Post Mortem Releases

Having an artist release an album of new material after they have died is really creepy. I touch on this point only because Mitch Hedberg released a new album today and he has been dead for 3 years. I've got no problem with tributes or Best Of albums but when it's all new material that just starts messing with your head and gets you thinking that they aren't really dead and are going to do a "I'm Not Dead" tour and all the while they've been "dead" they've been writing killer songs up in a cabin in the Himalayas while meditating with the Dalai Lama.

See, It messes with your head.

New Poll

Look to your right, a little further, a little further, oh come back a little bit, right there. You see that I have posted a new poll. This was a question that was brought up during a pregame show on Sunday. For those of you not caught up, each time there is a hurricane the Saints have to pack up and move somewhere else to practice and the stadium has to be cleaned a prepped for the next game. I'm not sure who pays for all of this, I would assume that it is the team and not the NFL.

The thing that always gets on my wick is that the team receives a triumphant return and the commentators go on and on about how the team is the heart of this city that has had such a hard time. There are only so many times that you can hear this before you say "Stop being stupid and move."

Couture vs. Lesnar

UFC's president, Dana White, announced last week that UFC 91 on November 15th will be between Randy Couture, the reigning Heavyweight Champion, versus Brock Lesnar. Couture, unarguably the most well known MMA fighter in the world, is fresh off a 9 month legal battle with Zuffa and at age 45 is looking to step inside the octagon once again to defend his title. I have a number of problems with this arranged fight; Lesnar has only 3 MMA fights and only two with the UFC, a loss to Frank Mir by submission and a win against Heath Herring that went the full three rounds. There is really very little known about Lesnar's fighting ability other then he packs a punch and relies on that as his only real weapon. He won the 2000 NCAA World Championship in wrestling and has a couple of titles in the WWE, which we all know means nothing in the real world of MMA. Lesnar also doesn't have the maturity to be in the UFC either; this was clearly shown when at the sound of the final bell in the Heath Herring fight Lesnar jumped up and started pointing and laughing at him even though Lesnar was unable to finish the fight after a first round punch that left Herring dazed for the remaining two rounds.

Couture has nothing really to gain from this fight but has everything to lose. He is a three time Heavyweight Champion with the UFC and is one of the most respected fighters of all time.
Can Couture win this fight? Sure he can, but he will have to avoid going toe-to-toe and boxing it out, this guy hits like a Mack Truck. Ground and pound is probably his best option even with Lesnar's experience as a wrestler I haven't seen anything from him that proves he really knows how to wrestle with skill instead of just brute force.

The winner of this fight will go on to face the winner of the Nogueira vs. Mir fight on December 27th.

The 10 Commandments Guidelines of Concert Behavior

VI. Thou Shalt Not Request Songs

Sorry folks, the music biz has changed. Gone are the days of Springsteen's bladder-bursting 4-hour shows and The Replacements swapping instruments to bumble through Bad Company covers. Touring is expensive and promoters are cramming more bands on bills in an attempt to sell tickets, which means tighter schedules and shorter sets. 99.9% of bands are working off setlists because time is money. Lighting and effects. Alternate tunings. Sequencers and samples. Even stage banter is meticulously planned out ahead of time to maximize presentation of the product. And speaking of product, don't think the record companies don’t have an interest in what songs their bands perform live. Bottom line? You can yell your head off, but if it's not already on the setlist, forget it. Which reminds me. If an artist asks an audience what they want to hear, they're just waiting to hear the title of the next tune on their list. You know that, don't you?

What's wrong with letting musicians decide which songs to play? It's their material, let them present it as they wish. Do you toss out requests at the symphony? At a play? At church? What would you rather hear? An inspired version of a song you've never been terribly fond of, or a half-assed version of a favorite? And one more thing, when a musician changes bands, don't expect them to revisit the good ol' days. If you're going to a Wilco show and planning on screaming for Graveyard Shift and Punch Drunk until you're lightheaded, do us all a favor; just stay home and listen to the Uncle Tupelo records.

Note to the guy still yelling for Free Bird at every concert: Stop.

