9/17/16

I've officially settled into my new apartment at UC Riverside. I'm ready to begin my sophomore year of college. Hopefully it will only be better. I'm taking four classes: two English, one computer science, and one history. The last two are requirements. I'm excited to finally have my own bedroom and a kitchen, since I enjoy cooking as a hobby.

Anyway, I made a big change on Wednesday. On Wednesday afternoon, I crossed off another bucket list item: get a tattoo. For about the last year or so I imagined myself getting the P logo from the Progressive Music Awards tattooed on my right upper arm. I knew that that would be a huge commitment, so I thought about it for a long time. Since I knew that the process of getting a tattoo was a particularly painful one, I decided that it would be better to get one symbol that represents all of prog instead of many individual tattoos representing different bands. To me, my new tattoo represents more than just prog. It represents what I feel strongly about, and how important music has been to me over the last 7 years. When I look at my tattoo I think of all the ripple effects that came out of my musical journey. That one day at guitar class back in 2009 led to the discovery of new music, new people, and a passion that I never knew I had. It represents the old music, the current music, and the music that's to come. The tattoo took about 2.5 hours to put on. I gritted my teeth against the pain of the needles racing across my skin, but I kept reminding myself why I was putting myself through this. I was doing it because I felt that strongly about prog. I felt strong enough about it that I was willing to have a symbol for it permanently marked on my skin. I wear my new ink proudly. Once it heals up (just in time for the Ian Anderson concert on October 18!) I will proudly display it.

9/1/16

Yes played a great show Sunday night. It was an honor getting to hear Drama in its entirety as well as sides 1 and 4 of Tales From Topographic Oceans. There was also a surprise appearance for "Tempus Fugit:" Trevor Horn. I was surprised that he could still sing that song as well as he did. He definitely didn't disappoint. There was a slight change in lineup shortly before the tour started, however. Since Alan White needed to undergo some physical therapy for back pain, he had to sit this tour out. Filling in for him for the time being is Jay Schellen. I couldn't help but compare this tour to the last one, which was quite sad to watch. On the last tour with Toto, Yes seemed to have lost the energy, presence, and drive that they had when Chris was still alive. I was afraid that that drive was lost completely due to the absence of Chris, but I decided to give them one more chance. I am very pleased to say that the Yes I saw Sunday night was a far more confident Yes than what I saw last year. I think playing entire albums really impacts their performance in a positive way. When they play full albums, they really seem excited about the show. To me a Yes concert (and really any concert) is supposed to be a positive, uplifting experience. I would hate to associate a Yes concert with bad memories, which is why I was ready to retire from going to Yes shows had this one been low-energy. Needless to say, I will be continuing to see them as long as they tour by themselves. I have seen them five times now, three times alone, and twice with another band. The two times I saw them with another band were very weak compared to the other three. Chris' death may have played a factor last year, but I think it was also because they couldn't be as creative with their set lists as they could when touring alone. As long as they continue to play alone and with confidence, I will be there. 

7.5/10

The 2016 Progressive Music Awards took place tonight in England. It was streamed live on Facebook so I was able to watch it in real time. Tonight's show seemed to be a lot more diverse than last year. It seemed like more attention was given to younger and lesser known bands. Last year's awards show was basically a love fest for Steven Wilson. I have a few new bands to look into now. As some of you may know, Jon Anderson was presented with the Prog God Award at the end of the evening by Rick Wakeman and Trevor Rabin. Trevor Horn even flew in from Santa Barbara to attend. Appropriate attention was given at the beginning of the evening to the many musicians who have died this year, including Keith Emerson and David Bowie. During Jon Anderson's speech, I couldn't help but imagine my friend Rachel Flowers up there one day accepting the Prog God award herself. She is more than deserving of that title, even now at 22 years old. Maybe, one day, we can both be in attendance at the Prog Awards.

8/28/16

Before I post part 3 of "I Never Ever Saw the Stars so Bright," I wanted to give you all a quick update on what's been going on.

