I did not really know him but whathisname and I were LJ friends for a long time. I admired his research and knowledge of the cemeteries of the Los Angeles region. He wrote books about it, and gave tours which I would have loved to have been a part of.
He was also very funny, and a good writer. I remember how he negotiated his life post divorce and tried to find a relationship. He told stories about his interest in a recently divorced neighbor and a crush on a cashier in a store he frequented. Made you root for him in a rom-com way.
He died on New Year's Eve. I hope he knew how loved and admired he was. My condolences to his family, friends and those who knew him best.
Trying hard to maintain here. My son was in hospital last weekend. He was vomiting something resembling coffee grounds that is undigested blood so the staff took him to the ER. He has an issue with part of his bowel not moving the mail so he was admitted.
There was also a snowstorm going on and the roads were not really passable so I did not get there until Sunday morning, when it was zero degrees outside, and the roads were still lousy.
He had his own space in the ER and seemed in a cheerful enough mood, and was in no visible signs of distress.
A room was found for him later in the day. He was there until Tuesday afternoon. He had a endoscopy which revealed a hiatal hernia and an irritated esophagus.
Again, he was in a decent mood the whole time he was there. He only got out of bed on his own, which an IV hookup once, to move a cup of water on the windowsill three feet to the right. He surprised us by eating vanilla Greek yogurt with no hesitation. He shocked us when he ate most of a pureed hospital meal of pork and masked potatoes. He took an spoonful of broccoli and politely drew the line at having any more.
Trying to relay to the staff of the facility that monitoring his diet is very important. Feels like more of a battle than it should be.
We're going to see him later.
Other than that, this weird ass calendar year is coming to its conclusion. Will I retire in six months? Stay tuned.
We met here. Over 20 years ago. Explosivo had a knowledge of music and a love of the Mets. At the time he was living in L.A., still trying to save the music industry from itself. He was so smart, sometimes too much. He put his life into his own record label and released three records. None of them hit.
You should know about Eugene Edwards' My Favorite Revolution though. It's a brilliant piece of power pop throughout. It should have been hit. Edwards is now Dwight Yoakam's lead guitarist.
Tremolo — Love is the Greatest Revenge had a few rockers on it. Check out You Were Born For This. Fit right in during the early 2000's.
The Vanity Project was a side project and first solo record by Stephen Page of Barenaked Ladies. Totally overlooked.
Marc Nathan was a force of nature. He was a friend of Bill W. and helped so many people. I was having a rough time and deleted my LJ. He reached out and called me, "Eddie, you ok?"
I never called him back, but did acknowledge his call.
We did finally meet, at a Mets game in Cincinnati in 2015. By then he had moved to Nashville to try and kickstart his career. I bought him dinner, to his annoyance. He got us decent seats. Left us to go to the concession stand, came back with a yard long bag of popcorn. He was an amazing heckler. We parted with him searching for the casino as we headed back home.
We would occasionally message and text each other about the Mets, or the happenings on Jeopardy (He liked Austin, I was not a fan) but as time and his health issues grew, they stopped. He was still pushing music on his Facebook page, most recently Dan Spencer. I texted him about a week ago about Jake Mangum of the Rays (former Mets minor leaguer) finally making it to the big leagues, never heard back either because I had the wrong number or he was not able to respond.
Marc died yesterday. I am grateful for his presence in my life and I'll miss him. Condolences to his friends and those who knew and loved him best.
Self doubt flows through me. I create because I do then ask myself what’s the point. Who will listen? Read? Review? Share? Stream?
The second Authority Control record was a lead balloon. It was released too soon and the mix on a third of the songs is weak. For starters.
Even the likes of the music I post have dwindled. I’m not out to make money, sales figures do not deny that.
Again, though, money is not the point. Throwing money into something that’s not going to be heard seems pointless though. Sure, it’s nice to do for myself, to show some musical growth (and it’s there). I can spend more to have a professional mix and master but if no one’s going to stream it, why bother?
And I go back to the real musicians, the ones who have had a few hit records, tv appearances, positive reviews and so on. I see a few really struggling out there to make a living. If you don’t tour, you do not make money. Some musicians are getting to old for that grind and I get it. Some have great music that gets zero airplay or gets into an algorithm that gets them exposure. Streaming income is also a pittance.
