Friday, March 27, 2020

Music Review //
Aditi
"Somebody"


https://open.spotify.com/album/3mJd2DrwKFbdjQX9HLAb0r

This song begins with these desolate tones which have a sci-fi feel to them.   This kicks into a sound which is somewhere between rock and pop, maybe with a little bit of that country/folk feel added in as well.   It's slower and is telling a story until the chorus kicks in and picks up in a big way.   The piano comes in and I'm reminded a bit of Michelle Branch or Anna Nalick, which are not influences I get to reference often enough.

As smooth and calming as this song is, it can feel just as intense.  And in that way, I'm quite invested in these lyrics because the idea behind "Somebody" is that "I'm not gonna cry tonight because there is somebody waiting for me" and I think that we all need to feel that way at some point in our lives.   We can try and be alone as much as possible but at the end of the day, there does come a time when we need someone- when we wish somebody was there.

Musically this song even ends on that beautiful piano part which just kind of feels like the end of the movie.  It's something I wouldn't put past hearing on the radio, yet at the same time there exists a certain level of music which I feel is too good for the radio (because maybe the masses are not all meant to enjoy or understand it) and I want to put Aditi in that place slightly even if it means isolating all of those people who might need to hear these lyrics for inspiration.

"Somebody", as a song, is an investment rather than a gift.  It's something that you might not listen to and say "Yeah, I feel this" right now because maybe your head is in a different place.  But there will come a time in your life when you feel like you need "Somebody" and that's why you need to put this one away if you don't feel it right now- like money saved for a rainy day.   When the time comes that you do realize you need this song, you'll be glad you have it saved and you'll be glad for Aditi as well.

Cassette Review //
DeLorea Pontiac
"Horizons"
(Sunny Tapes)


https://deloreapontiac.bandcamp.com/album/horizons //

To put it in its simplest form, the reason why I like DeLorea Pontiac is because these songs remind me of something I've heard before but it is something which I can't quite put my finger on.   Isn't that really what we all want in music?  Sure, hearing something new is great and all, but hearing something that has that familiarity is a different kind of new and it just makes you feel like you've been listening to this cassette all of your life and that makes you love it even more.

Through beats and synths come the sounds of pop, R&B and a whole lot of soul.   One of the other things I really enjoy about "Horizons" is that at times it feels like a sound out of the 1980's or 1990's.   Yet at other times it can feel modern in a way which I cannot describe- like there is some artist out there currently making music like this but I just don't know who because maybe I don't listen to them.

A lot of my favorites come out within here though.   In an older sense, I hear Cyndi Lauper and Madonna.   In a new sense, I hear Polly Scattergood, Demi Lovato and Lana Del Ray.    For somewhere in between, I definitely hear some PJ Harvey and at times it takes you into that time of the mid to late 1990's where a dark song would come on the radio (like a Portishead, for example) and you'd hear it and then fall in love with the band though you'd never hear them on the radio again.

At times, I can hear a movie from the 1980's in these songs.   It's the soundtrack to "Gleaming The Cube", which more people should be talking about.    It's the soundtrack to a 1990's movie as well though, something like "Hackers" or "The Crow", but then it becomes modern where you could take a song and have it in some big budget new movie.   I want to say like a Michael Bay film but that might just be because I watched that new movie he did on Netflix the other day.

This cassette is just powerful.  It's that sound you might have found on cassette back before CDs came about and yet there is enough modern influence that you might not see it the exact same way.    If this doesn't hit you in a strong way like other artists have hit me but in a few and far between way then I can only imagine you're listening to this wrong because after listening to "Horizons" way too many times I feel like DeLorea Pontiac should be a household name.









Live Pro Wrestling Review //
Blitzkrieg! Pro Wrestling
"We Got That Attitude"
2/29/20 @ House of Pierogis, Enfield, CT


Additional Photos can be found in a Facebook album here :::


The last time Blitzkrieg! Pro was in Enfield, VSK defeated "Smart" Mark Sterling in the main event and thus was set up for a title shot against Bobby Orlando.   This brought out a pissed off DL Hurst, which had this triple threat set up for this show.   That match alone had me ready to buy tickets and return to the House of Pierogis and then a lot of other stuff happened.   And by "a lot of other stuff" I mean that names got announced like Tony Deppen, D-Lo Brown, Swoggle and Nick fucking Gage.

