NLDS Game 1 Recap: A “Webb Gem”
The Giants game 1 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers can be summarized using one name, Logan Webb. The 24 year old pitched the game of his life last night, holding the Dodgers scoreless through 7.2 innings on 5 hits and 10 strikeouts. Last night’s outing put Logan Webb in the history books for the Giants, along with players like Tim Lincecum, and Madison Bumgarner. Along with Webb’s pitching, I saw a team that hit 3 home runs on the night, and pulled off one of the greatest double plays anyone has ever seen. So if you think last night’s win was an easy one, I would caution anyone to believe that tonight’s game 2 is going to go that smoothly. It will be interesting to see how the Dodgers respond to such a dominating performance by the Giants. I look forward to writing my thoughts about game 2 tomorrow, as another chapter in the Giants-Dodgers rivalry is written.
Radio Debut 3 Years Ago Today
For those of you who don’t know, long before I started this blog, I was the host of a weekly radio show on KSSU, a student-run radio station at Sac State. Today marks the third anniversary of that radio show, which I called “The Fletch Hour” in reference to a nickname I received at Wave Camp many years earlier. It’s funny to think about how uncomfortable I sounded trying to talk about the latest news in the world of sports and music on that day. As time went on, and I was able to get some more experience behind the mic, I eventually settled into a groove and found my place on air.
September 2021 Playlist
Hello everyone! I know it’s been a while since I’ve posted here, so I just wanted to make a quick post about some of the music I’ve been listening to this month. So far in September, I’ve really been enjoying Halsey’s new record If I can’t Have Love, I Want power, Big Red Machine’s How Long Do You Think It’s Gonna Last, and Lany’s gg bb xx. I do plan on giving all of these albums a complete review once I listen to them more. In the meantime, I will put a link to my September 2021 Spotify playlist at the end of this post.
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4RB3uvdJo5Dw5PdxoAkDll?si=4c2a944192754e08
Dead & Company Summer 2021 Tour Review-Philadelphia, PA
On the 4th night of their Summer Tour, Dead & Company played a show at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, PA. Having played a great show at Citi Field, in New York the previous night, I had high hopes for what the band could deliver in Philadelphia. Due to weather concerns, the band decided to play one really long set instead of their usual two-set show. I think this was a great decision because the 15 songs the band played Saturday night, were full of long elaborate jam sessions throughout. While the entire show was amazing, the two songs that stood out the most to me were “Sugaree” and “Morning Dew”. Overall, I would say that this show was my favorite of the 4 shows that Dead & Company played on their first week of the tour.
Some of my Alt-Indie Favorites
Here is an update about some of my favorite Alt-Indie music I have been listening to lately. I will put a link to a Spotify playlist I made below. This playlist features artists such as LANY, Valley, The 1975, Scarypoolparty, and a few others.
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4loq1BDp5R1zSFtEV6x41V?si=4a7bebe6e9e34cd0
Woodsquawk Music and Arts Festival 2021- A Concert in Your Mind
We are 11 days away from my favorite music festival of the year. This Memorial Day weekend Friday, May 28th through Sunday, May 30th, 96.9 The Eagle Sacramento’s Classic Rock station presents the 16th Annual Woodsquawk Music and Arts Festival. As always, The Eagle does a great job of playing all of the live classic rock music people love while making it seem like there are actually people at the show in person. The three-day festival will feature many legendary classic rock acts from different eras. I’ll be sure to post a link to the Spotify playlist I make from this year’s festival after it’s over. In the meantime, I will also attach the link to last year’s Woodsquawk playlist. I hope to see you all there.
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0V94dYOz72CnYGF1wjJByh?si=698c6c2b53da4a1c
Does Neil Young Have Too Much Music?
Earlier this week, I was listening to Neil Young when I came across an article about some of the new archival releases he has coming out later this year. This got me thinking about just how much music Neil Young has released. He has over 40 studio albums dating back to 1969, as well as 8 live albums. That number doesn’t account for all of the unreleased music that he puts on his own streaming service that his fans can subscribe to. As a fan of his music myself, I am left with the daunting task of deciding where to begin when it comes to blogging about my appreciation for his career, which spans over 50 years.
I am sure I will do a review of a few of his albums in the future, but which ones should I review first? Only time will tell. When looking at a songwriter with a career as prolific as Neil Young, the thought of having too much music to listen to and review is actually a good problem to have.
Jake Paul: From YouTube Stardom to Professional Boxer
YouTube star Jake Paul, who has over 20 million followers on his YouTube channel, is now taking his shot at another popular endeavor, professional boxing. In Jake Paul’s second career fight on November, 28th of last year, he knocked out former NBA Dunk Contest champion Nate Robinson as they were on the undercard for the Mike Tyson - Roy Jones Jr. fight. The only other fight in Jake Paul’s career came against Deji Olatunji another fellow YouTuber.
