• Categories

  • Babbling
  • Commentary on the News
  • Duplicated on my LiveJournal
  • Guest Posters
  • Health and Exercise
  • Homelife
  • Mobile Posts
  • Music
  • Plugs
  • Political Musings
  • Quandries in Life
  • Recipes
  • Reviews
  • School
  • Sports
  • Sunday Share
  • The history of me
  • Vacations
  • Webmaster Woes
  • Work
  • Writings/Rants

• Archives

  • November 2008
  • October 2008
  • September 2008
  • August 2008
  • July 2008
  • June 2008
  • May 2008
  • April 2008
  • March 2008
  • February 2008
  • January 2008
  • December 2007

Search

First off, if you’re not reading this on the site, please head over there now. I’d like to thank two (three) people for this: Brian Gardner for such an awesome theme (and I’ll be tweaking it some more with widgets and side column items, but I like the functionality of it and readability of it) and Katie McAllister, my friend in the U.P. of Michigan for the awesome header (which comes from an awesome picture by my other friend, Karen Z) which will be updated soon when she’s helped me with a final design, but with a momentous night like tonight? I felt the switch over was warranted early…

So a “law school open mic review” eh? Not usually what you see up there, but I’ll preface this…

About a month or so back, my wife had gotten an e-mail about an open mic night that a girl at the law school was trying to organize. Knowing that I wanted to get more into the open mic scene on the town and to meet folks, my wife forwarded me the e-mail and so I was in contact with Miranda, the girl putting it all together. A few weeks later, I had a few e-mails coming in for people asking me to assist them by accompanying their sets. Sure, you know? Why not? I do whatever I can to help others when I can.

So after arranging songs with the other individuals and meeting them to practice (albeit, this bit I’m fibbing but the true story is between them and I), I was ready, secure, and confident for the night. And for both Anne and Miranda, I hoped that I had instilled confidence as well that I would do their songs right for them.

Me? I went on about midway through the night, roughly around 9:40ish according to my text message logs, and I played what might be my strongest set ever up here:

Echo
Slide - Goo Goo Dolls
Trying So Hard
Don’t Stop Believing - Journey

I felt a lot more personable with the audience and joked with a few folks there, but I’d like to note a few moments here that really made me feel good about this:
1) I dropped my pick not once but twice. The first time was in the middle of “Echo” and when I did? I recovered with my strong strumming and had no problem. But when I dropped it in the middle of “Slide” right before the picked outro? I saw a few guys in the audience eyeing me, wondering how I’d do it. I might have botched it a little, but I think I did a damn fine job cleaning it up.
2) During “Echo,” something happened that I’ve never had happen before: the entire audience clapped out the rhythm. Orlando, you have just been epic pwned. Thank you, Champaign. Made my night right there.
3) I got to rant about the intArwebs in the intro to “Trying So Hard.” Not worth repeating, but amusing.
4) “Don’t Stop Believing” was the crowd vote when given the choice of “80’s song versus 90’s song, and you must sing along.” The 90’s song? It would have been my “Free Bird/Semi-Charmed Life” cover.

I blended right back in to the crowd as well at this point. I’ve never been so alone in a crowded room. Amazing. Completely interesting to just watch everyone and to take it all in.

A few people later, I was backing Anne and did two songs with her for her set, and I think they went fairly well. For those keeping tally at home as to songs I’ve played behind a guitar at one point or another in my life:

Falling Slowly - Glen Hansard (from the movie Once)
The Story - Brandi Carlile

Very smooth set, I think I pulled off my part very well and Anne is a strong vocalist and her friend harmonizing with her on “Falling Slowly” did a good job, even though she had expressed concerns with some of the notes.

And my final part of the night was to back Miranda, who was dressed up as Alanis to go along with the three covers she was playing. How do you dress as Alanis? A long straight haired wig, leotard, and stockings, I guess. Or that’s what she did. And I just played:

You Learn
Ironic
You Oughta Know

And as a whole, I had fun. I enjoyed getting out and just playing and being around a lot of folks who were just friendly and fun. So thank you, law students of UIUC for the nice warm welcome and giving me your ear… Next Tuesday, Election Night, I’ll probably be taking a break from Memphis on Main again just to follow the results as they come in, but I’ll be back around soon live. I’ll update via bulletins on MySpace as to where I’ll be when…

Oh, and I’ll edit this post with some pictures, seeing there were some taken tonight and I asked the individual to pass me them when they get a chance, but until then…

Walking back to the car from Open Mic, 10/29/08

And welcome to all of the new folks reading me for one reason or another… Please, stay around and enjoy the ride, and say hi!