As a point of reference for how old I am/how long I've been watching wrestling I've likely seen D-Lo Brown live before, even if I don't remember it, because when he was in WWE was the time when I was going to their live events once or twice a year when they came to CT.   Swoggle was in WWE though when I stopped going to live events (though I did still watch on tv at least- his WeeLC match against El Torito is a classic) so it's fun because I've never seen Swoggle live before and I feel like this is my first time seeing D-Lo Brown live as well, just because.

After five hours sleep, lots of caffeine and then listening to Poppy and Refused, we got to Enfield around 2:20 pm because I thought doors would open on time.   Originally this was going to be a night time show but apparently something else was happening at night so they moved it to the day time [Side Note: There was also a Shine show in NYC today but that was also day time.  There was an EVOLVE show in NYC at night but I don't think anyone could have really done both] so I thought we were on a tight schedule and, yeah, doors never open on time anywhere for anything.

We weren't outside for that long though.  On the way there we saw some snow flurries, so at least we were in the sun most of the time.   Once we got in, we put coats on chairs on the stage, and then we went over to where there were two tables: one for D-Lo Brown and one for Swoggle.  I wanted Quentin to take a picture with one of them and as soon as he saw the merch Swoggle had it was settled.    We bought one of the plush toys that Corey Goodman makes (which goes with our Joey Ryan one!) and then Swoggle took a photo with Quentin, which was nice because he did the photo with the merch purchase.  (I think initially he just wanted to sell me an 8x10 for $10 for the photo but I ended up spending more money because it's what I do)

Before the show even started, we got our first lesson of "How to be good wrestling fans (and people)" on the stage and this is how it should always be.   The stage has one row of seats on it and it was sold out.   As it was nearly full, there was one seat next to me open with people then on the other side and the same thing on the other side of Quentin.  Someone showed up and said "We're a group of four, can we make it so we can sit together" and we all shifted so the group of four could sit together because that's what you do.

The thing I like about Blitzkrieg and why you should watch these shows live if you can is because you never know what's going to happen.   The other day on Twitter I saw a match announcement somewhere with Aaron Rouke and I thought "Oh yeah! What happened to him?" and then he comes out as a surprise to open up "We Got That Attitude".    Also, with an injury suffered by Oswald Project we got to see Nunzio instead team with Pinkie Sanchez, which was quite fun.  (And MSP somehow got cheered?)

In our third match, Nick Gage went to war with Jeff Cannonball and Nick Stapp.   Before this match, on the drive there, I told Quentin that for this show and this show only, since Nick Gage was there, he could have a swear pass.  I told him he could say "MDK all fucking day" when everyone else did but I don't believe he did.   He did, however, get shook by Nick Gage during Gage's entrance and that was pretty special.  I popped big for that moment right there because that's what it's all about.

Aside from the entrance there are two moments I will always remember about this triple threat match.   First, Nick Gage pulled out a pinata with a Frozen theme that ended up having Legos in it and the crowd started a "Let It Go" chant.   Never did I think I'd hear that, but here we are.   Nick Gage just destroyed most of the seating area because Nick Gage does what he wants and that level of destruction is just something you have to see live (and it had most of the crowd standing for the show because fuck those chairs)

Now at one point during the match, Nick Stapp was a bloody mess- he'd been beaten up all match- and Nick Gage had him in the corner with this board over him and it was just so brutal.  Quentin was sitting on the edge of the stage and made this face where he put his face down into his hands like "I can't watch" and the guy two seats over from me was pointing it out and laughing and I go "He's too young to watch a man die!" and the fan two seats over said "I'm too young to watch a man die!"   Nick Stapp didn't die but they tried to put music on to play out Nick Gage when he wanted to talk and that was something I wouldn't have done.   Nick Gage is done when he's done.

After cleaning up that match we went into a four corners tag team match which had M.A.D., the CDC, The Girls Room and the team of Bryce Donovan and Kirby Whackerman with Kirby dressed as a goat though I feel like it really looked like a unicorn costume more.   But anyway, that was an elimination style match so not too many pinfall break up attempts and at one point Rip Byson took a break to sit in the crowd and watch and that was fun. 

On the last Blitzkrieg! show, Joey Ryan was the before intermission main event and this time it was D-Lo Brown, so I'm beginning to sense a pattern.   If I ever thought I would see D-Lo Brown vs. Hermit Crab... I don't know what I would have had to thought up in my mind to come up with this match, like just me thinking one day "You know who should fight" but it just somehow works so well together.   It became such a perfect match and I loved every second of it.  Only in 2020, only in Blitzkrieg! Pro can you see such things that weren't even thought possible in your wildest dreams.

