The story says that KG was at a commercial shoot at Conseco Fieldhouse this summer, and when he was asked by a Pacers assistant on his way out to meet the Pacers rookies Tyler Hansborough and AJ Price he responded by saying "Fuck your rookies!" and walking out.
I love this story. Unless by "meet" this assistant coach met "have sex with their wives", I'm not exactly sure what he was expecting. People can hate KG all they want, but I stick to my guns that he hasn't changed a bit. He's always been this way, and he was appreciated for it when he was in Minnesota. The only thing that's changed is the quality of his teammates and the size of the market he plays in. People can say what they want, they wish they had guys like this on their team.
Cs at Magic tonight. Fuck their rookies too....and their veterans....and their ron jeremy look alike coach.
And, as if you needed more, don't forget that the world's greatest band will be playing at the Middle East on Saturday night (I know I've posted the Gnashing several times lately...I guess sometimes a song does that to you):
Baroness will be coming back around again this Saturday (11/21) at the Middle East in Cambridge. People get sick of us plugging no band but this one, but I am unphased. In a perfect world, this would be the highest grossing tour in history. I can honestly say that there isn't a show I can think of that I would see over them. Obviously, you should be there.
My deluxe copy of The Blue Record, the new Baroness album, finally arrived on Tuesday night. Because of this, needless to say, my week has kicked more ass than usual. The album is unreal. Coming off the Red Album, my expectations could not have been higher, and they were all exceeded. On top of that, the deluxe edition of the album comes complete with a live CD with 5 great live Red Album cuts. You need to get this for yourself. You can order it here.
Now, the picks.
Kansas City +6.5 over WASHINGTON: A colleague of mine, who is a Skins diehard, is making a pretty strong case for his team to be the worst in the entire NFL. At first I didn't buy it, but the more he talked with me, the more I became convinced. Even their wins have felt like losses. Despite being an NFC team, the strength of schedule factor hurts the Skins on a historic level. This will mark the 6th consecutive week that the Redskins will face a winless team. This is week 6. Every single team they have played has entered the game winless. That has never happened before. And yet, despite this cupcake schedule, they have not managed to turn in one solid performance. So, are they the worst team? You'd be hard pressed to argue otherwise.
CINCINNATI -5 over Houston: The Bengals are currently one super flukey play in Denver away from being undefeated. They also currently have the NFL's leading rusher. Carson Palmer seems to have returned to form for the time being, and you have to love the way this team is finally gelling after the better part of a decade.
PITTSBURGH -14 over Cleveland: I'm not a Browns fan (which I am thankful for every day), but I have to believe that win in Buffalo on Sunday felt like a loss. Derek Anderson, who was supposed to help breathe some life into this offense, completed 2 passes for 23 yards. Between the piss poor performances on the field, and all of the turmoil off the field (I don't know how often multiple players file grievances against their coach in the same week, but I'd imagine it means 2 things: 1) the players are unhappy, and 2) they don't feel like their coach would be receptive to them communicating that unhappiness), this team is not going to win another game.
MINNESOTA -3 Baltimore: I was sure the Vikings would flame out eventually, but they're showing no signs of that at the moment. In fact, they seem to be getting more and more powerful and in sync as each week passes. Coming off two straight losses, the Ravens are certainly hungry, but I can't pick against Minnesota at home with the way they've looked.
JACKSONVILLE -9.5 over St. Louis: What the fuck was that last week, Jacksonville? All along we've been saying that you never know what you're going to get with the Texans and Cardinals, but this Jaguars team seems like the ultimate wildcard right now. I thought they might have trouble in Seattle and I didn't expect them to win. But, I couldn't believe they got waxed like that. Still, I'll take them at home over the Rams just like I would take anybody at home against the Rams.
Giants +3 over NEW ORLEANS: Maybe I'm missing something, because just about everyone I've talked to or heard talk on tv has picked the Saints. I get that they're coming off of a bye, but the G-Men played the Raiders at home last week. I also understand that if you're not looking any further than the quarterback matchup, it's hard to go against what Drew Brees has been doing. But, this game is about a lot more than Brees vs. Manning.
