Why Mario Williams and the NHL Have Ruined Professional Sport For Me.

everyone knows athletes are over-payed.  no news there.

 that's not what bothers me.

what bothers me is the genuine lack of heart exhibited by some athletes and the absolute short-sighted arrogance that comes from others.

mario williams is set to make 98 million dollars as a buffalo bill.  50 million guaranteed.  he had two tackles against the kansas city chiefs.  arguably the worst team in the nfl.  i play club rugby for one of the more renowned clubs in the area, and yes, it's not the nfl, but i think i could somehow find my way in front of two tackles over the course of a 60 minute nfl game.  and he made more in that game than i'll make over the next 3 years.  the guy is laughing all the way to the bank.  i knew it was going to happen.  when they signed him, i went up and looked up some articles from his time in houston and what fans were saying when he left.  it was all the same.  nobody was complaining about him leaving.  instead, they were talking about how he would disappear for weeks at a time and only show up when the spotlight is on.  so, here we are, primetime game against the miami dolphins, look who halfheartedly shows up and makes a couple plays.  it makes me SO angry.  this guy was heralded as a king when he came to buffalo.  he had a cereal named after him (yes the proceeds go to charity, but that's not the point).  you know who deserved to have his face on a cereal box?  doug flutie.  that's it.  why?  cause he had heart, he played with heart, and you could see how much passion he had.

mario williams has a football with a dollar sign on it tattoo'd on his "injured" wrist.  hm.

it's a joke.  this guy doesn't deserve any of it.  nobody should make that much money, especially when you have the attitude he has.  he is the only person on the bills roster who has it built in to his contract that he CAN NOT be interviewed by reporters except on media day.  fuck off, man.  fuck off.

mike schopp on wgr was making a comment today about how he thinks the top professional athlete should only make 4 million dollars.  i've been saying something along these lines for years.  they are doing something that millions of kids around the country would LOVE to do, and would do for much less.  these athletes, over time, with contracts just getting bigger and bigger, have become arrogant, out of touch, cry babies.  case in point.....the nhl lockout.

the average nhl player makes more money than me and you do combined.  gets top of the line gear, gets to travel the world, gets free food, and, if you're in a city like buffalo, gets treated like a king.  and they are just bitching and bitching and bitching.  "oh my god, the commissioner is a thief, he's stealing from the fans, you should all be outraged!" blah blah blah blah blah.  NO!!!!!!! NO NO NO NO NO NO!

you should be happy with the fact that you have these huge contracts while the rest of us are struggling to put a turkey on the table!

i recently ran into a guy i know who is one of the head chefs at a summer-time restaurant.  he's a cook up in the sabres suites.  nah, not any more.  he works at a chain restaurant.  how many other people have been laid off by this lockout?  how many bars and restaurants are losing revenue?  i guarantee ryan suter hasn't even thought about it.  at least he didn't think about it when he was complaining that his 4 million a year isn't enough and that the owners are stealing from the players and the fans.  SHUT UP!

i've just become so jaded over it.  it's so whiny and pretentious and arrogant and......ugh.  it's just not what any kid who ever started playing hockey in his driveway or football in his backyard thought about.  where's the heart?  where is it?  it's selfish and arrogant and it makes me sick.

tom gabel and why music is so special.

whelp, now that the news has had some time to set in for everyone and i spent a good week listening to against me! like they broke up or one of them died.....i have a lot of thoughts on the situation that i would really like to put to paper.  i have always been very vocal about against me! and the things they do, but over the past year or so, i have discovered a new unwavering love and respect for them, regardless of any animosity i may have had in the past.  and i don't think that will change any time soon.

now do i have any objection to tom's desire to express himself?  absolutely, positively not.  but does it make me think a bit differently about the times we live in?  absolutely, positively yes.

i am very torn when it comes to things such as this.  i have no problem with gay people, bisexuals, or anything of the sort.  my motto has always been "as long as it doesn't directly effect my life, then i have no problem with it."  and the reason behind that motto is that it's not a lifestyle i chose to partake in but it doesn't negatively effect my life at all, so why condemn it?  there's no reason to.  and people who do are fucking foolish.  now, i know tom is not gay or bisexual, as he's said so himself, and is staying with his wife.....but the fact of the matter is still the same.  people who condemn someone for such a thing is foolish because it does not directly effect their life.

