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6:00am Tuesday 12/25 - More awards: Band of the year - Juiced. Doesn't mean they're the best band in PA at this time. What is does mean is they've taken the Midstate by storm over the last year. Maybe year and one month. Partial Post had been around for countless years. Carrie and then Beth come in. Boom. Music Conference of the Year - Millenium Music Conference. (2nd place Philadelphia Music Conference) I'm biased - but the core team - John and Vikki - has been in place since the beginning, and since they can make a top-notch, well-organized conference happen in Harrisburg, PA - they have to win. Of course, that core team could take that show on the road, and there would be very little downside to that, and much upside. Underrated musician of the year - Steve Ward. Steve Ward's Opening Night is an amazing album, and the hook in California is one that any A&R guy that's looking for a hit should listen to. "Seems California is your hiding place" Hook of the year - see above - California Scene guy of the year - a) Jeff Deitrick - Fiddlestyx - The Revolution Club Milton, unfortunately, does not have a lot of people. Jeff tried very hard to have good bands, a good room, a good stage, good lights, etc. There are a lot of bands that will appreciate what Jeff D. did for them and the cause of rock. If you have $350 and want to rent a room that's better (physically) than any other in most places, call Jeff. b) John Fritchey - Plays with Steve Ward, Wayne Supergenius, The Polins, more. Is out there, like I am, making the scene, but not all nasty like (like I am). He deserves that award for not punching me in the face ever, as well on playing on many of the best albums of the year. Studio of the year - Saturation Acres - If there's going to be such a thing as a Central PA Sound, it's likely to come from Saturation Acres. Saturation Acres is, more or less, the Badlees, and they back a lot of solo acts, who record with them (I guess that doesn't bother them, they get paid some, etc.). Those albums sound great, every one. Sometimes the singer isn't that good, but basically, it's The Badlees, so it sounds awesome. Darcie Miner's first CD - Down To Earth was recorded in that basic manner. She's signed now to Beyond/Universal and is recording her 2nd CD at Saturation Acres. Show of the year (outside PA) - Rock City Crimewave - 7/1/01 - The Skinny, Portland, ME The best - I was up for like 40-44 hours straight when I saw em. Didn't know what to expect. The first 2 bands that bill didn't do too much for me. THIS IS WHAT WE NEED DOWN HERE. RCCW is from Boston, they're playing MMC in February - come and see em. I'll be talking about them more right here on this page. Ferocious. You like early Mudhoney? The jarring, garagey stuff. Heavy nu garage. Where are they? band - Brave the Day - Did they break up? They were called Clubber. Then they were called Brave the Day. Becky Miller is amazing. I'm listening to one of the skillions of boots I have right now - this one is of Brave the Day at the Harrisburg May Fair (or whatever it's called) it sounds and looks great. They're a band (especially Becky Miller) that needs more exposure around here. Enough awards for this moment. 5:00am Tuesday 12/25 - MERRY CHRISTMAS! 5 Year anniversary of PA Rocks (give or take 6 days) Giving out a couple of awards Shows of the year - 1) Wolfpac - 5/5 - Carlisle Fairgrounds Click here to stream Wolfpac in 45k RealVideo. That show was amazing. 2a/b) 6gig / Beautiful Creatures at Fiddlestyx - The Revolution Club The 6gig + other great bands show was in May - the Beautiful Creatures + other great bands show was in September. A tribute to Jeff, and a reminder what can still be on occasion while the club is still in his hands. The 1st one was stronger, but, whatever. 3) Slo-Mo and more at Gullifty's 12/1 - see below for more commentary. Show from the past award 2001 This is an award for a show not from 2001 that I feel like talking about. 3/18/00 Team Shorty, Velcro Mary, Andrew McCutcheon. 3 great bands, not an awesome turnout, but ok. It was a PA Rocks night. The kind of thing I'd like to bring again to the area. Check out the bands on the RealVideo page to see the show. I'm listening to MP3's now, just heard Velcro Mary, great indie band. Ok 7:30am Sunday 12/9 - Slo-mo still sounding great - Ed Yaz tells me he's gonna work extra hard to get Slo-Mo back - here's a link or 2 - same song, this time video, high band and low. Click here to stream "Thank God She Cooks" in 225k RealVideo, Click here to stream "Thank God She Cooks" in 45k RealVideo. Good benefit tomorrow - Toys for Tots - Crowne Plaza Hotel, I'll be there, I think. MMC going well - don't tell anyone I told you that, though, it's all hush-hush now. John Nasser - look above at the Electric Records and Holland Sound banners - has a top 100 song in Gavin Top 40. Root for him. It's a good thing. 