Every now and then I like to go on an aural adventure through the randomness of the itunes store in an attempt to find new music.  More often than not this search ends with me finding a couple of songs that are cool but not much else.  At other times I’ve discovered some really awesome bands, so well done itunes I guess.  Inevitably I end up listening to some crazy electronica or super-indie downbeat stuff and reading the hilarious reviews.

Have you ever bothered to read the reviews on the itunes store?  Some of them are good, some are just terrible, and some are just waaaay the hell out there.  It makes me picture some twisted philosophy major in his late twenties coming down from a serious meth binge who decided to go write some reviews in the midst of not sleeping for two weeks and surviving on cheezestrings and mountain dew.  But that might just be me.

Anyway, I have gathered a few for your ocular consideration.  Enjoy!

1. …trancends the downbeat limitations of the incipient form with astonishing grace.

2. nothing wrecks the mental image of limitless space quite like the sound of steel guitar.

3. …something Paul McCartney would write had he been paying attention to the music of the youth in his own backyard.

I will continue to document my discoveries as the time goes on.

While we’re talking about music, here’s an awesome example of something that is awesome.

There’s no denying it: spring in Vancouver is dandy.  Dandy in the way that a 65 year old man uses the word, and damn well means it, damnit.  I think it’s the cherry blossoms.  I mean, the weather right now is fantastic, but you can get fantastic weather in a lot of places.  But stepping outside in the morning on the way to wherever it is that you’re going when you would much rather be sleeping just becomes a lot easier, and verges on pleasant when you see these things.  It brings this tired soulless grad student joy, and the promise of a more fulfilling existence.

Did you know that there is an annual Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival?  I didn’t.  But I’m glad that this exists.

Random note to self: new future band name – the manly dandies.

I had no idea that dandies were actually a kind of social class, like bohemians.  Dandyism is actually characterized by a rejection of bourgeois values, believe it or not.  They just chose to dress aristocratically for fun.  You learn something new every day.

But other than my embrace of spring here on the west coast, not much going on in the life of Dave.  In the month long limbo between semesters at grad school.  Kind of in fear over having to wear my student suit in the summer time.  It’s a time of no suits.  It’s the summer of no pants.  I’m not sure that will fly at school.  I guess there’s only one way to find out.

I think I know a few modern day dandies.  Or I’ve at least seen them.  Could they be the equivalent of my most archest of nemeses: the douchebag?  Or are they a more innocent manifestation of our culture’s all-encompassing affluenza?  Such questions are not to be taken lightly, and I propose some serious research be put to this question.  Thesis idea?  Hahaha.  I can see it now: “The Dandy Bag Conundrum: Contemporary Issues in the Differential Diagnosis of Douchebags and Dandies.”

Or, “Empathy for the Douche: Myth or Possibility?”

I’ll have to continue my exploration into these phenomena.  Science never sleeps, you know.

The fellow in the picture is kind of a classy 50’s Dandy.  Love the cigar and the skinny tie.  But you can tell it’s all show.

I have a severe level of rage.

I stumbled upon a video today about how scientologists are attempting to blame psychiatrists for all terrorist activities, including 9/11 and the holocaust.  At the end of the video they talk about a pamphlet called “mental health abuse – chaos and terror.”  So I googled this and started looking at the official website, aimed to expose the “crimes of mental health practitioners.”  The site is run by a group, ironically called the Citizens Commissi0n on Human Rights (CCHR).  

Human Rights??  You’ve got to be SHITTING me.  The president of the CCHR, Jan Eastgate, has such idiocy as the following to say in her address on the main page.

Seventeen million children worldwide are prescribed antidepressants that cause violent and suicidal behavior. This includes children younger than one year old who are now being prescribed mind-altering drugs. Millions more of our young are prescribed a stimulant that is more potent than cocaine.

I’d be interested to hear how antidepressants cause  violent behaviour and suicide.  In all the hundreds of thousands of cases of antidepressant use, how many people got better  compared to those who got worse?

Inmates were terrorized with electric shock treatment, often as punishment and without consent. Psychiatric lobotomies and other psychosurgical procedures destroyed minds and lives. Powerful neuroleptic (nerve seizing) drugs caused irreversible brain and nervous system damage making patients sluggish, apathetic and less alert. Furthermore, patients were assaulted and sexually abused—all under the guise of “therapy.” Any claim of a scientific basis was a hoax.

First of all, what is a scientologist doing worrying about firm scientific bases?

Now, I’m not one to say that the history of psychiatry doesn’t contain some pretty disturbing stuff.  However, the same can be said of the practice of medicine in general.  But in order to discredit a psychological treatment, you have to look at it’s use today.  And you do have to take all things into consideration, including the empirical research behind it.

