Anton's CD recommendation of the week

This week I've decided to recommend one of my favorite hip-hop albums of all time GZA/Genius: Liquid Swords. I remember buying Liquid Swords my Sophomore year of high school and playing it none stop in my Grand Am, memorizing every word as a drove around the hard streets of Blaine, MN.

The GZA is easily my favorite member of the Wu-Tang Clan. GZA's rhyme flow and distinct voice are truly amazing. I'd put him up there with the greats like KRS-One, Guru, Rakim and Chuck D. GZA's Wu-mate RZA really shines as a producer on Liquid Swords, more so than any other Wu release in my opinion. The old Kung Fu movie samples mixed with some insanely sick beats are untouchable. Some stand out songs on this album are "Liquid Swords", "Rule of the Iron Mic" and "B.I.B.L.E."

Hip Hop is a genre that if is it not done correctly an album can sound dated within just a few years but Liquid Swords is 13 years old now and hasn't lost one beat.

A letter to Andrew Bird

Dear Andrew,

Enough with the fucking whistling, we get it.

Losing interest,

Anton

My Top 5 Favorite Christmas Albums

It's official, the Christmas season is upon us. I realized this after I picked up our car from the shop and for some reason the radio was set to Kool 108 and some repulsive Gloria Estefan holiday song was playing.

I would say 95 to 98% of all Christmas albums are crap. They are a quick way to make the record companies some extra cash. One prime example of this is "Hung for the Holidays" by William Hung. That is exactly what I want to hear when I am driving through snow trying to find a parking spot at the mall, some no talent mush head singing jingle bells. But every once and a while a decent Christmas album will slip through the cracks. It's like finding a puppy under the tree on Christmas morning.

Here are my top five Christmas Albums.

5. Funky Christmas - James Brown.
The title says it all. Mostly original songs with a couple classics sprinkled in. It's hard to keep you feet still listening this album.

4. Songs for Christmas - Sufjan Stevens.
An ambitious five EP box set. This album is almost cheating yeah all the songs are about the holidays but it doesn't sound like a holiday album. This one if for all those hipsters out there that need a little Christmas cheer.

3. A Christmas Gift for You - Phil Spector.
Don't worry Phil Spector will not kill you for Christmas but rather offer you this Album with all the classics done in a rock/motown feel. The songs by The Ronnettes are some of the best Christmas songs ever recorded.

2. Christmas - Low.
Leave it to a band from Duluth to really capture the true emotions of the holiday season. It's not always happy and cheerful, sometimes it's downright sad and depressing. I listen to this album year round.

1. White Christmas - Bing Crosby.
What's Christmas without Bing Crosby. This is the essential Christmas album of all Christmas albums.

Hey Anton, This is your Asshole talking...knock it off!

I’ve always have had a love for spicy foods but with in the last couple months I have really be pushing my limits. Last month I decided I would try 6 of the blazing wings at Buffalo Wild Wings, the hottest wings they have. I was able to eat the 6 hell chickens fairly easily. I enjoyed the flavor, but I was a little disappointed they weren’t very sauce.

A couple weeks later after flag football we went to JJ’s Clubhouse and I decided to order 10 of the Pitbull wings. They waitress warned me that they are extremely hot but I just had blazing at Wild Wings so how hot could they really be. Well about 3 beers, 2 containers of ranch and 10 sweat soaked napkins later I finished the pitbulls. To this day probably the hottest think I’ve tasted. The flavor was really good but I was only able to enjoy for about the first 15 seconds of the first wing. If you like spicy I would suggest trying one of two of these but don’t be a fool like I was and order a plate full.

Last Thursday a group of friends and I gathered at Wild Wings for 60 cent boneless night. I decided to order 6 of the blazing again and was happy to see these had more sauce on them. After the first bite I got a case of what I like to call the “heat hiccups.” I got the hiccups under control and enjoyed the rest of my meal.

My spicecapades are taking a break for a while. I think I am ready to step it down a few notches now that I have self verification that I can eat the hottest. I would like to apologize to my stomach, I’m sorry.

Anton's CD recommendation of the week

This week’s recommendation is the classic “Pet Sounds” by The Beach Boys. Once again I am not really going out on a limb with this recommendation but if you don’t have it in your record collection…you should.

When you ask most bands that are out there know who are some of their musical inspirations I’m sure most of them would say The Beatles, but who inspired The Beatles? One of the answers to this question is The Beach Boys and even more specifically the album “Pet Sounds.” The Story goes, Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys heard “Rubber Soul” by The Beatles and was absolutely blown away and inspired to create an album just as good or better. So he gathered the boys and recorded “Pet Sounds” using ground breaking recording methods. The Beatles then heard “Pet Sounds” and were so impressed it inspired them to write “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.” You know, just like how Creed’s “My Own Prison” inspired Nickelback to write “The State.”

