AC/DC - Back In Black

AC/DC are the 3rd and final honourable mention for the 'Fab Five' greatest rock bands of all time. I had a bit of trouble choosing this last band. U2 and Aerosmith were no-brainers but I debated big-time with AC/DC, Queen, and The Doors. AC/DC ultimately won out because they have put out more music and are still going today, sold more albums and had more hits, and just fucking rock harder. Both Queen and The Doors have incredible legacies and were very influential but they're both dead and done, unlike all the other bands on this list who are still going in one form or another (note: new shitty Queen and new shitty Doors don't count). 

AC/DC were first fronted by wildman Bon Scott. His great voice powered early hits like "Highway To Hell" and "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap". Sadly the dude was too much of a party animal and drank himself to death. Enter Brian Johnson. With the very difficult task of stepping into Bon's shoes, Brian did so with pure grace and many would argue was even better than the wildman. His first album with the band was their highest selling and best album, Back In Black (also the second highest-selling album on planet Earth!). He has lead them ever since, singing on some of their best songs such as "You Shook Me All Night Long" and "Thunderstruck". The rest of the band includes guitarist Angus Young and his brother, rhythm guitarist Malcolm Young

Aerosmith - Rag Doll

Aerosmith is the #2 honourable mention for the 'Fab Five' greatest rock bands of all time. They are definitely the greatest American rock band of all time (Beach Boys and Eagles are up there too). And guess what, they're lead by another unreal songwriting duo of singer Steven Tyler and guitarist Joe Perry. Throw in guitarist Brad Whitford, bassist Tom Hamilton, and drummer Joey Kramer and you have the greatest American band ever. They have dozens of hit songs and albums, from early hits like "Dream On" and "Sweet Emotion" to later ones like "I Don't Want To Miss A Thing" (their first and only Billboard #1, go figure) and "Jaded". They have toured relentlessly and have a crazy history of breakups and bad feelings. But they recently announced a new album is due soon as well as another major world tour. I've never seen them live but if they roll through Vancouver I'll definitely make sure to get a ticket.

Tyler is one of the ultimate rock frontmen, with that awesome voice and crazy lifestyle. I recently read his autobiography/memoirs "Does The Noise In My Head Bother You?" and it made me like him even more. There are some amazing quotes in there as well as hilarious/crazy stories. Here's some of the notable ones:

- The world's going to hell in a handbasket, everybody has rolled over and given up, and there's no more afternoon baseball.

- I'm E to the Z ew tweedle-dee, I'm a rhyming fool that weren't learned in no school-me, Fritz the Cat, and Mohair Sam are the baddest cats ... What is what am.

- Life is like a roll of toilet paper, the closer it gets to the end, the faster it goes

"Rag Doll" is actually my second favourite Aerosmith song ("Dream On" is number one but I didn't want to go with a typical one, plus I may need it later ;)). Great horns in this one and just a catchy all around great rock song!

U2 - Angel Of Harlem

This is the first of 3 honourable mentions for the 'Fab Five' greatest rock bands of all time. U2 have over 3 decades of incredible songs, albums, and tours under their belt. Yet in the class of the 'Fab Five' that simply isn't long enough and is the key reason why they aren't in there yet... give it a few years boys. U2 also consists of an amazing singer-guitarist songwriting team in lead singer Bono and guitarist The Edge. Adam Clayton on bass and Larry Mullen Jr. on drums make up the rhythm section and the full sound of the band. One thing I've always loved about this band is that it's been the same 4 guys since day 1. They have stuck together, always recorded together, and you rarely hear of any fighting or feuding (unlike most of the top 5...). They have also stayed ridiculously relevant through each decade, consistently putting out hit albums and singles, not to mention the highest grossing tour of all time in 2011.

"Angel Of Harlem" is my favourite U2 song (well actually second to "Where The Streets Have No Name" but I already chose that one earlier). The horns, something rather uncommon for a U2 record, are unreal and make the song for me. It's also just a cool story about the Irish band's love for USA and, especially, NYC.

Some thoughts...