Take Electro-Convulsive shock therapy (ECT), for example.  A lot of people get really defensive about ECT because they see it as a violent, damaging and inhumane procedure.  But upon closer inspection, it’s not hard to see the benefits of the treatment.  For one thing, it is one of the most effective  treatments for things like depression and anxiety that are resistent to all other forms of treatment.  Unilateral ECT can be virtually side-effect free (something that cannot be said for much more common treatments such as psychotropic meds).  Sure, some people have died, but this is due to the use of anaesthetics, like any minor surgery would use.  It’s now an outpatient procedure and due to advances in medicine like effective muscle relaxants and the like, the fact that a seizure is even happening can be quite difficult to see.

Of course, no one really knows how or why it works, so naturally there is a lot of controversy surrounding it.

But I digress.

One of the most alarming claims made on the website is the idea that “psychiatric rape” is a common practice and that it is justified as a kind of therepeutic intervention by offending therapists.  Now, let me be perfectly clear.  In cases where any sexual activities occur between a therapist and client, even years after the fact, it’s just wrong.  There is never a case where it is ok, due to the extremely one-sided emotional interactions that are a part of therapy and the ensuing power dynamics.  Even when things are perfectly consensual, there’s just no way that a healthy relationship can develop.

But to single out psychology as the only profession in which inappropriate sexual contact is dangerous is absolute absurdity.  Therapy is a helping encounter, and those who practice psychotherapy practice in a helping profession.  Hmm…  I wonder what other helping professions have ever bred inappropriate sexual contact?  

Interestingly, in her section on how psychiatry is destroyinig religion and hope, Jan Eastgate recommends that “Men of the cloth need to shake off the yoke of soulless materialism spawned by psychology and psychiatry and put religion back into the hands of the religious.  Indeed, religious leaders must take this responsibility, not only for the sake of religion’s survival but also for the survival of mankind.”  If you’re going to make an argument against psychiatry based on sex offenses, seems to me you would think twice about declaring religion as your saving grace.

And what does Scientology have to say about the treatment of repeating sex offenders?  Because I happen to know that behavioural psychotherapy sure has a lot to say.

I know that psychiatry has its problems, not the least of which being the backing of the giant pharmaceutical companies.  It’s an interesting debate and once in which my mind is certainly not made up.  But if Scientologists think that they have the answers, all one has to do, really, is to think about the founding principles of what they  believe in, and you’re ready to look elsewhere for worthwhile information.

I don’t even know what else to say, other than go check out the website if you’re in need of a laugh.

Every now and then we all know it’s great fun to put on our critic pants. I’m certainly no stranger to this phenomenon, and if nothing else, this will be a fun way of putting my thoughts together about some great music that I’ve been listening to lately. And if anyone else happens to discover some new music as a result or share their thoughts it’s a bonus.

Disclaimer: yes, I will be using ridiculous sounding adjectives and other typically pretentious sounding language that is all-too present in all things that have to do with music critiquery.  (including my personal favourite, the hyphenate-weird-sounding-things-together-technique).

So, I’ll start with a band I found while perusing the itunes store, named Hey Rosetta.

There’s something about East Coast alt-rock bands these days that really push the right buttons for me.  ”Into Your Lungs” is Hey Rosetta’s second album, and is a bit of a departure from the sounds of their first record, “Plan Your Escape.”  However, the somewhat folky and whimsical sounds of the first record still manage to inform the higher energy rock tracks of “Into Your Lungs.”  Another very audible influence is the presence of Hawksley Workman, the producer of the record.  

There’s just something very East-Coast about the sound of the album.  From the twangy acoustic arpeggios and banjos of the opening track, “New Goodbye,” which are joined one by one with heavier drums, bass, and mind-scraping electric guitar by the 2/3 mark of the song, to the soft pianos and simplicity of the closing track, “Psalm,” there’s a lot to love, including the incredible production value with no shortage of awesome sounding strings.

3 Standout tracks:
“I’ve Been Asleep for a Long, Long Time” (more of those throaty, beefy guitars and simple catchy melodies)
“Red Heart” (killer drum beat, probably the most memorable tune on the record)
“A Thousand Suns” (I’m a sucker for those songs that build up the intensity then cut everything out except for the bass, drums, and vocals.  This is one of those songs.)

Next up is a band that I’ve been into for quite a while, but only recently picked up there latest album.  They are The Dears.

I have tons of respect for this band because they are legitimately one of the most unique Can-rock bands out there, without being so weird that I can’t stand listening to them.  It’s not math rock or experimental-post-noise-whatever, it’s actually music, and every album they’ve put out has been both fantastic and, as every good album should be, different.  End rant.

When I first came upon this guy in the itunes store and listened to my 30 second previews of all the tracks I was relatively unstoked.  But after seeing it on sale at HMV I decided to pick it up and give it a listen based on my love of the rest of the band’s stuff.  Of course, I was actually really pleased with the album on a whole, and completely understand why the previews on itunes don’t do it justice, a truth that I have discovered many times over with other albums.  But that’s an aside.  If you’ve heard The Dears and liked them, I really think you’ll fall in love with this album like I did.  It’s very heavy on the synth (which should come as no surprise – last time I saw them live they had two keyboards and a keytar all going strong) and lead signer Murray’s deep, almost hypnotic at times vocals make for a deeply… I would say visual listening experience.

