is anyone out there even watching Big Brother 3? i was a huge fan last summer, but i haven't been able to get into it at all during this go-round. and my chances of getting into it just dropped by about 47% when they kicked out Tonya last night. worst. over to the rizz is a shot i found on the wire a few minutes ago, taken last night just seconds after her eviction.

buzz...

i don't know what you Detroit FOWs were up to last night, but unless you were at ferg's rehearsal dinner or makin' sweet love in the backseat of a Volkswagon, you should be filled with regret this morning. why? because you missed one helluva show by The Prime Ministers at detroit's superbest State Bar. i've always been of the opinion that there isn't a more criminally underrated band in the city; there is no reason that the PMs shouldn't be garnering Paybacks-type buzz. but i suppose that is because they don't really fit the mold of other Detroit "garage rock" bands, and the press is currently enthralled with any band that fits the profile of "the next White Stripes." but i'm keeping my fingers crossed that the increased attention on Detroit as a musical haven will result in The PMs garnering a little bit more attention. maybe the August 3 show at the Lager House wsg The Fags (buzz!) will throw some proverbial kindling on the proverbial fire that propels buzz.

last night's show was the first time i've seen the Ministers perform since the departure of drummer Joel Wicks in April (ish) of 2001, and i was happy to see that the band has continued to grow and evolve in the interim (even without performing live very much). Todd Wicks (lead vox, guitar) has grown more confident in his abilities in the last year and some change, especially vocally. last night his voice was clear and resonant in a manner that i hadn't quite heard before in a live setting. and the rhythm section of Lawyer Ned Friendship (bass guitar) and Jason Lewis (drums) just crackled last night; everyone seemed to be on their A-game. the show alternated between crowd favorites ("oh rock", "make me your mission", "saturn 7 rock hour"), old rarities ("hall of fame"!!!), and a healthy dose of new songs ("i'm a rockist", "makin' up"). only two songs into the show, it was evident that the PMs had won over the crowd both inside AND outside The State Bar; homeless people walking by the entrance were spotted spontaneously dancing on multiple occasions. local journalist and music-enthusiast Adam Graham even went on to call it "the best show i've seen in months." and your loyal narrator/webmaster/writer extraordinaire would have to agree, The Prime Ministers are the real deal.

Veni Vidi Voicemail...

"so i'm thinkin' about just droppin' the whole rock star thing and, ya know, workin' for my pa thing and and managing a White Castle / Church's Chicken hybrid restaurant. uh, on the corner of North Lyon and Telegraph in lovely downtown...Taylor! in case you don't know Taylor, it's the capital of Down Riv, um, which is maybe maybe the most beautiful area in all of the Midwest. you really should visit here, it's tatts. they have houses with yellow shingles and, um, ya know, girls with, you know, about as many teeth as i have fingers. gimme a buzz. oh yeah, this is peabs."

just in case you thought that the world of English majors was horribly boring and lacked any sense of excitement, check out this article about the brewing feud between Rick Moody and Dale Peck. Dale Peck, a literary critic for The New Republic, starts his review of Rick Moody's new book with the following sentence: "Rick Moody is the worst writer of his generation." he then goes on to eviscerate Moody and virtually all of the "postmodern" authors, including heroes of mine such as David Foster Wallace, Don DeLillo and Vladmir Nabokov (you know, that guy Sting talks about in "Don't Stand So Close To Me"). peck's review is actually worth reading, especially if you ever had any interest of criticism as a form of literature. i can't say whether i agree or disagree (i have yet to read The Black Veil), but I can easily say that Moody is not the "worst writer of his generation" -- i read The Ice Storm and i rather enjoyed it, thank you very much.

my boy Jeffrey Wells throws out some major Blue Crush props in today's Hollywood Confidential column. among other things, he says that it's "a quality piece of merchandise. Most of it isn't just good, but very good. It's honest, touching, thrilling — an adult film about teenagers that genuinely satisfies...Cheers to all concerned for churning out a quality summer flick. Blue Crush might look like some frothy, escapist romp in the trailers; it is anything but in its feature-length form."

lunch-time post. salon.com's Masterpiece series focuses on the story behind the classic Kinks jam "You Really Got Me". also, Greil Marcus' weekly Real Life Rock Top 10 showers some praise on the new Counting Crows album. methinks i'm going to go buy the record tonight. i'll save you a click-through, here's the mini-review...

thought...

happy monday to you and yours. what a tigs weekend. unfortch, i don't have time to post any pics or do a solid write-up until tomorrow at the earliest. but fear not, loyal FOWs. here is another in a long line of ridiculously tigs postings from my gossip source in LA. he/she used to have a nickname that most of you will recall, but because of his/her impending superstardom, he/she has asked me to leave his/her nickname out of this posting. we are still working on alternate identities that cannot be traced back to him/her...but for now, here is a posting from anonymous:

"Tues was out with my Pam Anderson and David Spade at Sky Bar with my friend. Pam is hotter than hot but i think that my ex who doubles for her is hotter. i know this sounds crazy but Pam's teets are toooooo big! it makes her body look weird in person. don't get me wrong, im not kicking her out of bed for eating crackers. she is the hottest milf i have ever seen.

uhhhhhh my life is not normal. here's who i've been hanging out with lately. first marcus allen and britney daniels . where? at our 4th of july party at Manhattan Beach. then we went to Adam Duritz's house for late night party. Can i just say his house is frickin amazing. then they played a little ditty from the new album. o yeah, since i'm name dropping, other attendees included breckin myer, virginia madson, neil patrick harris (aka doogie), eddie mills, teri polo, sarah michelle, charlize, and the girl of my dreams paulina rubio. oh my God can she please be my wife or sex toy. dear God is she the hottest latino girl i have ever laid eyes on. Holy Salsa with a bottle of chanti sauce.