7:30am Sunday 12/2 - Last night at Gullifty's - very nice. Plenty of scenesters there to see Case 150, Slo-Mo and The Cellarbirds - Stephen Reso, Shea Quinn, Diane Lochner (Virgin Rec) (she's gonna be there to see Pete on the 7th btw), Ray Rossi, Deuce and Michelle Gibb, Dave Aufiero, John Fritchey, Johnny Victor, Mark of Bubba, the Checkered Past owner, and a whole lot more - made that show one of the strongest for me in quite some time. That's the stuff I really like, and there are those of you who've known that for quite some time. Anyway, here's the same song as below - "Thank God She Cooks" by Slo-Mo, but from a few hours ago - Click here to stream "Thank God She Cooks" in 32k RealAudio. Good benefit - Toys For Tots - at the Crowne Plaza Hotel - Sunday, December 9. It's all ages, but if it's like last year, they're selling beer, etc. too. E-mail storky265@aol.com for more on that. Latest lineup - 1pm - Locke, 2pm - Nevermoure, 3pm - Zero Gravity, 4pm - Juiced, 5pm - Darcie Miner Band, 6pm - Clove, 7pm - Martini Bros., 8pm - Emily's ToyBox, 9pm - Negative Space, 10pm - Spellbound. storky265@aol.com is in charge of any schedule changes. 3:00pm Monday 11/19 - Got a package in the mail from Ed Yashinsky of Case 150, containing a Case 150 CD (Ephemera - a quality CD with an Americana feel), and a CD especially made to promote a show that Case 150 is playing at Gullifty's on December 1st. The CD was 9 songs long, and contained 3 songs from each of the 3 bands playing the show, Case 150, The Cellarbirds, and Slo-Mo (or Mike Brenner of Marah). The label read "Sampler CD" had the date of the show - Saturday, December 1, 2001, and the place of the show - Gullifty's Camp Hill, as well as the track information. Note to bands: putting together a CD with tracks from the bands playing a particular show is a very good idea. Not only does it make the show seem special right off the bat, there's the chance something on the CD is gonna knock me (or whoever is receiving the CD) out, as was the case here. I had seen Case 150 and The Cellarbirds previously, and they're both good bands. As an aside, Case 150 has undergone membership changes - Bryce and Bill have left, replaced by Ken Seick, formerly of Spelling Tuesday, and Tuck. I was unfamiliar with Slo-Mo prior to receiving this CD from Ed, and I'm very glad that I got it because Slo-Mo is great. Very different from almost anything you're likely to hear in clubs around here. From Ed's Press Release: "Read what No Depression Magazine said about Slo-Mo: 'Slo-Mo's mastery of his dual dobro/lap steel - especially on the more fiery numbers "Thank God She Cooks" and "Country Girl" - proves that the marriage of twang and turntable can seem effortlessly natural.'" The Slo-Mo CD "Novelty" was produced by Tom Rothrock, they guy who discovered Beck, produced "Loser" and "Mellow Gold", produced RL Burnside "It's Bad You Know" - The Sopranos, and recently was the Associate Producer, Mixer of "Southside" - Moby w/ Gwen Stefani. Rothrock seems to be inventing a genre - techno americana - fusing beats with traditional sounds and genres - folk (Beck), blues (Burnside), and dobro/lap steel (Slo-Mo). If you like Beck and Burnside you'll like this. Check out the Slo-Mo website - heyslomo.com Click here to stream "Thank God She Cooks" in 32k RealAudio. Other news: downtown Harrisburg is coming on strong. At this time, and certainly by the time all the new bars/clubs are open, downtown Harrisburg is the unrivaled destination spot in the Harrisburg metro area. Barhopping action in abundance. Now, barhopping destination spots aren't the same thing as live music, and downtown Harrisburg is still a little light on the live music for my tastes, but, as it turns out, there will be more live music there than initially anticipated. Mars just opened - word is, that's a great bar, with a NY feel. Eclipse is apparently opening on Wednesday, day before Thanksgiving. Yes, live music there. Martini Bros. Thursday, November 29. I think Darcie the week after, but not sure. Also, live music in Fisaga and Firehouse. Good stuff. 6:00pm Saturday 10/20 - 2 benefits I want to mention next weekend. Sunday, October 28 - Celebration of Life - The Art Bittner Benefit - Appalachian Brewing Co. Tons of bands - parocks.com/celebrationoflife for more info. Friday, October 26 - PA Rocks writer Paul Autry is putting on a benefit for the Firefighter victims of the September terrorism at Fiddlestyx - The Revolution Club - parocks.com/spotlight/uws.htm for more infomation. Keep sending your benefits to be listed on the Benefits page - http://parocks.com/benefits. 