Day one of the Prep Bowl is in the book.

5A Final: Cretin-Derham Hall 16 Eden Prairie 5: In the night-cap game these two power houses squared off. However, Eden Prairie’s offense looked like they stayed home. Eden Prairie failed to score a touchdown and did not play like a typical Eagles team. In an ugly win for Cretin, Quarterback Mark Alt made several big plays to capture the win. Alt completed 10 of 19 passes and made the plays he needed to win the game.

2A Final: Waterville-Elysian-Morristown 33 Moose Lake/Willow River 22: A week after winning on a two-point conversion to put them in the Prep Bowl, WEM puts the final touches on their season. With Friday’s victory, the No. 10-ranked Bucs beat No. 1 and two-time defending champion Caledonia in the quarterfinals, No. 2 Eden Valley-Watkins last week and now, No. 3 Moose Lake/Willow River.

1A: Minneota 42, Adrian 21: The Vikings entered the championship game averaging more than 51 points per game and almost held true to this mark. Minneota used a powerful running game to overpower Adrian. This is Minneota’s third state championship, the last two coming in the late 1980’s.

9-man: Stephen-Argyle 37, Nicollet 22: Stephen-Argyle made a statement early and often in this game. In capturing their record-setting seventh state title the Storm racked up 616 yards of offense  on 94 plays, 34 of them going for first downs. Those numbers are all Prep Bowl records.

Having first listened to this album about a month ago I was convinced that a band I used to find quite listenable and even enjoyable at times were either getting worse or for some reason becoming more unbearable to these ol’ ears of mine. After some mildly intense reflecting which was sparked off by coincidently catching their video ‘The Resistance’ on tv I narrowed down the problem. These lyrics really piss me off.

If you’ve got the hots for some slightly politically tinged lyrics sexed up with semi predictable rhyme schemes and like to feel like it’s ‘US’ against the world than hey! Look no further cause this album is for you. I just hope you don’t feel the need to stick it to the system or whatever just cause Matt Bellamy told you too. If you want to criticize the evils of the world please find a better reason because you know… Obama and Chuck Norris might just have to double team your sorry ass. Oh … you know I’m not serious. Though I do suggest you pick up American Idiot and do some sifting through U2’s latest masterpieces if you’re looking for more political masturbation. It will get you in the mood and all. You quasi rebels… You really make me smile sometimes… and also punch myself in the face.

Lyrics aside. Muse seem to be really digging Queen and rocking out to some Mozart. Oh and watching 2012 starring John Cussack (though I think it just came out). Cause to me ‘The Resistance’ sounds like they probably do all those arguably action packed activities. Their arpeggio heavy intros that lead to larger than life riffs are still present (MK Ultra). They have some new wave-ish influenced songs (undisclosed desires) which I like in an f-off but don’t f-off sort of way. Like the feeling you get when Bon Jovi’s living on a prayer song comes on… They have the sing alongs (Uprising, Resistance) which will get your toes tapping. ‘United States Of Eurasia’ sound like Muse spent too long listening to Bohemian Rhapsody. ‘Guiding light’ sounds like a slightly ripped off but better version of ‘Save Me’ also by Queen. Nearly every song has a piano dishing out haunting classical vibes somewhere between the hundredth verse and ninth chorus sometimes even during the sixth outro… I know! sly move Muse. I kind of zoned out during the Exogenesis Symphony. The three part thing at the end… but apparently it’s pretty good… I zoned out though… just saying.

So if you love haunting, Mozart influenced, broadway-esque tunes and you love Matt Bellamy’s equally haunting (though whiny at times) voice than you will love this! It rocks more than enough in most places, it’s pretty consistent all the way through, the lyrics are quite bad and It’s probably their best album yet. I also forgot to mention that they are extremely talented musicians. I guess it’s worth a listen, not if you’re suicidal though… But honestly It is actually quite good. The lyrics are quite bad.

