The Best Stuff

Caro, please don't tell.

I was in the grocery store yesterday and there was a Dido song playing, and I was thinking to myself, "this is certainly not one of the best songs ever written". A couple days before that, Boys of Summer had been playing as I was being electrocuted in the physiotherapist's office, and I had the exact opposite thought.

So, I think it's time to talk about some of the best stuff. Feel free to pitch in.

Best Songs (at the moment....)
Boys of Summer (Don Henley)
I Hope You Dance (Lee Ann Womack with a great backing band)
most of the Pornografitti album (Extreme)
With or Without You, Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking for, Where the Streets Have No Name (U2)
Anything that doesn't have Sean Paul in it

Best Band Names
Chixdigit
Marky Mark & The Funky Bunch (thanks to Erin for the reminder)
Monday Night Band

Best Delivery of the Word "Tea?" (as an invitation)
British Nathan

Best Foods
Steak
Nat's trifle
Anything deep-fried

Best Sound
The little chick's laugh

Best Articles of Clothing
Depends heavily on the situation, but, in general, a great pair of jeans
Big Red Coat

Best Tire
Front driver's side

Best Picture
The next one...


More to come. Hope you're all well!

Happy Birthday To Me, Part II

Well, we had a MNB listening session last night to choose some new tunes. It was not an easy affair. I've been on a country kick. Our bass player figures that Motown is the key to get people dancing. Caro has an ear for b-sides and rarities, and our singer doesn't trust anything that isn't on top-40 radio. Here.

Not a lot of overlap, there.

But, they surprised me with a little birthday celebration. Caro brought a cake, Helen a bottle of champagne, and we had a little party, MNB-style.

Now, when I was in Canada at Christmas, my aunt was kind enough to give me some "candles" that have been legendary in our family for some time, but that I had never before had the pleasure of experiencing.

I have "candle" in "quotes" because they are mostly plastic, and about the size of stubby pop can. I put one on the cake last night, and lit it. And, to our shared delight, it shot up a sparkler about a foot into the air. The sparkler lit the mini candles (about... oh, nine of them?) that were on folded-up leaves above it, and then the leaves dropped down, making it look like a rather explosive lotus flower. The leaves started to spin, and a cheerily electronic version of "Happy Birthday" began to play.

And play.

And play.

And play.

Eventually, I took it outside and put it on my window ledge. It seemed reckless to throw it into the street, I didn't want to keep it inside, and, besides, there is a pigeon who has been visiting the little chick and I, and sitting there. At first I thought this would be grand, and a wonderful chance for her to see a bird at close range. Then I realized that, should I decide to open the windows this summer, it may be a little too close, and quite likely messy. I speculated that perhaps this rather spiky lotus-thing would help him stay away.

Nathan, upon arriving home, mentioned that he had gotten up at about 2:30 to have a good cough, and noticed that it was still playing. Crazy, we said.

The party was... about 8:00 last night. And it's now about 7:00 today. And Nathan just opened the window to check, and it's still playing.

Happy birthday to me.

Happy birthday to me.


That pigeon is never coming back.

The Set List

For Troy.

Set 1

1. Kiss Me (Sixpence None The Richer) - good tune, maybe a bit slow for a starter in retrospect
2. Somewhere Only We Know (Keane) - it rocks
3. Everybody's Gone To War (some Australian chick) - it really, really rocks. Love this song
4. Who Knew (Pink) - solid tune, maybe not the best fit for us, but fun to play
5. King of Pain (Alanis Morrisette acoustic version) - nice backup part for me to sing in this
6. Shiver (Natalie Imbrouglia) - kind of mellow, but it's a nice one
7. Life For Rent (Dido) - not my favorite tune, but I do get to sing in it
8. Torn (Natalie Imbrouglia) - nice, and people know it
9. What Took You So Long (Emma Bunton) - yes, former Spice Girl. But it's a hauling song
10. Radio (The Corrs) - nice guitar in this one

