"I'm spinning round the room in awe" ryan adams

Saturday, July 23, 2005


Washington Post Best Bets

i just peed myself

ok, here i am again. and harold and kumar just busted out with some wilson-phillips in the movie. i'm in tears from laughing. it reminds me of the time i rode thru philly with nate with jazz blasting and the windows down. Heh. or the time jen and i rolled through dc with freaking melissa etheridge on because that was the only station that would come in.

this is too damn funny.

hafford, OUT!

Friday, July 22, 2005

Harold & Kumar

Ok, so "Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle" is my new favorite movie. Seriously. This is almost like my life and my silly friends and the malarky we get ourselves into. Plus i have been laughing so hard I almost peed myself four times. One can only hope that this is on repeat all weekend.

Some select quotes for you to enjoy:

Kumar: Now we're in Newark, of all places. You know we're gonna get shot.
Harold: Maybe it's not as bad as they say. Maybe it's just a bunch of hype.

Harold: This is either a really smart move or by far the stupidest thing that we have ever tried.

There are more, but they weren't on IMDB, so I have to wait until tomorrow. Like "Vagina McVaginastein".

me versus frozen fruit

I never really mastered the art of frozen fruit. I'm not really in the mood for real dinner since I am so frazzled anything solid may make me puke. Since I did want something healthy, I opted for frozen strawberries. I now have a bowl full of strawberry moosh. I defrosted and I heated and they are still moosh. Fat free cool whip masks the globs of red mess. And I don't even like cool whip.

I took the long walk home tonight...meandering riverside contemplating. I don't have time to talk to the people I want to talk to and the people who I need to talk to I can't get a hold of.

Wow, this time last week I was riding down with Aurora to Delaware. Last weekend was seriously one of my favorite weekends since I've been here...that and the previous weekend when CB and Amy came to visit.

Haha, which reminds me. One of our artists wives is at their vacation home. I guess Rich was on Pollstar seeing which artists were playing in that two. He IMs me with, "you shoudl tell ... to go to Wild Wing Cafe tonight". As soon as he typed that I replied, "my LDE boys?" not even thinking the date, but just when I hear of that place, I think of LDE. So yeah, that would be crazy if she checks them out. So of course he peruses their itinerary asking me if I will be in Hartford, Blades, and any other random city on their tour. Of course the real gigs weren't on their so he saw all the random bars. Now he knows where I go on the weekends haha.

I tried to knock myself out with the p-touch today. I think I was on the phone at work with CB earlier this week and he talked about killing himself with some office tool...I told him that I feel like taking my bic to the jugular at least three times a day. Rich sent me an e-mail just after I was about to jump out the eight story window. It was too funny and so true. There's been some drama in the office (not between us) so we'll see what next week brings. I'm apparently the lucky one, though "lucky" wasn't the word I would use to describe the situation. For the most part things got solved and I think a new project just got landed on my shoulders. Rich had left for sushi and I told him everything can be solved with sake. He said this weekend was "all sake, all the time".

On a lighter note of today, I got the latest issue of Pollstar. No one that I didn't know already was on the inside. JM got a picture on the inside cover. The white Jewish rapper was on the cover. Rich asked who that was, so I gave the 30 second shpeil and how he is signed to Epic. Rish said that it can't be, that HE is the only white Jewish rapper around. It's true...he covers "ice ice baby" like no other.

Haha, so speaking of the office...Laura has a border collie and Rich has a pug. I do not have a dog, I have two horses in Newark. Last night at work we were talking about what we were going to do over the weekend. Rich mentioned this pug gathering, so of course I had to ask. He practically pushed me away from my computer to show me pictures of this pug meets. Of course in the group shots he is holding Guapo up in the air, deeming him the "highest pug". Laura asked if there were border collie meets and I mentioned my horses, but they all don't compare to the "highest pug".

Fuck this, I am going to make some samosas and crack open a beer.

Wednesday, July 20, 2005

inxs rockstar show thingy and other ramblings

Ok, so Mig is hot. And he's nice. Neil is kinda hot too, but he is wearing a tank top and that just doesn't work for him. And this Jessica chick can't sing and the dark haired country girl has no personality.

In other empty music news, Lou Pearlman has his hands on another mindless robotic boy band...US5. WHY does this keep happening!?!? Seriously, who perpetuates this garbage?
I hate it all. I do like the new Ben Folds album more than I thought I would. Beleive me, I think Ben is super keen, but his last album makes me all giddy for white boy wussy piano banging rock.

On another note, please come see JJ and Lloyd Dobler Effect rock out at Arlene's Grocery on Wednesday August 10th. It's 18+ and for $5 you can get a can of PBR and a shot of Jack. And for $5 more, you can buy me a can of PBR and a shot of Jack.

