Patriots Turn Out The Lights On The Bolts, Again

Note: Posted on Blogcritics last night

With yesterday's hard fought 21-12 win over the San Diego Chargers at Gillette Stadium, the AFC Champion New England Patriots have now earned a trip to four of the last seven Super Bowls. Perhaps almost as impressively, New England's appearance in the AFC Championship game was their fifth in the last seven years, and they've won all but one of them.

Their lone AFC Championship loss in that span was to the Indianapolis Colts last year, and it left a bitter taste in the mouth of every Patriot in the RCA Dome that fateful day in January 2007. They had an 18-point lead at one point and it was looking like the Patriots were going to the Super Bowl for the fourth time in six years (and likely defeat the Chicago Bears). But a combination of un-Patriot-like actions, including poor, seemingly worn out defense, late-game penalties and a Brady interception in the game's final drive led to their demise — and to Peyton Manning's first Super Bowl ring.

It was that loss, not "Spygate" as many in the mainstream sports world (including ESPN) have said that has made the Patriots as determined as ever to play football at their very best level and get back to the Super Bowl. And with a 9-point victory over the Chargers, the Patriots did what they could not do a year ago at this time: play disciplined football, get a lead, and hold onto it until the clock runs out.

The now 18-0 Patriots proved yet again they can win any way possible and why they are on their way to becoming one of the greatest NFL teams ever. With Randy Moss
relegated to a being decoy (and making just one catch) for a second straight game and Brady throwing 3 INTs for the first time since his team knocked the Chargers out of the playoffs in last year's divisional round, a short passing game, a strong running game and a trademark bend-but-not-break defense was how the Patriots won. (This win also marks the third game in a row in just over a year that the Patriots have beaten the Bolts.)

For the second time in this playoff run, New England outran one of the best rushing
teams in the NFL. Second-year RB Laurence Maroney cut-and-ran for over 100 yards for the second straight week. Clearing the way for Maroney's strong running performance was the offensive line, led by Pro Bowlers Matt Light and Logan Mankins and excellent blockers like TE Kyle Brady.

New England's 21 points didn't come easy though, as Brady got some pressure from SD's defense, and his wide receivers were tightly covered by the San Diego secondary all day long, not wanting to get beat down the field. Emerging star corner back Antonio Cromartie, Quentin Jammer, and DE Igor Olshansky were among the reasons the Patriots offense got frustrated for much of the game. But Brady stayed cool in the freezing weather in Foxborough, Massachusetts and lead the Pats to three TD drives (2 passing, one running TD by Maroney).

Besides Maroney, the unsung hero of this game on the offensive side was long-time Patriot Kevin Faulk, who has split time between running and receiving for years. Never a starting RB due to his tendency to fumble the ball — though not this season — he was always been reliable catching the ball and is the team's all-time leader in receptions by a running back. On Sunday, he led the team with 8 catches for 82 yards. Along with Maroney's runs, it was Faulk's great hands and crucial third-down catches that kept the ball in Patriot hands in a 15-play drive that sucked up the last nine minutes of the game, not even giving the Chargers a chance to make a late-game comeback.

Everyone knows about the Patriots' highly potent offense, but they also have a top five defense, and it showed. San Diego had three red zone opportunities to score touchdowns in this game, but only came away with three chip shot field goals. New England's defense either stuffed the run or knocked down QB Phillip Rivers's passes once SD got inside the 10-yard line. Veterans like Tedy Bruschi, Richard Seymour and former Charger Junior Seau were major contributors to SD's touchdown-less drives.

In a close game such as this, turnovers can be costly, but it's what you do with them that matters. Brady had 3 INTs, one of which was a tipped ball, but San Diego only turned them into two field goals. The Patriots, by contrast intercepted Rivers twice and used Asante Samuel's 2nd quarter interception to turn a 7-6 lead into a 14-6 edge, one they would never relinquish and would indeed add onto, via a Wes Welker TD reception from Brady in the 4th quarter.

Sure, the fact that San Diego lost one of the league's best RBs LaDainian Tomlinson to injury early hurt their chances of scoring touchdowns in those red zone opportunities, but
they still had a resilient QB in Rivers and emerging receivers like Chris Chambers and Vincent Jackson for him to throw to. Even TE Antonio Gates hung in the game with a dislocated toe. The Pats defense just had the poise and smarts to stop Rivers, backup RB Michael Turner and co. whenever they had to. In other words, they played like true champions.

Now, let's just hope the Chargers don't act like sore losers like they did after last year's playoff loss to the Pats. (Hint: Tomlinson complaining that a couple Patriots over-celebrated their victory at San Diego and imitated Shawne Merriman's own celebratory dance.)

