043; [19/50 QTWFYM] battle of the accents

So I stumbled upon a website with a whole bunch of questions, 50 to be exact, that one can ask them self. I love talking about life and self, although it can be depressing sometimes... Anyway, I scanned through the questions and I thought it would be kind of fun to answer them in this blog. So hope you enjoy my answers, and please feel free to leave YOUR answer in the comments. 

50 Questions That Will Free Your Mind
19. If you had to move to a state or country besides the one you currently live in, where would you move and why?
What an appropriate question for someone who is moving.
If I had to move to a different state (or as Canadians call it "province"), I'd move to British Columbia (Vancouver) because it's the most similar to Ontario (Toronto): city + suburbs, multicultural, good schools.
If I had to move to a different country, I'd pick an English speaking place because getting forced to learn a language intimidates me. I also love diversity. City living or suburbs is a must. I think England (maybe Leeds or London) or Australia (Adelaide - apparently teachers are in demand in this area, Perth, or Canberra) fits well. It's just a matter of which regional accent I like better.

Temper Trap - my favourite aussie band

New blog for my adventures in eastern asia:

http://whosthefobnow.blogspot.com/

040; Noel Gallagher...AKA what a night!

On November 5th I had the pleasure to attend a special acoustic set at the newly named Virgin Mobile Mod Club, formerly known as the Mod Club, featuring the one and only Noel Gallagher. It was a private, pre show warm up to his performances at Massey Hall later in the week.

Mod Club

Virgin Mobile Mod Club: a mini profile

• 722 College Street, Little Italy Toronto
• Fits 600 people (floor, lounge-ish areas, balcony)
• Concert venue - one of my favourites because it's so small, sound is crisp, and there's no barricade separating you from the stage
• Night Club - Not familiar with their system but I know there are UK Underground Saturdays

So my expectations weren't extraordinarily high, although I expected something good because well it's Noel Gallagher, the better half of Oasis. The email invited me + guest to attend a 5 song acoustic set on the re-opening night. What did I get?

• A club full of middle age people - I'm 99% sure my friend and I were the youngest in the crowd
• drink ticket - thank you virgin mobile!
• An awesome view of the stage over all the tall men
• Grown men shouting "I love you Noel" between every song, to which the cool Noel replied" there's a lot of fucking love in this room."
• An 8 song set. He played:
• It's Good to be Free
• Talk Tonight - one of my favourite Oasis songs
• If I Had a Gun
• Supersonic
• Wonderwall - I was not expecting that. Thought he'd be tired of it. 
• AKA... What a Life
• Half the World Away
• Don't Look Back in Anger - soo good.
• A poster commemorating the night on my way out

I definitely got my email's worth.

037; [14/50 QTWFYM] inCREATIVITYsanity

So I stumbled upon a website with a whole bunch of questions, 50 to be exact, that one can ask them self. I love talking about life and self, although it can be depressing sometimes Anyway, I scanned through the questions and I thought it would be kind of fun to answer them in this blog. So hope you enjoy my answers, and please feel free to leave YOUR answer in the comments. 

50 Questions That Will Free Your Mind 

14. Have you ever saw insanity where you later saw creativity?

I guess there's a fine line between creativity and insanity. I can't remember a time where I felt something was insane and later thought it was creative...but I can think of some examples of what others might think:
CN Tower Edge Walk - So basically, you walk around the rim of the CN Tower while attached to some strings. The fall is only 356m/1,168ft off the ground, but it's totally safe. The insane part is the cost of the ticket ($175 CDN). I was so very much excited to do this, but it was something an unemployed summer student could not afford. Maybe next year. 
Screaming vocals (i.e. screamo, post-hardcore, emo) - Would you say it's an acquired taste? Or is it something that you like or hate in the first moments of the musical encounter? Personally, a song with pure screaming is not something I would listen to (insane) but mix it with some nice singing vocals and it's something I really like (creative).  
Haunted Houses/Scream Parks - First of all, why would you want to pay someone to scare you all night long? Things follow you until you go into a wash room (don't even think about running as they run after you), you're anxiously wait for something to pop out, and there's really no place to hide... I was looking forward for my first scream park and after experiencing a proper haunted house (not a school orchestrated one), I could actually say I love getting scared+surprised. I found it all quite thrilling, exciting and really fun! 

