Butch

I went and saw Butch Walker over at the Paradise a couple of nights ago. Now my initial annoyance at not being able to find a place to park or eat beacuse Snow Patrol was playing right next door and the entire area was a mob scene was mollified by:

1) The nice Korean meal I had for dinner. Apparently Snow Patrol fans and Korean don't mix, as this place was largely empty.

2) The excellence of a Butch Walker show.

Never mind the first two bands. Rocket was terrible, and the other band was decent but forgettable, as evidinced by the fact that I can't remember their name.

I've seen Walker now a half-dozen times, twice at the Paradise, twice at Axis, once at the House of Blues (R.I.P.) and once in Atlanta. If you count the fact that I saw his previous band once also at Axis, then I've seen him seven times. And he always brings it. It's consistently one of the best shows I've seen (in a "smaller club show" not a "massive concert production" sort of way.) Dude is a natural frontman, with a very good grasp of how to work a crowd. It helps that his fan base does seem pretty devoted, I'm sure. Top that with some great tunes, and it's always money well spent.

I found myself reminiscing as he played "Joan", a sad little piece about reading the letters of a woman that killed herself. It's from the album "Letters", which came out two eyars ago when I was down south for a week. The day it came out was the day I was leaving South Carolina to head up to Nashville. Figuring, "what the hell?", I stopped by one of the local WalMarts on my way to the highway to see if they had it, so I could listen to it while driving. They didn't; no surprise there, really.

So when I pull into Nashville some 8 hours later (I would have gotten there more quickly if not for being pulled over just outside of Atlanta, and the resultant stict speed limit driving that ensued) and got myself checked in to the hotel room, the first thing I did was grab the phone book and look for the nearest record store. I found a Tower not too far away, so I headed over and picked up a copy. I then proceeded to drive aimlessly around Nashville listening to it. "Joan" reminded me of this because it was a song I was particularly struck by upon first listen. But the point of thsi story is something different.

You never really love music as much as you do when you're in your teens to early twenties. I believe that. It doesn't have the impact it does at that age. In fact there have been studies that show that many people's musical tastes stop developing around their mid-twenties, and what they've liked up until that point is largely what they'll continue to like. I've noticed the same in myself. Not that stagnating tastes, but the fact that although I still love music, it's not nearly as powerful as it used to be. Compare it to a relationship. It's hotter and more passionate at the beginning, and tends to mellow as it goes along. But I get excited that I can still sometimes get excited for an album to the point that the only reason I'm driving aimlessly around a new city as in my car as soon as I get there is so that I can listen to it.

Other note: Also at the show Wednesday, Walker played a song I'll call "State Line". I don't know the actual name of it because it's a hidden track on the "Letters" CD and doesn't have one listed. I missed it when I was first listening to the album, but caught it later when I was driving out of Nashville and heading back down to Atlanta (oddly enough to go to the Walker show I saw there). I remember it coming on as I was getting close to the border of Tennessee and Georgia, in a particularly scenic area that has some small "mountains" that you wind between, as well as a nice river, leading into what looks like the equivalent of a mill town. It's not important, just a nice memory of a pretty area.

Where do we go now - update

New news on the selling of our house front. My landlord called last night with more details. Apparently she is going to convert each of the three floors into condos and sell the 1st and 2nd floor separately, and move in to the 3rd floor herself.

Although this still doesn't speak to any definitives as to what will happen to us when the place is sold, it leans a lot further in the direction that I don't want. Which is that we'd probably have to move. According to my landlord, who works in real estate, typically when people buy condo units such as this, it's usually to live in, not to rent out.

On top of the questions about what my roommate will do (see previous blog on matter) I now have to concern myself on what to do. As stated before, I want to stay in the same area. As stated before, I cannot currnelty afford to live alone. As stated before, I would prefer to live with someone I already know. These things greatly narrow my options. To accomplish the first two, I might have to forego the third.

Also, I'd rather not be in a situation where I have more than one roommate. I've done the multiple roommate situation before and don't particularly care for it. Even when you like the people you live with, it can tend to feel crowded.

Man, am I high maintenance or what? So many conditions.

