things i hate today

1. travelling. i love to travel but sitting in a minivan for months with smelly dudes has lost its allure. basically my butt is sore from sitting on it. it does leave a person with a lot of free time but you cant do anything with it. theres no room, no personal space. once you've finished the books you brought, theres nothing but countryside to stare at. unfortunately, ive seen it 150 times. its green, its england.

2. spending money. england is beyond expensive. maybe i just dont notice how bad ny is because im actually earning at home. ive spent a fortune on this tour.

3. beer. i can barely get it down. i do, but i might be reaching my beer breaking point. i need a new drink. past few days ive been opting for the healthy alternative, diet coke. beer over here is usually warmer and flat. even the familiar brands. when you're living on bread and hummus, its not so easy to get down.

4. recharging things. wires everywhere! which leads me to number five...

5. "whats the wifi password?" these words have been uttered so many times in the past month. i thought skype would solve all my calling home issues. it has helped but finding the right circumstances on tour is like a rare planet alignment. first there has to be strong wifi (once there is wifi discovered, 25 people use it at the same time) and it has to be quiet, this never happens on tour. when i say quiet, i mean no background noise let alone no soundcheck etc. skype is difficult in that way. of course, the person you're calling also has to be avaiable right at that moment, even worse, in front of their computer for the free video version. also, you have to have suffient battery power (see number 4). what happens in the end is you just get frustrated and text and call straight through and have a $500 phone bill. im happy skype has worked a bit but i'm beginning to think that free wifi should be a right to all. i mean, lets start with affordable health care but after that...

6. im missing the manchester stop of dio's greatest hits tour by one day.

7. my current sore throat.

8. eating. i starve myself all day to avoid spending money at rest stops. this is always in hopes that upon arrival at the venue you might get some food. im am always appreciative of this type of hospitality but we are a group of 14 people, all doing the same thing. it goes quickly. some nights are better than others but i will say this is one of the creature comforts im having an issue giving up. it's just eating...no biggie. if my band were more popular, this wouldnt be an issue so i guess its my fault.

9. loading 10 minutes after playing. we are headlining for this tour and almost without exception we have to get out of the club within minutes of playing the last note. this is when i feel very old. luckily there are a lot of hands but honestly, i need a breather....

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mistake version...

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TTFA ....so far....

so i thought about this far too much. when your on tour, thats all you have is time to think. fuck knows you can't get anything else done. ive even thought about thinking....i was going to do a traditional tour diary but its way too boring. i wondered if i should just make stuff up, everyone does that. nah, then i thought i could write about my days off. thing is, i dont have enough except this week. the german part of my tour finished and ive ended up in edinburgh, scotland for 4 days. today being my last. ive done it all this week, ghost tours, the castle, whiskey museum, and of course, i found the local metal bar, bannermans, where i sit wriitng this. they have free wifi. ive been in this city 4 times previous and besides the tourists, i love it. its like being in a harry potter movie. during this short trip ive learned a little something about myself. im a bit socially awkward. i dont know whether i always have been or its something i never noticed because as a bandmember and bartender etc, im never without something to talk about. as a lonely tourist, im retarded. even alcohol doesnt help, in fact it makes it worse. of course ive tried to avoid the band conversation with most people. nothing gets stranger looks than "im in a band called gay for johnny depp". but its inevitable. i dont look like a backpacker or your general tourist so it always comes up. i wish i could take video of customs officers faces...amazing. they actually wrote "gay for johnny depp" on my passport. anyway, its something odd ive learned and i still have a month left. i hope im done with the introspection. its a ruff road.

edinburgh airport, 7:30 am. didnt sleep a wink last nite. lugged all my shit to the bus, had to pay extra for baggage...again. i know, stop complaining. im excited to see friends in london but its expensive as hell. days off in london are the demise of ones tour funds. basically, you cant leave the house if you dont want to spend money. unfortunately, when youre staying with friends, thats not possible and usually, they are more broke than you. the english are the most polite and generous people on earth. also the most repressed. admittedly so i think. ever notice how a brit cant get off the phone...its all "bye, bye, bye...". they never want to be the one to hang up. maybe thats why bully boy tv is so popular (gordan ramsey) or was. that shits like hanging with a german. they are blunt, whether they mean it or not.
stop the presses! ive seen three people drinking in the terminal area. its 8:30 am. even in my heyday, i dont think i could do this. i guess its ok as long as its not the pilots.

a week has passed. im on my way to the third gfjd show. so far so good. we're just starting to get it together. the other bands are great etc. enough about tour. i was doing some research in my boredom and wanted to share the results. just like there is comfort food, there is also comfort music. you know that thing you throw on when you cant figure out what to listen to. we are all into certains kinds of music aestetically, but what are you really listening to? what are the hard facts. well, luckily with itunes, you can find out. i have very eclectic tastes. im older and have pretty much been into everything with out going too far. i love extreme metal, older political punk bands, britpop, classic rock, etc... but what gets the most ticks on my ipod? U2 "the unforgettable fire", by a mile! its my go to album in times of doubt. 2nd place goes to lush "spooky", a much maligned record at the time of its release. hmm...next up.... the lost classic from 1972, roy harper "stormcock". from there it goes into obscure oasis and verve tracks and downtunes to "the apostasy" by behemoth and mercyful fates "dont break the oath" and i'll end with yes' "going for the one". who knew??? i dont think the word eclectic even fits how weird this list is.

