There's an Election coming up?

We are reliably informed that a gubernatorial debate took place here in New Jersey last night. Meh. We saw our first campaign ad of the season. In this one Phil Murphy slams the GOP candidate (who's name we won't bother looking up) for attending a Trump rally near Trump National in Bedminster. That's the Somerset County for Trump rally, which we used to attend. Look at us! 

You're goddamn right there was a Confederate Flag.

Polls show Murphy running away with 50+ percent of the vote. You know, we haven't seen a single Murphy yard sign or bumper sticker. There is a fair amount of said materials for the other guy about. The other guy has run a steady, solid, focused campaign. We think Murphy will win, though not quite as decisively as predicted. Say...50-44 or some such?

Will we vote for Murphy? Maybe. The last Dem we voted for was Cory Booker. He was running against one of those perpetual losers whose name we can't recall. Why not? No, we would not vote for that bug eyed song of IBM execs today.

We've spent the last few days listening to Guns n Roses' Locomotive. What a riff. What drive. Sounds like...a locomotive. This song is so complex and technically demanding the band rarely performed it live. Check the licks and the bridge riffs. Just remarkable. Locomotive reminds us a lot of Led Zeppelin's Carouselambra in structure. The beat is similar. Were we to put together a list of GnR deep tracks, this one is at the top.

It's time already for the Stroock family to consider 2022 vacation plans. Ideally we'd like to get together with our dear Irish friends. We had speculated about a rendezvous in Canada, but that doesn't seem in the offing. We'd like not to go back to Ireland. One can only see so many green fields and crumbling castles. Despite being descended on our mum's side from proud Orangemen who fought for Good King Billy at the Boyne and went on to be Tories in the War of the Rebellion, we've no desire to see Scotland. It'd be Ireland with different accents. We are informed by our man on the ground that the Scots are a lot less friendly too. Wales? Back to the Continent sans dear Irish friends? The Wuhan Virus from Wuhan China being the Wuhan Virus from Wuhan China, we may be stuck in North American again.

The Great Nuclear War of 1975 remains stubbornly on schedule. In reading the last few days we've found plenty of cracks in the granite. That is, we've found places where we can expand on what's happening, give the reader more info. Once we're done with '75 we're gonna play right on to '76. A screen read through, then a printout read through. 

Alert reader(s) may notice we've updated the Future Projects page. 

Will is Estranged

Oil tanker, dolphin pod, the United States Coast Guard, Slash rising from the murky depths like the bastard love child of Poseidon and Christ. No it's not excessive, Axl. Why do you ask? People of Earth, we give you Guns and Roses' Estranged:

Sometime in the early autumn of 1991 we were driving home from school when we became aware of the melodic harmonies midway through GnR's nine minute epic. We've loved Estranged ever since and the song is easily one of our top ten ever.

Estranged climbs like Stairway to Heaven climbs. We don't think Estranged is more epic or as epic as Stairway, and we doubt Axl was trying to equal Stairway with Estranged. But gentlemen, he comes close. 

Guitar licks and piano bits punctuate song lyrics, and the effect is brilliant. Slash's solos rise to the greatness of the song.  Listen to Axl's pipes on this one. The man could sing. Check him out at 6:55 in this clip.

Estranged is obviously a breakup song. But as Dee Snyder testified before the United States Senate, a song allows the listener to derive whatever meaning he wants from that song. We always thought Estranged had the whiff of suicide too it. Listen to the lyrics and reader(s) will see what we mean,  'I'll never find anyone to replace you. Guess I'll have to make it through this time, whoa, this time Without you.' We were once convinced we'd hear these lyrics and think of a childhood friend. That never came to pass.

DirecTV is run by Sub-90 IQ Reprobates, and other Observations

We are pleased this morning as Mrs. Stroock's Penn State defeated Auburn 28-20. We know some of the readership around here has some thoughts about that.

But we are also not pleased as DirecTV was supposed to come yesterday and replace our system damaged by Hurricane Ida. We called and read them the riot act after they didn't show for the 12-4 window. We called and read them the riot act again after they didn't show the for 4-8 window. They actually wanted to sent a technician at 10 PM. We had some thoughts on that proposal and shared them. 

