GRIFT

Paul Newman was on of my all time favorite actors and someone who was tapped into the pulse of life. He used his celebrity for a greater good, and he was one hell of a talent. I actually met Paul in 2004 when he filmed the movie Empire Falls in my hometown. I was actually in the movie as an extra and one day he and Ed Harris came and had lunch with us at the craft services table. He was one of the most interesting people I've ever met and one of easiest conversationalist. He was just cool. Dragline said it about Luke and I am saying it about Paul:

"Hell, he was a natural-born world-shaker."

5 Artists, and the songs in order of play count in my Itunes.

TOM WAITS

Filipino Box Spring Hog

Please Call Me Baby

You Can Never Hold Back Spring

Had Me a Girl

Cold Water

TOWNES VAN ZANDT

Where I Lead Me

Nothin'

If I Needed You

Rake

Flying Shoes

ROLLINS BAND

Low Self Opinion

What's The Matter Man?

Your Number is One

Hello

We Walk Alone

WEEN

Transdermal Celebration

Flutes of Chi

Exactly Where I am At

Buckingham Green

Voodoo Lady

Elvis Costello

Radio, Radio

Brilliant Disguise (Springsteen cover)

Spooky Girlfriend

(I don't want to go to) Chelsea

When I was Cruel Number 2.

I second the Chet Baker love. Grab his Prince of Cool double disc collection-- one half is instrumental and the other is with him singing.

I wasn't sure where to put this but David Foster Wallace died. Infinite Jest is one of my all time favorite books.

Go buy it. Go read it.

Neutral Milk Hotel... in that they just stopped. They put out two great albums in a very short period of time and then got all Salinger.

Bill Hicks had such a unique dynamic on stage and in life that would lend itself very well to drama. Moments like the 'Freebird Incident' or anytime he attacked a heckler seemed like they should have been taking place in a film rather than reality. I'd love to see a smart movie that showed this genius struggling to connect and contextualize his message with the populace.

When they make a movie about my life, Morgan Freeman is the actor I want to play me.

Hasn't Christian Bale been quoted as saying something to the ilk of, "The day I see Robin in the script is the day I hang up my cape?"

I am paraphrasing at best.

EDIT: Found the quote

“If Robin crops up in one of the new Batman films, I ’ll be chaining myself up somewhere and refusing to go to work.” - Christian Bale

I am hoping for a secondary villain who can can challenge Batman physically in the next film. I for one am not on the bandwagon that hates Nolan's from the shadows camera work on fight scenes; it works for the narrative of Batman, but that being said I'd like to see someone who can offer a more sustainable fight scene. I want someone who pushes Batman to his limits before Bruce picks him apart.

I think it is too early for Bane, and I don't think Crock will ever make it onto the silver screen while Nolan helms. Still though, I'd like to see someone of their physical prowess in the next film.

I am going to see Gogol Bordello in August... I haven't been this excited about a show in ages.

It is one of my office days and I just sent out the crew. Now I have the whole office to myself until interviews at 4pm so I am jamming out to Immortal Technique at max volume. Life is good.

Ugh. That son of a bitch. He does this every summer, and never comes closer to me than OHIO. FUCK.

WEEN live in Chicago gets play a lot at my house.

Rescue Me gets a lot of rotation too.

I saw Minus the Bear this past weekend... my next big show is Gogol Bordello at the Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom.

Sublime

The Clash

ELO

Gogol Bordello

The Band

George Harrison

Summer music, FTW.

Blasphemy. The Clash are the perfect soundtrack to a summer day.

Brilliant Dance by Dashboard Confessional... >_>

My roommate came home early from work once and caught me listening to it and singing along. It was worse than being caught masturbating.

No fucking around, no top five, no close second places: What is your quintessential summer song? It is that song for the sunny days spent lakeside and those sweltering nights spent on bar stools and boats. It is for BBQing at dusk, or drinking at sunrise.

It took some deliberation for me, but Sublime wins with Boss DJ. I imagine Sublime will be responsible for a lot of the EWB's responses, but Boss DJ stands above the rest of their stuff for me. I think it has to do with me spending a lot of summers casually dating a girl who loved the song. We had a sort of one night stand mentality that lasted all summer, and started back up every year. It is hard to feel bad about something associated with that, and her singing it on the beach has always been one of the sexier things I've ever seen.

(Close second to a girl who sang Mother by Danzig at a karaoke night in the sexy category...)

But what is your be all end all summer song?

Fraggle Fucking Rock

They are just about the last band I'd go to the Warped Tour to see. Their music can be catchy, but come on... This is the same Warped Tour that made its bones with guys like Bad Religion, Flogging Molly, Anti-Flag, Avenged Sevenfold, Bouncing Souls, Dropkick.

But to their credit this is like the third time they've been on the tour.

The fucking Gym Class Heroes? Really? That sucks. This is the worst line up in years.

Outside of Every Time I Die, The Bouncing Souls, and The Vandals I can't think of much to go for. Most of the other decent bands on the list don't really fit the Warped Tour mold. Where is Bad Religion? Didn't they release a new record this year? What about Rancid or one of Tim's other projects? I went to the Warped tour ages ago and other then The Vandals and Pennywise I can't see many of the tours staples.

I saw Feist and Conner Oberst do Mushaboom live and that was pretty sweet.

Also, Emmylou Harris and basically anyone. She is the queen of collaboration. One More Cup of Coffee with Bob Dylan is an easy favorite. Her stuff with TVZ is classic too.

Also Maynard joining in with the Deftones on Passenger resulted in one of my favorite Deftones' songs ever.