Fuck All

I've got fuck all to say but seeing as the last time I posted I was a wee bit depressed, I thought I might give you guys a happier update. So lets see, what's there to be happy about...
Well I did get to watch the new Dr. Who last week (not sure if I mentioned that anywhere) and it did not fail. As one reviewer from Behind the Sofa pointed out, the episode was a bit bland, but not nearly as disappointing as some episodes from last series. Tonight though there's a football match (Waterford v. Manchester United) and so even though the show has been delayed forty minutes there's the possibility that if the game runs into overtime the episode will be delayed a week. Boo! I don't care who wins just as long as it doesn't go into overtime!
Let's see, what else...
Lollapalooza! I could go, but spending $195 to see 8 bands (some of which are only maybes really) just doesn't seem worth it. Besides with some of the bands, there's always the chance that they'll come to the DC area (which doesn't actually exist) and the ticket price will be much, much cheaper. But yeah, it was kind of cool to think about how I could go to Lollapalooza if I wanted to.
Umm...
Picture!

Kitty! This is such a cute picture even if it totally contradicts an episode from last series. Oh well, still very, very cute.
That's all. I leave you with an article full of advice for the young men of Arctic Monkeys.
Quick Reminder: "Hot Fuzz" comes out this Friday!! Go see it and be amazed!!

Addendum

There's an article I forgot to post. Go ahead and read it, see what you think. My personal opinion is that popular music (or at least popular rock music) has reached a similar point in its growth that classical reached around the early to mid 20th century. Although I don't entirely agree with the bands listed at the bottom I suppose everyone is entitled to their opinion. Overall though it's a good article that brings up some very interesting points. And it's not by Dom Gourly.

Scotland Rocks Your Socks

Why does Scotland rock your socks? Because it birthed David Tennant, the Fratellis, and Franz Ferdinand, among others. Scotland will in fact take over the world eventually. And here's an article to back up this thesis. You know what else Scotland has on its side? A distinct lack of Kaiser Chiefs.
Now, the Long Blondes have decided (or gotten the chance) to finally release their debut and guess what? It's going to have four bonus tracks. This makes me excited because I've been waiting for this forever. This release along with the Pipettes means that finally I'll have more than Jenny Lewis to represent the lady rockers. I'm happy.
I've decided that I'm going on a Kaiser Chiefs detox. I've put too much of myself into that group and have gotten basically squat in return, so I'm going to turn my attention to other things, like school and Doctor Who. I mean this honestly, this isn't some wussy "protest" that will only last a day or two. I'm dead serious.
Now you might be wondering what made me decide to do this. Well there was the concert and then there was this which just exacerbated my feelings from the past few days. So I decided that I just can't do this. I have enough in my life and I have other interests, so I'm just going to focus on those instead. Going through a wonderful roller coaster ride of emotions over a bunch of guys who I've never met is ridiculous. I'm just not doing it anymore. There's more to life.

You Should Never Meet Your Heroes

Actually, you should never live your fantasies. Reality never plays out as well and so you're left disappointed in yourself and in the world and, at least in my case, quite heartbroken.
When you devote yourself so entirely to something, or someone, or a group of people, there's a certain amount of your heart you put into it too. So when you feel like there should be acknowledgement for your devotion it's incredibly devastating to realize that, that devotion will never be acknowledged. Or, maybe not never. There's always the chance that sometime in the future it will be acknowledged, but I guess when you're screaming at the top of your lungs, the future doesn't really matter that much.
There's always the chance that I'm wrong. Maybe my devotion, or at least my exertion during the concert, was noticed and so all this angst I'm feeling is utterly pointless. Or I could be right and it was the girls who groped and stood in the middle and sacrificed themselves at the alter of respectability who got noticed and not me. Lord knows he smiled enough to give that impression. Maybe both kinds of devotion were noticed and I just have incredibly low self-esteem.
But how would you react? You stump their album to all your friends, you constantly write about them, you do a song by song review of their new album, you do everything within your power (and wallflower personality) to promote the band and then you stand for two hours in line in freezing weather, damage your ears and vocal chords, and for what? The possiblity that it was you the leader singer was smiling at? You see others, more outgoing, more willing to act like idiots, being acknowledged and smiled at. How would you react to that?
All the while in the back of my head there's this nagging voice telling me I'm acting like an idiot. That I'm overreacting to something that doesn't really matter in the grand scheme of things. That I know better than those girls, that a smile is fleeting. But still, as the Fratellis said, "my hearts all broke in pieces and my heads a mess" and for some god-awful reason I can't move on.
It's sort of funny. I've never been in a serious relationship, yet I know what it's like to feel heartbroken. At least that's what I think this feeling is. Maybe it's only funny in how completely pathetic I am. No, you should never live your fantasies. The reality of it all hurts too much.

RIP NMTB

Well it seems someone noticed lizzilupin's stash of Never Mind the Buzzcocks episodes, so now they're all gone. I don't know if I'll ever be able to watch Ricky drunk again, or see Preston walk off because he's an idiot. Never again will I be able to revel while Phil and Bill take crack shots at everything under the pop culture moon. So very, very sad is what I say. Stupid YouTube. Stupid living in North America. Grrr...
Despite the fact that I still can't listen to KC, I have made a step forward in my rehabilitation and read some articles and such about them (or by the them, depending.) Even though I'm having a hard time thinking of myself as a true blue fangirl, I'll post these lovelies because that's what I do. Enjoy.
[Just the titles, no snarky comments. I'm not that far along in my recovery]
KC/DC - Back in Blog
A Blog in Time Saves Nine
Kaiser Chiefs continue US tour
Well that's all folks. I think I'll go die a little bit more now...

And Oh the Towering Feeling

And now for my 450th post, a whole hell of a lot of fangirling

And oh! The towering feeling
Just to know somehow you are near

Just thinking about it makes my chest feel tight. I could never properly review any of their concerts simply because it's all too surreal for me. I couldn't have asked for anything more amazing or heartbreaking. The after effect may have been one of despair (because I can never be someone I'm not), but how can I forget those too perfect moments of complete bliss? Yes, I can never be certain of anything, but it's so wonderful to imagine, so very wonderful. I may never be able to do what I wish I could do, but if everything goes as planned, that won't matter. No, I won't ever forget, and one day I will be remembered.

I was so faint with joy I didn't know what was happening

Set List:
Saturday Night
Every Day I Love You Less And Less
Heat Dies Down
Ruby
Thank You Very Much
Na Na Na Na Naa
Everything Is Average Nowadays
Born To Be A Dancer
Modern Way
Highroyds
Try Your Best
I Predict A Riot
Take My Temperature
Retirement
The Angry Mob
Oh My God

By the time we were let in I couldn't feel my toes and my hands weren't working properly. I had seen Nick and Simon leave the tour bus, the exact same one that Sophs had been saying she wanted to push over. The opening bands were good, but I couldn't understand a word from either of them, what with the sound system not working. But piece by piece the stage was cleared till all that was left was the equipment for the main attraction. My poor ears were all but dead and I knew I would pay for my enthusiasm through my neck. Then the lights went down and the screaming started.
Before that Peanut was up on the balcony watching the Walkmen speed their way through their set. The proceedings had started late and the two opening acts were paying for this tardiness. I was up against the railing to the right of the stage, my right ear getting the brunt of the abuse I was enduring. Then it was the Walkmen's last song and a half hour of waiting. The waiting didn't seem that long though and soon there was cheering and screaming. And there they were, living, breathing, real men.
Most of what happened afterwards is blurred together with only a few things standing apart from everything else. The deadening realization that as much as I seem like a fangirl, I'm far too inhibited to actually act like one in public. The hope that his (and we all know "he" is) wink and salute was to me, though it may have been towards someone else. Brief moments of possible eye contact, his eyes looking so dark. The slow realization that all of my attention was focused on him, that somehow my stare would draw his attention. The other realization that I was screaming and shouting my vocal chords into oblivion for the same purpose as my stare. Then, during "Take My Temperature" the stage dive to the bar and the return journey. I touched his hand! My god, I really touched his hand.
There was a moment during the concert when I just stood there, my mouth partially open, staring in amazement that I was were I was. Smiling when Ricky collapsed near the end of the set, feeling nearly as exhausted as he probably felt. Egging them to come back, knowing full well which songs they hadn't performed. Wondering why that one girl thought she could actually convince the band to stray from the prescribed set list, as if she was so powerful. No, the whole thing was a blur of emotion with the music acting as an accompaniment.
And yes the performance was excellent, despite what the Washington Post reviewer* may think. Oddly enough I actually learned some things as well: People either don't pay attention to or don't absorb lyrics the way I do and when it comes to living out the fantasy the closest I can get right now is holding his hand for a brief moment.

