Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Funky Little Schack! Funky Little Schack.

New Year's Eve


If you don't like seeing live music for w/e reason and don't have enough friends to have a comfortable party, you should go to the Maritime Hotel for New Year's Eve. They're having a cabana party! For $30 you won't really be able to sit down [that costs $100] but you'll be at a decent dance party in the best hotel in New York. Plaza? Waldorf-Astoria? Be damned! One bathroom trip to the Maritime Hotel [en route to some live music], and you'll want to live there right as your divorce is being finalized.

So yeah, definitely save up your $30. Otherwise you'll have to go Rubulad. Yech!

Canned-gini: A Jet fan's opinion of a victim of the firing line.


Monday, Eric Mangini had officially been fired as head coach of the Jets. Old news? Relatively. Unexpected? mmm, Not so much.

It's tough already being the head coach of a New York football team, especially one whose fanbase is in a desperate need of a Super Bowl appearance; but when your organization pumps $140 million into trading, free agent signings, and other fancy-pants personel changes and not get into the playoffs, well, something's gotta give.

Don't get me wrong, I liked Mangini. I believe that he layed down a good foundation for player development and some strategies for offense and defense worked really well, and 2 out of 3 winning seasons is pretty good. But looking at this, I can see why changes might be needed.

This could've gone both ways. I think if we held onto him, he might've took what happened this year and use it to develop a way the offense can't collapse in the west or make better passing plays for Favre (if he doesnt retire...again), or he would've turned into another Herm Edwards and lead the team to another horrible season with absolutely no development. Oh my dear God, we don't want that.

Also, Mangini had one season left in his contract, so another question that could be raised is would he come back? That's tough to call now, but judging by the player's admiration for him, maybe he would've stuck around. But I feel it's time to move on and the tides have gotta change. I had a feeling they would sooner or later.

As far as new coaches go, I'm not too sure about Bill Cowher, as he just negotiated with CBS, but he'll listen to what we gotta say, so that's good. Spagnulo would be nice, seeing as the Giants' defense is diesel and Marty Schottenheimer seems fine, and having the line coaches interviewed doesn't seem like a bad idea, either.

There's going to be a lot of talk about what's going to happen next year. But as far as coaching is concerned, but I think it'll work out considerably better than years past.

-Nick

The Nick Sciretta Show on Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/group.php?gid=47319603984&ref=ts

Sunday, December 28, 2008

The Jets Lose.




Recently i became a Jets fan. I'm debating if this choice was a good one or one that i might have been better off with. I thought that this year they would at least make the playoffs and everything would be fun in the sun with Brett Favre. Eh, not so much.


I'm not going to ramble on but I'm genuinely upset with "my team". I guess that may be a good thing.



Check out this video i did with Justin for our video class!





-sam

Saturday, December 27, 2008

The New York Yankees batting order for 2009

Radio waves, ESPN analysts and even the most informed Yankee fan would think of the 2009 batting order as follows:

1. J.Damon
2. D.Jeter
3. M.Texiera
4. A.Rod
5. H.Matsui
6-9. J.Posada, R. Cano, X. Nady, and whoever plays center field (Swisher, Cabrera?)

Here's where I come in...The Yankees should offer me millions of dollars to tell them how to run their baseball team and get the most out of their players. The most important thing the Yankees must worry about is the development of Robinson Cano. Call me crazy, but I firmly believe that this is more important than their starting pitching.

Cano is still a very immature player who has a hall of fame caliber baseball player struggling to get out and play to its potential. We saw a glimpse of it in 2007 when he came off of the disabled list and almost stole the batting title away from Joe Mauer finishing witha .340 batting average and leading the league with doubles...all after missing 6 weeks of ball! My point is this...It is time to bat Cano in the 3 spot! It is very simple. This will give Cano the ego-boost a young, immature players needs. He will shine in the 3 spot. I guarantee it. This leaves Tex in the 5 spot with Matsui 6, concluding with Posada, Nady, and the TBA center fielder with a very strong and respectable bottom of the order.

Happy holidays and a Merry Texmas to all!

With Love,

Marc

Friday, December 26, 2008

THS




Thanks to armslength and some recent free time, i've been hooked on The Helio Sequence.


I'll leave it to the pros to describe.

The collective wisdom of Wikipedia currently describes The Helio Sequence as “indie electronica” (bonus points to whoever fixes that one). One listen to Keep Your Eyes Ahead, which was self-produced by the duo and then mastered by Greg Calbi (Iron and Wine, Interpol, and Paul Simon’s Graceland), confirms The Helio Sequence teem with an energy and a range that continues to defy such narrow categorization. Unapologetic pop and folk meld seamlessly to create songs that are bigger, more epic and polished than anything they’ve ever done. Keep Your Eyes Ahead is the sound of a band and a decade-old partnership that’s been invigorated. And that’s exactly how the songs will make you feel: invigorated.
-SubPop.com


They're new album is amazing.
They're old albums are amazing.

