it's raining, it's pouring...
Labor Day Saturday is boring...
we were supposed to be at a party today, but plans changed...
so, in order to pass the time, I added a guest book to my blog... it's just to the left.
I hope you're enjoying the holiday.
later.

rediscovery...
is sometimes exciting...
on a whim the other day I grabbed my cassette copy of Fragile by Yes to listen to in the car. On the way home that night, I popped it in and I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Maybe it was just the right time, the right place, or maybe it was that I hadn't listened to it for several years, but it blew my mind all over again. I think it was partly that it brought back some great memories, but I think the biggest part of it is that my appreciation for things musical has matured over the years and I'm hearing things that maybe I didn't really hear as clearly when I was younger. (the album came out in 1972 and was the fourth album that Yes put out in as many years. I was a fan of their music since their first self titled album "Yes" came out as an import in the states in 1969). Fragile really is the pinnacle of their efforts, in my opinion. It was the first album that included Rick Wakeman on keyboards. It was also the first Yes album that could be classified as true progressive rock, without the burden of the sterility that was so common to prog rock music of the era. Steve Howe on guitar was discovering how to coax sounds from his axe that rivaled, yet complimented Wakeman's incredible dexterity on the keyboards, especially when he was noodling around on the Hammond and his bank of Mini-Moogs. Chris Squire's solid and innovative bass work was the precursor of what was to come, a la Tony Levin, and Jon Anderson's vocals pulled us in to the swirling mix. And, no, I did not forget Bill Bruford. His amazing percussion work was, in my opinion, what made Fragile the unique thing it is. Bruford is the master of the syncopated back beat, but he was also allowed to rise through the web of sound and perform as an instrumentalist, which was a rare opportunity for a drummer of the day. His trap and cymbal work in the number Heart of the Sunrise is nothing short of amazing. I heartily suggest that some night you get a nice glass of wine, light a few candles, turn out all the other lights and sit and listen to Fragile. (turn the bass down a bit and adjust the midrange so you can really hear Bruford. If you can score a copy on vinyl, believe me, it sounds better than any of the CD versions that are out there). I guarantee you will enjoy it.
Oh, yeah, while you're listening, be sure to dig on the great Roger Dean artwork on the album cover...
peace and rock on...

too much...
too much driving
too much walking
too much food
too much booze
too much shopping
too much sun
too much fun...
Busch Gardens Williamsburg is definitly number one on my list of places to vacation.
Virginia is beautiful.

some new stories and poems soon, did lots of writing while on holiday...
later.

headin' south...

we're off for a week's r&r in lovely Virginia...
Colonial Williamsburg, Busch Gardens, outlet shopping and generally blowing off steam.
see you soon.
peace.

OZZFEST 2003
highlights, lowlifes, a mind-blowing experience and Ozzy...

the gods of metal were watching over us this year... the rain, with the exception of a few drops here and there, held off for most of the day. Caitlin and I dragged our butts out of the house at 7:30 and headed south to Camden, NJ. We arrived at 9:00 and made our way in and headed to the second stage to see what was going on. First up was Twisted Method, who, considering the hour, cooked. An inspired set by Killswitch Engaged followed, after which Shadows Fall ripped it up big time. After their set, we tripped back to the vendor areas, scoped out the various stands and stuff, grabbed an early morning hotdog and wandered back to the second stage to catch Unloco, who were luke warm at best. An even worse Endo followed... then Sworn Enemy more than made up for the two preceeding lackluster events. We skipped Grade 8, Depswa and Chimaira, then hustled back to catch the insipid, but at least colorful Motogrator... next up, a fairly mellow band from Australia, Memento, who, while not bad at all, lost the attention of the then growing crowd who were starting to warm up, bellies full of early morning beer. Hotwire failed to fire up the crowd very much, but they were follow by Voivod, with Jason Newsted, recently departed from that collective group of assholes, Metallica. Good move Jason, you rock!!
Last up, but certainly not least, the madness of Cradle of Filth! They were the perfect end to the day's outside festivities, too bad they didn't play the inside shows... maybe next year?
We hustled back inside the ampitheatre, grabbed some more grub and found our seats... not too bad, twelth row left, a little out of range of center stage, but close enough to be glad I brought ear plugs!
First up - Chevelle. It's too bad that the ending of the outside show and the start of the inside were so close, the house was less then half full for their set. They really rocked. I'm happy that they're getting noticed.
After them came the dull and ordinary Disturbed... I do have to say that, even though I'm not a fan of their's, the sounded really clean and tight... maybe I need to give them a second listen sometime.
and then... well, just what the hell can you say about Marily Manson? Just when you think you've seen it all, he pulls one of the most over the top stage shows out of his pants and blows your mind. Singer, performer, actor, he does it all... he had the crowd in the no doubt sticky palm of his hand for forty minutes. I hope my pictures come out... words just can't do him justice...
After Manson came a mediocre set from Korn. Well, maybe that's not actually fair because they played mostly old school stuff, which was great to hear, however... while Jonathon, Fieldy, Head and David were trying to give it their all, I think they were distracted by Munky's desire to play the crowd rather than his axe... he spent more time thowing water and picks, then trying to catch up with the song then playing along... too bad, it ruined what could have been a nice set.
And then... there's Ozzy... I gotta tell ya, I really, really love the man and as long as he can drag himself out on stage, I'll probably be there to see him, but... Sharon, if there's any way in hell you ever read this, please sit the Ozz down and tell him he needs to start taking it easy. The poor guy is cooked. He was still suffering the effects of loosing his voice three weeks ago and was having a tough time talking. His singing suffered as well, both from the throat thing and the ravages of the tour. The band was having a hard time trying to keep up with his ever changing tempo and it was painfully obvious that he was physically trashed. It's always a wonderful thing to see him, but it would have been a lot more fun and man, it was actually embarassing to see him like that. He better start taking care of himself, or it's going to be the Ozzy Osbourne Memorial Tour one of these days, probably sooner than later. Take care of yourself, Ozz...
Well, that's about it for now. Like I said, maybe my pictures will be worth posting.
Have a nice evening and pray for the Ozzman...
peace

only eleven hours...

to OZZFEST...
full report to follow on Friday.
see you then.

gerade für Raven...

gerade so angespornt durch das reizende Raven heute abend..., hier
gehen wir mit meinem schrecklichen Deutschen...

letzter Samstag hatte sie etwas über das Werfen weg von den
mit verbundenen Augen und sehenden Sachen, wie sie wirklich sind; die
ist nicht eine schlechte Idee. Jedoch seien Sie sehr, sehr sicher,
daß Sie nicht im mit verbundenen Augen für einen Satz Scheuklappen
handeln, die gleichmäßig sein können, wie schrecklich für das
Sehen der Welt, da Tunnelanblick ist schlechter als kein Anblick an
allen... Es würde eine gute Sache sein, zum der Baumwolle Ihre Ohren
herauszuziehen, auch... und sicherzustellen Sie gerade hören Sie
nicht... hören
gute Nacht und Frieden.

I just want to do my part...

to help get this situation in Iraq over and done with. The media released some images yesterday that have been altered to show what Saddam Hussein might look like if he tried to disguise himself to elude capture.
I guess that it’s feasible that he might try to do this. I think that it might be easier to hide in plain sight… just take a look at the pictures below… that’s Saddam on the left, in a vidcap from an Al Jazeera broadcast of him supposedly giving a speech not too long ago… now look at the picture on the right from the Al Jazeera show “You Bet Your Jihad.” You tell me…