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23:00:00 02/08/12
Lap Band Success Stories And Pictures
[LESS INFO] 0 VIEWS | ADDED 23:00:00 02/08/12
http://mylapbandsuccess.plus101.com
---Lap Band Success Stories And Pictures. "My Journey With The Lap Band Has Been Rough... In Fact, I Almost Took Matters Into My Own Hands, And Ended That Journey A few Years Ago...
But the fact that I'm still here today -- slim and happy, is proof that it is possible to overcome, and end your emotional reliance on food, and get the body and life you've always wanted!
Let Me Tell You My Story...
It was the worst week I had since my surgery -- Thanksgiving week. I was at a point where all I was thinking about all day, was food. I had to actually fight to resist my strong cravings...
I just wanted to take one bite of that turkey... just eat one piece of pumpkin pie! I just wanted to be able to taste some of the same things everyone else was eating!
Not Only Was I Still Obese, But I Couldn't Even Enjoy My Own Life!
My cravings were driving me insane, but I did my best to resist the temptation. When I got onto the scales that week, I was dumb-founded - My weight loss had stalled! All the agony and deprivation I'd suffered... was for nothing!
I was so angry at myself for even putting me in such a low, pitiful state in the first place! I was to blame for the way I looked! I was frustrated and... I felt helpless!
My Weight Loss Had Stalled...
Ok, so maybe I needed another refill but nothing could improve my emotional state-of-mind...
I became so disillusioned that I could not remember my reasonsfor wanting to lose weight, and how critical it was for me to resist my favorite foods. All I thought, was that the lap band was not working for me... and I gave in!
I Was Once Too Embarrassed To Share My Story With Anyone, But I'm Telling It To You Today, So You'll Know That You're Not Alone!...
I had lost all hope of losing weight, that I began to out-eat my band, and find ways to cheat it...
One of my favorite foods before the surgery was french fries dipped in a mix of mayonnaise and ketchup. Since I couldn't have it after the lap band, I improvised... and blended it!
I Would Actually Put Fries, Mayo And Ketchup Into A Blender... And Then Drink It!
If you've ever fallen off the wagon then I don't have to tell you about theguilt that sets in after-wards...
I'd drink it, then I'd feel guilty and start to cry...
It would make me sick... but I did it anyway!
I hated myself for doing it... but I did it anyway!
When the scales began to creep back up again, I knew why... but I didn't know what to do about it!
I felt like my life was in a tail-spin. The worst part was that I was just too embarrassed & humiliated to talk to anyone about it!
Have you ever felt that way?
To find out what happened next, scroll down!
In an amazing twist of fate, find out how I found it easier to lose the last 132 lbs than it ever was to lose the first 60 lbs!"
By April Cannon
Lap, Band, Success, Stories, And, Pictures, Laparoscopic, gastric, Banding, costs, stomach, surgery, diet, successfull, Raisa Khan, April Cannon
11 Views
03:24:04 01/19/12
Indie Game Makes Bank and SOPA Goes Down - Press Pause Daily
[LESS INFO] 11 VIEWS | ADDED 03:24:04 01/19/12
An indie developer recoups their entire production cost in four days, and the Stop Online Piracy Act is dead for the moment.
SHOW NOTES:
Story 1:
Here at Press Pause, we are big fans of indie games. So when good things happen to an indie release, we wanna tell you about it.
Toxic Games, makers of the recently released Portal-esque game Q.U.B.E, announced this week that they were able to recoup their full development cost in the game’s first four days on sale.
Toxic was one of the first developers to take part in the Indie Fund, which helps independent game makers fund their games. They ended up investing $90,000 in the development of Q.U.B.E., which was doled out in chunks. The folks at Indie Fund say that their investment was worth it and “that that investment paid off with 12K sold copies since the game launched last week.”
It seems that Toxic is already discussing possibly moving Q.U.B.E. beyond the PC. Lets hope that means an XBLA or PSN release in the near future.
http://www.joystiq.com/2012/01/16/q-u-b-e-moves-12k-copies-in-first-four-days-recouping-full-ind/
http://indie-fund.com/2012/01/q-u-b-e-recoups-investment/
Story 2:
Well it looks like the internet is victorious in it’s battle against the Stop Online Privacy Act, at least for now.
A report has come out that states that the legislation that had been making it’s way through the US House of Representatives has been indefinitely shelved, and will not be coming up for a vote on the floor of the House.
On the official Committee on Oversight and Government Reform site, committee chairman Darell Issa posted a statement stating that SOPA would “not move to the House floor this Congress without a consensus."
While this is a good day for the internet, the fight isn’t over yet.
Let’s not forget that the US Senate has it’s own version of the legislation called the Protect Intellectual Property Act.
Let’s hope the same fate awaits it as well.
http://www.gamespot.com/news/congress-shelves-sopa-6348670
That will do it for your daily dose of Press Pause. You can always find all our episodes over at presspause.mevio.com . You can also check them out over at our Youtube channel: youtube.com/presspausemevio .
2 Views
16:57:51 12/19/11
Family Of The Year - Live in Studio B - Part 1- Living On Love
[LESS INFO] 2 VIEWS | ADDED 16:57:51 12/19/11
Part 1 of Family of The Year performing at Mevio Studios in San Francisco For the entire performance CLICK HERE
WEBSITE FACEBOOK TWITTER About
Most bands function like a family, seeing how touring, writing, and studio time force them to share a lot of small spaces for extended periods of time. But Family of the Year has taken that familial feeling a step further, and not just with its moniker. The members of the Los Angeles outfit have formed unbreakable bonds amongst themselves that come from cohabitating in a run-down house and relying on each other for inspiration and support, which has led to the kind of camaraderie that allows members to finish each other’s sentences. It also doesn’t hurt that frontman Joe Keefe and drummer Sebastian Keefe are real-life siblings.
Not surprisingly, many of the group’s songs feature numerous voices, and more than a few include a chorus of joyous handclaps. Some even sound like they should be sung by the tight-knit group around the campfire while the s’mores are melting and the wine is flowing, especially the ones that name-drop members of the band. Guitarist Jamesy Buckey, in particular, has received the lion’s share of shout-outs in FOTY songs, to the point where it’s become a Family tradition.
Family of the Year’s story began in 2009, when Joe assembled a band around an album, Songbook , that he completed while decompressing from a five-year stint with Unbusted, the alt-rock trio he started in Boston with Sebastian that gained some notoriety for its inclusion on the soundtrack to the Farrelly brothers’ film Stuck On You . Instead of relying on the distortion of his past, suddenly pianos, horns, acoustic guitars, and other assorted instrumentation were being used to display a more sophisticated—yet equally as playful—indie-rock sound that brings to mind classic pop bands like The Smiths, The Byrds, Fleetwood Mac, and The Go-Betweens.
To say that Family of the Year has accomplished a lot in a short amount of time would be an understatement. In addition to Songbook , the band has issued a pair of EPs on its own Washashore Records imprint, 2009’s Where’s The Sun and 2010’s Through The Trees , and songs from all three discs have made their way onto various international releases. Media attention has come from various corners of the world, including heavy rotation on French radio as well as glowing reviews from NME , the BBC, and Spin .
Now the group is preparing for its busiest schedule yet, with shows and tours being planned around two new releases: the St. Croix EP, which is coming out on Sept. 27, and the full-length Diversity , which is due in early 2012. In addition to plenty of stateside dates, the Family plans to return overseas, where it has already developed a significant fanbase. In early 2011, the band played sold-out shows in England and across Europe, including a triumphant set at France’s largest music festival, Les Vieilles Charrues.
The list of artists that FOTY has played with over the years is notable, including Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeroes (who took the band on tour early in its career), Mumford & Sons, Gomez, and The Antlers, though arguably the most impressive opening gig so far was when the band warmed up a Ben Folds performance with the Boston Pops Orchestra. Handpicked by Folds and Boston Pops conductor Keith Lockhart, Family of the Year beat out 700 other hopeful artists to open the Oct. 2009 event. Not a bad way to spend your third show ever.
“We went back home to Boston to play at Symphony Hall, which was the sweetest homecoming ever,” says Joe. “The show was amazing. Our mom got to stay at a nice hotel and get dressed up and come see us play. Musically we were a bit shaky, it being our third gig, but it was a great room to play in.”
