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I'm getting psyched about the weekend. Tonight, Kate and I will head to the Redhook Brewery to see Aaron Katz. Tomorrow, we'll meet up with JohnnyCool and maybe his roomate to hike Mt. Lafayette -> Mt. Lincoln -> Little Haystack. Three peaks for the price of one, although only two of them count as 4000 fters.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 4:13 PM

 
More links of madness.... http://www.guitarworld.com/spotlight/0603.treyanastasio/index.html This is a taste of guitar world's interview with Trey Anastasio, and is good enough that I might consider acquiring the magazine. We'll see if the tabs are any good, possibly relating to TAB. I know I can't play any interesting Phish tunes.

Two things really struck me in this appetizer. The discussion of arena slapback being in time was really intriguing, and certainly elucidates some of the creative mechanisms behind the way Phish peaks some of its jams. David Bowie David Bowie, and it certainly explains why Antelope jams have been very different, some people would say stale, since '96. I wouldn't say stale. I dig the whole Neil Young, ocean of sound thing by which Phish seems to be increasingly influenced.

The other thing that impressed me was that Trey is playing arenas out of a 25 watt fender. Joe Highschool Rock-off has that wattage. My bass amp is a 50 (which is equivalent to no more than 35 in guitar wattage). The funny thing is that Mike's playing out of the largest rig that I've ever seen him use.

Background Music: Pavement - Passat Dream, Starlings Of The Slipstream, Fin
posted by Ben at (0) comments 8:10 AM

 
I want music to be a mad prophecy. A holy message from beyond the realms of conception, of understanding. It should defy notions of physics, mathematics, and call into question the very concept of time. Music is an art intrinsically tied to that meter of life: the beating of hearts, the primal sounds of our African genesis, to the cogs and machines of our mechanized utopic chaos. It is not limited by this connection; no, music can control it. Music is not a slave of time, it is not it's dancing boy, not its jester. Music is the master of time, a brother of the soul. It can be free, limitless, expressive and inspirational. It need not be the lethargic manufactured sedative produced for consumption by the masses to promote a reallocation of wealth, with sounds and artists nothing more than a grim pornography which neither titillates or stimulates, ignored after the first glance. Music is not the background street sounds of hustling commuters. It is the lighting, the rain, the flooding of Storrow drive that grabs at unsuspecting souls and demands attention. Music cannot be ignored. It can not be boxed up, pre packaged to fit a demographic. Music is not a commodity for sale or trade. It is an experience, transcendental, monumental, and immediate. Of this I am certain, for last night I witnessed the rebirth of faith of jazz of time itself.

No this was not the timid notes of a first time band finding some vibrant new expression as the rains softly fell onto Lansdowne street. I witnessed seasoned pros who'd played together off and on, written recorded, improvised and inspired a number of times before. The marquis above the doors to the paradise said nothing special, nothing shocking or indicative of the future possibilities that lay within. It simply stated Garage a Trois. Perhaps a risque punk band, perhaps a pun that would be the best thing about the band. The thoughts of the uniformed passers by are beyond my conception. It could have been any band, on any given Wednesday in Boston. Maybe it was any band on any given Wednesday playing some seedy music rife with anticipation, syncopation; a copulation of artistic ideals in a free flowing act that is oft repeated, but never quite the same. Before bed, in the morning, a quickie at work... Just blow, blow, like there is no tomorrow. The squeals and pounding rhythmic writhing, dancing, primal, and timeless or perhaps in control of time.

I was there standing in some twisted quasi train station of wooden sound, unable to describe the unfolding events, the streams of notes of percussion, of changing melodies melding old and new. What it was I cannot say, but I know Skerik just blew blew blew, saxophonics dancing atop the integrated rhythmic strumming and base picking of Charlie Hunter on the 8-string guitar, while Stanton Moore thought of relativity and laughed effortlessly metering out kicks, snares and symbols and Mike Dillon elfishly danced between flighty percussion and melodic marimba.

What borders could define or map the terrain of improvisation, composition, and reckless abandon for the rules, establishment. Simultaneously, they consecrated and contradicted the proper Berklee conventions of music.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 11:00 PM

 
I just walked to the mailbox to mail some film to snapfish, and the fresh air was alive with the scent of trees, flowers, and spring. I'd forgotten about the simple joys of spring air. Cleveland's was always rather stale, or too moist for proper scent chemistry.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 12:49 PM

 
Today seems to be shaping up to be a day when I put link after link into my blog, like the typical blogger. Oh the excitement!!!. The current link of choice is from the Times of India, which i don't regularly read. It's about Orson Scott Card developing a videogame that will likely turn into a movie. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/cms.dll/html/uncomp/articleshow?msid=46808537. It seems reminiscent, although entirely different, of the terrifying morality play Harlan Ellison developed in the game form of "I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream". Hopefully this finds a bit more commercial success and I actually get to play it.


Background Music: Sheryl Crow - It's Only Love.

posted by Ben at (0) comments 11:56 AM

 
10:15 - and I haven't even checked my email. Umphreaks.com is the fan site of the month (woot!). Zzyzx has a featured column on growing old, touring and his "reverse midlife crisis". It makes me feel a bit better about growing old. I just wish that I had the finances/drive to catch fourteen shows in one summer. Maybe, I'm older than my age would indicate. Waful also has another interesting interview up. This month it's with John Lecesse, who is one of my favorite jam-scene bass players. He discusses Percy Hill and the Assembly of Dust. I'm impressed that Waful bagged interviews with two people that I care about in adjacent months (last month was Brendan Bayliss of Umphreys). I'm a regular reader of jambands.com, but aside from the occasional interview with top selling talent (phish, moe., mule, etc) and the occasional interesting column the content has been lacking. I remember when Waful was a music nazi, and nothing could meet his high standards, including phish, which he'd over-exposed himself to by teaching some sort of course on them at Oberlin. Pay more attention to the word Oberlin than the word teaching. Waful delved into the obscurists, the jazz bands, and tried to find redeeming music that was pretty far from the jamband model. Now he seems to have come back, and probably has a bunch of people on the west coast scratching their heads. Why do people keep talking about this Percy Hill band that never tours? How could a jamband have a great studio album? What kind of name is Percy Hill anyway?

Interestingly, one of Percy Hill's purported summer dates is at the LL Bean music festival in Freeport on 7/26. That will certainly make we feel better about not being in Chicago for four sets of UM in 24 hours. I'm hoping that Swampdonkey will also be on the bill, but I couldn't find any info on this festival. I checked moe.'s calendar, and they seem pretty open in July. Interestingly, they'll be playing a free show in Portland on 7/31. I'll have to consider stopping by on my way to IT, like half a billion other hippies. Go moe. Let's have the hippies take over downtown Portland.

Background Music: Dar Willaims a fair amount of stuff from the End of the Summer CD (middle to late). I don't have the jewel case here, so I can't name them all.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 10:30 AM

 
I was reading through the entertainment section of the telegraph and stumbled onto an article called Retro Research: Fraternity Brothers Prove Foof Builds a Better Beanbag. Fraternity Brothers? Better Beanbag? It sounds like something taken from the pages of my own book. Foof?? Foof?? Well maybe not everything sounds familiar. It seems that some fraternity brothers at Hope College, in Holland Michigan, also identified the fatal flaw in Beanbag design and created their own uber-lounge blob. They took couch cushions and filled beanbag type cloth with this more durable foam, just as Lucas and Gordo filled Thumper with futon material. Unfortunately, the similarity in the story ends there. These fellows were entrepreneurs in a land of Tulips, and started making additional uber-beanbags (I refuse to recognize Foof as a valid term) for sale to friends and neighbors. Eventually, they had to outsource the sewing duties and start thier own company. Comfort Research . Now they're selling these things across the country and cashing in on a big slice of the comfort pie. Why didn't we think to be entrepreneurs? Phi Tau's fundraising troubles could be eliminated if we skimmed 20% off of the profits of our Thumper, Inc. Maybe it's not too late. Vive Le Capitalism.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 9:34 AM

 
Monster.com rampages through the countryside, demanding sacrifice of time or frustration to keep its burnination at bay. Oh, the towns it razed in the day still smolder, though nary a villager can recall the year the fiery green beast first smote that soil.