Tonight, Jake Paul goes back into the ring once again. This time, Paul is going to fight Ben Askren, who has a 10-2-1 professional fighting record in 22 career fights. Askren fought in MMA for 10 years from 2009-2019.
This fight was over rather quickly, as Jake Paul moved to 3-0 on his boxing career with a first round TKO, of Ben Askren, who fought in his first career boxing match tonight. Even ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith gave Jake Paul some credit on twitter saying, ”See, this has to stop. @jakepaul is not some scrub.” After tonight’s technical knockout victory it is quite possible that Jake Paul is no longer just a YouTube star, but a real threat in the boxing ring as well.
Album Review- Continuum John Mayer (2006)
At the beginning of his career it felt like John Mayer was known as a singer-songwriter from a radio prospective. With hits like “Your Body Is a Wonderland,” “Daughters,” and “Bigger Than My Body” John Mayer had already established himself as a very popular singer-songwriter. His 3rd LP Continuum would show fans and critics alike that he had a different side to him, combining the songwriting he was known for with the blues he grew up idolizing.
Continuum, which was produced by Mayer and Steve Jordan who also plays drums on the record, is the perfect mix of blues with a pop sensibility. The first song on the album “Waiting On the World to Change” is a song where John Mayer simply looks at the role his generation is playing in the world. He sings, “One day our generation is gonna rule the population” as a reminder to start paying attention to what is going on around us.
“Gravity,” which would later become the song that Mayer has to play at every show, is a bluesy number that sees John questioning the way some things in his life are turning out. Near the end of the song he proclaims “Just keep me where the light is” in order to try and stay levelheaded on things in his life.
On “Slow Dancing in a Burning Room,” Mayer beautifully paints a picture of a broken relationship. At times during the guitar solo it sounds as though he is making the guitar cry out of anger and sadness.
The last song I want to discuss is “In Repair.” This song has to be one of the most underrated songs in his catalog. Throughout the song, Mayer speaks on the emotion that no matter where we are in our lives there is always room for improvement or revision. He sings “I’m in repair I’m not together but I’m getting there” to drive home the point that life has a funny way of working itself out and to enjoy the process of figuring things out.
This album is not only my favorite John Mayer record, but it may just be one of my all-time favorites. I hope this review gives you a reason to give it a listen.
Kings win their 5th Game in a Row!
With the 132-115 win over the San Antonio Spurs, the Sacramento Kings extend their latest win streak to 5 games, including 7 out of the last 8. The Kings are currently a half game out of the 10th seed in the western conference and two and a half games out of the 8th spot.
Even though De’Aaron Fox has been on an absolute tear while the Kings have been on this win streak, what impressed me most about last night’s win was the bench play. Terrence Davis and Maurice Harkless combined for 27 points off the bench. This is a huge improvement from what fans have seen from the Kings bench all season.
So yes, with 25 games left in the season the Sacramento Kings have a shot at making the postseason for the first time in 14 years. In the meantime however, all the focus should be on whether the Kings can beat the Spurs again tomorrow night.
Album Review: folklore Taylor Swift(2020)
When Taylor Swift surprised her fans by dropping folklore in July last summer, I was very intrigued to find out where she would take her sound. As someone who has been a massive fan of her’s for about 13 years now, I have throughly enjoyed every era of music Taylor Swift has written thus far. In my opinion, folklore is not only my favorite album to come out last year, but it also has some of the best songs Taylor Swift has ever written.
Taylor Swift wrote folklore with Aaron Dessner of The National, and her long time collaborator Jack Antonff a member of the band Bleachers. While all the songs on this album get better and better the more I listen to them, I am going to highlight three of my favorites from the album below.
The first song I’d like to discuss is exile. This song is incredible for a few different reasons. The first reason I love this song is because of the melodic piano part that helps carry the story of the song along. I also love the way that Taylor Swift and Bon Iver(Justin Vernon) chose to write the lyrics in the bridge of the song in a call and response style.
The next song I’d like to highlight is this is me trying. Once again, Taylor Swift relies on her ability to be a great storyteller. This song has very sparse instrumentation which allows the listener to really focus in on the message she is trying to portray in the lyrics.
The third and final song I want to discuss is illicit affairs.This song has one of my favorite lyrics from the entire album. “Don’t call me kid, don’t call me baby, look at this idiotic fool that you made me, you taught me a secret language that I can’t speak with anyone else”… is just a portion of the really powerful and meaningful bridge section in this song, that I can not stop listening to.
Overall, folklore is a incredible album full of great melodies and texture throughout. If you have yet to listen to this album, or Taylor Swift’s music at all for that matter, I hope this review gives you a reason to.