This Sunday, like many Sundays, I’d like to do something just a little different for my Sunday Share. I’d like to share something from a friend. Literally more from a friend than other “from a friend” things that I’ve posted.

My friend, Sean Evan, and I played many shows side-by-side in Orlando. And as long as I’ve known the guy? He’s been a very jazzy guitar player with a hint of attitude. And while he comes across looking like a very scraggly clone of Paul Simon with a touch of Jason Mraz, the presence that he holds on a stage is one that I could only envy. He gets lost in his music, and because you can see the passion and emotion that he feels for it? You have no choice but to be drawn in on it.

The whole time I’ve known Sean, he’s been behind an acoustic guitar. So when he told me he was getting a band together, I had no idea how that would sound. I couldn’t really imagine the guy with anything but an acoustic, maybe another acoustic backing him in a band. But, he knows best, and I trust that.

While he did a few gigs before I left Orlando, because I was so busy with our upcoming move, I didn’t have a chance to make it out to see him and the band. And a week or two back, he asked me to take a listen to his bands EP on his MySpace. I told him, quite honestly, that I don’t really listen to music at home anymore just for the sake that I’m always either at work, or that I don’t have speakers on my home computer, and if he wanted me to take a listen, he’d better pass me the mp3s. I felt a little greedy, knowing that he and the band got it professionally mixed, and I know how hard he’s been working on this…

And I felt even worse when I heard it.

To be honest, The Cameron Quartet (or on MySpace for the EP) isn’t the best band that you’ve ever heard. They’re not even the best band that you’ve never heard of. They’re four hardworking guys who put in a lot of what they love into the music that they play, and it comes across. And the four songs, for the few months they’ve been together? Are a perfect full band sound. They’re not “Sean Evan and backing band.” The harmonies to the songs are nice additions to Sean’s vocals, and Richie Kelly’s vocals on “Streetlight” are a nice introduction to the sound on the EP. The other three tracks–”Worthwhile,” “Be There,” and “Brand New”–lead mostly by Sean (with Richie stepping in for a verse or alternating line here or there) are classic fare that I’ve come to expect from Sean, but then some. Richie’s lead guitar work, while sometimes feeling a little excessive, still belongs. The artistry of Mark Cardona’s bass playing leads the steady march of Cheech’s drums. To be honest, while sometimes lost in the mix, the pairing of Mark and Cheech’s rhythm section is sublime. I found myself stopping and listening to the underlying lines, and there’s something there that is so counterpoint to Richie’s lead work, but that just works. Sean’s lyrics are complex, thoughtful, and insightful, and make me wish that I had more of a chance to actually sit down and hang out with him in town. Sean writes in a style that paints pictures. These snapshots just draw in the listener, and strong hooks on the chorus keep your head moving. My two complaints are that Richie’s guitar is in need of a slight intonation adjustment (something only a musician or audiophile would notice) and the mixing is still a little rough…

BUT those are superficial things.

If this is only what they’ve done after three to four months? Keep an eye on them Orlando. Finally some good music coming out of the town…

Oh yeah, and check them out at a show and pop $3 into Sean’s pocket or buy the guy a beer because I owe him for my copy of the EP…

When I was growing up, I used to watch the nightly news on CBS every night with my parents. That, then Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy. Sorta a nightly two hours of brain power for me. I felt fairly informed, even if I just read the comics in the morning and the sports section to follow up on my Buccaneers.

Moving away to college, I have to admit that I dropped out of touch with that whole geeky newsy side for a few years. Sure, I got the funny blog forwards and I used to skim the headlines on Reuters.com, but at the same time, its just not the same thing.

