Record Store Day packs a heavy hit

It's like a kid in a candy store. 4.20.2013

It's almost Record Store Day and I can hardly wait, I've already ranked my personal list. One of my favorite days of the year happens to share this saturday with another counter culture event, 4/20. And, if you happen to live in the Bay area, San Francisco is hosting an event to celebrate Earth Day. Can it be, a day so filled with sensory overload, on multiple levels, recognizing different themes, that I can actually partake in each? Like the little engine that could, I think I can, I think I can...

This year's list is impressive and long. Some of the vinyl catching my eye ranges from east coast hip-hop legends, live folk recordings and reissues from rock 'n roll heavyweights. Here's a small sample of what's tickling my fancy.

Bob Dylan will be releasing a 7 inch with Wigwam and Thirsty Boots as the b side. Ready to Die gets a facelift with two 12 inch pieces of white vinyl. (R.I.P. B.I.G.) Meanwhile Public Enemy decided to drop a greatest hits on us, titled, Planet Earth. The White Stripes pay homage to Elephant, it's been ten years people, by giving each LP its own color variation. An EP by the Rolling Stones, a 7 inch Gram Parsons recording from 1973 with the Fallen Angels and a compilation of those who performed at the 1965 Newport Folk Festival are some of the other rarities on my radar. The Grateful Dead (rare cuts 1966), Fela Kuti and Patty Griffin also put out limited releases for record store day.

Go support your local record shop. See you in line at the Last Record Store. I think I can.

eightychoices.

Feliz Cumpleaños San Francisco

Happy Birthday San Francisco,

The City by the Bay

San Francisco may only be seven square miles but today it turned 163 years old. It's safe to say a lot has changed since April 15th, 1850. I for one am thankful to be a part of the greater bay area. I'm proud to call California home. San Francisco is blessed with both cultural and geographical diversity. It truly is one of the best cities in the world. So here's to you SF, may we always recognize and appreciate your grandeur. Cheers!
A happy resident, eightychoices.



I'd also like to take this opportunity to offer my condolences to those impacted by the violence in Boston. My thoughts are with all of those who were affected.

The Cardinal Rule

House of Cards

Congratulations Louisville, your play and perseverance were inspiring. In what was one of the most exciting championship games in recent years, hat's off to the Michigan Wolverines as well. Last night's final was immensely entertaining. We were treated to stellar play throughout on the grandest of stages. It was a game for the ages, in which everyone involved performed at such high levels with unbound intensity (sans Russ Smith, who played horribly). This was the game and the madness was in full effect.

Both teams had major contributions off the bench. When Trey Burke picked up his second personal in the first half, Shorty White (aka Spike Albrecht) went nuts and actually increased the Michigan lead. Not to be outdone, Luke Hancock (aka the bearded rain maker) came in and went bonkers, sinking his first four threes to bring the deficit to one. On the next Louisville possession the lead changed hands on what may have been the dunk of the year by Montrezl Harrel, served up by Siva (until Tim Hardaway Jr. unleashed one in the second half). By intermission the Wolverines recaptured a one point edge. Still my mind was buzzing with the two and half minute run in which the Cardinals rattled off 14 points.

Montrezl Harrel flying for the lob.

The second half had three primary characters, perhaps four. In my mind Peyton Siva and Chane Behanan were the difference in the final 20 minutes. The two of them were flat out playing man ball. Chane's effort on the glass epitomized the will to outwork everyone else down low, pure hustle. He was in beast mode and Peyton Siva was orchestrating both the team and the tempo. Not only does Siva work his ass off on both ends of the floor, he's also the calm within the Cardinal storm. He seemingly does what needs to be done, creating a frenzy while simultaneously staying under control. The guards of Louisville are absolutely relentless in their ball pressure. It's fun to watch and nice to know that some teams still get after it on the defensive end. Trey Burke had his game back on track too. The Naismith and Wooden award winner played his heart out. Time and time again Trey drilled clutch shots, in both half court sets and at the charity stripe. The sophomore point guard lead all scorers with 24. Let's not forget about Luuuuke... he ended up with an ultra efficient 22 points (5/5 from three, 7/10 from the line and only one missed field goal). Hell, Louisville might not have even made the title game without his clutch shooting against the Shockers of Wichita State. Hancock walked away with the M.O.P award. He registered 44 points, 5 assists, 5 rebounds, 4 steals and 0 turnovers during the final four. Not bad for a transfer who comes off the bench.

