2010 Plans

We here at Not Lame Minus would like to thank everyone who has stopped by, both casual readers and steady followers alike, to see what we have been babbling about, reviewing, or recommending since our debut in early June. And a heartfelt "Aw, shucks, it was nothin'..." to those of you who have found us to be a useful source for local music dates and links to outdoor (and some indoor, during the cold of winter) family fun.

With all of the holiday mayhem, lack of funds, and the dearth of local music performances, there hasn't been much to babble about in the last month or so, but in 2010 we will hit the ground running with some "Best of" columns, more frequent reviews, another contest or three, and hopefully, so much music stuff that you'll want to track us down to receive and/or cash in those wooden nickels!

And from Ken, Brian, Jay and Rob:

Happy New Year
Feliz año nuevo
Bonne année
Hyvää uuttavuotta
كل عام وأنتم بخير
Ευτυχισμένο το νέο έτος
あけましておめでとう

REAL Snow is Coming

Last week's snowstorm was apparently nothing compared to what is in store for the east coast this weekend. As of 2:30 pm EST, there is 16+" on the ground in Maryland (thanks Heather B), Philly and NYC are being hit hard, and Massachusetts has at least a foot coming this evening, with less snow expected the further north and west one lives (New Hampshire and Maine may even escape untouched)...

Let us know how much snow you wound up with, any personal "Tales From the Blizzard" you'd care to share, or even what activities/music/movies got you through your weekend!

Snow 12-09-09

How did the first major storm of 2009's winter treat you? I read, wrapped gifts, and watched movies all day (after getting up early to move my car for the plow). Here are pictures aimed outside of two of my windows:

Web Comics

Over the last decade or so, there has been a slow move to the internet and online comics. The vast variety of writing styles, artwork and subject matter is truly astounding. Personally, I will never relinquish my love for having the story and art in my hands (I still buy around ten comics a month), and being able to take them with me anywhere. That being said, there is a lot of excellent and varied work for all tastes being done online. Below, I have listed a variety of the ones I am currently enjoying for anyone who might like an occasional brainful of amazing illustrated serial entertainment, updated on various semi-regular schedules. The title links should bring you to the first installment of each series.

• If you've ever played a role playing game like Dungeons & Dragons, read sci-fi and/or fantasy novels, or seen movies in either genre, "Order of the Stick" might be your thing. Don't let the seemingly simple illustration style fool you. The story is hilarious, the characters are engaging, and there are tons of in-jokes and references to outside stuff, not limited to the two genres. I've been reading this series the longest to date (several years), and wish it was updated more frequently.
• Skottie Young is a comic book artist of no little talent, having illustrated various X-Men titles for Marvel Comics, as well as the phenomenal "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" graphic novel (which I bought for my 10-year-old niece Ryan, who absolutely loved it). He just began a short series entitled "The Adventures of Bernard the World Destroyer". It's pretty darn funny, turning a few of sci-fi's 'first contact' cliches on their collective ears. He plans to update it daily for at least one month, and longer as whimsy dictates.
• Karl Kerschl, illustrator of The Flash, Teen Titans, and other series from DC Comics has been putting out a weekly snippet of his charming "The Abominable Charles Christopher", a tale of a wandering yeti, and his sometimes humorous, sometimes serious encounters in the forest and beyond. The strip began in June of 2007, and hasn't missed a Wednesday installment since!
• I just today discovered Ramon Perez's twice-weekly (Tuesdays & Thursdays) series "Kukuburi". I've read the first 29 installments (up to late October of '07), and so far it is a trippy tale of a girl and her talking chameleon who wander into a Seussian dimension of wierdness, surrealism and danger. The colors pop, (many of the strips are wall-print worthy), the creatures are imaginative, and each day's vignette makes me want to click "next"!
• And last but not least, another funny strip I discovered today: "Girls With Slingshots", a "slice of life", relationshippy 5-times-weekly comic that has been running since 2004, about two girls, Jamie and Hazel, and their friends in the city (I haven't figured out which city yet, but that may not matter). It is definitely not for kids, and my initial impression is that it reads like a Showtime/HBO version (read: Rated R) of "How I Met Your Mother" or "Friends" (please forgive me longtime readers of "GWS", if this offends your sensibilities - haha!). So far, very funny!
  

Go forth, read on, and please let me (and the creators!) know how you feel about their creations! Some of them even have collected print editions of their work available for purchase (no one told me to say that :Þ) for those of you who might prefer the heft and scent of the printed work.

So Live = SO Good

Thanks to some Mute Math tickets I bought way back in July, and my friend Erik getting two last-minute passes to The Cranberries up at The Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom, I was able to see two of my favorite bands live this past week.

I had three tickets for Mute Math on Thursday the 12th, but only Brian could go (thankfully, he's always down for a trip into Boston!). So I rode the T in to Lansdowne Street, and parked myself at the bar at The Cask N' Flagon to wait for him. After he got there, I had a couple of Sam Adams Octoberfest drafts (always good), and a turkey club (with hand-cut fries), and he got a pizza ("not very good") for dinner. Then it was down the street to The House of Blues for the show.

As Tall As Lions were the openers, which was a nice surprise. I had tickets to see them in San Francisco back in February when I went to visit my brother Jason, but we wound up not going, so it was cool to have a second chance. They were pretty good, if a bit gimicky at times, though every song that featured the trumpet turned out to be a cool jam that should be heard in person.

Then Mute Math came out. They were almost as amazing as they had been in September of '07, when Jay, Gavin & I went to see them for the first time. I say almost, because that first show kicked such ass, that it couldn't be matched for pure enthusiasm and power. That being said, this night's show was fantastic because they had two full albums (and an ep) of material to pull from. The songs were great (sometimes it's better when the live version isn't performed "note for note" to the studio version), their energy was consistently high, and the light show added nicely to the experience. Totally worth the drive, T ride, T ride, and drive (haha).

On Saturday the 14th, I drove up to Hampton Beach in the rain to see one of my all-time favorite bands. I thought I would have to miss them this time around (on their first tour in seven years) due to lack of disposable income, but Erik came through out of the blue with a pair of tickets he got on eBay! I was PSYCHED. The opening act was a dude with his guitar named Griffin House, He was pretty good, and funny (apparently his wife was on tour with him as an extended honeymoon), and made the settling in at our table (with several Longhammer IPAs - great scent, better flavor!) beforehand quite pleasant.

Then it was The Cranberries. I've seen them live on three other occasions (05/03/99, 08/21/99, and 05/14/02), as well as Dolores solo back in July of '07 with Jay, and they are absolutely in my Top 3 Bands of All Time to See Live. Every show has been amazing, and this one was no exception. Dolores had released her second solo album back in August, and was going to embark on a solo tour, but amazingly, she got to talking with her bandmates, and they agreed to do a Cranberries tour instead! They would play a bunch of their greatest hits, and sprinkle in some of her solo tunes. They did not disappoint.

The first few songs included "Animal Instinct" and "Linger" (two of my all-time favorites), and except for a couple of quiet moments (including her solo tune "Lunatic"), the energy never let up. Twenty-two songs flew by, with barely any time to breathe in between the music and banter. Amazing. The playlist was very "No Need to Argue" heavy, which happily took me back to my two years in Boston ('93-'95) and hearing them on the jukebox of every bar Jay & I used to hang out at with friends. There is nothing better than driving home from a kick-ass show, ears still ringing from your favorite songs being blasted at you by the people who created them, and reminiscing about the people & places you first heard them with/at. Well done, Erik, well done. Thanks, buddy, I appreciate the effort you put forth to get these tickets!