Summer '05..... 

Matt and Stv in VIP lounge at the House of Blues...the night tha446 opened for White Boy and Twista. 

Sleep Out 

If you don't know - you better find out.

Matt: So to summarize: Deep Space Nine is far superior to The Next Generation for the afforementioned, indisputable reasons.

Marshall:What about when the Federation entered war with the Dominion? Think about it -- the Federation is at war with the Dominion, an apparently quite dangerous and formiddable foe. Yet the flagship of the Federation is never called in to the front lines?!?!? Gimme a break! Yeah, sure, it costs extra for the guest-starring of the old TNG cast. But it just wasn't believable.

Matt: Seriously dude, you do not want to challenge me on this one.

Marshall:But...

Matt: DO NOT FUCKING CHALLENGE ME.

Because I am equally blessed and cursed by these little buggers ....I can offer up a hearty "god damn it" this morning. Whoooo. Back to work.

Today I embarked on a 5 mile walk to Blam Recording Studios to pick up a copy of the Sleep Out session we recorded last weekend. It's going to air tonight at 6:30 on wluw.org Please check it out. It really turned out well and there's some bonus music of me singing the star-spangled banner ala Beyonce. 

Doobanz. 

service with a sneer. 

attacked by a steering wheel. 

Service with a sneer 

nate's all-american hairstyle. 

A friend indeed. 

indeed. 

It's like this.... 

a mess suitable for a victory records album cover. 

One thing that rules about being a guy is cutting the crap out of yourself while you shave. Now, I'm just lucky enough to have a mole in the center of my chin below my lower lip. It's not very big and you can barely see it under normal circumstances. In the morning I like to consolidate all of my activities...so I shave in the shower without the use of a mirror. Inveitably I put a nice new incision in my chin every few weeks and boy - does my body love to bleed.  

Visiting E-Lo at his place of business (building with the crown on top of it next to the Sears Tower) today was a trip. The biggest atrium I've ever seen in my life, more trixies than you could shake a set of Volkswagen keys at and a nice view of the tallest building in the U.S.A. while we drank coffee. The kicker: I found parking right in front of the building...it was a Christmas miracle.

Comme ca

One of these at Resi's + Another at Laschet's + This courtesy of O'Donovans (and Kara, thanks Kdubz) + the DVD afterwards + a little of this courtesy of Matt and Maria inevitably =
which leads to waking up and putting on
which is the best album to sleep to ever.

Fin.

Slap out.

A moustache on a cabbage head

Three Nights Drunk

The first night that I come home
So drunk I could not see
Found a horse in my stable
Where my horse oughta be
Come here my little wifey
Explain this thing to me
How come a horse in the stable
Where my horse oughta be?
You blind fool, you crazy fool
Can't you never see?
It's only a milkcow
You're granny sent to me
I've traveled this world over
Ten thousand miles or more
But a saddle upon a milkcow's back
I never did see before

The second night that I come home
So drunk I could not see
Found a coat a-hanging on the rack
Where my coat oughta be
Come here my little wifey
Explain this thing to me
How come a coat a hanging a hanging on the rack
Where my coat oughta be?
You blind fool, you crazy fool
Can't you never see?
It's only a bedquilt
You're granny sent to me
I've traveled this world over
Ten thousand miles or more
Pockets upon a bedquilt
I never did see before

The third night that I come home
So drunk I could not see
Found a head a-laying on the pillow
Where my head oughta be
Come here my little wifey
Explain this thing to me
How come a head a-laying on the pillow
Where my head oughta be?
You blind fool, you crazy fool
Can't you never see?
It's only a cabbage head
You're granny sent to me
I've traveled this world over
Ten thousand miles or more
But a moustache on a cabbage head
I never did see before

Margarine Walker

Required listening: Bill Withers "Still Bill"

Proof that people outside of my immediate circle of friends are aware of mt.st.helens. Courtesy of Stv Slv's awesome power.

Yesterday I scaled towering bundles of cardboard boxes in our company's second warehouse in order to handpick an order of 300 bakery boxes. I had to cut the plastic strapping with a swiss army knife and throw them down to the ground (about 20 ft below) so I could stack them on a forklift pallet, drive that pallet to the dock door with said forklift and then load all those f'ers into my car. Luckily, the recipient was a cookie factory in Wheeling that we've done business with for years and I was rewarded for my efforts with a case of freshly baked cookies. I took them back to the office and distributed them to all my co-workers, put my tie and shirt back on (I had taken them off so as not to dirty them) and hit the road again to see more customers. KFA.