 Notorious M.O.P.

What a year for the college basketball junkie, I thoroughly enjoyed this march through madness. The games and the story lines were superb. Congratulations to the Louisville Cardinals, they earned this national title. Coached by the hall-of-famer Rick Pitino, the Cardinals won a third national championship for their university. Pitino also became the first coach to win titles at two different schools. Mad props to both teams, it was one hell of a display in effort and skill. Dare I say it had the feel of an NBA game. In my dream world everyone would return for another year of college, yep only in my dreams.



eightychoices.

April Fools

Hotlanta = Hoops Heaven

What a tournament, madness is most definitely the best word to describe it. Wichita State is, at least for this year, the best team from Kansas. My pick, the Orange of Syracuse, are playing the 2-3 zone with an almost mutant amoeba type level of intensity and movement. Michigan is in the Final 4 for the first time since the good old days of the fab 5. The Wolverines played amazing ball down the stretch to pull off one of the greatest comebacks I've seen in recent memory. Trey Burke is the tournament's M.O.P. thus far. And then there's Louisville, who is making a return trip to the Final Four. My thoughts are with their young teammate, Mr. Ware, I wish him the best. It was nice to see the Cardinals prevail for their fallen comrade. I have Syracuse over Louisville in the championship - the Big East going out in style.

Congratulations to the Orange, the Shockers, the Wolverines and the Cardinals.

Final 4 teams: Syracuse, Wichita State, Michigan & Louisville

Thanks for making this one of the most chaotic marches through madness in quite some time. I'm pretty stoked to see what unfolds in the Michigan versus Syracuse game. It's going to be interesting to watch the number 9 seed Shockers, full of talent and heart, go up against the overall number 1 seeded Cardinals, who pride themselves on defensive pressure, tempo and strong guard play. Let the Madness continue.    

eightychoices

ps. Happy belated Easter. Happy Opening Day too.

Heat Check

Tuesday Heat

Last night the Mystic theatre played humble host to Lotus. In my opinion lotus attacked this Tuesday night with serious heat. On a side note, the Miami Heat lost tonight for the first time since February 1st, that was 27 in a row if you hadn't heard. It will motivate them as a team, just as Lotus was motivated in throwing down for a smaller crowd of around 200 in McNears Mystic. Petaluma got a good one.

It was a lively scene regardless of the intimate number. Lotus had their vibe going and the crowd was pleased to move with it. It was clear that the fierce opener was simply setting the tone for a journey that had just begun. Multiple times I had these feelings of fantastic video game odysseys. It was as if everyone had just acquired some super ability or time device that allowed for us all to advance onward. In the first set we were treated to, intro to a cell which grew into golden ghost. I also liked kodiak, a new one. The second set was bananas. Harp kicked it off and then they uncorked a mikesnack which kept the crowd hyped through arupa. Sunrain was hot too.

Lotus at the Mystic

Here's a glimpse at the sets: 1) hammerstrike, intro to a cell > golden ghost, juggernaut, kodiak, let me in, wax   2) harp, mikesnack, bellwether > moonset > bellwether, arupa > sunrain, uffi, jump off  encore) cloud 9, break build burn

They only showcased three tracks from the new album Build, two of the three were to my liking. Their sets had a solid mix of selections from the albums, Escaping Sargasso Sea, Hammerstrike and Lotus. I do need to say however, that they played a song in the first set, prefaced by a comment from Luke the Knife Miller that, "this is an unreleased track." Maybe it should have remained unheard. They tried to implement a fake digi-voice that sang refrain/chorus type fluff, it was dull. I believe all artists have the right and obligation to explore and experiment, but this seemed to be in direct opposition to their more organic approach. With that said, they rocked the rest of the night. I know that they possess a great art, full of creativity and skill. They cooled down the Petaluma crowd with a two song encore (the last song employed a faux MC rap, it didn't resonate with me). Aside from the two blips it really was a funky work night reprieve. The music spread with energetic momentum. All of us in attendance were fortunate to catch this good time. Lotus is still on tour, give 'em a heat check.

eightychoices.