Pet Sounds is one you play from start to finish, it’s like the equivalent to a musical relationship. Track #1 “Wouldn’t be nice” embraces the excitement of your new relationship with Pet Sounds. By Track #4 “Don’t Talk” you’re ready to put the move on Pet Sounds. Track #6, you’ve done it…you are in bed with Pet Sounds. Track #7 “Sloop John B” Oh god, did I make a mistake? Track #8 “God Only Knows” you realize Pet Sounds is the one for you…your soul mate. Track #10 “Here Today” You get engaged but your friends aren’t sure Pet Sounds is the one. Track #11 “I just wasn’t made for These Times” You start to believe your friends. Track #12 “Pet Sounds” Fuck your friends, let’s get married! Track #13 “Caroline, No” Pet Sounds divorces your ass and takes all your money and your will to live.

Hold Steady and Drive By Truckers @ First Ave 11/16/08

At 9:04 pm the Drive By Truckers took the stage and I was impressed from the very first song. With 3 guitars exchanging solos and riffs DBT rocked 1st ave song after song. It was my first time seeing DBT, I’ve always heard about what a great show they put on and I was not disappointed in the least. Drive by played a solid hour and a half set. I am eagerly awaiting the next time I get to see them.

10:58 the screen started to rise and my favorite live band of the last few years took the stage. The Hold Steady played a good mix of from there last 3 albums with just a pinch of their first album.

The highlight of the night was the encore. The Hold Steady came out and did “Most People are DJ’s” then right after that Drive By Truckers joined them on stage. They played “Look Out Cleveland” by the Band which nearly made me pee my pants with excitement. It was pretty fun to watch Craig Finn “try to” sing a cover. Next song they rocked out a Drive By Truckers song “Let There Be Rock” and then finished the encore with a 5 guitar strong version of “Killer Parties” which almost killed me.

Hands down, rock show of the year!

Hold Steady Set List

• Hornets! Hornets!
• Constructive Summer
• Stuck Between Stations
• Navy Sheets
• Banging Camp
• Yeah Sapphire
• Sweet Payne
• Joke About Jamaica
• Hot Soft Light
• Stay Positive
• Stevie Nix
• Cattle and the Creeping Things
• Massive Nights
• Chicago Seemed Tired Last Night
• Same Kooks
• Cheyenne Sunrise
• Lord, I’m Discouraged
• Don’t Let Me Explode
• Chips Ahoy!
• Sequestered in Memphis
• Slapped Actress

Encore

• Most People are DJ’s
• Lookout Cleveland - Band Cover - With Drive By Truckers
• Let There Be Rock - With Drive By Truckers
• Killer Parties - With Drive By Truckers

My Top 10 Albums of 2008

It’s almost the end of the year and that can only mean one thing. Top Ten Lists! Here is a list of my Top 10 Albums for 2008.

10. Alejandro Escovedo - Real Animal. Great Rock and Roll album. If you are a fan of Springsteen or Strummer you will dig this album.

9. M83 - Saturdays = Youth. I admit I didn’t know what I thought of this one the first time I heard it. I felt like I was listening to some weird mix of the “Bloodsport” and “Breakfast Club” soundtracks. The more I listen to this album it is quickly becoming a new favorite. If you like 80’s synth music done right, give it a spin.

8. Dr. Dog - Fate. If you like the later Beatles albums you’ll dig Dr. Dog. A friend of mine said, “I guess I’d just rather just listen to The Beatles” when we were discussing “Fate”. I can’t disagree but I can still love this album.

7. The Black Keys - Attack and Release. Produced by hip hop producer Danger Mouse, “Attack and Release” restored my faith in The Black Keys. Their delta-garage rock sound that they have mastered has been nicely revamped by Danger Mouse.

6. Girl Talk - Feed The Animals. This wins most fun album of the year. It’s a great hip hop/dance record that contains samples from a diverse palette of artists, including Jay-Z, Britney Spears, The Velvet Underground, Roy Orbison, Megadeath, UGK, and The Cure. Download it online for free.

5. Dillinger Four - Civil War. Their first full length album in over 6 years comes as a breath of fresh air. It’s always good to hear new songs from my favorite meat and potatoes punk band out of Minneapolis. Not my favorite D4 album by a long shot but it’s new D4 so I like it.

4. MGMT - Oracular Spectacular. A great dedut album by this group from Brooklyn. It’s trippy, dancy and electric. Just and overall fun party time album.

3. Radiohead - In Rainbows. Radiohead does it again, another stellar album but this time they sound like a complete band again. Everyone (not just singer Thom York) shines on this album.

2. Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes. Read my review I wrote in a earlier post.

1. TV on the Radio - Dear Science. Easily the most listenable album by TVOTR, I love their other albums but this is probably the most mainstream for lack of a better word. Pitchfork said it best “But it’s also brainy and ambivalent, and more engaging for it.” This will be an album I will be able to put on in 20 years and still call it a favorite.

