Opening Day

Finally, one of the greatest days of the year, and at least for today, one of the nicest days we've had in Chicago for a while. Opening day for the Sox and Indians should go off without a hitch.

But I'm not here to talk about the Sox. I said most of what I had to say about the Angels a couple months ago, and for what it's worth, I don't think any of my analysis has changed very much. I still really like their offense. They've got power potential at pretty much every spot in the order outside of the lead-off spot (and the catcher's spot when Mathis plays). The outfield is old, and that's always a concern, since none of us can tell when any of those guys are going to go into a serious decline phase. They lose Figgins' OBP, but they hopefully make up for that a bit in Brandon Wood's power. I just hope the organization is patient with him, and that they leave him in the lineup to take his lumps so long as he is providing good defense at third base.

The starting pitching staff is solid 1-5, but there's not a ton of depth behind them. Of course, there's almost no team in baseball that has a great deal of depth beyond their starting four, let alone five. In a way, it almost makes the Angels more vulnerable to injury. Most teams are already throwing out junk for a fifth starter. If the Angels lose their fifth starter, they lose a legit starter, as opposed to a team that just replaces junk with junk. Still, I'd rather be in the Angels' position.

The bullpen looks to be deep, but not lights out dominant at any role. Fuentes will still drive us crazy. Shields will still have his moments where he can't seem to find the strike zone. Who knows what Rodney is going to bring. But I'm looking forward to another year of (hopefully) growth from Jepsen and Bulger. And we'll just have to wait and see if Stokes can be any type of replacement for Darren Oliver, even though the decision to not offer arbitration to Oliver still baffles me.

The Rangers and Mariners are improved, and every season is, to some extent, a crapshoot, but I just don't see the rush to crown either of those franchises the best in the west this year. I think a lot of the media driven hype around those clubs is a desire to see something different. On paper, the Angels are still the best team in the AL West. You never know what's going to happen when it comes to injuries, and the Angels are just as vulnerable to those as anyone, but all things being equal, the Angels will win the AL West for the fourth straight time this year.

Time to play ball.

Miles Kurosky w/ Pancho San @ Schuba's - 4/1/10

After failing to reach commercial success to match their critical acclaim, San Francisco pop outfit Beulah broke up in the summer of 2005. Actually, they officially called it quits before their last tour, which made that sort of a farewell tour. They played two nights in Chicago at the Abbey on that tour, both of which I attended. I was pretty much up at the stage on the second night, and was able to grab an extra setlist (something I've only cared to do one other time). I popped the setlist up on my refrigerator and it's been there ever since.

Last night Miles Kurosky, Beulah's former front-man, was in town playing material from his new solo album 'the Desert of Shallow Effects'. Because it was at Schuba's, a venue where you can usually chat with the performers afterward, I figured I'd bring the setlist with me to possibly get it autographed. Little did I know that the opening act, Pancho San, would consist of former Beulans Patrick Abernathy and Eli Crews. Pancho San also made up 3/5 of Kurosky's backing band for his solo material. The upshot is I was able to get all three to sign the setlist.

As for the show itself, Pancho San were pretty good. I've seen Patrick play with Beulah and with Rogue Wave, but this was the first time I'd seen him sing. Perhaps it's because I knew they were from San Francisco before seeing them play, but they seemed to deliver what one would typically consider the San Francisco sound. Jangly guitars, up-tempo pop-songs, and more or less ear friendly. I need to spend a little time with their album, which I picked up from the merch table after the show.

Miles Kurosky has endured some physical ailments between the end of Beulah and the release of his solo album, but he hasn't let that affect him. Pitchfork likened the new album to a fifth Beulah record, and that's both accurate and quite alright with me. It's nice to hear a familiar voice again, and the music on the new album is excellent. Miles played most of it last night, as should have been expected.

He also finished out the evening with some Beulah classics. The full band got together for "Emma Blowgun's Last Stand", "Landslide Baby", and "Popular Mechanics for Lovers". Miles also filled the encore void (it is Schuba's after all) with a short medley of Beulah tunes featuring "If We Can Land a Man on the Moon, Surely I Can Win Your Heart", "You're Only King Once", and "Gene Autry".

Particularly impressive was the full horn section that showed up to play. The band was backed by a couple trumpets, and couple saxophones, and a trombone. According to the guys in the band, they'd never met the horn players before, but they ran through the set at sound check and decided to give it a go. If you're familiar with Beulah, a lot of their stuff had some large trumpet parts, handled by co-founder Bill Swan. This band filled the void left by his absence quite nicely, and added a lot of texture to Miles' solo stuff, which is also heavy on horns. Pictures and some MK and Beulah vids below.



Dog in the Burning Building

Emma Blowgun's Last Stand