Hello.

Sooo not a lot has really been going on lately (in comparison to previous weeks, anyways), so here is a bunch of random stuff that is on my mind.

  Global Dance Festival Kansas City 2013

Since the event was announced on May 12th, there really haven’t been any updates on Global Dance 2013 up until yesterday.   They announced that the show is not canceled, however we have to wait until Thursday 6/20 for the line-up.  Really GDF?  Three weeks before the show is supposed to happen?  Anyways- I’m hoping for the best as the past few years have been off the hook and included performances from Above & Beyond, Knife Party, Krewella, Benny Benassi, and more.  This wait was kind of grinding my gears, but GDF (the promoter for most of the big name EDM shows in KC) just announced another show today…Rusko!

  Rusko

Yusssss.   With his new “Lift Me Up” EP coming out, I’m glad to see Rusko is coming back to Ks.  Last time we saw him was in Lawrence, KS at a much smaller venue (Liberty Hall), so it will be interesting to see him perform at the Midland.  This show will be an absolute banger, as Rusko knows what the crowd wants to hear and drops some crazy bass.  Check out the Facebook event page here, and then go download Rusko’s newest single “Take Off” here.

  Netflix

So I never thought I’d say this, but I have been debating cancelling my Netflix subscription (or at least put it on hold).  I think I’ve seen just about everything that I (realistically) want to see off of it and have Amazon Prime so I’ll still have access to that streaming library.  Right now on Netflix I’m into Bob’s Burgers (and just recently finished Archer seasons 1-3) and none of the movies have looked awesome enough to watch instead.  We’ll see on that one, though.

   Body Beast

As I have mentioned a time or two, I've been doing the Body Beast workout program with one of my friends from work.  This is the first workout program I have ever done, and it is seriously kicking my ass (in a good way).  I won’t get into the details too much; however here are a few things that I have noticed with working out.with working out.

Food:  I’m pretty much always hungry.  I know it’s because my body is ‘burning more fuel,’ and I’m ok with that as I like food.  Yeah buddy.  On the flip side, however, it is interesting attempting to adjust a diet when you never have really had to before.  That’s still a work in progress.

Soreness:   You know you've had a good workout when you are sore as can be the next day.  Yesterday was Leg day.  Today, my legs were on fire by the time I got to the top of the steps at work.

Energy:  I’m a lot more awake in the mornings after working out.  I still don’t know what the deuce is going on with my sleep schedule in terms of staying up so late, but…if it means I’m more awake and attentive during the day, I think I can deal. 

Results:  I’ve noticed the muscles in my arms have started growing a bit (my bis, especially) and my body has started reeeeally not liking a lot of not-so-healthy foods (read: fast food). 

Sorry about the lack of updates urrbody; this dude has been busy busy.  However, that leads to some pretty solid content. So. LESS DO DIS.

  EDC Chicago 2013 (5/24 to 5/27)

It has only been a week and I already feel like we drove away from paradise.  Needless to say, EDC Chicago 2013 was a-mazing.  From the people to the DJs to the food to the PLUR and the rides, I imagine that heaven has got to be something like EDC (minus the Detonator-esque ride. Pass on that one..).

If you follow me on Facebook, you probably got bombed with the photo and video uploads from yours truly.  Sorry about that…kinda.  If not, here are the highlights that I was able to nab using my iPhone. 

Of what I was able to take, I think the videos turned out best, so be sure to hit them as you are scrolling down (both are short, less than a minute total).

Side note:  If I ever talk about wanting to buy a new gadget/toy, someone please make sure it is a proper camera.

>Hardwell

>Above & Beyond

>Armin van Buuren

>Dash Berlin

>Big-Ass Light Up Daisy

>Terrifying Detonator Type Thing You Will Never Find Me On

And of course…we can’t make a trip without getting the good good eats.

>Lion's Choice

>Giordano's Pizza

Would I do it again?   Absolutely.  Will I?  Jeeeezas I hope so.  They are supposedly doubling the size of the event at next year’s EDC Chicago, so pepper thy angus for that.  I also copped 2 purr of Nike AF1 Lunar Force 1s....I'm pretty stoked about these and love the way they fit and feel.  Watch for a post on shoes before too long..