6:30am Friday 10/5 - 2 of Central PA's favorite young female musicians are celebrating their 18th birthday on October 10th - Liz Hale of HaleStorM and Darcie Miner. HaleStorM is kicking off their "Power of Youth" tour tonight at The Eagles Hall in Lebanon. The "Power of Youth" Tour is very important to the HaleStorM band members as they feel very strongly about talking to teens on the subject of Drug Abuse and Violence in the schools. This concert is their kick off event. The show tomorrow will be exactly what they will be doing as they perform in the public (and some private) schools across the state this coming year. Darcie has a press conference and show on October 16 at Shakey's in Hershey. Darcie will be discussing her signing to Beyond Music (home of Blondie, Better Than Ezra, Veruca Salt, The Go-Go’s and others). She will also be appearing at the Fisaga Fall Fest, a benefit for the Mayor's NYC relief fund, on Sunday with Martini Bros and more. Happy 18th!!! 8:30am Monday 9/24 - Rocking for the Red Cross yesterday at Ye Olde Ale House was very successful, with over $10,000 raised. Here's Liz of Halestorm and Lauren of Stereo Logic, after they performed at the benefit.  Another benefit for the victims of the terror attack will take place at Fisaga in downtown Harrisburg, on Sunday, October 7, with Full Effect, the Martini Bros., Krypton City Blues Revue, and the Darcie Miner Band. Check the website which I believe will be found at http://parocks.com/fisaga. Many area bands are helping out in our time of need, check http://parocks.com/benefits for info on other benefits, and contact PA Rocks to get your benefit listed. 7:00am Friday 9/7 - This Saturday, 9/8 - PA Rocks Night at Gullifty's with Smear Brick, Stereo Logic and SEEP. I've been hearing from a number of people that music on the heavy side of things hasn't been getting a fair shake in Harrisburg. Here's a good chance to c'mon out and support some heavier bands. If you support them here, other heavy bands might get a chance to get booked at Gullifty's. These are good bands, check em out. Congrats to Claudine (The X) and Jeremy (Dragonfly / MMC) getting married. New Contributor - parocks.com/lauren - Lauren 7:00am Friday 8/31 - A couple a hours ago, me and Jeff D of Fiddlestyx / Revolution Club came to the conclusion that this album was one of the best undiscovered albums. Actually, I think I persuaded him of this. It doesn't really matter much, since the band broke up. Eh, less than a year ago. The dumbasses in the record industry should have jumped on this so fucking fast. 2 and a half years ago. We were talking about Stept On prior to this. Stept On should get bookings here in South Central (Gullifty's, Shakey's, T-breds) but, still, this CD knocked Jeff out. This comes as no surprise to me, as I played this CD for him 2 years ago, but still, it remains super strong. 11:30pm Wednesday 8/22 - There's been a lot of discussion of the Chameleon Club / Lancaster police situation. Here's a bunch of links to online articles from Lancaster papers about this matter. These articles are from LancasterOnline.com. Thursday, August 16, Thursday, August 16, Friday, August 17, Friday, August 17, Friday, August 17, Sunday, August 19, Sunday, August 19, Sunday, August 19. If these links break, try News Library search - Ruoff, Chameleon It's terrible what the Lancaster police is doing to the Chameleon Club, apparently, in part, because Rich Ruoff's (the owner of the Chameleon) dad is running for Mayor against the incumbent Smithson, and all Lancaster residents should remember to register to vote if you haven't done so, and to vote in November. On a related matter, I saw Jimmie's Chicken Shack at The Chameleon on August 18. It was a great show, packed, JCS has not lost anything over the years, and it appears that their next CD will be more like the 1st and less like the 2nd. 5:30pm Wednesday 7/11 - Check out the PA Rocks contributors: parocks.com/snm - Shannon and Melanie parocks.com/spotlight - Spotlight - Paul Autry parocks.com/susanne - Susanne parocks.com/vin - Vin New contest gives the winner a record deal with Refuge / MCA Records - Rockstar 2k contest. There are 4 semi-finalists from PA: Bullet The Cellarbirds Poptart Monkeys Stept On Check out this contest, and vote the PA bands into the finals. 5:30pm Friday 5/11 - PA Rocks welcomes - Saturday May 12 - The Revolution Club http://themusicrevolution.net http://parocks.com/revolution 6gig, Dead Leaves, Throttle 5, Pure, Nevermoure. 