Please Please give them a shot.
Myspace

*From the new album Keep Your Eyes Ahead



From the 2004 album Love and Distance


Goodnight,

Sam

The Day After the Lonliest.

Just random awesome stuff you might like to check out:

75% of Americans are happy George Bush is leaving the White house.

What is Hardcore Punk?


The New Yorker names their top 10 Graphic Novels of the year.


Listen to the Jazz Funeral.
Download their new EP HERE

>
Sorry for the poor quality, you get the idea.
*Thanks Emily!


Enjoy your day!
-Sam

Thursday, December 25, 2008

So my latest wind of inspiration has come from and Italian artist who goes by the name of Blu. Blu is a street artist who works on a really large scale, with his murals often ranging from 10 foot walls to 7 story buildings. Armed with a few buckets of house paint, a ladder, and a paint brush or roller tied to a long pole, he sets to work on his massive projects. Keep in mind that like most graffitti artists he does most of his work at night under the radar from the law, which completely blows my mind.




Blu also does wall painted animations. In these works he paints on a wall, photographs it, paints over it, and draws the next image. Check out the animation Muto.

For more information on Blu check out his website at www.blublu.org

-Spencer
www.spenceralexander.blogspot.com

My Christmas Eve Rocked

Last night i went to see Yo La Tengo @ Maxwell's in Hoboken as part of the annual "8 nights of Hanukah with Yo La Tengo". I never had the opportunity to see YLT before, so i thought this would be the best time to do it. Usually on Christmas eve, i slouch around without any egg nog, christmas stuffers, or those awesome christmas sweaters. Why not, you ask? because i'm frecking jewish and Jews have no fun on Christmas, at least the young ones.

These next two days are the worst for younger jews, they have nothing to do and have to hear all the fun and exciting things that their Christmas celebrating friends are doing. So what does a Jew do on Christmas/Eve?

-Watch A Christmas Story on TBS at least two times.
-Go to some kind of feel good Christmas Movie at a movie theater.
-Consume some type of asian cuisine.
-Whine about it


It sux to be jewish on Christmas.


Anyway here are a couple distorted pictures and a video from the show:
pic1
pic2
pic3
pic4

.



Photobucket

That is an illustration by Adrian Tomine (one of my favorite artists) He composed this for the New Yorker to celebrate Yo La Tengo's Murdering The Classics which is performed on Christmas live on WFMU. People call in to request songs of any sort, and YLT attempt to cover them. Hence the name Murdering The Classics

You can find out more information on Adrian Tomine and his graphic novels Here

Listen to more Yo La Tengo

Merry Christmas, you bastards.

Sam

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Henchman 21 & 24 Sing A Chrismas Carol

Just in time for the holidays comes a Christmas Carol from my favorite T.V. show, The Venture Brothers. Check it out here

And if you're not an avid Venture Bro's watcher you can catch up at Adultswim.com.

Happy Holidays!

-Kirby

Friday, December 12, 2008

A New Life/ The Best Albums Of 2008

So, i did this last year and had a lot of fun, i thought before all the bullshit work piles on for finals i would quickly like to give to you my favorite albums for the year of 2008. *Let me just say that i did not listen to every album that came out this year, but out of the albums i did listen to, these were my favorites:

11. Flying Lotus- "Los Angeles" I won't lie, i did just get on this but you need to check this record immediately. Definitely for fans of JDILLA and those laid back relaxing chill straight beat albums.
key tracks- GNG BNG, comet course, sexslaveship


10. Wolf Parade- "At Mount Zoomer" This album is no "Apologies" (their previous album), it is a well crafted alternative rock album however. This band has so many side-projects that they become difficult to follow. I was waiting for this release for a while and when it finally came out i wasn't as excited as i thought it would be. This record has that special moldy power to grow on you slowly. Like i said before, this album dosen't have those same great songs right after one another but it is sure to make you bop your head just the way you like it, perv.
key tracks- "call it a ritual", california dreamer, the grey estates


9. The Black Keys- "Attack and Release" Before this album came out, i had not been a fan of this band at all. I thought their sound was way too distorted and had too much of an uncomfortable loud noise vibe feel. The Keys are definitely one of those cool bands that i had wanted to get into but never could accept into my I-tunes library. When you mix Danger Mouse with anything, you can do no wrong, so when i heard that he was producing this album i gave it another listen and was instantly hooked. It has a much more cleaner sound than past releases and you can really grasp onto that soul influence that can be found on each one of the songs. Definitely recommend this album for all you blues rockerz.

key tracks: Strange Times, Remember When (Side B), Things Aint Like They Used to be


8. Vivian Girls- " s/t" I love women, i love women who rock, and i love women who make things simple. This album has all of those mentioned traits and dosen't let you down for a moment. This band is relatively new, and has the potential to be this years Vampire Weekend, whatever that means. It's fresh, it's tight, it's melodic, it's got punch and it's not too long. Which is always a plus. (Insert masagonistic joke here)
key tracks: I'll tell the world, wild eyes, where do you run to?