*scroll down past the review of the classical artist to get to the review of Saturday night's show

Easter Sunday

Well...last night...it happened. I don't really want to write about at the moment, due to the fact that I'm still recovering from certain aspects of the concert, so y'all will just have to wait. So instead of a set list, you guys get the lyrics to a Fratellis song. Technically (or at least according to my interpretation) the song is about a prostitute (which is true for most of the songs on their album) but certain parts relate very nicely to how I'm feeling at the moment. The song is called "Whistle for the Choir" and is by the Fratellis from their debut album Costello Music. Enjoy.
Well it's a big big city and it's always the same
Can never be too pretty tell me you your name
Is it out of line if I was to be bold
And say "Would you be mine"?

Because I may be a beggar and you maybe the queen
Though I may be on a downer I'm still ready to dream
And it's 3 o'clock the time it just the time it takes for you to talk

So if you're lonely why'd you say your not lonely
Oh your a silly girl, I know I heard it so
It's just like you to come and go
And know me no you don't even know me
Your so sweet to try, oh my, you caught my eye
A girl like you's just irresistible

Well it's a big big city and the lights are all out
But it's much as I can do you know to figure you out
And I must confess, my hearts in broken pieces
And my heads a mess
And it's 4 in the morning, and I'm walking along
Beside the ghost of every drinker who has ever done wrong
And it's you, woo hoo
That's got me going crazy for the things you do

So if your crazy I don't care you amaze me
But your a stupid girl, oh me, oh my, you talk
I die, you smile, you laugh, I cry
And only, a girl like you could be lonely
And it's a crying shame, if you would think the same
A boy like me's just irresistible

So if your lonely, why'd you say you're not lonely
Oh your a silly girl, I know I heard it so
It's just like you to come and go
And know me, no you don't even know me
Your so sweet to try oh my, you caught my eye
A girl like you's just irresistible

5 Hours 20 Minutes

I dont' really have to time to write, but I just wanted to post this article from the NME. Set list will be up tomorrow sometime, hopefully. I may or may not do a review a la the WAS/Arctic Monkey concert from June, but I haven't decided.
In other irrelavent news, I don't know if I'll be able to watch "The Shakespeare Code"!! A fact that makes me very, very sad. I don't care if Sophs thinks I'm "stealing" by watching it on YouTube, I still want to watch it!
Anyway, that's all.

Day 1 cont. (Because I'm a Horrible Person and Couldn't Resist)

Monday was magical because...it wasn't really magical at all! That's what made it magical

Tuesday, what a tiring day, because...I was procrastinating on all the work I have to do, which is really quite tiring. That and I was trying to find "Smith and Jones" on YouTube, when it isn't there.

My Wednesday was wild & crazy because...I had breakfast for lunch. Crazy I know.

Thursday made me think about...how idiotic musicians are and David Tennant. Wonderful Ten-Inch and his wonderful Scottish accent.

Friday is the most fun because of...my Musical Investigation. Yipee.

1 Day

I've got a shit load of work to do (hurrah for MI!), so I thought I would try and get as much of my online shit done with earlier in the day, so that I can have more time to do the work I have to have done by the time I have to have it done. I apologize for that last sentence. I'm going to move on now.
I don't think Whitey understands punctuation. I say this because his sentences are separated by elongated ellipses..........Like so.......Thus leading me to believe he doesn't understand punctuation. It is nice to see that someone has decided to update the blog though.
So, we all remember how much of an obsessive Beatles fan I was not too long ago. Well it seems that my new obsession has decided to kill me. You see there are certain things, or songs, bands are not allowed to do, or cover. For instance, bands are not allowed to say mean things, or cover, the Beatles. This is simply out of respect and the understanding that if weren't for the Beatles, rock wouldn't exsist. That may seem like an exaggeration, but it's true. >_> Anyway, bands really shouldn't try and cover Beatles songs. The reason for this is because they aren't the Beatles. The only Beatles cover that has ever been as good, or better, than the original is Fiona Apple's cover of "Across the Universe" which was actually better than the original. Normally though, Beatles' covers are shite. Which is why it makes me sad that KC is partaking in this abomination of a really fantastic album. Also vaguely curious to see which song they cover. But mostly just sad.
Also on a quick side note, The Fratellis? What song could they cover?
And finally, some more KC news. According to NME, they will be keeping a blog during the NA tour. I laugh at this simply because they have a hard enough time keeping up with the blog on their site. How they hell does NME expect them to keep another one for them? I mean honestly, there's only so much you can expect from these guys. Oh, silly NME. I do hope they keep their word on the pictures though.
One last thing: Takin' Over the Asylum is wunderbar. And midcirclenine is my equally wunderbar provider. Yay YouTube!!

2 Days

In an effort not to make my journal sound like it's written by a drunk (an incoherent drunk at that) I'm writing this a bit earlier than usual. So now I'm going to go check my news sites, just in case something has happened that I didn't know about.
Oh Jesus. Today's going to be fun...
So let's start with the guys looking like dicks category. The top prize goes to Jamie Cook and Alex Turner of Arctic Monkeys for acting like old dicks when they're only two or so years older than me. First off they lay into Mark "Lily Allen's Producer" Ronson which means Lily will probably be saying something scathing sometime soon. Then the boys decided to take up my position that all music sucks. This is were Alex comes in saying that Timbaland is in every music video. Which made me wonder were he was in their video. As DIY put it, grumpy old men (the Gallaghers) before their time? I think so.
Our next category is America, or not being able to come to America if that's the case. So, while the View deal with the fact that their lead singer is a crack addict, Tokyo Police Club and the 1990s hustle their asses over here to be on the telly. Good luck to them.
Continuing with our look at people coming over to the States, we had a bit of deja vu a couple of days ago concerning our good friend Mystery Jets. Mind you this is just a reiteration of the fact that they're releasing an album over hear two days before my birthday and not coming near the DC area. On the other Ms. Allen is coming near the DC area, but I refuse to go to the Sonar, so that's another Lily Allen gig I won't be going to. I've stopped being disappointed though.
In the ongoing saga of the Swedish baby with the weird name, courts in Sweden aren't letting the parents name their daughter Metallica. The court's reason for not allowing the parents to name their daughter Metallica sound a bit Big Brother-ish to me, but I think this should be a sign to the parents not to name their poor daughter after a semi-mediocre metal band that were popular in the...I don't actually know when Metallica were popular, but the point is, don't name your children after metal bands. Or any bands for that matter. Moving on...
A show that I wasn't going to get to go to because it was this weekend in London got cancelled. That's all.
Give the Cribs their drum back!! After rewatching the episode of NMTB that R hosted, I've decided that even though the Cribs aren't my favourite band in the world, they don't deserve to have their snare drum stolen. They seem like a nice bunch of blokes, so whoever took it should give it back. :sticks out tongue in defiance:
And last but not least, Kaiser Chiefs. I say we start with the article that makes Nick look like an idiot and then move onto the article that makes Ricky look like a complete dick. So Nick...what's on your iPod? What I found interesting about this little article wasn't so much what Nick has on his iPod (though I did find it interesting that most of the songs that popped up were either songs he didn't like or didn't know), but that the person who did the interview was the same person who did the review of YTAM. Oh the irony of it all.
Now Rick. Rick, Rick, Rick. When you snub a concert dedicated to Princess Di don't bring up the obvious hypocrisy of all the other people doing it. Having checked your touring schedule, you have a perfectly good excuse. You'll be in Italy the day that the concert is suppose to be happening. You would be disappointing so many Italian fans if you didn't go, so there. You have a good excuse that doesn't make you look like a dick. Yes, technically you would still be snubbing Princess Di, but I think we can all live with that. Oh well. You've already said what you've said, can't go back now. Stupid git.
Well I don't have anything else to say. Actually I do: Just two more days, and Sophs has already agreed to showing up at the club early. Mwhahahaha. Oh and Jasmine, you've replaced Sophs as the person who I irate about stupid things. Good job.

