Won't Be Pathetic Forever

This Party Sucks

2009-05-13T16:12:00.000-07:00

Myspace blocks blogspot so we're shifting gears. For all info on our new record, hit up:

http://thispartysucks.tumblr.com

New Van. New Practice Spot.

2009-05-09T22:39:00.000-07:00

Today, Josh and I picked up the new Wonder Years van. We're really excited:

Friday started practice at our new practice spot at my house in South Philly. The next few weeks are sure to bring out my neighbors hatred for me:

Casey had some videos of the the practice but his car was broken into last night and his laptop got stolen. Bummer city.

More detailed updates on writing and shit next week. Maybe a new blog altogether if I can get someone to help me set up a decent looking one.

New Videos

2009-05-05T19:48:00.000-07:00

I posted some new videos of us playing at Kent State University on April 30, 2009. I will be posting some of my projects from school soon. Keep checking back.

www.youtube.com/mattbrasch

-Matt Brasch

Kent State

2009-05-05T15:01:00.000-07:00

Thanks to everyone who came out to our show with Motion City Soundtrack last thursday. It was a long drive for a one off, but seeing some familiar faces and a bunch of kids getting into it was definitely worth it. Here is a picture from the show. It felt good to play, since shows have been few and far between this spring. But as soup said below, we are ready to hit the basement and write what we think will be the best stuff we've turned out so far... Also, get ready for us to announce a few east coast dates in the near future! Hang on guys and girls, it will all be worth the wait...

We've been slacking on updating this

2009-05-04T20:35:00.000-07:00

and honestly, I'm considering moving it to tumblr because myspace blocks links to blogspot for some reason. Things haven't been too exciting, but they're about to turn around. This week we move all the gear into my basement in South Philly and start hardcore writing for the record. We have 7 songs done. I want to double that at least.

Best Weekend in a long time.

2009-04-19T20:39:00.000-07:00

Saturday:

My brothers in Fireworks got added to the New Found Glory/Set Your Goals/Bayside tour. They got the call while in Nashville with We Are the Union and hauled ass through the night to Philly. The dudes got to myself around noon. We hung out. They showered and went to Gianna's and then we headed to the venue for load in. The guys hooked me up with an all access pass and I had a really good time. The dude from The AKAs was doing tattoos backstage. Fireworks killed it and I know they will the rest of the tour. If you're going to see the show, be sure to support the guys. This is the first tour they've been on that's this size but won't be the last! Pictures below of NFG on stage and the pass I got.

Sunday:

Today ruled for a few reasons. One, the flyers won. Two, I got some work done on my 25 page paper for my senior seminar. Three, I scored free tickets to TNA Lockdown. For those of you who don't know what TNA is (and I didn't until this week), it's another pro-wrestling organization like WWE. A lot of wrestlers that aren't under contract with WWE anymore ended up here and there was some serious talent on the card. The point of lock down was that every match is in a cage. The highlight of the night was watching Mick Foley win the championship. When I was maybe 11, my dad took me to see WWF In Your House Mind Games. The headliner was Shawn Michaels vs Foley (as Mankind). I never thought I'd get to see him wrestle again and I was really excited he won. I don't see him doing too many more matches. Below is a picture from the seats Jack and I snuck into. It was an 8 man cage match and two dudes were fighting on the top when I took the photo.

6:00 PM. Philadelphia. City Hall.

2009-04-03T20:16:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, shitty days don't end that way.

Top 5 Records part duex

2009-03-24T11:22:00.001-07:00

I feel like I'm a john cusack movie, ***the best john cusack movie.

1. Latterman - ...We Are Still Alive
2. Less Than Jake - Hello Rockview
3. Bear Vs. Shark - Right Now You're In The Best Of Hands
4. Saves The Day - Through Being Cool
5. Blink 182 - Enema of the State

i know i'm forgetting something, but this is the best i could come up with right now, it'll probably change in like four hours.

i don't think kennedy needs to post his list because it's probably just the hatebreed discography.

-josh

Top 5 Records

2009-03-22T16:01:00.000-07:00

My friend Mike made a five favorite records of all time list. I noticed it was really similar to what I would put so I decided to make a list. Maybe the other dudes in the band will as well. It's really difficult to widdle it down to only five records. Try it. Let me know if yours is anything close to mine:

1. The Get Up Kids- Something to Write Home About
2. Blink 182- Dude Ranch
3. The Hold Steady- Boys and Girls in America
4. The Weatherthans- Left and Leaving
5. Brand New- Your Favorite Weapon

You know your life revolves around pop punk when you think Mark Hoppus is a better song writer than John Lennon.

Mike Kennedy Gets Tattooed: The Blog

2009-03-21T14:14:00.000-07:00

So, sadly, Kennedy's beloved golden retriever, Shadow Mapletree Kennedy, passed away last week. Our good friend Taylor (you may remember him from such bands as Bangarang and Daylight) tattooed him with a tattoo gun that our old merch guy Richie made out of a toothbrush, some tape, a guitar string and a number of other parts that absolutely aren't a part of an actual tattoo gun. Below, you'll find evidence of the saga.

Penn Sound

2009-03-16T19:48:00.001-07:00

If you have a minute, check out Penn Sound. It's a website where you can hear a bunch of poets read their work at different locations. I think it's really cool. I'm currently listening to a piece Bruce Andrews read on tax day of 1992 called You Made this World, We Didn't from his book "I Don't Have Any Paper So Shut Up or Social Romanticism." I've been getting more and more into poetry lately and wish I had more time to read and listen and write, but alas, I'm writing this blog entry on the only break I've given myself from work tonight. Tomorrow morning I want to wake up at 6, read for an hour, make oatmeal, tea and orange juice and shower and write songs before I ride my bike to school to start the day. We'll see how that goes.

EDIT: Here are a few of my favorites:

Robert Creeley reading I Know A Man

Anselm Berrigan reading 7/4/2000

Anselm Berrigan reading Have a Good One

Bruce Andrews reading You Made This World, We Didn't

MattBrasch: Glory Hog

2009-03-13T08:21:00.000-07:00

Look at this asshole stealing the spotlight again. Can he get his selfish grubby little mits off the center of attention for five fucking minutes? I mean, Jesus Christ. We get it man. You look really cool when you show off your David Blaine floating skills. (ATTN: Steve. re: Magic still isn't real) Leave the magic floating to the pros who can make it look like they're sitting on something that isn't real. You're at about an 8 right now and I need you at about a 4 MattBrasch. Let's tone it the fuck down.

Post inspired by: Fuck You, Penguin.

New video to go along with a new release...

2009-03-10T11:05:00.000-07:00

Today the 7 inch entitled "Distance" drops. We are really proud of this release so please pick it up. Below is a video I made yesterday about the recording process of "Distances."

p.s. I'm not retarded. I can actually line up the action with the sound. For some reason youtube hates me and screws up the sync every time I upload a video.

p.p.s. Click on the title of this post, New video to go along with a new release, before playing the video that way soupy's song won't play over top of it.

-Matt Brasch

It's finally getting nice out

2009-03-08T21:37:00.001-07:00

and I'm on Spring Break. Well, kind of. I don't have school, but I still teach this week. However, I have a bunch of cool shit coming up for the week.

Monday- Riding bikes with Matt and Molly and filling in on vocal duties for my boys in I Call Fives for this show.

Tuesday- I think A Loss For Words are crashing here Monday night so we'll probably hang a bit on Tuesday. I'm planning on getting some serious reading done as well of Zadie Smith's White Teeth.

Wednesday- This is our record release show! I'm so excited to see so many of our friends. Also, there's a special record release version of the 7 inch. I'm not going to spill the beans, but I'll tell you that it looks unbelievably cool courtesy of my man Fish.

Thursday- I'm spending the day relaxing. Maybe get a nice bike ride in. Probably read some more and watch more of the Birthday Present Jess got me back in January.

Friday- Playing down in Maryland with my boys in Man Overboard

Saturday- Playing up in Erie with Central PA's finest, Handguns.

Sunday- We just might be recording a demo of a new song for the next record for a school project of Josh's. The song I think we're doing is called Melrose and will absolutely be on our next record.

It's my birthday!

2009-03-01T20:54:00.000-08:00

God, 23 sounds old to me.

-Matt Brasch

I second that...

2009-02-26T08:27:00.000-08:00

I am pretty much over this whole college thing as well matt. I'm pretty sure that if we did the individual twitter thing on our page everyones would probably be pretty similar.... to the effect of "I hate school" or "I fucking hate school" or "I really fucking hate school and townies up here..." ect ect. But I'm only 26 credits away from a new LP, Europe, and touring until I puke. haha (inside joke, some kid once told us that he was more punk rock than us because he "plays drums all day and fuck's until he pukes.") any way, back to studying for my World Music midterm....

