Concert Reviews - Velvet Revolver and NIN
May. 18th, 2005 03:25 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rusty_haloNew Star Wars tomorrow!! I'm excited, and praying that it'll be good. And if it sucks, well, it's not like my estimation of the prequels could get any lower....
Wow. There's a ton of amazing Veronica Mars fic out there. I read a bunch last night (and left some half-assed one line feedback comments, sorry). This is so much more satisfying than my expedition into Queer as Folk fic.
Queer as Folk has been on the air much longer, but has very little in the way of decent fic. I wonder if it has to with audience--does VM appeal to a demographic that is more likely to write good fanfiction? Or is it that VM is a better show? Or maybe it's just that I like a popular character on VM--Logan--whereas I have an unpopular viewpoint regarding QaF--I don't want Brian to "settle down," and if he does, it should be with Michael.
Oh, and, sidenote: it's amazing how many Buffy fans are also in VM fandom. I think that more Buffy fans than I realized watched BtVS in spite of the supernatural, not because of it. Whereas it's not very likely that I'll get into something that doesn't have sci-fi or supernatural or at least action.
I thought this was funny. My friend![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
jaydk reads LJ, but hasn't seen VM. So she calls me:
jaydk: I'm bored, entertain me.
rusty_halo: You should try watching Veronica Mars; I just watched the whole first season, and it's decent.
jaydk: Oh god, you're not one of those mad obsessed Logan fans now, are you?
Oh, yeah, I keep meaning to post about this. In addition to watching the first season of Veronica Mars this weekend, I also went to three concerts.
Saturday - Velvet Revolver. This was at Jones Beach, which is a pain to travel to; you have to take the Long Island Rail Road and then catch a bus. It took over an hour, and was uncomfortable traveling alone, and I hate Long Island. But anyway.
I'd never been to Jones Beach before--it's this huge 15,000 seat amphitheater, with vendors and food and drink (but no alcohol!) and all that weird mainstream stuff that doesn't (IMO) have any place at a concert. Advertisements hanging from every visible surface, y'know. It was also freezing, and incredibly windy--as the name indicates, it's on a beach. And, yeah, outdoors. I wish I'd dressed more warmly; the temperature is much higher in the city.
The good news is that I had an amazing seat. Ten rows back in the very center. Presumably this is because I got my ticket from iloveallaccess.com. And having a seat was, in itself, nice... that way I didn't have to stand through the unbelievably lame opening band. (One of those hideous half-assed schmoopy "nu-metal" things... Hoobastank, I think.)
So Velvet Revolver played, and they were very good. Definitely had their shit together, knew what they were doing and how to do it. Totally solid, and fun, and maybe a little goofy, but there was also a lot of passion.
I've never been a huge Guns 'N Roses fan; I liked a few songs, but mostly couldn't get over what a pretentious asshole Axl Rose seemed to be. Slash, though, is a great guitar player, and certainly one of the coolest icons in rock and roll. Seeing him was neat.
And, well, I loved seeing Scott Weiland. (Even though every time I see him now I can't overcome the desperate urge to feed him.) I was always sort of embarrassed to like Stone Temple Pilots, because they were sort of rip offs of other bands, promoted by record labels trying to cash in on Nirvana. And Weiland had this whole "Look, if Eddie Vedder and Layne Staley bred, you'd have me!" thing, which was so annoying. But he also sort of had his own style, like there would be a lot more to him if he just could break out of that wanna-be grunge ghetto, and some of his lyrics were actually pretty good, and he did give a pretty powerful vocal performance.
So their album "Core" was sort of a guilty pleasure for me. And actually, I remember the exact moment where I decided I liked Weiland; I was watching TV at Danielle's house (I can't remember if this was MTV or a tape), and Weiland was performing the song "Sex Type Thing" in full drag, in order to show the band's macho fans that, while the song is about violent male sexuality, it's not an endorsement of it. (And then also, I always had this photo of Weiland french kissing one of his [male] band members hanging in my parents basement, which, come to think of it, really makes me wonder what they thought about that....)
Weiland brings a really interesting element to this band. They're like, y'know, Guns 'N Roses, cheesy 80s rock with a harder edge. Their logos are full of female silhouettes, and you'd expect their lyrics to be, well, not feminist-friendly. But having Weiland as lyricist/frontman brings in a whole different element, because he's got that more socially conscious 90s thing going on, and his lyrics are a lot more interesting and personal and serious. So that was cool.