4 Days

It's sort of interesting what people care about. YouTube user extraordinaire lizzilupin has uploaded the past three seasons of Never Mind the Buzzcocks as well as various episodes from past seasons and the direct to video special Never Rewind the Buzzcocks all of which adds up to quite a lot of hours. Interestingly, none of the episodes have mysteriously disappeared. On the other hand, all links having to do with the full episode of "Smith and Jones" have gone poof from the YouTube sight. This not true for other Doctor Who episodes including the series 1 finale and the 2006 Christmas special "The Runaway Bride" (which I watched today.) I suppose there's a certain logic for taking down "Smith and Jones" but it's also rather worrying. Will next week's episode be available, even if just for a day or two? But I digress. No, what's interesting is that a show on BBC 1 is more important than an equally excellent show on BBC 3. Funny, I guess ratings do matter more than quality. I just hope the Beeb doesn't notice all of those NMTB episodes.
Not much else happened today. I finally got to see "The Idiot's Lantern" which means I've seen every episode from the new series of DW, which is exciting in its own way. I also had the rather odd realization that I really would be seeing R and the lot in the flesh on Saturday. This might seem like a rather stupid observation, but one must realize that I see pictures of R and the band quite often. Thus, the idea of really seeing them takes a while to sink in. Anyway, I'm going to move on. A friend of mine got in an accident which reminded me of something entirely inappropriate. But I couldn't help myself. Anyway, I just hope he's completely alright, just like R.
Ugh, I've got to sleep now. Or at least not write. A demain, mes petites.

5/6 Days

I'm never entirely sure how to do count downs because I know to include the day that you're writing (eg today is monday, thus start with monday) but then, since the concert doesn't start until like 10pm, do I include saturday? So confusing. Anyway, it's 5/6 days until I see Ricky in the flesh for the first time in over a year. And this time I'll be uber-close as opposed to last time were I was really fucking far away. :squeeeee!!!!!!:
Anywho, today was visit UMW day or, for my mums, take lots of pictures of UMW on a crappy little disposable camera day. Most of the day was useless since I've already done all of the things they were doing today, but it was nice to see the campus in a different season and mums and I went on a bit of shopping spree at the bookstore. I got a neato t-shirt, flip flops, a glass, and a penant. Mums got Dad a t-shirt and a baseball cap and stickers for the cars. All in all a very enjoyable experience. We also went to the office of disability services and met a very nice lady who told me how I could get out of the pure hell that would be taking four course in french. Huzzah! Sadly I did not see Alex like I was expecting, which was too bad. But overall it was nice day. Oh and I got a cool frog ring for my middle finger. Yay.
Umm...let's see what else. I'm thinking of rewatching some Amstell NMTB, because I love him so and possibly rewatching "Smith and Jones" just for the hell of it. But only if I have time. Simon is every so much more important than Ten-Inch. Even if the possiblity of shagging Ten-Inch is slightly higher than shagging Simon. Damn you Mar!!!!! Damn you for corrupting my poor mind. Ugh.
So yeah, not much happening. Need to get started on my MI and reading Wuthering Heights. I'm super-determined to read this book, so I don't fail at life. We'll see though. Now...off to Simon!!

A Check List of the Things I Did Today

• Went to church and finished A History of Britain while trying not to stare at the creepy couple sitting in the library with me
• Watched most of the NMTB episodes I hadn't already watched, except for the one hosted by the old guy, which didn't seem like it would be that funny
• Watched the new Doctor Who, which was bloody brilliant. Here's a link with much thanks to tennantfan1 on YouTube for posting the episode. Hopefully they'll post next weeks episode as well. I'm really looking forward to Shakespeare
• Figured out which courses I would want to take to fulfill the gen. ed. requirements at UMW, which is rather exciting it in its own mundane way
• Nothing else. Really bloody fucking boring day. Guuuuuhhhhh, so bloody bored.

So yeah, that's it. I would suggest that everyone watch "Smith and Jones" because it really is bloody brilliant. Almost everyone over at Behind the Sofa agree that it's brilliant, so go watch!!
In other news I'm off to Fredericksburg tomorrow for the admitted student's day at UMW. This means I have to get up at normal school hours, which kind of sucks, but I'm excited to see the campus again.
I'm going to stop now while I still make sense. Go watch the good Doctor and all that jazz. Cheers!

Doctor Who

Gaaaaaaaaaah. The new series of Doctor Who has started and I can't see it. It's killing me on the inside. I need new Doctor, stat! Oh, Jesus I'm sad.
Not much else happening. I got my UMW sweatshirt for Sophs today and it's the exact same one that Alex has, which means we can be twins. Except he's slightly taller, blonde, and...a he. But otherwise we can be twins. But otherwise, not much happening. I think I'm going to watch the really long episode/special/video/thing of Never Mind the Buzzcocks. Have a nice night!

The Many Things That Need to be Said

So I got into UMW, yay!! I was really giddy most of yesterday afternoon because of that, but also because I have the new KC album which, for those cool people who bought the CD/DVD combo, includes an absolutely fantastic short film by a friend of the band's. I'll address that topic a bit later though. Firstly I have some things to get off my chest (or more accurately, out of my unposted articles folder).
Random Ten-Inch interview. Tis very interesting, mainly because it gives all the background info about Ten-Inch that I didn't know before. So yeah, that's all.
Umm, when did Noel Gallagher become nice? Seriously, read the article and you'll be wondering what he's on. I'm so confused...
Twat. I swear, I'm starting to wonder what people want from new music. I'm also starting to question my loyalty to DiS considering how frequently I've been disagreeing with their reviews. I don't need another news site (thank you NME), so the fact that DiS and I seem to have divergent opinions on music makes me wonder what the point of looking at their site is. Which makes me sad because it's a really lovely site and the writing style of the staff is fun. Still, Dom Gourley is a twat of the highest order.
Also, on the topic of music reviews confusing me, what the hell do you people want??? Honestly, am I just blind-sided by obsession with band? I mean, Mums likes the new album, but we practically have the same taste in music. Dad thinks it's good, but he was programing his new BlackBerry last night, so I don't really trust that opinion. I haven't heard from Sophs and I don't know anyone who I can get an honest opinion from. So here I am wondering whether my undying devotion to all things Kaiser Chiefs has completely skewed my ability to accurately tell whether YTAM is actually any good. Which annoys me to no end.
So yeah, that's that. Onto my notes from Tim Blackwell's Film. Tim knows the band through Rick (they met at uni) and has been "filming them [Kaiser Chiefs] ever since their early days." On the DVD that comes with YTAM there's a short film by him that's positively wunderbar and I took notes during my second viewing (it's only 14 minutes, so shut up.) Here they are!

• R= guuhh [Throughout the whole damn film, he's just wonderful]
  
• Mustache [Rick had full out beard which got shaved off to a mustache which you see at the very beginning of the film. Now he's all nice and shorn.]
• Pancake
• "Peanut, not Pancake" - Nick [Whitey mistakenly called Peanut Pancake]
• Gareth Keen/Keane [Who Peanut is more like. I'm not entirely sure who this is referencing.]
• "I'm confused" - Simon [Same here. Something involving R, Whitey, and a pool table]
• "I can't play" - Whitey [can't play the piano]
• P=Spiderman [When asked which super hero is more like, Superman or Spiderman, this was Peanut's answer]
  
• Nick recording vocals/rapping [Literally]
• Slow-mo recording [Scene that shows the band recording, but all slow-mo]
• 4 screen recording scene [The screen is split into four, with each showing a different part of the recording process. Shot during the recording of "Heat Dies Down"]
• Photoshoot
• Slightly out of tune?
• Arm waving [Rick randomly waving his arm, which reminded me of something you do in chorus when you mess up]
• Diff between R & N
• Recording faces (when singing)
• Also sort of similar [In terms of when they close their eyes, which was at exactly the same time]

• <> [crescendo, decrescendo and the facial expression difference]/rocking out
• R looking at camera [Really amusing, because it's so obvious]
• Beer after recording
  
• "Invisible, inaudible" - R [So cute!!!!!!!! In reference to how he couldn't hear Whitey]

• Zoo
• Tortoise
• Giraffes
• Legs then neck [According to R, giraffes long legs evolved first to get the high leaves, then the neck to drink water.]

