The Dave Blog

Asia At Club Nokia

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 22:52:00 +0000

This past Friday night I was able to see a band I never got a chance to see when I was a kid. Years ago on their second tour Asia had a live special on MTV called Asia in Asia. This was broadcast live from Japan and occurred the day before my 11th birthday. Here is a clip from that show that I stayed up until the wee hours of the night to see. They later broke up and went through numerous line up changes.
Some 27 years later I was finally able to see the original line up live at Club Nokia. Strangely I had a number of friends independently at this show as well. So we had a good little group at the show with Natasha, myself, Brian and Jay (from my apartment), and another couple of friends of ours Liz and Steve.

The stage was minimal with only the instruments and a small video screen above the drums. The only thing the video was used for was to show the album cover for the song they were playing.

This was a surprisingly enjoyable show with a great vocal performance from John Wetton, an expectedly good drum solo from Carl Palmer and of course some great acoustic solos from Steve Howe of Yes fame.

For a low key show in a small venue this is probably one of the best theater shows I've been to in years. Great music, a great environment and a crowd that really showed respect for the music, which isn't something you see much as shows these days.

Asia
Club Nokia
Los Angeles, CA
August 27, 2010

I Believe
Only Time Will Tell
Holy War
Never Again
Through My Veins
Don't Cry (Geoff Downes & John Wetton)
Steve Howe Solo (2 songs)
The Smile Has Left Your Eyes (Geoff and John, ended with full band)
Open Your Eyes

Intermission

Go
Time Again
An Extraordinary Life
End Of The World
The Heat Goes On (w/ Carl Palmer drum solo)
Sole Survivor

Encore
Days Like These
Heat Of The Moment

Old is new again

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 07:28:00 +0000

Well after having my car for nearly 7 years I decided it was time to get a new car. I wasn'tplanning on doing this right now, but after too many repairs this year, tires, alternator, belts, and then warning signs for a new clutch I decided to do what my Mom always did. When a car starts to break down, don't fix it, just trade it in for a new one. :-)

Here is one of the last pics of my old car and a couple of pics of the new one. Yes, it is basically a new version of my old one. Upgrading from a 2003 530i to a 2011 528i.I didn't think the drive and experience would be so drastic. My previous car was very nice and I had no complaints about the car it self. But this new car drives has both an amazing ride, and is decked out with outrageous technology. Starting with the navigation, smartphone, blue-tooth, and it even has a hard drive for time-shifting radio and for ripping CDs to your car. Some of these things I didn't even know they were doing.

The first road trip will be to Las Vegas in October. Can't wait.

Here is a link of the car I picked up today, down to the exact colors and options..

http://www.bmwusa.com/Standard/Content/BYO/SharedBuild.aspx?ConfigurationId=599325

The Rush Vacation before I turned into the Working Man...

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 04:52:00 +0000

After 6 weeks of vacation I head back to work tomorrow. I'll be joining Gogii, a start up that currently builds a free texting application for smart phones call textPlus. I'll be their VP of Engineering and will be working to both improve their current product line and expand their portfolio of products and services. So on my last week off I had planned a little vacation and was able to see Rush twice on their Time Machine tour. First in Los Angeles and then at the world famous Red Rocks Amphitheater in Denver Colorado.

I went to the first show with my friend Brian

from Helio/Virgin/Sprint and who is also a resident of the lovely Mansfield Estates. I had just joined the House Of Blues Foundation Room so Brian and I were able to get access to the VIP area at the Los Angeles show. I had great seats and towards the end of the show I caught one of the shirts Geddy Lee threw into

the audience. The shirt featured Geddy on front dressed as the character from Gershon's that was the movie featured pre-show and during the intermission.

On Thursday I flew out to Denver to meet up

with Brett. I stayed at his place my first couple of nights and we took in a lot of mountain driving. First on the back roads to Manitou Springs and then after a couple of hours of driving our destination was rewarded with an old school video game arcade straight out of the 1980s. We played Tron, Asteroids, Joust, Galaga, Q-Bert, Donkey Kong, Donkey Kong Jr., Pole Position and maybe even a few others. We got the high scores on nearly every game we played with Brett taking the #1 spot on some and me #1 on others. EED and DAV lived on.