Tuesday, July 19, 2005

the great apartment hunt of 2005

Well...clear your calendars because starting Sept 2005, there will be many social events to be had at the new apartment.

Tanya, Dan, and I will be moving in together - remember how crazy DE was...NYC is just the next level. :-)

I love it though...how funny...two years ago (though Dan claims we all have know each other a lot longer than that since we all spend so much time together) we were all within 20 miles of Wilmington, DE...now we have moved most of our DE Marlon Spike crew to NYC...Chris and Carolina are in Hoboken; Tanya, Dan, and myself will be in Brooklyn; Nick and Jesse are in Manhattan; and Todd recently moved to the big apple as well. Now we just have to get Oliver, Elise, and McDermott up here. :-)

Tanya is coming up on Sunday and we are going to hang out on Bedford Ave and check out the thrift stores and see a few apartments. I seriously can't imagine how great this is going to be...band practice at our place all the time. Tanya and I will make the brownies as the boys rock out.

screw your band part 2.

Ok, I reread what I wrote and I want to apologize. I was bitter. But the guy was extremely rude and short with me and upon researching his band (see, I do try to give everyone a fair chance), I discovered that the band has no buzz, has no tour dates, and um, doesn't have a damn website. So yeah, validated. Work on your online presence and cause some ripples.

I am watching that INXS show and it makes me want to stab myself. The silver dreaded chick was just singing Hoobastank and the black guy with the mohawk keeps pumping his arms and giving the rock sign. I do admit that JD is hot, has a good voice, and isn't as fake as the rest of them. The show still makes me want to puke though, there is nothing original about any of them.
On the other hand, I have some awesome original rock shows to announce soon...watch out August, it'll be a hot one.

screw your band.

AURGGRGHHRHR!
So today someone on the phone questioned me. I said that we do not take unsolicited material after this guy went through his little speech about his band. Thinking that was the end, he said something about solicitation...i don't know i really wasn't paying attention. So then I replied saying that we take band submissions through a reputable source, such as a label, lawyer, booking agent, collgeaue, etc etc etc. Then he asked if I have issues with trust. WHAT!?!?!?! Here I am giving this guy 30% of my attention and he comes with this out of left field. So I say that it isn't a matter of trust, and then that just opened a can of worms about how there is lack of trust in this industry.

No buddy, trust me...I know more than anyone who is not in a band on how god damn hard it is in this industry. I've busted my ass, have had countless hours of not sleeping, and have travelled many many many miles while working with the industry. Bands like you are a dime a dozen. Go to any fucking town in America and you'll hear the kids complain about how there is no scene, there are no venues, there are no outlets, there are no fans, but their band is the best band never heard.

AUURURURUURURGGGGHHH!HH!HH!H!H!H!H!!!!!!!
I've heard a lot of shit bands. I've had a lot of CDs given to me to check out and they end up as coasters or thrown away so I can use the jewel case. Don't waste my fucking time. Or maybe I am just lucky to have so many awesome and talented musicians around me that make the others look so lackluster.

But yeah...find someone in the industry who beleives in you, your music, and your aspirations. Have a relentless work ethic and find new ways to market your music. Fans first, money second, creativity always. Be tenacious. Find a lawyer, a booking agent, have fun with NACA, hit up colleges and the major cities, stray away from shit bars. Rock on. Oh, and don't be an assface. There's no trust in the industry, just love.

Sunday, July 17, 2005

Sundays were made for this

I think I am making a habit of only wearing pajamas and running clothes on Sundays. Sundays were made for moving watching, writing, reading, running, and promoting...all while lounging on the couch. It's two in the afternoon though it feels like morning and the apartment smells like coffee. Aurora just IMed and said she is heading to NYC now. Yay. Oh damn, that means I have to get out of my pink Delaware pants and my green Rock Adio shirt since I don't think that the combination is appropriate for the public.

My big writing project today is to write my doozy of a Rainbow good bye blog and to start pages for different sets of people. For example, I will have seperate documents with cut and pasted segments for different people, such as Aurora, the Omnisoul crew, the equestrian team, Carlos, WVUD callers, Rainbow customers such as Terry and Mohamed, STN, Nate, The East End, Jen, the UD girls, Chris L., Marlon Spike, Tanya, Akiva, LDE, Public Safety...get it?!??!?! I'll be sure to keep you updated.

"Win a Date with Tad Hamilton" is on and it may be the dumbest movie I has seen in a while. The only reason I watched the last half hour of it is because "Anything Else" with Christina Ricci is on afterwards.

"I've had a crush on you since we met. Couldn't you tell, the way I was ignoring you?"

R-O-C-K in the USA!