• Antwerp
• "Hi" - R [He says hi and then the band starts into "The Angry Mob"]

So yeah, those are my notes. I have no idea how to rip the video onto my mp3, otherwise I would probably be watching it all the time. Oh well, I'll figure it out eventually. In fact, I might do that right now.
Until later mes chers

Pay Attention

So nackered...got into UMW...celebrated with ice cream...got YTAM as well...fuckin' nackered to high heaven...have to do English first...I just want to sleep though...stupid grades...still...I got into UMW...nice big envelope with a nice certificate of admission...so tired.......
:goes to do English:

I Hate This Week

I hate this week. I hate it with a passion and it's only Monday. Imagine how I'll feel tomorrow or Wednesday (which I can't even spell correctly most of the time.) I hate this week so much it's not even funny. I really, seriously, want this week to die. I hate this week.
Anyway...here's picture of Ricky looking like a prep school student, which I find highly amusing:

I would love to see the original of this picture. It totally reminds me of a school club photo from like...the '50's or something.
Not much else to report. YouTube provider lizzilupin has uploaded more NMTB, but I'm not in the mood to watch episodes that don't involve Ricky. I'll probably end up saving them up and watching them over spring break (only 4 days away!!) when I'm not writing my MI for IB Music. God I hate this week.

:can't think of a good title:

Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh I hate Interactive Notebook!!! Stupid emphoris assignments that claw at my soul. :slowly dies to "Lola Stars and Stripes:
In happier news, my bestest YouTube buddy lizzilupin has uploaded more episodes of Never Mind the Buzzcocks so I watched one of them. Truly hilarious. Jonathan Ross is a complete perve who can't pronounce r's (not to be confused with R's), but still has a natty dress style. I also finally understand what the band thing is at the end of the episode R hosted. Most of you wouldn't be interested, so I won't bore you, but (!) if you want to know what it's all about, watch the first like thirty seconds of the Jonathan Ross episode. I'm hoping she'll post the original Amy Winehouse episode (not the one from two seasons ago), so I can see what Amy is like when she's not drunk. Though she may have been drunk all along. I won't know till I see it. So yeah...that's my day. Never Mind the Buzzcocks and hating my history teacher. Fun!

Oh No She Didn't

First off I would like to say that I don't want to live in the US when I have the option to move. The way the government has been acting for the last...oh, six years, I don't want to be here anymore. I've become completely disillusioned with the whole "democracy" thing. Or at least US democracy. Because our politicians suck and anyone with a grain of salt doesn't get elected. So yeah, culture isn't the only reason I want to leave.
On the other hand, much like my school spirit, if you slag off my country, I'll get a little annoyed. Just like right now I'm a little annoyed with a certain Ms. Allen of the UK.

It's all very weird here. They're all backward in Texas but not as much as they are in Arkansas and Wyoming where I'm going soon.

Now the only reason I haven't completely written Ms. Allen off is because 1) I really, really, love her album and 2) This is what she does. She slags off everything in world. But still. I know the south can be a bit "backwards" but you're not from here Lil (yes I do get to call her Lil, just like I get to call Ricky R.) I wouldn't make fun of Yorkshire or Devon or some other county in the UK. It's just common courtesy. You don't slag off my states, I won't slag off your counties. Mmkay?
By the by, here's the link to the original article by DiS. She says more, but it doesn't really make sense to me, so I won't comment on it. But just for everyone's information, if she slags off Virginia or the metro-DC area...I'm going to throw a hissy fit.
In other news, my high school is hosting the East Coast A Capella Summit (oooh) and one of the groups that is performing this weekend is Blue Jupiter. They came last year and performed at the school, but I'm not exactly a huge fan of a capella, so I really wasn't at all excited when I was told that they were coming again this year. The rest of the women in my chorus class were though and begged our chorus teacher to have the guys come to our class. Totally not excited. Really not at all excited. But then they came and one of the members (who's brand new) looks almost exactly like Nick from Kaiser Chiefs (also known as Nick Hodgson). I totally freaked out the minute he came into the room because he was tall and lanky and subconsciously reminded me of Nick. Of course once I got a good look at him I freaked out even more because I realized consciously that he is the spitting image of Nick. He (his name is Mike) is the only reason I'm going to the concert tonight. Otherwise I wouldn't have gone. So yeah, I'm totally sad and pathetic. Huzzah!!
No other news. Have a good weekend.

Aargh with the Frustration

Why can't Blogger be a bit more like LJ? Because then I could reply to comments posted and not feel like a total shit for not replying. At least with LJ I have the option to reply, even if I don't always use it. Stupid Blogger.
In any event, only two weeks and two days until I get spend a lot of time convincing Sophs that we really do want to spend two hours in line so that I can be really close to the stage. :D!!! My Ricky obsession continues full force, despite the stress of this week. Or maybe because of the stress of this week. But yeah, two weeks and two days until Kaiser Chiefs!!!!
I've figured out why Kaiser Chiefs aren't doing (or at least I assume aren't doing) Carling Weekend. The answer has been glaring at me every time I check their site, but didn't hit me until today, because I'm smart. See they're being the Foo Fighter's bitches, though that's not completely fair to them, but it's fun to say. In all honesty I'm really suprised that T on the Fringe and Carling weekend are overlapping, because it puts a lot of bands in a bit of a bind, not to mention the fans. What if I wanted to see Kaiser Chiefs and Maximo Park? It would be kind of hard because Edinburgh isn't exactly spitting distance from Reading or Leeds. Not that Reading or Leeds are that close, but the point is, Edinburgh is as far away from Leeds as Reading is from Leeds and so I would be unable to see Maximo Park and Kaiser Chiefs that weekend if I wanted to. Of course we all know who would win, but not everyone is like that. So yeah. Dunno why these festivals are overlapping. I'm not a huge freak or anything. Nope not at all.
Umm...news links!
Speaking of Carling Weekend, lots of people are now screwed. I feel really horrible for all of those people who thought they were going to this really major festival, who thought they had paid for these really expensive tickets, and are now completely SOL. A small part of me, despite the overwhelming sense of sympathy, is really happy because I wouldn't be able to go anyway. But yeah, poor people who can't go. They won't get to see some fairly okay bands. Oh I could be so mean right now...
Metallica is girl's name! Really, it's official, I read on the NME site. I just find it absolutely histarical that a hard metal band's name is the name of baby girl somewhere in Sweden. I hope for her sake she ends up liking the band because otherwise...it would be like if my parent's had decided to name me...Razorlight or something. Snow Patrol is another example. Or Mika.
Anyway that's it. Go watch some hilarious David Tennant. Be amazed at his sexy Scottish accent. Be wildly impressed with Catherine Tate's ability to use Shakespeare in a comedy sketch and have it make sense within the given context. I'm going to find some Boosh to watch.
Quick Side Note: New Doctor Who starts March 31st, so there might be more posts about that as things get started over in the UK. Unfortunetly I won't be seeing anything until this summer, so yeah. I might also go crazy, ya never know.

Late Breaking News

I just had to post this:

"Yours Truly, Angry Mob" is out in North America next week and to give youy all a chance at a sneak preview, we have put up the whole album for a limited period on our myspace page. Why not add yourself to our friends list while you're there? Enjoy.