After a late night dinner with Brett and his wife Sandy, we headed back to Brett's for some late

night gaming on the Xbox 360. Friday Brett and I headed to Rocky Mountain National park. I had done this a few years back with the family when we there for Brett's wedding, but this was one thing I wanted to do again. We spent most of the day driving through the mountains and saw some Elk and Moose along the way. Took some great pictures and at the peak we were over 2 miles above sea level close to 13,000 feet.

Friday night concluded with another dinner and more Xbox gaming. We had a great time and although he turned 40 the following Monday I felt like I was able to be a part of his 40th birthday celebrations. Brett and Sandy were off to a family vacation on Saturday so I was dropped back off at the airport to meet up with Terry and Geoff, Terry's other brother in law.

Once we met up we headed to Matt's, a friend of Geoff's and had lunch at Cherry Cricket, as featured on Man Vs. Food, and then we took in a Colorado Rockies game at Coors Field with a pre-game event at Lodo's for a Texas Exes meet up. A little pre-game drinking with UT alumni.

We had a great time at the game even though the Rockies ended up losing. The game went into the 10th inning but at the end of the day the Milwaukee Brewers came out ahead.

On Sunday we took in brunch at a place called The Buff Restaurant in Boulder. We took in a tour of the Coors Brewery, saw the grave of Buffalo Bill and had dinner at another little place in Boulder.

That night Terry, Geoff and I got a hotel and did some late night drinking at Buffalo Wild Wings and topped the night off with some Coors (Yellow Belly) and Coors Light (Silver Bullet) back at the hotel. Listening to music, telling stories, and acting a lot like we did when we all lived in Austin when we were in college.

Monday was the primary reason for being in Denver. The Rush show at Red Rocks. After sleeping in we are started our day once again at the Buff Restaurant in Boulder. Afterwards we headed up to the Estes Brewery in Estes Park and took an air tram to the top of the hill above Estes Park. After a couple of hours of sight seeing we were off to see Rush.

Once at Red Rocks we walked around the park grounds and were able to hear Rush's soundcheck which featured the songs Presto, and Faithless. We met a number of people from out of town including a couple from Texas. A little rain shower and then a beautiful but faint rainbow emerged. And all of this happened about 30 minutes before the doors to the venue opened.

Once we got inside we all just took it in. The Rush show is always a great spectacle with great music and on this tour they were playing their best selling album, Moving Pictures, in its entirety. The Red Rocks show had some technical difficulties with the into movie and it seemed the high altitude might have given the band a couple of challenges during the set. A few missed cues here and there, which is odd for a Rush show, but nevertheless a great show and if you ever get a chance to goto Red Rocks then do so. A visually stunning venue.

Rush played the same set in both Los Angeles and Denver.

Rush

Setlist

The Spirit Of Radio

Time Stands Still

Presto

Stick It Out

Workin' Them Angels

Leave That Thing Alone

Faithless

BU2B

Freewill

Marathon

Subdivisions

Intermission

Tom Sawyer

Red Barchetta

YYZ

Limelight

The Camera Eye

Witch Hunt

Vital Signs

Caravan

Drum Solo

Guitar Solo -> Closer To The Heart

2112 / Temples Of Syrinx

Far Cry

Encore

La Villa Strangiato

Working Man

Tuesday morning Terry, Geoff and I all headed to the airport said our goodbyes. A great way to finish out my stretch of time off, and now after a great week of escape its back to reality.

Rush closed their show with a song called Working Man. So as I start my new job on Wednesday and it's time to "Call Me The Working Man".

I took quite a few pictures so here are links to the different photo albums from the trip.

Manitou Springs / Rocky Mountain National park

Denver Weekend

Estes Park

Rush at Red Rocks 2010

Kings Of Leon - Hollywood Bowl

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 06:35:00 +0000

First off Happy Birthday to my sister, Lisa! It is number 30-something for her, but who's counting :-)

Tonight I took Natasha to a sold out performance by Kings Of Leon at the Hollywood Bowl. You really can't beat the great Southern California weather. I live close enough to the Bowl so we didn't have to drive or deal with parking and the weather was between 60-70 degrees the entire night. We left around 7pm and got home around 11:30 and spent the entire evening outside.

The walk takes about 20 minutes and we were inside and seated towards the tail end of one of the opening acts, Built To Spill. Another band, Futures, played before but we missed their set.

It's hard to believe I saw Kings Of Leon play the first show of the day in a tent years ago at Bonnaroo and now they are headlining and selling out the world famous Hollywood Bowl. They played 4 new songs tonight and surprisingly they went over well for being unfamiliar material for the audience.