however, it's made me think a bit about my own life.  i may be a bit old fashion in some of my values as i do not openly SUPPORT such a thing.  i very often say that if i grew up in the 50s, i would have been much happier.  this has to do with a lot of things, social issues, sexual issues, political issues, and god damn, technological issues.  for the sake of being brief, i HATE how dependent we are on technology and i think it is dumbing us down as a race.  now, did things like what's happening with the frontman of one of my favorite bands NOT happen back in the 40s or 50s or any other time period?  i'm sure they did.  they are just a bit more in the news now.  and it just makes me think that i myself, not society as a whole, would be better off in a different generation.

i've seen a lot of people who have never really bothered to concern themselves with against me! come forward and take a stance on this issue.  many have brought their opinions to me as they know i've been a long time fan.  and the overall resounding opinion of the people who don't know the band has been the same.  "oh good for him/her."  again, i do not think it is an issue that directly concerns ANY of us, except for the people who tom gabel is directly involved with.  so saying it's a giant victory for whatever culture.....i just don't know if i can get behind that.

it's a personal matter.

people worry too much about the celebrity craze and what other people are doing with their lives and i wish people would focus more on their own lives.  and that is why i will re-state my opinion again, and that's that i have ZERO issue with his desire to more openly express himself.  it is NOT my business.

if people were openly bashing him, i would have a much different stance, and i would say it's bullshit that people are doing so because by doing so you are not only meddling in affairs that don't concern you, but you're being a bigot to someone who has no effect on you.  but at the end of the day, the only thing i am truly concerned with, and the same concerns are shared with the fans of the band that i've known for years, is what's going to happen to the music.

white crosses is my least favorite against me! record.  it has some great tracks, but all in all, it's their weakest.  the new songs they've been playing sound amazing.  and if the record is amazing, then against me! will still fucking be against me!  if tom's voice changes, i might be a little taken aback by the issue, but he claims it will not.  so, therefore, as long as their production stays consistent and their live shows are as bad ass as ever, then against me! will always be against me!

tom gabel is someone who stopped a show to dive off a stage onto a bouncer who was pulling me out of the show in rochester, ny.  there will always be a soft spot.

and ya know what?  if the music does change, or this causes against me! to break up, or whatever other terrible thing might happen that i don't even want to think of....it will only matter to an extent.  because the great thing about music is it's timeless.  it will always be there.  as the eternal cowboy is one of the greatest punk records ever made and in 10 years, it's still going to sound the same.  you record music and it marks a time in your life.  and when you listen to that music, it marks a time in your life.

music to me has completely shaped my life.  most major memories i have, i can recall what was on my stereo at the time.  music is timeless, and no matter what direction a band goes in, you will always have the music you fell in love with.  if you hate new green day, dookie is always still going to be there.  for me, "...cowboy" will always still be there, "fluent in stroll" will always still be there, "the devil and god" will always be there....and every other important album to me...it will always stay the same.

and that is what makes music so special.  it can serve as more of a landmark emotional timekeeper than any other picture or place could.  to quote a country artist, "every time i hear that song, i go back."

2011: The Year In Music.

foreward: coming up on the end of this year, i've had a very hard time collecting my thoughts on the year in music. 2 years ago, when i first started writing these, i knew the year was going to be huge for me and the bands i liked. last year, i knew it wasn't going to be. this year, i was overwhelmed and taken by surprise. the concert attendance wasn't as high as i would have liked, but the albums that just poured onto my computer/record player/ipod/car radio were overwhelming. so, with that i present my complete thoughts on oh'11 in music.

