Ode to Small Factory

I've recently resurrected an old iTunes library off of a couple of dead PCs whose hard-drives were still in perfect shape.  The result, a heap of old music that I haven't been able to listen to in a long time.  I have a bad habit of taking CDs into a car, and then losing them from there.  A lot of music that I've collected over the years has been completely lost.  My Motown box set among them.

Back to the point.

When I was in college, one of my favorite bands (thanks to Barrelled) was Small Factory, a small Providence trio.  Their drummer was a cute, CUTE (rocking) chick named Phoebe Summersquash.  Seriously.  Dave Auchenbach on bass, and Alex Kemp on guitar.  This band convinced me that I liked the mix of male and female vocals that were lacking in so many of this era's indie/twee bands (see Tiger Trap, Tuscadero, etc.).    Another major difference was that the kids in Small Factory could actually play.  Like, really play.  In that era, a lot of indie bands couldn't, and while it lent a lot of credence to the "cuteness" factor of the band, there was a depth of musical integrity that was lacking, for me.

Today, I couldn't tell you which of the albums came out first, but I have three in my collection:

I Do Not Love You (1993)

For If You Cannot Fly (1994)

The Industrial Evolution (1996) - a compilations of singles and b-sides

All three were in extremely heavy rotation.  The production values are great, for an three-piece indie band in the early 90s.  Hell, the production values are great, no disclaimers.  I mean, they aren't Phil Spector levels, but let's not get ahead of ourselves.

Who can deny the strange pathos in Sensible (For If You Cannot Fly) - /It's getting harder to be sensible/it's getting harder to keep it straight/and all your friend wound up bitter and cynical/and you just say that's great.  Phoebe's layered vocal track(s) in the end are fantastic, and her unassuming, yet un-irritating harmonies offset the deep tenor of Alex's voice here, and the outcome is simply spectacular.  Even the simple 2-measure guitar solo adds a level of melancholy.  Every note, every track, every pause adds to this song.  Chalk this up as one of my all-time Small Factory favorites.

How about Bright Side (For If You Cannot Fly) - a love song to that particular kind of friend that everyone has, or wants to have.  I'm lucky - I have one (more than one, actually).  At the point in my life when I was listening to this, the one in particular helped me home on my 21st birthday, made sure I didn't die, and helped me dial my girlfriend.  What more could I ask for?  (If you start to cry/I'll be the one who'll wipe those tears from your eyes)

And the cover of Valentine (I Do Not Love You)?  You can't *not* fall in love with Phoebe on this one.  Period.  If you can resist, you probably eat babies.

Let's not forget If You Hurt Me (The Industrial Evolution).  Devolves into some awesome noise at the end.  /If you hurt me/I'll be angry and I'll grow up way too fast/And if you break my heart/I'll smash up your car/.  Miniboss does *not* condone violence, but I'll admit that I've felt like this with one of my breakups.  Not particularly because they broke my heart, but because they were assholes.

Small Factory disbanded after the release (or maybe even before) of The Industrial Evolution.  Alex and Phoebe started a new band called The Godrays - and while they were great, I missed the third that wasn't replaced.  Sadly, The Godrays also broke up a few short years later.

Pass da aloha, bra.

(Edited again to post a better pic.)

Img from AP, as Obama's high school marching band passed by during the inaugural parade.

I can't tell you how proud I am to be an American today.  I think we all felt like patriots on 9/11, and on the days and months immediately thereafter, but we were united in our suffering. Today is different.  Today, hope swells in my chest with every breath, and I believe that change is really possible.  

I'm realistic - Obama has problems that no president has had to deal with in over half a century, but I believe that he has what it takes to unite us; as a country, as citizens, as neighbors.  

Obama, I hope the aloha spirit lives on in you.  (Even though you did go to Punahou.)

In Rememberance

Today, I remember Marie.  She died four years ago today, around 10pm, after a nearly two year struggle with leukemia.  I can't remember hardly anything about what I was doing, career-wise.  I can't remember much of anything, actually, except for Marie.  I spent a lot of time at hospitals, and a lot of time vomiting in the bushes outside the hospital.  I don't think I ever got over the vomit-first impulse that my body has when it gets near a hospital.

There were good times and bad times.  The good times were great.  I got a lot of pleasure out of seeing Marie's attachment to a teddy bear (from Godiva) that she hilariously named Hershey (that we gave her).  To tell you the truth, I thought her short hair was really punk rock, and I didn't miss her long hair at all!  I remember us going to see the baby great white shark at the Monterey aquarium with my brother.  The jellyfish tank RULED, and that section of the aquarium got a lot of explanations from Marie, whose primary research was in invertebrates.

