10 Favorite Albums of 2010...

So many critics have their year's best and worst lists, but I'm no critic, and most year end lists are a pathetic slop of opinionated, sometimes skewed views on mostly the same selected group of releases that have everyone talking. I haven't heard all the albums on all of these year end lists, and my opinion is just as worthy as the next person, so this is simply a list of my personal favorite albums of the year and why.

(11. Jack Johnson, "To The Sea": I know I said 10 favorite albums, but this one was too good to leave off, but I still liked everything ahead of it slightly better).

10. Cee Lo Green, "The Lady Killer":
With the year's catchiest and possibly most controversial single "F**k You" as well as a string of other head bobbing pop hits, "The Lady Killer" was the definitive R&B album of the year. The "Saturday Night Fever"-ish "Bright Lights Bigger City" opens the album with a bang, and when most R&B is stale or jumping the shark in auto-tune overtones, this had to be one of the ballsiest and soulful LP's of the year.

9. Band of Horses, "Infinite Arms":
The album's lead single "Laredo" has one of the best and catchiest riffs of the year, and the perfect addition to any road trip mix tape, along with another standout track "On My Way Back Home". The opening track "Factory" sounds like a"Soft Bulletin" Flaming Lips b-side, and I can guarantee is the most striking and powerful coupling of "An hour later" with taffy candy "The Now and Laters" you'll ever hear.

8. John Legend & The Roots "Wake Up!":
What do you get when you pair the Marvin Gaye of the 2000's with the E Street Band of modern hip hop? A collection of obscure vintage soul covers that are given new lives of their own in a prolific time. The early 70's Bill Withers Vietnam epic "I Can't Write Left Handed" is the album's defining moment in my opinion, highlighting Legend's and the Roots' most powerful combination of performance on the album. The album's opener "Hard Times" is like a soulful Jethro Tull track, and "Shine" is an original track that closes the album beautifully blending right in with the 1970's interpretations all over the rest of the album. With overblown egos prevalent in today's music scenes, two heavyweights laid the groundwork for one of the best collaborative efforts of the past decade.

7. B.O.B, "B.O.B. Presents: The Adventures of Bobby Ray":

Probably the best produced and executed hip hop debut since Kanye West's "The College Dropout" to me. There's no boundary between pop, rock, and hip hop on this album, and it's more impressive than Kanye's "Twisted Fantasy" in that it didn't take a nervous breakdown of Brian Wilson proportions and a period of exile to conjure up (as far as we know). It took Kanye 2 or 3 albums to get into the kind of experimental territory B.O.B. seemed to achieve effortlessly on tracks like "Don't Let Me Fall" or the biggest crossover smash of 2010 "Airplanes". "Lovelier Than You" and "Magic" are the greatest Andre 3000 songs we've never heard and it's really saying something when you don't even need a track with Eminem on the radio to move your debut album. With musical chops that don't need an elongated auto-tune experiment, as long as B.O.B. keeps doing what he's doing, he has the potential to take over where Outkast left off.

6. Mumford & Sons "Sigh No More":
This debut is filled with tracks that play out like roller coaster rides slowly building to a sudden rush of pounding folk codas which seem to be this band's identifying trait. They sound like a band plucked right from a neighborhood pub in the English countryside with brutally honest choice words, which brings a gritty honesty and beauty to this album. Never has a banjo sounded so badass and in the forefront as it does here.

5. Brandon Flowers, "Flamingo":

The solo debut of the Killers frontman matched up to the band's latest album "Day And Age" and easily surpassed their previous album "Sam's Town" with a distinct synth heavy sound. Some of these songs could have been top 40 hits in the 1980's, which make this collection of tunes stand out even more in the 21st century. The album opens with a haunting and honest ode to his hometown, "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" and continues with the pop anthem singles "Only the Young" and "Crossfire" which showcase the songwriting skills that have made the Killers a worldwide smash. The deluxe version of the album includes some bonus tracks, one of which may be the best on the album, a modern Johnny Cash sounding storybook "The Clock Was A Tickin'". On his solo tour, as an added bonus Flowers has been reworking some of his Killers hits such as an acoustic stripped down version of their definitive track "When You Were Young" and a version of "Losing Touch" that might surpass the original. If the upcoming Killers album has any shades or leftovers of "Flamingo", then it will likely end up on similar lists at the end of 2011.

4. Eminem "Recovery":

After his disappointing comeback album "Relapse" from last year, Slim Shady released what should have been his return from a long hiatus this year with his most powerful and definitive music since "The Marshall Mathers LP". This was the year's best hip hop album front to back, as Kanye West's album was more of a genre shape-shifter. Some of the best rhymes of his career come through on the Lil' Wayne/Haddaway unlikely partnering of "No Love" and even the weakest tracks on this album run circles around most lead singles on any top 40 hip hop album of the last 5 years. Where Kanye's formula for 2010 was overexposure and making an album as close to "Dark Side Of the Moon" as hip hop can get, Eminem went back to basics. He simply had Dr. Dre and a stable of other heavy hitting producers provide the backdrop of beats so he could focus on his rap "Recovery" that took us to school with the abstract and definitive rhymes that made him one of the biggest music acts of the new millennium.

3. The Black Keys, "Brothers":
This duo is to Akron, Ohio what the White Stripes are to Detroit, Michigan. Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney's latest LP follows their breakout album "Attack and Release" picking up right where that album left off. The lead single "Tighten Up" produced by Danger Mouse has all the Black Keys signatures; Auerbach's vintage blues vocals and swerving guitar licks, and Carney's ground stomping drumbeats. Other highlights of the album are the sing along "Howlin' For You", the lovey dovey "Everlasting Light", the ode to fraternal friendship "Unknown Brother" which pretty much serves as the album's title track, and the mysterious "Ten Cent Pistol". The Keys have evolved in their sound while never straying too far from their original formula. After opening shows on Pearl Jam's tour earlier in the year, they should be headlining arenas throughout the US in no time.

2. Kings of Leon, "Come Around Sundown":
This album didn't have a weak song on it, and blended the best elements of their previous 2 albums "Because Of The Times" and their breakout album "Only By The Night". A lot of people accused this band of selling out on their last album, which makes about as much sense as U2 selling out when they recorded "The Joshua Tree". Usually, that's how it works when a band makes a steady climb from hipster underground to top 40 radio, but that doesn't automatically diminish their music, that only means they're not churning out the same boring formula album after album. The opening track "The End," is fitting as it picks up sounding like something that they left off of "Only By The Night". The album's first single "Radioactive" is one of the only songs that had heavy rotation on the radio this year with the unconventional formula of a chorus that doubled in length to the verses. Then the album plows ahead with some of the band's best songs to date in "Mary", "The Face", and two songs that seem like a sign of things to come in "Pyro" and "Back Down South". With "Pyro", they've made a song as serious as "Sex On Fire" was tongue in cheek. And exploring their Nashville roots in "Back Down South" has conjured up a song that would be right at home at either a summer cookout or in open air stadiums. While critics poured over Arcade Fire this year, "Come Around Sundown" had the total package in what a popular rock album should sound like.

1. Ray LaMontagne & The Pariah Dogs "God Willin' And The Creek Don't Rise":
For Ray LaMontagne's fourth album, he captured a stripped down sound heavy on upright bass, lapsteel, with some banjo sprinkled in, that sounded like it was recorded in a barn...because it was recorded in a barn. The opening track "Repo Man" and the closing track "Devil's In The Jukebox" are as hard as they come on this album, and everything in between sounds like nothing else out there right now, but at the same time could have fit in being played on a freight train rolling through a mountain range at the turn of the 20th century. If you want to hear what the closest thing to the musical equivalent of a man losing his soul, it's never been captured better than on "Are We Really Through". LaMontagne brilliantly compares distant love to the current state of the musical airwaves in "Rock & Roll And Radio" and "Beg Steal or Borrow" could fit right in between "Tangerine" and "That's The Way" on "Led Zeppelin III". This album is a throwback but at the same time sounds like nothing you've ever heard before with a distinct voice that's immediately recognizable (think a softer version on Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys). With albums that keep getting better than his last, I'm sure the next Ray LaMontagne album will bring about more surprises that are just as easy on the ears as this one, maybe more so.

