- A Match Made in Mexico
Obsession is a little strong. Let’s just say I was intrigued.
Chalada. Beer and tomato juice. Or more specifically, light lager style beer and Clamato.
I know. It sounds messed up. But then I remembered being at bars where Guinness was added to a Bloody Mary and I became … not obsessed.
We saw them in a convenience store cooler. Bud (+ a Bud Light version) and Clamato, mixed together in a proud tallboy can. This of course led to much discussion. Including the “But y’know …” alluded to above, with the Guinness in the Bloody.
So then of course we had to try them. Which we did. And the first thing we noticed was not the smell (it basically just smelled like metal. Like beer in a can.). The first thing we noticed was the color. Pink, like pink grapefruit juice. Not good.
And also not thick like I was thinking it would be. But then I remembered that Bloody Marys made with Clamato are also on the thin side and this made sense.
The taste? The taste. Aaaaahhhhh, the taste. Again, accuse me of beer snobbery if you must, but the taste of metal was a definite presence. I would be thoroughly unsurprised if someone tried a chalada and declared it the worst thing they had ever tasted in their entire life.
But I dunno – it really wasn’t all that bad. It wasn’t good either, but it certainly wasn’t bad. I chose not to finish mine but I could have. The problem was I couldn’t quite place what it was supposed to be. Was it supposed to be easy to drink like lager? A spicy sipping drink like a Bloody? My mouth couldn’t make up it’s mind.
Which brings me back to the word “intrigue”. Discussion quickly turned to how to make a BETTER chalada. The first step would be to choose a proper beer. Nothing too crazy or hoppy, but a nice reliable drinkable lager style something or other. Amstel Light? Heineken? Tecate? Something in that neighborhood.
And then of course there’s the question of clams. You can still make a good Bloody Mary with Clamato but you have to really thicken it up (which basically means extra horseradish). Instead we decided that you would have to try regular tomato juice or even V8. A little heat would probably help, maybe even some salt.
Now this is all perfectly fine drinkin’ talk. And recapping the whole thing is renewing my … intrigue. The question is, will I ever do anything about it.
Plus what I’d like to know is, who else has tried it? And what did you think? And who’s willing to guinea pig my first custom experimental batch?
- Insultant
Is there any way a guy can get easily and handsomely paid for insulting people? To become, in effect, an Insultant?
Gosh I sure hope so. But I kinda doubt it. Howard Stern manages, as does Don Rickles.
I am rather fond of that time when you get to know a person well enough to insult them. For some this comes very very early. For a rare and lucky few it may even come during introduction. Me I’m either too polite or too chicken or both to automatically jump to this stage.
This is not much of a blog entry. But I have made a vow to publish more and this is a start.
- On The Replacements, and their albums
First off you have to understand that I am one of the bigger Replacements (can’t quite bring myself to call them “the ‘mats”) fans you’ll find. I went through a pretty serious Let-it-Be-era-Tommy-Stinson fashion thing in late high school / early college that one could argue still manifests itself today, and my own attempts at songwriting are not without their Westerbergian influences.
But it’s funny, looking back on their career, they never really put out a GREAT album. Every album had some great tunes, some of course more than others. But there is really no ONE album that holds itself together, start to finish. (If you really want to get into it w/ nutball Replacements fans try this argument: “14 Songs” is actually The Replacements’ best album ….)
Just so we’re clear, I’m not saying they made lousy records. “Let it Be” certainly gets a ton of “IT CHANGED MY LIFE!!!!” type press, which I guess I can understand. And heck, I am even of the opinion that “All Shook Down” is quite good. But still, if I am in a Replacements-listenin’ mood there is no single long-player that scratches the itch.
Just for kicks let’s go record-by-record, shall we?
“Sorry Ma ….” – very listenable if you’re in the right mood. Holds together reasonably well, if for no other reason than the songs are short and for the most part sound pretty similar. Not, shall we say, “developed” enough to be great though.
