Don't FIGHT and Don't RUN From this ITEM, PKMN

I am not a geek so I don't play World of Warcraft.  However, I am a nerd so I still refer to myself as a Pokemon Trainer now and again even though I haven't played the game since senior year of high school (blurring the line between nerd and loser).  Now, as many of my fellow trainers and I believe, our canonical manifestation of the Pokemon series ends after Blue, Red and Yellow.  Since the release of Yellow in 1999, Nintendo has come out with:
Gold and Silver  
Crystal*              
Ruby and Sapphire
Emerald                
Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Red Rescue Team
Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Blue Rescue Team
Pokemon Ranger                                              
Diamond and Pearl                                          
Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time
Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Darkness
Pokemon Rangers: Shadows of Alimia
Platinum
Black and White

This is only a chunk of all the various installments of the series in which Nintendo has introduced nearly 500 new species.

To the extent of my knowledge, the creators of Pokemon have yet to enter the realm that which I am about to propose.  There should be a MMORPG ( Massive Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game for all you noobs) that allows each player to leave the restraints of the muggle Pokemon Trainer and roam the lands of Kanto as a Pokemon.  In this game, you could band together with a group of no more than five other friends to form an elite Pokemon fighting team.  As the Pokemon, you would be able to create your own moves (restricted to your type, of course. Blastoise can't fly, Rhydon can't surf and Goldeen still can't do anything).
There are more exciting features that I am sure will reveal themselves soon, but I just wanted to incept the subconsciouses of current Pokemon game creators.  Hopefully this takes off soon.


*I may have grown fond of Crystal had I not dropped it and my gameboy into the toilet

A Sad Tale of C-Town

In the midst of a fascinating 2010 MLB postseason, full of amazing pitching duels and claws and antlers, I can't fight my inevitable trip into a 2007 relapse.

People from Cleveland, if they haven't forced themselves to forget, will remember this year as the Indians were up three games to one against the Red Sox in the ALCS. The last three games of that series turned out to be a mess, as no one on the mound stepped up to the challenge of propelling us to a World Series. C.C. Sabathia, Fausto Carmona and Jake Westbrook all were given the opportunity to close the door on the Red Sox, but all came up short.

Now, I was fully able to move on from this ordeal and I promised myself I'd be quite alright. When I left the postseason I'd be completely restored to my normal, terrible old self. But maybe I'd be a little bit wiser for the wear (Willy Wonka quote). However, these past two post-seasons have featured several former Indians players from Jim Thome to Kelly Shoppach. But one former member of the Tribe has turned the playoffs into something unseen before. A Mr. Clifford Lee, now advancing to his second consecutive World Series appearance, is a perfect 7-0 in his first seven playoff performances. In each start he pitches as if he is throwing against high school players, befuddling and baffling with insane control.

Cliff Lee really propelled himself into the spotlight with his unbelievable 2008 season. Everyone remembers his dominant 22-3 W-L record and his miniscule 2.54 ERA, but I ask you, painfully, to remember further beyond that season of genius.

In Cliff's first three full seasons, he won 14 games with an 18 win season sandwiched in there. He had shown signs of promise, but nothing of what we are seeing now. Then came 2007. When Everything seemed to be going right for the Tribe, Lee was the only thing wrong. Days before the trade deadline in July, Lee and his 6+ ERA were banished to the minors. Apparently, Lee never showed up to Buffalo, but instead joined the League of Shadows where Ra's al Ghul showed him the key to mastering the strikezone.

Cliff was a phoenix gloriously rising from the ashes of mediocrity and despair and he is now soaring at the highest levels of baseball lore.

A great story of redemption for Clifford, but what gets lost is that his period of rebirth took place during the same time in which the Indians were making their push to the playoffs. Cliff rejoined the team in September, but never returned to the rotation. He stayed in the bullpen for the rest of the regular season. The real horror of this tale is now revealing itself. When the Indians were sitting pretty up 3-1 in the 2007 ALCS, we needed one solid pitching performance to enter the World Series and face a Colorado team that was far inferior to the men of Erie. A sure World Series victory and a championship team for the troubled city of Cleveland. But while C.C. , Fausto, and Jake all failed to come through, a Mr. Clifford Lee sat on the bench and twiddled his thumbs. And the question is now, when did Cliff officially turn into the superhero he is today? Was it in his preparation and offseason before the 2008 season, or, perhaps, was the trip to the minors the wake-up call? Was Batman sitting on the bench while the Joker stole our trip to the World Series?