18+ Show. Print out this e-mail and bring it to the show and get $1 off. This should be a great show. Check out the TV spots I did for the show - currently airing in the Milton / Williamsport area http://parocks.com/revcomsm1.ram (45k), http://parocks.com/revcombig1.ram (450k) The Clarks, Mary Prankster, Aztek Trip and More at The Silo in Reading tonight (Friday) I'm back doing The Silo page (kinda, just the schedule part) http://thesilonightclub.com, http://parocks.com/silopa Also, Insane Clown Posse at The Silo on June 7. WOLFPAC SHOULD BE ON THIS BILL (if they haven't already been added) WOLFPAC did an extensive tour with ICP, and there were a lot of Juggalos at the Carlisle show (see below) The Clarks and Mary Prankster at Gullifty's on Saturday, May 12) 3 good options this weekend to hear bands that are played on The X. Central PA PMC Showcase - http://parocks.com/pmcshowcase Friday June 15, 2001 Rocker's 3rd and Snyder Streets Philadelphia 9PM Bon Fuhrer 10PM Dead Leaves 11PM Spinebelt 12mid Dragon Fire 1AM The DCB Band The Central PA PMC Showcase is looking for a name - submit your suggestion here. I saw WOLFPAC in Central PA - Last Saturday (May 5) at the Carlisle Car Show in Carlisle - WOLFPAC IS as wild as they come. Unbelievable. Travel to see this band. I've spend hours and hours and hours looking at the video I shot. Points of reference? Beastie Boys, but much heavier? Definetely more lesbianism and stripping on stage. Breathing fire. Less violent than The Bad Luck 13 Riot Extravaganza (a band I want to see, but not sure I want to get ripped to shreds - anyone have any video?) A lot of WOLFPAC video is coming. There were a LOT of people there. Here are some 30 stills from the video. (1st one) (last one) Here's the last 20-25 minutes of the set in RealVideo - low bandwidth (it's fuzzy, but sounds good). (PARENTAL ADVISORY) Maybe there are tons of bands like WOLFPAC, I don't know, but they were, to me, mind-blowing incredible. Music of the future. The next big thing, or the next big thing after the next big thing. Ferocious and funky at the same time. Major props go to those (they know who they are) for bringing in the PAC. I've always liked Bon Fuhrer (who won the PMC showcase - and they're playing at the Revolution Club tonight (Friday), but after seeing WOLFPAC, Bon Fuhrer (who's always been tops in originality) seems much more promising. Extreme music. Darcie Miner update on the signing. They can announce that Beyond is the Record Company. Here's the e-mail announcement they made. The Cellarbirds released "Perfect Smile" on Tuesday. The Cellarbirds are Bret, Paul and Ron of the Badlees. The Cellarbirds aren't quite as country as Echotown, and aren't as pop as Pete's new one. Fans of Amazing Grace will like this CD for sure. I don't really do full reviews, but expect a fuller review from a contributor or contributors. http://parocks.com/snm (Shannon and Melanie), http://parocks.com/spotlight (Spotlight - Paul Autry), http://parocks.com/susanne (Susanne) The Cellarbirds are playing a CD release party early June at The Revolution Club. Just talked to Ron, and the CD is flying off the shelves. Sold out of the run of 2000 in 3 days. 10 adds to radio in under 3 days. Wal-Mart orders. Good, good stuff. When I listen to Amazing Grace, I hear a little of The Band. When I listen to Perfect Smile, I hear a little of post-psychedelic Beatles. Especially on Happy House. Where it goes "for the sense of betrayal that you feel". The word "betrayal" - very Beatlesque. Stept On is number two in FarmClub.com as of this writing. Click here to vote for Stept On. As mentioned in earlier e-mails, winning FarmClub.com gets you a very good prize - an appearance on national TV on the FarmClub.com TV show. Dragon Fire won a few months back (they're playing at The Revolution Club tonight (Friday) as well as Bon Fuhrer.) Also make note of The Malevolent Metal Fest that Dragon Fire is putting on on July 21 in Titusville, PA. It is my understanding that heavy bands might still apply, although I'm not 100% certain. WOLFPAC? Good shows at Gullifty's - May 19 - Jerry Joseph and the Jackmormons - I'm looking forward to this one. Jerry's from Oregon now, was in Little Women. I had a great time the last time they played Gullifty's. There will very likely be a number of people seeing the Gullifty's show and the Chambersburg shows http://jerryjoseph.com May 20 (Sunday) Benefit with Halestorm, Spinebelt, Negative Space, all good bands. May 26 - K-Floor - Buzz band out of the Philly area, with local favs Stone Jug. Clove - here ya go Jen :) is playing shows at Thoroughbred's on Friday May 18 and at Shakey's on Friday, June 1, also at The Revolution Club on Thursday, June 7 and back to Thoroughbred's on Friday, June 29. Clove does real well at all 3 clubs. They also are playing a bunch of other dates. Green Eggs and Spam will be playing Shakey's on Friday the 25th, and that likely will be packed. Same night at Thoroughbred's is Katie Did... I like them. Buzzfest in Lancaster on May 26 has The Martini Bros and a ton of other great bands. 