event. A bunch of us from her email discussion list (i.e. "Fumblers") got together at the Shark Club before hand, so despite sitting alone, I wasn't going to the show alone. With the except of several Seattleites, I haven't met most of the people there, being that *all* of them were from out of town. It was cool to finally put faces to names.
The show itself was better than I expected. My seat was shitty, despite the fact that I bought them the first minute tickets went on sale. I was basically in the middle of the arena, two rows up in the lower bowl, and the stage was at one end. WTF? Seriously lame. Rocking it on bass was opener Butterfly Boucher (BOW-cher), who played a decent, big-sounding, rockish female singer-songwriter set not unlike Jonatha Brooke. I could only see her big green eyes on the twin video screens beside the stage, on the account of my crappy seats.
When Sarah came out, something just clicked. She opened with "Fallen," the first single off last year's Afterglow, and that voice just took me back in time. The song itself was not spectacular, but just hearing her sing live gave me goosebumps. She then did a whole bunch of tunes from her last album, sprinkling old singles throughout the set. Surprising, she did a lot more album cuts from Fumbling Towards Ecstasy, her masterpiece, than Surfacing, her commercial breakthrough. Renditions of "Wait," "Ice," "Fear" (completely with the splendid high notes I thought she wouldn't do anymore), and "Fumbling Towards Ecstasy" brought loud cheers from me, while songs like "Angel," "Adia," and "I Will Remember You" received similar applauses from the female-heavy crowd. (Speaking of which, that was one good-looking crowd). Two encores later, the lights were turned on, and I was left satisfied. Live, Sarah just brings it. Her voice is just so fucking incredible, and hearing those high notes on "Fear" -- sheeeeeeet.
Sarah was the first musician I truly loved, so in a way, she was my first love. And I suppose my feelings towards her are somewhat like those to a first love too; despite my indifference towards her current stuff, a part of me will always love her (music). That feeling that I got when she walked on stage was undeniable, and I'll see her every time she plays Vancouver. Pinky swear.
After the show, the group of us (plus a few who didn't make the pre-show get-together) went for drinks. When we walked in, these two girls picked me out from the crowd, saying they saw me dance and sing my ass off at the show. Hehe. I guess I stood out, being the only person in my section to get off my butt during the encore. I'm still surprised they recognize me though, and perhaps even more that they waved me over to their table to chat. Hmmm.
Anyway, it seems like I've left no time to talk about Resident Evil: Apocalypse or Saturday night karaoke. Maybe I'll get to those tomorrow, but then again....
NP: Theresa Sokyrka - What the World Needs Now (yes, I taped it and am re-watching it)
posted by Hanson |
11:51 PM
Thursday, September 09, 2004
She Works the Magicks
Wow. Getting up early and working a full day in front of a computer really tires you out. I fell asleep watching the Apprentice, and it wasn't even 10 yet!
In better news, THERESA!!! Now that she's one of the final two, I don't really care if she wins, as I'll be able to hear her sing the maximum number of times. In fact, her not winning might be a blessing in disguise; being tagged "the Idol" will automatically pigeon-holes her as a TV-made pop star, no matter how talented she is. And besides, I think Kalan the Hobbit has it locked anyways. All those screaming teen girls vote more than anybody. Well, I guess we'll see in a week's time.
Tomorrow, I get to see Sarah McLachlan's final show of her current tour. If this were 10 years ago, I'd be pissing myself with excitement. Now, I'm simply looking forward to a good show and some good company.
NP: Mindy Smith - Jolene
posted by Hanson |
10:37 PM
Wednesday, September 08, 2004
Shows Shows Shows
Internet's back. And all it took was some begging. Yes, I'm still going to post about my trips, but right now, I'm just going to say how glad I am that in the following months, I'll get to see Death Cab, Metric, and Lisa-freakin'-Loeb! Check my show calendar on the right column for details. Yippee!
NP: (TV)
posted by Hanson |
11:24 PM
Double Trouble
You might be wondering why I haven't posted about my Bumbershoot trip yet. Well, I haven't done it because my internet got cut off yesterday, mostly likely due to my brother's over down/uploading. Ugh. If you've sent an email to my Shaw account in the last day or two, I haven't gotten it.
To make yesterday worse, I left my car door unlocked while I was at work, and some fucktard took my CD player (with Rilo Kiley's More Adventurous in it) as well as my bag, which had my collection of buttons! Now, all my years of collecting has gone to waste. Fucktard.
I'm at work now so I'll keep it brief. I'll post more about my HK and Bumbershoot adventures once I get access back at home.
NP: Laura Veirs - The Cloud Room
posted by Hanson |
1:24 PM
Friday, September 03, 2004
Bye Again
Well, I'm off again, this time to Seattle for Bumbershoot. I'll finishing recapping once my weekend-o-music is over, which'll be sometime Tuesday morning.
NP: Mindy Smith - Jolene
posted by Hanson |
7:48 AM
Wednesday, September 01, 2004
Asian Tour 2004: Part I
It looks like I'm going to split the recap of my Asian Tour 2004 into several parts. That way, each won't be too long, and I'll be able to cram in stupid details like the pleasure of three-ply toilet paper. This also means that it'll be a while until I get to the talking Bill Clinton action figure, but such is life.
So, it started off with parts of four days in Tokyo. The plane rides weren't too excruciating, as I slept, ate bad food, read Robert J. Sawyer's Hominids, and watched Shrek 2 and most of Starksy and Hutch (I decided against watching the Laws of Attraction). We landed in Narita, exhausted because of the time change and long plane rides, and then took a bus to our hotel in Shinjuku. My mom got a deal from a travel agent so we got a pretty decent price at pretty posh place. It took us a while to find dinner, in the midst of the heat, humidity, fatigue, and jet lag, but we finally settled on a chain ten-don (tempura rice bowls) place that I had fond memories of the last time I was in Japan. We ate quickly and scuttled off to our room for so much needed rest.
The next two and a half days in Japan mainly consisted of walking, sightseeing, and buying drinks from the ever-present vending machines. We went to several museums, Tsujiki Fish Market, Akihabara, plus a day-long jaunt to Kamakura. Because my brother and I was traveling with my mom, we couldn't go at the break-neck pace we were at two years ago. As a result, we didn't quite get to all the places we wanted to.
That said, traveling with a parent afforded us a little more in terms of our food budget. This time, we ate better, including a sushi dinner featuring the best piece of lightly-seared toro sushi I've ever had (the uni was fantastic as well). Just thinking about that makes my mouth water.
Anyway, other than a sweet-ass pair of headphones, I didn't pick up much stuff in Japan. Of course, that changed when I got to Hong Kong, but I'll talk about that later. Other items of note during my stay in Japan:
- At some point during those days, I started calling my brother "Mookie" Muqtada al-Sadr (or simply radical Shiite Muslim cleric)
- Watching the same gold-medal-winning clips of Japanese athletes over and over again
- Constantly trying to translate people and place names from kanji to English
- Beating my brother at "Count the Whitey" (that was actually a misnomer; we counted black people as well)
- Finding CC Lemon (in big bottle form) during our second last day there
That's enough for today. Tune in tomorrow for more exciting recap action.
NP: Tilly and the Wall - Bessa
posted by Hanson |
9:44 PM
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