Highlights for me included The Bucket, Use Somebody and the new songs Immortals and Southbound. And the surprise of the night they saved until the very end. Pyro!!!

Kings Of Leon
July 12, 2010
Hollywood Bowl
Hollywood, California

Crawl
Taper Jean Girl
My Party
Be Somebody
Immortals
Molly's Chambers
Fans
Milk
Closer
Mary
Four Kicks
The Bucket
Radioactive
Sex On Fire
Notion
On Call
Southbound
Trani

Encore
Knocked Up
Manhattan
Use Somebody
Black Thumbnail

A mini Vacation

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Sun, 11 Jul 2010 00:28:00 +0000

A couple of weeks back my friend Ron hit me up and asked if I'd be willing to meet him in Las Vegas the last weekend of June. Let's call this required minimal arm twisting considering I was wrapping up my job at Virgin/Sprint and I'm always looking for an excuse to head to Vegas. I drove out Friday June 25th and we met up that afternoon at the Palms. Since I had stayed at the Palms the last couple of times in Vegas I was able to get our room comp'd for the entire weekend.

After a few drinks in the room we headed down to the pool and then out for some dinner at SW (see my last Vegas post) and some late night gambling. Nothing too crazy and it was great to catch up since we hadn't just been able to hang out as two guys in many years.

Saturday we took in some more drinks, some more time at the pool and then was able to see a special concert at the Paris hotel with Cheap Trick presenting The Beatles Sgt. Pepper in it's entirety. The show featured a small backing symphony, background singers, an Indian Ensemble (for Within You Without You) and of course Cheap Trick.

The set started with I Am The Walrus, ran through all of Sgt. Pepper, Cheap Trick were able to play a mini greatest hits set and closed with some additional Beatles songs. We got tickets last minute and due to some extra seats in the front section the ushers upgraded our seats so the front section would be filled.

And the remainder of Saturday was left for more gambling.

Sunday ended up being the highlight of the trip. After a late night of gambling the night before we were eating breakfast and Ron suggested instead of hanging at the Casino all day we venture out to the Grand Canyon. The drive is a little over two hours and takes you over the Hoover Dam. However the directions failed to mention that the last 13 miles of the road is dirt up to the top of the West Side of the Grand Canyon. My car made it, but definitely was making some strange sounds on our way back.

I had never been to the Grand Canyon so this was quite a treat. The journey was also a bit touching because the day before my grandfather died he told me about the Grand Canyon and how amazing it was. He was actually driving out to the Grand Canyon when he died.

We went to Grand Canyon West and did the Sky Walk. This is a horseshoe walk way that goes out over the Canyon so you can get a birds eye view into the Canyon through the see through floor. A great time and definitely an unforgettable memory. They wouldn't let us take pictures on the Sky Walk but they had their own photographer and here are a couple of those photos.

Sunday night ended with more gambling and almost got ugly for me. Let's just say I had put my very list chip on to the table for the night and ended up rallying for five hours to break even on my trip. I wrapped up around 3am and by the time I left the Casino, I had a VIP card and also the business card of a Casino Host. I guess they want their money back next time I come. :-)

We both headed out early Monday morning, Ron a little earlier than me, and after a little get away I was back home by 2pm on Monday. Considering the close proximity to Los Angeles it was nice to have a spontaneous getaway with a good friend that resulted in a trip neither of us will ever forget. Good times!

On Gene Simmons Family Jewels

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Mon, 03 May 2010 21:26:00 +0000

This past February I went to a CD release party for Bruce Kulick, the former guitarist from KISS. At the performance Nick Simmons, son of Gene Simmons, got on stage and sang one song (twice actually). Gene Simmons' Family Jewels production was there to document the occasion and yours truly was front and center for the performance.

I just found out that A&E aired the episode last night. I found the episode online and watched the episode and there is a shot of me in full KISS Army glory :-)

Here is a picture I took of Bruce and Nick from the show , and below is a picture they took of me!

The show ended up being a great surprise and one of those things that you only get living out here in Hollywood. They played a couple of songs off of Bruce's new CD, and also played one KISS song from each album where Bruce played guitar.

