August 24, 2008, 10:50 pm : How is a raven like a writing desk?

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My poor estranged blog! You didn’t think I was ever going to write again did you? You know the standard excuse, “I’ve been busy”… well, I’ve been busy. You haven’t been far from my heart though. In fact, I’ve had ideas for some great posts that I never got around to writing. Here’s a quick summary of what you, the viewing public (A.K.A. Mom) have missed out on…

• Why I liked Indiana Jones IV and my theories on why the rest of the world didn’t.
• A summary of my time in Tennessee back in May.
• My top 10 most influential/favorite albums of all time (I’m sure I’ll do this at some point).
• An in-depth post about my time in Japan and Comic-Con.
• A history of Missing Words Records and some info on my biggest influences for that (I’ll probably do this next year).
• A detailed post about my few dates manning the MWR booth on the Warped Tour and how I feel about it.
• Why I liked The Clone Wars and my theories on why the rest of the world didn’t.

Anyway, I don’t have the time or energy to write all of those now but I did want to come back and assure the world that I am, in fact, still alive and that things have been going pretty well. So here’s a quick little catch-up on what’s been going on since my last post.

In April my work launched IndianaJonesShop.com. That was a ton of work on my end, as I had to get something like 100 products up on the site by the time we launched… but I did it and the rest is history. Also in April, Missing Words released its twelfth release, Breatherman by Ocoai. It’s awesome, check it out if you’re bored (or if you need background music while you read the rest of this).

I had a chance to visit some of my bestest buddies in Tennessee at the end of May. I was the ring bearer-bearer in my friend Jenn’s wedding and I spent the rest of the time hanging out with my friends there. It’s still really weird to feel like I have more friends in Knoxville than I do anywhere else. Well, maybe not Ventura, but definitely more than I have here in San Francisco. I love Tennessee. I could really go for some Cracker Barrel right about now. Also in May, I saw Indy 4, it was cool. Shut up.

The first few dates of the Vans Warped Tour were in June and Missing Words had a booth at two of them (should have been three but Jordan and Zeke needed their beauty sleep). I was only able to attend the Ventura show. It was fun I suppose. I think I’m officially too old to really enjoy Warped… or maybe it’s because I only like a couple bands on the tour this year.

July was a hectic month. I spent 12 days away from home, the first 6 were spent in Japan and the rest in San Diego. In Japan I spent a day at Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea, both of which were cool but DisneySea really took the cake. It’s the best Disney park I’ve been to so far. It’s really killer. Check out the pictures here. The primary reason I was in Japan was for Star Wars Celebration Japan, which was fun, although not as epic as the American Celebrations have been. Those photos are available here. And of course, I did get to wonder Japan a bit outside of the convention and Disneyland, check it out. I could write so much more on the subject but I just don’t have time. Sorry, for not doing you justice, Japan. It was amazing though.

Two new Missing Words releases came out in July. End Transmission’s Head Over Heels and a split by two Tennessee bands, Gamenight and Mouth Movements, called Blue and Green. I’m really happy with how they both turned out. Yay!

And here we are in August. Last weekend was the end of the Vans Warped Tour, which was… about the same as the beginning. We also saw the release of a new Star Wars movie, the computer animated feature The Clone Wars. I’d actually seen an unfinished version several months ago but seeing the completed film on the big screen was a nice experience. It felt really odd not being home waiting in line for the midnight showing, I missed out. It’s a cool movie though and I’m really excited for the TV show.

Okay, that’s it, a very brief synopsis of my last few months. I know, it was boring, even for me, but how witty can one be when one’s summing up whole months into a paragraph each? But now that I’m caught up maybe I’ll start posting more interesting things again… maybe.

March 10, 2008, 12:06 am : An interview with a nerd-lover

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In an effort to make this blog a little less Matt-centric I’m trying to think of some new content and this one just fell right into my lap. A friend of mine, Melissa, has recently taken quite the liking to “nerd boys”, a phenomenon that seems to be growing in popularity. As a nerd myself, I find this trend especially interesting so I thought I’d run a little interview with Melissa to see if I could get to the bottom of this…

Matt: Okay. I’m only somewhat prepared so there may be some improv involved… so, why nerds?

Melissa: Wow, okay…

Matt: if you think that’s a hard question just wait until the last one.

Melissa: Its’ not hard its just funny…

Matt: If you think that’s a funny question just wait until the last one.

Melissa: People seem to underestimate nerds. The typical stereotypes that are completely irrelevant to the person the really are…I don’t see what it so wrong about those damn sexy glasses (my perfect nerd boy would wear) or their obsession with movies, comics, etc… nerds are simple unlike many other guys…or girls and are just flat out sexy. I love nerds. I just realized.

Matt: When did you realize all of this and decide you want some nerd action?

Melissa: Well, I remember I had a secret crush on my neighbor… we would make random Lego models and watch Goosebumps all the time. I lost interest in nerds after he moved, but now my eyes only focus on them in a crowd of people.

[Several minutes pass]

Matt: Are you talking to hot nerd right now (aside from myself of course) and is that why you’re taking forever to reply?

Melissa: HAHAHAH NO! ………which one are you referring to? There’s a few :]

Matt: Oh snap. Feel free to go into further details but be aware that the tape is rolling… the IM tape… I say that like there’s going to be so many people reading this.

Melissa: Well thank you for making that clear. A lot of people better read this! I am pouring out my love of nerds… slowly but its getting there.

Matt: Shall i move onto the next question?

Melissa: Please.

Matt: Do you like a specific type of nerd (i.e. Star Wars Fanboys, Comic Books nerds, Tekkers, Browncoats…)?

Melissa: Not to eliminate a whole type but I’ve had experiences with Trekkers and so far, not impressed. If I had to choose, comic book nerds definitely grab my attention in a heart beat.

Matt Are you physically attracted to them or is it all personality?

Melissa: Not to be completely shallow, but physical attraction usually reels me in but once I actually converse with them, I don’t even care what they look like anymore.

Matt: Can you describe your ideal nerd?

Melissa: We would wear glasses, have shaggy hair, can easily make me laugh with his random outbursts of movie lines.

Matt: Do you think you could have a good relationship with a nerd?

Melissa: Are you kidding?! That would be the best relationship! I would have a permanent smile on my face (not that I don’t already :] ). It’s just something about them; they seem to have this way to win me over every time.

Matt: Do you think you could survive a comic convention?