Did You Know?:

The Friction Drum of Africa is played by inserting a stick through the drum head. A wet cloth is wrapped around the stick, and the cloth is rubbed. In turn, this causes the stick to move and the head of the drum to vibrate, producing sound....

Kennedy, this sounds way to sexual for you not to play it in europe this summer, so lub that shit up brother!

Isn't it summer already?

2009-02-25T22:41:00.000-08:00

I'm sick of school. I miss playing shows every day. SUMMER COME QUICKER!

-matt

Why bother? Why try?

2009-02-16T20:41:00.000-08:00

Really into this song right now. www.myspace.com/braindeadhxc

We're breaking and we're bleeding. I can't believe my heart stopped beating. And for what? To what end?

Why? Why bother? Why try? We don't care we just fall apart.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2009-02-14T21:54:00.000-08:00

Jess had work tonight, so we had lunch and then I sat around for a few hours until Ambrose and Max came over. In that time, I decided to record the following song for Jess for V-Day (no, it isn't the only thing I got her). She and I watch Scrubs every week and I just got a ukeulele for my birthday so it seemed like a good idea. Below is the song and the video it comes from. I'm not very good at uke yet or singing girl's parts, but I tried. Consider it a Valentine's Day gift from us here at team Wonder Years:

Fuck You by Riki Lindhome and Kate Micucci

Here's me doing it:

Pre-orders just went live!

2009-02-02T09:41:00.000-08:00

Chris no sleep just told me that the pre-orders for our new split 7" w/ All or Nothing called "Distances" just went live this morning. Here is a link if you want to buy it directly from the no sleep store or interpunk.com. There are very few packages and even more colors. Quantities are extremely limited as the pressing was only 1000 units.... get on it now before they are gone forever.... oh, and I think we will be having a few special edition ones set aside for release show and a certain festival coming up, but more on that very soon.

There are no strong men. There are no beautiful women.

2009-01-30T21:17:00.001-08:00

Cleaning out the old hard drive.....

2009-01-30T08:26:00.000-08:00

So my friend Dan that takes a lot of photos for us and has helped us out with artwork and stuff over the years just sent me an email reminding me how awesome myself and Kennedy were back in high school.....haha. Its a photo from one of the bands we were in back in the day before TWY. Needless to say, this one didn't make the final cut...

Enjoy,
Casey

p.s. Has anyone seen Mike Phelan...?

Writing writing writing...

2009-01-29T18:18:00.000-08:00

So, while we're battling with classes and work we've been getting together and writing some stuff for the new record. We're working on one tonight called New Years with Carl Weathers. This is what happens when I can't remember the lyrics:

In other news, an article I wrote for AMP Magazine online is getting some cool attention, check that out if you have time and my class and I are working on a mural project. We gridded out a picture we wanted to use, made it bigger and let each kid color a part of it. We're about 70% done:

Way to be America!

2009-01-20T19:41:00.000-08:00

Today, Barack Obama was sworn in and, while I understand this is a big deal for a lot of us, I don't think we can even fathom the amount that it touched some people. I replayed his speech for my class of first graders and they were glued to the screen with the proudest looks on their faces. One girl looked like she was about to cry and, while they might not have known what every word President Obama said meant, they knew this was historic and important.

Life in Early January

2009-01-11T19:54:00.000-08:00

In one week, I will be 23. That is a weird feeling. At my age, my parents were busy raising me and when I was younger, I assumed that was the norm, so I figured by now, I'd be married with at least one baby. I was way off. However, I did move in with my girlfriend Jess this week. Here's a picture of the Ikea dresser I put together all by myself.

Life is back to teaching and riding bikes. I'm getting ready for my last semester of classes and just trying to hang out and relax before things get really hectic. I'm working on a few things for Wonder Years (New lyrics, interviews, a guest blog for AMP Magazine, and some new merch online) but am mostly just existing. Tonight, we went and saw The Wrestler which was fucking awesome. I'm not a big movie guy but I loved this and you should see it when it opens nationwide on Friday. Oh yea, and GO EAGLES!

Growth

2008-12-26T23:29:00.000-08:00

I just posted up a new video called "Growth." If you have a free minute, please check it out.

-MattBrasch

URL - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1Iy46cMt4s

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-25T10:45:00.000-08:00

Hey guys!

I hope Christmas was awesome for everyone. I know it was nice to spend some time relaxing with my family. I'm about to head out for a quick bike ride and then over to my girlfriend's house to eat with her family. I just want to show you what we're bringing on tour as far as merch goes in case you're trying to think of places to spend that money grandma mailed. Shirts are 12, hoodies are 25:

2008-12-24T01:14:00.000-08:00

No more pencils. No More books. No more teacher's dirty looks....

I finished the semester with 4 A's and 1 B which was better than I thought I'd do. God does it feel good to be on winter break. It's so nice to be home with my family and friends for the first time in a while. I'm getting really excited for tour. I hope you all are excited for us to come to your town.

Be careful driving in the ice. My car was slipping all over the streets tonight.

Merry Christmas Eve,
Matt Brasch

Random Surprises

2008-12-18T20:21:00.000-08:00

Today was pretty sweet because my friend Jared who runs Heart of Gold Clothing called me and said he was coming over which is weird because he lives in South Florida. Then, he and I are hanging out and there's a knock on my door, which is weird because no one ever knocks on my door. We open it and it's Charlie, my friend that runs Positive Approach. Dude is from Buffalo and showed up at my door unannounced. So, now we're hanging out in my living room watching the Burning Angel DVD that Wonder Years are in. Life is funny sometimes.

Oh, life. You silly sonofabitch.

2008-12-17T20:33:00.000-08:00

I had a dream last night that, among other things, featured a scene that I feel is fairly representative of my existence most days. I was using the bathroom and stood in front of the toilet while I flushed it. Somehow, defying most laws of physics, the water from the flush somehow migrated upwards through a tube of pipes and showered down upon me from a vent above. It is perpetually raining shit.

Two days ago, I was playing kickball with the 1st graders I teach in Philadelphia when I hurt my foot. I decided to try to ignore the damage as I am a bit of a hypochondriac and felt I may have been fine. I waiting until today to go to the doctor after realizing the pain wasn't going away. Thinking it foolish to ride my bike, I borrowed my brother's car. Luckily, when I was 18, I got bored and taught myself to drive with just my left foot in case I ever break my right leg. I'm glad that finally came in handy. After visiting two different medical facilities today and loitering around a hospital with my good friend Chris Spiro, the conclusion was come to that I have ruptured a tendon in my heal.

Expect me limping:

Rolling Stone Top 50 of 2008

2008-12-10T21:08:00.000-08:00

Okay, I should preface this post by saying I'm half drunk and watching Rush Hour 3, but that doesn't even start to soothe my rage. I just took a look at the Rolling Stone Top 50 of 2008 and those sons of bitches could not possibly have their heads farther up their own asses. The only records that don't completely suck on this list are The Hold Steady coming in at #36 and Lil Wayne at #3. Among the ridiculous claims of this list are the following; Guns 'N Roses is at #12, Vampire Weekend is at #10, and Coldplay is #7. Maybe if this was the list for most insane bullshit of the year these records would rank accordingly. Someone at Rolling Stone needs a kick in the ass.

The Wonder Years top 10;
1. Living With Lions- Make Your Mark
2. The Hold Steady- Stay Positive
3. Trapped Under Ice- Stay Cold
4. Shorebirds- It's Gonna Get Ugly
5. Polar Bear Club- Sometimes Things Just Disappear
6. Blacklisted- Heavier Than Heaven, Lonelier Than God
7. Balance & Composure- I Just Want to Be Pure
8. Dillinger Four- C I V I L W A R
9. La Dispute- Somewhere at the Bottom of the River Between Vega and Altair
10. Algernon Cadwallader- Some Kind of Cadwallader

if you haven't heard any of these records, you're missing out. GET INTO IT.