Free Drinks at Velvet Dog (6/1)

As a promotional party put on by  Skyy Vodka, a friend got myself and a few others signed up for a happy hour/party/free DRANKS event that lasted from 6pm-9pm.  We got there shortly after 6 and started in on some drinks.  I did cranberry vodkas, which is probably not an awesome choice as I hate vodka.  It was goodish and after a few more I couldn't really taste a whole lot soo we just kept them coming.  I got to hang out with some new friends and some old, and had many laughs.  Hopefully Skyy pulls through and offers it again next year, as we have had a good time the past two.  Observe what happens when drinks are had!

  Limp Bizkit  (6/2)

Yes, that’s right.  Limp Bizkit came through Lawrence to play the Granada.  Most people that heard about it were pretty “wtf?  They still exist?” but I was extremely glad to see them as I had wanted to do so since highschool.

Tuesday already?  Jeeeezas.  Where does the time go.  The #optimistprime in me is thinking, ‘hey, now is a good chance to write and have some substance’. 

SO. Lets do this. 

EDC: Chicago

  While I have talked about this for a while, I finally was able to get this countdown timer set up (look to the right, yo).  Watch for this to be changing to a navigation menu before too long (or me to go insane trying to set that up).    But yeah, EDC Chicago set times have officially been released and I couldn't be more excited.  Armin van Buuren playing a 2 hour set from 2:00-4:00am?  Ferry Corsten and Mat Zo on before him?  Ermahgerd.  If you aren't too familiar with this kind of thing, check out www.YourEDM.com's post regarding the 5 reasons you should go to EDC.

The Weekend   

Friday night we went to Beer Kitchen and The Union.   By the time we were seated and had gotten our food, I was already a little tipsy off of some chocolate mint beer.  It was a bit heavier than anticipated, and more of an ‘after you eat, drink this’ kind of drink, but I decided it was pretty tasty and I would order it again (should I be able to remember the name).  I ordered the Build Your Own Macaroni and Cheese with bacon, blackened chicken, garlic, and blue cheese.  I felt like a fatty, but ohhh it was so worth it.   We headed to the Union next door, where we hung out on the back patio area.  It was my first time out back, but it was pretty awesome.  They had a live dj spinning (using Serato) some older rap/hip-hop stuff, a few tables for sitting at and kicking back, and a covered dancefloor that was pretty happening.  Good stuff, good stuff.

  Saturday night we did NHRA Drags at Heartland Park of Topeka.  The cars there were incredibly loud, but even moreso fast.  Cars running 4.xx and less quarter miles?  Yes please.  Add funnel cake and a beautiful day to the mix?  Done deal.  And a free ticket, on top of that?  Jackpot!   John Force set a new track record which was cool, as was getting to spend some time with some friends that I don’t get to see enough.

    Sunday we did worlds of fun for a company-wide event.  I walked around quite a bit and socialized, as rollercoasters scare the bajesus out of me.  I have been on them though at Worlds of Fun (Prowler, Timberwolf, Patriot, Mamba...helllll no to the Boomerang though). Heights? Fail.  Looptyloops? Fail. Feeling like I’m uncontrollably falling from space?  Definite fail.  Day off, funnel cake, and seeing my friends?  Pretty damn priceless.  HOWEVER… I’m pretty sure that place is a conjuring ground for nightmares. 

It is interesting how the concept of time and ‘shifting’ your work week can mess with your mind.  Here I am thinking things like “ughhh its seriously only Wednesday?” and “omg only halfway through the workweek…forealz?”.  Then it hits me. Tomorrow is my Friday and the long weekend is upon us.  CHYEEAAH BUDDY.

  Friday Night

As I have no idea what I’m doing Friday during the day, I’ll skip right to nighttime.  A few of us will be going to Beer Kitchen to get some serious eats (did someone say Mac and Cheese with blackened chicken? YES PLEASE). Following dinner is some barhopping throughout Westport.  The Union?  Dark Horse? Harpos?  We’ll see how that all pans out.