Since I really have no idea when the house is going to be sold, this is still all sorts of speculation. I have nothing solid to go on. But I do need to start preparing, so I can be ready. Which means talking with my roommate to see what she wants to do. And also, probably start peeking at Craigslist for apartment listings. One thing I might ask my landlord, (if it comes to it), is if I see a good listing that I like that is for before our lease is up, can I break the lease to grab it? (This of course assuming that it has already been decided that we'll have to leave.) Considering that my landlord is being super nice about this whole thing, I'd hope she'd be cool with it.

She did also offer that if I knew of anyone looking to buy, to let her know, and if she sold to them I could have a commission. So....anyone looking for a condo in Medford?

New music

I've been discovering some recently. Some of which I've mentioend here already, some I've not. But there's been some damn good stuff.

Corinne Bailey Rae. Mentioned her already. Great mellow, jazzy, bluesy album.

Lucero. Rough edged alt-country.

Amy Winehouse. New soul is what you'd call it, I guess. A lot of the vibe and stylings of soul, but also with some modern touches. Like the word "fuckery". And a song called "Rehab" that she wrote and released as her first single after firing her management that suggested she perhaps partake in said activity. Gotta love a chick with balls. And who sticks to her principles of denying sobriety. This album took a few listens to get into.

Nick Drake. Checked out one of his albums after reading a description of him in "A Long Way Down" by Nick Hornby. Pretty mellow 70's folk-rock, but definitely sounds pretty good.

The Twilight Singers. Krista has mentioned these guys a bunch of times and finally I decided to check them out. Wow. So far I think two of the albums---Blackberry Belle and Powder Burns---are great. And the others definitely have their moments, and may just need some additional listens to climb up the ladder of regard. I'm not really sure how to describes these guys. Their arrangements and songs defy easy description, but I've really been digging on these guys the past few days.

Where do we go now?, part 2

I get a call from my landlord on Friday night. She asks me is Sara (my roommate) is home, because she wants to talk to us. Sara's not home, so I call her and figure out when we're both going to be around. Call my landlord back and schedule a time to meet Saturday morning.

Now this all seems rather ominous. She wants to "talk to us", but we don't know why. There is, of course, wild speculation. And it turns out that the first thing that both Sara and I guessed was the correct thing.

She's selling the house.

Now this doesn't mean anything for us now, as the process will likely take a while. And even though she's putting the house up on the market this week, and even if it did sell quickly, it wouldn't legally mean anything to us until the end of July because that's when our lease is for, and no matter what we have the right to stay until then no matter who owns the house.

But obviously there's a lot of uncertainty once we hit that point. If this house isn't sold do we re-up a new lease? Maybe go tenant at will? And if the house is sold, will the new owners want to keep tenants? Will they not? Will they, but at a higher rent? A lot of questions here.

Given a choice I would like to not have to move. I like the apartment, I like my roommate, and I'm really getting a good grasp on where the best take-out places are.

But if it turns out we did have to move, that also raises more questions. Would we try and find a new place together? Would we not? She's been with her boyfriend for a while, maybe they'd want to get a place together. Does that mean I need to find a new roommate? Because let's face it, I can't afford to live on my own yet. Not until the car payments are done, (or if I were to get something like 17 times my current pay.) Especially considering I'd want to stay in the same Medford/Somerville area and it's not the cheapest place I could live. But at the same time, I'm not as into trying to find a place with someone I don't already know. I'd rather have an idea of what I'm getting into first. But my options on that front are slim at best.

So, there's essentially a lot of questions. None of which can be answered right now. And that's just wonderful. This news just put a capper on what was a weird and subtly tense week.

Where do we go now?

Of course the big news here at the 'B has been that we're moving. The entire stretch of University Ave. that we're on has been bought by a development compnay (Cabot, Cabot, and Forbes) and is being transformed into a hotel/shop/restaraunt center. They've bought up all the land from the highway down to (I think) the set of lights. They've bought out all the companies along that stretch, including us. And we have until January 1, 2008 to split.

We've known this for some time now. A year, maybe even two. And of course, the big speculation is where will we be moving to? And the answer...we don't know. Well, by "we" I mean us plebian workers at the peon level. Several "deadlines" where we were supposed to be informed of our new home have come and gone, including the latest one yesterday. I can understand on one level. The rumor mill around the building has it that a new late contender entered the ring just recently and because of that we needed to check it out. But by the same token, that same rumor mill has been working overtime, and rightfully so. Even with no concrete information, people are going to talk. This is a big deal.

