• Links Round Up for 10/24/10

    • Dropbox’s Y Combinator Funding Application: Y Combinator is an investing firm for tech companies. This is the application Dropbox submitted to them and ultimately won funding with.
    • Above the Fold: “Above the fold” is a term used in newspapers for when you fold a paper in 1/2. The most important stories should be on the top half, or above the fold. People try to apply this to websites by wanting to put everything important before you have to scroll. You do not have to do that. People can scroll just fine.
    • Oct. 18, 1985: Nintendo Entertainment System Launches: See how awesome Oct. 1985 was? NES launched just 2 days before I did. I was destined to play video games.
    • FaceTime for Mac: Apple launched a beta of their popular iPhone app for the Mac. Allows you to make FaceTime calls to other Macs or iPhone users.
    • The Truth about Burning Bridges: This is something I’m often worried about, but have found about the same results.
    • After 31 Years, Sony Ends Production of the Walkman: The Walkman was awesome. It let you take music with you. How crazy is that? I had one, which I used to listen to Green Day, mostly.

    A new personal splash page service called About.Me entered beta this week. Here is my profile. Also, I saw Muse last night in concert. If you ever get the chance, you should most certainly go. Finally, I bought an iPad this week. Expect a review in the near future.

  • Since the Last Time I Saw Blink 182

    blink 182

    Since 2001, the last time I saw Blink 182 live (in my first ever concert experience), I’ve…

    • Learned how to develop websites
    • Gone to over 50 other concerts
    • Started my own freelance business
    • Graduated High School
    • Gone to Ireland
    • Totaled a car
    • Held six different jobs
    • Graduated College with my Bachelor’s
    • Started and Finished my Masters in Software Engineering
    • Got my thesis published
    • Started a company with a friend

    I saw them last night in Philly and they were great- I was really excited to see them again after 8 years and they did not disappoint. Travis even topped his drum solo from last time. To get my thoughts from last night on Twitter, you can use this handy search query. If you were there, let me know what you thought!

  • Summer Music Round Up.

    Seeing as I didn’t write too much on music this summer, I am going to offer my thoughts in this one, full package post. I did go to a number of concerts, and while they don’t account for all my summer music, the best comes from them.

    Dragonforce

    First, probably my favorite band of the summer, DragonForce. I saw them at Ozzfest and they rocked the house. They are a very 80’s band that tells epic stories of war in their intense ballads. The instrumental parts of the songs and the solos are a testament to their talent as a band. If you are looking for something to rock out too, I strongly suggest them. In the past few months I have been listening to a lot of punk/’emo’ bands and they have brought me back to the metal side.

    Gym Class Heroes

    Gym Class Heroes, categorized as “Indie/Hip-Hop,” is a band I heard about at Warped Tour but did really hear until I heard their song The Queen and I on the radio. I really liked the unique sound of rock and hip-hop, and I wasn’t disappointed when I got the CD. There is more hip-hop then rock admittedly, but their songs seem to focus a lot on the lyrics and while maybe not the best message at times, it is a fun CD to listen to, and one that will get you pumped when you need it. Along with The Queen and I, I really like Papercut, 7 Weeks and Scandalous Scholastics, which is about him having an affair with his teacher. Isn’t that fantastic!?

    Some other music I really got into, which I recently picked up, is The Academy Is and She Wants Revenge. The Academy Is is a punk/’emo’ band that I happen to really like- while the sound might be similar to other bands of the genre, it has that familiarity of bands I already know and listen to a lot, so it is easy for me to get into. She Wants Revenge on the other hand, has a very different sound. They seem like a Killers meets Techno rock group that is very catchy. They hooked me with their song Tear You Apart. I also picked up the new Stone Sour CD, but while there are a few great songs on the album, over all I was disappointed. Later!

    PS: The title song to the Snakes on a Plane Soundtrack (Snakes on a Plane (Bring it) by Cobra Starship, feat. Travis from Gym Class Heroes and the lead singer from The Academy is) is Fantastic, and I don’t care what anyone says!

