Like the Dropkick Murphys? If you’ve never been introduced to their Celtic brothers then now is the time. The McKenzies have been rocking the Scottish Punk kilts of lads and lasses for more than a decade now, and to my knowledge are the only true Scotts-punk band that have broken into mainstream music. If you want to be technical they’re actually Scotts-Canadian.

Their last album 10,000 Shots in 2005 was a remarkable masterpiece of gridiron scotch drink tales. Off The Leash is in comparison a tad more polished, but just as true and rooted as all pervious albums. I don’t care how oblivious to good music you are. The McKenzies are story tellers. It’s a quality that makes a band timeless and impervious to releasing band albums.

There is quite a wide array of sounds and influences wrapped into this album. From the faster more Celtic tracks like “Kings of Fire.” This is why you buy the album. As we approach the ending track we find songs like “Guy on Stage” that have a softer, slower texture of backwoods precision with a tad more twang. Song like these are why you listen to the entire album. It’s perfect chemistry and arrangement from beginning to end. So grab some haggis, poor yourself a single malt, and enjoy another solid release for The Real McKenzies, not to be confused with the fake bunch

Topic 1: Torrents

Those of you who are cool or just part of youth culture know what a torrent file is. Some of you may not know exactly what a seeder or leecher is, or care about what your ratio is. Let me give you a VERY brief explanation of what a torrent is, in case you don't already know. Well, remember Napster? That revolutionary software which reached its ultimate peak/popularity when I was in middle school or early high school? Remember Metallica getting all angry and submitting a list of users it wanted dropped from the service after it was found that they had their songs? Well I was one of them (yeah I know, kinda lame that I had downloaded Metallica)...then I also remember ways to get around that. But anyway...Napster sparked a whole slew of Peer-to-Peer software "file sharing" programs like it that allowed users to download a wide array of pirated software and music. The problem with napster is that it kept a central collection of IP addresses and catalogs of files you were sharing (or something like that). Then came programs like Limewire and...I can't remember any of the other ones because I stopped using them a long while ago....but these programs got rid of some of the legal issues surrounding napster involving central computers. Then, programs such as the pay service of napster, itunes, and rhapsody appeared. These were 100% legal, but you had to pay for shit...

Torrents are the napster of this age...and much harder for the record industry to track. There is no central computer keeping a tally of what you download and from where...and there is no one service provider...they are found throughout the internet. There are numbers of torrent programs out there and a number of torrent websites to search for media. Among the most popular websites are The Pirate Bay, Demonoid, and Isohunt. These sites simply provide a search engine of torrents. A torrent file sets up a network between several different computers to allow data transfer. Those who have the file(s) readily available within this network are known as seeders...those downloading are known as leechers. Networks are set up and data transfer initialized through a tracker program. I use the program Vuze, formerly known as Azureus. The downside of this method of file sharing is that seeds on a particular group of files usually dies out because people don't usually feel the need to continue seeding (sharing) the stuff they just downloaded.

I love torrents...in fact I just downloaded a tribute album to Operation Ivy and a tribute album to Choking Victim. I don't exactly know of the exact processes of a torrent and tracker...but the above was based off of what I could extrapolate from having used it. Another upside of torrents is that you can find music that is hard to find and may not be available on your precious itunes. Well...on to the next topic...this wasn't so much of a heavily opinion induced rant.

Topic 2: Punk Fusion

People who know me, know I love punk rock music...and those who know me better know I love Punk Fusion genres. This includes Ska-Punk, Celtic-Punk, and more. Punk energy, tempo, and lyrics are what I crave. Mixing these elements with other genres of music I enjoy provide me with a musical orgasm. I even play in a punk band that used to be primarily punk/ska. Some of the best artists of the punk genre implement punk fusion such as The Clash, Rancid, Operation Ivy, The Pogues, Dropkick Murphys, World Inferno/Friendship Society, The Real McKenzies, Neck, Fishbone, Choking Victim/Leftover Crack (and other variations of the same), Intro5pect, Refused, and others I can't recall at the moment.

The Clash has been the best at infusing several different genres with punk...such as dub, ska, reggae, funk, folk, and weird techno-like stuff. Another notable band is Choking Victim/Leftover crack (and other "crack rocksteady" bands) who play a mix of punk, crust-punk, ska-punk, and hardcore. Dropkick Murphys are a testament of the growing popularity of punk in the way of fusion. Celtic music appears to be on the rise and Dropkick Murphys have been accumulating fans at an alarming rate since the movie The Departed came out. Something is very unique about punk fusion...its like a punk attitude with class. Not to rag on straight up punk...I love it...but punk fusion adds something a little more to the same old routine that has been done thousands of times before. Evolution....genres are splitting off but still deeply rooted in the past.

Lynam - http://www.myspace.com/lynam

They kinda remind me of 80s metal mixed with Three Days Grace, with some more talent than both.

Souls Harbor - http://www.myspace.com/soulsharbor

Nice rock band. Nothing that really screams "different" but they have some quality stuff. Now if only they had a CD available somewhere besides their shows.....

Civet - http://www.myspace.com/civet

Female punk rock band. Some may not be able to envision this, but imagine mixing the HorrorPops and the Dropkick Murphys

Tetanus - http://www.myspace.com/tetanusrock

Another run of the mill alt/rock band. Better than most start-up bands, but again, they don't really distinguish themselves much. Still a good listen, however.

And finally, the best deal in music, in my opinion, is the 2-disc set from retrograde. It's their demos and b-sides from the past decade or so. It ends up being around 26 songs and can be purchased from their website for $14 (Canadian). To purchase, go here: http://www.retrograde.ca/

Some exciting news to report though. First off, we paid for our next exclusive color last week or so and now we're just waiting to announce it. Its going to be an awesome package for an awesome reissue. It will be a LP + 7" set (it was never released as such so that is not going to be a useful clue) and our color is supposed to be clear. That's all you get to know for now. :) Second, we have nearly finalized our order from the Bloodhound Gang to carry most of the vinyl they have for sale at their online store. I love the BHG but tracking down their vinyl is far too hard. I hope to have preorders up sometime this week. Third, we are currently in the talks with Reel Big Fish to carry their "Monkeys" double LP picture disc that has only been available from their online store and on tour. These are pricey sets, but they come from France and there are currently no plans to make more. Hopefully that will pan out and we'll be able to sell them for less than the $30 they are charging right now.