an incomplete list of the shows i was in attendance for:
-dropkick murphys/against me! -- rapids theater, niagara falls
-noah and the whale -- the mod club, toronto
-against me! -- water street music hall
-warped tour -- big d, less than jake, street dogs -- darien lake
-brad paisley, blake shelton, jerrod niemann -- darien lake
-alkaline trio -- water street music hall
-reel big fish/streetlight manifesto -- rapids theater, niagara falls.
-big d and the kids table -- town ballroom
-foo fighters -- first niagara center
-noah and the whale -- some other crap club in toronto that charged way too much for beer

shows i regret missing:
-nofx -- kool haus
-manchester orchestra -- water street music hall
-blink 182/manchester orchestra -- darien lake
-the archers of loaf reunion tour
-dropkick murphys -- rochester ----I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW ABOUT IT UNTIL AFTERWARD
-brand new -- new years eve show



albums:
-akron/family -- S/T II: the cosmic birth and journey of shinju TNT
-akron/family -- bmbz
-against me! -- russian spies/occult enemies
-against me! -- black crosses
-against me! -- total clarity
-alkaline trio -- damnesia
-big d and the kids table -- for the damned, the dumb, and the delirious
-brad paisley -- this is country music
-blink 182 -- neighborhoods
-cake -- showroom of compassion
-dan andriano in the emergency room -- hurricane season
-dropkick murphys -- going out in style
-foo fighters -- wasting light
-green day -- awesome as fuck
-kevin devine -- nevermind
-kevin devine -- part of the whole/luxemburg
-kevin devine -- between the concrete and the clouds
-manchester orchestra -- simple math
-nofx -- 10" of 10 hardcore covers
-noah and the whale -- last night on earth
-radiohead -- the king of limbs
-rivers cuomo -- alone III: the pinkerton years
-she and him -- a very she and him christmas
-sum 41 -- screaming bloody murder

a "top 10" of the year

10. noah and the whale -- last night on earth
9. green day -- awesome as fuck
8. big d and the kids table -- for the damned, the dumb, and the delirious
7. brad paisley -- this is country music
6. manchester orchestra -- simple math
5. cake -- showroom of compassion
4. dan andriano in the emergency room -- hurricane season
3. foo fighters -- wasting light
2. alkaline trio -- damnesia
1. dropkick murphys -- going out in style


10. noah and the whale -- last night on earth


i extensively chronicled my thoughts on this album in the review of the first time i saw them live. it's good. is it as great as their first 2 records? not even close. i don't like drum machines. i don't like too many keyboards. i like charlie fink's guitar playing and consider it a huge inspiration, and there just isn't enough of it on this album. not enough singer-songwriter, too much poppy nonsense. but when it hits, it hits hard. "old joy," "the line," and "just me before we met" are all incredible. unfortunately, the song "life is life" is one of the worst i've heard all year.

9. green day -- awesome as fuck!


this album makes my top 10 simply on the track selection. incredible track listing for a live album by one of the biggest bands in the world. seeing them live on the tour where this album was recorded the previous year blew my mind. they dug so deep into their back catalog and it shows on this album. as a matter of fact, they probably would have made more money off of it if there were more of the hit singles on this. i wish there was a track from the buffalo show, namely "give me novocaine," and i wish some of billie joe's extended crowd interaction and guitar "solos" were a little more cleaned up, but this album is solid.

8. big d and the kids table -- for the damned, the dumb, and the delirious


i was initially very turned off by this album because it wasn't fluent in stroll. i've discussed big d so much lately, that my opinions on this band will become overbearing and old hat to some. this album is solid. they're one of the best ska bands of all time. with sean p still around, i think it would have been better but it's cool that he recorded some of the vocals and guitar on the record. "walls" is one of the most bad ass songs they have, it's right up there with LAX.

7. brad paisley -- this is country music


i wish i had accepted american saturday night quicker. it's become my favorite brad record. but, because i was so jaded towards it originally, i tried to learn from my mistakes this time around. the singles on this album have been pretty top-notch and "be the lake" is one of my favorite country songs of all time. however, there are a few problems i have with this record. it could be a work of art, and i think that was the original plan. the constant throwbacks to the title track are nice, but on my original listen, i thought they were going to serve as intros to segments of the album. instead, they intro specific songs. there are enough running themes that i think it would have been cool to keep it segmented. also, i miss the kung-pow buckaroos....

