Tom Gabel To Release Solo Material

Against Me!‘s Tom Gabel has been doing a little sumptin sumptin on the side.  The front man of the ever popular Against Me! is doing things his own way this time.  He will be releasing a solo album on Oct 28th, 2008 called Heart Burns

Leading up to the release Tom Gabel has been releasing music videos via MySpace of songs that will be appearing on his project. I hadn’t had a chance to check them out until now…and now you can too:

100 Years Of War

Random Hearts

Cowards Sing At Night

Harsh Realms

From what I am gathering the EP to be released will actually be live performances.  This is really a highly anticipated release for me.  This comes from the guy who used to HATE Against Me! too. 

When I first got into Against Me! there was already a huge following and a couple of albums had been released.  I listened to a few tracks and tried real had to like them but I couldn’t.  It was mostly from fans telling me how awesome they were and how incredible they sounded before my ears even got a taste.  Scene kids jamming them down my throat was not helping the situation when I worked at a record store.

I still gave them a couple more chances and even saw them play with Smoke Or Fire.  Soon after hearing them a few more times I started hearing the more folk driven tracks and I suddenly liked them.  When I caught them live my opinion changed entirely.  They were so fun, full of smiles, and played their hearts out.  Sing-a-longs galore.  Suddenly I liked what I once hated…

I remember when New Wave came out earlier this year.  Die hard fans soon hated the band and called them sellouts.  They were upset the band went mainstream.  I became a bigger fan myself after hearing that album, it is insane.  That’s music industry for ya though…  You have to pay the bills some how and if selling out means helping ensure a financially sane future then I say go for it… 

Oct. 28th is right around the corner and if you like Against Me! you should support Tom Gabel and pick up his solo release.

The 90’s Are About Me

As of late my Sirius radio has been stuck on the rock/alternative station Lithium 24.  Once in a while I love to just listen to the stuff I rocked out to while a teenager.

Today I checked out the friendly AddictedToVinyl.com and there it was… the perfect mix tape.  Apparently I am not the only one who has been thinking about the past.  Head on over to his site for a link to download for a sweet 90’s mix.  It will not disappoint.

After checking out the mix I starting thinking of things that remind me of the 90’s.  Mainly things that helped shape me into what I was becoming…a music lover.  Not only did I think of music but also concerts I went to and places I hung out.  I also thought about the movies as a youth I saw and then watched over and over again memorizing the lines and the way the people acted.

This movie was something that contributed:


Singles – Theatrical Trailer

It took me a couple of years to actually follow the story line and see it was a love story but when I first saw it my jaw dropped at the musicians who played roles in the movie or performed songs.  I was young when it came out.  All I remember is that I wanted to move to Seattle, buy thermo long johns and a pair of combat boots.  I wanted to be like the guys in Singles.

The thought of being a grunged out coffee making Seattle-ite soon changed those as I was introduced to other music and found my click…mainly punk rock.  I was growing up you know…change happened a lot.  I altered my look more than once in high school and went from a grungy long haired (bright red) to shaving my head senior year wearing NoFX shirts.  I might have gone punk rock, but I still listened to the rock/alt.

I still like the 90’s rock and always will…  I also like Matt Dillon movies….well mainly There’s Something About Mary…(hey, that was 90’s too!!!)

Beastie Boys and special guests to play Youngstown, OH 10-29-2008

Beaste Boys ugre you to vote this year.
Beaste Boys ugre you to vote this year.

Thanks to my pal Matt (who I seem to thank a lot) I learned that the Beastie Boys are coming to Youngstown, OH on 10/29/2008 with special guests Sheryl Crow, Ben Harper, and Norah Jones.

The Beastie Boys are counting on you to rock the vote this year.
The Beastie Boys are counting on you to rock the vote this year.

This is the first time the Beasties have even come close touring in Cleveland since 1998.  I saw them last year and even got to interview them at the Virgin Mobile Tour.  I have to saw they are still awesome.  My interview was not much of an interview as much as us just shooting the you know what…  I really need to post that on here one day.  Their live show was incredible.  It was my third time seeing them live.

So now I am trying to figure out if I should go…  I have so much going on late October.  Decisions decisions…  Pre-sale starts tomorrow at 10am.  Password is VOTE.  Go to their website for more info.

I am Cleveland

Out of all the places I could have been born, I was born in Cleveland, OH.  Some may find it difficult or depressing to grow up in a suburb of a dying steel manufacturing city but I myself consider it fortunate.   I like where I am from and even though I sometimes wish to live life elsewhere I think, in fact I know, I would miss the city of Cleveland.

Realistically I am admitting that Solon was the city I was born and raised.  I grew up in that city and while doing so I saw change.  By the year 2000 the population doubled and Solon turned more upper class, a bracket I never fit in.  Restaurants and stores were built on land that once housed the city’s first school or marshland.  New schools had to be built to house all the children that were brought in to the city.  It was change I did not agree with.

One change I dealt with was new neighbors.  I watched the forest next to my parents property turn in to a upper class haven full of rude arrogant people I never called neighbors.  How arrogant?  Let’s just say one of the features of this high rolling development were man made ponds in which one of the new residents saw it as a jet ski racetrack… The successful ass also allowed his kids to destroy my folks property and would frequently dump his yard waste.  I never rebelled at him as much as I wanted to but I was happy to hear he had to leave that house for breaking the law.  What a jerk.