  • The Bamboozle 2006

    BOOZLE06

    There is a lot to be said about the Bamboozle 2006. I went to Saturday’s show and I have to say that it was pretty f’ing wild. My friend Eric and I got there at about 1:30pm and the first thing we did was a meet and greet with Streetlight Manifesto. But that isn’t even the tip of the iceberg. Entering the outdoor complex, we made our way towards the main stages, where the really good bands were playing. We saw: Armor for Sleep, Mae, Reliant K, Sliverstien, Hawthorne Heights, All-American Rejects, Thursday and Fall Out Boy. We moshed hardcore to Silverstein, got beat up, throw down, surfed people and saved people during Hawthorne Heights, Rocked out during All-American Rejects and had some fun during Fall Out Boy. There were three categories we used to rate the show. Most Surprising Band, Best Band and Best Part of the Show.

    Most Surprising Band: Hawthorne Heights. Say what you will about their music, but they have one hell of a stage presence. They got the crowd going, interacted, and just knew how to put on a show. The music wasn’t too bad either.

    Best Band: All-American Rejects. During their set, they threw out beach balls, toilet paper (paper heart), moved the crowd and just did a great job. The crowd wasn’t too violent (for the most part). They made it seem like a small club show where you could really connect with the band.

    Best Part of the Show: Panic! at the Disco playing with Fall Out Boy. It was amazing. Fall Out Boy was like “How bad do you want it?!” The crowd blindly cheered. They start playing “I write Sins not Tragedies” by Panic. Enter, stage right, Panic! at the Disco. They played 1/2 way through the song and transitioned to Sugar, We’re going Down. It was awesome, even from far back you could feel the energy.

    All-in-all it was an awesome experience and unlike any concert/festival I have ever been to. You can find some pictures Here. Later!

  • CKY [again]

    CiG

    WOW. Over the last week I have been very very very busy, and will be until probably April 10th. Then I can breath and enjoy my (slightly longer) spring break. However, I did take the time last week, on Sunday night, to see CKY again. They came to a small club near my school called Tinks and I couldn’t say no.

    As usual, they put on a hell of a show. They played a few favorites, like Disengage the Simulator, Escape From Hellview, Close Yet Far, and a new favorite of mine, Shippensburg. The first time I heard it was the Albany show, and I had to hear it again. My favorite part of the show was probably when Chad did the bitch toss (which he retired in 2005) during a GG Allen song.

    After the show we stuck around and talked with the band. They are all really cool. My bro and I took our friend Melissa (it was her first show) around and helped her get her stuff signed. Over all a good time. If you ever get the chance to see CKY in concert, you MUST. Later

    Pics from this and the otehr show here

  • The HIM Show

    Valo

    After seeing HIM twice before, the first one being amazing, the second one being ok, I can say that this one ranks much closer to the first than the second. First off, both opening bands didn’t suck this time. I don’t know what it is, but HIM seems to have a knack for shitty openers. Finch, who played right before HIM, did kinda suck. They had energy, but the crowd wasn’t really into it. I felt kinda bad for the them, but it’s really not their ‘scene’. Skindred, the first band to play, was pretty good though. They had the energy, knew how to work the crowd, etc. The last HIM show had Arf Der Mur, which consisted of a female singer who was dumb as shit, and the music wasn’t very good either, and Monster Magnet- and the lead singer was a tool. So we are off to a good start. At around 9:30, HIM came on and opened with Wings of a Butterfly. Which was awesome. The show went well- they had a good amount of energy. They didn’t really talk to the crowd much, but didn’t need to. Then there was the encore. They came out, played a couple of songs, the last being Poison Heart, which is an awesome song. But after the song, they transitioned into this kind of instrumental piece where Valo sang and it was so emotional and wonderful- he ended the show but yelling “Please God help me” and bowed and went off the stage while the other members kept playing. One by one they came off the stage, the last one being Gas (the drummer). The lights slowly came on and everyone left, seemingly in awe from what they just saw. That’s how I felt anyway. Later!