Honorable Mentions:

• The Watson Twins - Fire Songs
• She and Him - Volume One
• Blitzen Trapper - Furr
• Atmosphere - When Life Give you Lemons, You Paint That Shit Gold.

Biggest Disappointments of 2008

• Weezer - The Red Album. Usually I am a fan of when a band tries to do something new or take their music in a different direction but when I buy a Weezer album I want to hear Rivers sing pop rock at it’s best. I don’t want to hear the other guys try to sing. If I did I’d buy their solo albums. Rivers if your reading this go back to being the next Brian Wilson and take back control.
• The Hold Steady - Stay Positive. I feel like I need to defend myself on this one. If I did a top 15 list of 2008 this would have made the cut. It’s a really good album but just didn’t live up to the Hold Steady standard I have. This is the 1st Hold Steady album that I actually skip over a track or 3.

Wilma! Our new foster dog.

Hello everyone, meet Wilma. Wilma is around a year old and about 50 pounds. She is the most affectionate dog that I’ve meet. Wilma needs a forever home, know anyone who might be interested? For more info click here.

TV on the Radio at First Ave

A few weeks ago Mary and I went to see “TV on the Radio” and “The Dirtbombs” at First Ave.

“The Dirtbombs” started off the show how I think every rock show should be started, two drummers pounding out a funky beat. I would challenge any foot in that place not to tap to their kickass rhythm section. It had been 7 or 8 years since I had last seen the “The Dirtbombs” and was pretty much only familiar with an old but classic album of theirs called “Ultraglide in Black.” They’ve had a few albums since then so I wasn’t sure how much I’d be familiar with but to my surprise they played a handful from Ultraglide. They did an excellent job energizing the crowd.

“TV on the Radio” took the stage and absolutely blew my mind. I haven’t had the pleasure of seeing them live before so this was my first time but in no way my last. These guys are amazing. Each and every person on the stage is extremly talented and has a great ear for sound and production. The amount of noise and layers they are able to replicate in their live show was truely a site to see. Next time TVOTR comes to town I am making it maditory that my friends go.

Anton's CD recommendation of the week

This week I am going to select one on my all time favorite albums. Neutral Milk Hotel’s “In the Aeroplane Over the Sea.” Every time I rediscover this album I feel the same amount of emotions and excitement as the first time I listened to it. I can’t pinpoint what it is about this album but it will never grow old or sound dated.

This is one of those albums when asked “if you could only listen to one record the rest of your life what would it be?” I would seriously consider “In the Aeroplane Over the Sea” as my answer.

I don’t feel my words or review could do “In the Aeroplane Over the Sea” justice so here is a link to Pitchfork’s review of the album. Pitchfork gave it a 10 of 10 rating which is almost as rare as W. getting a 100% approval rating.

All I ask is that you please give this album a chance. Hate it or love it I’d like to hear your thoughts.

Octoberfest!

It’s time for Oktoberfest beers and man am I excited. I like to think I know a thing or two about beer, I’ve certainly had my share so I’ve set out to find my favorite Oktoberfest. Prosit!

So far I’ve have tried the following.

• Samuel Adams - Octoberfest
• Paulaner - Oktoberfest Marzen Amber
• Flying Dog - Dogtoberfest
• Bell’s - Octoberfest
• Surly - Surlyfest
• Summit - Oktoberfest
• Leinenkugels - Octoberfest
• Granite City - Oktoberfest
• Ayinger - Oktoberfest Märzen
• Spaten - Oktoberfest

My favorite has been Surlyfest, runners up are Spaten, Bell’s and Sam Adams. I’m not a huge fan of Summit’s and Leine’s octoberfests.

Surlyfest according to Surly

This beer is a single hop lager, hopped exclusively with Summit hops. Being a Surly beer, we decided to dry-hop it. Is that a traditional German way to brew it? Nein, but we ain’t in Germany. We aged this beer over 11 weeks to let the flavors mellow into an exceptional taste. We used German malts and Crystal Rye for a unique flavor. Only one batch of this beer was brewed, so go and drink it while you can!

Fleet Foxes at The Cedar

Last Saturday Mary and I headed to the Cedar Cultural Center to spend the evening with the Fleet Foxes. I was pretty excited to see the Fleet Foxes in such an intimate venue. The last show we say there was Ryan Adams which is towards the top of my all time favorite shows. But the Cedar failed me this time around. For some reason they decided not to do seating at this show and it was incredible hot inside the venue.

But as for the Fleet Foxes…amazing. I was a little leery how well their harmonies would come across live but from the first note of the show I was stunned. They started with an acapella tune and their four voices were angelic. The band was very engaging of the audience and asked questions they seemed generally interested in hearing the answers too, like “Do you have a zoo here?” Which ended up with them deciding next time they come to town they want to play the zoo. Every song they played was extremly tight. When the show was over I was reminded why I love music as much as I do.

So in conclusion, I would see the Fleet Foxes again in a heartbeat, but probably not at the Cedar (maybe if they had seating).

