Leaf Blowers Suck... I Mean Blow

I live in an apartment. My apartment building is small. My apartment building is also close to other residential buildings. The owners of these buildings employ gardeners to maintain the landscaping. These gardeners use leaf blowers. Leaf blowers are loud.

Normally I might just whine a bit and then try to go back to sleep after being woken up by one of these monstrously loud contraptions, but this morning after it happened again I remembered that I have a blog and now I can share my idea to start a petition to ban leaf blowers worldwide.

What the hell is the point of a leaf blower? It's supposed to move leaves, dirt and other debris out of certain areas and into others, but it really sucks (or blows, if you wanna throw in a pun) at doing so. How do I know?

1) Because the gardener spends about 20 minutes using the thing to clear less than 2,000 square feet of courtyard and walkway, and makes several passes in order to attempt to do so.
2) Because several times I have walked around the "grounds" of my small apartment building after the weekly assault on our eardrums and noticed *gasp* leaves, dirt and debris still intact in several places.

Here's how a leaf blower works: a very loud gas-powered motor strapped to your back propels a variable-speed fan (the faster the speed, the faster the motor, the louder it gets) through a plastic tube not unlike a vacuum cleaner that spits fast-moving air at stuff on the ground and sends it flying. The idea is that it's supposed to move it along the ground and out of the way, but what really happens is a large amount of it ends up in the air (which happens to really suck for allergy sufferers) and then back onto the ground about 20 seconds later. So you either double back and hit it again, or forget about it and chalk it up as collateral damage.

So if the damn thing don't work no good, why the hell are they being used?

Because people are lazy.

Ever heard of or seen one of these things? -------------------------------->







<--------- Or perhaps one of these?







Since when is it sooooo hard to use a damn broom? Seriously, let's get some scientists and physicists together, because I swear that a damn broom is a lot more efficient and effective than a leaf blower. Not only does it clean better, kick up less dirt and debris into the air, and work faster and more controlled, it doesn't run on gas and it's quiet!

You'd think that gardening companies would want to cut down on costs and not have to buy gas, but I guess they ran the numbers and figured that doing fast, sloppy work with the leaf blower makes it possible to take care of more clients in one day... or some crap like that... Nope, I'm sticking with complete laziness. Oh, and stupidity.

I don't even have to get into the whole "green" issue and environmental concerns -- I guess it's warranted in order to allow a lazy dude to stand there and point a hose while his job of cleaning up the ground is done poorly by a wasteful and obnoxious travesty of an invention.

So if you feel like signing my petition to ban leaf blowers, let me know. I think Obama will put it high on the priority list along with the economy and Iraq and stuff.

Next time I'll rant about the other gardener gem: watering the concrete ground.

Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace

This album has been out for a while, and I bought it a long time ago too, but it wasn't until recently that I started listening to it... and now I'm really into it.

I came across the Yahoo! Nissan Live Sets footage of the Foo Fighters, and after watching all the videos decided I needed to pull out, unwrap and actually listen to their newest album, which also happened to win the Grammy for Best Rock Album in '08 and Best Rock Performance for "The Pretender."

I've always dug the Foo, but I was a fan of songs more than albums. What I mean is I liked a handful of their songs, but wasn't on board with full album composition most of the time. You could say I'd be happier with a "best of" compilation than owning all their records. This changed with "Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace."

The Grammy was well deserved. These guys are really tight -- evident both on the album and live in concert. I almost want to say they're approaching progressive rock, but they stay much closer to mainstream, which makes for just enough brainy or technical flare to set them apart from most other rock bands. There is a very solid level of musicianship and interactivity, and each player's parts compliment both the song and the hipness of the band. Songs like the single, "The Pretender," as well as my other rockin' favs, "Let It Die," "Long Road to Ruin" and "Cheer Up, Boys (Your Make Up Is Running)," show their ability to shove you around with heavy guitars and screaming vocals. But they also show another side of the band, stepping away from their typical hard rock mainstay and into the realm of singer/songwriters with "Stranger Things Have Happened," "Statues," and especially "Home."

