REVIEW: The Killers' album Hot Fuss

The Killers are a relatively new rock group, coming on to the scene within the last few months. Their debut album, titled “Hot Fuss”, includes 11 tracks with a total playing time of 46:32 – good to see a decently timed album (of course its not the possible 80 minutes, but hey).

You have undoubtedly heard the first single from the album, “Somebody Told Me”. You know, the one someone told him that you had a boyfriend that looked like a girlfriend that he had in February of last year? Yep, I knew you had heard it.

The other tracks on the album all have the same kind of sound, if not the same catchy lyrics. The first time I listened to the album I was less than impressed, I felt very much that the first single was really the only hit off the album. After listening to it a few more times, I guess you could say I am not entirely convinced anymore. There are some really great songs, like “Smile Like You Mean It” and “Indie Rock and Roll”.

For the most part however, I think most people will just like the first single and ignore the rest. Maybe I’m wrong, but I think comparatively there are much better rock albums out there right now. I will say however, that the band’s sound is definitely unique, and so it can be refreshing to listen to something different once in a while.

[Listening to: Somebody Told Me – The Killers – Hot Fuss (03:17)]

BlogosphereRadio.com Updates

So far the response to the site has been very positive and encouraging! And although it has only been two days, we have learned a lot already. For example, we learned that one of our servers needs more RAM, so we’re getting on that right away.

I didn’t think enclosures would be such a big thing, but I have gotten a number of requests and suggestions. So all of our RSS feeds now include enclosures (of the MP3 files, not WMA). The only thing I don’t like about enclosures is that I can’t include a download in the count that appears on episode pages (I tested a redirect page, but it didn’t work).

It was a very last minute decision to include MP3 streaming, so when the site launched we didn’t have MP3 downloads. I received a few requests for that feature as well, so you can now download in MP3 format as well.

Glad to see people are enjoying the site and offering suggestions, keep it up!

Avril & Britney

Ah big news in the music industry (if you care about those two ladies anyway). Britney Spears got married on the 18th of September and according to BritneySpears.com the Friday, September 24th issue of People Magazine will have all the details on the wedding and the couple’s plans.

Guess who’s on the cover of Maxim for October!? That’s right, Avril Lavigne. Looks good doesn’t she? Check it out here. Now to buy the magazine…

BlogosphereRadio.com Scobleized

This has to be some kind of record. We launched BlogosphereRadio.com last night at around 6:40 PM and it was linked by Scoble at about 9:00 AM this morning! Now I am interested to see if the effect is as big as they say…

Announcing…BlogosphereRadio.com!

Today I am pleased to announce the launch of BlogosphereRadio.com! This is a project that has been in the works for some time now, but I think its finally ready for people to start kicking the tires a bit. In short, BlogosphereRadio.com is a combination of blogs and Internet radio. We are starting with three shows:

  • Blogosphere News – a news show covering the latest happenings in the blogosphere
  • The Vlog – a verbal blog created and voiced by myself and Andrew
  • Blogging With… – an interview show where we talk to people from around the blogosphere

While BlogosphereRadio.com will probably always be a work in progress, the site already has a number of features, such as:

  • Content streaming in Windows Media and MP3 formats
  • Both RSS and Atom feeds, site wide as well as show specific
  • Forums for people to discuss the shows and give feedback/suggestions/etc
  • The ability to rate each show out of five stars
  • The ability to be notified of new shows via LiveMessage Alerts

So there you have it! Please check out the site, and let us know what you think either in the comments here or in the forums. Instead of creating a separate blog just for site news, I’ll post the infrequent news items we have to my BlogosphereRadio category (RSS).

I hope you enjoy BlogosphereRadio.com as much as we have enjoyed creating it!

Registered for Northern Voice!

I finally registered for Northern Voice today, as it seems pretty certain that I will be attending – probably with Megan and Andrew. If you want to register, or want more information, click “The Moose Is Loose” button on the left.

Camping Trip Recap!