I applied to a position as a packaging engineer for Lindt in Stratham. The thought of working with that high-class candy is quite tempting. I wonder if, like Ben and Jerry's, they force employees to take mass quantities of goodies home. Price and quality control, is key.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 3:50 PM

 
McNally's tides of poetic prose wash random, inspired thoughts upon the shores of my mind as recollections comb for memories and insights. The stark and startling insight into the tumultuous inspiration of the fallen Angel is captivating prose, seeded with bawdy revelations that would keep the attention of a reader who cared nothing for Kerouac, Ginsberg, Boroughs, or any of the beats. Masturbatory paths to enlightenment and the self-indulgent intellectual gratification seem commonplace in this twisted world where sex and thought are currencies of equal values. The birth of the beats was everything that hippie-dom wanted, some twenty years before the summer of love and Wyeth's oral liberation.

There are many tantalizing similarities between Kerouac's story and my own, but significant differences. The most shocking, was that Jack was cited to have carnally connected to the earth. I wrote twisted high school poems, thankfully not preserved by technology, on that subject somehow relating the fertile hills of central Pennsylvania to a sweet siren who had too long tugged at the tendrils of my heart. While the madness of the page is certainly, different than the madness of reality it would be foolish to think that it is an imagined, intangible, and entirely separate entity. The page must be some sort of projection, or intersection of a more complicated multidimensional form: a philosophic geometry, of sorts.

One of the more interesting arcs of this biography is the depiction of "hip" study of literature. There is little I have more contempt for than the collection of texts, and study of letters, for the fabrication of a trophy or to satisfy an assumed obligation. I reject the concept of a cannon, and those who seek to bring acclaim to themselves by defining one. McNally shows how a love of learning outside of a limited Catholic school education can be corrupted into a society defined by these ugly acts and somehow transcend the trappings of self-important study.

While a study of literature and letters can certainly inspire; this book is a freeze dried muse ready to be mixed into a summer lemonade, it seems unlikely that the best way to generate original ideas and original thought is to craft a card catalogue of quotes and responses. The great American novel is unlikely to be based upon the impossible dinner conversation between Nietzsche, St. Augustine, Plato, and Mark Twain. It does not seem that the way to create such an art would be to have that conversation play out internally, or in dialogue with like minded peers. The Indians seem to have a much simpler, and more moving plan to achieve self inspiration. Lone vision quests in the desert are often reported to return life changing revelations. Arranyakas, lengthy retreats to the forests and jungles of India where solitude and similarly inspired gurus wander, offers a similar experience half a world but not a word away. Twisting English, are you savant or pre-destined?

Of course, if one were to launch 100 men on a vision quest a statistically significant number of them would return with similar but independent revelations. Isolation from other ideas does not guarantee that one avoids the vile calculus of derivative or integral creation, it merely limits access to those tools. Uniqueness of vision, and of art transcends its background. While novel ideas may build upon the accomplishments of the past, progressing civilization, the prior components cobble the path to the creation. They are not pretentious gold leafing calling attention and giving false value to an otherwise uninteresting piece of lead.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 11:16 PM

 
Grumble Grumble. I was rejected by Wyeth. Stupid phone interviews. Its so difficult to compete with candidates that have faces. That's way I'm back here in New England, to put a face to my resume. Unfortunately, it'll take some work to drum up interviews and develop a list of interviews. My innate desires to run of into the woods must be ignored, and I must focus on ways to utilize this slowly moving internet as a tool for professional betterment. I need to find companies, visualize and attack. They need chemical engineers and they need one today!

I applied for a couple of positions today. Most were slanted towards MechE, but I still think that I could offer a lot.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 4:42 PM

 
I had cranked out a delightful entry poking holes in Meryl Streep's overly political, and ill reasoned key-note address at the UNH convocation but the ether seems to have reclaimed that creation. I was very proud to see my brother graduate, but disappointed that this memorable occasion wasn't introduced by a more inspiring speaker. Politics certainly has a place, but its place is certainly not on an occasion that is special to a great many people, most of whom differ in opinion on a variety of issues. The craft in the keynote should be to find a way to inspire and motivate these students without making any feel that they disagree with a word of the speech. Ms. Streep may be a lauded actress, but her speechwriting lacks the elegance required to perform at such an anticipated moment.

The nice dinner out with the entire family at the Three Chimnies Inn was pleasant, and would have been even better if I hadn't spent the better part of 40 minutes driving around Newmarket looking for an aged inn and restaurant on Newmarket Road in Durham. I had a cup of their fabulous, and non-traditional, clam chowder and the halibut, which was served atop mashed potatoes, garnished with a tomato salsa and drizzled with balsamic vinegar. The Inn's cuisine excelled at tackling traditional New England fare, like chowder, and halibut, but spicing and presenting them in a much more modern and perhaps even European style. I dug it.

That same day I also got my brother and hsi girlfriend hooked on Thai food, at the Thai Star Restaurant in Augusta. I love this little place, in the middle of nowhere. It's food beats any of the Thai restaurants in Cleveland. The Jungle Curry was incendiary.

The weekend was wet, which put a damper on activities at the lake. Kate and I did manage to get out canoeing a couple times, and reconnect to the waters. A loon even said Hello to us. Perhaps, I've watched On Golden Pond one too many times. I doubt it, though. The more I return to the lake after a season's absence or longer absence the more the silly rituals of that play/film make sense.

The weekend did afford a substantial time for reading. I completed Burt's The Story of Mt. Washington. Some of the historical tidbits were interesting, but as a whole this local history dragged. It was rich with facts, names, and dates, but generally lacked a stylish presentation. The last section of the book, regarding scientific research conducted on the mounatin was a lot smoother than the bulk of the book, which is surprising as Burt is from a long line of people connected to the mountain and not, by training, a man of science. I also started Dennis McNally's Desolate Angel, an inspired biography of Jack Kerouac. Kate gave me both books for Christmas and graduation respectively. The former is long out of print, but an oft cited document of regional history. The latter a creatively written study of the way one of this regions more famous authors fit into the tapestry that is America. It's first paragraph is an overture which indicates much of the style and content of the book.

Caught between the plain and the hills, the Merrimack River bends to create a vortex at Lowell, Massachusetts, a swirling center that draws in human experience the way a crystal focuses light. The water rushing over the rocks creates a simple physical energy, and factory building Americans came to exploit that energy. But the great liquid arc below the falls made it a magic place long before the Yankee industrialists arrived. The falls are somehow a center, a place where human experience is intensified in ways beyond the ken of ordinary understanding. And it is a dark place. Near those falls Henry David Thoreau was moved to exclaim, "If it is not a tragical life we live, then I know not what to call it." The river is the source, both of the subtleties of mood and perception, and the grosser realities of labor and commerce.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 11:09 PM

 
Mmmm soda. Kate saved some Emack & Bolio's sodas for me to treaty me on arrival. The Free Tibet Golden Ginger ale was quite tasty, good hints of ginger, a mild sweetness. It was much better than mass canned, but not a real ginger beer-like treat. Good for a warm summer day, with polite company. The Rock It root beer was very dark, and dry, with a sort of chemically flavor. Midwest!
posted by Ben at (0) comments 11:41 AM

 
Unpacking is the least satisfying activity that I have ever participated in. I completely restructured my room, to accommodate school stuff, and unloaded my car in a mind-numbing day of non-excitement. My new room set-up will be nice. I just wish that my newly bunked beds were more customizable. It is just a wee bit claustrophobic. I will, however, truly enjoy waking up to see my bass smiling back at me.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 10:11 PM