The Giants can bring huge pressure with their front four, so Drew Brees will have to get rid of the ball quickly. This will prevent big plays. The Saints blitz a lot, and they can get a lot of pressure that way. But, the Giants running game is so solid right now, and it seems like they are always facing manageable down and distance. Because they are so good on the ground, it's hard for me to imagine the New Orleans blitz forcing mistakes. I've tried to slice this one a lot of different ways, and I come up with the Giants winning every time. That being said, don't overestimate the importance of this matchup. It's only week 6.
And then there's this guy.....who I hopes takes a lot of hits on Sunday:
TAMPA BAY +3.5 over Carolina: I'm taking the home team in this matchup, because I can't be bothered to consider any other elements.
GREEN BAY -13.5 over Detroit: With Calvin Johnson most likely on the shelf this weekend, it's hard for me to envision the Lions making a game of this. The Pack should be fresh after their bye week, and I'm sure they're itching to feast on the Lions after losing a tough one to Minnesota their last time out.
Philadelphia -14 OAKLAND: I don't think I realized how pitiful the Raiders were until I experienced it first hand. The Raiders only touchdown came off a Giants muffed punt and an officiating miscue which allowed them to keep possession after a fumble. If Eli Manning had stayed in for the whole game, the Giants were on pace to score 100 points.
Arizona +3 over SEATTLE: That goal line stand against Houston last week was just the kind of thing that rejuvenates good teams (see Giants in week 3 of 07-08 at Washington). That was a gut check moment for the entire season. 1-3 would have been impossible to overcome. At 2-2, I like the Cards to keep improving.
NY JETS -9.5 over Buffalo: On the plus side, the Bills defense held Cleveland to 23 yards through the air on Sunday. But, they lost that game, which is unforgivable. Coming off of two straight road losses, the Jets will cruise at home this week.
Tennessee +9.5 over NEW ENGLAND: New England has looked good at home, but I don't know if I really buy that the Patriots are good enough to be giving 9.5 here. I don't think they should have been favored at Denver last week, and certainly not by more than three! More than anything, I'm angry about the line, which I just think is too high given New England's holes. So, it may be my undoing, but I'm taking Tennessee on principle. While I'm feeling this way, I'll go bold: Titans get their first win this Sunday.
Chicago +3 over ATLANTA: I showed the Falcons no respect last week, and it came back to bite me. But, I'm still not buying it. I think the Bears make some big plays on Sunday night, and pull this one out.
Denver +3.5 over SAN DIEGO: The Broncos are undefeated, one of the Chargers two wins was a nailbiter against Oakland, and San Diego has key guys banged up. The fact that Denver is getting points at all here is absurd. More than three points certainly makes no sense.
As excited as I am for the college and professional football seasons to kick off, I am equally as excited for the new Baroness album to arrive at my door in October. In case our widget below didn't work for you, here is a youtube version of the first two cuts from the upcoming Blue Record. The first song is Bullhead's Psalm, and it leads in to The Sweetest Curse. Lie on the couch and let this thing soak in. Really really awesome.
It's been over six months since our last podcast, and our rust certainly shows in this shaky return to action. Babcock and I called each other this afternoon to vent our mutual anger that Brett Favre was back in the news, and somehow this resulted in an impromptu podcast. We begin by bashing Brett Favre for about 20 minutes before we move on to discuss the impressive preseason debuts of the Giants and Patriots. We then break down the AFC and NFC East and make our Heisman Trophy pick. Finally, I try (unsuccessfully, although I did give him a huge hint) to stump Babcock in celebrity trivia. Here's your hint: "if you lie with dogs, you're bound to get fleas". Informative? Definitely not. But, I'd say it's certainly entertaining.
We will be back with part 2, and will bring the rest of the staff in to the fold.
(it might take a few seconds to load. If you haven't heard anything after 30 seconds, close and come back to the site and try again. This should do the trick. If that doesn't work, click below and it will feed you the episode straight from gcast).
Check out this single from the new Baroness album (set to drop in October). It's called Bullhead's Psalm/The Sweetest Curse, and it kicks a lot of ass. It's comforting to know that soon enough (November or December according to their website), I'll be back at the Middle East and they'll be fucking blowing my face off again.