During intermission, we made the rounds through the merch tables.   I had purchased a "We Got That Attitude" shirt online beforehand, so I picked it up there and I'm really trying not to buy one than one shirt per show because I'm slowly getting to the point where all the t-shirts I wear are going to be wrestling related and I really need to also have music and baseball related ones as well.   We were talking with DL Hurst and before the show I told Quentin to go tell him he stinks on ice.  Quentin made it down to the merch table, but wouldn't tell him because he said he didn't want to, so I guess Quentin will like some of the heels.

Somehow, Nick Gage eventually came down the steps and people slowly began to gather when they saw him.  He was nice enough to take a photo with Quentin and I told him the next time I'd see him would be against Pagano and that's going to be so insane.   I had this idea in my mind of four different people I wanted Quentin to take photos with at this show and so far, I had managed to find half of them.

The first match after intermission saw Logan Black and Chris Benne defeat The Arsenal and then Chi got mad and turned on them for losing.   This took us into one of those first time matches I never knew I needed to see between Tony Deppen and "Smart" Mark Sterling and wow did this match deliver.   There was also this feud going on between Tony Deppen and a child in the front row (Blitzkrieg! children are wild) and it added another level to the wrestling go on inside of the ring.   It's crazy to me to think how these matches have these entertaining aspects to them but you could also just watch the pure wrestling of it and be entertained.

During the scramble match with Swoggle, Max Caster made his in ring return and at one point he was outside of the ring and Quentin was taunting him and he told Quentin to leave him alone.   There was so much going on in this match- mainly Swoggle chasing everyone around- and it was a lot of fun as the in between of the Deppen-Sterling classic and the main event.   The main event was a tough call for me because I thought for sure VSK and DL Hurst would team up somehow to take Bobby Orlando out of the match and we'd have a new champion.  At one point, I was 90% certain DL Hurst was going to win it.   The fact that Bobby Orlando snuck in and stole the win was something I didn't really consider happening, but after it did it just made so much sense.

After the show we stayed stuck around so Quentin could get photos with Bobby Orlando and Ref Gina aka Bear Stripes.   Bobby Orlando gave Quentin the choice to hold the championship or Bobby Jr and of course Quentin chose Bobby Jr.   I was really happy Quentin got to see Bobby Orlando because he wasn't on the last Blitzkrieg! show and now I feel like all of the characters are slowly coming together, not only for him but for me as well.    Sometimes you just have to put the time and effort into making something really work and I feel like if you're paying close enough attention you'll see that with Blitzkrieg! and its roster.

Cassette Review //
Xentone
"Forensic Beats"
(Degenerate Trifecta)


- 2 images broke

$5 //
Edition of 50 //
https://degeneratetrifecta.bandcamp.com/album/forensic-beats //

When this starts the beats are definitely there, but as the title also implies it has this certain sound to it where it can feel like "The X-Files" but also like one of those shows I don't watch but everyone who does watch it is really into it and kind of is addicted- like CSI, if you will.    It has that eerie feeling, like a body has been found and it's up to us to solve the crime in forty three minutes or less, but there is also just this movement which makes me want to go outside and run.

Synths twist and turn as we sort of fade away from the forensic idea and just get into a great groove.    It takes on a pinball game feeling as well, as words are spoken and the beat just remains so steady.   It feels like we're moving and getting further away from one thing while getting closer to another, but even though the song ends as the first side does it does not quite feel like we are complete: we need to go to the next side.

On the flip side as the beats bounce around it sounds as if an electronic voice is saying "oh yeah" and it feels like a clue somehow, if you're sticking with the forensic theme.    We get into some dark slip beats now which feel somewhere between old school and industrial, so I'm definitely feel like we've gone from this faster paced theme on the first side to something more like "Lost Highway" now, which is about where it should be if we're talking about murder.

We're back into these haunted beats that cast a shadow with these grooves behind them, slicing through like an alarm of some kind, not so much like a physical one which would be coming from a cop car but rather an alarm in your mind.     This takes you on a hypnotic journey before finally freeing your mind in the end, which I suppose solves the case if you're  sticking with that theme.    The case, of course, would have to depend upon what answers you need in your life and these beats will be able to provide you with them.