036; back to: back concerts/school

September 8
Two Thursday nights ago I went to a STP concert and I must say Scott Weiland is incredible! After watching him perform I found a new form of respect for him. I can't help but admire him. After his battle with drugs and despite his age (okay he's only in his early 40's) his vocals whether amplified by a megaphone or straight to the mic greatly impressed me. But enough about Scott, the band's performance was pretty awesome too. They played all my old favourites including "Creep" and "Down", and new stuff like "Between the Lines".
And something interesting I noticed, I was probably the youngest and one of the few Asians (if any) in the stadium of thousands.

September 9
I was pretty excited to hear the university I attend got Montreal's Sam Roberts Band for frosh this year. Land of Talk, which is another Canadian band, opened for them with a 35 minute set. It was pretty spacious on the field during Land of Talk's performance. Everyone sat on the lawn with the sun beaming brightly on the back of their college frosh shirts. Although my attention was elsewhere, they seemed like a decent band. Before Sam Roberts came on, a heard of freshman entered the field after the parade and filled in the spots with vivacious students, spirit, and colours.  Not too long after, Sam Roberts took the stage.

They played my favourites and the set was well timed. The encore was probably my favourite part. They did a cover of Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds "If I Had A Gun." It was one the best covers I've heard live. I really hope there's a studio version soon cause I can't seem to find it anywhere. They ended their set with "Don't Walk Away Eileen" and it was then I thought, I'd really like to see them live again. And on top of all that, the sound was so clear and perfect. I don't know if it was because it was an outdoors concert, or if they had a really good sound check session, or if it was just the band. It was a fantastic show.

031; the death [and rebirth] of alexisonfire

If you haven't heard, Alexisonfire has called it quits. and it breaks my heart.
(funny thing is I picked up my AOF shirt today...)

The first time I saw them was on December 16, 2007. There was a huge snow storm, the car got stuck in the snow, the venue was a bajillion miles away, and my chem teacher's lesson was accompanied by strange ringing sounds the following morning.  All I can say is I don't regret any of this.

Dallas, George (in a Santa hat), Wade

The second time I saw them was on  December 17, 2010.
The third time I'll see them is on their Canadian farewell tour. (dates are not announced yet)
The fourth time I'll see them will be at their rebirth of alexisonfire show *fingers crossed*

I miss them already.

029; the black keys, you're my everlasting light

Last week I went to the sold out Cage The Elephant and The Black Keys concert at the Molson Amphitheatre. I'd just like to say that it's one of the best shows I've been to.

• Despite arriving later than usual, I had one of the best seats in the crowd - second-front row and centre on the floor. 
• Two ah-mazing bands for the price/place of one. 
• I finally got my "The Black Keys are my Brothers" shirt - and it looks better in person.
• I didn't have to pay crazy money for a bottle of plain water - I was allowed to take my own water in.
• My personal space was not violated/people around me weren't pushy - for most of the show anyways
• The set list was more than satisfying - I even scored the set list. 

Encore: Sinister Kid, Your Touch

Matt Shultz

Brad Shultz

standing in the crowd

Dan Auerbach

The Black Keys

7 days later, I'm still in awe.

I'm curious to see what they are up to next. If the new album doesn't like Brothers, does that mean they're reverting back or moving forward? Can December come a little faster?

017; First time teaching and I fell in love with Judas

Like many students, I've done presentations.
Like many prospect teachers, I've tutored students.
Unlike many teachers, I've not taught many lessons.

I taught my first official lesson today in an ESL (english as a second language) class.
Keeping it brief, there were moments of both good and bad, but the best was the rapport I built with the students (they even clapped at the end of the lesson). They all seemed like interesting people and I really wanted to talk to them on a more friend-like level buuut I had to restrain for "professional" reasons.

On the side note: new Lady GaGa <3

013; "it's not a Slayer concert." - Dallas Green

In honour of the 40th Juno Awards, the people of the Juno and Sirius radio organized a lovely little Juno Block Party. The line up included:

Shad is a London (nearby Toronto) based rap artist. I didn't know much about him prior to the show...I actually didn't know he was going to be at the show. I just knew he that he did a song with Dallas called Live Forever.

Also my first rap concert! which I did enjoy. He has these clever rhymes and raw stylistic flow. I'd say he's worth checking out if, especially if you like alternative hip hop, spoken word, or rap.

Live Forever!

Hannah Georgas has her roots from Vancouver. She has a Metric+Stars kinda sound. I had no idea who she was before the show.... in fact I thought she was going to be a terrible pop star. I'm glad I was wrong though. She's got a lovely voice and her band was wonderful too. 

