ECW Hardcore TV
02.13.96
Queens, New York
Your Host: Joey Styles

The Eliminators are in the back, as John Kronus is shaving his hair off, while Perry Saturn is laughing with the title in his hand. John is saying does he think they care about his hair; then he says he will eliminate you (referring to Pitbulls).

Joey Styles is in the ring as Bill Whistle Man and Taz march into the ring. Bill starts ranting on Joey Styles saying he hates him and hates Queens, New York. Bill says that 911 is finish. Rey Mysterio Jr. interrupts Taz—and says he is not afraid of Taz. Bill talks some trash, but then Rey spinning-heel kicks him. Rey then hits a botched hurrcanarana. Rey goes up the top and tries to go springboard, but get caught in a Taz Suplex. Rey fights back but Taz hits another Taz Suplex that puts Rey inside and out.  Wrestlers and Refs come out to check on Rey. Joey Styles is addressing for some help for Rey.  Joey Styles then puts over ECW by saying that you will not see action like this. Woman enters, and says that Joey Styles and her can go to WWF, but Joey says he wants to stay here. Sandman enters, and she asked him if he wants to come with her. He says he does not want to “come” with her, and then he says she has been a bitch her whole life. Women says she wants to stay here along time being the bitch here for along time, and no one is going to remove her from the ring. 2 Cold comes out and joins Women.  2 Cold then says business is picking up. He pretends he is with her, but he says Nancy you out of here. 2 Cold takes her out of the arena, and puts her in the limo. Stevie Richards comes out with Blue Meany, and lays down the offer. Sandman says never has he ever backed down from a fight. Richards says Sandman feels like a tough person with a chain in his and—and he thinks Blue Meany and him are a puss. Richards says Sandman should back out of the match—or he will have to Stevie-kick him. Blue Meany says he will do it. Blue tries to superkick him, but cannot reach him. Sandman canes Meany and Sandman said he is going for Raven. Richards is paranoid, as Raven enters the ring. Raven calls Stevie a moron. Raven then disses on Meany. Ravens says he was supposed to give Beulah her pill, but he could not handle that. Raven starts to beat the crap out of him. Richards tries sucking up to Raven. He goes into Blue’s paints—and it says Richards the king of dancing is engaging a lawsuit against Missy Hyatt for sexual harassment. Hyatt comes out and calls Richards a joke. Raven says that the other option is that she joins up with him. Hyatt says look at her and look at Raven because he is not on her level. She says that the bitch he is with now is a whore, and we all know that Raven has a low sperm count since Dreamer knocked up his ex. Raven gets angry and takes his coat off.  Sandman makes the save and canes all of them. Hyatt tells Sandman she likes that. Sandman and Hyatt celebrate hardcore style with beer, squares and Enter Sandman in the back round.

Joey Styles recaps what has been happening in ECW so far.  Joey Styles calls Taz offensive to the wrestling industry because of his evil intentions.

Commercial break plugs!!!!!!!!!!!

Joey Styles starts plugging what you can see on the DVDS if you buy them.

Shane Douglas/ Tommy Dreamer. w/ Beulah vs. Stevie Richards/Raven

Richard and Dreamer start the match. Dreamer hits a closeline that drives Richards out, and the crowd is wild up.  Shane sets up a chair near Richards head and Dreamer baseball slides into it. Dreamer throws Richards in. Richards puts on a Razor shirt and puts a toothpick behind the ear trying to piss off Shane. It cuts to a better part as Shane is cleaning house with the chair.  Shane tries getting a pin on Raven, but gets only two. Douglas hits a Piledriver on Richard, but Raven makes the save. Tommy jumps Raven. Cactus jumps into the match. Shane fights off Foley. Raven hits Shane with something, but only gets tow. Sandman enters, canes everyone including the ref as the place goes wid. Raven gets up, and pins Douglas, but there is no ref. Richards wakes up the ref, and Raven pile drives Douglas. ONE-TWO-NO.  Richards gets the tag in, and dominates Douglas. Raven comes back in, but Douglas hits him with a DDT.  Both men are done in the ring. Dreamer wants the tag, but Richards cuts him off. Richards hits a Stevie-bomb. ONE-TWO-NO.  Douglas gets Irish wiped, but hits a launch backwards springboard elbow. Dreamer has a frying pan and cleans house with it. Richards gets tree of wowed, and catches a pain in the groin. Dreamer goes for a cover, but Raven hits them with a chair. Dreamer gets back up, and attacks Richard. Meany is clueless and hits a meanymoonsualt onto Richards. Tommy goes for a pin, but Raven breaks it up. Raven hits a DDT but only gets two. She ties the frying pain to Dreamer’s boot. Dreamer kicks Stevie in the head. ONE-TWO-THREE.  You could feel the drama and the heat between all the wrestlers in the match. The excessive run ins and shenanigans made it a little overbooked, but that was pretty much what ECW was all about; it was about having that realism playing in—and making it seem like anything can happen at any given moment. Pretty decent and exciting and well booked match overall, but I cannot rate a match that was this clipped fairly.

Taz vs. Shark attack kid.

The kid tries to get fancy with Taz, but he gets drilled with a T-Bone on his head. Taz then hits a vicious Tazplex onto the kid, but Kid gets back up. Taz hit a belly-to-belly suplex him from the top of the top. Taz puts in the Taz-mission and that is it @ 2:00. Taz calls out 911, but Gordon comes out with the mic. Gordon comes out and says 911 do not want to wrestle him. Bill calls out Gordon. Gordon gets in the ring, and Gordon punches him in the face. Gordon closelines Bill—and attacks him. Taz attacks Gordon, but Bam Bam Bigelow makes the save! Bam Bam calls out Taz.

Going Home: We started ECW off this week with possibly the longest segment in the history of humanity. Well maybe I am exaggerating, but it was still very long. Some of the stuff on it was very interesting, but some of it was simply ridiculous. I liked the stuff with Sandman and Raven’s flock; it drew good heat and expanded the rivalry in the right direction. I found the stuff with Missy Hyatt and the restraining order to be entertaining, and they did a good job of making you want to see where Sandman and Hyatt goes from this point on. Both matches on the show were fine, but I think there could have been more wrestling on this show than what they gave us. Taz was possibly the most interesting and well-booked thing going for ECW at the time and I loved how they brought in Bam Bam in surprisingly. Overall, the show wasn’t bad, but if you missed it—or haven’t seen it, you really are not missing a whole lot.

Det finns två skivor som nyligen har kommit ut som jag varmt rekommenderar alla att kolla upp.
Den första är en ny skiva från bandet Muse, som heter “The resistance”. Deras musik är så underbar och unik. Sångaren har en djävulusikt bra röst – låter som en blandning mellan David Bowie och Roy Khan (-älskar den typen av röst!!!)
Alla låtar är jättebra, speciellt låtarna; Uprising, Disclosed desires, I belong to you samt de tre sista låtarna som är uppdelade i tre delar, helt underbara!!! Köp den, köp den, KÖP DEN!!!

Den andra skivan är Tokio Hotels nya album, Humanoid. Jag har farit lite fram och tillbaka när det gäller deras musik, kan låta lite tråkigt och de flesta låtar låter lika varandra. Vissa av deras äldre låtar är väldigt bra, som; Monsoon, Don’t jump/Spring nicht och Geh!
Men, den nya skivan är mycket, mycket bättre! Älskar deras nya sound, som får de att sticka ut lite mer i musiken. Deras nya sound låter lite som en blandning mellan Depeche Mode, Petshop boys och BWO – lite rock, lite disco, lite 80-tals känsla. De bästa låtarna på skivan är; Love & death, Humanoid, Alien, Forever now, Pain of love och Dogs unleashed. Härligt att se ett hyffsat band bli bättre! – fortsätt så pojkar

Ännu en eloge till Tokio Hotel, för deras frontmans nya frisyr, älskar, ÄLSKAR!!! Tummen upp för Bill Kaulitz

Chiar imi plac recomandarile tale. Merci mult de sprijin cu muzica buna!

Aceasta ultima piesa a mai fost de cateva ori postata pe site mai ales ca ea m-a facut pe mine mic “rocker” si este preferata mea in continuare. Se pare ca nu doar a mea totusi!

Chiar imi plac recomandarile tale. Merci mult de sprijin cu muzica buna!

Aceasta ultima piesa a mai fost de cateva ori postata pe site mai ales ca ea m-a facut pe mine mic “rocker” si este preferata mea in continuare. Se pare ca nu doar a mea totusi!

Chiar imi plac recomandarile tale. Merci mult de sprijin cu muzica buna!

Aceasta ultima piesa a mai fost de cateva ori postata pe site mai ales ca ea m-a facut pe mine mic “rocker” si este preferata mea in continuare. Se pare ca nu doar a mea totusi!

I’ve been a fan of all things Swedish for some time now, ever since I spent six months there in 2003 (that makes me feel old). So I have been surprised not to have attended the Scandinavian pop night Scandipop before last night. I went with a friend (who was late) but also met a couple of friends there for some live music from BWO, a.k.a. Bodies Without Organs, a Swedish “laptop pop” trio in the style of Army of Lovers with a quirky humourful poppyness and recent hits including Chariots of Fire, and Sunshine in the Rain.

I just thought I’d share a few pictures of BWO from last night.

BWO Soft Hackle- Fly of the Week-Week 2

Hook: Sz. 14-18 nymph hook

Thread: 6/0 Olive Uni-Thread

Body: 6/0 Olive thread

Thorax: Olive Dubbing

Hackle: Silver Phesant

fish in a down and across presentation with a lift of the rod tip at t

today in the supermarket they were playing BWO, I could hardly believe my ears. and they’ve got new vid, aww:

Martin is just too awesome. god, if I didn’t meet his clone yesterday I wouldve been fine. aaaah

ECW Wrestlepalooza
May 3, 1998
Cobb County Civic Center
Marietta, GA

The current ECW champions were as follows:
ECW Champion: Shane Douglas (11/30/97)
Television Champion: Rob Van Dam (4/4/98)
Tag Team Champions: Chris Candido and Lance Storm (12/6/97)

Your host is Joey Styles.

• The bWo (The Blue Meanie and Super Nova) vs. The FBI (Little Guido and Tracey Smothers) (w/ Tommy Rich)

Guido and Nova start it off. Guido’s quick instincts earn him a body slam for two, but Nova catches him celebrating with a school boy for two. Nova delivers a chokeslam atomic drop and a spinning wheel kick, then he bulldogs Smothers while giving Guido a legdrop. Meanie tags in, Guido wants out, Smothers won’t tag him, so Tommy Rich turns the match into a dance contest (yes, a dance contest) between Smothers and Meanie. They both strut their, uhh, “stuff,” then referee John Finnegan gets in on the action and Meanie declares him the winner, allowing Smothers to attack from behind. Guido accidentally dropkicks Smothers, then accidentally teams up with Meanie for a double elbow drop. The FBI push Finnegan around a bit, so he body slams them both! They end up getting dumped outside and Nova hits a sweet corkscrew plancha. Back inside, the FBI double-teams Nova and gets a two count with an atomic drop/jumping front kick combo. Italian leg sweep/superkick combo gets another two. Top rope leg drop by Guido gets two. Double Italian leg sweep and double elbow drop gets yet another two. Nova needs to tag out. Smothers puts a stop to a short comeback with chops and a back heel kick. Guido tags in and gets caught going upstairs, so Nova drops him with an inverted electric chair drop. Hot tag to Meanie! He has some initial trouble dealing with both Italians at the same time, but he drops them with a double clothesline. A double corner whip spot gets botched, then Nova hits a pescado on Smothers. Meanie goes upstairs, he’s temporarily stopped by Tommy Rich, which gives Guido enough time to avoid the MEANIESAULT. Guido nails Meanie with the Italian flag, but Nova sneaks behind him for NOVACAIN for the 1-2-3! (9:27) After the match, the bWo and the ref dance to the Village People’s “YMCA.” Very fun and absolutely absurd comedy match to start off the show. **1/2

We watch some history for the next match. Mikey ended Credible’s undefeated streak back at November to Remember, so Credible responded by tearing apart Mikey’s leg in the weeks following.

• Justin Credible (w/ Jason and Chastity) vs. Mikey Whipwreck

Mikey comes charging out and tries for a WHIPPERSNAPPER, Credible shoves it off but gets taken down with a spear. Mikey nails him with right hands, then whips him into an awesome Flair corner flip to the floor. Mikey is all over Credible and launches him over the guardrail right into a little kid! Mikey adds a Russian leg sweep into the railing, then tries for another one off the apron, but Credible holds on and Mikey hits the rail hard in a sick bump. Back in, Credible sets up a chair and drives Mikey’s head into it. With Mikey sitting down in the corner, Jason holds the chair in front of him and Credible delivers a stiff running knee. He pulls him out with a sitout powerbomb on the chair for two. They battle over a backslide and Mikey gives Credible a low blow, but Credible scores a reverse DDT anyway. Credible sends Mikey to the floor for a backbreaker from Jason, then he’s set up on a table while Credible climbs up on the guardrail. Mikey pokes Jason in the eye and heaves a chair at Credible, then delivers a superplex off the rail through the table! Back in, they both have chairs, Mikey ducks and lands a stiff chair shot on Credible, then a swinging neckbreaker gets 1-2-NO! He sets a chair on the top turnbuckle and catapults Credible into it, then grabs a school boy for 1-2-NO! FRANKENMIKEY off the top gets 1-2-NO! The ensuing body scissors spot looks pretty ugly, and it leads into a WHIPPERSNAPPER. Jason jumps in and also receives the WHIPPERSNAPPER. Chastity jumps in and receives a TOP ROPE WHIPPERSNAPPER! By this time, Credible is back to his feet and has a chair, Mikey stops him and pulls him up for a tombstone, but Credible reverses it and hits THAT’S INCREDIBLE onto the chair, 1-2-3! (9:54) A hell of a match. Fast paced, intense, stiff, good storytelling, good crowd psychology, nothing to complain about expect one slightly botched spot. ***1/4

Axl Rotten cuts a promo from the broadcast position and challenges the tag champs.

