The Social Circuit

Well, if it seems that my blogging these days is events based, it’s because in addition to spending a lot of my time online, I also have the semblance of a real life.

Last night I stopped by The She Spot book party and met Lisa Witter and Lisa Chen in person - both of whom are fabulous ladies. The party was a success - with loads of interesting people there from PulitzerCenter.org, Center For American Progress, and the Washington Post. The books flew off the tables, which was not only a good thing for Witter and Chen as they make their way around the country on a book tour, but also because 20% of the book proceeds went to Women for Women International and MomsRising.org.

Tonight, I continue my social carousel with an event at 1223 Connecticut that celebrates all things good in social media: an event with Robert Scoble, Gary Vaynerchuk, put on by Capitol Valley Media, in addition to help from Frank Gruber and the Social Times.

By the time Thursday comes around, I should be sufficiently over-socialized. But that isn’t going to stop me from helping to put on a fund raiser for the New Leaders Council at Capital City Brewery on Capital Hill. The NLC event will honor Mark Walsh, a former AOL executive, who also created Vertical.net, a successful early online advertising company and served as Chief Technology Officer of the Democratic National Committee before becoming a co-owner of national progressive radio network, Air America. Walsh was just selected as Chairman of NLC’s national Board of Directors and currently serves as CEO of GeniusRocket.com.

Hopefully, I’ll still have some energy left for the weekend’s festivities which include a romp through Space with my favorite DJ-duo cutting it up with some “heavy servings of classic and modern hip-hop bangers with sides of vintage reggae and dance hall.” Check out some beats that will be blowing up the Space this weekend, featured on The Wackness Mix Wit.

“It’s Still Punk Rock To Me”

Well this punk rock princess got back to her roots as a garage band groupie listening to the Maybe Tomorrow Band at the Red & Black Bar in Northeast D.C this evening. The Red & Black Bar is located on 1212 H St NE - an area that my cab driver described to me as a place where “they sell things like crack and smoke leaves - you know, the pot.”  Well, thanks for the lesson cabbie, but I just wanted to have a beer and listen to some live music…anyways..

For $8 and a lovely fleur de lis hand stamp, I got to hear a few different bands, see friends and feel some serious beats shake the blood in my veins.  The stage at Red & Black is in a small-ish room upstairs, guarded by large red velvet curtains, where the acoustics can become deafening. And I, a fan of being close to the stage, typically end up with my ears ringing for days after any concert. But, in a moment of maturity, I bought some lovely orange styrofoam ear plugs for just a dollar - something I would never have done in Junior High School - but now realizing the true pleasure of being able to hear,  I decided it would be a good idea. 

The ear plugs turned out to be worth the 100 pennies as did the trek to Red & Black. The bar itself turned out to be just as fun and cool as the bands that were playing. At Red & Black, if you buy at least two beers, you get complimentary red beans and rice - where else in D.C. does that?

Overall, it was a great time and Maybe Tomorrow rocked a serious set with a lovely NOFX meets Billy Joel mash up of “It’s Still Punk Rock to Me” and a fun nostalgic piece by the JawBreakers. The JawBreaker’s cover is what really brought me back to the old days in San Francisco when I trekked from record store to record store in my beat up converse kicks, my black zippy sweatshirt and corduroy satchel covered in safety pins as I listened to rebellious covers of good music by local punk bands.  Ahh, the good old days…

Tonight also reminded me about why I enjoy the punk scene in the first place. What is better than a bunch of dudes covered in tattoos, piercings (and if you’re lucky a really hot mohawk) wandering around, playing instruments and drooling into their microphone? Honestly, not much.

Lucky for me (and you) - the Maybe Tomorrow Band will be indulging in their punk rock rhythms again this Friday at the Grog and Tankard in Georgetown. So any drum-slamming, guitar jamming, bass grabbing, hard rock music aficionados should head down to see them. Oh, but don’t forget to bring the ear plugs - you’ll probably need them.