Since getting back from my Phish adventure with Dylan, things have been pretty quiet. I've been trying to keep busy by writing in my journal, listening to music, playing music, cooking, and doing volunteer work. My record collection has been increasing. On the first day of this month, I got an email from The Killers Victims fan club stating that The Killers' second album Sam's Town was going to be re-released on vinyl this October in honor of its 10th anniversary. A limited edition pressing that included two discs, a booklet, and a bonus 45 was made available for pre order. There were only about 5,000 copies of that version available. It was an opportunity I couldn't pass on, so I immediately jumped on it and pre-ordered mine. That turned out to be a good idea, for the minute the order went through, the pre-order sold out. I'm stoked and cannot wait until it arrives in the mail.

I've been getting back into a band that I have liked for many years: the Jonas Brothers. I started thinking back to when I first saw them on TV back in 2006 and became inspired to begin playing the guitar. I found my CD of their 2007 self-titled album and gave it another listen while driving one day. I can safely say with complete confidence that that is my favorite pop album of all time. The songs are memorable, sophisticated, and likable. To this day, my biggest concert regret is not seeing them while they were together. I missed what turned out to be their final concert at the now demolished Gibson Amphitheater back in 2013. I will always regret that. Nick Jonas is still doing music, so my goal is to see him one day, since he was the one member of the band I really paid attention to musically. Some may simply disregard him as just another teen pop star who will soon be forgotten, but I have always admired his talent. He was the driving force of the Jonas Brothers. He played the most instruments, wrote most of the music, and wrote most of the lyrics. I only just now discovered his solo discography and ordered a vinyl copy of his latest solo album the other night.

I will be attending my fifth Yes concert tonight at the Arlington Theatre in Santa Barbara. We decided to try a venue different from the Orpheum this time around. We began to regret that decision, but I found out something last night that made me feel differently: Trevor Horn will be joining the band onstage as a guest musician. I can't believe it. What are the odds? I'm way excited to hear Drama in its entirety along with sides 1 and 4 of Tales from Topographic Oceans. We'll see how this goes...

I Never Ever Saw the Stars so Bright (Part 2)

Minutes went by. We saw no signs of progress in making our way to the venue. Many people began to give up and start walking the rest of the way. As we moved, Dylan would occasionally ask a passerby how much farther we had to go. Once an hour had gone by, we began to get worried. We were worried that we may miss the beginning of the show. By the time we reached the parking lot, it was a little after 8:00! We parked as soon as we could and hurried inside the venue. Fortunately, all of our tickets went through the scanner. Dylan was hoping to score an event poster from the merchandise stand, but was not able to since we arrived so late. Our main goal was to get to the grass area. As we made our way up the hill leading to the grass area, we could hear excited Phish fans shriek and the first notes of the song “Tweezer” ringing out.

Dylan told me many times before that there is no moment quite like walking into The Gorge for the first time. You walk up a steep hill and once you get over the crest, you see a stage surrounded by an amazing backdrop of hills, water, and incredible shadows cast by the clouds. It really was a great view. Phish took the stage at about 8:15, when the sun was just beginning to set behind the hills in the west.  In the far distance, I could barely make out the figures on stage: Trey Anastasio on guitar, Mike Gordon on bass, John Fishman on drums, and Page McConnell on keyboards.

