MS-Related Fundraising Events, continued from page one...

Lastly, Sloth and Steph traveled again to Door County, Wisconsin for the second annual MS Challenge Walk. This year we were far better prepared, and Steph nailed the 50 miles of power walking and still had energy to drive all the way back to Grand Rapids. The two also did some sight-seeing around the gorgeous peninsula prior to the event - Sloth took great pleasure in surfing the 'Net seated at the edge of the boardwalk in Sister Bay and witnessed goats grazing on a rooftop! Over the week, the two of them reconnected with friends made the previous year and also met wonderful new ones as well. Utterly fantastic!

2010 will bring new challenges and new events: Sloth plans on hosting a special Wii-themed fundraising party as well as organizing an MS running team for the 5th 3rd River Bank Run, in which he participated for the first time this past May. Check out photos, videos, and get up-to-date info on these events at teamn3kk1d.com.

Fallen Branch Disposal Service!

This summer's yard project yielded great fun for the entire family as well as for many a guest. It began with the purchase of what some may call an "outdoor fireplace" - an elevated metal bowl with a grate cover to keep the fire isolated. But Sloth and Steph were looking to create something a little more ornate, and so the project actually became two projects in one: Sloth took apart the brick-and-gravel area at the southeast corner of the house (which was supposed to keep water out of the basement), reused the brick and pea gravel for the firepit, and then built an "L" shaped planter to replace it. The topsoil was removed from a circle drawn in the middle of the back yard; this was transferred to the area previously filled with bricks and pea gravel. An alternating pattern of bricks was laid on the outside perimeter of the circle, and the firepit was installed in the center of the circle on four flat leveled bricks. The remainder of the circle was filled with pea gravel and larger pebbles. Later, in the fall, we added long wooden benches from the old Barnes & Noble store. The firepit was well used over the summer and autumn, resulting in many outdoor dinners cooked and many a S'more consumed. But we still haven't solved one major mystery: after the long winter is over, what are we going to grow in a huge "L" shaped planter that never receives direct sunlight? Hmmmmmm...

Summer Vacation in Maryland

In July, Steph and Sloth ruthlessly ditched the kids and traveled to Maryland to visit Sloth's sister Rachel and her husband Manuel at their home in Bowie (that's pronounced "Boo-ee"). They found that, astoundingly, their tolerance for travel is far greater when not in the presence of kids. They also learned a little something about traveling on toll roads: never run out of cash.

Continued on page three...

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Trip to Maryland, continued from page two...

Their route took them through Pittsburgh and the rolling hills of Appalachia, eventually depositing them near the outskirts of Washington D.C. While in Maryland, Sloth was able to visit with old family friends and go running with his sister; meanwhile, Sloth and Steph enjoyed seeing Rachel's home for the very first time and caught up on recent James Bond films. During the day, Rachel acted as an unofficial tour guide and traveled into D.C. with Sloth and Steph, where they toured the Holocoust Museum and Arlington National Cemetery. Steph wanted to continue to the Smithsonian American Indian Museum, but in an attempt to make their trip not quite so somber, Sloth convinced her to instead conduct a general tour down the National Mall to see the iconic monuments. Our circuit around the mall was swift, but we were able to visit the Lincoln and Washington Memorials, the new World War II Memorial, the Capitol Building, the White House, and the Library of Congress. (Sadly, Steph found out later that a special pass was necessary to access the general Library documents!). Three days was just not enough to cover even a small percentage of what there was to see in our nation's capitol... but this merely sounds like the perfect excuse to come back to visit, no?

Above, top-left: Sloth and Steph take the obligatory cheesy photo on the National Mall in Washington D.C. Above, top- right: Statues stare bleakly into space at the very somber Vietnam Memorial. Above, bottom-left: The Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington, with the Memorial Amphitheatre behind it. Above, bottom-right: Sloth conducts his usual kid torture on friend Mary's son Owen while sister Rachel mentally reviews her home's insurance policy for personal damages.

