MLK Weekend 1/14-1/16/11

Had my lady come up last weekend to celebrate her friends birthday from Virginia Beach because they don't have much to do when the waves out there are frozen. After I took her up for NYE she was impressed with the nightlife and things to do she decided that DC was going to be a good spot for an extended birthday weekend. They arrived late afternoon Saturday and though we missed the Tattoo Convention held at Crystal City's Doubletree, we did make to the Smithsonian before closing time. We ended up at the American History Museum and it was quite a treat. They recently renovated the place and it is very exquisite. The subjects of our country's history from wars, culture, and even sports were displayed with a modern freshness that begged the eyes to gaze upon it. They liked it so much we went to the Natural History building on Monday to look at the Night at the Museum themed exhibits! So getting cultured is in full swing and I think I'll hit a new place every Sunday and give a report. To conclude Saturday we went to my favorite bar in town, Bourbon in Adams Morgan. They have over 75 bourbons plus all the other wines, beers, and spirits and the upstairs has a dance party on the weekends. Two Southern girls can get on that trip, for sure. Sunday started late as we were going to catch a Capitals game (they won finally 3-1) but before that I took everybody to a drag brunch at Nellies off U and 9th Streets. Yeah, it was a total drag and they even lip synced to some pop songs of the drags they were supposed to look like. To each is own I guess but it was a good time. Great weekend and best of all I was able to show off a huge diverse part of the city to some out of towners that are big fans now. All in all great success.

Death Race!

My 2011 concert line is weak as of late as I missed Das Racist, missing US Royalty, and probably skipping Chromeo's first set. That's alright because outside getting cultured I'm going run my ass off this year. It started with my new Garmin watch I got for Christmas and a bunch of cold weather gear. Then came the the obsessive compulsive race calendar creations. Let's see I'm doing the National Half Marathon, The GW Parkway Classic, and the Cherry Blossom Ten Miler all on consecutive weekends this spring. That'll be some serious running that my fat ass needs to train for or else it's going to be real ugly. Why? Well this summer I'm focusing on obstacle course races such as the Metro Dash, Warrior Dash, and the Spartan Race. These look intense but they're only 5K. That's totally doable now but I want to be drinking standing up and not puking laying down at the finish line, or ambulance. Gotta go, gotta get moving and best of all I think I'm playing soccer in NYC this summer at the World Police & Fire Games! Here's to resolutions bitches!
connect.garmin.com
www.nationalmarathon.com
www.cherryblossom.org
pacersevents.com/parkwayclassic/index.html
www.warriordash.com
www.spartanrace.com/index.html
www.metrodash.com

Happy New Year!

It has been a while since an update, sorry I've been really lazy. The weather has been freezing, cold, snowing, and yesterday it was 50 degrees. It's incredible out here in DC. Well got a new sweetheart and she came to visit over new years and I determined a new goal for the new year. I need culture! First thing I did was join up to the Zoo. Becoming a member to the National Zoo has its perks. Actually outside of the animals the best part of joining up is all the social events members get like the Boo at the Zoo. Anyway, went to the Zoo on the 30th to see the final night of the Zoo Lights. It was pretty nice to walk around and the lady sure enjoyed it. We stayed out a Kimpton Hotel in DuPont called Hotel Topaz. Great big room and it was cheaper than most of the major chains in the immediate area. For New Years Eve we skipped the crazy young kids parties and headed out for a quiet night at Policy, a new place off 14th/T St. We went there because I had a Groupon for it (which was void during NYE) and because it was close to our hotel. The food was great and was of the small plate variety but the real treat was tons of can beer by Butternuts. The decor was pretty cool and the layout was good too. After a couple drinks we left for a new bar but settled into Bar Pilar until the ball dropped. After midnight I finished my cocktail and we hightailed home. Leave the singles to fight over cabs at 4am! The rest of the trip was spent at malls, Georgetown, and even a speak easy in Old Town. Great trip and I'm looking forward to checking out new and old aspects of the city in the coming year. Now, who's coming with me??!

The Best of 2010

Year's just about over and this is my first official best of list, so enjoy peoples! Go download these now: Check mishkanyc.com/bloglin for some other great reviews and free mixtapes!