  Saturday

Saturday should be a lot of fun.  I’ll be joining a few friends for a trip to Topeka (~1hr away) to hit their Heartland Park racetrack, where we’ll be watching the NHRA Drag races.  I haven’t been to Heartland Park, however its nice that there is a track at least somewhat nearby (since KCIR closed down).  We will get back somewhat early in the evening, so maybe food or some kind of fun activity afterwards (read: partying heartily).

  Sunday

Sunday is Worlds of Fun day, put on by my employer.  Worlds of Fun basically rents the entire park out to our company for the day, and we all go to ride rides, eat plenty of food (which is supposed to be a pretty good spread), and come together as one big ol’ family.  I’m fairly excited, as I haven’t been to one in any of the 5+ years that I've worked here.  Rumor has it that the weather is supposed to be not so awesome (see below).  In any case, I took the day off so I’ll have a good time regardless.  I’m still pretty on the fence about if I’m going to ride any rides, but…proooobably not a whole lot, as I’m not much into the ‘shit yourself from being terrified mid-rollercoaster’ business.  Maybe I'll check out their new Dinosaurs Alive exhibit/addition/don't entirely know if its a ride or what.

Not a whole lot is going on this week (aside from work), however the weekend is looking promising.  I’ll post more on that tomorrow, but in the mean time…MORE RANDOM THOUGHTS!!!  Some are EDM (electronic dance music) related, but…if you know me, that shouldn’t be all that surprising.

Daft Punk – Random Access Memories

Random Access Memories…where to begin.  This album is one you will either love or really not feel at all.  I unfortunately am in the latter category.  “Get Lucky” is catchy and the last track on the album “Contact” is stellar, but I just cannot get into the rest despite how much hype this album has acquired.  It is worth a listen, but pepper thy angus for mixed feelings (oo-weeee).

Above & Beyond – Walter White

It has been out for a few weeks now, but Above & Beyond works their magic again creating a track called “Walter White,” named after the main character from Breaking Bad.  Give it a listen, as it is quite awesome.

    Paul Oakenfold @ Europe in St. Louis

Just announced today is Paul Oakenfold performing at Europe Nightclub in St. Louis on 9/6.  Done deal.  Lion’s Choice, Oakenfold, and White Castle?  Yeaaaaaa buddy.  I’d be content if he even just pressed Play on the Swordfish soundtrack.  Dude is sick.  Sure, he’s older than time itself, but sick.

Uncrustables Peanut Butter & Honey (with Wheat Bread)

You may remember a post a while back I had mentioned Uncrustables, the pre-made PB&J sandwiches, and how much I love them.  Today I ventured into another flavor:  Peanut Butter and Honey on Whole Wheat Bread.   It is pretty damn good.  I don’t know that I care for it as much as I like the PB&Js (strawberry or grape - it’s all good), but it is certainly a different flavor. 

Allergies

Another weekend for the books!  This weekend was a lot of fun, and I am finally getting a chance to get my thoughts together and write about it. So…here goes!

Friday

Friday night I went out with some friends to dinner and a movie.  We went to Blue Koi for dinner, which I have been hearing about for a while but never got around to trying.  While it tasted fantastic, my Firebird Duck was pretty much the spiciest thing I’ve ever tasted in my life.  I enjoyed it; however just think I was not quite prepared for it.  I got a to-go box, and thinking this will make a delicious (maybe hazardous?  Oo-WEE) late night dinner.

After dinner we went to the Alamo Drafthouse (yussss) to get a few drinks and watch The Great Gatsby. 

I was not entirely sure what to expect of this movie, as I’ve never read the book, but was pleasantly surprised.  The 3d was goofed at the beginning of the movie (everything blurry, even with glasses) which got resolved eventually, but that was kind of a ‘wtf’ moment.  The cast and acting was great, as was the Grasshopper Milkshake (which had me feeling a little tipsy afterwards).  It was strange not ordering a ton of food there, but I was still full from Blue Koi (#firstworldproblems).  I had a great time with great company and look forward to going back to both Blue Koi and the Drafthouse.