Proving its versatility, the Family has made fans of a couple of fellow Massachusetts-bred musicians who, on the surface at least, don’t have much in common: singer-songwriter Willy Mason and Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler. Mason contributed to the reggae-tinged “The Princess And The Pea” on Through The Trees , while the demon of screamin’ discovered Family of the Year through a mutual connection and compared what he heard to “The Mamas And The Papas on acid.” Interestingly enough, the Keefe brothers used to live next to the apartment in Boston that once housed Aerosmith.
“I don’t think Steven Tyler is getting a tattoo anytime soon, but he likes our music,” says Sebastian. “We had the opportunity to meet him once, and he was really cool.”
But a band is only as good as its most recent output, which is why it’s fair to say that Family of the Year has positioned itself for greatness. Recorded by what now constitutes the core of FOTY—Joe (vocals, guitar), Sebastian (drums, vocals), Buckey (guitar, vocals), and Christina Schroeter (keyboards, vocals)—the group completed 14 songs with producer Wally Gagel at his new studio in Hollywood. This is the first time that the band has worked with a producer and gone outside of its own camp to release its music.
With Gagel’s assistance, the band has crafted a stirring set of songs teeming with catchy melodies, clever ruminations on love, heartbreak, and staying up late enough to watch the sun rise, and a cosmopolitan flavor enhanced by the fact that the members of Family of the Year hail from all over the globe. After being born in Martha’s Vineyard, the Keefe brothers followed their father’s bloodline back to Wales during their formative years (during which time Britpop was booming); Buckey is from Jacksonville, Florida, where he familiarized himself with that town’s all-ages punk scene; and Schroeter is the lone Southern California native, having grown up in Huntington Beach. Though still only in their 20s, the members of this Family are music veterans, and the precision with which they play is a testament to all of the hard work that got them here.
Gagel is another Boston native, having played with ’90s power trio Orbit prior to his current status as half of the hit-making production duo Wax Ltd (he and Xandy Barry have collectively and individually worked with artists like Folk Implosion, Muse, New Order, and The Rolling Stones). Joe had already developed strong ties with Gagel before the band entered the studio.
“Having him be a really close friend instead of a random producer assigned to us was really helpful, because you have to be pushed to edit yourself and be better, be stronger, work harder on things,” says Joe. “Working with someone like that who knows exactly what we wanted it to sound like with the same exact vision, it was really kind of a no-brainer.”
St. Croix ’s title track and “Living On Love” perfectly encapsulate what FOTY does best, and the two songs will also appear on next year’s full-length. “St. Croix” is a dreamy, jangly tune about “a boy from Florida / took a trip to the Caribbean … he came to get over her,” and in case you’re wondering, yes, it’s about Jamesy. “Living On Love” is as spirited as the band members themselves, promoting carpe diem over a bouncy, keyboard-driven rocker that brings to mind Vampire Weekend at its best. As a bonus, the EP features a slow-bumping electro remix of “St. Croix” by Hooray For Earth’s Noel Heroux, who over the years has shared various stages with the Keefe brothers. The track is a reminder of their origins, while the EP and LP as a whole are glorious celebrations of just how far they’ve come.
“It feels like the first time in so many ways, because it’s the first time things have really clicked,” says Joe.
“We inspire each other,” says Sebastian. “It was important for this record to be something that would stand up as one piece, rather than something that sounded like songs strung together. We really wanted to have a record with a clear identity.”
And Family of the Year’s future is clearly a bright one. Playing every show like it’s a special occasional and writing each song with complete conviction has allowed the band to accomplish everything it has set its sights on. As “Living On Love” notes, “they say that you can’t get every little thing that you want … it’s such a lie.” Contact Information
Booking: AJ Paul / APA apaul@apa-agency.com
Online: Sneak Attack, Zach Hinkle, zach@sneakattackmedia.com
Label: tinyOGRE, marketing@tinyOGREent.com
11 Views
00:19:16 12/17/11
Family Of The Year - Live In Studio B - Part 2 - Chugjug
[LESS INFO] 11 VIEWS | ADDED 00:19:16 12/17/11
Part 2 of Family of The Year performing at Mevio Studios in San Francisco For the entire performance CLICK HERE
WEBSITE FACEBOOK TWITTER About
Most bands function like a family, seeing how touring, writing, and studio time force them to share a lot of small spaces for extended periods of time. But Family of the Year has taken that familial feeling a step further, and not just with its moniker. The members of the Los Angeles outfit have formed unbreakable bonds amongst themselves that come from cohabitating in a run-down house and relying on each other for inspiration and support, which has led to the kind of camaraderie that allows members to finish each other’s sentences. It also doesn’t hurt that frontman Joe Keefe and drummer Sebastian Keefe are real-life siblings.
Not surprisingly, many of the group’s songs feature numerous voices, and more than a few include a chorus of joyous handclaps. Some even sound like they should be sung by the tight-knit group around the campfire while the s’mores are melting and the wine is flowing, especially the ones that name-drop members of the band. Guitarist Jamesy Buckey, in particular, has received the lion’s share of shout-outs in FOTY songs, to the point where it’s become a Family tradition.
Family of the Year’s story began in 2009, when Joe assembled a band around an album, Songbook , that he completed while decompressing from a five-year stint with Unbusted, the alt-rock trio he started in Boston with Sebastian that gained some notoriety for its inclusion on the soundtrack to the Farrelly brothers’ film Stuck On You . Instead of relying on the distortion of his past, suddenly pianos, horns, acoustic guitars, and other assorted instrumentation were being used to display a more sophisticated—yet equally as playful—indie-rock sound that brings to mind classic pop bands like The Smiths, The Byrds, Fleetwood Mac, and The Go-Betweens.
To say that Family of the Year has accomplished a lot in a short amount of time would be an understatement. In addition to Songbook , the band has issued a pair of EPs on its own Washashore Records imprint, 2009’s Where’s The Sun and 2010’s Through The Trees , and songs from all three discs have made their way onto various international releases. Media attention has come from various corners of the world, including heavy rotation on French radio as well as glowing reviews from NME , the BBC, and Spin .
Now the group is preparing for its busiest schedule yet, with shows and tours being planned around two new releases: the St. Croix EP, which is coming out on Sept. 27, and the full-length Diversity , which is due in early 2012. In addition to plenty of stateside dates, the Family plans to return overseas, where it has already developed a significant fanbase. In early 2011, the band played sold-out shows in England and across Europe, including a triumphant set at France’s largest music festival, Les Vieilles Charrues.
The list of artists that FOTY has played with over the years is notable, including Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeroes (who took the band on tour early in its career), Mumford & Sons, Gomez, and The Antlers, though arguably the most impressive opening gig so far was when the band warmed up a Ben Folds performance with the Boston Pops Orchestra. Handpicked by Folds and Boston Pops conductor Keith Lockhart, Family of the Year beat out 700 other hopeful artists to open the Oct. 2009 event. Not a bad way to spend your third show ever.
“We went back home to Boston to play at Symphony Hall, which was the sweetest homecoming ever,” says Joe. “The show was amazing. Our mom got to stay at a nice hotel and get dressed up and come see us play. Musically we were a bit shaky, it being our third gig, but it was a great room to play in.”
Proving its versatility, the Family has made fans of a couple of fellow Massachusetts-bred musicians who, on the surface at least, don’t have much in common: singer-songwriter Willy Mason and Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler. Mason contributed to the reggae-tinged “The Princess And The Pea” on Through The Trees , while the demon of screamin’ discovered Family of the Year through a mutual connection and compared what he heard to “The Mamas And The Papas on acid.” Interestingly enough, the Keefe brothers used to live next to the apartment in Boston that once housed Aerosmith.
“I don’t think Steven Tyler is getting a tattoo anytime soon, but he likes our music,” says Sebastian. “We had the opportunity to meet him once, and he was really cool.”
But a band is only as good as its most recent output, which is why it’s fair to say that Family of the Year has positioned itself for greatness. Recorded by what now constitutes the core of FOTY—Joe (vocals, guitar), Sebastian (drums, vocals), Buckey (guitar, vocals), and Christina Schroeter (keyboards, vocals)—the group completed 14 songs with producer Wally Gagel at his new studio in Hollywood. This is the first time that the band has worked with a producer and gone outside of its own camp to release its music.