And then, with me watching less and less news, when I started watching MSNBC, I started to really remember what I missed. After we moved to Illinois, we had gotten rid of all of our TVs except for one. So nightly when I’d want to watch my usual shows, well, I’d get overruled from time to time. And I started to listen to my news via podcasts.

That being said, folks, we don’t need to sit down every night and watch at a certain time when the networks tell us that the news are to be watched. Nope. And you can choose whomever you want to hear it from, so, enjoy this nice collection of news podcasts for pretty much most of the networks I could think of:

ABC News
CBS News
Fox News
NBC/MSNBC
CNN News
BBC Radio
NPR Radio

Sure, there’s also AirAmerica and other outlets, but I figured I’d provide all of the major networks and common ones that folks know and commonly are referred to. Some of these–like CNN, CBS, and NBC/MSNBC–have full shows in audio or video, so there are a lot of options for catching your news as you’d like it. And no, you don’t need an iPod or iTunes for podcasts, you can always download a free podcast program, and because they’re just regular mp3s/audio files, you can just upload them to whatever mp3 device you have, or even watch or listen to them on your computer.

Be informed, folks. And not just for the upcoming election, but just in general. And from there? We can all have a better world.

About a week back, I started jogging. Monday the 6th, to be exact. To be honest, I had been mad and I just went running. And I ended up jogging about 2.8 miles. It wasn’t that hard, just one foot in front of the other and I kept on going. On Wednesday, I added a little and did 3.2 miles. I tracked my numbers on WalkJogRun.net by putting in the routes that I was running. Friday? I did something that I didn’t think I’d ever do. I said “Fuck it” and added another solid mile to that. I did 4.3 miles in about an hour. That’s something I definitely never imagined I’d do.

Back in elementary school at John D. Floyd Elementary School, we used to do the Presidents Physical Fitness test. I think that every kid sort of hated this. Sure, it was supposed to tell you that you either were in or out of shape. And part of it that I always hated? The mile run. Three times around the bus loop. When you’re 8 years old, a mile is a long long distance. Just think of the many miles you take on any sort of trip and every single one where you’re asking your parents “Are we there yet?” Well, how about now?

So I just ran. I was reading on Mike Garrigan’s site a while back about his training for a marathon, and when you read the numbers, you don’t really think of how far it is. Like, for example, I know its 5.5 miles for me to travel from home to work. I can’t imagine running that yet. Much less there and back. And yet? I plan on it some day soon. Why? Because I can.

And tonight, I had a moment that made me feel like its about time to share this little victory with my friends. Last week I did 14 miles. So far this week? I’ve done 11 miles. And I feel damn happy with that.

I passed the 2 mile point and a guy jogged past me. I finished the walking in-between, and I went back to jogging and passed him. About a minute later, I feel a tap on my left shoulder just above my iPod. The guy had jogged back up, and I pop out an ear bud.
“Where you runnin’ to?”
I pant out of breath, “Down here, Lincoln to Florida, back around to First and south down that”
“Man, that’s cross country length!”
“I never ran this much before, so I’m damn proud of anything I do.”
“You need to get some running clothes.”
I laugh, thinking how I look in my fro, jogging in black sweat/athletic pants and my white senior sweatshirt from Springstead High school. “Once I’m no longer a fat-ass, I’ll get me some good digs.”
He laughs, and we continue jogging side-by-side for another minute and he split between the residence halls between Pennsylvania and Florida.

For me? That compliment was worth everything to me. From a complete stranger.

And as to running? I’ll just keep putting one foot in front of the other and keep on going…

Another Tuesday, another setlist to post…

Atlantic City - Bruce Springsteen
Echo
Running To Stand Still - U2
Four
Growing
Faithfully - Journey
My My - Seven Mary Three
Down (Alone Now)

I had intended to play “Long Way Home” instead of “Echo,” but I wanted to play some sort of “A-list” material tonight to bring it back into rotation. As you’ll notice, this is somewhat of a carry-over from the prior week’s intended setlist, with another Seven Mary Three comfort cover. I also intentionally left out “Trying So Hard.” That song has eclipsed all of my other songs in a lot of ways.