That night, I was introduced to the unique community that was Phish phans. They reminded me very much of the type of audience Arcade Fire attracts: young, lively hipsters in the full pride of youth, smoking joints and dancing around. This audience was a bit older, but I got a similar vibe. I also noticed something that I have only seen at one other concert in my life: the absence of phone usage. As far as I could see, not one person had their phone out. I had not seen that since King Crimson in 2014. The only difference here was that the band did not plead with us to “embrace the moment” like King Crimson did. I guess that makes sense though. I imagine it would be hard to maintain control over 20,000 people as opposed to 2,000. Throughout the show it became very apparent to me that Phish were capable of playing multiple genres of music. I heard them play prog, jazz, and even country at some points. However, the first set seemed a bit slow. Everyone in my group as well as people around us seemed put off by the lack of energy exhibited by the band. Peter felt that the band was doing that intentionally, just to mess with us. I hoped so. I did not want my first Phish concert to be low-energy. Throughout the first set I recognized a few tunes, such as “Wolfman’s Brother,” “The Line,” and “Rift.” Phish were the only band I knew of that could manage to play a unique show every night. No two shows are ever the same, from what I’ve heard. Not only that, they also manage to go all out with their songs. A song that is originally 5 minutes can become 20 minutes when performed live. They take live shows as an opportunity to show off their wonderful improvisation skills. During intermission, I took an opportunity to run to the merchandise stand and pick up a vinyl copy of Phish’s latest album, Fuego. I was hoping they would have it available in orange vinyl, but from what I understood, that version of the album was pretty scarce, practically out of print. On my way back to our spot, I lost track of where my group was amidst the sea of Phish fans. I was soon able to locate Dylan, who was wearing a flashing glow-in-the-dark vest. We just happened to find that vest at his house when we were packing for the campsite, and it turned out to be a lifesaver. He thought it would be fun to wear at nighttime, when all the glow sticks started coming out. Without that vest, I probably would have had a much harder time finding my way back to the group.

Finally, the lights dimmed for the second set. That is, both the natural and artificial light disappeared. The band reemerged and began what turned out to be a much more fun, energetic, and enjoyable set. They began with a cover of the Talking Heads song, “Crosseyed and Painless.” I had not heard the original version of that song, but they really took it to another level musically. John Fishman actually sounded just like David Byrne. It was at that moment the glow sticks began flying through the air. It almost looked like a glow stick fireworks display. For a while, the sticks were landing everywhere, except where my group was standing, but eventually, a few sticks hit me in the head, and I was able to participate. I would save up my sticks until I had a massive handful. Then, I would release them into the crowd.

Then Phish began a fun jam called “No Men in No Man’s Land.” I think that was where I really started enjoying myself. Apparently, this song was not off of any of their albums. In fact, many of the songs in this set have never appeared on any studio albums, such as “Meatstick,” “Wilson,” and “Makisupa Policeman.” There were a few audience cues that I was not aware of, such as the claps during “Stash,” or the exclamation of the song title during “Wilson.” Well, now I know them for next time.  After playing “Meatstick,” the band transitioned into a cool jam of the theme from the movie 2001. It was during this jam that I finally realized that Phish were a special band, and grossly underrated band. It was this jam that made me wonder why this band never gets talked about in Prog magazine, or why they don’t seem to ever tour outside of America. I was aware of the lack of American prog acts represented in Prog magazine, but it just seemed especially wrong to overlook a band like this. I personally don’t see anything about Phish that international audiences would not enjoy.

Finally, the band closed with the song “Good Times, Bad Times.” Before we knew it, it was time to head back to the campsite, and my first Phish concert was completed. One night down, one to go.

I Never Ever Saw the Stars so Bright (Part 1)

Everyone, think of a band that you really, really like. It could be a band that you’ve loved for many years or it could be one that you just discovered. Do you recall the exact moment when you realized that that band spoke to you? Do you remember the moment you heard that band and realized, “So that’s what I’ve been missing out on all this time!” I’ve had that happen to me many times since about 2006, when my journey of musical discovery was in its infancy. It was that year that I discovered the first band that truly mesmerized me: the Jonas Brothers. They were just a typical teen pop band on Disney Channel singing about being in love and traveling to the year 3000. When their first album came out the following year, it seemed as though almost every girl at school had to have that album. You couldn’t turn on the radio without hearing “S.O.S.” or “When You Look Me In The Eyes.” When I watched the Jonas Brothers perform on The Oprah Winfrey Show in about early 2008, that was when I realized that I wanted to play the guitar. I would watch Nick Jonas pound out those power chords and think to myself, “I want to do that!” So, in a way, I have the Jonas Brothers to thank for inspiring me to pick up the guitar, which subsequently led to my discovery of prog and other forms of music that I now hold dear.