With Gagel’s assistance, the band has crafted a stirring set of songs teeming with catchy melodies, clever ruminations on love, heartbreak, and staying up late enough to watch the sun rise, and a cosmopolitan flavor enhanced by the fact that the members of Family of the Year hail from all over the globe. After being born in Martha’s Vineyard, the Keefe brothers followed their father’s bloodline back to Wales during their formative years (during which time Britpop was booming); Buckey is from Jacksonville, Florida, where he familiarized himself with that town’s all-ages punk scene; and Schroeter is the lone Southern California native, having grown up in Huntington Beach. Though still only in their 20s, the members of this Family are music veterans, and the precision with which they play is a testament to all of the hard work that got them here.
Gagel is another Boston native, having played with ’90s power trio Orbit prior to his current status as half of the hit-making production duo Wax Ltd (he and Xandy Barry have collectively and individually worked with artists like Folk Implosion, Muse, New Order, and The Rolling Stones). Joe had already developed strong ties with Gagel before the band entered the studio.
“Having him be a really close friend instead of a random producer assigned to us was really helpful, because you have to be pushed to edit yourself and be better, be stronger, work harder on things,” says Joe. “Working with someone like that who knows exactly what we wanted it to sound like with the same exact vision, it was really kind of a no-brainer.”
St. Croix ’s title track and “Living On Love” perfectly encapsulate what FOTY does best, and the two songs will also appear on next year’s full-length. “St. Croix” is a dreamy, jangly tune about “a boy from Florida / took a trip to the Caribbean … he came to get over her,” and in case you’re wondering, yes, it’s about Jamesy. “Living On Love” is as spirited as the band members themselves, promoting carpe diem over a bouncy, keyboard-driven rocker that brings to mind Vampire Weekend at its best. As a bonus, the EP features a slow-bumping electro remix of “St. Croix” by Hooray For Earth’s Noel Heroux, who over the years has shared various stages with the Keefe brothers. The track is a reminder of their origins, while the EP and LP as a whole are glorious celebrations of just how far they’ve come.
“It feels like the first time in so many ways, because it’s the first time things have really clicked,” says Joe.
“We inspire each other,” says Sebastian. “It was important for this record to be something that would stand up as one piece, rather than something that sounded like songs strung together. We really wanted to have a record with a clear identity.”
And Family of the Year’s future is clearly a bright one. Playing every show like it’s a special occasional and writing each song with complete conviction has allowed the band to accomplish everything it has set its sights on. As “Living On Love” notes, “they say that you can’t get every little thing that you want … it’s such a lie.” Contact Information
Booking: AJ Paul / APA apaul@apa-agency.com
Online: Sneak Attack, Zach Hinkle, zach@sneakattackmedia.com
Label: tinyOGRE, marketing@tinyOGREent.com
5 Views
22:32:21 12/16/11
Family Of The Year - Live In Studio B - Part 3 - St. Croix
[LESS INFO] 5 VIEWS | ADDED 22:32:21 12/16/11
Part 3 of Family of The Year performing at Mevio Studios in San Francisco For the entire performance CLICK HERE
WEBSITE FACEBOOK TWITTER About
Most bands function like a family, seeing how touring, writing, and studio time force them to share a lot of small spaces for extended periods of time. But Family of the Year has taken that familial feeling a step further, and not just with its moniker. The members of the Los Angeles outfit have formed unbreakable bonds amongst themselves that come from cohabitating in a run-down house and relying on each other for inspiration and support, which has led to the kind of camaraderie that allows members to finish each other’s sentences. It also doesn’t hurt that frontman Joe Keefe and drummer Sebastian Keefe are real-life siblings.
Not surprisingly, many of the group’s songs feature numerous voices, and more than a few include a chorus of joyous handclaps. Some even sound like they should be sung by the tight-knit group around the campfire while the s’mores are melting and the wine is flowing, especially the ones that name-drop members of the band. Guitarist Jamesy Buckey, in particular, has received the lion’s share of shout-outs in FOTY songs, to the point where it’s become a Family tradition.
Family of the Year’s story began in 2009, when Joe assembled a band around an album, Songbook , that he completed while decompressing from a five-year stint with Unbusted, the alt-rock trio he started in Boston with Sebastian that gained some notoriety for its inclusion on the soundtrack to the Farrelly brothers’ film Stuck On You . Instead of relying on the distortion of his past, suddenly pianos, horns, acoustic guitars, and other assorted instrumentation were being used to display a more sophisticated—yet equally as playful—indie-rock sound that brings to mind classic pop bands like The Smiths, The Byrds, Fleetwood Mac, and The Go-Betweens.
To say that Family of the Year has accomplished a lot in a short amount of time would be an understatement. In addition to Songbook , the band has issued a pair of EPs on its own Washashore Records imprint, 2009’s Where’s The Sun and 2010’s Through The Trees , and songs from all three discs have made their way onto various international releases. Media attention has come from various corners of the world, including heavy rotation on French radio as well as glowing reviews from NME , the BBC, and Spin .
Now the group is preparing for its busiest schedule yet, with shows and tours being planned around two new releases: the St. Croix EP, which is coming out on Sept. 27, and the full-length Diversity , which is due in early 2012. In addition to plenty of stateside dates, the Family plans to return overseas, where it has already developed a significant fanbase. In early 2011, the band played sold-out shows in England and across Europe, including a triumphant set at France’s largest music festival, Les Vieilles Charrues.
The list of artists that FOTY has played with over the years is notable, including Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeroes (who took the band on tour early in its career), Mumford & Sons, Gomez, and The Antlers, though arguably the most impressive opening gig so far was when the band warmed up a Ben Folds performance with the Boston Pops Orchestra. Handpicked by Folds and Boston Pops conductor Keith Lockhart, Family of the Year beat out 700 other hopeful artists to open the Oct. 2009 event. Not a bad way to spend your third show ever.
“We went back home to Boston to play at Symphony Hall, which was the sweetest homecoming ever,” says Joe. “The show was amazing. Our mom got to stay at a nice hotel and get dressed up and come see us play. Musically we were a bit shaky, it being our third gig, but it was a great room to play in.”
Proving its versatility, the Family has made fans of a couple of fellow Massachusetts-bred musicians who, on the surface at least, don’t have much in common: singer-songwriter Willy Mason and Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler. Mason contributed to the reggae-tinged “The Princess And The Pea” on Through The Trees , while the demon of screamin’ discovered Family of the Year through a mutual connection and compared what he heard to “The Mamas And The Papas on acid.” Interestingly enough, the Keefe brothers used to live next to the apartment in Boston that once housed Aerosmith.
“I don’t think Steven Tyler is getting a tattoo anytime soon, but he likes our music,” says Sebastian. “We had the opportunity to meet him once, and he was really cool.”
But a band is only as good as its most recent output, which is why it’s fair to say that Family of the Year has positioned itself for greatness. Recorded by what now constitutes the core of FOTY—Joe (vocals, guitar), Sebastian (drums, vocals), Buckey (guitar, vocals), and Christina Schroeter (keyboards, vocals)—the group completed 14 songs with producer Wally Gagel at his new studio in Hollywood. This is the first time that the band has worked with a producer and gone outside of its own camp to release its music.
With Gagel’s assistance, the band has crafted a stirring set of songs teeming with catchy melodies, clever ruminations on love, heartbreak, and staying up late enough to watch the sun rise, and a cosmopolitan flavor enhanced by the fact that the members of Family of the Year hail from all over the globe. After being born in Martha’s Vineyard, the Keefe brothers followed their father’s bloodline back to Wales during their formative years (during which time Britpop was booming); Buckey is from Jacksonville, Florida, where he familiarized himself with that town’s all-ages punk scene; and Schroeter is the lone Southern California native, having grown up in Huntington Beach. Though still only in their 20s, the members of this Family are music veterans, and the precision with which they play is a testament to all of the hard work that got them here.
Gagel is another Boston native, having played with ’90s power trio Orbit prior to his current status as half of the hit-making production duo Wax Ltd (he and Xandy Barry have collectively and individually worked with artists like Folk Implosion, Muse, New Order, and The Rolling Stones). Joe had already developed strong ties with Gagel before the band entered the studio.
