(feel my heat): Aloe Blacc

Not sure if anyone else know who this guy is, but he is amazing.  Aloe Blacc is an incredible soul/r&b singer on the Stones Throw label.  Same label that drops heat from Madlib, Oh No, and the late, great J Dilla.  Aloe has one of the best styles I have ever heard.  Kind of like an indie R. Kelly, minus all the faux gangsterisms and teen sex stuff.  The best song off his debut album, Shine Through, is probably his cover of Sam Cooke's "A Change Going to Come".  If it were me, I would have made this the theme song to Obama's presidential campaign.  Anyway go get this album if you don't already have it.

RIP - Paul Newman

Paul Newman was a bad ass.  He was a bad ass in Cool Hand Luke, in Hud, in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.  He was a great guy in real life.  Created and helped fund the Hole in the Wall and Painted Turtle camps.  Predated the health food craze.  He will be missed.

RIP Paul Newman 

Wilco and Obey

Currently on Wilco's website is a live recording of Wilco and Fleet Foxes covering Bob Dylan's "I Shall Be Released".  To get this recording all you have to do is enter your name and email.  Oh and pledge that you will vote.  All in all that seems to be a pretty fair trade off.  Its a great recording and pretty good song.  So go get that ish.

Obey is an amazing brand and Shepard Fairy is one of my heroes.  This is one of the latest things from the Obey website:

Here are the two most important things to know about the current situation in Darfur, Sudan:

1) There is currently a resolution before the UN Security Council that if passed would override the arrest warrant for Pres Bashir for Crimes Against Humanity and Crimes of Genocide. This would not only undermine the months and years of work by the ICC and the lives that have been risked to bring this information forward, but it would show to the world that Genociders can go free if they are the heads of state and show the UN and ICC are incapable of governing the capability to Veto this resolution and set in motion the arrest of Bashir and hopefully an end to the Genocide in Sudan.

2) The Government of Sudan (GOS) recently attacked one of the largest IDP (Internally Displaced Persons) Camps in Southern Darfur. Kalma Camp, located outside of Nyala has more than 150,000 occupants. During this attack, 37 civilians were killed, many of whom were children under 11 years old. The GOS is now in the process of building up its military presence around the camp in what many think is in preparation for another larger attack. This cannot be allowed to happen. Pressure must be put on the US and the UN to deploy the UNAMID forces to this camp to stop this attack. In addition, our media must cover these evolving events and put them on the “front page” to let the GOS know that the world is watching and we will not stand by and allow the killing of innocent civilians.

Do you part to stop the killings in Darfur; write your congressman, donate, or even just join a protest group.

Blind I

For those of you who read this and haven't clicked through the link list, I highly recommend Blind I.  It is a really good hip-hop/rap site.  They put up tons of full albums, everything from Wale to Santogold to beats.  I like to click it throughout of the day to see what new things they put up.  I suggest downloading the beats, make for great study music.  So big ups to Blind I.

Pop's a Blue Ribbon

Birthday Mix

Beach House - Wedding Bells

Fleet Foxes - White Winter Hymnal

Grizzly Bear - Little Brother

Panda Bear - Bros

Atlas Sound - River Card

The Dodo's - Red and Purple

The National - Brainy

Happy Birthday Dad, in case Homer wasn't enough

There is No Way the special can be as Good as this picture

So what if the economy sucks and everything else seems to be falling apart?

(feel my heat): Ted Leo

Ted Leo is one of my favorite modern artists.  Anyone who listens to the show, knows that I like and play him frequently.  He writes impassioned and political songs, that are still pop songs.  He blends his influences quite well: hardcore punk, ska and reggae, literate pop and old fashion rock.  When you see him play live it is just a trio.  His album "Shake the Sheets" might be my favorite album of the last five years.  Last years "Living with the Living" was like a punk version of Armed Forces.  

Anyway, he has just released a four track EP called Rapid Response.  It is in response to the wrongful arrests and police brutality that occurred at the conventions this year.  The proceeds will be donated to Democracy Now! and the Minneapolis chapter of Food Not Bombs.  The two original songs are pretty good, you can certainly hear his rage and frustration loud and clear.  The real winners though are the covers.  I Got Your Number is a great punk song and Leo adds his signature tricks to it.  Nobody's Driving is just Leo on his own and the song is better than the original for it.  Go buy this EP if you like Leo or just want to support the cause.

