Fail in February

I came across a decent idea: Four In February.

The idea being to play and finish four games in February as a step towards ending the backlog of video game shame most of us who play games have.  The criteria could extend to games you've already started and if you finished it in February, it'd count towards your overall total.

Indeed! I do have a backlog... a shameful one, H1 might reckon.

I did not make the "four in February" but in my defense, I play a lot of JRPGs and well, as anyone who knows these sort of things, JRPGS tend to take a lifetime to finish.

So, I failed.  But, not really!

I *finished* Persona 4 The Golden (*have to get the true ending but you know, 83 plus hours later, I'm considering myself just about done).

I finished Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask.

I finished Little Inferno.

So, see? I did not fare too poorly.  Right?!

With March soon upon us, I am plugging through a few more.  What to play portable wise?

Hmmm... 

Suggestions? Anyone? From this list?

Paper Mario: Sticker Star
Lumines
Freshly Picked Tingle's Rosy Rupeeland
Ace Attorney 2
Fire Emblem: Awakening
Resident Evil Revelations
Dragon Quest VI

Now, keep in mind I have to finish whatever I start by March 24th.  Why? Because Luigi's Mansion 2 comes out and...it's Luigi.

Don't judge me.

February Exists

Or rather, The HOchieS exist!

We do!

It's just that...one of us has been slacking on writing up anything and since that one is me (Or 2), well...yeah.  I was trying to confuse you for a second.  Did it work?!

Even though she has not read it yet, I can feel H1 glaring at me.  How odd...

Anyway, a bunch of things happened in February...like food outings, NYC's Restaurant Week (which I actually think I attended in January) and birthdays.

Oh...the Birthdays I have missed chronicling.  I take pride in my slacker behaviour and why shouldn't I?!

What's that? It's probably in my best interest to stop slacking because H1 will buss my ass? Yeah...you speak only the truth, Brain. 

Getting back from that muddied mess of text, here are the Birthdays that we did not write on the blog and should have.  Shame me.

February 2nd - Papa HOchie's Birthday! Yep.  Pretty much should hang my head in shame.  Mhm.  Mhm.

February 18th - 1st Year Birthday of Baby ZBoos.  Yep.  Extra shame with my shame. 

February 24th - Alex Friend's Birthday.  Atlantic City shamed her which in turn shamed me by keeping us poor.

February 25th - MC's Birthday.  Do I feel shamed? No, not particularly.  Hahahahaha.

So, there you have it.  All those other things I mentioned previously that "happened" in February, you will just have to wait on those.  It won't be another 3 weeks until I post!

...one can hope.

Currently: feeling ashamed.

Gung Hay Fat Choy!

Happy New Year, everyone!!!

It's the Year of the Snake.

What does that mean exactly? I'm not sure exactly but I'm sure a quick Google search could reveal much.  Since I'm just half-Chinese, I'm going to half-ass this greeting and not even look it up for you guys.

Have a good year, all!

Rabbit, Rabbit, Rabbit. Hare, Hare, Hare.

What? I missed wishing all good luck yesterday when it was the 1st day of the month?! Hey, it's the first day of the month some where in the world, right?  RIGHT?!

Well, I wished it in my heart for everyone yesterday.  I just did not make a grand announcement.

That's all!

So umm, good luck all.

My well-intentions today are the same as they are yesterday.  If for some reason you have some sort of ...debacle happen this month, don't blame me.

Blame Persona 4: The Golden.

Heh.  Heh.

...

Heh?

The Legend of Zelda Symphony That I Dragged H1 To

Yep, it was some time in November when I dragged a poor, little H1 to that thing.

November 28th to be exact.

Much like our trip to the Final Fantasy Distant Worlds Symphony in April of 2011, there were people dressed up as their favourite characters but the best I saw had to have been the awesome tribute someone did as a Skull Kid from the best of the Zelda games (which of course is Mask of Majora).

However, unlike our trip to Distant Worlds, this Symphony was vastly different and not in a terribly positive way either.

The Highlights

1.  In celebration of the 25th Anniversary of The Legend of Zelda, the good people at Nintendo crafted this entire tour featuring the music of the fantastic Zelda series.  It was the same for the 25th Anniversary of Final Fantasy and I couldn't be happier.  Both series shaped the type of games I enjoy playing now, and gave me a greater appreciation for music of its kind.  I'm sure I spoke at length before about my adoration of one Nobuo Uematsu but he's not the only one to thank.  The great Koji Kondo, composer to the Zelda series helped create the tone and indeed, the world of Hyrule and beyond.  The fact that the opportunity was afforded to be in attendance to hear musical genius realized by a full orchestra is a highlight enough.

2.  I saw Stephen Totilo and Jason Schreier of Kotaku at my show! They sat one row in front of me but more to the left of me but not too far away that I couldn't hail them.