Wow, what a weekend! Or was it?! Haha just kidding, it was tons of fun, even though it poured almost the entire time. And because it rained, it was quite cold too. We had a pretty good turnout, with Andrew, Jane, Megan, Andrea, Jen, Felicia, Chu, Michelle, John, Peter, AndrewH, Dickson, Sharon, and Kimmi making appearances.

First off, big thanks to Jane for getting this show on the road. And awesome job picking the site, we are definitely going to have to go back. Megan, Felicia and I arrived around 7 PM on Friday to see Andrew and Jane setting up camp, and Chu and Michelle setting up the love shack! Man that tent was rocking! Friday night also saw Andrea and Jen come in Andrea’s Aztek (you know, with the tent on the back) and John, Peter and AndrewH all came as well.

It absolutely poured on Friday night, an experience Inge summed up quite well – “it felt like I was in Jurassic Park”. That description was dead on – everywhere you stepped there was a huge puddle of water and mud. Everything was completely soaked on Saturday morning, including my jeans. So soaked in fact, that Felicia had to lend me her sweatpants so Andrew and I could take some clothes down to the dryer. Thank goodness Kokanee Springs is an RV park and had such facilities!

In addition to a washer and dryer, they have a driving range which we took full advantage of on Saturday. Felicia and I did our best to make a “happy gilmore” shot, and the one that I hit perfectly came right after Jane turned off the video camera. Peter had the longest drive, with Andrew and I not far behind.

Jane was our resident cook, and she made some awesome sandwiches on Saturday. Oh yeah, and Andrea toasted the buns and spread the mayo, so kudos beans! Dickson and Sharon stopped by on Saturday, and I think Sharon wins the award for “Most Out Of Place”. Fortunately they stayed long enough to see the fireworks! Not real fireworks, but we got some awesome flames going with coffeemate. Flames so high that we almost got the trees! The stuff is so flamable its crazy – I even burned my hand with it! It rained again Saturday night, and Megan’s stereo finally gave out and starting making noises like an upset animal.

Unfortunately most people left Saturday night, so there was only me, Andrew, Kimmi, Megan, Chu and Michelle left on Sunday morning. Chu and Michelle got up at some ungodly hour and left, so the rest of us had to clean up the campsite. It looked like a damn warzone, let me tell you. We even had explosions as Kimmi decided it would be a good idea to throw a lighter into the fire! If only we had video footage…

Kim, Inge, Megan and I went to Denny’s for lunch after we got back into the city today. It was kind of funny actually, we were so dirty and probably smelled so bad. I can just imagine what people were thinking! Somehow I arrived home with more alcohol than I took (Kimmi brought me more out on Saturday) so we’ll have to go camping again soon 🙂 I dunno about anyone else, but that shower I had when I got home was quite possibly the most satisfying I have ever had. I can finally feel my feet again.

Alright, I think in order to make a good experience great, you have to take away some piece of knowledge – you gotta learn something. I think this weekend was great, so here is what I took away:

  • Andrew is a pretty good camper – and he slept in the bed of his truck! Awesome!
  • You should always bring two pairs of pants and two pairs of shoes. Thanks Felicia!
  • Coffeemate even burns in the air and will carry the flame quite high!
  • Lighters make awesome explosions in fire pits.
  • You should definitely wear gloves when at the driving range.
  • You can reply to almost any statement with some variation of “or can you?!”
  • Shoes will burn when you put them in the fire.
  • The conversation can always reach “a new low!”
  • When you’re in the forest, you are never out of firewood.
  • CD’s can be dried off and played without error.
  • A marshmallow is only roasted properly when you can take the shell off three times.
  • I am a very helpful and considerate drunk!

Ah good times! Check out the photo album of pictures from my camera here. Hopefully I can get the rest of the pictures and video from Jane, Felicia and whoever else, and we can put together a CD photo album. I expect to see all of you there next time, for the entire weekend!

RE: Man walks into his own funeral

I realize I already made my camping post, but this is just too good to pass up:

The family of a Toronto man say they were shocked when he showed up at their home while his own funeral service was in progress.

Read: National Post