Set 2

1. I Don't Want A Lover (Texas) - good, straight-ahead rocker
2. Since You've Been Gone (Kelly Clarkson) - decent tune, I LOVE singing the "yeah, yeah" in the chorus
3. Sk8r Boi (Avril Lavine) - moves along pretty good, but makes my arms tired
4. Bend and Break (Keane) - another fun one to play, even if there aren't any BGV's
5. Starting Today (Natalie Immbrouglia) - why is it that I want to describe all of hers as "nice"?
6. Sand In My Shoes (Dido) - rocks pretty good, for Dido
7. Ironic (Alanis Morrisette) - people seemed to like this one - easy to sing along, I guess
8. Hunter (Dido) - not my favorite, but it has a nice grooving drum part
9. She Will Be Loved (Maroon 5) - love this tune, plus there's lot's of singing for me
10. Satellite (Natalie Imbouglia) - well... yeah, it's nice, too
11. So Young (The Corrs) - love the ending... nice harmonies on "yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah"
12. Leave Me Alone (P!ink) - another rocker

Set 3

1. Behind These Hazel Eyes (Kelly Clarkson) - pretty fun to play, the drums are all over the place
2. Breathless (The Corrs) - hard not to love this tune
3. Wishing I Was There (Natalie Imbrouglia) - very groovy, with a fun gang backup in the chorus
4. Adia (Sarah Maclaughlin) - great drums in this one, plus lots of singing. Hooray!
5. White Flag (Dido) - okay tune, but I get to sing in the chorus
6. Counting Down The Days (Natalie Imbrouglia) - fun, but feels like I'm trying to hold back a team of wild horses to keep the tempo steady
7. Thank You (Dido) - not bad, but I think my BGV needs a bit of polishing in this one
8. Only When I Sleep (The Corrs) - slow, but it rocks. We skipped it, I think to move on to something quicker
9. Black-Eyed Boy (Texas) - motown-ish rocking kind of tune, not bad...
10. Steve McQueen (Sheryl Crow) - love this one... the drums haul, and I get to sing my heart out in the chorus... it's just right for my range - low enough that I can hit all the notes without having to worry about it, but high enough to make it feel like I'm working for it. I could play this all night...

So there you have it. There were a bunch of people taking pictures and video, so I'll see if I can get some of that up for your viewing pleasure...

Tonight's The Night

The Cover Story (you may know them as the MNB) debut. It's going to be good, I hope. And fun. Fun to play, fun to listen to. The songs will start at the right tempo; the backup vocals will be so on pitch you will find yourself wondering where the CD is hidden; the guitar will be neither too loud nor too quiet, with an aggressive yet pleasant tone. It will all go well.

And I will not - NOT - drop my sticks.

Thanks to all of you who have decided to come and cheer us on. I'd love to buy you each a drink, but I'm afraid we're not getting paid quite that much. And thanks, also, to those of you who weren't able to get flights lined up (yes, I'll try to give you more warning next time) and so have been encouraging me from a distance. I appreciate it, and promise good seats to all when the world tour rolls around...

MNB No More

Well, we have a gig on October 4, and so we need a name. I like MNB (Monday Night Band), but it seems I'm the only one, so we have some more options, and I want you to help us choose.

The band is somewhat divided in terms of how to get a name... some want something that represents what we're doing as literally as possible (using, if there's any way, at least one pun). Some of us just want something that sounds cool and doesn't mean anything. You'll never guess which camp I fall into.

Anyways, here are four options. Pick your favorite - if you guess correctly, you could win a fabulous prize!*

1. Cover Story
2. Undercover
3. Hot Little Potato
4. Story Corner

And the voting starts.... NOW!


*Though I wouldn't hold your breath.

Mindy Smith

I was putting a bunch of the MNB tunes on my mp3 player and noticed I had tracks from a Mindy Smith album (One Moment More) on my PC. I can't remember how/from whom I got her CD, but I don't think I had listened to it after ripping it.

Wow.