Previous Guidelines:
I. Thou Shalt Not Puke
II. Thou Shalt Not Fart
III. Thou Shalt Not Smoke
IV. Thou Shalt Not Take Crappy Pictures With Your Cell Phone
V. Thou Shall Show Up On Time

Women in Politics

There is something egregiously unattractive about women in politics. No, I'm not saying that Sarah Palin is not an attractive women and I'm not limiting it to her alone, nor am I saying that they shouldn't be in or can't handle politics. But it is unappetizing to see a women in front of a crowd of supports and talk trash about an opponent. Men do it day in and day out, that is what men do, they bicker and argue, point fingers and call names. As a nation I think that we hold women to a higher standard to rise above these petty arguments and cheap tricks and be the voice of reason in a political system that is based on who can dig up the dirtiest tidbits about their opponent. Politics is an occupation that is unbecoming of a women. It forces them into a position where they have to lie or at the very least exaggerate the truth in order to accomplish their goal.

That is my soapbox for the day.

If you are looking for the truth about what all these crazy politicians are saying about each other check out this site. It doesn't appear to side with the right or left and has a gauge as to how much of a lie statements or attacks are.

Rules of Rock (The Finale)

Today is the final installment of my rules of rock. Some of you may be saying that music is suppose to be free spirited to let artist go where the music takes them; trust me, there are some places that music is not supposed to go for good reason.

X. Be Yourself - There isn't a band out there that annoys me more than Good Charlotte. By the looks of them you would think, at the very least, they play some hardcore thrash punk but when you hear Life Styles of the Rich and Famous you think that they radio mistakenly played a different song then they said they were going to and instead played a flavor of the month pop punk band. For the love of Pete (whoever Pete is), it is your life experiences that influence the songs that you write. There is no shame in finding out that the lead singer of some of your favorite punk bands is a PhD candidate (Dexter Holland of Offspring) or has a loving wife and kids at home (Jim Lindberg of Pennywise). You'll get a lot further in life not trying to put on a facade for your musical life.

Lifestyles Of The Rich And Famous - Formule 1 Top 100 - Good Charlotte

Songs That Make You Well Up

We all have a song or two that pull at our heart strings. I'm not talking about hymnals; those are designed to arouse emotions of every kind from love and adoration to guilt, nor am I talking about patriotic songs that you hear during the airing of the PBS Memorial Day Special. I'm talking about secular songs that you hear while not in any special setting, just driving in your car. My personal one is Blue October's - Hate Me. Now when you're done laughing, take a listen to it and see if it doesn't rip your heart out.

Rules of Rock

IX. Live Album Rule - Don't let the audience sing a part of the song or even worse set up the microphones so that the audience is heard throughout the entire concert (i.e. Dashboard Confessional - Mtv Unplugged). Don't get me wrong, I am probably the loudest singer out there when I am at a show. I'm not asking you not to sing at a concert, I don't think that it's possible to not want to sing along with the band that you have deemed worthy of spending an insane amount of money on tickets, service charges, parking, gas and your precious time. But I have paid good money to hear the band that I have deemed worthy sing the songs that I have deemed worthy, not 10,000 screaming out of tune fans.

Let's Play Pacman

In honor of the reinstatement of Adam 'Pacman' Jones to the NFL I have set up a poll to predict what will be his ultimate fate this year. Keep in mind that he playing with the Cowboys, not exactly a team that hasn't had their more than fair share of disciplinary problems in the past, and the fact that he is now on a team with Tank Johnson, who just got reinstated to play last year after a string of legal problems. You can't mix gas and fire without getting an explosion, but I quite enjoy some nice pyrotechnics occasionally.

The best quote that I have heard concerning this is from Doug Guttlieb with ESPN, he said "Putting Pacman Jones in Dallas with Michael Irving as a role model and surrounding him with T.O. is like putting Jared from Subway in front of a bunch of buffets."

Rules of Rock

I am really getting tired of all these rules and regulations so I know that you guys are too. Just a couple more days and we will be through the Rules of Rock and I will move on to something else, I promise. But until then:

VIII - Don't Force Philosophical Lyrics - The patience I have for this was used up a long time ago. I'm speaking of the songwriters that use contradictions in order to sound deep and thoughtful such as "In a place so dark I can see so clear" and things of that nature. This really does not make you profound or wise.