3.  The music was played absolutely beautifully.  The orchestra sounded better than at Distant Worlds and the acoustics at the Theater at MSG were quite lovely.

4.  The scenes accompanying the music from the various games in the Zelda series was well-thought out and put together.

5.  Ending the Symphony with music from The Mask of Majora? That's a damned plus right there even if it almost felt like an after thought.

6.  Whhhhaaaaa...??!! Conducting the Orchestra with the Wind Waker baton? I see what you did there...

Well-played (and I see what I did there).

7.  I would have rioted had "Lost Woods" not been played.  They're lucky... 

The Lowlamps

1.  This is not so much the music but the Theater at Madison Square Garden.  It's not that nice, which is sad.  It sounded great but it was not that comfortable.

2.  I did not shout out to Totilo and Jason at Kotaku.  I was playing Woobeewoo in that, "I'm shy".  It also meant I did not get to tag them in Streetpass.  It also made me miss Crecente.

3.  The Symphony itself while it sounded fantastic, as H1 rightly observed, it was not as fun.  This was not really the fault of the music selection though maybe that could be part of it but it was very much due to the fact that the musicians did their job and that was to read sheet music.  It was not played with feeling and there was no investment on their part into what was being performed.  At the very least in Distant Worlds the musicians truly had a keen interest in what was going on and the interactions from the crowd.  It made the FF concert that much more lively while this one suffered from a lack of personality.

4.  Musically, the song selections while not...horrendous, there was a lot overlooked and could easily have been included to make it not as somber as it felt at times.  I did not mind the inclusion of many of the Ganondorf battle music but what about the exploration? Some of it was there but not a lot...fantastic dungeon music, forest temples, and even some of the other minor bosses' music was overlooked.  Any piece of boss music (save Ganondorf) from Wind Waker would have made the whole thing so much more entertaining.

It was a fun night overall, except for the fact I failed to get a blasted ocarina at the shop which was a complete mob scene.  It was one thing to not get an ocarina but it sold out right before I could have ordered and sold to some woman who did not even want to really buy one.  ::sigh:: Such is life, I suppose.  And maybe it was Karma paying me back for having the "opportunity" to order a Virtue's Last Reward pre-order bonus thing.  I don't know.  Let's not talk about it.

I think H1 had a decent time and I think it's safe to say these crazy Video Game Symphonies won't be happening again any time soon.  Awww, that kinda makes me sad...Ah well.  Maybe next 25 years...

Awww, friends.

Fellow 3DS Cool Kids Met Via Streetpass: It was probably over 60 and it could have been more too, if not for my not wanting to leave my seat.

Currently listening to: "Magick" by Klaxons

Having Friends in Lego Places

An obsession with Lego began some time in May and it has since then descended into madness.

In the future, there will probably be a full-on post capturing the sets we've built since May of 2012 but for now, I'd just like to thank the wonderful Marvs for her contribution (and enabling) our current bad habit.

For Christmas (and yes, I know I owe a Christmas Loot list to all and a proper thank you to all...I will get to that too!), Marvs sent us a cute package containing some of our favourite friends.

Not only is it awesome having a friend who lives in the U.K. who has access to little Lego sets that may otherwise pass us by, it's even more spectacular having a friend living in the U.K. who is also employed by the greatness that is Lego.

In our little package were Avengers loose packets (which is fitting, since it was my obsession with Tom that started it all...curse you "Hiddleston Chain Reaction") and a tiny friend from a very Special Edition mini-figure set.

That's right, I've my very own Olympics 2012 Team Great Britain Tennis Player.

Just look at his fabulousity!

And look at his smug mug.

Did he actually win gold? Because I'm not so sure...! A quick Google Search tells me that the Mens Single was won by Brit, Andy Murray.

Well then, considered me served.

Carry on.

Currently listening to: "Sit Down, Stand Up" by Radiohead.

Happy New Year!!!

Rabbit, Rabbit, Rabbit.  Hare, Hare, Hare.

A new year, people.  Last year was not without its crummy times but we are thankful for the good times we had as well.  And we're thankful for the lot of you all and look forward to spending time again in 2013.

We hope the year and this our first month goes beautifully for all and good luck to everyone!

Much love!

The End of Year Review I: Music 2012

What a strange little year it has been for me in terms of listening to music.  There's not much that caught my attention this year and it was hard to motivate me to do anything more than purchase an album (usually on the Curse-Worthy $5 Amazon deals) and set it aside for my "listening pleasure" later.  It was the later that never really happened.

It also meant I did not really collect that much during the year but then TD5 came around in mid October and dropped a whole lot of music on me, while laughing maniacally the entire time.  He knew fully well that I would have no choice but to do something about it! But joke's on him because I only really listened to about 3 albums he gave me.  Mmhmm.  I'll get to them, TD5, I will.  But for the purposes of the Review...yeah, no.