And he is, actually, a very passionate and charismatic frontman. I was impressed, technically, by all the band members. They played a bunch of their own songs, a couple GNR songs, and two STP songs--I think one was "Crackerman." The other was "Sex Type Thing," which was so incredibly awesome to see live. It's by far my favorite STP song, totally dark and fucked-up and clever and real. I wish I'd been in a mosh pit for that instead of standing in front of a chair, but at least I jumped around like a lunatic. (The 14 year old next to me clearly only knew the Velvet Revolver songs and thought I was a freak for going insane over this song.)
Plus, for extra coolness, they dragged the song out to ultra-long length while Weiland went into the crowd, climbed to the top of the stadium, and gave a speech about the greatness of rock and roll (paraphrasing: "we're all sharing this passion, we give it to you and you give it back to us, we create it together") and how it's dying ("when I signed my first record contract, there were eleven major labels; now there's three. but it's not just corporations; there have always been corporations in music. it's up you YOU to seek out good new music. all we do is play the instruments."). It was sincere and heartfelt and cool to see someone who cared, even if it was kind of naive and silly and, dude, Guns 'N Roses and Stone Temple Pilots are giving a speech about the integrity of rock n roll, are you kidding??
But yeah, ultimately they put on a great show and I had a very good time. Even though I didn't get home until 1:30am thanks to all the buses and trains I had to catch.
Sunday - Nine Inch Nails. Okay, so already I was tired from the night before. I got up, watched some Veronica Mars (I was in the midst of the mystery, I couldn't help it!) and finally got to NIN around 5pm. I know, I was planning to wait at noon, but dammit, that takes all this effort and stuff. And I'd have been alone, no one to hold my place in line so I could get food or anything.
So I got there around 5 and the line was all the way down 8th avenue. I waited for almost two hours, then they let us in. I got a spot on the left side, about five rows back. Not too bad, but not great.
The opener, Dresden Dolls, started around 7:45 and was amazing: a mix of genres and styles, a beautiful singer, incredibly clever and passionate, with nicely twisted lyrics. I think I'll buy their record. And NIN's really hot drummer came out and did a song with them, a cover of Radiohead's "Karma Police."
So more standing, and I was so exhausted, and then finally NIN came out. They certainly opened with a bang; the first two songs were totally killer, heavy older songs. (I'm lame and can't find a setlist online; I think it was "Sin" and something else.) And, of course, the pit was insane. Not just pushing or smushing, but shoving and hitting. You're literally trying to keep your head high enough to breathe, not fall, not get sucked under, not faint. It's hotter than a sauna and your entire body is soaked in sweat--your own and that of everyone around you. There's really no concept of personal space, but at least the nice thing is that, if you lose the ability to stand, just lean your entire body weight on someone near you. They can't do anything about it. (Oh, and ladies? PIN UP YOUR FUCKING HAIR!)
Newbies continually astound me. They go into a mosh pit for the first time and freak out because OH MY GOD PEOPLE ARE PUSHING ME! Um, what did you expect??? And little girlies who freak and have to be pulled out--again, what did you think would happen?
They're not as bad as the opportunists, though--the big bulky guys who stand in the back getting drunk, then use their superior body size to shove past people who waited for hours, get to the very front, and then indiscriminately beat the shit out of everyone around them. Or the sluts with their gigantic tits hanging out who pull your hair or claw your arms in order to get past you and within sight of the band. I know this is part of the experience and all, but it really sucks when you can barely concentrate on the band because of it.
Yeah, so anyway, they opened with two amazing, breathtaking songs, and the crowd was rabid and insane, and then they stopped, because the equipment malfunctioned! Haha. I appreciated the breather a lot more than I should've. It turned out that someone had accidentally kicked out a plug, and Trent announced that about ten people would be fired that night, and then they continued.