Orange Crush

My fortune cookie's prediction on Wednesday night read, "You will enjoy doing something different this weekend."

Point Guard for the Orange

I certainly did just that with a trip down to San Jose for the early rounds of March Madness. The HP Pavilion was hosting teams from the Midwest and East regions (I know that sounds weird). Those in attendance for the first session were treated to match-ups in the Midwest region, where the Billikens of St. Louis defeated New Mexico State. The second game of the day had a Pac 12 flavor with the Oregon Ducks beating Oklahoma State in a deadly 12 vs. 5. The Ducks might just be the best 12 seed in the field. I initially thought their seed was justified. However, after their win I am persuaded to think they may have deserved a higher seed. St. Louis and Oregon will meet on Saturday in the round of 32. The Billikens are a great mid-major team, with gobs of potential. That being said, GO DUCKS! My brethren from Eugene successfully converted me in college to adopt the U of O.

The second session kicked off with a 'neutral' site game for the Cal Bears as they faced the Running Rebels of UNLV. I expected the Rebels to showcase the up-and-coming surge the Mountain West had been showcasing. This game had lots of thrills, and of course a rowdy atmosphere due to the dearth of Golden Bear fans in attendance. The Bears came away with the win in what was a sloppy final two minutes of the game. There were far too many rushed possessions with poor shot selection and a couple of inexcusable turnovers. The most frustrating part, and perhaps most exciting, was the amount of free throws that were missed down the stretch. Cal could've put them away and the Aggies could have actually pulled within one and/or tied had they hit more from the charity stripe. All in all it was a lively atmosphere and the Cal crowd went home happy.

Mascot Madness

The final game of the day was a big reason we made the drive south. The Orange of Syracuse were pitted against the Grizzlies of Montana. I have nothing against the state of Montana or its campus. I actually love both. But the Orange are one of my longtime teams. We were there to root for 'Cuse. It was made evident pretty early-on that this was a statement game for Syracuse. As a hoops fan, they were so fun to watch. They are incredibly active on both ends of the court. Not only did they hustle and challenge shots, they made it incredibly tough for the Griz to get good looks, either by deflecting passes or running people off of their initial look. It was a complete joy to watch Brandon Triche's feet in action. Simply put, the 'Cuse zone defense smothered Montana. On the offensive end, they played within their sets and seemed to be totally cohesive and, for the most part, patient. They were so unselfish in their ability to get a better shot or an easier shot. Michael Carter-Williams was just surveying the floor and served up some tasty dimes resulting in short corner jumpers, corner and wing threes and of course, inside buckets and highlight lobs. Next up for the Orange will be Cal. In what is sure to be another 'home' game for the Bears, I expect Syracuse to build upon their impressive performance against the Grizzlies. The pace and intensity of Syracuse was leaps and bounds above everyone else. In what has become the final year for the Big East as we knew it, I wouldn't be surprised in the least if Jim Boeheim's squad made a deep run. After all, Syracuse, as well as most Big East teams, pride themselves on winning the single elimination games that only a tournament can afford.

75 years of Madness

It was a great day of college hoops and it should be noted that the HP Pavilion is a great site to watch a basketball game. It was probably one of the better arenas I have been privileged enough to experience. Also, the scalpers in San Jose are the best I have ever encountered. Not only are they easy going and organized, they're willing to hear you out and make a great offer. We scored two lower level tickets, twenty rows off the floor for half price. Thanks to the guys who hooked us up. Nothing better than celebrating 75 years of college madness in sunny California. If you're able to explore the city of San Jose, check out Barefoot Coffee and the Black Cat Collective Vintage Emporium. Both local establishments made me want their creativity and initiative to rub off in the north bay.

eightychoices