A Bittersweet Reunion

Way back in 1998 as a junior in high school I was in a little play called "Our Town" by Thorton Wilder. We had great times in those days. My best friend Andrew Beard and I were the troublemakers on the set, though we weren't too much trouble in the scope of things. We had our own scene together and since the scene only consisted of about 60 lines, most of our time was spent roaming the halls of River Hill high school talking for hours on end about the rising British music scene and our favorite bands. We were different from the other drama kids. We were pretentious and felt we had a sense of the world and art and music. We were... little wankers.

Though I was only a junior I was a complete Anglophile. I had returned from England the year before obsessed with all things British. Oasis were my favorite band in the world followed by Blur. Of course being an 11th grade kid in a rich, pompous school in the suburbs about 10 people knew who Blur even were, and any jock can tell you those who listened to Blur were "fucking faggots."

My assumption was that they had no clue as to what they were talking about and they could go back and listen to their Creed CDs. There was, however, one other band I was obsessed with and that was a little known band called 'The Verve.'

The Verve were led by Richard Ashcroft and just by looking at his heroin sunken face you knew he was for real. By 1997 The Verve had made their splash in the United States mainstream with their single 'Bittersweet Symphony.' By this point in the story you may be wondering what this has to do with the play 'Our Town?'

Well, one November night as the play rehearsals neared their end it was announced that The Verve would be playing at the 9:30 Club in DC. Drew and I were ecstatic and could not wait to drive down there and see our new favorite band. I had already seen Blur earlier in the summer and was well aware that Oasis would be arriving shortly. Instead, Mrs. Land our director decided to hold a second rehearsal that evening, leaving Drew and me shattered and heartbroken. "It's OK," Drew said. "They'll come back again."

Three weeks later the Verve split and Richard Ashcroft went on to make some of the shittiest solo records I have ever heard in my life.

Today it was announced that The Verve are in the studio, reunited and recording a brand new album followed by a tour in the fall. Those three weeks may have just turned into a measly 10 years, but hopefully it will be worth the wait.

Oh Billy, How Could You?

It was announced that the new Smashing Pumpkins will be releasing their new album 'Zeitgeist' with four different versions; one through iTunes, Best Buy, Target and one for independent record stores across the country. However, only fans that buy the album at Best Buy, Target or iTunes will receive the bonus tracks on the album, and you have to visit all of these outlets to get the four different versions.

Those of us that decide to buy the album at an independent store will not receive any of the bonus tracks. This might not seem like a big deal, but I really feel it is a slap in the face to all independent music stores in this country that try so hard to compete with the likes of Best Buy and Target. These stores don't even focus on music anyway. Best Buy's CD collection has depleted to a small section in the corner of the store. They only carry the latest of corporate cookie cutter crap and probably still have 200 copies on their shelf of Kid Rock's 'Cocky' album.

While Smashing Pumpkins may feel that they're going to extend themselves to a bigger audience they might just lose the fans that got them there by pulling a corporate stunt like this. I am curious as to what my independent music store employee friend will think of this move. He defends the Smashing Pumpkins like a Republican defends Bush. I'll pester him later today.

The Last Dance
It's the most remarkable sight I've ever seen. An 80-year-old man suffering from congestive heart failure singing Coldplay's "Fix You." When I heard that there was a video of a bunch of old folks singing Sonic Youth's "Schitzophrenia," of course I had to chuckle.

What I took as a joke actually turned out to be the most heartbreaking video I have ever watched. These people are from the Young At Heart choir. A group consisting of 23 people all aged 73-92.

It's not as funny as it might sound, because when you hear an 80-year-old sing a song like "Fix You," it transforms the entire meaning of the song. This man knows he only has a short time left on this earth and his voice will crumble you to weeping pieces.




To read more on the group visit wusa9.com.

Target Hit The Mark With New Tee Trend

An original Pink Floyd concert t-shirt from 1972 might cost upwards of $300 to $1,000 according to What Comes Around Goes Around retailer in New York City, but now Target stores are offering their own replica t-shirts for young hipsters from $9.99 to $12.99. Targets, for just over a year, have offered a plethora of vintage t-shirts to keep up with the growing trend started by other hip stores such as Urban Outfitters and Wolfgang's Vault.