 
I think I made the drive in record time. I was in at quarter of 4, and left at about 6 am. I think much of the secret to my success was that I only had to wait at one tollbooth. Buffalo alone could add 30 minutes to a trip. Mid-day on I-90 was quite lonely, but things picked up as I entered Massachusetts. I like a little bit of a crowd to keep things interesting. Every car is a story, or at least a page of one, its always interesting to check them out. One particular story I was trying to digest, was that of two girls in a car with lots of UVM stickers and Maryland plates eastbound on 495. It looked like one was moving, but she didn't seem to have much stuff. Perhaps Maryland girl was taking a friend home.... But why on a Wednesday. Anyway, as I was pondering this, something transcendental occurred. After playing two mellow, perhaps even intensely depressing break up songs "Let me Down easy" and Let Me Down Hard", the River played Phish's "Free". I had no choice but to saturate my factory speakers by cranking it, and rolling down my windows. I was free. I was home. And my station was playing my band! Bouncing in the Sea! The excitement of that glorious moment can not be described, but simply put, for three minutes everything was right with the world. I think that I'm going to like this new afternoon DJ, she didn't play any other songs that I knew durring those 45 minutes. True variety is good, much like independent radio. I'm glad that Boston is a big enough market that there can still be one commercial radio station that is not owned by Clear Channel, or its compatriots.

Also, I should point out that I haven't heard Free on the radio before. That was quite cool by itself.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 4:29 PM

 
"Good-bye Suzy, Good-bye UNH." -moe. "Okayalright"
posted by Ben at (0) comments 5:27 AM

 
Its 5 AM, and I awoke naturally with the thrills of anticipation, and a taste for driving as the sun rises. It’s a good time to be on the road. I'll probably hit rush hour in Buffalo, but still arrive home before dinner. Hopefully all goes well.

These last few moments in Cleveland are filled with thoughts of people that I will miss. Brothers, Friends, Co-workers. It has been an honor and a pride to have known you and spent so many fine days together. Thank you for the small gifts that made so many days of these last five years memorable. I think of the creed, and while I've said these words every week for nearly five years they have not lost meaning. "I shall be loyal to my college and my chapter and shall keep strong my ties to them that I may ever retain the spirit of youth." My actions and heart shall continue to abide by this and all other parts of the simple, but poignant Phi Kappa Tau creed. Let us cherish our memories, and embrace the exciting opportunities of the future.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 5:09 AM

 
Warren Buffet has supplied the more detailed analysis of the tax cut that I mentioned earlier. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A13113-2003May19.html?nav=hptoc_eo This article was written by Mr. Buffet, and while it is still very general, it is very clear in its analysis.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 11:14 AM

 
Foggy rather groggy, I stumble to this website. It's difficult to conceive that I will be leaving Cleveland, but the reality is sinking in. I drove by downtown aty night for the last time today. It was a good night. There was a game at the Jake, spilling enough light to color the granite of a number of buildings while keeping things dark enough for the windows to sparkle with inner light. This pastoral scene, was a bookend of a journey to the realm of the bizarro case, in Lakewood. Kienitz, a friend and I went to the Hi Fi Cafe (?) for an open mic night. I haven't scene Kieneitz perform, and I wanted to before leaving the city of Cleveland. Unfortunately, we picked comedy night to head out to this dive. An hour or two of bad jokes preceded Kienitz performance. These folks were real amateurs with lame material, and often poor delivery.

The place had character. A donkey kong aracdae table, a rarely used billiards table, a nice little stage, and a post-goth vixen with a frizzy blond pseudo-fro tending bar.

I'm not sure whart she was doing at a place that required straight acoustic performances on open mic night. No pedals, no electrics. It was an honest ideal; interesting in a Cleveland neighborhood noted for its goth/rave tendencies.

Kineitz's two song, annoyingly shortened set, was quite good. He played his Crusty Monkey song, which I dug. I like just about anything related to monkeys. Monkey monkey.
posted by Ben at (1) comments 6:28 AM

 


Pictures from Friday's UM show are already online. Many of them are quite nice

Umphiles has also been updated, so my stats are now current.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 3:50 PM

 
Yesterday, I received some 3.5 hours of sleep with a quality similar to what I'd experience if I had slept the entirety of the similarly timed journey from my home to our camp in Maine, often disturbed by the highway grooves of pavement recycling. Lack of sleep casts an interesting character and perception to my thoughts, and actions. The long winded UM post seems choppy, and unfocused. That's what happens at 8 am after next to no sleep. I'm awake, and conscious, but improperly functioning. Things become more uninteresting as the day goes on and my consciousness is altered. By the end, there's nothing more entertaining than a good drug movie.

Thraller and I started out by watching Bogus Journey, which was better than I recalled from the Bill and Ted-athon viewing last year. Death certainly steals the show there, but it isn’t exactly drug movie fodder. Not for a brain that could find great meaning in the telephone book (or perhaps backwards x-files sounds - was I sleep deprived on that strange day?)

In order to satisfy my drug movie needs, I introduced Thraller to Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. It seems that every time I watch this, I race to the db to see if the waitress at the north star is Cameron Diaz in a lot of make-up. It never is. Someday, I'll remember that. Interestingly, I noticed some new things in the film. The most appropriate was seeing Hunter S. Thompson, himself, in the Matrix. Whoa. That scene has hilarious new relevance.

I never thought that I'd become one of those people who knows every line in a movie, but after watching Fear and Loathing four or five times in as many years, I seem to know 60-70% of the dialogue. It shouldn't be too surprising, as I still use quotes from the novel in daily conversation - most notably two phrases, one regarding size and the other gratitude.
posted by Ben at (1) comments 8:49 AM

 
Groggy and twisted, I awoke on a hard floor. What crazed thoughts could be in my head? Why did my subconscious decide to look onto the "the last Girl On Earth" - a somewhat obscure Presidents song, and play it incessantly in the back of my mind. I last listened to it on the drive to Columbus, and there has been a lot of music entering the ears since then. What is the message id and ego? What are you trying to say? Is this an invitation to buy a synthesizer, and start playing some silly stuff?

The thoughts about posting about the engineer's contributions to society, I do understand. My passion for my profession is deeply rooted. No gale of criticism, bitterness, or disbelief could shake but a few leaves from its autumn branches. It's spring, and those leaves are just starting to feed for another season. It's only natural that they'd be tempted to bud and grow in this forum. Especially given the monstrous storms that have visited the Midwest in the past week.

While there is no question that I could compose some hundred page Ayn Randian speech to the virtues of engineering, and list the great many ways it has shaped our society. I would confess, that I doubt that I'd read it in its entirety, past present of future. I know that I skimmed much of that speech in Atlas Shrugged. I will refrain from providing a detailed list simply because there is little I can do to achieve any sort of completeness. In fact, I can think of few achievements in the last century, and little of society in general, that is not built squarely upon a foundation of engineering principles or practice. Previously, I've argued that the folks who created the computer will have contributed more to the elimination of diseases like HIV and cancer than the people who actually publish the paper announcing the defeat of these terrible afflictions. These engineers won't even be cited for their fundamental contributions, but that doesn't upset me. Much of the charm of engineering is its subtlety. Well-engineered innovations organically compliment life, and are easily taken for granted. Its a charming endeavor, seeking no spoken thank yous, no public accolades. The capitalist system has a well-developed mechanism of showing its gratitude for these contributions.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 8:29 AM

 
Kienitz and I survived our journey to Columbus to see Umphrey's McGee. It was my thirteenth show, and number 2 for the Kiendogg. I'm beginning to develop a discriminating ear for UM. I guess that happens after a good bunch of shows. The first set was good, but not great. Jake was having monitor trouble the entire set, this curtailed some of the improv. Fortunately it was fixed by the second set which was phenomenal. Here's the setlist

5/16/03 - Umphrey's McGee -The Newport Music Hall - Columbus, OH


I: Last Man Swerving > Dump City, 2x2, #5@, The Crooked One > In The Flesh, Ja junk,In Violation of Yes> Last Man Swerving Ending

II. Dr Feelgood>White Man's Moccasins > The Triple Wide, Jimmy Stewart > Andy's Last Beer, Soul Food I > Fletch Theme > Hajimemashite* >"I Keep Forgettin'" verse > Push The Pig > Weed Rap**> Push The Pig

@ Jimmy Stewart jam turned song played previous 2 nights, and 4.20. Introduced by Bayliss as #5.
* Snucka I, Regulate, Dear Lord teases
** w/Eliot Peck
Guest Opened, and Joel sat in for one song.