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Wear Bright Colors to Distract the Enemy
by James Veenstra

This past summer was filled with fitness and great fun for me. During this time I was tried out in all positions on the soccer field playing for Ottawa Hills High School! I started as a goalie / forward / stopper / mid-fielder, but the coach noticed my unique skill right away: my height. I was put in as a goalie soon afterwards and I pretty much ran the whole season this way while new teammates came and left. Then, when we were well into the season, the coach purchased for me my very own jersey. It was THE most colorful thing I have ever worn - sort of a rastafarian style. My coach said it was to distract the enemies, though he saw it wasn't needed because I was quite skilled in the mystical art of goalie tending. Near the end of the season we weren't doing so well, so the coach tried me in as a forward - this was fun, but there was nobody quite skilled enough to replace me. That kinda made me feel awesome. OH YEAH!

Check out more photos and videos of James displaying the mystical art of goalie tending on our online family gallery. (Need instructions as to how to access the gallery? Email us at newsletter@slothwerks.com.)

The Pretenders... LIVE
Michigan Theatre in Ann Arbor, February 9 2009

Chrissie and the boys arrived on a cool yet fairly snow-free evening in Ann Arbor. As we were to discover, however, the weather outside was not indicative of the upcoming performance from this new iteration of The Pretenders. The unapologetically gutsy, sexy, and fierce Hynde has not lost any of her edge - if anything, the addition of the young Nick Wilkinson (bass) and astoundingly talented James Walbourne (lead guitar) have re-energized The Pretenders with youthful vigor. All evening, Martin Chambers (looking a little thicker than he did in 1980) pounded his drum kit as if the past 30 years had never occurred; his vocal sparring with old bandmate Hynde set us laughing more than once. Hynde is taking the band's age with wit and grace: several jokes were cracked about the gray hairs found in the audience and how The Pretenders are "an 80's band". Yet raucous opening act American Bang from Nashville freely admitted how difficult it was to keep up with their older mentors. All kidding aside, the song selections seemed to cater to these older fans: half of the first Pretenders LP was performed as well as a healthy roster of cuts from Pretenders II and Learning to Crawl. "Don't Get Me Wrong" from 1984's Get Close made it into the line-up, but that was it - fans of the hit-laden Last of the Independents from 1994 left empty-handed. The band also played the majority of their newest album, Breaking Up the Concrete (see review in NEW MUSIC). But it was the old tunes that really brought the fans to their feet, and by the end of the evening, Chrissie and the boys had whipped even those with gray hairs into a frenzy. Rock on, girlfriend!

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Colin Hay... LIVE
The Ark in Ann Arbor, April 27 2009

We returned to Ann Arbor a scant two months later to catch the solo acoustic tour of Colin Hay, formerly the lead singer and principal songwriter of Men at Work. I knew of some of his work after Men at Work - actor Zach Braff featured his solo cut "I Just Can't Get Over You" in his film Garden State, and Colin's 2003 collection Man @ Work collected acoustic renditions of hit songs with newer cuts from his solo career. However, nothing would prepare us for the show itself, which could have easily been billed as "Comedy Central Presents Colin Hay". Mr. Hay performed only a handful of songs for the first part of the show: most of his time was taken up by jokes, amusing anecdotes, and tales of the past. Stories of wild days of youth (goats utilized as lawn mowers) shared the same space with humorous observations of The Beatles (dinner with Paul McCartney and touring with Ringo Starr). "Heavier" topics were also covered: Colin was not at all afraid to talk about the price of fame, the break-up of Men at Work, his career since 1985, and alcohol addiction. Yet these topics were also entertaining and inexplicably funny; by the end of the evening, our faces and chests hurt from laughing so much. But Colin is not at all a washed-up 80's one-hit wonder: his voice is powerful as ever, and his guitar work was top notch. We were treated to new renditions of classic hits such as "Who Can It Be Now?" and "Overkill", but also later cuts such as the longingly gorgeous "Conversation". Sloth even had his two old Men at Work vinyl albums signed by Colin after the show! All in all, a fantastic evening full of laughter, good tunes, and good times.

A New Beginning for Barnes & Noble Booksellers in Grand Rapids!

Autumn 2009 brought a major change to Steph's workplace: the Barnes & Noble Booksellers on the south side of 28th Street closed its doors forever. To replace it, the company built a brand new, two-story flagship store at the Woodland Mall just a half block away. The new store is gorgeous: wide open spaces, contemporary furnishings, a new and expanded education section (with LEGOs!), and giant bay windows facing out away from the mall. The downsides: no used book department, mall parking (horrific!), and a lot of "browsing" by mall shoppers. But Steph is taking it in stride and has organized a beautiful children's area as its department supervisor. Come on down, find a comfy chair in the arts corner, read a book, drink a latte, and enjoy free Wi-Fi!