“Having him be a really close friend instead of a random producer assigned to us was really helpful, because you have to be pushed to edit yourself and be better, be stronger, work harder on things,” says Joe. “Working with someone like that who knows exactly what we wanted it to sound like with the same exact vision, it was really kind of a no-brainer.”
St. Croix ’s title track and “Living On Love” perfectly encapsulate what FOTY does best, and the two songs will also appear on next year’s full-length. “St. Croix” is a dreamy, jangly tune about “a boy from Florida / took a trip to the Caribbean … he came to get over her,” and in case you’re wondering, yes, it’s about Jamesy. “Living On Love” is as spirited as the band members themselves, promoting carpe diem over a bouncy, keyboard-driven rocker that brings to mind Vampire Weekend at its best. As a bonus, the EP features a slow-bumping electro remix of “St. Croix” by Hooray For Earth’s Noel Heroux, who over the years has shared various stages with the Keefe brothers. The track is a reminder of their origins, while the EP and LP as a whole are glorious celebrations of just how far they’ve come.
“It feels like the first time in so many ways, because it’s the first time things have really clicked,” says Joe.
“We inspire each other,” says Sebastian. “It was important for this record to be something that would stand up as one piece, rather than something that sounded like songs strung together. We really wanted to have a record with a clear identity.”
And Family of the Year’s future is clearly a bright one. Playing every show like it’s a special occasional and writing each song with complete conviction has allowed the band to accomplish everything it has set its sights on. As “Living On Love” notes, “they say that you can’t get every little thing that you want … it’s such a lie.” Contact Information
Booking: AJ Paul / APA apaul@apa-agency.com
Online: Sneak Attack, Zach Hinkle, zach@sneakattackmedia.com
Label: tinyOGRE, marketing@tinyOGREent.com
5 Views
15:00:05 12/14/11
The Sandusky Court Appearance: Attorney's 800-Quip Backfires...Badly
[LESS INFO] 5 VIEWS | ADDED 15:00:05 12/14/11
This is a video of a press conference Jerry Sandusky's attorney Joseph Amendola held after an abbreviated court appearance Tuesday where Sandusky waived his right to a preliminary hearing. Waving the preliminary hearing was a media savvy move on the part of Sandusky and his lawyer, because it means the prosecution's case will not be heard ahead of the actual trial, nor will witnesses have to testify ahead of trial.
However, Amendola went one step too far in his press conference afterwards. When questioned about Mike McQueary's testimony and how they planned to attack his credibility, Amendola went through about a two minute description of what one would have to believe in order to believe McQueary. Right at the end, he says this: >
If anyone is naive enough to think for one minute that Tim Curley, Joe Paterno, Gary Schultz and for that matter Graham Spanier, University President, were told by Mike McQueary, that he observed Jerry Sandusky having anal sex with a 10-year old looking kid in a shower room at Penn State or Penn State property and their response was simply to tell Jerry Sandusky that "don't go in the shower any more with kids," I suggest you dial 1-800-REALITY .
Well, someone at Deadspin.com did just that, and discovered that it's a real 800 number for a gay phone sex line. Deadspin has the audio of the intro to prove it. Yes, for 99 cents per minute, you too can "join the fun."
You seriously cannot make this stuff up. I'm sure Amendola thought he was being snarky, but next time he might want to leave off the 800 number reference.
Amendola made it clear during his press conference after the abbreviated court appearance that Sandusky will go after the credibility of each and every victim along with McQueary. They fully intend to challenge the veracity of Mike McQueary's testimony, which the Grand Jury said they found very credible, as well as the eight victims' credibility. I'm sure this is why the attorney for Victim #1 spoke out after the hearing and said he hoped for an acceptable plea bargain. Even with eight victims whose stories touch one another's in different ways, there will be a concerted effort in public and behind closed doors to intimidate, challenge and otherwise discourage each of them from testifying.
As I was searching for this brief clip from today's press conference, I combed through CNN and ESPN transcripts and videos from earlier today. Poor corporate media. They were simply bristling with anticipation, and so disappointed afterward. I particularly enjoyed this bit of angst by reporters who clearly ought to know better: >
PAUL CALLAN, CNN LEGAL CONTRIBUTOR: You're going to see most of the victims tell their story. They'll be subjected to cross- examination. It's a limited cross. They can't be attacked about, for instance, their credibility whether they have criminal convictions and things like that. But they will be questioned about their story and whether the story is true or not. so I think we'll get a good picture of what is actually involved in this case today.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMANS: Or not, because Jerry Sandusky, we are just learning, waived his right in court to a preliminary hearing.
VELSHI: Which means that this hearing that will take place will not happen. He will go straight to trial. We don't know what "straight to trial" means, because this could take --
COSTELLO: Which many analysts say it is a smart move, because you don't want to lay out your case in court. And is it necessary to hear from these six to eight victims to testify in open court with reporters all over the world. Probably, maybe, Paul Callan would know better than I.
VELSHI: According to the people that are there, the judge did ask Sandusky in doing so, does he understand that he's waiving certain rights. In Pennsylvania, ask you a right to this preliminary hearing. And as we discussed earlier, some chance, remote it might be, that the judge determined there wasn't enough to go to trial with.
COSTELLO: With six to eight witnesses.
ROMANS: With all of the prehearing analysis of what to expect today, what to expect today, I didn't hear anybody say you waive this right to this preliminary hearing, which may be another crazy like a fox move from his attorney to kind of --
COSTELLO: Or just a crazy move because a lot of people have accused his attorney.
I'm not sure whether these folks were around during the OJ trial, but anyone who paid even a little bit of attention to it knows there was almost no way Sandusky would have actually gone through with a preliminary hearing. Look at what releasing the Grand Jury presentment did to the case. It's one thing to claim a presumption of innocence and entirely another to expect human beings with human flaws to presume it, particularly when the media is blasting details from the hearing all over the airwaves. There was absolutely no way it was going to happen.
But I do love seeing their disappointed and shocked faces at the realization their sensational sex story might not be flogged every single day.
0 Views
17:19:58 12/06/11
What Cain's presence in GOP means to black conservatives
[LESS INFO] 0 VIEWS | ADDED 17:19:58 12/06/11
[ VIDEO ] Any story about the emergence of Black Republicans or conservatives I often take with only a grain of salt. There is a young man from The Sixth Ward who can't be described as conservative although he's more than free to correct me on this assertion who interested in covering Black conservatives in Chicago through is own production company .
Anyway I found this WGN story from early November. This was way before the many issues that have found Cain's Presidential bid hobbling currently.
Some of what's noted is stuff I could believe. Blacks basically are described as socially conservative. Black folks probably could relate somewhat to the evangelical base of the Republican Party. The issues may include abortion or even gay marriage.
Other issues probably aren't that important to different segments of the Black community. Economic development is one issue that should be important but there isn't enough talk of the entrepreneurs or small business owners. That's not to say there aren't Black small business owners or entrepreneurs, but if there is a discussion of economic development in Black communities, that doesn't appear to dominate. What may dominate is tax money and perhaps hassling corporations to black their business in Black communities.
Another thing said in this story that I agree with. A group of Black conservatives were interviewed in this piece and one of them said the issue was of messaging. He explained that the issue isn't entirely the message, but of the messenger. That aspect I think is dead on. Could Herman Cain be that messenger? If not him then who else?
All the same I've said it before and I will say it again. History may well be an important aspect of attracting Blacks to the GOP. They could mention Abraham Lincoln, Republican historic support for Civil Rights, or even famous Blacks who were Republicans.
I've often stated there must be more. Republicans have to offer Black something and in saying that I don't mean "pork". It's safe to say Democrats had a hold on the Black community because they offered something. Perhaps it was support for Civil Rights or even programs to help Black people during the New Deal or the Great Depression.
There is some answers to this. Any potential Republican Black or white or whatever could talk a lot about education and offer their ideas on this subject. While today there are reports that even charter school struggle in Chicago it's OK to talk about such an issue or to talk school vouchers. Black folks for the most part wants to ensure that their children are successfully education.