The good thing about Solon is that I had made amazing friends, many of which I still am friends with today.  My neighbors growing up put up with parties my brother and I threw.  Growing up was great as a kid but when I turned into a teenager and Dunkin Donuts kicked us out of their parking lot or we wanted to see a show Cleveland was just a short drive away.

Solon was a great city to grow up in.  Next to a great school system, there were awesome shops including the one of most missed music shops ever, Disc Den (rip).  When I was a kid that was the place to go.  Mike at Disc Den ran a great shop but could not afford to move on with sales dropping due to corporately run book stores that sold music as well (yes, I worked there, but in my defense I was a barista!!!).

Important people came from Solon as well.  Mike Cartellone, once the drummer of Damn Yankees and now current drummer of Lynyrd Skynyrd, was from Solon and he even played football with me when I was just a little tyke.  There were even some pro football players born in the city including Kim Herring who was a few grades above me.

So why did I even mention I am Cleveland and where am I going with this?  You might be wondering why I just told you my life story and I know it was not that good so let’s continue…

When you grow up you meet friends and lose friends, it’s a life long process.  Luckily my close friends happened to like music and hanging out.  As soon as I was old enough I started going to Cleveland to see shows.  I can not even tell you how many shows I have been to in my life time but I can tell you most of the most memorable took place in the mid to late 90’s, right about the time when I was a raging punk rocker.

Cleveland has some great music venues.  I can write all day about the shows I have seen.  Bands that were nothing and are huge now I got to see as they hardly had anyone in the crowd cheering for them.  Venues that have shut down or moved to the other side of town, been there.

I really don’t feel like writing about all that right now.

I want to talk about two things that recently happened to me that remind me why I like Cleveland so much:

Cleveland Browns Stadium
Cleveland Browns Stadium

First off…. The Cleveland Browns.  I am a Brownie for life and win or lose will always support the team.  I recently witnessed the Browns spank the Giants Monday Night Football style.  It was a great experience.  Even if almost everyone there was drunk and belligerent well before the game even started it was fun.

My brother and I got a pair of tickets so we decided to truck down early to tailgate.  As we made way to the community lot we passed the Great Lakes Science Center and the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame Museum.  I got to see Johnny Cash‘s tour bus parked in front of the Rock Hall and after checking to see if it was unlocked (I wanted to go on a joyride) we continued to a parking lot about a mile away from the Cleveland Browns stadium.

Tailgating was a treat alone with some folk starting their partying ritual at 9:00am, almost 12 hours before kick off.  By the time my brother and I met up with some friends at the community lot around 6:30pm there were people falling over drunk but smiling on the way down.  Everyone was decked out in Browns attire and DJs for a day were doing their best to play requests.  Food was being consumed and everytime a brave Giants fan walked past crowds of folk would stop during mid beer bong to point and call that fan an a$$h@le.  It was funny to see so many people get into it.  It was the first time I engaged in tailgating and it certainly will not be the last.

If you look you might be able to see the stadium on the bottom left.  The community lot was just a wee bit far...
If you look you might be able to see the stadium on the bottom. The community lot was just a wee bit far...

The game itself was even more insane.  Yelling and screaming and more drinking.  I can honestly say the Browns have the greatest fans ever.  We sat pretty far up but it didn’t matter.  All the fans around me, many season ticket holders, were great to cheer along with as the Browns beat the Giants 35 to 14.

Another reason I like Cleveland so much… Last Friday’s trip to meet Derek Hess.

I’ve already interviewed the man himself but this past Friday I had the pleasure of meeting him in person.

Along with my wonderful wife, my friends Matt and Adam joined us to a book store in Tremont, a historic neighborhood just outside of downtown Cleveland.  We all went to Visible Voice Books where I get to meet Derek Hess and author Kent Smith who both came together and wrote Please God Save Us.  Both gentlemen were very kind and autographed my book that Matt purchased for me (thanks pal!).  Kent Smith even asked to get a photo of us all where I look like a complete retard in it (see below for proof)!  Once I read the book a few times over I will be sure to post something on here about it.  If you are a fan of Derek Hess and wish to venture into his politically charged art, you need this book.

After Visible Voice books we went to nearby Lakewood and had dinner at a local bar.  The name escapes me at this time but we dined outside at the patio.  Even though it was a tad on the chilly side there were gas powered outdoor heaters that kept us warm.

We all sat around and chatted as we ate our meals.  While hanging out, I could not help but think how much I have enjoyed Cleveland all these years.  It seems like there is always something to do when you you venture in the city.  There is also more still to be done and I know there will be many more trips to that wonderful city.

Like I said I could talk all day about Cleveland but just not today.  I am sure other folk from Cleveland can agree it is a hell of a city with a lot to offer.

This was my story, for now.  Here’s some other photos I took with my crappy camera (except the 1st, that was taken w/ Kent Smith’s camera):

Kent, Matt, wife, retard me, Derek, Jose (the dog), and Adam
Kent, Matt, my amazing super awesome easy looking on the eyes with an honest beautiful smile wife, retard me, Derek, Jose (the dog), and Adam
Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame
Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame
Johnny Cash's Tour Bus
Johnny Cash's Tour Bus
We sat pretty far up but that did not bother us at all...
We sat pretty far up but that did not bother us at all...
Cleveland Browns Stadium
Cleveland Browns Stadium