5:00am Friday 4/20 - Tonight - 4:20 - Cotton Man's Land - Stone Jug and a whole lot more. CAMP OUT. Saturday 4-21 - Shakey's - SHARKS REUNION This will be big!!! Shea tells me that advance ticket sales are huge!!! I'll be there. (Maybe I should do more PA Rocks nights, or whatever). Wednesday 4-25 - Finals for the PMC Showcase - Gullifty's - Bands in competition: Bon Fuhrer, Deviation Theory, DCB Band. One will win. Be there. Friday 6-22 - Hershey Park, Hershey - Fuel, Aerosmith (tix on sale Saturday 4/21) Saturday 6-22 - Post-Gazette Pavillion, Pittsburgh - Fuel, Aerosmith (tix on sale Saturday 4/21) Ok, here's what I really want to talk about - Green Eggs and Spam. Now, remember what Andrew Loog Oldham said "as long as they spell their/your name right" Green Eggs and Spam. Ok. I have spent, since last Thursday, somewhere around 10 hours either traveling to a Green Eggs and Spam show, seeing a Green Eggs and Spam show (saw them at Wanda's last Thursday, and Shakey's last Friday), or debating the merits of Green Eggs and Spam. I spent approximately 3 of the last 24 hours debating the merits of Green Eggs and Spam. The first 2 were spent in a heated phone discussion regarding Green Eggs and Spam with the person I saw Green Eggs and Spam with. Later, I talked to John Fritchey (Wayne Supergenius, Steve Ward/Cherry Twister, The Polins, Amy Simpson Collective, more) about Green Eggs and Spam at the Echotown, Cellarbirds, Darcie Miner Show. After that I talked to Deuce Gibb (Martini Bros.) about Green Eggs and Spam at the Bon Fuhrer, Psycho-a-go-go show at the Vault. After that I talked to Steve Nelson (Green Eggs and Spam) about Green Eggs and Spam at the same show at the Vault. Perhaps I was too much of a straight shooter with Steve, who is a good man, and belated congrats on his marriage to Shelby, but I was just trying to communicate with him the fact that I had already spent a ton of time either seeing his band or discussing his band, and I wanted to get feedback on what I and my friend had discussed, because a lot was said in a knowledge vacuum. I'm sure you've seen Green Eggs and Spam, or, if not, you're certainly aware of what they do. Here's a poll. Some more randoms on Green Eggs and Spam. Midnight Sun is great. They're the ones who do management and bookings for Green Eggs and Spam and Mr. Greengenes. Phone - (610) 566-6777 Rick Green and Ted Kushner were both in the house at the last Millenium Music Conference. I talked to Rick for about 15 minutes about who he should go see - always on the lookout for new talent. We took the MMC 11x17 sheet with the pix that I did and I went through all the bands with him. It took a while to figure out what he was looking for, and I'm not sure that I did all that great a job for him, but I did try. At the time I was saying that Julian Fist was a natch, because they were playing before Greengenes, but I heard later that he didn't see em. Ted is supercool. We like Ted. I met Ted at the last MMC (MMC2000) He's a lawyer, like me, he wasn't with Midnight Sun at the time. This year I hung with Ted after I got back to the hotel from Gullifty's on Friday night after watching Zach Myers, Monovox, Mercy River, Rebel Amish Radio and Bead at Gullifty's and talking with and interviewing Jerry Harrison of Garageband.com and Talking Heads fame. We spent like a half hour looking at the PA Musician, and I was filling him in on the bands in it, then we went to go to find the Indian room (it was only like 3 am) and it was all broken up, which was a total bummer - then I hung out for another hour or 2 (Cal / Eden Park) and went home and captured, encoded, and served the Jerry Harrison video. More notes on last weekend. Saw Green Eggs and Spam twice and Clove at Throughbred's. Between those 3 places, there were somewhere between 1500-2000 people. Got decent video of both bands on Friday. Jen asked me a while back to post the Clove schedule on the PA Rocks Network E-Mailer, I was concerned about the propriety of doing so at the time, but since I'm talking about Green Eggs and Spam and Clove here, I'll do a modified version on the mailer, shorter but with schedules, which