Melissa: I hope so! I have a plan though! I would walk in with my hands over my eyes, carefully peak through and check the scene out and once I see my perfect nerd boy(s) I will quickly put my hands down and THEN I would probably have a heart attack and one of them will help me. That would be awesome.

Matt: Okay, now assume you already found your nerd boy and you were going to the convention with him. If you had to dress up, what costume would you choose?

Melissa: I’ve always wanted to wear the wonder woman outfit! id fill it out pretty damn well too

Matt: Do you think this is just a phase or are you likely to be into nerds for life?

Melissa: I am sticking to nerds. No doubt.

Matt: And how is the nerd hunt coming?

Melissa: Oh you know…

Matt: Are you pleading the 5th?

Melissa: For now.

Matt: I’ll allow it this one time. Please note this is not a court and I’m just being merciful.

So, if some sexy nerds out there want to contact you, what’s the best way?

Melissa: hell you can have all my info! Here’s my cell ___-___-____, my address ___________, Newbury Park, CA, www.myspace.com/LOVEryhmeswithpity, mf_reckless@yahoo.com, suupMELISSAFACE [AIM].

Matt: I’m not going to post all that, just in case. But the last three are good.

And the final question, what’s the going rate for a Hyperdrive on a J-Type 327 Nubian?

Melissa: HHHAAAAAA

Matt: Well, thanks for the interview. You may want to study up on the pricing of fictitious space cruiser parts.

Melissa: I’ll get right on that.

Have at her, nerds.

February 21, 2008, 9:03 pm : Toy Fair Round Up! (Blog+Video+Photos)

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Hi everyone. So I was at Toy Fair in NYC this week and, on top of my normal duties, I acted as a pseudo-reporter for StarWars.com. Below are links to my blogs, video and photos. Enjoy.

Field Report Day 1 (Blog)

Field Report Day 2 (Blog)

Field Report from Toy Fair: LEGO Clone Wars (Pics)

Field Report from Toy Fair: LEGO Indy (Pics)

Toy Fair Video Coverage

WonderCon this weekend! I may or may not blog about it. We’ll see if time permits.

February 12, 2008, 1:35 am : New Star Wars Movie 08.15.08!

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Okay, yeah, I’ve known about it for a little while but still, I’M SUPER EXCITED!!! Yay! Clone Wars!

If you didn’t hear about it check it out at starwars.com.

… aaaaaand while you’re all excited about Clone Wars, be sure to check out these exclusive shirts. Maybe even buy them so you can say “I totally know the guy who designed these”.

(I don’t work on commission kids, so I’m not just trying to peddle my wares. I’m just really excited!)

… and yes, I plan on coming home and camping out.

December 20, 2007, 7:11 pm : 2007 Musical Year in Review (A.K.A. Thing’s Matt listened To This Year)

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I love music. It’s one of the main passions in my life and unfortunately, since I have no musical talent, I’m forced to do anything else I can to explore my love of music. This is what led me to starting a record label, Missing Words Records (over 8 years ago!).

Several years ago my BFF, Kai, and I ran a somewhat successful indie magazine called “Three and a Half”, which was essentially 30 something pages of inside jokes, ads and record reviews that came out a couple times per year on a very irregular schedule. Honestly, I don’t have any idea why anyone would read it since it couldn’t have made much sense to anyone but us, but apparently people did read it. In a way, I miss doing Three and a Half. While it caused me a lot of unnecessary stress, it was fun to write such non-sense. It was nice getting free CDs in the mail, getting into shows for free and getting to interview great people. Most of all it was really great being able to hang out with Kai and get all of this done. I don’t get to see him much anymore and I miss him.

So anyway, to bring me back a bit to my old “zinester” days, and to honor a year when music didn’t totally suck for me (the first year like this in a while) I decided to write this list of my musical highlights of 2007. I’m writing this in my personal bloggy fashion, not from a pseudo music journalist angle, so I may mention things you don’t understand or people you’ve never heard of and not offer any explanations. Deal with it. That’s what Wikipedia is for.

By the way, I left out all the Missing Words releases from my lists since that didn’t really seem fair. But just to be clear, I put out three records this year, Mouth Movements, The Return and I was a Lover DeLorean was a Dealer, and I love them all.

And now your feature presentation…

Top 20 Albums

20. We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank by Modest Mouse

I’ve been a fan of Modest Mouse for years but I never really feel like their albums live up to their potential. They always seem to be missing something. I think maybe the addition of former Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr might have been exactly what they needed.

19. All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone by Explosions in the Sky

Explosions are one of the premier instrumental post-rock bands, a genre that seems to be gaining more and more ground lately. “All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone” expands further on their previous sound. An interesting side-note: their primary line-up features three guitars and no bass.

18. Self Recorded Demos by Ryan Grisham

While not officially released in any capacity, Mock Orange frontman, Ryan Grisham, released a full albums worth of solo songs on his MySpace page. Mock Orange is one of my all time favorite bands so this is exactly what I needed while I wait for them to get their next album out.

17. Sospiri by The Winston Jazz Routine

I discovered this band by chance while I was on tour and staying at someone’s house in Ohio. He had the WJR’s first album in his ITunes library and when I heard they were putting out something new I had to buy it. Despite the name, the WJR are not jazz at all, but a slow, almost ambient, indie rock band that relies heavily on piano and multiple vocal tracks featuring male and female vocals.

16. New Moon by Elliott Smith

Ever since Tupac it’s been all the rage for dead guys to put out new records. This is Elliot’s second postmortem release and it features two full CDs of unreleased and demo songs. A must for the serious music fan… or pretentious post-emo high school kid.

15. On Letting Go by Circa Survive

There’s something about Anthony Green’s voice that I just can’t get enough of. It’s so unique and fits Circa’s music so perfectly. “On Letting Go” picks up right where “Juturna” left off and doesn’t really show a lot of growth. But hey, if it ain’t broke…

14. Hvarf/Heim by Sigur Rós

One of those bands that I feel can’t do any wrong, Sigur Rós still holds the record for the best show I’ve ever been to. Hvarf/Heim is two discs of not-entirely-new music. Hvarf features new recordings of previously unreleased tracks and Heim is demos of songs from past albums. While it’s not as amazing as a new Sigur Rós full length, it’s enough to get me by… for now.