And that’s when it hit me when I get up on that stage and I think that I’m playing just for me? I’m not. I’m playing so that I don’t feel alone anymore. And maybe that’s why Memphis on Main is the right place for me to be right now. The bar is so empty that every week, I like seeing the same faces and same barmaids. They’re like a family, even though I don’t know them at all. These strangers in the room give me some comfort, even if I don’t really know them.

It all takes some time… Just all takes time…

I really need to practice and get back into writing. But I’ve got different writing to tackle on the horizon…

In this political season, I know I’ve been extremely, extremely quiet. Why? Well, with a new job, I don’t want to offend any co-workers who might stumble into my blog. Whether you’re pulling for Obama or for McCain, its good to keep up with everything, so in that spirit, I want to share a website that a friend shared with me the other day:

FiveThirtyEight.com
This is a good way to see how states are trending. But, its a very dangerous tool. Don’t let this give you a sense of security that your candidate is ahead or behind: polls are opinions. With nearly every poll out there, its only as good as someone who goes out and votes. So if you’ve been looking at the election? You make the difference on November 4th.

And if you’re still trying to figure out who you’re going to vote for? Tune in next Sunday for a few links to help you out to get even more informed than you might be right about now…

When I do open mic nights, I have a fairly simple rule: mix covers and originals. Always make sure that I can healthily mix the two so that I get my personal stuff out into rotation. After what I felt was a less than stellar performance last week, I felt that it was time to shake up my own rules. I came into the night with a set that I thought looked pretty good, and as you’ll notice, it’s not set off like my normal sets in the formatting here, so I’ll explain after I write it out:

Not Another Butterfly
Slide - Goo Goo Dolls
The Fall of Autumn
October - Mike Garrigan
Four
Growing
Faithfully - Journey

As you can see, there are two interesting things about this set:
1) No 7M3 cover, which I’ve had as a strong point of all of my sets the past few outings up here. Its a way I can hang my hat on a familiar cover that lets me take out a bit of frustration and let it loose.
2) “Trying So Hard” was left off. And intentionally so. I wanted to let it rest. I needed to let it rest. I’ve played so many nights over the course of the 5 years since writing it where its always found its way into the set in one form or another. And it had been in every night I had played up here.

I did a dry run this afternoon of some of these, especially because I hadn’t played “Not Another Butterfly” or “The Fall of Autumn” in a while. And “Faithfully” I’m still just barely re-learning. And the more I played some of these, the more they didn’t really fit. See for me? A set needs to have some high energy points. These songs all were fairly slower, lighter, softer. I’ve got no problem with that, but I know how I’m coming across when I’m playing them.

And while I was listening to Jeremy play, I took out my sharpie and started scrawling a little on my piece of paper. I wasn’t happy at all. So here’s what my final set ended up being:

October - Mike Garrigan
Slide - Goo Goo Dolls
Cumbersome - Seven Mary Three
Faithfully - Journey
Free Bird/Semi Charmed Life - Lynyrd Skynyrd/Third Eye Blind

Now, I have to say that I broke every rule in my book. I played straight covers, I played “Cumbersome,” which I haven’t practiced or played in year or two, and I just all around just cut it loose. And you know what? It was right. It was just right.

Sometimes, you need to take every rule that you make for yourself and rewrite them to get what you need out of it. I’m slowly going to be integrating in more covers into my sets just to get some new songs out there. Especially being in a new atmosphere, I’m still trying to get some recognition on the stage. And I appreciate all at Memphis on Main for their hospitality and welcome each week. I’m enjoying it, folks, and I’ll be back as long as you’re having me…

There’s something that’s just ever so wonderful about the month of October. For me, I don’t know if its the seasonal feel in the air, specifically, or just the fact that I’m now a solid 4 months from my birthday. But the festive spirit always catches hold and throws me into a glowing, beaming, seasonal mush.