• Tag Team Champions Chris Candido and Lance Storm vs. The Hardcore Chair Swingin’ Freaks (Balls Mahoney and Axl Rotten)

Candido and Storm aren’t getting along, so Candido creates his own entrance and demands that his name be mentioned first. That Candido was always a little goofy. Everyone takes turns tagging in for some basic rope running and arm holds for the first minute or so. Balls clotheslines Storm and makes a tag to set up a variation of a Demolition’s finisher for two. Storm scores a nice spinning wheel kick and tags out to Candido, who wastes time arguing and gets taken down with an arm drag. Balls tags in for a drop toe hold/leg drop combo for two, then controls Candido off a rope running sequence, but ends up missing a spinning wheel kick and falls outside. Candido tries a pescado but gets caught in mid-air and Balls takes over on the floor. Storm tries to help matters but ends up nailing Candido, then Axl delivers a slingshot somersault plancha! Back in, Storm dropkicks Axl, and Candido tags in for a stalling vertical suplex. Storm tags back in and goes back and forth with Axl until hitting a crescent kick for two. Candido tags back in and a double back elbow gets two, then Candido sits on a chinlock. Axl gets out and hooks a sunset flip for two, then scores with a big clothesline. Typical tag team psychology says he should tag out, but instead he goes up top and gets caught for a hurracanrana. Balls hits a clothesline from the apron, which gets two for Axl. Candido gets caught off the top with a powerbomb, Axl gets kicked off a catapult attempt, and he falls right into Candido’s groin! Storm gets involved to stop a hot tag, but he and Candido get caught in a double DDT. Hot tag to Balls! He takes over and hits Storm with a powerslam for 1-2-NO! Candido breaks up the cover. Balls reverses a corner whip and catches Candido bouncing out of the corner, but here comes Tammy Lynn Sytch to make the save. Balls grabs Tammy, but Lance hits him with a low blow. Candido doesn’t want anyone else saving Tammy, so he pushes Lance around a bit. Balls and Axl take advantage of the distraction but end up receiving stereo low blows. Axl gets sent outside and Storm delivers a nice springboard plancha. Inside, Candido gets caught going upstairs and Balls hits him with the NUTCRACKER SUITE. He decides to go for a chair instead of a pin, allowing Lance time to hit him with a springboard dropkick into the chair! Storm goes for the pin, but Candido hits him with a chair and makes the cover for the 1-2-3! (12:04) Candido walks away with both belts, so he and Storm exchange some punches before making their way to the back. Plenty of decent wrestling, some good tag team work, but nothing groundbreaking. **1/2

We watch some footage from before the event of Joey Styles bringing out a bunch of wrestling legends from Georgia. We got Junkyard Dog, Dirty Dick Slater, The Masked Superstar, and Bullet Bob Armstrong.

We’re back live, and Joey Styles explains that Shane Douglas will wrestle with a slew of injuries tonight, then the Franchise comes out with a fire in his eyes. He goes on about how he’s a big tough guy for wrestling while he’s all banged up, then says Shawn Michaels handed the Intercontinental title over to him to avoid wrestling with an injury, then talks mess about Ric Flair to mostly negative reactions, then says that we will all tell our great great grandchildren that Shane Douglas was the greatest athlete we ever saw. A sensible wrestling fan operating the house lights decides that final statement was about the dumbest thing he’s ever heard, so he tries to sabotage the show by turning off the lights. Oh, wait, nevermind. It’s Taz’s entrance. My bad. The Human Suplex Machine comes out and reminds Shane just who gave him all those injuries and says he should hand over the belt. Shane tells him to shove it, but then decides he’s down for an unsanctioned fight. Taz lands a fist on Shane’s fractured cheek bone and applies the Tazmission, but security guards break it up. As Taz is taken away, Bam Bam Bigelow appears and pummels Taz for a while until security gets in between them. Taz is taken away in handcuffs and tossed into a car outside, kicking the window out as the car takes off.

• Bam Bam Bigelow vs. New Jack

Bam Bam takes over right away with a bunch of stomps and a corner splash. He misses with a guitar, allowing New Jack to go nuts with various other weapons, then he sets a Godzilla doll on Bam Bam’s crotch and bashes it with a 9-iron. Bam Bam makes a comeback on the floor and scores with some other weapons, busting New Jack open. Jack gets tossed into the crowd and Bam Bam dives over the guardrail at him. Around the arena we go, and Bam Bam unloads with some hard plastic chairs. After getting tossed against a wall a few times, New Jack avoids a splash into a guardrail, and despite looking legitimately out of it, he makes his way to a balcony right above Bam Bam. A guitar mysteriously appears in his hands, and he plummets down a good 12 feet to smash it on Bam Bam’s head! Bam Bam’s busted open, but he looks to be the only one who knows where the hell he is, so he carries New Jack on his shoulders back into the ring, and GREETINGS FROM ASBURY PARK gets the 1-2-3. (8:48) DUD

We watch some cool clips for this next match while listening to Paul Heyman’s favorite song, “River of Deceit” by Mad Season.

• Sandman and Tommy Dreamer (w/ Beulah McGillicutty) vs. The Dudley Boyz (w/ Joel Gertner, Big Dick Dudley, and Sign Guy)

We get some of the usual stuff from Joel “The ladies call me Fred Flinstone because I make their bed rock” Gertner. Dreamer and Sandman score with stereo hiptosses to start. The match moves to the floor, where Sandman nails Buh Buh with a huge table suplex. D-Von gets bent over the guardrail and Tommy holds a chair for Sandman to come off the apron with a lethal guillotine leg drop. Inside, Dreamer delivers a handman’s neckbreaker out of the corner on D-Von. Sandman tosses a piece of guardrail in the ring, then he and Dreamer hit Buh Buh with a splash/slingshot leg drop combo stolen from the repertoire of RVD and Sabu. With the guardrail leaning in the corner, Buh Buh reverses a whip that sends Sandman flipping onto it. Looked pretty rough, and Sandman is put in a neck brace and on a stretcher and gets taken away. I smell kayfabe on this one. Meanwhile, Dreamer becomes the victim of a long double-team onslaught by the Dudleys. He finally comes back by catching Buh Buh climbing the turnbuckles for a superplex. D-Von breaks up the cover, and it’s back to Dudley domination. Buh Buh distracts the ref while Sign Guy tries to blind Tommy with a handful of powder, but Tommy ducks, D-Von eats the powder, and Tommy rolls him up with a school boy, but referee Jim Mollineaux is still distracted. Sign Guy blasts Tommy with his tiny sign and the Dudleys hit an INVERTED DUDLEY DEATH DROP. They prop the guardrail up in the ring, they crotch Tommy, and they give him simultaneous chair shots. As they both maneuver the rail, Spike Dudley shows up and drops them with a missile dropkick. A splash onto the railing gets 1-2-NO! Swinging bulldog on D-Von! ACID DROP on Buh Buh! Apparently Spike is in the match as a replacement for Sandman … for now. The Dudleys roll outside, Spike leaps out after them, they catch him in mid-air, then Tommy delivers a pescado! Back in, D-Von gets placed in a tree of woe with a chair in front of his face. Keep that in mind. Big Dick jumps in and drops Tommy with TOTAL PENETRATION (a sitout powerbomb). Spike avoids a powerbomb from Buh Buh, hits a low blow, then walks over Buh Buh and Tommy for a dropkick into the chair on D-Von! Clever little spot. Big Dick jumps in again and nails Spike with a BIG DICK DRIVER. Sign Guy stands over Spike, then takes a low blow and a DDT from Beulah! The Dudleys grab Beulah, and Spike makes the save but receives the DUDLEY DEATH DROP. That cues a return from Sandman in a neck brace, and he unloads with cane shots. Tommy adds a chair to the mix and stereo DDTs get the 1-2-3! (11:19) There’s some fun stuff here, but nothing any ECW fan hasn’t seen before. I could have done without Sandman’s fake injury, even though Spike Dudley is the f’n man. **1/4

We watch a set of awesome clips from the RVD/Sabu feud, which started when Van Dam defeated Bam Bam Bigelow for the TV title, despite the plan being for him to soften up Bigelow for Sabu’s title shot.

• Television Champion Rob Van Dam (w/ Bill Alfonso) vs. Sabu (w/ Bill Alfonso)

Fonzie comes out first with Sabu, but officially he is managing both men. Also, the referee is Jeff Jones, who’s in Fonzie’s pocket, so in Styles’ words, “This whole thing stinks.” They take it way slow to start, shifting between sizing each other up and Van Dam’s glory moments. Sabu finally grabs a hold of Van Dam’s leg, which leads to a flawless wrestling sequence controlled mostly by RVD, culminating in a standoff spot where they both bounce off the ropes and stop in front of one another. They soak up their crowd respect moment, then Van Dam gets on the mic. During a match? What’s this about? He says we were all gullible to think he would wrestle his good friend Sabu, and it was all just a ploy to ruin everyone’s night. Sabu plays along and they hold each other’s hands high. Referee Jeff Jones puts a stop to it, so RVD shoves him into a corner. He goes down on all fours to let Sabu jump off his back for AIR SABU on Jones, but instead Sabu kicks Van Dam in the ribs! It’s on now. Springboard leg lariat gets two for Sabu. Slingshot somersault leg drop gets another two. Van Dam takes a breather outside, but Sabu hits him with a slingshot somersault plancha. Sabu whips him to the rail and takes it back inside for a modified camel clutch. They both go back to impressing each other with acrobatic evasion moves, then they trade low dropkicks, and Van Dam hits a corkscrew leg drop for two. Fonzie shows his love for Van Dam, leaving Joey Styles confused as to who is double-crossing whom. I honestly think the idea is to make us forget about the storyline altogether and ignore the fact that Sabu and RVD are storyline and real-life friends and just enjoy the match. Mexican surfboard by Van Dam. Sabu looks like he legitimately hurt his leg in the hold, so Van Dam stomps him to the apron for a while. Slingshot guillotine leg drop by Van Dam. Back in, he attacks the knee and puts on a half boston crab. He delivers a crescent kick then goes outside for a table. Sabu plays dead until Van Dam bridges the ring and guardrail with the table, then he hits him with a suicide dive. Van Dam gets laid on the table and hit with a chair, Sabu goes for a triple jump, but Van Dam rolls away into the crowd. So what does Sabu do? He leaps from the top rope to the far edge of the table, has no balance whatsoever, and luckily collides with Van Dam instead of plummeting to what would likely be a serious injury. Call it a QUADRUPLE JUMP PLANCHA. We’re ten minutes into this thing.

A fistfight breaks out on the floor, and Sabu gets crotched on the guardrail. Van Dam wants Fonzie to hold a chair up for a FLYING VAN DAMINATOR, but Fonzie takes it away at the last second and it’s just a flying sick kick. Van Dam front suplexes Sabu on the rail and delivers his corkscrew guillotine leg drop off the apron. Now it’s Van Dam who gets crotched on the rail, and Sabu goes for a reckless Asai moonsault! That gets two back inside. Sabu throws a chair at Van Dam’s face and misses the TRIPLE JUMP MOONSAULT. A weak chair throw gets two for Van Dam. He crotches Sabu on the top rope and hits a long springboard side kick to drop Sabu to the floor. Somersault tope follows. With RVD on the apron and Sabu in the ring, RVD tries a suplex through a table, but Sabu counters, hangs Van Dam on the second rope, and delivers an ARABIAN PRESS, absolutely drilling Van Dam in the neck and chest with his shins! Sabu sets another table up between the ring and the rail, and goes for a TRIPLE JUMP PLANCHA DDT! But, opps, they fall to the side and the table hardly breaks. Check out their Hardcore Heaven 96 bout to see that spot in its full glory. Back inside, Van Dam goes after the knee again, but gets caught on the top turnbuckle and Sabu heaves a chair at his head. He sets up the broken table and a top rope hurracanrana sends Van Dam through it! Twenty minutes in.

They both get up way slow and have another slugfest outside. Van Dam goes after Sabu’s neck, lays him out under the ropes, lays a chair on his head, and comes down from the top rope for a guillotine leg drop! Sabu looks out of it and he gets whipped to the rail and hit with a spin kick, but he comes back by crotching Van Dam on the guardrail. He heaves another chair at Van Dam and delivers a hurracanrana to the floor! Ouch. Sabu takes a breather and lets Van Dam back to the ring, and RVD immediately scores a VAN DAMINATOR for 1-2-NO! OK, that seemed really awkward for Van Dam to get hit with a big move and then just stroll back in and hit his signature move. FIVE STAR FROG SPLASH gets 1-2-NO! Sabu stops the onslaught with a chair and lands a TRIPLE JUMP LEG DROP. Delayed cover gets two. It becomes a woozy brawl for a bit, then Van Dam tumbles into a monkey flip on the chair! Nice. Nonchalant cover gets 1-2-NO! He misses another monkey flip, then misses a spin kick, and Sabu kicks him down for an ARABIAN FACEBUSTER. Sabu hoists a table into the ring, but its legs are broken on end. Van Dam kicks Sabu into the table, which collapses. The crowd is thoroughly disappointed. He adds a leg drop and brings a nice new table into the ring. Oh, it’s all better again. Sabu again throws a chair at Van Dam and sets up the table. Van Dam ducks a clothesline and connects with a springboard side kick, which somehow lays Sabu on the table. The crowd boos at the lack of believability there. A chair shot keeps Sabu down, Van Dam wastes time going upstairs, kicks Sabu onto the table AGAIN, but then makes it all worth it with a FIVE STAR FROG SPLASH right into a cover, this has gotta be it, 1-2-NO! How did Sabu kick out of that? Double underhook gordbuster follows for 1-2-NO! Sabu scores a springboard knee to the face for 1-2-NO! He follows up with a slingshot somersault leg drop and a German suplex for 1-2-NO! Front slam and split-legged moonsault by Van Dam gets 1-2-NO! Sabu hits the ARABIAN PRESS for 1-2-NO! The bell sounds and we’ve got a 30-minute time limit draw. (30:05) How do you rate something like this? It’s a spotfest to the core, with the complete absence of anything resembling ring psychology, yet at the same time it’s borderline must-see material. I mean, there are A LOT of vicious and creative spots to see here. I’ll say it’s a must-see for fans of RVD or Sabu, and pretty much everyone else can pass it up. ***1/4

We watch backstage promos from both Shane Douglas and Al Snow along with a long history package. You might be thinking, “What the hell? Al Snow in the main event for the World Title? Was there some reason for this?” The answer is not really, other than that Snow’s gimmick of shaking a mannequin head to the tune of Prodigy’s “Breathe” was over with the fans. I mean, there was a feud, which took off when Al Snow pinned Douglas in a tag team match at the last pay-per-view, Living Dangerously, but Snow was not a usual main eventer and this was seen as a lopsided match-up.