13. Scream & Light Up the Sky by The Honorary Title

On “Scream & Light Up the Sky” The Honorary Title traded in their mostly-acoustic style for a more full sound. It took me a few listens to completely accept it but now I have trouble going back to the old stuff. I’m surprised these guys aren’t bigger, they’re probably one good single away…

12. The Shepherd’s Dog by Iron & Wine

At first “The Shepherd’s Dog” sounded to me like just any other I&W record but the more I listened the more I realized it is far more complex and well put together. Sam’s songwriting seems to get better and better with each album.

11. A New Canvas by Le Meu Le Purr

I’m really excited to be able to put a local band on this (well, local to where I call home, not to where I live). The Ventura music scene has been a pretty big mess for years, with very few listenable bands and even less really good ones. Le Meu has been one of the exceptions and “A New Canvas” puts them on top of the Ventura scene and has potential to make them far bigger than that.

10. The Alchemy Index, Vol. 1 & 2 by Thrice

“The Alchemy Index, Vol. 1 & 2″ is a dual EP concept album. The first disc, “Fire”, features hard-hitting metal influenced rock while disc two, “Water” slows down the tempo considerably and focuses more on electronic instruments. It’s a somewhat risky move by Thrice to make an album that’s two halves are so radically different. I’m sure there are a lot of bros out there who are completely confused by “Water”, but for those of us who can appreciate both sides of this band, this album is great.

9. Good Apollo, I’m Burning Star IV, Volume Two: No World for Tomorrow by Coheed & Cambria

As this list proves, I’m a sucker for concept albums. While I still can’t follow the storyline of the Coheed albums (despite the fact that I’ve read all of the accompanying comic books), just knowing that that level of thought went into the album scores them extra points with me. I enjoy this album less than any of their previous records but it seems to grow on me every time I listen.

8. Under the Boards by Saves the Day

Ahh, Saves the Day, a staple in my musical life for many years. This is one of those bands that I always depend on and they never let me down. While “Under the Boards” lacks the youthful charm of “Through Being Cool” or the absolute brilliance of “Stay What You Are”, it’s still a very solid record. It’s nice to see that a band that’s been through so many line-up changes can continue to put out good music.

7. The Flying Club Cup by Beirut

I’m still amazed by this band, or more accurately this guy. I can’t believe that a New Mexico native who is younger than me is writing music like this. While it still fits into a indie sort of category it borrows very heavily from Eastern European and folk music giving it a distinctly gypsy-like sound. It’s safe to say this is the only record on my list that features the ukulele as one of the primary instruments.

6. Autumn of the Seraphs by Pinback

I feel like I’ve been waiting years for this record… probably because I have. This is Pinback’s first new record since 2004 and it further broadens their unique indie rock sound. Pinback writes almost oddly danceable songs that are tons of fun to rock out to in the car. Oh, and one of the track titles is a Star Wars reference, so bonus points for that.

5. Remains by Alkaline Trio

“Remains” is a compilation album that gathers together all the tracks that were previously available on various compilations, splits and 7-inches since their last compilation of this sort, 2000’s self-titled record, as well as a few live tracks. Although I had nearly all of these songs already, it was nice having them all nicely bundled together. The majority of these songs represent their slightly less refined pre-”Crimson” sound. Also, the timing on this records release was very convenient and helped me a lot though a tough time.

4. Planet of Ice by Minus the Bear

While I still really miss the finger-tap-heavy sound of their albums like “Highly Refined Pirates”, MTB continue to put out some of the best experimental rock in todays music scene. Their new sound probably springs from their original keyboardist/producer, Matt Bayles, leaving the band and not being involved in the writing process. However, Matt did still produce the record so it’s not without his touch.

3. The Con by Tegan and Sara

Like many guys out there, I initially hated the strange sounds emanating from this Canadian singer-songwriter duo, but my opinion of them has changed greatly. I almost hate to admit it, but it was when I heard their song “I know, I know, I know” in one of my favorite TV shows, Veronica Mars, that I decided to give these girls another shot (with additional pressure from the amazing AJ). And I’m really glad I did. While their previous albums are great, “The Con” is by far more complex and better written … and really catchy too.

2. In Rainbows by Radiohead

“In Rainbows” is yet another amazing album by Thom and company, and while it may not be pure brilliance like “Kid A” or even “OK Computer”, it’s still great and far better than most any other modern band is capable of. I was also intrigued by their method of distribution of this album. And for those who are curious how much I paid (since the digital version of the album was sold in a “name your own price” manner)… I paid $80 and bought the spiffy disc-box version. By the way, it came this week and it’s super cool and definitely worth the money.

I’m almost shocked to be listing Radiohead, who are probably my favorite band, as number two, but there just hasn’t been a record in many, many years that I connected with like…

1. In Defense of the Genre by Say Anything

Brilliant. Amazing. Aw-inspiring. This ranks up there with “Kid A” and “Clarity” as one of my favorite albums of all time. “In Defense of the Genre” doesn’t just defend the genre, it re-defines it (I’m sure some real reviewer probably used that exact line). It’s two discs full of songs that lyrically and musically follow directly where they left off on their previous record, telling a slightly dramatized story of Max’s real life since the release of “… Is a Real Boy”. From his time abusing drugs, going crazy (literally), meeting a girl, losing said girl and doing everything he can to either get her back or fill the void she left. This has album has everything I love about music. From fast, up-tempo, poppy songs to depressing slow songs from serious lyrics to clever lyrics to hilarious lyrics. This album, with the help of the other albums on this list, helped to restore my faith in music, which had been slowly dwindling over the past few years.

Most Disappointing Album
Chase this Light by Jimmy Eat World

What can I say. I wasn’t expecting another “Clarity” but I know these guys can do better than this. You had your time in the spotlight, you’ve written your hits, can’t you step back a little and write some more songs with integrity? Really though, this album isn’t awful, they’re just capable of so much more. More songs like the title track would have been nice.

Surprisingly Good Album
Bone Palace Ballet by Chiodos

I knew these kids had potential. They’re last album was pretty much your run-of-the-mill boring screamo album but it had slight hints of something more. When this new album came out I told Amanda, “let me know if they grew up, I might want to check this record out” and guess what? They did. Right on Chiodos. I look forward to even better albums in the future. Don’t let me down.

Guilty Pleasure Album
Roit! by Paramore

I plead the fifth.

