I left my house keys in the lock over night…’cause, y’know, I wanted to see if I could trust my neighbours.
I’m happy to say I can.
I guess we just live in a nice neighbourhood…either that or the crooks are incredibly congenial -- Didn’t let the cats out; left the keys where they found them…didn’t steal anything…
“What a stupid thing to do”, you may say, but I look at it as symbol of my approachability. I mean, if I’m going to leave the keys for anyone to enjoy my house, then a casual conversation on the street is a breeze. That being said, it’s not an invite to steal my wallet…a mugging and a friendly convo are two separate encounters; I only welcome one of them.
Well, two days after Fred Rock, there is a lot of thank you’s being thrown around. From the Organizers to the volunteers; everyone did such a superb job making sure the weekend went well that thank-yous are definitely earned. But I have to say, I was especially proud of the crowd at the Loyalist Rugby Club this weekend!
The crowd was incredibly responsive, and that made my job as MC that much easier. Every time I asked for them, the cheers got louder and louder. I could feel the excitement and anticipation as each band performed and it got closer and closer to the headliner.
Our Lady Peace had not played the city since their Clumsy tour in 1997. I’m sure they now have a reason to come back more often. Backstage, each member had raves for the crowd with regard to how fun it was to perform in front of you, and for that, as a crowd member, you deserve a “thank you.”
Plus, when you cheer while I’m out there, I feel like the rock-star, so…thanks for the ego boost. :P
So, Fred Rock got off to a blistering start with Thornley at the Delta. The set-list was half Big Wreck, which didn’t disappoint...at least not me.The other bands had their moments to shine as well.
Craig Mercer & the Will Be Gones started the night with a slow - and I mean slow- one and I don’t know that the crowd ever really got into it the way they’d intended. Overall, I thought they sounded good, but that may have been lost on the crowd looking for a party. (By the way, did anyone else think the bass player looked like Snake from Degrassi? Just sayin’)
Brad Cain (from Fredericton) took the stage and began a set of all new material. It had a Tool/A Perfect Circle like vibe, which I thoroughly enjoyed. He has a new album in the works, by the way.
Saturday at the Rugby Field started off with a great set by local heroes Sleepy Driver. They’re also working on a new album and played about 4 new ones for the concert goers that showed up early. (Which I recommend every time...there’s so much talent that gets missed because people will wait til later to go…but that’s a rant for another time.)
KO hit the stage next with his brand of stoner-hip-hop-folk-rock…I guess that’s how I’d describe it. The crowd seemed to be into him, but he wasn’t really my thing. After that, CapeBreton’s Slowcoasterproved why they’re one of the premier jam-bands in the Maritimes. I can’t say enough good things about them.
After Slowcoaster, the wild-card of the festival hit the stage…
I remember when I first heard that Marcy Playground was on the bill, and I thought to myself: “where have they been?” They got two songs in before I heard the lead singer (John Wozniak) say “we’ll get there, don’t worry.” I thought waiting through two songs before requesting Sex & Candy showed incredible restraint amongst the crowd. -- I spent a good chunk of their set waiting to get some food (it was supper time, after all…and I was starving) but they sounded good to me. And yes, they played the song.
By the time I got on stage to introduce Hot Hot Heat, the crowd was growing, and the drinking side was getting their drink on big time. The heat was a great motivator.
I’d heard a lot of good things about HHH but never had the chance to see them perform before Saturday. They certainly upped the ante with regard to expectations. A superb live band, complete with energy & a loud sound, they hooked the crowd big time, and for me, was one of the stand-out performers early on.
As Hot Hot Heat left the stage, I got up to help Nick (Fred Rock Co-organizer) get a “Fred Rock” chant for the video. The crowd was impressively loud and super responsive; the dry side (which was slightly smaller) gave the drinking crew a run for their money with their enthusiasm. After the chant, everyone was awaiting Girl Talk.
Girl Talk was one of the most talked about acts of Fred Rock, because no-one really knew what to expect. He’s made appearances at some of the biggest music festivals in North America and has garnered rave reviews. There were beats, remixes, stage dancers and toilet paper…one of the most visually interesting performances of the weekend. The crowd on stage dancing really made it what it was; a great party before OLP took over.
It took the crew some time to clean up the mess that Girl Talk made of the stage (toilet paper, confetti and, thanks to Hot Hot Heat, vegetables..) so that only provided more time for anticipation, as everyone knew what was coming.
Once Our Lady Peace hit the stage, there was no denying who the majority of the crowd paid the ticket price to see. The band ripped into the most energetic song on Burn Burn (Monkey Brains) to open the show, and from there played hit after hit after hit; garnering many a sing-a-long. OLP played with energy and sounded good while doing so. The light show only enhanced the experience. By the time the band walked off stage, a good time was indeed had by all.
Thanks to everyone that was a part of it, from organizers, to volunteers, to patrons…it was a blast, at least from my perspective.
Inception is the rare blockbuster that provides you with huge action scenes, explosions, car chases and good looking stars, all the while demanding your full attention. As the viewer, your eyes focus on the stunning visuals, while your mind gets destroyed by the complexity of the story. A MichaelBay movie, this is not.
