Boston Bruins 2007-08 season (A Retrospective)

Wayne Blogged The...Boston Bruins 2007-08 Season A Retrospective
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It's usually around this point in the summer when I really begin to miss hockey season, and look forward to October. This year is no different, and lately I've been YouTube-ing videos of games 3,5, and 6 of this year's Boston/Montreal playoff tilt.

Last season was one of the most exciting seasons in recent memory. Especially after the B's were presumed dead in late October when Patrice Bergeron suffered a season-ending injury. If that wasn't enough, off-season acquisition Manny Fernandez turned out to be (at least a temporary) bust when the ol' knee injury came back to haunt him. Aaron Ward, Andrew Alberts, Chuck Kobasew, and captain Zdeno Chara were all out for a decent stretch of the season with injuries. But the Bruins continued to play hard under new coach Claude Julien.

Tim Thomas shocked the hockey world with an All-Star year, Marc Savard played like a remodeled Adam Oates, and rookie tough guy Milan Lucic brought a new attitude to the Bruins. Supporting members Glen Metropolic, Marco Sturm, Denis Wideman, Phil Kessel, and David Krecj all helped push this team of spare parts into the postseason for the first time since the lockout.

And it had to be the Montreal Canadiens in the first round. I would have taken Pittsburgh over Montreal. Anybody over Montreal...

Make no mistake, I loathe the Habs. They're the only professional sports team I honestly hate. Their cheap style of hockey is the most annoying spectacle: classless diving, instigating, and unsportsmanlike flashiness. And don't even get me started on their fans; invading opponent's arenas with their flamboyant "ole'" chants. Singing "hey, hey, hey, goodbye" after GAME 1!! And their bad haircuts...

My hatred for the Montreal Canadiens is so deeply rooted. I've hated the Habs since I started watching hockey in 1990 (age 2...). So try to imagine my excitement being present at Game 3, in overtime, when Marc Savard scored the game winning goal, jumpstarting the Bruins and beating the Habs for the first time in 2008, and half of 2007.

And although the Black and Gold blew it in Game Seven, they only lost the series by one goal. Game 4's 1-0 loss was painful, as was Game 2's OT loss. Sadly, The Bruins ended the series in a similar fashion they began it, flat-footed and outplayed.

But I have nothing but good things to say about this Bruins team. And about the Bruins future. This season was incredible, down to the last game. With Bergeron back, and Manny on the mend, the B's have a good shot of extending their season. And I have a good shot of extending my playoff beard, so it's a win-win scenario.

Offseason

Wayne Blogged The...Offseason
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Summer is my least favorite season (In case you're wondering the order, it's 1) Fall, 2) Winter, 3) Spring, 4) Summer). It's hot, I don't have an AC, I'm stuck in suburbia, and baseball's the only sport on.

Don't get me wrong, I love baseball. But the "real" season doesn't begin until after the All Star Game. Right now it's just...blah. Football's still a couple of months away, hockey trailing shortly after that, and then basketball. I miss the action! I miss losing my voice on Sunday night's after a day of screaming at my TV. But most of all, I miss hockey. A lot.

My Bruins did great this year. They overcame injuries, and many-a-naysayer to actually make the playoffs and force a game seven against the (goddamn) Habs (see my next post about that whole series...)

But needless to say...there's not much to do around here. My band is on hiatus for the summer, my guitar strings are rusted, I'm broke, and working in a deli along with some of the most incompetent people I've ever met in my life...ever.

Luckily, there are some fun things to distract me for the next few months. I'll be seeing some good shows (Spoon, Wilco, Andrew Bird, Radiohead, The Eagles, and (hopefully) Bruce Springsteen), I've got a great group of friends who tolerate me and my fart-jokes, and I'll be heading into New York City this week proudly sporting a Red Sox shirt. Wish me luck...

The Silver Jews

Wayne Blogged The...Silver Jews.
namely, American Water
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There's something about indie rock bands with a revolving door of supporting members that intrigues me. And while other acts such as Guided By Voices and Golden Smog have been able to maintain the image of a band, I don't feel The Silver Jews have accomplished that. It seems more like a really cool club. Just a bunch of authors, poets, and rockers getting together to record an amazing album.

The brainchild of David Berman and Steve Malkmus (yes, THE Malkmus of Pavement), The Silver Jews have released six LPs since their formation, and have had 26 members over that time period. Awesome, right?