I think I might be a little late to the party about the Foo Fighters doing some lighter stuff, seeing as how they mention an acoustic tour they did during the Yahoo! performance, but I'm glad to see there is more than one side to these guys. They have certainly proved their muster on the hard rock front, and after watching/listening to acoustic versions of "Everlong," "My Hero," and their new album, it's obvious that they don't have to turn the gain up to 11 to make a song work.

Kudos to the Foo Fighters -- I am now a full-fledged fan.

What a Weekend

This is where I spent my weekend:



I can't get over how incredible it was. It started as a trip down to the Lake Forest area to see my good friend Robin's band (The Pleasant Return) play, which was followed by some friends going with me to Laguna Beach for a night, which turned into none of us wanting to leave... ever. It's amazing what can happen when really good vibes are bouncing back and forth between people -- nonstop happiness and joy ensued, and it's nothing any of us planned on or expected to happen.

These kinds of experiences keep me reminded of how amazing life can be and what living in the Now is all about. It's hard to express the kind of bliss that occurs, but that just means it was genuine, profound and very special. It's one of those times when you wish it would never end, but I'm happy to have the memories and friendships that will continue to inspire and bring about new experiences.

Good friends, good times, good God.

Wow, I didn't realize Kanye West was so humble

Yahoo! posted a short little story this morning about an interview with Kanye West. Check it out and then come on back:

http://music.yahoo.com/read/news/15348921

I was laughing my face off when I read it. Kanye has said and done some silly things before (his infamous outburst on live t.v. during hurricane Katrina; getting booed at Bonnaroo for going on 2 hours late at 4:30 am; adamantly complaining about not winning a Grammy in '06 and '07), but this has to take the cake.

The "voice of this generation???????" Really??? Now to me the really funny thing about this has nothing to do with whether or not the statement is remotely accurate. I'm sure there are lots of people on either side of that discussion, and I don't find it necessary to state my opinion about him as a producer/musician/performer (although if you ask me I'd be happy to tell you straight up).

The point here is that he proclaimed himself as such the "voice of this generation." *Ahem* One order of humble pie for Mr. West, please! This goes against a very basic understanding of manners that applies in even the most basic of social situations. You simply don't talk about yourself like that, unless you want to be viewed as egocentric or self-absorbed. And what's more, in the world of music, every single artist or band who has ever been widely influencial and/or had a massive affect on the society or culture at large (i.e. Jimi Hendrix, the Beatles, James Brown, Michael Jackson, etc.) was dubbed as such by other people, not themselves. Sure, some of these influencial people were prone to be very self-confident and carried a bit of an ego, but they never assumed such a state as to proclaim their incredible importance to an entire generation while still in the middle of their career. I mean c'mon, the guy has only been around since 2001. Isn't there a statute of limitations on when you can become the "voice of this generation?"

Yeah, I know, hip-hop and rap artists have the reputation of being very forward and even obligatory with their egos and their confidence in themselves, but this is going a little too far. A word to the wise, Kanye: a really good way to ostracize both your fans and everyone else is to become really full of yourself. Someone who might have been considered musical and artistic can lose their positive luster when pompous attitudes and self-righteous behavior taint their persona.

Who knows... maybe he wants everyone to think he's a dick.

Rest in Peace, Mitch Mitchell

Today we lost the last living member of The Jimi Hendrix Experience. We lost Jimi in 1970, bassist Noel Redding in 2003, and now drummer Mother Goose, a.k.a. Mitch Mitchell.

I have to say, as a guitarist who is massively inspired by Hendrix, almost as influential as Jimi himself are the incredible musicians who played with him, and Mitch is definitely no exception to that. While many would argue that Jimi's years with the Band of Gypsys produced the more artistic and progressive music of his life, it is without doubt that the Experience was involved in the majority of Jimi's "hits," and therefore created the stardom for Jimi that allowed him to progress into the Band of Gypsys.