Okay, time for the stock updates, in no particular order:

Coming Soon:

Alkaline Trio - Crimson 

Alkaline Trio - Good Mourning (2xLP) 

New to the store:

Briggs, The - Come All You Madmen

Crime In Stereo - The Troubled Stateside

Dropkick Murphys - Blackout

Dropkick Murphys - Sing Loud, Sing Proud

Ghost Mice - Europe (Brown)

Preorders:

Blatz/Filth - Shit Split 

De La Soul - De La Soul Is Dead (180 Gram) 

Def Leppard - Pyromania 

Dylan, Bob - Tell Tale Signs Vol. 8 (8xLP) 

Eagles - Hotel California (180 Gram)

Genghis Tron - Board Up The House Remixes Vol. 1 

Restocks:

Against Me! - As The Eternal Cowboy 

Mars Volta - Bedlam In Goliath (2xLP - Red / Black w/ bonus 7") 

Refused - The Shape Of Punk To Come

Rx Bandits - The Resignation (White)

And how about Matt Cassel pulling off the win over the Jets?  Great weekend for New England sports.

Thought I would treat you to one of my favorite videos.

Oh, very interesting development on The Invitation.  More later.

I just watched a woman trying to apply her eye makeup graze her eye when the train shifted…I am going to assume that was unpleasant from the reaction she had.

I can not wait for Matt Damon and Wyclef to get back from  Haiti to tell me what is going on there  after the storm season…it reminds me of waiting for Sean Penn to fill me in on Iraq and  New Orleans…

Matt Cassel might be able to do enough…if the defense plays like that every week

I want to dance with Adalius Thomas

Being stuck on the inside seat of a 3 seater sucks and makes me type with my thumbs. But it is better than standing.

I am voting for Ed O’Reilly tomorrow. I want John Kerry to represent me in Washington, but I don’t want  him to dodge the democratic process and avoid a guy ( who looks like Joe Kennedy) who wants to share a differing perspective. Similarly, when Teddy didn’t show up to take on a candidate in a debate, I felt a little cheated, so I’d vote for the other guy (yes, I did vote for Jack E. Robinson). So good luck Ed, send a message, and perhaps this will be the momentum builder for another run, or a house run in the future. Besides, you are a UMass guy, I have to give you some love…

No one has the right to fart on the train. Even if you are 60+, dye your hair, and sit unassumingly…I know it was you…and so does everyone else…lady.

If the guy next to me is reading this…

I think getting a 12 ride during the busy season may be cheaper because no one checks when it’s too crazy.

The paper was there before I left this morning…

3^rd base behind visitors dugout seats…nice…pizza and wings at woody’s…great…watching a five and soon to be seven year old do irish jigs when paps is introduced to the dropkick murphys…priceless.

I'll never understand you people.

Anyway, to broaden my appeal, I'm resurrecting another blog I started and didn't get very far with: Travels With My Pedometer. It's about walking around, mostly in London.

Il avait tout récemment enregistré l'incroyable "Flannigan's ball" avec les Dropkick Murphys. Un cancer l'a emporté à l'âge de 73 ans. Rest in peace dude! Que le rock'n'roll te garde...

Source: Dropkick Murphys

When I got to Harvard, my main priority was to locate the admissions office and get myself another batch of materials to pore over once I'm back in England. I know, I thought, I'll try the School of Government - at the very least it would make an interesting starting point. I found the relevant building of the Kennedy complex (dimly remembered from a lot of scouring of websites back in Toronto) and went inside to look around. Absolute chaos. Teetering piles of books and chairs, flipcharts advertising everything from taekwondo classes to student drama, and nowhere a floor-plan so I could find my bearings. I eventually found a responsible-looking person in amongst the administrative jungle, and asked for directions to the office in question. What I didn't expect was to be asked right back: "They've moved, haven't they?" I don't know, I'm not from here, or I wouldn't be asking you, would I?! I described the directions I got in an earlier chat to Dhan S as something along the lines of "integrate pi, colour your answer in blue while singing 'Silent Night', then follow the yellow brick road", and to be honest doing that would have got me to the required location rather faster than what the actual directions told me to do. I latched on to the words "114 Mt Auburn Street" and dithered around along Eliot and Brattle Streets till I found said address. One slight problem - 114 Mt Auburn Street is a derelict tanning salon. Something stirred vaguely in my memory to suggest 112 on the same road, which turned out to be the back end of an abandoned pub. Now, I'm used to random empty buildings being really important in the Harry Potter universe, but in real life?! I took a closer look, and sure enough, there was a planning permission notice on both buildings that announced notional discussions that might possibly address conceivable plans to potentially think about intending to construct university office buildings on the two sites that would take place in two days' time, but no more than that. I checked the website again when I came back to my room, and sure enough, the address that the person in the School gave me was right, which means in practical terms that, as far as I'm concerned, the School doesn't actually have an existing admissions office. Superb, really superb...

I meandered aimlessly around Cambridge a bit, looking into the 'Harvard Coop' uni shop and even there finding nothing appealing that was within reach of my approximate price range. I had another confrontation with a black beggar, which this time really tested the limits of my patience. The first I heard was a very loud "HEY! C'm here!" from the opposite side of the road. Thoroughly irritated by the tone of the demand, I saw that it was a scrawny beggar, and gave him my usual dismissive wave and "No, sorry." Instead of being grateful that I hadn't gone over and administered a good old-fashioned, ahem, 'lecture in self-discipline', he came out with "Auw, da'ss right, rich white boi turnin's back on d'black man!" I actually stopped dead for a second, perilously close to dealing out said 'lecture', but instead carried on walking, fuming inwardly again. It was in this resentful frame of mind that I marched into the local information centre, intending at the very least to procure myself a tour of some sort for my efforts, only to be confronted with an ENORMOUS sign that read 'Harvard Graduate School of Arts & Sciences'. Where the hell have YOU been hiding, I thought grimly, and promptly inserted myself into the queue for the mandatory ID check. Another fool's errand, it turned out. On reaching the office, I found myself unable to progress beyond the heavily fortified welcome desk and the crone who sat behind it, whose answer to every single question I had (including "Is there anyone here I could talk to?") was "look on the website". I already have, I replied several times. Finally, she condescended to get up creakily off her chair, waddled over to a gigantic bookcase, muttering grumpily, and fobbed me off with a fat prospectus that on later inspection turned out to contain less information than I already knew.