<3
josh

Christmas at 22

2008-12-07T08:32:00.000-08:00

Last night, Casey, Matt and myself got together at Matt's place on South Street in the snow to crank out a song for the No Sleep Friends and Family Christmas Comp. The song is called "Christmas at 22" and is more or less about coming home for Winter Break. Matt's girlfriend Laura, who has been a good friend of everyone in the band for years, also lent us her voice for this song. Here are the lyrics:

Christmas at 22
(For Lansdale, PA)

Winter break always seems so cold. I took my brother's keys and I drove. Turned the headlights on because it's already dark at 6 PM. I'll navigate familiar roads to the Christmas songs on the radio. I'll turn it off for "Let it Snow." I won't be snowed in. We're visiting some friends I haven't seen since August to catch up on all the things we missed while we were in college. We'll find a house party when the bars close and I'll drive all my drunken friends home. Proving once again that no one we've ever met has really changed that much since high school. Let's turn on the TV and wait for Christmas specials. We'll make some frozen pizza and watch your stolen cable. We'll thank whoever's in charge here that this year didn't treat me so bad. The day the ground starts to get wet, everyone that I've ever met has an away message that says, "Faintest snow keep falling." New diners are packed out with old friends. We're overwhelmed but unimpressed. I miss the days when I knew every single waitress. We'll find a house party when the bars close. We'll never spend the holidays alone. Proving once again that there's a reason my friends still tend to call this place home.

Thanksgiving Week Tour

2008-11-30T08:26:00.000-08:00

We're currently in a Red Carpet Inn near Utica. We were gonna crash with some dude last night, but after we went to get burritos, he vanished. We're not worried about it. Kennedy is talking about how you can use semen as conditioner, I'm listening to The Ergs and checking out sketches of new merch designs. It's a good morning. We're on our way to Danbury, CT. Everything so far has been awesome. Living With Lions and Fireworks dates were unreal in Buffalo and Clevo. Thanksgiving with the family was nice and dates with Safari So Good have been a lot of fun. Last night, we did an impromptu cover of the finale from "The Nightman Cometh." I was pretty proud.

This is life

2008-11-22T19:55:00.001-08:00

If you ordered merch before yesterday, I shipped it yesterday. It took me a few days because I couldn't do it alone. As the picture shows, my roommate, Matt, had to help me. It took both of our bags totally filled to get all the orders to the post office. Friday morning, he and I rode through the snow to get you your t-shirts. He also wrote a few of you notes. I didn't read them, so here's hoping he didn't write anything to graphic.

Today, Casey and I were working on this acoustic song for the No Sleep Family Christmas Comp and saw this on tv. I don't think words are needed:

I sleep in these dirty sheets.

2008-11-22T08:30:00.000-08:00

Maybe we're spreading ourselves too thinly

2008-11-18T18:32:00.000-08:00

I feel like I should be cranking out ideas for another full length but instead I'm studying semantics and planning out how I'm going to stay warm tomorrow on my bike because I've worn this sweatshirt the last two days and the kids I teach are going to start making jokes. Fuck do I hate it here.

Just a heads up

2008-11-16T16:06:00.000-08:00

When I read messages from you guys and you include "nigga" or any derivative of the word, I automatically stop caring about what your message says. I don't know if it's an attempt at sounding cool or funny or what, but I don't think it makes you sound anything but ridiculous. I know you guys (hopefully) don't mean it in a racist sense, but I teach 22 black kids everyday who wouldn't appreciate it very much. Aside from that, it just makes you sound like a trend-hopping mosh wigger. Say it all you want in your spare time. I don't care how you feel about it or use it, but when you send us a message, just replace it with "dude" or something. That is all.

We're selling leftover tour merch cheap!

2008-11-15T08:30:00.001-08:00

$8 for a shirt or tank top. Supplies are crazy limited. Nothing in medium. Sorry. They're available right here: LEFTOVER MERCH Here are pictures of my roommate Matt modeling them in my girlfriend's bathroom:

Delicious Fixicious

2008-11-12T16:19:00.000-08:00

My main man Charlie (you may remember him as the merch guy for us on the Living With Lions tour) has moved back to Buffalo. While this makes my life a lot shitter, because I don't get to ride with Charlie anymore, his life has gotten a lot cooler. Dude is opening up a store called Positive Approach as well as a clothing line called Ridden and a blog called Delicious Fixicious. The store does screen printing, sells clothes, specializes in vintage second hand stuff and is selling bike parts and bags I believe. Plus, the dude's so cute, how could you resist? Go check it out!

Distances

2008-11-09T14:58:00.000-08:00

I've got high hopes

2008-11-08T13:12:00.000-08:00

Proud to say we all got out and voted last week and the candidate we supported won. We try not to get our personal politics into Wonder Years, but I'm really proud of America right now. No comments allowed on this one.

Why won't you come to (insert city here)?

2008-11-02T19:02:00.001-08:00

Everyday I see a shit-ton of comments and messages that say something to that effect. It makes me feel really awesome sometimes, because people want to see us play, but it also makes me feel really shitty sometimes because we can't always be where you want us to be. So, here is my attempt at an explanation. It is a two-fold issue.

Part One:

Listen, I love touring. It's all I want to do, but let's be fair here. Touring is not a career for a band like us and if it is, it's a short lived career. We're logical, practical dudes. We know how this world works. So, this year, we promised ourselves we would finish our degrees. Fall semester is winding down which means that in like 7 months, we'll basically be done with college. The weight can come off of our shoulders and we can hit the road full time. I would love to be able to play everywhere right now, but, as important as this band is to me, my future is also pretty important and I'd like to work on securing that a little bit. If you're somewhere we can't get to right now (ie: everywhere but the northeast), hang tight, because I promise you we'll be there. Once this summer rolls around, we'll be on tour non-fucking stop. You're going to see us so much you'll wish we were taking a fucking break. Hang tight and we'll try to do the same. I absolutely hate waking up everyday and riding my bike through this shitty city to go sit in fucking Linguistics classes. I would much rather be hanging out with you guys, but you've gotta do what you've gotta do.

Part Two:

We don't have a booking agent. Now, those of you unfamiliar with the "industry" might not have a good grasp of what that is, but I'm sure you can infer enough from the name. It's more or less someone that you pay to book your tours. Now, I can book our tours. I have and I will continue to for the time being. However, what I can't do is put us in places where I don't know promoters or put us on tours with bands we don't know well. Agents have shit-tons of contacts so wherever people want to see a band, they can place them. They also have the ability to put in bids for larger tours. We don't have any of that. What we have is the ability to play places that our friends will book us at. So, if you live in Boston and want to see us, you might have to either find someone to book the show for us, or drive to the closest show. I'm not magic. I can't just snap my fingers and have us play anywhere we want. It takes a lot of time and effort.

So, the moral of the story is, don't think we've forgotten about you guys. We sit around all day and daydream about being back on tour and it'll happen soon enough. Give us a minute to get our lives together. In the meantime, we're recording two new songs this weekend and we're writing for another record this spring that we're hoping to record at the beginning of the summer. I think you guys will like it.

My videos are on TV!

2008-11-02T07:46:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow (Nov 3rd) a couple of my videos will be on tv in a show called Music vs. Noise. If you live in the Philly area, check it out. The show will be on DUTV at 10PM.

-Matt Brasch

Day 6 of 7 (Matt's Student Films)

2008-11-02T00:23:00.000-07:00

If you have ever been interested how the ear works, this video explains it all. This video is called "How Does the Ear Work?"

Voiceover by Laura Borucki. Edited by Matthew Brasch. Images taken from random web pages. There are too many to label.

http://blip.tv/file/1413788

If you missed my last video, please check it out if you have a chance. It is called Avoiding Annoying Neighbors.

Day 5 of 7 (Matt's Student Films)

2008-11-01T09:19:00.000-07:00

I know I missed a day on the video blogs. My computer was acting up and I had to restart it from scratch. Thank God I have backups of most of my programs and files. Today I have posted the video that my grade for videography class relies on. My grade is based upon how many hits I get online. If you could please hit this video as many times as possible, that would be awesome. If you want to help me even more, it would be cool if you put this video up on message boards or sent it out to all your friends via email.

This video is called "Avoiding Annoying Neighbors." It is an instructional video on how to effectively avoid your annoying neighbors. Please feel free to try out some of these techniques if you have an annoying neighbors of your own.

Featuring - Pat Corcoran as Pat, Tom Corcoran as the annoying neighbor, and Matt Brasch as the host.
Filming, Lighting and Editing by Matt Brasch.

AVOIDING ANNOYING NEIGHBORS

http://blip.tv/file/1413880
or
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQ7cLQof3VU

Day 4 of 7 (Matt's Student Films)

2008-10-30T09:11:00.001-07:00

I wrote a song a few years ago using all sound effects plus guitar. This year I decided to make a video for it. This video is called "Matt's Morning." This is a typical morning in the life of me.

side note: My youtube account will not let me upload videos right now so check it out at blip.tv.

http://blip.tv/file/1292445/

If anyone would like to hear the extended version of this song, it is on my myspace. www.myspace.com/mattbrasch

PHILLIES WIN! PHILLIES WIN! PHILLIES WIN!