should be coming out in an hour or so. OK. 9:00am Wednesday 4/4 - Here's a blast from the past. 4 YEARS AGO IN PA ROCKS. This was when PA Rocks was at members.aol.com/JOLIII/PARocks.html - that site is still partially there. Check out the counter - I got more banner impressions yesterday, than I got total to the AOL site. You can see remnants of the old design. A whole bunch of broken links. You might find it interesting. Click Here for the 4 year old schedule. Was knocked out by 3 bands at Gullifty's last Thursday - Stephen Reso Band, Wayne Supergenius, No Show Ponies. Keep an eye out for RealVideo of these bands, and a whole lot more sometime before the end of the year (I'm way behind). Check out the PMC Playoff every Wednesday in April at Gullifty's. Tonight is Balistic at 10, Bon Fuhrer at 11, Eden Park at 12. Good benefit on Sunday - Jointstock is a benefit for the Arthritis Foundation and it takes place at the Appalachian Brewing Co. from 4-11pm. Stone Jug w/ White Bread (9p), Darcie Miner Band (7p), Tony Perry 3 5p), Dann and Dave (6p), UUU (4p)and Zero Gravity (8p) are playing the event with a Super Jam at 10p. More additions to the Shannon and Melanie section. Most recently, more RealVideo interviews from the Millenium Music Conference and interviews from Gulliftys 3/17 - check it out. 6:00am Friday 3/23 - ATTENTION PA HARD ROCK / HEAVY BANDS!!! Hard Rock / Heavy bands who have applied to the Philadelphia Music Conference - http://www.gopmc.com (the showcase application deadline is TODAY!!! - $25 application here - http://www.gopmc.com/app_form.htm ) are encouraged to apply to the New Music Showcase / Competition held at Gullifty's every Wednesday in April. John Harris - johnharris@johnharris.com is picking a total of 9 hard rock / heavy bands from the area - the winner gets a slot at the Philadelphia Music Conference. It's pretty hard to get a slot at the PMC - this might be your way in - John's almost done with the picking of the bands, so if you're interested, you should get on this today (Friday). E-mail John Harris with your interest johnharris@johnharris.com More info here A couple good benefits on Sunday April 8 - one in Harrisburg and one in Philly. Jointstock is a benefit for the Arthritis Foundation and it takes place at the Appalachian Brewing Co. from 4-11pm. Stone Jug w/ White Bread, Darcie Miner Band, Tony Perry 3, Dann and Dave, UUU and Zero Gravity are playing the event. Check the Jointstock website for more info - including band times when they are announced. In Philly, there will be a benefit for the family of Mario Parrillo at Finnegan's Wake from 6p - 2a with Animal House, Octane, Monster Island, Barrow Gang, Lauren Hart, Crystal Roxx, Monkey Bus, Lecompt, Vicious Circle and Steamroller Picnic. 6:00am Friday 3/2 - Inside the Web is taking down their message boards on March 5. I've implemented 2 new message boards http://pub55.ezboard.com/bparocks11185 and http://pub55.ezboard.com/bparocks86588 - there's been a bunch of complaints about the tenor of the board recently, and I think that some of the complaints should be resolved by some of the new features. Please feedback to me on this, and I haven't necessarily settled on this method. MMC was great. 4 long days. I'll tell you what my MMC was like. Got to the Hilton at 8:00 on Thursday, after leaving my place with the suspicion that I would not be able to accomplish all the various things I wanted to do - was quite running out of time, but didn't want to miss a full night of shows (I didn't really tell people what my plans were, so it's cool) The registration was pretty much closed, but I got my laminates, and then determined that most people were going to Gullifty's, so off I went, with Tommy of Function 45. Saw Scott Keck Band, Choda Farm, Idle Ride, Hafast Frank, videoed it all. The JH crew was in the house, as was Clear Channel Communications (Channel 15, 21) who led their newscasts live from Gullifty's. Cool, as we could watch live and TV simulaneously. Got a ride home, with a person I'd like to see again, but I was still (wrongly) in "work" mode, and I should have triaged more efficiently all work that still needed to be done, and concentrated on the "play" opportunites that I was presented with. Oh well, my bad. Rolled into the Hilton nice and late, confident that the amazing Shannon and Melanie, as well as others like Tony, Tim and Joy, would be holding down the fort (booth). They did so, and quite well. I'm not sure that they quite understood the extent to which I was leaving the booth up to them, but it's all good. Didn't rush myself during the day, got a little video, hung out with MMCers, tried