• ECW Champion Shane Douglas vs. Al Snow

Looong chopfest to start, then Snow goes right after Shane’s severely injured right elbow. Shane scores a back eblow, but Snow gets right back on top with right hands. Crazy sounds emanate from the crowd as people bump and rub their Styrofoam heads together. Snow heads upstairs but gets crotched by Francine, but he ends up dominating a brawl on the floor anyways, crotching Douglas on the guardrail and the ring post. Back in, a shoulderblock by Al gets two. Another shoulderblock gets another two. Douglas catches him on the third try and lands him on the apron, then dropkicks him out to the guardrail. With Snow in the first row, Douglas slams him into the railing, and … goes to the top rope? What’s this? Douglas delivers a rare and downright scary plancha, just barely clearing the guardrail and spilling himself on the floor! Shane never had the talent of the superstar he claimed to be, but damn, you can’t say he didn’t try. After another slugfest, Shane brings Al back inside for some stomps. He slows his offense down and grabs a face lock. INVERTED ROLLING NECK SNAP follows. Shane sets up four chairs in a square. They get into yet another slugfest, and Shane gives Al an inverted atomic drop, dropping him back onto the chairs. BOOO!!! Douglas goes for some punches in the corner, then settles for a two-chair setup and hits a powerbomb through the chairs. That’s better, but still small potatoes after what we saw during RVD/Sabu. Delayed cover gets two. Snow gets whipped and counters a back body drop into a swinging DDT. Here comes the big comeback. Pair of clotheslines drop Douglas, he pulls him up for the SNOW PLOW, but he has to let him go as Chris Candido shows up in the ring. Snow gives him a clothesline and dumps him outside, but turns around right into a BELLY-TO-BELLY SUPLEX by Shane for 1-2-NO! Snow gets whipped into an awful Flair Corner Flip, but makes up for it by giving us an Asai moonsault onto Candido and Bam Bam Bigelow in the entranceway. Shane takes a hard whip into the ring, then back inside Snow leaps off the top with a high crossbody, but Shane rolls it over for 1-2-NO! The locker room has spilled out to ringside to witness this historic match. SNOW PLOW gets 1-2-NO! Francine gets in the ring and also takes the SNOW PLOW. Candido jumps in and gets hit with the head. Bigelow wants in, but gets stopped by Axl Rotten and some others. Snow gets up top again and leaps into a botched sunset flip, but Douglas hangs on and sits down on Snow for the 1-2-3! (13:05) Douglas retains the championship even as everyone knows it would be his last match before surgery, which sidelined him through the next pay-per-view. Sound like odd booking? Well, this exemplified how ECW viewed its fanbase in 1998 as opposed to how WCW and WWF viewed theirs. In those promotions, if the champ was injured but could perform in one last match before taking time off, it would be an easy decision to have him put over a new champion (such as in the case of Shawn Michaels losing to Steve Austin at Wrestlemania XIV). However, ECW fans would have likely not seen the new champ or the belt as credible because the title change was for a practical booking purpose. If Shane dropped to belt to, say, Taz, the fans would know what it was all about and not see Taz as having truly “earned” the title. On the other hand, having your injured champ beat a main-event guy like Taz would hardly make Taz look like a future threat. So, the solution was for Douglas to beat a mid-carder (who would soon be on his way to the WWF anyways) and hold onto the belt during his hiatus, which doesn’t compromise the credibility of the belt or your top guys. So, in a strange way, ECW got it right, despite the fact that the only entertainment in this match is supplied by the crowd playing with their Styrofoam heads. *1/2

Finals Thoughts: Ehh, unless 30 minutes of RVD/Sabu sounds too good to pass up, or unless you are a devout fan of Mikey Whipwreck or Justin Credible, you might  be less than enthused about this show. I originally went thumbs down, but I think I was just too bummed out by the main event. Let’s say thumbs in the middle.

Along with October Caddis, it is approaching that time of year when Baetis/BWO’s become the dominant (Mayfly) species that begin to hatch in early Fall. They decline in activity as temperatures fall dramatically and then, magically reappear on warmer, overcast days during the Winter. Spring brings them back in force… On the Owens River, I have walked a mile or two (upstream and down) and found Baetis/BWO’s which are a different size and color coming off the water. I carry MANY variations. I have posted a number of these patterns including these, which are some of my favorite Baetis patterns:

Michael, working up a run, Owens River, Fall…осень

OWENS EMERGER

The Owens Emerger is a good surface film pattern used as a trailer or with a small BB size tuft of yarn 6 inches above the fly. I use Enrico Puglisi “ Powerfull” tippet material for fishing dries and film emergers.

I have recently been using Stroft GTM which my son Michael brought home from a trip to Paris, with excellent results. For fishing deep, my flurocarbon is always Seaguar.

Hook: Diiachi 1130, TMC 2487, # 16-#18 (20-24 in Fall)

Thread: Gordon Griffiths grey or olive
Tail/shuck: olive brown ice dub
Abdomen: Stalcup’s BWO goose biot/(Tan and light Gray in Fall)
Rib: Largutan fine gold wire
Thorax: Arizona Peacock hares ear
Wing: White sparkle emerger yarn

I also find this pattern , fished deep and all the way through the water column to the surface film – to be very usefull:

KRYSTAL EMERGER / BWO

This fly is a killer pattern in sizes # 18 & # 20 on the Wild Trout section of the Owens River near Bishop, CA – especially in the early spring.

Thread: Gordon Griffiths brown or olive
Hook: Diiachi 1560 or TMC 3761 # 16-20 (22-24 in Fall)
Tail: Olive Zelon straight or kinky
Abdomen: Stalcup’s BWO goose biot (Tan and light Gray in Fall)
Rib: Largutan fine gold wire
Thorax: Olive ostrich herl
Wingcase/legs: Black crystal flash

I fish this pattern deep with twist–ons or higher in the water column with appropriate weight. It may also be fished just under the surface film as a trailer/dropper.

FALL BAETIS

THREAD: Gordon Griffith’s 14/0 Brown, Black or Tan

HOOK: TMC 2488H or 2488 #16-24

SHUCK: Brown Mayfly Zelon

RIB: Wapsi XSM gold wire

ABDOMEN: Stalcup’s PREMO goose biot, tan (not fringed!)

WINGPAD: 6 strands, pearl FIREFLY

THORAX: Arizona Peacock, Pheasant Tail

I got this idea from Craig Matthew’s Micro Madison Baetis. Again, a little tweak of the pattern for Fall Baetis hatches on Eastern Sierra waters. This one has generated some nice fish for Michael and myself in late October, when the frost stays a little longer on the ground here:

The Owens River in Fall…

CC’S JU JU BAETIS: ( 2 VIEWS )

HOOK: TMC 2488, # 18-22
THREAD: Gordon Griffith 14/0, Black
TAIL: Pheasant tail Fibers
UNDERABDOMEN: Uni 8/0 white thread
ABDOMEN: Superhair, 1 Black, 2 Clear Strands
WINGCASE: Pearl Flasabou ( or, Black KF)
GILLS: White Flurofiber, Antron, Zelon ( small amount)

SWISS STRAW BAETIS / BWO

THREAD: Gordon Griffith’s 14/0, olive

HOOK: TMC 2488, # 18-24

SHUCK: Light olive Zelon

ABDOMEN: Stalcup’s goose biot, BWO (fringed or not)

WINGCASE: Olive Raffia (swiss straw)

THORAX: Stalcup’s BWO dubbing

UNDER WINGCASE: Green Krystal Flash

LEGS: Olive Zelon, crinkled, half strand

This pattern was designed by a young student at Montana State University in Bozeman. It appeared in one of the premier FF Mags. in 2004. IT KILLS!!! He is going to be an accomplished pattern designer…

BIOT BACK MAY:

HOOK: Daiichi 1560, # 16-18 or TMC 3761 #16-20
THREAD: Gordon Griffith 14/0, Olive
TAIL: Olive Pheasant Tail Fibers
ABDOMEN: Wapsi UTC 70 DK. Olive/ Tan for Fall
RIB: Chart. Wapsi wire XSM/ Copper Brown for Fall- SM
WINGPAD: Dk. Brown or Black Goose Biot
THORAX: Olive Brown Ice Dub or SLF Prism, Olive Brown
BEAD: Copper Metal or Tung

I developed this fly for the East Walker River as an alternative to the “Tailwater Tiny”.I also tie this in brown too. It works REAL good…

BATWING BAETIS

Hook: TMC 2487, Diiachi 1130 ,16-20

Thread: Gordon Griffiths 14/0 Brown

Tail: Dun hen neck 4-6 fibers

Abdomen: BWO Goose Biot, Tan works well too.

Thorax: Medium Brown Beaver Dub

Bead: x-sm glass, gun metal for 18 & 20

Wing: Fluffy, soft barbs at the base of Dun Hen Neck feather ( tied over thorax & bead convex side up -then tied down behind the eye of the hook).

This pattern appeared in Flyfishing and Flytying Journal about three years ago. It reminds me of the “Wonder Baetis” developed on the Bighorn. I have used this pattern in # 18 & 20 on the lower Owens in the spring. It is a fish catching machine below Five Bridges. This pattern may be modified to match many Mayfly hatches and it is huge success in Ozark tailwaters.

BH BAETIS:

HOOK: TMC 2488, #18-22
THREAD: Gordon Griffith 14/0, Black
TAIL: Pheasant Tail Fibers
UNDERABDOMEN: White uni 8/0
ABDOMEN: Superhair, 1 Clear, 1 Black
WING: Clipped Partridge, Natural
BEAD: Glass Gunmetal

Variation on Charlie Craven’s pattern. I use this as a trailer behind a Snowshoe Baetis in the Spring and Fall, Both flies take fish…

More Baetis patterns may be found here:

BAETIS

I will be adding additional BWO/ Batetis patterns in a week or so, thanks Ally…

Where Ally gets her “good Looks”… it is in the DNA…

GRANDMA

Maybe her MOTHER too….

…and remember what Gary LaFontaine asked in his new book ” La Fontaine’s Legacy – Pg. 18: “Did you ever see a BWO spinner fall?” And, the answer is?

PT/TB

Blogging without Obligation

I found a blog again that I thought I had lost track of called “A Curious State of Affairs” http://j9marshall.wordpress.com/ and was thrilled. And then of course once again she had a story/logo that I totally connected with.

BWO! means blogging without obligation. I am quoting J’s summary of her friend RubyShooz:

“RubyShooZ said, (in a nutshell) that she believed that everyone should blog without obligation. That a blog shouldn’t become a treadmill to you and you should only blog when you felt you had something to say – rather than because you felt obligated because sometimes, less is more.

She pointed out that you will not get the statistics of how many people visited your blog, or left a comment on it, engraved on your tombstone – so don’t be a martyr, blog with integrity and only when you feel like it!”

So like J, I am joining the club because I completely agree and hopefully I can use one of the logos on her blog.

ECW Barely Legal
April 13, 1997
ECW Arena
Philadelphia, PA

The current ECW champions were as follows:
ECW Champion: Raven (12/7/96)
Television Champion: Shane Douglas (7/13/96)
Tag Team Champions: Dudley Boyz (3/15/97)

Your host is Joey Styles.

How’s this for a way to start your first pay-per-view ever: As the show goes on the air, we see the ECW Arena going crazy and Joey Styles standing in the ring, but something seems off. We faintly hear a few production guys on headsets talking for the first ten or so seconds of airtime. Sometime during that span, Styles realizes his microphone is not working, and he smiles in embarrassment for a short while. The redeeming factor of this blunder? The crowd is shouting “ECW” at the top of their lungs the whole time, and that’ll hype you up faster than any other opening bit out there.

He eventually gets the word that his mic is on and does his thing, but he’s interrupted by the Dudley Boyz crew, who do some of the usual heel taunting.