I just got back from rocking out at the Mellencamp show. I had a FANTASTIC time. I told Nate fun facts that he didn’t want to hear on the ride up. My mom and her friend also joined us. John Fogerty played a great set. He sang songs that I didn’t know were his, seeing how I know zilch about classic rock. Want to know a little known fact about me? Ok, so you remember pocket rockers (circa 1988)? I had a pocket rocker and “Down on the Corner” was my first tape on it. Man, I loved that song. I was floored when Fogerty played it because I didn’t know it was his and I haven’t heard it in so long.

Mellencamp took the stage with my favorite Mellencamp song, “Small Town”, which always reminds me of home (home being Newark, DE) and hearing it live after this weekend was perfect. Check out the lyrics below, the most close hitting being in bold:

“Well I was born in a small townAnd I live in a small townProb’ly die in a small townOh, those small communitiesAll my friends are so small townMy parents live in the same small townMy job is so small townProvides little opportunityEducated in a small townTaught the fear of jesus in a small townUsed to daydream in that small townAnother boring romantic that’s meBut I’ve seen it all in a small townHad myself a ball in a small townMarried an l.a. doll and brought her to this small townNow she’s small town just like meNo I cannot forget where it is that I come fromI cannot forget the people who love meYeah, I can be myself here in this small townAnd people let me be just what I want to beGot nothing against a big townStill hayseed enough to sayLook who’s in the big townBut my bed is in a small townOh, and that’s good enough for meWell I was born in a small townAnd I can breathe in a small townGonna die in this small townAnd that’s prob’ly where they’ll bury me”

Want to know another fun fact about me? Ok, I also adore the song “Jack & Diane”. That drum solo is AMAZING. Out of all the songs from my childhood, I always took that one with me. I distinctly remember the summer before 8th grade I was home during the summer and seriously calling WSTW every damn day during their all request lunch hour and asking for “Jack & Diane”. One day I finally got it and they said my name over the air and I taped it and it seriously made my summer. Now I work for him, crazy crazy crazy life.

So yeah, we’re all up singing and dancing to Mellencamp. I see a lot of shows and in all honesty, this was great. Very simple stage setup, but the energy and dynamics were above and beyond what I expected. JM is incredibly charismatic and just owned that stage. We R-O-C-Ked in the U-S-A (which I have been saying in the office for about a month now).

Andy is hot. Too bad I met his wife the other day. Nate turned to me and was like, “lemme guess, you think the guitarist in the red pants is hot.” “yup.” “I know your tastes too well.”

JM danced like a fiend and there was massive amounts of arm pumping. I was beaming the whole time, it was absolutely incredible. The NY Post wrote an amazing review of JM’s show at Jones Beach last week and now I know why he got such high accolades. I don’t really know what more to write. Oh yeah, Nate got yelled at for having his camera, but he stealthed pics anyways – I’ll post once he sends them.

Afterwards we hung out backstage in the green room. On the walk over Rich informed me that there was beer there. I will never ever live down the Essex incident. I got to meet so many people who I talk to on the phone and place names with faces. Quandt, JM’s tour manager, told me the other day he wanted my job and I cn have his. I tried to switch with him but he wasn’t having it. Rich made me start everyone in singing “Happy Birthday” to Allie. I also got to meet Julie as well. Julie is great and we’ve had to talk to each other several times a day and despite any mistakes I make, she’s always cool with everything and levelheaded. She also told Laura and I how thanks to us things have been moving so smoothly and she is incredibly grateful. Yay. She also hooked us up with out sweet seats, so props to Julie.

Quandt came over again saying that I have to keep Rich in line then we chatted about the DC show. I told Quandt to tell Rich to take me on the road more. Or at all. Haha. After this comment Rich asked me if that was really water in the water bottle I was drinking out of or vodka…how does he know me that well haha. Randy came over and I introduced him to the fam. He gushed about me to my mom, too funny. He also told my family how appreciative Rich is of me and how well we work together. Fun times. As we’re leaving I notice the water bottle Rich is holding is half full of purple liquid. He sees my look and says that its wine in the bottle for Trina for the car ride home. Now see, this is why I love my job. Because all you all who question my antics…see its all normal here in my life here. Ha.

And now here I am at home with insomnia recounting the weekend. Tomorrow will be pretty chill. I have some LDE stuff I want to work on, laundry, cleaning, and apartment hunting online. Oh and a nice long run. Yay for Sundays.

Lloyd Dobler Effect at the Logan House - July 15

Embrace is on VH1 right now. I really dig them, thanks Morita!

