Moe, Madness, Meters

I don't know how anyone can't be excited around this time of year. Not only did Daft Punk announced its first U.S. tour in more than 9 years (including a stop in Coney Island on August 9th--get your tickets now), not only is Moe. releasing the news that it will play a 3-night run to inaugurate the newly-constructed Highline Ballroom (scalp your tickets then, you'll get them for less than face), not only is President Bush rapidly approaching unemployment, but two titanically huge, monumental things are at hand:

1. March Madness!! For the uninitiated, this is the time to pretend you've been following college basketball all year long, and to immerse yourself in the the most rightfully-lauded one-and-done tournament that doesn't have to do with bullets or venereal diseases. Ohio State and Kansas look awfully good, but there is a player on Texas named Kevin Durant who looks like a rich man's version of Michael Jordan. We'll see, and we're still waiting for the first 16-1 upset--we're looking to you, Central Connecticut State of the Northeast Conference.

2. The sun is finally here, and in substantiality. Just when I thought the cold would never subside, and just as I resigned myself to 3 more months of space-heater hell, the cosmic weather forces decided to forgive us for global warming, at least in the interim, and bestow upon us some mild conditions. I spent the whole of yesterday strolling around Central Park with Rivas in a polo shirt and sunglasses, and i can definitively say that tourists from Virginia Commonwealth University are super ridiculously hot. Woohoo, VCU!!

Of course, the weather brings with it those agonizing self-control issues whose absense constitutes the sole bad weather benefit. Sitting in class is difficult when the sun is shining through the windows, and it's impossible to listen to any reggae music without booking to the beach. Frequenting Radiohead will become more difficult, as outdoor conditions will no longer be symmetrically morose. Ditto for Muddy Waters, Marvin Gaye, post-modern classical concept music, early Floyd, late Metallica, Bach fugues, progressive rock (that means you, Dream Theater), and heavy, heavy jazz. Back in vogue, in no particular order, are Blues Traveler, P-Funk, Notorious, Herbie Hancock, Jack Johnson, Sublime, 311, and the Meters. While we're on the Meters, I'm going to take a second to add "It Ain't No Use" to the funk hall of fame, along with the Doobies' "Long Train Runnin,'" Funkadelic's "Groovalegiance," Grant Green's "Ain't it Funky Now" (yes it is), and the unexpurgated James Brown catalogue. As for "It Ain't No Use," the pick-up on the main theme's last half-beat is the precise reason why white Jews from New Jersey will never be funk all-stars--except for me, of course. Kudos as well to the badass b-section, and to people who sell fireworks.

Stay selective, NCAA tournament committee,
MC Madness/DJ (Big) Dance