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google maps, boston and cold communication

i've had so many great times in boston but they have all been negated by this one trip. i understand its an old city (so is nyc). just like london the urban planning (or lack there of) was done in the 1600-1700's. i get it. seriously. BUT, you have got to be kidding me! try getting around harvard sq. coming from the west. thing is on google maps brattle st doesnt appear on the direction list. this is def. a google issues, get on it, you're worth a billion and this is a big city! the streets just randomly change name and the amount of notice one gets from the signs is about negative 5 seconds. also, i swear that most of the street signs have been stolen. what the fuck? also, nice one having a big movie shoot on that silly looking new bridge (name?), same day as a red sox playoff game. who is running the show here, ashton kutcher and we've all been punked? oh yeah, not to mention that harvard sq is closes as well for a street market (the reason i was there). any boston, you're one of the most transient cities in the country, grt your shit together or just keep being jealous of nyc.

i have a weird phone aversion. its clinical. i hate talking on the phone. i use email and text, which to be honest has held me back a bit. i have an observation regarding such cold communication. people dont answer questions they dont want to. im guilty. i dont know, i guess the modern age is designed to avoid confrontation and completely misinterpret the simplelest things. i have more to write about this but my phones about to die

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greed is terrorism

the new gay for johnny depp album has a lyric (read:statement) that i had my engineers 10 year old nephew speak..."greed is terrorism". it'll be out on nov 30th in the UK...just saying. anyway, i thought that having a child say this would have far more impact than me. the rest of the "song" has spoken word of the ethics of the nyse and the patriot act simultaneously. doesn't really make a point if you can't understand it but so goes punk rock. now, the 13 people that read this know.

i saw the new michael moore movie tonight. on day 6 of sober october, i finally hit the point of going to a movie by myself. it's only the second time i've ever done this. i'm always very skeptical of moore's films as they always seem as filled with lefty propaganda as a fox news broadcast is with the views of the right. i won't get into my opinions of his past films, just his current. contrary to most of the reviews i've seen, i really feel this was his best. being a self proclaimed "social democrat", i found many of the points made in this movie to be spot on. moore is essentially calling for a revolution but not the military kind, this isn't the 18th century. he is calling for a new system, one that has learned from the mistakes of it's predecessors. democracy is essentially an experiment that is ever evolving but never forgets the basic rights established by our founding fathers.

i'm not an expert of any sort so i won't embarrass myself by trying to act like one. i will simply say that domestic terrorism is real and it's head quarters is just across river away from me. to paraphrase a part of the movie, in a free market system, you can strive for riches and may succeed or fail. thing is, it seems that by definition, in a free market system if you fail, you should fail. you don't get reimbursed for your gamble like wall street did. i understand that there was a risk of a meltdown, but the people responsible for all this should at least be held accountable, not become treasury secretaries and get bonuses. all these people should be in jail. i live very simply and after seeing this movie, i'm kind of glad i have. greed is terrorism.

did anyone else see the piece on "horrorcore" that appeared on ac360 last night? some disturbed kid killed an entire family. he is into "horrorcore". this is the genre made famous by the genius of the insane clown posse. i don't want to be judgemental...wait, yes i do. have you ever scene the juggalo fest video on youtube? search it. fucking amazing! hip hop invaded middle america white culture but the elements of hessian metal still lingered....enter a bunch of dude in clown make-up rapping about killing people. it's a video game set to a cave man drum beat. that's a no lose. i'm certainly not blaming icp or giving them any credit at all, but they are lapping this up i'm sure. the whole thing made me sad, but i watched it like a trained monkey, guess i'm no better.

stay rock

it might get loud in sober october

NYC is a drinkers town. i'd say only london really rivals it in sheer consumption and cultural acceptance. public transportation and cheap options (at least in brooklyn) make it an imbibers dream. recently, my late nights (mostly working behind the bar) and afternoon "mornings" have grown tiresome. a few friends of mine decided to use the convenient rhyme to their bodies advantage and take on a "sober october". with my impending tours and general need to improve my well being, i decided to join them. i'm 5 days in and i'm nearly manic with energy. i made a soup yesterday! what the fuck? i feel great. although, i'm weary of the future, bender rhymes with november....haha.