UPDATE: These are actually the first two songs of the new album. Bullhead's Psalm is the intro and leads in to track 2, which is the Sweetest Curse.
Yeah, as always, that's some sick cover art. Gilby got an advanced listen of this thing over at Relapse, and reports that "it's fucking amazing". Honestly, the Red Album still blows my mind and it's been about two years now. Here's a link with more of the cover art and the track listings.
The band announced in this blog post that they had to cut their summer tour short, but says that they will be touring during November and December to promote the new album. As always, when they come to New England, the roomofzen will be there.
This video is 30 minutes, but well worth your time if it loads:
If you don't have that kind of time, here's something shorter:
You might think "The Second Coming" was referring to LBJ being the second coming of MJ. But, as Jordanesque as that moment was, I'm going to need to see some rings before I can bring myself to be so bold. Instead, it referred to this voicemail I got from Babcock at 9:10 this morning:
"Hey man, sorry to bother you so early on a Saturday morning. Just felt I had to let you know this big news. I'm driving through Bath, Maine, and I just saw a new building site in Brunswick, North of Cooks Corner. It read "Winner's Sports Bar". A brand new location and a brand new building."
If you don't know about Winner's, which we returned to Brunswick to find demolished to nothing but a scrapheap in October, and the story of how this site got it's name, let Gilby enlighten you. There may not be an actual roomofzen attached to this new Winner's, but the spirit of the roomofzen will still live there.
We've got Conference Finals all weekend baby! Enjoy it, and please, kick some ass this memorial day:
On a totally random note, this post from Christmas 2007 will always be one of my favorites. The site was new, I was trying my hardest to be funny, and I failed at multiple turns. But, overall, I think it still turned out alright.
As it always does before a holiday, work had piled up over the weekend. The last thing I needed, I thought, was to be heading out late on a cold Sunday night to go to a concert at the Middle East. And yet, I couldn't resist the urge. As soon as I walked through the doors, I realized that I had made the right move. This show was, indeed, exactly what I needed.
Throughout the existence of the roomofzen, we have never missed a Baroness show in New England. The first concert we ever reviewed was a Baroness show at the Middle East (I also just came across Babcock's post from when we saw them in March). Ted Gilbert, who writes for our site (and with whom an interview is published in the current issue of Rue Morgue magazine) works for their label, Relapse Records. We have posted about ten times more Baroness videos on this site than we have any other band. We have mentioned their most recent album, the Red Album (hands down the best album released in 2007. Revolver Magazine named it the best metal album of 2007.), at least 100 times on this site. I would certainly not claim that they are the official band of the roomofzen (and we have certainly not contacted them about this possibility, as it would really benefit them in no way), but they are definitely our favorite. Their shows are the best we've seen, bar none. Sunday, November 23rd at the Middle East was no exception.
The show was kicked off by Boston's own Motherboar, about whom I had heard a great deal but never actually seen live. I have heard multiple people compare them to Motorhead, which pretty much automatically makes them awesome. We arrived a little late to their set, right as they began to play their Underwater Trilogy. What I saw of their performance sucked me right in. There was a ton of energy on stage and the music was sick (everything I've heard from Raise the Death Toll is great). I am definitely going to make a point of seeing them again.
Next up was Coliseum, another Relapse band that had been traveling with Baroness throughout the duration of the tour (and who opened for Rancid this summer). This trio from Louisville, KY had much more of a punk/hardcore sound and feel to them than Baroness and their performance gave us all the forceful kick in the face that we were craving.
As great as the music from Coliseum was, my favorite part of the set came towards the end, when lead singer and guitarist Ryan Patterson addressed the crowd. He thanked everyone for coming out, and talked about how appreciative he was to the crowd regardless of whether or not they were there for Coliseum. He spoke at length about how many people he knows that are in bands who don't have homes to go back to because they put so much of their passion, time, and resources into their music.
At the end of Patterson's address he said, "this time on this stage means the fucking world to us." We already knew that to be true. Coliseum sent that message to us with the raw energy and the honesty with which they performed. But actually hearing the words spoken had a huge impact on me and reminded me why I had come to the Middle East on that cold Sunday evening. I had come to see something real. Bands like these and shows like these are where we can still find the real essence of music. While millions of Americans were at home Sunday night watching plastic musicians churn out manufactured bullshit on the American Music Awards, we were seeing three bands that were bearing their souls to us and presenting us with something authentic and original that we could take or leave. Maybe I'm not explaining it right, but it was fucking badass. See Coliseum and buy No Salvation.
