Of Montreal rocks Jacksonville

Last Sunday, Lindsey and I were in Jacksonville and went to see Of Montreal at Freebirds Live. I originally bought the tickets back in January for Lindsey's birthday, as luck had it, I accidentally left them at her place when we traveled to Jacksonville. Lindsey's mom was nice enough to pay for two more tickets.

So we get to the venue and wait for about an hour in the cold to get in. Of the two opening bands, only Pigeon John is worth mentioning. Accompanied by a synthesizer and drums, Mr. John kept the rhymes light and upbeat, while throwing in a bit of humor into the show.
After the first act, Lindsey wasn't feeling well, so we sat the second act out. From what we could hear, Loney, Dear wasn't anything special. About 2 hours into the show, Of Montreal took the stage.

Its really hard in today's music scene to be edgy and innovative with live music. Almost anything a band can think of usually has already been done before and better by another artist. Of Montreal succeeded in being edgy, twisted, and innovative with the mix of theatrics and stage presence. If you combine one part Ziggy Stardust, one part Kiss, and two parts of The Beatles, and a pinch of The Cure, and stir vigorously, you may get something like performance of Of Montreal(or some hideous lab experiment) . Lead singer Kevin Barnes seemed to channel David Bowie that night throughout his outrageous costume changes and stage antics. The rest of the band were covered with bright colors, glitter, ruffles, and other glamorous outfits. After they took the stage, it was clear that this band was going to be different.


Between brandishing a samurai sword and being carried around by a mime-like guy in a white full-body leotard(seriously), Kevin Barnes kept the crowd guessing what he was was going to surprise them with next. Of Montreal played a good mix of classic hits and songs from the new album. Besides a few lame drunk chicks spilling drinks and being obnoxious, we had a really good time. During the encore, they did a terrific rendition of two David Bowie songs. Kevin's voice lends itself really well to Bowie's style. I will eagerly awaiting them to play another show in the future.

more pictures

Happy April Fools Day!

I found a list online of the Top 100 April Fools pranks. Check it out:
Top 100 April Fools Pranks
Apparantly Facebook is offering to send someone out to poke you and they're calling it "Live Poke."
Google is offering up a new service called Google TiSP (Toilet Internet Service Provider ). It involves sending fiber optics through the septic system for free. You can even sign up for it now! ;)

Has anyone ever tried the Serran wrap on the toilet? That one's a winner every time.

5 Videos You Need To See, Of Montreal update, +new artwork

Here's 5 videos I've found recently that definitely need to be viewed:
#1 A Hard Day's Night Of The Living Dead
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KIWsMKZt3Eg

#2 Its just Like a Mini mall! (Worst Commercial Ever?)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xiHaqCFQLxA
#3 Amazing Animation On Whiteboard
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u46eaeAfeqw
#4 Another Amazing Animation using simple gifs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z6WyqIsxexo
#5 Awesome Of Montreal Music Video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8cCPH1qnYI


Lindsey and I traveled to Jacksonville for the weekend to visit her family and go to the Of Montreal show tonight. One interesting note: we got all packed the night before and then we left for Jacksonville from Ringling after I got out of work. We were about 4 hours into the trip and then Lindsey realized "We forgot the tickets!!" Yep, we left the tickets at her place on her dresser. Lindsey's mom was so nice though and helped pay for 2 more tickets. So we're set for tonight.

Here's my latest character design for my traditional animation class. I randomly picked a beetle/bug out of a hat. And this is what I came up with:














I was really happy how Bugsby the Beetle turned out. After this, I'm working on doing a "simple" jump with my character. Its really not that simple though. I'll post some more when I get working on it.

