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| Rocket From The Crypt, Photo by Scotch LaRock |
So if you've been wondering...
Hey, where you been? We haven't seen you 'round. What'cha been up to?
Yeah, the last few
weeks have been, been... Ah, it's been tough to put pen to paper,
finger to keyboard, thumb to text, whatever you kids do these days to
communicate. Skype, you guys Skype, right? Wait, was just told I
should FaceTime by my son. “Or maybe you should tweet it," he
added.
Well, I haven't put down the social media entirely, but I've definitely found it difficult to write. I really wanted to write something special about the two nights I spent with my all time favorite, Rocket From The Crypt. I went to two out of three local shows -- Brooklyn and Philly. Stood right up front because every time could be the last time. I got to see some old friends -- Joey, Tim, Hillary, and that group of people that you see at shows that you just recognize by face because you've all spent time together pushing your way to the front. I wanted the words to flow out of me like (insert your favorite writer here) and I'd have conveyed the magic that I feel and have felt over the last twenty odd years. I wanted it to come together. I tried. There were at least 5 versions. One even started with the chorus to Peaches & Herb's “Reunited." Yeah, I just couldn't get it to come together, struggled for a month now.
I couldn't get past the part where those days, those thoughts, those feelings were tied to another moment. So, I will tell you this. I attended those shows with a heavy heart. My family suffered a loss. Stephanie was a daughter, sister, mother, cousin, friend... She fought hard when she arrived early in 1972, and she fought hard until the end in 2014. Lucky to have known her along the way. In the words so often used by Rocket From The Crypt, long live the dead.
Well, I haven't put down the social media entirely, but I've definitely found it difficult to write. I really wanted to write something special about the two nights I spent with my all time favorite, Rocket From The Crypt. I went to two out of three local shows -- Brooklyn and Philly. Stood right up front because every time could be the last time. I got to see some old friends -- Joey, Tim, Hillary, and that group of people that you see at shows that you just recognize by face because you've all spent time together pushing your way to the front. I wanted the words to flow out of me like (insert your favorite writer here) and I'd have conveyed the magic that I feel and have felt over the last twenty odd years. I wanted it to come together. I tried. There were at least 5 versions. One even started with the chorus to Peaches & Herb's “Reunited." Yeah, I just couldn't get it to come together, struggled for a month now.
I couldn't get past the part where those days, those thoughts, those feelings were tied to another moment. So, I will tell you this. I attended those shows with a heavy heart. My family suffered a loss. Stephanie was a daughter, sister, mother, cousin, friend... She fought hard when she arrived early in 1972, and she fought hard until the end in 2014. Lucky to have known her along the way. In the words so often used by Rocket From The Crypt, long live the dead.
“...in the process of getting home”
I'm currently in
the throes of Damon Albarn's Everyday Robots. There are no Blur
guitars, no bounce of Gorillaz. Just sad songs rolling through the
battle between nature and technology. I'll wager a guess Roger Waters
approves on this rainy day.
Greg Dulli is well
up there on my list of favorites. Do To The Beast is the first Afghan
Whigs record in roughly forever. Now look, slap whatever name you
want on it, The Afghan Whigs, The Twilight Singers, The Gutter Twins,
or Harry and the Kentucky Wildcats, I don't care. Also, I made that
last one up. My point is that Greg Dulli does what Greg Dulli does: His
ever evolving interpretation of rock guitars and soul grooves. We are
exploring the seedy underside, the crime, the drugs, the affairs of
those in the dark corners. That's just the way I like it.
Record Store Day came and went. I made
one purchase. Well I had some huge help, so a hat tip to Tim for
taking one for the team. I bought the Sunny Day Real Estate / Circa
Survive split single. Some minor history first. Back in February of
2013, Music Radar posted an interview with Nate Mendel; and he punctuated a reunited Sunny Day Real Estate's recording with
this statement: “It just fell apart. So that was probably the end
of that band. If we couldn't make any new music, what's the point?"
Well, Record Store Day provided us with one last song. SDRE are one
of my favorite bands. Their make up / break up history only adds to
the passion. I'll hold onto hope, there's always room for hope. This
song makes me hopeful.
Other things currently in rotation,
currently tied to the 90s and six degrees of Jon Wurster:
Jason Narducy, Britt Daniel and Jon
Wurster
Aimee Mann and Ted Leo
It
just looks like I'm rolling through my 90s obsessions at a breakneck pace in 2014. I can't help it if some of my favorite artists
from my youth continue to make records. Plus, I don't get out much.
I'm still championing the cause for bands like Gates, The Hotelier, and Modern Baseball, all of whom are touring.
Go see them.
I should.
I should.
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