The Raging Tech

British Knights are Back!

The shoes that every kid used to nag his parents over when I was a child, British Knights (or BK) were discontinued, sometime shortly after the likes of MC Hammer and Vanilla Ice put down the microphone in the ’90s. I don’t know the exact date or time, but they seemed to fade out in the background, like so many stars of the ’80s and ’90s.

Recently, I’ve heard that the New Kids on the Block are reuniting, most likely under the moniker “The Block” since they’re obviously not kids anymore. Some of the fan favorites will still be performed, like staple “The Right Stuff,” while several members are working on new material.

What is it with the ’90s coming back? I realize it was cool and trendy to throw back to the ’70s, and we recently have had plenty of ’80s throw-back movies and trends. I guess the college kids and high school kids that are in school now were born in the ’90s or late ’80s, so they feel a closer bond to that time period.

Kylara really loves the ’80s, she was born near the middle of the decade. I have a closer affinity for the ’70s, even though I was born in the early ’80s. (Yes, I realize a lot of you will read this and go, wow, RT, you’re just a youngin’.)

What decade do you relate to the most? Is it the decade from your childhood, from your teenage years, or later on on life? Share your thoughts in the comments.

Music and Memories Flow

It’s amazing how you can be standing somewhere in a lobby and a song comes out over the PA system, and suddenly it’s like you never forgot the words at all. You remember the sunny summer afternoon with the windows in the car rolled down and you remember drumming on the steering wheel and singing to the top of your lungs.

This sensation has happened to me several times lately. Early-to-mid-nineties rock songs that I thought I’d long forgotten will be interspersed on the local rock stations or in bars or restaurants that target my age range. You could tell me the names of these songs and I’d say “No, I’ve never even heard of that song,” and then I’d hear the song and know all the words.

Playing the game Rock Band has triggered some neat memories I’d forgotten about. For example, “Dani California” by the Red Hot Chili Peppers came out as a single on the radio while I worked for Blockbuster Video in Fredericksburg. I remember turning the radio up in the car and singing along to it while waiting in the parking lot to go open the store. “Black Hole Sun” by Soundgarden used to be one of my favorite songs on MTV back when MTV didn’t suck. “Celebrity Skin” by Hole reminds me how much I still despise Courtney Love. She’s like Paris Hilton on crack. Literally.

There’s something familiar, comforting even, about knowing all the words to a song you haven’t heard in a long time. All the feelings, memories, and people you attached to that music when it first arrived in your life come flowing back to you like an unexpected ocean wave slapping you in the face. Maybe all this nostalgia is me getting older.

Where Are They Now: Bio-Dome

I’m sitting here watching Bio-Dome starring Paulie Shore and Stephen Baldwin (and even more notably, Kylie Minogue), and I can’t help but wonder: what ever happened to Paulie Shore and Stephen Baldwin? I mean, I understand that people wouldn’t care enough to check in on them from time to time.

I don’t know that I really want Paulie Shore in another movie, but we really haven’t heard much from him since Paulie Shore is Dead. Ironically, the movie is based on this very same premise. They tell famous celebrities that Paulie Shore is, in fact, deceased, and then tape their reactions.  Nobody seemed to care.

Stephen Baldwin, as it turns out, became a Christian and started some sort of world skateboard / rock music tour to try and reach out to young people.

Rock Band: Impressive & Innovative

Just a note, this is in no way a sponsored review. I was over at my friend Marq’s house on Friday night with a few other friends, and I finally got my hands on that Playstation 3 of his. We started out playing a game called “PAIN” that involves sling-shotting people through a city and into buildings and traffic.

Then, we got to the game I’ve been drooling to play - Rock Band. I started out on the drums, and even on easy, it was pretty hard for me. I got going and eventually got pretty decent on easy. I did one song on medium and was okay at it. I don’t think I got to play the drums the rest of the night.

I was already experienced at the guitar from Guitar Hero I - III and Guitar Hero 80’s version. I’d also done some Sing Star and American Idol: Karaoke Revolution so the singing in front of my friend part wasn’t too bad. Overall, it was a really awesome game.

We convinced Marq to download “Jukebox Hero” from the Playstation Store online, and then jammed out to that. The game has excellent song selection, a familiar feel to previous games, but manages synergy between all the instruments in a very excellent way.

The Good Ol’ Days: Skateboards and Grunge Music

I’m only 24, but sometimes I like to pretend that I’m old, and I reminisce about the “days of ol’” and how that music still “ain’t got the same soul.” I like that whiny grunge rock and roll. And the incessant whiny alt rock that followed. I also used to be really into skateboards, even though I could not, myself, skateboard. It looked so cool watching these bands skateboard in their music videos, upset because society rejected them and simultaneously too cool to care. Between Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” and Beck’s “Loser,” I’m not really sure which better spoke to me or my generation.

Anyway, I’m older now, and more responsible. But that still doesn’t stop me from daydreaming over at WareHouseSkateboards.com about what kind of skateboard wheels I’d want for a custom-designed deck. I’m not able to get a tattoo right now, so custom-designing a skateboard is the next best thing for me. It fuels my inner rebel to read about all of their different kinds of wheels: some for street use, some for pro use, some for better turning and gripping; it fuels the inner geek in me to find it online at a lower price than trying to pick them up in the store. Plus, around here in the mountains there aren’t too many skate shops, so the internet is a shopper’s paradise.