Thus, I was stuck scrambling trying to cram most of it in at the end of year for this review I insist on writing and torturing myself with.

How fair is this review actually going to be then? As by the standard I did a few years, I listened to my albums and did a song by song rating for a best out of 5.  Of course, there are albums here that were not released this year as per usual and they will be counted towards my review.  In looking at it as a whole, there is probably only one that stood out as great this whole year.  That said, here goes...

9.  Muse - The 2nd Law

I saw it coming over a year ago.  The whole thing with the Unmentionable KHud happened, and I was not expecting much from Muse's new album.  And while it's undeniable that my expectations of Muse are incredibly high; I did not anticipate this level of rot.  Some may say that the album before this one is even more horrid but I think those people are blind.  There is so much to forget on this album that even being the best band in the world to see live, is not enough to bring myself to go see them on this tour.  It's downright cringe-worthy, this mess of an excuse for music.

It's filled with rip offs from other bands (tributes? no...hardly), pop sensibilities that cannot even masquerade within the genre and a whole lot of laziness.

Songs Worth Listening to (you know, if you had to): "Animal", "Panic Station", and "Survival" (the last I'll admit to liking if only that is the only true Muse song in the vein of some ridiculous grandiose thing you might find on Blackholes and Revelations.

H1 vs Or 2: 5 > 6.  A winner is H1 with "Survival" over "Follow Me"

Album Cover Review: Psh.  Cool...I guess.  C-

8.   The Killers - Battle Born

TD5 was swearing by the great narrative qualities as exhibited by Brandon Flowers and while that's true, I could not bring myself to like this album all that much.  It was okay in an average sort of way but it started strong and I had hope.  The first track screamed inventiveness but then the rest of the album quickly descended into a sort of country feel that I could not love.

Songs Worth Listening to: "Flesh and Bone", and "Heart of a Girl"

H1 vs Or 2: 5 > 6.  A winner is H1 with "A Matter of Time" over "Deadlines and Comittments"

Album Cover Review: When it comes to The Killers, they do not often disappoint in this regard.  It's the least they could do.  B

7.  Keane - Strangeland

Admittedly, Keane will forever have a difficult task with any album they put forth after having one of the best albums in existence in Under The Iron Sea.  Yes, I am telling you that I will always be a biased jerk about it but can you blame me?

Strangeland does not come close but in its defense, it does recall the second greatest effort by Keane that was Hopes and Fears.  It does not quite get to that level even but there are some moderately good tracks to enjoy and it's not all a complete waste.  It's actually quite the average album making it non-offending, which is what Keane has become... familiar and familiarly dull.

Songs Worth Listening to: "Black Rain", "The Starting Line" and "Sea Fog".  The last song is mostly good save some bit at the end but it makes me realize that they should stick to songs about the sea.  That seems to work out for them.

H1 vs Or 2: 5 < 6.  A winner is me with "Still Life" over "Dive In"

Album Cover Review: It's a beautiful photograph but what's so Strangeland about it? It's reminiscent of another album cover great - Original Pirate Material.  I loved that one and I love this one too.  A-

6.  Imagine Dragons - Night Visions

At $1.99, I wanted to see what all the hipster fuss was about.  What I got is a very strange, uneven sort of listening experience.  Honestly, when I tallied up the songs total, they did not do so poorly on a song by song basis save that one song that achieved the unattainable - it managed to get a -1 on a sale of .5 to 5 stars.

They could be pretty fun in concert, I reckon but as an album...what exactly is their style? There are familiar sounds of Vampire Weekend (a band I don't care for really), Phoenix, Men at Work, electronic (?!) and one song in particular that is a call back to The Killers' Hot Fuss ("Hear Me") (and I have no problem with a Hot Fuss being that it held a solid place in my End of Decade review.)

Then there's the lead vocalist.  I have no idea what to make of that man's voice.  In keeping with the multitude of styles, his voice often sounds a bit out of sorts.  It's not grating but does not always fit either.  It's odd.

In all, it's a weird, uneven album all mixed together as if it's their first and last which leaves for a jarring listening experience when consumed in its entirety.  Direction? Who needs it.  And why not I guess, in a time when singles make stars and only nerds like me care about an album.


Songs Worth Listening to: "It's Time", "Bleeding Out", "Radioactive" and "Nothing Left to Say"

H1 vs Or 2: 5 < 6.  A winner is me with "Amsterdam" over "On Top of the World"

Album Cover Review: Reminds me of a dark video I watched this year by The Shins.  I like the dark colours and the expanse of wasteland.  A

5.  Menomena - Moms

I did not even know this was out this year! But TD5 and I happened to stumble upon a review of it someplace and it was immediately purchased.  The release of any new album from this bands leaves me excited at the promises of weirdness and uniqueness that Menomena creates.  But then it happened - we discovered that one of the three band members left the band.  I listened with apprehension, hoping that the one member whose vocals I enjoyed the most did not depart...Whilst understanding that they all equally contribute and there is no primary vocalist or writer.