Or, you could've gone to NME, a month ago, and have been listening to the album since then. I love you guys, but honestly, you make making fun of you far too easy. Sure the non-hardcore fans will be happy, but for the rest of us, this is just a cruel reminder of the fact that, supposedly, everyone else in the world has already heard YTAM. Thanks a lot guys.


I would just like to point out at this time that I'm not a loon. I'm a crank thank you very much.

I Feel So Appreciated

I've just finished watching Big Fat Quiz Show of the Year 2006, which lasted for-fucking-ever, and have realized why everyone (or so I am led to believe) in the UK loves Russel Brand: He can keep a straight face no matter how absolutely idiotic he sounds. It really is an admirable skill, which unfortunately Noel Fielding is not as good at. I must admit, when they won over David Walliam (yes, Wall-iam) and Rob Brydon, I was really fucking happy. Hurray for the goth corner!!!
In other interesting news, there seems to be another anglophile in the world and they commented on the Blogger edition of this lovely journal. I feel loved. :waves at readers:
So onto the real news:
Kaiser Chiefs aren't playing Carling Weekend. Instead Razorlight is. I'm being completely serious, as of today (20 March 2007) the Kaiser Chiefs were not scheduled to play Carling Weekend. Which is a huge deal because part of the weekend takes place in their home town of Leeds. I'm in shock still and am wondering what it all means. We shall just have to wait and see.
I could see Keane at the 9:30 club on 29 May. I won't though because I will be relaxing and mourning over the fact that I didn't get to see Arctic Monkeys on 16 May. It is rather cool that they're playing there though and I'm sure everyone who does go will have an absolutely fantastic time. I won't though, because I'll still be trying to find a green dress for graduation.
Look it's a Ricky statue!

According to spiffychocolate, this picture was taken near the Torchwood headquarters in Cardiff. This proves that you can be a Torchwood/Doctor Who/Kaiser Chief fangirl all at the same time. Others of us (the Ricky fangirls) can't get over a certain area of his...umm...yeah. Remember David Bowie in Labyrinth? That's what I'm talking about.
And finally, due to a bizarro fire drill today two minutes before the end of first period, Loghman was forced to make eye contact with me. Which means, he had to acknowledge for a split second that I exist. Huzzah! I exist! :shakes head: It's just so sad...

The Great Buzzcocks Spam of 2007

In an effort to absolutely nothing until 9 tonight, here are the links to different Never Mind the Buzzcocks episodes. They come in threes to be prepared.

When Ricky Hosted Never Mind the Buzzcocks:
Pt. 1, Pt.2, Pt. 3

When Noel Fielding and Donny Tourette Blew My Mind (This One's Got 4!):
Pt. 1, Pt. 2, Pt. 3, Pt. 4

When Nick Hodgson Was On Never Mind the Buzzcocks:
Pt. 1, Pt. 2, Pt. 3

When Sam Preston of the Ordinary Boys Walked Off Never Mind the Buzzcocks:
Pt. 1, Pt. 2, Pt. 3

When Ricky Was Pished on Never Mind the Buzzcocks:
Pt. 1, Pt. 2, Pt. 3

When John "Captain Jack Harkness" Barrowman Out Gayed Simon Amstell (This One's Got 4 Too!):
Pt. 1, Pt. 2, Pt. 3, Pt. 4

I've deemed six to be enough for you lot. Enjoy 3 hours of some of the best comedy known to man.
On a small instructional side note, you don't have to come back here at the end of each part. Just of the first one.

Some Things That Have Made Me Happy Since My Last Post (My God What a Long Title for an Entry)

• Rewatching the episode of Never Mind the Buzzcocks that Rick was on and re-realizing that he was so drunk/high while he was on it
• Rewatching the episode of Never Mind the Buzzcocks that Nick was on and re-realizing that Simon Amstell is my gay lover, not that I'd really forgotten
• Having some chicken with BBQ sauce and orange juice
• Watching a couple of episodes of Never Mind the Buzzcocks while Mark Lamarr was still hosting and soaking up his bitter comedy
• Trying to find episodes of Never Mind the Buzzcocks on YouTube to no avail. Don't ask, but that does in fact make me happy.
• Reading the comments for this rickydaily post, especially this bit:

  diva_chic_mandy: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAA
  Who's he with btw?
  honeyswallow: Whitey!
  diva_chic_mandy: Ok that's what I thought! But then I was looking & he looks different. HE'S SMILING MAYBE THAT'S IT! lol.

  diva_chic_mandy speaks the truth, except I would recognize Whitey's ugly mug no matter what his actual facial expression was (please don't kill me Whitey, you're an absolutely fantastic guitar player)
• Did I mention the chicken with BBQ sauce? Very happy making.
• Having bits and piece of my internal monologue be in a British accent from varying regions of said country (dear God I am an anglophile)
• Really, chicken is a cure all for everything, along with Never Mind the Buzzcocks

With much thanks to YouTube, the Beeb, Mark Lamarr, Bill Bailey, Phil Jupitus, LiveJournal, and chickens.

My Biggest Fear (An Open Letter)

Dear [fill in appropriate name],
Today I finally went to choir rehearsal for the first time in a couple of weeks. As usually we, the members of choir, waited outside of our director's office chit-chatting about nothing. I'm not the most social person, a bit too shy for my own good, and so I was just listening to snippets of the different conversations that were going on around me. Two girls next to me were talking when one of them, I think she's a sophomore, asked the other girl, also a sophomore, whether she liked the Arctic Monkeys. I immediately perked up, waiting for the second's girls answer. The second girl wasn't entirely sure whether she liked them, seeing as she only knew one song by them, something about when the lights go down. In my head I was trying to pair what this second girl was mentioning to the singles the Arctic Monkeys released last year and came up with "When the Sun Goes Down," and mentally corrected what she was saying from "lights" to "sun."
Rehearsal started and I got lost in the music we were rehearsing, a motet by Palestrina, which we may or may not be performing next week. During rehearsal someone's mobile started ringing. The tune sounded familiar but it wasn't until everyone had stopped talking and was staring at the person whose phone it was (the person who had asked about the Arctic Monkeys) that I realized that it was the Fratellis. I said to no one in particular that I liked the person's ringtone, though I doubt she noticed. Rehearsal continued and I got wrapped up in the motet again, sight reading the part while being the only person in my section.
Towards the end of rehearsal we started talking about scheduling. Our director asked who wasn't going to be available for the Good Friday service and some people raised their hands. He then asked who would be there for the Easter service and almost everyone raised their hand. I felt that now would be a good time to mention to John (the director) that although I would be at the service, I would be practically dead because of the rock concert I was going to the night before. He asked who I was going to be seeing and I said Kaiser Chiefs. The same girl who had the Fratellis ringtone and who seemed to have some sort of interest in the Arctic Monkeys sang-spoke the beginning part of the "Ruby" refrain (Ruby, Ruby, Ruby, Ruby) and I said "yeah those guys."
A part of me worried, at that point, that Kaiser Chiefs would only be known for "Ruby" and that by releasing that song they had doomed themselves to being considered a novelty group here in the States. Another part of me was excited to know that seemingly normal people know some of the same bands that I know, which means that they are becoming more popular here which makes me happy. The part of me that was worried is now more worried about something else: The bands that I adore and admire may never know how much I truly appreciate them.
There are so many pushy fans in the world and because of my natural shyness I will never be one of those fans. I will be the fan that waits in line for hours before a show, who will tell all of her friends about band X and that they should by album Y. I will be the fan who knows all the lyrics to all the songs and buys merchandise at every concert she goes to, which is every concert she can get to. I will be the fan who does everything she possibly can to promote band X and still stay within her shell. I will never be the fan who tries to get backstage to meet band X nor will I be the fan who sends letters or emails to band X telling them how much she adores and loves them, how wonderful they are, on and on. No amount of prodding or pushing will ever get me to be one of the pushy, in your face fans. But there are so many of them and only one me.
I want my favourite bands to know that I appreciate them more than words can say and that my admiration isn't fake or based entirely on looks. These bands, who I listen to day in, day out, may never know how much they mean to me, or if by some miracle they eventually know, I worry that they may not take it seriously.
This is my biggest fear: That the people who have helped me to realize what I want to do with my life will never know and until I realize my dream there is nothing I can do to change that.
Very Sincerely,
Nore

Dear god, did any of that make sense? I'm completely out of it right now. Half of my brain was trying to concentrate on writing this while the other half was split between playing Clicken Gold/solitaire and listening/singing along to YTAM. Sorry if this is just a bunch of nonsense I really have no idea where my head is at right now. Hopefully things will start making sense by tomorrow. Hopefully.