Then Mrs. Stroock, who does a lot of phone stuff in her corporate gig, spent an hour on the line inflicting pain and humiliation. They actually offered to have a tech at the house at 10 PM with Mrs. Stroock. Big mistake. She reduced the DirecTV call center to a metaphorical smoldering crater all while watching Penn State. The woman is remarkable.

Overall we spent more than two hours on the phone sorting things out. We need this crappy, out dated service because it's the only TV one can get at the Stroock Northern Strategic Direction in the Berkshires. Also, we married a woman who watches sports more than we do and she won't do without them. But they say Western Massachusetts will be wired for the internet by next summer. The bell tolls, DirecTV. The bell doth toll.  As we write this we're an hour into the appointment window. (Update: 12 noon, Sunday. Still not here. Mrs. Stroock recieved a phonecall advising that they're running late. You don't say, we replied.)

We did 75's first chapter yesterday and everything went just as we had planned. Which worries us no end. We'd rather make these changes now on printout then later on a proof. 

Thirty years ago last week Guns and Roses released their epically massive double album Use Your Illusion I and II. The albums were expansive, excessive and decadent, just like GnR. They just don't make rock bands like GnR anymore. When Led Zeppelin is saying, 'Wow, those guys have gone too far,' those guys went too far. The stories are legion and need no recounting here. 

Upon learning of the anniversary we felt much like the Big Lebowski in seclusion before his fireplace. 'Strong men do also cry....strong men do also cry.' We wept for our old friends Illusion I and II, the passage of time, and lost youth. Those albums were our everyday soundtrack throughout our senior year in high school. Upon hearing any song from either album we're behind the wheel of our '86 Toyota  Celica GT*, wearing blue genes, an earing, a Champion long sleeved T, and black Reebok low tops. We were a pretty good looking 18 year old. Heh, there was a girl we used to drive home from drama club and sometimes there were stops, detours...[Said the father of three daughters. Knobhead-Ed] 

It's Guns and Roses week all week at this blog. Heck, it should be GnR month. And maybe it will be. So for a pre Monday Metal, here's a song we think captures GnR's rock and roll decadence:

*We took that baby over a hundred MPH multiple times. Moron.

Metal Monday, Psycho Lead Singer Edition

Ahhh Guns and Roses. Or if you prefer, Axl Rose you son-of-a-bitch!


The band was strong and talented enough not only to give metal a much needed shot in the arm in 1988, but to survive the Grunge Apocalypse of '92. Axl is one of the best vocalists in rock and roll, Slash an innovative and interesting guitar player, Izzy Stradlin a talented writer. Appetite For Destruction is a sharp edged classic while Use Your Illusion I and II are masterpieces. They are the soundtrack to my senior year in high school. Use Your Illusion I and II are easily the equal of say Led Zeppelin IV.

In fact, GnR should have been the Led Zeppelin of the 90's. Unfortunately Axl couldn't let that happen because he's a controlling nutcase, primadonna. I've hated the man for 20 years.

We all know the standards, November Rain, Estranged, You Could be Mine and many others. I  love the fact that I thought these songs were awesome before they became hits.

With that in mind we'd like to present a list of underrated GNR songs:

The Garden: Bluesy and menacing with a strong and heavy baseline. You can just tell that something evil is about to happen. Alice Cooper sings on it as well.

Locomotive: Great opening drum and bass line. Slash's guitar sounds like a train. The intro is great and the rhythm strong throughout. Slash's riffs in the bridge a great.

You Ain't the First: Izzy Stradlin's acoustic slap at lover. If you've ever been jilted, and you have, this song is for you.

Get in the Ring: The band slams the media. Why not? It's a fun song and one of those anyone can use in their own life.

Breakdown: Overwrought and epic, seemingly filled with wisdom, at least for an 18 year. Also a lot of fun. With piano, banjo and several sounds thrown in Breakdown is a musical explosion. The intro is fantastic. Throughout the song surprises.  We don't know another song quite like it.