Like William Shatner and Henry Rollins awesome duet from a few years back, every time I see a presidential candidate talking I just want to yell, “I CAN’T GET BEHIND THAT!”
I really like the idea of Hillary and Barak running this year. I think we need that kind of diversity, but I don’t kid myself for one minute that there is a snowball’s chance in hell that they could win… even if I wanted them to. I really get disgusted with the Hildabeast because she is such a politician… She’s exactly what’s wrong with politics. She looks at her audience and calculates the best words to say and tells people what statistically should go over well. She hasn’t said anything that sounded all that original or great to me anyway.
If Hillary was just another white guy, would we really care about her campaign? What would be remarkable about her then?
I also seriously doubt the security of masculinity in this country to handle a woman president. Furthermore, it’s probably worth keeping in mind that we’re having serious issues with parts of the world that are very oppressive to women. I don’t see how electing a woman president is going to help our causes. What’s going to happen when they try to make the president of the United States wear a fuckin burka or a head wrap or whatever? Someone is going to have to cave… either we’ll tell them to fuck off, or she’ll wear it and the feminists over here will go fucking berserk!
Honestly, I love Bill Clinton. At least now. When he was president, he pissed me off all the time. I don’t remember much what for… mostly the bombings he did here and there, and the other usual politics and bull-shit policies that every administration has carried out over the past 40 years or better. However, since he’s been out of office and opened up a little more (and the nearest comparison I have to him now is W) Bill is my man! He spoke at my wife’s RIT graduation this May and I hung on every word. He was awesome. I’d re-elect him… seriously. But I just can’t dig his wife. I don’t see much good she’s done for our area either, being a Senator from NY.
Barak doesn’t seem to suffer as much from the politics as usual speaking game. However, he really looses me when he starts talking about Iraq. Why is it not clear to anyone that we need to get the hell out of that place and move on? – Wait! I didn’t mean that… don’t move on… next week we’ll be in Iran.
Honestly though, I haven’t heard anything from him either that made me freak out for him. I was very excited for him to run because I wanted him in there to shake it up a bit… But he’s been a far safer candidate than I though he would be. It makes sense because he’s obviously trying to get elected. But that’s the problem with politicians… they’re always trying to get elected. It often keeps them from saying anything honest and true. Sometimes the truth hurts people’s feelings, and I respect a politician who tells those people to fuck off because what they’re saying is true.
The other elephant in the room is the black thing. Unfortunately, the way our country is I just don’t see it happening anytime soon. I work with people who refer to Martin Luther King, Jr. day as James Earl Ray day. Something tells me the racist assholes in this country aren’t ready for a black president.
Honestly, I don’t see what’s so great about Obama. If he was a white dude, I don’t think there’d be as much fuss about him.
Call me old fashioned, but I kinda believe a person should be judged on their merits and their brains and not on the color of their skin, or what they’ve got between their legs. Saying something like that pisses a lot of people off, but you know what? I don’t really give a shit – because it’s true. I know people who aren’t white males that agree with it too.
Since Al Gore won’t run (and if he did, an army of closeted Bushies would come out with their fangs ready to strike) that leaves John Edwards. The safe, nice looking, southern white male. He’s got enough ideas that are on par with what the left is thinking, but he’s not a radical. He’s acceptable. He’d be way better than Bush. Most of us got to know him a bit in ’04 and based on that, I think he’s really got a shot if he makes it to the end. But that doesn’t mean I think he’s the best person we could find.
I sure as hell don’t support any of the leading republican candidates. I’d rather not vote.
So that leaves me with the 2nd and 3rd tier candidates. The people who say what’s on their mind… the crazy bastards… the people who usually say shit so freely that it knocks your wind out. However, it’s these people… with nothing to loose – the people like Bill Clinton and Al Gore now that they’re not seeking office, that feel free to actually say shit that is true. They say things that they really think. I can’t believe they’re actually saying some of this stuff sometimes – and I’m actually getting giddy like a school girl because I agree with them.