Set List

1. Sun Giant
2. Sun It Rises
3. Drops in the River
4. English House
5. White Winter Hymnal
6. Ragged Wood
7. Your Protector
8. Crayon Angels (a cover from late 70s folkie Judee Sill)*
9. Oliver James*
10. Quiet Horses
11. He Doesn’t Know Why
12. Mykonos
13. ENCORE: Tiger Mountain Peasant Song* / Blue Ridge Mountains

*Robin only

The Best season to listen to music is here, fall is upon us.

I don’t know what it is about fall but there’s something that just makes the music mean more. The cool crisp air, the leaves changing color, my twin’s sweatshirt, a glass of cider and my favorite fall albums.

In the spirit of one of my favorite movies “High Fidelity” I thought it would be fun to do a Top 5 list. So here it is.

Top 5 Albums to listen to in the fall.

5. Bob Dylan - The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan

Although this is not my favorite Dylan album something about it just clicks with autumn. It’s starts with a couple of Dylan classics “Blowin’ in the Wind” and “Girl From the North County”. I suggest you grab your guy/gal and put this album on, reenact the album cover and grab some coffee.

4. Sea Wolf - Leaves in the River

Wow, Even the name sounds like fall. When I listen to “Leaves in the River” I fell like I should have on a sweater made of yak hair and wonder somewhere in Eastern Europe. Come on and wonder with me.

3. Wilco - Being There

I challenge anyone to find a better fall band than Wilco. I picked “Being There” for a couple of reasons, first it’s my favorite Wilco album and second it’s a two disc album. More bang for the buck. Put “Being There” on and trace your hand and then make a turkey out of it.

2. Okkervil River - Black Sheep Boy

When I think about it there really isn’t a bad season to listen to this album. The energy and passion in this album is amazing. The power of Okkervil River could allow you to go outside in November without a jacket for at least 7 minutes. “Black Sheep Boy” might even make my top 10 albums of all time.

1. Ryan Adams - Heartbreaker

This is it, the big number 1. “Heartbreaker” is so fall I bet you that Ryan wrote this in the middle of an apple orchard sitting in a pile of leaves, while it lightly drizzled on his Halloween costume. ‘Heartbreaker” will make you shake your hips, hug your girl and wipe some tears. Buy it and love it!

331, Blingo and Raleighs Texas Tacos. My Tuesday love affair.

The 331 Club in NE is officially my new favorite hang out spot. It’s got that loveable NE feel to it and all that one could ever want in a social spot. Let me break it down…

Tuesday night is officially BLINGO night at the 331. What is BLINGO you ask? Well imagine if your local bingo hall was on Yo’ Pimp my Ride and you get BLINGO. Six fun filled (free) rounds of Bingo with some cool prices. Never played bingo to rap music? Well, here’s your chance! Ellie your host plays a fun mix of new and old rap tunes while calling numbers. Prizes include Shots, T-shirts, Salon gift card, tacos and a $25 bar tab plus the golden chalice. “Wait…Did you just say tacos?” Well heck yes I did! On Tuesday’s the 331 brings in Raleigh’s Texas Tacos to cater BLINGO. We were blown away by both the tacos and the burritos. Oh, and the home made chips and salsa! These delicious little wraps of goodness are all we’ve been thinking about! You may say, “Boy I really wish I had a delicious margarita to wash these tacos down.” Well you’re in luck because Tuesday is $2.50 margarita day- uh…yeah. The margaritas are tasty and strong and they put just a splash of Sprite in them to give them some fizz.

So, if you’re ever wondering where the Plaisted’s are on Tuesday night, you’re obviously not hanging with us at the 331.

Scared of Chaka, 7th Street Entry...in 2008, WTF?

Last night Mary and I went to 7th Street Entry to see an amazing five band line up. Now five bands is a lot even for a music head like me but when you put together a bill like this you don’t even notice how many bands there are because you face is being constantly rocked. The bill consisted of The Dynamiters, Birthday Suits, Off With Their Heads, Scared of Chaka and Dillinger Four.

The highlight of the evening was getting to see one of my favorites, Scared of Chaka from New Mexico. Scared of Chaka’s last album came out in 2001 and they haven’t been around since then but for some reason they decided to get together and do a 3 show mini tour with D4. If you were to give Chuck Berry 10 Red Bulls and a 8 ball of coke you’d get Scared of Chaka. It’s fast, it’s loud, it’s punk but it’s also melodic and danceable. The singer/guitar player for Scared of Chaka is also the bass player for the highly successful indie band The Shins which could explain why Scared of Chaka just kind of went away. It was such a great treat last night, being able to see a band I thought I would never hear from again. I was in my happy place.

Mary and I felt like we took a time machine back to 2001. We got to chat with some my old coworkers from Cheapo and catch up on their lives. It was great to hear of their successes and I look forward to keeping in touch with them. 12:35 am, Dillinger Four took the stage and our age started to show. This isn’t 2001 anymore, I don’t work at Cheapo and Mary isn’t in college, no, we have to get up at 6 AM to get to our desk jobs.

