When my editor asked me to go and review the U2 laser light show at the
LASM Planetarium, I was a bit skeptical. The last time I had seen one of these
shows, I had been forced to attend by my elementary school teacher, and even at
that tender age, I had been unimpressed and bored. Watching various geometric
and astronomical shapes move around a wall, changing colors and spinning, is
not my idea of a good time, then or now. But I agreed to go because (a) from
previous visits, I knew the planetarium air conditioner is set cold enough to
rival temperatures at the Arctic Circle, and most concerts during the summer
are miserably hot; and (b) it has stadium seating, so I did not have to stand
for hours while watching the band roadies set up, making perverse jokes and
rhymes beginning with the letter “P.”
It’s time to
play the music. It’s time to light the lights. It’s time to meet the Muppets at
the Louisiana Arts and Science Museum.
No,
seriously, I’m not kidding: the Muppets are here and can be found downtown
until June 22 in an exhibit entitled Jim
Henson’s Fantastic World. For anyone who grew up with The Muppet Show, learned to count with Sesame Street, and chased her cares away with the Fraggles, you
have to go and check this out.
According
to the latest U.S. Census, 34.5 million people in the United States claim Irish
ancestry. To put that into perspective
for you, Ireland only has a population of 4.1 million people – that means
America has almost nine times the amount of Irish Ireland has. (It’s amazing what the Irish can do when they are no longer being
repressed by the British, geographical restrictions, and condoms.) It really is no surprise then that St.
Patrick’s Day is rapidly becoming one of the biggest holidays in the U.S. I suppose it also doesn’t hurt that it is one
of the few holidays that openly encourages getting completely soused on beer or
whiskey in public. Since I am one of
those people who claims Irish descent, and with St. Patrick’s Day this month, I
felt that it was my duty – no, obligation – to pull up my kilt, straighten my
sporran, and steer y’all in the direction of some good Irish music – with the
emphasis on good.
Some
readers have brought to my attention that I am very cynical when it comes to
Valentine's Day, romantic love, and the pink and red drivel that comes with the
holiday, and because of this, I have been unkind to lovers and have not given
them the music that they need and crave for this most loving of days. So
I swallowed my natural aversion to all things sugary and saccharine (read contrived) and went into research mode
to try to find the top love songs that should be on your iPod or radio, to mesh
with the overwhelming feelings of love that greeting card companies have
advertised so much to convince you that you feel on this day.
October is
here! Theoretically, this is my favorite
month. The air starts to get crisp, and
you can layer clothing and wear sweaters.
Football season is in full swing.
If you live anywhere but here, the leaves start to change colors, and
you get to start up the first fire in the fireplace for the year. Hot apple cider is the beverage of choice,
and Halloween comes at the end and seems to kick off the beginning of the
holiday season. I love it!
As I was sitting down, getting ready to type this article, I realized that this particular piece would be published in September. Which means that, when you read this, my wedding will only be one month away. One month away, and I still have yet to pick a father-daughter song to dance to, and I have not selected the music that I will have the DJ play at my wedding.
When I was a teenager, I used to love to listen to the Beach Boys, They Might Be Giants, and various other happy-sounding, 60s-era bands while I was cruising in my car, enjoying the summer months. (Yes, I know that TMBG isn’t from the 60s, but I listened to them.) It was a wonderful time before I had to worry about paying bills and working eight hours a day.
How many times have you been looking through your CD collection or scrolling through your MP3 player and thought to yourself, "Hmmmm… Do I want to listen to the hard-rocking, metal sounds of Metallica, or do I want to listen to the gentle harmonies of The Beatles? Gosh, I wish there was a way that I could combine these two sounds and not have to make such a tough decision"?
This month, my editor handed me two CDs that bands had sent to me to review, and it brought about a dilemma for me. Which do I choose to review first? Do I review the CD that has the best music? Do I review the band that actually plays here in town, or do I pick the band that has made it enough to tour in Houston?