2008-10-29T22:27:00.000-07:00

big ups to our home town philadelphia phillies for being downright amazing and winning the 2008 world series. so happy. i can remember crying (at age 6) when joe carter hit that homerun to beat the 1993 phillies and being crushed. tonight was one of the best nights to see a team that works so hard for a city that loves them so much to finally win a championship.

go phils! our thoughts are with you charlie manuel and shane victorino for your losses,

congrats again to the 2008 WORLD SERIES CHAMPIONS, THE PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES!!!!!

-josh

family

2008-10-29T10:57:00.000-07:00

keeping with some sappy nostalgic posts on this board i wanted to talk about a different kind of family. i love my mom/dad/brother/sisterinlaw/little nephew, but what i'm talking about is the friends we meet on the road and have little families all over the country and the world. the boys from a new born thriller (myspace.com/anbt) needed a place to crash last night so they hit me up and shacked up on the floor of my nasty apartment. i was so stoked to see them and return the favor they've done for us countless times. being in a touring band gives me a whole different sense of family with these guys and tons of other bands. gas prices, weather, speeding tickets, and flat tires suck enough as it is, us touring bands have to stick together and be good to one another. i can't think of too many people who can be hundreds, if not thousands, of miles from home and have a warm place to rest up for the shitty drive tomorrow. i hope all the bands we tour with like a new born thriller know they have homes in south eastern pennsylvania just like i know i have a home in virginia, tallahassee, vancouver, birmingham, newport city, kansas city, detroit, and countless other places.

thanks boys, it was fun as hell

josh

Day 3 of 7 (Matt's Student Films)

2008-10-28T21:29:00.000-07:00

Hearing loss is a serious issue in the music community. Just attending 1 show without ear protection permanently damages your ears to some extent. Once your ears are damaged they cannot be repaired. Being the retard that I am, I have gone to hundreds of shows and band practices without earplugs. I also listen to music and practice my instruments way too loud. I have lost a considerable amount of hearing over the years and I would like to save you from doing the same thing.

In my video “Hearing Loss” I interview 3 musicians from the Pennsylvania pop punk scene about life with hearing loss. This video features Ben Link from Fell Victim, Drew Conte from I Call Fives, and Wes Lieberher from Kill Verona. Filming and Editing by me (Matthew Brasch).

I would especially like to thank Wes Lieberher and his organization, Keep the Dream Alive, for inspiring me to do this video. Keep the Dream Alive promotes wearing ear protection and gives away free ear plugs at shows.

Or

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b5MT_9cpsCU

Check out…
…Keep the Dream Alive www.myspace.com/keepthedreamaliveta
…Kill Verona www.myspace.com/killverona
…I Call Fives www.myspace.com/icallfives
…Fell Victim www.myspace.com/fellvictimpa

Day 2 of 7 (Matt's Student Films)

2008-10-28T09:49:00.000-07:00

This piece is called “Nervous.” This was the first experimental video that I’ve ever done. My first assignment for experimental video class was to pick a word and shoot something to describe it. This was the result.

Cinematography, Lighting, Filming, Music, Artwork and Editing by Matthew Brasch.
Artwork and extra help behind the camera by Laura Borucki.

Or

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4VKOyla6ftI

Day 1 of 7 (Matt's Student Films)

2008-10-26T21:52:00.000-07:00

Day 1 of 7

For those that did not read my post on Wednesday, I am going to be posting a new video of mine every day of this week (October 27 - November 3). This year I have been working on a plethora of videos for school and I’d like to share them with as many people as possible. On the final day, November 3rd, I am posting a video that is due for school. My grade is based upon how many hits I get. If you would like to be extremely amazing, tell all of your friends to check the videos out. Please feel free to repost this message on message boards and emails.

This is a video that I created for experimental video class. The video is called “Dexterity” and it features The Wonder Years’ song “Solo + Chewy Holdin It Down.” This video shows what each of the limbs are doing while playing the instruments for this song. I also wanted to show the way I felt about listening to music visually. When I listen to music, it is always a new experience because I am always listening for different things or thinking about different things each time. I wanted to create the same experience for the viewer. If you watch the video multiple times, try paying attention to different frames each time.

Or

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6NR1c4Vycw

watch my student films and give me some feedback

2008-10-22T23:44:00.000-07:00

Next week (Oct 27 - Nov 1) I will be posting a new video each day that I have been working on at school. Each video is different in style, format, and content. Please check some of the stuff out. If you do not like one of the films one day, do not be discouraged to come back and check out others because, like I said, they are all completely different. If you like what you see please subscribe to my youtube account. The main reason that I am uploading all of these videos in a row is to hopefully gain some viewers. I have a project that is due on Monday, November 2nd and my grade is based upon how many views I get online.

To start you off, I just uploaded an experimental documentary that I made about being broke as fuck on the road. I used footage from the past summer tour as well as some other footage from previous tours. Enjoy and give me some feedback.

If this doesn’t work, here is the link…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpOc2JoblmE

-MattBrasch

Totally Agree

2008-10-21T17:10:00.000-07:00

So funny that Soupy just posted about the world and how much stuff there is to see and how little time it seems we have to see it all. Today in one of my classes we watched an old newscast about Japan and its cultural and economic differences and it got me thinking... Years ago, before TWY, I could only dream of spending weeks in the UK with some of the coolest dudes in the world, or traveling across the country with my best friends. But since this band became "real" I have been blessed with more opportunities than I could ever imagine possible (and more than I probably deserve at times). The Wonder Years has kept me young, even as we all near the end of college and have grown into our places in the real world. This band has made me believe that there is nothing in this world that you can't achieve with the help of friends if you want it bad enough. I've always wanted to visit asia, specifically Japan, and after watching that video clip today, I am more excited than ever to think that TWY may one day bring us there as well! As much as I will miss my amazing friends in philly when this year is done, I'm pretty sure I speak for everyone in the band when I say that I am counting the days until we can hit the road and meet each and every person around the world that has ever supported us or will support us in the future. Hopefully the stuff we are writing, and stuff we have yet to write, will be strong enough to get us everywhere we want to go and show us all the places we want to see. But obviously, regardless of the crap we write, we will always owe everything to the kids that helped us from the beginning; the kids who are all a part of the DIY scene that is like no other group in music today. Thank you again, and may that mentality live on for a long time to come, and keep bringing great music and good times to towns all around the world.

Casey,

p.s. my apologies for the moment of sentimental bullshit, but I'm sure a lot of you dudes in bands would agree.

Looking at pictures of Birmingham

2008-10-19T09:40:00.001-07:00

Some days, the world seems so big that when I think about it, I get dizzy and anxious and never want to leave my bed again. Then, I start to get upset that there's so much going on that I'm not seeing. I'm beyond grateful that this band has let me see so much of this world already. Thanks.

Passion Brand Clothing on THE REAL WORLD

2008-10-16T12:06:00.000-07:00

HELP OUR FRIENDS AT PASSION BRAND CLOTHING:

Our good friend Dave, Founder of Passion Brand Clothing will be entering the online casting call for the new season of The Real World MTV. If you don't already know about Passion Brand, check out their new fall line of cloths now and vote for Dave while you're there!

Vote for Davis Passion to be on THE REAL WORLD now by clicking the link below!

and vote vote vote

you can vote once a day, so vote EVERYDAY!!!!

thanks so much

NL CHAMPS! GO PHILS!!!

2008-10-16T11:53:00.000-07:00

So if you haven't heard already (cause you don't live in philly or you've been living under a rock...) the Philadelphia Phillies are going to the fuckin World Series for the first time in over 2 decades! They beat the LA Dodgers in game five of the NLCS last night 5 to 1. I watched the game at our neighborhood bar up the street in East Falls called Murphy's Irish Pub. Such an electrifying moment when they got that last out. The bar exploded with screams, hugs, and high fives. The streets of south philly filled up with loud phils fans for the rest of the night and people drove around every part of the city honking horns and shit. it ruled! So it's looking like we will probably be up against Tampa Bay since boston can't seem to get there act together. Can't wait for the next game...