I cheered myself up with a very filling and politely-served lunch at the local Wagamama (the third positive), then wandered around looking for more information. I located the venue for a proper (rather than just touristic) tour of the university, which I will go on tomorrow, and then took the metro back to the hostel to have a drink and a rest. A few chats later, I set off to explore the area around Boston Common again, even managing to find a few of the venues used in the film The Departed, which has prompted me to look up various songs by the Dropkick Murphys on the internet. One of my roommates, a relaxed Aussie who reminds me a little of Gavin K, told me about a free stand-up comedy outing the hostel has organised for 20:00, so I signed down for that after buying a few more fruit-juices at the nearest corner-shop. That is now only 20 minutes away, so I look forward to a more humorous evening than I would otherwise have had.

UPDATE: [four hours later - I seem to be doing a lot of these] Comedy was absolutely amazing, just wish it weren't only a weekly event. Shared a table in the pub we were in with a cool Scottish guy and a very laid-back German called Ben, as well as a nice Scottish girl called Kirsty, with whom I ended up heading back to the hostel while everyone else (everyone over 21, i.e.) went off clubbing. Good end to the day, at the very least.

You like live music don't you? Of course you do. If you are interested in music and vaguely aware of your surroundings you cant have failed to notice that Norwich gets its fair share of gigs. Being on the University tour circuit certainly helps! But what bands should you bother to part with a tenner or so to see? After all that's about 5 pints in the Union Bar. Well, this article is designed to give you an idea of who to bother with in 2008. At the time of writing tickets are still on sale for those recommended so we won't waste your time telling you who you should have bought tickets for.

First up on the 20th January is British Sea Power at the Waterfront. They've been called a second rate Arcade Fire by George Lamb, but he's an idiot so don't listen to him. If you like Arcade Fire though and haven't checked this band out yet, what are you waiting for? Their live show is pretty unique involving army costumes, and they reference obscure eastern European authors among other things. So British Sea Power = Arcade Fire + Fun. Go! Just a week later the Futureheads come to the Waterfront. After a slightly disappointing second album, both commercially and artistically, especially given the brilliance of their debut, they left their record label, 679. Now they are back with new material and their angular post punk will be worth seeing, not only for the sublime Kate Bush cover, or the hits from the 2004 debut.

February 6th seems to be 'the are they still about? day' with Kula Shaker at the Waterfront, and Dropkick Murphys and Mad Caddies with their somewhat questionable sounds playing UEA. Either gig will be sure to be entertaining; just it remains to be seen for what reasons.

The NME and their awards tour of 2008 is at UEA on the 13th Feb. The tour has featured bands such as Maximo Park, Bloc Party, The Killers and Arctic Monkeys in recent years, so this year has a lot to live up to. It is the turn of the superb Cribs to headline this time around, which makes the entry fee worth it alone, backed up by three absurdly named bands in the shape of the hotly tipped, but not that good, Joe Lean & the Jing Jang Jong (seriously WHAT were they thinking?), Does it Offend You Yeah? (Friends of Hadouken, draw your own conclusions) and the Ting Tings. If you read the NME, you should enjoy it.

The following night, also at UEA, Southends' Get Cape, Wear Cape, Fly brings his acoustic guitar, political statements and raw passion to Norwich, ahead of the release of his second album and follow up to acclaimed debut 'The Chronicles of a Bohemian Teenager'. He has been compared to Billy Bragg and whilst this is a bit flattering, his live show is worth seeing. He spoke to me in rough trade about Bullet Union once, which shows he likes good music too.

There is something for everyone at UEA, as on the 15th Gallows play UEA. Supported by F**ked Up, SSS and Set your Goals it remains to be seen whether Gallows are overshadowed by the support acts, in particular by the frantic hardcore punk of F**ked Up. This is a gig not to be missed; especially as most of you (concrete included) were too young to see the brilliance of the original hardcore bands such as Black Flag, Dead Kennedys and Minor Threat, but this goes a small way to redressing the deficit. A little under a week later on the 20th Hot Chip and their infectious electro pop come to UEA, don't miss out. On the same day Reel Big Fish hit the Waterfront, so if you like ska punk either sort your head out or go to this gig. You want vaguely political pop punk? Anti Flag are in town on the 24th Feb at the Waterfront, think Greenday ala American Idiot and you are halfway there.

If you like your 'indie type bands' bland, cliché ridden and generally not very good then you've got a couple of gigs coming your way in March and April. The Hoosiers are first up, bringing their annoying pop with guitars to the UEA on the 2nd March, whilst the quite frankly awful Scouting for Girls follow a little over a month later on the 7th April. If you like them, well, good luck to you.

Sunday March 9th, UEA, Gary Numan. Be there. Foals continue their trend of playing bigger venues each tour by moving up from the Arts Centre last term to the Waterfront on the 14th March. Yes they are a hype band now, but they've got the tunes to back it up. See them before they end up in bigger venues, for a larger entrance fee. Last but not least is the Hives on April 14th. They have been described as 'scandi-garage'. We don't know what that means either but they're infectious tunes and raucous live show is one to look forward to.

See you down the front.

I hope I never have to hear this song again. Nothing against the Murphys, the city of Boston, or even "the Departed," I've just heard the damn track roughly 3493 times since it came out 3 years ago. Anywhere I'd go, that frigging accordion followed me. In traffic, in class, haunting me in my dreams... didn't matter, though if the Red Sox were home, the probability skyrocketed.

I can rest assured now that I'm back in New Jersey that I will not have to hear it again unless nostalgia grips me or I take a trip back to Boston, which I probably will. However, come to think of it I was in (Avalon) New Jersey last weekend for the Emerson Hockey summer retreat and Zach Wilson subjected four of us to it on our way to grab some seafood at Carmen's in Sea Isle City:

Zach: Yeah I like to listen to this before games because it makes me want to fight.

Me: Me too. It makes me want to fight whoever put it on.