DVD Review: Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, "London Calling: Live in Hyde Park"

In an age where music is scarce at regular retail, music DVD's could be considered an endangered species. There is very little incentive for artists or record companies to commit to releasing any sort of video products when a channel called Music Television hasn’t played a music video in its entirety for over half a decade. However, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band's 2010 concert release "London Calling: Live In Hyde Park" swims against this current tide, and shows why these releases can still be relevant and worthwhile.

Shot in high definition video and sound, “London Calling: Live In Hyde Park” brings the Bruce Springsteen live concert experience right into the living room, minus the heavy ticket/concessions expenses. With a blockbuster setlist spanning over 3 hours, the epic scale of a Springsteen concert is given even more depth as the show starts toward the end of summer daylight, continuing into the night.

This incredible live document was filmed in the midst of the E Street Band's European tour in the summer of 2009. While headlining stadiums and festivals across the Atlantic, this one was the Hard Rock Calling concert in London's historic Hyde Park. The setlist is sprinkled with fan favorites such as "Badlands," "Born To Run," and "Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)," obscure gems "Night," "Johnny 99," and "Out In The Street” along with some unique covers, such as The Young Rascals’ “Good Lovin’” in all it’s Hammond B3 organ glory, and the most fitting of The Clash's "London Calling" which opens the show. Fellow New Jersey native and lead singer of The Gaslight Anthem guests on the 80’s Springsteen anthem “No Surrender” also. There is plenty here to wet the palette of even the most casual of Springsteen listeners and any fan of music or an appreciation of a live concert experience will get more than their money's worth out of this one.

Some added bonuses to the DVD are extra performances of "The River" from the 2009 Glastonbury Festival, and "Wreckin' Ball" performed exclusively at the band's residency for the closing of Giants Stadium during the same tour. The brilliant direction of Chris Hilson as well as the mixing and mastering of longtime Springsteen collaborators Bob Clearmountain and Bob Ludwig make this release a testament to why this format is still endangered but not extinct, showing that it is noteworthy enough to stand alongside the other albums in the Bruce Springsteen cannon.

Thoughts from the 51st Grammys...

Tonight marks the 51st Grammy Awards from Los Angeles. Here's some random observations and thoughts from the evening from my brain...

Note: My commentary picks up about a half hour into the show since I got home after it had started. I missed U2's show opening performance of their whacky, off kilter "Achtung Baby" sounding new single, "Get on Your Boots," but I'll surely Youtube it before the night is over..


A "Sign of the Apocalypse" moment: Who in Sam Hill let the Jonas Brothers onstage with one of popular music's most legendary performers, Stevie Wonder. Please, someone tell me Stevie was tricked into this, heavily medicated, or lost some sort of Super Bowl bet on the Arizona Cardinals. Say it isn't so Stevie. How could you let these musical children of the Corn butcher one of the funkiest, hop in your step songs of the past 40 years "Superstition"? Why, Stevie, why?

Jumped the shark/worst haircut of the night: I have been a big fan of Kanye West ever since he exploded onto the scene a few years back, first as the producer of some of Jay Z's biggest hits, then as he came into his own as an incredible solo artist. But Kanye is stuffing too much of his Kanye-ness down our throats as of late, and his uber-mullet hairdo tonight was about as stale as his overuse of Auto Tune music software. I was initially hooked by the uniqueness of "Love Lockdown" and "Heartless," but the biggest musical contributions Auto Tunes will go down in history for having created will forever be Cher's "Believe," and the mediocrity of T-Pain. There's a reason singers used to get signed based on their natural abilities, not needing computer technology to correct their tone and pitch...it's called talent.
Why was Morgan Freeman at the Grammys? Morgan himself answered my question-- he's friends with Kenny Chesney, who'd have thunk it. Any film Morgan Freeman is in turns to cinematic gold, so I'll give Kenny the benefit of the doubt based on Morgan's assessment of his good character.


Best fashion accessory: P. Diddy's lavender Member's Only jacket. Members Only jacket=good, Kanye's uber mullet=bad. I only wish I had the prowace and fashion presence to be able to pull off this nylon coat of yesteryear.

Deja vu moment: Coldplay looking like they scoured the dumpsters outside of Abbey Road Studios for the Beatles old "Sgt. Peppers" uniforms. At least the band was noble enough to admit this with Paul McCartney sitting in the front row when they collected one of several awards on the night.

If Kanye should stop singing, Kid Rock should stop rapping: In his multi-song medley, Kid Rock gave the crowd an old fashioned decadent rock performance reminiscent of the mid 1970's. He's got the chops to be a hard rock frontman, and should keep the hip hop on the shelf for a while. I've thought so since his great cover of Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Fortunate Son" ten years ago at Woodstock '99.

Katy Perry kissed a girl, liked it, and lost her voice: This bi-curious top 40 radio smash hit sounded off key while accompanied with the stage setup of a Shop Rite can-can commercial. By the sound of her performance, it's pretty obvious her vocal lack of talent was polished like pair of Prada shoes with the help of studio magic.

Queen Latifah can't fool me into thinking "Swagga Like Us" was a Rat Pack song: Kanye, T.I., Lil' Wayne, and Jay Z aren't the Rat Pack as much as they like to reference them in their songs. Last time I checked Frank, Dean, and Sammy never had Kanye's mullet, Wayne's tone-deafness, or a pregnant M.I.A. onstage with them. I'm usually a big fan of Jay Z and Kanye, but their hodge podge, inconsistently paced performance was so choppy the crowd wasn't even sure when to start applauding.

The Walrus was Grohl?: Dave Grohl pummelled the drums backing Sir Paul McCartney, and made us all remember that before he fronted the Foo Fighters, he was the Keith Moon of the grunge era providing the backbeat for Nirvana. I was surprised at Paul's choice to play "I Saw Her Standing There," as I'm a bigger fan of the later Beatles stuff, and was equally surprised that this was the only song he performed. His appearance fee must be up there with the Super Bowl commercial rates.
Robert Plant is still a Golden God: The frontman of Led Zeppelin picked up some awards with collaborator Allison Krauss with whom he made a great album that abandoned his hard rock roots for some bluegrass ones, "Raising Sand." Recently, Plant totally killed all rumors of a Led Zeppelin reunion saying there wouldn't be anything to gain from it. I'm glad he made this decision, as he closed the door for the band to become another Spinal Tap punchline like so many others that refuse to hang it up when their time has come. As much as I love Led Zeppelin, I respect Plant more as an artist now that he refused to just fold to the financial fortune he could have made on this reunion that would have been nothing more than a nostalgic revisit of the band's mid 1970's peak. They would never sound as good, so their legend and memories can now live on.


Jumped the shark/worst haircut of the night Part II: Radiohead's performance with the USC marching band. (Also lead singer Thom Yorke's Jonas Brothers haircut deserved mention alongside the increasingly popular Kanye uber mullet.) So, what's the deal with Radiohead? I mean, I like them and everything, but why does everyone hail them as the absolute soul saviors of all things music? Their musical peak, according to most music critics, "OK Computer," I find second to what I feel is their best album musically, their previous, "The Bends." I like "In Rainbows" as well, and "OK Computer" is more than OK, but I still think "The Bends" is their best album; and I'm not budging on that stance. Sorry if I prefer melody and modern rock fare to music produced on Pluto. I continue to applaud them for abandoning the ordinary though.

T.I. and J.T. proves much better than T.I.'s previous "Swagga Like Us" debacle: The best part about the Grammy's? Most of the premier artists get countless chances to totally redeem their sub par performances that took place earlier in the evening. "Dead and Gone," was a great performance by an artist I haven't had too much familiarity with other than his music on the radio, T.I. Accompanied by Justin Timberlake, it was one of the surprisingly better performances of the night.

The President of the Grammy's, Neil-something looks like Tommy Chong of Cheech & Chong: He then went on to introduce Smokey Robinson. So, a guy bearing striking resemblance to Tommy Chong introduces a guy known to the Motown-loving world as Smokey...that's some coincidence.

Performance we could have used more of: Keith Urban, B.B. King, Buddy Guy, and John Mayer playing "Bo Diddley" in tribute to the late great blues virtuoso was a hearty buffet of guitar. This was a great performance I wish had gone on longer than it did. Maybe by next year Lil' Wayne won't have to be onstage four more times than one of the Beatles to make room for longer performances by these proven acts. Hopefully Katy Perry's out of tune 15 minutes of fame will be over by then as well.