City and Colour during sound check

Dallas Green - the man of the evening and the reason I was standing there for more than 3 fuh-reezing cold hours. I couldn't feel my legs and my hands were numb but it was worth it. He played two new songs, one of them I really liked and the other one was okay. Nonetheless, Little Hell should be a promising album. He started off with Sleeping Sickness and The Death of Me, ended off with Bring Me Your Love and Sometimes for the encore in a 30 - 45 minute set. There were  some  "remixed" versions of some of the songs because it was too cold to play the acoustic guitar. I really wanted to here The Girl (favourite C&C song) but he didn't play it...and oddly I wasn't too bummed out about it. 

you can see his breathe

GTFO

In the middle of his encore, he stopped singing and everything just stopped. Dallas put a pause on the show and asked this guy if he was fighting and told the guy to get out. After a few more words from Dallas and the crowd chanting "you fucked up", the guy left the crowd escorted by the security team.

Lesson to be learned:

1) Dallas Green does not take shit.

2) In any type of altercation he does not fuck up, rather it is the other.

The whole set list: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_obYW1Nlbw&feature=channel_video_title

Jan 18; On the road to Nashik

Day 13
It's going to be a long day.
I didn't do much today. It was just sitting in the car and catching up with some readings for school and listening to whatever music was on the road mix. I heard things from Enrique Iglesias ft. Ludicras (what a fucktarded song btw), Katy Perry, Owl City, Cobra Starship, Bruno Mars, Akon.... I miss my music. 

India on Justin Bieber: 
They like him for his music, not his looks - that's refreshing to hear. He has a lot of hits there, but Baby seems to be the favourite. Personally, I don't like his music but I can respect that others do. We've all got opinions. It's just when people get crazy and insist on marrying him... that's the part that annoys/pisses me off. 

 Back to the trip, first stop was the Infant Jesus Shrine.

I don't go to church very often but I do believe there is something greater. So if you can call that religious, than I guess I am religious to some extent.

Driving here took most of the day, so when it came time to call it a rest we found a hotel for the night.

1 family room = 1350 rupees = $33

(That's pretty damn reasonable!)

Mosquito Bite Count: 11 +4

011; My favourite season: Concert Season

Concert season starts at the end of March and goes on till mid November.

(I know, it's practically the whole year.)

What I'm looking forward to this year:

The Black Keys - I don't like the venue very much BUT 

Cage The Elephant - is the opener so how can I say no. Really. Two birds with one stone.

Rise Against - new CD means new tour. They're doing Edgefest (music festival) this year but I don't know whether to wait it out for their own show or just go for the festival. I feel like they won't have enough time on stage if it's a festival, but I don't know...

Go Radio - The last time I saw them was 3 years ago and they only had a 6 track  EP. They've grown a lot and I would love to see them again because a) they're really good live b) I want to hear them sing "goodnight moon" live, and c) the last time I met them, they were really nice guys, especially Jason. They're opening for A Rocket To The Moon and I dread the thought of teenboppers. 

30 Seconds To Mars - they're coming back! I saw them last year so i'm kinda debating on whether to go or not.... It'll all depend on the openers I guess.

What I've already missed out on (Sold Out Shows):

Adele - her tickets sold out within a few hours. boooo.

A Day To Remember - should have got the tickets when i had the chance - dammit!

I'll probably be adding to the list as more shows get announced but until then
I wish you all a very happy concert season.

010; book based on a movie

No not really...
Dreamworks bought the rights to the film in June 2009.
A year later, the first book of the series came out on Aug 2, 2010.
wtf?

I Am Number Four is a teenbopper's sci-fi. It's entertaining I guess, but pretty predictable and straightforward. Nothing special, but a nice movie for the family day weekend.

Something that the director should have thought about: iPhones and projectors don't go together. The main character uses a iPhone and there's a scene in the classroom where the students are watching a film from a projector.
wtf?

Would I recommend the movie? I would recommend the soundtrack. Right off the bat, Kings of Leon's Radioactive was in the background, then right after that Tighten Up by The Black Keys. Hearing these two songs (especially the second one) got me in a pretty good mood. Throughout the movie, the songs don't fail to impress with tracks from Adele, The Temper Trap, and The xx. So it really didn't matter how much I liked the film. music will also be my saviour.

009; Happy _____ Day

a) Valentine's
b) Single Awareness
(yes, i'm a day late)

I spent my evening in a steamy room with 200 individuals, in perhaps the most boring class ever.
I also got a origami rose from this nice random stranger.