Berman's voice echoes Leonard Cohen's 1980's incarnation, while his writing has been compared to Bob Dylan. The music drawls on without much complaining, by neither the audience or the band. Yet, there's something hypnotizing about the band's output. I can honestly listen to American Water no matter what mood I'm in, and it fits. I've been on roadtrips, in depressive spells, underneath girlfriends, and on top of the world while listening to their music. (I hope you appreciate the humor in that last sentence as much as I do...)

I've been wanting to write down my favorite lines off of this record for a while. But here are a few I can remember:
The alleys are the footnotes of the avenues - Why can't monsters get along with other monsters?
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People ask people to watch their scotch.
People send people up to the moon.
When they return, well there isn't much.
People be careful not to crest too soon.
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o come let us adore them California overboard when the sun sets on the ghetto all the broken stuff gets cold. (holdin' up their trousers with extension cords)
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But perhaps my favorite song off the album (and perhaps of their entire discography) is Federal Dust, which is co-written and co-sang with Steve Malkmus:

They don't walk and they don't talk in Malibu. They don't vote and they don't smoke. I know you're blue… They don't cream and they don't dream in Kansas City. They don't crack and they don't act. I know you're ready… They don't cry and they don't die in South Dakota. (just like a seagull) They don't match and they don't hatch in South Dakota. Here comes the coda. Not much water coming over the hill…..
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State of The Union

Wayne Blogged The...
State 0f the union
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Friends, colleagues, benefactors, and cohorts,

Nothing is inspiring me, and I'm low on time as of late. Hopefully I'll have a good update for us all to enjoy sometime in the next few days. Until then...

Unenthusiastic Woo's volume 2

Wayne Blogged The...Unenthusiastic Woo's!
Volume 2
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For today's unenthusiastic woo, we turn to the late Warren Zevon. After being diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer, Warren began work on what would be his final album, The Wind. While the record holds some great songs, you can tell ol' Warren couldn't muster the same enthusiasm and energy as he had on all of his previous releases. So how does one fix that? Add an unenthusiastic "WOO!" right before a guitar solo on the opening number:

http://www.sendspace.com/file/3s0plu

I really wish I had a better way to share this with you, but until I figure it out...I've uploaded the "woo" so you can download it and add it to your personal collection.

Female Singer-songwriters I Fall In Love With Every Time I Listen To Them

Wayne Blogged The...Female Singer-Songwriters He Falls In Love With Every Time He Listens To Them
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Call me shallow if you must, but every time I put on a record by any of the following female artists, I fall in love with them...let the creep show begin...

5) Feist
- It could be the intimacy of the lo-fi recording, or the warble of her voice, but whenever I hear her sing "The Park" or "I Feel It All" off of The Reminder, part of me wants to move to Canada to find her...

4) Emmylou Harris
-Okay...this one may seem a bit out of left field, but her rendition of Orphan Girl is very, very good. And she wears the adorable combination of cowboy boots and a dress...

3) Zooey Deschanel (She & Him)
-I love harmonies, and it sounds like she's doing all of her own on the Beatle-esque debut album from She & Him. Beautiful voice and great songwriting.

2) Jenny Lewis
-Ms.Lewis currently holds the position of my favorite singer in this bunch. Although the songwriting is at times a bit twee for my liking, her voice almost overshadows the lyrics. Plus the cover of Handle With Care (originally by the ugliest group of all time, The Traveling Willburys) is so freaking good, despite the fact that Ben Gibbard whines every time he opens his mouth.

and

1) Jenny Owen Youngs
-What can be said? Batten The Hatches is a perfect album. Her cover of "Hot In Herre" has a great video, and the pop-sensibility in the mixing of Drinking S0ng (particularly in the second verse after the chorus, when the guitar fades out leaving a Fender Rhodes plucking at each chord with an unbelievable effect on the musically-nit-picking listener). I can't wait for her sophomore release...

Unenthusiastic "Woo!"s

Wayne Blogged...Unenthusiastic "Woo!"s
Volume 1
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This may prove to be less successful than I originally hoped, but I'm introducing a new section to this blog. Sometime this past month, probably a Wednesday, I decided that there were a lot of songs that included unenthusiastic "woo!"s.

What is an unenthusiastic woo?

It's when a singer/guitarist decides that the song needs to be more "rock and roll"-y, and can't contain themselves from a sudden outburst of enthusiasm. The problem is, although nice in theory, the energy is rarely flattering to the performer. A recording studio also generally inhibits the artists' raw-energy. These moments have been captured, and will live forever in infamy.

Unenthusiastic WOO Number 1:
Neil Young- Cinnamon Girl
http://www.sendspace.com/file/4qp830

I've captured the woo in all it's glory here, for you to download and cherish.

Until next time...