Two New Songs/Charity Shirt Ruled/Bike Shit

2008-10-13T17:43:00.000-07:00

New Songs:

This weekend we wrote two new songs. I can't tell you what they're for yet, but I can tell you that we're recording them at the end of November with Vince Ratti at Skylight Studios and that they are tentatively titled: An Elegy for Baby Blue and It's Never Sunny in (South) Philadelphia. I'm really proud of them right now. I was starting to get mega-nervous. I think it happens to a lot of people when they're writing new material. I kept writing these melodies and then having anxiety over whether or not they were up to the level of Won't Be Pathetic Forever, but I'm confident now and it feels good.

Charity Shirt:

It's been four days and the charity shirt is all but sold out. I'm looking at the orders now and we're down to the last two shirts. I'm really proud to be able to help with this and so excited that you guys all came through and bought shirts.

Bike Shit:

This weekend, my friend Kevin and I rode our bikes 30+ miles from South Philadelphia to Blue Bell, PA. the ride rook us along Kelly Drive and up the Wissahickon Creek. It was a ton of fun and had some awesome scenery. We did the whole thing on fixed gear bikes so it was crazy riding around on the trails.

I also put on a new front wheel I got for free at the IRO cookout and started painting the fork I got from them too. Riding around has been keeping me sane in between clases and work.

Help us help someone!

2008-10-09T16:22:00.000-07:00

USA Orders:

World Orders:

Do something worthwhile!

I've been sitting here for a while trying to think of exactly what I wanted this to say without offending anyone or any organizations. I think I'll just put it this way: it's amazing that kids into punk rock and hardcore are into being charitable, but, in my opinion, the money isn't going to where it's most needed. Realistically, most of us here in the good old first world have it pretty sweet, comparatively speaking. There are families all over this world who can't manage to eat much less sit and mull over the inanities that make people in this country depressed. I am guilty of getting down on myself and my life from time to time. We all are, but there are people that have it much harder and in my opinion, those people are who need your help. I think it's about time I put my money where my mouth is on this issue and so I've organized this whole thing to help. We have this VERY limited T-shirt design for sale. We're only going to sell 50 of these bad boys and ALL of the profits will go to buying a cow for a family in a third world nation through The Heifer Foundation. The cow will not only provide enough milk for a family and neighbors, but will give birth once a year to a calf that will be given to another family in order to continue the cycle. This is possible through the charity of Daniel Fishel for donating his artwork and Heart of Gold Clothing for donating their time and talent to print and ship all of these shirts. They are truly some of the best people I know and I thank them for their help in this endeavor. Below you will see EXACTLY where your money goes when you buy one of these shirts. There is literally nothing skimmed off the top. Costs are covered and the rest goes directly to purchasing the cow. Also below, I have included some quotes from the Heifer Foundation's website so you know exactly what it is you're helping. This is a good cause and a dope shirt to boot. On top of all this, all shirts will be transported to shipping via bicycle so we're even being eco-friendly. Get into it!

Total cost to you (including shipping)*- $17.00
Cost of each shirt- $2.00
Cost of oversized screens (total)- $50.00 ($1.00 per shirt)
Cost of shipping per shirt*- $4.00
Money donated per shirt- $10.00

"A good dairy cow can produce four gallons of milk a day - enough for a family to drink and share with neighbors. Milk protein transforms sick, malnourished children into healthy boys and girls. The sale of surplus milk earns money for school fees, medicine, clothing and home improvements.

And because a healthy cow can produce a calf every year, every gift will be passed on and eventually help an entire community move from poverty to self reliance. Now that's a gift worth giving!" –Heifer Foundation

* Overseas shipping adds $2.

RIP Kelly

2008-10-08T21:09:00.000-07:00

If you know me, you know that I am absolutely terrified of dogs. I had a plethora of bad childhood experiences and I can't be around dogs at all without freaking out. Needless to say, this presents a problem on tour. Tons of people we stay with have dogs and I end up sleeping in the van or hiding behind Josh until I'm safely away from the dog. The first time we got to the Wasserman residence in Monterrey, CA, this massive horse of a dog greeted us. I subsequently ran upstairs. However, over the next few days, Kelly didn't growl or even bark once. He obviously got in the way a lot due to his size and was often stumbled over, but he never seemed to care. I'd never liked a dog this much, felt as comfortable around a dog like this or seen a dog so happy and loving and smart. When we came back to Monterrey I was excited to see Kelly and am really glad I got another chance to hang out with him. Today, he had to be put to sleep. He had bone cancer and it was beyond control anymore. I'm going to miss Kelly a lot and I wish the Wasserman's the best. RIP Big Guy.

VP Debate tomorrow

2008-10-01T19:43:00.000-07:00

I couldn't be more excited to watch Sarah Palin eat massive shit in Vice Presidential Debate tomorrow. Joe Biden probably won't have to say a word.

Where the fuck are all the shows, dudes?

2008-09-29T17:27:00.000-07:00

I know, I know. We've been playing very few shows since summer and I know a lot of you want us to play your area. I'm really sorry that we can't right now, but it's really important to us and to our families that we finish this last year of college. We've been pushing it back and taking it easy because of Wonder Years but after a full summer of touring and two releases in nine months, we felt like now was the time to finish up. Don't worry though! Not only do we have plans for a few shows coming up and a small tour this winter, but we're writing for some new releases. Hopefully a 7 inch this winter and a new full length this summer. Then, school is done and you'll see us on the road more than you can fucking handle because half of us won't have places to live except for the van anyway. Get ready for it, because we're gearing up this year to come at you fucking hard soon.

On personal notes:

- My new bike came! It's fucking awesome. It's an old Raleigh road frame painted burnt orange with "Head Above Water" in black on the top tube. It's got an Origin 8 crank set, sun rims laced to formula hubs and a rockworks track cog. I'm riding fixed at a 46/18 ratio. Thanks again to the great people at Heart of Gold for the hook up!

- My friend Colleen put a poem of mine in her blog. Check it out (you have to hit read more to see the whole thing: Typo&Graphy

- I'm really bummed that one of my favorite bands is breaking up but they are releasing an insane amount of material before they do, so definitely check out The Ergs all you can before they're gone!

2008-09-22T19:28:00.000-07:00

Tour Video Blogs

2008-09-18T18:32:00.000-07:00

I know that I said that I was going to have tour blogs from this summer up soon, but I have been swamped with school projects. I am going to work on it a little bit tonight. If anyone has a genuine interest to see them soon, let me know and I will actually make an effort to get them done.

-MattBrasch

I'm feeling nostalgic...

2008-09-15T22:16:00.000-07:00

So, Matt and I used to be in this band called The Premier. We both still sang, but I played bass as well and Matt played drums instead of guitar. I wrote all the lyrics. Our good friend Nick wrote all the music and our boy Dave played guitar. Below are the two EPs we recorded. I was really proud of this music.

The Live Like You're Dying EP

The Winter Tour EP

Writing new songs/ending up at random parties.

2008-09-13T22:48:00.000-07:00

Today, Matt, Casey and I started working on some new songs. I've had a lot of ideas floating around in my head and it was good to get them down on something even if it's just temporary. The songs are really turning out to be something I'm proud of already but they won't be done until Mikey, Josh and Kennedy can get their hands on them-- not just because it needs keys, bass and drums but because when we rework songs as a full band, some of the coolest little changes to the songs happen. That to me is what makes a good song. A ton of dudes can write decent melodies. It's the tiny parts that make it something cool.

Afterward, my room mate and our friends Charlie and Julia invited us to a party. We went there and a Sublime cover band was playing in the basement. We subsequently left. However, while randomly riding our bikes around, we stumbled upon another party that I ended up knowing a lot of people. It was fine and I stole toilet paper for my house. All in all, a good day.

I'll leave you with a tentative new Wonder Years lyric:

"You won't find me in the North Jersey club scene with the Girls Gone Wild B-Team. I don't need to pump my fist to look sweet."

+/-

2008-09-08T17:57:00.001-07:00

+ Getting a New Bike thanks to Heart of Gold
+ Ordering pizza online
+ Watching Arrested Development on DVD
+ Being drawn as a Superhero as part of my job

- The Ergs broke up
- A lot of school work
- The cops didn't find my bike that was stolen at gun point
- A Terminator TV Series?

Fireworks & Swellers show = sweet

2008-09-03T16:25:00.000-07:00

Thanks so much to everyone that came out to the Broad St. Ministry show on monday night. It was a great time playing acoustic and Fireworks rocked it as usual. That place is a really cool place to do shows, with a lot of space and a great location in center city. I really hope they do more shows there soon, cause it has a lot of potential as a great up-and-coming venue in the philly scene. In other news, we finished up a new song called :1902: Home Sweet Home" that we debuted on monday. Let us know what you think if you heard it... Later

Casey

Teaching, teaching, teaching

2008-09-03T06:46:00.000-07:00

Between Field Experience, classes and work, I'm spending 12 hours in the class room some days. Sweet.