• Tag Team Champions The Dudley Boyz (w/ Joel Gertner and Sign Guy) vs. The Eliminators

No tag rules to speak of in this match. The Dudleys devise a Sign Guy sneak attack, and of course it has no effect and he receives TOTAL ELIMINATION. The Eliminators work the crowd, allowing the Dudleys to make an actually worthwhile sneak attack. Perry Saturn takes a reverse DDT, and John Kronus gets powerbombed and hit with a flying headbutt from D-Von, who covers for two. Buh Buh Ray gives Saturn a tilt-a-whirl slam and a D-Von splash gets two. The Dudleys double team Kronus for a nice vertical suplex/crossbody move for another two. Saturn gets whipped but springboard backflips over the Dudleys and hits a double dropkick and some clotheselines, but gets caught with a BUH BUH SLAM. The Dudleys whip Kronus to set him up for the DUDLEY DEATH DROP, but Saturn kicks D-Von, allowing Kronus to hit Buh Buh with a spinning wheel kick. D-Von receives a double team roundhouse kick combo, then Buh Buh takes an intricate elbow and kick combo. A pair of front slams sets up STEREO TWISTING SPLASHES! The Dudleys try to get it together outside before getting knocked off the apron to the rail. As they to their feet, Kronus lifts Saturn by the foot for a moonsault plancha of sorts, then Kronus delivers a SPACE FLYING KRONUS DROP, which is a cartwheel backflip tope. Saturn brings D-Von back inside for a springboard spin kick, then Buh Buh gets put in the corner for HURRICANE KRONUS, a double backflip back elbow. Kronus slams Buh Buh and Saturn delivers an extra high flying elbow drop. D-Von gets whipped and both Eliminators leap frog him before bringing him to his knees and drilling him in the back of the head with stereo sweep kicks. Saturn slams Buh Buh and springboards off the second and third rope for a TRIPLE JUMP SATURNSAULT! Just to make sure we see enough aerial moves, Kronus sets up D-Von and hits an awesome 450 SPLASH. Buh Buh gets whipped and dropped to his knees for a roundhouse kick sandwich, then the Eliminators pull him back up and deliver TOTAL ELIMINATION, Saturn covers, 1-2-3. (6:11) As they celebrate, Gertner grabs the mic to say that the Dudleys won 86-83 on the Studmuffin Scoring System, and so of course his chubby ass receives TOTAL ELIMINATION. What you got here is an offensive exhibition by the Eliminators with a minute of Dudley offense at the beginning to help it pass off as a match. That said, I’ve seen people go as high as four stars for this because, damn, it’s just plain fun to watch. The crowd was also loving it, so it obviously served the purpose of an opening match. But I’ll try to be reasonable. **1/2

We watch a Sandman promo and he nails himself with the cane because he’s extreme.

Chris Candido appears in the ring and cuts a hysterical promo about how pissed he is that he can’t be on the show. It was scheduled to be him going against Lance Storm, but he had a bicep injury, so Rob Van Dam (who complained that he wasn’t booked) took his place. Candido says we can expect to see him sometime later in the show.

• Rob Van Dam vs. Lance Storm

The crowd is under the false impression that Van Dam is soon jumping to WCW, perhaps so soon that this will be his last ECW appearance, so he gets a pretty mixed reaction throughout the match. (In actuality he would go on to do only a couple of shots for WWF that both promotions used as storylines until RVD refused to job to the Roadie and the WWF dropped it.)

They feel out each other a bit until Van Dam delivers some forearms in the corner. Storm hits a shoulderblock off the ropes, then avoids a monkey flip and hits a clothesline. He grabs a headlock, but Van Dam powers out for some kicks, an arm drag, and a springboard crossbody for one. Van Dam throws Storm outside, which sets up a somersault tope. Back in, Van Dam scores a body slam and a top rope leg drop for two. Storm gets corner whipped but springboards into a nice flying back elbow. He drapes Van Dam on the top rope and knocks him to the rail with a dropkick, but Van Dam avoids a pescado, and a flurry of forearms sets up a moonsault press off the railing. Storm gets thrown back in and Van Dam brings a chair into play. He whips Storm to the corner and quickly throws the chair at his face, then wastes a bunch of time before skateboarding the chair at Storm. Van Dam hits a double underhook gordbuster and a FIVE STAR FROG SPLASH, but delays the cover and only gets two. He retrieves the chair and throws it at Storm once again, then sets it down as he tumbles toward a monkey flip, but Storm moves and delivers some crazy move I’ve never seen other than in this match, landing Van Dam’s head on the chair. Van Dam keeps the advantage with some more forearms, but he misses a spinning wheel kick and Storm hits one of his own. Storm sends Van Dam into the corner for a cartwheel splash, setting up a nice springboard flying forearm for two. Van Dam gets whipped and rolled up into a Boston Crab, then a half Boston Crab. Some Van Dam trickery dumps Storm onto the apron, Storm hits a couple shoulders to the gut, but Van Dam takes him down and delivers a slingshot guillotine leg drop on the apron. Back in, Van Dam tosses the chair to Storm and tries a VAN DAMINATOR, but Storm ducks, scores an extremely weak chair shot (extremely, get it?), and delivers a wince-worthy sitout powerbomb onto the chair for 1-2-NO! As Van Dam stumbles up with the unfolded chair in hand, Storm comes off the top rope with a leg drop that drives his head onto the chair for two. A quick rope running exchange ends with Van Dam escaping a waistlock with a low blow, then he crotches Storm on the top rope and badly botches a springboard back elbow. Styles tries to cover it up by saying Storm shook the ropes, but the ECW Arena crowd has it right: “You fucked up! You fucked up!” Cover gets two for Van Dam. He picks up the chair, but Storm sneaks behind him with a German suplex for two. Storm hits Van Dam with a pair of terribly soft chair shots, so Van Dam responds with the VAN DAMINATOR, then hits a quick backflip splash for the 1-2-3. (10:10) After the match, Van Dam grabs the mic as the crowd chants “You sold out.” He denies Storm a handshake, then goes on about how he doesn’t give a shit if the fans or the locker room respect him, even though he threw a fit about being booked as a “second-line wrestler” to fill in for someone injured. He finishes with, “Lance Storm, by beating you here, Rob Van Dam is worth more money here, and now Rob Van Dam is worth more money ELSEWHERE!” This began the whole Mr. Monday Night angle, and it’s pretty damn funny to see that the ECW fans were hoodwinked like that. It’s also a really enjoyable little match, just right for the #2 slot. ***1/4

We see some cool Terry Funk clips and listen to Heyman push the three-way dance later on.

• The Great Sasuke, Gran Hamada, and Masato Yakushiji vs. bWo Japan (Taka Michinoku, Dick Togo, and Men’s Teioh “Terry Boy”)

This was a match borrowed from Michinoku Pro in Japan, and it was the first ECW appearance for all six of these men. As far as I know, there’s no rhyme or reason to the whole bWo thing; they’re just wearing bWo shirts, definitely to add to the number of shots taken at WCW during this pay-per-view and possibly to help us keep up with who’s on which team. (I’ll do the same thing here and put all the bWo guys’ names in blue.) The tag rules are pretty loose, with guys sometimes becoming the legal man without making a tag. To get the full effect, try reading this as fast as you possibly can, because the pace is insane.

Hamada scores a quick arm drag on Taka to start it off, then goes on a quick onslaught before holding Taka up as Yakushiji comes off the top with a double foot stomp. A slam and a leg drop gets two for Yakushiji before tagging out to Sasuke, who pelts Taka with a bunch of kicks. Taka fights off a suplex and pummels Sasuke before tagging Terry Boy. A snap mare by Terry Boy sets up an elbow drop by Taka, a somersault senton by Togo, and another elbow drop by Terry Boy. Taka whips Sasuke for a sidewalk slam and a Boston Crab, Terry Boy grabs a camel clutch, then Togo delivers a low dropkick to the face. Togo beats Sasuke down and hits a senton splash, and Yakushiji breaks up the cover. Taka tags in and attacks the throat of Yakushiji, then gives him a slam and tags in Terry Boy, who scores some knee lifts and a stalling corkscrew suplex for two. Togo tags in and launches Yakushiji off a whip, but Yakushiji scores a wicked hurracanrana off another whip, then delivers an awesome floatover lucha arm drag to send Togo to the floor. He backflips off the second rope to show off, so Taka rushes in after him and shoots him to the ropes, but gets sent to the floor with a tilt-a-whirl arm drag. Now it’s Hamada and Terry Boy, and they exchange overhand chops until Hamada hits a big headbutt. Hamada backflips away from a corner whip and catches Terry Boy with an armbar takedown. Taka breaks it up and goes for a back body drop, but Hamada lands on his feet, baits Taka, who knocks Terry Boy to the floor, and Hamada scores another armbar takedown. He gives Taka a back suplex and tags in Sasuke, and they team up for a whip and a double chop. Sasuke grabs a bodyscissors chinlock, but Terry Boy breaks it up. He and Sasuke have a cool rope running sequence that ends with Sasuke cartwheeling into a crossbody for two. Yakushiji and Taka tag in, and Yakushiji hits a quick dropkick, but Taka brings him to his team’s corner for some punishment. Terry Boy tags in and does a little spot where he tosses Yakushiji outside a few times, but Yakushiji keeps coming back in, then outquicks him and dropkicks him to the floor, setting up a baseball slide into a headscissors takedown! Hamada and Togo match up and Togo ends some rope running with a low dropkick. Hamada goes running and a hurracanrana gets two before Taka breaks it up. Hamada counters a vertical suplex into a small package for two, then Taka gets triple teamed with chops to the back. Sasuke puts Taka into a half crab, but he squirms to his feet and hits an enziguri. Taka whips Sasuke to the corner for a running forearm and a roundhouse kick before making a tag for some triple team action. First, Togo and Terry Boy attack Sasuke’s midsection and hit a double facebuster, then they hold Sasuke up by his ankles with his head resting on the mat, and Taka hits a running front dropkick in the gut! They humiliate Sasuke by putting him on the bottom of a cheerleading-type pyramid, then if that wasn’t enough, Taka and Terry Boy each put a boot behind his head as Togo drills him with a stiff running front dropkick. You know, for being the guy with arguably the most clout in this match, Sasuke’s taking a hell of a beating.

A stalling vertical suplex gets two for Togo. Terry Boy tags in and goes for the SPINNING TOE HOLD, Sasuke kicks him off, Terry Boy gets whipped, and he delivers a swinging DDT. Taka and Yakushiji match up and a brainbuster by Taka gets two. Terry Boy tags in and gives Yakushiji a Hogan boot to set up a sweet triple team maneuver, check this out: Terry Boy begins to slingshot Yakushiji, Togo bounces off the ropes and drops him back with a clothesline, and as his whole torso is exposed and Terry Boy keeps a hold of his feet, Taka leaps off the top with a flying knee drop! A late cover by Togo gets 1-2-NO! Togo slams him to set up a second rope somersault senton, then Terry Boy tags in for a gnarly back suplex, but Hamada breaks up the cover. Taka goes after Hamada and gives him a back body drop and takes him into the bWo corner, and he and Togo team up for a spike piledriver. Hamada rolls to the floor and Yakushiji becomes the legal man, and the bWo team gives him an awesome triple team powerbomb for 1-2-NO! Sasuke makes the save, so they try the same powerbomb on him, but it gets botched. They go for it anyways, and Sasuke counters into a hurracanrana for two before it’s broken up. Sasuke gets whipped and avoids a double clothesline, then springboards into a moonsault onto Taka and Terry Boy for two. Togo matches up with him, and Sasuke delivers a cartwheel back elbow to send him to the floor. That sets up a fearless asai moonsault that lands Sasuke in the first row. Inside, Hamada sets up a top rope hurracanrana, but Terry Boy counters into a super inverted atomic drop. Hamada rolls outside and receives Taka’s springboard plancha. Inside, Yakushiji hits Terry Boy with a missile dropkick for two. A snap suplex sets up a second rope moonsault, which gets two. Terry Boy reverses a whip and hits a swinging DDT, then a chokeslam powerbomb, and the cover is broken up by Hamada. Togo hops in and hits him with a powerslam for two. Hamada catches Togo charging, and he leaps off the second rope for a swinging DDT for 1-2-NO! Togo reverses a whip and catches him with a powerbomb for two. Meanwhile on the outside, Sasuke is apparently kicking Taka so hard that the fans in the first row are wincing. Togo goes up top, but Sasuke stops him and Hamada pulls him down with a top rope hurracanrana. Sasuke and Hamada decide to focus on Terry Boy outside, leaving Togo alone to receive a missile dropkick by Yakushiji. That sends Togo outside, setting up a high-speed suicide dive by Yakushiji. Back in, Taka and Sasuke trade waistlocks until Sasuke kicks his way out, but he gets caught coming off the ropes with an overhead suplex. That sets up a stiff missile dropkick to the back of the head by Taka and the MICHINOKU DRIVER for 1-2-NO! Yakushiji makes the save, then gets tossed outside. Taka goes up top, but Sasuke dropkicks him on his way down and a springboard moonsault gets the 1-2-NO! Sasuke quickly gives Taka a big powerbomb and a DRAGON SUPLEX, and that’ll do it, 1-2-3. (16:55) Togo and Hamada push and shove a bit after the match. I know it was an exhausting play-by-play (Matt noted the overwhelming amount of action in his review in the WWE Classics section), but I love this match so much I just had to do it. This was some wild action that really got the crowd jumping. It might be a little lower on the scale by Japanese standards, but given the context, this is easily a classic and it helped give this show some real credibility. ****1/2

Stevie Richards delivers a creepy backstage promo where he’s looking at a mirror the whole time.

• Television Champion Shane Douglas (w/ Francine) vs. Pitbull 2

Douglas shows up with a three-man riot squad because in Joey Styles’ words, “You think it’s easy getting that man in and out of the building?” After all, he legitimately broke Pitbull 1’s neck during a four-way classic at Heat Wave ‘96 and then aggravated the injury sometime later by throwing him down by the device that held his head in place. And to make things more intense, he boasts about it during a big cocky promo as Pitbull 1 is seen sitting in the first row. Nice.