Guest's set was too long, and mostly uninspired. Towards the end, they remembered how to play their instruments - but it wasn't all that impressive. Even a Joel sit in couldn't provide much interesting music. Joel had a good solo, but I think that he was doing his best not to show up Guest's keys player -who didn't sound like he was playing with more than three fingers on each hand. Guest is not on my see again list. They are quite likely the worst band that I've seen open for UM. Yes, worse than Aranka Fabian. At least Aranka Fabian has the excuse of being High School students. No mercy for guest tonight. Also, their lengthy set is responsible for shortening UM's second set and nixing any encore possibilities.

#5 was an impressive tune. It has a very open, experimental feel. The composition is rooted in a series of trancy bass lines that pony pounds out while the band performs ambient or jazz like improv/composition. I don't know where to draw the lines as I haven't heard 4/20 or the prior performances of this tune. If they played it three times in a row, they must still be "writing" it improvisationally. It was sort of like a musical picture of a storm cloud. I could also describe it as falling somewhere in the middle between Jake and Joel's solo albums. They might have teased Walletsworth before starting the Crooked One, I'm not sure. I wrote Wallets in my setlist but crossed it out, I'm a bit rusty at naming tunes. In the Flesh was tight. Joel was very dramatic in his delivery of the vocals. Roger Waters would be proud.

Ja Junk was nice to see. It was a first for me, and seeing the performance was very eye opening. It's an amorphous tune, that I believe sprung from some Stewarts, and in seeing the performance I developed a sincere appreciation for how the composition produces such open ended improv. I've become a much bigger fan of the song. I must admit, that the one song that I didn't really want to hear tonight was In the Violation of Yes (although - Divisions ended up on that list too - for purely statistical reasons). While I think seeing Jake on Bass is cool and all, I've seen it at almost every show since they started playing it. I think it started getting stale, and poorly used as a set closer. Somehow, I didn't have any complaints tonight. Kris' drumming seems to reinvigorated this song, opening up its jazz roots and reclaiming the tune as a jazz piece, not a number that was jazz trying to be rock. i didn't catch the LMS ending, but it must have been there. Jake was still on bass, and Pony on the Rhodes, so it had a very different sound. Also note that if the can segue out of IVOY something good must be going on.

Set II was unquestionably a superior set. Dr. Feelgood kicked things into over drive from the outset. It was cool to see Kris spin drumsticks in his hands before hitting cymbals. Did Tommy Lee do the same? The second set really got great after the Triple Wide. That Stewart was UNREAL with incredible full band jamming. Kienitz thought it was composed. I was really digging it. The segue into ALB was very smooth. I'm not really sure how they smoothly went from the techno 4/4 to ALBs sickly weird meter. There was a regulate tease before Haj, and afterwards I truly believed that I would be graced with the debut of Snucka 1 with Kris lyrics before they teased Regulate again. Then I thought that I would see that (a fitting connection to my first show almost three years ago) before Bayliss started singing the lyrics to the song that provided the sample which drove regulate.

I love Eliot Peck. She can make anything sound angelic, even "Get a job lazy mother fucker". This wasn't her best performance. I don't think she was expecting to sing, and seemed disoriented by Jake's monitor. Regardless, her voice is a refreshing and rare compliment to any UM show.

This was my first show seeing the band with Kris on drums. Kienitz and I were both impressed. This man is unreal, from his cymbal muting to his fills, to the way he can kick a beat He's fun to watch and really can drive the music. It seemed to me that Kris was able to lead jams in ways that Mirro never quite could.

The venue was right across the street from OSU, in a very happening neighborhood of restaurants and shops. It was the single most vibrant part of Ohio that I have seen. I really enjoy youth driven marketplaces, and with plenty of OSU students on the sidewalks they were in control of the economy and of the society. They must be nearing the end of their term, or perhaps not. regardless, the parties we drove by in residential neighborhoods afterwards were eye opening. Hundreds of people spilled onto the lawns in front of numerous houses, non-Greek houses. We drove by at least 5 such parties, and even saw one where bike cops were seemingly persuaded by one flirtatious coed to ignore the mayhem behind their backs. It was wild. Somehow, I think I seeing OSU betters my understanding of Ohio, and certainly explains why it's the state with the leading number of playboy playmates. The ladies were not too skanky, but just skanky enough. Dressing up like you clubbing to stand in a yard and drink cheap beer - who would have thought.

If OSU provides the model for what people from Ohio expect from college, it's no wonder that they constantly complain about there being nothing to do at Case/in Cleveland.

posted by Ben at (0) comments 10:09 AM

 
Jimmy stole my all of my stuff! Well, okay, he's going to pay for it, but I'm still left stuffless. He and Shelley came over with a rider truck to move the stuff to Detroit. First they took Ken's couch, which led to some hilarity - trying to take it out the back door when there was no prayer that it could ever be angled out the door in that tight hallway. So they had to carry it back the length of my apartment and down the front stairs. I'm not entirely sure how it happened, but Shelley ended up putting his head through the bottom of the couch - displacing some paneling but harming nothing else. I'm sure taht it hurt, but being Egyptian, and all, Shelley is incapable of recognizing pain. Eventually the dynamic duo took my bed, my recliner, my desk, my bookshelf, and they even took the ugly yellow dresser. At least that's gone. I suppose some good had to come of this.

I've fabricated some form of sleeping mat on my floor, and have devised some peculiar computing area with my keyboard on top of a file box, and my monitor sitting atop a set of cheap plastic drawers. I suppose that I can survive until next week.

Anyway, I'm printing the final copies of my thesis. Hopefully it's in accordance with graduate studies formatting requirements. I'll print two copies and see if they're cool.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 12:34 PM

 
I'm pretty excited about seeing Umphrey's McGee tonight. This is a lot more genuine excitement, than what I felt about the matriix. I think that I was more interested in going tout to dinner with Eric at the Great Lakes Brewing company than seeing the movie with the bros. The meal at the GLBC was nice, we were seated on the ground floor in the room with the two malting tanks. Eric and I both started with the grand cru, we' both love Belgian style unfiltered, then I went on to the IPA and Eric ordered a sampler. It was a nice time, and the first time in a while that I've had a genuine conversation with my roommate. It's sort of a sad state of affairs.. Alas, there's little that can be done about that now.

Regardless, the Umphrey's Show should be pretty good. They just came off of a two week break on Wednesday and played a set that looked amazing on paper. It was set list free, and reviews say it was one of the most jammed out shows ever. Last nights with a high profile Chicago gig, and initial reports indicate that it was good, but not outstanding. I'm not too surprised, UM tends to hit its stride when no one is looking. (Hopefully more southern tour shows pop up - I'd imagine that those were unreal). The pressure and publicity of shows like the Field Museum gig tends to cause the band to showcase more of its compositional talent, and take fewer risks when improvising. They're still good shows, mind you, but aren't likely to be shows where the band composes a song on stage - which is something I really enjoy seeing. Anyway, given that last night was a little flat and that tomorrow is a festival set - I'd say that UM will tear the roof off tonight. Also, the word on the street is that they've been sound checking Out of Order and senior Mouse for the first time since Chris joined the band. It would be great to catch one or both of those tunes.

