White Sox pitcher Mark Buehrle pitched a perfect game today! For non baseball fans, a perfect game is one where a pitcher doesn’t allow a single opposing player on base, meaning no hits, no walks, or hit batters. A perfect game is so rare that it has only happened 18 times in Major League Baseball and now twice in the Sox franchise history. It was such a major accomplishment that even the visiting team took time to applaud Buehrle before retreating to the locker rooms. And amazingly, this is Buehrle’s second no-hitter of his career. You can check out the last out here. However, perhaps even more exciting than that, is Wise’s home run stealing catch that he bobbles out of his glove yet still manages to grab barehanded. You can view that here. For those really pumped, you can watch there entire 9th inning here. Only act fast before YouTube takes it down. ESPN coverage here. And oh, photos here.
July 23, 2009
History!!!!!
July 22, 2009
SHELebration
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If you are a dreamer, come in.
If you are a dreamer, a wisher, a liar.
A hope-er, a pray-er, a magic bean buyer…
If you’re a pretender, come sit by my fire
For we have some flax-golden tales to spin.
Come in!
Come in!
“Invitation” Shel Silverstein from Where the Sidewalk Ends
Last week, Apryl and I partook in SHELebration, a free musical and poetry event celebrating the life and work of the late Shel Silverstein. Famously known for children’s books like Where the Sidewalk Ends and The Giving Tree, Silverstein was also an accomplished songwriter (“Cover of the Rolling Stone,” “A Boy Named Sue,” etc.), cartoonist, and screenwriter. The tribute, which was held at the beautiful Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park , was put together by Bobby Bare Jr. and starred a slew of guests including Bobby Bare Sr., Patrick Hallahan (My Morning Jacket), Sally Timms (The Mekons), Jon Langford (The Mekons), Will Oldham (aka Bonnie Prince Billy), and acting as the house band, The Bare Family Band. Why Chicago, you ask? Well, Shel Silverstein was born in Chicago in 1930. He even sold hot dogs at Comiskey Park when he was a kid and remained a lifelong White Sox fan. For more information about SHELebration, check out this great article from the Tribune.
Here are a few photos from the event:
Miss Lori and the Campus Kids from PBS read and act out the works of Silverstein.
Sally Timms sings “One’s on the Way,” made famous by Loretta Lynn.
Bobby Bare Jr. performs Silverstein’s most famous songwriting contribution, “Cover of the Rolling Stone,” originally recorded by Dr. John.
Will Oldham dons a ladies wig and performs another tune originally sung by Loretta Lynn called “Hey Loretta”.
The hilarious Bobby Bare Sr. entertains the kids as well as the adults.
And, here’s a short video of the finale, “Unicorn”:
July 21, 2009
Pitchfork Music Festival – Recap
Well, it’s over! After 3 days and 40 artists, the annual Pitchfork Music Festival is now officially in the books. Without doubt, this was the highest attended Pitchfork since the festival’s conception three years ago (four if you count the Intonation Music Festival curated by Pitchfork in `05). With cheap tickets and headline acts such as The Flaming Lips, Built to Spill, and The National, it’s easy to see why the festival was sold out.
While it would be an extremely long post if I started reviewing each act from this past weekend, I will mention a few of the highlights. So here we go:
Day 1 had a gimmick behind it. Labeled “Write the Night,” all four bands’ playlists were predetermined by the fans who were able to vote on what they wanted to hear that evening beforehand. Theoretically, the idea seemed strong, but with only an hour on stage, there were a lot of requests that had to go unfulfilled. It also lead to some disappointing choices such as when Yo La Tengo played “Pass the Hatchet, I Think I’m Goodkind”. Sure, it’s a great song, but it was on their last album and had been played numerous times on their last tour. On top of that, it’s a long song so it took up a chunk of Yo La Tengo’s playing time. It didn’t help that the group cheated and added three new songs into the mix.
Yo La Tengo rockin’ it out!
The strongest set was probably from Built to Spill, despite the fact that it contained very little material from the band’s early career. Built to Spill are just an amazing live band, and it was great fun hearing so many of their classics in a row. It also didn’t hurt that they played one of my all time favorite songs, the Halo Benders’ “Virginia Reel Around the Fountain”. The experiment probably worked the best for openers, Tortoise, making their set an almost “best of” collection. However, I had to overhear the majority of their set while standing in line for Will Call. More on that later.