I don't need to tell you that Baroness took the stage around 11 for the final performance of the tour and fucking killed every note. They get better every time we see them, and are hands down the best live act on the planet. The setlist was different from the last shows we've seen. They opened with The Birthing instead of Rays On Pinion (which came later), but still closed with O'Appalachia. This was also the first time we've seen them since Peter Adams joined the group. If I had to pick a highlight of the show, I'd say that Wanderlust was particularly sick. But, there is really no way to break down or describe a live Baroness performance. It's impossible to do it justice. They are so raw and aggresive on stage, and yet the melodies are overwhelmingly present but unpredictable. If you haven't had the pleasure of a live show yet, then you're missing out. If you don't own their CDs (particularly the Red Album), then you must not value our opinion very much because this is about the 500th time we've told you.
I was there with Riley and Salsich, and all three of us agreed afterward that the goblet of rock had never tasted quite so potent as it did on that evening. Now, four days later, we all remain thoroughly quenched.
I don't know when they'll be back in New England, but I can't wait. As always, the roomofzen will be there.
If you've been reading ROOMOFZEN from the start then you know that Genghis Tron is not only one of our favorite groups, but also the group we've seen live more than any other over the past year. We've seen them multiple times in both Boston and Philadelphia, and several places in between. Most recently, Babcock and I headed over to Worcester to see them play the Palladium with Baroness in March. Their shows are amazing and kick our ass every time. Needless to say, we were honored that they were willing to grant us this interview. Before you start, here is a video of them playing the title track to their most recent CD, Board Up the House (video from Metal Injection). If you haven't bought the album yet, you must not read this blog enough.
Hamilton Jordan, the guitarist you see above, was kind enough to answer our questions.
ROOMOFZEN: Thanks so much for agreeing to do this interview. If someone would have told me 6 months ago when this site started that we'd have a band of your caliber voluntarily being featured, I would have shat my pants. I'm not really sure what has changed, because I didn't shit my pants, but we're all really pumped.
Hamilton: No problem, man! We're happy to take part.
R: One thing that is really awesome about you guys is that it seems like you are constantly on the road. Every time we see you around Boston, we leave feeling excited because we already know that you're going to be back sometime in the next couple of months. Each time, the show is more dynamic and the lightshow that you added is sick. How much time do you guys actually spend on the road, and what have your experiences been like on the road this year with bands like DEP and Converge?
H: We do spend quite a lot of time on the road -- not as much as some bands out there, but that's because we all have lives and families and friends that matter to us, so we can only keep ourselves healthy and sane by making sure to balance our touring and home lives. In 2008, I think we will spend about 5 months on the road total. Our experiences this year have been amazing -- our best so far. Our 5-week U.S. tour with Converge was a complete blast, and it was followed immediately by two weeks in Europe, which was also amazing. We're about to take a break for a few months, but I'm already looking forward to booking more tours -- and that's something I wouldn't have ever imagined myself saying a year or two ago!
R: Have you managed to swing a bus yet or is it still the GT van? Which was a bigger priority, the lightshow or the bus?
H: Haha, I don't believe we'll ever get a bus. That's Mookie's favorite thing to joke about, and it will never happen.
R: How has it been working with Kurt Ballou on your last two records and how has he influenced the choices that you made in Dead Mountain Mouth and Board Up the House?
H: It was a great experience. It's very important for us to have an opinionated, talented, fourth head involved in the recording process. The three of us work so hard writing the songs and we often drive ourselves and each other to the edges of our sanity. Because our instrumentation and production style makes for limitless options, it's very hard for us to make songwriting and arranging decisions. Thus, it would be far too daunting for us to also spearhead the recording and engineering of our albums. Working with Kurt provides for a great balance, because we're still making the grand decisions as far as how the album is going to sound, but he's the one who is able to comprehend our goals and help us translate them into specific sounds and effects. Furthermore, he's a talented songwriter, so if we're stuck on revising a last-minute addition to the album, he's great at pushing us to make wise choices.