Literary Cinema

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Literary Cinema

Okkervil River - Our Life Isn't a Movie or Maybe

The National - Secret Meeting

The Hold Steady - One for the Cutters

Andrew Bird - Plasticities

Josh Ritter - Girl in the War

The Mountain Goats - Tallahassee 

This is Incredibly Sad

David Foster Wallace dead at 46

I never read anything by Mr. Wallace but his style intrigued me.  The way it has been described certainly sounds like something I would enjoy.  And no matter what it is sad when someone kills themselves.  I was actually planning on going to Barnes today to pick up Consider the Lobster, A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, I Just Want My Pants Back and some Y: the Last Man's.  Those will probably be the last 52's this year. I have a Suburban Noise to post on this topic (literature) later.

Southern Gothic

In celebration of the dark and the gritty.  Scary without being cheesey.  Speaking of which, if you haven't seen True Blood go watch it.  It is really entertaining.  All about vampires being allowed to live openly, and is set in a small southern town.  It comments on a lot of different all at once.

Southern Gothic

Grinderman - No Pussy Blues

Dax Riggs - Radiation Blues

Mark Lanegan - Man in the Long Black Coat

Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Dig Lazurus Dig

deadboy and the Elephantmen - Stop I am already dead

For Ethan

Ten Most Haunted Places in the World

Looking to get spooked? take a tour of some of the creepiest, most ghost-infested places on the planet From England to the US this list contains the top 10 most haunted places that you can visit.There are certain places where the restless spirits of the night linger. They manifest as eerie voices and strange perfumes; they move things about; they creep out of the shadows as apparitions. Sometimes they even attack.
These are the places, through years of experiences and unnerving reputation, that are considered the most haunted places in the world.
1. Edinburgh Castle - Edinburgh, Scotland
2. The Whaley House - San Diego, California,US
3. The Borley Rectory - Borley, England
4. The Bell Farm - Adams, Tennessee, US
5. Raynham Hall - Norfolk, England
6. The Queen Mary - Long Beach, California, US
7. The White House - Washington D.C., US
8. The Tower of London - London, England
9. Ballygally Castle - Ballygally Bay, Ireland
10.The Rose Hall Great House - Montego Bay, Jamaica
The Most Haunted Places In World

Saw this and had to jack it

Slackers, Losers, and Underachievers aka English Art and Geography Majors

Slackers, Losers, and Underachievers aka English Art and Geography Majors
Silver Jews - Punks in the Beerlight
Pavement - Range Life
Superchunk - Yeah It's Beautiful Here Too
Why? - These Few Presidents
Violent Femmes - American Music

Death By Black Hole

I am not a scientist.  I am in fact really bad at science and math.  It interests me but I have little talent at it.  This excites me greatly though.

Fun times.  Lets go Big Bang

New Blog Up

Okay I decided to make this a personal blog again. So I am here to announce the Fear and Loathing in 2008, the political blog. Still run by me. Expect the same low quality of service.  Just decided that I am posting enough stories that it needed a separate blog.

Aight peace

Check In and Album Reviews

Okay so I decided it was time for a check in and some album reviews instead of all politics all the time.  Boston is going well.  I like my classes.  Swahili is almost overwhelming but it is interesting.  It is certainly a huge change from English.  Calculus may end up being a pain in the ass.  I am not totally sure.  My teacher has an accent that is like a verbal cinder block.  English and Economics shouldn't be too bad.  Both are kinda interesting.  I want to read Thomas Friedman's new book.  It relates to the type of geography I am interested in.  I signed up to join the radio station, along with a bunch of other groups. 

Shareen is doing well.  She likes her classes and is still set on psychology, but slowly considering Public relations which I think she would be great at.  She is a research assistant for her psych professor.  Which is pretty cool.  Overall I am impressed at how well she has been able to transition to college life.