Doug Martsch of Built to Spill gives the fans what they asked for.
On Day 2, I was excited about seeing Final Fantasy, Beirut, DOOM, and The Black Lips. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find myself the most impressed with Plants and Animals, Wavves, and The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. (OK, Final Fantasy was just as amazing as I had expected.)
The first group I caught on the second day was the Canadian group, The Plants and Animals. The band is clearly an indie band but one that was raised on classic rock. Their 2008 release, Parc Avenue, even has an album cover that reminds me of a cross between the Allman Brothers’ Brothers and Sisters and Bob Dylan’s The Basement Tapes.
The Plants and Animals are from Montreal though the singer dons a Yankees cap.
The Wavves, which is basically a moniker for the 22 year old skater Nathan Williams, are a group that take lo-fi to the extreme. The Wavves’ sound consist of Williams’ highly distorted vocals drenched in noisy, pop guitar strumming. And as if the songs shouldn’t be taken too seriously, 5 of the 14 tracks on the self-titled debut (out on Oxford’s Fat Possum Records) include the word “goth” in the title. Despite Pitchfork’s high rating for this album, I was immediately put off by the amateurish production. The live version of the Wavves shines out a bit of the studio’s rough edges even though Williams’ vocals are still completely muddled through an effect pedal. At one point, Williams forget to step on the foot pedal after talking to the crowd without effects, and his lyrics came through clearly. It was nice, but I guess not the Wavves. Realizing his error, Williams immediately tapped his pedal, and the Wavves sound was restored.
The young Williams kid is also a bit of a loose canon, and his recent antics in Barcelona have been well publicized. I’m not going to go all into that but there certainly was a feeling around the crowd on whether or not Williams would have a breakdown. This feeling was heighten by the fact that the Wavves’ set was delayed starting due to technical issues. The most alarming part about the Wavves set was the shock of seeing Williams playing a guitar with a cast on his right hand. It seems he hurt it falling off his skateboard. Ah, kids.
Wavves, frontman Nathan Williams, performs happily with cast and a Chicago Bulls cap.
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart have a horrible name but they create wonderful songs that are short, noisy, and poppy. The whole sounds reminds me of a marriage between My Bloody Valentine and bubblegum music. Too bad it took me seeing them onstage before I started to really appreciate them. But hey, that’s why bands tour, right? One of my favorites performances of the entire weekend.
On Day 3, everyone’s minds were set on The Flaming Lips. Without argument, the Lips are the largest booked act in Pitchfork’s history. With a reputation of over the top performances, just what did the Oklahoma boys have up their sleeves for the festival’s finale? We would all have to wait, but luckily we were given plenty of great music to tide us over.
Can you pick out The Flaming Lips fans?
The biggest surprise on Day 3 was Blitzen Trapper. Like Built to Spill, Blitzen Trapper are a great live band. And also like Built to Spill (and Plants and Animals) a lot of their influences are grounded in classic rock. However, on top of the classic rock, the group hodgepodges an assortment of genres that include indie, hard rock, and jam band. Even the band members themselves all look like their all different bands. Somehow it all works!
Blitzen Trapper aren’t a band I would typically seek out but there they were blowing my mind!
Another highly anticipated act was M83. The French group are getting a lot of exposure lately after their music was included in the new Palm Pre Flow commercial. Of all the acts throughout the weekend, I don’t think there was another band that was more appreciative of being a part of the festival. Though their set seemed short, they still managed to play a lot of their favorites (“Couleurs,” “Kim & Jessie,” “Don’t Save Us From the Flames,” etc.). Unfortunately, the guys didn’t cover any material for their debut, Dead Cities, Red Seas & Lost Ghosts. Still, great stuff.
80’s fashion was very popular for concertgoers as well as M83.
The best dance act I saw was DJ/Rupture who entertained a smaller crowd than usual since The Thermals were also performing at the same time. Typically, I don’t care for watching DJ’s since it’s basically watching a guy in front of his computer. However, DJ/Rupture is so creative that it’s amazing to watch him. My favorite number was one where he slowed down Joy Division’s “She Lost Control” and created a trance version out of it that had all the hip kids dancing.
