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Concert Etiquette

I recently went to a concert and was standing in the inner circle. It was a very cool experience, but it also reminded me how some people don't understand concert general admission etiquette.

There are few rules, and even fewer things you are entitled to in a general admission concert. For clarification, general admission means you have no assigned seat. Because of this, it may seem redundant but people miss it, you have no assigned seat. You are entitled to where you're standing. That's it. There are no "savesies" or "holding spots" or "reservations." It's every man for himself out there.

Another lesson that concerts have taught me is this: the only time that matters is now. If you had been standing in a spot, a really good spot, for four hours but then had to pee and you leave, you lose your spot. Sorry. Also, never use the "I've been here longer than you" tactic. No one cares. An example of this that I heard at my most recent concert went like this:

Man 2 stands next to Man 1. Man 1 gives Man 2 a look that implies Man 2 has done something equal to strangling a kitten.

Man 1: Hey! Keep movin' buddy, this spot is saved.

Man 2: I don't think so. I'm not moving.

Man 1: This is saved!

Man 2: Too bad.

Man 1: Listen buddy, we've been here since 5.

Man 2: Well they aren't here now.

Man 1 tries to bore a hole in Man 2's skull with his eyes.

It may seem wrong, but Man 2 had every right to do what he did. Also, Man 1 made some critical mistakes. First, he used the "this spot is saved" tactic which no one cares about. Second, he used the "I've been here longer" tactic, which again no one cares about. It's all about where you are now, not where you were four hours ago. If you were eating a delicious meal while I stood outside, crammed into the venue, stood steadfastly in my spot, left to get a drink, and when I came back BAM there you were...well all I can say is touchè sir. Third, he called the guy "buddy." "Buddy" just pisses people off, don't do it unless you grew up across the street from each other, went to college together, and were each others' best man.

The final rule, or perhaps caveat, is that once the show starts you have no personal space. You will be sweated on, bumped into, stepped on, and possibly sexually harassed (depending on how you qualify sexual harassment). Accept it, it's going to happen.

That's it folks, the three basic rules of general admission: every man for himself, live in the moment, and you have no personal space.

Oh, and don't call people buddy.

Reda

Currently listening to: "Should You Return" by Copeland

Music Mondays - Closure In Moscow

Closure in Moscow is an alternative indie experimental quintet from Melbourne, Australia. Made up of Chris DeCinque (vocals), Mansur Zennelli (guitar, vocals), Michael Barrett (guitar), Brad Kimber (bass), and Beau McKee (drums), CIM was one of Alternative Press Magazine's Top 100 bands to know in 2009. They released their first EP "The Penance and the Patience" in 2007, gained notoriety in Australia, Europe, and North America. Two years later we get "First Temple" as a gift to our ears.

This album truly stands in the elite class of displaying incredible technical musicianship. Every song has at least one technically difficult and intricate part incorporated and executed masterfully. Not only do CIM offer intricate parts, they also have truly engaging music throughout the album. There is never a dull moment. Everything flows together perfectly. Here are some standout tracks.

"Kissing Cousins" - Talk about opening in a way that gets attention. McKee opens with a blazing tempo on hi-hats while tapping on his snare rim on the off-beats, then enter guitars playing rising scales until DeCinque croons "We have never lived / We have never even tried," as an amazing guitar riff gets played in the background, all on top of a solid bass line. CIM certainly tries to bring their audience through this track. It has just about everything: synthesizer, distant sounding vocals, bongo drums, keys, and a few very well-placed hand claps. Overall an incredible, fast-paced track that ties amazing instrumental capabilities with poetic lyrics and perfect vocal execution together to create a brilliant 4 minutes.

"Sweet#Hart" - This song opens with another fast-paced percussion section (a shaker and what sound like metal drums) accompany an almost delicate, Far Eastern-sounding guitar riff that explodes into a hard-hitting dual guitar bridge with full percussion and bass and a quick guitar solo. By far one of the coolest intros to a song I've ever heard. The speed of every aspect of this track blow me away (I don't think the drummer ever plays anything less than 1/8 notes, and that's for only a few parts, and the guitars and bass keep up), but even during the softer sections (the lead into the chorus and the bridge) keep the tempo upbeat. And with lyrics that talk about leaving a relationship because it's too much sex and not enough heart, this song certainly keeps the listener's attention.

"I'm A Ghost of Twilight" - A slower (almost folk sounding at times) song with, again, a great dual guitar part as the introduction. This song is a bit darker and lyrically driven. There are still incredible guitar riffs and solos, rolling bass lines, and complex drum fills; but DeCinque drives the song with swooning, rising and falling, moving vocals. The song takes its main theme from the chorus, "I'm the ghost of twilight, honey, neither night nor day / With one foot treading sweet rapture and one foot in the grave." The song touches on the conflict inherent in making choices, especially difficult ones.