But Zach's a good guy and he had our steering wheel in his hands so I restrained myself.

I have to say that leaving Boston is always much better than coming back, and there's only one reason for that: Boston Market. Nearly every westbound service plaza on the Mass Pike has one, while heading eastbound there are none. No cornbread. No macaroni (rotini, whatever). No succulent, juicy rotisserie chicken. Just McDonald's and crane games you can't win. It's sad.

In all seriousness, I've left a lot of good friends, colleagues and parking tickets behind in Boston. I'm going to miss you all and will try to visit whenever I can.

As far as the blog is concerned, it's coming with me. Sorry I had to pack it up for a couple weeks there. You know how moving is. I'm pretty much all set up at home now and ready to get cranking though. I've got a bunch of video I shot at last weekend's hockey retreat including interviews with assistant captain Pete Keeling, goalie Zach Wilson, and incoming freshman Hunter Lydon.

I'm going to try a few different things and see what works. I'll do some traditional reporting, writing stories and putting together packages, and also try some more multimediac approaches. So a bunch of content this way comes.

I'm also putting together a multi-contributor blog for the team, alumni, student reporters, etc. I'll post the link when that goes live.

10 days until NHL 09 ruins/enhances my life.

We still legged it straight to the main stage to catch Bring Me The Horizon (9/10), the best example of metalcore that Britain has to offer. They were a last minute addition to the line-up to try and make up for those disappointed with the Slipknot exclusions. Very impressed with their set, which also included some of the most promising examples of new material from any band I heard that day (gf certainly would disagree). Next up were Alexisonfire (7.5/10), really enjoyed them, new stuff blended and sound as great as thier modern classics, knew how to work with the crowd. Off to the NME/Radio 1 stage for Cajun Dance Party (7/10) and Lightspeed Champion (7/10), both excelled expectations, still some work to be done, with much future potential on show from the former. Saw a bit of Plain White T's (5/10) between CDP and LC, not bad, nothing special, their hit went down well. Caught the end of the Dropkick Murphy's (8/10) set regret not seeing more, so much energy from the band, a lot of crowd pleasing tunes that everyone seemed to embody. Saw a few songs from Feeder (6/10). Classic Feeder, nothing more, nothing less than expected really. Then off the Pendulum. The NME/Radio 1 stage was packed... tried getting into the tent, then once there had to escape, was just too much. By the time we got in and out Feeder had finished. Pendulum (N/A) sounded like a real treat, will have to catch them at their own gig. Tenacious D (7/10) were cool, though found myself waiting for their jokes in between (during) songs rather than enjoying the music, shame as I really enjoyed their first album when it came out. Off to see the Last Shadow Puppets (8/10) next, great performance that include a mini orchestra. Really top performance, although thought it might have been a bit premature in their careers to have the strings and co. behind them, pulling out the stops when their second headliners on the NME/Radio 1 stage, what are they going to do when they headline a festival? Now the headliners Metallica (8.5/10). As grand and demanding performance as you can expect from one of America's finest. Did many of the hits and some, encore seemed a little of an anti-climax, highlight the haunting classic 'One'.

Next year back to camping at Reading? Maybe.

NB. Will post some pretty pictures here when I get around to it.

"Mom, why do you hate jews?" No seriously, just ask her. Someone else asked her when you were born. It's your penis, you have a right to know.

Rate a band /10: Dropkick Murphys -MrAwesome

9/10. Full disclosure though, I'm from Boston.

If you could prevent 1 persons death in any time in history, who would it be? -SambarLee

If we're talking Epic History, JFK. If we're talking personal guilty pleasure; Phil Hartman.

You ever "top-shelf" anyone? -BongZimmer

You mean the Mexican Aquarium? Top-loading? 2,000 Brown Flushes? Up-Tanking? No. I have never done it. Seems like it would be an awkward situation for me. I do know someone who claims to have "High-Bowled" Rachel Ray at her house in Saratoga. Great story he tells.

Should I smoke weed? -Harbringer319

Whichever those options you choose, neither will make you a better person. So, just don't make a big deal about whichever direction you go, and people don;t have the right to resent you.

Slavery helped African-Americans because otherwise, they'd be starving in Africa. -crider4

If I was a southerner, I'd want white reparations for the transportation and room & board afforded to black people. Unfortunately, my great-great grandfather fought in the Civil war wearing Blue, so I don't have any claim.

So a mosque is being built near my town and all the Christians are going crazy. Protesting to the government to try to get it stopped. Being an atheist, I really don't see what the problem is. No one protests churches being built, why should they protest mosques? -Cruzcontrol

Is there another way for a religion built on tolerance to react?

What would you consider the perfect size for your ladies boobs? -BlackDraggin

Anything more than a handful is unnecessary and potentially dangerous. Plus it avoids the chances of some turd-burgling douche-gallon eye-humping your ladies chesticles right in front of you at any given point.

If given a choice between Hamburgers and Hot Dogs only at a BBQ, which one would you pick? -4Chancellor

Sight unseen? I would choose the hot dog, because I've been to many a BBQ where the burgers are burnt meatballs on a bun. Tough to fuck up a hot dog.

Are you Circumcised? I am and I'm proud not only because of the many health benefits but As a Jew it is the covenant that Abraham made with G-d when he said every descendant shall have the mark of the covenant. -fibronostalgia

I am, but neither feel pride nor shame because of it.

Would you have sex with your land lord if you were broke and needed to pay rent? What if your land lord was a dude but looked like a young david hasselhoff? -Frazzled

He can eat my cheeseburger off the floor.

Would have sex with your hot boss, regardless of the ramifications? -8bitselect

Depends on the boss, I have like 50.

I've never been a big fan of The Boondocks. and I'm black. Is there anything wrong with that? -Razashell

Im a big fan, and I'm white. I don't think you are an Uncle Tom or anything because you don't like a cartoon show thats aimed at your demographic. Just shows you are more complex than your skin color, but aren't we all?

Why are so many people jumping onto the Buddhism bandwagon? Seriously. I'm hearing more and more people talk about how they're Buddhist while also being their religion. What? -JayMotes

I don't get how people feel the need to move from one religion to another, like one has the answers they need, and they can't possibly have an identity of spirituality without religion. Anyway, Buddhism is a fine religion. Could use a dose of it in America. People should recognize that different things don't have to be classified as better or worse, just different.

