One up on the economy

I have basically solidifed my position for a summer job at Sundaycare so I am set for the summer and will have steady income while a lot of my friends are slackin. Up yours bad economy!

Grading The President

I have seen a few news media programs try and grade our president. I honestly don't think it is right to try to grade him this early. He has only been in office a 7 months and I honestly think the waiting period before "grading" a political official should be at least a year.

This gives you time to see a lot more than you will see in 100 days and it you can see the pros and cons of the decisions he has to make. Making all of those decisions isn't as easy as you would imagine. You have to take into consideration how it will effect the people of the U.S. How it will effect our policies with other nations. Also, if the decision will effect the rights of any group of people in the United States.

http://www.last.fm/user/AttackOfTheTom

The thing thats really been striking me lately is the fact that my music taste is all over the charts, literally. I have always been into every genre thanks to my mom and my other family always playing various music when I was little but what I listen to lately varies so much. It starts on the soft side with Kevin Devine and Saves The Day. Then slowly progresses to Brand New, Say Anything, and New Found Glory. They lead to A Day To Remember and Devil Wears Prada. They shed light on Converge and Trap Them.

I dont know if you guys realize but it goes from acoustic rock to (pretty much) grindcore.

Then on the other side of the spectrum I have artists of Hip Hop that vary from Nas to Twiztid. It fucking off the wall.

Then lastly Im getting into trance and techno more so there are a few djs I have yet to learn more of but currently Armin Van Buuren and BT are most played for me.

Some Catching up to do

So lately I have had a severe lack of updates. Since Ive last blogged Ive done a promotional photo shoot for Surrender The Dance Floor and have been talking to The Gates Of Ivory and DJ Bless for possible shoots. I also did a live shoot again, Hooker In The Morgue and Tuesdays With Morrie. Those pics came out very well, surprisingly, since my camera took a slugging at the Oceano show on March 8th.

At the end of last month and the beginning of this month I have been having a steady dialogue with Zach from Bloodshot Music about management for bands and booking. We have worked out a sweet deal for myself. I am now the manager for Tuesdays with Morrie. I will be working closely with them in the upcoming months to make sure they're set for a possible upcoming tour and a shitload more shows. Plus a ton of promotion so I'm stoked on that fact.

I recommend every one to go out and see the movie I Love You, Man. It was definitely worthy of the 8 dollar ticket purchase (prices may vary by location). I am also getting ready to see Observe and Report on friday. Seth Rogan is the man, and just about all of his movies are a "laugh-riot".

I have also noticed a trend in hip-hop where the rappers are all referencing their swag. Style is such an abstract concept but apparently its whats cool in rap so everyone will buy it, but me.

Also, on a random note, Henry Rollins will be speaking at the Webster Theater on June 6th. I am so fucking excited for this. You may be thinking, Why do you like spoken word when all you do is talk about live shows?" Well, I like Henry Rollins spoken word because he is actually a smart guy. He is deeper than most people who rant and rave about their problems. I also think Black Flag is fucking awesome.

I shall be updating this a lot more from now on. I hope you guys are ready.
Until then I leave you with this....

My adverstisement Flyer

I am proud to finally say I have something that is almost official. It is an add I threw together so I could have it printed in a local Connecticut zine called "The Breakdown". Ill post more info when I get the chance. As of now, Im busy with some extra homework, setting up shoots, and listening to Converge.

Rap Music. The Downward Spiral.

Rap music, everyone has different opinions on it. Some feel it is a creative outlet to express the struggle of the urban culture or tell stories over beats. Others feel that it is a talentless form of poetry over music.

Im not particularly sure how you, the reader, feel about the hip-hop/rap culture but I'm sure you have noticed a few things about it.

Around 2002, it was more noticeable then, there started to become a trend of making a dance or making something up that everyone would know and only having that hit to rely on for your success. Since then their has been Huey (Pop, Lock, and Drop It), Yung Joc (made the motorcycle dance), and countless other dances spawned off of Crank Dat Soulja Boy. It is not necessarily the fact that people do the dances it is just the fact that the people are so shallow minded and dont realize that the rappers that make the songs are record label produced bullshit. There are new rappers coming and going now adays and it seems like no one has a true permancence anymore like the greats of yesteryear such as; Jay-Z, Nas, Wu-Tang Clan, KRS1. Not to say that there arent good rappers now a days. Some truly good rappers are masters of their crafts and know what their doing. Good examples are; Kanye West, Custom Made, Lupe Fiasco, Tech N9ne.

