May 21, 2009, 9:26 am : Preview: The Cheaters Forthcoming Release – Midnight Run

Filed Under: Album Reviews, Genres and Styles, Interviews, Music, Upcoming Shows
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Are The Cheaters poised to stretch their wings far beyond their Baltimore stomping grounds? With the upcoming release of Midnight Run, this writer thinks that is a distinct possibility.

I interviewed drummer Kevin Shook and lead singer/guitarist Jason Morton for Baltimore Examiner recently to get their firsthand take on Midnight Run and the music life. Here’s what Shook had to say about Midnight Run:

Examiner: Can you give fans some insight about the new CD? What can we expect from your new music?

Shook: The new album is definitely a lot more straight-forward rock ‘n roll than the first disc. We have a couple of tracks that hint back to the southern-influenced material from the first record, but on the whole, this is really just a solid rock record. We also worked really hard on the songwriting this time around. We’ve added a lot more dynamics, like dueling leader guitars, key changes, and different song structures to help keep things fresh. We also brought in some guest musicians this time around, and added some harmonica, back-up singers, and organ on some tunes. We’re all really excited about the new disc, and feel that this is definitely our best effort yet.

Since then I received an advance copy of the album and got the chance to listen to it a few times. Slicing guitar, impressive arrays of drum beats that are finely varied and creatively timed, and vocals that are developed way beyond the typical abilities of a young singer are the elements in what makes Midnight Run the release of the year. The songwriting shows strong development and diversity, with a few amazing surprises for listeners.

To say it more succinctly, in rock terms, this album FREAKING RIPS! Ask yourself the last time you were blown away by a new rock release; real, authentic rock? Thank The Cheaters, because once Midnight Run hits the streets we’ll all have a reason to “Grab the whiskey (and) grab our friends.” Their CD release party is June 5th at the 8×10 in Baltimore. Be there. I will, there’s no chance I’m missing this.

Coming soon – I’ll post a couple of tracks off Midnight Run for an exclusive sneak peak.

May 10, 2009, 9:50 pm : New York Surf Film Festival 2009 Announces Judging Panel

Filed Under: Events, Imagery, News, Surfing
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Building on a premier success, the New York Surf Film Festival has announced a stellar mix of surf emissaries with various perspectives on surf visual arts. The 2009 judging panel includes luminary shaper Tom Parrish, garish yet brutally honest former Surfline Editor of the Power Rankings Lewis Samuels (formerly Surline’s best feature, now posted up at PostSurf.com),  Long Island stalwart Charlie Bunger Jr., respected editor Alex Dick-Reade, and Long Island classic Mike Becker.

Good choices all, and the rest of the cast include surf writer Thad Ziolkowski, who did a strong exploration into surf literature with his debut effort, On A Wave; Alex Karinsky, who lives and breathes New York City surfing and keeps the spark lit, artist Todd Di Ciurcio, a Pennsylvania turned Brooklyn native artist and surfer, and a few others whose resumes I am not familiar with.

But very impressive. Tom Parish? Litmus Trip Tom Parish. That is incredible, kind of like having Mickey Mantle coach your amateur baseball team, or something. I mean, the guy was responsible for shaping boards for the best pros at the most robust time in professional surfing. He has seen and done it and now practices law on Maui.

Also, information I have points to a very big announcement at this years New York Surf Film Festival.

May 4, 2009, 11:27 am : ASP Tour Roundup After Bells Beach – Contest 2 of 10

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As if title #10 should be a cakewalk for Kelly Slater, the Australian leg of the tour and its constituency made it clear that would not be the case in 2009. Going into the season the media made it out to be a matter of what contest Slater will clinch his tenth rather than if he can. Slatermaniacs can cry foul judging and unfair nationalist bias, but Joel Parkinson came out the clear winner on the Gold Coast and at Bells Beach, where he took out impressive local wildcard Adam Robertson in the final. Important to point out is the point that Parko’s run had nothing to do with Slater’s losses in either match; bowing out to Julian Wilson for his first of a pair of seventeenth place finishes, then choked out by Owen Wright at Bells. Both victors were wildcards, and Slater really didn’t muster any waves of incredulity. He looked rather normal, almost vulnerable.

Yet the season is early, and Slater is by no means out of the race. He’s made it clear that he can run off regular strings of event wins, but Parko’s two wins in two starts puts him in control of his own fate for the rest of the season. That’s how it is when everyone else has to look up at you. It will be interesting to see how Parko will handle the pressure he will face. Inside reports have him more confident than ever, and focusing on his game more than in past years. This could be the year for the smooth-styled Aussie, but there is plenty of grind left to go.

Other throughlines from the first two contests include a couple of guys with surprising starts and the new format, which was revealed for the first time at Bells.

On the former, Fred Patacchia and Jordy Smith stand out with both surfers sitting in equal 3rd position. Smith seems to have found the confidence he didn’t have last year, and looks to fill the expectations the media has lumped on him. Patacchia is more of a surprise because of the difficulty goofy footers have surfing two different and tricky righthanders to start the season. This bodes well for Patacchia going into Teahupoo, as the Hawaiian loves dangerous left hand barrels. Another surfer who has gotten off to a surprisingly good start is Jihad Kodr. The Brazilian was the brunt of much derision last year, getting waxed in almost every heat, but it seems he figured it out between then and now, sitting in equal 14th place. Maybe not for long going into Teahupoo, since he has shown no forte for nasty reef barrels. Maybe he learned how to chuck himself over the ledge into life-threatening situations too, but that’s doubtful.
Parko claims victory at Bells (Getty Images: Lucas Dawson)

With the launching of the new format there is no more losers round, it’s all sudden elimination. Surfers seeded 1-16 are placed directly into round two, while the remaining 29 Tour surfers and three wildcards duke it out in round one. The format eliminates 16 heats from the schedule, allowing the contest to run in three days rather than four. More chance to score good waves for the entire contest, perhaps, if its done right. While the original format wasn’t used for the Gold Coast, it was at Bells, with the first round being run in crap waves. As can be expected in conditions like that, luck won out more than skill, turning the brackets upside down as some big names went down early (e.g. Dane Reynolds).

It will be interesting to see what the ASP will do for the remainder of the season. There has been lots of noise made by the surfers against the format. The change is really about $$$ more than anything else, since less contest days means less overall expense. Time will tell, but it is interesting that the ASP has allegedly abandoned the idea of moving to a one tier system (meaning all surfers counted in a single rating system, rather than World Tour and Qualifying Tour being separate). Word has it that implementing it would bring lawsuits from several surfers who have major cash incentives in their sponsor contracts for being on the World Tour, and they could feasibly lose out due to lack of definition between the two tours and their contract language.

Once again, Ace Buchan wrapped up his first hand account of Bells on his Surfline blog. Keep it up mate; good work.

And Lewis Samuels hasn’t let his firing from Surfline dim the sharpness of his pen. Actually he has gotten edgier to the point of excess, but hey at least he’s entertaining. Here’s the links to his non-Surfline-edited power rankings (Surfline has continued with their own version, but to wit, it’s worthless. Enough said):

1 – 5
6 -10
11 – 15
16 – 21
22 – 27
28 – 33
34 – 39
40 – 45

Here’s looking forward to Teahupoo, where hopefully my Fantasy Surfer team can make a miraculous comeback after taking the pipe in the first two go’rounds.