Anton's CD recommendation of the week

In two days we leave for Vegas so I wanted to try to recommend a CD that ties in somehow to Las Vegas. I was looking through my record collection trying to figure out what to recommend that fits the Vegas theme and was having a tough time. I pulled out albums like Hank Thompson’s “Live at the Golden Nugget” and The Rat Pack “Live at the Sands” but I only want to recommend music that I think everyone will like and would round off any music collection nicely. Then I came across my one and only Elvis album. Now this is not the “I left my last gift to mankind floating in my toilet” fat Vegas Elvis but the young up and coming punch your mama in the face hip shaking Elvis.

My Recommedation this week is Elvis “56”. This is a collection or 22 songs that Presely recorded in 1956. I do not agree that Elvis is the king of rock but this album is his best argument, it’s raw and dirty rock and roll blues. You’ll recognize most the songs on the album but there are some amazing lesser known surprises. Elvis doesn’t get any better than this. I picture him drinking a fifth of whiskey, walking into the studio, rockin’ the shit out of it, kicking the some studio hand in the teeth and then being carried home to bed. Minus the couple ballads on the album this was punk before punk was punk.

Gettin' Funky at the Fair

Last Friday Mary and I gathered a few friends up and went to the Minnesota state fair. This was the first year I can remember going to the fair and the food wasn’t the main reason for going. Mary and I picked Friday night because Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings were playing a free show on the Lienie Lodge stage.

When we got to the stage I was impressed by the number of people that were there. The show started with the Dap-Kings coming to the stage and entertaining us with a couple of upbeat instrumentals which really got the crowd going. Instantly the little soul man in me started to find his grove. Sharon then took the stage and had the crowd in the palm of her hand. She played a lot of my favorites from her earlier albums and did an amazing cover of “This is a Man’s World” by James Brown.

Since it was the State Fair I expected to see the crowd dwindle as the show went on but Sharon didn’t disappoint. She invited people up on the stage to dance with her which at times was entertaining and times creepy. Imagine if you will a early forty year old male, shirtless with jean shorts and flowing blonde hair trying to dance with Sharon Jones. I my was much more smooth of course, I must have looked like a white James Brown in the crowd. Not only was I cutting the rug, I was eating a gigantic turkey drumstick that looked like it came from the Cloverfield monster.

Anton's CD recommendation of the week

This weeks recommendation is “Let it Be” by Minneapolis’s own The Replacements. Alright, I feel if you are a Minnesotan and you don’t own a Replacements album you should be forced to pack up and move to Cedar Falls, Iowa. If you are my friend and don’t have anything by The Replacements please come and see me immediately because I really don’t want to have to visit you in Iowa.

I struggled picking which Replacements album to suggest and not take the easy way out and recommend their greatest hits album. I think 1984’s “Let it Be” is the best representation of the band. It has a good combo of their earlier album’s punk rock edge and there later album’s genius pop song ability. “Let it Be” opens up with what could be my favorite album openier of all time “I Will Dare” which Features Peter Buck of REM fame on guitar.

I don’t know if I’ve ever heard a perfect album but this is about as close as you can get. Rolling Stone magazine rated “Let it Be” #15 on their list of 100 greatest albums of the 80’s.

She & Him...and Me

Last night I went to First Ave to see Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward’s band She & Him. I wasn’t expecting the show to be all that great but I was pleasantly surprised. Happy is probably the best word I can think of to decribe the show. On a few occasions I found myself completly at ease with a smile on my face. Zooey’s vocals were impressive (much better live then on the album) and their backup band was very tight. I can see Zooey having a successful career in both movies and music.

Set List:

Black Hole
I Was Made For You
Change Is Hard
Sentimental Heart
*band leaves, just Matt and Zooey play a set
You Really Got a Hold on Me (Smokey Robinson cover)
I Don’t Want to Wonder if You Love Me…cover??
Terrible News - new
You Turn Me On, I’m a Radio (Joni Mitchell cover)
*band comes back
Saw You Lingering Still - new
Got Me
I Thought I Saw Your Face Today
Why Do You Let Me Stay Here?
This is Not a Test
Sweet Darlin’

Encore:
Bring It On Home to Me (Sam Cooke cover)

Since the Packers are all over the news...

I thought I’d post an old story I wrote and sent via email to my flag football team “The Dramatic Prairie Dogs” last year. It just seemed fitting with all this Farve and Packers talk in the news recently. I hope you enjoy!

Hello again Prairie Dogs,

Last night I, along with a few other Prairie Dogs witnessed a story that must be told.

