Blog: Floating Away

I found this fact on CNN.com . Perhaps Dan is afraid that posting to floatingaway from his laptop could cause long term problems to future Dans. As for CNN's incredible reporting, it's wonderful that they were able to find an extremely current image for this story.

I've been trying to figure out since that first ridiculous bore hole, why at the very least they didn't send down some sort of remote control camera. At the very least, we can surely do better than one hole at a time. I'm no geologist, but we've sent men to the Moon; we can figure out a way to drill multiple holes. Is it just me, or does it seem like they've been using the best technology 1999 has to offer in an effort to find the trapped miners? I understand the [...]

If you are free Saturday night, you can check out Rilo Kiley at the Eagle Rock Lanes for free by following the instructions below: Writsbands will be avalibe for pick up after 4PM (NO LINE UPS PRIOR TO 3PM) Friday at the Echo (The echo is located at 1822 Sunset Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90026 in echo park - The telephone number is (213) 413-8200) You must bring a print out of your MySpace profile with both Rilo Kiley & Secret Shows in your top 8. Entry [...]

Amy's really going to be pissed this time! While the story is just becoming public now, it turns out that Matt Roloff, star of my favorite show, Little People, Big World , was arrested on June 19th for DUI. Here's the mugshot to prove it: Matt's going to have a much tougher time delivering his didactic sermons to his family and friends with this new association. Either way, I'm still a huge fan and I'm still trying to [...]

As I have written before, I am thoroughly enjoying the few songs I have heard of Vampire Weekend, so of course I was going to make it out to the Troubadour for Vampire Weekend's first show in LA. The LA Weekly this week described their music as an "effortlessly appealing brand of jangly, African-inspired indie pop". Their quick guitar riffs, incredible percussion, high pitch keyboard and rhythmic bass do nothing to negate this comparison. While often, the buzz out of NYC can be deaffening, often times, they get it right and the Brooklyn [...]

[In an attempt to keep my few readers abreast of what I am listening to, The Monthly Mix Series is a monthly post featuring music that found its way into ears of the course of the past month.] This mix is coming a bit late and I truly apologize for that. I have been a bad blogger recently and have a list of things that I have been meaning to write, but just haven't gotten around to it. June's mix is sprinkled with some old classics and some new [...]

It's just great to go out and see Patrick Park perform. He is so talented and there is no reason that he should have been playing to a half empty Spaceland last night. Like Duke , I have seen Patrick Park perform many times around town and agree that his debut album doesn't really do him justice. I have heard his albums many, many times and yet after seeing him live, I am constantly trying to remember songs to see if they are on any of the CDs or EPs I have of his. [...]

The Hammer Museum 's free Thursday night music line up continues once again. The line up this year is solid, so don't miss an opportunity to see some of these great bands on the Westside. More information here . TONIGHT: Foreign Born and Great Northern Thursday, 7/12: The Pity Party and The Little Ones Thursday, 7/19: Castledoor and the Fields Thursday, 7/26: Sea Wolf and Midnight Movies

I certainly hope everyone watched what I watched this morning as Joey Chestnut made history in not only defeating Takeru Kobayashi but also setting a new world record (66 hot dogs) in the Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest. As usual, the competition was broadcast on ESPN and while the contest was entertaining, the real highlight was color commentator Richard Shea who sprinkled in some true gems during the twelve minute contest. Here are some highlights: "I dont know if you have ever had your wisdom teeth removed, but its [...]

It's been a surprisingly busy week with friends in town and hotdog eating contests, so I have not had the time to properly post these pictures and write a proper review. Radars to the Sky brought their A Game to the Echo last Saturday night and played a rocking set that should have showed the large crowd that they were here to play with the big boys. Their double guitar sound is a total throwback to the mid to late 90s sounds of Pavement/Built to [...]

At the risk of me sounding like I work for Jax , I am incredibly excited for Saturday night's show at the Echo. Seemingly overnight, I have become a Radars To The Sky groupie and I am looking forward to seeing them headline their first show in LA. The band was able to pick the lineup and they did a stellar job of adding fellow up and comers The Henry Clay People and Tigers Can Bite You . The show is sponsored by Rock Insider , KXLU and [...]

Today, David Colker of the LA Times wrote, "Across America, people are planning to line up for hours and even camp out overnight [yada, yada, yada, to get an iPhone]." Seriously, David, overnight? That's the best you could think of? As you may already know, the lines have already started. Yesterday, Greg and his buddy, were the first to line up for the iPhone. That's right, 4 DAYS before it goes on sale. Turns out that many of these blazingly [...]

This month's Los Angeles Magazine has a section on LA's Best New Bars. While there are bars I have never been to and never plan on going to, props to Los Angeles for including three great bars that I really enjoy on the list. Hyperion Tavern is a bar that I just love. Its a bit hard to find the first time (no signage on a dark street), but once you are there, you will love it. It's the kind of place where you show up alone and leave with [...]

Friday night, everybody who is in a band in Los Angeles headed over to Safari Sams. I saw members of Silversun Pickups, Earlimart, The Broken West, Airborne Toxic Event, Radars to the Sky, and Lets Go Sailing. I am sure there are many people that I didn't see/recognize/meet. It was my first time at Safari Sam's and I was very impressed. It has everything I like in a good music venue. It's incredibly well lit (for photos), the stage is very high (so you can be in the back and still see the show), tons [...]

• Switch - Tongue Tied

This is why I will never win a Pulitzer Prize. When I tell someone about how great Apple Pan burgers are, I say they taste great and the tillamook cheddar is just incredible. When LA Weekly's Jonathan Gold describes it, he says: The top and bottom buns of an Apple Pan burger are crisped and slightly oily, crunchy at the edges, working toward a near-complete softness at the middle; the pickles are resilient dill chips; the sheaf of fresh iceberg lettuce provides a dozen-layered crispness at the core. The beef, [...]

4 great shows go on sale tomorrow morning at 10 am. Good luck playing ticketmaster roulette. July 19: Ryan Adams @ Elbell Theater Aug 29: Wilco @ The Greek Sept 10 and 11: Spoon @ the Fonda Sept 19: The White Stripes and Cold War Kids @ The Forum Sept 18 and 19: Amy Winehouse and Paolo Nutini @ The Wiltern

LCD Soundsystem 's set at Coachella has been a highlight of my year, but I think tonight James Murphy just topped himself. He played the second of three sold out nights at the El Rey and the place was just plain crazy for LCD Soundsystem. I doubt there was a dry shirt in the entire place. Plain and simple, he just destroyed. James on the cowbell, Nancy on the keys, these guys can do no wrong and tonight they proved that they put on one of the best live shows around. Highlights include [...]

After seeing The Airborne Toxic Event several months back at the Echo and writing this post , we received some "hate comments" in the comments about this band (ok, so hate comments is a bit bold, but we rarely get comments, so we can take some liberties here). I really liked them when I saw them at the Echo but wanted to see them again with the criticism in mind. I was also incredibly excited to see Radars to the Sky, who I have been dying to see for some time, and the Happy Hollows, [...]

I have been thoroughly enjoying Sky Blue Sky and been anticipating seeing Wilco play this new stuff live. After announcing dates everywhere else in the country, Wilco finally got around to setting up dates on the West Coast: Aug 21: Marymoor Park, Seattle, WA Aug 22: Edgefield, Portland, OR Aug 24: Greek Theater, Berkeley, CA Aug 29: Greek Theater, Los Angeles, CA No info on on sales yet, but go here for all tour dates.

This is one of the funnier things I have seen in a while.