Corey Worthington Fights For His Right To Party

He’s baaackkk. Corey Worthington that is - the Audacious Aussie who threw the massive rager at his parent’s home back in January. Thanks to Sajalicious for pointing out the news of his single, “Fight for Your Right (to Party)” making headway into the music scene via Inthemix.

Instead of lighting fires at his parent’s home, the petulant S.O.B. is apparently trying to one-up the Beastie Boys with a cover of their 1986 song that defined my rebel-without-a-cause streak in middle school.

Unfortunately, the club mix sounds just like it is - a hungover Aussie kid doing Karaoke at his parents house. Not catchy enough for my tastes, I’ll stick to the original. And besides, three dudes in sunglasses is way better than one.

In other Worthing-tool news, it is speculated that he will make an appearance on Big Brother and has been offered a job as a party promoter. His single, already receiving criticism as a spin-off of a cult-classic, is available at www.youmenow.com as of Monday, May 5th.

Elect Obama, See Pigs Fly

Photo by Mick Orlosky via Flickr

At the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival held in Indio, CA Roger Waters, a former member of Pink Floyd, reportedly “brought Coachella to a close with an epic two-set performance that included playing all of “Dark Side of the Moon” and unleashing a giant inflated pig into the night sky.“

Never mind the fact that Waters performed “an elaborate, almost retrospective concert Sunday featuring music from throughout Pink Floyd’s catalog” - he let loose a giant pig into the night sky! Even more amusing is that the underbelly of the pig read “Obama” with a check box alongside.

Yet another musical tribute for Prez-hopeful Barack Obama. HRC is eating dust when it comes to the Votes for Notes Campaign. (Not sure if that really exists, but it sure seems like it).

The AP story reports that the pig was led above the crowd from lines held on the ground, and as Waters drew the festival a close, flame bursts exploded off stage setting the swine onto an outer space mission into the night sky.

Now that is some serious canvassing efforts - I wonder if there are any super delegates from Mars?

Barack Brushes The Dirt Off

Yet another musical tribute to my man, Obama. This one isn’t PG-13 like the others, but it’s a pretty hilarious remix of Jay-Z’s “Dirt Off Your Shoulder” and offers a good laugh. The second half of the video is a bit of a slam on Hillary Clinton with the remixed “99 Problems” - but all is fair in music and politics?

Overall, I think the video demonstrates the great sense of humor that Obama and his fans have. It does not, however, demonstrate a great sense of Obama’s dance moves. Don’t quit your day job, Barack.

Countdown to Earth Day 2008

I hope everyone is as excited as I am for Earth Day 2008. The Earth Day Network is spanning the continent with a myriad of free concerts, events and speakers for Earth Day 2008 starting on Friday, 4/18 and lasting until the evening of 4/20. Green Apple Festival is the catalytic force behind the events and so far, the speakers and bands lined up for the National Mall in DC look pretty dope:

In Washington DC on the National Mall, 19 Recordings/Jive Recording artist Jordin Sparks will perform the National Anthem. An acoustic set by members of rock band O.A.R. will kick off the festivities at noon and the Roots will headline with multi-platinum three-time Grammy award winning artist will.i.am, Ne-Yo, Doug E. Fresh, Talib Kweli and Chrisette Michele.

Other cities can view their line-up here. For those who were just planning to get green on Sunday, make sure to check the scheduled performances so that you don’t miss out on any earlier events.

Here are a few suggestions to reduce your carbon footprint on Earth Day -

1. Keep lights and AC off all day.
2. Unplug all unnecessary electronics.
3. Limit use of water - quick showers, or none at all. (This is your chance to be smelly for a cause)
4. Don’t drive. Walk or metro or bike.
5. Bring a reusable bag to the grocery store.
6. Pick up miscellaneous trash off the street.
7. Recycle !!! Pay attention to what containers and plastics can be recycled.