I have been listening to a couple albums a lot recently.  So here are thoughts/reviews:

• Ra Ra Riot - The Rhumb Line: This album is pretty good.  I just listened to it for the second time.  I like it.  It has a similar vibe to Vampire Weekend, only less ethnic-y.  I will see if it continues to grow on me.
• The Gaslight Anthem - The 59 Sound:  This band and the Loved Ones made me care about punk rock again, at least a little bit.  It sounds like Bruce Springsteen with a frog in his throat.  The album does not break entirely new ground but it is a fun record to listen to.  The same can not be said for the latest Anti-Flag album.
• Shearwater - Rook:  This is kinda like Okkervil River's sad little brother.  Which makes sense since the main guy in Okkervil started this band with the main guy in Shearwater to release more acoustic music.  With this album hopefully Shearwater will be able to get out of big brother's shadow.  The songs are rich and well developed.  They are well done but maintain an sloppy edge.
• Wale - Mixtape About Nothing:  This is a great album.  Wale might be the premier lyricist out there.  He is on par with lil wayne, only less absurd.  Plus the album was free which is a plus.
• The Walkmen - You and Me:  I have listened to this album a couple times and like it.  It gives off a vibe similar to The National.  Which took a bunch of listens before I really like Boxer, now I listen to it almost daily.  So we will see where this ends up.

Otherwise I am not up to much.  I am excited for the new Tv On the Radio, Okkervil River, and Deerhunter albums.  Eager to start working at the radio station.  Hopefully I will have a new 52 to post soon.  Expect another Suburban Noise soon.  Otherwise that is all for me at the moment.  I am out.

Silver Surfer Feels My Heat

Silver Surfer Feels My Heat Mix
The Ventures - Walk Don't Run
The Pyramids - Pressure
Deltas - Hawaiian Wipeout
The Challengers - K-39
Beach Boys - Surfin' USA

Cowabunga Dude!!!

Funky Cold Heat

Since I don't get a radio show this semester,  I decided that I will do more podcasts.  I think they will have themes but no garuntees.  Anyway here is a fresh one for you.  Full of funky horns, jazzy beats and soulful singing.  Even some random banter with awkward silences, its just like WMSR. Enjoy!

Funky Cold Heat

Madlib - Tape Hiss (Dirty)

Mf Doom - Buckeyes

The Budos Band - Mas O Menos

Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings - Nobody's Baby

James Brown - Hot Pants

I don't know if the link works so please let me know

15 Down, 37 To Go

Book: Gonzo: The Life of Hunter S. Thompson
Album: Stay Positive - The Hold Steady

Gonzo was a hard book to read. It was all about Hunter Thompson, the stories got repetitive. Every page was soaked in Chivas, caked in coke, and burnt with cigs. He seemingly treated everyone badly and then was way too nice and generous to make up for it. It was very interesting to get past the outlandish attitude and get bits and peices of what Hunter might actually have been. I think that people were way too generous with their praise for him. I read Hell's Angels and the Vegas one and bits and pieces of the others. Other than the first two I was not blown away by anything he wrote. He wanted to be the next Hemingway but he wasn't able to write short fiction like Hemingway, nor did he have Hemingway's dedication and discipline it sounds like. It certainly interesting to watch the myth be stripped away from the man.

The new Hold Steady album is pretty great. For a band that had an album inspired by Kerouac there songs resemble more of Thompson's spirit. The albums filled with characters that are constantly getting drunk, getting arrested and can't get out of their own way. I once heard that the difference between Springsteen and Tom Waits characters are how recently they showerd, these characters are the bastard kids spawned from those songs. They have been going at it for long enough now that the characters seem to reappear as if they were in a Faulkner story or Kevin Smith movie. Long as they keep rocking and not attending their AA meetings I will keep listening.

Dear Summer

So as I write this I am flying to school. Summer is over, back to the grind back to school back to the fake world. Its not that school is fake but there is a false sense of security and, for me at least, a distance from real life. Real Life I do not think has parties, mid-terms, and meal plans. I may very well be wrong, god I hope so. Anyway it is always hard for me to leave home at the end of vacation. If I am in a place for more than two weeks I begin to become settled and attached. My family certainly makes it difficult to break away. Anyway to keep the tradition alive, I here are some of the highlights of this summer:

• Nightmare of You
• Getting into Boston
• Getting Good Grades Second Semester
• Wild Rivers the one time I went even though I bought a season pass
• Costco runs with my mom
• Working as the cheese bitch
• Lunches with Shareen
• Wandering around the spectrum and south coast
• The week of Graduations
• The visit - not a highlight but it gave us all something to talk about
• Visiting Boston
• Tommy and all associated with that
• Lolla
• New York City
• Colin's basketball games
• Ethan getting into Concordia
• The feeling that I never really saw most of my fam since they were out with friends/asleep/working
• Moving E into school
• Batman, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Pineapple Express

All of these and many more. This is in no order. Just what came to mind while I was sitting on the plane, in between episodes of Seinfeld, Snatch and reading Gonzo.