"Deluge" - The song begins "This body is riddled with ailments / The devil's got me in his grip / Genuflect and skin me of this payment / 'We share the same affliction, everybody's gotta brand' / That's what I say" while backed by steady, deep drumming. While most of the previous songs have had a faster pace, this song employs a slower, steadier, and more epic sound. And CIM perfects this just as well as their insanely fast technical style. A great song, although the message mostly says that there is no point in loving any more. Musically though, there are some great breakdowns and crescendoes throughout.

"Afterbirth" - The insanely fast technical sound returns on the track right after "Deluge" and it comes back with a vengeance. Starting off with a guitar part that has some sort of trill effect with four of the same note, then it crashes into a full-blown intro. If I had to make up one word to describe this song it would be: styley. Back and forth vocals, crazy effects on a guitar, cryptic lyrics, complex drum fills, fast-paced breakdowns, a complete shift with a drum/guitar solo that flows immediately into a piano driven bridge, back into the opening guitar riff, and then one final chorus into a chaotic ending. It's brilliant, and it's a great show of what Closure in Moscow has to offer.

Overall this is a great album, and one I listen to often. Check out the band's pages on MySpace and Purevolume, or their own Web site: http://closureinmoscow.com/

Enjoy

Reda

Currently listening to: "Dulcinea" by Closure in Moscow

Not Cool

Contrary to popular belief, seeing a fight happen is not cool.

The other day I saw someone, who did not deserve to get punched in the face, get punched in the face. It sucked. However, most males would say that seeing someone get hit in the face would rock. That's why UFC has prospered so much ... probably. That and testosterone has powers that can control any male mind, turning him into a bloodthirsty animal that feeds off of UFC fighting. Anyway, most males would say they want to see a fight. I fell in that category. Then I saw one. Now I'm out that category.

Hearing a fist make contact with a face is an incomparable sound. A sickening, soft thud of fist breaking skin and smacking bone makes me cringe to remember. Watching blood fly in an arc from someone's face to make red arches across the ground has no glorified sexy appeal. It's gross, and a little scary. And bloodstained shirts? Throw them away.

So, in conclusion, seeing someone get sucker-punched blows.

Reda

Currently listening to: "Let Go" by Edison Glass

Music Mondays - Balance Problems

Balance Problems is, for all intents and purposes, Brack Cantrell. He gets help from some friends (Robert Paine, Lewis Wall, and Cory Harvard) but Brack makes the music. And what music it is.

A self-described Indie/Folk/Acoustic artist, I would only add Minimalist to that list. You won't find complex guitar riffs and drum fills in BP's music, but you will find ambient and relaxing instrumentals--ranging from guitar to banjo to keys--backing Cantrell's soft, soothing singing. The lyrics themselves also take on the minimalist approach. He sings in plain, straightforward verses with few ambiguous lines. Balance Problems makes simple, beautiful music and is a joy to listen to when you just need to take some time out from a busy day. Basically, if you're looking for something to bob your head to and dance around, look elsewhere. If you need to slow down for 40 minutes, then this album is what you need.

Balance problems has released three albums to date, but I'm taking a look at their 2008 LP "Morning Sun."

"Morning Sun"- The title track and second on the album, this exemplifies Cantrell's style. The song begins with a simple guitar part accompanied by sleigh bells. It sounds cheesy, but it works. Cantrell's vocals get the spotlight for the first half of the song, with the instruments simply painting a backdrop for his story of a girl running away from her problems, but eventually losing what she holds dear. The song crescendoes two minutes in, but Cantrell's voice keeps its slow relaxing tone through the crescendo. There's a nice fade into a piano driven bridge, with group vocals singing the main theme of the song, "You're all dressed up without a place to go / But that's okay because I know / That you'll find a way to be anywhere but home." Not a particularly uplifting song, but a great display of the range of styles Cantrell can use.

"Iowa"- An acoustic song about someone from Iowa he met on tour. Minimalism at its finest, this song never gets fast, and never employs a drumhead. Somehow Cantrell's vocals and lyrics keep your attention throughout the entire song. He sings of a friendship that lasts far longer than a tour, even though they only knew each other for those three months. He sings the story of their meeting from beginning to end (meeting, getting to know each other, and departure) through the verses, and the lasting effects of that relationship in the chorus: "There's a bed waiting for you / There's a light that I left on." A melancholy but moving song.

"Blankets in the Grass"- One of the songs in which Cantrell plays the banjo, and it has a lovely folk sound. Again, melancholy serves as the style of this song, but it's a beautiful mixture of banjo, guitar, and what sounds like a xylophone to back up Cantrell and a female guest vocalist (I couldn't find her name, but she has an amazing voice). A song about redemption and reconciliation, "Blankets in the Grass" again tugs at the heartstrings with the chorus "Outside in the grass, you cry yourself to sleep / Blankets in the grass, you look the same as me." Cantrell uses his tender lyrics, soft vocals, and intricately sad instrumentals to capture a feeling perfectly.

