gutter twins

Greg Dulli isn’t claimed that often by Cincinnati, but we probably should claim him. The Afghan Whigs were one of the most overlooked independent rock bands of the 90s, and The Twilight Singers are one of the better indie bands of today. Greg Dulli doesn’t claim Cincinnati that often, and he probably shouldn’t do so. The reasons are obvious.

Greg’s got a new project going right now with former Screaming Trees frontman, part-time QOTSA contributor and whiskey-soaked crooner Mark Lanegan called The Gutter Twins. It’s pretty cool stuff, the sort of sultry rock music that Greg has been making with the Singers for a good while now, just add in Mark’s voice which fits the sound perfectly. (But after Blackberry Belle’s knockout closing track “Number Nine” featuring Lanegan’s vocals, we knew that much.) Their album Saturnalia comes out on March 4. You can listen to it all online here. You can check out some tunes and other stuff on their myspace and official website. Check out an interview with Mark and Greg by the Onion A.V. Club here.

And The Gutter Twins will be performing at the Southgate House in Newport on Tuesday, March 11. Get there. I’ll be attending so expect a wildly entertaining review of the show afterwards.

the bodies just hit the floor

I password protected the bodies @ museum center post because I realized that the entry is the FIRST result that comes up if you enter “bodies museum center” into google, and that is absolutely ridiculous. This blog is not meant to inform you of anything of any importance or, for goodness sake, moral significance. I assure you that preventing people from viewing the entry has nothing to do with anything anyone has said about the entry or has left as a comment. In fact, I’ve enjoyed the comments. It’s just that google is ridiculous, and it’s not fair to anyone involved that what an amateur wrote is apparently the internet authority on the exhibit. If you want to read something constructive and informative about this exhibit, go to http://www.cincymuseum.org/ or http://www.enquirer.com. I’ll take the password off of the post when I feel like it which I assure you will not be soon.

Update: I deleted the entry for the time being.  Experimenting with internet things.

Casual observation #416

Hypothesis: The band Nickelback chose their name because after someone plays one of their songs on a jukebox, the person says, “That song sucked. I want my nickel back.”

Diesel or unneeded?

What the fuck were the Phoenix Suns thinking? For those of you out of the know, the Suns traded away Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks (not the point) for Shaquille O’Neal from the Miami Heat in attempts to bring a true big man to the team with the best record in the Western Conference. The Suns think this is a wise move because the team needs a dominant and most importantly, a defensive presence in the post. Unfortunately, the Suns don’t seem to realize that you have to play defense in the first place to require a defensive post player.

What boggles my mind and apparently no one in the Suns’ front office, is the idea of an aging, unmotivated 300 plus pound center trying to keep up in Phoenix’s up-and-down, high-tempo style of play. Sure, who needs Marion – possibly one of the best power forwards in the god damn NBA, when we can have an injury-plagued, 35-year-old center that can’t walk up the court without his knees giving out? The Suns appear to believe that even 15-20 “quality” minutes from Shaq will give them a chance on the defensive end and stop opposing teams from driving to the basket. Correct me if I am wrong, but don’t the Suns have one of the top shot blockers in the game in Amare Stoudemire, who averages almost 2.5 blocks per game, already playing down low? Sure, his official position is power forward, but that is just splitting hairs, as a team that plays like the Suns can’t afford to keep a lumbering defensive anchor like Ben Wallace on the court. The Suns succeed at what they do because they flat out score more points than you and out-run you down the court for easy transition buckets. I don’t see Shaq hustling down the court to finish off a Steve Nash alley-oop.

Here is an idea. Instead of Phoenix dishing out a helleva player like Marion for a veteran like Shaq, what don’t you guys play some fucking defense? Is that too much to ask? If the team put in any effort to stop opposing teams, victories would come easier and the Suns could become legitimate title contenders. Sure, that is a lot of work, and playing defense doesn’t sell ticket, but it does (if you don’t mind the cliche’) wins championships. You know why cliches are cliched? Because they are true. Example A) New York Giants, example B) San Antonio Spurs. I rest my case.

Now don’t think I have anything against Shaq. Shaq was great. Shaq was the most dominant player in the NBA. Shaq was a reliable and healthy player. Shaq was the backbone for championship-caliber teams like the Lakers and Heat, but let’s face it, Shaq is old. Shaq can barely play in the half court setting as is – let alone on a team that gets up and down the court. Oh well, why should I care? Even if Shaq sucks it up in Phoenix, the faithful fans of the Suns can count on Shaq policing their streets.