“Hootenanny” – A really diverse and interesting bunch of tunes, but too many toss-offs and inconsistent production keep it from “complete album” greatness.
“Stink” – pretty fun to listen to. But too short and too, uh, hardcore.
“Let it Be” – THE CLASSIC!!! THE LIFE-CHANGER!!! Ok, it is quite good. And has moments of unbelievableness (“Answering Machine”). But I’m thinking the Kiss cover alone stops this one in its tracks. Snarky remarks aside though, this may be their closest to a “complete album”, and is an interesting snapshot of an interesting band at an interesting time in their interesting career. Interesting.
“Tim” – The production kills it. There are some career high points and also some filler. But in the end it sounds like it was recorded from across the street. Or as the kids might say, it does not “rock”.
“Pleased to Meet Me” – Another good argument starter is the production on this one. I personally think they done flung the door too far the other way after “Tim”. Again, some great tunes and some filler. “Shooting Dirty Pool” ruins the party for me, but this one also has some real pleasant medium rock gems like “Valentine”.
“Don’t Tell a Soul” – Again w/ the bad production. This time over the top “pro” sounding. I can defend a lot of things Replacements but this album is a tough sell. I still dig the hit single (“I’ll be You”), and a scattering of others, but this album just don’t move me.
“All Shook Down” – Well, see, I really like this record. I always have. And what’s worse I have always copped an insufferable “history will show …” attitude about it. I think it comes close to feeling like a proper LP, I really do. “One Wink at a Time” is a great great song, certainly a couple others on here. Not sure whether it’s the “it was really Westerberg’s solo album” thing or the watery tunes or both that keeps this one from “great album” status though.
In conclusion (which is weird to type as I am sure that no one has made it this far in) let me reiterate that I am a big fan of this band. I guess what surprises me though, is that despite all of the WESTERBERG IS A GENIUS stuff, I feel like it is the IDEA of the Replacements that people like. Arguably this is the same as the “spirit” of the band, which still gets written about a lot. And yeah ok, I’ll buy that. Maybe I just feel like I wish that this band that I love would have put out a single long-player that perfectly summed them up, and that I could spin any time I was in a ‘placements mood.
Hmmm, think I’ll go put on “14 Songs” ….
- :30 / :15 / :0
A friend joyfully Tweeted recently regarding the fact that :30 spots are now on the web, and that he won’t have to fret about cutting ‘em to :15. He’s a smart guy, and I love him like a brother.
However this seems to miss the point entirely. It makes me want to sell him one or both of the VCRs I have in my basement.
Attention spans are getting SHORTER. Blame ATM machines, certainly blame the internet. But shee-it-yeah, let’s do a better job recognizing the medium and challenging ourselves to do BETTER WORK.
If you’re still revolving your jive around :30s and :15s, fine. But pretty soon you might be BEGGING for :15. Better yet, start creating kickass :10s and :5s.
- The New AP
Here’s an internet news item. It’s interesting to me for this reason.
It seems to me that in the Olden Days a news item such as this would be supported by some sort of early buzz by news outlets and/or journalists. But Nowadays, we have a “story” with support by … Twitter posts.
http://gawker.com/5170697/new-bruno-movie-hilarious-familiar
- Enterprise Rent-A-Car
I recently placed calls to two local Enterprise outposts. The nuts&bolts of the answers were similar but there was a world of difference in the delivery. There was also a clear “next step” present in one and decidedly missing in the other. I placed the calls because there was a chance I would need a car the next morning.
The first call was answered by a very, let’s call him “laid back”, gentlemen. I told him I might need a car the following morning and asked if they had cars on-site. He sort of lacksidasically told me that they “usually” have cars but that it’s “best to make a reservation”. Then … silence. I am very importat and not have time for such froo-fra. So I thanked him and hung up. (I should add that this particular Enterprise location is 4 blocks from my house, making it quite convenient.)