Det är typ irländsk-amerikansk punkrock. Helt underbart. Favoritlåten för tillfället är The State of Massachusetts. Finns bl.a på Youtube:

Plus att jag älskar det faktum att de gör covers på gamla irländska folksånger. Typ Johnny I hardly knew ya, och Fields of Athenry. Nån gång ska jag se dom live. Krävs bara att de kommer lite närmare än Malmö...

Hemsida finns här.

I removed the back seats in the van and put in some mattrasses, which actually made for a comfortable bed (at least much more comfortable than any tent would be. And drier). We got water and food that won't turn bad without a fridge and arrived in Salzburg in the afternoon. We parked the car in a nice meadow and then the fun could begin.

Surprisingly, it was sunny and hot and as we walked (about a mile, I'd say) to the actual festival area on the Salzburg Ring (Formula 1 car race thingy), I thought about all the warm clothes I brought and if they were really necessary.

Anyway, we arrived just in time for The Dresden Dolls. I have to admit that I was one of those people who didn't really know any song by them (except Coin-Operated Boy, which was featured in a commercial in Austria) and I wasn't the only one by far.
Their show was great, very itense and funny and the music is really worth looking into more closely. And I loved their Eisbär version:

Extra: Amanda Palmer performing Neil Gaiman's song "I Google You":

Next stop was José González. Again, someone I "met" through an ad, this time a more international one, for the Sony Bravia LCD TV, the spot where the rubber balls jump through San Francisco [The Knife's Heartbeats].

He sat alone with his guitar on the stage and seemed a bit lost, too small. But only until he started singing, because with his voice and his playing, he immediately filled all the space. He even enticed some teenages girls to scream "ROSE! [sic] WE LOVE YOU!" [which had me laughing to no end... and reminded me of last year, when I was at the Frequency with my sis and we saw The Good, the Bad and the Queen and I explained to her that it was Damon Albarn singing. And she fought her way to the first row and then screamed: "DAMIEN!!!"].
Anyway, José finished with Teardrop. How cool can a person be? Covering Massive Attack and actually being good at it is definitely amazing.  Here's the video:

During Flogging Molly, we didn't really listen, but did some shopping and went to the ATM, which took up most of our time [1 ATM, 50.000 or so people], so I can't really tell you about their performance. But people seemed to enjoy it.

Then came Travis. [Btw: New Album coming out in a month: Ode to J. Smith] After I got over my initial shock of "FUCK! Fran's going grey!", I really, really enjoyed them. They just got everything. They seem nice, they know how to rock, they have good music and they definitely know how to work a crowd. And they must have some contract with the weather goddess, because right around singing "Why Does It Always Rain On Me?", it started to rain [Well, at least some drops...]. [And I was happy that I had some clothes for the cold with me.]
I love those guys. Seriously, if you ever get the chance to see them live, do so. They're great!

After Travis, there came R.E.M., arguably the biggest band at the whole festival. They started with "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?", which obviously is a great choice for the Frequency festival. Unfortunately, all the light show and video installments couldn't change my feeling that it all was such a routine for them. They even introduced the song "Imitation of Life" with the exact same sentence they said 3 years ago at their concert in Vienna ("It's always a special pleasure to introduce our next song, the first number one hit we ever had in Japan."). And they played only 70 minutes.
I mean, okay, they gave us a 5 song encore after that, which was good and left me feeling not completely disappointed, but still. The headliners in the last years usually played like 2 hours...

Anyway, we made our way back to the car and arranged ourselves and fell asleep, just as it started to rain. For real this time. It still rained, when we woke up the next morning. S., who only stayed for the first show, tried to wait till it rained less to get to the shuttle bus to Salzburg city, but unfortunately, it wouldn't stop.

Deadra and me waited. Therefore, we missed The Roots, for which I am very sorry. Finally, it stopped raining at about 4.30 and we made our way back down, through more mud than I thought possible to exist (boy, was I glad that I bought gum boots) and arrived basically as the Dirty Pretty Things played the last notes. 

We got some coffee and I got a new piercing (not a new hole, just a new ball thingy). See: 

(sorry for the crappy quality, it's pretty hard to take a photo of something in your face yourself)

Afterwards we headed to IAMX and that was a great show. I love the Sneaker Pimps and though IAMX is different, there's still this undertone that Chris Corner carries along.
And who doesn't love a guy, who wears a Two-Face style black and white jacket (no shirt) and hat, suspenders and black and white striped socks?
Anyway, I danced till I felt like my feet would fall off and then I danced some more. Really cool stuff.

Next, we caught some of The Charlatans, who probably would be a good band, if it wasn't for their lead singer. Tim Burgess has the charisma of a dead frog, the energy of a stoned, dead frog and the haircut of The Beatles meet Anton Chigurh. Not a good thing if you want to perform life.

Anyway, as it started to rain again, we headed for the UK Weekender stage, which was inside a tent. (And probably one of the few places, where we wouldn't have to listen to The Hives' self-admiration.) Only young and relatively unknown bands played there. We saw Kingsize, who have potential, but not their own sound yet and a bit of The Indelicates, who sounded really nice and have really cool fan shirts, but unfortunately, we didn't really have the time to listen to them, because we needed to go out into the rain and see Iron and Wine.

It was raining pretty hard, this drizzly kind of rain that you hardly see but which drenches you within minutes. And it was fucking freezing. I really envied Iron and Wine, standing underneath all those spotlights.
Their performance was really nice. Unfortunately, it was much too cold and their music is not really dance-y, so we stood an hour basically motionless in the rain. Every once in a while, Samuel Beam would be astonished that there were still people listening to him. ("You really must love music", is what he said.)
But we do love music and I especially love his music. I rather listened to him than the Manic Street Preachers, anyway.

But after this show, we called it a day. The Rain would get into deadra's sleeves everytime she clapped and I didn't have a hood on my jacket. So, we let the Fantastischen Vier (Fantastic Four) be the Fantastischen Vier. They are cool, but not worth getting seriously sick.

Again, we had to fight our way through the mud, which had become even more. When we arrived at the car, we let the heater run for half an hour before we went to sleep. Unfortunately, this wasn't enough to get our clothes dry. But both of us were prepared for that case.