A "Sign of the Apocalypse" moment Part II: Gary "Lieutenant Dan" Sinise introducing Lil' Wayne in one of his half dozen appearances of the evening. Even he probably asked himself what he was doing at the Grammys. Perhaps his involvement in a film with one of the greatest soundtracks of all time, "Forrest Gump," automatically qualifies him.

As the show was winding down: T-Pain's George Clinton-inspired outfit made P.Diddy's lavender Members Only jacket look like an evening coat for a United Nations diplomatic formal dinner at the Waldorf Astoria.
Robert Plant and Allison Krauss sounded as good live as they do on their record: Plant's voice is aged, and galaxies away from the high pitched hard rock wail from his Led Zeppelin days. It's a different voice, not better or worse, but one that he's grown into and made more great and alternate music with. It was fitting that less than 2 minutes after their performance they collected the award for album of the year.

The show closed with a performance by Stevie Wonder: Because the show's producers realized how royally they screwed Stevie hours before by making him share the stage with the haircare product endorsing Jonas Brothers.

"I AM A GOLDEN GOD!"- Robert Plant from the balcony of the Continental Hyatt (Riot) House in the mid 1970's. Back in town for the Grammy's tonight, he may be repeating the same proclamation.

The Greatest Story Never Told..."Killing Bono"

The name of one of the best rock n roll authors is one that is as random as it is anonymous..Neil McCormick. The author of "Killing Bono," has written one of the most interesting, thoughtful, and entertaining books on the music industry or the entertainment industry in general that I've ever come across. It's title sounds a bit psychotic, and may disappoint anyone who has a disdain for Bono, world renowned frontman for U2. I picked the book up after finding the liner notes interesting. McCormick grew up alongside Bono and the other members of U2 as they went to school together in Ireland. McCormick had lifelong aspirations of becoming a world famous musician, larger than life figure who made music that transcended genres and generations, pretty much everything that Bono and the rest of U2 went on to accomplish.


The sad part about the tale is, with as much fame, success, and fortune U2 had, Neil McCormick had an equal amount of hard times, misery, and misfortune. All of this makes for an extremely entertaining tale. He hits just about any brick wall imaginable in the music business, and to make matters worse, one of his closest friends was simultaneously taking the world by storm. Bono called McCormick his doppelganger, a real life Bizarro Bono in the flesh, even himself admitting to Neil that the only way for his life to be set right would be by "Killing Bono."

Recently, I read the autobiography of guitar legend Eric Clapton because I'm a sucker for music biographies or other true stories in paperback. Clapton's autobiography however, was one of the biggest letdowns I've ever had as I made it a habit over the years not to read much unless I was really interested by something. Since I've started commuting via mass transit every day though, I've had more time to read, and all the time I wasted on Clapton's autobiography, I would have rather had reading McCormick's book again. I haven't lost any respect for Clapton as a musician, but as an author, his book painfully and just barely scratches the surface almost feeling like a cliff's notes version of the book everyone would have wanted to read. If you were thinking of this book, don't buy it unless it's at a garage sale, Clapton phoned it in. A 40 plus year career through the trials and tribulations of rock and roll decadence, and a guy who only scratched the surface of the music industry had an endless amount of more interesting tales to tell.
In reading McCormick's book, it feels like half U2 biography told from a luckless man on the side, watching everything go right for them as the whole world around him fell apart. In his failures as a musician McCormick shines most. His endless determination and conviction make the book comical but touching at the same time. He's a man with a dream, who won't give up on it no matter what. The fact that he constantly gets a figurative kick to the groin with U2's gradual rise to super stardom from their beginnings in the high school gym to selling out Wembley Stadium gives the book a style unlike any other rock n' roll saga. He gets cursed out by Sinead O'Connor, has nightmares about being abandoned by Bono outside the velvet rope, and gets ripped off by Adam Clayton, U2's bassist who sells Neil his first piece of junk instrument.

This book is also just as valuable to a U2 fan, since you're getting the brutally honest opinion of someone who grew up next to them. With a summoned typical biographer there's no doubt going to be inflated stories as well as untold tales. With an authorized biography, a band or musician has the control to leave out some embarrassing memories that they might want to leave in their inner most circles. With a unique and interesting person as McCormick telling it, you get brutal honesty along with an unmatched style. He's not afraid to tell you that Adam Clayton was the most maniacal of U2's members when they were growing up, in one case horrifying girls at their in home rehearsals in the early days only wearing a robe that inadvertently flashed them his own member. I'm also somewhat certain an authorized U2 biography wouldn't dare tell the story of how Bono was invited to join Bob Dylan onstage in Dublin for "Blowin' In the Wind"

but fumbled the lyrics like Ray Finkle trying to kick the Miami Dolphins a Super Bowl victory.

These are stories you couldn't make up, and the luck that they have been told by a guy with a unique and hilarious literary style is the same stars aligning in the sky occurrence U2 has had in becoming one of the biggest bands on the planet. His combativeness with Bono is hilarious, as are his many encounters with people from every depth of the music industry. This book would make one hell of a film, but odds are it could never be visualized nearly as fantastic as it reads. Neil McCormick's tale is one that comes along once in a lifetime, about as often as a monumental band like U2 comes along, perhaps only several times for each generation. The luck of this Irishman had it that he also had the writing chops to get it all down on paper for the world to read. Go out and read this book now. The quote on the cover by Elton John says it all: "The best book I've ever read about trying to make it in the music business."

Editorial: Another Candle in the Wind, Gone at the Top of His Game.

On Sunday night, Heath Ledger won the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor for his unforgettable role as the Joker in "The Dark Knight." He received the night's first standing ovation, and the film's director Christopher Nolan, accepted the posthumous award on Ledger's behalf.

When Ledger died last January from an accidental overdose on medication, I was unusually shaken by it. Perhaps it was his youth, or more likely my anticipation in seeing the most anticipated film of the year in my eyes, "The Dark Knight." Earlier that December, I went to see "I Am Legend" in IMAX just to get a glimpse of the first 6 minutes of "The Dark Knight" which was being promoted with it. You only saw Ledger for all of 10 or 20 seconds, but the anticipation was boiling over nearly 7 months before the film was due in theaters that July.

I don't recall how I got the news; I remember being at work, scouring CNN's website for information, at first thinking it was a hoax for whatever reason. I think my brother was the first person I told about it, as I knew his anticipation for Ledger's upcoming film was as heightened as mine. I got home in a daze, and watched various news networks for several hours, the most stunning sight was seeing the medical staffers take his body out of his apartment building where people had already flocked to. I can't compare it to the assassination of John Lennon in 1980, but seeing the images over the years of fans flocked outside of his home in the Dakota Building also in New York City, came to mind.

The last time I remember being this moved or stirred by the passing of a celebrity was when I was around my 14th birthday in 1997, when I heard in the car on the radio that Chris Farley had died of a heroin overdose, also ironically in New York. I remember it somewhat vividly now, it was Christmastime, it was on z-100 (back when I still listened to that station) and Adam Sandler's "Hanukkah Song" had just played. It felt like a cold dose of reality, or queasy feeling, not so much a punch to the stomach, but a feeling of unease, that these people I idolized on the silver screen were just as fragile as you or me.

Last January, I was revisited by this feeling, having been a fan of Ledger's work in "The Patriot," "Brokeback Mountain," and remembering the first film I ever saw him in, "10 Things I Hate About You." Here was our generation's James Dean, a tremendous talent, who we would never see come to his fullest potential, a sad casualty to the perils of celebrity and a life cut short.

Then, I saw "The Dark Knight" in IMAX on opening night, actually at the 3AM show with my brother since the midnight shows were long sold out. The crowd was buzzing, and one would have thought it was an 8PM showing, giving no hint other than checking your watch for the time that you could be labeled certifiably insane for seeing a film during the middle of the week 3 hours before the sun was due to come up.

I remember the feeling of the film, that opening sequence, the crowd cheering at the first glimpse of the Joker. Ledger became this character, as I had no recollection or memory of his death for the entire 2 and a half hours of the film. The sign of a brilliant actor, a performer who comes along only a few times in each generation that really changes the way you look at films; someone who raises the bar so high that you don't know if there's anywhere for it to go but down from that moment forward. I'm sure the colossal IMAX screen added to this effect, but I believe it would have been the same feeling regardless. An exhilarating witness of a great story onscreen, portrayed by an actor at his best, helping to redefine the comic book film genre. It started with the first film, "Batman Begins," but major awards buzz already surrounded the film, guiding this ship of a genre down a completely different path.