The second call was answered by a considerably more energetic young man. I told him my deal and he said they “pretty much always” have cars on-site, but that I might as well reserve a car to be on the safe side. He explained that there was no cost to reserve a car and all I had to do was give him my name and a phone #. This location was a little further away (just outside of logical walking distance), but still pretty convenient.
So, uh, which would you choose? Dude #2 gets a gold star. He was a little sales-y, but heck – HE’S IN SALES. Dude #2 needs a day off and a gentle kick in the pants. Or a new job.
- Skittles
Clearly this is what they wanted. For people to Twitter about the new site, blog about it, and so forth.
And you know what? That’s fine. Part of me wants to write a “is this what marketing has come to?” type post. Basically bemoaning the fact that they have succumbed to a lowest common denominator “any press is good press” approach and otherwise thumb my nose.
But the thing is maybe this IS what marketing has come to, and maybe we need to accept that. The goll-dang internet has both ruined and enabled many things. (But I would argue that it has opened as many marketing doors as it has closed.)
We can’t put the toothpaste back in the tube. People DO have instant access to everything and everyone CAN post their (unfiltered) opinions anytime they want. If people want to rip a brand to shreds they can and will. Skittles is embracing this and saying “take your best shot”.
What would folks have them do? Create a site listing the attributes of their candies and cheerily encourage people to buy a bag? Or do you go with the currency you already have*, and portray yourself as hip and open and (seemingly) uncaring about negative opinions?
*Let us not forget that Skittles has the advantage of being a known entity. Anyone who might buy a bag has already heard of them. So they do have a slight head start, and are able to take some more chances.
ALSO, they are in a category, and have a primary target, that is both open to and aware of this type of approach. These are folks who use Twitter and who are prone to reaction and to expressing this reaction.
Ok I’ll leave this topic for now. But maybe more to come.
P.S. I have now gone back and changed my initial alt spelling of the brand (”Sk____es”) to a right and proper one. Why? Was I hoping for some borrowed equity? Am I that hopeful for eyeballs?
- On MySpace and rock music and the selling of records
I have a friend who is in a local Chicago rock group (and yes, this really is about a friend, not about me). They are quite good; great songs, great harmonies, great playing. They are unsigned but playing the better Chicago clubs regularly.
My question is this: does it make sense, in this day and age, to release a record (on CD)? Or is the toothpaste so far out of the tube that everyone expects music or free?
My feeling is that it’s the latter. No one goes to see bands anymore (even small unknown local ones) without having heard their tunes. This is both good and bad; good because it can get you psyched to see ‘em (or help you avoid blowing your hard-earned cash on a stinker), bad because some of the mystery/anticipation has been removed.
It seems to me that the smarter and seemingly more common route nowadays is to let folks listen to and/or own your tunes for nothing. “MP3s are the new gig flyer” as someone once said (hint: it was me).
The band in question has a MySpace page and then gives out CDs at shows. Seems about right. I think what’s neat is when bands really use MySpace to their advantage. Don’t just post 4 songs and leave ‘em there. Pick your 2 strongest and then rotate in some goofy demo stuff, outtakes, etc.
- Seth Godin on the running of the mouth
Seth Godin has a post from February 2nd. In a nutshell it urges folks to be not long-winded ( to be short-winded?).
Quote: “Do you save the most important part of the meeting for the end, when everyone is already standing?”
Now see, here’s the thing. I think this angle is missing something fundamental. Unless you’re on some sort of Speaker’s Corner, standing on some sort of apple-soap-box, there is an expectation in the room. Folks are there for a reason.
So to me, this means one has to employ a little old-fashioned showmanship. Chances are you have a MAIN point to make, but that there are also some littler crunchy bits you are hoping your audience will nibble on.
Do a good job with the smoke and with the mirrors, start with a joke, BUILD to your climax. Keep your audience’s attention, give them some unexpected nibbles, and they’ll be that much hungrier when you get to the main course.
(One too many food analogies?)