Isn’t there something American about liking the underdog? Do I need my head examined for liking Dennis Kucinich, Mike Gravel, or Ron Paul?
These people are running against the odds… using their runs to call out the other candidates and the rest of us – the voting public. They’re out there talking about how fucked up everything in this country is. They’re not afraid to tell us what they believe in. However, unlike Bush, they’re actually right about a lot of what they’re saying. They can back up their statements with facts and education. They’re actually saying something with substance.
What kills their shot is that they aren’t that good looking, they’re often dorky, and they don’t have a lot of money for their campaigns. They’re nerds.
I’ve said it before – most of the reason that things are screwed up over here is because nobody cares enough to take action themselves. We don’t want to think hard and figure out our problems for ourselves. So we expect these politicians to do it for us. Let them figure it out while we drool on ourselves and watch lame shit on TV.
But I’ll tell you something, when I was in high-school, there were a few classes that I didn’t really like. I didn’t want to do the work to find out the answers to my problems myself. I’d often cheat off other people or copy someone’s notes. I wasn’t looking to the kids in class with the most money, the best looks, the novelty of being an intelligent woman, or an African American… I was just looking for whoever had the best answers or the best ideas… the smartest people I could find…
The Nerds.
Seriously folks what’s technology got against guitars?
Years ago it was the growing popularity of disco, techno, electronic – dance musics in other words that seemed to be making guitar playing about as hip as sitting on the porch on a Friday night and whittling.
But everything in life operates on a curve… everything swings to and fro like the pendulum of an old grandfather clock. Guitars – and more importantly, guitars played in all kinds of styles became hip again in the last 10 years. From folk to shred… even rappers have guitars sometimes. That’s what makes shitty bands like Nickelback able to have a job.
A few years back a friend of mine who is a terrific drummer (only he barely ever plays so he suffers from being rusty pretty bad) got into this game called “Guitar Hero.” He was really good at it. He spent hours playing it. Because I can actually play a real guitar pretty well, it was assumed by him that I’d kick ass at it.
So finally one day I’m at a house party with all these “kids.” I call them kids because even though I’m only 25, I’ve got a 5 year old son and a full time job. There is a disconnect. I have a lot of responsibilities, and most of the time I’d probably get along with their parents just as good if not better than them. In other-words, I’m an old fart.
So in the midst of all the drinking, laughing, getting stoned etc. that is going on, I’m handed a video game controller that looks like a little guitar with buttons instead of strings. Now it couldn’t even be a ton of little buttons in six rows (like strings) spaced out like frets… I might be able to play something like that. No, just 5 big plastic multicolored buttons and a weird paddle thing that you’re supposed to strum.
He picked out songs that I like by Cream, Hendrix, SRV and know how to play… On easy mode I totally sucked. It was too slow and out of time. On Expert, I couldn’t hang with my fretting hand. “Where’s the fucking strings? How do you bend?” I couldn’t even play a Ramones song, which by the way I love The Ramones, but it’s all just strumming chords for the most part. It was hard on that game. Hard because it’s so different.
People, let me tell you… I fucking hated that game. I felt like an ass-hole. It’s aggravating to know you can play these songs in real life – something that used to make people like you at parties and was always a sure fire way to pick up the ladies. (Well, I’m married, but it’s nice to know if you still got it…) I bet you anything, no chicks will dig you because you’re good at a video game.
Now there is this Guitar Hero III craze. They’ve even got tournaments going on for Christ’s sake! The zone has been calling me, trying to get me to play a gig at a GH3 event in Farmington. Then there is this game, Rock Band that also lets you drum and play bass and even sing.
The last straw was last night – I’m watching TV and there is a commercial with people sitting around, singing Sublime to a kid “strumming” over the screen of a little hand held device.