I used to keep records of all the concerts I went to....then I stopped.....that was really stupid of me.

The Concert Journal

November 2003
1st – Tha 446 @ The Orpheum – Madison, WI // Ed Lo featuring Room Service w/ Steve McQueen and the Punky QB's @ Library Mall, Madison WI
6th – The Hot Machines w/The Girls, The Mystery Girls & The Cuts @ Schubas – Chicago, IL
7th – Mt.St.Helens w/ Monday’s Hero, The Buzz Spectors & 1 @ The Wheaton Grand Theater – Wheaton, IL
8th – The Ghost, David Singer, Desert City Soundtrack @ The Fireside Bowl –Chicago, IL // Rollo Tomasi w/ Oh My God, Blue Shade Witness @ The Metro – Chicago, IL // Seam w/ Aden, Ee @ The Abbey Pub – Chicago, IL
9th – Ween @ The Vic – Chicago, IL
11th – Ted Leo & The Pharmacists w/ Oneida & Kristin Forbes @ The Fireside Bowl – Chicago, IL
12th – Badly Drawn Boy w/ Leona Naess @ Park West – Chicago, IL
13th – The Ghost w/ Niagara Fell (last show) & Starstruck @ Diversions NIU – DeKalb, IL
19th – Fountains of Wayne @ The Vic – Chicago, IL // The Darkness @ The Double Door – Chicago, IL (Both with Dad. Tequila & seltzer at Nick’s Beer Garden afterward and dinner at Café Ba Ba Reba before)
20th- May or May Not @ Phyllis’ Musical Inn – Chicago, IL
22nd – Guided By Voices w/ Tobin Sprout @ The Abbey Pub – Chicago, IL (With Dad & Christian)

December 2003
4th – Riddle of Steel, Call me Lightning, Rockbot @ Fireside Bowl - Chicago, IL
5th – Mark Kozelek @ Schubas – Chicago, IL
6th – Lungfish, Red Eyed Legends @ Fireside Bowl – Chicago, IL
11th – Hanalei, Catfish Haven @ Fireside Bowl – Chicago, IL // Pinebender, Pelican @ The Empty Bottle, Chicago - IL
17th – May or May Not, Driftless Pony Club @ Phyllis’ Musical Inn – Chicago, IL

January 2004
2nd – Mt.St.Helens, Rollo Tomasi, Archaeology @ The Empty Bottle – Chicago, IL
10th – Tha 446, Driftless Pony Club, The Shirley Temples @ The Doty Ranch – Madison, WI
17th – Evan Dando, Frisbie (acoustic) @ The Double Door – Chicago, IL
(With Matt Fast who was converted to an Evan Dando fan that night)
26th – Twista, White Boy, Crucial Conflict @ House of Blues – Chicago, IL VIP Passes & hanging out in the HOB lounge. Opera box seats, juke contest, pic w/ dude from Crucial Conflict. Compliments of Matt Spinner. Awesome night w/Matt & Steve Reidell.
31st – Mt.St.Helens @ Northern Illinois University Radio, acoustic set.

February 2004
3rd – Super Furry Animals, Papa M @ The Metro – Chicago, IL
4th – Ben Weaver, Charlemagne @ Schubas – Chicago, IL
5th – Mable, Inspector Owl @ The Beat Kitchen – Chicago, IL –followed by Brian Moss’s DJ set at the Bottom Lounge
6th- Bang! Bang!, The Functional Blackouts, V.D. @ The Empty Bottle – Chicago, IL
7th – May or May Not (acoustic –stv&zaid), Braam @ Nevin’s Live – Evanston, IL
13th- The Ponys, We Ragazzi, Volcano I’m Still Excited @ The Empty Bottle –Chicago, IL ***The night Chris Saathoff was killed***
29th – Mt.St.Helens, Bible of the Devil @ Subculture Skate Park – Elgin, IL -cancelled