- Huge congrats to Pavel Bure for making the Hockey Hall of Fame today. I always felt he'd been snubbed and this came as quite a shock today. The interesting part of this will be to see the response from the Canucks. His jersey is not in the rafters (the way he left the team/city definitely wasn't the most gracious way one could do so) while 3 other players who will all likely never make it to the Hall are. At this point it would just seem kind of embarrassing and 'just because'. There's always the ring of honour but, come on...

- Brendan Shanahan got completely snubbed for HHOF. Sundin gets in quite easily and no Brendan... That just doesn't seem right, especially when there's no limit for number of players admitted each year.

- Stoked for Canada Day camping this weekend. As long as mother nature cooperates it should be a real beauty.

The Who - Baba O'Riley

The Who are the #5 band in the 'Fab Five' greatest rock bands of all time. They are definitely the most contested band on the list as some may argue they aren't worthy. I was humming and hawing over the final pick (the one I was debating between will be part of the honourable mentions later) when I watched The Who Live at the Isle of Wight and was instantly convinced that they belonged with the other four. I also chose them because they have always been my personal favourite of the classic rock bands, so a bit of bias there. 

The Who started out as a garage rock band and were one of the first bands to completely destroy their equipment at the end of every show. Hits syuch as "My Generation", "The Seeker", and "I Can't Explain" had them in the same conversations as #1 and #2, The Beatles and The Stones. They then morphed into a band that made rock operas, one of the very first of their kind, with the two classics Tommy and Quadrophenia. They then made the leap to arena rock superstardom with Who's Next which featured the hits "Baba O'Riley", "Won't Get Fooled Again", and "Behind Blue Eyes". Later in their career they continued to put out successful albums although they came much less frequently. And oh yeah, they fucking headlined fucking Woodstock for fuck's sake!

At that concert at The Isle of Wight they played for a crowd of 600,000 and rocked the fuck out. Lead by, once again, the incredible songwriting duo of singer Roger Daltrey and guitarist Pete Townshend, the two displayed their knacks for showmanship such as Roger's great banter and microphone twirling and Pete's infamous windmill guitar playing. Wildman drummer Keith Moon is such a goof but also one of the greatest of all time. He died way too soon like so many from that era, found with 32 pills in his stomach. John Entwistle often dressed in a skeleton jumpsuit and was solid as a rock on bass, also chirping in for some of the funnier singing by the band (see "Boris The Spider"). And yes, I got into this band WAAAAAAYYYY before fucking CSI sort of ruined their classics.

I saw The Who live a few years ago and, despite the fact that only Daltrey and Townshend are still alive, they were insanely good. They played all their best hits as well as some new material from Endless Wire. Daltrey sounded great and nailed the howl on "Won't get Fooled Again".

"Baba O'Riley" is my favourite Who song because of the unique keyboard line with the piano, the great singing by both Daltrey and Townshend, and the epic fiddle closing part. I actually consider it up there with my absolute favourite songs of all time. Period. The more obscure Who song I have chosen is "The Real Me" from the somewhat overlooked brilliant rock opera, Quadrophenia. Here it is:

Pink Floyd - Comfortably Numb

Pink Floyd are the #4 band on the 'Fab Five' greatest rock bands of all time list. Starting out as a psychedelic band, Pink Floyd was lead by Syd Barrett, a sheer musical genius who simply was too fucked up and in his own weird world all the time. They had a few hits and were pretty big in Britain but really hadn't hit their stride yet. Enter guitar extraordinaire David Gilmour. He, along with bass player and singer, (There seems to be a theme here of dynamic songwriting duo of singer and guitarist...) Roger Waters, helped compose some of the true masterpiece albums of all time such as Dark Side Of The Moon, Wish You Were Here, and The Wall. Roger did a lot of the writing (or so he claims anyways) but David brought that incredible voice and guitar and was a large part of the bands biggest hits such as "Money", "Wish You Were Here", and "Another Brick In The Wall Part 2". Then there was drummer Nick Mason and keyboardist Richard Wright who added their musical expertise and trippy beats to the band. A fight between Gilmour and Waters in the 80's ended the band and they have only played together once since. Each guy has gone on incredible solo tours, selling out arenas worldwide. The demand for a true reunion, when pigs fly, would be insane. I'll be first in line to get tickets.

