I Really Need To Make More Friends

....i'm in tears right now because I missed this on saturday.

"On a typical Saturday Night at the Air Canada Centre you'd find roughly 18,000 people wearing Leafs jerseys and chanting "Go Leafs Go!" but this past Saturday was slightly different. The Foo Fighters made their way into town to a sold out crowd of 20,000 plus and instead of seeing Leafs merchandise you saw Foo Fighters T-shirts and chants of "Foos Foos Foos".
Opening for the Foo Fighters were Against Me!. Having listened to their recent album New Wave for a couple of months, I was excited to see how they were live. Normally an opening band won't fill up the seats, but these guys had a huge following and filled up more than what I expected. They played for a good 45 minutes to an hour. They played a number of tracks from New Wave including Stop!, New Wave, Thrash Unreal, Borne On The FM Waves and more! Overall I thought they played a good show.
While waiting for the Foos to come on stage I noticed a long catwalk that connected the main stage to an unknown circular area. We all had no idea what that was for until later on in the show. Once the Foos hit the stage everyone and I mean everyone was standing! They opened the show with Let It Die from their latest album Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace. Then they followed it up with their smash The Pretender. Then Dave Grohl asked the crowd if they have been to a Foo Fighters concert, and a loud roar responded. Then he asked the crowd if this was their first Foo Fighters concert and another loud roar responded. Dave decided that the crowd was split 50-50 of newcomers and old-timers. He then assured us that this was going to be a special show. What was going to make this show special? Well for one the Toronto show has been the biggest the Foo Fighters have played in Canada, that they had some special guests, they were going to play some old shit, some new shit and some acoustic shit! From then on I knew it was going to be a great show!
They followed up Dave's speech with hit after hit including 'Times Like These, Break Out, This is A Call, Stacked Actors, Breakout, and Cheer Up Boys'. I guess Dave was right by playing older, heavier, foo fighters tracks.
After that set of tracks Dave, Nate, and Chris walked off stage leaving Taylor Hawkins to do his drum solo. After a couple of minutes of his drum solo Taylor introduces special guests of the night - Rush! RUSH! Alex Lifeson and Geddy Lee of Rush joined Taylor Hawkins on stage and jammed to Rush's hit YYZ. Once they fished jamming Dave comes on stage and yells 'RUSH! RUSH!' Mr. Grohl indeed came through with his promise of the show being a special one, and he wasn't done either!
As the crowd was going nuts because Rush were on stage I noticed that they started to uncover the circular area at the end of the catwalk. Still not know what it was the band started walking down the catwalk. As they are walking a second, smaller, stage emerges from the rafters! It's time for the Foos to play some acoustic shit!
They kicked off the acoustic set with Skin And Bones followed by Marigold. During the acoustic set Dave introduced everyone on stage and gave solo's to violinist Jessie Green and to percussionist Drew Hester who ended up performing a triangle solo! Then came My Hero. I am positive that every single body in that place was singing this song. It came to a point where Dave Grohl didn't have to sing, he encouraged all to sing and the crowd ended up taking over the vocals for the song. It was great! After that sing-a-long I knew that this was the best show I've been to and they were only half way through their entire set! Then came Taylor's turn to take lead vocals on Cold Day In The Sun, followed by But, Honestly and closing the acoustic set with Everlong. Another song that Mr. Grohl really didn't have to sing. He went to each of the mics on the second stage and sang to each side of the crowd! This guy knows how to work a crowd! Towards the end of the song it went from acoustic to electric and Dave ran along the catwalk and jumped back onto the main stage and rocked out to finish off the track!
Asking the crowd if they were done they ripped into Monkey Wrench followed by All My Life to finish up the concert. During the encore break the screens showed the band backstage with the set list, focused in on Dave putting yup a finger to indicate a single song encore. The crowd got loud when he put up two fingers and the crowd went crazy when Taylor stepped in the put up all ten fingers. Storming onto the stage to perform their encore Dave Grohl told us a story about his first trip in Toronto when he got to play drums for Iggy Pop as a 19 year old. Finishing off his story they started the encore with the 1996 hit Big Me followed by Long Road To Ruin and 'Best Of You' which were both huge singalongs!
If you were at the show, let me know what you thought of it.
Full Setlist:Let It Die
The Pretender
Times Like These
Breakout
Learn To Fly
Cheer Up Boys
This Is A Call
Stacked Actors
YYZ (f. Geddy Lee & Alex Lifeson of Rush)
Skin And Bones
Marigold
My Hero
Cold Day In The Sun
But, Honestly
Everlong
Monkey Wrench
All My Life
Encore:Big Me
Long Road To Ruin
Best Of You"

Courtesy of www.muchmusic.com

The Eyes Have It

You guys ever have those days when you feel like nothing is going your way? Well for me those days turned into a week, and that week has thankfully ended. It seemed like one tragic defeat after another. I got really bad on some assignments, and by bad I don't mean 60/70 I mean bad. On top of that, I just wasn't digging my appearance, I mean I know i'm never going to be buff or jock like, but last week just seemed to show off my gut more than usual. Lastly, I was supposed to go to a concert Saturday night, which I had been pumped for, for a while. And, low and behold, that didn't happen either, and now i'm stuck $120 in debt and two tickets sitting on my dresser with no place to go. Aside from that, I had this strange but interesting thought come into my brain on friday night. I was suprised that I thought about it when I did, mainly because I should have been occupied with the life stories of Rich Plante and Uncle Bobby, two guest speakers at my youth group. Not to say that I didn't take their stories to heart because they definitely had an effect on me, but this thought kept occupying my mind.