Fast forward to about February 2016. I received a text from my friend Dylan that the band Phish was rumored to be playing a show at his favorite concert venue, the Gorge Amphitheater, that summer. Last year, Dylan sent me a CD of Phish’s album Rift. That album sparked my interest in the band, and in August of that year, I listened to Phish’s third performance at their Magnaball festival in New York. Since that show, Dylan had talked about how cool it would be if I came up Portland sometime so we could go on a Phish road trip. I was certainly not opposed to that idea, so when the news was made official that they would be playing two nights at the Gorge in July, we could not pass up the opportunity. Before I knew it, I had a plane ticket to Portland scheduled for July 13. “Life will never be the same after this,” Dylan stated. Five months later, the week finally came. I flew into Portland on the afternoon of July 13. We headed out for Washington the next afternoon, accompanied by Dylan’s friends Joe and Lee. Dylan considered Lee to be someone you absolutely had to take with you on a camping trip, since he had the most experience with it. The plan was to stay at a camping resort about 15 minutes from the venue. I had never gone camping before so I was interested to see what the experience would be like. We stopped at the grocery store and stocked up on what was supposed to be enough food to last us the weekend. In the end, I think we ended up with what felt like a month’s supply.

Dylan had talked about how beautiful the drive from Portland to Washington was. He called it “one of the most beautiful drives in the country.” It really was a breath of fresh air to be able to sit in the car listening to music while also taking in the natural beauty surrounding us. The scenery was definitely not what I normally see in California. It was very green, calm, and the sky looked massive.  That was one of the things that really stuck out to us. “It makes you feel so small and insignificant when you’re surrounded by a sky that huge and by things that are millions of years old!” Dylan observed at one point in the drive. It reminded me of a similar observation Neil Peart of Rush had made in the Rush documentary Beyond the Lighted Stage, when he was discussing his Ghost Rider travels that took place in the late 1990s, following the deaths of his daughter and wife. Those natural views were part of what allowed him to heal from all that he had endured. I put that observation to the test when I traveled through India in December 2012, and it was certainly true. During the drive from Delhi to Jaipur, the mountains surrounding us looked huge. They were so red and vibrant that you couldn’t help but notice them. It was that feeling of smallness that made me look at the natural world differently. I live just outside of Los Angeles, which is known for city life and the views of skyscrapers and the Hollywood sign. However, those are all manmade views. There is something truly special about being able to get away from land that has been taken over by humans and just take in what hasn’t been touched.

We arrived at the campsite well after 8:00pm and were greeted by brutally strong winds. None of us were prepared for that, but I quickly learned that camping is all about playing things by ear. Things never go exactly as planned, and they certainly did not for us. I did not want to deal with the hassle of setting up a tent in the strong wind, so Dylan made some space for me in his car and I slept in there. I was out of the wind, but it was terribly uncomfortable. I awoke early the next morning since the rising sun was heating up the inside of the car. Lee brought along enough equipment so that we could have pancakes and coffee for breakfast. After I showered and cleaned myself up, Joe decided to take a walk down to the lake that was just outside the campground. I decided to go with him. When we got to the water, I wasn’t in much of a swimming mood, but I did stick my hand into the lake. Had I brought along any swimming gear, I would have definitely gone in. The water was perfect! Cold, but not too cold.  It would have been a perfect way to cool off since it was a hot day.

The day went on. Later in the afternoon, another person joined our group: Dylan’s friend Peter. The day was very laid back. Too laid back, I may say, for at one point, we realized that it was after 6:00pm. The doors to the venue had already opened! Dylan wanted to get there with enough time to buy a poster from the merchandise stand. There was no possibility of that now, so he texted another friend of his who was already there to see if she could get one for him.  We cleaned up our campsite as quickly as possible and then piled into Dylan’s car. Once we were about a mile outside of the venue, we realized what a mistake we had made leaving late. Traffic was completely backed up. However, that gave us enough time to buy a ticket for Peter from a fellow Phish fan (or Phish “phan”) who was walking by the backed up vehicles offering spare tickets. Perfect! Now we all had tickets. Lottery tickets, mind you. Dylan had entered for a chance to buy Phish “lottery” tickets way back in February. Lottery tickets are supposedly available in limited amounts. They are printed with artwork that is unique to each concert event, although the artwork for the two Gorge shows was the same. We all had tickets. Now, we had to get through traffic.