Saddest Break-up
The Blood Brothers

I really didn’t see this coming and only recently heard about it. I’m just glad that I had the opportunity to see them live before they called it quits. At least they’re not completely going away. Johnny and Cody have formed Jaguar Love, which from the MP3s I’ve heard, has a whole lot of potential. The rest of the guys, along with the original BB guitarist, have started a band called Past Lives, which I’ve yet to hear. Hopefully we’ve lost one good band and gained two.

Albums that Could Have Made the List but for Some Reason I Haven’t Bought Yet
Our Love to Admire by Interpol
Alone: The Home Recordings of Rivers Cuomo by Rivers Cuomo
In Your Dreams by Gregory and the Hawk
Feast or Famine by Chuck Ragan
The Last Little Life by The Rentals

It seems like if I don’t get a record the week it comes out it takes me forever to pick it up. Maybe I’ll get some of these for Christmas?

Best Unsigned Bands I Heard This Year
Generation of Vipers (Tennessee)
Stiletto (Ohio)
Fromanhole (Nebraska)

Artists I Really Hope Put Out an Album in 2008
Alkaline Trio
Brand New
Damiera
Death Cab for Cutie
The Faint
Flight of the Conchords
Jaguar Love
The Jealous Sound
Mock Orange
MU330
New Amsterdams
Owen
The Roots
The Slackers
Justin Timberlake
The Velvet Teen

Well that was a lot of fun, I’m really glad I got to share all that with you. I usually don’t care if people comment on my blog (it’s nice, but it’s something I sit around waiting for) but this time I’d love it if you could throw in your thoughts, either on my list or recommendations for albums I may have missed this year. I’m always looking for new music so it would be great for people to reply. Thanks for reading, I heart you.

P.S. If I get a chance sometime in the next month or so I’d like to write a similar list about the movies of 2007. Stay tuned.

December 10, 2007, 1:22 am : Three Months Later…

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Hello again blog! I bet you thought I forgot about you. That’s not true at all, I was just ignoring you. Don’t feel bad, I’ve been ignoring a lot of things lately.

So, it’s been three months since my last blog entry and everything is different! Let’s recap. I now live in San Francisco, or actually San Bruno, which is just outside of San Francisco. Living in the city would have been sort of a pain and it’s really expensive. I’m a lot happier in my tiny tiny little apartment in San Bruno than I would have been in San Francisco. For one thing there’s actually parking here… and Drive-Thrus, and streets that go both directions AND (best of all) a Target right down the street. What would life be without new-release-Tuesdays at Target?

Living alone is really nice. I don’t have to worry about wearing headphones late at night or getting entirely dressed immediately after I shower or even closing the door when I have to pee. Although I still do the latter since I don’t want to develop any bad habits. The apartment is really, really small but it has everything I need and just enough room for all my stuff. Well, I could really use a little extra space for my hockey gear, but whatever.

After three or four weeks here I got myself a kitten. Her name is Jaina, I believe she’s about 4 months old right now. She’s super cool. She was really tiny when I got her but she’s growing up pretty fast. Apparently before I got her she was living in some pretty unsanitary conditions and thanks to that I came down with a very fun case of ringworm. For those of you who don’t know, it’s pretty much like athletes foot but on your upper body. It was really gross and itchy. Jaina herself was just a carrier and didn’t even have the spots herself. What a jerk. Initially I thought it was chickenpox, or at least that’s what everyone was telling me, since at first that’s what it looked like. My cat ended up having to get shaved and looked like a very creepy mini-Mr. Bigglesworth. Her hair is growing back nicely now and she’s officially cute again. I think I’m done talking about ringworm now. It sucked though, trust me.

I’m still playing hockey, which is great. I’m actually playing more than I was at home, and at three different rinks. That keeps things pretty interesting. I really miss playing with my friends though. My teams here are all cool but it’s just not the same as playing with the guys I’ve been playing with for years. I also miss having my boys around to keep me from getting beat up too much. No one here seems to care if people beat the piss out of “Matty”.

And then there’s work. It’s amazing. I love my job. Unfortunately, due to a confidentiality agreement I had to sign, I can’t tell you all of the best things than have happened. The people at work have really made me feel at home. I suppose it helps that I knew many of them before getting the job, but still, they’ve been great. It’s really busy at the moment but I sort of like that. I’m counting down the days until the Holiday vacation though.

The only thing that’s sucked about living here is that I have very few friends and, honestly, I don’t even know how to make new friends. Really, how does a 26 year old make new friends? Sure, I have friends at work and friends at hockey but they’re not really the type of people that I would actually hang out with. I need a friend or two who’s more like me. Someone (or several someones) that I can go to shows with or go to movies with or really just hang out with. I’m very fortunate that I do have one friend up here, Kara. I knew her back home and she moved up to San Jose to go to school so, now that I play hockey in SJ, at least I have a friend once a week. And there’s always Jaina. I know these things take time and I’m really not stressing over it but I miss having more friends than I have time for like I do back home (and, oddly enough, in Tennessee). I guess that’s why I’ve gone home so many weekends since I moved. It’s nice to feel loved and get to see at least a few of my friends and family that I really miss.

I guess that’s a quick overview of what’s been going on. There are a ton of things I’m leaving out but I’m not about to try to remember every cool thing that’s happened since I moved. Sorry kids.

If you’re interested, here are a couple photo galleries:

- At the end of October my favorite person, Amanda, came up to visit me and do some fun Halloweeny stuff. Here are some photos from our misadventures. They’re not the most exciting but it’s better than nothing, right?

- Last night Kara and I went to the Lucasfilm Holiday party. It was a little weird since I really didn’t know many people there. Kara and I kept ourselves entertained by taking some random and funny photos.

Hopefully it won’t be another three months before I blog again.

September 3, 2007, 10:53 pm : I have achieved professional nerd status.

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For the last year or so things just haven’t slowed down for me and it seems that trend is continuing. I’ve had a lot of ups and downs during that time (mostly ups and one big down) and now I’ve hit what might possibly be the biggest up of my life, I have just accepted what might possibly be my dream job. Here’s the skinny…

If you’re reading this you probably know me, at least well enough to know that I’m a big nerd and my number one nerdy obsession is Star Wars. Since I was 8 years old I’ve lived and breathed Star Wars. I’ve seen the movies a bazillion times, read probably near 100 books, kept up with almost all the comics (well, aside from the lame Marvel ones), played and beat almost every Star Wars video game ever made and, most importantly, developed a collection of Star Wars merchandise that encompasses an entire museum-like room in my parents house as well as a garage full of boxes of everything from the usual action figures to Virgin Airlines Episode III Air-sickness bags.

