Old sketches from yesteryear

Some years ago, in a galaxy not far away, my buddy, Ryan and I started hanging out and drawing at coffee shops and bars.  Eventually, people we knew or didn't know would approach us to look at out stuff (mainly Ryan's) and would ask if they could join.  Suddenly, the next week we had unknowingly started a sketch group which we called "Sketch Jam."  We met up every week and basically drew, shared supplies and advice as well as dorky conversations.  It started to pick up steam and would have about 12 people on average showing up.  Like all good things, it had to end.  Ryan moved to Frisco and attendance started to taper off.  About 5 of us continued to meet up but eventually that ended as well .  I've since enjoyed drawing solo, but doors the comradery of fellow artists.  Anyways, here's some old sketches from those good ol'days

HOPSCOTCH 2013 Syllabus (non NC bands)

 

My hometown of Raleigh, NC will host the 4th year of the 3 day music festival known simply as, "Hopscotch."  I am amped about this year's festivities for multiple reasons: I'm a huge music nerd (however I prefer "enthusiast"), it continues Raleigh's progression to legitimize itself as a great music scene, and it will also be the second time I can attend since its inception in 2010.  Apparently that weekend is very popular when it comes to weddings, so I thank my friends for not choosing to get married that weekend for a change.  Anyways, this blog post be the first of two posts and will serve as a "cliffsnotes" for the bands on this year's lineup that I am interested in seeing.  The bands listed here will be non-NC bands.  No more jibber-jabber, here's the list.  

Amor de Dias (London. England)


Big Black Delta (LA)
 
Big Boi (ATL)
 
Califone (Chicago, IL)

Cy Dune (Tuscon, AZ)
 
Dan Friel (Brooklyn, NY)

Dauwd (London, England)

Deleted Scenes (Washington, D.C)

Earl Sweatshirt (LA)

Ex-Cops (Brooklyn, NY)
 
High Highs (New York, NY)
 
Ilyas Ahmed (Portland, OR)
 
Inter Arma (Richmond, VA)

Jamaican Queens (Detroit, MI)

Jonathan Kane's February (New York, NY)
 
Kopecky Family Band (Nashville, TN)

Kurt Vile (Philadelphia, PA)

Lady Lamb The Beekeeper (Brooklyn, NY)

Lapalux (Essex, England)

Leech (LA)

Local Natives (LA)
 
Marnie Stern (New York, NY)
 
Matthew Dear (Brooklyn, NY)

Mikal Cronin (Orange Co, CA)
 
Nathan Bowles (Blacksburg, VA)
 
Night Beds (Nashville, TN)
 
Nightlands (Philadelphia, PA)
 
Pig Destroyer (Arlington, VA)
 
Pissed Jeans (Allentown, PA)

Purling Hiss (Philadelphia, PA)
 
Rose Windows (Seattle, WA)
 
Sleep (Oakland, CA)
 
Spacin' (Philadelphia, PA)
 
Spiritualized (London, England)
 
Swearin' (Philadelphia, PA)
 
The Beets (Queens, NY)
 
The Breeders (Dayton, OH)

The Golden Void (San Fran)
 
The Shilohs (Vancouver, BC)
 
Torres (Nashville, TN)

Turf War  (Atlanta, GA)
Water Liars (Oxford, MS)
Waxahatchee (Brooklyn, NY)
 
XXYYXX (Orlando, FL)

The Art Of Mistaken Chorus

Everyone has that single, shining moment in their lives where they sang a song (probably in the company of friends or an audience of strangers) and belted out the chorus with high volume and high confidence only to be called out for singing the wrong words.  Very few things in this world are absolute, but it's safe to say that this has happened to EVERY human being on this planet.  It's a very simple mistake to make but where does the blame lie?  Is it the artist's fault for not enunciating properly or clearly enough?  Or is it our fault for being too damn lazy to look the lyrics on the googlenet?  I think it's 50/50.  Either way, instead of being shamed for our musical ignorance, I'd like to celebrate the "Art of Mistaken Chorus."  Here's a list of songs in which I hear words than the original ones written:

Michael Jackson: Don't Stop 'Till You get Enough

What he sings: "Don't stop till you get enough"
What I hear: "Don't stop till you get it up"

Jay-Z feat. Alicia Keys: New York

What she sings: "New York, concrete jungle where dreams are made of"
What I hear: "New York, purple wet dream tomato"

Jimi Hendrix: Purple Haze

What he sings: "Excuse me while I kiss the sky"
What I hear: "Excuse me while I kiss this guy"

T.I: Whatever You Like

What he sings: "I want yo body, need yo body"
What I hear: "I want Joe Biden, need Joe Biden"

Slipknot: Liberate

What he sings: "Liberate my madness"
What I hear: "Really great bananas"
What I hear: "Do you like, muh panda?"

Hot Hot Heat: Bandages

What he sings: "Bandages hide my legs and my arms from you...bandages...bandages...bandages"
What I hear:  "Panda jizz hide my legs and my arms from you...panda jizz...panda jizz...panda jizz"

Sketch Round Up

Here's the latest batch of sketches from ye' ol' drink n' draw. Debating whether I should draw "Ron Swanson" exclusively from now on.

Sketch round up

Latest batch of sketches from my Rockford Sessions!

Yang's 10 Horror Movies

Guess what!  I'm bored at work.  So here's my top ten favorite horror movies cuz I'm a horror movie nerd!

10.  Candyman

9.  Insidious

8. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003)

7.  The Blair Witch Project

6.  The Shining

5. 28 Days Later

 4.  The Exorcist 

 

3.   The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

 

2. A Nightmare On Elm Street

1.  Halloween (1978)

 

 

Evil Dead: Shut Up and Take My Money!

If you didn't know by now, I'm a huge horror movie nerd.  I would say that half of my movie collection is horror flicks and my collection is bordering on ridiculous.  I'm even guilty of watching "B" quality horror movies on Netflix streaming which are always good for a laugh or two.  In a week or so, the "re-imagining" of Sam Raimi's classic "Evil Dead" will be coming to a multiplex near you and I can't wait.  When it comes to "re-imaginings," I don't really have too much of a negative opinion on them.  I enjoy the classics/originals and honestly do feel that they are perfect the way they are, but the fanboy in me is always curious to see how they would turn out with today's effects or when shot with a much more different tone.  Most recent attempts have not even come close to their original counterpart but some do land (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Halloween, The Hills Have Eyes in my opinion).  What made these work was the fact that they didn't try to make an exact replica which was a plus since the originals had such a campy tone to them.  Rather they gave a much more darker tone while still paying homage using classic scenes from the originals.  This is why I'm amped for new "Evil Dead."  It seems to abandon the camp that Raimi's original which and basically just goes for the gusto when it comes to gore and violence.  Why try to create the tone of humor and zaniness when Bruce Campell (Ash) isn't the lead.  A new cast of characters demands a different vibe and story.  The fact that Raimi and Campell are producing the film also gives me hope that this will be good since it has their endorsement and to some extent, their input.  So far, advanced reviews have nothing but good things to say which most times is a double-edged sword because it increases my expectations.  Regardless, come April 15th is an exciting day for me!

This meme sums up my excitement for the "Evil Dead"