to make sure Shannon and Melanie were happy, having fun - tried to give them space to do their thing. Closed up around 6. Saw Darcie Miner, Aztek Trip at the Hilton, taped, went to Gullifty's, with Christine Heilig, saw Zach Myers Band, Mercy River, Monovox, Rebel Amish Radio, Bead, taped. Talked to Jerry Harrison of Garageband.com and Talking Heads fame, taped it. Back to the Hilton, with Pam, Sal, et al., for the late night partying. Impressed Ted from Midnight Sun with my partying skill. Talked to Cal for Eden Park, but apparently I missed all the bigger parties due to their being broken up and such, so no partying until 6-8 in the AM, which is a change - something that I have come to rely on. Went home, encoded the Jerry Harrison footage and put it on the MMC website, went to sleep. Strolled in late again, again confident in Shannon and Melanie and the PA Rocks team. Chilled out, hung out, did a little taping, talked to some people, generally took it easy during the day like I like to do. Taped mostly at the Hilton that night - Shannon and Melanie were there taping as well, so coordinated with them. Radio Caroline, Perforated Head, New Invisible Joy, Stephen Reso Band, then to the Whitaker Center for Julie Schreiber, then back to the Hilton. I pretty much was done taping by that time, talked to Cal Weary and David James for an hour or so, found Shannon and Melanie, got their stuff, they went home. Partied with Perforated Head - they liked my video of them, which I was able to find after looking at some 10-15 unlabeled tapes. Security was knocking on the door, etc., etc., apparently the little speaker on my camcorder was too loud. Found JH and hung with the JH crew till about 6 - went home, slept. Went to Shakey's with Jeff from Fiddlestyx / Revolution Club. Saw, taped, Waste of Time, Mr. Kahn, Deviation Theory, 6gig. Hung out, went home. Didn't completely go insane for long periods of time, was pleased by this. I've been getting way, way behind on my encoding and uploading of my video. (I have stuff from November that's still not up) I just got a standard video capture card - a return to how I used to capture and encode back in 1998, early 1999. Recently I've been going firewire to Sony to Premiere to RealProducer which is extraordinarily time consuming, but theoretically should give the best results. Now I'm going to be going straight to RealProducer through the standard video capture card. The results are quite good, I've done a test - got 28fps at 45kbps - with a nice clean look (and the sound's the same). So, I'm pretty confident that I'll be up to date by the end of April. The clips will be much longer than they were before - more 30 minute clips, and less individual songs. 6:00am Saturday 2/17 - Home runs - 1st - Zach - unbelievable - just a home run set - if your were there, you'd know - but words like blistering, fiery, etc, come to mind - I don't see that many home runs. You know I love you all, but you would've had to have seen that set to fully understand what I'm saying here. . 2nd - Shannon and Melanie - not me, but better than me at what they're doing. Let's rally behind the making sure they have great college recommendations type thing idea. Jerry Harrison wins whatever is the highest award. The world of light, I'ts gonna open your eyes up. Umm, yea, ITS ALL GOOD. Buzz has Julian Fist and the Martini Bros doing great, but I wasn't there, so I can't really say. Best guess is that they did, because they rule, in general. Make sure you try to see Halestorm and Julie Schreiber tomorrow. (To be honest - and to get out of promo mode - if anyone has seen Liz Hale, Julie Schreiber and Darcie Miner sing, tell me who's good - my opinion is that they're all amazing, so I'm curious as what you all think. Aight. 2:30am Monday 2/12 - 3 days till the start of the Millenium Music Conference - looking forward to it. Want to note that the ALL AGE ACCESS show at Sunday at the Rodeway has been moved to Shakey's and 6gig was added. Check Showcase list for the lastest updated list. 7th House is now at the Vault on Thursday, Margret Heater is in their place at Shakey's, Fat Apple is out of Appalachian, I think those are the latest. About ALL AGE ACCESS shows in general - some serve alcohol, some don't. Rodeway, Broad Street, Whitaker - no alcohol. Hilton, Shakey's - alcohol served, I believe there's separate areas for U21's and 21+. For those of you who are interested in getting press for your band or club or whatnot Shannon and Melanie are likely to be at the PA Rocks booth at the conference and when they're there, they'll be available to do interviews with. So, just go up to them at the booth if they're there and talk to them, work something out. The booth in general will be pretty good, the idea is to have the focus on the bands and clubs who are part of the PA Rocks Network, and less on the web site itself. I figure that people can check the web site out later, at their convenience, but having the PA Rocks bands, clubs, contributors there to show off their stuff would be key - so, check out the booth. I'll be around, but it's likely that I'll be working for MMC at the time - I'm not certain. 