I was really impressed with the number of Pretty Hate Machine songs that they played that night. (Dammit, I need a setlist, stupid forums requiring registration now, aaargh!). Anyway, they definitely played "Terrible Lie," and they played bit of "Down in It" during "Closer," and something else I think. (Oh, and they closed with "Head Like a Hole," perfectly.) They also played several from Broken, "Suck" and "Gave Up" and "Wish" being standouts. (Though I was terribly disappointed in the lack of "Last"--possibly my favorite NIN song--or "Happiness in Slavery.") They also played "Burn," from the Natural Born Killers soundtrack, which is a song that I love and adore. I sang every word and, for that song at least, was really glad I was in a mosh pit. They also played "March of the Pigs," another perfect mosh pit song, and "Reptile," which Trent introduced as one of his favorites. The rendition of "Closer" was awesome, of course; how can you not love a room full of three thousand people all singing together "I want to fuck you like an animal"? "Hurt" was kind of a disappointment; it was performed well, Trent and his keyboard, but hard to focus with everyone either screaming along in bad voices or else taking the relative quiet as an opportunity to gossip or complain or scream at the people who'd been pushing them.
The guitar player and drummer were both really cute, and all the musicians performed well. Oh, and Twiggy!!! He looks really freaky without makeup. And he and the guitarist did really well on backing vocals.
Trent's all weird and buff and muscular now, which looks ridiculous; he's Trent Reznor. He's supposed to be skinny and pale, goddammit. He's lost all sex appeal for me now. Though it was cool to be up close, and to see his facial expressions as he sang. He's an actor; he sobs during the heartwrenching parts and sneers during the snotty parts and rages during the angry parts. Fun.
So, yeah, it ended with "Head Like a Hole" (no encore), an amazing rendition, and I was happy. But also happy that it was over, so that I could desperately gasp for fresh air, and then walk over to Duane Read and drink an entire bottle of water before I even got to the front to pay for it. And, literally, I was soaking wet. It was an hour and a half in a sauna, pressed up against others with no room to breathe, getting constantly grabbed and shoved and slammed into and smushed.
I don't know if it's just me getting old, or if I just don't have the passion for NIN anymore (if it had been Pig, I wouldn't have minded, but NIN is emotionally reflective of a state I most haven't felt since I was sixteen). Or maybe if it had been the correct $40 ticket price, instead of the $150 scalper ticket that I had to get off eBay. For that much money, it just feels wrong to end up in so much physical pain. But I'm glad I went; just wish it had been better.
Monday - Nine Inch Nails. So the next morning I woke up and was so sore I nearly couldn't get out of bed. So I called in sick to work, took a ton of ibuprofin, and went back to sleep. (I tried to listen to NIN, but found myself sort of repulsed by it, and thinking how juvenile Reznor's lyrics are, and how the new album kind of sucks, and how Raymond Watts has such a better voice and much more creative and witty and interesting lyrics, and how Reznor's really just a spoiled fake little rich boy, and yeah, weird.)
I got up later, briefly considered going to wait in line for four hours, and decided instead to watch Veronica Mars and sleep more. I didn't head over to the NIN show until after 8, totally missed the Dresden Dolls, and came in during NIN's performance (they were playing "Sin").
So I stood in the back, could see everything without having to peer over anyone's head, and wasn't getting shoved or pushed or grabbed. So nice. I bought a Corona and chilled.
I noticed, from this angle, that they actually had sort of a lighting show, which I hadn't even seen the first time. Basically it was just a row of vertical bars of light behind them, but they'd light up in different colors or amounts depending on the song, and along with the music. (So for "Closer" they were eerie red, and for "Burn" the lighted parts moved in a shape like fire, then flared intensely on the backing vocal "burn" part.) It was really cool--totally suited the aesthetic style of the band.
They played a lot of the good songs from the night before--"Burn" and "Closer" and "March of the Pigs" (this time with the full "the pigs have won tonight" part, which Trent left out the previous night) and "Gave Up" and "Wish" and "Hurt" (which I enjoyed much more because I could focus on it this time). In the middle, they played a ton of stuff that I didn't know--I think a lot from "The Fragile," and stuff from the new album. Of the new stuff, "With Teeth" (or "With-uh Teeth-uh," to be more accurate) is terrible, but "The Hand That Feeds" is very good--bouncy and poppy and, dear god, a call to political action from king-of-nihilism Trent Reznor? What is the world coming to??
They closed with "Head Like a Hole" again, which was great--such an amazing song. It really stands up over time--I think it's as good now as it was in 1990.
So yeah, overall, good show. And from my very biased point of view: old stuff better than new stuff, back of the room better than front of the pit.
