At The Rock Show And Other Topics

Last night my unstoppable rock band Valley Lodge played at Fontana’s over there on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. It was good times despite the rain outside and also the fact that- when you get right down to it- we are really not all that popular. Still, we got up and rocked it in our new power trio format and then another band, the Surreal McCoys (not to be confused with the band of the same name who used to play around New York City a bunch of years ago) from parts unknown, got up and played their rock songs and it was fun times all around. They let us borrow their equipment too, which was nice of them and exciting because they had Dr. Z amplifiers, which are made in my hometown of Cleveland and sound excellent. They look really cool too, as hinted at in the photo above. I have wanted to get a Dr. Z amplifier for some time now and now I want to get one even more, dammit. As long as we’re on the topic however, I should point out that the amplifier I usually use is an Orange AD 30 head from the ‘90’s which runs through an Orange 4x12 cabinet from the ‘60’s or ‘70’s (I forget which). Okay, there, I’ve gotten all guitar geekiness out of my system (and hopefully satisfied any guitar geeks that might be reading this somehow). I’m really, really sorry about that. It was uncalled for. I’m not sure what got into me.

Before the rock show, my bandmates Phil and Rob and I crossed the street to eat the fuck out of some dumplings at Dumpling House on Eldridge Street, where you can get five dumplings for a dollar. The dumplings were super delicious as usual but I have to admit their ridiculously low price always makes me a little suspicious. How do they do it?

After the rock show I hung out for a bit and drank a couple beers in keeping with the rock-n-roll lifestyle. Then I left and ate the fuck out of a slice of pizza with some friends at Rocket Joe’s on Delancey Street. I probably shouldn’t have eaten the fuck out of the pizza a couple hours after eating the fuck out of some dumplings but then I was all like “Fuck it!” and just did it anyway. This is just one more example of my “anything goes” approach to life.

In other news, I meant to write about this sooner but last weekend I watched the popular movie “The Departed” starring Hollywood’s Jack Nicholson, Mark Wahlberg, Matt Damon, Martin Sheen, and Leonardo DiCaprio in the popular DVD format. I really enjoyed it despite the fact that the only two people in the movie that could hang onto their fake Boston accent for more than a couple words at a time were Mark Wahlberg and Matt Damon (which I guess makes sense since they are both from the Boston area in real life). And I hate to ruin it for you if you haven’t seen it, but at the end of the movie Mark and Matt are the only two left and you’re all like “Great- I can’t wait until Mark Wahlberg and Matt Damon go at it with their convincing Boston accents for a while!” But then before they have a chance to make that happen Mark Wahlberg totally shoots Matt Damon and he drops his groceries everywhere. Mark Wahlberg sneaks into Matt Damon’s apartment and is waiting for him with a gun and then when Matt Damon gets home and sees Mark Wahlberg with a gun he is all like “Oh, great- I guess I am dead now!” and he is right because then Mark Wahlberg totally shoots him and he is dead. It happened just like that.

Of all the stars in the hit movie “The Departed,” I liked Mark Wahlberg the best. Not only was he really good at talking like someone from Boston, but he also had really great hair in the movie. As if all that stuff weren’t enough, he’s also the guy that sang that “Good Vibrations” song (as Marky Mark), which people just can’t get enough of to this day no matter what they tell you. The impressive thing though is that Mark Wahlberg could totally bust out “Good Vibrations” any old time he wants but he never does and that’s what gives him the power in the end. He’s like a Buddhist or something. Keep up the good work, Mark. It has been noted.

Dave Hill