Musical Crack

Well, as I have a tendency to post about music-related items, here is a new platform for all who enjoy music and freedom of choice:

Songza has quickly become the new cool kid on the Internet-music block. It has the potential to eclipse my other online jukeboxes of Pandora and Last.fm. Unlike Pandora, Songza doesn’t arbitrarily decide what you might also like to listen to. It just lets you search for exactly what you want. So instead of trying to outwit the Pandora algorythm (if I plugged in one bubble gum pop song I was inevitably exposed to the entire collection of NOW! music and my station is ruined for eternity) - with Sognza it is all Biblical: “Ask and you shall receive.”

Milk Gets Hip With Kitschy Band

Well, the famous “Got Milk?” people have taken their love of Milk beyond just a question mark with the band White Gold & The Calcium Twins. Yes, that’s right, similar to The Monkees - this is a real band, with real songs, that really makes you want a tall, glass of milk. And they are ridiculous (in a good way). Think doppleganger of David Bowie meets Spinal Tap after a fist fight with Austin Powers at a karaoke bar while Zoolander serves up some ice, cold, milk.

The story of how White Gold got together is rare, emotional and something that only fate could deliver:

Guitar geniuses like White Gold aren’t just born. They’re honed. Crafted. Perfected. It’s not genetic coding; there isn’t a strand of DNA that automatically infuses an artist with milk into their veins and calcium into their bones. For this maestro, consumption was the only way to become reborn and set free.

Before the luscious white mane, the four-hour guitar solos and ripped abdominals, there was White Gold, the man. A mess of frail hair, a dull smile and a scrawny body. It was a rockless bottom for White Gold. He couldn’t finish a three-song set without being booed off the stage and thrown out onto the street.

Then something changed. White Gold’s voice started sounding like nothing ever heard before - was it voice training or was he more well-rested? His sculpted biceps were shredding his T-shirts. His skin had a sexy, healthy glow about it. Gossip columns questioned whether White Gold had had work done. He strongly denied it, saying, “Everyone needs to chill, like my milk does. It’s all good. I’m just a vessel for the white genius to flow.”

About this time, White Gold met musical phenoms Skimberly and Wholena, now known across the world as “The Calcium Twins.” The twins’ unrivaled musical talent, matched only by their bewitching good looks, catapulted White Gold’sSM unique sound to an unparalleled new level. Together, they released “Ends, Split Ends.” They began selling out theaters, and their infectious single “The Milkionaire” began to snowball.

This band only has one true love and it ain’t rock n’ roll, but rather the smooth creamy liquid from bosom of your local cow. White Gold is blowing up the music scene with some hits off its stunning album, “The Best I Can Give Is 2%.”

Songs include: “Is It Me, Or Do You Love My Hair?”, “Tame The White Tiger”, “One Gallon Axe” and “PMS (Pour the Milk Sister).”

Take a listen to “One Gallon Axe” and you might never go back to any other beverage besides milk. If you’re lactose-intolerant, however, well, I just feel bad for you.

Head Bang For Obama

To continue my musical-propaganda train for my favorite 2008 Presidential Candidate - Sen. Barack Obama - I present “Obama-sistable” a great find by Andrew Sullivan at the Atlantic’s Daily Dish.

The fact that Obama can get these guys to rip a few guitar chords in their parents basement - well that just takes the idea of political efficacy to a whole new level for me.

So far we have a broad musical tribute going on for the O-man:

• Deadheads for Obama
• The Yes We Can celebrity tribute to Obama
• My own personal “Hope The World A Better Place” mix cd
• The Obama Girl music video
• The Bergevin Bros “Fire it Up and Ready To Go” song

And there are many more musical tributes for this campaign of hope that I’m sure I haven’t even seen yet. I wonder if this campaign has the grassroots record for the most cause related music created for one Presidential campaign?

So, far only one musician has totally failed his peers when it comes to flexing his musical muscles in the political world - DMX. According to his interview in XXL Magazine, he doesn’t even know Barack Obama is a) black or b) running for President.