The setting for this story begins in a warm bar on a frigid Thursday night in downtown Minneapolis. We all sat down to watch the Packers/Cowboys game, ordered a few drinks and some apps, nothing out of the ordinary. A short while later the server came around to take our dinner orders. As we all ordered our sandwiches and burgers the server made her way to our very own Angela. Angela looked our server straight in the eyes and said “I want dessert” and then proceeded to order the brownie sundae.

Some time has passed now, the Pack are falling behind and Favre got taken out of the game with an elbow injury leaving Packer fans starring into the nervous eyes of their back up QB Aaron Rodgers (A.Rodg). As the table was becoming more and more somber our server showed up with our food. Placed in front of Angela was a huge brownie sundae that reminded me of the time I climbed Everest (but that is a whole different story). With spoon in hand Angela looked at the table and said “I’m eating this whole thing.” The challenge has begun!

The atmosphere in the bar slowly started to change. It seemed with every completed pass by A.Rodg the Packer fans spirits lifted and so did Angela’s spoon. There was a certain glimmer of determination in A.Rodg’s eyes now and that same glimmer could be seen in Angela’s. Before we knew it the sundae was over half gone. Angela looked at the table and said “I’m doing pretty well and I’ve only broken a little sweat.” I feared after this comment Angela might be getting a little cocky and that is not the Prairie Dog way.

The Packers have now pulled within 3 points of the Cowboys but both the Pack and Angela seemed to have lost momentum. I could see defeat in their eyes. I knew it was time to step in. I reminded Angela of the Prairie Dog way. The DPDs do not give up; they stay focused on the challenge in front of them and see it through to the end. After the whole table wiped away their tears from my moving speech Angela picked up the spoon and finished off the bohemiath sundae. I wish I could say the same thing happened to the Packers, that they came back and won the game without Favre, but I can’t, because they didn’t.

So the moral of the story is the Dramatic Prairie Dogs are way cooler than the Packers.

Anton's CD recommendation of the week

This week I recommend to you the self titled release by Fleet Foxes. I have only owned this album for about 9 hours now but I am absolutely in love with it. I am on my 3rd consecutive listen now while I sit here at work and it gets better and better with every listen.

Fleet Foxes is putting the tired Seattle music scene back on the map. This quintet describe their music as “baroque harmonic pop jams.” Their harmonies are AMAZING! It’s like your listening to the “Smiley Smile” era Beach Boys mixed with Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young. From start to finish no track on this album disappoints. I’m struggling to find words to describe how these songs make me feel, it’s almost spiritual. I feel like I am just gushing now so I’ll stop and let you make your own opinions on this album.

This is the first album released this year that I feel excitingly confident recommending to people. With that being said buy it, burrow it, download it, burn it…hell steal it if you have too. Once you own it, play it at high volume wherever you go so others can hear it. Make that middle aged man next to you in his luxury sedan turn off his Michael McDonald CD and remind him how good music can be. Make that douche bag on the crotch rocket next to you want to grow a beard and trade his bike in for a horse. Make all those Tweens walking down the street realize that Miley Cyrus is no talent ass clown. That’s all I got.

The Hold Steady on 7/22 at First Ave

Tuesday night a friend and I went to First Ave to see one of our favorite bands The Hold Steady. The show was in support of their new album “Stay Positive” and it sold out over a month ago.

We arrived in time to catch the last couple songs of the opener “The Loved Ones” which seemed like we walked through some time portal back to our high school days. Did First Ave just turn into Hot Topic and is this the new coolest band on the Warped Tour. We both were underwhelmed and surprised this is who The Hold Steady picked as their opener but were happy to only have to listen to two songs.

After the opener was done my excitement started to build. This was my 4th time to have seen The Hold Steady and have not been disappointed yet. At exactly 10:25 The Hold Steady took the stage, walking out to “Let’s Go Crazy” by Prince. They started off the set with the 1st track off the new album “Constructive Summer” and reeled in the crowd right away.

As the set went on I found myself getting really excited when they played tunes from past records. I have not found that “love at first listen” with there new album like I did with the others. There are some great tracks on the record but I find myself skipping tracks from time to time which I’ve never done in the past. I thought maybe seeing the band play some of these songs live would give me a new appreciation for them but I found myself drifting away from the show until a older tune was played.

The highlight of the show was the two killer encores they performed. Probably the most rocking I’ve ever seen the guys.

All in all I still had a great time at the show. I think it is impossible to not have a great time at a Hold Steady show. I wouldn’t hesitate for one second to see them again.

SETLIST:

Constructive Summer
Hot Soft Light
Chips Ahoy!
Sequestered In Memphis
Yeah Sapphire
One For The Cutters
Stevie Nix
Hot Fries
Magazines
Sweet Payne
Party Pit
Massive Nights
Two Handed Handshake (First Time Played Live)
Joke About Jamaica
Lord, I’m Discouraged
Your Little Hoodrat Friend
Stay Positive
Slapped Actress
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Positive Jam
Stuck Between Stations
How A Resurrection Really Feels
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Certain Songs
Killer Parties

Friday night I was entertained by the man with the itchy legs and ignited a rock crush with a set of twins.