Slowly Collapsing

So District Festival (chorus) went well even though we (as a whole group) completely fucked up for a few measures. I wasn't allowed to bring my purse which meant I couldn't have my mp3 player which sucked major balls. I'm now exhausted and don't have anything else to say. I did get to listen to most of YTAM during IB music which is tres, tres wunderbar (go mixing two languages!). Anyhoo onto the freaky ass picture that_heather posted in her valiant effort to make what is suppose to be a daily community actually daily instead of sporadic. So yeah, one freaky picture coming up.

Posting For the Sake of Posting

Umm...I've got nothing. Really, absolutely nothing. No pictures, no news, no stories, just a whole lot of nothing. :cocks head to the left: Well I am going to be applying for a job as an usher at Wolf Trap, but that's not that interesting. So yeah, whole lot of nothing. So go watch the Mighty Boosh! On YouTube! Watch the "Soup Song" in amazement and awe, because it is so awesome. I'll go practice.

More Pictures and Other News

Right, I have more pictures of R, this time from when Kaiser Chiefs were Parva. I do <3 grunge R. Especially when he wears a bowler hat. :D So silly. Anyhoo, here are the pics.

Avec un chapeau melon


Logo Time


[Fill With Cliche Fangirl Thought]


Onto the news! Huzzah!
I'm so glad I don't live in the UK. Betcha never thought I would say that, huh? But seriously, the method of getting tickets for the Arctic Monkey April tour sounds so incredibly fucked up. I understand the reasoning behind it (touts are those twats that sell tickets outside of shows the night/day of), but still. I mean a fucking raffle for the tickets?? That's so crazy, I can't even begin to understand how many people will be screwed. So yeah, I may not be able to go, but at least I don't live in the UK.
Such filthy horrible lies. Taunting us Americans with their lies of YTAM coming out today. Some poor plonker probably believes that shite and is going to try and by the damn album today. Two weeks Mr./Ms. US Correspondent, two more more weeks of listening to the stream.
So yeah, Amy Winehouse may be booze hound, but damn she can sing. "Me and Mr. Jones" is an absolutely fabulous song, as is "Tears Dry on Their Own." I would defininetly recommend Back to Black.

Music News 101

Just a quickie (about to have dinner). So here it is!
14 Covers That Are Better Than the Original. I don't agree with all of them (Elvis Presely covered "Hey Jude"??), but still an interesting list.
Arctic Monkey's North American Tour. More proof that the music industry gods hate me. Why does it have to be the night before my IB Music test? Why???????
That is all.

I Love Spring Break

For complete reading pleasure, pretend Simon Amstell is reading the entry. Really, go ahead, it's fun.

Not that I'm on Spring Break (Apr.1-7), but most colleges are which means college students get to do things don't normally get to do because they have so much damn time on their hands. I believe this is why there have been a slew of pictures in the rickdaily community on LJ. You see the moderator (the ever present that_heather) has been posting lots of wonderful pictures that constantly remind me of my goal in life: Meet Ricky Wilson in person. And now, for your viewing pleasure, the small and freakishly huge version of the same picture! Have I mentioned recently how very desperately I need boyfriend? Well I do...

Regular sized:


Super sized:


If you look closely at the freakishly huge version, you might wonder "What colour are R's eyes?" I think they're like Alex's and change colour magically. I could go on, but I won't. Anyhoo, I've got to get to work on this damn moth lab. Thank god this is the last IB lab for the year. I really do hate introductions.

The Return of the Friday Five

Dear God it's back!! Run away, run away!

1. If you could retroactively erase one TV show from the history of entertainment, which one would you choose?
None, they're all important. 0_0 DON'T ERASE DOCTOR WHO!!!!

2. Are you more like your mother or your father?
Depends on the situation, but overall I'm more like mums

3. If you could take a year-long vacation, what would you do?
I would become a groupie. I won't say for which band/artist though, I'll make you guess.

4. Can you think of a reason not to answer this question?
:chirp:

5. What's the nicest thing you've ever done for someone?
Not make them listen to my musical compositions. I don't know really.

Maximo Park hates me. Or the DC area, I can't decide. I mean, technically I could go to Boston or DC but oh wait...both weekday dates. So, no I can't go. Grrr...
Nothing else to report. Have a good weekend.

Because Heather Told Me To

So, either that_heather is trying to kill me or R somehow knows who I am and is trying to kill me. Actually neither of them know who I am, so maybe I'm just freakishly paranoid.

Not much else to report. Mystery Jets are releasing an album here May 8th and only four of the songs will be new to me. YouTube user extraordinaire lizzilupin uploaded the last episode of Never Mind the Buzzcocks for this season (or series if you're a freakish Brit) and I watched it. Not as funny as last week's, but still fairly funny. Also, the young singing children need to sing out. Especially those young ones that sing the second part. Harmony forever bitches!!
Right, off to play solitaire...

I've Got a British Slang Dictionary (Thanks BBC America!)

After watching what now adds up to three and bit hours of Never Mind the Buzzcocks, taking the piss out of one's favourite band seems like quite a lot of fun, which was the case when I looked through Peter Hill's photo's from KC's London show this past weekend. But before we get to that wonderful experience I would like to thank lizzilupin of YouTube for posting all of those wonderful episodes of NTB that I would otherwise be unable to view. Muchos gracias my unknown benefactor, muchos gracias. One last note: I love Simon Amstell and want to be his bestest friend, because I can't date him. He's so cute!! Now onto taking the mickey out of KC.

First off we have my opinion of Whitey's new hairstyle.

I don't know what he's thinking honestly. I mean, would you have a look at that. Horrible, just horrible. He wasn't good looking to begin with, but now. Dear God man, get a haircut for fuck's sake.

Ricky screaming.

Yeah, that's Ricky screaming. I believe he's a very angry man, very angry indeed. Oh wait...there's a song on YTAM called "The Angry Mob." He's obviously auditioning for a part in the mob.

Ricky jumping.

I worry for his neck when I see a picture like that. I also worry about Peter Hill for taking such a god awful picture of Ricky. Something like that just can't be good for one's reputation.

Simon, showing Ricky how one should jump.

Now see this is how one should jump. You've got the closed eyes and scowly face, but it seems that it would be impossible to break one's neck if one were to jump like this. Take note Ricky, Simon is beating you at your signature move.

Simon wins again.

I saved this picture as "tryingtobeelvis" which translates to "trying to be elvis" because of the stance Mr. Wilson is in. Mainly I saved this picture because it nicely points out how all the fat R has gained since 2005 has gravitated towards his torso. I don't really have room to talk, but at least my fat is evenly spread throughout my body. Now the reason Simon wins again (along with Nick and Peanut) is because he has somehow managed not to gain at least 10lbs. I love you Rick, just remember that.

Oooh lookie up there.

What is he looking at? I guess there was a balcony :tries to find out, to no avail: but otherwise he's just blinding himself. He was probably already blind because stage lights hate you and want your eyes to burn, so maybe he just didn't know what he was looking at. In any event, his hair is also bothering me, but nothing I can do about that.

Yes, yes, yes.

Do you remember those Herbal Essences shampoo commercials were the woman model would go "yes, yes, yes" whilst flipping her hair around? I saw this picture and instantly thought "Shampoo commercial." And really that's all I have to say.

Also, I really do have a British slang dictionary. I've had quite a lot of fun looking up random definitions and phrases from different regions of the British Isles and really the only thing I've learned is that the Welsh don't have a damn thing. Except pong (to smell bad), Welsh rarebit (a piece of toast served with a cheddar cheese sauce made with beer), and lechyd da (a popular toast meaning Good Health.) The last one is pronounced yacky dah. So, no money, no sex, and no clothing. Hurrah for the Welsh!!
Off to do work hopefully. I would like to get something done tonight other than watching another episode of Never Mind the Buzzcocks with the wonderful and adorkable Simon Amstell. Aaah disco.