I'll be heading down to Columbus with Kienitz. It's really great of him to come along to a second show. I wonder how many repeated songs he will see. Hmm. I'm guessing 3. I invited the few PKT bros that are still around, but they're too busy. Some have graduation plans, others are uninterested. Its disappointing as I would like to share the whole jamband thing with them, but I guess that isn't to be. If only Calvin weren’t out on the road seeing a hilarious quantity of baseball games. I think that he would actually go. Maybe I'm just crazy, now.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 9:27 AM

 
I watched the Matrix Reloaded today, like oh so many people. The thrill the excitement of seeing the movie on the opening day. I guess it's something that I need to do every once and a while. Unfortunately, I picked a lousy movie. The Matrix isn't that great of a film. Yes the first one introduced a number of interesting filmographic techniques, which have since become cliche but that was really the limit of its bounty. Its not a film of plot, nor is it a film driven by character. The thin story of the original was a watered down Dune meets early cyber punk. h. Yes, if you want crazy kung-fu in an American film it was nice to see. It was fun, but not all important.

Somehow, when it came time to create the second film, many of the reasons people went to see the first matrix film were forgotten. Reloaded is a film that takes itself far to seriously, and treats its audience as unthinking drones needing some sort of enlightenment. If you're going to make a movie about choices, the word choice shouldn't appear in every sixth sentence. Reloaded was a film without subtlety, and offered viewers every possible device to interpret it. It demanded interpretation, and not enjoyment inspiring later contemplation. Reloaded was a film with no moment. It was a poor lecture on the metaphysics of free will, and was rather uninspiring.

It would be difficult for a film to introduce as many new visual techniques as it's predecessor, and I suppose I would have rather that this matrix refuse to try. It's new techniques and new effects were underdeveloped and unrealistic. The use of computer generated actors for some fight scenes may have made for some exciting visuals but the actors were obviously lifeless and uninteresting. The visuals for Zion were also disappointing, a few cut scenes were clearly intended to impress fans of the Lord Of The Rings but they, like the rest of the Zion visuals lacked the care and reality of those films. No real efforts were taken to seamlessly blend live action, CG, model or map painting. Some of the shots were only slightly more integrated than some Borg related effects in a second season episode of Start Trek The Next Generation. Certainly the Matrix should have access to the technology, and the budget to craft a film that would be visually inspirational. I guess it wasn't as important, as revealing all of the cards in the matrix metaphysics deck (which isn't exactly a creative feat). You got my eight bucks. Are you happy?
posted by Ben at (0) comments 1:51 AM

 
I'm an old man. Nothing reiterates that fact like sitting down and making a new website, and then uploading the hit content that I made in high school. It's been five years since I touched my Backwards X-files page. 5 years. That's a long time. The old man jokes in the fraternity have been a lot of fun, but today, with my mind twisted from listening to backwards messages, I really started thinking about the time I've spent on the earth. 22 years, likely a quarter of my life. Wow. It seems like I'm only getting started, and so much has gone. I also know that I'll be really old for the last quarter, so it will be at best anti-climatic. That only really gives me half a life to live. That's kind of sad. My quest shall be to find a way to make this sadness a form of motivation. I will find the joy in these days, and joy in the cycle. There must be a peace and understanding, somewhere somehow.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 11:08 PM

 
Upon much investigation, lengthy deliberation, and after some meditation I have reached the conclusion that Chris will fill a similar role in the fraternity dynamic to what Eric had played. A simple comparison of their two websites, Playerific and the H2Co page of Fun reveals many starting similarities. While Chris lacks Eric's hang-ups on Pirates, terrible movies, and the word penis he does share many eccentric traits. The most striking, and vital to the fraternity, is the fact that in both subjects boredom seems to manifest itself in the form of insanity. Who wouldn't rather hang around a guy who'd rather start a parade than one that would sit around moping about how there's nothing to do, and that the MCATs are ruining their life*?

Upon further study of the websites (the old versions are better) it is clear that there are some significant differences in the content that the two individuals wish to present. While Eric is interested in showcasing the crown jewels of his high school creative experience, Chris is much more interested in chronicling the crazed adventures that happen in his own life. He also seems willing to admit that he is at college. It is somewhat surprising how little Pseudonym mentions it on his site. Intriguing.

It is important to note that while these differences in presentation may indicate some deep differences between the two individuals they should be taken as being in no-way indicative of their behavior when they interact with people. They reflect only interactions with this sterile internet medium. Perhaps it's a mirror of the soul? Following that thought will only lead to narcissism.

Continue reading their web-sites. They're both more entertaining than this. If you can't see them playing the similar roles within Phi Kappa Tau, it might be time to leave the computer, travel through time and meet them as freshmen and as seniors.

Since I lack the liberties offered by affordable time travel, I am left only with my memory and its convoluted wanderings. It is clear to me that they will start on similar pages? The drama comes from the question, will they end on the same page? Will Chris goes crazy in his senior year and stop hanging out with the fraternity? I hope not. he has so much to offer. It makes me wonder, could things have been different?

Little annoys me more than the idea of people quitting the Fraternity. The point of the organization is that it is supposed to be unquittable. There is growth and learning that can only be achieved by maintaining membership. Certainly, one's relationship with the organization will change. That's part of the joy, and the root of the experience. One should shift from looking up to older members, following, involving themselves in an office or a project to later on developing skills to lead younger members while learning from the older and mature to the point where they give back by sharing their lessons, experience and stories. It is in this cycle that the fraternity shall find its true strength.

*If the MCATs are ruining your life, you are interested in the wrong profession. They are the only way to open the door to medical school. Suck up and deal. If a stoner ChemE can study for 3 days, mostly learning biology that he never had a class on, and get a 35 bio/chem majors should have no issues. If they do, I'd rather not have them as a doctor. When I get my health plan, will there be a way to screen doctors by undergraduate majors? Is there some whinny-ness meter? These features and freedoms are important to me. I'd pay top dollar to get an engineer, although I'd rather that the money came from some fat cat HMO. Yes, despite some provisions in the PKT constitution, I do discriminate by course of study.
posted by Ben at (1) comments 4:46 PM

 
There's a lot of crazy stuff afoot, these days. Bears attack submarines. Cats steal shoes. I do work. Thinsg are strange indeed.

The crazy spectre of moving is starting to haunt my steps. I fins my self motivated to clean, and ready myself to move. These are such strange notions.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 11:55 AM

 
I recovered my Marxist interpretation of peaches, and put it up on my new website. i didn't reformat it. There's something charming about the raw retro-look, a throwback to 1997 when I drafted it. March of 1997? Could it be that long ago? Interestingly, Kate found a German website that interviewed PUSA's guitarist, and they asked a question about my website. It was quite a satisfying surprise. It was more moving than having the backwards x-files site mentioned on Fox news broadcasts in the lead up to the X-Files movie. This was up there with the inclusion of my site in Verge Magazine's top 10 x-files web sites. Is Verge magazine still in print? No, it didn't show enough skin to latch onto the whole Maxim, FHM thing. That's too bad.

Anyway, the whole experience has me nostalgic for the days when the internet was wild and untamed. Websites were for the tech savvy, but were rather low tech in terms of construction. Frames were the controversial mark of high-end composition, and while there were some corporate web sites the Internet was really populated by the raw and creative websites of motivated individuals. All it took to be noticed was a creative idea, and the hits came rolling in. A really novel, or amusing idea would place you amongst the big wheels on the Internet. From Dancing Hamsters, to crazed rants. It was a jungle of unfettered creativity.

Unfortunately, the rise of broad band and higher speed access has given web developers the ability to increase the data-size of web sites. People expect some sort of stylish presentation, and look for higher tech content. While there are still some great underground sites, like homestarrunner.com, the average user with wacky ideas is left making web pages that look terribly unprofessional or falling silent. No longer can a high school kid produce a web site that people will read, remember, and discuss. No longer can that student experience the joy of going to college, and meeting a guy across the bathroom that not only visited his home page, but remembers liking it. Strange, triumphant connections have become rare. With its increasing technology, the Internet has lost its fundamental marvel? Its ability to transcend itself.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 1:10 AM

 
I spent most of the day working on refacing my web site. The old one was rather embarrassing. It didn't hold a candle to the one I did in high school, and was a bit too forced. I think this one is a bit more my style. Check it out. There's still a lot of room to polish it, and a lot of text that needs to be written but I think that its presentable. I'm certainly out of steam for the moment. Let me know what you think of it.