Now at 7-0 with a 1.26 ERA and a gaudy 9.57 K/BB ratio, Lee has yet to make a playoff mistake. All the Indians needed was one of those seven stellar performances, and the world would be a different place today.

I will leave the topic of how the Indians drafted Tim Lincecum for another post.

New Kid Cudi yall

Check out the new leak off Man on the Moon 2: The Legend of Mr Rager, Maniac ft. Cage. Listen on illRoots

Fantastic beat, a sample of St. Vincent's The Strangers. As much as Cudi is an unconventional rapper, this still seems like an odd choice of a sample. The execution is fantastic though, as Cudi seems content to let the track do most of the work, laying down verses seemingly to fit and compliment the beat more than to flex any kind of rapping muscle. The end result is one of the better uses of an indie sample and it adds to the mounting excitement of this fall's coming rap releases.

Effing Gem

Came across this clip watching Chappelle's Show the other day... gold.
It's most definitely, not think so

Lion's Choice: Deerhunter

Posted by Lion



If you happen to be a reader of Pitchfork, or any indie music site for that matter, you've already heard of Deerhunter.  And you may also know that Deerhunter recently released an album titled Halcyon Digest, which just happens to be UNBELIEVABLE.

This band is very difficult to figure out.  Their first album, Cryptograms, can only be described as modern shoegaze.  Very difficult to listen to, but, if you're into that shoegaze stuff, it was a gem.

With their sophomore album, Microcastle, Deerhunter cleaned up the production a bit (a small bit, mind you.)  They were easier to listen to, and Bradford Cox really grew as a lyricist.  He seemed fragile (which only fits his physical appearance.  The dude has Marfan Syndrome, which makes him the most gaunt-looking human being I've ever seen.)  Not to mention, Nothing Ever Happened was a straight up jam:



I thought my Deerhunter love would peak after Microcastle.  They were one of those bands I always enjoyed, but not to the extent where I could listen to their albums all the way through in one sitting.  And then, all of a sudden, Halcyon Digest happened:



As Wolf can certainly attest to, Deerhunter stepped up their shit.  This album is their most accessible and diverse album yet.  A few examples:

Revival, my personal favorite of the album, is probably the most like their previous material.  It would've fit right in on Microcastle.  If you aren't sure this is your type of song, at least listen for the change of pace at 1:20, which is one of my favorite moments of the record.  Then again, I am a sucker for tiny little moments that shouldn't make a song, but for me, they do:



Next, we have Helicopter, the first single off Halcyon Digest.  It's an interesting change of pace for Deerhunter, one I could only describe as "haunting"..



Finally, Coronado. If you told me that Deerhunter could ever sound like Buddy Holly, I would've laughed in your face.  But damn, Deerhunter sounds like a 50's Back to the Future band in this song.  And it's...like...really good?  Why is this good?  I don't know.  But...it's...good...

3CI.0.1

Wolf here,
I'd like to take this opportunity to provide an updated photo that better reflects our commitment to this new tomorrow.

Onward and upward gentlemen. The only directions we will hence concern ourselves with.

I'm going to try to bring to 3.0 my own unique (and highly white) views on the world of rap. Starting with this track from Wiz Khalifa's 2010 album Kush and Orange Juice. Gotta love the use of Frou Frou's Let Go as the backing track, conjuring immediate associations with one of my favorite movies of all time, Garden State. Although it's clear from the first rapped word that the song will have absolutely nothing to do with anything you felt while watching Garden State.

3CI 3.0

Hello all.  Crazy thing happened.  We at 3CI recently went on vacation to this beautiful secluded island in the Pacific.  While on vacation, we explored the pristine lands and found some interesting things.  One of these things was a big wheel sticking out of a wall in a cave.  It took all three of us to turn it because it was actually frozen in there, and upon doing so we got transported back to the 70's.  It took a whole series of complex events to return us back here.  If there is a here...now....

Anyway, we would have been blogging but, alas, we were in the 70's.  However, we are back in our original timeline (or at least some alternate dimension protruding from some events that took place in what you may refer to as the original timeline) and we are ready for another reboot of the famed and financially successful franchise -Three Conchords Inc.

What awaits in the upcoming posts will entertain, enlighten, and encourage your participation.  We want to hear from you.  And to show you how determined we are with this new reboot of the franchise, here is a picture of our very own Wolf's dangerously delicious moustache...

The keen eye will notice the vorticity of the apex of said stache.  This image is a message that we are ready to come back better than ever. 

Peace be the journey...