Cats Hate People

So for the past week or so Lindsey and I have become the care takers of Java the cat. Not to be confused with Jabba the Hutt... or Pizza the Hutt. Anyways, I'm sure if you've grown up with Java, she's a lovely cat. Problem for me is that I'm not a pet person to begin with, (and allergic as well) That being said, Java is having a lovely time at the Gilbert residence; a lazy, lazy, residence. I'm not going to waste anyone's time with the cat's shortcomings because frankly, she's a cat. Java isn't human, so I wont put her up to any human standards. I'll put it like this, it hasn't helped my appreciation of cats very much. Now on to a non-cat subject.

This sunday Lindsey and I are going to finally see Of Montreal live and I can't wait! Lots of pictures to ensue.


Lindsey just picked up the new Arcade Fire album "Neon Bible and I have to say that its lives up to all the hype and anticipation that it has received. I had previously had heard and loved the songs called "Intervention" and "No Cars Go." The rest of the album follows suit. If you like Arcade Fire before, you'll really like Neon Bible.

Here's some pictures of some work I've been doing as of late.

HELP. Stuck in Office. Can't breath. Walls. Closing in.

I'm currently working right now as the receptionist for the Job department of Ringling. (go figure, my first job is working at a place that deals with Jobs). Anyways, still on my spring break. If you can call it that considering I'm on campus right now. I get the amazing oportunity to work a double shift because the person working after me is busy with a project. I agreed to do it because of the sweet sweet minimum wage.

List of things I've done wrong today:

1. called Pat "Barb"
2. called Barb "Pat"
3. Didn't know the new person in the office and told someone on the phone that they had the wrong number
4. Completely fucked up a transfer call and had to go running back to grab someone to fix it.
5. had Barb come to the Lobby when I was supposed to get Pat.
6. The list goes on...

I still have another 45 minutes to go...

In other news, I had a great time camping with Lindsey overnight. We're getting Lindsey's friend Nicole's cat for a week on Saturday. That should be interesting.

Does anyone else think spring break went by too fast??

Spring Breaking

Today Lindsey and I are going camping for a night, out in the Bradenton wilderness during our spring break. I haven't gone camping since boy scouts and she hasn't been out in the woods since she was little. There's a lake and a hiking trail and we're gonna do s'mores and hot dogs over a fire! Lots of low tech fun.

Here's some pics from the beach from a couple days ago:

Love me, Hair-do!

Not much to update for this weekend, biggest news being that I finally got the nerve to get a haircut.

Found this awesome link to see just how crazy/awesome the Japanese can be.
Top 12 Weird Japanese Inventions.

For class I've been working on this new poster project for Communication Design. We have to make up a movie idea and design a poster for it. I decided to go with the 1950s Sci Fi "B" movie theme. The name of my ficticious movie is "NUCLEAR CREATURE FROM SPACE COLONY 5." I'd want to go see it.

<- here's what it looks like so far (just some perliminary sketches)



Also, I changed the title layout of my blog. Let me know what you think!

My latest animation

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HuQlBzYCgpQ

Enjoy! Let me know what you think!

Bonnaroo and Living Arrangements

So this week I went ahead and bought my ticket to the best concert(s) ever. I'm so excited because I know that no matter who's playing, its guaranteed to be amazing. It doesn't hurt that the Flaming Lips, Regina Spektor, Girl Talk, The Decemberist, among others, will be performing (with more to come!) Lindsey bought her ticket soon afterward. :)

This week I also finalized my living arrangements for next year, which was quite the headache. I was the only one on time to claim a space out of the 4 of us. The plan is me and 3 other guys sharing a dorm space with a central living room/kitchen and get this...my own room! I can't wait.

I finished my flour sack animation and my john wayne gacy coloring book (its not as sick as you may think), and they were both well received. I'll post them here soon.