Her voice reminds me of Alison Krauss (that is, what an angel would likely sound like if I had the chance to hear one sing), but she is a bit more folksy rather than bluegrass-y, and when she rocks, she rocks it right. I'll tell you... listening to her rip it out with some open, country harmonies in behind and the drums kicking Steve-Earle style (think "Copperhead Road") while walking to work in the sunshine this morning pretty much sets up a day that cannot, no matter what follows, go too far wrong. Yeah, baby!

Happy weekend, everyone. Here's hoping you get a chance to breathe, to slow down, and to see or hear something beautiful. And if you're the one who introduced me to Mindy, thanks. I owe you one.

More Girly Stuff

Well, tonight it was Pink, Who Knew.

I've never been a huge fan of hers... she has seemed just a little too much in the past, with the tough-girl image and the whole "I'm a pop star who's not a pop star" thing, but I was in the mood to play this one tonight, and it just hauled. The verses are a bit plain and the bridge is actually disturbingly weak, but that chorus....

Wow.

And especially in the last one when she kicks it up a notch and goes high... I got outvoted for whether or not this tune suits having male backing vocals, but I'm just going to have to push the mic aside and sing my heart out - there's no way to let that chorus go by on its own. And really - I couldn't care less if no one else can hear me.

And it makes me just ache to play my acoustic kit... to have those high hats open and creating this wall of sound, huge and resonant... the kick drum feeling like a punch in the stomach... my piccolo snare ringing out and cutting through the rest of the music like a bell... wow, I miss it.

I'm not a guy who's really prone to aggression I don't usually like loud noises. But there is something about laying into a snare drum until it feels like it's going to rip your face off that just can't be compared to anything else. If you ever get the chance, I highly suggest that you try it. Of course, not everyone may have the same reaction I do to it, but who knows? Maybe you will.

Visitors And The MNB Plans Ahead

I have a lot of friends coming to visit in the next couple of months... most only for a couple of days, but, still - I'm really looking forward to it. I'm not going to make any kind of top-ten list for maintaining my long-distance friendships, I'm afraid, but there are a lot of people who are not in my day-to-day life but who I really care about. And it will be wonderful to see some of them this summer.

Also, it looks like the MNB (likely under a stage name) will be performing in September. I was kind of hoping it would be sooner for the people who will be gone as of summer, but a little more time to polish some of the tunes won't hurt. I can't wait! Best onesthat we practiced tonight were by Maroon5, I think. Really well-written, and man.... they just groove. She will be loved has a certain, shall we say, chordal similarity to "With Or Without You" (along with about a billion other songs) in the chorus, but the melody line is distinctive enough that I don't think it hurts it at all. I'm going to be singing all night...

For Those About To Rock

I usually love my walk to work in the morning - but today I drove and it was cool, cool, cool. I was listening to the MNB practice cd's, picking out some of the drum stuff that I had missed (or, more likely, forgotten) and singing along at the top of my lungs. It made me realize how long it's been since I've performed.

I'm happy we have a bass player. I'm happy the tunes are coming together. 'Cause I can't wait to get out and play again... I hope we can get a date before Pickwick's stops for the summer.

Happy weekend, everybody.

Big News From The MNB

Tonight, maybe we practice with a bass player. Maybe. Then we will be unstoppable. But first, I have to clean up the little chick's toys.

We had a going away party for a friend last night. Once again, I'm thankful for the people I have been able to meet here, and, once again, sorry to see them go so soon. That's Geneva...

Drummer Face

No, I'm not going to post a picture. But some of you have seen it. And, if you haven't, if you show up when the MNB finally ends up playing (we're hoping for May), you will most certainly see it. It's drummer face.

It looks a little like I'm constipated (but happy, as we determined in practice today), but it means that we are rocking. It means I am ready to pound my drums into the ground and hit you with a wall of sound that will snap your head back like student driver in an F18. It means you better look out.