Music Review: Jimmy Eat World - Chase This Light

Note: Posted on Blogcritics.org December 2007

For the last eleven years or so, Jimmy Eat World has put out full-lengths that have either been labeled landmark releases that influenced a generation of emo-centric rock bands or gotten fairly respectable praise from fans and critics alike.

The first of them, 1996's Static Prevails saw the then young Mesa, Arizona quartet making a raw, melodic but mostly emo-core record that only hinted at its top-notch songwriting abilities. 1999's Clarity, though criminally under-marketed by their former label Capitol Records, slowly but surely solidified Jimmy Eat World's reputation at home and abroad as one of the best and most influential bands in the emo genre.

Commercial and radio hits, however, didn't come until Jimmy Eat World released Jimmy Eat World (a.k.a. Bleed American) in 2001. Though it contained an emo hit ("Sweetness") written in the Clarity era, this record was more in the power pop vein than any previous release. It was such a big hit that songs like "The Middle," "Sweetness," "Authority Song" and others have gone on to be featured in everything from sports stadiums to movies and in the case of "The Middle," covered by local cover bands or ripped off by newer so-called "emo" bands.

2004's Futures, in contrast to prior releases, had a darker sound and mood, but wasn't a commercial hit. Still, fans and critics mostly praised it, and even on the band's current tour, the few songs from the album that make their set list get loud cheers.

So, does Chase This Light (Interscope Records) recapture any of the magic and power of Jimmy Eat World's best records?

In essence, there's a little Clarity on the album, and some of the pop appeal of Jimmy Eat World (a.k.a. Bleed American) as well. For example, first single "Big Casino" has a speedy rhythmic guitar going through its verses that harkens back to Clarity's minor hit "Lucky Denver Mint." It's a heavy power pop number that's getting lots of airplay on modern rock radio, but the song doesn't quite have the catchy vocals to sing along to that their more successful radio hits had.

By contrast, the final track on the album, the incredibly expansive break-up song "Dizzy" will remind older fans of why they fell in love with Jimmy Eat World in the first place. The intensity of Jim Adkins's personal lyrics and the tense and melodic guitars that complement each other as "Dizzy" builds to a crescendo are classic Jimmy Eat World. It's the best song they've written in a long time, IMO.

Elsewhere, strong points on the album include the political and punk-inspired anthem "Electable (Give It Up)," "Firefight," new single "Always Be," and "Carry You." The latter track has a truly memorable chorus and should be a future radio hit. However, like some other tracks on the record, "Carry You" is a bit too pop-friendly in its production, with double octave vocals in the verses and "do-do, do-do-do" background vocals that take away from the personal and passionate vocals Jim Adkins brings to the song.

"Gotta Be Somebody's Blues" has a live string section conducted by David Campbell, but they are the song's highest point, as the hushed nature of Adkins's vocals isn't very appealing. This is not to say that it's a bad song. There is not a "bad" song on Chase This Light, just some songs that do not entice you to hit the repeat button on your CD player.

There is one song, however that is bound to cause mixed reaction among Jimmy Eat World's older and newer fans. "Here It Goes," found in the last half of the album, is basically a dance-pop rock number with a bass line straight out of '80s pop. It's the most un-Jimmy Eat World song of all-time, IMO, but it is infectious and hard to resist.

Taken together, Chase This Light is a largely satisfying power pop rock record with hints of what used to be their trademark emo anthems. While it certainly will get more spins in my CD player than Futures and Static Prevails, it's not quite on par with emo masterpieces like Clarity and the near perfect power pop of Bleed American CD. In fact, this record suffers at times from super slick, pop-oriented production and perhaps too much of it overall - in a too-many-cooks-spoil-the-broth kind of way - with the legendary Butch Vig serving as executive producer, while Chris Testa, John Fields, and the band serve as co-producers.

Ultimately, like many 2007 releases, Chase This Light isn't an instant classic but is definitely worth owning if you've been a Jimmy Eat World fan all these years. In Pitchfork fashion, I'd give it a 7.8 out of 10.

For more info on the band, visit their official website or their Myspace page.

Also, check out a Windows Media audio clip of the new single "Always Be".

Music Review: Joe Satriani - Surfing With The Alien: Legacy Edition (CD/DVD)

Note: Posted on the Blogcritics web site last month

Twenty years after its initial pressing, famed guitar teacher and virtuoso Joe Satriani's Surfing With The Alien still stands as an album that revitalized instrumental music and made him a household name in rock, one of the best in the business.

More than selling millions of records, it inspired legions of guitarists to follow his path and even made instrumental rock music a genre cool enough to earn Grammy nominations, of which Satriani himself has earned fourteen. This year, the album got the remaster treatment — courtesy of Epic/Legacy Recordings. Along with a bonus DVD featuring a full Satriani concert, the total package stands out as one of the most notable reissues of 2007.