Another answer certainly is economic development. The answer can't be redistributing wealth, but certainly making it easier for Black to use their talents and prosper. At that I don't mean being entertainers or athletes. We all have a talent for something, and that talent could be used to make money. Some are good at sales, some are good at producing.
See there Republicans reading this blog got some free advice right there. All they need are some messengers. :P
0 Views
15:00:01 12/06/11
What 'Occupy Our Homes' Could Change
[LESS INFO] 0 VIEWS | ADDED 15:00:01 12/06/11
Amy Goodman reports on "Occupy Our Homes" for Democracy Now
This week 60 Minutes gave viewers a good look at some of the widespread criminality that created the Wall Street mortgage boom and led to our ongoing financial crisis. They also saw some of the overwhelming evidence of illegal activity on the part of big banks, and were reminded that none of those banks' executives have been prosecuted.
As ugly as the situation is, there is some logic behind the government's actions - and its inactions. They're acting on a tragically incorrect (but internally coherent) set of assumptions that can be summed up in one sentence. It goes something like this:
"To preserve the health of the American economy, banks must be allowed to keep preying on their consumers."
That's it. That's the logic.
But there are two exciting "Occupy" developments this week that could change the equation - "Take Back the Capitol" in the District of Columbia, and Tuesday's "Occupy Our Homes" events around the country. Think of them as complementary actions: One is taking place at the site of our greatest government power. The other is bringing the action to homes where people have been victimized by bankers.
People may not realize it, but there's power in those homes, too.
The Logic of Injustice
Despite their destructive behavior, the people who bailed bankers out and are giving them a free pass for their crimes aren't necessarily evil or corrupt. Well, okay, people like this guy are. But others have merely been so infected by misguided economic thinking that they really believe that the only way to save the economy is to keep shafting consumers and pampering mega-bankers.
The thinking goes something like this: Our largest banks are too big to fail, and since we lack the will or the motivation to break them up or regulate them we must protect them at all costs. We've propped them up with TARP, quantitative easing, and $7.7 trillion in secret Federal Reserve loans, but they're still shaky as hell. If we prosecute any of their executives, their stock prices will fall and they'll collapse again. And they'll take the entire economic system with them.
That leads to some grotesque miscarriages of justice. Nobody at Wells Fargo has been indicted for money laundering, for example, despite the fact that the bank has paid millions to settle charges of laundering cash for the Mexican drug cartels that have murdered more than 35,000 people. As an experienced bank investigator working for the Senate observed, "There’s no capacity to regulate or punish them because they’re too big to be threatened with failure."
The Bailout Nobody Knows
And banks don't just need protection from their own criminality. They also need protection from their own lousy management. Their balance sheets are filled with toxic risks from their long run of incompetence, negligence, and greed. That's where you and I come in. Some powerful folks are afraid the banks will fail if they're forced to write off the bad loans on their books, or to stop profiting from loans sold deceptively or irresponsibly.
TARP may be over, but there's another massive bank rescue going on. Who's funding it? We are. Every time we pay a usurious interest fee on a credit card, we're propping up the banks. Every time we make another month's payment on an underwater mortgage, we're propping them up too. Every time we pay an overpriced consumer loan of any kind, we're making another payment into the consumer-funded bailout that's keeping the big banks afloat.
It would be great if politicians in Washington stopped using American consumers to subsidize banks that shouldn't even exist. But they haven't. That's where "Occupy Our Homes" comes in.
Occupy Our Homes
Tuesday, December 6, has been declared a National Day of Action to Occupy Our Homes . Its goal is to focus attention on the corrupt banking practices that led to the mortgage boom and today's ongoing economic misery for most of the 99 percent.
It's also a day for helping people in our communities who have been victimized by predatory lending, criminal bank forgery, unfair or illegal foreclosure practices, and other bank abuses that victimize the public. Occupy Minnesota has already occupied an illegally-foreclosed home, and plans to do the same thing with another home tomorrow. Here in Los Angeles, where an inspiring victory has already taken place, OccupyLA will help two brave families re-occupy their illegally foreclosed homes .
One of those homes belongs to a three-earner family that includes a gainfully employed woman with cerebral palsy named Ana Wison. Ana's household clearly seems capable of making its mortgage payments, but her bank's foreclosing anyway. And in one of ironies that have become all too common, the bank in quesion is none other than that Mexican drug cartel money-laundering outfit, Wells Fargo.
The Occupy movement hopes to focus the public's attention on people like Ana Wison. In the words of the Dylan song : "Things should start to get interesting right around now."
Demonizing the Victim
Resisting illegal foreclosures is a good first step. It brings attention to Wall Street's criminality, venality, and plain old inhumanity toward the people they call their"customers" - but treat like serfs.
It does something else important: It counteracts the brainwashing, driven by Wall Street and dutifully echoed by the media, which has demonized the victims of bank misbehavior. (We were trying to fight that brainwashing back in 2008, without much luck.) The Occupy movement has already won several battles in that war. If the public's attention can now be focused on people like Ana Wison, that can be a powerful blow against the Wall Street/corporate media "they deserve it" hype.
What about the millions of people who have suffered because of the banks' predatory mortgage lending but aren't behind in payments or in the foreclosure process? We need to re-open the debate about the fairness of forcing any underwater homeowners to pay underwater principal on homes that their banks knew, or should have known, were going to decrease in value. After all, the same conglomeration of banks and corporate media that demonize homeowners as "greedy" and "irresponsible" spent most of the last twenty years convincing people that real estate was a sure-fire investment.
Banks made an extraordinary amount of money off the bubble they created. The total mortgage amount outstanding in this country went from $6.2 trillion in 2002 to $11.9 trillion in 2009, a meteoric rise. And while banks feed off the Federal Reserve's unusually low rates, they've renegotiating very few home loans.
Consumers also owe nearly three quarter of a trillion dollars in credit card debt, much of it being paid at unconscionable rates of 12 percent to 29 percent - while their banks enjoy rates from 0 percent to 3 percent, thanks to the government institutions created by those same consumers.
Occupy Our Homes. Occupy Our Credit Cards. Occupy Our Payday Lending ...
What will happen if consumers stopped blaming themselves? What if they demanded that the banks take responsibility for their irresponsible and/or predatory lending? What if they refused to stop this country's perverse economic role reversal, where customers have become the ATMs while banks keep making the withdrawals?
If 10% of America's homeowners declared a mortgage strike it would rock the banking world. If everybody paying exorbitant credit card interest declared a moratorium on payments all at once, Wall Street would change forever.
Think about it: "Occupy ALL Our Homes." "Occupy Our Credit Cards ... Our Payday Loans ... Our Buy-and-Drive Loans ..." I'm not saying these are necessarily the right tactics, although they very well may be. But what's most important is that we understand that consumers have far more power than we usually realize - provided we act together.
Many of Washington's leaders will cringe at the thought, of course. "That could hurt our biggest banks," they say. It would be tempting to reply, You say that like it's a bad thing. Here's a better response: Then start planning to break them up in an orderly fashion. We're done living a life of indentured servitude just so we can subsidize their greed.
Those are the discussions that we should be having. If powerful people on Wall Street and in Washington aren't worried about Occupy Our Homes , they're not paying attention. But with any luck, they soon will.
______________________
(If you've been a victim of mortgage abuse you can tell your story here . If you want to find an Occupy Our Homes event near you, you can look for one here .)