The hipsters shaking their hips!
As the sun went down and Grizzly Bear’s set came to end, the crowd got ready for the Lips. Like Phish (and at once, The Grateful Dead), the Flaming Lips are a group that have a traveling fan base with many of them dressed up as animals or space aliens. A Lips’ show is all about fun and fantasy so it makes sense that folks would want to go out of their way to be a part of that. There was no doubt who were the most loyal of the loyal.
Aliens.
As for the show, The Flaming Lips didn’t disappoint. I was afraid they were going to have to scale down the theatrics because of the park setting, but little seemed to be spared. Everything about their performance (art) was grand, including the band’s entrance where each member was “birthed” on to the stage. I’ll let you leave that one to your own imagination.
If you’ve seen a Lips’ show in the past couple of years, you are familiar with a lot of their antics such as Wayne in the bubble. Still, it’s always funny to see Wayne rolling over the crowd.
Wayne Bubble!
One of the main attractions on stage is a large screen that plays video that is often in sync with the rhythm of the music. Also, the screen is used to show an upclose image of Wayne as he addresses the fans.
I like to call it “Wayne Cam”.
For some reason, Wayne had some misconceptions about the Pitchfork Music Festival. Now, it’s true the fans picked the playlist for the bands on Day 1. But Wayne was under the assumption that all the bands throughout the weekend were bound by these rules. So, the Lips also participated in the online fan requests. However, Wayne was quick to point out that the Lips always played what the fans wanted to hear. And then the band followed with the requested “Bad Day,” which Wayne confessed they hadn’t played in 10 years!
Due to time constraints from the park, the Lips taking a long time talking to the fans between each song, and the addition of a few new songs, the Lips didn’t make it that far through their fans’ list. Still, it really didn’t matter. It was the “awe” that everyone came to see from the Lips. And the “awe” is what everyone got!
The Flaming Lips making everyone smile!
However, the real story for this year’s Pitchfork was the weather. Typically, the temperatures are in the low nineties but this year the highs never even broke the mid 70’s. At night, it was time to break out the sweaters and blankets as temps averaged in the mid 50’s. Because of this, I’m not even sure this year’s Pitchfork should qualify as a summer music festival. Not that I’m complaining. I thought it felt wonderful. I can only hope for such agreeable weather in August while I’m working at the Lollapalooza festival.
Obviously, at a festival the size of Pitchfork, not everything is going to be perfect. For one, Will Call was a mess. It took 40 minutes to obtain our holding tickets! I blame this one on a lack of direction for the folks in line as well as an understaffed Will Call booth.
Thankfully, Will Call was right next to the stage where Tortoise was playing or I would have nearly missed the first act completely!
Another misstep was the lack of food vendors on the opening night. Now while the first night is the shortest, the evening (thanks to the strong lineup) is still well attended and coincides with dinner time. So, obviously there’s going to be a lot of hungry people. Unfortunately, there were only two vendors opened and food was going fast. I should note that on Saturday and Sunday this wasn’t an issue, and I hardly saw a wait for grub.
There was an issue with a lack of port-a-johns on Saturday creating extremely long lines full of nervous folks. Seeing this as a problem, more port-a-johns were added for Sunday. Highly commendable.
One final gripe. The sound was a bit sketchy. A lot of this depends on where you are positioned from the stage. However, there were multiple occasions when the sound was too soft or there was too much bleed from another stage.
I suppose you could also suggest the idea that the festival is growing too fast. Compared to Lollapalooza where one can get worn out just walking from one stage to the next, Pitchfork is easily manageable. Obviously, there will come a day when the Pitchfork will outgrow Union Park and when that day comes it will be a real shame. Especially since, this is one of the few music festivals Apryl is able to manage crowdwise.
Apryl and I lying under our favorite tree.
Still, any qualms I have about the festival are almost trivial when it comes to the chance to see so many great bands all in one place for such a bargain price.
See you next year, Pitchfork!
– Check out all my photos and videos from Pitchfork here.
July 17, 2009
Pitchfork Music Festival `09 – It’s On!