3/5

Just some stuff that came out during the last decade that I decided I liked. There are some definite shockers in there but hey.. I don’t really rate my musical expertise very high… I’m just hoping you will. Sweet.

30. The White Stripes – Elephant
29. Mos Def – The Ecstatic
28. Yann Tiersen – Tabarly
27. Shugo Tokumaru – Exit
26. The Ruby Suns – Sea Lion
25. Elliott Smith – Figure 8
24. Fiery Furnaces – Blueberry Boat
23. Girls – Girls
22. Beach House – Devotion
21. David Kilgour/Sam Hunt – Falling Debris
20. The Strokes – Is This It
19. No Age – Nouns
18. Belle & Sebastian – The Life Pursuit
17. Reduction Agents – Dance Reduction Agents
16. Flaming Lips – Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots
15. Wilco – Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
14. Radiohead – In Rainbows
13. Tricky – Knowle West Boy
12. Brian Jonestown Massacre – Bravery Repetition And Noise
11. Iron & Wine/Calexico – In The Reins
10. Modest Mouse – Good News For People Who Love Bad News
9. Mogwai – Come On Die Young
8. Times New Viking – Born Again Revisited
7. Yo La Tengo – I’m Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass
6. Spoon – Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga
5. Mint Chicks – Screens
4. Deerhunter – Microcastle/Weird Era Cont
3. Beck – Modern Guilt
2. Animal Collective – Feels
1. Tom Waits – Alice

if i ever hear someone knock on this album, i have proof that the someone in question isnt a metal fan. or at least not the metal i listen to.

when Iron Maiden teamed back up with Bruce and Adrian to write and record their ‘comeback’ album ‘Brave New World’, metal elite everywhere started getting ready to hate it. as a result the three albums the band has put out since their comeback have gotten the usual ‘oh they are old now’ reviews and unnecessary hatred that is expected. normally for a band of Maiden’s stature it is ok with me that “fans” dont like their newer stuff, because the truth of the matter is that usually older bands lose that flame. but here, on this album, and the follow-up, ‘A Matter of Life and Death’, it actually makes me angry.

this album is a solid slab of amazing heavy metal songwriting. songs like Rainmaker, Montsegur, Face in the Sand, and Journeyman, are flag waving metal masterpieces. Steve Harris, metal’s resident master of bass playing plays his fingers right off. the triple guitar attack of Adrian, Dave, and Janick is enough to make air guitarists everywhere throw the backs out headbanging. Nicko is a gigantic drummer. both in size and sound. his playing is ferocious and refined all at once. he slides into Steve’s bass lines like he was born to play along. and on top of it all, the unmatched voice of metals single best tenor. Bruce Dickinson is arguably the ‘best’ singer in metal history. and it is a known fact that the male voice is at its peak during the ages of 40-55. this album was recorded right in that ark. and it shows.

everything comes together perfectly in the songs ‘Dance of Death’, and ‘Age of Innocence’. these two songs are among Iron maiden’s greatest achievements. their passion and brutal strength pull them up to be truly rousing spiritual songs.

this album is criminally underrated. if you like metal, heck, if you like singers, then this is an album you need.

make your way over to amazon and pick up a copy for a few bucks HERE.

Have you heard the news that New Moon is out in theaters?  If you haven’t, you’ve been living under a rock!  The second installment in the Twilight saga has been getting a great deal of press, and it has the ticket sales to back up the brand, but will it live up to the hype?

I’d say so. US Ticket sales for opening weekend grossed a total of $140 million.

The trailers made their rounds on the Internet, TV, etc.  From the looks of it, action is the key word!  Edward and Bella’s run-in with the Volturi seems to feature some hardcore fight sequence!  The trailers have been featuring Edward getting smashed into marble stairs and benches!  Sounds like a good time to me.