Still... with a founding member gone (again, of which now two members had to create a plethora of sound and layering I've come to expect from them), I hoped for the best while expecting the worst.

From the very beginning, there was an upbeat quality to the usual melancholy.  It was completely unexpected while being completely refreshing.  Lyrically, it was biting and the weirdness and greatness of the music shone - talk about some heavy, in your face bass lines with underlying, accompanying drum beats! Sparse but noticeable piano keys all mixed in with Spaghetti Western sensibilities.  It was almost unrecognizable and daring while all the while retaining the Menomena quirk.

But it would not be Menomena without the brooding oddities with some of the content so sharp and disturbing that it can be quite the cringe worthy experience.  Somehow the album manages to present a more focused effort and that's not a bad thing necessarily.  I'm looking forward to the next and will enjoy this one greatly in the meanwhile.

Songs Worth Listening to: "Pique", "Tantalus", "Capsule", "Don't Mess with Latexas"and "Plumage"

H1 vs Or 2: 5 > 6.  A winner is H1 with "Heavy is as Heavy Does" over "Giftshoppe"

Album Cover Review: Another fantastic, creepy cover.  Just stare into the abyss.  That's right my Master and I will do as you command and give you an A+

4.  The Shins - Port of Morrow

Had I not known that most of The Shins was no more, would I have heard the departure and a completely different band on Port of Morrow? James Mercer's voice is so distinguishable but it may have been a bit difficult and with songs like "Bait and Switch", it would be easy to be deceived by the fun nature.  Yet, as a whole, this album lacked some of the charm of their last (and super stellar - go get yourself a copy now) Wincing the Night Away.  

Maybe I'm just talking out of my arse since I have that knowledge in my head.  It's by no means a terrible album.  One of the greatest songs I've heard this year starts this album strong.  The aforementioned "Bait and Switch" keeps it The Shins happy but I found the album as a whole sort of average good (and on the quiet side) but it certainly is not without its moments of greatness but that's what I found - just some moments mixed into the otherwise solid listen.  Ah, the problems of high expectations.  But as with my initial short-sighted assness on Wincing the Night Away, maybe it'll take me a year or two to realize this one's potential.

Songs Worth Listening to: "The Rifle's Spiral", "Port of Morrow", "Bait and Switch", and "Simple Song"

H1 vs Or 2: 5 < 6.  A winner is me with "No Way Down" over "September"

Album Cover Review: Wait a minute...this seems a lot like Imagine Dragons'...but better!  A+

3.  Two Door Cinema Club - Beacon

I was of the mind to dislike this or at the very least to be very "meh" about it but at TD5's insistence, I gave it an honest go.  What a year or a forced, repeated listen can make! Or maybe, this Sophomore album by Two Door Cinema Club is just better than their first (and I think I gave that a pretty poor review).  So good is this new one though that I have decided that I'll go back and give the first another chance.

Okay, maybe this album is not the best thing since sliced bread and as I'm looking at my notes, there were a few lowly scored tracks but of the 11, the majority were better than average songs much to my surprise.  One song in particular became an instant classic and on heavy rotation on first listen.  What I did like about this album was the musical arrangement on some of the tracks - the fast pace breakdown at the end of many of them or the initial set up (see "Pyramid") but I'm unsure on the ones that sound a bit smug - a bit...green (see "Pyramid").  There's some of the hipster sense going on here that angers the blood!

Still, decent work, Two Door Cinema Club.  Not bad at all.

Songs Worth Listening to: "Handshake", "Someday", "Wake Up", "Sleep Alone", "Settle", and "Pyramid" (okay, I'm still not sure on this last one).

H1 vs Or 2: 5 > 6.  A winner is H1 with "Someday" over "Sleep Alone"

Album Cover Review: I can't even begin to express how much I dislike this album cover.  Or wait, here we go:  F - -

2.  Janelle Monáe - The ArchAndroid

On the one hand, I do not like the pull from different genres making this feel like an unfocused album but on the other hand, the album represents a complete celebration of music.

It's political, social, and off-kilter.  Give me an album that just flows one song to the next and I will be all over it.  With so many influences, it's actually a pretty terrific blend once you get used to the madness of it all.

Vocal maturity and accompanying fantastic musical genius make this album one of the most impressive displays of talent.  It starts like a powerhouse track after track and suffers only for being a bit too ambitious in length with closing tracks winding down the album and for me, some of the weakest.  And I say that yet, it's probably just the style I don't particular enjoy because they are still some solid numbers.