Bruce Kulick
The Cat Club
February 1, 2010

Come Hell Or High Water (KISS)
Hide Your Heart (KISS)
Tears Are Falling (KISS)
Heart Of Chrome (KISS)
Hand Of The King (w/ Nick Simmons)
Hand Of The King (again w/ Nick Simmons. They played twice so they had enough video footage for the TV show)
No Friend Of Mine
I Walk Alone (KISS)
God Gave Rock And Roll To You II (KISS)

You can watch the full episode here.

http://www.aetv.com/gene-simmons-family-jewels/video/?bcpid=58345455001&bclid=82355205001&bctid=82331971001

A little Vegas and staying busy in LA

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 05:38:00 +0000

I just got back into town from a mini-vacation in Las Vegas. The primary occasion was just a little get away along with a concert with a friend. I stayed at Palms Place, the same place I stayed at when I saw KISS in November. The concert I saw was Muse and Silversun Pickups at Mandalay Bay on Saturday.

Drove up Friday, gambled Saturday and Sunday and had one of the best steak dinners ever at SW Steak House in the Wynn hotel Sunday night. Check out the picture of the Funnel Cake dessert. Amazing!

After dinner I went to a couple of clubs, first the Ghostbar which is on the roof of one of the Palm's Towers. Their gimmick is they have a see through floor where you can look straight down 50+ floors. It was super windy so I didn't stay too long. After the Ghostbar I headed over to the Playboy club near the top of the other Palm's Tower. Great drinks, great bar and lots of Playboy logos along with waitresses in the classic bunny outfits.

I just got back to LA Monday evening. And this week is another full week. First I have band rehearsal with Spidersuit tomorrow night in preparation for our show at the Joint in Los Angeles on Thursday night. Wednesday night I'm seeing Them Crooked Vultures.

And then on Friday Terry is flying into town and we are headed to Coachella for a 3 day music festival.

My first letter to my Senator

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Mon, 05 Apr 2010 00:03:00 +0000

I'm in the process of cleaning out things and came across the first letter I wrote to my US Senator, Barbara Boxer, here in California. And I'm sure my Mom will be proud of me once she knows what it was for :-)

Was it for Health Care? No...
Was it for Educational Funding? No...
Was it to get Ah-Nold out of the role of Governator? No...
Was it for Gay rights? No...
Was it for the Legalization of Pot? No...

So what was it for?

It was for funding of the Arecibo Observatory to support the efforts of S.E.T.I. Search For Extra Terrestrial Intelligence. Here is a link to the PDF of the response I received back in October 2008.

Spidersuit Gig

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 08:37:00 +0000

Looks like Spidersuit returns with a gig at The Joint in Los Angeles on Thursday April 15th at 9:00pm. This will be my first show in 2010 and I'm looking forward to having some of my new friends see me perform. More details will be posted as I get them.

Ok. It took me three updates to this entry but we finalized the date and time for the show.

Things are getting busy

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 21:59:00 +0000

Here we are in February and the year is starting to get busy. First off between January and the first part of February I've been to numerous birthday parties. I'm discovering that is the thing single people do out in LA. Lots of dive bars, karaoke, dinners, and overall good times.

After the slowness of the holidays I'm excited that concerts of bands I like are starting to get back into swing. I was able to see Bruce Kulick, former guitarist from KISS, a couple of weeks back do a CD release party. He played one song off each KISS album he was on as well as a few of the tracks from his new CD. Gene Simmons' Family Jewels was also taping the event so maybe I'll be on an episode of Family Jewels in the near future.

On Wednesday I'll be seeing one of my favorite artists Bob Schneider out of Austin, Texas and I have a few more shows lining up over the next few weeks. Since my bands aren't playing I guess it's time for me to go see other bands play.

Having some down time on the home front I've decided its time to explore LA. There is so much to do out here and I'm looking forward to exploring. This past weekend I did brunch in the Hollywood Farmer's Market and this next weekend I think I might be going hiking in Runyon Canyon with some friends. The best part of all of this is so much of it is within walking distance of my apartment. I'm really enjoying the Hollywood location.

On the work front they are also keeping me busy. I've been on the road the majority of the year bouncing back and forth between LA, Warren New Jersey, and Overland Park Kansas. I was snowed in by a small scale blizzard in Warren last week and although snow is pretty, I'm finding there is no need to live anywhere other than the perfect weather of Southern California. My work travel schedule will be in full swing for another month or two and then I think by April things should return to a slower pace.