  Saturday

Saturday was a busy, busy day.  Once people started arriving at my house around 11:30, we started pregaming and getting ready to go to 98.9 The Rock’s ROCKFEST 2013.  After a few drinks, we hopped in our DD’s car and made our way to The Westport Flea Market to consume some food.

"Mmmm, this is a tasty burger!"

This place is amazing.  The atmosphere is great and the burgers are out of this world.  If you have not been, I would definitely recommend going. 

After food, we once again piled into the car and headed to Rockfest.  Once dropped off, we got through security (which was supposed to be tighter this year, but was less than normal in my opinion) and made our way to beer and music.   We bounced between stages watching  All That Remains, Sevendust, In This Moment, Aranda (PASSSSSS on these fuckers), Young Guns, Red Line Chemistry, Papa Roach, Killswitch Engage, and Device (who dropped a killer cover of Wish by NIN).   We actually left during Alice in Chains, the headliner, as they really just weren’t rocking out nearly as hard as many of the other bands were.  Food wise, I had two cheeseburgers and a funnel cake.  Starting to drool a little just thinking about that funnel cake..mmh.  Yes please.

After Rockfest, a few of us actually ended up back at The Westport Flea Market to get more food and drank.  This was more interesting than the first visit, as there was some kind of karaoke competition taking place.  We got to hear some college kids sing songs like Ms. Jackson (Outkast), Bohemian Rhapsody (Queen), and some older gentleman (not old, but like late 50s maybe) sing a slow love song.  The older fella singing had an awesome voice.  When he was up singing it kind of reminded me of the video for Above & Beyond’s “Sun & Moon”. 

    Anyways…we ate, left, fell asleep, and then its off to work on Sunday (today).

Overall, I had a blast this weekend.  I got to see family and those closest to me, ate some great food (probably too much unomsayn?), and got a little sunburnt (awesome but not awesome) indicating the good weather is officially here. Yusss cmon nice weather.

  Bonus Round: Random Thoughts

I’m getting better about putting my plans into my phone so I don’t double up on making them.  This is exciting, as I typically fill out my calendar at work, which sucks when someone asks outside of work hours what all plans I have.

 Daniel Tosh’s “Happy Thoughts” stand-up is hilarious.  I caught a bit of it on Comedy Central last night and remembered just how funny it is.  If you have not seen it yet, and are good with questionable humor, check it out asap.

    And last but not least…HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!!!  To all of you moms out there, we both literally and figuratively would not be here without you, your understanding, patience, guidance and your love.  Love you mom!

As another Sunday brings the weekend to an end, it is also a good time to recap and ease into the work week.  This past weekend was an interesting one to say the least....

Friday

Most of Friday was spent between Body Beast and deck building (Magic).  Around 6 or so people started to show up at my place to play a few rounds.  We played our EDH decks and the one I spent all day constructing prevailed (game 1, anyways).  I lucked out by topdecking a Luminarch Ascension on turn 2, as the rest of my hand was solid but higher casting costs that I just was not able to hit (maybe needing to adjust my mana a bit. Hm…).  We played a few games, I went 1-2, and I crashed around midnight.  Good times.

Body Beast kicked my ass.  Body = sore (in a good way).  Before and after pics will come down the road yet, but I’m OH! I ordered some bitchin adjustable dumbbells off of Amazon (Bowflex Smarttech 552) which arrived on Thursday.  As I don’t have a ton of space for individual weights, and Body Beast calls for a bunch of different weight increments, these looked to be a great option.  I would recommend these, but you may also want to have another pair of ‘basic’ dumbbells/weights around as the Beast has you change the weights often (and mid-workout), so it’s nice to be able to keep powering through.  My ‘spares’ ran ~$40 at Dick’s Sporting Goods.  In my (delusional?) mind, i see it going something like this:

Also on Friday, the mailman was very good to me.  New shirt from http://www.6dollarshirts.com came (yay party shirt), as did my tickets for both Rockfest and EDC Chicago.  The EDC Chicago ticket is boss as can be, as it is not paper as one would expect but instead a card that can be swiped and scanned.  Epic.  