Then, as some of the crowd lingered during the credits, as my brother and I almost always do whenever we see films together, the first return to reality came with the dedication to Ledger and the stunt man who died during filming. The ride home and next few days were filled with excitement, remorse for what could have been, more excitement, and wondering if a film could get any better than that. We went into the theater in the dead of night, and emerged after 6 AM with the sun up, a surreal experience, fitting for this epic motion picture event. The daze of fatigue and deep thought, and disorientation engulfed us.

I returned to the theater 2 more times to see "The Dark Knight," once the next day, the official opening Friday, and again a few weeks later, to see it again on IMAX. Each time, for those 2 and a half hours, I was removed from the sad reality outside the theater doors, that Heath Ledger's swan song was playing out right before our eyes in that dark theater. But that's what great actors and great films do; they take you away from the world outside for a few hours, away from worries of families, economic crisis, relationships, education, work, and whatever else sits in the back of your mind on a daily basis. Heath Ledger accomplished this in his films, most notably "The Dark Knight," but now, part of the realities of the world outside the cinema, was that he was no longer here.

I came back to these memories today, when reading a post on slashfilm.com recalling this same sentiment, that compiled a list of the greatest final performances by actors prior their deaths, some timely, some untimely. Ledger made this list along with other cinema legends including John Wayne, Greta Garbo, James Dean, and Henry Fonda, and rightfully so. This sad tribute during awards season will hopefully continue with the Oscars, which he most certainly should be at least nominated for in the coming months.

Ledger has one more film yet to be released, "The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus," directed by Terry Gilliam, whom he also worked with on "The Brothers Grimm" a few years back. Ledger's work was not finished on that film as he was still working on it at the time of his death, leaving "The Dark Knight" as his last complete film. The fantasy based story left his character the openness to be portrayed in different forms by different people. Therefore, his part has since been taken over by Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and Collin Farrell, all of whom are donating their wages to start a trust fund for the young daughter Ledger left behind.

Link to the article at Slash Film: http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/01/13/john-wayne-leads-list-of-10-best-final-performances-in-acting-history/#more-18690

The Best Films to Watch This Time of Year...

(Simply my opinion, but these would be what I deem Holiday Classics, films that I try to watch at least once around this time every year, and some I actually watch throughout other seasons of the year also.)

"Scrooged" is an all-time favorite of mine, both around Christmas and even throughout the year. Based on Charles Dickens' classic "A Christmas Carol," this is probably the only film version of the story I can watch over and over again and never get tired of. Bill Murray plays Frank Cross, the ruthless head of a major TV network who gets a dose of reality when visited by 3 ghosts on Christmas Eve. Bill Murray brings his comedic genius to a role that is one of the least celebrated of his career, but still among his greatest in my opinion. Picture Peter Venkman from "Ghostbusters" with more of a chip on his shoulder, no ghosts or Stay Puft Marshmallow man, and Bobcat Goldwait.


"National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation" was the third film in the "Vacation" series, and by far the greatest. The simplicity of the story is what makes it so ironically great; the Griswold's don't go anywhere on vacation, but rather have their wacky in-laws stay with them for Christmas. Chevy Chase is at his comedic peak, but still gets overshadowed by Randy Quaid's Cousin Eddie who rolls into town in a broken down Winnebago with his wife, son Rocky with the lip fungus, daughter Ruby Sue whose eyes are no longer crossed, and the family Rottweiler Snot, who loves it when people rub his belly. Uncle Louis and senile Aunt Bethany also add to the Griswold family fun in this festive funny film.



"Elf" is a more recent film that has since become a Christmas classic. While it takes an unrealistic character and thrusts him into a realistic world, the film still works because Will Ferrell plays Buddy the Elf so convincingly and innocent. It's an original and smile-inducing film and a role that could never have been pulled off by any other actor past or present. It's as funny as Bad Santa, but without all the four letter words and Santa loving nymphomaniac.



"A Christmas Story" is the film that coined the catchphrase "You'll shoot your eye out" and came from the same guy who brought us the comedy classic "Porky's," the late Bob Clark. The world would never know what a "major award" could be personified as until this film showed us, in the form of a voluptuous leg lamp. It's also the only film that continues to be played for 24 hours straight on Christmas that I still continue to watch over and over.



"The Santa Clause" is probably Tim Allen's best cinematic work next to his voice over as Buzz Lightyear in the "Toy Story" films. In one of the oddest casting moves in the history of merry movies, Tim Allen is the first, and most likely only onscreen Santa to sport a mullet. When Santa falls off his roof, he is forced into the role of Kris Kringle in a film that maintains the level of innocence in "Elf" but falls just short of it's side-splitting comedy. However, this is still a worthy holiday motion picture.



"Gremlins" isn't a conventional Christmas film, but still has all the evidence of a holiday film: Furry critters, snow, Christmas carols, and a youthful Corey Feldman. My earliest memory of this film is how creeped out I was when Phoebe Cates tells the story of how her father died trying to come down the chimney dressed as Santa one Christmas. The traumatic effect of this is most likely why this film is still etched in my memory...and Corey Feldman.



"Bad Santa" is not only one of the funniest Christmas films I've ever seen, but probably one of the funniest films period I've ever seen. If ever there was a role Billy Bob Thornton was born to play, it was Willy, the safe-cracking, booze guzzling, manner-less, moral-less, and often homeless store robbing Santa poser. His character is the epitome of a person on their own self-imposed highway to hell, befriending a nympho bartender, overweight victim of bullies and his senile grandma along the way. This was also the last film performance of John Ritter, best known for his role as Jack in "Three's Company," and Junior's father in the "Problem Child" films.



"Die Hard" might not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think of holiday-centric films, but my list is comprised of films whose story is somewhat built on the notion of the Christmas holiday around it. "Die Hard" pulls this off from the start as NYPD Detective John McClane is visiting his ex-wife and children in Los Angeles but his ex-wife's company Christmas party is crashed by money hungry German terrorists. McClane brings the audience further into the Christmas spirit after killing the first terrorist, clothing him in a Santa hat, and marking up his sweatshirt in red marker with "Now I have a machine gun. Ho Ho Ho." He takes out the terrorists with some outside assistance and moral support from Reginald Vel Johnson who would shortly after go on to portray another famous police officer, Carl Winslow in the classic TV series "Family Matters."



"Batman Returns," like "Die Hard," is another obscure but nonetheless worthy pick of this list. The second film in the first "Batman" series had the Penguin and Catwoman pinned up against the Caped Crusader in the midst of Gotham City's busiest shopping season. Of all the things that have after all these years stood out and remained etched in my memory these are the most prevalent from this film; Paul Reubens A.K.A. Pee Wee Herman's cameo as the Penguin's father in the beginning of the film, Danny DeVito's portrayal of the Penguin as he was perfect for the role, and Christopher Walken as Max Shreck. Seeing this film in the theaters, one of the things that stuck with me were his hair and awkward vernacular. This was my first experience with Christopher Walken on film, and would cause me to always seek out more of these eccentric performances to this very day.



"Home Alone" and "Home Alone 2: Lost In New York" were the pinnacle of comedy in my childhood, only to be matched later by "Mrs. Doubtfire." These Christmas films were slapstick at its finest, a child's answer to the 3 stooges, and a brilliant yet simple story. A kid gets left alone at Christmas by his annoying family, neighborhood robbers try to break into his house, and he fights back with the best household booby traps since Data in "The Goonies." Without Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern as thieves Harry and Marv, this film would never have been so widely popular or deservedly great. Their chemistry that recalled such dummy pairings as Abbott and Costello, Laurel and Hardy, and Martin and Lewis, gave these films their luster and countless laugh out loud moments years before the acronym LOL was even conceived.



"The Nightmare Before Christmas." Is it a Halloween film? Is it a Christmas film? Well, it's got a character named Jack Skellington headlining it, but he does have Santa envy and the film is sprinkled with holiday cheer and musical numbers. The answer lies in the agent of this unique story, Tim Burton. Burton's dark themes portrayed in his other films of the period, "Beetlejuice," "Edward Scissorhands," "Batman," and previously mentioned "Batman Returns," simply give us the explanation that it's a Christmas film, Tim Burton style. The animation was visually perfect for the story, and before Pixar started the computer trend with "Toy Story." If this film were made ten years later than it was, it would likely have been rendered on a computer, but it would have lost its effect as its gritty claymation adds to its quality even over a decade and a half since it's original release.