9:30am Thursday 2/1 - The Millenium Music Conference will definitely be the best yet for the U21's. 4 Stages will be ALL AGES ACCESS. Hilton Harrisburg and Towers, Rodeway Inn, Whitaker Center, and Broad Street Market all accessable to U21's. 2 Nights at the Hilton (Friday and Saturday), 3 Nights at the Rodeway (Friday, Saturday, Sunday) 3 Nights at Whitaker Center (Thursday, Friday, Saturday) and 2 Nights at the Broad Street Market. Buy a wristband for $20, and you can see all of that, U21's. If you are U21, live anywhere near around here, and at all interested in music, you've got to do that. Check the bands out on the Millenium Music Conference site, and plan your long weekend in advance. This might be the best deal the U21's have ever gotten around here. 7:30pm Wednesday 1/17 - A few things: The Millenium Music Conference is in the process of making announcements. 95+% of the showcase schedule is up, announced, in text form. Check this file periodically, as this file is the most up to date info out there, beyond what JH has on his computer. Stuff like Panels, and CD track listing will be posted shortly, as well as the venue pages. I've seen a few things that bands are doing to hype themselves regarding the MMC - some good stuff. Got an email from Orion 321, a band from Canada, who's playing the Gingerbread Man Downtown Friday 2/16 at Midnight, which read in part "I can make them available to "PA ROCKS" for an interview any time between 2:00 pm and 10:00 pm if you would be interested? We will also be happy to supply you with copies of their new CD "Bottom Of The Sky" (which can be preveiwed at http://artists.mp3s.com/artists/cds/54/54716.html), as give-aways for your readers." So, these guys are making this outreach, seeking press interviews and offering up multiple copies of their CD - good stuff. So, by doing this in this manner, I'll probably talk to them at the conference. And, if you want a CD, send me an e-mail. (Send it soon, I'm not sure how many I can give out, so, 1st come 1st served) mailto:parocks@parocks.com with your name and mailing address. It's always good to give some CD's out, just in general. CD's cost like a buck or two to make and a buck or so to mail out. I happened to come across what Ives Law, who's playing at the Rodeway Inn at 5:30 on Saturday 2/17 is doing regarding the MMC. They're renting a bus from Maryland and for $30 bucks you get a ride, admission to the show, a t-shirt, and a six pack of beer. Their e-mail said that they were "thrilled" about the "opportunity." That's the proper attitude to take toward the conference. A showcase spot at the MMC is not just some gig, and it is certainly not a gig to which bands are entitled. Also note that the All Age shows are at the Rodeway Inn (The Rock N Roll Hotel) and not the City Island Pavillion. The Rodeway Inn is the Old Courtyard, or the Villa Leo. A nice big room with a nice big stage. Stone Jug did a New Year's Eve show there this past NYE, and the NYE before, and will be having another show there on 4/20. This is a good concert space in Harrisburg, right off I-83 and the Turnpike, and it's available to rent, affordably, for those individuals who are interested in putting on an All Age Show perhaps. There aren't too many big all age stages in the Harrisburg area - props to Tony Catalano and John Harris for helping to bring this stage back into action. Lots of good stuff on the winning contests front. Poptart Monkeys are less than 100 votes out of 1st place in the Jagermusic.com contest, where the prize is $10,000. Vote for Poptart Monkeys here. Dragon Fire won FarmClub.com went to LA, got taped, and played the Crowbar and got taped there as well. Dragon Fire will be appearing on Farm Club (USA Network) early to mid February. Check out their press releaseCheck out their press release. Bead and Zach Myers (from Memphis, but MMC) are doing well on Garageband.com - a MMC sponsor - with 2 songs apiece in the top 100, and eleven eleven, Christine Havrilla (playing MMC in 3 Stories High), and Prince Dred all are in the top 100. Good luck to all. |
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