At it's core, The ArchAndroid is a brilliant journey in funk, emotional weight, dance, groove and all done with impeccable style in its artistic blend of classical, soul (and for good measure, a total Jpop styled song) and rock with heartfelt execution.

Songs Worth Listening to: "Dance or Die (feat. Saul Williams)", "Faster", "Tightrope", "Wondaland", "Oh, Maker", and "Mushrooms & Roses".

H1 vs Or 2: 5 < 6.  A winner is me with "Cold War" over "Sir Greendown"

Album Cover Review: I think it's safe to say that you put that cutie Janelle on the cover of anything and I will more than likely swoon.  Make her up to be a doe in headlights Android and I'm okay with that too.  Experimental, weirdly scientific and pure B rated sci-fi mess of a Goddess! ("goddess" term as coined by TD5) A-

1.  Kimbra - Vows

Yes.  In a strange twist that not even I saw coming, I've placed an album by a female artist that sings as my number 1 album for the year.  The fact that I have willingly listened to an album by a female artist that sings on my own is a feat in of itself!

I do it sometimes but... yeah.  I am not known to be partial.

Then that grating, overkill of a song by Goyte came out and everyone and their mothers seemed to be all up ons.  I can't say I cared but H1 did the kindness of showing me the weirdo featured as the guest vocalist on that track in her own video for "Settle Down".  I expressed my shared concern at the sheer weirdness of her hands flailing about but it was when Kimbra had a breakdown dance after some equally odd vocal quirks that I secretly fell in love.  I became TD5 in that moment but kept my interest to myself.

A superb Amazon digital deal later, I "bought" this album under the pretense that maybe H1 herself was interested in listening to it.

She advised me she was not and so I listened with my good pair of headphones (yes...recall that I used H1 as an excuse to buy this album for myself after all but shhh, no one knew!).

I was so drawn in by the vocal prowess of "Settle Down" that it took me a few days to move along.  What I found was so much damned talent, in a brilliantly, superbly high-valued production presentation with layers upon layers of intriguing sounds coupled with layers upon layers of Kimbra's own vocal ambition acting as a the stand out instrument holding it all together.

And then I discovered she could perform live like no other.

This album is nothing short of amazing in its powerful delivery, soul, and sometimes pop like fun.  It's everything I'd expect myself to hate and yet, what's crafted here is just so much diversity and beautiful artistry that it deserves every sort of praise I can throw at it.  Now to get those fools (MC and Frass, yep...you two fools!) on board to listen and love as TD5, H1 and I have done...

Songs Worth Listening to: A favour to yourself would be to listen to the whole thing but indulge your ears on "Settle Down", "Cameo Lover", "Good Intent", "Come Into My Head", "Sally I Can See You" and "Warrior" (H1's favourite and her best) and then go grab "Limbo" (bonus track on the Deluxe Version).

H1 vs Or 2: 5 < 6.  A winner is me with "Good Intent" over "Old Flame"

Album Cover Review: It's our cutie girl..in black, white and strange.  B+

Currently listening to: "Scarlet Fields" by The Horrors.

Merry Christmas, Everyone!

Some of you are already well into the Christmas festivities whilst here at the HOchieS', it's bed time.  We will update the blog later today for the Christmas loot but for now, Merry Christmas!

We hope it'll be a great day for all.

The Airing of Grievances: 2012

It's that time of year again...it's time for Festivus!

And with Festivus, comes the Airing of Grievances.

You lot have been pretty horrendous, I must say and are all deserving of the following:

But since we only had one, we sent it to MC.  That's not to say he made Number 1 on the list this year but we happened to get a package out that day and in it went.  And had we thought it about well, X surely would have gotten that.  Mmhmm.

I was also hoping that the World was going to End on Friday so that I would not be re-gifted that coal next year.  H1 and I have decided that we will keep this coal circled among the frenemies.  So...think carefully, MC...

Until next year!

Rabbit, Rabbit, Rabbit. Hare, Hare, Hare.

Even though there are now only 22 days until the Zombie Apocalypse, I am still intent on wishing all of my frenemies some good luck because now it's just about wishing you to become zombies instead of zombie food.

Good luck, all and Happy December.

A Knuckle to the Eyeball and Storm King

In the place of wandering off to a Black Friday shopping mess with the ever so thrilling expectation of being trampled upon and pushed by complete strangers, the HOchieS with Luuuiiissss, TD5 and a gaggle of children went off to Storm King's Art Center.  It was the sensible thing to do! And we did not even need a knuckle to the eyeball to help us think.

Frankly, we've never actually gone Black Friday shopping.  Or maybe there was that one time TD5 and Luuuiisss went...but since then, and even at that time, it's been all about Black Friday shopping at the Happiest Place on Earth - Amazon.com.