A small group of friends and I decided to head to the Turf Club on Friday to catch Tim Fite and the Watson Twins perform. We arrived early enough to grab a table right up in front. They were great seats except for the Antarctic air blowing at gale force speeds right at us from the air conditioner.

A local opener took the stage first treating us to some unimpressive banjo playing and some uncomfortable between song banter. As soon as her set was done the show began.

Tim Fite started off walking the whole bar, shaking people’s hands and thanking them for coming before taking the stage. The stage was set with a large wooden light up boombox and a projector screen. Tim put on a very entertaining show, fun songs, funny stories such as “let’s go outside and stab a mother fucker”, and great visuals. He was inclusion rock at it’s best.

Next up the headliners, The Watson Twins. After listening to their album I was expecting a pretty mellow show which would not have been a good fit following Tim Fite. They started their set with their upbeat single “How am I to be” and then kept the set rocking from there. The highlight of their set was their hauntingly beautiful cover of The Cure’s “Just Like a Dream.”

After the Watson’s finished up Mary and I headed back to the merch table to have them sign our CD and thank them for the show. Mary ended up hitting it off with one of them and chatted with her for a good 5-10 minutes. They both seemed so nice, almost too nice.

Anton's CD recommendation of the week

This week I am going to recommend “Over the Counterculture” by Tim Fite.

So you may have heard the old joke “what do you get when you mix country and rap music….Crap” well this album proves that wrong. I don’t know if any other artist would be able to pull this off but somehow Tim Fite makes it all work. He’s twangy vioce, intersting use of samples and lyrical satire of capitalism and commercialism all come together to make a mind blowing album. One of the best things about this album is Fite decided to release the album for free online from his website and not at stores.

The ideas contained within this album were spawned from Fite witnessing Sean “Diddy” Combs on a video award show starting a call and response of: “Don’t Get Mad! Get Money!” Fite said, “It sounded so true. It made so much sense. I liked it. I wanted to respond - Get Money! - Get Money! - Get Money! But as quickly as it had started, it was over. Mr. Combs plugged his new record, and the commercials came on - a car ad with a hip-hop beat - Vitamin Water by 50 Cent - Dirty South Ring Tones - The Game: Sneakers by Reebok - “Don’t Get Mad…Spend Money…Don’t Get Mad…Spend Money…Don’t Get Mad…Spend Money!” I slammed my last three quarters into the laundry maching. I am mad. Fuck money.

I highly recommend you go to the site and download this Album. Listen to it a couple times and let me know what you think.

Anton's CD recommendation of the week

This week’s album recommendation is “Revolver” by the Beatles. Alright, so I’m not really going out on a limb with this week’s pick but not only is this my favorite Beatles album, it is my favorite album of ALL TIME.

People often argue about what Beatles they like more, early Beatles or late Beatles…well I say middle Beatles. “Revolver” along with its predecessor “Rubber Soul” are known as the transition albums. In 1965-66 the Beatles started finding new influences such as LSD and Hindu spirituality which started bringing new sounds, instruments and deeper meanings to their songs. These influences can be heard in the backwards guitar solo on “I’m Only Sleeping”, Harrison introducing the sitar in “Love you to” and in what I consider to be the first techno song ever “The Tomorrow Never Knows.”

“Revolver” also carries hit tunes like “Good Day Sunshine”, “Yellow Submarine” and my personal favorite “Taxman.” However, the true star of the album is “Eleanor Rigby” which reads like an incredible poem on paper but when set to the music of a haunting string section the lyrics really come alive.

Running 4.5 miles has never been so entertaining

Recently I have taking up running as a hobby. Yes, this is the same Anton that used to dread “The Mile” day in grade school. In 6th grade I actually fainted after completing the mile. I don’t know if it was because I was completely exhausted or if I was overwhelmed with excitement because I finished seconds before the obese kid.

As I pulled into the parking lot of Lifetime in Plymouth I decided to set my goal at 4 miles. I stepped on to my favorite treadmill and began my 3 minute warm up. About midway through my first mile I noticed some wild arm movements a few treadmills ahead of me. First thing that came to my mind is “I need to be filming this” but I am pretty sure they don’t allow cameras of any kind in the gym and I don’t want to be pegged as Mr. Creepy, so I will do my best to describe what I saw. Let the show begin!

Working out(?) a few treadmills in front of me was a lady in her late 30’s maybe early 40’s. She wore tight spandex pants, a gray cutoff T-shirt and some sort of weight belt thing to cover most of her midsection. Even crazier than what she was wearing was how she was moving on the treadmill. I quickly noticed her frantic leg movements that were somewhere between a roller disco routine and a pro athlete running an agility course. From time to time the upper body would want to get into the mix moving her arms in some sort of choreographed cheerleader routine.