0 Views
20:21:18 11/21/11
Fighting for Veterans' Jobs: Keep the Pressure on Congress to Pass the President's Jobs Plan
[LESS INFO] 0 VIEWS | ADDED 20:21:18 11/21/11
Fighting for Veterans' Jobs: Keep the Pressure on Congress to Pass the President's Jobs Plan
Share this video: my.barackobama.com Mike McCarry, a Vietnam War Veteran, shares his story on transitioning back to civilian life after his service in the Vietnam War. It wasn't easy for Mike --he felt like he was out there by himself. He doesn't want this to happen to our troops from Iraq that are scheduled to return by the end of this year. That's why he supports the President on asking Congress to take action on jobs. The Veterans portion of the President's jobs bill provides support to transition our vets from combat to careers, and offers employers tax credits for hiring veterans. "VOW to Hire Heroes Act" is one part of President Obama's plan to get Americans back to work and provide economic security for middle-class families. But the fight for American jobs isn't over --and we need your support to keep the pressure on Congress. Mike says: "All those provisions in the job bill are very important...We need all of our politicians working for the greater good of all the people in this country. President Obama has my support. He is for people like me. He has the best interest of the country and the people. That's the work he's doing. It's something we have to fight for. You always have to fight for the good things in life." Here's what's next: after Thanksgiving, the Senate will vote on extending President Obama's payroll tax cut, which puts $1500 in the pockets of the typical middle-class family. It's the provision that Mitt Romney called a "little band-aid" -- but ... From: BarackObamadotcom Views: 74929 833 ratings Time: 02:51 More in News & Politics
3 Views
22:26:36 10/22/11
Inside the Avatar Studio: Bernhard Drax & Daniel Moshel
[LESS INFO] 3 VIEWS | ADDED 22:26:36 10/22/11
Kevin welcomes guests Bernhard Drax (aka Draxtor Despres) and Daniel Moshel, director of Login2Life.
About the film Login2Life:
Login 2 Life portrays people who have found an alternate home in an online world. This is the starting point of a journey into fascinating virtual realities, meeting diverse human beings in different parts of the world who have one thing in common – they are savvy in using virtual worlds as an extension of their real lives. The film premiered on German ZDF October 17th before heading onto the international festival circuit.
About Bernard Drax
Bernhard Drax (aka @Draxtor) writes music for TV, commercials and feature films.
In the virtual world “Second Life” Bernhard regularly files machinima reportages on social and political issues. His story on virtual Guantanamo won the 2008 Human Rights Media Awards from ‘Internews’ in France.
His series on “Public Good in Virtual Worlds”, co-produced with the Network Culture Project at USC has been used in many classrooms to illustrate the possibilities of immersive 3D platforms.
As news director at NPR member station KAZU in Pacific Grove, California – from 2002 to 2004 and as consultant from 2004 to 2006. Bernhard was instrumental in transforming the local news operation by producing high quality local content as well as training reporters and technical staff. A champion of non-commercial radio news and culture, Bernhard still develops formats for public radio and TV, in the US and abroad.
Sponsored by the US Department of State, Bernhard also finished up a video series showcasing the use of virtual worlds in public diplomacy, focusing on the 6-month collaboration between architecture students from Cairo and USC in Los Angeles.
More info about BD at draxtor.com
A playlist with machinima focusing on educational use of virtual worlds: youtube.com/view_play_list?p=C505E316DB51834A
About Daniel Moshel:
Daniel Moshel is a gamer and an award-winning director. He was inspired to make this documentary by his personal experience. But this is about more than just gaming – this is about a new lifestyle, necessary for some, fun for most.
Bits and pieces of digital life, glimpses linked within a larger network, a personal view of what drives the people behind the screen to live, love and do business in a virtual world.
Facebook: facebook.com/urockcliffe
Twitter: twitter.com/urockcliffe
Cast: Metaverse TV
Tags: second life , virtual world , metaverse , avatar , machinima , login2life and documentary
2 Views
20:00:07 10/16/11
Wagging the Dog on the Iranian Threat
[LESS INFO] 2 VIEWS | ADDED 20:00:07 10/16/11
In our initial reporting of the alleged Iranian assassination/terrorism plot, I stated that I had some niggling questions on the Tom Clancy-like plot forwarded by the State Department. Turns out, other bloggers , far more well versed in Middle East politics, did as well . Former intelligence office Col. Pat Lang had this to say : >
We are asked to believe that Iran and its skilled covert action force chose to set up an operation in which they ("they" being members of the "Quds Force" with approvals reaching up to Ayatollah Khamenei) relied on a used car salesman from Texas to recruit Mexican drug thugs to kill Adil al-Jubeir. This is a problem involving the suspension of belief. Why on earth would they create a situation in which they had to rely on this untested, untrained, unguided, and uncontrolled asset rather than their own people?[..]
None of this is "rocket science." If as FBI Mueller said, this "plot" is like a Hollywood screenplay, then it is a screenplay written by a couple of kids high as a kite on a weekend and pitched in a producer's cottage on a film company's "campus." It is trash.
The overwhelming likelihood is that this is someone's "information operation" intended to condition public attitudes for some purpose. The over riding question is that of where the ovens are located in which this confection was baked and who the bakers might be.
Listen to House Intelligence Committee Chair Rep. Mike Rogers, here with Christiane Amanpour, talks about how "action" *MUST* take place in response to a plot to assassinate someone on American soil ( don't think about that too closely, Americans ) and that not even military action should be off the table (because with Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya and now Uganda , we have the resources for another front.). Those words should be a red flag to us all. Prof. Juan Cole : >
I personally do not understand how the corporate media in the US can report the following things about Manssor Arbabsiar and then go on to repeat with a straight face the US government charges that he was part of a high-level Iranian government assassination plot.
It seems pretty obvious that Arbabsiar is very possibly clinically insane.
Here are the top 10 reasons that he cannot be Iran’s answer to 007:
10. Arbabsiar was known in Corpus Christi, Texas, “for being almost comically absent-minded”
9. Possibly as a result of a knife attack in 1982, he suffered from bad short-term memory
8. He was always losing his cell phone
7. He was always misplacing his keys
6. He was always forgetting his briefcase and documents in stores
5. He “was just not organized,” a former business partner remarked
4. As part owner of a used car dealership, he was always losing title deeds to the vehicles
3. Arbabsiar, far from a fundamentalist Shiite Muslim, may have been an alcoholic; his nickname is “Jack” because of his fondness for Jack Daniels whiskey
2. Arbabsiar used to not only drink to excess, but also used pot and went with prostitutes. He once talked loudly in a restaurant about going back to Iran, where he could have an Iranian girl for only $50. He was rude and was thrown out of some establishments.
1. All of his businesses failed one after another
The downward trajectory of Arbabsiar’s life, with his recent loss of his mortgage, all his businesses, and his second wife, along with his obvious cognitive defect, suggests to me that he may have been descending into madness.
I hypothesized yesterday that Arbabsiar and his cousin Gholam Shakuri might have been part of an Iranian drug gang. But after these details have emerged about the former, I don’t think he could even have done that. Indeed, I have now come to view the entire story as a fantasy.
That a monumental screw-up like Arbabsiar could have thought he was a government secret agent is perfectly plausible. I’m sure he thought all kinds of things. But that he was actually one is simply not believable.
I have a question that I wish Christiane Amanpour had asked Rogers and Sanger as they advocate going to our allies to further isolate Iran for such hubristic attempts on American soil: Will you also ask Americans like the Koch brothers , Dick Cheney and current Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney as well? Shouldn't that be on the table as well?
0 Views
00:00:33 10/13/11
So Now We Decide A Terror Plot Can Be Handled Through Our Court System?
[LESS INFO] 0 VIEWS | ADDED 00:00:33 10/13/11
Here's the problem with sporadic adherence to the rule of a law and an opaque extra-judicial "legal" system: We just don't know who or what to believe . (That, and the executions .) The timing on this Iran "terror" plot is a little too convenient , isn't it? I guess we should be grateful the terrorists -- excuse me, alleged terrorists - weren't simply sent to Gitmo. And we'll just pretend that Israel hasn't been trying to push us into an attack on Iran . Amy Davidson in the New Yorker : >
It’s hard to know, at this stage, how solid the case against two men charged with trying to assassinate Saudi Arabia’s Ambassador to the United States is. But it does have one thing to recommend it: an indictment. One of the men charged, Manssor Arbabsiar, an American citizen, was arrested at J.F.K. on September 29th. (The other, Gholam Shakuri, an Iranian, is at large, but, according to Eric Holder, the Attorney General, is not believed to be in the United States.) Arbabsiar will be put on trial in a court in lower Manhattan, just as Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the would-be “Christmas Bomber,” went on trial today in a court in Detroit. Neither was sent to Guantánamo, or put before a military tribunal, or preëmptively assassinated . That sounds like a simple thing, and it should be, and can be, even when, as in this new case, the alleged crime is complex. There is something discouraging about the relief one feels at a rudimentary adherence to the rule of law.