It’s all fine if this stuff is going to turn people on to real bands and playing real music again. It’s great if you get into these games as a young kid and then decide you want to play the real thing. But I’m scarred that this isn’t going to be the case.
I hate to come down on anything that gives people a laugh or a good time in today’s world. There’s so much to be worried or depressed about that a little escape into your dreams of rock stardom is pretty cool. I just feel like it makes a joke out of the whole thing. You can totally screw up but if you use your “star power” by doing some stupid stage tricks and moves people will eat it up. (Well, that’s probably pretty accurate now that I think about it.)
All I know is this: I begged and pleaded for a guitar. My parents spent the most money they’d ever spent on me for a holiday to buy me my first guitar. A $200 acoustic on top of other presents. I played the shit out that thing. In 8 months I was begging and pleading for an electric. I took whatever money I had at the time and my Dad, seeing that I had applied myself to something and actually learned how to play a bit, took me to the HOG for my birthday in August and helped me buy a Mexican strat and a little practice amp for probably $400. From there it just got more and more expensive, but I kept getting better to help justifying it – to a point anyway.
I used to lock myself in my basement room and play guitar for 12 hours a day. On school days, I’d play before school, and then as soon as I got home I’d play till dinner. Then if I ate, I’d go back to playing till I fell asleep with the guitar. I’d play in front of the TV… I’d play on the toilet. I’d just play and read guitar magazines and play and play and play. Once I got to play with other people and have the sound of a band it was like magic. “Dude, we just sounded like that song!”
I never took any lessons. I taught myself – and that shit was a lot of work. The hardest part was knowing that you suck and it’s going to take you a lot of time to learn things and be able to play songs. I tried to teach a few people once and it was a pain in my ass because they didn’t want to learn anything. They didn’t want the theory or the why… just “teach me this song.” For people like that, guitar hero is probably amazing.
My point is for all the time people like my buddy spend playing the video game, they could buy a cheap guitar and learn how to play the real thing. But it’s too much work for most people. It hurts their fingers or something.
Part of me wants to take that gig at the Guitar Hero 3 thing in Farmington, so I can go out there and fucking smoke everything I touch for 2 or 3 hours. Play every part of me off… play till I’m bleeding (hey it’s happened) and the sweat is burning in my eyes… my arms and legs are like jello… till I have nothing left and my strings are all broken.
Then I’d turn to the microphone and say, “See what you could do if you put down the fucking video games and picked up a real guitar?!”
It would be cool in a cheesy, Steven Seagal kind of way. Hopefully I’m totally wrong and in a few years the next amazing guitar player will emerge from the unknown and say, “I picked up the guitar after playing video games like guitar hero and rock band. It made me want the real thing.”
It could happen… and monkeys might fly out my butt.
Excuse the lame title, but the point I’m getting at is if you haven’t made it out to see the Varnish Cooks yet – get out there now!
The Varnish Cooks are an old time String band based right here in Rochester, NY. For more info on them and to learn a bit more check out their web sites: Varnish Cooks or the site every band is nuts to not have since they’re free: Varnish Cook’s Myspace page.
After a pretty decent burger at Red Robin I took the family up to House of Hamez to see the Cooks along with the Powder Kegs, who I bet were awesome – but having a 5 year old meant I didn’t get to stay for the whole show… I did manage to use my son to get us some seats though!
First of all, House of Hamez is in fact, one of the best small rooms to play an acoustic show in Rochester. Formerly known as Daily Perks, It’s barely 4 months into it’s run as a new business. It’s a place a lot of us musicians feel has a lot of potential, even as Perks.
They hired a sound guy who although he’s a bit quirky and out there, does an amazing job. He told us he custom built the PA speakers and really has put some thought into making that room sound good. He also – get this – stays at the sound board while there is music being made, taking his headphones on and off all night and monitoring everything with the visual aid of some computer sound recording program. I know from personal experience, he’ll do that same thing even when you’re playing to an empty room.