Mitchell played on so many of Jimi's massive songs: Foxey Lady, Manic Depression, Fire, Red House, Voodoo Chile, Crosstown Traffic, All Along the Watchtower... the list goes on. He played with Jimi for that historic performance at Woodstock, and he played on my favorite Hendrix record, "Axis: Bold as Love."

His bombastic style and rock-solid groove was the perfect match for Jimi's revolutionary sound. I simply can't imagine Hendrix without having Mitch Mitchell in the same thought. It's sad to see him go, but that doesn't stop the music from continuing to inspire.

Cheers, Mitch... you'll be missed.

Prop 8

Hotels

Every once in a while I find myself taking inventory on things that I've done in my life, and while finding myself in that place today, I noticed the stack of hotel keys I've been collecting over the past 6 months or so. I can't say why I've been collecting them as the reason is part of a secret operation known only by a few (it's not as cool as I tried to make that sound), but the point is... that stack of keys represents a whole lotta hotels I've stayed in across the country. In fact, if I had kept all the keys from all the hotels I'd stayed in since getting a road gig almost 3 years ago, that stack would be a whole lot bigger.

What it makes me think about is how grateful I am for all the places throughout this country (and abroad) that I've gotten to see. I grew up in a fairly small town, and didn't do much traveling except for the occasional 250 mile jaunt to visit grandma and grandpa. I "learned" about other places in school, but never really saw much of anything until I was 17, when I went to Boston for a summer to attend a 5 week program at the Berklee College of Music. Since then I've been all over this country, as well as Mexico, Canada, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, the Caribbean, Kwajalein, Guam, Korea, Japan, and out on the open waters of the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico on a cruise ship.

I wasn't sure I wanted to write on this topic, because it can seem like I'm trying to sound fancy or looking to impress, but the real reason is that I've realized how incredibly important it is to see as much of this world as you can while you are able. I've learned a lot more than I'm sure I am aware of by going to these places, meeting and talking with people, going to restaurants and bars, seeing "the sights" (even when there isn't much to see), and getting an overall feeling for what life is like in these different areas. It's pretty easy to stay in your comfort bubble around your hometown, or wherever you establish yourself, and keep life to a short list of locations and situations that you deal with on the day-to-day level. But I'm growing more and more fond of the idea of living in multiple places for several years -- a year in New York, a year in Boston, a year in Chicago, a year in Austin, a year in Minneapolis, a year in Seattle, a year in Denver, a year in London, a year in Barcelona, a year in Paris, a year in Berlin... you get the idea. It sounds easier said than done, and that's probably very true, but there's so much life experience to be gained by doing this, even if the list ends up being a bit smaller.

I guess you could say that I have been bitten by the travelling bug, and now it's hard to imagine staying in one place right now. Actually... that's not right. It's too easy to imagine staying in one place, and I don't want to be that complacent. I find that if I don't give myself a kick in the ass every couple years, I start to develop too much of a routine -- I get lazy, get bored, and start to lose sight of all the amazing things that happen and can happen to us in life.

I'm very fortunate to be able to do a lot of traveling as a musician, and I look forward to broadening the scope of my travels as my musical journey sees fit, but the quick visits that these gigs allow still leave me with the romantic notion of living there for a bit. Guess I've got some work to do if I'm going to make that happen... sounds like fun.

I got my sticker

At around 9:10 this morning I turned in my vote-by-mail ballot and got my sticker. Rock on.

I spoke with my friend Jini today, who is currently living in Texas while attending college, and she explained the excitement of today pretty well: "It's like a sporting event." People are watching this election like no other. It's almost creeping into the realm of pop-culture. The country has never been more uniform in its issues that we want resolved, and I've seen more enthusiasm about politics than you can shake a stick at... and I'm talking about a really big stick.

Hopefully all this excitement, enthusiasm and action will carry through past the election. The worst thing any of us can do is vote for someone and then sit around waiting for him and his people to make things better. Hopefully people are adamantly pumped this time around because they see what's going on, have chosen a candidate they think can lead the change/reform, and plan on staying active to help implement the changes after he's elected. Because if everyone actually did that... well, let's just say we could start patting each other on the back for figuring something out for once. There is no "I" in "team" -- this is not a one-man job -- our responsibility is not over once we drop the ballot in the little slot.

