Month: July 2014

Books, and Music, and Traveling… OH MY!

First off, I have a real quick entry on the latest chapters in the Nerdist Book Club. Then there’s a super big update on the band I kinda sorta work with. It’s super exciting news so stay for the whole post (or just skip ahead, I won’t be offended).

Ok, so in Ch 5-8 of The Silmarillion we get to see Galadriel introduced and what her family line looks like. I love getting to see how this history stuff connects to the world we know in LotR, so that bit is pretty cool. We also see the big bad guy Melkor get released from bondage (as if I have to tell you that this only ends in sadness). I find it fascinating that a group of people that are supposed to know everything that goes on in the world are so easily fooled. I guess that is just a metaphor for how we in general are often blind to the evil that surrounds us or people we may know. The real big thing we get in this section though is the creation of the Silmarils – three great jewels of unknown substance. Even though we don’t know what they’re made of, I picture that just means they are an odd combination of all the things and SUPER SHINY. I can’t blame Melkor for being his usual jealous self at the thought of them.

That concludes my real quick thoughts on the latest section of Nerdist Book Club. Next week’s entry I will be on the road, so there might not be a post on it. Which brings me to my big announcement…

The Pandemics are going on tour! And I’ll be traveling with them as merch girl extraordinaire!

That’s right, kids, your humble blogger gets to travel starting tomorrow all the way till August 3rd. If you happen to be in any of the following areas, please come to the show. Stop by the merch table and mention this post and I’ll see if I can hook you up with a sticker or something. Or just buy things from me and make me look good. PLEASE!

Tour dates are as follows:

  • Tour kickoff – Thurs, July 24th @ Stephen’s Talkhouse in Amagansett, NY – Only $10!
  • Fri, July 25th @ The Fire in Philadelphia, PA
  • Sat, July 26th @ McGarvey’s in Altoona, PA
  • Sun, July 27th @ Charm City Art Space in Baltimore, MD
  • Mon, July 28th @ 123 Pleasant St in Morgantown, WV
  • Tues, July 29th @ Lynchburg Lofts (1009 Jefferson St, Lynchburg, VA) – Only $5!
  • Wed, July 30th @ The Odditorium in Asheville, NC
  • Thurs, July 31 @ The Hideaway in Johnson City, TN
  • Fri, Aug 1st @ Local 506 in Chapel Hill, NC
  • Sat, Aug 2nd – Sadly had a show fall through on this date. We have possible leads but any help is greatly appreciated. You can leave a comment or email me at newsonshuffle[at]gmail[dot]com
  • Sun, Aug 3rd @ Mill Hill in Trenton, NJ – the official after-party for Punk Rock Flea Market

The dates that have their own Facebook events I linked to where I could. The full list of dates and other information (like prices and other bands playing) can be found in one handy little spot here. I really hope this post brings a few people out. Like I said, definitely come say hi to me at the table so I know I’m not just talking to dead space. If you can’t make the show, I’m gonna try to take as many pictures as possible while chained to a merch table. You can expect the results of that when I get back and recover a bit. I’m also gonna try to do a tour journal but we’ll see how that goes (if I have internet and/or interesting things to say). Until next time (to steal Wil Wheaton’s catchphrases) PLAY MORE GAMES and DON’T BE A DICK.

Nerdist Book Club: Ch. 1-4

As I mentioned in last week’s post, I’m participating in the Nerdist Book Club as they read The Silmarillion. Yesterday we discussed Ch 1.4, which goes further into the origin of species in Middle Earth. This first part starts off slow but it’s still cool seeing how the world we know in Lord of the Rings forms. It’s especially cool seeing why the Ents were created and the origins of them being made the protectors of the forest. We also get to see that the dwarves have a different origin than elves and man and why their loyalties are more towards things they make with their own hand instead of nature. My favorite part, however, has to be the origin of the orcs. It seems like they were captured elves that Melkor transformed. That fact really changes how you view future battles that happen in later works.

This has been my reaction to the first four chapters of The Silmarillion. I promise I’m not turning the whole site into a grounds to discuss one book, but this is what I have to talk about for now. There’s big news regarding a certain ska band that’s featured here *cough*ThePandemics*cough* so stay tuned for that. I’ve also been doing a lot of writing over at Nerds in Babeland so definitely go check that out if you’re looking for some new content of the nerdy variety. Until next time folks!

Nerdist Book Club: The Silmarillion

the-silmarillion-coverOur friends over at Nerdist have decided they are doing a book club where they invite everyone to join along in reading The Silmarillion together. Amy Ratcliffe, the nerd heading this little adventure, said that it was the one Tolkien book she hadn’t tackled yet and figured if other people read along with her that would be good motivation. Since this is the one book I also had trouble motivating myself to read, I decided to join them. The discussions just started this past Tuesday and will happen every week until we finish on September 30th. I know that sounds like a long time for people who are speedy readers, but it means we’re reading about 30 pages a week. Also, as with other things written by Tolkien, some parts are a little dense to get through, so the way the discussions are broken up feels less intimidating.

The first discussion was only on the introductory chapters, which mainly show you how the world was created. I especially love seeing how the first “evil” was formed and a familiar name in the Tolkien-verse he was connected to. I definitely plan on keeping up with this and maybe even contributing thoughts here instead of just in the comment threads and Twitter. Either way I wanted to share the club with you and let you know what that “Nerdist Book Club” hashtag on Twitter was all about. If I end up converting some people over to our discussion then all the better.

TMBG First Album Live – A Review

The first time I saw They Might Be Giants live was a free concert during the summer on Williamsburg Waterfront… in the pouring rain. Oh, and Patton Oswalt was the opening act. While nothing is ever going to top that experience for me, this album is still pretty damn good.

First of all, I love the album title because it’s a play on words. Let me give you a minute to figure it out… Did you get it? That’s right! It’s both their first live album ever and also the first album they ever released but all live tracks. I should expect nothing less from a band this fun and silly though.

It’s not just the title that is fun about this album, folks. TMBG are full of such fun energy that it’s hard to not smile at anything they do. While the immense collection of studio recordings I had to choose from was sufficient, it’s nice to finally have a collection of live recordings. In fact, I didn’t realize I was missing this from my life until I had it (much like my current boyfriend, who hasn’t seen TMBG live before ever and must change this immediately if we are to keep dating). Hopefully TMBG will give us a chance to catch them live and in person real soon, but for now we can all enjoy these live recordings. Grab a bunch of friends, pull up a picture of the band, and pretend you’re having a concert in your house. Free summer show right in your backyard! It’s the kind of fun and silly thing a band like this would appreciate. Maybe we can even create a hashtag and have some real fun with this. (#FreeTMBGInMyBackyard) Now I’m just being silly… It must be all the TMBG I’ve been playing.

You can download the new They Might Be Giants live album FOR FREE. You can also check them out on their recent appearance with NPR’s quiz show “Ask Me Another“. The latter also includes Jonathan Coulton. Hell, they even team up on a song (although that might be a bonus episode). You can find the bonus rounds on iTunes but the actual podcast is at the link I provided. Obviously you have lots of content to enjoy, so you better stop reading this post and get started!