Album Review: The Dark Side of the Moon- Pink Floyd (1973)
48 years ago this week, Pink Floyd released one of the most groundbreaking albums of the 1970’s with their 8th LP The Dark Side of the Moon. This album is largely recognized as one of the band’s best. In fact, it is probably my favorite Pink Floyd album with 1979’s The Wall coming in at a close second. When looking back at Pink Floyd’s catalog, it’s amazing to hear how much of a sonic shift and leap this album took compared to their previous 7 records. This album also spent a record 783 consecutive weeks, or about 15 years, from 1973 to 1988 on the billboard top 200 charts.
What makes this album so memorable to me is the way that each of the songs connect to each other. At times, while listening to the album it can feel as though it is one 48-minute song, rather than eleven separate ones. The instrumentation on this record is very sparse which helps create the space-like mood that I feel while listening to it. Now, I'm going to briefly highlight some of my favorite songs on the album.
The first song worth examining is “Time” which begins with a 2:17 instrumental part that includes a heartbeat, a percussion solo played by drummer Nick Mason full of whistles and octobans, and different sized toms which help create the kind of spooky mood that the rest of the song has.
The second track on this album that most people recognize is “Money.” This song starts with the sound of a cash register and the clinking of change before the lyrics come in. This song is unique in that it is played in a 7/4-time signature. When taking into account the odd time signature, the saxophone solo which begins at around the 2:05 mark in the song, and another one of guitarist David Gilmour’s signature guitar solos, it’s easy for me to hear why this is one of the band’s most well-known songs.
The last song I wanted to discuss in this post is “Us And Them.” Like the rest of the album, this song is a beautiful example of a song that is mellow, but has just enough energy to keep a listener engaged.
Overall, I hope this review gives a little insight into why The Dark Side of the Moon is a timeless classic that even casual music fans still enjoy listening to 48 years after its release.
The Sacramento Kings Snap a 9 Game Losing Streak.
For the first time in 18 days the Sacramento Kings found a way to win a basketball game with a 110-107 victory over the Detroit Pistons. Sure they may have only won by 3 points, but after the last couple of weeks I think players and fans alike will take a win anyway they can get it. The main difference between this game and the previous nine was the defensive energy the team came out with, which allowed them get out to a 35-25 lead at the end of the first quarter.
De’Aaron Fox lead the team in scoring with 27 points, along with 5 rebounds, and 6 assists in 38 minutes of action. Richaun Holmes also had one of his best games of the season with a 19 point, 17 rebound double double.
Overall, the Kings played a much more complete basketball game on both ends of the floor from start to finish. The Kings will look to build on the momentum of this win tomorrow night when LaMelo Ball and the Charlotte Hornets come to Sacramento.
My First Dead & Company Show
Every music fan has a concert or two that changed their lives in one way or another forever. Here’s the story of one that changed mine.
In late 2017, I discovered that John Mayer was a part of a side project, Dead & Company, featuring three original members of the Grateful Dead. This included Bob Weir, Mickey Hart, Bill Kreutzmann, with Jeff Chimenti and Oteil Burbridge on keys and bass. The only reason I went to the show in the first place was because I had recently become a massive John Mayer fan and I didn’t get the chance to see him live on his solo tour in support of his album,“The Search for Everything” the previous summer.
Now let me preface the rest of this blog by saying prior to this concert I had heard of the Grateful Dead, but I didn’t really listen to their music or have any expectation of what their shows were like. In fact a couple months before attending the concert I had decided to give the Grateful Dead a listen. At first, I didn’t really like the music or understand what made fans who are aptly named “Deadheads” want to follow them on tour year after year. My prospective on the Grateful Dead’s music all changed on Monday, July 2nd, 2018, at Shoreline Amphitheater. Shoreline being the place where I would later learn the Grateful Dead made their unofficial home playing there a total of 39 times between the venue’s opening in 1987 and their breakup in 1995.
I only recognized one song that Dead and Company would play that night, the 1987 hit “Touch of Grey.” However, I was absolutely floored by the way this music made me feel in the moment and the way it gave me a new prospective on how live music could be played. The rest of that summer I made it a goal of mine to listen to as much of the Grateful Dead catalog as I could, that way when I attended more shows in the future, I would have a better chance of recognizing the songs that the band played.
I’ll wrap up this post by saying this: there’s a famous lyric in the Grateful Dead song “He’s Gone” where lead guitarist Jerry Garcia sings, “steal your face right off of your head.” Well, I don’t think my face was stolen necessarily but I certainly became a massive fan of both the Grateful Dead and Dead & Company. I always tell people that I went to this show as a John Mayer fan and left a Deadhead, and I’m forever “Grateful” for the experience.
Top 10 Songs February 2021
1. Broken Harvest- Madison Cunningham
2. Hungover- Eloise
3. drivers license- Olivia Rodrigo
4. Do You Wanna Do Nothing with Me?- Lawrence
5. homebody- Valley
6. Like 1999- Valley
7. Gasoline (feat. Taylor Swift)- HAIM
8. illicit affairs- Taylor Swift
9. 3am- Halsey
10. forget me too (feat. Halsey)- Machine Gun Kelly