"Comfortably Numb" is my favourite Pink Floyd song. The lyrics are incredible and it is sung by both Waters and Gilmour; unique for the band. And HOLY FUCK that final guitar solo. It's one of those solos that I've heard so many times that I can sing every note of it! Just an absolute classic.

I saw Roger Waters live when he toured playing the entire Dark Side Of The Moon album, my favourite Floyd album and one of my faves of all time. He was awesome, playing a set of other Floyd songs and some solo stuff, then an intermission before Dark Side, and then he came back to play "Brick Part 2"  and "Comfortably Numb". Epic. And the band he had with him were unfuckingreal. They hit every note perfectly, sounding just like the album but even better cuz it's live.

The obscure Pink Floyd song I've chosen is off their 90's album The Division Bell. In my opinion this is a much overlooked album, probably because it didn't feature Waters, just the other 3. This song is just so chill and one of those great long, chug-along guitar songs. Here it is:

Some thoughts...
- As I sit here the Heat are owning... fuck...
- Lot's of epic shit planned for the weekend. Should be a banger.
- Stoked on Euro cup and can't wait for the England/Italy game on Sunday. Should be a classic.

Led Zeppelin - Babe I'm Gonna Leave You

Led Zeppelin is the #3 band in the 'Fab Five' greatest bands of all time. Led Zeppelin is by far the hardest rocking of the 5 groups and they practically invented the hard rock genre, opening the door for metal as well.  The band took old blues songs and rocked the fuck outta them, making them true Led Zeppelin tracks. Once again a brilliant songwriting duo, that of singer Robert Plant and guitarist Jimmy Page, lead the way. But the  rhythm section of bassist John Paul Jones and wildman drummer John 'Bonzo' Bonham were the true driving force that gave Zep it's unreal sound. Just listen to the opening drums on "When The Levee Breaks" and literally feel the power. Also those drums have been sampled numerous times, by the likes of many hip-hop artists such as Run-DMC and the Beastie Boys. Led Zeppelin called it quits after Bonhams death in 1981, performing only a handful of times together since. The market and fans are sure there for a tour but Plant just isn't interested. I for one would be stoked if they did tour again. But another part of me just wants to see them leave it be, just like the Beatles did. 

"Babe I'm Gonna Leave You" is my favourite Zeppelin song ("Stairway To Heaven" is up there too, but c'mon, it's almost too EpiclyUnreal for this list). The guitar work by Page is amazing and when the band kicks into the chorus... HOLY FUCK! Talk about EPIC! Plant's wailing away while the other 3 are hammering away on their instruments. Truly incredible. And this was the second track off their 1st album! 

I'll always remember driving (fresh off my 'N', meaning that I could drive without adult supervision) with my buddy Justin over to our friend Oliver's house. We fucking blasted this song, cranked to the absolute max, and picked Oliver up while slowly driving, making him jump in. I have no clue what we did after that but I will always remember that crazy pickup to "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You".

The other Led Zeppelin song I've chosen is a more obscure one from their 3rd record, Led Zeppelin 3, called "Gallows Pole". It's just a sick acoustic driven foot stomper that builds and builds. Enjoy:

The Rolling Stones - Gimme Shelter

The #2 band on the 'Fab Five' list. The Rolling Stones fucking rule. Like the bad younger brother of the Beatles, the Stones have put out hit after hit after hit, trotted the globe, and inspired millions. They consist of the incredible songwriting duo of lead singer Mick Jagger and guitarist Keith Richards who, despite their constant bickering and squabbles have managed to compose some truly classic rock songs such as "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction", "Sympathy For The Devil', and "You Can't Always Get What You Want". The steady  driving force behind them of their elder jazz-trained drummer, Charlie Watts, has been brilliant (and grey-haired!) every step of the way. Founding bass player Bill Wyman and guitarist Brian Jones helped create the mean, bad boy image of the early Stones, while Mick Taylor defined some of their epic guitar songs of the 70's and Ronnie Wood continues in that tradition today. Fucking epic band!

