Friends + fireworks = fun!

The Bike Brigade is proud to announce that it has received two new members. This weekend, in the state of Maryland, Russell Hoyt and Chris Madden were accepted into our gang. Russell, as previously mentioned, will now go by the name of Crocket. Chris will now be known as J.J. (after the guy he blew a kiss to at an amusement park... there's much more to the story, so if you would like the details, just ask Chris). To celebrate this this joyous addition to the Bike Brigade (but mostly to be crazy), the three of us went to Old Forge Elementry school in Haggerstown and lit off a bunch fireworks. Many firecrackers were thrown at J.J.-- which is mean, but very funny (earlier in the night, Crocket shot 10 Roman Candles at him. One melted some of his hair and another grazed his arm). The highlight of the fireworks extravaganza was the lighting of the "Frienship Fountain" which shot thousands of large sparks high into the air. The three of us then ran through the sparks, jumping over the fountain. Exciting, slightly dangerous, and overall a good time!


Suburban Slow Jams:

Now it's time to move on to the music section of the blog. This week's CD is X&Y by Coldplay.This album, the much-anticipated followup to 2003's A Rush of Blood To The Head, is already selling out of stores and rocking the suburbs. This disc is filled with irony. The production of the music is flawless, while its lyrics are arguably flawed. They are simplistic, trite, and simply cheesy. While Chris Martin's lyrics are the weakest part of the album, they work well on the level of highlighting his phenomenal voice. Because Martin's voice is so strong and beatiful, his cutesie overly-rhymed lyrics seem to work, when they might fail for a less talented vocalist. The album will most likely disappoint a majority of listeners who are expecting a showcase of catchy upbeat songs. This album is considerably slower than previous Coldplay albums, and yet still rocks. With all this said, this album is worth a listen and definitely provides glimpses of brilliance. Standout tracks include: Fix You, Speed of Sound, A Message, and Swallowed In The Sea.