Let’s not forget about Jacob’s wolf pack!  Since the hugely successful first movie, Twilight, it seems Summit has increased its own pockets and gave New Moon a higher budget!  The CGI is top of line, and it’s got a trailer to prove it!  When Jacob transforms from adolescent teen into ferocious wolf, it’s more than eye-popping!  It’s downright scary!

Summit has stayed mum about how faithful their movie is to Stephanie Meyer’s novel.  After all Edward appears very little in the novel, yet actor, Robert Pattinson, stars along with fellow lead role actors Kristin Stewart (Bella Swan) and Taylor Lautner (Jacob Black)!  Not that I’m angry.  We’ll see how this all pans out!

by Adrian Garcia

Friday
10 a.m. … Nine-Man: Stephen-Argyle (12-1) vs. Nicollet (10-2)
Nicollet pulls an upset and wins. 21-14 Nicollet

1 p.m. …  1A: Adrian (10-2) vs. Minneota (13-0)
Haven’t seen either play. So I am picking…Adrain. 14-10 Adrian

4 p.m. … 2A: Moose Lake-Willow River (13-0) vs. Watervile-Elysian-Morristown (12-1)
Moose Lake-Willow River wins by two touchdowns. W-E-M is coming off a big win in OT, but Moose Lake is too much. 28-14 Moose Lake-Willow River

7 p.m. … 5A: Cretin-Derham Hall (11-1) vs. Eden Prairie (12-0)
Some have said that the Wayzata v. Eden Prairie game was the Prep Bowl (don’t get me started on how re-seeding should happen after sections), but I think that this will be a good game. CDH has a high-powered offense and Eden Prairie has the great defense. Something has to give. I think it will give in Eden Prairie’s favor. 21-7 Eden Prairie

Saturday
Noon … 3A: Glencoe-Silver Lake (13-0) vs. New London-Spicer (13-0)
I want to pick New London-Spicer in an upset, but Glencoe-Silver Lake will win by a couple. Prediction: 27-14 Glencoe-Silver Lake

3 p.m. …  4A: Sartell (13-0) vs. Totino-Grace (12-0)
I think this one will be closer then most think. Sartell has beat Branierd (5A Team in State), but Totino-Grace’s speed is too much. 31-21 Totino Grace

[Photo credit: Dakota Fine, BYT]

If there are two things we here at ATG love, it’s music and DC.  When we get the opportunity to talk about both in a post, you know we’ll take it.  For that reason I’m proud to announce the birth of the Blisspop blog.  For those of you don’t hail from our nation’s capital, Blisspop is the project of DC’s resident/favorite DJ, Will Eastman.  The man hosts dance parties year round in the DC area under the Blisspop banner, bringing along some of his favorite bands and DJ’s along for the ride.  Now that Blisspop’s made a home for itself on the interwebs, you can keep better track of what Mr. Eastman’s up to as well as snag exclusive downloads from other artists that carry the Blisspop spirit.  Below you can check out Classixx’s remix of Yacht’s “Psychic City”, one of the latest features on the new site.

MP3: Yacht – “Psychic City” (Classixx Remix – Fabio Pop Dancefloor Rework)

If you find yourself in the DC area this weekend, then go and check out Blisspop’s next party over at the Black Cat this Saturday, November 28th.  Yes Giantess will be showing some love with their own DJ Set along with Will, so you don’t want to miss it.

CHECK OUT THE BLISSPOP BLOG.

Love,
Adrian

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Hi all – I’ve been totally slacking on updating this site.  Sorry!  I’m now in the middle of my sixth month on T.  Gosh, that is hard to believe!  About a month ago I went back to my endo to talk about the benefits of injections over creams.  He previously had me on 1/4 teaspoon of the 5% testosterone cream daily.  I’d heard from a few friends that the creams work slower than the injections, and I’d noticed that my results were occurring at a somewhat slower rate than the transguys I knew on injections.  My endo confirmed the rumor that the cream works slower, and started me that day on injections, 100mL once a week.  The nurse taught me how to do it at that visit, and I’ve been injecting myself every Tuesday morning since.