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NEW MUSIC NEW MUSIC NEW MUSIC

Four Star Rating System Explanation

1 ... I'm embarrassed I paid money for this album.
2 ... Some highlights to the disc, but I doubt I'll play the full-length album very often.
3 ... A solid release that requires several listens.
4 ... I play this album over and over!

James Hey Ma - British progressive-pop band James joins the growing list of groups who fool us by breaking up, making us weep with their passing, and then re-forming again later better than ever. Our last newsletter reviewed The Verve's Forth; we now turn our attention to a delayed review of James' Hey Ma, released in 2008. For those under the impression that Tim Booth has lost his voice along with his hair, this album proves them wrong - not only is Tim back in full form, but we are also treated to the arrival of trumpet player Andy Diagram to the recording sessions - something we haven't heard since the release of Seven in 1992. Producer and bassist Lee Muddy Baker allows the band to do what they do best: jam on top of the Booth's cynical lyrics, thereby creating the classic James sound that has delighted us since 1981. Booth himself throws caution to the wind and delivers vocal yelping that eluded the more processed recordings with Brian Eno (the 1993's Laid through 2001's Pleased to Meet You), and the band's earlier sound with hits such as "Sit Down" is successfully re-visited through the relentless rocker "Upside" and the joyously dark title track. But this record is not a trip into the past: this is a line-up that has learned their licks the hard way, and we need to go no further than the slow-building opener "Bubbles" for proof. Indeed, Hey Ma sounds less like a reunion than the band at their musical and commercial peak almost 20 years ago. How is this possible? Answer: these chaps are musical geniuses. Four out of four stars.

Imogen Heap Ellipse - Imogen's self-recorded, self-produced follow-up to her breakthrough Speak For Yourself was a highly anticipated event: Heap's prior work had inundated the soundtracks to "hip" television series, films, commercials, and music festivals. Heap also is beloved to her fans and kept in constant contact with them throughout the creation of her album via video blogs, pre-released tracks, and her website. Finally released this past summer, the 13 new cuts sometimes come across as sketches more than fully realized visions... but this is perhaps because we are familiar with her former, more heavily-layered work with Guy Sigsworth (who has also produced Bjork). This is not to say that Ellipse is sparse or minimalist; it's just that it is far more stripped down than her previous work with Frou Frou or even some of the cuts on Speak For Yourself. That said, the album grows on you - Imogen's unique conversational lyrics, lighter-than-air delivery, and electronic pop sensibility lends itself to an immediate attachment to the album. "First Train Home" and "Swoon" will please the classic Imogen Heap fans; "Between Sheets" is a gorgeous and quiet love song; "Bad Body Double" is an amusing take on post-30's traumatic changes. However, the best is saved for last: "The Fire / Canvas" is an undeniably Tori Amos-esque complex composition, with a slow build and subtle layering on the mix. All in all, not a bad effort from a woman who set out to record one track every two weeks in the comfort of her childhood home. Three out of four stars.

New Music continues on page seven...

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New Music, continued from page six...

The Pretenders Breaking Up the Concrete - With a six-year hiatus between this and Chrissie Hynde's last (rather experimental) album Loose Screw, I was assuming that the sun had finally set on one of my favorite groups of all time. Not only that, but singer-songwriter Hynde had lost half of her band, including the talented guitarist Adam Seymour, who was responsible for the searing power chords on the 1994 come-back Last of the Independents. After the oddly reggae-tinged Loose Screw, Chrissie decided to go back to the basics: single takes of an ensemble of talented musicians recording in a down-and-dirty studio with no overdubs. To this end, she acquired the young and insanely talented James Walbourne to replace Seymour, as well as Londoner Nick Wilkinson on bass and ex-Son Volt member Eric Heywood on pedal steel. This new line-up gives Breaking Up the Concrete a rockabilly, acoustic-blues edge, and allows Hynde the perfect framework for a well-rounded collection of unabashed pop tunes, searing verbal fist-punches, and yearning ballads. In fact, this may be the album's one major drawback: not one of the 11 cuts on here really can qualify for the "hit song" award, although Chrissie mentioned in concert that the approachably poppy "Love's a Mystery" would be her pick for this dubious honor. The lack of a solid hook may turn off some, but the wicked lyrics of "Boots of Chinese Plastic", the sullen "Nothing Maker", and adrenalized title track give listeners plenty of sonic meat to digest. Overall, a return to form for this sultry rocker of yesteryear. Three out of four stars.