Target offers t-shirts from Pink Floyd, Led Zepplin, Jimi Hendrix and The Beatles to help keep a young interest in these legendary bands.The vintage t-shirts are not only restricted to classic rock bands. Consumers can also find their favorite television heroes from the 1960s.

Target offers t-shirts with Mr. Rogers, the original Batman logo from the hit series starring Adam West, as well as Captain America and the Amazing Spiderman. “We are simply trying to provide our guest with the trends they want and when they want them, and at a better value that other retailers,” said Amy von Walter of Target Media Relations.

The tees offered are exact replicas of the originals, and are only available at Target stores. "The original Pink Floyd t-shirts are extremely rare and not many were made back then," said Christina Dennstedt PR coordinator for What Comes Around Goes Around.

What Comes Around Goes Around are the largest retailer for vintage t-shirts on the east coast. The store also teamed with author Johan Kugelberg and released the book "Vintage Rock T-Shirts" in February. "The book features images of some of the rarest t-shirts still around -- which were mainly donated from the WCAGA co-owners Gerard Maione and Seth Weisser's private collection," said Dennstedt. The book is available through Amazon.com or by visiting their site whatcomesaroundgoesaround.com .

Screaming Mimi's a vintage store in New York City sell concert tees anywhere from $125 to $150, "we price our t-shirts very modestly," said saleswoman Kirin Wachter.

Other chains such as Urban Outfitters have offered such replicated t-shirts but at an inflated price. On average their t-shirts can be found from $24 to $28. “We take inspiration from a variety of sources and are always on the hunt for the next big thing,” said von Walter.

Teens have already taken notice of the change in Target’s fashion line, “Target guests are known for being on-trend and fashion conscious, which is why we work extremely hard to provide the latest styles and fashions,” said von Walter.

Homosexuality To Be Taught In Public Schools
The Montgomery County School system in the state of Maryland has decided to add sexual orientation to its sex education curriculum for eighth and 10th graders. This has been met with both criticism and praise.

According to the Associated Press this includes homosexuality, gender identity and the correct use of a condom. Hopefully they're not still using cucumbers for this exhibition, because quite frankly the girls will only end up being disappointed.

This is a bold and necessary step toward helping students cope with an uncertain time in their lives. Sexual education is important to the welfare of our future society and helps progression into a healthier 21st century.

This is being met with criticism, obviously, on the homosexuality aspect. One protester went as far to say that "I think their agenda is to get students to accept this stuff as normal, and it's not."

In case this man was not aware, homosexuality has not been labeled as a mental disorder since the early 1970s, so why shouldn't homosexuality be taught in our school systems? These students have been ostracized and bullied long enough. It is time for a change and we are supposedly in a period of acceptance, tolerance, and progression.

The Sopranos: Where
Is The Disappointment?
For seven years I have listened to people rave about the show 'The Sopranos.' I do watch a bit of television, and I am a fan of the 'Godfather' movies, as well as almost everything Martin Scorcese has ever done; however, I have never watched a single episode of 'The Sopranos.' While most would call me a traitor to modern pop culture, I did not subscribe to HBO until well into the fifth season of the show, and just never bothered to get into it. HBO also like to sell their DVDs for $100 a pop, so I never thought to actually buy a complete season.

Frankly, I could care less that this legendary show ended in disappointment to most fans. All day long I have had to listen to people say, "Why? Why didn't they kill off Tony?? Why didn't he enter the witness protection program??" The show ended in a quick fade to black much like the end of "I Want You (She's So Heavy)," leaving viewers baffled and checking their cable boxes.

Even though I have never watched the show, the answer is simple. The American people, as much as they say they do, DON'T want to watch their hero die, and don't like everything wrapped up into a neat little package. We all like a resolution to life's stories, but there never is a resolution in any of our lives. People leave this earth as quickly and quietly as they entered, and why should this "realistic" mob show be any different. Tony Soprano will always look over his shoulder and wonder if death is right behind him.

I can only name a handful of shows that ever ended with "the perfect ending." Even Seinfeld was deemed a failure by the majority of the masses and the media (though I thought it was the only way to contribute all the characters into one episode).

