The Girl I Can't Forget: Done!... Sort of.

Today I finally finished penciling and inking one third of the Cliffhangers of the B-Side Dimension collect of short comics, The Girl I Can't Forget. (For those of you keeping score at home that's two of the three main comics completed, the other being the first chapter of Immaculate.) On a related note, I finally got the Macbook Pro that I had been working for this whole time and I am using it right now as I type this post. I bring this up because I'm holding off on coloring this comic (as well as the rest of Cliffhangers.) until my uncle swings by town again to load my computer up with all the arts software that I will use to make my comics look prettier than ever before. (That means no more MS paint for me :D) The Girl I Can't Forget is based off the Fountains of Wayne song of the same name, it's one of my favorites of theirs and if you have never heard it I suggest you look it up now.

This is How I Dance When Nobody's Looking...

Haven't really posted anything significant recently, I've been super focused on completing the first issue of Cliffhangers. So far I've got all the first draft pages of Immaculate done, (I'm probably going to redraw maybe two pages.) I'm currently wrapping up The Girl I Can't Forget and I'm progressing through Red Vag of Courage rather nicely. As for how my life is going, I finally got my new glasses and the job has been going pretty well, I like the work. Last weekend I received my first pay check and I worked my first Double shift. (and my legs were killing me all of Easter Sunday) I opened a savings account with my pay check for that new computer I've been meaning to get for my art and I used my tip money from the weekend for my basic needs and for my recent efforts to increase my swagger. (I ordered some new clothes online that'll fit me better and I got a new hair cut.) I also went to the library and went through my father's CDs to broaden my musical horizon. Here are some of the bands/artists I've been listening to a lot lately;
Billy Bragg, Jenny Lewis, Aquabats, Arctic Monkeys, Barenaked Ladies, The Dandy Warhols, Electric Light Orchestra, Feist, Hefner, Metric, Neko Case, The Pooh Sticks, Sondre Lerche, The The, Maroon 5, and Weezer.
I've checked out some Graphic novels that looked particularly interesting and are more in the genres that I tend to write about. I read Hope Larson's Mercury cover to cover last night and I'm currently in the process of reading Craig Thompson's Blankets. I highly recommend both for their amazing use of graphic story telling.

The Songs and Musicians That Got Me Through AmeriCorps

So While in NCCC I've heard a lot of new music and gained a new appreciation for some old favorites. These are some of the artists that really grew on me this last 10 months and their songs. (Also the in case you are wondering what is up with the picture it's a reference to a song by one of these artist/groups. 10 house points to the house who get it.)
Wilco: I was some what familiar with the band Wilco before AmeriCorps for the album they did with Billy Bragg of Woody Guthrie covers. (I mean I think they would be considered covers, none of the songs were recorded by Guthrie so...) I got a hold of their album Yankee Hotel Foxtrot and I really dug it. I like the mellow folky beats, my favorite song on the album would probably have to be Heavy Metal Drummer.
Liz Phair: People who are too good for popular music know her for the Album Exile In Guyville, and people who are good enough for Popular Music know her for the single "Why Can't I" and those same people who where too good for it labelled her a sell out for it but I say screw them. Liz Phair will always have a special place in my heart, (I'm a sucker for her lucky pretty eyes.) and sure "Why can't I" certainly wasn't one of her better tracks but even with that song it's still a pretty good album. Needing to make a living does not make you a sell out.
The Clash : I was introduced to the Clash by the other Avery but to me they were one of those bands who you always knew about but you didn't know you knew them. Train In Vain is a song I can always jam out to.
Of Montreal: This was a band I had heard about but never really looked into and I have just got to say, wow, simply wow. They've got a great use of instruments and clever lyrics, things I look for in a band (as should you.) Satanic Panic In The Attic has easily become one of my favorite albums and The Party's Crashing Me has become one of my favorite songs.
Rilo Kiley: This was a group that Thomas (see Pirate Party) introduced me to. I love the song "Ripcord" which my teammate Andrea does a beautiful version of on her ukulele. I also found their song "Breakin' Up" was just what I needed for my recent break up. I played the video for the song for Kamen while we were in MS and he fell in love with it. He then played it after he broke up with his boyfriend. (an unrelated incident)
The Kinks: I really dig the Album Aurthur especially the tracks "Victoria" and "Drivin" both remind me so much of my Corps Year.
Harvey Danger: Another band I came across with NCCC thanks to the famous Matt Rossi, simply wonderful, they did a brilliant cover of Bowie's "Oh you Pretty Things" and their album Little By Little is just as great.
Ok Go: Yes they do have songs other than the treadmill video and yes they also have videos even more awesome to match. My favorite song of there's, "This Too Shall Pass". My sister prefers the album version/ the one they use in the Rube Goldburg video but I prefer the marching band version, I like me some brass instruments. I listened to this song after a particularly bad day of work and I cried, it was good cry mind you, but I cried, I really got what the song meant that day.
The Avett Brothers: Another band introduced to me by Thomas (you'll notice this pattern, because if it wasn't something that I found through Thomas it came from the Famous Matt Rossi.) great group, the Album "Four Thieves Gone" is the album I listened to all through Toledo and then some in MS. There one song "Kick Drum Heart" has this line "It's not the chase that I love it's me following you" which I just think is one of the most beautiful things anyone could say to someone. (cause I'm weird like that.)
She And Him: Again a Thomas related discovery, I kinda have this obsession with Zooey Deschanel. (actress and the "she" half) She has just got this voice and musical style that sounds like it comes from the 50's and I love it, especially the songs "Black Hole" and "In the Sun"
Franz Ferdinand: An old love of mine, I've found the song "Micheal" to have been made for Kamen, for more than just a name's sake.
Camera Obscura: Once again I blame Thomas for this one, he included a song of theirs on a mix CD he made for me before I left. I love the songs "French Navy" and "If Looks Could Kill"
Metric: Not a huge fan of them as a whole but their song "Black Sheep" off the Scott PIlgrim Motion Picture Soundtrack is music to my ears. (I guess that saying isn't as powerful when you're literally talking about music, I mean it could be bad and still be music to your ears.) Anyway it's good.
The Rolling Stones: I sang "Satisfaction" at a Kareokee night which is something I had never done before so this song will forever have a special place in my heart.

There are plenty of other songs and artists I could name but this post is already mad long and other people need to use the computer so I'm gonna cut it off here.