I was lucky enough to see them when they came to Vancouver, playing BC Place in 2006. And wow did they ever rock. I've been to a lot of shows in my life but I genuinely don't think anything will ever top this one. The set was massive; giant TV screens, a huge blow-up tongue, and roaring flames. Mick Jagger had the energy and physical abilities of a 25 year old, never mind 65 year old, as he sprinted from end to end of the footbal-field (CFL-sized) width stage. They played for a solid hour and a half and it'd been so good. Tracks like "Midnight Rambler", "Jumpin' Jack Flash", "Streets Of Love", a trio of Keith Richards-led tunes, and an amazing duet with Bonnie Raitt on "Shine A Light" had me thinking this was the best show I'd ever seen. 

BUT they hadn't even really begun. During a super sexy "Miss You" (my buddy who I went with, Logan's, favourite song that he really wanted to hear) the band got close together in the middle of the front of the stage when all of the sudden it raised up and started rolling through the middle of the crowd. They got about three quarters out and then duh-na-na... duh-na-na, Na-na-na-na-nuh-nuh-na. They tore through the epic "Start Me Up" and the concert just hit another gear. From there they played "Honky Tonk Women", "Sympathy For The Devil" (such an awesome version), "Paint It Black", "Brown Sugar", "You Can't Always Get What You Want", and finally "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction". Talk about epic; literally their greatest hits... nay THE greatest hits of rock music. We were in the last row in the building but we couldn't give two fucks as we rocked out to living legends doing what they do best. 

"Gimme Shelter" is my favourite Stones song. From the insanely cool and unique guitar riff to Mick's powerful singing (and the back up singer as well) the song rocks from start to finish. Also the anti-war lyrics and political tone of the song made it an anthem for the Vietnam war era. 

The more obscure song that I chose from the Stones is "She Was Hot (Live)". This live version from the 2006 concert/documentary by Martin Scorsese is an absolute rocker. Keith kills it on this one and looks better than ever rocking in the video. The whole documentary is awesome as well and I recommend it for any Stones fan out there. Here it is:

Some thoughts...

- Choked about OKC's loss tonight. At least LeBron is playing well and he was quite the warrior tonight...

- #3 coming tomorrow... any guesses???

- Signed the petition to stop the Enbridge pipeline from being built across BC. This is so fucking stupid as it destroys the pristine beauty of BC while giving us very little in return as most profits go to Alberta and the oil goes to Asia. I encourage anyone who gives a shit to sign the petition. It take 1 minute folks and could have a massive impact on the Province's future. For more information visit http://www.bcndp.ca/enbridge

The Beatles - While My Guitar Gently Weeps

Ok so this week I'm gonna do what I have dubbed the 'Fab Five', that is the five greatest rock and roll bands of all time. Period. This is not solely my opinion but more along the lines of fact. These 5 bands have numerous hits, were/are incredibly influential, have stood the test of time, and would/do sell out massive venues virtually anywhere on the planet. I genuinely dare anyone to come up with a different band to be part of the fab five. I'll do my personal favourite by each band (a hit) and then a (somewhat) more obscure track from each.

The Beatles are without a doubt the greatest rock and roll band of all time. In the span of 8 years, the fab four released 12 classic albums, countless singles, had 29 Billboard #1 songs, took a year off to go to India, and changed the face of music forever. I really feel that I don't need much more explanation of how epic this band is. With the brilliant songwriting duo of John Lennon and Paul McCartney the band had its leaders and early lead vocalists. Throw in the quiet yet sensational lead guitarist and vocalist George Harrison who, though it took him longer, penned some of the band's best songs such as "something", "Here Comes The Sun", and this one, "While My Guitar Gently Weeps". And of course there's always Ringo Starr, keeping the steady beat and even singing on a few of the more fun tracks. 

"While My Guitar Gently Weeps" is my favourite Beatles song because of the beautiful chug-along piano backbeat combined with Eric Clapton's amazing guitar playing. George Harrison's voice is so pure and just real, as are his lyrics. It's one of those classics that I could listen to all day, every day.