"Jingle All the Way" gives us two things never before seen in a holiday film before it. A factory full of bootlegging Santas and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Coming out around the same time as the Tickle Me Elmo craze, Turbo man was the Red Ryder BB gun of this film. Arnold plays the underachieving Christmas Dad in this film (see James Caan in "Elf," Tim Allen in "The Santa Clause") who is challenged with the next to impossible task of finding his son the unattainable Turbo Man action figure on Christmas eve. With Leon the mailman (played by Sinbad) hot on his trail, and his neighbor (Phil Hartman) hot on his wife, Ahnuld faces a challenge he never saw with Terminators or Predators: bringing joy home for the holidays.

What does J-E-T-S spell? Inconsistent.

While nursing the consequences of a fun filled Saturday evening for my 25th birthday, Sunday's performance by the New York Football-less Jets could have given a sober 70 year old woman a hangover. For the past few weeks I've found myself looking desperately for the same team that manhandled the undefeated Tennessee Titans, and keep coming up with what looks like the same old disappointing Jets. They could have locked the division up weeks ago, but after disappointing losses to Denver and a horrendous 49ers team that was without Frank Gore for half the game, they continued their downward spiral yesterday. By some miraculous act of something otherworldly, they managed to score 10 points in the fourth quarter without even managing a first down. That's almost the equivalent of saying, they won the game even though the other team outplayed them...wait a minute, that's actually what happened.

Jets fans have the idiotic play calling of Bills coach Dick Jauron to thank for this half-hearted miracle that gave us an early Christmas present. Had Jauron called a running play and continued to give the ball to Marshawn Lynch (who the Jets couldn't tackle all afternoon), they'd probably have the win all locked up. I am convinced however, that Jauron did this to torture the soul of every Jets fan, including myself, who now have a renewed false sense of hope going into the last two games of the season.

The Gang Green go out to Seattle next weekend to play the Seahwawks, a team who barely beat the Rams yesterday, yet still nearly upset the Patriots last week. This is a game the Jets could very well lose, and judging by how they've played lately, have a 50/50 shot at losing. Jets play the Miami Dolphins in the final game of the season, which if both teams win next weekend will decide who takes the AFC East, and who gets to go home.

Games like the last 3 the Jets have played are the reason Brett Favre's beard gets a shade grayer each week (though he's partly to blame for their shortcomings this year) and may likely be his reason for actually retiring (again) after this season. I'd like to see Brett back (mainly because Kellen Clemens isn't our savior), but will not be angry or disappointed if he isn't. Eric Mangini is great at finding a game plan, and using it...for the entire season, even when it stops working or teams figure it out. Prime examples: They run the ball almost every time Leon Washington is on the field; If Brad Smith is in, they're going to some sort of ridiculous triple reverse option (Smith didn't play yesterday, and I think the team is better off with Clowney in. He's a faster and better receiver, and his name is Clowney.) They don't blitz anymore and wonder why Shaun Hill looked like the reincarnation of Joe Montana last weekend. Luckily J.P. Losman might be the worst QB on the planet, thus a main reason to why they won against the Bills.

Long story short (I know, too late.), the Jets, though they seemed to be the new and improved Jets at the start of the season and especially after the Titans game, are the same old Jets. Or as Mr. Hurley in "Big Daddy" called them, "The goddamn Jets." That's right, their horrendous shortcomings have been so bad in the 1990's/2000's that they get a shout out by a drunk old man at the Blarney Stone in an Adam Sandler film (If you saw the game yesterday you'd also notice Sandler was at the game, as well as Michael Douglas).

I really don't know where I'm going with this whole post other than to revoice what was once my former disdain for the New York Jets. I rewatched "Step Brothers" and "The Dark Knight" before and after the game yesterday in my day of lethargy, and both were more rewarding and fulfilling to watch than the Jets have been in the past 3 weeks. I hope this does not understate the greatness of both films, as it is not my intention for the overt crappiness of the Jets recently to be so dismal that it would mean watching "The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift" would also be more rewarding or fulfilling.

One more sidenote: what the hell is up with Chad Pennington? The guy leaves the Jets then unleashes 40 yard passes of the likes we have never seen? Must be the warm Miami weather loosening up his once linguini-like arm.

The Legend of Lennon Lives On...

Yesterday was the 28th anniversary of the assassination of John Lennon on December 8, 1980. To mark this occasion, Rolling Stone has done something credible and respectful, words not typically associated with the magazine this day and age. They have posted the complete interview Editor in Chief and Founder of the magazine Jann Wenner had with John Lennon accompanied by Yoko Ono spanning 2 of their 1971 issues. The interview is quite a lengthy read, but undoubtedly contains more insight and just as much relevance as anything you may currently read anyway.

Looking back at the former Beatle, he has a unique outlook on life many today can still envy and admire. Having been a fan of, and sought out information of the Beatles over the years, reading this interview shed light on some things I had not previously known. It also reaffirmed my belief that following the Fab Four's breakup, Paul McCartney's next band Wings might as well have been called Beatles 2.0. Ringo is portrayed as lovable but stupid, George as a loopy Hare Krishna with a catchy radio tune, and Paul as a power hungry puppet. He didn't think George Martin did much producing for them after "A Hard Day's Night," also an interesting revelation considering their abstract later period. Lennon also reveals his love for Creedence Clearwater Revival, disdain for Ike and Tina Turner's Beatles covers, and sheds light on the fact that anything the Beatles innovated, the Rolling Stones just copied 2 months later.

Even nearly 30 years after his death, my opinions have changed from some of his insight. This interview made me gain more respect for Yoko Ono, and should show people she can't be looked at as the reason the Beatles broke up. I also realized in reading it that it was a good thing the Beatles ended when they did. There was no room in the bloated scene of 1970's arena rock that saw such acts as Led Zeppelin, The Who, and Queen rise to prominence. The Beatles were above all that, and they were here just long enough and not too long at the same time. I respect his decision to get out of a situation where he felt there was no more musical growth and suffocation on his evolution as an artist.

"Gimme Some Truth" was an iconic tune of his, and this is what he gave the readers in this look into his private life, career with the Beatles, and his solo work. Seeing the recent documentary, "The U.S. vs. John Lennon" gives more insight to his steadfastness in America throughout the 1970's that shines through in this vivid picture of the man who doesn't believe in Beatles, but just himself. Every year around this time we continue to hear on the radio what is still, in my opinion, the greatest Christmas song ever recorded, "Happy X-Mas (War is Over)." Times like these that are so enjoyable are also saddened by the fact that this great artist was taken much before his time. With all the great music he recorded with and without the Beatles, we will never know what would come later in his middle age that never was.

Of all the musicians taken before their time, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Tupac Shakur, Jim Morrison, Kurt Cobain, Notorious B.I.G., Marvin Gaye, Jeff Buckley, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Duane Allman, and Brian Jones to name only a few, while Lennon had a larger body of work than most of them, I still feel today like some of his best work was still ahead of him. Where those artists were gone too soon, they had the candle in the wind mythos to their musical bodies of work. Each were best suited for the time they had here, did the most with it, and may have just wilted away musically and never had as full a legacy. John Lennon, on the other hand, was a completely different story. He had been to the mountain with the Beatles, chopped it down with solo songs like "Instant Karma," and "God," then solidified his own legacy with iconic songs like "Imagine" and "Working Class Hero" which spoke to generations past, present, and now future.

In 1975 following the birth of his son, he took a 5 year hiatus from music, returning with the comeback album "Double Fantasy" in 1980, only to be killed 3 weeks after its release. This new musical outpouring was the next chapter in his story that we will never see the end to. You can hear glimpses of this in the incomplete demos the surviving Beatles completed in the mid-1990's, "Free As A Bird" and "Real Love." Wondering what the 1980's music of John Lennon would have been like is like wondering what the 1970's music of the Beatles would have been like. We will never know, but luckily, the music can still be heard of what he did in his time here. Let it be a lesson to us all.

Part 1 of the Interview (From the January 21, 1971 Issue): http://www.rollingstone.com/news/coverstory/24937978

Part 2 of the Interview (From the February 4, 1971 Issue):
http://www.rollingstone.com/news/coverstory/24946866

Paul McCartney's tribute to Lennon, "Here Today." Probably the most moving song Paul McCartney has ever written, with or without the Beatles.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yY09Wa7z_38

The Lennon demos as completed by the surviving Beatles in 1994/95:

"Free As A Bird" great video, it actually won a Grammy that year: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0D196-oXw2k

"Real Love": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZjCGF57v4Q

Viva La Ripoffs???