In 2003 I did some volunteer work for Piazo Publishing that would lay the groundwork for my new career. At the time, Piazo was publishing the official Star Wars magazine, the Insider. Piazo needed help at their booth for Comic-Con International in San Diego, CA and made posts for volunteers on several reputable fan oriented sites on the interweb. I made my submission and received an e-mail from Paizo saying I was accepted.

Comic-Con was sort of a mess (some fellow volunteers may remember the “silver Boba Fett” fiasco) but I stuck it out, had an enormous amount of fun. From that time on I was made part of the “elite squad” for many future conventions, including Star Wars Celebration 3 and 4.

At Comic-Con the next year my job as a volunteer was working in the StarWarsShop.com booth. There I worked the buyers for SWS and after meeting them and getting an idea of what they do I thought, “that’s the job I want to do”.

In the fall of 2006 I was contacted by the SWS people and asked to be a freelance designer for Lucas Online, working on banner ads, product images and various other projects (even a few products). Of course I jumped at the chance to work for Lucasfilm, even though it wasn’t the exact job I wanted and even though I had to work from home instead of working in the offices, I was still getting paid to work on Star Wars stuff. Honestly, I didn’t think I’d get any further in the company than this but I kept my eye on the Lucasfilm job postings and even got as far as getting a couple interviews.

In my freelance work for SWS the two primary people I got jobs from were the buyers. Last month in an IM conversation, one of them told me he was leaving the company for another job closer to his home. After hearing that, I sarcastically mentioned to the other that I should apply for the job and he thought it was a great idea and encouraged me to do so.

About a week later I got a call from Lucasfilm Human Resources asking if I could come in for an interview in a couple days. The night before the interview I was so stressed out that I didn’t sleep at all so I drove all the way to San Francisco and had my interview at about hour 30 of awake time. Thankfully my friend Amanda came with me to keep me awake.

I had to interview with a total of six people. I left thinking I did pretty well in the interview but I was pretty certain I wouldn’t get the job since I don’t have any actual buying experience (although I do have a lot of related experience). I was so sure I wouldn’t get the job that I only told a select few people that I even had an interview, since I didn’t want have to tell everyone about how I didn’t get the job. I was told they were hoping to have a decision by the following Wednesday.

Days passed. Wednesday came and went. By the following week I had pretty much lost all hope of getting the job and had begun looking for other jobs in the area, since after coming home from tour I’ve been extra broke and my freelance jobs just weren’t cutting it anymore.

The next Thursday I was out running errands and had just pulled into the parking lot of Target when my phone started ringing and said “Lucasfilm” on it. This was it. This was my official “better luck next time” call. I answered the phone and the person said… (I’m sure you’ve already guessed where this is going)

“we’d like to offer you the job”.

And the rest is history, folks. I don’t mean to sound lame or cliché here but don’t give up on your dreams. Sometimes good things do happen to good people.

If you’re now wondering, “what exactly is your job”, here’s the official description from the job posing…

Buyer / E-Commerce

Analyze sales reports, develop vendor relationships, and place product orders for StarWarsShop.com and LucasArtsStore.com. Work with the fulfillment center on receiving and inventory management issues, negotiate prices and terms, manage and maintain inventory levels quantities to keep pace with sales, partner with accounting to manage billing process, take on merchandising responsibilities including writing product descriptions and selecting cross-sell product based on inventory status and sales correlation data.

I start work on September 17th, that’s two weeks from today. During that time I need to finish up some freelance work I have sitting around, try to find a place to live and (hopefully) move. Although if I don’t find an apartment in time I do have some friends to stay with in the meantime.
Thanks to everyone for being my friend, you guys are all amazing. It feels really good knowing that I have the support of so many amazing people. And, of course, my family too. Well, my family even more so, really. I love you Mom, Dad, Kelly, Briann, Brandon and everyone else.

Ventura people, I’m going to miss you a lot, but I’ll be back sometimes. And anyone who wants to come visit me up in San Francisco is more than welcome to!

In an unrelated note, here’s a little playlist I made. If you’re in the mood to hear some new music, find an artist you’ve never heard and click it!

August 21, 2007, 6:08 pm : Comic-Con was so awesome that I don’t feel like writing about it! OMG OMG OMG!

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Hey everyone, I’ve been planning on writing a long drawn out post about Comic-Con and how awesome it was this year but I really haven’t had the time. Today I finally sat down to write it and, well, I just don’t feel like it. Honestly, this was my favorite Comic-Con ever, I think I went to a panel on nearly everything that I obsess over BUT, since you guys don’t really care about all that stuff in the same way that I do, I’ve decided to spare the details and not write about it. So yeah, maybe next year. I did take a few photos though so check them out here. If you’re interested in something specific about the con, just ask!

Just to add a little filler to this tiny little post, here’s what I’ve been listening to lately. If you’re in need of new music maybe you should consider trying out some of these artists…

August 7, 2007, 12:48 am : Rock ‘n’ Roll Super Highway, Rock ‘n’ Roll Super Highway (sing it off key).

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Tour has been over for almost a month and I’m just now getting around to finishing my “tour log”. Whatever jerks, I’ve been busy. In all honesty I tried to sit down and blog a few times since Jersey but things just weren’t coming out of my head the way I’d hoped. So, without further delays, here’s the low down on the rest of the tour with Mouth Movements and Gamenight… as best as I can remember. There’s no way I’m going to proof read this behemoth. Deal with it.

Okay, so last I wrote I was sitting in a hotel room in New Jersey (which is about as bad as most people say, by the way)…

The next stop was the show I was looking forward to more than any other: New York City. Ever since I was really little I wanted to go to New York… the Ninja Turtles and Spider-man live there after all. Between having a trailer and not being allowed to use the main bridge into the city and having to pay a gazillion tolls getting into the city was pretty tough.