Results: zits!  I have some acne on my face now   But, my voice has dropped to a recognizably male range, albeit somewhat androgynous still.  Also, I’m growing hair!  Lots of hair.  My legs are turning into hairy masses.  The hair on my arms is definitely thicker but it’s also constantly getting bleached by sun, so it’s not noticeably darker.  The hair on my face is growing in consistently but is still thin and light in color.  It definitely won’t look like “good” facial hair for some time.  Besides the hair and voice and zits, I have an insane libido.  And strangely, porn is more appealing now than it has ever been.  Pre-T I never watched porn, but now it’s a semi-regular event.  Along with libido I still have noticed an increase in my physical energy.  Sadly, I haven’t had time in my schedule to be a regular at the weight room, but my running has really improved over the last few months.  I ran AIDS Run, a 10K, in October, and came in 14th out of 120 among the 20-29 year old females (I was registered as female because my license still had female on it).  It was my first 10K, and I know I would have done much worse if it weren’t for the T.

Thanks to being on hormones, I was also able to change the gender marker on my California license to male!  I made a stop at the DMV after legally changing my name two weeks ago.  It’s a huge relief to finally have an ID that looks like me and has my chosen name on it!  Hooray!

This was one of my first ever spoken word pieces….enjoy

I vibe off a thought try to write a little poetry
Wont put my name on it but still you know it’s me
Subject, flow, timing, vocabulary
Hints of emotion, lo and behold you know it’s me

The plain and simple
The unspectacular
Till I fight into your senses
With adjectives to back me up
Against a wall of truth
I survive on the unseen eternal fruits

You see I have an underground vineyard
Everything I produce connoisseurs wanna sample the
Laboured for fruits of my youth
In a quake off the Richter scale my roots wouldn’t move
And I have nothing to prove for I’m that deep

Reluctantly fashionable I only work for big companies yet its not big company I keep
And I hold real not prototyped hyped new age beliefs

I am the topside of a chocolate digestive
Provoking gluttonous lusts yet the most resisted
So I take calculated risks if victory exists
And at the site of beauty I just lick my lips
For its just its…
The don king of moments
The little bit of crazy that everyone goes with

The versatile black that flows with any outfit
Make gold look good
Softly spoken realist
Spiritual apprentice
I was bought by love
Will never be rented
I AM

This post has been written for NaNoWriMo 2009. It has not been re-read, beta’d or proofed for typos.

While I know that NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month, my mind is still so fickle about things that I know I would start up on a story, get bored and leave it behind only to start again some week later, so my ‘WriMo works are selected titles in a large list that I write upon.

My personal daily goal: 1,800 word per entry.

Under this cut, one of many files. Some may contain non-heterosexual relationship but none of the works will touch the sexual aspect of things. All works, I’m hoping, will be PG-13.

Please enjoy your read.

I wasn’t supposed to survive. That’s what they thought, I knew that much, I only had to look at them for all of a minute. That or simply look around to my surroundings. Locked out of the orphanage, how cruel could you be? I knew I didn’t have long anyway so what was the point? They didn’t want me to make the other orphans ill so I had to stay outside with little more than a blanket. Cruel indeed, isn’t it? I didn’t blame them then, I accepted my illness as much as a child of that age could.

So there I was, on the steps, huddling with my ever thin blanket, winter coming in strongly and he appeared, out of nowhere. The words he first spoke I could not understand for the life of me until he spoke in Russian, the only language I understood then. He asked me what I was doing there. Asked me why I couldn’t go back inside and told me he would take me to the hospital. They didn’t take care of me there, who would have? Just an orphan in the street, dying, who cared? Filthy little thing I was.

The man brought me back to his hotel. I’d never been in a bed quite so comfortable, it was discomforting. Then he had soup. I didn’t know what soup was, back then so I only ended up staring at him as if he had two heads, or close enough.