"Hello, Goodbye" is the second Beatles song that I have chosen. Although it was a hit at the time I feel that it doesn't get the same respect or air play as certain other Beatles classics. The singing is magnificent and it's catchy as Hell. I also love this video. The comment the guy left about Lennon impersonating Elvis is dope. Here it is:

Casiokids - Fot I Hose

Epic European house music. It's Friday, get out there and dance ur ass off! These guys are a cool Norwegian band that I saw at Roskilde Festival in Denmark. That's about all I know about them...

Some thoughts...

- That was totally a foul on KD last night.

- Fuck yeah England. They dug deep when they needed a win and got an absolute beauty for the game winner.

- Prometheus is sick, go see it

- Gotta be cheering for Tiger now. I just wonder how many women are...

Observer Drift - Corridors

Awesome song. I honestly know very little about this band/guy... Just a great song that reminds me of the beautiful wilderness (trees, mountains, rivers, cabin in the woods, that type of shit). It also makes me want to go camping... something that I started to plan today for the Canada Day Long Weekend. 

Last year was quite a shit show lol. For starters, 5 of us crammed into my small SUV along with all the gear. We were the only vehicle to go up and had to get a good spot for everyone coming up the next day. It was sooo fucking crammed. We tetrised the shit out of the whole vehicle and let's just say I'm glad I drove. We made several stops to grab all our booze and drugs and were finally on the road at like 9pm and it was dark. We were planning to go to Stave Lake but only 1 guy in the car, Supnet, had ever been there before. He figured he knew the way so I printed off a very basic Google map. Turns out Supnet was on shrooms the last time he went up and really had no fucking clue. We got up to basically where the map showed us and started charging it up a gravel road up a hill. Supnet kept saying he thought he recognized certain things like turns and bridges etc. So we kept charging. Problem was we couldn't see any sign of a lake and just kept going up and up and up. We also had to keep stopping to put up signs showing which way to go as there was no cell reception. It's now past midnight and we're still charging. We saw a few random vehicles parked on the side which kept giving us hope that just around the corner would be the epic spot. 

Well that spot never came. Fuck. After a final road that was getting more rocky and tighter as it went along we collectively decided Fuck It and went back to the nearest clearing to make camp for the night. It's now after 1am and instantly Nate and Doug call dibs on passing out in the car, taking up all the room. This leaves me, Nick, and Supnet to set up the tent. I had brought what I thought was a tent... turns out it was only the fly lol. Luckily Nate had a little 2-man which would have to suffice. The 3 of us crammed into it, legs hanging out the door and everything. After a couple bowls we decided to hit the hay when suddenly Supnet jumps up, "Yo did you guys hear that?" Nick and I heard nothing. We all sat silently until we heard scuttling right behind the tent where our heads were. Oh Fuck! We are literally in the middle of nowhere on some fucking mountain supposedly near a lake. We sat still again... heard it again. Supnets like "fuck this shit, I'm out." I tried to reason with him "Dude where are you gonna go? The car is jam packed and you sure as hell ain't hiking outta here. We're safe here so stay put." All 3 of us are freaking the fuck out when I lean back and hear the same ruffling noise when I hit my water bottle. NO WAY!!! That was it the whole time?!??! The 3 of us are howling with laughter and sweet relief. I move the water bottle somewhere else and we try to get back to sleep. 

Then, no more than 5 minutes later, the same fucking noise! This time all 3 of us are freaking out and ready to split. Knowing we really can't go anywhere we draw straws to see who's gonna get out and see what the fuck it is. Nick pokes his head out, barely, and comes back in saying he saw nothing. No help there. At this point I would love to end this story with an epic twist... sadly all that happened was we tried to get back to sleep and only heard the noise once more before passing out. We rationalized that it couldn't have been a bear or anything big, but also nothing small like a squirrel. We figured it was something like a coyote or raccoon. Stupid, I know, but scary as fuck given the circumstances.

The lesson here is to print a better fucking Google map!

The rest of the weekend had some very eventful moments as well... more to come soon.