For the fourth straight year, Apryl and I are attending the Pitchfork Music Festival, which occurs every year at Union Park. (Technically, the first year was the Intonation Music Festival curated by Pitchfork, but that’s nitpicking.) This year tickets sold out faster than any other year, so we’re expecting a far larger crowd than normal. Hopefully, it will still be manageable, since this is one of the few festivals Apryl is able to stand crowdwise. And as long as the predicted showers for Saturday and Sunday hold off, the temperature highs ranging from the low to mid 70’s should make the conditions quite comfortable (though I can imagine Apryl being disappointed in the idea of taking a sweater at night when it’s officially summertime). Below, a list of some of the artists I’m looking forward to checking out:
Built to Spill, The Flaming Lips, Yo La Tengo, Tortoise, Grizzly Bear, M83, Beirut, DOOM, Final Fantasy, The National, The Walkmen, Bowerbirds, and many, many more.
If you aren’t able to attend but still want to check out the festival, there will be a live stream here.
July 16, 2009
Cubs vs. Cards – Attended Game #11 (7/12/09)
Cubs 7, Cardinals 3
On Sunday, I attended the Cubs/Cards make-up game from a rain out in April. If you’ve been reading the baseball posts then you are well aware of my recent drought of seeing a victory. Well, I caught a “W” for the Cubbies. Not sure that counts. Especially since it meant that I had to endure the horrible sing-a-long number, “Go Cubs Go”. Even worse though, I was sitting next to one of the most obnoxious fans I have ever met.
The “fan” was in his mid twenties, from Indianapolis, and was attending his first Cubs game. How do I know this? Because, he talked to me throughout the entire game despite the fact that I hardly ever responded. Around the 1st inning, Annoying Fan told everyone around him that he could make his father proud if at the 7th inning stretch he streaked across the field. “What’s the worst tat could happen to me, ” he asked. A Cubs fan next to me had the answer. “$1000 bail!” AF said that he had that much money on him and that it might be worth it. I told him that he had about an hour and an half to think it over. Did I mention that AF had already confessed to us that he been drinking heavily in Wrigleyville the night before and had woken up on someone’s porch (thank goodness we don’t live in that neighborhood).
During the 2nd inning, AF started quizzing me on baseball history. His first question was what was the oldest ballpark in the majors. Easy, Fenway Park. Obviously, he thought I was going to say Wrigley. And then he came with a harder one. What is the oldest team in the majors? I answered, “Cincinnati Reds.” He was impressed and stopped with the baseball trivia. Unfortunately, that didn’t stop him from commenting and telling jokes to me for the next couple of hours.
The sad thing was that he was a friendly guy. But there was just too much pep there. I mean even the Cubs fans were getting agitated with him. The most annoying thing he did was press his fingers between his lips, and blow the loudest whistle I’ve ever heard come from a human being. He kept doing this over and over and over again. Finally, a Cubs fan near me told him that whistling was really only reserved for home runs. That stopped him for a few innings at least.
Speaking of home runs, AF called the homer from Carlos Zambrano in the 4th inning. This fact excited him to no end. He started screaming out profanities (luckily, the young kid in front of him was with his dad on a bathroom break) and looked for someone who would high five him. Even with an excited crowd, I don’t know if he found any takers.
Towards the 5th and 6th, I think all the beer AF had consumed was starting to have a sleepy effect on him for he was pretty quite during this time. But as soon as the 7th inning came around (no, he didn’t run out onto the field naked), he got his second wind. He started up the whistling again much to the chagrin to those around him.
I will admit that he had one funny joke. At one point in the game, the Cubs popped up behind Pujols (who had already committed an error missing a routine grounder through his legs) in short right field. Three Cardinals went for the ball but the ball fell in between them. AF yells, “How many Cardinals does it take to catch a pop fly? More than three!” Okay, that was funny. But true to his annoying nature, he ruined the few chuckles he got by immediately repeating the joke. And then in the 8th, he recycled the joke without any context.
Surprisingly, at the bottom of the ninth, AF turned to all of us around him and announced that he was leaving to beat the crowd because he was driving back to Indianapolis that night. As soon as he was gone, there was a collective sigh of relief. One Cubs fan near me told me, “I don’t know how you sat next to him the whole game!”
