Ding Dong...

Well, the Pope is dead. I have absolutely no moral feelings on this either way. The simple fact is, I am no longer last in the celebrity death pool I'm in. Sadly, it's not like this tragic loss came without expectation, so I've a ways to go before taking the lead. If Jack Osbourne kicks it though, I'll net three points for unexpected checking-out. Honestly, though. I'm not sure how Courtney awarded each person point values. I think it's purely age, which is a little boring. A mutually agreed upon scale of likelihood would have been better.

Moving on to exciting news of the living, last night I had the pleasure of seeing one of my pet bands, alaska! The exclamation point is part of the name, as is the lower case "a", both of which made them a bitch to write about the two times I've put them in various newspapers. This is was my third time seeing them, and sadly the least fulfilling. They were only allowed a 30 minute set at the beginning of a concert for Ash and The Bravery, both of whom I knew nothing about prior to last night. Though I was unfulfilled by the show, I was able to pick up a pre-release copy of their second album. My first impressions are that it lacks the variety of moods shown on their first album, but it does go more passionately into dark and mystic sounds. The lead singer/guitarist Imaad Wassif comes off as a moody, fragile fellow with explosive energy and capable of channeling his emotions into his music with hypnotic effect. The man is literally a scarecrow and as he thrashes about on stage, I am deeply concerned he will break himself.

Another blogger I read was at the show for Ash, and he described alaska! as "dismal." This first struck me as an insult, but honestly it is dismal music. I suppose that's just its appeal to me. And just as I wasn't enthralled with Ash because they are totally new to me, he was unimpressed with alaska!. The way my head works, I need to decide I like something. I'm rarely moved by pure emotion and taken with something in the moment. There must be a process. An introduction followed by a courtship and then, after many many flowers, love.

Thank you for reading.