Monday, March 23, 2020

Cassette Review //
LUGERLEX
"MONKEY DUST"
(Bloody Monk Consortium)


$10 //
Edition of 50 //
https://bloodymonkconsortium.bandcamp.com/album/monkey-dust //

One of the first aspects of all of this which might draw you in is the name LUGERLEX because it's a jumbled up version of Lex Luger, who is like the wrestler not Lex Luther.   These beats are harsh and the vocals are dark and cut sharp.   It's hip hop at its finest but also reminds me of some murder anthems.   Though the first song tells the story of LSD, which gives a lot of this cassette a feeling of drug abuse but at the same time (maybe because of the title) I am also reminded of the "12 Monkeys" movie and just think this somehow ties in with that.

I'm not even sure what to compare this with exactly.  Is it Wu Tang?  Is it NWA?  Not quite.   But it has that feeling to it, where it's not just words and beats, but it's an entire movement within a sound and eventually people will start comparing future versions of hip hop to LUGERLEX the way I'm trying to do now with that which already exists.   For some reason, this also feels like something which could either be on the soundtrack to "Trespass" (which I have on cassette) or "Judgment Night", which says a lot if you've ever heard either of those two albums.

If you need something recent to think about how this might sound, it has that Benny the Butcher vibe to it at some point, and as such I can hear some clipping. in here but it's not 100% the same as either of them.    A lot of hip hop (such as what you hear on the radio) I feel makes people comfortable.   They like to sing along and sometimes forget that there was a time when hip hop- like punk music- would make people scared.  I feel like this cassette could take us back closer to those days of when you could play this and people would be scared rather than immediately want to sing along.

Sometimes I feel like I hear Busta Rhymes in this as well.   That makes me think of Tribe, but also it makes me wonder what would happen if Busta Rhymes was part of Wu Tang.   I think it's just about that intensity- that level of not listening to this one after dark if you're not brave enough.    Towards the end of this cassette there is an audio clip listening off the drugs from the movie "Fear and Loathing" and so I do go back to think this is about drugs still.  Maybe that's the scary part of it though- these guys are on drugs and you don't know what they're capable of so you play this one a little quieter in public.
















Music Review //
Luo
"Unspoken"


https://luomusic.bandcamp.com/album/unspoken //

This electronic album begins with drums and it's loud.   It reminds me of a video game, a little "Final Fantasy" perhaps.    There are synths and live drum kits which also can bring out some Doctor Who.   The drumming is so wild and then it has those Transformers synth sounds as well.   Looping sirens and then the second song comes in with a purpose, a bit like Rush perhaps.   Horns blare and then electronic drops come in like Phil Collins.   It then kicks back in a bit faster and this one makes me want to drive faster.

The way this kicks in and then pushes on is definitely some kind of cross between a video game and anime soundtrack.   "Septa" continues with these somewhat distorted back and forth synth tones which makes me feel like we've entered a certain level in a video game, though the percussion behind it makes it feel more like a live performance than something which you would find within a computer.

We find ourselves in a somewhat eerie place now, where this can take on a feeling not too unlike The X-Files.   It builds and has that appearance of something even perhaps from the show "Stranger Things".   "Problem Ball" might be about Dragon Ball Z, but it has a lot of trip loops and makes me feel more like we're inside a game such as Resident Evil than any particular anime series. 

We then begin to hear singing for the first time on this album as well, during the song "Problem Ball".    This song really makes me want to watch the original Transformers animated series.   This takes us into "The Gapper", which has these round about beats and loops.   It bursts like the sun but then curls back up and hides itself as well.  It makes me think of some music you'd heard in between shows on Adult Swim.   Dark acoustics then take the lead.   Then it blisters like an electronic swarm.

"Boss Fight" has these synths and drum patterns which create stops and starts.   The title of this track was really my first idea that this could be an album about video games and not just my hearing it as such, as this song does also feel like you're hitting that certain level where things become intense.   There is a slight Double Dragon feel in this song as well, which just really makes it feel like something out of the 1990's and that early time frame from Nintendo.

"Pangolins Pt.1" begins with a certain drive to it, as if we've defeated the boss but now on another level.   It transforms, then can slow down to almost nothing and comeback with this crazy electronic skram part.   By the second part notes are transmitted and then it feels like we just blast off into the sky.

There is a delicate interlude and then we go into a song called "Elegy" which begins with big skip beats.   This song has a destructive quality to it, like things are falling apart, and then it just continues to feel like everything is breaking during the final track.   I can only assume that whatever force has been against us this entire time is finally meeting its end.  Yes, I'd like to play the video game that goes along with this song (assuming they make one) but I also am just happy listening to it and having the images unfold on their own in my mind.