October 1st marks the day when I’ll usually whip out my copy of Mike Garrigan’s The Lessons of Autumn or the album that followed it from Mike, Collapsis’ Dirty Wake. It helps set the seasonal mood for me… Both brooding albums with hints of the playful spirit and introspective lyrics, Mike’s music puts me in the mental mood for the weather to come and stepping outside. It goes back to when I used to work at Walgreens and sit outside and listen to songs on my 15 minute break in mid-October, with the cool breeze thrashing at me. All I had to defend me was the volume control on my CD player as I’d listen to “Superhero,” “Automatic,” and “October” for my break…

October 2nd is when I usually celebrate Wallace Steven’s birthday. I’ll thumb through my tattered paperback copy of The Collected Poems, reading some of my favorites like “Le Monocle de Mon Oncle,” “Sunday Morning,” “Not About the Thing but The Thing Itself,” and “Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird.” And maybe, just maybe, I’ll put out my copy of the voices of the poet that Sarah got me one year and listen to Stevens read some of these. He has that classic feel to him, that gentleman of the 1950’s that is controlling that passion and emotion with a sharp tongue, slicing and parsing his words cautiously, carefully, controlling the tone of his voice to keep you just barely hanging there, but awaiting the next words drop…

October 3rd finishes off my early October festivities with me usually loading a copy of Stevie Ray Vaughan’s Texas Flood and Couldn’t Stand the Weather onto my iPod or carrying the CD with me, and spinning it at least once for lil’ Stevie’s birthday. One of the greatest blues guitarists of all time, SRV has been cited across the board as influential by many of today’s modern musicians, and the wake he left in the blues allowed so many main stream individuals to keep it alive. Besides, without Stevie, we wouldn’t have had that smoking guitar on Bowie’s “Let’s Dance.”

For me, October just feels right… Its just turning outside with the seasons and on the cusp of the cool and the cold and the warm and a stew of the smells and sights and a complete sensory overload… And for me, it helps this year now that we have one of these sitting in our bathroom. Yup, just one scents up the whole apartment just right…

So this is my October… Cover me accordingly…

Usually I keep my Sunday Share’s fairly short. I like to get that link and get in and get out. Like a blogging marine or something. Today, though, is a little different…

Friends who know me now that when it comes to my hair? I’m vain. And not only am I vain, but I know my hair care products and have gone through a lot of them. When you have thick naturally curly/wavy hair, you sort of learn to use products. And its always a battle to make sure that you keep it under control.

When we moved from Florida to Illinois, the biggest change is the humidity, which severely affects hair. Mostly just the volume and the frizz. For me? I don’t like either volume or frizz. But who really does, you know?

Suffice to say, the other day when we were shopping at Target, Sarah and I stumbled across something…

Giovanni Hair Care Products
A bit more expensive than anything else we’d try, we had a gift card, so we picked up a shampoo, conditioner, leave-in conditioner, and mousse. I usually use a leave-in conditioner for all of my styling needs, for those who know me.

That being said? Its one of those products that leaves your hair feeling really clean and not stripped at all. Very fresh and natural. The mousse too isn’t sticky or heavy. For example, this past Tuesday with the open mic night I went to? I used the shampoo and conditioner bright and early around 7am. At about 7pm before leaving, I used the mousse to spice it up a little and help define my curls better? My hair still felt natural and not all “producted up.”

So friends, I’d highly recommend this. They have a full product line, but the luster and shine and manageability with the shampoo and conditioner alone is amazing.

• Twitter: AdamJCohen

  • 
  • is so hardcore that he chugsRice Nog from the carton... about 8 hours ago from web
  • stopped and watched the snow flurries outside the window at work... :) about 13 hours ago from web
  • thinks that you should head to his site and download his album "Building Up New." It turns 2 years old today! http://www.adamjcohen.com about 14 hours ago from web
  • wonders why the heck he keeps getting porn bots trying to add his work Skype account? Srsly. about 14 hours ago from web
  • just got struck by a headache as he sat back down at his desk... He probably drank his bucket of sweet tea just a little too fast... about 15 hours ago from web

About The Site


Thanks for stopping by, folks! My name is Adam J. Cohen, and I'm a guitarist/songwriter in Champaign, IL, recently relocated from Orlando, FL where I'm a UCF grad. Here, you'll find vignettes on my life, setlists and show reviews, and whatever else crosses my mind. Enjoy!

NaNoWriMo WordCount

Admin

• Register
• Log in
• Subscribe by Email
• Subscribe by RSS
• Wordpress
• XHTML