No, no.  It's not Disney, fools.  I thought we discussed this already?

It was a brilliant day on Friday weather wise.  It was sunny (alright, that's not brilliant for me but brilliant for photo taking opportunities, if I must), and not a biting cold November day and it was in fact, the perfect sort of day to walk the acres at Storm King.

So a-walking we went.

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday to TD5 and Bughie J.!!!!

Was there cake this day? Lo Mein with pork? (on that I can be assured that TD5 had some) or maybe a cat meowing at your door at wee hours in the morning? Surely there only to wish you a Happy Birthday and surely not in some sort of twisted, evil cat plan?

Whatever happened, we hope it was a wonderful day.

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

I trust my frenemies will have a wonderful day today even though quite the lot of you don't celebrate this day.  Just know we miss you all and that the HOchieS are thankful for all of you...  Some more than others.

Bwahahaha.

What the What.

My camera has finally returned to me and I couldn't be more excited.

And what sort of craziness do I get to take (awful) pictures of on it's first foray back into the world?

Yep, snow. 

I could not stay out there to take any sort of interesting pictures because it's pretty dangerous out there with the wind kicking up.

However, I just wanted to show you the shitnanigans regarding the snow, as H1 would probably want me to point out.

After the Hurricane last week and the Nor'Easter we're currently embroiled in, it's only serving to make me that much more convinced that the Zombie Apocalypse is soon headed our way.

Seriously though, this storm is a tragedy on top of all the hell many others faced last week and are still facing.

I did not get a chance to wish my good luck chant at the beginning of November but I'll wish it now for everyone.

"Rabbit, Rabbit, Rabbit.  Hare, Hare, Hare."

November....please stop this ridiculous behaviour.

Pumpkins and Lies at the Great Jack O'Lantern Blaze

It's been a couple of years since we went to the Great Jack O' Lantern Blaze at Van Cortland Manor, but it has not been long enough for us to forget the sights at the last exhibit.

October 12th was bitterly cold.  It was cold enough in fact, that Active Goat T. and Alex felt justified in proclaiming that "Winter is Coming" or rather, that "Winter Is Here".  I often marvel at their ridiculousness.  Everyone knows that the official start to Winter for our part of the world is December 21st.  Coincidentally, that is the start to the Zombie Apocalypse/Armageddon, so it's going to be our most brutal winter in the history of the world.

It might be the last Winter ever...but let us not dwell on that for now.

With the cold air, it was sort of nice trekking along with frenemies and family in tow, in the dark with our way lit by over 3,000 carved pumpkins.  It's the sort of fun October event to do to put one in the mood to celebrate all the tricks, treats and ghoulish fun of Halloween...

...Or so you may believe until you figure out that the exhibit is in fact full of shitnanigans.  As H1 and I made our way past the pumpkin grave yard, bursting with zombie hands (a preview of things to come in the near future) and single pumpkins that needed some grading (a lot of "F - -" pumpkins to be sure), our hearts trembled with fear upon the realization of something rather sinister.

Yes, even more sinister than this clownish, starry-eyed fool.  "D -", by the way.

 I believe it was past the house and around the bend that we made the startling discovery.

I don't know what is going on with those pumpkins on top of there.  I don't know what they're supposed to be.  Lumps of turds? Your guess is as good as mine.

The discovery was that not only was there a giant, skull faced spider lurking outside the house and the occupants should probably call in an exterminator for the hellish problem on their hands but it was also a very familiar spider.

No, no.  I'm pretty sure we did not meet him before at the bar or at a concert.

I'm fairly certain we met this very same spider at the Blaze some years ago.  I have no idea how long spiders can live (and this one may have been a special case being that...uh, he's...of special circumstances) but he was hanging out by some dinosaurs.

DINOSAURS.  The same damned dinosaur exhibit we saw when we were there the last time!

Look at them! Look at how familiar like they appear! Where's Stomp-a-saurus? Distant cousin to the Active Goat?

Logistically, there is no way for them to carve over 3,000 plus pumpkins to be able to withstand and hold up under warm weather conditions (which to achieve, they would have to be carving months in advance of October).

But, wax pumpkins? Fake pumpkins?! Are these the lies I've been dealing with all these years?! Are they using the same stencils and putting them in the exact same position as they did three years ago? Shitnanigans! Shitnanigans, I say!!!!!!!!

Don't you be beady-eying me!

And stop laughing at me Cheshire Cat!

Also, there are no such things as fairies!

And I will kick down your mushroom houses!

Ahem... anger aside, there were a couple of new portions of the fake exhibit that were spectacular.  There were giant jack-in-the-box displays as part of the Scary circus portion of the exhibit.  I did not get pictures of those because H1's phone battery died by the time we got to that point (and I still do not have my camera back from shop repairs hence double the anger and lack of blogging).