7. Girl Talk- "feed the animals" There is something that you don't want to like about this DJ. Is he even a real DJ? I don't really care that much, but this guy consistently puts out a great party album every fucking time he tries. I don't know any other album that you can put on at a party that will make both the guys and girls go as crazy as this record does. If you haven't seen him live, do yourself a favor and stop being a lump. One more thing, HE USES A BAND SAMPLE!!!! That's enough to make this list.
key tracks- Still here, No Pause, In Step


6. Bon Iver- "For Emma Forever Ago" - I had a chance to go see this band last night, and although it didn't change my life, i had a great time even though i got ripped off on my ticket. From what i know, the guy who wrote the album recorded it a log cabin out in Wisconsin after having to go through a failed relationship, was in a state of depression, and hunting his own meat. Yeah, crazy shit. Anyway, you can tell how "raw" this album is just by the first track. I'm a sucker for vocal harmonies and this album gives that term a new name. It's as if you combined 3 voices into one but still new that they were separate. Does that make sense? Listen to the album, you'll understand.
key tracks: flume, for emma, skinny love


5. The Delay- " The Keys EP" Staten Islands finest deliver one the best rock albums of the year and it's only 6 songs long. From the first song to the last, this album smacks you hard and dosen't cease until the end. It might be a little unfair to rate this album alongside other national acclaimed artists, but it's just that the "acclaimers" haven't found this band yet, because when they do, you'll hear about them because they won't be able to stop telling you how great they are. I am a giddy child when i talk about this band, they get me that excited.
key tracks: ALL OF THEM!


4. Vampire Weekend- "s/t" Yeah Yeah, overrated i know, unless you actually listened to the album you would know that this isn't overrated. I can't stand the haters of this band who go on to say how the no age album is groundbreaking. This is a pop album, pop albums don't have to smart or astonishing, they just have to sound good and that's what this album does. I will give it you that they might not have "earned the cred" that some of the bands who have been trying to gather for a while, but either did NO Age. Wear them boat shoes proud, hipster.
key tracks: oxford comma, Bryn, Walcott


3. Mates Of State: "Re-arrange Us" I went through a lot of hard shit this summer and this album along with the next two really helped me get out of that rut. Compared to previous albums this album sounds way more produced. It dosen;t have that distinct keyboard sound that the others had. Although those songs sounded great, this album is definitely a step in a more serious direction. Although most of the songs are about getting through tough times and being together and loving your children, i found that this album great throughout and that's real tough for some musicians to these days. Yay! for them.
key tracks: get better, the re-arranger, blue and gold print


2. The Hold Steady- "Stay Positive" If you like beer, if you like being in Memphis, and you if like staying positive and you haven't heard this album yet, something may be wrong with you. With lyrics like " Me and my friends are like, the drums on lust for life" and "Everybody's coming on their navy sheets/everyone wants to suck on something sweet" This record is for the boozehound and bro-dude alike. It might take a little while to get aquainted with but give it some time because it will be well worth it. Minneapolis bar rock at it's finest.
key tracks- Sequestered in Memphis, Navy Sheets, Stay Positive.

1. Tokyo Police Club- "Elephant Shell". For some reason no one is giving this album any recognition. I know it definitely came out this year, so it it boggles my mind why no one is creaming their pants over this band? It is by far the most fun you will have out of any album released this year and that includes the new Guns and Roses. I had a chance to see them play a secret show @ Mercury lounge this year, and they sure know how to put on a show. Don't be like those elitist music bloggers, go out and listen to this album, YOU WILL NOT REGRET IT!
key tracks- juno, your english is good, Centennial


Now the bad shit.


Dissapointments:
Death Cab for Cutie " Narrow stairs" enjoyed the single the rest of the album put me to sleep.

Conor Oberst- "s/t" Cape Canaveral is a great track, then it goes downhill, i guess i was just expecting more.

Bloc Party- "intimacy" i don't know why i try anymore with this band.

Coldplay " blah blah blah" 2 songs! that's all you can give me even with Brian Eno, o c'mon!



best show- radiohead live in masfield mass.


Look out for these band new releases in 2009
Space Ghost Cowboys
Phoenix
Moving Mountains
Grizzly bear
The Decemebrists
Dr. Dre?
AC Newman
Bon Iver
Clipse


Thanks for reading. Please feel free to comment/discuss.
Love Always,

Sam
 
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