Can I get a hi-five?

New CDs

It's a very regular occurrence for me to go to Amoeba Records here in L.A. to buy new CDs. Yesterday I picked up four, and I've listened to two of them so far.

Why come no one has told me about this guy yet? Mark Ronson is (from what I've read) a DJ-turned-producer. "Here Comes the Fuzz" (2003) is not your typical DJ album. It's loaded with guest appearances from Nate Dogg to Aya to Rivers Cuomo to Anthony Hamilton to Nikka Costa. I went looking for this album in the "hip-hop" section, because... it's a hip-hop album. When it didn't exist there, I double-checked the magic-computer-look-up-machine at Amoeba, and sure enough... it's listed as a hip-hop album. But guess where I found it... Rock/Pop. After listening to it, it makes sense. There are rappers all over it, but it's got the flavor of a rock/pop record, so I guess we'll call it a crossover. Anyway, I'm not blown away by every track, but the album serves as proof that DJs are musicians too. The penultimate track for me is of course "Ooh Wee," and my pick for deep cut would have to be "She's Got Me," with a well-chosen sample of the Average White Band's "When Will You Be Mine" as the foundation of the track (?uestlove is behind the drum kit for that one). Another of the CDs I bought was Ronson's newest disc, "Version," which I haven't started listening to yet. Imma let "the fuzz" marinate for a bit first.

The other purchase I've listened to so far is Keane's recent release, "Perfect Symmetry." I've been a fan of Keane since hearing them on KCRW's "Morning Becomes Eclectic" around 6 years ago, which was about the time that "Hopes and Fears" was gaining major steam in the U.S. I also own and dig their second release, "Under the Iron Sea." I'm not so sure about this new one -- I'm not making any firm judgements here, and I plan on listening to it more before I decide anything about it. I heard the single "Spiralling" before the record came out, and dug it, but after listening to the whole record one phrase comes to mind: 80's. Now that's not necessarily bad, I just found it overwhelming how much the synthesizer predominates the production of "Perfect Symmetry." And not just the synthesizer in general, but the application of certain kinds of synth sounds reminds me a lot of 80's music. Perhaps it was a conscious effort on Keane's part to do so. In fact, if it was, I'd say that's pretty hip, because they did it in a cool way and it works. It's sort-of an evolution of the 80's sounds which makes it a lot cooler than just a retro record. With that said, I was pretty distracted by the sounds, so I wasn't paying all that much attention to songwriting and melody (some of Keane's strong points), so I'll have to listen more for that in the next few spins.

Seeing as how the last time I bought CDs I was mostly disappointed with what I bought, I'm happy that this go-round was better. There will always be good music being made, and there will always be not-as-good music being made. It's fun looking for the good stuff.

MusicianWages.com

Another holiday down, and we're into the last couple months of 2008. Stores have already started playing Christmas music, and turkeys are getting nervous. It actually rained in L.A. today, and Thriller is still a wicked record.

I got an email from my good friend Cam today (Cam's website -- Cam's blog). Cam is a great guitarist and all-around badass. He's extremely smart, and everything I do to promote my music I basically copied from him. Recently, Cam and his friend Dave started a new website for musicians. The site is called MusicanWages.com and it's designed to help working musicians in their pursuit of making a living with music. In addition to writing articles themselves, Cam and Dave (kinda sounds like Sam and Dave... they should make a band) enlist the services of their musician compatriots to contribute to the site. It makes for a real functional and useful site that I wish was around when I was getting started. I wrote an article (yay for me!) and am happy to be a part of it. Cruise on over and check it out, and if you know any musicians, pass the word along.

I'm almost to the halfway point in Thriller, and I'm finding myself wanting to skip ahead to P.Y.T. so I can hear Paul Jackson Jr.'s funky guitar work... patience is a virtue.