Deerhoof Show At the Crow Bar 2/18

Went to the Crow Bar in Tampa last Sunday with Jay and saw Deerhoof. I really wasn't sure what to expect, because I am a fairly recent fan of the band and have not heard about how they are at playing live.
When we finally found the club, we waited for about an hour for the first band, The Harlem Shakes, to take the stage. I haven't seen a band ever take so long to do sound check. Once they were done getting ready, they were pretty good, they sounded like a cross between Clap Your Hands meets Interpol meets The Strokes. They had alot of energy, but I wont be buying any of their albums from what I saw.
Next up was Busdriver, a hiphop act featuring a guy spitting out lyrics so fast they were almost incoherent and a skinny white guy doing insane beats. This act was the surprise of the night. Busdriver was loud, fast, funny, and unapologetic. He got the whole crowd jumping and singing the choruses of songs 90% of the kids there had never heard before, which was very impressive.
Finally, Deerhoof took the stage and delivered an amazing performance. Lead singer/bassest Satomi Matsuzaki sang more as instrument then actual lyrics. The drums were almost tribal sounding at times and like a drum machine at others. The guitar stayed pretty close to the album material, but sometimes sped up the sound or slowed it down which was nice. There was also this crazy windmill contraption that kept the audience mesmerized with the rainbow LEDs that spun and changed colors in conjunction with the music. Jay and I got to meet the guitarist after the show and he talked about being influnenced by Sonic Youth and what he thought about Animal Collective. I was really happy I got a chance to see these guys live and I'll be sure to see them again if I ever get the chance.

I'm Pretty Sure Hallmark is Behind V-day

Its only 1 in the morning, but it still counts as officially being Valentine's Day. I got a great afternoon planned for Lindsey. Most of which I can't mention until after she gets to see everything. Afterwards, we're going to see a showing of the low budget breakout, Four-Eyed Monster in Orlando.

I finally got everything worked out with my rooming situation next year. I'm staying on campus in a 4 person doorm with...my own room! I'm excited.


Sunday I'm going to see Deerhoof with my friend Jay. I'm not sure what to expect, but I think it will be insane. Deerhoof's music is from another planet and I hope there live show is no different.

Been working on Lindsey's website recently and finally got it online. You can check the progress here:

The listing of artists performing at Bonnaroo was recently leaked and posted on http://iguessimfloating.blogspot.com/2007/02/leaked-bonnaroo-lineup.html

I'm pretty stoked about seeing Flaming Lips, The Decemberists, Regina Spektor, Girl Talk, among others, all in one place. Now if I could just aquire the fundss...

Here's a still life I forgot to post last time. It was a pile of random items we had to paint to gauge where we all were. Sorry about the quality, it was taken with a camera phone.

1 down, 7 to goo.... (semesters at Ringling)

I apologize outright for procrastinating this long to write another post, but seriously, I have good reason. Its just hard to keep this updated when I don't know if anyone reads it. That being said, I'll keep going.

To give a huge recap on recent events, here's whats been going down.

• Went to To Philly with Lindsey to see her Art Institute buddies.
  

• came back to Florida to start my second semester at Ringling School of Art and Design
• Celebrated Lindsey's Birthday. Made her a cake, got her the Ghost World comic, a Tenacious D mag, a brontosaurus we Christened "Ringo Gertie the Dinosaur", a Threadless tee, and 2 tickets to see Of Montreal in April. I think she liked the gifts.
  
• had a birthday party for her with the regular hooligans.
  

• Bought myself a old record player from Goodwill to play the records Lindsey's been buying me. Still need to buy a needle (which costs like 30 bucks) :(

• I started my first real Animation course at Ringling which has been so surreal and amazing. I actually work at one of the desks that was used by Disney Animators since the '60s! Check it Out!:
  
  Its crazy that I'm finally getting a taste of what I came to school for. Best thing is, I love it and I'm not that bad so far.
  

Here's my first two animations I've done so far. They're really short and don't look like much, but there's alot that go into it. Each second of animation takes roughly 24 drawings.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0RwRhxkkH7Y
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fd_W4W3Ipwg

I'm currently working on a "flourbag animation" which apparently every animator experiments with at some point.

• Saw both Children of Men and Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny in theatres. Children of Men knocked my socks off while the Tenacious D movie made me chuckle but left me underwhelmed.