"Winter Sun"- What I can only assume has something to do with the song "Morning Sun," "Winter Sun" is a faster-tempo song about finding a true love. The basic theme of "Morning Sun" revolved around abandoning your roots and being fake. "Winter Sun" revolves around finding that special connection and not severing it; in essence, finding an honest love. An interesting verse goes, "I wake you up in the cold / To look at you, then I know / With morning sun's first peaceful glow / An answered prayer, as I had hoped." In this song, the morning sun shows a new consistency instead of a negative change. Again, the instruments in the background command attention. It's a faster song, ditching the almost lackadaisical style of the previous songs as if to tell you to pay attention to this new message. A rolling drum beat and cascading piano part backs the chorus and adds perfect emphasis. A great song with a great message.

"The Bo Tree"- A happy ending to the album, led by Cantrell on banjo. This song embodies the spirit of adventure, nostalgia, and the intrinsic worth inside us all. "Perfect plan we are / Does it make the start? / Forget what you know / Rest assured you don't" encourages everyone listening that they are a perfect plan, but they need to go out and find themselves. A great upbeat end to a fantastic album.

Check out Balance Problems on their MySpace or on Purevolume.

Reda

Currently listening to: "Winter Sun" by Balance Problems

The Trust Factor

I don't know if I can or can not trust my floormates. I'll explain.

To date, I've had my clothes stolen for a satirical photo shoot in which the girls on my floor posed as the guys, my unlocked room has often been used as a temporary storage place for my friend's miscellaneous items (as previously documented), and most recently my blog got hijacked. That's right folks. The terrorists have entered the blogosphere.

I had laundry to do, and also homework. Therefore I took my computer into a public floor lounge, worked on a few things, then headed to the laundry room (literally eight feet away) to transfer my clothes from the washer to the dryer. I left my computer on, with my Web browser open, and my blog's home page up. Apparently that was all the time the hijacker needed.

The previous post on this blog, entitled "To Trust Or Not To Trust," was not created by, or with the permission of, myself. It represents the illegitimate child of tyranny, and instead of deleting this post I will keep it as a statement: a statement against the terrorists, a statement against anarchy, a statement against the enemies of America who are trying to spread socialism and communism and attempting to DESTROY FREEDOM!

I suppose it could be worse, but as it stands, no it couldn't. So I say to you, blog terrorist hijackers, not cool. Not cool at all.

Currently listening to: "I Will Not Bow" by Breaking Benjamin (thanks to Gerald researching for his blog, www.gosuns33.blogspot.com)

To Trust or Not To Trust

I shouldn't leave my blog open for anyone to post things on.... Maybe next time I will logout and not trust my floor mates!

A Letter To Captcha

Dear captcha word chooser,

WTF?

How do you come up with combinations of words that either make no sense together, or make so much sense together that it freaks me out a little bit? It amazes me. "Annual ribs?" Are you referring to a barbeque that takes place every year? I don't get it. Then we have things like "lobster invasion," which makes sense in a weird, 1950's bad sci-fi movie kind of way. Then of course there's the classic combo of "lineal of." First off, I don't think "lineal" is a word. Seriously. Then we have "of". You made my captcha a prepositional phrase consisting of 50% not-a-word, 50% word-that-only-sets-up-other-words, and 100% stupid.

But really captcha maker, how do you do it? Do you have a database of every word known to man an randomly choose two words to use? Or do you make up words? Or do you have a database of all the Google searches, then use those words? That might explain the captcha "14 packers" (the search would be fruitless: there is no number 14 on the Packers' roster this year) but would not explain the extreme lack of "pamela," "paris," and "boobs." However you go about your crazy business, I seriously doubt you could explain why "Bernard Nieuport" came up.

So, captcha maker, I know you stop computers from posting things they aren't supposed to, so you make the words get all smudged and blurry and stupid-looking so the computers can't read it. That's cool and all, but usually I can't read it either. That's annoying. I want to post my link, or buy my stuff, or whatever I want to do that evil computers want to also do. So don't make "lt" look like "H," or "lo" look like "b," or "Oprah" look like "Booyah." Be clear, please.

And finally, if my eyes can make out the words you show, and my mind can somehow wrap itself around the weird combination of words I see, please, captcha maker, make them real words. Last I checked, "lectives" is not a word. And I just checked. Dictionary.com says I win this time. Oh, neither are "ignoratio" or "nexis." Unless of course they're Latin, which I'm unfortunately not fluent in.

So, mighty captcha maker, I have one request. Be clear, don't confuse me, and use real words. Is that so hard? I really don't think so.