...and now a bunch of memes and quiz results:
I think I'm way more of an existentialist than this indicates:
This impressed me:
Sad, but true:
I like this one:
Wow. There's a ton of amazing Veronica Mars fic out there. I read a bunch last night (and left some half-assed one line feedback comments, sorry). This is so much more satisfying than my expedition into Queer as Folk fic.
Queer as Folk has been on the air much longer, but has very little in the way of decent fic. I wonder if it has to with audience--does VM appeal to a demographic that is more likely to write good fanfiction? Or is it that VM is a better show? Or maybe it's just that I like a popular character on VM--Logan--whereas I have an unpopular viewpoint regarding QaF--I don't want Brian to "settle down," and if he does, it should be with Michael.
Oh, and, sidenote: it's amazing how many Buffy fans are also in VM fandom. I think that more Buffy fans than I realized watched BtVS in spite of the supernatural, not because of it. Whereas it's not very likely that I'll get into something that doesn't have sci-fi or supernatural or at least action.
I thought this was funny. My friend
jaydk reads LJ, but hasn't seen VM. So she calls me:jaydk: I'm bored, entertain me.rusty_halo: You should try watching Veronica Mars; I just watched the whole first season, and it's decent.jaydk: Oh god, you're not one of those mad obsessed Logan fans now, are you?Oh, yeah, I keep meaning to post about this. In addition to watching the first season of Veronica Mars this weekend, I also went to three concerts.
Saturday - Velvet Revolver. This was at Jones Beach, which is a pain to travel to; you have to take the Long Island Rail Road and then catch a bus. It took over an hour, and was uncomfortable traveling alone, and I hate Long Island. But anyway.
I'd never been to Jones Beach before--it's this huge 15,000 seat amphitheater, with vendors and food and drink (but no alcohol!) and all that weird mainstream stuff that doesn't (IMO) have any place at a concert. Advertisements hanging from every visible surface, y'know. It was also freezing, and incredibly windy--as the name indicates, it's on a beach. And, yeah, outdoors. I wish I'd dressed more warmly; the temperature is much higher in the city.
The good news is that I had an amazing seat. Ten rows back in the very center. Presumably this is because I got my ticket from iloveallaccess.com. And having a seat was, in itself, nice... that way I didn't have to stand through the unbelievably lame opening band. (One of those hideous half-assed schmoopy "nu-metal" things... Hoobastank, I think.)
So Velvet Revolver played, and they were very good. Definitely had their shit together, knew what they were doing and how to do it. Totally solid, and fun, and maybe a little goofy, but there was also a lot of passion.
I've never been a huge Guns 'N Roses fan; I liked a few songs, but mostly couldn't get over what a pretentious asshole Axl Rose seemed to be. Slash, though, is a great guitar player, and certainly one of the coolest icons in rock and roll. Seeing him was neat.
And, well, I loved seeing Scott Weiland. (Even though every time I see him now I can't overcome the desperate urge to feed him.) I was always sort of embarrassed to like Stone Temple Pilots, because they were sort of rip offs of other bands, promoted by record labels trying to cash in on Nirvana. And Weiland had this whole "Look, if Eddie Vedder and Layne Staley bred, you'd have me!" thing, which was so annoying. But he also sort of had his own style, like there would be a lot more to him if he just could break out of that wanna-be grunge ghetto, and some of his lyrics were actually pretty good, and he did give a pretty powerful vocal performance.
So their album "Core" was sort of a guilty pleasure for me. And actually, I remember the exact moment where I decided I liked Weiland; I was watching TV at Danielle's house (I can't remember if this was MTV or a tape), and Weiland was performing the song "Sex Type Thing" in full drag, in order to show the band's macho fans that, while the song is about violent male sexuality, it's not an endorsement of it. (And then also, I always had this photo of Weiland french kissing one of his [male] band members hanging in my parents basement, which, come to think of it, really makes me wonder what they thought about that....)
Weiland brings a really interesting element to this band. They're like, y'know, Guns 'N Roses, cheesy 80s rock with a harder edge. Their logos are full of female silhouettes, and you'd expect their lyrics to be, well, not feminist-friendly. But having Weiland as lyricist/frontman brings in a whole different element, because he's got that more socially conscious 90s thing going on, and his lyrics are a lot more interesting and personal and serious. So that was cool.