Another trend in hip hop that I particularlly care for is older rappers dropping hot albums. I mean older rappers, as in you've been in the game for a substantial amount of time and had at least 5 albums drop. Some veterans are dropping hot albums. Nas put out "Untitled and Hip Hop is Dead". Dilated Peoples put out "The Release Party". Redman release "Red Gone Wild".

Very often will you stumble upon a rapper or a group of rappers who arent all about "getting money and bitches". Rappers who can expand beyond what is normal concious thought in the rap world. A good example of these kind of artists are the artists on Rhymesayers (Atmosphere, Brother Ali) or Def Jux (El-P, Aesop Rock, Cage). Their rhymes will often tell a story and will show how their lives are impacted by music ir will show the constant struggle they go through on a day to day basis.

Overall I feel that hip hop has decreased in its overall likeability to me. Now hip hop is all about trends and lyricism and true genious is put on the back burner while everyone shows off their new dance or what kind of cars or clothes they have.

I would definitely recommend you listen to any of these artists:
Redman
Method Man
Nas
Jay-Z
The Roots
Dilated Peoples
Eminem (anything before encore)
The Alkaholics
Kottonmouth Kings
Snoop Dogg
Dr. Dre
Aesop Rock
Cage
El-P
Atmosphere
Brother Ali
KRS1
Canibus
Jedi Mind Tricks
Ill Bill
Sabac
Immortal Technique
Ice Cube
Wu Tang
N.W.A.
Camp Lo
The Coup
(older) DMX
Jadakiss
Styles P
among many others....

The Pros and Cons of Veganism

"Veganism may be defined as a way of living which seeks to exclude, as far as possible and practical, all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, the animal kingdom for food, clothing, or any other purpose. In dietary terms it refers to the practice of dispensing with all animal produce - including flesh, fish, fowl, eggs, (non-human) animal milks, and their derivatives, with the taking of honey being left to individual conscience." - THE VEGAN

I have been adhering to this dietary and lifestyle choice for almost 4 months now, having previously been vegetarian for almost 5 months, and I have realized that their are definitely a lot of benefits to being vegan and there are unfortunately a few cons.

Let me tackle the bad aspects of being vegan first. It is kind of an inconvenience to the average American because it makes going out to eat a task. A lot of fancier restaurants don't truly cater to vegan customers. Another con to a vegan lifestyle is not being able to receive certain vitamins and nutrients without having to take multi vitamins or other supplements to get them. The other con I have really noticed (this is more towards the women) is fashion. A lot of things that are popular are the leather products or the brands that use a lot of fur. A lot of your hygenie products arent vegan. Although there are downsides to having a Vegan diet and lifestyle they are just matters of convenience. The cons will looks miniscule compared to the list of pros.

During the ongoing course of my veganism I have realized a lot of good things about veganism. A well planned vegan diet a good fighter of heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, and prostate cancer just to name a few killers. There are a lot of ways to get the vitamins and nutrients you need to be a healthy individual. For instance; in a vegan diet Vitamin D is very low in quantity but if you spend 10 to 15 minutes in the sun for 2 to 3 times a week and that will cause your body to start to produce the vitamin D you need. You would never believe how many subsitutes there are for things you would cook with, ie; meat and or dairy. There are a ton of "faux" (fake) meats and "faux" (fake) dairy products. There are also specialized vegan recipes for things like deserts, like using applesauce or tofu instead of eggs. Vitamins and nutriets arent lacking in a vegan diet. You gets many of the essentials (Vitamins A, B, C, betacerratine...etc) and some you wouldn't except such as Iron and Zinc.
To tackle the other topics presented in the cons list; a lot of fast food places have started to accomidate vegan lifestyles such as Taco Bell. Anything on their menu can be veganized by removing the meat and dairy. In the world of fashion a lot of designers have started to use "pleather" (fake leather) and fake fur to accomidate their vegan customers. It may be hard to believe but some companies have introduced vegan hygenie products such as Deodorants, lip balms, tooth pastes, and soaps as to include the customer that stays animal friendly.

In my opinion it seems that the pros outweight the cons.

PETA has said that, "A Vegan diet can save up to 100 animals a year".

Veganism.com on possibly justification of killing and eating animals, "That we can do something does not mean that it is right to do so. We have a lot of power over other creatures, but with
great powers come even greater responsibilities, as any parent will
testify. Humans are at the top of the food chain because they CHOOSE to eat
nonhuman animals."