That's it for now.

What's new?

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 06:12:00 +0000

Travel! It's been a crazy few weeks and I think the travel is going to be fairly intense for me for the next few months. Virgin Mobile was acquired by Sprint right before the holidays and I find myself in the middle of the planning for the transition. This is the fourth work week of the year and my third on the road. I'm actually writing this from the lovely Overland Park, KS Marriott hotel.

With that said I'm learning how to adapt to both my new single life and new work life. One of my best friends lives in Kansas (Sprint's HQ) so I get to see her and her family most of my trips out to Sprint. And late last year I made a few new friends when I stayed the weekend in NYC (near Virgin's HQ) and I've been able to meet up with them the last time I made it there.

Some fun things I've done recently included seeing Pee Wee Herman at the new Club Nokia in downtown Los Angeles. I was invited last minute by my friend Brian on his birthday. We went with a couple of other friends and had a great time. For those in Los Angeles I highly recommend the show. I was not a fan growing up and was surprised by how well done and entertaining the show was. We even got to stick around for a Q&A that lasted nearly an hour. We saw the last of his warm up shows before he had all the press come out for his big return to the spotlight.

Something I've found myself doing that has surprised me is I'm reading books again. The last time I remember regularly reading was back in elementary and middle school. I've gone through a couple of books in the past month and a few weeks ago when I was out with a friend at the mall I actually found myself buying more books to read.

In February I hope to be home just a little bit more so I can catch some live music and hang out with friends. One of my favorite artists from Austin, Bob Schneider, is playing the intimate Troubadour, and I think I'll be going to the 5th Annual WesFest at the end of February.

Oh and I shaved :-) For those on Facebook I think a couple of pictures have been posted. Now I just need a haircut... Haha.

Till next time...

Happy New Year

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 01:25:00 +0000

Happy New Year Everybody!

Just a warning up front. This isn't one of my typical posts and is probably more for me than you, but I wanted to put this out there. You've been warned.

For those that don't know this has been one of the most challenging years of my life. I lost one of my best friends to suicide, I lost my mother in law, and over the course of the year Jacki and I filed for divorce. At the same time I had one of my most accomplished years. I had a great year at work, was recognized by my company and sent to London to have dinner with Sir Richard Branson, I was able to record drums for a new CD (coming in 2010, hopefully), I played a sold out show on the legendary Sunset Strip at one of my favorite venues, and I was able to see my daughter graduate from high school and begin her journey towards becoming an adult.

As you've noticed I haven't written much this past 6 months. It's been a time of reflection, a time of solitude, and now a time to look forward. In a strange way I feel like I'm in the process of discovering or redicsovering who I am. And I must say I've been a bit surprised to find that I actually like myself quite a bit.

I've made lots of new friends in LA recently. I had one of my best birthdays ever earlier this month, I was able to follow my favorite band KISS on the road for nearly 2 weeks, and I find myself enjoying and getting more out of life than I have in years. I've also had more lasting memories in the past few weeks than I've had in years. And one of the most important things to me is I've been able to see so many of my best friends in the last month. Who knew I'd get to go to Colorado, Kansas, and Texas, and even reconnect with my friends out here in LA that I don't see enough. And all in a period of a few weeks. You all know who you are :-)

Today is bittersweet. It was supposed to be a day of celebration, a day when Jacki and I would look back on a milestone of 10 years together. Instead this first decade of the 2000's symbolically bookends our marriage starting with Dec 31, 1999 and virtually ending on Dec 31, 2009, and now the next phase of my journey begins.

I will look back on 2009 as a year of finality, too many endings, and too much death. Instead of an ending I see it as a close to a chapter. I definitely feel as I'm in transition and I hope 2010 will be the year that brings an end to the transition and a start of many new beginnings.

I'm now headed off with friends to ring in the new year. Good bye 2009, and I hope that 2010 brings everything you are looking for. I know it will be one of my best years ever!

You Wanted The Best... You Got The Best...

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 06:54:00 +0000

The Hottest Band In The World... KISS.

So for friends and family that are close many of you know I've had a hell of a year. As a bit of relief I'm going to be going to see my favorite band perform not once, not twice, but five times over the next eleven days.

Tuesday night I'll get to see KISS in Anaheim with my daughter Darian. We have 2nd row tickets on Gene Simmons' side.