Cmonnnn Memorial Day weekend…

Saturday

Saturday was a bit more on the busy side.  After getting ready for the day, a friend came over to help me Plastidip my wheels.  It didn't take too long at all (roughly an hour and a half, most of which time was waiting for each coat to dry) and the results turned out great.  We did 4 coats, but held off on the clear layer.  I want to give it a few more days to see how I like the matte black, but may end up putting it on down the road.  I also need to do a little bit of touch-up on some spots, but overall I am very pleased with the results. Yes, I know it needs a drop.

  After wrapping up the Plastidip project, I met up with the rest of my family for a big birthday lunch for my step-grandma’s sister (no idea what that makes her to me, though she is a very nice lady) at Mimi’s Café.  Unimpressed by my first visit, I was not the most optimistic however was pleasantly surprised.  Playing it safe, I went with some breakfast food and ordered the Cinnamon Brioche French Toast.  Holy. Shitballs.  Mimi’s menu describes it as

“Cinnamon swirled brioche slices dipped in a rich egg batter flavored with nutmeg and freshly grated orange zest. Griddled to perfection and topped with powdered sugar.”   

They very well could have just put:

“This is delicious, order me. Don't mind my billion calories. And yes, you can get your bacon extra crispy.” 

I also ordered a plate of crab cakes.  I was not too impressed with these.  They were a bit soggers, fell apart really easy, and had diced peppers (which wasn't bad, just different).  I did like, however, that there were three of them, as most places I've ordered crab cakes from typically serve one or two.  Related but unrelated, I love crab cakes and like that on Kitchen Nightmares, Chef Ramsay always orders them if they are on the menu (which I've recently started watching).

After lunch, I decided that I needed a little retail therapy in preparation for a night out.  I lucked out by finding some dressier shoes (mine desperately needed to be replaced) as well as a pair of black Supra Vaider Lows both on sale.  Two pairs of shoes and three pairs of awesome socks later, I am a happy camper.  A little bit later, I met up with my partner in crime to head to Power and Light.  

Once at P&L, we met up with some other friends for drinks and snacking at Gordon Biersch. (sorry about the picture quality/lighting...didn't wanna have the flash going all crazy and it was low lighting).

I ordered some chicken strip deals, which weren't strips at all and in fact incredibly messy wings with some kind of Asian zesty sauce on them.   Tasty, but not what I expected.  Also, if you don’t already know, I don’t really do the whole eating-meat-off-of-any-kind-of-bone thing.  Gives me the willies.  Their seasonal “Maibock” brew was uncanny, however.  I had two tall glasses and was feeling pretty tipsy. 

We proceeded next door to The Dubliner, which was a pretty nice setup.  Lots of space, good service, and the drinks kept on coming.  Yeah buddy.  

“FlipSide,” a Filipino entourage that covers pop/alternative songs, set up and played live music all night long.  They did some good covers of bands like Maroon 5, Rob Thomas, and Katy Perry.  The lead singer had a pretty solid voice and sounded spot on with the Maroon 5 covers.

After partying at the Dubliner, we made our way to Chubby’s for some late night eats.   I was still full from Mimi’s earlier in the day (plus drinks) so I wasn’t all that hungry.  I decided, “what the hell? Might as well try somewhere new and get some food in my system to soak these drinks up…” and ate half of a blueberry muffin.  I’m not saying it was the best muffin of all time, but it was pretty damn tasty.   I look forward to going back to Chubby’s eventually.

  Sunday

Today was a recovery day for the most part.  I woke up around 7am with a crazy case of the spins that I couldn't shake.  Eventually I passed out just from pure exhaustion, but ughhh hate that feeling.  I finally woke up and it was time to get some food.  My parents were in town this weekend, so we all went to Freebirds.  CHYEEEAH.  I can get down on some Freebirds.  This was the first time I had been to their location on 119th and Metcalf, which opened up not too long ago.  It was not terribly busy, and the food was on point as it is at Freebirds.  We all got crazy full, and I headed to work. 