Pitbull 2 comes out and charges right at Douglas for a long slugfest, then takes over with a back body drop and a spinning wheel kick. He grabs a big front headlock, trying to break Douglas’ neck. Styles’ take: “While no compassionate human being would condone that, can you blame Pitbull 2?” Douglas low blows his way out and grabs a hard front headlock of his own. Pitbull gets out of that and delivers a nice headlock takedown and holds on for a two count. Douglas works his way up and attacks the midsection, but Pitbull scores a drop toe hold and floats over into another headlock, wrenching on it hard. More classic Styles: “He would love to just pop off that head and take it home with him!” Douglas puts some shoulders to the gut and comes off a whip with yet another front headlock, but Pitbull crotches him on the top rope. Shane runs the ropes leading to a blatantly botched move and an awkward pause, then Pitbull hits a low blow. They go for take two, and Pitbull catches Shane with an inverted atomic drop. A clothesline gets two. Francine is seen crying her eyes out as Douglas gets choked on the ropes. Pitbull whips him and goes for a powerbomb, but Shane counters into a horrible hurracanrana! Douglas is still on wobbly legs though and he gets clotheslined. Pitbull tries again for a powerbomb, but this time Douglas delivers a much-better hurracanrana to the floor!!! Back in, Douglas takes over with a trifecta of piledrivers. He chokes Pitbull on the ropes, then delivers a snap mare/dropkick to the neck combo (PSYCHOLOGY!!!). The crowd starts to get bored of Shane dominating, so they give Francine the good ol’ chant of “She’s got herpes.” Shane hits a stalling suplex and grabs a camel clutch while talking shit to Pitbull 1, calling him by his actual name, Gary. It’s those little things that count when it comes to making the “well-educated ECW fans” buy whatever angle you’re selling them. Pitbull 2 eventually breaks free and scores a choke inverted atomic drop. Shane gets whipped to the corner, springboards off the second rope, and gets caught, and it starts to look like another botch, then Pitbull lets him down (?), then he picks him up again for a fallaway slam through the timekeeper’s table! Douglas gets tossed around like a rag doll outside, then Pitbull 1 jumps the rail and attacks him! That’s short-lived though, as the riot squad holds him back and takes him to the locker room.

The match comes back inside and Pitbull brings a section of steel guardrail with him. He stands it up and attempts to crotch Shane, but Shane flips to avoid it (not landing on his feet like he tried to do), and attempts to crotch Pitbull, but the rail gets knocked over, and Shane drops him clumsily knee-first on the rail. Ouch. Shane hits some low blows and rolls Pitbull to the floor, then drops the guardrail onto him! He finally crotches him on the guardrail, then smacks him in the back with a chair. Back in, Douglas gives Pitbull a million right hands, Pitbull eventually starts no-selling and coming back with rights of his own, but Douglas stops him with a kitchen sink and an elbow drop. Shane jumps from the top and gets caught and perched up in the corner, then shoves off a superplex attempt. He gets adjusted and leaps off, but Pitbull dropkicks him on the way down. They get up slow and hit each other with double-KO clotheslines. Pitbull takes over with punches and a pair of knockdowns, then catches Douglas with a powerslam for two. Whip and back elbow gets two for Pitbull. Whip and dropkick gets two. Another whip leads to a nice press slam, but Pitbull is tired and staggers into the ropes, allowing Francine to slip some brass knux to Douglas. He delivers two uninspired right hands, then picks up a piece of table and breaks it over Pitbull’s head for 1-2-NO! Chair across the back gets two. Ring bell gets two. Another piece of table gets two. The crowd has no doubt that these are going to be two counts. Pitbull comes back and whips Shane to the corner, but he grabs the title belt (which is oddly hanging between the post and the top turnbuckle) and gives Pitbull a couple shots with it. He unties his boot and reaches for a small chain, but Pitbull sneaks up and hits a pump handle slam for two. Pitbull grabs the chain out of the boot, Chris Candido appears, and Pitbull swiftly knocks him off the apron. Francine inches into the ring but retreats when Pitbull comes toward her, allowing Shane to grab a school boy for 1-2-NO! Pitbull comes back with a clothesline, but Shane ducks a second clothesline and scores a BELLY-TO-BELLY SUPLEX for the 1-2-3. (20:43)

After the match, he hear Ravishing Rick Rude over the loudspeaker saying something about how he wants Francine or he’ll kick Shane’s ass. (Oh, by the way, Rick Rude had been at ECW shows wearing a Mexican style mask and taunting Shane, and although his face was covered, everyone knew it was him because of the voice. And, oh, by the way, there was a stipulation that if Pitbull didn’t win the title, the “Masked Man” would have to reveal himself.) So here he comes walking down the aisle, wearing a blue “Simply Ravishing” robe. He struts right in and lays a kiss on Francine, so Shane decks him with the title belt and tries to pull off the mask, but a riot squad guy hops in and pulls off his helmet to reveal himself to be … RICK RUDE! Everyone goes crazy, except Shane, whose back is turned. He gets the mask off and it’s Brian Lee, so he turns around and takes a nightstick to the gut and a right hand from Rude, then gets chokeslammed by Lee for a big huge crowd pop.

This match was an ambitious effort, with both guys trying like hell to make it a classic by inserting more psychology and wrestling maneuvers than you’d normally see from them, yet much of it is so sloppy and boring that this match gets completely shit on. It turned out to rely on the heat of the feud (and it was a great feud), and that alone didn’t carry it through 20 minutes of these two guys huffing, puffing, struggling with moves they don’t know, and failing to sell convincingly. **1/4

Raven talks some of his typical Raven talk in a backstage promo.

• Taz (w/ Bill Alfonso and Team Taz) vs. Sabu

This is billed as “The Grudge Match of the Century,” and a couple guys at ringside look shocked that it’s not the nightcapper. Sabu suddenly appears in the ring for a big staredown, having apparently jumped the gun on his cue to enter. They trade slaps until Taz hits a clothesline that has Sabu reeling to the floor. Back in, Sabu reverses a whip and drops down, Taz hits the brakes and goes for the TAZMISSION, but Sabu blocks it and scores an arm drag and holds onto a reverse arm bar. Taz wrestles out and they trade some hammerlocks. Sabu blocks a suplex, but Taz takes him down for an ankle pick. Taz lets Sabu go for his leg, but he ends up on top for some crossface blows, then a bodyscissors hold. Sabu takes a pummeling and then we see that he’s bleeding, apparently from one of the crossfaces. He kills time and gets a sneaky low dropkick and a slingshot leg lariat onto a seated Taz. He sends Taz to the outside and over the guardrail and delivers a TRIPLE JUMP PLANCHA into the crowd! They brawl back and forth and move through the sea of humanity for a while, then Sabu leaps off a chair, missing Taz and hitting the rail, and Taz clotheslines him over. Back in, Taz drop toe holds Sabu and applies a freestyle bow-and-arrow. They start a slugfest from their knees, then brawl on the mat until Taz puts on a bodyscissors arm bar. Sabu makes it to the ropes and hits an enziguri, setting up an awesome springboard somersault leg drop. He brings in a chair and hurls it at Taz in the corner, which sets up AIR SABU. He misses a second try and Taz hotshots him onto the chair, and a late cover gets two.

Back up, Taz whips Sabu into an unbelievably stiff clothesline for two. He catches him coming off the ropes with a sidewalk slam, but Sabu pulls him to the floor and goes for another TRIPLE JUMP PLANCHA, but Taz avoids it and Sabu hits the guardrail. An OVERHEAD BELLY-TO-BELLY TAZPLEX sends Sabu crashing all over chairs. Sabu gets rolled back in, and it looks like Team Taz set up a table bridging the rail and ring apron. Taz orders them around a bit, allowing Sabu to ambush him and knock him out and onto the table. He begins a triple jump move, but stops because Taz doesn’t look ready. He heads out and Taz tries to set up a suplex, Sabu fights it off and goes for a swinging DDT, but Taz doesn’t budge and Sabu falls through the table. I’m pretty sure that was all botched if not just badly improvised. They have some more slugfest outside, then they bring it inside, and Taz favors his shoulder. A top rope hurracanrana gets two for Sabu. He follows that with a huge top rope leg drop. After more slugfesting, Taz grabs a hold and delivers a SIDE HEAD AND ARM TAZPLEX, then a HEADLOCK TAZPLEX, but he takes a breather, which allows Sabu to come back with a PUMP HANDLE SABUPLEX! He mocks Taz, but Taz gets right up, Sabu ducks a clothesline, and he puts on a SABUMISSION, but Taz wiggles around and delivers a modified SIDE BELLY-TO-BELLY TAZPLEX. He follows up with a PUMP HANDLE TAZPLEX, then locks on the TAZMISSION, Sabu is out, it’s over. (17:49)

Taz gets on the mic and he and Sabu have a nice mutual respect moment, which is interrupted by Rob Van Dam jumping Taz. Van Dam gets stuck in the TAZMISSION, but Sabu saves him and Van Dam unloads on Taz with stomps and leg drops. Sabu brings in a chair for an ARABIAN FACEBUSTER. Van Dam sets him on a table outside, and Sabu goes for a triple jump moonsault plancha, but he slips off the rope and settles for a more modest verison of a plancha through the table. Sabu puts on another SABUMISSION while Fonzie just stands there, not trying to help Taz. Fonzie gets in the ring with RVD and Sabu, and he takes off his Taz shirt to reveal a Sabu shirt. This starts the Sabu/RVD/Fonzie alliance. Van Dam gets on the mic for the second time and tells his new employer to think about picking up Fonzie, “because he knows my schedule, and I love to work Mondays.”

This match has good heat and some good wrestling, and it even has a unique realism going for it, with Taz keeping the advantage after the table spot and Sabu only coming back here and there, but I don’t think it sets the world on fire like some people do. Maybe I can’t get past all the mini slugfests between spots and the otherwise underbooked feel. ***1/4

• 3-Way Dance: Terry Funk vs. Sandman vs. Stevie Richards (w/ The Blue Meanie, Hollywood Nova, Thomas Rodman, and 7-11)

The winner faces Raven for the ECW Title. Tommy Dreamer adds some guest commentary here. The story is that he gave up his spot in the match to his mentor Terry Funk, and he promised he wouldn’t interfere. The crowd loves the bWo since they’re obviously a WCW parody. After the opening bell, Sandman pounds yet another beer and spits some of it at Stevie, and of course he’s already bleeding. Funk puts a headlock on Stevie, then Sandman puts one on Funk, and Sandman bounces off the ropes for a shoulderblock. He takes advantage on Stevie and gives him some overhand chops in the corner, then Funk gets in on the action, then he and Sandman have a chopfest, and it ends with Funk pushing him into a Stevie school boy for two. Sandman misses Stevie and gets decked by Funk, who goes for a SPINNING TOE HOLD, but Stevie hits him with a flying forearm. Stevie and Sandman take turns dropping elbows on Funk, then Sandman picks up Stevie and drops him into a legdrop on Funk for two. Stevie agrees to go for another try, but this time Sandman turns on him and hits a back suplex. Sandman takes off down the entranceway while Funk delivers FOUR hangman’s neckbreakers on Stevie for a two count. Sandman emerges with a ladder and heaves it from the floor right at Funk. Stevie takes some ladder punishment, and Sandman covers Funk for two. Sandman sets up the ladder near the corner and drops Stevie with a DDT. He climbs and Funk goes after him and gives him some fists, then he delivers a MOONSAULT PRESS onto Stevie! Considering that there’s no telling where Funk will land with a moonsault, Stevie did a decent enough job of getting underneath him. Sandman grabs the ladder and comes off the top rope, smashing it onto Stevie. He levels Funk and body slams Stevie on the ladder for two. He grabs the ladder again, but Stevie dropkicks it into his head for 1-2-NO! Funk quickly crawls across the mat and headbutts Stevie for two.

Sandman puts the ladder in a corner, but his corner whip is reversed by Stevie. That gets two. A body slam on Funk gets another two for Stevie. Low blow gets another two. Sandman beats Funk down some more, then climbs the ladder in the center of the ring. Stevie meets him up top, and Funk backs into it to drop both guys into the ropes. Funk holds the ladder up on his shoulders and spins around wildly, dropping both of his opponents. He sets the ladder against the ropes and brawls with Sandman, and Stevie comes off the top and seesaws the ladder into them both. STEVIEKICK on Sandman gets 1-2-NO! STEVIEKICK on Funk gets 1-2-NO! If it wasn’t obvious before, it’s obvious now: Stevie’s going out first. The match spills to the floor, and Sandman knocks Stevie into the crowd, then sets the ladder against the rail and comes over the top rope for a seesaw! Funk nails Stevie with a chair while Sandman heads down the aisle for more weaponry. Funk brings Stevie inside and delivers a corkscrew vertical suplex, but Sandman shows up and hurls a trash can covered in sheet metal right at Funk’s head! Sandman gives Stevie a suplex onto the can and Funk covers for 1-2-NO! Funk and Sandman team up for a spike piledriver, then Sandman sets the ladder on Stevie and hits a slingshot somersault leg drop, and Funk covers for 1-2-NO! Sandman sets the ladder on the ropes for another seesaw on Stevie, but it doesn’t connect and the ladder goes flying onto the guardrail. Still looked pretty cool. Funk throws a chair at Sandman and covers Stevie for two. Sandman and Funk team up for a powerbomb, and they both cover Stevie for the 1-2-3 at 15:43.