 Outside the house, a demonic dance around a giant fire pit looked like quite the fun to join in but alas, I do not think my living kind was welcome.

There were also some witches brewing some toil and trouble.  They also give us some stank eye which I did not appreciate.

But how is one supposed to take some witches with ridiculous hats seriously?

But perhaps the most brilliant display was the giant Grandfather, Halloween Clock complete with Jack O' Lantern Pendulum heralding the End of Times.  The Clock stood tall at the start of an eerie dirt road lined with mini Jack O' Lanterns that snickered and flickered off into the darkness, leading where? Who knows?

It was a spectacular sight and made me curse that much more for not having my camera to capture the sheer magnificence of the set up.

As I was standing there trying to get a decent enough picture to share, a chilling laugh could be heard in the dark somewhere down the path.  "That was not cool!", I shouted.  In that moment, it was fairly scary but yeah, it was actually fantastically cool and added so much more depth to an already amazing set piece. 

Despite the lies upon the realization of shitnanigans, we had a fun evening.  It's just not something we may revisit any time in the next few years or so.

Happy Halloween

Hi Ho, Halloween Hellions.

We're writing this to you from the past being that we do not know what the Future may bring on Halloween... 

There may be power, or there may be no power by the time Wednesday rolls around...who knows? As this is being written, we're just about to enter the extra dangerous spots of Hurricane Sandy that involve 60 to 80 mph winds.

With that said, we're saying goodbye to our Drinking Lego Robot.  Summer's long been over but without a working camera, we have not really been able to capture an ideal Autumn picture to represent on the blog.  What? Draw one? Yeah...I guess... but what's there to motivate us? WHAT, I SAY?!?!

Heh.

Anyway, bye bye Drinking Robot.  Not that he has not had reason to drink as it has been unseasonably warm this October what with this Indian Summer type thing we've been having (and now a Hurricane...).

For now, hello to Halloween Hoodlums who dance around a giant fire where they're cooking up... humans.  I don't know, it's probably best not to ask or stare for too long lest you too end up as embers.

Happy Halloween, everyone!

Currently: Listening to the wind outside, hoping to not lose power and thinking about everyone's safety.

Harvest Moon'ing

With Hurricane Sandy currently blowing through the Tri-State, The HOchieS are in our respective houses bunking down in true Harvest Moon style.

We hope everyone is safe wherever you may be during this storm.

Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday to Frass even though no matter what happens, he will get a lambasting some time this year.  You know, you're only making things worse for yourself.

Hope you are safe wherever you are with this madness of a Hurricane.

Kimbra and Her Magical Frock in Limbo

It's true.

Kimbra has more than half a song in spite of what many of you clowns may believe.

Not only does she have more than half a song (as featured on Goyte's one-"hit" wonder song that was all the rage this year), but her album is 50 times better than that of the aforementioned Goyte.

It's an album that's actually 50 times better than most but I'll leave the gushing for the end of year review.

Thus, even threatening me with housing her concert at Webster Hall could not deter me.  Webster Hall's not that awful and it certainly is no Terminal 5 which I would have more than likely passed up.

But with TD5, Active Goat T., Alex and H1 in tow, I'm incredibly happy that TD5 and I did not pass up the opportunity to see the fantastic Kimbra.

We began the evening at Kenkas (sorry B.!) and ate a bunch of our favourites but nothing spectacularly strange as with past ventures being that Beetchie was not with me.  I don't think that gives me an excuse for going there without her and I won't tell her that the food was really good that night.

Especially our awesome fries which is fast becoming the only place to eat fries.

After a satisfying meal (and some trauma to the Active Goat's fragile, young mind of the aesthetics on display at Kenkas), we traipsed on over to Webster Hall for the best $20 concert I've ever attended.  In fact, I knew the evening could be nothing but awesome considering that's the cheapest I've ever paid for a concert.

That alone is amazing in itself.

Ushered upstairs, we were met with the sounds of opener The Step Kids.

We've seen some pretty horrendous openers in our time but The Step Kids should not be lumped with the lowest of the low.  They were more middle ground, I suppose.  Musically, they sounded pretty good but they were a bit too much funk and too much on a 70's vibe for my taste.  I mean, what business did these white boys from Connecticut have being so psychedelic, funk?!  It was funny save the forced falsetto of one of the vocalists ever so often.  That was done too much and everything just sort of blended into one song.

They did have an awesome little stage show though with the lights... 

...which you cannot really tell from this picture.  You can be assured that it was cool though.

After exiting stage right, and then brushing past us in the crowd (yeah, the drummer with some girl squeezed his way past us after their set was over), we had a little bit of wait while Kimbra's roadies set up her stage.  It was the point when her second microphone stand was set up complete with her boo boo tambourine that TD5, H1 and I lost it.