My beginning under Remy’s care was rough but it became rather quickly visible that they wouldn’t let me die as they would other have out there on those steps. The first few years were a little strained if only because it wasn’t altogether easy to get my health back under control. I was winded a little too quickly for anyone’s taste but there was no helping it. I was like Adrian. I’d met him ever briefly, too quickly he was gone and I did miss him when he was gone.

I looked like a younger version of him, so strange that, almost as if another him had been born some years later and just not in the right place. I know that’s not the case but at times it helped me get through my days when I told myself that maybe I was a little bit of him that wasn’t ready to go just yet. It made me feel better, it made me feel like I belonged.

When I was old enough, I took up the violin and Adrian’s things sort of became mine. I had a natural talent for most instruments that didn’t require air and fingers nimble enough to get where I needed to with just a little push and some confidence. When I enrolled into a school—the conservatory—where people who didn’t know him certainly had lived all of their lives under a rock, things became a little different. I think it was a good thing that I ended up settling into the boarding part of it all despite that home wasn’t all that far.

I was trying to come to terms with the size of the shoes I had stepped into. I looked like a younger version of him, people expected so much and I pushed myself more than I ever had before. It had been difficult, so very hard but I pulled through. Of course, those were three years of my life I spent away, writing often and calling but I barely ever visited. I couldn’t. I told them that much when I called and wrote. I had to stay for my three years.

Of course, when I finally came back, one of those issues I know I had enrolled into the conservatory to avoid came back to haunt me. Luc is family. Even though we’re not blood related. He’s an older brother, I should have loved him as that was, an older brother but there was something else in me, a pull and I quite thoroughly wanted him as a complete part of my life, not as a brother.

Didn’t go so well those things, that one visit for the holidays just a few months before I was going to graduate from the conservatory. Though we did eventually come to terms with the fact that we both seemed to care for one another as more than brothers, the idiot got himself in an accident and I was sure he was going to die. He didn’t, of course but I still worried. Mothered him a bit much but there’s no helping that. Aside from Remy and Winnie—I miss her so much too—and the close family, Luc was the one I was closest to, losing him would have been like losing a big part of myself.

At one point, I had this concert in Quebec, up north, in an ice hotel. The idea alone made my skin crawl. It would be cold, I couldn’t wear my coat, it would have hindered my motions. So I didn’t. It went well until just about the end where I all out collapsed. Or I figure I collapsed, I really just remember feeling faint and cold, Luc holding me to him like I’d fade in a foggy breath through the air if he didn’t and the car on its way to the hospital. I hate hospitals.

I spent too much time in them though most of the time I saw the medics back home, I really shouldn’t complain.

Give it a little more time and things were fine, at least until we were celebrating another concert back home, things got a little, um.. hot for lack of a better word for it and he called the wrong name. I never left a place quite so quick. I know I shouldn’t have blamed him, I couldn’t. I learned later on that alcohol tends to not be so good on his brain, though we hadn’t really expected to drink as much as we had, things went overboard. I left and huddled back home with my adoptive parents while my brother-slash-boyfriend tried to make amends before things just went sort of quiet.

I wanted to find my own apartment, my own home but Remy wouldn’t let me leave quite yet. Of course when I found out why, I had nothing left to say, nothing to really offer. I had my own little home, all mine! Of course by then I felt the need to fix things with Luc so I did invite him over. The details of that discussion are fuzzy, I just remember raising my voice a little, I know I misunderstood his intentions and things went sourly downhill.

He left, I tried to get the keys to the house back to Remy and he told me to either sell or rent the place out if I couldn’t stay. I didn’t really want to do either though I eventually did. I couldn’t leave the house without any inhabitants for six months. I had a contract way across the continent, across the water to be honest, in Paris. Six months with concerts left and right. I had a small room there and it was all I really needed.