After finally making it to the venue we had a lot of time to kill. I really wanted to go to Rockefeller Center or something else fun, Times Square, Central Park, pretty much anything other than the 911 memorial… so guess where we went. The memorial was pretty depressing, as you might expect, but the mood was really killed by these protestors who were outside preaching hate through a P.A. It’s really sad to see a group of people get the message so completely wrong. That memorial is to bring people together, not spread hate even further. Within the memorial proper we got some stickers that said “Amplify love, dissipate hate. I pointed out that those protesters could really use these stickers and at this slight prompting Joe proceeded to go and put the stickers right up on the protesters little stage. Again they seemed to miss the point as they shouted through their speakers “we don’t need your flyers, you faggot in the tight pants”. Yeah, they really said that. Screw those guys. Gaaaaaaahhhhh intolerance makes me really angry. I need an ice cream break.

Okay back. The show itself pretty much sucked. The Lit Lounge is more like a dungeon than a venue and there were hardly any people at the show. The few people who did show were friends of Mouth Movements and Gamenight so at least they paid attention. After the show when we tried to settle up and get paid we found out that the promoter took off with the money so, after all the tolls and trouble of getting into the city the bands didn’t even make any money. So, bands, don’t play the Lit Lounge, it sucks on many levels.

The next show was in West Chester, Pennsylvania, which is a really awesome little city. I wondered around on my own a bit taking pictures and searching for internet access. While I was photographing pretty cool looking church (as I often do) I was approached by one of the most beautiful girls I’d ever seen. She said “hi” we talked for a bit… it was really awesome. Unfortunately she couldn’t come to the show so I’ll probably never see her again. That whole thing probably wasn’t worth mentioning but it was the highlight of my West Chester experience. The show was cool too.

From Pennsylvania we went back to the capital of New York, Albany. It wasn’t nearly as exciting as NYC but it was not without its charm. The show was packed with people, which was nice to see, although the vast majority of them were just there to drink and didn’t really care much about the music. In that little bar I witnessed what is probably one of the most random and amazing things of my life. Between bands someone chose the Queen song “Bohemian Rhapsody” on the jukebox. As soon as the first words came on (sing it with me: “issss thisss the reeeeaaall liiiffeeee, issss thissss jussst fantasssy…”) everyone in the bar, and I mean everyone, began singing and they didn’t stop until the song had ended. It’s nice to see that many people in one room who really appreciate Queen… or are just big Wayne’s World fans. Either way is fine.

Okay, so after Albany there’s a two day break in which I think we just drove straight to our friend Jordan’s house in Akron, Ohio… or did I forget a show? Whatever, I don’t remember much, it was a hectic time. Akron was blazingly, ridiculously hot but it was still a a lot of fun. The boys already had many friends there so it was like a multi-day party for them… for me, I had work to do so I spent a lot of the time in a coffee shop down the street that happened to have free internet and awesome tea for a dollar. Still though, the time I was able to spend with everyone was a blast. Those Akron guys are all amazing. If you get a chance check out Stiletto, Annabel and Adios. The show itself wasn’t bad but it wasn’t all the boys had hoped it to be.

After leaving Akron we crossed over into West Virgina for an all ages show at some teen center sort of thing. This show was cool, there were a lot of kids there… that didn’t buy stuff, but hey, at least they watched. It was in the parking lot before this show that I found out Brandon form Gamenight shares my love for Justin Timberlake… and I got some video of him showing his love:

By the way… dear 12 year old scene girls of West Virgina: smoking isn’t hot. Seriously, stop it.

That night, after a few beers, Steve took us on a 12 minute long magical journey. Join us, if you dare:

Back to Ohio, Cincinnati this time. We didn’t get to roam the city much but I really liked the small bit I saw… which apparently was the nice part since everyone was talking about how Cincinnati was totally ghetto. That night we stayed with our friend Sara, who has an awesome house. I’m very jealous. For some reason the guys (not me!) chose to watch Epic Movie… it sucked more than you can possibly imagine. Brandon made amazing tea that night though; I think that made up for the lost brain cells from that horrid movie.

From there to LaSalle, Illinois at the Knights of Columbus. This was a fun show with a ton of kids. It was really interesting to see how the scene in LaSalle differs from what I’m use to, for instance, the kids there actually like bands that have fun… not just bands that scream about broken hearts. Hooray for good shows with open minded audiences.

The next two shows were in Iowa with our buddies The Beat Strings. Both shows went really well and hanging out with the Beat String guys was a lot of fun for everyone. Unfortunately, since I had a huge headache for almost a full 48 hours, I missed out on a lot of the shenanigans. It happens, I guess.

Our last show in the eastern half of the country (until the trip back) was in Omaha, Nebraska in a small bar. While the show was tiny the crowd seemed to enjoy the bands and the local headlining band, Fromanhole , was really awesome.

After a pretty lengthy drive we made it to Denver, Colorado to play to… just about nobody. This is one of those shows that really goes to show that every show can matter, even if it feels like a waste of time. One of the very few people at the show happened to be the promoter of a big festival called Denverfest which features a lot of great bands. She was so impressed with Mouth Movement’s set that she asked them to play the festival in August. So, while the show may have been small, at least one pair of ears made it worthwhile. I’m planning to join the guys at Denverfest so I’m sure I’ll post a blog all about it… hopefully less than a month after it’s over.

Since our Utah show was canceled we were forced to drive all the way to Las Vegas, Nevada from Denver. We left as soon as the show in Denver was over and had a 12 hour drive ahead of us, which we planned to make in one trip. The problem, in our van at least, is that Travis is the only one insured to drive so he had to make the full drive by himself. I volunteered to sit co-pilot and make sure he doesn’t fall asleep.

Driving through the Rocky Mountains at the crack of dawn was truly one of the most amazing experiences of my life. I really wish we would have had time to stop and look around but we were in a hurry to get out of the heat and into a nice Vegas hotel room.

After 36 hours without sleep and his No Doze wearing out, Travis began to lose it and we were forced to take a break at a rest stop in the middle of the Utah desert. The vew here was great and lead to one of my favorite photos of the whole tour:

After our little photo shoot Travis and I took a nap inside van. It was ridiculously hot, even considering the fact that we were sleeping in our boxers. Two hours later we peeled (literally) ourselves off the van seats and proceeded to The Tropicana, on the Las Vegas strip. During this journey we listened to more Wesley Willis than I had previously though possible.

This was the first time most of these guys had been to Vegas so I was expecting to have a fun and somewhat wild time… I was a bit disappointed. They spent a lot of time sitting around the hotel, so much time, in fact, that I was forced to wonder down nearly the whole strip and back alone. I didn’t want to waste my Vegas time. For some reason I end up doing that nearly every time I’m in that city. I still had fun though.