But last night was no empty room at all – something I’m sure the owner, James Rowe took notice of… Hamez was so packed that they had to turn people away! And get this… some people were waiting outside so that when a few people would leave they could get in! I’ve never seen anything like it.
I’m guessing a lot of the draw was for the Powder Kegs, as they’ve been blessed with some exposure since they won a contest on NPR’s “A Prairie Home Companion.” I saw a lot of people in attendance that were probably in their 60′s or older – people who were amazed out loud at the talent of the opening act – The Varnish Cooks.
But there was also a good amount of young faces in the place, besides my wife and I. I hear that most Cooks shows have a very good turn out. Probaby because there aren’t a lot of people playing this kind of music – playing it well anyway. It’s a niche that seems forgotten most of the time.
“John,” you might ask, “where did you hear about the Varnish Cooks?”
Well, I have this love for the music and respect for the life boldly led by one of Rochester’s Gems, Gregory Paul. Greg is a local musician, artist, poet – a renaissance man in the truest form. This is what he does. Constantly playing gigs with different musical projects or having his artwork in one of the local galleries, he doesn’t go to work in some factory every day to keep up the appearance of a normal life. He’s free of all that – a blessing and a curse, but none the less, people like him are essential to the artistic side of the City of Rochester.
GP recently joined the Cooks and was very excitedly talking about the band to my friend one night at the Lux Lounge. Great name, cool posters, old timey string band, and Greg is in the band now? I’m fuckin’ there man! And I’m so glad we went because they killed it up there. My wife liked it too, which just completes the experience for me.
The thing about the cooks is that they oozed realness from the stage. None of them were mind blowing or shredding up their on banjos or whatever. I saw Ricky Scaggs open for Wille Nelson this summer and it was great – but that band is made up of people who are recognized as the best players – period. They were jaw dropping, but it was almost too good.
The Varnish Cooks were just some real, local dudes playing with feeling and they were still amazing to anyone who’s ever tried to play any of the instruments up there. Ben Proctor the Banjo player was pulling out some great stuff, picking with a fever and pulling some bluesy bend offs. Greg Fair on mandolin was chunking away at his side and providing a little background info before each tune. Ryan Griffith, the bass player was entertaining as hell for me anyway. He was huffing and puffing and rocking back and forth – playing the stand up with his whole being. And there’s no frets, so that already makes you good in my book.
The vocals were great although mic placement might have been better if centered more – but that’s me being picky, and the band looked like you’d want a group like this to look. No flashy suits, no bare feet, overalls and straw hats, they just looked like real guys.
But the neatest thing to see was Greg Paul taking a supporting role. In his solo music, Gregory Paul is up there, pushing sonic boundaries, creating all this sound as one man and a guitar or banjo and creating a very surreal and often reflective mood while his voice floats high in the air, tackling lyrics which are often comprised of poetry and prose. The guy is deep and it shows in his music and writing. Some people love it and others don’t understand it or find something they just don’t like about it… His solo music doesn’t have mass apeal in otherwords, and as much as we artist types feel proud of that fact when it applies, inside it can be rather crushing to not have people like your art. GP has played the game long enough where he’s pretty calloused to this, or at least he says he is.
In the Varnish Cooks though, he’s taking the roots of his music to the forefront. Whatever it is inside him that makes him play old traditional covers and Hank Williams songs during his solo shows is allowed to stretch it’s legs and breathe with the Cooks. You can tell he’s having fun, and as I looked around at a packed ass house where people were almost sitting in each other’s laps to be there, it seemed he was getting a well deserved taste of recognition. And sure, it’s not singular, it was a general feeling towards the whole band – but I think that’s what all of them are looking for. (Varnish Cooks philosophy)
Good times, great music, a sense of pride playing American roots music, voices in harmony singing out… the music is happy and sad, beautifully simple but terrifyingly complicated at the same time – it’s about as real as life is, and last night the Varnish Cooks drove it home.