My concern is that moving an entire business, including people and infrastructure is a huge undertaking, and MIB has a histroy of not being the quickest of companies. And the longer it takes to make a decision, the longer it is until we can start preparing. That same rumor mill has us moving anywhere between September and the end of the year, and every day is one day closer to that. And the closer we get without a decision of where we're going to be, the larger I imagine the clusterfuck is going to be when we do actually move. Because that January 1, 2008 deadline for us to be out, as far as I know, is a hard one. No leeway there. I could be wrong about that, but it's what we've been led to understand.

As for me, I just want to know where we're going to be. Some of the options I've heard mentioned might actually make my commute easier. But I just want to know where my new desk will be, and will I be sharing it with someone, and will there be a cafeteria, and will our current cook get to work there? Important questions. Oh, and if I could find out the exact week we'd be moving, can I get that week off for vacation? Because I can't imagine it going smoothly.

UPDATE: It's later in the afternoon from when I first posted. We've gotten an update. Our new deadline is now mid-April, as we are currently in the "negotiaton" phase. What we know is that we will not be having a new building constructed for us by Cabot, Cabot, and Forbes here at our current location. (This was an option offered by C,C,&F when they unveiled their plans for the area.) This however, is not really news, as we've known that for a long time. More that's just a bone thrown to us so it feels like we're actually getting information. One other thing that we've learned is that we will be in a multi-tenant building somewhere. This means that when we move apparently our cafeteria and maintenance staffs will be out of a job. But it also raises new and important questions, like: Since the 'B is what I'd call "hottie deficient", will other companies in this as yet to be decided new builing contribute in raising the eye candy quotient? Important stuff.

Pros and Cons

The con: The past week or so I haven't been inspired, or even interested, in playing my guitar. It seems like every time I pick it up, I just end up staring at it. This happens to me every now and then, it's not unique. Of course I always get nervous when it does happen, wondering if I'll ever be interested in playing it again, but it always passes, so I have to defer to the logical part of my brain that tells me: "Wait it out. You'll be itching to play again in no time."

The pro: In lieu of not wanting to play, I had to find something else to occupy my time so that I wasn't watching TV and playing video games from the moment I got home from work to the moment I went to bed. So I revved up a different part of my brain and worked on a short story idea I've had bumping around for years. And more importantly, last night I finished it. This is the first story I've finished in quite a long time. Now, while working on it, I had in the back of my mind the entire time the reminder that I wanted to try and work more within a draft system. That is, when I used to write before, I hated writing in drafts. Hated it! As a result, I'd try to get everything exactly right the first time. And as a result of that, I'd very easily get stuck at some point and not be able to continue. Which is why over the years, the wrecks of half finished stories litter my drawers.

So this time I kept mentally telling myself: You are writing in drafts. You will be doing this over. Just get the story out and worry about the rest later. So, the story may have been finished last night, but it's not good. Not in it's present form. It needs some whipping into shape. I'm taking a week off from it to decompress, to let it percolate, and then I'll start on a second draft of it. The entire thing is on paper, and now all I have to do is make it readable, and hopefully enjoyable.

But the important thing, to me, is that I got it out. I actually finished one. It's been so long since I've done that.

This is why we can't have nice things.

Here's a list of all of the non-maitenance realated ills that have befallen my car since I moved to Medford approxiamtely a year and a half ago. (Note: not all these occured in Medford.)

1) Break-in #1. This occured outside my apartment. The clever thieves made off with two dollars in change.

2) The accident. This occured while I was down in the southwest with my family. I come home to a note on my car with a phone number. Call it to find out that, in defiance of all laws of physics and reality, that some guy's car somehow backed out of his driveway, made a 90 degree turn and into my car. Unbelievable? For sure. But since there was no damage to my car, I let it slide.

3) "What the hell happened to my bumper?" Return to my car after the Black Crowes concert, as it's sitting in the parking lot of the Tweeter Center, only to find the back bumper half ripped off on one side. How it happened, I'll never know. Luckily, there's a piece that it snaps back into. It's not "fixed", but it works.