Days 35-44

2008-08-09T10:49:00.000-07:00

Day 35. Marietta, GA

We said
goodbye to the
dudes in I Call Fives and
hello to The Awkward Romance.
Game time.

Day 36. Tallahassee, FL

Best dudes:
No Excuses.
Tallahassee is one
of my favorite places to
play still.

Day 37. Panama City, FL

Holy
shit I got to
pee on Casey's leg and
swim in the gulf of Mexico.
Life rules.

Day 38. Stuart, FL

Awesome
show equipped
with new friends and good dudes.
Free food and free shirts makes for a
good night.

Day 39. Augusta, GA

During
our second song,
I looked off stage to see
my girlfriend drove to Georgia to
see me.

Day 40. Charleston, SC

Jess, Josh,
Car and I went
to the beach and spent the
day in the city. So nice to
see them.

Day 41. Spartanburg, SC

We for-
got to say, "This
is madness. No this is
SPARTANBURG!." It was still a cool
show though.

Day 42. Wilmington, NC

For the
first time all tour,
I couldn't remember
what town we were in. Hate how it
all blends.

Day 43. Newport News, VA

I love
all the kids here.
Best friends I could ask for.
Dave and I met four years ago.
Weird, right?

Day 44. Philadelphia, PA

Home rules.
Not only did
I eat Wawa, I got
to play my favorite venue.
Bye, tour.

Days 21-34

2008-07-25T00:26:00.000-07:00

Day 21. Monterey, CA

Thanks to
the Wassermans
we had a relaxing
time in Monterey by the hot
tub/pool.

Day 22. San Francisco

We rode
tandem bikes to
the Golden Gate Bridge where,
in victory, Mikey and I
stood alone.

Day 23. Reno, NV

In pitch
black darkness, we
jumped from a fifteen foot
cliff into the river below.
None died.

Day 24. Santa Maria, CA

Mikey
and I came in
first and second during
a twenty-two man laster tag
blow out.

Day 25. Ontario, CA

Mike and
Ant were held up
at gun point but the dude
forgot to load the gun. What a
dumb ass.

Day 26. Las Vegas, NV

After
two weeks, we have
Rich backm but we don't have
money or pride after time in
Vegas.

Day 27. Las Vegas, NV

Packed out
little cafe:
Dont know how you survive
these punk rock shows, but I'm, glad that
you do.

Day 28. Mesa, AZ

I missed
seeing Ashmore.
I'm glad he's doing well.
On the other hand, our van is
so fucked.

Day 29. Albuquerque, NM

Almost
got killed in an
epic dust strom but we
powered through and played a really
fun show.

Day 30. Midland, TX

I hate
Texas. It's hot
and could not be any
bigger, but the kids rule and that's
what counts.

Day 31. San Antonio, TX

You know
most people would
think the Alamo would
be receptive to guests but it
is not.

Day 32. Oklahoma City, OK

The home
of Toby Keith
is far from proud of its
native son. Don't think I would be
either.

Day 33. Little Rock, AK

Driving
all day numbs my
brain. It's not even that
I'm tired; it's just that I'm so
damn bored.

Day 34. Henagar, AL

Who would
have thought this state
would have dope shows. Plus we
get to see Rocky. My eye got
jabbed though.

Days 12-19

2008-07-11T17:04:00.000-07:00

Day 12. Morris, IL

Deadbeat
Promoter. Get
fucked, dude. Rumor has it
you blame the venue but it's all
on you.

Day 13. Cornerstone, IL

Five in
the morning saw
me sneaking us into
Cornerstone Festival. Sorry,
Jesus.

Day 14. Kansas City, MO

We sat
at the highest
point in Kansas City
and watched more fireworks than I
could count.

Day 15. Warrensburg, MO

Even
in the weirdest
towns on earth, ten kids will
come see us. That's a really good
feeling.

Day 16. Denver, CO

Wingin'
It filled us up.
I rode bikes at the show.
Kids had water balloon fights. Den-
ver rules.

Day 17. Richland, WA

Twenty-
Two hours of
driving sees the Falcon
hurting pretty badly but she
keeps on.

Day 18. Tacoma, WA

Show ruled.
Shelby couch moshed.
Saw Seattke all day.
It may have been the coolest ci-
ty yet.

Day 19. Portland, OR

Portalnd
isn't all it's
cracked up to be but it
is a really clean and friendly
city.

Day 20. San Jose, CA

Weather
for Santa Cruz:
Sixty-Two and smokey.
On top of this, we played in an
arcade.

Days 7-11

2008-07-02T17:14:00.000-07:00

Day 7. Taylor, PA

Hung out
in a box car
yard and ate Waffle house.
I can't complain about any
of that.

Day 8. Lemoyne, PA

I love
Championship.
Regardless of turnout
Cody and the central PA
kids rule.

Day 9. Cleveland, OH

Got in
some sweet stage dives,
verbally assaulted
some dumb blonde bitch in a Hummer.
Good day.

Day 10. Taylor, MI

I stood
on a bunch of
kids and screamed about how
everything will be okay.
It will.

Day 11. Madison Heights, MI

This was
day six on my
Force Fed T-shirt. It smells
but I'm still representing the
straight edge.

Days 4-6

2008-06-27T06:19:00.000-07:00

Day 4. Franklinville, NJ

Jersey
has always been
cool, despite the fact that
we wrote a song defacing their
whole state.

Day 5. Doylestown, PA

Holy shit.
So good to see see
so many friends come out.
It felt like old times with great dudes.
Thanks guys.

Day 6. Severna Park, MD

Felt like
I was dying.
Headache and vomiting.
Must have been dehydrated. You
were right.

Alkaline Trio

2008-06-25T15:10:00.000-07:00

I just saw Alkaline Trio at the Montgomery Mall and they were awesome. The were probably the best I've ever seen them. If you've never heard of them, check em out.

-MattBrasch

Waking up with My Cousin Vinny

2008-06-24T13:18:00.000-07:00

So we drove back from Mass last night to NJ. Show tonight in Franklinville should be dope. Woke up this morning to watch My Cousin Vinny on TV. Always forget how good that movie is, and more importantly, how fuckin hot Marisa Tomei is!!! Listened to a lot of Minus the Bear on the ride back last night as usual, but also rocked this band called. Mikey just showed me them and they are super mellow for fans of old death cab and shit. Check them out if you dig that. I've also been reading this book by Lee Siegel called Against the Machine, which basically talks about how the Internet is destroying us all and crap. Very well written, but I have to take it in small doses cause its mad depressing at times. Kinda ironic that I am talking about this on a blog the next morning after reading all about how blogs distort the line between reality and fiction in the form of self-expression and "prosumer" commercialism. So if you want to see the big picture of how your myspace page is nothing more than the commercial manifestation of your "personal" life, read it i guess.

-Casey

First Three Days of Tour:

2008-06-24T13:05:00.000-07:00

If you'll recall, a few posts ago I said this:

"[I] decided that every day on tour I'm going to write and (internet service allowing) post a cinquain every day reflecting that day to me. This is a style of poem similar to a haiku. It is 5 lines and 22 syllables in this order: 2, 4, 6, 8, 2."

Here are the first three days:

Day 1. Montrose, PA

It's good
to see old friends
and start tour off right,
but packing was a cluster fuck.
Oh well.

Day 2. Buffalo, NY

We made
paper airplanes
from tonight's show flyers.
Threw them over Niagra Falls.
Felt small.

Day 3. Florence, MA

Today
we woke up to
a slashed trailer.
I hope someone in Buffalo
feels tough.

ALL KENNEDY ALL THE TIME

2008-06-19T21:55:00.000-07:00

i read a book last night and today whose main character has a PhD in Anthropology and used it to write a weird kind of Anthro themed porno....dare i say, inspirational?

so i said goodbye to my girlfriend tonight and that kinda sucked donkey balls, HOWEVER i did get to watch National Treasure II for the second time and that movie totally rules. i mean come on, America, Nick Cage, Hot Babe, some sweet-ass sidekick and America

i got all my shit together for tour...well except for my new kit, but hey that's life.

I'm exited, I'm nervous, I'm getting a chest piece and golden pirate nose ring as soon as humanly possible

-AKATT (that's gonna be my pen name, for my anthro porn)

And the headlines today read:

2008-06-19T19:17:00.000-07:00

Matt Brasch: Only Satisfied Customer of The Happening

All I've read were bad reviews.