I get it pretty frequently when I'm playing, because, at least some of the time, it rocks. But I also get it when I'm watching a band. Or listening. So if you see me walking down the street and I appear to be in trouble of some sort, it's probably just a monster groove going on in my earbuds.

And here's something I love: Andy gets it, too.

What makes that unique is that Andy is not a drummer. He's a bass player, which is almost like a drummer but they don't use their feet at all, and they rely on amplifiers to be heard. Anyways, when Andy is laying down a deep, nasty groove, he gets a look on his face that says, "if you even try to stop this I will crush you like a little Ukrainian easter egg that wasn't allowed to dry properly and had all the ink run until it wasn't suitable for display or resale." He's one of the nicest guys you could hope to know, but if you see Andy when he's laying down a beat you would think he may be getting ready to kill you.

Anyways, today it happened a couple of times, but the best, for me, was on another Keane song: Somewhere Only We Know. It was cool to hear Kristy taking over and hammering it out on the piano (most of the rocking songs we play are guitar-driven). But that song just soars... wide open chords ringing out, funky kick drum hammering down some triplets and the snare ripping your face off on 2 and 4. It's beautiful. I love it, and I can't wait to perform it. Can't wait!

Creme Brulee

It is in what may be my favorite chocolate in the world, and I discovered today that it lives in ice cream, too. We had a MNB practice this afternoon (it appears that I am the only one the name has really caught on with, but I haven't given up hope. I am nothing if not hopeful), and Helen brought Creme Brulee ice cream. And Caro brought brownies. Kristy brought salad, but salad is important even if it doesn't have sugar in it.

So it made me think of ice cream flavors I would like to have. Maybe they make some of these, but they should be more accessible.

Watermelon (that really tastes like watermelons)
Dark chili chocolate
Super nibs (with chunks, please)
Terry's chocolate orange
Gummy sour cola bottle
Apple pie

Any other ideas?

Girly

I just finished a practice of sorts with my Monday Night Band (MNB). We didn't actually play tonight, but we each brought in tunes that we thought may be suitable to expand out set list and had a listen to the bunch.

Well, I've had my heavy phases in the past... I did punk, I did speed metal. Lately I've listened to a fair bit of pop-ish stuff, as well as a lot of folk, country, and bluegrass. But I realized, as I was going through my CD collection, that I have almost nothing like I am playing with this band (Corrs, Dido, Texas, Sarah Mclaughlin). Still, I'm playing it. Willingly.

And, what's more, I'm liking it.

Since probably almost none of you have met them, I should just say that we are, at present, a four-piece: three lovely women on keyboards, guitar, and lead vocals, along with me on drums (waiting for Andy to join in on the bass), with all three of the instrumentalists doing backup vocals. These women are talented, and I have really enjoyed playing and singing with them, but clearly, we don't have a lot of testosterone in the room. At first, I didn't think it would be an issue.

But it's become a cause of concern for me. It started (or, at least, I realized it) when one of them suggested "I Love You, Always Forever" by Donna Lewis and I said, "I love that song" before I had a chance to stop myself. They didn't seem to notice, but I felt that something had changed. No longer would I be able to wear a Tragically Hip shirt at practice without doubting myself. No longer could I just glance over from my drums to my Extreme cd's for reassurance. I had crossed a line, and I don't know if I can go back.

And tonight it continued. I managed to pull Jessica Andrews (?!?) out of my own collection, thinking that some of her songs may fit what we're doing. The verdict, from the girls?

Too girly. Not quite what we're looking for.

I am the drummer. I am the man. I am the one who, should we end up gigging, will be carrying anything heavy. I am the one that no one expects to smell good, who should be covered in sweat by the end of a show. I hit things, and I make really, really loud noises. According to all stereotypes, I should show up drunk and in a foul mood and leave, if possible, more drunk and more foul.

So what in the world has happened to my taste in music?

I'm going to go listen to Ozzy now. If I'm not back in three days, send out the dogs to look for me... I'll probably be under a big stack of Christina Aguilera cd's...