The Greatest Generation

Had the honor to meet a member of the 101st Airborne who landed inland from Omaha beach on June 6, 1944. Just like Private Ryan. Softspoken, wheelchair bound and proud, I didn't expect to get choked up after I shook his hand and thanked him for what he did.

It was the first time I'd thanked a veteran. Amrbose's Band of Brothers taught me brotherhood was what won the war.

I think I know what Patriotism means. Maybe at least one member of the greatest generation thinks this gen-exer isn't so terribly uncool.

Hang Tough, SoCal

Our thoughts and prayers are with you.

R.E.M.Live: Ich Bin Ein Dubliner?

Last week, R.E.M.LIVE went live to a [insert favorite corporate retail outlet here] near you.

Now, I love this band. Love their music
more than any other four guys playing great rock and roll. Love their longevity. Love the songwriting. In fact, I love this band so damn much I can get past their politics.

But do we really need to hear Mr. Stipe, pictured doing a mediocre Boy Wonder impersonation above, tell the Dublin audience that they "come from a strange, far away and often-confusing place called the United States of America?" I would hope that R.E.M. esteems their country higher than that. I can understand that you don't like G.W. Bush or the war--or conservatism--for that matter. After all, Mr. Stipe did go on Anderson Cooper recently. But maybe love for country during a 2005 concert in Dublin isn't the best place to profess love of country. Mr. Stipe, I welcome your comments.

At any rate, I do appreciate the two songs Mr. Stipe calls "our state of the union address." Great stuff, especially a rare R.E.M. fight song called "Final Straw." A great thing about R.E.M.'s music is a conscious choice on part of the songwriters to allow for personal meaning plug-ins. Their songs might be a musical flipping of the bird to them but to me they mean something else. So that's great, thanks for playing. I'll still buy the next record in April on day one. Like I have with each since New Adventures in Hi-Fi.

Anyhow, the setlist is mostly good, but I wish to all that's sacred and holy that they permanately retire "The Great Beyond" and "Imitation of Life" from all setlists. The R.E.M. catalog is replete with oustanding songs and these two aren't holding water over time. Maybe one day we can hear "Bittersweet Me," "Texarkana" or "Try Not To Breathe."

But speaking of songs that hold water, "Boy In The Well" sounds fantastic and I absolutely was floored by the show opener, from 1994's Monster, "I Took Your Name." "So Fast, So Numb" sounds equally fantastic and not just because it's from Hi-Fi.

I recommend viewing the DVD with a shot of Dramamine and sunglasses. I get the high energy style and trick pony photography, but only on Orange Crush is it well executed. Definitely postpone watching if you've got a headache.

Perfect Square, on the other hand, is an absolute gem and if you've got a hankering for R.E.M. live, give that DVD a whirl. I'm afraid it has the aforementioned waterlogged songs, but still well worth your time.

Guys, thanks for the live release and I hope when the Democrats take back the White House nothing changes. Would that be so terribly uncool?

Reckoner\In Rainbows Ra d iohe_ad

If you haven't had the good fortune to give In Rainbows a spin, do yourself a favor post haste. Radiohead have made a new record, we're told at inrainbows.com. A spectacular set of ten songs I've been waiting to hear since 2003's disappointing Hail To The Thief.

(And you should know that I tried my damndest to like that record. I just couldn't get into it.)

Reckoner is a spectacular song. Radiohead, thank you for making a new record. You deserve all the publicity your distribution experiment got.

What a breath of fresh air. The folks down at Hollywood and Vine are no doubt cursing the terribly uncool factor of it all.

Nobody Knows My Na-- Er, Reads My Blog

Spread the word to your excellent friends - nobody reads my blog.

So behold my resolve: I'm going to post daily in what is sure to be glorious brevity in an attempt to capture my own everyman narrative. Literary and dramatic critics be forewarned: MD is unleashing his power on the ever-perpetuating filth of the blogosphere.

And you'll find I'm good with quotes, lousy with sources. A media mogul was purported to have said, "The information age has given new credence and credibility to uniformed opinion."

Who I am to hold back if that's the world we live in? No, holding back would be terribly uncool.