Before I knew it I was just over 2.5 miles into my run. My mind was completely distracted from how my body felt, 4 miles is going to be easy, and then it happened…In between the unconjoined leg and the arm movements the lower and upper body decided to work together. This move was straight out of “West Side Story” when the Jet’s and the Sharks are walking towards each other in the alleyway before the big fight. Her back was hunched over, arms at her side, fingers snapping to the beat while her legs took long cool strides. I was like “oh, no she didn’t.” About 5% of me was amazed at the energy and balance this lady had but the other 95% was just hoping to see one of the most horrific treadmill disasters in history.

Disappointment struck when she started her cool down which consisted of a normal one foot in front of the other walk. The show was over. I looked down at my digital display and noticed I have now ran for 4.1 miles! I decided to stretch out my run to my new personal best 4.5 miles.

I would like to thank you Ol’ Crazy Legs whoever you are for helping me become a better runner. I wish my old gym teachers could see me now.

Anton's CD recommendation of the week.

Part of my blog will be a weekly CD recommendation. These recommendations will be both new and old albums that would make a great addition to anyone’s music collection. If one sounds interesting to you let me know and I let you take it for a spin.

My first CD Recommendation is “Naturally” by Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings. This is Sharon Jones 2nd release on Daptone records, a label I have absolutely fallen in love with over the last few years.

Sharon Jones has a huge soulful voice and an attitude to back it up. Her ability to go from upbeat funk tunes like “My Man is a Mean Man” to slower bluesy songs like “Stranded in your Love” is truly amazing. Her cover of Woody Guthrie’s “This Land is your Land” turns a folk track into a genius funk/gospel version. Sharon’s backup band the Dap-kings are one of the tightest funk/soul bands I’ve ever heard. The Dap-kings played back up on most of Amy Whinehouse’s “Back to Black” album and were employed as her touring band. “Naturally” was recorded in 2005 but you’d swear it was 1965.

This album is perfect for driving with the windows or top down on a summer’s day. Enjoy!

Our First (and last) Time to CiCi's Pizza.

Our adventure started on Monday night when Mary and I go through our nightly routine of what or where should we eat. After looking in our fridge and seeing a few cans of Grain Belt and some soy sauce starring back at me, we decided going out to get food sounded like a great idea.

One of the perks of living in a suburb (I’d be pressed to name more than two) is that you have every food option available to you within a 5 minute drive. We decided on trying a newly opened all you can eat pizza buffet called CiCi’s. I have to admit the combo of the words “all you can eat” and “pizza” got me pretty stoked to try this place. As we parked the car I noticed a big sign on the front saying “All you can eat just $5.49.” What?! Did we just get into our DeLorean and travel back to 1988? Now with both a little excitement and apprehension we walked through the front door.

Just seconds after walking through the door we were greeted by every employee with an exciting “welcome to CiCi’s.” After paying the cashier and receiving the low down on how it works we started our way down the buffet line. It started with 3 pre-made salad options followed by a pasta bar with your choice of both red and white sauce, then we hit the “Coup De Grace” the pizza. CiCi’s had somewhere around 15 different types of pizza sitting under heat lamps for your choosing. If you listened close enough you could here their screams “Help me!, Pick Me!, Get me the hell out of here!”

With our plates ambitiously loaded we sat down. We both agreed that the Italian salad was pretty good, a little soggy but good. The pasta was bland at best, Mary however did complement the texture of the noodles. Now on to the pizza. Dry, dry, dry, every once and a while one of us would say “Oh, a fresh piece” and still be disappointed. I have to give CiCi’s props for trying some adventurous topping options like their Mac and Cheese pizza, but the more adventurous the longer it sat under the lamps and the dryer it got.

As we battled our way through the pizza we started to take note of the clientele that CiCi’s brings in. You know how we all have Aunts or Uncles that we try to avoid at family gatherings but the gatherings wouldn’t provide any good stories if they weren’t there, well they all hang out at CiCi’s. These aren’t the Coach toting, nose in the air, Bravo housewife wanna-be’s that we are accustomed to seeing everywhere else in Plymouth, oh no, these were Plymouth’s forgotten ones. We watched in amazement as two young athletic guys took full advantage of the pasta bar for carbo loading. Plate after Plate loaded with noodles and white sauce. I just hope they make their sporting event and don’t get stuck in the crapper. The people watching was way more fulfilling than the food.

Just before we decided to leave the bus boy came buy with his cart to clear our plates. He wheeled up right next to us and took each plate and banged it clean into the garbage bag before placing it in the dirty dish bin. Leaving Mary and I having an uncomfortable conversation next to the portable kitchen for about 30 seconds. We quickly headed for the exit where we were thanked by every employee with a gracious “Thanks for coming to CiCi’s!”

We giggled our way back to the car and told Mary “I really need to start a blog.” Just when we thought it couldn’t get any funnier we noticed a rainbow of bungee cords holding the crimpled hood shut on the car parked next to us. “Where and the hell are we!”