It'll be interesting to see how it takes shape in relation to this journal. I envision it having a more polished presentation and more easily referenced stories, while the journal will have more fresh insight. I'd imagine it will be the stream of consciousness outlet, while the site will be more organized. It'll be great when I start documenting hiking trips on the site. I'm really looking forward to that.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 10:50 PM

 
Apparently, the gunman was a 62 year old indian man who recieved an MBA from CWRU in 1999. It's believed that the incident was an act of vengance for a web-site hack. http://www.cleveland.com/cuyahoga/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/cuyahoga/1052645719257251.xml That's pretty sick. 1). It's just a website. 2) Back up, or be sorry.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 12:09 PM

 
With a twisted taffy brain, I'm updating. I'm updating for you Net1plus, and I'm updating for me. I know that you've checked this journal three times since the last update and you must either be disappointed and bored or terribly nosy. Either one is fine. I'm not here to judge, but I'm here to set these moments and mental lapses into some permanent stone.

The taffy has been pulling since before 7:00 am, thanks to some friendly Midwest thunder. I suppose that screaming and flashing wakeup calls are preferable to the afternoon attacks of nature that have been visiting other portions of the Midwest. What an unfathomably poorly defined regional entity. New England is clearly defined. Coastal regions are clearly defined. This Midwest thing is shapeless and needs definition as much as it needs representation. Brendan Bayliss, that is a new mission for you.

I'm haunted by visions of Paulie Walnuts, although not really hauntings... its more of some sick joke that I only half get. After watching an insane number of sopranos episodes in the last week its shocking to me that I'm done. At the same time, that's great as I can move on to other forms of procrastination. There's data loaded in excel, right now but the motivation to work on it has evaporated.

There was a documentary about the Open Source Movement on IFC or Sundance, and I watched most of that - with a little nap in the middle. Stupid thunder! I'm not even that much of a nerd, and the GNU guy seemed like a complete nut job. It was nice though that at the end, after showing how the stock price of VA Linux went from a first trade in 1999 of $299 to a close of $2.91 in 2001 the GNU dude was called out to declare the free software movement to be a glorious hack, a joke that changes society for the better. Enlightenment through clever humor. It sounds like some sort of philosophy. Sufism?? I'm not even going to look it up. I think Zzyzx did an analysis of various jambands and their differing methodologies of inducing transcendence. It's the one that was used to describe Phish. Anyway it was twisted, and Paulie was there. He's still staring at me out of my monitor. Crazy guy.

Speaking of madness, and craziness. That whole situation in the weatherthead building yesterday afternoon->evening->night was beyond comprehension. Well at least the fact that the guy broke into the building with a sledgehammer, and carried weapons. It's very reasonable that the building which lacks a single right angle and almost no straight lines would drive people mad. It's an acid trip in aluminum and concrete.

There was an exquisite surrealness to the experience of watching events taking place a mile or two away unfold on TV. Distance was comforting to the point of numbing. The views of campus were thrilling, insightful and captured the beauty of campus on an unusually bright day. A wondrous day stained black and red with a ravaging violence. Fury, confusion, and voluptuous curves. It was nice to see the Clarke tower in the foreground opening the expanse that is our campus. It is truly beautiful, and well wooded for a city school. How could there be a feeling of jeopardy, when local news was constantly on the phone with a professor within the building who was quite happily getting caught up on work. People were emailing each other, IMing, strategizing and comforting. It was surprising that there weren't webcams doing some imbedded journalism. Terror comes from the unexpected and unknown. Will communications technology eliminate fear? Will it lead to a type of callous omniscience? too twisted for answers, and perhaps too saddened by potential conclusions, and a possible new thematic meaning for the Borg. Are they a society that let technology go to far, or a culture that was so crazed with a quest for information that they forfeited having an individual to a hive mind so that they could see all that was happening and get the news "as it happens". Madness and sorrow. I'm closing by copying President Hundert's letter to alumni. I also received very similar letters to current students, and one to the campus community.

May 10, 2003

Dear CWRU Alumni,

As many of you know, a tragic event unfolded at Case Western Reserve University on Friday, May 9. Late in the afternoon, a gunman broke into the Peter B. Lewis Building of the Weatherhead School of Management on the CWRU campus. One of our current MBA students was fatally wounded, and three others were injured.

We are saddened and shaken by this terrible tragedy. Our thoughts and deepest sympathies go to the victims, their families and friends. The students, faculty and staff here are all members of our university family, and we grieve for the loss of life and innocence. It is particularly painful that a CWRU student was killed in this terrible tragedy.

Local law enforcement, including the Cleveland Police Department, University Circle Police, the Cuyahoga County Sheriff's Department, the FBI, and a number of SWAT teams ultimately contained the situation and saved many people from potential harm. We commend the bravery and professionalism that brought swift resolution to this tragic situation.

We are now just beginning the difficult but essential healing process with the help of families, friends, alumni like yourself, and the community. We are grateful for the immense support already shown to us by so many people who care about this great institution. As a member of the CWRU family, be assured that we are committed to the safety and security of students, staff and faculty. Case Western Reserve University is a strong and resilient institution, characterized by deep caring. That has never been more evident than now.

I am extremely proud of our students, faculty, staff and the community for the professional, thoughtful and caring manner in which they responded to this situation. It is a testament to the quality of the people of Case Western Reserve University and to the community of Cleveland.

Going forward we will continue to rely upon your strength and your support, and the support of our entire community as we pull together and begin the healing process.

If you would like more information about the support services offered to those affected by Friday's events, you can contact the alumni affairs office at (800) 866-6280.


Sincerely,


Dr. Edward Hundert
President, Case Western Reserve University

Background Music: The Flaming Lips - One More Robot/Sympathy 3000-21, Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots pt. 1, Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots pt. 2, In the Morning of the Magicians, Ego Tripping at the Gates of Hell, Are You a Hypnotist??, It's Summer Time, Do You Realize??

What's up with this double question mark thing? It's clearly a Jayism that should be used to make single words or statements into questions, not to emphasize that a question is a question. Ex. Situps?? Has Jay done his sit-ups today? This goes back to 1999.

posted by Ben at (0) comments 4:13 PM

 
Now, we have started taking actions towards the middle east that will de-stabilize governments, advance our interests and promote massive social change. http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/05/09/bush.mideast/index.html There's nothing like free trade to promote capitalism and expand the middle class populations necessary to support democratic governments. Free trade is also a nice carrot to offer countries that want to assist us in our goals of fighting terrorism, and reforming governments. This is a major foreign policy move that should please the middle east a lot more than it pleases some people here at home.

Of course, many of these people would argue that we're using this as an opportunity to get the oil from Iraq without taxing ourselves in the process. It's a witty retort, but is rather short sighted. Look at the influence Hong Kong is having on the rest of china. A snippet of free market is eroding the Maoist state much more effectively than sanctions and brinksman ship ever could.