And he is, actually, a very passionate and charismatic frontman. I was impressed, technically, by all the band members. They played a bunch of their own songs, a couple GNR songs, and two STP songs--I think one was "Crackerman." The other was "Sex Type Thing," which was so incredibly awesome to see live. It's by far my favorite STP song, totally dark and fucked-up and clever and real. I wish I'd been in a mosh pit for that instead of standing in front of a chair, but at least I jumped around like a lunatic. (The 14 year old next to me clearly only knew the Velvet Revolver songs and thought I was a freak for going insane over this song.)
Plus, for extra coolness, they dragged the song out to ultra-long length while Weiland went into the crowd, climbed to the top of the stadium, and gave a speech about the greatness of rock and roll (paraphrasing: "we're all sharing this passion, we give it to you and you give it back to us, we create it together") and how it's dying ("when I signed my first record contract, there were eleven major labels; now there's three. but it's not just corporations; there have always been corporations in music. it's up you YOU to seek out good new music. all we do is play the instruments."). It was sincere and heartfelt and cool to see someone who cared, even if it was kind of naive and silly and, dude, Guns 'N Roses and Stone Temple Pilots are giving a speech about the integrity of rock n roll, are you kidding??
But yeah, ultimately they put on a great show and I had a very good time. Even though I didn't get home until 1:30am thanks to all the buses and trains I had to catch.
Sunday - Nine Inch Nails. Okay, so already I was tired from the night before. I got up, watched some Veronica Mars (I was in the midst of the mystery, I couldn't help it!) and finally got to NIN around 5pm. I know, I was planning to wait at noon, but dammit, that takes all this effort and stuff. And I'd have been alone, no one to hold my place in line so I could get food or anything.
So I got there around 5 and the line was all the way down 8th avenue. I waited for almost two hours, then they let us in. I got a spot on the left side, about five rows back. Not too bad, but not great.
The opener, Dresden Dolls, started around 7:45 and was amazing: a mix of genres and styles, a beautiful singer, incredibly clever and passionate, with nicely twisted lyrics. I think I'll buy their record. And NIN's really hot drummer came out and did a song with them, a cover of Radiohead's "Karma Police."
So more standing, and I was so exhausted, and then finally NIN came out. They certainly opened with a bang; the first two songs were totally killer, heavy older songs. (I'm lame and can't find a setlist online; I think it was "Sin" and something else.) And, of course, the pit was insane. Not just pushing or smushing, but shoving and hitting. You're literally trying to keep your head high enough to breathe, not fall, not get sucked under, not faint. It's hotter than a sauna and your entire body is soaked in sweat--your own and that of everyone around you. There's really no concept of personal space, but at least the nice thing is that, if you lose the ability to stand, just lean your entire body weight on someone near you. They can't do anything about it. (Oh, and ladies? PIN UP YOUR FUCKING HAIR!)
Newbies continually astound me. They go into a mosh pit for the first time and freak out because OH MY GOD PEOPLE ARE PUSHING ME! Um, what did you expect??? And little girlies who freak and have to be pulled out--again, what did you think would happen?
They're not as bad as the opportunists, though--the big bulky guys who stand in the back getting drunk, then use their superior body size to shove past people who waited for hours, get to the very front, and then indiscriminately beat the shit out of everyone around them. Or the sluts with their gigantic tits hanging out who pull your hair or claw your arms in order to get past you and within sight of the band. I know this is part of the experience and all, but it really sucks when you can barely concentrate on the band because of it.
Yeah, so anyway, they opened with two amazing, breathtaking songs, and the crowd was rabid and insane, and then they stopped, because the equipment malfunctioned! Haha. I appreciated the breather a lot more than I should've. It turned out that someone had accidentally kicked out a plug, and Trent announced that about ten people would be fired that night, and then they continued.
