Birthday Bling. The quarter-century bash was AWESOME. Mals surprised me with tickets to go see Rent and when I heard that, I got so excited I peed on his shoe. Rent was amazing (again), and of course I bawled (again). I also got taken out to Parallel 33 on my actual birthday, where I had both the most fantastic shrimp curry and the most fantastic red wine I've ever tasted. So good I almost had a seizure. Dancing is also planned for a night sometime soon, as well as a solo road trip (my b-day present to myself). Aww yeah. 25 ain't so bad. Shine on you crazy-old diamond.
Restaurant rave of the month: Sushi Deli One. Just classic. Anyone who knows sushi in San Diego knows this joint. Good California Rolls, great spicy tuna, wonderful specialty rolls like the Ninja Roll and the Dragon Roll. The decor is casual and funky, with a black paint-splattered ceiling, shoji screens on the wall, and a screen door on the front entrance that makes you feel like you're walking into somebody's kitchen. Watch out for Friday and Saturday nights, as well as weekdays for lunch, as there are nearly always a crunkload of people waiting to get in.
Live show rave of the month: The Pixies at Rimac Arena. They sounded fantastic. They sold pink T-shirts. They did "Broken Face" and "Hey". What more could a girl ask for?
Album rave of the month: Interpol- Antics. Rife with Interpol's stylish brand of brood, Antics is a solid sophomore offering from the NYC hipsters. Anyone who was expecting their sound to change radically from 2002's Turn On the Bright Lights will be sorely disappointed- the blood running in Antics' veins is undeniably of the same color and consistency as TOTBL's. That said, this album is not without welcome traces of growth. Paul Banks' automaton baritone is still stark, but new flashes of tilted romance grace his lyrics ("I'll subtract pain by ounces/Yeah I will start painting houses/When things come alive" from "Not Even Jail"). Songwriting is tighter, both melodically and lyrically, and most traces of band-searching-for-their-own-sound akwardness evident on their debut have been abandoned. Interpol has clearly learned a good deal about their own musical skin and how to be comfortable in it. They may never leave the ubiquitous Joy Division comparisons behind, but Antics is reliable enough to reassure fans that Interpol will be around long enough for a legion of new bands to seethe about being compared to them. Standout tracks: "Evil", "Slow Hands".
What else is in my CD player now: Black Keys- "Rubber Factory", Blink 182- "Blink 182", Death Cab For Cutie- "Transatlanticism".
THE HOT LIST (according to me):
-MySpace.com. Cool place for cybernerdies, music lovers, and all those who speaketh blog to post profiles, upload music, chat, join groups. Sort of like Friendster meets LiveJournal meets old-skool mp3.com. It just sucks you in, man.
-Starbucks carrying sandwiches. It's not that they taste excellent, or even really really good, but the fact that they're THERE has saved me from starvation many a time that I have had no time to stop for anything else on my way to my other job. Hooray!
-Mustard. One of the Starbucks sandwiches comes with a mustard packet. I'm ashamed to say that I'm now addicted. Packet sucker!
-Birthday money. Self-explanatory.
-Sara. My stepmom. A shout-out for just being an amazing individual.
Quote of the Month:
"I was so much older then; I'm younger than that now." -Bob Dylan, "My Back Pages"
© October 7, 2004 by me.