One, might say that since free trade is so great, why didn't we just launch the $-bomb on Iraq instead of going to war. Free-trade would be impossible with Iraq under UN sanctions for WMD and other non-compliance. It also would fuel undesired industries. Now that we've taken care of that problem we can use free-trade to help revitalize the economy in Iraq. Supporting the economy is key to establishing a stable government. Look at Japan. Can you tell from their economy, or their government that they were brutally defeated with the most horrible weapons imagined less than 60 years ago? American business quickly took advantage of Japanese interests, inspiring Japanese business and the economy to grow. Once the economy was up and running, everything fell into place and Japan leapt to gain more international attention than the Empire had received in its hey-day fighting wars with the Russians.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 11:55 AM

 
If I'm having a mediocre or not-so-great gig, often I'm trying to play things I can't play or I'm finding I wish I could play in a different way or more notes, more scales. One of the components of having a great gig is accepting. "Accepting" is one of the biggest words in my journal for peak gigs. Accepting what my abilities are on the bass at any given moment is very important, and working within that. There are endless possibilities within what you can already do, as long as you're not wishing you could do something different. - Mike Gordon

Mike Gordon is the Zen master of the low end. I can think of no one, of any celebrity, who has spent as much time considering the philosophy of the bass. Mike is not the most technical player, neither is he the most stylized. His true gift to the bass playing profession is his quest to understand what makes a gig good. He writes journals dedicated to this quest (two of which were directly about one particular peak musical experience - a show he has vowed never to listen to on tape)

This passage inspires me to ask the question "What makes for a good day, or a good life?" Maybe Mike has the answer to that too.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 11:00 PM

 
I thought today would be the day that I really escaped the post-defense, post-exams malaise, but I didn't quite make it. After my phone interview, instead of making progress relabeling graphs in my thesis or tidying up my paper I watched 5 episodes of the Sopranos. Quality television. I think I'll be ready to be productive tomorrow. While I've gone through a period of diminishing marginal utility with my sopranos watching, returns have been picking up today so one episode lead to another, which lead to another. Fortunately, for me, this recent episode resolved a lot of standing issues and didn't end with an emotional cliffhanger. I'm not being drawn to the next episode. A lot of the best shows end with a punch to the gut which isn't necessarily a piece of unresolved plot to remind you to tune in next week but is some sort of revelation that has the potential to shake the foundation of the show, and significantly impact the dynamics. Those keep me coming back to see how the family is affected by the latest turn of events.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 11:43 PM

 
Hmmm. This popped up on rec.music phish. UNUSED AUDIO COMMENTARY BY HOWARD ZINN AND NOAM CHOMSKY , RECORDED SUMMER , 2002 , FOR THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING (PLATINUM SERIES EXTENDED EDITION ) DVD, PART ONE . I don't read much McSweeny's, but my roommate worships it and its culture of literary elitism.

There was some funny stuff in the commentary, allusions to the War in Iraq and the intentionally misguided discussion of the pipe-weed based economy. Funny stuff. My question is simply "Why does this piece invoke the names of Howard Zinn and Noam Chomsky?" Does the piece stand without their names? The author certainly makes no effort to capture, or lampoon, the voice of Howard Zinn, writer of The People's History of the United States. Its also not exactly in line with his philosophy, but not exactly askew. It seems that Mr. Zinn is being played as any leftist social historian. He is made generic, and lifeless, recognizable only by his name.

I am less familiar with the work of Noam Chomsky, so I'm not completely set. It seems reasonable to me that he is just as poorly represented as Zinn, taking the form of this half wit that bears his name. From what little I know of him, it'd seem to me that he'd spend more time questioning why people wanted to hear his commentary than talking about movie.

The names are dropped simply to grab the reader's attention as they browse web sites, or read rec.music.phish. They may foreshadow some of the content. It seems that a Noam Chomsky send-up might be driving the omitted part (part II) but Howard Zinn is further reduced to a bit player, marginalized and mindless.

I'd wager that if the authors read this they'd sit back, smugly thinking about this dumb schmuck who is so influenced by the mainstream media that he doesn't know much about Noam Chomsky, despite the fact that some threadbare VHS documentary with his name on it was kicking around the apartment for quite some time. Well, authors be smug. Be elitist. Just get your contact prescription updated and watch as this cancer devours literature.

Damn you TS Eliot. For you have bred this disease with your ploys to canonize yourself. Look now at the literati. Look at their hip, cryptic, pieces. They call them stories but they have no plot, and their characters evaporated like the vermouth spilled at some dinner party where Hemingway was denounced as uninspired. Did you say that of him too? In three pages, Hemingway could evoke such stark emotion and thought with an economy of words that would send your poems with voluminous footnotes running to find some new flash diet.

Art is not taking the combined history of literature throwing into a pan and boiling it down to a thick syrup. Maple sap is mostly water. Are you trying to claim the same of literature? Is that your end goal? Are the achievements of man your wasteland? Perhaps, now that you've inspired imitators; who are so influenced that they may not recognize the genesis of their activity as they bake pop-quasi-intellectual culture into some lavish spice and use it to flavor a turd, you have achieved your goal. At least that is the outcome. Vulgar, isn't it?
posted by Ben at (0) comments 11:06 AM

 
I just got off the phone with Wyeth. Although it was shorter than my last phone interview, it seemed to be better. I think that I developed a rapport with the hiring manager, which seemed surprising for simple phone call with someone that I've never met. Perhaps there's some universal bond between people who've experienced something similar to Measurements lab, where professors do there best to ask impossible questions during presentations. She seemed to relate to a lot of my stories, particularly my "group from hell" measurements lab story. It helps that it now has a happy ending, as Mike and I pleasantly TA the same course.

Hopefully something comes of this screening interview as I am very interested in Wyeth BioPharma. This process-engineering group seems to be an exciting way to support the company.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 10:22 AM

 
Woot!!! I have a phone interview with Wyeth scheduled for 9:30 am tomorrow! Woot!!!!

I was checking the bort, and there was a post from someone who caught the Monkey's On Ecstasy (secret moe.) show in GA, and met Al afterwards. She thanked him for supporting UM (who opened for moe. at Jazzfest, and will be on the bill at a couple moe. festivals this summer). He replied "Of course, Umphrey's is fucking awesome."

Background Music: Phish - Waves
posted by Ben at (0) comments 9:44 AM

 
I'm trying out the new Blogger engine, Dano and I'm quite impressed. The interface is slick, and more intuitive. They've fixed the archive bug that had previously kept March and some of April in weekly form. Its very nice, and it'll be nicer once they get the new features like email publishing and RSS support someplace where I can find a way to turn them on. Unfortunately, they haven't built in a spell checker.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 8:15 AM

 
Congratulations! You have just purchased tickets for the following show(s):
Jul 13 2003 Gorge Amphitheatre George, WA (Delivery)(2 x $43.75 = $87.50)
GA x 2

Woo hoo!! 2/3 with the new Phish Mail Order. That's much better than my record with the old system, which I think was weighted to support people doing tours and not 1-4 shows.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 7:53 AM

 
While I typically favor tax cuts, and may have spoken in favor of the Bush plan to revitalize the economy, my position has now changed. According to the London Times, Warren Buffet opposed the tax plan. Mr. Buffet is a true leader of benevolent capitalism, and a man with ad profound understanding of the American economy. He's one of the richest men in America, and has enormous influence on the economy. I just with that I could buy into Berkshire Hathaway.

My position has changed, but I need to do more research to be able to defend it. Maybe I can find a better Buffet analysis.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 9:37 PM

 
Weekends are rarely restful. I'll stay up to 3 am and still awake before 7 am, without an alarm or even reason. So in a rather groggy state, I had a phone conversation and watched Just Looking on IFC, a cute coming of age movie which captures the grim meathook realities of the adolescent male. It still has the gentle take of the classics, and tries not to be a gross out comedy. I'd say its the best film that I've seen in the genre. Summer of 42 my ass. I'm still convinced that the film was more of a Vietnam protest and counter-culture propaganda film than an attempt to really capture the twisted workings of the adolescent mind.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 11:54 PM

 
Good-bye old friend. I shall miss your watchful gaze, as you glance over the majesty of our state. I shall miss your pointed chin, and the strength of your profile. Good-bye old friend. I feel as though I neglected you, my lost guide. I took you for granted as you stared back at me set in granite. And though I knew you were on life support, I trusted that technology could keep you safe, that we mere men could prolong your life. That is not our plan, nor was it the plan of god, who gave you unto us. You were a poignant symbol for our people, and your watchful gaze defined our character. We are rugged individuals. We are men whose souls are carved with the strength of granite. We are the men born of our land, connected to our mountains. We are the men of this home. Where is Robert Frost, on this day when we most need his poetry? We need to be reminded of the joy of transience, and how that is the only way to appreciate beauty, and love. The memento morir may be troubling, but it gives us the dynamics to appreciate our life.

