WWSLD?

Whenever I'm feeling stressed out and frustrated and my head is about to burst and all I wanna do is call in sick and hide under the covers and then reorganize my life, I just have to sit back and ask myself -- what would the slow loris do?



and somehow that makes things better.

Frank Turner Signs with Epitaph

Press releases don't often make my day -- and I'll be honest here, I usually only read about 3 sentences of most that I get -- but this one totally made my entire afternoon a few days ago.

Frank Turner is now a member of the Epitaph family, which means an easier finding of his records stateside and more tour dates close to my apt. This is very good.

If you don't already know Mr. Turner, consider yourself warned. Get acquainted. I've been in love with him and his trucker hat and acoustic guitar and British accent since I first caught him on the family jamboree revival tour with Chuck Ragan last fall. (And I hate trucker hats.) I had never heard of him before that and wasn't expecting much as he slowly walked up to the mic. How many former punks have already put out solo acoustic albums over these last few years anyway? (Answer: plenty.) But by mid-set, and especially once I heard "Long Live the Queen," I knew I'd be looking him up afterward. (I get starstruck no matter how small someone's star might actually be, so of course, I did not approach said Turner after his set to chat. Please. I'll cyberstalk him later.)

Next thing I knew, I was listening to him on repeat day after day after day, and though I'm known for doing things like this on occasion (ok, a lot of occasions), it had been quite a long time since anyone really caught my attention like Turner. It's nothing special, just the standard guy + guitar, but he's just so good. The lyrics, the casual yet impassioned delivery, it's easy to see pieces of yourself and your friends in his songs -- they're like little declarations of your own fleeting thoughts and memories that you're glad someone else put into a few lines of a 2 minute song because it would have taken you much longer to get something half as coherent out.

Consider his new album one of my most anticipated this year; make it yours as well.

Who's the Enemy?

Green Day's much-anticipated new album is just about a week away, and our first taste has been the (surprise!) first single "Know Your Enemy." As a fan of American Idiot and as someone who likes to give bands the benefit of the doubt, I've been cautiously optimistic about the new record. Is it going to be the critical and commercial success of the last record? Well, no. Those are some giant shoes to fill, what with all the hype, the Grammy and about a gazillion copies sold. There is the very good chance that the band will overthink things and buckle under the pressure of having to follow up the album that thrust them into arenas around the world and made them relevant again. (Though if that happens, chances are good the next album will kick ass.)

But even if it's not American Idiot, Part Deux, it can still be a damn good album. Green Day is a great band, despite what some people might say, and they definitely have it in them to bring it again. And 21st Century Breakdown will indeed be great -- as long as "Know Your Enemy" is the worst song on the ambitious, story-based, three-act album. I've listened to it a few times, and well... I can't listen to it anymore. Sorry guys. Talk about a grating track. It's in the realm of a standard Green Day radio "anthem," but there's no bite or real urgency like songs before it. Just kinda feels empty amid the generic sneering and pyrotechnics. Straightforward rock, but without an especially memorable melody (see also: annoying) or catchy lyrics, urging a rebellion... I think? Rebellion for the sake of rebellion? Fists in the air for...? Wait, what are we rallying against this time? C'mon Green Day, don't tell me there's no genuine anger left in you...

Check it out for yourself: "Know Your Enemy"

Photo: Kim Kulish

question of the day

if sugar ray gets back together for a new album and no one cares, does the album still suck?

you spin me right round baby

this app is almost enough to make me wanna get an iphone. i'd use it for like 5 minutes, but it would be a REALLY great 5 minutes.

Spinning vinyl ipod app from Theodore Watson on Vimeo.