March 2004
5th – Tha 446, The Ghost, Mt.St.Helens, The Pines, Paper Lanterns @ Fireside Bowl – Chicago, IL
6th – New Black (record release), The Coach Whips, Call Me Lightning, Russian @ The Fireside Bowl – Chicago, IL
13th – Calliope, Analog Radio, Hanalei @ The Bottom Lounge – Chicago, IL
19th – BENEFIT FOR THE CHRIS SAATHOFF FOUNDATION: Chin Up Chin Up (Quinn Goodwillie playing bass), New Black, Rollo Tomasi, Pinebender acoustic @ The Empty Bottle – Chicago, IL
20th- Haymarket Riot (Mog release show), Riddle of Steel @ Fireside Bowl – Chicago, IL
25th – Sun Kil Moon @ Park West – Chicago, IL
26th – Tha 446 @ Orpheum Stage Door – Madison, WI
27th – Driftless Pony Club @ Union South – Madison, WI // Paris Texas @ 1350 Williamson House – Madison, WI
29th – Neko Case, Jim & Jenny and the Pinetops @ Schubas – Chicago, IL
(live recording made for upcoming CD)

April 2004
2nd – Blonde Redhead, Secret Machines @ The Abbey Pub – Chicago, IL
9th – John Vanderslice, May or May Not @ Catacombs - Madison, WI /// Driftless Pony Club @ The Klinic – Madison, WI
10th – Graham Smith’s Manzardo, May or May Not @ The Hideout – Chicago, IL
24th – BENEFIT FOR CHRIS SAATHOFF # 2 w/ Chin Up Chin Up, The Hot Machines, The Ghost, Mt.St.Helens, Sleep Out & M.O.T.O @ The Fireside Bowl – Chicago, IL
26th – Beauty Pill @ The Empty Bottle – Chicago, IL

May 2004
14th – New Black, May or May Not, This Moment in Black History @ Fireside Bowl – Chicago, IL
21st – My Morning Jacket, M. Ward @ Metro – Chicago, IL // Rollo Tomasi, Retisonic @ Fireside Bowl – Chicago, IL
22nd – Mt.St.Helens, Riddle of Steel, Blaked, No More Lies @ Otto’s – DeKalb, IL
29th – Mt.St.Helens, The Ghost, Droids Attack @ The King Club – Madison, WI
30th – Driftless Pony Club, IfIhadahifi @ High Noon Saloon – Madison, WI

June 2004
2nd – May or May Not @ The Bottom Lounge – Chicago, IL
8th – Bang! Bang!, Paris Texas, Mannequin Men, Lucida @ Metro – Chicago, IL
13th – Secret Machines, New Black, Skeleton Key @ The Metro – Chicago, IL
18th – The Innocence Mission @ Schuba’s – Chicago, IL // The Shins @ The House of Blues – Chicago, IL
23rd- The Streets @ Metro – Chicago, IL

JULY2004

12th – Rollo Tomasi , Blaked, Bear Claw @ The Abbey Pub – Chicago, IL
24th – Steve Reidell @ Gunther Murphy’s – Chicago, IL

mind blown courtesy of Kris Racer and Mr. Boots

listen to the Universe Society's "Because I Love You". It blew my mind today...so good & sad. Right up my alley. The other songs are great too...Sleep Out will be playing with Kris Racer at Uncommon Ground in January with our newest member Sam Grant of Driftless Pony Club. I guess Sleep Out could also be know as Mt. St. Pony Club now. Sleep Out now consists of: Ben Geier, Nate Bartley, Sam Grant, Steve Reidell, Brian Moss (back in the day), Chris Saathoff (back in the day) and me. That's a pretty impressive array of dudes. Time to wail on my pecs.

Neil's birthday courtesy of the beautiful Monika Ebly (shown with cigarette). I guess being drunk makes me look gay. Hmmmm. I wonder what Matt was doing behind me. Neil's repping a kick ass band shirt.
That's about it. Towns I was in today = Sycamore, Woodstock, Elgin, Geneva, St. Charles, Batavia, Aurora, Naperville & Lisle. Poinsettia delivery season....I love it. Two more days to go. Short sentences are back in. Consider me the Hemingway of the blogworld.

In the meantime - if you're not listening to Jolie Holland, you should be. You can download an mp3 of this song on her site...I think the lyrics are incredible.
December, 1999--I'll see you in the Springtime, after the battle is won. I know I'm crossin over, as far as we have come, and I want your hand in mine, dear, as we face that shining dawn. Eyes open, I'm hopin you'll be there with me, so gently I want your hand in mine, I want you by my side in the midst of our great victory. The storm clouds had all gathered. We drew our forces nigh, and entered into battle, though it clamoured to the sky, and we faced that fateful lightning with saints on our side. Eyes open, I'll follow that lonesome road to the top of the mountain where the fire is blazing and the heat is astounding--what's even more amazing is to see you by my side.*******