Aggie87

It was certainly ages ago, Matthew! I'm glad you went and saw them in Seattle, and enjoyed it so much. I did a search and I think first mentioned Porcupine Tree on this board in 2003, almost 20 years ago (yikes). I'm not quite as obsessive about them as I was earlier, but I still love their music, and the overall evolution of their style and sound. I also like a few of SW's solo albums better than some of the PT albums, which I'm not sure I ever would have thought earlier on. I still think the stretch of albums from Signify through Fear of a Blank Planet is almost perfect.

Bumping this old thread... Porcupine Tree reunited this year, and put out a new album, "Closure/Continuation". It doesn't appear to have really been a conscious decision to reunite, just a sharing of musical ideas mainly between Steven Wilson and Gavin Harrison over the past decade, which then turned into Richard Barbieri also interacting with the other two guys. SW played a lot of the bass on these jams, so apparently they didn't get to the point of asking original bassist Colin Edwin to participate. Anyway, I really enjoy the album, it took a little while to hit me right off, but it's a grower, I think. They also have a world tour going on, that started on Saturday night in Toronto. Montreal is tonight, with a number of dates in the U.S. to follow, and then Mexico City, a date in Chile, and then Europe. I was able to make it to the Toronto show, and it was a fantastic experience. A lot of joy in the sold out audience, just to see the band back together, after a decade of being defunct and no prospects for a reunion. Randy McStine augments the band on guitar and vocals, and the bass duties are being handled by Nate Navarro. Both did well in their roles, and the core band sounded amazing. The light show and videos are also well done, and fit the music very well. If anyone is thinking about seeing them, I whole-heartedly recommend you go! 09/10 – Toronto, ON @ Meridian Hall 09/12 – Laval, QC @ Place Bell 09/14 – Boston, MA @ MGM Music Hall at Fenway 09/16 – New York, NY @ Radio City Music Hall 09/17 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Met 09/18 – Washington, DC @ The Anthem 09/20 – Chicago, IL @ Auditorium Theatre 09/21 - Milwaukee, WI @ Uihlein Hall Marcus Center 09/23 – Irving, TX @ The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory 09/25 – Denver, CO @ Bellco Theatre 09/28 – San Francisco, CA @ The Masonic 09/30 – Los Angeles, CA @ Greek Theatre 10/04 – Mexico City, MX @ Pepsi Center 10/07 – Santiago, CL @ Movistar Arena 10/21 – Berlin, DE @ Max Schmelinghalle 10/23 – Vienna, AT @ Gasometer 10/24 – Milan, IT @ Forum 10/27 – Stockholm, SE @ Globe 10/28 – Copenhagen, DK @ Falkoner Theatre 10/30 – Katowice, PL @ Spodek Hall 11/02 – Paris, FR @ Le Zenith 11/04 – Stuttgart, DE @ Porsche Arena 11/06 – Oberhausen, DE @ KP Arena 11/07 – Amsterdam, NL @ Ziggodome 11/09 – Zurich, CH @ Halle 662 11/11 – London, UK @ SSE Arena

Boston, 5 August 2022

I do love me some Joe Ely for sure. Grissom adds a distinct style to just about anything he's involved in. Here he is with the Allman Bros.

I just got a signed copy of this one a couple of weeks ago from David. He's an amazing guitar player! I like all of his solo work, and his work with Storyville, James McMurtry, Mellencamp, Joe Ely, on and on.

The Minus 5 - Of Monkees and Men

Tears for Fears - The Tipping Point

Street art, Kansas City 7/15/22

Article is from 2016, but maybe some of the shops are still there: https://thevinylfactory.com/features/lisbon-best-record-shops-guide/

FWIW, I go into Philly pretty regularly and love it (more so than any comparably sized city in Texas). I don't know if it will/would help Rooster or Mrs. Rooster with their issues, but it's a fascinating place.

Tapping Maple trees for syrup (takes ~40 gallons of sap to make 1 gallon of syrup) Green Mountains, Vermont 7/24/22

Love Luna! I just listened to "Lunafied" yesterday.

I just got a package sent from a musician in Austin that got to southern New Jersey in 3 business days, by media mail. Ordered on Thursday, June 30th. Arrived here today, July 5th, with a holiday weekend in the middle.

Denali peeking through the clouds, 6/19/22

Hah! I appreciate your subtle humor here!

Hubbard Glacier, 6/21/22 - this glacier is 600' tall at the end (here in the pic), and 350' visible above the waterline.

What do you think about this one? I just purchased the deluxe digital version of the album (the cd will follow eventually), but haven't given it a spin yet. According to SW and the band, the album has hit #1 in the U.K.

He also drummed on Harrison's "All Things Must Pass album", including the "My Sweet Lord" single. Ringo played tambourine on that track, according to White. He was a solid drummer for Yes, not a virtuoso like Bill Bruford. But he fit their music well, I think. Here's a version of Starship Trooper from their Symphonic tour in 2001.

Joshua Trees, Nevada 5/16/22 Las Vegas, 5/17/22

Paul Carrack is great! Oh wait, you meant Paul Simon! You can call him Al. Oh you meant Paul Westerberg, he rocks. Maybe Paul Anka, he's old school cool.

Dan, the World Health Organization believes masks suppress the spread of Covid. So does the Mayo Clinic. As does Johns Hopkins. So does the CDC. I can go on but I hope you get the point. Legitimate disease/virologists/medical/health organizations all seem to believe masks suppress the spread of COVID, which logically means that fewer lives would be resultingly lost. I believe them. You apparently don't (?). https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/advice-for-public/when-and-how-to-use-masks#:~:text=Masks%20should%20be%20used%20as,as%20effective%20as%20possible. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/coronavirus/in-depth/coronavirus-mask/art-20485449 https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/coronavirus/coronavirus-face-masks-what-you-need-to-know https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/science/science-briefs/masking-science-sars-cov2.html If you don't believe in any group of scientist/medical professionals (all of whom have nothing to gain by lying about this), I'm not sure how to respond further. Or what you're actually disagreeing with.

Todd Snider - Acoustic Hymns and Stoner Fables

Three people I personally knew died from COVID - my unvaccinated uncle, a young healthy female coworker who elected not to get vaccinated (she was also the mother of three young children) who sat 3 desks away from mine, and an admin assistant's father (don't know his vax status). You'll never convince me COVID was as trivial as many tried to make it out to be. I believe that at least 2 of the 3 would still be alive today had they chosen to get vaccinated. I also still have anger that the previous President trivialized masks during the onset of this pandemic. I am convinced at least 150-200K in the U.S. lost their lives unnecessarily because of that dismissal, and the resulting early spread of the virus before vaccines were available. Any attempt to discuss this calmly (with factual information) with right-wingers on FB or elsewhere usually results in a "laughing face" emoji in response to any attempt at a discussion. Instead of responding with any educated response. That is also maddening that people won't take the time to actually educate themselves.

Padre Island 4/18/22 Garden of the Gods & Pikes Peak, 4/20/22

Dean Wareham - I Have Nothing to Say to the Mayor of L.A.