Are you following the presidential race?
Not at all.

You’re not? You know there’s a Black guy running, Barack Obama and then there’s Hillary Clinton.
His name is Barack?!

Barack Obama, yeah.
Barack?!

Barack.
What the fuck is a Barack?! Barack Obama. Where he from, Africa?

Yeah, his dad is from Kenya.
Barack Obama?

Yeah.
What the fuck?! That ain’t no fuckin’ name, yo. That ain’t that nigga’s name. You can’t be serious. Barack Obama. Get the fuck outta here.

You’re telling me you haven’t heard about him before.
I ain’t really paying much attention.

I mean, it’s pretty big if a Black…
Wow, Barack! The nigga’s name is Barack. Barack? Nigga named Barack Obama. What the fuck, man?! Is he serious? That ain’t his fuckin’ name. Ima tell this nigga when I see him, “Stop that bullshit. Stop that bullshit” [laughs] “That ain’t your fuckin’ name.” Your momma ain’t name you no damn Barack.

So you’re not following the race. You can’t vote right?
Nope.

Is that why you’re not following it?
No, because it’s just—it doesn’t matter. They’re gonna do what they’re gonna do. It doesn’t really make a difference. These are the last years.

But it would be pretty big if we had a first Black president. That would be huge.
I mean, I guess…. What, they gon’ give a dog a bone? There you go. Ooh, we have a Black president now. They should’ve done that shit a long time ago, we wouldn’t be in the fuckin’ position we in now. With world war coming up right now. They done fucked this shit up then give it to the Black people, “Here you take it. Take my mess.”

Right, exactly.
It’s all a fuckin’ setup. It’s all a setup. All fuckin’ bullshit. All bullshit. I don’t give a fuck about none of that.

We could have a female president also, Hillary Clinton.
I mean, either way it doesn’t matter. I don’t care. No one person is directly affected by which president, you know, so what does it matter.

Yeah, but the country is.
I guess. The president is a puppet anyway. The president don’t make no damn decisions.

The president…they don’t have that much authority basically?
Nah, never.

But Bush pretty much…
You think Bush is making fuckin’ decisions?

He did, yeah, he fucked up the country.
He act like he making decisions. He could barely speak! He could barely fuckin’ speak! Can’t be serious. He ain’t making no damn decisions.

WOW - thanks DMX. Just when we thought we were making a dent….how about you just keep to rapping, we’ll keep to politicking.

 

The Cult Has A Song, It Just Needs A Dance

So Obamamania has taken on a whole new meaning in my life — in the form of a mix-cd. Last night I just received the best indication of my political nerdiness factor when a friend sent me a “Hope The World a Better Place” mix cd full of speeches and songs, all with some relation to the Obama campaign, hope or change messages:

itunes.pdf

Better Way - Ben Harper
Don’t Stop - The Rolling Stones
We Shall Overcome -MLK Jr
Running Down A Dream -Tom Petty
Better - LMNO
Waiting On The World To Change -John Mayer
Fired Up And Ready To Go - Bergevin Bros
2004 DNC Keynote Address - Barack Obama
Changes - 2PAC
Hope - Shaggy
I Won’t Back Down - Tom Petty
I Got A Crush On Obama - The Obama Girl
One - U2
Yes We Can - Wii I Am
Signed Sealed Delivered - Stevie Wonder

Previous to this, the Obama campaign has already played an amusing role in my life. It has brought ex-boyfriends who I swore I’d never talk to again back on speaking terms. It has afforded some entertaining road trips through South Carolina and a new found love for “Bo-Tatoes.” It has brought me closer to old friends who choose to text message me absurdities like “DOMINATION” when Obama won a league of states on Super Tuesday.

Overall, I have been quite impressed by the enthusiasm for this election within my generation and now I have my own personal soundtrack to appreciate it all even more.