At least six countries are part of the story: allegedly, an American who also had an Iranian passport travelled to Mexico to meet with a member of a drug cartel (who turned out to be a confidential D.E.A. informant) to recruit a hitman to kill a Saudi Arabian and maybe also attack the Israeli embassy in Argentina. (A map with pins in it would help here.) And its scale was also potentially great: according to a wiretap recording cited in the indictment, which said, “They want that guy [the Ambassador] done [killed], if the hundred go with him, f*ck ’em.” Still: that is nothing our justice system—our real one—can’t handle, when we let it. The evidence against Arbabsiar, according to the indictment, includes “a series of Mirandized interviews” in which he “confessed to his participation in the plot” and also gave information about the involvement of others.
11 Views
21:12:30 10/12/11
Turbid North - Live in Studio B - Part 1 - Kodiak
[LESS INFO] 11 VIEWS | ADDED 21:12:30 10/12/11
Part 2 of Turbid North performing live in Studio B of Mevio in San Francisco For the full performance CLICK HERE
About Turbid North:
“I was reading a book of Alaskan survival stories and one of the stories struck me as an inspiration” Nick Forkel (guitar/vocal) of Turbid North relates the inspiration to the band’s new album “Orogeny.” “It was the story of this hunter who was trapped in the wilderness at the height of winter and things got worse and worse for him. His will to survive and his hunter’s instinct helped him to overcome this hell and the album follows that. It’s about overcoming the odds no matter how grim and the survival instinct we all have.” Self-proclaimed Alaskan mountain metal Turbid North’s sound retains the galloping thrash of early 80’s period of bands like Metallica and Kreator, the technical and abrasive shredding of modern death metal and even moments of bluesy and flowing solos reminiscient of Randy Rhoades period Ozzy. The songs are as epic as the storyline of the hunter and the fully painted artwork that adorns each page reflects the story. The artwork was done by Alex Rydlinski (guitar) and even contains a lost touchstone of metal, the bad-ass mascot (see pic above) “We call him Snow Death” says Forkel, “he represents old man winter throwing everything he can to make the hunter fail.”
The story of Turbid North parallels the hunter as they both have a strong drive to survive and meet challenges. The band started in North Pole, Alaska back in 2001 right near Fairbanks. Original members Forkel, Rydlinski and his brother Adam Rydlinski (drums) were accomplished musicians with Adam even spending time in the Alaskan Symphony Orchestra. “We quickly made it to the top of the Fairbanks metal scene” says Forkel “but there was really no where to go from there.” Though big acts in the world of heavy music rarely came, when they did come Turbid North were selected as the opening band. The group opened for Darkest Hour, Godsmack (twice), Adema and their show with Drowning Pool changed their lives. “The guys in Drowning Pool watched us and said you guys are great but you’ll never make it if you stay here. They told us that the scene in their home area of Dallas/Ft Worth Texas was great and that we could really make a name out there.” The band worked full time as Lumber Jacks saving up all their money and a little over three years ago picked up and moved to Fort Worth, Texas.
The band entrenched themselves in the live music scene, making a sizeable dent in the Texas metal scene building a respectable audience. Leaving their original bassist in Alaska, the band came to the attention of Chris O’Toole, who recently moved from the UK to Texas strangely enough. O’Toole sent audition videos from the UK to the band and joined their ranks. In 2009 the original vocalist left to return to Alaska and his replacement was Brian McCoy, ex vocalist of Debri, who won the Ozzfest Battle Of The Bands in 2008. Today the band lives together in the same house where they recorded Orogeny in their home studio by Forkel. They have done multiple regional tours through the Texas and surrounding areas playing with such artists as Goatwhore and Skeletonwitch.
The band plans to embark on another tour this fall and a video paralleling the album’s story is in the works.
Members:
Chris O’Toole – Bass
Nick Forkel – Guitar
Brian McCoy – Vocals
Alex Rydlinksi – Guitar
Adam Rydlinski – Drums
Discography
“Under the Eight” (2008)
“Orogeny” (2010)
Links
http://www.myspace.com/turbidnorth
MySpace
Facebook
Last.fm
Twitter
11 Views
20:57:57 10/12/11
Turbid North - Live in Studio B of Mevio - Part 2 - The Hunter
[LESS INFO] 11 VIEWS | ADDED 20:57:57 10/12/11
Part 2 of Turbid North performing live in Studio B of Mevio in San Francisco For the full performance CLICK HERE
About Turbid North:
“I was reading a book of Alaskan survival stories and one of the stories struck me as an inspiration” Nick Forkel (guitar/vocal) of Turbid North relates the inspiration to the band’s new album “Orogeny.” “It was the story of this hunter who was trapped in the wilderness at the height of winter and things got worse and worse for him. His will to survive and his hunter’s instinct helped him to overcome this hell and the album follows that. It’s about overcoming the odds no matter how grim and the survival instinct we all have.” Self-proclaimed Alaskan mountain metal Turbid North’s sound retains the galloping thrash of early 80’s period of bands like Metallica and Kreator, the technical and abrasive shredding of modern death metal and even moments of bluesy and flowing solos reminiscient of Randy Rhoades period Ozzy. The songs are as epic as the storyline of the hunter and the fully painted artwork that adorns each page reflects the story. The artwork was done by Alex Rydlinski (guitar) and even contains a lost touchstone of metal, the bad-ass mascot (see pic above) “We call him Snow Death” says Forkel, “he represents old man winter throwing everything he can to make the hunter fail.”
The story of Turbid North parallels the hunter as they both have a strong drive to survive and meet challenges. The band started in North Pole, Alaska back in 2001 right near Fairbanks. Original members Forkel, Rydlinski and his brother Adam Rydlinski (drums) were accomplished musicians with Adam even spending time in the Alaskan Symphony Orchestra. “We quickly made it to the top of the Fairbanks metal scene” says Forkel “but there was really no where to go from there.” Though big acts in the world of heavy music rarely came, when they did come Turbid North were selected as the opening band. The group opened for Darkest Hour, Godsmack (twice), Adema and their show with Drowning Pool changed their lives. “The guys in Drowning Pool watched us and said you guys are great but you’ll never make it if you stay here. They told us that the scene in their home area of Dallas/Ft Worth Texas was great and that we could really make a name out there.” The band worked full time as Lumber Jacks saving up all their money and a little over three years ago picked up and moved to Fort Worth, Texas.
The band entrenched themselves in the live music scene, making a sizeable dent in the Texas metal scene building a respectable audience. Leaving their original bassist in Alaska, the band came to the attention of Chris O’Toole, who recently moved from the UK to Texas strangely enough. O’Toole sent audition videos from the UK to the band and joined their ranks. In 2009 the original vocalist left to return to Alaska and his replacement was Brian McCoy, ex vocalist of Debri, who won the Ozzfest Battle Of The Bands in 2008. Today the band lives together in the same house where they recorded Orogeny in their home studio by Forkel. They have done multiple regional tours through the Texas and surrounding areas playing with such artists as Goatwhore and Skeletonwitch.
The band plans to embark on another tour this fall and a video paralleling the album’s story is in the works.
Members:
Chris O’Toole – Bass
Nick Forkel – Guitar
Brian McCoy – Vocals
Alex Rydlinksi – Guitar
Adam Rydlinski – Drums
Discography
“Under the Eight” (2008)
“Orogeny” (2010)
Links
http://www.myspace.com/turbidnorth
MySpace
Facebook
Last.fm
Twitter
7 Views
03:58:48 09/25/11
Meet the new Freddie Mercury...
[LESS INFO] 7 VIEWS | ADDED 03:58:48 09/25/11
Throughout the day yesterday, my Twitter and Facebook feed EXPLODED with links and posts about my buddy Marc Martel of the band Downhere who uploaded a video to YouTube a few days ago which went viral. And by viral, I mean more than 1.5 Million views in less than 3 days! The video he submitted is a recording of himself singing a cover of the Queen song Somebody to Love as part of the Queen Extravaganza competition. Queen drummer/songwriter/singer Roger Taylor launched the competition only a few days ago in honor of the 40th Anniversary of the band Queen and offers the opportunity for winners to tour in the Queen Extravaganza Live Tour in early 2012. Music fans worldwide have suddenly discovered what we downhere-fans have known for years: that Martel's Freddie Mercury impression and likeness are beyond stellar. However it's not just an impersonation - Marc's actual singing voice lends itself not only to Mercury, but in the early days of downhere, he was often compared to the likes of Bono of U2 and even former DC Talk member Kevin Max. (I really should dig up a copy of Downhere's cover for U2's Beautiful Day ; my husband and I preferred it over the U2 version, but I know that's a bit sacrilegious to say out loud.) Marc has even ventured into singing opera in the past few years, which may seem a little farfetched for a rocker, but as one commenter stated, "This guy is the Swiss Army knife of singing!"