Guitar legend Joe Satriani is suing Coldplay for allegedly ripping off the melody from his 2004 guitar instrumental "If I Could Fly." Rolling Stone broke the story, and also has the videos posted side by side comparing the two. The similarities are definitely there, and if Satriani's lawyers can prove Coldplay heard the song before recording "Viva" they've got a case. However, proving someone listened to a song doesn't seem as easy as it looks, so he might end up on the short end of the stick with this one.

Last summer, Coldplay faced similar accusations from a Brooklyn indie group, Creaky Boards, whose ironically titled, "The Songs I Didn't Write" also sounds all too similar to "Viva La Vida." The band started a campaign via YouTube, supplemented by a conspiracy theorist-like claim that a man resembling Chris Martin was in the audience while they played the song during the CMJ Festival in New York and seemed to really enjoy the tune. Their case is a bit more feasible, but the conspiracy theory thing only hinders their cause in my opinion. Rolling Stone covered this occurrence as well.

I'm trying to be objective about this, and will give Coldplay the benefit of the doubt since I'm a big fan of their music. Also, I think this an argument that goes back a ways.

Creaky Boards' "The Songs I Didn't Write" (from 2007) vs. Coldplay's "Viva La Vida" (2008)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUhFLiw6h6s

Joe Satriani's "If I Could Fly" (from 2004) vs. Coldplay's "Viva La Vida" (2008)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ofFw9DKu_I&feature=related

Rolling Stone Article that broke the story.

http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2008/12/05/joe-satriani-sues-coldplay-for-viva-la-vida-plagiarism/

Rolling Stone Article that broke the story of the Creaky Boards comparison last June. Take notice of the comments section below the article. Several people make mention of the Satriani similarities as far back as September. Perhaps Joe's people took a hint from them before filing legal action.

http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2008/06/16/new-york-band-claims-coldplay-stole-viva-la-vida-melody/

Here's a look at an older case of the ripped off song with Ray Parker Jr.'s "Ghostbusters Theme" having ripped off Huey Lewis's "I Want a New Drug." I'm sure this had Huey singing "I want a new royalty check!"

Huey Lewis and the News "I Want a New Drug"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MMSFX1Vb3xQ

Vs.

Ray Parker, Jr. "Ghostbusters Theme"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4uxIo4t7xM&feature=related

AND...an even older case of Beatle George Harrison's "My Sweet Lord" which riffed off of The Chiffons' "He's So Fine." Harrison actually ended up having to pay up after the case went to trial in the 1970's

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzlRMhtXaD0&feature=related

AND... Led Zeppelin have so frequently done this, there's a whole compilation of it up on YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HjPAEPFaxoM In later years, Zeppelin went on to credit the older songs they "borrowed" from, but I think they were forced to. I don't care though, I still happily listen to them on a weekly basis.

AND...probably the most talent-less hacks in this article, The Offspring, possibly one of the worst bands I've ever heard in my life. They are one of the only bands I immediately switch the radio station on if I hear them come on. I can't even say this about the Beastie Boys as even though I hate their music, I still listen to "Sabotage" or "Intergalactic" if I hear them come on.

The Offspring, mercilessly ripped off the old Beatles classic "Ob La Di, Ob La Da" with their song, "Get A Job." Adding a steel drum to the song doesn't constitute a non-ripoff. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=duyAHixppcM

In the words of Cleveland from "Family Guy" in his response to why he stabbed Skeet Ulrich, the same can be said of this band: "There is nothing good about who you are or what you do."

Live Footage from the Fifteen Fleeting Show

FIFTEEN FLEETING FOOTAGE!
Here's a link to a video of Fifteen Fleeting's cover of "Come Together" from the show at Maxwell's in Hoboken last weekend. This was definitely a highlight of the show. The band also has a couple other killer performances from the show up on their You Tube page, so check those out! They'll be playing next at Chubby's in Red Bank next Saturday, December 13th, and I'll be there as it is also my 25th birthday. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B40ezJVx1n0

Live Review: Fifteen Fleeting Fire It Up at Maxwell's

A week with Fifteen Fleeting culminated with a blistering set at Maxwell's in Hoboken Saturday night. The band sold out the standing room only venue that also saw the official release of their latest collection of music, "Signals From an Empty Room." The band was explosive in their first appearance at the venue since their debut EP release nearly a year ago. You could feel the energy from the crowd, and Fifteen Fleeting pulled out all the stops in what may have been their most solid live set ever.

Opening with an instrumental jam that led into a newly anointed crowd favorite, "If It's Alright," they sounded tight right out of the gate. They then treated the loyal fans to one of their older tunes "Alive," which rocks about as hard as anything in their catalog and lets singer/guitarist Vinny Belcastro, lead guitarist Dan Rodriguez, bassist Mike Petzinger, and drummer Scott Petzinger show off their hard rock chops dutifully. This was followed by three of their "Signals From an Empty Room" numbers, "This Time," an epic rendition of "The Only," and the bluesy superhero love number "Man of Tomorrow."

Fifteen Fleeting then gave the crowd their first of four amazing covers of the night, with "All Along the Watchtower." This is one they've mastered in more recent shows, that they've managed to give fresh life to. Fifteen Fleeting's rendition plays at the tempo of Bob Dylan's original version, infused with the guitar blitzkrieg of Jimi Hendrix's definitive version, creating F.F.'s stamp on the classic rock tune. "Torn In Two" is another older song from their days as Trust that fits the band naturally and has helped define their musical identity so far; it sounds great on record and explodes even more so in concert.

The loyal crowd was then treated to a sentimental new tune "In Your Arms," which went over well, and brought them into some conversation with the crowd who has been there with them from their beginnings to their career pinnacle thus far, playing 2007's Bamboozle music festival at Giants Stadium. This led nicely into their next cover of "The Middle," by a band they shared the stage with at Bamboozle, Jimmy Eat World.

Singer Vinny Belcastro playfully urged the crowd to take their lighters out during their ballad, "Among a Million." A great surprise addition to this number was the band being joined onstage by Chris Klaus on violin, who also played on the album version. This really showed everyone in the audience that night how far the band has come in such a short period of time; filling up the room, everyone singing along to their songs, and being joined onstage by guest musicians. This also gave the band a different, somewhat fuller sound, with Belcastro manning the acoustic guitar along to Rodriguez's electric.

Their rock n' roll saga "A Just Perspective," is a song I think their audience will appreciate more in time as they listen to the album a few times, but they got the crowd into its mounting buildup and heavy riffs. Following this, Fifteen Fleeting had a pleasant surprise up their sleeves. Their cover of The Beatles' "Come Together," looked to be one of the band's crowning moments onstage in their budding career so far. The band and the crowd were on fire, and they rocked the hell out of the classic fab four number. It also gave ample spotlight to talented six-stringed bassist Mike Petzinger, who sometimes goes unnoticed but never unheard among the shining onstage personas of bandleaders Belcastro and Rodriguez. Where the sometimes underrated George Harrison was known as the "Quiet Beatle," it was fitting that the "Quiet Fleeter" had shone brightly during the Beatles number. They gave the crowd full reign as they let loose the iconic "One and one and one is three..."

"Streetlamp Limelight" followed, widening the eyes of a crowd in awe that this seemingly small time group can still pull off such groundbreaking sounds and studio techniques so seamlessly when playing live. Where Mike Petzinger tore up the Beatles cover his brother, drummer Scott Petzinger took a stranglehold of Fifteen Fleeting's final cover of the night. One might think pouring gasoline and setting fire to such a late 1980's pop number as Madonna's "Like A Prayer" would make about as much sense as a Britney Spears better parenting seminar, but the members of Fifteen Fleeting turned a risky move into an ultimate triumph. They spun "Like a Prayer" into a hard rock opus and Scott Petzinger's drums eluded to such techniques seen on U2's "Sunday Bloody Sunday," or Franz Ferdinand's "Take Me Out."
The final two numbers gave a nice bookend to the evening. "A Little Change" is a song that defined them in their beginnings and could be labeled conductor on the freight train that got them from their humble start to a huge stage at Bamboozle. The band slips into this song like an old pair of jeans and they always make sure the crowd is singing along with them. At the end of this tune, Fifteen Fleeting gives us all a great taste of the talents in this four piece as a musical powerhouse. They've grown confident allowing their highest output of energy and musical freedom which is hard to miss such an intimate venue.