Live Pro Wrestling Review //
Atomic Championship Wrestling
"Come As You Are"
2/28/20
@ Reverb (Reading, PA)


Additional Photos can be found in the Facebook album here :::

https://www.facebook.com/pg/raisedbycassettes/photos/?tab=album&album_id=3692798757428338

At some point in your life, you have to stop fighting the current and just relax and enjoy the wave.   I'm by no means a surfer, but that sounds really deep, right?  I saw this show posted on the Twitter of Riley Shepard and came to two conclusions: 1) We weren't going to see Riley Shepard again until the end of March and 2) that didn't seem like soon enough.  Funny now how this will become a hopefully monthly tradition of seeing Riley Shepard.   Also, I've never been to a wrestling show in PA before and Quentin has never even been to PA as a state before so this was one of those "Let's do it!" things. 

I had called out of work a few days earlier in the week (I told them I had a stomach bug, but it was more of a mental health breakdown) and so I told them I was going to a doctor's appointment on this day and left work at noon.   I then went over to pick up Quentin from school, who I promptly pulled out at 12:30 because what is that school going to teach him that he won't learn on a roadtrip with his dad?  When I signed him out, I had to fill out a line on a paper and I just copied the person above me and for the reason I wrote "appt".

Reading, PA is about a four hour drive from us but we wanted to leave early because a) I don't like getting stuck in traffic (I didn't want to feel rushed) and b) I remembered that Cici's exists in PA and somehow there was one right on the way to Reading so I knew we would hit there as a late lunch/early dinner.   Plus, Quentin has never been to Cici's before even though he was born in Texas but this trip was about firsts, right? 

Once we got into PA we went to their welcome center and picked up some literature.   Did you know PA has a Crayola factory?  I do now!  How great would it be to go there for a tour on a Saturday afternoon then go to a wrestling show that night?  It's the dream.   We drove through the Poconos and apparently fireworks are legal in PA because they are EVERYWHERE.  We stopped at aTurkey Hill looking for the good birch beer but they let us down.   We went through Milford and the 209 and it felt like we were taken back to the past. 

We legitimately spent an hour at Cici's because Quentin had broken his car charger for the DS so we found a booth with an outlet, sat down, charged his DS and ate all the pizza, pasta and salad we could (and desserts!)  It was well worth the $15 and change and I wish they would bring Cici's a little bit closer to us.   Until then, it just becomes a special sometimes trip I suppose.

Apparently there are no good ways to get to Reading.  We had to drive a lot of back roads and at one point we went up this hill and I felt like we were just going to drop off into nowhere.   There were also some funny names for roads and towns but I don't remember them right now.   Just look at a map.

The thing I like about Atomic Championship Wrestling is that this show page on Facebook had a disclaimer where it said that you could bring children but it isn't entirely family friendly.   I like that type of warning, like "Kids aren't banned but they might see some shit".    I also really enjoyed that this show was called "Come As You Are".   We waited in line for less than ten minutes and then they started letting everyone in.   I, like a good wrestling fan, did my research before this show so I knew who was on it and if I hadn't heard of someone before I looked them up a little bit.

We first saw Megan Mason when got inside and started looking around at the merch.   At Weekend At Sean's House Night 2 we saw her in a triple threat match so this was our second time seeing her.   During that show, she was one of the few people who set up merch during intermission and I was impressed with her in the ring as well, so I decided I wanted Quentin to take a photo with her (which he was on board with) and to get an 8x10.   Since it was so early in the night though, Megan Mason did not have change for a twenty so I just ended up buying two 8x10's (let that be a selling tip for all pro wrestlers-- don't make change, make more money!)  We talked with Megan Mason about Sheetz and Wawa, death matches and Casanova Valentine and then it was time for the show to start.

I like when wrestling shows have this mix of names I know and names I don't and this seemed to be this perfect combination because there were a handful of people I'd seen before and wanted to see again, some I knew about and had not yet seen live and then a lot that I had never really heard of before which is good because that's how you get to learn new names and meet new faces.    Megan Mason was the first wrestler we saw wrestle we knew and she was in the second match versus Christina Marie, who is apparently all over as well.     An older woman sitting near us said to someone else that she didn't like Megan Mason and she didn't know why and all I could think was "Because she's a heel!  Duh!"

We saw a guy called Jack Hershey lose his title and he's some kind of combination of Chris Jericho (younger years) and Jack Evans.   And then we got into a match between Avista Varlowe and Dani Mo.   Dani Mo I recognize because she's in a tag team with Facade, who we would see later on, and I've seen them on Uncharted Territory among other shows on IWTV.  Avista Varlowe is someone who I was seeing for the first time here tonight *but* I did manage to look up and... if you think Kris Statlander has an alien gimmick you like, you really need to see Avista Varlowe.   It's that sort of idea, only different, and turned up to 1000.