To be continued…

6/19/16

I need to think of things to do this summer. I have until about September 16, which is Move In Day for those living in the UC Riverside campus apartments. I'm really looking forward to that. I'll finally have my own bedroom and a kitchen. I think I will work this summer to improve my cooking and baking skills since I will be making all of my meals next school year instead of going to a dining hall. In addition, I think I will do some volunteer work at my local animal shelter. I did that last year and I really enjoyed it.

This summer has been off to a great start so far. On June 9, I drove to Ventura to see the premiere of Hearing is Believing, a documentary about my friend Rachel Flowers. I had a great time and enjoyed sitting next to Rachel during the movie. I could tell a great deal of time, care, and attention went into making it. Her family truly is amazing. I always feel great after spending time with them so I will definitely have to jam some prog with Rachel some time this summer. I need that kind of positivity in my life.

On June 12, I drove to the Canyon Club to meet up with my friends Xhana and Steve to see Justin Hayward. I had not seen him since I saw the Moodies back in November 2013. We had a wonderful time. I was seated right up front, and throughout the show, I could tell Justin was looking at me. At times, I felt like he was telling me stories from his past rather than the audience. After the show, I managed to get one of Justin's guitar picks as well as a setlist. I had never been able to get a setlist at a concert before, so that was very cool.

Anyway, I went to my local record store again the other day to return the live ELP album the owner had let me borrow the last time I was there. It was a live album released on this year's Record Store Day, but recorded in 1997 (my birth year!). He wasn't present sadly. I really wanted to tell him what I thought of it. I finally picked up a copy of the late Chris Squire's solo album Fish Out of Water. I had been meaning to get it for a while but never got around to it until now. That copy had been sitting in the store for a long time and I always knew that someday it would be mine. I'm listening to it now. So far, I can see why so many people like it. It definitely has a classic Yes sound to it with special emphasis on Chris as a bass player. I never really liked him as a lead singer, though. I also grabbed a 45 of the Stevie Wonder song "My Cherie Amour." 

Staying off of Facebook has continued to be nothing but beneficial. Almost every time I log back on, I am quickly reminded of why I chose to take a break in the first place. It seems like it is typical to see people post negativity on Facebook these days. I don't mean this towards any of my friends or ProgBook followers, of course. If it's not music, then it's politics, or religion, or how much society sucks. It gets exhausting seeing all of that all the time. If it weren't for my friends or ProgBook, I would probably not have a Facebook page anymore. That's how bad it's become. But since I have such great friends and followers, I will stay. :)

6/8/16

Sorry it's been almost a month since my last entry. I have been taking an extended break from Facebook and social media in general. Facebook was once a positive, upbeat place where you reconnected with people from your life. Nowadays, it has become a black hole full of negativity, politics, religion, pointless debates that never get resolved, and the ugly world known as the comment section. I realized that it's not good for me to see that every single day, so I deactivated my account for a few weeks. I reactivated it today, but deleted the app from my phone, since I realized that that is where I log on the most often. From now on, I think I will just go on to make a few updates or to post a new blog entry.

Anyway, I am home for the summer. I came home Monday afternoon after my finals. I can't believe my first year of college is done. It went by so quickly! I got very lucky this last quarter. My computer science class had no final. My poetry class did have a final, but we worked on it during the last few weeks of the quarter and then turned it in on the day of the last lecture. The only two finals I really had were in my English class and in a class I took on an intro to women's rights. I think I did well.

Concertwise, I have a few more shows to look forward to this year. Firstly, I learned that Al Stewart would be coming to Thousand Oaks in September, which is very close to my hometown. Naturally, I couldn't pass up the opportunity. In addition, my dad and I got tickets to see Jon Anderson, Rick Wakeman, and Trevor Rabin at the Orpheum in November. However, we ended up with nosebleed seats since those were the only decently priced seats. As much as we love those guys, we weren't willing to squander well over $1500 for both of us to briefly meet them. We learned that lesson when we did the Yes meet and greet back in 2011.