Anyways…Friday. I always look forward to when Lloyd Dobler Effect plays the Logan House. In the past three years I have only missed two LDE LoHo shows: 4/9/04 (PMB at the TLA) and 1/27/04 (Johnathan Rice & Starsailor at the TLA) – though Aurora and I did meet the band at the LoHo after the show. But yeah, I always enjoy the Logan House because it’s a good long night of music and it’s an easy show for my friends, those who don’t even really like shows, to go to. Plus any night hanging with LDE is a fab time. Obviously I enjoy these shows even more now that I am gone since its like a homecoming :-)

Aurora was in Boston visiting Jackman and picked me up en route, though a bit delayed. Her car was towed in the afternoon and they sat in massive traffic on the way to NYC. I didn’t feel like walking back to my apartment with my bag so I sat in front of city hall and read my book (Killing Bono) till it got too dark to read. I then popped over to Barnes and Noble across the street because I was bored and found two more books that I want to get. I am so not used to having all this free time so I made phone calls and actually talked to people. Crazy. I told Chris B. that it’s so strange to actually talk to a real person and not thru email or aim or texting. So this is what people do to communicate when they aren’t pressed for time – what a novel idea!

I finally meet up with Aurora and Jackman and we are off to Delaware! Naturally we all don’t shut up for the entire trip down there and my phone won’t stop ringing, I love it. We all shared some crazy stories and reminisced about some of our greatest hits. Some things will never ever change and I love it. I was talking to CB while looking for the random bottles of booze in my bag when some raspberry shit exploded…also as we passed the cop. While trying to find the empty bottle, I felt something hard press into my leg, so I said how I had a penis sticking my leg, only kidding. When I find the hard thing pressing my leg, it was in fact, a wooden penis ashtray from the Philippines. I just had to write that because it may have been the weirdest phone conversation I have ever been involved in haha.

(I am now talking to Doug on AIM and we’re exchanging our LDE sets of the weekend haha)

On the highway I make Aurora and I bevs…Jackman already downed his whiskey…and I tell Aurora that she can’t have hers yet. I tell her she will get it when we go over the bridge so that she will arrive to the LoHo buzzed. Nevermind the whole drinking while driving thing, I just didn’t want to hand it to her while she was so far away. Some times I don’t think haha.

We get to the Logan House and it’s a freaking reunion. I absolutely adore my friends and I miss you soooo much. I don’t even know what LDE was playng, I just know that when I got upstairs I saw so many familiar faces. Judy, Nate, Michelle, Tim, Matt, Lyn, Morita, Moses, Lee, Fetus, Epler, Jay, Damien, Kristen, Chris G…aughhhh!!! I loved it. I spent one song saying hi and hugging. Then the band took a break. Socialized a bit more, oh how I have missed everyone so much and it was great getting the drive by catch up. We all talk via aim, email, phone, but real life is great.

Phil and Jackman were at the same movie in Camden last weekend. Lee and Jackman know mutuall people. My latest CKY story is Phil’s new favorite story of mine. CB still sweats a lot and knew my hair curls since he spent three days with me. Then the break was over.

They played London, Kangol (YAY!), Birmingham, This Could Be, and um, not really sure what else because I have a big mouth and like talking to people who I haven’t seen. I felt downright awful, especially because about half the crowd were my friends and it was more like social time than anything else.

I can’t even really give you a real show review, I’m sorry. But I can tell you that Michelle bought a house and Lee is moving to Atlanta and Lyn just turned 21.

They played Land Down Under and I was elsewhere. There was no Two Step! Yay – more LDE songs! They ended the night with “The Story”, to which CB of course touched himself during ownership words, and he caught me catching him.

I’m talking to Phil and Johnnie after the show and Johnnie says that he misses me calling him, so I call him there while talking to Chris and Judy. Jay comes up to me and tries to get my attention and I tell him to wait. He then says how its important and takes the phone away from me. I have a problem with leaving venues, so Epler told Jay that if he gets me out of the Loho in less than two minutes, then he’ll give Jay $20. Since no one thought it could be done, I had to prove them all wrong. I wave to the stage, turn to Chris and Judy, grabbed both of them (separately) kiss them good bye, then RUN out of the venue since I know that they are timing me.

We’re in the car and I call people who I left at the venue to say bye for real and explain. Jay then grabs my phone. Which then prompted the game “who on mir’s phone can we call at 1:30 am”. I apologize if you got a drunken Jay phone call. And he so called Howie Day on my phone. Too damn funny, that better have made the away message. This game also went on at Jay & Damian’s house. He called people I haven’t talked to in a bit as well as random STN calls…such as to the studio. He did make one phone call where he sang into the vmail which made me fall on my knees on the stairs since I totally didn’t expect him to bust out into song. I come down from the stairs and he is apparently giving the band directions to Wawa. Oh STN knows our Wawa. I think Chris asked where the next Wawa is after the Newark one and we all answered, “exit 77”. Scary. We all drive too much. Or we love Wawa too much. And there is nothing wrong with that.

Aurora lives around the corner from Jay and I made it to her house around 3:30 AM. I adore Newark. Aw, I love how Lee said he misses my rooftop parties. We woke up and watched TV and started our day with a jaunt to Newark Bagels and Rainbow. Like I said before, some things will never ever change and I love it.