I could have had so much more during my stay there but I didn’t want to. Anything more reminded me of Luc and he was the last thing I really wanted to think about. Not because of what had happened, not because of anything that had been shared between us. Because I kept on telling myself that if I thought about him, I wouldn’t pull through the six months and would want to go back home to where he was. I missed him terribly but a childish part of me wanted to remain mad at him. I wanted to believe that he was at fault for our last fight.

By the end of my contract, I did end up writing him a letter. There was so much I did want to write, so much I wrote down but scribbled over. The only thing that stayed on that paper, amongst the black scribbles, was a very simple ‘I’m sorry’. He came to my last concert and swept me away once it was done. I don’t think I ever cried so hard before in my life.

Things were settling again, I was back home, I relaxed a little, tried to settle back in. Momma died not long after I actually came back. There were so many people surrounding her. The families in this part of the city, few but big families, we’re all close. Or I should say, they’re all close. I’ve always been a little distant. Not that I didn’t want to make friends, I was just too shy to.

Momma’s passing was hard on dad and he disappeared now and again for a few days, a week or two. We all could see that it was doing him some good, so wherever he was going, we didn’t mind. Whoever took care of him, whatever he did, he came back looking a little brighter each time.

Time did drift and trickle away. The holidays always seem to sneak up on you when you least expected them. I wanted to buy something special for Luc so I bugged Remy—figuratively, he’s mostly always given me everything I ever asked for—to go shopping and so we did. On the way to the store itself, a storm started up, snow and a little wind. Not much of a storm then but it did get worse, so much worse. By the time we were out of the store, it was an all out storm with the wind so strong I know my foot slipped a few times. The day had been so warm beforehand that I hadn’t thought to wear my warmest coat. By the time we were back home I was down with a fever.

Or at least I figure that’s what happened. I’m with Adrian and Winnie now. ‘ drian tells me that it’s temporary, that I’m just having something of an out of body experience while my body settles in a coma. Shouldn’t last long I’m being told. It does bug me a little since I don’t want them to worry so much over me. I can’t really see what’s going on down there but I can imagine that Luc might just squeeze me too hard when I’ll wake.

I was missing Adrian, I barely had been able to see him when I was a fresh and new addition to the family, it feels strange to be able to spend time with him now but I enjoy it while I can. There’s this strange blue-haired boy that pops up and around now and again, I don’t think he likes me much, it’s strange but I know I’ll be going back down soon so I don’t let it get to me much. I spend a good amount of time with momma too. It feels good to be able to curl in her arms again, even if it’s for a short period of time.

I don’t know if I’ll be able to tell them about who I saw while I was in that coma. Stupid sickness. Maybe I won’t even remember it? I know some people talk about near-death experience but is that really what this is? I saw no white tunnels and no nothing else. Just ‘drian and Winnie and other pretty winged beings. So strange up here but so peaceful. I miss Luc though, I hope to go back down soon enough.

I hope that I’ll have been good enough in my life to come up here once it really is my time. Not that it’s something I really want to think about. The idea of leaving Luc behind a second time—or would that make it a third?—makes me ill. Maybe not physically but it hurts so much I could double over and not get back up again. It tears me to itty bitty pieces to think about abandoning him again. I can’t imagine how he feels when I’m not there. When I was in Paris, now in this stupid coma.

I’ll need to make it up to him.

El Ligallo de CHA en La Muela considera inmoral la subida de impuestos aprobada esta mañana en pleno y que va a suponer que el impuesto del IBI registre una subida del 21,428%. Adrián Tello, secretario de CHA-Valdejalón, considera que llevar a cabo subidas como ésta en tiempos de crisis da cuenta del talante de las personas que están al frente del ayuntamiento.

En este sentido ha recordado que mientras municipios como Ateca o La Almunia de Doña Godina han procedido a congelar todas las tasas municipales para ayudar a los vecinos en tiempos de crisis, La Muela ha procedido a subir el Impuesto de Bienes Inmuebles de naturaleza urbana, el que se aplica mayoritariamente, de un 0.7 a un 0.85, lo que supone una subida de un 21.428%.