When it's all said and done I will see KISS in 3 different states, in 5 different cities and I'll be going with different friends and family to every show. It's going to be the best 11 days I can imagine leading up to my birthday!

Seven Seraphim

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 06:05:00 +0000

This past Wednesday I was able to perform once again at the Key Club with Seven Seraphim. This time around we opened up for a band called Stratovarius. The show was a great success. I showed up about an hour before we were scheduled to go on stage and there was a line going around the block. On Ticketmaster the show was sold out.

So now I can say I've played a sold out show on the Sunset Strip. Those are some bragging rights I never thought I'd be able to have. We played better than our first show, made some new fans and I was able to be a rockstar for the night.

Here are some videos from the show I found on YouTube.

We've been bootlegged!

Intranet write up of my trip to London

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 17:15:00 +0000

IT Guy Scores Virgin Star of the Year Award and a Trip to London!

Congrats to David Howard for winning a Virgin Star of the Year Award 2009 on September 11th. This annual award is given to those that best embody the true Virgin spirit.

"I had the honor of representing Virgin Mobile USA at the annual Virgin Stars Awards Dinner in London last month," says David. "Just to name a few others there, we had Planes, Trains, Cosmetics, Mobile, Online Gaming, Soft Drinks, and even Space Ships. I met people from South Africa, Australia, United Kingdom, Canada and of course the US. And to top off the event Sir Richard Branson even gave away a few trips to Necker Island. A great time was had by all."

Last day in London

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 11:49:00 +0000

This week we spent a couple of days in Paris, rode a highspeed train from London to Paris and under the English Channel, and then we are spending the last couple of days back in London.

Unfortunately we have no US power plugs here at the hotel in London so our computer and cell phones are dead, and I'm typing this from an internet kiosk in the Hotel. So we feel just a bit disconnected.

In Paris we saw the Arc D'Triomphe, the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre Museum, the Musee D'Orsay and walked up and down Champs-Elysees. All things I started to think I may never get to do. The Louvre was amazing and I could have spent 2-3 days in there if I had the time.

And yesterday was our Beatles exploration day, with trips to Abbey Road, and yes we have lots of pictures and even video. We left some graffitti on the front of Abbey Road studios and learned how to use "The Tube", which is London's underground subway/train transportation.

Tonight our last event will be the musical Wicked and we will be seeing it at the Victoria Apollo Theatre in London's West End. And tomorrow we get to go back home, which both Jacki and I are looking forward to.

I should be back online Saturday night and will post photo and video highlights.

London

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 00:33:00 +0000

Jacki and I have been in London for the last few days before we head off to Paris. It's been a busy few days and it will only get more packed as we head to France on Monday.

I have lots of pictures to share and will have those online soon.

The reason I'm over here in the first place is Virgin Mobile USA selected me as part of their annual Virgin Stars. My reward dinner was with other stars from Virgin companies worldwide and with our special dinner guest Sir Richard Branson. Dinner was amazing and it was great getting to socialize with people from all over including England, South Africa, Canada, Australia, and even the US.

I'll get pictures and more stories posted soon.

Happy Birthday to Darian

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 18:06:00 +0000

It's Darian's 18th Birthday today. Happy Birthday D, I love you!

Alice In Chains Listening Party

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 16:29:00 +0000

I haven't even recapped the Rocklahoma event and I'm already going to new events in LA. Monday night I got a text from a friend inviting me out to a listening party for Alice In Chains' new album, Black Gives Way To Blue, scheduled for a September release.

I landed back in LA Tuesday morning and then that night 4 of us went out to the listening party. The set up was nice, free open bar, free In 'N Out Burgers, and was set up in what looked like a modern multimedia theater. Two small screens flanking both sides of the stage and a very large screen in the middle.

I had never been to a listening party so I didn't know what to expect. As we walked in they had the video for "A Looking In View" playing on the big screen over and over again. One of either the marketing or label people got up and stage, welcomed everybody and then they played the CD with accompanying still visuals on the large screen.

The artwork accompanying the songs was distorted views of reality. My favorite was of an eclipse of the Moon covering the Sun, however the Moon was much larger than the Sun which is not a perspective you can see from Earth. Other distortions included two people sitting around a table with a child standing on the table that looked to be only 10" tall. Very fitting artwork for this band.

