Jean Paul Yamamoto at Safari Sam's

I saw this band called Jean Paul Yamamoto at Safari Sam’s in Hollywood Tuesday night. It’s this Asian band with a Caucasian drummer. I did a little research and the lead singer/guitar player is Lun*na Menoh, a Japanese artist. Their set started out with a lady coming out on stage with a stack of paper with written words on each sheet, which she proceeded to toss across the stage one by one as the audience read what was on each sheet. I wasn’t sure if this was the start of the show or not. It was of course, and was a uniquely artistic way to open a set. It was too bad I didn’t pay closer attention to the written word. The band than proceeded came on stage and started their set. There were two ladies, one on each side, dressed in white, looking like either angels or characters from sci-fi cartoons. They slowly swept their arms around as the band sang. The music itself has an electronic feel to it. The other three members; a guitar player, drummer and singer/guitar were also dressed in white. What was interesting about the whole set was that the two ladies made three costume changes throughout the set, but for some reason I was preoccupied by other things on the stage that I didn’t even notice them exiting. I’m not exactly sure how that occurred since this isn’t a band that provides you with a big stage show. Perhaps it is just the subtle action on stage during these transitions that caused me to get distracted. And oh, there’s that big white wig that the lead singer wears.

Notes from Vivace

Automatic Music Explosion. Venice Air Conditioned Supper Club.

I caught The Automatic Music Explosion at the Venice Air Conditioned Supper Club. The audience at Venice-ACSC was a bit stand off-ish at first, but by the end of the set there was growing interest. It was likely driven by the active performance that the band displayed throughout their set. The ending was particularly energetic with various band members flying around the stage. One can tell that they’re a well rehearsed band. At one time, the two guitar players and bass player were aligned in a sharp angle. It is a small thing to notice, but indicates a belief in practice makes perfect. I’d recommend checking this band out. And the Venice-ACSC is a good place to check out, as well. There were probably 80 – 100 people there during the Automatic Music Explosion set.

Notes from Vivace

A strange dream

I had a dream that sort of stuck with me:

In my dream I was driving by this corner building. (This is a real building in my neighborhood that used to be a home video store.) I noticed that the building was now occupied by a bookstore. I decided to check it out. I parked my car and walked in. It was no longer a bookstore. It was now a boutique store, a day care center and an art house movie theatre. I decided to watch the movie that was being shown. The theatre only had a handful of seats. I took one in the front row. I figured that this would be too close to the screen, but I was surprised to see that there was an extra 20 yards between my seat and the movie screen. Being an art house movie theatre, it also wasn't one of those mega-screens. After the movie ended, I found myself discussing the movie industry with some people I'd met. Somehow early morning arrived and I walked out to my car. I read the street signs that said that all cars needed to be moved out of the area by 6 a.m. My problem was that I'd somehow parked two cars in the area and it wasn't possible to move both cars out of the area by 6 a.m.

I then woke up. The dream wasn't extremely dramatic, but for some reason I remember it.

Notes from Vivace

Lady Danville at UCLA

I came across this band called Lady Danville recently. I enjoyed their set so figured I'd give a quick write-up:

This is a folk/acoustic type band. It is a three piece band with a keyboardist, guitar, and a percussionist. The percussionist plays on a cajon (a beat box, box drum type instrument). It was a pleasant set. It is the type of music that you listen to when you want to sit back and relax. The melodies are strong, the rhythm is pleasant. The guys in the band appear to get along with each other. There isn’t much interaction on stage between the three members, but you still get the feeling they enjoy playing as a trio.

Notes from Vivace

New England Patriots and Potential Super Bowl Victory

I admit I have mixed feelings about the New England Patriots. I feel this is one arrogant team that needs to be brought down a notch; however, they are the best football team out there. (I'm a Pittsburgh Steelers fan, but you've got to admit the obvious.) When you have a team that is so superior to any other team in the NFL, it would stink if they didn't win it all. But on the other hand, I want a team out there to beat them and shove it in their faces just like New England did to other teams throughout this season. If San Diego doesn't have much of a team on Sunday due to injuries, I guess it will be up to the Giants or Packers to knock off the Patriots. I don't know how I'll feel when Super Bowl Sunday comes around -- should the Patriots make it. I think half of me will be cheering on the Patriots while the other half will be cheering on the NFC team.