Vignette Completed

Here's my vignette. Fairly self explanatory, so enjoy.

Hurrah for “Time Honoured Tradition”

March 19, 2005
Walking long distances in clogs is not a smart idea. Perhaps not as dumb as walking for a long time in high heels, but nonetheless, still not the brightest idea. The feet, in an effort to keep the damn shoes on, will rub, making blisters in all the wrong places. Entering into this little store, away from the “hustle” and “bustle” of Williamsburg, my feet had started to ache. Despite the blisters my Birkenstocks were giving me, I was on a mission. I had discovered a few weeks before “popular music” and wished to acquire some of this at the record store my sister had been raving about. The store, with its ever elusive name, was set up in such a way that everything to the right when entering through the glass front doors was interesting and held untold treasures (CDs) from equally interesting lands (bands). The left side of the store may as well not have existed.
Feet aching, feeling slightly jittery, I headed towards the “I” section of the CDs. Interpol, Interpol, Interpol. Ah, Interpol. Now…Antics. No, not that one, Antics. Here we are, Antics. Okay, now I’m looking for Zutons, Z. Who killed…the Zutons. Here it is. Lets see, I have this much money…okay, cool.
I wandered around Planet 9 (or is it Plan 9?), brushing through the other CDs and DVDs, suddenly bored and feeling the effects of poor shoe selection more than ever. The lack of meds made my attention span even shorter than normal. I flipped through posters, staring quickly at each known and unknown band name, intrigued and uncaring. My ears, having previously been filtering out the PA system, suddenly caught on to something very peculiar. A “whoa” or “la” bounced out of the speakers, diverting my attention and slowing my blistered feet. This, unknown and jaggedly brilliant, was something I wanted to know about. It’s popular, right? Definitely isn’t the Beatles or anything I know. So, find out who. I asked my sister Sophie if she knew who this was, but she just shrugged.
Oh god. I don’t want to ask the sales clerk. Don’t make me ask the sales clerk. Oh, but that was interesting, that was new. I want to hear that again. Fine, I’ll ask the sales clerk…
“Um, excuse me, who is this…” I’m nervous, timidly pointing above my head, not entirely sure I’m allowed to ask.
“Kaiser Chiefs. I think it was released last week.”
“Oh, thank you.”
Kaiser Chiefs, Kaiser Chiefs, Kaiser Chiefs. K, where’s K? Ah, K. Kaiser…Chiefs. Here! Kaiser Chiefs, Employment. Oh shit…not enough money. Damnit. Well, I’ll put the Zutons back, I can get that later.

January 10, 2006 (about a year later)
I’ve jumped and screamed through two Kaiser Chiefs concerts, euphoria blurring the memories of each experience. July 22nd and October 3rd, each with their own set lists and flitting memories of a smile, a hat, proximity to the stage and an odd feeling of connectedness. I have a small collection of photos of the band and its lead singer Ricky Wilson. It will grow considerably over the next year and a half and the amount of giggling and flushed cheeks with each right click save will increase as well. I’ve joined online communities, read hundreds of articles, bought an import magazine (NME Yearbook, where more giggling and blushing occurred along with confessions of sanity which weren’t true), downloaded B-sides and demos (both legal and illegal, excuses made for the illegal ones that will fuel debates of conscious and the spending of more money on thing but well loved tee-shirts), and discovered that popular music isn’t just what’s MTV and VH1. Now, a year and a million listens later, I’m being vindicated. Kaiser Chiefs have been nominated for five Brit Awards, which is the equivalent of being nominated for five Grammy’s. (They will win three; Best British Group, Best Rock Act, and Best Live Show.) I feel elated, a selfish pride for a group of men I’ve never met. I think of their nominations as my nominations, proof that all my yelling, screaming, laughing, and boasting gave them these nominations. A month later, when they win, I will feel the same rush of emotion, not because I did anything, but simply because it happened. My strange and serendipitous discovery, now an obsession of sorts, has been vindicated, so in turn I have been vindicated. Hurrah for “Time Honoured Tradition.”

The Curse of Expectations

Quick, I have to get these articles out of my "Unposted" folder! They're turning moldy...
Kaiser Chiefs doing Glastonbury: Nore cries just a little more. Something involving KT Tunstall and the environment. I might finally get to own a whole Pipettes album.
Huh, done. No more really old articles! Now onwards and upwards...
Second albums, in my opinion, are a bitch and half and rarely meet up to the expectations we (fans, media, nit-picking sons of bitches) place upon them. Few, if any, bands reach the goal given to them by the press. Second albums are also particularly hard if your band is incredibly famous and has been placed on a pedestal. I predict that Arctic Monkeys will have this problem when they release their sophomore album later this spring. But the topic of our discussion is not Arctic Monkeys but their theoretical forefathers, the Kaiser Chiefs.
According to Drowned in Sound, Yours Truly, Angry Mob is bland. At the end of the review, Dom Gourlay the reviewer states, "The sad thing is that while nobody expects Kaiser Chiefs to be re-inventing the wheel, we do expect a pretty rock-solid, perfect pop record. Yours Truly, Angry Mob most definitely isn't rock solid or perfect in any sense." This statement, in my opinion, is exactly why any band will fail on their second album. You can't expect perfection, from anyone, and then also expect them to out perform themselves next time. As a listener, you will be consistently disappointed if that is what you expect. A band can only reinvent themselves so many times before it completely loses its sense of self.
The same complaint made by Drowned in Sound is brought up by Pitchfork, but at least Eric Harvey gave the band the courtesy of giving the the album a 5. My question is, what exactly were these reviewers expecting? I was expecting something better than Employment but not so drastically different from that first album that the band is unrecognizable (a la The Killers and Sam's Town). Incremental improvement, not huge leaps and bounds, is the most important thing to me, but I must be in the minority. An interesting point, though, was made by This is Fake DIY in their review of Yours Truly, Angry Mob: Some music has to be lived in. Repeatedly listening to an album and letting it stew might seem antithetical to doing a proper review, but sometimes that's what is needed. Or, as James McCrimmon put it in his review: "By no means all things to all men, Kaiser Chiefs do what they do better than anyone else. Give this a chance to get into your head, and you'll have your proof."
As stated at the beginning, second albums are a bitch and half. The media and press just make it 10 times harder. So why not just enjoy the damn album on face value? Some goals cannot be achieved and "rock solid or perfect" shouldn't be achieved the second time around, because were do you go from there?
Disclaimer: I do realize how horribly biased I am on the topic of Kaiser Chiefs, but the views stated in the above can apply to almost any band or album out there. It just happens that I disagree with a lot of the reviews (at least a lot of the reviews that I pay attention to) for YTAM.
And now on a light note from jeffs_odyssey "Ricky after he fell into us and nearly had his shirt torn off." If look closely you can even see the scratches on his left arm. Not that I'm looking because his manly chest hair is distracting me. 0_0

He's so cute, he even has his eyes closed!! :group "aww":
Have a good night.

We Are Asses

The only good thing about nothing updating on the weekends is that I don't have to worry about the fact that I'm not here to check that nothing is updating. So huzzah for lazy ass people who don't update on the weekends!
So this weekend is going pretty well. I spent my afternoon/evening, yesterday, and all of today at GMU for a MUN conference. I'm on the US National Security Counsel and I am the Secretary of Defense. I was totally frazzled yesterday and today I was basically like "yeah whatever" except when we decided to essentially veto sending a UN peace keeping group to South Asia which pissed me off. I spent most of the day trying not to fall asleep and finally got my second wind just as we were adjourning. I also totally told off the counsel for telling our UN ambassador to veto the peace keeping mission resolution because our reasons are for shit and would make us look extraordinarily petty. The chair for our committee said I made a good point and that people really needed to think about the situation. Hahahaha I rock! But yeah...I'm exhausted. So I'm going to bed.
I might give a full report on the MUN conference, but don't count on it. I will be far too busy and tired tomorrow. So yeah, goodnight.