Again, it rained the night through and by morning, the idyllic meadow we parked on looked like this:

A lot of people were leaving. So many, in fact, that we were afraid that they cancelled the festival. (which thankfully, they didn't). We decided to wait if the rain stopped until five and if it didn't, we would drive home. Fortunately, we only had to wait till 3.15, then it really stopped raining and we were on our way again. This time, the mud had increased so much that the gum boots were hardly enough (I swear, if they had been 2 cm shorter, the mud would have spilled inside). At times, we sank so much, that I was afraid that I'd lose the boots if I pulled too hard.

First thing we saw was Julia (link's in German), an Austrian (punk) rock band. Their music's good, better than the average Austrian band, but not my style. They also sang a song with Itchy Poopzkid (link's in German, again), a German punk rock band with probably the stupidest name I've ever heard.

After them, it was The Subways' turn. I didn't really know much of them before, but I like them. Nice, catchy songs and definitely one of the best shows this Frequency. And Charlotte Cooper speaks really good German (Billy Lunn not so much).

In the break between The Subways and Kaizers Orchestra, deadra got herself a Henna tattoo (real one is out of the question, needle phobia. And, in my opinion, a festival's not the right place for that anyway). It looks really cool, don't you think? Unfortunately, it's fading already.

Also, it was announced that the Babyshambles cancelled. Not surpising (surprising was that, at least that's the official story, the reason was not that Pete Doherty was too high to perform, but that he missed the flight. And the rescheduled flight as well), but a shame nonetheless. I would have liked to see them. The Babyshambles (and also the Libertines) are a good band, and Pete Doherty would be a great singer/songwriter, if he'd manage to perform every once in a while.

Kaizers Orchestra were pretty cool. Norwegian singing and still internationally successful should say it all. There show's extravagant: They use crowbars and dust bins and their piano/accordion player, Helge Omen Kaizer,  wears a gas mask. Their tunes are catchy, they use gypsy and arabic melodies and it's all very danceable. Plus, their lead singer, Janove Ottesen/Sjakalen Kaizer is hot. 
And they gave us a almost twice as long show to make up for the missing Babyshambles.

By now, deadra and me were fighting the cold. It didn't rain anymore, but the temperature had dropped to around 10°C, which is frickin' freezing.

deadra: "Tea?"
me: "Yeah. I'll go and buy the cool over knees we saw the other day. Want a pair?"
deadra: "Yes."
me: "Who's the next band anyway?"
deadra: "The Dropkick Murphys. Where are they from?"
me: "Don't know. Ireland? At least, they really work with the Irish imagery."
deadra: "Then they could be from Boston as well."

So, I went and bought the over knees, which were the third pair of socks I was wearing. And deadra got the tea and then the Dropkick Murphys started to play and turns out, they really are from Boston.

They were good, but it's not really my style of music. I prefer the Irish folk songs without the rock. They played a little longer as well, thanks to the Babyshambles.

Finally, it was time for The Killers. They started with Somebody Told Me, which was the right choice to get us warm again, at least a little bit. Unfortunately they slacked off a bit. But by then, deadra and me were too busy wondering about the video wall director. We were standing in the back, we depended on the screen to see more than fingersized man shaped shadows and a lot of stage lighting (very cool lighting, btw). And the director refused to show Brandon Flowers, instead showed almost exclusively Dave Keuning. I don't insist on the main focus being on the lead singer, which is the usual thing at such events, but they never showed him, which is not normal. I mean, Flowers would move about the stage and the camera would move the other way. Flowers played one song on the piano, alone, and the camera showed the lighting.
I have some theories as to why they did this (the director has a grudge against Flowers, Flowers has a special kind of contract, it was a doppelganger singing playback, ...), but when they came back for the encore, Flowers couldn't talk, he only slurred and altogether, the show was really short. So either, Flowers was tired and jet lagged and dead on his feet or he was high and either way, he/his management didn't want people to know.
[If you have any other theories, you're very welcome to share.]

Well, after that, we went to see if Tricky would be as cool as he promised to be. But we didn't stay long, because the music was so loud that you hardly could hear it, it seemed more like noise. [I'm not saying that it's his music in general that sounds like noise. More that the sound guy at the Frequency was tired already.] And we were tired. And very, very cold.

So, we went back to the car and there, the horror struck us: we would stay another night, but so many people wouldn't, that there was hardly any grass left and the whole place was a mud field. And there were tractors moving about, pulling people and their cars out of it because they couldn't manage alone anymore.

We hoped, against reason, that the next day it would be better and that a VW van is probably better equipped to handle this situation than a VW Lupo. And went to sleep.

We awoke again at 4.30 in the morning, because it was too cold. Much too cold. I lay in my sleeping bag and had the choice to cover my face and start hyperventilating [I can't stand it, if my face's covered. Panic ensues] or probably lose my nose to frostbite. But I also couldn't bring myself to leave the sleeping bag and start the car and wait for the heating. Fortunately, deadra could and she saved my nose.

When we woke up again, reasonably warm and ready to depart, we saw that the tractors were still at it, pulling cars out of the mud. We gathered our things and I started the car to try to see how far we would get.

Well, the answer was "not far". I manage to turn the car around and then got stuck and ended up farther from the street than we had been parked. And then we had to wait for almost two hours until the tractor came to our rescue...

The drive home was uneventful, but my arrival home and subsequently in the bath tub was great. I don't think I ever enjoyed warm water as much.

Idag skrotadejag comviq, trots att nästa alla har det. Istället kör jag nu vidare med Tre och detta innebär att jag har NYTT NUMMER. Om du vill ha mitt nya nummer så skriv på msn eller bilddagboken, eller så kan du kommentera här och lämna din email, så svarar jag.

Jag vet att jag skulle kunna flytta över mitt gamla nummer, men på det här viset kan jag börja om from scratch och bestämma vem som ska ha mitt nummer. Jag slipper helt enkelt att människor jag inte vill prata med ringer.

