26 October 2010

Asheville Vaudeville This Friday and Saturday

DO NOT miss the chance to see Asheville Vaudeville this Friday and Saturday in its biggest show yet.

Local Performers! Great Music by Sirius.B! Sophie the Wonder Dog!

Tickets available online at www.ashevillevaudeville.com

ONly $12 for 3 hours of performance. Cheap BEER too!

Asheville in the New York Times

Asheville made it (again) into the NY Times this past weekend, with "36 Hours in Asheville".

My friend, Patty Bilbro (a wonderful ceramist) made it into the article, which also mentions the Admiral, the incredible restaurant/hipster-dive bar located just across the road from my house.

Check it out here.

21 October 2010

Cold Fingers

Today I learned the importance of wearing very warm gloves while riding a motorcycle in 40 degree weather. By the time I got to work, my pinky was numb and my fingers hurt like hell.

Through experience I shall learn quickly, methinks.



20 October 2010

Vaudeville

[Facebook Users: Click "original post" to see the original post.]

Congratulations to Asheville Vaudeville for winning "Best Live Show" of 2010 in the Mountain Xpress "Best of 2010" issue.

Come out and see us (Sirius.B is the house band) on October 29th and 30th at the Asheville Community Theatre. 3 hours of live performance by all local musicians, artists, performers, and weirdos. Tickets available online via the ACT website's ticketing service.






Local Band, Next Big Thing: Sirius.B

Sirius.B -- Voted "Next Big Thing" in the Mountain Xpress "Best of 2010"

La Moto

This, dear friends, is my new friend. S/he does not yet have a name, though I am taking suggestions. S/he is a Kawasaki Super Sherpa dual sport bike (which means that I can ride on and off road on it).

S/he is very beautiful and I believe that we will get along swimmingly.

Phones Away!

A small picture of the storm drain down which I dropped my phone the other day, along with some of the tools that I used to retrieve it.


The tools included two long pieces of wood, duct tape, and a "grabber". I wrapped the duct tape (Gorilla brand) around the ends of the wood (inside out) reached down the nearly five feet into the drain, and, using a chopstick technique, pulled the phone up as far as the strange angle and thin holes in the grating would allow. I then had my helper (a passerby) use the "grabber" to grab the phone, though it was still impossible to just raise the phone out of the abyss. Using my forefinger and middle finger, I was then able to fish the phone out of the hole.

This was quite an adventure, which luckily turned out well, thus ensuring that my Monday morning was brilliant and wonderful rather than annoying and expensive.

Although this all turned out well, I do hope that this saga (which began months ago, when my phone took a brief swim in a urinal) is now over, and that my phone and I can now settle into a humdrum, happy life together, devoid of adventure and danger.

14 October 2010

13 October 2010

Dearly Departed

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Great show coming up on November 5th. Beth Bond (my wife), Alex Irvine, and Patty Bilbro, all ex-residents at the Odyssey Center for the Ceramic Arts.

Be there!

The name of the show is Dearly Departed, and the opening reception is November 5th from 5-7 pm



12 October 2010

Definitely Maybe

I just finished reading a Russian science fiction novel called "Definitely Maybe" by the Strugatsky Brothers.




This is a book that a friend gave to me some time ago. It has sat, forgotten and forlorn, on my bookshelf for a couple of years, and only a few days ago did I begin to read it...And it kind of blew my mind.

A quote:

"Because that's fiction. Dime store fiction in bright, cheap covers. It's like trying to fit an octopus into a pair of tuxedo pants. And not a plain octopus at that, but an octopus that doesn't even exist."

11 October 2010

First Muni Attempt

A short video of my first mini muni attempt. Muni, for those unfamiliar with the term, is Mountain Unicycling.

This was really more "path unicycling" (puni?) -- but it is a start...and it still ain't easy.

YouTube Video

07 October 2010

BRIAN BOND

CHECK out Brian Bond (my brother) and his band Communipaw. They've got group and solo music available for streaming and/or purchase.


Streaming is free, and to buy is very cheap. Just go to:

http://brianbond.bandcamp.com/

http://communipaw.bandcamp.com/

Here's one review of Brian's music, from the website Can You See the Sunset:


Just who is Brian Bond and why is he so awesome? Well, Will from Sound As Language (also of Beartrap PR who works with Brian Bond) has been raving about Brian for some time now and I’ve got to agree. His recently released full-length Fire & Gold is easily one of my favorite albums of 2009 thus far. It straddles the line between fairly standard (albeit amazing) singer-songwriter fare and indie-folktronica in way that reminds me of a lush(er) more augmented version of Denison Witmer’s Philadelphia Songs. There is a bit of a lo-fi aesthetic (hints of tape hiss and home recording) that just add so much charm and warmth to Fire & Gold that make the already amazing songs even better. From the first note to the last, Brian Bond’s music is as captivating as anything I’ve heard in awhile.

Oddly enough, Brian Bond hails from the punk-rock hotbed of New Brunswick, New Jersey but carries himself without a single ounce of that scene seemingly bleeding into any of his music. Fire & Gold is (instead) an indie pop masterpiece that really gets better every single time I listen to it. His songs are lyrically powerful and nuanced as well as instrumentally interesting. Brian Bond isn’t just a guy with a guitar though. He employs slight electronic manipulations, percussion, keys, strings, and other instrumentation that just adds even more depth to the whole. Even so, writing about Fire & Gold feels cheap and like I’m not doing the music justice. Really, I like this album quite a bit so it’s hard for me to write about it without diving headfirst into hyperbole (even though I’m not exaggerating at all). In summation, Brian Bond’s well-crafted and tuneful indie-pop is delightful. Seriously, fans of Matt Pond and Denison Witmer should take note as you’ve just been handed your new favorite artist and while you’re at it, download his The Thousand Songs EP for free.

New Work

Here's Some Work that Beth and I have been working on together....

We just took it down from a show at the Clingman Cafe (in Asheville's River Arts District), and we should have this and much more new stuff up at shows to be announced soon.

More pictures to come soon, as well as lots more new work.

Pure Beth, No Pancho

Beth and Pancho

Beth and Pancho

Beth and Pancho

04 October 2010

Horsey Time

Seen in west Asheville by a friend...right outside the bakery on the main drag (Haywood Rd.)