A Few Words On RSD 2016*

Okay, so for the last four years I’ve been pretty active in RSD(Record Store Day for you folks not familiar.) And when I say active I mean I get up early on a Saturday morning in April and head into a record shop to wait in line for exclusive records. My first year was 2012. […]

Ribbed and Veined

So yesterday was the big day. The dance with the doc. My one on one with a scalpel. My herniated disc was going to be dealt with surgically. I have to say, I was not looking forward to it. In fact I was kind of dreading it. I was wanting it taken care of. I […]

Women And Van Halen First

There was a time in the early 90s where if you admitted to being a fan of Van Halen you were ostracized by everyone around you; family, friends, neighbors, that nice senior couple that lived down the street and even the clergy. There were camps set up across the US where admitted Van Halen fans […]

Song And Dance, Man

So last night we took a little break from the normal evening shuffle and headed into my son’s elementary school for the school musical. Now if you’re someone of my age bracket(older than 41, but younger than 43), you might remember the elementary school musicals like I do, which is to say they were sort of […]

Mama’s Mix

So what’s all this talk about making a mix if you don’t actually make a mix, right? Well I’ve been at it the last couple of weeks making mixtapes. I’ve got two done I’ll be mailing this week. I also made a mix of horror soundtrack stuff for the van. My son and I quite […]

Fugue In Space

I’ve never said I was a “cool dude”, or “hip” or “with it”. I’ve never been a trendsetter or even a trend follower for that matter(I don’t think acid washed jeans or Alf count.) If I’ve ever been a fan of the cool it’s completely by coincidence. I’ve always cringed at the modern hype machine. […]

Fine Art

So I took my son to the school art show today. Kids from all the local elementary schools had pieces put in by the art teachers. Or maybe it’s just one teacher for all the schools. I’m not sure. I know that according to popular belief and local school administration that sports is much more […]

The Fog Approaches

I woke up this morning to a thick, heavy fog covering the neighborhood. It was so thick I could barely make out the house across the street. The streetlights made merely soupy, vague circles in the early morning air. Before I left the house I brought my wife her cellphone, just in case she got […]

Everything You Do Is A Balloon

Sometimes, when I’m feeling a little run down, pushed around, and generally beaten up by life I turn to Boards of Canada for a little pick me up. I haven’t quite put my finger on what it is about these Scottish brothers’ brand of electronic music that connects with me, and to be honest I […]

The Shrapnel Years…or, Where My Lunch Money Went In Middle School

Between 1986 when I discovered Yngwie Malmsteen and 1990 when I discovered Alex Lifeson I was a fledgling guitar student learning basic chords and scales. Given that it was the mid to late 80s and I was only 13 I didn’t have guys like Jimmy Page, Ritchie Blackmore, Jeff Beck, and Jimi Hendrix to find […]