Set in a somewhat futuristic present day world, Inception stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Dom Cobb, a professional thief who specializes in stealing from people’s dreams. He takes on one last job with his team (Joseph Gordon Levitt, Tom Hardy plus new recruit Ellen Page) from a Japanese business man (Ken Watanabe) who promises to erase his vague legal issues, which will allow Cobb to reunite with his two children, who are back home in the States.
To explain any further only gives things away. I can tell you, though, that this “one last job” is not to steal an idea form the “mark” (played by Cillian Murphy), but to implant one; a feat which is said to be impossible. At the very least, “inception” involves a considerable amount of risk, and hence, a thriller is born.
Christopher Nolan has proven his worth to me more times than one. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed all of his films, (even Insomnia, which isn't as highly regarded) and his screen-writing abilities only further intrigue me. (How does a mind like his exist?) A common theme among his films is jumping back and forth between time frames within the film, creating an intricate puzzle that can leave the viewer confused, yet wholly satisfied by film’s end.
As someone who commonly remembers his dreams, I was blown away with how detailed and intricate the script was in dealing with the human subconscious. I’ve picked apart my own dreams to figure out what certain themes may represent, or how seemingly random moments and people from your life can just pop-up within these - as I like to put it - “movies of the mind.” With Inception, Nolan incorporates all of these ideas, and explains them in a way that is existential, yes, but without the common art-house pretentiousness. After all, this is a heist film at its core; and what is a summer blockbuster without action?
The film is shot beautifully, with, most importantly for this film fan, limited CGI. The zero gravity fight scene, which rivals anything from the Matrix, was done with a rotating set & cable work. This method allows the viewer to believe the unbelievable aspects of this world, because it doesn’t look like it was done with a computer.
At 2 ½ hours, the film didn’t feel long to me. In fact, it moved along at pretty slick pace, which was heightened by the fantastic score which underlined the entire film. I sensed both the urgency and the excitement that was being presented, and I was completely hooked form the beginning. As I mentioned before, my eyes were locked on the visuals, while my mind was being blown apart. A movie that does that is worth viewing again…and in this case, you’ll probably have to just to fully-grasp its complexity.
5 Dented Bumpers*
*Crash’s Film Rating Legend:
5 DB’s -- Freaking Fantastic! (a rating that’s not easily attained.)
4–4.5 DB’s -- Great: It’s worth seeing again/owning.
3–3.5 DB’s -- Decent – Good (I’d watch it again on cable)
2–2.5 DB’s -- Meh; (possibly had potential, but I won’t watch it again)
1DB -- Awful; I want my money back.
Anything less is not even worth downloading illegally
I love when callers are excited to win tickets...Like Mike was to get Fred Rock tickets this morning. Only problem: he didn't actually get the trivia answer correct, lol....I gave the tickets to him...eventually. Check out the audio below.
The Foxis the Official Radio Station of Fred Rock Go here to learn more.
So, I struck out in slow pitch… twice… in my first game.
It was this utter humiliation that drove me to avoid playing on my new team for 5 weeks. (Not true…but it's much sadder this way) Either way, this past Sunday I made my return to The Slammers <- my Sunday's only beer-league-type slow pitch team. The heat was on. (No really; it was in the 30's…and humid.)
Seeing as how, for various reasons including a couple rain postponements and my own wedding, I hadn't played with the team since that fateful first outing, I'm dead-last in the batting order. The pressure to actually get on base was outstanding, and I had lots of time to agonize over my first at-bat.
The first pitch is thrown. I count: one...two... swing on three.
Whiff!
It was a swing and a miss, followed by laughter from our dugout; followed by cursing under my breath.
The 2nd Pitch
Contact is made (though barely). The ball grounds to the short-stop who decided to throw to third for the out rather than catch me at first. I was on base…fielder's choice, yes, but I was on base. Mission Accomplished. My stats still sucked, but beefing those up from the comedic Zero was never the goal of the day…a pipe dream, perhaps, but never a goal.
My next at bat was similar to the first, except this time the fielder elected to throw to first for the out. (I won't be focusing on my defensive play; The day wasn't about that. Although I did get an assist, we don't keep track of defensive stats, so…why try so hard?)
For my final at-bat of the game I stepped to the plate, amidst tremendous scrutiny and jeering from my teammates (If you know me at all, you know I dish it out as well as the best of them). The pitch is thrown.
Contact is made. I drive it deep into left field. So deep, in fact, that it sails over the netting designed to keep balls in the park. That's right, reader; I nailed one out of the park. My team was in shock from awe. I felt fantastic; it was the best contact a bat I'd swung had ever made with a softball.
It was foul.
So, while my story loses its impressiveness at this point, I have a reason to look forward to next weekend and a new goal to work toward: making it to second base.
After two failed attempts, I was finally able to make my interview with Steve Mazur of Our Lady Peace happen. We talked for about 15 minutes. This is what made the air:
