DARTS OF PLEASURE

i was mighty tired last evening, for whatever reason... but there was no time for rest as i had purchased a ticket for the franz ferdinand show at the grand regency ballroom. christian and shane (the other one) were attending as well, and we had planned to meet up there. i didn't feel like finding parking after the show, so i took the bus for the first time since i moved to SF. it actually didn't take as long as i thought it would... hmm, time to start studying the routes, i guess.

because i was experimenting with a new form of travel, i left a bit early... you know, just in case. something went wrong. we lost a tire. the doors wouldn't close. the planet exploded. etc. of course everything went ok and ended up arriving just before the first opener: the blood arm. while the crowd's response seemed a bit mixed, i enjoyed their performance. i heard some dude behind me claim that the singer reminded him with "jack black with none of the charm..." a bit harsh in my estimation. i quite enjoyed the act and picked up their record as i was leaving. i'll be digesting that soon.

the second opener was a band from glasgow (christian and i were informed by some random girl on the bus during the ride back home) called sons and daughters. i found their tracks to be a bit boring, but i really wanted to like them. the band has a good look. they're sexy. the lead male vocalist reminded me of a cross between ferris bueller and opm's c-bake. his most interesting quality was that he looked as if he was about ready to explode as soon as he began to play. it was intense. the other notable member of the band was the bassist/mandolin player... she's just really cute and looked disinterested the whole time. it was nice.

franz ferdinand destroyed. they came out onto the stage when it was fully lit looking like the nerdiest bunch of nerds that ever held a guitar. imagine a band with the following members: george mcfly on lead guitar/vocals, spud (minus the drugs) on lead vocals/guitar, beck on bass, and rivers cuomo on drums. that's franz. except as soon as it's time to play, they transform to an extremely charismatic machine that is built to spit out the most catchy and impassioned tunes you've ever heard. i was rocked. hard. highlights: "the dark of the matinee," "michael," "jacqueline" and of course, "take me out." if you're a fan and have a chance to check them out, do so. you will not be disappointed.

on an unrelated note, i received my copy of gish yesterday. it's a 2D platformer for the pc developed by a small company called chronic logic. you play as gish, a small blob of tar who must save his girl from evil fiends who've snatched her. the game is notable for its innovative physics system, excellent controls, and fantastic graphics and art direction. if you want a platformer that feels nothing but fresh, i'd advise checking it out. oh, and in my first ten minutes of play i found a secret, super mario bros-inspired level. those lucky enough to locate it will be quite impressed. there's a demo to download, but i skipped it and simply ordered the game. it made getting the final product much more exciting, but those who don't feel the need to drop twenty bucks should at least give the free version a bit of a go. Posted by ryan at June 5, 2004 11:40 AM