The CD is fairly steady consisting of heavy, dark material and material that started in the acoustic world. You would never notice that Layne Staley isn't on this material. Will DuVall, their new singer blends perfectly with Jerry Cantrell, and this material is fidelity wise an evolution of the band although the songs may not be.

After the CD the screen lifted and revealed Alice In Chains on stage in an acoustic setting. They were a five piece featuring Derek Sherinian, from Dream Theater fame, on keyboards. They ran through three songs and then left the stage. One classic, and the performance premiere of two of their new tracks.

Alice In Chains
July 14, 2009
The Ricardo Montalban Theater
CD Listening Party

Down In A Whole
Your Decision
Black Gives Way To Blue

They took our phones at the door so unfortunately I don't have any pictures from the event itself, although I was able to get a poster promoting the album, and a guitar pick.

Rocklahoma 2009 - Day 1

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 15:56:00 +0000

Terry and I made it to Rocklahoma 2009 yesterday. Nothing quite like coming back to the show and seeing familiar faces, and meeting up with friends we've made through the years at the event.

We arrived to the event around 3pm and once we got our wristbands
1. Age verification for drinking (check)
2. 4 day pass for event (check)
3. VIP Seat assignment (check)

As we walked into the venue Metal Church was wrapping up their set. We only saw one full song which ended up being a cover of Deep Purple's Highway Star. This also marked Metal Church's final performance as a band. It seemed a non event.

Next up was Anvil. I had seen their movie and although their music isn't the best I was looking forward to their set. Shortly before their show I bought their newest CD "This Is 13". The recording of this CD was featured prominently in their movie.

Sadly the Spinal Tap moments haven't ended for this group. Let's count.

1. They had no roadies and were loading their own gear onto the stage prior to their set. Spinal Tap moment #1.

2. Lips is their frontman and ran right out onto stage at the start of their set and then immediately tripped on a stair and fell on his face. Spinal Tap moment #2.

3. Lips is fairly chatty between songs, and he'd tell these stories that were a bit awkward. It's like the guy that tells a joke or story and the delivery is poor. Fortunately Lips is charming so although the stories were awkward you found yourself laughing anyway. Spinal Tap moment #3.

4. Near the end of their set Lips trips on the stage again, making for a total of 2 falls. Spinal Tap moment #4.

Anvil

Soundcheck - This Is Thirteen

Set
This Is Thirteen
666
School Love
Winged Assassins
Jack Hammer
Race Against Time
White Rhino -> Drum Solo
Metal On Metal

They were fun to watch and although their music isn't all that memorable I had a good time. However, I don't think Anvil did much for Terry.

Next up was Overkill, but we didn't see them. We were off to meet Saxon and Nigel their drummer. Out in LA one of the bands I'm in is called Spidersuit and features Pete on guitar. His sister married the drummer of Saxon a couple of years back so as we were driving up to the event and listening to music I noticed Terry had some Saxon on his iPod. A couple of emails and phone calls later we found ourselves backstage getting autographs and pictures with Saxon. A lot of fun and completely unexpected.

After the meet and greet we headed to the VIP tent and ate dinner and refreshed our beverages. Next up was Saxon!

I had maybe heard only 2 Saxon songs prior to the show, and I must say they put on a hell of a show. They gave the best performance out of all the bands on Day 1. Lots of double bass which was nice for me to see as a drummer and considering we had just met Nigel backstage, and since I'm connected via a couple of degrees of separation it was great to see them bring such a great show to the event.

Saxon

Battalions Of Steel
Heavy Metal Thunder
Demon Sweeney Todd
Strong Arm Of The Law
Valley of The Kings
This Town Knows How To Rock
Dallas 1pm (Last minute addition to set list requested by Anvil)
Wheels Of Steel
Crusader

Encore
Denim And Leather
Princess Of The Night

After the set Nigel texted me, and asked me how I liked the show. It was the surprise of the day for me and I had a great time. He said it was nice to meet me and Friday morning he heads back to England.

The final show of the day was Anthrax. Terry is a big fan but had never seen these guys live. I'd seen them a few times through the years so I knew they can bring a great show and this was the event I was looking forward to all day.

Anthrax's new singer is Dan Nelson and as the guys walked onto the stage Dan looked considerably different from the last time I saw him. He had a beard and looked a little more sinister, which is appropriate for metal. And Scott Ian had a full beard as well.