Tour starts Saturday. Van is inspected. Merch arrives tomorrow. The set is tight. My bags are packed. Let's do this!

Tomorrow means picking up the van from the shop, organizing the merch, running the set some more, riding my bike to the train and then to my girlfriend's house. Sleeping there. Then, Saturday, I ride back to Kennedy's and get in the van. If you live anywhere in the US, I better see you at a show.

The Happening

2008-06-15T22:08:00.000-07:00

I just got home from seeing The Happening. All I can say is that it is the most disturbing movie I have ever seen. Everyone should check it out. I've been replaying the movie in my head over and over again and I can't the horrible images out of my head.

I'm gonna go try to sleep.

-MattBrasch

Philly is too hot/Cinquain summer

2008-06-09T22:38:00.000-07:00

This blog has two purposes:

1. It is way too fucking hot in Philadelphia. I don't have A/C and it was 101 degrees today. I ended up sweating through my couch for a few hours after work. Luckily, Josh's girlfriend is moving in down the street and gave me a ride to my friend Kevin's house so that I can sleep comfortably tonight. It's June and feels like the worst day in August. The average temperature for today is supposed to be 78 and it isn't even going down to that at the coolest part of the night. Al Gore was right. The world is getting hotter. However, his solution of being on a first name basis with every fast food employee in the tri-state area isn't working so we've got to think of something else, I guess.

2. I wanted to make a lot of blog updates this summer. Like daily. However, I don't want to do standard blog updates because I'm trying to keep my creative mind working all summer. We're a pretty literate band and we all have our summer reading lined up to keep our minds sharp (I'm reading The Autobiography of Malcom X, I Dream of Microwaves and The Unbearable Lightness of Being). I took a look at my trust handbook of poetic forms and decided that every day on tour I'm going to write and (internet service allowing) post a cinquain every day reflecting that day to me. This is a style of poem similar to a haiku. It is 5 lines and 22 syllables in this order: 2, 4, 6, 8, 2. Below is an example of what I would have written on the last US tour the day of the Denver show:

Matt Brasch
Please, do not shave
your beautiful mustache.
It is a gift from God unto
us all.

PS: I apologize for not having a picture of Matt with just the stasche. He only kept it for like 10 hours. Perhaps we'll get him drunk enough to do it this tour and I can get a good picture for us all.

I Don't Feel Like Mowing The Lawn...

2008-06-04T10:51:00.001-07:00

I don't. Went to the phillies game last night with the old man and it ruled. Phils are ten games above .500? and in June?! This shit is b-a-n-a-n-a-s, like gwen stefani and shit. every time i write in here i wonder if anyone actually gives a fuck or if the lot of us are just writing in here to make ourselves feel like we've done something with our early twenties. the actual reason for making this blog is this. the last blink 182 cd (self-titled) doesn't really suck. if it came out under any other name i think people would have been all up on its nuts loving hem gently. i mean, it rules besides all the fucking weird tracks where they read poetry but I'm going to chalk that up to Tom being a douche bag. An angels and airwaves concert is really comparable to an ascension to heaven? I can't imagine his explanation of a wonder years show is, because we are way fucking cooler than those dorks.

~~fin~~
josh

We're really sorry about all of this...

2008-05-31T10:33:00.000-07:00

Last night we played directly after a candle lit ceremony honoring those who have died from cancer recently. It could not have been a more awkward situation and in true wonder years style, we answered the call by getting into a fight with the sound guy and playing very poorly (sorry to anyone who saw that haha). On the upside, Jordan, who ran it was a dope dude and I got to play volley ball with some high school kids for awhile.

Today my old job asked me to come in to work so I'm going to go make a few bucks. I'm also starting to put together our tour in August with some TBA bands.

Check out Title Fight and Tigers Jaw for some cool music.

Most importantly, one of our songs will be featured in the new Burning Angel DVD entitled Cum on My Tattoo 4. I'm excited

5-30-08

2008-05-30T11:36:00.000-07:00

Tonight we have a show at some school in Jersey. I hope it's a good time. I really messed up my hand the other day doing landscaping stuff, so I hope that doesn't affect my guitar playing.

I saw the new Indiana Jones movie and it was pretty sweet. I recommend it to anyone who is willing to go to the movies and drop 9 bucks. Some of it was a little bit unrealistic, but come on, so is every other Indiana Jones movie.

For anyone who is looking for new music, I've been obsessed with new Living With Lions. There are 2 new songs on their myspace, which I visit daily.

CHECK IT OUT
www.myspace.com/livingwithlions

-MattBrasch

I Should Probably Change My Major To Sanskrit

2008-05-28T11:54:00.000-07:00

because it'd be about as valuable as my current major. I've come to this realization after reading a book by Dan Kennedy, a guy who worked at Warner Music for 18 months. Sweet book, it's called "Rock On" if you want to be a part of the music industry and want to get a jump-start on self-loathing. Disclaimer: if you really do major in a 3000 year old dead language, you're probably a sweet ass bull. Troc show was crucial the other day; fists high, stage dives, danced the night away... and what not. We're putting final touches on the Head Above Water Summer Tour. By "We" I mean Soupy.

I ate lunch with Kevin today. He is a tall Norwegian boy. He is in a band called Force Fed. They sing about being straight edge and hating everyone. www.myspace.com/forcefedxxx

get into it.

josh

Killing Time Before Work

2008-05-22T11:31:00.001-07:00

I just watched Colbert make a TS Eliot joke. Swish.

We're playing the Troc tonight with some bands that we don't fit playing with. It should be buckets of LOLZ.

The Flyers broke all of our hearts earlier this week. My boy Evan does this project called Into It. Over It. It's a solo project where he writes and records a song every single week this year. He's up to 35 songs and this week's laments over the loss of our beloved Flyers.

Nothing Worth Having Comes Easy

2008-05-21T09:48:00.000-07:00

Yo, new tracks from our boys in Save Your Breath are up. Get into it: www.myspace.com/saveyourbreathband.

Also, if you want to hear our new EP, punkradiocast.com is streaming it all on June 2nd. Check out www.myspace.com/thewonderyearspa for more info and shit.

School's been done for a hot minute now and I've just been hanging out and teaching. Last weekend I rode my bike out to Boat House Row because my boy Dave was coaching a crew team that was racing. It was a nice ride and probably the most eventful thing to happen to me lately, haha. Sad.

We're playing some shows this weekend. Will be nice to spend time in the van with the boys.

Soupy always has creative titles to this bullshit.

2008-05-19T21:34:00.000-07:00

score update? the flyers lost to pittsburgh in the eastern conference finals. this doesn't mean pittsburgh is/ever will be good for anything, don't fool yourself pittsburgers. i mean c'mon, you fucking call yourself pittsburgers. okay, but for real, i don't have that big of a beef with you leftcoast keystone brethren. that's the most exciting shit that has happened to us i guess, because we've fallen off on writing on this thing harder than mike kennedy. we have some shows and some other cool shit happening leading up to the head above water tour that kicks off in late june. get into it.

josh

p.s. big shout out to my brother who had his first child with his wife. i'm an uncle. i can't wait to buy that kid all kinds of dumb shit to annoy the crap out of my brother and sister-in-law. on that note, if anyone is really good at shrinking clothing, i'll throw you some shit to shrink up a wonder years shirt extra small for the kid. let me know before you start mailing me babysized clothes and expecting free shit.

Finally Summer

2008-05-14T14:49:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was my last class at Temple for the semester. I'm pretty sure I did well. I got two of my grades back... one being an A and one a B+. I just need to see how I did in the other three classes.

Now that I have more time, I've been starting to write some new songs. Some may be for the band, I'm not sure yet. I also want to shoot a short film before I leave, so if anyone is interested in helping (concept or acting), let me know.

-MattBrasch

She was a damned good dancer, but she wasn't all that great of a girlfriend

2008-05-13T07:34:00.000-07:00

Today I have my last two finals. I woke up late and rode my bike to school only to arrive right after the instructions were given in my first test. I subsequently fucked up the order and had to redo the whole thing. This all still only took me a half an hour so now I'm killing time before my 11:30 final instead of putting together my portfolio for my assessment class because I forgot the folder. Go me! However, this does mean that after I hand that in tomorrow, I'm done school, which then means it's only a matter of time before we're on tour.

Last night I got these two records that I highly recommend to anyone.