  It has been a few days since I've posted, so here are some cliff-notes of how my mind has been working and what’s new in my world.

  Sander Van Doorn – Europe Nightclub, St. Louis MO – 4/26/13

Per my previous post, we went to see Sander van Doorn perform at St. Louis’ Europe Nightclub.  The music was on point, crowd wasn’t nearly as packed as Above & Beyond was (either time), and VIP tickets were well worth it.  From now on, if going to Europe, I will definitely be getting VIP.  The VIP area had places to sit, their own bar (read: did not take 15 minutes to get a drink), a great view, and a good chance to catch your breath.   

The Hummer rode like a champ, had a great sound system, and great company.  We hit Lion’s Choice on the way there (I had 2 sandwiches, while one of the other people in our group had three).  White Castle was on the return trip, but I took it easy as I did not want to feel like my insides were giving up forever. 

  Armin van Buuren – Intense

So Armin’s newest album, Intense, got leaked recently and is absolutely incredible.  He did a radio takeover for Sirius/XM in preparation for it where he has been giving his album plenty of love and airtime.  I couldn’t be any more excited to see him at EDC Chicago here in a few weeks.

“Wait..we are putting BMW wheels on an Acura??” –Meineke guy

I finally got some little wheelywheels for my Acura.  It was a pain in the ass trying to find somewhere that would move tires from one set of wheels to another and then mount them, as most places won’t touch used tires.  While mine are practically brand new and have plenty of tread left, I understand that it is more of a liability issue than anything.  But alas, I went to Meineke right up the street and they had me squared away within an hour or so.  So I now have a set of BMW bottle caps on my car, which has both a good and bad side.  Good, because it looks considerably better than the steelies I had on there, however bad because I’m now realizing how bad that car needs a drop.  Friday or Saturday I’ll be Plastidipping the wheels black with a coat of clear, which I’m thinking will look even better.  Stay tuned for updates on that front…

  Bye Bye Camaro?

This week I’m going to be taking out the amp/sub setup from my Camaro in preparation of putting it up for sale.   While I’ll miss her, it will be a good chance to start on another fun project or get myself into a nicer daily driver.  I also plan on taking out the system from the Acura (12” Polk entry level something or another and a Kicker 350.1) and putting the much better/louder Kicker L5 12” with a Kicker 750.1 amp from the Camaro in its place.  I’m hoping that I can get it as loud as my old P. Miller 12”s I had in my Talon, but those were pretty stupid loud.

  Body Beast

In my quest to further improve myself I’m going to be starting Beachbody’s BODY BEAST program. Like, tomorrow.  I’ve wanted to bulk up for a while now (as I’ve always been a skinny guy) and I think now is the time to do it.  I’m hoping this 90-day program will yield the results I’m looking for, so be on the lookout for Body Beast related posts and me almost dying in them.

  LG Customer Service

A week or so ago one of the clips on my Bluetooth headphones broke (see picture below).  This sucks, as I hate the feeling of the cord just dangling on my neck.  I have the LG Tone HBS-700 headphones, which work fantastic (usually anyways…a few pairing issues but I think that may be my cheapo Bluetooth dongle on my computer) and have a killer battery life.   So back to LG’s customer service; I hopped on their website and couldn’t find the piece I was looking for.  The little ‘live chat support’ popped up, and I explained what I had, how long I have owned them, and what piece broke.  The rep asked for my name and address and sent me two replacement clips, no other questions asked.  They showed up a few days later and were just what I needed.

What to take away from this section:  

-Be nice to your customer service people.  They are the ones who decide if you are getting any help or getting stonewalled.

-LG has awesome customer service and their headphones are bitchin.

-“The little things... there's nothing bigger, is there?”  

It’s that time again!  Here are a few of the tracks that have been getting some playtime lately by yours truly.

  Sander Van Doorn – Identity

Sander Van Doorn’s radio show “Identity” is solid.  He’s got over 170 episodes, so there is plenty to listen to.  I’m incredibly excited for tomorrow night, as Sander will be tearing up Europe Nightclub in St. Louis.   Sander Van Doorn, Europe, Lions Choice, White Castle, and riding in a hummer the whole time.  Bring on the weekend.