Since it was a night of celebration in the release of their new CD, the band ended it rightfully with the title track, "Signals From An Empty Room." This was an ironic ending, as this room was nowhere near empty and the band could have played all night at this point feeding off their own energy as much as the audience's. Whatever wasn't spent up on their previous 16 numbers, they laid out on the stage for this one. This gave the band a chance to relish the moment once more and if smoking hadn't been banned in New Jersey bars, a match could have set the whole room on fire; that's how explosive this ending was. With a performance that far exceeded the small price of admission, Fifteen Fleeting should be filling a lot more venues very soon as they continue to build a reputation as one of the area's rising rock bands.

As the buzzing crowd poured out to the bar for drinks among the unlucky ones who didn't make it in to the show, a clueless young woman approached me asking if I was there to see Fastball play later on that night. I nearly laughed when I said that I wasn't, and even if I had tickets, why would I? I had just seen the best rock n' roll show west of the Hudson this weekend.

Set List:

1. Intro Jam

2. If It's Alright

3. Alive

4. This Time

5. The Only

6. Man Of Tomorrow

7. All Along the Watchtower (Bob Dylan Cover)

8. Torn In Two

9. In Your Arms

10. The Middle (Jimmy Eat World Cover)

11. Among a Million (w/guest Chris Klaus-violin)

12. A Just Perspective

13. Come Together (Beatles Cover)

14. Streetlamp Limelight

15. Like a Prayer (Madonna Cover)

16. A Little Change

17. Signals From an Empty Room

Fifteen Fleeting Topics With Fifteen Fleeting:

As part of our week long coverage with New Jersey rockers Fifteen Fleeting, I interviewed the band about their humble beginnings, recording, their influences, and their live shows among other things. Here are Fifteen Fleeting Topics with Fifteen Fleeting:
1. Topic: Meeting Across the River
How did you guys get together as a band?
SCOTT: The band originally started with Vinny and I just jamming on songs Vinny wrote up on the campus of Ramapo College. One thing led to another, things became serious and [we] sought Dan to play guitar (Vinny and Dan met in college) and my brother Mike to play bass, who also went to Ramapo. Everyone met through Ramapo, though I was the only one never to attend Ramapo College. By April 2007, the band’s lineup was complete and played under the name Trust, and later released our debut EP in November 2007.

VINNY: If it wasn't for Ramapo, this band would not exist [laughs]. I began looking to start up a new band in the summer of '06. Scott was the first I approached as I had seen him play a bunch of times in another band and really thought he was a great drummer and an excellent fit for what I had in mind. Then I remembered Dan was an amazingly talented musician/guitarist from one of my classes at Ramapo, so I gave him a couple of songs to listen to and asked him if he was interested in joining Scott and I. Mike completed the lineup in the summer of '07 before we recorded our debut EP.


MIKE: Vinny said it pretty well.

DAN: We met at Ramapo College. I knew Mike since my Freshman year before he picked up a bass. I met vinny pretty late in my college career through a music writing class we had together. First time I met scott, I thought he was mike. They look like twins at first glance!

One day, Vinny approached me to come to a practice/jam session and I decided to come. I was pumped since I have never been apart of a band before. Im so glad he came up to me cause I was real shy about approaching people with music in general.


2. Topic: My Chemical Chemistry
When was the first time you guys really clicked musically whether it was onstage, rehearsing, or in the studio?
SCOTT: When we wrote the song “A Little Change” in my basement. It was the first by-product of the Trust machine. Once we had that song down, we had more idea of what direction the band was going in musically. If our first song written together was different, we could have easily went in a different musical direction.

VINNY: That's hard to say, but I do remember the first time ever Scott, Dan, and myself practiced and Dan started playing along to one of the earlier songs I had written. It just sounded so natural and from inside of himself that I knew right then and there we had something special.

MIKE: I can't speak from the beginning-beginning, but at my first practice, I had only gotten to work on learning the band's 13 or so songs for about 3 days, and there was a show the very next day after that. It seemed to work pretty well at practice and the subsequent show, so after that I felt pretty good about us.

DAN: The first jam we had together I felt something. I knew [Vinny] was super talented from the class as well as hearing his songs on myspace. Mike wasn’t around then but I think as the 4 of us, writing “A Little Change” was a moment when it all just happened. I think the song “The Only” really came about much in the same fashion.

3. Topic: Harsh Times
What was your worst musical moment whether with Fifteen Fleeting or in another band?
SCOTT: Thankfully I don’t have just one “worst” moment. I just have a collection of bad times, all which stem from equipment/instrument failures. When a stick breaks, or a drum head breaks, or something moves out of place, all are recipe for disaster. There’s times when one of these things happen, and just snowball into affecting the whole band and our sound.

VINNY: I've had some bad moments [laughs], but one that always stands out was losing my voice during one of our sets at the Whiskey Bar [in Hoboken, NJ].

MIKE: Didn't have gloves at Bamboozle and it was windy and unseasonably cold. Just a little scary playing bass without a pick, slapping, and tapping with numb hands.

DAN: We have had a lot of weird/strange/annoying/humorous stuff happen on stage. Nothing too terrible – just typical with a regularly gigging band. Vinny had his voice go Mini-mouse in front of 75 ppl in Hoboken for a second. My voice has changed into an 85 year old woman voice with a smoking addiction of 95 years (that’s her entire life plus 10 years- in the womb and her mother smoked). Scott has busted a number of sticks. Mike once did a dipsy doodle I believe. We also played a show in front of no one before in NYC. Literally – no one! There was a bartender and a soundguy and they were in and out during the set. That was rough.

4. Topic: Band Name

Where did your band name come from? How did “Trust” come about, and when you had to change it, why did you change it and how did “Fifteen Fleeting” come about? Part 2 to this question: Regardless of how great or crappy the specific band is, what are some of your favorite historic past and present band names in music?

SCOTT: Part I: I’m sure one of the others can answer this better. But here’s how I look at it. Trust. You can’t get away from Trust. Life is based upon trust. Think about it… Fifteen Fleeting A.K.A. fifteen minutes of fame. Everyone gets a small window of opportunity at fame. It’s whether one is able to realize when that time is, and be able to take advantage of it before it “fleets” away from you. Part II: I don’t think I’ll ever understand band names. It’s all relative. Like All-American Rejects? A bad name turned into a good name. Who would have thought?

VINNY: Trust was a name I had in my head since I was 16. And to me Trust was more of a philosophy than anything else. Everything in life boils down to trust. When we had to change the name, I thought about what we wanted and everyone is supposed to get their 15 minutes of fame. Those 15 minutes don't last, and so I thought of Fifteen Fleeting.

MIKE: Vinny said it pretty well.

DAN: Trust came about when Vinny mentioned it. It struck a meaning with me because it was something I lacked at the time. It was like a sign that I needed to approach things, people, and life differently. We changed it to avoid confusion with other bands named Trust - a la 1980’s band or a brazlian metal band.


Fifteen Fleeting is a carpe diem name saying that when you get your 15 minutes – make the most of it.


I personally view all band names as either not serious or so bad that they're good. There is no such thing as a good band name in my opinion. Aerosmith? What the hell is that? Flaming lips? Ya – okaaay buddy. Counting Crows? Stupid – but theyre counting money all the way to the bank! There's a few good names out there but 99% of them suck. Theyre just names though. Id say the best and most accurate band name is Rage Against the Machine. A close 2nd would be Dick Buttkiss.

5. Topic: Influences
Who are your biggest musical influences past and present?
SCOTT: I pull different influences from different bands. Huge influences on my music as well as my outlook on pursuing music as a career are acts like Saves the Day, The Starting Line, The Early November, etc. These acts came up out of the Jersey/Philly area playing small firehall shows in front of only a few heads, and have ended up being able to tour the world and sell out shows miles away from where they started. It gives me hope and light.

VINNY: I would have to say Silverchair and A Perfect Circle because each album they do is so different and unique, and that shows maturity and progression in songwriting.