i saw the documentary "it might get loud" last night. the movie focuses on the careers of jimmy page, the edge and jack white. they get in a room and talk shop, play each others songs then edge and jack worship jimmy page. i could've watched this movie for 3 hours. i loved the jp interviews. his story is a history of rock n roll. edge is quickly becoming my favorite guitar player alive. his playing really reflects his personality, humble and earnest. jack white, was out of his league and it was really obvious that the film maker was a friend of his. i don't want to be overly negative but the guy even admits that the white stripes "got away with it." he admits that the image was a distraction from that fact they were just a blues rock band and a sloppy one at that. i appreciate that he admits all this and i also appreciate what the white stripes did for the indie scene. without them breaking through, things might be very different these days but it doesn't negate the obvious fact that as humble as he was, he should not be in a movie with legends. he's a lucky, lucky guy and his impact is felt, but in no way the way that zep or u2 will be forever. then i got to thinking, who else could they have gotten for the modern era? so many options were tossed around but they were either too obscure (graham coxon of blur) or too mentally insane (eddie van halen). i guess jack white worked.

got a few new records:

doomriders: fucking awesome! heavy sludge a la older baroness.

baroness - blue album : jury still out on this one. i'll get back to you.

megadeth- endgame: megadave seems like they are pulling a "death magnetic" and playing on the fans need for nostalgia. makes sense really. i only gave one good listen and besides some really hoaky lyrics, it's a good record. the guitar solos are amazing. thrash has been back in style for a few years now so why not have the masters play it again.

muse - the resistance: fuck everyone, i love the obvious queen rip off's and the symphony.

top ten. the new depression

since i can't seem to get my shit together and stop being a depressive bore, i'm going to use my current morose state and lack of concentration, i'm returning to my eclectic, a.d.d. friendly top 10's:

1. U2 at giants stadium: holy fuck. this was the most insane show i have ever seen. they were amazing and i have to admit, the edge stole the show. that is no small order, but sometimes the quiet guy onstage makes noise in other ways. he was perfect. muse was pretty amazing as well.

2. rorschach reunion show: it was actually two shows in one night. i loved this band when they were originally around and i thought this would definitely disappoint but, i was very wrong. pure power and violence (in a very smart way).

3. stryper live: yeah, i know the top 3 are about as weird as it gets but i'm old. i saw stryper at 12 when my born again cousin dragged me along to the felt forum (i think). they were awesome, many years later this ex-catholic turned staunch atheist returned to his guilt ridden days and rocked for jesus. they were fucking amazing!!! if i hadn't seen #1 and 2, this would be higher on this list. it was kind of hedonistic for scary jesus lovers.

4. "the end of faith" by sam harris: ahhh, back to normal. this book is a few years old but no less powerful in its commentary on modern religion. not as difficult as dawkins nor as snotty as hitchens, harris makes a great argument for the obvious archaic nature of organized religion. some of his strongest points are in #5.

5. the war in afghanistan: i'm very torn. the 3 authors (especially hitchens and harris) mentioned above openly claim that islam is a very dangerous religion. making strong arguments and direct quotes (numerous of them) that show the koran is a violent book that according to islamic law, was written by god and is therefore infallable where as the bible and talmud were both inspired by god but written by men. get it? yeah, infidels must die. scary shit. the thought of nut jobs like the iranian government (who care less about their people than their insane ideologies) having nuclear bombs scares the shit out of me. thing is i'm staunchly anti-war, especially this one in afghanistan. does our government ever read history books? i hope you do. we can't win but it seems like we have to. the whole area is a nightmare. i'm still trying to figure it out. not sure it's possible.

6. hating digital music: i've yet again lost a lot of my music. it's vinyl for me.

7. god fires man "life like" 180 gram vinyl european release: nuff said. 3 extra tracks, cd included. fuck yeah! europe here we come.

8. gay for johnny depp "manthology" : be afraid! Uk here we come.

9. top gear: i fell in love with this show a few years ago and my obsession has not stopped.

10. intervention and hoarders: these shows are designed to make me feel better about myself. thank god, i need it. unfortunately, i've learned a lot about myself from watching said shows. intervention, you've taught me that i drink a lot but i sure as hell ain't those people. hoarders, you're a different story. i've always been a collector of sorts, records, videos, magazines etc. as you get older you learn to part with things but i find the whole exercise incredibly stressful. today, i had one of those days of cleaning and whatnot. i threw out all my video tapes, a collection that i could have saved myself from had i foreseen youtube. also got rid of a lot of cd's, this nearly killed me. i kept going and taking different ones back for no reason at all. it just made me feel better.....oh my god, i'm a fucking hoarder. all the sudden i looked around my room at the piles of shit that i can't seperate from. shirts, mail, posters, wires, music gear the list goes on. when did this happen? i'm not sure but looking back it's always been there. having stuff is a band aid for depression i think. although i've never been diagnosed as i haven't had health insurance in years, i think i'm a prime candidate. at least i'm somewhat self aware. i think. oh well. we all have our issues.