Politics Shmolitics

I only have myself to blame. I choose to subject myself to the background noise of CNN news coverage of George Bush’s illegal war. But if I never hear the phrases “shock and awe” or “imbedded reporters” it will not be soon enough. If you’ve been watching the coverage, you’ll know what I mean. I’m sorry if I offend any of my visitors with my politics. I guess you can boil all my views down to this one phrase…LIBERATE AMERICA! We’ve been watching “The Complete Jam” DVD here at the house lately. I have found a renewed interest in what was once one of my very favorite bands and is now again. I’ve never seen any live footage of them. WOW. They were a seriously energetic, tight and fun to watch band. Amazing musicianship. Great vocals. I was really astonished. If you enjoy power pop / mod or even punk you owe it to yourself to check out this DVD. It’s really well put together. The TV and live footage and videos are excellent and there’s a lot of extra cool stuff as well. A lot of you probably don’t know this about me…but when I was a freshman/sophomore in high school I was really into being “mod”. I wore the vintage thrift store clothes, the patches, the buttons, the pegged pants, rode with my friends on their vespas and rocked out to The Who, The Jam, The Purple Hearts, The Merton Parkas, The Lambrettas, Secret Affair, The Truth, Squire, Madness, The Specials, etc. At the same time I was in a punk band. I went to a mostly upper class high school where any of the weird kids (mods, punks, new wavers, goths, etc.) all hung out together since there was so few of us. So, I guess listening to The Jam again is bringing back a lot of memories of that time. Oh…and it’s now March 27th and I’d like to be the first to officially wish my girlfriend a happy birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY RONEE! Alright kids, that’s all for now. Go listen to some music!

Al Ja Who?

Managed to find the Al Jazeera footage of the POW’s, etc. on the net. Pretty crazy. Also went to see the movie “View From The Top”. I thought it was going to be a lot better. Very dissapointed with it. Did you see Michael Moore getting booed at the Academy Awards? Pretty crazy. You should go to his website michaelmoore.com and check out the new System Of A Down video he directed. It’s awesome. I love having wireless internet in the house. I’ve been sitting/laying in bed with my laptop a lot the last few days. It’s nice and relaxing. I guess that’s all for now.

News Burnout Immenent

Enjoy the war. It’s only going to cost us 75 billion dollars and who knows how many lives. Ugh… Anyway…I re-posted my discography page and added a link to my extended A&R / Executive Producer / Recording credits at the top of that page. Over the next few weeks I’m going to be adding a ton more photos and information all over the site. So, stay tuned. Thanks for watching. Back to CNN…BBC…etc.

Sahara Hotnights

Yep. I changed everything around again. I like to keep everybody on their toes. And I was really only making a temporary artistic statement with the other look. And in times of war we need something more straight forward. So here it is. I went to see Sahara Hotnights a few hours ago at The Roxy in Hollywood (my new favorite club). They totally rocked. My second time seeing them. It was amazing. Go see them if you get the chance. You will not be sorry. I’m just working here in my office and watching CNN, etc. You know…the usual…

Comic Book Nerds

I knew I was forgetting some things. 1. I went to this geek fest at the Shrine Auditorium…some comic book convention and collectible thing with my new buddy Jon. It was worth the trip though because a) I got a 12″ vinyl Clash bootleg that is a live set from the late 70′s that has 2 songs they never recorded in the studio. b) I got to go to Fatburger for the first time and had a Turkey burger with steak fries. Awesome. 2. Did you see the Clash get inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame with Elvis Costello on VH1? It was amazing and very touching. If they repeat it you should try to catch it. ACDC, The Police and The Righteous Brothers were also inducted.

Heck On Wheels

I’m surely going to kill myself. That’s right, I just bought a pair of roller skates. Hilarious, I know. Especially since I’m such a clumsy bastard. Anyway… My girl and I went roller skating recently and had a blast. I need to get some exercise and we’ve been going to the beach at least once a week. And they were 50% off. So, there you go.

I’ve picked up some excellent indie music lately. I’d like to recommend some to you. STEREOTYPERIDER “Same Chords, Same Songs, Same Six Strings” (Suburban Home), COUTERFIT “Super Amusement Machine Your Your Exciting Heart” (Negative Progression), SMALL BROWN BIKE “Dead Reckoning” (No Idea). I got all 3 from Interpunk (my new favorite online store) for decent prices. All are excellent if you like rock. I also picked up the complete Jam DVD as well as another DIY documentary called “Songs For Cassavetes : An All Ages Film”. There is some great stuff out there. Support independent music!

Speaking of. My mail order company URBAN ACHIEVER is putting out a couple more releases. An EP by EVELYN HOPE from New Jersey. It’s their debut. And I’m putting out a MOVIES WITH HEROES anthology disc with best tracks from all their releases with 3 or more new songs. I manage both of these bands and they are excellent. If you haven’t stopped by my site before, you might want to CHECK IT OUT I’m trying to make a living doing this and managing bands. If you wanted to pick up a CD or a button or something to help me out I’d be most grateful. OK, end of sales pitch!

Anyway…things are going great. The weather has been crazy down here in California. Heavy rains and super fast winds. Yesterday was St. Patrick’s and I was decked out in green. Went to the beach with Ronee and some friends and had lunch. Also discovered our new favorite deli…”Jersey Joes”. Just like being back in Jersey!

I recently got a 1″ button maker. If you need some buttons made I can hook you up so drop me an e-mail if you’re interested.

This has been one of the most rambling postings ever. Sorry. ha I know there was something else I was going to say… Oh yeah…WAR SUCKS. I don’t feel safer and I’m real worried about our own country and economy. I’m praying it all ends soon…but somehow…I know it won’t. Sorry to end on such a downer…I love you all. xoxo

Happy Birthday Jim Fox

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JIM FOX! Still trying to get over the flu. I just keep popping Sudafed and Dayquil. Gets me by anyway. Stopped by Tower Records and picked up a bunch of fanzines as well as the new AFI, Peter Gabriel DVD and a documentary “DIY or DIE” about being an independent musician. Looking forward to checking out the Ian Mackaye interview on there.