Tag: Coachella

Random Thoughts Roundup: The Beginning of May Gray

Posted on Posted in Life Happenings, Music, SurfingTagged , , , , 1 Comment

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/June_Gloom

California has an interesting take on the beginning of summer. Back east, May signifies lots of neoprene shed, the slowing down of surf, and the warming up of the land. This was one of my favorite times to be home, since it was beautiful and far less crowded than summer (I sound like a grumpy loc). While it isn’t on the cook like winter can be, we still get plenty of surf. In contrast to this, May and June in California signify May Gray and June Gloom. Weirdly cloudy and colorless days fill up more than half the seven days of the week. While we do get closer to my favorite surf season out here (south swell season = lined up barreling lefts), there is still even a funk in the ocean. Often there is morning sickness that takes forever to go away, and most of the first south swells tend to be more walled than lined up. May 1st is this Wednesday, so it is right around the corner and we are slowly inching closer to summer. Closing out the month, I thought it appropriate to touch upon the last 2 weekends to regurgitate some random happenings and thoughts around my brain. I swear after this post, there will be more structure and thought put into them (still fuzzy from Coachella). Speaking of that lets enter rambling number 1:

Coachella reminds me how fun festivals are.

0gio270_0gio270-R3-014-5A

My pal Noah feeding into the festival vibes.

Whether it is the actual festival itself or the company you surround yourself with during the weekend, it really is hard to match the kind of carefree attitude and sounds of a good festival. The sheer amount of good music and people all in one place makes it almost a dream. If my amount of Instagram posts doesn’t tell you enough, let me literally say it: I had a great time. With artists across all genres, awesome guest appearances, and the morning recaps (and rallies) before entering day 2 and 3, it truly is an experience I long to replicate literally one day after it is over. I sound pretty basic, but why isn’t there a weekend 3?

Bells ran in massive surf; goofy footers showed up.

I am really bad at fantasy surf. I currently am in 2 leagues, but refuse to pay for both purely because my passion picks always end up not working out. I had surfers I like on for Snapper, then took them off and put a more realistic bunch in for Snapper. All of my passion picks from snapper did well at Bells. After I took them off. While I ended up doing ok this contest, I was stoked with the sheer surfing done, specifically by my screw footed brethren. By the quarters, it was equally 4:4 regular to goofy foots. Ryan Callinan smashed lips smoothly while Medina and Italo surfed with speed and poise. I am going to save my finger dexterity by not going into detail on my opinion on the interference call. That rule needs to change. Anywho, the vertical angle Ryan was achieving and the backhand floaters that Medina was tagging sections with made me a proud goofy footer. While we didn’t see back-to-back goofy wins (Italo won last year), John and Filipe were looking in form the whole event. And plus, an all Hurley final should make the office on Monday buzzing with stoke.

Tons of new music.

IMG_0211.PNG

Current lineup: I have already played through CrasH Talk a bunch, hence the song playing.

On top of gaining new music to listen to from visiting Coachella, there have been quite a few notable album drops in the past 2 weeks. One major one that might not be my cup of tea is the Beyoncé live album and Lemonade making Spotify one of its new homes. The beehive is definitely buzzing after this one, and you’d have to think there could potentially be a new album coming with this type of rollout. On my side of things, we have new projects from two vets in the game. ScHoolboy Q has returned from a 3 year hiatus with CrasH Talk, and it is sounding like a good rap album. Just lots of rapping. And I love that. Other notable favorites from me include a new Wiz Khalifa album and Blackbear album. The couple I have not got around to listening to yet are Pivot Gang’s You Can’t Sit With Us and Hit-Boy/SOBXRBE Family Not A Group.

Boardie season is upon us.

As the season begins to change, so does the water. The times of no wetsuit tans and nipple rash (sorry for that image) are upon us. This one I will keep short sweet and to the point: nothing feels better than scoring (or just surfing in general) in boardies.

That about wraps up all the ramblings I have in stored in the membrane. I noticed some people checking out the site today, in hopes of a new post, yet I am lagging on this one thanks to last night. In the future, let’s shoot for 1PM PST for a new post to be live. I know the anticipation just kills.

Random thoughts regarding desert da(y)ze.

Posted on Posted in Life HappeningsTagged , , , , Leave a comment

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=km_TumzeoHo

It is that time of year again. Thousands flock to the desert in search of good music and a weekend to let loose at. The outfits alone couldn’t even describe the hectic nature of it. Coachella 2019 is halfway over, and I am stepping up to the plate next weekend. The anticipation really didn’t start hitting me until early last week, when I was jamming out at work to potential acts I will see (if everything goes according to plan, which it never does). Oh, the stoke! It really is unlike anything else I have experienced, in so many different ways. That was super cliché. But I digress. What will follow this light introduction are some thoughts I have had stirring in anticipation to the desert days and wildness that will ensue.

…

Sick Sets (Not waves, which look like they will be good when we are dancing in the desert. Sad face.)

The best part about Coachella is how much good music is surrounding you. Last year, some of my favorite band sets were from bands I didn’t know, and ranged along a large spectrum of genres. This year will be no different most likely, but there are definitely some acts I am stoked to cross off my concert bucket list. First and foremost, Kid Cudi, who I have been listening to since my brother was my age and living in Red Bank, NJ. (Shout Preston). Along with him, I will cross Diplo and DJ Sanke off the EDM side of things, along with a slew of other electronic artists I like. I will see my guy Wiz Khalifa for the third time, and am also jazzed about Anderson .Paak since it is following the release of his new Ventura album, which is quite good. Also, Pusha T will be performing, and most likely dishing out those classic Daytona verses.

A True Test In Opportunity Cost

Do I stick with the crew or drift off into the abyss of people to go see someone I like but others may not? This is also a question, since there are so many conflicts and often a lot of people I may like way more than others. Last year I only adventured once solo, for French Montana (while he is one of my favorite artists, the set was sub par). This year, I am going to just go with the flow, but definitely see a couple more sets solo. While it is definitely different being alone than with a mob of 30 people, it is really cool to think you have thousands of others around you all connected because of one person’s music. That was pretty deep. But it’s true!

 

Great Company

The sheer amount of people that go each year is pretty ridiculous, and it is a great place to reconnect with old friends and also new ones. In a way it is similar to a family reunion, with much of my alma mater (Chapman University) in attendance, it will be awesome to catch up over great tunes, even if it requires yelling the same thing 3 times. I am also staying in a house with some of my closest pals, and will be bringing disposable cameras in the festival and around the house to document all the great moments that will ensure. (Scope this IG post to see a recap of last years. The lesson learned, use the flash since half of my exposure did not turn out.)

 

Gues(t)sing Game

One of the marquee features of Coachella is the amount of surprise guests that come out during performances. This is often something I think about when weighing out options of who to see. Last year, pedaling back to French Montana, he brought out Ty Dolla, who I had seen before. Kind of a bummer. This year, I am keen to see who comes out with certain acts. I swear the best surprise guests come out when you aren’t at that set. Hopefully this year packs some heavy hitters for on stage guest appearances.