Wow, first post with so much to say

What and Why
I have always felt the need to communicate in some form or fashion beginning with my first website back in 1995 while still in school. Not that I have ever had anything worthwhile to say, but there was always this pull to express myself through this medium. I believe that we as humans have a basic need for communication in some form or fashion. There was a time that I kept up with my site on a fairly regular basis but being in "The Industry" kind of hinders your desire to do similar stuff in your free time. Maintaining a site used to be a fairly tedious task, but with technology the way it is today it is no harder than composing an email.

So, in an effort to get my creative juices flowing (partly inspired by my creative comedy writing friend Steve (aka Yubnob)), I will begin this journal of sorts. What you are going to get out of me is a big mixture of music and movie reviews (I know there are already a million people doing the same thing, but so what), the occasional book review, along with arbitrary morsels of counterproductive information that I run across. So enjoy and contribute to our small little community.

Hear this
I listen to a ton of music on a daily basis, but over the past several months The Decemberists, The Weakerthans, and Modest Mouse have gotten the most playing time. The Decemberists will be in Dallas on June 21st at Trees, however I am going to miss them as I will be out of the country at the time. The Decemberists and The Weakerthans are lyrically amazing and use very catchy melodies. They both are a blend of folky pop. Modest Mouse is a bit edgier than the other two, but just as catchy. I am driving my wife crazy because these bands are constantly being played from the car, the entertainment center, and the computer.

If you are interested in checking any of them out, below are the albums from each that I would start with, however all of each of their albums are great so you can't go wrong.

The Decemberists - Her Majesty The Decemberists Grade: 9.8
The Weakerthans - Left and Leaving Grade 9.7
Modest Mouse - Good News For People Who Love Bad News Grade 9.7

Downloads
Modest Mouse Live at The Bowery Ballroom - mp3s
The Weakerthans - a few free mp3s from their new album
The Decemberists - Here I Dreamt I Was an Architect - mp3

Read This
The US National Soccer team is ranked #8 in the new FIFA World Rankings. This is their highest ranking ever. Also, tickets for the 2006 World Cup in Germany go on sale February 1, 2005.

Hooray for Cigarette Taxes. NY city shows decrease in smoking. This is good news for all (except those counting on the cigarette tax I suppose).