Ikväll är det Dropkick Murphy's som gäller - aldrig hört dom, men älsklingen vill se dom, så jag hakar på. Det blir festivalmat igen men förhoppningsvis ingen sen kväll då jag börjar 9.40 imorgon och Kim har ett tidigt morgonpass.
På fredag flyr vi fältet och tar oss upp till familjen G. Det känns som om det var jättelängesedan jag var där, men det var det nog egentligen inte. Hur som helst ska det bli skönt och roligt att komma dit igen, även om det kommer kännas konstigt nu när Linus flyttat.

Der Grund für meinen tollen Ausdruck:

Das

Highfield

2008

Am Freitagmorgen ging es 6.30 Uhr aus dem Bett, duschen und fertig machen. 8.30 Uhr waren dann Josi, ihre Ma und Jörg da. Auf nach Hohenfelden!

Angekommen 10 Uhr und es hat gekippt wie sonst was - raus aus dem Auto, Zeug geschnappt, Bändchen geholt und Platz nah am Eingang gesucht. Unser Zeug haben wir unter eine Plane gelegt und haben unser Zelt angefangen aufzubauen. Nach 5 Minuten waren wir auch schon fertig - dank Regen waren wir recht schnell. Kaum hatten wir uns "eingerichtet" hörte der Regen leicht auf - schönen Dank auch! Also haben wir erstmal das Gelände erkundet. Und schon hat es wieder angefangen so richtig zu schütten! Toll, ganz toll! also ab ins Zelt und ich wieder raus um den Eingang aufzustellen, damit wir rausgucken können. Währenddessen ruft Mirko an - er ist gerade angekommen und hat die Karte vergessen, Trottel! Also musste er wieder zurück nach Hannover und die Karte holen.
Als unser Eingang aufgestellt war, haben Josi und ich uns ins Zelt gesetzt und den Leuten draußen zugeguckt. Irgendwann fingen zwei Kerle unserem Iglu gegenüber ihren aufzubauen. Nachdem sie eine Viertelstunde probiert hatten und das Zelt immer noch nicht stand, baten Josi und ich unsere Hilfe an - die armen Jungs wurden ja klitschnass ;) Binnen 3 Minuten stand das Zelt und die Jungs packten peinlich berührt ihre Sachen hinein.

Durch den Regen war es richtig kalt und gegen 15.30 Uhr zogen Josi und ich zum Festivalgelände um uns dort schon mit Merchandise einzudecken. Das erste, was wir gekauft hatten, war ein dicker, warmer Highfield-Pullover - schöööön warm. dann sind wir die Tshirts zum Zelt bringen gegangen (was für ein Satz). Der Weg vom Gelände zum Zelt war doch recht lang. Wir mussten etwa 20 Minuten laufen - und das im Regen! Aber Dank dem Pullover war es dann schön warm. Als der Regen nachließ sind wir wieder zum Festivalgelände gegangen. Als wir unten ankamen, spielte Daniel Wirtz seine letzten Lieder. Klang nicht so schlecht - wenn man bei der Akkustik von "klingen" asprechen kann.

Als nächstes kamen die Subways dran - somit füllte sich das Festivalgelände. Die Jungs und Mädels von The Subways rockten die Menge ganz schön. Wobei ich fand, dass sie nicht wirklich gut gesungen oder gespielt hatten. Naja! Aber das beste an deren Auftritt war der Soundcheck. Der Typ, der die Mikros getestet hat, war der Brüller!

"Checking the spare vocal!" ...
"Checking Charlotte's vocal - this is not the spare vocal, it's Charlotte's vocal - checking Charlotte's vocal!"
"Checking William's vocal - this is not the spare vocal, this is not Charlotte'svocal - it's Billy'svocal - checking William's vocal."

Total klasse! Darüber wurde sich sogar noch am Ende des Festivals unterhalten.
Aufmerksamkeit erregte auch die deutsche Version von "Rock'n'Roll Queen".

"Du bist die Sonne, du bist die einziger, du bist so cool, du bist so Rock'n'Roll".

Es folgten Tocotronic! Tolles Konzert! sehr schön.

Danach kamen die Plain White T's. Da diese uns nicht wirklich interessiert hatten, wollten wir zu We are Scientists gehen. Durch technische Probleme mussten diese allerdings später anfangen und da wir aufs Klo mussten, mussten wir leider gehen und konnten sie nicht begutachten.

Danach gingen wir gleich zum Zelt um etwas zu essen.
Zurück auf dem Festivalgelände: Es spielten die Sportfreunde Stiller.
Sie haben zwar Party gemacht und das Publikum war richtig gut dabei, aber der Gesang war schlecht, die Noten und Griffe vereinfacht und zusammen gespielt haben die Jungs auch nicht wirklich: Sorry, aber es war schlecht!

Nach den Sportfreunden kamen Bloc Party. Die waren sehr gut, auch wenn sie nicht mein Musikgeschmack waren, aber sie wussten definitiv, was sie machen.

Es folgte der Headliner des Abends. The Killers. Ich konnte mir leider nur 3 Lieder anhören, da mir meine gebrochene Hand zu schaffen machte und so zog ich alleine zum Zelt - neben dem Mirko während der Sportfreunde endlich sein Zelt errichtet hatte, wow!

Die Nacht war es richtig kalt, habe nur eine andere Hose angezogen und den Pullover samt Tshirts und die zwei Paar Socken angelassen.

Am nächsten Morgen wachten Josi und ich schwitzend 8.30 Uhr auf - verdammt war das heiß - die Sonne prasselte auf unser Zelt. So sollte das auch noch den ganzen Tag sein, den ich mit tollen Sonnenbrand beendete.

Jedenfalls gönnten wir drei uns ein langes Frühstück. Wir unterhielten uns darüber, dass Kerle nicht wissen, welche Frisur ihnen steht und dass die Tshirts mit andersfarbigen Ärmel Mist sind.

Dann hatten wir wieder einen kurzen Besuch beim Merch-Stand und ein Mittagessen während uns Dioramic beschallten. Mirko wollte aufs Klo und kam nicht zurück.
Während Fire in the attic gingen Josi und ich wieder gen Zelt - bei 25 Grad Berg hochstiefeln - schöne Sache! Wir holten Flyer und gingen wieder runter zwischen Festvalgelände und zeltplatz und verteilten diese Dort. Nebenbei hörten wir Louis XIV und State Radio.