Photos

These are just some photos I found today. The first two are the same (you're not losing your mind) but the second one is an edited version of the first one. I just feel like posting both though. They are mostly of Rick from their most recent tour of the UK. There is also an icon that is amusing and a picture of Simon (I'll explain that one when we get to it.) Enjoy, as always.

With football


Without football


When I saved this one from the site the file name was bowiericky. I'm not sure why it's called that, but I like the name nonetheless


Everything You Need to Know about Kaiser Chiefs (fucking hilarious and sadly true)


All I have to say is, when I was saving this picture the file name was simonlovesit. Really, I don't want to comment beyond that.

Before I Go to Bed

Before I collapse in a warm pile of comforters, I would just like to say this to Mark Beaumont of NME:
IT ISN'T JUST RICKY WRITING THE FUCKING LYRICS. I don't have the liner notes for this album (damn my American citizenship) but you might want to remember the order of writership from the last album. Nick Hodgson was first, then Rick, then the rest of the band. So the fact that Ricky sings all the songs (except "Boxing Champ") doesn't mean he wrote all the songs (except "Boxing Champ.") This isnt' the Beatles or the Kinks. So for fuck's sake don't say Ricky wrote all the goddamn songs because that will just piss me off and your review already does that well enough without adding that little tidbit into the mix.
As for the person who wrote the review of "Ruby", good job, you didn't piss me off.
Ugh...dead, dead, dead. You're all going to be dead before I'm done with this world.

Massacre of the Innocent

I'm thinking of writing a short ditty about Broadway Night where I almost nearly kill the middle/elementary school students. The high school students will, of course, not be spared, but the tiny ones will. I'm not sure yet. We'll see.
On another note, I've decided that Yours Truly, Angry Mob is the Kaiser Chiefs' angry album. Employment was their bubbly nonsense album and Yours Truly... is their angry nonsense album. Hopefully next time they'll be able to combine the two, so that I can have a bubbly angry nonsense album. That would be perfect.
Also, because when I'm angry I fantasize as a distraction, I want to have sex with Ricky's singing voice for "Retirement." Seriously, if having sex with a voice were possible, I would have sex with his singing voice for "Retirement." Or maybe just his singing voice in general. Oh god I need to move on...
On final note (before I do fucking research on fucking Italian fascist fucking propaganda fuckity, fuck, fuck bollocks shit) David Tennant + freckles = Nore dying.
Fuckity, fuck, fuck, bollocks, shit, twat, bloody fucking hell, son of a bitch wankers. God fucking damnit to hell, shit, shit, shit, bloody son of a goddamn bitch, bollacks, shit, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck. >_< I hate everyone (except Ricky).

Thingy Things

I've got things to post and I'm going to post them even if it kills me. Not that it should kill me, but it's a nice turn of phrase. Anyhoo, onto the thingys!
I forgot to post the link to this yesterday, so here it is (now with two versions): Kaiser Chiefs have their first number 1, kicking Mika's butt. Also for your reading pleasure an interview with the boys, that suprisingly I haven't read yet. Finally Marvin (and a bunch of other sidekicks) get's his dues, because he is the most awesome android in the whole entire universe.
One last note before I wrap things up, if you'd like to listen to the new Arcade Fire album (I know, a different band!) here's the handy dandy link. Turns out you don't need an account to listen to the NME media player, so don't worry about that. I haven't listened to it myself but I've heard good things about it. Neon Bible doesn't come out anywhere until next week, so getting to listen to it now would give you a week's leg-up. Or a month in the case of Yours Truly, Angry Mob which you should listen to right now. LISTEN!!
That is all.
Edit: I have read the KC interview, the shits at DIY just reposted it with a spiffy new picture. Damn poos. Anyway, here's the picture

Yours Truly, Angry Mob --- Kaiser Chiefs, Pt 2b

So we begin the last installment of my reviewing, track by track, Yours Truly, Angry Mob. If, for some horrible reason (or you're just lazy) and you haven't listened to the album yourself by this point, I curse you. Mind you, I haven't listened to it since yesterday, but considering how I've already listened YTAM at least ten times since Friday, I have an excuse. You, my wonderful readers, don't. Now, just as a quick reminder, here's a link to Pt 2a, aka the beginning of the review. If, for some reason, you have forgotten what I said for the first six tracks, you can read it now while listening to the first six tracks as well. Enjoy!

I Can Do It Without You: Either John Lennon is communing with the Kaiser Chiefs from the grave, or they've been eaves-dropping on Paul McCartney. But on the other hand it's also about the fact that, well...fame can kind of jump on you without any warning and everything you take for granted goes poof over night. Yes my friends, another backlash song, but this one doesn't make the band sound like dicks. Another slow song, which the band has seemed to have mastered since the last go around. Something else that should be noted for all the songs is that Whitey's leash has been greatly extended and I'm starting to wonder where Peanut was.

My Kind of Guy: In the description of this song on DIY, Stephen Ackroyd described this track as a slowed down version of Time Honoured Tradition. I would have to agree, simply because I understand what Ricky is singing but verse to chorus to verse, it doesn't make sense. So here's the minor-sounding slowed by half version of Time Honoured Tradition. I don't even have to listen to this track twice to get the review. Hurrah!

Everything is Average Nowadays: And now to get the blood pumping again, a fast track. This album's pepped up version of Modern Way the band discusses how everything is...average...nowadays. Yeah, the title kind of gives away what the hell the song is about. Stylistically speaking, Everything is Average Nowadays is more akin to Employment, so could very well be the next single after Ruby. Also, the band's multiple tours with The Cribs has seemed to have had some influence, at least in this song. Finally, there's a neato key change in the last repetition of the chorus, which makes me happy because I like obvious key changes.

Boxing Champ: Peanut gets to show off his piano skillz and Nick gets to sing lead. Self deprecation and an autobiographic tale are held within this short little ditty. Yup, that's it.

Learnt My Lesson Well: Drum solo!!!! No, seriously, at the beginning of the song there's a great drum solo. Then there are the cool back vocals and thumping bass during the verses. Musically speaking, this is one of the more adventurous songs on the album and Ricky sings "dick" which is right up there with Lily Allen singing "twat." This song also shows off what I love about Kaiser Chiefs: Happy cynicism. Could be single material, but it would be a waste on the general listening population. As the 9th Doctor would have said, "Fantastic!"

Try Your Best: Supposedly this is the band's possible answer to Oasis' Champagne Supernova(r), but I somehow think that's not entirely true. There's more to the song than that in my opinion. For instance there's an absolutely golden moment for a truly wicked guitar solo. Besides those superficial things, this song begs to be listened to over and over again. I can't really say anything else about Try Your Best. It's just one of those songs you have to listen to yourself.

Retirement: No one likes to work. Even if you're bloody famous and you love your job, inside each and everyone of us is a lazy little shit. That is what this song about, giving into the lazy shit that resides inside you. A great fist pumper and if Kaiser Chiefs hadn't already recorded OMG or IPAR a perfect concert ender. The chorus though, is pure genius as is the false ending. My second favorite on the album.

:sigh: I'm done. So, here for your delight and pleasure, a fifth link to listen to the album yourself. Also a real life review of the album from our friends at This is Fake DIY, an article from Wikipedia about the real Highroyds and an article from NME about how fucking awesome Kaiser Chiefs are. Actually it's not about that, it's about how Ruby has finally ousted Mika from his number one spot on the singles chart in the UK. Also, it's the band's first number one so yay!! I'm going to listen to YTAM again, just for the hell of it. Enjoy!

Update on Snow

It's fucking white outside my window, except for the trees. They're white and brown. Nonetheless, it's fucking white outside.
In major fangirling news: Someone (lizzilupin) on youtube posted the episode of "Nevermind the Buzzcocks" that R was on (not the one he hosted, I have that) which means I'll have something to entertain me later on in the day when I'm bored out of my fucking mind. Yay!
And now one more time with feeling...IT'S WHITE OUTSIDE