I remember sitting outside one day, having coffee and talking to a friend about his insurance practice. He directed my attention to a four-way traffic light, where a guy was waiting to cross the street. "See that guy over there?" he asked. "He thinks he's going to make it to the ...

As I sat on the patio this morning, sipping my coffee and listening to Ben Harper, I had no idea that yesterday had been the last day that I could truthfully say, "I've never been bitten in the face by a scorpion." I should have been working, as I had promised ...

While very little on Facebook should be taken literally (or seriously), there are seven types of status updates that are, in fact, truly terrifying cries for help. The best thing you can do when you see one of these is to simply ignore them. Remember that first scene in Raiders ...

Holy shit, has this been a crazy week. Arrived in London last week for a pair of monumental events in music history. First was the Download Festival at Castle Donington, somewhere up in the middle of the UK. Thanks to the generous intervention of the iconic scribe, Mr. Mick Wall, I ...

The live album used to be a rock and roll institution. Before Live Nation and Ticketmaster made concerts feel as special as shopping at The Gap, concerts were a near-mystical opportunity to commune with a band, usually in your hometown. Musicians were still special back then because their every word ...

On a relatively last-minute whim, I flew home to Massachusetts to spend some time with my family. Between my two young nieces growing up at a furious pace and my dad and uncle continuing to solve the world's problems well into their 90s, I was massively looking forward to the ...

Remember when the Dixie Chicks got all feisty and said that they were ashamed that then-President George Bush was from their state of Texas? If so, then you surely remember the military-grade ass-plowing they took from Red Staters. I now invite each and every person who excoriated those artists for ...

  NOTICE: The following blog was written off-the-cuff and it has not been proofread. Blog may contain material considered boring, tangential or repetitive. The opinions herein are of no practical or inspirational use to anyone. By proceeding to the blog proper, the reader assumes responsibility all emotional consequences for subjecting themselves ...

To follow up on my announcement on Twitter today, I have enthusiastically accepted the position of music editor of Tiger Beat magazine. I'm thrilled to be able to report on the vital, culturally-potent music that is shaping not just the hearts of today's youth, but that is the cornerstone of ...

Weekend was crazy. Crazy, man. Interviewed Slayer's drummer Dave Lombardo on Friday afternoon while sitting by a hotel pool just off of Hollywood Boulevard. Surreal. The two of us rocked black jackets, black t-shirts and shades, conspicuously separating us from the shirtless, pasty-hued Big Ten guys doing cannonballs into the pool. Yesterday I ...