U2 No Line on the Horizon - The 2009 offering from U2 is in line with their previous releases from Interscope Records, starting with All That You Can't Leave Behind, continuing with How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, and now No Line on the Horizon. Again, U2 is working with production veterans Steve Lillywhite (Boy, October, and War) and Eno / Lanois (The Unforgettable Fire, The Joshua Tree, Achtung Baby, et cetera). But this fantastic and very talented group of musicians still cannot get me to shake the feeling that U2 hit their peak several years ago and are now riding on a wave of media and radio airplay fascination. It's difficult for me to place my finger on: Bono still can pen some fantastic lyrics ("I've got a head like a lit cigarette / Unholy clouds reflecting in a minaret / You're so high above me; higher than anyone / Where are you in the Cedars of Lebanon?"), and The Edge can still lay down some dangerous licks ("Stand Up Comedy"). Perhaps it's the homogeneous mixdown in half of the songs; perhaps it's just one too many "oh, oh, oh's" uttered in virtually every cut on the album; perhaps it's something completely intangible - no matter what the reason, there is not a single track on Horizon that grabbed at me. This isn't to say that the record doesn't have its moments: "Get On Your Boots" is a stirring and fun little romp; "Breathe" sounds like a classic U2 / Lillywhite tune, and the dark and haunting "Cedars of Lebanon" is a wonderful gem brought to us by (of course) Daniel Lanois. But, like the previous How To Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, I walked away - after many a repeated listening, I assure you - feeling unfulfilled. Is it a bad album? No. It's just listening to Horizon immediately after Boy, Rattle and Rum, or even the dismally-received Pop, I can't help but feel that U2 has lost their sparkle. The crackle of raw energy just about to burst forth from the very fabric of the music itself, a feeling that once embodied this band in its youth, is gone - at least for me; at least for the moment. As Bono writes so astutely: "Every day I die again and again and reborn / Every day I have to find the courage to / Walk down into the street with arms out." The talent is there... but it needs to be reborn and refocused. And that takes courage. Two out of four stars.

New Music continues on page eight...

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New Music, continued from page seven...

Depeche Mode Sounds of the Universe - This second studio album produced by Ben Hillier is a darker, quieter follow-up to 2005's Playing the Angel. Yes, lead singer Dave Gahan has cleaned up from his infamous struggles with drugs, and yes, we are missing Alan Wilder (whom many credit with crafting the unique sound of the band in the 80's and early 90's). But if anything, this talented three-some is more focused than ever, with Gahan now assisting Martin Gore with songwriting duties ("Hole to Feed", "Miles Away", and "Come Back"). The opening track ensures that only the strong of heart dare enter this minimalist, brooding world of electronic music - "In Chains" begins with distorted noise, only to give way to a gorgeous, slow-building, Gore-penned confession of lust and unrepentant desire. The first single from the album, "Wrong", probably contains some of the best lyrics Gore has come up with in a long time; Gahan delivers his bandmate's words with a tortured power that leaves one breathless. Gore's high tenor harmonies have also only become stronger on this release, although I prefer Gahan to Gore as lead vocal ("Jezebel", Gore's lead vocal offering, is probably one of my least favorite tracks on the album). The two of them are completely in sync on "In Sympathy", which will appease fans of the band from the 1990's. But for the most part, Depeche Mode continues to blaze forward on this record, keeping their eyes steadily fixed into that dark twisted tunnel that is their world. The fact that Sounds of the Universe comes across as even remotely fresh is a minor miracle, given that this "alternative college radio band" (at least here in the United States) has been around for almost thirty years, and yet they continue to play to massive music festivals, contribute tracks to major television series, and rack up Grammy nominations for their efforts. Albums such as this should not come out of three decades of depression and angst... but that's the beauty of Depeche Mode. Three out of four stars.

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