When you look at somone what is the first thing that runs through your mind? Usually, I wonder what is going through their mind. When I see their face, I can tell if somethings troubling them, or their happy and so fourth and so on. There's a whole list emotions that I can usually pick up on. For example, when I see Kristina's face I can see the joy that she's about to bring where ever she is. On friday night that kind of changed for me. I was listening to these two men talk about their lives without God and how when they finally found him it was the greatest moment in their lives. In detail I heard about their trials and tribulations from their childhood ranging to their early 40's. When your hear those kinds of stories, your mind immeadiately thinks back to all the moments in your life where you've made a bad choice or done something you've regretted for years. As I listened my eyes drifted up into our youth pastor, Jay's. For a quick second I was in direct line with his eyes, and thats when it hit me. What do people see when they look at me? And for that matter do I look the same to everyone or I am viewed differently by everyone that I know?

It was weird thinking about it, and for a while my mind just kind of drifted off questioning what people see when they look at me? When I got home that night, I looked at myself in my bathroom mirror and I didn't really see anything new. Same 6 foot 5 J-moose, with acne on his face. Still I wondered what others see. Fast forward to work the next day. I was a little bit of a rush to get my returns done and start cleaning my department, since it looked as if a bomb had gone off in it. I was speeding down the action alley towards the bikes when I passed fellow blogger and friend, Klla. Usually we don't have a chance to exchange pleasantries since she's rushing towards the front to get to a register and i'm usually running around with Barbies in my hand, but 9 times out of ten we usually exchange a smile, which is just as good as a hello in my books. Anyways, we passed by one another and managed to see into her eyes for a brief moment, and again my mind immeadiately thought about the image portrayed to her when she looks at me. It's weird to think about that, mainly because she doesn't see me as often as everyone else I know, and usually the only chance we get to talk is over msn. You don't have to tell me Klla, it doesn't really matter, it's just the thought that intrigues me. But again, what goes on in someone else's eyes? Look at school life for example, you've got over a thousand kids cramped into one building, and each one of them has their own view on what that school looks like, and what each student looks like. It's hard not to think about how people see me, since everyone at BT has seen my face on the morning announcements, but do I look like that guy with acne making his nose look bloodshot red and a 6 foor 5 misfit, or am I just a voice without a face?

Whatever the case may be, I know when I look into a mirror I see a boy desperate to find his place in life. God knows where i'm headed, but unfortunately me and God have yet to get to know one another, and it's truly unfortunate. Jay Brock told me he didn't find God till he was 17. I'm 18 and I haven't found God, but I know in his eyes, i'm constantly changing, and thus a true image can never be revealed. Maybe one day i'll be able to see what exactly changed, but for now i'll keep questioning.

J-moose

She's Looking For Some Courage. She Feels Faithless, She Feels Earthless

Now before we begin, i'd like to let you guys know that i'm having the worst week possible so far and i'm kind of losing faith in my intelligence.

Today I was sitting in my philosophy class and a song started playing in my head. A song about a girl (most songs are), but to me this song is more than that. It's not a love song, but a description of this girl and what she questions, the struggles she goes through. For me, it was the only thing that kept me from wanting to cry. I don't know why, but even as I write this, I find myself gradually slipping into despair. When I hear this song, a different set of lyrics play through my mind, and instead of a young girl it's about a boy. If this sounds anything like the song about the girl, I apologize Raine Maida.

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Every morning is a new day, a new fight, a new struggle, a new light. He wakes up to the same song, day after day, those same words etched into his brain. The mirror in his bedroom likes to play tricks on his mind, supplying false images of what he should be. Muscular ain't worth it, being a dreamer just don't cut it, those 5 minutes of shame when he sees himself, get harder everyday. He cries out to sky, expecting answers from above, but God won't listen, he's got to do this on his own.

--

In his mind he's the epitomy of failiure, friendless, souless, selfless, and scared. But his minds a cruel tool, makes him believe what he really shouldn't. Everyday a new friend prayers for his happiness and hopes to God he knows it. Those lonely hours he spends walking the town searching for his purpose questioning life, love and what he can't understand.

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And hope is what he really needs. Some hope to help him breath. He's grasping for the surface...But the suface just ain't worth it, let me be gone, let me go.

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A reminder that I always write my best when I feel like crap. This is a key example of that.