Oh, one more thing. Never make me type "$25-million bile" again. Ever.

Sincerely,

Reda

Currently listening to: "Transatlanticism" by Death Cab For Cutie

Thank You

My blog turned 500 (views) today! So thank you all for checking it out, whoever you are.

Also, to those who comment, first and foremost thank you even more. Reading what you have to say in regards to what I have to say is as much or more enjoyable than posting things. Again I thank you. You are truly beautiful people.

And to those who don't, consider it. I'm not saying you MUST comment on EVERY post I make, but if something gives you a thought, reaction, emotion ... share it! This is the Internet my friends, a place for sharing ideas and knowledge. Challenge something, add your own spin to something, add additional info on something. Maybe it will spark additional comments, and a whole new debate will begin. I might even join in on it.

Truth of the matter is, I love reading the comments you folks in cyberspace leave for me. It shows that you read my blog, and not only that, it has impacted you enough that you want to let me know. That's a great feeling, and you are the reason I get to feel it.

So, if you feel like saying something, anything, say it.

Thank you for reading.

Currently listening to: "1901" by Phoenix

Music Mondays - All The Day Holiday

All The Day Holiday is a brilliantly named indie-rock/alternative/ambient quartet from Cincinnati, OH. Made up of Daniel Simmons, David Roller, Mark Ventura, and Nathan Frisch, these guys have created a unique and exciting new sound. Don't believe me? Believe Rolling Stone, who named ADTH one of six breakout bands of the year. For good reason. Their album, "The Things We've Grown to Love" released this past August, and it's brilliant.

I'm not exactly sure how to describe ATDH's sound, but if I had to try I'd say that nothing is sharp. Now, I'm not saying that their playing is sloppy--it's far from that--what I'm saying is that everything flows almost organically. The guitars echo softly, the bass-line flows beneath them, and the vocals seem just a bit distant yet remain entirely captivating. Add to that the brilliant, steady, but constantly changing drum beats and you get a sound that can't be matched.

Coupled with the instrumentals and overall sound is the the depth of the lyrics. There's an obvious emphasis on nature and relationships between people. Touching on everything from longing for love to avoiding an uninspired life, each song will make you think. If you really listen.

Here are five standout songs.

"Autumn"- The opening track. It begins with distant vocals backed by a steady bass line and acoustic guitar for the first verse, then bursts into an instrumental introduction followed by a bridge. "And we fly/we soar through the story of our lives" drifts through the speakers and sets the tone for the song and album. With eyes closed you could truly feel as if you were soaring. Towards the end of the song Simmons swoons "I promise you we'll make it out alive/I promise you we'll see a brand new light." It's as if he's setting up the entire experience of the album. Just prepare yourself to be taken away for fifty minutes to discover the story of a life, and you'll make it out with a new perspective on some aspect of your own.

"2000 Winters"- The third track and one of my top two favorites. It has a similar introduction with a delicate guitar intro and distant, almost haunting vocals. This is a truly great love song. Call me a sap, but I find the honest and real emotion in the song captivating. "I'll take you wherever you want to go/I'll see you through the night/you are here so come in/I want you to be so close my dear/'cause I love you so/do you really know?" Brilliance. This is a lyrically driven song, but the instruments pair perfectly, matching the mood of the song throughout.

"The Things We've Grown To Love" - The title track is a definite foot-tapper and head-bobber. The rhyme scheme is quick and the music is upbeat for the first 1:30 of the song, slowly winding down into a bridge at the 2:00 mark. Then a slow but steady drumroll crescendo into the last chorus is a beautiful build-up with the inspiring lyrics "We're holding on to the things we've grown to love/we won't, and don't want to, let go." There's also a subtle trumpet part in the background as yet another layer of perfectly meshed instrumental aspects. Again, a wonderfully crafted piece of music.

"Flowers and Fireworks"- If you hadn't found a song that "soars" up until this point in the album, you certainly will have after this song. It truly does soar. A song of the joys of youth and a carefree life, and how comforting it is to find something to allow us to return to that feeling, "Flowers and Fireworks" may be the standout track on the album as far as pure musical, emotional force. It's a truly uplifting song, highlighted by the final words, "Why did I ever need to control?"

"Invisible"- The final track on the album. If "Autumn" was designed to take you away and capture you in ATDH's music, "Invisible" was designed to bring you back. A stripped down, all-acoustic song, it is a technically simple song. No sweeping movements, bridges, or build-ups and breakdowns. This song is a bare-bones acoustic love song. And while it may not "fit" with the style of the rest of the album, it does fit and serve a purpose. It wraps up the album, and brings the listener back uplifted, as though the album was written with them in mind: "It was all invisible to me/you were the only one, the only one that I could see."

If you want an album that you'll listen to again and again, pick this up. Or check out the band on

MySpace

Purevolume

Enjoy