6. manchester orchestra -- simple math


this album was said to have "the best song i'll hear all year." that song, and the title track are the reason this album isn't higher on this list. that song, "virgin" and the title track fall on their face attempting to be epic. they slow the album down and bring a level of mundane into an otherwise awesome album. the opener is amazing. absolutely amazing. "pensacola" is so engagingly fun. the whole album is really strong minus those two aforementioned tracks.

5. cake -- showroom of compassion


i always thought cake was a gimmicky joke band growing up. i really fell for them this year. they're so damn catchy and so unique. if this album just had "mustache man" and "sick of you" 5 times each, it would still probably be in my top 10. i can't describe the effect they have on me. the guitar riffs are so engaging, the vocal delivery is so unique, and the added musical instrumentation, whether it be percussion, trumpet, or whatever.....it all works so well for cake, and this album is no exception.

4. dan andriano in the emergency room -- hurricane season












a total mood album. i've always preferred dan to matt in alkaline trio, and i was really excited for this album. it didn't disappoint. a lot of really really good stuff. even the songs i didn't consider to be that great have somehow managed to get stuck in my head on random occasions (such as "me and denver" yesterday while i was at work). dan is friggin awesome, i would love to see him live at a solo show.

3. foo fighters -- wasting light


it took a lot to not make this album my number 1 of the year. it's probably the most consistent record that the foo have ever put together and it's damn good from start to finish. when "rope" first came out, i was very hesitant. it was a very unique song-structure for this band. but it's gotten to the point where i crave listening to that song. there are so many hits on this album. any song on it could be a single in my opinion. the return of krist novaselic/dave grohl was great to see/hear as well.

2. alkaline trio -- damnesia


this record is perfect. my only complaint is that it isn't long enough! more songs like this!!!!! the two new originals are great. i thought "i remember a rooftop" was boring and too wordy at first, but now i absolutely consider it one of dan's best. "i held her in my arms" turned out amazing, and all of the re-worked songs from past albums turned out beautifully. i would have a hell of a time trying to make a best-to-worst list of the tracks on this album. so many great emotions covered as well, fun, dreary, depressed, angry, upbeat...it's all there.

1. dropkick murphys -- going out in style


i've occasionally heard the term "a triumph of the human spirit" be uttered by i myself have never used it until now. i would consider "bamboo bones" off of against me!'s white crosses to be a triumph of the human spirit because it is so jam-packed with emotion that it just slams into you when you crank the volume. and this is on an album with no emotion whatsoever anywhere else. so what happens when you have an entire album bursting with this very triumph of human spirit? you get "going out in style." it's fucking perfect. it's amazing. it is so overwhelming. i listen to it and i just want to scream the lyrics and be in a crowd of blue-collar workers having a beer. the gang vocals and giant sound are part of the reason for this. another is the excellent cameos. fat mike, bruce springsteen, it's great. even the weaker songs are better than 75% of the songs in the rest of this top 10. i don't think i could come up with a bad thing to say about it if i spent all day thinking about it. the title track and "memorial day" are incredible singles, "broken hymns" is truly beautiful, and this album has one kick ass closer. a triumph of the human spirit and the ideals of a blue collar, working class society who want's to work for what they have and have pride in where they came from.
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let down of the year:
Radiohead -- the king of limbs
i adored "in rainbows." i thought it was a really phenomenal album. i had to force myself to get through this album. it's boring, it's pretentious, it's lame, it fails at what it's trying to do. this band can do so much better.


thoughts on the rest:

akron/family -- what they did with the record store day release/fake leaking of their album was hilarious. i just wish i hadn't spent 15 bucks on the record without knowing that's what i was buying. the actual album is pretty good. i don't think they'll ever touch their old music in my opinion, but some of this stuff really still hits hard.

against me! -- awesome stuff from these guys this year, both live and on record. the new 7" was really friggin good. the total clarity stuff is pretty decent. black crosses is superior to white crosses. i think replacing warren was a bad decision for white crosses, he sounds great on this release. that being said, jay weinberg is a great fit for these guys.

blink 182 -- neighborhoods -- it's what i expected. a not-that-great follow up to a great album coming off an idiotic hiatus. there's some great songs on here (i'm looking at you, "after midnight") but there are some real sleepers. "wishing well" is the worst song they've ever written. what's with the production on this album?! it's so slick that it sounds like plastic. the guitar sound is friggin terrible, there's no meat to it at all.