It’s down to Sandman and Funk. Sandman gets dumped outside, but wobbles around and finds some barbed wire, which is all tangled with the streamers that were thrown in the ring before the six-man tag match earlier. Funk pulls Sandman’s shirt over his head hockey-style and throws some punches at him, then whips his bare back with the wire! There’s one ugly moment there when the wire snags Sandman’s skin as Funk yanks on it. Sandman manages to stop the whipping with a loose piece of sheet metal, then he wraps himself in barbed wire! He uses it to knock down Funk a couple times, then he hits a top rope leg drop for 1-2-NO! Stevie returns, stumbles up to the ring apron, and takes a barbed wire hug from Sandman. Funk capitalizes by putting the trash can over Sandman’s head and slugging him a couple times, then Stevie comes back in and delivers a STEVIEKICK into the trash can. Funk goes up for another MOONSAULT, and that gets the 1-2-3. (19:10) Probably what you’d expect. Full of fun spots and not much wrestling or storytelling. Sloppiness definitely brought it down. ***

Just ten seconds after the pinfall, Raven jumps in the ring, and here we go …

• World Champion Raven vs Terry Funk

Funk doesn’t have much left, so Raven just bullies him around, then delivers a DROP TOE HOLD ON THE CHAIR! He adds a chair shot, and a close-up reveals that Funk is bleeding up a storm. A kayfabe doctor checks on Funk while Raven calmly rests in the corner. (A funny side note is that due to New Jack’s “Mass Transit Incident” from late ‘96, the pay-per-view company demanded that there be a real doctor at ringside with the authority to stop a match.) Raven pummels Funk to the floor and suplexes a table onto him. He sets up a table outside, lays Funk on it, and leaps over the top rope, crashing Funk to the floor in a heap. The kayfabe doctor looks at Funk’s cut and tries to stop the match, but Raven decks him. Here comes a group of renegade bikers aligned with Raven, and they start setting up a stack of tables right underneath the broadcast position. Meanwhile, female weightlifter Reggie Bennett shows up and powerbombs Funk in the ring. Raven gets on the mic and tells Dreamer that he’s going to end Funk’s career by dropping him off the balcony through the tables, and that does it — Tommy’s pissed, and he’s headed to the ring. But, no, he gets attacked from behind with a trash can by Big Dick Dudley, who just got out of jail (lol). Dick tries a chokeslam, but Tommy counters and delivers his own chokeslam, dropping Big Dick through the stack of tables! Raven waits for Tommy to make it to the ring while Funk quivers in a pool of his own blood. Raven reverses a whip, and Tommy hits a swinging DDT! Funk covers, 1-2-NO! We hear the ring bell anyways. Wow, way to fuck up your simple job at the most inopportune time, Mr. Bell Ringer. Raven fights back and tries a suplex, but Funk rolls him into an inside cradle for the 1-2-3! Funk is the champion! (7:20) While Dreamer still hasn’t scored a pinfall on Raven, this was obviously a victory in their feud. Funk and Dreamer spend the next few minutes with some fans as the show goes off the air. This was obviously not booked to be much of a match, rather more of a storyline piece, so it’s tough to rate, but I gotta say that it worked for the emotion and mark out factor. ***

Final Thoughts: One thing that makes following ECW history difficult is the absence of an annual megashow a la Wrestlemania — sure, Styles used to push November To Remember as the yearly granddaddy of ‘em all, but it seemed just like any other pay-per-view and never delivered the quality of a megashow — so this is arguably the lone “special” ECW show. It was the promotion’s chance to show it could stay true to itself while operating within the bounds of a live pay-per-view event (although they almost hit the end of the three-hour time slot before the show’s conclusion, which would have been a disaster). It’s also the only ECW pay-per-view held in the ECW Arena, which is a shame in my opinion because the energy was much better there than in some of the places ECW held pay-per-views. On a technical level, the six-man tag is the only must-see material, but there’s plenty more to this show than star ratings and the whole show is a must-see for ECW fans. Thumbs up.

The ubiquitous (I love that $10. word) Blue Winged Olive. The BWO (not a trucking company or rail line) is a very common mayfly that is on the small side (size 14-20). The nymph is a swimming type (as opposed to crawler, clinger, burrower which necessitate stouter bodies compared to the more slender swimmer) and some key factors for the nymph pattern are: probably split the difference and tie 16’s with some smaller. Keep the abdomen slim and have a slightly heavier thorax (like the guy that only does benches but not squats…the con look) and have a pronounced dark wingpad (Planet Trout reminded me of this from his observations).

If you query Google Images re BWO’s you will see mostly emergers (little, sparse ties on pupa hooks) and chunky dries (trying to put all the components on a size 18 hook) and not too many nymph patterns. Nymphs are prolific in the drifts of streams and occupy varied waters of the stream from rapids to the adjacent quieter waters. Also, BWO’s hatch several times a year so they are worth consideration as a must have pattern on the mayfly side. Not as flashy as the less frequent hex or the green drakes and PMD’s but BWO’s are early Spring fish food and again in the Fall and Winter (or if you are a hearty Winter fisher, you can simply view this as your primary Winter pattern). Other than midges, you have to agree the BWO is busy enough to be frequently available to the trout. As with other mayflies, the early hatches may be larger (say 14-16) and later smaller (16-20 or smaller). If you tie, it has to be simplistic patterns.

I think simplistic Pheasant Tail Nymphs, or Krystal Flash bodies or thread bodies with wire ribbing for segmentation will keep the body (abdomen sparse) and then a thorax slightly thicker will complete a simple pattern.  A nice Scott Richmond piece re BWO’s at Westfly.

PTN~SwittersB

BWO DRY (KISS) From GFF

ECW November To Remember
November 1, 1998
Lakefront Arena
New Orleans, Louisiana

The current ECW champions were as follows:
World Heavyweight Champion: Shane Douglas (11/30/97)
Television Champion: Rob Van Dam (4/4/98)
Tag Team Champions: Dudley Boyz (10/24/98)
Unrecognized FTW Champion: Taz (5/14/98)

Your host is Joey Styles.

Jack Victory is being interviewed outside the building, and New Jack comes out of nowhere and jumps him until a bunch of security guys break it up.

Joey Styles does his usual hypeman routine in the ring, and Terry Funk comes through the crowd wearing a graduation cap. He gets on the mic and starts up about how Tommy Dreamer betrayed him. The story is that Dreamer has a mystery partner for a tag match and he didn’t choose his father figure Terry Funk to team with him. Funk’s also mad at Paul E. because he wasn’t invited to the show (hence him coming through the crowd). Dreamer comes out and tries to clear things up, but Funk ain’t havin’ it.

• The bWo (The Blue Meanie and Super Nova) vs. Danny Doring and Amish Roadkill

Nova and Doring start. Nova has trouble getting out of a headlock and gets tossed to the mat, so now he’s pissed and he takes off his gloves!!!!!! They go into a rope running sequence and all of a sudden we see Terry Funk strolling down the ramp. Nova scores a sitout facebuster and tags Meanie in for some double-teaming that we don’t see because the cameras are all on Funk. The “Hardcore Legend” table-jacks the “officials” at ringside and takes a seat. After a long stalemate, Meanie hits Roadkill with a hangman’s neckbreaker and makes a tag. Meanie assists as Nova delivers a leap frog leg drop, Nova covers, and avoids a Doring elbow drop. Nova and Meanie team up for the SUPER DUPER DOUBLE LOOPER, Meanie covers, and he avoids a Roadkill splash. Roadkill and Doring have a chat, it gets heated, they trade some shoves, Doring gets on his knees to surrender, Nova dropkicks him, and his head gives Roadkill a low blow! A bulldog by Meanie results in Roadkill and Doring having a meeting on the floor, and Nova hits them with a sideways suicide dive. Back in, Meanie slams Roadkill and delivers the PEOPLE’S LEGDROP. Funk hops on the apron and slaps the hell out of Meanie, and Meanie fights back, knocking Terry onto the table. The table doesn’t break but rather tips over, landing him hard on the concrete! Only Terry Funk could manage to be hardcore when he’s not even in the match. Now he’s mad at the table for not breaking, so he destroys it! Oh yeah, the match. Well, Doring and Roadkill use the distraction to their advantage and Nova takes the worst of it. Nova gets beaten down by Roadkill, but eventually wins a rope running sequence with a drop toe hold. Roadkill takes the advantage right back though, culminating with a standing powerslam, which sets up an AMISH SPLASH three-quarters across the ring. He goes up again, walks the rope (!), and misses an elbow drop. Nova tries to tag out, but Doring tags in and stops him. Nova puts up a quick fight, but Doring hits a G-SPOT SUITE for two. Flying legdrop gets two. He’s all over Nova, but Nova finally makes a Hogan-like comeback and hits the SLEDGE-O-MATIC. Hot tag to Meanie, he wrecks shop and snap suplexes Doring. They team up and Doring and Roadkill both get splashed in the corner by Meanie. He and Nova climb to opposite turnbuckles for a frog splash/MEANIESAULT combo on Doring, 1-2-NO! Roadkill makes the save. Nova avoids a corner splash and hits Roadkill with a modified tornado DDT, then Meanie grabs Doring to set up the BLUE LIGHT SPECIAL for 1-2-3. (10:54) After the match, Terry Funk shows up again and beats the living hell out of Meanie, Nova, and a security guard. This match in a nutshell: slow start but eventually picks up, some sloppiness but also some cool moves. **1/4

We watch a 100 mph history package for the upcoming Dudley Boyz vs Masato Tanaka and Balls Mahoney match.

• Tommy Rogers (w/Chris Chetti) vs. Tracey Smothers (w/ Tommy Rich, Little Guido, Big Guido, and Ulf Herman)

Smothers dominates early and tries relentlessly to get heat, allowing Rogers to hit a sneak missile dropkick. Smothers gets dumped on the floor and has a meeting with the FBI. Back in, the ref gets distracted and Ulf Herman drops Rogers with a slingshot shoulderblock. Chetti beats Herman back to the locker room while Smothers gets a two count with a choke. The ref gets distracted again, and Little Guido jumps in for a superkick/Italian leg sweep combo. That gets two. More interference and a leaping front kick gets two. Even more interference ending with a double elbow drop gets two. Smothers grabs a chin lock. Rogers fights back and hits a Russian leg sweep, but misses an elbow drop. Rogers gets the knees up on a splash, then hits a knee lift, a dropkick, and a powerslam. Smothers avoids a flying crossbody and rolls him up for two. Smothers delivers for a twisting flying crossbody, but Rogers rolls through it for 1-2-NO! School boy gets two for Rogers. Smothers evens the score with a low blow, then hits a cool slam for two. Guido gets on the apron with the Italian flag, he’s ready to nail Rogers, but Rogers reverses a whip, Smothers puts on the brakes, and Rogers hits a KAMIKAZE for the 1-2-3. (7:51)

After the match, Little Guido and Smothers appear to be having an argument, but it turns out to be a ruse to bait Rogers into getting his ass kicked. Chetti reemerges to save Rogers, then Herman reemerges with MABEL! Mabel crushes Chetti with a corner splash and Herman hits a gutbuster. Chetti gets set on a table for a splash from Mabel, but Spike Dudley shows up to save Chetti. Oops, Spike gets laid down on a table, Mabel jumps, Spike moves and Mabel hits nothing but wood. Spike hits some ACID DROPS and covers Mabel (?), and referee John “Pee Wee” Moore hops in, and Spike gets a 1-2-3! Only in ECW. The actual match was pretty much a TV-quality match on a pay-per-view, and the nonsense ain’t special unless you’re a Mabel fan. *1/2

We watch a loud backstage promo with Axl Rotten, Balls Mahoney, and Masato Tanaka. Axl does the talking and basically tells the Dudleys to hope and pray they don’t get killed by the team of Balls Mahoney and “Masata” Tanaka.

• Lance Storm (w/Tammy Lynn Bytch) vs. Jerry Lynn — (Special guest referees: Tammy Lynn Sytch and Mikey Whipwreck)

I’m just going to call them Dawn Marie and Sunny to make it easier. Midway through the entrances we watch a clip of a recent brawl that set up this five-way feud. Sunny takes her sweet time getting ready for the match, and unfortunately, she’s the main ref and Mikey stands at ringside. They start with a long mat wrestling clinic before Storm hits a fireman’s takeover and grabs an arm bar. What follows is an insanely long yet fast-paced sequence, here goes: Lynn flips out of an arm ringer for one of his own, snap mare by Storm, Lynn bridges up and returns the snap mare, he hits the ropes for a shoulderblock, he runs some more, Storm leap frogs, Lynn catches him with a boot, Storm kips up from the corner whip, Lynn ducks a clothesline and delivers a monkey flip but Storm cartwheels out, Storm corner whips Lynn and hits a monkey flip but Lynn lands on his feet, Lynn catches Storm with a drop toe hold, and he ends it with an arm ringer. Goodness gracious they have to be tired after that. They trade a few arm ringers, Storm drops Lynn but Lynn brings him down with him and puts on an arm bar. Storm gets out and sets up a press slam, but Lynn wiggles free into a sunset flip, then they go from one nearfall to another, which gets sort of wasted because Sunny doesn’t make clear or consistent counts. A shoulderblock by Lynn gets two. A second shoulderblock gets two. Lynn counters a back suplex for two. Sunny is counting fast for Lynn. Storm hits a drop toe hold and they go back to some mat wrestling. Lynn gains the advantage and works on Storm’s arm. Storm takes it to the corner and nails Lynn with chops, but Lynn comes right back with some stiff ones of his own. Storm Flair Flips in the corner and lands on the apron, they both duck clotheslines, Lynn bumps Storm out to the guardrail, and he delivers a sweet baseball slide into a headscissors! He follows up with the rolling shoulderblock off the apron. Lynn gets a bit distracted, and Storm shoots him to the rail and rams his head into the steel. Back inside, Storm hits a flying shoulderblock and Mikey makes a two count. Storm puts his knee into Lynn’s sternum a couple times, then grabs a chinlock. They run the ropes and Lynn hits a crossbody for two. A flying headscissors gets another two. Lynn ends up on the apron after a short exchange, and Storm dropkicks him to the floor. Storm goes for a springboard crossbody, but he gets caught on the ropes and looks pretty ugly plummeting into Lynn. Back in, Lynn fights back, corner whip by Storm, and Lynn kips up into a sunset flip for two. Storm goes for a powerbomb, but Lynn flips through, lands on his feet, misses a clothesline, and Storm delivers a full nelson inverted leg sweep! Storm gets up slow and puts Lynn in a Mexican surfboard, but I think the move gets botched and Lynn gets free. A whip and a high dropkick gives Storm some time to gloat. Lynn counters a powerbomb into a sunset flip for two. Right back up, they both miss clotheslines and Storm hits a superkick for a very slow two count. Lynn reverses a whip and puts on a sleeper, Storm pushes him off and puts on a sleeper, and Lynn hits a back suplex. They stagger to their feet and trade big forearm blows, Lynn hits the ropes and counters a hurracanrana into a powerbomb for two. Lynn delivers a sitout front suplex, they tussle into a short cover for Storm, they bridge up, and Lynn delivers an awful-looking PEDIGREE. Delayed cover gets two. Sunny’s fast counts for are too fast and I think it’s messing with Storm. A quick chain wrestling exchange gets a slow one count for Storm. He hits a back elbow and begins to set up a tornado DDT, but Lynn dropkicks him off the turnbuckle to the floor. That sets up Lynn’s always-awesome crossbody plancha. Storm gets tossed in, Lynn battles with him from the apron, Storm crotches Lynn in the corner, and he delivers a super back suplex! They’re both down, and Sunny counts to seven before Dawn Marie gets involved. She gets OWNED by Sunny and stripped her to her bra n’ thong. Mikey gets in the ring and gives Dawn Marie a WHIPPERSNAPPER (a stunner). He tries to give one to Sunny, but Lynn stops him, so instead Lynn receives the WHIPPERSNAPPER. Storm low blows Mikey and gets him out of there, covers Lynn, and a ridiculously slow count gets 1-2-NO! Storm goes after Sunny, Lynn grabs him but receives a low blow, and Sunny hits Storm with a SUNNY STUNNER, then Mikey hits Sunny with a WHIPPERSNAPPER. Lynn puts Storm in a small package, and Mikey turns it over in Storm’s favor and makes a swift three count. Storm wins. (16:48) This match could have been superb if it weren’t for the guest referee angle that mainly consisted of, hello, giving the babyface an unfair advantage? There’s a reason most guest ref situations favor the heels. Anyways, Storm and Lynn get about A-minuses for their work, saving this match from being a disaster. It’s a good thing that this wasn’t the only time these two would face each other because they were pretty damn good opponents. ***

Terry Funk gets in Joey Styles’ face and apologizes for his earlier actions (?) and says he’s going home (?).