Old friend you were a symbol for my state, you were the face of my home, and now you are gone. resting in a peace that we have long denied you. May you find solace as you leave this world reminding us of the deeper symbolism that you represent. A natural feature, forged by wind and rain, ice, cracking and fragmenting rock - birthed as you died. You were a natural symbol, strong like a rock, seemingly permanent, with a profound gaze that stirred the hearts of men whose lifespans you well eclipsed. I was glad to have met you, to stared at your majesty, and I shall remember. But I will remember not only your profile, but also I will remember your lessons that nothing in this world is permanent. There is no time to waste, and that we must appreciate every moment that we have together. Thank you, my Old Man. I weep for your loss, I weep for our shared sadness, but I rejoice at the natural world you surveyed.

I have read that there are plans to rebuild you, and I must say I wonder what you would want. So much of your strength came form your natural birth. Could some Frankenstein replace you? Cannon is not Rushmore, and it should not be. The Whites are a place of nature, they should be regarded as such. While i can think of no greater symbol for New Hampshire, I don't think that I want to see you crafted by men. Certainly not if it means blasting a new profile into the cliffs. I suppose I would welcome your return if your fragments were reassembled, but even then would you be alive? Would you be happy? Or would you just be a soul-less face on life support?

My friends from out of state, with the exception of Justin (who lived nearer to your perch than I) think that this is silly, or perhaps funny. They lack an understanding of how profoundly you symbolized the people of New Hampshire. Perhaps they lacked the experience of seeing your wonder, the joy of looking up at you and seeing the face of nature stare back - approvingly. I don't know, but I'm not sure it is important. What is important is the gift of pride that you have given us. Thank my Old Man. Thank you for the time that you spent with us. Thank you for the lessons of our world that you have taught us. Thank you. I will miss you, and I will remember you. And I swear that my children will know you, as best as my words can teach. For you are our symbol, and your memory shall be eternal. You are the pride of New Hampshire, and even in passing you stand to teach us of our character and our purpose.
posted by Ben at (0) comments 2:59 AM

 
Yesterday a really great interview with Trey popped up in my inbox. http://playboy.com/features/dotcomversation/anastasio/ Not only is a good interview with an interesting musician, it also highlights Playboy's journalistic prowess. While I'd still be skeptical of any guy who says he gets the magazine just for the articles, I must say Playboy does its best to make the claim plausible. Certainly their content (text-wise) is 100 fold better than anything in Maxim, Stuff, or any other clean Men's magazines. Before the new editor took over, Playboy didn't suffer from the ADD quick content of these other airport mags. Unfortunately, flash cut paragraphs in colorful layouts are starting to infiltrate the pages... but not entirely at the expense of good content. Content so good that this excellent Trey interview was seen as B-rate web fodder, and evidently shortened. While I'd rather read an interview with Trey than an interview with Mike Piazza, I can see how I might be in the minority there. Certainly neither hold a candle to other Playboy interviewees Harrsion Ford, Yassir Arafat, or even Howard Cosell.

A well written interview dleicately balanced scripted questions with spontaneous follow-ups which drive the subject, who has likely been asked many of the same questions countless times before, into novel territory. A crafty interviewer can capture not only commentary, but character. The goal should not be to pull a Howard Stern, and force the subject into becoming a character but to allow them to reveal themselves. Colin Farrel is very clearly a tool who lacks rudimentary ability to express himself without resorting to profanity. Hrrison Ford is a very private man living a very private life and doing quite well at maintaining his sanity. The trey interview provided an intriguing litmus test. I've seen Trey perform in three different bands (four if you want to count lineups of TAB), read countless interviews, and have a good handle on his onstage and of stage personas (which aren't that different). I've read many of the questions that Trey is often asked, and his typical responses. Somehow, playboy managed to ask some of the standards and yet provide insight into new areas, the Trey -centered stage setup, the story behind a song, unlikely celebrity friends (Kid Rock and Nelly), and really covered a great depth. Somehow the interview touched on both the Simpons and Politics. I was really interested in the politics section, of which I will excerpt a question and part of Trey's response.

PB: Given the kind of band you have, and the large youth following you attract, do you feel any obligation to be more of a political advocate?

TA: Right before this tour, I had lunch with [Vermont Governor] Howard Dean. We've been on panels together, raised money for music schools in Vermont, stuff like that. And most of the lunch we spent talking about the role of an entertainer, and obviously he wanted me to back him, because then a lot of young people who vote could help his bid for president. And now is the time when we clearly need a candidate. But I was a little bit frozen by the whole thing, because I don't really know the answer to the question yet. Politics, by definition, divide, and music unifies. As an example, Phish did a pro-choice benefit, and afterwards I got a letter from a kid that was very well-written, and he said, "I'm a very religious person and I love Phish, and by doing that pro-choice benefit, you put me in an awkward position, because I'm not pro-choice, and am I supposed to be pro-choice in order to like Phish?" That's the problem that I have with getting political, because by nature, you're alienating half the people in the room.

I really thought that was an interesting take on the role of politics and music. It also seems reasonable. The Beatles are considered to be one of, if not the greatest rock bands of all time, and their music was primarily a-political. John Lennon squeezed some veiled commentary into a couple songs but I'm sure much of that went over peoples heads. While Dylan is also lauded, if one considers his most political protest songs, they don't directly address political issues. While the anti-war intent of "Blowing in the Wind" is clear it isn't offensive to people who support the Vietnam war. Most reasonable people would like to see a time of peace. His other protest songs sing of the plight of victims, or are written metaphor which are not only applicable to a specific event or issue but are meaningful when considered 30 years later with respect to other issues.

Consider the musical responses to 9-11. There were songs of anger, of sadness, triumph, and vengeance. I appreciate Neil Young's early moves - rerecording Lennon's Imagine and his song about the heros on the flight that went down in PA. He expressed his emotions through songs that were reflective, and evoked memories of actions that were universally good. Toby Keith and Ani DiFranco (whose music I enjoy, but often disagree with) responded as angry Americans. While they put the blame and focus of their rage on opposite targets, the effect is the same. Keith sang of bombing the hell out of People, and Miss DiFranco's sadly beautiful recounting of 9-11 events "Self Evident" exploded with blinding rage that would make Toby Keith blush as she moved on to rant about Bush, and oil policy. Neither one of these sings really appeals to me, as their political rage is so polarizing. The best music to come from 9-11 was Springsteen’s The Rising, some of which "My City of Ruin", etc were written pre-9-11 and somehow resonate as if they were written in the hours after the attack. These songs are about people and feelings, everyone can relate to them bringing their own experiences and ideas as a starting point. I'd wager they'd put Miss DiFranco and Toby Keith on the same page, if only for a minute.

posted by Ben at (0) comments 10:58 AM

 
I just cleared 4+ gig of Furthur temp files from my D drive. Its no wonder that I couldn't fit as many sopranos episodes on my hard drive as I expected to be able to. Stupid furthur should learn to delete its temp files. I don't recall having that many incomplete shows. Good bye 3% of the Cleveland Oysterhead show. I'm sure I'll find you somewhere.

No brueggers for me today. I blew my breakfast out money at the rock bottom last night... oh well. I'd be a bit less cheap if I had an idea as to whether or not I picked up my last paycheck yesterday, or if I'll be getting another at the end of May? Since I have yet to find a job, and I need to maintain some semblance of my lifestyle throughout the summer, the bottom line is becoming increasingly important. Until I see a May paycheck, I'll be economizing as if I'm retired.

posted by Ben at (0) comments 10:07 AM