MIKE: Bandwise, I think Vinny got that. Individually: Stanley Clarke, Larry Graham, Tim Commerford, Dirk Lance

DAN: I gain the most just by observing whatever is playing at the moment. I have some favorite artists but I really try to pay attention and examine anything that is on at any given time. My influences have changed over the years. I used to be into writing like Nirvana, Rage Against the Machine – heavier rock stuff in general. Then I got into a phase of classical style in high school a la Mozart, Chopin as well as a big acoustic theme (Dave Matthews Band, Dispatch, Guster). Then I got into blues/jazz/shoegaze sounds later on. Right now, I drawing a lot of inspiration from Radiohead, Eric Johnson, John Mayer, Lydia, People in Planes, Guster, Beatles, Hendrix, etc…
6. Topic: High Points
What has been your best moment musically as a band so far?
SCOTT: Each new day is our best moment musically. This band continues to impress with me the fact of how far we’ve came, and how far we still have to go. Sure, moments like Bamboozle will always be great, but as we progress new shows and songs are superceding the past. I can’t wait to see what the future holds.

VINNY: Opening up the Bamboozle '08

MIKE: Bamboozle '08.

DAN: Bamboozle '08. To be topped with (hopefully) Bamboozle '09.


7. Topic: Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes
What has changed the most about the band since you first formed/recorded your EP (as Trust) to now with your stint on Bamboozle, headlining shows, and new album?
SCOTT: Professionalism. We were once a band with nothing on our resume. Now we have 2 records, some big shows, and a bright future; something I feel we have to live up to when you go out each night and play. Having dealings and working along side bands who do it for living makes you not take music and the band for granted. People will not take your band serious if you don’t take your own band serious. We’ve matured quickly in our time.

VINNY: I think we are more recognizable now [laughs]. We have gained a lot of credibility within the past few months, so I think we are just establishing ourselves as a name to be remembered.

MIKE: We're definitely defining our own sound at this point. I feel like you can listen to us and hear a bit of each of our personalities within.

DAN: Confidence. I knew that being in a band with original music, it takes time to gel. And now after nearly 1.5-2 years since day 1 of practice before we were truly a band, I realize that’s a never ending process. However, now, instead of gelling, its about exploring each other's possibilities and potentials. I have so much more confidence in what we each do. Im learning about them and myself each day. As we continue to grow, we’ll continue to take each other to higher levels – and hopefully – never peaking!


8. Topic: Strange Sounds (Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes Part Deux)
What, if anything, has changed about the band’s sound and approach since you first formed?
SCOTT: Our sound and approach hasn’t necessarily changed, but more less has settled. It’s like going clothes shopping. We’ve found the right pair of jeans. They fit well.

VINNY: I think our songwriting has been evolving and we are beginning to carve our own sonic niche.

MIKE: I think our songs are getting progressively more diverse.

DAN: I think we’re starting to mess with song structuring a little more now. Also, I know that Mike and myself are deeply into the spacey and atmospheric sounds. I think our direction is that of a double headed dragon in a sense. We want to have the appeal to a wide audience (pop) yet also have a sound that is not typical radio and still tingles your ear. Like I said to the last question, it’s a learning process. Music and people are things that you can always learn more about and from.
9. Topic: Onstage and In Concert
You’re a group who puts a lot of energy and work in onstage. Do you find that it’s necessary when you’re not as accessible as big acts, or do you just enjoy performing, or do you think both aspects come into play?
VINNY: There is nothing like performing, and as far as accessability, I want the crowd to feel as though they are performing with us. They are without a doubt what fuels our live shows.

MIKE: Both, without a doubt.


DAN: I love to play live. I'm so uncoordinated that I need to calm down so I don’t look too stupid! But playing music live is now a show. You have to engage the audience and make them feel a part of the event. We try to do that as much as possible.


10. Topic: Simply the Best
What are some of the best concerts or live performers you’ve ever seen? Is there anything you take a hint from them on that you put into your performances individually in the band?
SCOTT: Watching any major performing artist live is great even if I don’t like the music. Some of these acts have so much equipment, electronics, and instruments going on, it’s cool to see the whole production come together. In the end, it gives me ideas to apply to FF’s live show.

VINNY: The Police at PNC Arts Center in '08 were amazing. There's only three of them, yet they owned that whole stage and put on an amazing performance. And of course I have to say Metallica at Giants Stadium in '03...the one thing I loved about that was James Hetfield's control over the crowd and the show in general. With the point of a finger he had the entire stadium erupting.

MIKE: Return to Forever in NYC, August 8th 2008. Both the music and the energy that band brought that night were unreal. And you could just tell they were just up there having fun. I always like when you can tell the band is enjoying it as much as the fans.

DAN: Just like listening to music – good or bad – you can always learn something. I truly believe that. Same comes to shows. Ive seen some bad shows but always manage to take away something. Maybe it's something not to do but hey – you still learn something. I think the craziest shows I've seen were of Rage Against the Machine. They're insane. Foo Fighters put on a great show. N.E.R.D. put on an AMAZING show. The Roots – probably one of the best shows to see time and time again. They may be the best live act of my generation and maybe throughout…
11. Topic: GOAL!!!!(S)
What are your goals as a band both that you have accomplished already, and ones that you look to accomplish going forward?
SCOTT: Keep progressing. We can’t stop. We won’t stop.

VINNY: The main goal is to get our music in as many ears as possible and to continue to evolve in our songwriting and live performances.

MIKE: Taking names and kicking ass [laughs]. On a serious note, we've accomplished a ton of unbelievable stuff on the local level. The next step is broadening the scope of that success I believe.

DAN: Goal – Never plateau!

12. Topic: Music to Your Ears
What are the greatest albums you’ve ever heard? Give a top 5 either individually, or collectively as a band. Any specific reason those are your favorites?
SCOTT: Too many to name. Let me leave you with best 3 best of 2008:
“The Glass Passenger” by Jack’s Mannequin
“Illuminate” by Lydia
“Fearless” by Taylor Swift

VINNY:
1) Queen- "A Night at the Opera" 2) Pink Floyd- "Dark Side of the Moon"
3) Zakk Wylde- "Book of Shadows"
4) Silverchair- "Neon Ballroom"
5) Pearl Jam- "Ten"

MIKE:
In no particular order:
Led Zepplin II - Led Zepplin
Master of Puppets - Metallica
Origin of Symmetry - Muse
Blackwater Park - Opeth
Kezia - Protest the Hero

DAN:
This is one of those questions that is so simple to ask but impossible to answer. If you put a simple math equation into a super computer, it would end up out-thinking itself and making the question a million times more complicated with variables and constants and s**t…eventually it would blow up. I will say this – Lydia – Illuminate is the best sounding album I've ever heard. That’s me personally. I haven’t heard a better sounding album than that.

13. Topic: In the Beginning…

When did you start playing music? Did you always play the same instrument?

SCOTT: I started playing drums in 4th grade because everyone else was doing it. In the end, I’m the only one left playing now. It’s never good to be a follower, but I’m glad I followed.

VINNY: I started playing guitar when I was fourteen, but I didn't start singing until my freshman year in college...I was always too shy to be in front of the mic.

MIKE:I didn't do a thing involving music 'til I was a senior in high school. Didn't pick up a bass 'til I was a freshman in college, and then I ended up majoring in music.

DAN: I started with the drums as a youngin'. I steal Scott's kit every now and then. I think he gets mad at me but f**k him!! I sold my kit/my dad got a few bucks back for the kit he bought for me around junior year of high school. I picked up the guitar in middle school and haven’t put it down since.

14. Topic: The Things You Do For Music.

What’s the most ridiculous thing(s) you’ve had to do as a band on your journey so far? (Examples: playing a birthday party at a bowling alley, a VFW senior citizen’s dance, or winning a pie eating contest to get a gig)
MIKE: Theres been a lot but I can't think of anything specific....any one else guys?

DAN: Um….the NYC show in front of no one was pretty bad.

15. Topic: Meatloaf.

Meatloaf once sang, “I would do anything for love, but I won’t do that.” If you said “I would do anything for music, but I won’t do that,” what would “that” be in your case? (You could have more than one “that” in this instance)
SCOTT: I would do anything for music, but I won’t NOT do that.

VINNY: I would do anything and everything for our music.

MIKE: Jail time.

DAN: I would not play one of those keyboard guitars and pretend to enjoy it in a live setting. F**k no. I would play a keyboard guitar on stage in a live setting as long as I could show my disdain for the instrument – however, I would not pretend to enjoy it. F**K NO [laughs].

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