Notes from Vivace

"Definitely, Maybe" film preview

I've seen the trailer for "Definitely, Maybe" a handful of times. There is a scene where the father is telling his daughter about a threesome. The daughter asks, "What is a threesome?" The father says something like, "It is a game that adults play." I wonder if others out there find this a bit disturbing. Okay, so it is meant as comedy and it is sort of funny, but on the other hand it isn't. Why would anyone talk about a threesome with their pre-teen daughter? And the actress herself is a pre-teen. It just seems wrong to have allowed something like this to be written and filmed.

Notes from Vivace

Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Jacksonville Jaguars: Part 2

Okay, that was a hard game to watch. We're down 18, we make a comeback. We end of losing by two points, 31-29. For some reason, it sounds like the first game against the Jaguars.

Impressions (I didn't take notes throughout the game so do forgive):

1. Impressive first drive.
2. What was up with the rest of the first half? The offense just stalled out.
3. What is up with the Steelers' special team play?
4. Emotional high coming back from an 18 point deficit. Wow, I was excited.
5. During their second to the last drive with around 3 minutes to play, why did the Steelers play so conservatively? I really believe they should have kept on going with the pass, at least in an attempt to get a couple more first down plays. I understand the need to play conservative, but I also figure that if you're going to play that way you at least want to gain some yards and pin Jacksonville down around the 10 yard line.
6. I wonder if the Steelers' defense should have just allowed Garrard to rumble into the end zone? Admittedly, they'd have needed a touchdown to win, but they'll also have had their timeouts and more time on the clock. It is sort of like basketball, do you just go ahead and foul the three point shooter?
7. Why the three interceptions? Two of them were just stupid. Admittedly, that one interception where the defensive player slipped and just popped back up at just the right time was probably one of those lucky moments in life, but the other two were simply bad decisions.
8. Of course, to a degree the fact that the Steelers had to face the Jaguars was their fault, having lost to a trio of teams they shouldn't have lost to.

On the plus side: I do believe that 2008-2009 has the potential to be a really good season. At times, this season, the Steelers looked brilliant. It just wasn't consistent enough.

Notes from Vivace

I am Legend

I enjoyed the movie, but so many questions. Some of these questions might be stupid or might have been answered if I’d paid better attention to the movie, but here they are:

First, how did Robert Neville get all that lab equipment into his basement? I suppose that while the virus was starting up, he might have gotten some help from the military.

Second, if “the infected” are smart enough to put together a trap, why aren’t they smart enough to track Robert Neville’s daytime movement more carefully? They obviously knew where he went to get his videos. I suppose you could argue that they didn’t track him to the video store, but instead randomly came across it during their night walks and made the assumption that this was where Robert Neville hung out at times.

Third, how could Anna and Ethan survive in a truck with “the infected” all around the country?

Fourth, I understand that there is easily a breakdown in communication when a country falls apart, but why was Robert Neville unable to get into contact with the safe zone over a 3 year period? Anna and Ethan had obviously heard of this safe zone so why wouldn’t Robert Neville with all that fancy equipment of his not have known about this safe zone as well? And if he somehow wasn’t aware, why wasn’t the safe zone looking for him? Anna knew that Robert Neville was an important figure in the fight against the virus. Wouldn’t this safe zone be interested in figuring out if Robert Neville was still alive in New York? And wouldn’t the safe zone also be sending out messages to the potentially uninfected?

Fifth, if “the infected” have this ability to scale three story townhouses, wasn’t the safe zone walls rather short?

Sixth, what are all the side effects of being infected? You obviously look awful, but you’re still able to strategize. You turn extremely vicious and violent, but you also wear cloths and hoard American dollars.

Seventh, for a city with the infected in it, the city looked remarkably well kept. The infected looked a bit vicious, I just wonder why more damage wasn’t done to the city.

Eight, what do the infected eat after three years? I suppose they feed on animal flesh.

Ninth, do the infected reproduce?

Tenth, so Robert Neville uses a grenade to kill off the leader of the pack. So wouldn’t using a grenade in the basement cause problems for Anna and Ethan who are in the safe? Couldn’t a blast potentially jam the door?

Notes from Vivace