  • Links

    So, yeah- there has been a lot I’ve wanted to say- but I really can’t find the time to sit down and write it. I’m banking on the fact that that will change at the end of this week when I go on Thanksgiving Break, which, baring tests or quizzes, I will be extending by 2 class days. But, for now, here are some links for you:


    Busted Tees has a new shirt that I happen to find hilarious. I highly recommend buying it- I know I will!#

    Save Arrested Development!- FOX has a knack for canceling great shows. AD is honestly the funniest show I have ever seen. It won 5 of the 7 Emmies it was nominated for, and FOX wants to oust it. We are hoping that with enough support, we can get them to bring it back, or get some other station to pick it up.#

    I saw Trans Siberian Orchestra last night. Pics on the pics page. Later!

  • The Misfits!

    The Misfits

    The Misfits show was awesome! Well- let me rephrase. When the Misfits played, it was incredible! However, there was 6 hours of opening bands. door opened at 6, the ‘Fits came on a little after 12. When they came on it was crazy though. Great Halloween set, and they opened with Halloween. They played for about hour- songs included Last Caress, Helena (Phil’s favorite song), Teenagers from Mars and American Psycho. Every song was at a really fast tempo. Like songs on speed. They came out for an encore, played Die Die my Darling, Rise Above, and ended on We are 138. It was some High Octane fun, plus, Jerry Only came right off the stage and started signing shit. Great night! Later!

    Get Cuts From the Crypt Greatest Hits 1996-2001 ||| View Flickr Pics

  • Bloc Party!

    Bloc Party

    The Bloc Party concert in Philly this past weekend was absolutly amazing. After the opening acts, [insert name] was weird and excentric, but got better towards the end. They had one song, Monte Cristo that was really good. I’m sorry I don’t know the name of the band. The Kills came on after that, and I liked them. The girl, though she did kinda look like the chick from The Ring, was totally hot. But then it was time for the main event.
    Bloc Party came on at 10, and went crazy. They are great performers. The light show was great, and the crowd was pretty cool. I didn’t really expect any ‘moshing’ or jumping around, and there was a lot. Everyone just went nuts for Banquet and Helicopter. They played until about 11, and then came out for 2 encores, and ended on The Answer, which was great. I also really enjoyed their performance of Pioneers which is a song I love. If you have never heard of Bloc Party, you can check them out here. Later!

    Buy Silent Alarm ||| View Flickr Pics

  • The U2 Concert

    Bono

    The culmination of 2 weeks of fun, excitment and some boozing. 12 days after I arrive in Dublin Int’l Airport, 11 days after our first night out, 8 days after Sean’s party, 3 days after I saw the most beautiful country side, after months of waiting, I saw U2. And it was incredible. The stage, the lights, the energy. Bono and the boys know how to put on a show. They came on at about 8:50pm- it was still light out. The opened with Vertigo. They played for about 2 and a half hours. They closed with Vertigo. The middle was a barrage of emotion and music coming both from the band and the audience. Durring Sometimes you can’t make it on your own Bono took his shades off, went off stage, and sang with every ounce of feeling he put into writing the song- everything the inspired him. The cameras focused on him the whole time. You could feel connected to him. He knows what he is doing and that is why U2 is arguably the greatest band in the world. The emotion Bono put into the performance is only comparable to the energy. Durring Sunday, Bloody Sunday and Where the Streets have no Name the crowd exploded in a burst of energy resonating from the stage and the whole place errupted and we sang along with Bono. Durring 2 parts of the show, Bono pulled audience members up on stage- one to give her a hug as he sang to her at the edge of the runway- and one so he could play guitar with them durring one of the songs. 90,000 people witnessed what was probably those people’s lives changing. I mean, how many people can say they jammed with Bono, or Bono sang to you. Only a handful. After the show I was left speechless and breathless- I have never been so exhausted after a show in my life. If you ever get the chance to see these guys live, do not pass it up. Later.