• Going to see both Less Than Jake with Lindsey and Deerhoof with Jay in the near future. So excited!!!
• Started selling my old textbooks on Amazon. Made close to 2oo bucks. oh yeah.
• Got my first actual job working at where else? the reception desk at the job center on campus.
• celebrated 5 amazing months with Lindsey <3

Over the next couple weeks I'm working on securing an apartment space with 3 of my friends at the campus apartments for next school year. I also have to start working on my awesome v-day gift and day for Lindsey.

If you get a chance, buy the new Shins album. Its pretty awesome. Better than expected, and it comes with stickers.

Christmas Wrappings

Today I go to pick up Lindsey for New Years and I'm pretty excited. Christmas was great. This year it was less about getting expensive gifts and more about giving some special surprises. My mom loved the original Beatles shirt (see previous post), Caitlin liked the custom apron that said "no, you do the dishes", Jess liked America: the book by Jon Stewart, and I think Lindsey will like her gifts as well. I'll be reviewing my best albums of 2006 in the next post. Happy Holidays!!

Too Much Egg Nog

Here's the "Too much Egg Nog" 2006 Christmas mix I promised last post. I don't know what it is, but no matter how crappy and "un-christmas" likemy day is, these songs seem to give me a tasar shock of christmas spirit. Hope it works for you as it does me.





1.Belle and Sebastian - Christmas Time is Here
2.Bright Eyes - Blue Christmas
3.Eels - Everything's gonna be cool this christmas
4.Sufjan Stevens - That Was The Worst Christmas Ever!
5.The Waitresses - Christmas Wrapping
6.Sufjan Stevens - Come On! Let's Boogey to the Elf Dance!
7.Weezer - The Christmas Song
8.Death Cab for Cutie - Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)
9.Sujan Stevens - Lo How A Rose E’er Blooming
10.Brett Dennen - The Holidays Are Here (and we’re still at war)
11.Sufjan Stevens - What Child Is This Anyway?
12.Belle & Sebastian - O Come, O Come Emmanuel

Happy Christmas (War is Over...)

(...If you want it) -John Lennon

It has been quite a long time since my last post on here lots going on lots to mention. I would lie and say that its solely because I have been so busy (which I have), but in reality I lost interest for a while to keep this thing updated because I have no idea if anyone reads this or cares. So, its going to be a little haphazard with posts for a while. Lets see...I could go over my near-death experience involving a speeding truck...or I could go over the recent news that Southwest Air lost (and later recovered) my luggage, the first time I ever used baggage claim (note: never again). But I'll spare you.

Instead, I'll use this post in another way. There has been alot of good news recently.
First off, I passed all my classes at Ringling! (All B's and one C because I'm terrible at Art History) I'm really excited about the next semester too, all new teachers and classes and my Intermediate Figure Drawing class goes from 8:30 till 3 pm! I'm not sure how that works, but it will be interesting. I hope this next semester is just as amazing as the last.

In other news, I've really gotten into the "spirit of Christmas" you might call it. Before I left for Pennsylvania, Lindsey and I were listening to heavy doses of Christmas classics sung by modern artists. Anyone else's ears would be bleeding from the high level of x-mas music, but not us. I even made a great Christmas mix of songs called "Too Much Egg Nog" (more about it at the end). Lindsey and I even dressed up as a crazy old couple for some Christmas card magic. I do enjoy that sweater from Goodwill. We also made a high speed video of us putting up her fake tree in her apartment:

I was having the hardest time figuring out what to get my mom for Christmas until I found this item. Its an original shirt from the '60s featuring the Beatles' faces in lace. It cost an arm and a leg, but it was worth it. I got so many other cool gifts for my family and friends, that it gets me excited every time I think about it. I've come to the conclusion that Christmas may never be as magical as it was when I was little (for reasons I don't feel like discussing), but I'm going to make the most of it with the people I'm with.

I'll save my Christmas mix for another post. This one is long enough as is.