Rusted Root - Send Me On My Way

So yesterday I graduated from Simon Fraser University, "Send Me On My Way". I graduated from The Beedie School of Business with a marketing concentration and geography minor. After 5 quick years and countless classes at both the Burnaby and Surrey campuses I have to say that I really, truly enjoyed it. I took some really cool classes such as Integrated Marketing Communications (made me sign up for Twitter and we looked at epic ads all day!), Strategy, Geography of Tourism and Consumption, and Marketing Ethics. I took some classes that I absofuckinglutely hated and just scraped by (let's just say that the bell curve in the Beedie School of Business requires that a certain number of students have to get C-'s) such as Finance, Managerial Accounting, Managerial Economics, and Stats II: Data and Decisions. And some simple courses such as Geohazards, Natural Hazards (7 credits for basically the same fucking course lol) and anything in my first 2 years that may have seemed somewhat difficult back then but come on! Overall I really enjoyed it all; met tons of new people and several lifelong friends, got great use out of my U-PASS travelling to and fro the Burnaby campus all those times, got to sleep in whenever I took a class at the close as fuck Surrey campus and I never once did a group project that I didn't like the project or group or had difficulty with. I'm not sure if this a testament of my personality and ability to get along with others or just sheer luck. Probably a combination of the 2!

So now, with 5 years of educational experience at one of the finest schools in the country, SFU, you can "Send Me On My Way". This song by Rusted Root is one of my absolute favourites of all time. It's one of those songs that I can listen to all day every day. I first heard it in the movie Ice Age. It was in one of the best scenes in one of the greatest movies of all time. Sid the sloth is fucking dope okay.

Some thoughts...

- So I graduated... now what???

- GO OKC. Fuck yeah I was stoked when, after a last check saw the Heat up by 7, I looked to see OKC up by 9 in the last 2 mins!

- It's pretty cool to see all of these grad pics and posts! Congrats to anyone and everyone who graduated University/College this semester.

- Taking 5 years to finish school doesn't seem like I took too long at all, in fact it seems like the norm as virtually everyone I knew who graduated with me yesterday is the same age or older...

J. Cole - Home For The Holidays

Love this song. The horns that make up the beat are soo sick. J. Cole isn't one of my absolute faves or anything but he's definitely a solid rapper. This mixtape is probably his best and has some great tracks. "Only if I could be Lebron and go straight to league" - cool line. Just bob yo head to this.

Some thoughts...

- Fuck Ya Friday!

- Stoked on the Euro Championship. Day 1 featured a crushing by Russia (my Dark Horse pick btw) over the Czechs and an epic match between Poland and Greece that featured 2 red cards and a saved penalty shot.

Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros - Child

Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros are fucking epic. That word can truly be used to describe this 10-piece of hippie musicians from California. I first saw them perform their mega-hit "Home" on Letterman and instantly fell in love. Their first album, Up From Below, is as good a debut as they come. I could choose any song from that album and it would be EpiclyUnreal worthy. Here's that Network TV debut on Letterman, "Home":

Instead I chose to go with my favourite from their brand new second album, Here. "Child" is a much more chill song than this band is used to. It also features guitarist Christian Letts handling the lead vocals, a cool change from front man Alex Ebert. I highly recommend checking Here out, especially if you enjoyed Up From Below; you won't be disappointed. 

I also had the pleasure of seeing them live at the Commodore in 2010. They were fucking amazing! Probably the best show that I've seen there... tied with TVOTR and Elliott BROOD tho...

There is also a hilarious and ridiculous story that happened at the beginning of that night. I went with my 2 good friends, Nick and Jordan (together we dubbed ourselves the Three Musketeers, tho it should've been the Three Fuckedupateers!). Jordan picked us up in his VW Rabbit and, after a couple beers, we headed down 64th Avenue towards the freeway entrance to the 91. First off, Jordan has his 'N' which means he can only have 1 passenger, and has had a couple beers, which is not allowed with the 'N'. Nick and I each have a road beer, Nick is rolling joints in the front seat, and he has 2 caps in his pocket. We're fucking stoked! Concert Time! Jordan goes speeding around the blind corner onto the freeway entrance and BOOM, roadblock. Oh Fuck! Nick throws the weed to the ground and we both cover our beers. The cop comes up and asks Jordan where we're going and coming from. Jordan tells him we're heading to work and came from just up the way, Panorama area. The cop then proceeds to lecture Jordan about his excessive speed, pointing out all of the scratches and marks on the concrete shoulder. Jordan apologizes, says okay, sir. The cop nods back and sends us on our way. HOLY SHIT WHAT A DUMBASS!!! Aren't roadblocks designed to stop idiots like us! WOW!!! Well after that we felt fucking invincible and proceeded to have one of the best nights that one can ask for.Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Fucking Zeros!