Best of 2010 (in no particular order)
Albums
1. LCD Soundsystem: This is Happening
2. The Black Keys: Brothers
3. Yeasayer: Odd Blood
4. Vampire Weekend: Contra
5. Free Energy: Free Energy
6. Klaxons: Surfing the Void
7. Girl Talk: All Day
8. Das Racist: Sit Down Man
9. Das Racist: Shut Up, Dude
0. Surfer Blood: Astro Coast
1. Local Natives: Gorilla Manor
Singles
1. Wavves: Post Acid
2. The Black Keys: Tighten Up
3. Deftones: Diamond Eyes
4. Holy Ghost!: I Will Come Back
5. Klaxons: Echoes
6. Sia: You've Changed
7. Neon Indian: Sleep Paralyist
8. LCD Soundsystem: I Can Change
9. Washed Out: Feel It All Around
0. Oh No Ohno: Helplessly Young
1. Smith Westerns: Weekend
2. Cool Kids: Delivery Man
3. Chromeo: Don't Turn the Lights On
4. Mark Ronson & The Business Intl.: Bang Bang Bang
5. Duck Sauce: Barbara Streisand
6. Ariel Pink's Haunted Grafitti: Round and Round
7. Mayer Hawthorne: Maybe So, Maybe No
8. Big Boi: Shutter Bugg
9. Yeasayer: Madder Red
0. Das Racist: Nutmeg
1.Vampire Weekend: Run
2. Surfer Blood: Floating Vibes
3. Local Natives: Sun Hands
4. Major Lazer + La Roux Feat. Gucci Mane: I'm Not Your Lemonade (Heroes & Villians Remix)
Best Shows I Saw 2010
1. Black Keys
2. The Dead Weather
3. Dead Meadow
4. Best Coast
5. Chromeo
6. Neon Indian
7. Phoenix
8. Vampire Weekend
9. Mayer Hawthorne
0. Free Energy

Can't wait for next year's shows and records, looking for Girl Talk and Chromeo to go on tour coming soon!

Las Vegas 11/19-11/23/10

Well I just recovered from Las Vegas. I mean two days ago. Vegas is awesome but I can't handle that place. I've been three times now and this was by far the best and the wildest. The best part was defintely seeing my old pal Diaz and hanging out with the Warren family. I got to go to an Elvis themed wedding and took shots in a bar that was 5 degrees below. That was cold. I got to drink Fat Tire beer all week, in the mall, on the streets, everywhere. I saw O by Cirque Du Soliel and it was quite impressive. The only bad part was the weather: it was real chilly. Being outside the casinos was brutal after hours and the wind was crazy. Hanging out with everyone was great and although I didn't win a lot I had a great time with the group I went with. I love that city and hopefully when I return I'll be ready to handle all the splendors of Las Vegas once again.

DJ Shadow 11/16/10

It's been a while but it's been a busy couple a weeks. Between work and play I've been quite active. In the mean time I went on two adventures, Richmond and NYC. Richmond is pretty good for a weekend and NYC, well it's pretty awesome. So, in the spirit of the great American road trip I spent Tuesday with my buddy Gary in the Big Apple. Without a plan or a place to stay we managed to do some searching en route and found my favorite dj playing a show that night in Brooklyn. We arrived in SOHO/NOHO/NYU to check out Other Music, a record store of course, and just take in the city. I probably was last in NYC in '93 so everything around us was new and exciting. We checked out a few stores then took the subway to Times Square. After getting blinded by the lights we linked up with a fraternity brother in the financial district and had a few drinks. By 2130 we finally arrived at the Brooklyn Bowl to catch the tail end of DJ Shadow's set. I missed him in Baltimore and was more than excited to check him out in a great music town. The venue looked great and it actually had a bowling alley inside. That makes for a great evening, bowling to DJ Shadow. The master dj mixed an incredible finish from my favorite albums ...Endtroducing & The Private Press and the visuals were intense. It was smooth and people were really getting into it. I love that. After the show we went next door to a great whiskey bar and took shots with the bartenders. Great time but now I'm super tired. Big ups to Brooklyn! Next trip: Vegas...

Mayer Hawthorne & The County VIP! 10/21/10

First off I would just like to thank both The Black Cat and Mazda for letting me win a VIP Meet & Greet with Mayer Hawthorne and putting together a great event. It was very cool. I'm always entering contests for anything that comes around but on my birthday I got an email stating that I was going to be meeting Mayer Hawthorne @ The Black Cat. Love this guy and I dig the venue and its neighborhood. I didn't know what to expect going into the VIP since I had never heard of this done at the venue before and was really excited too. Got there on time at 1830 and once inside I received a VIP pass and two drink tickets then was escorted to the Back Bar for some fan interaction with the Mazda people before Mr. Hawthorne made his appearance. They got pizza from the Italian Store and the beer was pretty good too. After about an hour I got my CD signed and my sister got a nice message on a poster, something about Twitter. After hanging in there we got upstairs to check the first band Gordon Voidwell. If you can imagine Matt & Kim where Matt is black and Kim is a white guy and you've got them visually. I was surprised how infectious their sound was, it was electronic keys and drums but very danceable rhythms. They started off with "Heart of Glass" and flowed together the rest of their own material in that same style. Next up was The Heavy. These guys sounded like Sevendust, no joke. A rocking band with an intense black man singing, with a British accent! Ok not so much Sevendust especially with their horn section but they weren't that bad and they played a good long set. After they got done the house DJ played most of "Illmatic" while The County got ready. When they came out the place went nuts. I saw these guys at the Rock And Roll Hotel earlier this year and they killed it. Mayer brought new songs this time with a bigger stage and it worked. It was a genuine Motown band, that's the best way to describe them. I wasn't around for the groups and solo acts back then but all the old footage I've seen was Mayer's perfect homage to some great music. Had to have been in the top five shows I've seen at The Black Cat and that's without the VIP package. Free shows are great but I'd pay hard cash to see this guy, next time he's in town I won't miss it. Great night for sure.