I was really impressed with the number of Pretty Hate Machine songs that they played that night. (Dammit, I need a setlist, stupid forums requiring registration now, aaargh!). Anyway, they definitely played "Terrible Lie," and they played bit of "Down in It" during "Closer," and something else I think. (Oh, and they closed with "Head Like a Hole," perfectly.) They also played several from Broken, "Suck" and "Gave Up" and "Wish" being standouts. (Though I was terribly disappointed in the lack of "Last"--possibly my favorite NIN song--or "Happiness in Slavery.") They also played "Burn," from the Natural Born Killers soundtrack, which is a song that I love and adore. I sang every word and, for that song at least, was really glad I was in a mosh pit. They also played "March of the Pigs," another perfect mosh pit song, and "Reptile," which Trent introduced as one of his favorites. The rendition of "Closer" was awesome, of course; how can you not love a room full of three thousand people all singing together "I want to fuck you like an animal"? "Hurt" was kind of a disappointment; it was performed well, Trent and his keyboard, but hard to focus with everyone either screaming along in bad voices or else taking the relative quiet as an opportunity to gossip or complain or scream at the people who'd been pushing them.
The guitar player and drummer were both really cute, and all the musicians performed well. Oh, and Twiggy!!! He looks really freaky without makeup. And he and the guitarist did really well on backing vocals.
Trent's all weird and buff and muscular now, which looks ridiculous; he's Trent Reznor. He's supposed to be skinny and pale, goddammit. He's lost all sex appeal for me now. Though it was cool to be up close, and to see his facial expressions as he sang. He's an actor; he sobs during the heartwrenching parts and sneers during the snotty parts and rages during the angry parts. Fun.
So, yeah, it ended with "Head Like a Hole" (no encore), an amazing rendition, and I was happy. But also happy that it was over, so that I could desperately gasp for fresh air, and then walk over to Duane Read and drink an entire bottle of water before I even got to the front to pay for it. And, literally, I was soaking wet. It was an hour and a half in a sauna, pressed up against others with no room to breathe, getting constantly grabbed and shoved and slammed into and smushed.
I don't know if it's just me getting old, or if I just don't have the passion for NIN anymore (if it had been Pig, I wouldn't have minded, but NIN is emotionally reflective of a state I most haven't felt since I was sixteen). Or maybe if it had been the correct $40 ticket price, instead of the $150 scalper ticket that I had to get off eBay. For that much money, it just feels wrong to end up in so much physical pain. But I'm glad I went; just wish it had been better.
Monday - Nine Inch Nails. So the next morning I woke up and was so sore I nearly couldn't get out of bed. So I called in sick to work, took a ton of ibuprofin, and went back to sleep. (I tried to listen to NIN, but found myself sort of repulsed by it, and thinking how juvenile Reznor's lyrics are, and how the new album kind of sucks, and how Raymond Watts has such a better voice and much more creative and witty and interesting lyrics, and how Reznor's really just a spoiled fake little rich boy, and yeah, weird.)
I got up later, briefly considered going to wait in line for four hours, and decided instead to watch Veronica Mars and sleep more. I didn't head over to the NIN show until after 8, totally missed the Dresden Dolls, and came in during NIN's performance (they were playing "Sin").
So I stood in the back, could see everything without having to peer over anyone's head, and wasn't getting shoved or pushed or grabbed. So nice. I bought a Corona and chilled.
I noticed, from this angle, that they actually had sort of a lighting show, which I hadn't even seen the first time. Basically it was just a row of vertical bars of light behind them, but they'd light up in different colors or amounts depending on the song, and along with the music. (So for "Closer" they were eerie red, and for "Burn" the lighted parts moved in a shape like fire, then flared intensely on the backing vocal "burn" part.) It was really cool--totally suited the aesthetic style of the band.
They played a lot of the good songs from the night before--"Burn" and "Closer" and "March of the Pigs" (this time with the full "the pigs have won tonight" part, which Trent left out the previous night) and "Gave Up" and "Wish" and "Hurt" (which I enjoyed much more because I could focus on it this time). In the middle, they played a ton of stuff that I didn't know--I think a lot from "The Fragile," and stuff from the new album. Of the new stuff, "With Teeth" (or "With-uh Teeth-uh," to be more accurate) is terrible, but "The Hand That Feeds" is very good--bouncy and poppy and, dear god, a call to political action from king-of-nihilism Trent Reznor? What is the world coming to??
They closed with "Head Like a Hole" again, which was great--such an amazing song. It really stands up over time--I think it's as good now as it was in 1990.
So yeah, overall, good show. And from my very biased point of view: old stuff better than new stuff, back of the room better than front of the pit.
