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Well, well, well…it’s been too long since I’ve written anything on this website. I know it’s been a REALLY long time since I’ve actually blogged. Mostly this functions as a place for album reviews. Yeah, I’ve totally had the intent of doing the concert reviews as well, but I’ve slacked magnificently in that area. I hope that I can sort of hunker back down and get back to work on this website, because I really do love doing it. It’s just that when other stuff comes around, this website is usually the thing that gets put on the backburner. Shouldn’t be that way, but that’s the truth. I don’t really do this for anyone other than myself. And for all I know, I only have 3 regular readers. Eh, whatever. I do it to amuse myself. We’ll see how I can do in updating this thingie.
So, what have I been doing since June 4th, the date of my last review? A few days after that I headed out for vacation to Texas and Colorado. I saw a lot of family and friends (yay!) and got to see two Iron Maiden shows (YAY!!!!). I caught the opening night of the tour in Dallas and then a few days later in Denver. I also saw the closing night of the tour in late July in Washington DC. It was really cool to be able to see opening and closing nights of the tour and of course, any time I can see Maiden play live I’m always happy. The Denver show was the best of the three. While it’s cool to see opening and closing nights of the tour, opening night there are some jitters and closing night the band is inevitably kinda tired. Dream Theater, the opener on this tour, was phenomenal on these shows and got better with each successive show. They totally out-played Maiden at the DC show. Still, seeing 3 shows of Iron Maiden is a fantastic experience and I had a blast at all 3 shows. They played 2 songs on opening night that didn’t show up much more in the tour, and in Brighter Than a Thousand Suns, they only played it that night and never again.
Maiden released their new album, The Final Frontier, last week and it’s absolutely stellar. Probably the best one since the return of Bruce and Adrian, and thus the best one since 7th Son. I listened to it constantly all of last week. It’s truly a classic Maiden album that shows the fire has done anything but died out.
Other kick ass concerts I’ve seen the past few months – Lyle Lovett, Mike Keneally, Phish, Star Wars Live, Victor Wooten, Rev. Horton Heat and Jonathan Richman. And of course, there’s Rush coming up in a few weeks. I love that I’ve seen so many of my favorite bands this summer! It’s hard to say what has been my favorite: Maiden because seeing my favorite band is always a great experience, Keneally because his band is possibly the best band touring right now, Phish because they still put on a great show even after all of the hiatuses and drug problems, Rev. Horton Heat because he’s a fantastic guitarist, Jonathan Richman because of his unpredictability, Victor Wooten because he’s simply the best bass player on the planet, and Lyle Lovett because of amazing songs and breathtaking versatility of his music. It’s honestly either Keneally or Lovett for top honors.
So I’ve been busy with music (not so much my own, unfortunately), work’s been kicking my ass and I think most importantly my time has happily been spent with two new people in my life – my new puppy Leela and my wonderful girlfriend Danielle. Danielle’s certainly awoken that long-dormant part of my life: writing music. She’s given me a wonderful dose of inspiration and when we’re not going out to see shows like Lyle Lovett or staying in and watching Arrested Development the music is always in my mind and on my fingertips. Yeah, the new puppy is taking up a LOT of my energy, but I definitely have a new-found sense of inspiration that I am excited to see what it will bring out. I’ve already started working on my first song for Danielle and so far she loves it. I’m happy with what I have; it’ll be good to finish it.
So that’s where I am. I’m gonna get back to this thing and hopefully do some of the concert reviews along with the album reviews that I like to do so much. It’s been a good summer so far and the fall is also going to be a good one. Football starts in 8 days!!!!! Off-season is so long.
Cheers to everyone. Go drink some good beer and crank up your favorite tunes.
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Music for tonight’s typing: Ricky Martin – La Copa de la Vida > Shaolin Death Squad – Lizard > Shaolin Death Squad – Escaping the Absynthe > Shaolin Death Squad – Waiting to Disintegrate > Stereolab – Des Etoiles Electroniques > Stereolab – International Colouring Contest > Tess Wiley – This Shadow > Thunderstone – Drawn to the Flame > Tony Joe White – Polk Salad Annie (UNGH!)
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