14 down, 38 to go; Work; Venture Brothers; and Boston

Here is the worlds longest blog post. Enjoy!

14 Down, 38 To Go
Book: I Was Told There'd Be Cake by Sloane Crosley
Album: The Sun and the Neon Light - Booka Shade

I Was Told There'd Be Cake was an okay collection of essays. It grew on me slowly but surely. The opening chapters were so weak and unfunny that I set it down and nearly didn't pick it up again. I am glad that I did. Around page 75 the essays got better, less princess-y and jew-y. Two big no no's for me. Anyway the stories about Oregon trail, her sick sister and vegetarian lifestyle were both funny and reminded me of things I had done and thought. I am not sure if I would recommend this book as the absolute next thing you should read but if you have a weekend of traveling and want something short and easy to read you could do a lot worse than this book.

The Sun and Neon Light has almost nothing to do with the book. The style is not at all similar. This is my first booka shade album and I was shocked at how un-dancey it is. When I saw these guys at Lolla they brought the bass and the funk. This album has some of that but it is much more of a chill out album. Still it is one of the better albums I have heard this year.

I finished my last day at pavilions today. It was quite a summer job. It taught me a lot about people and what real life is. Here is a hint: it is not last summers job. Real life is working a job and still not being able to afford rent. It about dealing with bitchy customers and idiotic co-workers. The job taught me that most people are lonely and that people will quickly open up to annoy who appears to be interested and nice, even if they guy is trying to sell you a piece of brie that cost more than two gallons of gas. I also learned that it is good to shut up and just work. Don't think about how shitty it is, just do what you are told. However this is the last time I think I will ever work as a deli person. First I can not deal with people barking things at me, I very nearly told a couple people a shift that no they could not have half a pound of turkey. Second it is a bad idea to yell at the person who is handling your food, don't know who still needs to wash their hands. Third I never want to cut into a bag of roast beef and get blood in my eyes ever again. Other than those complaints and the awful pay, I thought the job was a positive experience. One that I can live without repeating.

This past season of Venture Brothers was epic. That is the only appropriate word is Epic. Epic like Homer. The continuity of the story and the back stories provided are incredible. They are extremely silly but the fact that everything is tied together and had been set up since season one is extraordinary. Its like going back and rereading the harry potter series and seeing how many things that were mentioned in the first book were critical in the last one. This is all intentional of course, but the jokes and references that the characters make are perfect this season. The back story of The Monarch, Dr. Girlfriend-Wife, Billy and White and all of Team Venture are interesting. Then there are the sub-texts of the show: good vs evil, brother vs brother, brains vs brawn, failure and disillusionment, the boys sexuality, Brock's roll in the family, and what villainy is. Shareen has complained that she doesn't get the show, which is understandable. This show like a lot of comics, is almost impossible to jump into midstream, there is too much back story and idiosyncratcies. Also the show is only funny if you get all of the references, old comics/action movies, 80's music, and other randomness. Ultimately this season was a total success, unlike other shows where the third season signaled the beginning of the end: House and Monk for instance.

Lastly I am going to school on Friday. I am very excited about this. I am ready to go back to school. Home has been fun but it is time to go back to school meet people and do work. Boston will be a lot of fun and a great experience I think. It is odd to talk to my friends at Miami who are already in class doing work and stuff. I was shocked to see how many emails from teachers I had today when I looked at mymiami email today. I have no received that many from my teachers at Boston. For those of you wondering what I am taking: Swahili i, Freshman English, Calculus I and Economic Geography. Pumped for Geography and Swahili, scared for Calculus and uninterested in Freshman English - particularly because it is about Russian Literature. For those of you who don't know, I am living at the Hyatt Regency in Cambridge this semester. Not a huge fan of living in a hotel but I have no other place to live. The saga of me trying to find a place to live is way too long to write about, but needless to say this was not my first choice.