The Hold Steady- Boys and Girls in America- This is some super cool pop-infused music with a really interesting vocal styling and dope lyrics. You're going to get a lot of Springsteen comparisons, but that doesn't do it justice. Go listen for yourselves. Standout tracks- Stuck Between Stations, Chips Ahoy and Citrus.

Dillinger Four- Midwestern Songs of America- Sort of Poppy Punk with growly vocals that are sort of similar to the kind of shit the dude from Polar Bear Club does with his voice sometimes, but you know, done, what, ten years ago? Solid as shit. just listen. Stand out tracks- Mosh for Jesus and The Great American Going Out of Business Sale

-Soupy

Junior Year In The Books

2008-05-09T05:48:00.000-07:00

"Well we got no choice
All the girls and boys
Makin all that noise
'Cause they found new toys
Well we can't salute ya
Can't find a flag
If that don't suit ya
That's a drag

School's out for summer
School's out forever
School's been blown to pieces

No more pencils
No more books
No more teacher's dirty looks

Well we got no class
And we got no principles
And we got no innocence
We can't even think of a word that rhymes

School's out for summer
School's out forever
School's been blown to pieces

No more pencils
No more books
No more teacher's dirty looks

Out for summer
Out till fall
We might not go back at all

School's out forever
School's out for summer
School's out with fever
School's out completely"

I couldn't have said it better than Alice Cooper. Peace out Lancaster.

Josh

Slots are wack, but JEW is not!

2008-05-05T18:34:00.000-07:00

So much like my singer, I too was in Atlantic NJ this past weekend. However, my trip down there was not solely to gamble away money i do not have, although i did end up losing about 15 bucks total in the end. I actually got to see the Jimmy Eat World/Paramore show on Friday night at the Trump Taj Mahal. Deer and the Headlights opened, and I was not very impressed. Don't know how they landed that one, but not sure they deserved it just yet. Anyway, Paramore (Hailey) put on a pretty good set, although I felt it could have been mixed slightly better at points. Jimmy Eat World, however, put on one of the best rock shows I have seen in years!!! Not to mention the fact that this was the first concerts I have been sober for in quite some time...ha. Saturday night I saw Anti-Flag at the Factory, but had to leave half way through their set cause I could not take anymore of the god awful guitar mix! Their rhythm guitarist had a real nice rig (SG + Triple Rec, same as mine!)...but I could barely hear it at all. Just ashame. You would think that after all this time, Anti-Flag (and more importantly their sound guy!) would have the whole live punk rock thing down...Oh well, maybe next time guys.

Slot Machines are Confusing

2008-05-04T14:41:00.000-07:00

My girlfriend and I went to the beach for the weekend. It was not a good week for it and was really too cold to go on the beach so we decided to go to Atlantic City and gamble. I don't know where all the sweet black jack tables and shit are, but I can tell you that there are endless fields of slot machines. Even the cheap slots you can only play with five dollar bills. Slot machines are not the simple concept they once were and we were confused into losing 40 dollars each. Casinos are weak.

Also, my room mate is trying to convince me to get a dog. Here's the thing: I'm scared SHITLESS of dogs. I had a really mean one as a kid. He and his girlfriend are starting to wear me down though. Look how fucking cute they are:

Matt, April 30th

2008-04-30T11:12:00.000-07:00

Last night was the first night in a while where I have slept for more than 5 hours. It felt great. I have so much school work to get done in the next few weeks. I have a final and a paper due tomorrow, a film to finish editing and adding in foley by Monday, and a five page paper due in my film noir class really soon. I'm on call for work tonight at the vans store and hopefully I won't have to go in. I need school to end to gain my sanity back. I hope everyone else that goes to college can relate.

-MattBrasch

Call Someone You Care About

2008-04-30T06:30:00.000-07:00

Last night my Dad called me and let me know my Great Aunt Emmy died in her sleep. She was the closest thing I ever had to a grandmother. On the real, call someone you care about, life is too short to not spend time with your family.

I hope she's proud of me.

Josh

Get Your Head the Fuck Above Water!

2008-04-29T10:39:00.000-07:00

I'm so fucking stoked. Tour is almost done being booked and we should be announcing dates soon. Life in between tours is weird and I can't wait to get back into the Falcon with my best friends for a month and a half. This summer consists of touring, Dave from Mile High School's wedding, the beach and more touring.

So far, the week has been uneventful. My kids have been extra awesome in school this past week. We've been covering poetry and they write really impressive shit for second and third graders. I put a picture up on the left here that's me with Shanna, Shaniah, Hadleigh and Matia. They're adorable. Last night, my girlfriend and I got take out and did homework. We're exciting people. My boy DJ called me today. I haven't heard from him in months and it was good to hear from him. I think he's going to be trying out for I Call Fives so if it goes well, I'll get to see his ass all summer and I couldn't be more excited. Tomorrow is my mom's 25th anniversary at her job and I'm going to go to her banquet. My mom rules.

Last week was a good week for mail. I got my new Macbook and a copy of The Mr. T Experience record on vinyl. Here is a picture of said vinyl taken by said Macbook!

I'm going to leave you with these recommendations:

Read the Dear Klint Blog.
Listen to the new Chaos Days song.

Another monday

2008-04-28T09:26:00.000-07:00

Thanks to everyone that hung around to see us play at Finn McCool's on friday night in Warrington. The show was fun and Balance and Composure rocked hard! Saturday night got out of hand real quick down in Maryland. haha. I want to give another b-day shout out to rich and an internet high five to josh and soupy. Apparently MD girls like to show their boobs to other moving vehicles...p.s. Also got to see Forgetting Sarah Marshall last night...and aside from an unnecessary amount of male frontal nudity, it was really funny. Side note: The chick that plays Jackie in That 70's Show looks real good in this movie! I guess the weather is making us pay for all the fun we had this weekend, cause it is totally shitty outside:( Slept through my first class this morning and don't plan on going to my other one. Going to attempt to get some odds and ends done before work at 5 tonight. This might consist of driving back home to pick up my guitar which i forgot at kennedy's house last night and a much needed trip to the store for food (which I currently have none of at my apartment). Other than that, i'm sure it will be another busy week, so i'll be sure to check in again soon when something interesting happens. Later

Casey

Kennedy

2008-04-24T19:50:00.000-07:00

so i am half drunk laying in my girlfriends bed waiting for her to get home from a jimmy eat world/paramore show. word. today was ok, much like josh i am a state schooler so i only have one more day of classes for the semester then new orleans to pretend i feel bad then tour. stoked. im exited to play a show this weekend and go down to MD for Richies Bday. its hard being at school and not playing. ok, well that half drunk is leaning towards full so im gonna peace. o ps. listen to balence and composure

Got lucky on sunday night!

2008-04-23T17:59:00.000-07:00

I almost forgot about Sunday, which found my friends and I at a place called Lucky Strike. Had a great time bowling and enjoying the vibe. Lots of big screens, pool tables, a LARGE bar, and good service made for an epic afternoon and evening. Its a national chain, and they have locations in most major cities, so check it out if your into bowling or just looking for a new place to go at night..

Casey

Kate Nash - not as cute in person...

2008-04-23T17:07:00.000-07:00

So I did a lot of running around the city this weekend with my friend ben for Sony/BMG. I helped out (and by helped, out i mean i raced to get Ben to the show on time, bought pizza, and drank the free beer there!) at an in-store performance for UK pop cutie Kate Nash. Sadly, we concluded that she was not nearly as darling as the marketing dept. at Fiction/Interscope makes her out to be... But sounded good overall. If you are into Feist-like singer-songwriters, give her a listen... Picked up a copy of "The Devil and Daniel Johnston." I've been hearing a lot about this documentary lately for some reason and i saw it in A.K.A so i figured i'd pick it up (since Sony/BMG was fronting the bill...). Unfortunately I still haven't had a chance to watch it, but i'll probably get to it this weekend. I'll let you know what the verdict is. Had a great time outside on the deck Saturday night with friends from Drexel and NY. Wishing it was the weekend again though, cause I am currently stuck at work sitting in silence on a wednesday night. Totally looking forward to the show this Friday @ Finn McCool's, and possibly MD on Saturday for Richie's (TWY Merch Guy) B-Day. We will see.

Matt, April 22nd

2008-04-22T09:18:00.000-07:00

Yesterday felt really good. I accomplished so much. I slept in, went to the bank to deposit a few checks, went grocery shopping, bought two new movies because they were on sale (and I'm a sucker for movies), skated at LOVE park, went to the gym, and finally, chilled with Laura, Soupy, Jess, and Steve.

Here are some pictures from my skate session at LOVE park...