Irgendwann kam dann ein Typ auf mich zu "Du sieht sexuell so unbefriedigt aus, darf ich die helfen?" Wenn du genau so oft duschen warst wie ich: Nein, danke.
Kurz danach kam auch Mirko wieder ... mit Rastas ... scheiße! Wir haben uns doch erst beim Frühstück über Kerle und Frisuren unterhalten ... schlimm, echt schlimm.

als wir alle Flyer verteilt hatten, gingen wir zum Festivalgelände um uns Gogol Bordello anzuschauen. Nicht unsere Musik, aber wir wollten es sehen. Kurz davor traf ich auch endlich Hippo - Freitag hatte es trotz verzweifelter Versuche nicht geklappt - da wir beide unser Handy öfter einfach nicht gehört hatten.
Nach einem kurzen Gespräch fingen Gogol Bordello endlich an - und das Publikum ging ab! Was das der Hammer. Echt beeindruckend! Wir fragten uns, wie das Madonna-Publikum wohl reagierte, als sie diese Chaoten als Vorband ertragen mussten. aber auf dem Highfield kamen sie total toll an!

Danach folgten The International Noise Conspirancy und Flogging Molly. davon haben wir jeweils nur ein Lied gehört. Danach sind wir zum Zelt - essen und Pullover holen. Und schon ging es wieder zur Bühne und zu Kettcar - wunderschön! Wirklich. Ich war so begeistert. Auch Bela B. hatte einen Gastauftritt. Ach war das ein tolles Konzert!

Als nächstes betraten The Hives die Bühne und wir bewegten uns nach ganz hinten - dort sah man die Bühne und die Leinwand. Wir hofften dann einfach, dass die Hives schnell aufhören zu spielen, die sich aber feierten wir verrückt. Mein Gott haben die genervt.

Doch dann traten endlich die Headliner auf: Die Ärzte!
Die waren so gut drauf! War ein super Auftritt und durch ihre klasse Reimerei hießen sie nicht mehr die Ärzte sondern Hubschrauber. Josi und ich haben fast geheult vor lachen.

Nach den Ärzten ging es wieder in armen Klamotten in den Schlafsack.

Am nächsten Morgen wachten wir wieder klitschnass auf. Dann Frühstück. Mirko machte sich fertig zur Abreise - er hatte das Zugticket ausversehen viel zu früh gebucht. Depp. Ne, ne, ne!

In den Sonntag starteten Jennifer Rostock - grausig! Danach folgten The Bones. Die bewunderten wir vom Schatten aus - es war einfach zu heiß. Aber sie klangen ganz gut. Dann kamen MxPx. Tolle Band! Ich fands gut.

Thrice lösten MxPx ab und rockten das Festival und dann kam mein persönlicher Favorit Less than Jake! War das geil! Toller Auftritt, toll, toll, toll! Hab ich schon erwähnt: Toll?

Danach sind wir wieder essen gegangen, da wir Madsen nicht sehen wollten. Wieder nach unten spielte Serj Tankian. Wir fanden es leicht lamgweilig, aber stilvoll.
Es folgten die Dropkick Murphys. Ach war das wieder schön :) Haben total toll getanzt.

Und dann kam es zum letzten Act des Abends und des Highfieldes 2008: Die Beatsteaks. die Menge tobte und wir tanzten hinten.

Leider musste ich auch diesen Auftritt frühzeitig verlassen, da mein Arm mir richtig zu schaffen machte. Schade.

Am nächsten Morgen bauten wir ab und Josis Mutter fuhr uns netterweise auch wieder nach Hause.

Die Geschichten von den betrunkenen Deppen etc. habe ich einfach mal weggelassen, damit das Festival viel besser dasteht, als es war ;)

P.s.:

Tipp des Tages: Highfield 2009

Murphy, Murphy, darling dear
I long for you now night and day
Your pain was my pleasure, your sorrow my joy
I feel now I've lost you to health and good cheer

Darcy, when I met you I was five years too young
A boy beyond his age, or so I'd tell someone
Anyone who'd listen and a few who couldn't care
Still I welcomed you with open arms, my love I did share

[Chorus]
Darcy, Darcy darling dear,
You left me dying, crying there
In whiskey, gin, and pints of beer
I fell for you my darling dear

You shut me off and you showed me the door
But you always came crawling back begging me for more
I showed you kindness, a stool, and a tab
Then you poured me my pain in a dirty glass
(Yeah, you left him bloody, battered, penniless, and poor)
You know, I often stopped and wondered how you made it through my door
With my brother's new non-duplicate registry ID
Well you bit off more than you could chew the first day you met me.

[Chorus]

You weren't the first to court me mister you won't be the last
Oh, I'm sure I wasn't honey, I know all about your past
Listen to the big shot with his pager on call
You spent most of those nights in my bathroom stall
(Yeah, you got him high, but you left him low)
Mind your own business, boy, how was I to know
That he was just a fiend and a no-good cheat
Well it's all in the past bitch 'cause now I've got it beat.

Dropkick Murphys - Fuck You I'm Drunk

I bang on the door but she wont let me in
cause you're sick and tired of me reeking of gin
I knock on the doors from the front to the back
you left me a note telling me I should pack

I walk in the bar and the fellas all cheer
hey order me up a whiskey and beer
you ask me why I'm writing this poem
some call it a tavern, but I call it home

Fuck you I'm drunk!
Fuck you I'm drunk!
pour my beer down the sink
I've got more in the trunk
Fuck you I'm drunk!
Fuck you I'm drunk!
and I'm going to be drunk til the next time I'm drunk!

you've given me an option
you say I must choose
between you and the liquor
then I'll take the booze
jump on a bus
turn down to the south side
were I'll sit down an excersise my Irish pride

Fuck you I'm drunk!
Fuck you I'm drunk!
pour my beer down the sink
I've got more in the trunk
Fuck you I'm drunk! (Fuck You)
Fuck you I'm drunk!
and I'm going to be drunk till the next time I'm drunk!

Oh this is fun. The Dropkick Murphys play boisterous in-your-face Celtic punk complete with Irish reels that spin under layers of throaty vocals and frenetic noise. Accordian, bagpipes and tin whistles abound. Fantastic.

Sunshine Highway - Dropkick Murphys

Wicked Sensitive Crew - Dropkick Murphys

The Auld Triangle - Dropkick Murphys