98: Iron Maiden--Run to the Hills

Recently I have gained an appreciation for metal and of everything I have heard Iron Maiden are the best. This song is absolutely infectious, and the energy of the live performance wants me to put all my Wilco cds in a box and trade them in for a pair of black jeans and leather wrist gauntlets. Enjoy!

Dude of Dudes

In Recent years Bono has gotten a lot of press for all the diplomacy he is involved with. Although I really respect what he has done with his fame, I have never found him that intriguing--maybe I just don't like pleather pants. With all the fuss about Bono, I feel that the most important and dudely rock activist gets over looked. Willie Nelson, also known as the red headed stranger does alot for the people of this planet. He is the one that started Farm Aid, and he has a bio diesel company aimed at getting semi-truck drivers to switch to vegetable based fuels. If I had the opportunity to invite one celebrity over for corn bread and chili hands down I would invite Willy Nelson.

A cry in the wilderness

After a busy few weeks I finally had time to drive up the coast for a surf yesterday. I was pretty excited because there was a small wave at a spot that rarely breaks but is fun and uncrowded. I had my wetsuit half on and began to zipup when the entire zipper decided to come off and thus make it impossible to surf. Fortunatly we had our gum boots and decided to hike up a creek, so in the end it was a great day.
On a different note here is a band that I have become pretty obsessed with The Mae Shi. It is a fun video the whloe album HllllyH is worth getting.

Salty But Subtle

As much as I love surfing I get tired of it been used as a means for branding and cool factor. Art and writing that includes the sport of kings falls into two camps, soulful or tacky. I have come appreciate art/music/books that have surfing in the background not the foreground. I like things that imply but don't outright say "surfing".

Art--Tom Killion

Recently my own art is taking the direction of ink lines and colour swaths. I want to head in the direction of print making so was very interested to discover Tom Killion's work in the last Surfer's Journal. Tom Killion blends traditional Japanese print making with coastal Californian content. The result is absolutely spectacular, although it is clear that Killion is a surfer he includes it in a very appropriate and subtle way.

Books--Tim Winton

Australian writer Tim Winton writes novels that take place is rural, coastal, Australia. Winton hardly ever mentions surfing in his books, but he is a surfer and surfing magically exists just off the page and whispers itself to the reader through out the books. My two favorite books by Winton are Dirt Music and Blueback.

Music--Chris Issak

Jack Johnson has been credited with creating the newest wave ofc surf music, very laid back simple songs that border on wimpy. But before Jack there was Ocean beach surfer Chris Isaak. Chris is the first person that has ever been able to make singing in Falsetto manly. Although not appropriate in all settings, and never appropriate in a car full of guys Chris Isaak's Baja Sessions is the perfect soundtrack to an after surf hammock swing...

Girls with mics

Lately I have been listening to lots of female M.C.'s here are my three top.

1) Jean-Grae

Super smooth, very mellow, better than any guy out there--all her stuff is great but My Crew stands out. I hope you like it as much as I do.

2) Ladybug Mecca

Like many in the mid 1990's I spent alot of time listening to the Diggable Planets. Much to my supprise the planets never kept their music going. Fortunatly ladybug is still at it as a solo act, her ryhmes glide as ever.



3) M.I.A.
M.I.A. is the daughter of a Srilanken freedom fighter that grew up on the streets of London. She is by far the most gangsta of the three. Her album Kala has been widly acclaimed this year, so much so that she was asked to perform her single Paperplanes on Letterman. She caused a big commotion when she insisted on including the shot gun beats in her performance after the network had asked her to exclude them.
I love this clip.

M.I.A. performing Paper Planes on Letterman
Uploaded by dtrip01

Spells and Grooves

Every once in a while a really special album grabs you. From the first chord you know that you be returning to not just the opening track, but the whole album--That was how I felt when I heard Live at the Annadale: by Life Without Buildings. The band released one album in 2002 and everyone that heard it loved it--unfortunately they never had any major attention. The band broke up after their debut release. Fortunately their record company released their live show as an album. L.W.B. has a unique sound, the vocals are wonderful spoken words that sound like spells, they are backed by wonderfully smooth up tempo grooves. I can't say enough good things about this album--you really have to listen for yourself.