Every now and then I remember that I really need to own a copy of "Sittin' on the Dock of the Bay." I never really noticed this song much until one day at Bard. I was walking past a dorm (South Hall if you care) and someone was playing this song on repeat. I sat there for maybe an hour, listening to it over and over again. Yeah, I was in a melancholy mood, but it really seemed to fit.

I don't really need that much Otis Redding, so I check on iTunes every now and then to see if it's there. It's not yet. However, what is there is a German version of the song, "Ich Sitz Den Ganzen Tag Bei Den Docks."

Udo Lindenberg doesn't have the same voice as Otis, but it's pretty amusing to hear a bunch of German with "Georgia" and "Frisco Bay" thrown in the middle of it. It's almost worth paying the $1.06 for it. It's definitely better than the "duet" where Don Ricardo Garcia takes the original track and sings over it for no apparent reason.

Tags: music

It's quite possible (but not too likely, as a lot of fun bands are coming to town in the next week+) that two consecutive times going out to see music will
be to the Junkies and Trey. Talk about bands going in opposite directions, the former are a band that started out writing slow songs but now open up their shows for more improvisational sections whereas Trey was once known for his improv skills, but now he's trying to be a more song oriented
performer.

The Junkies definitely are still working on their jamming skills. For the most part, their jams all go to the same place. At least it's an interesting place to me, not exactly high energy but dark and kind of scary.

When thrown in the middle of a song like "Bread and Wine," it provides a surprisingly sharp relief to the song; that might have been the
single best performance of a song that I've seen them do. Put it in "Dragging Hooks," and it's just bleak with a side order of depression. Perhaps it's not
perfect for the sunny afternoon at the zoo that we had yesterday, but it's a great mid-winter song.

I wish we could have a bit of a skill exchange. Have Trey teach Michael Timmins how to build peaks. An exciting peak at the end
of the darkness would freak people out with the contrast and the mood shift. In return, perhaps he could try to explain to Trey how he writes his incredibly powerful lyrics and Margo could try to give some singing lessons. Too bad you can't just make a straight swap like in that Twilight Zone episode...

Tags: music
Current Music: Cowboy Junkies - Pale Sun

(1) SCI might not be that great, but I like the ways in which they're not great. They lean so far in the hippie dippie direction that anyone who would be really annoying in a 3 day camping environment isn't likely to go.

(2) Worst excuse ever: It was about 2 AM on Friday night/Saturday morning and some guy starts rifling though our cooler. desertgirlva woke up first and told him to get away. His response, "Do you have any grilled cheese?" Yeah we keep our grilled cheese sandwiches in the cooler; I hate it when they get warm. He should have just claimed he thought it was his.

(3) Part of what Peak Experience was trying to do was to blur the line between performers and audience. It's finally working. When I saw some of the outfits and the hooping abilities of random audience members, I was never sure if they were just fans or if they were there as part of PE. Some of the eye candy was insane; it's getting Burning Man-esque.

(4) Speaking of PE, they're finally getting it. They've stopped preaching. They keep the information out there if you want to read about their world view, but their acts are more open ended for interpretation.

(5) Paddle boats + water cannons + hot day == great way to kill a half hour on a Sunday.

(6) Worst loss of perspective ever: There was an open mike thing going on Sunday afternoon and some guy complained about the new Horning's rules this way, "The Native Americans were forced onto reservations; we call them 'Beer gardens.'" Yes because there's no difference between being forced out of your home and going to a concert where you can only drink beer in certain areas. He was completely serious.

(7) Trickster gods can be evil. Loki, Coyote... stay away from them.

(8) I should not have driven home last night at all. While I've been more tired in my life, it was pretty bad. The WA/OR line to Centralia part of the drive was really rough. By the time I hit King County though at least I got the second wind from being so close.

(9) The first set Friday and the last half of the second set on Sunday were REALLY good. I want to listen to them again at some point. The rest was kind of sloppy.

(10) Most important thing I learned this weekend. Technically, a strawberry isn't a berry. It's a "fleshy receptacle." I was asking people what the difference between a berry and a fruit was on Saturday. I got some interesting answers - it's amazing how many people were willing to entertain the question instead of just ignoring it - until a botany major told me that it was very complicated.

Tags: music
Current Mood: sleepy