As I said, AF was friendly but also so grating and exhausting. At one point while he was talking on the phone to his friend, he commented on just how beautiful the day was and how beautiful the ballpark was and how much he wished his friend could be there with him. That the people were so friendly. And it all felt like a bit of Heaven. Thinking about that made me feel a bit guilty about all the negative thoughts I had had about him. Then, I felt the ringing in my ears.
Arriving at the ballpark by bus.
The old time band plays for those entering Wrigley. Nice touch.
Inspired by Adam a few months ago, I kept score. It was also a great way to ignore the madness going on next to me.
The great Pujols went 2 for 4 with a double, two RBI’s, and a run. He also made an error that probably cost the Cards any chance of getting back in the game. A few days later, he would also make an error in the All-Star game.
“Take Me Out to the Ballgame”. Towards the end, you can see AF waving his newly bought Cubs cap. AF was also wearing a Cubs shirt he bought at the gift shop and finally put on around the 3rd inning.
The last out was a fly out to Milton Bradley in right field. Note that I stopped transmission right before the “Go Cubs Go” sing-a-long.
The massive crowd that AF was trying to beat. The official attendance for the game was 40,701. For the Sox, such a number happens on opening day, during playoffs, or whenever the Cubs are playing at The Cell. For the Cubs, it’s just another day at the ballpark.
Dang, I forgot to take a picture of my hot dog.
July 13, 2009
Work.
On Saturday, I worked with EXTRA for my first shoot with NASCAR at the LifeLock.com 400 at the Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet, IL. Clearly, I’m a newbie in this picture because I wasn’t aware you couldn’t wear shorts in the garage and pits, and I had to buy a pair of ridiculous sweat pants just so I could do my job. Great look, huh? The segment I worked on was with Carl Edwards and should air on EXTRA this week.
July 12, 2009
July 10, 2009
Sox vs. Indians – Attended Game #10 (7/9/09)
White Sox 8, Indians 10
Alright, I’m getting tired of seeing the Sox lose. I haven’t seen a Sox victory since May 7th. And what’s really frustrating is that the Sox have been winning, but I’ve just been going to the wrong games. To be fair, I knew the odds were against me when the Sox took to the field yesterday. The Sox had swept the Indians in Cleveland last week and were one game away from doing the same at home. In baseball, you’re always playing the odds. Statistically, I didn’t stand a chance.
My friend that invited we to the A’s game called me up a few hours prior to yesterday’s game, and since I wasn’t working, I jumped at the idea. Before I headed out for the train, though, I debated on whether or not to wear my new Sox cap or the old one. Since I’ve purchased the new cap, I haven’t seen a single Sox victory.
As I mentioned in a previous post, I don’t play the superstition game. I mean, I did once upon a time. Like making sure you’re wearing your lucky shirt in order to push those odds in your favor. But then one day (during a Grizzlies game), it all seemed really silly. How could one person’s eccentricities doom an entire team? Surely, I had no influence over a team’s dismal play. Right? After laughing off the Gods of Baseball, I grabbed my new Sox cap and took a mighty stand against superstition. And what did it get me?
For one, an early beating! Sox starter Clayton Richard gave up a grand slam in the 2nd which put the Indians up 6 -2. The next inning, the Tribe added 3 more runs to take a 9 -2 lead. Ugh, I was sensing superstition was teaching me a harsh lesson.
And then, I felt like my luck was beginning to turn around. With two outs in the 3rd, the Sox managed to add 4 more runs on the board. And then in the 5th, also with 2 outs, the Sox added 2 more, making it a one run difference. Perhaps, my new cap was a good luck rally cap!
Alas, no. The Indians added another run in the 6th. The Sox, despite having multiple opportunities, were not able to send any more players over home plate. Still, you have to give it to the Good Guys for not giving up. It’s not their fault that I decided to be stubborn and wear the new cap.
Despite the loss, I enjoyed myself and my hot dog:
Sure, it looks disgusting but it’s so so good!
And since it was a decent crowd of over 27,000, I recorded another Nancy driven version of “Take Me Out to the Ball Game”:
