The Paul Show #89 - new strip!

Hey, new strip!!!!

-paul

Some album reviews!

Here's a few album reviews.

Corrosion Of Conformity - Megalodon

The plus side of this album is that it's free. You can download it, right here. The negative side is that you have to give a car company your email address, and who knows what plans they have for it.

Another plus side is that it's from Corrosion Of Conformity, who are my favorites. The negative? There's a f***ing logo for a car company on the cover. Right on the cover. Jesus H. Criminy!

It would be strange to scream "SELL OUT!" at this band, because I'm sure plenty of people did that when they signed their first record contract, or later made a video, or later found themselves on a major label, or later opened for Metallica, etc. And as much I don't want Scion emailing me about buying a car, because I just bought a car and the dealer didn't throw in a CD to go with it, I gotta give them props for supporting a lot of independent bands, even established one, and providing some music to their fans. Frankly, the environment to expect your fans to buy your music so you can keep making more music has disappeared, and to even suggest that they pay for the album they're torrenting is career suicide. I thought about contacting Burger King, "hey, wanna buy a 30 second spot before my song?" Seriously, if someone torrents my music, the torrent site probably has ads (placed by Google), since I'm not getting a cut of that, why not force the listener to hear an ad before my song? They can complain about it after I cashed my advertiser check so I can pay my recording costs.

Where was I? Oh, yeah, thanks Scion for being a benefactor of COC. The songs are pretty good. The last album (that also came out this year) wasn't just a reunion and a throwback to the three piece, it was its own thing, a combo of bits from their past and a new progression as a trio. So, yay for that. I liked most of it. Are the five songs on Megalodon a continuation? There's something that COC was becoming known for in the 00's, a "boogie metal" vibe, and it wasn't as prevalent on the heavier, slightly punkier and rougher self titled album. "Megalodon" and "Strong Medicine Too Late" have that swinging feel, while "Priest Brains" and "The Vulture" keep up the speed in a way similar to "Rat City" and "What We Become" from their S/T from earlier this year. All these songs are pretty good, though I think the only one I'm not fond of is "Feed On." Maybe it's the placement; it starts out much slower than the other song, and then picks up with the boogie in the middle. It's also the longest song of the five. It would have been a decent closer. Over all, it's still a good EP, with my favorites being "Megalodon" and "The Vulture." And, IT'S FREE! So head on down to your Scion dealership and demand a copy. Or just go to the link above and download it and prepare to delete a lot of Scion related emails (note: I haven't received any emails since I surrendered my email to get the music in October).

Man...Or Astro-Man? - Analog Series (Volume 2)

Here's three more songs from the Astro-Men (and girl), to be collected as an album minus a track or two, so if you want all the stuff from these sessions, you gotta pick up these 7"s (or get them on iTunes or whatever). If Vol. 1 was a tribute to their Experiment Zero (and prior) surf material, these three songs sound straight out of the darker and 'experimental' (non-surfy) Technetium and EEVIAC albums. Yet it's more of what you heard on Vol. 1, isn't that weird? Well, it IS weird. And lively. I dig this band and I'm enjoying this new material; if it was flat and unremarkable and they were just dicking around the studio, I wouldn't bother. But they're putting a lot of effort into this new stuff and it sounds both interesting and fun.

Local H - Hallelujah! I'm A Bum

I'm not sure what the title refers to, but the packaging and sound effects between some songs suggest some sort of concept or tribute to being a Chicagoan. When I listen to Anthrax' Stomp 442, I think of NYC, because I know they were fighting it out with the record label and who knows who else while writing and making it, and partying in the roughest Charles Bukowski manner in New York. Maybe not, but with titles like "Blue Line" and "Another February" and "Cold And Mannered," I have a feeling I'll be listening to this a lot during cold walks to and fro train stops on my way to work.

I did most of this album. I play a lot of Local H at work (my old job) and my (former) coworker and I had many discussions about the albums produced from '01 on. We both agree that there's something deep and worthwhile here, but for some reason...on big stereos, something seems off and rough about this. Yet on my headphones or in my car, this sounds great. Maybe it's truly a personal connection sorta thing? Kudos if that's the case. I'm not sure what else to say about this album other than I really like it even though nothing really sticks out. It's just a good album from beginning to end and something that will be required listening during the next few cold months.

Royal Thunder - CVI

I've been introduced to some great music this year; I think I bought more albums this year than in other recent years. A good chunk of that has been because of my seeing Corrosion Of Conformity, and being introduced to bands like Torche and Black Cobra. I saw COC again in October and this band Royal Thunder was the first opener. Bluesy, dark, not heavy metal exactly, but not lightweight hard rock. So when I got home, I bought their first full length CVI from Amazon.

HOLY SHIT.

This is my "Album Of The Year," if anyone cares. That's a hard statement considering that I'm getting new music from two of my favorite bands, COC and Astro-Man, and just how much Torch blew me away when I saw them, to the point where within a week I had all their available albums. They had that much impact me. Baroness, too.

Now, maybe part of this is my love for the band Lost Goat, of whom I will write about in much greater detail. But if you know me and were in my Saturn cruising hither and yon, at some point you had to have heard Equator, this low budget recorded but still powerful, bluesy yet heavy, female fronted power trio of awesomeness, and the 2nd album by Lost Goat. It's one of my favorites and they're one of my favorite all time bands.

Royal Thunder: are they the 2nd coming of Lost Goat? Have they even heard of Lost Goat? The comparisons: they are female fronted. Both singers have wonderfully powerful voices. Both bands aren't exactly thrash or death and the guitars aren't exactly distorted beyond heavy nor are the drums going a zillion miles an hour, but the mood and writing present something far deeper and darker and therefore heavier than many of those other bands combined.

And both bands are incredible. I've only heard CVI by R. Thunder and I hope there will be some more soon. The biggest difference is that Royal Thunder has more in the way of backing vocals (I think it's the singer doing all the parts, I'm not sure, but she's fantastic).

Here's a sample, "Whispering World." The whole album is like this, but maybe moodier. There's a lot of dark and slow jams and long songs and then there's straight rockers like this one.

I'm not sure what else to say other than how blown away I am by this album. I've been able to listen to it at any time during the day no matter what mood I'm in. It helps that it totally rocks. I'm not sure what "but..."s to point out; I don't like how suddenly "Whispering World" ends, does that mean that I JUST DON'T LIKE THAT IT ENDS? Goddamn, that's a sign of a great album! It's been on repeat a lot around here.

So, thank you, Royal Thunder, and congrats on getting the King Vermin Album Of The Year Award for 2012. There is no trophy. There's rarely ever an award ceremony, outside of I'll be listening to this album a lot and I told a few friends to buy it. Sorry for the comparison to Lost Goat. Big thank yous to the new bands I've been introduced to and fallen in love with, mainly Torche and Baroness. I hope to hear great things from all these bands in...THE FUTURE!

CITIZEN COBRA - Scene 13

The finale. Thanks for sticking around.

CITIZEN COBRA - Scene 12

Here's the 2nd to last scene. It's just Cobra Commander, and a video.

CITIZEN COBRA - Scene 11

Scene 11. Almost there.

CITIZEN COBRA - Scene 10

This thing just rolls on. Another scene drastically changed in every draft.

CITIZEN COBRA - Scene 9

Scene 9. This scene changed completely each draft. When we did the live reading, it came out pretty well. On an actual stage, we'd have to figure out a lot of staging and lighting that I'm sure the cast/crew would hate. It also introduces several characters who won't make appearances again.

CITIZEN COBRA - Scene 8

Here's Scene 8 from Citizen Cobra. Characters are just C.Commander, Scarlet, and Joe Biden.

CITIZEN COBRA - Scene 7

Not today, but I have to review new albums by the following:
-Local H
-Corrosion Of Conformity
-Royal Thunder
-Man...Or Astro-Man?
-...and some other stuff.

In the meantime, here's Scene 7.

CITIZEN COBRA - Scenes 5 & 6

Here's two scenes. Scene 5 is REALLY short and serves to set up the stage for Scene 6 without a long blackout. Character list below, pointless notes to follow.

CITIZEN COBRA - Scene 4

I apologize for this one. Don't click on the jump if you have low tolerance for sleaze, because I do my best to do my worst. There's some swearing and some terrible, terrible, TERRIBLE innuendo, and I apologize to the Vice President. And to the Onion, of course, and everyone else who gives Uncle Joe this sort of One Louder personality. I'm really sorry...

CITIZEN COBRA - Scene 3

Here's scene #3 from Citizen Cobra. Same setting. All the same characters from Scene 2, minus Dr. Mindbender and Storm Shadow. Notes follow the end of the scene.

CITIZEN COBRA - scene 2

Here's the 2nd scene of Citizen Cobra. A whole new setting. Character list and then the scene itself after the jump, with notes at the end.

CITIZEN COBRA - Scene 1

The following is the script, 4th draft, to CITIZEN COBRA. This is the first scene. There are notes at the end, including any major changes I had made from the first two drafts, which featured drastically different scenes. Stage Directions and other scene set ups are in italics. I have highlighted anything I took out from the fourth draft for the blog due to any copyrights I might have to worry about, though remember: this is based on the cartoon. I apologize for typos and homonyms. First scene below the jump:

Theater anti-news. CITIZEN COBRA cancelled.

I have a lot of albums I want to review but those are going to wait just a tiny, tiny bit. I have parted ways with New Millennium Theatre and most likely "theater" completely. This is a personal blog, but it's one where I just plan to post what I'm doing and thoughts about the process as I do it. It's not to express my feelings on what is actually going on in my life, beyond album reviews and any humorous anecdotes.

The news results in Citizen Cobra, aka Script #3, which I've mentioned I was working on hither and yon, ceasing to exist as a play. It will obviously not be made into anything else since it's a parody of a cartoon.

I am going to post the script here on this blog and you can read it or you can not read it. I don't know how interesting it will be to read a failed script (or a script I have decided to stop working on and no longer promote or rewrite). I am going to remove lines that are songs that the cast was going to sing, as the lyrics are copywritten. I will, at the end of each scene, include notes of the intention, what the scene is about, and changes I had to make. That might seem unnecessary, but seeing as how it's no longer a play that means it will never see the light of day.

I wrote out and then deleted the reasons why I wrote the play, how I worked on it, and why recently I decided to quit working in theater and cease running Cobra Commander for President Of The United States. It's no longer important, though maybe it'll be obvious while you're reading it. I was upset but I don't have an axe to grind.

I am going to work on my band and my dopey comic strips. If no one listens or reads, that is fine. I am looking forward to getting back to drawing.

If you ever came to see me in Hack/Slash, or saw The Flaming Dames while I worked behind the scenes, or saw Scott Janus: Monster Hunter, thank you so much. If you saw any NMT shows while I was there, they appreciate it. But the shows I appeared in, worked behind, or wrote: I needed the support. Each time was a new ocean filled with sharks and negligent oil companies and your support helped make it a great time!

Man...Or Astro-Man? Analog Series (Vol. 1) & Transformers: Fall Of Cybertron

Slightly longer reviews.

MAN OR ASTRO-MAN? - Analog Series (Vol. 1)

There is new music by Man...Or Astro-Man?, the first batch of new material since 2000/2001 with the tour-only Spectrum Of Finite Scale (which was a companion piece to Spectrum of Infinite Scale, their last actual full length). I guess since singles are back in style, the Grid Sector residents are putting out their next album bit by bit. Analog Series (Vol. 2) should be released later this month.

Cold November Rain update. Music, plans, etc.

Howdy. The Giants won the world series, so life is good.

I plan on writing a few things. Reviews of music, reviews of video games. So in the very near future I will be discussing in some varying detail:

-Local H - Hallelujah! I'm A Bum - their new album! It doesn't sound as awesome as 12 Angry Months, but I can tell that I like it and that it will totally grow on me, unlike Whatever Happened To PJ Soles? And I think I am the test market for Local H at G-Mart. I buy it, other employees devour it and we discuss. So Local H has a following. At my store.

-Man Or Astro-Man? - Analog Series Vol. 1 - three song single in a series of singles (I hope) of NEW MATERIAL FROM MAN OR ASTRO-MAN!!!!! Holy cow. Way recommended.

-Ratchet & Clank - the collection - the first three PS2 Ratchet & Clank games now on one disc for PS3 (which is great, considering that the PS3 doesn't play PS2 games). Really fun, especially the 3rd game, Up Your Arsenal.

-POVERTY RECORDS - the pizza box! My introduction to Lost Goat! So much more!

Okay, I don't have much else to say right at the moment. I've been 'reviewing' Transformer figures on the Gassy Autobot page and doing a few other things. Oh, yeah, the Citizen Cobra rewrite, also been writing some new music for Hired Goons. So I'm a-keepin' busy. But I can't wait to talk about the pizza box. Well, write about it. Hopefully you talk about it.

Citizen Cobra reading / Baroness review

I've been a little preoccupied with staring at a word document and trying to cut down words and maybe remove sentences while making things easy for actors to say out loud AND also making sure the whole thing makes sense and is also funny.

See that run-on sentence? I can actually write LONGER run-on sentences. "Marathon-on sentences." And I fully expect actors to first memorize and secondly say these things. With proper emotion and feeding off each other. Because I am an unfeeling, uncaring, unsympathetic person trying to pass himself off as some kind of writing-guy.

Recent music trade ins.

I wanted to buy an album, but I didn't want to spend any money.

"Paul, why do you still buy CDs?"

Because I can sell them BACK, that's why!

Quicksand : Slip - a review, nearly 20 years later.

There's an album you have out there that only you love, you bought, you played it, everyone else cringed, and you thought you'd be the only one to really dig what was going on.

They were missing out.

Maybe your ears suck.

Flashback Weekend - Saturday, August 11th - NMT Performs Tales From The Scrypt

We'll be at Flashback Weekend to perform a series of sketches called "Tales From The Scrypt." Or "Script." Anyway.

I wrote a bit and will be performing it. So, yay on me! Hey, Svengoolie will be there. And it will be cheaper than going to Wizard World.

I had some other thoughts but I will post them later. Hey, listen to the Hired Goons albums linked all over this blog site. We'll be playing in Chicago on Saturday, August 25th. www.gabbagabbadoh.com.

Gears #15 has been written. Slowly working on a live action "pilot" with Acid Storm voice Keith Carmack.

-paul

PS I am apparently NOT the only person who didn't like Amazing Spider-Man. Here's the other person. He pretty much nails it for me. So, thanks dude.

Quick Album Reviews - Aeges, um, some other stuff.

I cleaned out the KV HQ but only by a tiny bit. A few records here, a few records there, here a book, there a book. It helps make the place a tiny bit tidier, especially the KV Man Cave / Production Office.

This allowed me to pick up a few albums in exchange for what I brought in. Obviously this is done at a loss but the time it takes for the ebay listings and subsequent ebay billing, if I DO sell the items, well, it's worth it to get out of the house and go to a place that at least gives you a respectable trade in.

The wife included Parks And Recreation Season 2 on DVD for her part of the trade, and gave it to me. That was nice of her. I can now watch this in the other room while she is watching Star Trek: Voyager on the PS3. This can be a comment on the soullessness of society, that our lives our empty to the point where we both need a separate distraction in separate rooms. The dissolution of our marriage? Separate TVs, separate lives?

Everyone Loves Gears #14

Been a little while. I recorded the audio for this months ago. Didn't have the time to work on it and little motivation and then figured I better finish it before I lose all interest. Ended up having more actual "stop motion" moments than I planned! Anyway, waiting so long resulted in my losing interest in having a storyline that kicks off with this episode. But I can still have things happened and semi-"resolved." A continuation.

Amusingly, there have been a lot of requests from friends in my tiny acting world to do a voice on the show. And I'd like to expand the show so that it'd be...something else entirely. Likable characters, actual plot, that sort of thing.

But, you make plans and then God farts all over you. Or, maybe you have other things to do.

I have little else to say at the moment so I'll sign off.

A trip to the carnival and its predictably terrifying results.

I have to make an effort to be a better uncle-figure to my nieces, who live here in town and I don't see that often, even though they're the greatest and I'm pretty sure I have some sort of Favorite Uncle status with them. So that means more quality time with them. More hugs, more sit down talks about growing up and things like that.

A few years ago I took them to a carnival/fair thing in the parking lot of a large public high school and this year I thought I'd take one of the girls to it again after her mom asked me to hang out with her this weekend. They had a total blast. The wife and I had a blast watching them. Good times were had. I also didn't pay attention to the carnival workers during that visit, or at least have no recollection of them or their activities.

This year was slightly different, but only in that I WAS AFRAID, not for me, well kind of for me, but for any child who walked into that parking lot hoping to experience joy and not grow up painfully, tragically, and traumatically fast.

Some rocking. What else to talk about? Oh, I witness more meathead-ery.

I rocked out with my pal Mark last weekend on some music he's working on. Here's the results. More to come once stuff gets shaped n whatnot.

I rewrote Script #3 (Citizen Cobra) and may make another pass at it soon. My scanner doesn't seem to be recognized by the new OS and I'm a little upset by that and don't want to buy a new one. Thanks, Windows 7, for not recognizing anything I owned beforehand.

I have little else to write about, but I should type just to type and use this blog and write more often so we have a moment to visit with each other. So, after the jump, here's a true story.

Another Bugs & Cranks article...

...here.

ALSO! I was interviewed about Hired Goons. Check it out.

ALSO! Doin' a rewrite for script #3 for NMT.

ALSO! Will finish "Everyone Loves Gears #14" this week. Promise.

ALSO! Got my bike tire fixed.

ALSO! Jamming with a different possible band this week.

Lots of silly stuff going on. I really don't have much to talk about at the moment.

I wanna give a shoutout to my nurse pal who had to deal with a crack addict this weekend. I hope they pay you in the zillions.

-paul

Albums purchased recently: quick reviews (COC, Pelican, Torche, Metallica)

I was going to type up a long rambling thing about some of these, but life is short and I don't want to ramble on too much. I realized I was typing COC's life history and you know what? I'll just talk about the album.

3rd script reading and excess emotional baggage.

Taking a few moments to think about what went on a few nights ago. I can't lie to myself: one of the reasons I'm not drawing as much is those damn video games. Damn you, Ratchet & Clank! (a review of the Ratchet & Clank games for the PS3, coming soon.) But I was also spending a lot of time in front of this very computer (other than the last two weeks, of course) working on a 3rd script, the 2nd being The Voice and not being read at the moment.

3rd script is a parody and I belted out the outline in minutes yet had a rough time writing along with that outline.  Losing the computer for two weeks didn't help (and before C2E2, so I was too busy to write even if I had time to get the computer fixed right away). I was allowed to borrow a laptop, work on scenes from what I could remember, and then continue when I got the computer and attempt to finish in two days.

Computer trouble, stuff.

My computer decided to be difficult and hold all my music that I love to listen to hostage. Though I still buy CDs, this made it hard to listen to stuff while I type. Also, I wasn't able to type anything. And I have a script due Sunday. Which I will be finishing this weekend now that my computer is back in action. In that time, the Goons did two shows. Not sure how many we'll be doing anytime soon, as Monty is having a baby in July, so we'll be taking a break. I do have two musical projects I'm working on. I have to get back to typing. Excuse me. -paul

So I seriously thought I was going to die.

Dropped a cast member off. Headed home. Looked for a place to park. Got to an intersection, stopped. Someone else pulled up, i got there first, so I went through. The other car, some silver beater sports car that hasn't been stylish in quite a while with a big dent in the front right side, gunned it. Then he stopped as I went past him, and honked his horn. He turned to follow me. I went around the block and he kept honking his horn. I was a half block away from my place and I'm being followed. All I'm thinking about is I hope he doesn't start shooting. I can't imagine what his beef was. I stopped. He did that thing where he stopped at the end of the curb and not the stop sign before the crosswalk, like a lot of people do. I stop at the stop sign. Anyway, I stop at the stop sign nearest and now he's at my bumper. I go through the stop sign and he goes through with me, I guess me stopping meant he could go through with me, like a funeral procession. Like MY funeral because he's going to KILL me.

We Are Wyld Stallyns, some other stuff.

#1: I found my iPod. Ignore previous comic strip.

#2: We Are Wyld Stallyns just started at Theatre Wit, 1229 W. Belmont in Chicago. Click on the link to read more about the show...and to get tickets (plus, links to half price tickets!). I wrote the music for the band that fights Bill & Ted.

I thought I had more but i'm really tired. I should update more. Sleep now,
-paul

I lost my iPod. Waaa waaaa waaaa. The Paul Show #88.

Blog alert: Valient Himself

Check this site out. Click on the link in the title.

Not sure why, they came highly recommended from respectable sources, but Valient Thorr just didn't grab me at this week's COC show, at least not like Torche did. They weren't bad, I didn't DISLIKE them, I don't want to say anything that I didn't like about them because I'd be doing so out of ignorance and (as someone who used to review bands that I was unfamiliar with) that would be unfair. I do not want to write them off or turn anyone interested but also ignorant of their style away from them.

BUT IN THE MEANTIME, the singer has a blog, Valient Himself, and most of it is about old crappy movies (and some good ones). Low budget Sci-Fi channel, Up All Night, the kind of thing even The Asylum is too competent for. He writes hilariously (and of course, very well) about these movies. So kudos to his blog for KEEPING ME UP ALL NIGHT because I can't stop reading about his movie choices.

Hooray for Valient Himself! Check it out!

Corrosion Of Conformity - live at Double Door - Smarch 7th, 2012

I can't write about Corrosion Of Conformity impartially. I would like it to be known that if they put out an album of nothing, of complete silence, I would purchase it and champion it as the best damn tribute to John Cage ever.

(waiting to let that gag sink in...)

I have been very fortunate to have been given attention from the band regarding tour info and album stuff over the last decade and a half. So, yay me. And kudos to them, as they must have the patience of a saint to put up with me. I can't even put up with me. Maybe bumping into me only once a year makes it easier on them, who knows. I'm not bragging, I just dig the band, they are cool people and hopefully my incredible bias toward them won't cloud your decision to buy all their albums.

But you should buy all their albums.

Their latest is their self-titled. It is only a throwback to their old Animosity days in that there's three members instead of four. And maybe like the old days, the music seems to change almost randomly in each song and the riffage comes from left field.

Oh, the riffage. I wish Animosity and Eye For An Eye were recorded like this album. (This is blasphemy to all the fans from BACK IN THE DAY who saw COC create their scene as well as an entire new subgenre of music. Back off: I was 8 at the time.) The guitars never sounded this mean and angry before...and In The Arms Of God was pretty angry sounding! My favorite track, showcasing the talent of the reformed classic lineup, is Time Of Trials. It goes from wild n crazy to slow and heavy and it doesn't drag on forever. It's also the last song, which is perfect for the sort of album that when it's over, you feel like you didn't hear every nuance and you gotta go back again. Well played, COC.



I'm not sure what I can say about the album other than I dig it. The youtube clip here is two songs, The Doom which is heavy with a bit of thrash before switching to a bluesy jam, and then the previously mentioned and amazingly awesome Time Of Trials.

SO, live. This is only the fourth time I have been able to see them since they 'reformed,' once before at Riotfest 2010 and then twice last year. Sadly I had to skip out on their Champaign gig for a theater meeting. What can I say, I know they put on a show and last night was no exception.

The first band was "A Storm Of Light," and they were followed by "Valient Thorr" and I got to the club as Storm was finishing up, and I didn't know what to really make of Valient Thorr, such as whom to compare them to or if what I saw/heard was close to what they usually sound like. I don't want to say the wrong things about these bands and upset a fan with my ignorance so I'll just link them and you can check them out.

TORCHE, however: wow. A friend described them as Foo Fighters meets...someone really heavy, I don't know. (Maybe he said Helmet, as in the angrier material.) I don't know if "Foo Fighters" applies here either. Maybe something stoner rock meets Mastodon? I was super impressed. Whatever it was, it was aggressive yet groovin'. I totally dug it and rocked out a bit. They played some stuff from their upcoming album which is due in late April. Click on the link for their site and you can listen to a song from that new album. I picked up the EP "In Return" and listened to it ALL DAY. It's only 19 minutes long but it rocks super hard. I am listening to it now and am mad that I'm not headbanging, but it's hard to type that way.

COC: Finally, new material. They played some of the songs last year (MoneyChangers & Your Tomorrow). A good portion of the set was from Animosity (Loss For Words, Mad World, Consumed, Holier, Hungry Child) and there were a few more new ones (Psychic Vampire, Rat City, Leeches). Part of their set as a trio is opening with some of the instrumental Bottomfeeder from Wiseblood and then playing part of Vote With A Bullet (with Reed singing), so the highlight for me was the band playing the whole title track from Deliverance. It slammed. They were full of a lot of energy. No time between songs to rest up, just one after another and it stayed intense that way. They were also very animate, much more than when I've seen them on bigger stages. I wonder why that is, even years later? These sort of things create a better mood for both band and audience, I think, and that was the case last night. The crowd ate it up and rocked out. Older punks & metal heads & pretty much everyone else in the room joined together by the power of rock headbangin' together.

There you go. My clouded vision of my favorite band giving me what I wanted and then some, with me walking away super happy and telling you about it. So, while they're still on tour, check them out. They have an official site n stuff and you can buy the album here. I'm not sure what other details to bore you with so please check them out.

Incoming! Shows, projects, things!

Okay, SEVERAL things on the burner right now.

1. WE ARE WYLD STALLYNS! I wrote/co-wrote the music for two songs for the evil metal band in New Millennium Theatre's play. You can find out more information about the show starting off at the KICKSTARTER page for the show. Please check it out and donate a few bucks! I showed the metal band how to play the new stuff and they picked it up right away and are making it their own bad ass of bad assery that I can't wait to hear the finished product and see it performed on stage this spring!

2. HIRED GOONS show! We'll be performing at a fundraiser for New Millennium Theatre on Sunday, April 15th, at Fizz. Details once I have them.

3. HIRED GOONS show! Friday, April 20th @ Ye Olde Town Inn in Mt. Prospect. We had a blast at Poochie's bday party and they seemed to like us so they asked us back.

3.5. I might do something Kickstarter-ish for the Goons. Will let you know.

4. Am working on finishing the latest script and there will be a table read for the other script soon.

5. I drew a strip for The Heckler but I'm not sure if they'll use it.

6. I'm sure I have some other things that I'm doing but as I think about it, really I'm just in the process of trying to get the Goons booked this spring and finishing this script and maybe getting back to drawing.

7. Oh, Everyone Loves Gears #14 has been recorded, but I still have to take pictures and edit the whole thing together. Soon.

Um, this may or may not seem like a lot. It's not a lot to me, as far as volume, though it means a lot. I really feel like I should be doing more things. That's my own fault that I'm NOT, of course. Like drawing.

Sadly, my laziness has been a result from those damn video games you've been hearing about.

The mrs. picked up Batman: Arkham City and though I'm a guy who shouts "Make Mine Marvel!" instead of "Amen" during church, I gotta say that I have more love for the Batman. Or The Goddamn Batman. It's surprisingly...vulgar. The word "bitch" gets thrown around a lot. Other than the non-stop swearing and such, the voice acting is great (except for Talia; holy crap what an annoying character). The Mrs. is even shocked by the amazing graphics.

I played the game on "Easy" because let's face it, I die a lot in these games Usually in the opening menu. And i want to get through the game and not cry myself into a curled up fetal position because all I want to do is beat up Mr. Freeze or whomever. That said, the fighting portion of the game is just kinda pointing Batman at whomever you want to punch and pressing the fight button and he punches them. Again, I didn't play it on the other difficulty level (yet) but sheesh, getting through the legion of goons hiding out in Arkham City is brutal....FOR THEM!

I will say that several times, I was eaten by a shark.

And me with no Bat-Shark Repellent!

So it's really just flying from hither to yon around the city courtesy of a grappling hook and your cape and beating up oblivious goons. Fortunately ascending levels to open up unlockable weapons and attacks is pretty easy (again, I admit now that I was on the "Easy" level of difficulty) which I'm grateful for, as opposed to ever-widening level upgrades that would make having to beat up a ton of similar goons with fewer challenges seem painfully redundant despite being necessary. So, thanks, gamers.

If you think I'm a wimp for praising that aspect, please note that this is a video game. I don't deserve more respect for beating it because the level-ups are simple. I would deserve respect if I did something real, like become a real medical professional and saved real people's lives. I doubt there are real life lessons in Arkham City I could learn and apply in these situations, aside that I am going to ask some of my female friends to wear similar Catwoman suits (along with the same amount of lipstick).

So, anyway, I enjoyed the game. It's easy to get around Arkham City, the side missions are fun, there's only a few frustrating moments. I hate the kinds of games where I have to go BACK in an open free-exploring world and it's a zillion miles away. In Arkham City, it's easy to get around, even if the objective's at the other end of town, and thus I don't feel the need to reset the game because of so much time even MORE pointlessly wasted having to retrace my steps from the last save point (seeing as how I'm already pointlessly wasting my time playing the game in the first place).

"I am not really a gamer," says the guy who just spent days playing a video game. I have been pretty picky about the games I've purchased. "Oh, get Skyrim/Uncharted! You'll love it!" No, you don't know me, I probably won't love it. I'll love a movie that has a beginning, middle, and end. I won't love feeling like I'm PLAYING a movie. You don't play a movie. I like playing War For Cybertron not because I feel like I'm involved in some interactive art presentation that I need to defend against Roger Ebert's dismissal of video games being art; I just like to pretend I'm a robot smashing the crap out of other robots. So for a few hours I liked being the Goddamn Batman.

"WHERE ARE THEY?" the wife shouts randomly from another room.

I enjoyed the living heck out of the Ghostbusters game because I got to be a Ghostbuster. I would enjoy the game over another forced movie (without Bill Murray), but this is only because of my obsession with Ghostbusters. I would not recommend it as a work of art to be compared to the movies or discussed at a book club. I am enjoying the "Ratchet & Clank" series because I enjoy the gameplay, I think the characters and even the enemies are cute, and the presentation done very well. I have thoroughly enjoyed playing it but I admit that I wouldn't have picked it up if not for it being bundled with the PS3.

That is not an admission that I'm wrong about video games, even though I'm enjoying that particular game that I wouldn't have otherwise even given a thought about. Now it's it my life at the moment and I'm enjoying it. Score one for video games.

I would just be doing something else with that time, and it would produce something that would exist that I could call my own and even with my shoddy workmanship I could share and maybe be proud of. That's how I feel about video games, and about what I really should be doing with my time.

But, still, I'm the goddamn Batman.

Everyone Loves Gears #13

Working on a script for theater company. Woo.
-paul

I managed to not watch a single second of the Super Bowl.

My title is not one of snobbery. "Oh, I don't OWN a Television," answered the snob when all you wanted to know if the Cubs won. Or if The Simpsons was any good. Jeesus H. Criminy, I don't need a diatribe over why I'm an inferior slack jawed yokel because I like to watch Futurama on Netflix, or, you know, the news.

I have a fleeting interest in football, In that the Bears won the only Super Bowl that ever matter and we had to sing THE SHUFFLE after the Pledge Of Allegiance in grade school that week (not kidding). I watched THE GAME last year at a friend's house. I don't recall the year before. I watched the last Bears' appearance. I may have attended a few parties for the free food for the games before that. Before THAT, we'd show the games at the Brew & View, and I'd hang out in the lobby if the game sucked. And before THAT, I'd get as many episodes of MST3K that I hadn't seen yet and veg out on them all weekend.

Anyway, I will give people a hard time because they tuned in for the commercials. I don't listen to NPR for the pledge drive. ("Oh, I don't OWN a radio," continues the snob.) They (advertisers, networks) will air the commercials for the next few months. Also, thanks to internet, we knew about the return of Ferris Bueller. Artificial hype was created because dumbasses who never heard of IMDB ("oh, but I don't OWN a web browser...") can't look to see if an actual sequel to "Day off" is being produced. What, it's not? Of course not. Entertainment Tonight would've had that covered the minute the ink dried on Edie McClurg's contract to appear in the film. Shut up already. It's for a car commercial, a wise choice for Matthew Broderick. We don't need to keep talking about it. We can stop giving them free advertising.

One of the best things about the Super Bowl is that every other place that isn't a bar is empty. We went grocery shopping at a usually crowded claustrophobia-inducing grocery store filled with great deals and dozens of lunatics, this time virtually empty of other customers. Hooray for us!

Got home, played Super Paper Mario, enjoyed life. Yes, dear snob. You thought I was on YOUR side, dismissing the popular television event TO MAKE A POINT, but NO, I was playing mind-numbing proletariat-crushing VIDEO GAMES. Take THAT.

Super Paper Mario (Wii) is a ton of fun, by the way. I downloaded Paper Mario (SNES, on the Wii) and that one is pretty fun, but Super Paper has real time fighting, which I guess eliminates the critical difference in this RPG-ish sub-series from the other Mario games. It's also a lot easier. I think this game might be for much younger kids and not guys in their 30's. It might not even be for guys. I refuse to be embarrassed by it. It's silly fun, the enemies are adorable, and sound effects induce plenty of "awwww"s. Yes, my wife loves watching me play it.

This is not an important update in the new KVSM blog. I have abandoned the LiveJournal to the Russians a long time ago. I have not yet decided to discuss my Transformer collecting here though.

Nothing new artistically. Because I've been playing video games. No, wait:

-I'm in the process of booking some Hired Goons shows.

-2nd script has been reviewed...by me. I may just draw it whether or not it gets produced as a stage play. Yay.

-Everyone Loves Gears #13 & 14 have been written, with most of the dialogue recorded.

That's it. Talk later.

-paul

The Cubs Convention!

I asked Brad of The Heckler if he needed an extra hand at his booth at the Cub Convention this weekend, and he said sure. So that was cool.

If you're not familiar, The Heckler is a satirical site and occasional publication that originally was aimed at Cubs fans. It spread to cover other Chicago sport teams and then in the last year or so started to make fun of teams in other markets as well. I remember seeing it for the first time and laughing my ass off. People take their teams a little too seriously, myself included.

Anyway, I had done the Heckler booth dance a few times before. Hand out copies of our print edition, try to sell shirts. It's usually non-eventful from my point of view. A good number of people from Iowa telling us how much they love the Cubs, that sort of thing.

What I never get is why people DON'T want a free paper. Well, I guess I can see that.
Someone has I'm sure handed me plenty of free things, but usually flyers and ads are tossed out. If someone is handing me a free humor magazine, sure I'll take it. I need a laugh. I love 'zines. I pick up any of them when I'm travelling, be it the alt-weekly or someone's photocopied zine at a record store. Why not? Even if they aren't discussing something local, it's always a bit of local flavor, and always an added bonus when there's a comic strip I've never seen.

So why not take a free magazine so you can read something while waiting in line to meet former Cubs Frank DiPino & Vance Law? (note: I don't think they were actually there. Or that you know who they were.) A lot of "no thank yous" which is polite for "get that outta my face!" and, okay, you don't want to be hassled. But sheesh, it's free! And sports needs more humor. When I'm at a game with friends or my wife, we never stop with the dumb jokes. Everything deserves even a bit of a snicker, even the guy on your team throwing that no-hitter. Even sports I don't care for have a rich history and much of it unintentionally funny in contexts years later. If I had a Mad Magazine/Onion style sports mag in the 90's, I wouldn't have stopped paying attention to all of them during that bleak period (except for the Bulls, of course). So this sort of thing should be cherished.

The stories of the weirdos and drama are best left to Brad because he's the face of The Heckler and the local sports everybody seems to know him and respect him. If they don't, they're jags, and then they're his stories, not mine. I'm in the booth handing out papers and I didn't see much of nuthin', other than that Harry Caray impersonator who gave us his card and then left without doing his impersonation. I did walk around a bit. Not a lot of great stuff on super cheap discount and I didn't have much to spend on anything there, but I was happy to get a t-shirt in the style of '84 Cub jerseys with "Sandberg" on the back, so I never have to get another sports related clothing item again. There, the only thing I bought at the convention.

Be sure to subscribe to the Heckler for various silly sports stories throughout the year. I'll be doing more strips for them this year, they won't appear on this blog, but I'll let you know when they appear on that site.

In the meantime, the other cool thing was that Jody Davis signed this strip for me. It's based on something that happened when I was 8, when I met him on the field. Forgive Chug's enlarging head. I'd like to claim license to exaggerate, but we all know that I can't draw.

New-ish Paul Show strip / The Heckler @ The Cubs Convention

I drew this over the summer when we had a sale at the store I work at. I set up a drawing table and printed out some of my panels and let people draw their own strips. This was mine, done at the store in one sitting.

IN OTHER NEWS: I'll be at the Cubs Convention this Saturday, January 14th. Stop by The Heckler's booth if you're going and buy my comic book, Chug-Chug: Inaction from me, please.

I do a spit take as Carlos Zambrano gets traded to the Marlins.

Click on the link to see my latest contribution to Bugsandcranks.com.

-paul