MICKEY ZETTS DOT COM

Spent the day cleaning.
Here are some fun "before" pictures.
Ow ow ow... sore.

So for the album I am working on, Slipping On My Tears: A Collection Of Weepy Emo Crap, I want the artwork to have me dressed in black and with a stupid emo haircut. I however do not have enough hair to do that, so a wig is my only option. I'm also thinking of performing at the next Ukulele Cabaret as this emo kid.

So before I go searching and spend money on an emo wig, does anybody already have one? Anything shaggy and unkempt I suppose will work. I know they pay a lot of money to get that "just got out of bed" hairstyle, but really, I think it's the same end result if it's truly a just got out of bed hair happening.

I'm looking at something like this: http://www.newyorkcostumes.com/istar.asp?a=6&id=24585-01!1

The album artwork will be in black and white, so I don't need to worry about it having blue or red streaks in it, plus I can reuse an unkempt black wig for other things. So if you have such a thing, and I can borrow it the last week of the month, lemme know this week. Tanks.

Amazing show at Two Brothers in Middlebury last night.  It's 5:30pm on the day after and I'm just now recovered enough to document it.

Criticisms and analysis first. All of us in the band committed our share of flubs and miscues. We really could've given ourselves a hard time over it but to our credit we just plowed on and had a great time.  After all, we're a cover band playing in a bar so the stakes were low.  This was a good gig for us to play right now. In the last three months since the Drag Ball gig we've learned about 15 new songs. We needed to take on such a cramming session so that we could start doing full nights at various venues. 

Now the fun. Holy crap did we ever rock the snot out of Middlebury. We went on around 9:45 as the pub was starting to fill in. It's a perfect room for a band as pub gigs go. We had plenty of space to set up (see right picture below) and there was still more than enough room for the crowd to dance and pump their fists. The first few songs made for a good warm-up and introduction since the crowd were clearly just on their first pints.  "Steppin' Out" was the first stand out. That song is just Jeff on bass doing a stunning two-handed tapping line throughout, Ornan keeping the beat and me singing and playing the electric piano/bell part on the keys.  On completion, one guy from the crowd came right up to the "stage" and shook Jeff's and my hand and told us how impressed he was. Very cool. It is an impressive arrangement, if I may say so.

"The Safety Dance" got a handful of folks up and dancing (albeit safely). Our pal Martha was hoppin' and boppin' all decked out in some serious 80s attire with the sideways ponytail, frilly dress with dinosaur iron-ons and Chuck Taylor sneakers.

"Video Killed the Radio Star" was the perfect first set closer. We were spot-on throughout and everyone loves that tune. Can't miss.

We started our second set at 11pm. Jeff laid out the set lists so well. The second set was full of the more high-energy show-stopping tunes which really paid off.  "I Ran" went off without hitch unless you take into account the band completely ignoring my count off.  "Pop Muzik" is still a little rough but we've taken some liberties with the arrangement that we're still getting used to. I'm really happy with our arrangement of "Bette Davis Eyes" and during the extended guitar solo Mike was getting the "we're not worthy" salute from a few audience members. It should be said that by this point in the night the crowd was adequately lubricated.  "Dancing With Myself" came off so much better than expected. A lot of dancing. Becky took the opportunity to jump into the crowd and bounce around as she doesn't sing on that song at all.

We finished our regular second set with "Don't You Want Me" which we do quite differently from the original - very metal. I come out and shared center stage with Becky and we hammed up the dialog of the song. We even went into a pogo for the final chorus during which my voice all but gave out. 

We stayed on for our (totally planned) encore. Even if we hadn't planned the encore we would've had one given the undeniable chants of "one more! one more!" How cool is that?  In fact, before we started up the last song we planned to play, the owner of the bar asked us to play a few more and he'd take care of us for doing so. So, saying "no" was not an option.

We played "Total Eclipse of the Heart" and I swear we could barely hear Becky over the crowd singing along.  I won't bother describing the event that was "Total Eclipse" because you simply had to be there. Beyond magic.

That was where we thought the show would end. The crowd wouldn't hear of it so we ran through "Dreaming" and then the owner specifically requested we do "Bette Davis Eyes" again. Very odd to redo a song but what the heck.