Though it may seem like videos go viral all the time, Marc stated in an interview with WGBL that the reporter he talked to from the Wall Street Journal on Friday said it truly isn't that common. Nonetheless, views today (Saturday) have grown to more than 1.8 Million total views, and strangely enough many fans including myself have noticed the YouTube counter seems to get "stuck" on the play count for several hours before jumping up again.
I have known the members of Downhere, Marc, Jason, Jeremy and Glenn, for about 10 years now, ever since a friend at Word Records introduced me to them and asked me to edit a promotional music video for their first album release. From the moment I first heard clips of their to-be-released debut until now, they have been my absolute favorite band. I've always told them that someday I expected them to get a big break like Christian rockers Switchfoot did in 2003 when their fourth studio album suddenly sold 2.6 Million copies after being marketed to the mainstream music industry. While this is certainly not the same story, Marc's new-found fame will certainly prove to enhance the awareness of Downhere . Over the years I have heard SO many new fans discover Downhere's music and say things such as "WHY aren't you all better known? This band has so much talent!" However, I also believe that God has used their journey to keep them grounded as the most down-to-earth set of performers that I have ever encountered. Not a concert goes by where they don't spend at least 30-45 minutes after the show in the lobby greeting every single fan who wants to meet and talk with them. This deep connection to their concert goers has established a grassroots fan base for them that has grown and sustained them as a band over a decade when many Christian performers have come and gone.
FINALLY an opportunity has arisen that will shine the spotlight on these guys who spent 9 of the past 10 years touring North America in a 15 passenger van. Media coverage by outlets such as The Wall Street Journal, CNN, Huffington Post , and the CBC to name a few, has just started. Whether Marc gets a chance to perform with Queen in early 2012 or not is yet to be seen, but many fans feel it would be a travesty otherwise.
Marc's Original Audition video: (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dREKkAk628I)
Amazing "Mashup" video with Marc and Freddie Mercury singing simultaneously: (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jPhkfk8EBsI
CBC interview: (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gV1-9TeMS4w%feature=share)
GREAT Radio Interview out of Chicago: http://twt.fm/491745
Celebrity Values article: http://celebrityvalues.com/marcmartel.html
CNN clip: http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/tech/2011/09/23/ctw-han-viral-videos.cnn?hpt=hp_c2
Marc Martel Facebook Fan Page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Marc-Martel/283556381655697
3 Views
01:39:35 09/09/11
Clash Of The Clueless Friedman V Santelli
[LESS INFO] 3 VIEWS | ADDED 01:39:35 09/09/11
We talk about the Villagers a lot on C%L , and you'll hear the term used in many progressive blogs as well. Tom Friedman is a high ranking beltway Villager and Rick Santelli is a free market CNBC/wingnut Villager. Remember, he did his rebel yell that helped kick off the tea party by blaming homeowners for the mortgage crisis instead of his Wall street pals who actually created it. However, Santelli told us that the economy was healthy right before the meltdown. Anyway, this is what you get when you put two Villagers together on one screen. The debate was about Social Security. Rick Perry, the new tea party favorite calls it a Ponzi scheme. Obviously Santelli wants to privatize it so he and his CEO pals can make tons of cash off of the backs of the middle class again and put their retirements at risk.
They'll attack it from any angle, even if it's an insane one. I hadn't heard that Social Security is like a chain letter before, have you? >
Texas Gov. Rick Perry stuck to his claim during last night’s presidential debate that Social Security is “a Ponzi scheme.” The media are getting a lot of mileage out of that sound bite, and the Ponzi-scheme debate is very much alive this morning. On Thursday’s “Squawk Box” on CNBC, CME Group floor reporter Rick Santelli, known to some as the father of the tea party movement, challenged New York Times columnist and Rick Perry critic Thomas Friedman on that claim. “I’d just like to know — you know, I was watching that debate last night, although it really wasn't a debate,” Santelli said. “It was like a weird press conference. But I would like to know — does Mr. Friedman think Social Security is a Ponzi scheme?”
That led to a heated back-and-forth between Friedman and Santelli: >
FRIEDMAN: No, I don’t think it’s a Ponzi scheme.
SANTELLI: Earlier in the show you said that we’re putting a burden on our kids that’s unsustainable . What’s the definition of a Ponzi scheme?
FRIEDMAN: It’s a program that made promises that it cannot keep in full and it needs to be fixed and reformed.
SANTELLI: Isn’t that exactly what a Ponzi pyramid is?
FRIEDMAN: I don’t think it is a Ponzi scheme as a criminal endeavor.
SANTELLI: No, no — forget the criminal side. You need more people to perpetuate a myth because if the people stop the myth is known to all. That’s my definition of a Ponzi scheme. Let’s call at it chain letter, a pyramid scheme. Isn’t that by definition what Social Security is? Take the legalities and fraud out.
STEVE LIESMAN: Why is it a Ponzi scheme, Rick?
FRIEDMAN: It is pay as we go. Ronald Reagan fixed it. Why can’t we fix it?
SANTELLI: What does Ronald Reagan have to do with my question?
FRIEDMAN: What does your question have to do with reality?
MICHELLE CARUSO CABRERA: We brought it up.
SANTELLI: You can’t decide that more people is the only thing made Social Security work. We have a real issue because many people in government seem to like to read your work.
FRIEDMAN: What makes Social Security work is fixing Social Security in terms of the population demands.
SANTELLI: I didn’t ask if we should fix it or not. I asked if it’s a pyramid scheme.
FRIEDMAN: Your question is idiotic. That’s what you asked.
SANTELLI: You’re idiotic. I’m done. I feel good.
FRIEDMAN: So do I.
Santelli is a Wall Street gasbag who won't ever need Social Security to live on when he retires and he's upset because Tom gets a lot of attention from his beltway pals. Screaming about bailouts is one thing, but calling the longest running social program a pyramid scheme or a chain letter won't set off waves of protests from the tea party since many of them receive it. Friedman at least understands that it's not a Ponzi scheme. However, Friedman also believes that the middle class and poor need to start sharing the sacrifice even more.
CEPR: >
On the first question, I suppose that Friedman and Mahbubani want to see taxes increased or benefits like Social Security and Medicare cut. Both of these steps would mean real sacrifices for low and middle class people, but how exactly do they help the recovery?
Remember our problem is too little demand. So we make people sacrifice by paying higher taxes. How does this increase demand? Or we cut their Social Security benefits or make them pay more for their Medicare. Again, this would imply real sacrifice, but how does this spur the economy?
Are there businesses out there who are saying that they will not hire or invest today because Social Security and Medicare are too generous? Will these businesses decide to hire more workers and expand their business if the government cut these benefits?
In more normal times, there was at least a plausible argument that this could be the case. The story would go that reducing the deficit would lower interest rates, thereby encouraging businesses to invest. (Actually most research shows that investment is not very responsive to interest rates.) However, with interest rates already at post-Depression lows, it is difficult to envision them going much lower, nor that there would be much additional investment even if they did. In other words, Friedman and Mahbubani seem to be calling for pointless sacrifice.
The second part of the story is who they want to sacrifice. The top 10 percent of income distribution received the vast majority of the gains from economic growth over the last three decades. A grossly disproportionate share went to the top 1.0 pecent and the top 0.1 percent. It might be reasonable to expect that the big gainers over this period would be the ones who should be doing the sacrificing.
But not in Thomas Friedman's world. In his world, sacrifice must be shared equally. Those who are incredibly rich and those who are barely getting are both called upon to make sacrifices for the greater good. That's Thomas Friedman justice.
Friedman happens to be a very wealthy man. (h/t Atrios )