Daft Punk – Get Lucky ft Pharrell Williams

If you haven’t heard about Daft Punk’s new single yet, I don’t even know what to tell you.  I’m not entirely sold on Pharrell’s vocals, but Daft Punk’s beat is fantastic.  Their new album, “Random Access Memories,” needs to hurry up and drop.

  Dragonette – Easy (DBT! Remix)

I heard this track a while ago and fell in love with it.  DBT! (Do Big Things!) delivers on this remix with plenty of electrohouse goodness.  Check it out, like the DBT! Facebook page, dance heartily, then press play again.

    Marcel Woods ft Vanbot – Bring it Back

Something about this song really grabs my attention.  It has a solid beat and the vocals are also on point.  While the track doesn’t get its official release until May 24th, YouTube has an official music video already. 

    Nero  - Into the Past

A new Nero release?  Yusssss. About time!  One of my favorite edm albums is Nero’s “Welcome Reality,” which has so many different sounds that I wouldn’t even know where to begin with categorizing it beyond “awesome.”  Their newest creation is “Into the Past” which will be featured on the soundtrack for the new movie “The Great Gatsby.”   I can’t wait to see these guys again and look forward to their future releases.

With the weekend officially being over, here is what I did.  It was overall a quality weekend and I can't wait to do it again.

Friday

Flux Pavilion

As predicted, this show was off the chain.  I don’t know that it sold out, but the Midland is a pretty good sized venue for edm events in KC.  Flux played all of the songs you would expect to hear and some that I hadn’t heard in a loooong time.  One of the guys in our group almost got in a fight, a good amount of drinks were had, and we had to end the night with a drunken Denny’s run (yes we had a DD).

If you haven’t heard Flux by now, check out his remix to the song “Cracks” ft Belle Humble and prepare to have your mind blown.

Saturday

Total Recall

While I did not get to see Lords of Salem yet, Alamo Drafthouse was screening Arnold Schwarzenegger’s 1990 classic “Total Recall”.  This is by far my favorite Arnold movie, so I was not about to pass up going to see it on the silver screen.  While there I engorged myself with delicious foods, such as the Spicy Blue Cheese Burger and a Grasshopper shake.  I think this was an alternate cut of the movie than what I’ve always seen, as there were a few scenes that were slightly longer than I remember and one or two one-liners I hadn't heard.  Well played, Drafthouse.  The rumble seats were turned on and seemed to be cranked up higher than normal or something (maybe just more bass?) compared to how they were at Jurassic Park which saw there not too long ago.  Not to nutswing too hard, but if you don’t know about this place you need to at least check out their website here.  They are showing things like Face/Off, Clue, and Close Encounters of the Third Kind right now (as well as some new movies), to give you an idea.

INJUSTICE: Gods Among Us

Later in the day, I decided I wanted to try my hand at a new fighting game on ps3.  I went with the latest and greatest.  Neatherrealm studios (Mortal Kombat) and Warner Bros presents….

This game is everything that Mortal Kombat vs DC Universe should have been, sans Mortal Kombat characters and gore and finishing moves.  It has a good selection of characters, is easy to pick up (if you’ve played any of the MK games since like…MK2), and plenty of over-the-top action.  The interactive stages are a little fruit loops, but you can toggle that feature on and off.  My roomie asked me if I bought the game because of the title.  Watch this video, and you will know why:

Also, it came with a free copy of MK vs DC Universe…so if anybody wants it, let me know and it’s yours as a door prize for visiting my blog.  First come, first serve, and let me know you want it by commenting below.

Sunday

I work Sundays now, so…I’ve worked.  That’s all. 

  BONUS ROUND

BT and Arty ft Nadia Ali – Must be the Love

As this week is coming to an end, and not a whole lot has happened during it, I thought today would be a good day to get extra pumped about this weekend’s coming events.  So check it out, it’s like this…

  Flux Pavilion

This show will be epic.  It’s at the midland which is great (my favorite venue), plus its Flux.  If you remember my post from the other day, I talked about this some but didn’t go too in to detail with his music.  Like other DJs, Flux definitely has his own sound.   Massive drops, killer synths, and epic wubwubwubs.