R: We saw you guys at the Middle East on the tour with DEP, and it was a great show. We came for you guys, but we were also really psyched because we had heard tell of how intense Dillinger is on stage. We were expecting to see Stolen Babies opening that show. Instead we got Shat. Now, I'm certainly not going to speak ill of any bands, but I was excited to see Stolen Babies and Shat left me feeling a little bit empty (particularly the occasional visible scrotum that their show entails). Did Stolen Babies ever join you guys on that tour and if so do you know why they weren't in Cambridge?
H: Stolen Babies were never on that tour; it was announced as such, but apparently was never true. We've never met them nor played any shows with them.
R: I have a question about etiquette. Every time we see you guys play, you are also very visible around the audience throughout the rest of the show. Obviously, it would be awesome to talk to you guys, but I never feel comfortable enough to do it. The closest I ever came was the show at Great Scott (album release tour) because we saw you guys outside the place before the show. But, in Worcester, I had you guys and Baroness, two of my favorite bands, standing right in front of me. I want to talk, but I don't want to end up like Wayne and Garth bowing down to Alice Cooper chanting "we're not worthy." Do you guys like to mingle with the fans at your shows, or would you rather just take the show in like everyone else?
H: As long as people aren't super crazy or obnoxious for some reason (which is rare), we love talking to fans at shows. I don't go out of my way to walk around the crowd and shake hands with people, but if someone approaches me and wants to talk, I'm always happy to do so. I did that all the time with bands I admired, and still do. So come say hi next time!
R: Genghis Tron and Baroness are our two favorite bands and the two that we have spent most of our time writing about. We didn't even stay in Worcester to see RC or Converge because we didn't want to change the energy we had from seeing you guys and Baroness play consecutive sets. What do you think of those guys and what other bands are you guys into right now?
H: You should have stayed for Converge! Baroness is a great band consisting of great dudes. We're hoping to do some more touring with them later this year. We're into tons of bands, too many to name -- but right now, as far as newer bands, we've been listening to a lot of Black Mountain, Nachtmystium, Black Moth Super Rainbow, Krallice, and the Chromatics!
R: I know you guys are heading to Europe with Nachmystium. What comes next? Can we expect you in the Boston area any time soon? (NOTE: THEY HAVE RETURNED FROM THE EUROPEAN TOUR WITH NACHMYSTIUM)
H: We're playing a single show in Brazil next month, then in July we return to Europe for one week to play a large festival in France and some other shows. Starting in September or October, we plan on doing another U.S. tour and probably back to Europe a third time after that!
R: Can you describe to us some of your musical influences, specifically in the punk / hardcore or metalcore realms? We are huge fans of cross-over bands like yours, and the unique combination of styles intrigues us since we fucking love newer bands like you guys and High on Fire and Hatebreed, yet retain our appreciation for older bands such as Megadeth. Also, do you have any thoughts you'd like to share about Neil Young?
H: Our influences are pretty diverse, as we all came from different musical backgrounds. Personally, I wasn't really a part of any "scene" growing up in Atlanta, so most of what I learned about music I found from books, magazines, and later the Internet. Between the three of us, I can confidently say that some of our biggest influences are Nine Inch Nails, Coil, Drive Like Jehu, Skinny Puppy, Slint, Philip Glass, Meshuggah, Autechre, Botch, Boards of Canada, and Tool.
R: Thanks so much for taking the time to talk with us and have a great time in Europe. (NOTE: THEY HAVE RETURNED FROM THE EUROPEAN TOUR)
H: No problem, man! Thanks for the interview and I'm quite sorry it took so long to respond.
Obviously all of us here at Roomofzen are huge Baroness fans. That is why we talk about them all the time and have them linked up over on the right. I really do believe that the Red Album was the best album of 2007 and it's ashame that we are in this age of music where you really have to look hard to find good stuff. Anyways, Babcock and I saw them on Sunday night, as you can see in the Babcock report and I feel inspired to post this sick video. Play it loud, and maybe you can experience 1/10th of the intensity that this band puts out. Both times I have seen them I have left feeling like I just gained some profound insight into the way the world works.
