Friday, January 28, 2005

There Is A Light That Never Goes Out

Last night wandered through the haze of running on 5 hours of sleep to our show at DC9 with the zeal of a proud father having watched his child win a soccer game, only at 2am on a schoolnight. Really, the buzz of doing something of value– in this case raising over $1,400 for the children affected by the tsunami– has carried me and then some. Jim and I played a more "rock" set (eschewing the slower numbers) and covered the prince of rock darkness: Elmo ("I Don't Want To Live On The Moon").

I remarked to Anne how I wish that every day I could do something fulfilling like the fundrasier, and she mentioned that if that were possible it would be exhausting. But really, I always end up doing things the only way I know how: like an insane idiot. Jumping right in feet first and worrying about details- sleeping, eating– later.

That being said, playing with Private Eleanor and Alcian Blue last night was a pleasure, honor and priviledge. I am only beginning to get Alcian Blue's nuances, and what they do blows me away. So dense and driving, yet intricate. Just as much, I am only slowly climbing out of social-awkwardness and genuinely meeting other bands. It's so strange, these people in other bands have the same motivations, the same passion, and the same interests to being playing in bands at roughly the same age, yet I somehow always fall prey to my own schisms. Not sure if that stems from my own, amateurish deification of all things music, or if it's some deeply rooted social anxiety, but I seem to rest myself somewhere close to slackjawed or googily-eyed and self-concious about whether I am coming across like a dick. It's the same thing that really prevented me from dating in college.

Funny? Maybe. Marcia Toms, where are you now?

Bundle up, baby it's cold outside.

Thursday, January 27, 2005

Massive!

Indie Rock Karaoke for the Children was booming last night… oh my! Attempting to cross the floor at 10:30 last night mid-song, I realized my efforts were futile, and started appreciating the crowd. It wasn't our usual faithfuls who come to our shows and support us in other endeavors, it was scene containing several circles of friends, all there to see one another bastardize and rock out songs some of us know, but we all love.

Part Karaoke and part DJ night, Indie Rock Karaoke Night for the Children really hit a nerve. Where else can you see Guided By Voices mimicked (with beer, flying kicks,mic twirls et al) side-by-side with straight edge anthems (with fists clenched in all of their marker X'd glory?) along with James, The Postal Service, The Ramones, Throwing Muses, and on and on? I'm talking vibe… it was on. IRKFC brings people together. Dare I say we're the model UN of Indie Rock?

We would like to thank everyone involved for helping raise $1,296.00 for OXFAM. It wouldn't have been nearly as fun had you not been there.

But that is only 1/2 of MFA's musical agenda for the week… join us tonight at DC9 for our show with Alcian Blue and Private Eleanor. Doors open at 9. We go on first, so please, do what you must.

Friday, January 21, 2005

The Post, Karaoke for Kids, et al

So we're in the Post for the Karaoke night. They put the emphasis on the fact that it's Indie Rock, we'd like to keep the focus on that it's for the children. We've put a concerted effort into getting our flyers out, hopefully it'll fly. Tom hit DC last night, Jim and I canvassed Arlington Wednesday night. I plan on making a sweep through Adams Morgan and Dupont tonight.

Have you been outside? DC has returned to "normal" after the cowboy hat and fur parade, but it's freezing. Bring on the snow. Bring it! I stood on the roof of my building watching the snow fall the other day… very zen. Be the snow.

Tuesday, January 18, 2005

Indie Rock Karaoke (for the Children)

Ladies and Gents,
Do your part… please. We are proud to announce our participation in Indie Rock Karaoke for the Children, a benefit for Oxfam International's Tsunami Relief Fund. We got together with our friends in LavaJet devised the plan. Please visit Indie Rock Karaoke's Site for more information. We will be your hosts for the evening, therefore, a massively entertaining night is in store. Big thanks to James at Staccato for helping us put this together at the last minute!

Pax,
mc

Tuesday, January 11, 2005

Hut Hut Hike

Jim in the hizzo. Loved the Galaxy Hut show last night. I had some cymbal malfunctions and I forgot how a song I played only 2 times before went, but other than that, the set went well. After the malfunctions I felt a little out of it, but I got though it with little damage. Overall, when things got going it was fun to be playing for a great group of friends in one of my favorite places in the whole world. Julie fed us Yeungling all night and Pink Noise rocked the house before us. They were a good example of how bands can blend modern sounds without sounding like a Radiohead tribute band. I hope they come through town again.



Cool, we were in the Washington Post.



Do bands need managers? I am mostly on the no manager side of things, but Pink Noise’s manger was very cool and picked our brains for places to play in Pittsburgh, Baltimore and DC. I guess if you are going to have a manager, pick one that does a good job! I think for the most part I do not mind doing manager type stuff, but most musician types hate it. Kim from Jawbox once said that bands that think they need a manager really need an accountant. That seems to be my philosophy. I like to be in control of where I play, so I don’t know if I would give that up to a manager. If we pick a bad place to play, I want it to be my fault.
Thanks to our friends for hanging with us last night. We do this for you... Ok. For us mostly, but for you too.

Thursday, January 06, 2005

Melatonin

Matt here. Sleep depravation is definitely my drug of choice. There is something about the bare minimum of sleep that gives you a slight edge on perception… if I sleep just barely not enough, I'm sluggish. When I sleep only a few hours, interrupted, my mind takes to a state where every thought is a staggering work of genius. I've written entire novels in my head only to have them thrown out when my concious brain takes over, being soooo smart (and well rested).

The fact that I have spent a great deal of the past two years alternately half-awake or half-asleep underscores this. A creative drought all but ended my previous band… now songs I started when I was 20 are being finished to the point of releasing. It's as if subconsciously I am sending myself back to the days in school when I would stay up all night just because I could, wanting to see what it would do to my capacity to function. The stakes are a bit higher now. I am also attempting this without the safety net of coffee. Don't try this at home kids.

We're finishing up work on our EP this weekend. Mark has really added a lot to the process, humor and a sense of adventure. I second Jim's note about working with people who are as into music as I am… we get the same vibe from Nick Anderson. By the way, I need to call Nick, we have a record to finish!

Your humble servant,
Silence Dogood

Monday, January 03, 2005

So This Is The New Year

Hey guys, Matt here,
Sorry for the lag of communique… I had to eat my way out of a coma, only to drink myself back into one. Luckily, with a little help from Arrested Development Season One on DVD, sanity has been regained. Or at least conciousness.

Please give whatever you can to the disaster relief efforts for Southeast Asia. The day of the quake/tsunami (evening here), I was having drinks with my good friend Ramsay who had just returned from a 3 month trip around the area. He and his girlfriend Kelly had opted to do some humanitarian work in the mountains of Thailand for the final two weeks of their trip as opposed to two weeks on the beach near Phuket. They returned home December 10th. I haven't yet talked to him since learning about the disaster, but it's nagged me that a few decisions later, they could have very well been in the wrong place at the wrong time. I am forever grateful.

Think about 9/11, then imagine that had happened at every major city on the East Coast. We're talking 125,000 people gone in a flash. I was reading The North Atlantic's blog at myspace.com/thenorthatlantic, and Cullen was mentioning visiting a juvenile rehab detention center making him grateful for loving parents. Post-tsunami, I am just grateful for everything. Generations are lost. They say 1/2 of the lost are children.

My mind is so jumbled with feelings about this tragedy, the scope of which I cannot comprehend. Just please give what you can… be aware that some organizations have reached their capacity, and that some cannot process your contribution for a few weeks if not months. This shouldn't matter as I am sure they could use the assistance.

Thanks… I'll try to lighten up a bit.