...and now a bunch of memes and quiz results:
I think I'm way more of an existentialist than this indicates:
 | You scored as Postmodernist. Postmodernism is the belief in complete open interpretation. You see the universe as a collection of information with varying ways of putting it together. There is no absolute truth for you; even the most hardened facts are open to interpretation. Meaning relies on context and even the language you use to describe things should be subject to analysis.
What is Your World View? (corrected...hopefully) created with QuizFarm.com |
This impressed me:
Your Political Profile |
Overall: 0% Conservative, 100% Liberal |
Social Issues: 0% Conservative, 100% Liberal |
Personal Responsibility: 0% Conservative, 100% Liberal |
Fiscal Issues: 0% Conservative, 100% Liberal |
Ethics: 0% Conservative, 100% Liberal |
Defense and Crime: 0% Conservative, 100% Liberal |
Sad, but true:
Star Wars Horoscope for Cancer |
 You may whine at times, but you've developed a thick hard shell (like that of a crab). You are strong willed and persistent - until you get what you want. You never shy away from a fight, even when things get dangerous. Mentally sharp, you are starting to master the elements of mind manipulation. Star wars character you are most like: Luke Skywalker |
I like this one:
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-18 01:08 pm (UTC)LOL! Yeah, same here. One pal of mine that was a BtVS fan but is now HUGELY into VM was commenting about wanting to write VM. I had to ask, "How to you write fanfic for non-genre?" I wasn't being snarky. It just hit me that in all the fandoms where I've written fanfic, it's been genre. My fanfic always has to do with time travel or alternate universe or unexplained mysteries regarding mytharc with much running, fighting, and cliffhangers. I don't know how to plot it without the magic or spells or aliens or "an apocalypse is pending." I suppose that's because I really like that stuff. :)
(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-19 09:03 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-18 01:47 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-19 08:57 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-18 01:53 pm (UTC)Bodes well for Saturday's show, I suppose. I'd already decided to skip the floor for the balcony, which sounds like it will be a good thing.
I haven't decided what I think of the Dresden Dolls yet. The weird cabaret style doesn't really do it for me, but if they've got a good live show I may reconsider getting the album.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-19 08:57 am (UTC)Dresden Dolls were really great live. I hope you enjoy. :)
(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-18 01:54 pm (UTC)2. I'd like to see Slash live. Could never stand Axl. And you heard Sex Type Thing live. :D (My teenage self is all bouncy)
3. I've always hated the run to the bus and the run to the train. I saw Depeche Mode in 1994 and my friends and I were stranded because the LIRR workers went on strike. I still don't want to learn to drive.
4. Dresden Dolls are worth listening to. Did you get one of those CD samples they were handing out?
5. I just wrote the same thing about those newbies in my journal. Oh and pale!Trent vs. Hulk!Trent. And Last (I love that song. Has he ever played it?)
6. Setlists are here.
7. Don't really like the new album much either. His time has passed.
8. It was weird to hear him sing "26 years on my way to help". I was hoping he's replace 26 with 39. ;)
(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-18 02:12 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-18 02:22 pm (UTC)Jones Beach would've been better if I'd had a traveling companion (trains are a lot more tolerable with good conversation) or if I'd realized how cold it was going to be. Oh well; next time.
I know, Sex Type Thing! Lately it's just been, like, wish fulfillment for all my teenage fantasies: Chris Cornell singing "Outshined," Shirley Manson singing most of Garbage's first record, and now Weiland singing "Sex Type Thing"! Not to mention NIN, close enough to see the expressions on Reznor's face. :)
Eek, stranded? I'm glad I managed to figure out the bus situation. I couldn't find any up to date online info, so I just took the LIRR to Freeport and followed the crowd. Thankfully it worked out.
I definitely liked the Dresden Dolls. I got the sampler, and will probably buy a CD at some point.
Thanks for the setlist link! "Pinion," why do I always forget the name of that song? I really enjoyed the old songs, but the new songs are just sort of empty blank spots in my memory; I really didn't get into any of them, except sort of THTF.
I know, seeing 39-year-old Stallone-Reznor singing "26 years" is just wrong. But I guess it matches the emotional state of the song better. (Yeah, I assumed you meant to type "hell". :)
(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-18 05:42 pm (UTC)I'm not jealous, noooooooo, not me... :oP~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Got my flights to Atlanta....!!