We watch some Justin Credible clips that set up the Credible/Victory vs Dreamer/Mystery Partner match coming later.

• Tag Team Champions The Dudley Boyz (w/Joel Gertner, Big Dick Dudley, and Sign Guy Dudley) vs. Masato Tanaka and Balls Mahoney (w/Axl Rotten)

Buh Buh Ray gets on the mic for some cheap heat. Joel Gertner does his thing: “Hotter than Tabasco sauce but loads easier to swallow.” And Sign Guy does his thing: “War, Hate, and Dudleyness” The Dudleys somehow start with a sneak-attack, and Buh Buh ends up in the ring with Tanaka. They put on a quick slopfest and Buh Buh secures the advantage before tagging to D-Von. He gives us some boring heel moves like a trapezius hold before Buh Buh tags back in. He drops Tanaka with a neckbreaker for two. D-Von tags in and unloads on Tanaka with right hands. Tanaka eventually shows some fight, but D-Von hits an inverted DDT. A body slam sets up an exaggerated PEOPLE’S FALLING HEADBUTT, but Tanaka moves out of the way, makes the tag, hits a powerslam, and Balls hits a nice frog splash for two before Buh Buh makes the save. Buh Buh works over Balls, but Balls wins a rope running spot with a low blow, then delivers a superkick that sends Buh Buh to the floor. They dump D-Von onto the Buh Buh, and Tanaka hits a tope off Mahoney’s back. Balls goes up top, but Big Dick gets his “brothers” out of the way, and the Dudleys take over on the floor. Get this, Buh Buh hits a tope! I can’t believe what I just saw. Tanaka sends Buh Buh into the rail and drills him with a running chair shot. Back in, Tanaka hits Buh Buh with the ROARING ELBOW, but a second attempt bumps referee Jim Molineaux. He drops Buh Buh with the third attempt, so Big Dick jumps Tanaka and hits a neckbreaker slam, then Axl Rotten hits Dick with two evil chair shots. Sign Guy nails Axl and stomps him, then Joel Gertner joins the fun, but Balls comes in and drops Sign Guy with a NUTCRACKER SUITE. A chair shot from Gertner has no effect, and the quintessential stud muffin avoids a chair shot from Balls. That cues a big staredown with all four actual participants, each wielding a chair. Tanaka and Balls each come back after two chair shots, but three times a charm. Back up, they duck chair shots and hit stereo ROARING ELBOWS. Molineaux is still down, so referee Jeff Jones comes running down for the 1-2-NO! Jones stopped before three by faking an arm injury! You don’t see that one too often. Tanaka has a chat with Jones, so Jones pulls out a Japenese-English dictionary, then receives an Axl Rotten chair shot, and everyone gets back in the ring for a slugfest. Balls gets dumped when Big Dick pulls down the top rope, and Tanaka gets hits with the DUDLEY DEATH DROP, 1-2-NO!!! The Dudleys have a discussion, Buh Buh slaps D-Von and D-Von punches Buh Buh, then Balls and Tanaka sneak up for stereo chair shots, double cover, 1-2-NO! They set chairs on the mat for Balls’ NUTCRACKER SUITE and a tornado DDT from Tanaka, 1-2-NO! The Dudleys quiet the crowd with low blows, a piledriver on Balls and a sitout powerbomb on Tanaka. They clumsily get two tables in the ring, with D-Von getting a wire stuck on his (you’d think they’d be experts at getting tables), and here comes RVD and SABU to beat the hell out of the Dudleys. The Dudleys get laid out on the tables, Sabu hits a flying leg drop and RVD hits a frog splash. The spot either got mistimed or they each aimed for the far table. Balls covers D-Von, 1-2-3. New champions! (15:01) This had your typical ECW tag team madness, but somehow it all actually worked pretty well. One of the better Dudley Boyz matches I’ve ever seen from ECW. ***

We watch a promo led by Shane Douglas and then a history package for the six-man main event.

And then we watch an ad for an ECW “Extreme Music” CD. Why, ECW, Why?

• Tommy Dreamer and Jake “The Snake” Roberts vs. Justin Credible and Jack Victory (w/ Jason, Nicole Bass, Chastity & Lance Wright)

Yup, Tommy chose Jake Roberts to tag with instead of Terry Funk. So you can see now why Funk made such a fuss. They all brawl on the rampway to start, then Roberts and Dreamer score a pair of knee lifts back in the ring. Credible and Victory get dumped to the outside, and Dreamer hits a pescado on the whole entourage. Back in, Tommy and Credible go at it a bit, then Roberts hits an inverted atomic drop and clotheslines Credible to the floor. Tommy ends up getting crotched on the guardrail by Credible and tossed inside. Credible beats Tommy up a bit and throws him back outside, where he receives some boots from Jason. On the elevated rampway, Credible whips Tommy and hits a powerslam! Back in, Credible scores some funny swinging DDT-like move. We get some more typical heel tactics to work over Tommy, and Credible grabs a chinlock. Jason gets in the ring, Credible climbs up top, Tommy counters Jason’s suplex and whips him to the corner to crotch Credible, then delivers a superplex. Tommy’s too beaten up, so Credible gets up first at delivers the DROP TOE HOLD ONTO A CHAIR. Tommy sits in the corner and baits Credible into missing a baseball slide, crotching him on the post. Tommy pulls him into another crotch shot, but Jason nails Tommy outside, so Credible STILL has the advantage. Jason hops on the apron and apparently he’s in the match because Jack Victory got injured earlier when he was backdropped to the floor. Credible avoids a corner whip, but Dreamer catches him and hits the DREAMER DRIVER. Lukewarm tag to Jake the Snake, Credible tags Jason, and Jake unloads, the crowd’s chanting for a stereo DDTs, but here comes Rod Price and One Man Gang. Jake gets splashed by One Man Gang, but now here comes New Jack and John Kronus with a bunch of weapons. Dreamer, New Jack, and Kronus take over with every weapon in the book, and Kronus hits Credible with a 450 SPLASH. Kronus gets up and runs right into a clothesline and a splash from One Man Gang, then New Jack hits the Gang coming off the top with a chair. Dreamer delivers the highest frog splash he’s ever done onto Credible, 1-2-NO! He then hits a Death Valley Driver, but Mr. Right and Chastity get involved and Chastity low blows Roberts, so Dreamer piledrives Chastity. Nicole Bass goes after Tommy, Tommy hits the low blow, and Roberts his the DDT. Tommy brings a ladder in the ring and heaves Credible onto it from top turnbuckle. DDT on the ladder by Roberts, and that gets the 1-2-3 (12:26) Terry Funk shows up and wants to know why Dreamer chose Jake Roberts as his partner. I kind of have the same question. Dreamer says he won’t hit Terry, so he lays there while Terry beats the hell out of him. This so should have been Dreamer vs. Credible. *3/4

We watch a silly RVD promo and a serious Taz promo.

• FTW Champion Taz, Sabu and Rob Van Dam (w/Bill Alfonso) vs. The Triple Threat (ECW Champion Shane Douglas, Bam Bam Bigelow and Chris Candido) (w/Francine)

The Dudleys jump Sabu and Van Dam on their way to the ring, the lights go out, Taz comes out, and he attacks the Dudleys before the lights even come back on, then he delivers a head-and-arm Tazplex on Candido. D-Von and Buh Buh get suplexed as well. Bam Bam takes Taz to the floor as Candido and Sabu match up in the ring. Douglas reverses a whip and Van Dam hits the rail on the outside. Inside, Douglas hits a fisherman’s buster and Candido hits a leg drop. INVERTED ROLLING NECK SNAP by Douglas. Sabu fights back and hits a springboard leg lariat on Douglas. On the floor, Van Dam saves Taz by taking a chair to Bam Bam. Candido and Douglas roll to the floor, and Sabu goes for a triple jump moonsault plancha, but falls off and settles for a springboard plancha. Van Dam follows with a sky high plancha. Sabu brings Douglas inside and hits the TRIPLE JUMP MOONSAULT for two. Sabu goes up top, but Bam Bam catches him and slams him for two before RVD and Taz make the save. The Triple Threat clears the ring, Candido piledrives Sabu, and Douglas covers for two. The match finally settles down to tag rules, and a stalling suplex by Candido gets two. Douglas tags in and delivers a shoulderbreaker. Candido tags back in, and Sabu reverses a whip and hits a springboard leg lariat. ARABIAN PRESS gets two before Douglas makes the save. The Franchise gets back in and keeps Sabu from tagging out, Sabu scores a dropkick, Douglas still holds onto him, but he finally makes a tag to Van Dam, who cleans house on Douglas and Bigelow. Meanwhile, Candido puts Taz through a table on the floor but it was completely missed by the cameras! Bam Bam stops the RVD onslaught with a shoulderbreaker. It turns out that the ref missed the earlier tag, so Sabu is still the legal man, Douglas pulls him to the Triple Threat corner and tags in Candido for a scoop slam. That sets up a rocket launcher with aid from Bigelow, but Sabu moves, and RVD hits Candido with a flying karate kick. He pummels Bam Bam, leg sweeps Candido and hits a FIVE STAR FROG SPLASH. Bam Bam and RVD try a hurracanrana/powerbomb exchange, but it gets botched, but even so the confident RVD pops up and acts like they drew it up that way. Taz gets in and hits Candido with a belly-to-belly Tazplex. Everyone ends up outside, and Bam Bam and Candido get thrown into the crowd. Van Dam looks like he wants to take a dive from the top turnbuckle into the crowd, but ends up settling for a wacky diving front kick from the apron on Bigelow. Douglas is all over Sabu on the ramp, but Taz sneaks behind him and the two face off. Taz dominates while Van Dam finally gets his big dive set up, and he hits Bam Bam with a somersault plancha into the first row! Inside, Taz and Shane have a little exchange, Shane kips up from the corner, Taz stays behinds him, TAZMISSION! They fall to the mat, and Sabu takes a chair up top, delivers an ARABIAN FACEBUSTER, and covers Douglas for the 1-2-3. (12:57) Taz and Sabu get in each other’s faces after the match, which breaks up the short-lived Sabu/Taz partnership. The idea is that Sabu hit both Shane and Taz with the Arabian facebuster, and also Taz had said he wanted to make Shane tap out. The problem was that Sabu’s target was kind of ambiguous, and you don’t automatically think, “Wow, I can’t believe he hit Taz,” and so it became one of those things that the announcer had to spell out for you. This match is hardly passable as a main event and nowhere near the potential of having these six guys in the ring together. **1/4

Final Thoughts: What’s with all the tag team stuff on this card? Only two one-on-one matches? I never cease to be confused by ECW booking. If you can ignore Sunny’s handiwork, Lance Storm vs. Jerry Lynn is very good, but there’s not much else of note from this pay-per-view. Thumbs down.

Started the morning hoping to find trout rising to tiny Trico’s, the infamous “dimple.” Water levels seem low but rain last night helped to cloud the water slightly helping me out a bit. I took a water temp of 56 degrees, noting that 56 is ideal for hatching Trico’s. I moved upstream and observed steady dimples but no flies. I took a chance and rigged a 12ft. leader with 7x tippet and tied on the smallest imitation I had. I hadn’t gotten a chance to tie my own Trico spinners yet so I rigged a #20 Jujubee Midge and let loose. I could barely see the fly so I scanned the water looking for a dimple, I got a take and set the hook too sharply. I found you really only get one shot at each fish, they aren’t going to fall for it twice. Although I didn’t see any Trico’s I did get two more strikes on the Jujubee Midge before noticing a small yellowish mayfly come floating at me. The Little Blue-Winged Olive’s (Plauditus punctiventris) are out and in size #18-20. I need to tie some of these up, pronto. 