Some smoke machines later, a dimming of the lights and the extended opener version of "Limbo" playing over the loud speakers that things got under way.

It was quite the thrilling little builder of anticipation...I know I was excited as it's one of my favourite tracks.

There were lots of purple lights and soon, Kimbra came dancing out and straight into "Limbo", and she was dressed in an outfit that many considered doing for Halloween.  I loved its weirdness and the blast of multiple colours that Kimbra came dolled up in.  Soon, H1 dubbed the giant purple thing draped over her shoulders as "The Magical Frock" and so it shall be remembered from this day forward.

Our time spent with Kimbra felt incredibly short even though she played just about every song from her album but I guess time flies when you're having fun, which is exactly what we did.  We danced, yelled, screamed, cheered and marveled at Kimbra's genuinely excited demeanour.  The girl was so happy, it was too cute for words.

Scary at times, too.

 To recap as we always do, here are the highlights and lowlamps -

The Lowlamps

1.  I was expecting hipsters.  Hipsters are lowlamps for sure but what I was not expecting was probably one of the rudest crowd I have ever encountered.  I don't know what the fans could be categorized as but they were not hipsters.  Hipsters, at the very least, are polite and tend to stand around not doing much.  The jerks at this concert were pushing their way to the front, cutting off a lot of us and standing way too close to us and others in an attempt to get up to the front.  These people exist at all concerts but it was particular horrendous this night.

2.  The Great Herding of Webster Hall.  Marketing or herding, it was awful.  After Kimbra was done, there was a herding situation of epic proportions that had us going down flights of stairs and into a section for "more live music", the bar area (in which we almost lost TD5 because he was very tempted to sit down and have one) and an eventual street escape.  It was ingenious and pure evil at the same time.

The Highlights

1.  Our girl, Kimbra! Her vocal range is nothing short of spectacular.  She sounded great live and even better than on disc (if even possible!) changing up songs just enough to be interesting and not jarring.  Her personality on stage was playful, joyous and again, she was just so darn cute.  I think it's safe to say that TD5, H1 and I can highly recommend seeing her live if anyone is afforded the opportunity.  I really do hope this girl is going to get a lot more exposure than she is being given.

2.  Webster Hall's Sound System.  Everything sounded so incredibly awesome which H1 rightly pointed out at some point during the evening.  It was clear, and fantabulous.

3.  Two Microphones? Kimbra's vocal prowess is so intense that the girl needs two microphones to sing with.  Two.  At the same time.  It's a spectacle.  I say vocal prowess, while others might say she's a wide-mouthed frog.  Same difference?

4.  That outfit.  The purple Magical Frock that completed the outfit was just dynamite.  It wouldn't be a Kimbra concert without some weirdness/artistic madness and insane hand gestures on her part.  At one point the Magical Frock got away from her shoulders which she mentioned too as "having never happened to her before...must be New York". 

1. 5.   "Settle Down".  Apparently, we weren't playing along.  By "we" I meant the fools in the crowd.  We were supposed to be singing along and we didn't (TD5, H1 and I did) but no.  Anyway, she restarted it and the entire performance was the best.
   
   
   The Kimbra at Webster Hall on October 19, 2012 Set List:
   
   
   1.  Limbo
   2.  Posse
   3.  Good Intent
   4.  Plain Gold Ring
   5.  Two Way Street
   6.  Marigold
   7.  Old Flame
   8.  Warrior
   9.  Something in the Way You Are
   10. Settle Down
   11. Cameo Lover
   12. Come Into My Head
   
   
   Encore:
   
   
   13. Withdraw
   14. Call Me
   As you can see from the set list, I got the better song.  Or rather, we had never heard that song before but it was quite the danceable fun song that I cannot wait to get on a follow up cd or something.   I managed to get the better song over H1's.  Heh.  I think I got choked for that at some point.
   
   In closing, (I don't know why my blog post just got messed up - unrelated but I cannot seem to fix it) it was a great night with lots of fun with friends and to Kimbra: Our hearts are already open.
   
   

   

Happy Birthday!

It was Boohead's Birthday yesterday.  I blame my lateness on the Lego building that has been consuming our lives every evening since Sunday. 

Curse you, Haunted Mansion!

Little BooHead...how is it you're six years old already?

Rabbit, Rabbit, Rabbit. Hare, Hare, Hare.

Last month was terrible, I have to tell you.

Hope this one is better for all.

Good luck everyone.

A "Keed"napping at the Job

It was Thursday when members of The Avengers and S.H.I.E.L.D. and Friends of Hello Kitty went missing.

A missing report with Reward details were posted.

I guess no one will take a knuckle to the eyeballs seriously.

A ransom note and follow up "demands" letter were received.