(no subject)
Wow, it's been almost a month since I posted, and what a month! I'm going to give the condensed version:
-during the past couple of weeks I've had various people come into town to visit, and good times were had by all, if I do say so myself :) Gifts were exchanged, parties and get-togethers were had, cupcakes were baked, birthday money was spent. A trip down to Greensburg for a party at Tina's house led to some crazy toll booth irritations, and long story short, 1) I now owe PennDOT $26, and 2) I resolve to return to my lapsed habit of carrying an emergency supply of cash on me at all times, either that or my checkbook.
-I didn't do anything particularly special for my birthday that was specifically "a birthday party," but I had fun times with friends over that weekend anyway, and I watched Stardust, which I've decided is now my birthday movie.
-I had a super-enjoyable time with Mike and Tara to see Mary Fahl play at Club Cafe! I can now say that I have seen all of October Project play at Club Cafe--only, not at the same time ^.^; The performance was bare bones, really: just Mary Fahl and an acoustic guitar. But I've come to realize that she is the only artist I can think of for whom the primary draw, for me, is her voice. She could sing the friggin' phone book and manage to break my heart. That being said, she only sang a few familiar pieces from the OP days and from her first album, but managed to hit most of my favorites: Bury My Lovely, Ariel, Ben Aindi Habibi. The only one from "Falling Farther In" that she sang, if I remember correctly, was "If I Could." Most of the rest of the songs she sang were newer stuff, like "Johnny and June" and my personal favorite from the evening, "Gonna Be Alright," which I am so hoping will be on her new album! And then, for all of us dedicated Fahl fans, she had a rare never-to-be-officially-released album, which was a cover of Dark Side of the Moon. It was $40 for a copy, but again, it's a rare collector's item, she signed it, and the only other copies floating around out there are on eBay for $200 a pop.
Also, Mary Fahl was super nice in person and was very thoughtful when I encouraged her to do a cover of "Into the West," which I think would suit her vocal style and range perfectly. Here's hoping!
From a critical perspective (I know, right?) I have to say that Fahl's lyrics writing ability isn't quite as powerful as Julie Flanders' from OP. There are moments of inspiration (which is one of the reasons I particularly love "Gonna Be Alright") but overall it is not as consistently impressive. That being said, Flanders is a high standard to be compared to, so this is really a minor quibble in the grand scheme of things. I had a great time, Fahl's voice was incredibly powerful, I almost cried on multiple occasions from overdosing on sheer-beauty-of-it-all.
She commanded the room. When she sang, the place was utterly silent. She is that kind of singer.
-In other news, I participated in my first-ever flash mob! It was a giant pillow fight at Flagstaff Hill, which would have been followed by How to Train your Dragon, but apparently they couldn't get ahold of the DVD which hasn't been released yet, so they showed Ghostbusters instead. Adam, Cynthia and I decided not to stick around for the movie, but went back home and hung out with Brian, who was on-call and therefore chained to the apartment.
But the pillow fight itself was really fun! It wore me out in a few minutes, but it was worth it! I even wore pj's for the occasion :) The best part was when a girl with a lion plushy noticed my dragon puppet (I brought Chester along), and Chester introduced himself to the lion, and the lion introduced himself, and they bowed, shook hands politely and then it was "Have at you!" with shocking intensity.
Life has been pretty good, all things considered. I've been reading a lot of good books and graphic novels. The weather is finally cooling down, which means I can actually spend time outside and not die! Not dying is always a plus. Brian and I also caught Scott Pilgrim vs. The World in the theaters, and it was fabulous! I recommend it highly to anyone who has grown up with arcade games and/or a Super Nintendo.
-during the past couple of weeks I've had various people come into town to visit, and good times were had by all, if I do say so myself :) Gifts were exchanged, parties and get-togethers were had, cupcakes were baked, birthday money was spent. A trip down to Greensburg for a party at Tina's house led to some crazy toll booth irritations, and long story short, 1) I now owe PennDOT $26, and 2) I resolve to return to my lapsed habit of carrying an emergency supply of cash on me at all times, either that or my checkbook.
-I didn't do anything particularly special for my birthday that was specifically "a birthday party," but I had fun times with friends over that weekend anyway, and I watched Stardust, which I've decided is now my birthday movie.
-I had a super-enjoyable time with Mike and Tara to see Mary Fahl play at Club Cafe! I can now say that I have seen all of October Project play at Club Cafe--only, not at the same time ^.^; The performance was bare bones, really: just Mary Fahl and an acoustic guitar. But I've come to realize that she is the only artist I can think of for whom the primary draw, for me, is her voice. She could sing the friggin' phone book and manage to break my heart. That being said, she only sang a few familiar pieces from the OP days and from her first album, but managed to hit most of my favorites: Bury My Lovely, Ariel, Ben Aindi Habibi. The only one from "Falling Farther In" that she sang, if I remember correctly, was "If I Could." Most of the rest of the songs she sang were newer stuff, like "Johnny and June" and my personal favorite from the evening, "Gonna Be Alright," which I am so hoping will be on her new album! And then, for all of us dedicated Fahl fans, she had a rare never-to-be-officially-released album, which was a cover of Dark Side of the Moon. It was $40 for a copy, but again, it's a rare collector's item, she signed it, and the only other copies floating around out there are on eBay for $200 a pop.
Also, Mary Fahl was super nice in person and was very thoughtful when I encouraged her to do a cover of "Into the West," which I think would suit her vocal style and range perfectly. Here's hoping!
From a critical perspective (I know, right?) I have to say that Fahl's lyrics writing ability isn't quite as powerful as Julie Flanders' from OP. There are moments of inspiration (which is one of the reasons I particularly love "Gonna Be Alright") but overall it is not as consistently impressive. That being said, Flanders is a high standard to be compared to, so this is really a minor quibble in the grand scheme of things. I had a great time, Fahl's voice was incredibly powerful, I almost cried on multiple occasions from overdosing on sheer-beauty-of-it-all.
She commanded the room. When she sang, the place was utterly silent. She is that kind of singer.
-In other news, I participated in my first-ever flash mob! It was a giant pillow fight at Flagstaff Hill, which would have been followed by How to Train your Dragon, but apparently they couldn't get ahold of the DVD which hasn't been released yet, so they showed Ghostbusters instead. Adam, Cynthia and I decided not to stick around for the movie, but went back home and hung out with Brian, who was on-call and therefore chained to the apartment.
But the pillow fight itself was really fun! It wore me out in a few minutes, but it was worth it! I even wore pj's for the occasion :) The best part was when a girl with a lion plushy noticed my dragon puppet (I brought Chester along), and Chester introduced himself to the lion, and the lion introduced himself, and they bowed, shook hands politely and then it was "Have at you!" with shocking intensity.
Life has been pretty good, all things considered. I've been reading a lot of good books and graphic novels. The weather is finally cooling down, which means I can actually spend time outside and not die! Not dying is always a plus. Brian and I also caught Scott Pilgrim vs. The World in the theaters, and it was fabulous! I recommend it highly to anyone who has grown up with arcade games and/or a Super Nintendo.