I should have some more photos and maybe a little video footage soon.

During the second set the owner told us to plan on coming back for another show.  We also got an offer from someone in attendance to do a show in Bristol. Nothing confirmed yet but nice to get such immediate recognition.  I got a few handshakes and congrats while I was wrapping up my gear which is always pleasant and encouraging. 

Best evening of playing music out ever.

Happy birthday, fatherbingo!

Post about last night's Hot Neon Magic show to come later today.

Why I might not be able to support Obama after all.

Ugh. Can't wait to talk to my landlord about this one...

Here's what I recorded today:

Adore You

You And Me

Both tracks feature Ruth, my newly-salvaged guitar.

Lately I've been noticing that when I lean over to pick something up, when I return to a standing position I come very close to smacking my head against against something very hard, and usually pointy. It's humbling to think about the number of times I've not been discovered dead three days later. But it also points to the fact that thus far in my life I have proven to be immortal.

Went over to Kevin's for a bit this afternoon, and came back to find my kitchen ceiling all over my kitchen floor. There's a hole about 2 1/2 feet by 1 1/2 feet over the sink-- in other words, where I could have easily been standing and cooking or doing dishes. Looks like I only lost one little dish in the sink-- one bright spot in all of this.
So, yeah, I'm a bit rattled. My super swept up the mess and patched up the hole with plywood and cardboard and duct tape, but I'll still be spending the next few nights at Kevin's. I don't want to think about what could climb out of that hole in the night. The super says that nothing else will fall, but I don't wanna take any chances.
Off to the opera with Paula. I need some distraction. And alcohol. Lots of alcohol.

Need to take a short break from writing.

So last night, since I was already up, wired and cranky, I decided that doing some actual work was in order. I laid down tracks for the opening and closing bumpers for the script reading presentation I've been working on. By the time I was done recording, sleep had grabbed me by the face and shaken me like a seal will shake a penguin.

I've actually been up since noon. I fought a bit with my coffeemaker (mostly to deal with a small, unexpected pest infestation), then finally got to writing.

Except, I couldn't find the story I had started. WTF?
This turned out to be a good thing, as I rediscovered an unfinished piece that had much more potential. So I dusted it off, changed the opening a bit and added another 1100 words, into the third act of the story.

Later tonight I hang out with low_end_rhythm and the boys.

For now, back to writing.

We rearranged the living room. the couch is not in the middle of the room anymore. the tv is at a strange angle, but I think i'll get used to it. the books are unpacked. MY BOOKS ARE UNPACKED. This is awesome. I live here, and stuff. We're still going to take delivery of the second bookcase. the one is already overflowing and we have nowhere to put our DVDs or my cookbooks. This place just gets better and better.

I just got my new shoes that I ordered on ebay.
The beautiful black and white peep toe spectators I've been pining over for years.
I finally worked up the nerve to buy them and they finally arrived today.
I slid my foot in.
It wouldn't fit.
I could not get my foot all the way in.

I was confused. I checked the shoes to be sure they are the size I ordered.
Then it hit me: these are the first shoes I've bought since being pregnant.
And apparently, my feet are even wider than before.

I might have to sell them or see if they can be stretched or something.

Not Happy!

Just added another song to my Imeem profile:



Aw yeah. Smackin' down those Mozart riffs...

In other news, my SM for Romeo and Juliet is coming over this afternoon--finally get to meet her! She sounds very enthusiastic.

I realized last week on the way home from the laundromat that there is another laundromat right across the street from where I live. So I tried the new one this morning.
They have a painting on the wall there of Mount Rushmore, redone with the faces of Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, Nelson Mandela and Frederick Douglass. Entitled "Mount Blackmoor". AWESOME

Scott Stout sent me this link to a Fark mashup of movie posters with Muppets. AWESOME.
( spoilers )

Went to see It's a Grand Night for Swinging last night at Theatre Ten Ten. actress_in_nyc came along to keep me company. Gonna write the review this morning, then off to see Man of la Mancha, then DeBaun's season announcement.

Sabine should get some love too...



"So this is Jersey City..."

Whatta nice picture of my monkey-faced bobo!!!

I'm wired. It's 3 a-goddam-m, I've had far too much caffeine to sleep, but I'm too tired to write (tried).

