RE: Lying Bloggers

So last night was my first official gig as concert reviewer, which is really for myself and posterity more than anyone else, which is a damn good thing given no one will ever read this. At any rate, Sondre Lerche was just lovely. But here, let me break it down for you
1. The Place:
The Paradise Rock Club is probably one of the stranger-shaped venues I've been to in my day. It's sort of a perpendicular Middle East, in that rather than being a long, skinny venue, it's a very wide but very shallow sort of affair. Meaning, everyone is sort of pressed very close to the stage but can waggle more or less to the left or right basically to the horizon. Not bad.
2. The People:
I have literally never been to a concert with that many girls (not women--girls) and so few guys EVER. Even Andrew Bird, who's basically chick porn, was a solid 60/40. I counted maybe ten guys within the first ten feet of the stage, all the way across. I mean, Sondre Lerche is pretty heart breakingly sweet, but nevertheless, it's ridiculous. Basically all college freshman types, planning their trip to 'Regina'. Fuck them, but everyone was mostly near sober. However, had I seen one more couple using Sondre as an excuse for hanky panky, I actually would have punched them, madly in love with Lerche or not.
3. The Players:
Despite being one person, despite never using loops, and despite barely scraping 5'7'', Sondre Lerche not only dominated the stage but totally held the audience captive for an hour and a half or so. He had cute-awkward-my-English-isn't-perfect banter, and he pounded the ever loving hell out of a beautiful little Gretsch. He played some new stuff, but kept it light with old standards and any musician with multiple sing alongs is totally worthy of praise. Oh good God, there was a whistle-a-long.

In summary, Sondre bloody rocked it.

Next time would have been Maximo Park, however they canceled their entire damn American tour, so it'll be Wavves at Great Scott on the 27th.

Until then,
Stay crisp, stay crunchy
--WF
RIP Patrick Swayze

Lies and the Lying Bloggers Who Tell Them

I SKIPPED OUT ON MUCCA PAZZA BECAUSE THE WEATHER SUCKED AND THEY REALLY AREN'T THAT GOOD TO BEGIN WITH.

Sondre Lerche, 9/13 @ The Paradise, coming up in like six hours when my life isn't in shambles. Get pumped.

FACT: Fiction

So this summer has made me decide to take this contraption in a different direction. I got no friends here at BU, so rather than sit and angst it out, I'ma go to more concerts. And here I will review them, for posterity. However, I hate writing big things, so it'll break down into three p's:
1. The Place: How's the venue? Smelly? Huge? Strangely sticky?
2. The People: All emo kids? Over-30s reliving their glory days? Pregnant?
3. The Players: HOW IS THE BAND?

For example, We Are Scientists at the Middle East, July 30 (ish):

1. The place: The Middle East is generally cute, generally not sticky but louder than holy fuck. My bad for standing so close.
2. The people: A nice mix of moms with 25 year old Keith Murray lookalikes (which made for one awkward as hell autographing moment) and college kids. Met two students from Mexico visiting for this show and All Points West, which I think is RIDICULOUS BECAUSE THEY CAME FROM MEXICO FOR TWO CONCERTS. By the time WAS came out (11:45? Midnight?)the volume of tit-bearing drunkards was a little much, but otherwise people were people.
3. The Players: Bad Girlfriend, Keith Murray's girlfriend's band, opened, with Murray on drums. Quite the hoot, despite having 5 tracks to their name. Somebody was number 2, they were alright, but immediately forgettable. 'Scientists were naturally funny, played a few new songs, DESTROYED the place with the classics. Generally awesome, I will say.

So there you go, 'Fries on the case, this is now a concert review blog. Up first:
Mucca Pazza, oddly enough also at the Middle East, Friday 9/11. I'll keep you posted.
-WF
Who fricken cares?

Happy Lief Ericson Day!

Let's not even talk about the inactivity of FDLFBH. WHO CARES?

Any way. New vibe I wanted to explore. Well, there are like thirty. First off, an explanation:

I've been busy amongst other things, turning down an acceptance into Tisch for film due to a lack of finances, and the angst alone took up most of my time. I've also been editing something I made in school and making these for my sister. I made a third one too, but she never put that up. Which is a real shame. It's pretty rad.

Since the last entry, a mouse died, a hamster died, and we got a new hamster. Neighborcat, being the sadistic bastard it is, dug up deadhamster once, couldn't open the box (no thumbs), dug up the box again, took out the hamster (developed thumbs?), left the box and then knocked on the door until I came out to discover what he had done.

Anyway, theme:

Yodeling. I'm totally serious. As I discussed not so long ago, I feel folk music today has become more of a faux-folk music thing. For a total lack of recognizeable, singular culture, in an environment today where a single family's history involves half a dozen languages and twice as many countries, middle class mutts (such as myself) cling to some semblance of 'history' by chugging nouvelle-folk music like Kefir samples at a Whole Foods.

As an extension of said chug, I've noticed a trend in indie music as of late wherein the singer, like the folk musician add-ons of yestermonth, tends toward the yodeling side of singing. Well, more like a semi-yodel yelp. While it may simply be a stylistic choice, I'm definitely feeling a cultural vibe here.

Examples:

Drunk Yodel: Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - Upon This Tidal Wave of Young Blood

Indie Yodel: Yeasayer - Tightrope

Incidentally, I hate CYHSY, but they definitely win for best song titles of all time. They're Dave Eggers/Ray Bradbury level good, I think. Also, Tightrope is off of maybe the best compilation album I've ever heard: Dark Is the Night. Great title, better music.

Well, that's all for today. More tomorrow. Or, maybe later.

Love
WF
Realistically, much later.

I evidently have terrible commitment issues when it comes to stupid hype-related bandwagon-like activities.

I have a pretty sweet excuse though, why I've not been updating. List is as follows:

1. I've been shooting two different films simultaneously. Nothing big but still. I'll link when they're finished. More or less what I did for my application film is part of this trilogy. Part one is missing a place you haven't left yet (IE the application film, IE 'Little Things'), part two is looking back in retrospect and the final days, and part three is the journey home. So, naturally, I can't really finish filming part three until, well, I'm home.
2. There's also a third movie I'm going to shoot end to end before I leave, involving We Are Scientists and muppets. Just as a side note.
   
3. I was in Chicago/Milwaukee. Both great. We went to the zoo in Milwaukee and maybe my favorite building in Chicago that I would gladly bear the children of, were it looking to copulate, met a kitten in a bookstore in said building and generally spent the week happy and well fed. Glen Ellyn, despite being a suburb, has more of my happier memories than most other places.
   

That's it. Not a very sound argument, but there nonetheless.

Also, oddly while I was picking out the music (which, technically, inspired the movie, rather than the other way around) I happened upon a video wherein someone similarly applied moving images to music, thus making a music video, but not necessarily in the traditional sense. Moreover, it's Andrew Bird, who I have not only been going googly over for a while now, but additionally is the music for both the second and third parts of the triad. NUTSO.

At any rate, that about covers it. Maybe someday I'll start writing relevant entries again.
--WF
Maybe someday, ha.

A Timeline of Nonphenomenal Lineage

Moments that blew my mind:

Finding out from an old Richey Edwards interview that it's Van Goff, not Van Go.

Hearing Andrew Bird reenact the mournful little four year old on a plane that inspired the song (more or less) Oh No.

That's more or less it.

-WF
I'll Update...Later...

Rostrum Batmanglij, the newest Spice Girl

Again, pardon the post, but it needs to be said:

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