It's easy to forget that SWTA was Satriani's sophomore effort, with 1986's Not Of This Earth being his first foray into the instrumental rock world. It was solid and technically impressive in its own right. But the array of diverse sounds and moods of SWTA's ten tracks, along with Satriani's technically precise playing made this record a masterpiece.

From beautiful emotive love ballads like "Always With Me, Always With You," swinging blues rock boogies like "Satch Boogie," impossibly fast, complex hard rockers and strange or classical-sounding music, it's all there.

Original producer John Cuniberti was chosen by Joe to remaster the album, and there is a noticeable difference in overall sound, not as much in his lead guitar playing as in the backing guitars, drums and other percussive instruments. The sonic textures of the instruments that compliment his guitar work are more crystal clear or explosive-sounding than ever before.

In the liner notes, Satriani gives some valuable insight into both what went into the production of SWTA and his experience playing the 1988 Montreux Jazz Festival, the full performance of which is included in the DVD portion of this re-release. Nigel from Spinal Tap tells some pretty amusing stories of his encounters with Satriani on the DVD as well. You also get to see a couple of old videos from this era, including a black-and-white video of "Always With Me, Always With You."

Satriani's versatile technical skills and incredible songwriting abilities are on full display throughout SWTA, as his many adoring fans and musicians already know. But whatever the reason, the audience at the 1988 Montreux Jazz festival gave mostly respectable applause throughout Satriani's SWTA-heavy set most of the time. In fact, as Joe recalls in the album's liner notes, much of the crowd left as soon as his band started playing!

They were supposed to hit the stage at midnight on July 15, 1988 but got pushed back to 4am because prior bands played well over their set times. As if that wasn't bad enough, Satch was told to cut down his set time as well. Unfair as it was, the band still rocked the joint, and it's a shame that the crowd who stayed didn't have anywhere near the energy the band did. As to those who left, apparently they didn't know what they were missing.

True, it was a jazz-oriented audience and Satriani was not yet as famous as he would later become, but there was some awe-inspiring musicianship on that stage, not only from Satch but from bassist Stu Hamm as well. While Jonathan Mover isn't the greatest drummer I've ever seen, he kept pace with those two throughout the 58-minute set and like Hamm, got the stage to himself for a few minutes to show off his soloing skills.

Speaking of midnight, the song "Midnight" really stood out from this show, just as it does on the album. On the DVD, you get to actually see Satriani recreate the majestic beauty of the baroque-styled instrumental. Skill-wise, it's a challenging song to pull off either in studio or live, and Satch does his two-handed finger-tapping work on stage with ease at this late hour, creating lovely and tense, minor-keyed melodies with two-to-four fingers (using both hands) at a time! It's the type of song that truly is best appreciated live.

In all, Surfing With The Alien: Legacy Edition is highly recommended to all Joe Satriani fans — even if you have the original CD (or cassette tape, remember them?). Besides a remarkable improvement in the sound of the original album, getting to see him and his band live in concert early in his solo career is rare, and is what makes the total package truly valuable and worth the purchase price.

Say It Ain't So, Roger!

This was published on Blogcritics in December. An UPDATE is at the end of the article.

Like many in the baseball world, I was visibly and emotionally shocked to learn that the once immortal Roger Clemens had steroids injected into his behind and had done other illegal performance-enhancing drugs for at least three years (1998, 2000, 2001).

Maybe I shouldn't have been, since his name was among many others floated around in association with the Jason Grimsley affidavit last year. But then again, Grimsley claimed that affidavit was not accurate and denied volunteering the names of other illegal drug users. Thus, other than David Segui, no other alleged cheaters ever came forward or were confirmed as such, so I didn't put much stock in the Grimsley affidavit.

But when you have Roger Clemens' former trainer, Brian McNamee telling former Senator George Mitchell, some heavily detailed information about when and where he helped inject his high profile client with steroids and human growth hormone (HGH), you take those statements seriously. After all, like other witnesses in the 400+ page report, McNamee gave his testimony to Mitchell in front of agents from the FBI and IRS and knows he could get himself into legal troubles if he gave false information to them.

So, how did Roger Clemens respond to McNamee's allegations? First, he sent his lawyer Rusty Hardin to issue a flat denial on his behalf just hours after the report became public last Thursday afternoon. Tuesday, a whole five days after the report came out, we get another statement, this time through his agent Randy Hendricks, which said in part: "I want to state clearly and without qualification: I did not take steroids, human growth hormone or any other banned substances at any time in my baseball career or, in fact, my entire life."

That might sound plausible at first, but here's the catch: HGH and steroids weren't banned from baseball when he allegedly took them, from 1998-2001. In fact, it took years for baseball to catch up with federal law in banning steroids, which were finally outlawed in MLB in 2002, followed by HGH in 2005.

