You're Killing Me, Smalls

Comment of the Week:

byantownsyou: "It's not Megadeath you fucking idiot, it's Megadeth" - posted yesterday on a post from June 6, 2006

It's always interesting to see the comments I get on this blog sometimes. Whether its someone trying to sell me viagra or someone yelling at me about misspelling a band name or something, it's always a good read. Annoying and unnecessary, but hey, that's what you get when you open your world to the public domain.

So, I'm going to talk about my fantasy baseball team for a minute here, not because you care, but because I'm pretty upset with the trade I made last week that's still processing and what has occurred since, and since I work with a bunch of older women this and the ESPN message board are pretty much my only forum. But in the small chance that someone that reads this blog plays fantasy baseball...read on....otherwise skip down to the end to check out some music.


So in my 10 team head to head league over at Yahoo! sports I pulled the trigger on a trade that would send Chase Utley and Miguel Tejada to another team in exchange for a slew of pitchers (Dice K, Marcum, Soria, and Shields) and The Natural, Josh Hamilton, as well as Edgar Renteria and Chone Figgins (image, above, courtesy of ESPN.com).

My whole reason for trading away my two best players was because I really needed help in the pitching department, and I've got huge man love for Josh Hamilton's abilities to crush the ball 500 feet. Plus, I figure either Tejada or Utley has to come back to earth soon enough, and even if they don't, Renteria and Figgins should return to their numbers from last year in most respects, and Hamilton will hopefully continue to crush the ball en route to a Triple Crown.

Of course, just after agreeing to the trade, Figgins gets hurt again, and last night Dice K does something to his hip. So I potentially will be landing two injured players (although I haven't checked on Dice K this morning, but hips are never good for pitchers) and could be in serious trouble for the next week or so while my players recoup, at least offensively. Oh yeah, and I also had to drop Jay Bruce, Cincinatti's newest phenom, to do the deal. Unfortunately, he had a pretty good first day in the big leagues.

You're killing me Smalls, you're killing me!



Bound Stems Announce Sophomore Full-Length, The Family Afloat,
Out September 9th On Flameshovel

May 19, 2008 // Toronto, ON – Chicago quintet Bound Stems are set to release their sophomore full-length, The Family Afloat, September 9th on Flameshovel. Bound Stems struck a distinctive chord with their ’05 debut ep, The Logic of Building the Body Plan, quickly garnering attention from the media and following with the expansive, eclectic, ’06 full-length, Appreciation Night, that received laurels from Rolling Stone, The New York Times, Alternative Press, URB, Chicago Tribune and Reader. The album incorporated elements of the band’s home town, found sounds helping to shape the feel and texture of the songs, that were explosive pop celebrations, swept off into the bustling city. With The Family Afloat Bobby Gallivan, Janie Porche, Dan Fleury, Evan Sult and Dan Radzicki continue to explore the idea of the home and family, further refining their skills and proving themselves worth every accolade that has thus far come there way, and deserving much more ahead.

The Family Afloat proves well worth the wait. While Bound Stems quit their day-jobs to tour relentlessly throughout 2006 in support of Appreciation Night, the band returned home ready for new challenges, and made the communal decision to return to the more stable life of work weeks and strong roots; Gallivan’s job as a history teacher is particularly influential in his lyrics and topics. Meanwhile the band continued to play the odd show, including Lollapalooza last August, write songs and began work last fall on a new record.

The Family Afloat includes the track, “Happens To Us All Otherwise”, filled with punchy rhythms and an unforgettable chorus, available for download now. Bound Stems will take to the road this summer showcasing the new material and will offer for sale, exclusively, The Family Afloat, on 12” vinyl. July 11th in Chicago at Schuba’s, will celebrate the first availability of the record. Full dates are below:

7/11/08 – Chicago, IL @ Schuba’s
7/18/08 – Muncie, IN @ Vilage Green Records
7/19/08 – Toronto, ON @ Sneaky Dee’s
7/20/08 – Montreal, PQ @ Jupiter Room
7/21/08 – Boston, MA @ Middle East
7/22/08 – Brooklyn, NY @ Union Hall
7/23/08 – Philadelphia, PA @ M-Room
7/24/08 – New York, NY @ Mercury Lounge
7/25/08 – Washington, DC @ Velvet Lounge
7/26/08 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Howler’s Coyote Lounge

Bound Stems have flown under the radar pretty much so far but make sure to check out the new mp3 from their upcoming release below:

Bound Stems - "Happens to Us All Otherwise"