The venue that they were supposed to be playing at that night didn’t even know a show was going on so when Steve called to find out the set-up time he had to tell them all the info on the show, including spelling the bands name; “M-O-U-T-H space M-O-V-E-M-E-N-T-S”. When we arrived at the bar we were greeted with this:

After seeing that sign we weren’t expecting a good show… and we were right.

The next show was to be my last show on the tour, the Knitting Factory in Hollywood, California. My original plan was to stay home once we hit California and let the guys continue back to Tennessee on their own. I was having so much fun that I couldn’t let that happen though. Because of this I spent the majority of our California time sitting at home trying to get a months worth of work done in four days. This caused me to miss out on most of the fun things the boys did in their downtime. We did have a bit of a pool/laundry party at my house one day that turned out to be a lot of fun, although I was stuck in front of my computer working most of the time.

The California shows were all some of the best on the tour. Hollywood was supposed to be the CD release show for another band on my label The Return… unfortunately we didn’t get the CDs back from the plant in time (not my fault!). Still though, the show was sold out. Steve broke his giant pedal board and Mouth Movements had to cut their set short but Gamenight, the Return and our buds Le Meu Le Purr all rocked. Mouth Movements and Gamenight played a couple more shows in the Ventura area with The Return and Le Meu and they were a blast.

At this point the tour sort of went downhill. The New Mexico show was canceled leaving us with a purposed 16 hour drive from Ventura to Amarillo, Texas. This drive took us through yet another desert and, since it was the middle of summer, it was 120 degrees outside. After several pit stops to make sure out vans wouldn’t spontaneously combust night finally drew and we were getting tired and hungry.

Our destiny was changed in a very awkward way by a simple billboard; “McDonalds, open 24 hours”. We rolled into Winslow, Arizona (as in “well, I’m a standing on a corner
in Winslow, Arizona and such a fine sight to see…”). As we sat in the parking lot eating our “McShittles” some girls rolled up in a beat up car and asked “are you in a band”. We got to talking and, 100% jokingly, I asked “so can we crash on your floor”… and they said “yes”. When we got back to their place a party was already going on. There we met a kid named Evan who said he sets up shows in the area, we asked (joking again) if he could set up a show for us the next day and he said he’d try.

Well, try he did, and he actually pulled it off. Single-handedly, Evan managed to set up a show inside a park and personally called a ton of people, drawing about 40 kids to the show, which is probably 35 or so more than would have been at the Amarillo show that they skipped in order to play this. The kids seemed to enjoy both bands but, since it seemed to be a more hardcore crowd, some of the Mouth Movements and Gamenight guys, along with a kid from the crowd, put on the most impressive improv hardcore show I’ve ever seen. I managed to get much of it on video (until my battery died):

Thanks a lot Evan and all the kids of Winslow. I’ll talk a little less trash about Don Henley from now on.

Since we didn’t make it to the Amarillo show we had to drive straight from Winslow to the second of our planned Texas dates, Midlothian. The Lighthouse was a very cool venue that was part of a church, which I thought would be awesome since churches tend to have a built in crowd. Unfortunately the kids of Midlothian are a little more concerned with the fashion show in the parking lot then the bands on the inside so it turned out to be a pretty big disappointment. Brandon tried hard to get the kids to go inside though:

It was after this show that the funds began running really low and sacrifices had to be made. Because of more shows falling through we were left with our next show being all the way in Florida. After finding out that the bands were very unlikely to be paid for that show we were forced to cancel. We were officially on the way back home to Tennessee with two shows in-between.

Before the show in Mississippi we stayed with friends in Houston, Texas and Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Both cities seemed like really fun places to spend time in but we weren’t really able to do so. Maybe next time. Mississippi was the most horribly racist place I’ve ever been, it was quite a culture shock and, frankly, it sucked.

It was pretty apparent that no people were going to be at this show and the bands were seriously considering not playing. When they eventually decided to play it turned into one of the highlights of the tour. The first band, The Raleigh Symphony, was by far the best and most fun ska band I’ve seen in a long time. It was really great to experience a band that helped to remind me what I love about that type of music since most of my favorite ska bands are no longer around. Gamenight and Mouth Movements both decided to do something unprecedented during their sets. Josh, Brandon and David (from Mouth Movements) played a song from Josh and Brandon’s former band Capulet. That was great for me since I’m a fan of Capulet but I was never able to see them live.

As some of you may know, Mouth Movements is made up of 3 out of the 4 members of former Missing Words band The Shape, and one of The Shape’s former guitarists, Tyler, happened to be on tour with us. The Shape are by far one of my favorite bands ever and I was so sad to see them disband. It hurt even more knowing that their last shows were all in Tennessee, where I couldn’t see them. That made it all the better when The Shape reunited for two songs during Mouth Movements set. Joe, from Mouth Movements, and the Gamenight guys are all big Shape fans so it really became quite the lovefest. Those two songs made up one of the best 10 minutes of my life. I was pretty much in tears. Lame, I know… but hey, they played my favorite song.

The final road show of the tour was in Alabama to a crowd consisting of two of Travis’s friends, Tyler and me. Gamenight decided not to bother player so they just caused trouble during Mouth Movements set. Here is my favorite video of the zaniness of the last official night on the road:

The real last show of the tour was at Old City Java back in Knoxville, Tennessee. We were joined again by Stiletto and tons of friends from home (who all became new friends of mine). The tiny place was packed and the audience was singing along to many of the songs. It was the perfect way to end the tour. I was nearly in tears… again (man, I suck!), but after seeing these guys play 25 or so times I really didn’t want it to end.

I spent the next week hanging out in Tennessee with old friends and new. I’d go into more detail but really, I think I’ve written more than enough for one night. It was fun though. I love Tennessee and I really didn’t want to leave. The people there really made me feel at home and I miss them all a whole lot.

In the end, that tour was the best time of my life. I wish I could do that all the time. I’m glad I had the opportunity to do it at least once though.

We took a ton of pics check them out here.

You can view all the videos from tour here

Also, one late night in Tennessee several of us went to the Smokey Mountains. You can see those pics here

Thanks for the memories guys. I love you all.

I’ll blog again soon about Comic-Con.

June 13, 2007, 8:38 pm : 11 shows down… a bunch more to go (and I’m still excited).