If he was telling the truth, Clemens would have said he never took, without qualification any performance-enhancing drugs his entire career. But he can't do that, nor will he come out and deny these charges outright in person (instead of handing off statements through agents and lawyers) or under oath because doing so could risk becoming another Marion Jones.

Another fact worth noting is that on page 175 of the Mitchell Report, it says that even after 2001 when McNamee was dismissed by the Yankees, Clemens "remained a source of income for McNamee up to and including 2007." In fairness, we don't know what exactly Clemens kept paying him for, but the fact remains that in MLB, only he and Andy Pettitte were "loyal" to McNamee after he left the Yankees, according to the Mitchell Report.

If Roger Clemens is really innocent, he should be preparing to sue McNamee, Kirk Radomski (who supplied McNamee with some of the illegal drugs Clemens used) and perhaps Mitchell himself for defamation of character, libel and slander. But common sense tells you he's not innocent in this matter, especially when his close friend Andy Pettitte admitted last Saturday that he too got HGH from McNamee (but allegedly used it for just one two-day period).

I'm sure this won't be the last we hear from the Rocket, who is now no longer a shoe-in for the Hall of Fame. Like Barry Bonds, he cheated in the latter part of his career, but the "Integrity," "Character" and "Sportsmanship" qualifications for the Hall make no such distinctions. And if in the next five years the facts that Brian McNamee and others gave to Mitchell are not successfully refuted by Clemens via a lawsuit, the Rocket's legacy will be forever tainted and like the recently indicted Bonds, should be kept out of Cooperstown.

UPDATE: A couple of Mondays ago, Clemens officially filed a defamation suit against Brian McNamee. But that's not going to be enough to clear his name, as he (along with other Yankees including Chuck Knoblauch and Andy Pettitte) are scheduled to testify under oath to Congress on February 13.

News reports on ESPN.com and elsewhere have claimed that Roger's representatives were warned by McNamee's reps as far back as 2004 that when MLB began stricter steroid testing that Roger may be in trouble for doing steroids.

Before this development, I was willing to at least hold out hope that Clemens was in the right and McNamee, for whatever reason, was in the wrong. But now, a situation may be developing where McNamee, who also has to testify on Feb 13, is willing to be a Greg Anderson and go to jail for Clemens - like Anderson did for Barry Bonds - instead of sticking with his story he told to Mitchell investigators. Will McNamee go to Congress and actually take back most or everything he said about Clemens and lose his freedom in order to protect The Rocket's legacy, even if what he told George Mitchell was the truth? That would be fucked up, I know.

The equally important question is, will Clemens lie under oath or will HE change his mind and tell Congress not only what he did from 1998-2001, but also what, if any illegal substances he took in 2004 or any other year? All I have to say is, Barry Bonds=perjury. Will Clemens be foolish enough to possibly suffer that same fate? Only if he refuses to tell the truth about his past and if the feds can prove he lied to them and if McNamee's claims remain credible or are never solidly refuted.

Music Review: As Tall As Lions - Into The Flood EP

This was published last month on Blogcritics, but I'm re-posting it here because it came out near the end of 2007 when no one cares about new music and thus needs more attention!

Long Island, New York has turned out a steady diet of hardcore and punk bands over the years, so when the British-influenced indie rock quartet As Tall As Lions came on the scene a few years ago, people paid attention. The LI natives released their debut album Lafcadio in 2004 and (self-titled) ATAL sophomore disc in 2006, to the raves of bloggers everywhere, including those at Stereogum, who labeled them a Band To Watch last year.

As Tall As Lions has toured with the likes of Sparta, Acceptance, Coheed & Cambria, June and Copeland. And fans have been so into their live show that the band tried to get their label Triple Crown/East West to release a live DVD this year. That didn't happen, but on November 27, the label did release their brand new EP Into The Flood, which is available on various digital formats, including iTunes, Amazon.com, and Rhapsody.

First song "505" starts out quietly but soon morphs into a cello-led, beautifully sad soft rocker not unlike early Death Cab For Cutie or Coldplay's "Trouble." However, where the more famous latter track is dreary in its mood, As Tall As Lions's "505" is more bittersweet chamber pop. And as you'll hear on this and other tracks on the EP, including its ambitious epic title track, singer Daniel Nigro's vocal range is considerably higher than Chris Martin's trademark falsetto.

The rest of this EP follows a similar path to the first two tracks and is worth checking out, but is not quite as memorable as the first two tracks. Nonetheless, "Blacked Out" retains a bit of that Coldplay flair mixed with a Jeff Buckley influence, even if the music isn't adventurous like the late crooner's best known material.

In all, Into The Flood is a largely satisfying appetizer for fans eagerly awaiting the release of As Tall As Lions's third album, due out next year. The EP is available now, so download all five tracks at Amazon.com or the band's Myspace page.