Their set had a slow start, the crowd interaction was poor and the guys in the band weren't hitting their stride. About 3-4 songs into the set they were getting into the rhythm of the show and Dan was working his best to get the crowd that had been out in the sun for as many as 12 hours to give some energy back to the band.

Anthrax

Indians
Got The Time
Madhouse
Antisocial
Fight 'Em (new song)
Caught In A Mosh
Safe Home
Room For One More
Only
What Doesn't Die
(Birthday celebration for Frankie Bello. The brought out a cake and had the crowd sing happy birthday to him.)
I Am The Law

Encore
Whole Lotta Rosie (AC/DC cover)

I was standing by some guys we had met last year and starting with Caught In A Mosh we started some very light moshing and banging into one another. Only 3 of us doing it but fun nonetheless.

After the set I was able to get a Frankie Bello guitar pic, a Scott Ian guitar pic, and Rob's setlist. Considering the drought of after show freebies through the day it was nice to get some Anthrax after concert swag. Terry walked up after the set and was as hoarse as could be. Nothing like singing at the top of your lungs for 90 minutes.

Once Anthrax's set was over they showed the Anvil movie on the big screens. Terry hadn't seen it before so we stayed for the movie and were on the road back to our hotel shortly shortly before 3am. After a quick shower, and the after concert wind down we were asleep by 3:30am. Approximately 13 solid hours of rocking. Not bad for day 1.

Moving day for Darian

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 23:34:00 +0000

Moving D into her first apartment of her own in Santa Barbara. A big
day for all of us. Here is a quick pic of the front door.

She is what they call one of the Gillespie Cottages. A very fancy
name for a mult-unit four-plex.

Change

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 00:29:00 +0000

So they say you should not fear change. In the upcoming weeks we will be going through a series of life changes. Darian moves off to school on Tuesday, and by the end of July we will be moving out of our house in Santa Monica. A little downsizing, and time for us to start on our new journey, collectively and individually.

I can't say I'm looking forward to all of this change, but in life I've never been afraid of change. A couple of decisions through the years have significantly changed our lives and now 10 years later we find ourselves living in Los Angeles, having successfully raised Darian through school, and now we will send her off to experience life on her own. And in many ways we will be going through this new beginning and embracing new experiences, on our own, as she will do by herself.

Over the next 4-6 weeks I'll be moving from Santa Monica and will relocate into the Hollywood area. Only a short 9 miles, yet a world away.

Although this posting doesn't say everything, it represents one of those key turning points in my life.

Michael Jackson RIP

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 04:54:00 +0000

There really isn't anything to say about this icon that hasn't already been said.

I work in Westwood and my office window looks over the UCLA Medical Center which is where Michael was taken. Upon the news of him being rushed to the hospital and then later his death I was able to see helicopter after helicopter circle the medical center. At one point there were 6 different helicopters in my view from my office window, and traffic had backed up considerably. No matter what you think about this icon you can't deny his impact on society.

With that said I do remember watching the Motown 25th anniversary special and seeing the Moonwalk. The was a time before Tivo and DVRs, and we didn't even have a VCR. However to this day that was a performance that I'll never forget. I became one of the kids in elementary school that perfected the Moonwalk. That was a piece of joy and an unforgettable memory from childhood that Michael Jackson left with me.

D's Graduating

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 22:35:00 +0000

Today is the big graduation day. It's hard to believe we've come this far and now she is getting ready for her big celebration and in less than 3 weeks she will be moving to Santa Barbara to go to college.

I'm very proud of her and hope nothing but the best for her as she starts the next part of her journey.

Spidersuit books multiple shows!

noreply@blogger.com (David) — Thu, 14 May 2009 04:52:00 +0000

Spidersuit has booked a couple of shows. Here is a quote from Pete when I asked when was the last time Spidersuit booked multiple shows?

"The first time since '79. Remember opening for UFO in Odessa? We rocked!"

We are in the final stages of wrapping up our CD so with a little work, and a little luck one of these shows may be used as a CD release party.

These shows have been booked with other bands that are friends of the 'suit so these will be good full nights of music. And Tom, our bassist, will be doing double duty for our October show playing both with Spidersuit and Brainspoon.

Monday June 29th
Venue: El Cid - Los Angeles, CA
Featuring Spidersuit and Broken Ocean

Saturday October 3rd
Venue: The Puka Bar - Long Beach, CA
Featuring Spidersuit and Brainspoon

Scream for me Long Beach!