Tim Donst had his own fan club section.   There were huge signs for him and it was crazy because he was fighting someone who I was believe was supposed to be the face in Breaux Keller.   This is where I believe intermission happened, because there was also an in ring segment where Felicia Rose interviewed Crazzy Steve.  Jamie Senegal also came out to say that no one was good enough to fight him and he left mad, which apparently meant his scheduled opponent wasn't there.

During intermission we made the rounds and found so many wrestlers to talk with.    First we found Riley Shepard, of course, and we talked with her for a little bit and Quentin took a photo but then we realized we had to let her talk with other fans as well.   We found Avista Varlowe just walking around, carrying trading card pages and selling merch in an unconventional way.   But I still bought a trading card, some pins and a tiny glow in the dark alien which Quentin promptly lost. 

From Avista Varlowe we made our way over to Felicia Rose who also had a trading card (Yay trading cards!) and I told her about how I pulled Quentin out of school early and left work early to make the drive and she called me a badass dad.   I'll never forget that.   We talked about how with children it's important to teach them respect, with women, and that if it's something they learn when they're younger they'll hopefully always have it in them.   Quentin was also a fan of resting his head on her chest.

Second half started with I believe the battle royal but there was also a singles match happening at some point that I didn't really get pictures of but it was between Gory and Andy Header (I believe)  Apparently ACW has their own Battle Royal Champion and his name is Bones and he successfully defended his title here against a lot of other wrestlers- one of whom is named "Hot Shot" Scotty Jeffreys and he had thought he won.   He has that Rock n Roll Express look to him, but I enjoyed how the first three or so guys to come out during this battle royal, the crowd just booed them all.

Riley Shepard is back and it was great seeing her win the ROGUE World Championship from Layna Lennox.    Facade and Crazzy Steve had a match which could have been the main event as both of them are equally unique in their style and it just kind of works somehow.   Earlier in the night, during the interview segment with Felicia Rose called The Rose Room, she asked Crazzy Steve how he's legally blind and wrestles and he said something like "I'm not very good" but this was such an amazing match between two wrestlers who can really go and wow has 2020 been such a "never would I have ever imagined I'd see this but I'm glad that I did" year.

The main event saw Stockade take on ACW Heavyweight Champion Dame.   Dame has this very femme character while looking somewhat like Carrot Top, but it just works.   Stockade is this huge tank that's done death matches and I most know him for his time in CZW.   Stockade is one of those wrestlers that I know about in legend but this was my first time seeing him in person. 

So there was this one fan- and I hate when fans try and get themselves over but I need to make a point with this- and this fan was taunting Stockade as soon as he came out, yellling insults and flipping him off, which is fine because Stockade is the heel or even if he wasn't, it's wrestling.   Insult the characters you don't like-- to a degree.   At one point, Stockade ran out of the ring and charged the guardrail and the fan just went into the fetal position like he shit himself scared.   Whatever that fan said, Stockade was not pleased with it.

Now fast forward to the end of the show, after the last match.   We were hanging out in the merch area.   Stockade is over there after just having his match.   The fan comes over to try and apologize or whatever and says something like "I was just joking" but Stockade is having none of it.   Stockade got up from his chair several times to chase the fan off.  He told him that it doesn't matter if he was joking, he said something racist to him and that wasn't cool.   In the end, security finally kicked out this "fan" but... Number one: don't say racist things.  Ever.   And secondly: you're there as a fan.   We're all there trying to enjoy the show.  Stop trying to get yourself over.   Don't be like this "fan".

Stockade went to the back to change and at that point Quentin decided he wanted to buy this plush dog that Stockade sells, which wears a Stockade shirt and, yeah, if there's any sort of odd merchandise like this out there Quentin and I will find it and buy it.   We got an 8x10 signed as well and then Riley Shepard came out.   This was the show where we bought a Riley Shepard pin and t-shirt and I'm quite pleased by this, though next time we see her I might buy her other shirt because I'm still torn on which one I like better. 

Last time, the first time, we saw Riley Shepard she asked me if she could hug me and it turned into this whole thing and I felt badly about it after I thought it over so this time I decided to ask if I could hug her and then it was funny because Quentin came over for a group hug.    The drive home tried to take me back through NJ for some reason but eventually I found my way to 84 and there were not a lot of places to stop but I suppose that's what happens when you go to PA.