Valentine's Day Playlist:

• secret valentine, we'll write a song
• you're every line, you're every word
• i wanna feel you from the inside
• you feel like heaven to touch
• my path has lost direction

Enjoy

Jan 4-5; Arrivals and Departures

Flight 1: Canada to Germany
I haven’t been on a plane since I was 3, so I was super excited about the plane ride. I could tell you that the excitement wore off pretty fast. Now I understand when people say plane food sucks and ear popping hurts. I realized that I need to board 6 planes throughout my entire trip. Ouch.
Sitting behind me were some young Germans boys who sang. I was wrong to assume this be a music depriving trip. The boys sang different tunes including Duck Sauce’s Barbra Streisand , which I thought was pretty entertaining.

Stopover: Frankfurt
Got some food from McDonald’s, which I’m really not a fan of, but I was strangely mildly attracted to it. Maybe because it was foreign.

Strange Job Sighting: As I was putting my tray away there was an employee standing in this little garbage corner, taking peoples trays, cleaning the trays and putting it away. That's ALL he did. What kind of job is that ?!? (a really easy one)

Food and Drinks: Nestea Iced Tea tastes different. It actually tastes like iced tea.
Fact: Beer is cheaper than water. Oh you Germans : )

Flight 2: Germany to India

I met some interesting people on my way, a Canadian fellow going to an ashram and a Belgium man on a business trip to discuss soya products.

Destination: Mumbai
There’s so much security guards strutting their stuff: camo attire, sergant hats, geared with riffles. I wanted to take a picture but I was scared they might shoot me or something.

Let the culture shock begin! (with honking vehicles)

Mosquito Bite Count: Zilch

007; I see/k improvement

My study habits need to improve.
I have 2 tests, a paper, and tons of readings to catch up on so I need to hustle. ahh, oiajfioS:NBgsdgf // Coming back from India has definitely worn me out. I'll say some stuff about that later.

Bring Me The Horizon has improved.
In 2006, I used to think they were an untalented shit band with a front man with really nice hair with a lot of annoying fans.
In 2011,they've got the annoying fans and nice hair, but more importantly they've grown as a band. Their songs don't seem so scattered and they've even got Canadian cutie Lights in on one of their new tracks, Don't Go. However, I don't think I'll ever be a fan of the band. Perhaps a guilty pleasure if anything.

A Day To Remember does not need to improve.
I just saw the music video for All I Want. Love itttttttttttt. I love anything with cameos. Pete fckn Wentz. haha......

004; shhh. it's a secret show

Yesterday, Alexisonfire had a secret show at Sonic Boom and I could not pass down an opportunity for an intimate show with these guys.

Sonic Boom: A mini-profile

• Independent Record Store
• 2 floors; Music on the main floor and even more music in the basement! The stage area is also in the  basement.
• Great selection of music, current and old & new and used.
• VINYLS, CDs, T-shirts, books, and some other fun stuff. 
• Friendly staff (?) - The only actual staff encounter was asking for the ticket so it's not much to base it off of, but he seemed really nice nonetheless.
• Scott Pilgrim was filmed here!

Performance:

They started off with songs from the new Dog's Blood EP and ended off with You Burn First and Control in a 30 minutes-ish set.  Control was definitely a bonus. After George announced the show was over, the audience wanted more - but really, who wouldn't want more - and someone wanted to hear Control. So the guys talked about it and we got what we wanted : ) 

The stage was really small so I couldn't see Dallas or Jordan really well but from what I could see with George, Chris, and Wade, it looked like they were having fun. Anyways, I loved the performance. It was so full of energy and George definitely has charisma!

Chemistry: 

This was the second time I've seen AOF perform. The first time was 3 years and 2 days ago and at that time I didn't notice any tension or whatever, just saw a bunch of talented dudes loving what they were doing.

When I saw them recently, I noticed something different with one member actually. When they first came on stage, the guys were getting geared up and they noticed that they were short a guitar pick. Dallas said he left/saw (can't remember exactly) the picks near the amp. From my perspective (I could be totally off), I thought he seemed a bit frustrated when he said that. As I mentioned before, control was not originally on the set list. When the band was talking it out, Dallas said  how playing one more song was like doing a concert. I couldn't help but feel that he didn't want to be there (again, I can totally be off) doing what he was loving.

I've come to an undecided conclusion that:

a) Dallas was having an off day

b) Dallas is normally like that

c) I'm over analyzing things

Lastly, I got to meet the band afterwards and I'm still pretty happy about that - got my CD and poster signed. I thanked AOF for doing the show individually and Chris, who is actually my personal favourite, was the one I talked with most. He said how the band liked doing shows at small venues like the one we were at. It's comforting to know that the band you love like doing what they're doing, kinda like their heart is where it should belong.

NOTE: I'm not hating on Dallas.