(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-19 08:53 am (UTC)Atlanta!! Squee!! We're going to have good fun.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-18 05:50 pm (UTC)re: NIN -- I didn't get online until 6:30 so clearly I missed you, and I never made it up front. Did you see David Bowie in the first tier of seats to the right of the stage? I moved around a lot during the concert, mostly going with the flow of other people since it's easier to do that then fight those big, drunk dudes you mentioned. Worst moment was when I got an elbow to the back of the head. Saw stars, I think I might actually have gotten a concussion. But hey, I kind of expected to leave Hammerstein with some kind of injury. I set my alarm to wake myself up once in the middle of the night, just to be safe.
Also, one of the first thing I noticed was how bulked up Trent was. I've always found a lot of his sex appeal to be in that lean look so I was a little wigged out. From further back, he looked oiled rather than sweaty, and at one point I found myself thinking it reminded me of a body-building competition. Very weird. But my night was complete with the playing of 'Closer' and 'Head Like a Hole', because those are my faves. (Yes, apparently I am a cookie-cutter fan.) I do kind of like the new album, but nothing on it jumps out at me as a classic, you know? I could say a lot more but I feel like I'm already hijacking your journal too much.
re: VR -- OMG they played 'Sex Type Thing'? I will cry if they do not play that on Friday. This ticket kind of fell in my lap and I was rather ambivalent, but as the date has drawn closer I've found myself looking forward to it more.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-19 08:50 am (UTC)I'm pretty sure they'll play "Sex Type Thing"; looks like they're playing it at all their shows (from what I've read). It's a really great song to hear live!
David Bowie was there? So that's why everyone kept turning around and staring! I was wondering about that; I figured someone famous must be there.
A concussion? Damn, that's not good. Hope you are feeling better!
I think I've been really lucky that I've never been seriously injured in a mosh pit. Kicked and punched in the head, bruised beyond belief, but never anything really serious. (*knocks on wood*)
Bulked up Trent really kind of freaked the hell out of me. It's so wrong. But the concert was good; that's what really matters. :)
(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-18 05:53 pm (UTC)Heeeee! Besides, Jaydk and I are trying to lure you into OUR new obsession!! Harrumph!
So, um, we can still do the final Sharpe episode Friday night (despite the two dogs sitch) as long as you guys don't mind coming out to Brooklyn. It's like practically your backyard at this point, isn't it? ;)
(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-19 08:46 am (UTC)Actually, did I tell you that I had a dream about that sleazy bad British guy becoming president? (In the BSG universe.) And using his all powerful status for all sorts of evil things. It was freaky. (And I don't know why I was dreaming about YOUR obsession!)
I'm up for final Sharpe on Friday night. Alexis, squee! If it works out, I'm in. :)
(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-20 09:30 am (UTC)Heeee! Hey, it could totally happen ... Keep dreaming about my obsession ;)
(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-19 08:37 am (UTC)The wealth of good fanfic is cheering information. That's been one of my many beefs with QaF fandom, as you well know.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-19 08:44 am (UTC)So far the fic situation seems good. A lot of experienced writers seem to have embraced that fandom.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-19 08:53 pm (UTC)You scored as Materialist.
Materialism stresses the essence of fundamental particles. Everything that exists is purely physical matter and there is no special force that holds life together. You believe that anything can be explained by breaking it up into its pieces. i.e. the big picture can be understood by its smaller elements.
Materialist 88%
Existentialist 75%
Modernist 63%
Cultural Creative 56%
Romanticist 50%
Postmodernist 44%
Fundamentalist 25%
Idealist 25%
Your Political Profile
Overall: 45% Conservative, 55% Liberal
Social Issues: 25% Conservative, 75% Liberal
Personal Responsibility: 50% Conservative, 50% Liberal
Fiscal Issues: 75% Conservative, 25% Liberal
Ethics: 25% Conservative, 75% Liberal
Defense and Crime: 50% Conservative, 50% Liberal
Star Wars Horoscope for Scorpio
You are a powerful character.
You tend to be possessive and lusty - which explains your greedy nature.
You feel threatened when people try to order you around or control you.
You are prone to suspicion and jealousy - but your resilience and passion get you what you want.
Star wars character you are most like: Han Solo
What is Your Star Wars Horoscope?