Music for the start of a new week.

Musak:Rock/Alt

MP3: Brett Dennen - San Francisco

MP3: Brett Dennen - Closer To You

MP3: Brett Dennen - World Keeps Turning

from Hope For The Hopeless (2008) [brettdennen.net / amazon.com]

We passed on this shady look’n casino in Noordwijk, Netherlands

We’ve been putting together some pretty decent poker games recently. On top of that, I’ve been keeping up with the World Series of Poker on ESPN. All of this gambling has reminded me of all the random casinos that we ran into in Europe. On the streets of Germany and The Netherlands we came across casinos that often sat next door to everyday shops in busy areas of city centers, like next to clothing stores in Amsterdam and even a McDonald’s in Munich.

For better or worse, I guess gambling is just one of many things that American culture finds taboo and pushes to the middle of the desert (i.e. Las Vegas) or remote Indian Reservation land - with the exception of Los Angeles where you can find a card room almost anywhere. I’m not sure if it’s better to sweep gambling under the carpet or allow slot machines in the local laundromat… but then I wouldn’t have quarters for the dryer.

Sort of along these same lines, I guess San Francisco is going to consider decriminalizing prostitution [AP article].

Interesting times in the Wild West..

Musak:Alt/Indie/Rock

MP3: Okkervil River - Lost Coastlines

MP3: Okkervil River - On Tour With Zykos

MP3: Okkervil River - Calling And Not Calling My Ex

from The Stand Ins (2008) [okkervilriver.com / amazon.com]

sunrise over Germany

Stateside for the first time in a while. More about that later…

Musak:Reggae/Pop/Hip-Hop

This track is all over the place in Northern Europe. Biggups to Norway!

MP3: Madcon - Beggin’
from So Dark - The Con of Man (2008) [madcon.no / myspace]

“Disney Billboard” by eBoy

Trying to pack a bag for a long trip can be quite a daunting task.  For me, the issue isn’t so much that I try to bring my entire closet. I look at all the space in this 4,200 cubic inch backpack and wonder how I’m ever going to fill it.  So I did a little research around the internet and found a ton of packing lists. No list is as complete as the Universal Packing List. It’s too much stuff for me, so I’m just using it as a guide to make sure that I don’t forget any essentials.

My itinerary is light as well. As long as a train, plan, or automobile can get there, so can I. Lonely Planet makes for a great travel guide, as does this site called IGoUGo.com. IGoUGo points out some sites for many destinations and travelers use it to keep an on-line journal, which you can read.

Then there’s the science of documenting your travels. A great blog for this is Scription, written by Patrick Ng. The blog seems to have started as a tribute to the famous Moleskin brand journals and grew into a more general journal/photo/travel blog that artsy/craftsies will enjoy.

Lastly, there’s the anticipation. The waiting part is a killer. Some tunes to pass the time…

Musak:Dub/Reggae

MP3: Bedouin Soundclash - Music My Rock

MP3: Bedouin Soundclash - When The Night Feels My Song

MP3: Bedouin Soundclash - Murder On The Midnight Wire

from Sounding A Mosaic (2004) [band site / amazon.com]

Andrew kicks off the warming of house

First of all, gotta give a shout out to my friend and former Harlem roomie, Zoe, for writing some brilliant prose on her new blog Zoe Says.  I think a lot of people will see a piece themselves when they read her blog.  Or they’ll inch away from the computer and shave their cat.  Either way, Zoe’s blog is sure to make an impact.
She’s inspired me to write a bit more than usual, so here I go:

In the last 3 weeks I’ve received 5 multimedia messages on my celly. The problem: you can’t view multimedia messages on an iPhone. Make note of that. Write it down in your diary. Instead, try e-mailing me pictures of your office decorations and video of your roommate puking in a parking lot after a night out.

So a while back I wrote about my adventures in framing. Well I had to cancel one of my framing orders from Micheal’s. Take my word, do not get any matting done at the Micheal’s on Northern Blvd in Woodside, NY. First of all, it took them 17 business days to finish my order - and I didn’t even get a custom frame, just matting. All they had to do was cut some paper! The first frame [Warborne Blvd by Dave Kinsey] came out looking amazing. The matting for the second print [Proud Parents by Shepard Fairey] came out crooked ON ALL SIDES - like some grade school kid cut out the matting during arts and crafts hour.

I asked them to fix it, and they agreed to have it ready by the next day. I get a phone call the next day (5 mins before I’m supposed to pick it up) saying that they messed up the matting so bad that they’ll have to order new paper (another “10″ business days). I asked for a refund, and got one with little fuss on their part. They were always polite, but their craftsmanship reflects the “$10/hr, just a warm body behind a desk” framers that they are. Save your money and time. I know I will.
[bonus]
Man, that was a lot of negative energy. But I reserve the right to not edit this post and sweeten it up

Some down and dirty tunes, FTW!

Musak:Rock/Punk via Rap/Hip-Hop

I ripped the headphones from out my ears this morning and decided to completely whipe my iPod clean.  Time for some completely new tunes.  Whilst digging through one of Joey’s on-line harddrives, I found a compilation album called Punk Goes Crunk.  The album is better than it’s title.

Don’t be fooled by the first few minutes of this track.  The first half sounds like a fairly predictable cover, but then it goes off the scale at 2:08.  Hang in there…
MP3: My American Heart - California Love (2Pac cover)

Was a little hesitant about this one when I heard that New Found Glory was doing the cover - but I’ve been a huge fan of Arrested Development since the mid-90’s so I gave it a shot. Was definitely pleasantly surprised by this one.
MP3: New Found Glory - Tennessee (Arrested Development cover)

A little Maroon 5-ish… in a good way?
MP3: Secret Handshake - I Wish (Skee-Lo cover)

The last guy to rap on this cover bugs me, but the other 75% of this track is legit. Bonus points for the clever band name.
MP3: Scary Kids Scaring Kids - Notorious Thugs (Bone Thugs and Biggie cover)

from Punk Goes Krunk - Various Arists (2008) [amazon.com]

Got out and explored my hood a bit. Around every corner I find yet another welcome change from Manhattan life. Tonight we walked towards Astoria Park but got distracted by Socrates Sculpture Park. There was a band playing some interesting electro/alt/rock in Spanish, to be followed by an outdoor international film showing on a large inflatable screen.

Also snapped these pics from around the sculpture park (was dusk and these are just off my phone):

Musak:Electro/Retro/Pop

MP3: Cut Copy - Feel The Love
from In Ghost Colours (2008) [purchase at amazon.com]