So I figure I'll play some video games until I am too sleepy to continue. The kid procured the Devil May cry series, I figure I'll continue my game.

I, instead, get owned. Like I don't know how to play video games owned. Now, I used to fly into rages when games pissed me off. I smashed all of my favorite PS1 controllers and 1 television because I could not control myself.
So the rule I developed was this: Video games are made to be enjoyed. If you are no longer enjoying yourself, stop playing. So the second I get an urge to fling the controller, I stop playing. In the old days, I was good for about 3 resistances against my rage, but the difficulty to save kept going up until I'd lose it. Now? After I make that first save, off goes the game.

So I shut off DMC, pop in Gran Turismo 4, which has become my standard, "play when you don't want to play anything else" game, because there's SO MUCH CRAP in that game. Except I was up to the hard races. No more relaxing, I was battling for my proverbial life. Well, fuck. I come in 4th on the last race of a circuit but win the circuit, then start a new one (still wired), and basically fuck up EVERY TURN.

EVERY TURN.

Must. Not. Fling. Controller.

Off goes the game.

So now I'm searching through my collection, looking for a relaxing game. And I realized what I wanted to play.

A turn-based RPG.

Except, no one makes them any more, and the last one that I had that I hadn't already beat, I lent to sola. Xenosaga was BORING, but it would have put me to sleep.

Also, I should get a Tetris-type game for my PS2. Do they even make something that simple?

Nyargh. Tired but wired. Fuck me.

I feel as if I been in a metal garbage can, rolling down the hill and beaten with baseball bats. But I made it through the week. Yay! Now I am going to get some beer and wind down.

Whew! Sent out e-mails, Facebook invites and MySpace invites for the fundraiser, then e-mailed the cast.
Need a nap now, but that's probably just the barometer. Darn rain.

I wrote in the e-mail to the cast that physical items donated would be tax-deductible, but services are not.
Eric of course wrote back that he'd been intending to donate two handjobs, but since they aren't deductible, now he's not. I pointed out this was an example of the IRS sticking it to the man. ...or not.

Have begun making up a producer letter. I think it's okay so far.

( Here's what I have... )


Looking forward to some relaxing Rogers and Hammerstein tonight. actress_in_nyc is coming along with me.

The server at work....BLUE SCREENS OF DEATH!!!!

Looks really bad. Junior's now been on the phone with Dell support for about 4 hours......

Joss Whedon on How He Staged a Career Intervention for Eliza Dushku


If you're a (talented, cute, snarky) actor in search of a tough-love mentor, you could do worse than Joss Whedon. The creator of Buffy, Angel, and Firefly admits he was cajoled to finally return to television, and delay a film project or two, by protégé–Buffy nemesis Eliza Dushku. A marathon lunch at the Ivy last year yielded the idea for Dollhouse, the memory-swiped-operative-chicks show that premieres on Fox in January. "I was mentioning writers, but Eliza kept saying 'Don't you want to do it? Don't you want to do it? Look how cute I am!' And she's really cute," allowed the strawberry-blond auteur at last night's after-party for the Fox upfronts at Wollman Rink.

We were impressed that Dushku held such sway over Whedon and wondered if he had that kind of bond with other actors. Whedon said that he's closer on a daily basis with Buffyverse alumni like Alyson Hannigan, Amy Acker, and Alexis Denisof. But Dushku, he said, is different. "Eliza and I are seldom in the same place for very long. And I'm an old married guy, she's a lot younger and bubblier." But he has given her plenty of career advice — a tradition that started "when I got frustrated with all these crappy horror movies she was making. Like Wrong Turn and Soul Survivor and whatnot. Those broke my heart." So Whedon staged an intervention. "I said, 'I love you. I think that you have something that no other actor I've worked with has. What can you be making these movies for? Why are you doing this to me? You're killing me! You're better than this.'"

But what about the One True Slayer? "Sarah Michelle Gellar's made some really good choices," he says. "She's had some bad breaks. She goes with the independent, interesting young filmmakers and then they get slammed, like Southland Tales. I'm proud of what she's trying to do. It's hard." And onetime Angel David Boreanaz, who's now scored a lucrative role on the Fox hit Bones? "David owes me money." —Justin Ravitz