Four Tops - Bernadette

A soul classic! Of all the motown/soul bands in the '60's, Four Tops are my favourite. Their harmonies are outta this world and lead vocalist Levi Stubbs took charge, bringing the song to incredible heights. Here is an amazing, haunting acapella version of another classic "Reach Out (I'll Be There)':

Some thoughts...

- Fuck Ya OKC!!!

- Glad the Kings lost, showed some regular human symptoms. Plus my prediction of 5 games is looking better :)

- Had a great game of golf today with the boys, logan and gram. Shot an 82, got my atleastone birdie, and made a few epic putts.

The White Stripes - Seven Nation Army

OK this is the last Sasquatch song that I'll be posting for a while... promise. I just could not leave out Jack White. The dude put on an insane show, playing his own new stuff, as well as tons of White Stripes, Dead Weather, and Raconteurs. Jack is touring right now with 2 different bands, 1 all male and the other all female. For this particular night at the gorge he went with the boys; probably needed the extra power on the massive stage. They rocked the fuck out, rarely taking a break or playing a slow song. It should be noted that I was incredibly fucked up while watching it and don't remember a ton but I know it was epic! Here's just a sample of that show, "Missing Pieces":

Seven Nation Army is simply one of the greatest songs of all time, period. That riff is absolutely iconic. If you hum/sing/play/yodel it in any form, everyone around you will instantly recognize it. Mr. White knew he'd already played a terrific set and just decided to take it up another 10 notches when he closed with it. Also the video is fucking awesome. So simple and so brilliant. 

Some thoughts...

- The NBA Playoffs have destroyed the NHL this year. I am riveted by the West and East finals and am officially super stoked that both OKC and Boston have won 3 in a row to take 3-2 series leads.

- Congrats and Fuck You to the LA Kings. An absolutely dominating performance (only 2 losses so far and they've only had 8 home games incl. upcoming game 4).

- It's a shame that my tax dollars will be put towards the room and board of that dipshit Magnotta. I say hang the fucking bastard and get rid of him!

Beck - The Golden Age

Another great performance from Sasquatch! Music Festival. Beck closed the final night with an awesome set that featured lots of stuff from Odelay, The Information, and 2002's masterpiece, Sea Change. I knew a lot from this album but honestly had not heard (or at least paid attention to) this particular song until he performed it that night. What an awesome performance it was! His voice sounded incredible as it rang through the gorge and over the crowds at Sasquatch. Here is quite a solid video of that performance:

Some thoughts...

- Finally washed and cleaned my car. Suzi is now void of all hippie window paintings!

- Bought an awesome suit, belt, and shoes today for grad. Plus I got a new summer jacket and it all came to $400, Bring on Convocation!

- Fuck the LA Kings... At least the 'nucks lost to the eventual cup champ.

- RIP Season 2 of Game of Thrones. What an epic finish to an incredible season. Dragon Power! 

- Well that means only a month or so 'til Breaking Bad!

The War On Drugs - Taking The Farm

The War On Drugs were the 3rd best act at Sasquatch. I've loved this band ever since my good friend Nick showed me them 2 years ago. They played a ferocious set on the side stage in the late afternoon. This song was one of the many they played and they killed it. I love the dudes voice and their overdubbed and chugging guitars. 

This is a picture I took from that day. The big black thing in the background is the large set of teeth used for Feed Me's set later that night. I love The War On Drugs so much that I simply have to add a second tune. Here's the very Springsteen-sounding "Baby Missiles" which they also played: 

Some thoughts...

- Happy National Donut Day everyone!

- I think I'm gonna get drunk tonight, here's to Fridays!

- These are my second and third TWOD songs I've posted... such a good band.