quoperative

Weather cleared up yesterday so we took it out for a drive around UBC and got a couple more pics…

It’s ok that I was triple parked.  Nobody else was in the lot.

Actually the guy in the Volvo did make a comment…

The dashboard…pretty basic.

The seats… this is where we sit.

Hey ladies… goin’ my way?

Actually to be honest I’ve been told that old cars like these are the opposite of chick magnets.  The only people who pay any attention to you are older men.  Which is unfortunate because they’re usually into cars and will very quickly trip me up with any kind of question beyond “What kind of car is it?” (answer: Valiant  — it says it on the side) or “What colour is it?” (answer: green).  The compression ratio, displacement and bore stroke are not things that concern me… so please don’t ask.

I didn’t think that Mish and I were contributing enough to global warming so I figured we could increase our collective CO₂ emissions by getting a second car.  But not a newish car… their engines are too efficient and don’t release nearly enough exhaust.  I needed something old that burns gas like a real American car should.

Enter the Valiant…

I had to have this car.  So I came up with a plan to get the money by playing online poker.  Bullet proof.  I went to the bank to get a line of credit so I could have some money to gamble with but they weren’t too keen on helping me out.  Whatever.  I just went with my backup plan of buying it with the money I had.

Yadda yadda yadda… I am now the proud owner of this 1973 Plymouth Valiant.  I know the picture kind of sucks but it was raining so I had to do it in the underground lot.  I’ll post a few better ones when I can take it outside.

The thing that’s cool about this car is that the guy I bought it from (the original owner) somehow traveled back in time to get this car and bring it back to 2008 to sell it.  No shit this car looks like it’s 6 months old.  The upside is that it’s a super-sweet ride but it also means it doesn’t product that much CO₂. Ah well.

Took in a couple good shows on labour day weekend…

Thursday night Mish and I went to see Beck at the Orpheum — a pretty incredible venue when you’re blessed with decent seats… and blessed we were — but I was more excited to see the openers Band of Horses.  I don’t know where I first heard these guys — I picked up their 2nd album a couple months back and let me tell you: they’re the fucking real deal.  South Carolina via Seattle kind of Allman Brothers meets Skynyrd meets the Pixies. I’m fully aware that makes zero sense in the band-identifying spectrum of references but that’s what I’m hearing.  These guys play big beautiful rock music.  The sound was fantastic and the songs just filled the room. With the aid of special guest keyboardist (picture medium-sized John Popper with a massive beard and a voice like an angel) they totally blew the doors off the place.  Fortunately they were able to be re-hinged by the maintenance staff prior to Beck hitting the stage.

As you might expect, Beck put on a helluva good show himself.  Not quite as wild and ruckus as the time I saw him on the Midnite Vultures tour but in a venue like the Orpheum things are a little more high class, ya dig? Despite not being a devout Beck fan (I think I only have maybe half of his albums) I pretty much knew every song he played… except for one that he opened the show with called “Loser“… apparently this song enjoyed mild popularity in the mid 90s.  Pretty solid repertoire of songs he’s got these days.  Good mix of hard-rockin’, dance-ish and folkier numbers. Kudos goes out to Beck’s female guitar player who was both incredibly attractive and ridiculously proficient at her instrument.  Unfortunately I can’t find a picture of her.

On Labour Day we ceremoniously torched our white clothes before heading down to Stanley Park for day 2 of the Stanley Park Singing Exhibition, a 2-day musical event held in an outdoor amphitheatre smack dab in the middle of the park.  Sweet sweet musical lightning struck twice this week as I was able to see another great band I had yet to experience live: Black Mountain.  (Direct order to all readers:  go and buy In the Future, acquire a pair of large headphones and listen to this record at maximum volume).

Absolutely K-I-L-L-E-R set.  So loud. So heavy. And so good.  These guys are just loose enough to rock the jams (not as cheezy as it sounds) on a regular basis but tight enough to nail the jam-ending changes without any visible nodding or onstage communication.  Unbelievably big sound from five people.  And a bonus treat to finally put a face to the incredibly haunting voice of Amber Webber. I highly recommend checking them out if you get the chance.  They’re heading to Toronto and Montreal later this month.

Rounding out the Stanley Park show was Visqueen, the 1900s, Stevie Jackson (of Belle and Sebastian) and the New Pornographers.  Pornos drummer Kurt Dahle continues to provide more entertainment value than the rest of the band combined.  The guy chucks drumsticks, talks to his buddies, drinks beers and moves his cymbal stands around… while playing.

Pretty awesome video from the New Pornographers’ last album Challengers…