4) Break-in #2. Near Mass. Ave. at Boylston. Smashed back window. Stolen iPod.

5) Tagged!. This occured last night at some point. Came out to my car this morning to see a nice splat of white spray paint on the front door.

These are the "Not normal in the pace of the day" occurences. That doesn't take into account the car maintenance issues. One dead battery, which is fine I guess as it was about time for a battery replacement, being that they only last 5-6 years. One back brakes replacement, which was annoying because my brakes went from 0 to grinding in the space of one night, and I didn't even get a warning that I should replace the pads and spend less than the almost $800 that cost me. One malfunctioning hood mechanism, which briefly made it seem like my hood would fly open if I drove too fast, and also could not be opened by conventional means. And one catalytic converter sensor replacement which was also annoying, because while the catalytic converter was covered by the waranty, the sensor inside was not?!?!? What?

If I were a superstituous man, I'd say that Medford was cursed for cars. Or maybe just me, because it seems like almost all my cars have had major issues. Well, which isn't that odd, considering most of my cars have been heavily used beaters by the time they got to me. How much is a T pass anyway?

Ahhh, sweet tunes

Have you ever had one of those days where every album you've chosen to listen to has really hit the spot? That's me today so far, mostly. Without further ado...

Motley Crue - Theatre of Pain: Motley Crue fans don't seem to like this album. Hell, Motley Crue themselves don't even seem to like this album. I don't understand why. Sure, it could have maybe sounded a little better, but so could 90% of the albums that came out in the 80's. Admittedly I could do without ever hearing "Smoking in the Boys Room" again, but aside from that it's a pretty damn good album. And for my money, "Home Sweet Home" is right up there with "Sweet Child O' Mine" for one of the most memorable hard rock guitar solos. I think that maybe there was some backlash because it was maybe seen as a disappointment after Shout at the Devil. I can understand that; it isn't as good as SATD, but none of their other albums are. You can't chastise a band for not putting out their best album ever every time they put out an album.

Rush - Presto: OK, this is where the "mostly" in the first paragraph comes from. Before today, I would have told you I really only like 3 Rush albums; their first one, 2112, and Presto. But listening again today, Presto seems to have lost a little of its luster for me. The production seriously does not help either. It's a very weak "sounding" album. I still think it's a decent album, with some catchy tunes, but I just don't enjoy it as much as I used to.

So on to...

Rush - 2112: The first side of this album is one 20 minute long concept song about....well, I don't know what it's about. But who cares, it's that damn good. And what makes it even more amazing is that I don't particularly care for indulgent prog-rock that much. But something about that side one I just get off on. And I haven't even listened to it high yet. (But you can bet I will be soon.) And if that weren't enough, side two is another solid five stand alone tunes. Also, about what, I have no idea. To be honest I tend to just tune out Neil Peart lyrics, because while sometimes clever, they're often too cute or goofy for me to get behind. I mean c'mon, he supposedly used trees as a metaphor for political unrest in England centuries past. Enough said.

Stereophonics - You Gotta go There to Come Back: I got a copy of this album from Brian who liked one of the songs from it that he heard on a Nissan commercial. What I like about it is that it sounds like it could have been at home coming out 30 years ago, and not just a few scant years back. I also really dig that, for me, there are no couple of stand out tracks, but rather the album seems to fit together, song to song, really well. It's an album that is enjoyed more as a whole than as parts.

Drive-By Truckers - The Dirty South: This was my first exposure to the Truckers, and I always have a soft spot for the first album I bought from artists I like. But what a great 1-2 punch in the first two songs, "Where The Devil Don't Stay" and "Tornadoes". Even before I'd heard the rest of the album that first time, after those first two tunes I knew I'd be buying more Truckers. What are they like? Southern story-telling rock. The type of band that sings about Buford Pusser, moonshiners, down on their luck folks, a double concept album based on Lynyrd Skynyrd, etc. Hell, they even have a song about incest that's actually really pretty. And really, who can't appreciate a band that passes around at least two (that I saw) bottles of Jack Daniels while playing a live set? Who, I ask you? Communists, that's who.