People will always feel a sense of disappointment when it comes to the end of an era. I know that when the last episode of 'Lost' airs in 2009, I too will feel a sense of disappointment in its ending. That's what television is... Filled with disappointment.

Though 'The Sopranos' will never air again as a television series, there is still money to be made in the a blockbuster motion picture, which has been talked about for sometime.

I felt that this comment on CNN's blog summed it up nicely: "In my mind what happened next is that Tony Soprano woke up next to Suzanne Pleshette and found that the whole thing was the dream of their autistic son, Ted Baxter who turned out to be the only one who didn't get fired or whacked while the rest of the gang was sentensed under the Good Samaritan Law to a year in jail."

Are You Crying?? There's No Crying In Jail!!
Why, oh Why is Paris Hilton receiving so much press about her return to court? Damnit, you media outlets, I know very well it's a slow news day but all this is doing is diverting the attention away from President Bush.

Yea, she should never have been released, but I have never seen such an outrage from people who want to see the little princess behind bars. No matter what news site you go to: CNN, MSNBC, FNC (probably shouldn't go there), CBS, NBC, they are all talking about Paris returning to court. CNN even showed the car drive in L.A. with Hilton handcuffed in the backseat for a good 20 minutes. I haven't seen the likes of this media frenzy since the O.J. Simpson chase down a Los Angeles highway in 1994.

It literally makes me ill that the media care this much about a woman who is only famous because she videotaped herself in a poorly lit room. The best quote I have heard all day on this matter courtesy of TVNEWSER, was from MSNBC's Chris Jansing when he asked the Village Voice's Michael Musto: "You know everything there is to know about Paris Hilton. Does she have a medical condition?" "Yeah, she's crazy," he said.

There Are 175 Million Assholes In This Country

The Creation Museum in Petersburg, Kentucky has just opened and is already causing controversy not only here in the United States but across the globe. The museum conveys and attempts to support the theory that the earth was created in six days, and only 6,000 years ago.

The basis of the $27 million project denounces the theory of evolution, and is based on the book of Genesis, which will cause problems in school systems that teach evolution. In a short film on Current TV they explain that 60 percent of Americans believe in the creation theory. This is an astounding number of people who do not support what science tells them, and in turn could cause damage to scientists all over the world who study and research the beginnings of our existence.

I wish I could believe that the earth was created in six days, but my brain cannot even wrap around such a concept. I cannot be so self-righteous to believe that we are the most important beings not only on this planet but the universe itself.

IT WAS FORTY YEARS AGO TODAY

It was actually 40 years ago today that the Beatles released their monumental album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, and though I would not be born for 14 years after its release I can assure you that it's still as good as the first time I would have heard it.

I am not going to bore you with a note by note reference guide as to what and why this piece of music is so brilliant; or even how it has influenced the music of that generation, or even my generation. We all know it has. It's kind of strange to talk about an album that was released so long before I was born; so as I write this I think to myself, what does this album mean to me?

Well it does not sum up the summer of 1967 for me, but rather my entire childhood of listening to the Beatles and watching "The Beagles" at the local Chuck-E-Cheese's in 1983-85. When I was around the age of two I was enamored, along with every other child my age, by the prospect of spending the day at the wonderland that was Chuck-E-Cheese's. Except I was not interested in the rides or the balls, or ski ball (which I did enjoy), but rather with a fictional group called "The Beagles."

"The Beagles" were a set of four animatronic dogs that fascinated me with their music, Liverpudlian-humor, and robotic movement, which happened to resemble another group I was becoming familiar with called "The Beatles." My favorite song by "The Beagles" was a little obscure tune called "Lovely Rita," which just so happened to appear on the aforementioned album.

Though I would eventually grow up, and no longer see my favorite band anymore, I began my lifelong relationship with the band that inspired them. The Beatles are forever my favorite band, and I will listen to this album and every album the created in their brilliant seven years as the greatest rock 'n' roll band of all-time.

Whenever I think of "Sgt. Pepper" I think of this moment in my childhood. Of course, I have so many memories with this particular album, and all of "The Beagles" catalogue, but "Lovely Rita" will always be my absolute cherished memory.