Although I didn’t land any fish on the midge pattern I was pleased that I was able to fool a few takers and as water temps rose I noticed fewer and fewer mayflies. I re-rigged with two caddis larva patterns, a larger #14 and a smaller #18. First run I got to with the new set-up made me feel like a rookie. Stumble to the water and immediately kick upstream a nice 18-20in brown, lookin’ healthy, then in an effort to get started I planted my two flies in a 6ft tall weed. Note: the flies must be in water to catch trout.  A little frustrated I retrieved my flies and concentrated on getting them down deep to fish lips. First fish up to bat was nice and it felt good to see one of these guys again, it’s actually been a week or more since I saw one up close and personal like.

Second fish went down like this…larger fish comes up the run past me, I don’t know why I thought I could cast to a cruising larger brown but I did and the first cast didn’t get anywhere. I made a quick second cast probably 4ft in front of his nose and what resulted next is one reason I love trout. He caught a glimpse of the larger caddis larva I had on as it hit the water and just nailed it, like a charging bull, no need for the strike indicator here. He faught well and was promptly released to fight another day. I worked upstream taking a few creek chubs and smaller trout when I happened upon a sucker that was still breathing turned upside down in a shallow pocket of water. Seeing him struggle I attempted to see if he could be released but to no avail, this fish was on it’s way out. Curious. I wonder what might have hit this thing, perhaps a big bad daddy brown, either way everything will eat well when he settles to the bottom tonight. 

Other quick note-ables: The nymphs are beginning to show up on the rocks again. I’m pretty sure the image above is of a Trico (Lower Right) and a late season BWO (Upper Left). Also, I was pissed to find a 4ft fire pit on the edge of the bank today with burnt trash and beer cans in it. Someone camped out on one of the best holes, go somewhere else and illegally camp (I was on WMA land) and make a mess. If I can’t trust you with making and cleaning up a campsite how can I trust you with our cold water resources? F*** You. I apologize to those of you who are respectful and would never do this, which I hope is most of you, sometimes the Fly Factory has to vent some steam or I may explode!

Beethoven-hand written score

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) was a German composer and and pianist whose music straddled the temporal and stylistic border between the Classical and Romantic musical periods. His compositions have been lumped into three generic periods: early, middle, late. The late period (1813-1927)  reportedly represented an emotionally intense period for Beethoven. His late-period works reflected a preoccupation with lyricism, fokloreish melodies, and belied a desire for intimate communication between composer and listener (“Beethoven,” New Grove Music Online). Similar to his early (Vienna) works, Beethoven favored variation movements but refigured them during the late period. These variations were “probed to [their] fundamentals”–more dramatic reinterpretations of a major musical theme. “All this suggests a changing concept of musical unity, now seen as an evolution from within rather than as a conciliation of contrasting forces: a Darwinian concept, perhaps, rather than a Hegelian one” (“Late-period Style, New Grove).

Unity was the guiding trope for Schiller (1759-1805). In his Letters Upon The Aesthetic Education of Man Schiller argues for the importance of art and beauty in peoples’ lives. He concludes that there is a split between feeling and thinking that beauty is able to mend, thereby enabling a pure aesthetic unity.

Schiller was writing during the French Revolution. He opens the first letter with an admission that current times do not take conversations about art to be seemly; philosophers must attend to more important political considerations. Because art requires one leave reality, as it were, and exit the bodily level, the real material concerns of poverty, liberty, disease, and freedom are more likely than art to occupy philosophers’ minds. Thus, against the backdrop of the French Revolution, it is no surprise he concedes his topic may be ill timed or “unseemly.” He anticipates his audience’s negative reaction to taking up issues of aesthetics and attempts to assuage critiques of his project by framing the issue of art and beauty as necessary components of achieving political freedom: “I hope that I shall succeed in convincing you that this matter of art is less foreign to the needs than to the tastes of our age; nay, that, to arrive at a solution even in the political problem, the road of aesthetics must be pursued, because it is through beauty that we arrive at freedom.”

It might have been more of a Kantian unity Beethoven was after. Schiller composed his own variation on a Kantian theme: an appreciation of beauty evidences an individual whose emotions have been mediated by reason. A very moral way of limiting the sheer ecstasy of listening to, for example, Beethoven’s 9th Symphony. Schiller, however, eventually resolves the conflict in Kant between Form und Sinn with the concept of the Spieltreib (play-drive). The unity of reason and sensuous reason comes with the capacity to live beauty.

Beethoven’s arguably most successful late-period composition, his Ninth Symphony (Old to Joy) is a musical example of the utopic Spieltreib Schiller envisions. His fourth movement is Schiller’s poem, An die Freud, set to music.

I love Leif Inge’s reinterpretation of the Ninth Symphony. His 9-Beat Stretch project digitally stretched the Ninth with no distortion and can be heard on the internet 24/7. This reconfigured work is fluid; in this sense, the elongated symphony simulates unity as each instrument, measure, key and time signature bleed into each other. But the effect is not always pleasing. At times the stretch evokes a futuristic dystopia. Where normally a phrase would build tension and eventually, resolve, we are suspended somewhere between the two states. The tension, perhaps a seventh or ninth extended for an uncannily long period of time, might just make a sensitive listener look over his or her shoulder to ensure no one is watching. I become quite paranoid at times while listening to the radio stream. I am reminded of this passage in A Thousand Plateaus:

“Gregory Bateson uses the term plateau for continuous regions of intensity constituted in such a way that they do not allow themselves to be interrupted by any external termination, any more than they allow themselves to build toward a climax…Every BwO is made up of plateaus. Every BwO is itself a plateau in communication with other plateaus on the plane of consistency. The BwO is a component of passage” (158).

Inge’s stretch elses the Ninth into a plateau–it prevents the symphony from ever climaxing. Phrases just melt into one another or remain indefinately suspended in disc(h)ord. Most disturbingly, some phrases hang on a tranquil chord with just a hint of dissonance-sometimes just one note taints the entire project of unity. If the New Grove is correct that Beethoven desired a more intimate means of communication during his late-period, Inge’s “plateau in communication” helped him manifest that desire centuries later.

Tune in to the Stretch live 24/7 here.

Den 21:a februari var jag hemma hos en kompis och tittade på Melodifestivalens andra delfinal. Alexander Bard var deltagande med sin konstelation BWO (låten var inte alls imponerande). Jag fick en konstig idé och skrev en sång om den älskvärda och flintskallige mannen. Den tänkte jag ge dig förmånen att läsa texten från (den får gärna kopieras och publiseras, ingen copyright tillskriven från min part).

Sången om Alexander Bard

Vers 1
Ditt hjärta är av guld som jag funnit för din skull.
Hand i hand går vi tillsammans på en strand.

Brygga
Ni får ursäkta mig, mitt herrskap, men snart kommer mitt budskap.

Vers 2
När du plingar på ditt piano ljuder tonerna starkt.
Att din hjässa är kal, ja, det har vi märkt.

Brygga
Ni får ursäkta mig, mitt herrskap, här äntligen kommer mitt budskap.

Refräng
Alexander, när du står där i din rymddräkt,
mitt på scen framför Carolas vindfläkt.
Då tystnar TV4’s hallåa, för dina kläder de är ju så gråa.
Alexander, skriver du aldrig med Pling? Då skulle kassan låta Ka-Ching.
Alexander, Alexander, du smakar som SodaStreamad Oboy.

Stick
Alexander Bard, rimmar på charad.
Alexander Bard, vem är du bakom skägget?
Alexander Bard, rimmar på nattvard.
Alexander Bard, är du skald som Shakespeare?
Alexander Bard, det är svårt att komma på,
något mer som rimmar på ditt namn.
Alexander Bard, jag kan inte komma på,
något mer som rimmar på Alexander Bard.

Vers 3
Din vers är en mellanakt, refrängen i all sin prakt.
Under en del av din låt, vill vi stoppa snö i örat.

Brygga
Ni får ursäkta mig, mitt herrskap, än igen kommer mitt budskap.

Refräng X2
Alexander, när du står där i din rymddräkt,
mitt på scen framför Carolas vindfläkt.
Då tystnar TV4’s hallåa, för dina kläder de är ju så gråa.
Alexander, skriver du aldrig med Pling? Då skulle kassan låta Ka-Ching.
Alexander, Alexander, du smakar som SodaStreamad Oboy.

Slut
Ni får ursäkta mig, mitt herrskap, men till slut tystar jag mitt gap.

Hej då…

Nu är alla katterna hemma igen efter äventyr i de finska skogarna/på de finska grusvägarna runt den jävligt långa travbanan som hela kalaset arrangerades på.

Första laget kom på 24:e plats, och andra laget slog tredjelaget, så alla är nöjda och glada. Och om man inte var så glad när man kom i mål så löste vi det snabbt genom att ta fram Må Bättre Påsen – innehållande en okänd mängd skattefritt godis.

Måste väl passa på att tacka vädergudarna för att jag höll på att dö i skogen av solsting och uttorkning, istället för drunkning och vatten i öronen. Men ni kunde väl ha sett till att jag packade med mig ett par shorts i alla fall. Det är ju ändå juni.

Eftersom jag var uppe alldeles för sent på natten mellan lördag och söndag för att heja på en klubb som inte bör nämnas vid namn, så var jag inte lika sugen på den finska karaoken som Viking Line bjöd på senare på söndagskvällen som de andra catsen. Jag hade nog kunnat somna stående. Eller ja, sittande i alla fall. Men aberaber, hursomhelst så skrev jag en lite sång då jag stod i min ensamhet och borstade tänderna i hytten (medan jag hörde de andras studsande discodans och den höga dunkande musiken hade jag kunnat skriva om vi inte hade bott under bildäck och på Vilking Line). Eller ja, skrev och skrev… det var ju ljug. Men jag tänkte i alla fall lite på det hela. Ganska lite i och för sig, men jag kände mig ändå ganska nöjd med vad jag hade kommit på. Melodin har jag givitvis snott rakt av utan några vidare tillstånd, men jag tror inte någon bryr sig. Jag hoppas verkligen inte det. Tänk om Alexandr Bard kommer hem till mig och knackar på mitt i natten.. Då tar jag bort det här inlägget tror jag. Så om detta är försvunnit vet ni vad som har hänt mig.

Melodi: You’re not alone (BWO)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGPwuKs0AQQ

Jag har dock än så länge bara skrivit en vers och refrängen och den är på engelska så ni får ha överseende med att den inte är grammatiskt korrekt osv. Observera inte är grammatiskt korrekt, dvs inte kanske inte grammatiskt korrekt.

En lite ordlista kanske kan behövas: racetrack = travbana. Sådär ja nu vågar jag nog släppa den; You’re not allowed!

Think of your friends, they can neither do it
before they start, they will wait for you
but when you are done, you will leave it to the next one

You’re not allowed, you’re not allowed to touch the maps
You’re not allowed, but it is just a minute left
You have a racetrack, to read to map so carefully
but you’re not allowed, to touch the maps now.

nuskajagbörjamittnyaliv-börjaträna!/annah

Eternity 8
The question is what last for eternity?
The love!? Our soul!?
The music…and this new album, from Jade Villalon (former vocalist Sweetbox) and her music producer Roberto “Geo” Rosan, called “Eternity”
Roberto Geo Rosan is guilty of success of the songs “Trying to be me”,“This is for the lonely” “Cinderella”, and this year put his charm to do this new material for his new project Eternity 8, but keeping the same idea to use classical themes ..like in his last project Sweetbox.
I think the new album will convince the most stubborn critics to listen from the first song called “Wonderful World” till last one “Turn it up!”
The album was released in Japan this month and Jade & Roberto lunched and a single from this material called “Love”.
Fifteen tracks dressed in the most sophisticated way … ready to conquer the music industry …and your minds & soul….for Eternity…!!
The Album can be found here
For more infos check this site

BWO released from their album “Big science” the new single called “Right here right now” a nice pop dance song ready to conquer the European pop charts….
The single has and a video lunched this month …
Tracklist:

01 BWO – Right Here Right Now (Radio Edit)
02 BWO – Right Here Right Now (Oscar Holter Radio Mix)
03 BWO – Right Here Right Now (SoundFactory Radio Mix)
04 BWO – Right Here Right Now (Skyylab Remix)
05 BWO – Right Here Right Now (Oscar Holter Extended Club Mix)
06 BWO – Right Here Right Now (SoundFactory Extended Club Mix)
07 BWO – Right Here Right Now (Myon & Shane 54 Remix)
08 BWO – Right Here Right Now (SoundFactory Paradise Anthem)
09 BWO – Right Here Right Now (SoundFactory Paradise Dub)
10 BWO – Right Here Right Now (Miss Leeloo Bought The Bouquet Mix)
The song can be found here

Helena Paparizou was nominated this year at Mad Music Awards for more details and to vote for her here

Hello everyone and welcome to EUROTUNES, a blog dedicated to the Eurovision Song Contest and european pop music in general.

Are there any of you not aware of the Eurovision Song Contest (ESC)? Well, it’s difficult to believe so, since in the last decade the contest has gained tons of popularity and TV exposure. To summarise the concept of ESC, it is a yearly song contest among national broadcasters around Europe. Each broadcaster selects a song that will represent their country. The winner is decided by a complicated voting procedure. The live performances of the songs and the voting that declares the winner are part of one of the largest TV shows and most expensive productions worldwide. There are many websites around the net, in which you will be able to find much more info (and fans can assure you there is plenty of trivia knowledge concerning Eurovision!). From now on, I assume you possess a decent amount of information on the subject.

ESC takes place in mid-May. So, it might strike to you that I create this blog at this time of the year, the ‘off-season’. Well, this blog is not only about Eurovision. Of course, during the ‘on-season’ there will hardly be anything else to talk about, but in the rest of the year you’ll have the chance to get a little better known with pop music around Europe. Let’s start right away with Bodies Without Organs (shortly BWO), a swedish electro-pop band that has tried to enter ESC through the swedish national final, Melodifestivalen, a total of four times. They have released lots of great tunes, but this one is their latest hit.

Right here right now by BWO, Sweden…

Neat! To have me send it to you please comment with your e-mail or contact me privately!