First Gold - 7.5 AAU @ 60 min
Kent Goldings - 10 AAU @ 20 min
Kent Goldings - 5 AAU @ 5 min
1 oz (about 7AAU) Kent Goldings dry-hopped after about 3 days in primary
4lb Wheat DME
4lb Extra Pale DME
1lb Carastan Malt (steeped at 160F for 30 min)
Before cooling the wort, added
Zest of one orange
Zest of half a grapefruit
1/4oz coriander
Brewed: 08-22-2010
Kegged: 09-25-2010
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
The Cloud Cult
Went to Portland this weekend to see a Cloud Cult show. I've loved the band for a couple of years, and the show did not disappoint. It's been living in my head ever since then - I can't stop thinking about it. Think of the first time you saw the Matrix - just like that.
A few high points
Crazy spinning easels - Two artists, Connie Minowa and Scott West, do painting on stage during the show. They're auctioned off afterward (the paintings, not the artists). They both have sweet custom rigs that will let their paintings spin. It looked like they had them set up to spin by pump action, like a pottery wheel, and according to Scott's blog, they have disc brakes. Hell yeah.
Great instrumentation - Let's see... Acoustic guitar, electric guitar, electric bass, drums, keyboard, violin, cello, french horn, toy megaphone, half-sheet pan plus mallet, toy xylophone, vocoder... That's most of them. So yeah - I was really stoked to find out that the weird vocal distortion in some of the songs is Craig Minowa singing into a kid's megaphone that probably came from the dollar store.
Big songs - Seriously, a lot of Cloud Cult songs are like orchestral rock opera epics, and I can't help but dance and shout and sing. On The Exploding People, five of the band members crowd around two bass drums and slam out the rhythm in unison. It's huge. It made me wish I had a drum too, so I could get my tribal funk on.
Intimacy - It was a small venue, and their a band that's niche enough that everyone in the audience has some level of love for them, and probably knows their songs very well. I've been to a Paul McCartney show where 70,000 people all sang Hey Jude. It was way better at the Cloud Cult show where maybe 300 people all sang Everybody Here is a Cloud. Especially since it's a song with multiple harmonies and vocal counterpoints, and people around me were singing every one of the different parts - there's something about that that makes you say "These are MY people."
For those of you listening along at home (*chirp, chirp, chirp*), here's an incomplete set list, in no particular order.
Unexplainable Stories (opener)
Today We Give Ourselves to the Fire
You'll be Bright
The Exploding People
Forces of the Unseen
Running with the Wolves
There's So Much Energy In Us
No One Said it Would Be Easy
Everybody Here is A Cloud
The Story of the Grandson of Jesus
Love You All
When Water Comes to Life
A really Cloud Cult-y cover of Tambourine Man
I'm sure there was at least one song off the Meaning of 8 as well, and probably a few others I missed.
If you were on the fence as to whether you should drop a few g-notes to fly to a far-off city and see the Cloud Cult before the tour is over, waffle no further. Get your ass on the road and rock out. It will be the best show you've ever seen. You'll laugh, you'll cry, and it'll be better than Cats.
If you're not a Cloud Cult fan, run, don't walk, down to your local record shop and purchase their entire catalog. Or, just come to my house, and I'll play them for you and thoroughly annoy you with minutiae about the band and the songs that I read on the internet.
A few high points
Crazy spinning easels - Two artists, Connie Minowa and Scott West, do painting on stage during the show. They're auctioned off afterward (the paintings, not the artists). They both have sweet custom rigs that will let their paintings spin. It looked like they had them set up to spin by pump action, like a pottery wheel, and according to Scott's blog, they have disc brakes. Hell yeah.
Great instrumentation - Let's see... Acoustic guitar, electric guitar, electric bass, drums, keyboard, violin, cello, french horn, toy megaphone, half-sheet pan plus mallet, toy xylophone, vocoder... That's most of them. So yeah - I was really stoked to find out that the weird vocal distortion in some of the songs is Craig Minowa singing into a kid's megaphone that probably came from the dollar store.
Big songs - Seriously, a lot of Cloud Cult songs are like orchestral rock opera epics, and I can't help but dance and shout and sing. On The Exploding People, five of the band members crowd around two bass drums and slam out the rhythm in unison. It's huge. It made me wish I had a drum too, so I could get my tribal funk on.
Intimacy - It was a small venue, and their a band that's niche enough that everyone in the audience has some level of love for them, and probably knows their songs very well. I've been to a Paul McCartney show where 70,000 people all sang Hey Jude. It was way better at the Cloud Cult show where maybe 300 people all sang Everybody Here is a Cloud. Especially since it's a song with multiple harmonies and vocal counterpoints, and people around me were singing every one of the different parts - there's something about that that makes you say "These are MY people."
 |
| A crappy picture I snapped because I wanted a good shot of Craig's Country Gentleman |
Unexplainable Stories (opener)
Today We Give Ourselves to the Fire
You'll be Bright
The Exploding People
Forces of the Unseen
Running with the Wolves
There's So Much Energy In Us
No One Said it Would Be Easy
Everybody Here is A Cloud
The Story of the Grandson of Jesus
Love You All
When Water Comes to Life
A really Cloud Cult-y cover of Tambourine Man
I'm sure there was at least one song off the Meaning of 8 as well, and probably a few others I missed.
If you were on the fence as to whether you should drop a few g-notes to fly to a far-off city and see the Cloud Cult before the tour is over, waffle no further. Get your ass on the road and rock out. It will be the best show you've ever seen. You'll laugh, you'll cry, and it'll be better than Cats.
If you're not a Cloud Cult fan, run, don't walk, down to your local record shop and purchase their entire catalog. Or, just come to my house, and I'll play them for you and thoroughly annoy you with minutiae about the band and the songs that I read on the internet.
Seared Chicken
For years, I've stuck to roasting or braising my chicken. No more! Here's a few guidelines to make seared chicken unbelievably awesome.
- Let it come up to room temperature - Or at least 40 degrees F all the way through.
- Cut it into smallish chunks - Say, half a thigh big
- Adequate Lube - Olive oil works real nice
- Don't be afraid of high heat - Crank it up, get some brown crusties
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Pictures from Camp
Dear Mom and Dad,
Having a great time at camp. Meeting lots of new friends!
Love,
Dan
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