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We have a hotel room. Hotels are nice, even when stuffed with 10 smelly boys. We have beds and carpet (hardwood floor is not fun to sleep on), TV, a nice shower and, most relevant to this post, internet access. I figured I should take this increasingly rare occasion to fill you all in on what’s happened on tour since the last post.

When I left you I was writing from inside of the Map Room in South Carolina. That show turned out to be another dud of sorts. We knew the first few shows on the tour were going to suck and most of them lived up to our expectations.

We didn’t have any place to stay that night so we decided to try to drive toward our next destination and find a hotel on the way. After a couple hours of driving Travis was getting tired and we decided we needed stop and sleep, with or without a hotel. We eventually found a random little church on the side of the road and came to the conclusion that a church parking lot was a reasonably safe place to stay. The place was dimly lit with an orange glow and looked pretty creepy… I loved it. Aside from the mosquitoes that ate up most of the guys (but not me for some reason) it turned out to be a reasonably nice parking lot to sleep in, or well, sleep in our vans in… until 8:00 am when some dude came and told us to “get out of here”. So we did. We drove to North Carolina and got a room at a Motel 6 for the next night.

The Motel 6 seemed to be even more sketchy than the church parking lot. I won’t go into the full details but I’ll tell a little story that should clearly illustrate how this hotel worked: the now infamous story of room 129. So, we were all sitting outside of Gamenights trailer partaking in peanut butter and jelly sandwiches (well, not me because that’s gross) and this very, I hate to say it, trashy girl comes walking up to us and slurs “ya’ll like mah pericins’” We tried to be nice until she stumbled her way back to her room, number 129. She was obviously on something. An hour or so later we were packing the vans and getting ready to leave when we see a car pull up to 129. A large guy gets out, walks into 129 and emerges about three minutes later. About ten seconds later the other woman who was staying with the “piercins’” girl stumbles out of the house asking for a lighter… probably for her crack pipe… or meth… pipe? I have no idea how people use meth. Maybe I should have asked them for a demonstration. In addition to that fun stuff I attempted to do laundry but the dryer sucked so I ended up with a bag full of moist clothes… more on this later (I’m sure you can see how this ends).

Before the show we went to Joe’s brothers new house where he barbequed a bunch of food for us. That was way cool, thanks a lot Jim. While we were there some of the guys went on a magical meditative journey in the middle of the living room. Check out this video for a small fraction of the craziness that ensued…

The next show was in Wilmington, NC and was the last in our string of unsuccessful shows. I guess I should clarify, the shows were good. The bands were great. The venues were pretty cool… there just wasn’t anyone there to watch (or buy stuff, which is pretty important at this point). Wilmington was a really cool city so I had a lot of fun wondering around the city. I took pics, surprise, surprise.

We then trekked back to South Carolina to the New Brookland Tavern for the first in a string of successful shows. The venue was in a bit of disrepair but the sound was just amazing and all the people who were working there had a real passion for the place. It was nice to see. It’s a shame that place doesn’t have more funding.

Baaaaack to North Carolina we went for a show in Sylva at the Guadalupe Café. Sylva was a really pretty little town with a courthouse up on a hill. At the courthouse there was a statue for “our confederate heroes” which was just weird to see, and a little disturbing for a sheltered kid from California. The café gave us free gourmet organic food which was pretty awesome. It’s probably the only thing even remotely healthy I’ve eaten in weeks. This was another show with a decent crowd, consisting of some kids and some very drunk adults dancing very poorly. Good times.

That night we stayed at a house in the mountains (thanks Jeremy and Jenni). While we were unloading our stuff in the dark I noticed a bunch of weird blinking lights in the distance. I wondered over to where I could see them better and realized that they were lightning bugs. It was truly one of the most amazing sights I’ve ever seen looking down on a group of blinking bugs and up at a sky filled with more stars than I ever knew existed. All the other guys, being from Tennessee were completely used to the lightning bugs but they seemed to enjoy watching me experience it for the first time.

We finally left the Carolinas and moved into Virginia to the Outback Lodge in Charlottesville. This was another great show that was pretty packed. The crowed seemed to dig both bands and everyone was happy. Hooray!

The next show was to be at a church, which was a little weird. When we got there there were some kids already there waiting. This was a great show with a really young crowd. It was awesome to see a show full of high school aged kids. Apparently the kids in Roanoke are a lot more hip than the rest of the country.

We ate dinner at Sheetz, a weird convince store type place where you order food using a computer screen thingy. We had to stay in a hotel that night since I needed internet access in order to meet a work deadline I had the next morning. I noticed that the hotel had a laundry room, which was good since my clothes all smelled horribly like mildew since I was unable to dry them fully at the Motel 6 North Carolina. I spent my night, from about 4:00am to 6:00am doing laundry and working on my computer outside of the laundry room of the hotel. I didn’t get much sleep but at least I was productive. It’s been incredibly hard to get my other work done while on the road, I’m going to have to step it up.

From there we went to Baltimore, the home of Edgar Allen Poe’s grave… which I really wanted to visit but didn’t get to. My dad came out to this show since he’s on a business trip in the area. It’s good that he made it out to the show since he was pretty much the only one there to watch. Oh well, Baltimore is frightening and filled with sirens and gunshots. We got out of there pretty quick. Or at least we would have if we didn’t get lost in the ghetto. We survived by blasting rap and blending in with the neighborhood.

Last night was Trenton, New Jersey which was actually pretty cool. The area of the city that we were in was pretty nice and really pretty. The venue was in the basement of a nice looking bar. Unfortunately the show wasn’t promoted at all and we thought no one would show up. In the end there turned out to be a halfway decent crowd and a fun show.

We now have a hotel room in East Brunswick, New Jersey. For lunch we went to a place called Jimmy’s where they had all kinds of crazy sandwich type things. I ended up getting a “fat nights” which was a sandwich filled with cheese steak, mozzarella sticks, fries, chicken strips and marinara sauce. It was pretty intense.

And now, here we are, sitting in the hotel room, watching the season finale of Sopranos. I’ve never watched this show so I’m not paying attention… obviously since I’m writing this. Okay, well, that’s it for me. If you’d like to hear more about our adventures by people who are much better writers than myself check out the news section of Gamenight’s website . They’ve been doing nightly updates. I’d added some new photos so be sure to check out the photo gallery . Also, here’s a funny (and long) video of Travis rocking out to ACDC. This may be the last video for a while since my camera sort of died.

P.S. I don’t feel like proof reading tonight, so deal with it.