How the heck can you stand out? Word of mouth? An influencer likes your stuff? A viral video on Tik Tok? A good song, a good record, does not seem to matter.
Broke a small plate tonight. Slipped out of my hand, landed on the stovetop, split in half. These things happen.
The ice and snow in the alley next to the house was such a mess it took me four times to get my car up the slope and into the garage. This cold, winter, rarely appeals to me. Nature always wins though. It's hard to fight it.
In the midst of the lunacy happening, performative or not, I saw that J.D. Vance had some minor sinus surgery over the weekend. Would I be surprised if the next time I saw his grievance babyface that he looked more like Melania? No, I would not.
That's how it's impacting me right now. Have to start taking care more of what I can control. Left Twitter a month ago and have not looked back. There are people I genuinely miss but I got fed up with with being called a pedo by some rando because I have 'works in a library' in my profile. I tried to filter and control it, but the crazy fucks have taken over. May they feed on their own shit and die.
Making noises in the Cavern. One cover coming out by the end of the month. An original, when? I do not feel another whole album coming this year, but I do not want to sit on stuff like Neil Young.
The Young Man had a dental appointment this morning. Handled it all very well while the dentist got in there and cleaned his teeth. He did not flinch or resist, but after a time his anxiety and distress became apparent, and the dentist stopped. Very brave stuff from him today. His month has more to come.
2. What did you do in 2024 that you'd never done before? Released two albums.
3. Did you keep your New Year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year? Nah.
4. Were you in school (anytime this year)? I work in one, but did not attend classes.
5. Did anyone close to you give birth? No.
6. Did anyone close to you die? Quiet year on that part.
7. What places did you visit? Manchester, Dublin, Liverpool. Great trip.
8. What would you like to have in 2025 that you lacked in 2024? Inner peace
9. What dates from 2024 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? Around my birthday in Dublin. Seeing the Post Office, Gaol, and Glasnevin Cemetery put a lot of the Easter Rising in physical perspective.
10. What was your biggest achievement of the year? Not one, but two albums!
11. What was your biggest failure? To stabilize my son's life.
12. Did you suffer illness or injury? Just aging
13. What was the best thing you bought? A guitar pedal and PA.
14. Whose behavior merited celebration? My wife for putting up with the chaos.
15. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? Those who did not turn out and vote in November.
16. Where did most of your money go? Travel.
17. What did you get excited about? Travel, concerts.
18. What song will always remind you of 2024? Wild God — Nick Cave
19. Compared to this time last year, are you: a) happier or sadder? Sadder b) thinner or fatter? Not thinner c) richer or poorer? The numbers say richer
20. What do you wish you'd done more of? Traveled. socialized, learned to master tracks.
21. What do you wish you'd done less of? Doomscrolling
22. How did you spend Christmas? In Autismland
23. Did you fall in love in 2024? With the one I'm with, still.
24. What was your favorite TV program? I'm really digging One Hundred Years of Solitude. Great direction and sets. Very period accurate. It's been a long time since I've read the book, but I'm remembering stuff as it happens.
25. What did you do for your birthday in 2024? Went to Glasnevin Cemetery. Climbed O'Connell Tower. Had a pint at Kavanaugh's. Got sunburn. In Ireland.
26. What was the best book you read? Nothing I read for the Thurber Prize. Making my way through Ian Rankin's Rebus series.
27. What did you want and get? Short scale bass. A Gretsch, I love it.
28. What did you want and not get? My son to have a life with meaning.
29. Did you make some new friends this year? I do not think so.
30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? More streams and record sales.
31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2024? Tired.
32. What kept you sane? My wife. The record collection and creating in the Cavern.
33. Which celebrity/public figure did you think about the most? Nick Cave
34. What political issue stirred you the most? defeat.
35. Who did you miss? Jim Bach
36. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2024. Just do it
The album will be released on streaming platforms TBD on 1/19/24. There will also be a video, along with the back cover. They'll come out by mid-December.
whathisname and I were LJ friends for a long time. I admired his research and knowledge of the cemeteries of the Los Angeles region. He wrote books about it, and gave tours which I would have loved to have been a part of. 