There’s no limit in terms of the sounds you hear on this album, be they the jazzy sax sounds of the intro, “Disclaimer,” to the screaming, Led-Zep-messy guitar soloing of “Lights Off,” the vocoder-laden vocals of “Money Babies,” to the pleasant, barely-off-key soul-moving darkness of “Demons,” to the soul-churning  organs and children’s choir of the closer, an 11-minute beauty, “Saviour.”

3 Standout Tracks: 
“Dream Job” (a lilting, playful-yet-relaxed foray into a very dream-like soundscape indeed.)
“Demons” ( the kind of song that sends chills down your spine.  Kind of creepy but you still want to shake your head to the beat.  Dissonance without descent.)
“Saviour” (When I hear this song I don’t want it to end.  A soulful, heartfelt  journey into keyboards, trumpets, children’s choirs, and a man who’s gonna make it right… this time.  One of my favourite ways to spend 11 minutes these days.)
 

These two albums get the Dave seal of approval.  But there’s plenty more awesome music I’m currently into that I just can’t seem to put words to.  For instance, Explosions in the Sky is currently my must-have-playing music for when I am studying or otherwise spending my time academically at home.  Very cool instrumental band that is totally transforming my brain into joy-goo.  Which is actually something I want when I’m studying.  Check them out!!!

The effects of coffee are many and splendorous.  I, like many people the world over, am hopelessly addicted to java to the point of getting extreme headaches if I don’t drink a cup within about an hour of getting out of bed.  I am definitely physiologically hooked and even more so psychologically addicted to the stuff.  In fact, I can think of few things more comforting than a hot coffee after a nice evening meal, ideally on a patio with a lake or mountain view…. or more realistically probably sitting in front of the TV watching something on the food network.  Nevertheless, the point remains: without the glory of coffee I would be in serious trouble.

But not all of coffee’s effects are necessarily immediately desirable.  Has anyone else noticed that drinking a coffee makes a trip to the bathroom much more… urgent?  Coffee definitely makes you have to poo.  And for my whole life up until this point I had merely accepted the fact without overly questioning the underlying bodily mechanics, perhaps summing it up to the stimulating effects of caffeine.  For whatever reason, today I felt like I had to do a little bit of research to gain some insight into this phenomenon.

One fellow on a message board had this to say:

Caffeine inhibits an enzyme that is thought to regulate mucosal secretions in your small intestine. Secretions go up, so fluid in your bowel goes up, and if the amount of fluid in your colon is greater than the amount of fluid you can reabsorb, splat, you get diarrhea, or at least looser stools.

According to the Bowel Movement Guide, caffeine causes your gastrocolic reflex to trigger more readily, thereby pushing that future poo from the colon into the rectum.  Seems like a pretty simple explanation.

That’s about as far as 15 minutes of looking around got me.

On a related note, feel like a $50 cup of coffee?  Look no further than the litter box.  Yep – Indonesian cat poo coffee!  It’s apparently about the rarest and most expensive coffee available, extracted from the feces of Indonesian civet cats (which coincidentally happen to be related to the SARS outbreak).  “When roasted, the resulting beans sell for around $1,000 a kilogram ($450 a pound) and brew into a earthy, syrupy, coffee acknowledged by connoisseurs as one of the world’s finest.”

Just when you think you’ve heard it all, cat SARS poo coffee.

On the topic of coffee, apparently it’s the number 1 source of antioxidants for most folks.  “Nothing comes close,” not even red wine and beer, which are both in the top 10 list after coffee.  For those that might be curious, antioxidants are “thought to provide health benefits in preventing diseases such as heart disease and cancer by fighting cellular damage caused by free radicals in the body.”  Worth a disruption in your natural digestion? Up to you, I suppose.

This is big.

Yep.  Huge.

I gave up on blogging probably 3 or 4 times since I got into it years ago, only to get sucked back in every time.  I don’t really know what the allure is… it’s really quite silly when you get down to it.  Even the name blog is pretty inherently silly.  Web log.  Blog.  Kermit and Miss Piggy, people.  The muppets were onto this shit way before the internet even became something people occupy their time with.

The muppets were pretty intense.  And by intense I mean they had that early Simpsons-esque appeal to pretty much all audiences.  Hell, if I could track down a Pigs in Space dvd I would buy it without thinking twice.  If you can remember watching Pigs in Space you are my friend.  If not, become 5 years older and then we’ll talk.

So, blog.  Why blog?  It appears that a lot of people are up to it these days.  Especially given the facebook note thing, which is great.  But facebook has always had this negative valence to me.  Maybe because everyone is doing it.  Kind of like Harry Potter.  But I shouldn’t talk, being that I import my blog posts onto facebook and that’s really the only audience that’s realistically even reading this.  So thanks, facebook guy.  Thanks for not selling out to the man.

I feel like I have to get the obligatory post about nothing in particular out of the way.  Then I can start talking about current events and things like that.  Pet peeves.  Things like that.  I guess in the meantime all I can do is leave you with this.

Weekdays at 1:30 pm on Public Access TV.  Welcome to my week.