J-moose

Body In a Box

There's a song on the new city and colour album that made me think long and hard about what happens when I die. On top of that there's a book i'm reading called "Tuesdays With Morrie" which briefly talked about the same thing. Most people in this world love recieving compliments, and I for one always love to get them. To me it's a real confidence booster and it just really makes my day. For example, I recently met this girl at my school named Amanda, and we've been corresponding over facebook. One of the first things she said to me was "Why are you so freaking nice?". To get a compliment like that just brightened up my day. She even told me that she's never seen me without a smile on my face, which just added onto my euphoria. I know, you guys aren't really seeing a point to my rambling yet, but i'm getting there.

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So in the song, Dallas Green speaks about death, which has always been a little weird for me to think about, since there's so much I want to do before I do. Now how do compliments relate to death you might ask, well think about it. At what time does someone get the most compliments ever said about them? A FUNERAL! I mean think about, for those of you who have been to a funeral i'm sure you've sat there (especially if you didn't know the person well) wondering what made this person so great, and why you should care about hearing their lifes story. But if you think about, isn't that whats going to happen at your funeral? All your surviving friends will be there, as will your family, and for an hour they get to reminise about the good times you shared with them.

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That's where it kicks in. Everyone, at one point or another is going to realize that all those nice things they've said about you, are never going to reach your ears. Doesn't that give off a depressing feeling? I mean think about, when are ever going to hear these great things people think about you ever again? Yeah, people will compliment you from time to time, but what they truly think about you can only be expressed when your gone for good. So here's my plan, well actually it's Morrie Schwartz's plan but none the less i'm using it. When I get older, and can feel my time slowly slipping away, i'm going to have all my friends/family over so they can properly say goodbye. This way, i'll go knowing how they truly feel instead of wondering in the eternal bliss of heaven, what they really think.

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J-moose

New Music Makes Me Happy

Most people know that I love my music. If I didn't have my ipod with me 24/7 i'd probably go insane. So when I found some new songs floating around I knew that i'd be doing a blog about them sooner or later. Oh and the best part about this, is that it's all canadian music. Thats right, all Canadian and it all kicks ass.

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1. Tokyo Police Club - In A Cave : So TPC is back, and they don't disappoint. It's a classic TPC song, the prominent bass line, with the catchy guitar and keyboard rifts that make me wonder why they're not more popular. The big downside with this is that its not their new single. Bands today have this thing they've dubbed "The Myspace Single" and this is unfortunately it. The first official single from their new album "Elephant Shell" is called "Tessellate" and its not coming out until April 21st. So until then this is going to be holding me over.

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2.Sam Roberts - Them Kids: When I first saw this song on the edge's website on the thursday 30 countdown I figured it to be a track of an EP he'd be releasing, but again I checked his myspace page, and much to my suprise it's actually the first single from the new album titled "Love At The End Of The World". Down to the nitty gritty. It's a little different than what I was expecting from Sam Roberts. The opening has this TPC kind of feel to it, but then it goes right into what I love about his music. The song has a little bit of a weird vibe to it, but it works for Sam and the band, so it's worth a listen. I'm probably gonna pick up the album when it comes out.

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3. Theory Of A Dead Man - So Happy: All you need to know, is that they're Nickelback clones. The song pretty much sounds like everything Nickelback has done, just a bit harder. Listen at your own discretion.

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4. Neverending White Lights - The World is Darker ft. Auf der Maur: I Love Daniel Victor for creating this band. Although my copy of "Blood And Life Eternal" got stolen and i'm not blaming anyone in particular "Cough" Klla"Cough". Kidding Klla. I managed to save the cd to my laptop so I could listen to it whenever. The song is very dark and gives off this gloomy kind of feel to it. The vocals in it kind of give the creeps, but its kind of expected with Auf Der Maur. For those of you who don't know who she is, I say forshame. Melissa Auf Der Maur was one of the many bass players that graced the amazingly awesome "Smashing Pumpkins". Although she was only around for one album, she still managed to add a little flair to the bass rifts so she's worth checking. Besides SP she also has a solo career going for her. Although I haven't really heard any of her solo work, I can assume from the vocals on NEWL's song, it should be worth a listen.

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5. Matthew Good Band - Giant: You can't expect me not to put something by MGB up, in my mind they are Gods. Although they're broken up, I still manage to find new faves on their albums. It's weird, i'll listen to an album a few times, and I'll really listen to the singles. After a while, i'll find some new stuff off it, and question why it didn't make it to radio. Giant is a great example of this. The opening with the cheerleaders yelling out how to spell "Kickass" mixed with the perfect timing of the drums entry and then the simplistic, yet increadible guitar opener, is exactly what MGB is about. Definitely worth a listen.

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That's all for now kids, but if you ever need some good music I post what i'm currently digging, up on the side there. Oh and if you want to listen to any of these tracks, just check out the bands myspace pages. Excluding MGB you should be able to listen to every song I wrote about.

J-moose