kevin devine -- he's consistent. the 2 7"s were really good, with luxemburg being the superior of the two. his idea to cover nevermind was novel, it's something i could see myself doing with some of my favorite albums if i were to ever make it. but come on, i doubt anybody prefers it to the original. the angst and aggression just isn't there. his new full-length wasn't great in my opinion. it wasn't bad though. it was right in the middle. like i said, kevin is consistent.

nofx -- 10 hardcore covers -- the thing with nofx is you know what you're going to get, even if it is something new. they said this would be different and they explained how it would sound. they were right. it's exactly what i expected. aggressive, sloppy, fast, almost off-putting. not bad, just not my thing.

rivers cuomo -- alone III -- eh. i expected more. it's "the pinkerton years" and i was expecting it to reflect the greatness that is that album. this is very close to fitting into the "let down" category. i wanted this album with the book but it's so ridiculously over-priced. half the songs sound like he just recorded them without putting any forethought into what he was going to sing about. and it really goes to show that pinkerton was the superior to songs from the black hole.

she and him -- yeah....i listened to this whole album. i like zooey deschannel and i wish she still looked the way she did during elf. baby it's cold outside.

sum 41 -- screaming bloody murder -- it is what it is. another thing that was exactly what i expected. there's a few good songs and a lot of "meh." their time has passed and if they can continue to make music for the love of it, then good for them....i respect that to the ends of the earth. but they aren't about to blow up again any time soon.
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best of shows:

this was the first time sense 2006 that i didn't see brand new once all year. kind of a bummer.

i so so so so so so so wish that the dropkick show came 2 weeks later. it came just days before the album was released and they played a lot of it. the show was awesome and i could tell the new album was going to be good before it even came out. i just hate seeing songs live that i have yet to hear on album. it was such a high energy show and so much fun, it probably would have been one of the shows of the year for me if i had "going out in style" in my hands ahead of time.

against me! killed it at this show and it was the reason why i went back to see them in rochester later in the year....and thank god i did.

seeing noah and the whale live was something i had always hoped for but never really thought would happen. so to see them twice in one year was awesome. the first show was the easy superior to the second. they've strayed too far away from the band i loved at this point. the lack of guitar playing by charlie and the weird stage presence they had at the 2nd show was very off-putting. but that first show....magical.

my trips to darien lake weren't as successful as the previous year. warped tour was garbage, i think i was home by 3 in the pm. brad paisley was a hell of a time though. that line-up was awesome. again, like last year, i wish had been more sober for it.

the against me! show in rochester was the show of the year. i wrote enough about it already. you can look for what i wrote or read all the reviews of the controversy partially caused by me all over the web. i will forever support this band after that show.

after the alkaline trio show had happened, i thought it was a let down. a couple weeks later, however, i realized that it was friggin awesome. i just wish they played longer sets.

i'm not a big streetlight fan but i've been a reel big fish fan for years. they've gotten old. aaron barrett looks old. and it's weird to me. the eternally youthful feel of their music set to a gray-haired skanker in a hawaiian shirt is just odd. losing scott is a real heart-breaker in my opinion.

the big d show was interesting, as they all seem to be. i love talking to those guys and drinking beer with them. eternal thanks to ryan for sneaking me in after i got kicked out. the show was not the same though. the lack of sean, the lack of the dollies, the lack of the lights, the lack of dave's normal energy.....it wasn't bad, it just wasn't what i know these guys are capable of.

foo fighters are fucking awesome. what else can be said but that? they played for a fortnight. the highlight to me was the acoustic set dave played, namely "long road to ruin." if only they had played "wheels"!!!!!


looking ahead:

i really don't know what's to come in the new year. apparently new against me!? i hope so. with them on their own label, i think they can return to form. i really don't even know what else i have to look forward to. new motion city and maybe new brand new? who knows. maybe that's a good thing considering how this year turned out.

one thing, through hell or high water, there will be a next week's weather full-length in oh'12.

thanks
-jc

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