  Want more info on the show or to come out with us?  Check out this link for the Facebook event page: 

https://www.facebook.com/events/554617207883620/?fref=ts

  The Lords of Salem

Sooo this movie has seemingly taken forever to come out.  Pending if I can get anyone to go to the midnight release, I’d love to go see it tonight.  It’s another Rob Zombie movie, so I’m expecting some vulgar jokes, plenty of gore, and some generally wild shit happening.

  BONUS ROUND

This has nothing to do with the weekend. Regardless, you need to watch this. It is funny.

It’s that time of the week again where I look back and reflect on what I've been listening to lately and share the better portion with the rest of the world.

  Soilwork

I got the chance to see these guys destroy the Riot Room last night, and their performance was even better than when they came with Killswitch Engage and Lamb of God.  It had been a minute since I’d seen a real mosh pit like that one, but it was solid nonetheless. 

  Knife Party

Knife Party has been killing it with all of their releases (in a good way).  With their Haunted House EP on its way (expecting a release in the next two week so or so), there are already streams just about everwhere of at least a few of the songs.  Check out their new track “Powerglove” for some electrohouse goodness:

  W&W

For my trance fix, I turned to W&W.  I first heard these guys on my way to Above & Beyond a few weeks back(link) and have been feeling it ever since.  If you like artists like Ashley Walbridge and Above & Beyond, give W&W a listen.  Also, if you follow record labels at all, they’ve signed to Armada.

    Flux Pavilion

In preparation for this Friday, I’ve been revisiting my Flux library.  Epic dubstep? Yes please!  If Kanye is stealing his beats, he can’t be bad, right?  I’m hoping he plays some of his older stuff and not just the Blow the Roof EP.  I know he will, but in the event he doesn’t drop Bass Cannon…I just don’t even know.

  Kaskade

A bit of a throwback album (is it old enough yet to say that?), Kaskade’s Fire and Ice has quite a few different sounds going on.  I tend to like his ‘lighter’ tracks on the album (Eyes, Room for Happiness, Turn it Down), however his track Lick It (ft Skrillex) goes pretty hard as well.

I love discovering new things I like.  Who doesn’t, right?  Here are a few epic items that have entered my list of all things awesome.

  Payday: The Heist

This first person shooter is simply awesome.  Breaking the mold of aliens/terrorists/demons/whatever creatures attacking and you having to save the world, this one goes full on gangster where you take on the role of a terrorist going from heist to heist.  The first mission is robbing a bank Heat style, followed by stealing safe full of cash from a safe house, to breaking someone from a prisoner transport.  It is all kinds of badass and only costs $20 on Steam.  It is squad based (4 people in your squad total), so be sure to get some friends on board.  The AI isn't bad, but doesn't compare to people and being able to communicate.

  Uncrustables

With the perfect jelly to peanut butter ratio, Smucker’s has changed the snack game.  Prepackaged PB&J that is actually tasty? YUP. I’ll take 10.

   Adventure Time

With Netflix adding a ton of cartoons, I had to check out a few that have gotten quite a bit of hype.  Of those, Adventure Time has really caught my attention.  While still a kids show, the adventures of Finn and his magic dog Jack will absolutely blow your mind.  It isn’t totally vulgar like Family Guy but still has some more adult humor behind it.  I do feel that while I’m on the topic of cartoons that I should give an honorable mention to The Venture Bros, as that will be my next cartoon series to watch.

  I NEED TWO PURRRR: Nike AF-1

I went shopping for some new kicks the other day (as I had nothing to go with anything purple that I own) and, in a moment of weakness, ended up buying an extra pair.  I went back and forth between Foot Action, Foot Locker, Journeys, etc…basically every shoe store at the mall.  Alas, I decided on two pairs of Nike Air Force 1s.  I bought one pair, then another…damn salesman.  Two trips, same store. What just happened?

I got to stompin in my air force 1s.

  It reminded me of Parks and Recreation…”TREAT YO SELF”