Show in Middleton Tonight! April 25th!

Some fun Instagrams from Mike and Wendy's LA Trip and Show!

Sunspot - Change the World Live - April 13th, 2013

March Drummercams

Direct from Wendy's camera onstage...

Big V's in St. Paul, you know how to party!

It was time for some afternoon drinking at The Thirsy Nickel in Austin.

Still out on a Tuesday night, pretty good Springfield, Illinois!

Hitting it hard during SXSW at Aussie's in Austin!

RIP Roger Ebert

Roger Ebert meant a lot to me when I was younger because I would get excited when his show came on Channel 10 on Saturdays. We were a movie-going family and that’s the show that would get me excited about what I wanted to see (and also they’d review the R-rated movies that I’d have to beg my parents to let me see.) Plus, they were in Chicago, right down the road. 

As I got older, I would read his reviews to compare them to my own opinions. Out of all of the film critics, he was probably the most geek-friendly (though he could be hard on some of my favorites) and that combined with his presence in my living room on weekends made him someone who was very much a part of my life. Interestingly enough, once he was on Twitter, I probably read him more than ever because even after he lost his voice, it seemed like he was writing constantly. I followed and admired him and whatever happened, if I would read just one review of a film, I’d read his. 

Sometimes to see if my opinion was right, sometimes just to see what he thought of it. I’m often still a movie-obsessed little boy and he was a big part of that. In his passing, he was a model of dignity so that it feels more triumphant than sad. He lived well, wrote well, made a big impact, and left while he was still relevant. I’m sure he would have said it could have been longer, but definitely have given it a thumbs-up.

Ogre Mage

Ha, my buddy Jim just turned me onto this band, Ogre Mage,  this week and I gotta say, I love their style.

 

I'm insanely jealous of taking the idea of a Dungeons & Dragons game and turning it into a video (I think this would have been awesome for "Power Word, Kill", our most obviously D&D-influenced track.) They even get it right, that the girls look bored during the game (I wonder if they also thought about when the girlfriend of the DM who's usually there because she's trying to spend more time with him, gets "special bonus rolls" during the game.) Plus, they keyboard riff on the chorus is frickin' killer.

 They also get a +4 bonus for covering "Surrender" (which we're known to bust out on occasion as well!) Plus, the dude chugging a beer while wearing an American flag cape is about as good as it gets.

 

 I hope they can make it to Wisconsin sometime or we meet them out on the road!