En este sentido ha recordado que ya el año pasado este impuesto pasó del 0,6 al 0,7%, mientras que el de circulación subió un 12% y el de basuras alcanzó una subida del 11,8%.

El Ligallo de CHA en La Muela considera inmoral la subida de impuestos aprobada esta mañana en pleno y que va a suponer que el impuesto del IBI registre una subida del 21,428%. Adrián Tello, secretario de CHA-Valdejalón, considera que llevar a cabo subidas como ésta en tiempos de crisis da cuenta del talante de las personas que están al frente del ayuntamiento.

En este sentido ha recordado que mientras municipios como Ateca o La Almunia de Doña Godina han procedido a congelar todas las tasas municipales para ayudar a los vecinos en tiempos de crisis, La Muela ha procedido a subir el Impuesto de Bienes Inmuebles de naturaleza urbana, el que se aplica mayoritariamente, de un 0.7 a un 0.85, lo que supone una subida de un 21.428%.

En este sentido ha recordado que ya el año pasado este impuesto pasó del 0,6 al 0,7%, mientras que el de circulación subió un 12% y el de basuras alcanzó una subida del 11,8%.

For the past two days, online and mobile social media community site Zoopy.com has featured two videos featuring Shiraaz Ismail . Shiraaz hosts the breakfast show on Bush Radio with Victor J. CLICK ON PICS TO WATCH THE VIDEOS.

We are not sure why, but we think the cute and funny factor may help. On a serious note Shiraaz wanted to highlight that many young people need to learn the national anthem.

Bush Radio uses zoopy.com to promote the work of artists as well as some of the video productions it is involved in, like the work of the CREW , during the annual Media Kidocracy Konfrence. It is also a way in which the interns at the station get to experience the intergration of media.

I saw Michael Jackson’s This Is It weeks ago, and after voicing a few hesitations about the documentary/concert film, I now know the genius that is Michael Jackson.

Although the goal of the film was to show the concert that Michael had worked so hard to create, I got something different out of it.  The concert would have been technically amazing!  From a giant robot to a 3D Thriller video, Michael and AEG Live pulled out all the stops and spared no expense!  All of his greatest hits including “Human Nature,” “Thriller,” and “Beat It” were showcased.  The choreography was Michael approved, and his dancers were extraordinary as well as his band.  Everything was above par, but the behind the scenes footage that was released was far more valuable than the show.

It’s a shame that more behind the scenes footage isn’t released for other superstars, because what I saw with Michael surely applies to others.  He was extremely hands-on with everything from dancers to the music.  In a scene with his music director, Michael strives to perfect everything he created in its original form.  He ran through cues, mechanics, and video shooting.  It was his final concert, so he wanted to give it one last, “Hurrah!”

I can’t describe how great it was to see Michael singing “live” or complaining about earpieces.  It was great!  From a movie watchers experience, I watched as a boy no older than ten sang and danced in his chair as he watched with wide-eyes at Michael’s show.  After all these years, he still has it.

by Adrian Garcia

It ain’t no secret that I have quite the fancy for the Rx Bandits.  I’ll spare you my praise for them since I use every opportunity I can here to let you know that they just happen to be the greatest band in the world.  But seeing as I never gave a proper review for their latest album, Mandala (A+, 10/10, smiley face), I figured I would share this little video of them performing “Mientras La Veo Soñar” at one of their recent California shows.  This clip is pretty exemplary of the performance I saw when I caught them earlier this summer during their stop in Baltimore, although I wasn’t fortunate enough to see frontman Matt Embree jam out with Chris Tsagakis on the drums as he does here.  Enjoy, and don’t forget to grab the track below.

MP3: Rx Bandits – “Mientras La Veo Soñar”

Love,
Adrian