I remember a horrifying ICU visit that will probably haunt me until I die.  I remember her lamenting that she would never kiss another boy again.  And I remember crying myself to sleep on many an occasion, wondering why people so young have to die?  It is *never* easy to watch someone die.  Even less so, a person in the prime of their lives.  I remain forever indebted to the friends who stood by me in my need.

But today, I think of Marie.  I miss you.  We all do.

Graduating from Linda Mar to Mavericks

Just kidding.  I went surfing yesterday at Pacifica.  I admit - it was probably the *flattest* day I've *ever* seen there.  I went in dry, and came out with anything above my waist still dry.  However, I do not consider it a successful surf session.

The Mavericks contest was hoping that a typhoon swell originating in Japan (and which hit Oahu's North Shore yesterday with 20+ Hawaiian measurement) would form today.  It didn't, so the contest is off.  Rumor has it that a lot of the pro dudes who have already shown up with surf out there anyway, so it might be worth the drive down to check it out.

I got back into my daily swim when I got back from Mexico, but strangely, I found it to be a LOT less calming than usual.  Thank goodness Pacifica looked good - even though the surf was pathetically small, I felt very tranquil, and thought of nothing but the waves, the freezing cold water that made my hands look like lobster claws, the birds, the ocean and the sun.  Very meditative.

Since Mavericks is off for today (and the weekend), I think I will make another trip out to Pacifica for surfing.  Wish me luck.

Ensenada

I got back from Ensenada yesterday. I went to visit a friend (and old coworker) of mine and had a wonderful town. Ensenada wasn't the sleepy beach town that I expected, but it will definitely warrant a subsequent visit, even if the visit is just a pit stop on my way to the Surfing spot that will remain nameless.

What did I do?
I ate a lot of raw seafood at a street cart near the fish market.
I ate a lot of fried fish tacos.
I walked on the beach *every* day.
I went for a hike up to a cross on the top of one of the mountains on the right side of the major valley.

Ensenada's beach looks slightly like Santa Monica on a not-so-good day - close shorebreak, closed out. Probably not a good choice for anything but a beginning surfer who just wants to ride a wave into the sand. San Miguel didn't look as good as the internet sites say - and looks like a really fast right. I don't think i could make the section(s) on a longboard, but maybe an egg or fish. I did a little bit of research and am actually *totally* stoked to drive back down there for a weekend trip, maybe in February, and hit one or two surf spots (k38 in particular) on my way down to Ensenada.

It was great to be out of the country, which I haven't been since my last trip to the Philippines in May 2007. It was great to be "on vacation", and hanging out with my friend. I remembered that I love playing music with people who also like to play music.

I had time to reflect on my life while I was there, and am still struggling with a few of the conclusions that I've come to.

I also read an awesome book - easily the best book that I've read in the last 12 months: Playing With the Enemy: Nelson Mandela and the Game That Made A Nation. It was about the 1995 World Cup (Rugby) that was held in South Africa, just shortly after Mandela was elected president. I'm not an overly emotional person (except for my temper), but I found myself either in tears, or near tears, once every chapter. If this was made into the movie, it would probably be better than Rudy, or The Natural, in the genre of *great* sports movies. It was an inspiring read about how peaceful revolution can be achieved if the compassion in the human spirit can triumph over other, more destructive emotions. Definitely recommended.

Teenage Fanclub's Bandwagonesque is in heavy rotation - and I'm unclear how this slipped past my radar all this time. Also, Chris Bell has been on my mind a lot, but I know where that road leads - to excessive drinking and depression. His You and Your Sister, in particular, have played in my head incessantly for the past day or so - and its actually a pretty trivial song to learn, but can anyone really replicate the angst in Chris' voice? Look Up, well - that one nearly killed me 10 years ago. I Am the Cosmos nearly did, too. I actually got a phone call from a friend in Texas then, whose first question to me was, "What are you listening to?" I replied, "Chris Bell." To which he replied, "You gotta stop doing that." It was good advice.

Chris Bell is a nearly Brian Wilson-esque figure to me - except that Chris Bell is dead, and Brian Wilson is not. (For more info, please see my Brian Wilson tribute.) I can't explain why - I don't listen to him *nearly* as often as other bands in regular rotation, but there's just something about his music. There's a reason why Big Star's #1 Record is the first and foremost of the Big Star records.

I'm also currently fixed on Okkervil River, which an old college buddy of mine plays in. I have to admit that I didn't really *get* Black Sheep Boy, which won critical acclaim from nearly every music critic on earth - but I really like their The Stage Names album. Isn't their drummer cute?

That is all.

Why Scotch is great.

Because it is.

My current (but soon to be not current) bottle is:


This bottle can be had at BevMo for about $50. Highly recommended, and replaces my Macallan 12.